Abbiamo Vinto!!

Sunday was an action packed day with the Fiorentina match playing the leading role. I slept in a little bit, did some homework, and then put on my Fiorentina gear (my Luca Toni jersey and Fiorentina scarf) and went to San Marco to meet Professor Batterman. Fabio and Batterman's son Giulio came along, and when I first met Giulio, he started speaking English but Prof. Batterman objected. "Niente inglese. Solo italiano. Lui e' lo mio studente." That's one of my favorite things about Prof. Batterman. No matter the situation, he always speaks to me in Italian. If the school were burning down, I'm pretty sure he would shout orders to me in Italian. Plus he knows my level and capabilities, so he never brings out anything I don't know. I feel pretty confident about my language skills when I talk with him.

We got to the stadium shortly before the game started and set up shop at Curva Ferrovia, the side of the stadium closest to downtown. This match, against Livorno, was an important one for Fiorentina for a couple reasons. Because of the penalties, Fiorentina is in 15th place, and if they finish in the bottom three out of the 20 teams of Serie A, they will be demoted to Serie B. There isn't much more room for them to slip. Also, because of Livorno's proximity, it's a big rivalry. The Livornesi, fenced off as usual by large plexiglass walls in their visiting fan section, were very fired up for the match. They talked some hopeless trash to the large Fiorentina crowd as their team was announced, only to be bombarded with cheers of "Livorno, Livorno, va fanculo!" from the purple abbiss surrounding them.

The match was a great one and Fiorentina controlled the tempo, playing the best soccer I had ever seen them play. Unfortunately they couldn't get the ball in the back of the net, missing opportunity after opportunity. The Romanian sensation Mutu missed at least six golden opportunities and Livorno capitalized on one of their few chances late in the first half. Florence failed to clear the ball out on a header and one of Livorno's strikers was able to traverse the goal from about 10 yards out and bury an easy shot. At halftime, things were looking grim for La Viola.

However, they continued to knock, with Mutu putting a couple more decent looks wide. He finally took a great shot from the 18 that the goalie barely got a hand on. But Toni was right there to put it away to even the score. After that Fiorentina kept pushing hard. In the 81st minute Toni received a pass with his back to the Livorno goal and played off a beautiful ball to Jorgenson who drilled it home for the lead. Then Fiorentina held on for the victory.

On my way home I ran into Matt and Conor, who were on their way up to Fiesole to catch the tail end of the sunset. I joined them, and we ended up exploring the hill next to Fiesole that turned out to be a large park with many hiking trains. Though it was dark and our only light was the moon, it was a beautiful area that looked out over the entire city. It's definitely a spot that I'd like to return to for camping when the weather gets warmer.

After that we got dinner at the self-service restaurant by San Marco, which didn't bode well for all of us. Matt and John ended up catching food poisoning and spent their nights and mornings crouched in front of a toilet. We think it was the salsice they had on their pizza and spaghetti, but whatever it was, we're never going back to that place again. Which is too bad because I loved their gnocchi and pizza.

San Gimignano

Today was our day to travel. We slept in on Friday and didn't end up going anywhere, so we promised ourselves that we'd get up and get to the train station bright and early the next day. The originally planned destination was Orvieto, but train ticket prices were a little steep so we looked elsewhere. We considered going to Portovenere, a town just south of Cinqueterre, but it required more than just an afternoon. So San Gimignano it was. And in the end, that was a great choice.

It was a beautiful day without a cloud in the sky. John, Matt, Kelly, and I boarded the train at 11 and got to the ancient walled village by 12:30. It was really peaceful and there were hardly any tourists there. We pretty much had the town to ourselves. San Gimignano rests beautifully on a hill overlooking the gentle Tuscan countryside. The old city wall is still in tact along with several large towers. We strolled along the old narrow streets and took in the breathtaking views of Tuscany. Eventually we ended up at a small restaurant in one of the main town squares where we sat outside in the sun and talked over some sandwiches and tea. All in all it was the perfect little day trip and I'm really glad I saw San Gimignano.

Tomorrow I go to the Fiorentina match with my Italian teacher Professor Batterman, his son, and Fabio, the boy in my Italian family. La Fiorentina plays Livorno and it's a pretty important match. It's also only the second one I've been to this year. I'm going to rest up and live it up tomorrow. Forza Viola!

