Wow. Poo has hit fan in England.
Three years ago today I returned home from my 6-week trek through Europe. It’s only fitting that Karen Howell, Joy Gribble, and Amanda Taylor are traversing Italy with Brooke Johnson.
Their adventures are being chronicled on Brooke’s blog.
Here are the rest of my pics from London. I’m sure I’ll find a few more straggling around. For now you can find all these and more in London08.
This time of year (beginning about, oh, 4 days ago) is the slowest time of year on the blog. People are on vacation… spending time with family/friends… spending 5 hours in the Galleria searching for gifts, only after they spent 3 hours searching for a parking spot. We understand as we’re busy as well. However, that doesn’t mean the blog takes a break.
The blog will be on “auto post” for the majority of the next 2 weeks, which means that I’ll be feeding the beast jars of grape jelly and Twizlers. Treat the beast with respect and test the parameters of the updated comments section (ie-which words I’ve ‘blacklisted’).
Christmas Holidays:
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We’ll be home in Jasper from on December 21… in Jackson, MS on Dec 22 for David Ash’s wedding… back to Jasper from Dec 23-25…. then to Hattiesburg from Dec 25-28.
New Years Holidays:
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We’ll be in London from December 29-January 2, opting to ring in the new year along the River Thames. Posting will be sparse, but I’ll try to throw up a couple of photos if I get the time.
FYI – Blog reader and commenter Aaron C. is currently traipsing around Europe with his lovely wife. You can read all about it here. He’s also got a few pictures available for your viewing pleasure.
…I spent my first day in Europe. Yes… one year ago today was the start of EuroSix. Actually… I left on the 13th and kicked things off in London the morning of the 14th. That’s also where I spent Valentine’s Day with an Italian fellow by the name of Pier. Remember the guy who called me “Lan Don”?
The book is underway (though I appreciate all the “WHERE’S THE BOOK?!?!” messages and phone calls as of late) though there’s a good reason behind the delay. I love you all. I won’t let you down.
Ugh. You know that feeling when you think back to something you enjoyed so much… only to get that cramp in your stomach just wishing you could do it all over again, not knowing what would happen… the the ups… the downs… getting kicked off a train… meeting new friends on a bus in Italy… seeing the Pope… actually watching a good soccer game… standing for an hour in the rain just to stare at the Eiffel Tower… braving Budapest… riding in my very own sleeper car… waking-up to 8 inches of fresh snow in Austria… freezing my buns off for photos… rejecting hookers… almost getting in a fight over gummy bears… going to the Olympics… feeding bears with a kid who speaks gibberish… sleeping on the ground… and of course, watching Laguna Beach in Italian.
It was worth every minute and every penny. I’m so happy I had all of you to follow along.
I leave you with my “oh my gosh, I can’t believe you actually sat there and made that video” video of my sleeper car to Vienna. It was a long day. I was wet. I’d been lugging my pack around Venice for 8 hours, and I got a room all to myself. I was happy. Here it is. Make fun, if you will.
In an effort to best secure all copyrights and tweak last minute issues, Eurosix won’t be release for 1 more week. I knew that when I set the November 7th date I was shooting for as a target that was almost unattainable… but I shot for it anyway, not understanding just how long the tweaks and twerks would take.
I’ve been unusually busy around here the past week (ie – going to bed at 4 AM as opposed to the usual 2 AM) and I want to do this to the best of my ability. Seeing as this snuck up on me as fast as it did to many of you… I don’t believe I’ll be receiving any death threats for the release of the book.
So, put your credit/debit cards back into your wallets/purses and camp out for one more week as Landon Howell Publishing presents the first product in its best possible form.
get ready for a blitz over the next few days… you’ll know when it’s next Tuesday.
The World Cup begins tomorrow.
Here’s a TV schedule for World Cup 2006.
This video was sent by Mr. Jonathan Pettus. It’s pretty nifty.
However, I must admit that I (like many, many other Americans) don’t give a flip about soccer.
I DO, however, care about the U-S-A.
I’m a patriot, and I know you are as well.
I kidded in a serious tone after I attended this soccer game in Rome between AS Roma and SS Lazio during my Eurosix trip.
