London

I had three days in London before I headed home to Seattle.  To be honest, London didn’t have much of a chance with me.  I was so looking forward to coming home, that I had one eye looking ahead.  I was also just very burned out from big city Europe, it was becoming redundant.  The fact that London was by far the most crowded of the cities I have visited, did not improve my enthusiasm for the city.  But, it took me 35 years to get here, so I tried to make the most of it!

I made it to most of the main sights.  The Tower of London and surrounding area, which included the Tower Bridge.  Come to find out, the bridge you always see pictures of in London, is this bridge, not the London bridge which is a basic concrete slab these days (practically unnoticeable).  I did have fish and chips in this area which was ok, but I prefer Ivars : )  This area also showcased several of the modern buildings in London.

 

I then walked to St. Paul’ Cathedral, Covent Garden (which sadly wasn’t a garden) a cute market/shopping area and popular square to hang out in, and Leicester Square. Covent Garden had a great vibe and a lot of street performers.  Picadilly Circus (square) was a lot of fun. It is like a small times square with lots of street performers, live theatre, shopping, and restaurants.

 

I visited the National Gallery and Trafalgar Square areas twice (once at night).  This turned out to be one of my favorite areas in London, with so many fountains.  Just across the Thames River from this area is the London Eye, the 30 minute ferris wheel that offers views of the city (I decided it would be boring on my own, so skipped this attraction, it was also $25+).

    

In general the buildings in London were very bland – white or grey.  I did like the area near the house of Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey, which were more intricate and reminded me of the architecture I had seen in other big European cities.

     

Of course, I visited Buckingham Palace (which I was underwhelmed by) and the surrounding park areas including St. James, Green park, and Hyde Park, which has many memorials.  It was nice to finally see some green, although they were mainly open grassy areas with some trees (no flowers).  I even hit up Harrods, the massive and extravagant retail store.  It was truly amazing – this picture below is from inside part of the food court. 

 

I was not sad to say goodbye to London, knowing I was coming home.  I will never forget the extremely crowded metro here where (as in most of Europe) the men were always offering to help carry my luggage up and down the stairs, they have a free newspaper twice a day (morning and evening), and you hear the words ‘mind the gap’ about a thousand times a day (referring to the gap between the train and walkway).  After two days fighting the crowds and 7 weeks clomping around on my feet, I decided a spa day was in order.  So I spent my last day getting a much needed mani/pedi and massage : ) It was wonderful!!  Europe was everything I hoped it would be, but there is no place like home!!

Amsterdam

Everyone one knows of Amsterdam for the red light district.  The area where prostitution and drugs are the norm.  I think this overshadows the fact that Amsterdam is beautiful.  It is situated on canals and islands, a Northern Europe Venice.  There are colorful boats and bikes everywhere, often multiple people on a bike (either a child with parent, or loved on side saddling the bike). With a similar climate to Seattle, it reminded me a lot of home.  Very green, familiar flowers (hydrangeas, lilac, lavender, etc.) and water everywhere.  In town you are constantly dodging the many bicycles and trams that, (as you can see below) even cut right through the main squares.  Keeps you on your toes!

   

Amsterdam is quite small, so I was able to tackle by foot, most of the downtown area in one day.  The canals are quite picturesque, and the buildings generally in good condition and photo ready.  I visited parks, famous spots such as Anne Frank’s house, Van Gogh Museum (sadly just the outside), Dam square, Waterloo square, and the red light district. 

 

My favorite experience was walking through some of the side streets and smaller canals.  So beautiful.  The weather was overcast with pockets of sun, just like home.  The buildings were so colorful and several had cool wood paneling in the front of their stores. The flowers here are better hydrated than places I have been visiting, so far more photogenic.

   

The canals are lined with all kinds of boats, including the cutest houseboats.  All of them decorated in tons of plants and flowers.  Speaking of boats –check out this Pirate ship!

Their is a Heineken factory here, so you can find it all over the place.  They also had the cutest flower market; greenhouses that lined a canal and sold tulip bulbs, among other flowers. 

