I need a backpack and a buck. Off to see the world!

In Oslo. Barely.

2008-08-16T03:19:00.000-05:00

Holland would just not let us go.

After being there for about a week (wayyy more than we had planned) mostly because our hostess was the greatest in the world, our last day was the unluckiest of them all.

Long story short, we got lost in Amsterdam due to torrential rains and howling winds. We jumped on different trains on our way to Utrech to see Rocola Bacalao play. Well, my sister caught the right train while I had to escape from a creepy man by getting off the right train and jumping on one going in the completely opposite direction. Two hours later I was in Utrech, everyone else was nowhere to be found and eventually I caught the last train back home so as to not be left stranded in a train station - yet again. All in all, thank goodness for the European transportaion system. Had this happened anywhere else in the world (couchecuadorcough) at that same time, I would have actually despaired.

The worst part of this entire story is that I missed Rocola Bacalo. Oh, and then the fact that the two girls in Utrech lost each other and we missed the early train to Oslo. And as if that wasn´t enough, on our way to catch the next train to Oslo, as we were running to the platform, my sister´s bag nearly completely fell apart, Lucero´s flip flop flipped and flopped all over the place and tore apart. That one chaotic minute made it so that we missed that train as well. Argh.

Baby steps. We left Wageningen so as to try to leave bad luck (and awesome hostesses) behind little by little. We went to Arnhem and found out that the next train for Oslo didn´t leave until six hours later. If you ever need tips for killing time... we are your girls.

The night train to Copenhagen, from where we´d connect to one to Oslo, was a pain in the butt. Quite literally. However, as soon as we hit Copenhagen, we apparently also hit BALLIN trains central - Scandinavia, where second class is first class and first class must be freakin heaven.

We are now in Oslo and as with many things on this trip, we did not plan to come here originally. We were supposed to end with Stockholm but since we have a cousin here, we are going to bunk up with her for two days and make it a family affair.

Tomorrow we head out to Sweden on a night train, making it directly into the Stockholm airport four hours before our flight. With luck, we will be back in SA the night of the 18th.

Peace and good luck.

We're going to Oslo!

2008-08-14T05:35:00.000-05:00

After the unluckiest day for all of us in Europe thus far... we are off to Oslo!
We live.
Gotta run!

From Amsterdam

2008-08-10T16:53:00.000-05:00

We have been chilling for the most part. Literally, figuratively... you name it. The days have been very Amsterdam of us.

We have only actually been to Amsterdam once though, because Wageningen is two hours away, the weather has been a little on the rainy side and because we are having a pretty good time hanging out in Lucero's dorm room. We're also sleeping in a little, we need it. The little we have seen of Amsterdam has been pretty beautiful. Nothing like what we expected... in fact, the one day we were there we didn't even make it to the Red Light District but just walked around with the canals on either side of us. Our Amsterdam night was great. We caught a few performances on the street (check the videos! They were awesome) and then bar hopped until the trains started running again and we could catch one back home.

Monday and Tuesday are Amsterdam. Wednesday is Utrech for a Rocola Bacalao concert (Woo! Out of all places they decided to come to tour Europe and come to the Netherlands!) and on Thursday we head to Oslo... and then comes the end of the trip.

WOW.

We're Alive..... and in The Netherlands!

2008-08-07T04:14:00.000-05:00

I realized two things. No signs of us being alive for 5 days. Sorry mom. Also... I misspelled "Au Revoir" in the last post. How embarrasing. Aporogies.

So Paris is over, which makes me very sad. The city is just all sorts of adjectives. Huge, first of all, busy, beautiful, quaint, overwhelming, overcrowded (in a surprisingly good way), delicious, fun... good times. Endlesss.

After going out the first few days, unashamed to be stereotypically touristy, we continued to be sterotypical tourists. How could we not be? On the third day, we went to see the Pompidou (for FREE!) and after concluding that we were completely museumed out, we went shopping for souvenirs which now make our backpacks at least 10 pounds heavier (each!) and then we climbed up the Eiffel Tower and I just could not stop gasping. Of all the places we have seen, that one is the definition of GRAND. Oh, and we saw a video of the countdown to the year 2000 (on YouTube for your own viewing pleasure)... Times Square should just kill itself.

That night we had more creppes (MMM), walked around the city at night and made the mistake of sticking around the expensive neighborhood to go out. The bar was no good and the men (more like MAN) were dancing by themselves. Funny how that was the COMPLETE opposite on the north side of the city - Montmartre, where we ended up on our last night in Paris.

On our last night we sat on the steps in front of Sacre Coeur, a HUGE chapel on top of Montmartre. Tons of people where already there by the time we reached the top (we got distracted taking pictures in front of the Moulin Rouge and checking out the Red Light District type window displays on our way over.) There were street performers (check out YouTube for the guys who played with fire... LOVED IT.) People were singing and everything was just right.

The only damper on the night was the fact that we got hit on by every single person we happened to make eye contact with. As flattering as that should have been, it ended up being more uncomfortable than anything and at one point we just wanted to close our eyes to avoid running into anymore French lotharios. Chriiist. French men are FORWARD. I bet maze is sold to girls there by the galon.

On our last day we had lunch with our WONDERFUL host - Odile, a distant aunt (?) we found out we had in Paris. She was welcoming, brilliant, laid back, interesting... wonderful. Finally though, it was time to move on and we took off to go to Bruges.

We were SO tired from the previous night that we missed our train stop (oops) but fortunately found our way back and eventually checked into our hostel in this quaint little town where the smell of waffles and chocolate was as overwhelming as we would have imagined. Oh! and FRITES with mayonaisse were another food that was smelling up the place. A pregnant woman would go nuts here.

