Yesterday we met up with a friend of my brother's, who showed us all over the Brixton area of South London- the local markets were amazing and full of incredible looking fresh fish and meats. It was great to see the local areas of London where tourists don't usually end up. We had dinner in the markets and then headed to a couple local bars and saw a bit of live music. It was a great evening, and really a great chance to get outside the normal tourists areas.
We're pretty exhausted at this point, so we're taking it really easy- today we saw Despicable Me in 3D (which came out when I was studying for the bar and completely oblivious to everything else in the US).
Tomorrow is our LAST DAY here- we fly back across the pond on Tuesday (leaving London at 12:00 PM- 5 AM KC time....arriving in KC at 11PM KC time...connecting to IAD and ATL....that is going to be brutal). We're planning on spending it catching high tea at Kensington Palace and then heading over to Brick Lane for shopping and Indian food. I can't believe it's over- and at the same time I feel like we've been traveling for much longer than 6 weeks. We're really looking forward to getting back to the states and sleeping in our own bed again after visiting our family and friends in KC (25 uncomfortable cheap hostel/hotel beds between times sleeping in our own...but who's counting).
For now, time to sleep in one of the last .... goodnight!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
London Bridge is not, in fact, falling down.
We've spent the last couple days sleeping late and relaxing- as well as fitting in the new Harry Potter movie on opening day! The 'cinema' was in the Camden Market area, and was actually in a refurbished old theater, complete with a stage and curtains. We had (assigned) seats in the balcony area, which were good, except that we wished the screen was a bit bigger (we were expecting an Imax size screen- the theater was certainly big enough- but instead it was more standard movie theater sized). In any case, it was really good and an excellent setup for the final movie- without any spoilers, Matt says it was the 'Empire Strikes Back' version of Harry Potter. I am not really quite sure what that means, but hey, maybe it tells you something.
We also went to Vinopolis, a 'wine museum,' right next to the still standing London Bridge (again, not falling down. American nursery rhymes have a lot to learn.). Actually a really fun time which was more learning through tasting than traditional museum experiences. We got tasting tickets for around 12 things, including wine, champagne, whisky, beer, absinthe, gin and rum. I think we spent around 3 hours there - with me writing detailed notes about each wine in the flavor journals they gave us, and Matt mostly standing around waiting for me to get done so we could get the next samples! Also, other people apparently don't particularly like whisky, so we got several extra taste tickets for free by the end.
We visited the British Museum as well, which was a really impressive collection of artifacts from a huge array of cultures all over the world. Probably most amazing to see was the Rosetta stone, which allowed scholars to finally translate the Egyptian hieroglyphics they had been studying. We also saw ax-heads from 400,000 years ago. That's not a typo. That's insane. 400,000 years old.
As my paid internet time is quickly running out, I will wrap this up by saying that we are continuing to have a really great time. We're headed to Brixton this evening to meet up with a friend of my brother's, and have only a couple days left here to enjoy, only 3 more nights of weird beds (though Sunday and Monday I think we are staying in a better hotel- tonight is the very last of the bunk bed hostels...hooray!!!).
Will try to take some more photos to post, but not that much interesting to take photos of when you are mostly just hanging out and relaxing!!! Till then, cheerio!
We also went to Vinopolis, a 'wine museum,' right next to the still standing London Bridge (again, not falling down. American nursery rhymes have a lot to learn.). Actually a really fun time which was more learning through tasting than traditional museum experiences. We got tasting tickets for around 12 things, including wine, champagne, whisky, beer, absinthe, gin and rum. I think we spent around 3 hours there - with me writing detailed notes about each wine in the flavor journals they gave us, and Matt mostly standing around waiting for me to get done so we could get the next samples! Also, other people apparently don't particularly like whisky, so we got several extra taste tickets for free by the end.
We visited the British Museum as well, which was a really impressive collection of artifacts from a huge array of cultures all over the world. Probably most amazing to see was the Rosetta stone, which allowed scholars to finally translate the Egyptian hieroglyphics they had been studying. We also saw ax-heads from 400,000 years ago. That's not a typo. That's insane. 400,000 years old.
