Prettige verjaardag Dad

Yes, March is a big month for birthdays in my family. Today is my Dad's birthday and I'm not allowed to say how old he is ;) Let's just say that he's right at the age where he still rides a motorcycle but he also keeps a mean garden... ;)
Anyway, Dad always wanted to do a trip like this to Europe, so I'm his eyes because he never got the chance (there's still time yet though!)
Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday Tara!

Today is my sister Tara's birthday.
Tara is one of my best friends...and not many people can say that about their siblings. I can count on one hand (well, maybe one and a half) the number of times we've fought in our entire lives.
She's busy right now being a mom, starting a business, working a full-time job, and...what else? Well, she's got enough ambition for both of us ;)
Happy birthday big sis!

Hello from Bled, Slovenia

Hi all, I'm in Slovenia!
I seriously want to catch up on posts, there's lots to write about, I promise. But internet is so expensive in Austria and Slovenia...2 euro per half hour :( But, I broke down and bought an hour of time tonight because I've been anxious to catch everyone up. I think the last time I posted was as I was just getting into Roma, and I've been all over the place since then!
Check back and hopefully there will be lots to read soon!
Love to all,
Tori
ps. Only one month left!

Alles Gute zum Geburtstag Debbie!

Today is my step-mom Debbie's birthday.
I bootlegged a bit of the Opera from Vienna for her gift (not much of a gift, but hey, I'm a poor traveller now) and am going to upload it when I get access to a USB port...
Happy Birthday Debbie!

The bus back from Assisi

I was still full of that peaceful and serene feeling as I sat waiting for my bus back to Perugia...that is, until the bus arrived and 40 rowdy highschoolers showed up out of nowhere and started pushing their way on to the bus. There were more of them than there were seats so I fought my way through for a seat for myself and an 80 year old lady. A couple of poor Chinese tourists got to brave the aisle with all the leftover students for the hour-long trip home.
I don't think I've mentioned it yet, but bus drivers in Umbria don't seem to realize that they aren't driving sports cars...so they drive down these tiny, one-lane, curvy roads at nearly death-defying speeds...They take ess-curves at break-neck speeds and I swear sometimes it feels like we're going to tip right over the side of the mountain (of course, we never do). Anyway, as the bus careened down the winding road to the bottom of the moutain, the kids fought and teased and wrestled in the aisles and over my head. I was determined not to let it ruin my buzz (I mean, I know I was annoying as a teenager, but was I really this annoying?), so I put on my earphones and stared out the window.
Then two girls started arguing in the seats in front of me, one pretty blonde girl and one tough looking brunette. The blonde looked very sorry and the brunette looked very angry. I was amusing myself with trying to decipher what the girls were fighting about (I could only imagine it was about some guy) when the brunette swung back and slapped the blonde in the face! After that is a little unclear, the blonde stood up to fight back, but got pulled by her hair into the aisle and then slammed against the bus door. The bus driver, who obviousely wasn't paying attention to the back of the bus, was still careening down the mountain at breakneck speeds. He took another high speed turn at a sharp s-curve and the girls were thrown, scratching and slapping back into the seats.
The other kids were shouting and laughing, the local adults weren't about to do anything about it, and the tourists really couldn't do anything about it. I was only thankful that I had a window seat...the poor Chinese tourists were bearing the brunt of it for me.
Finally, the little old Italian lady stood up from her seat and started shouting at them, which seemed to calm things down a bit. The girls sat back down in their seats, and with the exception of shouting at each other from across the bus, it was all over. It lasted only about 5 minutes, but it was a crazy 5 minutes.
I missed the sunset over the mountains, and the feeling of peace was replaced with heart-thumping anxiety, but I guess this was more exciting anyway, and really something good to write home about too ;)

Assisi

I remember visiting Assisi during my grade 10 art trip through Italy...it stood out as being a very peaceful place. I bought my Grandmother a set of rose scented rosary beads there which she has kept to this day (even though I don't think she's catholic)
I went again today, and this time I spent the whole day there instead of just a quick stop through. I love Assisi, I don't know why, but this place just feels so serene...like a weight is temporarily lifted off my shoulders while I'm walking through the cobblestone streets. (Perhaps it is because of St. Francis himself, who was the big dude on campus here and who was well known for his charity and love of nature.)

