After leaving Josh in Barcelona I met up with Mikaila, eventually, and dropped my bags in her cousins (Liam) flat in the city. Already plans had been made for that night so soon after getting changed I had a drink in my hand and was walking across Barcelona to meet up with a group of Liam's mates. While waiting, I had my first ever McBeer! It was actually quite drinkable... Next stop was some classy nightclub. After a taxi-ride, 15euro's and strong strong vodka to ease the pain of the expensive entry fee it was time to party! And thats what happened.
Morning came and it was time to do a bit of sight seeing. So Mikaila, Hannah and I went walkabout over the city. We went and saw the La Sagrada Familia which was just unbelievable. The detail and time that has gone into this temple is amazing! You could stand there for hours admiring it without ever getting close to seeing every single piece of Gaudi's designs. The inside wasn't as fascinating as the exterior but from the top we had a great view across Barcelona.
In the evening we were taken down to the beach for a beach party by Liam and his girlfriend, Maria. Sooner than later we realized that this "beach party" was a "gay beach party" and the "beach" was a "nudist beach"... Can you imagine what our eye's had to endure?
The next day Mikaila jumped on a hop-on hop off bus and I decided to take a walk around the city. I started off in Las Ramblas and took a walk looking at all the street performers and pet-stands on the side of the street where you can buy anything from turtles to spiders to lizards to squirrels! Then I crossed paths with a very weird man. This man was wearing no clothes, just shoes, and had a tattoo of a pair of undies where they should have been. I then noticed that he had two eyes tattooed either side of his penis, making it look like a face with a long nose!!! It was more amusing watching the unsuspecting onlookers expressions.
That was that for Barcelona and Mikaila and I had decided we'd take a few days to go up to San Sebastian. So away we went...
San Sebastian was a really nice city. I think there were 3 beaches and plenty of nice places to eat and drink at night. We kind of spoiled ourselves a bit and went out every night for dinner and drinking plenty of sangria. One day we decided to take a big walk up the mountain where a big statue of Jesus stands. The view from the top was incredible and was definitely worth the walk up, unlike the statue...
Next stop was Madrid where we were to meet back up with Hannah. The bus ride was awful, four smelly Arab people, two of which were females who burped every 5 minutes. Thats enough said about that.
Madrid was really nice. I was glad that I could get back there again after only spending a night there with Josh a few weeks earlier. The first day we were there Hannah hadn't arrived yet so Mikaila and I went and hired a row boat in the Retiro park to unwind a bit in the sweltering heat.
Later on that night we had plans to watch a bullfight in the main arena. Hannah just made it in time to the fight, we snatched up our tickets and quickly sat down. Before long a bull was out in the ring and the Matador's were stabbing it with spears and throwing darts into it's back and then it was dead, soon to be dragged from the ring by three donkeys. That night we got to see 7 bulls get killed, some much quicker than others and some much more slowly and gruesome.
The next day the three of us went for a sight seeing walk and ended up going into the Palacio Real, a big palace with over 2000 rooms all of which are extremely exquisite. I think its meant to be where the King holds his ceremonies and dinners etc. It was hard to sneak some photos while in there but I managed to get a couple. One day you'll see them!
For our last night we grabbed some sangria, played Gin Rummy and got drunk. It was a good way to end the Spain leg of my trip. In the morning I said goodbye to the girls and jumped on my flight to Berlin, Germany...
Friday, 7 September 2007
Wednesday, 15 August 2007
Spain/Portugal Road Trip...
Pamplona had ended, everyone was bugged and we just had to keep on moving. My plan from here was to do some travelling around Spain for 2 weeks. Josh didnt know what he was up to so we both decided that we'd do Spain together. After about 5mins with our noses stuck in our lonely planet guides we has made a decision to head to the north of Spain, to Santander.
After a couple of buses and some much needed sleep we arrived in Santander. With no accomodation booked and no idea where to start we began to wander the streets. Before long we had stumbled across a semi-cheap hotel which we decided would be the best option considering the circumstances. First things first, we clean ourselves up with a much needed shower then made our way out for some dinner. We eventually found a place not too expensive which had the added bonus of a "pour your own beer at your table" system, we were sold! After being filled with good food and good beer we decided to makes plans for the coming week. The plan was to hire a car and drive from northern Spain to southern Spain/Portugal. Then zzz zzz zzz...
Morning came and so did our pesky little rental car. Lucky it was only the 2 of us travelling and sleeping in it! After driving around Santander like a granny for half an hour trying to get used to driving on the other side of the road it was time to make tracks to Santander. Along the way we stopped off at a Macca's for some lunch. Before long I was trying to order myself a meal using the limited Spanish I had picked up along the way. I thought I'd done well until I ended up with half the menu on my tray... Luckily I was hungry, they must have listened to my stomach not my words?
We stopped off in Segovia for a few hours to check out a few of the sights, mainly the massive aquaduct that slices through the city. It was a pretty impressive structure, especially because it was built using no mortar. The rest of the city was really nice also, small cobbled streets lined with old houses and shops, it was great! Very Spanish... We were on a tight schedule so we left before long, next stop Madrid for the night.
Firstly, driving in Madrid is insane! There are hardly any lanes, massive round-a-bout's with people driving wherever they want its amazing we didn't have an accident. We arrived at night and was only going to stay for 1 night in the car so we quickly found a spot to park the car and took off on our self guided "Madrid by Night" city tour. After a couple of hours we were pooped and had seen pretty much everything we wanted to so we jumped in the car for some sleep.
Morning came and we hit the road once again, next stop Toledo, just south of Madrid. We had heard good things about this very small, old town and decided to stop off for a few hours to check it out. Again, this town was very Spanish and had some really old churches and castles which were pretty unique all of which were surrounded by a wall around the city, maybe to keep out the enemys back in the day. There were plenty of really small winding streets here which you could very easily get lost in and every different alleyway you go down is different to the next. Again time was not on our side so we had to get going again, next stop Lagos, Portugal.
After a very long drive from Toledo we eventually arrived in Lagos. Josh wasn't too keen on sleeping in the car again so he decided to pay for a camp site for the night. So we set up our tents and away we went to the beautiful beaches of South Portugal. And yes, they are very very beautiful, explaining them doesnt do them justice but picture and nice white sandy beach amongst the 12 Apostles. The town here is almost as equally nice as the beaches, colourful buildings line the small windy alleys that zig zag their way through the town. After an afternoon of swimming Josh and I grabbed a MASSIVE pizza and a bunch of beers and ate and drank down by the beach, chillaxing... The next day was pretty much the same, relaxing and chilling out down by the beach before heading off to our next destination, Malaga, Spain.
Malaga wasn't as nice as the rest of the places we'd been through but the warmth of the Mediterranean. We stayed one night here and just chilled by the beach again. It was really great just to be able to laze about and not worry about anything. Very much needed... Thats about it for Malaga... Next stop, Valencia.
We arrived in Valencia at night and Josh had to go to hospital to get checked up on something, I waiting there for hours and decided to head back to the car to get some sleep. Everything was fine in the morning and we jumped on a hop on hop off bus to get a quick tour of the city. Valencia was pretty nice but we were limited to what we saw on the bus, some pretty old building and beautiful architecture. The beach was pretty good too, warm, Med sea water. I finally got to taste some Paella in Spain and unfortunately wasnt very good. Joe, yours is the best I've had sofar! We stayed here for a night and next stop was to be Barcelona.
I was to meet up with Mikaila in Barcelona and after driving around for hours trying to find her we finally did, not after almost getting a fine from the Spanish Polizia! I dropped off the car and that marked the end of the Spanish Road Trip with Josh. What a great time!
Next blog will be up soon too. Im heading to Athens tomorrow for the Greek Islands if anyones wondering, so got a few blogs to catch up on!
Thanks for reading.
After a couple of buses and some much needed sleep we arrived in Santander. With no accomodation booked and no idea where to start we began to wander the streets. Before long we had stumbled across a semi-cheap hotel which we decided would be the best option considering the circumstances. First things first, we clean ourselves up with a much needed shower then made our way out for some dinner. We eventually found a place not too expensive which had the added bonus of a "pour your own beer at your table" system, we were sold! After being filled with good food and good beer we decided to makes plans for the coming week. The plan was to hire a car and drive from northern Spain to southern Spain/Portugal. Then zzz zzz zzz...
Morning came and so did our pesky little rental car. Lucky it was only the 2 of us travelling and sleeping in it! After driving around Santander like a granny for half an hour trying to get used to driving on the other side of the road it was time to make tracks to Santander. Along the way we stopped off at a Macca's for some lunch. Before long I was trying to order myself a meal using the limited Spanish I had picked up along the way. I thought I'd done well until I ended up with half the menu on my tray... Luckily I was hungry, they must have listened to my stomach not my words?
We stopped off in Segovia for a few hours to check out a few of the sights, mainly the massive aquaduct that slices through the city. It was a pretty impressive structure, especially because it was built using no mortar. The rest of the city was really nice also, small cobbled streets lined with old houses and shops, it was great! Very Spanish... We were on a tight schedule so we left before long, next stop Madrid for the night.
Firstly, driving in Madrid is insane! There are hardly any lanes, massive round-a-bout's with people driving wherever they want its amazing we didn't have an accident. We arrived at night and was only going to stay for 1 night in the car so we quickly found a spot to park the car and took off on our self guided "Madrid by Night" city tour. After a couple of hours we were pooped and had seen pretty much everything we wanted to so we jumped in the car for some sleep.
Morning came and we hit the road once again, next stop Toledo, just south of Madrid. We had heard good things about this very small, old town and decided to stop off for a few hours to check it out. Again, this town was very Spanish and had some really old churches and castles which were pretty unique all of which were surrounded by a wall around the city, maybe to keep out the enemys back in the day. There were plenty of really small winding streets here which you could very easily get lost in and every different alleyway you go down is different to the next. Again time was not on our side so we had to get going again, next stop Lagos, Portugal.
After a very long drive from Toledo we eventually arrived in Lagos. Josh wasn't too keen on sleeping in the car again so he decided to pay for a camp site for the night. So we set up our tents and away we went to the beautiful beaches of South Portugal. And yes, they are very very beautiful, explaining them doesnt do them justice but picture and nice white sandy beach amongst the 12 Apostles. The town here is almost as equally nice as the beaches, colourful buildings line the small windy alleys that zig zag their way through the town. After an afternoon of swimming Josh and I grabbed a MASSIVE pizza and a bunch of beers and ate and drank down by the beach, chillaxing... The next day was pretty much the same, relaxing and chilling out down by the beach before heading off to our next destination, Malaga, Spain.
Malaga wasn't as nice as the rest of the places we'd been through but the warmth of the Mediterranean. We stayed one night here and just chilled by the beach again. It was really great just to be able to laze about and not worry about anything. Very much needed... Thats about it for Malaga... Next stop, Valencia.
We arrived in Valencia at night and Josh had to go to hospital to get checked up on something, I waiting there for hours and decided to head back to the car to get some sleep. Everything was fine in the morning and we jumped on a hop on hop off bus to get a quick tour of the city. Valencia was pretty nice but we were limited to what we saw on the bus, some pretty old building and beautiful architecture. The beach was pretty good too, warm, Med sea water. I finally got to taste some Paella in Spain and unfortunately wasnt very good. Joe, yours is the best I've had sofar! We stayed here for a night and next stop was to be Barcelona.
I was to meet up with Mikaila in Barcelona and after driving around for hours trying to find her we finally did, not after almost getting a fine from the Spanish Polizia! I dropped off the car and that marked the end of the Spanish Road Trip with Josh. What a great time!
Next blog will be up soon too. Im heading to Athens tomorrow for the Greek Islands if anyones wondering, so got a few blogs to catch up on!
Thanks for reading.
Tuesday, 24 July 2007
San Fermin - Pamplona, Spain
I know I´ve been a bit slack with the updates and this comes almost 3 weeks after the festival but better late than never right? Actually, I did write this about 2 weeks ago but the internet ran out just before I got to save it so I lost it all...
We left Biarritz to make our (Pete, Josh, Will & Myself) way to Pamlona for the much anticipated San Fermin festival or ¨Running of the Bulls¨. This was definately up there on the high priority list for my travelling so you can imagine how excited we all were. We hadn´t made any accomodation bookings as we were planning on sleeping in the park and ruffing it for a few nights and funnily enough by the time we got off the train we had a few other people following us to do the same thing. We then jumped on a bus into the centre of town and again by the time we had arrived we had probably 8 other people coming with us to crash in the park, a nice little happy family of bums I guess...
After dropping our bags off in the left luggage place in town we headed to the grog-shop and spent the rest of the night getting to know our new found parksleepers. As the liquor dried up we got tired and it was time to hit the flowerbed for a sleep, in the middle of the main square. A few short hours later we were woken by a sharp pain in the shin´s... It was a bunch of police smacking us in the legs with their battons, and it wasnt any lovetap either! I think we all ended up with a few lumps and bruises and my camera got a bit of dent in it, still works tho. After only about 3 hours sleep we needed longer so we packed up and moved to better hiding spot.
We awoke to the sounds of the opening ceremony of the festival so we quickly packed up our sleeping bags and made our way to the El Corte Ingles, the supermarket, for bulk quantities of Sangria! 5€ later and 5 litres heavier we were set, well at least for a few hours. We did manage to find some room in our stomachs for some food too... The Sangria was SO cheap, we had so much and it was so hot so put all those 3 together and you get everyone soaked in Sangria! So much fun!!!
The day, the people and the town became very very messy. Will managed to lose his passport until I found it about 50metres down the street, a few people spewed and I´m sure I´m missing some important points from that day... As night fell we all were pretty bugged so didnt really stay up too late, and also because we needed to get up early for the first bull run of the festival. So we grabbed our sleeping bags and off we went to our patch of grass...
