Kelly and I took a week-long trip in September 2007 to Barcelona, Spain. I kept a journal of our ramblings then and have just now finally scanned it in. Perhaps I’ll transcribe it soon, too! The penmanship is pretty poor, so it’ll be like your own little adventure reading it! Click on the image(s) below to bring up a slideshow/gallery thing!

More pages: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17.

The journal itself was a very handy Moleskine City Journal (Barcelona Edition), packed with city maps, bus routes, underground stops… and a pocket in the back that contained the following:

You can also read my then-live dispatches from Barcelona, and view photos from our trip in the 2007/09 Barcelona gallery.

A full transcript of the journal appears after the jump.

Itinerary

Key to Matt & Sara Packing Laptop Bag Books Check Cat & Water

CHECK IN – SDF 09/19/2007 4:45 PM – Atlantic Southeast (Delta 4581) 8:00 PM Delta Flight 114 -> BCN

CHECK OUT – BCN 9/28/2007 1:05 PM Delta 114 Check in for seats! 9:45 PM Delta 824 -> SDF 11:05PM

SEPT 19 Departed Louisville 1:15 late – our flight was scrubbed due to “mechanical problems”. Re-routed to later flight to Atlant (6:05 P vs 4:45 P) – which shortens our layover to almost zero! Hustled to our gate with a Spanish lady who was in town (Lou) b/c she is a brand manger for Br. Forman – specifically Jack Daniels. We go to the gate just as they were boarding. ATL is quite nice! THE TRAINS – THEY RUN ON TIME! A grupo of students on the 767 with us. Generally more fashionable than US kids. Hip eyewear, etc. Attention to dress is notable – but perhaps just the style. I am wearing a jaunty hat, one with a feather. I thought it would be appropriate. Maybe it is just funny. I have asked to remove it for the lady seated be me who wishes to watch the in-flight movie – “Georgia Rule” with Lindsay Lohan. Kelly does not approve

SEPT 20 On the bus to Plaza Catalunya. Despite the yard high “WANTED” posters for the Basque separatists (ETA) security at El Prat was fairly light – at least compared to my prior encounter w/ int’l travel, which was Canada. Canada interviews you for a few moments asking about your hometown, why you are there, etc. Not here! A quick glance at your passport and that’s it! Even customs isn’t more than a glance. THough, there are heavily-armed polic upon exiting the airport via road.

Hotel Inglaterra is a smallish affair – but it modernly adorned. We have a balcony out to the street which is wonderful. Very tired, but we decided to take a squick walk down to Pl. Catalunya & the H&M that is there. A lot of well-dressed people here! LIke Chicago but to an extreme. Glasses are definitely vogue – esp. ones with square ends. – It should be noted that the music I heard here so far is slightly out-of-date – but so much so that it’s cool again. Mid-90s. “I can tell by the way you walk…” Jarvis Cocker? Lemonheads? – Ate a short lunch @ TAPA TAPAS (44 P/Graig). Some tasty fries w/ aoili, apella mixta topped with a mussel. Met some backpacking Kiwi girls. Very nice! They noted they learned no Spanish in school Are going to Denver in Dec/Jan. Walked the Ramblas to Mare Magnum on the Harbor. Had a beer @ Cafe Lirica. Living statues: silver pirate, table, Edward Scissorhands, scary bike thing. Sat and watched people go by while enormous beer plied me with it’s creamy ways. I do not know what beer this was. Good head, slightly creamy. Lager I assume. Attempting to stay awake to a “normal” hour. May not be possible.

Sept 21 Slept until about 9AM this morning. Back on track! Ate at a cool little tapas bar last night – right up the block from the hotel. d’Or was it’s name. Kelly and I had a .5L each of Spaten (German beer). I had the “Rip-Hack” sandwich (shredded spiced steak), Kelly had the Catalan – a sausage and ham sandwich. Patatas bravas as well – friend potato cubes w/ a spicy sauce. At Starbucks now – I ordered a black coffee which they referred to as “American” cofee. Kelly thought maybe they meant coffee for an American. Considering they don’t have black coffee on the menu, I’d assume it’s the former.

