AMSTERDAM
There's a lot to say about this free city. Some of you at home would adore it, and the place I stayed (yes, for the very reason you're thinking). I can't say it's the city for me, but I did have a good time. Unfortunately I arrived on the 14th, which was a Sunday, and left that Wednesday, which didn't work well for late night dancing. So obviously I checked out some coffee shops and spent every night in the bar of my hostel. If you come to Amsterdam and you want to meet people, play pool, get high, drink beer, etc etc, then the Flying Pig is for you! On the other hand, if you don't want to worry about security and you need quiet space, don't come here. I had a good time, even made friends with one of the bartenders (consequently receiving a free drink or two). I drank a lot but after Belgium it didn't bother my head. Did I peruse any of Amsterdam's other joys? That you'll have to ask me yourself. *mysterious smile*

Amsterdam is incredibly bike friendly. In fact, if you hear any bells ringing behind you, jump immediately to the right or expect a front tire running you over. I took a bike tour that gave us some good city history then took us through town, outside, and to a cheese and clog farm. Yes, I have pictures of clogs on my feet. No, I didn't buy any for anyone! Afterwards I discovered 4 people together on the tour were at my hostel and they let me join their crew. Had dinner with them and the next day we all went to Van Gogh's museum. Personally, I found it slightly disappointing. An average history, great comparisons to other artists, lots of paintings especially of his self-portraits, but no famous paintings of any kinds. It cost 9 euro, I guess I expected just a little more of Van Gogh himself. Saw a few great Monet's though.

Well, the weather has been beautiful ever since...since July. I've been incredibly lucky! I am on my first day in Berlin now, and will write more as my time here develops!

BRUGES, BELGIUM
The actual dates for spending time in Bruges are between Sept. 10 and 14. I'm a tad behind. I can best describe Bruges as Belgium's beer capitol. True, there are few abbeys within the city's outskirts, but Bruges is a great place to import from other parts of the country. One bar visited offers over 300 choices. Out of those, I think I tasted just under 40 (say 7 or 8 a night plus some sips of others, for 4 nights). The beer is good! Oddly enough my favorite was a peach beer on tap at an exceptional little bar that let us stay after hours. By us I mean a very nice american guy, Eric, who let me follow him around every day to explore the city, another american named Benjamin who makes his own beer in Seattle and wanted to taste test, and a French gal named Stephanie who is possibly the nicest person I've ever met.

Bruges itself is a phenomenon. It's part of the UNESCO heritage list - the whole city - and so within 10 years should entirely phase out cars. It's a well preserved medieval town of no more than 30,000 people (everyone else lives outside the city walls and canals). Most of it is cobblestoned and all of the houses are beautiful in the flemish style. Many little towns outside are similar. Did I mention flemish Belgium is flat? Incredibly so, not a hill to be seen unless you count the dikes protecting the man made canals (which are used to keep water from flooding the rest of the flat land). I actually saw all of this by taking a little bus tour that showed the countryside, windmills, waffles, chocolate, and beer. Good choice!

Switzerland
Wow. If you have a little money to burn and you're in the neighborhood, COME TO SWITZERLAND! I had the most fantastic time here the last 3 days. Arrived at an off time for the hostel and so wandered around Interlaken for a few hours to wait. I watched Paragliders landing in the park and after an hour fretting about the price (?100) I decided to do it. Why not? It was amazing. I had no idea you can actually rise in the air with a parachute, but it is literally like being a bird. You just follow the thermals. My flight had a professional pilot (Robi) behind me doing all the work, and he was very good. Our jump started 800m above Interlaken, and we rose higher than everyone else who jumped at the same time. The flight lasted over 20 minutes. Hawks were flying with us. It was great.

And then the next day I went canyoning through a canyon called Grimsel. It's fun as well. This time instead of flying high I jumped low - straight into glacial water. Brrr!! Luckily they make you wear tight wetsuits. Canyoning is all about climbing down the canyon by rapelling, swinging along ropes, sliding on waterfall rocks, and jumping off ledges. I think the whole group had a blast. We were all very talkative at the end. A few people told me I had a constant huge grin on my face. I was one of the more adventurous and did a front flip off one ledge and climbed up again for more.

