TravelStream™ news feed for member hikinggirl on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/hikinggirl en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Fri, 28 Nov 2008 21:49:56 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hikinggirl/1/1224820800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hikinggirl/1/1224820800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/hikinggirl/1/1224820800/tpod.html Fri, 28 Nov 2008 21:49:56 -0500 Adventure Bound = 7 Countries in 4 Weeks!

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Brugge, West Flanders, Belgium

Party in Room 24 in Brugge...

Okay so for those of you who have seen the movie titled "In Brugge", then you will be able to guess what the alternate title of this blog entry was going to be... !! (but I was worried about blog censorship and all...lol)

Brugge is fabulous my friends!!! A small pretty town with the most amazing locals! I would go back in a second and stay for a week. The locals are so cool about showing you where the movie was shot and I think they may even start a tour revolving just around the movie...love it! Great European humor I tell you :-)

I really is all about the locals in Brugge...and don't let anyone tell you differently! The Flemish are the nicest people I have ever met...and fantastic beer drinkers. My gosh, the beer.... a whole blog entry should be dedicated to Belgium beer! It deserves a special level of respect and appreciation, something that I was very good at ensuring I practiced...eleven beers later.... :-) I can't wait to go back home and drink with the local Canadian and finally, for once in my life, out-drink them (well, I think I could??!).

Belgium beers are always served in their own special glass, so it is super fun ordering. Just point out the glass you want to drink out of, and then that determines the beer! ha ha, love it!

So, if I haven't disappointed you yet with my party tales in each city, then Brugge is no different! :-) But unlike the other cities, Brugge captured my heart somehow.... Maybe it was partying with the Canadian from Barrie, or playing drunken foozball with the American from Seattle or eating the biggest bowl of spaghetti with the joint smoking Flemish local with a killer van...! Whatever it was, it was special and I know somehow that I will always smile when I think back to my night in Brugge...

Unlike Prague, apparently whatever happens in Brugge does not stay in Brugge:-) And I have the pics to prove it! hee hee...

Started the night with a candlelight dinner with a local and then moved to some serious beer tasting (Belgium beers are just so great!). Went to a dance club in Brugge (not sure if Brugge even has more than one?!! lol), both the Canadian (Shawn) and American (Aaron) were good sports and got into the whole speaker dancing thing with me :-) I mean you can't really say you've partied until you've dance on a speaker in Brugge! Love it!

But my friends, the night only gets better when we move to a local "Rock & Roll" bar where there is a big local bartender (actually now that I think of it, he looked kind of Russian?!) and the room is only locals...sweet! So we start playing drunken foozball with some locals....and I owe an apology to Aaron considering that I was his partner for most of the game but I am the WORST foozball player on the planet! lol

It is only then that I notice the big burly bartender playing "Jenga" with another local on the bar!! Hilarious!! Jenga my friends, I haven't seen that game since the '90s!! The bartender introduced my to Cherry Beer and I entered a new level of Heaven... Just thinking about it now is making me salivate....yum!

Of course we close down the bar (hmmm, this is becoming a habit, not sure what this means?!) and we do the stupidest thing...get in a van (which is also technically a house...yes, you just read that line correctly) with a pot smoking, drunken local who happens to be a maniac driver...OMG...talk about crazy driver!!!

We all piled into the front and I was sitting on Aaron's lap and Shawn was trying to take pictures in the in case this was to be our last night on earth....I'm still not sure if Shawn realized that the flash probably would have contributed to our pending deaths! lol

We get back to the hostel and almost kiss the ground...! But after you've had a near death experience, sleep is just not an option...so we do the natural thing...take over a random room in the hostel with a crazy fire escape and decide that Room 24 will our party room from 3:00am to 6:00am. I mean who wants to wake the Aussies that are are sleeping in our real room! (Okay, Shawn since I know you'll have a comment about this....I know, I know...not Aussies but Americans were actually in our room, but technically I didn't know that until breakfast that morning!)....

So after a very loud evening in our own room (well, takeover room) and many shared secrets the three of us got an hour of shut-eye before we had to get up and shower, technically I think I was the only one who showered...(Shawn, I have to know....was the shower curtain really see-through?!). We met the Aussie-Americans (lol) at breakfast and they were pretty cool about the whole thing... Sweet!

Shawn and I go the train station together, he leaves for Berlin and I decide to play a game and hop on the next train that comes... When Europe, why not?!!

