TravelStream™ news feed for member thorgal67 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/thorgal67 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Mon, 06 Apr 2009 05:15:40 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116232740/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116232740/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116232740/tpod.html Mon, 06 Apr 2009 05:15:40 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Berlin, Germany

Our final destination

After leaving Szczecin we paid a short visit to the local supermarket. It was the first time that Ingrid had some time for shopping, I hope she found what she needed. Frank bought some DVDs, a CD of Kayah, a Polish singer, and some chocolate and cookies for the rest of the family.

Than it was a short trip to Berlin, where we visited the following monuments :
- Checkpoint Charlie and the Wall Muur
- Reichstag
- the Dom
- Alexanderplatz
- The new Holocaust memorial

In the evening we had a great spicy dinner in an Ethiopian restaurant and we slept at Mirjam's, Frank's first Hospex/BeWelcome host ever (and very fiting that she should also be our last host on this trip). The circle is complete
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1114379880/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1114379880/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1114379880/tpod.html Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:18:14 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Hasselt, Belgium

Ingrid's Version

In the past, my travels have always been organised through a travel agency. The hotels had several stars and my time was divided between going to the pool or going to the beach.

But this time things will be different.

First of all Frank explained me about the way BeWelcome (BW) works. I had to look for my English dictionary in the attic and became a member. Pretty soon my free evenings were filled with surfing on the BW site and it didn't take long before I got addicted to their way of travelling. I even invited my first guest from Indonesia.
When I showed him the city I realized that I didn't know a lot about my own city. From that moment onwards I have been keeping a book about Hasselt on my bedside table.

Frank gave me a list of things that I HAD TO and things that I COULDN'T take with me. Most things I didn't own, so I started looking for a sleeping bag and a camping mat. In every shop I asked about the different qualities of sleeping bags and I bought one that guaranteed up to + 4°.

In the meantime I had my hair cut short and filled my toilet bag (not a beauty-case) with mini-versions of deodorant etc.
I'm still thinking about what clothes I should bring. This time I can't bring a suitcase filled with 7 pairs of shoes, skirts, blouses and shirts. Instead I need to make a realistic choice.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/india-2006/1156086480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/india-2006/1156086480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/india-2006/1156086480/tpod.html Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:07:01 -0400 A Passage to India

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Coimbatore, India

We informed the manager about the cockroaches in our room but he didn't even apologize. Even when we told him that under the bed we found crisps from previous guests (many hotelrooms in India are not regularly cleaned - we stayed in many places two nights and never saw a cleaning lady or even traces of something being touched) he didn't budge. The complaint register showed an entry somewhere last year as the last negative feedback, so we imagine that either nobody complains or nobody bothers to write it down. Anyway, if you want to stay in Hotel Saat, you have been warned.

We checked out, got to the station and tried to find a bus to Coimbatore. Again we were not lucky, because the bus never showed up. But there was another one going to Salem (100 km further) so we jumped on that, settled in the back with reclining seats and put in our earplugs when the Bollywood movie started playing on the DVD player in front of the bus.

After almost 5 hours on the bus (bumpy roads, state border controls) we arrived in Coimbatore where Vishnu, another HC member, picked us up. He took us to a very nice place for lunch where we tried Pongal (looks like mashed potatoes but is actualy made from rice, peppercorn and spices) and some dosas with cauliflower. We then drove to his home, met his mum and freshened up to go to a wedding.

A friend of his(Senthil)got married that day to an American girl (Amanda), and we were invited to the reception. Indian weddings are quite different from European, they can last several days (or even a full week) and having more than 1000 guests is not uncommon. Here it was a 'small' wedding with about 500 people showing up during some stage of the day. And most will have their picture taken together with the bride and groom (just like us). This marriage had a walking dinner with starters, main courses and desserts. I tried a carrot halwa (soft sweetmeat) but found it too sweet for my taste. The bride and groom met on the internet and then in Chicago. They promised to listen to our CD when they are going on their honeymoon.

Getting married is serious business in India. Many people still have arranged marriages
, where the parents will choose the bride. Some men and women have the option to refuse twice, the third time they HAVE to marry the partner chosen by their parents. But nowadays there are more and more marriages out of love. And these are often found on the internet or in newspapers. Reading the classified ads in the newspapers is quite an eye-opener. Most people demand that their partner is from the same or similar caste (with more than 1600 castes that can be a bit tricky) and special importance is put on the biodata and horoscope.

If you want to find out more about the pros and cons of arranged marriages : click here


Afterwards we went back to Vishnu's place and he found us accommodation in Ooty (our next destination). Vishnu works in logistics (textile, Coimbatore is the textile capital and often called 'The Manchester of India) but lately he wants to broaden his horizon by importing champagne and European wines. We even got a taste of some Indian wine made from Strawberries which a friend of his makes in the hills around Coonoor.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116059100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116059100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116059100/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 05:28:23 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Szczecin, Poland

In the morning Kinga took us for a healthy walk through the woods north of Gdansk. She lives in a residential area, in one of those grey block of flats which you may remember from the old documentaries during the Cold War, but the forest starts only 5 minutes from her house.
And when we left the forest, we were in the middle of dunes and then the Baltic Sea ! Such a surprise, and it was beautiful.

I took 10 copies of Kinga's book, so if somebody needs one : for only 15 euro it can be yours.

After that we left in the direction of Szczecin through one of the slowest roads I have ever seen (ok, we are exaggerating, the road from Mexico City to Tenochtitlan is even worse). But it was not our lucky day : road works, detours, road blocks, .... 300 km took us more that 6 hours effective road time, not really very fast. But the slow pace also worked to our advantage : we could take a picknick and try one of the Polish national dishes : Bigos...a dish made with sauerkraut.

