Hello {everyone}
i am currently in transit from austria to italy and thought i would try to complete a blog post about
my journey thus far. Let me preface this by saying that there will be typos in the following post - it is inevitable because i am using a tablet computer and i am too lazy to correct every error {sorry}
Jen and I are learning a lot about being nomadic travelers and will probably be experts come august... or at least i am hoping we get better at it. Some of our traveling woes have been cured now that we have eurail passes, that allow us to travel between and in 30 different countries in europe on one ticket. we are also learning a lot about couchsurfing and finding it easier and easier to find places to stay {which wasn't the case in the beginning}
{INTRODUCTION}
{INTRODUCTION}
i thought i would have time to write before now, but it is difficult to get internet access in many places without paying a lot! When we do get free wifi we have massive to-do lists that need to be completed: email/ check in with family, send out couchsurfing requests, book bus, plane, or train tickets, etc. It's a hard life being on an unplanned vacation. And so, i apopogize for the length of this post.
So far, we have had some interesting experiences,seen some beautiful places, and met some really awesome people. I am going to {try to} briefly summarize a little bit about the trip so far {but 3 weeks and 5 countries is difficult to summarize} so bare with me... i don't plan on taking as long before my next post.
the journey began on saturday may twenty-eighth with an overnight bus trip to chicago {i almost didn't make it on the bus} and then after a few delays we were off to london to begin our journey.
{PART ONE - ENGLAND & SCOTLAND}
After three days in london we took a bus to the city of bristol, where we experienced our first official couchsurfing experiece. we stayed with a 43 year old musician who took us on a walking tour {with a history lesson} of the city and showed us some great indian food before he had to work. {did you know that bristol is the home of trip-hop such as portishead} In the evening jen and i went to visit the bristol cathedral and sat on the lawn and had a drink while watching groups of people dancing, tumbling, and other crazy things. later on, afte visiting a small pub, our host coaxed us into singing a song he wrote {it was in spanish}..we attempted to sing it and it only took us 30 minutes to learn our parts. that was a funny night.
first stop - london - when we arrived in london we had a lovely {free: thanks to jens' uncle} hotel room just to the north of central london in the small suburb of eastcote. the hotel had a 600 year history and delicious {free} english breakfast {i have lots of pictures not sure if i can get them on here now}. We spent about three days in london exploring the city: we went to see a famous play called The Woman in Black, climbed hundreds of steps at St. Pauls Cathedral, saw a lot of buildings, went to the tate modern, etc. The city was busy with many construction projects which are likely being completed in preparation for the 2012 Olympic games which made the already busy city seem just a little too hectic for me.
we really enjoyed our short visit to bristol and our host but the next day we set off for york to meet up with a small group of interior design students from k-state and went to dinner with some of them. in york we walked around and saw some really cool places: clifford tower, the fairfax house, st. mary's cathedral {with an awesome art installation by susie macmurry}, yorkminster abby {the largest gothic cathedral in england}, and some really great markets. We also ate the best strawberries EVER {i may go back someday just because of the strawberries}
after two great days in york we were ready to say goodbye to england and move on to scotland! We arrived in edinurgh late and stayed in our first hostel of the trip. We stayed in edinburgh for four nights - three of which we stayed with a couchsurfing host who left us keys to his house because he was going out of town. We got to visit with him and two of his roommates {both females} So far edinburgh has been one of my favorite places, with mountains surrounding the city and a castle in the middle it is such a beautiful place. During our visit we walked the royal mile to the castle, saw a weaving factory {where they make kilts}, went into the giles cathedral, and went to the national scottish museum {which has a well designed interior}. On the third day we hiked to the top of a gorgeous mountain at holyrood park called arthurs seat. This was probably my favorite experience so far… I could have stayed there all day. we also walked to the top of colton hill which is home to several monuments {one of which is in honor of architect robert burns}.
{PART TWO - EUROPE - AMSTERDAM & BERLIN}
from edinburgh we booked a flight to amsterdam on the 8th of june. In amsterdam we didn't have much luck with couchsurfing so we decided to pay for a hostel and continue to look for the following days. we headed to our hostel to check in and along the way we realized that it was located in the red light district {oops}. It was on the edge so we quickly found our way around. We met several cool people from the US at the hostel and spent an evening hanging out with them - eating, drinking, and listening to street performers {one of my favorite things to do this trip}. After a long evening and a flaky couchsurfer, we didn't have a place to stay and had to get a hotel room last minute - boo. The next day we did the one thing no traveler should do - we saw a movie {our excuse-it was really rainy}. that night we had better luck with couchsurfing and stayed with a nice host. Our last day in amsterdam we visited the tropenmuseum {the museum of anthropology} which was fascinating and walked through oosterpark {lots of birds} before leaving that night fot germany.
