TravelStream™ news feed for member mallorybecker on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mallorybecker en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:36:41 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224854760/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224854760/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224854760/tpod.html Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:36:41 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Berlin, Germany

I spend the past few days in Berlin with some German friends I met in Barcelona.  They showed us around sights and showed us some cool places for nightlife.  It was great to ask questions from someone my age who saw history with their own eyes.  Currently, Berlin looks like another city that could even be in Canada.  There is no signs of anything....except for museums, memorials and textbooks.  I thought Berlin would be more exciting because of the history, but it seems all covered over with modern architecture.  The people of Berlin are lovely and very hard working.I spent my last day going to check point Charlie and reading about individual stories involving the Berlin wall.  It was very interesting and I still cannot believe it was so recent in history.But I am off to the airport now to fly to London, and then eventually home!  Talk to you when I get home and feel free to call me!Love you, Miss you, Can't wait to tell you all my storiesMallory
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224690720/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224690720/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224690720/tpod.html Sat, 25 Oct 2008 09:19:28 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Wow...Amsterdam.  INSANE!I arrived in Amsterdam around dinner time, and I had problems finding my hostel.  I asked many people on the street and they had no idea where to go!  Thank goodness a lovely local lady saw my confusion and led me to my hostel (and she said I was just about to walk into the Red light district if she wouldn't have stopped me).  She told me many things about local history, and said that many houses in the area are actually churches on the inside, because of the housing crisis and gave me tips of where to eat and visit.  I arrived to my hostel, and I went out for dinner with Katharina, a lovely Australian girl.  We then went on this extremely high swing ride to see Amsterdam light up at night from a great high view.The next day, I went for a stroll through the streets and embarked on a cannal tour.  Later, I went on a red light district tour, because I was travelling alone and I thought it would be safest to see that part of town in a group.  I learned a lot of information about the district, and I was shocked by how much security was in the area.  There were police officers every half a block!  That night, we had drinks with some friends I met on the pub crawl, including a lady from the New Zeland military, an Aussie girl, and two Aussie guys.The next day, I went on the free walking tour and met up with the people I met the prior night.  We ended up meeting up that night so see more of the city and that was Amsterdam!PS - While on the walking tour, I leaned that my hostel was located in the gay district of Amsterdam....and it definately made sense!  :)  Oh Amsterdam.Love you, Miss you See you soon!Mallory
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224528660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224528660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224528660/tpod.html Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:34:11 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Brugge, West Flanders, Belgium

Brugge!Brugge is a lovely little city with a local population of 35,000 but peaks much higher during tourist season.  It is filled with history.  It is interesting because people from Belgium speak Flemish (an old sailor's language) and then on the east the speak German and French on the south.  It almost looks like a city from a pop-up book.  We arrived around dinner time to Brugge and I had my first taste of a pot of Belgium muscles on the market square and fruit beer.  It was called Kreik cherry beer that tasted like cherry kool-aid and it was delicious and it was the first beer I had ever finished.  I then tried another local beer and I enjoyed it as well (I normally HATE beer).  Belgium has strict regulations on having fresh beer with no preservatives so it can't be exported to other countries usually.  It has weather similar to Canada and during the day is is mild (10-15 degrees) but at night is is near freezing levels.The second day in Brugge, I went on the Flanders field tour with Damien, who is a soldier in the Australian army.  It was very powerful hearing the stories, seeing the memorials and grave sites.  It was really nice because Damien works with a lot with explosives so I learned so much about weapons.  We toured around Canadian, Scottish and Australian war monuments (those were the nationalities of the people in the tour) and then to the major memorial sites.  The British funded many of these monuments and the graves of British soldiers were often placed near the front and around the paths all together, while other countries such as Canada and Australia were placed randomly near the back and on the edges.  One neat observation I made was that there are still thousands of explosives and pieces from the war still on the land.  Farmers are supposed to put explosives (missile heads, etc.) on the side of the road where the bomb squad comes around every few days and picks them up.  Most locals come to the fields where the battles took place and search for bullets, helmets, riffles, and other war items with their children on the weekends.  Most of the WW1 fights took place here for years so the land was completely destructed and many remains are still present.  Apparently, many deaths still happen because of the explosives as many locals try to dismantle them, or the explosives become sensitive to light/heat and explode.  We then went to Ypers to see the Flanders field museum which gave more history of the war, but had many personal letters and stories from soldiers that fought in the war.  It had samples to smell of the chemicals used such as tear gas, and then had the sounds of war and screaming in the war the entire time.  It was very informative and was presented as a story with audio, pictures and video so people unfamiliar or very familiar with war all had something to gain from the experience. Next, the tour went to the country sides and showed us the ruts in the land, that was once completely flat and now has massive holes in the ground from land mines from the Germans.  The last part of the tour was the trenches (remade of course) but was very interesting.  I could not imagine the conditions that these individuals were in!  The experience was particularly powerful because I was with Damien, who is a soldier that has been to Malaysia and Afghanistan fighting and has personally experience war so I had many questions and I learned about the many realities of war.  I still cannot believe how regular individuals can do such heroic things and I have such a massive respect for soldiers as their bravery and sacrifices are unbelievable.  That night, we went out for ribs, and they were more dry than Canadian ribs but tasty none the less.Today, Damien left to go back home and I went and toured Brugge town.  I went on a cute canal tour, checked out the chocolate shoppes and chatted with some locals as the waffle and cheese shops.  Love you, Miss you!Mallory
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224244500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224244500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1224244500/tpod.html Mon, 20 Oct 2008 08:48:02 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Paris, Île-de-France, France

