Wow. Europe. The Old World.

We started in Dublin, and it was pretty cool. I went to the Guinness Storehouse, which was the original brewery and still has some active distribution on site. I got there at about 6 pm, only to find that it was closed. Isn't that just my luck? Fortunately, I didn't have to be on the bus until 11 the next morning, so I got there at 9:30 am when it opened and made sure to have a good look around. It was awesome. Dublin itself was a pretty cool town. I think I could live there.

Next was Belfast. Didn't really look around much in Belfast, kinda scared to. I know that peace has come to Ireland and all that, but I still didn't really want to wander too much there. Great crowd though. And a fun show. This whole opening band thing is kinda cool: our show is finished by 9 pm latest, and then I get to watch Pearl Jam or just hang out.

On to London: first a ferry ride, for which I was way too drunk (I recall doing aerobics at some point, just trying to stay awake. It didn't work very well.) and then a half day off in London. Not too bad, I guess, but London can be so blah. Big show in Hyde Park tho, look for it on VH1.

Next to Amsterdam. Nice town, Amsterdam. Very mellow. Lots of Americans. All looking for pot. Weed and Heineken, it's like a frat boy's wet dream. Still, one of the crew guys knew a local, and so we found some real Amsterdam, and it was pretty cool.

Today: Berlin. I went to do laundry. The hotel gave me directions to a laundromat that was 2 km from the hotel; nearly a mile. Since it was a beautiful day, I decided to walk. I got to the place; the sign outside said "waschsalon". I walked in, and there were 6 old men playing dominoes or some other tile game; none of whom spoke English or could tell me anything about the waschsalon. Whatever. So I walk back to the hotel and hang out.

It wasn't until later tonight, as I was walking out of the mall that I had dinner in (at the Irish Pub, no less), and I walked past a piece of the Berlin wall that the real history of this place hit me. I think I need to bust out a map tomorrow and find Checkpoint Charlie and get a few good pics.

"Berlin is the testicle of the West. When I want the West to scream, I squeeze on Berlin."

Nikita Khrushchev (1894 - 1971)