La Vita

Quant’è bella giovinezza
Che si fugge tuttavia:
Chi vuol esser lieto, sia,
Di doman non c’è certezza

-Lorenzo Il Magnifico

Amsterdam

1/17/07-1/21/07
Starring myself, John, Matt, Conor, and Gallo D'Oro (Lauran, Aly, John, Jason, and Blake)

Getting to Amsterdam was no easy task. We had to sit in the airplane on the runway for at least two hours before we even took off because the wind was so bad at the Eindhoven airport. They waited and waited and waited and finally took off sometime around 3:30 p.m. At first the flight was smooth, but soon things got really shaky. It was by far the worst turbulance I've ever experienced. Every time the plane dropped it sent a shock through my body, all the way through my fingertips and toes. When things got even worse people started throwing up. The flight attendants stumbled up and down the aisle collecting barf bags in large garbage sacks. The lady sitting in front of me had a pretty large collection going by the time we landed. Our jokes and laughing turned into nervous chatter as the plane tried to touch down the first time. It was way too shaky, so the pilot pulled back up and circled around for another jolty 20 minutes. Then we went down again, and though I wanted to land, I was thinking that maybe landing wasn't the best idea at the time. But the pilot pulled it off this time and the tumultuous ride finally came to an end. There was a man on our flight who we had seen earlier at the gate who looked just like Jack Bauer. By the time we had landed, he had blarred multiple times and looked pretty sick. Blake turned around, looked at him, then looked at us, and shouted, "I guess he's not Jack Bauer afterall."

Of course all the shuttles from Eindhoven to Amsterdam had been cancelled due to weather and the train station in Amsterdam had its roof blown off so trains weren't running either. We finally convinced a cab driver to take us to Amsterdam for a decent price. So, after a full day of traveling, we finally arrived in Amsterdam. Even though we went through a lot to get there, it was quite an adventure with some good memories.

Amsterdam's a great city, with way more than just a bunch of coffee shops and a crazy red light district, a major reason why a lot of people end up going there. My favorite things were the Van Gogh museum, Ann Frank's house, and the Heineken Experience. The city itself was amazing, with canals similar to Venice and unique architecture. Our hostel was in the perfect location, right near downtown and within walking distance of everything. We had the perfect set-up and a great group. All in all the trip was a blast.

On a sidenote, Amsterdam had movies in English, so I took advantage of it one night and saw Rocky Balboa, or Rocky VI. My expectations weren't very high, but I came out of the theatre highly impressed. The final fight scene was awesome and it got me really fired up, which is the main reason why I like the Rocky series in the first place. His opponent once again has a great nickname (Mason "The Line" Dixon) and Rocky is in classic form in this movie, breaking out some memorable speeches. There is one scene where he goes before the court to see if he can be eligible to fight, and they turn him down. As he's walking out the door, he stops and asks, "Yo, don't I got some rights? Rights, like in that official piece of paper they wrote down the street there?" He then unleashes a riveting speech that takes on important issues such as the Bill of Rights, the pursuit of happiness, and the judicial system as a whole. It's up there with his Cold War speech from Rocky IV ("I guess what I'm trying to say, is that if I can change, and yous can change, everybody can change"). Now all Rocky fans can breathe easy; the mistake that was Rocky V can be annulled. Those who have the 5-disc DVD set can replace Rocky V with this new flick as soon as it comes out on DVD to complete their collection.

Peccato!

It's been a rough past few days. I just got back from watching the Seahawks game, which was an intense heartbreaker. It was a great game, but I wish I could be celebrating a win right now. My favorite student life coordinator Jen left for Africa this morning, and she's been replaced by what sounds like another version of Shelley. When is the administration back at Gonzaga going to realize that the most important requirement you need for student life position at Gonzaga in Florence is knowledge about Florence, from, I don't know, maybe living there or doing the Gonzaga in Florence program yourself? You have to know the city if you're going to live in it and help students live in it. A master's degree alone can't help students get from their pensione to Santa Croce, it can't help arrange discounts and school-wide events with local restaurants, and it definitely can't help preserve the rich traditions of the years past. It takes something else. There are a lot of people who have it. But you can't frame it and put it on your wall, and you can't put it on your resumes to impress your employers and get the job. I wish they understood it. Jen definitely had it. Her absence will be felt greatly this semester.

Peccato. Too bad. You can only get so upset before realizing that you're in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, having what will probably be the greatest year of your life.

