Son imágenes que me impresionaron. Que las disfrutéis. Saludos.

i think i've caught my second wind, and i'm hoping that there are many gusts because this second is rather early in my trip, because i have booked a ticket to Paris for Dec 13th, after my program ends.  i'm thinking of staying a few days (ok, 2) to go to the Louvre and the Eiffel tower, then heading to Glasgow Scotland, then Dublin, then back to Madrid to head home.  All three other locations would be hit in a matter of 5 days (dec. 13-17) because my flight back home is at like 8am on the 18th.  this is so exciting!  i should book my tickets to the other 2 soon, and hostels, so they are cheap (and they're looking like they're about €20-30 each way).  I'm trying to save about €300 for this trip, but i'm sure all of it will be worth it!!  I'M IN STINKIN EUROPE AND I OUGHT TO SEE IT WHILE I'M HERE!!  that's my motto right now, and i'm hoping it will justify all of my expenses while i'm here!  i only have about €1800 left, so let's hope it lasts.

I'm listening to my itunes right now, and i must say that my random mix is quite appropriate!  i started this post on "life is a highway" by rascal flatts, then "my God's enough" by barlow girls (i think...), now "hawiian roller coster ride" by jump5.  it's quite uplifting and makes me really excited for the next 2.5 months!  i have so much time here, and if i really put my faith in Christ, then He will provide.  i just need to remember that.  He sure is providing a lot of excitement right now, and i will be counting down the hours until morocco!  sadly, that still includes 4 hours of class and some homework...  on that note, i ought to go do something more productive, tarea then?

ciao, d

This was a day we wanted to spend leisurely - as if the fishing days weren't leisurely enough but I mean, we could choose to either fill the day with strenous water sports like wind surfing or something, or just have a laid back day and lounge at the beach. We thought we would be going to the Local Island in the morning and have the Dolphin Safari in the evening. In the end, I decided we didn't have to go for Dolphin Safari. After all, we saw the dolphins the day before and it was a beautiful sight. Moreover we didn't have to crowd around the boat and take pictures no one can see. The memory of the dolphins was wonderful and was good enough for me.

The Maldivians are Sunni Muslims. So in order to respect their culture, we had to dress appropriately when visiting the local islands or the City of Male. We took a boat ride for about 30 minutes and arrived at this very desolated island. I couldn't remember the name of the island now, but this was what greeted us when we arrived.

There are signs of a community no doubt. But it was really very quiet. You can see the white banners in the photo above. They seem to be some political outbursts of sorts, depicting in both Maldivian and English that 'there is a need for change'.

Many parts of the island were under construction and they seem to be building a lot of residential homes. Most of where we went to looked like this.

Since it was the month of Ramadan, most of the people were indoors resting, or they were out lounging of makeshift 'chairs' like these.

We walked around a lot and there were only a handful of people. Here we are at the mosque, which was also empty.

We didn't see much while walking around but we heard the primary school kids singing the school song during assembly. We also saw a couple of carpenters who were quite amused by tourists and one of them used his hp to take a photo of us! All around we saw signs of a community like a soccer field with fresh scores from the weekend before, political banners, schools, shops, a mosque and all that. But we hardly saw anyone. After more walking around, we saw this little kid playing with cards on his own. He wasn't shy and didn't run away. But he didn't want to look up either.

Here's AS with our guide

He's the same guide who took us night fishing. After the visit to the local island, we realized that not everyone was as fortunate as our guide or his other colleagues in the resort to have a good job. This guide had a 'surfer dude' friend (named by yours truly so because he really looked like one!) on the local island who has a gift shop. The whole island was so quiet and had only a handful of shops operating. These are the shops that catered for the locals and occasionally the tourists who needed a drink or something. The shelves are almost bare and have only ten or less of each product. Most of the other shops which were open were the tourist gift shops, one of which owned by the friend of our guide. Looking at how little visitors there are, we wondered how they actually make a living.

AS took a picture of this on one part of the island.

