Hi Friends,

I hope you haven’t been so ashamed by the total lack of progress Gabrielfrancis.com has made in the past year that you’ve forgotten me completely. If you had forgotten, well then, welcome back, its nice to have you again. If you hadn’t then thanks for sticking it out, you’re a trooper and here’s a prize.

I’m coming out of hibernation for a short revival trip to Western Europe for the New Years. This past year of working at Google in the San Francisco bay area has put the corporate clap down on me and I’m ready for a break. Thanks to my new found wealth in stock options and the money I’ve saved with their FREE gourmet meals I can now afford to take short jots here and there about Europe with short notice. Well, not really wealth, and I still can’t afford it, but what the heck, I’m going anyway. Some people spend the money on diamond rings and finer things and I choose to spend it on fleeting adventures to the Congo. Need proof? Come visit my new apartment off of Stanyan and Page in the Haight Ashbury of San Francisco. Its entirely barren of furniture and I probably won’t have any for a long time if I keep busting my savings on these trips. Anywhoo. I’m off, I’m off.

The details:
Tomorrow early morning I leave for Amsterdam, Netherlands. I’m a bit worried about my flight from Chicago to Amsterdam, because the plane picking me up is being routed through Denver and that airport has been snowed in for the past week with no break in the storm. If I make it out of Chicago I’ll be quickly on my way to legalized prostitution, marijuana coffee shops, street side gambling, and a whole host of other wonders that make my mother cringe. I only plan to be one night in Amsterdam, to celebrate New Years Eve. I still don’t have a place to stay as all the hostels are either entirely sold out or ridiculously expensive. Even last minute resorts like couchsurfing.com have proven fruitless. The plan right now is to either a) make friends quick, b) sleep in the train station, c) don’t sleep, or d) be dead, mugged, and frozen solid.

The morning of New Years, January 1st I’ll be off by train to visit a friend in Vire, a small town in the countryside of Normandy. You may remember Benjamin, from Paris in my Around the World in 61 Days adventures. Or maybe you don’t. I haven’t finished that story yet have I? Kind of left you hanging huh? Well, don’t worry, because I’ve let myself down more than I have you. I’ve already forgotten a lot of what happened and if I don’t jot it down right quick it may be gone forever. And what a shame. Anyway, I’ll be visiting Benjamin and his new Polish girlfriend for two days in his hometown.

Then to Paris for a half day of shopping the Champs Elysees. Shopping you ask? Yes, shopping. On one of the most incredibly overpriced and luxurious streets in all the world. My girlfriend, Ms KerryAlpen.com herself is accompanying me on this trip and, as fashionista as her Nordstrom managing heart is, it just wouldn’t be right to deny her the pleasure of a shopping day in Paris. We’re not staying the night in Paris, I just extended our layover for a full half day so she would have some time. Hopefully it snows. Can you imagine? Paris in a blanket of snow? Heaven.

For the last stop of our trip we’ll be in Barcelona. I have no plans there but to hang out with old friends, eat an entire leg of jamon, and spend the Spanish version of Christmas (El Dia de Los Reyes on January 6th) with Juan, Mayte and their two little girls Laura and Lidia.

I hope you all had a Happy Christmas. Please keep me in mind on New Years Eve as I may be shivering in a gutter, stuck up with heroin needles. I’ll do my best to write a few updates during my travels and post them on GabrielFrancis.com .

Gabe