The Great Snore-Off and PICTURES

The last two hostels that Jeremy and I have stayed at have been a bit more interesting than our last hostels. I think that it has something to do with the size of the hostels. They are larger and more like dormitories than the family run hostels that we have previously stayed at.

But we have also seen many more adults in these hostels. And they do not seem like they are tourists or travelers. Instead, I have the impression that they are street vendors who stay at hostels to save money. In Padua, with the exception of probably stealing my headlamp, all of the other guests were very kind and courteous.

But here, there is a group of 3 adults who are incredibly noisy and rude. Last night, a number of people were trying to sleep and these guys came in and talked to each other in loud voices. And this other guy, at around 1 am, decided that it was necessary to repack all of his luggage. This wouldn't have been so bad, but all of his items were in plastic bags. It was quite noisy.

Finally, and these guys couldn't help it, but 2 people snore very loudly. I felt like I was back at home (love you dad!). It seemed like the two were in a competition to see who could snore louder and everyone else was losing. I really wanted a good nights sleep last night, and I just didn't get it.

And now for some pictures:

Here I am in a museum in Genoa. This is the home of that intrepid world explorer that I cannot remember the name of. But his entire home was a cabinet of curiosities. This fancy light was not part of his original collection, but we thought that it would be cool to lie down inside of it!


Here is a picture of Jeremy and myself in the Cinque Terra (thanks Pierce and Donna! This place was awesome). I am violently attacking Jeremy on the path of love.


This is a picture of the best cheese in the world. It has mandarin oranges.


Oh, and I now understand why Captain Ahab chased that darn whale. In Italy, I have had the best ______ of so many things. For example, in Palermo, I had the best cake in the world.


We also had the best canoli.


In Padua, I had the best lasagna and the best risotto I have ever had. Anyhow, I will have to keep trying, but I will chase these metaphorical whales for the rest of my life. Or, until I return to Italy! I love you Italy! You can yell at me at post offices and trick me into spending extra money for train tickets, but I'll be back.

Here we are in Genoa, exploring a park high up in the mountains. This park has a number of fortresses that you can explore. However, the temperature was very cold, as you can see. This is me at the last fort. I am rocking the typical "Brad Keen Slant," but the picture clearly shows just how cold it was! What it doesn't show is how windy it was.


This is a toilet in Pisa with a very fancy seat.


And here I am again in Genoa. I have been drafted to the army and am about to enter combat! Watch out!


I LOVE ITALIAN MARKETS!!!!!!


This picture was taken in San Gimignano. This is wonderful lady who very unpolitely asked us to leave her cheese store. She must have thought that we were in Paris. Sadly, we were in Italy, and her conduct was not appreciated.


And how about the fractal pattens on this broccoli? Aren't they pretty mom?


And this is Jeremy in Palermo standing in the ocean.


I didn't quite stand the ocean. But I did dip my hands in it.


I have to sign off now. It is 8:10 and at 9 we leave to meet Angelo. One more day. This is our last day in Italy. I can't believe it. When I first started this trip, I thought that I had an eternity. Now it is almost over. Still, I cannot relax yet. There are a ton of variables that still need to be conquered. We need to catch our flight to Dusseldorf. We get to meet and game with Olav. We spent 2 nights in Dusseldorf at a hostel and then need to switch to another hotel on the last night. Then we must transport luggage to the airport and safely get everything home. But I wouldn't pass this up for the world!