Munich, Germany & Dachau Concentration Camp

After arriving in Munchen from Neuschwanstein with a few new friends I checked into my the Wombat City Hostel planning on going out with the bunch of them. However, at the Wombat I met a bunch of other people who were heading out for a night of drinking...how could I resist. We headed directly for the Hofbrau Haus and drank 1-liter steins until closing time. Already quite acquainted with a hot little Ecuadorian girl from Canada we all headed to another bar which was still open. After a few more drinks we all headed back to the Wombat ...CENSORED... The next morning I had plans with Noah (met at Neuschwanstein) to visit Dachau, the original concentration camp. We hopped on the S-bahn for a quick 20 minute journey to the town of Dachau and made our way inside the complex's walls. As morbid as the history books and movies describe the holocust, nothing can prepare you for the environment of actually being inside a former concentration camp. The film they showed, with actual footage from the events that took place inside the walls is more than moving, it will change your life. All I can say is "holy shit". A few hours was all I could take of the somber Dachau before heading back to Munich to see a little bit of that city. We saw the Glockenshpiel, a clock in one of Munich's main squares which has animated figures dancing and jousting twice a day. After that, Noah and I headed to English Park to watch urban surfing on a river wave. Quite amazing, who knew you could surf in Germany? Then we went to the Chinese Bier Garten to drink a few before heading back to the hostels. The night, my last in Europe, was a quiet, relaxing one. Dinner at the Hofbrau Haus, which has amazing traditional Bavarian food, and then drinks at the three hostels on Senefelderstraße (where Wombat is) was all I could manage before a relatively early bedtime in order to make my flight to Boston in the morning. The next morning I left quietly and went to the airport. A beer in the airport's bier garten (that's right, the airport even has one) before boarding the plane. Its been a long strange trip and as much fun as I've been having I think I'm ready to go home. Next up, in a few weeks, I'm driving to California from Boston, so this year's traveling is not over just yet. Stay tuned for that blog ... http://blueph0enix2.blogspot.com/

Fussen, Germany & Neuschwanstein Castle

King Ludwig II's Fairy Tale Castle where he lived for only 172 days before his death. After arriving in Fussen on the train I had to hop on a bus up to the castle. I met a couple of other backpackers who accompanied me. Although touristy, the castle was quite impressive. Very ostentatious, very beautiful and very disappointing, for the King, since he didn't have the opportunity to spend much time in it. The shy king built the castle in order to hide from people and be a sort of royal hermit. Upon King Ludwig II's death in 1886 the castle was far from complete, which only adds to the sad story of the life of the mysterious fairy tale king.

Zurich, Switzerland

I have a 7-hour layover here waiting for my train and the hostel is full. Sleeping on the street, literally, is really my only option. Oh why don't I just sleep in the train station you ask? Well, in Zurich they shut it for the night from 0200-0600...super. Its very cold out but it's my only option. After finding a nice place to sleep next to the River for a few hours I woke up shivering and probably a little hypothermic. I tried to walk around to warm up and stood near the locked metro station to get a little heat. By this time all the bars and restaurants were closed, so that wasn't an option. After warming up slightly I figured my best bet was just to go back to sleep somewhere to make the time go faster. I found a nice little alleyway and slept behind a van, on the ground, waking every hour until the train station opened. When I finally got up I knew I had hypothermia. I made my way to the train station, shaking from low body temperature, and jumped on the train, shivering the whole ride...now I have a lot more empathy for the homeless.

Zermatt, Switzerland

A pituresque car-free village in the Swiss Alps and at the base of the famous Matterhorn. With a population of just over 5500 this place was bustling with hikers, skiers, snowboarders, mountain bikers zip-liners. I decided to take part in the cheapest of the forementioned sports, hiking. I hiked around the base of the Matterhorn, but in order to climb it I would need some serious gear (let alone skill) due to it's 4478m elevation and near vertical faces. The town of Zermatt was quaint with small electric taxis, bicycles and walking the only form of transportation it was a quiet little town with a giant looming over it. But thats what Zermatt is all about, the Matterhorn. Frequent avalanches dumped snow into the glacier below the mountain provided year round skiing and riding for its visitors. The houses in the town were grandiose swiss mountain cabins each at least four-stories high. Other than sports there didn't seem like there was much else to do here, and with my backpacking budget if there was anything to do I would be paying for it in Switzerland. So I hopped on the slowest train in Europe, the Matterhorn Express, back down to Brig and planned to find a way to Fussen, Germany. The one hour train journey to Brig was $30 so I just dodged the conductor for the short trip.

