Haiku-a-day:
I arose early and quite quietly. When I sat up in bed and looked around, I saw a lot of rugby boys hanging out of the beds! I guess they were a bit too tall for the beds as their feet hung out the ends! It was a very funny sight.
I got ready, got Chelsea up, and we rushed out to go to the Victoria Coach Station where our tour bus was to pick us up. We were on a tour with about 40 people. Our guide seemed quite nice and I admired his management: he made sure everyone was quiet if they talked while he was talking to ensure that those around him who wanted to listen could. I've been on tours where people around me are way too noisy and I can't hear a thing. It's really annoying. This guy would actually stop his speech to quiet people down and then continue. It was a good system. He didn't do it in a demeaning way or anything and he wouldn't call people out, but he would say "It's too loud, talk softer please" and they would.
Our first stop was at Stonehenge. We were given free audio guides to listen to the history of Stonehenge. Quite neat. You couldn't get too close to the stones. Way back when, people used to be able to go up and touch it and chip off pieces of it. You can imagine how damaging that can be. One too many pieces chipped off and you have no more Stonehenge!
We spent an hour there before heading over to Bath. We were given a very brief tour of it when we first got there, but were released for a few hours to explore by ourselves. Any history lessons were given already on the bus. Chelsea and I went into the Roman Baths first thing. You couldn't actually go swimming there, but you could tour the building (which we did with audio guides) and go over to the hot springs and (illegally) touch the water. It was really cool. Bath was only the center of the English social life in the 18th and 19th centuries! I can't tell you how many books I've read that mention going to Bath. It's a really cute place. After the Roman Baths, we took a detour on our way to the Bath Abbey to a fountain in the Pump Room where we got to actually drink the supposedly miraculous mineral water. It was disgusting. YUCK. I don't think I'd try it again. Anyway, the Abbey was gorgeous, as they usually are in Europe. Besides that, we spent a lot of time walking through the streets of Bath, eating pasties and cakes and going souvenir shopping. I could definitely have stayed a bit longer. Oh, and the pasty I ate, d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s. So good. I want another one right now!
The night was spent watching Britain's Got Talent in the kitchen/tv lounge of the hostel. It was a very chill night. If you watch the show, vote for Ronan if he's still on. I saw his audition and he's amazing.
Up at 4AM to catch a 5AM bus from Victoria Coach Station to London Luton airport. Not the best experience in my life. I've really not had good experiences in London airports. I've now done Heathrow, Gatwick, and Luton. We were cutting it close as it was in Luton, but when it was our turn at check-in to fit our luggage into the little baskets, neither of ours would fit. Chelsea took a few things out and threw the away and got hers to fit. Mine didn't and I wasn't about to rifle through it. We didn't have the time. I went sent to another desk where I waited in line before paying a £26 fee for having to check my bag. Mind you I had a duffle. It wasn't big. That was the whole point, bringing something small so I wouldn't have to waste money on checking it. I was frustrated but there wasn't anything to do about it. The security checkpoint was very long and we became frightened that we would miss our flight. We got to our terminal with only a few minutes to spare and agreed that from then on, we would go places way ahead of time so we wouldn't have to rush or worry.
Lovely getting to sleep in till about 9AM! We got ready and headed down to buy tickets for the 6-hour walking tour. We almost didn't make it though, because Chelsea lost our voucher for 50% off and the guy at the ticket counter (who we had spoken to the day before) refused to give us the discount without the voucher. So we ran back to the hostel, asked the woman from reception for another (thank goodness she was home! She's pretty unpredictable...) and ran back to buy the tickets. Why, you ask, was it that important for the voucher? Well, if you do the conversion, we paid $35 for the ticket WITH the voucher. Without it, paying $70 was NOT an option! Thinking we were in the clear finally, we had another shock to the system as our tour group had already left and we didn't know where! So we rushed up and down the street looking for "the yellow umbrella." I finally spotted it in the New Prague center and we hurried over in time for introductions. The tour began in New Prague, went through Old Prague, a boat cruise with free drinks (where I had a nasty dark malt beer), the Jewish Quarter, a stop at a few stores, then to 3-course lunch (it was included in the tour), ending with the Prague Castle Cathedral with a walk along the Charles Bridge (this was cool as it had stalls selling everything lined up on both sides).
With our 6 hour tour, we received free tickets for a ghost tour, so we hung around Old Prague, ate dinner there, listened to a free concert, did our souvenir shopping, and then joined the ghost tour group. The guide spoke pretty bad English, so it was hard to hear her and understand her jokes. Chelsea and I were glad we didn't pay extra for it.
Apparently we enjoy beginning our mornings with a nice healthy dose of stress. We get up, leave the hostel and are on the metro by 6:30AM heading towards Praha 7 to meet up with our tour group at the Plus Prague Hostel for breakfast. I knew the metro stop we were to get off at, but I lost the map detailing where to go from there. Yay me? I have no idea how I even lost it... We get directions from a few people telling us to get onto a tram. Well, we go over to where the tram stops and stare blankly at the map. It's all in Czech and we're not sure we're at the stop going the right direction. It's a fiasco until a very nice gentleman comes up and asks us if we need help. Guess what, a Londoner! Living in Prague for work! How lucky are we? He tells us exactly which tram to get on and which stop to get off at. Oddly enough, he's going to the same one. When we get there, we're still confused as to what to do next. He asks someone else for directions because he knows the language. They point us in the correct direction. Even more odd, he works right across from the Plus Prague Hostel but says he's never actually seen it before, that he's just not paid enough attention! We thank him, say good-bye, and head into the hostel. Praise the Lord for people like him! That was super lucky.
As is becoming the trend, we have more morning fiascos. The hostel reception desk sends us to a building connected to but behind the hostel. This is supposed to be the room where we get breakfast. Some people are there, it's a bit awkward, and rather quiet. No one is eating. I pick a table and Chelsea and I put our bags down. I go up to the counter were there are two staff members and I ask about breakfast, I'm starving. The girl asks me if I have a ticket. I say no. She informs me that I should have received one at reception. A little frustrated, I head back over to the main building and ask there again. The same guy tells me that they're out of tickets, that more are being printed. When I return to the breakfast building, there are two other people asking about breakfast and the staff member is telling the same spiel to them, so I interrupt her and inform her of what the guy said. She's exasperated with everyone asking so she throws her hands up and says "OK, fine. Just go." And we all do. Oddly enough, I end up nowhere near the front of the line...
Chelsea's on a computer using the free internet and I'm sitting at a table about to eat my breakfast alone when a guy from the tour walks up. Most of the tables are filled, so I ask him to join me. His name's Felix and he's from Manchester. We talk over breakfast and I've just made my first Busabout tour friend! Chelsea joins us and we talk until it's time for everyone to load their belongings onto the bus.
The tour bus holds about 45ish people. We have all seats filled but one. Chelsea and I are some of the last people to get on the bus, so we head for the very back seats. I make another friend, Antony from Melbourne, Australia. You know the tour is going to be great when your tour guide starts playing up-to-date songs (he's what, 31(?) he loves this stuff too). He chooses our Busabout theme song. This is something he played for us everyday. After that, he plays Katy Perry's Hot and Cold and dances to it! Hilarious! Please click on the link! And let me know if it stops working. Our tour guide's name is Ben. Canadian. Only gets paid £40 a week (?) but gets free accommodation while doing a job he loves. Who wouldn't want a job that takes you around the world? We got to hear a lot of really bad puns and jokes on this first day. It's good to help warm everyone up though.
In order to help everyone get to know each other, we did what Ben called "speed dating," where the people on the outside seats would get up and move ahead (or back depending on which side you sat) one seat and meet that person. You'd get to talk for about two minutes before getting up and moving to the next person. It was a really good was of getting to know people. I actually was able to memorize the names of everyone I spoke to, but I could only tell you the names if I said them in order of who I talked to most recently. Quite a feat!
