Saturday, July 5, 2008
Czech this out
I'll do a full post after I leave, but I just got back from walking around and took some awesome pics. Unfortunately my camera isn't that great, but I tried my best. The sunset was gorgeous. Prague is INCREDIBLE, it is officially my favorite city now. There, I said it.
Buda < Pest
I'm in Prague now, here's my entry for yesterday, written on the train this morning:
7/5/07 - 11:04AM - Wow, that was a quick stop, but still fun. As many of you know, Buda and Pest were, until the 19th century two different cities on opposite sides of the Danube. I stayed in Pest, just up the street from the really cool Parlaiment building:
It was kinda scary going to a country whose language I knew nothing about. With German, at least I knew the very basics, but I didn't even know 'thank you' in Hungarian. One thing I learned though was that not only do they say 'hello', they say it both upon greeting and leaving. Also, the 'S' is pronounced 'sh' but 'sz' is our normal s so Budapest is Budapesht. A lot of borrowed english words obviously need that sz, like busz and szex (I stayed near a seedy area).
Anyway, after getting settled, I headed out at 1 to accomplish an ambitious agenda in less than a day. I started by getting food and wanted something authentic. The hostel owner recommended a nearby restaurant that had goulash for about 6 bucks. Wow. I had my reservations about goulash, maybe because it sounds like goulags or ghouls, I don't know, but this was very delicious. It's basically a big bowl of soup with potatoes, meat, and some veggies, but it was soooo good. I highly recommend that Sarah, who enjoys making new/experimental stuff, try to find a traditional Hungarian goulash, I'd fly to Denver for a bowl.
I then walked to the main area of the city, explored, then took a bus to Statue Park. Again, as many of you know/remember, after the Soviets liberated Hungary from the Nazis, they didn't leave. Communist leaders were put into place and statues were erected (standard commy affaire). After communism fell, many of thesee statues were put in this park. It was very cool, certainly something that'd make any John Birch Society cardholder shiver. This statue previously stood on a hill over Budapest:
The whole design of the park was symbolic, too. The front gate was big and nice, but nothing was behind it really, pomp with no circumstance, much like communism. Here's another one (I'd do more but the internet is really slow here):
I really enjoyed the visit and although I had already learned communism doesn't work thanks to Sid Meier's Civiliation computer games, the thought was certainly reinforced by the exhibits of Statue Park.
Back in the city, I walked around again and got dinner at McDonald's and ate it by the river. I know, it's McDonald's but I'm trying to not spend so much. The fries were really good though. I was told later by a guide that when the first McDonald's opened after the fall of communism, people thought you needed a passport to get in, they didn't really know what it was.
At 8, I did a night tour, there were only 3 of us and the guide, so that was cool. We walked all around and then took a cruise on the Danube. The city is very modern, helped by the fact that most of it was destroyed by WWII or the 1956 revolution. They call it the Paris of the East, but I don't know if I'd go that far, but certainly the nicest formerly communist city I've ever been to. Here's a couple pics from the tour:
7/5/07 - 11:04AM - Wow, that was a quick stop, but still fun. As many of you know, Buda and Pest were, until the 19th century two different cities on opposite sides of the Danube. I stayed in Pest, just up the street from the really cool Parlaiment building:
It was kinda scary going to a country whose language I knew nothing about. With German, at least I knew the very basics, but I didn't even know 'thank you' in Hungarian. One thing I learned though was that not only do they say 'hello', they say it both upon greeting and leaving. Also, the 'S' is pronounced 'sh' but 'sz' is our normal s so Budapest is Budapesht. A lot of borrowed english words obviously need that sz, like busz and szex (I stayed near a seedy area).
Anyway, after getting settled, I headed out at 1 to accomplish an ambitious agenda in less than a day. I started by getting food and wanted something authentic. The hostel owner recommended a nearby restaurant that had goulash for about 6 bucks. Wow. I had my reservations about goulash, maybe because it sounds like goulags or ghouls, I don't know, but this was very delicious. It's basically a big bowl of soup with potatoes, meat, and some veggies, but it was soooo good. I highly recommend that Sarah, who enjoys making new/experimental stuff, try to find a traditional Hungarian goulash, I'd fly to Denver for a bowl.
