Breaking the Habit

---

Geo: 51.0451, -114.063

"The brakes feel like they are starting to go - you really have to stomp on the pedal to bring the car to a stop. And there's a problem with the fan - sometimes it's extremely weak, sometimes no air comes out at all, but the problem is intermittent and usually only lasts for twenty to thirty minutes". That was my response to the attendant when I dropped off the rental car at the airport at 4 AM today, when he asked if there were any problems with the car.

The response? "It's a Micra!" the rental car attendant said with a smirk and a shrug. Normally, complaints of brake problems on a rental car from one of the biggest rental agencies in the World would elicit a concerned reaction, but apparently not when it comes to this piece of crap car! So ended my time in Cyprus, with a response that was similar to my feelings about Cyprus - it was far from perfect, but it got the job done, and it was time to move on from it!

This was a bit of an oddball trip, one with distinct highs and lows, some of it perhaps a result of certain expectations of the places we visited. Not expecting much of Delphi, Crete, and Troodos, they turned out to be some of the highlights of the trip, while Santorini fell fall short of our high expectations. Though we felt that Meteora was sure to be phenomenal, it was even better than advertised, and while we didn't think Paphos or Larnaca would be all that great prior to arriving, they proved to be even less appealing than we had imagined.

Larnaca definitely was not the best place to end off this trip, as finishing up on a low certainly doesn't leave a great overall impression. For the first time I can remember in a long time, I was actually looking forward to getting the Hell out of someplace and going home! Don't get me wrong, as there certainly were some amazing and unforgettable moments during the past few weeks - it's just that Larnaca was that bad, dulling the highs of the previous two-and-a-half weeks.

You live and you learn ... many times in the past I've found that the places I expected nothing from turned out to be the most memorable. Unfortunately, that didn't turn out to be the case with Paphos and Larnaca but as always, there are never any real regrets with travel - if you didn't make the effort to go somewhere, you'd never know for certain if you would like it or not.
Perhaps the proper approach with travel is that when you discover a place that isn't to your liking, you make a mental note to never return, but also remember that place the next time you are somewhere amazing - that way, you can understand exactly how fortunate you are to have discovered a place that you do love.

Looking back on this year so far, it's been about as good as it gets when it comes to travel - taking so many shorter breaks, you really don't realize exactly how much time you've taken off, and it's only now that I can step back and see that. It's been pretty damn good!!! But there was something very strange about this year - did you catch it? It was easy to miss, but once I tell you exactly what it was, you'll wonder how you missed it.

For the first time in eight years ... I did not go to Spain!!! Not once!!! And no, that is not a typo!!! OMG, this must mean the World is ending! So with that revelation, the title of this blog finally makes some sense - Spain was replaced with a series of random stops around the World, so this year was all about Breaking the Habit. That is the problem with taking more frequent, shorter trips - Spain was always easy to squeeze into a longer trip, but this summer's itinerary was far too cramped to include one more country.

So in the spirit of broken habits, inspiration for the theme song for this trip goes back to the very start of this most recent trip, to the first few days in Greece when we were in Meteora. As mentioned before, Meteora was the inspiration for Linkin Park's second studio album, and the song "Breaking the Habit" was the fifth and final hit single released from that album. Upon first inspection, the song seemingly has nothing to do with this trip, other than the song's title and the name of this blog.

However, closer inspection reveals a connection, albeit a somewhat dubious one - in the most absurd attempt at drawing parallels in the history of travel blogs, and perhaps even in the entire history of literature, I will try to link the song's themes of drug addiction with my longstanding addiction to Spain. Even worse, I will venture to do the same with my new found addiction - snorting fallen powdered sugar from Turkish delight!

---

Photos

No Sacher Torte ...
... having a two-hour layover this morning in Vienna meant there was ample time for a couple of things that Vienna is renowned for - coffee, and the famous Sacher Torte. The cappuccino wasn't anything special, but the Sacher Torte would make up for it, right? Sadly no, as the cafe I stopped at strangely sold entire Sacher Tortes for people to take away as a souvenir, but wouldn't give you a single slice.

Surprisingly-Good Airport Meal ...
... normally an airport is the worst place for a meal, usually overpriced and not-too-appetizing. But surprise - this plate of spaghetti and meatballs was quite tasty, with a delicious sauce and plump meatballs, nice with a glass of primitivo. Once again, Calgary's sky-high prices are a blessing in disguise, because this meal actually cost less than the equivalent meal in Calgary. Bravo to Boccone!