Saturday, July 31, 2010
Update!
Update to come soon I promise! My Eastern Trek was wonderful but provided me with not much opportunity to post on facebook or here so bare with me my fan club hehe.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Prague and Terezin
Leaving Berlin so early was a sad thing. I feel like I could have spent a week there and still barely scratch the surface of such a multifaceted place. But there is only so much time to spare and there was none left. It is a place I would enjoy returning to one day in the future.
The trip to Prague was excellent, he scenery in the Czech Republic, stunning. The rolling hills and lakes reminded me a lot of certain parts of the BC landscape. One of my favorite things to observe while I am traveling is the architecture and the differences in houses compared to home. Every town that we pass, the most noticeable structure is the church. You can see them from the highways with their large pointed bell towers looming over the little villages. I have yet to see a town anywhere along the way without one of these.
Also, the houses here are magnificent and depressing at the same time. Coming from a society that prides itself in structural upkeep, especially to the outside facade of the buildings, to see all these houses that have the paint peeling off, the stucco crumbling in parts as well as completely abandoned looking buildings all over is a bit of a shock. When you leave the downtown tourist areas you really see a difference in what is priority and what is not.
On the way to Prague we stopped at a place called Terezin. "Terezín was established at the end of the 18th century as a fortress; still surrounded by its massive ramparts, the town lies at the confluence of the rivers Labe (Elbe) and Ohře (Eger)." During the Nazi occupation the fortress was used as a holding place for political prisoners. It was not meant as a concentration camp though in my opinion it walked a fine line. Many of the people that were housed here were eventually sent to one of many concentrations camps, including Auschwitz. By the end of the second world war over 150 000 people have been through Terezin and 35 000 prisoners eventually died there as a result of stress, hunger, the atrocious accommodation and poor hygienic conditions. I will include a link below to the official Terezin website, it is interesting to read the history as well to be able to see an aerial picture of the area.
Now as for Prague. I have never been to a stranger place I do not think. It is hard to explain. I am not sure if it is because it is one of the few places that was not touched during the wars as it was Hitlers golden city or whether it is because it is Bohemia and the Bohemian influence has taken over all aspects. Either way, this place is just different.
I met some people from Australia the night I got in and we took a guided bike tour through the city the next day. Learning the history surrounding the Hussite wars, the World Wars and the Velvet Revolution made a huge difference in understanding the culture and heritage of this place. Czech people are very proud to be Czech. Walking down the streets you would think that every single brick and cobblestone would have it's own story to share about how it got there. Though it would be nice if they could tell me more practical things like what street I am on as reading Czech road signs and comparing to my map was nearly impossible. Apparently Czech is the fourth most difficult language in the world to learn with an alphabet of 40 letters and seven tenses (if I can add it is in the top five in my books for the most harsh to listen to as well. Czech is not pleasing to the ears at all.)
We started by watching the Astronomical Clock do it's performance as it does every hour on the hour. It was commissioned in 1410, designed and built by a man named Mikuláš of Kadaň. After it was completed the King decided it was so beautiful that he could not stand for this fellow to build anything like it again so he sent his men to burn his eyes out with hot metal. Before he died years later it is said he climbed to the top of the tower to render it nonoperational. It was so complicated that it took 60 years to fix and every 50 years or so it breaks down. The legend says that the clock is cursed and that anyone that tries to fix it will die shortly afterward. I have gotten the impression there are a great deal of gypsy 'stories' here.
Across from the main town there is a park on a hill that overlooks the skyline. This used to be the home of the worlds largest statue of Stalin (30m high) but in 1961 they strapped a truck load of dynamite to it and blew it up. In the early 90's they commissioned an art piece to be placed there and of course the only logical thing was erected: the worlds largest functional metronome. I really think they do too much Absinthe here.
On the other side of town is a tv tower similar to the one in Berlin. One major difference though, this one has a bunch of giant black coloured, faceless,cement babies crawling up and down it. These babies were another art project by the Metronome fellow. When he made them, there were not only the ones on the tower but other ones spread across the city on the ground. Every night he would have them moved 22 meters towards 'home', so every morning the babies were in a different place. In a town where Absinthe and Marijuana are legal I can only imagine the massive paranoia this project probably created.
Other than the oddities, Prague is stunning. Being one of the only places spared from the wars the buildings have a character that is unlike anywhere else in the world. It lives up to it's name as the town of spires. Overlooking the city from the Metronome platform you can see the spires shooting up across the skyline. Many of them have golden balls or gold plating incorporated into them and they reflect the light from coming off the river and from the sun. It was impossible to take pictures of everything I wanted to, it would have been easier to just video the entire place.
I have been fortunate to have been able to include these places in the more eastern parts of Europe, the feeling is completely different from the West. I am looking forward to the next week as I travel through Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. These places will be very a very special part of my journey. I wish I could go farther East but am not prepared to do so on this trip. For now I will enjoy the places I have been fortunate enough to see and save the dreaming of future adventures for when I return home in October.
Terezin Information Website
Terezin Pictures
Prague Pictures
The trip to Prague was excellent, he scenery in the Czech Republic, stunning. The rolling hills and lakes reminded me a lot of certain parts of the BC landscape. One of my favorite things to observe while I am traveling is the architecture and the differences in houses compared to home. Every town that we pass, the most noticeable structure is the church. You can see them from the highways with their large pointed bell towers looming over the little villages. I have yet to see a town anywhere along the way without one of these.
Also, the houses here are magnificent and depressing at the same time. Coming from a society that prides itself in structural upkeep, especially to the outside facade of the buildings, to see all these houses that have the paint peeling off, the stucco crumbling in parts as well as completely abandoned looking buildings all over is a bit of a shock. When you leave the downtown tourist areas you really see a difference in what is priority and what is not.
On the way to Prague we stopped at a place called Terezin. "Terezín was established at the end of the 18th century as a fortress; still surrounded by its massive ramparts, the town lies at the confluence of the rivers Labe (Elbe) and Ohře (Eger)." During the Nazi occupation the fortress was used as a holding place for political prisoners. It was not meant as a concentration camp though in my opinion it walked a fine line. Many of the people that were housed here were eventually sent to one of many concentrations camps, including Auschwitz. By the end of the second world war over 150 000 people have been through Terezin and 35 000 prisoners eventually died there as a result of stress, hunger, the atrocious accommodation and poor hygienic conditions. I will include a link below to the official Terezin website, it is interesting to read the history as well to be able to see an aerial picture of the area.