As my paid internet time is quickly running out, I will wrap this up by saying that we are continuing to have a really great time. We're headed to Brixton this evening to meet up with a friend of my brother's, and have only a couple days left here to enjoy, only 3 more nights of weird beds (though Sunday and Monday I think we are staying in a better hotel- tonight is the very last of the bunk bed hostels...hooray!!!).
Will try to take some more photos to post, but not that much interesting to take photos of when you are mostly just hanging out and relaxing!!! Till then, cheerio!
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
It's Raining in London and We Couldn't be Happier
yes....vacation. That's what this week in London is all about- relaxing and doing what we feel like, instead of trying to see tons of sights. Today we took that to heart and slept in much later than usual (past 11!!!). We then headed directly to buy tickets for Harry Potter, which comes out here on Friday, a few days earlier than in the US. While we paid through the nose for tickets (20 pounds each...around $30), it is in an IMAX theater and should be really great. We then shopped in Camden Market, headed to a couple hours in the London National Gallery where we saw works by everyone from Michaelangelo to Picasso, and rounded out the night with a trip to "Gordon's Wine Bar," which incredibly dates to the 1400's. Overall a super-relaxing day.
The talk of the town is the engagement of Kate and Will- and I must admit, I got a bit teary-eyed when reading the extensive coverage in the papers here (I spent about an hour today pouring over the coverage in the London Times at a coffee shop). Perhaps because parts of their story seem to parallel a couple dear to us (they've been dating 7 years (earning her the awful nickname "Waity Katie"), met as Freshmen in college, are exactly our age, and getting married next year....) I'm quite excited to get to attend at least one of these historic weddings ;)
It is a little silly to talk about Will marrying an "Average" girl Kate, when her parents are millionaires, but even so its a great story that really most of us girls, whether we admit it or not, dreamed of when we were small children...becomming a real life princess. (Disney gave us this idea, its not our fault!) Amazing. And in any case, great entertainment for the rest of us who will look forward to every wedding detail! And, considering the already breathless coverage of the engagement, it's hard to image that the excitement will decrease as more details come to light.
While we are hiding out from the cold rain in the hotel the rest of the evening (it is actually colder here then it was on top of the Alps...), hope you all are staying warm (and dry!) in the mid-November weather!
The talk of the town is the engagement of Kate and Will- and I must admit, I got a bit teary-eyed when reading the extensive coverage in the papers here (I spent about an hour today pouring over the coverage in the London Times at a coffee shop). Perhaps because parts of their story seem to parallel a couple dear to us (they've been dating 7 years (earning her the awful nickname "Waity Katie"), met as Freshmen in college, are exactly our age, and getting married next year....) I'm quite excited to get to attend at least one of these historic weddings ;)
It is a little silly to talk about Will marrying an "Average" girl Kate, when her parents are millionaires, but even so its a great story that really most of us girls, whether we admit it or not, dreamed of when we were small children...becomming a real life princess. (Disney gave us this idea, its not our fault!) Amazing. And in any case, great entertainment for the rest of us who will look forward to every wedding detail! And, considering the already breathless coverage of the engagement, it's hard to image that the excitement will decrease as more details come to light.
While we are hiding out from the cold rain in the hotel the rest of the evening (it is actually colder here then it was on top of the Alps...), hope you all are staying warm (and dry!) in the mid-November weather!
Monday, November 15, 2010
City of Lights
(Tonight's post is written by guest blogger, bon vivant, and man-about-town Matt)
Bon soir from Gay Paree. So here's what went down so far:
The Arc de Triomphe
Champs-Elysees
Eiffel Tower
Notre Dame
Latin Quarter (that's Classical Latin, not Taco Latin)
Lots of Rain
Exceptional Food and Wine
Katie and I are truly enjoying the Parisian "cafe culture," and its associated laid-back lifestyle. So much so that we spent an extra night here.
As the trip winds down, we find ourselves looking back to take stock: Did we see all we wanted to see and did we have enough fun? I believe we did. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn't long ago that I had never left Missouri, and now here I am blogging from Paris. We have scaled the Alps and bathed in Hungarian hotsprings. We have drank French Wine and Czech beer, and everything in between. Katie tasted Irish whiskey and Matt ate a kidney on his lamb chop. We have tried new things,made new friends, and strengthened our marriage. More than anything, we have had FUN, and isnt that the point?
