Utah-Spain (4)

Hello all - this may be a confusing letter cause this keyboard is sticking...I'll try to come through clearly...

So, I'm still in EL Chorro... Here are the links to make it easy for those that are curious... one of Andalucia... look for El Chorro on the map - that's me! The other is the site for the finca that I am staying in... see pics of climbing, the finca, the general area.... gorgeous...

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/mapshells/europe/andalucia/andalucia.htm
http://www.el-chorro.com/ingles.html

Now, let me back track and recap a bit...

I went to Morocco with a couple from Manchester England... they are a bit older than me, in their 50's... They spoiled me. They never let me pay for a meal, a drink, not even for my tram ticket to the top of the rock of Gibralter... so kind..I felt like I was on a family holiday... Gibralter was actually our first trip... it's like a peninsula of the tip of Spain... It's not that big, yet hoards of cars pile in every day... you have to go through two passport checks.. one to leave Spain and one to enter little England... Gibralter... The town is coveted by Brits in Spain for the duty free cigarettes and liquor... half the price they pay at home... and by the Spanish for the foreign clothing stores... I guess.. We took the tram to the top of the Rock of Gibralter... had I been alone, I would have opted for a lovely walk up the huge piece of rock... linked by this site:

http://www.fortogden.com/gibralter.html

At the top, tourists are greeted by apes... they run around and attack you for food if you're simple enough to bring a bag of food to the top. Another English couple thought they would have a nice picnic on the top... they were quickly proved wrong by the tame critters which jumped on the man's back, and nabbed the bag from his lady while she screamed and threw her can of coke at them.... jeezus... but it was a good show for the rest of us, including the ape that sat shoulder to shoulder with me on the railing, watching the whole thing go down... Twenty minutes later we all just watched as they slowly and in a civilized manner, shared the food and ate it slowly, making sure not to miss an ounce of flavor... after the show, I had my pic taken with one of the macaques... I think they are... and then we headed down and made our way past some shops and back to Spain...

A couple days later I went to Tangier with the couple.. We took a high speed boat that only takes 35 minutes to haul ass across from Tarifa, the southern tip of Spain, a kite surfing destination... when we arrived in Tangier (with our tour guide and group, as recommended by all) ... in fact, they won't really let you into Morocco without a guide... or at least they strongly recommend you take one... cause you'd get lost in the Medina... never find your way back to the boat and be mobbed along the way by vendors.. the whole getting lost thing might happen with unexperienced travellers, but I didn't find the route we took particulary maze-like... as for the shopping experience, since we were with a group, it was definitely a whirlwind experience, and it was a relief to have a local guide... who spoke French, English, Spanish and Arabic... We saw far more than we would have if we had come alone or just picked up a simple man to man guide at the other end of the ferry ride... our group was assembled back at the ticket office in Spain...

Needless to say, it was a wonderful experience...to see the variety in Morocco... women dressed like Europeans, women wearing djilabas with burkas, women wearing djilabas, burkas and a bit over their face so that only their eyes were showing... I don't know enough to comment on the varying levels of concealment.... I did learn that the city we were in was very religiously diverse... Catholic, Jewish, Muslim... various temples throughout... high tolerance for diversity... we were an anomoly as we were walking about in a big obvious group of whities... some of which were not particularly quiet or inconspicuos... which is why I said before that I would prefer to go back with more typical dress and just blend abit... but I'll wait on that for now...

After I said farewill to the Manchester couple... I headed back to Malaga to take the train to Alora, the nearest town to El Chorro... I was planning, after having had a big chat with my folks, on heading up to Germany, Slovakia, over to Ireland for Christmas, just getting around til Justin came over to climb... and then I got to El Chorro.. it was really just gonna be a curiosity thing, and now it's turned into paradise...

The finca is gorgeous, as you can see in the link and the climbing is super rad... I have made tons of friends here.. I'm the only American on deck right now.,... several English, two Finnish, four German, two Swiss, two Dutch and comings and goings daily... At the crag I've met Polish, Czech, French and of course loads of Spanish... I've climbed on two separate days... the first was a mellow feel it out day... the second was mellow two... but we did go to an area called Poema de Roca... wherein lies the 'Route to do' when in El Chorro, which is also called Poema de Roca with a local grade of 7a... My partner, Tim, hung the draws and did the route... he had redpointed it a few months back.. It's a lovely route that climbs steep out some tufas and then traverses a bit on more tufas and then pulls steep through some slopers and side pulls to a hand jam and then the finishing jugs... I flashed it!!! It made my day and boosted my confidence and has inspired me to stick around for a bit... So, I arranged some jobs around the finca to cover my lodging costs... cleaning, teaching climbing to groups that pass through, and hopefully eventually babysitting for the owners of the finca, who have 4 boys...!!

So - all's increible!! I'm psyched to be here, although, as you can imagine, I'm not speaking too much Spanish and I'm not teaching English, which... well, kind of stuff the original plan a bit... but, plans are for the rigid, and I am clearly not rigid....

I have been working on another language however... It's called Brittish English... Here's the dictionary so far:

up the duff - pregnant
mythered - annoyed
then Bob's your uncle - all's good
bird - girl
bloke - guy
takin' the piss - messin' with, fuckin' with
dodgey - dicey, sketchy
a piss and a fart away - real close

I have so many more but on the spot I'm going blank.. wait for the book!

Well - I'm a bit far from a computer, but I'll stay in touch when I can.... Take care and be in touch!

Utah-Spain 2003 (3)

Hello all - this is a sinfully small and short letter that will do my journey no justice, but I just wanted to drop a quick update with details to come...

I went to Morocco.. quite the experience... got some pics and would love to go back in my new djilaba, with a scarf over my head so I could experience it without the vendors in my face, without having to explain that I too am poor and am just getting by to see as much as I can for a bit... they speak French, Spanish and English in Morocco and many speak German too.. they cater well to tourists in Tangier.. we got looks, but for the most part, just bumping arms with one another in the market on the 18th day of Ramadan (sp?)...

Now I'm in El Chorro.. in the finca la campana.. the spot for climbers.. speaking mostly English with the English and Swedes that are staying there with me.. I have a room in a beautiful bunkhouse.. we have a fully stocked kitchen with a shop on site and laundry, shower and all other kinds of facilities... it's ideal really with the exception of the fact that I'm speaking English, but the owners have 4 kids that only speak Spanish so I've offered some babysitting services in exchange for free lodging and they're thinking of taking me up on it, although I haven't met the kids yet and all the climbers tell me they're little devils...

I was gonna climb today but it rained so everyone headed to the Poema cave... it was crowded to the gills with 50 climbers and I'm glad I waited.. I'll go out tomorrow for a bit of sunshine and more space... it's gorgeous here.. if you're interested.. look up Finca La Campana El Chorro on the internet and you'll see where I am....

It's funny really cause I was heading north without looking back, a little frustrated and off to Germany, now I think I found a great home base... I want to also try to find work picking olives, oranges and lemons as the season is right around the corner and I've been told I could find plenty of work.. we'll see... For now - that's that.. I hope you're all well... Smiles and Deep Breaths from Spain..

Utah-Spain 2003 (2)

Hello - In the pink is my dad's phrase for feeling better which is funny cause it's dead close to 'in the red' which can't make anyone feel better! But, I guess it's far enough away from 'Blue'....

The night of my GLUM message, I went to a veggie restaurant (a word I'll never spell correctly consistently in English... ristorante is best).. and I had a cup of tinto and then saw an independent film called The Dreamers... quite racy in theme, but quite entertaining and in the end, sent me home thinking lots, just cause the creativity was flowing... I may have lost some of the impact cause I saw it dubbed in Spanish, but I got the jist... I think it's normally in English, although set in France... I dunno... Anyway-

I'm writing from rainy Marbella.. usually sunny, the second, third or fourth home of Sean Connery, Richard Gere and some other random star types... I was sitting in a cafe earlier today and Joey Tribiani walked by (Matt LeBlanc).. I waved like he was an old friend and he came in and sat with me for a second... he asked my name and for fear that saying Rachel would seem like a pick up line, I just showed him my passport first... but, then, none of that really happened. It was just a movie in my head that played out when a Spaniard that looks a lot like Matt walked by...

Marbella is sleepy right now... off season. The majority of the people I see are British. I came by bus this afternoon from my apartment in resortlandia... I am in this resort for the week called Miraflores, which is kinda like it's own little world... it has everything on site so the Britts and Germans can get all they need without speaking a word of Spanish... Karaoke, bar, restaurant, supermercado, beach, pool, golf... in fact, there is no town within walking distance... so, I escaped via bus.

Back in little England however, I did meet two lovely couples... one in the bar the day I arrived... who own the sweetest Lurch... the latest in UK recognized dog breeds.. a cross between a greyhound and a whippet.. the perfect size.. they said they would love for me to take him running... The other coouple I met, also from England, are my neighbors. I met them when they locked themselves out and popped over to use the phone. Then we sat on their patio and talked for hours... til dinner... then after dinner I went back over, just to pop in for a wee rum and coke... five rum and cokes later, having discussed every angle on religion, politics, cultures and family life... it was a shocking 4am and I had to retire... only to sleep in again!! I hate sleeping in this much but I'm fucked! Can't figure out my sleep cycle...

The apartment here is really nice... really clean and really all mine.. with laundry machine in the apartment, phone, CD player, television, comphy beds and best of all, my own personal ferel cat colony... Yes, I have gatitos... 5 of them. I am on a ground level, so I opened my door to the back garden and saw a kitty... called him over and like rats running from the light, they all poured out of the hedges... running at full speed past me and into my apartment... I just left the door open and they came and went at leisure... I have Wonder, the curious black and white that gets closer by the hour, Sketcher, the tabby and white micks ( the 'ecks' button on the keyboard doesn't work) who likes to run in Matricks fashion up and down the walls to get by me... very wild... , Corky, black and white with a curly half tail... lost tragically I'm sure..., Carinyo, my buddy - loves to be held and sleep between my legs and then Oscar, which is short for Oscuro cause he's my all black mystery man... not too sure about the whole being seen by humans thing... but, regardless of temperment or level of wildness, they all slept in the bed with me on my first night here.. I left the window open and by morning, they were all gone... Yes, I know... diseases, fleas, etc... Thanks for the heads up... I just love the company.

