Weekend in Greece, as you do

So the UN here is Kosova occasionally (or maybe frequently, I don't know, I'm still kind of new here) organizes bus trips to places. And this month they had two weekend trips to Paralia, Greece. Having been in school for a lengthy two weeks (and not even full weeks), I clearly needed a break. So last Friday after school we boarded a bus filled with various international types and were on our way.

You may or may not have heard in the news, there have been some issues between Kosova and Macedonia about border crossing. So our journey to Greece involved first driving into Serbia, then into Montenegro, and finally into Greece, with all sorts of border stops. (Usually I love getting stamps in my passport, but sadly these stamps were all so faint that the only part you can actually read is the date) So we didn't roll into Paralia until about midnight. Basically we checked in and passed out, all pretty happy to be horizontal instead of wedged uncomfortably in a bus seat.

When the sun came up we suited up and headed down to breakfast. First of all, our hotel and its restaurant were right on the beach, and on top of that the breakfast was a huge smorgasbord of eggs, cereals, baked things, beans, feta, tomatoes and cukes, fruit, and of course fabulous Greek yogurt and honey.


We spent all day at the beach. Both days were actually beautiful - not a cloud in the sky, in the 80s - it was heaven. The water was a little bit cool, but not bad once you got in and the beach was walled off from the open sea, so it was pretty calm. The hotel had lounge chairs, little tables, and umbrellas all set up. The only catch was that you had to order stuff from the hotel bar/restaurant. So we had drinks served to us all day and also occasionally they would bring us little bowls of potato chips or nuts.


We didn't really realize that this snack service was kind of a thing until after dinner.

There were about 10 of us on the trip who knew each other, so we all went out looking for somewhere nice to eat and to try a little local food. I ordered some sort of spicy meatball thing which was delicious. We had some amazing little salads beforehand - beet salad, carrot salad, coleslaw - and some tzatziki with bread. The owner (?) of the restaurant had sort of lured us in with the promise of a free glass of wine. There was also a free shot of ouzo.

After dinner, some of us went to get another drink or two and we found this cute little bar with comfortable outdoor seating and twinkle lights. When our drinks came, so did a little tray of cucumber and tomato slices. Then there were some chips. And some little ham and cheese toasty sandwiches. and a small pizza. and a little shot of liqueur in an edible chocolate glass. We probably could have done without dinner, that's how much food they were bringing us at this bar.


Like I said, day two was just as beautiful and it started out exactly the same way. We spent the morning on the beach, then wandered around the shops a little bit. I bought lentils from the grocery store and some kalamata olives (you know, as a souvenir). On the way to get our bus back to Kosova we stopped to pick up a little chicken gyro which was delicious.

Luckily, border issues were solved over the weekend (?? Seems impossible, work getting done on the weekend) and we had a much shorter trip back to Pristina. Though I knew going into the trip that we might get back late on Sunday night and that I would have to be up early for school the next morning, I decided it would be worth it. And it was. AND we got back into Pristina by 8pm, so I even had time to pull myself together and have a relaxing evening before jumping back into school.

I can't wait to see what other weekend trips are being planned. This weekend home and doing nothing has been great so far, it's really giving me a chance to feel like I'm catching up on some grading and even planning ahead for my classes.

long time, no post (nicaragua & panama)

so i know, i had this plan to post more about my trip to nicaragua during semana santa (easter week) and now it's late april.... so i guess i'll go with the condensed version.

the absolute best part of our trip to nicaragua was that the morning we moved to this cheaper hostel (after our late arrival the night before) we hear the people running get a phone call.... the turtles are hatching. so they organize this trip late that night to see the baby sea turtles hatch at this reserve beach (la flor i believe). so we were completely into it and probably like the first people to sign up. that night we go and it's so cool. probably one of the coolest things i've seen here. not only did we see the turtles digging their way up out of the sand and heading for the ocean (bathed only in red light so as not to disturb them) but we also saw a big turtle who came to shore late lay her eggs. so. cool.


so that was weeks ago now.... and i needed to leave the country again before my trip home in july. and we had a long weekend just this past one (batalla de santa rosa - costa ricans fought against the evil american william walker) and so we went off to panama. here i am crossing the border - yes, i'm walking on a rickety old railroad track bridge. super dodgy, but this is the border between costa rica and panaman.


and this one is me doing a cartwheel off this diving board at a bar. the problem was i was overshooting my dives a little bit and slapped my legs pretty good a couple of times (and i still have the bruises to prove it. so my diving coach encouraged me to make like i was doing a cartwheel in the air off the end of the board, and doing a little flip landing feet first. scary the first time, but so much fun.


