I tolerate Paris in the spring time

Okay I am going to need everyone who knows me to grab a chair. This might be difficult for you to accept but... I was cool with Paris. Dun Dun DUH!!! Now before you wonder how this feat worthy of the Guiness Book of World Records was accomplished, I did a few things to help me out.

1.) I always asked, in French, if they spoke Spanish...THEN English
2.) I only asked for help at Tourist information centers if at all possible
3.) Whenever possible I sought out Black and Asian Parisians to ask for help.
4.) I left within 5 hours of arriving

The first thing I did was lock up my stuff. The problem was that only Gare du Nord had lockers. The good news is that I fit EVERYTHING inside. From there it was off to somewhere. because the Paris Metrosystem sports a type of userfriendliness typically found only in the US tax code. Electromagnetics...just slightly tougher than getting from one point to another. I finally got it but crap that was confusing. Apparently they have main stops and then from those main stops the map forks into numbers. Umm...okay. So you have colors, letters, numbers, letternumbers, battleship coordinates, yeah it sucks. But it was very well run. Clean, fast, efficient and takes you anywhere in the city. Hard to ask for more than that (well nomenclature that doesn´t take an Industrial Engineer to figure out maybe).

I popout on the first stop that seems promising. Notre Dame. Em wanted a photo here (she wanted a series of photos from places where she was). Done. Inside the baroque architecture was amazing and it really reminded me of Seville but the stained glass windows allowed a lot more light to enter. A great first step in the city of lights.

Then from there I just headed west and figured I would hit the Eiffel Tower. Along the way I stumbled across the Lourve. Turned out the line was "short". Inside found someone who spoke English (1 of 2 at Tourist information) and got in the ticket line. 30 minutes later, I was frantically trying to hit the highlights. The Mona Lisa, was...bigger than I thought. Okay first Paris didn't suck and now it is bigger than you thought!?!?! You lost it Joey, really man. No I know, it is "small" but everyone makes it sound like an 8 by 10. It is decent size and very realistic. I always wondered what gives a painting or sculpture noteriety. What made the Mona Lisa famous? I think, the painter and usually there is something artisitically better or different about it. For example, the Venus de Milo is at the end of a long corridor of great sculpture. She is just a little more detailed though. I think I have officially decided that sculpture is more impressive to me than painting.

Okay now Eiffel Tower. It was pretty cool and less brown than I thought it would be. The sun was reflecting off of it which was really pretty. I went to the east corner, snap snap, here you go Em.

So the marathon (or as one of my fellow Enforex students told me, a race to acquire cultural capital) continues along the Champ De Elysle..whatever to the Arc de Triumph (if you are wondering why I am not spelling this stuff right... I just dont care). Snap snap, to Gare du Nord to leave.

Fare thee well Paris, Salamanca Hi!

Now here is the interesting part. I was told Irun is a connecting point for Spain as it is on the French Spanish border. In typical French fashion all the announcements were only made in French. I thought, how ridiculous, Irun is how people get to Spain! Why not use French and Spanish (English wouldn't hurt)? So I see people getting their stuff and hear Irun. Good enough for me. I get into the gangway where they are speaking Spanish. What a schminkle for sore ears. I tell them I have a train from Irun to Madrid they all nodded. I get off, at what looks to be a small station. Really small. Not sure where Irun is, how big or anything about it but something feels off. I approach a few people and say Je ne parle Frances, parlevouz Espanol o Ingles? Everyone spoke Spanish! I figured well, I guess because they are close to the border they have to.

Turns out my Irun station is the next stop and the train already left. So I took a Topo (trolley) to the station. Well, 15 minute walk to the station. I asked the folks on the train also if they spoke Spanish or English, they did as well. Then it occurred to me.

¿Perdoname, estamos in Frances o Espana?

I have officially been in a country by mistake. Welcome to Spain. That is why they spoke Spanish. The reason the signs were not readable by moi? I was in Pais Vasco, where they aren't as keen on Castellano and apparently there was an explosion two nights ago. They must have some sympathies with Catalan because I think I saw that listed under the Basque. With all this is mind, why weren't those stupid announcements in two languages?

So onboard the train I met two brothers from Venezuela. They both lived in the US for a little while (they have drivers licenses from Miami) and they joked that this Train was from WWII and that we are going back in time. It was old, I will grant him that. Not exactly the train I took from Barcelona to Milan (the Salvador Dali?).

