Well, I went to the Vatican City today and got to see the Sistine Chapel. But, if you ever come to Rome, I warn you that everything attached to the Vatican has a dress code. I faintly remember someone telling me this but I was not thinking this morning when I was getting dressed, so I put on shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt because I didn't want to get hot again. The biggest faux pas in Catholic dress code is showing bare shoulders, apparently.
As I walked through the Vatican Museum and marveled at the incredible sculpture and modern art, I was filled with the anticipation of getting to sit and admire the marvelous frescos by Michelangelo. When I finally made it to the Sistine Chapel, I was staring up at the ceiling trying to find a comfortable place to sit and observe. You do not often have the opportunity to examine such fine art first hand, seeing the actual painting of Adam touching fingers with God. All of the sudden, I felt a tap on my shoulder and a security guard asked me if I had anything to put over my shoulders. Unfortunately I had left my mink stole in my other purse, so I wasn't prepared to wrap myself up in anything. Upon answering his question, with an answer he obviously didn't care for, I was asked to leave the Chapel. Yes, I was kicked out of the Sistine Chapel. Now I can say, without lying, "I have been kicked out of nicer places than this before." But the whole time the gentleman was telling me I had to leave since I was baring my erotic and sexy shoulders, I kept wanting to say, "Dude, look up! Everyone painted on the ceiling is NAKED!!!!" I held my tongue, though. The experience did, however, make me want to cry. An art student, in Rome, studying the work of one of the greats, forced to leave for dressing too provocatively. I also wanted to point out to the guard that Michelangelo himself, would have probably enjoyed seeing my bared shoulder (and bum, but [pun intended] that is another discussion).
The only thing that really made me mad about the whole incident was that no one until then told me that I was not dressed appropriately. I had gone through a security check point and bought a ticket. Both were occasions where I could have been at least told that I would not be able to enjoy the Sistine Chapel to the degree I was anticipating. Poor form on the Pope's part in my opinion. If the Pope wants me dressed a certain way, he could have at least had the decency to put a bouncer outside his club turning people away who don't live up to his aesthetic standard. Poor form indeed!
After that, I decided not to risk standing in the long line to go to St. Peter's Basilica only to be turned away. It seemed like a pointless waste of time to be rejected twice in one day by the Catholics. Not that I hate all Catholics, just the ones in Vatican City.
I decided, instead, to spend the rest of my day using the brand new smudging stick I bought at the art store yesterday. That was a fun experience trying to explain to the non-English speaking girl at the art store what a smudging stick was. Several times she offered me the same eraser, and I kept saying no, but finally after drawing a quick doodle for her, and using my finger to smudge it, she figured it out. We both shared a good laugh about it while I paid.
I am heading to Florence tomorrow, I am thinking about catching a later train in the day so I can go back to St. Peter's in a tuxedo and possibly make it through the line. But who knows, maybe they will say the cummerbund and bow tie combination I am wearing is too offensive to go through the pearly gates.
Ciao
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Rome
Yes I am in Rome and I have already been here for one night. It is a little hard to get on the internet here for me because there aren't really a whole lot of outlets in the hostel, so I have to take refuge next to one plug to do anything with my computer.
I am having a blast in Rome. It is a really beautiful city, so I am having a lot of fun just walking around discovering what the city has to offer. Today I went to the Colosseum, the Spanish Steps, The Pantheon, the Fontana de Trevi, among many sights. I got a map from Tourist Information and it has the routes of one of the big bus tour companies so I just made sure to hit all of the big sights it stopped at.
Rome is a really remarkable city. Thousands of years of history, millions of people, and an energy that never stops. The current population of Rome is estimated at just over 11 million people. It is hard to believe that in the peak of the ancient city the population was just half of that. (14 AD pop. 4,700,000). Walking around today made me think about the current crisis in America right now. People always say, history repeats itself, so there is bound to be a time when the U.S. would fall. I don't think that is what is going to happen when history repeats itself this time.
I am going to play Devil's Advocate for a moment. What do you think is the greatest success of modern technology?
Incredible architecture? I think we can all say the Romans were pretty good at outdoing most of the buildings we see now.
Economic wealth? Romans had that one going for them as well.
Advanced Health Care? Rome had a population of 4.7 million people in 14 AD, so are we really that much healthier than they are, or are we just better at keeping the sick alive longer?
Maybe, Communication? Well the Romans did have a very elaborate communications network, it just wasn't e-mail.
Indoor Plumbing? Nope, they had that one too.
Again, Devil's advocate, I think it is safe to say, that the only thing we have really been able to do in the past 2000 years is make things happen faster. Faster construction of buildings, faster communication, faster transport, ability to spend your money (or money you don't have) faster. So what is it that I think modern technology has really given us? I would say, technology has made patience a societal impossibility. Apparently nothing is fast enough for us, unless it moves at the speed of light.
Imagine what hell would erupt if a contractor told a company that it would take 200 years to finish construction on its new headquarters. Imagine, again, it taking hours to get to the market where you buy your groceries.