1/3/07 The Road Home

Today we got a 4:30 wakeup call and headed to the airport. Last night we had a nice dinner in Sidi Bou Said. It was seafood and our plates had full fish on them. A lot of the girls weren’t big fans of it but it wasn’t too bad. It was good to have everyone together one last time, and looking around I realized that this trip has brought me even closer to the GIF group. Maybe it was all the long bus and car rides or meals together, or maybe it was something else. We all experienced the high points and low points of this trip together as one. The end result is an enduring bond of friendship.

I’m writing this on the bus from the Rome airport back to Florence. It’s hard to believe that all 14 days of Christmas tour have flown by already. All in all, this trip was great. It was a lot different from what I expected, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worst. All the five star hotels were nice but that style of traveling isn’t quite for me. Give me three grand and I’d probably be able to do some pretty cool things in some pretty cool places all over the world.
That’s not to say that I didn’t enjoy the trip. It’s something I know I’ll never be able to do again and the experiences and memories will say with me forever. Here are some of the highlights of the trip:

-Fine buffet meals three times a day
-The 4WD excursions into the desert
-Xmas Eve in the Sahara with a visit to the set of Star Wars, sunset in the dunes, and a traditional dinner
-The cool oasis we visited and the frogs that inhabited them
-Riding deep into the desert on camels and then sitting out under the stars
-Laying out on the beach in Djerba, pretending and believing it was summertime in late December
-The coliseum
-The funny convos we had on the long bus and car rides

And so another chapter has ended in this year-long story abroad. I have no idea what next semester will bring to the table, but I’m more that a little eager to find out. I’m itching for more adventures and thrills before I return to the States in April.

1/1/07: The Coliseum

Today was back to the routine of this trip that I haven’t enjoyed so much: driving all day. The wake-up call was way too early and we spent pretty much all day in the bus. It was a really nice day outside and I wish I could’ve spent it relaxing at the beach. At least we had a good group of people in our bus and we made the most of the long drive. We stopped for lunch at a nice hotel and the buffet was one of the best I’ve had on this trip.

Apparently the fried fish they were serving was really bad…I didn’t mind it, but everyone was talking about how terrible it tasted. Tom brought a piece of it ith him on the bus as we were leaving and eventually Andrew Engel ended up eating it. It was pretty funny.
We stopped at a well preserved coliseum which was by far the coolest ruins we’ve stopped at. The coliseum was huge and a lot like the big one in Rome. We were free to roam around it as we pleased. After the Coliseum we drove to our next hotel, had dinner, and relaxed for a bit. I went to the hookah bar with Miller and Wallace and it was the strongest I’ve had so far. After that I went up to the room and watched some English TV. Tomorrow is our last full day of the Christmas tour. It’s been a blast but I’m extremely ready to get back to Firenze. I miss it a lot.

12/31/06: New Year's

Today I was at the beach all day long. It was a little cloudier and there was more wind, but it was still a nice day. I listened to some tune and swam in the ocean, the outdoor pool, and then the indoor pool. After that I took a nap up until the New Year’s Eve festivities. First up was a mass said by Father Gary that was very nice.

After mass we had “cocktail” hour which was actually just juice and some other drink. I went up to Matt and Conor’s room and drank some wine that I had bought earlier. Then we headed to the Gala. The room was very fancy and the plated meal was pretty great but they stretched it out over about two and a half hours. They had a lot of dancers and a live band, which was awesome. After that we danced the night away and celebrated the New Year at midnight.
All in all New Year’s was a blast. The school didn’t help us out with alcohol at all, but we still partied. It was a great time, one that I will never forget.

12/30/06: It's the Summertime Baby!

Today was very, very, very relaxing. Finally. I tried to sleep in but ended up waking up around 9. That was fine because it meant I wouldn’t miss the buffet. I ate a good breakfast and then swam in the indoor pool with Engel and John. After that I cleaned up and went to the beach. The weather was very nice, probably around 70, and the hotel has a great beach with lawn chairs, a bar, and lots of cabanas. I laid out, swam in the ocean, and caught rays all day. I got a lot of sun. Not bad for a day in late December. The Mediterranean was pretty cold this time around, but nothing I couldn’t handle. The water’s a light blue down here but the ground’s a little rocky in places. It was just great to lie on a beach and take in the sun all day…It was exactly what I needed after all the traveling I’ve been doing.