It was really different from the resort islands of Maldives. I didn't go to Male and don't know what the city is like but from what I hear, it seems much more different what what we've seen in the local islands. The heartening thing I guess is that schools are provided for even in these quiet little islands. So young children still get basic education even though they may not live in the city center. Looking at the seas near our resort and looking at the 'beaches' of the local island, I can't help but feel very fortunate.

On another note, to remember our trip and our swim with the Manta, AS and I bought ourselves these Manta Ray pendants from the friend of our guide.

A few weeks ago, I did make a small investment on a trip to the North of Chile.  Me and my grand travel buddy Will adventured through the two big port cities of the north, Iquique and Arica, before cutting down through the luxurious desert of Atacama.  We got some surfing in on the cost and some camping in in the desert.  Very good trip.  Traveling is almost always a good investment.

Click here for more photos of the trip!!!

Since then I have been to two futbol matches.  One here in Vina where my team Everton, reigning champ, beat Colo-Colo, the most successful team in Chile.  The other game was in Santiago.  The gran clasico chileno between the two most popular teams in Santaigo, Colo-Colo and La Universidad de Chile, more simple know as "La U".  Colo-Colo playing at home won 2-0 in a very entertaining match.  I wished I had taken my camera because the crowd was beautiful, but I was warned about thugs, punks and flaites.  I wanted to see the Chilean national team take on the dirty, dirty Argentines, in Santiago for World Cup Qualifying, but tickets were too expensive.  The dollar isn't that strong.

Another investment I have made is in my lightly used, brazilian surfboard.  Today was the first day, of many to come, spent out on the waves alone before sunset.  I really want to get good before I'm 5 hours away from a beach at home in Texas.  This will require dedication and many hours on the water.  I am prepared.

More to come soon, after I get my passport stamped in Argentina.

PS: here is a link to my pictures from August...

You would not believe the effect that listening to John Denver Greatest Hits :) while driving to 10,000 feet elevation along Tioga road would have on you until you try it!  And what if your cute kids are totally into some of your favorite music?  It adds even more punch to the "rocky mountain high" that you're on.  HA!  Jenny, remember how we listened to Troy and Travis' cool music over and over until we had every word memorized?  I told the kids how we would argue over who had the words right.  I admit that I also told them that you eventually gained a respect for my wonderful memory for lyrics...wouldn't you agree? Hee Hee.

This is me, detaching the camera-case Velcro from my lovely camping sweater for the third time.  Hand-me-down sweaters made of acrylic yarn are very sticky, people.  I'm gonna have to keep a tighter surveillance on the location of the camera in the future...I guess I thought it was funny enough to share, though.  Hmmm.

I have to say that I "stand all amazed" that the wonderful world of nature goes on all around us, in it's majesty, whether humans notice it or not.  The world spins, the insects buzz, trees grow, trees house other animals, drop seeds, burn sometimes, and fall over other times.  Little animals find their food and store it, birds stay together flying around and playing, and the effects that the flow of water bring all year round keep it all continually changing.

We took good food, a couple of frisbees, and gear.  I'm glad that we had a secluded spot--glad for ourselves as well as potential neighbors--and the kids found plenty to explore.  Rachel found herself flat on her tummy every half hour it seems, but enjoyed herself nonetheless.  She takes to rough terrain with a lot of courage, but doesn't have the balance she needs to stay upright all that much!  We played the awesome game I learned at girl's camp where a couple of people are the rescue team and they wait in a hidden spot until the "lost" people call them to come find them in the wilderness.  The exciting part is that the lost people have laid down an intricate set of clues for the rescue team to follow to their hiding spot.  Sticks set up to look like arrows, words spelled out in sticks, such as "31 steps North," pathways dug out of the pineneedles, and other landmarks that would point the way to the location of the stranded hikers.