Ah Madrid. I Rush to get a ticket to Salamanca and time for arrival. Where I am greeted by my new family with open arms. Beni (the mother) and Mariano (the father) seem nice. They made me some Cafe con Leche and Pasgual cookies. I took the best shower of my life and then I met my roommates. Two girls from Seattle. They thought I was German because I was arriving from Munich. So did Beni, and the German Ayinger beer didn't help with that opinion.

She apologized and said she thought I was from Munich. No need to apologize, I have been called much worse ;)

Lest you think that everything was absolutely perfect in the 2012 losing candidate city...

One last shot of Paris. At least in Rome the sidewalks were safe ;)





--Joey

The Real Disney Castle

King Ludvig's Neuschwanstein is roughly 2 hours by S-Bahn from Munich. Once in Fussen it is roughly 15 minutes to the foothills where it is a 30 minute walk to the entrance. What an incredible location. During the height of Winter it was amazing, during the Summer and Spring it must be beyond words.

On the train to Fussen I met an American girl that was also doing the backpack bit. She is the first person I met who did not want to be in her own photos. Paulette and I walked up to the castle. One of the most beautiful strolls I have ever taken (were talking Bergen, Norway in May caliber)

I think this is the 5th snow fall of my life so that was cool, and it surrounded the top of the castle in a foggy, snowy mist. Very cool! Across from the entrance was a bridge (called Mary's bridge?) which you can walk across during the summer. The castle inside was very impressive as well but they did not allow photography. One area even had a manmade cave! Really bizarre!

We left and headed back to Munich where we parted ways. I went back to the hostel and planned out my trip to Aying, called home and left to enjoy the Hofbrehaus.

It's a Small World After All

When I walked in to the Hofbrauhaus (around 11 at night) I stood behind a brass band playing traditional Bavarian songs such as "Sweet Sue". After 15 minutes of that I went for a table (they won't serve you standing up) and found one emptying out. Who do I see, but Fabio and (uff, sorry in advance on the spelling) Merina, a Brazilian couple that shared a hostel room with me in Florence. Traveling is not just weird it is abso-lutely bizarre. If you said, go to the Hofbrahaus, at this time, on this day, there will be two people you know there, there is no guarantee of finding them. I got to have a more traditional hofbrahaus "light" beer before heading to an Ayinger oriented bar where I inflicted the majesty of Celebrator doppelbock on those two with great success. Oh and just to make you all jealous, yeah, it was on tap baby!

Tomorrowland

My plans for the next morning consisted of going to Aying (a small town outside of Munich) and touring the brewery. First though I had to arrange my travel to Madrid/Salamanca. When I went from Barcelona to Milan it was about 10 hours. So I figure from Munich it must be roughly the same (within 4 hours). That is what you get for assuming stuff in Europe. Turned out every trip was 24 hours or more (one said 18 but I forgot the details).

So at this point those discount European airlines are sounding good. Problem is that none fly out of Munich for a cheap price or if they do it require a change over in Phnomh Penh. So train it is. 35 hours via Paris, where there is a layover of 8 hours.

Gives me a chance to see Paris, and another chance at the country which isn't exactly on my shortlist of friendly nations.

For now, Aying, a sleepy German town that brews the world's best dark (lager) beer. The website states that reservations are required but I couldn't figure out how to do it. But surely saying how wonderful the beer is and that I am like a pilgrim who has arrived at my zymurgical Bethlehem would be enough to squeeze me in?

The S-Bahn, the local commuter train, has several options to get to Aying. One had a stop just before Aying. Naturally, I thought that meant it was the last stop, so I wanted to wait for the one that went to the end of the line. Being the foreigner I relied on the insistance of 3 people (independent, well 2 together and 1 other man) that this was the right train. Lesson 39, go with your Gute-instinct. That is exactly what happened. But, because I don't speak German, I stayed on and was the only one left. Well, the train then detached and went the other way, so I am stuck on the train and the push button is not working to let me off. SchieBe. Can you imagine if that was the last train that night!?!?! Fortunately, a new conductor got on, took me to the next station and told me where to go.

On board that train, I met a Swedish woman who was living in Munich but wanted to go for a walk out in the snow covered country. She speaks German better than the locals :-P which came in handy in trying to find the brewery. It was closed unfortunately. However, the connected hotel did serve the beer and sell 5 packs (the 6th spot at a nice glass). A perfect souvenir for me, and for my new family in Salamanca. This turned out to be rather interesting later...
So I told them about my unhealthy obsession and undying love for their beer which worked in my favor as they tried to give me every free thing they had with the logo on it. Ausgezeichnet!

