You know you are a backpacker when...

10. The only bug that scares you more than foot fungus is a bed bug.
9. a) a hot shower beginning to end is like a gift from god that you just can't stop talking about.
b) the person who takes a shower after you curses you for using all of the hot water.
8. Even the tastiest pizza makes you want to hurl but you just can't stop eating it due to price constraints.
7. You can' remember the last time you sat on a toilet seat.
6. You walk past a group traveling with rolling suitcases and think, "Losers."
5. A 'travel day' is synonymous with running with over 100 lbs of bags while having a simultaneous headache and backache.
4. Everything on your MP3 player drives you mad but you keep on listening to it anyway.
3. Even tho half of the information in the Lonely Planet guidebooks is wrong you still haul 1-3 around, each weighing 5 lbs.
2. You have ask where the bathroom is in 12 different languages but you can't understand the answer.

and the number 1 way to know that you are a backpacker when...

Having all 10 toenails is a thing of the past.

The Islands of Mali Lošinj and Susak

Laying on a deserted beach watching the warm blue water lap the fine sand I thought about writing this blog with much pleasure.

On 27 May we headed on a bus all the way from the port town of Poreč to the adriatic island of Mali Lošinj (pronounced lotion) in one day, which is quite impressive by my standards. Mali Lošinj has about 6500 inhabitants and a cute and colorful port. It reminded me a little of Cinque Terre, Italy in the colors of the facades. The island is covered in dense pine trees which gave me the feel of being at summer camp. The first day we treked to the far side of the island and sunbathed all day. While the bay was a beautiful color of turquoise I was not overly impressed. The beach was a gravelly at best and OVERUN BY GERMANS! Actually that could be said for all of Croatia. So we laid out till we couldn't handle anymore sun and we back in our cush beds before midnight. Needless to say the nightscene on Mali Lošinj doesn't pop unless you are interested in teenage german boys. Guten tag!

So the next day we took a day we took a ferry out to a tiny island called Susak to get away from the Germans. Population 188 and about 3 sq. miles when we stepped off the boat the thought, "Is this is?!" slipped out of my mouth. While the the buildings around the port are a bit dreary the old town up on the hill is quaint. There are no street names in Susak, just numbers. Mass had just let out and the old women were wearing their regional outfits which look like the top half of a nun's habit and the bottom half of a school girl uniform with thick stockings. After getting lost and talking to a local we found out that the nice beach took a 20 minute trek around the bend past a cave. When we arrived it was like that scene out of the movie The Beach. The water was crystal clear and warm with little fish swimming around. We threw down our gear and jumped in. The shalllow bay stretched out for at least a hundred metres. Everyonce in awhile boats manned by nudists would come into the cove. Nudism is a big thing here in Croatia and I have seen more than my fill of old man bits.

We laid there for what seemed like forever before making our way back to the first tourist beach which had been once again overrun by a group of school kids.

Today we got a 4:45am bus to Zagreb where I currently am writing this before heading to the Plevtice Lake Park in the middle of the country. The park is known for beautiful waterfalls and lakes. A nice change from the beach.

Porec, Croatia

Croatia is everything I ever could have hoped it to be and more. Welcoming locals, good food, plentiful clean beaches, and knock off designer sunglasses and bags galore. Not to mention cheap jewelry, I think I am in heaven.

Took a ferry from Venice to Porec, Croatia yesterday. Walked off the boat and was offered a cheap room from a nice (and slightly inebriated) croat named Miro. My travel buddy Sarah and I dropped our bags off and started walking around the small port town. Blue water, sailboat filled bay, pink sunset, and cobblestone streets. The people in Porec are very lovely and kind although the city is overrun by German tourists.

Today we took a boat to tour the Istria coast. Croatia is spotted with tiny uninhabited islands that are covered in pine trees, a nice color contrast to the cobalt sea. I saw we a pirate cave that was too cool. Tonight we are going to feast on the local truffles that are supposed to have some trippy effects.

Tomorrow we are headed to Rijeka as a base for island hopping.