So, while a couple of times I felt a little put-out that meal preparation and clean-up took the bulk of 5:30-7:30 p.m., I also realized that we had the time for it!  Here is the wonderful enlightenment that allows me to be at peace with my work even at home: I have the time to do this valuable task, and I am going to do it.  There is no hurry.  Janelle and Derek felt wonderful about being old enough to do most of the fire-starting and tending, and Christine and Melissa felt very grown-up about helping me cook at the stove.  Especially the little girls couldn't believe they were actually cooking at the stove!

The weather was accommodating, the site was private enough, and the views were fantastic.  This was another great camping trip!

I went up to the Smokey Mountains in North Carolina for a weekend to just chill out, something I really needed. I intended on doing a live stream from up there but the wi-fi crapped out, oh well. 

I'm thinking of setting another live stream for thursday, perhaps. Got a funny "from the road" story as well as videos and stories from riding a nearly 4000 foot chairlift... It was insane. 

Anyway, I'm home and back online. 

See you all soon, 

C

Contemporary Art Encounters
Feb. 22 – March 1, 2009
The Emerald City: Seattle, Washington

Coming in February, join the ASU Art Museum and the Ceramics Research Center curators on a trip to one of the country's most active and eclectic art centers. The trip will include exclusive tours of private art collections, studios, galleries and museums where we will meet with artists, dealers, curators and collectors. Our itinerary will explore the range of media and formats employed by contemporary artists, from ceramics and glass, to video and mixed-media installation. We will stay in a boutique hotel in the center of the city, surrounded by restaurants, galleries, unique shops and local sites. Please check back soon for a detailed itinerary and pricing information. Space is limited!
For more details, visit: http://asuartmuseum.asu.edu/trips/index.html.

So, on Halloween weekend, rather than dressing up in a slutty costume like everyone else my age (who doesn't have kids), I will br driving my first rental car to a beach town 3 hours away to catch hawks with my aunt and uncle.  And I couldn't be more excited!

Direct from Dam Square - Amsterdam!

The Party Season just started!

I'm 28... (o:

TRUST IN GOD

Yeah!  We’re in Miami!  We spent last night here -- Jane and I sharing a room -- and spent the evening in a lot of uncontrollable laughter and giggling.  One of my Advocates called from the airport and woke us up at midnight in a panic; she didn't know how to get to our hotel.  I was seen leaping out into the hallway saying, (a la Buzz Lightyear) "To Eternity and Beyond!"  I felt like I was heading out "beyond the call of duty" to rescue a fellow Advocate!  So the giggles began. 

What was the view from our room? – a construction site.  It wasn’t until we were on the elevator with a man that he viewI realized how God had taken care of us.  He said, “Good thing it’s the weekend, huh – can you imagine what it would’ve been like if they were working?”  And then, as he stepped off the elevator, he said “God bless you ladies.”  We looked at each other and Jane said, “The Elevator Prophet.”  Yes, God is present and taking care of us; He even cares about the smallest details.   And He sent that man to remind us. 

I have been thinking a lot about the issue of trust.  It keeps coming back to me.  Mindy said she had been afraid of the hurricanes and kept watching the weather channel.  Then she went to her Pastor to ask him to pray about it and he said, “Mindy, I detect an issue of trust.  You aren’t in control, are you?  You can’t control the weather, the pilot or anything about this trip, but you know who can.  Trust Him.” 

Now we have a more serious and uncomfortable situation before us.  It’s midnight and we’re still in Miami.  We were supposed to have flown out at 7:35pm, but here we are still.  We’ve had mechanical problems, paperwork problems and now they’ve had to bring in a new crew.  They finally decided to have us deplane and return to the terminal.  It’s been a long ordeal, but let me tell you – there’s no better group to be with in a situation like this than a group of Compassion Advocates.  We’ve told our stories to each other, made friends with a delightful young advocate from Australia, and we’ve shared our food (with free vouchers from the airline) with others.  Some have had a slumber party and others enjoyed pizza parties.  We’ve made friends with passengers and crew.  One of the flight attendants said to me, “What is this Compassion about anyway?”  They were all interested in hearing about our ministry (I think they were surprised that after 3 hours on the plane, no one had gotten mad at them or demanded anything).  We had a nice long talk about children in poverty, and she took my business card.  A young man that is a border agent with the Coast Guard spoke with me a long time and is interested in sponsoring a child.  I’ve watched several other Advocates sharing with others on the flight, in some cases sharing child packets.  We’ve made new friends and helped mothers with small children.  Mindy has lots of chocolates to hand out; that helps the tired mother as well as the child.  We’re making the best of it, and there’s been much laughter.

