Oh, and a quick thanks...

...to all the people that have either commented or sent me personal emails about this issue. Several people have shared similar stories, and it's been reassuring that there are people that understand and empathize.

To all of you: many thanks.

On the nature of blogs, behavior and being unreasonable

I think this is an Obvious Idea post. However, it has become exceedingly clear that this is not obvious and it needs to be addressed.

On blogs: A blog is a lot like reality tv. While 24 hours of my life go by each day, I spend maybe 5-10 minutes writing what's on my mind or what I've done that day. Think about this, 5-10 minutes to describe a day. Clearly, much is edited to fill the little entry. Clearly, what is included is subject to what is on my mind and presented with my personal bias. I am a rather opinionated (someone once said judgemental) person. To repeat: this blog is *my* recollection and *my* description of events. I still don't quite understand the line between these two traits, but there you go.

A blog is a record of [most frequently] one person's feelings or thoughts about whatever is on their mind. It is that person's opinions. It is biased. Blogs are not about Unbiased Accounts of What Really Happened. I have always wondered what would happen if I posted something even remotely negative about anyone who actually has access to my blog. I've often felt my blog was rather vanilla, in that everything written is generally upbeat or entertaining.

An opinion is an opinion. A feeling is a feeling. These are personal things. This blog is a personal thing to me and I choose how and what to share through it. There are many, many things which I've not written about here, and do not intend to. If I wanted to be spiteful, malicious or cruel, I could write many things about people I've met or things I've seen. I could write about the extreme poverty that still exists in Argentina and the dearth of homeless children begging everywhere. I've seen things that have truly made my heart break in sadness. I could write about specific events in Argentina in which people whined, behaved in unthinking ways or were just plain stupid. Or, I could just start naming names. And before Anonymous gets his panties bunched even further, I'm using these examples to cover many people.

Or, I could write about how Anonymous is using my paintings as hostage until he gets the apology he feels he deserves and is warranted to him. It's been brought to my attention that he feels what I wrote was a "lie". I've taken the time to write a thoughtful, non-inflammatory email to him (when what I really want to do is write something entirely different) and try to engage him in some kind of dialogue. I have no idea if he actually read the email because all I know is he posted a comment saying the apology was not enough. I don't even know exactly what it is I'm supposed to write. Am I supposed to write he was The Best Travel Companion EVER!? Am I supposed to write that I'm a hysterical raving bitch and that I'm fabricating my emotions? I have no idea. I struck a nerve and I can't even respond properly because I haven't been told what nerve it was.

I am not psychic. If anyone knows a good psychic, do let me know...

On unreasonable behavior: So. Let's get back to paintings as hostage. We'll start with an email he wrote me after the post (see, being spiteful would mean reprinting it here), saying all sorts of nasty things to me, attacking me and my character. He then told me that unless I print a "sincere and to the point" and "you're a writer...make it sing" apology by a certain date, then my things [my paintings] "will be tossed!" He went on to tell me not to respond to the email because he'd blocked my email address (the email I sent him after his email was from another email address I have -- I have several). Is this adult, reasonable behavior? To me, sadly no. I generally think that being that vindictive is a pure waste of time and, for me, not remotely worth the energy. The previous post was not written in spite. If anything, it was written in exasperation and sadness. As much as I love most of my friends, I've discovered it's probably not a good idea for them to travel and visit me while I'm on this trip. I am in a different mental space than anyone I knew before I started this trip is in, and it just doesn't seem compatible to anyone currently working or who is stressed out. Perhaps this is selfish or even egotistical, but hey, this is how I've interpreted my experiences and how I feel.

I will say that if my paintings are destroyed or otherwise not returned to one of my friends, I will pursue legal action upon my return to Seattle, and this is not an idle threat. I have documentation of his threat to destroy my paintings (behold, the power of an email archive). I've previously been in a position where I found it necessary to take legal action against someone, and I was quite successful in pursuing that action.

Were the request one to rewrite or remove the post, I would have considered it. Even after I posted it, and before any of this vitriol started, I pondered that maybe I could have written it differently and that maybe I would edit it later. It's possible I will still edit the post. Though, this will not change the content of that post, just the way it's presented.

On behavior: I never claim to be perfect. I am flawed just like everyone else -- no more, no less. I am disgustingly average that way. The people I think are more flawed than everyone else are those that think they are perfect. I've met a few of these shiny, fake people, and I tend to run as far away from them as I can. Do I have faults? Certainly! Am I a nasty, cruel person [sic] "undeserving of any friends"? Certainly NOT. Friendship is about many things, one of the most important being acceptance of the person you are around. The other person I wrote about in my blog, at much greater length I might add, well, we've made peace with each other. You are around people because you like them more than any faults they may have. You accept them in spite of, and including, their faults. If there is a disagreement or issue between two people, then it is their responsibility to resolve it in a responsible way. This means that a dialogue must occur -- without exception. It means that demands for censorship and, in fact, lying, are without merit. If the friendship meant anything, then dialogue is natural even if it is difficult.

