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08/17 Madrid, Spain
08/26 Sagres, Portugal
08/24 Algarve, Portugal
09/15 Zermatt, Switzerland
07/10 Kuopio, Finland
11/21  Marmaris, Turkey
07/27 Bruges, Belgium
10/22  Corfu, Greece
08/01 Gloriette, Vienna Austria
09/11 Milan, Italy
10/01  Villach, Austria
06/16 Southern Ireland
06/06 Edinburgh, Scotland
09/01 Valencia, Spain
07/06 Uppsala, Sweden

08/17 Madrid, Spain

I woke up in the middle of a desert of reddish clay painted orange by the rising sun.  As the ride wore on the sun converted our compartment from a cozy bed into practically an oven.  Each hill looked the same as the one before it rolling one after another past my window.  If one didn’t know any better it could be assumed that my window was the backdrop to a movie set.  …

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08/26 Sagres, Portugal

I awoke from a dream that I could not remember and found it difficult to head back into that sleep.  My mind was overtaken with a feeling that I should not have left Ann.  I felt that she had reached out to me and I in some way had abandoned her.  At that moment I decided I needed to return to her.  That thought combined with a lot of other ingredients lead me to the decision to leave then, not later but that moment.  …

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08/24 Algarve, Portugal

We woke the next morning to a welcome change in rooms.  Perhaps a good night’s sleep awaited us.  Our little dog was adopted as kinda of mascot.  He had been eating and actually gained some weight.  By the affection he was receiving his future looked bright.  Every day was a beach day and today was no different.  Luck did find us.  I spent the first few hours at the bar down on the edge of the sand, hair of the dog like the day before and the day before that.  About every thirty minutes or so, it was back into the water to wash off the sun.  …

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09/15 Zermatt, Switzerland

A trip to Zermatt was next on my agenda, so the next day was nothing but train travel.  When I finally reached Visp I hit a fork in the road and needed to make a decision on whether to fork out an extra nineteen dollars for a round trip train ticket or to thumb my way into Zermatt.  The rail to Zermatt was a private railroad and not covered under my rail pass.  I looked around and since there was not a single car heading in that direction my decision was made easily.  …

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07/10 Kuopio, Finland

I darted around from one small town to another and eventually followed a young lady into Kuopio.  She explained that she had been traveling in Germany for the past few weeks and was reuniting with her boyfriend that evening.  We kinda hit it off and she went out of her way to call a few of her friends to see if they could accommodate me with a room.  She found me a beautiful cottage alongside one of the many lakes.  I understood the cottage was her parents or an Aunt but they, like most the folks this time of year, were away on holiday.  …

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11/21 Marmaris, Turkey

I was up early, grabbed a table and a few chairs and set them up on the sand.  I sat and gazed out on the empty bay writing until the others woke.  A pot of coffee soon followed and then breakfast. The girls were taking about exploring the city’s bizarre, a female shopping ritual.  I on the other hand I was invited to go with the men.  Bear hunting was on the agenda.  We all loaded onto a friend’s boat and headed along the coast to a location that supposedly had a recent bear sighting.  …

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07/27 Bruges, Belgium

We found ourselves a small room above a bar not far off the main square of Brugge, claimed ourselves bed, dropped off our stuff and hit the local canals for a little sightseeing.  We roamed among the flower vendors, chocolate shops, lingered behind a cup of coffee and smoked a cigarette while standing on a humped-backed bridge.  I enjoyed the mood of the weeping willows and gazed endlessly at the reflections painted by the water.   …

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10/22 Corfu, Greece

Even though all the other guys had paid for a room joining the ladies outside became a priority.  Good looking women typically have that effect over men.  We all traded stories and passed around a few bottles of alcohol.  By the time we reached Corfu we had assembled into an interesting group of travelers.  Once we hit Corfu’s dock an elderly lady persuaded us to check out her hotel.  I used our group’s size as a bargaining chip and obtained a better rate for the group.   …

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08/01 Gloriette, Vienna Austria

One thing was for certain, I needed a shower.  Sleeping out with element guarantees one thing, we were up early, so we took advantage and started searching for a room.  Luckily we found a room in the area that accommodated our needs, but we couldn’t check in until later that afternoon, so we reserved a room.  They were kind enough to watch our bags, allow us to scamper off and tour the city.  …

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09/11 Milan, Italy

I found a good cup of coffee on the square in front of the Duomo, sat there and caught up on my journal while I watched Milan wake up around me.  The morning light danced past its arches onto the adjacent building.  It was a breathtaking sight, absolutely gorgeous, a very unique structure.  I spent some time queuing inside and then sat along the edges of the square.  I discovered an excellent restaurant just not far from the Duomo and relaxed to a bottle of wine.  …

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10/01 Villach, Austria

I managed to get some sleep just prior to boarding an early train into Villach.  I didn’t have anything to read and I was getting a little bored.  I got out some colored pencils I had been carrying for some time and began coding a chart of guitar chords.  I was focused in on what I was doing, dreaming about something when I noticed a strong feeling that I was being watched.  I looked over to my left and sitting a couple of rows down the car were three of the cutest little girls all dressed up for Sunday church.   …

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06/16 Southern Ireland

The gentleman that leased us the car was extremely nice.  I am naturally suspicious of people who are too nice and I usually create a bit of a buffer until I’ve figured out their motives.  We ended up talking a bit over a cup of tea before we departed south.  The agent’s nervous habit of looking out the window was distracting.  …

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06/06 Edinburgh, Scotland

We headed north into Scotland.  Initially we didn’t wander too far from the train stations but eventually we stretched our arms and headed into the countryside.  The weather had been wonderful.  I truly believe the sun had been following us for weeks.  The primroses were in bloom and the fields were scattered with frolicking rabbits.  …

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09/01 Valencia, Spain

I woke early to the jingling and jangling of the vendors setting up the local market and was up and out in minutes following the caravan of wagons and carts down through the streets to the market.  The strategy was the same, I looked for food and if I could obtain it for free, all the better.  As long as we both got what we wanted out of the conversation, I could play the game.  “You picked them all by hand did ya? Your fingers are too big.  I think this one has been bruised.  …

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07/06 Uppsala, Sweden

With a cup of coffee and a cigarette, I got an early start and headed toward Gavie to see its shores.  All this talk about love and kissing had got me thinking about it as well.  In regards to the young ladies that had entered my life that I have loved, I always acted as a gentleman and never took control until the door was open and I was invited in.  I needed a green light.  …

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