Now as for Prague. I have never been to a stranger place I do not think. It is hard to explain. I am not sure if it is because it is one of the few places that was not touched during the wars as it was Hitlers golden city or whether it is because it is Bohemia and the Bohemian influence has taken over all aspects. Either way, this place is just different.
I met some people from Australia the night I got in and we took a guided bike tour through the city the next day. Learning the history surrounding the Hussite wars, the World Wars and the Velvet Revolution made a huge difference in understanding the culture and heritage of this place. Czech people are very proud to be Czech. Walking down the streets you would think that every single brick and cobblestone would have it's own story to share about how it got there. Though it would be nice if they could tell me more practical things like what street I am on as reading Czech road signs and comparing to my map was nearly impossible. Apparently Czech is the fourth most difficult language in the world to learn with an alphabet of 40 letters and seven tenses (if I can add it is in the top five in my books for the most harsh to listen to as well. Czech is not pleasing to the ears at all.)
We started by watching the Astronomical Clock do it's performance as it does every hour on the hour. It was commissioned in 1410, designed and built by a man named Mikuláš of Kadaň. After it was completed the King decided it was so beautiful that he could not stand for this fellow to build anything like it again so he sent his men to burn his eyes out with hot metal. Before he died years later it is said he climbed to the top of the tower to render it nonoperational. It was so complicated that it took 60 years to fix and every 50 years or so it breaks down. The legend says that the clock is cursed and that anyone that tries to fix it will die shortly afterward. I have gotten the impression there are a great deal of gypsy 'stories' here.
Across from the main town there is a park on a hill that overlooks the skyline. This used to be the home of the worlds largest statue of Stalin (30m high) but in 1961 they strapped a truck load of dynamite to it and blew it up. In the early 90's they commissioned an art piece to be placed there and of course the only logical thing was erected: the worlds largest functional metronome. I really think they do too much Absinthe here.
On the other side of town is a tv tower similar to the one in Berlin. One major difference though, this one has a bunch of giant black coloured, faceless,cement babies crawling up and down it. These babies were another art project by the Metronome fellow. When he made them, there were not only the ones on the tower but other ones spread across the city on the ground. Every night he would have them moved 22 meters towards 'home', so every morning the babies were in a different place. In a town where Absinthe and Marijuana are legal I can only imagine the massive paranoia this project probably created.
Other than the oddities, Prague is stunning. Being one of the only places spared from the wars the buildings have a character that is unlike anywhere else in the world. It lives up to it's name as the town of spires. Overlooking the city from the Metronome platform you can see the spires shooting up across the skyline. Many of them have golden balls or gold plating incorporated into them and they reflect the light from coming off the river and from the sun. It was impossible to take pictures of everything I wanted to, it would have been easier to just video the entire place.
I have been fortunate to have been able to include these places in the more eastern parts of Europe, the feeling is completely different from the West. I am looking forward to the next week as I travel through Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. These places will be very a very special part of my journey. I wish I could go farther East but am not prepared to do so on this trip. For now I will enjoy the places I have been fortunate enough to see and save the dreaming of future adventures for when I return home in October.
Terezin Information Website
Terezin Pictures
Prague Pictures
Monday, July 19, 2010
Berlin - Advice to any Canadian traveling abroad included!
Waking up early makes me feel like I am at work but on the days that I am traveling the choice is no longer mine. My bus left from the Flying Pig Uptown hostel at 8am on Friday morning so I was packed and out the door of my hostel by 7:30am.
I found out that day how small the world really was as the fellow that was acting as guide on the bus was from Tsawwassen of all places. To think that in a place halfway across the world I would find myself talking to someone about people and places from my home town.
Our day was long, the trip was planned to take about 10 hours but because of some unforeseeable traffic delays we did not arrive in Berlin until just before 8pm. The drop point was thankfully only a 10 minute walk from my hostel so walking in the 33 degree heat (yes even at 8pm) was not as bad as I thought it would be.
With a hot evening and a tired body from the long ride I decided not to try and navigate Berlin in the dark and called it and early night. There is no way to describe to you my ecstasy when my head fell upon the worlds most wonderful gift to me so far on this trip: a feather pillow. It was as if my cries had been heard in the previous weeks and I was rewarded for my patience. It is such a tiny thing but when you live life out of a backpack and you spend most days a little bit lost and disoriented (no matter how many times you look at your map), the simple joy of a soft pillow to rest your weary head is a little slice of heaven on earth.
When I finally ventured into the city I found myself with so many things to see, so much history to take in, in a very short time. Walking down one of the main roads Unter den Linden you find yourself surrounded by memories from a world gone by. I will admit to being surprised at how much the people of Berlin embrace their sordid history. I want to write about all the history here but with my simple knowledge I could never do it justice.
Seeing the original book burning square where in 1933 the Nazi's held the first of many book burnings was something that made me stop and think for awhile. As a lover of all types of literature the loss of such a library is heartbreaking.
The Memorial to the Murdered Jews was also something that inspired much thinking. It encompasses a massive area of ground that undulates as you walk along between what start off as smaller blocks of cement of uneven heights that eventually turn into blocks nearly twice my height only to return at the other side back into the small blocks again. There are a series of rules for entering this art piece although I do not think many see them. You are to enter slowly and quietly, you are to be reflective as to their meaning and the story that surrounds them. With many different routes to take from one side to the other you could spend much time just wandering and thinking all seemingly away from the rest of the world.
The Neue Wache has a rather glorious and almost Roman styled front facade but when you enter you encounter a very different atmosphere. The entire room is coloured dark, it is large in size with massive vaulted ceilings. Yet the only thing that rests in this room is a statue of two people cradling each other. This statue lies under a large round hole in the ceiling that is opens to the sky above. When it is sunny the statue is basked in sunlight and when it rains, the statue is also rained on.
My first day ended after a good deal of walking and a lot of pondering and appreciating the things of the past.
Only two days in Berlin is admittedly not enough, there is far too much to see to even crack the surface in the short time I had. I am sure if I took public transit I could have seen more but I have been enjoying these last few days of just walking between the places I want to see. You cannot see the different neighborhoods, the different people, the small little details when you spend all your time on the sky train or metro. Some of the places I enjoyed seeing the most were not on the tourist map and could be seen from a train.
My second day was supposed to start early but I was able to catch up with a friend from home online first thing so my activities were delayed. Communicating with people from home in real time is a difficult thing to do with a 9 hour time difference and it is always something I enjoy as there has been little opportunity for these moments in the last three weeks. So it is no sacrifice at all to put off my plans for a little while to chat and enjoy a friendly conversation with someone familiar.
