Day Twenty Six - All Quiet On The Western Front

It's been a relaxed week or so lately. I haven't been up to much since I already checked out most of the sights that I was interested in. I think I visited most of the major museums, saw Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London and the Tower Bridge, and also wandered some of the more interesting neighborhoods here in London. A pretty good list I would say. I've been enjoying taking it easy after all that.

I have two CS hosts lined up for Belgium. So my entire time in Belgium is already organized, accommodation wise. That is a very good feeling, knowing I don't have to worry about getting a place to stay. I'm also eager to meet my hosts and spend some time hanging out with them.

After Belgium I'm not sure where to go next. I'm thinking maybe Switzerland but I can't decide. I could also do some of eastern France. I just want to make sure I keep heading south towards Rome. Anyone have any suggestions to help an indecisive traveler out?

I'll leave you with some of my most recent photos. Big Ben isn't as big as I imagined him to be but is still probably the most impressive clock I've laid eyes on. Enjoy!

Day Twenty Three - Belgium Bound

As the title suggests, I'm going to Belgium! The land of waffles and delicious beer. Actually, after a quick check on my favorite website Wikipedia it turns out that Belgian Waffles are not Belgian at all! Of course, leave it to the Americans to make shit like that up. The beer on the other hand is very real and very Belgian and VERY delicious. Very exciting, indeed. It will be nice to have a beer that I truly enjoy, as opposed to settling for the one I dislike least as I have been for the past few weeks. Don't worry, I'll take it easy there. No more stories akin to my last post.

I shall be departing London next Tuesday evening and will be arriving in Brussels, Belgium on Wednesday morning. It's going to be over a nine hour bus ride, not looking forward to that. But it's only going to cost me £18 to get to Belgium, a steal really. I was able to pounce on a ridiculous deal being offered by the bus company. I will also be saving the trouble of working out accommodation for the night which is nice.

Speaking of accommodation I finally got a host to agree to have me stay with him via the CouchSurfing website. For the uninitiated CouchSurfing is a website in which travelers from all around the globe connect with fellow travelers. One way in which this connection occurs is by having those that are at home host those that are traveling. Some people are not able to host but still like to meet up with those that are traveling to show them around or just meet someone new from a different culture. It's an unparalleled way to meet up with locals from different parts of the world. I highly recommend the organization to anyone that travels that enjoys meeting new people.

Back to my experience with CouchSurfing (herein to be referred to as "CSing"), I have had a very difficult time connecting with anyone. I have sent out numerous requests to hosts telling them I am coming through their city or town and have been rejected every time. Mostly the reasons are the same, the hosts I selected are too busy to accommodate me. Understandable of course but nonetheless a frustrating experience. But lucky for me I have found a nice guy named Steven to host me in Brussels. He even offered to meet up with me after my bus arrives at 7 AM so that I can put my bag down at his place or possibly catch some shut eye after my long bus ride. What a guy. I am ecstatic to be able to meet up with a local and hopefully learn more about Brussels and Belgium than I would had I been completely on my own. I'm sure it will enrich my experience there.

After Belgium I suppose I will continue to head south in anticipation of meeting my good pal Ezra in Rome on March 18th. I can't wait to see a familiar face in person. By the time I meet up with him it will have been almost two months since I had seen any of my friends from back home in person, something I am not accustomed to. It will be a joyous day indeed.

Which reminds me I must get in contact with my friends Luke and Stefano that I met in Galway. I will be heading to Italy soon and we had plans to meet up again once I got into their area. I can't wait to see them again as well.

Goodnight and farewell.

Day Twenty One - Alcohol Is Bad, Mkay?

Well, I sure had an interesting night last night. It started out at a club and ended with me being robbed, I think, and having blood all over my face. Check it out!



Good times, huh? I woke up this morning trying to piece together what memories I was able to retain. The night started out grand. Being Saturday night I thought it would be fun to go out and have a few drinks. Apparently by a few I really meant a lot. I was at a club called The Walkabout, an Aussie hangout here in Shepherd's Bush. I figured it would be nice to be around my people. I met a bunch of Aussies there which was awesome. Fortunately for me, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, they had a deal going where you could get a can of Victoria Bitter, a tasty Australian beer, for only two quid. What a deal! I thought.

