Day 29 - Croatia

When I wake up in the morning and I am feeling fine you know I am loving everything today. -SlightlyStoopid

Well pretty much every day has been like this. I get up, feel great, and love everything in this world. I feel that I am opening my mind enormously on this trip, not only to other cultures but to a way of life that has alluded me until now. The backpacker way of life is one of fluidity, freedom and cultural exchange. I have realized now it is the people that make the trip. Not the room you stay in, the beer you drink, or the place you are staying, it is the people that determine how enjoyable your time is. Needless to say the people are great....

Kitty and I met two Danish guys on the train from Sofia to Belgrade that we have been traveling with for almost a week now. These guys are great. They are positive, fun, and open minded. They are curious about our way of life as we are theirs. Though Denmark is a western civilization their system of government is much different. They believe in social programs that any American would likely call communist. For them university is free, healthcare is free, transport is free, among so many other things. Yes the country of Denmark only has a population of 5 million as opposed to the USA's 300 million, so it is much easier to manage social programs, but the country has a lot of good ideas that I think the USA can implement over time if we started thinking more about the common good than just our own good. This philosophy of common good trickles all the way down to the hospitality that we have recieved since we started backpacking.

It is apparent that lots of people here truley care about the common good and not just their own good. As a capitalist I still think that many things in America are much better than things in Europe, but I cant help but agree with the Europeans on matters such as Heathcare. The notion that if you need medical attention but cant recieve it because you dont have insurance really is a ridiculous idea. Yes medicine is expensive and we have great doctors in America, but would it really be a bother to pay more in taxes for everyone to have healthcare?

More pictures and thoughts comming later...