Our First Tour 2007

We had no editorial on our first trip to Europe. Just a lot of good-times. And a lot of booze was consumed hanging out with Ritchie, Joey, Twa, Nathan and everybody else that made it out. Here's a piece from the past:

Scene 1, Morning in Barcelona
The sound of applause sprays through the air. A performer has done well. I've seen him here before but this crowd he's attracted proves to be the grandest. The whole ocean walk is lined with people admiring the performer. It appears the performer loves his job dearly and takes a simple pleasure in filling the air with his lyrics. Except this time he's wearing a sombrero looking hat. It definitely adds to his allure as a performer. My recently acquired phone number doesn't make my phone ring. I sit here hoping to myself that nobody says the word 'Macba' today. Despite living five or so blocks from the other house, the only way to link the two groups is to show up and politely wake everyone. Please never trust a plan made at Monolo (the local skate bar) the night previous. Let me tell you why: It's quite possible that your company will make off to an absolute elsewhere. One may slip away with a newly met acquaintance. Perhaps others will dance the night away and cascade late throughout the city. Or some may even decide to leap in the ocean and forget about sleep altogether. And all of these instances did occur. Barcelona is so awe-inspiring.

I buzz their apartment and head upstairs. What a sight! People sharing beds, Fyfe's on the floor, Joey's on the patio with the sun and Nate's preparing Americano's for the group. Twa was there too. Even after having his VX-setup stolen, he could've been the happiest guy in the house. Like most days, there were no plans and everyone was moving at their own pace. Everything unfolding accordingly on it's own. Life was rich like that. On long trips accommodations can be somewhat of an uncertainty. Sleep a night here, sleep a night there, it always seems to work out in the end. A warm thank you to Eric, Jon and the three Swedish girls for lending their hands when we needed them. At one point of the trip there were seven of us living in a one-bedroom loft! Over an early morning breakfast I was quickly corrected that we now lived in Borne. See you at Pinocchio's my dearest friend! Amid all the inevitable conflict from lack of space, one man stayed cool by writing short pieces mocking the whole situation. And then he'd recite them to us! Maybe that was therapeutic to him. Out of a sound sleep I awoke to another laughing to himself, Dryden book in hand. You just have to love the three-thirty AM self-amusement. Chalmers could also be seen with Don Simon everywhere he went. (Don Simon is a very accessible box of wine sold for about one euro.) At one point his appeal attracted a large children following chanting, "chalmski! chalmski!"

Superbowl Sunday didn't get underway until about midnight local time which worked out nicely since everyone goes out late anyways. I knew Payton would rise to the occasion and this would be his graduation day. The Colts prevailed; everyone got really drunk and paid little attention to the game. If you accidentally slept in after a heavy night of drinking, there was always a good chance of catching someone at Café Zurich. "What time at Zurich?" Ask someone and they'll know. But then again, a plan made the night before? Despite all the coffee spots we still found our way to Starbucks regularly. It was just so close! Josh Kalis seemed to enjoy Starbucks even more that we did and seemed to be there whenever we went in. Didn't he know about the other coffee spots?

Leks and I made a special trip back to the Boqueria – a place we often frequented on our first trip to Spain. This massive market is really special to the senses. Accompanying us there sat some senior Spanish guys. Suited up, all wearing fedoras it looked as though they were dressed for their best days. Now remember it's only nine-thirty, ten in the morning here. Glasses were being touched, the vino was flowing freely and these guys were in paradise. Yelling back and forth at each other we had no idea what they were actually saying. While I'm over here eating fresh fruit from the stand next door, I look over in admiration. Prawns, bread, cheese, antipasto and wine covered the table. Fedoras off to those guys!

With all the other saluting going on, everyone else seemed to be doing fine too. Hearing about all the rain back home brought a smile to my face and was enough to skip my flight home. It doesn't get much better when you're hopping trains twelve at a time, skating world-class spots, then coming home to beach front real estate. 'The Pasta Spesh' was a popular meal of choice after a long day of skating. Throw in a couple euros with a friend, buy a couple veggies and you're eating for really cheap. And it's the communal cooking that really stands out. One person chopping, one person cooking, everyone was contributing. We got so caught up with it all we even missed the lunar eclipse. But there were many other beautiful sights taken in that trip. Is it even possible to know beauty without knowing Barcelona? It could be considered 'the land my heart desires.' Until next time Spain, I will miss you so… And may we never thirst.