At 8pm, we decided to take a nap to go out later in the night. We soon found (again) that on this trip, we just can't plan ahead of time... not even an hour ahead of time. At 9pm we woke up and our bodies were in no condition to move an inch. We slept right through the night and for 13 hours... For anyone who knows me... that contitutes a comma. For anyone who knows Stefy... that's pretty normal.

The next morning, our one and only in Bruges, we made hostel friends and spent the day with them, walking around talking and - on Stephen's request - eating ice cream. Every girl's dream. The chill day was just what we both needed. And then... we left for Holland.

We're in Wageningen (don't even bother to try to pronounce that) with Lucero, Stefy's long time friend. She was with us in Paris and now we are with her in Holland, ready for a week-o-fun. Today we're out to see a couple of the cities around Wageningen while Lucero studies for her exam on the 11th. This weekend is Amsterdam time.

Only 11 days left. We are taking it slow because clearly, our bodies can't take it anymore. Holland now, Oslo on the 13th and Stockholm on the 16th before heading back.

If you want something from Europe, now is the time. We don't have to carry our bags around as much for much longer so souvenirs are doable.

See? Definitely alive.

Love!!!

Such Tourists

2008-08-02T20:15:00.000-05:00

We are most definitely in Paris... where the keyboards are so strange, they almost kept me from writing at least a little something about us being here and loving it.

The little patience I have with this keyboard, I will use to let you know that the gargoyles at the top of the Notre Dame tower are amazing to be standing next to, the Louvre was a bit overrated but a definite must while in Paris, the Orsay was AMAZING and I will never believe that I was able to stand just three inches away from Van Vough's Bedroom in Arles and the lesser Starry Night (the major one was nowhere to be found) and maaajor paintings by Renoir, Cezanne, Monet, Matisse... artgasm. It took my mind off my painfully aching feet which have officially gone on permanent strike from too much physical abuse.

I will also say that I never really got how stained glass can truly be out of this world beautiful until I went inside St. Chapelle, that I have never been more happy to pay 4 euro for a small cup of ice cream other than the one we had at this place called Amarino, that Versailles is mind blowing and so oppulent it makes you feel dirty, that nutella creppes are to die for, that people speaking French are to die for, that there are things to do in every corner of Paris, that the metro system will kill you if you let it get the best of you, that the city is a huge melting pot (aw man, I hate using that world... seems outdated for reasons I won't go into now) of cultures, races and ethnicities... and that, no matter what anyone tells you to try to undermine it... your first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower will take your breath away and watching it light up at night will leave you so that you will consent to anything, including buying little Eiffel Tower souvenirs from way overpriced street merchants.

Paris is beautiful and then some more.

We still have a few days here and we're going to be putting in some serious work.

Aur Revoir!!!

PS: I'm working on more pictures and videos but some new ones are already up. Enjoy them!!

From random Luxembourg

2008-07-29T17:48:00.000-05:00

We have left Munich. And it was awesome. Wait... no... it was NUTS. We had an amazing time with our CouchSurfer who is actually from California and another CouchSurfer who is actually... from California as well. God Dan, you people are everywhere.

We funny thing is that we did not do a single touristy thing in Munich, except hang out at the English Garten a LOT and then walk around the city and somehow passing through Marienplatz. Other than that, our adventures involved the night life there and CouchSurfingness. We went out as a group and it felt great to feel like it was just us going out with a group of friends, except that this time... we were in Munich. Our first night we arrived at our CS place really late after using the internet at a really hip place (that also doubled as a Casino) and met up with Jane and Jordan. We hung out all night and went to bed in the morning. Felt like home.

The next day we walked around the city and actually sort of boomerangedback to the house to pick Jane up and go grab pizza and cheap beer. We set up a dinner picnic at the English Garten, next to a group of free lance drummers. haha. There must have been something in our blanket because everyone began to gravitate towards us and all of a sudden, the party moved to our little 4 square feet in the park. By the time the cops came by to break up the party... there were at least 20 people there, singing, dancing and playing the drums. And, in no attempt to not use a cliche... they did not break our spirits. We took the party to the streets of Munich and somehow, must of us were able to stick together and make it to a bar that was just filled with all sorts of characters... my favorite - Martha, born in 1951 and still partying like a 20 something and "German name I can't remember how to pronounce" man who looked like Rod Stewart... kind of and not really. The best part was the tight rope. That's right. And the huge swing that could hold at least 10 people and that kept going all night because there was always someone who just found it amusing to push the rest of us back and forth.

What a night. The only regret (but not really) was not leaving early enough to catch a night bus because we had to walk back to the apartment, which took at least 2 hours in the cold night and we were all exhausted.

By the time our time in Munich was over, we felt like we had known everyone for at least a solid school semester (I'm more familiar with talking about time in these terms...) and, if we all come through for each other, we will most definitely see Jane and Jordan again in some new corner of the world.

...

We are in Luxembourg now. Our CouchSurfer and his neighbor have already taken us in, fed us and let us use the internet - the first signs of GREAT CouchSurfers :) We got here about five hours ago and have been talking nonstop since. Another good sign. Tomorrow we're out to see the city... which we hear is as big as the country... and then we're off to the Rhine Valley for a ferry tour just for kicks and then... PARIS!!! Ooh la la!

Pictures and Videos!

2008-07-27T08:53:00.000-05:00

Pictures and Videos! Pictures and Videos! We found an internet place in Munich just now that is just 0.50 Euro per hour... So I just uploaded a couple of thngs for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy. Meliss, Munich rocks. And I found out fm our CS that the old man that we HAVE to talk to has a name and it is Herbert. haha. Is that the same guy you told me about? Herbert hangs out at the English Garten and even passes out laminated business cards.

