Jason F Maurer

We all don’t get to go places that we dream of as a child very often. I remember as a child hearing about Pompeii and the amazing story of its destruction. I became fascinated by it. I remember going to the library and reading books and looking for pictures of it. I remember seeing National Geographic specials on it and being spell bound. Here was a place that was frozen in time for us to see – it was the closest thing to time travel yet. 

As tired as I was – I was still eager and excited about this days journey. I got up wicked early, and hopped a train to Pompeii – about a 2 hour ride or so. When I got to the tiny station I grabbed a taxi to the ruins to begin my exploration. It was hot in the sun about 93 degrees, but there was a slight breeze and the shade was inviting and cool. Unfortunately there isn’t a lot of shade in the ruins of Pompeii-but I managed to find spots here and there. The water from the fountains there was clean, clear and cool and while I was used to drinking from it-there were several people who looked at me like I was about to consume the plague-silly Americans and their chi chi water.

As I walked through the ruins -they were so well preserved that it felt like I was strolling down the street of some small village. I say small but the ruins of Pompeii are anything but small. It is a vast network of buildings and streets that cover an area of 1 or 2 miles, if not more. The conservation of the place is very well tended. They are constantly fixing, repairing and opening new areas for public view. For me the greatest moment was when I was standing in front of a 2000 year old fresco and I forgot that it was that old. It looked like someone had just painted last year. I started thinking about the people of Pompeii, who lived in these places, who painted the frescos, who chipped in the graffiti in the stone, what drunken roman pissed off the sidewalk I was walking on, what pair of lovers embraced in that alley way. 

While Rome has age to it, Pompeii is age. You walk its streets, stroll through the buildings and you feel its age. It creeps into your soul as you walk through it. You begin to feel the ghosts of the place, too see the ancient people laughing, crying, screaming, fighting, dying and you shudder. It is a quiet place, not spooky, but it is a vast graveyard dedicated to an ancient people who obviously loved life and lived it fully. We are lucky to have such a window into the past and to be able to reflect on it. 

It is interesting how much and how little we have changed in 2000 years.

Here’s the phot0s-

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Rome was a grand disappointment for me. I was expecting so much and got only a little. I had built up the ancientness of this city to such great heights in my mind that it paled in comparison to my imagination. My initial impressions were not favorable in the least – dirty, foul, hot, crusty, rude, smelly, expensive…

My opinions change slightly as my time spent there increased but the feelings of dirty and rude never went away. Rome simply did not hold a candle to Paris. Like any big city I expected lots of people and a certain amount of debris, clutter, etc. I’ve been to New York, Chicago, L.A., Paris and Tokyo (the cleanest I’ve ever seen a city) but Rome was a bloody cesspool. Maybe I just was there on a bad week… ha… maybe.

As for my activities while staying in the ancient city well. Then first two days I was dead broke, so I just walked around and saw the “free” monuments and buildings. I trekked through the heat in pants, sat at the coliseum which was really cool, was unimpressed at the ancient center ruins and walked through the tomb of the unknown soldier simply to get out of the heat. This was a pleasant surprise actually as it was free and it had a lot of Italian war history all through it. Really what was the most impressive was the churches. I must have walked through 10 to 15 or so amazingly beautiful churches, basilicas, etc. while in Rome. While I was in awe of the skill of craftsmanship and artistry I was in utter disgust at the avarice of the catholic church and the need of the popes to “preserve their memory”.

While some of the most beautiful and amazing works of art -the Pieta or the Sistine chapel to mention just two – were commissioned by the popes I wonder how many people starved while the cardinals sat on gold leafed chairs awaiting their dinners or how many people went homeless because cardinals had to sleep in extreme elegance. It was a real re-affirmation to me of the horrors of organized religion and how specifically the Catholic church has used its followers for its own betterment. That being said I am a true fan of the francsican order and of all the catholics these guys are really following their beliefs… Just one of the many reasons I’m a shamanist and not a catholic.

My tour of the Vatican museum concluded with a walk in the Sistine chapel. Now they say no photography, no cameras, no flash and no talking while in the chapel. I know what your probably thinking this is Jason we are talking about here, for sure he’ll sneak a photo and chatter away… right… Hey I’m not catholic but I’m also not a rude, disrespectful ass monkey-like 80% of the other people who were in the chapel that day. I was utterly amazed at the shear audacity of the people around me – most of which I might add were NOT Americans, but Germans and Italians. Clicking away, flashes slowly destroying their own national treasure. I stood there appalled wanting to take pictures of the people taking pictures just to make some statement – instead I refrained and choose to write about it instead.