Some random thoughts for your brains to chew:
- We are flat-out tired of touring. Luckily, we did a whirlwind tour of London when we first got here, so this last week in London will be pretty chill.
- Four Roses Bourbon. I have never heard of it before, but in places that have more than one American Whiskey (ie, something other than Jack), this is the most common option, and it seems to be priced like a top-shelf product. Tastes pretty ok, as far as I'm concerned.
- We had always heard that DC was designed to "feel" like Paris with its avenues and shorter buildings, but we didnt really get a sense of that until we saw Paris from above on the Eiffel Tower. From that vantage point, you can really see the similarities between the two cities, such as the traffic circles and resulting funny shaped blocks and buildings.
- In Europe, we have seen many beggars who have (and emphasize) severe physical deformaties, such as backward knees and club feet. In the US, it seems the worst you see is an amputation here and there. Maybe because malformed babies get better care in America? Or is it hidden due to pride?
- Concept cars. There are a few dealerships along the Champs-Elysees that showcase futuristic concept cars that will likely never be for sale. Why spend the money making these cars, for that matter, the money to rent the prime real estate to house them?
- The Eiffel Tower is MUCH taller than the Washington Monument. Just in case you were wondering. (katie's note: Matt wasn't sure when first arriving....he has some trouble with "perspective.")
- What happened to Crepes in the US to make them all terrible? I blame the schools.
- Europeans eat peanut butter-flavored things, eg. crisps (chips), but we can't find a jar of the stuff at all.
- We run into other backpackers that claim to roll into cities with no idea where they are spending the night. In our experience, even waiting til two nights before means you will either pay through your teeth or have to stay WELL away from everything. Maybe there is a special "I'm a dumb person" pass?
We'll always have Paris....but now on to London...
Bon soir from Gay Paree. So here's what went down so far:
The Arc de Triomphe
Champs-Elysees
Eiffel Tower
Notre Dame
Latin Quarter (that's Classical Latin, not Taco Latin)
Lots of Rain
Exceptional Food and Wine
Katie and I are truly enjoying the Parisian "cafe culture," and its associated laid-back lifestyle. So much so that we spent an extra night here.
As the trip winds down, we find ourselves looking back to take stock: Did we see all we wanted to see and did we have enough fun? I believe we did. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn't long ago that I had never left Missouri, and now here I am blogging from Paris. We have scaled the Alps and bathed in Hungarian hotsprings. We have drank French Wine and Czech beer, and everything in between. Katie tasted Irish whiskey and Matt ate a kidney on his lamb chop. We have tried new things,made new friends, and strengthened our marriage. More than anything, we have had FUN, and isnt that the point?
Some random thoughts for your brains to chew:
- We are flat-out tired of touring. Luckily, we did a whirlwind tour of London when we first got here, so this last week in London will be pretty chill.
- Four Roses Bourbon. I have never heard of it before, but in places that have more than one American Whiskey (ie, something other than Jack), this is the most common option, and it seems to be priced like a top-shelf product. Tastes pretty ok, as far as I'm concerned.
- We had always heard that DC was designed to "feel" like Paris with its avenues and shorter buildings, but we didnt really get a sense of that until we saw Paris from above on the Eiffel Tower. From that vantage point, you can really see the similarities between the two cities, such as the traffic circles and resulting funny shaped blocks and buildings.
- In Europe, we have seen many beggars who have (and emphasize) severe physical deformaties, such as backward knees and club feet. In the US, it seems the worst you see is an amputation here and there. Maybe because malformed babies get better care in America? Or is it hidden due to pride?
- Concept cars. There are a few dealerships along the Champs-Elysees that showcase futuristic concept cars that will likely never be for sale. Why spend the money making these cars, for that matter, the money to rent the prime real estate to house them?
- The Eiffel Tower is MUCH taller than the Washington Monument. Just in case you were wondering. (katie's note: Matt wasn't sure when first arriving....he has some trouble with "perspective.")
- What happened to Crepes in the US to make them all terrible? I blame the schools.
