Last Stop Warsaw

I stayed here one night on Sunday after taking the train in from Berlin but did not leave the hostel at all since I got in late.

Cities like Warsaw, Dresden, and Rotterdam (all places I visited) were left in ruins after WWII so they are somewhat "new" cities.  Obviously  fter the war Poland belonged to the USSR ruled by Stalin.  He came in. and built the communist apartment blocks you think about today when thinking of Eastern Europe.  By the way this is Central Europe While there are many of these blocks on the outskirts of the city, the downtown core is being completely redeveloped.  It's all centered around the Palace of Science which dominates the cityscape.  It was Stalin's gift to Poland after the war however most people found it ugly.  I would disagree with them. I think they say that only because Stalin built the thing.

Wide boulevards surround it along with skyscrapers and a giant shopping mall opposite the train station.

I had planned on going to Czestochowa but missed my train since the ticket lady had plans on chatting and eating for 10 minutes. Also because the machines don't accept large bills. I'm flexible.  So I walked up to a hostel and booked it for one night.  Sweet location right on the main drag.

My first day being a tourist I walked to the old town.  Obviously this was rebuilt after the war.  There wasn't too much going on there so I moved on and headed for the Uprising Museum.

Old Town

On the way I found a farmers market and bought the second tastiest apple I've ever had for about 15 cents. The tastiest was from my buddy's grandfathers farm in Bavaria.

The Uprising Museum documents the failed Uprising of 1944 against the Nazis.  180,000 Poles died. Warsaw almost failed to exist after it was burned to the ground.  The film was what really moved me. When we think of WWII we center more on other countries and kind of forget what Poland went through. It's a terrible history almost impossible to believe. 

You may say yes I went to a museum but I felt this one is worth it and something I was interested in learning more about. Definitely check this place out if you have the chance. 

To eat check out the milk bars, relics of the communist era. These serve homecooked Polish cuisine and are still subsidized by the government. I got a schnitzel with potatoes and salad for about $3 one night. I ate there both nights because I thought they were so awesome.  It tends to attract the homeless and students with the prices so low.  So one drunk came in and started yelling at these other people speaking english. I think it had to do something about communism. Probably for him his life was much better.  It's funny to think about how in that system everyone earns equally and is able to afford a life.  Obviously something this guy wanted back. Well he was warned by the hostess to stop which he did but still muttered under his breathe.

My meal with "the guy"

As for my evenings, I watched the Poland-England game the first night and went to the CS meeting the next. Since my flight was at 6am I decided I would just stay out all night. I left my bags in storage at the hostel without booking a room.

The CS meeting was right next to the hostel at a place called Barometer. Later on we went to a more upbeat place playing music. More vodkas and dancing and it was time for me to head home already.

Since this is my last article I feel I should summarize a bit all the happenings and memories I've made on this trip. Definitely the highlight being the wedding in such a beautiful place with awesome people I will always remember. Being able to hang with my great friends again in Germany something I hope will continue to happen and know it will.  The crazy streets of Copenhagen, biking through the Netherlands, Spanish skies, and of course Poland's comforts.  I want to keep this blog alive and add some other side trips I take but know I will come back to this soon because I have a lot more places to see outside of Europe.  Until then! 

Holy Krakow

Took the train down from Warsaw in the morning and planned on staying one night in Krakow. There's a lot of hype on this town as the tourist trade has really amped up here in the past 5 years. The biggest draw is Auschwitz being an hour away so many choose Krakow as their base.

Main Square

I'd love to visit Auschwitz but it's not my main goal for coming here. I could have gone to Dachau near Munich all those days I spent there studying but I never did. We all know the events that occurred at these places but I felt spending my time in the city would be more beneficial. It's hard for me to describe my thinking here but I choose not to go.

I did however want to check the Schindler factory out but it was my last stop when it should have been my first because I didn't make it there in time. And it was free this day. Ahhhh missed. But the building is completely renovated and the factory itself is hardly recognizable. The art museum decided to swallow up part of it under its glass facade. Not a good decision to preserve something if you ask me. I read in the movie they actually reconstructed the factory nearby since it was so unrecognizable.

There are churches galore here. If you like churches you'll love this place. I like them.

Nuns and priests are everywhere. In the grocery store, the bakery, the bathrooms. It's a very holy city.

Home of Pope John Paul II where his former palace was and where people continue to worship him. I mean they worship here. Every church has about 30 people inside praying.  As a catholic it was surprising and heartwarming to see such devotion on a Monday at 3 pm. People take their religion very seriously here.

