Venice-Rome

Although more "luxurious" (and expensive) I was more comfy on the sleeper train from Berlin-Krakow than i was on this one. The 4 person female only sleepers are lockable from the inside which makes me feel more comfy about the safety on this train. the ride is not very smooth and sometimes jolts us awake (really jolts us) and also, 2 ladies come into the cabin at a later station about 1.30am and chat etc. before going to sleep. Arrive 6.50am bleary eyed. head to the hostel which is a metro ride away, get crammed in to peak hour public transport and see people sleeping rough at the station. The hostel is more like a hotel, I'm in a 4 bed dorm with a young British couple and the boy's father. they have connections to Australia and the father had been to Adelaide earlier in the year so we chat a lot. I am relieved as my couchsurfing fell through in Rome I booked this place at the last minute and didn't have high hopes. I have a shower and a nap then head out about 10.30am, armed with my sunglasses (one of my simplest pleasures is being able to wear my sunnies, Scotland isn't a great place to indulge in that). Again, take a million photos, everywhere you turn you want to take a picture. It is so sunny I find a patch to lie down and soak up the rays for half an hour.

Met two girls from South Africa and spent the rest of he day with them, we all got along really well. One is studying medicine and they have 2 weeks in Italy before her break is over and she has to return to study in Johannesburg, Siena is next on their itinerary. We visit the Colosseum, Pantheon, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (picture), the Spanish Steps and Fontana di trevi. When we were in the Collesseum, I run into one of the girls who was on the Paddywagon tour in Ireland...small world. She is doing a Contiki tour at the moment and sounds like she is having lots of fun. Surreal moment, running into someone you know at the Collesseum!

At 6.30pm the SA girls and I separate so I can go home to pick up my jacket and we meet up again about 10pm for a few drinks in the Trastevere area. I love all the little bars and clubs but wish I knew more Italian to speak with the locals! Have a great night, again on Italian wine. Sleep soooo well that night as I must have walked 15 kilometres today (or it felt like).

The next day I head to the Vatican City, i'm too late to go to the museum and Sistine Chapel but that doesn't bother me. Hang out and look for the Pope but don't spot him. Again, another beautiful day, slightly colder but still sunny and clear blue skies. Have two gelatis today (!!!) one is Nutella flavour, my world is complete. After Vatican City I walk a few blocks to a lively food market in a residential area. Sadly it is starting to close by the time I get there and I wish I had a fridge so i could buy the yummy cheeses and meats to bring to Marcos and Diana in Spain. The rest of the afternoon I spend in Palazzo del Popolo, sitting next to a group of art students drawing the area (picture). When I did art at school we would draw pieces of fruit and bottles of Coke and erasers, these guys are spoilt!

Spend the night at the hostel bar, there is free pizza and hang out with a few Aussie travellers then later Holly and Dan (dormmates). They are a lovely couple and we chat for hours about nothing and it is great fun. They are waiting for their visas to come through so they can return to live in Australia for at least 3 years, in Maroubra. If all goes to plan they might be back there in about a month. They give me their address in Maroubra and I think next time I'm in Sydney I will definitely catch up with these guys.

It's now Friday morning and I'm at the internet cafe typing up all my nonsense...hope you're still reading! After this I will head to a cafe for a coffee and maybe another gelati and then start to head to the airport for my flight to Madrid. Spending 2 nights with Marcos and his family and can't wait to see Diana also. On Sunday morning I head to Avila which is where I will be for the following 5 nights at VaughanTown doing my spot of volunteering helping to teach English. Just a note there is no internet there, Wifi but no internet so I won't be checking my email or updating my mobile until after the 15th December most likely. See you then :)

Venice!

It was a toss up between Verona and Venice for me to see before rome. I kept changing my mind as I thought Venice would be so much nicer with someone to share it with. I am glad i ended up choosing Venice as I'm having a great time. When I get into the train station at 2pm it is so sunny I consider leaving my jacket with left luggage. I stay wise and keep it on though. i have the rest of the afternoon and evening before getting on the overnight train to rome at midnight. I'm getting a couchette as theives work on this route apprantly.

