My last post for this trip. We have done some reflecting about what we like about the states vs. Germany area, and vice versa. Here you go:
Things we like better about Germany:
Dogs everywhere- At one point we were talking to an Englishman who had a beautiful bloodhound with him on the train. We were talking about the differences between Europe vs. the States and I brought up the dogs. I said you would never go to a restaurant or get on a train with a dog in the US. He made a funny face and said “That’s Weird.” I love it!
Menus of restaurants posted outdoors- Every restaurant does this. It’s very convenient to see if you want to eat there before you go inside.
Public transportation- So easy to get around.
Everyone multi-lingual- It’s pretty amazing.
Prices are really the prices- they include tax and tip is minimal. If the sign says 2 Euro, that’s how much you pay.
Outdoor cafes everywhere- Pretty much every restaurant has an outside area.
Bike-Friendly- Pedestrians and drivers both watch out for bikes, and there are wide sidewalks and lots of designated lanes. And bike racks everywhere you look. It’s awesome.
Things I like better about the US:
Free bathrooms- Enough said. 50 cents to pee? Stupid.
Free condiments- Again enough said. 30 cents for a ketchup packet? Can’t I get at least a few included in the cost of the fries?
Air conditioning- When it’s hot and no place has AC, you cannot escape the hotness. You know when you’re really hot and you walk into a nice AC’d room? How nice and relaxing that feels? Yeah, you never feel that here.
Ice- Didn’t know how much I loved ice until this trip.
Mexican Food- mmmmmmmmm.
Pepperoni on pizza instead of salami- mmmmmmm.
Soft drinks and water- Unlimited free refills on pop. Free water. Both good things. A regular size drink at fast food restaurants in Germany is about the size of a child-size here. Maybe good for your health, but not enough to drink with a whole meal.
When all is said and done, I’m very happy to be back in the states. Happy that I can read signs and communicate with the people around me. Happy to see my friends and family again. Excited to sleep in my own bed and shower in my own shower. We had a blast, and I can’t wait to go back, but I’m glad I live in the good ole US of A.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tips for Future Europe Travelers
Our last day in Berlin was not super exciting, though it was fun. We rented bikes and had the city as our cul-de-sac. Biking is such a great way to get around town and I wish that Kansas City was more bike-friendly. We really enjoyed riding through the streets of Berlin. After lunch and some shopping, Mark headed back to the hotel for a nap and I went back to Checkpoint Charlie and to an open-air exhibit called the Topography of Terror, which was really boring. We met up to return our bikes and had a nice dinner, then tried to get some sleep before our 3 a.m. wakeup call.
Now we’re over the Atlantic, halfway through our 9 hour flight. And that’s just one out of the three legs. I cannot stop thinking about seeing Turner and Hooch again, and about the cheese dip and margarita I’m going to get from 54th Street tonight. And Mexican food in general. Mark says “Chipotle” every 10th word. By the time I get a chance to post this we will be home sweet home.
I know a couple of people have been reading this because they are planning upcoming European trips, and I have some insight for you. I hope that some of my mishaps can save you some time, money, and frustration.
First of all, if you have connecting flights on different airlines, do everything you can to know which gate the connecting flight leaves from, or at least what terminal the airline is in. If you don’t know this and ask someone official-looking at the airport, they will lie to you. With certainty.
Second, if you are flying on an airline that is not a major airline in the country you’re in, realize that they may not have their own ticketing counter. When we flew out of New York, it took us forever to find the Air Berlin counter because there is no Air Berlin counter- it is an American Airlines counter with a small Air Berlin sign.
If your connecting flights are not on the same airline, allow at least 1-1.5 hours for your layover. I usually want the quickest layover possible, but it can take time to switch between airlines….especially if you check bags.
Mark has been keeping our finances straight while we’re over here, and he noticed two $30+ charges were pending and we weren’t sure what they were. When they both cleared, we realized it was for two phone calls we made. Each was less than a minute. We called from Austria to Switzerland and Austria to Germany to take care of some business with places we would be staying. We called from the train station- that is the mistake. If you have to call when you’re in Europe, do not call from the train stations…unless you enjoy spending close to $70 on two short calls. You can call much cheaper from Internet cafes or by using calling cards.
Stay at least two-three nights in each place. We didn’t and felt rushed and unsettled at times.
Pack light. Roll your clothes and only bring things that have multiple uses. I am not usually a light packer, but I was able to fit everything into a carry-on. Or at least a bag that they let me carry on….not sure it would have fit in the little box they use to measure it. You are moving around so much and having lots of luggage or big luggage would have been a big hassle. And get good, durable luggage…I thought mine was…it wasn’t. Carrying a suitcase is not fun.
Check the carry-on limitations for each airline you’re flying on. Most are not strict about
Pack a water bottle, an alarm clock, and a calculator. The water bottle because you cannot get a small cup of water for less than $3. I just filled mine up at the hotel and carried it everywhere. I didn’t have the last two and wish I did. Hotels do not generally have clocks. The calculator would have been handy for calculating exchange rates, especially when you’re traveling between countries that use different currencies, and also for when you’re charged and given change in one currency, but paying in another.
Ladies, tampons over here do not have applicators, so plan accordingly if that will be an issue.
Take a bike tour…most big cities have them. They are fabulous. Rent bikes to get around. Also fabulous. I much prefer it to using the subway system, and wished that we had done it earlier in the trip.
Travel sites say to get an international student ID, which costs around $25, to take advantage of student discounts. We used our UMKC IDs and never had any problems.
If you’ll be traveling between cities by train and have questions, feel free to ask me….it can be complicated to figure out. I didn’t understand it until we got there….and still don’t understand all of it, but I have a good feel for it.
Invest in a good guidebook. We used ours a ton. Also learn basic phrases in their language.
This sounds stupid, but check the weather for where you’re going and really think about that when you’re packing. June in Germany is not the same as June in Kansas City. I packed like it was. Germany June is more like KC April….I brought one cardigan and one hoodie, and they are both pretty stinky now.
Save a lot and budget well. We paid for everything in cash and stayed within our budget. It was very enjoyable knowing that we don’t have to pay for this vacation after we get home.
Start a blog and send me the link so I can read it!
Thanks for reading and I hope this is helpful. I love to travel and am thinking about stating a show Samantha Brown style…whadda ya think?
Now we’re over the Atlantic, halfway through our 9 hour flight. And that’s just one out of the three legs. I cannot stop thinking about seeing Turner and Hooch again, and about the cheese dip and margarita I’m going to get from 54th Street tonight. And Mexican food in general. Mark says “Chipotle” every 10th word. By the time I get a chance to post this we will be home sweet home.
I know a couple of people have been reading this because they are planning upcoming European trips, and I have some insight for you. I hope that some of my mishaps can save you some time, money, and frustration.
First of all, if you have connecting flights on different airlines, do everything you can to know which gate the connecting flight leaves from, or at least what terminal the airline is in. If you don’t know this and ask someone official-looking at the airport, they will lie to you. With certainty.
Second, if you are flying on an airline that is not a major airline in the country you’re in, realize that they may not have their own ticketing counter. When we flew out of New York, it took us forever to find the Air Berlin counter because there is no Air Berlin counter- it is an American Airlines counter with a small Air Berlin sign.
If your connecting flights are not on the same airline, allow at least 1-1.5 hours for your layover. I usually want the quickest layover possible, but it can take time to switch between airlines….especially if you check bags.
Mark has been keeping our finances straight while we’re over here, and he noticed two $30+ charges were pending and we weren’t sure what they were. When they both cleared, we realized it was for two phone calls we made. Each was less than a minute. We called from Austria to Switzerland and Austria to Germany to take care of some business with places we would be staying. We called from the train station- that is the mistake. If you have to call when you’re in Europe, do not call from the train stations…unless you enjoy spending close to $70 on two short calls. You can call much cheaper from Internet cafes or by using calling cards.
Stay at least two-three nights in each place. We didn’t and felt rushed and unsettled at times.
Pack light. Roll your clothes and only bring things that have multiple uses. I am not usually a light packer, but I was able to fit everything into a carry-on. Or at least a bag that they let me carry on….not sure it would have fit in the little box they use to measure it. You are moving around so much and having lots of luggage or big luggage would have been a big hassle. And get good, durable luggage…I thought mine was…it wasn’t. Carrying a suitcase is not fun.
Check the carry-on limitations for each airline you’re flying on. Most are not strict about
Pack a water bottle, an alarm clock, and a calculator. The water bottle because you cannot get a small cup of water for less than $3. I just filled mine up at the hotel and carried it everywhere. I didn’t have the last two and wish I did. Hotels do not generally have clocks. The calculator would have been handy for calculating exchange rates, especially when you’re traveling between countries that use different currencies, and also for when you’re charged and given change in one currency, but paying in another.
Ladies, tampons over here do not have applicators, so plan accordingly if that will be an issue.
Take a bike tour…most big cities have them. They are fabulous. Rent bikes to get around. Also fabulous. I much prefer it to using the subway system, and wished that we had done it earlier in the trip.
Travel sites say to get an international student ID, which costs around $25, to take advantage of student discounts. We used our UMKC IDs and never had any problems.
If you’ll be traveling between cities by train and have questions, feel free to ask me….it can be complicated to figure out. I didn’t understand it until we got there….and still don’t understand all of it, but I have a good feel for it.
Invest in a good guidebook. We used ours a ton. Also learn basic phrases in their language.
This sounds stupid, but check the weather for where you’re going and really think about that when you’re packing. June in Germany is not the same as June in Kansas City. I packed like it was. Germany June is more like KC April….I brought one cardigan and one hoodie, and they are both pretty stinky now.
Save a lot and budget well. We paid for everything in cash and stayed within our budget. It was very enjoyable knowing that we don’t have to pay for this vacation after we get home.
Start a blog and send me the link so I can read it!
Thanks for reading and I hope this is helpful. I love to travel and am thinking about stating a show Samantha Brown style…whadda ya think?