How can we laugh in this situation?  Why do we not worry about mechanical problems?  Why do we not demand our rights, or a solution to the problem?  Because we know who we can trust, and He has everything under control.  And – best of all – we can’t wait to see what else He has for us in the Dominican Republic.  If waiting for hours in the airport can be this much fun, what will it be like when we reach our destination?

UPDATE!  We reached out destination!  I'm posting this from the Dominican Republic -- we arrived at the motel at 6am this morning!  And we're up and ready to go!  Just meeting friends again is a huge thrill!

Falta algunos meses para que empiece  invierno y es tiempo en donde se empiezan a construir insólitos hoteles de hielo, cuyas habitaciones garantizan una noche confortable sobre una piel de reno. ¿Has pensado en hospedarte en un hotel así tan peculiar?

Estas son alguna de tus opciones:

 
• Alta Igloo Hotel:
  Se encuentra en la ciudad de Alta, en plena Laponia noruega, presume de ser el hotel de hielo más grande del país y el más septentrional del mundo, con capacidad para 80 personas, un bar de hielo y hasta una capilla y una sala de reuniones.Se construyó por primera vez en el invierno de 2000, y cada año, en cuanto la temperatura baja lo suficiente,se vuelve a edificarse. Todo es de hielo: desde las camas hasta los vasos.

 
• Icehotel
  En Escandinavia, se encuentra a los pies del valle de Gudbrandsdal, dentro del Winterpark, un parque de ocio único en Europa, que abre sus puertas a la caída del sol. Cuenta con una catedral de hielo en la que se celebran bodas y conciertos y con capacidad para 40 huéspedes en habitaciones en las que la temperatura oscila entre los –3 y los –7 grados, pero en las que, aun así, es posible conciliar el sueño gracias a sus sacos de dormir dispuestos sobre pieles de reno.

 
• Castillo de Nieve de Kemi:
  En Finlandia, es todo un reto al talento de los artistas locales, algunos de los cuales se han formado en las universidades en las que recientemente se han abierto nuevas cátedras de estudiossobre la arquitectura de hielo. Sólo algunas de las más pasmosas esculturas de hielo que lo decoran se conservarán para el año siguiente. El resto, sus alrededor de 20 habitaciones dobles, su puñado de dormitorios para grupos pequeños y hasta la suite nupcial.

On Friday I left to go on the Körhelg (Choir Weekend) with V-dalakören (V-dala choir) to Järlåsa and I just got back yesterday~

I think it was an adventure from the start. I met with Evelina who had brought me a sleeping bag and a little blow up mattress type thing that Ulrika had let me borrow, but she wasn't going to come until Saturday.  Anyway, yes so we met at Ekonomikum and took the Sala bus line to our little cabin/house dealio.  It kind of reminded me of our old girl scout cabins and such.  But, the place I guess can be rented out for weddings and all that fun stuff.

So, we took a looong walk into the woods to find the cabin thing and when we did we all got settled in.  And of course, we sang!  It's choir practice/weekend/fun/adventure after all.  It really reminded me of band camp.  We would sing, eat, sing, eat, and that consisted of our time.  So, we had hot dogs our first night, I don't usually like hot dogs, but these were really good haha.  And on Saturday we also did the same thing and we had fika as well.  2 fika in one day, it was like a dream come true!  I love fika cakes and cookies.  So delicious.

