Czech, Czech, Czech, Czech, Czech Ch-Check It Out!

On Friday, Morgan and I did a walking tour of Prague.  It was a free tour with our guide receiving tips at the end.  Our guide, a self-proclaimed nerd, Filip (also with a self-proclaimed name status of being most economical for spelling) was absolutely terrific.  Learning English form British and American television, he had an interesting blended accent.

He showed us some of the best sites in Prague. We saw the large cathedral and Astronomical Clock in the central square. He also showed us one of Mozart's concert halls.  He took us around the Jewish ghetto, showing is the Spanish synagogue, the Jewish Cemetary, the Jewish Museum.  Filip also discussed the long and tumultuous history of Prague and the Czech Republic. From the Protestant/Catholic conflicts of the old past to the Communist conflict of the recent past. Prague has been through a lot!

 The Rudolfinium - a concert hall in Prague 

A statue of a ghost (dementor) outside of the Mozart Theatre

After our walking tour Morgan and I sighed up for a pub crawl. The first pub we went to was nice and laid back.  We met four travellers: Stefano and Laura from Italy and Camille and Simon from Quebec.  The second pub was a bit strange.  It was pajama party themed and there were feathers all over the dance floor.  Patrons were encouraged to throw them up in the air and spin and dance and spin and dance like a bunch of idiotic pixie fairies.  I don't get it. Also let be real here.  What if someone had an allergic reaction!!?!?  The third bar was underground, overcrowded, and had poor air circulation.  These are all ingredients for a sweaty, stanky ball pit.  So the six of us went to McDick's! Delish! Exotic!

The following day, our hostel mates and we went to the town of Kutná Hora just outside of Prague.  We joined Hannah from Australia and Lexi from Vancouver to the ossuary there.  The ossuary, built from an old church, contained sculptures and structures made from up to 40,000 skeletons. It was phenomenal and very ethereal. 

Outside the ossuary

Some skulls

The Schwarzenberg coat of arm bones 

Bone sculpture? Put a bird on it!

A chandelier 

The bone church was so great to see.  Mom, take note for Halloween decorations!

After getting back from from Kutná Hora, Morgan and I went to a medieval themed dinner and show.  The building was over 600 years old, and there were fire-blowers, belly dancers, and actors to accompany our meal.  The entertainment was outstanding, and we met some pretty interesting people, a couple from Germany on holiday and two Canadian (always Canadian...) students who were doing internships with NATO and the UN in Europe this summer.  The whole dinner was a great experience.

Our last day in Prague, Morgan and I went to see the Prague Castle and of course the Sex Machine Museum!  There our little brains were penetrated with interesting facts about the history of sex toys.  Very...intriguing.  We also watched a short porno film from 1925 and could possibly be the first recording of "canoodling" with more than two participants!  We've apparently come a long way from that to now. E.g. Bukake (not a Greek meal, well not necessarily).

We then went to the train station to head to Berlin.  Unfortunately, our train was delayed....  It took 70 minutes longer to get to Prague, and we were delayed a total of 2 hours and 45 min to get to Berlin.  Get all the travel delays!!

But we did finally make it to Berlin.  Ich bin ein Berliner!!

Berliner

Toodles!

The Great Linen Race Update 1

For those who are new to the Great Linen Race, we will be keeping track of which hostels provide linens (point for Eric) and those that don't, requiring me to use my packed sleeping bag (point for Hilary).  We are now providing the first update in the Great Linen Race for Salzburg and Prague.

Salzburg - Meininger Hostel - provided linens 

Prague - Hostel Mango - provided linens

Eric 4

Hilary 0

Thank you for this linen service announcement. I think Hilary is feeling the common trend here "looming" in the future.

Praha-ha: A Day of Funnies

And by funnies I mean frustrations and travel delays.  We were planning on leaving Salzburg by train at around 11:00am.  We were to train to Munich where we were to catch a bus to Prague.  Due to the flooding though, our train to Munich was cancelled.  We once again had to train through Müldorf to get to Munich.  Müldorf is becoming one of our most favorite cities it seems....  This, however, resulted in us missing our bus to Prague.  We then had to catch a later bus there at 3:50pm instead of our proposed time of 12:50pm, which of course resulted in us getting to Prague 3 hours later than planned.  Woo! 

We finally made it to Prague around 9:00pm.  And then we had to get to the hostel.  I kind of feel that I am in a video game of sorts.  By the time we get to a new city, figure out the transit system, become acquainted with it, we are off to a new location. The next level! Upgrade! I suppose we are now on level three (considering Frankfurt as tutorial).  Here's hoping we don't loose all of our lives and at least collect a few power-ups alone the way.

Super Mario

Making it to our hostel around 10pm was very much welcomed.  We basically got settled and hit the hay.  However, none of our 8 other roomies were there yet.  But they got back...at night...pretty loudly.  Oh well, travels are supposed to be fun, no biggie. However, I hope the girl below me had a biggie.  She brought a man home that evening for some "canoodling." 

