Arrived after an amazingly comfortable flight. Business class is certainly worth the price you pay. Full lie flat beds and proper cooked meals at any time you want. On the first leg, I had four steaks and watched movies for the entire time. In the business class lounge in Abu Dhabi after losing and finding my wallet, I got to say hello to the frizzy haired one from “Two pints of Lager” (really this time). On the second, longer leg, I slept for most of it. I was tucked in and the Air Hostess tucked me in and left a bottle of water beside me for when I woke up. The second I did wake up, she was over like a light to take my breakfast order. Arrived in Melbourne well rested and not jet lagged. Upon arrival, I was randomly interviewed (I should be used to this by now) because I looked “suspicious” and in fairness, I was a little disorientated as I had just woken up and I cannot function for two hours after I woke up. The interview went OK and they let me through.

The welcoming party was Dell and Gormo. They shouted at me like I was a celebrity and I was very happy to see them after so long. They even brought beers for the car journey back to Dell’s house. We went out on the tear that night on a pub crawl along Acland Street (The main bar and restaurant street in St Kilda).

The next day, we went to a BBQ for Ciara Donovan’s birthday in one of the many parks in Melbourne. We drank all day and it was clear by everyone’s tans that I had just arrived. That night, we hit club Wha Wha in Melbourne city for a long overdue rave with the rave Jesus.

After that, I started house hunting. I didn’t want to live alone and the only ads that replied to me were either couples or Irish people or backpacker room-shares. I eventually opted for a house share on the other side of the city to Dell and Gormo in a place called Brunswick. The house is lovely and it’s a (corrected) 10 bedroom and I’m living with 10 other people. 4 doctors and a few locals. The house is like a hotel and everything is taken care of. I even have a balcony (that I have to share with the girl next door). The rest of the housemates are fantastic but I already have my favourites. Julian, a Kiwi guy and Stephanie, an Ozzie girl from Adelaide (who I’m convinced is up to something). I hope none of them ever read this!

Most of my time has been spent setting up bank accounts, broadband and going on the piss. The city of Melbourne is amazingly clean and the public transport is phenomenal. VERY easy to get your bearings here. The new phone, Google maps and GPS has been a massive aid in helping me find my around the city and back home at night. In the two weeks I’ve been here I have never ONCE made the last tram home (At twenty to one in the morning!). Very easy to lose track of time because it gets dark so late here and I think the Ozzie beer affects me in weird ways.

Most nights have been spent on Acland Street and Fitzroy street sampling all the night-life and mingling with the locals. Turns out you cannot play the “Irish Card” over here as much as you can in most other countries as there’s so many Irish here. It really is astonishing. And yes, they/we stick out a mile over here too, even the ones not wearing a sweaty, unwashed Kerry jersey.

Even got to go on a date night with Dee and Gormo (how sad is that) to see Harry Potter. Loved it. Emma certainly is blossoming

Been to a few comedy nights. Comedy in another land is a little difficult to grasp as a lot of the observational and situational comedy is very Ozzie based. Lots of stuff us Irish simply didn’t get. Good craic though. Also got to meet Stuart lee’s best mate (apparently).

The vineyard the place to be on a Sundays too it would seem. World class DJs and a nice comfortable smoking area. Pity about the bouncers. Got to meet lots of Dee and Gormo’s friends too which was nice. Most lovely.

So far, it’s fun but it’s not what I expected it to be. Or, it’s exactly how I expected it to be. Maybe that’s my problem. Little homesick which has never happened before really except during week three of Thailand. It quickly passed, hopefully it will again. Maybe it’s because I missed Elaine’s wedding and the repercussions of that

A lot more connected here but maybe that’s a problem too.

That’s all for now.

PS: Is the man bag a bit too much? It’s VERY handy.

