Catania is an ancient port city on Sicily’s east coast. It sits at the foot of Mt. Etna, an active volcano with trails leading up to the summit. The cruise port is located close to the city center and the wild and rowdy “La Pescheria” fish market. Wanting to do something fun and adventurous my two amigos(Walter and R2) and I decided to bike up close to Mt Edna crater. I contacted Maurizo(info@etnabiketours.com), communication could not have been any easier. He asked for body height and weigh to insure we had the correct bikes. Maurizo met us at the precise meeting location and off we went. It was a fun yet challenging ride and the bikes that were furnished were TERRIFIC. Scenery was incredible and throughout the ride we rode about 4.5 miles + uphill savoring the scenery. Following the ride we were taken to a lovely restaurant. An amazing day, filled with beauty and exercise to boot.

When you visit a place and like it so much a return trip is a must. This was my second trip to Zagreb and I arrived the day before the world cup finals which featured tiny Croatia against France. For this visit I rented a lovely little apartment in the heart of the city, Slobodan (centralparkzagreb@gmail.com) the apt owner was great in responding to all my questions and even came to pick me up at the airport. The city was starting to party and the streets were filled with Croatian memorabilia, I even got a free T-shirt with “Godina Ponosa” which means the year of pride. Day #1/2 Made my way to the town square and was surrounded but over 150K people with horns, setting off fireworks and waving the Croatian flag. Awaiting the start of the soccer game. The crowd went wild when Croatia scored but settled down and France went ahead 2-1. Even though Croatia lost the crowds continued to celebrate and the next day the team was to arrive @ 10:30. It turned out to be more like 20:30 and impossible to move anywhere in the main square. Day #3 One of the fun things to in Zagreb is to find the plants in our solar system, Artist Davor Preis created metal models of the planets in scale with the established sun and placed them at relative distances around the city of Zagreb, finding them has turned in a challenge and fun game, so far 5 have been found. No iPhone just a map. The picture is of the earth marker. Day#4 My Zagreb adventure continues, I discovered that the 16th degree Meridian passes through the city. So off I went searching for the monument. Doing a little more homework, I discovered that the sculpture dedicated to the 16th Meridian was created for the 1987 Summer University games. Day #5 “These feet are made for walking” wanting to visit Samobar a picturesque town with a French flair and charming architecture not to mention it is famous for traditional Croatian eats. Took the 1hr bus ride from Zagreb and got to the Samobar bus station, I then started to follow the red shoes to get into town, however, the red shoes never told you how long you had to walk…Lovely town, great food and you get a lot of exercise following the red shoes. After our long walk we finally discovered the famous Gabreku 1929 restaurant and ate "wild boar". Day #6 Mt Medvednica adventure; Just north of Zagreb is the lovely Mt. Medvedica and the nature park. I wanted to make a day of it, however, all instructions from locals and the tourist office were incomplete and lacked clarity, I even read that hikers spent many hrs trying to find the summit and were confused by the different trail signs. With some basic instructions we took the challenge and after about an hr by public transport, we had arrived. Yes, the trail signs are confusing but we just looked for a few landmarks and found ourselves at the lovely and historic Chapel of Our Lady of Sljeme, Queen of Croats. Following a small trail/path, we were at the summit and TV tower. We then made our way back to one of the authentic Croatian restaurants in the mountains, great food, and service. This was well worth the effort. You can reach the top via tram and bus. Day #7 Invisible Zagreb; Wanting to depart from the standard tourist path I managed to make contact with “Branimir”(invisiblezagreb@gmail.com) and he was able to coordinate us joining the “Invisible Zagreb” experience. This is an educational tour conducted by a formerly homeless person “Mile Mrvalj” who is now involved in assisting the homeless in Zagreb. A moving eye-opener experience. Since it was our final night we wanted to see the "street lamp lighter" which we were told would appear at a specific location at dusk, we waited almost 2hr for the street lamp lighter to appear but he must have been invisible. Put this city on your MUST list.