 

There are technically two ‘red light’ districts in Amsterdam.  The one I visited is two canals/streets that run parallel to each other.  The first street seemed to be more focused on ‘coffee houses’ for buying and smoking weed.  The other was focused on the sex industry there.  I went around 9PM so things were just getting started.  It wasn’t as shocking as I expected it to be.  Basically, as I am sure you have heard about, the women stand in the windows (and doors) in their bathingsuits/lingere.  The ones at street level are in doors, each with a small room behind, just big enough for a small bed.  In they go, close the curtain, and well – that is all I know : )

Holland – Lucky Lake Hostel

After staying the night in London at Palmer’s lodge (which was funny because that is Wm’s last name). I headed out to take a train/ferry combo to the Netherlands.  After taking a fast train to Harwick (on the East Coast), I boarded a beautiful ‘ferry’ that was basically half of a cruise boat.  I had a room all to myself for the 7 hour, overnight, ride to Hook Van Holland.  2 trains later, and I arrived near my hostel. (random note:  the hat I am wearing I bought in Amsterdam.  When we hiked in the cold I hated cold ears – this should do the trick).

The hostel I stayed at, was intentionally out of town, more in the country.  It was recommended to me by another traveler and I am SO happy it was!  It is a 20 min train ride and 15 min shuttle ride away from downtown Amsterdam.  Lucky Lake, as they call themselves, was such a refreshing change from the typical hostel.  It is more of a caravan.  They have little trailers for rent, or some cabins.  I stayed in shared cabin, female ‘dorm’, with 3 others.  The property was scattered with fun creatures and cute Holland wood shoes.  There was a lot of open green area with flowers, to hang out in, play games in, etc.  The vibe there was just wonderful, everyone was very friendly!  There were also several chickens, a mama duck, and her darling babies that kept me quite entertained.  The common area was very comfortable and cute (a trailer they called the lucky lounge). 

   

My last day, I had planned on exploring the area by bike, as I had heard there were windmills not too far away.  Sadly for me, all of the bikes were rented when I got around to it.  But it all worked out, as the hostel is located 5 minutes from a gorgeous, big, lake.  The area in-between was the most charming channel based neighborhood.  What a wonderful life this seemed like.  It just felt very relaxed, everyone had gorgeous flowers and plants, and the canals are just so fun! I walked up and down them all, taking pictures and just soaking it all in.  What a nice change from the big cities! The outdoor environment felt a lot like home.

   

Wm, if you are reading this aloud, close the kitties’ ears : )  On my walk I met the most precious and beautiful kitty.  She was very soft, talkative, and loving (I had hair all over my black pants when she was done rubbing my ankles).  Her markings were very pretty and she liked to pose for my camera. 

 

It was fun to see how the Dutch live.  Many of them have farm animals on their property and grow their own vegetables. The quality of life appeared to be very good here!  At the beach I noticed a fun water toy built on the beach.  The children’s toys here (like in jungle gym) are very fun (in Austria too).  They tend to be built with wood and like to incorporate zip lines.  Fun!

Overall, my stay in Netherlands, which is my last hostel was amazing.  I definitely hope to make it back here one day.  If I do, I just might go straight back to Lucky Lake, what a fun place!! Now, off to tackle London.  I will be home in 4 days!  I can’t wait to see my loved ones.

There is more to Salzburg, than the Sound of Music

I woke up early in the morning my last day here, which was great, because the day prior I had neglected to take pictures of Old Town, thinking I would have plenty of time later in the day to return.  The old town if quite small and very condensed (as you can see from my aerial shot of town below during my hike) making taking pictures a bit difficult, but the town is very pretty.  Of course, many of these things can be found in the movie too though : )

     

I also took several pictures of greater Salzburg during my bike ride yesterday, including the river which is lined on both sides with walking and biking paths.

   

I haven’t mentioned it yet, with all of the SofM excitement, but Salzburg is also the birthplace and home of Mozart, so you are able to see his home (and garden), his grandmothers home, and many statues of him throughout the city.

