funny article on clueless tourist

saw this on CNN's offbeat news: tourist goes 13,000km off track

A 21-year-old German tourist who wanted to visit his girlfriend in the Australian metropolis Sydney landed 13,000 kilometers (8,077 miles) away near Sidney, Montana, after mistyping his destination on a flight booking Web site.

Dressed for the Australian summer in T-shirt and shorts, Tobi Gutt left Germany on Saturday for a four-week holiday.

Instead of arriving "down under", Gutt found himself on a different continent and bound for the chilly state of Montana.

"I did wonder but I didn't want to say anything," Gutt told the Bild newspaper. "I thought to myself, you can fly to Australia via the United States."

Gutt's airline ticket routed him via the U.S. city of Portland, Oregon, to Billings, Montana. Only as he was about to board a commuter flight to Sidney -- an oil town of about 5,000 people -- did he realize his mistake.

The hapless tourist, who had only a thin jacket to keep out the winter cold, spent three days in Billings airport before he was able to buy a new ticket to Australia with 600 euros in cash that his parents and friends sent over from Germany.

"I didn't notice the mistake as my son is usually good with computers," his mother, Sabine, told Reuters.

Copyright 2006 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

up in big bear

The Sarti Party has headed up to Big Bear for a few days of fun in the snow... it's Jana's Dads 60th Birthday (Happy birthday Barramundi!) and the whole family is up in Big Bear staying in a cabin together. I did make it more than 24hrs without internet, which was a great vacation, but found a Starbucks and some internet and managed to post some updates to the kids' blog.
The chains were no fun, but got us here safe, and I continue to remember that people from Western Australia don't handle the snow and freezing temperatures too well... or at least I am speaking for myself!

more from the french capital

It went from wet, wild, and windy yesterday to clear blue skies today... and we like the other million people thought heading up the Eiffel Tower would be good. After about a 3hr wait we got to the top and it was worth the wait.
The lovely people of France have been most friendly, except in their cars when you try to cross the crosswalk. The French Fries are good, the French coffee is good, the French bread is great, and I am yet to have some French Toast.
I hae quite a few pictures to view and you can view them by clicking here.

paris pix - part deux

A full cold windy rainy day in Paris, but a great day... some highlights:
-Having a Cafe au Lait made fresh for you while the waiter smokes a cigarette brewing the coffee
-Seeking sanctuary at Notre Dame (not unlike Quazimoto) from the wind and rain
-A crepe with nutella (yum yum)
-Internet in the apartment
-An evening stroll around the Louvre
-Having fun with Anthony and Lachlan

paris - a couple of pics

Got into town this afternoon and cruised around a little as well (Sacre Cur and Arce de Triumph), as caught up with friends... here are some pics!

bon voyage dear bloggery

No, I am not giving up blogging just yet, but I am taking a short trip over to Paris. I am in Dallas en route to the French capital city, where I will meet up with a good friend Warren and his family who have been traveling over in Europe for the last month. In the coming days I am sure my blog will be fillled with wintery Parisian photos and stories of those ever friendly French people!

this week in leighview

Since Thanksgiving it has been a little crazy around the house of the Sarti Party... Here are some happenings...

- Jana went to the Paul Frank sale in Costa Mesa, and dropped her keys down the drain while getting in the car. It’s Friday at 3:30pm. It took two hours to get the keys back. 59mins drive there in traffic, 59mins to drive home in traffic, 2mins for me to open up the man hole and climb down to find the keys in a pile of leaves. No rats or ninja turtles were found in the sewer

-We went our to visit friends in the 951 (Riverside), saw the lights of the Mission Inn, stayed the night in their guest house, braved the 951 locals, and got to play olf at the Victoria Club in Riverside

-Became a citizen of the Clipper Nation. Got some sweet Clipper tickets right by the players tunnel behind the basket. Clippers killed the Orlando Magic. Watching Dwight Howard was unbelievable. Note: I thought I was going to a Laker Game until we were halfway up to LA. I won’t lie... Initially I was disappointed!

-Watched Bella grow and learn at a “tumbling class”... She got to do somersalts, hang on the bars, and play on all the fun equipment

-Watched Leighton grow a lot more... Still eating lots... Staring to smile more... Starting to make some really sweet noises