Now, I agree modern technology really has given us some wonderful things. Books, instant information, an international network of business economy and culture. But what about the latter? When Rome fell, there were civilizations in Asia, (i.e. the Turks) ready to take over the fledgling society. (Not that it was very nice about doing it). But now, with the complex web of culture, information, and money, will anyone be left when the market crashes? We witness on a daily basis the effect that the weak U.S. economy is having on the rest of the world. What happens when it collapses? You may be saying there are fail safes to keep that from happening, but I remind you that I am pretty sure that the Romans thought the same thing about their economy. Nothing lasts forever? But will there be a market left once the U.S. fails? I point out the scare raised by the bird flu in Eastern Asia. People were so worried that they would somehow contract it even though they were nowhere near East Asia. How will the world be affected by this travesty? Are you prepared to deal with what that would entail, because I certainly am not!
Will the only people unaffected by this be the nomadic tribes in Africa, Central and South America, and Southeast Asia? They already have a taste of what is required to make it without money... not that they are terribly successful at it, but they have a head start.
Again, devil's advocate. This city just startles me how "advanced" they were, and with the economic and climate problems that we are seeing, I just wondered if there really is a distinction between the U.S. and the rest of the world. What would be left?
Even though I sound like I have been getting really deep on this part of my journey, that thought process was about 30 minutes out of a really great day. I highly recommend Rome. Just expect it to be warm. Even in the middle of October, I was wearing shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt, and I was still hot and humid.
Tomorrow I plan on doing the Vatican and the Relics of the Ancient City!!
I am having a blast in Rome. It is a really beautiful city, so I am having a lot of fun just walking around discovering what the city has to offer. Today I went to the Colosseum, the Spanish Steps, The Pantheon, the Fontana de Trevi, among many sights. I got a map from Tourist Information and it has the routes of one of the big bus tour companies so I just made sure to hit all of the big sights it stopped at.
Rome is a really remarkable city. Thousands of years of history, millions of people, and an energy that never stops. The current population of Rome is estimated at just over 11 million people. It is hard to believe that in the peak of the ancient city the population was just half of that. (14 AD pop. 4,700,000). Walking around today made me think about the current crisis in America right now. People always say, history repeats itself, so there is bound to be a time when the U.S. would fall. I don't think that is what is going to happen when history repeats itself this time.
I am going to play Devil's Advocate for a moment. What do you think is the greatest success of modern technology?
Incredible architecture? I think we can all say the Romans were pretty good at outdoing most of the buildings we see now.
Economic wealth? Romans had that one going for them as well.
Advanced Health Care? Rome had a population of 4.7 million people in 14 AD, so are we really that much healthier than they are, or are we just better at keeping the sick alive longer?
Maybe, Communication? Well the Romans did have a very elaborate communications network, it just wasn't e-mail.
Indoor Plumbing? Nope, they had that one too.
Again, Devil's advocate, I think it is safe to say, that the only thing we have really been able to do in the past 2000 years is make things happen faster. Faster construction of buildings, faster communication, faster transport, ability to spend your money (or money you don't have) faster. So what is it that I think modern technology has really given us? I would say, technology has made patience a societal impossibility. Apparently nothing is fast enough for us, unless it moves at the speed of light.
Imagine what hell would erupt if a contractor told a company that it would take 200 years to finish construction on its new headquarters. Imagine, again, it taking hours to get to the market where you buy your groceries.
Now, I agree modern technology really has given us some wonderful things. Books, instant information, an international network of business economy and culture. But what about the latter? When Rome fell, there were civilizations in Asia, (i.e. the Turks) ready to take over the fledgling society. (Not that it was very nice about doing it). But now, with the complex web of culture, information, and money, will anyone be left when the market crashes? We witness on a daily basis the effect that the weak U.S. economy is having on the rest of the world. What happens when it collapses? You may be saying there are fail safes to keep that from happening, but I remind you that I am pretty sure that the Romans thought the same thing about their economy. Nothing lasts forever? But will there be a market left once the U.S. fails? I point out the scare raised by the bird flu in Eastern Asia. People were so worried that they would somehow contract it even though they were nowhere near East Asia. How will the world be affected by this travesty? Are you prepared to deal with what that would entail, because I certainly am not!
Will the only people unaffected by this be the nomadic tribes in Africa, Central and South America, and Southeast Asia? They already have a taste of what is required to make it without money... not that they are terribly successful at it, but they have a head start.
Again, devil's advocate. This city just startles me how "advanced" they were, and with the economic and climate problems that we are seeing, I just wondered if there really is a distinction between the U.S. and the rest of the world. What would be left?
Even though I sound like I have been getting really deep on this part of my journey, that thought process was about 30 minutes out of a really great day. I highly recommend Rome. Just expect it to be warm. Even in the middle of October, I was wearing shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt, and I was still hot and humid.
Tomorrow I plan on doing the Vatican and the Relics of the Ancient City!!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Krakow & Auschwitz
I have made it to Krakow safe and sound although I think I have come down with a bit of a cold. Probably just from the quick changes in climate the past week or so, or Jules gave me her sniffles.
I met up with Shelley at the hostel last night, and we went out for a late bite to eat, and spent the evening catching up. She is having a wonderful time in London studying but her theatre trip to Krakow has been a little reorganized due to the fact that all the shows she wanted to see here have been sold out. Oops.
We decided today to get up early and take the tour offered by the hostel of Auschwitz Concentration Camp. What a moving experience. Per the request of the museum I did not take any pictures inside Auschwitz, and I really didn't want any pictures documenting what I saw there or me being there. The memory will be enough to serve me for the rest of my life without revisiting the sights I saw.