Paris.......*sigh* By far, Paris was the highlight of my trip for many reasons.  The city was B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L!  I arrived after taking the night train to Paris at 8 am and arrived at my hostel at 9 am.  I wasn't able to check in until 2 pm so I had breakfast, and met some wonderful company whom I spent a lot of time with in Paris and also Brugge.  I went on the walking tour and learned about the history of Paris including Napoleon and King Louis (many of them).  Next, we went to the Eiffel tower, and climbed up to the second story and took the lift to the top.  It was beautiful!  Apparently only one person died when it was being built because someone dropped a hammer off the top of it.  The Eiffel tower was meant to be temporary for a world festival however, it became permanent after it's popularity and was even used as a communication tower during the World Wars.  I learned of an interesting story that Paris was supposed to be completely destroyed by the Germans, but the head German in charge had a change of heart and decided to abort the mission and fool Hitler that is was destroyed, when it was not.  That night, we came back to see the Eiffel tower at night with wine - illuminated in blue lights with a sparkle light show at every hour.  It was beautiful.  The next day, I went to the Louvre and I was really satisfied.  I didn't expect too much from this experience because of my lack of art history however, I was really blown away by the beautiful images.  Interestingly enough, Mona Lisa was not the best picture in the gallery and was only popular because it was once stolen.  She was so small and defiantly over-rated.  That night, we went to Moulin Rouge and drank champagne.  The show was actually very classy and well done with BEAUTIFUL girls.  And I have never seen so many males with sparkles in my life! The third day in Paris involved visiting the War museum and Napoleon's tomb.  The museum showed the succession of war uniform, strategies and uniforms.  Napoleon's tomb was interesting because it was placed on the floor below, and in order to see it, a person had to lean over the rail in a bowing form.  Napoleon wanted this because it was "bowing to the emperor." The last day in Paris was at Versailles, as we saw the palace and then went for a lovely meal of crepes.  My main course of crepes was seafood and then the dessert crepes were even better!  The day I left on the train to Brugge, we went to a little restraunt off the beaten path and had l'escargot (snailes) and they were good!  There were a combination between fish and chicken.  Yummy. Overall, Paris was AMAZING filled with beauty, history and an wonderful experience.  Sorry I haven't written in a while but I was too busy enjoying the beautiful sights! Love, Mallory
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223810280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223810280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223810280/tpod.html Mon, 20 Oct 2008 08:43:55 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain and Canary Islands