The morning came and we woke a bit late so were rushing to get to the gate so that we could participate in the bullrun. Unfortunately we got there too late and missed out but I managed to get up the front of the crowd for a good view of the run. It was good to be able to see how it all works before I actually ran I think, but, it definately made me more nervous for the next day... I could see people getting trampled in the stampede of humans and bulls and you can definately see how people get so hurt every year!
After the bullrun the day was pretty relaxing... The day was blisteringly hot so Pete, Josh and I made our way down to the river just outside the town to have a siesta. The sleep didn´t work out, it was way too hot and the river was o so tempting, well if you could get the dirt and smell out of your head... Before long we were splashing about having a ball and about 20 other people wearnt too far behind us! I guess the river kind of acted as our shower for 3 days we didnt have access to one. You can imagine how dirty we were if we thought we´d be cleaner by swimming in a dirty river... Again the night fell and we again slept in our patch of grass.
Tomorrow came and it was now or never for us to run with the bulls. We managed to get up with plenty of time to spare to get to the track and after a heap of pushing and shoving Pete and I manage to get onto the track. It was so exciting and adrenaline pumping just to be standing amongst the crowd. Everyone was so pumped up and you could see the nervous looks on peoples faces, it was quite nerve racking... Then the gun went off and that was our que to start running for our lives. I took my camera with me and took a video over my shoulder as I ran. ()I took the run pretty slow at first to try and let the bulls catch up with me and damn did they catch up. One minute there wearnt anywhere in sight the next they were up my arse. I did a massive stack and quickly got back up just as the bulls were running right past me. One metre to the left and I would´ve been stomped for sure! But I got back up quick smart and ran for my life into the bull ring. Safe at last? HELL NO! After the runners were in the ring, they began to let our more crazy bulls into the ring and they pretty much just charged and charged and charged until they hit someone. You could see people getting flung into the air and there wasn´t much you could do if the bull came staight at you. Luckily enough I escaped virtually unscathed, just a few cuts and bruises on my arms and legs from the stack during the run... Definately a great experience that I´ll never ever forget!
Well now that I´d done my run and I was satisfied it was time to pack up and head off. The next destination was to be Santander on the north coast of Spain. The plan was to go with Josh and we would hire a car up there and drive our way all over Spain, ending in Barcelona...
Plenty more blogs to come so just stay tuned and I´ll do my best to type one up whenever I get the chance.
Until then...
We left Biarritz to make our (Pete, Josh, Will & Myself) way to Pamlona for the much anticipated San Fermin festival or ¨Running of the Bulls¨. This was definately up there on the high priority list for my travelling so you can imagine how excited we all were. We hadn´t made any accomodation bookings as we were planning on sleeping in the park and ruffing it for a few nights and funnily enough by the time we got off the train we had a few other people following us to do the same thing. We then jumped on a bus into the centre of town and again by the time we had arrived we had probably 8 other people coming with us to crash in the park, a nice little happy family of bums I guess...
After dropping our bags off in the left luggage place in town we headed to the grog-shop and spent the rest of the night getting to know our new found parksleepers. As the liquor dried up we got tired and it was time to hit the flowerbed for a sleep, in the middle of the main square. A few short hours later we were woken by a sharp pain in the shin´s... It was a bunch of police smacking us in the legs with their battons, and it wasnt any lovetap either! I think we all ended up with a few lumps and bruises and my camera got a bit of dent in it, still works tho. After only about 3 hours sleep we needed longer so we packed up and moved to better hiding spot.
We awoke to the sounds of the opening ceremony of the festival so we quickly packed up our sleeping bags and made our way to the El Corte Ingles, the supermarket, for bulk quantities of Sangria! 5€ later and 5 litres heavier we were set, well at least for a few hours. We did manage to find some room in our stomachs for some food too... The Sangria was SO cheap, we had so much and it was so hot so put all those 3 together and you get everyone soaked in Sangria! So much fun!!!
The day, the people and the town became very very messy. Will managed to lose his passport until I found it about 50metres down the street, a few people spewed and I´m sure I´m missing some important points from that day... As night fell we all were pretty bugged so didnt really stay up too late, and also because we needed to get up early for the first bull run of the festival. So we grabbed our sleeping bags and off we went to our patch of grass...
The morning came and we woke a bit late so were rushing to get to the gate so that we could participate in the bullrun. Unfortunately we got there too late and missed out but I managed to get up the front of the crowd for a good view of the run. It was good to be able to see how it all works before I actually ran I think, but, it definately made me more nervous for the next day... I could see people getting trampled in the stampede of humans and bulls and you can definately see how people get so hurt every year!
After the bullrun the day was pretty relaxing... The day was blisteringly hot so Pete, Josh and I made our way down to the river just outside the town to have a siesta. The sleep didn´t work out, it was way too hot and the river was o so tempting, well if you could get the dirt and smell out of your head... Before long we were splashing about having a ball and about 20 other people wearnt too far behind us! I guess the river kind of acted as our shower for 3 days we didnt have access to one. You can imagine how dirty we were if we thought we´d be cleaner by swimming in a dirty river... Again the night fell and we again slept in our patch of grass.
Tomorrow came and it was now or never for us to run with the bulls. We managed to get up with plenty of time to spare to get to the track and after a heap of pushing and shoving Pete and I manage to get onto the track. It was so exciting and adrenaline pumping just to be standing amongst the crowd. Everyone was so pumped up and you could see the nervous looks on peoples faces, it was quite nerve racking... Then the gun went off and that was our que to start running for our lives. I took my camera with me and took a video over my shoulder as I ran. ()I took the run pretty slow at first to try and let the bulls catch up with me and damn did they catch up. One minute there wearnt anywhere in sight the next they were up my arse. I did a massive stack and quickly got back up just as the bulls were running right past me. One metre to the left and I would´ve been stomped for sure! But I got back up quick smart and ran for my life into the bull ring. Safe at last? HELL NO! After the runners were in the ring, they began to let our more crazy bulls into the ring and they pretty much just charged and charged and charged until they hit someone. You could see people getting flung into the air and there wasn´t much you could do if the bull came staight at you. Luckily enough I escaped virtually unscathed, just a few cuts and bruises on my arms and legs from the stack during the run... Definately a great experience that I´ll never ever forget!
Well now that I´d done my run and I was satisfied it was time to pack up and head off. The next destination was to be Santander on the north coast of Spain. The plan was to go with Josh and we would hire a car up there and drive our way all over Spain, ending in Barcelona...
Plenty more blogs to come so just stay tuned and I´ll do my best to type one up whenever I get the chance.
Until then...
Friday, 13 July 2007
Bordeaux, Biarritz - France
Ok, so after leaving Libourne we (Josh, Pete, Will & Myself) spent the day in Bordeaux. We didnt really get up to much, just the usual walk around and checkout the sites. Then, again, it was back to the station to jump on yet another train, to Biarritz.
The train ride was only 2hours and was made alot quicker by the fact that we had a case of beer between us and a few American women to talk to. Again, we had no accomodation booked for the night, just our tents and sleeping bags. We arrived sometime in the evening, around 9ish I think, and jumped on the bus to the city/beach where we were planning on crashing for the night.
After reaching the beach we realised that it probably wasnt the best place to pitch the tent for the night. It was still busy and very windy and cold... So we thought that sleeping in our sleeping bags on a small piece of grass in the middle of town was a good idea, not really, it was bloody freezing... Our bodies told us we needed warmth so we decided that we'd try and just get through the night with the tents up on the beach so off we went and set them up, 30 mins later we were sound asleep, and 4hrs later the police were banging on the tents... No trouble tho, just packed up and away we went, this time to the caravan park.
The caravan park was so much more relaxing and at least we had showers! After a few days of dirt I bet you can imagine what the 4 of us smelt like. The day was filled with beach, pool, shower, beer, and food and more beer. All in all a great day.
The morning came and it was again time to pack up and head to the station, this time, destination Pamplona, Spain for San Fermin (Running of the Bulls). One of my most anticipated places on my trip...
Will write about that next time...
Until then, a side note...
The general perception of the French. From almost all the people I have spoken with, they have all told me that the French people are just arrogant and very stubborn people. I didn't find that at all, actually, from my travels I could amost say that the French people (the ones I've met) have been some of the nicest people I've come across... Just my experience tho I guess...
See you again soon!
Don.
The train ride was only 2hours and was made alot quicker by the fact that we had a case of beer between us and a few American women to talk to. Again, we had no accomodation booked for the night, just our tents and sleeping bags. We arrived sometime in the evening, around 9ish I think, and jumped on the bus to the city/beach where we were planning on crashing for the night.
After reaching the beach we realised that it probably wasnt the best place to pitch the tent for the night. It was still busy and very windy and cold... So we thought that sleeping in our sleeping bags on a small piece of grass in the middle of town was a good idea, not really, it was bloody freezing... Our bodies told us we needed warmth so we decided that we'd try and just get through the night with the tents up on the beach so off we went and set them up, 30 mins later we were sound asleep, and 4hrs later the police were banging on the tents... No trouble tho, just packed up and away we went, this time to the caravan park.
The caravan park was so much more relaxing and at least we had showers! After a few days of dirt I bet you can imagine what the 4 of us smelt like. The day was filled with beach, pool, shower, beer, and food and more beer. All in all a great day.
The morning came and it was again time to pack up and head to the station, this time, destination Pamplona, Spain for San Fermin (Running of the Bulls). One of my most anticipated places on my trip...
Will write about that next time...
Until then, a side note...
The general perception of the French. From almost all the people I have spoken with, they have all told me that the French people are just arrogant and very stubborn people. I didn't find that at all, actually, from my travels I could amost say that the French people (the ones I've met) have been some of the nicest people I've come across... Just my experience tho I guess...
See you again soon!
Don.
Tuesday, 10 July 2007
Libourne - France
Pete, Josh and I left London on a flight to Bordeaux with our final destination to be Libourne.
After arriving in Bordeaux we pretty much jumped straight on a train heading to Libourne. Not sure why we went there but I think it was something to do with the wine region... Anyway, we arrived in Libourne and met up with Will who had flew over from OZ to spend some time in Europe with us boys. It was good to catch up with him, hadnt seen each other for something like 8months!
So straight to the bottle shop and off we went walking to the campsite about 3kms out of town. After the long tiring walk we finally arrived walked in then walked out. The place was only for caravans... As you can imagine we were all pretty frustrated and dissapointed because the next campsite was 6kms away! We decided to knock on the door of a vineyard and ask if we could pitch our tents in their yard. So we did, and the first doorknock was a success. 30mins later we were set-up and heading back into town for some tucker.
Dinner was basic, a kebab. Then we went down the road a bit and bought a case of grog and sat out front and drank til the early hours of the morning. After some drunken shenanigans it was time to head all the way home...
The next day we departed Libourne and headed back to Bordeaux. (will update from here on very soon! Promise...)
After arriving in Bordeaux we pretty much jumped straight on a train heading to Libourne. Not sure why we went there but I think it was something to do with the wine region... Anyway, we arrived in Libourne and met up with Will who had flew over from OZ to spend some time in Europe with us boys. It was good to catch up with him, hadnt seen each other for something like 8months!
So straight to the bottle shop and off we went walking to the campsite about 3kms out of town. After the long tiring walk we finally arrived walked in then walked out. The place was only for caravans... As you can imagine we were all pretty frustrated and dissapointed because the next campsite was 6kms away! We decided to knock on the door of a vineyard and ask if we could pitch our tents in their yard. So we did, and the first doorknock was a success. 30mins later we were set-up and heading back into town for some tucker.
Dinner was basic, a kebab. Then we went down the road a bit and bought a case of grog and sat out front and drank til the early hours of the morning. After some drunken shenanigans it was time to head all the way home...
The next day we departed Libourne and headed back to Bordeaux. (will update from here on very soon! Promise...)
Return to London...
After Helsinki I made a (kind of) surprise return to London to spend a few days in the old house with the boys until the next leg of the journey, France.
My time in London was probably most enjoyable because of the fact that I could just relax and not worry about anything for a while, eat well and again, relax.
One of the days we retraced our steps of the "Fosters Tour" that we had done many months before. This day ended with many stumbles and lost memories but was an awesome day which was reinforced by the morning feeling, "Never drinking again" ring any bells?
Another outing included heading to The Church, my first time there. This place is really on a different drinking planet. Drinks are served in 3 bottle/can lots and given over the counter in clear plastic bags. The floor is covered with sawdust, my guess is so that cleaning is much easier with all the spilt drinks and spew everywhere. A (dirty/disgusting) stripper also performed on stage and a few drinking games were held but mainly the whole day was drinking and drinking and yep, drinking!
Ok well that was that for London! (more happened but I´m so far behind my update that I´ll just put those important parts in...)
Next we left for France, destination Bordoeux.
My time in London was probably most enjoyable because of the fact that I could just relax and not worry about anything for a while, eat well and again, relax.
One of the days we retraced our steps of the "Fosters Tour" that we had done many months before. This day ended with many stumbles and lost memories but was an awesome day which was reinforced by the morning feeling, "Never drinking again" ring any bells?
Another outing included heading to The Church, my first time there. This place is really on a different drinking planet. Drinks are served in 3 bottle/can lots and given over the counter in clear plastic bags. The floor is covered with sawdust, my guess is so that cleaning is much easier with all the spilt drinks and spew everywhere. A (dirty/disgusting) stripper also performed on stage and a few drinking games were held but mainly the whole day was drinking and drinking and yep, drinking!
Ok well that was that for London! (more happened but I´m so far behind my update that I´ll just put those important parts in...)
Next we left for France, destination Bordoeux.
Sunday, 24 June 2007
Helsinki, Finland
If anyone back in Oz is thinking they need a good sunbathing session then jump on a place and head over here to Finland. I say this because in this place, the sky is always light. This means that from about 3am to 11pm you can actually see the sun in the sky and between 11pm and 3am you cant see the sun but the sky is still light...