Now, I am more than willing to walk away from people that are poor friends or display really bad behavior. I've done it before and I'm sure I will do it again. It makes me sad to lose friends, because I spend a lot of time and energy cultivating and managing friendships. Any difficulties I have dealing with other people are no greater or less than much of the general population. In addition, I recognize difficulties in my personality and actually work to change the ones I feel need to be changed. I have not always been the best kind of friend to some people. However, those situations have generally ended up with some kind of discussion of the issues at hand, without ultimatums and blocked email addresses in the first volley. Some friendships were repaired, others were mutually discovered to be beyond repair and went down in flames, others still were rejected by me because I felt the person in question was disrespectful of me and wasn't going to change and I wasn't going to put up with that kind of behavior any longer. As a coda, one friendship that had been ended by me, I missed the friend so much that I got back in touch with her a couple years later and our friendship is stronger than ever. So yes, I make mistakes with people, and I try to find the courage to right things when I can. And when things don't appear fixable, I can and will walk away. Otherwise, I live with my decisions -- even when I'm not happy about them. I am able to accept myself as I am, and I like myself even in spite of my undesirable traits. Though, when there appears an impasse when agreement and dialogue cannot be achieved, or people become self-righteous and unwilling to accept any blame for a situation, this is what happens: 1. I try to engage them in a dialogue; if the dialogue works (and this has happened several times), then the friend remains a friend; if the dialogue is refused, then I walk away. I walked away from one of the people I was closest to right before I left Seattle. I became angry at something he did, and he wouldn't acknowledge any wrong-doing, nor would he apologize, nor would he make time to deal with the issue before I left. There were several other factors involved, as I do not make the decision to walk away from a friend, especially a close one, lightly. With that particular person, there were other factors I was aware of in our friendship, and I didn't feel I was being treated in a fully respectful way. Again, this is my interpretation of what happened between him and I. I'm sure if you asked him, he would paint a different picture and make himself look rosy.

I do not write about all the different people I meet and spend time with. Sometimes I will mention people, but those mentions do not begin to cover all the people I meet or the time I spend with other people or the quality of time. Shall I tell you about the British woman I met on the way to my current destination (we happened to be on the same flight and staying in the same hostel and we met at the airport bus stop), whom I am now fast friends with. The Spanish girls in my hostel room my last night in London that I got along so well with, we all stayed up hours later talking than any of us intended to -- and then they took a photo of me because they wanted to remember me. I once met a woman in a UK train station that works for a large company, and told me to visit their website and let them know if I might be interested in working with/for them, just because I happened to engage her in a conversation and they thought I was rather outgoing, smart and possibly a really good person to work with. Or any of the several people I've met in hostels and spent several days with -- people that even *volunteered* to go and wait in the hospital with me as I've dealt with the continuing problems with my ankle.

I will also say that I have a temper and I will express anger. There are people that will attest to this. Though, I still work on learning how exactly to manage my anger and I work to express it only when I feel it expressly justified. Of course, my anger is not always expressed properly. I hope that I never experience so much anger that I know how to express it properly -- that thought frightens me. I spent many, many years not expressing my anger and it really hurt me as a person. It does no one any good if feelings are not expressed. People are angry at each other, and if they care about each other, they will make an effort to resolve the anger. Otherwise, if you only want to surround yourself with Yes People or Fair Weather Friends, what's the point? Those people are not friends. Friends call friends on inappropriate behavior. Friends help friends. Friends do not make themselves victims to the people they call friends. Friends do not lie to friends. This list could go on forever, but I hope you get the idea.

So. I hope this is the last time I have to write any of this. It seems common-sense to me, but I know from experience that sometimes common-sense ideas have to be reiterated now and again.

An apology

It has come to my attention that one of the people I wrote about in the previous post is rather upset about the post, and has asked for an apology.

As my feelings about his visit were previously unknown to him, I apologize that I hadn't discussed it with him, privately, earlier.

However, as these are my feelings of how the visit went, I will leave the post as this blog is a documentation of my travels, what I feel during those travels and what I see and do. The post was not written with the intent to be spiteful or malicious. The post was written to illustrate my experience in travelling with friends and my thoughts on the subject -- not, I repeat not, as an attack on anyone referenced.

On travelling with friends

This is a mixed bag. On one hand, you get excited because you will be seeing someone who knows you and someone you like to spend time with. On the other hand, if they're working then they're not as relaxed as you are and then their General Level Stress causes problems (I have found that while I am more relaxed than ever, I tend to be really sensitive around other people's stress -- especially if that person is a friend and I can't just walk away from them completely (like you can with people in hostels or people you meet elsewhere)). On yet another hand, you may discover that you do not like travelling with that person.

I have just had this happen for the second time.

Argh.

When the first friend visited me in Argentina, there were difficulties. Namely, I had to organize everything and he wanted someone by his side at nearly all times. He made a stink about having to eat alone, and didn't even want to go on walks by himself. I tend to be pretty independent, and while I enjoy spending time with other people, I also highly value having time by myself or spending time with more than one person. He also hadn't researched what he wanted to do before he arrived, which left me as an ill-prepared and unpaid tour guide (I mean, you do research the place you're going to visit, right? -- even if you're going to visit a friend?). There were nice moments in that trip, mostly very early on, but it became very difficult and there is no way I will travel alone with that person again (before the trip I'm on, we'd talked about taking a long train ride together, in a country where neither of us speaks the language).