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Randomness
A couple of things I forgot yesterday:
The beggers here are nuts. We met our bike tour yesterday at one of the main squares, and as we were walking this sweet lady who looked like she was from India came up to us. She had the head covering and was holding the hand of a precious little girl. She asked if we spoke English, and when we said yes she handed us a sheet of paper that said something like “I am here from Bosnia with my small child and have no money to eat. Can you please help?” These types of things break my heart. But we told here we had no cash but would say a prayer for her. Well, as we were waiting for the tour w1e were approached at least a dozen times by different women with the same story. They were everywhere, like mosquitos in the summertime! One woman even came up to us while she was breastfeeding! At this point I started thinking it was a scam and stopped feeling bad.
The other thing I forgot was something we learned on our tour. We learned that Berlin is one of the most liberal cities in the world with the highest Turkish population outside of Turkey and the third highest gay population. We also learned that they have a very high percentage of atheists- 50% of its citizens recognize themselves as such. However, we then learned that you are taxed based upon your religious affiliation. The religious pay higher taxes to go towards the rebuilding of religious buildings that were destroyed in the war. We found this very interesting. What if you love God but don’t want your money to go towards buildings? Is that considered renouncing your faith? Some interesting discussion questions if nothing else…any thoughts?
The pub crawl last night started off as fun, though we were ready to go home at the end. We met a bunch of guys from England who were celebrating their buddy’s stag party. They were fun. We weren’t really that impressed with the bars…we went to three bars that were nothing special or different than what we would find in KC. Nothing wrong with them, just nothing exciting. Then we went to two clubs that had crazy lights, people dancing on tables, and loud techno music. Not really our thing, but it was fun to get out and talk to people from around the world.
One funny thing that happened on the pub crawl. Mark was talking to these Canadian guys about where we have been, and he asked them if they’ve ever heard of Baden Baden. They hadn’t. Mark started telling them about how awesome, terrific, and wonderful it is. He says “You just walk around naked, and they massage you, they rub you all over, it is so great!” He goes on and on about it. The Canadian asks if it’s a girl doing the massaging and Mark says “No, it’s a guy, but it’s not weird. It’s so awesome.” Then the Canadian guys started giving Mark weird looks and slowly backed away. Hahaha.
Today is our last day. There’s not another bike tour available today, so I think we’re just going to rent bikes and get around the city on our own. Already started praying that we don’t suffer the same fate that the Air France flight did……
The beggers here are nuts. We met our bike tour yesterday at one of the main squares, and as we were walking this sweet lady who looked like she was from India came up to us. She had the head covering and was holding the hand of a precious little girl. She asked if we spoke English, and when we said yes she handed us a sheet of paper that said something like “I am here from Bosnia with my small child and have no money to eat. Can you please help?” These types of things break my heart. But we told here we had no cash but would say a prayer for her. Well, as we were waiting for the tour w1e were approached at least a dozen times by different women with the same story. They were everywhere, like mosquitos in the summertime! One woman even came up to us while she was breastfeeding! At this point I started thinking it was a scam and stopped feeling bad.
The other thing I forgot was something we learned on our tour. We learned that Berlin is one of the most liberal cities in the world with the highest Turkish population outside of Turkey and the third highest gay population. We also learned that they have a very high percentage of atheists- 50% of its citizens recognize themselves as such. However, we then learned that you are taxed based upon your religious affiliation. The religious pay higher taxes to go towards the rebuilding of religious buildings that were destroyed in the war. We found this very interesting. What if you love God but don’t want your money to go towards buildings? Is that considered renouncing your faith? Some interesting discussion questions if nothing else…any thoughts?
The pub crawl last night started off as fun, though we were ready to go home at the end. We met a bunch of guys from England who were celebrating their buddy’s stag party. They were fun. We weren’t really that impressed with the bars…we went to three bars that were nothing special or different than what we would find in KC. Nothing wrong with them, just nothing exciting. Then we went to two clubs that had crazy lights, people dancing on tables, and loud techno music. Not really our thing, but it was fun to get out and talk to people from around the world.
One funny thing that happened on the pub crawl. Mark was talking to these Canadian guys about where we have been, and he asked them if they’ve ever heard of Baden Baden. They hadn’t. Mark started telling them about how awesome, terrific, and wonderful it is. He says “You just walk around naked, and they massage you, they rub you all over, it is so great!” He goes on and on about it. The Canadian asks if it’s a girl doing the massaging and Mark says “No, it’s a guy, but it’s not weird. It’s so awesome.” Then the Canadian guys started giving Mark weird looks and slowly backed away. Hahaha.
Today is our last day. There’s not another bike tour available today, so I think we’re just going to rent bikes and get around the city on our own. Already started praying that we don’t suffer the same fate that the Air France flight did……
Monday, June 8, 2009
Berlin
We are in Berlin. We’re staying at the Courtyard Marriot, which is very nice, except that it’s supposed to be “City Center” and it’s not actually the center of anything. But it’s close to a subway stop so nothing is too far away.
After we got into town last night, we relaxed a little and then tried to take the Rick Steves self-guided tour. But we ended up getting lost and headed back to our hotel area. One thing we did see before getting lost was this old church:
Which was bombed during WWII…you can see its missing spire. After we got back we had a late dinner and called it a night.
Today we took a bike tour. Let me tell you, we are hooked on this! Bike tours are my new favorite way to see a city. You can cover way more ground than a walking tour, and you can get more up close and personal than a bus tour. It was great. We’re thinking of doing another, more focused one, tomorrow.
Berlin has a rich history, which I did not appreciate until we got here. I’m sure many of you already know this, but here’s the Cliff Notes version for those who slept through history class. After losing WWII, the Allies (US, France, Britian, and the Soviet Union) got control of Germany. They split it between the 4 countries. Shortly after, the US, France, and Britan territories joined together to become West Germany, which was a capitalistic, democratic society. The Soviet territory became known as East Germany and was under Communist rule. Berlin was in the East territory, but the other countries didn’t think that the Soviets should control the entire city, so they split the city into West and East territories as well.
It didn’t take long for East Germany to become oppressed and its people started escaping to West Germany. To prevent this, the Soviets created a barrier (the Iron Curtain) down the middle of Germany. Then people started escaping to West Berlin (remember, this was in Eastern Germany). Once in West Berlin, they could become a citizen of W Germany and then go there freely. The Communists didn’t like this either, so they built the Berlin wall. The Berlin wall stayed up for close to 30 years and was just torn down in 1989. In 1990, Berlin was reunited into one undivided city, and shortly thereafter became the capital of Germany again.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let me show you some pictures from our tour:
Marks sexy bike:
The TV tower in East Germany. The Communists are mostly atheists, and after they built this tower they realized that when the sun shines on it, it leaves a very distinct reflection of a cross. They tried and tried but could not get rid of it. The Westerners call this the “Pope’s Revenge”.
On this square, the Communists burnt thousands of books that promoted capitalistic ideas. You cant really see in this picture, but below that glass is a monument of an empty library.
I don’t remember the name of this gate, but it is very famous. The statue on top is of Victoria, the goddess of victory. Once a French ruler fell in love with the statue and took it back to France with him. This made the Germans very upset, so they eventually stole her back and put her back on top of the gate- this time with her butt facing France.
Me “climbing” the Berlin wall. Not much of it remains today.
Another shot of the Berlin wall. It’s much thinner than I was expecting. There were actually two walls with a strip down the middle called the “death strip”. People were shot if they tried to cross. The top of the wall is rounded because W Germany tried to help out the East with their plumbing systems by giving them pipes. The Eastern leaders split the pipes in half and put them on top of the wall.
This is the most famous wall checkpoint, Checkpoint Charlie. Not after a person, but because Charlie is the third letter in the military alphabet. These actors are acting as guards for the East and West. We went through the museum after the tour. People tried desperately to escape. They were smuggled in cars, in suitcases, through tunnels, even in hot air balloons. They were desperate.
The Parliament building as it stands today:
We saw many more interesting sites, but these were the highlights. Berlin has changed a lot in the 20 years since the wall has been torn down, and it’s fascinating to see how a city rebuilds itself.
After we got into town last night, we relaxed a little and then tried to take the Rick Steves self-guided tour. But we ended up getting lost and headed back to our hotel area. One thing we did see before getting lost was this old church:
Which was bombed during WWII…you can see its missing spire. After we got back we had a late dinner and called it a night.Today we took a bike tour. Let me tell you, we are hooked on this! Bike tours are my new favorite way to see a city. You can cover way more ground than a walking tour, and you can get more up close and personal than a bus tour. It was great. We’re thinking of doing another, more focused one, tomorrow.
Berlin has a rich history, which I did not appreciate until we got here. I’m sure many of you already know this, but here’s the Cliff Notes version for those who slept through history class. After losing WWII, the Allies (US, France, Britian, and the Soviet Union) got control of Germany. They split it between the 4 countries. Shortly after, the US, France, and Britan territories joined together to become West Germany, which was a capitalistic, democratic society. The Soviet territory became known as East Germany and was under Communist rule. Berlin was in the East territory, but the other countries didn’t think that the Soviets should control the entire city, so they split the city into West and East territories as well.
It didn’t take long for East Germany to become oppressed and its people started escaping to West Germany. To prevent this, the Soviets created a barrier (the Iron Curtain) down the middle of Germany. Then people started escaping to West Berlin (remember, this was in Eastern Germany). Once in West Berlin, they could become a citizen of W Germany and then go there freely. The Communists didn’t like this either, so they built the Berlin wall. The Berlin wall stayed up for close to 30 years and was just torn down in 1989. In 1990, Berlin was reunited into one undivided city, and shortly thereafter became the capital of Germany again.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let me show you some pictures from our tour:
Marks sexy bike:
The TV tower in East Germany. The Communists are mostly atheists, and after they built this tower they realized that when the sun shines on it, it leaves a very distinct reflection of a cross. They tried and tried but could not get rid of it. The Westerners call this the “Pope’s Revenge”.
On this square, the Communists burnt thousands of books that promoted capitalistic ideas. You cant really see in this picture, but below that glass is a monument of an empty library.
I don’t remember the name of this gate, but it is very famous. The statue on top is of Victoria, the goddess of victory. Once a French ruler fell in love with the statue and took it back to France with him. This made the Germans very upset, so they eventually stole her back and put her back on top of the gate- this time with her butt facing France.