so that's what i've been up to. it's the end of the first quarter and i'm kind of swamped with trying to get all my grades together, grading papers, and blah blah blah. definitely a learning experience this past quarter.... seeing how this how grading thing is playing out, i am definitely doing some things a little different for the next quarter.

tomorrow is festival imperial, which should be pretty awesome. i'm going to see smashing pumpkins and incubus, for a mere ¢10,000 (that's $20). and i've heard the ticket includes some free beers too. after all, imperial is la cerveza de costa rica.

nica saga - intro

so i'm just back from nicaragua. seriously, just now, at nearly midnight on friday... it's a long story... the whole trip is a long story... and i'll tell all as soon as i get some sleep. but i'm back safe and sound.

back with a fresh visa

for those of you who were concerned about me going to panama... i assure you it was not a scary place. (in fact it was pretty touristy- at least where i was). and that i'm back. photos and stories to follow.

nicaragua wrap-up

so our first relaxing day on ometepe island we decided to go to this natural swimming hole called ojo de agua (new picture at right). we took the bus... despite my disdain at the whole island bus system. after paying a dollar and walking through a cow field (very carefully) we arrived at the place. the water was kind of a greenish-blue and a little chilly. clearly the focal point of the whole place was the rope swing. a stream of young local boys were swinging off it. we just watched for a while then decided to try it before sitting in the sun for a little bit.

WELL. it was pretty awesome. and after sitting in our chairs for a little while longer we decided that we should try to take some pictures using the rapid fire picture mode on my camera. i was endlessly amused by the whole ordeal and we went on the rope swing many times - while perfecting the method of the shooting mode. such a blast. i was smiling about it for the rest of the day.

the rest of the day we just kind of chilled for a while. we chatted with a few other travlers - sara, tom, and barbara - who we ended up hiking the volcano the next day with.

ah, the volcano hike... well, they said it would be an 8 hour hike - four up and four back - which i was a little concerned about, as i'm rather out of shape. and it certainly was 8 hours. at first it was fine. a challenging hike, to be sure. but after about two and half hours i stopped having fun. the trail was, well, not very trail like. we were basically hiking up a narrow ravine with water trickling down and ankle deep mud. it was incredibly rocky and quite steep. on top of all that - when we got to the top, where there was a crater lake (this is an extinct volcano - the other on the island is still active), it was so foggy/cloudy that you couldn't even really see across the lake.

so i was not really thrilled with the hike. and i could barely walk when i got down (for like 2 days afterwards as well) and i was coated in mud. *sigh*

the next day we left the island and headed up to managua where we were going to catch our bus back to costa rica in the morning. managua was, meh, a city, not all that different from san jose. we sprung for a room with AC, TV, and our own private bathroom. ah, luxury. saturday morning we got up bright and early and walked (yes, the other feature of our "luxury" hotel was that it was less than two blocks to the bus station) to the bus station. another long day on the bus (but again - rather luxurious compared to our other bus adventures in nicaragua) and this time only 2 and a half hours at the border - and no standing in the sun.

arriving back in costa rica kind of felt like coming home. i was half expecting to see someone at the bus station holding a sign for us (man, do i love signs at airports/bus stations!). so home again, home again.

when are there too many people on a bus?

answer: never. seriously. especially in nicaragua.

so after spending a lovely day and night in granada, cruising around granada (which i really liked) we got ready to head for the island of ometepe. we got ourselves together in the morning and made our way to the bus station. well, "station" is too strong a word. the buses for rivas left from the corner across the street from the gas station. no problem. however, due to a little confusion when trying to pay our bill at the hostel we arrived just in time to hop on the bus. all the seats were full and we had to stand and lean against the side of the seats. normally not a huge deal - but this was going to be an hour and half bus ride.

not a terrible ordeal overall. but we kept stopping and picking up more people. and more people. every once in a while someone would get off - but mostly we were just picking up more people. finally at one point the bus is kind of pulled over and the guy is shouting "rivas!" and waving us toward the back of the bus. so we jump out the back grade school bus emergency drill style and there´s a taxi driver waiting to take us to the port.

then we get on the ferry, which will take us to ometepe. again crowded, but not that bad. what did worry me was how interested everyone was with the life jackets. like grabbing one off the rack and holding it with them in their seats... so after an hour of sitting on a metal seat i was ready to get off the boat.