I then walked to the main area of the city, explored, then took a bus to Statue Park. Again, as many of you know/remember, after the Soviets liberated Hungary from the Nazis, they didn't leave. Communist leaders were put into place and statues were erected (standard commy affaire). After communism fell, many of thesee statues were put in this park. It was very cool, certainly something that'd make any John Birch Society cardholder shiver. This statue previously stood on a hill over Budapest:
The whole design of the park was symbolic, too. The front gate was big and nice, but nothing was behind it really, pomp with no circumstance, much like communism. Here's another one (I'd do more but the internet is really slow here):
I really enjoyed the visit and although I had already learned communism doesn't work thanks to Sid Meier's Civiliation computer games, the thought was certainly reinforced by the exhibits of Statue Park.
Back in the city, I walked around again and got dinner at McDonald's and ate it by the river. I know, it's McDonald's but I'm trying to not spend so much. The fries were really good though. I was told later by a guide that when the first McDonald's opened after the fall of communism, people thought you needed a passport to get in, they didn't really know what it was.
At 8, I did a night tour, there were only 3 of us and the guide, so that was cool. We walked all around and then took a cruise on the Danube. The city is very modern, helped by the fact that most of it was destroyed by WWII or the 1956 revolution. They call it the Paris of the East, but I don't know if I'd go that far, but certainly the nicest formerly communist city I've ever been to. Here's a couple pics from the tour:
Friday, July 4, 2008
Vienna Vidi Vici
4:24pm 7/3/08- The trip from Salzburg to Vienna was uneventful but pleasant. My hostel is located very close to Westbahnhof (train station), which was really nice. I'm sharing a room and one bathroom with 7 people, including 3 girls, so it's interesting to say the least. I kinda like it though, and it's fun meeting people from all over as only one other person is American.
I set out on foot right away towards the Schonbrunn and explored. I walked around the side and came around this one corner to a beautiful view and a gust of wind hit me at the same time. No chorus of angels, but it was still pretty cool, I then took a picture:
I really liked the gardens:
I hiked up to the Gloriette and noticed they had tables out for a cafe. As my new thing is eating with cool views, I sat down and had a little cake and apple juice with this view:
When I walked down and out my feet were kinda hurting. I had been wearing flip flops for the past two days and it was taking its toll. I noticed a sort of bike rack vending machine nearby where you can rent bikes and they have locations all over where you can return them. The bikes just lock into these stalls and you use your credit card to get them out. They're free for the first hour, 1 euro for the 2nd, and 2 euros for each subsequent hour. So i got one and just started riding. I had no idea where i was going but rode the cruiser in my plaid shorts and t-shirt like some beach bum. The Viennese hadn't seen an Ostler on a bicycle in over 30 years.
Before I knew it, I was riding alongside a student demonstration with police escort. I sped ahead where they were clearing the streets of traffic and had the roads to myself. I figured I'd just play the dumb tourist but at least have plenty of room to mosey. All of a sudden I came upon the main cathedral of Vienna, Stephansdom:
-PICTURE REMOVED-
For some reason I forgot to take a picture of the church, so this one is borrowed, nice Jeff.
I continued on to the Danube, went down a ways and found a station to lock up the bike. I ended up using it for 55 minutes, so it was free. I walked around the inner city and did some people watching.
Today I did the self-guided tour that Dad outlined. I started at the Belvedere Palace:
Then continued to some other sites, stopping by Stadtpark, where Dad had spent a lot of time as a missionary. I tried to think of what unfinished business my Dad would have me do in an area where he had worked so hard and diligently. I thought for a moment and realized it is something all missionaries would want, a nap. So I found a park bench and snoozed for about an hour in the warm sun. Then I went to the old city again, got lunch and continued exploring.
9:35 AM 7/4/08- I'm somewhere in western Magyarorszag, the anglicized version obviously being Hungary. After my entry yesterday I went to call the tour I'll be going on tonight in Budapest. You're supposed to call 24 hours in advance to confirm, which is retarded since the tour is nonrefundable anyway. So, I had to buy a stupid phone card just for that purpose and went to a pay phone. I called and said that I'd like to confirm, to which the lady said, "ok, you're confirmed." Puzzled, I responded, "um do you know who I am? As in who is confirming?" She says, "Oh, right, what is your name?" Yikes.
I headed back to the hostel to see the plans of some people I met and we were talking for about 20 minutes when I realized I couldn't find my wallet. For some reason, I can remember the most obscure dates and other trivial things, but the whereabouts of my belongings always seem to be my Achilles heel. I couldn't find it in the room and realized I must have left it at the pay phone. I ran to the pay phone, and as you have probably anticipated by the lack of curse words in this post, it was still there. This wasn't a pay phone on some small street either, this was Mariahilfstrasse, one of the busiest streets in Vienna. But sure enough, the good people of Vienna let my wallet be, so thank you Wieners, you will not be forgotten.
