***Day 9 - June 10-12, 2012****

....AND the adventure continues....when we last left off, I was debating whether to stick around Oslo for a time, or return to Sweden to visit my travel friend again, who is a professor at the University in Gothenburg. In the end, I didn't revisit Sweden, instead choosing to spend a full three days in Norway. Although EXTREMELY expensive, the mood couldn't be dampened, and I found Oslo to be one of the more beautiful and entertaining cities I've visited. I was impressed with the cleanliness of the environment and attitude of the populace. I found the people, locals and visitors alike, to be outgoing and welcoming.
I met a nice group and Aussie travelers and a pair of Swedish girls working in Norway, as well as an expat American girl also working there. I spent most of my time with these new friends. Along with being fun, my "local" friends paid off, and I secured free lodging for two nights of my stay. The two Swedish girls work in the service industry. They guaranteed employment to me if I ever made it back to Oslo. This is something I may consider during the Summer months one year, as wages in Norway border the absurd. A waiter makes $25 USD an hour plus 5-10% in tips! I could get a working visa fairly easily before I turn 30. It would be a nice way to pass some time...sooo, maybe one day...
Norwegian costs were steep though. I quickly became accustomed to paying upwards of $20 per meal; and apparently there is no such thing as a beer for less than $10! The free lodging really helped in this matter. With Norway out of the way however, the rest of my trip should feel pretty cheap, relatively. Norway is also famous for its odd hours. This time of year, Oslo receives about 3 hours of darkness each night. The sun doesn't fully set until around midnight, and it begins to rise again at 3am. My first two nights of partying with my new friends allowed me the opportunity to see this spectacle. The downside, however, is the winter time sees the same situation, but reversed! This is way too many hours of darkness, and not an ideal situation if you ask me.
Now I find myself in Brussels, Belgium, via a Ryan Air "special" from Oslo, where my life adventure has led me to cross paths with probably the greatest "travel friend" I ever made....
Day 12 June 13, 2012
In August 2010, I was wrapping up the most epic adventure to that point in my life. The previous 4 months journey had taken me to the lands of Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Africa, and finally the Middle East. It was here, at a bus stop in Sharm El Shiek, Egypt, where I first sighted Kristen. Before we ever spoke, I saw something in her that was missing in my life. I thought to myself, why is it I cannot find someone like this to travel with me, to be with? Clearly, she was an adventurous spirit traveling through the Middle East. And she was so beautiful, my heart leapt at the first sight of her. We spoke only briefly this first encounter, but I was already taken. We both were heading North to Dahab, so I hoped we may run into each other again. The following day, luck struck while I was at a market store picking up rehydration salts to cope with the desert conditions. When we met this time, oddly, I was in need of change for my purchase since the store was dry. I asked Kristen about this, but she had nothing to offer either. This visit was shorter than our first, and by the time I stepped next door to find the change I needed, the one who would change everything was walking away. She was gone, and I thought to myself, that was it.
Two days later, I was crossing the Egyptian - Israeli border on my way to Israel....It had been a whirlwind 4 days. I had traveled from Zanzibar to Dar es Salaam,Tanzania, and flown to Kenya, spending a night in Nairobi, then onwards to Cairo, landing at 2am. I proceeded to finish that night off with an overnight bus trip to Alexandria, the city founded by Alexander the Great, where I spent the following afternoon, even going so far as spending for a hotel. But in the end, I was satisfied with the city's greatness for only an afternoon. I boarded yet another night bus, my second in as many days, and took off for the Sinai peninsula's most southern tip, Sharm El Shiek.
It was under these conditions, and in the state of mind I was experiencing at that time, that Kristen and I first passed. Now, two brief encounters and two touching moments had been shared between us. But several days and hundreds of kilometers now separated us. I spent the following night hiking up Mt. Sinai, and on no sleep, I descended the biblical relic, followed down a dusty path, and made my way, bags and all, to a desolate intersection, inhabited by a simple shack, and a half dozen Egyptian Security Police. It was here I sat, silently waiting my next next transport. After only several attempts at a hitchhike, I struck beginners luck and had a ride in no time. An affable couple gave me a lift, one Egyptian male, and a heavier, delightful Hungarian blonde. They escorted me all the way to the boarder, stopping several times for a series of photos, which of course they wanted me apart of. All in all, we made friends, and it was an exciting trip to the northern tip of the Red Sea, as I prepared to enter the under belly of the Holy Land.
