Munich, Germany

Our Barvarian Experience

Our first stop on the way to Munich was at Dachau Concentration Camp. It was incredibly moving and emotional to be able to see the actual place where it all started. Dachau was the first concentration camp. Appropriately, it was snowing/sleeting throughout the entire walking tour. It was freezing, but it just added to the effects.

After we checked into our hostel (quite the disappointment compared to the Mercure in Salzburg), we relaxed for a bit before catching the tram to downtown Munich. We headed to Hofbrauhaus, the world famous beer house, for all an all you can eat buffet, and lots of beer (again, thanks JMU, for our wonderful cultural experiences). It was so fun- with the long tables and delicious food, the dancers in their lederhosen, beer maids carrying 12 liters at once, and the entire place singing and swaying with our beer mugs. It definitely was the ultimate Barvarian Night. Prost!

The next morning, we did another snowy walking tour of Munich, again with GREAT guides, super fun (even in the cold). We saw a lot of the history from Hilter’s days in power- what was destroyed and what had been rebuilt. Then we got some lunch at (another) Augustiner Bierhaus, where we got to try the preferred beer of the pope: Augustiner Edlestoff (which I guess, somehow, makes it the beer of God). We went back to the hostel for a little bit, and then headed out to the BMW Museum.

The BMW Museum was probably the coolest museum I’ve ever been to. It was HUGE, first of all, and it was completely interactive. The building was designed perfectly, and all the beautifulllll cars were lined up throughout. It was really cool to see the concept cars and my new favorite, the Isetta! So cute and tiny with it’s motorcycle engine! I could have probably spent a day and a half in there- that’s how much there was to see.

On the tram ride back, a couple of us jumped off at a random stop to get China Express, haha, an all you can eat Chinese buffet, including a beer, for 6,80euro. It was everything we wanted and more! Then we headed back to A&O Hostel, and headed upstairs to the rooftop bar to play drinking games with the cheapest beer possible.

All and All, Salzburg and Munich were great. I’d love to go back and see Eagle’s Nest when the weather is better. Actually, I’d love to go back and see all of it when it was warmer and I felt like adventuring more.

Up Next: Barcelona and Madrid for fall break, followed by the Ardennes in Luxemborg with school. Cheers!

Salzburg, Austria

These are a Few of my Favorite Things

A 12 hour bus ride got us to Salzburg, Austria. Most known as the home of Mozart and The Sound of Music, this city is probably one of the most underrated in Europe. Once we arrived, we checked into our very posh Mercure Hotel (thanks, JMU), and I went out exploring with some of the guys. First thing to note: it was cold (if you know me, you know I HATE the cold) and it sucked. Second thing to note: It was gorgeous! The city was nestled right up against the cliffs of the Austrian Alps, and on top of the cliffs is the Fortress. It was breathtaking!

In the morning, we got up, at a spectacular continental breakfast, and went to meet our guides for a walking tour. It was snowing. A three hour walking tour… in the snow. “Kill me” was all that was going through my mind. Fortunately, our guide was hilarious and highly entertaining. She was also pretty good at getting us into warm cathedrals, trams, and other buildings just when I thought I was going to freeze to death. We saw plenty of sites where the Sound of Music was filmed, the fortress (amazing views of the city), Mozart’s house and birthplace, and plenty of good shopping and cute cafes (too tempting!).

After the walking tour, a couple of us went around shopping (see: window shopping), and hanging out in the city. Our first stop was Café Tomaselli for some hot chocolate to warm us up. Later, we stopped and got “Bretzels” at a stand, and also went to Demel Café for cake and tea, mmm. We headed back to the hotel earlier than necessary and caught a nap (in the most comfortable beds, ever!) before dinner. Coach Kelly led us off into the city for dinner at Die Weisse, a brewery (thanks jmu), where we each got a beer and Weiner Schnitzel. It was delicious! We also had Salzburg’s apple Strudel.