Current Philosophy

The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.
~Mark Twain

Heading to Croatia tomorrow. No reservations, no preconceptions, nothing but me.

Venice

Canals, boats, bridges, blah blah blah... I am staying at a campsite outside of Venice and sadly enough that might be my favorite part of Venice. Sleeping in a tent is so much fun and really cheap. But back to the city. It is over run by tourists and to ride one of those gondolas down a canal cost 80 euros. No thanks. I went around yesterday and saw everything that I wanted to see, including the Guggenheim collection that rocked. No more Madonnas only contemporary art. So today I am sitting at the campgrounds doing laundry and trying to plan my trip to Croatia. Seriously there is almost no literature and no internet help booking hotels so I am kinda going renegade style. Showing up at the port city of Ancona on Wednesday and gonna get on a boat and see where it takes me. Wish me luck cuz I am gonna need it.

Next stop Split (If I can keep up the nerve.)

Florence

Florence was lovely. There is more Renaissance art there than you can stand and I decided that if I saw another Madonna with Child I was gonna freak out. Seeing Michelangelo's David was poignant moment. I was captured by his perfection and is it strange to be physically attracted to a carved piece of marble? What a man.

The best thing that I did in Florence was charm a sweet Italian man into take me wine tasting in the Chianti region. We drove in his convertable thru the Tuscan countryside to a little town called Greve. All along the way there were rolling green hills and winding roads. We feasted on Wild Boar and truffles before tasting at least 20 different kinds of vino. Wine is the international language I prefer to speak.

On to Venice...

Last Night in Cinque Terre

A camera cannot capture...

My friendly neighbor with his sax standing on a beached paddle boat improvising to to Pink Floyd's "Shine on you Crazy Diamond" playing to people eating and talking under a perfect italian nigh sky. Lit up caverns housed dry boats. Me on a stoney porch rocking to the familiar melody, not alone. A waiter brings me the house special to eat on the marina after I tell him that I am a friend of the musician and deny their coveted reserved table. I prefer to eat outside with the singing sax and my bottle of chianti.

This morning I had a dream that I met a old friend and had a great conversation. At the end she got on a train and said she had to go. I asked her why and she said that it was time. I awoke, packed my bags and left Cinque Terre for Florence. When it is time to go it is time.

Figueres

Went and saw a theatre that Dali built in his home town of Figueres and it was seriously the COOLEST art museum I have ever been to. I first heard about it years ago on some travel show and finally made it there on my way out of Spain. Dali converted a burnt out theatre into a museum of his work and his crypt lays below. I saw my favorite painting of Lincoln and it was absolutely huge. Everything in this place was a testament to defying the borders of reality. The Mae West room had a couch in the shape of lips, a couple of fireplace, and pictures of eyes hanging over the mantle. One climbs stairs and looks thru a fish lens mounted on a camel and everything comes into persepective... It is Mae West's face!!! Too cool.

Anyone who loves surrealism must make the pilgrimage. Stay off the drugs tho, the art is enough to drive you crazy.

Cinque Terre

It was quite an ordeal to get here so I will quickly recap my trip from hell. Well there have been train strikes in France and Italy so I had to change trains 6 times and was never sure if I was going to be dumped off in some dark empty train station in the middle of the night alone, or worse yet with a group of freaky dudes. Luckily I met this lovely elderly American couple who were a testament to true love. When my couchette was full of creepy learing men they let me have one of their first class beds and shared the other. Together we were ripped off by a French conductor who took my Eurail pass and threatened to tear it up if I didn't pay him 100 euros all because he didn't like the way I wrote my numbers and accused me of fraud. The couple had to pay 35 euros a piece for some other nonense. That was the last time I was in France and I may never go back again. After being to Spain and Italy I see how terrible and mean they can be. (Sorry Romans friends, I had a bad day.)

