All Good Things Must Come To An End

A strong theme that occurs through my travels are the people. I have mentioned a couple times the importance of meeting people from around the world and connecting no matter race, country, political preference. Each person has a story to tell and something to teach me. I just wish I could give back what so many have given me on my travels. 

So far I have met 6 life changing people that I hope will stay in my life for my eternity. Jen, Alex, Paul and the wonderful Liz really had a big impact on me when I was in London. Then this trip to Hiedelberg, I found great caring friends in Patrick, Lea, and Jana. I had roommates that I have always longed for and great times that will not fade with time. When they dropped me off at the bus station I really felt like I was leaving a home I had created. 
I show redundancy only due to the fact that it is that important to me. If someone were to ask why I am traveling. My typical answer is to see what the world has out there. But for me, the connections with people is what is out there. Don't get me wrong, seeing the leaning tower of Pisa is pretty special, but sharing the moments make that moment magic.

As homework, go meet someone today, spend 24 hours together exploring with the sole purpose of getting to know them. Who knows, they might become your best friend. 

Thanks to everyone I met and those who support me on my travels!!!

Being Lost Can Help You Find

The other day, yesterday to be exact, I went on a mission to get lost inside what is now one of my top 5 places in the world. This humble little town is hard to actually get lost in due to the fact that isnt the biggest place, and there is a main street that is the artery of the town. I bobbled down the street as if a red blood cell, knocking into other cells(people) along the way. The direction I took was opposite of the main district. The "Rich" people lived over there. I guess they were kinda rich with there massive "Mansions" and lots full of "BMWs".

As I kept trying to walk off the beaten path, i stumbled upon a graveyard. I was about to walk past, but I remembered when I was in Athens and went to a graveyard there. It was beautful and meaningful at the same time. Sure I giggled a couple times when I saw the name Adolf, but for the most part it leaves quite a bit of self reflection to be done. Seeing proof of the inevitability of time happening and the fact we are not invincible helps to put perspective into quite a bit of the menial things that dont really matter. For example my fingers having frost bite due to the cold. Sure I "need" them do to "things", but time will take them eventually. My suggestion is for people to go to graveyards more. Sure to mourn your loses, but to be shown humility by elements of inevitibilty.

Perfect Timing

Tonight after I had woken from my nap, my stomach took me out of bed and spoke with the voice from the thriller video. "BRIAN, GET A KEBAB". After my initial shock that my stomach had such an extensive vocabulary, I grabbed my new coat, scarf, ipod and wallet and hit the street. As soon as I stepped out of the door I regretted my decision. My face was growing icicles, my fingers felt like they recieved local anesthetics, but I had gone to far now. Momentum had taken ahold of me and nothing could bring me to a stop. 30 minutes of walking through a beautiful slightly windy town, I had reached my destination. It had been a trying journey, with a reward that would final put my stomach to rest. I was honestly getting tired of the "ARE WE THERE YET" comments(sorry parents if you have those kids, I feel your pain). The Kebab was mindblowing and the restraunt was warm.

It was on my way back to my roommates flat that I had an epiphany. There is no better time to practice for a music video then when walking late at night by yourself with headohones in. Putting on slow songs really can be life changing experiences. A song starts talking about being lonely and looking for love and now you are walking slowly looking back and forth like your loved one is popping out of the bushes. Try listening to Berlin-Take My Breathe Away. You will start dancing in the street and lip syncing at what looks like the top of your lungs. Of course, quick songs are fun, but the key is knowing the lyrics. The director will make you redo it if you mess up.

Official Date

If you were hoping to get juicy details of a steamy hot date I might have had...oops, someone was mislead. Instead I have just officially bought my ticket to Sardinia. I am taking the infamous RyanAirlines. Why infamous? simply put, because it is the cheapest airline, and for good reason. Boarding planes is more similar to cattle being hearded. Seat space is actually a joke they tell when informing you about the floating devices actually have lead in them. And worst of all, each sudoku in the magazines are always filled out. No wonder if you plan a couple weeks to months in advanced they are almost paying you to travel. Under CIA's top torture techniques Bush performed, flying prisoners RyanAir was right under water boarding and wake surfing. I digress.