So, back on track, I headed back to the old city and went to dinner at the Griechenbeisl, which Mom and Dad recommended, as it dates back several hundred years and hosted the likes of Beethoven, Wagner, and Strauss, to name a few. The food was very good, and once again I imagined a conversation with the past patrons, perhaps getting Wagner's thoughts on the use of his music in Bugs Bunny cartoons.
Afterwards, I walked to the Hofbrau and surrounding areas, here are a couple pics:
All in all, a great city, although I know I missed a lot of things. I just got really tired after the first day there and need to start pacing myself or else I'll have no energy to run with the bulls in Pamplona, rollerblade in Paris, or barter with the ladies of the night in Amsterdam.
I set out on foot right away towards the Schonbrunn and explored. I walked around the side and came around this one corner to a beautiful view and a gust of wind hit me at the same time. No chorus of angels, but it was still pretty cool, I then took a picture:
I really liked the gardens:
I hiked up to the Gloriette and noticed they had tables out for a cafe. As my new thing is eating with cool views, I sat down and had a little cake and apple juice with this view:
When I walked down and out my feet were kinda hurting. I had been wearing flip flops for the past two days and it was taking its toll. I noticed a sort of bike rack vending machine nearby where you can rent bikes and they have locations all over where you can return them. The bikes just lock into these stalls and you use your credit card to get them out. They're free for the first hour, 1 euro for the 2nd, and 2 euros for each subsequent hour. So i got one and just started riding. I had no idea where i was going but rode the cruiser in my plaid shorts and t-shirt like some beach bum. The Viennese hadn't seen an Ostler on a bicycle in over 30 years.
Before I knew it, I was riding alongside a student demonstration with police escort. I sped ahead where they were clearing the streets of traffic and had the roads to myself. I figured I'd just play the dumb tourist but at least have plenty of room to mosey. All of a sudden I came upon the main cathedral of Vienna, Stephansdom:
-PICTURE REMOVED-
For some reason I forgot to take a picture of the church, so this one is borrowed, nice Jeff.
I continued on to the Danube, went down a ways and found a station to lock up the bike. I ended up using it for 55 minutes, so it was free. I walked around the inner city and did some people watching.
Today I did the self-guided tour that Dad outlined. I started at the Belvedere Palace:
Then continued to some other sites, stopping by Stadtpark, where Dad had spent a lot of time as a missionary. I tried to think of what unfinished business my Dad would have me do in an area where he had worked so hard and diligently. I thought for a moment and realized it is something all missionaries would want, a nap. So I found a park bench and snoozed for about an hour in the warm sun. Then I went to the old city again, got lunch and continued exploring.
9:35 AM 7/4/08- I'm somewhere in western Magyarorszag, the anglicized version obviously being Hungary. After my entry yesterday I went to call the tour I'll be going on tonight in Budapest. You're supposed to call 24 hours in advance to confirm, which is retarded since the tour is nonrefundable anyway. So, I had to buy a stupid phone card just for that purpose and went to a pay phone. I called and said that I'd like to confirm, to which the lady said, "ok, you're confirmed." Puzzled, I responded, "um do you know who I am? As in who is confirming?" She says, "Oh, right, what is your name?" Yikes.
I headed back to the hostel to see the plans of some people I met and we were talking for about 20 minutes when I realized I couldn't find my wallet. For some reason, I can remember the most obscure dates and other trivial things, but the whereabouts of my belongings always seem to be my Achilles heel. I couldn't find it in the room and realized I must have left it at the pay phone. I ran to the pay phone, and as you have probably anticipated by the lack of curse words in this post, it was still there. This wasn't a pay phone on some small street either, this was Mariahilfstrasse, one of the busiest streets in Vienna. But sure enough, the good people of Vienna let my wallet be, so thank you Wieners, you will not be forgotten.
So, back on track, I headed back to the old city and went to dinner at the Griechenbeisl, which Mom and Dad recommended, as it dates back several hundred years and hosted the likes of Beethoven, Wagner, and Strauss, to name a few. The food was very good, and once again I imagined a conversation with the past patrons, perhaps getting Wagner's thoughts on the use of his music in Bugs Bunny cartoons.
