Eurotrip v2.0, vol IV - Red Light District

We've reached the end of our journey. We fly to Chicago in six hours, then back in Jacksonville at 10. Tonight we walked through the Red Light District on our journey to meeting some roommates at a discothèque. It was unreal - a living, breathing and infected open wound in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. There, for all the world to see and gawk at, were women in glass cages like animals in a zoo. I don't know what kept them in their hells. Perhaps it was dept, perhaps they were escaping from something and fell into an even deeper pit along the way.

The red-lit alleys were narrow and full of horny men. Testosterone clung to the humidity like a pheromone smog. Most were just staring, wondering what to make of it. Some of the browsers were doing it for the sheer fun of mocking those of lower social standing. Others were shopping for women like you would clothes in a mall. The tables were turned, now it was the men who were being hunted down and were declining and ignoring every third step. Around some church there were particularly aggressive black women scratching the glass and opening their doors as you walked by, beckoning for men and their euro's.

Why would women volunteer to destroy themselves? How could anyone sell their very dignity to escape? How do you get out? I don't know. I don't ever want to go back. But it was over quickly. Ten blocks by three blocks and that was all. It was back to regular Amsterdam, bicycles and Dutchmen with light pouring from falafel stands and closed coffee shops.

I sit now sipping coke in the basement bar of the Flying Pig to stay awake until plane ride out. I wake Abe up in a little while. The hours have been harsh. We were up for 22 hours on Wednesday, got a couple hours of sleep on the plane over here, then spent another 7 hours walking around the city before crashing out for 12 hours today. I look forward to a beers with Izak on my roof, lunch at Angies, and a relaxing walk on the mid-day beach on Sunday. Warm dry clothes are a luxury I'll soon savor. I''ll alas be away from the horrible American 80's pop blaring in every restaurant, but also from the parks and the alien tongues that fill the ether like some sweet incense.

Thanks for following my journey with me. I''m sure I'll have some closing reflections upon arrival.

- Trey Menefee

Pictures (soon) and Eurotrip v2.0 Archives at http://www.treyopia.tk

Tags: Treyopia Europe Travel Amsterdam

Eurotrip v2.0, vol III

I've never been anywhere like this. Amsterdam is perhaps the most beautiful cities I've ever visited. There are few cars, all the trams are electrically powered, and mostly everyone rides bikes. The air is clean and there are none of those harsh city noises one gets accustomed too. Being on a busy corner during rush hour is unreal, with bikes fluttering by in every direction. In America, you're used to seeing people riding bikes either for exercise or recreation, but here people are going to and from work and carrying home groceries. The importance of bikes was highlighted in the park across from our hostel - pedestrians get a muddy dirt path to walk on, cycles get a fat paved road going down the middle.

The fog here is different than in London. Things aren't as gray because it's not as thick. Most o the buildings have a much older and European look to them. It's also got a much more foreign feel than London, being that though English is widely spoken, it's not nearly as pervasive. I think Eric was right when he said everyone should spend a month in Holland.

I'm sure most of you want to know about what Amsterdam is famous for around the world: the red light district and the "coffee shops." The myth is bigger than the reality. While both exist, both are largely confined to one part of town. People keep those things behind closed doors. We haven't been solicited anything walking down the street, as we were in Camdentown in London
It would seem the Dutch, and Europeans in general, take a different approach to vice than Americans do. They seem to take the Aristotelian approach that the alleviation of injustice is the proper path for man, and that a universal and "supernatural" approach to a justice doesn't work on Earth. As such, keeping AIDS subdued and prostitutes off of the streets seems to be of more importance than false impressions of a perfect city. The same goes for drug use. It's a shame so many tourist come here only to exploit this.