   

I then decided to tackle Kapuzinerberg Hill, which I had heard offered great views of the city.  I walked up the huge hill to get to the park, which was a fun workout. I then started hiking on the paths, in search of the great views.  Sadly for me, the paths are not well marked, and at times very unkept.  It is like hiking in the woods (but their trees are much different, thinner).  I got a bit lost which was somewhat frightening as there was not another person in site (it was only 8AM).  So in the end, I hiked for 2 hours instead of the intended 30 min, found a couple of good viewpoints, but not what I was expecting.  With the exception of the scratches on my ankles from sticker bushes, and the 20+ spider webs I walked through, it was actually a good way to get my blood pumping in the morning, and it was very relaxing and peaceful (minus the OMG I am lost times).

    

I really enjoyed Salzburg.  If I spoke German, this is a place I would want to live (not sure about the 5 months of snow in the Winter though).  Definitely one of my favorite places so far in Europe.  Now I am off to London!!

Sound of Music sites – on bike

Today, I nearly killed myself with what ended up being an 8 hour bike ride in the 95 degree heat.  It didn’t help that the bike I had was one with the small hard seat (ouch, me bum) and a semi-stuck brake that caused me to push extra hard.  It was a good workout though and allowed me to generate my own wind, while seeing all the sites in Salzburg that I needed to hit.  My goal was to see Old Town and several of the filming locations for SofM.  Aside from the above issues, the bike ride would have been wonderful.  Everyone here is on bike, so there are a lot of great bike paths to get you though main parts of town which are in the middle of fields and tree lined (some say the same ones from the kids playing on trees scene, but not sure)!  Very pretty.  Nonnberg Abbey can also be seen from most places in town, as it is situated high on a hill.  My first official stop was Hellbrunn Palace which is a ways out of town.  This hunting castle was built in the early 17th century by a prince.  The facade of the house was used in some scenes as the Von Trapp family home!  They also have reconstructed the galls pavilion from the 16 going on 17 scene here, albiet, in a far less charming location : (  But I still got to see it!!

   

Next up, was Nonnberg Abbey.  After biking to the bottom of the hill, i locked up my bike, and hiked up to the top of the hill it is situated on.  The Abbey is within the walls of the Hohensalzburg Fortress, so a bit hard to get a good look at.  They also have most of it blocked off to the public as it is still a functioning convent, the oldest in the German-speaking part of Europe.  As we all know, Maria was a novice here and the Baron and Maria were married here in 1927.  I couldn’t see many of the locations where famous scenes were filmed, but they did let you in the church (the real one, the movie used a different one), the beautiful outdoor cemetery (which as in other cemeteries in Austria have beautiful flowers planted on top of them).

Leopoldskron Palace was my next destination.  The exterior of this palace was also used as the Von Trapp family home.  You may recognize it, and it’s lake gate, from the scene where the children startle their father arriving by boat, dressed in curtains : ) This is the lake used for those scenes, including when the children fell in the water.  It is not viewable to the public, but the ballroom from the movie was copied from the Venetian room in this palace.

 

I saved the best for last.  Mirabell Gardens, which are beautiful, was where the Do-Re-Mi scene was filmed.  You may recognize the top of the gate, the stairs they hopped up and down, the pegesus fountain they skipped around, and the vine covered tunnel they ran through.  How cool!  It all looked very much the same.  The rest of the gardens were also amazing and I think some of the other statues were in the film, with the children climbing on them.

   

Considering I managed to live, it was a wonderful day I will not soon forget.  I certainly thought of my childhood a lot when Stacey and I would sing and perform the songs from this movie, which is still my very favorite.  I look forward to watching the movie again when I get home!!

Salzburg, Austria – the hills are alive!

I arrived in Salzburg yesterday evening to a great hostel.  Very clean, big rooms and bathroom etc.  They also serve breakfast and dinner here, both for very reasonable prices, and have a small bar too.  I have met 3 people from Seattle in this hostel, which is funny since I haven’t ran into many from home during my travels.  I had planned on doing the official Sound of Music tour while here, as the movie and it’s scenery are what brought me to Salzburg.  However, after reading reviews and hearing bad things from others – I decided to do it my own way and pace.  I most wanted to enjoy the scenery and wasn’t thrilled with the idea of 5 minutes at each place.

