Budapest, Hungary

Shaun and I made it to Budapest at about 8pm and made our way to the Buda Base Hostel. Immediately after checking in to the hostel, a homey little place with 10 beds, we were invited out to Hungarian Folk Dancing. We learned a very different, but fun style of dance where everyone holds hands in a huge circle and stomps the ground among other types of footwork exercises. Exhausted from Oktoberfest we came home pretty early where I fell asleep before my head even hit the pillow. Now, I'm finally caught up on my blog so I can speak in present tense. This morning I woke up early to try to fit all of Budapest in one day since I am behind on my intenerary. I set out alone since Shaun and I are breaking off as he is heading to Spain and I am heading to Serbia next. I started with Castle Hill Fisherman's Bastion and then made my way to the House of Terror. The House of Terror was a museum describing the Double Occupation of Hungary by the Germans and Soviets and then spoke of communism and the Secret Police. Shocking was the detailed explanation of how communism was forced upon Hungarians and anyone deviating from Soviet rule was deemed a war criminal, tortured and killed. After a somber look at the misfortunes of so many Hungarians I felt a strong sense of sympathy for the citizens of this city. Looking at older people and knowing what they went through such a short time ago taught me to respect the people of Budapest even more... Next I went to Heroes Square which, built in 1886, commemorates the Millenium Reunion of this ancient city. I walked through and visited one of the eight famous naturally heated spas/baths in the city, Szechenyi Furdo. After seeing the bath I had an excellent Hungarian meal consisting of Bay Leaf, Bean and Sausage soup; Beef Stew on Noodles; bread and beer all for 1500 Forints or $7.50. How I love the prices in Eastern Europe. After stuffing myself I went to the Gellert Furdo, the city's most famous thermal spa. I ran around trying out all the different baths which included an outdoor wave pool, an indoor swimming pool surrounded by ancient columns, a large thermally heated hot tub, a mineral pool which smelled like menthol and a steam room which scalded my lungs when I breathed. Now I am waiting for a night train to Beograd (Belgrade), Serbia. I won't lie, another night train makes me nervous, especially from one war torn Eastern European country to another and the fact that I am travelling alone again...

Wien (Vienna), Austria

Since we stayed at Oktoberfest so long and got so drunk, Shaun and I didn't have much time in Vienna. We put our bags in lockers at the train station and headed our to take in some of the sites. We ate chinese food for lunch and saw Arnold Swartzenegger graffiti. The city was nice, but someone back at the train station said it is just a bunch of museums, nothing special, so no biggie.

Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany

Twelve hours travel time to make it to a party may seem ridiculous but once I saw what Oktoberfest really was all about it was well worth it. The first night we got there, Shaun and I were too late to get into the beer tents, so we walked around the grounds and headed to bed to rest for the debauchery to follow in the morning.
After some breakfast we made it into the HB beer tent and had our first liter stine of beer at about 11:30am. Now, if you have never been to Oktoberfest I don't think you understand the amplitude of this festival. First, it is a carnival, but with rides twice the size of any in the U.S. then there are a dozen or so beer houses which are the size of airplane hangers and can fit up to 10,000 people in each of them. Although the beer is expensive (8euro for a liter) you are paying more for the atmosphere. Of course I had two stines, one in each hand, as I danced around the airplane hanger. Dancing on benches, on tables and through the crowds. I was in Candyland! We were planning on drinking until about 5pm and catching a train to Bratislava but when 1am rolled around and we realized what time it was we had to abort that idea. We finally boarded a 5am train to Vienna and slept the whole way.