After talking and having breakfast I made my way out to the East Side Gallery, the longest stretch of the Berlin Wall that still remains intact. The portraits go on seemingly forever and each one has it's own character and they are done by people from all around the world. I even found one done by people from Quebec. Each carries it's own message and it's own meaning. One part that surprised me was how small the wall was. It is not thick nor is it that high. To think that such a small thing could divide an area so vehemently.
After walking the gallery I crossed the river and made my way back to the Jewish Museum. It took much longer than I assumed and after 5 hours of walking already that day I was starting to feel weary. I walked the museums permanent exhibitions and learned a lot about Jewish history and tradition as well as a good deal of information about the war time persecutions and so forth. Definitely worth spending some time in.
I finished my day relaxing and repacking. With another early bus to Prague in the morning I thought that taking it easy, doing my 'chores' backpacker style (which is basically reorganizing all the things in your pack and trying to make them smaller).
One piece of advice I will give to anyone who goes to another country is this, I saved it for last: bring something from MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-op). It is probably the best, somewhat covert way of telling people you are Canadian. I did not sew any patches on my backpacks because I did not really care to advertise where I was from but even still, my shoulder bag is a MEC bag and people notice. Canadian people notice. Walking across the river the first day I passed by two guys that were taking photos and going the other way. As I pass all of a sudden I hear, 'Hey! She's Canadian' exchanged between the two of them. I turned around and we introduced ourselves. They had been traveling in the Baltics and had not encountered one Canadian that they knew of for almost a month. They were both from North Van and were excited to meet one of their own. 'We saw your MEC bag and knew you were one of us.'
Better than a flag.
Berlin Pictures
I found out that day how small the world really was as the fellow that was acting as guide on the bus was from Tsawwassen of all places. To think that in a place halfway across the world I would find myself talking to someone about people and places from my home town.
Our day was long, the trip was planned to take about 10 hours but because of some unforeseeable traffic delays we did not arrive in Berlin until just before 8pm. The drop point was thankfully only a 10 minute walk from my hostel so walking in the 33 degree heat (yes even at 8pm) was not as bad as I thought it would be.
With a hot evening and a tired body from the long ride I decided not to try and navigate Berlin in the dark and called it and early night. There is no way to describe to you my ecstasy when my head fell upon the worlds most wonderful gift to me so far on this trip: a feather pillow. It was as if my cries had been heard in the previous weeks and I was rewarded for my patience. It is such a tiny thing but when you live life out of a backpack and you spend most days a little bit lost and disoriented (no matter how many times you look at your map), the simple joy of a soft pillow to rest your weary head is a little slice of heaven on earth.
When I finally ventured into the city I found myself with so many things to see, so much history to take in, in a very short time. Walking down one of the main roads Unter den Linden you find yourself surrounded by memories from a world gone by. I will admit to being surprised at how much the people of Berlin embrace their sordid history. I want to write about all the history here but with my simple knowledge I could never do it justice.
Seeing the original book burning square where in 1933 the Nazi's held the first of many book burnings was something that made me stop and think for awhile. As a lover of all types of literature the loss of such a library is heartbreaking.
The Memorial to the Murdered Jews was also something that inspired much thinking. It encompasses a massive area of ground that undulates as you walk along between what start off as smaller blocks of cement of uneven heights that eventually turn into blocks nearly twice my height only to return at the other side back into the small blocks again. There are a series of rules for entering this art piece although I do not think many see them. You are to enter slowly and quietly, you are to be reflective as to their meaning and the story that surrounds them. With many different routes to take from one side to the other you could spend much time just wandering and thinking all seemingly away from the rest of the world.
The Neue Wache has a rather glorious and almost Roman styled front facade but when you enter you encounter a very different atmosphere. The entire room is coloured dark, it is large in size with massive vaulted ceilings. Yet the only thing that rests in this room is a statue of two people cradling each other. This statue lies under a large round hole in the ceiling that is opens to the sky above. When it is sunny the statue is basked in sunlight and when it rains, the statue is also rained on.
My first day ended after a good deal of walking and a lot of pondering and appreciating the things of the past.
Only two days in Berlin is admittedly not enough, there is far too much to see to even crack the surface in the short time I had. I am sure if I took public transit I could have seen more but I have been enjoying these last few days of just walking between the places I want to see. You cannot see the different neighborhoods, the different people, the small little details when you spend all your time on the sky train or metro. Some of the places I enjoyed seeing the most were not on the tourist map and could be seen from a train.
My second day was supposed to start early but I was able to catch up with a friend from home online first thing so my activities were delayed. Communicating with people from home in real time is a difficult thing to do with a 9 hour time difference and it is always something I enjoy as there has been little opportunity for these moments in the last three weeks. So it is no sacrifice at all to put off my plans for a little while to chat and enjoy a friendly conversation with someone familiar.
After talking and having breakfast I made my way out to the East Side Gallery, the longest stretch of the Berlin Wall that still remains intact. The portraits go on seemingly forever and each one has it's own character and they are done by people from all around the world. I even found one done by people from Quebec. Each carries it's own message and it's own meaning. One part that surprised me was how small the wall was. It is not thick nor is it that high. To think that such a small thing could divide an area so vehemently.
After walking the gallery I crossed the river and made my way back to the Jewish Museum. It took much longer than I assumed and after 5 hours of walking already that day I was starting to feel weary. I walked the museums permanent exhibitions and learned a lot about Jewish history and tradition as well as a good deal of information about the war time persecutions and so forth. Definitely worth spending some time in.
I finished my day relaxing and repacking. With another early bus to Prague in the morning I thought that taking it easy, doing my 'chores' backpacker style (which is basically reorganizing all the things in your pack and trying to make them smaller).
One piece of advice I will give to anyone who goes to another country is this, I saved it for last: bring something from MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-op). It is probably the best, somewhat covert way of telling people you are Canadian. I did not sew any patches on my backpacks because I did not really care to advertise where I was from but even still, my shoulder bag is a MEC bag and people notice. Canadian people notice. Walking across the river the first day I passed by two guys that were taking photos and going the other way. As I pass all of a sudden I hear, 'Hey! She's Canadian' exchanged between the two of them. I turned around and we introduced ourselves. They had been traveling in the Baltics and had not encountered one Canadian that they knew of for almost a month. They were both from North Van and were excited to meet one of their own. 'We saw your MEC bag and knew you were one of us.'
Better than a flag.
Berlin Pictures
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Amsterdam
Arriving early in Amsterdam was an experience. The train was longer than I thought and it was filled with people wearing orange. Everyone had football fever. The train station and the tourist office just outside are a madhouse. I am not sure if it is always like this but it took nearly and hour for me to find out how to get to my hostel. Again, a rather hot day. Always it seems I am trapped in trains or stations on hellishly hot days.