   

The tour would have been 33Euro.  I realized that most of the sites they take you to (where parts of movie were filmed) were within Salzburg and easy to get to on foot or bike.  But the famous hills, lakes, and mountains, are just outside of Salzburg.  I paid 11Euro for a round trip bus ticket to the lakes district here (7 lakes total).  I got off 45 minutes later in the small lake town of St. Gilgen which is on the most beautiful lake St. Wolfgangsee.  St. Gilgen was a cute little town and I picked this one as they offered a gondola up to the mountains (which was a pricey 20 Euro, but I wouldn’t have even been able to go there on the ‘official tour’).

The mountain is called Zwolferhorn.  The gondola takes you near the top where there are numerous hikes to choose from (1.5 hours to 2 days).  I took the only hike available if you do not have hiking boots – it was 1.5-2 hours and took you through the hills and mountains to several panoramic peaks which each gave you a view of 4 of the 7 lakes in the area.  St. Wolfgangsee was the largest of those we could see and was also the prettiest with a beautiful blue/green glowing color.  The hike certainly allowed for a lot of ‘Julie Andrews’ type moments.  I didn’t actually spin, but it was such fun!!

   

This is probably a good time to apologize for the redundancy in the pictures for this post, but I couldn’t help myself.  I wanted to do my best to capture the experience for other SofM lovers at home!  Sadly, there was a bit of a haze that the camera picked up, preventing you from seeing the amazing views I did with my own eyes.  I also took a few videos!!  The hike took me through some lightly wooded areas and apparently the hills are also alive with cows – who I had a few fun encounters with.

  

There are two restaurants up top and I treated myself to a mid-day apple streusel that was actually not that unhealthy.  The crust was very thin and not a lot of butter – the inside seemed to just be finely cut apples and cinnamon – it was tasty!  When heading back to the gondola, I had the pleasure of watching (and filming one) several paragliders taking off.  What an amazing and crazy way to see this beautiful countryside!!  The gondola ride and mountain experience was money well spent, it was exactly what I was hoping for from Salzburg.

   

On the way back to Salzburg, I was able to hop off the bus for a couple hours and swim in one of the other lakes.  The town and lake are both called Fuschl.  This town was smaller and almost all hotels.  It had two lovely (but rocky) beaches.  The water was the perfect cold temperature with very cold water coming from the bottom (perhaps spring fed as I didn’t see any rivers or streams).  I was so glad I had brought my bathingsuit, it was a great way to end a wonderful and hot day and give my muscles a break!  Tomorrow I plan on doing a self-guided tour of the official SofM landmarks on bike!

   

Prague Castle & Charles Bridge

Aside from the old town square, two of the most prominent sights to see in Prague are Prague Castle & Charles Bridge (the most popular of the many bridges that cross Vltava River which cuts through Prague). 

  

The castle is huge and has beautiful gardens surrounding it. It is also up on a hill, offering great views of Prague.

 

I was also there for the hourly changing of the guards : )

 

Right before walking over the bridge, I stumbled upon a annual French market which featured champagne/wine, cheeses, and these crazy sausages that were made from every kind of meat you could imagine.  I ‘lucked’ out and got to sample the donkey one.

Peppering the bridge are tons of statues, lots of people, and tons of vendors.  I found myself a glass and steel pendant that I am very excited about.  The iron gate below was in the middle of the bridge and clearly had some sort of religious significance.  People would place four fingers from one hand on the cross and then five fingers from the other hand on each of the stars circling the head.

 

There are a ton of swans all over the river.  Paddle boats are also popular and if you are lucky, you can get the one that looks like a swan.

 

Some other random things I saw on my walk.  As you will see, there are some quite modern buildings in Prague.  Check out these advertisements for McDonalds and KFC – look familiar, I think not.  Funny they serve ‘healthier’ food in other countries.  The last picture is a specialty food here – pork shoulder.  It was too expensive for me to try, but looked yummy!  Overall, Prague was wonderful.  I am very much looking forward to Austria next!