Afterwards, I walked to the Hofbrau and surrounding areas, here are a couple pics:
All in all, a great city, although I know I missed a lot of things. I just got really tired after the first day there and need to start pacing myself or else I'll have no energy to run with the bulls in Pamplona, rollerblade in Paris, or barter with the ladies of the night in Amsterdam.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Put Another Shrimp on the Barbie!
Welcome
Salzburg is absolutely beautiful, it's every postcard maker's dream, as well as travel blogger's for that matter. I feel like one of those critics that just raves about every movie, even if they suck, but I must say, so far these have been awesome places. I suppose if I did a random sample of world cities I'd be able to show a range of critiques, but it's as if I'm a movie critic for 'Citizen Kane' or 'Bill and Teds Excellent Adventure', what can I fault?
I started the day at 9AM by heading to Mirabell gardens:
I started the day at 9AM by heading to Mirabell gardens:
Then I went to the old town where Mozart was born:
Mozart Geburtshaus, which is coincidentally and conveniently located right down the street from Animalhaus:
I then toured all the churches in the area, which were quite ornate. I had my iPod on the Best of Mozart, and that was really cool. The quality is great on my iPod, it seemed like there was an echo as I listened to the songs inside the chapels. I liked the architecture a lot, more baroque compared to the gothic ones I was used to in France. Plus, it was hot outside, so it felt really good inside. After that I just wandered around, eating a wurst here, a strudel there, and trying on some liederhosen. I was incredibly hungry for some reason, I ended up eating like 5 meals yesterday plus snacks, and I dont want to go into this too much, but a major shout out to my body who realizes my disdain for public toilets and cooperated accordingly.
At about noon I headed up to the Festung by foot, which was a nice workout. It was quite impressive, reminding me of the Citadel in Besancon:
The Festung is the fortress on the hill, I'm standing in the cemetary below that I'm told is where the VonTrapps hid in 'The Sound of Music' from the Nazis.
At the top, looking down.
A new thing of mine on this trip is to eat in the coolest places possible. My budget doesn't really allow for that, but who cares right? There was a restaurant at the Festung overlooking the city and I couldn't pass that up:
So now I've eaten overlooking the Spiez and the Thunersee, the Lauterbrunnen Valley, and Salzburg...just wait until dinner though... After lunch I decided to do the 'Sound of Music' tour since I had seen almost everything in the main area of Salzburg. It was a great idea and I enjoyed it quite a bit as we traveled out to the Lakes district and other beautiful areas. Here are some shots from the trip:
Amazing
Eat your heart out Epcot Center!
Church from Sound of Music, in Hapsburg yellow, renamed pee yellow after the Treaty of Versailles.
The tour guide was quite good actually, I liked him because he sounded a lot like Jon Lovitz, but with a little more twinkle in his eyes. But what would you expect from a guy whose job exists because of Julie Andrews.
After the tour, I walked up the hill overlooking Salzburg from another angle and took these pics:
The wrath of Jeff descends upon the unsuspecting Salzburgers.
So, how do you outdo a meal overlooking Salzburg? How about dinner at the oldest restaurant in Europe, the Stiftskeller St. Peters, opened in 803. You would think from these meals I've been having that I'm some visiting dignitary, not a lone hostel backpacker. It turned out my room was 19 euros a night instead of 29, so I figured a splurge of this sort was justifiable. Also, Charlemagne ate there, so how can I pass that up? As I ate my salad and looked around at the stony arches, I imagined what it would be like to dine with Charlemagne some 1200 years earlier. I imagined our conversation would involve his recent conquests of Saxony or Lombardy. I'd then crack a joke about a Moor, a Magyar, and a Byzantine walking into a bar and we'd have a good laugh. Good ole Charlie, a man of the people.
Speaking of delusions, I'd like to take this moment to thank you for your viewership, I feel as if this blog is my 'Wilson' that I can talk to while I see the sites.
One last thing, I thought I'd share my thoughts on the hostel world. So far, it's not as bad as I was fearing, but certainly nothing to write home about (even though I am). My room has 4 beds in it, and the other three travelers are by themselves as well. This place is pretty nice, and I could see it getting pretty ugly, but the beds are long enough for me, the showers are hot, and the breakfast is pretty darn good. For sleeping, I just go 'Helen Keller' style with my earplugs and facemask and I sleep pretty good. Without those, there's no way as there is a ton of noise from the street or from snorers. I doubt I'll ever do hostels again after this trip, but for a young person, they're pretty good. Ok, time to go to Vienna, my train fahrts in 20 minuten.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Train-ing Day
Music:
6/30/08 1:29- I love riding trains in German speaking areas because they always wish you a gute fahrt! Why thank you! Yes, I did just turn 27.