After an hour and a half bus ride, we were dropped off in front of Auschwitz I, the first camp in Auschwitz out of the three that were completed before the liberation in 1945. It was eerie how modern it felt in Auschwitz I, brick buildings that reminded me of many apartment complexes I have seen in the States. But you quickly remember the horrors that occurred here not that long ago. The first building we were guided through showed the construction of Auschwitz and several photocopies of some of the few remaining Nazi records about Auschwitz. First the camp was built for Polish criminals but a year after its completion was turned into a Jewish work and execution camp. You wander through these buildings on the tour where hundreds of Jews struggled to survive and most often died. We were taken to barracks that still held the original beds where Jews were forced to sleep two to a bed in something half as wide as a twin bed, three tiers high, in good conditions. It was just absolute insanity to me what I was seeing, a place where the innocent were brutally tortured and killed. It may be the first time I actually understood what the word genocide meant.
The most impacting barrack contained relics of the Jews that had been in Auschwitz. The Nazis had warehouses the prisoners referred to as "Canada" where all of the personal items taken from people were sorted and kept. Anything of value was taken by the Nazis to help the funding of the third reich. Now the artifacts remain as proof and memory of the people that were once contained in Auschwitz. In one room they had two tons of hair piled up on display. Braids, single strands, and ponytails filled a massive room incased in glass. My jaw was on the floor and the tour guide pointed out that this was only the hair from about 45,000 people. The approximate weight of the hair from all 1.5 million people executed at Auschwitz would total 67 tons. It will hit you in the gut. Other rooms displayed thousands of glasses stacked together, hundreds of thousands of shoes, luggage, bowls, and many other artifacts that once belonged to the people imprisoned at Auschwitz. Room after room filled with items collected off people after they were sent to the gas chamber.
When the Jews would arrive by train to the camp, they had been promised they were being taken to a better place where they could start a new life. Propaganda was the Nazis greatest tool, but for the Jews it seemed better for them to simply believe the propaganda than believe the stories of what was actually going on. Once on the platform at Auschwitz, SS doctors would sort the people into two groups, ones who looked healthy enough for work and those whom they believed weak. The weak group was led off to take a "shower." Told to strip down, remember where they left their belongings so they could retrieve them later, and rushed into a gas chamber decorated with fake shower heads hanging from the ceiling. These people had no idea what was going on. Lie after Lie.
We walked through the "prison inside a prison" at Auschwitz, Barrack 10. A place where people were sent to be "punished" and judged by the Gestapo. The basement was filled with cells used to starve, suffocate, and cripple men. No one ever left Barrack 10 alive. I can't even explain the feeling you get when walking through a place like that, seeing the etchings in the walls left by men trapped inside.
Finally in Auschwitz I, we were led to the only remaining gas chamber. (All other gas chambers and incinerators were destroyed by the Germans). It was devastating to be forced into this room in a line of tourists, stepping into the room that was the last stop for tens of thousands of people, many of whom had no idea what their outcome would be. They were just going for a much needed shower. It was appalling to see how close the Gestapo's home was to the chamber. A place where he raised a family and kept a garden for his wife. Prisoners could hear his children playing in their front yard as they stripped naked before entering the Zyklon B filled chamber. It was terrifying.
After Auschwitz I, we were taken to Brikenau, the largest of the three camps under the heading of Auschwitz. All of the barracks here were constructed of wood planks by the prisoners themselves. Today very few of the hundreds of barracks in Birkenau still stand, but as you look out over the expansive field, you see grass littered with still standing chimneys of where each barrack once stood. When the area was repopulated after the liberation, people would go to the unprotected camp and steal the wood from the barracks to construct their homes. Many of the homes standing in near by areas are built out of the concentration camp.
That was the thing I struggled the most with internally, the idea of working to preserve this place. In one spot there were actually construction workers re-roofing one of the barracks. At first I was disturbed by the idea of maintaining Auschwitz. But that is when I realized in order to honor the memory of the people that were held in this sick place, you have to remember the terrible acts committed against them by the Germans. It was just such a weird concept to me, "rebuilding" Auschwitz.
Needless to say, Shelley and I were exhausted after our visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau, so we had a bit of lunch afterwards, walked around, and had some riveting political and social debates. It will definitely be an experience I will never forget.
I met up with Shelley at the hostel last night, and we went out for a late bite to eat, and spent the evening catching up. She is having a wonderful time in London studying but her theatre trip to Krakow has been a little reorganized due to the fact that all the shows she wanted to see here have been sold out. Oops.
We decided today to get up early and take the tour offered by the hostel of Auschwitz Concentration Camp. What a moving experience. Per the request of the museum I did not take any pictures inside Auschwitz, and I really didn't want any pictures documenting what I saw there or me being there. The memory will be enough to serve me for the rest of my life without revisiting the sights I saw.
After an hour and a half bus ride, we were dropped off in front of Auschwitz I, the first camp in Auschwitz out of the three that were completed before the liberation in 1945. It was eerie how modern it felt in Auschwitz I, brick buildings that reminded me of many apartment complexes I have seen in the States. But you quickly remember the horrors that occurred here not that long ago. The first building we were guided through showed the construction of Auschwitz and several photocopies of some of the few remaining Nazi records about Auschwitz. First the camp was built for Polish criminals but a year after its completion was turned into a Jewish work and execution camp. You wander through these buildings on the tour where hundreds of Jews struggled to survive and most often died. We were taken to barracks that still held the original beds where Jews were forced to sleep two to a bed in something half as wide as a twin bed, three tiers high, in good conditions. It was just absolute insanity to me what I was seeing, a place where the innocent were brutally tortured and killed. It may be the first time I actually understood what the word genocide meant.