Me “climbing” the Berlin wall. Not much of it remains today.
Another shot of the Berlin wall. It’s much thinner than I was expecting. There were actually two walls with a strip down the middle called the “death strip”. People were shot if they tried to cross. The top of the wall is rounded because W Germany tried to help out the East with their plumbing systems by giving them pipes. The Eastern leaders split the pipes in half and put them on top of the wall.
This is the most famous wall checkpoint, Checkpoint Charlie. Not after a person, but because Charlie is the third letter in the military alphabet. These actors are acting as guards for the East and West. We went through the museum after the tour. People tried desperately to escape. They were smuggled in cars, in suitcases, through tunnels, even in hot air balloons. They were desperate.
The Parliament building as it stands today:
We saw many more interesting sites, but these were the highlights. Berlin has changed a lot in the 20 years since the wall has been torn down, and it’s fascinating to see how a city rebuilds itself. Berlin is also known for its nightlife. Mark and I are not known for our nightlife. However, they do these pub crawls where you can see several bars/clubs in a few hours so we’re going to check that out tonight. The clubs here stay open until 6am, and I can assure you that we will not stay out that late. I am excited to go out- we haven’t gone out the whole time we’ve been here- but I think we will feel like an old married couple….we’ll probably be laughing about what the kids are doing. Haha.
Tomorrows our last day, then traveling all day on Wednesday. Sort of a bittersweet feeling. That’s all for now….
Tomorrows our last day, then traveling all day on Wednesday. Sort of a bittersweet feeling. That’s all for now….
Sunday, June 7, 2009
This Weekend
To those who have been asking for a post from Mark…I’m working on him!
It’s currently noon in Germany, though I won’t be able to post this for several hours. We’re on a train from Prague to Berlin. The train is a Czech train and is 45 minutes behind schedule….that would never happen in Germany. Germans are known for being extremely punctual. Mark is in the dining car drinking a Budweiser beer…not an AB product, but the Czech Budweiser. Remember that lawsuit from last year? He says it is good and lighter than most Czech beers. We learned that the Czechs recently took the number 1 spot in the world for most beer consumption per person.
So about Prague….I’ll start from the beginning. After my last lunchtime post, we strolled around the city for a bit. The streets are lined with majestic old buildings- Prague has never been destroyed by natural disaster or war, one of the only big European cities that can say so- but these majestic old buildings are splattered with graffiti and litter dances in the wind. Not the “most beautiful city” that we had imagined.
Friday evening we booked a river boat dinner cruise. This was about what we expected. The food was good and the people were fun. Our guide was amazing- there were people on the tour that spoke six different languages and she spoke them all fluently! I asked her how many languages she spoke and she just said a lot. Most everyone over here speaks at least two languages. This makes me feel a little uneducated and selfish, but living in the middle of the US there is really just not a need unless you regularly work with people who speak a different language. If people in Kansas spoke a different language than in Missouri, and people in Nebraska spoke a different language still, I am sure I would know more than just my own language. That’s kind of what it’s like in Europe. Anyway, back to the cruise. The views were incredible, and looking at the city from the water at sunset, we began to see its beauty.
Since I get motion sickness easily, I took two motion sickness pills before the cruise. I didn’t feel sick at all, but after the cruise my eyes were as heavy as lead. I could not keep them open no matter how hard I tried. We went back to the hotel around 10:30 and I went straight to bed.
I must have been tired because I got a full 12 hours of sleep! We had no intentions of sleeping so late, but I guess we got some much-needed rest.
Also on Friday, we did laundry at the hotel. This is the second time doing laundry on the trip. I intended to do it in their laundry room, but they did not have one. They did have a laundry service. A laundry service that charged per item, and the cheapest item was a pair of socks….and they were $4/pair. No way in heck I was paying that much. And the laundry had to be done. So we went to a mini-market, got a bottle of detergent, and filled up the bathtub with the detergent, water, and clothes. We jostled the clothes around a lot and let them soak for awhile, then rinsed them off and hung them up all over the room. Not the most glamorous part of our vacation, but a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.
After we got around on Saturday, we walked around town for awhile. I like to learn about a town’s history when traveling and I wanted to do some sort of tour, but none of them really fit our schedule. So I will have to Wikipedia Prague when we get back. I know that until the early 90’s it was part of the Soviet Union and under Communist rule, but that’s about the extent of my knowledge. A little bummed that I spent two full days there and still know very little.
We spent Saturday afternoon at Prague’s castle, which I believe is the largest one in all of Europe. Now when I think of a castle, I think of something like we visited on the second day of our trip. Prague’s castle is like a full city with a wall around it. You would not even know you were in something considered a castle. We could have spent hours here, but it was drizzling and cold, so we cut it short and headed back to the hotel to get ready for the night.
They have those guards that don't move:
This is the cathedral that is in the castle.
Before our evening plans, we ate dinner at a nice restaurant called Uno. It was in the middle of a shopping complex and we ran into one of our classmates that is doing some traveling on his own. Small world!
Dad would be proud of me for what we did Saturday night- we went to a classical concert! He loves classical music and I have always given him a hard time for it. I’m not sure why- more Wikipedia research to be done- but classical seems to be a big thing here in Prague. The concert was in a beautiful building called Semanta (Municipal) Hall. I don’t really have anything to compare it to, but it was a nice way to spend a chilly evening and we left the place feeling pretty classy. After the concert we got a few drinks and headed back to the hotel.
Another thing we’ve noticed about Prague is how rude the people can be. I don’t know if we’ve just had bad luck or if that’s their culture. Even the service at our nice hotel was rude. People have not been willing to help or answer our questions like in the other countries we’ve visited. Also, again not sure if this is bad luck or culture, but three times we have tried to order something that is on the menu and they say they don’t have it. Not “I’m sorry, we’re out,” or any other explanation, just “We don’t have that.” Well why the heck is it on the menu then?? There are also more bums than in other places, though not as many as you might expect in a big city. And they are pushy! After the concert we were enjoying some wine on a little courtyard terrace that was separated from the sidewalk by a flower garden. A bum who reeked of alcohol reached his hand over the flowers and begged for money. I like to think that I have a heart for homeless, but I realize the best way to help them is by supporting programs that support them, not by giving them money. It’s a little scary when they’re so pushy. That was a lot of complaining sorry, we really did like Prague, but it was a lot different than Germany.
This is getting long so I am going to cut myself off. Shout-out to my parents for celebrating their 28th wedding anniversary yesterday, and hope you feel better soon Daddy-O!
It’s currently noon in Germany, though I won’t be able to post this for several hours. We’re on a train from Prague to Berlin. The train is a Czech train and is 45 minutes behind schedule….that would never happen in Germany. Germans are known for being extremely punctual. Mark is in the dining car drinking a Budweiser beer…not an AB product, but the Czech Budweiser. Remember that lawsuit from last year? He says it is good and lighter than most Czech beers. We learned that the Czechs recently took the number 1 spot in the world for most beer consumption per person.
So about Prague….I’ll start from the beginning. After my last lunchtime post, we strolled around the city for a bit. The streets are lined with majestic old buildings- Prague has never been destroyed by natural disaster or war, one of the only big European cities that can say so- but these majestic old buildings are splattered with graffiti and litter dances in the wind. Not the “most beautiful city” that we had imagined.
Friday evening we booked a river boat dinner cruise. This was about what we expected. The food was good and the people were fun. Our guide was amazing- there were people on the tour that spoke six different languages and she spoke them all fluently! I asked her how many languages she spoke and she just said a lot. Most everyone over here speaks at least two languages. This makes me feel a little uneducated and selfish, but living in the middle of the US there is really just not a need unless you regularly work with people who speak a different language. If people in Kansas spoke a different language than in Missouri, and people in Nebraska spoke a different language still, I am sure I would know more than just my own language. That’s kind of what it’s like in Europe. Anyway, back to the cruise. The views were incredible, and looking at the city from the water at sunset, we began to see its beauty.
Since I get motion sickness easily, I took two motion sickness pills before the cruise. I didn’t feel sick at all, but after the cruise my eyes were as heavy as lead. I could not keep them open no matter how hard I tried. We went back to the hotel around 10:30 and I went straight to bed.
I must have been tired because I got a full 12 hours of sleep! We had no intentions of sleeping so late, but I guess we got some much-needed rest.
Also on Friday, we did laundry at the hotel. This is the second time doing laundry on the trip. I intended to do it in their laundry room, but they did not have one. They did have a laundry service. A laundry service that charged per item, and the cheapest item was a pair of socks….and they were $4/pair. No way in heck I was paying that much. And the laundry had to be done. So we went to a mini-market, got a bottle of detergent, and filled up the bathtub with the detergent, water, and clothes. We jostled the clothes around a lot and let them soak for awhile, then rinsed them off and hung them up all over the room. Not the most glamorous part of our vacation, but a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.
After we got around on Saturday, we walked around town for awhile. I like to learn about a town’s history when traveling and I wanted to do some sort of tour, but none of them really fit our schedule. So I will have to Wikipedia Prague when we get back. I know that until the early 90’s it was part of the Soviet Union and under Communist rule, but that’s about the extent of my knowledge. A little bummed that I spent two full days there and still know very little.We spent Saturday afternoon at Prague’s castle, which I believe is the largest one in all of Europe. Now when I think of a castle, I think of something like we visited on the second day of our trip. Prague’s castle is like a full city with a wall around it. You would not even know you were in something considered a castle. We could have spent hours here, but it was drizzling and cold, so we cut it short and headed back to the hotel to get ready for the night.
They have those guards that don't move:
This is the cathedral that is in the castle.
Before our evening plans, we ate dinner at a nice restaurant called Uno. It was in the middle of a shopping complex and we ran into one of our classmates that is doing some traveling on his own. Small world!Dad would be proud of me for what we did Saturday night- we went to a classical concert! He loves classical music and I have always given him a hard time for it. I’m not sure why- more Wikipedia research to be done- but classical seems to be a big thing here in Prague. The concert was in a beautiful building called Semanta (Municipal) Hall. I don’t really have anything to compare it to, but it was a nice way to spend a chilly evening and we left the place feeling pretty classy. After the concert we got a few drinks and headed back to the hotel.