La Boqueria is a large open-air market right in the middle of Las Ramblas. Filled with a dizzying array of fruits, vegetables, fresh meats and seafood. Kelly and I page 3 Euro for half a pina y a bowl of fresh fruit. Two bocadillos (filled rolls) with spicy ham/turkey & cheese was 4,20 Euro. We walked back up to El Triangle (a large mall just west of P. Catalunya) to eat. Next stop – La Universidad to pick up our packets for the race Sunday.

It should be noted that the pan con tomate here is pretty prevalent.

-

Scooters are everywhere as are bikes. Mostly commuter affairs, multi-geared. A lot of portables, too. Very, very few bikes wear helmts – but 95% of scooters do. Bikes are always on sidewalks. Saw a Hell’s Angel with Spanish colors yesterday.

-

Waiting in line for packet pickup for La Cursa de la Merce’. Skateboarders are prevalent in the city. We are at the University Plaza and there are two at the moment. One grinding the benches (stone) and practicing pop shove-its wearing his UK SUBS t-shirt.

-

Just saw a man wearing a bright orange vest with a sign on his back that said “BCNG: NO VOTE AL HEREU”. He is also wearing a gas mask & a red cap w/ a yellow star.

-

3PM – At the Sagrada Familia after a good walk from the University Placa. Gran Via was very busy so we walked along C/Deputidos to C/Marina. Sagrada is fascinating. It is at once a mirror of nature adn yet it also celebrated the linear in that nature. Hardly a right angle in it’s facade – ther may be non that I can see.

5PM – Walked from the Sagrada to a little place inside a marker on C/Ribes – La Tobada. I had a Damm + 2 bocaditos, one with red, spicy thin-cut sausage before and another with the Catalan ham that make the Boqueria smell funny. Kelly had un “Bikini” which is pretty much a normal sandwich. She also had horchata which also tasted odd.

5PM cont. – We are at the Museo de Xocolat on C/del Comerc. Two “Xocolta grans” and some school-baked “millandras” set up back 6,60 Euro. The chocolate is sweet – a taste like chocolate pudding without the gel. Very tatsty with these little biscuits. Funny taste in the biscuits tho’. That smell/flavor seems to be in everything in Barca – the water, the biscuits, the meat. I have classified it as a bit of “wet dog” smell, but not terribly.

C/den Gignas!

-

10:30 PM

[Kelly's entry] OMG I’m trying so hard not to break Rule No 1 (stay upright). Ben and I managed to finish off a pitcher of Sangria w/ our tapas. (fried arty-chokes, salted cod, chickpeas + spinach and some bizarre egglant + sardine thing that I swear would be better warm) (establishmet: taller de tapas. it was yummy. The (Rbl de Catalunya sur de Valencia – ed) “room” (i.e. the street, we’re easting OUTSIDE!!!) is moving, a nice, softly sliding to the right. We’re going to get ice cream next! Helado! Woo-hoo! I’m tore-up!

Sept 22 – Correfoc day! Ate breakfast as a joint on Las Ramblas – had an “English breakfast” served by a frantic little man in a bowtie. A dog roamed the open-air restaurant freely as int’l visitors from all worlds passed thru. Early this morning we were awakened by a really loud trask-pickup of mostly bottles. We hadn’t been awakened by anything previously. Kelly dreamt she was in a car-crash.

-

2PM – Went to the Ramblas H&M after breakfast – I was dog tired likely due to dehydration – legs are so tired from walking! We stopped in TRAVEL BAR on C/Boqueria for a bite to eat and to watch some of the Rugby World Cup – to it’s on at 2PM.

In rugby you make your own kicking tee out of a bucket of dirt! Howabout that. Such things you learn. At Travel Bar, one wait for food! Staff is largely English speaking, though! Not to self: must take Cholly on rugby road-trip.

3PM – Having ate and drank our fill at TRAVEL BAR we headed back out to the streets. Ate delicious choco helado @ Cacao Sampaka.

8:45PM – Via Laietana Kelly and I headed from the hotel to the Ramblas. Many people on the streets – drum corps and band all over the place. Down to C/Jaume I and then to a throng of people @ Via Laietana – the ambulance and people in full riot gear tell us we are in the right place!

11PM THAT WAS INSANE! People dressed as devils with sticks with firecrackers on the end of them – they are lit by what amounts to a crew chief and then they emit sparks for about 30-60 secons and they explode with a loud report. Each devil bounces forward, spewing sparks on those in the streets. It should be noted that care is given not to involve those who don’t want to be involved. Children are aplenty, though – many on their own, but many with partens. The teams are very well-orgranized, seemingly they are neighborhood organizations with their own style – but must (all) with their own drum corps, devils and support crew.