The most impacting barrack contained relics of the Jews that had been in Auschwitz. The Nazis had warehouses the prisoners referred to as "Canada" where all of the personal items taken from people were sorted and kept. Anything of value was taken by the Nazis to help the funding of the third reich. Now the artifacts remain as proof and memory of the people that were once contained in Auschwitz. In one room they had two tons of hair piled up on display. Braids, single strands, and ponytails filled a massive room incased in glass. My jaw was on the floor and the tour guide pointed out that this was only the hair from about 45,000 people. The approximate weight of the hair from all 1.5 million people executed at Auschwitz would total 67 tons. It will hit you in the gut. Other rooms displayed thousands of glasses stacked together, hundreds of thousands of shoes, luggage, bowls, and many other artifacts that once belonged to the people imprisoned at Auschwitz. Room after room filled with items collected off people after they were sent to the gas chamber.
When the Jews would arrive by train to the camp, they had been promised they were being taken to a better place where they could start a new life. Propaganda was the Nazis greatest tool, but for the Jews it seemed better for them to simply believe the propaganda than believe the stories of what was actually going on. Once on the platform at Auschwitz, SS doctors would sort the people into two groups, ones who looked healthy enough for work and those whom they believed weak. The weak group was led off to take a "shower." Told to strip down, remember where they left their belongings so they could retrieve them later, and rushed into a gas chamber decorated with fake shower heads hanging from the ceiling. These people had no idea what was going on. Lie after Lie.
We walked through the "prison inside a prison" at Auschwitz, Barrack 10. A place where people were sent to be "punished" and judged by the Gestapo. The basement was filled with cells used to starve, suffocate, and cripple men. No one ever left Barrack 10 alive. I can't even explain the feeling you get when walking through a place like that, seeing the etchings in the walls left by men trapped inside.
Finally in Auschwitz I, we were led to the only remaining gas chamber. (All other gas chambers and incinerators were destroyed by the Germans). It was devastating to be forced into this room in a line of tourists, stepping into the room that was the last stop for tens of thousands of people, many of whom had no idea what their outcome would be. They were just going for a much needed shower. It was appalling to see how close the Gestapo's home was to the chamber. A place where he raised a family and kept a garden for his wife. Prisoners could hear his children playing in their front yard as they stripped naked before entering the Zyklon B filled chamber. It was terrifying.
After Auschwitz I, we were taken to Brikenau, the largest of the three camps under the heading of Auschwitz. All of the barracks here were constructed of wood planks by the prisoners themselves. Today very few of the hundreds of barracks in Birkenau still stand, but as you look out over the expansive field, you see grass littered with still standing chimneys of where each barrack once stood. When the area was repopulated after the liberation, people would go to the unprotected camp and steal the wood from the barracks to construct their homes. Many of the homes standing in near by areas are built out of the concentration camp.
That was the thing I struggled the most with internally, the idea of working to preserve this place. In one spot there were actually construction workers re-roofing one of the barracks. At first I was disturbed by the idea of maintaining Auschwitz. But that is when I realized in order to honor the memory of the people that were held in this sick place, you have to remember the terrible acts committed against them by the Germans. It was just such a weird concept to me, "rebuilding" Auschwitz.
Needless to say, Shelley and I were exhausted after our visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau, so we had a bit of lunch afterwards, walked around, and had some riveting political and social debates. It will definitely be an experience I will never forget.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Saturday in Prague
Today was an interesting day in Prague. Interesting and exciting! I started the day a little later than I had hoped, seeing as how the girls I am sharing a room with kept me up fairly late into the morning, getting in around 5am. I went to bed a little late after booking my hostel in Krakow and my flight from Krakow to Milan. (Milan was not my desired destination, but it is pretty close to Rome. At least it is in the same country.). And the flight didn't cost me too terribly much, thanks RyanAir!
By the time I did get a start on my day, I was feeling quite energetic. I only had two goals for the day: find an art supply store to by a smudging stick so I don't have to use my finger any more, and meet up with Jules, the girl I traveled with in Vienna and Warsaw. She arrived in Prague late last night, is staying in a different hostel, and today is her birthday, so we tried to arrange a place and time to meet up and hang out. Jules had a couple of other friends visiting Prague so I was going to meet them as well. On my way to the center of town, I stopped at the train station and got a reservation to Krakow for tomorrow, so I didn't need to worry about getting to the station extremely early, just early enough so that I don't miss my train, again!
After an hour or so of walking around the Old Town looking for an art store and keeping my eyes and ears open for Jules, I ran into the girls I am sharing a room with. They asked what I was up to and recommended I go across the river since they had seen some art stores in that area. One exclaimed, "They had everything including colored pencils." Well Wal-mart has colored pencils, but I thought, I am not having any luck here, so what would it hurt to cross the bridge. This is when my day took an exciting turn.
I was just about a block from the Charles Bridge when I looked across the street and recognized a face in the crowed. Jules you might ask, no, in fact it was a fella I shared a room with in Vienna, Andrew. He was with another girl I knew from Vienna, Sophie, and two friends they had made on a pub crawl in Prague the night before. I crossed the street and surprised them to death. I do believe I was the last person they expected to see in Prague, since I certainly wasn't expecting to run into them there. After Vienna, Sophie went to Budapest, and Andrew went to Venice (and apparently the rest of Italy). We all had a good laugh about the odds of running into each other, and I was introduced to Tiffany from Melbourne, and Jacob from Sweden. The four of them were headed across the bridge as well, so I decided to walk with them for a bit. I filled them in on a few of the interesting tidbits I had learned on my walking tour, trying not to sound too know-it-all-ish, and they asked me to join them as their tour guide. I did my best.