But before that, yes, that's right - I explore! I don't even bother with a map as I knew I'd get lost so instead just follow the yellow wall signs to San Marco. Take a million pictures, the scenery is intoxicating...as is the smell sometimes (not in a good way). I do hate to think what it would be like in summer with the heat and the crowds. Go to Castello and follow the Canale di San Marco to Lido while the sun sets. There is a beautiful park along the water and it's further up than a lot of tourists bother to venture...very rewarding. At Lido I catch the Vaporetto 1 (water bus) all the way down back near where the train station is. It takes an hour and is my cheat's gide to an expensive gondola. I dit right at the front and my hands freeze but the scenery makes up for it. The sun is down now but the buildings are all lit up and the place looks magical.

I spend my evening in Dorosduro, a place where students and locals go for bars and nightlife. the university is right here. I visit a church which is open where a choir is practising and i listen for a little while then head to Cafe Blu, a place I'd been recommended - and get lost. Find it eventually after finding out I'd been walking in the wrong direction for 10 minutes. It is here I am writing this entry, drinking a glass of Italian Red that's going down pretty darn well. A little bit before this I had the biggest slice of pizza (funghi, of course) which was yummy and cheap compared to the tourist areas. I'm putting my high school Italian to the test as well as lots of hand gestures...when in Rome(!!!)

PS - look at all that Nutella...Italians go crazy for a bit of Nutella. These jars were like the size of my head...bigger...that's a lot of Nutella...mmm Nutella. I no longer have Vegemite withdrawals because of Nutella.

Lucerne

Pictures coming soon!

3 trains from Nuremberg to Lucerne, it's an early start and I see the sunrise on the first train. Beautiful scenery...and then the train went to Switzerland. Breathtaking. Giant waterfalls on this side, mountains on the other, green, green, green and beautiful houses. The line from Zurich - Lucerne was especially lovely, I can't believe I am in a place as beautiful as this. Laura is my host, I am couchsurfing with her for 2 nights. She lives right in the middle of the city in a beautiful apartment, set up perfectly and she is so lovely. What a character, we chat for over an hour over a yummy cup of tea and then she has to do a bit of marking (she is a teacher, her students are around 11 years old), and also go to the basement to get her Chirstmas decorations, so I leave her to it so i can explore the city. I basically just wander around, window shop at all the gorgeous boutiques, jewellers and watches! Stroll along the water and there is a concert on the waterfront, put on by Coca Cola for Christmas time, some kind of Coke festival with a big red semi trailer as the centrepiece! There is a music stage and a famous Swiss band plays, as well as gospel singers and a pop star. Good fun and i got a free Coke. Now that's advertising!

During the day I wander up to the Old City Wall. There's a little bit of fog aorund so it hampers the view of the mountains but lovely nonetheless. i wish I had more time to check out the rest of the country, maybe even try to attempt to ski. Or not...other sites in the medieval city inlcude the Chapel Bridge (picture), water tower and the city squares. The lake running through the city is gorgeous and I have a picnic lunch looking out across the river.

In the evening Laura comes home from work and we hang out and chat before she goes to her dance class. i go out quickly as well to get some supplies for the train ride tomorrow and spend the last few franks I have. When i come back I have a shower and it is so nice to be able to take my time instead of getting frustrated at timer showers like the hostels have. When Laura returns from her dance class we chat some more (noticing a theme, she has no TV so there's nothing else to do and it's great!) and exchange bands we think the other might like. Great evening, I wish I could stay longer but Italy is beckoning!!!

The train ride the next morning is long but scenic, the mountains and ravines and even waterfalls make Switzerland one beautiful country. The train takes us past Lugano, and in Italy Como (wow). There is a sparkling blue sky and even heat from the sun coming through the window. What a lovely feeling!!!

the train from Milan-Venice is so crowded I have to sit on a pull out seat in the hallway. No wonder it is a 'recommended reservation' journey! Only 1 hour though and I nab a proper seat. Food trolley and passers by make for interesting contortions with bags and what not from me and all the other people sitting in the hallway.

