TravelStream™ news feed for member nlevac on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/nlevac en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:30:51 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1193077200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1193077200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1193077200/tpod.html Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:30:51 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Frankfurt, Germany

We have arrived in Frankfurt, our final destination before we fly home. We returned the hire car with an extra 6000 km on the clock and no extra dings!! And yes, we did drive in Italy. How we managed to not do damage to the car in Italy still amazes me. Bit of a pain finding the car return - Hertz, bastards.

After returning the car, we visited the heart of Frankfurt and found the shopping strip based around Zeil. Lots of shops and department stores but I think that cities like Nuremberg and Leipzig outdo it for the shopping experience. Also, while Frankfurt has its odd massive church and old buildings, its modern business focus is much more dominant. It has none of the historic character of many of the other cities that we have visited.

However, it has yet to rain on us and the sun continues to poke out every now and then, though it is really getting COLD now. A max of 8 degrees and I guess we hit that for about 2 minutes near 1pm today.

We have almost finished our holiday now and Frankfurt should give us a chance to wind down before we hit the stratosphere headed for the warmer climes.

[Almost totally off-topic] Many of the hotels that we have stayed at have had an English TV channel or 2 - mainly CNN, MTV and sometimes BBC World. Has anyone watched "Sweet 16" on MTV? Surely you wouldn't broadcast this material all around the world! As if America hasn't got a bad enough image already. This sort of show can only make things worse, much worse. Hell, I want to kill Audrey, and slap her parents! For your own sake GWB - take it off the air - at least off the satellite! Don't bother hiring PR firms to improve your country's image while this stuff is going out.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1192714260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1192714260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1192714260/tpod.html Mon, 22 Oct 2007 03:17:58 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Heidelberg, Germany

We have been in Heidelberg for 24 hours now. Heidelberg is written up as "one of the most beautiful cities in Germany". We have not seen that yet. I would say Nuremberg and Dresden beat it hands down. The shopping is not real great either! Also, bus-loads of tourists get dumped on the center regularly - have I mentioned how I hate tourists?

The weather is cold and damp now - not pleasant walking around with your ears aching from the cold. I took a few photos today which I will upload shortly.

We had dinner in the hotel (Hotel Heidelberg) last night (I normally try to avoid hotel dinners). The meal was quite good and not terribly expensive. They don't know how to make pumpkin soup though. We will probably eat there again as its the easiest thing to do as we are quite far out from the center of town.

Tomorrow [Saturday] we will catch the train to Mannheim and see what it has to offer.

Mannheim - I uploaded a couple of photos - not much to say.

Well, the weather in Heidelberg has taken a turn for the worse with freezing cold wet days. We bought a few accessories to help keep us warm but doing outdoors stuff is not much fun. Definately time to head back to the sunny side of the world - Sydney 30 degrees I see!! I bit more shopping and looking around in Frankfurt and we will be ready!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1192116420/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1192116420/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1192116420/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:46:34 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Potsdam, Germany

The main reason I wanted to come to Potsdam was Park Sanssouci and I was not disappointed. The park is absolutely amazing and is a must see for anyone coming to Germany. Don't come for the shopping as there isn't really any.

Park Sanssouci is kilometers long and about a kilometer wide and contains a couple of hands-full of palaces. The only complaint was that we could have had better weather but at least it didn't rain.

Bought a little present for my mum (hello mum - in case you are reading this). Karen bought some cookbooks written in German for Markus to translate :-)

As we were here for 3 days, we tried out another park as well, Park Babelsburg but that was a real disappointment as it is very neglected and overgrown.

Being parked out, on the 3rd day we took to the car and drove out to Haldensleben to see the worlds longest water bridge that joins 2 canals over a river, and then down to Worlitz Park.

The water bridge was interesting though we had to wait nearly an hour for something to go over it. We had a coffee in a nearby cafe while we were waiting.

Worlitz Park is amazingly beautiful in a cultivated way. It would be really nice say 6 weeks early while it was warmer and the lake-side restaurants were active. Even so, it was worth the painful drive to get there. The colours of autumn really make it picturesque.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190471160/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190471160/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190471160/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:43:42 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Venice, Italy

A bus and a train took us to Venice today - about an hour all up. Half an hour in a queue to get a tourist map and we were off.

Venice was extremely crowded - the crowds can not be understated - but the weather was great. My over-all verdict is that it was good to visit but I have no desire to ever go back. It was dirty, rundown, smelly, expensive and crowded.

Have a look at the photos.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1189781520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1189781520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1189781520/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:41:51 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Berchtesgarten, Germany

We had a couple of days in the Berchtesgarten area. This is a beautiful part of the world. The snow covered alps, the exploding greenery and the charming architecture really make it easy on the eyes. Sorry that the photos wont show this properly as the weather wasnt in our favour.

We drove around a bit and ended up at Konigsee which is the highest lake in Germany. We took a cruise to St Bartholoma which is about halfway up the lake and close to the foot of Watzman Mountain - really something to behold.

We were going to visit the Eagles Nest while we were here, but the whole things is a bit of a circus. There were at least 20 buses that had emptied tourists into the staging area where another set of buses take you to the Eagles Nest. Additionally, there were around 150-200 people waiting for a bus at the staging area. So, we decided that it really wasn't for us, though it would have been nice to see. We could see the Eagles Nest from Konigsee and it was a LONG way up and the view would have been spectacular.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1189274580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1189274580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1189274580/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:41:24 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Dresden, Germany

We have managed to find our way to Dresden. Karen is coughing her lungs up and I got food poisoning from our last Dinner in Berlin. My lesson is to always trust your instincts - which as to walk out. So, watch out for a restaraunt near check point charlie in Friedrichstrasse.