Chris! The Cubs were on in Prague! They were winning when we left the bar, I hope it stayed that way... Dan! We met three Dans in Prague. You are still my favorite though. Even though you left me for Peach. Michael. I am giving you full credit for our adventures in Prague. That is a LOT of credit friend.

Love you ALL!

East Europe Living.

2008-07-26T17:23:00.000-05:00

We just arrived in Munich after some time in Budapest, Berlin and Prague. Basically, ten days were absolutely incredible. Our best in Europe thus far I would even say.

Budapest was chill. Our CouchSurfer was UBER trusting and let us stay in her place for five days while she was out on holiday. We was so much fun and really really nice. We walked in our first night and she was with a friend, helping her make her wedding dress. The next day she took off but left us with some advice and some friends to call up and hang out with. The next days we did a little less sightseeing and a little more night living. Budapest was definitely the place to make that switch. Because we stayed there for so long, we also caught up on sleep and cooked ourselves dinner every night, which was a REALLY nice change from the backpacker sandwiches we´ve been eating. We did mess up though... when we decided to go to the supermarket and by something in a can that was all in Hungarian. Whatever what was in that can was... I did eat some of it just to try and I never want to find out what that was. It´s for the best.

One night we ended up at Gödör Klub and saw a free concert (a lot of cheap entertainment going on in Budapest we found out) featuring "La Familia" a gypsieska (I don´t think that´s spelled right) band from France and Spain and Cuba and all over the place. And then Stefy turned 20. We celebrated with some baked goods.

During our stay in Budapest we met up with a Hungarian friend that Stefy happens to have and went to a summer festival venue... place... and just out at night again. It was a good, relaxing time Budapest... but the best was yet to come.

We tried to leave for Prague on the 21st but ended up back in Vienna and back at our Vienna CS place. Even though us being there meant that something had gone wrong, we had a blast that night. After dinner (our CS in Vienna is an amaying chef) we went out to a club that is supossed to have the best sound system in all of Europe. What it has was the drunkest people in all of Europe thus far and it was a little too much but nevertheless good times.

We went to Berlin the next day and had I been wearing any socks... that city would have rocked them right off my feet. Berlin was huuuge and it definitely deserved an extra day, but we made the most of the time we had and I left there wanting to definitely go back some day. Loved it.

Today we´re back from our stay in Prague. OH MY LORD.

.... WHAT A TIME. Despite our Eurail passes not working there, we paid goodmoney to catch a train into Prague and it turned out to be worth every Czech Krona. We arrive at night and went to our hostel and then out for a drink. We went to a pub that was playing Manu Chau ALLL night long and had a good time drinking some quaity Czech beer. They know what they´re brewing... those Czechs.

Not to undermine our own wits... we were LUCKY enough to pick up a flyer for a Pub Crawl and decided to do that last night. Good times. We waked all over the city during the morning and in the afternoon. We did a little shopping, trying to take advantage of the sweet exchange rate, I bought shoes that I will regret having bought for at least the next three days and then we went back to the hostel to get ready to head out to the Bohemian Bagel, an American restaurant in Old Town Square. The Pub Craw met there and kicked off with a keg party - can you tell that it was a group of three American people that started it? We went to four clubs last night and ended up with free tshirts the next day and the memory of our best night in Europe. WE met tons of other travellers... people from Florida, Australia, Germany, Denmark, El Salvador, Canada... nothing I will say will do the experience justice. Tons o´fun.

So Munich... here we are. We are down to more or less 20 days left in our trip.

Oh my lord.

from vienna.... again

2008-07-21T15:22:00.000-05:00

no exclamation marks on this keyboard... bear with me.

we just made our way back from budapest and didnt end up going to prague but staying in vienna for a night before going to berlin, a slight change of plans but as a wise man just said to me... we are on vacation, we are not supposed to be anywhere, goofball...

so the goofballs had a great time in budapest and, if stefy wouldnt be wanting to shove me off the seat to use the computer, i would tell them all to you. but it will have to wait...

for now, we live and we are in vienna. will write from germany tomorrow.

see ya... which also happens to be how you say hello in hungarian. which is the only thing we learned. with all do respect, that language is gibberish.

Our Austrian Adventure

2008-07-16T17:08:00.000-05:00

Well, it began in Innsbruck as you already know. But it continued, as did the rain, in Salzburg, Austria, birth place of W.A. Mozart. The best part of our one-day trip there - which was enough to walk around the entire city by the way - was the biergarten. We walked for a long time under the rain to get there, staying true to our "Best of Europe" book. Finding the Auguftiner Brauftubt Biergarten was heavenly - literally, because the place is run by monks and is actually on the bottom floor of a monastery. We bought ourselves half liter mugs, washed them and turned them over to the keg man to be made happy. We were. Very. Even though the place wasn't really our demographic we sat and ate pretzels and strudels and listened to a trio of middle-aged german men play "I want you to want me" and "TNT." Ballin.

We walked through a storm to get back home and Stefy cooked what was probably 10 pounds of pasta...each.

On the 13th we were in Vienna and at 1pm, on our way over to our CouchSurfers place, we saw ladies of the night - except I guess it wasn't late enough to call them that. Vienna was a CITY city. I liked. We walked around for pretty much the entire day and had sachertorte, amazing Viennise chocolate cake, which I got the recipe for from our CouchSurfer... so expect a baking attempt when I get back to San Antonio. After a realy really long day we went back home and had traditional Vienna dumplings made from scratch. It was a good day for eating traditional food... and beer. Our CS went out and got at least six different types for us to try.

