Friday, October 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
The Trip
Itinerary;
Start: November 7 2008, Hong Kong,
Then: Macau, Hong Kong, Moscow (4 months), Riga, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Lyon, Chamonix, Geneva, Bern, Lucerne, Zurich, Paris, Ypres, Paris, Bordeaux, San Sebastian, Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Casablanca, Fes, Tangiers, Marseilles, Nice, Pisa, La Spezia, Pisa, Rome, Sorrento, Rome, Praja a Mare, Napoli, Praja a Mare, Milano, Barcelona, Roma, Napoli, Ischia, Praja a Mare, Roma, Florence, Venezia, Corfu, Athens, Santorini, Ios, Santorini, London, Dublin, Tralee, Dublin, London, Sharm El Sheikh, Dahab, Eilat, Masada, Jerusalem
Next (not necessarily in order): Tel Aviv, Haifa, Golan Heights, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Galilee, Eilat, Petra, Amman, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur then finally Sydney!
'The Awards' - in order
Best party; Ios, Barcelona, Nice
Best natural scenery; Santorini sunset, Chamonix, Lucerne
Most helpful strangers; Lyon, London
Most welcoming locals; Praja, Tralee, Eilat
Best dive; Thistledorm - Egypt
Best beach; San Sebastian, Mylopotas (Ios), Barcelona
Worst accomodation; Fes, Tangiers, Roma (Pop Inn was horrible!)
Best accomodation; Santorini
Best hostel party; Nice (Villa Saint Exupery), Ischia (The Ring), Praja (Onda Road)
Best trains; France, Switzerland, Belgium
Dirty cities; Bordeaux, Zurich, Athens,
Best food; Napoli, Casablanca, San Sebastian
Cities I could live in; Stockholm, Amsterdam, London
Best beer; Nasto Azzuro (Italy), Goldstar (Israel), Guinness (Ireland)
Best museums; Yad Vashem (Jerusalem), Nobel museum (Stockholm), Vatican Museum (Vatican City), British Museum (London) - special mention to Vatican & British Museums for number of stolen artifacts from Greece & Egypt
Historical buildings; Rome, Athens, Jerusalem
Biggest night out; Moscow, Moscow, Barcelona, Ios
Biggest adrenalin rush; Cliff jumping - Praja,
Most # of Australians: Ios, London, Rome
Most helpful accomodation; Giovanni's Place - Napoli, Camp Alaska - Sharm El Sheikh, Onda Road - Praja
Worst diet; Corn chips & coke, canned corn in Moscow - too lazy to walk across the road to the shops in -5 to -20 C weather!
Special mention; to Benny from Sydney who I ran into in Paris (hostel), Nice (hostel), Ios (beach) & London (in Paddington station) without planning to meet
Return date to Sydney? 99% December 6, 2009
Start: November 7 2008, Hong Kong,
Then: Macau, Hong Kong, Moscow (4 months), Riga, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Lyon, Chamonix, Geneva, Bern, Lucerne, Zurich, Paris, Ypres, Paris, Bordeaux, San Sebastian, Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Casablanca, Fes, Tangiers, Marseilles, Nice, Pisa, La Spezia, Pisa, Rome, Sorrento, Rome, Praja a Mare, Napoli, Praja a Mare, Milano, Barcelona, Roma, Napoli, Ischia, Praja a Mare, Roma, Florence, Venezia, Corfu, Athens, Santorini, Ios, Santorini, London, Dublin, Tralee, Dublin, London, Sharm El Sheikh, Dahab, Eilat, Masada, Jerusalem
Next (not necessarily in order): Tel Aviv, Haifa, Golan Heights, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Galilee, Eilat, Petra, Amman, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur then finally Sydney!
'The Awards' - in order
Best party; Ios, Barcelona, Nice
Best natural scenery; Santorini sunset, Chamonix, Lucerne
Most helpful strangers; Lyon, London
Most welcoming locals; Praja, Tralee, Eilat
Best dive; Thistledorm - Egypt
Best beach; San Sebastian, Mylopotas (Ios), Barcelona
Worst accomodation; Fes, Tangiers, Roma (Pop Inn was horrible!)
