Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Mission Monitor Board Today I (Imaginary Version) ...

... finished my European Tour with Blaze by hitting the Balkans and the former Soviet states!


... took a breakfast cruise in historic Dubrovnik, Croatia, with its traditional Croat fish dishes

... sampled the famous ski resort in Zlatibor, Serbia

... took pictures in the astoundingly beautiful Bay of Kotor, Montenegro

... lounged on the beach in Ohrid, Macedonia - one of the oldest human settlements in Europe

... pampered ourselves in the spa in Teslic, Bosnia and Herzegovina

... counted the windows in Berat, Albania's City of 1001 Windows

... marveled at the classic architecture in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia

...visited Saint Sophia's Cathedral, the oldest remaining church in Kiev, Ukraine

... got lost in the Mir Castle Complex of Belarus

... had our fortunes told in Soroca, the gypsy capital of Moldova

... watched the sun set on Bulgaria's Sunny Beach


... did the Dracula tour in Transylvania, Romania

... finished my European Tour with Blaze by hitting the Balkans and the former Soviet states!


... took a breakfast cruise in historic Dubrovnik, Croatia, with its traditional Croat fish dishes

... sampled the famous ski resort in Zlatibor, Serbia

... took pictures in the astoundingly beautiful Bay of Kotor, Montenegro

... lounged on the beach in Ohrid, Macedonia - one of the oldest human settlements in Europe

... pampered ourselves in the spa in Teslic, Bosnia and Herzegovina

... counted the windows in Berat, Albania's City of 1001 Windows

... marveled at the classic architecture in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia

...visited Saint Sophia's Cathedral, the oldest remaining church in Kiev, Ukraine

... got lost in the Mir Castle Complex of Belarus

... had our fortunes told in Soroca, the gypsy capital of Moldova

... watched the sun set on Bulgaria's Sunny Beach


... did the Dracula tour in Transylvania, Romania

... wore blue lipstick with pink eyeshadow.

...got the drainline from my sink thawed and flowing

After finishing Asia and Europe, took Blaze over to Oceania...

... marveled at the giant stone money of Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia;

... swam in the jellyfish lake and swam with the sharks in Palau;

... studied up on World War II history and nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands;

... flew into an active volcano and lounged under the world's largest banyan tree in Vanuatu;

... explored the entire island of Nauru in an hour, and learned some things about phosphate mining;

... had tasty fish dishes while learning local handicraft work in Tuvalu;

... went shipwreck diving in, and enjoyed the bird-like native dances of, Kiribati;

... learned about the endemic species of East Rennell in the Solomon Islands;

... found beautiful nature while checking out the lava fields, waterfalls, blowholes, caves, national parks and of course beaches in Samoa;

... immersed ourselves in local life on Tongatapu in Tonga, enjoying the moving singing in church and the extremely strong kava drink;

... went whitewater rafting in Fiji, then had tea in the Garden of the Sleeping Giant;

... hiked the ancient Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea,

... headed over to New Zealand for some bungee jumping in Queenstown, Maori culture and hot springs in Rotorua, chocolate and albatrosses in Dunedin and beautiful scenery in Nelson,

... and finished by exploring Australia: great cities Melbourne and Sydney, theme parks in the Gold Coast, camping in Uluru, diving in the Great Barrier Reef, exploring Tasmania, tasting wine in the Barossa Valley, and getting lost in the Outback.

...added a new room to chez_cleome. I needed it to store all the postcards I got from IB and Blaze this year!

... invited cleome and mr.cleome over to our Caribbean tour! (and anyone else who wants to come is welcome too!)

... took pictures of the brightly colored birds in Trinidad and Tobago;

... took the Scenic Railway to see the best sights of Saint Kitts and Nevis, including the Brimstone Hill Fortress;

... took a dip in the sulfur springs of Saint Lucia;

... saw the canopy of Mystic Mountain, Jamaica, via bob-sled and zipline!

... explored the ruins of old forts and castles in Haiti;

... had a nice lunch in the lush gardens of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines;

... tasted the wonderful spices and swam in the waterfalls and beaches of Grenada;

... marveled at the unique animals in Dominica, aka the Nature Island of the Caribbean;

... learned to kayak in the Bahamas;

... enjoyed the colonial architecture in the city of Trinidad, Cuba;

... loosened ourselves up with some Mount Gay rum in Barbados! (and no, the rum doesn't turn you gay...);

... joined the party at Carnival, in Antigua and Barbuda;

... and retired for the evening in the luxurious resorts of Bavaro in the Dominican Republic.

(It will take a lot to top that post, IB)

... did my Scrooge McDuck and swam in a pool full of money.

... magically cleared all the streets, sidewalks, and driveways of snow. It all ended up in Memphis, Houston, & Ft Lauderdale.

Invited everyone to escape the snow by heading to South America!

