France - Versaille Spain - Madrid, Toledo, San Sebastian

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6-8-07
Audry and I got up around 8, I got my gear packed and we had a couple pieces of bread and some tea. We talked a little more. She works near the train station, where I needed to go so we walked together and rode the subway together. She gave me a subway ticket. We rode together for awhile, which seemed way to short as she is a very nice person, and then she got off and I continued on to the next stop. I had a few minutes to wait to get on the first train to Brussel, Belgium and from there I was going on to Amsterdam and stay with Jackie for a few days. I wanted to get a few blog entries, relax and get over this cold. It is nice to take a break from the traveling for a few days. The day went by quickly and before you knew it I was in Holland. In Holland it was cool to see right as you cross the border you see people biking. It was almost like I was coming home. I thought awe Holland, and it made me smile and feel more relaxed. This is just what the doctor ordered.

At Amsterdam Central, I walked over to the trams and told the attendant I needed off at Ooosterpark and she said this was the right tram. Man it is cool to walk into a City for a change and know what to do and where to go. I have walked into so many City's not having a clue where I was going.

Jackie had a gall stone situation and had been feeling really bad so she was still home from work from that ailment. I yelled at her window and soon the door opened to a person's face that I knew. She had lost quite of bit of weight from the ailment. She was feeling much better now though, as she had the gall stone blockage remedied at least for the time being. She exercised earlier in the day for the first time in many weeks. That was very relaxing for her and a nice change.

We talked for awhile and she said she was going out to meet friends later tonight and ask if I wanted to go along. I told her no at first as I was really tired and had a cold, but after a few hours I thought maybe I was being rude so I decided to go out with her. I told her however I could not stay long. I really did not look forward to all the smoke as Jackie and her friends all smoke.

After a few hours of talking we headed to the bar and I had a few drinks as Jackie does not drink. Her and her friends were puffing away and I quickly remembered why I was reluctant to come. We stayed there for about 2 hours and then called it a night. I was ready to call it a night. I got the familiar couch folded down and I was out like a light.

6-9-07
I really didn't feel like doing much this day except work on my blog so I did just that. There were a few things that I miss as I travel, besides the obvious family and friends, and they include gardening and cooking. I am not a good cook, but I enjoy the process. I told Jackie I would cook supper. We discussed what to cook and my idea of spaghetti was scratched by Jackie as she said that is too easy. I then came up with the idea of Chili. She said she likes chili so that is what I decided to cook.

I felt like I had spent a little too long in the house the day before and Jackie had asked me if I wanted to go shopping with her and I said I would. We headed to a town that just borders Amsterdam and got her some clothes. Probably my favorite part of the shopping was watching little kids play in the water. There were some fountains shooting a stream of water up through some grating. It was funny as all the kids treated the water differently. Some were a little afraid of it others loved it. One kid started putting the bottom of his shoe over the stream, at grating level, and it tended to cause some splashing that got adjacent kids wet. Another younger kid who looked a little chubby decided to do it himself. His current build looked like a miniature Harley Rider. He didn't care how wet he got and he enjoyed other people getting wet as a result of his maneuvers. I busted out laughing at times. It was great. Jackie was shopping during this time period and I just watched.

It had been raining off and on during a significant portion of my stay in Amsterdam unlike the time I spent here in late April, which was beautiful. As we headed back, it started raining again, but fortunately we found shelter. We had thought about riding bikes there, instead of the train which I am glad we didn't.

When we got back, we decided to go to the store and get the ingredients for the chili. I made the chili and she liked the meal. Later that night we watched the second Austin Powers movie as Jackie has not seen it and I like it so much I was game for seeing it again. Actually I have been recommending that movie to her for awhile now and she agreed to watch it. She liked it very much. I worked on the blog awhile longer and called it a night. I still was a little under the weather, but felt like my condition was improving.

6-10-07
Jackie went with a friend to do some shopping and bought some new shoes. I worked on the blog all day. The shoes were very cool, but I thought they were kind of expensive.

Jackie cooked some supper and I worked on the blog for a few hours and then called it a night myself.

6-11-07
This was my second to last day in Amsterdam and I didn't feel like I had accomplished as much as I liked to so I was going to work on that all day. Jackie went to work as this was her first day back in about a month. She got back around 4:00 and said she spent most of the day talking to her coworkers about her ailment. The Netherlands has an interesting policy as you can be sick as long as you want and they still get all your vacation days. They have to go to doctor however if they are sick for a certain period of time. This is a pretty nice policy for the employee, but I am sure it leads to some abuses. Their taxes however are around 40%, which I assume goes to certain fringe benefits like that.

I decided to head out for about an hour bike ride as I felt like I had not exercised much lately. I took her bike out for about an hour ride and peddled hard for the whole time. The bikes are pretty much junk in Amsterdam as the real nice bikes get stolen so it is smart to have junky bikes. I got everything out of this junky bike I could for that hour.

Jackie had the movie Sea Biscuit laying there, which was one of the movies that a friend gave her to watch during her sickness. I told her I had heard that movie was pretty good and we decided to watch it. It was a good movie, but not great. Jackie liked it a lot, but it was a little too predictable for my taste. It is however a decent movie and I am glad I watched it.

We called it a night.

6-12-07
This was the day I left Amsterdam and I still felt I really did not get as much rest as I wanted, nor as much as I wanted to get done on the blog. I was going to work until about noon on the blog and then head to Brussels, Belgium to spend the night. I wanted to cut the trip to Paris down to just an hour and that was the distance from Brussels to Paris. The following day I was going to Versaille.

I said goodbye to Jackie and she left for work. She said the day prior, it felt really good to get back to work. I myself like the routine of it at times. I ended up working on the blog until about 3 in the afternoon before I left. Jackie had called several times, which I didn't answer, because I had no idea who was calling and she emailed me to tell me I could stay another night if I liked. I knew she had plans with a friend that night so I really didn't want to intrude and knew I was running out of time on my rail pass. I needed to keep on keeping on.

I got to the train station and jumped on the first train to Brussel. I did not need a reservation so I could just jump on the train. That is nice as the lines at train stations are often long and time consuming before you can get your ticket. On the train I met a nice lady from Bulgaria who is studying in London, but traveled to Amsterdam for the weekend. She had some time before her train left from Brussels to London so I decided to have coffee with her. She told me their was a tourist information place in the train station and took me too it, where I could see about hostels. It was a Tuesday night so I really expected no problems getting a hostel. We parted ways and I was again off to find sleeping accommodations. It was about 7:30.

The first hostel I went to was booked, the second I went to was booked, the third one I went to was booked, the fouth one however fortunately had a room. They said I had taken the last one. I was in the room with several Americans and they said they were turning in early. Another guy however had dreadlocks, which tend to be the late partying types. I was going to head out and grab a beer. Several people had told me Belgium has great beer. I asked the hostel staff and they said go to Delirium Café and they gave me directions to it. They said they have 2,000 beers available for purchase.

