trying to get home

I have had a good time in Dublin. When I got off the one hour late plane from Heathrow the plane to boston was still there. Not a good sign. They had a car ready to take us directly to the plane, the woman driving it said, "Okay, to get ya there on time, we're ganna do a bit of sneaking around." (in an Irish accent of course)

Anyways, I got onto the plane, watched almost an entire movie while they waited to be de-iced. Then the intercom said it might be another hour. 15 minutes later it crackled out again that we should come back tomorrow.

I got off the plane and waited 5 hours in line to have the service close with one person in front of me. I feel so much worse for the girl in front of me than I do for myself. There was an announcement every 5 minutes it seemed that there was free internet and that we should reschedule the tickets online. I tried this, but the system was so over loaded that it would not let you to choose your departing city as dublin, only heathrow, this could be a form or torture.

I don't mean to complain. I rather stay in Dublin a few nights than die on the runway, you know?

Coming off retreat, I thought the behavior exhibited at that airport was over the top and ridiculous. When they closed the service for rescheduling tickets, five policemen came over and made sure the employees safely got away. My favorite line was "You tosser!" by a man in a very nice suit, at an employee who said they were closing.

Zoe came into the rescue calling up the airline (I do not have a phone), and sorting it all out for friday which is the soonest flight that has a chance. I found an inexpensive hotel, and here I am now! Being here at dublin is not bad at all. Being away from home is awful.

bumming around Spannocchia

I had quite a bit of time at Spannocchia, I spent most of it trying to take in the scenery. This is the secret garden.... it's not much of a secret anymore....

This is my good friend Zeus, one of four of my canine like friends at Spannocchia.

Drying grapes for vin santo!

This is Santa Lucia, the standing building use to be a monastery, next to it was the church that has fallen.

I did see a live wild boar there! It was a massive pig, much larger than what I have seen in Spain.

This is the key I got for my room at the hostel on my way back through Rome. I was in the attic, and it had a serious lock to keep out.... I never found out what it was to keep out....

pressing olives, and Spannocchia

The picked olives were brought to the press. First they are washed (in the machine by the man in the blue jump suit), then ground pits and all by two massive wheels.

Next they are put onto woven plastic mats. The oil runs out just under their own weight, then they are squeezed in a massive hydraulic press for a few hours.

The oil goes into a centrifuge to remove the water and to mix it well. Then it is bottled or put into a tank. The waste product looks like dark chips, the oil business buy these "chips" but nobody at the press knew why. I have consumed liters and liters of olive oil here, it is great!

After Panic Ale (Panicale), the town I was staying in, I got a ride from Paul and Jane to Spannocchia, which is near Siena.

I made some new friends. The farm is part of a program called "Noah's Ark" which is in effort to save the heirloom breeds of farm animals because they are less "efficient" at growing, working, or producing.

Spannocchia makes wine, vin santo, grappa, olive oil and other products. These are grapes that were not fit to make wine, but look yummy to me! Wine grapes are not very good to eat, they're mush.

I am going to do a whole blog post just to the pigs there when I figure out how to get the rest of the pictures off my camera. The pigs are amazing!

Continuing the blog

I have been debating whether or not to continue blogging since it would be feeding a world that seems to eat only synthesized experience. People need to experience things at the source, be there, feel, and live.

The goal of this blog is to improve my writing, documenting, and multimedia skills through practice. Unfortunately it will always be that I can only capture a small portion of the experience, no matter what.

So please go out and reach deeply into the world. I hope I can give you ideas for your own adventure, no matter how big or small. My most favorite experience in Europe has been walking in a field of grass.

Enjoy,

-Max

Oliver once made a car....

My brother made a car some years ago, and I recently came across the photos of it. You can tell what the driver is like by the license plate: 666.... 13.

Yeah, that stick on the side, it's the brake. You pull it and the other end drags on the ground. The rose, however, is just for looks.

The red thing is a periscope, to see over oliver.

Picking Olives

I have been happily working for our neighbors since I arrived in Panicale. I do a few hours of work and they give me internet, lunch, and a bag of food to bring home. It could not be better. This is the road I wander down every morning to their house.

Olive trees grow so slowly that if you shock them by cutting them down they do not die, they just send up more trees.

Picking olives is simple. Put a net down to catch them, and rake or hand pick the entire tree. There is some technique to raking the tree. Climbing in them is both necessary and enjoyable until one falls out.

This tree below has been the record for producing the most olives, and it has a hole right through it.

One tree makes about 1 liter of oil.

Siena

Well, Stew, Midge, Kiki, and I went to Siena for lunch. It was a two hour drive which was fairly uneventuful except for picking up a Dylan Dog comic book. Damn, that is a great comic book. Always wears the same clothes, gets the girl, and survives/defeats the bad guys.

I look up at the uncompleted church. I look down at my legs. I have cartoon legs.