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05/31 South Wales
09/11 Milan, Italy
10/06  Pisa, Italy
10/01  Villach, Austria
06/10 West Coast, Scotland
07/09 Northern Finland
08/28 Nerja Spain
08/19 Nazare, Portugal
10/03  Venice, Italy
10/11  Pompeii, Italy
08/09 Burn, Switzerland
11/13  Jerusalem, Israel
07/27 Bruges, Belgium
11/06  Nikolaos, Greece
12/04  Sarajevo, Yugoslavia

05/31 South Wales

We proceeded down through the middle of Wales, heading south toward the coast.  We followed the hedge groves that lined the road as it meandered like a large serpent, forcing the adjacent hill to bow to its will.  

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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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10/06 Pisa, Italy

I was told of a nice beach just outside of Pisa so I snuck in an early shower again and took an early train out.  Tuscany provided an enchanting landscape painted in pastels.  I followed the tourists to the tower in Pisa, gave my two cents and climbed to the top.  With all those people hanging all over it I was surprised it hadn’t fallen and decided to head down before it did.  After strolling through the Duomo and viewing Ramous’s doors I wandered across the river to get a feel for the countryside and sat along the side of the bridge thinking.  Truth, like art is sometimes in the eye of the beholder.  

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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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06/10 West Coast, Scotland

I looked down and saw the speck that was our car and I could almost make out Jim sitting there reading his book.  “You’re missing out”, I yelled.  I realize coming off one of these mountain I lost my wallet.  Backtracked but couldn’t find it.  Not much money and no credentials or credit cards inside, so that was a relief, but I did lose my address book.  So for all those that I promised I would write, please accept this as my apology.

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07/09 Northern Finland

There were about eight of us on a train traveling from Sweden across the Arctic Circle into Finland.  When we reached a painted line across the tracks, the train stopped and they ushered us out for a celebration.  When the speeches were over, they actually gave each of us a certificate validating our crossing, woopty-do.  It was a nice opportunity to stretch our legs, until we came to learn that this leg stretching exercise would continue for another few hours. 

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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. 

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08/19 Nazare, Portugal

The train station was a short walk outside of town but after only about fifty yards or so Jim began complaining.  I was at the point where I didn’t even hear him anymore.  He threatened to pack his shit up, fly home and didn’t like my “Go or stay but just stop complaining because you’re giving me a headache” response.  My thumb attracted a truck that had also picked up a pair of French girls who, like us, got off at the campsite. 

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10/03 Venice, Italy

Took a morning boat to Giudecca to visit a glass shop and took advantage of the weather and the sand.  The hostel I went to check out was over crowded with mostly children running about, so spent the remains of the day back on the main island.  Before dark I had gathered up my things and boarded a train towards Padova.  Across from me sat a beautiful young lady with a twinkle in her eye and I caught a smile or two.  Sex was in the air so I broke the ice.

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10/11 Pompeii, Italy

I rose early to get a head start on the tourists and encountered a thief with a taxi.  Once we reached Pompeii he tried to double then rate we agreed on.  I wouldn’t give him a dime more so the argument continued until I was imposing on his next victim.  A few impolite gestures and more than a few choice works as he sped off.  I looked around and noticed I was the only person wandering about the ruins but it was still early in the day, which was kind of a weird feeling.  After about an hour or so I saw another individual and then two young men wandered up to me and inquired if I had any hash to sell.

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08/09 Burn, Switzerland

Jim joined the hostel attitude.  He didn’t want to go anywhere, see anything, he just wanted to stick around the hostel and wash his clothes, so I sought out on my own.  I checked out Albert Einstein’s home and then the modern art museum.  “One man’s treasure is another man’s trash”.  I love art but sometimes.  I wandered the market and the local stops searching for Christmas gifts, but ended up buying chocolates to satisfy my taste buds instead. 

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11/13 Jerusalem, Israel

Alongside the darkness we walked the city streets.  It was a different feel since the majority of the shops were boarded up for the night.  It gave the streets a maze like feel.  We came upon a community of water pipes where I sat across from an elderly blind man and a few of his companions.  We shared a pot of spearmint tea and a conversation.  I had a picture taken but it was very dark and without a flash I wasn’t sure if it would come out. 

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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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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.

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12/04 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia

It was very late, or to be more accurate, real early in the morning.  Outside the station it was dark and cold, really cold.  Neither one of us were equipped for that type of weather.  The streets were covered in ice and our worn tennis shoes didn’t provide much if any traction.  When we exited the station we had no idea which way to head to find ourselves a room.  There were two others that also exited our train so we began following them in the hopes they would lead us down the right path.  We came to a large boulevard lined with large office shaped buildings but there were no signs or lights that provided us any indication that we were heading in the right direction. 

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