I walked down there and saw a sign out there that said to day we have 2,000 beers available for purchase. I thought man this is going to be a long night trying all those beers. The staff had shirts on that said on such and such day this bar broke the Guinness World Record of having 2,004 commercial beers for sale. I was thinking I wish I had been there that day as I would have been able to try those other four beers. I tried to order a beer, but they were very busy. I waited about 10 minutes and attempted to order my beer. I wanted the beer in the tap closest to me and said Wiet Blanc. He very exactly says no more beer in broken English. I was not sure I had heard him right, so I said the beer again. He said no more beer. I had seen them get beer from it just a minute earlier. I said ok just give me a Belgium beer. I then didn't understand what he said and he was showing frustration on his face now. I pointed at the beer tap I wanted beer from and he went and got the Wiet Blanc. I was thinking ok, the thing I learned from that ordeal is this guy definitely has a “tude” which is short for attitude. Oh well, I took my beer and sat at the end of the bar. I over heard a little bit of a conversation beside me in English and I made some small talk. We discovered we both went to the University of Illinois for engineer his major was General Engineering, whereas mine was Civil Engineering. Wow what a small world and it was about to get smaller. I had told him earlier that I was from St. Louis and he said he was from St. Louis and ask me where at. I told him actually in Illinois just east of St. Louis. He smiled big and shook his head and said where at and I said Carlyle and his smile got even bigger. He said his wife is from Aviston, Illinois. I never dreamed that I would here Aviston, Illinois mentioned in a Bar in Europe. Holy Crap. She went to the U of I as well and had graduated in 1991 two years before me. We talked for awhile and he was in Brussels for work and was with another young engineer from Italy. We then talked beer for awhile. I was soon out of this awesome Wiet Blanc and decided to go for a Chimay Blue as these guys recommended. They said it is 9% alcohol and you don't even taste it. I went back up to order another beer. This turned out to be a fiascal. There were a group of Americans in front of me. They were pretty much plowed. They ask me what I was having and I said a Chimay Blue. He spurted out we have already graduated from that and am well beyond that. I believed him based on the way he was spurting the words and mouth fluids at me. Actually he was pretty nice and not as out of control as I described but needless to say he had had a few beers already and these beers were high octane. Jet fuel like. Anyway they were going over what beers they were going to have as if they were about to take a test. We waited there about 10 minutes and I heard them say something about being treated here like they were in Paris. I am not sure how they were treated in Paris, but I got the point. I then decided to go a little farther down the bar and stood by and Irishmen. We talked for awhile and then he ask me if I wanted his spot at the bar? I said sure and thanked him. Just as he moved out of the way a girl slid into the spot the Irishman had vacated for me. I just looked up in the air and the Irishmen just shook his head. Anyway it was not worth it to me to get too angry. The lady knew what she was doing. She must want the beer worse than me. I talked to the Irishmen for awhile and had a great conversation with him. The spot next to the lady that had cut line had been vacated and I nabbed it. The bartender looked over in our direction and he said whose next and looked at the lady? The lady froze and did not even know what she wanted so I yelled out Chimay Bliue and the bartender said, "She was there before you and he turned away." I about crapped in my pants. I knew however if I didn't play my cards right he would never serve me. Doesn’t this guy know my grandfather was over here fighting the Germans, and if he and his buddies had not done that things would be a lot different here in Belgium? Man shouldn’t I get served a beer at least for be a relative?

There were only 3 guys serving probably 200 people and they always had someone to serve. By now I had waited probably 30 minutes and I was getting a little peeved at the situation. I put my 3 euros on the bar and a different bartender grabbed the money and through it in the tip jar. I told him that money was 3 euros for my next beer and told him it was not a tip. I then saw this as my opportunity and told him Chimay Blue. He said that is 3.50 euros. I wish I had told him there were 5 euros there now. I gave him the other 0.50 euros. I am quite certain that they would not have served me the rest of the night if he had not mistakenly took my money. I am quite certain they were trying to make life as hard as possible for the Americans at the bar. Nor sure why? I kept trying to find the humor in it all and thought about the Seinfeld episode where they called the one cook the soup Nazi and the guy told Elanie and Seinfeld "no soup for you." In this situation I just thought of him saying, "No Beer for you." Because he had said, "She was here before you" with a similar degree of exuberance. Anyway I drank the beer and did not like the flavor nearly as well as the first beer and quite frankly was pretty fed up with the whole situation there. It had such great potential to be an awesome bar. They needed to have about double the staff serving beer.

I left there and headed for the hostel. I got in bed as quietly as possible not to disturb the people already sleeping and called it a night. A day I thought was going to be quite easy turned out a little difficult as it took me for ever to find a hostel and had to walk a long ways and the dealing with these Beer Nazis made it a little more eventful than I desired. What can I say more memories.

6-13-07
I got moving and went to the train station. I just missed one train and had to wait another hour before I could leave for Paris. I was behind the eight ball already as I needed to get to Paris, travel across town to the other train station, get a train there and head to Versaille. From there I needed to go back to Paris and get a train headed towards the Amboise area, as I did not want to spend another night in Paris as it is much more expensive. I thought it is going to be another one of those days.

I made it to Paris and then went to the other train station by metro and got a ticket to Versaille. It went pretty smoothly, but the trains to Versaille seemed a little confusing. In Versaille I walked around trying to find the good stuff. It was already about 3:00 in the afternoon I walked briskly around for the tourist information office. It seemed like in Ireland and London, the towns Centers and tourist information offices were more centrally located. It was more difficult finding them across the water in mainland Europe.

After asking a couple people I finally found the office. I got the map and ask them to circle a couple big items to see, as I only have a few hours as I want to get back to Paris around 6. They circled a bunch of stuff and I thought man I probably need to stay here or in Paris and come back as I didn't know if I could do everything. I finally ask them, what is the nuts and bolts of things around here and they said the Palace. I said ok I am heading there and hope I could still see everything there and hoped it was not closed. The tourist information office said you can get motels for like 20 euros. I still have not seen that anywhere in Europe, but maybe this might be the town. Right next to Paris though, it just didn't add up to me.

At the Palace the people at the ticket office said I have time to make it through everything. That lifted my spirits as I did not want to get another day behind. I was really ready to get to Spain and see a new language, a language I want to learn. I just do not care to learn French. The castle was cool. The Hall of Mirrors probably being the most popular exhibit. Also the audio guide that is free with the ticket said a worker there said he had been injured and ran into the queens room to warn her to leave as they were under attack, collapsed on her floor and yelled, "Long live the Queen” which is a pretty famous line.

After that I walked the gardens, which are massive. I wondered how many people they had for upkeep on this property. It had to be a quite impressive number as the estate was huge. Marie Antoinette also had a compound of her own on the grounds, but I did not have time to see that and that cost extra money to see as well. I had to be back to get my backpack, which was checked in the luggage there at Versaille, by 5:30 so I hustled back to pick that up at 5:25. I talked to some people earlier about what there is to see in Versaille and they said mainly this palace and that is about it. I was glad as I really did not want to leave here thinking there was a lot I missed. I headed to the train station and got turned around and stumbled upon a 2 star motel. I wanted to just check the price. I walked in and asked for a bed for tonight and how much. He said they are full. I said ok how much does a room normally cost and he said 69€. Ouch! I will be staying in hostels for the foreseeable future.