Nuremberg

To break up the journey from Prague to Switzerland, I chose Nuremberg to stop overnight. Originally I had planned this for Munich but it was simpler connecting to and from Nuremberg. Jen, Cara, you'll be pleased to know i think there was an emo convention upon my arrival at the train station, I have never seen so many emos in my life, seriously hundreds! The emos over here are much better than Australian emos, they have better hair. My Chemical Romance or some crap band must have been playing Nuremberg that night perhaps. Seeing them puts me in a way better mood than I was in in Prague.

The hostel is standard, disappointing as i had stayed at the same hostel in Berlin and that had more character. Spent the afternoon and evening wandering around the town, despite the rain. The city was packed as the Christmas Market has just started and the one in Nuremberg is the biggest in Germany, possibly Europe. It spilled out across several squares and the connecting streets. There are trinkets and lots of delicate gifts but more importantly Bavarian food! Everyone has food or drink in their hand so I decide to join them. First I try Bratwurstl, little sausages i bread which are scrumptious. then after a while I have potato pancakes and apple sauce, served on a wafer. Can't remember what these are called. The people serving at this tent were all in singlets as working with litres of hot frying oil is probably a little warmer than being on the other side of the counter. Hillarious!

The sweet stalls had giant cookies, little cookies, gingerbread in all shapes and sizes and lots of Christmas Cake, so i get a small slice of that. One of the photos I have added is of a stall selling half a metre long hotdogs...yes, that is serious. I really wanted a photo of someone holding one but alas, felt too much like a stalker. Changing the subject, there are bands playing on the stage and the place has a great feeling to it. I'm really glad I came here, the city is gorgeous, totally Bavarian and the view from the Castle is worth the uphill walk. Over on one side of the city the houses look like the view from the glass elevator from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I just googled it and the place was Rothenberg, oh well, I was close!

Prague

On the train from Olomouc I have this overwhelming sense of sadness as we approach Prague. This time last year was the time when I had to face a lot of hurdles with my back injury and Bella dying. I dont want to make a big deal of things as it will only make me sadder and I have done a lot of things in between then and now which has made me so proud. My back is really good at the moment, but it sucks just being so aware of it all the time, how it's feeling etc etc. There are some times where it still stresses me out but it's certainly not holding me back from doing anything and I am so grateful of that.

Feelings wise, I still get a bit blue and of course homesick sometimes, but nowhere near like I was. Again, it's keeping active and keping my back healthy as I know if my back gets bad then my mood tends to tumble.

It sounds silly, but if anyone who is still reading this knew Bella, I'd love if you could post a message on here and tell me a story about her. It will make me laugh, God knew that dog gave me a lot of laughs, stealing food etc. I don't think I ever told Mum about the turkey roll incident one day where she jumped up on the kitchen counter and grabbed a turkey roll fresh from the oven. Five second rule, it was still good (and too expensive not to eat it!). Hi Mum!

Prague is lonely. It's the first bit of the trip where I havent befriended anyone. I think I am also on 'beautiful sights' overload. On Thursday night upon arrival at the hostel I was accosted by a group of young American students studying Spanish in Madrid. They are loud, anoying and drunk but I don't say no when they invite me to join them on the town. I last the tram trip into town nd about 10 minutes of them stumbling aorund. There are two kinda sobre ones so i let the know I'm going off on my own and I think they wish they could join. They'll be babysitting the other 6 all night.

I walk around for an hour or so before the cold gets to me and I head back to the hostel. It's got a great bar downstairs that's like a friends' living room. Lots of comfy chairs, good music. there's a good group of people there to chat with but most are leaving the next morning. I retire about 1 am, full of Kozel, one of Czech's favourite (cheap!) beers.

