Ich Bin Ein Berliner

You know those things that everyone says is great, but you dont quite believe them. Then you do it yourself and you realize its even better than they described. Thats what your first time is like. Your first time in Berlin, I mean. That city is unlike any where else you will ever go. Due to a strange mix of its recent history and politics and some of the cheapest beer and wine in Europe, Berlin is home to awesome bars and clubs, gorgeous architecture, haunting memorials and really weird corners.
Within my first hour at the Eastener Hostel (which I cannot recommend highly enough) I was heading out with fellow packers for a night time tour of the city which just so happened to be in the middle of its festival of lights, meaning all the main buildings and monuments were lit up with lasers and light shows. After gawking at the New City of Lights, we headed to Zappata, a bar and night club located in the back of an abandoned building. Awesome in the sketchiest way possible. The city just got better as I met Jesse (a Mac Alum) and Jules and Juz, a couple from Oz. We ended up spending the next three days cooking giant communal breakys, walking around and seeing museums and tours, then heading back for giant communal dinners which, copious booze included, came out to 5 euro per. Amazing! Did I mention the homemade guacamole, the long debates about Star Wars versus Indiana Jones, or the attempts to understand cricket?
Sadly all good things must end, and Jesse and I decided to head to Munich together while the aussies finished their time in Berlin. After a rough night train, we arrived bleary eyed in Munchen and found a hostel. However, we are thinking we might head to Prague this weekend and meet up with Jules and Juz again, haha. All in all amazing times.
However, the weather is getting frigid here, so I will very soon be making haste for the south coast of Italy France and Spain, possibly Portugal. So much to see, so much to do.

Gutentag (wait, that's German)

Wow, I guess it has been a while since my last post. Leaving behind the MacBook tends to minimize my internet access. However, I have left London behind, been through Amsterdam (I think) and am now chilly in Denmark. Alas, poor Yorick, you should have worn a scarf!
Though I was sad to leave the comfort of Mitch and Anne's guest room (and all those turkey leftovers), I boarded a plane bound for the Netherlands (which, strangely enough, is what I call the area between my...nevermind). 35 minutes later (thats right, 35 minute) I had reached mainland Europe and the city famous for its drugs and hookers. My guide and lodging to this haven of sin, which actually turned out to be a very old style town with a relaxed attitude to certain pleasures, was Nick Ellens. Couch cushions don't quite compare with a real bed, but hey, the price was right. Biking in Holland is bigger than Jesus, and everyone from students to grannies flys through bike lanes with bells blazing. With one day of gorgeous sun and two days of drizzly rain, I got the full gamut of Dutch weather. I won't go into details about the infamous coffeeshops, everyone knows the deal. All I will say is that walking along canals on a sunny morning only to turn a corner and be confronted with a dozen windows filled with prostitutes is more than a little disconcerting (and hilarious at the same time, in a very awkward way).
Getting from Amsterdam to Copenhagen was an all-day event of trains, transfers, ferrys, delays and two very nice swedes (no, not bikini models, older people). My train from Amsterdam to Ostnabruk was late, meaning I missed my connection. Fearing the worst, I caught the next train to Hamburg where I was supposed to catch yet another train. Luckily for me that one was also quite late, and I made the connection no problem (which is good, as it was the last one of the day). I spent the last 5 hours of the trip talking with the 2 Swedes (who were coming home from Italy) about pretty much everything: the difference between Americans and Canadians, car racing, IKEA (seriously). After 12 hours on the train, I finally arrived in Copenhagen, and grabbed a cab to my hostel.
Call it divine spite or coincidence, but I have had the top bunk in every hostel so far. This time, I am the top on a 3 bunk bed (so if I fall off, Im falling FAR!) Luckily I was so tired from the ride I simply passed out. Today I walked around town (got lost) and am heading out later to the pub with some other Torontonians.

Soon, off to Berlin

London

I guess I can now say that the trip has begun in earnest, as I have left the Emerald Isle for Jolly Old England. And I must admit, it is fairly jolly. Not Santa Clause jolly, more like "we're well dressed and fairly happy in our jobs" jolly. Either way, London is a fantastic city with lots to offer the casual tourist, such as myself. Not only are all the national galleries and museums free (not the specialized ones though), but the architecture on every block offers up something new for the photog's. Victorian towers mix with modern geodesic structures to create a surprising harmony. Much like the new ROM Crystal in Toronto, of which I am a huge fan, London has not shied away from fusing the old onto the new, presenting itself as a city that celebrates its past without seeming sentimental or redundant. Couple that with a sprawling and yet simple to navigate Tube system, and you've got a formula for very satisfying day trips. 

To orient myself to the major monuments of London and learn more about the cities past, I signed up for a Fat Tire bike tour, an experience I recommend for all newcomers to London. Led by Dave, a mid-20's Texan who runs the London branch of the company, about 15 of us rod our California-cruiser style bikes throughout the city, covering Hyde Park, Trafalger Square, Buckingham Palace and many other landmarks in about 4 hours. The bikes were super comfy, and Dave's narratives about the monuments were informative, interesting and infused with some great tidbits of info and jokes. I think he rattled off about 6 or 7 of Winston Churchill's wittiest comebacks, including the famous "I may be drunk, but you ma'am are ugly. In the morning I will be sober, but you will still be ugly." Our group was even lucky enough to see the changing of the guard; somehow the modern automatic rifles seemed a little out of place against the traditional beefeater outfits.

