DCNY

All right, so Washington and new york. (this is written through a haze of jetlag, so god only knows how it's going to turn out)

So it was hot in washington, and I went to museums, and hung out with a guy from Indiana and a girl from Switzerland. (the guy has since emailed me saying wouldn't it be cool if we all got matching t-shirts to remind us of our cool time in DC...wouldn't it be cool though?) Also, the guy who owned the hostel was a fire engine enthusiast. he kept one out the back. Odd.

Anyway, we saw museums, and Arlington Cememtery, and various large marble buildings of political import.

Then flew on to New York. Fun fact about America - they think i am a terrorist. Seriously, honest to god a terrorist. Every time I flew, i got the SSSS rating. which means 'Seriously Suspicious So and So'. I think. Anyway, The result was that each time i went near an airport i had people shouting orders at me, swabbing my extremities for explosives and mostly just getting more and more worked up at my inability to follow their orders. (as I've mentioned, I'm kinda...well...disorganised sometimes)

So, eventually touched down in New York. It's like walking into a film, looking at all the places I've seen on television. It was odd.( Although I didn't get to go on a date with any of the women from Sex in the City - thought that was something that just happened as soon as you get onto manhattan island, live and learn, i s'pose) I did, however see the sights, and walk around like ahomeless person. (spent the last few weeks growing a big nasty travelling beard)

Following new york, I did get on the plane at JFK, spent an hour taxiing around, and 6 hours later, touched down in Dublin, bringing the trip to an end.

probably some editorialising tomorrow. And that'll be it.

i'm a bit sad though.

Last stop...

New York City.
It's hot.
I'm home on Saturday.

I'll put up a proper post before then.

LA.

(I had a whole post devoted to steak, and argentina, but i'll put that up later)

So, I stayed in a hostel on Hollywood Boulevard. With 2 roomates. one's a dwarf who does impressions of Chucky (from Childsplay) for money outside Mann's Chinese Theatre, The other was - let me get this right - a poet, who was also a knight Templar. Who was trying to revive the tradition of knight poets. He was in LA to try and get a job with a breakfast radio show writing limericks. Or as a Male model.

These were only two of the people i lived with. Others included:
-The jingle writer, who sang about everything, all the time. 'maa-kin' a sandwiiiich...gonna put some peanut buttter iiiiin....'
-The would be soap star. Who lectured me on the importance of coke as part of a hollywood career. And on the danger of kissing girls who turn out to be guys.
-The guy who goes around pointing out celebrity resemblences. (i look like no-one, sorry dude)

So i went for a walk on hollywood Boulevard, saw all the adult shops, exotic shoe shops, exotic adult shops, tattoo shops, exotic tattoo shops, shoe tattoo shops, and any combination of the above.

And I decided, since I was there, I might as well have a bit of a wander out to see other parts of LA. So i did.

Long Beach - Gone in 60 seconds was filmed here.
Universal City - i couldn't afford the theme park, but i wandered along the shopping streets
Reseda - 'It's a long way, living in reseda...'
and
of course,
because I am the wisest man ever to have walked the face of the earth...

i went for a stroll in compton. (as in 'the hood' from 'boys in the hood' and 'compton' from 'Straight outta Compton' and...well, you get the idea, it's the hood)
(where stroll = getting off the train, wandering across teh road, saying wow, this place is kinda crap, and getting back on the next train)

Anyway, at the moment I'm in D.C. It's hot, but i don't care, i saw the capitol building over the top of some trees and thought I was in the west wing for a bit. awesome.

Travelling, all glamour, all the time

All right. I'm a terrible traveller. You probably know this. I enjoy it, having a blast, but seriously, i'm very disorganised, prone to worry and have a short fuse when i'm really tired.
Some examples:
I had a complete meltdown in a chinese bank. (where complete meltdown includes, but is not limited to: incoherent swearing, clown like gesticulating, arguments that rely on the 'Just...Fucking...Because!' principle, and confusing of foreigners with half remembered junior cert language classes. -today i went around going 'i eat the bank?')
And a Danish train station.
And Hong Kong Airport
And Santiago Airport (Twice)
Various small ports in south east asia
Overnight buses make me suicidal (or homocidal, depending on whether or not you're all up in my face trying to get me to stay in your guesthouse)

So, this last few days, i've had a particularly complex bit of travelling to do. On my own. Rio- Santiago- Buenos Aires. With no Spanish or portuguese, a shortage of local currency (guaranteed to make me kick inanimate objects) 3 hours sleep a night, and lots of complicated and hitherto unknown (due to my aversion to guidebooks) airport taxes. Also, the fact that i've just apparently smuggled a mobile phone into Argentina. Anyway, I'm dead proud of myself. I didn't break down, didn't freak out (even when it looked like we were going to land in the middle of the Andes again)

I even managed to include an interlude of drinking whiskey with Chilean political activists, very inflamed about nationalisation. I think. They were speaking spanish. They may not have been activists, may in fact have been Zookeepers. My knowledge of spanish isn't great.

Anyway, I'm in Buenos Aires, alive and well.

Also, remember back in last August, I wrote this:
In my head, I'm playing the blues on a beach at sunset to a crowd of smiling brazilian girls. The waves lap in. There was a barbecue earlier, and we had freshly caught fish. I've a cold bottle of beer beside me, the moisture on the side slowly dripping down onto the sand.

That Happened! Not at the beach, but close enough!