It's time to go! For all that I have had an absolute blast... I definitely feel ready to come back home. So, this morning I got up, did the final touchups on my stuff for packing, and checked out of my hostel. From there I took the short walk to the bus stop outside the main train station, where a bus goes directly to the airport.
The bus ride was fine. It actually had 1 stop at some other part of the city where it picked up a few more peeps. But, then we returned to the road en route to the airport. Having been my first experience driving in italy...driving in italy sucks. I feel like all cars, bikes, and people are all always trying to see how close they can cut traffic laws. So cars don't want to stop and people assume they will and bikes just figure they can squeeze anywhere since they're so small. Its a bit terrifying. But, we made it to the airport in about an hour total, and there were no incidents nor accidents on the way.
The airport was simple enough. I got there before the desk for checking in opened, but a short wait was all it took to solve that problem. Check in went smoothly enough, as did security. But, it wasn't until through security that the fact that I only had 1 boarding pass registered as a potential problem. This caused a moment of panic as I didnt want to now leave security. Luckily, I found an information desk and they said that I would get my next pass in Dublin and it was supposed to be this way. Crisis averted! So, a few hours later the plane boarded...and I slept for most of the flight so my details are...lacking.
I landed in Dublin a few minutes early, which is always nice. It was good to pay attention here though as all the airport employees were pretty thoroughly funneling people through emigration. But, I did not want to go that way. So, just before the lines I was able to veer off to where there was a transfer desk. There I was given my new boarding pass and a US customs form. I then passed through a lengthy series of security checks for the US. I thought that this was really annoying because the US was now checking everyone twice. Anyway, I got through with close to perfect timing. I never rushed but before long I was at my gate and they were getting ready to board their first passengers. On I got, and off we went.
This flight I stayed awake. I watched a few movies: Due Date, Wall street: Money Never Sleeps, Wall-E, and the first few minutes of Megamind. Due Date was funny, in that stupid humor sort of way. In a sense it was similar to Planes, Trains and Automobiles... but less.. classic. I really enjoyed Wall Street. I'm not quite sure what about it I liked so much... but I did none the less. Then I saw Wall-E, which I had before and I'd forgotten just how cute it was. As for the first few minutes of Megamind... I saw it on an earlier flight and had just a few minutes left to kill. Great movie though.
We landed in JFK, again a bit early. I was thinking it would be fine... but annoying as I knew my dad might not be there for a while. But, then it turns out that I had picked up my bag and was headed outside. Apparently I did all the customs in Dublin as a replacement to doing it in the states. That I think is sorta cool. So, I gave my dad a call and he was just pulling up out of sheer luck! Sometimes its better to be lucky than good!
It was great to see Mr. Dad! And we made it home without getting lost, despite our fairly constant chatter; something that usually causes us mistakes... Anyway, mom was at bell choir, so we cooked up some food and just as we started to eat in came mother. Much like with Mr. Dad... it was terrific to see mom again too. Now, I have of course omitted the cats here. Please... saying I was happy to see them would be an understatement...
So, we then spent a few hours chatting and telling small stories, both of travels, life and the going ons at home, such as the play. I made a few calls and emails to update various people that I was back home, and called it a night.
For all that traveling is and was a blast, I had a great time and learned a lot; There's no place like home!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Sweet Sistine
My last day in Rome had 1 thing on its todo list... visit the Vatican Museum. So, after breakfast I headed out from the hostel to walk, once more to the Vatican. I will say... I think I usually have a pretty good sense of direction... but Rome sucks for navigating. While the walk there went... ok... the walk back was an absolute disaster! But, in the end it all worked out and I am now done being bitter...
Anyway, I arrived at the Vatican, and headed around its outer wall to the northernmost part. This is where the entrance to the museum is, so I did not quite make it that far. Instead I joined the very...very long line for admission. Rumor has it you can book a ticket online for a specific time, and the skip the queue. I was not on the ball with this so cannot confirm, but I recommend checking if you plan to go. It is a very long line. But, luckily for me, I had nothing else planned for the day.
I did not time the wait, but I know it was more than an hour, though I suspect it was less then two. Regardless, I made it to the entrance without issue and proceeded through security. It was then a bit of a maze to find the ticket office, and the entrance to the actual exhibits. But, again... I found my way their without too much trouble.
Before discussing what I saw I will give some overall views. First... the museum has enough sculptures to decorate a moderately sized country. As for the building itself, much like the Louvre, it could belong in a museum itself. While the exhibits were all beautiful, some of my favorite things to do were watch the ceilings and the floors. The ceilings in just about every room were decorated by a series of planners of individual paintings. Meanwhile, the floor in room after room was an intricate mosaic. Really, the building was pretty cool.
However... you need to make sure you have LOTS of energy when you visit, as the entire time in the museum is spent either fighting through crowds to see an exhibit, or hosteling with the crowd as you try to push into the next room. The entire thing (barring a few side rooms) is just a solid flow of people all pushing towards the Sistine Chapel. I think I would have liked to have known just how crowded it was beforehand, as it defiantly was frustrating to deal with and not be aware of.
So yeah... beautiful, but really crowded. So, my first stop was a loop around a courtyard that is in the center(?) of the museum. This courtyard seemed mostly dedicated to where tour guides could talk about the Sistine Chapel before dealing with the crowds and noise inside. So, as I walked around the courtyard there were very few things to see. In the front and center there was a small fountain with a few nice statues around it. My favorites were, of course, the egyptian carved cats. In the center there was a large booze spinning glide-like thing. But, I have no idea what it was about. Around the sides of the courtyard (where all the tour groups were) were a series of pictures on a stand. The pictures were of various different parts of the Sistine Chapel, and the groups were discussing them. I stopped...and listened to different groups for a while, and then moved on inside.
The first exhibit was Ancient Greece and Rome. This was predominantly sculptures of people. The first room was really a hallway that was mostly the sculptures of heads... in a way that was a bit creepy... but if you don't think about that it was pretty fantastic. At the end of the hallway I turned into the next room that had more... completed structures. That said, the next room was I think my favorite room. The room itself had a light blue and white theme in terms of color, and the floor had multiple sections of large white and black mosaics. I thought the room was absolutely amazing. I also noticed in the various greek and roman rooms that snakes continued to appear in the carvings. What the significance of the snake is/was I do not know, but thought it was interesting.
Greek and roman works continued for a few rooms following. Much of this was more sculptures, but the other prominent type of object was baths. There were a lot of tubs. And they were really big... and really fancy. But, for the most part this section continued to be filled with ornately carved pieces of stone.
Next, I went into the Egyptian exhibit. In contrast to the Greeks and the romans, most of the egyptian sculptures were of animals; not people. I will admit, I was a fan of these... and yes... that is very much because of the placement held by cats in Egyptian culture. I do so love cats and I believe the Egyptians did a good job portraying rose feelings. Second to the cats are the scarabs, which I have always thought were cool. I also liked how so many of the egyptian carvings are made of black stone, which I think is very elegant to say the least.
The next gallery was on Etrusian Italic Antiques... I think... but in short, and simpler terms... vases. A lot of vases. And, if you are like me and have always stereotyped ancient greek vases to be black painted clay with pictures in light brown or tan...this was the section for you. There were simply case after case of vases, of more shapes then I ever knew they could come it. It reminded me of the disney movie 'Hercules', where so many of the songs are told by a story on pots... just like these.
The few galleries were all of paintings. The first of these was geographical. This was, in my opinion, the most impressive of the galleries. It was helped by the exceedingly long and straight room, with an ornately carved and painted ceiling... but the room itself was just filled with giant, painted, canvases of maps. Since I like maps... this was cool. The next gallery (galleries) was a progression of art through the ages. This might have been more interesting had I known more about art history... but I don't. I could and did still appreciate their impressive size and intricate work, but that was all I could do. The last gallery was on contemporary art. I don't like contemporary art at all. I didn't before... I still don't. Luckily, I passed through here quickly.
And from there entered into the Sistine Chapel. This is a very impressive room, despite being a bit dark and ridiculously overcrowded. The ceiling and wall...so beautiful. I rarely get more out of a painting than, "this is nice", but this did. For one of the few times in my life I could actually see what was being depicted without that depiction being the actual scene. In this case I could see what sections represented earth, heaven and hell. Aside from the sheer size and wonder at how you paint a ceiling and wall like this, the work all seems flawless to the dot. Its just stunning, and well worth all the hustle, bustle and jostling it took to get there.
And so, the Chapel concluded my time at the, museum. The rest of my day consisted of a bit of a disaster of a walk back (in terms of efficient directions). But, on the way I did pick up a few little trinkets I'd been meaning to. Then, I got back to the hostel and had dinner. Post dinner, I checked up on times and costs for the bus to the airport, and worked on packing up my stuff. That, in fact, I am going to go finish right now, before heading to bed.
Anyway, I arrived at the Vatican, and headed around its outer wall to the northernmost part. This is where the entrance to the museum is, so I did not quite make it that far. Instead I joined the very...very long line for admission. Rumor has it you can book a ticket online for a specific time, and the skip the queue. I was not on the ball with this so cannot confirm, but I recommend checking if you plan to go. It is a very long line. But, luckily for me, I had nothing else planned for the day.
I did not time the wait, but I know it was more than an hour, though I suspect it was less then two. Regardless, I made it to the entrance without issue and proceeded through security. It was then a bit of a maze to find the ticket office, and the entrance to the actual exhibits. But, again... I found my way their without too much trouble.
Before discussing what I saw I will give some overall views. First... the museum has enough sculptures to decorate a moderately sized country. As for the building itself, much like the Louvre, it could belong in a museum itself. While the exhibits were all beautiful, some of my favorite things to do were watch the ceilings and the floors. The ceilings in just about every room were decorated by a series of planners of individual paintings. Meanwhile, the floor in room after room was an intricate mosaic. Really, the building was pretty cool.
However... you need to make sure you have LOTS of energy when you visit, as the entire time in the museum is spent either fighting through crowds to see an exhibit, or hosteling with the crowd as you try to push into the next room. The entire thing (barring a few side rooms) is just a solid flow of people all pushing towards the Sistine Chapel. I think I would have liked to have known just how crowded it was beforehand, as it defiantly was frustrating to deal with and not be aware of.
So yeah... beautiful, but really crowded. So, my first stop was a loop around a courtyard that is in the center(?) of the museum. This courtyard seemed mostly dedicated to where tour guides could talk about the Sistine Chapel before dealing with the crowds and noise inside. So, as I walked around the courtyard there were very few things to see. In the front and center there was a small fountain with a few nice statues around it. My favorites were, of course, the egyptian carved cats. In the center there was a large booze spinning glide-like thing. But, I have no idea what it was about. Around the sides of the courtyard (where all the tour groups were) were a series of pictures on a stand. The pictures were of various different parts of the Sistine Chapel, and the groups were discussing them. I stopped...and listened to different groups for a while, and then moved on inside.
The first exhibit was Ancient Greece and Rome. This was predominantly sculptures of people. The first room was really a hallway that was mostly the sculptures of heads... in a way that was a bit creepy... but if you don't think about that it was pretty fantastic. At the end of the hallway I turned into the next room that had more... completed structures. That said, the next room was I think my favorite room. The room itself had a light blue and white theme in terms of color, and the floor had multiple sections of large white and black mosaics. I thought the room was absolutely amazing. I also noticed in the various greek and roman rooms that snakes continued to appear in the carvings. What the significance of the snake is/was I do not know, but thought it was interesting.
Greek and roman works continued for a few rooms following. Much of this was more sculptures, but the other prominent type of object was baths. There were a lot of tubs. And they were really big... and really fancy. But, for the most part this section continued to be filled with ornately carved pieces of stone.
Next, I went into the Egyptian exhibit. In contrast to the Greeks and the romans, most of the egyptian sculptures were of animals; not people. I will admit, I was a fan of these... and yes... that is very much because of the placement held by cats in Egyptian culture. I do so love cats and I believe the Egyptians did a good job portraying rose feelings. Second to the cats are the scarabs, which I have always thought were cool. I also liked how so many of the egyptian carvings are made of black stone, which I think is very elegant to say the least.
The next gallery was on Etrusian Italic Antiques... I think... but in short, and simpler terms... vases. A lot of vases. And, if you are like me and have always stereotyped ancient greek vases to be black painted clay with pictures in light brown or tan...this was the section for you. There were simply case after case of vases, of more shapes then I ever knew they could come it. It reminded me of the disney movie 'Hercules', where so many of the songs are told by a story on pots... just like these.
The few galleries were all of paintings. The first of these was geographical. This was, in my opinion, the most impressive of the galleries. It was helped by the exceedingly long and straight room, with an ornately carved and painted ceiling... but the room itself was just filled with giant, painted, canvases of maps. Since I like maps... this was cool. The next gallery (galleries) was a progression of art through the ages. This might have been more interesting had I known more about art history... but I don't. I could and did still appreciate their impressive size and intricate work, but that was all I could do. The last gallery was on contemporary art. I don't like contemporary art at all. I didn't before... I still don't. Luckily, I passed through here quickly.
And from there entered into the Sistine Chapel. This is a very impressive room, despite being a bit dark and ridiculously overcrowded. The ceiling and wall...so beautiful. I rarely get more out of a painting than, "this is nice", but this did. For one of the few times in my life I could actually see what was being depicted without that depiction being the actual scene. In this case I could see what sections represented earth, heaven and hell. Aside from the sheer size and wonder at how you paint a ceiling and wall like this, the work all seems flawless to the dot. Its just stunning, and well worth all the hustle, bustle and jostling it took to get there.
And so, the Chapel concluded my time at the, museum. The rest of my day consisted of a bit of a disaster of a walk back (in terms of efficient directions). But, on the way I did pick up a few little trinkets I'd been meaning to. Then, I got back to the hostel and had dinner. Post dinner, I checked up on times and costs for the bus to the airport, and worked on packing up my stuff. That, in fact, I am going to go finish right now, before heading to bed.
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Sunday, March 20, 2011
Stairway to Heaven
I wish I could claim credit for this title. Unfortunately, the idea came from Tom (I know the name is convenient but this is not me in the third person...). Anyway, I met Tom technically last night, as he was in my hostel room, but I had breakfast with him today and would say that that is where/when we met. Neither of us had particularly busy days planned, and we both wanted to see the Vatican, so we decided to travel the day together.
We knew going into the morning that the Vatican Museums were closed today. However, it was his last day, and the weather was beautiful, so we figured we should go see the square and the cathedral while the weather was shining. So, we headed out from the hostel to go west towards the Vatican. Apparently, the Rome Marathon was taking place today (which was sorta cool) and it made for some difficult navigations. First of all, we found ourselves walking straight to the Colosseum (my second time arriving there by accident). So, we corrected our ways and headed north. This took us to the Trevi Fountain, and that was perfect. Due to the Marathon, it was an absolute pain to get there. But, that meant that it was not as crowded as it usually is. Convenient, as I wanted to end up here at some point anyway.
The fountain was spectacular! As the sun shined down over the buildings behind (south), the entire fountain was bathed in light. The water ran down primarily from the massive statue in the center, through multiple layers of falls, before plunging into the blue pool below. Meanwhile, the sides of this main part were flanked by marble carve into fancy curves and valleys, so water flowed from the sides down miniature falls and flows into the pool. Meanwhile, the sculptures consisted of men and horses and fish and serpents, all seemingly interacting together. It was pretty great.
From there we continued west, and had to navigate the streets of the marathon a few more times, but, in the end we made it to the Vatican City. On the way we did briefly stop by the Castle of Saint Angelo. It was quite impressive... very round and right on a bend in the river, but we did no more than that. The Vatican however, was pretty cool. We arrived, and walks down the main strip that is flanked by sculptures and columns. We then entered the main square of the Vatican, in front of the Basilica of Saint Pietro.
So... the Vatican Square was quite nice. At the time it was packed! It was little before noon, and as the marathon ran by, Tom and I figured that this crowd would be a combination of the usual crowd and the marathon crowd. Turns out, the Pope was giving a speech at noon. So... we heard the pope give a speech! What it was about, I've no clue, as it was in Latin... but it was still cool. Also, we wouldn't have had much of a view from anywhere, as he was way up in some window-things that was really far away. But, like I said... still cool.
Meanwhile, we'd found the queue to get through security into The Basilica.I believe this square is all technically part of the basilica, along with its curved walls of columns that surround it. The line was long, but moved fairly quickly. Before too long we were through the queue and on our way to the church (not that it was very far).
The Basilica is very impressive! Apparently the second largest church in the world, though I have trouble imagining one larger. The whole thing was massively spacious. The effect caused not only by the high, vaulted ceilings, numerous massive domes, and wide hallways, but also by the distinct absence of rows of benches. There were a few, when you walked close enough to the front altar, but for the most space...it was space.
The space aside, the cathedral was absolutely beautiful. Most of the building seemed to be made from marble, be it pink or white, or a darker color. The ceiling was very ornate, and much of the trim of sorts was golden. Meanwhile the domes were either vividly painted of colorful mosaics. Every dome had a window top, and every chapel had a window up high, and between all of these the light seemed to be blasting into the cathedral. The front altar (I think) was a towering wooden structure, with 4 pillars that sort of spiraled up to the wooden roof it held. I would probably say that this is the most stunning cathedral interior I've ever seen.
From there we left to climb the 551 steps to the roof of the domed top. It was quite a climb, and I actually recalled some fun trivia facts from St. Paul's in London that explains some things. As we neared the top the path became... crooked. Tom inquired why, and I was able to explain the effect of having an inner and an putter dome on the top of the Cathedral. That said... it was really weird that the walkway became... literally... crooked... But, we emerged at the top and the view was absolutely amazing. We could see out over the entirety of Rome, and even see to what I believe are the Alps to the north, where the rose into the clouds. Made me very pleased I did not try to get views from any other buildings around the city.
