This post is coming to you from Portugal but I would be remiss to not mention our adventures in Lyon. After my first night out in Lyon I needed a day to recover. Saturday was supposed to be my recoup day in order to get ready to attack the Alps on Sunday. After sleeping until about 3 on Saturday it was time to see a little bit of Lyon.
In order to ski Sunday morning we had to make a trek across town in order to rent the skis. I will do my best to insert some things that have been most interesting to me on my travels while appropriate. First of all public transportation in Lyon is amazing and makes the CTA look like it was designed by a four year old (this is especially impressive when you take into account that Lyon and its buildings have been around for five centuries or more) Any way we went to get our skis and I had my first encounter with French customer service where the customer is always wrong. Pause FREE SHOT...Elwood picked a fantastic hostel in Lisbon where you are required to take a free shot at 1130. Anyway after we got our skis we headed over to Elwood's buddy's house for Jimmer night. BYU was playing San Diego State and it was Elwood and Sebastian's first opportunity to see Fredette play. They (we) celebrated by opening a few bottles of wine (French people never stop drinking, even at work...) and streaming a game over the internet. Maybe not the best decision since the bus to take us to the Alps left at 6 the next morning. We finally left around 3 in the morning knowing full well the alarm was going to ring at 5 the next (same, i guess) day.
The bus ride to the alps was fantastic. France as I have already said is just so beautiful and the little residence secondaire (secondary residences) in the country are such a wonderful escape. Dan explained that many French people have these homes that have been in their families for centuries. After the country the Alps are upon you. I have been to Colorado to ski but they pale in comparison to the Alps. I guess the best word to describe the mountains is violent. They come from out of nowhere and the next thing you know you are 1000M above sea level. The Alps are not a place where people go to learn how to ski. We sat next to a kid on the chair lift who had been on the mountain since she was TWO. We held our own despite the limited visibility and severe cold. My personal highlight is when both Dan and I took a little detour off the trail and we both failed pretty miserably. I went first and almost made it down before a big time face plant. I could hear Dan's laugh from 100m's down the hill. His attempt was much worse. As I rolled over to watch he biffed it about 3\4 of the way down and got tangled up with his own skis and poles. I could hardly hold it together while lying on the ground. A couple French people stopped to make sure I was okay (mistaking my laughter for pain) only to see Dan STRUGGLING to right himself and then joining to take part in his humiliation.
Later that night as I sat in Dan's kitchen talking to Stojic I realized that in the food capital of France I had yet to enjoy a meal. All over the place are what are called boulangeries which are little bakery\cafes. Dan introduced me to gallette au sucre which is pure bliss. Saying that it is dough with a a sugary topping simply does not seem to do it justice even though that is what it is. They also make what I guess I can best describe as a calzone but taken to a whole other level.
Monday we slept late and made the trek up to Fourviere, the church on top of the hill. Elwood, Sebastian, and I found a little spot and just kicked on the hill while drinkin some brews. We explored the church and concluded the day with an authentic French meal. We had a little trouble with the menu but managed not to order Tripe which I count as a success. Elwood order French Onion soup which was indescribable. This we the best on earth. There was NO way that it could have been better anywhere else.
We headed back to Sebastian's for a night cap and as Dan and I returned to his place he realized he did not have his keys. After about twenty minutes of calling and ringing the doorbell we finally woke Dan's roommate who was none too pleased at being woken at 2AM having to work early the next day.
We got to Portugal today where it is 60 and sunny and again unbelievably beautiful. Elwood to no ones surprise is working the ladies at the hostel and attempting to push the music of Elton John and Billy Joel on the hostel lobby. Tomorrow we are off to the castles and beaches. Stojic...wish you were here.
Obrigado (thanks)
Liska
Elwood's Blog
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Chile
Well I arrived in Chile just fine. Flight from Chicago into Dallas ran quite late on departure, so I was forced to hammer through the airport Home Alone style to catch my next flight from Dallas into Santiago, but no big and it will count as my workout for the day. Last night I took an overnight bus from Santiago to Puerto Montt. I unfortunately believe that I left my camera uplink cable in Chicago, so picture updates appear unlikely until after I return.
Anyway, some brief news of my travels so far. As I said, I arrived in Santiago yesterday and had time to kill before my over night bus. I had enough time to do a couple things Erin suggested.
