Back To Gozo

Here are the videos from the Gozo coast. This was my most favorite place in Europe. I know the videos are shaky, but its so hard without a tripod and such a tiny camera.

The Teolato's

Here is a brief look into the Teolato family.

Massimo has several hobbies. The first is tobacco sport.  This means collecting pipes, tobaccos, and smoking. He has over 200 pipes, and he remembers where each of them is from.  He has tens of kilograms of tobacco, all from all over the world.  He also enjoys photographing birds.  He will stay in one place for hours until he gets the perfect shot.  He has cameras with 10x magnification. He also enjoys building his own bird watching huts.

Saturday Night Easter Vigil In The Vatican

So Friday morning I woke up early to wait in line for the Coloseum.  During the day the line can be up to 4 hours long, and I didn't like that.  So I got there around 7:30am, and I was one of the first people there.  It was slightly chilly, and so I was wearing a sweatshirt. My Binghamton University sweatshirt to be specific.  These two gentleman come up behind me in line and are sitting there for a while.  Then one of them says to me,

"Do.. you go to Binghamton?"

Here's the thing about Binghamton: It's a great school, but maybe one in a million people in Italy no what it is.  So I knew something was up.  Long story short, he didn't go to Binghamton, but grew up in Vestal, the city in which Binghamton is located.  So we started talking.  And we talked for about an hour while we waited in line. Him and his friend were both about 30, and very cool guys with great stories.  We ended up traveling through both the Palantino and Coloseum together.  At one point, one of them says to me..

"So.. my friend works in the US embassy here in Rome, and he got us tickets into St. Peters Basillica saturday night for the easter vigil. We have an extra ticket, and you are the first american we've met here who we've actually talked to and gotten along with, do you want to come with us?"

Of Course I said yes.  An opportunity to participate in this historical ceremony, in the presence of the pope, in the vatican, and free entrance to the basilica.  Of course I said yes.  One thing though was that I hadn't brought pants with me, so I had to buy a pair.  Which was awesome because I had an excuse to buy myself a really nice pair of Italian dress pants, which are cheaper than jeans in Italy.


Anyways, here are some of the videos.

The choir and other people did the chanting and songs in Latin. It was beautiful.

The Pope's voice isn't quite as beautiful.

This is a long video.  You'll see the swiss guard, college of cardinals, bishops, and The Pope at around the two minute mark.

Rome

Rome has a very exciting train station

This gentleman appears to be in the wrong place.  At first he casually juggles the ball on his head in the middle of the intersection.  But he's not lost, because as soon as he stops and catches the ball, he walks from window to window with outstretched hands to retrieve an award for his bravery.

This is the Vittorio Emanuel building.  It is also an amazing building.  It is large, perfectly white, and built with 100's of majestic pillars.  There are also statues protruding from all sides of the building making it an excellent sight catcher.  This is a very dramatic building.  At night they light the top up blue with the statues protruding into the darkness with a blue tint.  The birds in the city all play along in the drama game by circling this monument at night.

The Trevi Fountain is beautiful.  It's so intricate and detailed.  Additionally, all of the fountains in Rome have beautiful clear blue water.  And there are many fountains.  Not only that, but throughout the city they have metal faucets that run a solid stream of delicious clean drinking water 24/7.  Their ability to provide all of those waters in ancient times contributed to their success as an empire.  The city of Rome is built on top of large limestone deposits, and the limestone acts as a natural purifier of the water.

When I saw the man locking this door I couldn't help but to take a video.  I think someone should tell him that criminals upgraded from 2-D to 3-D breaking and entering a while ago.

No matter what large city you go to, you're never far from a cheesy but fun to watch break dancing show.  Make sure to watch the guy at the 1:28 mark.

A roman sunrise from the top of an 8-story building in Rome with a view of the Coloseo and The Vittorio Emanuel.

Rome

I'm in Rome right now. Great city.  I don't have my laptop though and have no way to post videos.  And internet here costs 2.50 Euro for 30 min. Soo I won't be on long.  Tomorrow I'll be visiting the Coleseo, and the Roman Forum. Then on Saturday I might head south to the Naples, Pompeii, and Sorrento region.  I only have 3 weeks left here so I've got to get around.  And I have a long weekend.

Malta - Gozo

Malta is an island country south of Italy.  Gozo is part of Malta but is another mile off the coast of Malta.  Gozo is approximately 76 Square Km.  Thats approximately 29 square miles.  Or an average diameter of 5 miles.  So small island. We rented bikes and you can bike one side to the other in under a half hour.


