Today was election day in the United States.  A lot of people take for granted all of the lives that were given so that every citizen of America could have the right to vote.  It saddens me that America has so much freedom that people use their own freedoms against the machines that provided us with the current rights we have, just because we are citizens.  Television and radio are filled with ads that encourage people to vote.  This is so crazy to me because teenagers will run to the DMV the moment they are of age to obtain a driver’s license, the under-served will stand in lines for hours to receive financial assistance,  your average joe will spend his last dollar on a lotto ticket and the “chance” to win, but all of these people have to be encouraged to vote.  Is it that they don’t see the benefit of voting?  I don’t know.  I’m going to ponder this a little more, we must find a solution.

I was in the Netherlands this past weekend when I came across the magazine seen above.  The photograph and the caption truly caught me off guard, but when I really looked at it, I wondered why such a cover story was even possible?  I’ve seen first hand how the world truly watches every aspect of America and responds to the cues that we send out.  There are some special interest groups that are truly trying to discredit Obama in any way possible with overt and covert tactics that inadvertently cross the seas and influence the perception of America.  The recent, often childish nature of politics has created a very bad image of America, and all for seemingly for the personal gain of these special interest groups and not America as a whole.  Often when I travel I’m very proud to be an American, but I’m always cautious because I’m just not sure anyone else is happy to have me around.

Here are a few pics from Uppsala, Sweden.  It was cold!!!!!! Boy was it cold!!!!!! I’m sorry, but not too many pics of the city.  We were in and out and didn’t get to see much.  Here they go!

I know this first pic seems kinda random, but this piece of paper has really come in handy.  I loose track of days so very easily because we’re constantly on the go!

This is a view of the area immediately outside of our hotel.  We heard that the city is pretty much a college town.  So there are primarily twenty-somethings that hang in the area.  Everything seems modern and hip with a flair of historic architecture.

» Read more: Uppsala, Sweden

The “Tour” has actually begun.  First show: Lund, Sweden.

There are about 18 shows in all and this is where it all begins.  We had to make an hour’s drive to Lund from Copenhagen, Denmark.  I like having the opportunity to ride around in new places because it always helps me to get more acquainted with the land and helps maps make more sense to me.  I never knew much about Europe but it appears that all of the countries in the EU are “islands” connected by bridges and tunnels.

» Read more: The Actual “Tour” Starts…

Hey guys! The tour has started! So far… I’m a bit tired!! We flew from Atlanta to London, about 8 hours, and from London to Copenhagen which was about an hour and a half. Believe it or not I slept about 90% of the time I was airborne ( Yeah, I have this uncanny ability to wake up right when the lady is about to bring food or drinks and that accounts for the other 10%… trust me, this is one of the greatest gifts I possess). The thing that has me tired is the time difference. There is a 6 hour difference between Copenhagen and Atlanta, so we were arriving when my body thought that it was actually about 5:00am. The key to adjusting to time change is staying up and sleeping with local time…. but yeah that was struggle that I lost. Hence, the first post a day later…lol. Needless to say I’ll be playing catch up.

This is my first time getting anywhere near London so I was uber excited to see this sign.  We were only passing through, but I’ll be back next week for three shows.  We had a two hour lay-over and I decided to just kinda walk around the airport….

» Read more: Visiting Distant Lands…