So after a while the club started to close down. It must have been either two or three in the morning at this point. On my way out I started talking to this girl and her friends and we went walking, where we were going I have no idea. This is about where my memory gets really foggy. Next thing I know I'm in a neighborhood somewhere trying to find my house. A police car pulled up and a couple cops got out walking my way. I'm fucked, I thought. Here I am, drunk as a skunk, in another country about to get thrown in the drunk tank. To my surprise and delight they were real nice blokes.

They asked me what I was doing. I told them trying to find my house. The next question was, where is your house? I answered with in Shepherd's Bush. They informed me that I'm about a mile away from Shepherd's Bush. In my drunken idiocy I had wandered into a random neighborhood thinking it was Shepherd's Bush but in reality I was way off. The cops then asked me if I knew that I had blood all over my face. I touched my forehead and, sure enough, there was blood. What a surprising thing to discover! I must have fallen over, face first, at some point. I also had scrapes on the palms of my hands. Boy, did I feel like an idiot. The cops gave me directions to Shepherd's Bush and said I'll be home in fifteen minutes. I apologized repeatedly to the police officers and thanked them for helping me out. I then made the shameful walk back to my flat.

On my way home I realized that my pockets were empty except for my house keys. That was weird, I thought, because earlier there was fifteen quid as well as a prepaid public transport card that had ten pounds on it. I tried to remember what may have happened to it but my brain was utterly useless at this point. I had done too much damage to it in the course of the night. The most plausible story I could come up with was that I got robbed at some point during my wanderings. It would have been very easy to take advantage of me in that state and it seems that someone noticed that and seized the opportunity. Lucky for me all I lost was twenty five pounds. A bummer to be sure but not the end of the world. And besides my forehead injury, which I believe was self-inflicted, I was unharmed. I am very grateful for that.

After getting home and taking a good look at myself in some light I realized I really did look like shit. I washed up and ate a bit of food then immediately fell into a deep sleep once I laid down. In the morning I was able to take a look at myself with sober eyes and reflect upon the lesson I learned the hard way: don't get drunk and go out late by yourself, you'll get robbed. Really, I already knew that. But after a bunch of pints my judgment is a bit skewed. I just need to exercise more caution when going out at night by myself.

And to top it all off, I ripped a hole in my pants.

Day 15 - L.O.N.D.O.N.

I must apologize for my inactive blog-ness lately. I have been meaning for a few nights to write up a new post but have either gotten distracted or too tired to power my brain enough to formulate sentences and paragraphs and such. Good news about that though is I have had a fairly active last few days which translates into interesting stories and some strikingly beautiful photos.

To pick up where my last post left off, I arrived in London on Saturday morning at about 1:00 AM. Rhea and her husband Mathew picked me up at the bus stop and surprised me with a quick tour of London's biggest sights at night. I had a quick glimpse of Big Ben, the House of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, and Camden Town, among a few others I can't quite remember. It was a fantastic introduction to London.

The flat I am staying in is located in a neighborhood dubbed Shepherd's Bush. This is a wonderfully diverse part of London, culturally speaking. It is home to many first and second generation immigrants from the Middle East, the Carribean, various Asian countries, and Australia (booya!). The mix of all of these backgrounds brings a great amount of character to this area. I absolutely love it. Not to mention there are falafel shops aplenty, a fact I could definitely get used to were I to live here. Speaking of which, being able to stay with Rhea and Mathew in their flat has given me great insight into what it is like to live in London, as opposed to being in a hostel that would not be located in the heart of a real London neighborhood. I truly do love what I have seen of this city. Yesterday I even looked into what it would take for me to renew my Australian passport which in turn would allow me to get a job in London for up to a year. Australian citizens are allowed to obtain work visas much more easily because of Commonwealth laws. Despite Australia's independence from Britain long ago there are still some ties to the Queen, one of which is the aforementioned long work visa for those from down under. Alas, obtaining my passport while in the UK would prove to be prohibitively difficult. I can always come back to London after returning home, which is what my plan currently is.

