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The Professional Bum
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Santa Monica, California
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This place was Great
visited Jan 2000
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After a tough game of beach soccer, it is customary to go for a post-game analysis at the closest place that serves beer. Ok, maybe not, but that's the outcome of this particular game of Swedes versus locals. One local joins our little group of Scandinavians. He's not from California. Moved out there to catch a break. Pretty much like everyone else in LA. 'So what do you do for a living?'. 'I'm a professional bum' is his rehearsed and completely unshy answer. It's almost with a sense of pride he tells that he used to sleep on the beach or wherever he could, before finding (and being able to afford) an apartment. He's waiting to catch the big break as an actor - duh! He's had a few minor roles, the 'biggest' one being in the blockbuster 'Chain of command'. He has the theory that special skills will land movie roles. His special skill is a German accent. And why not...? There will always be a demand for an Adolf or Klaus to counteract the good guys...
posted Apr 24, 2005
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A Little Behind
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Fuengirola, Spain
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This place was Average
visited Dec 2004
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New Year´s celebration in southern Spain. Every country has its own ways of celebrating. One of the beauties of travel is to come to different sites and take part of local customs and traditions. In many countries it is customary to make a pilgrimage just before the stroke of midnight to where everybody else is making the same pilgrimage. Usually it’s a natural gathering place, such as the main square. This is also the case in Fuengirola. People gather at Placa de la Constitution. They have brought the necessities, champagne and grapes. Champagne is a rather international occurrence. The grapes are however a Spanish specialty; the idea is to put one grape for each stroke of the clock without choking, chewing, or swallowing. In other words, stuff your mouth with twelve grapes in roughly twelve seconds. When this is accomplished it is allowed to swallow. We have no grapes, have to concentrate on the champagne part, and watch other people fill their mouths until their cheeks are blown up like balloons. After this ceremony and after having wished friends, family, but also complete strangers a Happy New Year, people take off to wherever they choose to celebrate the rest of the night. So do we, in search for a spot to be jolly and merry. After some time, apparently about one hour, we pass The London Pub, where people seem ecstatic of joy. Even in a drunken stage, it does not take very long to figure out that these people have chosen to completely ignore everything local for a moment of celebration. This little British island, on this particular night, does not recognize European Standard Time, but in honor of the motherland, is on Greenwich Time. In effect, people in this pub are oblivious to the outside world, and have decided that New Year is not when the local time is 00.00, but when the Queen says so, i.e. one hour later. Question is, is Britain compatible with the rest of Europe, or is it Europe that is incompatible with the UK...?
posted Apr 23, 2005
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The Toll Booth Money Collecting Service Person
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Fuengirola, Spain
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This place was Average
visited Dec 2004
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With all due respect to honest work, the profession as a toll booth collector must clearly be the least glamorous and rewarding one imaginable. Seriously, what are the requirements for this position? The ability to sit on a chair and count to 2 (coins or tokens or bills). Although there is some interaction with people, it would be completely wrong to label this as a customer service job. There is some money involved – otherwise the whole concept with a toll road would defeat the purpose – but the bookkeeping cannot possibly be more advanced than the simplest calculus. The advancement opportunities also appear very limited – possibly there might be chances to advance to a toll booth station supervisor (or whatever is the title for the person who is responsible for it). Probably all these potentially negative thoughts occurred to the toll booth attendant at the very same instance we pulled up with our rental car at the little station in the hills slightly north of Fuengirola. Our intent was to NOT get on the toll road, and instead get on the public, non-fee based highway. Therefore we politely asked Juan or Carlos or Rafael or whatever was his name if we could possibly just make a turn without passing the gates. No such thing was possible. Instead, Juan or Carlos or Rafael or whatever his name was referred us to a little traffic circle about a hundred meters down the road where we could make a u-turn and go back. The option of backing up, making a turn, and very much illegally driving against the traffic until we could get back in the opposite direction seemed like a rather non-appealing alternative, so we decided to scramble the €2 or so and give in to Juan or Carlos or Rafael or whatever his name was. So, pay, make a round in the traffic circle, and go back to exit for the highway took us no more than a minute. However, upon returning to the booth again, it turned out that exiting would require another little deposit at the toll booth. As there was only one booth, one a window of each side to handle traffic in both ways, naturally we were faced with Juan or Carlos or Rafael or whatever the hell his name was, for the second time in two minutes. Thinking that logic would rule and that he would open the gate to let us out, we nodded at him expecting him to open the gate. We were sadly mistaken. If it was the result of a short-term memory equivalent to a shot of tequila, or a disgust for foreigners in rental cars, or bitterness over his sad situation we will never find out. In any event, our ticket to freedom in the form of the public highway would cost us another €2 with the only motivation “salida” – “exit”...For future reference: Check the road signs while you drive. If they say “toll road” – slam on the breaks or pay up...
posted Apr 23, 2005
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The Little Tiny One
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Andorra La Vella, Andorra
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This place was Amazing
visited Jun 1997
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It may be the weather, the time of the year, and the relative lack of a crowd. But, Andorra la Vella just seems like the most peaceful place imaginable. Beautifully squeezed into the valley, the little town just seems to live its own life. Despite the tourists. Summertime doesn't really offer a whole lot of activities, except for duty-free (cheap!) shopping. But it's the perfect place for the backpacker wanting to take a rest from the big cities and the regular trail of overseas and domestic youngsters. It's affordable, it's nice and clean, it's slow and calm, almost on the verge of being boring. The woman in a red and blue uniform standing in the middle of the road directing the traffic may very well possess the most exciting job in the country...In any event, I'm content - possibly the most scenic McDonald's restaurant ever lies here...
posted Apr 23, 2005
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Untitled
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Monaco, Monaco
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This place was Average
visited 1997
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It may be the weather, the time of the year, and the relative lack of a crowd. But, Andorra la Vella just seems like the most peaceful place imaginable. Beautifully squeezed into the valley, the little town just seems to live its own life. Despite the tourists. Summertime doesn't really offer a whole lot of activities, except for duty-free (cheap!) shopping. But it's the perfect place for the backpacker wanting to take a rest from the big cities and the regular trail of overseas and domestic youngsters. It's affordable, it's nice and clean, it's slow and calm, almost on the verge of being boring. The woman in a red and blue uniform standing in the middle of the road directing the traffic may very well possess the most exciting job in the country...In any event, I'm content - possibly the most scenic McDonald's restaurant ever lies here...
posted Apr 23, 2005
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