This is a group of about 14 Spanish people from Granada on vacation that I introduced myself to in the hostel.

Bus rides on Malta are insane. The buses are from the 1960's. The drivers are from the 1940's.  They collect money while driving. The doors stay open.  They drive like maniacs.  Here's a sample.

Malta is a very cheap place.  Here is the hostel/hotel we stayed in for 9 Euros a night per person.  It was three of us and we had our private room, bathroom, fridge, microwave. It was basically a hotel.

You will see the best of Gozo later, but here are some ruins.

View from Viktoria, capital of Gozo.  Old city.

The Malta Experience

Before I break into Malta with some videos.  Let me say that this was possibly the best place I've visited thus far in Europe.  Beautiful, great country.  Also, while my meal program was succesful last week, as for 6 days I ate nothing but the fruits and vegetables I had purchased, my meat free ended abruptly upon entering Malta when I saw, and I kid you not, "A Meat Pie," selling for 1.50.  It took this as a sign and indulged myself.  How much more literal could it get.


Now I knowww they say that the emperial guards in the United Kingdom are the best in the world. And that the changing of the guards is a must see. However, I think you'll agree with me in saying that the modesty and true heroism of this Maltan display for outpaces any fish'n'chips entente.

The arcade in Paceville, Malta was top notch.

Disclaimer: As a result of Maltese Government rulings, all arcades were banned from offering tickets in exchange for game play. As this is a method of gambling.  It was a very... dry arcade.

We take for granted some things in America. Like free water on the table at restaurants. If they put water or bread on the table for you, there is a 75% chance it costs money in Europe.  I prefer free water. Also, at this restaurant I ordered a delicious sounding hamburger from the menu. Guess what I got... yes, a hamburger.  Just the burger, a patty of meat on a bun. I was like... pickles?

Diet Results

So far I have been successful in eating no meat, and only food from the ingredients I bought on Saturday.  Which has been about 95% fruits and vegetables.  It's been 5 days, here's what I've eaten.

4 Oarnges

3 Bananas

10 Eggs

2 Slices of American Italian Cheese (Leftover in fridge from before shopping)

1.3 Lbs of Lettuce

5 Large Tomatoes

2 Large Cucumbers

1 Lb of pasta

7 Large Carrots

4 Potatoes

2 cans of corn

2 cans of beans

1 can of Peas

2 Heads of Brocolli

And I've ran everyday since Saturday for at least an hour.  A few days 2 hours because I got lost.

The world seems so small until you get lost in it.  You think you know a place, and then it's like, who put this giant city here?

I'm going to Malta this weekend so I can't continue the at home fruit and vegetable diet.  But I'm going to keeping going Vegetarian.  Not for much longer though because I dont want to be a vegetarian my last few weeks in meat capital Italy.  I'll probably switch to vegesmarian.

Definition - Vegesmarian

I'm a vegetarian, but meh, I'll eat meat once in a while, when it feels right.

Back to Break- Tenerife

This is the worlds oldest tree at a remarkable 300... 3000 years old.

Info about the diet.

So far it has been two full days.  I have been successful so far and consumed only the following:

2 oarnges
2 bananas
3 eggs
300 grams of lettuce
2 large tomatoes
1 large cucumber
400 grams of white beans
300 grams of corn
400 grams of peas
3 carrots
2 potatoes
200 grams of pasta

And I've ran about 12km

Bianchi Di Spagnolo

Back To Spring Break- Tenerife-Canary Islands

Alright so Tenerife is one of the Canary Islands off the south coast of Morocco.  We spent approximately 3 days there during spring break.

Here are their stories.

Food in Tenerife is pretty cheap. And it's good too. So I indulged.

A typical view from the coast at sunset

Typical chickens in typical cages

Typical book burnings for typically handicapped. No but seriously we stumbled upon this in one of the cities we visited.  It was a gathering of what appeared to be different teams of people. Each team was dressed up in different costumes. It appeared to be some sort of event for mentally and physically handicapped persons.  The uniting factor for all teams, every one was dancing, and everyone was burning things.  I didn't catch it on camera, but off to the right there is a pile of burning ash in the center of the parking lot. And standing erect in the pile of ashes was a burning cross. But everyone seemed to be in such a good mood, and just dancing.

 

Quick Break From Spring Break

Okay, so here's a story. A true one.