Hi everyone!Barcelona was....interesting.  The streets were crowded with street performers and markets.  Lucy and I sat down for some tapas (tastes of appetizers) and some street performers started doing somersaults on the road and then asked everyone at the tables for money.  It was really funny when the police came and pulled them away.  It seems like everyone in Spain would rather do anything but work a regular 9-5 job.  There was this one funny street performer, and his whole act was him on the toilet acting as if he was going to the bathroom.  My favorite part of Barcelona was the markets that filled the streets with fish, fresh fruits, sweets and many other foods.  During the evening, I went out with some Canadians I had met in my room to a pub downstairs.  However, it was really interesting because I thought the girls were sisters...one my age and the other looked about 20 but the older one was actually the mom.  And that is great.....but she was definitely interested in the younger boys!  Very interesting.....But the stay in Barcelona was short as most time was eaten by traveling, and the weather was extremely muggy.  It wasn't my favorite place in Europe, and I did feel let down from what other travelers had said.  I think it has the best nightlife in Europe however, I really wasn't there to party too much. 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223891640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223891640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223891640/tpod.html Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:56:33 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain and Canary Islands

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!I will write about Barcelona soon.  I only have the day here and then a night train to Paris!  Its so hot...and muggy...love you guys and thanks for writing back and have a wonderful day!  Have a great thanksgiving mom, aunty cheri and tori and grandpa and grandma and eat extra for me!! I miss turkey.....Love,Mal
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223668980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223668980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223668980/tpod.html Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:08:03 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Nice, Provence, France

Bonjour!Je suis a Nice, et c''est magnifique!  Nice is the perfect place to have in the middle of travelling because it is like a Mexican resort minus the mexicans and garbage.  All I have been doing is laying on the beach and talking to locals!  I met Lucy at the hostel here last night and we hung out all night at the hostel bar with two other ladies drinking sangria and eating some AMAZING brownies.  Today, I was at the beautiful rockey beach near Monnaco.  It has perfectly erroded rocks from green, brown, grey and white that don't hurt your feet at all!Tomorrow, I am going to buy a snorkel so I can go diving!  I was going to go on a scuba diving excursion but the locals told me its better at this one beach I was at with just goggles because you spend too much time in the classroom and only 20 minutes actually in the water.  So sounds like a plan!  It is about 22 degrees but it seems much warmer because of the warm wind!  Tomorrow is another beach day and then off to Barcelona!!Avec beaucoup d''Amour,Mallory
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223485800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223485800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223485800/tpod.html Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:52:32 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Lauterbrunnen, Swiss Alps, Switzerland

Today, I went hiking in the SWISS ALPS :)It is very different from the Canadian Rockies.  The Swiss Alps are warmer, more green and BIGGER.  They are also more heavily populated and every house has a pasture of sheep or cows with cowbells on.  I am staying in a little town called Lauterbrunnen, which is in an area of Interlakken in the Berner Oberland.  It is absolutely beautiful.  It is nice because it isn't too busy here with tourists but many of the trails are closed because it is almost winter.  I woke up early and packed a lunch so I could hike up to the top of a mountain, but basically anything high was closed the tourist information office said.  I took a lift up to Murren, and then did a hike called the Northface Hike, which was the hardest hike available.  It had the scenic view of the Northern Alps, which are the biggest and covered with snow.  The largest, is called Jungfru, which is 4107 m high.  The autumn leaves are also turning here, so it is a beautiful mosaic of bright reds and yellows spotting the green alp trees.  The entire hike, I heard the music of waterfalls and cow/sheep bells.  The area has 72 waterfalls.  After coming back to Lauterbrunnen, I visited the Staubbachfall, which is the largest freefalling waterfall in Europe and it inspired a famous poem by Goeth.  I hiked up, climbed some steps so I could get a view under the waterfall.  The houses are characteristic of German houses, and they speak Germann and French here.  I am mostly conversing in French, and it is so nice to actually understand what is happening.  On my way to Switzerland by train, the train's front lights went out and the train was delayed 25 minutes because it runs through dark tunnels through the mountains, and lights are definately required.  But I was glad I could figure out what happened because it was in French.  I still ended up making my required connections.  The train ride was the most beautiful of them all yet.PS - I ate lots of Swiss cheese and chocolate.....yummy!Love you,Mal
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223314080/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223314080/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223314080/tpod.html Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:36:05 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Cinque Terre, Italian Riviera, Italy