Other highlights of London have been: the National Gallery, which houses Monets, Gaugins, Van Goghs, and a less famous Seurat (he of Pointilism notoriety); the south bank of the Thames, which had a great used book market and buskers; the Princess Diana memorial fountain, a very cool spring-fed fountain that encourages visitors to chill out on its banks.

Mitch and Ann, who have taken me in for the last few days, have been fantastic hosts, and I could not have asked for more. Mitch, a correspondent for the Toronto Star, has been regaling me with stories of being embedded in Afghanistan, or traveling through the Congo, or living in Egypt on 50 cents a day. Talk about a well traveled guy. Tomorrow I leave for Brighton for a few days, then fly to Amsterdam where I will begin to railroad portion of my trip. I will be leaving my computer behind at the Potters, as well as a bunch of other gear I don't need, so my posting of photos and blogs may be a little less frequent. However, I will try to stay on top of things through internet cafe's as much as possible. If anyone who does not have facebook wants to view my London photos, just go to this link:  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2229105&l=d2246&id=72602674

Cheerio!

Ireland on the Way Out

After a fun night in Galway, a random night in Dublin, and 2 entertaining days in Cork I have left the Emerald Isle and crossed over to Jolly Old England. London, to be precise, via Ryan Air, which was actually a completely pleasant flight with none of the unpleasant surprises I was warned about.  I will be spending 3 days in London before heading to the seaside to crash with my buddy Steve in Brighton for a couple. After that its on to Amsterdam to begin to the mainland (and most sizable) portion of this trek, which I am quite excited for. Already purchased my Eurail pass, so I am good to go on any train, any time, to 20 different countries. I am hoping to take a lot of night trains, thus eliminating the need for hostels while moving between cities.

            Galway held some interesting surprises, none of them bad. Pulling up by bus, I noticed a large gathering in Eyre Square, what looked to be the makings of a rally. Sure enough it was a student protest, not surprising since Galway is home to 2 universities. What was surprising was the focus of the rally. These youngsters were not protesting apartheid, or politics, or war, or racism, or any of the usual fodder for such events. No, the topic that seemed to anger so many students was the possibility of…wait for it…paying for their education. That’s right, apparently Irish students don’t have to pay for their post-secondary education like the rest of the world, and the very idea of tuition fees was enough to stir up the collective ire of three thousand freshmen. I was very tempted to grab the microphone and explain to them how much debt the average Canadian student accrues after highschool, but decided instead to find my hostel.

            An even better surprise was waiting for me at the Roisin Dobe (pronounced Russian Dove), one of the local pubs that I went to with some fellow hostelers. Not only did we get free live music, we were also handed a bag of candies and two free beers at the door! What a country! Sweets and beer! Needless to say a night that starts off that well can’t be bad, and I went to sleep rather impressed with Galway city.

            After booking my flight, I returned to Cork for two last days in Ireland, intent on doing at least one very Irish thing. Instead, I went and saw giraffes. I know, I never would have thought that Ireland would be the place to go see exotic animals like cheetahs, penguins and monkeys, but the Fota animal reserve proved me wrong. After checking out the animals all day with Robbie and Jen (two of the girls I met through SWAP), we all headed back to their flat where I was given a spare bed and a place to store my luggage. The next morning Jen and I headed to Blarney, my first close encounter with a castle. And what a castle! Of course, I had to kiss the blarney stone, reported to give anyone who kisses it the gift of gab (could explain the length of this blog), and we walked around the beautiful grounds. Unfortunately my camera battery died halfway through the day, but you can take my word for it that it is definitely worth checking out. (This is why Facebook should invent a “mental-pictures application). As I write this I am taking the train to Liverpool street, where I will then try to figure out the underground enough to get to my hostel.  If all goes well I won’t end up in Manchester.

Massive change of plans

Well, if you know me then you know my plans always change. When I got on my bike I intended to be gone for 2 months and bike all the way to Halifax and back. Then when I actually got there, I realized I wasn't prepared to go that distance, and shortened the trip. Looks like I will be doing the same thing with this little excursion in Europe. After looking at the job market in Dublin, Cork and Galway, I have decided that finding a job is simply not in the cards for me. Instead, I will be packing my bag and heading to the mainland to see as much of Europe as I can. I know this means that I will be returning home much sooner than first thought, but after much thought and debate, this seems to be the best option for me at this time. I have been in touch with several other Canadians in the SWAP program, all of whom are struggling to find good employment in a country currently experiencing a recession. So, rather than burning through my money looking for work, I am going to embark on a whirlwind tour of Europe immediately, seeing as much as I can while still maintaining a reasonable budget. For those of you back home, this means that I should return by mid november, at which point I will begin looking for work in Toronto with local law firms and, failing that, any other employment I can find. 

I have struggled with this decision for a while, since I didn't want to simply give up on my original plan. However, this truly seems like the best option, and is the one I have decided to undertake. I will keep you all updated on my progress, and I am truly looking forward to seeing Europe in any way I can.