It was on this border crossing where Kristen and I stumbled on each other yet again, for the third time. This meeting came only days after a rocket attack in the region had flown from the Sinai Peninsula, over the city of Eilat in Israel, and into a parked car residing in Aqaba, Jordan. Upon our arrival at the border however, you would have never noticed a thing was wrong. I had arrived via hitchhike, and her by private car, for another completely random meeting. By this time, I knew there was something about this girl, and there certainly was.
She walked up on the Egyptian side, carrying the same chess set, a gift for her father, that she had that fateful day we met in Sharm. It was this powerful meeting, that came subsequent to the brief series of chance meetings, which would lead to a fourth visit in Jerusalem 5 days later. Our time together in Jerusalem cemented the feelings I had for a girl I had known just over a week. This final encounter in the Middle East led to a relationship worth dozens of visits to meet each other, spanning three continents, six countries, multiple regions of America, and two years of my life.
Day 13 - June 14, 2012
It was this friend whom I met in Brussels, and later continued on with to Amsterdam. I had mixed emotions for this part of the trip. On one end, I felt sadness over certain aspects of our recent friendship, as we have had our differences, and distance, lately. But I was optimistic, and saw it as a chance to spend time abroad with an energetic friend who I had traveled with before, and someone I had come to enjoy in my life. Maybe too, I saw it is a chance to re-discover each other, and find again what we once had.
Fun is always a good recipe for the soul, whether with new friends or old. On this trip I had already visited friends from many of my past travels (as noted in earlier entries). So this was the natural course...
Any time in Amsterdam should be a fun time, and this wasn't any different. Although I've matured since my earlier years on previous trips, I still have a good time throwing back a few beers and overseeing the spectacle in the streets. Together, we did this. From a fun night in Brussels, we traveled along to the Netherlands and joined the fray for a Euro Cup match pairing Holland vs. Germany. We watched the match in the party Heart of Amsterdam in Leidsplein. The crowd was raucous and full of energy, it was a good scene. Disappointingly, the crowd lost steam as we didn't get the victory we were looking for. Sometimes things don't work out the way we want them to. Learning to accept this is a life lesson we should all be taught. But the fun was good, and it brought back memories of my trips past; from my previous trips to Amsterdam, to earlier journeys with Kristen. But this visit was leaving its mark too, it was simplifying things and making matters clear.
But the visit wasn't over yet, and with 36 hours remaining, a lot could still go wrong. So it goes in Amsterdam...
Day 14 - June 15, 2012
Amsterdam Day 3, will always be remembered as the day I was forced to move on. Since early January I have been trying to shake certain feelings, but it is seemingly impossible to remove a woman from one's thoughts while she still captivates your heart. I am forced now to face that situation and understand we were something that was not meant to be, and I must move on. Letting go of someone is sometimes the hardest decision to make in life. When these decisions are out of your control, it makes things even more difficult. Even the greatest of travel romances must have their end point, and sadly, ours ended in January, after a year and a half together. Closure is something I sometimes struggle with, but peace can be found now. In the end, we had too many differences to sustain a relationship. We will always have the times spent together in common, and that I can appreciate, and smile about :)
Day 16, June 17, 2012
The Amsterdam days are in the books and the journey continues. I have a few days in and around Gent, Belgium, where I am headed via a train through Antwerpen.
The last days in Amsterdam were not uneventful. I had arguably my most memorable afternoon and evening ever on the town. After parting ways with my old friend for what was supposed to be the last time, I dejectedly returned to my hostel. Here, I made the acquaintance of an unusual friend who would change the course of the evenings events.
