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07/12 Helsinki, Finland
09/17 Zermatt, Switzerland
08/04 Mirabellgarden, Salzburg Austria
06/16 Southern Ireland
08/02 Salzburg, Austria
07/03 Amsterdam, Netherlands
11/02  Crete, Greece
08/19 Nazare, Portugal
11/24  Selesck, Turkey
08/15 Heidelberg, Germany
10/18  Cefalu, Italy
12/03  Belgrade, Yugoslavia
10/09  St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome Italy
09/12 Lausanne, Switzerland
06/28 Bodo, Norway

07/12 Helsinki, Finland

I woke from a dream, fixing my eyes on the unseen shadows of the dark room and began tracing the steps of the dream that had just left my grasp.  I got up, sat at a table in the corner of the room and stared out at the moon. …

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09/17 Zermatt, Switzerland

I was up in the early hours staring out my window at the full moon and the Matterhorn bathing in its light.  I had awakened drained, partly hung over and in need of food.  But it was Sunday and on Sunday nothing was open.  I obtained just a cup of coffee and a bit of cheese, which was hardly enough to provide any additional strength.  Well here I go, one ski lift to another and the valley below disappeared in the distance.  I guess you could say I was kind of a novelty being a first time skier and the group was set on taking me to the top of the mountain.  …

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08/04 Mirabellgarden, Salzburg Austria

Today’s plan was to wander around the city in an attempt to locate our choir from home.  After another walk along the river, around the castle and up and down the many streets, I got the feeling we had taken the wrong approach to find our choir.  I began thinking it a better approach to let them find me.  That would at least reduce the walking.  In the middle of the squares in-between the castle and the church sat a large chess set, with pieces about two and a half feet in height.  …

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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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08/02 Salzburg, Austria

As we approached Salzburg the clouds parted and the sun came peaking through, signaling that a good day was ahead of us.  In one of the travel guides there was an interesting youth hostel alongside a casino.  I knew from my last visit to Salzburg, that the hostel had to be on the cliff overlooking the old city.  Once our train arrived we headed straight toward a phone and contacted the hostel to see if rooms were available.  Good news but we had to be quick because they did not take reservations.  …

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07/03 Amsterdam, Netherlands

There were no hedges, nor fences, in the bare and uniform countryside leading into the Netherlands.  We were heading back into the crossroads of traffic back into the circus they had named Amsterdam.  I could see no natural boundaries that separated the courtyard from the jester.  …

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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.  …

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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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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.  …

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08/15 Heidelberg, Germany

In a middle of a dream a young man introduced himself to me, explained that we knew one another and that he had something to show me.  I looked at his face and couldn’t recall where we had met or when.  He stated that he had been given permission to show me something and at that moment opened what could be best described as a door.  Behind the opened door I saw billions of people of all ages, with all characteristics, moving frantically as if searching for someone important to them.  As I moved closer I noticed that my mind did not perceive the physical characteristics of these people.  …

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10/18 Cefalu, Italy

The storm passed through very quickly.  When the sun rose I gathered up my things and without even saying goodbye I headed down the volcano like I was escaping.  I had just come out of a sulfur cloud, was coated in mud and must have smelled like shit.  I sure felt like shit.  When I finally made it back down to the residence below they too were cover in mud.  I’m glad somebody could laugh at this.  The first two people I saw were in the process of shoveling themselves out of the mud.   …

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12/03 Belgrade, Yugoslavia

I was told I still had family in Belgrade.  My grandmother had given me addresses of relatives so at one point I considered visiting, but the negative idea of just showing up on somebody’s doorstep crept in.  I ran it by Jenni.  She didn’t have any plans of her own and kind of reluctantly agreed to follow, as long as we were heading north.  We spent the rest of the day seeing some of the sights and roaming the streets.  The one thing I didn’t want to do was to visit another museum.  …

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10/09 St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome Italy

It was an early arrival into Rome.  I had in my pocket a few phone numbers and a couple of addresses handed to me along the way.  After two attempts at one of these addresses there still was no answer so I obtained a map and began walking towards Saint Peter’s square.  I jumped on to the subway surprised to see all the graffiti.  Unnecessary scars.  As I entered the St. Peter’s courtyard I heard whispers, like the voices of the past that never really left.  Each pillar that surrounded me gave me the impression they were watching my every step.  …

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09/12 Lausanne, Switzerland

I enjoyed traveling on trains through the darkness of those mountains.  When there was nothing else to do and I was tired of writing, I just stared at the passing shadows from the darkness of my compartment.  I reached Lausanne early in the morning and walked into some confusion.  Apparently the airport in Paris was on strike and that had a domino effect across Europe.  Every form of information service had a line leading out its door.  I noticed a young Finnish girl waiting in one of those lines.  …

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06/28 Bodo, Norway

I picked up a pair of apples and a few candy bars for the trek, while Jim checked the train schedules.  “Track four, ready to go” said Jim.  After a minute or two with no train, it dawned on me that Jim most likely misread the schedules and picked the wrong platform.  I retrieved the schedule from Jim’s bag, “I’ll hold the bags, you go check platform six” I bluntly stated.  In the tunnel between the platforms I could hear Jim’s echo, “Its going!!”  …

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