Our first stop was in Kutna Hora at a Bone Church. The church itself was not made of bones, but everything inside was. The chandeliers were made of bones, the family crest (a family had bought the church), there were things that looked like huts that were made of skulls. It was weird. Kind of cool to see what they can do with bones, but at the same time, you have to stop and remember that these are the remains of actual people. When the visit with the church was finished, we walked over to a grocery store, bought snacks and lunch, and got back on the bus.
We drove from Kutna Hora to Olomouc, still in the Czech Republic. Once there, we checked into our hotel (yes, hotel!), had a bit of time to nap, use the one and only computer in the reception area, or wander around. At 5PM, we met up, took a walking tour of the city, went to a winery, then headed off to dinner. I ordered authentic potato pancakes, chicken a la duck, and white wine. Too much food, but I really wanted to try it all! Dinner was successful. Chelsea and I made more new friends! Funny side note: check out the vegetarian options this restaurant has!
After dinner everyone headed over to a bar in an airplane. You read me correctly. Some guy turned a communist airplane into bar. What's more funny? It displays an American flag inside when you first walk in. I didn't want to stay so I walked back to the hotel with my friends Nicola (New Zealand) and Allyson (Ireland). I just thought I'd display the range of nationalities too! =) Actually, our tour was dominated by Australians!
I found this online. It's really interesting and gives you a quick history on Auschwitz. Check it out.
After a heavy but essential day (essential because I think everyone should have the chance to see Auschwitz. As George Santayana said, "Those who forget History are doomed to repeat it"), we got back on the bus and made our way from Oswiecim to Krakow. Same story, small break and then a short walking tour. We split up for dinner. Chelsea and I along with a group of our new friends, headed off to the Milk Bar where we ate pierogi ruskies. They were good!
If Prague = beer, then Krakow = vodka. So, naturally, as a group we had a vodka night. We met in the hostel courtyard for a "vodka tasting" before heading out to the Diva Club for more vodka and dancing. Hear me out mom and anyone else scrunching up your face judgingly! I didn't get drunk! Or even tipsy. I had shots though, yes. Anywho, the night got pretty wild for some people. I left the club at midnight with Nicola. I went back to the hostel, showered, and was about to get into bed right when the door burst open and three of the Busabout gals carry in a very drunk and sobbing Chelsea. We made her bed and took off her shoes. There might have been a bit of an accident on the bathroom floor if you know what I mean. After that, we made her drink a bit of water and got her into bed. What a day.
Day two in Krakow. We began the day with a nice bike tour. Our bike tour guide took us all over the wonderful city. We did the square, went to the castle, Krakow University, crossed the bridge to get to the Jewish Quarter where we had drinks, then saw Schindler's factory. It was great, but I got really sunburned. Oops. Awkward farmer's tan and everything. After the tour ended, Chels and I grabbed gyros with our friends Nicola, Josh (California), and Aaron (New Zealand). Up next was a salt mine tour. We got to go 133 km underground! It was neat, not as cool as the salt mine in Hutchinson, KS, but I enjoyed it. They pretty much turned the mine into a large museum. Each room had statues made of salt, there were salt friezes in the walls of a large hall, the chandeliers were made of salt. At the end of the path was a large room where people could have a wedding reception. And fittingly, there was also a tiny chapel. Oh, and a restaurant, art gallery, and souvenir area!
Chelsea, Nancy (Canadian), Allyson, Josh, and I did dinner together at a neat place called the Gallery Pub, though our waitress was rude. She flatly rejected Josh and I once each during the night when we asked for something. No apologies, no smile, simply "No." I take huge offense to things like that. That's partly why I dislike Vienna so much. I hate rude people.
I really liked Krakow, despite the one rude person, but I feel like I could have used soooo much more time there. We didn't actually get to go into any of the churches or the castle. I guess I'll just have to go back sometime!
You are certainly in for a treat when you see my pictures from this day. We drove from Krakow to Zakopane (still in Poland). Zakopane is a small ski town. So. Cute. We got in pretty early to our hostel/hotel/whatever it is. Chelsea and I shared a room with our friends Rachel and Gabrielle (both Canadian) whom we will meet in Canada at some point and have a nice long get together (also included in this get together = Pam!! (Canadian)). Anyway, our room was wonderful. It was adorable, had a nice bathroom, a balcony, and T.V. (not that we ever used it). I loved it!
We walked from our hostel/hotel to the main streets where all the restaurants and touristy shops were. Everyone separated, so Chels, Josh, Nancy, and I formed a group and took the funicular up the mountain to get some amazing views of the area. At the top, we walked around the shops, got caught in the off and on rain several times, and took in the view. There was a toboggan ride, but because of the rain, we didn't think we could do it. We were wrong. It still ran and we missed out. Bummer. We still had fun though. When we met up with other people from the tour, Aaron, Felix, Rachel, Elisa, Jess, Matt, Becks, and Steph (this is mostly for me so I can look back and remember who was there) some of us decided to do the zip line. There were 5 or 6 courses to choose from. We chose one that allowed us a second course for free. I can now say I've zip lined in Poland and the Dominican Republic.
When we came down from the mountain, Chels and I broke off from the group and did a bit more souvenir shopping and also got caught in the hardest rainfall of the day. We were both pretty much soaked and had to change before dinner.
Speaking of dinner, it was back along the same main street at a restaurant that featured meat. I mean this in a strong way. All types of meat. Platters in fact. Our table ordered a 8-9 person meat platter. There were 9 of us but there was definitely still meat left over. Oh, and I completely embarrassed myself by spilling David's (Texas) drink everywhere. Yup. =/
I ended the night with a nice card game between Chels, Rachel, Gabrielle, Nicola, and Sarah (Texas). Egyptian Rat Screw is quite a fun game, though at times can be a little painful!
A Day in the Life of a Tourist
Szia, segítség!
Nem besélek magyarul. Viszontlátásra.
We bus from Zakopane crossing the boarder to Slovakia. I feel like I can't really count Slovakia as a place that I've been, though I have been there. Driven straight through one end to another. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant in Slovakia where nearly everyone ordered a bread bowl. It was quite good. The place where we stopped was pretty deserted. There was the restaurant and a hotel. Oh, and the Barcelona football team's bus. =) Not sure what it was doing there, but sure enough, there it was. In Slovakia without its team...
One funny story, forgive me Josh for telling, but it was hysterical. So, after a rough night of drinking coupled with a bumpy bus ride I guess, Joshy didn't feel so good and got a bit sick. So we pulled the bus over so he could carry his bag of sick to a trash. Well, where we stopped, there were no trash cans. There was a bench, an info stand or something, and a lot of trees. Well, after wandering around for a minute and not seeing anything, Josh goes over to the stand and asks if they have a trash. The woman doesn't speak English, so he tries asking if they have a rubbish bin. Still nothing. So he hands his bag of puke to the lady and walks back onto the bus. This whole time the entire busload is staring, trying to figure out what he's doing. When he hands the bag over, everyone bursts out with screaming laugher. Funniest thing ever. I wish I could have gotten that on video. Too funny!!
So, after a quick lunch, we took off again heading towards Budapest, Hungary. Chelsea and I spent the afternoon planning what we wanted to do tomorrow. Sarah joined in as she and her brother David decided to join us. When we weren't planning what we were going to do with our full day tomorrow, we were at used bookstores and, wait for it, Tesco!! We all had to go to use the ATM in Tesco where we each took out 20,000 forints. That's about $105. We bought some wine for the night's boat ride, some water, and a few snacks.