Wait for the next blog to see where I end up my friends!
L.



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Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Amsterdam...the Fun Continues....!

Apparently, I did not blog all of the best parts of Amsterdam as some of my new friends have emailed me! lol... At least you guys are keeping me honest!!! :-)

Best parts of Amsterdam.....

1) PARTY IN A CHURCH!!!
Yes....you read this correctly, I went to a dance club in Amsterdam -- in a church!!! (Again...back to my earlier post...."City of Extremes!").

In the churxh-dance club all the pews had been taken out (this was the dance floor) and the DJ sat on the alter and rocked the house.....ummm... I mean rocked the "church"! lol

It was a little eerie in a way, since the stained glass windows and old balconies were still intact....so the coloured strobe lights were below the stained glass windows and everyone was dancing up a storm....

I mean come'on where else but in Amsterdam can you party it up in a church!! lol Wait till I post the pics...it definitely a sight to be seen....

2) No-tourist Flea Market!
Think of several blocks of a covered local market...so cool.

And...I have found my third career...yes that's right folks, not only am I going to become a DJ, I will also be opening up a new business that sells this ORGASMIC donut and pancake mixture combined together....

....like people... who doesn't love donuts and pancakes??!!
I tried to get the recipe but my Flemish was a little rusty! lol

Doesn't matter....I am determined to open a store back in Ottawa and sell this crazy concoction.... personally I think I died and went to heaven just tasting one bite...

Apparently, I was allowed into heaven since the flea market is OUTSIDE the red light district...ha ha....well, anyways it sure felt like heaven!!!

From someplace like heaven,
L.
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Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Amsterdam.... The City of Extremes....
I don't have much time to blog since, apparently I've been partying too much... lol....Too much to do, so little time! Some of you have been emailing me, asking for another blog...but seriously....come'on, did you really think that I would sit back and relax on my trip?!! ah NO! (i.e. so no time to blog!!! haha)

So I will make this short and sweet and hopefully you will get the jist of what it's like here...

1) Got lost walking to the hostel so of course I come across a policeman...(yes ladies, another one...!) ask him for directions and the guy next to him tells me he will show me the way in person...(I'm thinking SWEET!) ... I think this only until I find out that he's actually a criminal and had just been busted by the policeman for possession of 250grams of hash...

I ask why he's not in jail and he tells me that he has been "suspended from the city for 2 weeks".... interesting... so maybe I'm safe after all???.... lol

2) End up at my hostel safe and sound only to find out that it is a CHRISTIAN hostel...yes that's right folks, a Christian hostel in the middle of the red light district... (ahhh the wonderful world of Amsterdam!) ...and if that is not weird enough for you, the street the hostel is on, is not only the "red" part of the red light district but most the windows on this street have both the "red" and "blue" lights (for those of you wondering what the blue lights mean...think "special".... yep that's right... transvestites and more...hmmmmm....what does the christian hostel plan to do...convert them???!!! lol, too funny)

3) Hostel offers a free dinner so the room is packed...I mean come'on, who doesn't love free food when on a budget? ummmm....yeah what they didn't tell us, was that some woman would speak about her experience with God...none of us could leave....!!!

Now for those of you who know me, you know that I'm Catholic, but come'on.... preaching in the red light district????
I mean people's faces across the dinner table were humour enough ("...run...run. while you still can..." was visible in their eyes!! lol).

4) Aussie guy across from me at dinner asks me to go for a drink (...think about it...we are all seriously desperate at this point), I say yes.... we go for a stroll through the land of prostitutes and get a drink and.... when in Amsterdam.... we consume a "space cake" (ummmm, no that's not a typo!).

For those of you who don't know what "space cake" is (I didn't), just think of the saying "but honestly officer... I did not INHALE"!!! lol

5) Random Aussie guy and I decide to go see a live sex show....heck ....when in Rome...oops I mean Amsterdam! ...ummmmm....shall I say WEIRD!!! In cramped box with a total stranger watching a live sex show!!! ...hmmmm I think that's all I need to say here.... (but Marc I got you a cool souvenir...heh heh!)

6) Walk into another bar, and there is Bruno from Prague!!! ....And because its a small world, who is he sitting with you ask?? Well, one of the girls that works at the Christian Hostel of course! LOL

7) Girl from the hostel and I go to a pub and have a 2 hour debate on God, religion and apparently how I am not a good Catholic and not interpreting the bible correctly....