Oh there's a castle here as well.  Once used back in the day for the royal family.

Pope John Paul II's palace

Walking on the street here you will notice every block has a bakery and a 24 hour alcohol store. One for the morning one for the night.

I ate lunch at this micro brewery called CK Browar where they make a light, dark, ginger, and a wheat beer. Expecting good beer in Poland was a false assumption. But still better than Italian beer. Did you see that schnitzel picture I posted earlier. That thing was huge and for 8 bucks! It was the second most expensive thing on the list.

I went out to join the couchsurfing meeting in the Jewish quarter at a bar. These people are seriously awesome at these things. The ambassador was a 51 year old transplant from Toronto living in Krakow for 3 years because of his girlfriend. And all the other awesome travelers. I even met a guy from Philly CS that knows the same people as me.

I ended up branching off with some people to get myself in trouble with vodka. It plays a big role in the drinking culture here. We went from place to place in this little square trying all sorts of them. Then I had to get me a Zapiekanka which is not a sandwich as they warned me not to say but more a baguette with cheese and your choice of toppings. Pretty nice after a few vodkas.

I asked one of the girls ordering what she was getting on her sandwich and somehow she was offended by what I said. They warned me not to say its a sandwich here. I don't know. Some people.

Off to some club on a Monday mind you. Again easily offended people here. Start talking to some girl and they give me that look like who are you. So I chase them down later explaining I'm just trying to have a nice conversation here. I don't know maybe they didn't speak English well but don't give me that bitchy face attitude when I'm just being friendly.  So then I left because I was fed up.

I thought this place was a bit over hyped by people saying how lovely it was. It is a nice place don't get me wrong but it's not unbelievably gorgeous or anything. But the inside of every church is. I wish I could have gone to a service.

Town Gate

  

Berlin Calling

I knew I had to get back here because the last time I didn't have a chance to check out the nightlife. This was in 2008 and I left with a bad impression of the city. But I knew there had to be more.

Reichstag

Berlin is a huge city in terms of area and is made up of a bunch of different neighborhoods. I was staying in Charlottenburg with my cousin's friend. He made it up with a few friends of his for the weekend.

I really noticed this time how Berlin has chosen to make its past very noticeable everywhere you go throughout the city. There is a constant reminder what happened here.

I took a little walk through the main sites to start before stopping off at the Topography of Terror. This is a free museum documenting WWII next to a stretch of the Berlin Wall. Highly recommended that is if the place isn't closed temporarily for a fire alarm like it was for me.

Berlin Wall with Potsdamer Platz

I met up with the guys to get the evening started. Always have to eat a döner while in Berlin as it definitely is a different style here than the rest of the country. And three sauces to choose from on homemade bread. A döner by the way is a sandwich introduced by the Turkish to Berlin a number of years ago. Berlin has the largest Turkish population outside of Turkey. Seriously someone needs to introduce these to the US.

Next we stopped in a micro brewery called Eschenbräu. I really hope the IPA craze doesn't take off here because this was the first place I had been to that had one. Doppelhopf.

Time to go to the club. Came home around 4 drenched from the downpour of rain.

I headed to Ku'damm the next day to look around at some shops. Didn't have that much time before meeting up with the guys at Brandenburger Tor for the light festival. Unfortunately it started to rain and kind of halted our festival fun. But we did see the only lightning of the night hit the TV Tower. Kind of weird.

We headed for Kreuzberg the real gritty area of town with many bars. Had an awesome burger that always seems to have a wait of 15 minutes no matter what time of day it is. Had a few drinks back at a friends place before heading out at 1 am.

Burger under the tracks

We wanted to go to this place called Berghaim because it has awesome music. But the line was as long as a line at an amusement park. So we headed down the street to another place. Left around 6 to try Berghaim. But the line was still the same. I think this place closes down for an hour before opening up again. It basically never shuts down.

So three of us left while the other two decided to wait. They came back the next day around 11 am saying they waited two hours and got rejected at the door. Can you imagine that?!

I meet so many people who say they've traveled Europe but have never been to Germany. Amsterdam, Paris, Rome, London. I say you haven't really been then. And when people come to Germany they usually head to Munich. Great town but Berlin is just as deserving a place to go. They both offer experiences you can't get anywhere else as far as I am concerned. I still feel as if I have yet to see all of Berlin. It's like when people come to New York for a few days. You haven't seen everything unless you stay at least a week.