I walked into the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi during a service (they're used to that), and the congregation was singing this beautiful hymn. There seems to be a powerful energy here, I'm not even Catholic but I spent a long while in this church and the choir sang the whole time, and I just felt overwhelmed by it all...

note: Here is an article written about Assisi and St. Francis...in the article it says:

The entire town and particularly the Basilica have a definite atmosphere of
peacefulness that awakens and stimulates that same characteristic in the human
heart.

So I guess this peaceful feeling is a documented thing!

Girly post about hair...guys feel free to skip

After years of pulling and prodding my hair...diffusing it one day to make it curly, taking the straight-iron to it the next to make it straight...attacking it with products and blowdriers and curlers and sprays to get that sexy Victoria Secret 'just rolled out of bed' wavy haired look. And all it took was one month of travelling to figure out how to dab on a bit of anti-friss serum and wrap it in a towel to get this (sorry about the ugly bathroom background). No hair-dryer, no sleeping with my hair in rags, no gels or mouses...nothing! My hair is loving me right now...

The Dulcimer

When 5 o'clock rolled around, I went back to my hostel ready for a rest...instead I met two Romanian "colleagues" who are here to study in Perugia. I call them colleagues because that's what they called themselves, and when I asked if they were actually friends, they said that no, they were "colleagues" from the same school. I would normally say that this was just a language barrier issue, but actually they were a strange pair, anyway...
After dinner with the colleagues, we met Vince, a musician and history buff from Clevland Ohio. He is on a busking tour through Italy playing an interesting instrument called a Hammered Dulcimer (it origionated in Persia, to me it sort of looks like a cross between a harp and a piano).
Anyway, he gave us a little concert back at the hostel and it was fantastic, sort of a Celtic techno pop sound. Listening, I felt a wave of calm rush over me. Apparantly he is not only breaking even on this busking trip, he's also saving money. I could see why!

Sunday

Sunday in Perugia is very quiet. Sure, there are people out and about, but everything except a couple of coffee bars and trattorias are closed. My hostel has a 9-5 lockout, I think they run an office out of this building during office hours. That's 8 hours to spend in a city where nothing is open! Plus, Perugia is built on top of a mountain, so the altitude makes it chilly and the strong wind whips right through my nylon jacket. So, this morning I bundled up with every warm thing I had in my backpack and set out for the day (thank god I didn't throw out my gloves, scarf, and hat in Roma!)
I walked around the city, and that's no small feat because there are a lot of steep staircases leading from one place to the next (and we wonder why the Italians are so fit). I played amature photographer again, I also ate all my meals in cozy warm cafes*, and sat in piazza IV November reading my book and writing in my journal.

It was a wonderful day actually, but by the time 5 o'clock rolled around I was ready to get back to the warmth of my hostel.

*Normally I go to the grocery store for 2 out of 3 meals of the day. But because my hostel was so inexpensive and because I couldn't spend money on anything else today (seeing as nothing is open), I splurged on my meals.

A slapping good time

Perugians hit each other a lot. I'm serious! I'm seeing it everywhere...friends, couples, old people, young people...On the bus I saw one girl boff her friend off the top of the head really hard, then the friend slapped her on the back. I saw a woman kicking at her husbands feet. I've seen people punching each other in the arm and slapping each other in the face (although not very hard at least). I think it's good natured though, but I can't tell for sure. They seem to be laughing before and after...maybe it's just part of their expressive nature.
I don't know, it's surreal.

The view from my window...

Well, it would appear that the naked guy across the street is there for my benefit. When I looked out my window again this morning (for a G rated view I promise), there he was again, completely naked standing in his window. This time he waved to me...lol.

I have a fantastic view from my window...

When I got into my room, the first thing I did was check out the view from my window. I scanned from left to right and I saw the beautiful countryside and farms below; cute little buildings with shutters and flower pots; a naked guy standing in his window; the church and bell tower...What? I did a double take (and then a longer triple take, hehe.) Yes, it was a naked guy alright, and it was quite a sight...a big sight! I think he was brushing his teeth in his washroom or something...I'm not sure why he had the window open though, because it was really cold outside (although you wouldn't know by looking at him)...Anyway, I couldn't quite tell because I closed my shutters just in case he caught me looking...I mean, maybe he wasn't used to having people looking out the window across from him and he'd be embarrassed if he saw me. Not that he needs to be embarrassed...in that, well, let's just say this isn't like a friends episode...he wasn't an 'ugly naked guy' ;)

ok, I'll stop now

So, that was my view of Perugia: Countryside, Shutters and flower pots, Naked Guy, Church.

