A Long Way Back to California

Leaving Morocco really symbolized the end of our trip. We flew back into Madrid and had a couple of hours to see the fantastic downtown (most liveable city we all agreed) before catching an overnight train to Lisbon, Portugal. The overnight train was remarkably comfortable (unlike our experience in Eastern Europe). Lisbon is a fantastic city that is frequently overlooked by its bigger and more beautiful sisters in the Spanish cities. Still it is full of delightful squares, outdoor eateries and old Portugese architecture. There is even a monument on the edge of the harbor which was built in the late 1400s where all of the famous Portugese explorers were bid fairwell before heading off to find new lands in the Americas. Although we didn't spend much time appreciating the findings of the Portugese. We simply enjoyed their food and port, reminisced about the trip and bid our good friends the Haases fairwell (for now of course). Out of our traveling companions the Haases will be in Indianapolis, The Murphys in Minneapolis, Spetzlers in London and Baxters in Sydney. We are extremely saddened to see them all go but we are thankful for our time traveling with them and look forward to get-togethers in the near future. The Harris', Houghtons, Kings and Kelly and Malcolm will all be here in San Francisco eagerly waiting to host visitors!

After 24 hours of flying we arrived back in the States. One of the most wondeful places on the planet!

Rock the Casbah

We hired a car to take us into the Atlas Mountains on the edge of the Sahara desert to visit a Kasbah (a mud and rock dwelling in the most uninhabitable climate imaginable, not a British nightclub or Heidi Roizen's home). At first the mountains gave us a bit of refuge from the heat (dropped down to 105 or so). Then we hit the Sahara desert side and it felt like we were walking on the sun. Fortunately I had my new Vibram Chaco soles on - inferior soles surely would have melted on the spot. We saw where they filmed Lawrence of Arabia and other desert movies, saw some camels and had a guide with whom we had to communicate in our 2nd and 3rd languages. We also ran into a couple of snakecharmers with some serious pythons. Call a vet because these pythons are sick!

The Night Market

The Djeema el Fna is Africa's largest outdoor market. It is crazy. People come in from all over the country and the world to trade their goods and attend a fair-like carnival that occurs every evening 365 days per year. There are storytellers, snake charmers, monkey handlers, henna artists and food vendors. It is fun being in a market that is not overly touristy. This is a local market with far more Moroccans than any other ethnicity. Jennifer and I enjoyed some fresh squeezed orange juice ($0.30 per glass) and delicious spiced tea. During the day Jennifer spent her time negotiating for various leather goods in the market. Google and Haas have trained her well as she is an excellent negotiator. One man called her a Berber woman which we don't actually know what that means but we are assuming it means shrewd negotiator. She regularly negotiated the lowest prices... Chris Harris eat your heart out.

Ahh, Delta Force

It has been nice traveling with a military man. Logistics are organized and coordinated, watches are synchronized, and threat briefs are packaged, bound and distributed. The best feature of course was having Stephen's translation services in Morocco. Stephen speaks Arabic and I thoroughly enjoy seeing the native's response when they realize a white westerner speaks Arabic. Even funnier is when they comment that he has an accent from the Gulf States including Kuwait and Iraq. They then ask how he learned it... the answer... school, of course.

Aboard the Marrakesh Express

You have to be born before 1950 to appreciate the Crosby, Stills & Nash reference in the blog title and while I haven't heard the song before I assume it is a drug-related metaphor as I certainly didn't see a Marrakesh Express in the third world country of Morocco (unless you consider donkey-drawn carriages Express). We arrived in Morocco which is a beautiful Muslim country in the northern part of Africa (our 4th continent on this trip). It is completely different than Turkey which was our previous experience in a predominately Muslim country. It feels more like India, crowded streets, lots of street vendors and blazing hot (110 degrees). For this first time in my life I think Arizona in the summer sounds like a nice retreat. Fortunately our rooms are air conditioned and extremely comfortable with beautiful Arabic achitecture and decor. Jennifer and Ashley were certainly the hit of the town. The don't see a ton of cute westerners and most of the women in Morocco wear a modified burka/sari.