I arrived in Helsinki at 10:30pm and had some vague instruction on how to reach the hostel I had booked into. So after getting a bus from the airport to the city centre, as instructed by my instructions, I found myself walking around in circles trying to find a tram or metro to the hostel. After a good 15mins tiredness and frustration kicked in so I wrote down the name of the hostel on a bit of paper and gave it to a taxi, jumped in and a few minutes late I was walking through the front door of the hostel. Basically that was my first few hours in Helsinki, then I jumped in bed to prepare for the next day.
Today I had planned to do a fair bit of sightseeing and had marked on the map the various places I wanted to visit. First stop was a church, but not any old church, this one had been carved from the earth, built within a rock which had been chiseled away to form this "one of a kind" places. The whole church wasn't built from the rock, the roof and floor were unnatural but it was still quite impressive!
On the way to my next destination, Fortress of Suomenlinna, I walked passed the 1952 Olympics site, relaxed on a bench in the Winter Garden and passed numerous old buildings from varying time periods. After a long walk and a quick 15min ferry ride to the Fortress on the island Suomenlinna it was time for more walking... The island was pretty big so I had planned on staying there until the last ferry in order to see the whole place. After walking around for hours on end passing through old bunkers, pitch black tunnels and massive cannons it was time to rest my weary legs and what better way to do it than with a couple of local beers and a quite alcove on the rocky shore to do a bit of reading.
The weekend that I was in Helsinki, by coincidence, was their Midsummer Celebrations which included massive bonfires along the shores of the mainland and the hundreds of outlying islands. After taking the ferry back from the islands to the mainland it was time to find a bonfire. Shortly after, I stumbled across a massive stack of wood by the water so I found a suitable viewpoint and waited and waited and waited and waited and finally the fire began. To tell you the truth it wasn't that exciting, just really a massive fire, but was definitely interesting to witness. Time to head home and after a long long walk I got there. My dorm was empty so was good to have the place to myself, don't know why but it was good.
The morning came and I decided to leave the city a bit early, I felt satisfied with what I'd seen over the past day, so I walked to the station and got on a bus to the airport, changed my flight to the next one leaving for London and away I went. London here I come! Pete was expecting me on Sun (I was arriving Sat) and Josh wasn't expecting me at all...
Now I'm in London, again, so I'll report again soon, maybe from Spain this time...
I arrived in Helsinki at 10:30pm and had some vague instruction on how to reach the hostel I had booked into. So after getting a bus from the airport to the city centre, as instructed by my instructions, I found myself walking around in circles trying to find a tram or metro to the hostel. After a good 15mins tiredness and frustration kicked in so I wrote down the name of the hostel on a bit of paper and gave it to a taxi, jumped in and a few minutes late I was walking through the front door of the hostel. Basically that was my first few hours in Helsinki, then I jumped in bed to prepare for the next day.
Today I had planned to do a fair bit of sightseeing and had marked on the map the various places I wanted to visit. First stop was a church, but not any old church, this one had been carved from the earth, built within a rock which had been chiseled away to form this "one of a kind" places. The whole church wasn't built from the rock, the roof and floor were unnatural but it was still quite impressive!
On the way to my next destination, Fortress of Suomenlinna, I walked passed the 1952 Olympics site, relaxed on a bench in the Winter Garden and passed numerous old buildings from varying time periods. After a long walk and a quick 15min ferry ride to the Fortress on the island Suomenlinna it was time for more walking... The island was pretty big so I had planned on staying there until the last ferry in order to see the whole place. After walking around for hours on end passing through old bunkers, pitch black tunnels and massive cannons it was time to rest my weary legs and what better way to do it than with a couple of local beers and a quite alcove on the rocky shore to do a bit of reading.
The weekend that I was in Helsinki, by coincidence, was their Midsummer Celebrations which included massive bonfires along the shores of the mainland and the hundreds of outlying islands. After taking the ferry back from the islands to the mainland it was time to find a bonfire. Shortly after, I stumbled across a massive stack of wood by the water so I found a suitable viewpoint and waited and waited and waited and waited and finally the fire began. To tell you the truth it wasn't that exciting, just really a massive fire, but was definitely interesting to witness. Time to head home and after a long long walk I got there. My dorm was empty so was good to have the place to myself, don't know why but it was good.
The morning came and I decided to leave the city a bit early, I felt satisfied with what I'd seen over the past day, so I walked to the station and got on a bus to the airport, changed my flight to the next one leaving for London and away I went. London here I come! Pete was expecting me on Sun (I was arriving Sat) and Josh wasn't expecting me at all...
Now I'm in London, again, so I'll report again soon, maybe from Spain this time...
Thursday, 21 June 2007
Amsterdam...
Well well,
It seems that I'm travelling through these cities quite quickly, sometimes feels a bit too quick but never the less its good times all round so not complaining. Right now I'm in Amsterdam, my last day here before I jet off up to Helsinki, Finland.
Ok well this place is one crazy city, everyone here is here for one reason, to have fun! First day I got here was pretty relaxed, basically just chilled out and walked around the city taking in the atmosphere and getting my bearings for things. At night went for a walk with a couple of Brazillian guys got something to eat and checked out some ho's in the windows!
My 2nd day here started with a free walking tour of the city where I got talking to an Aussie guy from Melbourne who has his own band (Marty). The walking tour was excellent, showed us pretty much everything we needed to see and maybe some stuff we didn't really want to see... After the tour a few of us stuck together and went for a drink together. Marty gave me a CD with some tracks from his band, listening to it right now actually and its pretty good!
Next day I caught up with Marty and didnt really get up to much, watched some buskers in the main square, grabbed a bite to eat and sat down with a few beers before deciding we'd go on the pub crawl later that night. We met up at the first bar on the pub crawl and started the long night ahead. After shooting through bar after bar, shot after shot and beer after beer the night was finally over, or so I thought. On my way out of the last club a couple of blokes decided that it would be a good idea to f&*# around with me, they were getting pretty full on and ended up chasing me down the road. I escaped into a bar and then headed home to the hostel. Pretty full on night, definately worthwhile!
2nd last day brought a hangover and I pretty much just lazed around in the sun. Funnily enough I bumped into Marty on the street and we decided that we'd go on the Red Light Tour... This one was pretty good also, showing us where all the pro's are and how they operate their "skin trade". Pretty interesting and well thought out. After the tour the tour group all went to the bar and drank. Was a really good night where a few of us continued on and on...
Ok so now its my last day here in Amsterdam, I've got nothing more I'd like to see so I'm just chilling out today, my flight to Helsinki is at 7pm so a while to go yet. Not looking forward to tonights accommodation choice, an airport chair...
Thats all folks, signing out, Amsterdam...
It seems that I'm travelling through these cities quite quickly, sometimes feels a bit too quick but never the less its good times all round so not complaining. Right now I'm in Amsterdam, my last day here before I jet off up to Helsinki, Finland.
Ok well this place is one crazy city, everyone here is here for one reason, to have fun! First day I got here was pretty relaxed, basically just chilled out and walked around the city taking in the atmosphere and getting my bearings for things. At night went for a walk with a couple of Brazillian guys got something to eat and checked out some ho's in the windows!
My 2nd day here started with a free walking tour of the city where I got talking to an Aussie guy from Melbourne who has his own band (Marty). The walking tour was excellent, showed us pretty much everything we needed to see and maybe some stuff we didn't really want to see... After the tour a few of us stuck together and went for a drink together. Marty gave me a CD with some tracks from his band, listening to it right now actually and its pretty good!
Next day I caught up with Marty and didnt really get up to much, watched some buskers in the main square, grabbed a bite to eat and sat down with a few beers before deciding we'd go on the pub crawl later that night. We met up at the first bar on the pub crawl and started the long night ahead. After shooting through bar after bar, shot after shot and beer after beer the night was finally over, or so I thought. On my way out of the last club a couple of blokes decided that it would be a good idea to f&*# around with me, they were getting pretty full on and ended up chasing me down the road. I escaped into a bar and then headed home to the hostel. Pretty full on night, definately worthwhile!
2nd last day brought a hangover and I pretty much just lazed around in the sun. Funnily enough I bumped into Marty on the street and we decided that we'd go on the Red Light Tour... This one was pretty good also, showing us where all the pro's are and how they operate their "skin trade". Pretty interesting and well thought out. After the tour the tour group all went to the bar and drank. Was a really good night where a few of us continued on and on...
Ok so now its my last day here in Amsterdam, I've got nothing more I'd like to see so I'm just chilling out today, my flight to Helsinki is at 7pm so a while to go yet. Not looking forward to tonights accommodation choice, an airport chair...
Thats all folks, signing out, Amsterdam...
Tuesday, 19 June 2007
Brussels, Belgium
The place of great beer and chocolates!
After leaving Paris on the train it took around 3hrs to arrive in Brussels. I had tried booking a hostel for the two nights that I would be here but could only get one night booked so I booked into a cheap hotel for 50euro a night. It was good to have a bit of privacy for a change and my small shoebox room definately provided that.
The city of Brussels is a very lively place, whether you are walking down a side alleyway or in the main square there will always be tonnes of people around. My first day here consisted of just walking around getting a feel for the place and just chilling out really. Had a few beers and after I got the taste for it I found myself in a nightclub for the rest of the night!
Next morning checked into the hostel which was just across the street and was given a map with all the interesting places in town. So today was walking tour day, I marked all the places I wanted to see on the map and started walking, all day, too many k's to count!
While resting my tired legs in the main square I could see various men and women on their hens and bucks nights parading around in nappies, g-strings, cream covered bodies etc. It was so funny watching some of the shenanigans they were getting up to, got a few idea for you TOM! ;)
Next I decided it was about time for a Belgium beer and what better place to have one than in the Delerium Cafe, home to more than 2000beers!!! I couldnt choose which one to have so just asked the barman to recommend one. I cant say any more than delicious! After the beer it was chocolate time, free, taste testing and again didnt dissapoint. After the long walking day I had extremely sore legs and very tired so just crashed to bed before midnight.
Next day it was time to head to Amsterdam, so bought a train ticket and jumped on the train. (getting a bit sick of all this training about every few days)
So in Amsterdam now, having a great time, will update on Amsterdam after I've left!
Until then...
After leaving Paris on the train it took around 3hrs to arrive in Brussels. I had tried booking a hostel for the two nights that I would be here but could only get one night booked so I booked into a cheap hotel for 50euro a night. It was good to have a bit of privacy for a change and my small shoebox room definately provided that.
The city of Brussels is a very lively place, whether you are walking down a side alleyway or in the main square there will always be tonnes of people around. My first day here consisted of just walking around getting a feel for the place and just chilling out really. Had a few beers and after I got the taste for it I found myself in a nightclub for the rest of the night!
Next morning checked into the hostel which was just across the street and was given a map with all the interesting places in town. So today was walking tour day, I marked all the places I wanted to see on the map and started walking, all day, too many k's to count!
While resting my tired legs in the main square I could see various men and women on their hens and bucks nights parading around in nappies, g-strings, cream covered bodies etc. It was so funny watching some of the shenanigans they were getting up to, got a few idea for you TOM! ;)
Next I decided it was about time for a Belgium beer and what better place to have one than in the Delerium Cafe, home to more than 2000beers!!! I couldnt choose which one to have so just asked the barman to recommend one. I cant say any more than delicious! After the beer it was chocolate time, free, taste testing and again didnt dissapoint. After the long walking day I had extremely sore legs and very tired so just crashed to bed before midnight.
Next day it was time to head to Amsterdam, so bought a train ticket and jumped on the train. (getting a bit sick of all this training about every few days)
So in Amsterdam now, having a great time, will update on Amsterdam after I've left!
Until then...
Sunday, 17 June 2007
Paris...
After leaving Portugal our (Dad & myself) next stop was Paris.
We arrived in Paris at an airport almost 2hours outside the city so we took a 1.5hr bus trip towards the city and then the Metro to the hotel. We had booked a hotel based on a recommendation from an American bloke we met on the train in Portugal. After seeing the location, quality and price of the place we were definately glad we bumped into him! The hotel was right smack bang in the middle of the city, 5min walk to Notre Dame.
After checking in we decided to go and look for another hotel for my Aunts and cousin and her friend to stay in, ours was booked out! So after spending about 2-3hrs walking around Paris we had only found a couple of places that had vacancies and had prices considerably higher than where we were staying. Again, this made us feel even better about where we were staying.
Enough of that walking. It was time to sit down and have some dinner. We chose a place not far from our hotel and waited about 15min to get a seat outside. After sinking a few beers and waiting almost an hour for our meal (30mins before we got to order) we were finally satisfied and the duck I ate was happily swimming around in my stomach.
After dinner we went for a walk around the area and stumbled across a few buskers. One of which was singing good old classic songs and was really good until some drunk French guy decided he'd try and start a fight with the singer. Fortunately it wasnt to happen as a bunch of onlookers pulled him away and sorted him out. Very interesting for our first night! Next was a walk over to the Notre Dame and a crepe for the walk.
The next day my reloz arrived and we somehow got them a room in our hotel. We jumped on a hop-on hop-off bus and drove around the city seeing the sites. We saw the Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Notre Dame and various others. Unfortunately we missed out on seeing Montmartre. We were planning to go up the Eiffel Tower and we lining up when it started pouring down with rain so we ran for the bus-stop and huddled together until the bus came. Tomorrow...
After a hard days sightseeing we all deserved a drink. So we grabbed some takeaways from an off-license and a kebab and sat down by the River Seine outside Notre Dame. After some good drinking fun and shenanigans we made our way back to our beds. Another great day in Paris!
After missing out on the Eiffel Tower the day before, we had planned to do that today. First we stopped at the Louvre for a quick run to the Mona Lisa and back. After our quick art session for the day we walked from the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower which wasnt as far as I'd have thought! Finally we were going up! What an amazing view you get from the top of the tower! Its crazy when you're going up the lift and looking straight down the side of the tower, if you have vertigo you'd be stuffed!