I got on the train and went back to Paris. From Paris I headed to south towards Tours. I wanted to stay in a Hostel in that direction. There is a hostel in Beaugency-Sur Loire that looked good having a three tree rating (france's hostel ratings with 4 tree rating being the best) at a price of 11.80€. I like the country hostels much better as they are usually more quiet and cheaper. I reached Beaugency around 7 and asked some young kids where the hostel was. They were not much help and actually sent me in the wrong direction. I figured out roughly where I should be and walked in that direction. I still was not sure. I asked a young lady with a young daughter and she was not sure either, but tried valiantly to figure out where it might be. She ask if I had a phone number which I had and she called the hostel. She then volunteered to take me there. I said sure. I do not think this lady was even 18 and had a kid. Her car was not that nice either, but she obviously was very nice. We found the spot and I got out. I gave her young daughter of maybe 3 a dollar coin and thanked her again. Her and her daughter both waved as they drove away. Again I was happy to see such a nice gesture.

At the hostel there was a Canadian running the hostel. She was knew and still learning the ropes and still learning English as she was a French speaking Canadian. There was another Canadian guy there, that was on his way back to Canada after an extended stay in France. He spoke good English and helped answer my questions. I thought he was pretty cool.

I got my room assignment and headed over to it. I was in the same room with the Canadian guy. He mentioned he had things strung out on a couple beds and on the floor. I walked into the room and he indeed had his stuff everywhere. I was a little frustrated by that and changed my view of this guy. I think he should show a little more respect for his roommates.

I got things unloaded and my bed made. I unloaded my stuff as quietly as possible as there was an older gentlemen already in there sleeping. He was biking as many of the other people staying in this Hostel. This is a very pretty area of France and appears to be pretty safe biking. Biking is quite popular in Europe and the drivers respect them more on the roadway than do most Americans. I actually have not been a fan of bikers that bike on the highways as I think they can use the bike paths. I suspect most bikers however, just bike where they do for the scenery.

I went back outside and walked around a bit. It was about 10:00 and getting pretty dark. It is amazing how late it is before it gets dark in France. I am not sure I have that figured out yet. I know they have day light savings time, but so do we and it gets dark a lot earlier than 10 back home. I suspect it has to do with the latitude in relation to ours as they are farther north, which would explain it. They say mid summer in the Scandinavian countries they have only about 3 hours of darkness.

There really wasn't much going on and the only people I saw still out talking were speaking French. I decided to call it a night as I again was beat. It seams like I do not have as much energy as I did when I started this trip. The trip is like work sometimes. Like Joe Dirt says though you have to keep on keeping on. The individual bunk beds were huge and could sleep two people. Ok lights out!

5-14-07

I got up and wanted to use the computer, but the German lady running the hostel was in training like the Canadian Lady the night before and was not sure how the computer worked. She suggested I have breakfast first and I did. The breakfast was pretty good as it included cereal. Pretty much any breakfast that includes cereal in Europe, I consider a good breakfast and if it has eggs in any form it is an awesome breakfast. My breakfast standards have plummeted since arriving in Europe. A lumberjack would have a long day if he lived here as there are no lumberjack breakfasts.

After breakfast I used the computer for a few minutes and then headed out. It felt good to be heading to Blois to see castles, but I really was looking forward to getting out of France. Not sure why, but I was ready for a new Country. It is not that I do not like France it has some great stuff I was just really looking forward to Spain. I wanted to work at learning a little Spanish there. I had decided not to put much effort into learning French. My tongue just does not make French sounds very well.

I arrived in Blois about 10:30 and found the bus stop that the hostel in Beaugency had recommended. This bus would take you to three castles and I figured that would fullfill my castle cravings, which were not all that intense. It was raining this day so not a great day for sightseeing, but I was not going to wait for the weather to break. The tour included being driven to Chambord Castle, then to Ceverney and then back to Blois where there is a castle as well. There were only about 5 other people on the bus. As I said not a great day for sightseeing as it was raining. On our way out we drove through the country side along the Loire River, which is a famous area in France. This area is called the Loire Valley. There are lots of rich homes and castles here. One time the lady pointed out a bridge that had been bombed by the allies when they were fighting the Germans here. I told her I did not see where it is bombed and she said are you kidding me? I said no I don't see it. She then said come on. She sounded frustrated and thought I was just messing with her. There was one area of the bridge that I thought might be damaged, but I really did not see it. She spoke pretty good English and I really didn't give her any slack for her English speaking abilities as I do some people as I thought she had a large enough English vocabulary to choose words that where not as direct. She then pointed out a mansion that was owned by an American. It was right above the banks of the Loire River. I asked who the person was and she said we do not tell names in France. I was confused by that and she said something like they are entitled to privacy. I told her being that wealthy you pretty much lose any privacy you may have. That is just part of being wealthy. She said the people own an insurance company in the United States and that is all she would say. She then went on to say to that this farmland in this area is some of the best in France. I mentioned that I went to a school that has probably the best in the world. I told her the top soil is very thick. She said yes, but you use chemicals. The Europeans love to say whatever they can negative about America. I tell you it comes down to jealousy. I have seen jealousy before and that is what it is. They also like to talk about how united and similar all the European Countries are. These areas are so different, but they say they are so similar. I guess it is their way of trying to be as large as the United States. I wish I would have told her the last time I have checked our life span is just as long as there's and we use all these horrible chemicals. We don't dump our urine on the railway tracks either like they do in Europe. Yep I am much more proud to be an American these days than I was when I left.

Anyway she dumped us off at the first castle Chambord. This is the one that you see most often photographed. It is quite amazing. The most amazing thing about this castle in my opinion is the double spiral staircase in the middle. Two people can walk on opposite staircases and reach the top at the very same time on different sides of the staircase. It really is silly, as it just took more time to construct and not useful. It only adds to the cool factor. But this is a castle, so being pragmatic, does not have to be in the cards. The castle is quite amazing, but I was not that excited about it. It was raining most of the time I spent there. I walked to the horse stables and they were not that cool as you could not get very close to the horses. The horses however were very pretty. This place has the biggest park in France around it and I would have liked to walk around it to see some wildlife, but I didn't have time.

From there I went to get some pictures of the castle from the front of it in the distance. You had to be in the distance to get the castle to fit. It was getting close to the time, the bus driver was to come back to pick us up and take us to the next castle so I headed that way. I was getting hungry too so I was wanting to grab something to eat so I headed to the bus pickup area, where there where places to eat. I grabbed a hot dog and a beer. The hot dogs in France are fantastic for two reasons; they have great bread and great Dyjon mustard. I scarfed that down and went to the bus stop.

The lady picked us up and we headed to the castle, which was Cheverny. This castle was not as big as Chambord but was cool in a couple respects. I liked the interior decorating better. The house had lots of weapons and lots of cool paintings. I really liked this house. It also had a huge dog pen. Yes dog pen. They had what appeared to be about 50 hounds. I assume for fox hunts as you see in the movies. I think more people enjoyed the dog pen than the house actually. I was surprised this many hounds got a long so well. Sure there were a few near fights as I stood there and watched them, but all in all they seemed to get a long. A dog handler came out when I was there and gave a few of them some shots and sprayed something on them. I guess when you have that many dogs in close quarters, they are more prone to get diseases. I wondered if he was a vet. He actually hit a couple dogs that were getting to close, which I was surprised to see. There were about a 100 people watching them. I suspect that kind of behavior would not go over well in America with regards to hitting the dogs. I walked a couple gardens around the castle. I talked to an older German couple on several occasions and they were extremely nice. I really think the Germans are going to get my nod for nicest in Europe. I heard a French person tell me how nice they were to her, when she traveled there. It seems a little ironic that Hitler’s country, maybe the craziest and cruelest man that ever lived, now has the nicest people.