Nightlife

Okay, we can't hang with the Spaniards. That is a fact. We tried to experience the nightlife in Barcelona but I am convinced that these people aren't night people they are morning people. When certain clubs don't open until 4am you know that they don't stay up late, they just get up really early. Still, we picked up some cheap Euro outfits at Zara (pretty hysterical, wish we had pics) had a great dinner and then killed a couple of hours before getting to a club at 1:30am when it opened. But, just because it was open doesn't mean people arrive at that time. We left at 3:30am and people were just starting to arrive. This town is crazy.

Spanish Wine and the Bull's Blood

Rebecca sister married a winemaker's son and as a result we had the good fortune of getting private, guided tours through two of Spain's most prominent vineyards: Torres and Jean Leon. At this point we had Annie and Luke Baxter with us whom are our favorite Kiwi friends and also happen to be wine connoseuirs. We had a fantastic afternoon tasting phenomenal wines and getting to spend quality time with friends and the Andrews family. Even Luke, who is a harsh wine critic, found the wines to be particularly good and we bought a special bottle on his recommendation to save for a special occassion. The Andrews and Torres family were so incredibly generous. We are extremely thankful for their hospitality and want them to know that we had a fantastic time and will be looking for Torres and Jean Leon wines back here in the States! Also congratulations to Sarah and Miguel on their new baby!

Roomate Reunion!

We were so fortunate to get to spend time with Rebecca Andrews, one of our closest friends and one of Jennifer's housemates from UNC. She is in Barcelona visiting her sister who lives here full-time and is about to have a baby. Rebecca took two days off of her family duties to show is around the town of Sitges which is a coastal beach retreat on the outskirts of Barcelona. It is so fun to share experiences like this with friends and it also reminds us of how small the world really is.

Navigating Spain

As I mentioned Jennifer did a fantastic job planning all of Spain. We saw Barcelona for two days and met up with our good friends Kelly and Malcolm, Annie and Luke Baxter and Matt and Amanda Spetzler. Talk about a solid crew! Jennifer planned the events for us, got us around the public transporation and organized a private tour of the Torres vineyards (more next post). Still she occassionally needed help reading a map!

Lost in Translation

We thought it would be easier to get around in Barcelona using our Spanish. Turns out it has been tougher than we thought for sever reasons i) we have forgotten much of our Spanish ii) they have strange accents (the 'th' sound) which makes it hard to understand iii) they don't even speak Spanish. Many speak Catalan which is the separatist language and is completely unlike Spanish. Still we loved being back in a Spanish country and as always love seeing how things get lost in translation like this Ben & Jerry's ad which can be translated as "games with your tongue."

Viva Barcelona!

Hola, estamos in Barcelona - la ciudad que no sabe dormir! We love this place. Barcelona is packed with wonderfully friendly people, the food is fantastic and the energy palpable. On our adventure one person was responible for planning each country. Spain was Jennifer's task. And I must say she did a fantastic job. We are staying in an apartment right on La Rambla which is the hot walking street in Barcelona just up from the shore. We have a beautful outdoor market right next to the apartment so we wonder over for fresh fruit, smoothies and croissants at breakfast time (which is the crack of 11am). Then we check out a few of the Barcelona must sees including the Sagrada Familia (which is the strangest looking cathedral we have ever seen) and the Olympic Village. Then the evening begins...

If You Want an Iron Curtain Here You'll Need to Pay For It (in Euros)

Wow has the world changed! I visited Prague 10 years ago and left the country with more money than I came in with. A nice meal cost only $4 per person, a beer was $0.50 in a bar and there was very little English spoken. Times have changed. This is the most expensive place we have visited and it is packed with tourists and English speakers. Fortunately it still has its beautiful Eastern European landmarks including the Prague Castle and the Charles Bridge (featured in Tom Cruise's Mission Impossible). The signs of communist influence are all but extinct as this city is a thriving capitalist economy. And wow that hurts the pocketbook. Fortunately, we met up with three fantastic classmates: Ian, Thiago and Vikas. We got some great meals, checked out the Czech pubs and saw a concert that Jennifer was thoughtful enough to have Google sponsor for us.

Bathing Budapest Style

I forgot to mention the baths! One thing Hungary definitely has going for it is the communal baths. These are elaborate swimming pools and hot tubs set amongs beautiful old architecture and statues complete with spa services, jets, fountains and of course great people watching. Visiting the baths is an experience - and it is quite fun to check out all of the locals. Still one questions bothers me. Why is it that there is an inverse correlation between the size of the Hungarian male and the size of his swim suit?