In the evening we arrived at Anna and Tomek's in Szczecin (very difficult to pronounce - we are not responsible for any damage to your tongue), and they served us wonderful chocolate cake and cherries with alcohol. After that we visited the city and had a beer in a film café.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116023400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116023400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1116023400/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 05:25:40 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Gdansk, Poland

After visiting Gdansk we went to Kinga's mother, Krystyna.

Krystyna is a wonderful person, and it is easy to see where Kinga gets here love for travelling from.

For those who don't know it yet : Kinga is a young Polish woman who has been hitch-hiking for 5 years everywhere in the whole wide world. She did this with her friend, Chopin, and wrote a book about it called Led By Destiny, which is also the name of her website : www.ledbydestiny.com

And now she travels all over Europe in her red 'led-by-destiny' car, trying to get her books sold so she can leave on another adventure, this time to Africa.

Her mother, Krystyna, is something of a celebrity herself, since she is a driving force behind the "Odyssey of the Mind", a creative competion for young children. If you want to find out more : www.odysseyofthemind.com

Kinga's father let us taste some good Polish beer from Gdansk (Kaper) and after that we drove to Kinga's place where her flatmate had some vegan food for us (Lentils and spinach salad).

We had a great time at Kinga's place and she showed us her pictures of her latest trip to Rumania.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115754240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115754240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115754240/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 04:44:12 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Kaunas, Lithuania

Today we have 2 big projects :
1. a visit to the castle island of Trakai
2. a meeting with Regita in Kaunas

1. Trakai : the pride of Lithuania, one of the most pictoresque places and an ideal spot to enjoy the panorama. Unfortunately we could not visit the island because they were making a movie, but after some negociations we were allowed to go up to the bridge.

2. Kaunas : last year Frank was supposed to meet Regita te ontmoeten (BW username : Coconut) but because of some turn of fate it didn't work. But these time there was no obstacle... the meeting was warm, we visited a shrine where Ingrid received exceptionally the authorisation to place a candle herself in the chapel. But more about that tomorrow...
We also visited an airplane museum (the history of Lithuanian air travel in 15 minutes...I have never visited a museum in such a short time) and afterwards Regita made us a wonderful meal : cold beetroot soup with potatoes.

And then off to bed : why is it that Ingrid can always sleep with our female hosts, but I have to sleep on the floor ? :-(
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115665920/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115665920/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115665920/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 04:39:52 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Vilnius, Lithuania

Some short impressions about Vilnius

- more than 70 churches on such a small surface, it looked like the Vatican
- beersnacks made from fried bread, cheese and garlic
- potatoes
- trolleybusses, some older than the others
- the hills round the city, ideal for climbing and panoramic views
- potatoes
- Uzupió, an artistic 'republic' with cozy pubs and art galleries
- did I already mention 'potatoes'?
- on every corner you can find a 'Kirpykla (hairdresser's).

Tonight we are going to eat Lithuanian Pizza (Pica) and tomorrow to Trakai !
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115535480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115535480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115535480/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 04:21:19 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Vilnius, Lithuania

Frank vertelt :

Today will be the toughest day for me : 10 uur driving without much distraction. That's why I planned a route that will bring us at least some nice things to see : driving through part of the oldest forest in Europa (there are still bizons living there, unfortunately we only saw them on a bottle of Wodka).

The second kind of entertainment was paying my ex-mother-in-law a visit. Ok, ex-mother-in-law is not the right term, since Barbara and I were never married. Anyway, she was very happy to see us, and Ingrid and I received Ponczki a kind of donut but without a hole...

We had no problems at the Lithuanian border and when we picked up a hitchhiker, it turned out she was going to the same street where our friend Mintaute lives ! What a coincide !

Mintaute and Milda are two friends I met last year, and this will be the third time we met. In the evening we went to a traditional restaurant where they served typical Lithuanian food like ox tongue, smoked pig's ears and lamb slumgullion !.
Ingrid took a Zeppelin, I tried the potato sausage. Delicious !
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115502480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115502480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115502480/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 04:02:25 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Warsaw, Poland

Before leaving Turek we received a private concert from Ulisses. After that we left for Warsaw, and the trip went surprisingly fast, so we had some time to walk around town and eat a traditional Zapiekanka, a sandwich covered with mushrooms, cheese, ketchup and mayonnaise.

Afterwards we met Gosia, a fellow BeWelcome I met at Hospex Spring Camp. She showed us the old town, the walls and took us to a nice tea room where we had one of the 50 different kinds of tea on offer.

Then we went to her place where we received a warm welcome from her parents, and we tried several kinds of bread and Polish sausages.

In the evening her boyfriend came and together we watched some pictures of my travels and I also gave a slideshow of Kinga's trip around the world.

And tomorrow we hope to arrive in Vilnius around 8 pm to meet my good friend Mintaute.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115364780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115364780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/thorgal67/hoc-2005/1115364780/tpod.html Mon, 19 May 2008 04:01:19 -0400 Towards the Hill of Crosses

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Turek, Poland

This morning we went back to another Art Fair, this time in an old converted brewery in the centre of Poznan. We are not pretending that we have suddenly become art experts, but it was very interesting and impressive. There was even a Polish gallery owner who spoke Dutch !

After that we drove on to Turek where we would spend the night with Aneta and Ulisses. I had met them twice before, but for Ingrid is was the first time. And what a first time : it was Aneta's birthday, there was Mexican soup, a fantastic concert in a nice pub...

You see, Ulisses is a street musician from Oaxaca, Mexico, and he has an impressive collection of panflutes and other traditional indigenous instruments fron Central America. "El Condor Pasa" in a Polish cellar, it certainly has a nice ring to it.

It won't strike you as a surprise when I tell you we went to bed very late...and now we must rise and shine early to leave for Warsaw.
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