Motel 6 looks like 4 Seasons

Sorry for the lack of pics, but last night was outrageous! We booked a hotel "only miles from the airport, but found that it was about 1 hour or more of transportation time. This means walking through the ghetto of Athens by riot cops preparing for the Euro finals aftermath. With only 8 hours between flights, this was unfortunate. We walked around lost for an hour after a 45 min train ride...and then found the worst hotel I've ever stayed in! The room was 31 degrees celsius, or 88 farenheit, and the shower had no hot water. I would rather have a 60 degree room and 90 degree shower, but at least sleeping in a sauna means I'm keeping my girly figure! Also, because of the Euro 08 finals, there was screaming and rioting in the bars across the street from our room until 3 am. So, we'll update the blog more tomorrow, but Istanbul is incredible and we're here safe. Life is getting better by the minute...

Lazy Larries

Today, we leave Santorini for Athens (then Istanbul tomorrow). So, we are maximizing each minute left on this paradise island by laying lazily by the pool, the pool in the pic above. You can see Tim trying to nap, Ashley asleep, and Channy putzing around if you look close enough!
Vacation is exhausting!

Just Jumpin' Around

Not to be confused with Haasen' around, this is something Dave and I like to take a lot of- jumping pictures. We love them because they are candid, fun and show a deeper respect and appreciation for the scene being photographed. So far, we have been "jumping" our way through the Parthenon, the Athens National Gardens and Santorini. As you can see the Murphys are now jumping too- it is contagious....

Shout out to BK

One friend in particular has asked for a shout out several times and since he only cost me $7 in text messages this morning, I figured we could give him one. Brett- shouting out to you- I will bill 750 Industries.

Dave here, and I'd like to add a few thoughts. While Brett is an incredible person and friend, we would like to list the qualities we are looking for in EuroBrett (the better version of Brett we hope to find during our trip).

1. EuroBrett will cut and brush his hair regularly, and accept the mohawk style rather than claiming it is an accident that his hair has a ridge in the middle.

2. EuroBrett will sleep at night and not consume 12-15 Mountain Dews each day.

3. EuroBrett will be on time at least 10% of the time. This is a much higher rate than AmeriBrett.

Finally, a word of warning to AmeriBrett. Krista will likely fall in love with EuroBrett should she ever meet him. You should marry her immediately in a shotgun wedding to prevent her ever leaving you.

Smarty, Smarty- Chan loves to Party!

This day might have been the best day of Chandler's life... For those of you unaware-I have never met someone who wants or loves Smart Cars more than Channy. She has a plethera of pics in front of them, mini models and a desire to convince the local Minneapolis dealer that she should be allowed to drive one around with advertising on it as a favor to them. Smart girl! For the first time ever, she rented a smartie today and cruised around the island with her hubby Tim! The above photos are her with various smarties we have seen thus far in Greece- there have been millions and the one of her jumping is with her own personal rental. If you can not tell this is a photo of glee- utmost glee- the most glee you have ever seen.

Scootin' and Smartin' in Santorini

Today we cruised the island via dos modes of transportation- the murphs in a smart car and the haases on a scooter- look dad, helmets- and we're not even required to wear them! We went to one end of the island first- Akrotiri where we found this picturesque location in the above photos. We then made our way to the most popular beach on the island- the black-sanded Kamari beach. So glad we did this! What a cute town complete with beach, boardwalk, boobs and burritos (okay, the are really gyros but I was looking for a "b" word and yes, it was a topless beach.) I have to say, I love seeing life from the back of a scooter! What a way to get around town- just cruising along the cliffs, strapped to the back of my motorcycle man... Dave has never been happier in his life- although now he really wants a motorcycle, but what else is new?

The Murphy Perspective - Guest Post

Greetings! Chandler Murphy here, one of the lucky travelers who is currently in Greece with Dave and Ash. A few things that may not have been mentioned in the blog:

1. Dave has never before been more interested in the activities - he is planning and leading like only a business school graduate could do. We have all been extremely impressed with his skills and have very high expectations for him for the remainder of the trip. Thank you, Euro Dave! Also, you may not know that Dave is sporting a Euro-hawk (mohawk) and it looks quite natural on him.