Snow White

I left and walked along until I met an old German man. He looked at my beer, then at me and rattled something off. Ich nicht sprechen Deutsch! More rattling. Turned out the Swedish lady saw me in the distance struggling so she came up and translated. He wanted to know if I was going to a restaurant with the beer. Umm.. okay. Also, where did I get the beer? The whole time staring at my two souvenir 6 packs. He told us there was a nice place that serves the Ayinger and the train was nearby, 1km outside of town. Cool, the walk begins. It too was closed and the train station did not look like it had much activity (25 minutes no train). Look to the right, that was the view from the trainstation! This was the anti-Hofbrauhaus, so untouristy it was amazing.

Walked back again. Met the same weird German guy. I asked if he spoke English. Nope. Spanish. Nope. Norwegian...maybe? Could it be? An opportunity where I must speak it out of necessity rather than as a quick laugh where the Norwegian on the receiving end laughs uncomfortably in a mad dash to return to English? Well, no but apparently he was in Norway and it had something to do with 46. Maybe for 46 years, when he was 46 or in '46 (doing God knows what). I only understood Oslo, Narvik and Trondheim. We walked back into town and I met an American born kid who has lived in Germany since he was 3. He helped me translate. Turned out there was a misunderstanding, he thought I wanted to go to the post office. If the post office dispenses beer that maybe the greatest city EVER!

Back in town I made a mad dash to the Hofbrauhaus to buy a 1 liter mug (Oktoberfest style, the first picture in my last blog) for 8 Euros. With literally minutes left, I walked to the train station, made my 35 hour reservation, got my bag and brought it back. German trains don't mess around and you seldom get even a 5 minute reprieve. So I hopped on board and headed to Paris. Where I could only hope there was a locker because as Dad said...

"Walking around Paris with a couple of six packs...Cuh-Lass!"

One last view of Munich...

--Joey

Eins zwei g´suffa from the city of Monks











I don´t know why I thought this was a small city, perhaps because my last city in the south of Germany was Freiburg? Anyway the brats are flowing and the beer is smoked just the way I like it. The town plaza is really amazing.


I arrived too early to my hostel, the Wombat, so I redid laundry. Lesson 36 don´t put clothes away damp, it makes them smell pretty rank. I am not sure if this is the best one I have been in, but it is probably in the top 2 or 3. If you are in Munich it is definitely a great place to stay (they have Paulaner on TAP!)





Look Em, The German Clovers ----------------->







So after a bit of a stroll I happened on the famous (or infamous) hofbrahaus of Munich. I thought I was pretty clever when I asked Wo ist das Hofbrahaus. Purely from memory because I left dad´s handy phrases on the computer. The problem was following the directions afterwards. Good thing everyone speaks English.

I bought a ticket for Ayinger to see the brewery (my favorite in the world), so tomorrow I will probably do that and Neuschwanstein which will save Dachau for the last day. I am debating between seeing Dachau or Linz. As of now I am leaning toward Dachau so I am have time to take an early evening train to Madrid.

Just for Professor Fehr... wursts und biere. Heute Blaue und Morgen UberBlaue

All word swaps are intentional ;)

--Joey

Okay quick reupdate, it sounds like Neuschwanstein takes a day... So I have to decide whether to go to Ayinger or Dachau. Or decide whether I am going to arrive in Salamanca on Tuesday instead of Monday. I will decide today. My next blog will probably be in 3 or 4 days do to hectic traveling

Walking through Pompei is an unforgettable experience.

To get there, Melvin and I took the early train to Napoli and then a commuter to Pompei Scavi. The entrance is very small but offers a great view of an imposing Vesuvius. Inside is the story of a civilization buried under lava and ash from a nearly 2000 year old eruption. Unlike much of Roman history, the lifestyle of the average person is preserved (not just the wealthy)

Pompei was quite a surprise for me. One, I thought it was pretty small. WRONG. The arena where gladiators fought was more than a mile and a half from the entrance which is why they offer a two day ticket so you can see it all. Ironically, it was the first time that the audio guide was of little use.







After touring we headed towards a Naples pizza joint, which was great but it should be as that is the birthplace of pizza.

Back in Rome I hit the sack (perhaps a poor choice of words for this city) to prepare for my last day, where the only must visit place was the Pantheon.