Our CouchSurfers were completely different and awesome. We were hosted by a brother and sister who lived together in the apartment in the roof of a building. Their place was decorated by the walls which they had painted themselves and with friends and in a little balcony, they had tons of home-grown things going, some more legal than others.

Just today we went to a little island on the Danube and then to an amusement park. We went on one of the rides and it was worth the 4 euro.

We're in Hungary now and we have been looking forward to coming here for a few weeks now. Our first Eastern European experience was the run down train station, complete with a drunk man who offered to buy us beers and was creepy.

We just met up with our CouchSurfer, Orsi, who was in the middle of making her friend's wedding dress. Cool huh? We've met the most interesting people on this trip. We'll be in Budapest until the 21st, Stefy turns 20 on the 19th, we will have been in Europe for 1 month on the 18th and that's all the numbers I have for now.

Paz.

Oh, pictures and videos. Check them out.

Sprachen problems

2008-07-14T00:13:00.000-05:00

Well, slight at the very least.

We are in Austria now and we actually leave Innsbruck today to go to Salzburg, the home of Mozart. We were welcomed here by the ever so organized culture, which was great because we probably couldn't get around otherwise... German sounds nothing like anything we've had to listen to and try to understand.

The main thing is that Innsbruck is very cold and I miss my sweater, which I left back in Rome in a fit of deperation due to insanely hot weather. I also miss the four inches of hair that I left behind in Greece in fit of boredom and, again, desperation. On the other hand though, we get to wake up, walk outside and see the Alps.

We have been incredibly lucky with our CouchSurfers thus far. Marián, our host in Innsbruck, was amazing. He made us feel right at home and even went out with us for a tour of Innsbruck even though it rained all of yesterday. He also turned out to be a huge film buff so we hung out, talked and watched movies when the weather was too cold to bare.

Off to get me some schnitzels, some beer, some Mozart, and to get used to the fact that German keyboards have the "Z" and the "Y" in different places.

PS: Meljo, people here are beginning to look more and more like you.

Last Italy post

2008-07-11T17:03:00.000-05:00

We leave for Innsbruck tomorrow and I want to apologize for all the incorrect spelling and grammar on this blog. I probably will continue to do it because it's difficult to type fast on unfamiliar keyboards and under the pressure of limited internet time.

Milan was a good time. Last night we arrived and went out for some quality Mickey D's and then we met up with my friend at a wine bar and then we all took off to a club, "Just Cavalli"... none other than Roberto Cavalli's club in Milan. My friend and her friends are studying fashion merchandise and they have internships at showrooms and well... there are perks. The club was a fashion show and the men were hot - I'm talking Calvin Klein models every which way you look. Today, during our eight-hour walk around the city, we proved that both of my previous statements were correct.

Milan is not so much about the monuments so we just walked around the city, did a good bit of window shopping and took a couple of pictures. We also went to an aquarium which made my day.

To bid Italy arrivederci we ate a HUGE pizza and had gelato for dessert. I just put up some more pictures. It's been real.

Andres has left the building

2008-07-10T14:32:00.000-05:00

It is now up to the Narvaez sisters to make it happen in Europe. We are in Milan, staying with a friend and going out for a good ol' Milan party to celebrate our last Italian city. Austria is next and we have couchsurfers lined up. Should be fun.

Venice was beautiful, expensive, but beautiful. Small and not too much to do but it had a definite charm.
Pidgeons are insane there.

Florence has been good to us

2008-07-08T12:08:00.000-05:00

That is pretty much all I have to say about that.

And I just uploaded a couple more pictures. Check them out. Bye!!

Happy July 7th!

2008-07-07T03:52:00.000-05:00

We live! I think that might be the start of every post from now on since we rarely use the internet because it's so ridiculously expensive all over Europe. But yes, we live and we have been living quite well - or rather, living good things.

We were bums on our last day in Rome. We had leftovers for breakfast and then we walked around the city to see more of the monuments which were all impressive and right in the middle of apartment buildings, office buldings, homes, etc. We haven't seen anything like that anywhere else yet. The Vatican City was also very overwhelming, high maintenance type of stuff I would say, compared to the rest of Rome and Europe thus far - they're definitely go the extra mile for the man upstairs.

We finished the day exhausted and sat on the steps of the Trevi Fountain. We drank wine out of a box and watched a group of Bangladeshi merchants literally shove their roses onto unsuspecting tourists trying to take romantic pictures in front of the fontain. To stick with the tradition, we all tossed coins and made wishes - 1 Euro cent wishes... We hung out until 3 am and after that, moved on to the sidewalk where we took a nap before catching our 6am train to Ancona, the port from which we took the ferry to go to Greece!

The bad thing about not sleeping was that we didn't get off at our train stop - almost didn't. We slept through and got up a few seconds after the train began to move again. We had to pull a "WAIT!!! Driver! Sir! Stop the train we need to get off!" Thankfully it worked and we had to walk just a few feet through train tracks to get back to the station.

We made two new friends, Rachel and Miriam from Canada. They were going to Greece too and we all rode the ferry together. The ferry was AWESOME. We were on the deck and it was literally decked OUT. We drank the cheapest wine we could have brought back from Italy, played cards and ate a picnic lunch. Later on we hit the ship's disc (that's right) and we were the only four people dancing (to salsa - Andres' request of course). Some German guy clapped and paid for our drinks. And that was the first time I earned something based on my dancing skills.