Each team has their own “fire box” filled with supplies that they push behind the devils. The order is always devils-support crew-drum corps (tabalers). It is very well-organized and it was completely the safest inferno I’ve ever been to. We headed back to the hotel to rest up before the race in the AM. We did stop by d’Or again – the roll call is on the previous page.

d’Or 1 Spaten 1 plate Padro’n peppers 1 plate calamaris Romana

Sept 23 [Kelly's entry] Wake up call @ 7:30AM, we roll out of bed @ 8. A quick breakfast of oatmeal bars that we had left from the plane ride, and then we headed down ot the Placa Espana for the race.

Apparently the races over here do not supply you w/ safety pines to put your bib on with (and we couldn’t find any yesterday – it might have helped if I had known the word for “safety pin”) I scrounged one from off my purse, but Ben was just carrying his in his hand. A nice woman gave us 2, and I found another on the ground. Also, since my Nike’s that I was wearing have weird laces, I had to fasten my timing chip on with dental floss.

Once the race started, we were fine. A lot less jostling than local races, but there were few, if any walkers (or if there were, they knew to line up in the back). The course took us back towards the Sagrada Familia and through neighbourhoods we’rd already toured. Ben + I got separated at the halfway point, and I didn’t see him again until km 9, when the race went both directions on one street (BTW, I was head :)) The last km was all uphill and Ben + I both were passing people like crazy. At the finish I managed to yank the dental floss off, and grabbed some water and a Coke. No bagels, just Coke. Also, most runners wore the race shirt, a Day-Glo orangae thing. In the US, it’s bad luck for a lot of people to wear the race shirt before they finish the race. It was weird to stand out wearing all black.

[Ben resumes] We returned to the hotel and took showers, etc. We wanted to go to the Boqueria and fetch some bocadillos and fruit but the Boqueria is closed on Sunday. Instead we headed west towards El Ravel and got sandwiches as Mar Mandizabal – a cool little walk-up bar. Mine had serrano ham, goat cheese and mango! Then lightly grilled. Delicious! We walked up to the MACBA (museum of art) – and found that iti si free tomorrow thanks to the holiday that is El dia de lam Merce’! So, instead nothing the weather had turned very nice we headed northwest up to Parc Gueel, Gaudi’s outdoor creation. The subways here are pretty nice, but damned hot at times!

3PM – Parc Guell The Vallcarca station on the MTB Green Line was claimed to be the “easier” route to Parc Guell. The Lonely Planet guide book mentioned a climb to get there, but in the shape Kelly and I were in that was torture! It’s a huge climb, tho’ made easier by about 1/4 mile of escalators. Beautiful view!

5PM – Kelly and I wandered about quite a bit. It’s east to get lost in this freeform park. Amazing view of Barcelona from the top. Headed down through the “Zona Forest” + Saint Salvador’s fountain – shame it wasn’t running today! The fountain went into a large pool and then down a channel in the stairs, nice and secluded. Manes houses up in these hills. Reminds me a fair bit like Hollywood. Saw a great vista of the Monserrat Abbet on the mountain framed by two pine trees. Many hill were walked to bring back photos and memories. We rejoined Parc Guell and walked down to the large open plaza, with the curvy bench. Took a seat next to an old trumpet player and relaxed while a young man proposed in front of the large crowd on the plaza. He must have been somone of reasonable means as he had a camera crew + sound guy with him. A big! camera.

Ciutat Comtal! Montaditos de Jugabo ham! Kelly had Dammn Lemon, I a Damm Estrella [Kelly cuts in] (Mine was better!! Lemon start, beer finish) Serrano ham on brochette, the potatoes w/ tomato y aoli, shrimp + squid, bread and manchego, and these awesome chicken and ham croquettes. I want to eat them all the time. Ben kept wanting to order more and more because, as he put it “it’s all so tay-stee!” I convinced him that we should hold off and head down to Valor (a chocolate place) a little down the road.

- [Kelly] Side note: with tomorrow being a holiday here in Barcelona, we’re hoping that a lot of the restaurants aren’t closed. We may starve. There is one oatmeal bar left in the room… (and I’m sure the international chains, i.e. Starbucks, McD, Burger King, will be open, which I guess would do in a pinch.