The museums in this city are unparalleled, as far as I've seen. The British Museum has so much history contained within it's walls that I am going to have to visit it a second time to see what I missed when I went yesterday. I was up close and personal with the Rosetta Stone, the famous key to deciphering ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. That was really amazing. To see an artifact so important to Egyptian history, arguably the most important find for understanding Egyptian culture, blew my mind. Without this slab of stone 4,000 years of Egyptian culture would still be a mystery to us today. I don't know about you but that sounds like a pretty big deal to me. Some of the other artifacts I admired were almost 4,000 years old. Four thousand years! That's nuts. Although, I couldn't help but think while examining all of these pieces about my time spent in Egypt when I was just a wee lad. I was impressed by the museum's collection but didn't find it as impressive as seeing similar artifacts actually in Egypt, within the pyramids. I cannot wait to go back to the British Museum, something I will likely revisit tomorrow, as long as I wake up early enough, something that is easier said than done for me.

Yesterday was the British Museum, today was the Tate Gallery of Modern Art. HOLY SHIT. I love this place. Such an inspiring collection of art. I saw original works by Picasso, Matisse, and Kandinsky, to name a few. Those were just the big names. There were heaps of pieces by less famous artists that were absolutely fantastic. I was totally in awe of some of the genius of these artists. The Surrealists were particularly amazing. There was also a room dedicated solely to Russian propaganda posters, a particular interest of mine. That was a great surprise to see and I spent a good deal of time in that section. I saw a room of Viennese Actionists that was very disturbing. A major theme of these Austrian Actionists was self-mutilation, a very odd form of art. But who am I to judge?

Seeing all of the pieces contained within this massive gallery really pushed me to pick up painting. I've only done a very limited amount of painting in my short artistic history, but seeing such beautiful works brought something within me to life that can only be appeased by expression through artistic creations. I have always told myself that when I have a home, whenever that may be, that I want it to be covered in art. Paintings, sculpture, posters, whatever. The only problem is that purchasing original pieces of art is often very expensive. So I got to thinking today that what I could do is just produce these pieces myself. That way I don't have to spend all the money on buying this stuff plus my home can be a sort of informal gallery of my own works. The only thing to do now would be to actually get into all this art crap on a regular basis in order to have enough pieces to spread around my home. I'll put that on my to-do list once I get a permanent, or at least semi-permanent, home.

Earlier this evening I went out to a pub with my generous hosts, Rhea and Mathew, as well as their flatmate Wayland. I hope I spelled his name right, my apologies if it is incorrect. I continue to have a grand time every time I go out with these wonderful people. Rhea has her own blog that you should check out. She writes about her experience as a 'Merican expat here in London. The small differences in culture are quite interesting. It's familiar enough to function in but different enough that I get really confused sometimes. It keeps things fresh though.

After seeing the British Museum last night I went for a night walk along the Tower Bridge. This must be the most beautiful bridge I have ever laid eyes on. I know I'm from the Bay Area but sorry Golden Gate, you ain't got nothin' on this shit. The Tower Bridge is truly amazing. At night it is very striking. Just take a peek at the pictures and you shall see what I mean. I also took a walk along the Thames River which provided a very tranquil setting accompanied with some jaw dropping night backdrops. London really is a good looking city. I am constantly amazed by the sights that I see. And people that live here see this stuff everyday, that is awesome!

Tomorrow I have plans to go back to the British Museum to see the rest of the exhibits that I missed. Perhaps, time permitting, I will also go to Camden to check out that neighborhood. I think it may be an area of London that I will really enjoy. If I don't have time tomorrow I have plenty of time to see Camden another day. Man, I love this city.

Check out my England, mostly London, photos so far:

Day Twelve - In Limbo

One of the unfortunate things about traveling is...traveling. What the hell am I talking about, you ask. This vegan must have gone mad. I'm talking airports, people. They suck. HARD. They take forever, are a royal pain in the arse, and are very boring. I'm currently sitting in a cafe at one such location named Kerry Airport. It's a small airport not far from the town of Killarney where I have spent the last few days. In about 2 hours I will be aboard a plane transporting me to London. What is inconvenient about that is the latest bus I could catch here arrived just after 6:00 PM, a full three hours before my flight. So here I am, blogging to pass the time.

I'm very excited to be moving on to my second country. Ireland has been sweet to me, she is a very kind mistress. Yet I have been eager the last few days to move on to something new. Sorry girl, it isn't you, it's me. I swear! On my walk to the bus station I couldn't help but have a spring in my step, to sound a bit cliché (this UK keyboard layout on my netbook makes it easy to do this character: é, neat!). Killarney was getting a bit stale. If one isn't doing tours or venturing out of the city to see the sights there is not much left to do except go to pubs. And drinking every night gets awful expensive, real quick. So I laid low for a few days in order to save some money. This is another reason a change of location would be good for me.