Tomorrow I'm going with the younger and more active of the two English couples to Africa.... haha! Sounds funny to say it like that... but yes, we're going to Morocco.. They want to shop, I want to walk around. I'll probably check out the way the women dress and then go back on my own and head a little farther.. maybe toward Senegal.. I have a dream of doing it with one outfit (that on my body) and my purse.. nothing else.. I'll just go for a week as far as I can and then head back to Spain.. why not. I have an Irish passport and if I cover up, I should be ok... but, I'll check it out tomorrow with my new friends...

The Malaga situation is better too.. I decided during many of my sleepless hours between midnight and 5am that I would have to suck it up and settle for a bit as that was the whole point... so my plan now is to get an apartment with some Spanish folks (I've seen lots for rent at anywhere between $150-$200 a month.. not bad and much cheaper than hostels all the way.... and then when I have a place I'll figure out work close to that place...

I have yet to climb!! I'm not close to Malaga anymore so I couldn't ecksplore so easily, but maybe one day after Africa I'll take the train back to Malaga and see what I find... then live out the time share, head to Africa again on my own and then come back to settle...

I collected sea shells today... the kind you only find for sale in shops cause they're still in tact and they're beautiful.. colorful, spirally, perfect! And small enough to lug around... Oh how I wish I could shop in Morocco.. I know I'll find so much I'll love but if it has to go on my back for 9 months, I think it'll have to wait... maybe I'll look into shipping it all! Anyway - that's the latest.. sorry it's not the greatest... Thanks for all the uplifting messages you all sent me! I'm glad folks are enjoying the snow in Salt Lake and the waves in Myrtle Beach! Take care!!!

Utah-Spain 2003 (1)

Well, I´ve escaped Madrid and now I guess I´d rather be there than here.. I´m in Malaga... I spent some serious time doing some wonderful self pitying while I was wandering the streets alone and jetlagged in Madrid.. then I got some great pick me up messages from lovely friends and had a nice conversation with the gentle older woman who runs the hostel I was in... and then had the most beautiful train ride from Madrid (4 hours) with Dido playing along with me... And then I got to Malaga - my absolute worst nightmare- and unless you´re planning to go straight to El Chorro for climbing or taking one day to run up the castle and see a Picasso museum, my advice is stay away...

I should write travel books, the Real Deal by Rai... of course it would be my opinion, but I think I can safely say that this experience is not worth it when you could go two hours north and see Granada or head to Italy and have cobble stone streets and bridges coming out of your ears without the cranes, jack hammers, tourists, potential petty thiefs checking you out, etc etc... So, did I mention today was a low point... but I expressed that earlier to Justin, my mom and dad and they each sent the best of messages... my mom saying she´d even go vegan if I´d come home and let her support me, while at the same time encouraging me to keep my chin up! How sweet is that!! Anyway - those messages brought tears to my eyes... oh wait they´re still coming... but there is hope...

My parents lined up a time share for me starting this Saturday for one week... a gesture I was not so keen on when I was stateside... now, the thought of having permanence and not having to lug that f-ing pack around on my back to get denied at the doors of full hostels or told that I have to pay out my %&$ to stay one night... I've almost paid a month´s rent at this point... well, that thought is soothing to say the least. The good news is I have a place tonight and tomorrow and then begins my time share - a two bedroom condo, on the beach, with a pool and a full kitchen... all to myself? Any takers on a last minute week in Spain? My amiga from Germany, Uta, (Uta is her name, she´s not from Utah, she´s from Germany) is coming down for next weekend to be a girl with me. During this week that I have time share I am going to cook like I own a restaraunt and go out to El Chorro to see what it´s all about and if there is anywhere near the limestone heaven that can give me sanctuary from this hell hole... Please don´t be angry cause I´m bitching about being on the Mediterranean in Spain with no job to worry about... truth is, I'd rather be sitting in slc looking out the window at snow fall with friends than sitting here alone. But, all will come in good time, including friends.

I did meet some great climbers in Madrid at the climbing gym last night.. great, as in good people - buena gente... I have the number of a few of them in case I go back there or they come to Malaga... I may be back there sooner than I thought, but I still have back up plans.... Alicante, Granada and this rad white house stranded in the middle of 1,000 acres of Olive Trees... well, that would require the owners to let me stay and give me work... oh and me finding it again as I only saw it fly by through the train window this morning... but it soooo called out to me.. all the country side did. It reminded me of how at home I felt in Mallorca years back - with the olive trees and sheeps bells ringing all around... Mallorca isn´t out of the question...

Yes, I´m looking hard and as is my personality, I am not settling... I will not stop til the land resonates deep within me and I know I can stay, live, learn and produce something worthwhile - be it language, poetry or just passing on good spirit... right now, in this grunge, my spirit is super weak and I just want out... So, that´s the glory of travel sometimes.. It´s fucking hard and like friends have reminded me, it´s hard to leave the comfort zone and... something big and beautiful will come of it, whether I can see that now or not!

Anyway - the other shitter is that I can´t find a decent bite to eat.. I wandered around for hours and all I could find were dingy cafes with loads of tourists on the patios, smoking and drinking cafe... so finally, I stopped my quest for the perfect lunch, entered one of those places and found that all they had on the menu were 25 variations on how to eat meat... so I drank a cafe... Now, I´m still starving and wired... but, I did find a cute little shop the size of a small closet.. I bought some fruit, some water and a chocolate bar... oh and shampoo... and the sweet little old lady threw the fruit in for free for some reason... so, we´re on the uphill folks! I´ll try to promise that I won´t write again until what I have to say is beautiful... this message is merely to soothe the jealous beast in all of you...

As in the words of Pink Floyd - WISH YOU WERE HERE...

Spain - Italy 2001 (1)

Greetings from Rome.. What a sad and happy day for me!!! Sad cause it marks the end of 3 months here in Europe!! Happy cause, hello!! I am coming home!!! Yeehaw! I think the happy side outweighs the sad side by a few hundred pounds.. Europe is going nowhere and I will be back.. but right now, I would love to be home!! Eating healthy, throwing a frisbee with my dog, climbing, speaking American English and doing so audibly and proudly.. I am in Rome right now.

I went to the US Embassy today to get my passport. That's a long story, but basically - I left mine back at a hostel in Lisbon, Portugal. I had it sent to Granada, Spain and waited as long as I could before having to leave on a train for Rome and my flight home. So I brought my photocopy in to the embassy to get an emergency replacement to get home. It will be ready for pickup in four hours.. Everything there is quite mellow. There was not another soul in site and no one seemed on gaurd, so that was relieving. Rome is nice today. The weather is very much that of autumn. The air is cool, crisp and even seems a bit clean remarkably.. or maybe it is just my euphoria that is making it seem so!

I am staying right across the street from the train station and it will take me right to the airport tomorrow morning, so really it is easy going from here... and I will be in my house by the lake with Seamus tomorrow.. Due to the fact that internet access is much easier from here than it will be in Myrtle Beach, I wanted to make a quick side note to all Salt Lakers... I will be home around the middle of December and will still be homeless... what is this, year 4? Anyway, if any of you are going to need me for dog, cat, house sitting.. let me know now... otherwise, I am going to start looking for a proper place to live... you know how it goes with me.. I get so many dog sitting jobs.. and I can never say no cause I love doing it.. then I'll end up paying rent and bills but never be home.. And on the flipside of that.. if anyone knows of a place needing a kind little renter and her perfectly perfect house dog, let me know about that one too! Oh, the life of a vagabond! By the way, the boy dog, Seamus, comes with high references from several who will attest to his respectable house manners... including my parents who have let him move in and take charge in their own home for these last few months...

Well, shit there goes my time on line and this is it! I have my passport now!! Got it a few hours ago and will be on the plane in the morning!!!! So, goodbye Europe and I will drop you all a line from the mainland! love, loyalty and friendship to all!! rai

Portugal - Spain 2001 (1)

Hi.. this will be short and sweet. I am safe. I heard last night that we were doing some bombing.. Iwouldn't have known except a group of Spanish lads that I was bar hopping with made some joke about how one of them, Alejandro, had to give Bush the OK to fly through his air space before the bombing will begin.. and I, trying to be the peaceful American, said, oh, we won't be bombing yet, I don't think.. Of course.. they all flipped around and said in seven different pitches.. You already did...today! Well, that just shows you how out of touch I am.

I am in a smaller college town, Granada.. There is little access to media for me.. no news stands near where I am and no TV whatsoever... I just plain had NO F-in' idea and I guess, I am glad that I didn't, cause now that I know, I feel sooooo sad. I keep picturing all those poor refugees and wonder how many didn't flee in time toget out of harm's way.. and of course, I don't even know where we bombed, so maybe people weren't hurt.. again, naive, peace loving, confrontation hating me! Not happy times for anyone!

And me ... I spent that week in southern Portugal with my family, lying by the pool and drinking a lot with my Irish lush of a family.. I even... brace yourself.. got upand sang Respect by Aretha Franklin in Karoke.. I thought it would be a cold day in the Sahara first, but turns out (does the Sahara get cold..) I just needed to drink a lot of Portuguese sangria which is mainly composed of Champaigne. Dio mio! Well, Holland sang with me.. oh, yeah. My friend, Natalie from Holland came to the south of Portugal.. we met in Lisboa.. and she stayed a night with me and the fam.. and that's when we sang... As you would hopefully know, English isn't her native language, so Karoke was funny for her, even though she's highly proficient. Anyway, that part when Aretha says r-e-s-p-e-c-t takeout the t-c-p ... well, what the hell does that spell anyway.. well, when that came on the screen, I only got half way through and then took a laugh attack and she had to do the second part solo.. She sang the following... 'Take out the TOP?' It was the funniest moment in that week! My aunt and uncles were laughing their chaps off! Later we went to a disco with some youths from England and my uncle Louis.. It was a gas and we got back at around 5am! ouch...