After the roof we left the Vatican and made our way back into the main of Rome. by now the marathon was nearly over (at one point we saw the guy we think was the last runner), but it made city walking much easier. We made our way to the Pantheon. It was a building that looked...old... despite being intact. I felt it was a bit underwhelming to see, very pretty with cool columns and paintings inside, but also really simple and straightforward. That said, I really enjoyed the roof, left open for the sun to shine down into the center of the circular room. Apparently they never close it, and during rains it just flows out the slightly sloped floor.
After the Pantheon I did a more local thing. Taking the advice of my friend Carolyn from back home, I worked my way around to find a Bar-Cafe called Sant'Eustachio il Cafe... It's a cafe, as in serves various coffee drinks, but has a bar setup. So, lots of standing and milling and being served at a bar. I ordered a cappuccino, which was absolutely delicious, and it was a lot of fun.
From there we had about another hour to kill. So we walked to a park in the norther part of the city to just sit and rest for a bit. This took us past the Spanish Steps... which are packed and apparently a huge tourist thing... though I don't really know why. The park felt very much like a Roman version of central park or Hyde Park... or any major central park in a big city. But, as the hour ticked later... it got a bit more chilly and we headed back. We went to the train station, where Tom caught a bus to the airport, and I headed back to the hostel for dinner and to call it a day.
We knew going into the morning that the Vatican Museums were closed today. However, it was his last day, and the weather was beautiful, so we figured we should go see the square and the cathedral while the weather was shining. So, we headed out from the hostel to go west towards the Vatican. Apparently, the Rome Marathon was taking place today (which was sorta cool) and it made for some difficult navigations. First of all, we found ourselves walking straight to the Colosseum (my second time arriving there by accident). So, we corrected our ways and headed north. This took us to the Trevi Fountain, and that was perfect. Due to the Marathon, it was an absolute pain to get there. But, that meant that it was not as crowded as it usually is. Convenient, as I wanted to end up here at some point anyway.
The fountain was spectacular! As the sun shined down over the buildings behind (south), the entire fountain was bathed in light. The water ran down primarily from the massive statue in the center, through multiple layers of falls, before plunging into the blue pool below. Meanwhile, the sides of this main part were flanked by marble carve into fancy curves and valleys, so water flowed from the sides down miniature falls and flows into the pool. Meanwhile, the sculptures consisted of men and horses and fish and serpents, all seemingly interacting together. It was pretty great.
From there we continued west, and had to navigate the streets of the marathon a few more times, but, in the end we made it to the Vatican City. On the way we did briefly stop by the Castle of Saint Angelo. It was quite impressive... very round and right on a bend in the river, but we did no more than that. The Vatican however, was pretty cool. We arrived, and walks down the main strip that is flanked by sculptures and columns. We then entered the main square of the Vatican, in front of the Basilica of Saint Pietro.
So... the Vatican Square was quite nice. At the time it was packed! It was little before noon, and as the marathon ran by, Tom and I figured that this crowd would be a combination of the usual crowd and the marathon crowd. Turns out, the Pope was giving a speech at noon. So... we heard the pope give a speech! What it was about, I've no clue, as it was in Latin... but it was still cool. Also, we wouldn't have had much of a view from anywhere, as he was way up in some window-things that was really far away. But, like I said... still cool.
Meanwhile, we'd found the queue to get through security into The Basilica.I believe this square is all technically part of the basilica, along with its curved walls of columns that surround it. The line was long, but moved fairly quickly. Before too long we were through the queue and on our way to the church (not that it was very far).
The Basilica is very impressive! Apparently the second largest church in the world, though I have trouble imagining one larger. The whole thing was massively spacious. The effect caused not only by the high, vaulted ceilings, numerous massive domes, and wide hallways, but also by the distinct absence of rows of benches. There were a few, when you walked close enough to the front altar, but for the most space...it was space.
The space aside, the cathedral was absolutely beautiful. Most of the building seemed to be made from marble, be it pink or white, or a darker color. The ceiling was very ornate, and much of the trim of sorts was golden. Meanwhile the domes were either vividly painted of colorful mosaics. Every dome had a window top, and every chapel had a window up high, and between all of these the light seemed to be blasting into the cathedral. The front altar (I think) was a towering wooden structure, with 4 pillars that sort of spiraled up to the wooden roof it held. I would probably say that this is the most stunning cathedral interior I've ever seen.
From there we left to climb the 551 steps to the roof of the domed top. It was quite a climb, and I actually recalled some fun trivia facts from St. Paul's in London that explains some things. As we neared the top the path became... crooked. Tom inquired why, and I was able to explain the effect of having an inner and an putter dome on the top of the Cathedral. That said... it was really weird that the walkway became... literally... crooked... But, we emerged at the top and the view was absolutely amazing. We could see out over the entirety of Rome, and even see to what I believe are the Alps to the north, where the rose into the clouds. Made me very pleased I did not try to get views from any other buildings around the city.
After the roof we left the Vatican and made our way back into the main of Rome. by now the marathon was nearly over (at one point we saw the guy we think was the last runner), but it made city walking much easier. We made our way to the Pantheon. It was a building that looked...old... despite being intact. I felt it was a bit underwhelming to see, very pretty with cool columns and paintings inside, but also really simple and straightforward. That said, I really enjoyed the roof, left open for the sun to shine down into the center of the circular room. Apparently they never close it, and during rains it just flows out the slightly sloped floor.
After the Pantheon I did a more local thing. Taking the advice of my friend Carolyn from back home, I worked my way around to find a Bar-Cafe called Sant'Eustachio il Cafe... It's a cafe, as in serves various coffee drinks, but has a bar setup. So, lots of standing and milling and being served at a bar. I ordered a cappuccino, which was absolutely delicious, and it was a lot of fun.
From there we had about another hour to kill. So we walked to a park in the norther part of the city to just sit and rest for a bit. This took us past the Spanish Steps... which are packed and apparently a huge tourist thing... though I don't really know why. The park felt very much like a Roman version of central park or Hyde Park... or any major central park in a big city. But, as the hour ticked later... it got a bit more chilly and we headed back. We went to the train station, where Tom caught a bus to the airport, and I headed back to the hostel for dinner and to call it a day.
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Saturday, March 19, 2011
When in Rome...
I have waited 9... 9! weeks to use this title. The number of times I've been unsure of what proper procedure is in different countries... and then thought, "when in Rome..." has been huge. So, the number of times I've wanted it as my title has also been huge. But, at last... when in Rome, one uses the title... "when in Rome." Hurray!
So this morning was nothing different. Breakfast was coffee, cereal and some really hard rolls. Not stale... just hard. The insides were still nice and soft. I have decided that Europe has strangely flavored jellies. This morning my choices were between apricot and plum, and this is not the first time with a similar choice. That said... plum is remarkably similar to grape.
Anyway, I then began day 1 in Rome. I headed southwest of my hostel, and I think its unlikely my route was most direct. I knew generally where to go, so just wandered without my map you. Now, despite the fact that I enjoy the walking... and don't mind the routes not being direct... I do prefer it when I find cities to be laid out in grid fashion. Its just better...
Anyway, about 30 minutes later I arrived at the first, and most important, stop of my day (in my opinion of the whole city... but that's just me); the Colosseum. It is... so... big. So much so, that it is hard to imagine what a monster of a building it had to be in its prime, especially relative to everything else know at the time. The fact that so much of it still stands is simply a marvel of roman engineering. That said, standing out side it, it was a bit fun to imagine the building full and in tact... all the tourists being romans headed for the games... stuff like that. It was/is an impressive building.
So, the first task, which paired well with my walk around the outside of this colossal ring, was to join the queue. Which, itself was about half the diameter. So, I headed around the other way, so that when I was done with the line I'd have completed a full lap. The line in total took probably an hour. Outside it moved deceptively quickly, but inside the masses sort of piled up and slowed down. That said, I thought the staff was terrific at explaining and keeping everybody well informed. Before long, I was at the front and got my ticket (which would also serve as my ticket for the Forum later).
But, before I move inside, the outside was terrific. Unfortunately, the cloud cover was still a bit thick, though the sun was certainly keeping things bright through them. But, the building has layer upon layer of arches, rising up to the upper floors. You can see inside many of them to give you a feeling for the enormity of the building. Sadly, so many of the arches have gates to keep the flow of people orderly, which is reasonable, but hinders the view when close. That said... lovely exterior, and later I got some views as the clouds thinned and they simply improved.
Moving onto the inside of the Colosseum... from the ticket office I walked through one of the many, many sets of arches that led to the inned ring. There, the first thing to catch the eye are the rows of 'seating' that tower above you in literally every direction. On the ground level you can look down into the ruins of labyrinth of rooms that excised below the stadium flood for animals and the like. Then there are I believe 3 stories of seating that rise in a cone-like stadium fashion. It is the stone remains, and at first its a bit unclear where the seats actually are. But then I noticed holes in all of the remaining walls which looked to be where rafters could be run and seats placed. From the ground floor you can spin around and imagine yourself just a little further forward, within the area, and imagine the thousands of people that could sit around you and watch.
I worked by way all the way around the ground floor, and got much the same sensations from all the various angles, and then made my way up to the second (top for tourists) level. The stairs were really steep! Definitely not up to modern code... but I'll fogive them. The second floor was awesome too, though for much different reasons. While the ground made it easy to imagine being in the arena, the upper level made it easy to imagine watching the arena. Just toss a solid covering over the catacombs, a few fighters, fill the stands below you and around you with noise and people, and you've got yourself a match. From above you felt like you were looking straight down onto the events, and the ring was large enough that you even still felt close! I again, worked my way all around the level, taking views of both the inside and looking through the arches into the city around the building, but those views were... less inspired, despite still good.
From the Colosseum I headed down the short bit of street to the entrance of the Forum. Turns out, it might net time to do the Forum first, as you can get the same ticket, and then bypass much of the line at the Colosseum. The ticket line here was practicals non-existent. Anyway, the system here was also much less organized and that was a shame, but that's ok. It didn't take long and I headed through into the Forum.
While not as immediately as impassive as the Colosseum, this was still cool. This large area is seemingly under excavation, though also possibly many of the building are just being repaired. Anyway, there was much work being done. I describe it sort of like, ruined town meets botanic garden. Most of the layout was indeed the ruins of a small town. You could easily find the remains of wells, houses, streets and churches, not to mention numerous other unknown structures. But, then there were lots of trees of many times, ranging from pine, to palm, to fruit (oranges). The trees all seemed to be very... intentionally placed, and that made for much of the garden feeling.
But, this walk too led to some great views. My favorite was from a hill in the Forum that overlooked the street that wan down the center. Looking down the street you see past some arches, over some trees, next to some columns and to the grand Colosseum. I thought it was pretty sweet. Looking out over the rest of the city of Rome, I was able to identify only the Basilica of St. Piero in the Vatican, as a result of its large dome, and two small domes in front of it.
From my vantage point I went down to the center street of the Forum, and walked through away from the Colosseum. This took me through more fun ruins, and eventually out to the foot of the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II. I do not know much about him or the building, but the building was really nice. Completely made of white marble, and it was free to walk up to it's second floor roof. Being that this building already stands on a hill, the vantage point from here was terrific. Again, I spotted the Vatican, though only by its main cathedral again, and then I could look back over the Forum to the Colosseum. I then headed back downstairs and out the front of the building, which had some pretty spectacular statues.
From there I walked back to my hostel for the night. I actually had a few issues with navigation (not much though), but after a small hiccup I was directly on track. With that I had dinner and another quiet evening.
So this morning was nothing different. Breakfast was coffee, cereal and some really hard rolls. Not stale... just hard. The insides were still nice and soft. I have decided that Europe has strangely flavored jellies. This morning my choices were between apricot and plum, and this is not the first time with a similar choice. That said... plum is remarkably similar to grape.
Anyway, I then began day 1 in Rome. I headed southwest of my hostel, and I think its unlikely my route was most direct. I knew generally where to go, so just wandered without my map you. Now, despite the fact that I enjoy the walking... and don't mind the routes not being direct... I do prefer it when I find cities to be laid out in grid fashion. Its just better...
Anyway, about 30 minutes later I arrived at the first, and most important, stop of my day (in my opinion of the whole city... but that's just me); the Colosseum. It is... so... big. So much so, that it is hard to imagine what a monster of a building it had to be in its prime, especially relative to everything else know at the time. The fact that so much of it still stands is simply a marvel of roman engineering. That said, standing out side it, it was a bit fun to imagine the building full and in tact... all the tourists being romans headed for the games... stuff like that. It was/is an impressive building.
So, the first task, which paired well with my walk around the outside of this colossal ring, was to join the queue. Which, itself was about half the diameter. So, I headed around the other way, so that when I was done with the line I'd have completed a full lap. The line in total took probably an hour. Outside it moved deceptively quickly, but inside the masses sort of piled up and slowed down. That said, I thought the staff was terrific at explaining and keeping everybody well informed. Before long, I was at the front and got my ticket (which would also serve as my ticket for the Forum later).
But, before I move inside, the outside was terrific. Unfortunately, the cloud cover was still a bit thick, though the sun was certainly keeping things bright through them. But, the building has layer upon layer of arches, rising up to the upper floors. You can see inside many of them to give you a feeling for the enormity of the building. Sadly, so many of the arches have gates to keep the flow of people orderly, which is reasonable, but hinders the view when close. That said... lovely exterior, and later I got some views as the clouds thinned and they simply improved.
Moving onto the inside of the Colosseum... from the ticket office I walked through one of the many, many sets of arches that led to the inned ring. There, the first thing to catch the eye are the rows of 'seating' that tower above you in literally every direction. On the ground level you can look down into the ruins of labyrinth of rooms that excised below the stadium flood for animals and the like. Then there are I believe 3 stories of seating that rise in a cone-like stadium fashion. It is the stone remains, and at first its a bit unclear where the seats actually are. But then I noticed holes in all of the remaining walls which looked to be where rafters could be run and seats placed. From the ground floor you can spin around and imagine yourself just a little further forward, within the area, and imagine the thousands of people that could sit around you and watch.
I worked by way all the way around the ground floor, and got much the same sensations from all the various angles, and then made my way up to the second (top for tourists) level. The stairs were really steep! Definitely not up to modern code... but I'll fogive them. The second floor was awesome too, though for much different reasons. While the ground made it easy to imagine being in the arena, the upper level made it easy to imagine watching the arena. Just toss a solid covering over the catacombs, a few fighters, fill the stands below you and around you with noise and people, and you've got yourself a match. From above you felt like you were looking straight down onto the events, and the ring was large enough that you even still felt close! I again, worked my way all around the level, taking views of both the inside and looking through the arches into the city around the building, but those views were... less inspired, despite still good.
From the Colosseum I headed down the short bit of street to the entrance of the Forum. Turns out, it might net time to do the Forum first, as you can get the same ticket, and then bypass much of the line at the Colosseum. The ticket line here was practicals non-existent. Anyway, the system here was also much less organized and that was a shame, but that's ok. It didn't take long and I headed through into the Forum.
While not as immediately as impassive as the Colosseum, this was still cool. This large area is seemingly under excavation, though also possibly many of the building are just being repaired. Anyway, there was much work being done. I describe it sort of like, ruined town meets botanic garden. Most of the layout was indeed the ruins of a small town. You could easily find the remains of wells, houses, streets and churches, not to mention numerous other unknown structures. But, then there were lots of trees of many times, ranging from pine, to palm, to fruit (oranges). The trees all seemed to be very... intentionally placed, and that made for much of the garden feeling.
But, this walk too led to some great views. My favorite was from a hill in the Forum that overlooked the street that wan down the center. Looking down the street you see past some arches, over some trees, next to some columns and to the grand Colosseum. I thought it was pretty sweet. Looking out over the rest of the city of Rome, I was able to identify only the Basilica of St. Piero in the Vatican, as a result of its large dome, and two small domes in front of it.
From my vantage point I went down to the center street of the Forum, and walked through away from the Colosseum. This took me through more fun ruins, and eventually out to the foot of the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II. I do not know much about him or the building, but the building was really nice. Completely made of white marble, and it was free to walk up to it's second floor roof. Being that this building already stands on a hill, the vantage point from here was terrific. Again, I spotted the Vatican, though only by its main cathedral again, and then I could look back over the Forum to the Colosseum. I then headed back downstairs and out the front of the building, which had some pretty spectacular statues.
From there I walked back to my hostel for the night. I actually had a few issues with navigation (not much though), but after a small hiccup I was directly on track. With that I had dinner and another quiet evening.
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Friday, March 18, 2011
Eurail Part 3 (Views...)
The day started out nice and early. Rising at 6 I got up for a quick shower and to pack my bag. As 6:30 approached, I sat down for breakfast with Ellen and her kids. Breakfast was yogurt, cereal, coffee and the two remaining pastries, 1 chocolate crescent and the other an almond and cream thing. At 7 I bid my farewells to Anouk and Julien and headed out with Ellen on her way to work and she would drop me off at the station.
I am grateful that Ellen had come with me as this is where my misunderstanding came to be. Yesterday I'd asked if my train left from here (Fribourg), and I was told yes. But, that was actually the 7:04 train to Bern, not the 7:34 train from Bern. Which was confusing because I didn't realize that I had 2 transfers and there was a 7:34 train to Bern so ... it was confusing. But Ellen, speaking french, was able to help me quickly change my tickets for a very small fee. She then walked me to my platform. I bid her farewell with hopes to see her again soon, and she wished me the best and said hi to the family. I then began heading to Rome.
The first train was to Lausanne. The ride was short, but there were still some nice views. It was still as the sun was low, so there were a lot of clouds and the ground was still blanketed in fog in the lower areas. So, I could look out over the Swiss countryside in the morning shadows. There I could see many more small, old towns, each one just coming into view as the fog began lifting out of the hills. A bit later, as we approached Lausanne we passed a lake, with a similar effect. This time though, rather than small towns scattered about the countryside, the view was of dark mountains, rising into the fog and clouds all along the other side of the coast. They had a pretty cool glow about them as they were the only things blocking the sun from spreading across the water.