2. Ash knows how to book hotels. Our hotel in Athens was so cute and perfectly located...and our current locale in Santorini is no exception! We are in the heart of the city with an amazing pool and view. Ash, can I please pay you some sort of stipend to plan my future travels?

3. I am just so thankful to have such amazing friends...at dinner tonight I realized that two years ago we had not yet even met...we are having a blast and I am beyond grateful for these incredible friends!

Efcarisco mi Santorini

Thank you Santorini... for being charming and beautious. We are at the Dream Island Hotel- a very small, family owned hotel nestled along the water of Santorini. A brief description of the island- a cliff-sided island in the Greek isles with mostly white houses with blue roofs, quaint, quiet and delightful. The hotel is a great find for our dollar and we have loved just relaxing in comparison to our busy time in Athens.

The gyros are delicious, the sun is warm, the breeze is perfect and my husband is more than excited that he is allowed to rent a motorcyle here. Ok, it is hardly a motorcycle- it is really a scooter, but I will not emasucualte him more after his recent testicle injury! He and Murph rented scooters and checked out the island
flare as the ladies chatted poolside.

Tonight we are having dinner at a table overlooking the cliffside at sunset- Sphynx is the name. Check out the sunset above!!

Dana's Decisions

I (Dave) would like to point out that Dana (DKs sister) makes great decisions. We have seen evidence of this fact a couple times, and I have become convinced that this is the rule, not the exception. There are certain people who have the ability to make great decisions, and Dana is one of them. Two points that support this statement...

1. Gator Dog, 3AM Boise. Unbelievable. One of the best meals I've had, and a reason I would consider moving to Boise. Seriously. My life is sad enough that I'd move to a new city to follow a hot dog. Go Dana.

2. Rooftop bar, Hotel Bertagma, Athens. Dana hit this one out of the park. I had a $24 Mojito while I stared at the sun setting over the Mediterranean, and the Parthenon was lighting up in front of us. What a setting...one of the most memorable (and expensive!) drinks I've ever had.

Based on the law of small numbers which I learned about in my MBA training, I can say conclusively that Dana makes incredible decisions 100% of the time.

Euro-Paterson

(Dave here) Another exciting development during our time in Athens was the discovery of another Shaun Paterson. Evidently, since Shaun moved out of Europe (and is now AmeriPaterson), he has been replaced by a better version of himself. We spoke with this fine young man, and he was everything we hoped Shaun would be (but is not). He is friendly, not sarcastic, and slightly less plump than AmeriPaterson. I now consider him a friend...I'll update his contact info later for those who want to upgrade.

Ashley's Worst Nightmare

(Dave here) Groups of clueless people who are dehumanized with flags, hats, or matching shirts. Following their fearless (clueless) leader with dedication seen only before by lemmings and herds of buffalo as they run over cliffs! We have seen endless tourbuses and groups already, but would like to point out that our pics will never be from the inside of one of these "schools" of travelers...this is nearly as scary to Ashley as small pieces of paper!

The Eurohawk

We would like to update our friends and family on an important development in the Haase family...Dave has altered his approach to hair style while in Europe.
After much deliberation before and during the flight to Europe, Dave has decided that he would like to honor the people of this wonderful continent by styling his hair in a way that shows his love for the European people and their home countries. How better to do this than to honor the timeless European hairstyle that screams Europe more than any other? After considering the Paterson Mop Flop, the Italian Grease ball, and the French pseudo-mullet, Dave settled on the EuroHawk. This is the king of all European hairstyles. See the pic above for a close-up, and don't be surprised to see this hairstyle continue to shine in the coming weeks. Also, side note from Ash and Chan- we renamed him Da-vay. It is also more European.