we get on the island and talk to these people at a hotel which the book says can make a reservation at this place near the beach. so after that's squared away we wait for the bus. it finally pulls up to the bus stop and we hop on a take a seat. and then we wait. and wait. for the next ferry to come in. at which point tons more people get on the bus. and finally we take off. the bus is pretty packed, but we keep picking up more people. lots of people.

it takes us nearly two hours to get to where were going. which is a bit surprising because it's not a very big island. but all the stopping takes a while. and then when we are a little farther away from the main town the quality of roads deteriorates rapidly. so not only are we going about 10 miles an hour the whole time and stopping to pick up more and more people, we are also dodging pot holes and swerving all over the road to avoid livestock.

by the time we get to our hotel i am so ready to get off of the bus. our room turns out to be fine, with a shared bath and a view of one of the volcanoes out the window. we take a little walk along the beach to santo domingo for dinner. and then a longish (about 25 minutes - even though the book claims it should be about a kilometer away) walk back home. we decide the next day will be for some relaxing and exploring. more later.

fronterra extravaganza

so we woke up at the crack - no wait - well before the crack - of dawn this morning to get ready to leave for nicaragua. 3:15am. i actually felt surprisingly awake - but seriously, it's more like the middle of the night than the morning. we got ready, made some pb&j's and called our taxi. got to the bus station ¢4,000 poorer - even though normally this would have cost like ¢2,000. but it was the middle of the night. and for some reason our taxi driver came from another town. but whatever.

we got on our bus, which was well air-conditioned, and settled in. well, since it was the middle of the night (okay, well 5am i guess is the early morning) it wasn't actually hot. at all. so we spent the first part of our journey with goosebumps trying to get a little more sleep.

eventually we seemed to arrive somewhere. everyone got off the bus and got in line to get our "leaving costa rica" stamp. well. this line rivaled the line for space mountain on the busiest day at disney. it snaked back and forth through a dirt parking lot with no sun. we stood in this line for over 2 hours. sometimes there seemed to be regular movement. but other times it would just stop. for like 20 minutes. at one point we got excited that we might actually get the the shady portion of the line just before entering the building. but no. we were just out of reach and the line stopped for like a half an hour.

eventually we got through, having ruined all my careful tanning on the patio in the process. we found our bus and got back on. the driver collected all of our passports and $8. this was for the "entering nicaragua" portion of the border crossing.

so while we wait, colleen decides she's going to use the bathroom on the bus. she goes, but then comes back pretty quickly. apparently there was a big crap in the toilet. so we're waiting and the driver goes to the back - seems someone has told him about the poo - and berates the back of the bus - los banos son solamente para liquidas!!! the bathroom is only for liquids! then he gets off the bus and moments later comes back. carrying a big stick.

the nicaragua portion of the border crossing goes much easier. the bus driver gets all the passports stamped. all we have to do is get our bags out from under the bus and stand in a short line to talk to the customs guy. you show him your form and then you press a button connected to a modified stop light with only two options. red - you go inside to have your bags searched - or green - back to the bus. luckily colleen and i both get green.

getting all the luggage back on the bus ends up being a bit of a project as well. but we do discover that the bus can drop us off in granada instead of taking us all the way to managua where we would have to get *another* bus to granada. we arrive in granada at about 5pm. a very long day, for sure. all in all the whole border crossing extravaganza tooks us about four and a half hours. aye dios mio!.

but now we're here. we've had some dinner. some beers. we have a place to stay. free internet. and we don't have to work for a whole week!!

hang loose redux

i've long since recovered from the frustration of losing my post at the shipboard internet center... and i'm not really 100% sure of what i was planning on saying anymore. so instead i'll just post a few more pictures from hawaii as a reminder to "just hang loose".


towards the end of the cruise there was a shift change for some of the crew. and we finally got a cabin steward who knew how to make towel animals. which of course is one of the more amusing things about cruises. we also got a bunny. but out of a 7 day cruise, 2 towel animals does not an extra tip earn.


the zipline in kauai was probably one of the cooler things i've done in my life. here's meg en route across the zipline. the guy in the blue shirt works for the zipline company. but he was once a mere vacationer who never went home and found this job. he's my hero. plus he's from nashua and says he would like to open a zip course in north conway someday. i'm so there. :)


on the last day of the cruise we did some "scenic cruising" past the napali coast on kauai. which was amazing and beautiful. and perhaps due to the proximity of the bar to our viewing spot on deck i took about 100 pictures that all look relatively the same. but none-the-less it was cool.