As night began to fall we readied ourselves for the big night ahead, Moulin Rouge! First of all we jumped on a Illumination tour bus which drove you around the sites and showed you them illuminated at night, the Eiffel Tower was awesome to see at night, especially when it started to twinkle with thousands of lights! When we drove around the massive round-a-bout which circles the Arc de Triomphe there were thousands of people all dressed in white having a sit down dinner on the pavement. They were all going crazy waving their napkins in the air and some even ran over and jumped on our bus!
Eventually we arrive at the Moulin Rouge theatre and saw what lay ahead, a 200meter line! Oh well, so to the back of the que we went! Dad went into the pub and bought some Corona's for the wait. Finally we arrived at our seats in the theatre and popped a bottle of Champas. The show was fantastic with costumes and sets like no other! Extravagent! It's for sure the best show I've ever seen! The show finished up at 1:30am and we made our way back to the hotel for the final night before Dad flew off...
The next day we packed out bags and checked out of the hotel. I went to the station with Dad to say our goodbyes and then he was gone... Dad, I had an awesome time with you! Some of the best parts of my trip! Thanks for a GREAT time!
Next it was my turn, so I said my goodbyes to my Aunts and jumped on a train to Brussels, Belgium which is where I am now. Actually I'm leaving for Amsterdam now so I'll update on Brussels from there.
Don.
We arrived in Paris at an airport almost 2hours outside the city so we took a 1.5hr bus trip towards the city and then the Metro to the hotel. We had booked a hotel based on a recommendation from an American bloke we met on the train in Portugal. After seeing the location, quality and price of the place we were definately glad we bumped into him! The hotel was right smack bang in the middle of the city, 5min walk to Notre Dame.
After checking in we decided to go and look for another hotel for my Aunts and cousin and her friend to stay in, ours was booked out! So after spending about 2-3hrs walking around Paris we had only found a couple of places that had vacancies and had prices considerably higher than where we were staying. Again, this made us feel even better about where we were staying.
Enough of that walking. It was time to sit down and have some dinner. We chose a place not far from our hotel and waited about 15min to get a seat outside. After sinking a few beers and waiting almost an hour for our meal (30mins before we got to order) we were finally satisfied and the duck I ate was happily swimming around in my stomach.
After dinner we went for a walk around the area and stumbled across a few buskers. One of which was singing good old classic songs and was really good until some drunk French guy decided he'd try and start a fight with the singer. Fortunately it wasnt to happen as a bunch of onlookers pulled him away and sorted him out. Very interesting for our first night! Next was a walk over to the Notre Dame and a crepe for the walk.
The next day my reloz arrived and we somehow got them a room in our hotel. We jumped on a hop-on hop-off bus and drove around the city seeing the sites. We saw the Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Notre Dame and various others. Unfortunately we missed out on seeing Montmartre. We were planning to go up the Eiffel Tower and we lining up when it started pouring down with rain so we ran for the bus-stop and huddled together until the bus came. Tomorrow...
After a hard days sightseeing we all deserved a drink. So we grabbed some takeaways from an off-license and a kebab and sat down by the River Seine outside Notre Dame. After some good drinking fun and shenanigans we made our way back to our beds. Another great day in Paris!
After missing out on the Eiffel Tower the day before, we had planned to do that today. First we stopped at the Louvre for a quick run to the Mona Lisa and back. After our quick art session for the day we walked from the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower which wasnt as far as I'd have thought! Finally we were going up! What an amazing view you get from the top of the tower! Its crazy when you're going up the lift and looking straight down the side of the tower, if you have vertigo you'd be stuffed!
As night began to fall we readied ourselves for the big night ahead, Moulin Rouge! First of all we jumped on a Illumination tour bus which drove you around the sites and showed you them illuminated at night, the Eiffel Tower was awesome to see at night, especially when it started to twinkle with thousands of lights! When we drove around the massive round-a-bout which circles the Arc de Triomphe there were thousands of people all dressed in white having a sit down dinner on the pavement. They were all going crazy waving their napkins in the air and some even ran over and jumped on our bus!
Eventually we arrive at the Moulin Rouge theatre and saw what lay ahead, a 200meter line! Oh well, so to the back of the que we went! Dad went into the pub and bought some Corona's for the wait. Finally we arrived at our seats in the theatre and popped a bottle of Champas. The show was fantastic with costumes and sets like no other! Extravagent! It's for sure the best show I've ever seen! The show finished up at 1:30am and we made our way back to the hotel for the final night before Dad flew off...
The next day we packed out bags and checked out of the hotel. I went to the station with Dad to say our goodbyes and then he was gone... Dad, I had an awesome time with you! Some of the best parts of my trip! Thanks for a GREAT time!
Next it was my turn, so I said my goodbyes to my Aunts and jumped on a train to Brussels, Belgium which is where I am now. Actually I'm leaving for Amsterdam now so I'll update on Brussels from there.
Don.
Saturday, 16 June 2007
Porto, Portugal
Hello Hello!
Well its been a short while since my last update but alot has happened since then.
So after leaving Ireland with Dad we flew to Porto, Portugal for 3 days. First impressions were really good, the airport was brand new and the rail system was clean, efficient and took us close to the hotel, we kind of. After a sweaty 20 minute walk from the Metro station to our hotel we were glad to be able to rest for a while before heading out on the town to explore the city.
We walked and walked and walked all over the city, through tiny alleyways lined with buildings probably older than our country. The city has been built on the hillds of the river Duoro and looking across the water at the city it's definately a very impressive sight!
Next was to jump on one of those hop-on/hop-off busses and shoot around the city in order for us to get a feel for the place. The bus trip took about 1.5hrs and drove all over the city, along the river, up and down the hills and across bridges, definately a worthwhile journey.
One evening Dad and I decided it was time to try out some of the Port that the city has grown famous from. We tasted 4 different Ports, 3 reds and a white, and eventually decided that we'd buy ourselves a bottle and relax in comfort looking over at the city. We ended up having to get a couple of fellow Aussies to help us polish her off and then being the kind people they were, bought a jug of Sangria for us to share...
As night fell, our stomachs started to tell us that it was time to eat. So we made our way to a restaurant that someone had recommended. My tastebuds were set on that juicy bunny rabbit sitting in a cage out the front, but by the time we came around to ordering it was already "gone". So baked Cod was on the table for me and what a delicious meal it was!!!
As the next day came it was time to explore another part of Portugal. So Dad and I jumped on a train to a small town 1.5hrs away by train. The train ride was unbelievable with the tracks hugging the banks of the river with views of the vineyards across the way. Definately something worthwhile seeing! This town was definately small, we only ended up staying here for about 3hours, if that, but the surrounding scenery was amazing! Rolling hills covered in vineyards with the river winding its way peacefully back to sea... (I'll put photos of all this up when I get a chance, bit harder now that I dont have the laptop anymore!)
On the way back to Porto the train stopped half way and everyone got off. We didn't know what was going on so we jumped off too later to find out that further along the line another train had had an accident so we were to go no further. After an hour of waiting we got talking to another couple of Aussies and decided to share a cab back to town.
After our 3days it was time to hop back on the plane and make our way to Paris. I'll write about Paris very soon because I'm on some free internet in the hotel and some people are staring at me and telling me with their eyes to hurry up!
Keep checking back!
Don.
Well its been a short while since my last update but alot has happened since then.
So after leaving Ireland with Dad we flew to Porto, Portugal for 3 days. First impressions were really good, the airport was brand new and the rail system was clean, efficient and took us close to the hotel, we kind of. After a sweaty 20 minute walk from the Metro station to our hotel we were glad to be able to rest for a while before heading out on the town to explore the city.
We walked and walked and walked all over the city, through tiny alleyways lined with buildings probably older than our country. The city has been built on the hillds of the river Duoro and looking across the water at the city it's definately a very impressive sight!
Next was to jump on one of those hop-on/hop-off busses and shoot around the city in order for us to get a feel for the place. The bus trip took about 1.5hrs and drove all over the city, along the river, up and down the hills and across bridges, definately a worthwhile journey.
One evening Dad and I decided it was time to try out some of the Port that the city has grown famous from. We tasted 4 different Ports, 3 reds and a white, and eventually decided that we'd buy ourselves a bottle and relax in comfort looking over at the city. We ended up having to get a couple of fellow Aussies to help us polish her off and then being the kind people they were, bought a jug of Sangria for us to share...
As night fell, our stomachs started to tell us that it was time to eat. So we made our way to a restaurant that someone had recommended. My tastebuds were set on that juicy bunny rabbit sitting in a cage out the front, but by the time we came around to ordering it was already "gone". So baked Cod was on the table for me and what a delicious meal it was!!!
As the next day came it was time to explore another part of Portugal. So Dad and I jumped on a train to a small town 1.5hrs away by train. The train ride was unbelievable with the tracks hugging the banks of the river with views of the vineyards across the way. Definately something worthwhile seeing! This town was definately small, we only ended up staying here for about 3hours, if that, but the surrounding scenery was amazing! Rolling hills covered in vineyards with the river winding its way peacefully back to sea... (I'll put photos of all this up when I get a chance, bit harder now that I dont have the laptop anymore!)
On the way back to Porto the train stopped half way and everyone got off. We didn't know what was going on so we jumped off too later to find out that further along the line another train had had an accident so we were to go no further. After an hour of waiting we got talking to another couple of Aussies and decided to share a cab back to town.
After our 3days it was time to hop back on the plane and make our way to Paris. I'll write about Paris very soon because I'm on some free internet in the hotel and some people are staring at me and telling me with their eyes to hurry up!
Keep checking back!
Don.
Sunday, 10 June 2007
My last 2 months!
Ok Ok... I know I've been pretty slack with the updates lately so here's to the beginning of the slack updates! From now on I probably wont be updating my blogs as much as I'll always be on the move for the next 6months.
Easter was my last update, a lot has happened since then...
My memory isn't too good (alcohol damaged), so I'll only write about the most memorable moments that I have lived and learned over this time.
Since Easter, the occupants of the London Pad have all changed. Britain moved out: Italian moved in, French moved out: French moved in, Italian's moved out: Aussie's moved in, Moroccan moved out: Italian moved in. I've got to say, since these changes the house has been such a better place to live in. Bills paid on time, dishes washed, drinks drank, laughs had and plenty of good times etched into our memories.
Not sure if I mentioned this in my previous blog but the last job I had in London I was working in a Financial Research Company which was probably the best job I've had while in London, better atmosphere, more money and easier work... Basically started doing data entry then moved on to being a Financial Researcher which was a lot more interesting and challenging. I worked there for almost 2months, which came to an end a few days before departure to Scotland. I didn't tell them I was leaving until the day before, which I thought was a bit hard on them but I enjoyed doing it like that for once, I've been so nice with my "quitting" in the past!
The rest of the time from Easter until a few days before I left for Scotland were pretty much the same old, drinking Fri/Sat and working Mon-Fri... A few "exciting" occurrences occurred during these times which I wont be mentioning in this blog... Actually, I'll mention one of them! (Just for you Josh!) Josh got knocked the fuck out at the Walkabout in London one night, was hilarious! I turned around and found him lying on the pavement sprawled out like a beached jellyfish! Many more stories to follow on arrival back in OZ...
Mikaila and Hannah arrived in London on the 25th May and stayed at our place for a couple of nights. Pretty cramped but we were all pretty pissed so sleeping on the floor, couch or wherever didn't really bother any of us. Actually, I think Josh had the worst sleep of us all, on that air-bed that went completely flat after a couple of hours of sleep (he thought it had a hole in it... hmm???)
Saturday night and being the nice hospitable men we are I decided that our evening would involve a tonne of drinks and plenty of dancing at the one and only Ministry of Sound nightclub. The night started off strong at home with enough drinks to satisfy a small army then we made our way to the club. The music wasn't exactly the kind of stuff you hear on "The Annual's" but it was still very energizing keeping us movin' and groovin' to the early hours of the morning with the sun welcoming us home to our bed, floor or couch.
Sunday came and it was time for me to embark on my journey into the rest of Europe. First stop Glasgow to meet with my Dad and the rest of my reloz. Hannah, Mikaila and myself jumped on a plane and away we went. A few hours later and I met up with Dad. Was really good to see him again!! Being gone for 6months, naturally I was missing him! From there, where else but straight to the pub...
Over the next 8 days in Scotland I met up with my Scottish relatives in Glasgow and Edinburgh. I haven't seen them for ages, if at all, so was good to catch up. Other than that our days and nights were pretty much based around the pubs in the city. I'll tell you, the Glasgonian's know how to take a drink or 20! Dad took me around Glasgow showing me where he grew up, saw where he took his first steps, the house he grew up in and plenty of other stories rolled off tongues left right and centre.
A road trip lasting 2 days found us winding through the Scottish Highlands. This part of the world has some unbelievable scenery with 360deg picturesque views over the rolling hills and mountains. The weather was on our side with the days hitting around 23deg which saw me wearing "beach gear" for the first time in a long long time (unusual for Scotland). If you ever get the chance, I'd recommend you take a trip up that way at any given opportunity! We had a few more days to relax in the pubs in Glasgow and then next stop Ireland.
\So we jumped on a car ferry with my uncles van from Scotland to Ireland and a couple of hours later were in Belfast. We took a look around the city which had some interesting physical sights but not that exciting. Yes I know that there is a heap of history about the place but I haven't, still, had the chance to read into to too much. We departed Belfast with Monaghan our destination. This town close to the border is where some of my distant (in location and relation) cousins live.
The next few days staying in Monaghan with the reloz were pretty much non stop drinking and meeting relatives that I'd never met let alone know about before. One night we had a "family introduction" where I got to meet up to 30 relatives who are apparently my 3rd cousins. So my already large family is beginning to get even bigger and I found out that two of my 3rd uncles (or something) actually have build almost the whole village, pubs, hotels, houses, cathedrals etc...
