Berlin!

I arrived in Berlin airport after a quick flight and caught the train into the city. I got off at the wrong stop, gave Karl a call and waited for him to find me. It was great catching up with an old friend I had not seen since we both did exchange in the same town in USA three years ago. We travelled back to his place but ended up at a friends on the way and we relaxed for the evening grabbing some dinner, drinking beer and playing pool. The next morning I let Karl sleep in as I went into the city which takes only about 20 minutes by train to meet for a tour of Sachsenhausen a concentration camp just out of Berlin. This was not like any other tour I had been on, it was very serious and respectful to the prisoners of the camp. It was quite shocking hearing about the system in which the prisoners where taken in and how they were treated. It was also sad to hear about the physiological techniques that was used to torture and control these prisoners. No matter what you hear or read I don't think it can compare to actually standing in the place where all this history took place and I highly recommend visiting this concentration camp. That night we went to a party not far away and to my surprise nearly half of the party arrived on bikes just like us. It was a bit of a different experience then the typical party in the backyard at home this was in a small smoke filled room in an apartment and everyone only having a couple of beers with most of the girls drinking beer as well. The next day I was up early to join a free walking tour of the city. The sights of Berlin are very impressive, I really enjoyed seeing and learning about brandenburg gate, square where the book burnings occurred and my favourite sight of course the Jewish memorial. This has to be the best memorial I have seen up to date as it is simply concrete blocks that gradually get taller the further in you walk towards the centre. It is so impressive because you don't have to view this memorable from behind a gate or glass you can walk, run and climb through it.

My next couple days I spent in Berlin were meeting some of Karl's friends, riding around the city and preparing for my future travels. And today we are both of to Prague to catch up with another friend Martin from exchange.

We are both very excited, and can't wait to see Martin this afternoon!



Also we had Dunkin donuts!!!!!!!

Barcelona and Pamplona

After a sad goodbye and another flight the boys and I arrived at our large apartment in Barcelona. We booked this at the last minute for the price of a hostel. After getting settled we went our for dinner and explored the city a little bit. The next morning we really just took it easy because we all knew that that night was going to be a big one. We caught a train at 2:30pm to pamplona which took 4 hours and met an interesting guy called Marley who happened to live around the corner from us in Perth. He was doing the bull run with his contiki group so we decided it would be a great idea to tag along. So after about a 40 min taxi ride into the middle of no where we were rejected by the staff of contiki but not before Timm grabbed some free tacos and we had some sangria. So after a few failed hitchhiking attempts we got a taxi back to Pamplona and got dropped off in the middle of the festival. The first thing we did was buy the traditional clothing and store our bag at the bus station. Then the night began! The streets were crowded with white and red, there was music and there was cheering. It was so much fun to meet so many tourists there for the festival and also all the locals. We stayed out all night going from bar to bar and stayed up all night. At about 6am we went and had a look at what would be chasing us soon and that definitely scared and sobred us up, I don't think we realised how big the bulls would actually be. Soon after that Timm and I said our goodbyes to Lucas incase we didn't make it out alive, and then we waited. Waiting was the worst part and the last 45minutes of the wait felt like hours as we watched the hands of a clock tower go round. There was an extreme silence that was exaggerated by the noise of the previous nights fiesta. We met a few Australians and Americans before we ran, getting tips and exchanging our fear. It had finally reached 8am and the first gun was shot and everyone started to walk and then 30 seconds later the next gun was fired and everyone moved into a jog. After what seemed like minutes but was really only seconds we saw people sprinting their hearts out and throwing themselves against the walls trying to avoid the pack of bulls. They were soon approaching so Timm and I squished up against people who were squished up against more people who were squished up to the wall. When the bulls pass you feel such a relief but on your feet again so not to get caught by the steers who run a little while after the bulls.

We ran until we entered the arena which was packed with people screaming. Then we all stood around for a bit waiting for something to happen and next thing we see a bull charging! We cautiously stuck to the walls for the first bull and watched anyone brave enough try to slap the bull. After a while the bull was escorted out using a steer and then a minute later a bigger and more aggressive bull was realised and this was the pattern for the next 3 to come. By the third bull we were feeling more confident and when the bull trotted by while we were up against the wall Timm and I both slapped him. The bull stopped, turned to face us but we were lucky because this gave everyone a chance to slap him some more and cause more confusion. It was insane inside the arena, every time someone got hit by the bull or snagged on its horns the crowd would cheer and there were some big hits. A rule I learnt is never touch the horns or tail. We watched a tourist grab the bull by the tail and the arena started to boo, he was abused and then he received some punches from the locals and then they got him to leave the arena.