....and yes, she actually pulls out a bible (at an Irish pub in the red light district no less....please tell me the irony is not lost on you either???!!!)

Well that's all the time I have at the moment, but hopefully this was enough of a teaser to get you laughing and waiting for the next blog...

Signing off from the red light district...
L.
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Vienna, Vienna, Austria

Vienna Pastries & More....
Yesterday I ventured out into the Vienna's sea of neo-gothic, baroque, classic renaissance world of architecture....hmmm I ask myself why no Art Deco?! :-)


The architecture is truly amazing here and profoundly inspiring. However, Vienna is so much more than just it's buildings...apparently it is also home to an interesting tableware collection (or so we were told by our quirky tour guide)....hmmmm tableware, I can't exactly say I came to Vienna to see tableware...but heck, whatever turns your crank :-)

I met up with two wonderful girls from New Zealand and California and a couple from Ireland, we had a grand old time sipping Vienna coffee and having a taste of what Vienna is truly well known for...it's pastries..... That's right my friends...PASTRIES...!!

And let's be clear here, I don't mean the day old kind sitting in the grocery store, I mean the kind that brings tears of joy to your eyes with it's exquisite taste, where the bakers are called artists and we are only but lowly peasants blessed with their creations....




hmmmmmmm, did I mention how much I love Vienna pastries?!!

Vienna coffee is in a world of its own, where the experience of sipping your coffee on a cafe terrace is almost more important than the coffee itself. A cup of Cafe Melange with a fresh baked Pastry on the side...need I say more?!!


I wish I had more time here in Vienna to explore the Museums and truly embrace the culture that surrounds this city, however, as much as I want to stay, I am also anxious to see Prague and all it has to offer.
Vienna will definitely be on my list for future return visits.


I am now off the Prague for some good times and I will be meeting up with a new friend, so it should be a crazy adventure for sure...


Stay tuned....and remember friends, next time you clink glasses and say "Cheers" or "Prost" to the person beside you, ALWAYS remember to look them in the eye... without eye contact the Germans and Austrians believe it's a recipe for 7 years of bad sex... I mean seriously who needs that??!!!

Enjoy,
L.
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Salzburg, Austria

Salzburg, Austria
Wow, what a night! I arrived in the small town of Salzburg earlier this evening and was offered a chance of a lifetime... A Mozart dinner concert with an evening representative of the 1790s: with candlelight, a three course dinner based on historical recipes, period costumes, opera performances in the oldest restaurant in Central Europe, and last but not least the music Mozart.

The evening was truly wonderful and the food amazing. The diner company was just as fantastic. I can't even explain the beauty of the evening. To top it off, I seemed to be picked out of the crowd for the leading performer to serenade to...quite embarrassing but romantic none the less... Austria is turning out to be even better than Germany! ;-)

Getting back to the hostel, was another story entirely. I have come to the conclusion that I should factor in approx 2 hours in every day just to accommodate being lost... Yes, that's right....I have no sense of direction, but apparently half the people I ask for directions have the same problem as me, so maybe this should make me feel better?? On the bright side, I had a not so random encounter with another policeman (yes ladies...this time in uniform...hot!). I could start liking getting lost if all the policemen looked like him ;-)

Good night and be merry!
L.
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Munich, Bavaria, Germany

Munich at it's Best...and Worst!...
My time in Munch Germany has come to an end as I leave for Salzburg Austria today. But before I go, I wanted to give you all a rundown of my time here in this great city...but since I am all about being fair, I'll give you the good stuff in addition to all the "dirt"!

hmmmm, where to begin? Well, since many of you reading this blog have quite diverse interests, I'll dedicate a section per type...so sit back (yes, that means get a beer) and relax (this means get a pretzel) and enjoy...

For the Cultural Fanatics:
Munich is a "young" city, when you look around, the majority of the people are between the ages of 17-35. Which seems to make this a vibrant and exciting place to be. The language spoken is German, but since English s taught in primary school, if you ask people if they can speak English most can to varying degrees (identical really to those of us Canadians with French as a second language...you will never hear us speak it unless requested by someone else or for work).

Munich is apparently the second most expensive city in Germany to live in, but doesn't seem to flaunt it. The people are very social and very kind. They are used to tourists but accept them with a smile and always seem so friendly.