The 30th of January is time for paradise and sweat. I have slightly kept in touch with my hosts and they say that there is an American "helpx'er" working with them so I will have a buddy during the time there. There are a few things I need to be scared of.
1. Does this s/he snore? I dont think I could live with an individual for 2 or 3 days, let alone months that snored like a plane was landing in our room.
2. Working out could be trouble. It will be so easy to eat, work, explore a little, eat, eat, nap, eat, then eat. Sure I burn calories when I eat, but exploring once in a while could just get me fat.
3. Yoga. I am scared of this because I do not know my own level of expertise. When the host woman teachers her class and I take part, am I gonna be the American that is "TRYING" to do the poses but really looks more like an interprtive dancer froozen.
4. Visa's. This is an actual fright because I am figuring out at the moment what options I have, and what needs to be done to stay the longest. Good luck to me.

I am hoping to be post quite a bit more. So feedback is always very much welcome. Just dont be too harsh, my fragile ego can only take so much.

Heidelberg part zwei

It was today that I was supposed to depart from this glorious fairy tale town of Heidelberg, but instead decided that staying the rest of the week was the best idea possibly.

Brian, you are spending too much time in one spot, what are you thinking?

If any other question popped in your head like what does veggiemite taste like, or how many times have I tried to lick to the center of a tottsie roll pop, then you will not get the answer you looking for. If you were thinking of the above question, please read on.

Yes, I am in this town for an extended period of time. Yes I am overstaying my welcome. But I do this with pure heart and money in the eyes. The flat mates I have been living with for the past 4 days have really accepted me as one of their own and taken me under their wing showing me around and keeping me entertained. Why stop a good thing? Second, I am in no hurry to get to Italy, it is the end of the month I have to arrive so before February will work. Last and surely extremely important, my friend Patrick and I have decided to start our own travel facebook company. At this point if you are uninterested, please just go to youtube and start watching cute cats and horrible impersonators to be entertained, otherwise proceed at your own risk.

To have a true understanding of what we are doing, a story must be told. This story is not gonna be my slightly exaggerated everyday story, but a true to form explination. Patrick was at a glacier in Argentina when he was trying to find words to describe what he had feast his eyes upon. "This is a world...........thingie". He was so amazed by the site that he was trying to compare it to a world wonder but with a slightly better name.

Part two of the story was when Patrick and I were in Heidelberg castle and he had told me about his story. So before a picture i put my hands in a circle as if it were the world and he snapped it. From there the ideas flew and our company WorldThingie was invented. The idea is simple enough. We supply the means through facebook for people to post their favorite World Thingies that amaze them. We try not to have the usual magazine photoshopped images appear, but real ones that everyday people can submit from their travels and home town. The only catch is they need to be in the picture making the same sign. With this we are hoping to open the worlds eyes to more beauty and inspire travel.

At the moment, we are at very early stages of our company, but we will soon be making huge strides so everyone can take part in seeing WORLD THINGIES

Because you read this far, 76 times I have tried to lick to the center, but not once have I ever succeeded. DAMN YOU TOOTSIE ROLL POP!!!

Heidelberg

After the musical chair train ride, i found myself in Heidelberg. Truthfully, I would have never thought of going here, but I was meeting a friend that I had met in Athens a year and a half earlier. This town is absolutely beautiful. Small town feel, older styled buildings that are very well maintained, and a monsterous castle that overlooks the city. The first day there I was introduced to his roommates which are wonderful hosts and extremely great musicians. After a few drinks, I am pretty sure I was equal to Elvis as well. 5 hours dinner, 2 bottles of wine and a bottle of rum later, my friend Patrick and I decided, at 1:30 in the morning, to go dancing. Before I mention anything else, Patrick is German, but he also is Spanish. Since the discotecka was not close, we took a tour of the salsa club. At first I was just grooving with myself, but due to Patricks connections with the Spanish world, he had Chilean women dancing with me. I had a great time and the women were fantastic and taught me a thing or to about the moves. The first woman was in her forties with her husband leaning against the wall starring. I usually dont get intimidated by 5'3 men, but when a wife is involved and sexy dancing, lets just say i make room for jesus. The second dancing partner I was offered was a woman that must have been in her 70's. I left room for Buddha and his belly this time. Though I am gonna say, she could move pretty well for being a few years away from plastic knees and hips. I think the highlight of the night is when there was a circle that formed and individuals decided that they should show off their best move while others observe and judge. There was some smooth moves going on, but then I was "called"(pushed) to the middle. I closed my eyes and just moved. The song was eventually drowned out by chants from the crowd saying "GO GRINGO, GO GRINGO...". I wasn't sure if they were trying to encourage my moves, or literally telling me to stop disgracing their culture and leave the club. I took a gamble and stayed. Ended up having a great time with the ability to salsa. Thank you Chilean women.