That evening, most of us ate at a restaurant that was expensive with so-so food. We had all become so close that it was decided we all needed to swap emails, so our buddy Antony passed around a sheet during dinner and had everyone put there name and email down. We'd been talking about doing this for a while, so I'm glad someone actually did it. Antony had copies ready for everyone the day after next.
After dinner, we headed down to the pier where we got onto a boat and took a tour on the Danube. The city is pretty at night. I actually liked the boat ride in Budapest on the Danube much better than the boat ride in Paris on the Seine. The lights are better in Budapest.
This was the last full day with everyone. Nine people were to leave us in Budapest and we were to gain seven more. As sad as it was, this was probably my favorite day of the tour. Not only am I in love with Budapest and the Hungarian language, but it offers some amazing activities and sights.
Along with the aforementioned persons, Josh joined us and we headed down to the markets to begin with some souvenir shopping. Along the way we realized that all 5 Americans on the tour had joined up! Unplanned!
The markets were cool. One large building sporting multiple levels. The first level was mostly food. The second mostly souvenirs. After the markets, we spent a bit of time at the Citadel, where we had a lovely view of both Buda and Pest and of course the Danube. It rained off and on here as well. From the Citadel we walked around the Budapest Castle and made our way to a few churches. The St Stephen's cathedral was gorgeous. Very spacious and elaborately decorated.
We grabbed lunch after visiting the cathedral and then caught a hop-on hop-off bus for a nice 40 minute drive to get back to the hostel. We found two Busabout buddies on the bus already: Myriam (Canada) and Kim (Australia). From the hostel/hotel (again, I'm unsure of what to call it...) we bought tickets to go caving outside of Budapest. Chelsea, Josh, and I were going to go. Sarah and David wanted to go to the Baths instead. After we bought the tickets, we did everything short of running to the meeting point. We only had about a half hour to get somewhere that supposedly took about 20 minutes to walk there. Considering we were in an unfamiliar place and might get lost, we didn't want to be late.
When we got to the area where our map said we were supposed to meet, there were no buildings labeled, no signs, no nothing! Panic began to sink in. We spent 4,500 forints for this, so we wanted to make sure we found everyone. I asked several people if they knew about the caving tour and no one had an answer for me. If it wasn't for the fact that Josh heard Pam talking, we would've been in trouble! As it turned out, more people from our tour decided to join in! Now it was me, Josh, Chelsea, Rachel, Felix, and Pam. So the meeting point was actually just a man who didn't even have a sign. I don't know how we were supposed to know he was from the caving tours. He was a cave guide who was there to "pick us up." We had to pay for transportation on top of the ticket. It took 2 bus rides to get there.
The caving experience was amazing. We got to do all sorts of things like crawl through holes on our bellies or hands and knees, fall through holes in the ground without knowing where the bottom was, etc. We were down there for quite a long time too. We met up with everyone at 4PM, were down in the caves by about 5PM, and didn't emerge until 8:05PM. I really want to go back. Our guide, different from the one earlier in the day, was amazing. He told funny jokes, he was very knowledgeable, he could shimmy his way into and out of anything. And he was SO quick. He'd explain where you were going one moment and the next he'd dive into a hole in the wall you'd never noticed before and he'd be gone in a split second. One word to describe caving: amazing. It also brought our little group closer together too.
After we were finished, everyone else took a taxi back to the city because they figured they could get in a short amount of time in the Baths before we all did dinner/drinks together. Josh and I didn't care to go, so we took the bus back. It took us forever to get home! The time it took us to get back was the same amount of time that it took the others to take the taxi to the Baths, swim, and get back to the hotel/hostel. Amazing. Whatever. Josh and I had fun too.
We met up with everyone else for drinks and said our good-byes to some people. Sad night, but great day.
Last good-byes are made to those staying behind (Josh, Antony, Myriam, to name a few). The rest of us, along with the 7 new people we picked up for 3 days, head out towards Croatia. So far we haven't had to do anything for crossing the boarders, but now things get serious. At the boarder, we give all our passports to the boarder police as they must check everyone out to ensure no one is here illegally. We've been told by Ben that one time they made the tour bus wait 5 hours as one man's visa was going to expire the very next day. Apparently they deported him. I've got around 3 weeks on my visa, so I'm OK now and I was OK back there in Croatia, but it's still nerve racking. We were thankful that they only made us wait for 40 minutes. I got Hungarian and Croatian stamps on my passport because of that!
Croatia is so beautiful. I adore it. We made a stop at a cute little town where there are waterfalls everywhere, some going under a few of the houses. We also stopped at a beach, but it was way to windy/cold to swim. Only Aaron was brave enough! =) Our third mini-stop was at a war memorial in a tiny town. They had all different types of tanks on display from different countries who fought there and there were 2 planes: 1 that was shot down and the other was the plane that did the shooting. It was raining and muddy, so we didn't stay long.
Not too long after, we stopped at a grocery store to buy supplies for our bar-b-que dinner. The dinner was nice. Everyone pitched in to help set up, cook, prepare food. There was a little drama, as there always is, but on the whole, it was a good evening. I liked chilling out with my friends on the grass eating greek salad and chicken wings!
We bar-b-qued in the campgrounds where our cabins were. The cabins were small 2-person rooms. Nothing else but a small table and 2 chairs. Very similar to the cabins we stayed at in Mykonos, however, these were way nicer and cleaner, not to mention that the beds were 100X more comfortable and warmer.
The night ended with Super Ben--our guide dressed in a spandex costume, cape and all. Don't ask!
Last day of the tour. I got up at 7AM. A group of us were supposed to meet and have breakfast at Tonik, a smoothie bar. I used up pretty much all of my change there! Some people from our group were continuing their tour by sailing or doing another trek. (Mine was the Classic Rhapsody Trek.) We said our good-byes, then Chelsea and I split off to buy our bus tickets to Zadar, where our flight was to leave that night at 9:25PM to Brussels.
After we bought our tickets, we ran into Ben who told us that the Busabout bus had its license plate stolen! I never heard what became of that.
We walked back to the apartments, said good-bye to more people, pack up the rest of our stuff and moved it into Pam's new hostel, as she was to stay another night. We had to be out by 10AM but our bus didn't leave until 1PM, so it was very nice of Pam to offer to aid us!
I don't even know how the rest of our time there passed so quickly. All I know is that we kept running into more Busabout people, saying more good-byes, and stopped back at Tonik a second time. At 12:30PM I figured we should probably head out and catch our bus. Pam came with us to the bus station and hailed us good-bye. Such good times and so many good memories. It was hard to leave it all behind.
Our bus ride lasted 3 1/2 hours. Once it dropped us off at the bus station, we ended up having to catch another bus to the airport. We waited a half hour, then the bus ride was another hour. That was fine, either way we still had about 3 hours. At the airport we took our time and leisurely ate dinner. Security wasn't that big of a deal and the airport was so small that there were only 3 gates total.
I tried to sleep on the plane. Didn't quite work. I was getting a little bit restless. The flight landed at 11:50PM, then we had to catch another bus to the city of Brussels. Did you know that Brussels airport is 65 km outside of the city? I didn't... There was another 40ish minutes and when we got to the city, we had to take a metro to the stop closest to us, then walk a few blocks. Again our hostel (which I swear could be called a hotel! It was wonderful!!!!) was on the edge of the Red Light District. We got in at 1:10AM. I didn't get to bed until 2AM, which is a tragedy as those beds were the most comfortable thing ever. I wouldn't mind going back to Brussels just to get a goodnight's sleep in that bed. No joke!
We got up early enough, 8AM(?). Again, a misfortune because I just wanted to say in that wonderful bed. We only had 1 day in Brussels, so we had to make the most of it. I think we did a pretty good job too because we toured the Town Hall, walked all around the city, saw the Brussels Palace, the outside of the library, went into several churches, ate at a fry stand, ate Belgian waffles for lunch, bought tons of chocolate, and souvenirs. Brussels has one of the top ten largest Roman Catholic Churches in the World. We didn't get to go there, but we could see it from across the city. I already know I must go back to Belgium, so I'll add this basilica to the list of things I still need to see there.