Which brings me to: someone who has been very close to me in the past was with me in London the last ten or so days. He is currently waiting for his train to take him back from where he came. The first 36 or so hours were blissful. Perfect. Then things went downhill. Not for reasons that were his fault or my fault -- there were problems with lodging and we ended up sleeping in three different places instead of the planned two (I had a free hotel night that I used for one night). I don't know exactly what happened between us most of the rest of the time, but he was critical of me (to the point of making me cry, repeatedly) and very often not pleasant to be around for more than an hour. It often felt like we were crossing paths in the same city, not being in the same city *together*. Few decisions felt like they were made unanimously. I walked away from him on the street a couple nights ago, and I almost did it again this morning -- which would have meant us parting without saying goodbye. I considered him one of my closest friends, and now I feel like I don't ever want to visit him (he doesn't live in the US) for more than 2-3 *hours*. Hours. I've sent him two emails today, one long and one short, expressing all my upset. I hate that I had to do it by email, but there's no way I could have spoken to him this morning. For one, there wasn't time, for two, I would have been emotional and started crying again and thus would have been unable to talk coherently, and for three, when I tried to tell him how I was feeling a couple days ago, he walked away from me and didn't let me finish -- and I hadn't been criticizing him, I was just wanting to quickly explain why I was feeling the way I was (there were factors such as lack of sleep and me now being unaccustomed to being around any one person for very long and having to take another person into consideration when I make plans).

So. Some things I've learned. While I miss my friends, I think it's by and large best if I just keep in contact with them via email. After the first friend visited, I made jokes with friends that I was going to require a questionnaire of people before I would agree for them to come and visit me. This was said with a strong amount of seriousness, and with there being only 2-3 people that could not have to fill out the questionnaire.

I know there are two people that have mentioned visiting me when I get to Portugal. One of them is one of my very best, long-term (10+ year) friends. We know each other very well and I would love to see him. We've never travelled far together (we've gone on short, weekend trips), and I imagine that the visit would be fine. He's travelled a lot and I have (I think) a good understanding of how he travels. The other person is a woman I know, and from what I know of her, I think she would also be fine. If anything, I think she would be more active in doing things than myself and maybe annoyed about my relative laziness. But we'd probably end up dancing and flirting with the boys every night, and having a lovely time.

I have no idea how serious either of these people are about coming to visit me in Portugal, and it's probably likely that the trips won't happen.

Naybe I shouldn't travel with men? This is strange, because since I was 16, my best friends have frequently been guys. Straight. Gay. Doesn't matter. The men that visited me were only friends -- I can only imagine the headaches if they were people I was romantically involved with and all the stuff that happened happened.

Right now, I have a sour taste in my mouth about being in London, and I can't wait to leave.

I've just booked a ticket and lodging in a city far away. I leave tomorrow. By myself. Where I can be blissfully alone, as I don't speak the language and don't count on English, Spanish or French being widely spoken. I will catch up on some personal journal writing (hasn't happened in almost a week, which is close to a record for me on this trip). It's escapism, I know and I embrace it wholly.

Forgive me if I happen to become a poor correspondent for the next few or several days while I try to relax and unwind after this past week.

A bag lighter, shoe news and marginally closer to a destination decision

So. Have left a medium-size backpack with my friend in London. He thought I'd wanted to leave more with him, and was surprised that it was [sic] so little. He hasn't seen the bag I'm living out of, and I had to explain it really was a good chunk of what I was travelling with.

It will be SO nice to be that one bag lighter. And I know that if I need anything, I'll just buy it. There isn't anything in the bag that I can't live without. Though, I will definitely miss some of it, but knowing that it's safe and fairly easily accessible is comforting.

This is the second time I've 'shed' clothes and stuff. I sent a package of clothes home from Glasgow. And it's worth mentioning that the lovely Reeboks I bought in Argentina are dead. A few of you may know, from emails or personal experience, that the smell in said Reeboks was, as my friend visiting me in London so subtly put it:

"A Weapon of Mass Destruction"

He suggested sending them to Iraq...

So, I washed the shoes in the washing machine in the flat, with extra powder and the hottest water possible. Dear readers, this wasn't the best idea: the fabric of the shoes SHRANK. Woe. I do have another pair of walking shoes (thank heavens!), so I'm ok there. But the Reeboks, oh-so-deadly-fragant Reeboks: they were so completely comfortable to wear. I could walk so much further, quicker and longer than in nearly any other pair of shoes I've owned in the last few years. RIP dear blue/grey Reeboks.

Tonight was meant to be my last night in London. However, there were timing difficulties between checking out of the current flat and being able to make it to the airport within an hour (you'll laugh if you've done this in London -- especially if you want to say goodbye to someone, and also if you have to switch tube lines). So, I will be spending an extra night in a London hostel (back to my normal travelling budget -- YAY!!!), and then flying out on Tuesday. Still haven't decided where exactly -- I'll be returning to the flat soon and I'll read the chapters on the potential candidates. The prices aren't that much different for Tuesday (how I wish it wasn't Easter week -- I could save almost 70 pounds if I was to fly a week from tomorrow. Though, I comfort myself that I am going to Eastern Europe, and living will, or I expect it to be, much cheaper there.

It's a bit strange, not to mention liberating or exciting, to not know where I will be in 48 hours.

Where do I go?

I think I have decided. At least, as a general geographic region.

I believe that Monday (or maybe Tuesday -- it depends on flight times and being able to collect the flat deposit back before any flight takes place on Monday) will find me flying to Prague or Budapest. Maybe Bratislava. I'm actually thinking Budapest, and then taking a train down to Istanbul or thereabouts.

I'm planning on spending about 4-5 weeks in that area. Then, I will take a quick flight back to London, then I will fly back to continental Europe. [As another of my side notes: my friend that actually lives in London is doing two HUGE travel-related favors for me: 1. he is allowing me to leave some clothes and stuff with him, so I can have a lighter pack (so very, very cool, since I will not need some of my clothes in the next month, but will need them *in* a month); 2. and I will be buying a Eurail pass via the US website, having it shipped to a friend of his, and then having said ticket make it's way to London and him, where he will hold on to it for me until I come back to London (thank heavens for cheap flights around Europe!).