The next morning I get up to head to a walking tour of Prague. The guide is lovely but we spend 3 1/2 hours and only se part of the Jewish Town, the Main Sqare and Wenceslas Square. I didnt learn as much history as I did n the Berlin walk although our guide was more than happy to tell us all about going to a Czech university, the admissions process and so on. Why, I don't know as the group clearly weren't into it.

After the tour, I visit the Museum of Communism, conveniently locaed above McDonalds! It took 3 weeks after the fall of communism here for the first one to appear in Prague, amazing. It was done quite well to show what it was like living in communism but I would have liked more of an exploration into the Velvet Revolution and the toppling of Czecheslovakia's communist regime.

At 8pm I go to a concert in St Nicholas' Church in the main square. It goes for an hour and a group of 9 muscians play pieces from Mozart, Handel and Werner and finish with 'Still Night' (Silent Night). It is a beautiful (albeit it freezing!) church and it was a great atmosphere listening to this classical music.

Get lost walking to the tram to take me back to the hostel and the workers are putting up Christmas decorations in the street with the tram line so service is suspended for the evening. Get lost again trying to find an alternative tram, but eventually make it back to the hostel. Organise my Couchsurfing in Lucerne for Sunday and Monday nights and my train to Nuremberg the following day then go to bed. I know Prague is a beautiful place but I found it very solitary and also the main parts full of tacky souvenir shops.

Krakow - Olomouc (updated 7.12.07)

I took the overnight train to Krakow on Sunday night. During the day there was a Couchsurfing meeting where we were supposed to go iceskating but the outdoor rink was closed. Instead we drank Gluhwein (hot wine with spices) and chatted, there were about 15 of us all sitting around a long table in an wooden building as part of a Christmas market.

I head to the train station after this and the train ride is fine, except we arrive about an hour later than expected in Krakow. My couchette cabin is full but surprisingly comfy for such a cramped space with 6 people and luggage. Perhaps I was pschying myself up for it to be a lot worse..

Hostel I stay at is great, good choice again. Staff are so friendly and give me the rundown of the city. But first things first, it`s laundry day. I picked the right place to do it as its free here! As they have no dryer I spend the whole day lounging around the place as I have no trousers or socks to wear! Lucky this place is small, like an apartment, feel right at home in Krakow watching a big plasma tv and using the free internet. There is free brekky and free supper too, I am getting the vibe Krakow has a very competitive backpackers market.

Make friends with some other travellers, and we go to dinner at U Babici Maliny. My clothes are not dry yet so must head out all rugged up on top but wearing 3\4 length leggings and no socks! I wish I knew Polish for "its washing day" so I could make a sign and wear it on my head. Everyone takes so much pride in their appearance here I feel like a bit of a fool. Oh well! I had a massive meal, as did Alan the guy who came out to dinner and with our beers all together the meals only cost about 5 pounds each! Its suprisingly not that bad walking back in the snow with my shins uncovered but Im glad to get back to the warmth. We organise to go together to see Auschwitz the next day, early in the morning.

So, we get up at around 7.15 to have brekky and take the bus to Osweicim/Auschwitz, it takes about 90 minutes. We decide doing a guided tour and its a good decision, we take our time with the museum instead of just being rushed in and out. Of course the exhibits are shocking in Auschwitzs museum but we are more struck by the sheer siye of the second camp, Bikenau. At Auschwitz you got an insight into how the victims of the Nazis were treated, some sense of the people and thier lives before the troubles and a very good display on the Polish Resistance. There were rooms which held amazing amounts of peoples property inlcuding suitcases, shoes, glasses, hairbrushes and human hair. The human hair was kept by the Nazis to make into material.

Birkenau was not so much a museum but gave you a feeling of how awful the conditions were for the Jewish. Absolutely awful, it made us even more sombre walking the length of the camp with the railway with the gates of death at the top at one end and the crematoriums at the other, while it snowed hard. We were frozen and in many layers, the victims had no more than a pair of pyjamas, not even shoes. Their calorie intake was counted so that with the labour they performed, they would only live to see 3 or 4 months before expiring. We take a long, slow ride back to krakow. it wasnt a pleasant day but something I felt I needed to see. No amount of seeing will ever make me understand how the Nazis could do so many atrocious things to so many people. Never.