Best accomodation; Santorini
Best hostel party; Nice (Villa Saint Exupery), Ischia (The Ring), Praja (Onda Road)
Best trains; France, Switzerland, Belgium
Dirty cities; Bordeaux, Zurich, Athens,
Best food; Napoli, Casablanca, San Sebastian
Cities I could live in; Stockholm, Amsterdam, London
Best beer; Nasto Azzuro (Italy), Goldstar (Israel), Guinness (Ireland)
Best museums; Yad Vashem (Jerusalem), Nobel museum (Stockholm), Vatican Museum (Vatican City), British Museum (London) - special mention to Vatican & British Museums for number of stolen artifacts from Greece & Egypt
Historical buildings; Rome, Athens, Jerusalem
Biggest night out; Moscow, Moscow, Barcelona, Ios
Biggest adrenalin rush; Cliff jumping - Praja,
Most # of Australians: Ios, London, Rome
Most helpful accomodation; Giovanni's Place - Napoli, Camp Alaska - Sharm El Sheikh, Onda Road - Praja
Worst diet; Corn chips & coke, canned corn in Moscow - too lazy to walk across the road to the shops in -5 to -20 C weather!
Special mention; to Benny from Sydney who I ran into in Paris (hostel), Nice (hostel), Ios (beach) & London (in Paddington station) without planning to meet
Return date to Sydney? 99% December 6, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Bern - Seville
Writing this from Seville, Spain, Easter Sunday.
Lucerne - short train ride from Bern. Lucerne is beautiful, mountains and lake right next to each other.
Zurich - met with Dennis (The Menace) Atzert and had more than a few beers. Had a great time with Cecilia (Stockholm with an English accent!) and Jarod from Melbourne who'd backpacked from South Africa through to Egpyt then flew to Zurich.
Truth told Switzerland gets a 'Fine' on the country rating. It's a little dirty and definitely more than European average of people littering and spitting in the streets (which is FOUL Europe, cut it out please)
Paris - what a city, pulled in about 18.30 and met up with Mohammed. Huge night rolled in at 6.30 in the morning having for some of the night been drinking 500mL glasses of VB on tap for Euro7.5. Did the usual Tower, Arc, Louvre, Champs d'Elysse etc. Caught up with Hugh D for a couple of beers too.
Ypres - this delightful town was completely destroyed in WWI by German armies not wanting Allied forces to shelter there. Ypres was a battleground for the whole war and the Commonwealth & German grave sites, battlefield tours and memorials were eye opening. It's hard not to reflect what a difference it is to be a 25 yo in 2009 than in 1914 (or 1939). Each night at the Menin gate (a gigantic gate with the names of all Commonwealth soldiers known to have died but whose remains can't be located inscribed) the Last Post is played. Some of the older people in the crowd were crying. The Australian memorial at the Menin Gate says that 313,000 out of 4,500,000 Australians volunteered to go to Europe for WWI.
Bordeaux - more than a little hungover / still drunk missed my train and had to cough up 68 euros for the next one as there weren't any Eurail places for days. Wine was good. Decide now that older French men are front-runners for the Euro Cup in Snoring.
San Sebastian - what a city! Before I went I knew of Basque language / culture / people in vague terms. Basque language cannot be proved to be related to any other language in the world! Enjoyed great pinxos (like tapas) and went to a Basque rap battle with a couple of American college students. Didn't understand a word but still had a great time.
Madrid - great city, starting to let up on the pace of big nights here. Good paella and so warm! Managed to get first sunburn since leaving Oz!
Barcelona - 4 nights in Barcelona, great fun, what a place. Even raining it was awesome. The photos for Mum's birthday were taken on the beach on a rainy day. My last day in Barcelona spent reading on the beach in the sun while people came around selling beer, henna tattoos and coconut.. I was very sad to leave and head to
Seville - 12 hours on the train and after a late night I hit Seville station at 2030 exhausted. Decided that no more drinking until I get back to Europe from Morocco. I spent 2 hours trying to find the hostel whilst all the holy week processions are going on. Seville has a definite Meditteranean flavour and the processions of hooded penitents are fascinating. Good tapas & coffee here too..
Tomorrow I'm off to Morocco via Algeciras. Even Lonely Planet can't say anything nice about Algeciras and I'm glad that I'm only there for minutes in transit to the boat to Tangiers. Back to mainland Europe on the 16th to begin an epic 24 hour train trip to watch Toulon v Toulouse on 18 April. Playing - Sonny Bill Williams, Tana Umaga, Michalak and Byron Kelleher for 37 Euro - brilliant!