Another thing we’ve noticed about Prague is how rude the people can be. I don’t know if we’ve just had bad luck or if that’s their culture. Even the service at our nice hotel was rude. People have not been willing to help or answer our questions like in the other countries we’ve visited. Also, again not sure if this is bad luck or culture, but three times we have tried to order something that is on the menu and they say they don’t have it. Not “I’m sorry, we’re out,” or any other explanation, just “We don’t have that.” Well why the heck is it on the menu then?? There are also more bums than in other places, though not as many as you might expect in a big city. And they are pushy! After the concert we were enjoying some wine on a little courtyard terrace that was separated from the sidewalk by a flower garden. A bum who reeked of alcohol reached his hand over the flowers and begged for money. I like to think that I have a heart for homeless, but I realize the best way to help them is by supporting programs that support them, not by giving them money. It’s a little scary when they’re so pushy. That was a lot of complaining sorry, we really did like Prague, but it was a lot different than Germany.This is getting long so I am going to cut myself off. Shout-out to my parents for celebrating their 28th wedding anniversary yesterday, and hope you feel better soon Daddy-O!
Friday, June 5, 2009
PS
Chris, Sean- We went on the school part of our trip with a guy named Stephen Knutter who went to school with you guys. He was pretty excited to find out we were all related.
Prague
We’re in Prague. We checked into our hotel with no issues. It is a very nice hotel; I got a steal on Priceline. The problem with nice hotels is that they charge for things that are normally free at less nice hotels. For example, internet is $25 for 24 hours. So now we are at a restaurant with cheap wifi waiting for lunch. Be patient if I don’t get to update tomorrow.
Prague is in the Czech Republic. Although CR is a member of the EU, they use their own currency and do not accept Euros at some places. Switzerland was similar, they are not a member of the EU and only use Swiss Francs. They have their own currency, which is really annoying when you’re only in the country for a couple days. You end up with all this money that isn’t good anywhere else. In Switzerland it was pretty easy to figure out the exchange rate, because 1 Swiss Franc roughly equals 1 US Dollar. Not so easy in Czech. To find US dollars we have to divide the Czech price (I’m not even sure what their currency is called) by 19.8 or something crazy. And that’s not all there is to it. They say a price in Czech currency, you ask them how much that is in Euros and if they take Euros, they usually say yes, you pay Euros, and then they give you your change in Czech currency. It can get pretty confusing and you have to trust that they are charging you the right amounts and giving you the right amount of change.
The other thing unique about the Czech Republic is that they speak Czech, not German like all the other places we’ve visited. In Switzerland, they actually speak 4 languages, but predominately German. We have a little German phrase book and are fairly comfortable with basic expressions, but guess how many Czech words we speak? Zero. Our first impression is that most people here speak English, and I hope that holds true.
Tonight we are taking a river boat dinner cruise. No plans for tomorrow; we’ll figure it out in the morning. Maybe a walking tour to learn about the history of the town. It’s supposed to be the “most beautiful town in the world”….I don’t know who that is according to, but have heard it several times. I’ll make sure to post some pictures on my next post; I feel like I’ve been slacking in that area lately. Have a good weekend, can’t wait to see everyone again soon!
Prague is in the Czech Republic. Although CR is a member of the EU, they use their own currency and do not accept Euros at some places. Switzerland was similar, they are not a member of the EU and only use Swiss Francs. They have their own currency, which is really annoying when you’re only in the country for a couple days. You end up with all this money that isn’t good anywhere else. In Switzerland it was pretty easy to figure out the exchange rate, because 1 Swiss Franc roughly equals 1 US Dollar. Not so easy in Czech. To find US dollars we have to divide the Czech price (I’m not even sure what their currency is called) by 19.8 or something crazy. And that’s not all there is to it. They say a price in Czech currency, you ask them how much that is in Euros and if they take Euros, they usually say yes, you pay Euros, and then they give you your change in Czech currency. It can get pretty confusing and you have to trust that they are charging you the right amounts and giving you the right amount of change.
The other thing unique about the Czech Republic is that they speak Czech, not German like all the other places we’ve visited. In Switzerland, they actually speak 4 languages, but predominately German. We have a little German phrase book and are fairly comfortable with basic expressions, but guess how many Czech words we speak? Zero. Our first impression is that most people here speak English, and I hope that holds true.
Tonight we are taking a river boat dinner cruise. No plans for tomorrow; we’ll figure it out in the morning. Maybe a walking tour to learn about the history of the town. It’s supposed to be the “most beautiful town in the world”….I don’t know who that is according to, but have heard it several times. I’ll make sure to post some pictures on my next post; I feel like I’ve been slacking in that area lately. Have a good weekend, can’t wait to see everyone again soon!
Train Woes
A note about the overnight train, which we are still on….
I forgot to tell you about my suitcase. I love my suitcase. It was a undergrad graduation gift. It has four wheels so I can pull it like a normal suitcase, or I can pull it sideways. It’s great.
Well, on the way here, one of the wheels broke off. I didn’t even notice; somebody following me out of the plane told me about it. Down to three wheels. At the airport I went to the bathroom, and when I came back Mark had ripped off another wheel for some completely un-understandable reason. Two wheels. This is sort of annoying, but not a huge deal. I can still pull it like a normal suitcase, it just doesn’t stand up on its own- I have to lean it on something. Well, yesterday in Baden-Baden I was a little rough with it, and one of the remaining wheels popped off. So now my poor little suitcase only has one wheel. Which means poor little me has to carry it everywhere. It’s not super heavy- maybe 40 pounds or so- but after awhile it does get to be heavy, and it’s definitely uncomfortable to carry, especially when you only have a few minutes to catch the train. And you have other bags you’re lugging around, and a husband too.
The trains are, for the most part, easy to figure out. They only stop at most stations for a couple of minutes, and once the doors shut there is no reopening them- if you miss it, you are out of luck. We were waiting for the train last night after I posted- we gave ourselves PLENTY of time since it was our first overnight train and we weren’t sure what to expect. We had assigned beds and weren’t sure how to find them. The trains are unbelievably punctual here, and it was one minute before our train was due to leave and it was nowhere to be found. We were getting a little worried. Also, the electronic signs at the stations usually say the trains ultimate destination. This sign had two- Prague, where we were going, and also Berlin. No clue what that’s about.
The train gets there and we rush to get on. Our assigned car is 266 and we boarded on car 277. As we go towards the front of the train, the numbers decrease, so that’s where he headed. This is annoying. You are walking down narrow aisles full of sleeping people, me while carrying my suitcase, all while the train jostles you about like a drunkard. Well we get to car 270 and that’s it- the front of the train. No where else to go. We then notice all these signs that say stuff about Berlin. At this point I had, as Mark stated it, worked myself into a frenzy. I was not happy and was convinced we were on the wrong train. This would be an absolute disaster and would totally ruin our next day.
Mark left me there with the baggage while he went to find the conductor. He eventually came back and said that the train would be splitting at some point in the night, and that the cars towards the back of the train would be going to Prague. Mark and I jumped off at the next stop and started running towards the back, but I got nervous that the train would leave without us, so I made us get back on to find our seats. Annoying again. We eventually did find our car and our beds. After we learned how to lock up our luggage, all was good. We climbed into our beds- they are tight, six in a room- but comfortable. Our stranger roommates were quiet and did not give us any problems. We both got a good night’s sleep and are now looking forward to a day in Prague. And to getting off the smelly train.
I forgot to tell you about my suitcase. I love my suitcase. It was a undergrad graduation gift. It has four wheels so I can pull it like a normal suitcase, or I can pull it sideways. It’s great.
Well, on the way here, one of the wheels broke off. I didn’t even notice; somebody following me out of the plane told me about it. Down to three wheels. At the airport I went to the bathroom, and when I came back Mark had ripped off another wheel for some completely un-understandable reason. Two wheels. This is sort of annoying, but not a huge deal. I can still pull it like a normal suitcase, it just doesn’t stand up on its own- I have to lean it on something. Well, yesterday in Baden-Baden I was a little rough with it, and one of the remaining wheels popped off. So now my poor little suitcase only has one wheel. Which means poor little me has to carry it everywhere. It’s not super heavy- maybe 40 pounds or so- but after awhile it does get to be heavy, and it’s definitely uncomfortable to carry, especially when you only have a few minutes to catch the train. And you have other bags you’re lugging around, and a husband too.
The trains are, for the most part, easy to figure out. They only stop at most stations for a couple of minutes, and once the doors shut there is no reopening them- if you miss it, you are out of luck. We were waiting for the train last night after I posted- we gave ourselves PLENTY of time since it was our first overnight train and we weren’t sure what to expect. We had assigned beds and weren’t sure how to find them. The trains are unbelievably punctual here, and it was one minute before our train was due to leave and it was nowhere to be found. We were getting a little worried. Also, the electronic signs at the stations usually say the trains ultimate destination. This sign had two- Prague, where we were going, and also Berlin. No clue what that’s about.
The train gets there and we rush to get on. Our assigned car is 266 and we boarded on car 277. As we go towards the front of the train, the numbers decrease, so that’s where he headed. This is annoying. You are walking down narrow aisles full of sleeping people, me while carrying my suitcase, all while the train jostles you about like a drunkard. Well we get to car 270 and that’s it- the front of the train. No where else to go. We then notice all these signs that say stuff about Berlin. At this point I had, as Mark stated it, worked myself into a frenzy. I was not happy and was convinced we were on the wrong train. This would be an absolute disaster and would totally ruin our next day.
Mark left me there with the baggage while he went to find the conductor. He eventually came back and said that the train would be splitting at some point in the night, and that the cars towards the back of the train would be going to Prague. Mark and I jumped off at the next stop and started running towards the back, but I got nervous that the train would leave without us, so I made us get back on to find our seats. Annoying again. We eventually did find our car and our beds. After we learned how to lock up our luggage, all was good. We climbed into our beds- they are tight, six in a room- but comfortable. Our stranger roommates were quiet and did not give us any problems. We both got a good night’s sleep and are now looking forward to a day in Prague. And to getting off the smelly train.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Heidelberg
It’s currently about 10:30 in Germany and we are sitting at an Internet Café in the train station, waiting for our train. We are taking an overnight train to Prague- it is close to an 11 hour train ride. We paid about $50 to get beds- we figured it is cheaper than a hotel and will allow us to actually get some sleep. We’re excited and anxious to see how the overnight trains work- hopefully we get a good nights sleep. There could be up to four other people in our cabin so it could be tight.
