TravelStream™ news feed for member mc62778 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mc62778 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 11 Mar 2008 11:28:36 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203943920/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203943920/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203943920/tpod.html Tue, 11 Mar 2008 11:28:36 -0400 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Hopfgarten, Austria

Monday, however, the lack of sleep caught up with me, so I slept in and chose to enjoy the sunshine from the deck off my room.  It's been a long cold winter, so being able to sit out in the sun in a tank top and read a book was just as appealing as heading up the mountain.  By Monday night, I was reenergized, and was ready to hit the town.  We went out to dinner (I love snitzel) and a surprisingly small amount of people decided to go to The Silver Bullet...an amazingly fun little bar that became our hang-out for the week.  It was on this lovely evening that I met a girl, Linsey, who I somehow hadn't met the night before.  Linsey, from Australia (of course), and I hit it off instantly, and I had a pretty good feeling that this was going to be a pretty great week. 

Here we are at the Silver Bullet:
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204340520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204340520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204340520/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:03:09 -0400 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Hopfgarten, Austria

Friday, we skied again. In the two days we had taken off for our little excursions, it was amazing how much snow had melted, but it was still pretty decent. I skied for a couple hours before doing the après ski thing...everyone seemed to call it an early day since it started to rain by early afternoon. And of course, for the final night in Austria...back to the Bullet!!! It was, as always, a good time. A pretty decent band was playing...lots of country music...the type of band I probably never listen to hear. But when you're with the right people, anything can be fun!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1205200620/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1205200620/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1205200620/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:01:36 -0400 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Kitzbühel, Austria

Wednesday was a little on the rainy side, so Linsey, Rhea, Chris, Rick and I decided to take the train up to Kitzbuhel.  It was a beautiful little Tyrolean ski village where we found a nice little café to have some tea and hot chocolate.  There was a beautiful church set on a hill, so we decided to stroll up there....as we turned the corner around the wall at the top of the stairs, we found ourselves in a cemetery with an insane amount of beautiful graves, all surrounding the church.  As we walked around, we realized that there was actually a funeral going on on the other side of the cemetery.  Somewhere around this same time, Chris noticed a small peculiar stone on the ground, and picked it up, only to discover that it was, in fact a tooth.  A full molar with the entire root.  How on earth does a tooth make it's way into a cemetery?  We decided not to think about these possibilities too much, because there was just something strange and eerie about it.  The church was open to the public, so we went in for a bit.  The incense from the funeral outside was still floating about the air of the absolutely gorgeous church, which I found somewhat unsettling...the idea of wandering around a church where a funeral is underway just seems inappropriate to me.  After having a nice lunch, we headed back to Hopfgarten, had a couple beers. 
 
That night, we went out for a nice tasty dinner, then back to the Silver Bullet, where several people decided to show off their lack of singing skills with a little Karaoke.  I met an interesting British guy who, after a long discussion of politics and the current US administration, declared that I am the most un-American American he's ever met. 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204253940/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204253940/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204253940/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:00:57 -0400 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Salzburg, Austria

Thursday, we went to Salzburg, which is quite a beautiful city...the birthplace of Mozart. Got to see the abbey from The Sound of Music. Wooohooo!!! I love the Sound of Music.







Thursday night, everyone hung out at the hotel bar due to it being Shot night or something like that...Yes, I even did shots!! Crazy, I know!! It was a wild crazy dance party...all in all, a good time!!




]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204080900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204080900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1204080900/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 21:56:32 -0400 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Hopfgarten, Austria

Tuesday, I woke up nice and early with tons of energy, ready to hit the slopes. To my surprise, the conditions were actually pretty good. I got in quite a few good runs before it got to be a little too warm and I thought I was going to die from the heat...I'm not used to skiing in such warm weather!! That night, there was a big theme party at our hotel...I, as usual, decided not to partake in the costume aspect...I have had enough of the "who can dress the sluttiest" contest. Maybe I'm getting old...? But it was a fun night, complete with a Mankini, a girl who thought wearing a bikini constituted a costume, and all other sorts of shenanigans.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203867000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203867000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203867000/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 21:52:34 -0400 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Hopfgarten, Austria

So after my long flight with only half my seat, I finally arrive and catch my transfer to Contiki world. I fell asleep for about half the drive, which was pretty nice, I must admit. When I awoke, I notice something important missing: Snow. There doesn't appear to be much of it anywhere. Luckily, as we neared my destination, I could see more snow in the upper elevations and some runs toward the bottom as well. When I hopped out of the car (or stumbled may be more accurate since I was half asleep) I was stunned by the weather...it was quite warm. That explains the lack of snow.

I go in, and some character named Bayden is checking me in, babbling on and on about this and that, and I don't hear a word he says. I do hear that if I can be ready in 40 minutes, I can catch the bus to the ski area and get my equipment, etc. So, up I go to my room, which has already been inhabited by two unknown girls who were lucky enough to arrive on time. I throw on some ski gear and head on downstairs just in time for the bus.