I think there are few things in life more enjoyable than passing through the Austrian Alps in first class (zweitzer klasse is für idioten!), listening to one of Mozart's symphonies. I just left Bludenz and will arrive in Salzburg at 5:30, but I'm looking forward to going through Innsbruck and other Austrian towns along the way. This morning I left at 6:30 so I could go to Luzern before continuing on to Zurich. Yes, I know, going to Zurich via Bern is quicker, but I wanted to see Luzern quite badly and I wasn't disappointed. Here are some pics:
I love pain au chocolat, which is basically a chocolate filled croissant, but I found this place that took it one step further: chocolate filled croissants with nuts on top. Wow. I then picked up some lunch for the train ride: fresh bread and appenzeller cheese, an apple, and some Torino chocolate to wash it all down. By the way, I found some Suchard Double Creme at the hostel in Lauterbrunnen, but only one bar. I didn't find any in Geneva, so none will be sent home since I'm only mortal and devoured the Double Creme last night during the EuroCup. Anyways, Luzern was great, very charming.
2:10- I'm obviously listening to a lot of Mozart off my iPod. Listen to the Lacrymosa part of his Requiem. While you listen, think of the major events of your life or of someone important to you:
If you do it without getting choked up or even goosebumps then you have no soul. I think the Requiem, Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber, and Everyday by Carly Comando are the 3 saddest songs I know.
As if my iPod's shuffle is mocking me, I'm now listening to 'Big Girls Dont Cry', well played.
9:30- I'm at a local internet cafe because the wireless doesnt work at the hostel, uggg! Tonight is the first night that I'll be sharing a room with strangers...great. Tomorrow I'll do Dad's tour of Salzburg but probably won't write about it until Vienna, we'll see.
6/30/08 1:29- I love riding trains in German speaking areas because they always wish you a gute fahrt! Why thank you! Yes, I did just turn 27.
I think there are few things in life more enjoyable than passing through the Austrian Alps in first class (zweitzer klasse is für idioten!), listening to one of Mozart's symphonies. I just left Bludenz and will arrive in Salzburg at 5:30, but I'm looking forward to going through Innsbruck and other Austrian towns along the way. This morning I left at 6:30 so I could go to Luzern before continuing on to Zurich. Yes, I know, going to Zurich via Bern is quicker, but I wanted to see Luzern quite badly and I wasn't disappointed. Here are some pics:
I love pain au chocolat, which is basically a chocolate filled croissant, but I found this place that took it one step further: chocolate filled croissants with nuts on top. Wow. I then picked up some lunch for the train ride: fresh bread and appenzeller cheese, an apple, and some Torino chocolate to wash it all down. By the way, I found some Suchard Double Creme at the hostel in Lauterbrunnen, but only one bar. I didn't find any in Geneva, so none will be sent home since I'm only mortal and devoured the Double Creme last night during the EuroCup. Anyways, Luzern was great, very charming.
2:10- I'm obviously listening to a lot of Mozart off my iPod. Listen to the Lacrymosa part of his Requiem. While you listen, think of the major events of your life or of someone important to you:
If you do it without getting choked up or even goosebumps then you have no soul. I think the Requiem, Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber, and Everyday by Carly Comando are the 3 saddest songs I know.
As if my iPod's shuffle is mocking me, I'm now listening to 'Big Girls Dont Cry', well played.
9:30- I'm at a local internet cafe because the wireless doesnt work at the hostel, uggg! Tonight is the first night that I'll be sharing a room with strangers...great. Tomorrow I'll do Dad's tour of Salzburg but probably won't write about it until Vienna, we'll see.
An Incredible Fahrt
So I'm posting twice from Salzburg because of the stupid internet in Switzerland. Here's the music:
6/28/08 1:34pm- I'm sitting at the Interlaken Ost Station waiting for the train to Lauterbrunnen, where I'll stay the next two nights. The train ride here, as you can tell from the title of this post, was fantastic. We went along Lake Geneva, up through Valais and across to Spiez. I got out in Spiez for lunch at the local Migros and this was the view from my seat:
The photo doesn't even do it justice, it was incredible. The train from Spiez to Interlaken was equally impressive. the music was chosen because it conjures up thoughts of grandeur and amazement. I wouldn't be surprised to see a T-Rex come around the corner any second now, or Julie Andrews, although I'm not sure which would scare me more.