Perugia

Oh Perugia, I could wax poetic about Perugia for pages and pages...or you could just read Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes to know why I'm so in love with this place.
I got into the city-center at around 19:00 and walked through piazza Quattro November to get to my hostel. It seemed that the entire town was out in the square in front of the big church. Young and old, despite the winter-like cold, they were all bundled up in their winter coats and chatting in front of the bars and trattorias. Right from the start I got a very social and pleasant vibe from the people here.
My first night was relaxing, I went for Gnocchi and a glass of wine at a little pizzeria in IV November then hustled back to my hostel to make the 11:00 curfew.

The train from Rome to Perugia

The train from Rome to Perugia was so completely beautiful...all I did for the entire two hour trip was sit back and stare out my window at the Italian countryside as it went by. It was just so green...hilly farms and viniards, beautiful old churches and castles, little towns built into the mountains.

It's at times like these that I just can't believe how spoiled I am right now.

Better at night

In the evening, my dormmate from New York and I went to a jazz club by the Spanish steps. It was a cool little bar with an upscale crowd and a classic jazz trio on piano, drums and bass. We crashed for a set without paying cover or buying drinks (our two little seats were disguised from view and near the washroom, but we had a great view of the stage)
Afterwards, we walked to the Spanish steps, which were filled with a whole different crowd from the daytime. It was such a cool vibe. Sure, there were rowdy ones, and still a couple of souvineer peddlers around (only 2 though, not 10)...but mostly there were people hanging out drinking wine and beer, people writing in their journals, or drawing in sketchbooks. The highlight for me was a group of about 5 guys, all playing accoustic guitar and singing in harmony. They did everything from U2 to the Beatles, and every once in a while they'd throw in some cool folky Italian song. We sat there, loving every minute of it, until we got too cold to sit any longer, then we walked home...
So, the moral of the story is this...if at first I don't like a city, I should seek out a reason to like it, sooner rather than later. Today, I saw Rome in a better light...moonlight, and it's just too bad I didn't see it sooner.

Beautiful Tivoli

I decided to take a daytrip to Tivoli today, and I'm so glad I did! Tivoli is this beautiful little town about an hour bus ride from Rome. It's small, clean, quiet and well-cared for (everything that Rome isn't I guess ;))...the downtown park is filled with fountains and overlooks the Italian countryside at the bottom of the hill. I spent the afternoon walking through little cobblestone streets and playing amateur photographer. I took lots of pictures...of beautiful old doors, windows filled with flowerpots, long winding avenues, the countryside below...I must have taken about a hundred pictures in all (I wish I could get access to a USB port so I can upload some of them!) It was a perfect way to spend my last day in this part of Italy...

The Welsh Rugby Team

The hostel is pretty quiet...except for the Rugby Team from Wales...they've livened things up a little. They're here to watch some Rugby match, I presume between Italy and Wales, and instead of sightseeing they spend the rest of their time in the pubs. (I guess this is what any group of 19 and 23 year old guys would do on a trip to Rome.) Usually by the time I run into them they've been into the drink for a while and are pretty rowdy. They're really very charming actually, in a drunken rugby team sort of way...they try to buy me drinks and flirt with me mercilessly...but they're just so cute I want to pinch their cheeks!

Ladies Day

Today was "Ladies Day" in Rome, where women get in free to all the major touristic sites. Lol, leave it to the Italians to have a Ladies Day ;) So, I went to the Colosseum but didn't go in, the line was long and I've already seen it on my grade 10 art trip. I also went to the Palatine Hill and sat in the Garden. I fed the birds near the ruins of old Rome.
Later, I went for a walk through the area surrounding the Colosseum and had lunch in a cute little side-street cafe. The waiter gave me a little yellow flower, which I pressed into my journal.
In the evening, I went to the Disco (that's what they call dance clubs in Europe) with my roomates from Brazil and New York.

Sightseeing

I was a typical tourist today...I visited the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps and Vatican city. I walked everywhere.
Trevi Fountain was very cool, and it was also very busy. I spent about half an hour there, dodging souvineer peddlers and amusing myself watching people throw their coins into the fountain. Older couples, groups of teenagers, cool fashionable types, big burly dudes...they all had the same thrilled look on their faces as they tossed that coin over their shoulder. It was pretty fun to watch.

Rome

Part of the reason I haven't written in a while is because I wasn't sure how to write about my time in Rome. I didn't really like this city, but how can I write something bad about Roma??? There were good things though, so I'm going to just get the bad things out of the way, quick like a band-aid...then I can dedicate some posts to the good stuff.