The hostel is huge and is much better than some of the others though lacking in some of the more preferred amenities such as a shared kitchen. I am tired of eating breakfasts of bread , cheese and muslix.
Not really knowing much about Amsterdam and it's layout I was unsure where to go to start off but as soon as I stepped out to the main street there was a sea of orange heading all in the same direction. When in Holland, follow the orange. We ended up at Museum Square where they had 3 giant screens, endless Heineken stands and more orange than the eye could stand. Not wanting to stand out I went in search of something orange to have. As luck would have it, there was a bus with people on top trowing out bright orange shirts with Berjt! on the front (I am going to assume this means Beer in Dutch, but feel free to correct me Dianne!)
Watching the crowd was more fun than watching the actual game. People are very patriotic here. They sing all the songs together, they hug, they blow in their vuvuzelas. The feel was very jovial, though the quantity of alcohol all over would probably have something to do with that as well. I watched people walk into the field with CRATES of beer. I guess we know the favorite past time here.
At one point one of the Police watching everything was near and I asked him if things did not turn out well for the Dutch in this game, were things going to turn ugly? He replied, 'We just like to party. Does not matter if we win or lose it will just be a party.' Pretty mellow for a police officer. The three helicopters in the air and the armored vehicles on every corner made me wonder though.
However, even with the loss it was a calm crowd. I am not sure but I get the feeling they did not actually expect to win this game. They were just proud to get to the point that they had.
My only criticism of the whole thing was how absolutely disgusting everything was afterward. The amount of garbage the lined the streets and the fields and the canals was disgusting. No one seems to care at all in that situation. Broken bottles were everywhere and I saw more than one person with bandaged feet from accidentally slicing themselves open on the bottles. Even the next day after spending all day cleaning, the streets were still a mess. I am not surprised though, considering 120 000 people came and there were no large garbage bins anywhere, it was bound to happen. Still it is not pleasant to see or walk through.
The hostel is huge and is much better than some of the others though lacking in some of the more preferred amenities such as a shared kitchen. I am tired of eating breakfasts of bread , cheese and muslix.
Not really knowing much about Amsterdam and it's layout I was unsure where to go to start off but as soon as I stepped out to the main street there was a sea of orange heading all in the same direction. When in Holland, follow the orange. We ended up at Museum Square where they had 3 giant screens, endless Heineken stands and more orange than the eye could stand. Not wanting to stand out I went in search of something orange to have. As luck would have it, there was a bus with people on top trowing out bright orange shirts with Berjt! on the front (I am going to assume this means Beer in Dutch, but feel free to correct me Dianne!)
Watching the crowd was more fun than watching the actual game. People are very patriotic here. They sing all the songs together, they hug, they blow in their vuvuzelas. The feel was very jovial, though the quantity of alcohol all over would probably have something to do with that as well. I watched people walk into the field with CRATES of beer. I guess we know the favorite past time here.
At one point one of the Police watching everything was near and I asked him if things did not turn out well for the Dutch in this game, were things going to turn ugly? He replied, 'We just like to party. Does not matter if we win or lose it will just be a party.' Pretty mellow for a police officer. The three helicopters in the air and the armored vehicles on every corner made me wonder though.
However, even with the loss it was a calm crowd. I am not sure but I get the feeling they did not actually expect to win this game. They were just proud to get to the point that they had.
My only criticism of the whole thing was how absolutely disgusting everything was afterward. The amount of garbage the lined the streets and the fields and the canals was disgusting. No one seems to care at all in that situation. Broken bottles were everywhere and I saw more than one person with bandaged feet from accidentally slicing themselves open on the bottles. Even the next day after spending all day cleaning, the streets were still a mess. I am not surprised though, considering 120 000 people came and there were no large garbage bins anywhere, it was bound to happen. Still it is not pleasant to see or walk through.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Antwerp
Tickets within Belgium to take the train feel extremely cheap. To go from Brussels to Ghent was 7.5Euro and Ghent to Antwerp about the same. Realizing that they pack the trains as full as possible would have been good to know before hand though. I ended up standing packed into the space between cars with at least 10 other people with my luggage and theirs. It does not help that the heat waves were continuing. Luckily on the way to Antwerp the train was mostly empty and I had a proper seat.
Antwerp is like a test of will power. As soon as up go up onto the main floor of the Central rail station you are met with Diamond store upon diamond store. If you think that exiting the terminal will help you would be incorrect. It only gets worse from there. Along the streets surrounding is the Antwerp Diamond Market and there has to be at least 50 if not more Diamond jewelery stores. And of course because it is summer sales season in all of Belgium, the same goes for the jewelers. Everything advertised at 40-60% less than marked.
The gems were incredible. I have never seen such big stones and in such quantity in my life. However it becomes less of a temptation when that gorgeous necklace you see ends up starting at 10 000Euro. At 50% off though I mean it would have been a steal.
I am not sure where my luck in timing has come from but the only day I was in the city was the first day of the Tall Ships races at the harbour. I did not realize this until, after walking around for a couple of hours seeing some of the old architecture and buildings to note, I walked up to the harbour and it was full of beautiful sail ships.
I have never gone to see the Tall Ships when they have been in the Vancouver area so it was neat to walk around and observe the whole spectacle.
Antwerp feels like a small and confused city. There is an odd blend of architecture with ancient buildings side by side with modern offices. And the statues, the are everywhere. I think on almost every single corner they have a statue to something, the most famous one being in the Markt where there is a man throwing a severed hand. Is this a warning of some kind?
The day was a sweltering 37 Celsius and it left me pretty exhausted so I went back to the hostel in the early evening and passed the time playing pingpong with a fellow from Belgium that was volunteering at the festival. Overall a good day in the city of Antwerp. Definitely worth the stop over on anyone's trip!
Pictures: Antwerp
Antwerp is like a test of will power. As soon as up go up onto the main floor of the Central rail station you are met with Diamond store upon diamond store. If you think that exiting the terminal will help you would be incorrect. It only gets worse from there. Along the streets surrounding is the Antwerp Diamond Market and there has to be at least 50 if not more Diamond jewelery stores. And of course because it is summer sales season in all of Belgium, the same goes for the jewelers. Everything advertised at 40-60% less than marked.
The gems were incredible. I have never seen such big stones and in such quantity in my life. However it becomes less of a temptation when that gorgeous necklace you see ends up starting at 10 000Euro. At 50% off though I mean it would have been a steal.