From there we went to Sevilla, had an epic time finding a place to sleep and ended up sleeping in the chairs of a hostal lobby for four hours and then hitting the road for Granada.. I never saw more of Sevilla beyond the four hours walking from 9pm til 1am looking desperately for the bed that never came.. We were glad to have made the choice to leave cause Granada is the best! I would move here tomorrow...1st Granada, 2nd Barcelona, 3rd Cinque Terre 4th Paris, 5th Florence..... I love this place. I just had tea in an Arab tea house.. I know! This place was of the Muslims back in the day before Rey Carlos the something took over... hence the Alhambra which was a Muslim fortress that eventually went to Catholics at some point... Needless to say, there are loads of students and lots of other subtle tourists from the likes of Australia, England, Holland, Germany.. but it is not a tourist area.. Everyone is mellow, bordering on super alternative.. lots of dreads, hash, grungie clothes and trendy students.. I love it! Everyone is really peaceful and happy. I did lie a couple of times last night when I walked along the street with all the Arab tea houses.. All the street vendors on that street are from Morocco or nearby... so I was Canadian, Dutch, Irish and Finnish last night! It was interesting.. and then finally, I gave in and felt like an unloyal americana.. so I became American.. I got some looks, but of course when they got to know me, they knew I wasn't that kind of American.. don'task what kind I mean..

A group of fellows that we met dancing in this pub drug us to another pub.. we didn't put up a fight.. it was fun and then to an all night disco where I learned to do the Flameco to house and bass beats.. and I rolled into the hostal at a cozy 7am... ohh god.. That makes three nights in a row that I blew off sleeping and tell me, those of you who know me.. how unlike me is that!? Incredible, no? I know! Well, I'm getting it out of my system cause I know they don't party like this in Salt Lake... 2am is an all nighter there, right!! And I usually only make it to 12am anyway.. Well, you'd be proud of my stamina and the ensuing desire to get back to a mellow life free of partying and full of climbing.. well, not free of partying of course... Holland and I leave tomorrow ...she for Valencia and I for Figueras... I only have 8 days before I fly from Roma! wow. Well, I must go to bed now cause I am again running on 4 hours and I need a siesta.. love and kisses to those who want them! cheers, peace, loyalty, friendship, safety, pride, humility and spirituality... -rai

Spain - Portugal 2001 (2)

Hey... god, I feel like shit. Sorry, but I was just sitting here, checking messages and writing a few and all of a sudden I felt like puking. I will still go through with this but it may be brief.. went out with the fam last night, downed a few too many rum and cokes and almost got up on Karoke, if that tells anything.. I never do Karoke.. I would damn near clear the place I fear.. anyway, I don't know if this is hangover puke, too-hot-in-here puke or last night's dinner coming to haunt me.. ughh.

Right. So, I just wanted to touch on the subject of Circumcision for a minute. My aunt Nancy, cousin Catherine, uncle Louis and I were talking about something random, and I saw this naked toddler walk by and it reminded me about what Finland told me about...how no boys in Finland get Circumcised.. well, in Europe actually, except the Jewish or those that had to for health reasons.. Well, being American, I was shocked. I just never knew. She (Finland), on the other hand, was shocked to know that the majority are 'done' in the USA. She has never seen one, American style.. :) So, I mentioned that to my kin.. 'Does everyone in Ireland really not get circumcised?'... Of course they don't. Well, my aunt Nancy might be near 60 and my telling her that the Americanos almost all do without question was a shocker. She never in her life knew that... not to mention the fact that it is barely a consideration... you don't think much about it, you just do it.. Well, not everyone.. You know I have all these new age hippy friends (smiles) that battle with that one, but so many just let the doctor take the wee lad away and cut him.

So, this brings me to my point. Many of my friends recently had baby boys and many of them were torn to pieces about the decision. Some of the cons to not being done are...being the odd one out among your friends, awkward moments with American girlfriends, cleanliness (which should be a non issue), and not looking like dad. The pros are ... well, not having to have it be done in the first place. (this one guy who was done said he felt that it was a sexual violation on him and it has carried emotional repercussions for him in life.. whether this is possible or not.. but, he had a boy and did not have it done, nor did he or his wife have to think twice about it.. No way, no question) It's amazing how many people... in conversations about this, were so strongly on one side of the fence or the other.. mostly on the side for having it done... But lord.. now that I am here in Europe surrounded by sooooo many men that haven't had it done, seeing all the healthy relationships, seeing that no one is dying of infection.. obviously... well, it just isn't necessary! And I am saying all this rubbish in case any of you are on the way to having a boy. Just do some research. All that fitting in business is rough, maybe, but they can always take a girl from Europe! ;) In retrospect, maybe it's even bordering on barbaric and, while 9.9 out of 10 of you boys on this list have been done and are glad for it...(ask yourself why.. it's the norm, that's it) just know that they don't all get done and seeing one undone is NOT freak wierd or anything! It's ok... and it's ok if your boy isn't like you...

Don't worry. I'm not taking this up as oneof my platforms or anything. The animals keep me busy enough.. but, just remember that the world is big and the USA is small in comparison and maybe all that knifing of baby penises is just not necessary. It would be a hard decision for me to make... I know, how could it be after having gone off about it being unnecessary.. but, you know.. it's our culture. it's just a strange part of it.. why us, why in a country so full of people from all over the world where it was never done, did we become a country.. one of the only ones to do it? My friend Jenny had her second boy recently. She had both her boys done... she didn't want to but her husband wouldn't let it slide and she let it be up to him as he is the Father.. anyway, the first boy was taken from her and done in another room with no option given to her that she be with him.. She demanded with the second and they protested adamantly until they realized she wouldn't let it go. She wanted to be there, holding his hand.. How many of you know if your mom had a choice or if it was just done? Why the hell am I talking about this?! I think I must still be drunk! And, no offense to any new moms and dads who did it.. it's a tough decision and fitting in is important in America and here! Finland, the sweet child she is.. and I thought so innocent,apparantly saw her first one after she left me.. One from New Jersy while she was in France.. go girl. She had to let me know cause we were both laughing about how funny it was that each others' boys and girls were just used to one way and the other would be so bizzarre.. Ohmigawd.. i'm officially out of my head. Bye.

Spain - Portugal 2001 (1)

Hello hello! Greetings from sunny warm Portugal. It's nice to be here, still wearing shorts and tank tops and not worrying about my next relocation for at least a few more days...or weeks.. :)

Let's see. I took the night train out of Madrid last week... Friday night. I got into Lisbon, Portugal on Saturday around 8am and the power was out. I couldn't get any money from the machines and all I had were Pesetas from Spain. Not to mention that the automatic lockers in the station were out of order.. so Icouldn't drop my pack and wander. The original plan was to drop my pack and explore Lisbon for the day then take a later train down to Algarve, where my cousins and uncle were. Well, seen as how I had to take a ferry across the river to get to the train station that serves the south and on and on and on, I decided to stay in Lisbon for the night and leave my digs in the hostel and march around properly. Well, I got denied at a few places cause I didn't plan ahead with reservations, then the last spot I went to sent me around the corner and into another hostel spot where I got a 'great' room with six beds! There were only three other gals in the room and I only met one of them... later...

I saw the Castello de Sao Jorge.. big castle which overlooks the city. It was cool. It provided the best view of the city, all the white walls with the red roof tops, all glistening in the sun and overlooking the water.. the River that cuts through Lisbon and eventually becomes the Atlantic! At that time there was a big fuss going on in the streets below.. Red Bull sponsors, cameras, video crew, whistles, music, etc... and loads and loads of cyclists.. geared up to high tail it down this windy path and down a set of stairs and on still through narrow alleys in the town. It was like some extreme sport event or something. It was exciting to watch. They had to ride through the streets and all, so the crew would let cars and pedestrians cross at mockspeed between each competetors... they weren't all going at once.. it was a timed event. I heard some cyclists speaking in broken English to each other, so I think it was an international event.

From there I went to a museum on the other end of town.. I forget the guy's name, but he has this huge collection of art from Egyptian relics.. dating backto 600BC, to Greek coins aged from 300 BC and on up to velvet tapestries, cloaks, pottery.. apparently, if we all just hang on to our rugs and old clothes, they too will be in a museum some day. Then they also had a phat collection of Asian art.. again, dishes, pottery, statues, writing tool storage boxes.. cute little things and then loads of paintings from plenty of great artists.. Van Dyke, Manet, Rembrandt, Rafael, and a couple that I know through Michaelangelo.. I saw one woman admiring a piece by my friend Guiliano and I sauntered past her saying, yeah, I know the guy that did that.. she just ran the other way.. humm. ;)

From there I just walked aimlessly, admiring the streets, the colors, the fact that it felt like the capital of a developing country except they had a metro line under ground.. oh and they have these great trolleys that roll around the heart of the city.. cute, like the ones in San Fran, all decked out in Coca Cola and random beer adverts.. The food sucks as far as I can tell.. they don't have a certain Portuguese food...well, fish. Cod. Apparently, they have 365 ways to cook Cod. Sounds like Bubba's 365 ways to cook shrimp... Bubba?

While by the water, sitting in this plaza by a big statue, this wrecked, mental homeless fellah walked by, well, around in circles, yelling at the top of his lungs... something in Portuguese that again sounded like HILE.. raising his hand firmly toward this statue and the Arc d'Triumf-like monument that overlooks the Placa d'Comercio.. Everyone is riled up these days.