What I do not understand is how people can be so truly clueless, insensitive and utterly moronic about viewing art. I watched numerous people walk into a room holding video cameras scan the room with the camera and walk out. As if the reproduction on their camera was going to be enough to absorb the fine brush work of a mannerist painting or the subtle details of the cracks in a statues fingernails. Then there was the use of flash – are they thinking that oh one little flash couldn’t possibly hurt that painting… its not just one you dolt… but hundreds of thousands. Here the Americans were as guilty as the rest of the tourists. It infuriated me so much once I actually said something to a woman.

Jason – Um ma’am you know that your flash is destroying that painting?

Lady – Really? Oh my… I didn’t know.

Jason – Well they post signs. Do you know how to turn your flash off?

Lady (slightly embarrassed) – uh… well no not really…

Jason -  here let me show you…

Then I proceeded to show her how to use her bloody camera, after which she promptly thanked me and left the room.  What else was I too do? I had had it with all these camera drones and their insensate clicking and flashing. Why couldn’t they just sit and look at the art?

And then it hit me… because they didn’t know how, they didn’t understand the process, they saw it just like they saw the rest of the “stops” on their tour… just one more thing to get on the check list, just one more digital photo to put up on their blog or facebook. Just like the Mona Lisa in France. I was just as guilty – I had had an agenda as well. I had made a list, I ignored things in favor of other “better” things, I had taken tons of photos. I had forgotten to just be – to as we say enjoy the tree.

Well I vowed that the remaining 2 days I had left I was going to just be and absorb and sure enough the last two days were great. One of the high lights of Rome for me was a really amazing street artist whom painted pictures in spray paint in like 2 to 3 minutes. Her process was very impressive and while not very healthy definitely amazing to watch. I was so impressed by it that I went back the next day and bought one of her pieces to remind me to always explore process, which ironically was one of the reasons I was in Europe to begin with. How appropriate.

The last stop on my journey in Europe was to be Pompeii – and it was on my last full day of travel. I was determined to not let the speed tourist take over. I was going to live and breathe Pompeii. It turned out to be one of the most moving experiences of my life…

Here’s the photos…

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What types of images do the words hungry and poor conjure up in your mind? For me it is Florence, which is ironic as the city is usually associated with good food and wealth. Well this tourist was broke, stone cold busted broke. So broke in fact I almost broke out my harmonica and started to play for money-when I saw the local policia take another American/Canadian away for doing the same thing but with a guitar. While other people – whom were obviously Italian – were playing right along nearby. Good ole corruption at work…

Florence was beautiful, the Ufitizi museum was stunning – from the outside. Yeah I couldn’t afford to go inside, not if I wanted to eat my meager meal of pasta and hard bread. I’ll tell you this much – the french can make some wicked good bread, but the Italians… not so much. I was not impressed with any of the bread I had in Italy – not one loaf. Now their cheese, pasta and meats  different story, but their bread flat out stank.

So I did what I could – I took pictures. I watched people. I strolled through the town and watched the rich tourists eating their overpriced meals. I drooled over gellato that I couldn’t afford to eat, as I took another mouthful of trail mix. I stared in gastronomical wonderment as a chef slowly shaved off slices of a beautiful ham in a window kitchen. It was a real exercise in what it meant to be hungry. I was trapped. All I could do was stare, watch and imagine. I had no credit cards. I had no reserve moneys. I was truly stuck. It was soul crushing.

This very minor little taste of being destitute or homeless has given me a totally new appreciation for homeless people and what they go through every day. No one deserves to experience even a tenth of what I went through and what I went through was trival in comparision to what the homeless of the world go through. To be denied the joy of food, the pleasure of a good meal – hell even just clean basic food is a right unjust and terrible thing.