I am not sure where my luck in timing has come from but the only day I was in the city was the first day of the Tall Ships races at the harbour. I did not realize this until, after walking around for a couple of hours seeing some of the old architecture and buildings to note, I walked up to the harbour and it was full of beautiful sail ships.
I have never gone to see the Tall Ships when they have been in the Vancouver area so it was neat to walk around and observe the whole spectacle.
Antwerp feels like a small and confused city. There is an odd blend of architecture with ancient buildings side by side with modern offices. And the statues, the are everywhere. I think on almost every single corner they have a statue to something, the most famous one being in the Markt where there is a man throwing a severed hand. Is this a warning of some kind?
The day was a sweltering 37 Celsius and it left me pretty exhausted so I went back to the hostel in the early evening and passed the time playing pingpong with a fellow from Belgium that was volunteering at the festival. Overall a good day in the city of Antwerp. Definitely worth the stop over on anyone's trip!
Pictures: Antwerp
Friday, July 9, 2010
Mental Health Break
My two days in Ghent have been a nice break. Although I could have spent all the day walking around and visiting every single little inch of the town I chose instead to only spend yesterday afternoon doing the main tourist area with all the old structures and the rest of my time has been spent resting. I have been fighting a cold rather unsuccessfully for the last 4 days. I am not fully convinced it is a cold but rather a body saying ‘take a day off already.’
So, taking some of my own advice that I regularly give my clients at work, I took a mental health day. I know that it sounds crazy as I am supposed to already be on vacation but every day so far has involved a lot of aggressive city walking and travel days with only pauses for a few hours here and there to regain energy. Some days I arrive back at the hostels and I cannot even think for myself anymore and I can barely make it up stairs (in my defense we were on the fourth floor in Paris which equated to 72 excruciating steps. Yes I counted. After doing it 6-8 times a day you start to get curious.)
To continue, I had been talking to a young fellow at the reception desk yesterday and he told me that there was a lake in this town, ‘just follow the water and eventually you will get to the lake.’ So today I set off in the direction he showed me. I was ecstatic that along the way I walked right past an English secondhand bookstore as I have already finished the one book I allowed myself to pack. I bought two smaller ones and hope that when I finish these I will come across another place to buy another. I will abandon my finished novel here on the hostel communal bookshelf with my name and home printed on the cover. Hopefully someone gets to pick it up someday and enjoy it.
After what seemed like hours of walking, which in reality was maybe only an hour with my stops to look at books and to get lunch, I finally saw some local people carrying inflatable water toys heading in the direction I was going. I followed them for another 5 minutes and was happy to finally arrive at my destination.
I don’t think that many tourists manage to make it out this far as it is not listed or shown on the maps that are given out and it is well away from all the main attractions. It was nice to be surrounded by locals for a change. My camera stayed inside my bag, my headphones went in and I just sat in the shade enjoying the company of my music, my book and the people of Ghent.
Everyone needs a day off sometimes, even when you are traveling. Today, I pretended I was at home by the water doing what I would normally do on a sunny day off. Listen to music, read and people watch. And you know, it almost felt the same.
So, taking some of my own advice that I regularly give my clients at work, I took a mental health day. I know that it sounds crazy as I am supposed to already be on vacation but every day so far has involved a lot of aggressive city walking and travel days with only pauses for a few hours here and there to regain energy. Some days I arrive back at the hostels and I cannot even think for myself anymore and I can barely make it up stairs (in my defense we were on the fourth floor in Paris which equated to 72 excruciating steps. Yes I counted. After doing it 6-8 times a day you start to get curious.)
To continue, I had been talking to a young fellow at the reception desk yesterday and he told me that there was a lake in this town, ‘just follow the water and eventually you will get to the lake.’ So today I set off in the direction he showed me. I was ecstatic that along the way I walked right past an English secondhand bookstore as I have already finished the one book I allowed myself to pack. I bought two smaller ones and hope that when I finish these I will come across another place to buy another. I will abandon my finished novel here on the hostel communal bookshelf with my name and home printed on the cover. Hopefully someone gets to pick it up someday and enjoy it.
After what seemed like hours of walking, which in reality was maybe only an hour with my stops to look at books and to get lunch, I finally saw some local people carrying inflatable water toys heading in the direction I was going. I followed them for another 5 minutes and was happy to finally arrive at my destination.
I don’t think that many tourists manage to make it out this far as it is not listed or shown on the maps that are given out and it is well away from all the main attractions. It was nice to be surrounded by locals for a change. My camera stayed inside my bag, my headphones went in and I just sat in the shade enjoying the company of my music, my book and the people of Ghent.
Everyone needs a day off sometimes, even when you are traveling. Today, I pretended I was at home by the water doing what I would normally do on a sunny day off. Listen to music, read and people watch. And you know, it almost felt the same.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Adieu Bruxelles
This is my final night in this lovely city of Brussels and I am sad to see it go. The days have been relaxed and I have seen many things, smelled many things and experienced many things that this place has to offer, though I have not seen nearly all.
Yesterday was spent walking outside of the tourist area that is so conveniently close to where I am staying. Brussels looks much larger on the maps than it is. You could walk a circle around the downtown in maybe one hour. I find it almost laughable that they have a metro system here because it seems in excess of what is necessary, though if I lived here I would probably not want to walk everywhere, and I certainly would not want to drive. Although the locals seem to have very keen driving skills, not including their devastatingly poor parking skills, I do not think that I would want to bother owning a car with so many little streets and cobbled streets. It just feels as if it would be immensely more difficult to drive around than to walk or take transit.
I spent a good deal of time sitting at the botanical gardens located in the more northern part of the downtown. It was nice to watch people as they were taking their lunches into the grounds and having small picnics with their colleagues and friends. Afterward I tried to lose myself in the streets around the park which I was not successful at because no matter how much I walked I always ended up coming back to where I started. Again it is a very small place.
I have taken many more pictures than I have been able to share. Some of my favorites from this place involve the graffiti and murals that seem to be everywhere. There are a whole series of murals on the sides of buildings involving the characters from Tin Tin. It is fun to be walking down a small road and suddenly be staring at a massive piece of art that is related to something so familiar to me.
In the evening I tried to find a place that I had read about that you can see a beautiful panorama of the city from. It is on the top of a parking structure and although I found it my plans were thwarted when I realized it was probably not the best idea to go to the top of parking lot, alone, in the evening, in a city I am not familiar with. I would have liked to have seen the view but it is better to be safe.
Today the sun was out in full force but I unfortunately was not. I had been feeling under the weather the day before and I was still not in the best place when I awoke. It is hard to get a good rest here because it stays light much later than I am accustomed to and also becomes much brighter earlier. I have awoken 2 days in a row at 4am and thought that it was 8 in the morning.