On one of my 5 days in Ireland we ventured up to the very north of the country on a mini road trip, damn I love road trips! Any kind of burl actually... Anyway, we stopped off at the Bushmills Distillery and took a look around, not much to see here, but there were a few bottles of whiskey that were bottled over 200years ago! Our next stop was the Giants Causeway. This place is absolutely magnificent! The scenery is just amazing and the rock formations down by the ocean are incomprehensible. So far, Ireland has put on a great display of character and definitely lived up to my expectations. Oh and I'll just mention that the people in Ireland are so damn nice its annoying!
Ok I know I'm rambling a bit now but as I said earlier a lot has happened since last update! Anyway, I'll be quick and just jot a few quick happenings down.
The rest of my time in Ireland included visiting a couple of graves of my Irish ancestors, attending an Irish funeral service (a friend of my relative we were living with), a visit to Castle Leslie where Paul McCartney was recently married and a day in Dublin before my flight to Portugal. I thought Dublin was a much nicer city than Belfast, alot more going on and still nice people. And once again, was loving the Irish reloz, they put me and Dad up in an apartment they own in the city centre.
Ok well thats that. I'm now in Porto, Portugal and loving the place, but I wont write about that now cause I'm here for another 3days then Paris for 3days so I'll let you know how all that goes a bit later on.
Until then,
Keep safe and remember I'm still missing y'all back home!
Don.
Easter was my last update, a lot has happened since then...
My memory isn't too good (alcohol damaged), so I'll only write about the most memorable moments that I have lived and learned over this time.
Since Easter, the occupants of the London Pad have all changed. Britain moved out: Italian moved in, French moved out: French moved in, Italian's moved out: Aussie's moved in, Moroccan moved out: Italian moved in. I've got to say, since these changes the house has been such a better place to live in. Bills paid on time, dishes washed, drinks drank, laughs had and plenty of good times etched into our memories.
Not sure if I mentioned this in my previous blog but the last job I had in London I was working in a Financial Research Company which was probably the best job I've had while in London, better atmosphere, more money and easier work... Basically started doing data entry then moved on to being a Financial Researcher which was a lot more interesting and challenging. I worked there for almost 2months, which came to an end a few days before departure to Scotland. I didn't tell them I was leaving until the day before, which I thought was a bit hard on them but I enjoyed doing it like that for once, I've been so nice with my "quitting" in the past!
The rest of the time from Easter until a few days before I left for Scotland were pretty much the same old, drinking Fri/Sat and working Mon-Fri... A few "exciting" occurrences occurred during these times which I wont be mentioning in this blog... Actually, I'll mention one of them! (Just for you Josh!) Josh got knocked the fuck out at the Walkabout in London one night, was hilarious! I turned around and found him lying on the pavement sprawled out like a beached jellyfish! Many more stories to follow on arrival back in OZ...
Mikaila and Hannah arrived in London on the 25th May and stayed at our place for a couple of nights. Pretty cramped but we were all pretty pissed so sleeping on the floor, couch or wherever didn't really bother any of us. Actually, I think Josh had the worst sleep of us all, on that air-bed that went completely flat after a couple of hours of sleep (he thought it had a hole in it... hmm???)
Saturday night and being the nice hospitable men we are I decided that our evening would involve a tonne of drinks and plenty of dancing at the one and only Ministry of Sound nightclub. The night started off strong at home with enough drinks to satisfy a small army then we made our way to the club. The music wasn't exactly the kind of stuff you hear on "The Annual's" but it was still very energizing keeping us movin' and groovin' to the early hours of the morning with the sun welcoming us home to our bed, floor or couch.
Sunday came and it was time for me to embark on my journey into the rest of Europe. First stop Glasgow to meet with my Dad and the rest of my reloz. Hannah, Mikaila and myself jumped on a plane and away we went. A few hours later and I met up with Dad. Was really good to see him again!! Being gone for 6months, naturally I was missing him! From there, where else but straight to the pub...Over the next 8 days in Scotland I met up with my Scottish relatives in Glasgow and Edinburgh. I haven't seen them for ages, if at all, so was good to catch up. Other than that our days and nights were pretty much based around the pubs in the city. I'll tell you, the Glasgonian's know how to take a drink or 20! Dad took me around Glasgow showing me where he grew up, saw where he took his first steps, the house he grew up in and plenty of other stories rolled off tongues left right and centre.
A road trip lasting 2 days found us winding through the Scottish Highlands. This part of the world has some unbelievable scenery with 360deg picturesque views over the rolling hills and mountains. The weather was on our side with the days hitting around 23deg which saw me wearing "beach gear" for the first time in a long long time (unusual for Scotland). If you ever get the chance, I'd recommend you take a trip up that way at any given opportunity! We had a few more days to relax in the pubs in Glasgow and then next stop Ireland.
\So we jumped on a car ferry with my uncles van from Scotland to Ireland and a couple of hours later were in Belfast. We took a look around the city which had some interesting physical sights but not that exciting. Yes I know that there is a heap of history about the place but I haven't, still, had the chance to read into to too much. We departed Belfast with Monaghan our destination. This town close to the border is where some of my distant (in location and relation) cousins live.The next few days staying in Monaghan with the reloz were pretty much non stop drinking and meeting relatives that I'd never met let alone know about before. One night we had a "family introduction" where I got to meet up to 30 relatives who are apparently my 3rd cousins. So my already large family is beginning to get even bigger and I found out that two of my 3rd uncles (or something) actually have build almost the whole village, pubs, hotels, houses, cathedrals etc...
On one of my 5 days in Ireland we ventured up to the very north of the country on a mini road trip, damn I love road trips! Any kind of burl actually... Anyway, we stopped off at the Bushmills Distillery and took a look around, not much to see here, but there were a few bottles of whiskey that were bottled over 200years ago! Our next stop was the Giants Causeway. This place is absolutely magnificent! The scenery is just amazing and the rock formations down by the ocean are incomprehensible. So far, Ireland has put on a great display of character and definitely lived up to my expectations. Oh and I'll just mention that the people in Ireland are so damn nice its annoying!
Ok I know I'm rambling a bit now but as I said earlier a lot has happened since last update! Anyway, I'll be quick and just jot a few quick happenings down.The rest of my time in Ireland included visiting a couple of graves of my Irish ancestors, attending an Irish funeral service (a friend of my relative we were living with), a visit to Castle Leslie where Paul McCartney was recently married and a day in Dublin before my flight to Portugal. I thought Dublin was a much nicer city than Belfast, alot more going on and still nice people. And once again, was loving the Irish reloz, they put me and Dad up in an apartment they own in the city centre.
Ok well thats that. I'm now in Porto, Portugal and loving the place, but I wont write about that now cause I'm here for another 3days then Paris for 3days so I'll let you know how all that goes a bit later on.
Until then,
Keep safe and remember I'm still missing y'all back home!
Don.
Sunday, 15 April 2007
Happy Easter!
Happy Easter to you all!
Easter '07 has been and gone, the first Easter I've been away from Australia for! So is it different? YES!
The English Easter for me was very very different from that of back home. Firstly, there were no Hot Cross Buns, Easter eggs, bunnies or sleep, just plenty of beer, women & fun! Oh and just so you know, we didn't forget why Easter is Easter, Jesus died for us all those years ago so that we can do the things we do today and be the people we are, which is why we wanted to celebrate, after all he wanted us to be happy and live good lives.
The Thursday before the Easter long weekend was just a normal day. Josh, Pete and I had all just started our new jobs and were looking forward to the weekend, paying more attention to our watches than our work. At this important point in time, we had nothing planned for the long weekend, although some things were guaranteed, beer & partying!
After work, we all sat down, threw some ideas around and made some decisions, Liverpool, hire-car, beers, no accommodation, partying and more beers. They were our Easter plans. So we jumped on the internet, booked a car and prepared ourselves for the weekend with what we knew would be our last good sleep for a few days!
The morning came quickly with it we embarked on our journey. After a long 1hr20min train ride to Heathrow airport and a few arguments with the hire-car company we were ready to hit the road and before we knew it we were on the highway bound for Liverpool, at 110miles/hr . The highways here are so much better than those in Australia, wide, straight, smooth and everyone drives at least 90miles/hr.
After a 3.5hr drive we finally made it to Liverpool. First things first, we found a suitable place to park the car and then were instantly attracted to the "Bargain Booze" store, conveniently only a minute walk from our 4 wheeled luxury apartment in the city center.
Our first night saw us in the Walkabout, an Australian Pub full of fun, cheap beers, good music, women and a croc. All 3 of us became excessively intoxicated and had an awesome night living up to our expectations of Liverpool and its awesome nightlife. Oh and I have to add that Josh found himself in a live sex show, performed in a bus stop with a live audience of passers by. A lucky man... or was he?
Unfortunately a shower wasn't included in our accommodation, I guess thats the price you have to pay for a prime location! So in need of some cleanliness, we decided to drive into Manchester for the day, see the city, take a shower and return to Liverpool for our final night. After driving around the city for an hour trying to find a shower we eventually found one in a hostel. We cleaned up and said bye bye to Manchester to head back to Liverpool.
We began our night by watching Australia destroy England in the Cricket World Cup before moving onto the Walkabout again for our final night. Again, another awesome night was had by all and we returned to our beds for the final time. A few hours later it was time to make the drive back to London. 3.5hrs later we were back home, and preparing for work the next day.
A quick update on the London situation, Josh and I both have started new jobs together in the same company doing data entry. Its good, very easy, relaxed and good money so no complaints there. Actually there is, our hours are from 7am-4pm which means that we need to wake up at 5:30am to get there on time, not happy about that! We've also opted in for some overtime and are working from 7-6 every day, trying to rake as much as possible! Pete is working for a different company and is also enjoying it there!
The months are zipping by! Its now only 1.5months until my Dad gets over here and we travel together for 3weeks. Dad, I cant wait! Looking forward to it! Then after that, the rest of my Europe trip begins. Its all so exciting!
So that was my Easter for '07! Hope you enjoyed reading. I'm missing you all back home, I hope you don't think I've forgotten about any of you!
Bye for now...
Easter '07 has been and gone, the first Easter I've been away from Australia for! So is it different? YES!
The English Easter for me was very very different from that of back home. Firstly, there were no Hot Cross Buns, Easter eggs, bunnies or sleep, just plenty of beer, women & fun! Oh and just so you know, we didn't forget why Easter is Easter, Jesus died for us all those years ago so that we can do the things we do today and be the people we are, which is why we wanted to celebrate, after all he wanted us to be happy and live good lives.
The Thursday before the Easter long weekend was just a normal day. Josh, Pete and I had all just started our new jobs and were looking forward to the weekend, paying more attention to our watches than our work. At this important point in time, we had nothing planned for the long weekend, although some things were guaranteed, beer & partying!
After work, we all sat down, threw some ideas around and made some decisions, Liverpool, hire-car, beers, no accommodation, partying and more beers. They were our Easter plans. So we jumped on the internet, booked a car and prepared ourselves for the weekend with what we knew would be our last good sleep for a few days!
The morning came quickly with it we embarked on our journey. After a long 1hr20min train ride to Heathrow airport and a few arguments with the hire-car company we were ready to hit the road and before we knew it we were on the highway bound for Liverpool, at 110miles/hr . The highways here are so much better than those in Australia, wide, straight, smooth and everyone drives at least 90miles/hr.
After a 3.5hr drive we finally made it to Liverpool. First things first, we found a suitable place to park the car and then were instantly attracted to the "Bargain Booze" store, conveniently only a minute walk from our 4 wheeled luxury apartment in the city center.
Our first night saw us in the Walkabout, an Australian Pub full of fun, cheap beers, good music, women and a croc. All 3 of us became excessively intoxicated and had an awesome night living up to our expectations of Liverpool and its awesome nightlife. Oh and I have to add that Josh found himself in a live sex show, performed in a bus stop with a live audience of passers by. A lucky man... or was he?
Unfortunately a shower wasn't included in our accommodation, I guess thats the price you have to pay for a prime location! So in need of some cleanliness, we decided to drive into Manchester for the day, see the city, take a shower and return to Liverpool for our final night. After driving around the city for an hour trying to find a shower we eventually found one in a hostel. We cleaned up and said bye bye to Manchester to head back to Liverpool.
We began our night by watching Australia destroy England in the Cricket World Cup before moving onto the Walkabout again for our final night. Again, another awesome night was had by all and we returned to our beds for the final time. A few hours later it was time to make the drive back to London. 3.5hrs later we were back home, and preparing for work the next day.
A quick update on the London situation, Josh and I both have started new jobs together in the same company doing data entry. Its good, very easy, relaxed and good money so no complaints there. Actually there is, our hours are from 7am-4pm which means that we need to wake up at 5:30am to get there on time, not happy about that! We've also opted in for some overtime and are working from 7-6 every day, trying to rake as much as possible! Pete is working for a different company and is also enjoying it there!The months are zipping by! Its now only 1.5months until my Dad gets over here and we travel together for 3weeks. Dad, I cant wait! Looking forward to it! Then after that, the rest of my Europe trip begins. Its all so exciting!
So that was my Easter for '07! Hope you enjoyed reading. I'm missing you all back home, I hope you don't think I've forgotten about any of you!
Bye for now...
Wednesday, 21 March 2007
St Patrick's Day Shenanigans!
Well, as I'm sure you are all aware, last Saturday was St Patrick's Day. So naturally, Josh, Pete and I had planned for a big day of drinking.
Firstly though, some other news. Josh has managed to get himself a job. Pete and I called our agency for him and 2 days later he was in work. He's working in a telemarketing company like Pete and I are but the hours are from 1pm-9pm which is alright but I think he'd rather a 9-5 job.
My arm is healing quickly, the bruising is completely gone and the movement is getting much better, I can now almost straighten & bend it completely. Its a huge relief to know that it wasn't serious, I was worried for a while back there that it may have affected my trip somewhere along the way.