- Europeans eat peanut butter-flavored things, eg. crisps (chips), but we can't find a jar of the stuff at all.
- We run into other backpackers that claim to roll into cities with no idea where they are spending the night. In our experience, even waiting til two nights before means you will either pay through your teeth or have to stay WELL away from everything. Maybe there is a special "I'm a dumb person" pass?
We'll always have Paris....but now on to London...
Saturday, November 13, 2010
From a town of 100 to the City of Lights
From Interlocken we headed into the Alps to stay one night in Gimmelwald, a tiny town of 100 that doesn't even have a grocery store- though there is a cheese stand in a 200 year old hut. We arrived in Gimmelwald via a gondola to Murren, the "big town" where the grocery store (which closes at noon) and a resturant are located. We enjoyed a beautiful walk down to Gimmelwald (with all our luggage- for those of you wondering why we have backpacks instead of a rolling suitcase, this is why). About an inch of snow had fallen the night before, but the path was (mostly) clear, allowing for the perfect mix of fresh snow beauty and sure(ish) footing. As you can imagine, in a town of 100 during the offseason, there is not much of anything to do but sit back and enjoy the incredible beauty of the mountains around you. The alps are stunning in their cliff-like beauty- unlike the Rocky Mountains in the US, these peaks are truly jagged spears soaring up 13,000 feet into the clear blue sky.
It was actually a blessing to have everything closed in Gimmelwald (not that there is much to do there anyway during high season other than ski), because it forced/enabled everyone staying in the hostel, about 10 of us, to really get to know each other and hang out. We played a very fun card game that is a take-off of Uno, in which added rules include slapping your hand on the table or your head when certain cards are played and the ability to play totally out of turn where you have matching cards. It was one of those really excellent and unexpected nights, where everyone just gets along and has a great time together. While we had hoped to find this in other hostels along the way we really haven't so far, but are very happy to finally have had the experience.
In addition, we were lucky to have beautiful clear weather on the day we arrived, because the next day the clouds had moved back in, blocking the gorgeous views. Instead of heading up to the very top of Jungfrau (the highest peak in the area) when the views weren't there, we decided to head back to civilization- and 10 hours after leaving our town of 100, we rolled into Paris.
Concerned that we were headed to Paris with nowhere to stay on a Friday night, we sprinted to find an internet cafe near the train station in Bassel during our hour connection. Luckily we happened upon one within about 10 minutes of leaving the station, and were able to find a small hotel that had availablility (though indeed many of the places listed on hostels.com did not have rooms for the night- including where we were originally going to stay when we planned to arrive a few days later). While further contemplation of the hotel's location at first lead to concern as the metro stop it is close to is in fact the very end of one of the metro lines (Port de Orleans on the Left Bank), when we arrived at last we were quite excited to see that it is a bustling area with many resturants nearby, and without the inflated tourist prices of the area near the major sights.
After sleeping in (at last! a private, quiet room with a REAL bed and our own private bathroom! Haven't seen that in quite a while...) we spent the day touring the Louve and then dining with the Pariseans. We brunched on crepes filled with eggs while sipping our coffees. We unwound after the Louve tour with a Spanish Sangria and tapas. We dropped in on Harry's New York Bar, a former hangout of Hemmingway. And we ended back in our little neighborhood near the hotel with a fantastic 3 course truly french meal, starting with smooth and rich foie gras, then a seabass with mixed vegetables (Matt of course went for red meat and had a roasted lambchop served with a kidney...we think....it was yummy regardless), and finishing with chocolate profiteroles and vanilla ice cream (plus two excellent cappucinos to top it all off). A very memorable Parisean meal without the memorable tourist price tag!
Tomorrow hopefully the weather will clear up (maybe?), and we'll head to the Eiffel tower and the walk along the Champs-Elysees.
A few random thoughts on guided tour of the Louve to leave you with:
-Sometimes on a trip like this you encounter new information about something fairly common that you didn't realize before. For me today I found out (yes this will seem really stupid if you know this): Crystal is made out of stone, not glass. The beautiful pieces in the museums have been carved to hide their imperfections naturally occurring- therefore the plainest crystal in the museum is actually generally the most priceless, as it is made from the most perfect piece of rock. I have no idea why I thought that crystal was just made from regular glass that was then etched (perhaps because I assume most of it sold for home use is in fact made that way), but am glad to have been enlightened.