Transportation is AMAZING! Subway, underground, trams, buses and trains are all so efficient and there are so may options. The funny things is that Munich is not really that large, and you can walk to almost all the sites...so it's quite incredible that they have such an advanced transportation system. Now, the more plausible reason is that it is so freaking hard to understand how to navigate the streets...I got lost SEVERAL times walking, so using the underground was so much easier...hmmmm maybe if we made Ottawa streets hard to find and navigate, would the politicians finally agree on advancing our transportation system? ....yeah....I didn't really think so either...

For the Shopaholics & Fashionistas:
Shopping...shopping and more shopping...Yuck! Okay so those who know me well, know that I HATE shopping...I know, I'm apparently not a girl. lol Anyways, for those of you who love to shop (yes, Natalie...that's you) Munich is a shopping haven...tons...I mean tons of shops/boutiques with both American and European flavours. So what does this mean? Everyone here is dressed super fashionable, not as extreme as Paris, but a lower key type of fashion...

Want to know the new trend....? (of course you do!) Knee high boots a little loose (preferably brown - not Ughhs) with skinny jeans tucked inside. Interesting that the trend is no heal on the boot, but this could be due to the fact that Munich is full of cobblestones so it may just be the practical side of people here. ...Tops...layer with a black short trench with belt or a black bomber jacket with a hood. Black, black and more black...need I say more?

For the Foodies:
Cross Munich off your list right now...no foodie would ever survive....I mean for goodness sake...LARD is served on your plate looking like potatoes...."Crisco" on your plate? Hmmm sounds like an ugly rap song. Boiled white sausage seems to be another popular option...did anyone say "floater"???! On the upshot, there are fresh bakeries everywhere (think every third store) with pretzels, pastries and nutty concoctions... pun intended :-)

Now... I must do justice to the BRATWURST....The bratwurst is the bomb....and I met up with this great crazy Australian who shared my love for the stuff....just thinking about it makes me salivate...Alan do you know what time is???? Bratwurst time babe!

For the Alcoholics:
Munich lays claim to the origin of beer (although Belgium disputes this constantly). Munich also s well known for the largest beer brewery in the entire world. Most of the beer served in the top breweries are in LITRES....yep, that's right... forget the PINT...you order a LITRE (think of a pitcher all to yourself) ...LITRES my friends...that's where it's at!
What you may like best is that beer can be drank anywhere, anytime... yes that means out in the open on a street or you can even get it from the local vending machine!

Now, Oktoberfest deserves a mention all of it own...and in many ways this is both the best and worst that Munich has to offer. Think crazy partying, lots of singing and dancing, costumes, but mixed in with the expected bar fight, the lineups (ohhhhh the lineups) and of course the after effects of many LITRES of beer...the vomiting.

Oktoberfest is hard to describe other than saying that it is like the Canadian superEX times a factor of 50. The beer "tents" are not tents at all but similar to our indoor pavilions. The majority of native Germans (and some tourists too) get dressed up in traditional dress (ledderhosing for the guys and "maiden-like" dresses for the girls), quite fun and very colourful. Anything goes at Oktoberfest...(expect drinking wine of course)! :-) I experienced drinking on a Carousel Bar for the first time...picture the carousel sans horses and it turns while you drink! lol Only at Oktoberfest!


For the Romantics:
I had an encounter with the local police and it was stuff the great romance novels are made of....okay maybe in my dreams, but I did honestly meet a real policeman/detective (he was undercover at the time) and he looked like a romance novel character (not that I read those of course!). Think, tall, muscular but trim, dark brown leather jacket, dark jeans, 1 day old scruff...yes, ladies quite the man to drool over....

Now, for the men (I know there are some of you jut as romantic as the ladies), German women dressed in costume give you a hint of what you're chances of scoring: Apron tied to the right = she's taken, apron tied to the left = she's available, apron tied in the front = a virgin, and apron tied in the back = means she's a widow....


Now, come'on if that's not romance, I don't know what is :-) lol


But of course, the most romantic element of all...the Castles... specifically the real castle that inspire Dysneyland's Cinderella Castle!



For the real Canadians:
Okay let's talk about weather (I mean seriously, you can't live in Canada and not discuss the weather at least once a day)... so as I mentioned in my earlier blog, it is damn cold here, yesterday I broke down and bought some mitts (no, Dad I will not be sporting a toque here...).

Whoever tells you that Germany is a dry cold is LYING! It was damp, raining and cold the first three days, today on the other hand is beautiful sunny but still cold :-) Okay, but here is the weird thing, no one here complains, the guys are walking around in tights, the girls in short sleeve dresses, but everyone is still smiling and no one seems to notice how damn cold it is...several of the Americans and Canadians I met, we all seem to agree that this phenomenon must because everyone here is actually drunk or high on pretzel / carb endorphins!