Luckily, the idea had been festering in my head as a result of Carolyn, a friend I had met only two three or four times before pestering me about going. She’s one of the types that tries to get as big a crew together for everything, even if she barely knows most. She facebooked me her details, me and Essy booked and before I knew it I was standing at Dublin Airport with Es, Caz and Brona, Carolyn’s friend.

After some luggage rearrangement and a few beers, we were on our way. Thank God the girls were the talky-easy-to-get-on-with types. Flight felt like a 15 minute commute.

The event was held in Ghent, a fantastic little city in Belgium that reminds me of Konstanz. Arrived safely in one of Ryanair’s “middle of fucking nowhere” airports and got a €150 taxi to Ghent (Most Ryanair flights actually work out more expensive when you add up commute fares, I’m surprised nobody has copped on). Arrived, checked in and went exploring the town a little. Carolyn and her directions

Had a meal, headed for a quick nap that never happened, a bit of a wash then got ready to tear the arse out of it.

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A few drinks in an Irish bar, some peer pressure at the tram stop and we were on our way. Chubba Chupps sponsored the event in some way so there were plenty of free lollipops around. They even built an I Love Techno wall, see below, our only group photo!

So the night was brilliant. 35,000 people in one single indoor event. I can’t describe the scale of this in words. It’s just something you would have to see for yourself. My timetable, worked out for weeks (even when I wasn’t going) was perfect. Very few clashes and all the DJs I wanted to see. Unfortunately, it was not to be. First stop, Boys Noize and to my dismay, the room was completely full. No chance getting in. Sadly, this was to be the case with a few other acts that night.

Headed over to underworld and met with Caz and Brona who we had separated from earlier due to a scheduling conflict Underworld were amazing. Proper danced it out. Next was bloody beetroots, the only act a “must see” for me but it was not to be. The room was officially closed out. Signs saying “Please go to another room”. I guess it was to prevent a repeat of the love parade thing.

Things got a little blurry after this. Vitalic was next and was the complete highlight of my night. Loved it. Got to squeeze in a dance at Dave Clarke, Dr. Lektroluv and finished off the night with a dull performance from Robert Hood. Flaked out in the chill out area, then left. Went back to the room and panned out for a few hours. I *think* we got some sleep. Not so sure.

Woke up early the next day, went to Paddy Foleys (And Irish bar in Ghent) and met a massive crew of other I ♥ techno heads. A MASSIVE crew. Things start to get a little weird here. Not sure if I imagined most of the rest of the night or not. Made almost instant friends with the rest of the ILT heads and the music was pumping. Phone calls back home, mexican wave dancing and a pledge to continue the night somewhere else.

We ended up in a place called π-nuts. Dancing on tables, bottles of Gin, toilet madness and new friends. Fantastic night. The party continued in Caz and Bronas hotel room (for the little time they had it).

After a missed late checkout, it was all back to our room. Red wine murder scene, grapes in caesar salad, missed flight. Fortunately for Essy, he had the sense to get up and go.

Long story short, after another night of madness that really shouldn’t have been (Belgian whiskey drinkers are the worst, Arklow assholes and “I could have been your chick”) we made it to the airport on time. At this stage, none of us wanted to talk to each other and were ready to get home. Unfortunately, a massive fog delayed the flight for an hour. So we slowly made our way to the gate. When we arrived, apparently the door of the aircraft was closed so we couldn’t board. Next flight home is in 12 hours.

Missed Christmas dinner, horrible sleep at the airport, extra plane fare and we finally boarded. Landed at Dublin airport for a brief goodbye.

An amazingly fun weekend with a bit of a bummer of an ending. Would I do it again? Hell yes.

Technology wasn’t as advanced and travelogues were quite the niche thing when I originally started this blog so I’ve upgraded the design, added some cool new features impossible 5 years ago and made things a little easier for me to keep track of my notes while on the move as well as a little easier to read.

