The Diwan-i-Khas at Fatepur Sikri

The Buland Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri

India is sooooo cool

After years of running around having my picture taken with celebrities I've come to a place where people want to have their picture taken with me! This is Suneel Kumar and he even got his picture printed right away.

Agra

Udupi food

A billboard for the restaurant in Agra we ate at yesterday and today

Last night's meal

Last night's restaurant

India off to a good start

Our cab got a flat tire on the way from the Delhi airport into town.

Würzburg

I'm gonna fill in an explanation here when I have more time.

Germany!

After tearing through the former Yugoslavia for two weeks, and then a 10 hour bus ride north last night, I'm now in Germany. This of course is Schloss Neuschwanstein, and part of the German stereotype of American tourists is that we all go here. So of course I had to go.

Mosaic

The Basilica in Porec is also famous for it's mosaics.

Euphrasian Basilica in Porec

This is a really interesting place because it's been a center of Christianity since the 4th century, and has gone through many changes along the way while staying a Christian site. The Byzantine elements are the most photo worthy.

Porec

This was my hotel in Porec. It's a real eyesore I know but at least it's hidden by trees. There are actually quite a few of these in Porec as it's been a major resort town for German and Italian holiday makers for years. The nice things are that the hotel was really comfortable, quite cheap for what it is (less than 30 euro for one night) and included a huge proper breakfast (eggs, pancakes, etc.). In addition to that the hotel also had a lounge singer in the lobby at night and no one there under 50, officially making it one of the more interesting places I've ever stayed. The fact that there are lots of these hotels in town (and all managed by the same company oddly enough) means that there are no little old ladies waiting at the bus station to sell rooms. Now that I think about it I saw one of these going up in Dubrovnik, but I thought it would be a really exclusive resort.

So my final Croatia tally is that I got to see 9 of the 10 places I wanted to see. Of them, four I really enjoyed, two I really did not, and three places I wasn't there long enough to have a really informed opinion, but in those places I did see the major sites and I liked them.

Pula

You would be forgiven for thinking that after Slovenia I made my way to Italy, but no I just went back to Croatia! I've now seen 7 different Roman stadiums in various states of ruin, but the one in Pula is probably the most impressive, more so even than the Colosseum in Rome. A lot of that has to do with the way it is situated in the city, it really feels like it just belongs there.

Skocjan Caves

The main thing I wanted to see in Slovenia after Ljublijana was the Skocjan Caves. Not really notable for stalactites, the main feature of these caves is the absolutely massive size of the main underground chasm. After seeing Plitvice a few days before to see another awesome display of natural beauty just reminds me how incredibly blessed I am.

Ljubljana

After Zagreb I ducked into Slovenia for a little bit. Of all the cities I've been to that people claim to be "the new Prague" I think Ljubljana is the most deserving of the title. It's a really picturesque city, very laid back and also very hip and modern and everyone speaks English. Slovenia I think is actually the new face of Europe. They are an EU success story and will be the first of the 10 new countries admitted to the EU in 2004 to adopt the Euro.