Journal from my trip to Europe (May 2011)

May 9 – Boston, MA
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? Fuddrucker’s

An interesting start to the adventure… I think Fuddrucker’s is my new favorite restaurant! Not only is the name sweet, but the cashier randomly decided to give me a 10% discount for no reason. Her reasoning was “Sometimes… employee discount is for passengers, too.” Awesome!


Day 1 – London
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? Hobgoblin ale was pretty good, and the Brits sure know how to make a damn good breakfast!

First day went well! I didn’t starve and I’m not sleeping in a park. I saw the London Eye and Big Ben, but today was mostly just walking and exploring. London is fucking huge and it hurts my knee. L It took about ninety minutes to get from the airport to a cheap hostel that I’d found online once I got here.

On my way back from the London Eye, I got stuck for a small moment at the subway. I was accidentally putting my ticket for the London Eye through the machine instead of the subway card! An attendant came over and said, “I’m glad to see that you had a nice time on the London Eye, but that won’t help you here.” I almost fell asleep on the subway to and from today, so I’m glad that didn’t happen!



Day 2 – London
Shame on me, another wasted day… Well, maybe not a wasted day, but hopefully the last non-super-productive day. I was very tired and couldn’t get out of bed until 9am, and even then I was dying to sleep longer. I was showered and packed by 10am, and went next door for a local breakfast of English sausage (so fucking good), eggs, beans, ham and tea. The tea even had milk in it… I was skeptical, but it was really good!

From there I went to the free Science Museum. I spent a couple of hours there and then attempted to reach the Kew Gardens. I arrived about 4pm, which was a bit late so I decided to save it for tomorrow. Instead I explored a nearby park and got some pizza. It wasn’t very exciting, but I learned a valuable lesson: I need to start decide what I’m doing before I go out for the day. Exploring is great, but not when it impairs your ability to see the things you want to see.

Tomorrow will hopefully be productive as it’s my last full day in London and I still want to see the Tower of London, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Kew Gardens, and Camden Town at night. Although I may consider going there tonight depending on how quickly I can locate my next hostel…


Day 2 (Part 2) – London
It took me a while to find a hostel tonight and my knee kind of hurts from the walking so I didn’t end up getting to Camden Town. Instead I decided to play some poker with the guys at the hostel. There were five of us and we went in for just two pounds apiece. I got lucky a few times and had a pretty large stack of chips. It quickly became a contest between me and an Italian guy for highest chip count. As fun as it was to play, it wasn’t without a stinging, sour moment.

For those of you that know poker: I was dealt a middle pair raised to four times the big blind. The Italian called and everyone else folded. He had built a reputation at the table for being pretty loose so I was feeling confident when I flopped trips. Where I was out of position and there was a straight draw on the table, I felt going all-in was the best choice. He called with top pair and an ace kicker so I was way ahead. We dealt out to the river and after all cards were up, I was the victor.

He would’ve had virtually no chips left over, but now that all of the cards had been dealt out, he claimed that there was a misdeal on the flop. He said that the guy dealing didn’t burn a card before the turn and the river. The dealer went ahead and corrected the problem by burning the correct cards and showed us a revised turn and river – the Italian guy still did not make anything to beat my trips. However he insisted that the hand be deemed invalid and we redeal from the beginning.

Naturally he and I argued for a bit, but since we ultimately could not come to an agreement, there was no choice but to redeal. In retrospect I should’ve at least insisted that he pay a big blind penalty to me for waiting until all of the cards were down to claim there was a problem, but I was too mad to even think of it. My intuition tells me that he wouldn’t have said anything if his hand had come out on top.

On one hand, I am in a strange country with no knowledge of the culture, no legitimate form of self-defense, or even the ability to run because of my busted knee. Conversely, if I don’t stick up for myself out here, who will? Sure it was only 12 pounds, but who knows where else my lack of spine will screw me. I ended up losing to him later because I was tilted so hard and lost my desire to try. Tough lesson learned… I hope.



Day 3 – London
Holy shit I have never heard a person snore (more like scream) so loudly in my entire life! One of the guys in my room last night was obnoxious! I’m SO glad I brought ear plugs because I could not have slept without them. But somehow I managed to wake up on time to get breakfast. I got lost getting onto the train and had to wait half an hour… If I’m lost with directions in English, I am seriously worried about Paris. It’s starting to hit me that I know zero French.

