long update

ok so yesterday i got back from Barcelona...it was the best weekend i've had. I really enjoyed Spain and i would love to go back to Barcelona aka Catalonia. There is so much history there that i never even realized. For example this crazy ruler named Franco and how the Catalonia became apart of spain. This wouldnt be that interesting if it wasnt for the fact that this all just happened in the 1900s. I bought a book yesterday from WHSmith about catalonia and the struggle the people of barcelona went through in the 30s. The food of course was yummy...paellas and tapas...real cheap too. So we got to Barcelona around 1130am on Saturday, checked in, went up a tiny elevator to the top of the chris colombus monument, went to the beach, and took a bike tour at 4:30. The bike tour lasted 4hours and we went to a ton of places...Sagrada Familia, arc de triomph, city park, music hall, the cathedral, bull fighting arena, beach again, a square where Franco killed some Univ Professors, um and tons of other places. Got some grub from Happy's and got a little happy from the champagne...it was delicious. we woke up really early to go to the beach and people seemed like they were just getting back from clubs and going out. i dont know when they sleep in spain. walked around las ramblas saw more Gaudi buildings and went in the Sagrada Familia...which is not suppose to be done un til 2082!!!!!! Gaudi was a crazy man with an amazing gift but i think he might have been a little to compulsive at times. He died in 1928 by a tram(trolley) he was walking backwards looking up at his church he was building when a tram hit him....and they say only 30% of the church is done.....but it really does look like it is melting.
Amsterdam...i really enjoyed it...i know some people didnt find it that special but i really liked it. I loved all the canals flowing through the city and all the bikes that everyone is on looks fun. Me and this girl katie rented bikes for a whole day and saw so much. They say there are more bikes than people, and i probably almost died because of all the bikers. but while we were therer we went to the Van Gogh museum the rijks Museum and saw and amazing Rembrandt and Carvagio show. It was a Dutch and italian artist being compared to each other, these two artists painted at the same time and painted similar pictures from bible stories. It was so neat to see how different artist from different countries portrayed the same story. didnt smoke any weed...thought about it but i had too much fun on my bike to actually stop and buy some, plus i wasnt very good at stopping anyways. Also went to the Heineken Factory and the Anne Frank House. The anne frank house was much more moving and powerful than i thought...i forgot how amazing this little girl was and it made me want to read her diary again.

now back in paris for a few more days and i leave sunday the 2nd fro Italy...Florence, Rome and then off to Austria, PRague, munich, and switzerland. I miss everyone...and being in paris makes me miss home and america. It is very different here and i dont know if i could live here anymore...i would love to but i miss the convience and the lazy america way sometimes. I will be sad though to leave paris because the feeling you get walking around the city is something i cant explain, and i dont think any place could really compare.