Lake Garda, the largest lake in Italy is known for its crystal clear waters. With the lake being so close to Verona it was on “my visit” list. I coordinated with Stefano(contabilita@melsinea.com) what my group and I wanted to experience during a one day trip, Stenfano respond to all my requests and even added to my list. Our wonderful guide Irene picked us up at the hotel Verona for a short drive to visit Peschiera a resort town at the most southern tip of Lake and it is where the river Mincio starts to flow. Following a small walk around we hopped on a lovely boat touring the lake we went around and under castle bridges visiting the Grotte di Catullo archaeological site and numerous Roman villas on the lake shore finally docking in Sirmione, a town on a peninsula surrounded by breathtaking landscapes, this little gem is famous for its thermal waters and beach. The town of Sirmione is dominated by the Rocca Scaligera, a fortress with harbour views. We walked by the church of St. Anne and walked and through the Medieval Castle (Rocca Scaligeria) gates, the entrance was built guarding the only access point to the southern city center ( we had gone underneath the fortress bridge is our boat ride). Following our visit and wonderful local lunch of fish and pasta we headed for the famous Valpolicella vineyards and visited a gorgeous winery tasting “Amarone” wine. Incredible day, great weather, wonderful food. You can get to Perscheria and Simrmione by train from Verona but you will not get our lovely day.

My last visit to China was focused on Beijing and the Wall, for this trip Shanghai and Xian(home of the warriors) were on the agenda. All arrangements were made through “Christine” owner of China prime tours(christine@chinaprimetour.com) she was easy to deal with and everything was PERFECT. Arriving Shanghai Pudong airport(PVG) is a journey in itself. The airport is massive and the taxiway to the gate is long. Having been to China before (I had a 10yr visa) immigration was relatively quick, however, you will be required to fingerprint more than once at various Kiosks and the machines tend to get temperamental. At the airport we met our lovely guide “Lucy”( everyone in China has an English name) I did not want to tackle the traffic so I had planned to ride the Shanghai Maglev train, the world’s fastest commercially operating train with speeds in excess of 250mph. The 19 mile journey to downtown was covered in less than 7 minutes an awesome ride that the landscape just zooms by your window. We then transferred to the subway and reached the “Pudong” district. Booked my 6-night stay at “Central Hotel”, superb location in the heart of the Pudong district, very reasonable price and terrific rooms. Day #1; Went to Shanghai’s Old City and walked through the “Yu” Garden that is filled with classical pavilions, rock gardens and arched bridges, we made our way through alleys that have not changed since the 16th century. The highlight of day and perhaps my entire Shanghai visit was going to the spiral-shaped 121-story Shanghai Tower the worlds 2nd tallest building, getting to the observation deck on the 118th floor is a fun ride but once you arrive start walking on the glass in the world’s highest fixed observation building the feeling can not be put into worlds. To end our day we strolled the famous “Bund” which is a walk along the Huangpu River, contrasting the past with the futuristic geometry of the Shanghai skyline. Day #2- We battled Shaghai traffic and had about a 90 minute trip to reach “Zhujiajiao” a water town which some refer to as the not so real Venice of the east…happen to agree, it is a Venice without the European influence. The water town is very well preserved with many bridges, we had a fun Gondola ride on one of the many canals and following our Gondola canal ride we walked through the narrow alleys admiring the ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It was “CRAB” season and watching the vendors wrap the and sell the crustaceans was interesting. Day #3 Took the subway to the domestic airport(also huge) and boarded our direct flight to Xian. Xi’an a very bustling city of 9M and is often called the birthplace of Chinese civilization. As the former capital of China it was the home to “The First Emperor” who united China and left his mighty legacy “The Terracotta Warriors”. No to waste time, we immediately went to the city walls which are the largest and best preserved military defensive structures in the world. We biked half way around admiring the city below. Following our quick check in at our hotel, we headed downtown to visit the magnificent “Bell Tower”. After figuring out how to avoid the multitude of vehicles and getting to the tower entrance we were disappointed that we had arrived too late and it was closed. The next challenge was trying to find a way back to the hotel, taxis seemed impossible to flag so we just stood around for about 20 minutes watching the locals as they flagged passing cars for a ride. I decided to give it a try and stood at the corner with my fingers out. A number of cars stopped but no English was spoken, finally a car stopped I handed the driver the hotel name in Chinese, he pointed to money, I asked how much and he showed me a currency bill.. I agreed and within minutes we were at the hotel.. wow a fun adventure. Day #4 Following a one hr drive we finally made it to the entrance of the “Terracotta Warriors”. The Terracotta Warriors and Horses, is a super large collection of life-size terracotta sculptures in battle formations they are reproductions of the imperial guard troops of first Emperor . The entire collection are housed in three large covered underground pits. The majority of the sculptures are in PIECES and the Chinese government is slowly putting the pieces back together. In pit “one” which is the largest pit and most photographed stand long columns of warriors in formation and behind them along the pits are the numerous broken pieces which are being put together. The entire complex is amazing so are the throngs of visitors. We never made it to the ‘Wild Goose Pagoda” due to our schedule, just grabbed a flight back to Shanghai. Day #5 Walked along Nanjing Road which is the main shopping street of Shanghai but no real bargains are to be had, visited the Shanghai Museum, walked in Peoples Square park and eventually made our way to the former French Concession. This interesting area of Shanghai was developed in the late 1800’s and was the trendiest section of Shanghai till 1943. Following the communist takeover the area lay undeveloped, starting in the 1990’s the French concession started to come back to life, the area is now home to live-music, boutique wine bars, fashion shops and European style delis totally unexpected to find in China. Following a dinner at a typical local Chinese dinner at a local establishment we rode the bus back to the Bund and admired the the enchanting night view of the city all light up. Day #6 Our departure was marked by another ride on an even faster Maglev train. Tips; Shanghai is China’s most cosmopolitan city with 24 million, the city is quite compact and can most of the main tourist districts can be easily be covered by foot however, the air quality is VERY bad. The metro which is the world’s largest is very well connected and simple to follow but expect crowds. Overall a fun city city to spend a few days.