Praha, Czech Republic

Finally, a place where I have some time to relax. I made it here at 11pm and planned on having a beer and going to sleep to recuperate after the last night's events. Haha, at 11:08 there was a glass of Absinthe in front of me courtesy of a nice Brazillian girl. As you may or may not know, CZ is the last nation to allow authentic Absinthe. Midnight brought me out to U Sudu and the Akropolis. U Sudu was a great bar situated in an underground bombshelter-catacombe type place. The Akropolis is where a lot of Absinthe was consumed and I met a very hot Czech girl who din't speak english. We began to dance and she ...Censored...
So Kahti's friend was hooking up with some other Czech kid Michal. Michal and I walked them home around 7am and then proceded to the nearest non-stop (24-hour pub) and drank a few more pints. We walked around and he told me about the history of Praha and then we made it back to the Czech Inn hostel around 1pm where, since it was Friday, people were on the patio already drinking. I knew Pearl Jam was playing in Praha tonight so I was hoping someone had details as to how I could acquire a ticket. Luckily they were still on sale for a mere 40euros, or 990Crowns. I finally had some sleep from three until six pm and then woke up and began pregaming for the Pearl Jam Concert at Szaka Arena. We took the metro to the arena with a group of about a dozen people from the hostel. The show was amazing, 2 encores and 3.5 hours of total concert and who knew Eddie Vedder can speak Czech. After the show wasn't too exciting since I was split from everyone in the show, so I just turned in for some much needed sleep.

The next day consisted of a walk up to Prague Castle and then a bike tour all over the city. A nice big Czech dinner for a total of eight dollars followed the tour and then the night began. We ventured to Cross Club about fifteen deep this time. Now Cross Club isn't your ordinary club, it looks like someone opened up a diesel engine and threw it all over the walls and ceiling. It was straight out of Star Wars or the Matrix, all of the machines on the walls were moving and had lights all over them. After the club, at about 5am, we went back to Czech Inn and I neglected to sleep in my bed again, however, I did sleep...

The next day is Sunday, when the post office doesn't deliver. Now I don't think I said it before, but I've been waiting for a replacement camera from the U.S. that has been shipped to Prague. This has been a huge dilemma during my travels, but it didn't get bad until now since it is holding me up. As a result, Sunday was a day to relax and do laundry (1st time in 2 weeks). After laundry Shaun (Michigan, whom will be mentioned more), Sam (L.A.) and Steve (Canada) went down to the Jewish Quarter and the Old Town Main Square. The Jewish Quarter is one of the most preserved in Europe since the Nazis were planning on making Praha the jewel of their eastern empire. The Jewish Quarter itself was going to be a living relic of an extinct race, or so the German's planned...think about that when you visit it. The German's weren't planning on losing the war and had big plans for the future. Its a good thing it didn't go their way. After that we walked down to Charles Bridge and took some night shots of the Voltava River and the Bridge itself. This bridge was the original 14th century gateway to the city and also passageway from east to west europe centuries ago. After our tour, back to the Czech Inn we went when sitting on the patio drinking two slammin' girls in Traditional Bavarian dresses pulled up in a cab. Now, I haven't yet been to Bavaria so I've never seen dress like this. Regardless, they were two Australian (Sydney) girls who just arrived from Oktoberfest. Of course we asked them to join us that night. Out at the club there were about ten guys and the girls in Bavarian wear. So, Shaun and I had to think quick. Four day veterans of the city we offered them a night tour of some of the sites. Shaun and I left the club with Kat and Tanya in tow and showed them around showing off our newfound knowledge of Praha. Needless to say they were impressed and the rest is definitely needless to say.

Monday morning I planned to wake up early go to the post-office, grab my package, and head to Munich. Five hours of headache, and four trips to the post-office later I had no luck and decided to give up. Lucky for me Lenka, the "mummi" from the Czech Inn went with me the last time to translate for me. Even with her with me, the Czech post-office couldn't find my package. So I decided to leave the package, whenever it may arrive, and hopefully they return to sender. Shaun and I were all packed up and ready to go to Munich when we relaized it was too late. We made it as far as the tram stop a block away and turned around to check back in to the Czech Inn. But, its not so bad, I love Praha.

That night we brought some people back to the Cross Club and then we went to Roxy, a huge hard house club, where we drank absinthe and Becherovska (a Czech Jager and Cinnamon liquor) and danced until the early morning.

The next morning we finally left Prague for Munich. We couldn't wait to get out of Prague, but little did we know the unreliability of the Czech Train system.

Berlin, Germany

After a CRAZY train ride I finally made it to Berlin. Too late to stay in the hostel I still made my way there since it was planned. They were very nice when they didn't charge me for the room and allowed me to take a shower. I set out on a self-guided walking tour of the city which was divided so recently by Nazi and Communist rule. I had my passpot stamped at Checkpoint Charlie and toured the site of the former Berlin Wall. After six hours in the city I decided it was time to make my way to Prague. Therefore, I hopped on a train with these two amazing Hungarian people and travelled to the Czech Reublick.