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

You can't traveling throughout Europe without experience train travel. I quite enjoy it actually. The rumble of the tracks as you speed across the beautiful countryside. Of course I have romanticed Eastern European train travel a bit since I last did this 10 years ago. Or perhaps my standards have changed since then. We took an overnight train from Budapest to Prague in a compartment that is even smaller than our place in California (hard to believe). Fortunately we were blessed with great travel companions which makes being packed like sardines quite enjoyable! It also helped that they had fake Budweisers (seriously, a Czech brewed beer called Budweiser which is not the King of Beers).

No Points for Second Best

This place has a real knack for second best. In nearly everything they do they win the silver. Not in the Olympic Games of course, but in life. The Parliament building is by self-proclamation the second most beautiful parliament in Europe. They have the world's second largest synogogue, etc. etc. It is actually quite comical hearing every tour and building referred to as the second most (fill in the blank). Maybe that is why the people aren't all that friendly. If you win the gold you can be thankful, if you win bronze - hey at least you medaled. Winning silver is, well, I think Top Gun said it best. That being said, we have loved Budapest and found it to be the quintessential Eastern European town.

Arriving in Hungary and on an Empty Stomach!

There really is no other way to arrive in Hungary than, well, hungry. No, the food isn't particularly good (in fact it is terrible) but they realize gastronomy is not their core competency so they outsourced it to their neighbors including Italy and Turkey. Its reasonably cheap so once we arrived in Budapest we ate our way right out of the country. Budapest is actually two towns, Buda and Pest. Despite sounding like an aweful place to live Pest is actaully quite beautiful and was where we stayed for three days.

The One That Got Away

I had been told that Mt. Triglav (the highest peak in the Julian Alps) was unclimable in a day. That is was a three-day trip that I would be unable to sell to the ladies on the trip. Turns out, it was very much attainable in a 12-hour day. We took a beautiful hike up a quarter of the way and while we didn't get to stand on top we did get some fantastic views of this jagged peak to which I hope to one day return.

Slovenian Hospitality

We stayed at a bed and breakfast called Reka Hisa, halfway between Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj and right next to Triglav National Park. The hosts, Clive and Myrna, treated us to our best meals of the trip. Days are spent with outdoor activities including hiking and whitewater rafting and evenings are spent with four-course meals and excellent Slovenian wine. We have spent hours chatting with our hosts and two Aussie couples also staying at the Reka Hisa.

The Mountains Win Again

You are either a beach person or a mountain person. I find that everyone tends to prefer one over the other. I am a mountain person. Especially after a week of 90+ degree temperatures - it just feels nice to be able to sleep with a sheet over you. We are in Slovenia which is the sunnyside and often overlooked side of the alps. Just over the jagged peaks from Austria and the sound of music, Slovenia is a mountain paradise complete with beautiful lakes and yes, cool evening temperatures. What, you have never heard of Slovenia? Neither had we until recently. It is nestled at the corner of Italy and Austria and has the best characteristics of both of those countries.

Great Croatian Roadtrip Part II

Our first stop on the Croatian roadtrip is Plitvice National Park which is as Stephen Houghton says, "the most beautiful place you have never heard about." We are quite thankful that the cars are grossly underpowered - nobody complains about getting 40 miles to the gallon when gas costs $11/gallon. We are now crossing the border from Croatia into Slovenia. This part of the former Yugoslavia is simply beautiful and we have no doubt it will be a tourist hotspot once the word gets out.

The Great Croatian Roadtrip

Part of the reason I enjoy traveling is to experience new cultures and new ways of doing things. For example, renting cars. We were informed by an utterly impolite attendent at National Car Rental in Split that renting a car involves purchasing the car and then getting a refund once you return it. We said, "let me see if I understand this - you are going to charge $10,000 USD on my credit card which you promise to refund once I bring the car back?" Her response was, "yes, welcome to Croatia." And for four days I was the owner of a grossly underpowered Nissan Econocar... but hey, at least we're traveling.

Back on the Hog

The only phrase we have learned in Croatian is "I get 70 miles to the gallon on this hog." At $12 per gallon its a good thing. We rented Croatian Mopeds (distinct from regular mopeds in that they are in Croatia) and drove across Hvar. The scenery was spectacular as most of the island is untouched and covered with lavendar and vistas of distant islands. A highlight was watching Stephen Houghton hold up a line of 6 cars including a bus because his underpowered moped couldn't make it up the hill at the prescribed speed limit. We found our way to the tiny town of Stari Grad and were rewarded with fresh homeade Gelato which was simply the best we have ever tasted.