Reading back over the tripe I’ve written while I was away last has not only made me wish I had updated it more frequently, it has also made me realize how much the mind forgets and how important some of those memories actually are. I vow to also add photos to the posts where I mention someone I’ve met, however briefly as reading over the old posts has made me realize that I can’t remember the faces of the people I shared so many fond memories with.

Although it seemed a little silly at the time, I seriously regret not updating this more 5 years ago. My biggest regret was not writing while I was inter-railing and at least transferring some of the memories back into the blog. I have also deleted some posts, some crap, some private and some bitter birthday wish posts to those who are no longer friends.

I make no excuses or apologies, this blog is for me and my memory. I’m getting older now and realize that life is a lot shorter than I once thought it was. Too short not remember every precious moment. I’ve also decided to remove a few defunct posts and stop writing titles like I’m some sort of witty journalist. This will also be a 100% working journey. Unlike previous travels, I’ll be working full time (if not fuller) this time around. Can’t let what I’ve built over the past 10 years fall to ruins

So, here is my current plan. MUCH like the last plan, this probably wont work out even close to how it is currently structured. That’s all part of the fun though. Unfortunately, as much as I want to I wont be able to (but things might change) attend my favourite Indian lady‘s wedding in October. Anyone who is interest can find out where exactly I am at any given time by clicking here. Pretty cool eh? (Took me a while to figure that one out!)

This itinerary is of course provisional and I may not be able to visit all the destinations but it’s a little less ambitious than my last one so here’s hoping. When I reach Brazil, I intend, depending on a million factors, to take the Gap Adventures tour which can be seen here. Hopefully, I’ll still be alive by then! While I plan to spend a bit of time in Melbourne doing my skydiving AFF (More on that some other time), I’m pretty much free to move about as long as I have the funds.

Because I’m not one for going away parties, I’ll consider Electric Picnic, Berlin Festival and the October bank holiday in Dublin my going away “parties”. I couldn’t have asked for a better time despite the festivals missing a few key players.

I wasn’t strong enough to beat the K monsters. Both of them. One in particular won hands down. I didn’t want to give up but I just can’t win. I should have fought harder. I should have won. A wise soul and a good friend once told me that I have to close the book on a chapter finished long ago. I wish I didn’t have to. I guess I don’t know myself at all. Bon voyage.

Some photos of my last days in Ireland. I had a lot of fun and it was better than any going away party. So sad it was missing some very important people.

This was the last entry of my “phase one” when I went to live in Germany for the year with Sarah. In brief, Germany, Konstanz in particular was awesome. I absolutely loved my time there but really slipped up on learning the language as Sarah was so fluent.

The summers were beautiful and the winters were snowier than any snow I had ever seen. We lived a little outside the town, right beside a mental asylum that we had to walk through at night to get home. There’s too much that happened over a year to cover in one post so I wont try. The Christmas, the Christmas markets, the trips to Switzerland, the incredibly creepy version of German Halloween and random trips around Germany when people came to visit. The photos tell most of the story.

For three months I felt “At home”. I felt so depressed when I got back, I thought it would never go away. After being home 3 weeks now, its finally starting to wear off. San Diego feels like one big dream right now. While I’m not and never was a beach person, I miss the beach, I miss the having countless things to do, I miss the parties and I miss knowing that it will again tomorrow without fail.

Oh well, whatever right? At least I’m back with Sarah.

All kicked off when I arrived in Seattle and just hopped on a bus downtown. I arrived downtown and walked a bit to find the HI hostel. Little did I know that this was the ONLY hostel in Seattle. Can you bee-lee dat? I was forced to go to a hostel/ranch on one of Seattle’s many islands. Vashon Island. Made my way to the ferry and across. All patrons have to HITCH A LIFT about 4-6 miles to the hostel. The roads are not lit and the place is the scene of a horror movie. lucky me hitched a lift off a little old lady. A little crazy but nice.