I love Belgium. I think Brussels is an exciting city with tons to offer. I'd love to visit other cities as well. What I want to do most is visit an archives or library or something. I want to look up my family history. That would be amazing.
One day is not enough. After Chelsea and I did dinner (free drink! she got mussels, I got chicken!) we bought chocolate beer and visited the Manneken Pis, a famous statue in Brussels made in the 1600s, did a little more souvenir shopping, and went back to the hostel. A shower and all my packing done, I was prepared for my 4AM wake up call.
Four AM is too early! I got up and hopefully didn't wake Chelsea. My taxi was already downstairs by the time I arrived. He dropped me off at the bus station where I caught a 5AM bus to the airport. My ticket was actually supposed to be for 5:30, but the taxi dropped me off early. It was nice not having to wait a half hour. I'm glad they let me on. I've seen way too many instances where the driver refuses to pick someone up at any other time than what is on their ticket.
I got to the airport bright and early, 6AM and had tons of time to wait. My flight didn't leave until around 9AM. Waiting was hard, but I finally got through to the check-in desk and made my way through security. The flight was from Brussels to Madrid, Spain. It was an easy flight. I sat near a window, then there was an empty seat, then a woman with a baby. Yep, I got the woman with the crying baby.
When we arrived in Madrid, I met up with my flat mate Vanessa. We took a bus to the city center, then metro-ed to where the hostel had told her was the closest stop to them. They LIED! We had to walk forever to find it! Turns out there was a stop right across the street from our hostel, but for some reason they didn't think to list that one, but instead another one on the opposite side of the city (not really opposite, but when you're walking with a bag, it's far...).
We didn't do much with this day. I had gotten up at 4AM, Vanessa had spent the night in the airport--that never equals a good night's sleep. We found dinner after talking in a park for a few hours and then went to bed at about 6:30PM. I kid you not. I slept for 15 hours I was so tired. Not to mention I got sick. I think it might have started in Brussels because I got an unexplained nosebleed, but in Madrid I just couldn't breathe. I slept under a window. It was ridiculously hot in Spain every single day (in the 90s), but I can't sleep with air blowing on me. No open windows, no fans, no air conditioning. And I couldn't switch beds either. We spent 4 days 3 nights there and each night I couldn't get very much sleep because of this. Quite unfortunate. And when I did, it was out of exhaustion.
It's nice that we have a window that brings in cool air; it's terrible that it makes me sick. Not a good balance! Also, Vanessa informed me that in Australia, they don't have sunscreen higher than 30SPF because apparently higher can be bad for you. Where is the balance? How can you win? Too much sun isn't good and too much sunblock isn't good What do you do?!
After breakfast (toast with mashed tomatoes on top!) we headed over to Palacio Real, didn't go inside the palace, but toured the church across from it instead which had a great view of the palace's courtyard from above as well as great views of the city.
From there we went into the Museo del Prado. It was cool We also tried going to the Reina Sofia museum where they have Picassos. It just happened to be closed on Tuesdays!
We ate paella for dinner for the first time!! So yummy! You can image I talked Vanessa into getting the chicken paella, not a seafood one! We bought tickets to see Carmen the ballet for tomorrow. I got a call from a friend of mine studying in Madrid this semester. She was able to meet up that night, so Vanessa and I chilled out at the hostel before meeting her at 9PM. Spanish time is late! The sun doesn't set until after 10PM and apparently they eat dinner really late, as in 10PM. So Christin joined us and we got paella again together. And cervezas! She had to continue studying for finals, so when dinner was done, we said our good-byes and headed back to the hostel.
Vanessa and I found a cute little diner to eat breakfast. They had 17 flavors of real tea to choose from. I chose chamomile, hoping it would help me to feel better. It was delicious. Breakfast was super yummy as well.
We decided to take it really easy. We went to the Reina Sofia museum, saw Picassos, then went to the Parque del Retiro and napped on the grass for like 2 hours! It was so relaxing. When we were done, we headed back to the hostel, changed, and got on the metro on our way to see Carmen. Between the first and second stops, Vanessa checks her purse and realizes her wallet is missing. We get off, switch trains and head back to the hostel to check the room. She said that she sort of felt something tugging at her on the metro, but she didn't follow her instincts. It wasn't back at the hostel. So, instead of seeing Carmen, we stayed in, called and canceled her credit cards and went to an internet and phone cafe where we called her card company and spent a good 20 minutes at least on the phone waiting for them to say they'd send her a replacement card soon. Not the cheapest call. It was .50eur/min. At least the situation was taken care of.
Since it was so late when we discovered the missing wallet, we figured it'd be best to go to the police station in the morning. She thought they'd be closed at 10PM.
Instead of seeing Carmen, we had a leisurely dinner, talked, then when back to the hostel and to bed.
June 23rd
He falls to his knees,
sobbing uncontrollably.
Gold to save one life?
Gold to save one life,
perhaps a car to save ten?
He falls to his knees.
That was my own version of a haiku-mini-triolet (or mini-villanelle?) hybrid. I watched Schindler's List today. It's been on my list to re-watch ever since I toured Auschwitz and Birkenau a short while ago. The ending scene is so touching the way he realizes that he could have saved more lives had he not wasted so much money in the past or had he sold his golden pin or his car. He falls into Itzhak's arms, sobbing.
OK, so now you want to hear about my 3 week trip, eh? Well I'll tell you all about it now! Text today, pictures tomorrow. Sound good? Good. Because it's getting really late here and I want to go to bed now! =)
May 29th
Being sporadic.
Bought tickets to see Les Mis.
This should be quite fun.
The trip began in an amuzing way. Chelsea and I left our flat in Leeds to walk the half-hour distance to the bus station around 6:30AM. One block away from the station, Chelsea freezes. Curious, I ask her what the matter is. Her face drains of color as she replies that she thinks she's left her passport back in her room. She quickly checks her folder of important papers and it's not there! At this moment, I get worried for myself. I pull out my folder of important papers and discover my passport is missing as well! The two of us could smack ourselves for being so careless. We're out of time though, we've only got about 15 minutes before the bus leaves. Even if we taxied back to the flat, we wouldn't make it. Then, as all hope seems lost, a thought occurs to me. Our money pouches. Why not check there?! You know what I'm talking about right? Those tourist pouches where you keep your cash, credit cards, and passport. So I check. It's there. I yell to Chelsea who's pacing in panic to check her's. It's there. Day saved! Thank you Lord!
We joked the whole bus ride down about it. Quite a way to start a long journey! Panic. Think. Recover. Laugh.
In London, we dropped our stuff off at the White Ferry House hostel, the one I stayed in during April for the Royal Wedding, then took off. We had made a list of what we were to do on each day. We ended up following it more or less completely, minus one museum. Next time though.
The day's adventures in London began with a tour of the Tower of London. It was quite neat. We definitely didn't have enough time there. Pretty much by the time we walked around most of the wall, it was nearly time to go to the next place. We budgeted our time everywhere to make the most of the short time in London.
Next, we walked over to St Paul's Cathedral. It is gorgeous. As it was a Sunday, we decided to stay for a service. I'm quite sad that they did not allow pictures of the inside. It's marvelous.
From St Paul's, we walked over to the Tate Modern and wandered around there for a while. I'm quite sad that the giant slides that I had seen in pictures were gone. But that was a temporary exhibit, so what can you do? In this museum, we also found a piece of "art" that was just a mirror on the wall. I'm not impressed...