In the afternoon I was able to meet up with my friend's friend that lives in Brussels, Nonna. She was very gracious to spend some time taking me around and showing me some of the sites that I had not yet managed to get to. She also told me some of the beautiful history behind the older buildings and structures. It seems like very stone here has a story or a purpose behind it.
Eventually we had to part ways and I found myself wandering back into Grand Place for one last glimpse of it area before I left. One thing that I had not noticed before was the smell. Intensified by the heat, the nauseating smell of chocolate and waffles almost overwhelmed me. I can appreciate a person's love for these foods but to have what seemed like endless shops filled with chocolate mixed with endless tourists eating their ridiculous waffles left me wanting very little to partake in either of these things. I will admit, I will leave Brussels without having one of the tourist waffles. I am sorry to disappoint but I just could not bring myself to eat the monstrous things covered in whipped cream, ice cream, nutella, fruit and whatever else they could manage to stuff on it. It just felt wrong to me. I know, I am a disappointment but I can live with that.
I returned to the hostel, packed my things, got ready for tomorrow journey. Though it is not far to go it is still another day of travel. When I felt everything was ready, I walked outside decided that tonight would be the night I would partake in what seems to be a Belgian tradition of fast food; fries. There are street carts are all over the city selling this delicacy and there is one located conveniently beside the hostel. So, I walked over and ordered a small plate of fries with mayo and sat down to watch the local hooligans practice their skate tricks across the street. In the background I could hear accordion music and realized that one of the young men was playing as his friends biked and skated.
This is where I sat enjoying my fries, listening to music, reflecting on the last days and taking in my last moments of this city of Brussels.
Yesterday was spent walking outside of the tourist area that is so conveniently close to where I am staying. Brussels looks much larger on the maps than it is. You could walk a circle around the downtown in maybe one hour. I find it almost laughable that they have a metro system here because it seems in excess of what is necessary, though if I lived here I would probably not want to walk everywhere, and I certainly would not want to drive. Although the locals seem to have very keen driving skills, not including their devastatingly poor parking skills, I do not think that I would want to bother owning a car with so many little streets and cobbled streets. It just feels as if it would be immensely more difficult to drive around than to walk or take transit.
I spent a good deal of time sitting at the botanical gardens located in the more northern part of the downtown. It was nice to watch people as they were taking their lunches into the grounds and having small picnics with their colleagues and friends. Afterward I tried to lose myself in the streets around the park which I was not successful at because no matter how much I walked I always ended up coming back to where I started. Again it is a very small place.
I have taken many more pictures than I have been able to share. Some of my favorites from this place involve the graffiti and murals that seem to be everywhere. There are a whole series of murals on the sides of buildings involving the characters from Tin Tin. It is fun to be walking down a small road and suddenly be staring at a massive piece of art that is related to something so familiar to me.
In the evening I tried to find a place that I had read about that you can see a beautiful panorama of the city from. It is on the top of a parking structure and although I found it my plans were thwarted when I realized it was probably not the best idea to go to the top of parking lot, alone, in the evening, in a city I am not familiar with. I would have liked to have seen the view but it is better to be safe.
Today the sun was out in full force but I unfortunately was not. I had been feeling under the weather the day before and I was still not in the best place when I awoke. It is hard to get a good rest here because it stays light much later than I am accustomed to and also becomes much brighter earlier. I have awoken 2 days in a row at 4am and thought that it was 8 in the morning.
In the afternoon I was able to meet up with my friend's friend that lives in Brussels, Nonna. She was very gracious to spend some time taking me around and showing me some of the sites that I had not yet managed to get to. She also told me some of the beautiful history behind the older buildings and structures. It seems like very stone here has a story or a purpose behind it.
Eventually we had to part ways and I found myself wandering back into Grand Place for one last glimpse of it area before I left. One thing that I had not noticed before was the smell. Intensified by the heat, the nauseating smell of chocolate and waffles almost overwhelmed me. I can appreciate a person's love for these foods but to have what seemed like endless shops filled with chocolate mixed with endless tourists eating their ridiculous waffles left me wanting very little to partake in either of these things. I will admit, I will leave Brussels without having one of the tourist waffles. I am sorry to disappoint but I just could not bring myself to eat the monstrous things covered in whipped cream, ice cream, nutella, fruit and whatever else they could manage to stuff on it. It just felt wrong to me. I know, I am a disappointment but I can live with that.
I returned to the hostel, packed my things, got ready for tomorrow journey. Though it is not far to go it is still another day of travel. When I felt everything was ready, I walked outside decided that tonight would be the night I would partake in what seems to be a Belgian tradition of fast food; fries. There are street carts are all over the city selling this delicacy and there is one located conveniently beside the hostel. So, I walked over and ordered a small plate of fries with mayo and sat down to watch the local hooligans practice their skate tricks across the street. In the background I could hear accordion music and realized that one of the young men was playing as his friends biked and skated.
This is where I sat enjoying my fries, listening to music, reflecting on the last days and taking in my last moments of this city of Brussels.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Bruxelles
Hello from Bruxelles! Tonight is my second night in this lovely city and I am really enjoying the atmosphere here. It is much more laissez-faire than Paris and London.
I did forget to include in my previous post about my trip to the Luxembourg gardens in Paris. If you picture and idyllic Paris scene with the sunshine beating down, people on chairs having picnics, playing games, laughing and having a good time this is where you will meet them. It is so picturesque and so relaxed. There are fountains that you can rent little boats to race and play with along with other toys. I loved it.
My trip to Brussels was a bit bittersweet as the previous night there were maybe 6 - 10 of us at any given time in the hostel kitchen/dining area and we sat around and talked for hours about the places we were from and where we were going. It was good fun and it was sad to leave them all the very next day. I think this will happen often unfortunately. It is a part of the traveling life.
I arrived early in Brussels and spent the afternoon and evening hiking through the different areas. Brussels is conveniently small, I have not yet had to take the metro or bus system. It is just as easy for me to talk everywhere, it takes time but I have lots of that, I am in no hurry to be anywhere.
I cannot believe the luck that the day I arrived in Brussels so did Le Tour de France. I did not see the athletes arrive in town but I got up today and walked to the area that they were leaving from on the next portion of their race. I am not a follower of cycling but it will be for sure the only time I will ever have the opportunity to participate in something like this. And hey, I got a free hat out of it so it's a win win.
The tour buses were massive and there were unending cars with bikes on top. I took some pictures of people that looked like bikers but as I know little about the sport they really could have been anyone. I did pass by Lance Armstrongs bus at one point and was stuck in the most irritating pack of people imaginable. It took nearly 15 minutes to move 25ft and people were pressed together like sardines.