Lucerne - short train ride from Bern. Lucerne is beautiful, mountains and lake right next to each other.
Zurich - met with Dennis (The Menace) Atzert and had more than a few beers. Had a great time with Cecilia (Stockholm with an English accent!) and Jarod from Melbourne who'd backpacked from South Africa through to Egpyt then flew to Zurich.
Truth told Switzerland gets a 'Fine' on the country rating. It's a little dirty and definitely more than European average of people littering and spitting in the streets (which is FOUL Europe, cut it out please)
Paris - what a city, pulled in about 18.30 and met up with Mohammed. Huge night rolled in at 6.30 in the morning having for some of the night been drinking 500mL glasses of VB on tap for Euro7.5. Did the usual Tower, Arc, Louvre, Champs d'Elysse etc. Caught up with Hugh D for a couple of beers too.
Ypres - this delightful town was completely destroyed in WWI by German armies not wanting Allied forces to shelter there. Ypres was a battleground for the whole war and the Commonwealth & German grave sites, battlefield tours and memorials were eye opening. It's hard not to reflect what a difference it is to be a 25 yo in 2009 than in 1914 (or 1939). Each night at the Menin gate (a gigantic gate with the names of all Commonwealth soldiers known to have died but whose remains can't be located inscribed) the Last Post is played. Some of the older people in the crowd were crying. The Australian memorial at the Menin Gate says that 313,000 out of 4,500,000 Australians volunteered to go to Europe for WWI.
Bordeaux - more than a little hungover / still drunk missed my train and had to cough up 68 euros for the next one as there weren't any Eurail places for days. Wine was good. Decide now that older French men are front-runners for the Euro Cup in Snoring.
San Sebastian - what a city! Before I went I knew of Basque language / culture / people in vague terms. Basque language cannot be proved to be related to any other language in the world! Enjoyed great pinxos (like tapas) and went to a Basque rap battle with a couple of American college students. Didn't understand a word but still had a great time.
Madrid - great city, starting to let up on the pace of big nights here. Good paella and so warm! Managed to get first sunburn since leaving Oz!
Barcelona - 4 nights in Barcelona, great fun, what a place. Even raining it was awesome. The photos for Mum's birthday were taken on the beach on a rainy day. My last day in Barcelona spent reading on the beach in the sun while people came around selling beer, henna tattoos and coconut.. I was very sad to leave and head to
Seville - 12 hours on the train and after a late night I hit Seville station at 2030 exhausted. Decided that no more drinking until I get back to Europe from Morocco. I spent 2 hours trying to find the hostel whilst all the holy week processions are going on. Seville has a definite Meditteranean flavour and the processions of hooded penitents are fascinating. Good tapas & coffee here too..
Tomorrow I'm off to Morocco via Algeciras. Even Lonely Planet can't say anything nice about Algeciras and I'm glad that I'm only there for minutes in transit to the boat to Tangiers. Back to mainland Europe on the 16th to begin an epic 24 hour train trip to watch Toulon v Toulouse on 18 April. Playing - Sonny Bill Williams, Tana Umaga, Michalak and Byron Kelleher for 37 Euro - brilliant!
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Bern (incl Riga, Tallin, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Lyon, Chamonix!, Geneva)
Finally I have the internet.
The keyboard is french and has the z and the y switched..
Riga, Tallinn - nice enough, seem geared up for British drinkers with plentz of fish n chips and ads for soccer.. Lots of history of Soviet & Nazi occupation
Helsinki - walked on frozen lake (tres cool) made snowman, saw churches and went to a cool island fortress
Stockholm - I love Stockholm, everzbodz was wonderful, it was cheap enough and so, so pretty if not a little cold..
Copenhagen - Sorry Mary, wasnt impressed. Didnt help that Lonelz Planet recommended a hostel in a waryone. Someone was literallz shot metres from the hostel in the earlier week. Did have an epic night out with an Aussie, a Mexican and a posse of Spaniards though..