Always wanting to visit Havana Cuba, I hopped on the RCL ship “Empress of the Seas” for a 5 night cruise with an overnight in Havana, lucky for me the “Empress” was the last ship allowed to visit Cuba, a new Cuba embargo was put into effect while on the ship was docked in Havana. To make the most of my 30+ hours in Havana, I booked a 6hr excursion tour with “Urban Adventures” that turned into 8hrs. It was a perfect sunny day as I made my way to San Francisco square to meet my tour guide “Yuri”. -The Capitolio… much like our capital building -Plaza Revolution…with faces of Jose Marti and Che on the government buildings(only building with A/C) -The Malecon…Havana seaside wall -Cemetery Colon… Artistic graves Our final stop was at the famous Hotel Nacional and I sampled the “Mojito” while admiring the photos of the famous celebrities who had a drink at the bar I was sitting at. Following our drive we visited a local restaurant to sample Cuban food, very simple but dipping bread in a mayonnaise sauce was interesting. We then started our walk through old Havana and visiting a few new Havana sites. We walked to all four famous squares; Plaza de la Cathedral(Havana Cathedral), La Bodeguita Del Medio( famous Hemingway bar), Plaza Armas, Plaza Vieja and finally ending our walk at a park displaying “La Giraldilla” the fist sculpture cast in Cuba and is now a symbol of city. Day#2 Now that I had my bearing I decided to explore the city on my own. Walking in Havana is a challenge as the streets are filled with “large chuck holes”, there are very few traffic lights and the duel currency system is a tad confusing. I made my way to the Almacenes San Jose which is Havana’ largest handcraft and art market. Endless small shops selling everything from original art to Jewelry. I then walked to a recently restored warehouse known as Cerveceria Antiguo which is a massive brewery, restaurant and bar on the waterfront, had a cold one while listening to the music and watching the locals dance. Following a snack I walked through the streets admiring old, the new and the falling apart that are still lived in. Found a local barber and got a trim before making my way back to the ship. OBSERVATION; Cuba is a very poor third world country, I found lines of people at small stores just picking up small plastic bags of bread crumbs, grocery stores had empty shelves, Credit cards are not accepted and cash in the way to go. Dollars and Euros are widely accepted by private merchants and if you want to buy cigars, only shop at the official government stores as there are many counterfeits. The streets are very colorful, I was never hassled and I was saddened to see a county in such a poor state.