Next time you are walking back from a restaurant with a dogie bag and you see a homeless person – don’t wait for him or her to ask for money – just give them the food and walk away. Or start carrying cliff bars with you or an apple and when a homeless guy asks you for money – give them the food…. cuz man I can tell you I would have taken just such a hand out in Florence had someone offered it…

Here’s your photos…

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Well leaving France was a bit sad actually. I knew that I was now at the halfway mark, I was gonna be low on cash thanks to good ole Eurail-but I was optimistic about the journey ahead. I had never taken a sleeper car on a train before and I was excited. Due to the previous nights indulgences I was a bit slow to rise and missed breakfast and ran out of the b&b with my pack barely on as Steve hustled me to the station.

Nothing like sitting in a train station hung over in France… HA. I napped a bit, a drew a little but mostly I waited and reflected on the trip so far. Italy was next, France was behind me now. I hoped that all my photos were intact and that I would be able to find a computer while in Italy.

The train ride to Paris was sleepy and rainy and the switch to the train for Milan was a piece of cake – a bit of stop hopping but nothing that a seasoned traveler such as myself couldn’t handle. Thank you Tokyo metro for teaching me the ins and outs of insane subway systems.

My bunk mate for the journey was an elderly British Gentlemen who was very nice and well traveled. We had a brief discussion and then he left for dinner and I passed out hard. I woke up promptly at 5:30 for my stop and got off the train and stepped into Italy for the first time. My very first impression was hot, smelly, humid, dirty and dis-organized – and come to find out I was going to be in for more of the same impression in every big city I visited. I was shocked at the utter disregard for cleanliness – man New York and Paris are dirty but Milan, Florence and Rome were disgusting but more on that later…

My train ride to Cinque Terre – more specifically Riomaggiore was comfortable. I got there hiked up the bloody hill thinking I was going the right way, which I wasn’t. I say hill I mean 30 degree slope 1/2 mile before turning around and finding out I went the wrong way. Nice. After I got me the proper directions I found my hostel, got checked in and went set up my day pack for exploring. Always being the eager little hiker that I am I managed to hike the entire route on my first day…. and man… let me tell you what. It was one of the hardest hikes I’ve ever done. I swear I must have climbed 5000 stairs of winding trail that were at times at like a 45 degree to 65 degree incline with my 25 lb day pack on.

After my ardeous hike I managed to meet up with some of my roomates and we all went and had drinks and dinner on the rocks by the sea wall. We formed a really tight group of people (whom you will see pictured below on a bridge) and over the next 2 days really got to know each other and had just a blast. My experience in Cinque Terre would not have been the same without these guys! So we all decided to do the full trail tomorrow – for me it was AGAIN, but hey I’m a glutton for punishment, and punishment it was. I pushed it too hard and managed to blow my knee out. Luckily not too bad and I managed to stroll my way back.

The rest of the time there was spent, relaxing, swimming at the beach and the last night was a down right wicked party. Wine being super cheap we all managed to have blow out that last night. I ended up dancing samba with a bunch of crazy drunk Germans on someones private terrace till like 4am…

In the end Cinque Terre and the people I met there changed my initial opinion of Italy. It was beautiful, idealic and the local people were friendly, warm and cared about their town. It was old, but not dirty-inviting but not overbearing-cozy but not cramped.

From here it was on to Florence for a day and then Rome with a day trip to Pompeii. The crazy thing was – I was going to have to survive in Florence and 2 days of Rome on something like 30 euros…

Here’s the shots form Cinque Terre, hope ya like ‘em!

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Well I made it to St. Marcan to stay at the nicest most comfy bed breakfast ever! My host and hostess,Steve and Liz, were simply wonderful and actually picked me up at the train station and brought me to the inn! Before I get into my day and evening I just want to mention that this little village of St. Marcan is an undiscovered spot. The bed and breakfast which can be found here is simply a slice of heaven. The two days I spent with them were restful and delightful. I would HIGHLY recommend this place should you be traveling to france. In the village there is an amazing pub owned by a older british gent named Kevin – who is a right funny bastard- called the Oystercatcher, which is quaint, fun, lively, and just to die for. He serves a wicked curry chicken that I still have a dreams about in the states.