I left at 7:00 am yesterday to catch a train that did not require reservations, and the conductor said that I had an old schedule and that reservations were required even for this train, so that was ANOTHER 15 euro.  I showed him the schedule I had and asked him why reservations were required when I allready had the pass and why the cost was so high, and he said it was a special train.  So I asked him why all the trains leaving Rome to Cinque Terre were special, and he said all trains in Italy were special.  Oh well.I got to Cinque Terre at 2 am, and everywhere was closed.  In Italy, most places close from 1 pm in the afternono until 4 pm so the workers can have a siesta and live.  Most Italians work 3-4 hours a day and enjoy their lives at home or on the beach!  I lazied around on the beach all day as it was about 26 degrees.  I could not believe the beautiful colour of the ocean here.  It is that same blue colour of the lakes in the Canadian Rockies.  Simply marvelous.Today, I hiked the 5 villages of Cinque Terre and it was a 10 km hike up and down steep clilfs.  There are some interesting historical stores of each small village such as pirate raids in the 1500s by the Turkish pirates, or that one of the small villages that had less that 500 people had the worlds best water polo team that practised in the harbour until the international water polo board determined that all water polo must be played in pools.  Many young italians came here to hide when Hitler conscripted them to fight in WWI and they became freedom fighters.  There are also lots of bunkers used by the Germans here when they were in control.  I traveled with a friend I met from Britain, so I had nice company.  The hiking paths were verry narrow and dangerous, but it was filled with beautiful views of each town that was somehow build on the cliffs beside the seas.  The hike took about 7 hours, as we spend some time in each village exploring.It is my last night in Italy, so I am going to indulge in the biggest gelato I can find.  I love the free sampling of the flabours as well.  Yummy!Love Always and Forever,Mallory
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223138280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223138280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mallorybecker/1/1223138280/tpod.html Sat, 04 Oct 2008 12:54:40 -0400 Mal's Galavanting in Europe!

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Vatican City, Lazio, Italy

Yesterday, Lucy and I toured the Vatican visiting St. Peter's Cathedral and climbed 730 steps to the top of it.  The dome, designed by Michaelangelo was magnificent and after staring at it for half an hour, I still did not see all the detail.  I never touched St. Peter's feet because there was a long long, but it was neat seeing everyone else do so.  Next, we saw the caskets with the remains of all the popes and near the site of the last pope, John Paul, many people were crying.  I never realized how important he is to so many people.  It was really beautiful to see the passion and unbreakable belief of the people there.  There were nuns and priests from all over the world there, all dressed in different colours.  Next, we went to the Vatican museum and saw many beautiful statues, some with missing pieces I might add, and works of art from Michaelangelo, Giovanni, Divinichi, and others.  The ceilings and decor all over the Vatican were all finished with gold and gigantic pillars.  It was a display of riches beyond anything I could ever believe.  We spend 2 hours at the Vatican, but one could have spend days just to learn of all the stories and history.  The Sistine chapel is a work of art itself and was the most beautiful piece of art I have seen so far.  Hard to believe it exists in reality.Although the Vatican was beautiful and it was very important for me to see, I was really disappointed in two things.  Out of all the places I have visited, I have never been pushed and shoved so much as in the Vatican.  People were taking pictures everyone, even though they were instructed that some places were sacred and photography and talking was not permitted, such as the catacombs of the popes.  People would push and shove and take pictures, and then go and pray by the site of a beloved pope as if religion was their life.  It was really against the teaching of the church, and was really disappointing to see.  Another thing was although I appreciated the beauty of the Vatican, I could not believe how it was a display of riches, and how these riches should have been used to help the poor and believers, rather than a display of power for the Catholic church.  However, the nuns at the Vatican were very lovely and always pleasant.Today,  Lucy and I went to see some final sights that we missed, but it was raining heavily when we were out so we had to take refuge in a cafe for a while.  We did get to see the Forum and Pantheon and a few statues.  Rome is actually really easy to navigate and everything is near and within walking distance.  The sky was really dark, but contrasted with the bright white colour of the historical sights we visited.Love you, Miss you!Mallory
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