the sunset on waikiki beach. sadly it's never really an *amazing* sunset in hawaii because as the air gets cooler the clouds pretty much always move in or something. so no crystal clear sunset, but still really nice.

hawaii is definitely somewhere i could see myself being happy for a while. it's beautiful, warm, there aren't any of those bad things that i hate, and the people are nice. but alas - i'm off to costa rica in less than 2 weeks. hopefully i have a similar reaction... and hopefully my spanish improves.

maui wowie (but not what you're thinking)

today was our second day in maui. it's been absolutely amazing, so beautiful. yesterday we took a trip to molokini, which is a crater island off one of the volcanoes of the island. from above the island has a crescent shape which shelters a great spot for snorkeling. we spent the morning exploring this spot and we have tons of photos.... which unfortunately are on the underwater camera and therefore NOT available for our immediate viewing pleasure (who knew digital cameras would make me so impatient?).


turtles!
after we left molokini basically we did some cruising around. and our pal captain doug opened up the bar.... the open bar.... :) i managed to ruin my careful tanning system by standing on deck in my suit drinking free vodka cranberries for a couple of hours... but what are you gonna do? we did get to see some turtles swimming near the boat - above is my best picture (which is admittedly not that good).


maui downhill bicycle
today meg and i did the downhill biking safari. now many of you might know how i feel about bikes.... for those of you who don't - i don't like them. living in japan and riding my flippin bike to work every day sort of turned me off of them. but this was an opportunity to ride a bike down a VOLCANO. (almost) no pedalling required. and the views were amazing - they said we had one of the clearest days that they've had in a while. but it was still a little bit scary.... careeening around those hairpin turns... trying not turn too far left (into oncoming traffic) or too far right (over the edge). it was exhilarating and beautful and i'll never do it again.

i'm quite excited that tomorrow i will try surfing for the very first time. i imagine in my mind that i will be quite a natural at surfing and possibly join the pro circuit in leiu of a traditional job. but we'll see how that goes. my immediate goals is to not get too badly sunburned the day before my massage. :)

aloha cousins!

i am in hawaii, cruising like a millionaire (except that i'm staying in one of the practically underwater cabins, but whatever) and having a blast. :) today is our first full day on the ship and we are docked at hilo on "the big island".

we arrived in hawaii on thursday evening after a long LONG day of traveling (i had two stopovers, the rest of my family only had one). it was all we could do to stay awake through dinner (hawaii is 6 hours behind the east coast). but i did make one great discovery at the ubiquitous "abc" stores (there's one about every block in honolulu) - they carry onigiri, which are these fabulous japanese snacks, basically rice and some sort of filling (salmon, tuna...) wrapped in seaweed and absolutely delicious.


waikiki at sunrise
friday morning was probably the earliest i've ever woken up on vacation... i was awake from about 3 or 4 am - dozing when i could. but we all got up and decided to head down to the beach for sunrise. unfortunately we were on the wrong side of the island to actually see the sun rising up over the ocean, but we still had a nice view of waikiki and diamond head.

we hit the beach pretty early and started the tanning (burning) process. i'm happy to say that i'm NOT sunburned (yet) and am well on my way to a deep, dark hawaiian tan (hopefully). by noon time we were pretty much done on the beach (we were there by like 8am) so we had some lunch and did some relaxing.


germaine's luau
friday night we went to germaines luau. basically a huge buffet of traditional hawaiian foods - such as the roast pig and poi and lomi-lomi. then there was a fabulous show of many different kinds of island dances. we saw some from hawaii, tahiti, new zealand (who knew?), and samoa. oh, and did i mention the drink tickets? ;P tropical (and your average run of the mill drinks as well) drinks and both meg and i purchased the souvenir germaine's glass (which only cost one ticket to refill - the same as the little cups). good times had by all.

saturday we hit the honolulu zoo which was nice. and then it was down to the port to board the ship. our rooms are actually really cute and the beds are super comfy. this morning i even woke up at a somewhat normal time (not normal for me, but there are people who wake up at 5:30am, right?). so before i know it i'll be on hawaii time... and looking tan like a native... maybe...

scotland photos

here is but a wee sampling of the photos i took in scotland... i may have gone a little crazy, but i love castles and stone buildings.


edinburgh castle - this is just one of about FORTY photos i took of the castle. most of them nearly identical to this one. i just love how it's perched on the cliffs. and the sun is shining in this one. not that it rained every day... just most of them (at least a little).