Yesterday I mountain biked for 6 hours. Biked uphill maybe 600m to a village called Grindelwald. From there I caught the bus to Grosse Sheindegg, which is about 1900m high. Had lunch, relaxed and stared in awe at the swiss alps and their glaciers, then deigned to bike back down. Um, mountains have rather steep slopes. I've never been more scared but eager on a bike in my life. Parts of the downhill roads were gravel, parts concrete, parts grass and rocks. Now imagine going 30-40mph along that. I think I wore the back brake to the metal. It was fun though! The wind on my face, that triumphant feeling when I reached the places I'd biked up.

Basically, I loved Switz. I want to come back and stay for a long time. Maybe I'll come learn German.

Barcelona
A bit late in coming, but here's the low down on Barcelona. I traveled there with the excellent 3 Kiwis I'd stayed with in Valencia. Spent one night in a small hotel with them, then when they moved to the campgrounds I moved across the Plaza to the Hostel Kabul. Nice place but very busy. It faces the Placa Reial (plaza real) and at night this plaza is incredibly loud and popular. Didn't sleep much while I was there.

I did however do a lot of walking and I visited Picasso's museum, which is a history of his life and his art, all small prints and pictures donated by him. I also visited many Gaudi buildings, which I admit are quite impressive. And apparently his crazy designs are geometrically more sound than regular architecture. I saw his unfinished La Sagrada Familia, of course. Fantastic from the outside.

I went to a bull fight one night as well. Best word: Educational. If I hadn't had a strong stomach and a desire to watch the entire ceremony and event, I would have left after the first bull. The toreador must have pierced it's lung because the poor bull vomited blood - lots and lots of it - until it died. Gruesome. The other 5 bulls died much more quickly though. It's interesting really, the toreadors tire the bull out while their crew of lesser toreadors stab and jab at the bull's shoulders. Then, when the bull can no longer charge and just puts its head down to stare at the capes, the head man stabs it at the spinal column and it falls over instantly. There were 3 toreadors that day, two on foot and one on horseback (the most entertaining - also something of a heartthrob, he had blonde hair). They earn points based on their performances, and if they do well enough they can win ears and horns from the bulls. Two toreadors won a single ear that day.

I appreciated Barcelona's people. There are numerous performers everywhere, and they don't bother you as badly as in some cities. They also try very hard. Many on the main tourist drag called La Rambla act like mannequins. They have fantastic outfits like Alice in Wonderland, golden Roman Centurions, dirty men driving motorbikes, etc etc. Give them a coin and they move slowly to pose with you for a picture. I was impressed. There were also some very good jugglers who come out at dinner time.

LA TOMATINA
Valencia...a small village called Bu?ol 30km west...a huge water and tomato fight for 2 hours...La Tomatina.

Wow, how can I best describe this? I came to Valencia in time for a fiesta that has no real historical meaning but calls to over 30,000 people each year. It's on the list of 100 things to do before you die. And all it is is a gigantic food fight along a block of narrow streets. It starts when someone manages to scale up a pole and cut down a ham. The pole is greased up with ham fat and if the people attempting the climb don't work together they don't make it. Some people actually make it harder by pulling down anyone who gets close. We had a great view of this beginning, and naturally we boo'ed anytime anyone played foul.

Once the ham falls all hell breaks loose. They turn on water hoses and people cheer because it's so hot under the sun. Then they quickly start stripping and tossing their wet shirts around. Ouch! Some of those shirts hurt!! It was tough in the crowd under the hoses. Eventually everyone started pushing and swaying dangerously. I was lucky, I had 2 big guys with me. A big shirt fight circle opened up and we found ourselves on it's edge after leaving the hose crowd. Some guys would actually stand in the middle with their faces and groins covered and get pelted from all directions. About an hour (an hour!) later the tomatoes arrived...

