Coastal Maine

The sights of Portland, Maine. Definetly a coastal town. I love the narrow streets, the granite curbs, brick sidealks and the smell of salty air. Better yet, the highs are in the upper 50's. That's a lot better than the upper 90's in Austin last week. I spent the night in Downtown Portland, ate some Indian food and then watched tv to recover from the long flight.

Got up this morning and headed up the coast on Highway 1. It was a beautiful day - lots of sun and lots of cool small towns. Best thing about them - everyone flies an American flag. This is the town of Bucksport, Maine.

No explaination required . . . just had to take a picture of it.

Fort Knox on the Penobscot River. It was built in the mid-1800's and is now a State Historic Site. It's really cool because the State allows you to walk pretty much anywhere you want. Most of the old rooms and tunnels are open and self-guided. When they say you need a flashlight, they aren't kidding. Walking down a dark underground tunnel by the light of your cell phone isn't very smart. It's an easy way to fall down a drop-off and shred your arm on the granite. (Hey, don't judge me. I went back and bought a flashlight at the gift shop.)


Old carriage road bridge over the road between Otter Creek and Bar Harbor.


The coast in Acadia National Park. I came to Maine to do things . . . hear the waves crash on the rocky coast line and eat a fresh Maine lobster. This evening, I did both. Everything after this is a bonus.

Pretty sure this guy is related to my supper. I had a giant lobster that barely fit on its own plate.

Tomorrow is another day . . . then only five more after that. I have really enjoyed travelling around the U.S. and the world over the last five years. The last couple of trips, I've just wanted to get back home. Maybe it's time to take a break from seeing new places. Miss everyone back home. See y'all next week.

First Day in the Dominican Republic

We flew from Austin to Atlanta last night, and then from Atlanta to the DR this morning. It was raining and abour 90 degrees when we got here. It is SO HOT with the humidity.

We are staying at the Sosua by the Sea resort. It's not a bad place. I have a corner room on the top floor with a great view of the pool and the ocean.

Beach area behind the hotel.

The pool. My room is the one on the top right corner.



Inside the room.


The only public school in the town. They hold three sessions a day - morning, afternoon and evening.


Typical street in the town. We took a walking tour today with the local missionaries so we could get familiar with where stuff is at and exchange money.

Key West Butterfly Conservatory

Inside the Conservatory

Road to the Harry Truman Little White House Presidential Museum




Warm and very humid here today. I held a $255,000 emerald from the Mel Fisher store today. Also held a $35,000 gold coin. both are from a 1700's ship wreck.

Donated blood this afternoon following lunch. Got a free movie ticket and a free Key West t-shirt.

A few from the Keys

It would sure be nice to never have to work again . . .

Back in the oven we call Central Texas

Well, I'm back at home after travelling for around 21 hours. Not much happened the last two days in Bergen. On Tuesday, my last night, I went to a highly recommended restaurant and had a reindeer fillet. It was fantastic.

But in the end, it was time to leave the cobblestone streets, rain, waterfalls and fjords behind and return home to Austin. I almost had a heat stroke at 10pm when I got off the plane. It will definitely take a few days to readjust to the 100+ temperatures.

Sunday and back in Bergen

So I finished out the day in Stavanger yesterday and moved from the hostel to a Best Western by the harbor (thank you Michelle for looking up the address so I could actually find it after walking for 20 minutes with no luck). It was a small but comfortable room. I couldn't figure out how to work the elevator - or the light switches in the room for that matter. Who knew you had to plug your room key in the wall and leave it there for the lights to work?

I took the ferry from Stavanger back to Bergen this afternoon and am back at my original hostel. For those of you that have been reading since the beginning, you know that means no more photos. But then again, you've alerady seen Bergen.

Tonight there is a summer concert in the 700-year-old church down the street. There's nothing else to do on Sundays, so I guess I'll be there.

I'll spend the next couple of days shopping for stuff to ship back. Fish balls for all!

Saturday - Just a day in the town

Haven't done too much today. It's been raining off and on, so I have stayed fairly close to town.

The wind from the storms has brought out the sailboats in the main harbor area.


I stopped in the National Petroleum Museum. This is the drill control room from an offshore drilling rig. They had a lot of interactive displays. I could control some of the drilling rig parts from these panels.


I also went in some of the local shops. This is a photo from a gourmet food store. All of the bottles on the wall are various types of olive oils. Prices range from around $25 to $250 a bottle.

So here's what money can buy you in Norway . . .

Ride the local bus one direction - $4.00
1/2 liter Pepsi - $4.50
Movie Ticket - $18.70
Burger King Meal - $16.00
Average sit down lunch in a pub (Burger, fries, etc.) - $25.50
Pint of beer to go with lunch - $13.50
A pound of bacon in the store - $22.87
Reindeer fur - $119.00
Dale of Norway sweater - $238.00
Solid brass oil lantern for a boat - $408.00

Wage for a college student washing dishes part time - 120 kroner/hour = $20.40/hour

Not a cheap place to visit, but I guess if you work here it all evens out in the end.