Walking, and more walking, in London

So. Yesterday: walked a great deal. We eventually made it to the Tate Britian (via Piccadilly, the Strand and St Paul's cathedral). So very cool. There is a room with several Rothkos. Rothkos like I've never seen before -- and I'm not talking about his early paintings. Ab. So. Lute. Ly. STUNNING. There was also another Rothko that was really exquisite, too. There were really quite a number of pieces I loved, and I've written them down in my journal (I've generally been doing this when I go to museums, as you can't always get postcards of the pieces you adore). After the Tate, we walked along the Thames, and then went up in the London Eye. Expensive (£12.50, aka $25 USD), but so very, very well worth it. It was just past dusk, and it was a clear night, so it was possible to see for quite a ways. I took some cool photos. After this, we walked a little further (!!), had dinner, then went to a movie. I was glad to get home and be vertical last night...

Today: walked to the market at Portobello Road and meandered through there for a while. I was pretty tired, so my friend and I split and I went back to the flat for a nap and he went to a museum. We're meeting up in a few minutes, for dinner and possibly another movie.

As a side note: The French film 5x2 had all these amazing reviews. It was an alright film, but I just don't get the raves. I enjoy French films. The characters were both so flawed, I couldn't see why they were together in the first place, nor was there enough 'good' shown so that I could empathize with them and like them on some level (let's not forget the utter bastard Clive Owen's character was in Closer, but you still felt a draw to him).

I have no idea what film we might see tonight.

I'm starving, so it's time to see if my friend is outside now (after I write another very short post, that is...).

Where do I begin?

So, today I need to decide where I will go on Monday. Suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Do I fly to Estonia?

Budapest?

Istanbul?

Warsaw?

Florence?

Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.

If you could spend the very beginning of Spring in Europe, where would you go?

Art and more art

Went to the British Museum yesterday. Vast is not the word. Overwhelming starts to cover it. But really, my mind shut down after about an hour.

Unfortunately, the Japanese woodcut I wanted to see more than anything else was not on display for conservation reasons. >pout< Though, did get to see the Rosetta Stone, and that was really cool. It is a lot larger than I thought it was -- nearly as tall as I am.

Then, met with my friend and we went to a Matisse exhibit at the Royal Academy of Art (? I think this is the proper name?). Very, very cool. Many textiles that he bought and used as inspiration for his paintings; some paintings; some of the cut-out pieces; some of the pen and ink drawings.

I want to re-visit the Musee Matisse in Nice.

Today, will likely go to the National Gallery for a bit.

Q: How do I manage my money so well in London?
A: Spend most of my time in museums and parks.

Spring in London...

...is pretty darn cool. The weather hovers around 16-20 Celsius, with a little very light rain yesterday, and lovely breezes. People walk around sans jackets. Boys in their public school outfits practice football (soccer to you Americans) in the little park at the corner park where Bayswater Road changes to Oxford Street. Wearing a scarf during the day is starting to be unnecessary (and if you don't have one and need one, there are a plethora of £3-5 "pashmina" scarves available everywhere for easy purchase. I'm starting to think that it's almost time to break out the sunglasses, and to send two sweaters home.

As to where I will be next week: I have no earthly idea. I originally planned on going to Amsterdam, for the museums, canals and to see one of the Los Angelitos from Buenos Aires. However, this is an expensive week, and the idea of Budapest or Prague in Spring sounds interesting. Or maybe Estonia. Or maybe Poland.

You get the idea.

Oh, and whilst walking to the British Museum, I inadvertently walked down Oxford Street and through Oxford Circus [my flat is almost a straight line to the British Museum]. Folks, that's one Major Shopping Street. Do you know how difficult it was to Not Walk In To H&M? I >heart< H&M. Actually, I passed *three* H&Ms on that street.

I'm currently wearing an H&M skirt I bought in NYC.

Definitely a dangerous street to walk down.

Now, am off to meet my friend and see if a museum has their Matisse exhibit up.

To me: Matisse is God. He would love the weather here and all the women venturing about in Spring clothes and bare legs.

Pain and happiness

Mostly, yesterday was a rather painful day for me. There was much difficulty in finding a new place to stay (until Monday). Very much difficulty. I cried in anger and frustration. Eventually, it worked out and we are now in a new apartment for the rest of our time here.

Then, met a friend of mine that's lived in London for several months now (the lucky guy's job transferred him here -- que horrible!). We'd met once in Seattle and have emailed occasionally since then. We had a really nice time and we have plans to meet again on Thursday. This made for a very nice end to a rather difficult day (by the time money had exchanged hands, contracts signed, keys given and a walk-through of the flat were done, I had under an hour to shower, get ready and get to where we were meeting -- at 8pm...).

I was saying to my friend that I'm staying with, that you have to have badness to appreciate goodness. He was saying something like all-goodness-all-the-time was good. I disagreed.

All Goodness All the Time: not very interesting and rather bland.

Spring Equinox in London

Happy first day of Spring!

The temp was 20 C when I arrived on Saturday. Absolutely amazing. Yesterday was cooler, with light fog throughout the day. My friend and I walked through Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, past Buckingham Palace, and eventually back to the hotel. Very nice...except for the two blisters on the *bottom* of my feet.

