good ol' T.O.! Toronto!

well, I did make it back in one piece... and am writing this just post my buddy's stag do... and being the designated driver has allowed me to blackmail everyone tomorrow as I'm one of the few with the clarity of events stored in my head! :)
Coming back has its own challenges & reverse-culture-shock is not something that should be dismissed lightly. For me it's always more severe than culture-shock but thats part of the game!
Right now I'm on a friend's machine as my home computer has a few viruses on it and needs to be rebuilt! :(
so, till I get that up 'n running... my emailing abilities shall be hampered! :(
so, wish me luck & I'll be up to emailin' soon! :)
ciao ciao! :)

New York... New York

New York... big apple... am in but sleeeeeepppppyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
--------------
well, I guess I should be out doing sometihng... but I cant get my butt up from my cousins couch to head out!!!
So, my aim for New York... is... hit a diner... watch some TV in english... thats about it! :)

Iceland... rain... and some ice!

well, I landed about an hour and a half ago and now am sitting in a hostel that is only 4 km from the airport but 49 km from the city! And sofar, I've been greeted by lotsa rain. And a cool guy running the hostel who thought it was quite funny that this is the 'darkest & drabbiest" time he's seen sofar this year! Apparently till this afternoon it was bright sunshine & great weather! But sofar sogood! The Icelanders that I've met sofar are really nice... and I'm scared to see the prices of cafes & restaraunts... even the Londoners on the plane were complaining about the prices! So, wait for the next posting... if I can afford it! ;)
bye all!
---
at the BLUE LAGOON... damn, I look SEXY!

---
Walk this way! ---->

--------
Lookin' out to SEE

--------
Bye Iceland... ironically, Iceland is MUCH greener than Greenland... and vice versa with ice! :)

jolly Ol' England... London

well, am in London... ironically, it cost more to get from Stansted to Central London than my flight from Salzburg to Stansted!  Boy have prices gone up! Besides that, feels like a stroll down memory lane, when I moved here in May of 1998. I can't believe that was more than 6 years ago... aside from the prices, most things here havent changed too much. It's still cloudy outside today... the late-night tube was filled with the last of the post-work pub goers... the smell of fish n chips & kebabs at the bus stop... ah... and a damn fine cup of tea this morning! :)

---
Buns&Dhiraj.... and below... with them... by the Thames... pre-pub! ;)





DA FAMILY at Des & Leigh's place!

Vienna & Salzburg

hey hey... am booked on train to Salzburg on Sunday... 
and by any chance, any of you know a good cheap place in Iceland??? EVERYTHING I've checked is booked! :( grr... and I get in at 1130pm on July 25th... a sunday! yeesh!
-------
new part...
well, I decided to go via Vienna... and boy was I glad... It was a beautiful city deserving more time... but am now in Slazburg. with a plane to London tonight... hopefully!
 
Salzburg is pretty nice... but I think I got a little too used to Eastern european prices!
-----


-----
AWESOME gardens

-----
WHAT FLOOR U WANNA RING??

PEST & BUDA

am in Budapest... and thouroughly enjoying it. As touristy as it is... it is still very beautiful. Will update more... but man, am not a fan of traveling in Europe in July... I cant imagine how touristy it will be in August... yes, I do realise I am a tourist too...
More updates soon!!
---
A great show of folk dances... thanks to Georgia & Orsi for hookin' me up! ;)


------
One of the oldest Jewish synagogues, I believe...

------
Now THAT'S a KNOCKER! I need one of those for my house!

-----
'nuff said!

Prague... well, sort of...

hey hey hey... am in Prague but not really doing the touristy thing as am hangin' out with the folks from the area... so... again... the trend of eatin 'n drinkin' continues... I am not sure if they'll charge me for two seats heading back to Toronto!!!
Am planning to head to Budapest tomorrow...
---
AMIGOS!!! at the outskirts of Prague... partyin' away!

Lichkov... dont worry, I didnt hear of it either

hey hey hey... I am in Lichkov,Czech Republic... a small town i.e. less than 600ppl. Ok... I lie.. I am currently in a town which is significantly larger and the only source of internet in the area. My friends parents restaraunt is in a village, less than a hundred residents, near Lichkov. I gotta say.. the Northern part of Czech has some beautiful scenery... and some nice rolling hills. And true to small town tradition(anywhere really), I have been shown amazing hospitality and have done little more than my two favourite things... i.e. eating and drinking.
The next stop is Prague... tonight in a friends friends car.
Ciao!!!
---
a really nice house near my friend's family owned motel

------
Vlad & her awesome family! Thanks always to ALL of you for opening your house and heart to me. :)