Rural people are the same everywhere – warm, inviting, genuine. There must be something about living in large confined spaces that makes people turn into raving assholes. I experienced a really great inviting time from all the locals of St. Marcan – there was Nick the chef his girlfriend Melissa, and Michael the farmer, whom got me plastered on a drink called Richard – which is poured into a small glass and then water is added to cut the taste. It takes alot like licorice, and packs a serious whollop! You have been warned. Maybe those two bottles or Bordeaux didn’t help either. : )

Mont Saint-Michel was all I could have hoped for and so much more. Since a child I have dreamed of seeing this place. It has been in and out of my dreams for years. It was a real magical experience for me to be there – I count myself lucky because it rained three times while I was there and it even hailed! It was so amazing to see the storms and rain roll in across the marsh and the bay. The wind was constantly tearing through the trees as if to welcome me to the mont. It wasn’t too crowded overall and I climbed all over the place. I spent probably a full eight hours exploring the abbey and the town. I got to see a mass at the abbey – not that I’m christian but it was still cool to hear the choir and the french and latin being spoken in such an ancient space. 

Well enough talk heres what you’ve been waiting for… the pictures!

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Today I was to leave Paris and in a show of emotion response the city cried. Yep tears of unbridaled saddness poured down on my as I humped my pack to the train station. Good thing I brought my rain gear -cuz man I needed it. It started off soft – turned into a downpour and went back to drizzle. As I made my way to the train station I realized that the catacombs were right next to the station I needed to leave from and that I was going to have about 3 hours to kill before my train… someone was looking out for me that is for sure! 

So I put my backpack in a storage locker and grabbed my photo gear and went to tour the catacombs! Even in the rain there was a cue(line) out the doorway about 2oo yards long, but it went pretty fast all in all. I probably stood in line about 1/2 hour tops before I got inside. And it was totally worth the wait. 

I’d heard stories about this place and was very anxious about seeing it. I decended a ton of steps something like one hundred or so… so it was pretty deep underground. The space was dark, lit by the occasional lamp and pretty cramped for me. Good thing I’m not freaked out by tight spaces.  I didn’t really see the bones until I had hiked a good quarter of the way in – but when they showed up there was no denying them their impact. 

Thousands upon thousands of people. It was simply haunting. The thought kept running through my head – this was once a person, and this one and this one. I was walking through a tunnel full of the remains of thousands of beings whom had once breathed the same air I do, enjoyed the same wine, laughed at a friends jokes, kissed a beautiful woman… it became overwhelming the longer I walked. It last for almost a full mile or two. Row upon row. Wall upon wall. Skulls and bones… the remains of a vast buried army. It was extremely intense and vastly humbling. 

I came through that tunnel as if being birthed – screaming and terrified of the new air. Cold in this new, bright world -changed by that simple mile. Altered by those empty bones-I know now how fragile and utterly similar we all are in life as in death. It would be an understatement to say that this walk did not shift something in my core and affect me to this day. You’d have to be an utter simpleton or a soulless bastard to not have it affect you. 

After this rainy, damp encounter with the dead I spent the next few hours on a train to Dol – where my kind bed and breakfast owners picked me up at the station and took me to a little slice of heaven. More on that next post… 

For now here are some photos of my catacomb journey…

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Today started as the day from hell. I for some reason was unable to remember a damn thing and had to go back three times to the hostel because I forgot things I needed. Then the kiss of death I went to make my train reservations at the local ticket office for my trip to southern france. Well from what I understood BEFORE going into the office I could make a reservation up to 5 minutes before a train leaves… so I figured two full days in advance, shouldn’t be a problem… Oops. So sorry but nope.

To start my ticket agent spoke no english, and her manager spoke a little so we haggled it out. They were nice people, but I after much review on the subject over the past weeks I have determined I got screwed. I ended up having to pay for an overnight train from Paris to milan italy, which stacked out at 131 euros. She told me that no trains were going to Nice or anywhere near Nice that would get me to Genova (my italian destination) on time or even close. That all the trains were booked, no seats left. I was pretty upset. So come to find out later that the Eurail pass only has a limited number of seats reserved on each high speed train and that once those fill up they do not allow any overages, as a EU citizen may need it. So odds are that train to Nice was half empty and I couldn’t ride it. So in my frustration I paid for a ticket that I probably didn’t need to pay for… I should have asked her or rather she should have suggested that I try taking the regional train routes, which I don’t need a reservation for using the pass. Granted it would have taken longer – much – much longer… but it would have been FREE!