The transfer at Lausanne went very smoothly. And the following train ride was exactly what I'd been hoping for out of these rides. This first bit was nice, seeing fun views of the countryside through fog. But, this second trip gave me the views of the Alps I'd been waiting for.
The mountains... oh the mountains. The first view I noticed was when the sun had to first crest the peaks to the left of the train. Despite still being hidden behind the whisks of cloud the emanated from the peaks, the rays of light broke the sun seemed to pierce through and illuminate the landscape. The light came from just over the Jagger shoulder of the first snow-crested cone rising above these clouds. With the sun rising higher, the clouds and fog further along the ridge had also thinned, revealing a ridged that spanned the entire horizon. Along the ridge was much the same... bits of cloud providing cover for the mountains, but the towering peaks rising above them to reveal the white snow that lay upon them.
These views continued, as the sun rose higher, and I trains closer. Sometimes, I gazed at these mountains through small towns, or over rolling hills. Once I looked over a hill crowned by a small castle. That was a pleasant sight. Eventually we were just running along the ridge, and the rock faces at the base of the mountains became clear. Meanwhile I could still look up into the clouds, continuing to thin to reveal yet more peaks with more snow. At some point we started cutting through tunnels through the mountains. We'd emerge into the light for brief interludes, sometimes cutting through gorges over rivers, sometimes on level ground where mountains surrounded us, and sometimes with no view... just an opening cut in the mountains over our heads.
On the other side I was in Italy, the final country of my travels (clearly not counting any airports I'll be passing through). We resumed our travels parallel to the mountains, as we headed towards my next station in Milan. Sadly, we soon turned away from the peaks and left them behind. Arriving at Milan, I exited the train, and a short wait later was on another headed to Rome, the final destination. This train ride was less exciting, though there were some cool views of clouds. I found that they were very layered, in a since, and I would gauss their setup was caused by the Mediterranean Sea... though it could also have simply been random. Anyway, as late afternoon approached I pulled into Rome's station.
From there it was only a few minute walk to my hostel. Checking in went smoothly, and for a while I thought I had a room all to myself. Through the evening more people have joined me though. Anyway, I walked around the area directly outside a bit, just to get a feel for the surroundings. The sky seemed ominously like a storm was coming also. So, I headed back to the hostel. Before long, the sky went from clear to downpour, to mild drizzle. But, I was glad to be inside.
Along with the room, the hostel package here includes dinner, which I wont do every night, but tonight it was nice to be easy. So, I headed across the street where I got some pasta, which was fine, and a small amount of wine to go with it. It was petter than I expected, so I was really quite pleased. From there I headed back to my room with a map, and planned out my next and last 3 days of site seeing. Their order will depend on weather, but I'm looking forward to it.
I am grateful that Ellen had come with me as this is where my misunderstanding came to be. Yesterday I'd asked if my train left from here (Fribourg), and I was told yes. But, that was actually the 7:04 train to Bern, not the 7:34 train from Bern. Which was confusing because I didn't realize that I had 2 transfers and there was a 7:34 train to Bern so ... it was confusing. But Ellen, speaking french, was able to help me quickly change my tickets for a very small fee. She then walked me to my platform. I bid her farewell with hopes to see her again soon, and she wished me the best and said hi to the family. I then began heading to Rome.
The first train was to Lausanne. The ride was short, but there were still some nice views. It was still as the sun was low, so there were a lot of clouds and the ground was still blanketed in fog in the lower areas. So, I could look out over the Swiss countryside in the morning shadows. There I could see many more small, old towns, each one just coming into view as the fog began lifting out of the hills. A bit later, as we approached Lausanne we passed a lake, with a similar effect. This time though, rather than small towns scattered about the countryside, the view was of dark mountains, rising into the fog and clouds all along the other side of the coast. They had a pretty cool glow about them as they were the only things blocking the sun from spreading across the water.
The transfer at Lausanne went very smoothly. And the following train ride was exactly what I'd been hoping for out of these rides. This first bit was nice, seeing fun views of the countryside through fog. But, this second trip gave me the views of the Alps I'd been waiting for.
The mountains... oh the mountains. The first view I noticed was when the sun had to first crest the peaks to the left of the train. Despite still being hidden behind the whisks of cloud the emanated from the peaks, the rays of light broke the sun seemed to pierce through and illuminate the landscape. The light came from just over the Jagger shoulder of the first snow-crested cone rising above these clouds. With the sun rising higher, the clouds and fog further along the ridge had also thinned, revealing a ridged that spanned the entire horizon. Along the ridge was much the same... bits of cloud providing cover for the mountains, but the towering peaks rising above them to reveal the white snow that lay upon them.
These views continued, as the sun rose higher, and I trains closer. Sometimes, I gazed at these mountains through small towns, or over rolling hills. Once I looked over a hill crowned by a small castle. That was a pleasant sight. Eventually we were just running along the ridge, and the rock faces at the base of the mountains became clear. Meanwhile I could still look up into the clouds, continuing to thin to reveal yet more peaks with more snow. At some point we started cutting through tunnels through the mountains. We'd emerge into the light for brief interludes, sometimes cutting through gorges over rivers, sometimes on level ground where mountains surrounded us, and sometimes with no view... just an opening cut in the mountains over our heads.
On the other side I was in Italy, the final country of my travels (clearly not counting any airports I'll be passing through). We resumed our travels parallel to the mountains, as we headed towards my next station in Milan. Sadly, we soon turned away from the peaks and left them behind. Arriving at Milan, I exited the train, and a short wait later was on another headed to Rome, the final destination. This train ride was less exciting, though there were some cool views of clouds. I found that they were very layered, in a since, and I would gauss their setup was caused by the Mediterranean Sea... though it could also have simply been random. Anyway, as late afternoon approached I pulled into Rome's station.
From there it was only a few minute walk to my hostel. Checking in went smoothly, and for a while I thought I had a room all to myself. Through the evening more people have joined me though. Anyway, I walked around the area directly outside a bit, just to get a feel for the surroundings. The sky seemed ominously like a storm was coming also. So, I headed back to the hostel. Before long, the sky went from clear to downpour, to mild drizzle. But, I was glad to be inside.
Along with the room, the hostel package here includes dinner, which I wont do every night, but tonight it was nice to be easy. So, I headed across the street where I got some pasta, which was fine, and a small amount of wine to go with it. It was petter than I expected, so I was really quite pleased. From there I headed back to my room with a map, and planned out my next and last 3 days of site seeing. Their order will depend on weather, but I'm looking forward to it.
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A Little Town in Switzerland
Yes... Fribourg is indeed a little town. I got up for breakfast with Ellen. Anouk and Julien had already left for school. I had porridge and coffee, a fine meal to start one's day! Then, Ellen left for work and I spent a bit of time doing what I could to tidy up parts of the house. Before long I headed out for the more chore oriented part of my day.
I left the house, and sadly the weather was grey and misty, but even then, it was not any sort of impending rain. The view was pretty great. Her house is on a steep hill overlooking a gorge that is home to the old part of the city and the river that cuts through. But, I would get there later, so headed up the 200+ steps to the main street level.
Here I headed back to the train station, which was only a few minutes walk. Here I had one of the easier times finding where I needed to be to book my next train ticket. This all went smoothly, (except there was one small misunderstanding...but that wont come until tomorrow...yes...I can see the future).
With ticket in hand... I still had about an hour and a half before noon. Noon was important because Ellen's kids return home for lunch then, and I planned to join them. But, in the meantime, I walked along the street that ran along the edge of the top of the gorge and made my way to the Cathedral of St Nicholas. I could just refer to it as THE cathedral, as its really the only one and its visible from anywhere in the city. That said... I made my way there without too much trouble.
The cathedral was pretty cool. Its front was home to a massively looming tower (which made it visible from anywhere). Its design on the outside was relatively simple, but its sheer size compared to local buildings made it quite impressive. Inside was also nice. I particularly liked the stains glass, which I felt used large pictures of scenes as opposed to some which use many tiny pictures all at once. I thought it made them simpler, and thus easier to 'read'. Each chapel along the sides also housed a small marble altar, each one I though was quite pretty and something I do not usually see in smaller cathedrals. There were a few lamp stands however, that had ... interesting portrays of what I interpreted as 'damned souls'... It was odd and I could be wrong on that, so I'm open to corrections.
Lastly, I had hoped to climb the 368 steps to the top of the tower, but could not find where. So, I attempted to ask but said person spoke no english. I then felt very pleased with what I did. I'd found an english pamphlet that read "climb the 368 steps..." So, I then found a french pamphlet and pointed where I knew the phrase was. This was successful, but to no avail. He led me around a corner to a sign that beheld the word 'closed'. Sadface...
Leaving the cathedral I heads back to the house for lunch with Anouk and Julien. They have a woman (who's name is escaping me) help them in the afternoons and she made lunch. It was quite delicious. Then, I talked with the other two about their school setup and life in general, and it was a fun talk.
After lunch I headed out on my walk to explore the old town. Unfortunately, I know the names of no rivers, buildings or bridges... so details will be somewhat lacking. But, I spent the rest of my afternoon weaving my way back and forth through the different 'levels' of the old town. The old town flanks the main curve of the river that makes the gorge. So, the buildings can be found running down the steer slope on either side of the gorge. At the bottom the ground levels off and buildings can be found leading out on a small peninsula towards the curve. Meanwhile, there were lots of bridges, all at different heights crossing the gorge.
So, my walk took we first along the ridge on the main side of the river. I made my way to one of the high bridges, crossed, and looped back along the ridge at the opposite side. This took me across the largest bridge (that I'm aware of) in the city. From there the roads I was following wound back down into the lower section of the old city, which was a maze of old buildings, back alleys, and cobblestone roads. It was a lot of fun to wander. My favorite part here was the soccer field I walked around. It sat directly at the point of the peninsular, so had river on 3 sides. Awesome location... though I bet a lot of balls go swimming...
I then crossed the river a few more times before finding my way back up the face of the gorge on the other side. All in all, the old town was great, and it was just fun to see all the old architectures and old streets... and it just felt old... in a good way. But, I then changed track and headed to the newer part of the city where I did a bit of shopping (specifically for some pastries). This was successful, to put it in 1 word.
I then returned to the house as afternoon turned to evening. There I was soon joined by both Anouk and Julien. The housekeeper (again, I forget her name) Put a chicken in around 6, which Anouk and I took out at 7 to eat. We then made some spaghetti and I sautèd some veggies, as I'm like to do. Then came the problem of carving the bird... which I had never done and the other two didn't want to. So... I must now give props to my dear brother... as he is very good at that, and I am... not so good, and did not appreciate that its sort of a pain. That said, I think it came out just fine. And dinner was delicious. Afterwards, Anouk and I did some cleaning and put away extra food, including stripping the bird so the bones could make soup.
Ellen got back a bit later, as she had a late class. She had the rest of dinner that we had, and we got out the pastries for dessert. All in all, it was a fun evening to cap a fun day. Off to bed at that point, where I actually found myself remarkably tired and had no trouble falling asleep (not only can I see the future but I can blog in my sleep!).
I left the house, and sadly the weather was grey and misty, but even then, it was not any sort of impending rain. The view was pretty great. Her house is on a steep hill overlooking a gorge that is home to the old part of the city and the river that cuts through. But, I would get there later, so headed up the 200+ steps to the main street level.
Here I headed back to the train station, which was only a few minutes walk. Here I had one of the easier times finding where I needed to be to book my next train ticket. This all went smoothly, (except there was one small misunderstanding...but that wont come until tomorrow...yes...I can see the future).
With ticket in hand... I still had about an hour and a half before noon. Noon was important because Ellen's kids return home for lunch then, and I planned to join them. But, in the meantime, I walked along the street that ran along the edge of the top of the gorge and made my way to the Cathedral of St Nicholas. I could just refer to it as THE cathedral, as its really the only one and its visible from anywhere in the city. That said... I made my way there without too much trouble.
The cathedral was pretty cool. Its front was home to a massively looming tower (which made it visible from anywhere). Its design on the outside was relatively simple, but its sheer size compared to local buildings made it quite impressive. Inside was also nice. I particularly liked the stains glass, which I felt used large pictures of scenes as opposed to some which use many tiny pictures all at once. I thought it made them simpler, and thus easier to 'read'. Each chapel along the sides also housed a small marble altar, each one I though was quite pretty and something I do not usually see in smaller cathedrals. There were a few lamp stands however, that had ... interesting portrays of what I interpreted as 'damned souls'... It was odd and I could be wrong on that, so I'm open to corrections.
Lastly, I had hoped to climb the 368 steps to the top of the tower, but could not find where. So, I attempted to ask but said person spoke no english. I then felt very pleased with what I did. I'd found an english pamphlet that read "climb the 368 steps..." So, I then found a french pamphlet and pointed where I knew the phrase was. This was successful, but to no avail. He led me around a corner to a sign that beheld the word 'closed'. Sadface...
Leaving the cathedral I heads back to the house for lunch with Anouk and Julien. They have a woman (who's name is escaping me) help them in the afternoons and she made lunch. It was quite delicious. Then, I talked with the other two about their school setup and life in general, and it was a fun talk.
After lunch I headed out on my walk to explore the old town. Unfortunately, I know the names of no rivers, buildings or bridges... so details will be somewhat lacking. But, I spent the rest of my afternoon weaving my way back and forth through the different 'levels' of the old town. The old town flanks the main curve of the river that makes the gorge. So, the buildings can be found running down the steer slope on either side of the gorge. At the bottom the ground levels off and buildings can be found leading out on a small peninsula towards the curve. Meanwhile, there were lots of bridges, all at different heights crossing the gorge.
So, my walk took we first along the ridge on the main side of the river. I made my way to one of the high bridges, crossed, and looped back along the ridge at the opposite side. This took me across the largest bridge (that I'm aware of) in the city. From there the roads I was following wound back down into the lower section of the old city, which was a maze of old buildings, back alleys, and cobblestone roads. It was a lot of fun to wander. My favorite part here was the soccer field I walked around. It sat directly at the point of the peninsular, so had river on 3 sides. Awesome location... though I bet a lot of balls go swimming...
I then crossed the river a few more times before finding my way back up the face of the gorge on the other side. All in all, the old town was great, and it was just fun to see all the old architectures and old streets... and it just felt old... in a good way. But, I then changed track and headed to the newer part of the city where I did a bit of shopping (specifically for some pastries). This was successful, to put it in 1 word.
I then returned to the house as afternoon turned to evening. There I was soon joined by both Anouk and Julien. The housekeeper (again, I forget her name) Put a chicken in around 6, which Anouk and I took out at 7 to eat. We then made some spaghetti and I sautèd some veggies, as I'm like to do. Then came the problem of carving the bird... which I had never done and the other two didn't want to. So... I must now give props to my dear brother... as he is very good at that, and I am... not so good, and did not appreciate that its sort of a pain. That said, I think it came out just fine. And dinner was delicious. Afterwards, Anouk and I did some cleaning and put away extra food, including stripping the bird so the bones could make soup.
Ellen got back a bit later, as she had a late class. She had the rest of dinner that we had, and we got out the pastries for dessert. All in all, it was a fun evening to cap a fun day. Off to bed at that point, where I actually found myself remarkably tired and had no trouble falling asleep (not only can I see the future but I can blog in my sleep!).
Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.7
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Eurail Part 2
Well this morning was particularly slow, and I think with good reason. Today would be the day I actually check out of my hostel. As a result, I would be taking my bag with me wherever I went. With a train leaving at 4, I did not particularly want to do a full day of tourism with a full camping pack. So, I took my time with breakfast, not that it was any more fancy then the last few days, and then went to pack my bag.
I did a bit of organizing of my stuff, filing away the papers I used and throwing out the excess. Done packing, I went downstairs and checked out. But, it was still a bit earlier then I wanted to go, so I took some time to write out some notes for myself, and send a few emails that needed sending, all while I charged my phone... cause I'm awesome at multitasking like that.
Around noon I headed out on the town. I had marked 2 places I wanted to go, where I could just walk around to see them, and so I headed to the first of those. That being, the Pantheon. This visit was suggested to me by Connor's french teacher, and my first reaction was... "isn't the Pantheon supposed to be in Rome?" I felt a bit stupid asking this but felt better when she said yes. She then explained that this is the second one, and that it is modeled after the one in Rome.
So, I walked there (from a nearby metro station) and it looked much like I would expect the Roman one to...perhaps not a huge surprise. So, I didn't go inside, but it was tall, with a lovely dome. The front had a lot of columns, and that triangle that is so common on roman buildings... sitting on the columns with a bunch of carved figures... Either way, cool, but that's about all I got...
From there I took a train to another site recommended by the same person; Hotel Des Invalides. The direct translation... I don't know, but I translate it to Napoleon's Tomb. But its definitely more than that. This place is a combination of a fort, cathedral, museum, and tomb... all in one thing. The building lies at the end of a huge road with lots of grassy strips. There is then a ravine, which at one point may have been a moat. Crossing this I entered the lawn, which had multiple paths branching out straight from the main gate, each one lined with cute little triangles of fir trees.
Down the middle path I approached the large front wall of the fort-like part of the main building. Passing through the wall led to a huge, square courtyard. The ground was lined with cannons, while the rooftop was lined with with gargoyles and carved white horses. Either side of the courtyard (through different doors) were the various museum exhibits, but I could not get to those. Through the door on the opposite end as the entrance was the room of the great golden dome, visible from much of the city. This is the cathedral of the building. Aside from my feelings that it was quite lovely and beautiful, I was surprised by how light it was. Perhaps it was a result of North Dame, but the contrast was amazing. The stone walls and columns, ceilings and floor were all white stones, and the windows weren't stained glass... just white glass, so the whole room was very bright. It was a nice change.