The start to the race was maybe a little lackluster, it really do happen quite fast and then that is it. But I was here and it was a cool thing to say that I have seen and done.
The rest of the day was more wandering and picture taking. The buildings here are just fantastic. There is this random mix of old and new. They do not even try to hide the ugliness of it all. They seem to embrace the absolute madness that is their city. It is just something you need to see. I will post many pictures soon.
I have two more days here and will be enjoying a very relaxing, slow paced few days before I head to the even smaller city of Ghent.
I did forget to include in my previous post about my trip to the Luxembourg gardens in Paris. If you picture and idyllic Paris scene with the sunshine beating down, people on chairs having picnics, playing games, laughing and having a good time this is where you will meet them. It is so picturesque and so relaxed. There are fountains that you can rent little boats to race and play with along with other toys. I loved it.
My trip to Brussels was a bit bittersweet as the previous night there were maybe 6 - 10 of us at any given time in the hostel kitchen/dining area and we sat around and talked for hours about the places we were from and where we were going. It was good fun and it was sad to leave them all the very next day. I think this will happen often unfortunately. It is a part of the traveling life.
I arrived early in Brussels and spent the afternoon and evening hiking through the different areas. Brussels is conveniently small, I have not yet had to take the metro or bus system. It is just as easy for me to talk everywhere, it takes time but I have lots of that, I am in no hurry to be anywhere.
I cannot believe the luck that the day I arrived in Brussels so did Le Tour de France. I did not see the athletes arrive in town but I got up today and walked to the area that they were leaving from on the next portion of their race. I am not a follower of cycling but it will be for sure the only time I will ever have the opportunity to participate in something like this. And hey, I got a free hat out of it so it's a win win.
The tour buses were massive and there were unending cars with bikes on top. I took some pictures of people that looked like bikers but as I know little about the sport they really could have been anyone. I did pass by Lance Armstrongs bus at one point and was stuck in the most irritating pack of people imaginable. It took nearly 15 minutes to move 25ft and people were pressed together like sardines.
The start to the race was maybe a little lackluster, it really do happen quite fast and then that is it. But I was here and it was a cool thing to say that I have seen and done.
The rest of the day was more wandering and picture taking. The buildings here are just fantastic. There is this random mix of old and new. They do not even try to hide the ugliness of it all. They seem to embrace the absolute madness that is their city. It is just something you need to see. I will post many pictures soon.
I have two more days here and will be enjoying a very relaxing, slow paced few days before I head to the even smaller city of Ghent.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Paris to Brussels
Paris
My arrival in Paris was to what can only be described as a melting heat wave. All of Paris is and was suffering. My roommates and myself had prepared for it to be slightly chillier in this city, bringing along some jeans and a sweater. However, at 35 and 33 degrees the last two days it was necessary packing, although for me it will for sure become needed when I get to Oslo in October.
The first day I arrived at Gare du Nord and realized that the ticket machines do not take my type of mastercard so I waited for ages in line for the tellers, constantly being harassed by Spanish teens who were trying to beg money for their brother with leukemia. It would have been more convincing of an act had their not been about 10 of them and all of approximately the same age. Plus, the moment the metro authorities came down the stairs they scattered quickly and efficiently into the metro system.
Finding my hostel was a bit of an adventure, I walked right past the street I was supposed to turn on and ended up hiking up a rather drastic hill to the very top before I stopped to ask one of the locals where the street was. After getting some much appreciated directions I walked all the way back down the hill to find that the hostel was only maybe 100m from the metro stop I had exited about 30mins earlier.
I met one of my roomates, a fellow name Philip from Minnesota that just finished his degrees in french language studies and political science. I have met a number of Americans here an they all seem to have poly-sci majors so I finally asked one of them what the deal was down there, if everyone just aspired to be El Presidente. It was explained to me that Poly-sci is their equivalent of a Bachelor of Arts degree. And here I thought I was surrounded by so many ambitious future politicians of America. Disappointment.
My other two roomies are two ladies from Sherbrooke, QC. We bonded over our Canadian-ness and then the second day after Philip had left, we bonded over our disapproval of the American that talked in his sleep.
My first night I was still lacking in a bit of energy as I am not sure I have fully adjusted to this time difference. I am not hungry in the day time only thirsty, constantly and my sleep is fitful. Part of that is related to the heat I am sure. However, I took out a map of Paris, figured out where the Tower was and headed down to see if I could find it.
The metro system is similar to that of London and Quebec but much more elaborate with an exhaustive number of lines that will take you everywhere. I keep checking and double checking constantly to make sure I have headed to the correct line.
The Eiffel Tower was very easy to see as soon as you leave the metro station there are seemingly endless numbers of men trying to sell you little replica towers. They get less and less expensive the farther you travel from the metro station.
I will say it is rather awe inspiring to see for the first time. Truly, all of Paris is breathtaking (so long as you keep your eyes up and not look at the dirty, garbage riddled streets). The buildings are stunning to just walk around and see. I wish I could take a running video of everything my eyes see but it is impossible. Pictures do not do it justice.
Yesterday, I spent all day walking around and eventually giving myself a tiny bit of heatstroke. I have never in my life missed the convenience of 7-11 and starbucks until there were none to be found and the only water was being sold by people on the corner in tiny little bottles for 1euro.
Despite my constant need to be buying water, the day was excellent. I started at the Arc de Triumph, walked Champs Elysee, saw Notre Dame and much much more. There will be photos to follow soon of all that I went to see.
It is funny, I do not think I experienced what really Parisians are like, as people tend to be a bit negative about them, because every last one of the people in the city were linked together in a mutual misery over the heat. No one had the energy to be negative to others as we were all suffering.
Today, a huge rainstorm came through early and by 9:00 there was thunder, lightning and nearly a flash flood down the street that our hostel is on. The morning I have spent reading and charging my computer with Frederico's converter (new roomate from Argentina that replaced the American last night) as my converter does not work in the outlets at this hostel. So as I wait out the storm, charge my precious electronics and go through my pictures from the last two days I prepare myself for going on the move again tomorrow afternoon which is when I will be heading to Brussels. I am looking forward to a smaller city where it will no be so much aggressive sight seeing. Taking some time to just sit back and enjoy the sunshine, do some people watching and work a little more on my french.
My arrival in Paris was to what can only be described as a melting heat wave. All of Paris is and was suffering. My roommates and myself had prepared for it to be slightly chillier in this city, bringing along some jeans and a sweater. However, at 35 and 33 degrees the last two days it was necessary packing, although for me it will for sure become needed when I get to Oslo in October.
