Donkey Paradise III

2/27 - Asturias - Thanks for the comments everybody! It's nice to know that people are reading this. Today we woke up late-Sunday is like our day off but there is still much to do. We took Marleen's van into Cangas de Onis today for the weekly street market where there are vendors in the middle of town with all sorts of clothes, fruit, spirits, cheese and second hand things.

We ordered sidra in a sideria but they would not pour it the way you hear about in travel guides-Instead they used a little figurine with a straw that sucks the sidra out of the bottle and shoots it into the glass(this is cheating if you ask me) Sidra is alcoholic cider that is famous in Asturrias and needs to be aerated when poured, otherwise it tastes like bitter cider.

When we got back to el Paraiso I prepared the donkeys meals with Marleen-carrots, apples, oats, vitamins, herbs, alfalfa, and hay for dinner. Now it is time for me to have dinner. Bye for now!
-Renee

Donkey Paradise II

2/25 - Asturias - Today was our first day at Donkey Paradise. It's a great place to be a Donkey or a person. Great weather, food, company, and plenty to get done. More info will come!

Asturias, Spain

2/24 - Asturias - Thursday was a long day. Renee woke up in the middle of the night, too excited to sleep. By 2:00am we were both awake. It was sort of convenient since we had to wake at 4:30am anyway so we could eat breakfast, and catch our flight to Asturias Spain. The flight was un-eventful. With Easyjet you get what you pay for. You get your flight, but drinks, courtesy, and customer service are extra.

Descending to Spain it was a nice clear day. Asturias is beautiful. Lots of sun, very green, and nice and warm. At ~50+F it feels like late Spring.

From the Airport we took a Bus to Oviedo, and confusion ensued. 8 Hours later we were on a bus to Arriondas. At Arriondas, Spain we stopped at a Cafe. In my broken Spanish, I asked for 2 black teas. We got a black coffee, and a Nestea. I tried.

Donkey Paradise

Sorry for the lack of updates. My laptop screen doesn't want to work - making it difficult to be online. If ever get it to work I have the next 4 updates + pics ready.

Update: My computer works when it wants to. It's working right now.

We've been at Donkey Paradise for a day and a half now. It's really great. Weather is amazingly warm in the days, the Donkeys are adorable. Renee's favorite is Pablo the mule who's a sneaky little guy who likes to steal hay out of your bag when you're not looking. I've been working on re-cementing a Cabana (summer house) a few minutes walk from the house, as well as helping Dutch Daniel fill in the trench for the water pipes. Yes, we do have running water!

London IV

2/23 - London - On Wednesday we took a double-decker to the London Eye where we looked down on London. We went with our new friends that we shared our Hostel room with.

On the way to the London Eye, we walked past Big Ben + Parliament.

Afterward we saw we rented bikes (1lb for 24 hours) and biked around the park. We got to see Buckingham Palace and got soaked in the rain. At night we caught our bus to the Airport, then made it to the hotel so we could get up early and catch our flight.

Here's the panorama we took about 3/4 way to the top of the London Eye. I would have gotten a 360, but there were people in the way:

London III

2/22 - London - We woke up at Bonnie's, and had a very nice morning. Afterward, we took the tube to our Hostel (Picadilly Backpacker's Youth Hostel) to drop off our bags. It was a nice place. You got what you payed for, but there were a ton of nice people, and a handful of kids too loud for their own good. There we met out room-mates before heading out for the night.

That night we saw the Tower of London, Tower bridge, and walked around London. I also jumped on the first double-decker, and got us both lost.

London II

2/22 - London - We woke up at Bonnie's, and had a very nice morning. Afterwards, we took the tube to our Hostel to drop off our bags. There we met out room-mates before heading out for the night.

That night we saw the Tower of London, Tower bridge, and walked around London. I also jumped on the first double-decker, and got us both lost.

London I

2/21 - London - We met up w/ a friend of mine currently studying abroad in London. We were starving, so went out looking for food. We found a classic british Pub for dinner.

2/21 London - The first beer Alex ever bought.

After dinner we took the underground to Bonnie's house. Bonnie is a friend of my dads from Business School. Her family lives in an amazing! house in N/W London. After some tea and talking we slept like rocks.

Flights

2/20 - Boston - Our flight was long, but we made it. 5+ hours from Boston to Reykjavik, Iceland. Our flight from Iceland to London was going well, until a passenger had a medical emergency. He ended up being ok, but we had to turn around and go back to Reykjavik. On the plus side we got to visit Iceland twice, and see it in the day light.

Our Plan

February 21st: Arrive in London. Visit a friend, and be Tourists.

February 24th: Take an EasyJet flight to Asturias, Spain, and work with Marleen at El Paraíso del Burro (Donkey Paradise). After that we plan to work with Anjo at Animales de Oriente.

Afterwords, we would love to visit a friend of ours studying in Madrid, travel through France, and then experience "Tulip Season" in Holland as well as say HI to some relatives.

to be continued...

About Us

Hello,
I created this blog to keep my friends and family updated as to our adventures! I'm going to try and post often, and upload as many pictures as I can.
Please comment on anything you would like!

If you're reading this, you most likely already know us. If you don't: Renee and I are from Massachusetts, USA. We like trying new things, candle-lit vegetarian meals, and long walks on the beach.

Renee is the best! Nice, fun, optimistic, and caring. (I'm definitely not biased)

I'm a dweeb. Former Computer Science Major at Salem State University. I like computers and shiny objects.

-Alex

Places I've Been

Here is a great picture of Venice that I took two years ago. I spent some time with my family traveling Italy. It's a wonderful place!

Here's Florence: where I spent New Years Eve. These pictures are just place-holders until we have something else interesting to put here!