I have heard negative opinions of London from some Europeans but I have a feeling I am going to like it. That feeling may be in large part thanks to my contact in London, Rhea. She has been kind enough to invite me into her home, without personally knowing me or having met me in person (thanks Rhea!). She even offered to show me a few things while I'm there. I am still constantly surprised by the kindness that I have been shown by so many people while on my Odyssey. The wonderful treatment I have received from people that are basically strangers has reaffirmed my belief that humans are naturally kind creatures, it is society that corrupts them. It's a damn shame.

While in the hostel today killing time I watched many backpackers arrive. Their packs were fucking huge! I only use naughty words in order to emphasize the size of these things. I saw one on some kids back that I swear I could stand upright in, have it zipped up around me, and then this kid could carry me around. I cannot explain how grateful I am of the research I conducted before leaving. My choice of pack couldn't have been better. I couldn't imagine lugging those huge bags around. I just laugh as I see them struggling trying to lift them up. That isn't mean, is it? I do laugh quietly if that helps.

If my memory wasn't completely shot, I would say goodbye with the Gaelic Irish word I learned a few days ago. But it's lost in the far reaches of my mind. You'll just have to be content with a regular goodbye.

Goodbye.

Day Eleven - Ireland's End is Near

So it's been 10 days now that I have been away from home. I have had more activity and excitement in these last 10 days then in the 6 months prior to my departure. For my own sanity I feel the need to slow down the pace a bit. Tonight will be a quiet one at the hostel.

I had the same plan for last night but a funny thing happened to me. After arriving here in Killarney, a small town situated near the Ring of Kerry, I was stricken with a bout of hunger. To appease the stomach gods I ventured out into the streets in search of a tasty bite to eat. I was just wandering around, as I usually find myself doing in new locations. I chanced upon an alleyway that really didn't look particularly promising in regards to my search for food. Yet I still felt
a need to explore. Shortly after turning into the alleyway I glanced to my left and couldn't believe what I saw. In the window of a small hostel I recognized the face of my German friend from Galway, Henning.

I ran up to the window, excited to see a familiar face. Henning looked up as he heard me rapping at his chamber door, yet at first he did not realize who I was. When he walked closer his excitement matched mine and he quickly let me in. We decided that we must go out for some pints in celebration of our chance meeting in this town that is in a completely different area of Ireland from where we originally met. We both caught up on our adventures since leaving Galway and then went out to a pub christened The Grand. Henning told me that there is live music there every night of the week. After having a fantastic time at The Grand we bid what will truly be our final farewell, that is of course until I reach Munich where we have plans to meet up again.

So going back to my original opening bit about having a quiet night tonight, I am very much looking forward to it. In the last few days I have been in a new city pretty much every day. That starts to take it's toll on you after a while.

I originally had planned to have a one week anniversary list of the things I have learned while being abroad. Since I missed that milestone I will have to change it to a ten day anniversary list. So here it goes, some of the interesting lessons I have learned so far:

- The Gaelic Irish language is very important to very many Irish citizens, yet only a very small portion of people are able to fluently speak and understand the language. Still, 99% of signs are bilingual, listing both English and Gaelic words.

- Doing your laundry in a sink not any bigger than a shoe box can be messy. I apologize to all of my hostel roommates for the wet floor in the bathroom.

- Guiness tastes a million times better in Ireland. I actually have grown quite fond of that beer. It may only be because everything else that is served at pubs is crap.

- Irish people love to wear my hats. I lost count of how many times I have been at a pub or a club (ha! that rhymes!) and have had my hat stolen from me by some intoxicated Irish person. This goes for girls and boys.

- People from around the world are not as foreign as I once believed. After speaking with travelers from Brazil, Germany, Australia, Belgium, and France I have learned that we all have much in common. Language is usually the only major difference.

- It is not easy to take a decent picture when it's overcast all the time. Many of my photos look better in person. My camera is not able to capture the light all that well sometimes.

- Cooking a decent meal for yourself is so much more satisfying than eating out constantly. I already knew this one from back home but this lesson has been relearned since eating out in Ireland can cost one a pretty penny. I should probably say it cost me a pretty Euro but that isn't as catchy, is it?


- I thoroughly enjoy blogging. Now I can see why this has caught on so much in the last few years. It is a great way to share my experiences while at the same time organizing my thoughts.