I mean, come'on, how can you not discuss the weather...what would we Canadians then do in elevators????!!!

So that's it folks, time for me to catch a train to Austria....

Prost,
L.
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Switzerland, Switzerland

5 Countries in 4 Weeks...

So for those of you paying close attention, maybe you've noticed that the title of my blog is no longer accurate... Yes, I know...a serious problem for someone like me!! lol

Technically the blog title should read " 7 Countries in 4 Weeks" (apparently I have no problem deviating from the plan and improvising with two additional countries!) lol!!

So I ask you...what should a blogger do in case like this?!!
1) Change the blog name, or
2) Leave the blog name forever incorrect?

Let's make this a little more interactive....so.... you decide!!! I can't wait to see the comments/emails :-)

Your European Traveler,
L.
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Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Leaving on a jet plane..... back to Canada...

Well friends...it's that time again.
Time to leave...time to say goodbye...time to go back home....time to go back to work...time to to go back to reality...

As I sit on the plane to go back to Canada I can't help but feel sad and somewhat alone.... How strange..., I left on a plane 4 weeks ago alone, but it is only now that I feel lonely...??

I feel like I am losing a piece of myself behind -- a great part, a fun part, a spontaneous part, a part of me that has been dormant for so long that I forgot still existed....

I have met so many wonderful people here, but as the miles slip away I can't help but wonder if these new friendships will withstand the test of time... I can only hope that fate will yield its magic once again and we will reconnect in ways not previously thought possible...

For my new friends, enjoy your travels and know that you will be sadly missed...

For my friends back home, I have missed sharing all these great experiences with you in person, and I am looking forward to taking part in your lives once again :-)

Your solo traveling friend,
L.
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Lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France

Random Train to Lille!

Ended up in Lille France only to find out that there are no rooms anywhere in the entire town... Perfect... So I do what any traveler does....start begging! I was able to grab someone's cancellation and well, thank goodness it's too cold here for cockroaches... get my drift?!

The best way to describe Lille, is that it is a smaller version of Paris but without all the tourists. It is a fashion hub, and a lot of the lesser known designers seem to test out their market in Lille prior to going to Paris. So think very fashionable...and a sea of black :-)

Since there was no city tour in English I did the 4 hour walking tour in French... and froze my buns off in the process... I haven't mentioned it much, but I am still pretty sick with an awful cough and brutal cold.
But honestly, why bother complaining when you're in Europe :-)

So tomorrow I go to Paris and hopefully I will be able to get some sleep...since these 1-2 hour night sleeps after partying just aren't cutting it! :-)

Talk to you from Paris....
L.

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Jungfraujoch, Switzerland

My Quest for Winter Hiking....

Going winter hiking in the Swiss Alps was not as easy as it first appeared.... I was told by several locals that I could not go hiking since in their words, I would "SLIP and DIE" (hmmmm... still not sure if this was a German-to-English translation problem?).

I decided to heed their warnings, since (a) I could not get my hands on any trail maps, and (b) with all the recent snow the trails were not visible... forget the slip and die part, I'm smart enough to know that if you can't see the trail slippage is the least of your worries... (The words "Canadian Lost in Swiss Alps" run through my head.). So since I'm normally quite practical, I figure getting lost in the Alps this week would not be the best timing, since no one really cares about Canadians during US election time... (come'on you all know it's true!!!)

As a consolation prize I take a tour to the "Top of Europe"... or so the quirky tour guide tells me. lol!

I end up going on the tour with two great Aussies who make me laugh the whole trip :-) I later find out that these Aussie's know how to play 500!!! Finding Aussie's who play a French card game in the Swiss Alps??!! ...(Crazier things could not have happened)!! Pauline...wait till you hear about their Mi-sere rule!!! Awesome I tell you!!

I try to convince our tour guide to let me go hiking, but my hopes are quickly dashed as he laughs... So much for hiking in the Alps... I mean so what if the snow is up to your waist, I'm a Canadian...I can handle it!!!

So instead of hiking, I had a snowball fight with Jeff (still not sure who won!) and some great photo ops with Jim on top of the mountain!! It wasn't hiking, but still a great time with lots of laughs and vista memories to last a lifetime...

Signing off from the top of Europe....!
L.
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