- [Kelly] An aside – we have seen plenty of dogs, a few rabbits, some chickens, birds, and hamsters, but until to-day no cats. We finally saw 2 (at different places) at Park Guell. I tried to pet one but he was too fast.

- [Kelly] 10PM – Valor Why can’t we live in a country where you can order liquid chocolate at a cafe? After a bit of confutions as to whom took our order, our drinking chcolate (xocolata maia para mi, xocolata sonoscuro para Ben) arrived. I would gladly give up a mean or two a week and replace it with real hot chocolate. It is liquid yum I want it ALL THE TIME.

Sept 24th Breakfast @ Viena a Las Ramblas. Chicken hot sandwich + Bock-Damm beer. Cafe solo and little catalan croissants. Walked from there to Museo d’ Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA). Many interesting installation here, mostly mixed media or film. Large exhibit of Joan Jonas.

3:30PM From there we travelled to the Museo Nacional d’Art (MNAC) – but it was only open ’til 2:30 due to the national holiday. We’ll be coming back. It’s an impressive collection of Roman, Classical, Baroque + Modern (to 1940) art. Plenty of stairs, too!

We exited and enjoyed the expansive view from the Palau Nacional (where the MNAC is) of Barcelona to Tibidado. Just behind the MNAC lies the Olympic Stadium so we took the strol and enjoyed the hulking, shrouded Stadium and placas.

9PM We returned t othe hotel for a bit and had a short siesta, being tired from all the hill-climbs. Being a holiday the Ramblas were full of people – and seeing as how many public attractions were closed, we decided to do some souvenir shopping. Kelly had her eye on one of the “Barcelona” bags apparently licensed by the city and I wanted a Catalunya shirt. Half by happenstance we passed by Taverna Basca Irati, a taps join that worked like this: you pick your tapa off a plate – eat it and save the toothpicks. Each toothpick is 1,70 Euro. Turn in your plate and voila! Your check. It was wonderfully delicious. Probably the best tapas yet. Minced cod w/ tomato and garlic, delicious smoked salmon and sauteed onion. Olives, peppers and sardines. Tuna steaks and ham croquettes. Kronenberg lager to drink! We wandered around more and stopped to watch an international b-boy crew. Gave them 2 Euro each for their great show. Also watched a bumbled juggler. The b-boys where pros! The head dude spoke English, Spanish, German, Italian, etc. We continued down to the waterfront and encountered a wine and cheese festival! XXVII Mostra de Vines y cavas.

Sept 25th (Tuesday) 9:30 AM Checked into bed last night and watched the Man U/Chelsea game. 2-0 Man U. This morning we were glad to see the Boqueria open again. I had a delicious cheese + spinach pastry + a “natural” crossant, pineapple and water. Kelly had a chocolate pastry. We also bought two bocadillos for lunch. My sammich is that thinly-sliced red sausage and Kelly’s is serrano ham. Delicious! We are currently @ Placa Reial waiting for the Gnarly Charly bike tour.

A tour guide in the Placa here is explaining that the giants we’ve see are all created by the individual neighborhoods and that the street performers are all licensed – they are cheap, but very limited!

3:15PM – MNAC Look up following: 7-eyed dog, the torture of St. Llucia. St. Vincent dogs/wounds/etc. Modest Urgell – Paisatge Ramon Casas – Ramon Casis i Per Romeu en un tandem

Had the full run of the MNAC today – amazing collection of Roman (1000AD) art – all religious. Fantastic altar pieces set in surrounding as they would have been “in situ” Most of the collections focused on Catalunya or Barcelona. Off to Camp Nou!

