Beach

This update is running late and out of timetable order.

I am now in Santorini getting a tan on my tan and drinking far too much. I have just climbed over a very large mountain to get to the next beach from ours. My biggest and most stressful decision seems to be wether or not to go to another sun drenched Greek Island full of beautiful (available) people (well, im thinking of Mykonos. We all know what happens there) or go to Turkey.

Allow me to continue from where I didn't leave off.

....I was sitting on the beach afterwards when a large piece of watermelon hit me in the back of the head. Strategically aimed by a Girl from Melbourne who had been in Athens doing a course (obviously not on watermelon throwing) and had not wanted it (the watermelon) in her drink. We were all sitting around a beach fire and at one point a group of people (ok, Drunk, brazen people) decided to take all thier clothes off and jump in the water.

One night we were followed home by a large dog that scratched the door for 1/2 an hour trying to get in.

I'm not sure where I was the last time I wrote or what had happened, so i'm not sure if I mentioned that when we landed at Madrid half of the plane went to the wrong baggage carousel to collect thier bags which (obviously) didn't arrive. We all passed through customs (with nothing to declare except that we had no bags)and into the outside world and then had to fight our way through all the welcomers waiting outside the OTHER arrivals gate until some poor unsuspecting sod came through the (usually) one-way doors and we all did the reverse dash the wrong way through customs to collect our goods. Continuing with Spanish airport dramas our flight to Athens was delayed two hours for no apparent reason. The two dogs on the plane didn't seem to mind.

I have been taking photographs of Nuns. Not sure why. I took one once and liked the look of it. I now have quite a collection. All Nuns photographed so far have no idea. (Unless they have been told by a higher source which may be why I haven't seen any for a while).

We arrived for the opening ceremony of the paralympics only to find that every Greek on the planet had apparently come home especially for the opening ceremony of the paralympics which meant for quite a number of people who had travelled half way around the world there were NO TICKETS left. We queued for a while outside the stadium with 50 other people all holding little signs asking for spare tickets, which in the interim were being bought for ridiculous prices by a shifty looking cockney scalper and his extended shifty-looking entourage. There was really no hope so we went out and got drunk.

I was told we didn't miss much at the opening ceremony from someone who should know. Apparently just a lot of people limping around a big tree which got in the way of everything.

We did go and see the Aussie women beat(just) 62-61 the Americans (Reigning Olympic Champs) at thier first match this morning. The girls have gone on to win at least one more match at last update.

Now I go and contemplate the 32 days I have left. Mykonos on Sunday. Possibly Turkey and possibly not. I could spent anothewr three weeks here and meld into the lifestyle.

Rain

I know what you did last Sunday and you should be ashamed.

No real Italian would fall asleep during the telecast of the Monza GP.

I think you should have been there battling through the pouring rain on what seemed like someone´s farm. Picking your way through a pitch black underpass where the local fans (who had been camped out for weeks to get the best spots on the northern curves) were living in shelter on either side of a 2-foot wide passageway for the visiting racegoers to trip thier way to the track. Of course, Ferrari came first, Minardi didnt.

Speaking of trips, I made the journey from Dubrovnik to Milan in a record 34 hours on a catermaran made in Australia. I dont normally share hostel dorms, but next time, I´m really looking forward to another room containing an obese man with a chest infection who snores, and a drunk, pungent italian who mutters to himself in his sleep.

Ancona is just Another Nondescript City Offering Nothing Amusing. Its the sort of place to which my Grandmother would say "What would you want to go there for".

This weeks facts.

If you talk with your hands too much and look behind you at the same time you will fall down the stairs on the Milan Subway.

If you take all of the tourists out of Verona, there would be no one left there for the homeless people to sell plastic Llamas and clothes pegs to.

If you took all of the Nigerians selling fake Louis Vuittion(?) handbags out of Milan it would probably just still be Milan and it would still cost AUD$15 for a beer.

Now in Madrid and what an amazing place. Here for 3 days and then off to the Paralympics in Athens. Milan was a little nondescript although the shopping was great (new sunglasses). Unfortunatley you needed a 7 figure bank balance to buy anything. Including Beer. The race was wet.

For some reason in the last two weeks I have ben approached three times by church of scientology worshippers trying to get me to buy something. Should I be nervous?

Have rejoined Julie for a few weeks and will probably now change my itenerary to take in some parts of Turkey and attempt to return to Rome by 15th October to head for whats left of Miami and Cancun.

Adios for now.

Pigeon

If (perchance) you were to meet a retired Financial Planner (age=young), a Banker, and a drug dealer - How do you know which one is the REAL criminal?

Why do pigeons heads wobble when they walk? (Note to self. Do not throw food at Pigeons when sitting near glass window. Result=Pigeon makes loud bang as it misses food, hits window, scares crap out of all other pigeons in vicinity (causing major pigeon havoc and mass pigeon fright/flight reaction) and results in several tourists to leap from seats and run.)

And - If you jump off a rock into the sea, make sure there is another rock so you can jump back out of sea when 200M Long Cruise Liner COSTA VICTORIA Passes within 20 metres causing major water turbulence and several people (OK, maybe just one) to scramble onto sharp rocks and try to get out of water. (I think it was more the fact that a huge ship was bearing down on me than the water was rough).

Thursday was my half-way day. 54 days down, and (at this stage) 54 to go. This part of the world is incredible and I am thinking of heading to Albania, Macedonia and Turkey instead of re-visiting Italy later in the month.

I arrived in Dubrovnik on Wednesday and LOVE this place. It is just incredible here. My apartment is high up and level with the old city walls (the whole old town is UNESCO Heritage listed). I sit on my balcony and have the perfect (and highest) panorama over the whole of the old town and out over the Adriatic.

Cruise ships and sailing ships dot the harbour. I'm pretty sure Kerry Packer's boat came in yesterday (Although the boat I saw was called "ARCTIC" and I think his is the "ARCTIC P")

This really is the most amazing place and I am so glad I came. Must admit that it is a little of a tourist mecca and that is a bit overwhelming, having just come through places which were predominantly tourist free. There are more Irish and Aussies here than i've seen since leaving Sydney.

Bought my ticket to Italy today. Bus to Split tomorrow in time for the 5PM Ferry across to Ancona and to Milan in time for the F1 race on Sunday next week.

More soon.