This morning we woke up in Baden-Baden, had breakfast at the hotel, and checked our bags with the front desk. We then went to the ‘fun” bathhouse. We paid for our tickets, changed into our suits, and then entered the bath. The first floor had a lazy river, indoor/outdoor pools, heat lamps, a cold plunge, a aromatherapy steamroom, a waterfall you could stand under, etc. The second floor was nude and had foot baths, Jacuzzis, saunas, etc. The average age of the place was about 65 so we saw a lot of saggy boobs. It was fun, but not nearly as relaxing as the one we went to yesterday. Also, you were free to go where you wanted to, compared to yesterday where we had a routine. We liked having a routine; it gave some rhyme and reason to what we were doing. We left about 1:00 and had lunch at the Baden-Baden train stop.
We then took the train to Heidelberg, which is only about an hour away. Heidelberg is a big college town. I was excited about Heidelberg- there's a restaurant in Columbia, our college town, called Heidelberg- but we did very little research on the town and weren’t sure what to do. We got a map and some information from the tourist center and then headed off into the old town. There are lots of shops and restaurants on the cobblestone streets. We shopped for awhile (Kaydee, I got you something I think you’ll like…) and then headed across the river that divides the town. They have a steep hike to a lookout point over the town. It was pretty, but we are becoming a little bit of view snobs- we have seen so many pretty views lately that it is becoming hard to impress us.
After that we went back to the Old Town and did a little self-guided pub crawl. We went to several local places, including Hard Rock Café, and just got one drink at each place. We had dinner at a little Irish Pub. It was a good time, but definitely would have been better if we had done our research beforehand.
So, sort of a boring day. We have two days in Prague and then three days in Berlin, and then back to Kansas City! I read about the Air France flight last night- haven’t really been following the news- and am a little freaked out about flying internationally. That’s scary stuff. More tomorrow!
This morning we woke up in Baden-Baden, had breakfast at the hotel, and checked our bags with the front desk. We then went to the ‘fun” bathhouse. We paid for our tickets, changed into our suits, and then entered the bath. The first floor had a lazy river, indoor/outdoor pools, heat lamps, a cold plunge, a aromatherapy steamroom, a waterfall you could stand under, etc. The second floor was nude and had foot baths, Jacuzzis, saunas, etc. The average age of the place was about 65 so we saw a lot of saggy boobs. It was fun, but not nearly as relaxing as the one we went to yesterday. Also, you were free to go where you wanted to, compared to yesterday where we had a routine. We liked having a routine; it gave some rhyme and reason to what we were doing. We left about 1:00 and had lunch at the Baden-Baden train stop.
We then took the train to Heidelberg, which is only about an hour away. Heidelberg is a big college town. I was excited about Heidelberg- there's a restaurant in Columbia, our college town, called Heidelberg- but we did very little research on the town and weren’t sure what to do. We got a map and some information from the tourist center and then headed off into the old town. There are lots of shops and restaurants on the cobblestone streets. We shopped for awhile (Kaydee, I got you something I think you’ll like…) and then headed across the river that divides the town. They have a steep hike to a lookout point over the town. It was pretty, but we are becoming a little bit of view snobs- we have seen so many pretty views lately that it is becoming hard to impress us.
After that we went back to the Old Town and did a little self-guided pub crawl. We went to several local places, including Hard Rock Café, and just got one drink at each place. We had dinner at a little Irish Pub. It was a good time, but definitely would have been better if we had done our research beforehand. So, sort of a boring day. We have two days in Prague and then three days in Berlin, and then back to Kansas City! I read about the Air France flight last night- haven’t really been following the news- and am a little freaked out about flying internationally. That’s scary stuff. More tomorrow!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
No Time for Modesty
We checked out of our hostel around 8:00 this morning and hopped on a train for a 4 hour ride to Baden-Baden. Baden-Baden is a small town (about 50,000 people) that we learned about from Rick Steves. It is known for its large, historic casino and for its spa bath houses. Neither Mark or I are into gambling so we focused on the bath houses.
When we got to the town, Mark and I got separated- I say he wondered off, but he would tell you that I did. I ended up finding our hotel and checking in; then set off to find him. After close to an hour of being separated I finally spotted him sitting on a bench. It’s tough without cell phones! Mark had lunch at a local place and I had McDonalds. One thing I’ve been meaning to type is how prevalent Burger King is over here. There are also a lot of McDonalds and Subways. The other US chain that we’ve seen quite a bit of is Claires, the teenage jewelry store. I had no idea they had an international presence.
After lunch we took the self-guided tour in my guidebook. Then we drank a little liquid courage to prepare for the baths.
So here’s the thing about the baths…if you only know me professionally you can stop reading now. They are in the nude. Totally in the nude. I was so nervous about this….definitely not a comfortable feeling for me….hence the need for some liquid courage. We figured "When in Rome...".....right??
We got there, bought our tickets, and stripped down. Boys and girls are separate for most of the time so I was by myself. I wondered around naked for awhile until a nice (fully clothed) lady led me the right way. You take a nice shower and then sit in a sauna. Just when I thought I was so hot I couldn’t handle it anymore, I went into the next room- it was an even hotter sauna!!! I didn’t stay in there long. Then I got a short (10 minute) massage with a soap brush- heavenly. The next 10 rooms were all pools of some sort….some hot, some cold. Some with jets, others just peaceful. Two of the rooms were with the guys…kinda weird. But after awhile you stop thinking about it. It’s funny how the attitude towards nudity differs between Americans and Europeans.
After those rooms, I went to the lotion room and covered myself with the stuff. Then I went to this room where they swaddle you like an infant. You lay there in your little cocoon, completely relaxed, very soft music playing in the background. You are so relaxed at this point. I feel completely asleep and didn’t wake up until some lady came in and started rubbing my legs. Our friend Larry always talks about being “zen” and that’s exactly how I felt- totally, completely Zen. That’s pretty much it- the whole thing takes about 3 hours.
Baden-Baden is known for this…it used to be where all the rich and famous people would come to relax and gamble. Today it’s pretty touristy, although many locals still frequent the spas. No pictures today…I’ll spare you that. J
Tomorrow is a pretty free day. They have another, non-nude bath that we may check out. It’s supposed to be less relaxing but more fun. At some point we will take the train to Heidelberg and spend the day there. It’s doubtful I will have internet access tomorrow night- we are taking the overnight train to Prague (this is a change of plans- we originally planned to stay in Heidelberg). So tomorrow day Heidelberg, tomorrow night train, and Friday in Prague! Can’t wait!
When we got to the town, Mark and I got separated- I say he wondered off, but he would tell you that I did. I ended up finding our hotel and checking in; then set off to find him. After close to an hour of being separated I finally spotted him sitting on a bench. It’s tough without cell phones! Mark had lunch at a local place and I had McDonalds. One thing I’ve been meaning to type is how prevalent Burger King is over here. There are also a lot of McDonalds and Subways. The other US chain that we’ve seen quite a bit of is Claires, the teenage jewelry store. I had no idea they had an international presence.
After lunch we took the self-guided tour in my guidebook. Then we drank a little liquid courage to prepare for the baths.
So here’s the thing about the baths…if you only know me professionally you can stop reading now. They are in the nude. Totally in the nude. I was so nervous about this….definitely not a comfortable feeling for me….hence the need for some liquid courage. We figured "When in Rome...".....right??
We got there, bought our tickets, and stripped down. Boys and girls are separate for most of the time so I was by myself. I wondered around naked for awhile until a nice (fully clothed) lady led me the right way. You take a nice shower and then sit in a sauna. Just when I thought I was so hot I couldn’t handle it anymore, I went into the next room- it was an even hotter sauna!!! I didn’t stay in there long. Then I got a short (10 minute) massage with a soap brush- heavenly. The next 10 rooms were all pools of some sort….some hot, some cold. Some with jets, others just peaceful. Two of the rooms were with the guys…kinda weird. But after awhile you stop thinking about it. It’s funny how the attitude towards nudity differs between Americans and Europeans.
After those rooms, I went to the lotion room and covered myself with the stuff. Then I went to this room where they swaddle you like an infant. You lay there in your little cocoon, completely relaxed, very soft music playing in the background. You are so relaxed at this point. I feel completely asleep and didn’t wake up until some lady came in and started rubbing my legs. Our friend Larry always talks about being “zen” and that’s exactly how I felt- totally, completely Zen. That’s pretty much it- the whole thing takes about 3 hours.
Baden-Baden is known for this…it used to be where all the rich and famous people would come to relax and gamble. Today it’s pretty touristy, although many locals still frequent the spas. No pictures today…I’ll spare you that. J
Tomorrow is a pretty free day. They have another, non-nude bath that we may check out. It’s supposed to be less relaxing but more fun. At some point we will take the train to Heidelberg and spend the day there. It’s doubtful I will have internet access tomorrow night- we are taking the overnight train to Prague (this is a change of plans- we originally planned to stay in Heidelberg). So tomorrow day Heidelberg, tomorrow night train, and Friday in Prague! Can’t wait!
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Cliff Jumping and More
Okay, first things first before we get to the exciting stuff.
Woke up this morning in Interlaken, Switzerland. Here is a picture of our hostel…the bar downstairs:
And our room:
We sort of already knew this, but we have learned that Switzerland is VERY expensive. VERY. As in, we were going to go to this Mexican place for lunch but one quesadilla was over $20. We went to McDonalds instead- We both got fries, I got a hamburger, Mark got 2 cheeseburgers and a drink….and it was $20. Not exaggerating. The Swiss are very proud of their products- their cheese, chocolate, watches, and army knives and other outdoor gear. We have seen lots of Swiss flags (which is in sharp contrast to Germany, who is not very patriotic because of the weapon national patriotism was once used as) and many signs advertise “Swiss made.”