While I have heard than the Pantheon at night is incredible, during the day it is quite the impressive building. For the most part is it is also almost 2000 years old when it was a temple to Roman gods (it later was coopted by the Catholic church and houses the tomb of Raphael among others)

Melvin overslept so I headed back to St Peter´s Basilica to take a look around. He told me he would meet me inside. I got to see John Paul´s tomb and Peter´s (at eye level). Really worthwhile. Then something sort of embarassing happened. Melvin calls me while I am inside, which if that was not bad enough, my (default mind you) ringtone happened to be "Losing my religion" by REM.

Whoops!

So after leaving we headed toward a few other monuments (Sant Angelos etc). Today really cemented it as my favorite city. So taking Dads advice from the previous post I threw three coins into the fountain for three wishes, good luck on my trip, a safe return to the US, and the ability to return to Rome. A River Dare Chi ;)



That night I went to Termini to arrange my trip to Munich, only to find out that I would again have to change train stations to Rome Tiburini. A real 2nd rate place without anyone to ask for information. I am looking frantically (though I arrived 25 minutes early) for my 21:55 train to Munich. No dice. There is only one 21:55 train so I decided to go there. The destination was Monaco but I figured it was possible to go to Monaco first, then to Munich.

I wish I spoke Italian.

Apparently, Monaco is Italian for Munich. Are you kidding me? That is insane to think of. This is not the first time a train has gone to Munich, would you not think they would at least put it in German below? Oh and the train was an hour late arriving...

Despite all that goofiness, Rome is firmly planted in the number 1 slot. With Italy and Spain both clipping Norway, something I thought would not be possible due to my quixotic love of the Nordic culture.

I also noticed something interesting about the languages here. In the US, we give out our Thanks in greater quanitities. 1000 seems to be the standard unit of thanks over here. In Spain they say mil gracias, in Italy gratzie mile, and in Norwegian Tusen Takk, German they say Danke Schoen. We say thanks a million. So think about it, in Germany, if you say a girl is looking schoen, she is looking like a thousand bucks. Again, English wins. She looks like a million bucks.

Off to Munich...

--Joey

Today I walked across a country, okay fine it was the Vatican. Still, I walked across the country.

I got a little bit of a late start and found a lady hawking a tour. Let me tell you what a good move that was! We bypassed 2 hours of line (in other words, we would have missed the Sistine Chapel) and we got some really interesting tidbits that simply gone unknown (had we got in).




The Sistine Chapel has undergone a renovation. So if you saw it pre 1986 or there abouts, you have not seen the Sistine Chapel. They left an area uncleaned to show the STARK contrast between the two. My guess is that it would have been impossible to see any detail at all!

To think that was ol Mickey's first attempt at fresco (painting with plaster). The room of maps is equally impressive with art that extends as far as your eye can see. Ironically everyone talks about the actual ceiling of the Capella Sistina, but for me the best part was the wall (Judgment Day and Jonah, whose legs appear to dangle three dimensionally)

After leaving all that we could have made a right to get in to St Peter's Basillica, but we left, and that meant we would have to get checked again. So we took the opportunity to grab some pizza. FINALLY! Every pizza place I have been to in Italy has been worse than Little Caesar's! Not saying it is bad, but not what you expect. I ran a few errands then back to the Basilica for a MUCH shorter line (the school groups that were there had left).

Wooooooooow!


Pepa (from James and Pepa the British couple I met at the Alhambra) was experimenting with some pretty good hash or something because there is no way the Vatican is below the Alhambra (as great as that is, and believe me the Alhambra is impressive). The only thing that could make it true is if you see it from the outside (I am sorta remembering that...maybe?).

St Peter's Basilica is jaw dropping. There are monuments (and tombs) for every(?) Pope going back to Peter. There are carvings and artwork EVERYWHERE! Seriously, you look up and bam, ten statues of incredible detail, which is only a distraction from the art between them. Maybe the greatest thing I have ever seen man made or nature.

Rome has a very special feeling, one that is different from anywhere I have been... especially at night. So for those keeping score at home...

1.) Rome (Venice is essentially tied but it is a fake city)
2.) Florence
2.5) Sevilla
3.) Bergen
4.) Granada
.
.
.
350.) The more dangerous areas of DC
.
.
.
500.) Lyon

Anyway, it was quite a day!

I met a British guy in Florence who told me something pretty cool.

"Seeing all of this... I just...I just feel honored to see it."