... pretended to perform a ritual for the sun at Machu Picchu, Peru,

... studied giant tortoises and other unique species at the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador;

... dove off the top of Angel Falls in Venezuela;

... pretended to walk in the sky at the La Paz Salt Flats in Bolivia;

... partied with the craziest and most fun at Carnival in Brazil;

... got lost in the pristine rainforests of Suriname;

... marveled at the well-preserved old town of Colonia in Uruguay;

... lounged on the beaches of Vina del Mar, Chile;

... chatted with the artists and writers while marveling at the architecture of Aregua, Paraguay;

.. learned to dance the salsa in Cali, the Salsa Capital of Latin America;

... helped care for some turtles at Shell Beach, Guyana;

... and finally ended up with some more ice by skating on the Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina!

...gave the State of the LMB Union address, proclaimed that we were doing pretty good, cut the speech short and we all went out dancing.

... channeled the spirit of a 12th century peasant farmer from Germany.

Imagined an ice pick going through my boss' head.

Oh wait,

wrong thread.

.... visited North and Central America with Blaze!

... helped excavate the buried ruins of Joya de Ceren in El Salvador;

... zip-lined over the rainforests of Belize;

... climbed the ancient Mayan ruins of Tikal, Guatemala;

... lay in the soft sand of Isla de Ometepe, Nicaragua;

... took pictures of the endemic species (big cats, dolphins, monkeys, tapirs and more!) of Costa Rica in their natural habitats;

... marveled at the Panama Canal;

... explored the Spanish architecture of Comayagua, Honduras;

... gorged ourselves on local cuisine while visiting the beaches and ruins of Mexico;

... blew our minds while touring the great USA cities of Las Vegas, New York, New Orleans, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Boston, Memphis, Dallas, went ice skating in Alaska and beach hopping in Hawaii;

... and enjoyed the cold weather while soaking up the uniqueness of Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Quebec and Montreal in Canada.

Got a Valentine's Card from Despero!

Headed over to Africa with Blaze to finish our world tour!

First, the African Sahel...

... helped restore the historic monuments in Timbuktu, Mali;

... drove through the Saharan sand dunes in Mauritania;

... shopped for oddities and colorful trinkets in Bellaraya Market, Niger;

... braved the extremely inaccessible Ennadi Plateau in Chad to see the sandstone arches;

... took part in the mesmerizing Sufi rituals of drumming and trance dancing, in Sudan.

...slept for a thousand years

Then, West Africa...

... shopped in the voodoo markets of Benin;

... visited the slae castles of Ghana;

... surfed in Robertsport, Liberia;

.. had lunch in the mud/straw tower-houses of the Tamberna Valley in Togo;

... jetskied in the magnificent waters of Cape Verde;

... rubbed elbows with the stars at the Panafrican Film Festival (Africa's largest, supposedly) in Burkina Faso;

... catalogued several fascinating exotic plants in Comoe National Park, COte d'Ivoire;

... hiked to some magnificent waterfalls and cliffs in Foutah Djallon, Guinea;

... learned about the river goddess in the Sacred Grove of Osun, Nigeria;

... learned to cook ceebu jen (rice and fish) with red and white sauces in Senegal;

... enjoyed the beaches of Varela, Guinea-Bissau;

... swam with the crocs in Kachikally Crocodile Pool, The Gambia;

... escaped from the world by heading to the pristine Banana Islands in Sierra Leone.

...invited IB & Blaze over to cook some of that ceebu jen.

... gladly cooked up a selection of international delights for Fat Cramer, including Philippine sisig, Chinese dumplings, Japanese sukiyaki, Spanish-style gambas, Mexican tacos, Korean bulgogi, Italian-style pesto, Singaporean laksa, Thai satay, and Maldivian fish curry.

...learned Latin

...sent Quislet, Esq. a congratulatory message regarding his job as the new Pope.

Then, Central Africa...

... laid on the beaches of Annobon, in Equatorial Guinea;

... toured the 5 national parks with UNESCO World Heritage status in the Democratic Republic of Congo;

... rode an elephant and fed a giraffe in Dzanga-Sangha National Park of the Central African Republic;

... dorve a 4x4 through Boma National Park and Nimule National Park in South Sudan;

... enjoyed the traditional storytelling, handicraft-making and palm wines of Ngoketunjia, Cameroon;

... climbed the escarpments of the Central Angola Highlands;

... marveled at the Boca do Inferno (literally Mouth of Hell) blowhole and explored the underwater caves of Sao Tome and Principe;

... observed the gorillas in Odzala National Park, Republic of the Congo;

... lived with the pygmies and viewed ancient rock engravings in the savannahs of Lope National Park, Gabon.

Was voted Emperor of Ankor Wat and Helldorado today. Lots of commuting.

Sold rickshaw my private jet and bought a new one, with blue leather seats.