Train: Poznan to Berlin

Now this is where the stories get good. I've read about the danger of traveling on trains in Poland and was sure to be careful, however I didn't really expect anything to happen. After seeing the Stary Rynek I made my way to the train station to get on the 1:35am train. The ticket lady in the window refused to sell me a ticket, or it could be because she didn't speak English...either way I missed the 1:35 and the next one wasn't until 3:35am. So I looked up the Polish of how to say "I don't understand Polish, please sell me a ticket to Berlin. Again, refusal. After about an hour of demanding a ticket I decided to just get on the train without a ticket. Two men, no authority figures, told me I couldn't get on. Seeing that they weren't police and they didn't work on the train I told them I'd just buy a ticket on the train. One of them sat me in his cuchette single sleeper car, which was very sketchy to say the least, and then came to me demanding 40€. So I said I'd just stay in the aisle and make my way to Berlin that way. But these rebels alerted the police so I was forced to leave the train...
The next train was not until 6:35am. I finally, after yelling at the top of my lungs, convinced the polish women to sell me a ticket. I got on the train, ready for some sleep, and what do I encounter...more scam artists demanding money from me. They said, "passport control", so I opened the door to see a non-authority fellow. This is when I demanded to see a badge, which he could not produce. So, I slammed the door and went to sleep hoping his banging on the door would not persist past 10 minutes. When I woke up after a two hour snooze crow bars were penetrating my cuchette door. I didn't know what to do. I looked out the window and, thank God, I was almost at the German border. The train came to a stop and the door busted off the hinges and three pillagers entered my room with the intent on killing me. My only choice of reaction was to headbutt the Polish fucker and run off the train.
It was such a relief to hear a German guard speak English to me and help me out. I had my passport stamped and jumped on the train to Berlin............

Poznan, Poland

I arrived in Poznan at 23:00 on 20Sep06 after dodging police on the train for having no ticket. The beautiful Stary Rynek was the only thing I could manage to see. It was gorgeous and sparkling clean since the city was rebuilt after be leveled by Nazis in WWII. The benches in the square breathed communism. The cobblestone streets were transversed by trolly cars and the main square, littered with outdoor pubs, was car free.

Gdansk, Poland

A flight from Sweden to Poland on Ryanair brought me to the beautiful coastal city of Gdansk. Situated on a river mouth flowing into the Baltic sea, Gdansk is on of Poland's oldest cities. The city itself was established around 800 a.d., however the Nazis leveled the city in the second World War. This is fortunate since the new Main square is all sparkling clean. A royal walk along the river peering through large brick and golden royal gates was surely a beautiful activity before climbing the 600 or so odd steps to the top of St. Mary's Cathedral to gaze down at the city from a bird's eye's perspective. At night a nice Polish dinner of gotbki and potatoes was just what I needed before myself and some Aussies headed to absinthe bar where dancing on tables and bars ensued. Chatting up a hot blonde Polish girl, which by the way seem to love me, was a nice end to a wild night. The next day, after sleeping in, I departed for the city of Poznan, the cradle of Polish history, about four hours to the south east.

Stockholm, Sweden

After a long train ride from Denmark, over the 7.8km Øresund Bridge (the longest in Europe) I made it to Stockholm, Sweden. After a switch in Malmö, Sweden, I hopped on the high-speed X2000 train to Stockholm, four and a half hours away. Through the countryside wild cows, sheep, horses and deer were plentiful, but human population was not. The past two countries (Nederland and Denmark) were very flat and I was pleased to finally see a little elevation near Stockholm.