6/29/08 5:55pm- The good fahrts just keep on coming. I arrived at the Jungfrau camping hostel, located almost directly under a waterfall (Ben, I'm sure you know) at about 2:30 yesterday. I checked in and got my own little cabin, which is probably about 7 feet by 10 feet, perfect. The wireless internet isn't working here, so I'll have to post this from Salzburg. I headed out right away and went to Trummelbach falls. Here's some photos from the valley floor (cue Jurassic Park music):
Here's the Jungfrau:
The Jungfrau- Forbidding, aloof, terrifying. The mountain with the... if you dont know the joke already, then continuing would just make it awkward.
And of Trummelbach falls:
You didn't think that just because I'm by myself, I'd pass up golden opportunities like this one, did you?
After that, I hiked up to a cable car that took me to Gimmelwald, as shown here:
From there, I hiked up to Mürren, where I was originally going to stay. The day could not have been more beautiful. I found a restaurant that overlooked the valley and ate some sausage and rosti:
Then I took cable cars back down to the valley floor and walked home. I was basically smiling the entire time, I just couldn't get over it. It's like Saint Peter's Basilica, in that you just have to be there to understand how big and impressive it is. Any testimony that I lacked in a divine creator from my many drives across Nevada has been compensated for by the beauty of this valley.
This morning, I woke up at 6:30 and took a train back down to Interlaken, where I met the canyoning tour. I met a guy from the University of Florida and two girls from SDSU and we kinda stuck together. I must say I dig canyoning. For me, it's just the way I live my life. I grip it and I rip it. I live it with a lot of flair. I live it on the edge, where I gotta be.
I've always felt that if you can take a picture of something, it's not extreme enough, so I dont have any. Well, they had a guy taking some but you had to pay 48 francs for them...and I never look good wearing a helmet, so I passed. The two girls bought pics, so if I'm in one of theirs, I assume I'll be tagged on Facebook, we'll see.
It was so fun though. You can see in the video below what we did, it was basically that. My favorite was the one where you jump out to the side, land on a rock, and slide down. We also got to hang out at this one rock and do flips and stuff off of it. The slides were cool too, it was amazing how everything was natural. The water was freezing, obviously, but the day was warm and it felt great.
UPDATE- When I took a shower that night (dont worry, this will be the only time I talk about my showers, i hope), I noticed a large bruise on my hip, but other than that, no injuries so that's good considering they get 'a lot of dislocated shoulders' and my shoulder is prone to that.
6/28/08 1:34pm- I'm sitting at the Interlaken Ost Station waiting for the train to Lauterbrunnen, where I'll stay the next two nights. The train ride here, as you can tell from the title of this post, was fantastic. We went along Lake Geneva, up through Valais and across to Spiez. I got out in Spiez for lunch at the local Migros and this was the view from my seat:
The photo doesn't even do it justice, it was incredible. The train from Spiez to Interlaken was equally impressive. the music was chosen because it conjures up thoughts of grandeur and amazement. I wouldn't be surprised to see a T-Rex come around the corner any second now, or Julie Andrews, although I'm not sure which would scare me more.
6/29/08 5:55pm- The good fahrts just keep on coming. I arrived at the Jungfrau camping hostel, located almost directly under a waterfall (Ben, I'm sure you know) at about 2:30 yesterday. I checked in and got my own little cabin, which is probably about 7 feet by 10 feet, perfect. The wireless internet isn't working here, so I'll have to post this from Salzburg. I headed out right away and went to Trummelbach falls. Here's some photos from the valley floor (cue Jurassic Park music):
Here's the Jungfrau:
The Jungfrau- Forbidding, aloof, terrifying. The mountain with the... if you dont know the joke already, then continuing would just make it awkward.
And of Trummelbach falls:
You didn't think that just because I'm by myself, I'd pass up golden opportunities like this one, did you?
After that, I hiked up to a cable car that took me to Gimmelwald, as shown here:
From there, I hiked up to Mürren, where I was originally going to stay. The day could not have been more beautiful. I found a restaurant that overlooked the valley and ate some sausage and rosti:
Then I took cable cars back down to the valley floor and walked home. I was basically smiling the entire time, I just couldn't get over it. It's like Saint Peter's Basilica, in that you just have to be there to understand how big and impressive it is. Any testimony that I lacked in a divine creator from my many drives across Nevada has been compensated for by the beauty of this valley.