The five of us spent the afternoon together, walking around Prague, and I took them to a fun restaurant that I had been to the night before that served cheap Czech cuisine. I didn't remember the portions being as large as they were, but the night before I had eaten conservative old chicken pasta, while tonight I had Pork neck (which is excellent). It was a great meal, and we all lost total track of time. Around 7:30 when we had finished and paid our tab (848 Crowns/ appx. $45 for the five of us) we headed on the metro to their hostel for an after dinner drink.
Of course, one after dinner drink turned into a couple, and I ended up leaving at around 1:30am after a stop at McDonalds with the gang for a late night snack. This is when the story gets a bit interesting. I didn't have a map all day, so before leaving their hostel, I picked one up so I could find my way home. After consulting the wise map, I realized I was just due south of my hostel and made a rough route home. Well, about a third of the way home, I realized I had dropped the map somewhere along my route and was without map. And the only "address" I had for my hostel was "It is on the street that looks kind of like 'chimichanga.'" Needless to say I got a bit worried, and realized I had two choices: turn back and get another map (which I would then staple to my body) or keep going. I chose the latter. I sort of knew where I was, I had a major landmark in vision, and I knew the direction to head. I walked in this manner for about 15 minutes, making it several more blocks, when I saw another hostel. I now view hostels as the all-knowing location of information. I tried pulling on the door and of course it was locked being almost 2am, but as I was walking off, I heard the sound of buzzing, meaning the door had been buzzed open. I walked in, told the guy I was a bit lost, and asked if he had a map. Well of course he did, an identical replacement to the one I had lost. Once I had it in my hands and figured out my location on it, I realized I was 3 blocks from my hostel. Incredible I would say. From there it was an easy walk home, but there were those 20 minutes where I was scared (pardon my french) shitless, yet I just kept walking. So when in a foreign country alone, keep dozens of maps on you as well as dozens of the hotel's business cards on you, so you don't have that situation (unless you enjoy living on the edge while a little drunk).
All in all it was a wonderful and surprising day, and I am not in the least bit disappointed that I did not in any way shape or form achieve any of the two goals I started my day with. I would have loved to see Jules on her birthday, but I am sure we both had a good day regardless. I say, live for days like this one, when nothing goes as planned, but everything goes right!
By the time I did get a start on my day, I was feeling quite energetic. I only had two goals for the day: find an art supply store to by a smudging stick so I don't have to use my finger any more, and meet up with Jules, the girl I traveled with in Vienna and Warsaw. She arrived in Prague late last night, is staying in a different hostel, and today is her birthday, so we tried to arrange a place and time to meet up and hang out. Jules had a couple of other friends visiting Prague so I was going to meet them as well. On my way to the center of town, I stopped at the train station and got a reservation to Krakow for tomorrow, so I didn't need to worry about getting to the station extremely early, just early enough so that I don't miss my train, again!
After an hour or so of walking around the Old Town looking for an art store and keeping my eyes and ears open for Jules, I ran into the girls I am sharing a room with. They asked what I was up to and recommended I go across the river since they had seen some art stores in that area. One exclaimed, "They had everything including colored pencils." Well Wal-mart has colored pencils, but I thought, I am not having any luck here, so what would it hurt to cross the bridge. This is when my day took an exciting turn.
I was just about a block from the Charles Bridge when I looked across the street and recognized a face in the crowed. Jules you might ask, no, in fact it was a fella I shared a room with in Vienna, Andrew. He was with another girl I knew from Vienna, Sophie, and two friends they had made on a pub crawl in Prague the night before. I crossed the street and surprised them to death. I do believe I was the last person they expected to see in Prague, since I certainly wasn't expecting to run into them there. After Vienna, Sophie went to Budapest, and Andrew went to Venice (and apparently the rest of Italy). We all had a good laugh about the odds of running into each other, and I was introduced to Tiffany from Melbourne, and Jacob from Sweden. The four of them were headed across the bridge as well, so I decided to walk with them for a bit. I filled them in on a few of the interesting tidbits I had learned on my walking tour, trying not to sound too know-it-all-ish, and they asked me to join them as their tour guide. I did my best.
The five of us spent the afternoon together, walking around Prague, and I took them to a fun restaurant that I had been to the night before that served cheap Czech cuisine. I didn't remember the portions being as large as they were, but the night before I had eaten conservative old chicken pasta, while tonight I had Pork neck (which is excellent). It was a great meal, and we all lost total track of time. Around 7:30 when we had finished and paid our tab (848 Crowns/ appx. $45 for the five of us) we headed on the metro to their hostel for an after dinner drink.