Lost In Translation

Two days have past between blog posts and much has happened since. The last time I left you I was in Berlin eating snow and freezing my tooshy(pg word) off. Today I am comfortably in Heidelberg with my friend Patrick. But as you have noticed, the destinations only account for a small portion of the experience, the stories created on the way is the suprise custard inside a donut that makes you do a leprechaun heel knock.

Saturday morning was my first look at the German train system. I had been all around Europe on trains, planes, and boats, but for some reason my fatherland had not been a point to visit. I had huge expectations for "my peoples". The night before I had bought a ticket that did not specify exactly where a seat was. If you can take that last sentance and add it to the title of the post, then you will have a pretty good understanding of what was to come. The algerba equation I learned in 8th grade was A + B = Awkward situation(maybe thats why I didnt do well in Algerba?). I take my seat and settle in with my head phones on and my eyes shut. My seat mate was a German fellow that was very interested in his TPS reports or something, he couldnt be bothered with the American. 1 hour into the ride I was uncomfortably leaning against the window with eyes shut and my mind concerned with what super hero power I would like to have. Increase someones gravity at any given time? Think about the humor you can bring. As my mind was turning my shoulder was tapped gently. But no matter how soft a tap is, when you have your mind deep in thought, you will react like you just got de-pantsed.
After I checked to make sure I still had my pants on, I looked up to an elderly man pointing at me and speaking German. There was a single word that I took out of the many he blurted out and it sounded like "Sniztel". Of course he must be talking about Weinersniztel, the great American restaurant. I instantly start getting excited, I love hotdogs. So a few moments pass with me looking at him salivating with a grin for hope he has one for me. He is points to me, to his ticket then to himself. Hmmm...what is he trying to say? "AHH i get it, you want to tell me how to make a good hotdog, and the ticket is the bun." He is getting more vibrant with his words and voice. I am sure everyone should know his secret cooking of the dogs, but it is a bit uncomfortable. I finally get up, grab my stuff and start heading for the kitchen. He slithers into my seat with an expression of exhaust.
Wait, so he took my seat, what is happening here? I look around and there doesnt seem to be any avaliable seats. I give him a look which is synonymous with touche. As I was so concentrated with my super hero powers the conductor played a massive game of musical chairs without telling me, and I had just been bamboozeled out of my seat. I look once more and there is an open seat. Mr. conductor, you forgot to take out the bolted down seat.

Note To Self

As the title foreshadows, this is a reference guide to myself for when I decided to travel again. Faithful bloggees(not the most charming name, sorry) might bring use out of my recent lessons learned, cause Yahweh knows I will need reminding.