Again, I am very very pressed for time in my new city, and unlike Copenhagen, Stockholm is huge, including all of the city's 16 islands and 12,000 offshore. Nonetheless, I couldn't dwell on the present as I proceeded to see the city. The ocean was nice to see, and the numerous bridges spanning the plethora of different waterways was gorgeous. Stockholm is a bustling metropolis with a lot of charm and splendor. Absolutely gorgeous, built on an archipelago, with grand buildings everywhere. A harbor sprinkled with boats in Scandanavia could only envoke thoughts of Vikings and then I saw a Viking ship, although a tourist cruise ship, still reiterated my thoughts. A nice walk through the Gamla Stan, the old town situated on an island connected by bridges, revealed narrow, cobblestone streets filled with shops and restaurants. Now I knew this city was a gem. Its too bad I didn't get to go on a boat tour or climb the city hall's 209m of steps to gaze down on the city. Tomorrow morning I depart for Poland.

Copenhagen, Denmark

Well, I made it out of Amsterdam alive after one more crazy night and walked around Copenhagen, had a good dinner and went to bed early.

Copenhagen is a lot different than the other cities so far. There is a lot more room, the weather is brisk and the people go about their own lives. It is not quite a tourist city as the others seemed. It is a city living on its own terms with Canals, Shopping, and Plazas catering to its own citizens. Dinner at RizRaz consisted of Danish Vegetarian Buffet with a half-liter of lager. 7-elevens were everywhere, thats a first so far in Europe.

The hostel was a 1080 bed tower with a view and modern interior. I slept like a baby as I was due to do after 3 nights in Amsterdam. Being stuck in London and Amsterdam for those days really pressed me for time in Denmark and Sweden and I will miss out on some things. Calling this a disappointment would be an understatement of how I feel about it. However, I am on my 6th country and have 12 more to go. Can't dwell on anything, just have to keep on going.

Amsterdam, Nederland

Back to the real "Sin" City. I hopped on a train from Brugge to Amsterdam and made it to my destination, the Heart of Amsterdam Hostel, at about 2:30pm. Upon arriving I met another American from Atlanta, just making it to the hostel as well. Alex is from Sandy Springs, Atlanta, Georgia and goes to Amherst in Massachusetts, so we related right off the bat. Locking our packs in lockers, we bee-lined for the Bulldog Coffee shop and acquired some Silver Haze. A lot of people-watching insued through the streets of the Red Light District as I showed Alex around, since he is an Amsterdam first-timer. The night started before dusk since we had Wok-to-Wok (an amazing Amsterdam noodle box) with Columbian Mushrooms. Lots of foot-touring and listening to the hundreds of languages was bewildering, every language started to blend, become incoherent and finally become one language...everyone in the world can communicate, regardless of their native language! A late night ending around 6am supplied only four hours of sleep...not very bright with another whole day in Amsterdam in front of me. The next morning Alex and I rented some Dutch Bikes and rode about the beautiful Canal-laden city. To Jordaan and Oosterpark, to the Harbor and Haarlem...my God, those bikes were scary, not to mention the trouble of avoiding people, cars, motorbikes, trams and other bikes. The night consisted of partying and Philosphor Stones, touring the red-light district and a wild nightcap at an asian lounge with amazing Thai Bartenders! This morning I bought a plane ticket to Copenhagen (skipping Hamburg) however, it doesn't leave until tomorrow. So, now I am stuck in Amsterdam with my pack in an airport luggage locker for one more night and no place to sleep. Its Saturday, and although I am behind on my itenerary timing, another party night in Amsterdam can't kill me? I hope...

Since hostel-booking has not been as easy as I anticipated, I have gone ahead and booked for Copenhagen (Kobenhavn), Stockholm, Gdansk, (skipping Poznan), Berlin and Praha, CZ then I will be right on schedule.

Brugge, Belgium

I arrived in Brugge at about 15:00 after a 3 hour train ride. Although touristy, the "fake" medieval city is beautiful. I made my way straight to the Lybeer Hostel and began on a self-guided walking tour. The city is not very large, so I got to see most of the city's glamor in a few hours. A great photography city. After showering in a dodgey shower with not curtain or overhead spout I had an exquisite Flemish Dinner of Lobster Soup, Flemish Beef and Gravy with a strong Trappist Ale. More walking and photography followed dinner, but this time with the tripod capturing amazing night shots of the Canals and Crude Stone Houses and Belfries. Oh, I almost forgot, the church of the holy blood is in Brugge, where I saw a vial of Jesus Christ's Blood from when he was crucified!