Of course, one after dinner drink turned into a couple, and I ended up leaving at around 1:30am after a stop at McDonalds with the gang for a late night snack. This is when the story gets a bit interesting. I didn't have a map all day, so before leaving their hostel, I picked one up so I could find my way home. After consulting the wise map, I realized I was just due south of my hostel and made a rough route home. Well, about a third of the way home, I realized I had dropped the map somewhere along my route and was without map. And the only "address" I had for my hostel was "It is on the street that looks kind of like 'chimichanga.'" Needless to say I got a bit worried, and realized I had two choices: turn back and get another map (which I would then staple to my body) or keep going. I chose the latter. I sort of knew where I was, I had a major landmark in vision, and I knew the direction to head. I walked in this manner for about 15 minutes, making it several more blocks, when I saw another hostel. I now view hostels as the all-knowing location of information. I tried pulling on the door and of course it was locked being almost 2am, but as I was walking off, I heard the sound of buzzing, meaning the door had been buzzed open. I walked in, told the guy I was a bit lost, and asked if he had a map. Well of course he did, an identical replacement to the one I had lost. Once I had it in my hands and figured out my location on it, I realized I was 3 blocks from my hostel. Incredible I would say. From there it was an easy walk home, but there were those 20 minutes where I was scared (pardon my french) shitless, yet I just kept walking. So when in a foreign country alone, keep dozens of maps on you as well as dozens of the hotel's business cards on you, so you don't have that situation (unless you enjoy living on the edge while a little drunk).
All in all it was a wonderful and surprising day, and I am not in the least bit disappointed that I did not in any way shape or form achieve any of the two goals I started my day with. I would have loved to see Jules on her birthday, but I am sure we both had a good day regardless. I say, live for days like this one, when nothing goes as planned, but everything goes right!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Another day in Prague
Well the Astronomical Clock in the Old Town Square goes off every hour from 9am to 9pm, which it has been doing for the past 700 years. YEAH THAT'S RIGHT 700 YEARS!!! They say that when you stand and watch the clock chime that you should shake your head, "no," because the 3 chaps on the clock with Death are saying "no it is not time for death" by shaking their heads, so if you do it to you will live forever. I tried it, but it is a long time to shake your head and not look crazy, so I failed at sustaining it.
I tried to save some money today, after spending way more than I anticipated yesterday by just strolling around the city and stopping to sketch whenever I felt compelled to do so. It was a lovely way to spend the day, especially after doing 7 hours of tours yesterday. This way I could go at my own pace. A lot of the architecture in the city reminds me of the buildings in Disney's Sleeping Beauty, so I found myself doodling Malificent at one point. I ended up going out for a bit last night, and that's when the spending hit the fan for me. I really am holding true to my belief that the more you like a city, the more money you spend there. Prague is fairly cheap, but there is just so much to do, that I tried to do it all yesterday (unsuccessfully of course, but I made a dent in it). So I have put myself on a very strict budget for the next week or so to recoup some of my loses. (It sounds as though I was gambling when I say it like that, if only I had had the opportunity or possibility of winning my money back.) I thought I might look up ways I could work on the black market selling fake passports, or fake designer handbags, but then I realized I have a few morals left, they may not be many, but they're there. I say sticking to a little bit tighter budget will do the job, maybe not as quickly, though, and without the awesome stories that start, "Well, when I was working on the
black market..."
I think Prague is a must see city. With the fall of communism so recent, all of the people here really understand what the word "freedom" means, making them extremely friendly and more than willing to lend a helping hand. The architecture is exquisite, the streets are full of poetic justice, and you never know when you are going to stumble on a bullet hole or two left by the Russians. (The huge museum in New Town is covered in them.)
We will see what tomorrow has in store for me. Hopefully something cheap, or even better FREE!
I tried to save some money today, after spending way more than I anticipated yesterday by just strolling around the city and stopping to sketch whenever I felt compelled to do so. It was a lovely way to spend the day, especially after doing 7 hours of tours yesterday. This way I could go at my own pace. A lot of the architecture in the city reminds me of the buildings in Disney's Sleeping Beauty, so I found myself doodling Malificent at one point. I ended up going out for a bit last night, and that's when the spending hit the fan for me. I really am holding true to my belief that the more you like a city, the more money you spend there. Prague is fairly cheap, but there is just so much to do, that I tried to do it all yesterday (unsuccessfully of course, but I made a dent in it). So I have put myself on a very strict budget for the next week or so to recoup some of my loses. (It sounds as though I was gambling when I say it like that, if only I had had the opportunity or possibility of winning my money back.) I thought I might look up ways I could work on the black market selling fake passports, or fake designer handbags, but then I realized I have a few morals left, they may not be many, but they're there. I say sticking to a little bit tighter budget will do the job, maybe not as quickly, though, and without the awesome stories that start, "Well, when I was working on the
black market..."
I think Prague is a must see city. With the fall of communism so recent, all of the people here really understand what the word "freedom" means, making them extremely friendly and more than willing to lend a helping hand. The architecture is exquisite, the streets are full of poetic justice, and you never know when you are going to stumble on a bullet hole or two left by the Russians. (The huge museum in New Town is covered in them.)
We will see what tomorrow has in store for me. Hopefully something cheap, or even better FREE!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Prague, Czech
I made it to Prague yesterday evening, after a long train ride (9 hours) from Warsaw. I am learning quickly that long days of traveling mean long hours of recovery, so once I found my hostel (without a map or directions, only the memory of briefly seeing its location on google maps) I decided to have a calm quite night in. I took that time to plan for the day ahead. I have begun to see why Lonely Planet guides are so popular; it is nice to have a little bit of research done on a city before one gets there. The hostel (run by two Canadian friends, who decided one day to pick up and leave Canada to open a hostel in Prague) was full of information on tours, sights, and events.