From there, I took a train to the station where I would be boarding my way to Geneva. I had hoped to find a crepe shop here, and have that as a snack while waiting, but I was surprised to find them absent (and disappointed). Instead, I got myself a chocolate crescent and found it... sufficient. I also hoped to inquire about a ticket from Fribourg to Rome, but could not locate the necessary desks. When I decided it time to inquire about where my train was, I found that it was back through some hidden, secret path that I never would have found. There also was the ticket counter I needed, but it was now too late.
So, I boarded my train and started my trip to Switzerland. The train ride was nicer than my previous two (at least the first ride to Geneva), mostly because I had a row to myself, so could sit in the window and watch the French countryside roll by. There are some really cute little towns on the way. That said, I did not find myself with the gorgeous views of the alps I'd built up hoping for in my mind. Sad...
But, I arrived in Geneva right on time, and went to find my second train. This was a small panic because I could not find a train to Fribourg, or the train number anywhere. But, eventually I was able to work out which train it was and board it. Again, I had a row to myself, but it was now dark and the views were...well...dark. So, just over an hour later I arrived in Fribourg, and before I left the station met up with Ellen Hertz (my mothers cousin).
She took me the quick drive to her house, where I had a warm welcome (in addition to the one she gave me herself). Her kids were there and she helped me grab some dinner of ham, potato's, applesauce and an artichoke (I think my second one ever?). Dinner was delicious! Meanwhile, I did a relatively brief recap of my trip, and got some of their travel stories as well. Also, they have 2 cats (big fan) and one of them is a purring machine! That said, I'm looking forward to tomorrow and am happy to be here, and looking forward to sleeping.
I did a bit of organizing of my stuff, filing away the papers I used and throwing out the excess. Done packing, I went downstairs and checked out. But, it was still a bit earlier then I wanted to go, so I took some time to write out some notes for myself, and send a few emails that needed sending, all while I charged my phone... cause I'm awesome at multitasking like that.
Around noon I headed out on the town. I had marked 2 places I wanted to go, where I could just walk around to see them, and so I headed to the first of those. That being, the Pantheon. This visit was suggested to me by Connor's french teacher, and my first reaction was... "isn't the Pantheon supposed to be in Rome?" I felt a bit stupid asking this but felt better when she said yes. She then explained that this is the second one, and that it is modeled after the one in Rome.
So, I walked there (from a nearby metro station) and it looked much like I would expect the Roman one to...perhaps not a huge surprise. So, I didn't go inside, but it was tall, with a lovely dome. The front had a lot of columns, and that triangle that is so common on roman buildings... sitting on the columns with a bunch of carved figures... Either way, cool, but that's about all I got...
From there I took a train to another site recommended by the same person; Hotel Des Invalides. The direct translation... I don't know, but I translate it to Napoleon's Tomb. But its definitely more than that. This place is a combination of a fort, cathedral, museum, and tomb... all in one thing. The building lies at the end of a huge road with lots of grassy strips. There is then a ravine, which at one point may have been a moat. Crossing this I entered the lawn, which had multiple paths branching out straight from the main gate, each one lined with cute little triangles of fir trees.
Down the middle path I approached the large front wall of the fort-like part of the main building. Passing through the wall led to a huge, square courtyard. The ground was lined with cannons, while the rooftop was lined with with gargoyles and carved white horses. Either side of the courtyard (through different doors) were the various museum exhibits, but I could not get to those. Through the door on the opposite end as the entrance was the room of the great golden dome, visible from much of the city. This is the cathedral of the building. Aside from my feelings that it was quite lovely and beautiful, I was surprised by how light it was. Perhaps it was a result of North Dame, but the contrast was amazing. The stone walls and columns, ceilings and floor were all white stones, and the windows weren't stained glass... just white glass, so the whole room was very bright. It was a nice change.
From there, I took a train to the station where I would be boarding my way to Geneva. I had hoped to find a crepe shop here, and have that as a snack while waiting, but I was surprised to find them absent (and disappointed). Instead, I got myself a chocolate crescent and found it... sufficient. I also hoped to inquire about a ticket from Fribourg to Rome, but could not locate the necessary desks. When I decided it time to inquire about where my train was, I found that it was back through some hidden, secret path that I never would have found. There also was the ticket counter I needed, but it was now too late.
So, I boarded my train and started my trip to Switzerland. The train ride was nicer than my previous two (at least the first ride to Geneva), mostly because I had a row to myself, so could sit in the window and watch the French countryside roll by. There are some really cute little towns on the way. That said, I did not find myself with the gorgeous views of the alps I'd built up hoping for in my mind. Sad...
But, I arrived in Geneva right on time, and went to find my second train. This was a small panic because I could not find a train to Fribourg, or the train number anywhere. But, eventually I was able to work out which train it was and board it. Again, I had a row to myself, but it was now dark and the views were...well...dark. So, just over an hour later I arrived in Fribourg, and before I left the station met up with Ellen Hertz (my mothers cousin).
She took me the quick drive to her house, where I had a warm welcome (in addition to the one she gave me herself). Her kids were there and she helped me grab some dinner of ham, potato's, applesauce and an artichoke (I think my second one ever?). Dinner was delicious! Meanwhile, I did a relatively brief recap of my trip, and got some of their travel stories as well. Also, they have 2 cats (big fan) and one of them is a purring machine! That said, I'm looking forward to tomorrow and am happy to be here, and looking forward to sleeping.
Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.7
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Tour de France - Paris on Foot
This morning had a few more hurtles in it than some. This is simply a result of having to change rooms today. So, I had my usual breakfast, as is...well... usual. I then packed my bag, and came downstairs. There I met a guy at reception who was much more friendly then the first person I met there. Then we arranged my check-out and my bag storage since I could not check into my new room until after 3. From there I left the hostel for another day on the town.
I had no trouble getting myself a subway day pass again, and found that I was quickly getting a feel for which lines took me to which stops. So, after boarding my first train I had a quick transfer and a longer ride to a station on an island, an island in a river, where the river is in the city...or Paris France. Sadly, I don't know the name of the island... but, it is most well known as the home of Notre Dame. That was however, not my first stop. At first I walked around the border of the island, relaxing at some views over the river, and taking some extra time at the west-most point. This is known as the Pont Neuf. Again, I don't know the translation and the french labels were all lost on me. But! I did appreciate that this little point sticking out into the river was a small walkway loop, with lush grass and beautiful gardens inside. I took some time to just sit on. A bench by the point, listen to the wind and water, and watch the ferries go by.
Having settled, I got up to visit dear ole Notre Dame. By this point, the sun was out, shining bright, and making this massive gothic exterior appear just a bit too cheerful. But, after a quick view of the front towers, I went inside for a more ominous and gothic effect. The cathedral is about as gothic in architecture a building can be. Dark stone, shaped in huge, vaulting ceilings. Every window an ornate, yet dark stained glass image. The frames around ever window and doorway was a series of arches on arches. Really... really beautiful. Perhaps this was a mistake, others can vote, but I chose not to climb the towers. Should my day go to plan, I would simply be spoiling my desire for an awesome view of the city.
I then left Notre Dame, at least the building, but took a walk around the outside. I've always enjoyed looking at the gargoyles and the flying buttresses. I always got the feeling that they were legs and the whole building was one day going to get up and leave. Should that ever happen... I told you so! On my route back to the front of the building, I stopped by a street vendor for lunch of a ham and cheese crepe. I then ate it in the square in front of the cathedral, and felt rather satisfied for the time being.
From there I walked to the other church on the island, and lesser known (at least to me). On Emmy's recommendation I found my way to Sainte Champelle. From the small amount of roof and spire I could see, it looked much like a miniature Notre Dame. Though, a few photos of the inside made it look pretty spectacular. More decorated and lit by the stains glass windows. Sadly, I arrived at the beginning of "closed for lunch". In addition to the unfortunately long wait, I was carrying a lot of things that I did not want to leave at the hostel. The entrance here is shared with a police facility, so they are very strict with what can be taken in, and I would just rather not risk the amount I had. So, this church will be saved for another day.
My next stop was a long subway trip away. I traveled to the western edge of the city, where I got out to walk north along the river. This route would take me directly to the foot of the Eiffel Tower. But, my path first took me past the Statue of Liberty, or the sister (little?) To the one we have back home in New York. It was not particularly stunning... it looked like the statue from back home... But it was funny to see something that felt so similar in a place that felt so foreign.
After a glimpse and a few pictures, I continued up the river. Sadly, this walk was not as peaceful as I'd hoped. Here there are a lot of ferry docks, so you cannot walk right along the river. Alas... But, before long I reached the Eiffel Tower. Its always nice navigating to the tallest thing around. Even if I didn't know what road to take there, its rather easy to identify. From its base, the tower gives a very... looming... feeling, as the way it curves I think exaggerates its height.
So, I then did what must be done... and got in the long, long line to go upwards. So, fast forwarding the next bit of time, I got to the first checkpoint, where they said my bag was fine. I then bought a ticket... and could not buy one to the very top! What!?!? Sigh... so, I got a ticket to the second floor, as it would still be the best view of Paris I was going to get. Fast forwarding again, I passed through/dealt with the metal detector, waited in line a bit more, and went up the elevator.
So, I emerged on the second floor of the Eiffel Tower just before 6. I should have waited a little longer, (I mean before getting in line...) so that I could catch the sun setting. That said, I enjoyed its location low on the horizon. I then proceeded to have spectacular views, with only whisks of clouds in all directions. I saw Montmartre to the north (where I'm staying), Notre Dame to the east, and other cool bits of city everywhere else. It was nice to just stand there and watch the sun work its way down also. But, before the sun set, hunger began to get the better of me, so I headed down.
Note, I never did find out why I could not go all the way up. There was another line on the second floor, but all I was told was that in 40 minutes there would be an announcement... ewe... I'll be back...
So, I headed to dinner, and was in a mood for something nice. So I returned to where I went the previous night with Connor's class, as I saw no need to be creative. For dinner I did an appetizer, enter, cheese, dessert special. I first got escargot for my first time ever. I was surprised at how good I thought they were, and found the little snail-shell-holder-utensil to be way more work than worth. I then had some duck over "fries", though really just potato slices. It was really good. I was then very glad to have saved my bread basket, as I needed it for the cheese. I know there was Brie and 2 others... though I'm hazy on details. It also came with a small bit of salad. Lastly, I had a creme brule... they are so good... All in all, I was very pleased.
I then took my last subway trip of the night and returned to my hostel. Bed time!
I had no trouble getting myself a subway day pass again, and found that I was quickly getting a feel for which lines took me to which stops. So, after boarding my first train I had a quick transfer and a longer ride to a station on an island, an island in a river, where the river is in the city...or Paris France. Sadly, I don't know the name of the island... but, it is most well known as the home of Notre Dame. That was however, not my first stop. At first I walked around the border of the island, relaxing at some views over the river, and taking some extra time at the west-most point. This is known as the Pont Neuf. Again, I don't know the translation and the french labels were all lost on me. But! I did appreciate that this little point sticking out into the river was a small walkway loop, with lush grass and beautiful gardens inside. I took some time to just sit on. A bench by the point, listen to the wind and water, and watch the ferries go by.
Having settled, I got up to visit dear ole Notre Dame. By this point, the sun was out, shining bright, and making this massive gothic exterior appear just a bit too cheerful. But, after a quick view of the front towers, I went inside for a more ominous and gothic effect. The cathedral is about as gothic in architecture a building can be. Dark stone, shaped in huge, vaulting ceilings. Every window an ornate, yet dark stained glass image. The frames around ever window and doorway was a series of arches on arches. Really... really beautiful. Perhaps this was a mistake, others can vote, but I chose not to climb the towers. Should my day go to plan, I would simply be spoiling my desire for an awesome view of the city.
I then left Notre Dame, at least the building, but took a walk around the outside. I've always enjoyed looking at the gargoyles and the flying buttresses. I always got the feeling that they were legs and the whole building was one day going to get up and leave. Should that ever happen... I told you so! On my route back to the front of the building, I stopped by a street vendor for lunch of a ham and cheese crepe. I then ate it in the square in front of the cathedral, and felt rather satisfied for the time being.
From there I walked to the other church on the island, and lesser known (at least to me). On Emmy's recommendation I found my way to Sainte Champelle. From the small amount of roof and spire I could see, it looked much like a miniature Notre Dame. Though, a few photos of the inside made it look pretty spectacular. More decorated and lit by the stains glass windows. Sadly, I arrived at the beginning of "closed for lunch". In addition to the unfortunately long wait, I was carrying a lot of things that I did not want to leave at the hostel. The entrance here is shared with a police facility, so they are very strict with what can be taken in, and I would just rather not risk the amount I had. So, this church will be saved for another day.
My next stop was a long subway trip away. I traveled to the western edge of the city, where I got out to walk north along the river. This route would take me directly to the foot of the Eiffel Tower. But, my path first took me past the Statue of Liberty, or the sister (little?) To the one we have back home in New York. It was not particularly stunning... it looked like the statue from back home... But it was funny to see something that felt so similar in a place that felt so foreign.
After a glimpse and a few pictures, I continued up the river. Sadly, this walk was not as peaceful as I'd hoped. Here there are a lot of ferry docks, so you cannot walk right along the river. Alas... But, before long I reached the Eiffel Tower. Its always nice navigating to the tallest thing around. Even if I didn't know what road to take there, its rather easy to identify. From its base, the tower gives a very... looming... feeling, as the way it curves I think exaggerates its height.
So, I then did what must be done... and got in the long, long line to go upwards. So, fast forwarding the next bit of time, I got to the first checkpoint, where they said my bag was fine. I then bought a ticket... and could not buy one to the very top! What!?!? Sigh... so, I got a ticket to the second floor, as it would still be the best view of Paris I was going to get. Fast forwarding again, I passed through/dealt with the metal detector, waited in line a bit more, and went up the elevator.
So, I emerged on the second floor of the Eiffel Tower just before 6. I should have waited a little longer, (I mean before getting in line...) so that I could catch the sun setting. That said, I enjoyed its location low on the horizon. I then proceeded to have spectacular views, with only whisks of clouds in all directions. I saw Montmartre to the north (where I'm staying), Notre Dame to the east, and other cool bits of city everywhere else. It was nice to just stand there and watch the sun work its way down also. But, before the sun set, hunger began to get the better of me, so I headed down.
Note, I never did find out why I could not go all the way up. There was another line on the second floor, but all I was told was that in 40 minutes there would be an announcement... ewe... I'll be back...
So, I headed to dinner, and was in a mood for something nice. So I returned to where I went the previous night with Connor's class, as I saw no need to be creative. For dinner I did an appetizer, enter, cheese, dessert special. I first got escargot for my first time ever. I was surprised at how good I thought they were, and found the little snail-shell-holder-utensil to be way more work than worth. I then had some duck over "fries", though really just potato slices. It was really good. I was then very glad to have saved my bread basket, as I needed it for the cheese. I know there was Brie and 2 others... though I'm hazy on details. It also came with a small bit of salad. Lastly, I had a creme brule... they are so good... All in all, I was very pleased.
I then took my last subway trip of the night and returned to my hostel. Bed time!
Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.7
Monday, March 14, 2011
To Belong in a Museum
The morning began with a breakfast of a small bowl of cereal, 2 crescents, OJ and coffee. A good way to start any day. I then took a bit of time with a map, as I always do, to put some of a plan into my day.
My first stop was the central train station. There actually was not a Central Station, like there was in Germany, but my first guess seemed lucky enough. There, I was led on a bit of a hunt to find the ticket office for international trains. But, once there it was fairly simple to book my train to Switzerland. Unfortunately, the ordeal was enough to tire me out a bit... so tired of dealing with reservations...
Anyway, I went back to the subway and headed to The Louvre. What a massive building! I walked like 3 blocks and was still walking next to the building! Luckily, my walk next to this museum, down the Rue de Rivoli, had a few sights of its own. The first of these was the Hotel Regina. While I never went in, it was prominent in the film, The Bourne Identity. There was also a cool statue of Joan of Arc outside of it.
My next stop was even better though. I went for "lunch" at the Angelina, which lived up to it's hype. I ordered the Le Chocolate a Lancienne Dit "L'Africain", and a Le Mont-Blanc. The prior is their old fashion french style hot chocolate, and it was the best I'd ever had. It was creamy and bitter, yet still sweet. It was also that awesome kind of warm, think and creamy where when it sits for a few minutes you need to stir it to prevent it from filming over... so good! The pastry was a meringue with whipped cream cheese covered in a sweet chestnut paste. I actually thought it was a bit overwhelming, and with the hot chocolate would have gone with a more fluffy dough pastry. That said, it was all pretty delicious!
From the Angelina, I finally found my way into the Louvre, and again must comment on its size. I'm sure some of this effect is created by it's non-compact shape, but its still really big. Either way, I walked around its courtyards for a while, and saw around all the pyramids and fountains before making my way inside. There, it was the most overwhelmingly chaotic museum ever. This is again I think a result of the size. But, there were lines and lines of people st different ticket machines, informations centers, shops and more.
But, I got myself a map, and a ticket, and headed inside. Not being a huge art fanatic, I did a brief Louvre tour. That is, I visit all the sites specifically noted on the map, so 3 things per floor. Most prominent of these were The Winged Victory of Samothrace, Mona Lisa, The Wedding Feast, Code of Hammurabi and the Venus de Milo. The Winged Victory stood at the top of the steps to the first floor. It was a sort of eerie beautiful, due to its location and damage, and yet still held so much beauty. I then went around this floor to the room that held the followingly mentioned paintings. Here I had a fun thought. In the case of The Wedding Feast, you know a painting is impressive when it is the wall. But, you know the Mona Lisa is impressive because it has a wall dedicated to it. Unfortunately, I think that to get a truly good experience with the painting you must be there at a much quieter time. For me the room was packed as people forced forward for pictures. It made it very difficult to just see the art. The Code of Hammurabi and the Venus de Milo were similar. Very beautiful, but you still had to fight the people.