This morning I woke up before Mark to souvenir shop. I was feeling brave, so I stopped by the hotel desk to sign us up for our adventures. They have everything here…skydiving, hang gliding, bungee jumping, etc. But more about that in a second. After souvenir shopping we walked around town. We stumbled across a little chocolate bar- I was in heaven! We selected about 9 pieces of mouth-watering chocolate and got it in a to-go bag. We took it to a place we had seen earlier that was a wide-open green space. We thought it was probably a park, but when we got close we noticed it was roped off and thought that was strange. We sat on a bench facing the green area with the mountains behind it and thought about how lucky we are to be here- then all these parachuters started falling from the sky! It was a parachute landing area! We watched about a dozen people land as we ate our chocolate.
As I’ve mentioned before, Interlaken is a small town (<6,000 residents), but is well-known for two things- Extreme sports and the mountain Jungfrau, which I believe is the highest point in Europe. We didn’t have enough time to do Jungfrau so we concentrated on the extreme sports. After lunch it was time to go…and I was scared to death.
The first thing we did was something called canyoning, which I had never heard of before. You put on all this gear- two wetsuits, water sock/shoe things, a lifevest, a helmet, and a harness with a plastic tarp thing over your butt. They drive you up in the Alps, and you hike 10 minutes to reach a BEAUTIFUL natural water source. The water goes all the way down the mountain running over rocks, around corners, and creating waterfalls. Then we got into the water to get back down the mountain. At times we repealed, other times we laid on our backs in the water and let the current carry us around twists and turns. Other times we walked under giant waterfalls, slid on our butts down rocks, or jumped sideways off a rock into a small pool. We even went down natural waterfalls backwards. It was so cool! Because we were in the water, we could not take pictures, but we did buy some from the tour company. They were actually a reasonable price. However, they gave us a CD of all the pictures and this computer does not have a CD drive, so I’m pretty bummed that I can’t look at them, let alone post them, yet.
After that it was time to do the REALLY SCARY one- something called canyon jumping. If you didn't see the video from my first post today, watch it....I swear, you have to be insane to do this. I was so scared. They drive you 30 minutes up a mountain to get to this huge natural canyon with a river rushing below it. Then you go out on this little platform, attached only to a rope, and jump. You free fall 150 feet, stopping 10-15 feet above the river. Then you swing. You miss one of the canyon walls by only 10 feet. Did I say I was scared? 
This is what it looks like from the top:
Before I went:
That little black dot is me! So fun!
Today was a great day. Not sure what we will do tonight since things close early and are expensive. I haven’t been too impressed with the actual town of Interlaken, but we did have an amazing time here. I’m also very excited about what we have planned tomorrow, but you’ll have to read again to find out. Cheers!!
Woke up this morning in Interlaken, Switzerland. Here is a picture of our hostel…the bar downstairs:
And our room:
We sort of already knew this, but we have learned that Switzerland is VERY expensive. VERY. As in, we were going to go to this Mexican place for lunch but one quesadilla was over $20. We went to McDonalds instead- We both got fries, I got a hamburger, Mark got 2 cheeseburgers and a drink….and it was $20. Not exaggerating. The Swiss are very proud of their products- their cheese, chocolate, watches, and army knives and other outdoor gear. We have seen lots of Swiss flags (which is in sharp contrast to Germany, who is not very patriotic because of the weapon national patriotism was once used as) and many signs advertise “Swiss made.” This morning I woke up before Mark to souvenir shop. I was feeling brave, so I stopped by the hotel desk to sign us up for our adventures. They have everything here…skydiving, hang gliding, bungee jumping, etc. But more about that in a second. After souvenir shopping we walked around town. We stumbled across a little chocolate bar- I was in heaven! We selected about 9 pieces of mouth-watering chocolate and got it in a to-go bag. We took it to a place we had seen earlier that was a wide-open green space. We thought it was probably a park, but when we got close we noticed it was roped off and thought that was strange. We sat on a bench facing the green area with the mountains behind it and thought about how lucky we are to be here- then all these parachuters started falling from the sky! It was a parachute landing area! We watched about a dozen people land as we ate our chocolate.
As I’ve mentioned before, Interlaken is a small town (<6,000 residents), but is well-known for two things- Extreme sports and the mountain Jungfrau, which I believe is the highest point in Europe. We didn’t have enough time to do Jungfrau so we concentrated on the extreme sports. After lunch it was time to go…and I was scared to death.
The first thing we did was something called canyoning, which I had never heard of before. You put on all this gear- two wetsuits, water sock/shoe things, a lifevest, a helmet, and a harness with a plastic tarp thing over your butt. They drive you up in the Alps, and you hike 10 minutes to reach a BEAUTIFUL natural water source. The water goes all the way down the mountain running over rocks, around corners, and creating waterfalls. Then we got into the water to get back down the mountain. At times we repealed, other times we laid on our backs in the water and let the current carry us around twists and turns. Other times we walked under giant waterfalls, slid on our butts down rocks, or jumped sideways off a rock into a small pool. We even went down natural waterfalls backwards. It was so cool! Because we were in the water, we could not take pictures, but we did buy some from the tour company. They were actually a reasonable price. However, they gave us a CD of all the pictures and this computer does not have a CD drive, so I’m pretty bummed that I can’t look at them, let alone post them, yet.
After that it was time to do the REALLY SCARY one- something called canyon jumping. If you didn't see the video from my first post today, watch it....I swear, you have to be insane to do this. I was so scared. They drive you 30 minutes up a mountain to get to this huge natural canyon with a river rushing below it. Then you go out on this little platform, attached only to a rope, and jump. You free fall 150 feet, stopping 10-15 feet above the river. Then you swing. You miss one of the canyon walls by only 10 feet. Did I say I was scared? Mark jumped before me, and he lived. He’s scared of heights so I was very proud of him. Then a few other people went….and then it was my turn. After a little encouraging I jumped off the platform and started falling…and falling….and falling. I wondered if people who commit suicide by jumping off things have second thoughts when they’re on the way down. I couldn’t believe I was still falling, so I just shut my eyes and screamed. Eventually I reached the end of the fall and started swinging between the canyon walls like Tarzan. What a rush!!!
See that platform at the very top? That's what we jumped off of.
This is what it looks like from the top:
Before I went:
That little black dot is me! So fun!
Today was a great day. Not sure what we will do tonight since things close early and are expensive. I haven’t been too impressed with the actual town of Interlaken, but we did have an amazing time here. I’m also very excited about what we have planned tomorrow, but you’ll have to read again to find out. Cheers!!Today Could Be My Last Day on Earth
Moms, Dads, Siblings....At 9:00 AM your time, we will be jumping off a cliff and swinging through a canyon. To view what we will be doing, watch this video (It has sound).
I am terrified. If we don't make it, we love you.
I am terrified. If we don't make it, we love you.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Trains and Mountains
I can’t believe it’s June already! We are halfway through our trip…woke up really missing my family, friends, and dogs.
We slept in Munich last night, and left about 8:30 this morning for Innsbruck, Austria. Our classmates went back to Munich, but Mark and I are continuing on our own from here, so we packed our bags this morning and brought them to Innsbruck with us. We put them in a locker at the Innsbruck train station so we wouldn’t have to carry them around all day.
Innsbruck is known for being a winter sports town. Its nickname is the Capital of the Alps. The Winter Olympics have been held here twice. As you can imagine, it is very beautiful.
Since we were leaving early, we didn’t have much time- we basically popped in and out. We took the bus to a cable car lift and rode the car up the mountain. We thought the cable cars might hold four or so people, but it is more like thirty. We took the cable car to the midway point and briefly looked around- we were more rushed than the class since our train left early.
As we were looking around, I noticed Mark wasn’t wearing the bag he had been this morning- the bag he left in Salzburg on Friday that still had our passports in it...so I asked him where it was. His eyes got really big and he quickly turned on his heel and took off in a sprint. Hahaha! Luckily they took it off the cable car and the guard had it, so it was no problem. I'm happy to say that the passports are now in my bag.
We went as high as the cable cars would take us, and then took a very short hike to the summit. As we rounded a corner on our hike, we came across some wild sheep/goat/llama things! Haha, I don’t know what they actually were, but it was magical to come across these animals. WE CAME ACROSS WILD ANIMALS IN THE ALPS!!!!! How often does that happen?? It was almost unreal. They were tagged so they must be tracked somehow, but I have to think they’re wild- who would farm animals at the top of the Alps? One was very friendly and came right up to me, but he was the only one who liked me. It was an awesome moment; one of my favorite on the trip so far.
From there we continued on, mostly just taking in the views. It was so beautiful. I wish I had a panoramic camera to capture it better. The summit we hiked had a cross at the very top. I have no idea why it was there or what it was from, but it was very cool. And appropriate- I can’t help but praise God at moments like this. I can feel His power and majesty and feel how very very small I am. Here’s a picture of the cross from the top and from a few hundred feet down. 
We slept in Munich last night, and left about 8:30 this morning for Innsbruck, Austria. Our classmates went back to Munich, but Mark and I are continuing on our own from here, so we packed our bags this morning and brought them to Innsbruck with us. We put them in a locker at the Innsbruck train station so we wouldn’t have to carry them around all day.
Innsbruck is known for being a winter sports town. Its nickname is the Capital of the Alps. The Winter Olympics have been held here twice. As you can imagine, it is very beautiful.
Since we were leaving early, we didn’t have much time- we basically popped in and out. We took the bus to a cable car lift and rode the car up the mountain. We thought the cable cars might hold four or so people, but it is more like thirty. We took the cable car to the midway point and briefly looked around- we were more rushed than the class since our train left early.
As we were looking around, I noticed Mark wasn’t wearing the bag he had been this morning- the bag he left in Salzburg on Friday that still had our passports in it...so I asked him where it was. His eyes got really big and he quickly turned on his heel and took off in a sprint. Hahaha! Luckily they took it off the cable car and the guard had it, so it was no problem. I'm happy to say that the passports are now in my bag.