We woke up on the deck floor and our bodies felt accordingly. When we got to the port of Patras, we made a new friend - Sergio from Mexico - and took the train to Athens.

Sergio had been in Thailand and backpacking through Europe for almost three months and he was telling up all about his trip. It was fun to meet up with someone from Latin America. I can't tell you what difference it makes to be able to speak words you know and know that you're saying them right.

In Athens we met our first CuchSurfer, Giannis. WHAT a character. Although we were a bit skeptical at first because of his unusual personality and his apartment (see pictures), by the second night we were having a blast. He was hilarious and he was the epitomy of what a CouchSurfer should be. Every night we would go back and meet more people. Everyone slep on the floor (although we did get a bed on our last night) and everyone had diferent things to say. Other than that Athens was cool. We saw the Acropolis and visited the Parthenon and, my favorite, The Temple of Olympian Zeus. We hung out at the popular Syntagma Square and learned that Greek teens are COMPLETELY emo, that they hand out late at night to pick a pseudo fight with their rival emo gangs and that it's illegal to sell fake purses on the street - we learned this when we saw a group of about 30 salesmen run away from the cops with whatever was left of that day's merchandise. We had our fix of columns on the first day and we hit the markets on the second day and then the beach at night. We would have LOOOVED to go to an island but I guess it'll have to happen sometime in the future.

We left early on the 5th to catch our ferry back to Italy from Patras. Confident that we could get away with it one last time, we didn't get a ticket for the metro and were stopped by Greek metr officers on the train. It sucked but we made it to the train on time and I guess we learned our lesson. The ferry ride back was relaxing. We laid out, drank bottles of sangria and had another picnic that was nothig compared to the table that three French people set up right next to ours. Our salami, cheese and bread were amateurs next to their fruit and peanuts and French break and wine. Show offs.

In a nothingtodoness, but also a Europeishotterthanhellness, I cut my hair with our pocket knife scissors. Very liberating, and right now, Florence is going much better because of it.

It took us the entire day yesterday to get to Florence, and we were on a downer type of mood, trying to prepare ourselves mentally to pay irrational sums of money for a hostel. Fortunately, some new attitude came over all of us and we picked up our heads and our confidence and walked into a hotel and got a double room with free breakfast for less money than a bed and a shared bathroom in a hostel. I think it was the fact that during our stay in Athens, we got yelled at by freaking LOUD Greeks more so than we've been yelled a by our parents in our entire lives. The hotel was a good way to help put that behind us.

Arrivederci!

Check for new pictures! Videos coming soon. They take longer.

PS: Chris, there is a pizzeria in Genova called "I Sassi." We never found it but I'm sure their pizzas were as good as a Cabana Bowl.

Ciao Bellos!

2008-06-30T05:56:00.000-05:00

We are in Rome! And we live! And some more of the pictures are up!
I have 8 minutes online so I will use them wisely.

Nice was great. Our first encounter with le French. They were alright people. We definitely figured out that our French sucks but, much to everyone's suprise, our Italian is even worse.

Nice was small enough that we could walk around and we pretty uch got to know the city in a day and a half. Our hostel was not as great as the one in Madrid or our Barcelona hosts :) so overall, I'm going to say that it was our first true backpacking experience. Complete with a shower that required an old school token to work for only 6 minutes. It was a trip.

We left Nice and took a few buses to get to Rome. We made some friends on the train and we've been traveling with them for the past two days. Yesterday we saw the Roman Coliseum (crap, I have no time to check the spelling on that word) and, oh my GOD, was it a sight. It's amazing though how much of it is completely GONE, I don't think I was expecting that but it turns out that every ruin of the huge Roman monuments is pretty damn close to that word - ruin.

Today we're going to the Vatican City and then to walk around Rome a bit more. Tomorrow, at 6am, we're taking off on a train to Ancona, an Italian port, to take a ferry to Greece!!! We should be in Athens by July 2nd.

Must go. But not without letting you know that gelatti here is orgasmic.

I found me another woman

2008-06-24T19:57:00.000-05:00

Today we walked Las Ramblas and checked out the Barri Gothic (Gothic Neighborhood) in Barcelona. It was a long walk and I just couldn't blink. There's so much to see. Tomorrow we're climbing up Mount Tibidabo and then going to see even more Gaudi.

This post though... is one that I wanted to get off my chest real quick. After visiting so many museums and seeing art around pretty much every corner of Europe I'm so happy to say that I've had a few cases of the goosebumps that had nothing to do with R.L. Stine. They happened once (but really several times) with Dali, another time standing in front of Guernica and the last in front of a woman named Sonia. I think Guernica was just bound to be overwhelming for anyone who knows anything about that painting and its context, Dali was a genius and a very troubled man and I'm glad he was both of those things - unfortunate qualities for anyone to try to bear with but incredibly fortunate for the rest of the world when they are embodied in a single woman or man who channels them into something the rest of us can experience. Amazing. And Sonia... I don't think the link does her ANY justice. She was beautiful and the coolest (for absolute lack of a better word) member of a royal family who ever had her portrait painted. She looks like a complete badass (Again, sorry for the lack of better words) and the very opposite of what royalty is expected to be pictured as. A true muse. Up close, she had the most intense eyes any artist could ever capture on canvas like that.

I don't know what will happen when we get to Paris.

BCN

2008-06-23T18:49:00.000-05:00

Barcelona is HOT and AMAZING. And pictures from Madrid and the trip thus far are up! To see them, click on the passport picture to the right. Ok, no more technical ramblings... onto Barcelona.