So I arrived in Cinque Terre and slept for what seemed like an eternity. Cinque Terre is five lovely villages perched along the rugged Italian coastline overlooking the Mediterranean. They are connected by a series of foot paths, some hanging off cliffs others winding throught the mountains. I have been traveling with a couple of Cali Kids from the OC. Last night we had an AMAZING dinner in this cute little restaurant. The owner came to our table and kept on telling me and my travel buddy that we are "As beautiful as the sun" in Italian of course. At the end of our meal he sat and held my hand as he told us his life story and blew kisses to the women at the surrounding tables. Now this is something that has definitely changed about me. Before I would have been creeped out by what we call a "Dirty Old Man." I watched another table of girls from Cali give AIR KISSES to the owner instead of cheek to cheek acting like he was gonna make out with him. Give me a break, he is 78 years old!! I have been hearing from American girls that they find the attention from Italian men intimidating but I still mantain that there is nothing more menacing than French Arabs. After living in Romans for 7 months I have nerves of steel and find the Italians charming and sweet. Sure it is all just talk to get a kiss off you, but it is done in a way that can make you feel beautiful if you let it. I think that I am going to mellow out here for a couple more days then maybe go to Venice or Florence. I haven't decided yet.

Baci

NO TRAINS IN FRANCE!!

So I went to the train station today to head to Italy and low and behold all trains in France have been cancelled. The goddam French are at it again. I mean,what's new? If a conductor burns a pot of coffee he goes on strike to show solidarity with the beans. So now I am in Barcelona for one more night.

Kabul has been so much fun but kinda getting to the point of saturation. While it is fun to get blind drunk on cheap beer with rowdy Australians, after a week my voice and liver need a break.

Tomorrow I am going to see a theatre that Dali designed in Figueres then head on a 20 hour voyage comprised of 4 trains to get to Cinque Terre where I will chill, swim and maybe even fish.

Mellow, think mellow.

Barcelona

I am in a big party. I dance all night and tan all day. Over the weekend some spaniards took me and my friend Becky sailing around Barcelona. Even tho I took some dramamine I still was getting a little sick and went down into the exhaust filled cabin to sleep it off. I think I lost some brain cells with that little siesta.

Just moved into the infamous party hostel Kabul today. Happy hour is gonna start but I think that I am going to go eat a falafel from Maoz before the drinking begins. Have discovered an undercover bar that looks out onto Plaza Real with hot peeps and cheap drinks, you have to ring an unmarked door and climb three flights of stairs but then voilam the party is on.

More to come.

Mellow in France

So instead of boozing all over France, I returned to my small town Romans for another week. After running all of France with my grandparents I didn't feel like being a tourist for another minute. Instead I tanned on my terrace, sipping Orangina while listening to French radio and reading. Every once in a while I would stroll down the street and say hi to all the people I have gotten to know or duck in to see a movie at the cinema. After I was done soaking up the hospitality of the Romanais I headed up into the mountains to visit Die. Die is this awesome hippy oasis in nestled between snow touched mountains and is just coming alive with the tourist season. The spring rains have turned everything green and flowers scent the air wherever you go. Not to mention that my favorite French alcohol is made here, Clairette de Die.

Tomorrow I will be heading to Barcelona. I do not expect my life to be this tranquil again until I head to Italy. Going to see Dali and Picasso, lay on the beach, and get into whatever kind of trouble I can handle. Meeting up with my girl Crazy Berkeley aka Becky and we are gonna set the town on fire.

Hasta Luego!!

Wine over Water

Dropping the Grandparents off tomorrow in Paris then heading to drink the stars in Champagne country then bike ride through the vineyards of Dijon. This weekend I will be returning to Romans to grab my stuff and then head to mountains to a little hippy town called Die to visit my girl Lalaina from SF. After that I will be dropping into Barcelona for the beginning of my Spain adventure.

Taking my grandparents around France has been a lot of fun although the driving has been a bit stressful. The coolest thing we did was head to the tiny town called Grasse in Provence to see where Parfum was developed and became popular. I have never smelled anything so good in my life, although after about 15 minutes everything smelled alike.

More to come.

Tour Guide in two Languages

So I have been playing tour guide since Paris with my grandparents. It is funny cuz I have English in my ears and French coming out my mouth. They think I am fluent which just makes me laugh but I guess I am a lot better off than when I first got here.