Anyway!  The real adventure came on Saturday night.  Saturday ingeneral was a bit hard to focus on.  I didn't sleep well the night before because my makeshift bed fell apart in the middle of the night and I ended up on the floor, the room was also extremely hot, (which I personally think is better than extremely cold, like here at Flogsta) and yeah...so I got maybe an hour or two of sleep that night.

Saturday we practiced more, but then we all split off because us newbies to the choir weekend had to perform a Spex, which is a funny comedy of sorts, usually a parody of something, but this time it was just a funny skit.  We decided to have a circus theme since 3 people in our group can juggle.  Martin is especially good, he can juggle 2 balls and an apple, and take a bite out of the apple, and keep going, without dropping anything.  He really belongs in a circus.  So yes, we had jugglers, Maike, Eugene, and I formed the exchange student triangle, and Gustav was the "lion" lol.  After that we all sang a song from Monty Python, though the beginning part 2 of the swedish guys changed the lyrics to funny stuff in Swedish and yeah.  So, that was our plan for our spex later in the evening.

After our practice of the spex, we all got dressed up and went downstairs for our "formal" dinner.  We had a weird way of picking who we would sit by.  We all had to draw a paper, the guys I believe had a character, and the girls had to sing the theme song from whatever was on our paper.  I got Beauty & The Beast, so I sang that and I ended up being paired with Marvelous Martin, not to be confused with Machine Dish Washer Martin who I was going to do the spex with, though he did sit across from me.  I also sat near Amelie and Karin who has the 3rd best dog in the world, Ville! Sooo cute~! Before I forget, earlier in the day we had learned everyones names by going in a circle and playing a game like "Patrik the penguin" etc etc... So, if I describe people later by that, you'll know why: hence Marvelous Martin and Machine Dish Washer Martin.

So, dinner was delicious.  It was like a gasque.  We had a 3 course meal (Bread-stuff that tasted like licorice to me because of the olives (starter), Salmon & Rice (entre), and New York Style Blueberry Cheesecake (dessert))and plenty of singing and toasting.  I drank water mostly, aside from a drink I had before the actual dinner, which tasted more like delicious juice! Alcohol is usually nasty, but this was actually pretty good.  So, while people were getting drunk throughout the night, I got to laugh at them, because I uh...wasn't?  But, basically after you sing a song you do this formal way of toasting, that's really a process.  I'll show everyone once I get home.  But, yes you sing after a speech or something special, then you drink.  Or you make a "tsss tssss" sound, and the person in charge (Sofia) gets up and starts a song that we've been learning in choir or something most people know, and after that people drink again with a toast.

There were 3 songs that were especially fun to sing.  Helan går (toast song of sorts), the ABBA parody song, and Circle of Life.  Circle of Life was the most entertaining though because out of nowhere Fabian (I think?) got up and started singing it and then the rest of the choir joined in, so I joined in with the sopranos singing what I thought they would be singing (which luckily they were haha).  It was so much fun.  A few more songs that came about just in our little section of the table was 'Bumbi Björnarna', the swedish version of Gummi Bears, which I just so happen to have! I was amazed, because I knew it and I didn't learn it at choir.  And also when Machine Dish Washer Martin and I sang Aladdin's "A Whole New World" together, but I did English Jasmine parts and he did the Aladdin parts in Swedish, so it was amusing. XD The most funny though is still the ABBA parody song about spanking and stuff lmfao.  This choir loooves ABBA. Smiska här, smiska där, piska mig, piska dig~HEJ~ (Sing it to the tune of numanuma...and stuff lmao)

After dinner, we all did our spex and that was entertaining, I think the others watching were amused. So yay~  Aaand yeah, then it became more chaotic and we eventually cleaned up and I talked with Kool Karin (not Ville Karin) and we all danced a bit or went and sang.  Eveeentually we all went to sleep.

Then the next morning, the sopranos (meee) had to get up and do breakfast and such.  We all cleaned up then and played some games before heading to the bus stop to go back home.  It was pouring cold rain that day, so yeah.  Some people drove back, some people offered to take people, but after all of that cheesecake and stuff, I just walked to the bus stop.  Probably not the brightest idea with only having a hoodie and such on.