Our first night here we salsaed the night away, however, we were showed up. Big time. The club's name was "Antilla," which should have been a red flag from the very start. Your average couple there was made up of a very tan, waxed, groomed man dressed all in white (including the ever so classy white, shiny leather dancing shoes) and a very fit, tan, flexible woman dressed in spandex-like fabric, neon color dress. There was spinning and clapping and arms flailing all over the place. We had fun trying to keep up and I'm going to say we all did a pretty decent job. Andres caught up with everyone there first though, as was expected.

The next day we took a break from walking all over the place and decided to make a trip to the beach. It was PACKED and there were boobs everywhere. That's right, it was a topless beach and there are all kinds of things going on with people of different ages that I apparently had no idea about. Men, again, were very tan and waxed. Spain definitely had a pattern there.

The day ended with some quality ice cream and a good night's sleep. Everything in preparation for today and tomorrow.

So far, we've ventured over to Montjuic (Mount of the Jews), which is a neighborhood near the coast, the the west of Barcelona, that has a beautiful castle and is the place of Joan Miro's museum (who is amazing) and the National Museum of Catalunya. There are castle's here everywhere you look. We also checked out the olympic stadium and I became nostalgic for some soccer.

Yesterday, by the way, Spain qualified in the Eurocup. The streets were running wild.

We took the metro to Parc Guell. Everything here is in Catalan, also by the way, which is a little confusing and makes me wonder about our fates in coutries where we most definitely don't speak the language. Yikes. Anyway, Parc Guell was beautiful. It's the site of Gaudi's, a famous architect, most ambitious project - a neighborhood for 16 of the wealthiest families in Barcelona. That flopped though, so now the whole thing is a park and it's a sight. We could see all of Barcelona from up there and we walked around his creations, inspired by nature.

OH, BIG P.S. for Pam... you know that episode of our guiltiest pleasure (ANTM) where the final runway show is a bride gown show in Spain? Do you remember them walking like "zombie" brides and yelling and whatnot? Do you remember that runway? Well, I was there. It's Parc Guell. Aaaaaaawesommmeeee.

Anywho, tonight we ate some Arab food for dinner and, had it not been for the fire works and CONSTANT explosions going off just a few feet away from where we were sitting... it would have been perfection. Tonight, and into the morning, everyone is celebrating the longest day of the year. We may or may not go out and party with them :)

Tomorrow, it's Las Ramblas. And then... LE FRANCE!

Madrid down, much more to go.

2008-06-21T15:11:00.000-05:00

We made it through Madrid! This post is going to be WAY to long if I even begin to tell you guys how much stuff we did and fun we had there... I´ll try to keep it somewhat short.

Our hostel was badass. We got free breakfast and the beds were uber comfortable (or they seemed that way because we were so tired from walking around the city everyday). Every day we would wake up and leave the bags in the hostel to go explore the city. I´m proud to say we covered ALL of Madrid on foot in three days and we even took a short train to Aranjuez one day. Their transportation system is perfection. We didn´t get back to the hostel before 10pm everyday. Which means we walked around for about eight hours everyday, nonstop. We did good sons. The buildings are beautiful, everything was a sight. Madrid was like the Center of Quito all over the place so it was a bit familiar for us - that, plus everyone was speaking in Spanish so I think it was wise of us to go to Europe and begin somewhere that wouldn´t be too much of a culture shock.

We went to the Royal Palace, the Archeological Museum, Reina Sofia Museum, The 1808 Museum, and walked through every street in Madrid we (and Rick Steven´s) could think of. Andres arrived on the second day so he has been part of the Madrid adventures for the past couple of days too.

My favorite thing so far was the Reina Sofia Museum, which we luckily went to see before leaving today, thanks fo Rick Stevens and some book about Europe he wrote that left us know the Museum was free on Saturdays. We saw the works (including Guernica!!) of Picasso, Dali (including the Enigma of Hitler which I actually wrote a paper about at some point in high school. That was cool) and Miro... and now I can die in peace. I also loved walking around. Everyone walks (and smokes, ugh) in Madrid and it was one of my favorite things to do. Also, no one ever sleeps in Madrid. So, trying to act like locals, neither did we.

The Eurocup is on. What a good time to be here.

We´ve been lucky enough to have access to showers, beds and somewhat cheap food thus far. So don´t worry mom, we are not bums yet.

We just arrived at Johann´s apartment today and we are making dinner and then going out to do a little dance and make a little love, or at least witness it in the making because Spain appears to be the number ONE P.D.A. (that´s Pubilc Displays of Affection momma) place in Europe... thus far. I can´t imagine what France is going to be like.

Adios tios!

EUROPE!!!

2008-06-18T07:44:00.000-05:00

The Narvaez sisters have arrived! I´m writing from our hostel in Europe and paying two Euros for this precious half hour of time online. The trip was HECTIC. I was up all night to try to beat the jetlag and to hang out with my wife and our awesome friend before leaving Ecuador behind. At 4a.m. Pam and I rode to the airport - oh, pause here... Pam, can you let me know that you got back to the apartment safe and when you are at Ana´s? Thanks! - and I was on my plane. On time this time... no hilarious I-messed-up-the-time-of-my-flight stories.

At the airport in Ecuador, I must have looked like I was going to smuggle some cocaine into Europe because a lady stopped me and went through my perfectly packed backpack. She also found it necessary to open one of my protein bars. Ugh.

I got through all of my flights OK but I was most definitely ¨that¨girl/guy... the one that falls asleep, mouth wide open, on the plane. By the way, planes need more leg room and better movies. Had I not fallen asleep I would have had to sit through ¨The Bucket List.¨

I was supposed to meet my sister in Philadelphia but she was rerouted to Germany and then Spain due to twisters in the Dallas airport. Yes, I´m confused to. I figured out that she wasn´t there though (you didn´t have to worry mom) and I waited for her to get to Madrid.