Also, the other week we decided to do some sight seeing because Josh and Pete hadn't really had a chance to get out and see the city. We got off the tube at Westminster station which brought us right into the centre of some major attractions. Just by looking around from the station exit we could see Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Eye and the Houses of Parliament. We decided to stick around here for a while to take some photos and soak in the atmosphere of London as the sun sank in the distance .
Now for St Patrick's Day. Our day began at 10am when we arrived at the pub around the corner from our house for a 2pound full English Breakfast. Because it was a special occasion we all decided to indulge in a Guinness with our breakfast to prepare our taste buds for what was to come. I somehow convinced the barman to give me a Guinness hat which made the day all the more St Particksy!
After brekky, we grabbed an 8pack of Fosters and jumped on the tube. The plan for the day was to see the sights of London, accompanied with our trusty tour guide called Foster. Being the perfect gentlemen that we all are, we decided that we would be so kind as to include our guide in our photo's. We walked across the city from sight to sight and continued to bev along the way. We managed to see, Tower Bridge, London Bridge, St Paul's Cathedral, London Eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus.
After the sun set and the pubs began to fill we decided to finish off our supply and head to the nearest Irish pub, which happened to be in Piccadilly Circus. By this stage our kindness to our guide had worn off so we ditched him in the gutter and off we went, walking like crippled men, to the Irish pub. It was packed full with fellow St Patrick's celebrators singing and dancing and a good night was had by all, especially Pete and Josh! (you know what I mean).
And that was our St Patrick's Day...
The End.
Firstly though, some other news. Josh has managed to get himself a job. Pete and I called our agency for him and 2 days later he was in work. He's working in a telemarketing company like Pete and I are but the hours are from 1pm-9pm which is alright but I think he'd rather a 9-5 job.
My arm is healing quickly, the bruising is completely gone and the movement is getting much better, I can now almost straighten & bend it completely. Its a huge relief to know that it wasn't serious, I was worried for a while back there that it may have affected my trip somewhere along the way.
Also, the other week we decided to do some sight seeing because Josh and Pete hadn't really had a chance to get out and see the city. We got off the tube at Westminster station which brought us right into the centre of some major attractions. Just by looking around from the station exit we could see Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Eye and the Houses of Parliament. We decided to stick around here for a while to take some photos and soak in the atmosphere of London as the sun sank in the distance .
Now for St Patrick's Day. Our day began at 10am when we arrived at the pub around the corner from our house for a 2pound full English Breakfast. Because it was a special occasion we all decided to indulge in a Guinness with our breakfast to prepare our taste buds for what was to come. I somehow convinced the barman to give me a Guinness hat which made the day all the more St Particksy!After brekky, we grabbed an 8pack of Fosters and jumped on the tube. The plan for the day was to see the sights of London, accompanied with our trusty tour guide called Foster. Being the perfect gentlemen that we all are, we decided that we would be so kind as to include our guide in our photo's. We walked across the city from sight to sight and continued to bev along the way. We managed to see, Tower Bridge, London Bridge, St Paul's Cathedral, London Eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus.
After the sun set and the pubs began to fill we decided to finish off our supply and head to the nearest Irish pub, which happened to be in Piccadilly Circus. By this stage our kindness to our guide had worn off so we ditched him in the gutter and off we went, walking like crippled men, to the Irish pub. It was packed full with fellow St Patrick's celebrators singing and dancing and a good night was had by all, especially Pete and Josh! (you know what I mean).
And that was our St Patrick's Day...
The End.
Thursday, 8 March 2007
Blakos has arrived!
Fortunately & unfortunately, since my last update a lot has happened!
Fortunately, Josh has arrived in old London town. He arrived last Thursday. Pete and I both took the morning off work to collect the man from the airport. We'll we thought it would only be the morning... Unfortunately for all of us, Josh's flight was delayed for 4 hours! The only good thing about that was the extra few hours sleep Pete and I got that night. Josh didn't know we'd be meeting him at the airport as we'd told him that we couldn't get the morning off work. After a good hour on the London underground, Pete and I arrived at the airport, waited for another 45mins and followed Josh down into the tube station for our long awaited surprise appearance! Unfortunately he spotted Pete before we had planned but was still a good surprise for the old boy. The long tube ride back to our house left us with no choice but to hear the stories of home from the freshest Aussie in London!
Unfortunately, after showing Josh our house, Pete and I had to make our way back to work. By the time we walked in the door at work, it was 2pm... Luckily our boss is pretty easy going and didn't mind, too much, that we were a few hours late. I offered to work back an extra 1/2hr for the next week to make up for lost time. Not to help them out but rather to recuperate lost funds from our morning with Josh. Then, 4 hours later, we were back home again, sitting down to a nice meal with a few beers celebrating Josh's arrival.
Friday night came quickly, and the alcohol disappeared equally as fast, and before we knew it we were out on the town, Camden Town... Josh made his mark on the town as expected VIDEO HERE! and Pete made his mark on the bus, also as expected. VIDEO HERE! The night was a success and Josh had done many things that he wished he had fond memories of...
Saturday night was planned out as another night on the town in Camden. The three of us went around to our old housemate, Yasin's house just around the corner and had some drinks there before heading out. Unfortunately we didn't get far... We bumped into the landlords on the street who Yasin had a massive grudge against and a fight broke out between them. Pete and I both jumped in to give a helping hand and unfortunately I took a nasty fall and screwed my arm. The elbow bent out the wrong way and the pain was excruciating. So after everything calmed down we all went home and I just nursed my aching arm which was now almost twice the size of my left. Strongarm? The next day I went to hospital to get it checked out and after waiting for about 3.5hrs I got some painkillers and an x-ray which showed that it wasn't broken, but I still couldn't move it without extreme pain.
Since then, it has bruised up massively but the swelling has reduced and I can move it a fair bit. Still can't straighten it out or bend it fully. I've got another appointment at the hospital on Monday for a review which I'm hoping will bring good news not bad :(
Everything else is pretty much the same old. Still working at the same place, still drinking at the same place and still sleeping at the same place. Maybe next week I'll have another update. We have planned to see a bit more of London on the weekend, with the help of the tasty tour guide named Fosters!
Until then... Cheerio!!!
Fortunately, Josh has arrived in old London town. He arrived last Thursday. Pete and I both took the morning off work to collect the man from the airport. We'll we thought it would only be the morning... Unfortunately for all of us, Josh's flight was delayed for 4 hours! The only good thing about that was the extra few hours sleep Pete and I got that night. Josh didn't know we'd be meeting him at the airport as we'd told him that we couldn't get the morning off work. After a good hour on the London underground, Pete and I arrived at the airport, waited for another 45mins and followed Josh down into the tube station for our long awaited surprise appearance! Unfortunately he spotted Pete before we had planned but was still a good surprise for the old boy. The long tube ride back to our house left us with no choice but to hear the stories of home from the freshest Aussie in London!
Unfortunately, after showing Josh our house, Pete and I had to make our way back to work. By the time we walked in the door at work, it was 2pm... Luckily our boss is pretty easy going and didn't mind, too much, that we were a few hours late. I offered to work back an extra 1/2hr for the next week to make up for lost time. Not to help them out but rather to recuperate lost funds from our morning with Josh. Then, 4 hours later, we were back home again, sitting down to a nice meal with a few beers celebrating Josh's arrival.
Friday night came quickly, and the alcohol disappeared equally as fast, and before we knew it we were out on the town, Camden Town... Josh made his mark on the town as expected VIDEO HERE! and Pete made his mark on the bus, also as expected. VIDEO HERE! The night was a success and Josh had done many things that he wished he had fond memories of...
Saturday night was planned out as another night on the town in Camden. The three of us went around to our old housemate, Yasin's house just around the corner and had some drinks there before heading out. Unfortunately we didn't get far... We bumped into the landlords on the street who Yasin had a massive grudge against and a fight broke out between them. Pete and I both jumped in to give a helping hand and unfortunately I took a nasty fall and screwed my arm. The elbow bent out the wrong way and the pain was excruciating. So after everything calmed down we all went home and I just nursed my aching arm which was now almost twice the size of my left. Strongarm? The next day I went to hospital to get it checked out and after waiting for about 3.5hrs I got some painkillers and an x-ray which showed that it wasn't broken, but I still couldn't move it without extreme pain.
Since then, it has bruised up massively but the swelling has reduced and I can move it a fair bit. Still can't straighten it out or bend it fully. I've got another appointment at the hospital on Monday for a review which I'm hoping will bring good news not bad :(Everything else is pretty much the same old. Still working at the same place, still drinking at the same place and still sleeping at the same place. Maybe next week I'll have another update. We have planned to see a bit more of London on the weekend, with the help of the tasty tour guide named Fosters!
Until then... Cheerio!!!
Wednesday, 21 February 2007
Time for a change...
Well its been almost 3 weeks now since Pete & I moved into our room in London. Over these past few weeks I've learnt what its like to live with total strangers, and how to deal with the problems that arise within these living arrangements. For example, the house has been without electricity for a total of 5 out of the 18 days that we have been living here! Yes, there's a few lazy, tight-arse, & dirty house mates living with us but it's all part of the experience I guess. Pete's the dirty house mate, as you could all guess... and sometimes the tight-arse one too!
After these 3 weeks in the house, we are looking at moving out and finding our own place when Josh gets over here. It will most likely cost about the same as we are paying now, so it will be good to have our own kitchen and bathroom etc so we can blame only ourselves if it's dirty, or Pete.
Since my last blog update, we have started another job. Its basically the same type of work, on the phones, but its closer to home and better money! I'm sick of this type of work already, its so boring and repetitive but I keep telling myself its only for a few more months then its eurotrip time! Trying to save save save but its hard... Gotta get into the saving pattern asap!
Pete & I have been hitting the town almost every Friday and/or Saturday night for the last 3 weeks. It's almost become a ritual, buy a bottle of bourbon, drink it at home then head out to Camden Town. Our local playground... Some crazy nights have already been had out there as I'm sure most of you have seen on my myspace page. Josh is arriving next week and no doubt we'll make his first night the most unmemorable! If your reading Josh, get excited buddy!
Until next time...
Don!
After these 3 weeks in the house, we are looking at moving out and finding our own place when Josh gets over here. It will most likely cost about the same as we are paying now, so it will be good to have our own kitchen and bathroom etc so we can blame only ourselves if it's dirty, or Pete.
Since my last blog update, we have started another job. Its basically the same type of work, on the phones, but its closer to home and better money! I'm sick of this type of work already, its so boring and repetitive but I keep telling myself its only for a few more months then its eurotrip time! Trying to save save save but its hard... Gotta get into the saving pattern asap!
Pete & I have been hitting the town almost every Friday and/or Saturday night for the last 3 weeks. It's almost become a ritual, buy a bottle of bourbon, drink it at home then head out to Camden Town. Our local playground... Some crazy nights have already been had out there as I'm sure most of you have seen on my myspace page. Josh is arriving next week and no doubt we'll make his first night the most unmemorable! If your reading Josh, get excited buddy!Until next time...
Don!
Saturday, 10 February 2007
London - Getting Settled!
Just a quick update this time!
So, if you read my last blog entry, we were in the process of finding work and a place to stay in London. Well, after some hard work for a couple of days we managed to find some work and also a double room in a shared house to stay for a while!
The job we got ourselves into is basically in a small call centre. Our duties are to call people around the world and ask if they will be attending various conferences that the company has organised. Its pretty boring but its very relaxed and we can just chill out all day, surf the net and call people back home. So if anyone wants a quick call anytime over the next week or so, leave a comment and I'll give you a buzz!!! Leave your number if I don't have it...
The house we moved into is starting to become "home" which is a really good feeling just to be able to come home and relax, leave our stuff everywhere and not have to worry (too much) about things going missing. Now the net is up and running I can update the blog more often and send/receive emails etc. So keep up the emails, its always good to hear whats going on back home and how everyone is... and I'll do my best to keep you all updated!
We went out the other week to Camden Town just down the road which was a crazy crazy night and marked our first weekend in our new house, so we had a big night to celebrate, not that we needed something to celebrate to have a massive night! You all know that... Ive put up a video on my myspace ( HERE) of a bit of funny drunkeness, you all know how it is!
So we're about to head out for another night on the town, Friday night, so maybe we'll have some more stories & photos in the coming days! Anyway, thats it from me for now, hope your all ok back home and make sure you all keep in touch!
Catchya's!
So, if you read my last blog entry, we were in the process of finding work and a place to stay in London. Well, after some hard work for a couple of days we managed to find some work and also a double room in a shared house to stay for a while!
The job we got ourselves into is basically in a small call centre. Our duties are to call people around the world and ask if they will be attending various conferences that the company has organised. Its pretty boring but its very relaxed and we can just chill out all day, surf the net and call people back home. So if anyone wants a quick call anytime over the next week or so, leave a comment and I'll give you a buzz!!! Leave your number if I don't have it...
The house we moved into is starting to become "home" which is a really good feeling just to be able to come home and relax, leave our stuff everywhere and not have to worry (too much) about things going missing. Now the net is up and running I can update the blog more often and send/receive emails etc. So keep up the emails, its always good to hear whats going on back home and how everyone is... and I'll do my best to keep you all updated!
We went out the other week to Camden Town just down the road which was a crazy crazy night and marked our first weekend in our new house, so we had a big night to celebrate, not that we needed something to celebrate to have a massive night! You all know that... Ive put up a video on my myspace ( HERE) of a bit of funny drunkeness, you all know how it is!So we're about to head out for another night on the town, Friday night, so maybe we'll have some more stories & photos in the coming days! Anyway, thats it from me for now, hope your all ok back home and make sure you all keep in touch!
Catchya's!
Thursday, 1 February 2007
Ashwell, Liverpool & Australia Day!
Pete and I decided that we’d go to the Ashwell house for a few nights while we waited for confirmation that our bank accounts were opened successfully. While we were in Ashwell it snowed overnight and we woke in the morning to see the streets covered in a thick blanket of white. Quite a pretty sight and one that I didn’t think I’d get to see.