My first visit; my wife and I spent two days visiting this lovely city that is overflowing with many sights, sounds and tasty foods. I arrived at the spanking new terminal 1, within minutes I was out of customs, passport control and the usual hoopla, it was the fastest I have ever experienced. Taxis are expensive in Barcelona so we had planned to exclusively use the city subway system which is very simple to use. We walked to the airport commuter train station where my wife bought a T10 ticket (cost 7 Euros) which can be used and shared (your ticket counts down) and rode the commuter train to the city, we then changed to the subway system to get to our hotel. The only downside was lugging our luggage up and down stairs when we changed from the train to the subway, a minor inconvenience but a HUGE savings(figure the average taxi to hotel is between 30-40 Euros). With much to see and little time to spare, we decided to-do a bike excursion with “fatbikes”, no need to prebook just show up at the designated spot. On our bikes we visited many of the sights(too many to mention) and stopped at the unbelievable magnificent Sagrada Famili words can not describe this awesome structure I was told that entering sagrada familia is only worth it if you have a lot of time to spend in Barcelona, our bike tour concluded with a stop at the beach. Going on this bike excursion was perhaps the highlight of my city visit and I would highly recommend this bike tour to anyone who wants to see a lot of the city sites while saving your feet for later. The bike excursion is not strenuous and was a nice wakeup after the long flight. The following day we took a trip to Montserrat and timed it so that we got to see the black Madonna while listening to the boys’ choir (they perform at 1:00pm). Getting to Montserrat is easy but will take almost an entire day and plan to do a lot of walking, personally I was not overly impressed with Montserrat and in retrospect I would have rather stayed in town. That evening my wife and I ate dinner at a small food stand in La Boqueria, La Boqueria is located about halfway down Las Ramables and is similar to a farmers markets with many more fresh items in a compact area, be aware that most of the shops and eating establishments at La Boqueria close early, walking down Las Rambles is similar to Times Square in New York but with many more characters and street performers. In the evening we visited the Magic Fountains (it is FREE), shows start running continuously at about 9.00pm and are repeated. At the fountains there is very little sitting room but you can sit across the street in the park (that is where we sat) and still have a good view. Park Guell is a must visit with all its monuments and you can walk to the three crosses (Tres Cruses) which are also in the park. We also visited the Gaudi masterpiece buildings; Casa Mila, Batllo and Casa Amataller, we did not go into the buildings but seeing them on the outside was incredible. Columbus Monument (you can go inside the monument and go to the top) is a must visit and was used as the start for our Las Rambles walk; Plaza Catalunya and Passeig de Gràcia are easy strolls but they are crowed no matter the time. Prior to my trip I had read many reports about pickpockets in Barcelona to be on the safe side I bought a money belt that tucks into my pants, my cash was secure and I encountered no problems. In conclusion, two days is just not enough to see this lovely city and there is no need to use the Hop On/Off bus(Bus Touristic/plan on standing in long lines to get on) a good subway map along with some comfortable walking shoes is more then sufficient, enjoy the city. Hotel; I found this gem of a hotel https://www.hoteleuropark.com/en/, you MUST visit the rooftop pool and bar. Next Barcelona visit, I decided to go ahead and go inside La Sagrada Famalia(http://www.sagradafamilia.org/en/), the outside is amazing but stepping inside you are in a different world.  Even though this cathedral is yet to be completed there are not enough words to describe this magnificent place, no other Cathedral or religious building that can even compare, and I have traveled worldwide.. I bought my entrance tickets online(make sure you do this) and walked in immediately at the scheduled time (however, even though I prepaid for the headset/worth it, there is still a line for the headsets that will take about 10 minutes). You are allowed to wander and reflect at your leisure; no one rushing you to leave. Regardless of your religious background, this is a lovely place that is deeply moving and will allow you to reflect and think. In my opinion #1 cathedral/religious building in the world. Barcelona MUST; For this Barcelona trip, I decided to visit the much talked about Salvador Dalí museum in his home town of Figueres, this Dali Museum is very entertaining and quite different than any museum I have ever seen. You can easily reach Figueres by the high-speed train and then take the bus to town, Dali designed it in the last years of his life, designing every little detail. The outside walls have small sculptures of bread buns. On top of the museum, you see golden mannequins and giant eggs, and Dali is buried below the stage in a crypt. I am not a fan of museums, but put this on your MUST list.