Seriously go here. The place was the focal point of the world for almost 60 years. It doesn't look anything like it did 20 years ago. It's ever changing more so than New York. 

Dresden: So fresh and so clean

Knowing about what happened in Dresden during WWII, this was the city I was anticipating the most. For those who don't know, the city was bombed flat by the Brits and Americans late in the war after it had been pretty much decided who would win. This contributed to why it was so controversial to bomb the city resulting in many innocent casualties.

Hofkirche, only catholic church in Dresden

The city itself has an incredible number of outstanding looking buildings which had to be rebuilt from scratch. The city is still rebuilding itself.

The Frauenkirche stands in the middle of town and was just completed in 2005 to enormous praise from the community. All of the money was donated by regular people around the world for the rebuilding. For years it stood as a ruin reminding people of what once happened. But I don't think the people need any more reminding here.

Frauenkirche

The inside of the church is full of bright colors almost doing the church an injustice to how incredible it is. If you notice on the outside there are some dark stones which are originals.

Frauenkirche

I didn't think I would realize the newness of the place but you really can, which disappointed me a bit. But it still is a beautiful place.

There is not much going on in the old town. They just opened up their big mall in the main square last year. That shows just how much rebuilding they are doing. Just one block from the Frauenkirche stands a large overgrown empty lot. Hard to imagine such ground going unused in the middle of town.

The new city on the other side of the river is really funky. Graffiti and art galleries galore. Bars and restaurants line every street. Very alternative cool place to hang out at night.

As for my happenings I couchsurfed here and had an awesome dinner with 4 lovely ladies the first night. Bouldering the next night.

If I were to study somewhere I think this would be an awesome University town for a few years. I really recommend everyone to not pass this city up. It's just as good as Prague if not better in my opinion. Come summer time you can be hiking or grilling on the shores of the river with a great view.

The Zwinger/City Palace

Prague

I decided I would indeed go to Prague again because well one they have some great beer and two everyone in the Burg was busy since it was a Monday.

10€ for a hostel per night and 19€ for the bus not a bad way to go.

Prague is an amazing town. The secret is out on that one. Everyone I meet seems to have been there already or are going. You will see when you reach the old town how it is difficult to even move. Pretty much every store in the old city is an overpriced restaurant selling crap or a tourist shop selling the same thing as every other shop next to it.

The famous Astrological Clock and Tyn Church

Like I said I can't pass on a good old fashioned hearty Czech meal and some great beer so I ended up going to the same brewpub both nights for dinner. It's called U Medvídku and it brews a beer that is 12.7% supposedly the highest in the world. (Don't know about that) Good but not great. Budvar dark on tap is fine by me.

Dancing House designed by Frank Gehry

Watch out for lunch specials here costing less than $5 for a great meal. The waitress I had however wouldn't let me order off the meal as the people here try and get every cent they can off you. Make sure you always count your change as well.

Like I said the town is extremely picturesque but the tourism industry has really taken the charm away. I think it rivals Paris in terms of romantic destinations.

Unfortunately again everyone in the hostel was American so I avoided them since all they had planned on doing was going on city tours and pub crawls costing €30.  The other group wanted to go to a place selling American style ribs with the beer towers. No thanks. You can get a beer in a pub for €1 and crawl yourself from place to place. I don't see the point.

But wait you get a free T-shirt! I should have reconsidered.

Wenceslas Square/Main Drag

Where it all began

This is where it all started back in 2006 for me being my first time in Europe. This is a really underrated tourist destination as it's got so much to see. Great old town and being the center of the world in the 1930's for terrible reasons.

I came to see old friends and go to the soccer game on Sunday versus Hamburg.

Sunday's in Germany are extremely boring. Everything is closed so having a soccer game on a Sunday is where most people tend to spend their time.

It's funny Germany has kept this up considering the country has an extremely poor church attendance. The country is far removed from religion in every day life but still has laws dealing with it. Another one is not being able to dance on days such as All Saints Day. It happened numerous times to me when I studied here and always on the weekend when I was out.

It may be a little odd to some seeing the old Nazi grounds next to the stadium but I never really think about it much because this is not what the city should be known for. It offers so much more.

Unfortunately they lost 5-0 so we decided to head to the hockey game right next to the stadium.

The Ice Tigers as they're called had the best record in the league winning all seven games they played so far. They were playing a newcomer to the league in the Schlenniger Wild Wings. The players of note were Paul Stastny's brother as well as Marcel Goc's.