So, here it goes...Top 6 reasons I want my coin back from the Trevi Fountain:

6. The train station and it's surrounding area are pretty grimy and filled with beggars, gypsies, and junky souvenier peddlers. Plus it smells like pee.
5. Within the first half hour of being there, I almost got pickpocketed by a gypsy woman pushing a baby carriage.
4. The city itself is dirty and sooo noisy, and anything that actually is beautiful is completely full up with tourists.
3. There are no traffic lights or dividing lines on the roads. I came this close to getting hit by a car (more than once)
2. The people, in general, are sort of rude...they blow cigarette smoke in your face, and they take up the entire sidewalk and force you onto the road. Shopkeepers get really rude if you take up five minutes of their time without buying something.
1. I paid 5 euro for a ham sandwich...I mean really, that's like 8 canadian dollars!

Massimo

I went to a park and sat on a bench to read my book. It was a beautiful place, and after a long day of walking around I was really hoping for some peace and quiet. But the funny thing was that Roman men kept coming and asking if they could sit down with me. I kept saying no...I just wanted to sit and read my book. Then Massimo sat down with me, and said he was a professor at the University. We chatted for a while, then he asked where I was staying...I told him that I was staying at a youth hostel, which seemed to really upset him. He warned me that all kinds of bad things happen and hostels, and they're being shut down all the time for health reasons...then he offered to let me stay at his place where we could "begin a friendship". lol, I said no thanks (thinking I'd take my chances with the youth hostel thank you very much).
He was very dissappointed, but I eventually got rid him by taking his number and promising to call him for a coffee later on...much later on.

Grimaldi Ferries

As it turns out, the ferry from Barcelona to Rome was very sketchy indeed.  I guess I should have known, with a name like Grimaldi Ferries...it sounds like a Romanian maffia company...or at least the bad guy on Days of Our Lives.  Don't get me wrong, it was a modern ship and it was safe, the cabin doors had working locks and all that, plus it's associated with my Eurail pass.  But on board with me were an "over 80" canasta club, 1 American couple, and about 200 creepy mediterranian men.  I think I was the only single female on the ship, not to mention the only person with blonde hair.  As I walked through each common area, I could feel the weight of 10 or 20 unsavory guys eyeing me.  Cat calls followed me everywhere I went, and let me tell you, I didn't have to speak the language to know what they were saying. And to top it off, the fake wedding band that I'd packed was nowhere to be found!
Luckily, noone else was in my 4-female cabin, so I had a room all to myself.  I'd gone grocery shopping for lunch and dinner so I had lot's to snack on, a good Maeve Binchy book to read, and a box of wine*.  After the ship set sail I stayed in my cabin almost the entire 19 hour trip.  I had room to stretch and reflect, and I was completely by myself for the first time in about a month...it felt soooo goooood.
So, it turned out to be a good time after all, sort of a vacation from my vacation.  When the boat pulled into the harbor, I walked past the leers and the cat calls with my chin up...I was on my way to Rome.

*The wine was meant to be shared with my cabinmates (as suggested in my Lonely Planet guidebook), I didn't buy a whole box all for myself ;)

Buon compleanno Gramma Stewart!

Today is my Gramma Stewart's birthday, she is...umm...65 ;)

Gramma is very wise but still young at heart. She started travelling later in life, and so far has been to Ireland, Alaska and all around Canada (I'm sure there's more, but I can't keep up with her!) She's an inspiration :D

Happy Birthday Gramma!

HelloBCN

I can't say enough about HelloBCN...it was clean (the showers were cleaner than I would keep mine at home likely), it had a great kitchen, and free internet. But more importantly, the staff always made me feel welcome and at home. I got to know most of them during my stay and I think they were part of what made Barcelona so memorable for me.

So, this post is just to thank HelloBCN for the great work they're doing :D

Last night in Barcelona

I spent one more night in Barcelona, mostly getting ready to go to Rome the next day. In the evening, I sat down in the lounge at HelloBCN and read my book. A guy named Martin from Germany sat next to me...he is in the printing industry...printing on paper, printing on packaging, bottles, cans, posters, you name it he knows all about printing on it. Now, I've met some interesting people on this trip, but this guy was about as dry as toasted cardboard. I was worried that I'd have to spend my last night in Barcelona talking about exciting new improvements in toner cartridges, but thankfully Teo (one of the cute front desk guys from the hostel) came to liven up the conversation.