This morning, I woke up at 6:30 and took a train back down to Interlaken, where I met the canyoning tour. I met a guy from the University of Florida and two girls from SDSU and we kinda stuck together. I must say I dig canyoning. For me, it's just the way I live my life. I grip it and I rip it. I live it with a lot of flair. I live it on the edge, where I gotta be.
I've always felt that if you can take a picture of something, it's not extreme enough, so I dont have any. Well, they had a guy taking some but you had to pay 48 francs for them...and I never look good wearing a helmet, so I passed. The two girls bought pics, so if I'm in one of theirs, I assume I'll be tagged on Facebook, we'll see.
It was so fun though. You can see in the video below what we did, it was basically that. My favorite was the one where you jump out to the side, land on a rock, and slide down. We also got to hang out at this one rock and do flips and stuff off of it. The slides were cool too, it was amazing how everything was natural. The water was freezing, obviously, but the day was warm and it felt great.
UPDATE- When I took a shower that night (dont worry, this will be the only time I talk about my showers, i hope), I noticed a large bruise on my hip, but other than that, no injuries so that's good considering they get 'a lot of dislocated shoulders' and my shoulder is prone to that.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Swiss Mister
Stop 1- Geneva, Switzerland
12:15 - Wow, good thing I'll be typing this up or else you'd be deciphering my writing through the sweat droplets on this page. I am quite sure I just set the record for a mile run inside Charles DeGaulle airport. My first flight (I'll get to that in a second) was to arrive at 11am, with this flight to Geneva leaving at noon. However, we didn't land until 11:20 and by the time we got to the gate and got out (I was in the back) it was 11:40. So, within the first 12 hours of my trip, it's already a good idea I did this alone. I was running at a very unsustainable pace but I didn't want to look weak in front of the French, so I kept going all out. I'm being serious, I really got the energy to run b/c of that thought. I'm sure there were a couple old people who, when seeing me run, had flashbacks to operation overlord...or not. Also, the 15 minutes of sleep I got on the plane didn't help. There were two stops along the way in the airport, one to check passports and another to check bags. For passports, the line was very long and would've taken at least 30 minutes, but I sweet talked some cute french girls into letting me get in front. By sweet talk, I mean panting and mumbling something in french, pointing to my ticket. And by cute french girls, I mean some 50-year old roundabouts, if you will. At the x-ray area, I foolishly took off my shoes, which I guess isn't required, but the security people seemed to enjoy it. Anyway, I made it, just barely.
The first flight started out bad, there was turbulence and the plane had NO personal entertainment screens for each seat like Virgin Atlantic. This turned out to be good as it forced me to talk to the Polish girl next to me, and we ended up talking for almost the entire flight about everything from Chopin to Polish dogs (although she'd never been to Costco...the horror!). She's an Au Pair in San Francisco but was heading home for a couple weeks. Other than that, the flight was uneventful and like I said, I didn't really get much sleep.
6:56 pm Why am I not staying more than one night in Geneva? This city is great and I was originally going to skip it altogether. Good thing I didn't as my bags weren't as nimble as I, so they have yet to arrive. No biggie, in fact that's better b/c I didn't have to lug them to the hotel. After checking in, I went down to the lake and ate a Kebab. They closed the Burger King, but I don't care, Kebabs are great. Everyone I've talked to so far has been incredibly nice and kept speaking in French even after hearing my accent. It's amazing how differently people treat you when you're not a missionary. Don't get me wrong, people who knew us treated us like demi-gods, but strangers were often very cautious. Everyone at the stores, the post office (sent 70 bucks worth of chocolate home, I'll distribute it when I get back), and train station have gone out of there way to help me. I know where things are, but I still enjoy people telling me, I like playing the naive tourist.
I walked around the old town, stopping at the cathedral where John Calvin preached, leading to the protestant group named after him, the Lutherans (I think Luther was his nickname). I love sitting in cathedrals, the architecture just blows my mind given the period of their construction. At the risk of sounding like George Costanza, I kinda wish I would’ve studied architecture in college. After the old town (or Olde Towne?), I headed to Meyrin where I lived at the beginning of my mission. It’s a dump, but there are a lot of memories there. I guess they were mostly bad ones, but that’s where I met Nick, so I guess it was worth it, for his sake, not mine.