The first day I arrived at Gare du Nord and realized that the ticket machines do not take my type of mastercard so I waited for ages in line for the tellers, constantly being harassed by Spanish teens who were trying to beg money for their brother with leukemia. It would have been more convincing of an act had their not been about 10 of them and all of approximately the same age. Plus, the moment the metro authorities came down the stairs they scattered quickly and efficiently into the metro system.
Finding my hostel was a bit of an adventure, I walked right past the street I was supposed to turn on and ended up hiking up a rather drastic hill to the very top before I stopped to ask one of the locals where the street was. After getting some much appreciated directions I walked all the way back down the hill to find that the hostel was only maybe 100m from the metro stop I had exited about 30mins earlier.
I met one of my roomates, a fellow name Philip from Minnesota that just finished his degrees in french language studies and political science. I have met a number of Americans here an they all seem to have poly-sci majors so I finally asked one of them what the deal was down there, if everyone just aspired to be El Presidente. It was explained to me that Poly-sci is their equivalent of a Bachelor of Arts degree. And here I thought I was surrounded by so many ambitious future politicians of America. Disappointment.
My other two roomies are two ladies from Sherbrooke, QC. We bonded over our Canadian-ness and then the second day after Philip had left, we bonded over our disapproval of the American that talked in his sleep.
My first night I was still lacking in a bit of energy as I am not sure I have fully adjusted to this time difference. I am not hungry in the day time only thirsty, constantly and my sleep is fitful. Part of that is related to the heat I am sure. However, I took out a map of Paris, figured out where the Tower was and headed down to see if I could find it.
The metro system is similar to that of London and Quebec but much more elaborate with an exhaustive number of lines that will take you everywhere. I keep checking and double checking constantly to make sure I have headed to the correct line.
The Eiffel Tower was very easy to see as soon as you leave the metro station there are seemingly endless numbers of men trying to sell you little replica towers. They get less and less expensive the farther you travel from the metro station.
I will say it is rather awe inspiring to see for the first time. Truly, all of Paris is breathtaking (so long as you keep your eyes up and not look at the dirty, garbage riddled streets). The buildings are stunning to just walk around and see. I wish I could take a running video of everything my eyes see but it is impossible. Pictures do not do it justice.
Yesterday, I spent all day walking around and eventually giving myself a tiny bit of heatstroke. I have never in my life missed the convenience of 7-11 and starbucks until there were none to be found and the only water was being sold by people on the corner in tiny little bottles for 1euro.
Despite my constant need to be buying water, the day was excellent. I started at the Arc de Triumph, walked Champs Elysee, saw Notre Dame and much much more. There will be photos to follow soon of all that I went to see.
It is funny, I do not think I experienced what really Parisians are like, as people tend to be a bit negative about them, because every last one of the people in the city were linked together in a mutual misery over the heat. No one had the energy to be negative to others as we were all suffering.
Today, a huge rainstorm came through early and by 9:00 there was thunder, lightning and nearly a flash flood down the street that our hostel is on. The morning I have spent reading and charging my computer with Frederico's converter (new roomate from Argentina that replaced the American last night) as my converter does not work in the outlets at this hostel. So as I wait out the storm, charge my precious electronics and go through my pictures from the last two days I prepare myself for going on the move again tomorrow afternoon which is when I will be heading to Brussels. I am looking forward to a smaller city where it will no be so much aggressive sight seeing. Taking some time to just sit back and enjoy the sunshine, do some people watching and work a little more on my french.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Hello hello and hello.
Time for the first proper blog post from your friend overseas. It has been a busy busy last few days. It feels like I have been on the move since I left, which I guess I have been.
The flight over was LONG. I flew over my final destination and arrive in Zurich with near 6 hours to waste. I was so tired as it was 10am Euro time but 1am our time. The Zurich airport has a wonderful little place that rents out day beds by the hour so I broke down and paid to have a little room to myself to take a bit of a rest followed by a wonderful shower. Completely worth it.
My flight to London touched down near 4:00 their time and I made it through customs no problems with only a slight comment about my chosen profession.
My hostel was located in a very nice district of Westminster that seemed to house some rather well off people. I looked at some local real estate ads and flats there run up 500 000 pounds. And these are not even houses.
Although I wanted to sleep I decided it was better to head into the city and see at least one of the sights as there was no way I would see everything you are 'supposed to see' in my limited time the next day.
I headed off to find the Palace. It was pretty impressive, though I was severely disappointed that the beefeater guys move around and don't just stand there like statues, I feel I have been misled my whole life.
Day two I spent probably 6+ hours walking around London. It was nice to see the things that you always hear about but I have to say I was not that excited by any of it. Maybe it was still just a little too English.
I met up with Ilona, a friend of a friend and she gave me some excellent tips on things to do in Paris. It was nice to be able to sit down and talk to a friendly face.
I have already made my way to Paris and will be here until July 4th. It is incredibly warm and yes it is dirty. But it is spectacular. More info to come.
For those of you not on facebook, here is a link to my photos from London:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=450351&id=529025075&l=1ace038345
Will post again soon!
The flight over was LONG. I flew over my final destination and arrive in Zurich with near 6 hours to waste. I was so tired as it was 10am Euro time but 1am our time. The Zurich airport has a wonderful little place that rents out day beds by the hour so I broke down and paid to have a little room to myself to take a bit of a rest followed by a wonderful shower. Completely worth it.
My flight to London touched down near 4:00 their time and I made it through customs no problems with only a slight comment about my chosen profession.
My hostel was located in a very nice district of Westminster that seemed to house some rather well off people. I looked at some local real estate ads and flats there run up 500 000 pounds. And these are not even houses.
Although I wanted to sleep I decided it was better to head into the city and see at least one of the sights as there was no way I would see everything you are 'supposed to see' in my limited time the next day.
I headed off to find the Palace. It was pretty impressive, though I was severely disappointed that the beefeater guys move around and don't just stand there like statues, I feel I have been misled my whole life.
Day two I spent probably 6+ hours walking around London. It was nice to see the things that you always hear about but I have to say I was not that excited by any of it. Maybe it was still just a little too English.
I met up with Ilona, a friend of a friend and she gave me some excellent tips on things to do in Paris. It was nice to be able to sit down and talk to a friendly face.
I have already made my way to Paris and will be here until July 4th. It is incredibly warm and yes it is dirty. But it is spectacular. More info to come.
For those of you not on facebook, here is a link to my photos from London:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=450351&id=529025075&l=1ace038345
Will post again soon!
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