ARG!!

So...I've been spending the last thirty minutes trying to upload pictures from Thailand and Europe, but blogger is not publishing the images and this one of the baths in Budapest is the only one that has worked. You'll just have to take my word for it...I've got some really nice shots of Thailand's beaches, Budapest and the Greek islands.
Michelle and I had a very early flight (5am) back to Budapest from Athens and right after arriving and dropping off our bags, we went straight to the baths for an early morning dip to shed the stresses of flying and a sleepless night. We spent two hours going from the hot indoor tubs to the saunas and steam rooms then outside to the two enormous thermal pools. Michelle has returned to classes this week, but we've still found time to explore some of the markets and sights that Budapest has to offer. Tomorrow morning we head to Prague on an organized trip with Michelle's school. In Prague we will meet up with Mike and Kevin and spend the weekend with them before we all return to Budapest next monday. Then, around Wednsday, Mike, Kevin and I will begin our journey south...most likely down the Croatian coast to Greece, then across to Italy...and beyond that, who knows? It will be difficult leaving Michelle, but she has school to attend to and I'll have Mike and Kevin, which will be nice. Our several weeks together have been incredible.
As it always is when we meet after a month or two apart, it feels as though we never left each others sides. Everything is so comfortable, relaxing and easy going when we're together. But...I'll see her in early May when I return for a final week before we both fly home to the States. That's all for now...sorry for the lack of detail - I'm in a library using Michelle's roommates laptop which needs to be returned. ...let me try one more time for a picture from Greece...no go. I'll try later. 10-4 out. -Sammy C

Santorini

Well...the weather improved enough on Paros for us to rent scooters and drive around the island. Great tiny villages that dotted the green, hilly landscape. The next day we got on a ferry and headed to Santorini Island. Santorini's current shape was molded by a volcano island just off shore and a giant earthquake in the 1950's. The Island is now lifted far above the sea, bordered by great cliffs jutting up from the Meditteranian. The towns on the island sit right at the top of the cliffs and provide spectacular views of the sea and the surrounding Islands. Today we took a boat tour to the volcano island and explored its lava rocks and craters, then the boat anchored in a harbor - we all dove off the boat into the freezing Meditteranian (isn't it supposed to be warm!) and swam to a hot, though it was really luke-warm, spring in a tiny inlet. The tour finished off by loading us onto donkeys that took us along the steep path up the cliff to Faros, the town where we (and the few other tourists here this time of year) are staying. The tour was actually a load of fun and it was a great opportunity to meet the other travellers on the island. Tonight we get on a ferry and hopefully sleep the duration of the nine hour ride to Athens. Michelle and I fly back to Budapest Saturday morning. Next week I'll have access to the computers at Michelle's school and upload some pictures from our trip. Hope that everyone is happy and well. Michelle and I send our love to all.
-Sam

Transition

Last week I left Mike on Ko Phi Phi and headed for Budapest. I departed in my shorts, t-shirt and sandals, sweaty from the intense heat and humitidy. Descending into Hungary I was writing intensly to catch up in my journal. I paused for a moment to look out the window and suffered some minor shock - the landscape was a beautiful vast plain of farmland covered in a soft blanket of snow. SNOW! I was feeling a little ill from all the flying and adjusting to the severe cold definitely took a toll on my body. However, this was no matter, because on the other side my lover was waiting for me. Seeing Michelle has been wonderful. She has set up a nice life for herself the past several months in Budapest and it is incredible having her as a guide to show me around. Budapest is a beautiful city. The architecture is commanding and awe-inspiring - a mix of neo-classical, gothic and baroque styles. It's been nice meeting Michelle's new friends, but the best moments are the ones we have alone sharing a meal or laying in bed sharing stories from our amazing experiences that have occured the past two months. Michelle had a midterm last thursday and directed me to a bath house near her school to relax while she was hard at work. It was an outdoor facility in the courtyard of a beautiful classical yellow building. The scene was great: crowds of Hungarians chatting in circles in the gigantic pools of steaming water that bubble up from the fault line that runs underneath Budapest, the old men congregated in corners playing intense games of chess. Towards the end of my time there it began to snow, completing my Hungarian bath house experience. That night we departed on a plane for Athens, Greece. People warned us that Athens was not too nice of a city, but Michelle and I thought otherwise. We had a great time exploring the streets and the views from the acropolis. Our second evening there we left from the port just outside the city for Paros Island, where we arrived last night and where I currently sit inside a nook of the House Bar plugging away at the interet. Our hotel is a charming little place with a courtyard that our rooms porch exits onto. The port city on Paros is stunning: lined with cobblestone alleys that maze between white stucco mediterranian-stye buildings sandwiched between the sea and the rolling green mountains of the island's interior. Unfortunately, it's been raining hard most of the day and our exploration of the island has been rather limited. But I have nothing to complain about. Travelling with Michelle is wonderful. 'Nough said.

Ko Phi Phi is the place for me

So....last week Mike and I were hanging out in Chiang Mai, waiting for my new debit card to be delivered (I lost my wallet down on Ko Chang). The card finally came Thursday in the early afternoon - I put it in my pocket, Mike and I grabbed our bags and we were heading south to the beaches...somehow. No flights at the airport, so we bought a cheap ticket to Phuket for the next morning leaving from Bangkok, went to the train station and got on an overnight train south. Remarkably, our train arrived on time and we got to the airport 20 minutes before our flight and made it no problem...we like to cut things close. From Phuket we got straight on a ferry for Ko Phi Phi, a much more laid back island than Phuket. Phi Phi is great. The island has no roads - if you want to leave the little town you either have to hike or take a boat taxi (we're cheap and have been hiking a lot.) I love the beach...it feels so good to be back. Our first full day here, Mike and I rented a kyak and paddled for several hours to Ko Phi Phi Leh, around the back side and in a little entrance to Maya Bay...the location where the movie The Beach was filmed. If Leo could do it on a little raft, we figured we could do it in a Kyak no problem. The beach was beautiful, but very crowded with people who cheated and hired speed boats to drive them the distance. On our paddle back we found some great spots for snorkeling and a neat cave that was just above sea level - we had to wait for a little inlet in front of the cave to fill with a rush of water and lift us high enough to grab the rocks and climb up into the cave. The paddle back was long, and the fact that a crack in the bottom allowed the hull to fill with water and weigh us down did not make it any easier. Anyhow...we made it back and went to a beach front restaraunt where we feasted on lobster and crab...I guess we're not that cheap. Today we hiked to the highest point of the island, enjoyed the view, then hiked down the other side to some more secluded beaches where we snorkelled, played frisbee and enjoyed life...needless to say, life is not to difficult to enjoy when you're in a tropical paradise with one of your best friends. Life is good...and it's only going to get better! Tomorrow I ferry back to Phuket, fly to Bangkok, fly to Cairo (at one in the morning) and then take a flight to Budapest where I meet my lover. Michelle finishes school right after I arrive, so she'll be waiting for me when I get off the bus that leaves the airport. We will be together in Budapest for several days and then fly to Greece for a week...life is good.