Prague, Munich, Venice, Rome...!
Hi eveyrone!
Sorry I have not updated in so long but I have been so busy with my travels that internet has just not been a priority! It's currently 1:30 in the morning here so I hope yo0u appreciate me taking the time to make an update!
The last time I wrote I was in Prague. Prague was pretty good although it was very, very cold! I went to a bar which had the beer taps on the tables...like you could pour your own beer and later on you paid by the litre. It was pretty cool although it was pretty loud! The next day was a day for exploring! Bron and I had a sleep in (believe me, we needed it!) and then went for a bit of meander around town. We went to the palace where the Royal family used to live - we went int oa church there which is very, very beautiful (like most of the churches in Europe!) and had a bit of a meander around the streets. It is all very old - everything is from olden day times there wasn't alot of modern buildings or anything. That night we went out to a 5-storey night club! I know, amazing! It actually wasn't as impressive as it sounds...it was a bit seedy and very expensive but it was nice to go out in Prague! I didn't stay out too late (by that it means I was home by 2am...) because the next day we were leaving to go to MUNICH!
On the way to Munich we stopped at Dachau which is a concentration camp. It was one of the very first to be built and wasn't very involved with the extermination, it more housed a whole lot of people. There were about 30 barracks which all housed at least 200 people at least...usually more .There is also a museum which has sooo much infomation, I didn't get to see all of it! There are also a few different chapels for different religions. Its actually a very overwhelming experience to visit a concentration camp- not so much because of how sad it is, its more because you can't take it all in. The vibe is just so thick there, its like walking through a fog of history...its just amazing. Its hard to explain!
Munich was also incredible. We went out to a famous beer hall called the 'Hofbraushous' and I ate a piece of turkey fried in eggs and cheese...it was delicious! There is also a drink called a Radler in Germany which is a beer with lemonade. Its suprisingly okay! It was a pretty quiet night, we all hit the sack fairly early in the evening...the next day we headed into 'Marionplatz' the main square of Munich where the New Town Hall is. And at the New Town Hall is the Glockenspiel! Our tour manager warned us that it was a bit of an anti climax...there are a few dancing people then two jousting horses and some twirling guys. It was okay I guess, just not the best thing that I've seen so far in Europe. Many of the girls on our trip then headed down the street to try and find traditional German bar girl outfits! Yes, I did buy one! It basically consists of a frilly white skirt, a dress and for some an apron. I didn't get the apron, I figured it was something I could make/buy at home. That night we went back to the Hofbrauhaus and everyone who bought one wore it! All the japanese tourists there went snap happy! I even have a picture of myself holding up 4 steins of beer in my outfit. It was a lot of fun to get dressed up the the traditional garb even though we did get a few funny looks on the way home! We then went out to the Night club district in Munich which is just an area which is filled with night clubs! It would be pretty amazing if it was all open! Because it was a Monday night lots of it was closed, but it was still fun to go and visit and there was one bar open anyway.
The next day we drove from Mun ich to Mestre which is a town very close to Venice. Amanda (our tour manager) thought it would be fun to add another country to our list so we went vis Innsbruck, Austria! Innsbruck is AMAZING! It is just like out of a movie set, there are many beautiful mountains in the background. We took a cable car up the mountain a bit and the view was spectacular. We went ice skating! No, I can't iceskate but it was still fun to try and now I can say I've been ice skating in Austria! We could only stay there for a few hours...but it was still a really beautiful place to visit.
We arrived at our hotel in Mestre fairly late. Amanda had warned us that hotels in Italy aren't really that great because they don't see the need to fix everything up because people keep visitng Italy anyway! However, our hotel in Mestre wasn't really that bad. The food wasn't great, but the beds were comfy which is all that matters! Because Venice is an island we could'nt go and see it until the next day, so Bron and I hung out and chatted with a few other girls before hitting the hay. The second day we caught a boat over to Venice...all I can say is WOW. Venice is kind of like a theme park, as in it doesn't feel quite real because it is so amazing. There is no road traffic in Vencie so it is really quiet and everywhere you go there are little alleyways and lanes to get lost in. There are shops everywhere and piazzas which little stalls selling all manner of things. For a moment we sat eating gelati by a canal watching all the boats go by...I felt like I was in a movie! Amazing! We had this incredible pizza for lunch- it was all thin crusted so it is very flavoursome. Italian pizza is very simple, each piece doesn't have many ingredients. We went out for tea in Venice before heading back to the hotel.
The next day was ROME! On the map it didn't look like very far to go, but it still took like 6 to 8 hours. All of the road stops in Rome are called 'Autogrill' which is pretty hilarious! I had a pannini (sandwich) which was quite nice...nothing overly exciting. At Rome we went for a bit of a driving tour...we got off at the Colossuem. It is amazing just typing things like that, I mean..itss the COLOSSEUM! Its not as simple as just we went there! It was actually the Colosseum! We walked past the Trevi fountain (I threw the coins over my shoulder) and to the Pantheon. It doesn't do justice to just describe these things...it is the vibe you get from them, the incredible feeling that these things have been here for years and years and years. Today we went on a tour of the Forum and the Colosseum which was amazing. Then a bit of a disaster struck...I got a really bad migraine. As in, absolutley terrible. I had to go back to the hotel and sleep it off, which I did for approximately 8 hours. I got to see the sistene chapel but I felt a bit dissapointed that I didn't get to see the rest of Rome. Oh well...there's always time to come back!
Being on Contiki can be really, really tiring, lots of people are getting sick but its so much fun and I really am having the time of my life!
Favourite plcae so far: Church at Dresden
I hope thatc you are all well...its nearly Christmas!!!...and hopefully I'll talk to you all soon!