When I got home I definitely had a warm shower and it was amaaazing, let me tell you!  I also found out when I got home that Matthias will be going back to Germany with his mom, so things are all packed up.  I hope he doesn't have any brain damage and gets out of this okay. =\  He'll be in my thoughts.

Also, my doorbell was rang a few minutes ago, so I went to check and see who it was.  We don't have a peep hole, so I couldn't tell if I knew the person or not.  Well, they started to speak to me in french, and then realized I wasn't french.  Which was fine, and I thought maybe they would leave. But, no.  Instead she whipped out her bible.  And they started asking me about what I thought about the future and if I thought it was scary or something.  I told them no, the future isn't scary when you live in the here and now.  So she read me some prophecy in Isaiah. Or something.  And asked what I thought of that and if I thought it was a real one, and I said no.  Because I think to make the world perfect and nice we have to work towards that.  I think the bible is a fine guide, like most mythology books on morals and stuff, but I don't think it predicts the future.  Theeen after a few minutes, she whipped out The Watchtower.  I'm not even kidding.  Back home I just don't answer the door if they come, so I've managed to not get involved, but it majority athiest Sweden...this happens? What's going on?  It's especially amusing because I watched 'Zeitgeist' last night (well part 1 & 2, I need to finish it) which taught/reminded me of a lot.  Put puzzle pieces together, that I didn't know where to put before.  So, I have an even different view on Christianity than what I had before I left for Sweden.

After a long long long while we had finally a get-together with almost all German Studies 2005 classmates!! :-)

We've met at Elisa's place, made tiramisù (an authentic one, since Elisa is Italian!) and enjoyed some lasagna, too!

I was missing these fellows a lot! - and it was very good to enjoy the warm feeling of being among good old friends!  :-)

here some pictures:

here also the pictures taken by Nadja (hm, the site is in Russian...)

http://foto.mail.ru/mail/nadja1980/2

... I am feeling happy!  :-)

The GANG got together and hatched a plan to attend a friend's wedding. We were a huge group of 18 and created ruckus wherever we went. In the restaurant, the marriage hall, the hotel room. Practically everywhere we went, we took with us a tornado of sorts.

Most of the first day went in travelling to Talakona Forest. We had almost given up the idea as we had to attend the reception from 7PM. But the boys were not ready to put there foot down. So we went ahead and reached Talakona forest area at 5 in the evening. From the gate we had to walk for 2.5 kms to reach the waterfall. Everyone was exhausted and looking forward to have a splash in the water. We walked and walked and walked and finally reached the waterfall. I couldn't believe what I was seeing in front of me. It was a thin layer of water falling as if it was coming from a tap!!!
[caption id="attachment_348" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="waterfall"][/caption]
And some people were literally bathing there. Yuck. I refrained from going anywhere I could even get some droplets sprinkled on my skin. So I had to hold the bags and baggage of others who went to play in the (dirty) water. And there waiting for me was a monkey! Yes, it was staring at me and the bags and was preparing to attack me with a background noise of 'grrrrrr'. I was scared out of my wits and started yelling at people to come back.
I didn't stop until they actually stepped out of the water. The walk back to the vehicle was superb. It was dark and there were a complete group of monkeys waiting for us in the path. There were hoardings indicating it was leopard territory so I was expecting one to jump on us any minute.

We walked back, out of the gates and thought we were safe. We were mistaken, the people in the nearby huts warned us of jungle elephants. And we did spot two of them on our way back to the town. That was eventful.

We had to attend the wedding at 7PM but it was late when we reached there. As late as 10PM. Shamelessly we got ready and headed for dinner, praying at least we get some food.

The next day the ceremony was at 5-6AM and we somehow made there by 5:50AM. Then we left for Horsley hills at 11AM. After a brief journey we were there but it was just like a park in the city with some caged birds and animals. I was mighty disappointed. View point wasn't exciting so me and a friend climed down to the unsafe territory to take a view. It was good enough. I wanted to trek further but the others started shouting at our backs to come back. Huh!

