Well here we go again. I am back for another commentary and ready to deliver.... at least I hope so. It is Thursday, August 30th, and in less than 36 hours I will be starting a journey to Australia that will take nearly 36 hours to complete.

While talking of Australia, I would like to take a moment to reflect back on some fo my past trips. First I would like to say thank you to my job who allowed me to see all the places on their tab (I am sure they would much rather it be on my tab though). I have got to see many places that most people only dream about through my work. I never would have thought that I would be able to visit 10 countries and travel all over the U.S.A. and get paid for it! I would like to now tell you a little about some of the places I have visitied.

My first trip abroad was to the United Kingdom. I flew from St. Louis to Detroit, then from Detroit to Amsterdam, Holland, and finally from Amsterdam to Manchester, England. We then had to hitch a taxi for a 3 hour road trip to the hotel in York, England. I had not slept the whole trip thus far (about 20 hours) so I snored away during the whole taxi ride. York was a very historical place. Most of the roads were still paved in cobblestone all of the stores were still the original building built hundreds of years ago. Everything was so commercialized. and every five hundred feet there was a Pizza Hut, McDonald's, or Burger King. Night clubs were the hot spots as soon as dark hit. The beer was served warm, thick, and more bitter than a scorned ex-girlfriend. Of course, they didn't care much for our American ales either. It was a fun time but not nearly as fun as our stop on the way home.

We were leaving on a Friday and called back to the States to get the okay to stay throughout the weekend. It was okay'ed and we set off on the first flight of our journey......The trip to Amsterdam! It was decided well before we left the U.S. on this trip that on the way home we would be stopping in Amsterdam for 2 nights. You can't go through Amsterdam without staying at least a night. The first day we were there we went straight out to town before we even saw our Hotel rooms. Two things that every person should know before going to Amsterdam are 1.) "Coffee Houses" with Bob Marley flags really don't sell coffee 2.) Never, E-E-E-Ever take a camera with you to red light district. Okay so everyone knows that Coffee houses in Amsterdam really don't sell coffee but maybe everyone of us Americans don't know that compared to what they sell in the coffee houses in Amsterdam, our similar stuff isn't worth a crap. Also if you want to do that sort of thing do it there where it is legal. That was the last time that I ventured into that realm. As for the camera in the red light district, I had my video camera hanging around my neck with the lens cap on and still one of the prostitutes freaked out and came out of her window, screaming "A-hole, A-hole, F'er, F'er, no picher, no picher" all the while smacking this crap out of me. I also went to see the Van Gogh Museum while I was there and after seeing some of his work it was no surprise that he lived in Amsterdam. Great place to visit and a lot of sites to see.

Puerto Rico was another great place. I stayed in a beach side condo while I was there. As you walked out to the back porch you flipped two switches that would raise the storm shutters and there less than 50 yards away was the beach and ocean. Every night, the two other folks from the mainland and myself would gather at my condo and sit on the back porch and drink beers while chatting and watching the tide. While I was in Puerto Rico, I went to old San Juan and walked around there. I hit the Hard Rock cafe and saw many lovely buildings, as well as the bank that was robbed in the Sylvester Stallone movie "The Professional". The food was good, the scenery was unique and the people were very very nice and helpful. I really enjoyed my trip to Puerto Rico.

Ecuador may not have been the greatest place I traveled but it does make you open your eyes and be thankful for all that you have. Poverty is everywhere. I would look out the window of my hotel room and as far ass the eye could see were tiny shanteys made out of anything they could find. There were small children everywhere around these. What a way to grow up. I am thankful for all I have and all that I have accomplished more than ever before. Many of us are much luckier than we know, I wish all of us in the U.S. could see Ecuador just once so that everyone could know how well off they are.

Venezuela was another nice trip I took. It was not the most well off country either but they were better off than Ecuador. The people there were very nice and helpful. The scenery was beautiful from the air and the mountains were majestic and such a sight. Some workers from the Hotel took me out to play pool and have supper one night. They were great people and I am anxious to go back.

I am going to combine both my San Luis Potosi and Mexico City trips into one about Mexico. I was not too impressed with our southern neighbors. You weren't advised to go out alone or at all if you could avoid it. As a matter of fact, I spent a whole week in a hotel room while I was in Mexico City. Seriously 5 staight days 24 hours a day. That sucked. San Luis wasn't that bad. I did get to go out a couple times there so it wasn't a total waste of time, but Mexico is just not on my have to go back list. Would I go back? Maybe, but it wouldn't be on my money.

Colombia.....just the mentioning of that word makes some people nervous but it wasn't that bad. I was in Medellin which may be why I think that. I have heard that Bogota is like a completely different world and that might be true but Medellin was very nice. Every morning I got to watch the sunrise over the mountains that surrounded the city from my hotel room window. Plus the usual sweet sixteen gift for the women there is a boob job, so it is a hormone-crazy-guy's greatest dream. All of the people I dealt with were great and extra helpful. I would suggest Medellin as a place to see.

Now to my longest trip abroad, Portugal. I was in Porto and let me tell you this town was a party town. I was there for nearly a month and there was no way I could have kept up with most of the locals in their partying no matter how long I was there. The parties didn't start until 10:00 P.M. and didn't stop until 6:00 A.M. It was crazy! They have the best bar foods too. Fresh olives, escargo, fresh breads, mixed roasted nuts, and many other great things. While I was there I got to see the Batalha Cathedral, my goodness was that a sight. It is hard to believe that it was built over 500 years ago! I also got to see an old castle. That was probably my favorite because you were allowed to go anywhere you could get to. It was so cool to sit on the balcony and try to imagine what everything looked like when it was in its prime. I also was staying right down the road from a bridge that the designer of the Eiffel tower built. It was probably one of the most beautiful bridges I have ever seen. It was actually a bi-level bridge, with roads both on top and midway down the bridge. Once again many nice people and everyone was helpful. Portugal is great!

Well that is all for now. Join me next time directly from Australia!