It's All Greek to Me

Classical Baby Grand- After a long day of literally planes, trains, automobiles, and walking- we arrived at our hotel. Wonderous! The Classical Baby Grand is one of the "Small Luxury Hotels of the World" which we were unaware of before checking in, sounds good! We walked to reception to find two Mini-Coopers transformed into desks with people behind them- how fun! We were then escorted to our room to find it painted like the desert at night- we realized later that each room in the hotel has a different theme, I love a good theme hotel! About two hours later, Tim and Chandler Murphy arrived at the hotel and we were off to explore Athens!


We spent roughly 36 hours in Athens and saw all we could! We had dinner outside in the Plaka the first night (a main area in town with shops and outdoor cafes). The next day- our only full day, we ventured to The Acropolis (home of the Parthenon), the National Gardens of Athens and explored Plaka more. That morning we found a bakery at the corner and navigated our way through the glass case purchasing delectable treats that looked as if we knew what they were. The best was when Chan orderd a supple, soft looking piece of wheat bread that ended up being as hard as a rock- we found out later this is like a crouton- It's All Greek To Me!

That night we followed a wonderful recommendation and had drinks on the rooftop bar of the Hotel Bertagma. Now, one note... this is the best view in all of the city and we were told and confirmed by several folks, this was for sure the place to go- little did we know a single Mojito was available for the bargain price of $25 dollars! Welcome to Europe right now my friends! We drank till the sun set and enjoyed the Parthenon lit up at night, chatting at the bar and watching all the extravagant guests staying there come in dressed to the nines while we had pulled out our best travel clothing attire! We had dinner at a great local spot and spent our final day in Athens at the seaside. We took the train to the coast and found a local cafe where we sat in the shade and enjoyed the beauty of the Mediterannean.

We then jetted off to the Greek island of Santorini for a little R&R before meeting up with the rest of the crew!

Isn't Flying Fun?

Lately I am sure we are all experiencing travel tales galore. We flew from JFK to Athens and ended up being delayed for about 4 hours out of JFK. Dave and I befriended an airport bar, had a few drinks and were not worried at all, realizing the wine might actually help us sleep on the plane. We boarded our jet and found our two middle seats in the back of the plane with all the local yokels headed back to glorious Greece. The only other word we heard of English came from a very angry college student behind us who for some reason was literally dumbfounded that she did not have an electrical outlet on her armrest that she could use during the flight. Perfect. :) We quickly closed our eyes and headed off to sleep- next stop Athens.... WRONG!! We woke to the pilot explaining that we were descending into London Heathrow due to a very angry/ violent passenger in first class who was breaking glasses! We lost another few hours while "the authorities" removed the man from the plane, but at least we were left with quite an interesting story to tell. Upon landing in Athens, Dave and I collected our bags and decided to try and take the Metro to our hotel instead of a potential $60 Euro cab ride. For those of you unfamiliar, that is over $100 with the current exchange rate. When you are traveling for this long- that just doesn't fly. So.... I head to the ticket window to figure it out. I tell the nice-looking lady where I am going, she takes me money and continue to shout at me "Syngtama Change." Although I try to clarify several times, she says only these two words to me 5 times in a row. Laughing and delirious I walk back to Dave who is standing at the Metro map and I say, "Please tell me when you look at that, Syngtama Change, makes sense to you." Luckily it did and we were on our way! We made it "changing trains in Syngtama" and then on to our hotel and for only $10 euros! First travel feat down!

I never thought I would be a "blogger..."

It is 2008 and just about everyone besides us has a blog about something- We just never thought we would dive in... but...here we go!
It all starts tomorrow as we hop a plane to Athens, Greece and begin two months of travels! Dave just graduated Business School a week ago and we figure once he starts working again in September we won't get many more chances to do this.
The journey goes as such: Athens & Santorini - Istanbul - Croatia - Slovenia - Budapest - Prague - Spain - Morocco - Portugal - Nice/ Monte Carlo - Las Vegas (yes, you read the jump from Nice to Vegas correctly) - San Francisco - Minneapolis - Indianapolis! We will blog our way along and hope you will check in every now and then to see our crazy pictures and read some entertaining stories. Cheers!