Seeing the beaches of Normandy, the American Cemetary, and the WW2 memorial in Caen was very moving. I definitely appreciate the sacrifice made my the generations before mine. I would suggest anyone who wants to feel the effect of war to visit these memorials and keep their eyes open. Very moving and life changing.

In Avignon right now enjoying the golden sun of Provence. The lavender scented air and pollen laden breeze keeps my allergies active. Enjoying the warm nature of the local population, which is a nice change from the cold bastards in Paris.

Tomorrow going to Nice, will be visiting Monaco and Grasse, where perfume was invented. After I drop my grandparents off in Paris I think I am going to go wine tasting in Champagne and then who knows.

Last Class

Hey, just had to tell you about my last class. My favorite class that I have had all year sang "Imagine" to me in the music room and then we had sweets and drinks. It was seriously the most touching class cuz all of the kids were very sad to see me go. They were all giving me hugs and kisses and were taking pictures. Probably the most memorable class ever.

Adieu Triboulet, Je vous manques énormément. Gros Bisous Tout Pleine, Alexandra

Au Revoir

So my friend who I was going to backpack with got a bleeding ulcer and now has to go back to the US! Therefore I am at square one again. That is just the icing on a dramatic week that has included an international love triangle, unknowingly going to the club with 2 guys I dated, a cameo by the psycho french boyfriend, being deathly ill, the end of my job, and moving. And that's all off the top of my head. Don't get me thinking. I am a freakin lightning rod for drama!

Saying goodbye to the kids and the highschool is a bit surreal. In the end, the students really warmed up to me and I enjoyed their youthful antics. I always let my class be a fun and exciting place for them to express themselves in any language they wanted. I haven't made a lesson plan since December and I think I pulled it off very well. I will definitely miss the young boys smitten looks and blushing cheeks as I tried to coax a little English out of their mouths. It is not every day that you get to be a goddess.

I have been packing my room and cursing myself for bringing so many things from home that would have been better left in storage. Who needs 12 pairs of shoes? And two freaking dictionaries? How about the 3 backpacks and 8 purses? I must have been smoking a heavy dose of crack when I brought that stuff out. Now I have to get it all back plus the crap I have aquired since.

Saturday the Grandparents come to Paris where I will meet them. Then we are off to see Versailles, the D-day Beaches, Avignon, Nice, and Monaco. I am not exactly sure what I will be doing after they leave. I kinda feel like going to Prague, but then again Amsterdam sounds good. I have no idea what I am going to do.

Me, my backpack, my tour book, my eurail pass, and my bank card are ready. Let the games begin.

Countdown to Lift-off

So April fool's day in France is celebrated by taping paper fish on the backs of unsupecting friends. Weird tradition but probably from the same Christianity vs Paganism roots.

Today begins the last week of my stay in Romans. I am pretty happy to be leaving but sad to be leaving the comfort of my life, namely my kitchen and my bed. I will be backpacking Europe for the next three months during which time I hope to see parts of France, Spain, Italy, and Greece. I will be carrying all of my earthly belongings on my back and sleeping in a different hostel every two nights. I except fatigue but also a great adventure. I will be backpacking by myself also, so there are risks that I am going to have to anticipate. Of course I am never alone for very long as I tend to attract fellow travellers of the same genre.

I will actually kind of miss my job as an assistant. I had a fan club of teenage boys that thought I was a goddess. That was cool cuz it was definitely not the case when I was in high school. I will also miss the fact that this seriously is the easiest job that I ever had and probably ever will have.

I should probably mention my trip to Nice over Easter. It was awesome!! We partied hard in the pubs, sat on the beach, and walked around the city. I got kicked out of a Casino because they didn't like my sandals, which was pretty funny. I will be going back in a few weeks with my grandparents, which should be fun.

Watched the pope's funeral today. It's like the world is changing all around us. All of these revolutions and deaths of famous people just makes you wonder what is going to happen next.

