Heading East

So we have passed through Germany and are now in Prague, ready to head to Krakow tomorrow. Our overnight train to Munich was better than the first, mainly because I had a bed! I slept pretty well apart from the continuous snoring above me by old mate. We arrived in Munich at around seven in the morning then walked around for about two. It was early on a Saturday morning so all of the market stalls were being set up. Fresh produce, herbs and slices, meats, cheese and everything you could imagine! The train to Berlin then took another 7 hours so we arrived mid afternoon into extreme heat, yet again! We found the hostel which happened to be about ten degrees warmer due to lack of ventilation! So it was hot, very hot. 

Berlin was amazing though. The history behind the city was so interesting and fascinating considering so much of it has happened within the last century. Most of it was hard to believe or even try to put yourself in someone's situation at that time. We started in the square in the famous gate. Next to it was the hotel which Michael Jackson dangled his kid out of! I had no idea it was in Berlin. Anyway, we walked along to the Holocaust memorial which was unbelievable. Architecturally it is one of the most different memorials I've seen, but so fascinating. No one knows why it was designed how it was, so it really is left up to interpretation. Some day it represents the graves of the murdered Jews, but to cover the 6 million deaths you would need 2000 memorial sites. The walking tour took us around the east side of Berlin, to all the monuments. We also stood on top of hitlers bunker also where he commuted suicide. There is no memorial here though, as they don't want him to have one. I really loved Berlin, based on its history you could easily spend a week there! 

Next as moved onto Prague! Train number 18 if I've counted correctly. Prague is beautiful. So many different styles of architecture it is pretty amazing. I didn't know anything about the history here but after the walking tour I've learnt a bit! Our guide was Australian and put in some good humour too, which made the tour all the more interesting. The bridge connecting us to the old town is covered in artists, beggars and musical acts. We visited the John Lennon Wall, which he started, now a huge graffiti wall! 

Tomorrow we are off to Krakow, Poland for two nights to visit Auschwitz. Tomorrow is one week to go until I get back to school and leave my Europe travels with Immi! 

Holocaust memorial 

Prague from the Charles bridge

The Astronomical tower. One of the most overrated tourist attractions in Europe!

 

John Lennon Wall

Seeya 

Molly xx

Time flies

Yes time does fly when your travelling around Europe! Over half way of my mini travel around with just two weeks left to go. We are currently in Amsterdam the multicultural capital. It has the highest range of people from different countries, if that makes sense! 

After Bruges we headed to Brussels but stopped off at Ghent along the way. Coincidentally we arrived in Ghent on the last day of their ten day festival. Basically all the streets were lined with live music, pop up bars, street food and much more. It was great! Probably my favourite place in Belgium. We also visited a castle which had a display of weapons from the medieval times and also all forms of torture, it was pretty cool. Waffles again of course, what else would you eat in Belgium?!?

We spent two nights in Brussels after we left Bruges. It rained nearly all day when we were there! But we managed to spend a whole day wandering the city. We visited 'the pissing boy'. Which to be honest was a bit underwhelming. I expected him to be much bigger! We visited some churches and old bookshops that were hidden around the many little streets filled with cafe's and boutiques. For a nice view from the top of a carpark! And we went to the cinema and saw Monsters University!! Because it was raining we decided it was a great idea, and that it was!! 

After Brussels it was off to Antwerp we go! Antwerp was also a nice city. Reminded me a little of Hobart, probably nothing like it at all but it was nice. By then we were pretty much dead. Legs so sore from walking, lack of sleep because of snorers and being kept up at night is what you should expect when travelling across Europe. But we managed to make the most of it! We visited a few more churches, the big square, the riverside and went down into an eighty year old tunnel that took you from one side if the river to the other! It was cold and smelt a bit but we did get a pretty nice view of the city from the other side! 

And finally, Amsterdam! We arrived here at around 11 am, came to the hostel to drop our stuff off before going exploring! We decided to wander the main streets before heading down to the ruks museum. It was a beautiful building that had been under renovation for ten years apparently. It featured work from Van Gogh, Vermeer, Rembrandt and lots more. I took a photo with the all too famous 'I Amsterdam' letters and we got ice cream by the museum. The heat warmed up alot as we came further north so our came the sunscreen again! Tomorrow we are off to Anne Franks house! Which I am pretty excited about. Bike rides around the city too as we'll as stopping off at some markets along the way. 