Paris, France (2) and Brussels, Belgium

Today consisted of some quite morbid activities. A trip to Jim Morrison's Grave and a journey through the twisted catacombes. Next was an afternoon train to Brussels for one night. Jim Morrison's body has been laid to rest in the most visited cemetary in all of Europe. Although great to pay respects to such a ledgend, his grave was less than spectacular for being such a motivational rock icon. Afterwards, I jumped on a 2 hour train to Brussels with no planned accommidation.



Planning on leaving for Brugge that night, I left my pack in a train station luggage bin. The Grand Place was amazing and the Mannekkin Pis statue reminded me of a figurine my mother once had, but I never knew of its origin...now I know: Brussel, Belgium.In Brussels that night I stopped into the Delerium Café: a pub which holds the Guinuess Book Record for beers served commercially. I met a couple Belgian girls who spoke Flemish, French and English and ...Censored... The next morning I had a belgian waffle for breakfast and hopped on an intercity Belgian train to Brugge, Belgium.

Paris, France

Sitting below the Eiffel tower drinking a bottle of inexpensive, yet delicious champagne may sound cliché, but nonetheless I still found it quite enthralling. Every hour the entire tower sparkles by flashing strobe lights affixed to the tower in hundreds of places. After meeting some Canadians, we walked around the Seine River and then I walked an hour (by choice) back to my hotel in Montmartre.

This morning began by seeing the Louvre, which is the most extensive museum I have ever witnessed. The works of art were so amazing that tears came to my eyes no less than three times during my tour of the museum. Departing the museum after about 3 hours I decided to walk north up Champs-Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe, at which I was delighted to learn I could go to the top of it to see vistas of Paris. The largest celebratory arch in the world, commissioned by Napolean Bonaparte, rises 50 metres above the largest traffic round-about on earth. That night I headed for the Notre Dame Cathedral and browsed around the labyrinth known as the Latin Quarter, people watching everyone on the sidewalk cafés. I walked along the river and took some pictures before taking the metro back for an early start tomorrow.

London to Paris

So, after being stuck in London for an extra day because my debit card was blocked for 'suspicious international transactions' I have finally arrived in Paris. Staying in Montmartre, the district where Picasso and Dali once lived, and home to the original Moulin Rouge, among numerous other erotic/sex clubs, the bohemian atmosphere suits me quite well.

Friday night in London and into the early morning (7:30am) was spent at The Ministry of Sound club, the original icon of clubbing to hard house music. Saturday, all day, was a dilemma attempting to call the USA to reactivate my debit card.

Now in Paris the Eiffel tower at night and maybe a stroll through the red light district will suit my fancy before turning in for some sleep in my only single room I will splurge on during my time in Europe.

London, United Kingdom

My first stop on the Ultimate Europe Tour has been very entertaining so far. I landed at 10am Thursday and made my way, through the decrepit underground/tube system, to my place of residence for the next 2 nights: Palmer's Lodge in London's borough of Camden. Shortly after checking in I set out to see some of what London has to offer. Big Ben, Westminister, the Thames River, The Parliment Buildings, Buckingham Palace, London Bridge, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London all were as expected: nothing less than breathtaking. The Tower Bridge with its light blue scaffolding and suspensions was my favourite to photograph with Big Ben being a close second. The night brought about drinking and socializing at the hostel's pub and another pub down the street. There weren't more than two people in our crew of ten who were from the same country.

Today started with a short tube ride down to Buckingham in order to catch the changing of the guard at 11:30am. Although very crowded, it was still a delight to see such a royal tradition. Suprising was that the red-coated guards toted non-traditional assault rifles by their sides! Following the guard changing we walked through the city to the Museum of London (free admission) and learned about some of London's history as well as seeing the original Roman walls of "Londinium". The museum was a bit tiring so we fueled up at Lord Raglan Pub near the museum. Food was nothing out of the ordinary, disappointing was the fact that they wouldn't serve me yorkshire pudding as a side dish. However, my steak and red onion sandwich with 'chips' hit the spot quite nicely. A walk to St. Paul's cathedral and across the Thames to Shakespear's Globe theatre culminated this day on the town. Now back at the Hostel, I'm going to grab a few pints at the hostel pub with my new 'mates' and inquire about a 'proper' house club for tonight.