Bring more then one pair of comfortable pants with holes in them when traveling outside of Arizona. Sure you think its a good idea with it being "the look" and what have you. Dont be fooled fellow Arizonans, winter outside of our borders actually means WINTER. It didnt take me very long to realiye this fact. It started when I saw my brother in North Carolina and I saw what looked like white stuff covering the ground. He informed me the scientific term for this substance is "snow". Being a foreigner to all that is cold, I was intrigued yet terrified. It was cold out for this percipitation to occur, but it was still bearable to walk in. What if it gets colder? To my complete and utter amazement, my fears had come true. When arriving in London, the near freezing breeze with the drizzled rain made walking about something of a task. Task would probably be a light term for what it was. It was a more a dreadful curse. But good company, Liz, Alex, Hannah and Gen took my mind off the chore.
This all brings me to why I have chosen this specific topic today. I thought I could grasp the understanding of cold since I had seen "snow" and "London". What could be colder? Alaska, possibly. Antarctica, maybe. Yet I was bedazzeled once again. Berlin I found out is colder yet, and mind blowingly not the coldest spot in the world(I can hear Arizonans gasp in disbelievement). This morning as I was deciding what to do with my day I put on my holey jeans, a few layers and debated in my head if a 3 1/2 hour walking tour would be beneficial to my attempt at worldlyness(real word?). Walking into the ether of cold was something of a shock. Similar to the feeling you get when a friend dares you to jump in the pool first with out telling you it is not heated. Oh yea, and it is winter in Antarctica. This "snow" stuff was falling at a slow rate. I had seen the snow, now I wanted to taste it and discover the true nature of it. So as I close my eyes, lean my head back and put out my tongue, with out me knowing, the population of Germans around me make a 30 foot perimiter in preperation for a massive sneeze that they are sure will bring back some form of the plague. As I close my mouth and hazmat team is about to tackle me they realize it is just an Arizonan.

I guess the moral of the story is "Bring 2 pairs of jeans"!!!

The New Diet

Who needs the Atkins diet or tweenkie diet when you can use what I call "The Travelers Diet". For short I will call it TTD. Because I have masterfully designed this diet, it is only appropriate I get to name it and regulate how it is said. The first part is pronounced like you have a stutter and really have something important to say. Phonetically - te te. The end is the most important. The first two letters are like introducing someone into the foyer, now you gotta wow them with the 100' plasma in your bathroom. You continue the trembling affect  while saying the DEE, but end it with a slight head nod forward then cut it off mid EE like a damn was built in your throat and the rushing water of sound will not escape.

Now that we got the most important part of the diet out of the way, its time to describe how it works.

Step 1. Cut a hole in the box...(pop culture reference, you dont need to do this, but you can)
Step 2. Buy a ticket to travel.
Step 3. Travel
Step 4. Put a budget on your travels. This is important cause you will be forced to decide if you are gonna eat lunch that day, or to take as many free apples as you can from the free breakfast in the morning.
Step 5. Eat local stuff that doesnt have the name McDonalds, or Kentucky Fried in it.
Step 6. Walk for 5 or 6 hours to your locations, it is gonna be tiring, but your mom gave yoiu legs(so did dad, thanks dad).
Step 7. Eat only when you feel like your stomach is gonna attack other organs near it to feed itself.
Step 8. Repeat 5 through 7 and #1 occasionally.

Now you need to have a real bystandard that has done this with huge exagerated results...

"My name is Brian Halbach and I have done the  Tetede diet and man I went down one belt notch in 5 days. I would like to thank the diet maker and my dad for giving me legs."

Good luck dieting!!!

Book Review

A common practice inside Hostels throughout the countries that have been graced with my presense is the use of a book exchange. I dont think I would have survived my first trip around Europe without it, and already I have put it to good use. Simple idea, there is a book shelf full of books, take and replace. I brought two books on my trip, the first a Bill Bryson book which is classic Bryson humor and fact. The second was my ego saying I could understand the concept of Concilience and grasp how all sciences in the world could be combined into one simple set of ideas. Einstien tried a unification theory for many years and never reached his promise land, but hey, maybe the average IQed kid from Arizona could wrap his mind around a theory that stumped Mr. Frizz (refereing to his hair and the fact I think he was married to the teacher in the magic school bus). After the first few chapters of what i call "boring" reading, i traded the book in for a book that looked quite interesting. Mike Birbiglia's Sleep Walk With Me and other painfully true stories". This book is full of great comic insights and anecdotes that at one point made me snort out a painful liquid, fanta if i remember correctly, out of my nose as i laughed. If you are looking for a book to read, go to Swiss Cottage hostel in London and look on the mantel for this book, or go to a library, which ever is easier.

