4. Italy, Austria, Germany, England, Holland, Belgium and France

Leaving Spain - I had a few sad days before all of my friends in Spain left each other, but my mood improved while traveling Europe. I came back to Santiago and felt all lousy again about leaving. I would have liked more time in Spain but it is also nice to be in the US again.

Traveling - Justin, Sarah and I traveled Europe for three incredible weeks. We were able to visit Europe’s finest cities and do so many things that aren't available in Spain or at home. To describe my "crash course European tour" in words is impossible, but basically I let go of all worries for three weeks, starting in Barcelona where we traveled along the French Riviera to Rome, Italy to see the Vatican, Coliseum, Roman Forum etc. After that we met a friend of mine in Vienna, Austria and toured the royal palace, made Austrian foods and had a city tour of the clean and beautiful capital of Austria. My friend in Germany is very much like me and so we sort of lived it up for a couple days at her place. Germany consisted of much beer if interested in beers. From the beer gardens in the day to the clubs by night, it was always available. We even had a beer with a German breakfast on our last day. I tried to be a sport as much as possible. London, England was an expensive "little town" with a thing or two to do. Buckingham Palace had the changing of the guards and from the Tower of London we were able to see London Bridge and so much more. Our hostel was in Notting Hill and close to all the attractions. However, this was not a very economical city for anyone with limited funds. My favorite place was Holland because many of my friends came to Amsterdam to meet me and we celebrated at an amazingly awesome restaurant and then a night on the town to the Red light District. In our four days there we toured the city by canals, had dinners at my friend’s places, and went to the Heineken Brewery and Ann Frank house. Then on to Brussels... I never thought Belgian waffles would taste so good! We only spent a day in Belgium which may have been a good thing as I could have gained an easy 10 pounds on waffles alone. I took a few waffles home to my family who also liked them. We took a bike tour of Paris and did many sights the first days that the last day we just chilled on the Eiffel Tower lawn and laid in the sun like locals. After France, the Spanish came in useful once again. In Madrid, we stayed with my host brother and went out with his friend in Madrid. Having been to Madrid several times before, I still had not seen el Prado, Plaza Mayor, and Palacio Real. El Palacio Real is the largest of all European castles. Las Ventas, the oldest bull fighting ring in the world, had its summer festival of bull fighters competing and this was definitely an experience "muy differente" than let's say... golfing. I loved it so much and sat next to some serious aficionados who explained the history and the meanings of everything. Last stop... Santiago... Depressing feelings came back as I realized I was leaving the beautiful places behind. Sarah and I went to mass at the cathedral and there were 175 priests there for Penecost. I enjoyed seeing 8 of my European friends the most since it had been a full year since we left each other in South Africa.

Home life - I am living in Dubuque and Bellevue for the summer. I came back late Monday night and went out and then started summer class and work the next day. It will be nice to build up my savings again. I was welcomed home with a fridge full of cottage cheese was glad to see my brothers and parents again. As everything else in May, I went a little overboard on gifts, but at the end of the day my parents liked the Maeloc pieces I bought for them so price wasn't important. After a five month vacation it feels nice to get back into my routine. My Bowflex, protein shakes, and veggie burgers are back for good and definitely have improved my self esteem a lot. I'm running of 5 miles a day minimum till the end of summer which hasn't been hard since I now have unlimited shower use and beautiful weather. This weekend I plan to ride with my biking team in a 50 mile race and also hope to do a race on June 26th, (my birthday), if all works out.

In the near future - My 20 year old bro will leave this fall for Iraq. He is a full-time tanker in the Army. He says he's ready to go any time, so I will be going to Kansas soon to see him. I have three weeks of summer class and then some seriously deserved time out on the river with friends. My parents have an ocean front condo in Florida and would have liked for my brothers and I to spend a week down there with them before Tavis leaves for Iraq and I start school again. However, there is this little thing that I earn at my job called money and I'm trying to work a bunch this summer and taking off for Florida would definitely contribute to an even poorer Jareb. What to do. My fall semester is 21 credits of fun plus my full-time job. Not the most ideal situation but at the end of the day I will graduate on time and am way excited for this.

Spain vs. USA - A few random thoughts that I've had regarding the pros and cons of life a month ago to life now... In American life the clock doesn't stop and lists of things to do are never completely finished. In Spanish life, the clock starts later in the morning and almost always stops between 2:00-4:00 each day. In the US 2/3 of the population is overweight. It's frustrating to me and for this reason I enjoyed the different lifestyle the Spanish have walking to all the stores and making fresh foods. It is great once again to be able to speak at a level of inteligence that is relative to my age. I no longer have to say the daily "Hola Papita!" - "Hola Jareb Que tal?" - "Bien y tu?" -"Bien!" - "Pues... bueno... Voy al gymnacio." - "Bueno" - "Pues, hasta luego!" - "Hasta luego Jareb" Also, I'm back in the loop at home. Spain and its distance sheltered me from so many changes that have occurred while away. Spain did have... the multi-purpose alemeda, Mar, Rosio, Civi, Camino man, Amparo, an island called Tenerife, strong cultural influences, and it's share of good looking well dressed chicas. Americans do have more liberties and a freedoms and probably access to a better but more expensive education. Even so, did you know that 60% of Americans my age don't know who we fought in WWII. That reflects American international knowledge or lack there of. American cars = power/gas hogs while Spanish cars = compact/economical. Also there are definitely fewer smokers in the US than in Spain!!! Right now the US economy is stronger than ever and unemployment rates are lower than ever. It isn't always that easy to get a job in Spain. In the quad cities the other night I shook a girls hand when we met. It felt awkwardly funny to shake a girls hand after kissing on the cheeks for so long. I prefer the kisses I guess.

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