So yea... some of the crowd issues were my own fault for seeing the sites specifically mentioned on the map, and I accept that. But, the museum itself... belongs in a museum. There is so much architectural work on the building, with tiled floors, carved pillars and painted ceilings. The building is really beautiful.
I then left and headed through the connected gardens. This took me to Cleopatra's Obelisk, standing in the center of Paris as a reminder of Egypt. A bit strange, I'll admit, but pretty none-the-less. It was also very pretty to see it with the Eiffel Tower standing in the backdrop. I then walked the length of the Champs Elysees, all the way to the Arc de Triomphe. I wanted to say, "I walked down the Champs Elysees and watched the people go by" as my title, but feared the relativity joke might need context... whatever...
Anyway, for a breather I sat on a bench when I arrived, and as I did I received a message from Connor (my cousin from Alaska). They were meeting at their hotel for dinner and were then heading to this very Arc. So, I'd be back! I grabbed the subway and headed down to the location Connor described, where I met up with him, his 2 teachers and class of 13 kids. They were a lot of fun. We went to some local place for dinner, and then went out on the town.
We took the train back to the Arc, where we all went to the top for some great views! While I don't like that Paris is not organized as a grid, the idea of road branching as a star from the arch is quite pretty. Impractical... but pretty. It was nice to be able to ask questions to the French teacher and be able to have a guide of sorts. We then went down and returned to the Louvre via a return walk down the Champs Elysees. Through dinner and the walk I had fun catching up with Connor and just chatting with the teachers. It was a relaxing way to end the evening.
As we got close to their hotel I bit them all farewell and a safe trip home as I hopped onto the subway again. I headed back to my hotel where I now write and am about to promptly crash into bed.
My first stop was the central train station. There actually was not a Central Station, like there was in Germany, but my first guess seemed lucky enough. There, I was led on a bit of a hunt to find the ticket office for international trains. But, once there it was fairly simple to book my train to Switzerland. Unfortunately, the ordeal was enough to tire me out a bit... so tired of dealing with reservations...
Anyway, I went back to the subway and headed to The Louvre. What a massive building! I walked like 3 blocks and was still walking next to the building! Luckily, my walk next to this museum, down the Rue de Rivoli, had a few sights of its own. The first of these was the Hotel Regina. While I never went in, it was prominent in the film, The Bourne Identity. There was also a cool statue of Joan of Arc outside of it.
My next stop was even better though. I went for "lunch" at the Angelina, which lived up to it's hype. I ordered the Le Chocolate a Lancienne Dit "L'Africain", and a Le Mont-Blanc. The prior is their old fashion french style hot chocolate, and it was the best I'd ever had. It was creamy and bitter, yet still sweet. It was also that awesome kind of warm, think and creamy where when it sits for a few minutes you need to stir it to prevent it from filming over... so good! The pastry was a meringue with whipped cream cheese covered in a sweet chestnut paste. I actually thought it was a bit overwhelming, and with the hot chocolate would have gone with a more fluffy dough pastry. That said, it was all pretty delicious!
From the Angelina, I finally found my way into the Louvre, and again must comment on its size. I'm sure some of this effect is created by it's non-compact shape, but its still really big. Either way, I walked around its courtyards for a while, and saw around all the pyramids and fountains before making my way inside. There, it was the most overwhelmingly chaotic museum ever. This is again I think a result of the size. But, there were lines and lines of people st different ticket machines, informations centers, shops and more.
But, I got myself a map, and a ticket, and headed inside. Not being a huge art fanatic, I did a brief Louvre tour. That is, I visit all the sites specifically noted on the map, so 3 things per floor. Most prominent of these were The Winged Victory of Samothrace, Mona Lisa, The Wedding Feast, Code of Hammurabi and the Venus de Milo. The Winged Victory stood at the top of the steps to the first floor. It was a sort of eerie beautiful, due to its location and damage, and yet still held so much beauty. I then went around this floor to the room that held the followingly mentioned paintings. Here I had a fun thought. In the case of The Wedding Feast, you know a painting is impressive when it is the wall. But, you know the Mona Lisa is impressive because it has a wall dedicated to it. Unfortunately, I think that to get a truly good experience with the painting you must be there at a much quieter time. For me the room was packed as people forced forward for pictures. It made it very difficult to just see the art. The Code of Hammurabi and the Venus de Milo were similar. Very beautiful, but you still had to fight the people.
So yea... some of the crowd issues were my own fault for seeing the sites specifically mentioned on the map, and I accept that. But, the museum itself... belongs in a museum. There is so much architectural work on the building, with tiled floors, carved pillars and painted ceilings. The building is really beautiful.
I then left and headed through the connected gardens. This took me to Cleopatra's Obelisk, standing in the center of Paris as a reminder of Egypt. A bit strange, I'll admit, but pretty none-the-less. It was also very pretty to see it with the Eiffel Tower standing in the backdrop. I then walked the length of the Champs Elysees, all the way to the Arc de Triomphe. I wanted to say, "I walked down the Champs Elysees and watched the people go by" as my title, but feared the relativity joke might need context... whatever...
Anyway, for a breather I sat on a bench when I arrived, and as I did I received a message from Connor (my cousin from Alaska). They were meeting at their hotel for dinner and were then heading to this very Arc. So, I'd be back! I grabbed the subway and headed down to the location Connor described, where I met up with him, his 2 teachers and class of 13 kids. They were a lot of fun. We went to some local place for dinner, and then went out on the town.
We took the train back to the Arc, where we all went to the top for some great views! While I don't like that Paris is not organized as a grid, the idea of road branching as a star from the arch is quite pretty. Impractical... but pretty. It was nice to be able to ask questions to the French teacher and be able to have a guide of sorts. We then went down and returned to the Louvre via a return walk down the Champs Elysees. Through dinner and the walk I had fun catching up with Connor and just chatting with the teachers. It was a relaxing way to end the evening.
As we got close to their hotel I bit them all farewell and a safe trip home as I hopped onto the subway again. I headed back to my hotel where I now write and am about to promptly crash into bed.
Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.7
Eurail Part 1
Out of the concern for my readers, I will put you under no illusions that all entries titled this way will be less exciting then some, as it is in fact, a day spent vastly on a train. That said...
This morning was a good morning. I got up and showered, and had breakfast with Alfred and Corinne. Over the coarse of the meal (the main coarse you might say) I asked Corinne and Alfred about any suggestions they might have about what to do over my short time in Paris. They gave me a bunch of good tips. My favorite was, "When you're in France... don't drink the beer." I suppose I'll stick to wine.
After breakfast, I moved into the living room where I would begin my list of things to do before departing. This list began with collecting my laundry from downstairs and folding it. Then next logical step is obviously to pack said recently folded clothes... so I did. But, packing was a bit of an ordeal. I went through everything I was carrying around from previous countries and threw out the things that I thought were just taking up space. I then reorganized how I packed my backpack and shoulder bag, so that I would only be carrying around the things I wanted to be. Corinne walked in at one point, as I had thoroughly consumed Bruno's floor... and she had to laugh. So did I...
Anyway, packing took me a while, and afterwards I was able to briefly help Corinne prepare lunch. French fries are SO easy to make! Defiantly going to make them more often when I return. We also had some pork that was roasted with carrots and shallots... but that's for later. I then had time to make a brief call to my beloved parents before lunch, which is always a pleasure (lunch that is... :) ). But, lunch was actually a pleasure too, being the roast with veggies and fries as mentioned with a bit of gravy.
And as lunch passed, my trial approached. Through the morning I had made my farewells to Elena and Victor, and now I made them to Alfred and Bruno. Corinne then drove me to the train station, where I made my farewell to her. I then boarded my train without difficulty, though it took me a bit to figure out how to know which seats were reserved... and then we left Munich.
I'd hoped that the train would give me some good views of Europe, but I neither had a good window seat, nor was the weather providing scenic views. But, i'm ok with gloomy weather today. A few hours later I arrived at the French border in Mannheim. There I grabbed a pastry and a cheese/veggie sandwich and found my next train to take me to Paris.
This one started off a bit rocky, as there were some miscommunication about reserved seats. But, in the end it was all worked out without issue. The rest of the ride was less exciting then the first bit. Partly because it was now black outside... So, skipping to the end of the ride, I arrived in Paris.
My first reaction was pretty good, as I spoke to two people who helped me figure out where I needed to go for the subway. Of that, my first reaction is that it looks fairly simple, though I also felt that it looks less clean then some of the systems that proceeded it. But, 4 stops later I was where I got out. I got out, and used my phone's map to finish the remaining 10 minute or so walk.
The hostel is definitely not one of the better ones I've stayed in, but I'll not dwell on those details. As midnight was approaching, I decided to just climb into bed.
This morning was a good morning. I got up and showered, and had breakfast with Alfred and Corinne. Over the coarse of the meal (the main coarse you might say) I asked Corinne and Alfred about any suggestions they might have about what to do over my short time in Paris. They gave me a bunch of good tips. My favorite was, "When you're in France... don't drink the beer." I suppose I'll stick to wine.
After breakfast, I moved into the living room where I would begin my list of things to do before departing. This list began with collecting my laundry from downstairs and folding it. Then next logical step is obviously to pack said recently folded clothes... so I did. But, packing was a bit of an ordeal. I went through everything I was carrying around from previous countries and threw out the things that I thought were just taking up space. I then reorganized how I packed my backpack and shoulder bag, so that I would only be carrying around the things I wanted to be. Corinne walked in at one point, as I had thoroughly consumed Bruno's floor... and she had to laugh. So did I...
Anyway, packing took me a while, and afterwards I was able to briefly help Corinne prepare lunch. French fries are SO easy to make! Defiantly going to make them more often when I return. We also had some pork that was roasted with carrots and shallots... but that's for later. I then had time to make a brief call to my beloved parents before lunch, which is always a pleasure (lunch that is... :) ). But, lunch was actually a pleasure too, being the roast with veggies and fries as mentioned with a bit of gravy.
And as lunch passed, my trial approached. Through the morning I had made my farewells to Elena and Victor, and now I made them to Alfred and Bruno. Corinne then drove me to the train station, where I made my farewell to her. I then boarded my train without difficulty, though it took me a bit to figure out how to know which seats were reserved... and then we left Munich.
I'd hoped that the train would give me some good views of Europe, but I neither had a good window seat, nor was the weather providing scenic views. But, i'm ok with gloomy weather today. A few hours later I arrived at the French border in Mannheim. There I grabbed a pastry and a cheese/veggie sandwich and found my next train to take me to Paris.
This one started off a bit rocky, as there were some miscommunication about reserved seats. But, in the end it was all worked out without issue. The rest of the ride was less exciting then the first bit. Partly because it was now black outside... So, skipping to the end of the ride, I arrived in Paris.
My first reaction was pretty good, as I spoke to two people who helped me figure out where I needed to go for the subway. Of that, my first reaction is that it looks fairly simple, though I also felt that it looks less clean then some of the systems that proceeded it. But, 4 stops later I was where I got out. I got out, and used my phone's map to finish the remaining 10 minute or so walk.
The hostel is definitely not one of the better ones I've stayed in, but I'll not dwell on those details. As midnight was approaching, I decided to just climb into bed.
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Saturday, March 12, 2011
Into a Fairy Tail
Well today had some pretty awesome sites. Breakfast was crescents with jam and coffee... nice and simple. The rest of the morning was mostly dedicated to watching the news and reports on Japan. I am VERY grateful that I am no longer there, am hoping to hear from my newly made friends, and am keeping the country in thoughts.
As for my day, myself, Alfred, Elena and Bruno headed out around 10. We got in the car and drove for about an hour and a half northeast of here to the edge of the Alps. The drive took us along the Autobahn for a while which was sort of crazy. The fact that there was no speed limit in many places resulted in pretty drastic speed variations. I do not think I liked this as I felt a bit sick a few times. We then proceeded through some flat lands all the way to to foot of the Alps. This resulted in some beautiful views of the snow crested mountains. Also fun on this drive... people driving on the right again! It feels so...right.
As for what we were doing at the foot of the Alps... we were visiting a few castles of King Ludwig. Specifically Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein. Hohenschwangau we never toured, but got some great views of the outside. It is the castle that Ludwig and his family lived in for quite some time. Conversely, Neuschwanstein we did tour, and Ludwig spent very little time there. Much of the reason for that is a result of his death though. This castle however, is most commonly known because it was used to model Cinderella's castle.
The ticket office foe the tours was at the foot of the mountain, and is set up so that you can arrive at the castle whenever you want to control your waiting times prior to your tour. So, we had a quick lunch and then started the walk up. Its not that difficult of a climb, ascending a road that is not too steep. However, when we reached the top the views were spectacular. We could look out, away from the castle and just gaze over the miles of flat plains towards Munich. Even more impressive was the view towards the mountains behind the castle. There we could look down into a gorge and raise our eyes to see across a white frozen lake and then up into jagged, snow-capped peaks.
Lastly, we could look at the castle itself, with high white walls and tall, round, pointed towers. The courtyard was small, and was very much built to be the size of a waiting/greeting area. That said, it was still quite lovely.
As our tour began, we were explained that very few of the rooms of the castle were finished by the time of Ludwig's death. So, the tour was going to take us through those few rooms that were. Also, apparently Ludwig build this castle as a dedication to Wagner, who was Ludwig's favorite composer (and more as rumors would have it). But, as the tour progressed it became very clear that this castle was designed for Wagner.
Out first stop was in the throne room, which was funny because there was no throne. That said, the chandelier was a 2000 pound masterpiece, shaped like a crown. The room had a grand marble staircase leading to where the throne would have been placed. The walls on either side were pained with the 12 apostles. The back wall held paintings of the 6 sainted kings, while the ceiling over the pedestal was painted with Christ, displayed as 'King of King's. The floor was a giant mosaic depicting the plants and animals of the world and the remaining walls were painted with the tale of one of the sainted kings slaying a dragon. (One painting also had a castle drawn in it, apparently Ludwig's fourth planned castle, though it was never started.)
Our next stop was Ludwig's bedroom. At first the room seemed far less grant then that of the throne room, but closer inspection said otherwise. Here, apparently 4 woodcarvers worked for years, every day before completing it. The wooden canopy over the bed, as well as the carvings on the sink and reading chair were breathtaking, carved to resemble towers and arches of cathedrals and churches. Here, his walls were painted to depict scenes from one of Wagner's operas, though I forget which one. I also liked that the sink, with a faucet carved as a swan (the swan is everywhere!), had running water from a spring further up the mountain.
We left the bedroom through a secret (and yes... I would not have known it was there... the wood carvers were indeed good) door that led through his dressing room into his library (or a room that served that purpose). This room apparently surpasses all others in terms of swans. The room was decorated by hundreds. The walls were subtly carved in pictures and patterns using them. The door handles were the necks and heads of swans. The swans appeared in the paintings around the walls. Again, the paintings were of a Wagner fairy tale.
We left this room and passed through an artificially constructed cave. The cave was a memento of another of Wagner's works (noticing anything?). It was also crazy how real it looked. I was surprised. And this led us into the final room of the tour, the singer's hall. This grand room had a stage, with the back painted as the magical forest that surrounded the magical castle that held the Holy Grail. Meanwhile the rest of the room was painted of Wagner's works. The acoustics were terrific, as the ceiling was constructed with a large number of individual wooden pieces. Again... a beautiful room. Every time I thought I'd taken the whole thing in I noticed something new... like the trees, carved into the corners of the ceiling to ease the transition from the walls... This room also held the coat of arms of Ludwig, the only sign in the castle that connected it to his family, as there were no portraits of him or anyone else.
Thus ended the guided tour, but we then walked out of the castle through the kitchen, the last and final completed room. Sandy, far less exciting to discuss. We then headed around the gorge to Marien Brüke (Mary's Bridge), that spanned the gorge leading up to the castle. Here, if you could not guess, we got some more outstanding views, of everything previously mentioned. And that should have been the end, but the way down was more exciting than it could have been.
Rather than taking the regular and clear path, Elena proposed taking the ... less beaten trail. Which was fine for me, as I was in boots, but the snow and ice caused more trouble for... her... as her footwear was less ideal. This made the way down slower then it could have been, but also more entertaining. And, by the end, nobody had fallen, so all a success. This route also led me to the best view of the day of a different section of the Alps, and my favorite view of the mountains, so I was pleased. It also led to one of the better quotes of the trip. We all know that I love penguins, so, when Elena said, "I feel like a penguin", with a few 'penguin-like' gestures as she crossed the ice, I was vastly entertained.
We then returned to the car and back to Munich, with much the same effects and thoughts of the car ride. Back in Munich we watched a bit more news, I did some laundry, and we had dinner of salad and quiche. My evening was then vastly dedicated to figuring out hostels for Paris and Italy, which I am now gratefully done with and hope it all works out. However... I miss the hostels from my previous countries... they were all so easy to set up and arrange. Grrr. But... yea... today was awesome!
As for my day, myself, Alfred, Elena and Bruno headed out around 10. We got in the car and drove for about an hour and a half northeast of here to the edge of the Alps. The drive took us along the Autobahn for a while which was sort of crazy. The fact that there was no speed limit in many places resulted in pretty drastic speed variations. I do not think I liked this as I felt a bit sick a few times. We then proceeded through some flat lands all the way to to foot of the Alps. This resulted in some beautiful views of the snow crested mountains. Also fun on this drive... people driving on the right again! It feels so...right.
As for what we were doing at the foot of the Alps... we were visiting a few castles of King Ludwig. Specifically Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein. Hohenschwangau we never toured, but got some great views of the outside. It is the castle that Ludwig and his family lived in for quite some time. Conversely, Neuschwanstein we did tour, and Ludwig spent very little time there. Much of the reason for that is a result of his death though. This castle however, is most commonly known because it was used to model Cinderella's castle.