Expect my posts to be much more interesting in the months ahead. A tend to get into lots of interesting situations when travelling and won't skimp on the details.

Who Even Reads This Thing?

So we are entering the final 21 days of my stay here in Romans. In the beginning it was boring, cold, lonely, and hopeless. Now it is warm and fun and I am almost sad to leave. As of late I have really gotten into rugby and go and watch all the local games. It is so much better than football or soccer, and the guys are a lot hotter. I know a bunch of the players and coaches. Meow...

Going to Nice tomorrow for the Easter weekend with my Romans girls. Looking forward to the warm weather and the rockin night life. There should be a bunch of English college students there for the holiday. Looking forward to the party.

Happy Easter everybody!

St. Patty's Day in the Twilight Zone

St. Patty's day isn't really celebrated here, so at around 4pm my girl Carrie and I downed a bottle of Malibu and Orangina on the sunny fields of her highschool. It was just like sophmore year. Sitting there drunk as skunks we complained about how French men are so strange. I hadn't heard from my French "boyfriend" in a few days and my vibes were telling me something was awry. At dusk we headed to the one Irish bar in town, which is in fact not Irish at all except in decor, and proceeded to drink even more. 10pm rolled around and I was ready to retire so me and my roomies started heading home. As we approached the highschool where I live a male figure came out of the shadows. Who was it other than my elusive French Amour! He said that he saw me walking on the street and stopped to talk to me. I sent my roommates ahead and as soon as they were out of ear shot the stupid bastard broke up with me!! I am amazed to report that "the talk" is the same no matter where you are. Such lines as, 'it's not you it's me,' 'I think that you are great but...' and 'I am just really messed up in my head' were all used. It must be programmed into the male chromosome or something.

All of the sudden we heard sirens coming up quickly from around the corner. Frenchie said that the cops were coming and almost immediately a small car came racing into the roundabout with a cop car hot on it's tail. Swerving at high speeds around the corner the fugitive car smashed into an oncoming vehicle. Then the cop car rear-ended the fugitive car! Out of the passenger door sprung out a young arab miscreant who came dashing in our direction with a cop on his heals. Frenchie tried to stand in front of me as some sort of chivilrous gesture, but I pushed him to the side. There was no way I was going to miss the most exciting thing to happen in Romans in the past 7 months cuz he wants to feel like my 'protector.' The young fugitive juked right, then left and in from of the kebab shop the cop lurched forward and pinned the punk to the sidewalk. A minute later another cop car had shown up and they dragged him away. Everyone got in their cars and drove off, and once again the street was empty except for me and the Frenchie.

"So you still want to end things with me?"
"Yes. I adore you...blah blah blah... I don't want to hurt you..."
"Right..."
I just kinda zoned out at what he was saying as I knew the words before he even spoke them. I reacted with a numb smile on my face as I soaked in the bizarro-land happenings. An air of resignation passed over me and gave way to a spring in my step. I shrugged my shoulders, gave a laugh, and wished him a good night. It would have never worked out anyway, but I am definitely cool about the experience. If he never broke up with me on the street that night then I would have missed the only episode of Cops-Romans, and that my friends was priceless. Hands down the weirdest day in Romans.

Bad boys bad boys, watcha gonna do?

Everyone who has a french boyfriend raise their hand

If you could see me you would see that my hand is raised.

Yes oh yes... after swearing off French men due to their tight pants and overall greasy demeanor I have found one in particular that strikes my fancy. He does not where tight pants and is the sweetest thing this side of the Atlantic. It took many bad dates and convaluted intentions with guys that would have ZERO chance with me in Cali, but 6 months after arriving I have a found the one who is just right for me. I will keep the details to myself except for the most important one, that he ADORES me and thinks that I hung the moon.

I will be done with my job one month from today. After that I have no idea what I will be doing or how this new romance will factor into it, but I have faith that everything is gonna be just fine.

And for the ladies out there, you have no idea what romance is until you hear it in French. NO IDEA whatsoever.

Enjoy the Spring my friends, no matter where you are.