This part lasted an hour too. The trucks drive slowly around the block and people from the truck beds throw tomatoes at the crowd. At intervals the truck stops and dumps a big pile of tomatoes on the ground. Everyone dives in, some swim, others stock up and start flinging. Everyone quickly turns red! I certainly did! I was right in the middle of it all and had a blast! At first the tomatoes were full and bulbous but after a little while it all turned to mush. Mixed with water the sides of the streets had deep puddles of soup. I was right there. Got to know a few portuguese and we picked on each other by smashing tomatoes in hair, on necks, faces, backs, you name it. Some people would grab bags or bottles from the ground and use those, I got to using tshirts and wringing them over heads, and we even found a bed sheet and used it to fling large puddles high in the air. By the end of it, we were drenched from head to toe with tomato bits in mouths, eyes, shirts, pants, and lots inside ears. They shot a gun in the air to end the fight and everyone trekked downhill to a little stream to clean off. I forgot to clean out my ears and picked at them all evening.

I'd say the only bad thing about the fight was at first with the pushy crowds, and the end when my eyes were irritated until next morning. Somehow I managed to keep not only my sunglasses, but also my sandals, my t-shirt (lots of "Camiseta!" shouts and tearing off of clothing in the crowd), and this plastic bag tied to my waist with a change of clothes. The clothes even stayed dry! Am I good, or what? I recommend this festival, but I don't know if I'd go a 2nd time. Once is enough for me! Craziness!

GRANADA
What a fun time! Granada is easily my favorite city in Spain. Not so much for the sightseeing, but for the people and the friendly hostels. Oh, and anyone who likes to smoke, hash is the order of the day all along this part of Spain. Even the hostel owners will smoke with you if you offer. I guess it's the proximity to Morocco. Ahh, yeah...No mom and dad, I didn't smoke any! You can ask anyone, I still haven't tried drugs. *big smile* So! I loved my time in Granada. Straight off the bus I met two fun girls from Cork, Ireland. They brought me to their hostel and I also procured a room. The place was very clean and fresh with a kitchen and a large patio in the middle, like many old spanish houses. The owners were laid back and only stayed in the morning and evening after siesta. We got to know near everyone in the hostel and even ate and drank and danced with about half the people a few nights.

The Alhambra is the main attraction here. It used to be the biggest arabic fortress in Spain. It's big enough! Used to house a palace a barracks and a village. I got some great pics. The place is definitely worth a visit. But buy a ticket a week in advance from a BBVA bank, or prepare to sit in line from the wee hours of the morning. We sat out at 6am for it's 8am opening. Luckily, Sundays aren't as busy and we were only the 20th people or so. Spent over 3 hours looking around and marveling at the arabic architecture. I found their innovations for medieval plumbing quite interesting. The Alhambra sits atop a high hill above Granada in the Sierra Nevada range, and it originally had no water source. But they got some up there and the place is covered in fountains and pools. I used the audio guide here, and I recommend it. You get a lot more out of the place when you learn about it's history.

SEVILLA III IV
I spent Day 3 investigating the Alcazar -- Sevilla's old christian palace. It was built atop ruins of an old arabic palace, and it is beautiful. The christian king who built it liked arabic architecture so much that instead of building his palace in the gothic style of the times he built it according to the lacy, open, greener looks of the arab style. The palace is large and spacious and is still somewhat in use in some areas for important meetings, and the occasional royal wedding. Sevilla is great for student discounts; this place was free. And I snuck into a walking english tour of the palace and learned some good stories and histories of the kings and queens who lived there. Much of the palace is restored, save the king's bedroom because Queen Isabel II in the 19th century (I think) was angry at her husband when he didn't want to go to Sevilla with her. So she restored much of the rooms except for his.

I also wandered for most of the afternoon around the Triana area south of the river. It's a modern part of Sevilla and a good place to shop. Everything in Spain seems to be on sale! One store I entered was selling -everything- for ?3!

Day 4 I decided I'd seen everything of Sevilla I wanted to see and I spent the afternoon with my friend, Jesus. He had to study, so I joined him in the library and read english books and took breaks with him on and off. Had dinner, said we'd see each other again (and we better, Jesus!) and I spent my last night in the lovely hostel. In the morning I caught the bus for Granada.