Bern, Switzerland

I was trying to get to Brig but trains were not running to such a small town in the mountains so I was redirected to the country's capital, Bern. A nice, clean city with covered arcades and bars/clubs above and below street level. The hostel was full so I had to spend more money than I would have liked on a hotel; Switzerland is NOT cheap by any measure. Eighty Francs ($63.50) later I had a nice cozy private room in the City Hotel near the train station. I finally hit the sack at around 2am and woke at 11am to catch my trian to Zermatt. The first full night of sleep in a very long time.

Venice-Milano--Bern, Switzerland.

Evil trains, I never want to see one again. Switzerland is SO expensive, bring me back to Eastern Europe. On top of it, they don't have hostels in Bern, the damn capital of the country.

Venice, Italy

After arriving late on the train with no planned accomidation I decided to sit at a bar with a group of people who I overheard talking about the Red Sox. Even though a hostel was right down the street I decided to chill out with them. Hopefully the girl from Peabody would let me stay with her...

I woke up early to see the sights and get back on the road. As beautiful and romantic as Venice is it is very expensive and I am travelling alone, I don't need romance. I climbed to the top of Campanile di San Marco since I like to climb to the tallest points in the destinations I travel to. At ninety-eight meters high I had a wonderful few of the 117 islands Venezia is built on as well as the 150-or-so canals and 400-plus bridges connecting the islands. My second trip to Venice and it was as breathtaking as the first. After a nice italian lunch and a few more hours walk taking pictures of the canals and buildings I headed back for the train station to make my way to Switzerland.

Bled, Slovenia

I made a day trip to Bled (30 minutes by bus), which owns the oldest castle in Slovenia, built in 1003. The hilltop castle overlooks a island-housed churched perched upon a crystal-clear lake. As if it wasn't enchanting enough, the entire landscape is surrounded by snow-capped mountains. Quite a gorgeous little town with a few great hikes around the lake and up to the castle.

I hiked up to the castle and gazed upon the lake taking in all the beauty. A little literature provided by the castle-museum provided me with the history of both Bled and Slovenia. This was followed by a couple glasses of wine from the castle winery (complementary with admission!). A hike back down and some walks around the lake concluded my short visit to to the village of Bled before my bus ride back to Ljubjiana.

Ljubjliana, Slovenia

It was wet walking around looking for a hostel, especially since the one I wanted to stay at was booked for the night. However, the receptionist at the Celica Hostel redirected me to Hotel Park, just down the street. I checked in to a four-person dorm to myself on the 14th floor with a great view. Very nice, I thought, now I can bring back guests, if I only I knew where to find them. There was nothing happening at Hotel Park so I planned on going back to Hostel Celica because there seemed like there were a lot of people around and I heard music and commotion out back. It turns out there was a swanky little squatter's community just behind Celica called Metalkova. In this bizarre complex I found a rock club, a DJ club and a bar, all run by squatters, not to mention tons of laid-back, cool people. The second I showed up I met a newly engaged couple from England, and with no Slovenian money, they were nice enough to buy me beer for the night. I stayed quite late chatting with them and making other new friends.

After Bled the next day I checked into Hostel Celica where I met a few cool Australian girls who fancied to drink with me. The night was fun hanging out with them and seeing a few bars before returning to the hostel to just chill. Hostel Celica is an old jail converted into a hostel with the cells remaining as some dorms. There was a great restaurant and bar as well as a few couch and pillow rooms where you could kick off your shoes and just relax. Waking up hung-over for the first time in a long time I had time before catching my train to Italy. I went to the center of town and took in the atmosphere along the river of a very cool community. Next I proceeded to climb the castle. If you haven't noticed yet, I try to go to the highest point at all my destinations. I got a great view of the city and the surrounding area before heading back to the hostel and boarding the train to Venice.

Overall, Ljubjiana had one of the best vibes in a city to date. It was quaint but beautiful and reminding me a little of Boston in the way it blended old with new so seemlessly. The people were great and the city was spotless-clean, definitely a jewel.

