06/08 Northern Scotland

Tracking down each of the antiquities had the feeling of a treasure hunt and we never felt lost because we could always find signs of life behind the pub door.  One of these nights while wandering I discovered the pub door was locked, so I entered an old grave yard across the way seeking the unknown.  It was dark at eye level, even darker after gazing up at the million of stars looking down upon me. …

08/16 Train Rails, Spain

We came to an unplanned stop at the border between France and Spain where it appeared the French weren’t about to share their trains with Spanish rails.  We had come to a complete stop and it was obvious they were ushering us through customs.  Well there was no way I would attempt carrying our hash through customs.  It just wasn’t worth the risk.  …

12/01 Istanbul Turkey

We arrive early into Istanbul but were without coinage and to compound our dilemma that day was the Sabbath.  All the exchanges in the station were closed.  We walked across town and ended up being directed to a major hotel in the area, but they would only exchange money if we weren’t guests of the hotel.  “Get a room and we’ll exchange money for you” the receptionist repeated to us twice.  The only other option we had was to charter a taxi to the airport, but the taxi wanted to double charge for having two occupants.  So Jenni went to the airport while I stayed behind and watched the bags in front of the hotel lobby.  …

11/02 Crete, Greece

One of the secrets learned while traveling is the advantage that can be gained by finding that right taxi cab driver.  Once I have selected my chaperone for the day I inquire about his business, ask a few questions to ensure he had the right personality, then I’d ask him to explain the best day he’s had in the taxi business.  “I once made twenty dollars”.  Then Id’s offer him twenty five to more depending on the economy.  Taxi drivers know their way around, where to go and what to see.  …

05/30 Stonehenge, England

Like a string of pearls, one complaint began to lead into another.  One minute it’s the weather, next minute it’s the price of food, carrying too much shit and then it was his feet.  “I’m not walking any further, maybe I’ll just fly home”, confronted Jim.  I reminded him that I was not his mother and if he thought I wanted to hear this shit, he had bigger problems than just his feet.  “Nobody’s putting a gun to your head and you don’t need my permission to make choices”.  I explained that I was not budgeted for repeating every other step and had a plan of what I wanted to see and experience and sometimes those things aren’t at the end of a train line.  “I’m committed to go forward and if you find it in your best interest to detour, I’m more than willing to meet you anywhere else on the map”.  “There’s no rule that says we have to do everything together”.  I provided an example of picking up women.  “I expect this to happen along the way and when we reach that fork in the road I’m sure you’re not going to be wanting me hanging around as a third wheel or vice versa.  We’ll just meet up someplace down the road”.  I tried to be a good person and attempt to avoid confrontations but traveling together has a tendency to bring these things to the surface.  Conflicts start and end with words.

Surely I dreamt today, or did I see. I wandered in this forest thoughtlessly
the clever boy that I once knew; with pebbles white and bread crumbs too
left no trail and lost my way, where all my pictures were thrown away

Through the forest, in the middle of a glade, forever nagging to persuade
no plank or bridge was placed in sight, only fists clinched as if to fight
the wind, the wind has caused me harm; you pulled too many false alarms.

08/28 Nerja Spain

We had awakened almost in the same position we had fallen asleep.  But now the birds below sang that the morning was new and filled with joy.  It was as if natural geometry and rhythms had aligned and everything was clearer than the day before.  We traveled hand in hand occasionally catching each other smiling as if it was just a bit hard to believe that we had found one another.  …

05/19 Los Angeles, California

Imprisoned by my own curiosity. I felt as if I was looking up through trees that encircled my view, staring at the many branches and the fruits suspended beyond my grasp.  I knew I could no longer be satisfied simply to lie here on my back, closing my eyes and dreaming of things out of my reach.

…

10/12 Napes Italy

When I woke up I notice that my knife was unchaperoned, sitting all by itself.  Most likely it was pushed away by me while I slept.  There were two elderly gentlemen sitting alongside the same bench staring at me and the knife.  I had gotten less than an hour of sleep and was still very tired and in need of a shower.  I followed those two gentlemen back into the heart of Naples.   …

11/19 Lindos, Rhoads Greece

I planned on taking a bus over to the ruins in Lindos but Jenni wasn’t feeling well and wasn’t too motivated to go anywhere.  “I’ll see you tonight” I told her.  The thought of missing something changed her mind and she decided to come along anyway.  It was a nice sunny day with a cool breeze.  A gorgeous little white washed village lodged under a Roman acropolis.   …

11/24 Selesck, Turkey

As the storm cleared we helped put things back into place and decided to hang around another day.  About midday we took a walk into town and bought two bus tickets north toward Ephesus.  Our bus was scheduled to leave early the next morning.  All in all this was good company and I had enjoyed the time off the road.  I didn’t know what to expect heading into Turkey’s interior.  I was never taught in school much about Turkey.  …

09/02 Barcelona Spain

After a morning cup of coffee I took a direct route to the train station and boarded the first train heading towards Barcelona.  I didn’t offer Jim a single word.  He either followed or went his own way and at that point I wasn’t going to give it too much consideration.  I wasn’t interest in continuing the conversation from the night before so sat in my own compartment.  About a quarter of the way to Barcelona a group of travelers from North Africa joined in and donated some hash for the ride.  …

08/10 Zurich, Switzerland

Our rail passes provided free passage on numerous lake cruises, so we decided to take advantage.  We gathered up the ingredients for a day out on Lake Zurich.  Opened up a cold beer, claimed a table with a view and broke out the cards to continue the cribbage marathon from the night before.  What a perfect day it was to be out on a lake.  There was just the right mixture between the warmth of the sun, the coolness of the breeze and the temperature of the beer.  Man some of these homes that line the lake with their manicured yards and adornments screams money.  …

07/15 Archipelago, Sweden

The young man, who originally invited me to his parent’s house, got up at first light and ran off to work.  His friend Brent left to pick up his girl friend.  I began to prepare omelets for the returning couple and took the liberty of cleaning up the house from the night before.  Brent’s girlfriend was very sweet and quite attractive.  …

11/06 Nikolaos, Greece

I woke to the sound of wind that seemed to be gaining strength.  It sounded like cats crying in the distance but no, it was closer.  I went out onto the balcony and noticed two of our lady friends down in the street trying to get somebody’s attention.  Apparently the door was locked and they had no key.  We had an early boat and needed to get moving.  Elspeth discovered her girlfriend never made it back from last night and she presumed she may have gotten lucky.  Either way she wasn’t going to hop on the ferry without her, so we left the two behind. …