The first activity was to hike up the trail to Cerro San Cristobal. Erin told me that there is ¨A big statue of Jesus up there or something.¨ I thought, great, Kuph would love it if I got pictures of a large Jesus statue for him to frame over his bed. Anyway, part way up the trail, (and this trail was a bitch, quite steep and in the Chilean heat, it was rough after being acclimated to the cold and being known as someone who loves the cold anyway) I realize, um, it´s a statue of the Virgin Mary. Way off Erin.... It was a nice hike though, great views overlooking Santiago.
After I finished that activity, I simply walked around town a bit. At one point a man stopped me and asked me some questions. (As much as I try to blend, it´s not too likely to happen. Oh, and I also don´t try, I don´t know how I could that wouldn´t be exceptionally offensive.) We chatted for a bit as he also asked me for help on his english a bit, translating sentences for him, etc etc. Eventually he asked me if I was in a rush or if I wanted to stop in and grab a beer and keep chatting and helping eachother with language. I said sure, why not. Anyway, Javier is 39 and a rather nice fellow, but it´s a weird situation when he doesn´t know much english, and therefore the phrases he wants me to translate come off rather weird when to a beginning speaker, it´s probably (read: hopefully) natural. The particular phrase in question was ´I like you very much.´ So, yea..... Anyway, he gave me a weird beaded necklace thing to remember him, and he also gave me his phone number and invited me to his neices birthday party next. What a guy.
After that, I wandered around some more. Went to a pretty cool market, and really loved some of the paintings artists had on display. That was pretty much it for my first day. I then boarded the overnight bus and fortunately slept most of the time as I didn´t get enough sleep on the flights. Erin and Steph are arriving into Puerto Montt in about an hour so I´m heading to meet up with them now.
Also, Chileans are big on PDA. teenagers are making out everywhere.
Anyway, some brief news of my travels so far. As I said, I arrived in Santiago yesterday and had time to kill before my over night bus. I had enough time to do a couple things Erin suggested.
The first activity was to hike up the trail to Cerro San Cristobal. Erin told me that there is ¨A big statue of Jesus up there or something.¨ I thought, great, Kuph would love it if I got pictures of a large Jesus statue for him to frame over his bed. Anyway, part way up the trail, (and this trail was a bitch, quite steep and in the Chilean heat, it was rough after being acclimated to the cold and being known as someone who loves the cold anyway) I realize, um, it´s a statue of the Virgin Mary. Way off Erin.... It was a nice hike though, great views overlooking Santiago.
After I finished that activity, I simply walked around town a bit. At one point a man stopped me and asked me some questions. (As much as I try to blend, it´s not too likely to happen. Oh, and I also don´t try, I don´t know how I could that wouldn´t be exceptionally offensive.) We chatted for a bit as he also asked me for help on his english a bit, translating sentences for him, etc etc. Eventually he asked me if I was in a rush or if I wanted to stop in and grab a beer and keep chatting and helping eachother with language. I said sure, why not. Anyway, Javier is 39 and a rather nice fellow, but it´s a weird situation when he doesn´t know much english, and therefore the phrases he wants me to translate come off rather weird when to a beginning speaker, it´s probably (read: hopefully) natural. The particular phrase in question was ´I like you very much.´ So, yea..... Anyway, he gave me a weird beaded necklace thing to remember him, and he also gave me his phone number and invited me to his neices birthday party next. What a guy.
After that, I wandered around some more. Went to a pretty cool market, and really loved some of the paintings artists had on display. That was pretty much it for my first day. I then boarded the overnight bus and fortunately slept most of the time as I didn´t get enough sleep on the flights. Erin and Steph are arriving into Puerto Montt in about an hour so I´m heading to meet up with them now.
Also, Chileans are big on PDA. teenagers are making out everywhere.
Friday, February 25, 2011
"Provocative Text Or Not"
"Provocative Text Or Not"
Lyon: Desole pour mon absence (sorry for my absence)
Bonjour, Comment ca va?
I made it. This post is coming to you from Elwood's apartment which has to have been built before America was founded. Thankfully no problems on the flight other than the miserable food which was compounded by the fact the whole meal was about the size of a decks of cards. Good thing I binged on Paul's and Chipotle before I left.
I arrived in Geneve, Switzerland at around 10:30....(fast forward this post restarting at 3:20 AM Lyon time) "Elwood's computer is dying and we are trying to figure out the power converter, "if it doesn't fit don't force it"( thats what she said). Just got back from the bars. Elwood's friends are so funny and have stories galore to tell about Danny.