- I.M. Pei really is a fantastic architect- we saw his work in Berlin at a muesum there, and of course his most famous today - the glass pyramid at the Louve. It is hard to imagine what these galleries looked like before his additions, as they seem to bring the entire space together and create a sense of natural drama and lightness to the buildings.
- As we have traveled, we have now several times noticed the same sculpture in multiple locations. "Sphere within a Sphere" was in the Vatican and also at Trinity College in Dublin. Today we saw a few statutes that we saw also at the National Mueum in Rome. And we learned the difference between a "copy" and a "replica." A replica is by the original artist or their protige- a copy is by a random other artist who has nothing to do with the original. Most of the "Greek" statues around Europe are actually very old Roman copies of the older originals.
- We have not encountered any of the famed rude Paris attitude. Everyone actually seems very nice- perhaps the main problem is when Americans visit during the middle of the summer when everyone is just grumpy anyway? Or maybe it is because we preface every interaction with the few French words we learned from our guidebook- Parlez-vous English?, Merci, Si-vous-plait, Bonjour, Bon Soir. (Do you speak English, Thanks, Please, Hello, Goodbye/Goodnight).
Bon Soir!
It was actually a blessing to have everything closed in Gimmelwald (not that there is much to do there anyway during high season other than ski), because it forced/enabled everyone staying in the hostel, about 10 of us, to really get to know each other and hang out. We played a very fun card game that is a take-off of Uno, in which added rules include slapping your hand on the table or your head when certain cards are played and the ability to play totally out of turn where you have matching cards. It was one of those really excellent and unexpected nights, where everyone just gets along and has a great time together. While we had hoped to find this in other hostels along the way we really haven't so far, but are very happy to finally have had the experience.
In addition, we were lucky to have beautiful clear weather on the day we arrived, because the next day the clouds had moved back in, blocking the gorgeous views. Instead of heading up to the very top of Jungfrau (the highest peak in the area) when the views weren't there, we decided to head back to civilization- and 10 hours after leaving our town of 100, we rolled into Paris.
Concerned that we were headed to Paris with nowhere to stay on a Friday night, we sprinted to find an internet cafe near the train station in Bassel during our hour connection. Luckily we happened upon one within about 10 minutes of leaving the station, and were able to find a small hotel that had availablility (though indeed many of the places listed on hostels.com did not have rooms for the night- including where we were originally going to stay when we planned to arrive a few days later). While further contemplation of the hotel's location at first lead to concern as the metro stop it is close to is in fact the very end of one of the metro lines (Port de Orleans on the Left Bank), when we arrived at last we were quite excited to see that it is a bustling area with many resturants nearby, and without the inflated tourist prices of the area near the major sights.
After sleeping in (at last! a private, quiet room with a REAL bed and our own private bathroom! Haven't seen that in quite a while...) we spent the day touring the Louve and then dining with the Pariseans. We brunched on crepes filled with eggs while sipping our coffees. We unwound after the Louve tour with a Spanish Sangria and tapas. We dropped in on Harry's New York Bar, a former hangout of Hemmingway. And we ended back in our little neighborhood near the hotel with a fantastic 3 course truly french meal, starting with smooth and rich foie gras, then a seabass with mixed vegetables (Matt of course went for red meat and had a roasted lambchop served with a kidney...we think....it was yummy regardless), and finishing with chocolate profiteroles and vanilla ice cream (plus two excellent cappucinos to top it all off). A very memorable Parisean meal without the memorable tourist price tag!
Tomorrow hopefully the weather will clear up (maybe?), and we'll head to the Eiffel tower and the walk along the Champs-Elysees.
A few random thoughts on guided tour of the Louve to leave you with:
-Sometimes on a trip like this you encounter new information about something fairly common that you didn't realize before. For me today I found out (yes this will seem really stupid if you know this): Crystal is made out of stone, not glass. The beautiful pieces in the museums have been carved to hide their imperfections naturally occurring- therefore the plainest crystal in the museum is actually generally the most priceless, as it is made from the most perfect piece of rock. I have no idea why I thought that crystal was just made from regular glass that was then etched (perhaps because I assume most of it sold for home use is in fact made that way), but am glad to have been enlightened.
