Hinschmo

As I write this final installment of ‘European With Paul’, I am not in some exotic place drinking fine wine and eating local cheese. No no, instead I am sitting in my living room in Idaho Falls with debilitating jetlag and post European sadness disorder. I suppose it’s for the better since I am practically broke and I haven’t done laundry since I last wrote (two weeks, two pairs of underwear: you do the math). A lot has happened in two weeks, so I’m sorry if this is too long for your attention span (if you’ve even made it this far). When Jason and I left Lana, Italy we went to a town called Brixen to do some hiking in the Dolomites. It turned out to be a very cloudy and cold day, but we were ... read more

It has been 12 days since I last wrote and I feel like I've been put in a food processor of activity and random events. After Fabriano, I went to Ancona and stayed two nights with couchsurfers Francesco and Katrina. Ancona is not a particularly special town, but Francesco seemed to be a history buff, tour guide and foodie all rolled into one, which definitely helped. I would be eating the best gelato in town (possibly Italy) while getting a full debriefing of Ancona's roll in World War II. Interesting pairing. They are fantastic people and I was very gracious for their hospitality. After two nights in Ancona, I took the overnight ferry to Zadar, Croatia on June 1st and began the third trimester of my trip. Not knowing a single word of Croatian, I almost ... read more

So apparantly the ominous Iceland volcano cloud has formed over Italy for the last week which explains all of the rain that is spoiling tourist's vacations. Last week was unintentionally dedicated to the quintessential tourist crap that I generally despise, and it has been especially depressing to be around all of the unsatisfied tourists. Since the Cinque Terre is only accessible via train and it isn't tourist season yet, I was expecting there to be five peaceful coastal towns where I could putz around and mingle with the locals. In reality, all five villages were inundated with German and American tourists that are the type of tourists that make you want to vomit. Now, I am also a guilty party of touristry, but most of these people have no respect or regard for the local culture ... read more

First of all I want to clear a few things up. First, my friend Morgan pointed out to me that she did not understand the 'change of underwear' reference in my last blog. I figured that it didn't need an explanation, but essentially I was saying (facetiously) that the wine and the experience was so amazing that I might have shat myself, which would have necessitated new undewear (and new dignity). Second of all, many people who write me comments show me way too much pity for my adventures. I don't pity myself, so neither should anyone else. Although I may write with a cynical tone, which makes it sound like I'm having a bad time, I am loving every moment of every disaster that comes my way and I wouldn't have it any other way. ... read more

All right, so my last entry I believe I left off giving a brief description of the farm, but I have pictures this time. It was quite a simplistic old farmhouse, but it was so simple and peaceful, even Anne Coulter could become a more pleasant person if she stayed there. After working long hours of pulling up weeds, I would grab a glass of vin rouge and watch the sun set behind a curtain of weeping willow branches. Then we would eat a large delicious meal that Joyce cooked (we ate very late) and drag ourselves to bed, only to do it again the next day. I loved doing everything 'the old fashioned way' even down to feeding the goats and hanging the laundry on the clothes line (I take great pleasure in the simplest ... read more