The Ice Tigers took a quick 3-0 lead before losing it late in the third. After an illegal hit to the head with three minutes to go the Ice Tigers had a power play the rest of the game. D capitalize they did to cap off an exciting game.

I thought it was just as entertaining as an NHL game as the players have more space to create with less of a focus on defending. There is rarely a blocked shot here as no one really stands in front of the net screening the goalie. The focus is on passing and scoring off the rush with no dump and chase play here. I really hope more Germans support the sport here because they have a good product.

Capping the night off with a Schäufele with an Andechs I was extremely satisfied.  

Must eat here in the Berg

Meine zweite Heimat

Munich is where I consider I really went to school. Yes I was only here a semester but I became more attached to the city than I was at UPark. I consider it the best city in the world. It is consistently ranked in the Top 5 in quality of living.

I was staying with my buddy Manuel who has a sick one room apartment overlooking the city. At night you could see the giant glow of the Wies'n.

I got into the city in the afternoon and was meeting another friend at Oktoberfest at 5:00. So I dropped my bags into the Hauptbahnhof lockers, put on my Lederhosen and headed for the Innenstadt. Specifically Zum Augustiner to have the best beer in the world and get a bite to eat. It's great to be able to wear Lederhosen without people giving you funny looks like at home. It's extremely traditional to see it on Sunday around the city even when Oktoberfest isn't taking place.

After beer and Leberkase I headed for the happiest place on earth. Not Disney World.

For me Hacker Zelt is the prettiest one of them all so we headed there and got right in. Since the table reservations were changing it was a prime time to find space at a table which is normally very hard to come by. But Germans love me so we got one of the best seats in the house on the balcony with a bunch of other dudes who were there together with their company.

One thing I don't like about Germans is it seems I do the work to bring the girls over and they steal them away from me. I don't mind much but it's a little rude not even a danke.

But it was a great first night.

Thursday I was back with Manuel at the Wies'n in Armbrustschützenzelt. I always end up here because it's the easiest place to get a table.

We sat with Manu's friends right next to an extremely intoxicated Italian guy. I just had a feeling something bad was going to happen. So about an hour later some other guy came by and started shoving each other. The Italian guy had a Maßkrug in his hand and I could just tell what was going to happen. Bam! Right in the guys face next to his eye. Shattered glass everywhere. So other people started tackling the one guy and I ran to get the security. I come back and see the other guy dripping blood all over. I've never seen anything that bad.

I continually think what could I have done to prevent this. I kind of feel bad about it but there are just some real assholes in this world I guess.

I ended up later in Ochsenbraterei to meet up with my old roommate there. It took me forever to find her but it was so nice to see her again and have a few Maß together. That really cheered me up to hang with her again.

Manu and I headed for the rides specifically the bumper cars. And the Toboggan which is a main attraction to watch here.

It's really just a slide for kids but drunk people take the challenge because to go up one must jump onto a moving conveyor belt. Of course this results in numerous crashes into the sides, ending up on your back with the dirndl over your head showing the world what you got, or trying to run up like I ended up doing. Somewhere there's a video of that. Just YouTube it to understand what I'm talking about.

The next day we went hiking to Tegernsee. It's known as being a fancy village for Münchner vacations and also the beer. It's probably my favorite beer I've ever had. But first we trekked up some mountain to have a breathtaking view. I think this is why I love this place. There's always a hut somewhere serving food and beer so we stopped for a quick snack.

From the hut

Going down

The top!

We did stop at the Braustüberl on the way back. Absolutely fantastic day. And the nightcap was yet to come.

Leberkase! And Tegernsee!

We headed for Oktoberfest but as it was a Friday the day after Germany's day of independence many people had off work. Thus all tents were full. So we drank a few beers outside and I decided to head back to the apartment to meet up with the guys later to go out.

We ended up at Kong where they play my favorite style of music minimal. It's really fantastic. Only in Germany. We were having a great time until my buddy ended up getting tossed out of the club for being overly drunk and hitting on too many girls. So I brought him home about 3 am.

This city just keeps proving to me it's the coolest there is. Summer to Winter there's always a festival or an opportunity to head to the alps just an hour away. Try sledding here if you never have. That's an experience.

Little things like the guy in the elevator asking me if I was going to watch the champions league Bayern match because I was struggling to carry 5 beers back with me because they don't give you bags here. Just that made me a little happier inside. I love this place and always look forward to the next time.

Asamkirche. A place I never was before. Don't know how I missed this.

Wasen

I couldn't wait to get back to Germany a place I feel at home in. Knowing a language really enables you to do a lot more of everything.