Today I ended up taking "The Ultimate Tour" of Prague. It was a little more than what I would normally spend on a tour, $65, but it came highly recommended by the guy from the hostel, and seemed to include lots of different tour types. The tour lasted 6 hours (twice that of Gilligan's Tour) and included walking tours, a boat tour on the Vltava River, and a tram tour to the Prague Castle (The Guinness Book for largest Castle in the world). The tour included lunch and a free pass to come back to do their Ghost Trail Tour, so I thought that $65 was quite a steal. I learned loads about the city over the 6 hours, had some great food, meet some fun people, and developed an overall love of Prague.
Even though the map of Prague is quite big, it is really an easy city to walk. (Except for this one intersection near my hostel that gets a little tricky). Our guide actually had his degree in history and up until 4 years ago, all tour guides in the city had to take an exam in order to legally work as a tour guide, so he knew loads. Per his advice I think I am going to go see Rigoletto at the National Opera tomorrow night.
Once the tour was over I decided to take in a few more sights around the main part of Prague while I waited for the Ghost Trail tour to start at 8:30. This is just a beautiful city, and it makes me laugh how the communist buildings stick out like sore thumbs. (After seeing what Europeans refer to as a "Communist Buildings," which I know were in fact built by communists, I marvel at how all contemporary American architecture looks "Communist". Does that mean something about all of our architects in the States? Do they all have some sort of hidden Communist agenda? LOL).
The Ghost Trail was great, just 5 of us on the tour. I believe it was a small group because of the rain, but the wet weather added to the charm of starting all the stories with "It was a dark and stormy night." Most of the tour was just legends, although we did get a little Czech history mixed in, and every once in a while a guy dressed in costume would jump out at us from behind a corner scaring us to death. Well worth it. The Czech accent made the stories especially creepy, and when I couldn't understand her I would just insert horrible, gruesome words that probably made the stories way scarier than what she was actually telling. I think I also taught her a few slang terms for the word "prostitute" because in one of the stories she said "prostitute" a dozen times, so I thought she might like to spice it up by saying things like: "streetwalker", "hooker", "wench", "lady of the night", and of course "whore." That way she wouldn't have to say prostitute" so many times in such a strange accent.
After such a long day of touring, in the rain, I think I am going to spend a nice night indoors, relaxing and planning for tomorrow. I did skip out on the Pub Crawl that a bunch of other people were going on, but I really prefer walking. Crawling is hard on my old knees.
Today I ended up taking "The Ultimate Tour" of Prague. It was a little more than what I would normally spend on a tour, $65, but it came highly recommended by the guy from the hostel, and seemed to include lots of different tour types. The tour lasted 6 hours (twice that of Gilligan's Tour) and included walking tours, a boat tour on the Vltava River, and a tram tour to the Prague Castle (The Guinness Book for largest Castle in the world). The tour included lunch and a free pass to come back to do their Ghost Trail Tour, so I thought that $65 was quite a steal. I learned loads about the city over the 6 hours, had some great food, meet some fun people, and developed an overall love of Prague.
Even though the map of Prague is quite big, it is really an easy city to walk. (Except for this one intersection near my hostel that gets a little tricky). Our guide actually had his degree in history and up until 4 years ago, all tour guides in the city had to take an exam in order to legally work as a tour guide, so he knew loads. Per his advice I think I am going to go see Rigoletto at the National Opera tomorrow night.
Once the tour was over I decided to take in a few more sights around the main part of Prague while I waited for the Ghost Trail tour to start at 8:30. This is just a beautiful city, and it makes me laugh how the communist buildings stick out like sore thumbs. (After seeing what Europeans refer to as a "Communist Buildings," which I know were in fact built by communists, I marvel at how all contemporary American architecture looks "Communist". Does that mean something about all of our architects in the States? Do they all have some sort of hidden Communist agenda? LOL).
The Ghost Trail was great, just 5 of us on the tour. I believe it was a small group because of the rain, but the wet weather added to the charm of starting all the stories with "It was a dark and stormy night." Most of the tour was just legends, although we did get a little Czech history mixed in, and every once in a while a guy dressed in costume would jump out at us from behind a corner scaring us to death. Well worth it. The Czech accent made the stories especially creepy, and when I couldn't understand her I would just insert horrible, gruesome words that probably made the stories way scarier than what she was actually telling. I think I also taught her a few slang terms for the word "prostitute" because in one of the stories she said "prostitute" a dozen times, so I thought she might like to spice it up by saying things like: "streetwalker", "hooker", "wench", "lady of the night", and of course "whore." That way she wouldn't have to say prostitute" so many times in such a strange accent.
After such a long day of touring, in the rain, I think I am going to spend a nice night indoors, relaxing and planning for tomorrow. I did skip out on the Pub Crawl that a bunch of other people were going on, but I really prefer walking. Crawling is hard on my old knees.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Warsaw, Poland
Warsaw has been an interesting experience. The weather here hasn't been great which I think has added a bit to the less than stellar experience I have had here. (A sea of white in the sky all day when you are sight seeing tends to make it a little slower paced. Plus with the low cloud cover it gets difficult to see the tops of the taller buildings.) I can deal with a little overcast weather, but I think Poland would be a much different experience in the summer.
It was also a little weird because the woman at the tourist information desk at the train station was a little off with some of her advice. She got a little crazy with her ball-point pen and our map of the city. She circled a bunch of areas and made some illegible notes on it that covered a good portion of the map I had. On the first day Jules and I were here, we walked to the historic old town and Jewish district (where they forced all the Jews to live during WWII, behind these huge brick walls).