 

Prague – The Old Town Square & More

Saturday, I arrived for my three day stay in Prague, Czech Republic.  I had been told by friends and other travelers that this city was a don’t miss, I completely agree.  Although Prague is a big city in Czech terms, it was quite a bit smaller than those I have recently visited and very walkable.  The city is filled with the most beautiful, colorful, buildings that have a lot of character.  It is, however, a bit difficult to get around if you don’t pay close attention as several roads in the same area have almost the same names, perhaps one or two letters different : )  My hostel was actually a hostel/hotel and brand new.  Very modern and clean.  There are 100 hotel rooms and 30 hostel/shared rooms, even a bar and club in the basement.

     

The old town square is eye candy.  So many colors. I took another city tour, while here, that explained the history of Bohemia thru current day Czech Republic.  I also learned that Prague is often the setting of many modern day films. 

 

I other parts of the old town, I saw St. James Church, Wenceslas Square, ‘John Lennon’ Wall,  the Powder Tower (the last of the old town wall), and St. Charles University, the oldest in Central Europe. 

 

The main attraction in old town square is a clock called Orloj, built in 1410.  It was also a primitive planetarium.  Not only can you tell the time on this clock, but it shares the season, zodiac sign, and sun.  It is based on ancient Bohemian time, only counting day and night hours.  The blue part of the circle means daytime, black – night, and brown is dusk and dawn.  The main event occurs each hour when the two doors pop open on the clock and the apostles pop out and spin around, commencing with the gold cock cawing (followed by oohs and awes from those who have gathered to watch).  The clock has too many details to capture on film, but I have tried to share a few with you below.

   

I then stumbled upon a strange, colorful, float with cartoon looking characters on it.  People were gathered around it with face paint and unique attire.  They were dancing and celebrating.  I learned it was the Ratha Yatra, a huge Hindu festival.  It was fun to watch them.

 

The escalators to the metro are the longest and steepest I have ever seen.  But the tram is a more common way to get around town and take in the sights.  There is also Pilsner Urquell Beer everywhere as it is made here. 

   

More to come!!

Tenerife – The Canary Islands

The Canary Islands are 10 populated (and many non-populated), Spanish owned islands which are situated 100KM West of North Africa.  They are said to be the Hawaiian islands of Europe, where Europeans like to travel because of the island environment and constant 70-80 degree weather with little rain.  Although I have to argue these islands don’t come anywhere close to Hawaii, it was a wonderful relaxing break in the middle of my European Adventure.

As you know by now, I stayed on Tenerife, the largest of the islands.  It takes about 2 hours to drive from North to South.  First of all, I have to be honest and say I didn’t explore the island at all, as (other than the two big parties) I chose to relax vs explore.  What I do know is this, the island’s beaches are all black due to the large volcano on the island.  Most of them are very rocky too, but there was one relatively nice black beach.  There are also a couple of gold sand, man made, beaches on the island.

 

The vegetation on the island was amazing, especially on the North part where I stayed, as it is slightly cooler (in fact it is almost ALWAYS cloudy and overcast due to the mountain).  But it was low 80’s most every day, so perfect!  There are also dramatic cliffs along the coastline.  The waves were very strong here – there were a few walled in swimming areas – and many walls to protect the city.  In one picture below you can see the recreation area of salt water pools built on the shoreline, with giant waves splashing up after encountering the walls. 

Other than the lovely Spanish people who live here, there is also a large German population here.  There were several vendors that also came over from Africa.  My hotel turned out to be great.  They greeted me with a fruit basket, bottle of wine, and large bottled water – how lovely!  I even had a view of the water which was unexpected, as few rooms here did (pictured below). There were mainly British staying at the hotel, so plenty of English to be spoken.  It also featured wood porches which are commonly found in the houses throughout the city. 

      

The food in the islands was far more reasonable, so I was able to treat myself to Paella again – it is so yummy!  Sadly (for my figure), I also found an amazing bakery that made the most scrumptious treat – caramelized, roasted hazelnuts, with a bit of chocolate on the bottom.  YUM!!  On the other hand -transportation was extremely expensive, another reason I stuck close to the hotel.  To go to the south part of the island and back on the public bus would be $25.