From there I left to find internet access. The tourist information lady said there is none in this small town. As I walked out she said the business across the street has wifi. I walked there and saw it stated on window, but they were closed. I was wondering why I had not seen that earlier. I tried connecting with my phone and did, but the connection was slow. I was hoping for a couchsurfing opportunity that night in Tours. I finally was able to check my email, but no dice. I then decided I needed to find a night train to Madrid. We got back to Blois and I went directly to the train station skipping the last castle. I saw the castle from the bus and that was close enough for me. The castles all cost money to enter. There was a hostel in Blois, but I really felt like I needed to keep moving. At the train station they told me about a night train that came through there later and then the train stopped in Poitiers around 22:15. I thought well there is still a chance of couchsufing in Tours so I was going to get on a train to Tours and check email and then if no luck take a train to Poitiers to catch the night train. I thought this plan was error proof.

I left and arrived in Tours around 8:00 or 20:00 and went to an internet site. I checked emails again no luck with my couchsurfing contact so I went back to train station. The people at the train station spoke very little English. I was asking for night train to Madrid. They said there is none stopping here. I said ok there is one at Poitiers at 22:15, when can the next train get me there. He said at 22:18. Too late. I ask them again there is no train that can get me to Poitier by 22:18? They said that is right. Damn. I ask them what time does the first train leave for Madrid tomorrow. The attendants computer was jamming and I went to another guy that was extremely slow. He gave me a couple options and I really did not trust what he was saying so I said I would think about it. I then went to another attendant on the other end of the building and he gave me the same answers. Not what I wanted to hear and I was getting frustrated and I was still wet from the day, I could not get a train and I was tired. I finally said ok I am going to sleep at the hostel here in Blois and figure this out in the morning. I called the hostel and they had room thank god. That was the last thing I needed a full hostel. I had directions in the hostel book, but they were not very good. I walked and walked and walked. I was told it was a 20 minute walk at first and then the next person I asked a few minutes later said it was a long ways and mentioned taking the bus. I said no I am walking. I continued on and then it started to sprinkle. I thought man I better find this place fast. All of the sudden the skies cut lose and it was really raining. I jumped into this open garage near the streets edge. I guess the person left and just left the garage door open. It was a small garage with nothing in it, but it did have a roof which was the most important thing to me at the moment as it was really raining. I also had to pee extremely badly and had to be creative to take care of that matter. Kind of like a construction worker might do. Anyway some secrets or mine and do not make the blog.

After about 10 minutes it let up. It was kind of fun watching the people running around crazy in the pouring rain as I stood in this garage. The owner never showed up. I walked around the corner and ask a lady again. She was behind a locked glass door and understood my question. She came out and walked me around the block and explained the directions. She was very nice and really went out of her way to help me. That was neat to see. I then walked farther and really was in no mood to get lost anymore and ask 3 ladys who were sitting almost in the street having a drink. I suspect they were only about 18 years old. The one lady said follow me. Her English was not too bad. She ended up walking me all the way there. I think she enjoyed talking to an American. I thanked her so much as it was about a 10 minute walk. Again another really nice French Lady. At the Hostel I got checked in and was disappointed that it was 17.20€ as this was a small town, where the hostels are usually really cheap. It really did not matter as this is much cheaper than a hotel and I was tired.

I walked up to the room and realized why it was more expensive. I had the room to myself only one bed. This was rather uplifting and I was excited about that. The room had a balcony on it overlooking the street below, a sink, closet and dresser. I washed a pair of pants and a shirt in the sink. I had not had to do that yet on this trip and rather enjoyed doing it just to see how well it worked. I walked around the hostel a little bit to check things out and it was a little disappointing to see all the wound up people. I thought oh boy there is no reason to go to bed too early tonight. I went back downstairs and used the computer. This was the absolute worse keyboard I have ever seen. It was like one of those really old computers where the screen, computer and keyboard were all one unit. The keys were extremely hard to push and you essentially had to peck with two fingers. It was absolutely ridiculous. Finally after using all but 5 of my minutes I went back to my room.

Around 11:30 I decided to call it a night. A couple times soon after I ran out into the hallway trying to catch someone in the act of being loud. I just didn't get why these kids needed to be this ridiculously loud. Surely they could show a little more class than that. I was really, really tired which I suspect led to me being less patient. I really needed to keep that in mind when I am tired to not have a short fuse. Anyway there were about three ridiculously loud outburst none of which I could really catch them in the act and show my disgust. At one time I heard what sounded like a lady screaming and then I wasn't sure maybe it was a cat making that noise. I just could never put a handle on what was making the noise. It was now about 12:30 and I really was no closer to getting to sleep and the noise in hallway did not appear to be subsiding. I decided it was time for the earplugs. I have had varying degrees of success with the earplugs. Sometimes they would come out. Other times they would hurt my ear if I laid on that ear. Sometimes it didn't seem like they really helped that much. I was to the point that I was ready to try anything. They seemed to help as I fell asleep around 1:00. Another long crazy day of traveling.

I think after this trip people will think I really know how to travel. They would be seriously mistaken as I just push real hard. The trip is physically demanding, tiring and sometimes a lot of work. Those are just the tough things. It is obviously a lot more than just that.

6-15-07
This is the day I finally make it to Madrid. At least I hoped that to be the case. I got up and went upstairs for breakfast. It wasn't too bad a breakfast, but no eggs. I then went back to my room around 8 and got packed. I went downstairs and realized the office was not yet open so I couldn't check out yet. It wasn't opening until 8:30. I also wanted to check email before I left and needed to get computer access for the remaining 5 minutes I had left on my card. I talked to a lady from Australia that was biking around this area of France for awhile. She said she has to get back out into the country hostels as these big City hostels no one ever talks to anyone and they are noisy. I said Amen to that sister. She was probably in her late 40's I suspect. It was good to talk to her as I was still a little wound up from the night before and that helped to relax me. Finally the lady in red arrives, the person working there. She had a bright red shirt and shoes on. It looked ok, but man there was a bright red theme going on, that was for sure. I asked to use the computer and got checked out and was on my way to the train station. It was easy finding my way to the train station from here, but a pretty long walk. After about 30 minutes I made it to the train station and walked in. I saw on the board a train to Bordeaux. I knew that was closer to Madrid than where I was at and was tempted to just jump on it as the people here at the train station were not being very helpful. Maybe they will be easier to deal with. I then decided to try again here in Tours one more time. I walked up to the ticket counter and said Bon Jour Masseur (or something like that) and asked politely if he spoke English. He says, "I speak English if you try to speak French." Ok I was wound back up very tightly. I was pissed at that response and was ready to vent. After a deep breath I said, "I am traveling to the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal to name a few. I can not learn every language in all those countries" along with the friendliest smile I could muster. He smiled too and then proceeded to speak to me in very good English. Man did this guy piss me off. He is working in a train station where he has 1,000's of travelers coming through here every day. The French have lots of nice people, but more people like this clown than most other countries, which just gives them a bad reputation. All I knew at that moment is that I can not wait to get out of France.