We were on our own for lunch today so I grabbed some bread and a couple eggs at breakfast to hold me over. Unfortunately the eggs hadn’t been boiled enough so they were both practically raw and had to be tossed out. So by the time evening rolled around I was starving. The dinner was outstanding as usual and I hit it pretty hard. After dinner we went to the hookah bar and hung out there until 9 when we had a meeting about the New Year’s festivities.

12/29/06 Snakes on a Bar

Today I accomplished a lot. I had a good breakfast and then boarded the bus to tour the island of Djerba. Our first stop was at the Pop Museum, some museum that was supposed to display Djerba’s culture. It was pretty much pointless and very strange. It was basically a joke and we all got a kick out of it when all was said and done. Then we went to a Synagogue that was pretty interesting. After that we went to a town wit ha large market with tons of shops and vendors. This is where I did most of my buying for the trip. The vendors were very aggressive and sold the same things, mostly useless junk. They all have the same lines everywhere we’ve been: “Hallo…Amereecan? Everything one dinar…Just look.” Conor, Matt, and I bought a hookah set for 35 dinar. It’s really cool looking and I hope we can get it back to the states eventually in tact. I bought a few other small gifts and then we went back to the hotel. For lunch I had some decent pizza and then napped pretty much up until dinner.

Dinner was great as usual. After dinner we went to the hookah bar, hung out there for a while, and then went to the discotech. They had a live snake show that was very very entertaining. The snake guy was nuts and I’m surprised he’s still in business. He put a snake in Peter Markun’s pant leg, guiding it through the top of his pants. I can’t believe Pete survived the experience. He brought out some scorpions, and couple of lizards, and a boa constrictor. The coolest part was when he brought out the cobra. He took three out and played with them at the same time. They flared up their necks and bit at him several times, hissing as they struck. It was a lot of fun to watch and I’m surprised he didn’t get bit. After that, John, Conor, Matt and I hung out by the pool under the stars and then called it a night. Tomorrow is a free day and I’m doing nothing but lounging all day long.

12/28/06

Today was cool, but I had originally planned on skipping the tour but ended up going, and I wish I hadn’t. It was mainly just a lot of driving and then a free day. I really just wanted to go to the town of Tataouine so that I could say that I did, and I guess I accomplished that. But it was just another market with dudes trying to peddle you their junk; another place to look at hukas and toss around the football. We stopped at an old village that was built into the hills that was pretty interesting.

Lunch wasn’t as good as the other buffets, but it was dece and I laid out by the pool and got some sun afterwards. I’m not that transparent color that I usually am during this time of the year. It’s nice.

When I got back I took a nap and then had another great buffet dinner. Who knows what kind of meat I’m eating, but I enjoy it. After dinner everyone went to the discotech and it was a lot of fun. Then I finally got to use the internet, but only for about 10 minutes. It was slow and the keyboard was an Arabic one, but at least I got to email my family. That was nice, but I wish I had more time and resources to get in contact with family and friends right now, especially since it’s the holiday season. Tomorrow is the last day of touring (not counting the dreaded 300 km of driving and touring we have to do on New Year’s Day), and it’s my time to do all the shopping I haven’t done so far. After tomorrow I get to relax and do some true vacationing.

12/27/06: The Road To Djerba

We woke up around 7:30, got some breakfast, and hit the road. Today was mainly a lot of driving. I had sand everywhere: all over my face, in my hair, in my eyes, in my shoes, between my toes, etc. My camera lens was a little gritty and had trouble opening but I think it’s going to be okay.

Our SUV crew was the highlight of the day. It was John, Engel, and I along with Kelly, Liz, and Malia, none who go to GU. They’re a lot of fun and we talked about a lot of things. Our driver was pretty strange; he was way slower than everyone else and smoked with the windows up. That wasn’t a whole lot of fun. We stopped at another filming spot of Star Wars for lunch and then eventually made it to our hotel in Djerba. At first it took a long time to get into our room but the hotel is very fancy. The buffet dinner was the nicest I’ve had so far. I’m looking forward to kicking back the next few days and truly vacationing.

12/26/06: Camp

Today was a great day. We woke up around 8, got breakfast, and hit the road in the SUV’s. First we went to some small town with a big town square full of people and markets. There were some dancers and music and it was very lively. I browsed around the shops, found nothing, and got back in the SUV. We had lunch at another very nice hotel, and as usual, the food was awesome. After lunch, we had some free time and it was nice out, so everyone laid out in the sun and relaxed for about an hour.

