Well, guys..... it seems that I am coming up on being about a month behind on my online journaling. To all the dedicated readers, I am truly sorry.
I must say, however, that I plan on catching up very soon. I have seen and done some amazing things; things that cannot stay couped up within myself; things that I feel the need to share.

That said, I will give you a quick update upon my current activities.
I have been in Italy since the end of October.... a long time, but this country is well worth it. I started in Florence, where I spent four nights and met some really cool people. I also got to see Michalangelo's "David".... something that I will definitely elaborate on when I catch up.
Then I went to a place called Cinque Terre... it means the 5 Villages in Italian. These villages are on the coast and are linked by an exhaustive yet breathtaking 12 Km hiking trail. It was amazing.
Then I went to Rome, where I didn't initially have a good time. The reservations at the hostel were screwed up and later that evening I actually caught a 14 year old boy in the act of stealing something from my backpack. It was funny because the only way I caught him was because I could see our shadows in the streetlight. I just so happened to see my shadow and also the shadow of someone else with their hand in my backpack. When I noticed I spun around and grabbed my backpack away from him, he promptly turned around and started walking the other direction. Well.... realizing that he stole my Baby G digital watch, and realizing that he was a non-threatening, small framed 14 year old, I went after him. I'm not completely proud of it, but I actually had a slight physical scuffle with a 14 year old. The good part is that I won and I got my watch back... and I think I embarassed him in front of all his friends. Again, I'll elaborate when I catch up.
I met Royce in Rome where we saw some amazing, amazing stuff. Rome is utterly unbelievable. Everywhere you turn is something of historical, religious, and architectural significance. We caught an amazing display of Roman ruins that used to be the center forum from the time of Ceasar, saw the Vatican (wow), and Colosseum, in addition to a plethora of other amazing Roman sights that just appear when you get lost.
After 4 nights in Rome, we headed to Amalfi Coast. Since Royce is on a tight schedule, we actually stopped in the city of Pompei on the way there. I actually toured the ruins of Pompei!!!!.... and they were more magnificent than I could have ever imagined. So much was intact. And it really felt like you were there..... and it was crazy being able to see Mt. Vesuvius in the near distance. You could picture that perilous day. Again, more later.
Anyway, on to the Amalfi Coast and the picture perfect town of Positano. If any of you have ever seen the movie "Under the Tuscan Sun", Positano is the small, picturesque costal village in the movie where she meets the Italian boy. Anyway, it was just as picturesque and was truly amazing until it started pissing down rain and all the steep, steep steps (the village is actually vertical on the side of a cliff) became waterfalls.
Anyway, caught the night train (insert Guns & Roses song here) to Venice that arrived in Venice's San Lucia train station at 5:31 AM. Spent about 5 hours in Venice, then caught another train to Bolzano. That is where I am currently. A quaint, small ski resort town that is extremely charming. You'd think this place would have an identity crisis, however, because it's actually Austrian. It has Austrian heritage, they speak German here, you can get doner kebaps and weinerschnitchel (sp?), but the town is located in Italy. They actually seem to handle it here, though. You can get by speaking Italian (which is good because my Italian is MUCH better than my German), and every once in a while you'll see a Pizzeria.
Today, we will catch a train to fair Verona, where I hope to catch a glimpse of the Houses of Montague and Capulet (yeah, right..... although, who knows?).
Then, back to Rome where Royce will fly back home and I will make a bee line for the Greek island of Corfu.
Hope all is well with everyone back home. I hope to catch up with everyone soon. Bye!