Train from Granada to Barcelona

The overnight train back from Granada was...interesting. I shared a cabin with three older women, and when I greeted the first woman, she stared at me with this sour miserable look on her face...okeee. She had drawn-in eyebrows and a bouffante over-dyed blonde hairdo...And to top it off, she snored...loudly. I was wearing 34db earplugs and I could still hear her clearly, so that says something. I couldn't sleep and it was getting later and later in the morning. I just wanted (so badly) to poke her...but what is the train etiquette on that?
Anyway, the next morning she woke up oddly cheerful...she must have had a great sleep. She had a big smile on her face and greeted everyone with a hearty "Buenos dias!" Well, what can I say...the roles had reversed and this time I gave her the mean look.
But now I wonder if mabye she wasn't scowling at me the night before, and maybe she just drew her eyebrows in wrong that morning...

*note: I´m skipping over some of Barcelona so that I can update everyone on Granada. I´ll go back and catch up when I am able to put up some pictures etc.
*oh and: The *posted on* dates are the days I actually posted but the dates listed at the top of the post are when the event actually happened. Because of a lack of internet time, I often have to play catch up and am posting much later than it actually happened. So, to know when it happened, look at the date on the top. To know what date I posted it, look at the date on the bottom. I hope that makes some sense...

The long walk up the mountain

After lunch, and on the advise of Antonio, I decided to find a garden called Carmen des Martirés. It's near the top of a big hill and has an excellent view of the city. The route to the garden wound round a small mountain/hill. I walked up and up and up, until at some point I realized that I'd taken a wrong turn somewhere and Carmen des Martirés was nowhere to be found. I had been walking uphill for over an hour. I was discouraged with myself and wanted to turn home, I'm always getting lost or going out of my way :( But then I looked down over the cliff to find my hostel...I had to look waaaayyyyy down...the buildings were like tiny dots from where I stood. When I realized just how far I'd come up that hill I thought, You Rock Girl!
Nearby there was a little old Spanish lady dressed in black who had come to say a prayer to le gusta Virgin des Lourdes (a little whitewashed temple to Mary carved into the side of the mountain). I asked her in my very best spanish "Scusi Seniora, dondé es Carmen des Martirés?" and she pointed me in the right direction.
So, I did find the garden, it was beautiful and it did have an amazing view, but for me I think the best part of today was all about the journey.

*posted March 7, 2007

Antonio

Today I had a glass of wine with Antonio...don't get too excited, Antonio is an older eccentric gentleman that I met in piazza St. Nicholas. He hangs out with the buskers, but was dressed far to well to be one himself. He did a reading on my handwriting and told me about his love for Granada. He loved my curly blonde hair and he said that my smile was like a sunrise, lol. Anyway, he asked if I wanted to join him in a glass of wine and I said sure, why not. We went to a patio that I'd been to before with an excellent view of the city. To be safe, I watched carefully as the waiter opened the bottle and pour it into my glass and I didn't drink much of the wine. I listened to Antonio talk though because he is an interesting man, his family pays his living expenses and he spends his days writing poetry (and having wine with female tourists obviously) in plaza St. Nicholas. In the evening he is an astronomer and musician.
I have a picture but can't post it in Italy, I guess using usb ports in public internet points is illegal due to some new anti-terrorism law.

The Alhambra

I went to the Alhambra today, which is the building you saw in yesterdays post. Here is a description from http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/The_Alhambra.html

On a hill overlooking Granada, the Alhambra—a sprawling palace-citadel that
comprised royal residential quarters, court complexes flanked by official
chambers, a bath, and a mosque—was begun in the thirteenth century by Ibn
al-Ahmar, founder of the Nasrid dynasty, and was continued by his successors in
the fourteenth century.

The whole time I walked through this palace I thought about how cool it would have been to live here. It was so peaceful, I hardly noticed the groups of highschool students and seniors tours while I was there. I spent hours walking through the lush gardens, listening to the trickling of the water fountains (good thing I didn't have to pee!), and especially admiring the epigraphy (decorative inscriptions carved into the walls with arabic script and design). My favorite part though were the cats, fed and clean, that lounged around the gardens and slept on the marble like kings and queens...what must one do in a past life to come back as a royal cat of the Alhambra?

Anyway, I can't say enough about this place...for those who couldn't enjoy it with me you can do a virtual tour and learn more about it here