After that it was time to go to our camp in the desert. WE made our way deep into the Sahara, parked the cars, and waited as several people brought camels for us to ride. There weren’t enough camels for everyone but fortunately I got one. Mine was very angry at first and I had to hope on quickly before he got too wild. But as soon as he stood up he was fine and good to go. We had a young guide who roped three camels together and walked us to the camp. It was a remarkable experience. The setting was unbelievable: white rolling sand dunes that stretched forever. Camels are kind of gross animals, they foam at the mouth, make really weird noises with their throats, and often flick their feces and urine up onto their riders with their tales. Luckily mine was pretty clean and I didn’t face any problems. Others weren’t as lucky.
The ride lasted about an hour and we arrived at the camp. It was a really cool setup: just lots of huts and tents, complete with a bar, souvenir shop, dining hall, and swimming pool.

I got my room assignment and then found Matt, John, and Conor and just started walking in a random direction in the desert. We were barefoot and the sand was so fine that it felt great to walk in. We ran down some dunes, played in the sand, and watched the sunset. The sand grew cold and we headed back to camp for dinner. I played hearts with Fr. Gary, Matt, and Conor and then ate dinner. They had a dance floor set up so after dinner everyone partied. We finished the rum and I ended up back out in the desert watching the starts. They were very bright and I saw several shooting stars. The sky was perfectly clear. That night I was freezing cold when I fell asleep in my tent, but I couldn’t have chosen a better place to spend the night: a 50 million star hotel.

12/25/06: Christmas

We got to sleep in a little today and then ate a great buffet breakfast. I have to say that this trip’s food has been outstanding. Catered buffets with good food…I can’t complain. We set off in our SUV’s around 9. This time our crew dropped Fr. Gary, Peter, and Dirt McGirt and picked up Wallace, Miller, and Tooleus. We first went to the Red Lizard Train, a scenic train that took us through some gorgeous canyons and breathtaking views. I took some great pics and took in the desert sun. Though everyone was in good Christmas spirit earlier that morning at breakfast, by the time noon rolled around we all forgot what time of year it actually was. The temperature was somewhere in the high 60s and we were surrounded by palm trees.

We stopped at this oasis right at the Algerian border which was something to look at from a distance. In the midst of the sandy desert was a forest of green palm trees. We ate lunch at a really nice hotel overlooking some ancient city and then stopped at another oasis town. This one was my favorite. There were dramatic gorges and high cliffs with a canyon of palm trees and a clear river. There were a few little waterfalls and a big clear blue pool that Miller and I kicked it at for about an hour. There were tons of frogs in it and it brought me back to the times when we’d go frog hunting with dad at Merricrest after school.

We headed back to our hotel (which btw is one of the coolest hotels I’ve ever stayed at) and I took a nap until dinner. After dinner I finally tapped into the run I bought at the duty free store and hung out with Fr. Gary and a few other dudes until pretty late. All in all it was an excellent Christmas.

12/24/06: Christmas Eve

Today things went from decent to spectacular. We hit the road early and first arrived in Tozeur, a town with a lot of markets and stands. Most of the things there sell here are junk, but walking through the food market was very interesting. At the meat stands they have the heads of camels, cows, and goats hanging so everyone can see them.

After that we had lunch and arrived at the hotel in Tozeur. The hotel is 4 stars instead of 5 but it’s by far the best we’ve stayed at. We had a couple hours of downtime after lunch so we played flyer’s up in the big indoor pool.

Then we set off into the desert in SUV’s. There were six people to a car and our crew was me, John, Engel, Fr. Gary, our travel director Peter, and Dirty D. Peter speaks French so he was able to coerce our driver into doing some extra stunts, so the ride was a blast. We sped over huge bumps and scaled steep hills like a roller coaster. The desert was beautiful, with sharp pink mountains dominating the horizon.

And then we arrived at the place I had waited all year for: the set of Star Wars. Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru’s village. The buildings were made of stucco or something like that but were still in good condition. It was so cool. I took lots of picks and then paid 5 dinar to ride a camel. Those things are tall. It was a lot of fun.