After dinner in Chinatown, on the spur of the moment, Chelsea and I decided we wanted to see a show. So we bought tickets to see Les Mis for two days from then. They were decently priced. The cheapest tickets were £18.50, but those were long gone. Some of the expensive ones were near 100, so we bought a pair for £28 each. Then, still in a spending mood, we did some souvenir shopping before heading home to the hostel.
What an interesting night it was!!! OK, so the bathrooms in this hostel are for both men and women. There is no door, you just walk in and see a set of shower stalls and a set of toilet stalls facing 2 sinks. These details are important. So I'm in the bathroom after taking a shower. I'm at the sink having just brushed my teeth when I hear someone talking behind me. I turn around and there is a naked man, ~25 years old, in the shower with the door open. "Can you give me some soap?" I'm stunned. Chelsea is right next to me. I look at her. Neither of us know what to say. "Seriously? I just...I just need some soap." He's standing in the shower still waiting. I have my soap at the ready so I had it to him. It sits in a small plastic box to protect the rest of my toiletries. He takes it, looks at it, and hands it back with a "Come'on! I need some soap. Real soap." I reply, "That is soap." He stares and pleads again. I look back to Chelsea who is still speechless. So I do the only thing I can think of. I squirt a ton of soap from the soap dispenser at the sink where I'm standing and walk over to the guy who has his hand out and ready. I smear the soap from my hand to his, turn back to the sink, wash my hands and walk away. I hear him say "Ah! Thank you!"
A little--scratch that--very confused about why the heck the guy didn't care about displaying himself to the world, I walk into the 15 person room I booked for Chelsea and I for the next couple of days only to find it is overflowing with guys about the same age as shower boy. Chelsea pops in and informs me that they are a rugby team from Manchester (?). Half the guys are naked and getting ready to go out. Not too long after, shower boy walks in. From overheard conversations, I discover his name is Jamie Miller. Any UK rugby fans out there? Does this name ring a bell? Just curious to know if I met anyone famous.
The guys were pretty loud, but when they left to go out it wasn't so bad. However, at 4AM, they return and the silent room is bustling with noise. I hear someone say to the rest "Shh, they're sleeping. These two have to get up early. We should be quiet, they've got to get up early." Someone else mimics "Shh, they're going to Stonehenge early. Be quiet." Obviously a bit drunk. They were talking about Chelsea and I. Chelsea had spoken with a few earlier and informed them of our tour of Bath and Stonehenge tomorrow and explained that we would be getting up early, around 6:45 I believe. Despite the fact that they tried to be quiet, it was still a bit loud. It doesn't help that one of them kept saying of Chelsea and I "They're probably awake. We probably woke them up and they're just faking it." Well, he was right, but I wasn't going to let him know that! Chelsea and I talked about it the next day, we discovered that both of us were awake for it and heard everything and faked being asleep. Fun first night, eh?! =)
A little--scratch that--very confused about why the heck the guy didn't care about displaying himself to the world, I walk into the 15 person room I booked for Chelsea and I for the next couple of days only to find it is overflowing with guys about the same age as shower boy. Chelsea pops in and informs me that they are a rugby team from Manchester (?). Half the guys are naked and getting ready to go out. Not too long after, shower boy walks in. From overheard conversations, I discover his name is Jamie Miller. Any UK rugby fans out there? Does this name ring a bell? Just curious to know if I met anyone famous.
The guys were pretty loud, but when they left to go out it wasn't so bad. However, at 4AM, they return and the silent room is bustling with noise. I hear someone say to the rest "Shh, they're sleeping. These two have to get up early. We should be quiet, they've got to get up early." Someone else mimics "Shh, they're going to Stonehenge early. Be quiet." Obviously a bit drunk. They were talking about Chelsea and I. Chelsea had spoken with a few earlier and informed them of our tour of Bath and Stonehenge tomorrow and explained that we would be getting up early, around 6:45 I believe. Despite the fact that they tried to be quiet, it was still a bit loud. It doesn't help that one of them kept saying of Chelsea and I "They're probably awake. We probably woke them up and they're just faking it." Well, he was right, but I wasn't going to let him know that! Chelsea and I talked about it the next day, we discovered that both of us were awake for it and heard everything and faked being asleep. Fun first night, eh?! =)
May 30th
Miracle water
with healing powers flows through
the hot springs of Bath.
May 31st
The paths we walk lay
not untrodden but in them
we see their value.
The day began with a stop at Buckingham Palace, just walking around it and taking pictures. On our way to Westminster Abbey, we got to see the changing of the guards! What great timing! We actually got to follow them from their barracks place up until the turnoff to the Abbey. I've already seen the Abbey and Chelsea didn't want to pay the £13 to get in, so we headed into the gift shop. It was overflowing with Royal Wedding-related souvenirs. Of course, our next point of interest was Parliament and Big Ben. I've already done this whole lot, so it was for Chelsea for whom this was her first official visit. She'd been in London for Chinese New Year, but she didn't get to see much. We walked to the National Portrait Gallery next. I learned a lot about England's history just by looking at the portraits and reading the descriptions posted at their sides. Afterwards onto Victoria and Albert Museum (which is cool, but it had too many rooms and was too eclectic for my taste. I like museums that are focused on a certain theme or era; the V&A just had everything, from every continent, spanning all of time). Yet another museum after the V&A: the Natural History Museum. We got to see dinosaur bones there. We got back to our hostel, changed, ate, and got to meet some of our new roommates. The rugby guys were gone. One of the new guys was an Australian who was staying in London for a night before heading to his new job in Leeds!!!! How random is that?! I've always known it, but it has become even more evident this semester that it really is a small world! Chatting cut short, we went to see Les Mis at Queen's Theater. It was wonderful. I didn't like the way they sang "I Dreamed a Dream," but the rest of the songs were great. I've always heard about the musical, but never known anything about it. Now I'm a fan!
June 1st
Red and blue lights flash.
The bass from the music pounds
down cabaret streets.
We landed in Prague, Czech Republic and got lost a few times on the way to our hostel. We had booked a cheap hostel on the edge of the Red Light District. Getting in was interesting. We had to walk through the entrance of a cabaret to get to the door to the hostel which was above the cabaret. When we got through the door, we were in a small enclosed courtyard with scandalous pictures plastered everywhere. It was a bit sketchy, yes, but I read all the reviews of the hostel online and people seemed to like the actual hostel, even if they didn't like the buildings around it. To make matters more interesting, the real door to the hostel at the other end of the courtyard was locked and there was no doorbell. I knocked several times with no answer. Chelsea and I were tired and getting a bit grumpy and doubtful about this place when I spotted a woman who looked like a staff member (to where? no idea) and it turned out that she didn't speak English, but she recognized that we needed to get into the building, so she let us in.
Once inside, I realized why no one answered my knock. It was a stairwell. We made our way to the 2nd floor like the sign on the outside door said. On the second floor there was another sign saying go to the third floor. On the third floor there was another sign saying go to the fourth floor. Finally, on the fourth floor was knocked and found the reception desk.
The hostel is simply a converted apartment. You walk in and are standing in the kitchen facing 4 bedrooms. On the opposite side is the toilet room and the shower room. We paid and were shown to room number 1. I may have been doubtful previously, but not at that moment. The room was a private 2 bed with 2 couches, a shoe rack, a potted plant, a chair, and a bookshelf. We were up high enough to be safe and the view was fantastic (albeit you could mostly see tops of the cabarets in the Red Light District...)