The next day, we were suppose to go to Eagle’s Nest, Hitler’s private getaway, but it was closed due to bad weather, so we had a free day. I spent the day relaxing, and doing a whole lot of nothing. We tried to go see the largest ice caves in the world, but they were also closed by the time we got around to it. At night, we went out to Augustiner Bier Huis, where we got to experience firsthand, the party that is a beer house. We got liter beers and schnitzel sandwiches and pretzels. It was quite the experience!

Dublin, Ireland

24 hours in Publin,…er, I mean Dublin.

We got to Dublin late (of course, thanks ryanair) and successfully navigated our way to Four Courts Hostel. The hostel was easily identified because it was right across the Liffey from Four Courts (duh.) The huge monument would be essential in finding the hostel post-pubs.

After we threw our stuff down in the hostel, we headed out. First, food. Although we originally were looking for some traditional irish grub, a group of us ended up at Eddie Rocket’s, the irish cousin of america’s famous Johnny Rocket’s. The cheap, diner food we’ve all been missing was just too tempting. I had nachos, and DIET coke (not Cola Light), and we had to TIP!! (WHAAT?!) Oh, and did I mention everyone spoke English? Lovin’ Ireland already.

Satisfied with our food, we went out in search of what else? Pubs! We went to The Porterhouse, one of the more famous Pubs that we’d all read about in “The Bible” (aka Let’s Go Europe 2009…thanks ash!) It was probably the coolest bar I’ve ever been inside. Three stories of home brewed beer, an old guy singing 90s covers (essential for any good bar), and cheerful people. Had a porterhouse red, (very thick/heavy, but delicious), met some cute irish boys, and after one beer we were finally convinced of how tired we were. With plans to get up early and explore, we headed back to the hostel.

The next morning, we got up and headed out. We wandered through trinity college (very pretty), and as we were leaving, we saw it… something I didn’t think I’d actually miss, but something I’ve been craving for far too long. It was like a light came shining down from the heavens on…STARBUCKS. Oh man, that was best Venti Caramel Macchiato I’ve ever had. There are NO starbucks in Belgium. There are barely any coffee places. And if you do find coffee, it’s about the size of an espresso shot and approximately 5euros. MMM, it was so good, and warm- just what I needed.

We went to Dublin Castle (extremely disappointing), Christ Church (one of the better churches I’ve toured so far), and of course, St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We also stopped at Leo Burdock’s: Dublin’s Oldest Chipper, for some Fish N Chips. I barely ate half of what they gave us, but it was a perfect way to warm up!

Up next was the Guinness Storehouse, which I was really only interested in for the Gravity Bar and the view from the top, but it turned out to be the best brewery I’ve been to (Brewery Count: 3). I loved seeing all the famous advertising. The view from the top was pretty amazing, and I don’t think it was a waste of time or money, but I doubt I’d ever do it again.

We headed back to the hostel to start pregaming for the Ireland v. Italy world cup qualifying game. A couple people walked to the stadium to see if it was possible to get tickets, but the cheapest ones were 100euro. After everyone had their fair share of Irish Car Bombs (obviously), we went to a pub to watch the game. Will and Annie had gone to a quieter pub earlier in the day that was outside of temple bar, and that’s where we headed. Since we got there early, we had an entire corner booth to ourselves with a great view of a TV. Everyone decked out in green for Ireland, and we got student discounts on “Smiddick’s” (Smithwick’s) and Carlsberg’s. The game was really exciting! It was great seeing how into all the irish people were. We were singing and cheers-ing right along with everybody when Ireland scored. In the 87^th minute, Ireland scored for 2-1, and in the 89^th minute, Italy tied the game.

We left the bar and Eric and I escorted a few people back to the hostel, and along the way I complimented an Irishman on his Flag/Cape, and he gave it to me, hah! Then we tried to meet up with everyone else, but by this point, we were all over the place, and people headed their own ways. Will and I did some random wandering before we headed back to the hostel. I had to be up at 6am to leave for the early flight back (love ya, ryanair).