The day was Sunday. I left my apartment around noon, just to walk.  It was warm out, and the tourists were a plenty.  I was in a rather bleh mood.  Not necessarily sad, but provocatively thoughtful with a base in sadness.  Anyways, I was just walking around playing angry birds and thinking.

Then I came across the Santa Croce Piazza.  This is just a large plaza with where people gather.  I sat down on one bench across from the church. I'm just there people watching, thinking, playing angry birds.

Then, 3 women walk towards me and sit down on the bench next to me.

Woman 1-
She was black, approximately 40, and she was a nun.  I know this because she had her nun outfit on.  She was very confident, tough, and outgoing. I know this because she was driving a hard bargain with the street vendors that would approach her. She negotiated down to her price on several different goods.

Woman 2-
She appeared hispanic and I would later find out she was from Peru.  She appeared to be in her early thirties, and she was also dressed as a nun.  She was quieter than the first, and had a pleasant smile on her face.  She was smiling and looked relatively happy.

Woman 3-
She was also black, but the only one not dressed as a nun. She appeared to be the oldest of the three, maybe slightly older than 40.  She was also the unhappiest, quietest, and largest of the three.

So they sat next to me, and about 4-5 minutes had passed. I really wanted to say something to them. I do this thing where I get inside my head, and sometimes remain stuck there. Creating potential conversations, having and re-having them. Just over and over again saying the words in my head.  Heres an example of one of the conversations going on.  (Translated to English)

Me- Hello, what's your name? Do you speak english?
Woman 2- Hello, my name is ... yes I speak english
Me- small talk...
Woman 2- small talk...
me- are you married?
Woman 2- no
me- Have you ever loved someone?
Woman 2- yes
Me- What happened?

etc...

Obviously it was more elaborate in my head, but basically I was just looking to talk to a stranger. Have a honest deep conversation with a random stranger.  But I couldn't get myself to say the words out loud. Normally I am very outgoing, but I got stuck up there.

Then, all of a sudden.  Woman 2 and I make eye contact and she holds out her hand. In her hand she is holding a juice box, and she says, "here."

I was like, "... Gratzie."  That was it, no other conversation. Just gratzie. Not exactly what I was thinking in my head, but I had a juicebox.  It was succo de pera.  Pear juice.  Delicious.

A few minutes later we begin talking. I don't remember who began the conversation. But I remember that she didn't speak english or Italian, so we began speaking in spanish.  Then Woman 1 joined in, but speaking in Italian.  Then this language triangle began.  I think that they thought I was much more fluent in the languages they were speaking than I actually am.  For example, woman 1 would say something to me in italian that I would understand a little of. And then if I looked confused, Woman 2 would translate it for me into spanish, thinking it was my native tongue.  Silence is a good portrayal of knowledge I guess.  Anyways it went on for a while, and it was cool.  I learned that they were here surveying Italy for some reason that I would have to guess was to help their mother live or do research or something. I dont know.

Then a few more minutes of silence.  And all of a sudden, woman 1 hands me a Chino soda.  And then a package of crackers. AND THEN A CAN OF MEAT!  And I was just holding these things in my hands like..."Do they think I'm homeless."  So I took a few seconds to survey my appearance to check and see if I might come off as homeless, but no. I looked presentable, other than the fact that I was now cupping crackers, soda, and canned meat in my outstretched hands.  So again I was like, "Gracias." Had I known more of their languages I might have better understood why.  But the from what I gathered from what they were saying, well they said something like this.

"Dont worry, we dont need eat.  Eat, Eat!  We dont need it, especially this one (woman 3) she is fat. We are very pretty and we are trying to keep our figures! eat, eat! Mangia!"

A few minutes went bye, and then they left. We said goodbye, and woman 3 still had not said a word the entire time.




  

Spring Break- Barcelona 3

This is a sand sculpture from the beach

This is me making a cool image with a pine cone and a palm tree

Having a full salted pigs leg is common in spain. When they are hungry, they just take the knife out and slice some ham strips.

This is a video of La Segrada Famiglia, a famous church in Spain. It means "The Sacred Family"

Spring Break- Barcelona 2

Okay so Edur is Basque.  This basically means that he is from a territory of Northern Spain that considers itself to be it's own nation. They are currently trying to gain independence from Spain. This is a very old country, and the language is possibly the oldest in the world. So old they cannot trace its origins. While in Barcelona, they were holding a sort of pre independence day Basque celebration party.  Basically all the Basques in Barcelona gather at bars and then throughout the day and night they move together through the streets from bar to bar.  They participate in ancient traditions such as a Basque dance which you will see. And the pouring of the cider that they drink. To them, the pouring process is considered an art.