After two or three runs, I go down and shed a layer. Then, I head up the mountain, and suddenly find myself frustrated with the soupy snow...so I stop at one of the bars on the trail to the bottom and have a beer. I decide that since I haven't eaten anything all day, haven't really slept, and am skiing like shit, I should play it safe and stop at one beer. And suddenly, my luck takes a turn for the better: I am actually skiing BETTER after a beer!! But let's not get carried away with this experiment. I'll just go to the bar at the bottom of the mountain instead :)

So, I hit the Rundell for a little après ski, soaking in the sun and getting to know the few people I'd met so far, who happened to be the Contiki staff. After a few hours, I headed back to the hotel and was pleased to discover that we actually had our very own little bar there, so the drinking continued. Later in the evening, after meeting some of the people I was vacationing with, we headed out to a dance club, where I pulled my favorite act: find the only empty spot and dance like the crazy chick I am! It was a spectacular beginning to a great vacation!!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203795000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203795000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203795000/tpod.html Mon, 03 Mar 2008 19:13:37 -0500 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Newark, New Jersey, United States

Finally, I'm leaving for real. Car picks me up at 10:30...get to the airport nice and early. Have lunch. Take off. Wishing I was already in Austria. Settle in for a nice long flight. And lucky me, I'm seated next to this big fat dude who stole the window seat and decided to lean against the window the whole night, which resulted in his big butt squeezing itself into MY seat. How annoying.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203679800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203679800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/2/1203679800/tpod.html Mon, 03 Mar 2008 19:08:21 -0500 Off to Hopfgarten, Austria!!

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Stamford, Connecticut, United States

So, as my luck would have it, even though it hadn't really snowed since December, the Weather Gods decided to dump 10 inches of snow on us the morning I was supposed to leave. So I wake up, check my flight. Cancelled. So I call the airline, switch my flight, check on it an hour later. Cancelled. So I'm rebooked for tomorrow. A little pissed at the weather, but hey, what can ya do, right?
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/euromagic2005/1128805200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/euromagic2005/1128805200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/euromagic2005/1128805200/tpod.html Fri, 16 Mar 2007 16:57:44 -0400 Contiki European Magic, October 2005

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Paris, France

In the morning, Jen and I decided against taking showers because the night before, that thing beat the crap out of us, and quite frankly, we did not want to sustain any more injuries. So then, we were off to Paris!! For me, this would definitely be the highlight of the trip for many reasons ;) After another long bus ride, we arrived at our hotel, where we indulged in nice, hot and safe showers. Wooohoooooo!! After dinner, we went on our bus tour of Paris and to the Eiffel Tower!!

It was actually a pretty calm night...just a beer in the hotel bar, but I still managed to stay up quite late!

The next morning, we were off to explore Paris, and I must say, I'm in love!! Even though I haven't seen much of the world, I'm pretty sure Paris is up as one of the world's most beautiful cities. Paris is easily the most beautiful city I've ever seen! And we tried to see as much as possible in our short time there.

That night, we decided not to go to the Moulin Rouge, but we caught a ride on our lovely bus up to Montmartre. The Sacre Coeur was awesome, and so was the view of Paris from the steps. We also found a great little Irish Pub, where Jen actually met a girl from Westerly, RI in the bathroom. After a few beers at the pub, we met up with the rest of the group at O'Sullivans. At O'Sullivans, which was nothing like the little Irish pub we were just at, everyone was pretty rowdy! And it seemed that Adele was leading the party! Things were getting crazy, and I can honestly say I don't know the last time I saw Jen that drunk. Soon, however, we headed back to the hotel and to finish off the night...

It was an awesome ending to an amazing vacation!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/euromagic2005/1128718680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/euromagic2005/1128718680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mc62778/euromagic2005/1128718680/tpod.html Fri, 16 Mar 2007 16:56:30 -0400 Contiki European Magic, October 2005

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Lucerne, Switzerland

After another delightful breakfast, and Darryl rejoining our group, we headed off to Switzerland! And we made it!! We went to the top of Mount Stanserhorn, and no matter what direction you were looking, the views were nothing but breathtaking!
After coming down the mountain, we went into Lucerne for a bit and walked around. Quite an adorable town! Over all, it was a relaxing day, which was nice. We even talked for a bit about relaxing this evening and takin' it easy...but then we came to our senses!! As it turned out, the biggest club in Switzerlad was right across the street from our hotel....we debated for a while about whether to go there or to go to another bar down the road, but Lincoln went into the club, so we went in looking for him...and we were hooked!! Sue and I had been talking about dancing all week, and finally, we got our chance!!


So, It was another late night, and when Jen and I got back to our hotel room with the possessed bathroom that basically kicked our asses, we had a bit of a case of the giggles! Overall, Switzerland was a good time!
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