Ah, no place like-- well, not quite home

we have returned from the whirlwind tour of europe, and have found england to finally have warmed up. and as Phil has pointed out-- not much has changed in the past 60 years in europe.

the germans are delightful and bring kind heart warming thoughts
the french are angry... just angry. and they 'won' the war.
the belgians are, well, disapointing but none the less, our brothers in arms (that armada was built for something.)
and the dutch are the canadians of europe. just so darn nice.

but aside from this, spring has made itself known in england, with flowers abound, and no longer a need for my coat to stay clasped to my body. although I* will miss the pocket space it provided for my things.

*by "I" I mean "my sister who loads many a thing on me due to her refusal to wearing cargo pants or pants with any form of pocket space, but also refuses the insecure form of a purse in which I am in a limbo state of opinion"

I realized why the stories of tulips are so exorbiant, in that they are just that gosh darn pretty. pretty enough to sell a whole castle for 12 of them? perhaps not. but still, almost worth the 12 british pound sterling for a bulb, coincidence at the number patern? I think not.

I found out that it is superstition here that tree blossoms are bad luck to have indoors, so the nice hosts of my sister who I thought I was bringing cheer and love and life into by bringing the fruit of spring in to her home. was in fact a symbol of death and proverbial house rape to which my sister gave me a scolding.

funny, van gogh once said that blossoms are rarely frowned upon and admired by all when he did his orchard series and the almond blossom painting for his nephew's birth.

I suppose it is a brit thing to have a distaste for them.

well, now I know. now I know.

News of the World

a summary of our adventures, in order as best can be done.

Weeze = a lovely little airport which I suspect to have had no flights that day but our own. and a former US-armed forces base.
Dusseldorf = efficient
Munich = Efficient and charming in every way. say for a slight duck attack hannah had to endure (long side the laughter of the sole response of "OH SNAP!" to the onslaught of flapping duck 5cm from her face.)
Hamburg = closed on weekends, but delicious hamburgers (and efficient)
Berlin = Efficient, still under construction from that whole WWII thing and Communist oppressive rule
Frankfurt = lovely railport....once again, efficient
Germany as a whole: I would move to Bavaria, the people are kind, upstanding, understanding, intelligent, quick, efficient, fashionable, attractive and efficient. the "ICE" is the best means of transport ever short of private aircraft and teleportation, or what ever Doctor Who uses. they are so on the game with the high speed trains that "You do not need a reservation in Germany" quoath the kind but straightforward conductor on the first ICE train we took (All other countries require reservation on the highspeed trains) did I mention that their trains run EXACTLY on time and they know WHICH platform a train 5 days in advance will land on and all clocks ding at the same time?
amazing.

Paris = Inefficient, lovely sights, lack of storage lockers and English speakers, overrated, over cost, over sexed.
Nice = The Mediterranean sun powered my mighty Californian fuel cells for action. wonderful flower market and enough to see and do for 2 days of fun action.
Monaco/Monte Carlo = many a Ferrari and yacht, Broke their bank, not invited back.
Paris = the begging women have pimps and are organized, do not believe their lies.
France as a whole: Eh. over rated. arrogant, unforgiving, ethnocentric, scared of change. and their computer systems will NEVER live up to American, or German expectations (they didn't know when trains would even arrive exactly, 2 of our trains were "retard" and it was unknown where it would even land.

Bruxelles = what a lovely little rail station, surely this place is on the up and up, ooo waffles, oh wait, our train has arrived to Holland yay!

Amsterdam = got lost, didn't want to be there till realized its kick ass was not to be determined by a prozzie that would not stop smacking her gum (click, SMACK...click............................click. smack smack smack--click *AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!* but all in my mind did I scream I did.) and holding her legs apart with her hand in the: "I am 2 cm from the masturbation position and you know I want to. but I am reading this surely shitty print out sheet, but for 10Euro I will," whilst sitting across from me, and you know that thing where you look at a person because they vex you so, but they think you are checking them out? made me (and the nice british couple whom she had forced her self next to (I suspect was kicked out of the past car)) pray for her understanding that no one wanted her around them whist she did that insufferable smacking.... it really was that bad.
lovely canals, tall sail ships (Which we stayed on, the Admiral something something, a fine little 9 sail ship with a kindly crew lead by "Casper" the nicest man yet met. an ambassador for the Dutch people indeed-- and made up for the fear instilled from the train ride in with prozzies, kindly bikers (think mad dog kind of biker) and accidentally thinking that he train station was in the middle of nowhere so we returned to rottenham only to realize it was hidden away from the beautiful town square by construction blockades oh silly me.)
friendly people, and something to do even for those who don't smoke or partake of prozzies. truly beautiful people. and if need be, I would not mind living there. although my heart would always be in Baveria.

Bruxelles= was unfortunate.

Belgium as a whole: total shit hole. seriously, they don't pick up their dog's crap-- ever. it litters the streets everywhere you go. the people are unattractive, uncaring, and have the work ethic and just over all appeal to the equivalent of the mexico of Europe. I regret building this country up to what I did. although the atonium and the planetarium was enjoyable. oh, and the motel six of a room costs more than I wanted to pay. and the Belgians are always asking for money from people, almost as bad as the french. but at least the french you get something out of it-- sometimes.
the France that wishes it was France but isn't cool enough even to be the lacky of France. and France as we all know is just the lacky of itself. which is kind of sad.

but, all and all, a good 9 days spent. with many letters and notes taken in the moleskin and in correspondence.

but I warn all of you, nothing good comes from Belgium. that prozzie I had to sit near, and the massive amounts of beggars (who wore nice clothes and had the whole family in on it. lousy pikers)

Met a nice Canadianan man (Ian) on our travels from Paris to nice and through nice and Monaco (along side a half french/new Yorker who once resided in Shasta, CA named Rick)

met up with Sara from Oxford in the Van Gogh Museum line, enjoyed one of my favorite artists of all time. and then went to the redlight district to observe the system of prozzies, gatekeeper-enforcer-and-hierarch pimps and johns.

and enjoyed a delightful little lunch with Sara and Hannah as well as a brewery tour (all sorts of mad stuff went on in there!)

saw my friend, David Carnes', Doppelganger in Brussels (he had slight stubble facial hair as well, thus making him the evil one. as well the all black and top coat with the upturned collar helped this issue as well, that and he was waiting for a long time in the central plaza of the shopping/business district and had that "I am David and I am only 9 minutes from the perfect robbery" face.)

all and all, we can tell where my favorite place was and who I think should head the permanent members of the UN security council rather than France.

just sayin' the Germans have something to bring to the party everytime (and I tell ya, it isn't 4 euro cans of coke like those other folk to the west.) and don't bitch about people speaking English in the EU headquarters.