I knew I was in the Sahara when we reached the sand dunes. The whole surrounding landscape, as far as my eyes could see, was rolling hill of fine sand. We stopped in the midst of the dunes to watch the sunset. I took off my shoes and ran down the sandhills much like I used to do at the Lot. After the sun set, we got back in the SUVs and headed to a camp for a fancy traditional dinner. They had a flameblower, Bedouin dancers, a band, and good food. After dinner everyone went out and sang Christmas songs, but I walked away from the lights to look at the stars. They were very bright and it was interesting to see the constellations from a different angle.

We rode back to the hotel and had a Christmas mass said by Fr. Gary. It was very nice but it still didn’t feel like Christmas. It’s hard to be away from home on Christmas, but thinking about it, I was experiencing something way closer to the actual birth of Christ. I saw camels, shepherds, and a starry night in the desert. It wasn’t all snowy with Christmas carols, presents, and lights, but it was special in its own way. I missed my family on Christmas Eve, but there were plenty of people there who I considered practically family. Overall it was an incredible Christmas Eve.

12/23/06: Tired but not ruined

Today was another packed day of visiting Roman ruins. First we saw Dougga, which had a really cool and well-preserved ampatheatre. This was after a 6 am wakeup call and three hours of driving, so I was pretty spent when we got there. After that we ate lunch at Hotel Thugga nearby. Our dable played a game called the “Clean Plate Club,” where you ate all your food to the point where your plate was absolutely spotless It was a fun game until our dessert came; it was an orange, so we all ate the orange peels in order to stay true to the game.

After that we drove to Sbeitla, checked out some more ruins, and then got to our hotel. We had an awesome buffet dinner and then played cards during the evening in the lobby. They actually had a bar there so I was able to drink a little for once.
Tomorrow we have another 6 am wakeup call. But we’re going to see some great scenery and cruise in 4WD vehicles through the desert. I would like a little time to relax soon because you can take only so much driving and visits to ruins.

12/22/06: Tunis, Carthage, Sidi Bou Said

Today was a packed day. We got a wake-up call at seven and went to breakfast. It was delicious w/ omelettes and pastries and fruit. Then we set off into Tunis to a big museum. It had the largest collection of mosaics in the world and they were very interesting. The tour guide was hard to understand but I still enjoyed it.
We then went to lunch where Miller and I ate seven cups of chocolate mousse for dessert. Then we went to Carthage, a well-preserved Roman civilization overlooking the ocean. It was kind of like Pompeii but a lot smaller.
After that we went to Sidi Abu Said, a blue and white village overlooking Tunis. There were lots of aggressive vendors there and it was a good thing I didn’t bring any money along. The view was great and we caught another amazing sunset.
Tomorrow’s another busy day and we’re heading into the desert. It should be an interesting day.

12/21/06 Tunisia Day 1

Today was mainly just a lot of traveling. We left at 4 am sharp from San Marco Square to the Rome airport and then unfortunately were stuck there until sometime around 3 or 3 30 pm. I tried to nap bc I didn’t sleep the night before but probably only got about 2 hours total if that.
Yesterday was a great last day in Florence before the trip. I walked around town, got to talk with my family on the phone, and ate dinner with the Castelanni. Dona gave me a pair of gloves for xmas, the perfect gift because though I don’t want to admit it, the cold weather’s getting harder and harder to handle. To say up until 3:45 that night, matt, conor and I watched return of the jedi because much of it’s filmed in Tunisia.

We finally got to Tunis around 5:30 p.m. They took us on a quick bus tour of the city and then we checked into the hotel. It’s very fancy and our room’s big. We had a fancy buffet dinner; the spread was as fancy as the ones we put out at the Ridge. There were a bunch of meats- I don’t know what they were- but most of them turned out to be pretty good.
After that we walked around the hotel a little and then John and I headed back to the room. We watched some English TV for a while and both fell asleep. I can’t find my watch and there’s no clock in here so I have to idea what time it is, but I think it’s sometime between 2:30 and 3:30 a.m. My sleep schedule is pretty messed up. Tomorrow we tour Tunis and then spend one more night here. Then we’re off to the next place. Reading the itinerary I can tell that this trip’s going to be amazing. I can’t wait to get out into the desert. We’re seeing some pretty cool stuff out there.

Anyways I’m going to try to catch up on some sleep now. Tomorrow morning we get a buffet breakfast and I’m hoping there will be eggs, bacon, sausage, etc. Probably just wishful thinking but there’s nothing wrong w/ hoping. Buona notte.