Well, I went back to the hostel and met one of my roommates... Natalie.. from Amsterdam. She speaks fluent perfect English, in fact, she teaches it, along with Economics and other random odds like me. She is also addicted to travelling and can't decide what to do with her life.. sounds familiar. We had a laugh, talking and finding things out about each other and about similar places we'd been to. When all was said and done and it was time for good night and goodbye (I was taking the 6am metro) she said she would come south to the part of Portugal I was headed to and give me a ring.. so far, so sound, but she's a wild bird and probably met some other folks to run about with.. So, 6:30am and I'm wandering beneath the belly of the city in the metro and would you believe the streets were packed with folks coming home from the discotheques.. discotecas.. drunk off their rockers! Iwas serenaded on the metro and given bad directions on the street, which sent me on a 40 minute walk in the wrong direction. By the time I got to the boat I was five minutes short of waving it good bye.. and my connecting train on the other side.. but, luckily, I met this drunk African guy and he played guide for me. He was from a Portuguese colony in Africa, Angola?! He was very kind and spoke good English and fairly good Spanish, so communicating was fine. Poor guy, though. I had him walking at such a speed in his little green blazer and slacks.... He didn't mind a bit. He actually fell in love with me. Said it was such a travesty that I had to leave him alone and that he wouldn't be able to get to know me better.. that he wanted me to stay.. blah blah.. He planted his luscious lips on my cheeks and said, Adeus Amore and that was that.

Then, I had the pleasure of sitting on the ferry next to some more partiers.. heading back to their part of the city, across the river. There were three boys and a girl.. all around my age or younger. The one guy next to me, reached out and put his hand on my leg and I just raised my eyebrows as his female friend said, no... like, don't do that... We ended up having a great talk... his English was pretty good. They were all excited that I was from the US and asked all kinds of questions.. none about the war. Then they poked fun at the guy next to me... trying to get him to ask me for coffee on the other side and all this nonsense.. I said I had a tight connection, but thanks... We all said good bye and he said if I was staying, he'd ask me to marry him.. God, it's amazing what a little booze can do for the bold and outgoing nature within a person!

I got to the train station in Albufiera on the southern coast of Portugal and it felt like I just arrived in some small village in a third world country... then I remembered that the station was 6km inland and hopefully the sights would change.. The place is very dry, but scattered with palm trees and occasional grassy patches.. mostly red, dry dirt though.. The folks here that own the house are Jimmy and Nancy. Nancy is my mom's cousin. The same night that I arrived, my uncle Louis and cousin Cathrine came in. Catherine is the daughter of Jimmy and Nancy and a surprise for them both! They had no idea. So everyone has been in the best of spirits! They are all from Northern Ireland. They've been cracking me up with their stories.. Things we shouldn't take for granted.

My uncle Louis who is only in his 40's (along with Nancy) was telling all kinds of 'back in the days' stories about how, back in the day, you got bathed in the sink and only had a bath on Saturday....the water had to be boiled pot by pot until there was enough and you shared this bath with your siblings... how, there was no fridge..the food was kept in a meat sieve and you only bought for the day.. day by day.. How the teachers could whack you as hard as they wanted and if you told your mommy, she would probably say, well, I'm sure you didn't get it for nothing.. and how in the bog meadows where they played soccer, they would push the dirt aside and drink out of a stream that popped up out of the dirt... how you could go into a sweet shop and pay a penny for a little teency glass of something sweet to drink.. and everyone drank out of the same glass, no washing between... how the same would take place in the bars with Sasparilla and they all felt like cowboys from the American movies, who they loved so much.. it's so funny to hear all of these stories.. I wish I could recount them more thoroughly and as well as my uncle with his great Irish accent.. All in all, I am loving it here. It is very relaxing! The apartment they own is great and we lay by the pool during the day and I am slowly preparing myself for the return to real life! For now, I'm happy being with some family and not thinking toooooooo much, although a bit, about my FRIGGIN future! Love to you all and hope I'm not borin' the tails off ya. -rai

Italy - Spain 2001 (3)

Just a couple of things to give you something to think about.

First, let me start with just happened to me this morning. I laughed all the way to the internet point...It's raining in Madrid. The traffic is horrible and I am one of a few without an umbrella. I'm standing there in front of all these cars, waiting for the green man so I can cross the street. There are buses in front of me too and people all around. Next to me is this scrappy fellow of about maybe 65 years or so. I glance his way, we make eye contact and I dive back into my baguette. Then all of a sudden, he throws his arm into the air and salutes me the way the Germans saluted Hitler and yells ¡Viva España! ¡Arriba Franco! It was so funny! Even people on the bus were laughing. He just stood there too for like 2 more minutes, hand up, eyes on me... until I dashed across the street. I thought I must be on Spy TV.

Now, let me share a piece of my book that helps me justify my delay in responsible living... it comes from The Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller... first published in 1939 and forbidden in the UK and US until 1960 or so.. It has evoked some of the most random facial expressions from me, in that it is both filled with vile visuals, lack of morality, beauty, compassion and passion and warm, red blood through and through...

"When I see the figures of men and women moving listlessly behind their prison walls, sheltered, secluded for a few brief hours, I am appalled by the potentialities for drama that are still contained in these feeble bodies. Behind the gray walls there are human sparks, and yet never a conflagration. Are these men and women, I ask myself, or are these shadows, shadows of puppets dangled by the invisible string? They move in freedom apparently, but they have nowhere to go. In one realm only are they free and there they may roam at will- but they have not yet learned how to take wing. So far there have been no dreams that have taken wing. Not one man has been born light enough, gay enough to leave the earth! The eagles who flapped their mighty pinions for a while came crashing heavily to earth. They made us dizzywith the flap and whir of their wings. Stay on the earth, you eagles of the future! The heavens have been explored and they are empty. And what lies under the earth is empty too, filled with bones and shadows. Stay on the earth and swim another few hundred thousand years!"

Some things never change. Now, from the same book.. same author.....it's vile.. He's talking about his good friend.. You see, they are both quite into this life of hookers, booze, being cheap, barely getting by.. and more hookers.

"In the midst of his reveries he suddenly arrests himself, and grabbing my arm excitedly he points to a whale of woman who is just lowering herself into a seat. 'There's my Danish (insert bad C word.)' he grunts. ¡See that ass? Danish. How that woman loves it! She just begs me for it. Come over here.. look at her now, from the side. Look at that ass, will you? It's enourmous. I tell you, when she climbs over me I can hardly get my arms around it. It blots out the whole world. She makes me feel like a little bug crawling around inside her. I don't know why I fall for her. I suppose it's that ass. It's so incongruous like. And the creases in it! You can't forget an ass like that. It's a fact... a solid fact. The others, they may bore you, or they may give you a moment's illusion, but this one -with her ass!-zowie, you can't obliterate her... it's like going to bed with a monument on top of you'

Beautiful description, eh? I hope you can appreciate the power of words! Sometimes, it's all we have and it gives us the strength to move the mountains of people's minds. I love writing and reading and books and freedom! I love it! Ok, Have a nice day, like Americans say! luv, rai

Italy - Spain 2001 (2)

Hello all! Well, I had written a letter previously but then sent it to the bin and started over. It wasa bit grim as I was not psyched when I wrote it. No big reason in particular except that I don't like Madrid as much as Barcelona and I'm alone here for too long to boot.. but asi es...

Anyway.. I have lots to say today as I haven't written in a while and like always, when alone, my brain has been on overdrive... I'll start with the end of Barcelona. It was great! We went to the beach all day on our last day there. The sun was bright and warm, the sky perfectly clear! Not a cloud in sight and then there was another air show.. This one was bonafide. They had killer planes, lots of them. At one point six flew together in formation and did the craziest shit including playing chicken.. and barely pulling out in different directions.. like in Footloose, except there was no crash. They also had colorful smokey stuff coming out and making designs in the air. They wrote 'y'all come back now, ya hear' It was cool. I knew it was for me... did you believe that? Good. So then that night we said goodbye.. me and Finland. She headed back to France to stay in Nice until her flight home to Finland and I went back to the hostel until my morning train. Bye beautiful Barcelona.

In Madrid, I have just been wandering aimlessly, sort of. I hit all the museums that I wanted to see. Well, let me back up. I went to the Prado and the Thyssens Museums the other day. They were very full! The Prado is full of a lot of stuff that I have already experienced in the Louvre and in Italy, somewhere.. it just seemed so familiar.. all these religious themes.. Mary Magdalene, St. Sebastian, the Crucifixion, the Anunciation, etc... but then there was also a healthy collection of Flemmish and Dutch work which based more of its themes on things like astrology or just random shit.. animals, wars, people I don't think I've ever met before. :) It was good, but at the end of this trip I WILL be museumed out! The next one, Thyssens, I think.. had a couple of Dali's! Oh, was I tickled! What a wonder for me to actually see his works in the flesh and know that he sat right in front of that very canvas.. ooohlahlah! I also saw in there some VanGogh, who I am a new big fan of.. Matisse, Monet, Manet and so many others that never made it to the headlines in my brain but who I am nonetheless impressed with. I spent the rest of myday trotting from cafe to cafe and home. And of course here to chat on this screen with chums... I also treated myself to a movie... Anyone seen.. Los Otros with Nicole Kidman.. Must be The Others or something.. It was Great and what an ending! Of course I had to watch it dubbed in Spanish but I understood! I always deciphered from lip reading that they had English accents.. am I right!?