The first videos are when we were just hanging out and eating pre party lunch in the apartment. Then we take to the streets.

Spring Break- Barcelona

This is a video of Barcelona from the top of the olympic park that was built in Barcelona for the 1992 Olympics.

This is a video from the famous Las Ramblas

In Barcelona we stayed with people that we met through couch surfers.  They were really great people and became good friends.  This is only three of them, but we met about 15 people in Barcelona.

Spring Break- Still on Sardegna

Spring Break Time! Day one

So the trip began in an Island off the coast of Italy.  This island is Sardegna, or Sardenia for some.  And we were on the coast near the city Alghero. This day was all about the waves.  We spent the day walking up the coast line.

Day 52- My Last Midterms

Todays Revelations:

Day- Wednesday
Midterms- Body Language and communication techniques, Italian Language
Person Satisfied- Me!  Because I'm done with midterms
Quote-

"The key is not to know all the answers, but to be okay with knowing that you don't always need to know."

Third Destination Of Travel- Tenerife South, Canary Islands, Spain

Day 51- My Midterms 2

Todays Revelations: Joshua Genesis 3:51 

Day- Tuesday
Midterms- International Marketing, and The Wines Of Italy
Person Satisfied- Wine connoisseur and international traveler Joann Gorman
Quote-

"Risk is in the head, Reward is in the heart."

Second Destination Of Travel- Barcelona, Spain

Day 50- My Midterms

So midterms begin. I have 5 midterms in the next 3 days, and then it is spring break time. I will reveal the midterms each day as they come up.

I am not yet going to reveal my destinations of travel.  I will reveal them one by one each day.  This will serve several purposes. I will reveal each purpose one at a time with one purpose revealed on each day. This will satisfy several different people, of whom I will reveal one each day.  Each day there will be a day and I will reveal that day one by one with one on each day.  Each day also has a quote of the day created by me, I will tell you all of the quotes at one time on one day... But at the same time I will only reveal a quote one at a time day by day.

Each revelation of each thing of each day will combine to create a treasure map. 4 treasure maps, one revealed each day.  No actually there are no treasure maps.

Todays Revelations: Joshua Genesis 3:51

Day- Monday
Midterms- Workplace Psychology: Building Effective Managers
Person Satisfied- Jackie Katz
Quote-

"There are two types of people in this world, those who let things happen, and those who make things happen."

First Destination Of Travel- Alghero, Italy- On the island of Sardegna

Day 48 - Spring Cleaning

Day 47- Cancelled Trip To Amsterdam

Originally I had a trip planned for Amsterdam this weekend.  I cancelled it for an interview I had today. It's okay though, it was worth it.

I can't believe its already day 47, that's already half way.  But I have midterms and spring break coming up. I have a very watery and tropical spring break planned.  And a very watery midterm week planned.  If only.

Day 44- Celebrating Carnivale In Viareggio

This one was fun. It was also crazy. In Venice there are thousands of people, but mostly tourists.  In viareggio it is just all locals dressed up in costume having a great time.  It was really fun. And we slept on the beach. If you click the video you can watch a larger version.

Day 37- My Crazy Amount Work

I hate my classes. They are all so difficult. You wouldn't understand unless I was to give you a description of my average life consuming difficult week.

Monday- Drag my self out of bed as soon as the Italian rooster crows to make it to Italian class by 12:00pm.  Later that day I am forced to do ridiculously relaxing things like meditate in a meditation yoga class for 2 hours.  I was so relaxed I could have killed someone.

Tuesday- Another long day. By 6pm I am exhausted and just want to go to bed, but I have to go to class from 6-8:30pm.  To make things worse, I have to sit there for 2.5 hours drinking/tasting and learning about different wines. If that doesn't sound difficult, then I have to describe the wine and what I think about it.

Wednesday- I wake up early to practice my body language and communication techniques. I improve my posture, communication skills, voice control, well okay that sounds pretty good.

Thursday-Sunday- I am then forced to do whatever my heart wishes. ...My heart can be demanding.


Try walking a week in my shoes.  I hope you have small feet, Italian leather shoes while fashionable, can be very tight.

Day 34- Car Troubles

I wish I never bought a bike.  First I bought the bike for 130 Euros, plus helmet was 150 Euros.  This was exactly 9 days ago.  In the last 9 days...