--------
Me 'n my ol' lady! ;)

saw war in warsaw

yeah... I love cheesey puns... and spent a good part of the morning in the Warsaw Historical museum as they were showing a film on the destruction of Warsaw in WWII. Its insane how much got destroyed and incredible how well they've built it back up! And all this I gathered in between my naps in the movie! Nothing like an overnight train journey with border control at 345am and the conductors booth next to yours (I swear there was some serious vodka involved in their cabin!!!)
So, so far... so good... its a beautiful place... been lucky with some beautiful weather... its funny how you appreciate clouds after three weeks of cloudless (and 35+ degrees) sky. But in either case... am not complaining (before I start receiving hate mail from those of you deskbound... not to worry, I'll be there soon enough!)
will write more soon!
Jup

Bissendorf... is it?

hiya... am in a small town near Osnabrück called Bissendorf... and even then, we are not in downtown Bissendorf (which I cant imagine having more than 2 blocks worth of "downtown"). I am staying with a close friend and her boyfriend and family in a beautiful 120+ yr old farm house and family farm surrounded by forests. AND as a reminder to write more about it... I went for my first Osnabrück bacherlor party two nights ago. I think I´m almost recovered now!!!
Next stop... hopefully... tomorrow night to Warsaw! Anyone know if Canadians still need to get Visas?

Deutschland!!! Stuttgart

Well, too much sunshine & sangria makes Jup fat 'n dark... (and no... am not complainin one bit!!)
am off to Stuttgart tonight and continuing North in Germany after. My digital camera just died (with all my friend's wedding pics...) and have been trying to explain in Spanish as to how I can get it fixed... surprisingly they understand me but cant help me!!! Anyone know how to recover hidden files on a compact flash card?? I know they are still on there as 25 megabytes are still occupied but they are not visible at all... even when I tell Windows to "show me the hidden files".
wish me luck! :)
ciao!!!

from Denia to Alicante...

As usual, I am busting around and have not had time to sit down and write... but I do promise that I will get around to it.
So, this is more of a post to update position rather that something deeper and (less) meaningful! ;)

Barcelona for a day... Denia.. here I come!!!

well, Murphy´s Law has finally caught up with me. I came to Barcelona only to connect to reach Denia... now, what I failed to look at was a Barcelonian calendar as that would have told me that June 24th is a holiday and that unless I had booked a ticket WAY in advance, I would be running around trying to find some mode of transportation to get me there!!! (i.e. no available trains and more that 5 hours waiting for the next bus which will take me to Valencia and then I connect from there to Denia, I hope!!!!)
Well, wish me luck and lets see what happens
----
Need I say more?

------
A late evening dip... for good luck! I can't remember the name of the festival... but as a for luck, you're supposed to take a dip in the ocean and then warm up by the bonfire



-----
Louise 'n Ian's Wedding... dancin' the night away


----
A gorgeous hotel we were at near Alicante... Cheers Carlos! :)


------
CARLOS-CARLOS-JUP

Sardinia... the not-so-lil' italian island!!! :)

hiya... am in Cagliari now and heading up to Alghero for the next few days... have to catch a train... so this is more of an itinerary update rather than an informative one.. will write more... I promise!!!
:)
memories...
3 hours waiting for anchors to get unhooked...
great sea food...
free dance lessons on the street from uh... "interesting" dance teacher! :)
-----

-----
Street Party in Cagliari

-----
GREAT GOGGLES, I swear I've seen BIGGER!!

Alghero... touristy... but not yet...

well, am in the north west coast of Sardinia.. and as of yesterday.. am fat and black! :) So, mission accomplished in Italy. I ended up meeting Marco, a local Algheran (?) and a bunch of us headed down to this great beach where you can see through the clear blue water (and no sharks!)... and lotsa gelato!!! :)

Am off to Girona/Barcelona tomorrow and will figure out rest of plans from there. THe internet prices here are still outrageous.. just like the Italian obsession with oversized sunglasses!!! I swear I saw a gaudy pair on this guy... when he smiled, his face disappeared!!!!
ciao ciao!
As for the comment... here's a pic from Alghero... Not sure if it helps! ;) Actually, I'm sure it doesn't!


-----
Alghero Hostel Jam Session... till WAAAYYY early in the morn!

----
Since I forgot to do a post on POMPEII , here are some pics... it's totally worth visiting! And plan on spending a whole day... and pack your own lunch... much cheaper & possibly better than what u get inside!

A great position... from the Pompeii Whorehouse

-----
He was alive when he got covered in lava... amazing thing to see... you can feel the fear in his face!

Almafi Coast

hi all... have met up with two friends and am on the Almafi coast (in a town called Positano)... its full with all the touristy stuff and for good reason... u just gots to wait till I post some pictures... high cliffs with houses literally hanging over the edge (in all colours) and clear blue sea (the beaches arent up to the Spanish standards that I've been spoilt with but they are great for drying off after a swim).
:)
future plans... not sure but have to be in Sardinia by June 20th!
------
Positano (I think) in Day time

-----
Positano at sunset

----
We hiked up from Positano... I'm suprised we made it to here! It was an awesome hike!

