Brownie Points

Good to see "The Boy" aka Brandon is following the rules.... 2 ft seperation and no eye contact. Larry P was in the house so I am sure he was on his best behavior anyways.

He can stay around for another +/- 6 months I guess.

Hello

I put up a couple of pics from London over at my flickr site...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/apace626

Here is a pic I took my last night in Barcelona. As usualy we were gearing up to go out. I was really lucky to be able to leave in a pretty fun residence. I think the peeps in this pic cover half the globe!

Good Times



After Europe I never really unpacked, I just rotated clothes out of my suitcase. The flight to Ottawa was awesome because the leg from Newark got cancelled so that left me stranded in Newark. I use to have only good things to say about Newark Airport, now... I hate it. Everything worked out though, my company hooked it up with a nearby hotel with a decent shuttle service.

Anyways, I got to Canada and a week later I am sitting here in Sudbury, Ontario. The weather has been pretty awful for work but pretty exciting for me. Its been snowing off and on which is way too exciting for this Texan. I love being in the snow. The first day I got caught in which I am calling a full-blown blizzard. The canadians call it a typical snowfall, I call it a blizzard. I've been really busy b/c we are doing 4 projects back to back. All the grunt work is done and everything should be organized and smooth from here, I hope.

White Stuff falling out of the Sky

I didn't know what to think!

So I am up in Sudbury, Ontario. It's nice but the Canadians have me working pretty hard. I'd love to share some pics of London and of course the white stuff falling out the sky here (they call it snow i think), but this connection blows. In due time.

A pit-stop before coming back to the US

FLICKR!

I decided to try out Flickr.com and get back into photo blogging...

FLICKR!!!

Many more to come.

Hola!

Well, the Spanish hasn't come very far, but the travels and adventure have. I've been going pretty strong through last weekend trying to see everything and going out all night. I am actually going to have a hard time trying to sum up everything I have done, but here goes.
Since my last blog I have done quite a lot. The student residence has worked out quite nicely. Everyone is pretty like-minded and willing to go out and explore the city. I think I have met someone from almost every European country, it's great. Me and the Germans are tight. Last Friday I found the stadium where FC Barcelona plays and then went to some really good clubs/bars. The views and music from Danzatoria were muy bien. Saturday, an older guy from class (my dad's age!) and I went to Girona and Figureres, two Spanish towns North of here. Girona is famous to me because the majority of professional US cyclists live there during the season, like Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie. It was much bigger than I thought, but still a very nice town. Figureres is where Salvador Dali lived and where his museum still exists. I am not a huge art fan, but this by far is the best art type museum I have ever been to. Saturday night was a blast, we were out to the usual 5 am. It's crazy here, everyone leaves to go out at midnight. Sunday was spent climbing/walking Montjuic, a mountain that guards Barcelona and where the 1992 Summer Olympics took place. Some great views of Barcelona are offered from here.

Well, I'm totally rushing this blog and hope this semi-summarizes my weekend. At the end of the week I have decided to skip a day of class and "whip & spur it" to another European destination before my return to America on Saturday.

Old Men and Other Things

Old men are the creepiest people in Europe, they are freaks! They love to check out the Eurobabes. And when I mean check out I mean more obvious than Micheal Jackson being a shemale. They will lay down on the beach (in a horrible speedo) RIGHT next to a topless girl and just stare. On the streets, they will STOP AND TURN around (which takes 5 minutes) and stare at the girls. It's awesome. On the train to a town called Figureres I watched a man talk to himself for about an hour straight. He was having a conversation with a noone and the whole time he was chugging wine. Awkard? Indeed.

Other than that my days in Barcelona are flying by. School is 2:300pm and its been hard to find time to explore in the morning. I usually get in one place or site a day. Today I went to a famous apartment, La Pedrera (sp?), Antonio Gaudi built, and then I attempt to find the stadium where FC Barcelona plays. I failed and that adventure will resume tomorrow. There is so much to see here I just hope I can get it all in. At night we have been going out a little but its been a little hard with jet lag and from walking around so much during the day. I need to step it up a notch!

This weekend I am planning a day trip to Girona, a town North of here that many famous US cyclists leave, notably Lance Armstrong, George Hincapie, Dave Z., Floyd Landis, etc...

Opps, dinner time.

Adios.

Barcelona, Spizain - The Beginning

I made it to Barcelona and to the residence no problema. I didn't sleep at all on the plane but managed to stay up until 4 am the first night, thats like 36 hours straight. Hey, when in Rome... I say. I have been pretty tired each day but I have more important things to do than sleep.

First off, Barcelona is amazing. The city is so lively and easy going. I'm digging it.

Everyone in the residence is very nice and everyone is from a different country, however, I think the Germans are winning. Right now there is someone from Bulgaria, Brazil, Germany, Russia, Holland, Jerusalem, and the US. Pretty awesome. Everyone speaks English at the house which is very convenient. My room is HUGE, at least 8ft x 8ft.

The first day I unpacked and then joined everyone at the beach. It was very hot down there but there was a cool breeze. Jets were practicing for an airshow the next day which provided entertainment. I have forgotten how they roll at the beaches in Europe, meaning topless babes! Oh yeah, the downfall is 3/4 of them are old and not easy on the eye.

The Med - Ibiza isn't far off you know.



After the beach I headed back by myself to try and explore the city and learn the Metro (subway). Being map-minded I can't stand to not know which direction I am going and basic orientation of a new city. The Metro is the best way to get around and is very efficient. I have done quite a bit of walking as well. People watching is top notch here.

I didn't do much after the beach except walk around aimlessly. Later that night we all went for drinks and dance moves. I was soooo tired but managed to keep up pretty well. The nightlife around here goes all night!

Yesterday, I needed to cure my direction problem and get my bearings so I decided to climb the highest mountain around and check the city from above.

Mount Tibadabo




Afterwards I walked down the one and only Las Ramblas. The Ramblas is everything it is built up to be. You could sit at one of the cafes all day long and not get bored. Its a beautiful part of town lined with trees and beautiful buildings.




I swear she did not blink the entire time I stood there, ~ 10 minutes.



Casa Batllo - Designed by the famous architect, Gaudi, he also did Sagrada Familia which I hope to see today before class. I landed the afternoon Spanish session (2:30-6:30). I think I was the only one at the meeting happy to hear this. Hey, I am on vacation too!




All for now.