Faux finishes in Spain

I was visiting a friend in Toledo, Spain this summer and came across this building. It looks like brick from afar, but it's flat.

Blogging again

It's been a busy, golly, 8 months? I've had knee surgery, therapy, recovered, visited a few more countries (Spain, Argentina, S. Korea, Costa Rica). I'm now on my final journey for my 2009 Executive Plat. journey. 100k miles on the way home to Chicago on Friday.

I think I'll take a new path for the website. Instead of attempting to chronicle the travels day by day (check out China 2008), I'll try to pick a few stories from the past 8 months, upload the photos and share.

I expect the stories to be somewhere between a tamed down for public image of a fraternity guy's weekend recap.

Welcome back to reading, I'll get posting,

Dave Matthews
International Transient

Telecommuting from Toledo...

Sitting on a picnic table, between an ivy covered castle, looking down on the valley and a river below...I sit with my laptop and cell phone. Skype is forwarding the calls from the states. I'm using remote desktop on my home computer via a VPN (www.dd-wrt.com) on my hacked linksys router. Awesome.

Traffic Maps in NW Indiana

http://pws.indot.org/ipws/nw/index.html#

A page with camera images from traffic spots in NW Indiana, along interstate 80-90. Cool!

Video Not Available in Your Country

Thanks Youtube…I love the Lebanese censors!

Lost Passport!

I can’t find my money belt or passport. I had them last night, can’t find them this morning. Bo left earlier with her group, perhaps they are in her purse. The folks at the hostel and I have checked all over, turned the room upside down, literally (it was quite impressive, but we had to put it back before Guiness could verify).

Tripoli

I'm alive more, i'm in Tripoli

I’m in Tripoli!

The city founded by 3 city-states way back in the day. Formed as the center of the Phoencian confederacy.

I drove up with a couchsurfer I met earlier today. It was fun, we have great conversation and enjoyed some shwarma while watching Obama speak. This is exciting.

Mari guided me to this lovely pension, with a dozen rooms and 1 (?) bathroom. The old ladies who run it remind me of my great grandma and great-great aunts. The house is full of stuff, with cotton doilies/covers on most of the items (tins, etc..), blankets over the wood stuff, pictures of saints decorating the walls. It’s a treat.

I get a car

Today I am alive.

Last night I reserved a car, today I picked up my Toyota Yaris, 5 speed. It’s tiny, cheap ($115 for 5 days). Driving through the streets of Beirut are better then F1 racing. There are almost no mandatory stops, its whoever is going is going when intersections arise. The cars drive fast, my car is tiny, like a go-kart, and has enough umph to put me beyond my adrenaline rush curve in the “I’m following traffic, well at least these three cars up hill, against traffic, on a one way street” and still feel safe.

It is ridiculous. I love it.

I'm sick. bad.

The fever is intense, my head is throbbing. I’m shaking, cold, sniffling, suppressing my coughs. I’ve had the runs for a couple days. I go them in Cairo, I think from Hardees…Possibly the place I ate new years.

The tiny single I have has no heat, and my cold is now a fever. I fasted for about a day…ate dinner tonight.

Now I feel like I’m dying. I hate anti-biotics, I’ve not taken any since pledging ATO when I was so sick from sleeping on the floor in tote’s room with a draft during winter. I actually loved the day after feeling of being on them. But I hate being so sick I should take them. My doctor (thanks) sent me off with 10 ‘travelers diaria pills’ I probably should of taken them earlier. Now I feel like I’m dying. I don’t like anti-biotics. I want my body to develop the antibodies it needs, and let all the other stuff be inside me ignored and not leaving any space for stuff that can hurt me… *sigh*

Driving to Baalbeck

Ancient city of Baalbeck

CS meetup in Beirut!

Bo and I looking good.

CSers visiting from England

A walk around Beruit

This building has seen better days.

Artillery damage

Similar to building above, but renovated.

A park.

Did eating here make me ill?

Beirut

Cairo's Spice Market (12/30/08 1:40pm)

Wondering around, looking for thread/yarn (it’s very inexpensive in this region, and seems to be one of the few ‘legitimate’ made goods we can easily purchase).

A propositioning guy shows up, leads us to where we can shop for thread, then spices, then artwork, and decorative boxes. He gets a commission from the pieces, but also led us to spots we probably would not of visited.

I had my doubts about the guy in the ‘factory’ making the boxes. Bo thinks it’s legit, but I think it’s a ruse. The guy leading us around was on his cell phone, and I can see how they have this ‘factory’ shop setup to move merchandise from China and claim it’s made here locally. Perhaps it is, I’m not sure. The boxes are of very good quality though, and I’ll get some good use from my eye glass case.

We also picked up some Saffron for $0.36/gram, and some other spices. Bo and Brad (I rang him) say it is really expensive in the states.

It was a fun day of things, and at the end, we got taken at a restraint by our guide. The three of us ate, and it was 120 Egyptian pounds…or $22. Ouch. I’m sure he’ll get a kick back on that one. We tipped him anyway, and now we are off to rest and then celebrate NYE2009!

My and Sarid, the papyrus painter (as mentioned in Lonely Planet)

The shop where the boxes are crafted.

Sarid's gallery.

Bo lost her ring (12/29/08 6pm)

After the pyramid and camel tours we headed over to an internet café. It’s quite impressive how the owner knocked the kid in the closest computer away. This same kid did a quick alt tab to hide the lingerie photos he was viewing; This was the closest thing to porn I’ve seen during our trip.

Bo had a conference call to make, so we setup the computer, Skype’d in, I checked e-mail, and then we were off to a laser light show on the pyramids.

It was a lot of fun, though a bit chilly as we were dressed for the desert sun, and not the desert night.

After the show, we hopped in a cab, and then realized Bo lost her emerald ring I purchased for her in Colombia!

We debated a bit, bo said she hoped it was in her purse. I wanted to go back and look…it’d just cost $2 in cab fair to check. I whipped out the trusty 3 LED flashlight my dad gave me for my birthday, and we walked through security. Back to the spot we were sitting, and voila! Glimmering on the concrete, her little silver emerald solitaire. We wore large grins on the way out, and the security folks were are very pleased we found it.

Camel tours...buyer be ware (12/29/08 12:59pm)

We walk into the Pyramid area, and are instantly approached by a man. He says it’s free, no charge, invites us over to see the pyramids, and he takes photo. We are skeptical, but there is a younger boy sitting not to far away, he says “It’s ok, he’s there by the government” so we proceed cautiously. He asks us if we want to take a camel ride (ah, this is how he’ll make his money). Then we negotiate, from way lots of money , down to 150 E.P each.

The kid from before, who said “it’s ok to go with him, he’s with the gov’t” is now our tour guide. Quite the team effort!

The Valley of the Kings!!! (12/29/08 12:03pm)

Wooooooooohooooooooooooo!

Ridding a camel!

Walking up and around the Great Pyramid (I wrote a junior topic based research paper on this in 11^th grade)!!

Photos…. :)

I'm huge!

I rode through the desert on a camel named Moses (or Micky Mouse)...

I wonder who is doing more work... the boy or the camel.