Thomas Berg, is not unlike me. The Swedish punk is straight out of the "Vicious Rumors" scene. Smack in the center of the movement, with the skins, the punks, and the like from skid row. He has tattoos, piercings in his nose, ears, and who knows where else, and he had a studded jean jacket to match. So maybe he is a little unlike me, but, Thomas is a family man, good natured, a strong heart, and a love for good ole fashion Punk music. We share the age of 27, but our differences are obvious. Our appearance, our upbringing, our current living standard, all differ drastically. We have had two different paths thus far in life, and two different stories to tell. But during the last of my dog days in Amsterdam, Thomas and I crossed paths, and we formed an unlikely duo, a necessary tandem to take on the town. We had good natured mayhem and revelry all night, on what was likely my most memorable night in Amsterdam from 4 previous trips. We shot across the city in search of the "Maloe Melo" music venue which was hosting "Vicious Rumors" that evening. I mingled with the tough crowd from the European Punk scene, and was even second row for the show. The audience had a rough dancing style, and the sounds of glass shattering was as audible as the band. But simply put, I had fun! I wasn't as out of place either as I had imagined I would be. Even with my lack of tattoos and piercings, my mainstream American education and career, I was right in the mix with my shagging beard and energetic spirit. It certainly was an evening never to be forgotten.
Thomas and I roamed Amsterdam for more than a day after that, sharing stories and moments. He had recently gone through a divorce and his new child was his life now. On the surface he seems content with his situation, but there is apparent unrest in his soul. Masked behind his rugged exterior, his studded jacket, pierced nose and tattoos, is a good man in search of something. He knows there's more out there in life, and he's looking for it. We are both looking for something, and I wish him well in his journey. I hope we cross paths again one day, and I will look forward to that moment.
I am now headed for Belgium and will be there for a few days to recuperate, before beginning the second phase of this Mission. In two days time, I will board a flight headed for Cyprus, and spread my wings east bound to Lebanon. The Middle East awaits!!!
Day 18 - June 19, 2012
The past two and a half days have provided me with the much needed rest to reinvigorate myself for the upcoming sojourn back to the Middle East.
At the onset of this trip, I visited my Argentine friend, Lupe, at her residence, while working on her P.H.D at Yale in Political Science. Lupe's roommate, whom I also met, has a boyfriend working on his Masters in Political Science, also at Yale. This Summer however, he is doing on site field research for his thesis on the Belgian political environment, focusing on political interest levels of the migrant population in Gent.
I spent my last two nights in Europe with this new friend, and was introduced to an array of his network of friends living/working/studying in Gent. Brian is a very interesting guy, and he speaks no fewer than 6 languages. His intellect is obvious. During my short stay, I developed a new inspiration to learn a second language, and I talked with him at length about his strategy for fluency. Languages are a long road, but so is life, and I may take up the challenge. I also learned a few things about Belgian politics, and the system in place here. The consensus, I determined, is like most countries, flaws are present, and adjustments/upgrades are needed to adapt to modernity. I look forward to hearing more about the research and surveys he was conducting and see the kinds of results he uncovered. I have a new found appreciation for Acadamia and the life it offers.
I also had several interesting talks with Brian's roommate, Wouter, the young Belgian philosopher studying in that program at the University in Gent. Like Brian, Wouter's intelligence is apparent. I would have liked to pick their minds for several more days, as both had plenty of information to share. They did put me on to several good books to expand my knowledge, one of which I have already began reading in preparation of my Middle East journey. "Orientalism", is the controversial book by Edward Said that looks into the false assumptions underlying Western attitudes toward the East. I think this book will shape some of my own attitudes and understanding of the region, which combined with this visit and further readings, I hope to depart with a greater connection and tolerance of the area. I pride myself on being an open minded individual, and having the ability to see points of view from differing perspectives. This journey, these books, and the experiences to follow are another step in that pursuit.
I like to take a little of life's knowledge from every soul I meet. If I can do that, I feel satisfied having met a person or had a particular experience. The people I met in Gent certainly filled that requirement. I hope to cross paths with them in the future, and I don't doubt that I will. For now, however, I am on another mission. In a few short hours I will begin the long walk to the train station, which will carry me to the airport in Brussels, which will take me to the island of Cyprus, from where I will sleep at the airport, and continue the next morning at 7:00am sharp to arrive early tomorrow in the hot and humid city of Beirut, Lebanon. Let Part 2 of this Epic Journey begin!!!