Tropea

well this is just a posting to add to more later! But Tropea is the "bunion" on the Italian boot.. and a great bunion at that! Beautiful scenery... great gelato!!! ;)
---
Check out the knocker on this one! ;)

--------
This was the view from the window where I stayed at in Tropea...

off to Mt. Etna

am off to the town of Nicolosi in a few hours. Its ON Mt. Etna and should be an easy way to burn off all the great Sicilian food that I have been having... the only thing that I am not fond of... maybe its just the idea of it.. was the Horse Burger! And seeing a horse skull (BUT with the eyes and eyelashes intact but no skin or meat) didnt help much before eating it!
anyways... the city of Catania has started to grow on me even though I am drawn towards the Volcano (hopefully not drawn INSIDE it!)
More updates soon!!! :)
---
Here's the effect of the last eruption... this is the remains of the Gondola!!!


------
Here's a store... I LOVE THE NAME!!! It's definitely for the HAIRY ITALIAN (Or PUNJABI) folk! ;)

THE WEBSITE:

http://www.geocities.com/bhasin405 I am trying to keep that as much upto date as possible! with travel plans.. .itinerary etc...

MY ITALIAN MOBILE NUMBER

For thos of you who want to contact me... for the next 12 days (i.e. till the 22nd of June), my number is (39) 320-4034381 And then for the next couple of days.. my Spanish one will be active again (34) 637180484
Talk to you soon! :)
----
This Island was SO beautiful... it's a World Wildlife "preserve" or office... not bad, eh?

in CATANIA

well, after 3 nights of chillin in Noto.. I decided that I needed to venture back into the 'city life' and come to Catania... sofar, its been overwhelming but I think going to a natural reserve, lying on a nearly empty beach and staying in a place where the only other english speakers you run into are 2 cool couples from Switzerland and Germany (so no native english speakers) will leave you overwhelmed!
Sofar, the plan is to go to Mt. Etna and check out a few more of the touristy sites... I guess I should do some of that instead of hang out with a bunch of little lizards who are interested in my pannini as much as I am!!! :)
-----
The market near the hostel... get fresh veggies, fruits and horse meat!

in NOTO... and SYRACUSA

hey everyone... cant write long as am paying and arm and a leg for internet... and have a new friend, Antonio... who I met on the train who is showing me around... all I have to say is that I am in love with Sicily... the food.. the people.. just cool! :)
will write more as soon as I can!
-----
I just discovered this editing option.. so I can add to the same post without making multiple ones!
so... will add more about Noto to this posting... but all I have to say sofar... Sicily ROCKS!!! The people are chillin... the natural beauty is excellent... and for those of you who haven't discovered... GELATO... GRANITA (LIMONE, MANDORLA (almond) and RICOTTA (yeah, the cheese!)) and ARANCINO... that is the BOMB! Its awesome!
-----
This pic is from the old monastary in NOTO that is now the youth hostel in NOTO... gorgeous, ain't it?

Something Greek... Something Roman... Something German... in SYRACUSA!!!

Off to Sicily... hopefully!

Hey everyone... as twenty minutes ago... I'm off to Siracusa (Syracuse)... in Sicily. Not quite sure where I'm staying or what I'm doing but I gotta head out of Rome. Ironically 'cuz theres too much English, French and German for me! Its hard to hear Italian in many parts of the city.
I should start posting pictures etc from down south as soon as I hook up there after a few days! :)
And am definitely looking forward to the southern food! mmmm.... ;)

Rome... tourist central

Well... here I am... made it to Italy... with an hour and half plane delay... airport change... no bus to take us from the airport to center... all thanks to BUSH who is in Rome today. So, there's TONS of police... I've seen the protesters starting to gather... lets see how the day turns out!
But Gerona (Spain) is an awesome place to spend the day if you're taking the Ryanair flight...
I came in at 2am today and I'm definitely considering leaving tomorrow just because (ironically) of the sheer number of tourists! Yeesh! Rome is a great bustling city... but I'm thinking of heading south... Probably all the way to Sicily... lets see. The only problem down south (besides the Mafia & pickpocketing) is the lack of budget places... wish me luck!
Am going for my first "pizza" in ten minutes! :)
Jit: the bet is off... I'll be super fat by the time I'll reach your wedding!!! ;)
Big hugs all!
---
This was the Bush protest... who's Silvio Banana?

first one..

hey everyone.... I'd heard about this blogging thing.. so lets see if this works like a message board... hopefully it does!
I am still in Barcelona and decided not to go to the Forum after speaking to a bunch of people (Barcelonians & some Torontonians)
well, not going to write too much in my first one... just incase this thing doesnt work!
Cheers & hope to see some of you join me!!! :)
Jup
---
Now that I got everything working and am still suffering jetlag from India... lemme post some old pix fer yer viewing pleasure... this one is from GIRONA... a location near Barcelona that the cheap airlines use... and I'm glad I got to spend a day here... its gorgeous!