Today was my last full week of work for a little over 3 weeks. Next week I have friends and family visiting, which I’m extremely excited for. Their visit is the catalyst for an incredible whirlwind of travel that looks like this:

Cairns > Port Douglas > Byron Bay > Tweed Heads > Noosa Heads > Rainbow Beach > Fraser Island

Oh, and there is this little event called Mardi Gras starting next week. Then I’m heading to Melbourne Easter weekend.

I get both excited and tired thinking about it. Somehow, I think I’ll live.

More importantly, the author raises an incredibly interesting question whether more attractive, but less intelligent people tend to gravitate to beach cities like Barcelona, Miami and Sydney.

Hmmm…certainty worth pondering.

Well, I’m happy to report that I’m now renting a room from a friend of a co-worker until I find something long-term. It’s in the Surry Hills neighborhood, which is just 2 min away from my gym and a 20 minute walk to work.

I have a local bank account, a gym membership and a new iPhone from Optus. Sydney is starting to feel a bit more like home.

I remember finding it difficult to comprehend the historical significance of Rome both times I visited. Athens has been continuously inhabited for at least 3,000 years so I’m expecting to have the same problem.

After two days in Athens, I’ll take a boat from the ancient port of Athens, Piraeus to Santorini for 4 days of beach living. Kamari will be my first time seeing a black pebble beach and Akrotiri will be my first red pebble beach.

I have some exciting news regarding Sydney, but more on that later…

BCN> London> Athens> Mykonos> Santorini> Istanbul> Thailand> Sydney

TRAVEL SCHEDULE
London       8/13- 8/17
Greece        8/17- 8/22
Turkey        8/22- 8/29
Thailand     8/29- 9/10
Sydney       9/10 – ???

Contact me if you are in any of the cities and want to meet up.

The flight from Chicago to Dublin was uneventful, other than a young girl puking twice during the flight. She was sitting only 3 rows behind me so I smelled the pungent aroma until the attendants worked their magic (side note: flight attendants don’t’ get paid nearly enough money for what they have to deal with).

I was somewhat nervous upon my arrival because I decided to try Couchsurfing for the first time. Any fear or doubt I had immediately faded when I met my incredibility nice hosts. They were extremely generous and I could not have had a better experience. Renato, Edmar, Grazi and Fabiano – If you’re reading this – THANK YOU!

Miscellaneous Thoughts on Dublin

The Irish were extremely nice and helpful. In fact, while I was waiting for the bus to the airport, a taxi driver stopped and offered a private ride to the Airport for the same cost of the shuttle bus. I’m still a bit confused why he did that. Perhaps he was already going to the airport to pick someone up and figured he could make an extra 8 euro. Regardless, I was very grateful.

Dublin Divided: North and South Dublin are literally by the Liffey river and figuratively by the economic and cultural differences.

International Dublin: Dublin was surprisingly international. Brazil, Nigera and all of eastern Europe was well represented. I spoke with many locals about the diversity and they all said this first started only 5 years ago. Like many immigrants, they followed the path towards money.

Cultural Experiences

National Gallery

Modern Art Museum

Trinity College

Dublin Castle

All the major streets: Dame, Henery, Graton, and Upper O’Connell.

Many conversations with locals (which I find the most interesting)

Night Life

Sunday Night social Hour: An invite only event in the Temple Bar district. Emailing the promoter saying I was in town from Chicago got me and my host friends access to the party. It was a very posh space with good music. It was a very fun night topped off by seeing an 8 person brawl as we were getting food at 2am. Is a trip to Dublin complete without seeing a full blown brawl involving the police and medics? I think not. Check!

Panti Bar: Panti Bar is a popular bar that is staffed almost exclusively by sexy Brazilians. It was a bit dead the night we went, but we still had fun because of the big group we came with. I apparently gave one of the sexy Brazilian bar tender a completely unnecessary 30 euro tip after one too many Caiperooskas (A caparina made with vodka vs cachaca).

Tripod: I emailed the promoter, which saved us 60 euro. Tripod is one of the coolest clubs that I’ve ever been to. And I’ve been a lot of clubs in many countries. I would describe it as “industrial chic”. Incredibly music? Check. Remarkable design? Check. Insane sound system? Check. Fun people? Check. It’s like 5 clubs, plus a music venue in one. The building itself was an old castle that was converted to a mega club a few years ago. It was an incredible night.

Saying Goodbye

It’s hard to get me worked up, but I always get extreme anxiety over the thought of missing a flight, so I left very early and arrived to the airport 3 hours early. I was ok with this because I gained free access to the Aer Lingus “Gold Circle” first class lounge (that was staffed by no less than 6 people, creating a crazy guest to staff ratio). Thanks to free food and fully stocked bar (free alcohol, beer, soda and full service espresso bar) the 3 hour wait felt more like 30 minutes. I slept the full flight to Barcelona after enjoying two Guinness and 3 glasses of an amazing South African Merlo in the lounge.

I had an amazing time in Dublin and I would highly recommend a visit to anyone.

Thanks again to my amazing hosts: Renato, Edmar, Grazi and Fabiano! You were all so nice and I look forward to staying in touch.