We went as high as the cable cars would take us, and then took a very short hike to the summit. As we rounded a corner on our hike, we came across some wild sheep/goat/llama things! Haha, I don’t know what they actually were, but it was magical to come across these animals. WE CAME ACROSS WILD ANIMALS IN THE ALPS!!!!! How often does that happen?? It was almost unreal. They were tagged so they must be tracked somehow, but I have to think they’re wild- who would farm animals at the top of the Alps? One was very friendly and came right up to me, but he was the only one who liked me. It was an awesome moment; one of my favorite on the trip so far.
From there we continued on, mostly just taking in the views. It was so beautiful. I wish I had a panoramic camera to capture it better. The summit we hiked had a cross at the very top. I have no idea why it was there or what it was from, but it was very cool. And appropriate- I can’t help but praise God at moments like this. I can feel His power and majesty and feel how very very small I am. Here’s a picture of the cross from the top and from a few hundred feet down.
And some pictures of the beautiful Alps, including my signature handstand pic:
Throughout our trip, we have often relied on friendly strangers to help us out. We have been impressed by how eager to help most people have been, sometimes without us even asking. We know very little German- we can say ‘Can you speak English?’,’ We don’t speak German’, ‘please’, ‘thank you’, etc. Something funny happened today. We were taking the bus from the mountain to the train station. We knew we had a connection but weren’t sure where it was, and the driver spoke very little English. Another passenger was going the same place we were, but he also spoke very little English. He managed to lead us there using a few common words and lots of gestures. We were very thankful for his help, so as we were departing I gave him a big wave and heartfelt “Bitte!!!”, thinking I was telling him thank you….as he walked away I realized I just told him Please!!, or You’re Welcome!!! (they use the same word for both)....pretty embarrassing.
Now we are on a train on our way to Interlaken, Switzerland. It’s a 6 hour train ride with 3 changes- not so fun. We’re trying to make the best of it- we bought snacks and drinks at the last station. We have first class tickets…long story, but I thought we were required to buy them and now I’m not so sure….but the first class cars are nice so I’m not complaining. We have a private room with a door, the seats lay down, we can control the temperature, and we have outlets- none of these are available in the normal cars we’ve been using up to now. Here’s Mark:
And me, writing this very post!
It’s currently 5:40 Germany time, 10:40 Kansas City time. I won’t be able to post this for several hours…we don’t get to Interlaken until close to midnight Germany time, 5:00 KC time. We are staying in a hostel for the first time and I am excited/nervous about that. We will be there for two nights. Interlaken is one of the stops I am most looking forward to…it’s known for extreme sports! More about that tomorrow….
Update: It’s now 5:45 KC time, 12:45 Germany time. We’ve checked into our hostel. It’s interesting…it’s pretty much just a bar downstairs, and then you walk upstairs to your room. I think it has 15 rooms total. Hostels often have shared rooms, with anywhere from 4-16 to a room, but we have a private room. We have a sink in our room but not a bathroom. The bathrooms are private- each one has a toilet, sink, and shower- but they are shared by everyone on the floor. Anyway, tomorrow should be a fun day….no idea what we will do, but I’m trying to talk Mark into jumping off a cliff. I’ll let you know.
Throughout our trip, we have often relied on friendly strangers to help us out. We have been impressed by how eager to help most people have been, sometimes without us even asking. We know very little German- we can say ‘Can you speak English?’,’ We don’t speak German’, ‘please’, ‘thank you’, etc. Something funny happened today. We were taking the bus from the mountain to the train station. We knew we had a connection but weren’t sure where it was, and the driver spoke very little English. Another passenger was going the same place we were, but he also spoke very little English. He managed to lead us there using a few common words and lots of gestures. We were very thankful for his help, so as we were departing I gave him a big wave and heartfelt “Bitte!!!”, thinking I was telling him thank you….as he walked away I realized I just told him Please!!, or You’re Welcome!!! (they use the same word for both)....pretty embarrassing.Now we are on a train on our way to Interlaken, Switzerland. It’s a 6 hour train ride with 3 changes- not so fun. We’re trying to make the best of it- we bought snacks and drinks at the last station. We have first class tickets…long story, but I thought we were required to buy them and now I’m not so sure….but the first class cars are nice so I’m not complaining. We have a private room with a door, the seats lay down, we can control the temperature, and we have outlets- none of these are available in the normal cars we’ve been using up to now. Here’s Mark:
And me, writing this very post!
It’s currently 5:40 Germany time, 10:40 Kansas City time. I won’t be able to post this for several hours…we don’t get to Interlaken until close to midnight Germany time, 5:00 KC time. We are staying in a hostel for the first time and I am excited/nervous about that. We will be there for two nights. Interlaken is one of the stops I am most looking forward to…it’s known for extreme sports! More about that tomorrow….Update: It’s now 5:45 KC time, 12:45 Germany time. We’ve checked into our hostel. It’s interesting…it’s pretty much just a bar downstairs, and then you walk upstairs to your room. I think it has 15 rooms total. Hostels often have shared rooms, with anywhere from 4-16 to a room, but we have a private room. We have a sink in our room but not a bathroom. The bathrooms are private- each one has a toilet, sink, and shower- but they are shared by everyone on the floor. Anyway, tomorrow should be a fun day….no idea what we will do, but I’m trying to talk Mark into jumping off a cliff. I’ll let you know.
Quite the Weekend
A lot has happened since I last wrote! Remember how I came home from the beer garden early and Mark stayed? Well I had a nice night that night….I updated this journal, packed up a few things, and then went to relax in the sauna. I got hot in the sauna so was laying out reading when Mark walks in. He says “Do you have our bag?!” I didn’t. I had left it at the beer garden with Mark. The bag has our passports, Mark’s MP3 player, and Mark’s Kindle. Luckily no money. Mark thought he had left it in the cab on the way to the train. After about 3 heart-pounding hours with the help from our professor’s wife and the nice hotel clerk, we located the bag with a cab company in Salzburg.
Now we had to figure out how to get this stuff back- we were due to leave early the next morning with our classmates. Our professor encouraged us to get the stuff immediately. We left even earlier on our own, took a 1.5 hour train to Salzburg, got a $80 ticket on the train because our train pass was only valid for the 2 hour train, got to Salzburg, met someone who noticed my Mizzou luggage tag and was also from Missouri, encountered a rude cab driver who refused to take us to the police station where our bag was, managed to get to the station anyway, rushed back to catch the train to Munich, and finally made it back to our starting point. Then we grabbed a quick lunch and hopped on a 3.5 hour train to Rothenburg to meet our classmates. We had to change trains twice on this journey, with only 5 minutes in between each. Stressful day. 7 hours on a train before 4:00, but having our passports and electronics back was priceless. Lesson learned: Don’t leave Mark in charge of our bags.
All of the stress melted away as we arrived in Rothenburg. Cutest. Town. Ever. This town oozed charm. Rothenburg is the main stop on a path known as the “Romantic Road.” It was indeed romantic.
Rothenburg was once one of Germany’s largest cities. The city’s heyday was from 1150 to 1400. It’s protected by a wall that goes all the way around the city. In the 1600s, the city suffered damage in the 30 year war and slipped into poverty. Unable to rebuild, the city is preserved as a true medieval town. The streets are all cobblestone. The houses are a scene from a picture book. Entering the gates, you feel yourself taking a step back in time.
We started by checking into our hotel. The city has no chains of anything- stores, restaurants, hotels…so ours was family-run, just like all of them are. It was adorable. It has 70 rooms so it is a legitimate hotel, but it felt more like a bed and breakfast. I was unable to get a picture that captured the room, but I did take this one out of our window:
We then set off to explore the town. Grandma gave me a Rick Steves guidebook that has proved quite handy. We did the self-guided tour from the book and learned about the history of the town. We learned, for example, that there used to be a moat leading up to the castle (which was destroyed and not rebuilt) and the wall. The door from that moat remains today. At that time, they had a curfew for all of their citizens to return inside the towns walls. If you missed curfew, you could still enter- but you had to pay a fine. Here’s me trying to fit into that 700-year-old hole:
Last night we met up with our classmates for the Night Watchman’s Tour. This guy gives the tour every night, and it’s very popular. Rick Steves calls him the medieval Jerry Seinfeld. We laughed a lot and learned little trinkets of knowledge, like that the word “salary” comes from the word salt, because it was once so valuable that it was used as currency. Notice how cute the row of houses behind him are- the entire town is like this.
Today we had breakfast with our classmates and then hit the town. We went through the Crime and Punishment Museum, where we learned about ancient torture techniques. It was pretty dangerous to be a baker those days. Bread was a very important food, and if you messed it up, you could be put in a box and dipped in cold water. If you did something shameful, you had to wear a “shame mask” that made your sin obvious- for example, if you were gossipy, you had to wear a mask with big ears and a long tongue. Another way they punished people was by having them sit in the town center and putting their feet through this thing so that they couldn’t move. Anyone that walked by could tickle your feet, and sometimes they would put sugar on your feet for the goats to lick off. And if you created a drunken disturbance, you would be put in a cage in town center so that everyone could laugh at you. The museum was educational and fun.
We grabbed a delicious Italian lunch and then set off to look at the wall. It’s pretty cool; you can climb up the steps and walk around the perimeter of it, and you can climb up the towers and look at the villages below. Here’s a view of how the wall looks:
And here’s Mark sitting on a low part of the wall- it’s actually about 20 feet tall, but it’s built on a hill:
After this we walked around until it was time to leave. The thing that makes Rothenburg so great are the small things you come across like old people in love:
And random parks overlooking the villages:
We fell in love in Rothenburg- with the town and a little more with each other.
Tomorrow we go to Innsbruck in Austria- the Winter Olympics have been held here twice. Then we leave the class and go on our own to Interlaken, Switzerland. It’s finally starting to feel more like vacation and less like work/school!
Now we had to figure out how to get this stuff back- we were due to leave early the next morning with our classmates. Our professor encouraged us to get the stuff immediately. We left even earlier on our own, took a 1.5 hour train to Salzburg, got a $80 ticket on the train because our train pass was only valid for the 2 hour train, got to Salzburg, met someone who noticed my Mizzou luggage tag and was also from Missouri, encountered a rude cab driver who refused to take us to the police station where our bag was, managed to get to the station anyway, rushed back to catch the train to Munich, and finally made it back to our starting point. Then we grabbed a quick lunch and hopped on a 3.5 hour train to Rothenburg to meet our classmates. We had to change trains twice on this journey, with only 5 minutes in between each. Stressful day. 7 hours on a train before 4:00, but having our passports and electronics back was priceless. Lesson learned: Don’t leave Mark in charge of our bags.