- Bus rides almost always make me fall asleep, no matter how awake I was when boarding the bus. There is something about the constant hum of the engine coupled with the vibrations of the bus that just puts me out every time.

- Hostels are great places to meet people. I was told before my trip began that this would be the case. Now I just wish the United States would catch up with Europe as far as the number of hostels goes.

- Living in the Bay Area really is expensive. One can get a room in an apartment in the city center of big places like Munich for about what I paid to live in the suburbs.

- I write long blog entries when I am waiting for my photos to finish uploading to Flickr. You readers are lucky it takes so long to upload these damn pictures or else you wouldn't have this great long list to enjoy.

I suppose that covers some of it. I have learned so much more than that but I didn't exactly write every lesson down as they happened to me so it isn't so easy to recall each one. I will leave you now with the updated Ireland photo extravaganza. There are some really good ones now since I went to the Ring of Kerry. The Ring of Kerry is a very scenic drive through Irish countryside that has some of the best sights in Ireland. Unfortunately the weather was pure crap today when I went so the fog is prominently featured in almost every photo. Although I did particularly like the way it hung around the mountain peaks, as you can see in a few of the photos. Other photos of note are a couple castles I have seen. I'm glad I was able to see at least one castle here in Ireland. One more thing I would like to mention is I have really enjoyed discovering stencil graffiti in the different cities and towns I have visited. I am glad to see that there are stencil artists out here.

Until next time, kids.

Day Five - MMM....Wine.

Well, this has been an active day, blog-wise, huh? You have my lovely little EEE PC netbook to thank for that. Blogging is so much easier when I can do it at my hostel. I just finished eating dinner, which consisted of canned Heinz spaghetti which cost me a dollar along with some gourmet sun dried tomatoes which cost three times as much. An odd pairing but it was delicious. Now I'm having a nice glass of South African Shiraz. Quite a nice dinner indeed. Cooking at the hostel really is the way to go. Food here is pretty expensive if you eat out all the time. Luckily the hostel has a full kitchen, refrigerator, and everything else I would need to make a decent meal. If only I actually knew how to cook...

Tonight I believe I will be going out with my new friend, Henning. He is a young German lad whom was studying abroad in Belfast, a large city in the north of Ireland, but not in Northern Ireland which is pretty much a different country. I'm not sure what we will be doing but finding fun in Galway is not terribly difficult. Especially if I have had a few glasses of wine ahead of time.

I must be going now, I believe my French acquaintances from my first night in Galway will be using my computer soon. Why make them pay for an internet cafe when mine is free?

Day Five - Photo Redux

Here are those photos I attempted to upload yesterday, plus some new ones I have taken since.

Day 5 - New toy!

So I bought a netbook today. It's basically a very small laptop that is fairly inexpensive. The reason I bought it is because internet cafes were proving to be expensive. Even with the 280 euros I spent on this device I should be saving money in the long run. Plus, it is so much more convenient. Every hostel and internet cafe I've seen so far has free wifi so now I do not have to pay for internet use! This is good news for all of my viewers back home because now I can make more comprehensive and frequent updates without worrying about how much time it takes me. And I can do it all from the comfort of my hostel instead of having to trek out to a cafe.

I w0uld update all of you on my recent adventures but I'm too excited about my new toy so I'm going to go play with it for a while.

Day 4 - Some Photos

Here are some of those photos I promised earlier. I have much more but uploading takes a long time. Note the "Emo" gas station.

EDIT: Nevermind, the photos aren't uploading for some reason. I'll try again later.

Day Two - Polish People Kick Ass

So day one was not so exciting. Day two on the other hand has been full of adventure. It started off with my decision to leave Dublin. I just got too lost there and I didn't know what was fun to do. I decided I would try my hand at hitchhiking to Galway, a small-ish town on the west coast of Ireland.

I figured if I'm going to hitchhike, I should buy a knife. Just in case, you know? I went to Tesco, the local grocery store, and grabbed myself a knife and an empty cardboard box from one of the employees. I made a sign stating my intended destination. While sitting on a bench in a mall constructing said sign, an old man named Gerry walked up to me and started chatting. I could tell he was a bit off but he invited me to get some tea so I felt it would be a good opportunity to chat with a local. This guy was a weirdo. He kept going on about nude beaches on the Catalina Islands. I heard stories about how he went to these beaches, took his clothes off, and how much he loved it. This guy would not shut up about these damn beaches. He then advised that I should take my clothes off if I find myself in such a situation. The whole time this bloke was chatting with me I kept getting the feeling he wished I would take my clothes off right then and there in the cafe. It was weird.