We decided to get a bite to eat and headed to an area circled on our map thinking it was a place that the woman at the tourist desk suggested as a good place to eat. Well, I don't think we actually saw a single restaurant in the entire area, so we walked across the river to the west side of the city where the woman said there was a large arts community that had made the area really trendy. We thought, "artists need to eat, I bet we can find food there." At first when we were walking around we kept thinking, "maybe this is 'Polish Trendy,'" since the stores were nothing impressive and there was no real arts influence visible. Finally, we stumbled on this small hole in the wall place that had a limited menu, but we were starving, and I would have eaten dog or cat as long as it came with something to dip it in. The menu did include Kielbasa which I knew was some sort of sausage and since it was Poland we both thought sausage was appropriate. However, we did also get a plate of spaghetti because it is hard to mess up spaghetti, a safe bet.
After dinner, Jules and I continued to walk around the 'trendy' part of Warsaw, but only stumbled on a Mall, where she bought a much needed SIM Card. The mall was really the arty-est thing we saw... LOL. But after the long train ride and a day of walking, we were both very tired so we went back to the hostel to regroup for the next day.
Today we went back to the Old Town, in order to see it during the daytime. It was really impressive and beautiful, and the Jewish section was just incredible. It was powerful to see the walls that segregated all of the Jews into an area where they would be starved and shot by the Nazis. Now they have turned most of the area into a park, but there is an enormous monument in honor of the Jewish Community. After walking there, we decided to go to an area not circled on our map by the woman at the tourist desk. It ended up being GREAT. Filled with life, shopping, restaurants, and nightlife. We learned, don't go to anywhere circled on the map in black pen. We walked around, did some window shopping, and ended up seeing "The Women" in a movie theater. It was not dubbed, so I was able to understand what was going on, and it was nice to just sit and relax after a full day of walking.
All in all, Warsaw was not terrible. I just wish we had gotten a little better info at the train station. Jules and I would probably not have wasted an entire day walking around "dead" areas. I also learned to trust the LonelyPlanet when it says "that area is not very popular with tourists" generally means, nothing to do.
Tomorrow I am heading to Prague. My friend, Shelley from Webster, is going to be in Krakow on Saturday, so I think I will head back to Krakow to meet up with her, and we can see Auschwitz together, which means I leave Jules tomorrow. It was fun getting to know someone, and travel a bit with them, but at the same time, it will be nice to get back to my solo lifestyle. I have slowly learned to love being out on my own.
It was also a little weird because the woman at the tourist information desk at the train station was a little off with some of her advice. She got a little crazy with her ball-point pen and our map of the city. She circled a bunch of areas and made some illegible notes on it that covered a good portion of the map I had. On the first day Jules and I were here, we walked to the historic old town and Jewish district (where they forced all the Jews to live during WWII, behind these huge brick walls).
We decided to get a bite to eat and headed to an area circled on our map thinking it was a place that the woman at the tourist desk suggested as a good place to eat. Well, I don't think we actually saw a single restaurant in the entire area, so we walked across the river to the west side of the city where the woman said there was a large arts community that had made the area really trendy. We thought, "artists need to eat, I bet we can find food there." At first when we were walking around we kept thinking, "maybe this is 'Polish Trendy,'" since the stores were nothing impressive and there was no real arts influence visible. Finally, we stumbled on this small hole in the wall place that had a limited menu, but we were starving, and I would have eaten dog or cat as long as it came with something to dip it in. The menu did include Kielbasa which I knew was some sort of sausage and since it was Poland we both thought sausage was appropriate. However, we did also get a plate of spaghetti because it is hard to mess up spaghetti, a safe bet.
After dinner, Jules and I continued to walk around the 'trendy' part of Warsaw, but only stumbled on a Mall, where she bought a much needed SIM Card. The mall was really the arty-est thing we saw... LOL. But after the long train ride and a day of walking, we were both very tired so we went back to the hostel to regroup for the next day.
Today we went back to the Old Town, in order to see it during the daytime. It was really impressive and beautiful, and the Jewish section was just incredible. It was powerful to see the walls that segregated all of the Jews into an area where they would be starved and shot by the Nazis. Now they have turned most of the area into a park, but there is an enormous monument in honor of the Jewish Community. After walking there, we decided to go to an area not circled on our map by the woman at the tourist desk. It ended up being GREAT. Filled with life, shopping, restaurants, and nightlife. We learned, don't go to anywhere circled on the map in black pen. We walked around, did some window shopping, and ended up seeing "The Women" in a movie theater. It was not dubbed, so I was able to understand what was going on, and it was nice to just sit and relax after a full day of walking.
All in all, Warsaw was not terrible. I just wish we had gotten a little better info at the train station. Jules and I would probably not have wasted an entire day walking around "dead" areas. I also learned to trust the LonelyPlanet when it says "that area is not very popular with tourists" generally means, nothing to do.
Tomorrow I am heading to Prague. My friend, Shelley from Webster, is going to be in Krakow on Saturday, so I think I will head back to Krakow to meet up with her, and we can see Auschwitz together, which means I leave Jules tomorrow. It was fun getting to know someone, and travel a bit with them, but at the same time, it will be nice to get back to my solo lifestyle. I have slowly learned to love being out on my own.
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