I agree.

--Joey

A moderately amusing thing happened while taking this photo...I thought of my opener for the Rome blog.

I know you must get sick of hearing this, but I think I got a new favorite city. Rome, contrary to what everyone told me is amazing. It feels safe (ignorance is bliss?), relatively clean, and is without a doubt one of the world's most beautiful cities by night.




Anyway, so I departed from Florence with some misty damp weather (but I still wanted to check out the Ponte Vecchio (sic? ... at right, this is the bridge that people put locks on and throw away the key symbolizing a love locked in Florence), only to find a near perfect day for my arrival in Rome. The temperature was about 18 degrees (15 at night) and a really clear blue sky.

I have arrived in Rome. First I saw the colloseum. Okay that is a lie, as you can see from the above photo. The forum first, then the Colloso. From the distance is looks pretty small but up close it is pretty aweinspiring.

While sorting through my photos I met a guy from New York, Melvin, who is also traveling through Italy. He works for the airline so it is pretty easy for him to get away.

Rome is his first city in Europe and he saw it within minutes of arriving.

Zia Laura was right, the traffic was hell. Fortunately, during rush hour, the cars are stopped. People don't pay attention to traffic laws at all! Blowing through red lights, quick "lane" changing around parked cars, and other fun stuff.



Three coins (and 40-South-Asians-trying-to-sell-you-crap) in the fountain

I have not seen Trevi during the day like Dad did, but at night it is worth a dedicated trip. Really amazing (beyond amazing!). Italy has a great scam going. They charge you for the bathroom and yet the put fountains every where. Brother, you don't stand a chance. While hanging out enjoying the ambience, every one of these cats from Bangladesh was trying to sell me everything from tripods to squeezable novelties to led replicas of the tower of Pisa (try to figure that one out). Of course that is not legal so anytime a cop comes, they pretend to be just sitting on the Dhaka the bay wasting time.

Right...

Melvin and I tried to take the subway back but it closed (and this was like 10:15) so we jumped on the bus and headed back to termini (both our hostels are nearby). On that bus, ... now traveling is what... anyone... anyone... weird. I bump into this girl I met at the Florence hostel. It feels like this happens to me with startling frequency which leads me to believe everyone is following me. So then I head back to the hostel where they have a room for me but it being midnight or so, everyone is asleep. I am going to try to avoid that tonight. I will also attempt to get the Vatican photos up in the next few days.

Ciao!

--Joey

Neve and Gile (I think?) say hello from Torino 2006.


My first in-person olympics! Unfortunately with all the security many of the traditional mainstay's of the olympics (the village etc.) were closed to anyone who was not a journalist, athelete or staff member.

I had the train cabin from Florence to Torino to myself. On board, I made a few signs in my journal in the event that I got to the NBC broadcast area (which I later learned was near the medals plaza) but it was so hectic that trying to find the right bus was enough of a scavenger hunt.

The town is really nice but I would say slightly underprepared for the volume of people that showed up. For example, I think I spoke Spanish nearly as much as I did English, the buses should have been almost twice as frequent, more clearly labeled signs etc.

All in all it was a great experience, but it told me that you pretty much need two or three days at the minimum to go to the olympics. The first day is just figuring out...figuring out. So after wandering around aimlessly I found an event in the town that I could attend. The Canada Finland women's hockey team. The Americans had just gotten through losing to Sweden, and while at first you might say, too bad you could see the home team, Canada and Finland is like a Florida v Florida State game. Though Canada / Sweden would have been equally good.

While there I met a few Americans, one of which is on the Curling team (actually she and her sister). They play Italy later today. So after the game I went to the Train Station and tried in vain to get a ticket back to Florence or, preferably, to Venice. I missed the train (okay the new streak begins) and it forced me to sleep in the train station with a bunch of other people doing the same. (No rooms in Torino under 200€). There was a concert that night which prompted a wave of people later (around 2:30) to come to the waiting room. I asked the police and they said the area around the station is not safe at night, so I didn't try to find the olympic store or anything like that. I think the whole city is probably okay right now but I was erring on the side of caution/exhaustion. Sleeping is difficult, and the police guarding the room, told everyone that they could not lay down on the railings above the chairs. Not sure if they were being jerks or what, but sleeping in a chair is tough so lots of people were on the floor which they didn't seem to mind.