I Say Hello, You Say Goodbye

The life of a traveller can be one of loneliness amongst the strangers of the world. Friends, family, and the usual comforts that we take for granted each day of our routines are thrown out the window like a finished banana peel that you dont want to put down on the floor of your car(you have been there). But behind the loneliness you meet fantastic people along the way that change your life in one way or another.

Florence: Julez was at the computer next to me and from there she became one of my best friends and still talk to her 18 months after we met. I even lived 1 block away from her in Australia. Just talked to her today.

Australia: Paul, Simon and Shu are fantastic guys that I pretty much will have a bromance with for the rest of my life.

Turkey: Pachi, Sharareh, Gen, Tanya, Lisa, Mack, Margrette. They made the most memoriable week ever at the best hostel.

Greece: Ten Ten and Alyssa. Both like minded people that i can truely trust to understand the beast of traveling.

London this trip: Alex(the Russian), Liz(the American) and Hannah(the Auzzie). We had a fantastic night walking around this great city and learning about each other.

Case and point is that for the rest of my life, whether I talk to people after our shared experience or not, there is always gonna be a huge spot in my heart for the people I meet on my travels.

The Good, The Bad, and The Gloom

The past couple days on this island off to the side of Europe was quite nice. Overcast but warm enough weather that a light jacket was good enough. Today though was the true London experience when the drizzle started to fall and the wind started to chill. I woke up this morning saying to myself, I am just gonna wander through the city using the two feet my momma gave me. As I walked outside completely ill dressed for this weather my mind was easily conviced to change plans to use the subway system free of rain drops and abundant in funny smells.

Today's journey was more of a feeling out the city to get a good vibe/aura from the city. In doing so I was able to analyze and ponder what this city was all about and this is what I came up with.

I have a theory about how Londoners use fashion. They must be afraid that if they did not dress as gloomy as the clouds above, then the cloud gods will cause a drought. I was absolutely amazed walking around the city the past couple days that there are 4 reacurring colors that make up the cities wardrobe; gray, dark blue, dark green, and black. I dont know if you notice the pattern that occurs, but all of these colors scream nuetral. It was the very infrequent tourist(me) that would wear bright reds and blues. I mock this London attire, but in reality I have never seen such well dressed individuals. As I walked the business districts, theatre districts and back alleys, each person is repping their own style and fashion uniquely and with much class. I have learned that fashion doesnt mean sticking out like a soar thumb, but to appease the climate gods to which you are honoring.

Food here is a prideful thing. I swore to myself after I got sick in Loas after eatting a street vendors delicious chicken that never again will I experiement with vendors. Today my will was tested and broken at the site of street vendors selling belgium waffles. The aroma of toasty sugar and sight of colorful toppings was making saliva form and the stomach to start talking to me in the language each person has with their stomach. Strawberry is just the most classic topping there is. After the first bite the taste buds interupted my stomach and decided to thank me for introducing them to this bliss. I digress. with over 4500 pubs and even more restaurants, tables are packed and love for food is filling the air. I have a feeling 9/10 places I would frequent I would probably claim to be a best meal ever.

He Aint Heavy, He's My Brother

Often times on my trip my ability to make a connection with a computer will be limited, so my ability to be an everyday blogger will be impossible. But I will do my best.

When I left you last, I was recovering from a long day in Atlanta at my brothers house in Durham. The ground was icy and the wind definitely bit you. It is 180 degrees different than what I am use to, but it was refreshingly fun and different. I was able to get a good look at a southern plantation, got some good ole southern food and played with their most adorable dog. It was a good two days that helped me slowly deal with the inevitable time change that was about to take place. Sure it is only 2 hours earlier than my town but when you are in the 7 or 8 hour change area, then every little bit helps.

 It was another long day of spreading the wings and taking flight on the 14th. Being dropped off around 9 in the morning North Carolina time, I was in the air/airport for 20 consecutive hours. Not excatly my favorite way to spend the day. But no one gets a free lunch, right?Its all water under the bridge? 1 bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush? Not sure if any of these apply to anything, but oh well...