Our hostel is in the center of the city, which happens to look very much like the center of Quito, with old, colonial buildings and a Burger King right in between them. Today we´re walking around after a short nap and then meeting a friend I made at the airport at Plaza Mayor.

I´ll write again from Barcelona, we´ll be there on the 21st.

Adios!

Last blog from Ecuador

2008-06-17T03:45:00.000-05:00

My heart is beating ridiculously fast. It's time to go to Europe. Ecuador, as always, did not let me down. I just made Pam an authorized blogger on the blog so look out, things will be coming at you from all corners of the world.

Beach Bossin'

2008-06-13T17:52:00.000-05:00

We're Back!

Yesterday we got back from our AMAZING trip to the beaches of Ecuador. We went to a beach called Same and to the hotel/resort area there where we rented an apartment. That place is called Casablanca.

It took a very unconfortable eight hours to get ourselves to the beach. We rode a bus to the city of Atacames and then frantic, confused and disheveled, we hopped on another bus that took us the rest o...

And now Pam took over the computer. I haven't been involved in this post. Andi is too inebriated and belligerant. I don't trust her with an email that parents will see. Ah... but she is stronger than I am. Okay, I'm off now. You will have to deal with a totally Andi post.

Hilarious Pam. Just hilarious.

Anywhooooo..... we got to where we were supposed to get to is what I meant to say back there, and for the next two days, Pam and I became beach bums. We each packed books this time (lesson learned jungle) and spent our days reading and tanning (or in Pam's case, roasting) on the sand. We swam in the Pacific when we got hot and ended our days with a swim in the apartment pool with an awesome view, we call it the horizon view (See pictures). Pam was even brave enough to get her hair braided in corn rows by the skilled locals (no, this is not a joke - we have pictures to prove it).

We even adopted a new sleeping schedule: in bed by 10 and up and on the beach by 8. This plan was thwarted the first night by a bird who had apparently learned to imitate humans - sketchy, creeper humans - and was perched near our window making sketchy, creeper noises. For the next two days, I looked down in shame whenever I passed the two security guards that showed up that night to save and protect us from, what I later learned, was a harmless creature.

Also on the first day, and come to think of it, very frequently thereafter, we went to dinner (right on the beach! heyo!!) at around 6p.m. where we were approached by a group of local lotharios that made awkward small talk from an awkward distance. They even invited us to join them for a late-night bonfire but Pam and I both decided no because... as good as a bonfire on the beach sounds... neither of us were comfortable with me being the translator of sexy things being said to Pam in a foreign tongue.

Our taste buds and stomaches continued their spoiled streak. Every night we ate fried rice with shrimp...mmmmm. But, not to worry, we had a LONG walk back up a STEEP hill every night that surely burned off those calories.

On the last day we decided to forgo a morning on the beach to get an early start on our loooong ride back home. We had planned on writing a haiku we came up with and intended to write in the sand that morning and take a picture of. Not to fear; we will not deprive you of more of our poetic genius. Here it is:

Beach in Ecuador
Shrimp rice fills our bellies
Meaning of life found.

Beach jefe.

PS: This is our second attempt at this post. The first one was erased because life hates me (Andi). Today also happens to be Friday 13th and... I am NOT supersticious but get this... I was in a traffic jam for nine hours today, my car was mysteriously "deactivated" in a random parking lot in the city, I slightly bumped into a taxi (sorry mom. The car it TOTALLY FIIIINEEEEE), Pam cried in the car (totally kidding Fran and Gary, she was fiiiineee), NO ONE would pay attention to us when we were WILLNG to pay money for telephone cards, and... someone FLICKED me off when we were stuck in traffic. I honked. I have crossed over to the honking dark side. And, excuse the language, but... I discovered why it happens to so many people... and then I proceded to become an asshole today. It's Ecuador's traffic.

Love you all.
Stay in your homes. It's not a good day to venture out.

Amazon Poemazon

2008-06-08T17:55:00.000-05:00

This is a little som'tin som'tin we put together for you to tell about our wild jungle adventures.
We are not experts. Please do try this at home. It's fun.

PS: Pictures will follow shortly.

We came a long way
by plane car and canoe.
We forgot to bring books
so there's nothing to do.

We're in the jungles of Ecuador
Pam has her yellow fever shot.
We have napkins and pens
so this poem we decided to jot.

It's the end of our second day
and we have yet to take a shower.
If our hut only had walls
the smell might overpower.

We saw three anacondas
a la the Sir Mixalot rap.
The afternoon of our first day
we took a big ass* nap.

If we could take one of the monkeys home
we'd give it a drumset.
"I can feel it coming in the air tonight"
would be its favorite song I bet.

On the second day we met our new
Belgian, Australian and Danish friends.
We went on a long hike
just around hte river bend.

We saw 300 year old trees
so tall you couldn't see their tops.
We broke open a small tree's branch
and ate ants that tasted of lemon drops.

The guide soothed Pam's mosquito bites
with a tree's Dragon Blood.
And Andi lost her balance in quick sand
and got all covered in mud.

Then we visited a Shaman
who performs rituals and promises cures.
He also offers a hallucinogenic drink
that makes you wake up in poop that is yours.

A few bitches be tweakin that night
because they took more than a sip.
This drink is a powerlful combination
like Ex-Lax and an acid trip.

On the way back home
we had bread made of yucca plant;
And we were a help in the kitchen
wven though you'd think we can't.