6PM Camp Nou – 50 years old – industrial, set in a busy sort of in-between neighboorhood called Le Corts. We circled it and stopped in the mega-botiga. All little cheaper here than elsewhere. I had heard that scalpers abound and that you could find them near the ATMS that double as ticket vendors. An old man mentioned “Tiquets! Tiquets!” I stopped and flashed two fingers he said “Si! Si!” He asked me for a pen and wrote “30″ and “48″ on the back of his hand. I asked him “Cuanto cueqest” but he looked at me and said “You see tickets across the street”. We were standing on Camp Nou ground and I gather scalping on the property is a no-no, after all club members are the only ones doing most of the scalping. He motioned across the street to an apartment building and said “amigo”. Looking across I saw another man waiting furtively – again maybe in his 70′s. We corossed and had a seat on the bench – I assume to keep the law off our backs. He showed me the tickets, which were off a perforated strip. The first set were 48 Euro, which was a little steep for Kelly and I. The second were 30 Euro which I was OK with. I made sure there were next to each other motioning until the old man said “junto!” and pulled close. The wanted 70 Ero even – which oddly the first amount the ATM gave us to withdrawal. I didn’t feel were were getting robbed – they had honest faces and appear to be two old chums out to make a buck. We paid them in broad daylight and I shook hands with the “amigo”. Elated by the experience (Camp Nou isn’t in the best of barris), Kelly and I headed to the nearest Metro with our quarry. We’ll see tonight if the tickets are good! I have reason to see why they aren’t. The website for FCB showed tickets available in our same section, but for 5-13 Euro higher. Dinner at a fantastic falafel joint Maoz – also found two Barca based graphic novels for HMD.

Sept 26th 2:15 L’Aquarium Shark tunnel is brilliant! Penguin exhibit OK – Newport is better, I think. Aquariums are similar, but Shark Tunnel(s) here are longer and with cool moving sidewalk. Many sharks would keep Holly happy.

3:00PM I should mention we’ve stopped into a few hobby shops – a lot of car/train stuff, mostly models, slot cars, etc. A few planes here and there – nothing recognizable save for a Thunder Tiger plane. Scalextrics is big, as is Tamiya. Stopped at Mare Magnum – big mall on the harbor. Earlier, made the plush pengy and shark we bought fight and then make up.

3:55PM Things to note: lack of good water, general flow of foot traffic, very few small courtesies (saying “hello” in a shop, saying “thanks”), “stop” buttons on toilets, almost everyone asking for ID w/credit. lack of public restroom (or WC, serveis), lots of people with broken arms. Facial piercings (mainly labret/lip, “beauty mark”), un-natural hair colours on older women.

Sept 27th 3:45 Pintxo d’Paxti, Txapena Lunch @ Pintxo – fascinating barista pouring was I assume to be the local “cava” – a sparkling wine like champage from a bottle 3 feet above the glasses, spalshing it everywhere, occassionally hitting the glasses. Order by number – delicious sausages and skewered shrimp mushrooms and bacon. Ham croquettes – loin marinated with adobo and garnished with kosher salt. Need to try the stuff in the barrel – orange and carbonated. Also a delicious cherry tomato and mozarella thing. Wandered around town a bit looked for souvenirs, etc. Bought two FCB buffandas (scarves) for 10 Euro each.

6PM – Sitting on the solarium @ Hotel Inglaterra More about the football match. Very light lines to get into Camp Nou. Getting there was no problem. Trains relatively light going to Collblanc station on the L5 line. FOllowed a jersey-wearing German. Kelly insisted we take a right at the stadium to get in – circling the same direction as when we toured it the day before. Mistake! We had tickets to enter Access #2, and we started at 16 heading ot 17. Long way around, but the walk was OK and the fans excited – singing the Barca songs. Many foreign fans – French, German, Brits, even overheard some US kids. Entry into the stadium suprisingly easy. Access gate attendant torn corner of your ticket. Then you look for your “porta”, ours was #88. There they scan your ticket. I don’t think you are allowed access anywhere else. From there you are patted down by private security. (Also notable was the Mossos d’Esquadron in full riot gear outside the Stadio) Then you walk down a few flights of concerte stairs and look for your “Boca”, ours #49. Seeing the pitch at eye level through one of the entryways was exhilirating – like seeing Wrigley Field for the first time, but with 70k die-hard fans in the seats. I was shocked to find that our seats were field level, 5 rows back (so slightly above the field). We were behind the north goal to the right of the goal.