Canoodling 

So now we are here about to start our first real day in Prague.  Wish us well!

The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Music...and LIES!!!

Getting to Salzburg was a bit of an experience.  Due to all the rain that Germany and Austria has been receiving lately, our original train to Salzburg was cancelled.  This was a pretty common occurrence as we met a group of three Pennsylvanian girls who were also trekking through Europe, and two other of their trains were cancelled earlier that day!  We were informed by the train station workers, however, that we could get on a train, transfer at the small town of Müldorf, and head onward to Salzburg.  That is just what we did.

At our hostel, we met a pair of travelers from the exotic land of Calgary.  They both finished up exchanges in Europe and were traveling around before heading home.  We joined these two lovely girls in the hostel bar for a few beverages.  They mentioned that they would be going on the Sound of Music Tour the next day.  The Sound of Music was filmed in Salzburg, carrying in the footsteps of the real life story line of the Salzburger family, the singing Von Trapps.  It sounded like the tchotchke tourist shit I know and love.  So we decided we would go on that tour as well.

The following day we headed out on our Sound of Music Tour.  Much to my initial dismay, but eventually it came around as Schadenfreude thinking about all the distraught crazo-fans there are for this film, we discovered many inconsistencies between the Hollywood film the Sound of Music and the actual life story of the Von Trapp family.  Here are just some of the cinematographic horrors and untruths that took place:

1. Firstly, the film version used two different settings for the Von Trapp family home.  The real home here in Salzburg for the front of the house, and the Leopoldskron Palace, for the back of the house and the lake scenes.  These two locales are actually across town from one another.  The Von Trapp family home doesn't even rest on the lake! 

The Gazebo used in filming - found outside the Von Trapp family home

2. Rolf, the Nazi mailboy, never existed in real life.  Good! He was a jerk anyway!

Rolf - a total d-bag

3.  The mountain that Maria claimed as her own at the beginning of the film is about 10km away from the Nonnberg Abbey, where she runs to after hearing the bells chime, in about three minutes.  Fräulein Maria can really shit book it!

4. Those same mountains the Von Trapps climb at the end of the film to escape to Switzerland to avoid the Nazi regime in Austria, don't actually lead to Switzerland. They border Austria with Germany.  Geography was apparently not "one of their favorite things."

5.  And lastly the Von Trapp family didn't actually escape through Switzerland.  They boarded a train to Italy before eventually ending in Vermont.

These facts both shocked and sickened me.  Well, actually I could care less.  Come on people, it's a movie.  Cool your jets. Not everything can be wrapped up in brown paper packages tied up with strings you know.

The tour also took us the the grand countryside of Austria.  The hills and the mountainscape in the distance were astonishing. We drove to the town of Mondsee, which hosts the cathedral used in the wedding scene in the film.  Even though they were actually married at the abbey in Salzburg (another lie!!).

Cathedral in Mondsee

After the tour, we wandered though the Mirabell Garten where the children ran through during the iconic "Do-Re-Mi" montage.  It was beautiful.

Ooh pretty

Ooh more pretty

This dwarf deserves a pat on the head

Another dwarf statue, I decided to name him Mr. SassyPants

After the jaunt thought gardens, we walked up to Hohensalzburg.  The fort that was originally built during the foundation of Salzgurg.

The fort from the city 

Hohensalzburg up close

The pretty much ended our day.  We also looked at old things and ate some cured meats, but what else is there to do really. And to top off my day of shock and disappointment I also discovered that Austria has succumbed to comicsansitis.

 

Oh the humanity!!!

I am really considering studying this disease.  I am pretty sure it is up to epidemic standards now; it's taking over.  Is it even too late?!?

Tschüss

The Great Linen Race

Firstly, let me preface this post by saying that without my good friend Hilary's insight, I would barely have made it out of Kelowna before starting my European adventure. Now, let me continue by saying that Hilary advised me to pack a sleeping bag, as hostels don't have linens.  A grand idea, as no linens would result in chilly and restless sleepy time. However, with this advice came a catalyst for battle of an insurmountable thread count. Hilary's husband, Eric, claimed that the hostels would have linens.  Why wouldn't they? Hilary retorts with admirable fervour on the lack of hostel linens.  And with this disagreement comes the grandest of all discoveries, a social experiment for the ages! The Great Linen Race! 

On this race, I will be keeping track of the number of hostels I visit that contain linens. A full disclosure on all linen items can be requested at any stop along the way.  With that, I will make any note of any specific linen items that are missing at any checkpoint.  With that, here is the first update:

Frankfurt - Meininger Hostel - full set of linens (sheet, pillow, comforter, and towel)

Munich - Meininger Hostel - full set of linens.  To be fair, I accidentally booked a double private room, so this room may not count.