The ticket office foe the tours was at the foot of the mountain, and is set up so that you can arrive at the castle whenever you want to control your waiting times prior to your tour. So, we had a quick lunch and then started the walk up. Its not that difficult of a climb, ascending a road that is not too steep. However, when we reached the top the views were spectacular. We could look out, away from the castle and just gaze over the miles of flat plains towards Munich. Even more impressive was the view towards the mountains behind the castle. There we could look down into a gorge and raise our eyes to see across a white frozen lake and then up into jagged, snow-capped peaks.
Lastly, we could look at the castle itself, with high white walls and tall, round, pointed towers. The courtyard was small, and was very much built to be the size of a waiting/greeting area. That said, it was still quite lovely.
As our tour began, we were explained that very few of the rooms of the castle were finished by the time of Ludwig's death. So, the tour was going to take us through those few rooms that were. Also, apparently Ludwig build this castle as a dedication to Wagner, who was Ludwig's favorite composer (and more as rumors would have it). But, as the tour progressed it became very clear that this castle was designed for Wagner.
Out first stop was in the throne room, which was funny because there was no throne. That said, the chandelier was a 2000 pound masterpiece, shaped like a crown. The room had a grand marble staircase leading to where the throne would have been placed. The walls on either side were pained with the 12 apostles. The back wall held paintings of the 6 sainted kings, while the ceiling over the pedestal was painted with Christ, displayed as 'King of King's. The floor was a giant mosaic depicting the plants and animals of the world and the remaining walls were painted with the tale of one of the sainted kings slaying a dragon. (One painting also had a castle drawn in it, apparently Ludwig's fourth planned castle, though it was never started.)
Our next stop was Ludwig's bedroom. At first the room seemed far less grant then that of the throne room, but closer inspection said otherwise. Here, apparently 4 woodcarvers worked for years, every day before completing it. The wooden canopy over the bed, as well as the carvings on the sink and reading chair were breathtaking, carved to resemble towers and arches of cathedrals and churches. Here, his walls were painted to depict scenes from one of Wagner's operas, though I forget which one. I also liked that the sink, with a faucet carved as a swan (the swan is everywhere!), had running water from a spring further up the mountain.
We left the bedroom through a secret (and yes... I would not have known it was there... the wood carvers were indeed good) door that led through his dressing room into his library (or a room that served that purpose). This room apparently surpasses all others in terms of swans. The room was decorated by hundreds. The walls were subtly carved in pictures and patterns using them. The door handles were the necks and heads of swans. The swans appeared in the paintings around the walls. Again, the paintings were of a Wagner fairy tale.
We left this room and passed through an artificially constructed cave. The cave was a memento of another of Wagner's works (noticing anything?). It was also crazy how real it looked. I was surprised. And this led us into the final room of the tour, the singer's hall. This grand room had a stage, with the back painted as the magical forest that surrounded the magical castle that held the Holy Grail. Meanwhile the rest of the room was painted of Wagner's works. The acoustics were terrific, as the ceiling was constructed with a large number of individual wooden pieces. Again... a beautiful room. Every time I thought I'd taken the whole thing in I noticed something new... like the trees, carved into the corners of the ceiling to ease the transition from the walls... This room also held the coat of arms of Ludwig, the only sign in the castle that connected it to his family, as there were no portraits of him or anyone else.
Thus ended the guided tour, but we then walked out of the castle through the kitchen, the last and final completed room. Sandy, far less exciting to discuss. We then headed around the gorge to Marien Brüke (Mary's Bridge), that spanned the gorge leading up to the castle. Here, if you could not guess, we got some more outstanding views, of everything previously mentioned. And that should have been the end, but the way down was more exciting than it could have been.
Rather than taking the regular and clear path, Elena proposed taking the ... less beaten trail. Which was fine for me, as I was in boots, but the snow and ice caused more trouble for... her... as her footwear was less ideal. This made the way down slower then it could have been, but also more entertaining. And, by the end, nobody had fallen, so all a success. This route also led me to the best view of the day of a different section of the Alps, and my favorite view of the mountains, so I was pleased. It also led to one of the better quotes of the trip. We all know that I love penguins, so, when Elena said, "I feel like a penguin", with a few 'penguin-like' gestures as she crossed the ice, I was vastly entertained.
We then returned to the car and back to Munich, with much the same effects and thoughts of the car ride. Back in Munich we watched a bit more news, I did some laundry, and we had dinner of salad and quiche. My evening was then vastly dedicated to figuring out hostels for Paris and Italy, which I am now gratefully done with and hope it all works out. However... I miss the hostels from my previous countries... they were all so easy to set up and arrange. Grrr. But... yea... today was awesome!
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Beer in Bulgaria
My day out and about the city started at about 11. This lead to my first adventure which was... buying a train ticket. I was able to switch the machine into english, but still found myself having trouble locating the day pass. Luckily I was able to ask someone and they helped me find it.
With a ticket in hand I was now able to board a train into the heart of the city (legally). So, I took the strain first to central station, where I would find out my options for train travel to get to the next and remaining few countries. It was remarkably difficult to get to the right place but eventually I got there. I then found what I expected and learned that a Eurail Pass would be cheeped than a set of individual trips. So, I purchased a pass for 4 countries and 5 days of travel, which will be more than I need to finish my trip. Lastly, I made the necessary reservations for my approaching trip to France.
I then got back on the train and returned to Marienplatz. From there, I headed out on a walk towards the English Gardens. This walk ran along a few rivers and streams in the city, all of which had some pretty lovely waterfalls. Unfortunately, I found myself mistaken about which river I was walking along, so I actually walked the length of the garden before getting to it. But, I arrived at the northern tip, and then got to walk back to the city through the garden.
The garden is huge! It has multiple restaurants, a beer garden next to a chinese tower, a big lake, and a couple large fields where people were relaxing or playing sports. That said, despite being named 'garden' there seemed to be very few flowers. Perhaps its a result of the time of the year, but I feel 'park' would have been a much more suitable title. It was however, quite a lovely walk on a day with quite lovely weather.
I returned to Marienplatz just before 5, which was perfect. As the clock (all 5 of them visible from the square) chimed, I got to watch the Glockenspiel preform. It is a bit entertaining how many people show up to watch it... but then again... I did it myself. My favorite of the objects going around are the two knights how look very much like they will successfully lance each other.
Anyway, at 5:30 I moved the short distance to the base of the Glockenspiel, where I met with the guided/walking Beer and Brewery tour. Now, by the end I will say that this is much more of a beer tour, and not that focused on the brewing process. So, our first stop was to Schneider Weissp. Here I had my long awaited dark wheat beer. It was so good! I've been trying to come up with the flavor I'd use to describe it... but have been struggling. Its sort of a rich, mapley, sweet, deliciousness. Apparently this beer house made these as their specialty.
From there we were headed a bit further so we went down to the train station. There, we took advantage of the lack of an open container law. We purchased a bottle of Augustina each (a german lager) and had that as we trained our way to our next stop. Rumor has it that this is the most popular bottled beer in Germany. It was pretty good, so it is a rumor that I would believe.
This brought us to Paulner Müchen. Here was the small part of our tour dedicated to brewing. But, we did little more than see the equipment, and I feel learned very little of the actual process. But, upstairs we were served samples of their 3 main brews. They were (in order) a light wheat beer, a lager, and a dark wheat. The dark remained my favorite, but they were all good.
Since we were a small group, we were ahead of schedule. So, our guide took us to a small room which is apparently the back of a restaurant. That was...interesting. We then ended our tour back at the Hofbräuhaus. This place is crazy on a friday night. Its absolutely packed, and everyone has a stein. There's live music blasting and people yelling and beer drinking. Its pretty crazy, and a lot of fun. Here is also where we had dinner... and a bit of me wishes that that occurred a bit earlier in the night. That said, it was a pretty great place to end the tour. At this point I paid my bill, and trained back where I prompts went to bed.
With a ticket in hand I was now able to board a train into the heart of the city (legally). So, I took the strain first to central station, where I would find out my options for train travel to get to the next and remaining few countries. It was remarkably difficult to get to the right place but eventually I got there. I then found what I expected and learned that a Eurail Pass would be cheeped than a set of individual trips. So, I purchased a pass for 4 countries and 5 days of travel, which will be more than I need to finish my trip. Lastly, I made the necessary reservations for my approaching trip to France.
I then got back on the train and returned to Marienplatz. From there, I headed out on a walk towards the English Gardens. This walk ran along a few rivers and streams in the city, all of which had some pretty lovely waterfalls. Unfortunately, I found myself mistaken about which river I was walking along, so I actually walked the length of the garden before getting to it. But, I arrived at the northern tip, and then got to walk back to the city through the garden.
The garden is huge! It has multiple restaurants, a beer garden next to a chinese tower, a big lake, and a couple large fields where people were relaxing or playing sports. That said, despite being named 'garden' there seemed to be very few flowers. Perhaps its a result of the time of the year, but I feel 'park' would have been a much more suitable title. It was however, quite a lovely walk on a day with quite lovely weather.
I returned to Marienplatz just before 5, which was perfect. As the clock (all 5 of them visible from the square) chimed, I got to watch the Glockenspiel preform. It is a bit entertaining how many people show up to watch it... but then again... I did it myself. My favorite of the objects going around are the two knights how look very much like they will successfully lance each other.
Anyway, at 5:30 I moved the short distance to the base of the Glockenspiel, where I met with the guided/walking Beer and Brewery tour. Now, by the end I will say that this is much more of a beer tour, and not that focused on the brewing process. So, our first stop was to Schneider Weissp. Here I had my long awaited dark wheat beer. It was so good! I've been trying to come up with the flavor I'd use to describe it... but have been struggling. Its sort of a rich, mapley, sweet, deliciousness. Apparently this beer house made these as their specialty.
From there we were headed a bit further so we went down to the train station. There, we took advantage of the lack of an open container law. We purchased a bottle of Augustina each (a german lager) and had that as we trained our way to our next stop. Rumor has it that this is the most popular bottled beer in Germany. It was pretty good, so it is a rumor that I would believe.
This brought us to Paulner Müchen. Here was the small part of our tour dedicated to brewing. But, we did little more than see the equipment, and I feel learned very little of the actual process. But, upstairs we were served samples of their 3 main brews. They were (in order) a light wheat beer, a lager, and a dark wheat. The dark remained my favorite, but they were all good.
Since we were a small group, we were ahead of schedule. So, our guide took us to a small room which is apparently the back of a restaurant. That was...interesting. We then ended our tour back at the Hofbräuhaus. This place is crazy on a friday night. Its absolutely packed, and everyone has a stein. There's live music blasting and people yelling and beer drinking. Its pretty crazy, and a lot of fun. Here is also where we had dinner... and a bit of me wishes that that occurred a bit earlier in the night. That said, it was a pretty great place to end the tour. At this point I paid my bill, and trained back where I prompts went to bed.
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Thursday, March 10, 2011
A Day at the Museum
Today my breakfast was a roll with jelly and a piece of toast with cheese. aside from that the morning was fairly uneventful, but many mornings are, and that's just fine. Good time for relaxing.
Morning aside, today was my day with Bruno. Just before 11, we headed to the train station, same as yesterday. Same line, though this time one stop father. This took us just past Marienplatz, and to the train stop closest to the Deutsch's Museum. From the train station the museum was only a few minutes walk away, and an easy one at that. From the outside, you might not notice it, apart from the signs pointing towards it, but the building itself just seems to blend in.
That said, the museum is HUGE! Its like 5 large floors and absolutely packed with stuff. I only saw a few exhibits and felt exhausted by the end. So, that said, Bruno and I bought tickets, checked in our coats, and I followed his lead at first.
First we went to the room, front and center, is known as the Shipping and Marine Navigation exhibition. This room was full of ships, ships everywhere. We first went downstairs, where the exhibit was mostly about the mechanics of ships. So we looked at a series of different motors and propellers. When I could, I tried to explain the differences between different engines, though sometimes needed a few words translated.
We then went up the the main floor, which was focused less on the mechanics of the ships, and more so on the different types of ships and boats that exist. So, we saw different kinds of canoes, kayaks and rowboats, and how they have become better through the years. The same is true for sailboats, but I thought some of their older versions looked really cool, while the old kayaks just looked...impractical. Then there were some models (no room for the real thing) of submarines and cruise/freight ships. No military vessels though, which I think could have been fun to compare through the years.
From there we headed a bit further in to the aeronautics exhibit. Again, the exhibit rose a few floors of the museum. I would have expected it to be more about the development of flight, but it seemed more focused on different varieties of flying ships through the years. My favorites to see were the gliders, that had no motors and were able to be steered but relied solely on wind and their currents. Again, we found a few model engines, which were fun to examine close up. I also enjoyed that amount the midsts of all the planes and gliders, there was one section dedicated to a missile, which is indeed a flying craft of sorts. The caption said that it has since been used as a model for design of space rockets, and that was not sunrising. They looked identical.
From the sky we decided to head underground. We headed back towards the main entrance where the mining exhibit was located. This was interesting. Rather than an open exhibit that displayed the tools and the like, the exhibit was designed as a mine, where we walked through small passages to see scenes of what it was like to work there. The worsts part of this is that I always felt like I was going to hit my head, and were I any taller I think I would have...
Anyway, the exhibit itself was regally cool, and showed different kinds of machines, cranes, drills etc... all in their working environments. There were also sections that dealt with different mined minerals and their various sorting devices. (Mom... I thought of you at this point and those sorting experiments you'd bring to school) The exhibit then progressed to show more modern mining equipment. It was interesting... up until this exhibit, I had no memory of ever being here. However, about halfway through, there is a room, where the floor is a flat narrow path, but the scene is of a narrow, open slope, angling at about 45 degrees. At the bottom you could see a few workers. I walked into this room and my only thought was, "I've been here before..." So... yeah. I guess I've been there before and just didn't remember. It would not be the first time this trip.
We then had energy for 1 more exhibit, so we went to the robotics one, as it made me think of Rob. Unlike the last few things we saw, this was just a single small room. My favorite aspect was reading about how different types of robots were modeled after different living organisms. There were also a few robots on display that have formerly been on robotics soccer teams... always cool.
So, with that we headed back to Corinne's house, where the small remainder of the afternoon was quiet. Dinner was salad and rattitouie (spelling?). I have really been enjoying my dinners here. After dinner, Corinne, Elena, Bruno and I played an interesting dice game. You rolled 5 dice and could roll a selected number another 2 times. Then you had to score your roll in 1 of a few categories. Once every category had a score, the highest total won. It was fun, and we discovered that the older you are, the more you value low scores. Golf rules! I had also decided that it was long since time that Choupette (the cat of the house) and I should become friends. So, by the end of the evening this problem was rectified. Hurray for kitties!
With that, the evening pretty much came to a close. A movie was put on, which I sort of followed, and only sort of payed attention to. I also spent time trying to figure out my last few days of plans (at least in terms of what cities I'd be in. I think I know at this point, but I'll need to tie up a few loose ends in the next few days... but, that will be for then...
Morning aside, today was my day with Bruno. Just before 11, we headed to the train station, same as yesterday. Same line, though this time one stop father. This took us just past Marienplatz, and to the train stop closest to the Deutsch's Museum. From the train station the museum was only a few minutes walk away, and an easy one at that. From the outside, you might not notice it, apart from the signs pointing towards it, but the building itself just seems to blend in.
That said, the museum is HUGE! Its like 5 large floors and absolutely packed with stuff. I only saw a few exhibits and felt exhausted by the end. So, that said, Bruno and I bought tickets, checked in our coats, and I followed his lead at first.
First we went to the room, front and center, is known as the Shipping and Marine Navigation exhibition. This room was full of ships, ships everywhere. We first went downstairs, where the exhibit was mostly about the mechanics of ships. So we looked at a series of different motors and propellers. When I could, I tried to explain the differences between different engines, though sometimes needed a few words translated.
We then went up the the main floor, which was focused less on the mechanics of the ships, and more so on the different types of ships and boats that exist. So, we saw different kinds of canoes, kayaks and rowboats, and how they have become better through the years. The same is true for sailboats, but I thought some of their older versions looked really cool, while the old kayaks just looked...impractical. Then there were some models (no room for the real thing) of submarines and cruise/freight ships. No military vessels though, which I think could have been fun to compare through the years.
From there we headed a bit further in to the aeronautics exhibit. Again, the exhibit rose a few floors of the museum. I would have expected it to be more about the development of flight, but it seemed more focused on different varieties of flying ships through the years. My favorites to see were the gliders, that had no motors and were able to be steered but relied solely on wind and their currents. Again, we found a few model engines, which were fun to examine close up. I also enjoyed that amount the midsts of all the planes and gliders, there was one section dedicated to a missile, which is indeed a flying craft of sorts. The caption said that it has since been used as a model for design of space rockets, and that was not sunrising. They looked identical.
From the sky we decided to head underground. We headed back towards the main entrance where the mining exhibit was located. This was interesting. Rather than an open exhibit that displayed the tools and the like, the exhibit was designed as a mine, where we walked through small passages to see scenes of what it was like to work there. The worsts part of this is that I always felt like I was going to hit my head, and were I any taller I think I would have...
Anyway, the exhibit itself was regally cool, and showed different kinds of machines, cranes, drills etc... all in their working environments. There were also sections that dealt with different mined minerals and their various sorting devices. (Mom... I thought of you at this point and those sorting experiments you'd bring to school) The exhibit then progressed to show more modern mining equipment. It was interesting... up until this exhibit, I had no memory of ever being here. However, about halfway through, there is a room, where the floor is a flat narrow path, but the scene is of a narrow, open slope, angling at about 45 degrees. At the bottom you could see a few workers. I walked into this room and my only thought was, "I've been here before..." So... yeah. I guess I've been there before and just didn't remember. It would not be the first time this trip.