So I guess this is a word of advice to all travelers out there – I thought I had it covered with the Eurail pass – guess what I didn’t. It is great for regional travel, which I had no trouble with at all -but with high speed trains or overnighters… book that reservation early. Now the irony of this is that it defeats the entire purpose of the pass itself. The pass is/was designed to allow for maximum freedom of travel across Europe, but with this limit on reservations for pass holders it pretty much kills the flexibility of it. No longer can you simply just hope a train to paris to nice… oh no… better book that shit ahead of time. So I guess had I been a little smarter  about their system and less frustrated I might have saved myself days of hunger and a harder trip in Italy.

Ok so after recovering from burning money I worked my way over to Notre Dame again because I wanted to climb the tower, for which there is a fee – this one I got in for free with my ID… and this was the ONLY one out of all the attractions I tried in Europe to get me in with a discount or for free with my ITSC ID – so frankly it was a waste of money. Before the climb I sat down and scribble my angst out in my journal while being surrounded by elementary school kids – there were like a thousand of them come to see the catherdral. It was funny but I couldn’t stay angry not being surrounded by these kids all eager and happy, all wanting to go see the church. Some were drawing, some were trying to find important things about the church running here and there. It got me thinking how wonderful it must be to grow up in a place where the appreciation for art and history is so important. Where an afternoon in the park with friends sharing wine and laughter is welcomed. Where embracing your lover as you walk along the street is respected, encouraged and open. They are really lucky to have such an environment, it was inspiring and refreshing to me to see.

So with a fresher perspective it was 387 steps up and down in a tight spirally staircase for me -up the tower to find the hunchback. Lucky for us that they broke it up into multiple stages so it was easier on you and you got to see different sections of the tower. Talk about wicked high up and what a view… wow… really great. I’m so very glad I did it. After the tower I started off to see San Chapelle, and gave up due to exhaustion, hunger and back pain. I made my way back to the hostel to simply relax – been running really hard and I felt I deserved an evening off if you will. So I went to the store, got some dinner and sat down to watch the semi-finals of the French Open, with some people. Talk about wow… the energy in the bar was intense. Everyone was really excited and the evening turned into a real blast. For my last night in Paris it was good. I managed to meet up with a few people there and got a mess of beers bought for me. It was a great time, we closed the bar and all drifted our seperate ways.  Tomorrow I I was to leave Paris… but not without seeing the coolest so far on the trip…More on that tomorrow…

Here are some shots from the day…

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Breakfast at the hostel was simple and nice – I drank a bit too much coffee I think, but whatever. Stuck waiting on the damn internet cafe to open up so I can transfer my picture files off the cards to the hard drive. Man am I glad I bought those extra memory cards – I would have been screwed without them. But the transfering is a pain – his damn computers are stupid slow and the keyboards are in french so they are not QWERTY. It makes for interesting email typing thats for sure. All my tech is working ok – a bit of a scare with my ipod but it was just completely drained. The battery recharger was acting funny but I got that working as well. So crazy that I’m worked up over my tech after I spent the day at the Louvre yesterday. All that raw art chock full of inspiration and creativity and I fret over my camera. I should be sketching more but I find that I’m using my camera in that way. I think I really am a photographer at heart – I’m just gonna have to accept it.

All my clothing and gear are doing well – again especially the underwear. I know I keep going on about these things but you guys out there know what I’m talking about. You cannot beat a good pair of underwear when you are traveling. No rubbing, no pinching, smooth silky ride all day no matter how much I sweat or what I’m doing. Ex-Officio you guys made one hell of a killer product and I’m glad for it.  Money is gonna be tight near the end of the trip I fear – but like everyone said pack half as much as you think and take twice as much cash – boy where they right.

My day really got jumping when I hit the Pere Lachaise Cemetery. I went by the markets got food and a bottle of red wine for lunch. My intention was to have lunch with Mr. Morrsion and drink with all my artists at the cemetery – well that sort of happened. Turns out that they have a standing guard at Jim Morrisons grave to prevent any more defacing of the graves that surround his and I did manage to have half my sandwich and part of the bottle before the guard shooed me off. No worries I had my drink with the lizard king so I was happy. I then proceeded to hit all the greats who were buried there and had a drink with each of them, toasting to their memory and thanking them for the influence. I saw Jim Morrsion, George Melies (father of cinematography), Marcel Marceau (the only mime I ever liked), Paul Eluard (french surrealist poet), Theodore Gericault (painted the raft of the medusa), Victor Noir (chap killed by Napollean in a duel), Fredrick Chopin (composer) and the highlight for me Oscar Wilde. The tradition with Wildes grave is to put on ruby red lip stick and kiss it – well I did it I’m not ashamed to say. 