Split and Zagreb, Croatia

Back in Split I hung out with Ashley from Calgary (met her on the boat from Hvar) and saw a little bit of Split's old town waiting for my bus to Zagreb, Croatia. Super cool girl, almost persuading me in staying in Split for the night, but I am on a mission, and Slovenia is calling. After a kiss-kiss goodbye I hopped on the 6-hour bus to Croatia's capital: Zagreb.
The bus ride, travelling away from the coast brought me to different topography. Limestone cliffs with the road being built on loose limestone foundation. High bridges and deep tunnels. For example, Tunnel Mala Kapela was 5500m long. Future mental note: don't drink beer on long bus rides with no WC. My teeth were floating!
Zagreb wasn't a destination just a transition point from bus to train as there are no trains along the Montenegran and Croatian coast. I took the tram from the bus station to the train station in Zagreb and luckily there was a train departing for Ljubijana, Slovenia in 45 minutes. Just outside the train station there were most of the city's public parks so I got to see a little bit of the city which in turn had a really cool vibe.
On the train to Ljubijana I sat with a bunch of Americans and Canadians who were studying in Vienna and who were amazed by my stories from on the road (they apparently were sheltered and haven't backpacked before). There were only travelling for the weekend to Croatia. Nonetheless, they were good company and I made a contact with Alexi from Vancouver in case I want to go skiing this winter. I arrived in Ljubijana and encountered heavy rain. Not good since I hadn't booked a hostel yet.

Hvar Island, Croatia

After the bus stopped in Split I realized it would have taken all night to get to Slovenia so I jumped on the night's last ferry to Hvar Island an hour and a half boat ride from Split. Split felt like a big industrial port-city so I didn't want to spend the night there. Although going to a isolated island for only one night may have not been in the best judgement seeing that I am strapped for time I was rewarded with a beautiful little place where I met some really cool people. On the boat I met a couple from Perth about my age who recommended a the place they were staying to me. Luka Viscovnic's Sobe (70 kune single room). Luka was probably the nicest guy I have ever met who spoke amazing English since his wife is from California and he used to live there. I walked around the old town of this island for a few hours with the couple from Perth, AUS before they turned in. Then I popped into a few bars meeting heaps of cool people from Canada and Australia. After a few drinks I just headed home to get some shut eye; the bars weren't that exciting anyway.
I woke up the next morning to overcast and light rain, but that didn't stop me from jumping in the water for a little swim. I did another quick walk around the old town before checking out ferry times back to mainland Croatia. Since it was October, ferries weren't running so frequently, so my return trip options were limited (only two ferries/day). At the port I met four cool Aussie and Canadian girls who may or may not have been travelling together and had coffee with them waiting for the boat. The ferry ride was fun, playing drinking games and chatting the whole way.

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Now this is beauty in a city! The walled in old town and the myriad Adriatic beaches were quite a treat. When I arrived on the bus, where I met 4 Aussie dudes, they talked me into staying where they were staying: Silvas Boarding House in Lapad. The best beach in Croatia was not far away, despite the fact that the old town was a 10-minute bus ride away.

The 2.5-hour busride here from Kotor was amazing running alongside the deepest fjord in Southern Europe and overlooking the jagged adriatic coast filled with islands and jetties. Once arriving in Dubrovnik the bus was swarmed with little old ladies saying, "Maybe Room, Maybe Room?" trying to sell you a place to sleep for the night. They were so overwhelming I just avoided them completely and followed the four Aussie guys. After we finally checked in it was getting dark. We headed towards the old town to grab dinner and see what this ancient walled in city had to offer. Dubrovnik doesn't have much to offer for eating so we settled for a pizzeria just outside the old city walls (cheaper). For 52 Kune (7euros) I had a large pizza to myself. After taking some nice nightshots of the old town we decided to find a bar and I decided to meet some new people. Lonely Planet suggested all the best bars were near the youth hostel so we headed in that direction. After ordering a bottle of Croatian red wine for 5euros (which I wasn't charged for in the end) I moved my table to one with some more lively people. I have to admit the Aussie boys were the lamest Aussies I have ever met and when I moved tables and asked them to follow they declined. So I sat with two American girls, a French kid and another "cool" Aussie; they were all staying at the Youth Hostel, which I concluded I should have done also. After hanging out until around 2am I had to catch a bus back to sleep.