I returned tonight to Madrid after making my first dumb traveler mistake. I accidentally booked a flight leaving at 1AM thinking it was PM – which cost me $200 and the opportunity to further explore Madrid : (  But, at least I have Prague to look forward to tomorrow!!

La Fiesta de Julio y La Virgen de Carmen

Last night, I got to experience another amazing night in Tenerife.  The town of Puerto de la Cruz where I am staying hosts the biggest festival of the year.  The short version is, this is a fisherman’s festival, based around a ceremonial embarkation of the virgin del carmen and her saint San Telmo. For the longer version read here. I arrived to the same main square that I partied in 2 nights ago for the futbol game.  The party had been going on all day when I arrived around 5PM.  This is a water themed day – so everyone had water guns, people were throwing pails of water from the porches above, it was VERY wet! 

   

I was told there was one of 3 places you wanted to be (and you have to pick one as the crowds of thousands prevented much movement once the main event started).  The church is where the parade started, they carried out a statue of the virgin and her saint from the church and had a celebration there.  Followed by a walk through town to the town hall where another celebration occurred.  They then were to walk to the main water area of town for her final send off – that is where I chose to celebrate with the Spaniards.  I arrived early and was able to secure a prime spot sitting on one of the walls that encloses the main public water area, which protects swimmers, etc from the main ocean.  For 2 hours as I awaited the virgin to work her way to the water – i was plenty entertained.  People were spraying everyone with their spray guns, jumping off of the walls into the water in droves and even an unlucky few were thrown off the walls by their friends.  I also watched the ‘walk the plank’ contest which was so funny (albeit frightening) where people tried to run out a thin wet log (above the water) to retrieve the flag at the end.  I was even there to see the winner capture the flag.  Photos don’t capture the hilarity of this contest – but I did get it on video too!!

   

Finally the procession of people and the hand carried floats with the saint and virgin arrived!  There were thousands of people surrounding the water, covering the beach and walls, and swimming/boating in the water between.  Screams, horns and singing were in full force when the virgin arrived.  They first carried the saint to the alter and back (which I had photo’d earlier in the day, above).  Then they carried the virgin to the alter – while they made her dance by swaying her back and forth to several songs while the Spaniards sang and yelled viva, viva, viva.  The last song was Ave Maria.  Also at all important moments – the people in the water all splashed around, making quite a scene. 

Then, the smaller of the decorated boats made its way through the sea of people to pick up the saint.  After getting him onboard there was more cheering and chanting.  Then the big boat made its way over to pick up the virgin.  This was a crazy and long process as everyone was trying to jump/climb on the boat, which held it down, and eventually got it stuck in the mud.  Finally people from the wall were able to pull the ropes and free the boat.  The boat went to the side wall to pick up the important people (mayor, queen, etc) and then the two boats were on there way to the sea.  Celebrated by a release of doves and the shooting off of a cannon. 

 

An hour or so later – the boats returned and the saint and virgin started there way for another 2 hour procession to and from old town.  Along the way they would stop for various ceremonies, people would sing, bands would play, and people would throw flowers from the buildings.  As night finally came, fireworks preceded them, causing a very eerie glow in the alleyway.  Once they arrived back in the square and set down – an amazing fireworks show started!!  There was even a full carnival with rides (my favorite a bucking bull ride), food booths, etc. 

    

As the virgin was making her way through town, the main party started.  It was SO CRAZY.  Plaza after plaza was full of drinking, dancing, singing, kissing, screaming, and water gun spraying Spaniards.  Water still being thrown from above, needless to say it made taking pictures complicated, but I did my best to capture the fun!  People were dressed anywhere from speedos, capes, short shorts with bikini tops, to normal attire.    Everyone (myself included at times) was somewhere between wet to drenched and the water fountains were ever populated by people filling up their ‘pistoles’.

 

By 10PM the main areas had at least 6 inches of plastic beer cups piled up that you had to dance through.  The police were very present, but for the most part, everyone was just happy, loving, and dancing!  I saw only one fight and it was broken up quickly by their friends.  I have never experienced something with this many people and this much energy!  I am sure I will always have fond memories of my time in Tenerife, Canary Islands!