Got a night train tomorrow night to Munich to then change to get to Berlin where we will be for 3 nights!! 

Unfortunately I have been a bit slack and haven't taken any more photos on my phone! So you will have to wait instead! 

See you later! 

Molly xx

3 countries 4 days

So it's been a few days but we've managed to leave Spain, Stay In Paris and arrive in Bruges, Belgium! 

We left San Sebastián on Friday to arrive in Paris at about 7pm. With a quick rush on the underground we arrived at Gare du Nord station to then find our hostel in the sweltering heat! Eventually we found it and then rushed off to quickly say hi to Mona Lisa! Yes I saw her and I had a photo as we got in free because it was a Friday. So I can now say I have been to the louvre, even though it was probably 20 mins max I have still been there! Anyway back to Mona, she was framed in a glass frame hung in the wall. Luckily there was no line up so I just walked up, said hi, took a photo and admired Da Vinci's work. Her eyes truly are piercing and she just follows you wherever you go. It was pretty surreal to stand in the same room as her! But after all the mad rush to get there we then rushed off to the Eiffel Tower to meet some friends. Crepes and ice cream in hand, we sat and watched the Eiffel Tower sparkle on the hour. It was great catching up with others to hear about their travelling stories and where everyone had been. Getting back to the hostel at 2 am did not leave us much time to sleep before getting up nice and early for... DISNEYLAND! 

Yes so I finally got there and experienced the magic that Disney provides! Getting up at 6.30 am wasn't the nicest feeling but knowing it was for a good reason. We arrived at 10am just as it opening and I was literally just overwhelmed with excitement and joy. Listening to the music as we walked up to the gates just made us smile. We entered the Walt Disney park first and went on a few rides, all of which were great! Then we headed or to the Disneyland Park to catch up with some princesses, walk down main at USA and of course experience all that was offered! Ride after ride meant standing on our feet for 10 hours straight!  

Our favourites were the roller coasters in the dark and the nemo ride as we flowed down the east Australian current! But my overall favourite part of the day was definitely the parade! I had never felt so happy before, words cannot describe how I felt. We saw Ariel and prince Phillip, Rapunzel and Flynn, Simba, Peter Pan and so many more!! We very slowly and painfully made our way out of the park to catch the bus back into Paris. 

And today we were up nice and early again to make our way to Bruges, Belgium. We got here a bit before twelve and basically just wandered the streets all afternoon. Had waffles of course, which were actually so so good. The amour of chocolate shops is ridiculous, every second window is full with delicious treats to tempt you into buying more! For tea we had pomme frites, the double fried chips Belgium is popular for! I must say the weather deceived me today, being cooler I didn't out any sunscreen and consequently am paying the price of burning skin! 

So tomorrow we are off to Brussels, the European capital, but before we are stopping off at Ghent. A similar town to Bruges but not as touristy. Two nights in Brussels before Antwerp for a night then to Amsterdam. Busy busy next two and a half weeks before mum arrives!! Yay!! 

The louvre was popular on a Friday night

By night it's gorgeous

Sparkling!! 

Baloo!

Ariel!

Bruges

Waffles! 

Anyway, very tired now! 

Molly xx

Food, Sun and Beach in San Sebastián

So we arrived in San Sebastián on Wednesday after our overnight train from Portugal. Not the best experience on the train, A group of Frenchmen decided it was fine to drink all night long and keep everyone up until 3 or 4 in the morning. The seats weren't the most comfortable either, but hey I'm not complaining! At least my train managed to stay on the tracks... 

We arrived in San Sebastián at around 11 am which left us time to find our hostel and check in then we were off to explore. We went to the old part of town which is full of bars and pastry shops and delicious food. Then we couldn't resist any longer, and we got in the water! For not so much of a beach and salt water lover, I quite enjoyed a dip in the warm water then a little sun bake, until it all got a bit got again and I had to leave before I ended up as a tomato. 