I walked out and sat down to wait for my train. A little later the asshole of a guy that I got the ticket from walked by. I did not have anything brilliant to say, although when do I say anything brilliant, so I did not say anything at all to him although I sure wanted to.

I walked to a restaurant that did not have much business and sat down at one of their tables and began typing. A guy came out and ask me what I wanted and I said nothing, just a place to type. He did not really speak English and just motioned for me to leave. I was having a great day with these Frenchmen. I suspect that may have happened in a lot of places although it is not like I had a skateboard at my side. Give me a break. I came over to Europe thinking I was going to improve US and European relations, but I do not think I am doing that these days. Bush has done for more damage than I had thought ( that is somewhat of a joke but they definitely do hate that man over here).

It finally came time for my train and I could not get out of here soon enough and out of France for that matter. I walked out on the platform and was a little confused by what I needed to do. I had to get on this train and ride it for about 3 minutes and then get off and get on another train to Bordeaux. I was a little nervous, but was under the impression the next train would wait for us if we were late. Being late 5 or 10 minutes is not unusual. I talked to this French lady and she spoke a little English. She said she was doing the same thing and said to just follow her. Wow she seems nice I wonder if she is actually French? We talked for awhile she was attending university. We got on our train and I was watching my watch as we talked. She ask to see my ticket and she said she would help me to my train car since I had assigned seating. Once the train stopped we jumped off and she walked briskly down the train platform and I followed. She pointed to the train car I needed to get on. She then said goodbye and took off running in the direction of her car. Wow she was risking missing her car for me. Wow these French are extremely nice people. The French I believe just have more outwardly people that are jerks but have probably an average number of nice people in comparison to other European Countries. It was great to meet her as I was getting a little depressed about mankind.

Everything went pretty smoothly and I was on my way to Bordeaux. Wine Country. I really did not expect these trains to be so long. It seemed like it was taking for ever to get anywhere. Rides that I thought would take a couple hours where taking 6 or 8 hours. The high speed trains might have done it in only a couple hours, but they were expensive and only available in a few locations. I do not think the length of the train rides were really upsetting me I was just wanting to leave France and it seemed like the trains did not run as frequently as I thought they would causing me longer stays in certain areas.

We made it to Bordeaux and the people there were more helpful. After spending several minutes talking to this person I had a game plan. I was going to take the next train to Hendaye, France which is right on the border and then take a local train to Irun and or San Sebastion as night trains ran through both of those Citys to Madrid. I really looked forward to Madrid. It seems like whenever you get close to the border of countries things are a little cumbersome. I think you are best going to the last City in a Country then taking a train from that station into the other country. It seems these trains are more frequent. That is what I am doing here by stopping at Hendaye. I remember having the same sort of issues when leaving Italy into France. Once at Hendaye I decided to take a train to Irun. In Irun I bought the night train ticket to Madrid, but I had decided to go into San Sebastian so the ticket was from San Sebastian to Madrid. I met a guy in Irun that I talked to extensively and he helped me around. He showed me where to get my tickets in Irun for the night train to Madrid. He really talked up San Sebastian as a nice place to see. It seems people in Europe are so used to travelers that they really know how to speak the language. How can a town named San Sebastian not be cool. Loved the name. I had about 3 hours to kill in San Sebastian and left the train station and walked to the town centre. I immediately came upon a big church. Wow what a surprise seeing a big church in Europe. I found a sunglass shop and of course no fitover sunglasses. I through out a couple Spanish words and had fun trying to speak a couple words and phrases. The person seemed to enjoy it as well. Really anywhere you go and try to speak the language they seem to enjoy watching you butcher the language. I ask what I needed to see in San Sebastian having 3 hoiurs. She said go to the beach. As I walked past the church on my way to the beach I saw kids playing soccer around the church. Often they would kick the ball up against the church. I was surprised they were allowed to do that, but no one seemed to mind.

At the beach there were thousands of people and it was already about 7 at night. Some people were starting to clear out though. It was an awesome and long beach. The beach surrounded this bay like area with an Island blocking it from the Atlantic Ocean. There were lots of people out swimming, kayaking sailing etc. This was a busy and beautiful place. It seemed yet everyone had room to play there. I walked about a mile along the beach to a mansion on the hill. Ok it really wasn't a mansion, but I just wanted to say a "Mansion on the Hill" as that is a Bruce Springsteen song that I like. Although, I like virtually all of his songs. They all seem different to me. I sure hope he goes on tour again with the E-Street Band. I will catch 4 or 5 of his shows.

I took several pictures, some of which I think turned out really good. After spending a couple hours there, I made my way back to the church and looked around for internet access. I logged on to check emails and to confirm my couchsurfing accommodations and everything was a go there. The couchsurfer was very prompt with her responses and had sent me several emails.

I went to find a place to eat and the internet shop owner was very nice and pointed me in the direction of places to eat. It felt great to be in Spain as the people seemed quite a bit nicer than in France, but I have only met a couple thus far, but so far so good. I can't imagine anyone being better than the Italians though.

I got some food and a beer. It was ok, but nothing great. The price was just ok as well, nothing great either. I left and went to the train station. I still had about an hour to wait so I did some typing. I often sit my backpack in front of me and type on it. It works pretty well. I must say this fold-out keyboard and phone have worked well so far, but I do not want to jinx things.

The train came and loaded up. I was in a car with six beds and they were all being used. I was in a middle bed. I need to remember to start requesting top or lower bunks as in the middle there is no safe place to put your bags. I slept with my backpack that night at my feet, with my handbag with my important stuff like camera and phone and wallet by my side. They say night trains are known to have things stolen, but I have not had any problems so far. I tried to type for awhile, but it really was not very comfortable so after about 15 minutes I stopped. We have about a 10 hour ride to Madird. I will see you in the morning in Madrid, Spain. This trip doesn't seem real. Good Night

