gandg
Gina & Gene Sawyer Joined: October 15th 2006
Logged in: November 6th 2011
Logged in: November 6th 2011
To figure out where we are on any given day, check our Google calendar
SCROLL DOWN -- Entries go from newest to oldest -- SCROLL DOWN
Travel Blog Posts
Isn't it a Beauty?
As some of you may know, Gina and I purposely did not purchase many souvenirs on our around-the-World trip this year due to the limited space we have at home. Instead, we opted to procure a Christmas tree ornament from each country visited to add to Gina's collection of travel ornaments that she began when we first started seeing one another. Gina finally finished decorating the tree this morning, and needless to say, we looked at one another and agreed we'll need a larger tree every year until the day we die to accommodate our growing collection. We wish everyone a Happy Holiday and continued success in the New Year! Love, Gene & Gina... read more
Well, it finally happened. Gina and I had discussed the possibility and almost accepted its occurence with finality before departing the US.I awoke on the houseboat we're renting in Amsterdam at 5AM this morning to take a pee. As I crossed the hallway from our bedroom to the bathroom, I turned to notice a shadow lurking in the kitchen clutching something. It took a few microseconds before consciousness hit me and I realized the baseball cap wearing prick was holding my laptop and camera. Naturally, I did what any person would do in the situation -- I yelled "HEY!" and started rushing the guy. It didn't even dawn on me that I was nude until after the whole scenario unfolded. As any good perp would do, he turned and ran for the door clutching my goods. ... read more
Hi All. Gina and I just wanted to put up a quick note to let everyone know that we're alive and well. We have obviously been falling further and further behind on the blog. The past month has been a whirlwind, taking us across 8 countries and several thousand kilometers. We just spent an amazing 10 days with Gina's brothers and their significants in Greece, followed closely by a 3 day trip to Ibiza. For those of you who don't already know, we'll be returning home to Chicago in mid-October, and will likely be writing blog entries into the end of the year :-) We miss everyone dearly and look forward to hearing from you soon! A few new entries will go up in the next two days. Currently, we don't have an Internet connection for ... read more
Hi Everyone. Even though we're running a month behind, Gina and I really are trying to catch up with the blog. Since we hit the European continent, our days have been marathons and we're very sorry that the entries have been slow going. We promise to have at least 2 up in the next day -- Gina has even been typing in the car as I drive. We've done about 3300 Ks (~2000 miles) since June 21 and are still having a blast. We miss you and hope all is well.... read more
Brand New
“What do you mean the rate isn’t available?” I fumed. The balding Spanish man standing behind the desk had just informed us that the reservation I placed on Hertz.com a month earlier couldn’t be processed. “I have a confirmed reservation for 2,464 Euro from June 21 to October 10!” I assured him. “Do you have a print of the reservation?” he inquired through unpracticed English. “No, but I can show you on Hertz.com. Do you have Internet access?” The accelerating pace of my counterattack must have confused him. “Internet?” “Yes, if you have an Internet connection I can login to my Hertz account and show you the confirmed reservation,” I reiterated, while clearly annunciating each word. “No Internet. You call and make a new reservation with an available rate,” the man countered with a grin. Ready ... read more
Sepulcro de Cristobal Colon
On our way to the internet café in the morning, I ducked my head into a hair salon to see how much it would cost to die my Raggedy Ann hair back to brown. As soon as I walked through the door, I knew I would again be employing my pigeon Spanish when all four female beauticians stopped what they were doing to focus their attention on me. “Hola! Habla Ingles?” I questioned with a cheery smile on my face. Unfortunately, my friendliness was greeted with a big fat “NO.” I felt like the subject of some psychology experiment as everyone stood watching, waiting for me to make my next move. Argh. This is going to be a blast. “No me gusta mi pelo rojo. Te quiero pelo moreno, pero no permanente. Comprende?” I asked, trying ... read more
Into the Horizon
The last thing Gina or I wanted to contend with after a rough night’s sleep was the winding 4-hour bus ride to Seville. To make matters worse, a fireworks grand finale had started brewing in my stomach by the time we reached the Algeciras bus station that morning, and it wasn’t long after procuring our tickets that I found myself frantically scanning for the closest baño. The seatless toilets that greeted me as I pushed open one stall after another were anything but welcoming; I had no choice. Finding Gina curled in the fetal position when I returned to the terminal a short while later, I could only envision the two of us fighting for the bathroom as our bus wound its way to Seville. At 10AM, our bus pulled into spot number 4 and we ... read more
Catching up on my zzzz's
Of course Gene would insist that we catch the first ferry out at the crack ass of dawn. To top that, Nervous Nancy felt the need to set the alarm clock for 5:00 a.m., two hours prior to the departure of the ferry for Spain. Good thing my husband is so punctual - we arrived at the port promptly at 6:00 a.m. to find the ticket office closed. The look on my face said it all. Gene, ignoring the fact that we didn’t have so much as a place to sit, suggested “we” grab some coffee (I don’t drink coffee) while we wait for the office to open. Gene began to grow fidgety in his rickety folding chair as the clock ticked past 6:30 a.m. and nobody had opened the doors to the ticket office. More ... read more
A Second-Class Ticket
Planning for a down day, Gene and I had the luxury of sleeping in. We felt no need to scurry to breakfast seeing as our morning meal was made available to us at our convenience. Revitalized, we headed up to the terrace where the cook dawdled in anticipation of our arrival. Almost as if he had been awaiting our company, Fred turned the corner with a cup of coffee in hand as soon as we took our seats. Happy to see his smiling face, we welcomed him to take a seat next to us. Our conversation picked up where it had left off the night before, with Fred’s additional commentary on our abandonment of work to travel. “You two are crazy! I love it!” Genuinely interested in the whereabouts of our future travels, Fred questioned where ... read more
Camel Head, Anyone?
“OH MY GOD!”, Gina shouted frantically while pointing at the bloody camel head adorning the front of the butcher’s souq. We had been pushing through the crowded medina on the coattails of our guide for the better part of the morning by the time Gina made the astonishing discovery and gawked openly for a few seconds. She visibly squirmed before moving on, as I fumbled for a quick photo knowing it would make good blog material. The butcher caught on quickly and jumped from behind his counter to demand money, but I turned and lost myself in the crowd before he could catch me. We had started our morning in a gingerly fashion, sleeping in and taking breakfast on the roof of our riad under the already oppressive sun. The voluminous spread was a daunting compilation ... read more