Ireland was a lot of fun, but I definitely want to go back and have a chance to get out of the city. I wish I could have stayed longer, but the early flight back was so much cheaper, that it didn’t make sense to stay. Oh well, something else to add to my bucket list!

Milan, Italy

The Epic Journey

I don’t even know why we went to Milan in the first place. I’m pretty sure we intended on having more time there when we booked the flight. The plan was that Ryan Air offers a cheap flight from Milan to Brussels, so why not head from Interlaken to Milan and from Milan back to Belgium.

The actuality was that we wouldn’t arrive in Milan until 9:30p.m., and the 8:00a.m. flight the next morning wasn’t actually from Milan, but from Bergamo, which is an hour outside Milan (thank you, Ryan Air). This meant that we had to be at the airport at about 6:00a.m., leaving Milan at about 5:00a.m. That gave us from 9:30p.m. to 5:00a.m. in city. If you do the math, that’s 7.5 [of probably the worst] hours to enjoy my first time in Italy.

Once everyone realized this, everyone immediately started dreading it. Would we stay up all night in Milan? Go directly to the airport and sleep until the flight? We arrived in Milan as scheduled and looked at the bus schedule to get to Bergamo, the airport outside Milan. Buses ran until 11:30p.m. and restarted at 4:00a.m. No one could decide what to do.

Will and I ended up buying a bus ticket and heading out into Milan. If I was going to be in Italy, I was at least going to get to see some of the city, even if it was just the area around the train station. We also didn’t feel like waiting for 19 people to coordinate themselves and try and make a group decision.

Will got a miracle/call from his friend, Meg, who just happened to be studying abroad in Milan. We immediately decided we were going to go meet up with her, and we were going to stay up all night in the city. A metro & a tram ride later, we were hanging out with Meg in her dorm. I was super grateful they were willing to spend their Saturday night in their dorm with us and not go out clubbing since we hadn’t showered since France, and I think Will and I both probably looked and smelled like it. We took tequila shots on their patio and shared stories about our times in Europe.

At about 3:00a.m., we called a cab and headed back to the train station. At 4:00a.m., we got on a bus to Bergamo.

After an hour long bus ride, and two more hours of waiting (and trying to stay awake... sleep isn't allowed in Italian airports, apparently), we checked in and ran for the plane (literally). I snagged an emergency exit row, window seat. Golden. Apparently there was an annoying intercom the entire flight, but I didn’t hear a thing. I was out cold for the two hours to Charleroi. I woke up only when they played the victory music over the loud speaker, which at first I thought was to celebrate landing alive, but was actually to celebrate landing earlier than scheduled. It was 10:30a.m. and we weren’t done yet.

We had to take a 2.50euro bus ride from Charleroi (not actually Brussels, thanks again, Ryan Air) Airport to Charleroi Train Station. From there we took a train to Antwerpen Centraal, and from Antwerpen Centraal, we walked back to the Monty arriving at about 2:30p.m.

I got in, showered, made pasta, ate it, checked my email, fell asleep….

And I woke up roughly 18 hours later, just in time for class.

[[There were no photos AT ALL taken in Milan, Italy.]]

Skydiving the Swiss Alps

In total, there were 14 of us skydiving, plus Matt, an Aussie who happened to be skydiving with our group as well. En route to the airstrip, we filled out waivers (I learned this summer never to read a waiver- just sign it), and people paid for pictures and DVDs if they were getting them. We also decided on jump order while we were in the bus. Jeremy, Matt (the Aussie), and I were going to be going in the last plane.

When we got to the airstrip and saw the plane, that’s when it really hit that we’d be jumping out at 15,000 feet. We all put on jump suits and practiced our free falling positions in the airplane hangar. One by one, plane by plane, everyone came floating out of the sky safely, so I wasn’t too nervous when it was my turn…mostly anxious. Hans was the Swiss professional that was going to be strapped to my back doing all the hard stuff, and he had been jumping for 10 years, so all I had to do was not freak out, haha. We all wedged into the plane (and I mean wedged…there were people on my lap and stacked up all over), and we were off.