After drinking tea he guided me to the street I needed to walk down in order to catch a ride to Galway. Gerry felt inclined to give me his contact info so that I may send him correspondence while on my trip. I politely obliged but all the while in my head I was secretly thinking about my chances of outrunning him if I were to just bolt off. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be able to catch me, even with my backpack on. At what appeared to be the end of our encounter I wished him well and mistakenly gave the man a hug. Gerry then almost kissed me. For some reason he thought a hug meant a make-out session. Awkwardly, I gently pushed him away and said my final goodbye and quickly walked in the opposite direction as him, even though he was going the way that I needed to be going. Before I left I wondered how long it would take to have my first truly bizarre experience. Two days is the answer to that one.

After bidding Gerry farewell, I headed down to the edge of town to catch a ride. I walked for maybe 20 minutes then decided to try my luck with my makeshift sign and raised thumb. It didn't take long for a taxi to stop next to me. I assumed the man was trying to get me into his car so that he could charge me a fare to take me where I wanted to go. I told the man that I wasn't looking to get a taxi and he responded that he was off duty and on his way home and he would be happy to take me to a better spot to get a ride. He had a petrol station in mind that was right at the edge of Dublin that he said would be perfect for hitching a ride. After getting dropped off there I thanked him very much and rejoiced in my first successful hitchhiking attempt.

The second try was a bit harder though. I waited about half an hour in snow and cold winds for a ride. Nobody wanted to pick me up even though there was a lot of traffic going past. Finally a woman in an SUV stopped and I ran to get into her car. It is unusual for a single woman to pick up a hitchhiker so I was very grateful that she would take a chance on me. We talked the entire way about how she was from Poland, how she moved to Ireland to work, US politics, Irish economy, all sorts of stuff. She couldn't take me all the way to Galway but the town she lives in is only 20 km from my destination. She dropped me off and I raised my sign and thumb once more. Within a few minutes another car stopped, this time a single man. He was polish too! What are the chances of that. Apparantly polish people are more apt to pick up hitchhikers because hitchhiking is more common in Poland than some other countries. Ireland also has a very large polish population, so I was in luck! Unfortunately this ride would only take me within 8 km of Galway, so I needed to get one more. Only a minute or so passed before my final driver showed up, a younger Irish lad. He took me right to the city center, gave me some advice on Galway, then we parted ways.

Galway is a cool little town. It has a population of about 70,000, largely made up of young people. I believe there is a college around here somewhere. I feel much more comfortable here then I did in Dublin, and I'm sure I'll have more fun too.

I'm very excited to have successfully hitchhiked the width of Ireland, even if it only takes two hours to drive it. I have pictures but I can't seem to figure out how to upload them to this internet cafe's computer and the time here is expensive so I'll upload them later. I'm having a blast so far. I feel like I'm starting to get into the routine of my nomadic lifestyle.

Day One - Lost in the Big City

Well folks, I made it safe and sound. The plane had barely anyone on it so I got to stretch out on four seats to sleep, it was awesome. When I first got off the plane I was greeted by the brisk Irish cold. I got spoiled from my 70 degree California winter weather, I wasn't quite ready for the drop in temperature. It's not snowing right now but 15 minutes ago it was and it sure was dumping. I was even getting hailed on for a few minutes. The pilot told me it was two degrees Celsius when we arrived. That should be in the ballpark of about 34-36 degrees I think. Pretty cold.

I spent a good chunk of my day today just walking around, trying to figure out where I was, where I was going, and what I was going to do when I got there. I have so much time on my hands I'm not even sure what to do with it. I'm going to have to come up with some kind of strategy for figuring out the interesting things to do in all the new places I'm going to go to. For now, it's 7 PM and I think I'm going to go get my first Irish beer.

Side note, the beer selection at most stores is sorely lacking. Maybe I'm just spoiled by being from California. Guiness is about the only beer I've seen that I would purchase and I don't even like Guiness! Apparently shitty American beer is popular here. All the stores carry Bud, MGD, I've even seen Corona. What are these people thinking. For a nation that is known for drinking, they sure do drink garbage.