It's wonderful to be around a good friend again. Not having to explain my trip or why I'm travelling alone or how I came to be able to do this trip: wonderful. It's also quite a luxury to be able to have nice hugs-on-demand. I'm an affectionate person, and I miss the normal touching that occurs between friends.

As to museums in the UK: 98% of them are free. Libre. Gratuit. There was a special exhibition at the Manchester Art Gallery that was £5. Museums in the UK have donation boxes, but they are free. Quite a blessing for art lovers.

So. Off to the National Gallery (maybe) for a couple hours. Then, to meet my friend and work out where we're staying tonight [the apartment I booked was already booked, and we stayed in a different hotel last night, but need to move closer to the exact center of London -- and try to book a reasonably-priced hotel room through Monday...let's not forget this is Easter weekend...wish us luck].

Can I send home my sweaters yet??

What's a girl gotta do...

...to find an internet cafe with a working printer? Walk across the city for 2-3 hours, is what.

Eventually, a woman in the public library took pity on me and let me print the voucher I need for my London hotel room for tomorrow night. Such an angel.

Needless to say, before this walk started, the day was a bit hellish. Thankfully though, everything is resolved and I'm on my merry way again.

Though, it's a really lovely day (maybe 14 C/ 60 F) and walking around was a real joy. I know Spring is only a few days away, but I'm constantly amazed at warmer weather. After being in Summer for so long, and then coming to nasty Winter, I keep expecting to have to deal with six months of nasty, cold weather. It's such a lovely surprise to walk outside and not need a scarf, and to need sunglasses.

I managed to get back to the Manchester Art Gallery, and see the photographic exhibit and some more paintings, that I missed yesterday. The MAG is one of the coolest museums I've been to in a while. It has a really good collection, with a solid mix of British, European and contemporary art. They also have a real cool Interactive room, which is VERY fun. Even for adults.

I can get tired of going to Cathedrals, but I never, ever get tired of going to museums. Because you never know when you're walking through a room, and then suddenly a lesser-known, and very, very lovely, Modigliani or Renoir just happens to be there.

I love art.

Oh, and I bought a couple bath bombs at Lush a little while ago. The hotel will surely have a bathtub (3* after all) and a friend and I are staying in London in a rented apartment that has a bath tub. I sooooo miss taking baths, and will be gleefully taking baths as much as possible next week. And making the bathrooms smell all lovely and girly.

Thankfully, the friend I'll be shacking up with next week appreciates a girly-smelling bathroom.

Man U: But Where Are The Men???

Went to the Manchester United Stadium yesterday, for a cool tour and visit to the Man U museum. Very cool.

But there weren't any Man U men around. [pout]

Standing in the players/footballer's wive lounge had me flashing on Footballers Wives. I was watching over my shoulder for fear of Tanya...

Off to an art museum today.

Happy St Patty's everyone. I'm wearing my green (even though you can't readily see it...), are you??? If no, then [virtual pinch] to you!

Theyah ain't nuh muh booze en Myanchestuh

At least, this is what the drunk waving an empty booze bottle was yelling as he walked in to an alley about an hour ago. I was just hoping he didn't decide to throw the bottle at one of us passerbys. I'm writing to you now, so obviously I didn't get a blow to the head by the bottle. Though, don't know if anyone (or the alley wall) was so lucky after I was out of earshot of the drunk...

I will be here until Saturday, at which point I will return to London for a week. FINALLY, heard back from my friend, and he will be coming to London for a week and we will spend that week together. Don't really know how this will work out lodging-wise, because I called another friend in London last night, and I've booked time on the couch in his flat for Sunday and Monday nights. I have a free night in a hotel room for Saturday night, so it will be a whirlwind week of hauling my bags from one sleeping destination to the next.

So. Woke up still feeling like crap this morning, but had a little lie-in for a couple hours, and took one of the magical Argentinian cold pills, and am feeling better. I plan on going to the Man United stadium and museum shortly, and if I'm still feeling ok, will go to one of the museums here.

Wish me luck in the Footballer's Wife lottery!!

Oh, and a note on trends

Now, I saw this in Vogue and other American fashion magazines during my brief US visit. Yet I cannot believe how popular it is in the UK, and I'm hoping it's not popular in continental Europe.

What I'm talking about is the Gypsy Look.

Folks, please, it's awful. It only looks good on some skinnnnnny girls and even then...

And do I even need to mention that actual gypsy clothes tend to look better than what is in the shop windows? At least, this is my impression from photos and such that I've seen. Heaven help us all if what is in the shop windows is really Gypsy Chic.

I shudder to think that I remember tiered skirts from when I was in middle school and my freshman year of high school -- almost 20 years ago. I don't generally feel "old", but when I pointed out remembering this fashion trend from "20 years ago" to a Finnish girl in Glasgow, I felt old. It's scary to me that I can talk about such things. I've noticed it more [in the past] when talking about music. "Oh, I remember when that song was originally released -- I was in 8th grade." and then a look of bewilderment from someone merely 10 years younger than myself, when realizing that X song was not originally penned by Y band.

But I digress.

If I didn't make this point clear before, I really, really dislike this trend. Positively awful -- and I don't care who the designer is that is churning out these clothes.

Do we really need Hippy Chic clothing again???? What's next? A Grunge revival, where everyone breaks out the old flannel and filthy, ripped jeans?

I think not.

Laid low in Manchester

Unfortunately, dear readers, this traveller has been bitten by a cold bug. As such, I woke up this morning, tried to convince myself this was not so by checking emails and getting something to eat, only to return to my hostel, eat the lunch and then promptly sleep for about two hours.