- I.M. Pei really is a fantastic architect- we saw his work in Berlin at a muesum there, and of course his most famous today - the glass pyramid at the Louve. It is hard to imagine what these galleries looked like before his additions, as they seem to bring the entire space together and create a sense of natural drama and lightness to the buildings.
- As we have traveled, we have now several times noticed the same sculpture in multiple locations. "Sphere within a Sphere" was in the Vatican and also at Trinity College in Dublin. Today we saw a few statutes that we saw also at the National Mueum in Rome. And we learned the difference between a "copy" and a "replica." A replica is by the original artist or their protige- a copy is by a random other artist who has nothing to do with the original. Most of the "Greek" statues around Europe are actually very old Roman copies of the older originals.
- We have not encountered any of the famed rude Paris attitude. Everyone actually seems very nice- perhaps the main problem is when Americans visit during the middle of the summer when everyone is just grumpy anyway? Or maybe it is because we preface every interaction with the few French words we learned from our guidebook- Parlez-vous English?, Merci, Si-vous-plait, Bonjour, Bon Soir. (Do you speak English, Thanks, Please, Hello, Goodbye/Goodnight).
Bon Soir!
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
No such thing as a Late Lunch
<< I regret to inform you that Europe is Closed. Please come back when it is not between seasons. Thank you for your consideration. With affection, Switzerland.>> (They don't use apostrophes here.)
Today we hung around Interlocken- and learned that a late lunch does not exist here. If you don't eat by 1:00, hope you didn't want any lunch, because everything is closed except McDonalds and they are charging $11 for a BigMac. Not including fries or a drink.
So, we skipped lunch and headed to the ice rink, where I attempted to teach Matt to skate. He did very well for his first time, but more practice is needed for such advanced skills as turning and stopping (or even really going straight). We still had a very entertaining time- as I spent most of it giggling in stitches! (The 3-13 year olds playing hockey didn't help either- they were staring at us as if they had never seen an adult who didn't know how to skate...which they probably hadn't...)
Not much going on here- everything is closed because we are splitting the summer season and winter season. I recommend that no one come to Interlocken during this time period, because really all there is to do is the indoor ice rink. But a down day is okay (especially for those who need to do laundry). Tomorrow we head up the mountain to Gimmelwald, which should be beautiful and may result in better photos. On the other hand, probably no internet for a couple days, so prepare for radio silence :)
Things we are missing right now, 4 weeks in, with 2 to go:
- Sandwiches. Europe apparently doesn't believe in the American concept of a sub sandwich with lots of toppings. Good luck ordering one, they will be very confused (and really just won't make it).
- Eggs. Maybe you can find them hard-boiled, but never scrambled or over easy to Matt's great lament.
- Personal space/somewhere to live. Moving every 1-2 nights gets a bit exhausting after a while.... and closely related:
- A real bed. Haven't seen one in a long time, even when we book private rooms, often there are just 2 twin beds pushed together, or a mattress much too short for us, or just extremely hard.
- A kitchen stocked with staples. I am really missing cooking and "normal" home-cooked meals.
- And, most of all, our friends and family. I got several really nice emails and texts the last few days from you all, and that really makes me feel happy and loved even though I'm so far away- but makes me miss you even more. We're really looking forward to Thanksgiving!!! Give each other a big hug for me until I see you soon!
Today we hung around Interlocken- and learned that a late lunch does not exist here. If you don't eat by 1:00, hope you didn't want any lunch, because everything is closed except McDonalds and they are charging $11 for a BigMac. Not including fries or a drink.
So, we skipped lunch and headed to the ice rink, where I attempted to teach Matt to skate. He did very well for his first time, but more practice is needed for such advanced skills as turning and stopping (or even really going straight). We still had a very entertaining time- as I spent most of it giggling in stitches! (The 3-13 year olds playing hockey didn't help either- they were staring at us as if they had never seen an adult who didn't know how to skate...which they probably hadn't...)