The view was the best part. It was absolutely breathtaking. I can’t even describe it here in this blog; the pictures I took don’t even do it justice. If you want to see the beauty of the Swiss Alps like I saw them, you have to go up in a tiny plane on a clear morning in early fall with sun coming through the peaks and reflecting off the lakes, just like I did. It cannot be replicated. As the houses got smaller and smaller, and more and more mountains surrounded us, you could look down and see the turquoise water and the town of Interlaken, right between the lakes like it was suppose to be. Gratefully, it was the most calming experience ever…. until they opened the door.

Matt was out first, and quickly it was my turn. Feet over the edge. Head back. Back arched. “Ready? Ok.” And then I was falling.

I felt like I couldn’t even breathe. I don’t think I did. For about 45 seconds I was free-falling, but I didn’t even have any concept of falling at all. It was like I was floating. The ground was so far away that I had no feeling of it getting closer. Before I knew it Hans had tapped my shoulder again and the parachute was open. He adjusted my harness and let me get my camera out. Hans spun us all around and I took video and pictures of the view. Then we landed, and it was easy as that. No problems. I hadn’t even considered the possibility of death in the whole ordeal. It was adrenaline to the maximum.

Interlaken, Switzerland

24 hours in Interlaken, ready GO!

We got to Interlaken West Train Station at about 5p.m., there, we exchanged money into Swiss Francs and headed to our hostel, the world famous Balmer’s. Will and I managed to pick up a backpacker, Liam, along the way who was staying at the same hostel as us. All together this made 20 people trying to check in at once (way to travel in a pack, JMU). When we arrived, the people working front desk let us know it was currently 2-for1 happy hour at the hostel bar, so we headed out back to hang out for a while and slowly check in.

Balmer’s was so nice- definitely famous for a reason!! It had an outdoor bar, a hammock room, a club in the basement, decent beds and rooms, and cheap prices. (It also was the hostel suggested to us by Outdoor Interlaken, our skydiving company!) While sitting outside, we met some Americans from Cali who were studying in Barcelona for the semester. They had gone skydiving that morning and told us it was AMAZING. We were all super excited, and ended up spending the rest of the night hanging out, drinking and talking with people from all over the world. It was really nice to have people from America and Australia all around…people who are just traveling around like us, trying to see the most possible in the shortest amount of time possible. I actually met one of our skydiving instructors at the club and talked to him about the next day and he made me even more excited! After a long, crazy night, we headed to bed at about 2am to try and get some sleep.

The next morning, we woke up at about 6:30, and got ready to sky dive! We headed downstairs and tried to eat some of our free breakfast and relaxed until 8:30 when the bus from Outdoor Interlaken came to pick us up… (I’m going to dedicate an entire blog entry to skydiving…)

***

We got back to the hostel at about noon. We met up with the rest of our group, and tried (but failed miserably) to explain how awesome of an experience we had. Then, Jeremy, Will, and I went next door to a restaurant for some traditional Swiss Fondue. Yum!! The cheese had a bit of wine in it for flavoring and the bread was delicious. It was a perfect warm meal for the chilly Alps.

It was only about 1:45 at this point, and our train to Milan wasn’t until 6pm or so, so we decided to rent bikes for a couple hours and see some of Interlaken. The three hour rental was not expensive at all (especially considering it was in francs, not Euros!) Will got a map and led us off into Interlaken towards one of the lakes. It was gorgeous!! The water was just as turquoise at eye level as it was from the airplane. It looked like it could have been Caribbean, and it was definitely cold!! We took pictures and explored some, then headed back towards the hostel a different route, past the train station we’d need to get to later in the afternoon (Interlaken Ost).

We took a break at the hostel, and then used the rest of the time with our bikes to go souvenir shopping. Finally, it was time to head to the train.