Waking up early I grabbed breakfast with the Aussies and left on my own to walk the top of Dubrovnik's city walls. Now this was the best part of my visit. Ocean Vistas on one side and the red-rooved ancient buildings on the other side, my photographs can only explain how enthralling it was to be here. And the weather was out of this world for October. After the 1.5-hour walk around the city's perimeter I made my way back to the boarding house in order to depart for my next destination. I paid the 100 kune ($16) and made my way to the bus station to go to Split were I did not plan on staying but decided to play it by ear on the way there regarding where my day's journey would end.

Kotor & Budva, Montenegro

Wow, what a beautiful land Montenegro is! Here is the place I have been interested for months in buying property; more on that later.

My 12-hour busride, (ugh, I know, I didn't know it was that long when I boarded) finally got in at 1am at Kotor. I decided to come here first because its a bigger city and I had no accomidation booked, even though the bus stopped in Budva first. When I got into the old-town of Kotor I went to both of the hotels (no hostels in Kotor) recommended in my lonely planet. Both of their receptions were closed. Luckily Hotel Rendezvous' side door was open, so I enterered and checked if any of the rooms were unlocked so I could just sleep. Alas, one is unlocked but there are two guys already sleeping in there. There were three beds, so I just took my bags off and passed out. When I awoke at 8am I snuck out of the room and the hotel and returned 5 minutes later asking if they had any rooms for the night. Little did they know I just got a free night out of them. Twenty Euros for a double with two beds in it and breakfast included, I said "deal". I took a shower and shaved and headed straight to the mountainside ramparts behind the old town. The march up wasn't so bad, about 600 meters up, but I made it to the summitt and was rewarded with breathtaking views of the deepest fjord in Southern Europe. Words can't describe how beautiful Kotor is. With a population of 20,000+ and an old town enveloped by ancient walls the city once had its own Navy. The old stone architecture is unique to Montenegro. After running back down in about 5 minutes (1 hour to get up) I decided to go to Budva for the rest of the day to go to the beach. At the bus station I met a guy from Singapore living in London looking for a room. A great idea to sell the other bed in the room and split my hotel cost. So now I'm sleeping in a hotel, not a hostel, for 5 euros a night!

Budva was a typical beach town with a gorgeous old town. The old town was wrecked in 1979 by an earthquake and rebuilt so the buildings are newer and less rustic than Kotor, but amazing nonetheless. After walking around the old town, getting some sun on the beach and jumping in the water which looked out at a pretty little island I hopped back on the 30 minute bus to Kotor. Montenegro feels a little like Europe's Costa Rica. Rustic and Beautiful, Green Mountains and Sparkling Sea, not many tourists (well when I was in Costa Rica there weren't many). Today I popped in and out of Real Estate offices posing as a serious buyer, as I would really like to be. I dressed up nicely and looked at the properties and the conclusion is, they aren't as cheap as I thought. Granted you can buy a 2-bedroom house for $45,000 overlooking the ocean, but it needs work. Now I am waiting for my bus to Dubrovnik, Croatia to start using my ninth currency. Dubrovnik as been coined both "Paradise on Earth" and "The Pearl of the Adriatic".

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Beograd (Belgrade), Serbia

Well, that train was exhausting! Two Serbians in my pseudo-sleeper train car wouldn't shut up for the better part of the eight hour ride. I couldn't even tell them to shut up because I don't know a lick of Serbian other than "Thank you". However, after the overnight train I made it to Serbia, still war torn with tanks roaming around and demolished buildings guarded by armed military forces. The soldiers forced another girl from New Zealand to delete her pictures of the still-destroyed buildings. Oh, but he didn't see me take my pictures, but then again I have pictures of the Sistine Chapel cieling and the Mona Lisa, even though they forbidden to take pictures of, haha.

I got off the train in Beograd at 7am and dropped my bags at a hostel planning on leaving them there until check-in time. I hopped on tram #2 which circles the city and proceeded to view the fortress. They proudly displayed parts of a downed U.S. stealth fighter. Now, Beograd has been detroyed and rebuilt over 40 times in its 1000+ year history, so there are ruins everywhere. The most recent from the U.S. airstrikes when Serbians were persecuting Albanians in Kosovo. I found one nice street in the whole city which was a pedestrian boulevard lined with cafes and restaurants. Other than that it was a large city devoid of tourists. Shopping was cheap as dirt however, shoe stores everywhere. They use the cryllic alphabet, so even reading street signs was difficult. After walking around for 5 hours and eating a unique Serbian meat burger with cheese and onions in it I decided I was not going to stay there for the night. So, I hopped on the noon bus to the Montenegran coast.

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.