Sorry about the post under Casey´s name. The people next to me bumped my arm, and my hand hit the Enter key. Anyhow, talk about culture shock! We are staying with Ben, who is living with a family whose hospitality seems rather transactional: warm when money is involved and less so when it is not. Regardless, it has been a good visit. Yesterday, we climbed the hill near the centre of the city and took in one of the most amazing views I have ever seen. We then rode the outdoor escalators down the hillside, yes, outdoor escalators, and walked around town for a while. We ate at an excellent seven-euro-per-plate restaurant and enjoyed a three-hour dinner, then went out for a drink. We need to look up a few things …

It has been a few days since I last wrote, and Barcelona has been busy in the best possible way. I started the day at the hostel, grabbed some breakfast, and walked over to my new hostel to check in. After a few suspenseful minutes at the door, I made it into room 306 and met the first of several new roommates. From there I went back out toward the Sagrada Familia, wandered around the cathedral, and reminded myself that I was getting better at the subway system. There is a strange confidence that comes from navigating a language you do not really speak, but can sort of understand if you squint hard enough.

I woke up at the hostel and eased into the day with coffee at a small cafe. Hostels make for memorable people-watching, and this one was no exception: a rotating mix of travellers, beach plans, late nights, and people trying to figure out where the next train would take them. We spent the afternoon at the beach, then returned to the hostel for a nap before meeting a larger group for the evening. About 20 people were heading out together, which sounds organized until you remember that this was a hostel group in Barcelona. I did not know exactly where we were when we arrived, but everyone seemed happy enough to be there.

What an eventful day! I do not even know where to begin, where the adventure starts, or where the insomnia blurs with reality in a dizzying haze. I left the airport after getting some change and finding my bags. Despite some family concern about me travelling alone, everything went smoothly: finding baggage claim in Spanish, getting change from an ATM, getting smaller bills for the bus, and catching the right bus. I jumped on the A1 and headed for Catalonia. I asked the bus driver to alert me at my stop, and he did. First on the agenda: find some food.

I am quite glad to be on an American keyboard; European keyboards take some getting used to! So, let's see: life is indeed quite interesting. After taking a long nap, I woke up to two women moving in. Being my outgoing self, I asked, "So, where are you both from?" That is where it all started. They joined a few friends and me on our adventures for the night. They were both charming, but both were already seeing people. But on to the story.

Hmm. I cannot believe how quickly time seems to pass! It turns out that I am doing quite a lot of walking, which is fine, but my new Birkenstocks are not entirely broken in. We are currently staying at Gothic Point in the middle of the Gothic Quarter. Ashley and I wandered down towards the waterfront, eventually found a small supermarket, bought some food (meat is very expensive here, at least compared with other items), and sat by the water to eat it. Afterwards, we wandered back to our hotel, no longer needing a map, and then over to the Picasso Museum. Wow! I need to email my parents soon and teasingly ask why they never took me to all these countries. As I wrote in an email earlier today, it was a …

We will soon land in Barcelona after a generally pleasant flight on one of easyJet’s large orange planes. I am very hungry, however. One of the shops in London would not accept Visa, so apparently the card was not accepted everywhere after all. While Ashley slept on the couch beside me, I woke from a short rest feeling almost dizzy from having slept so little over the previous five days. I began talking with two women nearby, Nikki and Alysia, who also went by Maggie. I did not understand the two names, but we joked about it together. When I took a drink from my CamelBak, they both looked surprised and asked what it was. I showed them, and they found it amusing. Without expecting anything, I gave one of …

Remembering quotes from Camus, I realize a couple of things. First, I am about one hour outside London, and second, I really don't have any idea what date it is. I think it is the 15th, but we are about 24 hours into our 34-hour journey to Barcelona. The flight has been relatively uneventful: Ashley slept for much of it, while I read more than 200 pages from various books. My sleep has been anything but regular; I have had no more than three hours a night for the past five days or so. I had to leave Portland with a "bang"!