OK, again, great Old Town. Weather is not very good in the Baltics unless you prefer cold and dreary conditions in the summer, but at least you do not need AC. Went for a run around the Old Town again today and had the same filling Russian dumplings I had in Riga today at 6 Pellini *spelling?). This am I walked to the old wooden homes way outside the Old Town. Sort of neat to get off the beaten path, but nothing amazing. Found a great little pizza spot last night with some hostel mates and we had some fun there [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, made it to Tallinn and can't write much yet--short on internet time, but it is a great little city. Waslked the whole old town today and it is so nice. Check pictures out online sometime! I also went for a run around the whole walled city and then back into it and did some stairs--that is after probably walking 4 miles did another 4 or so running. Good day so far. Starting to get a bit rainy, but the hostel is nice--almost like a hotel. Staying in the Old House Hostel. It seems like it will be a quiet one, [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, Helsinki sucks. . .I mean, it is a city with a big, dirty feel to it and it is packed with freaky looking people. The weather is cold and unpredictable. There really are no sights to see here at all. I walked all over the city and saw maybe 2 buildings that would not be average buildings in every other European city--or below average. It is so expensive it is a horrible joke. I mean, I am having a draft beer right now at an internet cafe for €6 which is about $9. A McDs cheeseburger was about $3 today [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, so went out with about 10 people last night to some beer garden where the beers were only 1 Lat. That is as good as it gets here--which is about $2.20, but they are very big. Had a lot of them and watched the stag parties going crazy with drinking games. We also met some Latvian girls who were fairly interesting--just very different culture to say the least. I never met the lady from Maine for dinner, just had some Russian dumplings at the beer garden--and more coming home at 2:30am. Good and cheap. That is real Russian food there--filling [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, so I thought it would take all day to see the sights in the Old City, but nope. First grabbed an omelet and got an espresso in a nice little pub. Then, I took some advice and made the first elevator up to the top of St. Peter's Churhc and was the only one up on top of the tower. Great view of the whole city, but cold and windy up there. When I went down, the line was so long for the next rides up. Pretty cool to have the whole top of the tower to myself. Next I [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, so I took the long cab ride into the Old Town of Riga. Pretty easy to find the hostel--Argonaut Hostel. On the way, saw lots of Soviet-style buildings, many with spraypaint all over them. The nightlife around this part of the Old Town seems to be really good, but I got in and showered and went to bed pretty soon. It was past 1:30am when I tried to hit the sack. Not a great night of sleep--but interesting. 10 beds in my room and I was on an upper bunk. 2 guys were sleeping already and the other people slowly [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, Waiting in the airport in Athens for my flight to Riga, Latvia. Free internet, but tough to use. Getting put on the news inAthens right now for being on this system. Anyway, good trip to the islands. No idea what to expect tonight in Riga when I get in after 10pm and am in a room with 9 other people. Supposed to be a fun city and it is cool not knowing what I will be doing in a few hours, let alone tomorrow or the next day. Well, hope the flight on airbaltic goes well. 3 hrs or so [View Full Entry]

---

---

Got a dune buggy today with Mom and drove all over the island. Went to Perissa Beach and the Red Beach then back towards the hotel to Kamari Beach. Just driving around mostly then went up to the mountain town of Pyrgos and checked out the crazy maze of streets and got lunch. Split a pizza and each had a drink. Can't believe I have never been up there. Maybe my favorite place on the island. Took a little nap this afternoon and then the whole crew drove to the other end of the island to Oia and watched the sunset [View Full Entry]

---

---

OK, 3 day in Ios now. Things are going well. This is the portion of my trip with about 30 Green Hope HS seniors. Brought Mom too. On the way, Mom and I and 7 others got bumped and got a free ticket to anywhere USAir flies, so I am thinking about maybe Brazl sometime. Always wanted to do that. We got in the 1st night about 12-13 hours later than we were supposed to, so just had to catch up with everyone else and try to get some rest. Ios is always fun. No place crazier in the world--at least [View Full Entry]

---

---

Below is my schedule for the summer. Busy, busy. . . June 1-9 Daytona Beach, Florida **then home for a few days June 17-19 Athens, Greece (Hydra, Aegina, and Poros also) June 19-22 Ios, Greece June 22-26 Santorini, Greece June 26-29 Riga, Latvia June 29-July 1 Helsinki, Finland July 1-3 Tallinn, Estonia July 3-5 Vilnius, Lithuania July 5-7 Krakow, Poland July 7 Bratislava, Slovakia July 8 Vienna, Austria July 9-11 Ljubljana, Slovenia July 11-12 ?????? July 12-15 [View Full Entry]

---

---