6-16-07
I arrived in Madrid and everything still seemed a little surreal. Awe it felt good, although it felt a little wet as well since it was raining. Oh well, I was glad to be here and I would not melt. I arrived at McCharmitin (sp) Station and then took a Renfe train, a local train to Atocha Station, where I got off and took another train to the first stop Vellardo Bajo, where I was to meet the couchsurfing person Carmen. I got there about 10 minutes before she said she would be there and just waited around. She was still not there, about 10 minutes later so I text her and about a minute later she arrived. She had been on her way. Her apartment is just a 5 minute walk from the train station. It was sprinkling a little. We made it back to her place and talked for awhile. She wanted to talk about couchsurfing so we did. She had had some bad experiences, which she proceeded to tell me about over the next 3 days. Rather than writing about it when it happened over those days I am just going to get it off my chest here. Carmen said she had couchsurfers staying there too long and they would not pay for anything and she said some people had looked in her closets. She said she knows if someone is looking in her closets. Her place is immaculate and immediately when we walked in she carried my shoes to an area of her place that had tile flooring. So the wet shoes would not damage the hardwood floors. She also complained about couchsurfers taking long showers and explained to me how they do not have much water in Spain. I ask her why is she hosting couchsurfers if she is having all these problems and she said she is taking a trip soon and was hoping to utilize it then. She then said however the responses have not always been great, when she is requesting places to stay where she is traveling to. She said she already has motels paid for for the entire trip except for the last 10 days. So you are doing it to save some money those days. She said no I can pay for it myself. I then ask her if she was doing it for friendships? She said no she has friends already, but if she makes some knew friends then that is good. Her English is not very good and a lot of the things I had to fill in the blanks. Essentially I still did not understand why she is hosting couchsurfers. I told her gracefully that maybe she needs to rewrite her profile to get rid of some of the wrong people. I sat down with her and helped her rewrite her profile, as a lot of it I did not understand. When I would restate what she meant I was often interpreting it wrong. She had listed as being an expert in English, but she was far from that. I came out of the shower one night and in the coarse of walking to my room I spilled at most 3 drops of water on the floor. She gave me a towel to wipe up the two drops as I never did find the 3rd drop, but there may have been one. I told her that I have hardwood floors all through my house. I told her sure you do not want to get a lot of water on the floor, but a little is not going to hurt a thing. I told her that is why you put varnish on the floors. These floors obviously had a coating of that on them as they shined. I told her if they were that hard to maintain then no one would install them. I think she still thought even droplets of water falling from a persons body after a shower need to be wiped up.

The first night there we went shopping and bought 35 € worth of groceries and I paid for it all. She had said earlier that some couchsurfers did not pay for anything. I was planning to be their 3 nights and figured sure I could do that. She did not seem to insist on pay for anything. The first day she cooked some eggs, I think some rice or something to go with it. She is really particular about having everything just right with the table cloth and all the silverware etc. The second night she spent an hour making a soup and some eggs and potatoes with vegetables in the potatoes. She cooked the eggs in boiling water and then was upset when she could not get them placed perfectly in the middle of the potatoes. She said that is just a pity. I am like well, I bet it still taste good as I really did not care how it looked. I told her I was wanting to take a picture of the food. I asked her to Sit down and I will take a picture of you and the food. She said I do not look pretty. I told her big deal just sit down and she says wait a minute. She then ran into her bathroom and put a different shirt on and some makeup etc. About 15 minutes later she comes out and was ready for the picture. We took several pictures at different angles etc. I told her we better eat the food before it gets much colder as it had been sitting there for probably 20 minutes now. After the meal we spent probably 1.5 hours talking about all kinds of things. Mainly differences in countries. Some of the things she got mad over and I was getting a little irritated with some of the craziness she was saying. Then at the end of the night she ask if I was mad and I said no. I just disagree with you. She said she was not mad when I asked her and she said if I am mad you will know it. I said good. She then started asking about the pictures as I had said I would put one of them on my couchsurfing profile showing the food that she cooked. It was pretty good actually, but a little salty. I figured that is how they cook in this hot area, too help retain water. She then ask more about the pictures as if I was going to so something with them to embarrass her. I told her if you are that worried about the pictures I will gladly delete them all. She then said no she would like to have them herself. I was getting a little irritated at all this. I told her ok I will take the card and put it in my external driver and plug it into your usb port. You can then remove those photos off my card onto your card. She then said her computer will not read the pictures I told her sure it will. Finally at about 1:30 in the morning after talking some more I ask her, do you want to put those pictures on your computer still tonight and she said yes. I took those pictures in her presence off the card and onto her computer. I then deleted them off my card. By 2:00 in the morning she was happy with that. She had originally said she would take me out to show me the town that night, but she always wanted to talk about couchsurfing about the US etc and after that we had no time left to go out. I sat with her for an hour talking about the US. She lived in Boston for awhile and said how mean the US people are to foreigners. She gave me an example of how some young women would not allow her to sit down with them in the Park and how she ended up sitting with a black man. I told her the women probably did not know what you were saying as I have a hard time understanding your English as well. I also said I put up my guard more if someone does not speak good English as well. She had said earlier that she was wanting to move back to the US soon. I ask her if the US is such a bad place why do you want to go back. She said it is not a bad place. She told me how I should not be traveling like I am, I should be spending much more time in the different areas. She told me about small fountain monuments I should be seeing in Madrid. I told her this trip is about seeing Eiffel Towers and not small monuments. She told me she did not like the Eiffel tower. I told her everybody has their likes and dislikes. She told me how all of Europe is similar. This is a theme I hear a lot but this is the most diverse area I have ever seen. This is Europes way of trying to compare their self in size to the US I believe. I knew that staying with her was affecting my perception of Madrid and I really needed to get out of here as she was driving me nuts.

After the computer picture deletion she said normally on Monday's she goes to her parents after school. She teaches music at a school. I thought here is my out and told her that I really need to keep moving as I am behind schedule and that she should just go to her parents and I am going to leave Madrid the next day. I was so fed up with staying with her and that even though I had not seen all that much of Madrid I had to leave. Nothing was fun around her with all her whining and complaining and paranoia. Ok I am done writing about that and now will write about what I did.

The first day it rained all day so I really did not do much. I slept for about an hour. Did some typing, went swimming, bought some groceries and revised Carmen's couchsurfing profile, after which I used the computer for awhile, then when she had finished supper, and it was time to eat, I told her I needed to use it a little more after supper and insisted I turn the computer off because she has unsecured wifi and other people might try to use it. I said ok and shut it off.

We spent most of the rest of the night discussing couch surfing stuff and I talked to her about the US as she is going to move back there. She lived in Boston for about a year.

6-17-07
The next morning I headed to the train station, which is just near Carmen's apartment. I then did as she advised and got off at the Atocha Train Station and went to the Prado Museum first. I got there and there was essentially no line. It was a free day as well. Carmen had advised going to this musuem first as it is most popular. This turned out to be a good move as when I left 3 hours later there was a long line. I am surprised people did not come earlier as when I got there at 9:30 it was really not that early and now they have a really long wait. I suspect the tourist in Madrid are not as educated about musuem going ons as are the tourist in Italy and in Paris. In those places they arrive early.

I do not know if it is because I was beginning to recognize a few of the painters or if it was the audio guide or if I was glad to get away from Carmen, but I really enjoyed this musuem. I liked Goya in particular especially his “black paintings”, Rafael, Rubens, Vasquel and others. Some of these painters I recognized from other musuems and it may have been the familiarity that increased my enjoyment. It was not as big as the Louvre which Carmen claimed was not as good. She really tried to make Spain out to be the most beautiful place in the world. I find myself talking about her all the time. She was such a big part of my stay in Madrid I guess is the reason why. I know I was so excited to get to Madrid and learn the Spanish language, but then I found myself in such a hurry to get out of there and wondering if really Spanish is the language I want to learn. It is the Italian people that I enjoyed the most so far. Maybe I should learn that as they say the Spanish and Italians can communicate effectively using their own languages as they are so similar. Maybe I should learn Italian. It is amazing how one person can effect a person that much. I know they always say you should not hang out with a person that exudes negative vibes. As I said I really enjoyed the Prado Musuem, but I really did not want to admit that to Carmen as she is always bragging things up about Madrid the way it is.