Alice xo xo xo xo
Sorry I have not updated in so long but I have been so busy with my travels that internet has just not been a priority! It's currently 1:30 in the morning here so I hope yo0u appreciate me taking the time to make an update!
The last time I wrote I was in Prague. Prague was pretty good although it was very, very cold! I went to a bar which had the beer taps on the tables...like you could pour your own beer and later on you paid by the litre. It was pretty cool although it was pretty loud! The next day was a day for exploring! Bron and I had a sleep in (believe me, we needed it!) and then went for a bit of meander around town. We went to the palace where the Royal family used to live - we went int oa church there which is very, very beautiful (like most of the churches in Europe!) and had a bit of a meander around the streets. It is all very old - everything is from olden day times there wasn't alot of modern buildings or anything. That night we went out to a 5-storey night club! I know, amazing! It actually wasn't as impressive as it sounds...it was a bit seedy and very expensive but it was nice to go out in Prague! I didn't stay out too late (by that it means I was home by 2am...) because the next day we were leaving to go to MUNICH!
On the way to Munich we stopped at Dachau which is a concentration camp. It was one of the very first to be built and wasn't very involved with the extermination, it more housed a whole lot of people. There were about 30 barracks which all housed at least 200 people at least...usually more .There is also a museum which has sooo much infomation, I didn't get to see all of it! There are also a few different chapels for different religions. Its actually a very overwhelming experience to visit a concentration camp- not so much because of how sad it is, its more because you can't take it all in. The vibe is just so thick there, its like walking through a fog of history...its just amazing. Its hard to explain!
Munich was also incredible. We went out to a famous beer hall called the 'Hofbraushous' and I ate a piece of turkey fried in eggs and cheese...it was delicious! There is also a drink called a Radler in Germany which is a beer with lemonade. Its suprisingly okay! It was a pretty quiet night, we all hit the sack fairly early in the evening...the next day we headed into 'Marionplatz' the main square of Munich where the New Town Hall is. And at the New Town Hall is the Glockenspiel! Our tour manager warned us that it was a bit of an anti climax...there are a few dancing people then two jousting horses and some twirling guys. It was okay I guess, just not the best thing that I've seen so far in Europe. Many of the girls on our trip then headed down the street to try and find traditional German bar girl outfits! Yes, I did buy one! It basically consists of a frilly white skirt, a dress and for some an apron. I didn't get the apron, I figured it was something I could make/buy at home. That night we went back to the Hofbrauhaus and everyone who bought one wore it! All the japanese tourists there went snap happy! I even have a picture of myself holding up 4 steins of beer in my outfit. It was a lot of fun to get dressed up the the traditional garb even though we did get a few funny looks on the way home! We then went out to the Night club district in Munich which is just an area which is filled with night clubs! It would be pretty amazing if it was all open! Because it was a Monday night lots of it was closed, but it was still fun to go and visit and there was one bar open anyway.
The next day we drove from Mun ich to Mestre which is a town very close to Venice. Amanda (our tour manager) thought it would be fun to add another country to our list so we went vis Innsbruck, Austria! Innsbruck is AMAZING! It is just like out of a movie set, there are many beautiful mountains in the background. We took a cable car up the mountain a bit and the view was spectacular. We went ice skating! No, I can't iceskate but it was still fun to try and now I can say I've been ice skating in Austria! We could only stay there for a few hours...but it was still a really beautiful place to visit.
We arrived at our hotel in Mestre fairly late. Amanda had warned us that hotels in Italy aren't really that great because they don't see the need to fix everything up because people keep visitng Italy anyway! However, our hotel in Mestre wasn't really that bad. The food wasn't great, but the beds were comfy which is all that matters! Because Venice is an island we could'nt go and see it until the next day, so Bron and I hung out and chatted with a few other girls before hitting the hay. The second day we caught a boat over to Venice...all I can say is WOW. Venice is kind of like a theme park, as in it doesn't feel quite real because it is so amazing. There is no road traffic in Vencie so it is really quiet and everywhere you go there are little alleyways and lanes to get lost in. There are shops everywhere and piazzas which little stalls selling all manner of things. For a moment we sat eating gelati by a canal watching all the boats go by...I felt like I was in a movie! Amazing! We had this incredible pizza for lunch- it was all thin crusted so it is very flavoursome. Italian pizza is very simple, each piece doesn't have many ingredients. We went out for tea in Venice before heading back to the hotel.
The next day was ROME! On the map it didn't look like very far to go, but it still took like 6 to 8 hours. All of the road stops in Rome are called 'Autogrill' which is pretty hilarious! I had a pannini (sandwich) which was quite nice...nothing overly exciting. At Rome we went for a bit of a driving tour...we got off at the Colossuem. It is amazing just typing things like that, I mean..itss the COLOSSEUM! Its not as simple as just we went there! It was actually the Colosseum! We walked past the Trevi fountain (I threw the coins over my shoulder) and to the Pantheon. It doesn't do justice to just describe these things...it is the vibe you get from them, the incredible feeling that these things have been here for years and years and years. Today we went on a tour of the Forum and the Colosseum which was amazing. Then a bit of a disaster struck...I got a really bad migraine. As in, absolutley terrible. I had to go back to the hotel and sleep it off, which I did for approximately 8 hours. I got to see the sistene chapel but I felt a bit dissapointed that I didn't get to see the rest of Rome. Oh well...there's always time to come back!
Being on Contiki can be really, really tiring, lots of people are getting sick but its so much fun and I really am having the time of my life!
Favourite plcae so far: Church at Dresden
I hope thatc you are all well...its nearly Christmas!!!...and hopefully I'll talk to you all soon!
Alice xo xo xo xo