Two days later we got the call and it was time to book a coach to Liverpool and begin our quest for work and a suitable place to live for a few months. An early wakeup and a two-mile trek with our packs and we were back on a train to London. I got away with a free trip by using an old ticket but Pete got pinned and had to pay the fare, and for those of you who know him and how much of a tight-ass he is, you can imagine how long he moaned about it for…
After an uncomfortable 6 hour coach trip from London to Liverpool, I was very glad that we’d arrived. I had just sat next to a large, putrid woman with excessively bad BO for 6 hours that for once in my life made me wish I had a blocked nose. We booked into a hostel and applied for a few jobs over the internet. One of which was advertised as being for a variety of hotel based positions like bar staff, cleaners, porters, reception etc. After receiving a reply email a few hours later offering an interview to both Pete and myself we had high hopes.
On interview day we were told that we were being interviewed for a management position within a worldwide marketing company that is expanding within the UK. So we went along with it and answered the questions they threw at us and later that day was to receive a call to accept or deny us to the next stage of recruitment. We got the call, and were both accepted the round 2. At this stage I was becoming very skeptical about the whole thing and wondered if the whole thing was just some sort of hoax.
Today was Australia Day, and of course after a hard day we deserved to party, hard! I donned my Aussie gear; singlet, boardies, fosters hat, aussie tattoos, flip flops, & the flag and we headed out to the Walkabout to celebrate. It was the 1st Australia Day away from home and the boys but it delivered a very Aussie day and one to remember! The morning came and we had aching heads and another successful Australia Day had passed us by.
Stage 2 of the recruitment process for this company and within 15mins of the day beginning I knew it was not what we wanted. They said take this big bag and go with our salesman and try and sell as much as you can. Haha, the guy basically bent over and said remove some fresh shit from my ass and go sell it for me! We finished off the day and were offered the job, never to return…
The next day we booked a bus back to London as we were sick of messing around in Liverpool trying to find work and a place to stay. Not to say Liverpool was bad, we had a great time there but we are here to work and that’s what we need to do. After an odorless bus ride back to London we stayed in a 5pound a night hostel which was by far the worst place I’ve stayed yet but was cheap and it was a bed.
Today we spent 4 hours on the internet sending off resumes to heaps of recruitment agencies in London and we’re going to look at a shared house later tonight with a bunch of Kiwi blokes. So hopefully over the next week we can get settled in and start earning some mullah!
I’ll keep you all updated…
Two days later we got the call and it was time to book a coach to Liverpool and begin our quest for work and a suitable place to live for a few months. An early wakeup and a two-mile trek with our packs and we were back on a train to London. I got away with a free trip by using an old ticket but Pete got pinned and had to pay the fare, and for those of you who know him and how much of a tight-ass he is, you can imagine how long he moaned about it for…After an uncomfortable 6 hour coach trip from London to Liverpool, I was very glad that we’d arrived. I had just sat next to a large, putrid woman with excessively bad BO for 6 hours that for once in my life made me wish I had a blocked nose. We booked into a hostel and applied for a few jobs over the internet. One of which was advertised as being for a variety of hotel based positions like bar staff, cleaners, porters, reception etc. After receiving a reply email a few hours later offering an interview to both Pete and myself we had high hopes.
On interview day we were told that we were being interviewed for a management position within a worldwide marketing company that is expanding within the UK. So we went along with it and answered the questions they threw at us and later that day was to receive a call to accept or deny us to the next stage of recruitment. We got the call, and were both accepted the round 2. At this stage I was becoming very skeptical about the whole thing and wondered if the whole thing was just some sort of hoax.
Today was Australia Day, and of course after a hard day we deserved to party, hard! I donned my Aussie gear; singlet, boardies, fosters hat, aussie tattoos, flip flops, & the flag and we headed out to the Walkabout to celebrate. It was the 1st Australia Day away from home and the boys but it delivered a very Aussie day and one to remember! The morning came and we had aching heads and another successful Australia Day had passed us by.
Stage 2 of the recruitment process for this company and within 15mins of the day beginning I knew it was not what we wanted. They said take this big bag and go with our salesman and try and sell as much as you can. Haha, the guy basically bent over and said remove some fresh shit from my ass and go sell it for me! We finished off the day and were offered the job, never to return…The next day we booked a bus back to London as we were sick of messing around in Liverpool trying to find work and a place to stay. Not to say Liverpool was bad, we had a great time there but we are here to work and that’s what we need to do. After an odorless bus ride back to London we stayed in a 5pound a night hostel which was by far the worst place I’ve stayed yet but was cheap and it was a bed.
Today we spent 4 hours on the internet sending off resumes to heaps of recruitment agencies in London and we’re going to look at a shared house later tonight with a bunch of Kiwi blokes. So hopefully over the next week we can get settled in and start earning some mullah!
I’ll keep you all updated…
Monday, 29 January 2007
London & waiting...
After seeing Brad off at the airport I went back to stay the night at my cousins place in Boston Manor outside London. I was planning on spending a few days in London and meeting up with my auntie and cousin and do a bit of sightseeing with them.
I booked myself into a hostel for a few nights and then met up with my aunt and cousin and did some sightseeing around the Westminster area of London. Firstly we planned on taking a ride on the London Eye, but unfortunately it had been closed for maintenance for a week. Alright for me because I was sure that I'd have plenty more opportunities in the future.
Next was a ferry ride down the river Thames to the Tower Bridge and Tower of London. We bought tickets to the Tower Bridge which gave us access to the walkway high above the road and also into some of the behind the scenes operations of the bridge. Its amazing that so many years ago they were able to build such massive structures with such intricate details in the stonework. After freezing ourselves on the bridge it was time to defrost with a coffee and a bite to eat.
After lunch we went for a tour through the Tower of London. It's a massive fortress, surrounded by dried up moats and has been around for hundreds of years. Some of the stories about the place and the history were very eye-opening as to how far the world has developed from this period of time. Inside the walls of the fortress the Crown Jewels are kept locked away but available for viewing for the public. I tried to sneak a few photos of the crowns but unfortunately got caught almost instantly. See what I have to go through to try and keep you all visually up-to-date!
After the tour we noticed that the day was slipping away and we decided that we wouldn't have enough time to see everything we wanted to see in the one day. My aunt offered the floor of her hotel room for the night so we could finish off the sightseeing the next day. Obviously, I took her up on her offer.
Day 2 we planned to see the Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. 1st stop was to be Westminster Abbey. This massive cathedral is decorated with perfectly carved stone walls and ceilings and lit by huge stained glass windows. Here hundreds of important people, from priests to kings to killed soldiers to poets, are buried beneath the floor under massive slabs of stone.
Next stop was the Houses of Parliament. We managed to get into the House of Commons and the House of Lords while they were in session. The House of Lords was decorated in gold leaf and was almost overdone, a bit hard on the eyes! Interesting but boring... I don't have much to comment on here.
Finally we walked passed the Big Ben and headed home for some dinner. Time to say our goodbyes and it was time for me to head out to Ashwell again to waste a few days until Pete arrived on the 21st.
I booked myself into a hostel for a few nights and then met up with my aunt and cousin and did some sightseeing around the Westminster area of London. Firstly we planned on taking a ride on the London Eye, but unfortunately it had been closed for maintenance for a week. Alright for me because I was sure that I'd have plenty more opportunities in the future.
Next was a ferry ride down the river Thames to the Tower Bridge and Tower of London. We bought tickets to the Tower Bridge which gave us access to the walkway high above the road and also into some of the behind the scenes operations of the bridge. Its amazing that so many years ago they were able to build such massive structures with such intricate details in the stonework. After freezing ourselves on the bridge it was time to defrost with a coffee and a bite to eat.
After lunch we went for a tour through the Tower of London. It's a massive fortress, surrounded by dried up moats and has been around for hundreds of years. Some of the stories about the place and the history were very eye-opening as to how far the world has developed from this period of time. Inside the walls of the fortress the Crown Jewels are kept locked away but available for viewing for the public. I tried to sneak a few photos of the crowns but unfortunately got caught almost instantly. See what I have to go through to try and keep you all visually up-to-date!After the tour we noticed that the day was slipping away and we decided that we wouldn't have enough time to see everything we wanted to see in the one day. My aunt offered the floor of her hotel room for the night so we could finish off the sightseeing the next day. Obviously, I took her up on her offer.
Day 2 we planned to see the Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. 1st stop was to be Westminster Abbey. This massive cathedral is decorated with perfectly carved stone walls and ceilings and lit by huge stained glass windows. Here hundreds of important people, from priests to kings to killed soldiers to poets, are buried beneath the floor under massive slabs of stone.
Next stop was the Houses of Parliament. We managed to get into the House of Commons and the House of Lords while they were in session. The House of Lords was decorated in gold leaf and was almost overdone, a bit hard on the eyes! Interesting but boring... I don't have much to comment on here.Finally we walked passed the Big Ben and headed home for some dinner. Time to say our goodbyes and it was time for me to head out to Ashwell again to waste a few days until Pete arrived on the 21st.
Tuesday, 23 January 2007
Ashwell, Manningtree & B-rad’s departure...
The bus ride to London was long, but 5 1/2 hours later we arrived. Our plan was to head to Ashwell for a few days just to relax after our long week of partying. Ashwell is a small town about an hours train ride from London with only a thousand or so residents. One of my dad’s mates Allan owns a house there and said it was cool if we stayed there a while.
Our time in Ashwell was boring the say the most. But we couldn’t complain we were looking for somewhere to relax that’s exactly what we did. I don’t have much to say about this part of our trip other than it was great to chillax.
From Ashwell Brad wanted to go and see some family friends in Manningtree, near Essex. So off we went again back on the train to London then out to Manningtree. They were very good to us, cooking breakfasts, dinners and giving us a nice place to sleep for a while, and I can’t forget the beers too. They also took us out to see their part of the world which was interesting and quite different from other places I’d visited, from the small traditional English pubs to the luscious green fields to the babbling brooks. In some places it was very surreal.
After a few days of chillaxing there with Brad it was time to leave again, this time was the big departure for Brad, time for him to head back home to Sydney. Back on the train again, next stop, Heathrow Airport. So after 2 weeks of B-rad, the awesome times we had were coming to an end. He was very excited to be heading home and said that 2 months was more than enough for his travels.
It was time to say our goodbyes and good lucks and then he was gone… Lining up in a line for security checks that was no shorter than a few hundred meters long! I’m not sure how long it took you to get through Brad but it seemed like it was a bit of a wait!
Now that I was by myself again I had planned to stay in London for a few nights and meet up with my aunt and cousin, who were also here on holiday from Australia.
Our time in Ashwell was boring the say the most. But we couldn’t complain we were looking for somewhere to relax that’s exactly what we did. I don’t have much to say about this part of our trip other than it was great to chillax.
From Ashwell Brad wanted to go and see some family friends in Manningtree, near Essex. So off we went again back on the train to London then out to Manningtree. They were very good to us, cooking breakfasts, dinners and giving us a nice place to sleep for a while, and I can’t forget the beers too. They also took us out to see their part of the world which was interesting and quite different from other places I’d visited, from the small traditional English pubs to the luscious green fields to the babbling brooks. In some places it was very surreal.
After a few days of chillaxing there with Brad it was time to leave again, this time was the big departure for Brad, time for him to head back home to Sydney. Back on the train again, next stop, Heathrow Airport. So after 2 weeks of B-rad, the awesome times we had were coming to an end. He was very excited to be heading home and said that 2 months was more than enough for his travels.
It was time to say our goodbyes and good lucks and then he was gone… Lining up in a line for security checks that was no shorter than a few hundred meters long! I’m not sure how long it took you to get through Brad but it seemed like it was a bit of a wait!
Now that I was by myself again I had planned to stay in London for a few nights and meet up with my aunt and cousin, who were also here on holiday from Australia.
English Roadtrip, Part 3...
We arrived in Liverpool just before sunset and had already decided that we’d stay in a hostel so we could have a proper sleep, shower and wash our dirty clothes. Brad had already decided on a hostel from his trusty Lonely Planet guide so we drove straight there to get settled. On inquiring about the cost of a bed each for the night we were quoted ₤15 each. I thought it was a bit expensive and was sure I’d seen it cheaper on the internet. So I asked the lady to give us a minute and I jumped on the internet in front of reception and booked 2 beds for ₤10 each. Up we went back to reception and said that we had a booking for 2 beds. She seemed a little confused but all was good and we ended up saving about $13 each. Later to be used much more wisely…
After dumping our gear in the room we put on a load of washing each and headed out for some tucker and then returned to our room to prepare for our night out. There was a Kiwi guy staying in our room who came with us for some bev’s. He was keen to go to The Cavern Bar where The Beatles had played hundreds of gigs. So we went along with his suggestion and after descending 3 flights of stairs into the underground bar, we were pleased to see a Beatles impersonation band playing. After many pints of beer it was time to move on.
Our next stop was the Walkabout, the Aussie pub! We stayed at this pub all night until it closed and only then did we notice that our Kiwi roommate had left us! Oh well, he wasn’t that fun anyways and he did seem a little drunk. After Brad insisted on a Kebab we made our way back to the hostel.
As we entered the room we were instantly confronted with a stale smell. Too drunk and tired to care we continued to prepare to become horizontal. As I was just about to jump into bed I felt something wet on my foot next to my bed. Instantly I remembered the stale smell and instantly came to the conclusion that what I had just stepped in was fresh urine. As I announced my discovery to Brad, he didn’t believe me and felt the urge to touch, stroke and almost caress the bed and carpet numerous times until he too decided that what was now covering his hands was indeed fresh urine.