Around 4am an Austrian guy shows up so hammered I was getting tipsy just standing in the same room as him. He built a backpack with battery, to power flashing lights, and speakers with yodeling and ompa tunes. Needless to say that was not cool with everyone trying to sleep. One girl told him, We are trying to SLEEP!, to which he replied.. ya ya schlaf musik (sic?). Oh-ho man! I will give the guy geek credit, he built it himself.




Then this greasy sleezy Italian guy shows up in a wig and starts blowing kisses to the guys that were awake in the room. Then he took it off to hit on some Australian girls. "Ima gona helpa youza alla hahuh!" I think Aunt Laura and Aunt Diana can relate to that :-D

A real collection of winners in that place :-P







"Ah... Venice"

The first train to Venice was at 6:05. Apparently Italy does not require reservations like Spain does. I just walked on and the guy punched my rail pass. Along the way the train got more and more crowded which made sleeping increasingly difficult. I found out from a group of Americans that this is the start of Carnival in Venice. The weather has not been the best, but the city is amazing none the less. Though I really feel like this is not a real place. I have not seen much in the way of normal stores (only tourist shops). One thing that took me by surprise was how green the water is. I always think of Venice has having nearly brown water. Must be much nicer with clear weather.

Okay I am on the verge of collapse so here is the deal, I am going to head on back to Florence (3pm local time) for an arrival around 8-10pm.

See you all later!

--Joey

PS I am fixing/adding to my last entry which is why it is gone temporarily. I have enough photos I may have to make another CD.

Benvenuto Italia... (yes I know the page is messed up, no time to fix) updated: fixed

A series of firsts for my trip to Italy. I left Seville without visiting McDonalds and I didn't miss a bus or train.

Impressive, I know.

So we left from Barcelona at 8:30, which should have been no problem. When I got my ticket in Seville, the guy at the desk never told me that from Estacio Sants (the main station in Barcelona) that I would have to travel to Estacio Franca. The ticket, I checked, said BCA/FRANCA which I (understandably) assumed was Catalan saying, I am going to Milano via France. Turned out to not be much of a problem, I jumped on Barcelona's metro (which is easy to use) and was there in 20 minutes.

Around 6am the French police get on board my train and a woman asks me, in English, for my passport. I obliged, and then she checks the cover, the photo, my town etc. then for some reason that is beyond my ability to understand she asks me if I have any luggage...in French. Two things, one, I had luggage locked to my drink holder, and B) she saw that I was an American, why the hell was she speaking French?!?! I said Je ne parle frances... "Oh..you have luggage?"
Yeah, if I have time after Italy, I will be spending time in Munich instead of Paris. It brought back every vile memory I have of France. (Edit: Turned out I liked Paris, crazy!)

On to more pleasant news, after arriving in Milano, I caught a Train to Florence with two Argentinian girls who were on my Barcelona->Milano leg. I guess because I was explaining to the guy at the ticket office that I, like those two girls, are going to Florence, he gave us one ticket between the three of us. They have family in Florence, and in Rome/Naples so they thought it was a good opportunity to travel comfortably.

Once in Florence I got a late breakfast/Spanish lunch outside of the Duomo. Just mildly impressive. I think the Cathedral that blew my mind in Seville could fit inside of this thing. I have seen pictures of it (who hasn't? It is the Colloseum of Florence) but I had no idea how huge this thing was. What made it really cool is that you don't get a good view until you are right on top of it and the scale is dizzying.

So a bit more walking until I arrived at the hostel. Not bad digs. 20 euros gets you a bed (4/room), ensuite bathroom, and a hot, real, breakfast. Today I had a cheese omlet toast, and some kind of salad with apples.


I always feel a little negative about a town when I arrive. The feeling of being lost, tired, etc. is usually a downer. Then I warm up to the place. Florence might have a record. Even with the worst possible weather on my arrival, I still enjoyed the town which is incredible (probably going to knock off Seville for top spot...so far gold, silver and bronze go to Florence, Seville, Bergen/Grenada).


I decided to save a rail day and go to Pisa on my own buck. The town is nice and the bridges look remarkably similar to Florence. I went to the Cathedral and the formerly leaning tower of Pisa. For those that haven't kept up with the news, they decided the leaning was too dangerous. Around 1973 there was a proposal to straighten it but it never "developed" and the excessive "exposure" stopped the idea in its tracks. So here is to the newly more or less perpendicular tower of Pisa.


For Lunch I had an Italian sandwich, Italian ice cream, Ciochotte (spelling is atrocious, drinking chocolate, or for Starbucks fans, it is the real Choctico). I defy you to tell me that it doesn't look good!




