I spent all of last week camping on the Buffalo River in Northern Arkansas, near Ponca. I hiked in after dark with my trusty flash light and head lamp to light the way. I spotted on an armadillo on the path. Setting up camp was quick and painless, plenty of trees to choose from to tie the hammock up. I camped at the top of 20 ft bluff that overlooked the river. The first day in, I sat on the bank drying off from my morning swim and a very curious copperhead snake came close to take a look at me. [View Full Entry]

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Well... Here I am in Tower Grove South, St. Louis, running my own business and bartending here: http://www.citymuseum.org. I've had a fairly eventful year of traveling, within the United States. I lost someone very dear to me last summer. He died tragically in a motorcycle accident at age 27 in the mountains of Italy. I just haven't been the same since this happened. It reminded me that life is short and that our time here is precious. At the risk of sounding totally cliche, I made myself a promise that I would do all the things I'd always wanted to do, [View Full Entry]

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This morning - bright and early - we boarded ship and set sail on the Aegean. I wasn't sure what to expect, other than magnificance.... The leader of our little expedition was a man named Peter Nicolaides (professional diver, oceanographer-biologist, off-shore engineer). He runs a school here called The Aegean Diving College and is one of the most intellegent, humble, fascinating individuals I've ever met. Yes, he's worked with Jaques Cousteau. Wow. Anyhoo... after Peter's lecture on the small islands just off the coast of Paros and the wonders beneath the sea (which, by the way, you can see [View Full Entry]

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So it's been awhile since I've reported here. I've now been on the island for a week and I think I'm suited to this environment very well. Athens was beautiful, as far as ancient art and food, but dirty and crowded and tourist-y. We left at the crack of dawn.... No, before the crack of dawn. The De La Soul show was the night before so I had zero sleep. (I danced on stage with De La and sang back up on "Me, Myself, and I" - it was the best night). The ferry ride was hell because I was exhausted, [View Full Entry]

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Second trip to Florence, we toured the Uffizi where I saw so many of my favorite works!!! Like Artemisia’s Judith and Holofernes; Caravaggio’s Bacchus, St. Isaac, and Head of Medusa; Botticelli’s Venus; Titian’s Venus and Madonna with the long neck… I’ve given up keeping a record of all the amazing foods I eat here. There is just too much to describe! Rest assured, I will come home a fatter me. [View Full Entry]

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Back in Pistoia. Saw a brilliant della Robia terracotta, his masterpiece, the Visitation, which depicts Mary and Elizabeth. It was beautifully crafted and I loved the contrast. Della Robia was indeed a genius, as our professor has already several times pointed out. [View Full Entry]

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Today was my last trip to Florence. I went to this amazing chapel overlooking the city and had my 2nd or maybe 3rd spiritual moment. The first, being in Rome…second in a Baroque chapel. Anyhoo… tomorrow I pack for Rome. I think I will cry. Italy is…. How could one describe? The good news is Greece will be equally awesome. And with this leg of my adventure coming to its close, the intensive travel and touring will be done and I will be able to concentrate more on classes and creating. And you all will be hearing from me more often! [View Full Entry]

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I had a lunch date with Federico today. He is 31, owns some sort of computer business near Venice and works with the production company handling their tech stuff. He’s worked on tour with Madonna, U2, etc, etc. Very sweet person. He took me to a ristorante called Gargantua, I had the Ravioli al’ Ricotta e Spinali and he had the Salome e Pecorino. Buonissimo! Afterwards, we walked around Pistoia and talked. Stopped off at the gellateria for dessert and then he drove me back to the villa. It was a great afternoon. He was a gentleman in every way and [View Full Entry]

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Today we toured Lucca. Three cathedrals, a museum, and an old cathedral that has been turned into a museum. Lucca is my third favorite (Rome and Venice being numbers one and two). Sienna and Pisa… eh. They’re alright. After the tour, I stayed awhile, did some window shopping, and had some gellato. Barely made it home in time to go to the Pearl Jam concert in Pistoia. There were between 10,000 and 15,000 people at the sold out show. We ended up not getting tickets for political reasons, but I managed (of course) to get into the show with full back [View Full Entry]

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I have a stalker. It was bound to happen. I met an Italian guy on the autobus on the way home. I made small talk with him and he walked me to the drive of the villa. BFD. Well… last night I stayed in Florence (about 30 minutes from Pistoia) for a bit after the rest of the group came home. I wanted to walk around, have a late lunch and a beer at Annie’s Pub (my favorite Florentine bar - Gaia is a great bartender), and cruise up to the Archeological Museum to see some Etruscan artifacts and the famous [View Full Entry]

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