That evening about 5 of us from the hostel go out to dinner at a Georgian restaurant. Good to chat although the big tables are only in the smoking section - bars are one thing but smoking in restaurants I just find repulsive now. Get over it though and have a yummy chicken dish with rice and the best thing about Georgian food is that it comes with lots of sauces you can add to the dish.

Left the gang who were all heading back to the hostel but I needed to walk off some of that sauce! It's so pretty all lit up at night and people are having snowall fights in he park. The next morning I do a bit more sightseeing before I catch my train to Olomouc. I took a tour bus as I thought it would be quicker and easier than walking but it was a waste of time and I have never been so cold in my life sitting on the top of a bus while it is snowing in order to get some good pictures. Especially when we picked up speed (for some reason we went on a highway), the wind was like knives. I wasn't the only one suffering either, there were a group of Enlgish tourists as well (although I suffered more than them as I had to overhear their very bad jokes).

Onto Olomouc, in Moravia, Czech Republic. I have a few train changes and one completely baffles me. In Katowice after askin at the window what the next train transfer I have a young Polish guy comes up to me ad says thats what he was wanting to ask too, he's going to the same place. I have to get rid of my Polish loose change so say to him 'see you on the platform'. Thank God I did after spending about 20 minutes of not knowing what was going on he spots me and tells me the train is delayed. We chat for the next few hours on the train he's a medicine student on an Erasmus programme in Olomouc. It's his last year of study. I am Couchsurfing with Anna, a uni student as well and we find out that they both live in the same uni residence...small world!

After meeting up with Anna, we all take the tram back to the residence and get numbers to meet up again that night in town. I get freshened up nd we head out to dnner at 'Torture' restaurant which was quite funny, the food wasn't very good but it was like eating in a dungeon (hoping that was part of the theme). After that we head to the club where Anna's classmates are (they study Chinese). It's great fun and many drinks are consumed, mine includes Kofola, the Czech alternative to Coke! I think it's nice although it has a lot more flavour than coke and is not as fizzy. There are a few Slovakian students and I get the lowdown on why I should visit Bratislava. It was on my wishlist, but again some other time. Next time. there is a guy who smokes cigarillos but is convinced he is not a smoker and I rile him up a about it. there is also another guy who was obsessed with Scrubs and loves the fact I know it as it is not shown over here.

We stumble home at 2am, my plans for getting up early the next morning are foiled but I spend mid morning enjoying a crisp, clear blue sy and the sights of Olomouc. This includes the many fountains, the astrological clock and the Christmas market, where I buy some things and a potato pancake for lunch. I ignore the amount of oil it was fried in and it as delicious. My host Anna showed me a great time in Olomouc an I'm glad I made the stop off there before continuing to Prague. I got a great glimpse of Czech student life and saw another city I'd never heard of until a few days before but would now recommend to anyone who will listen!

Maastricht - Berlin.

Arrive in Maastricht late afternoon. Stay OK is a brand spanking new hostel which is great but it has zero character. There are 3 other girls in my dorm and later that evening one came with me for a big walk around the city. It's a very beautiful place, right down the bottom of the Netherlands...it's so beautiful I could imagine living here very happily.

The next morning I get up a bit earlier and walk around the city again to take some photos and see the city in the daylight. Beautiful sunrise. I go back to the hostel to have the yummiest and biggest brekky ever, before catching my train at 11am. Bad point, for about an hour before catching my train I was fruitlessly searching for an internet cafe with my big pack on my back. The library didn't open until half an hour before my train left so ended up going there to check my email then running to the train station, with 15.7 kgs (my life!) strapped to my back.

I have to catch 4 trains to Berlin, the first two are only short and on the last two I have company from one of my roomates from the night before. Anya is 20 and spent last year in America as an au pair and although is German speaks perfect english with an American accent. She came to Maastricht to find a flat as she is studying at university there in the new year. We chat the whole 6 hours to Berlin and she invites me to her town about 1 hour out of Berlin. Sadly, I don't go as there is way too much going on in Berlin!

