Not just another list.

Often when I post a list of sites it's not just I think other people might benefit from them, but also because I don't want to forget them myself. (Other times it's just something I think is funny in the moment, but I'm not going to worry about that one right now)

I found these sites recently and thought that I'd share them with everyone and keep them in a place I'll be able to find them later.

The first 2 are about volunteering in South America . . .
http://www.travellernottourist.com/index.HTML
http://www.volunteersouthamerica.net/

The nest one is about doing worthwhile things all over the world . . .
http://www.idealist.org/

And this one is about trading your clothes with strangers . . .
http://www.rehashclothing.com/

Have a look, be inspired, and send me a new jacket!

Thank goodness for saving drafts!

I almost forgot to post this!

I heard about this guy from a Dutchman who met him. He's a cool spoken word poet that pretty much raps the entire Canterbury Tales. You can find some cool fan stuff done on you tube too if you like what you hear.

http://www.myspace.com/bababrinkman
http://babasword.com/writing/rapcantales.html

I guess it's not very Valentine's Day related, but neither is this . . .

A little more information for you.

Okay folks, I've been in Portugal now for 5 weeks and have posted only that last (and let's face it) shitty post, so now I've got 10 minutes to turn this whole thing around and post a mind blowing entry that people will be talking about for centuries!

Seeing as a picture is much more expressive than I can possibly hope to be in 10 minutes let's start with a few of them.

These first 2 pictures are of Lisbon where I spent 4 nights couchsurfing in a hostel and hanging out with a friend from the Netherlands that I met on the bus and a couple of Brasilians, a Texan, a Norwegian, an Estonian, and others that I know I'm forgetting and having a whale of a time in the scary little streets in the old city.

These next 2 are where I spent all those cold nights in January and the first week of February. It's called Paradise in Portugal and I stayed at the resort expense free and met people from all over the world.

This is a dude on his way . . . somewhere. I snapped the picture (I asked him first) on the way back from Santa Clara with the groceries for the Quinta.
This was about an hour and a half ago in Faro. I was in a park reading a book when all these Peacocks (and Peahens to be inclusive) walked out from behind the bench I was sitting on. I fed them some crumbs to get this picture.

Any of the really good ones from Portimão are on my friends camera and he's going to mail a CD of them to me in about 2 weeks. I won't get it 'till I'm back in Canada though, so you're just going to have to be patient.

And now dearest friends, you know a little more about what I've been up to these past few days during the terrible silence that befell my blog. And e-mail correspondance. And Facebook. And phone calls. ANYWAY, I'm still alive and still having a ball.

Still alive.

I'm still alive and kicking.

I tried to post something on my blog yesterday, from this very computer but timed out. Then today, when I came back HOURS later I sat at the same computer. I turned on said computer and executed the firefox program. At this point I was presented with the choice to either open a new session or restart the old one. I selected restart because I'm a curious bastard and guess what popped up?

My blog, logged in, ready to post a new entry.

Good thing I checked it or someone else might have had a bit of fun at my expence!

New Motivation

Watch this, (be warned, it's like an hour!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcqcWVZJPb0

And then check out more here!

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/
http://www.heymarci.com/


I've only just found out about them but they seem awesome!

Madrid

You ever take a long bus ride and kind of get excited because you'll be able to get some reading done and just take it easy? Well that was the state of mind that I was in when I boarded the bus in Bilbao bound for Madrid. Sadly the driver thought he'd turn on the overhead T.V.s and play James Bond and then the Bourne Surpremecy in Spanish and blast the sound the entire trip. The Bourne film was a pirate copy too and was terrible, complete with people standing up in front of the screen.

So then we arrived in Madrid and I tried to call my hosts so they could meet me or give me directions to their place. Nope, the payphone wasn't having any of it. So I asked around in my best yet still apauling Spanish to see what the deal was. Nobody knew why but one woman gave me her phone to use so I got in contact, but I had to call back later so I had to thank the woman and let her go.

So I waited around for about an hour and then decided to try yet another payphone. While doing so I overheard a woman speaking English so I approached her to ask for her phone. When she turned around she was in tears, and couldn't lend me her phone because the battery was almost dead and she had just been mugged.

Then I asked a security guard if he could help me with the payphone and as he was a girl came up to him, tears streaming, and reported that she had been robbed.

Eventually I met 3 Irish girls who told me that you can't call a mobile phone from a payphone, and they graciously lent me their mobile and I was able to call my hosts and sort out the rest of my life from there.

Strange how in one station you can have people who are so trusting and generous and others who're so immoral and willing to take advantage of people. It's actually probably the one personality that enables the other to exist sadly.

Feliz Año Nuevo!

Leading up to New Years I was a little nervous. I had been told that the last time June introduced someone to her friends who only spoke English, they really made no effort to talk to him and he was bored.

I shouldn´t have worried though. When we arrived June and her friends all talked with each other and I found out there was a Brazilian girl there too, so good! 2 non native speakers! I think I started talking to her in English and within a few minutes I was able to talk to everyone and they were all great!Our entrance to the bar cost us 20€ but that included 3 drinks and a shot. And they just gave you free shots when you ordered a drink anyway, I have no idea why! And if you asked them to mix you a really strong drink they would. It was pretty good! Anyway we stayed there ´till 4 or 5 I guess then we went to another bar and then to a house party in some room some guys rented. Across from their room there was a bar, I went in and bought a beer and ended up talking with strangers in there too. I had an argument with some Latin American guy about whether or not I was American and I just gave up because he was getting mad. After that though we were best of friends.

Just before the bar closed I asked the bartender if he´d just fill up my pint for me . . . and he did!!! Ha! Just filled ´er on up! Then I played hackey sack with some guy with a tennis ball, or more accurately just kind of kicked his tennis ball away from him.

Over the course of the night people disappeared, people reappeared, people threw up, I was given a roll of toilet paper in a grand ceremony in the bar, and then at about 8:30am we all stumbled back to our places and tried to get as much sleep as possible. I didn´t get up ´till 5pm.
Prior to all of this, June and I had watched the countdown to New Years on T.V. and then ate the traditional 12 grapes during the first 12 seconds of the year, then went out to the balcony to watch people shooting off fireworks from their balconies! Seriously! People were shooting crap right out their kitchen windows! I say one thing smack into the wall of the building on the other side of the road! I saw pedestrians on their way out have to run after someone dropped a firecracker out their window above them. It was awesome!!

Please note the Christmas tree in the background of the one picture. That´s because Christmas here isn´t over ´till January 5th when the 3 wise men come. The 25th is when Olentzaro brings gifts. That´s the dude who´s effigy I´m carrying in the impromptu parade in the old town.