Next stop -Toledo (in the picture). I went to Toledo on a recommendation from my new Paris friend, James Carson Daily McArthur III, from NY. He's an actor! ;) Toledo was well worth the visit! I pulled in at around 1pm and checked into my hostel, which is in a castle on top of a hill. The city is also atop another hill across the river from where I was. The town itself is a labrynth that weasles its way around synagogues, cathedrals and that big fortress thing.. The structures go back to the days when the area was run by Romans, Visigoths, Muslims.. I also went to the mueseum of El Greco. Just a small collection of random paintings of people.. Saints and popes mostly. San Pablo, San Juan, San Pedro..etc. I went home and changed as I was the only person in the town a) with blonde hair b) with shorts on. When I came back properly dressed, I went out to eat in a Pizzeria... I met the greatest folks. They were running the restaraunt, but as I was the only one there, we got into great discussions. The server was a girl of 28 years from Chile.. the pizza maker is a 21 year old youth of Sicily and the salad maker a mere 19 years from Toledo. We had the greatest time talking about culture, language, war, peace, food, travel and all in a combination of English, Italian and of course my mother-in-law tongue, Spanish! The opinion of the server with whom I spoke the most, is that we (the US) should tread lightly and move with our brains not our hearts.. not to kill so many more innocent people. She says more than ever now, she feels that the people of the US are her brothers and sisters.. We are all Americans she said. It broke her heart to hear about what happened, but she fears an ongoing, everlasting world war during our lives... We wrapped up our chat at the bar.. they bought me a beer and I got teary saying good bye!

On my way home, I ran into this bloke from NY city that I saw in a laundramat in Madrid. So, being as terrified as I was to be walking alone where I was, I said...hey! I saw you the other day in Madrid.. He was sooo nice and so excited to chat, so even though I had just come from town and was a mere minute from the hostel, I made an about face and went back to town with him. He, too, is an actor in the US, although, now at the ripe age of 38, still without kids and wife, he came to Europe to find himself. While here, his city, Manhattan, was bombed. It tore him up and he is still taking it very badly. None of his friends or family were hurt, but one close friend is a firefighter and has shared some heart wrenching stories with him. In light of all these recent events, he has finally come to the conclusion that when he goes home to NY, he is either going to become a firefighter or he is going to see if he can still enlist at his age! He is a really unique person. His take on the war is that we should plan a surgical attack and gradually take out all the terrorists, shedding as little blood as possible, but realizing that innocent blood will be shed! Anyway, at the end of our chat, we headed back up to the hostel and hit the hay... and other cliches.

In the morning, I went back to Madrid. I had seen enough of Toledo to be honest. I went to the station to find out about going to Lisbon, but the train for tonight was full so I had to book myself for tomorrow night and stay another two days and one night here! But, I am going to make the most of it... another movie, perhaps? I did go to yet another museum today. It was closed on my last day of museum tours and it is the one I most wanted to see! There were two, count 'em 1, 2! rooms of Dali art! How wonderful...The Great Masturbator was there as was The Monument to the Woman Child and something of Hitler.. It was great! The rest was good too. Picasso's Guernica was here and a bunch of Joan Miro.. that shit is nuts. I was walking through looking at the work of Miro, not being the best critic. I kept finding myself saying.. yeah, art my ass. I could do that.. That ain't no bird! Whatever.. I guess I didn't like that style much. With Picasso I would say, yeah, whatever Man with Guitar... pushaww... But, you know.. who am I!? :) I have been inspired though. If some of that can make it into the museum, then I can write the novel of the new century! and design the cover!! Irony of my life..

Well, I saw a couple of funny places here in Madrid as I was meandering about the town.. like, oh, El Museo de Jamon.. the ham museum..It's a damn ham store, but there is ham hanging all over the cieling like Christmas lights on the Grizzwald house. And across the street is a cafe with paintings of bullfights, matatdors, etc.. and between each painting is the head of a slaughtered bull. Twelve total! And the people just sit there eating like it's normal.. What's normal about that! I know, I know.... I know! It's a cultural thing, and I can appreciate that and for that reason I do not even wrinkle my nose when I walk by, I just walk by... yuk. Well, that's all for now..

Oh yeah. The exciting thing about Portugal. My uncle Louis, from Ireland is with my mom's aunt Nancy and her husband, Jimmy in the south of Portugal and that is where I am going.. to be with family!!! to drink and hopefully stay with them on the beach in sunny southern Portugal.. Hope you're all well and happpppy! We will survive!! luv, rai

Italy - Spain 2001 (1)

Hello guys. I am here in Barcelona and very much alive! Barcelona... have I written since being here? It may just be the best city in the world.. but then I've only seen a few in Europe so that's a naive statement. But, it superceeds Paris at least.. in my book. Why? Well, the city is huge but you can still see the sky. You don't feel like you are trapped in a concrete jungle trying daily to find your way to the world again. The beach is a five minute walk from our hotel and the center of town. The center of town is a gothic area with far too many bars for those lacking will power, wonderful plazas with fountains and narrow cobblestone streets everywhere you want them. The city is alive with trendy people, young people, students, professionals and of course loads of pobres or wanna be poor people who are as capable as me of having a job, so they don't get my pity. We actually got peddled by an English bloke, dressed ok and expecting sympathy cause he was barefooted.. Reminds me of a friend of my cousin, Carol. She was studying in Paris and one day came across a friend of hers from Ireland, begging in one of the main squares. She of course gave him a ration of shit and asked what the hell he was thinking... He said he makes more that way in a day than sitting around on the dole in Ireland.. slacker!

Anyway...I really love this city and I am also pleased to see the presence of soooo many dogs.. so I know Seamus and I could make it.. Quarantine in Spain? Don't know yet. Our hotel was recommended to us by some kid in the train station. They all hit you hard with promotional tourisy information about this and that, places to stay, places to eat, bike tours etc... So, we took that notion and headed to the hotel... after the hostal we wanted was too full to take us.. (I am still travelling with Finland). So, we get there and it's abit of a dive. Not too bad, but you know...cockroaches here and there, dingy taps, small creaky beds, sub-par lighting.. I know I just made that sound like hell. Let me fix the image. The guy that runs the place is like a dad! He is just the sweetest fellow I have run across in a while. He doesn't speak a lick of English, but complimented me on my Spanish.. yay. He does nice things like, washes our dishes (Don't worry, we refused adamantly, but he wouldn't take no...), offers us towels for the beach, suggests places to go sight seeing, tells us to watch for banditos.. how to do so, etc.. Just like a Papa! So, we share a double and stay out of the room most of the time.. And he lets us use his kitchen, dishes, everything.. Different than the American hotel, so maybe some of you can relate from experience, the rest.. you have about 30 years to get out there and do it, so get on it. :)

The beach here is perfect. The building stops at the other side of the street so you're not sitting under someone's balcony or anything. The sand is soft and yellow. They clean the beaches each night so in the morning, it is freshly swept and free of shit, trash, etc. The water was awesome too. Warm and not too full of sea weed. I still have my paranoia of sharks and today I was playing alone in the waves and I felt this massive current whip by my legs like someone waved a fin next to me. I never found out what it was and it could have been me for all I know. Tanja and I have to swim separately cause someone has to stay with the stuff on the beach. When I got back, she laughed and said she thought I drowned cause I was out there for 30 minutes.. I could barely bring myself to get out... Tomorrow, I'll go for an hour. Are you hating me for talking about this when our president is getting too big for his britches or is it refreshing..?

We went out bar hopping last night and I got to speak a lot! of Spanish with these fellahs that spoke no Ingles. I have one of them convinced to travel soon. He is 31 and has never been out of Spain! Now, getting out of the US can be tricky, but with their trains, there is no excuse. He was like, You are soooo right. I will go. I need to go and see France and Italy at least.. Get on it! Tanja met a Danish guy to keep her chatting as she speaks no Spanish. Did I mention, this city is very alive! I went to two museums the other day... The Museum of Modern Catalan Art and the Picasso Museum. Both were great. The Picasso museum has mostly his earlier works?? Not so much cubism and no multi media.. just paintings and some ceramics and a bunch of drawings too. It was really nice and well displayed.

The Modern Art museum has given me a new sculptor too bsess over and learn about.... name?? ughh... I have a post card.. I think it is Miguel Bray.. Quay.. something like that. And then another named Lluminoa.. I don't remember, but the first guy had this one sculpture in there of an old man sitting naked on a bench with a little girl sitting next to him, her head resting on his shoulder. I sat and looked at it for a while and I had myself convinced that it was a street performer, doused in powder, posing in the museum. It was almost to scale and the flesh was wrinkled, sagging, indented, fluid in so many perfect places.. and it was of Marble! Great!

Tomorrow we are going to see the big church.. Sagrada Familia and the Guida architecture... the park, the music theatre, etc. Then more beach and night life! Tonight, we were both feeling a little haggard so we decided not to go all out, even though it is Friday night.. so we just made our way through town and got so lucky as to stumble into a parade... a fiesta with fireworks, torches, drumming, horns, big papier mache dragons, pigs, devils, and other crazy creatures.. The biggest most Spanish celebration.. just like in my history text books...or social studies or literature.. I dunno.

OK.. the war... Well, like I said or did I... I haven't seen much about our current state of affairs on the tele here. They have their own problems. Local news is always about someone who was abductedand or killed or the situation with the ETA, etc. With an occasional mention of the Estados Unidos.. that's us. ;) But, I did get a paper and saw that Bush may be upsetting some people with his funny Texas talk, his cowboy mentality and his all out let's go to war enthusiasm. I also have received ump`teen petitions from all of you about settling him down a little.. take the easy approach. Looks like we may go back to the 60's. That's great. I always knew I was meant to be a hippie.. make love, not war.. all that groovy stuff. My Finnish friend says it will only bring more countries into the situation that otherwise would be out and loads of innocents will die like in the Vietnam war... but we have the right cause unlike that war, we have business, an obligation of sorts.. That's her thought.... I cried in a bar last night cause I have no one to cry with and finally it just got to me, so I sobbed with Finland and Denmark... not too much, just a little, poor Americans and I wish I could do more.. They sympathized. Everyone does. What a shitty situation.