Argh.

In reality, it's not too serious, and I do have some mighty fine cold pills I picked up in Argentina. I don't know what's different about them, but I can take a single one and feel better for about 30 hours. (The packaging says to take one every 6 or 8 hours...)

Had an interesting chat with the boy remaining in my hostel room. He's from Northern Ireland (though not exactly Belfast). We talked of US politics and the state of The Troubles in Northern Ireland (as a side note, I really am amazed at how much the US media controls what news is exported -- whenever I relate unsavory bits of the manipulation of the recent elections, non-US citizens are amazed at what happens -- not least because voting is not compulsory). I related the story of the trashy-dressed teenage girls, and he said they probably would've taken me on in a fight. That they still probably would have done so if it had been me with five or six friends.

So. I braved the relative cold outside to check for a particular email from someone (which is not in my in-box, for shame!) and to get something to eat.

Wish me luck in recovering quickly.

Because really, I would much rather spend a few hours going to the Manchester United "museum" and being all gooey touristy over such a great football team.

And honestly, I wouldn't mind the chance to see some lovely football players In Person, flirt with them, and thus enter the lottery for:

Could [She] Become a Footballer's Wife...

Lovely, lovely

I had the lovely experience of having a whole hostel room to myself last night. Ahhhhhhh. AND a double bed. AND quiet. Quite luxurious.

This is to say: I left the other hostel I was in. There were a host of problems there, which mostly don't bear reliving by writing about them, but which bear me saying that I really don't like sharing rooms with Eastern Europeans. Out of the 10 or so that I've shared with, only one was respectful of the other people in the room. I'm sure there are considerate Easterns Euros out there -- I've just only come across one (though, I think he had a crush on me...), which leads me to think that only 1 in 10 are good travellers.

But I digress into unpleasant memories.

Today, I fly to Newcastle and then bus/train it (whichever is cheaper) to Manchester, where I will spend several days, and then probably on to London.

I never made it back to the Ulster Museum yesterday, which I lament. Yet, I enjoyed the little time I was able to spend there, so that's a nice thing. I did return to the Crown Liquor Saloon last night, for another very lovely pint of Guinness. I didn't run into the fellow I met a few days ago, but I just relaxed and almost finished reading Crytponomicon.

And because someone commented on it in an email to me, I'll mention that my ankle is getting better. I'm still worried that a bone seems to be in a rather different position than the same bone on my left foot, but I can generally walk normally (and far) and I'm starting to entertain notions of wearing my dance shoes and dancing. So, a very good thing. There is still swelling, of a variety of levels, but it doesn't generally impair my ability to walk. The exercises the doc in Glasgow recommended have helped, as have walking around without using the brace I used for weeks.

So. Time to respond to some emails and then find some lunch before getting on another jet plane. Isn't The Who from Manchester? Which means there ought to be several musically-inclined tours there (like Liverpool).

Of course, there is also the Man United museum to visit. It would be beyond ultimately cool to be able to see a game.

How very beautiful

Yesterday, I went to the Belfast City Hall, for a tour of the building. It is really one of the most beautiful buildings I've been in -- especially for a city hall. There are three types of Italian marble, handcarved wood decorations, stained glass windows, portraits of previous Lord Mayors, gorgeous chandeliers, and the list goes on.

I really did not expect that it would be quite as beautiful as it is. It had a very complimentary write up in my travel guide, yet the description there just didn't do the building justice.

It is truly a remarkable building.

Yes, snow

It snowed a little this morning. And the cute boy in the sandwich shop said that snow in March is unusual here.

So. That makes it semi-official: where I go, it snows.

Still, the sky is clear now and it doesn't look like a hint of rain, and that is very nice.

It had to happen

It's raining. Not the kind of rain that really gets down to business, but the kind of rain that looks like heavy mist and drenches you within five minutes of being exposed to it.

It's supposed to be like this for most of the weekend. Or so I've been told.

There goes the trip to Giant's Causeway...

[remember folks: I only have a jean jacket...]

Though, I've come to realize I wish I'd gone to Inverness, in Scotland. So, I'm thinking that I will do a quick what-I-missed-the-first-time-around before I'm scheduled to leave in July. This is fairly easy, considering the many cheap flights to be found.

So: last night. Went to a rather famous pub last night, for the pint of Guinness. Ended up chatting with a man, who bought me another Guinness. We had several nice conversation threads. One of the things he told me was that if [in Ireland] you go in to a pub and sit at the bar by yourself, it means that you are interested in talking to someone. I didn't know this -- the bar was just packed and I took the first space at the bar I could (mostly so I could just order a pint).

Dear readers, I got mildly drunk from two pints of Guinness. I don't drink a great deal normally, but have been drinking very little alcohol recently. Partly it is because of my ankle (it's not a good idea to mix ibuprofen and alcohol: bad for kidneys), and mostly just because if I'm on my own, I don't tend to drink. I don't enjoy drinking alone.

I stumbled the several blocks home, remembering to get a bit of something to eat along the way (Subway, thank.you.). This prevented me from passing out in my bed at 8.30pm.

So. The rest of today will be spent going to a few places. *Inside* a few places. Tomorrow, I plan on going to one of the museums here. Again, inside. I've actually spent quite a bit of time walking around Belfast the last day and a half, so I think I've seen a fair bit of it. Well, the downtown-ish area, at least.

But I suppose being in the UK for over two weeks, without rain, is pretty noteworthy.