We then had energy for 1 more exhibit, so we went to the robotics one, as it made me think of Rob. Unlike the last few things we saw, this was just a single small room. My favorite aspect was reading about how different types of robots were modeled after different living organisms. There were also a few robots on display that have formerly been on robotics soccer teams... always cool.
So, with that we headed back to Corinne's house, where the small remainder of the afternoon was quiet. Dinner was salad and rattitouie (spelling?). I have really been enjoying my dinners here. After dinner, Corinne, Elena, Bruno and I played an interesting dice game. You rolled 5 dice and could roll a selected number another 2 times. Then you had to score your roll in 1 of a few categories. Once every category had a score, the highest total won. It was fun, and we discovered that the older you are, the more you value low scores. Golf rules! I had also decided that it was long since time that Choupette (the cat of the house) and I should become friends. So, by the end of the evening this problem was rectified. Hurray for kitties!
With that, the evening pretty much came to a close. A movie was put on, which I sort of followed, and only sort of payed attention to. I also spent time trying to figure out my last few days of plans (at least in terms of what cities I'd be in. I think I know at this point, but I'll need to tie up a few loose ends in the next few days... but, that will be for then...
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Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Good Food, Good Beer, a Sky was Clear
And so began day 1 in Munich. I got up and met Corinne downstairs. She gave me complete rule of the kitchen to make my breakfast, which was nice... I made some toast with a dark bread full of seeds and the like, on which I spread some Brie-like french cheese. Onto of that I made a few fried eggs. I will say, the type of cheese used has an enormous impact on the flavor of these breakfast munchies.
So, the next bit of morning was sort of splotchy. I was originally working on reading my way through a guidebook, but every time I began to get into it, I found myself drawn into conversation with a member of the household. Usually, the conversation included what I should do/see while I'm here. So, it all worked towards the same general goal, but it was very jumbled. That said, by the end of the morning I think I had a pretty decent plan.
That said, around 12:30, Victor, Elena and I all headed to the train station to ride into the heart of the city. In this case, I refer to the heart of the city as Marienplatz. We walked out of the train station and as I emerged from underground I was greeted by the sun, and the tall clock tower of one of the old town hall. We took a few minutes for me to gather my bearings. From where we stood we had a great view of the new city town hall, a few churches, and the pillar of St. Mary (whom the square is named after).
Before seeing any of these sites though, we cut straight to the important things. (I bet my brother guesses this without me saying) So we wound our way through some of the alleys around the square to Hofbrähaus. Yes... the brewery (one of the 6 biggest in Munich) and in this case... indoor beer garden. We walked inside and were greater by a room full of large wooden tables and benches, a live band of woodwind instruments, and the employees dressed in traditional (?) German attire. So we took a seat and discovered that there were menus in german and Russian... we all thought that strange.
Anyway, Victor and Elena translated a few things for me, and the Schweinhaxen and Knödel were described as a good traditional Bavarian meal. So, Victor and I each ordered that (and a beer of course) and Elena got a type of pancake-like powdered sugar things. It looked good but I did not try it. As for my meal... it was awesome and just what I wanted. The beer came in that oh so memorable 1.5 liter stein. Meanwhile, the Schweinhaxen was basically a large slab of meat from a pig and the Knödel was some type of sticky potato ball. It was all served with a bit of gravy and was so good!
After lunch we walked through some of the back shopping streets and returned to the main square. Here we went first to St. Peter's Church (Alter Peter?) which is the tallest building in the square. From the top of the tower we could see all across Germany. So, Victor and Elena pointed out what they could. That included the sight of the former Olympics, far on the edge of the city, a nice view down into Marienplatz, and where the Alps should be. Despite having clear skies, we could still not quite see the mountains. So, from there we spent a good amount of time looking down into the square, where we looked at the pillar from above and the old town hall. We spent the most time looking at the new town hall and the Glockenspiel, the clock tower of said town hall. Sadly, we never got to see it in action, but from above the view allowed us to see many of the figures that decorate and move when the clock does chime.
After out time on the tower we continued through the square to Frauenkirche, or the Lady's Church I believe. When we went in we could sadly not do anything. While my details are a hit hazy, the translation I received is that a high ranking church dude was about to give a talk/sermon. So, Victor told me the legend about the devil I think, stamping a footprint into the floor in anger of its beauty. So, outside the church is always windy because the devil is running around it. I feel not so confident on the accuracy of that report... but that's ok.
So we left Marienplatz then and walked a little ways to Odeonsplatz. Here (and with 2 of Victor's friends that we'd met a bit earlier) we sat outside for a bit of a snack and just relaxed. On the walk, and while here I began to notice that there were tons of people sitting and playing the accordion. So many people. I thought of my dear friend Kenny (I hope you're reading this Kenny!). Anyway, as the sun got lower, the air got cooler and we decided it was time to be off.
So, we headed back by train. While on the train I discovered I was far more fatigued then I realized. But, that was ok. We then each hung around the house a bit before dinner of spaghetti and another awesome salad. I need to completely rework my views on salads. They've been so good! And, after dinner, Victor, Elena, Bruno and myself all watched a movie and called it a night.
So, the next bit of morning was sort of splotchy. I was originally working on reading my way through a guidebook, but every time I began to get into it, I found myself drawn into conversation with a member of the household. Usually, the conversation included what I should do/see while I'm here. So, it all worked towards the same general goal, but it was very jumbled. That said, by the end of the morning I think I had a pretty decent plan.
That said, around 12:30, Victor, Elena and I all headed to the train station to ride into the heart of the city. In this case, I refer to the heart of the city as Marienplatz. We walked out of the train station and as I emerged from underground I was greeted by the sun, and the tall clock tower of one of the old town hall. We took a few minutes for me to gather my bearings. From where we stood we had a great view of the new city town hall, a few churches, and the pillar of St. Mary (whom the square is named after).
Before seeing any of these sites though, we cut straight to the important things. (I bet my brother guesses this without me saying) So we wound our way through some of the alleys around the square to Hofbrähaus. Yes... the brewery (one of the 6 biggest in Munich) and in this case... indoor beer garden. We walked inside and were greater by a room full of large wooden tables and benches, a live band of woodwind instruments, and the employees dressed in traditional (?) German attire. So we took a seat and discovered that there were menus in german and Russian... we all thought that strange.
Anyway, Victor and Elena translated a few things for me, and the Schweinhaxen and Knödel were described as a good traditional Bavarian meal. So, Victor and I each ordered that (and a beer of course) and Elena got a type of pancake-like powdered sugar things. It looked good but I did not try it. As for my meal... it was awesome and just what I wanted. The beer came in that oh so memorable 1.5 liter stein. Meanwhile, the Schweinhaxen was basically a large slab of meat from a pig and the Knödel was some type of sticky potato ball. It was all served with a bit of gravy and was so good!
After lunch we walked through some of the back shopping streets and returned to the main square. Here we went first to St. Peter's Church (Alter Peter?) which is the tallest building in the square. From the top of the tower we could see all across Germany. So, Victor and Elena pointed out what they could. That included the sight of the former Olympics, far on the edge of the city, a nice view down into Marienplatz, and where the Alps should be. Despite having clear skies, we could still not quite see the mountains. So, from there we spent a good amount of time looking down into the square, where we looked at the pillar from above and the old town hall. We spent the most time looking at the new town hall and the Glockenspiel, the clock tower of said town hall. Sadly, we never got to see it in action, but from above the view allowed us to see many of the figures that decorate and move when the clock does chime.
After out time on the tower we continued through the square to Frauenkirche, or the Lady's Church I believe. When we went in we could sadly not do anything. While my details are a hit hazy, the translation I received is that a high ranking church dude was about to give a talk/sermon. So, Victor told me the legend about the devil I think, stamping a footprint into the floor in anger of its beauty. So, outside the church is always windy because the devil is running around it. I feel not so confident on the accuracy of that report... but that's ok.
So we left Marienplatz then and walked a little ways to Odeonsplatz. Here (and with 2 of Victor's friends that we'd met a bit earlier) we sat outside for a bit of a snack and just relaxed. On the walk, and while here I began to notice that there were tons of people sitting and playing the accordion. So many people. I thought of my dear friend Kenny (I hope you're reading this Kenny!). Anyway, as the sun got lower, the air got cooler and we decided it was time to be off.
So, we headed back by train. While on the train I discovered I was far more fatigued then I realized. But, that was ok. We then each hung around the house a bit before dinner of spaghetti and another awesome salad. I need to completely rework my views on salads. They've been so good! And, after dinner, Victor, Elena, Bruno and myself all watched a movie and called it a night.
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Bonus Issue: London Calling
Should you find yourself with the urge to visit London (or the greater England area), I will do what I can to provide tips. I did not ever have to do much in terms of researching lodgings. Courtesy of my grandparents I was able to stay in the Flat of some family friends. That said, while at the flat I decided that its location could not be better. When looking into where to stay in London, I would say that the most important thing is to be near the subway (locally called the Underground or the Tube).
That said, the London Underground is terrific. Tickets are priced by the following 2 options: 1) Is it one way or a day travel pass and 2) how many of the zones will you be traveling in. I will dress these separately.
In my experience, it was almost always worth it to buy the day pass. I found that it was very easy to use the subway more than once in a given day, and the day pass allowed much more freedom in the ability to do so. That said, 1 day pass is less expensive than 2 one way tickets, so I think the day pass is almost always worth it.
As for zone travel, simply be aware of the system. Any of the subway maps are labeled, but in total there are 6 (I believe) zones. Aside from travel to London Heathrow Airport, Everything I saw was withing Zone 1. The only exception was my trip to the Fan Museum, but the day pass for zone 1 was the same price as the pass for zones 1 and 2. Moral being... day travel passes are good.
As for seeing London... Sometimes I try to avoid the stereotypical tourist locations. However, I visit them in London and found them quite satisfying. Westminster is stunningly beautiful, and if you visit St. Paul's Cathedral it is definitely worth going to the top (if you can) if the weather is clear. That said, they warn about lots of steps and narrow spaces, and the warnings are valid, so do keep them in mind. Other than that the Globe Theatre, London Tower, and Tower Bridge are all fun to see too. Many of the sites can be walked to from one another by following the Thames. The walk along the river is very nice, but it is worth being aware that there are some random patches where the path ceases. But, you can usually head up the road, around a building, and immediately return to the water.
Other than that, be prepared for the weather. Rumor has it that England has beautiful springs, and perhaps I was just a bit too early in the season... but, its always good to be prepared for rain... no matter where you go.
As for Oxford... My number 1 tip is to have yourself an Emily. That way you have a historical wavy guide, who loves to go around and show you stuff while also being able to help you plan and the like. But, some of this is to help prepare those who do not have such a contact.
That said, on a nice day, just walk through the city. Get a map in case, but don't look at it. For an hour or so, just wander the streets and let your eyes be your guide. If you like old architecture and castle-like buildings, you will have a lovely sunrise on every street and around every corner. That said, if it is a nice day do use the map to make sure you get to climb the University Church of St Mary the Virgin. It has some pretty great views of the entirety of Oxford and from there you can really appreciate just how many spiring towers there are in the city.
I realize that this is only a few comments on the few places I visit, but I can hardly speak for the locations that I did not myself see. Hope this is helpful!
That said, the London Underground is terrific. Tickets are priced by the following 2 options: 1) Is it one way or a day travel pass and 2) how many of the zones will you be traveling in. I will dress these separately.
In my experience, it was almost always worth it to buy the day pass. I found that it was very easy to use the subway more than once in a given day, and the day pass allowed much more freedom in the ability to do so. That said, 1 day pass is less expensive than 2 one way tickets, so I think the day pass is almost always worth it.
As for zone travel, simply be aware of the system. Any of the subway maps are labeled, but in total there are 6 (I believe) zones. Aside from travel to London Heathrow Airport, Everything I saw was withing Zone 1. The only exception was my trip to the Fan Museum, but the day pass for zone 1 was the same price as the pass for zones 1 and 2. Moral being... day travel passes are good.
As for seeing London... Sometimes I try to avoid the stereotypical tourist locations. However, I visit them in London and found them quite satisfying. Westminster is stunningly beautiful, and if you visit St. Paul's Cathedral it is definitely worth going to the top (if you can) if the weather is clear. That said, they warn about lots of steps and narrow spaces, and the warnings are valid, so do keep them in mind. Other than that the Globe Theatre, London Tower, and Tower Bridge are all fun to see too. Many of the sites can be walked to from one another by following the Thames. The walk along the river is very nice, but it is worth being aware that there are some random patches where the path ceases. But, you can usually head up the road, around a building, and immediately return to the water.
Other than that, be prepared for the weather. Rumor has it that England has beautiful springs, and perhaps I was just a bit too early in the season... but, its always good to be prepared for rain... no matter where you go.
As for Oxford... My number 1 tip is to have yourself an Emily. That way you have a historical wavy guide, who loves to go around and show you stuff while also being able to help you plan and the like. But, some of this is to help prepare those who do not have such a contact.
That said, on a nice day, just walk through the city. Get a map in case, but don't look at it. For an hour or so, just wander the streets and let your eyes be your guide. If you like old architecture and castle-like buildings, you will have a lovely sunrise on every street and around every corner. That said, if it is a nice day do use the map to make sure you get to climb the University Church of St Mary the Virgin. It has some pretty great views of the entirety of Oxford and from there you can really appreciate just how many spiring towers there are in the city.
I realize that this is only a few comments on the few places I visit, but I can hardly speak for the locations that I did not myself see. Hope this is helpful!
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Tuesday, March 8, 2011
To the Mainland
Well the morning started off better than I thought it would. After staying up to an hour that is likely far later than I should of, I managed to still wake bright and early. It was however, pretty convenient this time. I had a chance to have a fairly relaxed breakfast with coffee, repack and check out.
All said and done I actually arrived at the train station to catch the 9:30 train instead of the 10. The train ride was uneventful, a single train, returning from Oxford to Paddington station in London. There, I transfered to the Underground and took the tube a few stops to my terminal at London Heathrow.
Unlike some other trips through airports I've had on my journeys, this was remarkably painless. I pretty much walked to the counter, loaded my bag and was handed my boarding pass. With very little queuing, I proceeded through security without hassle. At this point I had about and hour and a half before my gate was announced and 10 pounds to spend. So, I wandered from store to store to se my options. I opted for a coffee, hot wrap, and a set of double A batteries, since I'm on my last 2. After that I was down to 42 pence, and decided that was satisfactory.
By the time I was done wandering and eating, my gate had been announced and I went to sit there to wait for boarding to start. There, a woman approached me, working for the airport, and requested if she could ask me a few questions. I obliged and she proceeded to inquire about my experiences in London Heathrow Airport over the last 24 hours. The question were all very simple and were I think designed to survey what people like or want improved in the terminal. I thought it was very painless and if acted on, good research to do.
With all interviews out of the way, I boarded my flight. Once seated I basically passed out. I stayed awake through takeoff, and just long enough for a drink and snack. I had coffee and chocolate cookies. They did little good though as I then promptly fell asleep. I awoke again as landing was announced. The landing itself was likely the smoothest I'd ever experienced, as (while awake) did not notice when we made contact with the ground.
Post landing, the trip through security and baggage claim was uneventful. Once through, I walked through the door and quickly found a woman with a sign, "Tom Brown". With that I walked over and met once more with Corinne. We got to her car and left the airport for her house. (Parents... should you think of answers to any unknowns I may mention... feel free to enlighten) We talked a bit, and tried to remember what year I was here last, as neither of us recognized each other. But, we enjoyed talking about the visits to the beer gardens that we did both remember.
We arrived about 30 minutes (maybe) later at her house. Inside, I was greater by Albert (Corinne's husband), Elena (daughter) and Victor (older son). It was a warm welcome, and while I didn't remember Elena or Victor, and Alfred only vaguely, conversation started up quite quickly. Elena showed me where to put my things and we went back downstairs for dinner.
Dinner was not what I normally think of as dinner. That said, it was really good and not something I would have thought of, but plan to make sometime myself. There was a salad, with lettuce, feta cheese, tuna and french dressing. To go with it was some bread, cheese and thin bacon(?) slices. I thought it was a great dinner were they in season, tomatoes would be a perfect addition to the salad.
Unfortunately, Alfred and the three kids (Bruno had arrived) were headed out to a concert. So, Corinne and I Stayed and chatted for quite a while. We talked a bit about travel and life, and had some wine with our cheese. After a bit Corinne got some pastries out, which seemed reminiscent of very fancy doughnuts, and they tasted like really fancy doughnuts. Along with these, she found a scrapbook of her year in the US.
The scrapbook was gold! I saw pictures of our old house with the basement set up for parties, as well as the back porch under construction. Pictures of both Samantha and Geraldine, who I always like pictures of. I saw photos of Aunt Colleen and Uncle Steve's wedding. I saw a picture of Aunt Colleen with hair longer than I'd ever seen and that was a bit of a sunrise. I also saw some of the single most hilarious photos of my dear brother Rob.
After photos, wine and dessert, we cleaned up the dining room and the kitchen. Corinne gave me a tour of the house and found a guidebook I could use to look up various facts and sites about Munich. That lead to a bit of quiet remnants of the evening, and then a long awaited time in bed.
All said and done I actually arrived at the train station to catch the 9:30 train instead of the 10. The train ride was uneventful, a single train, returning from Oxford to Paddington station in London. There, I transfered to the Underground and took the tube a few stops to my terminal at London Heathrow.
Unlike some other trips through airports I've had on my journeys, this was remarkably painless. I pretty much walked to the counter, loaded my bag and was handed my boarding pass. With very little queuing, I proceeded through security without hassle. At this point I had about and hour and a half before my gate was announced and 10 pounds to spend. So, I wandered from store to store to se my options. I opted for a coffee, hot wrap, and a set of double A batteries, since I'm on my last 2. After that I was down to 42 pence, and decided that was satisfactory.