william wallace cow - there was some sort of art cow exhibition going on all throughout edinburgh. everywhere you went there were cows, painted with maps on them, painted to look like a feild of flowers, etc. they were everywhere. some of them were cool, but this guy was by far my favorite: perched high upon mercat cross in front of st. giles cathedral. william wallace. cow.

edinburgh palace - i didn't actually get to go in to the palace. the day we went down there it was closed off for some kind of award ceremony. i couldn't even really get a good photo. this one is the view of the palace from the top of calton hill.

greyfriars bobby - at first i thought this was such a cute little statue. and the fact that he had his own bar (pictured behind the statue) was kind of cool. but the (abbreviated) story is that after his master died he stayed by his grave until he also died (which was a long time after). such a cute story. and a cute statue... i was mildly obsessed.

me and jill at uruqhart castle on loch ness - since we were at loch ness with jill's parents, i have lots of pictures of the two of us there. it turned out to be a beautiful day after we waited out the rainstorm that began on our way to loch ness.

uruqhart castle - so amazing. of course i love castles. and even though this one is pretty skeletal (though not compared to elgin castle), it is probably my favorite that i saw on this trip. plus there are lots of stories about saints and picts and crazy highland folk. such a cool place, and all on the edge of the famed loch.

elgin cathedral - i'm told this cathedral was the reason that elgin was granted city status, though it's not so big a place. it's quite old and it was destroyed not by some large enemy, but by some feuding scotsmen. watch out - they're a wild bunch. i just wish they had restored some of the stained glass...

rosslyn chapel - of da vinci code fame. i was fascinated to see this place, which the book describes as being filled with intricate carvings and varied pre-christian, christian, and masonic symbols. it really was quite cool, and though filled with tourists (some of the annoying and irritating variety) i had a good time. took many pictures, none of which really do the place justice.

bits and bobs part 2

loch ness and nessie
i was very excited at the prospect of spotting nessie gliding through the famed loch ness waters... and after the rain cleared i had many opportunities to gaze out at the water from the ruins of uruqhart castle. but in the end i was surprised by where i managed to spot nessie:


and

i also spotted nessie outside of a large gift shop and strapped to a raft near a loch cruise dock. apparently he gets around. otherwise i would be selling these photos to the tabloids.

men in skirts
i don't know what it is... there's just something about men in kilts that i find very attractive. (not really a fan of the hats these boys are wearing in my photo... but still) and lucky for me there was some sort of award ceremony going on at the edinburgh palace. so while jill and i strolled the royal mile we passed many good looking young boys (and some older guys as well) sporting their kilts. :) makes a girl smile.



the perfect close to my trip since i started out my trip with hassle on my amsterdam to edinburgh flight, it's only fitting that i end my trip with more flight hassles. i arrived in london for my 2 hour layover without issue. i bought myself a magazine (that came with a free bathing suit - yes, seriously) and i sat down to read a bit while waiting for my gate number to be posted on the departures screens. when the gate was posted i gathered my belongings and made my way to the gate. it was a bit of a hike, but i didn't mind since i knew i would be sitting for the next 6-7 hours. as i neared where the gate was i saw a large mob standing off to one side. i breezed past them and to my horror - they were waiting to get in to the same gate i was looking for. *sigh* i took myself to the back of the queue and waited patiently. after standing in line for nearly 30 minutes (and our departure time fast approaching) i was finally through to the waiting room (after having my matches taken away from me, which i packed only because lighters are not allowed). it was exactly 30 minutes before our departure time that we were allowed to walk down the hall... at the end of which there was, not a plane, but a bus. we piled on to buses and rode for nearly 20 minutes (no exaggeration here) to our plane. it was one of those gigantic double-decker planes capable of carrying 5,000 passengers (probably a little exaggeration here...) - and it took well over an hour to get the rest of them from the terminal to the plane. not only that, but i was seated next to this surly american girl who was just angry about all aspects of the flight (okay, so i was annoyed as well, but it was a resigned annoyance, i wasn't trying to get anyone to comiserate with me). luckily i got to eat lovely food (chicken and penne with creamy broccoli and mushroom sauce) and watch good movies (failure to launch and lucky number slevin).

i'll probably post some pictures in a few days - i took like a million.