Our first stop in germany was berlin. We stayed for three nights with our lovely host Hella, who invited us to have bbq with her and her visiting family. We had a great time visiting with her during our stay. She showed us some of her favorite places and walked with us along the south gallery of the Berlin wall recapping the way things were before the wall was torn down {crazy to imagine}. I felt like everywhere we went there were signs and remnants of past opression. We spent a day visiting the Jewish Museum and the Holocaust Memorial/musuem, which put both Jen and myself in a somber mood. AND THEN… as we walked through the busy city streets back to the underground station {this is a true story} a bunny fell from the sky and *thud* landed on the sidewalk not even ten feet in front us! We were basically shocked and didn't know what to say for a few minutes {we assumed that a big bird had dropped it} and needless to say we had a sad-ish day in Berlin.
Some of our time was spent wandering around landmarks in the city and having a "senior pic day", and eating yummy sushi, ice cream, and pizza {not at the same time}. On our last evening Hella took us to her favorite quiet spot near the river where we enjoyed a glass of wine and conversation with our lovely hostess.
{PART THREE - THE BREAK UP - MUNICH & VIENNA}
On Wedneday June 16th Jennifer Burke and I split up... it was sad. We went to the bus stop in berlin and said our farewells before boarding our respective busses - I was to go to munich to see an old friend and Jen was headed to denver for the weekend to be in a wedding. We both cried {just kidding}
I arrived in munich wednesday evening and was happy to see a familier face upon my arrival. I was visiting a friend who had been an exchange student during my junior year of high school - it had been seven years since we last saw each other. I stayed with Deedo and his flatmate Alex for three nights. During my time there I was given a mini tour of the city and enjoyed the company of some really great people - it felt good to laugh and be silly.
After seeing berlin, munich seemed lively and inviting. One of my favorite places there was the englischer garten - sitting near the water with hundreds of people doing the same thing - some swimming in the cold water {which i stood in..brrr}, others eating/drinking, and some just napping in the sun. I am happy in places like this - where everyone is enjoying the natural surroundings. Deedo also showed me around his university, markets, and climbed to the top of St. Peters cathedral {where i met someone studying architecture in zurich - i always meet people in funny places} for lunch we went to the hofbräuhaus {a touristy but nice beer garden/ restaurant}. There i tried several bavarian dishes and had an ice cold beer.
I really enjoyed my time in munich and was sad to leave after only a few days - but still i was determined to see austria and so i departed early saturday morning to travel to vienna.
In wien {vienna} i was greeted at the train station by julia my couchsurfing host for the weekend. I immediately recognized her enthusiasm and energy! She was awesome. We talked a lot as we walked the streets of Vienna going to a few places she admired. She took me to a great falaffel restaurant and then to a market to buy some fresh fruit for smoothies! Yum. Later that evening we went out to dance and we had an entire dance floor to ourselves... unfortunately Julia's wallet and camera were stolen from her purse that night. {sad}
The next day I was alone while Julia worked and I explored the city a bit. I went to the Schönbrunn Palace where i sketched and wandered aimlessly through the private gardens.{i was attacked by a giatnt moth there as well} There i also discovered a special exhibit about Marcel Breurer {Bauhaus - architect}. In the evening Julia and i explored.a Jean Nouvel building thst caught our eye and were sad we couldn't go everywhere in it because we were underdressed. We finished the night by playing games with friends of Julia {i am bad at austrian cranium} and eating yummy dessert!
On monday morning {20th} i left vienna to travel to salzburg, where i was to meet jen later that day. The train ride was wonderful with many beautiful landscapes to keep me occupied. I arrived around noon and checked into my hostel and changed quicky so i could see some sites while i waited for jen's train to arrive. I went to mirabell palace which was a backdrop in the 'do re mi' song in the sound of music {which was filmed in salzburg… there were a lot of references to the film and the real maria all over the city}. I was oddly excited to be at the site where one of my favorite films was made.
{REUNITED - and it feels so good}
After a short visit, i left the palace to meet jen at the train station and then we returned to the hostel to get cleand up. After freshening up, jen and i set off for a short walk / hike to the salzburg fortress that overlooks the city. We spent a while exploring the almost 900 year old structure and taking in the breathtaking views of the green mountain valley that housed the charming city of salzburg. {this city has become my new number-one this trip} … as the evening drew closer we explored some key sites including the birthplace of mozart {they have specialty chocolates called mozart. yum} … we were only in salzburg for one day so we tried to pack a lot into one day. At night we went to an irish pub to listen to live music and were back to sleep by midnight... we had a train to cath the next morning - destination: italy!
{to be continued}
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