Bought bike- 150 Euros
Bike Impounded by Polizzioti- 80 Euros
Retrieve bike from impound- 60 Euros
Buy new lock- 8 Euros
Bike stolen...

I lock my bike outside my apartment in a line with 10 other bikes.  I go outside this morning, and it's just not there.  Not there.  Everyone else's bike is there, and mine just isn't.  I have no idea what happened, and realistically I will probably never get an answer.

I am out 300 Euros ($450) for a bike that I can not even ride, because I dont have it.  I can not ride it for the rest of the semester.  And at the end of the semester I can't even sell it back for 60 Euros.

I wish I never bought the bike.  I thought that staying calm and moving past the 140 Euro fines in Siena was difficult and a test of mental strength. Now I realize that I was just warming up.  But I am okay with it now and I am moving on, for the second time.. But this time without a bike.  All within 9 stupid days.

Day 33- The San Gimignano Trip

Hello Everyone,

These past few weeks have been really crazy.  This one thing in particular that I have been chasing has consumed much of my time and mental energy.

However, now that my part is complete, I will continue more frequent blogging.  Not everyday, but more often.

The video you are about to see is the video from my incredibly long bike trip to San Gimignano with CJ.  It was much farther and more mountainous than expected.  But like you might assume, we perservered.

This is a link to the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7Bih5898kc

Day 25- Potentially Paris

Day 21- The Paris Report

I finally got back from Paris at approximately 7am this morning. And after having been up for 5 hours in the Bologna train station, then having 5 hours of class today, I am exhausted.

I am going to attempt to post tomorrow a decent montagé of my trip to Paris, France.

And for anyone who was worried about me, I appreciate it, and I am fine.

Day 16- Paris Preparation

Hello Everyone.

I am leaving for Paris tomorrow. I have not yet decided whether or not I will bring my laptop.  So I may be out of touch for the weekend,  Or maybe I'll use an internet cafe.

I'll make sure to have some good videos.

My Destination

Day 13- Tailgate Chili

Day 12-The Hills Of Tuscany

Day 11- La Torre Leaning

Friday a young man spent the afternoon in Pisa. He never returned...

And then he returned....

Here is his story.

Ignore this.

Day 10- Sloppy Thursdays

Today has been a clean day.  And I realize Wednesday was the first official day there was no post.

Tomorrow I'm preparing for a 45 km bike to San Gimigano southwest of Firenze.

Pro's:
Awesome, I love biking, San gimigano would be awesome, I love challenges. etc.

Con's:
I have not found somebody I really want to go with yet, which means I might have to bike myself, No place to stay.

Not sure what I will do yet.

San Gimigano is a medieval town southwest of florence and off the tourist track.  

Day 8- Unrest In Cairo

As political unrest continues growing and the storm continues heating up in Cairo...... Florence remains strongly unaffected.

I however felt personally affected.  While I am glad that Mubarak has agreed to not run again for office in September, I am not satisfied.  With millions of Egyptians on my side, I have decided to do a thing that a man in my situation finds himself needing to do.

Yes.... I'm going to Paris.  I just booked my trip for next weekend.  I have a bit of a crazy itinerary which i'll tell you about tomorrow, but I'm going. Don't know where I'm staying yet, but I'm going.  I'm taking one for the team.

Day 7- The Funny Thing About Italian Cooking

 I'm still not sure if i'm going to gain weight, or lose weight here.
                              
                                        
Gain Weight                                           
The food is so good, so it's easy to eat a lot      
 AKA, I eat a lot


Lose Weight
Food is expensive-So I find my self eating less- to save money

 I walk sooooo much.  I've walked at least 50 Miles  since I've been here.
    
No Elevators, A lot of stairs. I'm a stairmaster

The funny thing about being in Italy is that you can just throw anything into a pan with pasta and call it an authentic Italian Meal.  

"Ohhh we've got some pasta some sausage some tomatoes some garlic and red pepper. " "Your such a good cook Josh"

You may notice my frequent use of the garlic and red pepper. It's currently the only seasoning I own.

Day 6- Should I continue numbering days

Today was a slow rainy day...  and the fact that I had to number today made it feel even slower.

And i realize that although today may seem too slow, overall, slower is better then faster. So I will continue to number the days to slow them down.


Side note:  Grandma Katz: I made your dressing for our salad at dinner tonight, the guys lovedd it. Major hit.  I wish I could remember more recipes.