Lyon is absolutely beautiful and tomorrow we are going to explore some of its sights. I am so exhausted from the long journey but I must say I toughed it out like a champ today and am looking forward to a nice long sleep tonight. Many more details/pictures to come tomorrow.
AU REVOIR
Scott
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Deja Vu or A Glitch in the Matrix
Just noticed the following:
Local Weather Alert
Winter Weather Advisory for Chicago, Illinois
From 6:00 PM CST, Thu., Feb 24, 2011 until 9:00 AM CST, Fri., Feb 25, 2011
Issued by The National Weather Service
Chicago, IL
Wed, Feb 23, 2011, 11:00 PM CST
... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 9 AM CST FRIDAY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHICAGO HAS ISSUED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES... WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 9 AM CST FRIDAY.
* TIMING... SNOW IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN THIS EVENING.
* ACCUMULATIONS... AMOUNTS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES LIKELY... WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE. ACCUMULATION RATES MAY EXCEED ONE INCH PER HOUR LATE THIS EVENING.
* HAZARDS... SNOW. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS GUSTING TO AROUND 25 MPH MAY PRODUCE AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW. VISIBILITY MAY DROP BELOW ONE-HALF MILE AT TIMES.
* IMPACTS... SNOW COVERED ROADS. RAPID SNOW ACCUMULATION MAY RESULT IN VERY TREACHEROUS ROAD CONDITIONS AND MAKE SNOW REMOVAL DIFFICULT AT TIMES.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CAUSE PRIMARILY TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR SNOW COVERED ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES... AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING.
I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.
The last two trips I've been on have had significant problems caused by snow. Needless to say, I am not enthused as I fly out of O'Hare at 6:05pm. Many expletives are flowing through my mind right now.
Local Weather Alert
Winter Weather Advisory for Chicago, Illinois
From 6:00 PM CST, Thu., Feb 24, 2011 until 9:00 AM CST, Fri., Feb 25, 2011
Issued by The National Weather Service
Chicago, IL
Wed, Feb 23, 2011, 11:00 PM CST
... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 9 AM CST FRIDAY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHICAGO HAS ISSUED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES... WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 9 AM CST FRIDAY.
* TIMING... SNOW IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN THIS EVENING.
* ACCUMULATIONS... AMOUNTS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES LIKELY... WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE. ACCUMULATION RATES MAY EXCEED ONE INCH PER HOUR LATE THIS EVENING.
* HAZARDS... SNOW. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS GUSTING TO AROUND 25 MPH MAY PRODUCE AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW. VISIBILITY MAY DROP BELOW ONE-HALF MILE AT TIMES.
* IMPACTS... SNOW COVERED ROADS. RAPID SNOW ACCUMULATION MAY RESULT IN VERY TREACHEROUS ROAD CONDITIONS AND MAKE SNOW REMOVAL DIFFICULT AT TIMES.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CAUSE PRIMARILY TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR SNOW COVERED ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES... AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING.
I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.
The last two trips I've been on have had significant problems caused by snow. Needless to say, I am not enthused as I fly out of O'Hare at 6:05pm. Many expletives are flowing through my mind right now.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Signing On
Ok, here we go. This is my first ever blog post. I have rarely written for an audience and will preface this adventure by saying that I am nowhere near as witty (although some may say offensive) as Tim. I would also like to say that I am taking an approach totally foreign to me for this trip. Other than buying my ticket to Europe Elwood has essentially planned our entire trip……..no joke.
Brief overview: Like Tim, my trip begins tomorrow (booked mine first by the way). First up is a day-long ski trip to Switzerland. From Lyon we will be traveling to (in order) Lisbon, Madrid, Rome, Dublin, and Paris. Like Tim’s trip some of the finer details are yet to be determined but in the words of Elwood, “why are you so worried about plans everything always works out”.
Things I’m most excited about: First, the food. According to Elwood Lyon is the food capital of France. He’s talked a big game and I’m hoping Lyon comes to play. Second, Rome/Vatican City. So much history so much culture. Thirdly, Guinness. If it's as good as everyone says it is in Ireland then Dublin is going to be a good time.
I’m not really worried about a whole lot but if Hollywood has taught us anything about French people it is that some cute guy will try to seduce me and sell me into some sex trafficking network. Lucky for me I’m pretty tight with an army ranger. So if you don’t hear from me for a few days call up Drake so he can go Liam Neeson on some fools.
That’s all for now. I’ll check in from the other side…of the pond that is.