Today on the beach the craziest thing happened! We were just laying there, taking in sun rays when all of a sudden a huge fighter jet, or some fancy plane flew right over the beach, right above our heads. It was so close to us and so loud that we were all plugging our ears... The beach was crammed at this time. Everyone sat up on their towels and stared in disbelief... What the hell was going on!? Then it headed out toward the horizon and turned back around!!! It came back doing sommersaults and spins and then went away ... then came back and right in front of us took a ninety degree turn up and flew straight up then another turn so that it was flying upside down.. then it made a nose dive and came flying toward the sea.. It came back by about three more times and then was gone. I had my things in hand, ready to run... paranoid? Everyone else just sat watching. It was like an air show, but the plane was so sleek.. not some little funny plane.. a full on F180.. ha ha. Like I know my planes.. Whatever. It was nuts!

As far as whether most people around here think we should go to war...I haven't gotten the impression that it is too on their mind. Spanish people seem so laid back. I know they're thinking about it, but Italy and France showed more signs of caring about the situation. I think, they are just reporting what the general feeling is inAmerica, which I can only guess is that we need to take a deep breath and go slow and easy until that's not an option. One of Osama's dudes should just kick him to the curb and then kill himself. Step up to the cause, ya know. Murder suicide for the betterment of man kind.. yeah, likely! Well, just thought I would let you all know I am alive! love and best to everyone.. Ciao. -rai

Switzerland - Italy 2001 (5)

Hi gang. Well, let me start by saying that I hope that no one is bummed with me for writing about my adventures in the midst of all else out there, but life does go on and maybe more so for me because everyday I don't have the chance to see the news... good, bad, sad and touching - nor do I have much opportunity to get papers in English where I am at the moment. I will say that my Italian is improving from the articles I have tried to read, but I think it maybe leading to misinterpretaions and misunderstandings on my part about our current situation in the good ole US of A as it is so lovingly called. I do know that they have arrested some folks, pointed all fingers at Bin Laden and are aiming towards a war on Terrorism.. I also read a lot about the calls made by passengers from the planes, about the people holding hands in the air while they jumped from the towers, about the rescue of one officer who fell with the 82nd floor and about all the efforts made across the world to remember the victims through silent prayer, candles and flags. I am often hit unexpectedly by the tears on my cheek when I see a paper or someone crying on the news while they re-tell what they saw. It is ever fresh in my mind.. but, the train pulls out and the train pulls in and I must keep going with it.. so for those of you who want to read on... here I go, the rest can save it for when they are ready to read it. I just can't imagine how you are all feeling and since there are so many on the list, I want you to know that I am not traveling blind to the heartache in the States.. I have it in my heart too!

So, now I am in San Remo. It is in Italy just before the French border.. It's not worth a stop if you don't have much time. I came here with Tanya, a gal from Finland. We were together with Susan, a gal from Oregon in Finale and we decided to keep going the same way together. This town has a huge harbor and probably amazing seafood. There are many young people here but it is not the prettiest town or the most memorable. The weather is cooling off dramatically even though I am still in the Italian Riviera. Fall is here for sure! Good thing I'm going to Spain. Let me go back, go back...

Finale was great! For a few days. We stayed in a hostel on the top of a hill, at the top of maybe too many stairs! My pack is still too big. The hostel was cheap and our room was full of so much worldly power! We had Austria, Sweden, Finland, Italy, Poland and the US. It was quite beautiful. If you would like to know how they feel about it all, stay tuned. I'll go there in a second... The only crappy thing about the hostel is that they kick you out from 10a to 5p and one of the days was cold and then very wet, when the heavens opened up and let her tears douse us. We took refuge in a big, beautiful basilica and talked religion. Tanya, the Finnish gal, was shocked that we could actually be born without religion in the US. Susan was born of parents who don't really practice, so she is not of any church.. Tanya very innocently asked her, 'How did you get your name, then?' Isn't that beautiful! She thought you had to be baptised into a church to even get a name! I love this world. It is so full of surprises. We filled her in on the ways of our little space on earth and she on hers.

In Finland, you can choose to leave the church when youare older. Most people are Evangelical Lutheran although most don't really go to church, they just ARE. That night we met some new Italian friends, Tessa and her bro, Fabio (no lie, but no blonde hair). Then what should I overhear Fabio say to our other aforeunmentioned (new word, RaiWords 2001) friend Tom,who is from England and cycling to Greece... that he (Fabio.. still with me?) and his friends were going CLIMBING! What, I screamed.. well, asked calmely...climbing? So, I made a plan to meet him the next day on the train station steps to go.. They weren't going til 1pm so I went to the beach, sunned and swam with Susan and Tanya and then headed for the station.

Myself, Nadia, Fabio, Federico, and Juan Marco hopped in Fabio's car and headed out to Monte Cucco. The climbing was fun, but we barely got any in. Juan Marcois the 'experienced' climber. I had to get his gear off two routes. And the rest are only top-ropers. Their style is to hang at every bolt, or move, whichever comes first. It was a blast and I just sat back and enjoyed the day and the few climbs that we did do. I took it all in so that I would know wether or not to come back. They just about cracked me up though with the way they talk to each other. I learned yet more Italian through them. Only Fabio and Nadia spoke English. Ya know how we all say, OH MyGod.. quite freequently in shock or surprise mode..well, they say.. Oh Madonna!.. but with the Italian twist which I have quite taken to. So, from here on out, Oh Mah don ah! After climbing, we went to THE PIZZA place for the climbers, just down the hill from the climbing. Scott Franklin was present... in a poster climbing in the New River Gorge.. as well as other posters of Arches Nat'l Park, Canyonlands and Castle Valley.. It was great to see it.. and there was a photo of someone on SuperCrack! Oh, my lovely state. I was so proud!

While we were climbing, Nadia broke out her Italian newspaper and started to read bits and pieces. Next thing I know, the sweet 19 year old is crying. She is so upset by everything in the US and the world in general. She said they (Italians in general) can't even believe this is happening. They are all in shock that the US could actually have been attacked. The Swedish girl in my room faltered when I said I was from the US.. Oh, I'm so sorry. She couldn't believe that it was real. She walked past a paper stand and glanced a few times without stopping, telling herself the photos must have been created on a computer.

When she found them to be true later, she was in shock. In the sea, when I was swimming, this Italian Mackeral (guy that was macking on me) finally asked where I was from. I just said Utah. His eyes rolled up and sideways, fingering the files on geography stored in his head and then they shot forward, locked on mine and his head tilted to the side and he said in heavily accented English, 'I am SOO sorry for New York'. A bar tender in one Italian bar saw me reading the paper and tearing up and he asked the kids in the bar to settle down and he turned down the music. There were only four people in the place. On the news, they are always having forums with selected people, showing the clips of the attack and then discussing it. Unlike our talk shows, these ones are respectable with audiences that are just there to give support, mostly in tears and prayer. People don't assume that I am American. I think, with the time of year, it is unlikely that an American would be alone around here at this time.

Anyway...Back in Finale in the hostel, the morning I was leaving.. I ran into a group of five Brittish climbers. Although, one was living in France, two in the Middle East and one in Australia.. and one out of her back pack (ruck sack) for the time being. They were great to talk to. I think I have convinced them that even though I don't have a home, I would be a great host if ever they want to come to SLC to climb. They started drooling over the idea of Little Cottonwood and American Fork.. and Indian Creek, all of which they had heard of. One of them was even IRISH and get this DAD!!!! I asked from where in Ireland...'Dublin' Oh, my dad is from Dublin. From Terrenure (yikes, spelling!) and that he (you) grew up on Ashdale Road. She just got chills all over her body cause when she was younger she rented a flat at 38 Ashdale Road. She guessed that maybe she had seen my dad from time to time and thought he was a 'looker'..who knows! She's probably 55 or so. Crazy eh?

Anyway, although the climbing options seemed to be growing, I opted to leave Finale and go to the next port of wonder. Tanya is a bit sick to the stomach.. I think food poisoning. We are going to try to go to the beach today and then tomorrow we are going together to Monaco for the day and taking the night train to Barcelona. Are my plans always so random or what!? I think it will be nice to be in a big city. If I had been previously I could have given blood through Avis,the Italian donor center.. no relation to the car rental people. ;) I will still try in Barcelona. You know me.. always giving of my clean meat free blood. The track marks still apparent over the big veins! I hope you are aaaalllllll giving blood at home! One donation can save three lives! Please help. With the repercussions from Mad Cow the blood banks are in peril! It's never too late. If you give in Colorado or NC, that will maybe help someone in your state whose blood may otherwise have been taken from a NYer.. does that make sense.. Please go! Enuff, rai! Sorry.

The best way to get to know the people is to walk blindly through the streets in search of an internet cafe.. or point. I took an address from the yellow pages and went on this mission. I found the street, but in Italy, a lot of the businesses are in multilevel buildings, not advertised on the outside. So I asked directions in slow Italian and got them back in fast Italian. I'm sure he thought I must have been Italian cause why else would he have done that to me! I just smiled and again, thanked god that they talk with their hands. When I got there I was so embarrassed to find that I was in a business that sells internet products. Being sweet they set me up on someone else's computer, but then I asked where the internet point in town was and told them it would be better if I went there.. ooops. Well, guess where I am.... Using the 'internet point' that is nestled in MailBoxes Etc.. as in the one and only.. Wierd huh.. Anyway, I made it and I am glad to have been in touch again. Ciao my beautiful friends!

Until Barcelona. love, loyalty and friendship... 'rai. By the way,there are candles and flowers all over Europe for the victims... Oh yea, Beth, I'll tell your story. Beth,my friend from NY went to Germany with Jochen form Cinque Terre.. on her way to Munich. In Jochen's town, near Basel, Switzerland, in the main plaza, there were candles in the shape of a cross in memoryof all the victims and everyone else affected in general... The next morning when they drove by some kids were riding their bike to school and they stopped to relight some of the candles that had blown out inthe night....