When I arrived, as I mentioned already, the hostel is a ranch. As you can see by the photos, it’s an actual ranch. The dorms and common room are in a converted barn. It’s actually really cool. Met some really nice people here. Most people seem to be travelling alone, so that’s cool. Got free food and the campfire was blazing (And a stinky).

Went into town with some of the others in the morning, to Lake Washington Boulevard. No-one else cared. To anyone who doesn’t know what happened here, it was where Kurt Cobain was found dead (Murdered?). Seemed like nothing ever happened of interest here. Strange feeling.

Now, on to the sightseeing. Hit the Library (Where I made that previous post from) where we planned out our day.

On to the underground (Not the metro) where we did one of the only things that cost money of the day. A nice tour of the Seattle underground. (Seattle as we know it now is actually a city built on top of the old city.) Amazing to see another city underground.

Next on to the Seattle Art Museum, which was closed then on up to Pike street market. (Famous for throwing fish…. long boring story). Walked along the waterfront all day and just panned out there too. Saw the ORIGINAL Starbucks and had a triple late (Laa-tay) there!

Headed up to MONORAIL STATION to catch a… you guessed it…..MONORAIL!

Just caught the monorail to the Experimental Music Project. A famous music thingy. Got to see lots of cool music related stuff like Kurt Cobains clothes and hand written lyrics as well as a load of Pearl Jam stuff and Jimmy Hendrix stuff and loads of other artists.. Pretty cool. Headed up the space needle. Pretty cool structure. Was here since the world fair and they decided to keep it here.

After that, we took the free Seattle bus (Their city centre buses are free) to….. HEMP FEST 2006! Met up with some strangers (The Irish accent is SUCH an asset!), got stoned off our tits and listened to some really good bands. (Maybe they only seemed good though).

After a right session, sun burning and munch fest, we decided to make the journey back to Vashon hostel. Pffff.

That night, Jackie the Australian girl introduced me to two Swiss guys who just bought a car and guess what….. were driving down to San Francisco and wanted people to share the gas money and driving time. Although we cannot drive legally here, we jumped on board. (Jackie cannot drive full stop!). SWEET.

The next day, myself and Rebecca (The holy, church going, violin teacher went to town. Saw the aquarium, some more sights and sampled a LOT of different Seattle cafes and bistros. Back to the hostel for a movie, some fresh cooked ….. tuna dinner and some pool with everyone. Spoke tot he lads and had a few beers with them to discuss our trip. Turns out, they are all like me. “Let’s just drive in the right direction and see where we end up. It will work out for us eventually”. Yeay! ROAD TRIP IN THE MAKING.

Next morning, we gathered our stuff, I saw the car for the first time and we were on our way to….. Portland (Which was actually in my original plan!).

Arrived here and found out there is only ONE hostel in the whole city. And guess what? It’s been booked out since March. So I had to find somewhere else. The HI guy told me there was one on Vashon island. So away I went. Got the ferry over and realized that there was no taxi or bus on the island. I had no choice but to hitch hike. A little old lady (A bit weird) picked me up. She was terrible friendly and only too helpful. She dropped me off at my….”Hostel”.

The best way to describe this place is a mix of a wild west film set and a dwelling. I am literally staying in a barn. A REAL barn. It’s really cool though. Lots of dorm beds and lots of other lost souls who didn’t think to book 5 months ahead! The temp here is a LOT cooler than San Diego and at night it’s freezing which made for the most comfy sleep EVER!

Met a guy from New Mexico, A girl from Australia and a girl from Utah. Doing thecity tour today with them so at least I’m not on my own. My age too so its grand.

All three have been to Portland and they said it was shit, so I’m thinking of heading to Canada for a night or two. i’ll see how that pans out with the mnoney situation.

Anyway, I’m supposed to be picking the thing I want to do today so peace out.

After everyone backed out of the skydive Dave O Connell tried to organize, I said fuck it. I’ll do it myself. When I booked it, Jenny said she wanted to do it. So we were all set. We booked ourselves in for the Friday. Everyone seemed to get jealous. One by one, people were throwing me deposits for the jump. Cape May got on board and we got the list up to 20 people!