This is also the first place I've visited where it hasn't snowed immediately upon my arrival.

So there you go.

I am a NICE Irish lass

OK. Someone in Glasgow described it to me as a "rough" city. That may be true.

However, Belfast is a Tough City.

To wit: walking around after dark last night (but still early: pre-8pm), I heard lots of men angrily and aggressively swearing. Fighting in alleys? Drunken brawls with walls? Posturing? Who knows.

Then. I was walking towards my hostel and spied 3-4 teenage girls (15ish?) waiting to cross the street in front of me. I was looking at them, thinking (rather unkindly, but not specifically at them), that fashion sense among Northern UKers, especially that of teens and the early 20s crowd, really is awful. Too tight, cheap, weather-inappropriate clothing. It's like they're dressing solely to show as much skin (and cellulite) as possible, in a way that will entice guys to sleep with them. I saw a great deal of girls (esp in Glasgow) wearing tiny, tight mini-skirts, with no tights or pantyhose (6-8 degree Celsius weather!!!!!) and teetering heels. To say they looked this side of trashy, even when the clothes were not totally cheap, is an understatement.

Anyway. So one of these girls noticed my longer-than-momentary glance. She kept one eye on me, slid a second eye to one of her friends, and then when I was just past them, they quite aggressively yelled something like "Don't be looking at us!"

Now, I'm not often frightened, but I know that in this situation, I was either: one more look [at them] or three words from a fight with them. Were they posturing? Most definitely. Was, at least, the one girl spoiling for a fight? Quite possibly. Considering the odds (to refresh: 3-4:1) and the fact that I really didn't feel like getting in to it either verbally or physically, I just kept walking.

I'm just to relaxed and laid-back these days for stuff like this. I don't like worrying about the other people on the street after dark. I didn't when I was walking around Manhattan or Brooklyn after dark, and I don't feel I should here. But, such it is here.

This is still the UK, so taxis are expensive (but not as expensive as internet time here in Belfast -- towards $6 an hour!!). I will just confine most of my walking around until pre-nightfall.

I am a good Irish lass

Yes, dear readers, I am safely in Belfast. No sooner had I fallen asleep on the airplane did it start to land (it's only about a 40 minute ride from Glasgow to Belfast).

I went to Dublin in 1998, and it immediately felt like I was at home. I was instantly able to envision myself living there. Today, it doesn't feel much different in Belfast (though to be honest, I'm sure I'd still feel exactly the same way about Dublin).

When my shuttle bus from the airport was starting in to the city, it stopped at a red light. I looked out the window and saw an advertisment for building space for lease, by a company with my last name. My last name is Irish, as my bloodlines are mostly Scottish/Irish. It was really unusual to see, and also really cool. Seeing my last name (with the same spelling (mine is the most uncommon of the spellings), as there are variations of my last name which are spelled slightly differently) is as unusual for me as meeting someone with my name.

I am a good Irish lass and I'm very happy to be in Ireland -- well, Northern Ireland.

Now, time for a little walk and a stop in the pub for a pint of Pure, Unadulterated, [relatively] local Guinness. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm. Yummmmmmmm. Yipppeeeee!

A note about leisure

So, I had the lovely luxury of talking to a good friend on the phone yesterday. I was talking about my travelling, and mentioned how this trip, for me, is not about having a list of five places to see each day -- that it is about leisure. He chuckled. I think he found it an enviable thing.

Really, there are days when I'm lazy (is this a surprise, dear reader, after all those siestas in Buenos Aires???), and days when I'm not. It depends on the weather, my mood, the city and my feelings towards anyone I might spend the day with.

If it's Wednesday, it must be Belfast

Yes folks, Wednesday will see me on a flight to Belfast. Unfortunately, I will not be following this with a trip to Dublin. Hostel beds for that week are harder to find than four-leaf clovers. Alas.

That leaves me planning on visiting Manchester, post-Belfast. Manchester is supposed to be really cool, and they have plenty of beds available...

A Canadian I lunched with today described Glasgow as a working town. "It's a bit rough, but has a vibrant angle to it" is more or less what she said next. I think I've seen enough of Glasgow to agree. It's not really a city geared towards tourism, though heaven knows it wasn't easy to find a hostel bed here (three hostel booking websites, and three hours later...).

I actually find it rather interesting to visit someplace that isn't a Tourist Destination. I feel like I have more of an idea of what Glasgow is like, instead of just an idea of what Glasgow's Tourist Destinations are like. It's also nice to be somewhere that you don't feel the pressure of Doing Many Things In One Day. Here, it's easy and far more do-able to see one thing a day, and then just walk a little/take a nap/take it easy for the rest of the day. And not feel guilty about it!!

OK. Time to do a little of that walking around bit.

Ta.

Sunday, sunny Sunday

The weather is so beautiful. Still, not a drop of rain and the temperature is a little warmer.

Yipppeee!

Now, I have to research where I will go on Wednesday. I wanted to go to Belfast, then Dublin, but finding a bed in Dublin for the days I want to be there is rather difficult. I think maybe it's Spring break -- I don't have another idea for why the hostels would be so book in March.

I went to see the film Closer last night. Absolutely wonderful. If you have the chance, definitely go to see it. I adore Clive Owen, and his role is a lot meatier than most I've seen him in and he does a great job with the character. Natalie Portman is also really great: her role is a far cry from Queen Amidala.

Happy [UK] Mother's day to any mothers.

I just can't resist charity shops

I neglected to mention before that I bought another sweater today. £3. Lovely and it doesn't look like it was ever worn.