Interlaken was the most beautiful place I’ve been so far. The steady stream of people falling out of the sky was mesmerizing. From the moment we arrived until the time we boarded our departing train, we constantly saw parachutes floating down from the Alps. So far, this is definitely the number 1 place to on my “RETURN ASAP” list.

Strasbourg, France

DAY 1:

After 7 painful hours aboard a bus, we arrived in Strasbourg and we checked into our hotel (the Ibis). We took up half of a hall in the middle of the hotel (poor planning on the manager’s part if you ask me). Jess Dante & I roomed together, a.k.a. slept together because our double room was really like a closet with two twin beds pushed together in the middle, haha.

From the hotel, we left to tour the European Parliament. It is absolutely massive in size and completely gorgeous. It definitely doesn’t fit into the rest of the historical city with its glass, curved walls. We were given a TERRIBLE tour guide. Our guide explained [like] the history of the European Parliament, [so like] there’s a history of the Parliament, [like] they meet once a month for a week, [so like] they meet for a week out of each month… He repeated everything he said about 12 times in 3 different ways with either “like” or “so like” in between everything he said. It was SO hard to focus. I don’t know where he learned his English, but I’ve definitely tried for the past however many years NOT to say “like”… and he lectured on for about 40 minutes when it could have been about 10. Anyway… it was definitely cool to see the VIP red carpet and staircase and the chamber. Oh man, the chamber was so cool. It was huge!! I can’t even start to think about all that has been decided there.

After our tour of the Parliament, we went back to the hotel, changed, and walked to dinner. Jim Kelly led us across the town of Strasbourg (a very pretty walk!) and down into the basement of a brewery. They brought us all plastic cups, followed by pitchers of the house beer, and tarte flambé (French pizza-type things). The best part… it was all you could eat & drink… not to mention we were STARVING!! We just kept passing back empty pitchers and empty pizza boards until we couldn’t take anymore (and that took a while). Thanks JMU!

We went back to the hotel and then to the karaoke bar across the street, where we had to impatiently wait for the football game to end for us to be able to start belting out American classics… Gloria Gaynor’s “I will Survive” (the guys) and the Spice Girls’ “If you wanna be” (the ladies). Mike and I shared a contraption called The Giraffe, which essentially provided us with enough beer to get through the night in one container.

DAY 2:

Thursday morning we woke up and had breakfast in the hotel (we packed ourselves lunch, too!) and headed out to the bus for our tour of wine country. Serg, our French guide, was everything I’d expect from a wine country guide. He had the perfect accent, haircut, moustache, scarf…the whole deal. He pointed out literally EVERYTHING (including police pulling people over, a random tractor protest, a junkyard) on the way to wine country. The roads were lined with vineyard as far as the eye could see, it was GORGEOUS!! Definitely a beautiful area… I’d love to come back for a honeymoon or an anniversary.

We made three stops in the Alsace region along wine road. The first stop was Kaysersberg, a pretty little town from the 1600s. The buildings were all so cute, and I was impressed that they were still standing with the way that their roofs leaned and fell into each other. We saw lots of the famous pottery from the region, and of course shops with lots of wine! Stop number 2 was in Colmar, the Capitol of the Wine Route, and the birthplace of Bartholdi (designer of the Statue of Liberty). Here we got free time for lunch and wandering. A group of us went to a small French café for lunch where we could sit outside. I got wine and quiche Lorraine, YUM! Next we stopped at Riquewihr, where we got the chance to head into a wine cellar and actually taste some wine. We tasted the vineyards’ Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Gewurztraminer. My favorite was the Riesling, a little drier, not so sweet. That night we got take away pasta, which we ate on the steps of the Cathedral, and we bought a bottle of wine to drink by the canal. It was a relaxing evening for our next busy day.

DAY 3:

Friday morning we did a bus/walking tour of Strasbourg (with Serg again, ya gotta love it), and got to see all over the town, and then we were off! We got our stuff together and headed for the train station to head out for Interlaken!