The day took a slightly somber turn before I got to Wilde’s grave. I came upon a whole section of memorials for the holocaust camps  Auschwitz, Buchenwald, etc. What made this especially weird was I was surrounded by German tourists speaking german. The memorials gave me chills especially the buchenwald one. It was of these three massive degenerating figures holding each other in the throes of death. Even the flies wouldn’t leave the statues alone it was as if they were alive and dying right in front of me. Then it was on to see Oscar Wildes grave and I had a thought as I was leaving the cemetary.

Alot of these people I came to see were persecuted and greatly mis-understood in their time. It was a cemetery of the persecuted dead. A place of haunting beauty that only in death do people now understand the importance of their achievements and sacrifices, only now long after they have turned to dust do people think of what they did and offer up praise. Cemeteries to me are usually places of forgotten souls where the gardens of stone sit unvisited for decades because everyone who knew the deceased are long gone as well and they just become another name in a sea of granite. As I walked through this garden I wondered who all these other people were and what grand accomplishments they had achieved in their lives, what wonders had they witnessed, what sorrows had they clutched to their hearts, and if they too had been persecuted or mis-understood just like dear Oscar Wilde. It was a very sobering and inspiring day and I’m thankful for it.

Here are some shots from the day…

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Well I blew off the walking tour I was gonna take and just set off on my own. I managed to get up at like 6 am – not that I slept at all… stupid snoring kept me up and my roommates weren’t exactly thrilled. Well all Im gonna say is ear plugs people… bring ear plugs.

The day was pretty adventurous over all. It was wicked chilly in the morning like 55 degrees as I walked over to the tower on my way to the river and the louvre. I wandered down Rue St. Germain and had a wonderful cafe latte and chocolat brioche (chocolate croissant)  for breakfast. After that I was on a mission to score my lunch at one of the niffty markets and I had read of a good one up a ways on St. Germain. I managed to find it and got some really amazing food – the cheese I got was good but smelled like 10 day old armpits. It was definitely not a good addition to my day pack.

As I came out of the market I stumbled upon Paris’s oldest church, a real ancient romanesque beauty the church of St. Germain. It wasn’t the vast expanses of some of the churches I knew I was going to see but it was powerful in it solidity and somber in it’s silence. I think this church really symbolized my trip overall – it was the small undiscovered quaint places that moved me and not the typical over the top attractions that everyone sees, but more on that later.

After being entranced by St. Germain I headed over to the Louvre to get my art freak on – and boy howdy was I in for a treat. I got to pay a full 9 Euros to see the collection – I’m sorry she said but we only give discounts to European professors (which ended up being true at 80 percent of the museums and attractions all across Europe). Well its the Louvre after all so I just paid the lady and went with my hand on my jaw to keep it from hitting the floor every 20 feet when I saw another piece of eye popping sculpture or art. What can I say about the Louvre really its big… like grand canyon big… so much to see and no where enough time. So I focused on seeing a few things I really wanted to see and breezed through the rest. 

I don’t know why but I have always been entranced by ancient sculpture, maybe its their ability to capture such life and motion in a surface that is so solid and steady. Needless to say I spent alot of time in the Louvre’s sculpture area. I then managed to visit good ole rembrant and vemeer and was spell bound by them for almost a solid hour. I blew through the french painters – not much there really and kind of drifted around the mannerists with their bright colors and full figures, but I just kept coming back to the sculpture. Oh well…. 

I had lunch in the gardens at the Louvre and took a nap in the shade – it was amazing. I love France for this reason alone, lunch and naps in a park. Another plus was the Starbucks in the Louvre – only one I saw in all of Europe… funny that. After the Louvre I made it back to the hostel for a quick change and headed back out to Notre Dame to do my first night shoot. I got some good stuff I think and the temp dropped pretty fast. I walked back from Notre Dame at like midnight and it was like a 5 mile walk back to the hostel. Should have taken the train but then I wouldn’t have gotten some of the cool shots I got. Either way it was a hard hike, and I was very very very tired after it. 