We made quick decisions about what to do with the rest of the day. First, stop for lunch at a stand on the street. I ordered a chicken burger and got a hamburger... Second, walk around New Prague (the area right next to our hostel when you leave the RLD). The architecture and colors are gorgeous. Third, tour the Prague Castle! We did everything in the castle besides the large cathedral as we knew we'd cover the cathedral in the 6-hour walking tour we'd planned on taking the next day. After the castle, we went to Old Prague, toured St Nicholas Church, tried to get into Our Lady Before Tyn (another church), but it was closed so we just peaked inside. Old Prague is gorgeous. The pictures that are always shown of Prague, that's it. And at night the view is to die for. Just look at my pictures! Well, Chelsea really wanted to see a concert held at St Nicholas, so we bought tickets and then went to find dinner at the Old Town Square. There were stands everywhere, so we chose a stand that had haluski and pivo (beer). Czech Republic is famous for their beer, so I had a cup. It turned out to be an expensive meal (Eastern Europe is not cheap. Everyone says so, but they're wrong. I learned this throughout the entire 9 day tour!). The beer was fantastic though. I had beer twice the next day (it was free on our walking tour, and both times I had a different kind hoping to get the same kind as this day, but no one had it. The other two were bad).
The concert was very nice. There were ~6 players and they did some Mozart and Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Music that nice sort of puts you to sleep, so when it ended Chelsea and I were ready to go home and sleep. (Note: I always use "home" in terms of wherever I happen to be staying that night.) It was a bit noisy on our block, but no matter, we were tired and the beds were comfortable enough. Sleep came easily.
Once inside, I realized why no one answered my knock. It was a stairwell. We made our way to the 2nd floor like the sign on the outside door said. On the second floor there was another sign saying go to the third floor. On the third floor there was another sign saying go to the fourth floor. Finally, on the fourth floor was knocked and found the reception desk.
The hostel is simply a converted apartment. You walk in and are standing in the kitchen facing 4 bedrooms. On the opposite side is the toilet room and the shower room. We paid and were shown to room number 1. I may have been doubtful previously, but not at that moment. The room was a private 2 bed with 2 couches, a shoe rack, a potted plant, a chair, and a bookshelf. We were up high enough to be safe and the view was fantastic (albeit you could mostly see tops of the cabarets in the Red Light District...)
We made quick decisions about what to do with the rest of the day. First, stop for lunch at a stand on the street. I ordered a chicken burger and got a hamburger... Second, walk around New Prague (the area right next to our hostel when you leave the RLD). The architecture and colors are gorgeous. Third, tour the Prague Castle! We did everything in the castle besides the large cathedral as we knew we'd cover the cathedral in the 6-hour walking tour we'd planned on taking the next day. After the castle, we went to Old Prague, toured St Nicholas Church, tried to get into Our Lady Before Tyn (another church), but it was closed so we just peaked inside. Old Prague is gorgeous. The pictures that are always shown of Prague, that's it. And at night the view is to die for. Just look at my pictures! Well, Chelsea really wanted to see a concert held at St Nicholas, so we bought tickets and then went to find dinner at the Old Town Square. There were stands everywhere, so we chose a stand that had haluski and pivo (beer). Czech Republic is famous for their beer, so I had a cup. It turned out to be an expensive meal (Eastern Europe is not cheap. Everyone says so, but they're wrong. I learned this throughout the entire 9 day tour!). The beer was fantastic though. I had beer twice the next day (it was free on our walking tour, and both times I had a different kind hoping to get the same kind as this day, but no one had it. The other two were bad).
The concert was very nice. There were ~6 players and they did some Mozart and Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Music that nice sort of puts you to sleep, so when it ended Chelsea and I were ready to go home and sleep. (Note: I always use "home" in terms of wherever I happen to be staying that night.) It was a bit noisy on our block, but no matter, we were tired and the beds were comfortable enough. Sleep came easily.
June 2nd
Prague lights up at night
dazzling every watching eye.
Fantasy city.
With our 6 hour tour, we received free tickets for a ghost tour, so we hung around Old Prague, ate dinner there, listened to a free concert, did our souvenir shopping, and then joined the ghost tour group. The guide spoke pretty bad English, so it was hard to hear her and understand her jokes. Chelsea and I were glad we didn't pay extra for it.
June 3rd
A crest born of skulls
hangs proudly across a gate.
Man’s past on display.
June 4th
Some things never change.
Can I ever escape the
role of “Big Sister”?
I'll start off this post by saying that throughout the tour people kept thinking that Chelsea and I were sisters...or twins! I can remember at least 5 people saying this.
It may sound bad, but I was really excited about this day. We crossed the boarder from Czech Republic into Poland and the first thing on the list was a tour of Auschwitz and Birkenau. The tour was excellent. Our guide was an archivist who does tours herself only on Saturdays. I was very glad we got her. She was very knowledgeable, knew the answers to questions, knew the right kind of questions to ask (more on that later), and really impressed upon us how life had been for the Jews in Auschwitz and Birkenau.
It was difficult going through both places and seeing the gates, the blocks where Jews lived and were killed, holding cells, and worst of all, the rooms where sitting on display where the piles and piles of shoes, glasses, combs and brushes, empty zyklon B canisters, empty suitcases with owner's names written upon the side. It was hard to see it all and realize that these represent the people who owned them, the people who wore those shoes, those glasses, who used those brushes. And these weren't small piles. These were piles stretching from floor to ceiling, from one end of the room to the other. Same with the crematorium and gas chambers (torn down). Today it's hard comprehend how many people went through it all.
At Birkenau, the two things that really struck me (out of a list of many things) were the gates that stood to a torn down gas chamber and the point at the end of the railroad tracks within the camp. As for the gate, it literally stands alone. It looks strange standing there surrounded by nothing, now with the rubble of the gas chamber far behind it. So many people walked through it believing they were on their way to take a shower. And the train tracks, staring at the distance from the end of the line to the gates, it strikes you how truly huge the camp is. It's massive as its purpose was to house and kill Jews. The plans were to extend it even more, but that fell through.
While on the tour, we had the rare chance to meet a survivor visiting with his wife. This is when our guide showed her expertise and asked him some great questions. He was more than willing to talk with us and share his story. He was born in Holland and when he was 15, the Nazis gathered his family and took them to Birkenau. He was with his mother, father, grandmother, sister, and brother. When they arrive, the women were separated from the men and told they were to go take showers while the men were herded to the right-side camp. He never had a chance to say good-bye to his mother, sister, or grandmother. I'm so thankful we got to meet him. He was very kind and even joked with us a bit. He gave me a hug and was willing to put up with taking group pictures with us.
It may sound bad, but I was really excited about this day. We crossed the boarder from Czech Republic into Poland and the first thing on the list was a tour of Auschwitz and Birkenau. The tour was excellent. Our guide was an archivist who does tours herself only on Saturdays. I was very glad we got her. She was very knowledgeable, knew the answers to questions, knew the right kind of questions to ask (more on that later), and really impressed upon us how life had been for the Jews in Auschwitz and Birkenau.
It was difficult going through both places and seeing the gates, the blocks where Jews lived and were killed, holding cells, and worst of all, the rooms where sitting on display where the piles and piles of shoes, glasses, combs and brushes, empty zyklon B canisters, empty suitcases with owner's names written upon the side. It was hard to see it all and realize that these represent the people who owned them, the people who wore those shoes, those glasses, who used those brushes. And these weren't small piles. These were piles stretching from floor to ceiling, from one end of the room to the other. Same with the crematorium and gas chambers (torn down). Today it's hard comprehend how many people went through it all.
At Birkenau, the two things that really struck me (out of a list of many things) were the gates that stood to a torn down gas chamber and the point at the end of the railroad tracks within the camp. As for the gate, it literally stands alone. It looks strange standing there surrounded by nothing, now with the rubble of the gas chamber far behind it. So many people walked through it believing they were on their way to take a shower. And the train tracks, staring at the distance from the end of the line to the gates, it strikes you how truly huge the camp is. It's massive as its purpose was to house and kill Jews. The plans were to extend it even more, but that fell through.