We decided to go (out?) in style, so we booked a stretched limo for the (return?) trip. I was physically sick the night before. Went to the pictures and couldn’t even remember the film, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Anyway, we arrived and the shits were a plenty. A PLENTY. Being the organizer, I nominated myself to be first up and out. Didn’t play out that way (Thank God). The tandem masters decided that.

After 5 mins training, we were kitted out in our harnesses. I was on the second of four flights up. I was so concerned about the heavy heartbeat I almost faked a sickness.

After the first 5 landed, and seeing the expression on their faces, I knew what had to be done. Walking across the airfield was an experience or feeling I don’t want to ever feel again. Myself, Bunter, Reegan, Karl and Brendan all boarded. The shitty ass plane took off and all of a sudden…..the nerves went. It was peaceful. My Tandem Master was the coolest guy ever. Making jokes all the way up. “Oh god, I’m so hung over…I think I’m still a little drunk”. Legend. It actually made me feel so much better.

Three loops around and 13,500 feet up and we were strapped to our guys. The door opened and it was judgement hour. Brendan went first and watching him fall our of that plane at that height was horrific. Reegan went next, then Karl, then my turn to waddle up the plane. My Tandem Master the shithead… “Oh shit…. this strap is broken!”. I freaked. “Only joking mate….lets get off this plane.”. Waddled over to the edge and something clicked in my head. Something that I doubt is supposed to click. Maybe it was the common sense switch. “Ready…Set…ARCH!” I threw myself out the plane in a backward (Unintentional) flip. HOLY good fuck. My stomach was back in the plane for about 8 seconds and then all of a sudden…..it was like hitting water as we levelled out and accelerated to 120 miles per hour downward. HOLY FUCK. It was the most amazing feeling EVER. EVER. NOTHING like what you think its going to be like. Not like a roller-coaster AT ALL. Free-falling for another 65 seconds was just pure class. My TM was doing all spins and making me “Swim” through the air. Quality. Surprisingly, because we were up as high as we were legally allowed go (Why do things like this half arsed?), the ground never seemed to come very much closer.

After the min and a bit free-fall, the chute opened and we were dragged back up. What a strange feeling. Obviously. Then…..peacefulness. Pure quiet. Had a deadly chat with the TM….he showed me were he lived and pointed out the sites and Mexico. Did some scary ass spins and after 6 mins we came in for a landing to the cheers of everyone. Speechless for about 10-15 mins. Watching the next two batches absolutely SHITTING themselves waiting was so funny. But I was so so so jealous. I gave Jon the money to do his jump so I couldn’t afford to go again. Oh well. The other 10 went up and no-one backed out. We all went back to hodads in our limo for a “Sky Crew” meal and to talk about it. Good times. Good times.

My only regret….. Not getting a video.

I have now found my new drug. Planning to cancel my trip to San Francisco and do a solo jump at some stage next week. Can’t fucking wait. Can’t fucking wait.

To anyone who has never done a sky dive, Add it to your list of things to do before you die. Seriously. You will not regret it. (Unless you die).
Peace out.

Anyway, had a deadly time when Sarah came down to OB and met all my house mates and her family for a week. Think she kind of freaked out a little when we first arrived as there was a regular cliff session when we got back and she had to meet about 50 people all at once. By the way babe, everyone was very impressed that you remembered most of the names so quickly.

Went to some parties, went out on the rubber tubes, and drove a speedboat. Sarah likes driving boats. Went to some more parties and just chilled for a bit. Hit Tijuana and had the banter. Everyone misses you babe, but especially me.

Horrible affair at the airport. I shed a little tear.

Anyway, since then, U.F.C left and we got a few new house mates….from SWORDS! Lots of people have left and more keep taking their places. Uploaded a rake load more photos.