All of the stress melted away as we arrived in Rothenburg. Cutest. Town. Ever. This town oozed charm. Rothenburg is the main stop on a path known as the “Romantic Road.” It was indeed romantic.
Rothenburg was once one of Germany’s largest cities. The city’s heyday was from 1150 to 1400. It’s protected by a wall that goes all the way around the city. In the 1600s, the city suffered damage in the 30 year war and slipped into poverty. Unable to rebuild, the city is preserved as a true medieval town. The streets are all cobblestone. The houses are a scene from a picture book. Entering the gates, you feel yourself taking a step back in time.We started by checking into our hotel. The city has no chains of anything- stores, restaurants, hotels…so ours was family-run, just like all of them are. It was adorable. It has 70 rooms so it is a legitimate hotel, but it felt more like a bed and breakfast. I was unable to get a picture that captured the room, but I did take this one out of our window:
We then set off to explore the town. Grandma gave me a Rick Steves guidebook that has proved quite handy. We did the self-guided tour from the book and learned about the history of the town. We learned, for example, that there used to be a moat leading up to the castle (which was destroyed and not rebuilt) and the wall. The door from that moat remains today. At that time, they had a curfew for all of their citizens to return inside the towns walls. If you missed curfew, you could still enter- but you had to pay a fine. Here’s me trying to fit into that 700-year-old hole:We ended up in town center, which was very busy. This is a festival weekend- it’s much like Kansas City’s Renaissance Festival, only the entire town is the festival. And it’s actually a medieval town. So there were all these old-time people walking around, and there was lots of horse poop. Lots and lots of horse poop. Not a good mix with the cobblestone!
Last night we met up with our classmates for the Night Watchman’s Tour. This guy gives the tour every night, and it’s very popular. Rick Steves calls him the medieval Jerry Seinfeld. We laughed a lot and learned little trinkets of knowledge, like that the word “salary” comes from the word salt, because it was once so valuable that it was used as currency. Notice how cute the row of houses behind him are- the entire town is like this.
Today we had breakfast with our classmates and then hit the town. We went through the Crime and Punishment Museum, where we learned about ancient torture techniques. It was pretty dangerous to be a baker those days. Bread was a very important food, and if you messed it up, you could be put in a box and dipped in cold water. If you did something shameful, you had to wear a “shame mask” that made your sin obvious- for example, if you were gossipy, you had to wear a mask with big ears and a long tongue. Another way they punished people was by having them sit in the town center and putting their feet through this thing so that they couldn’t move. Anyone that walked by could tickle your feet, and sometimes they would put sugar on your feet for the goats to lick off. And if you created a drunken disturbance, you would be put in a cage in town center so that everyone could laugh at you. The museum was educational and fun.We grabbed a delicious Italian lunch and then set off to look at the wall. It’s pretty cool; you can climb up the steps and walk around the perimeter of it, and you can climb up the towers and look at the villages below. Here’s a view of how the wall looks:
And here’s Mark sitting on a low part of the wall- it’s actually about 20 feet tall, but it’s built on a hill:
After this we walked around until it was time to leave. The thing that makes Rothenburg so great are the small things you come across like old people in love:
And random parks overlooking the villages:
We fell in love in Rothenburg- with the town and a little more with each other.Tomorrow we go to Innsbruck in Austria- the Winter Olympics have been held here twice. Then we leave the class and go on our own to Interlaken, Switzerland. It’s finally starting to feel more like vacation and less like work/school!
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Doe, a Deer....
Today we went to Salzburg, Austria. As previously mentioned, this town is famous for being the scene for The Sound of Music and the birthplace of Mozart. Since I am not a big fan of either and most things to do in the town revolve around one or the other, I was a little unsure of how I was going to spend my time.
The train ride is about 2 hours. I was a little surprised/disappointed to learn that even though you’re going to a different country they don’t stamp your passport- Salzburg is a popular day trip from Munich and they must have some deal worked out. We were equally entertained on the ride by our sleepy classmates Bobblehead Brian’s and Dan’s growing love for each other:
As we were by the absolutely beautiful views- these are some of my favorites and they were both taken out the window while the train was moving!
When we got to Salzburg, we walked to the city center and had lunch at a café. It was right in the middle of the city and the food was great, probably the best food I’ve had on the trip. Kaydee, you would have loved it. Mark got a Greek Salad complete with sheep cheese and I got spaghetti noodles with parmesan and olive oil. We also got what they call “pizza bread” to share- it was fresh, hot bread that was sort of like pita bread, but flavored with garlic. It was scrumptious and was welcome after a week of sausage and fast food.
We learned on the train ride that Salzburg has been protected by a fortress for many years, and that because of that they were largely untouched by war until WWII.
Here’s what it looks like from the town- we were pretty close when this was taken.
The fortress was amazing. It was so cool to run your hands over walls that had been there before our great-great-great-great grandmothers were thoughts- the building of it began in 1077 and continued for centuries. And the views were breathtaking. You could see the whole city, as well as the Alps behind it. I took more pictures today than any other day of the trip. We took the tour and got to climb up in one of the towers- that offered the best views of all.
The train ride is about 2 hours. I was a little surprised/disappointed to learn that even though you’re going to a different country they don’t stamp your passport- Salzburg is a popular day trip from Munich and they must have some deal worked out. We were equally entertained on the ride by our sleepy classmates Bobblehead Brian’s and Dan’s growing love for each other:
As we were by the absolutely beautiful views- these are some of my favorites and they were both taken out the window while the train was moving!
When we got to Salzburg, we walked to the city center and had lunch at a café. It was right in the middle of the city and the food was great, probably the best food I’ve had on the trip. Kaydee, you would have loved it. Mark got a Greek Salad complete with sheep cheese and I got spaghetti noodles with parmesan and olive oil. We also got what they call “pizza bread” to share- it was fresh, hot bread that was sort of like pita bread, but flavored with garlic. It was scrumptious and was welcome after a week of sausage and fast food.We learned on the train ride that Salzburg has been protected by a fortress for many years, and that because of that they were largely untouched by war until WWII.
Here’s what it looks like from the town- we were pretty close when this was taken.
The fortress was amazing. It was so cool to run your hands over walls that had been there before our great-great-great-great grandmothers were thoughts- the building of it began in 1077 and continued for centuries. And the views were breathtaking. You could see the whole city, as well as the Alps behind it. I took more pictures today than any other day of the trip. We took the tour and got to climb up in one of the towers- that offered the best views of all.Here's one from a window in the fortress:
And one from the main part of the fortress:
And from the tower- a storm was brewing in the Alps!
And me pretending to fire a cannon on the enemy:
And Mark riding a bull- I don’t remember specific details, but Salzburg was once in a battle and they were hurting badly- everyone was starving. The whole town had one ox. The leaders of town paraded the ox in front of the enemy. The next day, they painted the ox black and paraded him again in front of the enemy. The enemy thought they underestimated Salzburg and surrendered!
After the fortress Mark and I wondered around on our own for awhile. He needed a hoodie because he didn’t pack very many warm things, and besides the first two days when it was unbelievably hot, it has been pretty chilly. We found him one, got a gelato, and walked to meet our class at Augensteiner, another beer garden. Augensteiner was a bit of our walk and it started POURING on us. We finally got there, but I was cold and could only think about the sauna at our hotel, so I left before too long to go back to Munich with some classmates. Mark stayed. One thing that is unique about this place is that rather than having the waiter bring your drinks, you can grab a glass, rinse it out, and take it to the counter for a beer. Then when you’re finished, you just rinse it out again and ask for a refill. It’s a cool thing to do, plus it's about $1.40 cheaper!
Tonight marks the end of the formal study abroad part of our trip. The next three days are an optional “post trip” that us and 8 other classmates will be sticking around for. Then on Monday night Mark and I will be leaving on our own. I must say that I am looking forward to that. We like the people we are traveling with, but traveling with a big group can be challenging and, at times, downright annoying! Up to this point, we have been at the same hotel, but starting tomorrow we will be changing hotels frequently, so I am not sure when we will have internet access. Hopefully everywhere, but there’s a possibility we could not. In any case, I’m going to keep writing in Word and posting whenever I get a chance. Thanks for reading! Miss you guys (but not work :) )
And one from the main part of the fortress:
And from the tower- a storm was brewing in the Alps!
And me pretending to fire a cannon on the enemy:
And Mark riding a bull- I don’t remember specific details, but Salzburg was once in a battle and they were hurting badly- everyone was starving. The whole town had one ox. The leaders of town paraded the ox in front of the enemy. The next day, they painted the ox black and paraded him again in front of the enemy. The enemy thought they underestimated Salzburg and surrendered!
After the fortress Mark and I wondered around on our own for awhile. He needed a hoodie because he didn’t pack very many warm things, and besides the first two days when it was unbelievably hot, it has been pretty chilly. We found him one, got a gelato, and walked to meet our class at Augensteiner, another beer garden. Augensteiner was a bit of our walk and it started POURING on us. We finally got there, but I was cold and could only think about the sauna at our hotel, so I left before too long to go back to Munich with some classmates. Mark stayed. One thing that is unique about this place is that rather than having the waiter bring your drinks, you can grab a glass, rinse it out, and take it to the counter for a beer. Then when you’re finished, you just rinse it out again and ask for a refill. It’s a cool thing to do, plus it's about $1.40 cheaper!
Tonight marks the end of the formal study abroad part of our trip. The next three days are an optional “post trip” that us and 8 other classmates will be sticking around for. Then on Monday night Mark and I will be leaving on our own. I must say that I am looking forward to that. We like the people we are traveling with, but traveling with a big group can be challenging and, at times, downright annoying! Up to this point, we have been at the same hotel, but starting tomorrow we will be changing hotels frequently, so I am not sure when we will have internet access. Hopefully everywhere, but there’s a possibility we could not. In any case, I’m going to keep writing in Word and posting whenever I get a chance. Thanks for reading! Miss you guys (but not work :) )
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