While on the tour, we had the rare chance to meet a survivor visiting with his wife. This is when our guide showed her expertise and asked him some great questions. He was more than willing to talk with us and share his story. He was born in Holland and when he was 15, the Nazis gathered his family and took them to Birkenau. He was with his mother, father, grandmother, sister, and brother. When they arrive, the women were separated from the men and told they were to go take showers while the men were herded to the right-side camp. He never had a chance to say good-bye to his mother, sister, or grandmother. I'm so thankful we got to meet him. He was very kind and even joked with us a bit. He gave me a hug and was willing to put up with taking group pictures with us.
June 5th
We all chase our dreams
though some in reality
and others in sleep.
Day two in Krakow. We began the day with a nice bike tour. Our bike tour guide took us all over the wonderful city. We did the square, went to the castle, Krakow University, crossed the bridge to get to the Jewish Quarter where we had drinks, then saw Schindler's factory. It was great, but I got really sunburned. Oops. Awkward farmer's tan and everything. After the tour ended, Chels and I grabbed gyros with our friends Nicola, Josh (California), and Aaron (New Zealand). Up next was a salt mine tour. We got to go 133 km underground! It was neat, not as cool as the salt mine in Hutchinson, KS, but I enjoyed it. They pretty much turned the mine into a large museum. Each room had statues made of salt, there were salt friezes in the walls of a large hall, the chandeliers were made of salt. At the end of the path was a large room where people could have a wedding reception. And fittingly, there was also a tiny chapel. Oh, and a restaurant, art gallery, and souvenir area!
Chelsea, Nancy (Canadian), Allyson, Josh, and I did dinner together at a neat place called the Gallery Pub, though our waitress was rude. She flatly rejected Josh and I once each during the night when we asked for something. No apologies, no smile, simply "No." I take huge offense to things like that. That's partly why I dislike Vienna so much. I hate rude people.
I really liked Krakow, despite the one rude person, but I feel like I could have used soooo much more time there. We didn't actually get to go into any of the churches or the castle. I guess I'll just have to go back sometime!
June 6th
Blue sky and green grass.
Rain showers fall on and off
like a moody child.
June 7th
My mind wanders as
early morning trudges forth.
Night in Hungary.
A Day in the Life of a Tourist
Szia, segítség!
We bus from Zakopane crossing the boarder to Slovakia. I feel like I can't really count Slovakia as a place that I've been, though I have been there. Driven straight through one end to another. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant in Slovakia where nearly everyone ordered a bread bowl. It was quite good. The place where we stopped was pretty deserted. There was the restaurant and a hotel. Oh, and the Barcelona football team's bus. =) Not sure what it was doing there, but sure enough, there it was. In Slovakia without its team...
One funny story, forgive me Josh for telling, but it was hysterical. So, after a rough night of drinking coupled with a bumpy bus ride I guess, Joshy didn't feel so good and got a bit sick. So we pulled the bus over so he could carry his bag of sick to a trash. Well, where we stopped, there were no trash cans. There was a bench, an info stand or something, and a lot of trees. Well, after wandering around for a minute and not seeing anything, Josh goes over to the stand and asks if they have a trash. The woman doesn't speak English, so he tries asking if they have a rubbish bin. Still nothing. So he hands his bag of puke to the lady and walks back onto the bus. This whole time the entire busload is staring, trying to figure out what he's doing. When he hands the bag over, everyone bursts out with screaming laugher. Funniest thing ever. I wish I could have gotten that on video. Too funny!!
So, after a quick lunch, we took off again heading towards Budapest, Hungary. Chelsea and I spent the afternoon planning what we wanted to do tomorrow. Sarah joined in as she and her brother David decided to join us. When we weren't planning what we were going to do with our full day tomorrow, we were at used bookstores and, wait for it, Tesco!! We all had to go to use the ATM in Tesco where we each took out 20,000 forints. That's about $105. We bought some wine for the night's boat ride, some water, and a few snacks.
That evening, most of us ate at a restaurant that was expensive with so-so food. We had all become so close that it was decided we all needed to swap emails, so our buddy Antony passed around a sheet during dinner and had everyone put there name and email down. We'd been talking about doing this for a while, so I'm glad someone actually did it. Antony had copies ready for everyone the day after next.
After dinner, we headed down to the pier where we got onto a boat and took a tour on the Danube. The city is pretty at night. I actually liked the boat ride in Budapest on the Danube much better than the boat ride in Paris on the Seine. The lights are better in Budapest.
June 8th
An end for some and
a beginning for others.
We leave behind friends.
We grabbed lunch after visiting the cathedral and then caught a hop-on hop-off bus for a nice 40 minute drive to get back to the hostel. We found two Busabout buddies on the bus already: Myriam (Canada) and Kim (Australia). From the hostel/hotel (again, I'm unsure of what to call it...) we bought tickets to go caving outside of Budapest. Chelsea, Josh, and I were going to go. Sarah and David wanted to go to the Baths instead. After we bought the tickets, we did everything short of running to the meeting point. We only had about a half hour to get somewhere that supposedly took about 20 minutes to walk there. Considering we were in an unfamiliar place and might get lost, we didn't want to be late.
When we got to the area where our map said we were supposed to meet, there were no buildings labeled, no signs, no nothing! Panic began to sink in. We spent 4,500 forints for this, so we wanted to make sure we found everyone. I asked several people if they knew about the caving tour and no one had an answer for me. If it wasn't for the fact that Josh heard Pam talking, we would've been in trouble! As it turned out, more people from our tour decided to join in! Now it was me, Josh, Chelsea, Rachel, Felix, and Pam. So the meeting point was actually just a man who didn't even have a sign. I don't know how we were supposed to know he was from the caving tours. He was a cave guide who was there to "pick us up." We had to pay for transportation on top of the ticket. It took 2 bus rides to get there.
The caving experience was amazing. We got to do all sorts of things like crawl through holes on our bellies or hands and knees, fall through holes in the ground without knowing where the bottom was, etc. We were down there for quite a long time too. We met up with everyone at 4PM, were down in the caves by about 5PM, and didn't emerge until 8:05PM. I really want to go back. Our guide, different from the one earlier in the day, was amazing. He told funny jokes, he was very knowledgeable, he could shimmy his way into and out of anything. And he was SO quick. He'd explain where you were going one moment and the next he'd dive into a hole in the wall you'd never noticed before and he'd be gone in a split second. One word to describe caving: amazing. It also brought our little group closer together too.
After we were finished, everyone else took a taxi back to the city because they figured they could get in a short amount of time in the Baths before we all did dinner/drinks together. Josh and I didn't care to go, so we took the bus back. It took us forever to get home! The time it took us to get back was the same amount of time that it took the others to take the taxi to the Baths, swim, and get back to the hotel/hostel. Amazing. Whatever. Josh and I had fun too.
We met up with everyone else for drinks and said our good-byes to some people. Sad night, but great day.
June 9th
Out of the corner
of my eye I look through life
spying what could be.
June 10th
Closer than ever,
we discover layers of
others never shown.
On our way to Split, we detoured at the unbelievably perfect Plitvice National Park. Supremely rich in greenery and the purest, clearest water I've ever witnessed. You could see the fish swimming in the water and plant roots. It was stunning. I took 300 pictures in 3 hours. Don't worry, I've weeded them down quite a bit, but that should give you an idea of how wonderful it was.
We ate lunch in the park and had some really good apple strudel.