After leaving the Prado I walked towards El Rastro another place Rick Steves advised going to. It was a long walk and the people I asked for directions often acted like it was too far to walk. It was only about a 30 minute walk. It took me about an hour as I got lost a couple of times. Carmen had asked me where I had been later in the evening and I didn't know of the places she had mentioned. She was looking at my pictures a little later and one of the places she had mentioned was in one of my pictures. She said you were there that is very nice. It was just a simple square. Nothing big. I have seen lots and lots of things a whole lot better, but this was one of those places that are must sees according to her. I tried to explain that I was in Europe to see big things not small monuments and fountains and squares like she kept trying to tell me to see. Wow I am talking about her again.

After walking around and asking many people for directions I finally found what I was looking for. Isn't that a song? El Rastro is a big flea market on the streets of Madrid. I had been warned about pickpockets and thus I pretty much kept track of my wallet as well as my camera and phone at all times. The place was pretty cool and I am not even big on shopping. Most of the stuff is pretty much junk. I did find a Christmas gift though. I think I am going to do all my christmas shopping on this trip. Actually I wonder where I will be this Christmas. I think I will most likely be in Australia. That will be my first Christmas ever, where I am not at home. I will miss Mark and I 's surf and turf competition, where I fix salmon and he fixes steak. I am the champion 2 years running. I really did not think I would win last year as mom bought salmon without skin on it. The oils in the skin really improve the salmon steaks. But for whatever reason, it turned out really good, while Mark's meat was not very good mainly because he had a bad cut of beef as gotten by mom, hence I was able to win for the second year in a row. If however he would have had cuts of meat like T-Bones or Porterhouse then I suspect he would have won as the judges are historically meat and potatoes kind of people. If I have the skin on that salmon however, I can compete with him even if he has good cuts of meat.

I spent a couple hours at El Rastro and then decided to head to the Reinfe Stras (sp). I got there surprisingly quickly as it is near the Prado Musuem. It really helps if you walk in a straight line and not zig zagging all over the place. Unfortunately it was closed on Sunday afternoons so I decided to try and hurry up and get to the Palace. I had no idea if it was opened, but I was going to roll the dice and try it anyway. It would be good to get it knocked out since I could not get to the Reinfe Stras musuem. At the train station I ask the lady working there if it was opened and she thought it would be.

I jumped on the subway and got to the Palace only to find it is closed. I walked around the Gardens in front of the palace and then walked into the Cathedral near it. The Cathedral was ok, but not that great. The Palace itself looked ok from the outside, but not all that impressive. I had just been to Versaille a couple days ago so it was hard to compare anything to Versaille. I read however the inside of the Palace is the real cool part. I could not see that. I had told Carmen I would be back around 6:00 so I decided to head back as it was now a little after 5:00. I jumped on the subway and headed back. I made it back to her place around 6:00. She asked me if I would rather eat now or later. Or maybe have something light and then a bigger meal later. I told her I have been walking all day and really would like to sit down for awhile. She was going to take me into Madrid for a night on the town. I really could not picture a scenario where this would be enjoyable, but heck it would be a great way to see Madrid at night. Therefore I thought eating something now and then going out would be great. I got on the computer and she began cooking.

Carmin again spent an hour cooking and we had a big cheap meal. I know I had not gotten anywhere close to my 35 euros worth of food. Oh the first night I told her I needed to wash a load of clothes. I asked her if a laundry mat was close and she said there was one around the corner of the building she thought. She was not volunteering for me to use hers. That is for sure. I told her I am going to spend probably 5 € at the laundry mat or I can give her 5 € to use hers. I gave her the 5 euros. She said we spend the money when we go out. We never went out and she kept the money. That night we talked again about couchsurfing as that is what she wanted to talk about, we talked about the US, and lots of other things. She asked me one time how many people go back to school for a masters and PhD once out of school. I told her not many and explained that people use their time doing other things. She said she was going back to school to get my PhD. She said she also likes to learn more about culture I said good for you and told her people have the option to spend their time however they want to. If some people want to spend their time working so they can have a big car or big house then so be it. You spend your time learning about culture that's your option. I told her I worked hard once I got my loans paid off so I could have a new car. She smiled when I said that. She thinks Americans or bad for wanting new cars. She went on to say that I may not want to ride with her as she has an old car. It seemed everything we talked about was how she is living her life the way people should be and Americans do not live like her. All I knew I was sick of this bitter lady and was going to leave tomorrow. I was going to wait and tell her in the morning so we would sleep better, but then the opportunity came up when she said on Tuesdays she usually goes to her parents and I jumped on it.

Finally about 2:00 in the morning we went to bed. I needed to leave this place in a bad way. I had thought about staying in a hostel, but said no I am heading to Lisbon. Adios Madrid. Hasta Luego!

6-18-07
The next morning picked up, where we had left off the night before. I took a shower and could not get the hot water from the tap right away so I let it run until hot water came out. I think the hot water source, which is the instant heat type, must have been on the other side of the house. Not sure, but I finally had hot water. She had complained earlier about someone using too much water. I knew she was listening. When I got out I thoroughly dried off so no drops would fall on the floor and walked to my room. I told her I was not getting hot water from the tap and she said I was wondering what was taking so long. Then she had a glass for me to eat cereal out of instead of a bowl, I am sure she thought this would restrict how much I eat or something as before I had gotten a bowl. I just filled the glass up several times. Remember I paid 37€ for the food on day one of my stay and I only had gotten 15 euros of the food. I then waited for her at the door and she then asked me what happened to the book that was sitting near me. She was accusing me of stealing a book. She said it was right by where I sat my backpack down and now it is gone. I told her I have no idea but no I did not take it. She looked around and said oh here it is. It was not by my pack. it was about 5 ft. away from it.

As we walked into the train station I told her I still had about 8 rides left on the train card and she said she would take the ticket. I told her I needed it to get to the next train station. She said I will buy you a couple tickets and then take your card. I said no I am just going to give it to a poor person when I am done with it. She said your going to give it to a poor person instead of me. And I said yes. She said I am poor and I did not respond. At the train station she said well it was a nice to meet you and I said yes it was and walked to my train. It was nice to meet her and even better to leave her. Man am I glad that this saga of my trip is over.

I was heading to Toledo. It was definitely time to move on. I headed for the train station and got on the Renfe train to Toledo. The train ride only took 30 minutes as it was a high speed train. The train was very nice and I suspect we were traveling over 100 mph, and it was nice and smooth. In Toledo, I walked around town for awhile and then after talking to some young ladys from Minnesota decided to go to the Cathedral. They said it is worth the 6 euros. I thought I had seen enough churches and really didn't think it would be much different from the other churches, but I was wrong. This church is awesome. Like nothing I had seen before. I am not sure how to explain it, but to say it is awesome. Look at my pictures. Also they had El Greco paintings, who I understand is from Toledo. His paintings did not do much for me, but I saw a Rapheal and Rubins paintings there, that I really liked. I can see how people can really get into seeing musuems. I enjoyed seeing artist that I was familiar with. Maybe I am finally beginning to appreciate art. I was really glad I went into this church and stayed there about 2 hours. There was quite of bit to see. I went to the restroom and filled up my water bottle and took a drink then realized there was a sign there that said this was nonpotable water. I wondered if maybe I might get sick, but thankfully I did not. I overheard some of the English speaking guides. One said the big doors in the back of the church are only open for leaders of country's or states. He said the doors were opened for the pope when he came there, only because he was the leader of the Vatican State. He said the doors were last opened for Charles and Diane when they came there. Another guide said behind the main alter, which is predominantly golden objects interspersed with paintings and lots of detailed art work was created by 40 artist.