For dinner and lunch we have been eating Pintox ( if that is how you spell it I'm not sure!). Basically just finger food that you choose from a huge selection that's up on the bar counter. Things like goats cheese, cars slides onion, prosciutto and bread all together in a mix of goodness!! Although its testing out budget we did really come here for the amazing Spanish food, then we will be back in a budget once we leave! 

Today involved a walk up the 'mountain' to get to the top and look at the view. It was a struggle in the heat and the sweat but eventually we made it. Then we went for some lunch in old town, watched some street buskers. There seem to be a lot here with very interesting acts. There was a man dressed as a baby in a pram as well as another man with his head popping out if a table, all very interesting. We then headed back for a light rest during the warmest park of the day, as it was very muggy and overcast before heading back out to walk to another point. This point was a bit like a blowhole with rock pipes coming up from underneath and you would get a full face of air! Luckily no water!! Dinner was yet again Pintox followed by ice cream and a nice casual walk back to the hostel before packing up to leave tomorrow. 

We head up to Paris for two nights! Hopefully will quickly say hi to Mona Lisa tomorrow night before heading to the Eiffel Tower to meet up with some travelling friends then onto Disneyland on Saturday!! Very excited! 

So a good couple of days in San Sebastián and my first taste of Spain. The beginning of what's meant to be a tan could be appearing, fingers crossed!! 

The beach, 2 mins walk from the hostel

Much darker day today

View from the top

Street acts

Sweets to die for! 

Over and out

Molly xx

Porto, home of Port wine

Hello all, 

We have been in Porto two nights already and our last night is tonight. Porto is the second largest city after Lisbon the capital. 

Yesterday we went on another free walking tour around the city. We saw the main sights including the tallest point here in Porto. A tower which measures 250 m we think, anyway we climbed up it today to get some good views. We also stopped at a bookshop which has been ranked the third prettiest bookshop in the world. Two famous authors have written there centuries ago and also the staircase inside was an inspiration for dumbledores staircase up to his office in Harry Potter. 

The walking tour also took us down to the waterfront area. Where the big bridge that connects Porto to another city is found. The smells and aroma's around the 'food' area was to die for, especially when you hadn't eaten! 

The pastries and cafe's are pretty cute, so we end up sitting in them for a while eating Portuguese tarts every so often. 

Today after climbing the tower and visiting the bookshop we took tram 22 around the city for a nice casual ride! 

Tomorrow we have another day before setting off on a night train to San Sebastián in Spain! Ready for Tapas and beaches...

Porto from the bridge

Every roof is made of terracotta tiles

The staircase in the bookshop

Out front of the bookshop

The view from up top of the tower

Tram ride through the city

Street art

And to finish, our amazing dinner from last night! 

Molly xx

Aveiro, the Venice of Portugal

We arrived in Aveiro on Thursday after a 2 and a half hour train ride. Walking down the Main Street to find the hostel was pretty easy and we even arrived early! 

For lunch we went to a little cafe bakery and spent little to what you would at home! A huge strawberry tart cost only €1.50! We were very pleased with our findings :D 

After a little walk down the canal and seeing the boats we got back to our hostel to get in our dorm. It is a really cool hostel, awesome kitchen and lounge area and we can wash our clothes! Imogen once again cooked a superb dinner and we decided a little ice cream with a walk was in need! 

The Canal next to our hostel

Cute little house

Procuitto wrapped chicken with rice and green beans! 

Today we had breakfast st the hostel, nice bread with jams, hand and cheese, cereals and even apple and cinnamon cake! 

We set off to go on a boat ride down the canals. We were showed the salt pans and the piles of salt. The fishermans houses, ceramics factory and why the houses have ceramic tiles to protect the houses from the salt. 

We then went and hired some free BUGA bikes! Riding up and down the canals with bikes without breaks was fun! Until I nearly ran straight onto the road! For lunch we had some more Portuguese tarts on a bench next to the canal then opted to go for a walk around the shopping mall. Which I believe was the first shopping mall on Portugal, perhaps. 

 

The boat ride! 

Some stairs we found! 

The boats in the canal 

Tomorrow we head to Porto, our last stop in Portugal! 

Anyway talk soon

Molly xx