A few days back, Pam and Rachel had kidnapped Ben's stuffed animal: a beaver named Justin. I hope you think that's funny. That's the point! So, Ben had no idea who'd taken Justin. Rachel and Pam had the idea to take photos of Justin wherever we went, so it looked like Justin was having fun on his own, out in the world. They would then email the pictures to Ben. Hilarious idea! At the bar-b-que it was secretly decided that everyone should get a picture with the Beave so that when he was returned, all the pictures would be emailed and Ben would have no idea who was behind it all because everyone was involved. The plan had worked more or less wonderfully up until this day at lunch. Ben was supposed to be at the bus, not at lunch with us. Pam didn't know this and went to take some people's photos with the little guy and Ben was right there. He saw! It was a hilarious and awkward moment! We almost got away with it Pam! So close!! Well, the beaver was returned. Because it was such a group effort, we decided to create a Justin D Beaver facebook group for our tour. That way people can find each other and share photos, etc. Plus it's just hilarious.
After we left Plitvice, we drove to Split. I really liked the apartments where we stayed. Chelsea and I were with Gabrielle and Rachel again. Good mix! This was our last full day together as a group. It was so sad. So to celebrate our time together we took a walking tour, ate dinner together at a fish restaurant (I ordered chicken...), went to a pub, then a silent disco, then a beach bar.
Dinner was interesting, to say the very least. The first pub was tiny, so we moved on. The silent disco was pretty cool. They had done one in Leeds a little while ago. Basically everyone buys a headset. There are 3 stations to choose from on the headset and 3 live DJs. You can listen to whatever station you prefer and dance to it. It's funny seeing people listening to different stations dancing together. The styles may clash, but hilarity ensues. The silent disco was shut down by the police for being too loud... Apparently it happens to them a lot.
The beach bar was a huge change from the silent disco. I liked how you could control the volume on your headset or take it off if you wanted and just talk with people. At the beach bar, the music was blasting. It was also really crowded. At 2AM I decided I wanted to go home, so I asked Pam and Felix to come with me. Chelsea decided to come as well. When we actually made it out of the door, our little group had grown. Aaron and Ant (UK(one of the new people)) joined, as did a complete stranger who asked me if he could walk back with us. I don't remember the guy's name, but he and I talked the whole way back until we split off to go to different hostels. He's from Cardiff, so I of course had to ask him if he was a big Doctor Who fan! =P
Ended the night with more chatting and then packing, so I didn't get to bed until 5AM. Got up at 7AM.
We ate lunch in the park and had some really good apple strudel.
A few days back, Pam and Rachel had kidnapped Ben's stuffed animal: a beaver named Justin. I hope you think that's funny. That's the point! So, Ben had no idea who'd taken Justin. Rachel and Pam had the idea to take photos of Justin wherever we went, so it looked like Justin was having fun on his own, out in the world. They would then email the pictures to Ben. Hilarious idea! At the bar-b-que it was secretly decided that everyone should get a picture with the Beave so that when he was returned, all the pictures would be emailed and Ben would have no idea who was behind it all because everyone was involved. The plan had worked more or less wonderfully up until this day at lunch. Ben was supposed to be at the bus, not at lunch with us. Pam didn't know this and went to take some people's photos with the little guy and Ben was right there. He saw! It was a hilarious and awkward moment! We almost got away with it Pam! So close!! Well, the beaver was returned. Because it was such a group effort, we decided to create a Justin D Beaver facebook group for our tour. That way people can find each other and share photos, etc. Plus it's just hilarious.
After we left Plitvice, we drove to Split. I really liked the apartments where we stayed. Chelsea and I were with Gabrielle and Rachel again. Good mix! This was our last full day together as a group. It was so sad. So to celebrate our time together we took a walking tour, ate dinner together at a fish restaurant (I ordered chicken...), went to a pub, then a silent disco, then a beach bar.
Dinner was interesting, to say the very least. The first pub was tiny, so we moved on. The silent disco was pretty cool. They had done one in Leeds a little while ago. Basically everyone buys a headset. There are 3 stations to choose from on the headset and 3 live DJs. You can listen to whatever station you prefer and dance to it. It's funny seeing people listening to different stations dancing together. The styles may clash, but hilarity ensues. The silent disco was shut down by the police for being too loud... Apparently it happens to them a lot.
The beach bar was a huge change from the silent disco. I liked how you could control the volume on your headset or take it off if you wanted and just talk with people. At the beach bar, the music was blasting. It was also really crowded. At 2AM I decided I wanted to go home, so I asked Pam and Felix to come with me. Chelsea decided to come as well. When we actually made it out of the door, our little group had grown. Aaron and Ant (UK(one of the new people)) joined, as did a complete stranger who asked me if he could walk back with us. I don't remember the guy's name, but he and I talked the whole way back until we split off to go to different hostels. He's from Cardiff, so I of course had to ask him if he was a big Doctor Who fan! =P
Ended the night with more chatting and then packing, so I didn't get to bed until 5AM. Got up at 7AM.
June 11th
Silent departure.
We had so much to say up
till now, but leaving
brings on the silence.
Saying good-bye and leaving
only memories
is too difficult
a burden to carry. We
speak with our eyes.
June 12th
The iconic boy,
Manneken Pis, surrounds the
city of Brussels.
June 13th
Madrid España.
The heat pierces straight through you.
Exhaustion brings sleep.
June 14th
Karma, yin and yang.
Balance is the key to life
whether good or bad.
June 15th
Why is it the worst
always happens when you feel
most vulnerable?
We decided to take it really easy. We went to the Reina Sofia museum, saw Picassos, then went to the Parque del Retiro and napped on the grass for like 2 hours! It was so relaxing. When we were done, we headed back to the hostel, changed, and got on the metro on our way to see Carmen. Between the first and second stops, Vanessa checks her purse and realizes her wallet is missing. We get off, switch trains and head back to the hostel to check the room. She said that she sort of felt something tugging at her on the metro, but she didn't follow her instincts. It wasn't back at the hostel. So, instead of seeing Carmen, we stayed in, called and canceled her credit cards and went to an internet and phone cafe where we called her card company and spent a good 20 minutes at least on the phone waiting for them to say they'd send her a replacement card soon. Not the cheapest call. It was .50eur/min. At least the situation was taken care of.
Since it was so late when we discovered the missing wallet, we figured it'd be best to go to the police station in the morning. She thought they'd be closed at 10PM.
Instead of seeing Carmen, we had a leisurely dinner, talked, then when back to the hostel and to bed.
June 16th
Coughing and hacking.
Who gets sick during summer?
Apparently me…
We went to the same diner as last time for breakfast. I got the same meal, even the same tea as last time. It was just that good. We spent the day in the park. We saw the Palacio de Cristal and spent a lot of time talking. We also went to the police station directly after breakfast and waited for a while before finally getting a chance to report the stolen wallet.
We stopped at the National Library and walked through its museums before heading back for our luggage and catching a metro to the airport. I like having plenty of time for flights. Our flight didn't leave until about 9:30PM, so we took it easy. I know it must sound like we didn't do much in Spain, but we really did. It's just too hot there to move or do anything.
We caught our plane which got in near midnight. Once back in London, we caught a National Express bus from the airport to Leeds leaving at 1:50AM getting to Leeds at 7:30AM. It had a transfer at 4AM though in Noddingham. It was a very tiring night.
Ok, that's everything plain and simple. I've sort of edited it, but I apologize if you still catch errors. Hope you enjoyed!
We stopped at the National Library and walked through its museums before heading back for our luggage and catching a metro to the airport. I like having plenty of time for flights. Our flight didn't leave until about 9:30PM, so we took it easy. I know it must sound like we didn't do much in Spain, but we really did. It's just too hot there to move or do anything.
We caught our plane which got in near midnight. Once back in London, we caught a National Express bus from the airport to Leeds leaving at 1:50AM getting to Leeds at 7:30AM. It had a transfer at 4AM though in Noddingham. It was a very tiring night.
Ok, that's everything plain and simple. I've sort of edited it, but I apologize if you still catch errors. Hope you enjoyed!
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