9:30pm Now I’m at Starbucks getting ready to post this, I’ll head to bed right after. Here are some photos from the day:
Kebab by the Lake? Heaven.
The Jet D'eau was right beneath the ball moments before this picture, they turned it off to spite me. Anyway, the ball is there for the EuroCup.
I know, this is the typical setup for a missionary photo, but I still couldn't resist.
My first missionary residence.
Looking to save money on marketing costs, Meyrin Fitness decided to use the logo of the building's former tenant, Michel's Kama Sutra Center.
I remember this place from when I was a missionary, but tried to stay above such jokes and didn't take a picture. I've since recovered.
I’ll post again on Sunday night, if I’m still alive from canyoning.
12:15 - Wow, good thing I'll be typing this up or else you'd be deciphering my writing through the sweat droplets on this page. I am quite sure I just set the record for a mile run inside Charles DeGaulle airport. My first flight (I'll get to that in a second) was to arrive at 11am, with this flight to Geneva leaving at noon. However, we didn't land until 11:20 and by the time we got to the gate and got out (I was in the back) it was 11:40. So, within the first 12 hours of my trip, it's already a good idea I did this alone. I was running at a very unsustainable pace but I didn't want to look weak in front of the French, so I kept going all out. I'm being serious, I really got the energy to run b/c of that thought. I'm sure there were a couple old people who, when seeing me run, had flashbacks to operation overlord...or not. Also, the 15 minutes of sleep I got on the plane didn't help. There were two stops along the way in the airport, one to check passports and another to check bags. For passports, the line was very long and would've taken at least 30 minutes, but I sweet talked some cute french girls into letting me get in front. By sweet talk, I mean panting and mumbling something in french, pointing to my ticket. And by cute french girls, I mean some 50-year old roundabouts, if you will. At the x-ray area, I foolishly took off my shoes, which I guess isn't required, but the security people seemed to enjoy it. Anyway, I made it, just barely.
The first flight started out bad, there was turbulence and the plane had NO personal entertainment screens for each seat like Virgin Atlantic. This turned out to be good as it forced me to talk to the Polish girl next to me, and we ended up talking for almost the entire flight about everything from Chopin to Polish dogs (although she'd never been to Costco...the horror!). She's an Au Pair in San Francisco but was heading home for a couple weeks. Other than that, the flight was uneventful and like I said, I didn't really get much sleep.
6:56 pm Why am I not staying more than one night in Geneva? This city is great and I was originally going to skip it altogether. Good thing I didn't as my bags weren't as nimble as I, so they have yet to arrive. No biggie, in fact that's better b/c I didn't have to lug them to the hotel. After checking in, I went down to the lake and ate a Kebab. They closed the Burger King, but I don't care, Kebabs are great. Everyone I've talked to so far has been incredibly nice and kept speaking in French even after hearing my accent. It's amazing how differently people treat you when you're not a missionary. Don't get me wrong, people who knew us treated us like demi-gods, but strangers were often very cautious. Everyone at the stores, the post office (sent 70 bucks worth of chocolate home, I'll distribute it when I get back), and train station have gone out of there way to help me. I know where things are, but I still enjoy people telling me, I like playing the naive tourist.
I walked around the old town, stopping at the cathedral where John Calvin preached, leading to the protestant group named after him, the Lutherans (I think Luther was his nickname). I love sitting in cathedrals, the architecture just blows my mind given the period of their construction. At the risk of sounding like George Costanza, I kinda wish I would’ve studied architecture in college. After the old town (or Olde Towne?), I headed to Meyrin where I lived at the beginning of my mission. It’s a dump, but there are a lot of memories there. I guess they were mostly bad ones, but that’s where I met Nick, so I guess it was worth it, for his sake, not mine.
9:30pm Now I’m at Starbucks getting ready to post this, I’ll head to bed right after. Here are some photos from the day:
Kebab by the Lake? Heaven.
The Jet D'eau was right beneath the ball moments before this picture, they turned it off to spite me. Anyway, the ball is there for the EuroCup.
I know, this is the typical setup for a missionary photo, but I still couldn't resist.
My first missionary residence.
Looking to save money on marketing costs, Meyrin Fitness decided to use the logo of the building's former tenant, Michel's Kama Sutra Center.
I remember this place from when I was a missionary, but tried to stay above such jokes and didn't take a picture. I've since recovered.
I’ll post again on Sunday night, if I’m still alive from canyoning.
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