Monday, February 21, 2011
And we're back...
Alright everyone, the time has come, and the revival of this blog is upon us. I may have stated quite some time ago that this blog was dead and buried like JonBenet Ramsey, but apparently I just didn't have much foresight.
Moving on, the blog has new life, which means that I'm heading on a trip soon. I thought about updating this blog to include posts about the trip a group of us took to the Kohlstedt's condo in Beaver Creek, Colorado. Quite frankly, I wasn't sure how interesting those posts would be, although a post or two may have been warranted due to the fact that we were forced to drive because of the early February blizzard in Chicago and Mr and Mrs Kuphall came to drink with us one night. It led to some great times. With that said, I could sum it up pretty quickly and fully by saying we did a lot of skiing, snowboarding, and drinking. I'm sure Rudy posted about it here anyway. This blog will remain about travels outside America.
I have a terrible habit of momentary thoughts driving my writing off on tangents, but I think I might be able to focus on the trips at hand now. Yep, trips. Twist! The blog has doubled it's writing staff. Current authorized writers of this blog has risen to 2 as Scott Liska has been granted author access. I'm hoping Scott can live up to the high journalistic standards this blog prides itself on.
My Trip:
Leave for Santiago, Chile on February 24th and return on March 8th. I'll be traveling around Chile and Argentina.
Liska's Trip:
Liska will be heading to Portugal, France, and Ireland I believe. Not sure if there are other destinations or if those plans have changed, but he can address that later.
That will be the extent of my writing about Liska's trip on this blog as he will hopefully fill in the rest of the details with his own posts. It was Liska's idea to contribute to the blog and, I fully support it and hope there could be days with an update from both, say, Portugal and Argentina. Hopefully Liska follows up and makes some posts. He will be with Elwood at least part of the time though, so all bets are off.
I'm still uncertain of the exact details of my own trip, I just know that I will be arriving in Santiago and then taking a bus to meet Erin and Steph (both recently finished a similar teaching program to Elwood). Potentially destinations include Chiloe, Valdivia, and Santiago in Chile and Bariloche, Argentina.
No post would be complete without some reference to the ramblings of my mother. She has a very real fear that my blond hair will inevitably lead to my murder, and she hates my new pea coat. I'm crossing my fingers she's wrong on both, especially the latter. It would suck if I was wrong about this coat.
Moving on, the blog has new life, which means that I'm heading on a trip soon. I thought about updating this blog to include posts about the trip a group of us took to the Kohlstedt's condo in Beaver Creek, Colorado. Quite frankly, I wasn't sure how interesting those posts would be, although a post or two may have been warranted due to the fact that we were forced to drive because of the early February blizzard in Chicago and Mr and Mrs Kuphall came to drink with us one night. It led to some great times. With that said, I could sum it up pretty quickly and fully by saying we did a lot of skiing, snowboarding, and drinking. I'm sure Rudy posted about it here anyway. This blog will remain about travels outside America.
I have a terrible habit of momentary thoughts driving my writing off on tangents, but I think I might be able to focus on the trips at hand now. Yep, trips. Twist! The blog has doubled it's writing staff. Current authorized writers of this blog has risen to 2 as Scott Liska has been granted author access. I'm hoping Scott can live up to the high journalistic standards this blog prides itself on.
My Trip:
Leave for Santiago, Chile on February 24th and return on March 8th. I'll be traveling around Chile and Argentina.
Liska's Trip:
Liska will be heading to Portugal, France, and Ireland I believe. Not sure if there are other destinations or if those plans have changed, but he can address that later.
That will be the extent of my writing about Liska's trip on this blog as he will hopefully fill in the rest of the details with his own posts. It was Liska's idea to contribute to the blog and, I fully support it and hope there could be days with an update from both, say, Portugal and Argentina. Hopefully Liska follows up and makes some posts. He will be with Elwood at least part of the time though, so all bets are off.
I'm still uncertain of the exact details of my own trip, I just know that I will be arriving in Santiago and then taking a bus to meet Erin and Steph (both recently finished a similar teaching program to Elwood). Potentially destinations include Chiloe, Valdivia, and Santiago in Chile and Bariloche, Argentina.
No post would be complete without some reference to the ramblings of my mother. She has a very real fear that my blond hair will inevitably lead to my murder, and she hates my new pea coat. I'm crossing my fingers she's wrong on both, especially the latter. It would suck if I was wrong about this coat.
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