  I did prove the extreme safety of the city of Florence.

A and E are where I live, and out towards B C and D are past the city limits. I walked generally in the direction you see on the map a mi solo. I did travel in the general direction but took mostly side streets.  The darker the better.   The walk was made between 9pm and 1am.  I had no troubles, and people were very nice.  Bono cere.

Florence is safe and beautful.

Day 5- He's Just A Dude

Last night was a late night.  Some wine at dinner, a few beers at an Irish Pub, then we strolled the streets for about 3 hours "looking for pizza." I qoute it because although we continuously said let's find pizza, I doubt our true intentions to find it.  We spent some time admiring the statues of great men at the near by Piazzale degli Uffize.  Amazing statues of amazing men carved hundreds of years ago.

When I first look, it seems like my first reaction is to idolize them. I see their faces and it's like, oh these were amazing, talented, perfect people.  And then, I like to realize that they weren't, and I try to see into their reality.  The easiest way for me to do that is to picture who they were as teenagers (my age), 19 years old and before anyone knew them.  And It's like, oh this guy, eric... or in their case... here comes leonardo.  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Macchiavelli01.jpg

This is a picture of the statue of Niccolo Machiavelli from the Uffize.  Look at it. Take time to imagine him at your age, doing something that you've done recently, seriously.  Then look at him again, try to understand his reality, and see him as just the man he was. 

It could have been you. And I get chills when I realize it could be me.  If I was born just a fraction of time ago, because sculpting like this is a lost art and no one will be making statues out of us.  Unless we're like..... reallyyy good.  He's just a dude.

We did end up finding pizza.

Day 4- The Tour

Now that I am settled into my place, you will receive a tour of my situation. The video is approximately 4 minutes long and not mandatory.

Sidenote: To everyone that has left a comment, I would like to return comment, but I have not yet found a way to do so. But I have read them all, thank you.  Mom, don't run too fast on your way home.  Aunt Jo and Lauren, approximately 56, which in italian years is about 78.  Uncle Marty, I dont think it's sad.  Dad Katz, Buon Giorno.

Day 3- Blending In

A major goal of my time is here is to eventually blend into the public like I'm Firenzen, or European depending on where I am.  So today what that meant, was a haircut...

And some grocery shopping....

And Some Home Italian Cooking... (I guess it's Italian because I'm in Italy using Italian Ingredients)

Side Note: Today at orientation they told us that some building require codes to get into.  This is a Lorenzo De Medici secret, so I can not tell anyone.  It is a very difficult combination near impossible to crack. Since you are all in America I will tell you the combination.

Ready...

Passcode: (TO ALL LDM ACADEMIC BUILDINGS) 1-1-1-1-1

Yep...

Day 2- Arrival in Florence

Today was all about first impressions.

I had margherita piazza for lunch.  When people visit foreign countries, and by people I mean Americans. They say they drive like maniacs over there.  But I disagree.  I think they're excellent drivers.  They come within inches of moving pedestrians and bikers without even flinching.  And the parking spots they manage to get into.  I think maniacs would be a lot less calculated and cause many more accidents.

I cracked my Ipod Touch Screen within 10 minutes of arriving in Florence.

I had an authentic Firenzen dinner.  First meal, gnochhi, Second meal: Duck, Pork, Chicken, Third Meal: White beans with creamy tomato sauce. Paired with a nice vino rossa.

Here's the big news.......... I stopped my first attempted pick pocketer! That  d-bag got all reachy up in my area and I totally slapped his hand and spin moved.  Unfortunately the old lady behind wasn't quite as agile and fell prey to the vengeful napper.
Score:
Josh: 1
Nappers: 0
Old Lady: Not getting any younger

Day 1- Flight To Frankfurt Germany

On the flight to Philadelphia, I had an empty seat next to me.. On the flight to Frankfurt, I had a row of 4 leather seats to myself! I slept like a baby who had been drugged with Diphenhydramine.  There were more than a few good movies playing and I didn't watch any of them.

At dinner time the flight attendant said chicken or pasta, I said can I have both?

She told me she'd give me one, and if there was some left-over she'd come back.

So I picked chicken...it was horrible...but she came back... and said would you like more...and I said yes!..

She said, "Well all I have is chicken."

Again I sat by myself on my flight to Florence, which was diverted to Bologna due to fog. 2 hour bus ride back to Florence......on which no one sat next to me.