LONDON:
Yes, I have made it, and yes we beat the Brits in our revolutionary war and they are still a lil peeved about it. Get over yourselves. I get ahead of myself., I got into London at 10ish AM without sleeping at all. When Dodgeball is a free movie to watch, there is no way to pass up such greatness. "No one makes me bleed my own blood", classic Ben Stiller. I got through immigration easy enough and got luggage and found my way to the hostel easily too. Compared to the Europe trip I did last time, this went by 5000 times easier. I met upwith my friend Gen for a tour of the city. We joke about how horrible a tour guide she was, but in reeality I saw things and heard facts I am not sure I would find on my own. We saw the Globe theatre, saw the real London Bridge(Americans think the tower bridge is actually the London bridge. Silly, I know). Went to a couple great reastuarants, took a 2 hour tour about Jack the Ripper around the city, saw the change of the guards, shopped a lil, and played pool. for the first and second day outta the country, I think I am doing just fine.
Thanks Gen

Rude Awakenings

"Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome."

Sir Arthur Ashe was certainly true and deserves a bravo for rephrasing a quote so eloquently. I left for Phoenix airport around noon for what I thought was going to be a relatively short 3 hour flight to Atlanta with a connecting flight to Durham to see my brother. The plan was far from what was actually the outcome oh the journey.  Checking into the airport and sitting in the terminal at 1, I knew it was a bit early, but it was better to be safe. That safety didn't pay off cause from the time when our plane was about to take off at 2:30 until 5:30 we were being informed that we needed one more steward(ess) to fly. And for the 3 hours we waited, the announcer was trying to sooth our worries with saying the steward was nearly there. 

After we take off, the flight was easy enough. No one sitting nearby, lots of sleep and a nice shot of orange juice they serve with too much ice. We arrive in Atlanta with icy conditions that would not allow anyone to leave, just to come in. From Sunday to Tuesday the airport was on standby, so the capacity of the airport was overflowing similar to heating up pasta with too much water. I hate it when that happens. Lucky for me I found a friend named Nancy. We decided to stick together and accompany each other through the night on the hard floor of the ATL airport. Hindsight 20/20 says I shouldn't have played any kind of game with her. She had won every card game, backgammon, and dominos game. After a bruised and heavily beaten ego  it was 3:30 am and time for an attempted nap. By nap I mean laying on cold ground with my eyes shut. Nancy and I instead stayed up looking for a warmer ground to sleep on, and chatted. Her fiance is a serviceman in the Navy that has fallen ill. I wish him the best and hope he can have a quick recovery.

5 pm Tuesday comes along and it is time for each of us to take our leave and hop on the plane. From there no troubles or outside interference led me down a different path. Greg picked me up and set me up on his futon and it was time to fall into the dark.

My First Travel Challenge

Yesterday I began my journey with a trip to Phoenix. My sisters family lives there. Among this family is my lil nephew Peter Gene Carothers. I call him Petey G because that is just cuter, but that is neither here nor there.

Besides not wanting to leave the cutest kid ever, the real challenge is from our mother nature. It seems that on my way to see my brother in Durham, NC the storm in the connecting city of Atlanta will allow  people to land, but not leave. Luckily for me, my brothers girlfriends family lives in the A-town and will be hosting me for a night as the storm passes. A little hitch in the plans, but overall could be a fun experience.

Just a thought, does it sound suspicious that you can land in snowy weather, but not take off? I am gonna try not to think about it too much.

Day X

The day has come for my travel marathon to begin. But I do not think it fair to call what I am doing traveling. I will, for all intents and purposes, be relocating to a new spot to call home. Just because it is in a foreign land with a foreign language and lots of wine doesnt make it any less of a move then if i were to move to another state. But i ramble.

The purpose of todays rant is for the future back packers and the inquisitive minds. Items to bring and not to bring to maximize pleasure and minimize head ache.

1. THERE IS A THING AS TO MUCH UNDERWEAR.  I was over zealous with my plethora of underwear during my first europe trip. I found that space and weight can be saved by packing about a weeks worth.

2. NO PHONE. While in Australia I was phoneless for the whole duration of my trip. I never felt so free and unleashed. Sure there were times when I would just say to myself "man how bad do I wanna txt the joke of the day hotline", but temptation fades when its out of sight out of mind. I am semi cheating though. I will be equipped with a itouch. With skype and facetime, i will be able to video chat to the whole world of my contacts. hint hint, if you want to talk to me, friend me on skype...