I am definitely going to the Post Office tomorrow and mailing some things home.

It was with Great Restraint that I did NOT walk in to the Oxfam today.

I can only go to a charity shop once every, say, three days...

I love UK charity shops!

I'll tell you how long...

The doctor says it may take another 4-5 WEEKS for my ankle to be 'normal'. I'd asked for x-rays, but she said my ankle was not still in a state of Accident or Emergency (FYI for you non-Brits, what Americans call the ER, Brits call A&E), and she didn't think I needed an x-ray. She gave me some exercises (which I've already been doing for nearly five weeks, because really, they seem pretty basic, thankyouverymuch) and sent me on my way. Really, she said I needed to spend some time in physiotherapy, but since I'm not here for long, she gave me the exercises.

I mentioned to the doc that there was a bone protruding further than it does in the same place on my left foot, and she felt it momentarily and dismissed my concern. She was a little brisk for my taste, though, it was nice to hear that my ankle was in a 'normal' state of recovery. Sprains like mine can take 6-10 weeks to heal. Egads. She also said that if I still had difficulties with my ankle after that period of time 'to visit your doctor at home'. Folks, this doesn't make me feel too confident about her assessment. But what can I do? It was free.

In all, I spent about 90 or so minutes for a mere one minute with the doctor. Though, this is Scotland and another home of socialized medicine, so the visit cost me nothing. But still.

Perhaps I will try for x-rays while I'm in Dublin.

Sorry for all the ongoing posts related to my ankle. It is really a major inconvenience, and the most pressing thing that I worry about (ok, I worry about money, too, since this in the UK, but you get the idea).

Which brings me to: Glasgow is an ok city. I don't really feel like I'm missing out on anything by not really doing much of anything other than the occasional short (usually food-acquisition-related) walk, or hopping the subway to go in to town to check my email. [note: this is also to give my ankle a break, so it's not just an extended fit of laziness.] I plan on going to the museum tomorrow, and maybe to a Cuban club in the evening. There's a Finnish girl in my hostel room, who's lived here for several months, and she shared her bi-weekly entertainment magazine with me. There are LOTS of clubs here, but apparently only one salsa club. Since dancing is an Extremely Bad Idea for me, I have no desire to go to a regular dance club.

If I am extremely foolish, I will take my dancing shoes with me. Though, I really doubt it -- I want the next 4-5 weeks to pass without further incident for my ankle.

If you know of anything particularly interesting to do or see in/around Glasgow, do send me an email and let me know.

In cool news, though, I had lunch at a place called Monster Mash today. The yummiest Shepherd's Pie I've ever eaten. [note for all you non-anglophiles: Mash is what is known as mashed potatoes.] The MM Monster Mash has chives in it...yum.

Lazy day

So. Have decided today will be a [relatively] lazy day. Seriously tweaked my ankle yesterday (when??! when??! when will it be better??!), and will spend most of today resting (there is a very nice 'day room' at the hostel). Tweaked the ankle while trying to find my hostel (I'd already checked in, so was not lugging bags) and getting massively lost. Really, this is not a story worth repeating, because it would be filled with expletives for people that do not know where something is, but continue to try and be helpful (thereby not being helpful) and give directions with an authority they do not have. Really now.

The city planning in Buenos Aires was remarkable -- the blocks were nearly all uniformly 100 meters, and laid out in an easy-to-follow grid. The streets in Glasgow, well, it's like someone got drunk and just got crazy planning the streets. Then again, I appear to be staying on quite a short street, at the top of a hill.

I still don't know how to get from the closest subway station to the hostel. But this morning, I figured out how to get there from the second closest subway station...

In any case, a Finnish girl in my hostel room says there really isn't a great deal of touristy things to see here. Unless you're "arty", in which case there are lots of galleries and shows and such. Perhaps this explains why so little is covered about Glasgow in my Rough Guide, and why I wasn't able to find much of anything in the tourist pamphlets at the train station. Though, there is plenty of shopping here... With great control, I restrain myself.

So. I will use this time to rest the ankle and do some writing. I will go to the museums and galleries this weekend.

Though, I want to walk. It's really a lovely day outside (blue sky, light breeze, not too cold).

So now I just hope this weather holds for a few more days.

Another pleasurable thing

If you've ever talked to someone [relatively recently] about cheap flights in Europe, you've heard of Ryainair.

For research and curiousity (yes, I'm in the UK now), I visited.

There is currently a special, whereby the flights are mostly £1 or less. Some are free. With airport tax, fares are maybe £14.

Even considering that my backpack currently weighs more than 15 kilos (roughly 19-20), it would still be cheaper for me to buy a whole lotta tickets now, instead of buying a Eurail pass.

Go Ryanair!

Everywhere I go: Snow

That is: falling snow. Every. Single. City. Though, it hasn't been sticking on the ground in London, Edinburgh or Glasgow. Thank heavens for small things, because remember folks, my only jacket is the jean jacket I've worn for the past couple years...

Haven't seen enough of Glasgow to have an opinion, really. The only thing I've noticed is that some places close really early (5pm). The bar I had lunch in (solid, not liquid) had a digital banner stating they were open until midnight on Friday. Like it was a really big deal...

Por favorrrrrr.

So. Bought a cheap-o pair of loafers, and if they are as comfortable as they felt in the store, then that means two pairs of shoes will be sent home (I will also be able to wear these shoes with skirts). More room in my backpack!!!!

Little things have the ability to please me greatly these days.