I told you traveling was weird... well, today inside the cathedral I met those two Argentinian girls from yesterday. The cathedral was pretty spectacular, but because I was already expecting something pretty impressive it didn't give me the same reaction the Sevilla one did.

Tomorrow to Torino at 7:51 and arriving around quarter till 1 local time.

I will add more photos later...yeah I right, I said I would put photos on my last post. Oh well, the technology over here is highly hit and miss. Edit: back in USA

Some Italian Ice Cream



--Joey

A true rarity, two blog updates in the same day. This will be fairly short...

I toured around town and saw the Barrio de Santa Cruz as well as the Alfalfel plaza...the perfect place to get a hair cut, by a Barber in Seville.

I am currently headed to the train station to make a reservation for tomorrow :)

To be updated with pictures

--Joey

Buenos Dias de Sevilla.

The streak is alive. From Marbella to Malaga...I missed the bus despite being there 15 minutes early. I was talking to a new student at Enforex (she left some CDs in a rental car in Malaga) and was at the bus station. I looked at my watch and saw I had two minutes before it departed so I said bye, and went outside. A woman told me it left 3 minutes earlier. My watch is a minute or two fast, the cell phone, her cell phone and the bus station all said the same thing.

Oh well, I took the non direct bus which gave me an opportunity to practice Spanish with the woman that told me I was out of luck and believe it or not the driver. They are all surprised that Spain is more expensive the states (well, Tampa)

So I got to the train station to go to Sevilla (I naturally arrived a little late and had to take the next train). There I met a boy from Liberia. I really am a selfinvolved idiot. I was feeling slightly paranoid (only slightly) and a little uneasy about my trip. This kid arrived in Spain around the same I did...that is the only thing that was the same. His mother, father, and sister died in the Liberian civil war. He has a friend in Madrid and no money to get on the train. They do not check your ticket, so it is possible to jump on and not pay if you can hide from the train staff. There was a security guard with him so I was reluctant to give him money to buy a ticket because I was not sure if he would get it taken from him so I helped him translate and gave him chocolate and a couple of Euros. Really puts things in perspective.

On the train I met an Irish guy and we talked about different places in Spain. He told me he liked Barcelona but on the first day he got his pocket picked from the front pocket...and lost €600 (roughly $750). The train ride was nice and we unexpectedly went through a canyon which may have been Ronda (not sure).

Sevilla is an amazing city. It is like Granada in terms of history but it is more spread out. In fact, they are building a metro (I think they might be doing the same in Granada), to illeviate the traffic problem.

My first day I checked in with the Youth Hostel of Seville (Albergue Juvenil de Sevilla) which is a lot like a hospital in appearance but it is well run. There is a picture of my room on the right. I ended up on the top bunk which is not good for people under you because I shake it when ever I get up.

So Sunday I headed for the Alcazar and got distracted by the Plaza de España. It was built for the 1929 IberoAmerican fair and I think for a future world fair that never happened. In any event, I enjoyed visiting the plaza both at night and during the day. To me it looked just like Naboo from Episode II of Star Wars. I even took this picture of a bridge that reminded me of the one they crossed to arrive into town. Turns out there is a reason why it looked familiar, this was the shooting location. I think I may have to go back to get a few shots exactly as they were in Episode II (of course, exact, is a relative thing, the CGI additions is what made me say it was not it at first ). This was an extra cool bonus for me :)

When I arrived (early) there were women with pieces of tree telling me "Toma" to which I said No, and then NOO with an outstretched palm. I am pretty sure they were trying to ripoff tourists because later there was more of a presence by police and they were no where to be found.


The Alcazar was really cool, but after the Alhambra it just couldn´t compete. However, they had some great artwork and huge tapestries that were really impressive. What did blow me away was the Cathedral in Sevilla. Both inside and outside. What is especially cool is that the entrance to the cathedral has art and the like but the ceiling is an impressive 20-30 feet. Then once you get inside you see this.
















And this , the "tomb of Columbus" (this one is probably one of his kids, Columbus is likely to be in the Dominican Republic)



It was a pretty packed day, and I have a few things to see and do (like arrange a Youth Hostel in Genoa or Florence). So I am going to cut this "short" and leave a picture of the outside of the cathedral (I have better ones but my mother insists that I get in the frame and ruin it :-P).

See you all later!

--Joey