Corfu; this was my 3rd trip to this island and I go with this top-notch outfit; http://www.dailycruisescorfu.com/, this is the perfect way to enjoy Corfu’s spectacular scenery in a beautiful 14-meter yacht, great food and more great food and yet more, unlimited drinks, and secluded swimming spots plus great company of friends. Salerno/Amalfi coast; My final cruise port stop and always wanting to see the Amalfi coast(the coastline along the southern edge of Italy’s Sorrentine Peninsula) this coastline is filled with; sheer cliffs, a rugged shoreline dotted with small beaches, fishing villages, grand villas, terraced vineyards, and cliff side lemon groves. We did not want to sit in a bus/car through all these winding roads and dodge other vehicles so we opted to see this beautiful landscape via boat. It is a tad pricey but worth every penny. Contacted blue mediterrano( https://www.blumediterraneosas.com/), top-notch outfit, bedsides the view and food we got to see a once in a lifetime view of the coastline.

Ajaccio; the birthplace and home of the most famous Frenchman, Napoleon Bonaparte. This is a fun island with a lot to do but I was limited on time so I followed the arrowhead markers to the most famous statue(there are 3 statues in different locations), the last and biggest one lists some amazing accomplishments of Napoleon and what he did for France. Messina; a town full of treats and a car show to boot. At noon in the town square the clock towers bronze statues in the facade start to move and put on a show that last for 12 minutes, this is not to be missed.

Wanting to see many of countries that were once part of the Soviet block before they are discovered by a massive onslaught of tourists, Slovakia was next up on my list. My favorite travel partner and I flew into Vienna airport and then took the bus from the airport for the one hour ride to Bratislava, Slovakia. On the bus ride to Slovakia, I was amazed at the number of wind turbines throughout the Austrian landscape; however, once you are cross the border into Slovakia, they all disappear. Bratislava is the capitol of Slovakia and located right on the Danube River. The bus drops you off close to the banks of the Danube and almost in the center of town( you look across the river and see the UFO and the bridge). For our 3 night stay was at the lovely Hotel Danubia Gate(https://danubiagate.sk/en/). Bratislava is a very easy town to navigate, and to start our exploration, we booked a 2hr Segway tour which gave us a great overview of the city. One thing that stands out while in Bratislava are the many different quirky statues all over town. These bronze monuments were added in an attempt to add some humor and life to the communist-era architecture. We found interesting characters such as a photographer, a man coming out of a man-hole cover, and even Napoleon! On our Segways, we crossed over the Danube on the UFO (a famous landmark) Bridge and got to see the narrowest house in Slovakia. On our second day, after a couple of wrong turns, two bus rides and a very, very long uphill walk (almost an hr), we found the “Kamzik TV Tower”. This area is a hidden gem that most tourists never visit and is challenging to reach. At the tower, we went up to the "Altitude" restaurant  where the view of the country and landscape is simply SPECTACULAR! If the view wasn’t enough, the restaurant is a 360 rotating floor so that you get a chance to see the view from all sides. Following lunch, we made our way through the forest and got to the cable car / chair lift (dual seating). The chair lift takes you down through the forest, hills and surrounding countryside. It is Soviet-era built, so it was a tad flimsy but well worth the effort. To end our day, we visited the Slavin War Memorial built on the hill that overlooks the city. The memorial stands there to commemorate the efforts of the Red Army in the liberation of Bratislava during World War II. There are also almost 7,000 Soviet Red Army soldiers buried there and a large part of the grounds is a cemetery. More fun things to put on your Bratislava must visit list; -Bratislava Castle. -Blue Church Bratislava -Obrazáreň pri Dóme, An abandoned church with dreamlike images in place of windows. -Hotel Galéria Spirit; A rather unique hotel for the artistic soul a rollback to the 60’s. -Danube walk/ cross into Austria and stand on the border. -The Iron Curtain(the deadly border). Put this lovely place on your list.

In my quest to visit many of the former eastern block countries, spent five nights in Belgrade Serbia Belgrade is by no means a pretty city as the chaotic socialist past is mixed with the new and then you still have remnants of the ottoman and roman empire altogether. Hotel accommodations in the very interesting city are very reasonable( stayed at the “Hilton”- perhaps the best hotel I ever stayed at). Belgrade is spread out and getting from around does take time even though taxis and buses are widespread( beware of the taxi scams, only ride a taxi with TX on the license plate). Serbian people are very friendly, prices are great with many bargains to be had. I did the segway Grand Tour (https://www.segwaybeograd.rs/en/) which gave a great perspective of the city both the old and new, got to see the most significant landmark “Beogradska Tvrđava” an imposing and massive fortress at the confluence of the Danube and the Sava rivers. This fortress will take you at least a day to walk around. A visit to the memorial and “Marshall Tito” mausoleum who kept Yugoslavia in tact, this is a MUST visit for any history buff as well as the church of St Sava is worth a few hours. Wandering the street and locating street art is a hobby and there were a few gems, Food in Serbia is very good but the meals tend to focus on meat and more meats. A day trip to the lovely town of Novi Sad the second largest city in Serbia built along the banks of the Danube is a must-visit, vineyard stops were also included and a visit to a very old and active monastery was included in the city visit. A possible return to this city is in the cards. On a final note, just wanted to post a VERY honest and reliable taxi service; www.belgradetaxi.com