So here’s the shots from day 2… there are alot hope you like them…

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Well we almost crashed on landing in Paris – it was really jumpy and slidy. The lady next to me puked and some of the overhead bins opened up, few people screamed… so what a way to start Paris. Once I got off the plane it took me about 20 minutes to get my pack all re-arranged for solo travel – all 55lbs of it. Considering the weight of it – the pack made it feel like nothing. That Gregory Baltoro 70 kicks serious butt!!! really enjoy it! Once I was all packed up it was surprisingly easy to find my way out and about. I was a bit concerned regarding this as several people told me the airport was hard to navigate in… not for this super traveler apparently!

I got to the information booth to find the location of the proper train and this poor hapless American guy in front of me totally loud butchered the basic greeting and asking if the guy spoke English… I mean like comedian butchered bad. He could not have been more hapless or clueless. I sort of felt bad for the guy, but all he had to do was listen to a audio book on basic phrases and he would have been fine…. oh well lazy is as lazy does.

I stood in line for bout 45 minutes waiting to purchase my rail pass for Paris metro – 48 Euros later I had it and was all set for total transportation for the week. Seemed a bit steep to me, but definitely worth getting considering how much I used the rail pass I believe I got my moneys worth. The train system is well marked and very easy to use, but this could also be because of my experience in Tokyo and their metro.  It was clean, fast and the people weren’t mean. I was able to find my stop and the hostel.

The hostel was a bit sketchy but pretty damn cool all in all. I stayed in a dorm with like 7 other people and I managed to score the top bunk – poor bastard below me. I changed and locked up my stuff using my trusty pac safe wire mesh – which while being a bit of a hassle at first really worked very well the entire trip once I got the routine down. I would highly recommend them.  I then went down to the bar, quizzed the barkeep/innkeeper Neil – whom was a really nice cat – and went out exploring.

I went walking, got an apple and a baguette and some cheese. I ended up in the park that looks down towards the Effifel tower. I sat down with my french meal, and set up my camera for my first time lapse. The park was full of french students, talking, cuddling, relaxing over dinner. It was so nice. The temp was like 71 degrees and the breeze was softly blowing -just perfect. The apple was super and all the little shops with fruits, and breads… oh my god the fruit and vegetable market was just luscious and amazing.

So I’m sitting here letting the camera just shoot away and people are coming and going and these young lovers set up right in front on me perfect in frame… ah paris what a wondeful thing. Nearby you can hear the sound of guys playing basketball and listening to gangster rap… in french! Its all a bit surreal actually. Here are some shots from the day…

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hey gang sorry for the delay been without internet access for days. Also ive had a few nasty mishaps involving the Eurail pass and the utter stupidity of it. either way it has cost me 131 euros, which i really did not have to waste and a lost pair of chaco sandals.

im doing well things are great i have shot over 40 gigs of photos so far and have been keeping a daily written journal which I will put up once i get home for everyone. I appoligize for this-Europe is not as connected as i was hoping it would be.

so look for photos and posts starting after the 19th

j

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The following are from my written journal as my access to internet is spotty and im typing on a french keyboard where all the keys are in different places and the spell check is in french. Oh and did i mention it is costing me about 5 euros to do this since i have to copy over my photos on this guys third world computer.

Ok so on to the post… It was a hot day and the airport was a bit muggy in paris. I did manage to get my pack as a carry on so here is to being polite and asking. Im nervous, excited and so ready. I have begun one of my life goals by going to Europe I will have walked on one more continent – now only five more to go. South America, Asia, Anatartica, Africa, and Austrilia. Then of course their is Greenlan, Iceland, and New Zealand. So  Im on my way to making these things happen.

Its 10:20 I made it onto the plane. Im sitting next to a german couple who seem happy and calm. Even so I dont think ill sleep well{and in fact i didn’t) I took the happy pill B loned me. nohing.

I made an obeservation while on the plane_nothing mind altering just this -

Fellow travlers;

 a crock pot of culture.

All bound up for,

culture….never to be contained

J

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The last sweet tea for a month. Made it to Atlanta waiting on my connecting flight. The pack is heavy. .