bits and bobs part 1

since i didn't get many chances to post while in scotland, i decided i would just tell a few short little stories:

royal pain in the arse airlines
or sometimes also called "royal dutch airlines" - KLM. after an overnight flight where i never really slept (like i said before, there were good movies) i had a short flight with them from amsterdam to edinburgh. well, it should have been short. we were all put on the plane, which wasn't very crowded. i had an empty seat next to me and an emergency aisle, the responsibilites of which were explained. then we waited. the captain came on and announced that there were low clouds in edinburgh, which meant that they didn't want planes coming in too close together. so we would be delayed about 30 minutes. we were served juice and pretzels. then we began to pull away from our gate. but before we got too far the captain came on again. this time there was a problem with the electricity on the panel. so we pulled into another stand and waited for the electrician to come on board and check it out. so we waited. eventually some repair was made and we were ready for takeoff *again*. but then.... the captain came on *again*... and due to the weather in edinburgh we wouldn't be able to takeoff for another 55 minutes. fortunately we actually got to take off this time, i was sure there were some surly businessmen who were near mutiny. and my concern was that i had no phone number to call jill and let her know even if i did have a phone (which i didn't). but when we arrived in edinburgh 2 and a 1/2 hours late she was still there. what a peach. :)

monster mash
after a couple of days at less than my normal (giant) appetite, we went to monster mash for dinner on friday evening. and it was sooo good, especially on a cool and rainy night. basically a british diner, the specialty is sausages and mash. there were sausage specials for the day (and vegetarian sausage specials as well) and mashed potato specials. one of the sausage specials was a beef, ale, and stilton sausage - which both jill and i got. then you pick your mash - plain mash, mash with spring onions, mash with neeps (turnips). i chose mash with spring onions. the final step - gravy - i went with the classic gravy. when they brought this food out i was completely enamored with monster mash. a giant bowl of mashed potatoes - giant like i would make for myself when i'm at home and eating nothing else for my meal - topped with my two sausages, and a pitcher of gravy on the side. once i dug in, i knew it was love. monster mash and i were meant to be. a truly perfect meal on an slightly cool summer night. after the short walk back to jill's flat it was all we could do to sit on the couch and have a cuppa tea. soooo good.

castles
i do love castles. and really, stone buildings in general, which edinburgh is filled with. my first glimpse on this trip was of edinburgh castle at the top of the royal mile (literally the mile long road between the castle and the palace). i snapped a quick photo while some fellas in kilts marched about. the first castle i went in was on loch ness, urquhart castle - if you can really call it going "in". maybe explored is a better word. but anyway, what remains of the castle sits on the banks of loch ness and is quite beautiful (minus the tour groups milling around). then there was elgin castle. or rather the spot where elgin castle once stood and now lies a pile of stones and a tall monument. but a nice view of the town. i spent part of my last full day in scotland wandering through edinburgh castle, which compared to my other castle sightings on this trip is very well maintained and dramatically perched on a now extinct volcano. i was actually a little obsessed, taking millions of photos of the walls coming right up out of the cliffs. so cool. (pictures coming soon)

the haggis experience

so this morning we rose bright (seriously, at 7am!!!!) and early to catch the bus to inverness, north of edinburgh. we were collected at the bus station by jill's mum and dad and took off to loch ness. the weather was a bit rainy, but we managed to get some sunshine while we explored urquhart castle on the banks of the loch.

i have a few nessie sightings caught on film, which i'll share later when i get my camera hooked up to the internet. and loads and loads of pictures of the castle itself (i'm a bit obsessed).

we had a little nap on the ride back to elgin (and got a little bit of a sore neck) and when we arrived the dinner started getting prepared... a traditional bit of dinner... haggis, neeps, and tatties...

truth be told it was actually really nice! even though i had read the ingredients to haggis in the supermarket (not a nice image) it was very, very tasty. you don't really eat the intestine wrapping, you just kind of scoop it out. it's like a pile of minced meat. and there's oats in it, it's spice very nicely. i really, really enjoyed it (which was a surprise to me - i did intend to try it, but i never imagined i would like it). the "neeps" were not so good... (that's turnips) but i can never say no to "tatties" (potatoes). if you ever have the opportunity to try it, i highly reccommend. just don't think about it too much.

so tomorrow we'll do a bit more looking around elgin, and traditional roast lunch. then we're back to edinburgh for a scary ghost tour in the evening.

my favorite letter is RRRRRRRRRRR!

got to see the new pirates movie last night. which was very exciting, and of course is sort of jill and mine's film. (we were a bit obsessed in japan - how can you go wrong with johnny *and* orlando?) we got to sit in the posh "gold club" seats. :) all in all a very exciting evening.

yesterday seemed like my first real day in edinburgh, since my plane arrived 2 and 1/2 hours late on wednesday, and i was in despareate need of a nap.... there were some good movies on my transatlantic flight... i never actually got to sleep.