SEVILLA I, II
Here I am on morning 3 in Sevilla. The city is confusing! Very large! Busy! First day I visited the Catedral, which like Cordoba was originally a muslim mosque. This cathedral has been heavily altered in the gothic style and is really quite beautiful. According to Guinness it is also the biggest cathedral of its kind in the world. The treasury alone is worth seeing, all kinds of bejeweled gold and silver trinkets and statues and crosses. Of course, the rest isn't bad either. I took pictures, but you'd really have to see it yourself to appreciate it fully. The rest of the day I mostly just wandered outside. I found a little pension to stay in that unfortunately had a curfew. I'm staying in the old jewish quarter called Santa Cruz. Again, this area has tiny alley streets, and these are extremely easy to get lost in. But I'm starting to remember landmarks and street names.

An old friend lives in Sevilla and picked me up in the evening. We walked the south side of the river and chatted, then drank, and (sorry mom and dad) I missed curfew, so we hung out until 6am and then I crashed behind a fountain until the pension opened. Ahhh, erm, that sucked, but I wasn't bothered, and I moved in the morning to a fantastic little hostal without a curfew. I'm not with anyone my age in these places, so I fend for myself all day, but this hostal gave me a single room with a toilet and bath for only ?18, so I'm happy!

Yesterday I slept until 4pm. Couldn't help it, I was up all night! Call it my siesta. Then I went to the Plaza de Espa?a and the Maria Luisa park and relaxed until 8. The Plaza was built in 1929 for a world fair. Long history. Very cool big, semi-circular plaza with colorful tilings and mosaics and benches for every county in Spain. The park is huge and full of beautiful trees and flowers and has all sorts of mini-parks like duck ponds, hedge art, fountains, grottos, the works. I got a little sun and blew off the last remnants of my hangover. Then I moved south of the river to check out the neighborhood Triana.

Ok, I admit it, I was hungry but stingy enough to stop at a McDonalds. And they do, indeed, call a quarter pounder a "Royal with cheese". McRoyal, to be exact. Everything tasted the same. The Triana area is nice and looks a little newer, and had cheap shopping. Everyone seems to be selling off all their merchandise. I bought some shirts and a skirt for dirt cheap.

And to end the night I went to a flamenco show. Was very good! The dancer didn't use those little wooden finger cymbals, but she danced with more energy and gusto than I've seen in awhile. Her singer and her guitarist were both excellent. She wore white dresses. She was beautiful! I forgot my camera...At the end, I befriended two americans I'd heard speaking english and we did a little bar hopping to outdoor tables around Santa Cruz. I tried the local brew, CruzCampo. Pretty good pilsner.

CORDOBA
I liked this town! The reason is probably because it was my first european city with narrow, cobblestoned alleyways for streets, but hey, the novelty is there. I spent 2 nights in Cordoba, partly because I wanted to see more of the city than it's main attraction, La Mezquita (the Mosque), and partly because the hostel was so good and so cheap. Sight-seeing: Cordoba has a large Mosque in it's center dating back to the 800s. Built by the Muslims, expanded 3 times, and finally altered to a cathedral by the christians, it was a fine sight. Inside everything is arched with red and white arabic arches. You can tell the difference between the expansions, and the whole thing stretches pretty far inside. Unfortunately, a large part of it is under reconstruction, and there is no student discount to get in.

The rest of the city is a fine place to take a stroll. There are many little plazas to get lost in, the streets curl around (my map was necessary), and there are long stretches of parks. The whole city is dotted with old roman and arabic mausoleums, towers, pillars, mills, other ruins, and even one bridge was built by the romans. The city has a smaller, intimate feel to it, and there didn't seem to be that many tourists. I recommend it!

MADRID 2
Wow, last night lasted forever! During the day I made friends with some great people at the hostel -- two guys both named Leigh, and two girls, Laura and Erin. All from America and Canada. We spent the entire afternoon at a public pool. There's nothing special about beaches in Spain being called Topless. The women go topless in regular public areas too. I did not, however. I kept my bikini on! Even got a little tan, though I was still one of the whitest people there.

And at night we went just outside of Madrid to a suburb called Leganes for a funk/r&b concert. We didn't make it there though. With the Festival going on, the streets were filling with people. After asking one group of very nice locals our age for directions, we instead joined them and went to the party. It lasted all night. I didn't get back to the hostel until 7am! Oy! Now, that was for two reasons. One, we lost Leigh at one point, and two, the metro didn't open again until 6. It was fun anyway, with the music and alcohol and new friends, and I even didn't mind that all my clothes were soaked with beer. Well, not until I had to pack...