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So here is the current suggested itinerary for my trip overseas to France and Italy. I’ve booked all my hostels and hotels so I will most likely stick to the places.

June 2nd – arrive in paris in the afternoon. Find Hostel, and have dinner prepare for tomorrow

June 3rd  - walking tour of Paris, and the Louvre possibly

June 4th – Cimetiere Du Pere, Catacombs, Notre Dame, Sainte Chapelle

June 5th – open day to catch up on anything I want to revisit or missed

June 6th – Travel to Rennes then to my B&B for Mont Sainte Michel

June 7th – Mont Sainte Michel

June 8th – The long train ride. Rennes back to Paris, Paris to Marseille, Marseille to Nice or St. Tropel, then on overnight to Genova and from there…

June 9th, 10th and 11th – Cinque Terre I will be staying in Riomaggiore and traveling to the other villages. 

June 12th – Florence

June 13th  - Travel to Rome in morning. Wing the rest of the day

June 14th – Early morning trip to Pompeii – first train there.

June 15th – Possibly do the Infiorata festival at Genzano di Roma

June 16th – Rome – Ancient Roman center, etc.

June 17th – Vatican and its museums. 

June 18th – I fly home.

Well there it is peeps. I will do my best to update you all as I travel, when I can get internet access on the cheap. Wish me luck I’m totally excited and can’t wait to see what kinds of stuff I am going to get for my film!!!

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Alright gear heads here’s my list of stuff I’m taking. I’ve compiled this list based off of personal needs and online advice from various other websites and forums. I will include links where I can but I got 80% of this stuff from REI.com and Magellens.

1. Backpack – Gregory Baltro 70
2. REI’s travel sack - This bag rules!! I’ve been sleeping in it for about a week now testing it out before the trip and it is roomy – even for me 6′ 3″ 280 lb man. It is light and airy and perfect for hostel hopping and summer camping. Based off my initial tests – we shall see how she holds up in the field.
3. Backpackers first aid kit – might be over kill here, but I am accident prone and better to have it than not.
4. Rain jacket from REI – I bought this baby almost 10 years ago and it still holds up. Gortex. Hurricane lvl 3 water proof. It is a rockin addition to my gear list, but they don’t make anything like it anymore. : (
5. Clothes – 2 pairs of shorts (REI sahara shorts, and REI Adventure Shorts) 2 pairs of pants (REi adventure pants) 2 short sleeved button ups (North face ), 4 pairs of underwear (Ex-Officio - they make the most amazing underwear EVER) 2 pairs of smart wool socks, 4 pairs of Wigwam Ironman socks
6. Keen walking shoes and Chaco sandals
7. REI dry sack – for my clothes
8. Camelback Bladder – for the pack
9. Chrome Messenger bag – for my day pack
10. Cleaning kit – Clothesline (this thing is amazing) sink stopper, small packets of detergent
11. Camera gear – Nikon D70s, Extra lens (70 to 300), tripod, extra battery, portable battery charger, card reader, 320 gig external hard drive, Pclix timelapse device, lens cleaning fabric
12. 1st gen iPhone(for WiFi,music and candids) headphones, charger and emergency battery
13. Power adapters - will be useful I think. : )
14. Hygiene kit - deodorant, toothbrush, body glide (Amazing stuff), razor, 3 extra blades, travel towel(amazing)
15. Personal Meds, vitamins, aspirin, sudafed cold and sinus, airborne
16. Compass
17. Travel docs – Security wallet, Passport, Faculty ID, ISIC card, ISE card, Rail Pass, List of important numbers and addresses, ATM card, Visa card, Euros, wallet, Xeroxed sections of guide books for France and Italy
18. Sketch Kit – travel journal, sketchbook, pencil case, watercolor case
19. Repair kit – Sewing kit, duct tape, rubber bands
20. Sunglasses and case
21. Combo lock and PacSafe 120 Security web large
22. Bike Light (for reading and night navigating – I had it already. : )  )
23. ear plugs – walmart specials
24. Backpack deodorizer - dryer sheets will do in a pinch
25. 5 1 galleon Ziplock durable bags
26. Multi-tool  - only if I check my bag
27. 18 cliff bars, and trail mix

So thats my list more to come… Will be posting itinerary later this week end and of course there will be updates on the journey as the internet permits!!!

until then - 

J

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