A goal view was just fine for me! We watched the Real Zaragosa goalie warm up. The opposing team is announced first and with each name read – a hiss! Very short, controlled. Barcas side is announced and with each name, a “Hey” is let loose, appropriately loud as per the popularity of the player. Both Ronaldinho and the captain Puyol (midfield) where out this game, so the loudest cheers with to Messi (f) and the frenchman Thierry Henry. The Barca song is sung, and I didn’t understand a wordy, save for the BAR-CA (barsa), BAR-CA, BAAAR-CA! 70,000 fans make a most impressive noise. As kickoff neared, Kelly brought out the sammish we brought (bought in La Boqueria htat morning) and I went to fetch a refreshment. I noticed that, unlike US baseball stadiums, there is no way to get to other sections of the stadium! If you are in Porta 88, you stay there! There was a two-tier refreshment area – the only one for our section. The bottom was a grill – grilling sausages for bocadillos and selling patates xips (potato chips) and the top selling drinklys. Curiously I noted that you couldn’t buy alcholic beverages! Only Damm SA (sin alcohol) was available in a cup. Sodas and water were allowed as were coffees. The cokes from cans – which you had to have decanted into a cup and the water all had to have their caps removed. I suspect these measure are to keep the peltings and other shenanigans to a minimum. That’s what hooliganism will yet ya! (Also notable – the “no Nazi flag” symbols. Make you wonder what’s in the hotdogs. In totla, three people were manning these booths and traffic was light compared to US baseball. Soccer never sleeps and only during halftime (a short 15-20 minutes, maybe) did these see much action. Football is also only 90 minutes, whereas the typical US baseball – or even football game will last that long. Upon kick the songs being. Behind us and the the left is a flag-waving corps of maybe 30-40 that starting singing these different chants – Ron-al-deen-yo! or some Barca based song that I don’t understand or, and perhaps these were my favorits – that involved liberal use of the work “puta”. When the scored reached 4-1 Barca then the chants got a little ridiculous.

Sept 27th cont 10:00PM TRAVEL BAR Overhead: “Yeah, when I managed a Dominos back in the States” Kelly and I just successfully managed the streets of Barce for the last time, finding a cafe and chocolate joint called “Cappucino” near Hotel Suizo on Via Laietana. Xocolate en la tass and a croissant dipped in chocolate on both ends in what I gather is a Barca custom. Delicious thought not necessarily up to what we had at the Museo d’Xocolat – but what the hell, it’s chocolate in a cup, who’s complaining?

Hand another encounter with “The Hang” – that steel drum/gong/drum sorta instrument over by the cathedral on the way to TRAVEL BAR. Different guy this time bu likely all the more haunting on this cool, moonlit night with on us and the hang player in the alley. We stopped ’round the corner to listen to the harp-like sounds. It has had quite the effect on Kelly and I both. It will be a lasting memory of this place, compunded by the area of town, the setting, the acoustics, the whole happenstance of it. One of those great travel memories forged out of circumstance.

Kelly and I have ordered some rather large lagers here at TRAVEL BAR. I had hoped to see the Real Madrid match at 22:00 but ??? we’re watching American dance videos.

(cont) Ordering in this place is a little strange. We came in and sat down at a 4-top near the bar and waited patiently, but were never approached. I went ot hte bar and ordered a pint apiece of San Miguel and something called “Scrappy Jack” for myself. The bar maid looked at me as if I as ten ???, and cocked her head a few times peered at the taps and then said that they had only London’s Finest on tap. “That’ll do” An odd exchange considering English is the dominant language here. Oh well. (interjection: KElly wishes she could hoola-hoop. Her beer is almost 2/3rd gone – ed.)

Kelly and I chatted about our trip ofr a bit, and taking stock of the people see around this bar, we half expected to see our old firned Art Black pop out of one of the many vinyl-only record stores beating out dub reggae.

(Pause: I watch Madonna’s “Hung Up” video on the TV) Damn – I love that song. ‘Specially that bit at the with the build-up.

Speaking of the patronage, I noticed quite a bit of the punk and goth stuff prevalent in the late 90′s (and today) but overwhelmingly in the Ramblas you’ll find a lot of dreadlocked rasta kids and backpackers and the like. Out on the streets proper, you’ll likely find the Ramones represented well. A healthy Muslim communicty in El Raval, all mixing with the old Catalans that put with the turistas like me in the Boqueria in the AM. I could get into this. I love the idea – but I’ll admit that doesn’t make much long-term sense means 2.5 kids, dog, cat, 401k and the like. The experience we’ve had is all too fleeting but very, very worthwhile.

Sept 29th 1:20PM EDT Back in Louisville after some 16 hours in transit. Having conversation with my normal tongue is a welcome pleasure. Also had a hotdog and a fountain coke for the first time in a long time.

-