I decided to head back to the train station around 6:00 as I had a 7:30 train back to Madrid from which I got on a night train to Lisbon. At the train station I typed for awhile. I enjoyed Toledo especially the church, but 1 day is enough.

On the train I typed for awhile and then started talking to the guy beside me who was a professor at Toledo. He spoke very good English and I think he enjoyed talking to me so he could practice his English. He was a very nice guy. I asked him about the terrorist bombings at Atocha Station. Carmen had mentioned this to me and acted half mad that I did not remember when it happened. A typical European that gets mad when you do not know much about their country. Why do they think we should be studying their countries. I remember a little bit about their countries, but not in the depth that they study the US. Maybe it is because the US is the top dog these days. Do you think they know much about a Country like Kenya. Do you think the Kenya people get mad at the Spanish people because they do not study about Kenya in school. Just because Europeans study our countries does not mean we should study their Country. A lot of the deal is that they get our television and movies and our country is on their tv on a daily basis. I have met several Russians on this trip that have said the English they know is from the TV they watched that was in English. A lot of the people are learning English from tv. I don't believe they are just better educated or more worldly just because they know more about our country than we do about theirs.

I really enjoyed talking to the college professor. I asked him about the bombing and he said yes it happened at the Atocha Train Station and it killed a couple hundred people. Carmen had said it was a couple thousand. I think she just was trying to make it sound like as many lives were lost as the World Trade Center buildings in an effort to make me feel like I should have known about the event because she knew of the 9/11 event. I have no idea what is going on in her head. I think she is a very bitter lady and is not happy very often.

He said there is a monument there, but the professor did not like the monument. I told him I would like to see it and ask him if I would, based on where I was going. He said as soon as we get off the train he will show it to me. He said when the bombings occurred he was at home and did not have to go to work that day. He said his apartment is close to the Atocha Station and he heard siren after siren after siren. He said he knew something big had happened as there were so many sirens. He flipped on the tv and saw what had happened. He said his mom called and ask where he was at, as she knew he went to the train station everyday. He told her he was fine.

We got to the train station and he showed me the location of the monument and we said goodbye. I was starting to like the City better based on one conversation. I really enjoyed talking to him and I think he enjoyed practicing his English on me.

I headed to the other train station McCharmitin and everything went smoothly and we were on our way. My roommates consisted of a couple from New York who are in college and a young Indian guy who has lived all over. He actually seems more like a child of the world as his parents were from India and another country and he currently has a child with a lady in London. He has lived in a lot of different places and I guess his age around 25. He has grown up fast it appeared to me, and was a very nice guy. I trusted all my roomies very much, which makes these night trains all the better. We talked for about an hour. It was after the bewitching hour so we called it a night. There was some mix up with regards to where the lady that was in our compartment was supposed to be. Their was a railroad policy that women could not be in compartments with guys so she was supposed to be somewhere else. If your married however that rule does not apply. Not sure how that is confirmed. I suspect it is just the honor system. I have heard of many stories like this with regards to the railroads. Two Australian ladies traveling together told of a story where a couple had first class tickets, but they overbooked the compartment and they got bumped to second class and were not refunded the cost difference. Another couple said they had to go to do a different compartment and had to pay a extra fee for the new compartment. I suspect that money is being pocketed.

Lights out 0:30 hours.

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Photos

Chambord Castle
I must say this castle is Rippin!

Frontside of Cheverny Castle
Yea not to shabby. It would work as a weekend home.

Delirium Cafe
They have the Guinness World Record of having 2,004 beers available for purchase at one time.

Must be Picture Worthy
If the Asians are taking pictures of something you should too, as they do their homework and know what to take pictures of. This is something that obviously needs to be photographed.

Versaille - Hallway of Mirros and Chandeliers
Outside of the garden this is my favorite thing at Versaille.

Outside Versaille
This complex use to be a hunting area. Now it is a huge garden. I would not want to have to mow this place.

Get out of the Way!!!
Can't you see I am trying to take a picture? The nerve of some people.

I am sinking !!!!
When designing this statue they forgot to consider settlement of the earthen fill below. No in actuality it is supposed to be this way. I kind of like it!

Now that is an Amphitheatre!
I would love to see a Bruce Springsteen concert here. Actually I enjoy his concerts anywhere.

Chambord Castle
Pretty impressive, though can you imagine the cleaning requirements. I have decided not to live there. Too much cleaning.

The Watson and Crick Designed Double Helix Staircase
View looking down! I am making that up, I have no idea if Watson and Crick inspired this design.

Pretty Cool Staircase
Their is two separate staircases here. If two people were to start 180 deg. from each other, and assuming they walk at the same rate they will both reach the top at the same time only 180 deg. from each other.

Outside view of the Double Helix Staircase
Watson and Crick would have been proud.

Release the Hounds
Man can you imagine what a cat would do if you held it up to the fence to check this out. I pity the cat as Mr. T would say!

Time to feed the Dogs
These dogs actually were quite amiable around this guy although a few were a little restless.

Dog Pen Viewers
There were more people interested in viewing the dogs than the castle.

One Big Dog
Can you imagine this dog slobbering on you?

German Car
On European license plates you can tell what country the car is from by the letter on the left side of the plate. The D stands for Deutschland or Germany.

Just Another Castle
I had seen so many castles by then I didn't even go in. The Loire Valley has lots of castles.

In Tours, France
Me impresonating this guy or gal!

San Sebastian, Spain
I had a lay over in San Sebastian of several hours before catching the night train to Madrid. I walked around and took a few pics. This picture is of the bridge just outside of the train station.

Wall around the Bay
I like these rocks at the base too. I really like this bay. Lots to do.

El Rastro
A big flee market in Madrid.

Impressive Building in Madrid
I think this may have been the Agicultural Building.

The Violin Playing Devil
Everyone loves a Violin Playing Devil.

St, Peter is Represented
Man, for a guy who denied Jesus 3 time this guy is doing pretty well. You see his stuff all over the place. Jesus who, I ask?

Palace in Madrid
I did not get a chance to go inside as the gates were closed but I read this place is fabulous.

Church Near the Palace
My church snobbing days continue. This place was just ok for me.

Nice Trains in Madrid
I liked Madrids Trains. They seemed very clean and relatively new.

Madrid Train Station
This is one of Madrid's 2 train stations and I must say this is the one I give top honors in all of Europe. Isn't the garden cool?

Toledo, Spain
This town just south of Madrid is known to be accepting of many different religions. I think there acceptance is very cool.

Toledo Street
It is very hot here so they put that tarp up above the street for shade.

Toledo's Narrow Streets
You obviously see this all over Europe!

Toledo's Cathedral
This is a great church and one of my favorites.

Do not Open the Doors
These doors are only opened for goverment officials. They were opened for Pope John Paul only beacuse he was the leader of the Vatican not because he was pope and were last opened for Princess Diane and that Charles guy.

Toledo Train Station
I thought it was neat how they integrated the design of the train station into the theme of the buildings in Toldeo.