I've come a Grand Theory of Europe, why Americans and Europeans are at odds on a lot of issues. I look at is in historical context, that Europe reached the zenith of their power about 150 years ago when they conquered the world through their various empires. Those empires came crashing down following the second world war. This then is Europe on the decline, and they'll be declining for quite some time. They've lost a lot of wealth, prestige, power, and population over the decades. American was at the height of it's relative power following the second world war but might have just hit another peak following September 11. It's impossible to tell how long we'll stay on top but the issue is we don't have the same historical wisdom as the Europeans have. For most Europeans, the collapse of their empire was within their living memories. One could take two paths from here: 1) Europeans are jealous of their power lost and want to hold America back so that they may regain some relative advantages in the world, or 2) that Europeans seek to warn American about the path to world hegemony we've taken and seek to restrain us so that the mast of Western Civilization, America, doesn't fall into the same trap of imperial overstretch that they did. Truthfully, it might be both. The French and Germans certainly fall into idea 1, but the Dutch and other smaller powers probably fall into idea 2.


Signing out,
Trey Menefee

Tags: Treyopia Europe Travel Amsterdam

Eurotrip v2.0, Vol II

Right now we're cooking breakfast and readying ourselves for a trek into Liverpool. We're staying with Eric's fiancé's apartment in Ellesmere Port, 30 minutes outside the city. It stands in pretty sharp contrast to the hostels we've been staying in. Everyone here lives in really narrow townhouses with all the common areas at the bottom and bedrooms upstairs. Abe and I get the couches downstairs. Last night we just relaxed and watched TV. The most popular channel here is the bSkyB network, run by the Evil Murdoch Empire, so it was largely Simpson's episodes and reality TV.

Eric is an interesting fellow. He left Gainesville in October of 2001 for a three month trip to Europe. He loved it here and fell for a British woman in Amsterdam who he's now engaged to. They work together around Europe in the travel industry, doing things like car rental in Greece. Claire, Eric's fiancé, is off right now getting training for a job either in the Canary Islands or Greece.

I can't wait to get back to the hostels. Sometimes I think half the reason I travel is to meet the people I meet there. Hostels are like old veteran lodges, where people come and fish tales of distant lands, crazy locals, and the most beautiful views in all the world. You have two types of people there: backpackers and urban explorers. The backpackers have been hiking or biking the country and camp nights on end. They pop into the hostels for a hot shower and a warm bed and company. Then there's the urban explorers like Abe and I, who hop cities and never see the countryside unless through the windows of a bus or train. It's a place though where all of the different vagabond souls can meet up together.

From Liverpool,
Trey Menefee

Tags: Treyopia Europe Travel Liverpool

Eurotrip v2.0, Vol I

Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2004 16:57:06 -0800

Hey guys,

So we arrived in London on Thursday. The exchange rate is killing us. Most meals cost around $10 just for a sandwich and a drink. The hostel we're staying at is great and Abe and I have made a lot of great friends. There's a little gang of us that meet up every night at the in-house bar for the cheapest Guinness in town. Abe and I have spent most of our time just walking the city, shooting pictures, and visiting interesting places. Who ever heard of the Statue of All Physical Energy? We also saw a play tonight at Westminster.

London's been so gray and wet that most of my pictures have come out very dull, but I finally got some good ones taken at dawn and dusk today that came out very nice. I've been photoshopping them on Dad's laptop at night when things settle down.

My biggest complaint is that their are too many Americans... we're everywhere! The hostel is 80% American (with half of them being from Wisconsin and Minnesota) and the uptown area's are very touristy. Honestly, London feels much more American than European. Maybe it's because the language barrier is broken and that sense of alienation isn't as pervasive, but a lot of my expectations built during my summer 2001 trip were a miss.

Sadly, not everyone will be getting post cards. I brought 18 postcards to a register and asked for stamps, and I was asked for £18 - roughly $40. I bought half that many - priority will be given to those who have sent me postcards in the past :-)

Much love,
Trey Menefee

PS - Feel free to forward this out to friends and family that I missed (i'm working off an old email list)


Tags: Treyopia Europe Travel London