By the time I was done wandering and eating, my gate had been announced and I went to sit there to wait for boarding to start. There, a woman approached me, working for the airport, and requested if she could ask me a few questions. I obliged and she proceeded to inquire about my experiences in London Heathrow Airport over the last 24 hours. The question were all very simple and were I think designed to survey what people like or want improved in the terminal. I thought it was very painless and if acted on, good research to do.
With all interviews out of the way, I boarded my flight. Once seated I basically passed out. I stayed awake through takeoff, and just long enough for a drink and snack. I had coffee and chocolate cookies. They did little good though as I then promptly fell asleep. I awoke again as landing was announced. The landing itself was likely the smoothest I'd ever experienced, as (while awake) did not notice when we made contact with the ground.
Post landing, the trip through security and baggage claim was uneventful. Once through, I walked through the door and quickly found a woman with a sign, "Tom Brown". With that I walked over and met once more with Corinne. We got to her car and left the airport for her house. (Parents... should you think of answers to any unknowns I may mention... feel free to enlighten) We talked a bit, and tried to remember what year I was here last, as neither of us recognized each other. But, we enjoyed talking about the visits to the beer gardens that we did both remember.
We arrived about 30 minutes (maybe) later at her house. Inside, I was greater by Albert (Corinne's husband), Elena (daughter) and Victor (older son). It was a warm welcome, and while I didn't remember Elena or Victor, and Alfred only vaguely, conversation started up quite quickly. Elena showed me where to put my things and we went back downstairs for dinner.
Dinner was not what I normally think of as dinner. That said, it was really good and not something I would have thought of, but plan to make sometime myself. There was a salad, with lettuce, feta cheese, tuna and french dressing. To go with it was some bread, cheese and thin bacon(?) slices. I thought it was a great dinner were they in season, tomatoes would be a perfect addition to the salad.
Unfortunately, Alfred and the three kids (Bruno had arrived) were headed out to a concert. So, Corinne and I Stayed and chatted for quite a while. We talked a bit about travel and life, and had some wine with our cheese. After a bit Corinne got some pastries out, which seemed reminiscent of very fancy doughnuts, and they tasted like really fancy doughnuts. Along with these, she found a scrapbook of her year in the US.
The scrapbook was gold! I saw pictures of our old house with the basement set up for parties, as well as the back porch under construction. Pictures of both Samantha and Geraldine, who I always like pictures of. I saw photos of Aunt Colleen and Uncle Steve's wedding. I saw a picture of Aunt Colleen with hair longer than I'd ever seen and that was a bit of a sunrise. I also saw some of the single most hilarious photos of my dear brother Rob.
After photos, wine and dessert, we cleaned up the dining room and the kitchen. Corinne gave me a tour of the house and found a guidebook I could use to look up various facts and sites about Munich. That lead to a bit of quiet remnants of the evening, and then a long awaited time in bed.
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At first there was Strawhenge and Woodhenge...
And I do credit Eddie Izzard for that reference, but I've had it stuck in my head all day.
Anywho... An early start to the day. I actually got up later than I wanted for the first time in quite a while... how inconvenient. That said, it was no big issue. I got up, dressed and took the quick hop over to the train station. There I purchased a return ticket to Salisbury and still had time to pick up some breakfast. So, I grabbed a coffee and an onion and cheese pastry. I believe it also had potato in it and it was much like a breakfast minced meat pie.
So, with food in hand I boarded my train and headed to Salisbury. About an hour, and 1 transfer later, I arrived.
I feel now will be an appropriate time to mention some luck and appreciation. I have jokingly complained about the english weather nearly every day. Yet, my day out to see outdoor sites is relatively warm and blue skies, without a cloud to be seen.
Anyway, from the train station I took a turn to head towards the information center, Before reaching it I found my goal though. There was a double-decker site-seeing bus that I was looking for. Outside the bus they were selling tickets, that included round trip bus fair to Stonehenge and Old Sarum, as well as admission to both. I bought my ticket and boarded the bus.
We headed north on the bus out of Salisbury, with an audio recording as a guide to point out notable features along the way. One of my favorite comments in route was when being told about the military encampments on the plains. Apparently, the town of Salisbury was never bombed in WWII. Turns out bombers were on strict orders to avoid it as the spire was used for navigation, and bombers would fly to Salisbury and then follow roads to targets of interest. We also passed Old Serum, which we will return to later, and sadly the pictures from the road are a bit underwhelming. But, about 30 minutes later, we arrived at Stonehenge.
There I stood, as many have before, and many more still will, in the midst of the Salisbury Plain. The sun was shining with not a cloud in the sky, and the air was crisp and cool. It is very much the 'mystical' place its made out to be. You look in every direction and see gently rolling green hills. There are small ancient burial grounds littleing the hills in every direction. And, being the morning, as you look towards the sun you see it shining down over these huge rock structures, when there is nothing else standing for miles. Its a pretty good scene.
With the tour ticked I'd purchased earlier I was able to just head in through the entrance and collect an audio guide. The route from there took a short tunnel under the road, and up a ramp too where the stones stood. The tunnel and ramp were painted in an manner to estimate the ancient landscape, show workers hauling these multi-ton stones, and show a view of what Stonehenge may have looked like when it was complete. The path the continued to, and looped around Stonehenge itself.
Now, among other things I learned was the fact that this is in fact the 3rd henge. The others to stand here were neigh stone nor completed nor of the same design. But, being the 3rd and final henge makes Eddie Izzard's joke about it all the more entertaining. Walking around the stones the path followed the ditch that looped them, dug at the time with animal bones as picks and shovels. Being close to the stones simply makes them all the more impressive. Standing nearly 3 meters tall, and with another stone crossing them, it is impossible to not wonder how it was done. Though, I also enjoyed learning that they were assembled with the aid of a type of tongue and groove, or ball and socket joint. All in all, regardless of what I learned or what is yet still a mystery, Stonehenge is really, really, cool.
After leaving the stones I returned to the bus, or rather another bus that took me to Old Sarum. Now, from the road Old Serum is quite unremarkable. It stands as a mound, which is clearly very large and steep for a hill over the plains around it. That said, the close I got, the cooler it got. The route I took led me up a slope until I reached a steep decline into a 'moat' followed by a very steep climb returning up even higher. The ridge I was on was a path that looped around the entirety of this inner hill. But, on the far side there was a small path that led up onto the top. Before continuing, one interesting fact is that the whole path was this white, quasi-muddy goop. I inquired later and learned that is was chalk. Apparently the entire hillside could be seen for miles due to its white color.
When atop of the mound there were 2 first things to notice. First, the view was amazing! Partly because I was so high and partly because everything else was relatively flat. The second thing to notice was that there was another even taller mount atop where we were. That is where the ruins of the castle of Old Sarum are. But, in the meantime I had an entire mound level to explore. Aside from the views there weren't many things to see. The list was comprised of 1 thing in particular. That is, the ruins of the Cathedral of Old Sarum. It looks a bit like a giant stamp inprinted the ground where the cathedral used to stand. There were a few remnants of walls, and many of the gravel/stone walking areas could still be seen in the grass. Many of these paths still exist, though the pavings have worn down substantially. It was very cool to see the literal outline of the cathedral in the ground while nothing else was present there.
From the cathedral ruins I climbed to the upper mound, which also had an odd moat-like ditch. There were the remains of the Old Sarum Castle. This was really cool because enough of the stonework was still present to incision what stood where. There were towers and gates, a chapel, a well in the courtyard. Some of the less identifiable features included the toilets and the like. But you could walk among the ruins and touch all the stones. It was a lot of fun. I thought the walls and stonework themselves were interesting and I wonder if its related to the chalky area. But, the mortal seemed normal, but many the stones seemed abnormally smooth. Secondly, there was one confer I found with a stone that had been engraved with the date, "1910". Why? I've no idea... The castle also provided even better views than before and a great overhead view of the cathedral's layout.
After Old Sarum I returned to the bus station to grab the bus back into the city center. From there I followed the massive spire that rose above all the little rooftops. This quickly led me through the cute town of Salisbury to the foot of the Salisbury Cathedral. I will say that the cathedrals I've seen have improved how I considered them. This one too uniquely beautiful. The first and primary reason I noticed was its visibility. So many cathedrals are in the midsts of cities, with buildings on all sides. It makes it difficult to get full views. Here, the church stood alone inside a giant walled in yard. That way, one could always stand far enough away to have an unobstructed view of the entirety of the cathedral. The second thing I noticed as I got closer was the carvings on the outside of the cathedral. Climbing to the tops of the short spires above doors, and the buildings corners, and spanning across the tops of arches above doors were ornate carvings of people. They were everywhere on the building. The sheer number of carvings were impressive, even not accounting for how well they were done.
Inside, I felt it slightly less unique. I did however greatly enjoy the cloister. Perhaps it was a result of being brightly lit from the sun, but I thought this cloister, and the yard it surrounded was absolutely stunning. One corner was tucked in under the cathedral's massive tower, while the tower was a wonderful view from everywhere else. I thought the arches that framed the windows between the yard and cloister were ornate enough to be beautiful, but simple enough to not stand out. I think the combination made the grassy square all the more appealing.
After the Salisbury Cathedral I returned to the train station, where I headed back to Oxford. on the return I added an extra train hop to save some time. So, 2 stops and another 2 hours later I was back in Oxford. The next hour or two were pretty simple. Shower and rest a bit, just take a load off. Then, I headed to Jesus College to meet her and have dinner.
For dinner we met up with Jenny, Rob, and Teresa again. It was a fun group for dinner. The food was yet again delicious. We started with a roll and potato-leak soup. The main course then was a flank of duck over lentils and ... something reminiscent of a leak... That was followed by dessert of a chocolate tort of a sort with cherries. For some reason we decided that was not yet enough, so we headed up to D&G's for some local Oxford ice cream. It was really good. I had 1 scoop of chocolate with 1 scoop of Baileys (made with its namesake). By far the best ice cream I have had in a few months.
After ice cream I bid farewell to Em's friends and went with her back to her place. There, we sent some emails, looked at some pictures, backed up some pictures on her computer... good stuff like that. Eventually we had tea and some snacks, followed by chatting... which was awesome. We chatted for a very long time and eventually, as we were both seemingly on the verge of passing out, bid each other farewell. A sad moment indeed as I know nobody who I can banter with quite so well. But, it was sadly time for bed, and to call it a night.
Anywho... An early start to the day. I actually got up later than I wanted for the first time in quite a while... how inconvenient. That said, it was no big issue. I got up, dressed and took the quick hop over to the train station. There I purchased a return ticket to Salisbury and still had time to pick up some breakfast. So, I grabbed a coffee and an onion and cheese pastry. I believe it also had potato in it and it was much like a breakfast minced meat pie.
So, with food in hand I boarded my train and headed to Salisbury. About an hour, and 1 transfer later, I arrived.
I feel now will be an appropriate time to mention some luck and appreciation. I have jokingly complained about the english weather nearly every day. Yet, my day out to see outdoor sites is relatively warm and blue skies, without a cloud to be seen.
Anyway, from the train station I took a turn to head towards the information center, Before reaching it I found my goal though. There was a double-decker site-seeing bus that I was looking for. Outside the bus they were selling tickets, that included round trip bus fair to Stonehenge and Old Sarum, as well as admission to both. I bought my ticket and boarded the bus.
We headed north on the bus out of Salisbury, with an audio recording as a guide to point out notable features along the way. One of my favorite comments in route was when being told about the military encampments on the plains. Apparently, the town of Salisbury was never bombed in WWII. Turns out bombers were on strict orders to avoid it as the spire was used for navigation, and bombers would fly to Salisbury and then follow roads to targets of interest. We also passed Old Serum, which we will return to later, and sadly the pictures from the road are a bit underwhelming. But, about 30 minutes later, we arrived at Stonehenge.
There I stood, as many have before, and many more still will, in the midst of the Salisbury Plain. The sun was shining with not a cloud in the sky, and the air was crisp and cool. It is very much the 'mystical' place its made out to be. You look in every direction and see gently rolling green hills. There are small ancient burial grounds littleing the hills in every direction. And, being the morning, as you look towards the sun you see it shining down over these huge rock structures, when there is nothing else standing for miles. Its a pretty good scene.
With the tour ticked I'd purchased earlier I was able to just head in through the entrance and collect an audio guide. The route from there took a short tunnel under the road, and up a ramp too where the stones stood. The tunnel and ramp were painted in an manner to estimate the ancient landscape, show workers hauling these multi-ton stones, and show a view of what Stonehenge may have looked like when it was complete. The path the continued to, and looped around Stonehenge itself.
Now, among other things I learned was the fact that this is in fact the 3rd henge. The others to stand here were neigh stone nor completed nor of the same design. But, being the 3rd and final henge makes Eddie Izzard's joke about it all the more entertaining. Walking around the stones the path followed the ditch that looped them, dug at the time with animal bones as picks and shovels. Being close to the stones simply makes them all the more impressive. Standing nearly 3 meters tall, and with another stone crossing them, it is impossible to not wonder how it was done. Though, I also enjoyed learning that they were assembled with the aid of a type of tongue and groove, or ball and socket joint. All in all, regardless of what I learned or what is yet still a mystery, Stonehenge is really, really, cool.
After leaving the stones I returned to the bus, or rather another bus that took me to Old Sarum. Now, from the road Old Serum is quite unremarkable. It stands as a mound, which is clearly very large and steep for a hill over the plains around it. That said, the close I got, the cooler it got. The route I took led me up a slope until I reached a steep decline into a 'moat' followed by a very steep climb returning up even higher. The ridge I was on was a path that looped around the entirety of this inner hill. But, on the far side there was a small path that led up onto the top. Before continuing, one interesting fact is that the whole path was this white, quasi-muddy goop. I inquired later and learned that is was chalk. Apparently the entire hillside could be seen for miles due to its white color.
When atop of the mound there were 2 first things to notice. First, the view was amazing! Partly because I was so high and partly because everything else was relatively flat. The second thing to notice was that there was another even taller mount atop where we were. That is where the ruins of the castle of Old Sarum are. But, in the meantime I had an entire mound level to explore. Aside from the views there weren't many things to see. The list was comprised of 1 thing in particular. That is, the ruins of the Cathedral of Old Sarum. It looks a bit like a giant stamp inprinted the ground where the cathedral used to stand. There were a few remnants of walls, and many of the gravel/stone walking areas could still be seen in the grass. Many of these paths still exist, though the pavings have worn down substantially. It was very cool to see the literal outline of the cathedral in the ground while nothing else was present there.
From the cathedral ruins I climbed to the upper mound, which also had an odd moat-like ditch. There were the remains of the Old Sarum Castle. This was really cool because enough of the stonework was still present to incision what stood where. There were towers and gates, a chapel, a well in the courtyard. Some of the less identifiable features included the toilets and the like. But you could walk among the ruins and touch all the stones. It was a lot of fun. I thought the walls and stonework themselves were interesting and I wonder if its related to the chalky area. But, the mortal seemed normal, but many the stones seemed abnormally smooth. Secondly, there was one confer I found with a stone that had been engraved with the date, "1910". Why? I've no idea... The castle also provided even better views than before and a great overhead view of the cathedral's layout.
After Old Sarum I returned to the bus station to grab the bus back into the city center. From there I followed the massive spire that rose above all the little rooftops. This quickly led me through the cute town of Salisbury to the foot of the Salisbury Cathedral. I will say that the cathedrals I've seen have improved how I considered them. This one too uniquely beautiful. The first and primary reason I noticed was its visibility. So many cathedrals are in the midsts of cities, with buildings on all sides. It makes it difficult to get full views. Here, the church stood alone inside a giant walled in yard. That way, one could always stand far enough away to have an unobstructed view of the entirety of the cathedral. The second thing I noticed as I got closer was the carvings on the outside of the cathedral. Climbing to the tops of the short spires above doors, and the buildings corners, and spanning across the tops of arches above doors were ornate carvings of people. They were everywhere on the building. The sheer number of carvings were impressive, even not accounting for how well they were done.
Inside, I felt it slightly less unique. I did however greatly enjoy the cloister. Perhaps it was a result of being brightly lit from the sun, but I thought this cloister, and the yard it surrounded was absolutely stunning. One corner was tucked in under the cathedral's massive tower, while the tower was a wonderful view from everywhere else. I thought the arches that framed the windows between the yard and cloister were ornate enough to be beautiful, but simple enough to not stand out. I think the combination made the grassy square all the more appealing.
After the Salisbury Cathedral I returned to the train station, where I headed back to Oxford. on the return I added an extra train hop to save some time. So, 2 stops and another 2 hours later I was back in Oxford. The next hour or two were pretty simple. Shower and rest a bit, just take a load off. Then, I headed to Jesus College to meet her and have dinner.
For dinner we met up with Jenny, Rob, and Teresa again. It was a fun group for dinner. The food was yet again delicious. We started with a roll and potato-leak soup. The main course then was a flank of duck over lentils and ... something reminiscent of a leak... That was followed by dessert of a chocolate tort of a sort with cherries. For some reason we decided that was not yet enough, so we headed up to D&G's for some local Oxford ice cream. It was really good. I had 1 scoop of chocolate with 1 scoop of Baileys (made with its namesake). By far the best ice cream I have had in a few months.
After ice cream I bid farewell to Em's friends and went with her back to her place. There, we sent some emails, looked at some pictures, backed up some pictures on her computer... good stuff like that. Eventually we had tea and some snacks, followed by chatting... which was awesome. We chatted for a very long time and eventually, as we were both seemingly on the verge of passing out, bid each other farewell. A sad moment indeed as I know nobody who I can banter with quite so well. But, it was sadly time for bed, and to call it a night.
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