Lovin' Croats!

I can't say this enough - this country is AWESOME! We are all smiles! We loved just hanging out in the crystal clear water and walking around the port.

To see all the pics of our time in Croatia, click on the group picture to be taken to our gallary. :)

Just Boating Around Havar

So, we all know that I am not so keen on sailboating, but if I was, I would totally come to Havar and sail! There were the most amazing looking boats of every shape and size around this little island - and there were so many little, small islands with great coves all around. The coast line was a little rocky, but it was nice because the rocks were flat and we could sun bathe with comfort and ease. :)

Our fearless capitans (Ash, Dave and Chris) navigated perfectly through the coves and found amazing places for us to hang out. We had a fun lunch on the coves and snorkled, through the clear blue water. We loved it!

Hip Hip Hooray for Havar!

Havar, literally, was like paradise! We visited the larger city of Havar and also the smaller city of Starigrad during our 3 days on this tiny little island. Our little hotel was just perfect with air-con and nice full-sized beds that were like a dream come true! We were so excited!

The country side of Havar is just beautiful. It is a small, hilly island with tons of rocky beaches along its tiny islands. It feels like an old movie when you walk through the streets discovering little houses and gelato stores. I swear, this place needs to be discovered, but secretly, I wish it would stay our little secret. :)

Splitting across Split, Croatia!

So, I will say, Croatia is absolutely one of the most beautiful places in the entire world! It is just amazing - and I can not believe it hasn't been discovered by tourists across the world! We arrived in Split via plane and went right into the winding little streets on the cusp of the Adriatic Sea. We spent 1 day in split before we left for the island of Havar.

In Split, we discrovered the WoNdErOuS gelato and pastries of Croatia that made us crazy! Amanda and "little flipper" are fans of gelato and the guys are LOVING the pastries. We wondered around the Diacletian palace and visited the market place to buy lunch for our ferry over to Havar. It was so good just to eat ripe fruit with so much flavor. I mean, I thought I had it good in California with good fruit!

Off to Havar with more fun adventures!

Exercise off that Spice Bazaar Turkey!

As you all may know, Dave loves to work out.  Well, his habits have not changed in Turkey by any means.  In fact, he has been getting up at the crack of Turkey Dawn, along with Chris Harris, to go run along the river.  He has love it!  So, the girls thought that they would go and do a little exercising themselves this afternoon.  Sooo - we went down to the outdoor gym along the coast line and did a little weight lifting.  It was quite the workout - or more like the amusement for all the Turkish guys!  I just don't know if these machines actually work, but you can see we had a good time on them!

This was all after we went to the Spice Market and World Bazaar for some fun shopping.  Dave loved the "spice of life" from the market and I was "jumping for joy" at all the fun things in the World Bazzar!  We ended up buying the "special blend" and hope we are able to cook with it as well as the meat market person we ate from on the streets today!  We will see how good my cooking is - or at least the spice will cover up any bad cooking I end up doing!

Tomorrow, we are off to Croatia - so be ready for some fun beach-side updates!

Bed Bugs and Harems!

There is nothing like going to a large palace and realizing that the Harem is the center of attention and largest attraction for the pristine location!  We went to see the amazing palace and also the Harem inside.  Apparently, the King could rank the harem girls as favorites based on how many kids they bore him.  Crazy!  It is only fitting, then, that 2 guys from our group went into the harem with the girls while 4 of the guys hung out outside.  I guess only a couple of guys these days are lucky enough to go into the Harem with such beautiful ladies!  The rest are just loiters!

So far, we have traveled with hardly any glitches in our entire trip.  However, we recently hit one little glitch - we had BED BUGS in our hostel!  Yikes!  You know how your Mom always told you to go to bed and "don't let the bed bugs bite!"  Well, these bed bugs just didn't listen to Stephen Houghton!  You will see by this lovely picture that bed bugs LOVE to bite - with a relentless abandon too!  Stephen has been a good sport - and the hostel has been amazing.  They not only threw away the mattress, but they also tore apart the bed and left it out for the trash man too!  I wonder if they would have been as nice/clean in the Harem during their days!