travelweasel

I use the SpeakEasy Voice Recorder application to record audio from my Iphone. The app cost $1.99 but was well worth the cost for the ease of use, and the feature of being able to get recordings onto your computer.1. Go to the SpeakEasy Voice Recorder website and download the free application that will get the files off the Iphone.2. Plug in the Iphone, back it up, sync the apps, and run the program you just downloaded.3. The files will be uploaded to your computer in M4a format. In order to get them onto my blog I needed MP3 format, so I downloaded a converter (http://www.nch.com.au/switch/plus.html).4. Once the files were in MP3 format I needed to find a file host to upload the audio to. After trying a few that didn’t work I got to www.mediafire.com, which thankfully did work.5. I uploaded my files to mediafire, and then inserted the links provided by mediafire into my blog. Unfortunately readers will have to click the link and download the file themselves to play it, but at least it works!

We arrived in Ashland at night and immediately checked in the Ashland Hostel. The Hostel was very clean and centrally located, and the man who checked us in wore a tight black work-out shirt and running pants. An unusual look for someone of his age. The shirt was a little two short and showed off his stomach, which looked like it was fit under the layer of fat. Anyway he must have been fit because he carried both our suitcases up the staircase at one time.There wasn’t much doing in Ashland. Ashland is known for its summertime Shakespeare festival. There are multiple stages and actors and tourists fill the town. Although the weather was pleasant you might have thought it was the dead of winter because there was no one there. The shops and restaurants were deserted. We left after an overpriced breakfast in the morning.  

We had a delightful stay at the Driftwood Motel in Newport, Oregon. On the first night we stayed in the cheapest room for $65/night and had a breathtaking ocean view and kitchenette. November is the off season so the place was empty. I guess November is normally rainy, but we had beautiful weather all three days. The manager offered on the second night to move us upstairs to a room with a full kitchen and the nicest view in the place. From upstairs we could see nothing but the great Pacific and a lighthouse to the left, and could hear only the waves.  I woke up this morning to the sight of the sea and what a way to wake up!If you ever drive Route 101 in Oregon stop at the Driftwood Motel.  

The thing about the pug is that it absolutely could not survive in the wild. When it gets too fat, its face-fat blocks the breathing passages and it suffocates. When it gets winded it wheezes uncontrollably. When it gets too excited its eyes pop out! And its not a smart dog either. It’ll chase its own tail for hours. The animal is an evolutionary nightmare, and yet it survives and reproduces because people think pugs are adorable and hilarious. I used to disagree. The grown pug is hideous. But then I met a pug who had four baby pugs. And my goodness those puppies were cute. They sold like hot cakes.  Just look at the pictures.    

We’re staying at the Hawthorne House Hostel in the Bohemian District of Portland. Everything about the place, and the area, is Bohemian. Hawthorne Street is full of theaters, vintage clothing shops, cafes, buskers and various types of peddlers. People ride around on their bikes and say, “Hello” to each other on the street. We’re just a mile from the center of the city, but it almost feels like being in a small town. The hostel is proudly “Green”- the toilet water is recycled from the rain that falls on the roof, and the electricity is harvested from the reverberations of sound made by snoring guests. Breakfast is not free. Neither is coffee. The dorms are large, and the beds do not have individual lights, so if one person needs light, the whole room gets light.  The people staying at the hostel are friendly and interesting.