Amsterdam - other than the hostel distinctly smelling of pot Amsterdam was wonderful. I hired a bike and went up and down the canals. Epic (Monday) night out with some Americans. (Note to all American friends - it isnt necessary to introduce zourself as being from the United States of America. Texas, Boston, LA are all places that we know). Standard Dutchmen dislike people thinking that Amsterdam is all drugs and red light district, easy to see, its a great citz
Rotterdam - massive port city, only had a night but the hostel was great.
Lyon - didnt intend to stop in Lyon but trapped bz a French strike (thanks guys). Typically French Im assured. Glad to have stopped Lyon and the Auberge Jeunuesse (Youth Hostel) had a view of the whole city that was amazing.
Chamonix - Perfect spring skiing. Sunny, fresh snow before I arrived, magnificent vista, no crowds (thanks to the GFC). Hostel, like everywhere else in Chamonix had an amaying view.
Geneva - stopped here for hours only, the city hates me. Tried to get into UN with giant rucksack. Denied (fair enough). Returned massive rucksack to trainstation (5 Euro later) and another cycle up the huge hill they tell me theyre closed for 2 hours. Thanks guys, would have liked to have known that 30 minutes ago. Red Cross / Red Crescent museum closed on Tuesdays. Thanks.
Next stop - Luzern, Zurich (Hi Dennis), Paris (Mohammed & The Ditch) and London (dropping off my ski gear before heading to the Med for summer).
Missing home? Yep. Love to have a few games of footy and a beach trip.
Photos - cant find a terminal that will let me upload.
Most liveable cities - Stockholm & Amsterdam.
Forgettable - Helsinki though the company saved it (Lui, Evgeny & Krish)
The keyboard is french and has the z and the y switched..
Riga, Tallinn - nice enough, seem geared up for British drinkers with plentz of fish n chips and ads for soccer.. Lots of history of Soviet & Nazi occupation
Helsinki - walked on frozen lake (tres cool) made snowman, saw churches and went to a cool island fortress
Stockholm - I love Stockholm, everzbodz was wonderful, it was cheap enough and so, so pretty if not a little cold..
Copenhagen - Sorry Mary, wasnt impressed. Didnt help that Lonelz Planet recommended a hostel in a waryone. Someone was literallz shot metres from the hostel in the earlier week. Did have an epic night out with an Aussie, a Mexican and a posse of Spaniards though..
Amsterdam - other than the hostel distinctly smelling of pot Amsterdam was wonderful. I hired a bike and went up and down the canals. Epic (Monday) night out with some Americans. (Note to all American friends - it isnt necessary to introduce zourself as being from the United States of America. Texas, Boston, LA are all places that we know). Standard Dutchmen dislike people thinking that Amsterdam is all drugs and red light district, easy to see, its a great citz
Rotterdam - massive port city, only had a night but the hostel was great.
Lyon - didnt intend to stop in Lyon but trapped bz a French strike (thanks guys). Typically French Im assured. Glad to have stopped Lyon and the Auberge Jeunuesse (Youth Hostel) had a view of the whole city that was amazing.
Chamonix - Perfect spring skiing. Sunny, fresh snow before I arrived, magnificent vista, no crowds (thanks to the GFC). Hostel, like everywhere else in Chamonix had an amaying view.
Geneva - stopped here for hours only, the city hates me. Tried to get into UN with giant rucksack. Denied (fair enough). Returned massive rucksack to trainstation (5 Euro later) and another cycle up the huge hill they tell me theyre closed for 2 hours. Thanks guys, would have liked to have known that 30 minutes ago. Red Cross / Red Crescent museum closed on Tuesdays. Thanks.
Next stop - Luzern, Zurich (Hi Dennis), Paris (Mohammed & The Ditch) and London (dropping off my ski gear before heading to the Med for summer).
Missing home? Yep. Love to have a few games of footy and a beach trip.
Photos - cant find a terminal that will let me upload.
Most liveable cities - Stockholm & Amsterdam.
Forgettable - Helsinki though the company saved it (Lui, Evgeny & Krish)
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Moscow nightlife
Last saturday night in Moscow. Vodka bar is fairly typical if smaller scale Moscow club. Thumping music, dancing girls, flaming dance floor.
Sunday morning was a fairly typical Sunday morning. Breakfast (1pm) of corn chips and coke. My body is a temple
Sunday morning was a fairly typical Sunday morning. Breakfast (1pm) of corn chips and coke. My body is a temple
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