Not much going on here- everything is closed because we are splitting the summer season and winter season. I recommend that no one come to Interlocken during this time period, because really all there is to do is the indoor ice rink. But a down day is okay (especially for those who need to do laundry). Tomorrow we head up the mountain to Gimmelwald, which should be beautiful and may result in better photos. On the other hand, probably no internet for a couple days, so prepare for radio silence :)
Things we are missing right now, 4 weeks in, with 2 to go:
- Sandwiches. Europe apparently doesn't believe in the American concept of a sub sandwich with lots of toppings. Good luck ordering one, they will be very confused (and really just won't make it).
- Eggs. Maybe you can find them hard-boiled, but never scrambled or over easy to Matt's great lament.
- Personal space/somewhere to live. Moving every 1-2 nights gets a bit exhausting after a while.... and closely related:
- A real bed. Haven't seen one in a long time, even when we book private rooms, often there are just 2 twin beds pushed together, or a mattress much too short for us, or just extremely hard.
- A kitchen stocked with staples. I am really missing cooking and "normal" home-cooked meals.
- And, most of all, our friends and family. I got several really nice emails and texts the last few days from you all, and that really makes me feel happy and loved even though I'm so far away- but makes me miss you even more. We're really looking forward to Thanksgiving!!! Give each other a big hug for me until I see you soon!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
The Old Man and the Sea - Cinque Terre
From Rome, we headed to the coast to see Cinque Terre ("five towns"). These small villages are connected by a series of hikes along the ocean and mountains. While I could write all about our hike, its better for you to just go look at the photos (a picture is worth 1,000 words after all). Especially since all we did was hike and eat seafood pasta (NOM NOM NOM....) Just a few comments to go along with the photos:
- My definition of "hike along a path" is more or less stroll along a nice sidewalky type of path, up and down hills, but expecting guardrails where it gets close to cliff edges. The first hike we went on was listed as one of the hardest, but it was where we were starting from, so we figured no big deal. It turns out that their definition of hike is more like "be a mountain goat for an hour and a half." There were many, many parts where a misplaced step was all that was between you and a 150 meter (300 feet?) plunge off the side of a cliff onto the rocks below. Scary. But beautiful (and hard to capture on camera...)
-Some people, when seeing a waterspout on the way to an ocean get-away might think, "gee, the water might be a bit chopped up." My brain did not process this. But yes, as you can see in the photos, it was incredible. We thought it was choppy the first day. The second day, we saw waves that were consistently 8-10 feet high, winds that were sustained 48 km/hr (I looked it up), and the waves when breaking spraying up to 100 feet in the air. All of this was really hard to capture in pictures, but compare the first day to the second day in our little harbour. Even the locals were impressed by the storm surge, which apparently happens 2-3 times every winter.
-We are now in Interlaken, Switzerland. We arrived at night (it took us 10 hours including a 4 hour train lay-over in Milan), so have not yet seen the Alps which are towering over us. Should have some good photos soon!!!
- My definition of "hike along a path" is more or less stroll along a nice sidewalky type of path, up and down hills, but expecting guardrails where it gets close to cliff edges. The first hike we went on was listed as one of the hardest, but it was where we were starting from, so we figured no big deal. It turns out that their definition of hike is more like "be a mountain goat for an hour and a half." There were many, many parts where a misplaced step was all that was between you and a 150 meter (300 feet?) plunge off the side of a cliff onto the rocks below. Scary. But beautiful (and hard to capture on camera...)
-Some people, when seeing a waterspout on the way to an ocean get-away might think, "gee, the water might be a bit chopped up." My brain did not process this. But yes, as you can see in the photos, it was incredible. We thought it was choppy the first day. The second day, we saw waves that were consistently 8-10 feet high, winds that were sustained 48 km/hr (I looked it up), and the waves when breaking spraying up to 100 feet in the air. All of this was really hard to capture in pictures, but compare the first day to the second day in our little harbour. Even the locals were impressed by the storm surge, which apparently happens 2-3 times every winter.
-We are now in Interlaken, Switzerland. We arrived at night (it took us 10 hours including a 4 hour train lay-over in Milan), so have not yet seen the Alps which are towering over us. Should have some good photos soon!!!
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