I know this sounds bizarre
but there are pink dolphins in these lakes.
You may wonder why we don't have pictures...
As Yoda would say, "perfect timing it takes"

At the end of our second day
we make bracelets out of tree fiber.
The Belgian said Andi's looked like jewelry
and Pam's... he had to lie to her.

We know you'd be shocked to hear
that it is 8p.m. and we went to sleep.
But it's true, and our mosquito net was already tucked in
to protect us from wild animals on the creep.

Shower time the third day was at 5a.m.
that's when we used to call it a night.
But we're graduates and alleged adults now,
it's time to get our lives right.

After bird watching, piranha fishing and lake swimming
we went back from whence we came.
Now it's time for beach baby,
We're kids no country can tame.
We're so the opposite of lame.
We might actually get 30 minutes of fame.
We'll put countless others to shame.
We'll probably have to change our name.
No one will ever do the same.
And we support Obama.

* Sorry parents, we needed another syllable.

What?, What?, What?, Please be more constructive with your feedback

2008-06-04T23:44:00.000-05:00

For the uncultured among you, that was a lil' Flight of the Conchords reference and a not-so-subtle hint that we would love to get some comments from you. No pressure. But seriously, we're lonely in a foreign land (Pam at least... I'm just lonely).

Yesterday we went to Cafeto, a really cool coffee house/bar right next to Aladdin (remember? The copyright infringement/shawerma place? Gosh, keep up with the blog). The service there was top notch and if, in the future, our waiter should become a book author, we think the title should be "I'm Awesome."

The soccer game was on (Quito's LIGA vs. Mexico's (boo) America) and for only $10 we were served unlimited national beer and unlimited national appetizers. Pam got a crash course on soccer and is still baffled why there was so much cheering when after 90 minutes of play, the score was still zero-zero. Clearly, there are still some cultural barriers Pam is not comfortable with. I explained, the whole thing is just a metaphor for how hard we Latin American's work and how little we get in return. Pam thought it was just low expectations. I rolled my eyes.

We then danced the night away at my favorite club/bar (notice how everything is "slashed"? Not kidding about us being hard workers... but maybe we are just indecisive) and returned home exhausted.

This morning we made ourselves the breakfast of champions (Pam's scrambled eggs with peppers/cheese/onions/spinach - some of you may be familiar with the recipe - and Iiiiiiiiii helped!) then we took off to drive 30 minutes to your hemisphere, at least where it borders mine. For visuals, please see pictures of our trip to La Mitad del Mundo/The Equator. Pay close attention to our impressive egg trick, I mean... ILLUSION (tricks are what whores do for money... or cocaine!**)

The day ended with another round of Corfu and pizza from El Hornero, which had corn, bacon and cheese on it. Delicious. Ask Pam (Pam: si).

Tomorrow, at 8am (Pam: ahhhhhhhhhh) we will be at the airport and off to see the Ecuadorian jungle! I have been warned about monkey thieves (thiiiiiiieeeevvveeess!) already, so all cameras will be put away in a safe place (make that camera, singular. Dammmmnnn!).

Enjoy your living rooms and whatever. Pam and I will be swimming alongside pink dolphins.

We will write again in a few days when we get back (So catch up and comment).

** For the VERY uncultured/SHAME ON YOU, that was a reference to the greatest show on Earth. Arrested Development - Soon to be a major motion picture playing in a theater near you.

Love you todos.

Sooo... how are thiiiings?

2008-06-03T13:04:00.000-05:00

Things are great. And we finally have pictures to prove it.

Two days ago Pam and I went to El Centro, where the Presidential Palace is and where there are tons of museums, cathedrals, statues, more cathedrals and deceptively gross sweets disguised as ice cream sold on the street. At night it's beautiful. That whole part of town was renovated a few years ago and it's much prettier and tourist-friendly now. In the main plaza, we saw tons of people gathered, talking politics and watching clowns perform on the steps of the presidential palace ... literally, they had large red noses. Figuratively speaking, clowns reside in the inside of the building.

Yesterday we crossed five things off our Ecuador to-do list. Cumbaya, Corfu, my old high school, the mall and Aladdin - not the movie, that's so crossed off the list there is actually a black hole where it used to be written (Thanks for first semester boys). Cumbaya is the valley and it's warm and sunny there all the time. There are rainbows and it rains Skittles and people don't walk, they skip. To get there, it's a perilous drive down the side of the mountain (There was a sign that read "Reduce your speed NOW!" and Pam peed a little in the car. But I cleaned it up mom).

My old high school is there and even though I hadn't visited in three years, it was still familiar and I was a good tour guide. Pam had never seen buildings that were so many different colors or that much landscaping - Trinity would eat it's heart out.

Later, we had the BEST ICE CREAM on the face of the Earth at a place called Corfu - it ended up all over Pam's face. She's like a child (But don't worry, I cleaned it up mom). We are definitely going back there. For future reference, ice cream recipe of greatness: waffle BOWL, two scoops of creamy heaven, fresh strawberries, blackberry sauce, cocoa powder, whipped cream and - this is the best part - a small wooden stick with which to scoop your ice cream.

After window shopping, we actually shopped and later last night we went to Aladdin, a sisha copyright-infringement place, home of large Ecuadorian beers and shawarmas. Those were delicious as well. Overall, it was a good day for our stomachs and taste buds.

We finished the night off at good ol' - Coffee Tree, open 24 hours and packed even on a Monday night.

This morning, after a watermelon exploded in my kitchen, we had breakfast and now we're off for the day. There is a soccer game tonight and Pam is just a few hours from witnessing utter madness and loud noises.

Jefe mayor.