The first video is 45 minutes before the game – BEFORE THE GAME. At the end you can see my buddy Matthew from Belgium. He loves to smoke. He also cussed at the opposing side in Italian during the entire game. He’s classic.
In the second video it gets nuts just before the game starts:
This was one of the greatest sporting events I ever attended – and I hate soccer.
Oxford Street in London is oh-so-crowded, especially when navigating your way towards Harrods.
This video shows a young fella playing a game he calls “Inbetweener.”
Watch, learn, and laugh.
[via Gridskipper]
A little late… but all of my photographs from the weedville that is Amsterdam are now available for your viewing pleasure.
My favorite photos are here… here… here… and this group of old men looking through piles of old books.
Also… remember the bike pedal I broke? This was my lovely replacement.
Oh – don’t forget about the Prostitution Information Center or the red light district.
Since everybody’s got Da Vinci Code madness, I figured that I needed to dig back into my Eurosix stash and show a couple of videos I haven’t shown before.
NOTE: You’re not suposed to photograph and/or video the Mona Lisa. Oops! ;)
ROCK! If they’d only had this a couple months ago.
Take a peek at the Charles Bridge in Prague… or my Boat Hostel in Germany… or the Bear Pit in Bern, Switzerland.
Or… just take a peek at the line at the Eiffel Tower. (Lawd!)
Go at night time… the view is prettier.
I’m gonna go waster some time… Google Earth – Europe.
USA Today on ten underpriced and on-the-rise European cities.
Made it: Bruges, Belgium
Missed it: Ljubljana, Slovenia
A question I do not mind answering, but one that can consume too much time once I begin explaining and others begin asking questions.
London, England was my starting point, then I worked south, going somewhat-counterclockwise to Paris, France… Bern, Switzerland… Florence, Italy… Torino, Italy… Pisa, Italy… Rome, Italy… Cortona, Italy… Venice, Italy… Vienna, Austria… Budapest, Hungary… Prague, Czech Republic… Berlin, Germany… Amsterdam, The Netherlands… Bruges, Belgium… and back to London, England.
Miles : 3,500 [approximately, point-to-point]
Number of Cities : 15
Number of Countries : 10
Favorite Small City : Bruges, Belgium
Favorite Large City : Berlin, Germany
I snapped this with my Treo yesterday at the gym. I was without my camera, so the camera phone had to be witness to one of the best sunsets I’ve seen in a while. The photo doesn’t do it justice.
This time last week I was in London, standing on Waterloo Bridge in 30 degree temperature… in the wind. Just to get this picture… this picure… and this picture.
By the time I got the shots I wanted, my left hand was numb, and my right hand was frozen in a claw-like position.
Today… I’m wearing shorts, and I rolled-down the windows to admire the blooming trees and flowers while driving to lunch.
Cold weather can kiss my butt.
Remember me telling you that I saw something funny on the Tube in London?
Here’s the video:
The man tried to beat the closing doors. As the doors shut, they caught his left elbow and left knee. He couldn’t move.
This short clip was all I could really get before I had to run down the platform to tell the tube conductor what was happening. I got pretty tickled when I first came across the scene. I talk into the camera a couple of times as I attempt to film inconspicuously from my hip.
By-the-way, he was ok after the doors finally let him go.
Well… happy Tuesday!
I know, I know… a very odd selection to place on the front page of the blog on such a wonderful Tuesday mornin’. But I must say, this graffiti in Berlin caught me off guard, but didn’t really offend me.
You see… graffiti is everywhere. Especially in major cities. And when you start to travel to enough, you start to admire it… kinda.
You don’t really want people to deface property that isn’t theirs… but that doesn’t stop some of it from being pretty good.
Is this particular piece good? Well… it’s pretty creative, and it definitely got my attention.
But I don’t know about calling it “good.”
Morbid? Uh… yeah.
Funny? A little.
Artistic? Only if you were the kid in high school who used to sit in the back of the class wearing all-black.
I’ve had a few of you ask about buying pictures I took in Europe.
Once I get all of the pics online, I’ll let you know how to go about ordering one.
Pictures probably won’t be more than $10 a print for an 8×10.