So about now I was pretty annoyed so I woke up the Kiwi guy and asked him if he’d taken a piss on my bed. He was extremely drunk and could hardly speak but managed to say that he didn’t think he’d pissed in my bed. So off I went down to reception and got a key to a fresh room. Okay I was happy now. Back to the stale urine smelling room and tried again to get the Kiwi to admit that he’d urinated all over my bed. After 5 minutes of probing for an answer he admitted that maybe he might have done it but he’d never done anything like it before! Oh well, there’s a first time for everything, time for sleep…
The next night was equally as good, back to the Walkabout we went and had another large serving of bev’s and hung out most of the night with a few Bobette the Builders! Good fun and good laughs were had and once again Liverpool had delivered another memorable night. Another kebab for Brad and myself on the way home and we were satisfied enough to become horizontal for a few hours before we had to drop the car off and jump on a bus to London.
This was to unfortunately mark the end of our English Roadtrip…
After dumping our gear in the room we put on a load of washing each and headed out for some tucker and then returned to our room to prepare for our night out. There was a Kiwi guy staying in our room who came with us for some bev’s. He was keen to go to The Cavern Bar where The Beatles had played hundreds of gigs. So we went along with his suggestion and after descending 3 flights of stairs into the underground bar, we were pleased to see a Beatles impersonation band playing. After many pints of beer it was time to move on.
Our next stop was the Walkabout, the Aussie pub! We stayed at this pub all night until it closed and only then did we notice that our Kiwi roommate had left us! Oh well, he wasn’t that fun anyways and he did seem a little drunk. After Brad insisted on a Kebab we made our way back to the hostel.As we entered the room we were instantly confronted with a stale smell. Too drunk and tired to care we continued to prepare to become horizontal. As I was just about to jump into bed I felt something wet on my foot next to my bed. Instantly I remembered the stale smell and instantly came to the conclusion that what I had just stepped in was fresh urine. As I announced my discovery to Brad, he didn’t believe me and felt the urge to touch, stroke and almost caress the bed and carpet numerous times until he too decided that what was now covering his hands was indeed fresh urine.
So about now I was pretty annoyed so I woke up the Kiwi guy and asked him if he’d taken a piss on my bed. He was extremely drunk and could hardly speak but managed to say that he didn’t think he’d pissed in my bed. So off I went down to reception and got a key to a fresh room. Okay I was happy now. Back to the stale urine smelling room and tried again to get the Kiwi to admit that he’d urinated all over my bed. After 5 minutes of probing for an answer he admitted that maybe he might have done it but he’d never done anything like it before! Oh well, there’s a first time for everything, time for sleep…
The next night was equally as good, back to the Walkabout we went and had another large serving of bev’s and hung out most of the night with a few Bobette the Builders! Good fun and good laughs were had and once again Liverpool had delivered another memorable night. Another kebab for Brad and myself on the way home and we were satisfied enough to become horizontal for a few hours before we had to drop the car off and jump on a bus to London.
This was to unfortunately mark the end of our English Roadtrip…
Sunday, 21 January 2007
The rest is coming...
The even more up to date blog is coming! It will magically appear here in 2 days from now! So check back and dont be afraid to leave comments...
Saturday, 20 January 2007
English Roadtrip, Part 2...
We left Newcastle knowing only one thing, the direction we should be going on the highway. Brad was busy, nose in his Lonely Planet guide, trying to find an adequate next destination. His idea was to go to Wakefield, a small town near Leeds and not far from Manchester. It’s a footy town and Deano, Brad’s brother, had been there previously returning with good reviews.
We arrived to a small country town, Wakefield. Found a place to park the car for the night, also to be our sleeping location, and headed out to checkout the town. After walking around for an hour we decided that nothing was going on here so we got some Chinese takeaway and hit the burl again. Next stop Manchester…
50miles & 30mins later we were in Manchester. Again we found a place to park, visited a YHA hostel and asked about the nightlife. Half an hour later we found ourselves, unintentionally, inside a gay bar. The only good thing was that the drinks were very cheap, maybe because it was a members only bar… I guess Brad must have looked like a member… Here's some proof!
The night fell short of our expectations so we decided we’d stay another night, only because we’d heard great things about Manchester.
Our 2nd night was much more eventful; luckily we booked ourselves into a hostel for the night. We followed the advice of a group of uni students we met in a bar and headed to a place called “Printworks”. We drank and danced the night away and were glad that Manchester had finally delivered! Back to the hostel and awoke to a throbbing headache, nothing a brisk walk in the chilly air of Manchester couldn’t fix, and again it was time to hit the road.
Next stop Liverpool...
We arrived to a small country town, Wakefield. Found a place to park the car for the night, also to be our sleeping location, and headed out to checkout the town. After walking around for an hour we decided that nothing was going on here so we got some Chinese takeaway and hit the burl again. Next stop Manchester…
50miles & 30mins later we were in Manchester. Again we found a place to park, visited a YHA hostel and asked about the nightlife. Half an hour later we found ourselves, unintentionally, inside a gay bar. The only good thing was that the drinks were very cheap, maybe because it was a members only bar… I guess Brad must have looked like a member… Here's some proof!
The night fell short of our expectations so we decided we’d stay another night, only because we’d heard great things about Manchester.Our 2nd night was much more eventful; luckily we booked ourselves into a hostel for the night. We followed the advice of a group of uni students we met in a bar and headed to a place called “Printworks”. We drank and danced the night away and were glad that Manchester had finally delivered! Back to the hostel and awoke to a throbbing headache, nothing a brisk walk in the chilly air of Manchester couldn’t fix, and again it was time to hit the road.
Next stop Liverpool...
English Roadtrip, Part 1...
1st stop, Newcastle. We arrived just after sunset, with nothing planned we thought we better find ourselves a bed for the night. A little while later we were dumping our luggage in a B&B a short walk from the town centre. After grabbing a can of beer each we walked into town to find ourselves some dinner and later some more alcohol.
Indian was on our “solids” menu for the night which we swiftly devoured in order to progress to the more enticing mesmeric “liquid” menu. After dinner we found ourselves in a shopping mall, although not any shopping mall, it was a shopping mall almost entirely devoted to pubs and clubs with the exception of a cinema on the upper floor. Were we in heaven? It sure looked like it…
Countless hours later we were back at the B&B sprawled out on our beds, music blaring from my laptop along with Brad drunkenly singing along. A few hours later we woke up, 5 minutes before checkout, only to hear an Asian woman banging on the door telling us to get out because she needed to clean up our mess.
We did some rapid packing and departed.
Next stop, unknown…
Indian was on our “solids” menu for the night which we swiftly devoured in order to progress to the more enticing mesmeric “liquid” menu. After dinner we found ourselves in a shopping mall, although not any shopping mall, it was a shopping mall almost entirely devoted to pubs and clubs with the exception of a cinema on the upper floor. Were we in heaven? It sure looked like it…
Countless hours later we were back at the B&B sprawled out on our beds, music blaring from my laptop along with Brad drunkenly singing along. A few hours later we woke up, 5 minutes before checkout, only to hear an Asian woman banging on the door telling us to get out because she needed to clean up our mess.We did some rapid packing and departed.
Next stop, unknown…
Edinburgh, NYE!
B-rad arrived at the train station (29th) and we stayed a night at my cousin’s place in Glasgow. In the morning we hired a car which was to mark the beginning of our journey. We burled from Glasgow to Edinburgh, found some accommodation with free wireless, which surprisingly wasn’t too difficult... It just happened to be our vehicle, parked out the front of a 5* hotel! Couldn’t have been in a primer location!
After having some beers in the car it was about time that we made our mark in the Edinburgh pubs. Beer in hand we walked from our accommodation into the city to find a pub. First up was some dirty pub which we stayed for a decent session of bevving until we decided that we'd have one more pint and that would be it for the night... After our pint we made our way to the next pub/club next-door where Brad bumped into an Aussie guy he'd met in Ireland. 5 minutes later and we had a pint of Snakebite (1/2 beer, 1/2 cider and raspberry cordial), then another, then another, then a few double vodka red-bulls and some tequila shots, all of which were compliments of Brads mate from Ireland! All I can really say is it was a very fun filled messy night.
Next night, New Years @ Edinburgh's Hogmanay. We awoke in the morning, or was it afternoon? All I remember was that my head hurt... Brad and I thought it was about time to get going and book ourselves tickets to the Hogmany Street Party. 20pounds later we had our tickets, along with a beanie and "kissable" lip balm. By now it was getting dark so darkness = bevving, well actually, anything = bevving at this point of our travels. So back we went to our accommodation and onto the sauce for a few hours preceding the main event. As the cans began to build up around our accommodation, the weather started turning bad. The winds became gale force and the rain became heavier so we put on heaps of clothes and ventured out to the street party.
Along the way we felt the urge to pickup some more booze, a flask of Vodka & some Red Bull’s was on the menu for our 2nd course. At the off-license where we made our purchase we were told that the street party had been cancelled due to the extreme weather conditions. We thought they were joking but sure enough they were telling the truth. Oh well, we had our grog and we were in the mood for a good night so we strolled the streets singing and carrying on, picking up our 3rd course (vodka & coke) along the way and finishing the night with a pint for desert in a pub before returning to our comfy beds at around 6am. Another night, or parts of, to remember...
Next day, the beginning of our English road-trip...
After having some beers in the car it was about time that we made our mark in the Edinburgh pubs. Beer in hand we walked from our accommodation into the city to find a pub. First up was some dirty pub which we stayed for a decent session of bevving until we decided that we'd have one more pint and that would be it for the night... After our pint we made our way to the next pub/club next-door where Brad bumped into an Aussie guy he'd met in Ireland. 5 minutes later and we had a pint of Snakebite (1/2 beer, 1/2 cider and raspberry cordial), then another, then another, then a few double vodka red-bulls and some tequila shots, all of which were compliments of Brads mate from Ireland! All I can really say is it was a very fun filled messy night.
Next night, New Years @ Edinburgh's Hogmanay. We awoke in the morning, or was it afternoon? All I remember was that my head hurt... Brad and I thought it was about time to get going and book ourselves tickets to the Hogmany Street Party. 20pounds later we had our tickets, along with a beanie and "kissable" lip balm. By now it was getting dark so darkness = bevving, well actually, anything = bevving at this point of our travels. So back we went to our accommodation and onto the sauce for a few hours preceding the main event. As the cans began to build up around our accommodation, the weather started turning bad. The winds became gale force and the rain became heavier so we put on heaps of clothes and ventured out to the street party.
Along the way we felt the urge to pickup some more booze, a flask of Vodka & some Red Bull’s was on the menu for our 2nd course. At the off-license where we made our purchase we were told that the street party had been cancelled due to the extreme weather conditions. We thought they were joking but sure enough they were telling the truth. Oh well, we had our grog and we were in the mood for a good night so we strolled the streets singing and carrying on, picking up our 3rd course (vodka & coke) along the way and finishing the night with a pint for desert in a pub before returning to our comfy beds at around 6am. Another night, or parts of, to remember...Next day, the beginning of our English road-trip...
London & Glasgow
The flight from New York to London
My cousin Hayley met me at the airport and we jumped on the underground to her place outside
Next day we just chilled out and checked out the town and I planned how I was to get to the
1 hour later,
For the rest of my time in Glasgow Paul took me out to see the sites, or should I say the pubs? I saw my fair share of Glasgonian pubs over my 5 days there, but I did manage to scrape some site-seeing in in-between!
We got around to seeing some old cathedral and some very old buildings including the oldest house in
We managed to see the
The days passed, the beers started getting all that more tasty and I knew in a few days that I'd be meeting up with B-rad for New Years then off to Edinburgh for many a good times!
Friday, 19 January 2007
New York New York
I arrived in New York
I had a hostel booked just down the road from Time Square. The hostel was pretty nice and the location made it awesome for just seeing the sights of the city. So I dumped my bags in the hostel and went in search of Mick. He didn't have a mobile with him so I couldn’t call him so I sent him an email saying that I'd meet him at 10am and 4pm on the corner of two streets.
For those of you who know Mick, you know what happened, he didn’t show up... So back to the hotel and used my laptop and skype to call Mick's mum to get the name of his hotel. Finally I was a bit closer to finding him! So off I went to his hotel and left a message under his door saying I'd meet him in the lobby at 6pm. Again, 6pm, no show :( Hmm... I thought he'd be getting back to the hotel soon so I waited in the lobby until just after 7pm when in he walked. He was amazed to see me sitting in the lobby and instantly got excited.
15 minutes later and we were off to a New York Nicks basketball game atMadison Square Gardens
The next few days were purely sightseeing...
We went up theEmpire State Building 
I had a hostel booked just down the road from Time Square. The hostel was pretty nice and the location made it awesome for just seeing the sights of the city. So I dumped my bags in the hostel and went in search of Mick. He didn't have a mobile with him so I couldn’t call him so I sent him an email saying that I'd meet him at 10am and 4pm on the corner of two streets.
For those of you who know Mick, you know what happened, he didn’t show up... So back to the hotel and used my laptop and skype to call Mick's mum to get the name of his hotel. Finally I was a bit closer to finding him! So off I went to his hotel and left a message under his door saying I'd meet him in the lobby at 6pm. Again, 6pm, no show :( Hmm... I thought he'd be getting back to the hotel soon so I waited in the lobby until just after 7pm when in he walked. He was amazed to see me sitting in the lobby and instantly got excited.
15 minutes later and we were off to a New York Nicks basketball game at
The next few days were purely sightseeing...
We went up the
I stayed at Mick's hotel for the next 2 nights which was a nice change from the hostels I'd been staying in for the past month. Thanks again Mick!
For my last full day we went Museuming. Firstly though, we had to walk through
We went to the
Next day time to leave, my last day in the
Off to
Monday, 15 January 2007
The update...
Its coming guys... Something happened with my old blog site and I cant add anything else too it so this will be the UK/Europe blog from now on... With New York added first :)
Sorry ive been heaps slack on the updates but im in the process of getting them all up to date!
Check back here very soon!
Sorry ive been heaps slack on the updates but im in the process of getting them all up to date!
Check back here very soon!
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