3. DONT BRING ALOT OF CLOTHES IN GENERAL. When you get to the destination of choice, chances are you will be tempted by the fruits of the markets and the clothes of the street vendors. So far I have not gotten sick from either.

4. BUILD THE CONFIDENCE TO HAVE SOMEONE TAKE A PICTURE OF YOU. You dont wanna be "that american" that does the silly poses that would be great on facebook, but doing the act in front of the locals and other tourists is just making you sweat bullets.  Its ok, you have the right to be there and no people will be more jealous than anything that you just pushed the leaning tower of pisa over.

There are many more "important" tips like keeping money safe or book ahead of time, but that is just overrated. Stick to these simple rules and you will have the best wardrobe and pics ever.

Where is that?

My departure date from the states is the 14th of January. Instead of going straight to Graceland, I will be taking the extreme scenic route from London all the way south. With friends I have met traveling, I will prove that I can be more then just a moment in time friend. London, Berlin, Heidelberg, and possibly Spain will be graced with my presence. It will be late January that I will find my final destination in Sardinia. To get a simple idea of where I will be working check out the website;

https://www.helpx.net/host.asp?hostid=9098

in the town of Bosa, google image it, is where my place of residence will be. Equipped with a river running through the town, beaches not 5 minutes away, and italian food that my nose is sure to go haywire over, this place seems almost like paradise.

Uncertainty my muse, Italy my canvas.

Roll with the punches, go with the flow, use any kind of cliche to describe how I will be going about my travel. The #1 question when someone has learned of my decision is, "Why?". That is a fantastic question, and I will tell you when I find out myself. But at the moment there are a few different answers that rattle around in my head that contribute to a "sound" reasoning.
1. Why not (pretty mind blowing answer)
2. Nothing holding me down in the States
3. I loved Italy when I visited it last
4. Desk jobs just aint for me.
5. I feel most alive when faced with foreign challenges alone.

These are just a few of the reasons that I could spew out on a whim. The #2 question is "what are you doing over there?". Again, what an excellent question. At the moment, contrary to what my default personality would have me do, I have made prior plans before I have even set foot in Europe. Most times my idea that "it'll work out" would suffice, but this time I thought, maybe get my feet wet first, then get travel cocky. My first job will be to find my way from London to Sardinia meanwhile seeing friends along the way. But as I set foot in Bosa, Sardinia I will be on an olive farmer working for a wonderful couple. They will supply me with room and board and a meal per day, in exchange I will do 4 to 5 hours of work on their farm doing what they ask. This is as far as the plan has gone. Their are whispers in my mind of possible paths to take after this, but not loud enough for me to post.

Prelude

Like every good novel, there is an introduction to the author and some background knowledge to the inspiration behind his/her work. Instead of a novel there will be a blog, and instead of work there is documented travel and discovery. The similarity lies within the inspiration.

Nearly 2 years ago I had graduated from the U of A and decided to throw myself into the wind and find where that took me. Luckily for me the wind stopped somewhere in Madrid and threw me around to most countries within Europe. Though times felt lonely, I had developed what every traveler learns for survival purposes; making best friends instantly. Roommates soon become slumber party members, the person at the computer next to you develops into a life long friend, and facebook posts triple in quantity and quality. So after many travels, it was time for me to go back home.

Nearly a week after I was home, I was convinced by my girlfriend to come live with her in Australia. I swear she used inception, because after that idea was planted in my mind, it was dangerous and not leaving. It was only 3 months later that I was on a plane going across the Pacific to see what down under had in store. I had very much enjoyed my time in Australia finding fantastic friends I met at gymnastics, taking in the sun with the GF and doing introspective thinking.

Southeast Asia was the next adventure that led me to start appreciating all that I have and all I want to do to help the world. I feel like I am in debt to karma with the good fortune that I have been blessed with. The travel bug mixed with the super hero complex has left me moving to Italy to find out more about myself and what I want to do. I am to be thrown in to the world as a lamb and to come out a lion.