Current score,

Eric: 2(1)

Hilary: 0

Stay tuned for more exciting linen fun!  

München ist regnerish, Alex ist super cool

After Frankfurt, Morgan and I trained over to Munich where we spent four nights. There was no better way to be welcomed to Munich than getting off the train and having Alex there with open arms! He was with his other Canadian friend (yes he has more than one!!!) Christina.  She is a lovely Canadian, boasting from the land of Edmonton.  Christina and Alex met while studying in Bamfield, but Alex introduced her (as he introduces all his Canadian friends) as one he had banged.  Although truth may escape Alex from time to time, it was no lie that she was great company our first night in Munich, ending her own European adventure there. 

Alex took the three of us to StuStaCulum 2013, a student festival being held during our weekend here.  It was a student music festival with lively bands (I hear their lyrics are really good...) and ever-flowing beer.  Fun Fact: it isn't uncommon in Bavaria to be served litres of beer, which is just what we ordered.   After listening to some music, Alex introduced us to some of his friends and we went out for a few drinks at a local pub.  Alex's friend Fabian, "Fabi", took us to the closest stop to our hostel...unfortunately we didn't know where to go from there.  After several hours wandering around and a nice young man taking us back to where we were familiar with, we returned back to our hostel unscathed but also un-dry.  This has been some of the worst rain Germany has seen in almost 150 years. 

The next day, the unfortunate plight of jet lag caught up to us. We slept until 5:00pm!! But we got up, and headed out on the town to meet up with Alex and some more of his German friends.  His friends Martin, the aforementioned Fabian, and Martin's girlfriend Lina took us to a free concert and afterward took us out for some bier und currywurst. It was very delicious and we had a wonderful night.  

The following day we were left alone in Munich, as Alex had to return home in order to start his PhD.  With this, and many centimetres of rain, Morgan and I looked around the Marienplatz.  We witnessed the Glockenspiel am Rathausturn, visited the Deutches Museum, and ate a salty, buttery pretzel. Tip: a Canadian palette does not require fatty butter on a salty pretzel.  After our time in the city, we took our soaked booties to the hostel bar where we watched the Munich versus Stuttgart football match. It was riveting! Also, fans be cray cray. 

Our last full day in Munich was spent traveling to and from Füssen, not too far from Munich.  From here, we went and saw the spectacular Neuschwanstein palace and the Hohenschwangau palace. The castle that inspired Disney and the summer home of Ludwig II, respectively.

Neuschwanstein 

Neuschwanstein 

Hohenschwangau 

And even with the tumultuous rain and trek to the top, the breathtaking view and grandiose feats of architecture made it all worth it! Well, almost...we ended up pretty wet.

Neuschwanstein was definitely a sight to behold. There was amazing woodwork carvings throughout the palace.  The throne room was awe inspiring. Unfortunately, we were unable to take any pictures, but maybe it's googleable.  Google it.

Our last day in Munich was spent strolling around the Englisch Garten, a vast greenscape that stretches throughout much of Munich. We walked along the paths, encountered some waterfowl, and ran into this little dude-snail.  

Snail in the Englisch Garten

Afterwards, we just visited one of the main squares, Marienplatz, where a number of cathedrals, other old buildings, and shops can be found. We just spent some time here (admiring the cakes) before departing to the train station for our journey to Salzburg.

Cakes!!!!

Omnomnom

I look forward to further updates about Salzburg.

Tschüss!

Frankfurt and Some Frank Farts

I know that I haven't posted in a couple of days, but I am posting now: We Made It!!!!  We landed in Frankfurt on Wednesday after harrowing a lengthy 10 hour flight. The flight consisted of two consistently bland meals (it's airplane food and to be expected); a finished reading of Dan Savage's The Commitment, which was very good and well-worth a read; and what else other than a cantankerous army of wailing babies. Needless to say, we landed in Frankfurt very hungry and very tired. So we decided that our first order of business was FOOD! And while in Germany...we went to a Japanese noodle bar. What can I say. We were very hungry and very tired.  And after we arrived back at our hostel, with bellies full of noodle (thanks Heidi MoschMosch, why your name is Heidi I'll never know), we slept!

The following day, Morgan and I did a small tour around Frankfurt's central square.  We attempted to go up the tallest building in Frankfurt; however, it was closed due to a holiday that Thursday. With that we were off.  We found a neat little museum along the river in Frankfurt, the Liebieghaus.  It had a lot of classical art, of which I have very little understanding and thus I had less appreciation for than what was probably deserved. But it was still very cool, and I am always amazed how accurate they can make cloth look on stone and wood. Like really! That's sick!

Throughout these excursions, we were periodically visited by my travel partner's gaseous friend from below. I blame the plane food.

And after Frankfurt, we headed to Munich where I was expecting to discover the real Germany from the infamous Alex.

Toodles!