I was headed to Karlsruhe to stay with a really good friend of my family that I see often and head to Wasen together. Wasen is the second biggest festival in Germany after the Wies'n. People wearing Lederhosen and drinking beer. It's in Stuttgart which is just an hour by train from Karlsruhe.

That was not until tomorrow. So I met my friend at the train station where he was all ready to head off to get a beer at his favorite place Vogelbräu. This is a micro brewery in Karlsruhe, which for Germany is a relatively new concept. It has yet to take off like it has in the States. Maybe because the market is already saturated with good beers. They had three on tap including a pils, festbier, and weizendoppelbock. Had a schnitzel with them while watching soccer. I knew why I was ready to come back.

After being at a friends apartment where I dropped my luggage off we headed to the Marktplatz to a club. The problem living here in Karlsruhe is the percentage of guys to girls is 70/30. So not a great time there.

The next day four of us headed to Wasen. Straight into the first tent where a few mass went down. Why we left I don't know but we did around 6 and went to the bumper cars. This is a must after drinking a few. So we had to wait an hour before getting back into another tent. Met some nice people drinks were had it was great.

Yeah I'm brief with this but I don't need my life story here. Just the interesting parts.

The next day I got the Karlsruhe tour. We headed first to a botanical garden which was actually awesome. They have sorted their plants by geographical region. The first thing we ran into was this plant that rejects water so to say. You submerge the thing and bring it back up and its totally dry. There was all types of plants like grapes, herbs, palms, and even a marijuana plant.

We headed toward the main site, the castle, next. There was a Turkish festival going on and the museum in the castle was free along with the tower. So we did both. And a great view of the city from above and you see everything radiates out from the castle. 

I also went to Freiburg since it was a short way away because my brother did his school exchange there and hearing about the city I've always wanted to go there.  It's known for having the small waterways through the city which adds a nice charm to it. 

Go up the hill and climb the tower

If you fall in the Bächle you will marry a Freiburger. I didn't :(

Met a friend of mine in another brewpub called Feierling. They however only brew one beer.

The train took me past Kippenheim, the small village most of my family originally came from. Unfortunately I didn't stop but it was nice to see how the city was situated on the outskirts of the Black Forest. 

Paris

Paris is really a fantastic city as this was my second time here. I was staying with my same cs host as last time as we still often have contact with each other.  But I actually have a love hate relationship with the city. Yeah it's beautiful, but the French culture is extremely confusing to me.

The Lourve. A museum. Don't do those. Mona who?

Now I know I stand out here because I'm wearing sneakers when I arrive in places. That's very American. Luckily I bought some other shoes in Spain to blend in a bit more. The French think they are a stylish sort of people but really they aren't to a certain degree. Every person wears the same variation of everything. I dressed up as a French person for Halloween a few years ago and it was actually a good representation. People really like their striped shirts here. But no one is forward thinking and wears something totally different from the rest.

I actually have been trying to learn the language for a year now so I can become an "insider" so to say. Their culture is fascinating to me. Every little detail must be perfect. Whether it's their clothes, food, or their plans for the evening, every little detail must be taken care of. Take a look in the metro for example and you will not see one person unoccupied. Over 50% of the people are reading something here. A lot of them books. For me nothing is perfect. Being sophisticated is not something I need to be.

Now for what I actually did in the city. Since I saw most everything already I just walked around like usual. Took some lunch to the Eiffel Tower and strolled over to Notre Dame where I realized they were about to have a mass. So I went to the service for an hour which really boosted everything for me. An incredible experience to take in in probably the most well known church in the world. The lady's singing voice was incredible. I really think they are more talented than most pop singers. Kind of funny to think about.

Make sure the lights are on. Last time I went in was pitch black.

It really is a remarkable place. The design is amazing both in and out. It's one place I don't mind the crowds. But they did stick this stupid stage bleachers in front of it for a reason I'm not sure of. I believe it's only temporary.

I met Jean for lunch the next day by the Opera as he took an hour break away from work to meet me. Went to an awesome bistro for a sweet lunch deal ordering some filet and nice mousse to finish. After he suggested I go to this perfume museum which I did. And it was free so I liked that. I had my own little guided tour by Klaudia a really attractive girl. Too bad I was leaving in a few hours. But really interesting. Again, a very French thing to do as they always have to look good and smell good too.

Took the TGV, one of the fastest trains on the planet, to Karlsruhe. We hit 290 kmh or 180 mph.