My cruise to French Polynesia; departing Sydney Australia and following 10 days at sea while crossing the international dateline whereby I gained one day in my life I finally made it to French Polynesia. Stop 1- Papette; the capitol of french Polynesia, located on the island of Tahiti is a crowded bustling town with a lot of traffic and tended to be a little on the seedy side. The majority of activity seemed to be around the port/ferry area ,so for an authentic island experience my small group decided to explore the interior of the island, visiting and driving through the extinct volcano, swimming in a lake and admiring a waterfalls and jungle vegetation. Overall, a rough ride in a 4×4, poor weather and lot of time driving. Following the trip I wandered the Mapuru a Paraita market which featured the standard tourist items..do not put this place on your bucket list. Stop 2- Moorea, a lovely island with jagged volcanic mountains and black sandy beaches. For this stop we jumped on a ATV for an island tour. Riding up to Mount Rotui which overlooks the picturesque Ōpūnohu Bay was pretty awesome, we drove through a number of pineapple plantations and through a rain forest. This is a lovely island with numerous high end resorts but plenty of road debris throughout which distracted from the amazing scenery. Stop 3- Bora Bora; the crown jewel and my anticipation was off the charts. The turquoise waters surrounding the island are lovely but the incredible picture perfect scenery around the Majestic Mount Otemanu take the crown. This mountain is simply magical and can be seen from every part of the island “it calls out to you”. I was highly disappointed in my excursion(I will not get into it but read my trip adviser review), but swimming with the sharks and snorkeling in the coral gardens was fun. We traveled the entire lagoon, admired the high end resorts which rested on stilts over the water and had a BBQ lunch on a deserted small island where you could almost walk out to were the ocean meets the reef. Be aware that the town itself is very run down and dirty.

Made a trip to Los Angles and stayed on the famous “Venice Beach”. Wanted to avoid the rental car scene, the stressful LA driving, not to mention the hassle and cost of parking, so I gave local transit a try. From the airport to Venice Beach is quite simple: ride the FREE shuttle bus outside the airport baggage claim/ground transportation area to the city bus terminal; then get on the Big Blue Bus #3 for a dollar – it will get you there perhaps slower than a car but a whole lot cheaper. For my stay, through homeaway.com(www.homeaway.com) I found a wonderful apartment owned by Rhoda and Bill (http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p203872)- all the amenities I needed and it was less than a two minute walk to the beach. Venice Beach itself is lovely and is a mixture of many cultures, strange and unusual sights, a variety of ongoing beach activities, an interesting skate board arena; however, I was most taken back by the numerous homeless hanging out. The boardwalk is a funky a mix of T-shirt stores, tattoo parlors and run down mom and pop shops; the entire place needs a facelift. The famous “Muscle Beach” area is an outdoor gym/weight room and turned out to be a huge disappointment – you need to see it and judge for yourself. Rented a bike from “Bike Curious Rental”(http://www.bikecuriousrentals.com/) and my wife, daughter and I rode the entire day from Marina Del Ray to Santa Monica visiting all 3 piers and a number of tourist attractions. It was a great way to see the area and get a little exercise. Having never seen the famous LA tourist attractions as I have always wanted to see (Rodeo Drive, Hollywood Walk of Fame, homes of the rich and famous, etc) I found a local company( http://www.adayinlatours.com/) that picked me up at a designated location. It would have been impossible to see and visit as much as the tour covered; in addition, the tour guide did all the driving and was funny, full of stories of interest and always knew where to park. My last day in LA was spent indoors as it rained throughout the day, all my hopes of getting spotted for an audition to my favorite TV show “SURVIVOR” were washed away.