Switzerland - Italy 2001 (4)

Hello all! I made it up the hill to my hostel at long last. Had to climb some thousand stairs with my pack on to get here. But, like I said earlier, rooms here are $12 a night so I can handle it. It's another dorm situation... 6 beds a room with a marginally friendly staff and less than marginal Italian rock music blaring in the lobby... but, the view of the ocean.. sea is phenomenal! The other funny thing is that the majority of the hostellers are Italian. It's the first time I've come across folks in a hostel that are from the country of the hostel.. but I am in a resort town and if they come from inland to here, they also wanna be reaping the benefits of an inexpensive stay by the shore.

I spent the day on the beach...well, let me back track.. I walked around Final Borgo this morning and checked out the climbing store. The climbing guide book for the area runs a fat $25 and is chock full of great looking sport climbs on impeccable rock! I asked about finding partners to join up with while here alone and they recommended camping out with the climbers on the other side of town... and then some (trek by bus and then walk 2K) so, I may check that out tomorrow and decide if it seems lucrative... otherwise, I'll just milk the sandy free beach for one more day and then head toSpain, or wherever... So, after I checked out the Borgo district, I did head back to the beach. I layed there for an hour before it got too hot and I had to jump in. The water is as clear as a pool! If I had 20 foot long legs, I'm sure I would still see my toes at the bottom. And the water was so warm! I didn't even raise my shoulders when the wave crashed up on my tumtum. I swam around on my own, regretting that I was on my own, but enjoyed it all the same... until, damn those sharks. They may not exist in these waters, but they sure exist in my head. I can't help seeing myself as their bait. This time I got spooked cause a fishing boat was going by with loads of birds soaring overhead and I thought they may be attracting the Big fish, ya know! Tomorrow I'll be braver. As my good girlfriend Megan Wolfe taught me, I can just tit dem sharks un tchase dem up dat mountin!

When I decided to head from the beach I looked around and realized that everyone was reading the paper. I saw New York on every beach towel! If only I could get out of bed early enough to get an English copy. It's not so much the sleeping part actually, just their location each day by 10am that is setting me back. Tomorrow I'm there!

As I walk around in all these cities you wonder what people think about you... well, sometimes, and maybe it's only me that thinks this cause I'm the foreigner... But, I remember once in Paris, all these people kept looking at me as I walked through one of these metro tunnels alone. Then when I got to the metro dock, everyone there was looking at me. At first I thought, oh, maybe I look cute today ;) Then I realized that I was the only white person waiting at that stop. Maybe that was it!? Then once I was walking about getting some looks and I thought maybe I had a boogie in the nose or food on the chin.. I never figured that one out. Here in Finale, I get so many looks.. ya know, those sympathetic ones again. I noticed that so far, I am!!! the only American around. So it mustn't have been the hot pink sarong, but wonder at my state of emotions or level of knowledge on the situation back home. I have seen Aussie's, Britts and Germans, but no Americanos... unless they're hiding. I guess American travel season is slow now anyway with school... and this isn't one of the BIG cities in the Let's Go guide....;)

Well, I will surf USA Today for a bit. Later I'll go out for pizza and a beer.. and dad, that's what I do in my spare time. Tomorrow there is a 'thing' coming to the museum... an exhibition! That's the word. So, I'll check that out and soak up some more rays... Oh, yeah, speaking of my tan (Jon, you can go now :)..) Today, I was buying fruit at a stand outside this shop and the shop keeper, an Italian man, said.. 'che nero, il piel' (how black your skin is...) 'are you from spain or france?' HaHa.. I said Spain... A smaller town outside of Madrid.. Toledo! ;) I kept him going. He let me sample all the fruit, the figs.. he said, you don't have these in Spain. They are from Italy! I bought my fruit and asked for more directions and headed off laughing at the bluffer I am. I am proud tobe American, but right now, it's kinda nice to not deal with the questions or assumptions! Soy espanola!!! Chau amigos! Vaya con cualquier dios quedeseas!! Un beso, Raquelita!

Switzerland - Italy 2001 (3)

Hi everyone and then some... Wow. What a moment in our little lives, eh? Yesterday and today have been jarring for me. I spent last night with a great group of folks and we stayed on top of the news. It was hard to watch, but I felt it necessary. Most of it was from CNN. The footage is unbelievable and eternally upsetting. I want to thank all 25 of you who did get in touch with me. It made me cry, for the fourth time today, to see everyone's face on the screen as I read each of your messages. You can probably imagine how important communication with all of you is right now! This morning my little possee and I had a small Italian breakfast over another dishing of the news, salted with some more tears... and then we split! Two to Germany, one to France and one to who knows... and then, me, in Finale Liguaro, Italy.

The train ride was fine. I got loads of sympathetic looks from all directions.. and they are still coming as I walk around the small resorty,beach town of Finale. The Italians are great! They are just so loving in the way they look at us, knowing without a word that we are American... I am still feeling their compassion. It breaks my heart to see all the news papers in Italian... Attacco all'America, la nueva Guerra.. and the photos! This is not supposed to be our country on the front page, right? Big mistake? I guess that's what we are all thinking right now. It does feel weird, as some of you wondered, to be watching all of this on European tele. It would be great to be home right now, but at the same time, I feel very safe right now. This little town is the perfect place for me... Amidst the sorrowful looks, there are still loads of Italians who are soaking up the rays on the beach and dancing in the cafes to American music as though nothing had even happened. I know they know, but here, life has to go on.

I know I am not in any danger here. It's just a dot on the map, not a target zone at all! I am going to avoid any big cities right now.. no Madrid, Barcelona, Rome... we're advised to steer clear of US Embassies and non-essential employees are recommended on Euro tv to leave Brussels. There was supposedly some concern over potential bomb threats in Frankfurt, but it was a mistake? And.... I don't know. I'll just force myself to stop dwelling and enjoy this gorgeous beach for a day or two, while staying on top of the important details. I can't believe the death toll is so high? I haven't seen the amount written here anywhere, so I don't know.. but one of you told me so....

I can speak more Italian than ever before, but I can't decipher the important stuff in the papers... Oh well. I am just glad that so many of you are ok.. I still want to hear from the rest of you! It's not much fun being on my own right now, but tomorrow I am moving into the hostel which overlooks the town and I should meet some folks there. So far, I haven't seen another American in this town... Hopefully I don't stick out like a sore thumb. I am dressed low key and I'm not in possession of my passport right now.. the hotel is.. so no one can demand it of me... not gonna happen anyway.

On a slightly lighter note, Finale is spectacular. It sits right on the beach, growing higher onto the hill with every street. It is surrounded by Limestone cliffs and supposed classic climbing.. My mission, to find the climbers. It is also overlooked by some13 century castle that I will explore tomorrow. I will be here a couple of days to lay low and see what happens and then maybe on to Figueras, Spain.. north of Barcelona... or... who knows.

Again, peace and love to everyone! Take super care and I'll be doing the same. This is old hat to some people. We may just need a week to adjust and then we'll be back on top. We can keep control and Bush and his forces will do well for us! Ciao babies! love, Rai!!!!
(April 22nd, 2007 SideNote - Can you believe I said that BUSH would do well for us back then?)

Switzerland - Italy 2001 (2) 9.11

Hey everyone..

Needless to say it has been a sobering day. You are still in it and I am wrapping it up. I was swimming and cliff diving all day, checking out loads of cool mediterranean fish when a Spanish woman on holidays here in Cinque Torre felt that we might want to know what happened on our soil. We looked at each other in disbelief and headed up the tiny town to check the news.. There was a pizzeria with CNN on and there it was like a nightmare in real life and full color. It didn't take long for us to burst into tears of desperation and disbelief. War, death, loss of friends. Two of us are from NY.. luckily, phone calls relieved them at long last and no one in the immediate fam or friends were hurt.

I was worried about my girl Dani and her boy Curt, but they are ok as is the family I just nannied for in Paris. I am in a bar in Riomaggiore right now with the noise of CNN in my ears.. the hidden cams, the sounds of excited and upset americans... and the thoughts running through my own head. I really can't believe what I'm seeing and hearing.

ObviouslyI am NOT going to Morocco right now. As it is, I don't really know where to go to be safest.. As of this afternoon, I was hopping a train to Figueras and then on to San Sebastian... but that was then and now, the Basque region with the ETA and all of this .. may not be good.. so, I am leaning towards taking refuge with family friends in Portugal and if the shit hits I will go HOME to Ireland and stay with family there until flying home is safe. I hope to god that all of you are safe and your families.. I know lots of you have friends and family in NY, DC and maybe other target areas..

I would love more than anything to hear from everyone of the 80 of you!! so that I know you're doing fine in sight of the fact that we are supposedly embarking on WWIII... bad joke... or not. I am definitely thinking of you all. When we sat together watching the sun set over the water this evening, we bid it farewell with our strength and encouragement for those in the eastern US.. I will be in touch tomorrow from wherever I go. We.. my five pals and I... all go our separate ways tomorrow and I will probably just creep around the corner to Figueras, still on the Italian Riviera. Good luck and safety to all .. love, rai!!!

Switzerland - Italy 2001 (1)

Hello gang! I can't write much, I don't think right now cause I am plum tuckered. Thanks for the message sagain. Everyone that wrote from SLC was so excited about the onset of fall weather! It seemed like maybe you all wrote on the same day. I'm sad to remember that I won't get to see a Utah autumn this year, but I think this Italian and Portuguese one will do me just right.