We got a 9:15am train back to Barcelona and spent the rest of that day sleeping and resting. For the rest of our days in spain we spent at the beach, exploring the city and doing some sight seeing. Spain was our last country together so we all said goodbye as we split up, Timm going to the UK, Lucas going back to Italy and myself going to Berlin to meet up with an old mate.

Spain has been a major highlight of this trip, it was filled with spontaneous fun I really enjoyed the Spanish culture. Another reason why I love Spain is because not as many people here speak English compared to Italy or France so it was so much fun learning a few Spanish words or using a mix of English and Italian and hoping for the best.

Next stop Berlin!

Greece- Ios and Santorini

I was very happy to meet up with everyone again even if it was at 2:30am at Athens airport. Then after another flight and a ferry ride we all arrived on the island of Ios. Ios is just how you imagine Greece, bright blue water, white buildings with blue trim and a very relaxed atmosphere, well until the nightlife kicks off. After hiring out a couple quad bikes(which were very limited being 50cc) we had a quiet evening and we tried to stay up late but with most people getting only a couple hours or less of sleep it didn't happen. After a sleep in we were at the beach and spent the day not doing much at all apart from hangout at the beach. That evening we went out for dinner which in Greece is always great and doesn't cost to much then came back to the apartment to sleep a couple hours and we were up at midnight ready to go out. As we discovered in Greece people go to the pubs and clubs normally between 12am-7am or so.

The following day we found ourselves hoping on another boat(thanks to our large group we had the boat to ourselves once again) and the day consisted of cliff jumping, snorkelling an old shipwreck which was a little disappointing and then the best part which was spending time at a little beach only accessible by boat.

The day after this we travelled to santorini for 2 nights were we just relaxed with our hotel being on the black beach, which was great to have such good access to the beach. On the second night we had one last dinner together and celebrated the end of the group travelling packed up our things as the following morning the girls spent one night in Athens then flew back home and the boys (Lucas, Timm and I) caught a plane to Barcelona Spain!

Paris

After giving up on how to get the metro to the backpackers I am staying at I caught a taxi. The hostel "Young and happy" is in no way fancy, it actually doesn't have many good points at all but what it does have is the best location in Paris and cheap rates. I spent my first day in Paris walking all day sight seeing all the major attractions such as the notre dame, Eiffel tower, the louvre and the arc de triomphe. But my favourite thing about Paris are the pastries, I've been eating to many nutella crepes, macaroons and croissants.

My favourite part about staying at a back packers is the guy on the bunk above me snores the loudest I have ever heard in my life and then wakes him self up every 15-20 seconds because he can't breath also shaking the bed.

Yesterday I went to Versailles, a giant mansion and garden just out of Paris. It was incredible the size, it just never ended, I spent pretty much the whole day there on a tour learning about the history and how everything came to be, it was a good day and was nice to meet some other auzzies in the tour group as I am in Paris by myself.

So today I had a few things to do in the morning and am now wondering around the musee d'Orsay where I will spend a few hours before returning to the hostel grabbing my bag and making my way by train to the airport for my flight to Athens. I can't wait especially as I will re group with everyone!

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is a beautiful place with its canals and relaxed city. We arrived in the afternoon and went out for a late dinner, the sun is very deceiving because it sets so late we find we are eating dinner a lot later then our typical times at home. The next day we had a late start and explored the city, went to the wax museum and then after dinner ended up on a pub crawl through the red light district which was great fun. The next day after another late start we went on a boat cruise around the canals then decided to hire some bikes and explore even more.

I am now at the train station trying to get to Paris where i will be in a backpackers travelling by myself for 3 nights while the group goes to Berlin and after we all meet in Athens. But being a very organised I didn't book a ticket so I have to wait a few hours for the 1:16pm train (I arrived at the station at 8:30am)