so thursday we got out bright and early (around 1pm) and did some wandering in edinburgh. walked the royal mile, which is the road between the palace and the castle. saw the castle and the palace (from the outside only....) saw a man dressed as william wallace taking photos with and axe and tourists.

it is really a lovely little city, which jill claims is easy to navigate, but i don't quite agree. everytime i think i know where we are or where we're going i find that i am mistaken. but i do keep ending up at places i recognize, i'm just not sure how we got there.

so for the weekend we're going up to elgin, where jill's mum and dad live, for a visit. i think we'll also go to loch ness. and i may be treated to a meal of "haggis, nips, and tatties" (which is haggis with turnips and potatoes). i'm wiling to try the haggis, but i'll have to say no to the turnips....

i think our plans for the rest of today involve a bit of shopping and more likely than not some food. :)

leaving tomorrow, and more to come...

so tomorrow i'm headed to scotland to visit my fabulous friend, jillian, and see the lovely city of edinburgh.

my goal is to actually post a few times while i'm there (i'll be away for a week). but as of late i've really hated everything i've written for this site (hence the lack of posts), so i'm not making any promises.

*however*

this will be my first trip with my digital camera (disney and pennsylvania don't really count...) and i intend on taking as many photos as i possibly can. so even if i don't get around to posting anything (or i only post crap) i will probably have a few photos to post when i get back.

i am also tenatively planning to make a MAJOR journey in the fall... more on that when i return from scotland.

if you're going to san francisco...

this post has been hanging in limbo since march 14, 2006... nearly 2 weeks ago. c'est la vie. here it is now:

... be sure to wear some flowers in your hair

both caitlyn and i arrived at oakland airport on friday evening. at danielle's dorm room that night (almost like old times - except no cassie! :( ) we perused a catalog of vineyards in preparation for our trip to napa valley.

we woke early the next day, despite the loud japanese girls living down the hall, without too much trouble (hooray 3 hour time difference - 8am feels like 11am). after a quick stop at starbucks we were on our way.

the day was sunny enough as we made our way to our first winery, the hess collection. located at the end of a long and winding road it had a small collection of modern art, beautiful views, and of course wine tasting. next we headed to darioush. the outside was beautiful, the entry way was flanked by columns and fountains, the view was scenic. but on the inside the wine was pricey and the whole atmosphere was a little too posh. after a lovely midday meal at pacific blues we went to provenance, which we had been given free tasting coupons for from hess. here we learned a little about wine growing and grapes in napa valley and i tasted my first sip of my newest obsession - port.

the next winery on our list was v. sattui. this place had lots of people, like darioush, but was very down to earth. we took a place at the tasting bar and were served by an older guy whose name tag read george sattui (though he claimed it was a coincidence). we made our purchases and headed to our last stop of the day - hall. this place was small, but the staff were funny and the the other tasters amusing. we closed the place down with a glass of sparkling california wine and headed back to hayward.


the crew at hall winery
sunday was our day to explore big sur. big sur is a coastal region of california, with dramatic oceanside cliffs and redwood filled forests. after the long drive we started with some sandwiches and hot tea at the nepenthe restaurant. then we did a short (but steep) hike to an unimpressive waterfall in the pfeiffer big sur state park. we followed the coastal route 1 home.


the beautiful big sur coastline
on our third (and my final) day in the bay area we spent in san francisco. early in the morning caitlyn's dad (mr. man) arrived for a few days visit and they went off to breakfast. after danielle and i got ourselves together we all drove into the city. after checking into their hotel, mr. man took a nap while we girls headed off to japantown for lunch. a seemingly straight route from the hotel was nearly all uphill (*big* hills too) and after a short descent we arrived at our destination.


danielle and caitlyn in japantown
we had some lovely sushi at a shop proclaiming to have the best sushi rolls in san francisco (and they were pretty darn good). after a little shopping (and the discovery of one of my obsessions from my time in japan - rice crackers) we went back to pick up mr. man. after dropping danielle at the bart station (she had work to do, it was a weekday afterall) we drove down lombard street - twice - which was big fun.

then we walked down to the wharves to see the excitement and the sea lions. after wandering around and poking in and out of some shops we chose a restaurant for dinner with a view. sadly there was not the beauteous sunset we had hoped for - it was still quite cloudy from the afternoon rain. my time in san fran was coming to an end. after a little post-dinner tv i was dropped at the airport with my crate of wine bottles and a ticket home.