Once in Berlin I'm straight to the hostel, it's again a great choice and I have a whole dorm all to myself on night 1. 7 requests for couch surfing here have all been denied - it's pretty tuough handling all these denials but people already have guests, are travelling or not able to host. Oh well!

I walk al day Friday from noon til 10pm. Come back to the hostel to relax, it's been a good, but LONG day exploring. In the afternoon I did a walking tour which went for just under 4 hours and took in Brandenburg Gate, Reichstag, Hitler's Bunker (well we stood on top of it), Luftwaffe HQ, the Holocaust Memorial, Potsdamer Platz, Berlin Wall, SS HQ, Checkpoint Charlie (even though it's all replica now and surrounded by souvenir shops), Bebelplatz and the book burning memorial, Museum Island and Gendamenmarkt. It was really good (for free! The guides work on tips...don't worry I gave him a few euro) but feel like I need to go back and visit a lot of these sites again, especially the Holocaust Memorial. After the tour I tried to get a last minute, cheap student ticket to the opera 'Aida' but alas, it's all sold out. I'll try for whatever's playing the next night. I wander around the city, stumble upon a few cool things but felt like I was missing something. This is the one city Jen and I need to visit together, and being there without her is just not as cool as it would be with her...can't wait to see you in Perth, my darl!

On Saturday I take an 'Alternative Berlin' walking tour. It's a good group of about 10 people (yesterday was over 25) and we all get along well. Again, the guide works on tips, but instead of seeing monuments and historical stuff we see things like street art, graffiti and the districts that make up Berlin. We use the public transport as well so we can get further out. Had lunch at Curry, cheap and filling German nosh. We visit a vintage shop called Colours where you buy clothing by the kilo! I finally found an awesome beanie and it was only 1 euro 20! I also bought a silk scarf for 1 euro, noice :)

Visited Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain, Prenzlauerberg and Mitte. We visit Eastside Gallery, a 1.3 km stretch of the Berlin Wall (and climb it - see photo) but walk along it on the other side, so have it to ourselves instead of tussling with tourists on the other side! In summer the tour would have finished here at a daytime rave! Instead, we escape from the Berlin Wall by crawling under a fence at the end...it's all very funny and really interesting to be going around town with a local. Amazing sunset. Great diversion from seeing monuments and cathedrals (not that there's anything wrong with that).

End up at this place which I've forgotten the name of which is a famous space for artists. Have a beer here and finish the tour.

Oh, and we also broke into an abandoned building (seriously) and climbed up onto the roof. This is all part of the tour (and the guide has his lawyer on speed dial should anything happen. Apparantly we wouldn't get in trouble if we got spotted by the cops because there is no sign on this building saying "no trespassing".

I decide I need a bit of culture to make up for my breaking the law (this photo is my bemused face at the top of the building and the one above it is another Aussie making his entrance). I head to Opera House half an hour before performance. I nab a ticket for 12 euro but it's the state ballet tonight (Jerome Robbins 'Balletabend") and not opera. It was lovely although completely weird to go to such a beautiful building in a hoodie, jeans and sneakers. It's Berlin so no one cares, at least that's what I keep telling myself.

Head back to the hostel and decide to call it a night but my dorm mates invite me out, I can't refuse. We leave the hostel at 1 am and head to Weekend, a club on the 12th floor of an office block overlooking Alexanderplatz. It's a crazy, Berlin nightclub and we dance until 5 am and then decide to go...and it's snowing outside! I feel giddy from the excitement of snow but that quickly disappears when I have to walk thorugh snow and slush in my 5 pound ballet flats with holes in the soles. They go in the bin on arrival at the hostel and my feet surprisingly defrost quickly.

What an amazing day that was! Graffiti, abandoned buildings, climbing the Wall, ballet, electronic music and snow. And that's just the main things I remember! I'm satisfied with my time here in Berlin and decide to head to Krakow a day earlier than planned.