Our apartment in Dresden is huge and really well located. Hopefully tomorrow we will have good weather and get out a bit and add some photos to the blog. It really is a beautiful city from the bit we have seen while grocery shopping.

[insert sleep here]

Well, we still haven't seen a lot of sun, in fact, we really have only had one sunny day in the 10 days that we have been here. I'm sure they would laugh at us if we asked about water restrictions. Everything is so green - except for the sky which is so grey! We should swap half of our sunny days for half of Germany's wet.

We have uploaded some photos that we managed to snap between rain showers. Hope that they show some of the beauty of the city.

[insert sleep here]

Well, its still pissing down - another dreary day. We went to the 'transparent' glass VW factory where the make the Phaeton - interesting, but light on and not worth breaking a leg to see. This afternoon we sent off some post cards (love you mum) and went present shopping with sadly only one present being bought.

We also found the Zwinger which we must have walked around about 5 times.

Tomorrow we catch a couple of trains to take us to Nurnburg and on to Munchen; around a 5 hour trip. This is our last programmed intercity train trip. In Munchen we pick up a hire car and then make our own way.

Another observation about Germany - most Germans drive imported cars like Audi, BMW, VW, Mercedes - hardly a Ford in sight and I'm yet to see a Holden - imagine that!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1188919560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1188919560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1188919560/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:41:01 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Berlin, Germany

Our welcome to Berlin was freezing weather coupled with wet stuff falling from the sky.

We arrived at Berlin Hbf and changed to an S-Bahn train to Friedrichstrasse and again to another to get to Anhalter. Found our hotel without any problems. A nicer place than we have stayed todate, however it is significantly more expensive.

Having unpacked, we set off towards the Brandenburg gate and Potsdammer Platz. Then on to the parliament house, back to Brandenburg Gate and down Unter den Linden.

We did some shopping for breakfast at Alexander Platz before coming back. Next time I book hotels, I will check if breakfast is included. 28 Euro for breakfast at the hotel - not me!

Some more impressions:
1. Germans like big things - like really fricken big - I hope this comes out in the photos. Even office buildings are big - not only tall, but often a hundred meters wide and long!
2. Not everything is in its place in Germany. You have beggers, sex shops, prostitutes, rubbish an people pissing in the street, punks and weirdos. Much of this is hidden away from the more touristy places.
3. Germans can't make a good flat-white.
4. Bier is very cheap here and you can buy it almost anywhere. Less than a Euro for a 500ml bottle from the supermarket. You pay around 3.60 from a cafe for the same amount.
5. American influences are everywhere from the Starbucks to the clothing brands to the TV ads. Much reeks of American influences. TV has got a lot to answer for.
6. Germans are generally very polite.

------------------------
Added some more photos from Wednesday 5th Sept. We had a shopping day and must have walked at least 10km!

Charlottenburg castle was pretty impressive.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1188483300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1188483300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1188483300/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:40:29 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Cologne, Germany

After an hour on the train we arrived in Koln (Cologne). Pretty impressive train station. But then you step outside and see the Koln Dom and the station is truly dwarfed!

We wandered aimlessly for a while until we got our bearings and found out hotel in Alter Markt - very close to Dom and station. We could not check in until 1400, so we dropped off our bags and went exploring.

The time 1000ish to 1400ish went so slow - probably because we had only had a few hours sleep in 36 hours. That first bath in Koln was magic!

A bit more wandering around and dinner by the Rhein (Rhine) and in bed by 1830.

The next morning we set out to get a local mobile phone so that Karen and I could communicate if separated. Don't believe the story that everyone in Germany speaks English! Anyway we managed to get a phone and some credit and then headed off on the next adventure....

Koln is a pretty city and well set out for visitors. The river area is particularly nice. Karen is enjoying the pastries and the beer (yes, I said beer!)
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190964120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190964120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190964120/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:39:37 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Assisi, Italy

We stayed overnight just outside Assisi on our way to the Amalfi coast. Assisi was interesting and appeared to be maintained and reasonably clean unlike most of what we have seen so far. The building appear ancient, but remain habitable - I guess through keeping up with repairs.

The view you get from the hill overlooking Assisi are worth the climb.

We had lunch in a restaurant set back into a rocky cliff. No windows - just ceiling lamps. A nice rustic ambiance but some of the modcons were problematic, like the plumbing.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190619540/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190619540/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/nlevac/europe-2007/1190619540/tpod.html Fri, 19 Oct 2007 10:39:13 -0400 Blundering through Europe in 2007

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Igea marina, Italy

We are here for 4 days to catch our breath and soak up some sun after the weeks of rain in Germany and Switzerland. Igea Marina is about 10km from Rimini. The whole area is not very 'nice' and is almost deserted. Very few people here have English skills and those that have are generally very limited.

The place does have a beach and it is sand, though it is mixed in with some mud making it less that fantastic. The water temperatue was good though, but watch for crabs attaking your feet.
There won't be too much in the way of photos as there is little to tempt me to take a photo.

Apparently the whole area is where Italians come for summer holidays and at the end of summer, most places shut down and put the shutters up until next year. So off season is extrememly quiet. Judging by the number of apartment building and hotels that are sitting empty, the place must be extremely busy during summer!! I think we were better off being here in the off season.
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