Then we just travelled back. Playing antakshari, dumb charades and dancing and some memory games etc. It was fun with the GANG but the trip wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be. The Andhra heat almost killed me. Ok I'm exaggerating. But it was pretty hot alright.

Reached home at 9:30 in the night and promptly slept through the weekend.

Edited to add: Can anyone see the picture above? I cannot see it here from office, some browser problem. Pls let me know.

Tonight was WWE's No Mercy and we had on tap what was a potential stellar card. And what did we get? A STELLAR EPIC CARD!!! Read on for my analysis.

ECW Title
Mark Henry v. Matt Hardy (c)
- This match opened up the show and boy is Matt Hardy over. The crowd was hot for this and great psychology was put into this bout as well. Henry isn't the greatest wrestler but when put in there with a great wrestler you get a fairly decent match. The ending was hot as psychology came into play and Hardy won with the Twist of Fate. 2.1/5

WWE's Womens' Championship
Candice Michelle v. Beth Pheonix (c) w/ Santino Marella
- This was your typical women match. Candice Michelle is still rusty, very rusty. She missed a leg drop like 30 seconds into the match. The only good thing was Santino and that was minimum. Beth wins. 0.5/

Rey Mysterio v. Kane
- This was an iffy one going in as Kane is suspect to glide through some matches. But this was all kinds of awesome as Kane, when he is interested in his storyline, can put in some good big man performances. Rey Rey clearly took a nasty shot at the end and most likely got a concussion and/or more. Hopefully he will be okay as these two put on a good match. 3.2/5

Backstage Antics meet In-Ring Antics
- After this match we go backstage where MVP wants to talk to Vickie but Big Show doesn't let him. So he comes out to the ring and spouts off he is the bestest in the bidness. Out comes Orton to stake his claim as the bestest. Out comes The 3rd Generation (Rhodes, Dibiase, MANU) to say Orton is a buttpirate. Orton claims until they do something he is not listening to them. MVP gets shunned by The 3rd Generation and leaves. CM Punk and Kofi come out and convince MVP to join the brawl. THEY RUN!!! MVP slides in alone and takes a beating until CM and Kofi clean house. It was good and gave PPV time to a great feud brewing. 3/5

#1 Contendorship for the World Heavyweight Title
JBL v. Batista
- SQUASH!!! It clearly was an elongated squash but hey, Batista is money and they needed him on here, right? Anyways, the best stuff happened after the match where JBL thanked the fans for their money they will paying for him to be rich via the bailout. Then as he was done talking, Cryme Tyme came on the screen and jacked his limo. They had the divas and SGT. SLAUGHTER with them which was awesome. Match was nothing, segment was 3/5

Undertaker v. Big Show
- The 1,000,000th time they face off but this was pretty good. Alot better than their other affairs. I guess they are playing up Show can knock a mofo out. Show victory...YAY!!! 2.5/5

WWE Championship Match
Jeff Hardy v. Triple H (c)
- What a great match but that was expected. I don't think Hardy should have went over as it didn't happen but this was his way to prove that he does deserve a title reign. I think he'll get himself another shot after Trips loses the strap. Also, great finish. I thought Hardy had it and I was about to jump out of my seat. 4.3/5

World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match
Shawn Michaels v. Chris Jericho (c)
- Talk about an awesome match. Great way to end one of the greatest feuds of the 2000s. They went out of their way to match an awesome spectacle of the ladder with minimum add-ons. That bump Jericho took from the huge ladder was sick, sick, SICK!!! Both men busted each other up and the battle for the title at the end was brand new and inventive and I thought HBK had it. Jericho's jump off the ladder at the end cracked his tooth it looked like. Hopefully he will use that tomorrow for a promo. EPIC!!! 5/5

Overall this was just a great show. Everyone gave their best and in the end provided one of the best PPVs of the year.