Right now I am in Vernazza, which is one of the five towns which comprise Cinque Terre. It is quite impressive! The towns are close enough to hike between. They sit high on hillsides, spiralling up and down to churches or light towers. It reminds me of some of the towns in Provence, but these sit right over the water... constant surges of power from the ocean beating against the rocky cliffs that the towns sit on or between. You should pop onto the internet and look up Cinque Terre. The towns are Riomaggiore (which is where we are renting our own little apartment.. 6 of us, we picked up a Jersey boy.),Vernazza with its great little harbor and wonderful sunbathing rocks and small diving rocks.. that's what we did all day. I'm so tired mainly cause I've been swimming around in the harbor back and forth to the jumping rocks.. with a diving mask on.. I nearly had the buhjeezus scared out of me when I looked into a school of sparkly fish.... next town... (they're not in order actually..), Corneglia, where we had the best latte macchiato and marvelled at the great narrow cobbles streets and colorful buildings... and then Montarola which has spectacular views, a great swimming hole and loads of its own colors.. and finally Monterosso which has the nicest of the beaches, sandy, big and right under the center of the town.

These towns are seriously small and so full of color, culture and pride. From one you can usually see the other four. The hike between the five is not so strenuous, just the occasional up, up, up. We did the hike in 6 hours with a cappacino break, a shopping break, a restock of film and of course lots of photo ops. I am mainly taking slides so I will have them to show on someone's wall when I get back to all of my US hometowns and those of my pals. Last night we chilled in our own little town after having an early supper in Monterosso.. great pizza, pasta and wine.. what else in Italy?

Well, while chillin' we managed to get a bit loopy and stormed the town with fervent energy! Not disgraceful, just fun. We sat on these old stairs by the water and roared with laughter as the waves came in sets and crashed over the nearby rocks, spraying us randomly and unexpectedly. It was beautiful. Our apartment is great. It's part of the landlord's home, with a kitchen, bath, and basic beds... just enough. From here, I may go with Beth, NY, to Portugal to meet up with some of her friends.

I am no longer meeting Doug in Nice to go to Sardigna as his plans have changed a bit, so I will probably go on my own.... although, I know have the wonderful opportunity to to go to Morroco with a new travel friend. I also met an African guy last night... a guy from northern Africa... Tunisia? and I may get some beta from him.. but like everything else on this crazy overstocked journey, who knows?! All I know for now and for certain is that I am so hungry,we have the grubbin' to cook and the wine to drink and that is where I am heading!

Until later.... I miss everyone and I hope you're all doing great! Ciao bellas.

France - Switzerland 2001 (4)

You ready for the rest.... This morning we woke and bid farewell to the lovely family that put us up. I say we cause Eric is leaving at the same time to go to southern Switzerland, near Lake Geneva... and I am off to Luzern. We took the train down to Interlaken together and said goodbye. Don't jump to any conclusions.. there was no romance, just friendship, and like all encounters in travel, that one had to end. We'll be in touch via e-mail and maybe see each other in the states. It's odd to make friends in Switzerland or anywhere else over seas that only live ten hours or so away in your own country.. strange. The train ride from there was beautiful, but I relish my reading time when I ride trains cause it's the best so I read more than I gawked and then after a while, I just reflected. It's sad to keep saying good bye... Funny that tomorrow I will see my German friend again and by 3pm tomorrow I will see Beth, James and David.. all USA. So, I get to Luzern. Disembark, pay to use the WC (toilette) and make my way to the hostel, which ends up being a bottom floor of student housing. Big and impersonal unlike what I just came from. This town is actually more of a city and I was in shock when I first got here after my solitude last week.

I quite dread being back in the city. All the cars and neon signs and people everywhere. And it seems strange to hear so much German and see it on every sign. Don't let that seem ignorant of me, it's just that Switzerland seems like it should have its very own language... The other funny thing is that I totally fit in here. I keep getting spoken to in fast German. No one jumps to the conlcusion that I am a tourist, which is refreshing. Once I checked in to my ward... The room having all white walls and furniture, no rug and orange blankets... a bit sanitary, ya know.. I walked around the corner to .... yes, the climbing gym.. Kletter Halle. I was very disappointed. It ain't no Rockreation... not even a woody. It may be better in some people's eyes, like those that were there. I got greeted in ferocious German by this tall Anglo with glasses who had someone on belay. After I said Nicht sprecken sie Duetch or whatever, he kept going. Finally someone was able to tell me that they had rented the place out until later that night... I wasn't too bummed cause they didn'thave any bouldering anyway, just leading and tr'ingand I didn't have a partner, obviously...

So, from there I made a big figure 8 around the town, saw it and now know it like the back of the pinky nail on my left toe... I didn't really see much.. But I did see that famous wooden bridge that apparently burned down in 1993 and has since been rebuilt. I also walked down some stairs which end in the river and are used to embark boats and I busted out the remainder of the loaf of sesame seed bread I had been living on all day (with brie cheese) and I fed the five swans and four ducks, females... 3 babies and the mom... until my bread was gone.. Guess what I did discover though. I spotted among the many water birds here, some Coots. I don't even know if that is what they are called, but that is what I have always known them as. They were always on our lake in the winters. They are the little black/grey ones with maybe a bit of white on the head which never fly.. They only run across the lake to join in the partaking of breaded goods. I always wondered about that whole flying thing cause they were there one month and gone several months later.. and I tend to doubt that they pack it all on their backs and huff it on foot.. but, what you don't see you can argue for or against really, right? I went to a tattoo parlour and almost decided to get my neckdone when I figured... A) dad and mom would probably not laugh at number 5 and B) in German, I might not explain the shading I would prefer adequately.. So, giving up on the town of Luzern I drifted to the movie theatre and was ever so delighted to see that it was yet another movie in English that I had not yet seen... The Mexican, with Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts. He usually doesn't do it for me, but it was all good in this movie. Maybe that Anniston woman is good for him after all...

Now, I'm listening to the Gypsy Kings, a Korean woman talk to her country folk on the phone and my own rampant thoughts which are fighting for seniority.. I'll be going to bed now and getting ready for my drive to the beach.. approx. 4 hours.

Love, loyalty and all that good stuff... Oh yeah, FYI.. My dad just sent me a note that there was a fire in a stable in Fontainbleau the week I was supposed to go and 24 horses were killed and many more burned badly...show horses.. For a reason.. many of us say it.. It's a cliche for a reason.. Everything happens for a reason.

ciao

France - Switzerland 2001 (3)

Hey everyone... Life goes on and so does Rai!

First let me recount my journey yesterday. Eric, SantaCruz, and I went on a great hike right on up to the Eiger. First we made our way across the valley and over the river, up the steep hill to Wengen (ven-gun) which brings to mind the day when an ex-beau told me that this is the town of his namesake... oh, how the memories can rush in so uninvitedly.. thank god the base jumpers across the valley gave me sufficient distraction... We met those base jumpers the night before, as they were staying in our hostel. One of the crew had a Nat'l Geographic jacket on and went out that day with a big camera on his head, so who knows... Anyway, in Wengen we had a cup of cafe aulait, caffe latte, cafe creme, cafe with milk... and took in the view of this cool little town nestled high above Lauterbrunnen. As we sat there, relishing the view, we realized that we were both on the same page, titled, LAZY SOB's so we decided to take a train to Wengernalp, one stop from the top... and what a great choice.

From there we rejoined the Eigerschlieterznickensldeutclat.... just kidding, theEiger trail and at a fork veered up and away from all others. It was a bit more burly, ahem.. toughsters comin' through.. Wanna know what happened next... Well, we stumbled upon, yes... cows! Of course I wanted my picture with them so I walked up to this one who just looked at me and then went back to grazing, for the moment. As soon as I put my arm around her, she turned aruond and busted out the sand paper cuffs... IOW she wrapped her big course tongue around my wrist and just licked away. Oh how great that was! Eric was even amused...and he eats meat. ;) So we kept trudging our way to the top, balancing atop a cute little ridge with snow on one side and none on the other....aspect. Then we spotted a herd of Chamois in the field below.. those goatalope things that are also like deer. At the top we had only about an hour to go to be meters from the base of the northface of the Eiger, but from our perch on the West Face we could see that the single track trail was laiden with snow and would pose trouble to the silly american gal with the runners on... I got that look all day. Little do they know I used to be a mean mountain machine. From there, we headed down to the saddle with the big town of Grindlewald way down the hill on our right.

At the saddle we wandered through some touristy shops and I bought myself a cowbell... a little one on an embroidered necklacey type thing.. It jingled as I walked and I felt like one of the bro's. I swear this one cow winked at me when I trotted past. We jaunted down the trail like kids, bustin' big air on the lip of every turn and biffin' once in awhile... there will be snow in SLC when I get back, cause now that I have the lingo down, I think I can wear my pants around my knees too... hee hee.

So, are you ready for the biggest part of the whole thing....well, the whole time we were hiking up we were looking at glaciers with amazing blue walls where recent breaks had taken place, so what did we see... Well, we're just walking along, being our ususal sarcastic selves when all of a sudden like a plane and thunder together right in our ear, the snow starts belting down this glacier's face, crashing for a few hundred feet onto the ledge below then gushing between two rock walls and down another drop, like a water fall...It was the most powerful thing! Luckily it was far from all people, though you would never think that with the noise it was making. We felt very lucky to witness that! From there it started to rain so we put a spring in our step and then my knees started to ache like hell.. I'm just too old for all this. If you're still under 22 do it now.. get out while you can.. ;)

Well, a couple of hours later and via a different route we are back in Wengen. We barely make it to the supermercado to buy some fixins to cook back at the casita... but we do. And we kick down for a beer at the same time so we have company for the last 40 minutes or so. Thank god for that beer cause my knees were shot at that point. So bad that Eric quickly came up with this game to keep my mind off it.. It was silly, you have to give a clue that leads the other person to guess what you're thinking, and it is always a two word ryhming pair of some sort... ex. chubby feline = fat cat. Or dude with braids and a horned hat who normally sails but is spending time in the mountain... hiking viking.. ha! It worked for a few seconds. :) At the bottom, we kicked the Brit's ass in Gin Rummy again.. or should I say, I did! I'll pick up from there so you can rest.. bye