good times. :)

tortilla espagnol

on my second night in spain i went out with carlynne and alida from my hostel and a friend of alida's who had been teaching in madrid. we charged him with choosing a restaurant, since he was the most familiar with the city. his first pick was far too crowded - we were never going to get a table. after a little more wandering we finally found another of his favorites and sat down to eat.

after perusing the huge menu (which was translated into english, german, and french) i decided that i would try a tortilla espagnol - literally a spanish omelette, meaning a potato omelette. it turned out to be one of the most divine things i've ever tasted. and so i decided then and there that my mission for this trip would be to find the best tortilla espagnol in spain. so here's what i found:

madrid
my first tortilla was perfectly round and crisp on the outside - like it had been flipped out of the pan and onto the plate. no rolled or folded omelettes here. the potatoes were diced small with just a touch of chopped onion and some spice i couldn't quite identify. also, far from being just a filling, the potatoes were evenly dispersed through the entire omelette.

granada
this tortilla was thicker than my last, but still about the same circumference. the potato peices were larger and it was lacking something... that i couldn't quite put my finger on.

sevilla
1. a pre-flamenco meal (very early by spanish standards). once again there were big chunks of potato but that elusive spice was back. :) it was also served with some potato slices on the side.
2. when i arrived early at the bus station on my way back to madrid from sevilla i went out in search of coffee. outside the bus station i found a little stand with a funny man inside. as i stood there chatting and drinking my coffee i decided to get a sandwich for the ride - a tortilla sandwich. the omelette was rolled this time - obviously - to fit inside the bread. the potatoes were a medium dice with onion. overall the omelette sandwich was pretty tasty, even at room temperature a few hours later.

the verdict
madrid wins it - the first was definitely the best. the small dice of the potato gave a better egg to potato ratio. i've even been able to reproduce this at home! it turns out that the onion *is* the elusive spice, somehow in this recipe it's just very subtle.

overall i found spanish food mediocre. but the tortilla espagnol has forever become one of my favorites. this is my last post about spain, next week i hope to get some more japan stories posted as well as a tribute to my 2003 fritaly trip.

mis fotos

(that's "my photos") i know i haven't posted in a while, i do have a spain wrap-up post planned - but i don't have my notes with me today. so that'll have to wait a little longer. instead i offer you some of my photos of spain. enjoy.

cat's hostel in madrid was probably the most beautiful hostel i've ever seen. everything was so clean, the key system was so high tech (each person gets a wristwatch type thing which is used as an electronic key to the front entrance, the room entrance, and your locker), and the courtyard area was amazing. the perfect place to relax after the craziness of the city.

i did not intend to get anything at burger king, i was merely there for the company. but how could i resist a beer at burger king? and just when i thought i couldn't be more amused, said beer was delivered in a plastic cup with the burger king logo on it. priceless.

the alhambra in granada was perhaps my favorite place in all of spain (that i saw, anyway). the tile work, the carvings, the beautiful gardens - and of course the history of it all - were fabulous.

i was prepared to love sevilla, from everything i'd read it sounded so great. well, it did not live up to my expectations. but the flamenco show i attended was above and beyond my wildest dreams. absolutely phenomenal - my photos do not do it justice.

toledo is a quaint and historic city. though a little boring. mostly i just wandered through the winding streets looking for non-weapon souvenirs. throughout the city i saw many artists painting and drawing away. in the right hand corner of this photo is a man painting the scene.

holy toledo!

visited toledo today, which was cool. one of those wall type cities perched on a hill. it was very beautiful, but easy to get lost in. which, i'm obviously very good at by now. :) but now i'm back in the place where it started, cat's hostel in madrid. i don't have anything on my to-do list, except maybe a little shopping.

this whole trip has been a little too whirlwind for me, i've been moving every 2 days or so. i think my next adventure will have to be a more base camp approach, where i stay in one place for a while and take day trips from there.

i'm glad to be on my way home, as i've been getting sick. stuffy head, runny nose, that kind of thing. i also had some devastating news- we lost power at home on thursday and my vcr didn't tape ALIAS like it should have. the season premiere!!!! so the person who can provide me with a tape of the episode will get a special prize from spain! i know there's someone out there who loves me!

not too much to say today. on my way here from the metro i passed burger king and i am considering having my dinner there... it seems wrong, i've only been gone for a week and i rarely eat there when i'm at home, but for some reason it seems like a good idea. tomorrow i think i'll actually make the free breakfast at the hostel (i was too late my first night and left too early the second)