Today I spent a lot of time in the Tower of London. It was awesome! From there I saw St. Paul’s Church from the outside, but it was expensive as fuck to go inside. I ended up going to Camden instead… Sadly I had just eaten and couldn’t afford to buy/carry souvenirs. I walked at least half a mile in both directions from the subway so I got a pretty good look at things… I even saw a licensed sex shop! In retrospect I think I should’ve gone in because I’ve never seen one before!

I had tried some chocolate from a super market, but it didn’t taste as different from American chocolate as my boss (who grew up in England) claimed. I also decided to skip the Kew Gardens because although I’m sure it would’ve been nice, it was rather expensive and I’m hoping to get some landscape photos later that will make up for it!


Day 4 – Paris
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? French Baguettes… Good, but still just bread.

I survived! Barely, but I did indeed survive my first time in a country where I literally had no idea how to read or speak the language. I was expecting it to be overwhelming, and the situation surely delivered. I have definitely realized that I’ve been screwing myself by not pre-booking hostels… I figured that finding a place on the fly would add to the adventure, but it really doesn’t. I walked around for three hours today trying to find a room for less than $100USD and essentially wasted a good day (well… about as much as you can waste a day exploring a beautiful European city!)

Frustrated, I went to a park to try to figure out how to leave Paris for Amsterdam. I still wanted to see the Eiffel Tower and Versailles, so I was torn about leaving. I ended up going back to the rail station to look for info on skipping Paris altogether. Upon not easily finding information on how to do so, I had a change of heart. I decided to buy an unlimited metro pass, see the tower, and then use the pass to explore the outskirts of the city in hopes of finding cheaper accommodation.

And god damn I am glad I did! At first the subway was tough to figure out, but when I realized that it’s just the same as Boston and London (and probably everywhere else), I was off. I even got to ask a cute girl in the subway if she spoke English in French… she did! With her guidance, I was able to find my way to the tower and garden, and they were beautiful. I think the perfect weather aided my courage because I was finally able to muster the words “Excusez-moi, parlez-vous anglais?” to some of the people in the park. From there I got directions to a youth hostel in a “nice area” that was on the edge of the city.

I’m writing this from atop the Palais de Challot… and it is a fucking party up here! The view is astounding, and it’s made me so glad that I didn’t leave Paris right away. Things seemed to have turned around… I just hope that the hostel I’m headed to tonight has a room. I’m beginning to wonder if this trip has had this “wasteful” start so that I could learn a few things about myself and the world I live in. All-in-all, I didn’t miss anything huge in London, and all I have left planned for Paris is Versailles and the Louvre. I’ll have plenty of time to see what else I can find!

Also this morning (in London) I took a bath in literally an inch of water because the other bathrooms were full – even at 7am! Even though the water was warm, it was an experience I would be content with never repeating. I am looking forward to the familiar face (and private bathroom) that awaits me in Brussels!



Day 5 – Paris
So I tried a French baguette… and I guess I’m still failing to understand what all the rage is about. I mean sure it was great. Probably the best I’ve ever had, in fact. But it was still just bread. Maybe I’m just not sophisticated to understand.

Anyway, last night turned out to be an insane one. The hostel I was foolishly counting on was booked full, and I was forced to wander around the streets of Paris at midnight. I asked a few people for help as I grew desperate, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to get any helpful information. Exhausted and increasingly grumpy, I had finally reached the point where I was going to settle for any place under $100USD. I let myself agree that if I could not find a suitable place within the hour, I’d go sleep in the park.

After nearly an hour, I had found the hotel that I decided would be the last one I checked before heading to the park. When going inside I asked about the price, and was pleasantly surprised to find that they only wanted about $40USD! I definitely could’ve negotiated it lower I think, but I was so tired that I didn’t care. Needless to say it felt like a break at the time… but in retrospect I sure got what I paid for (or didn’t pay for).

The room was absolutely tiny, and the shared bathroom down the hall had literally a single toilet. No shower, no sink, and not even enough space to close the door without already sitting down. Even the toilet paper could’ve been mistaken for napkins! But it was cozy, the bed was comfy, and having a private room allowed me to engage in my first attempt at sink laundry. I saw using the sink in my room for laundry as a way for me to “get even with Paris” for being such a bitchy city! [Post-mortem: Of course Paris is beautiful and everyone was very nice, I was just grumpy and upset at my unfortunate streak of bad luck… The one that I had basically begged for by not booking a place in advance. No hard feelings, Paris!]


The cold night meant that I went to bed knowing that sink laundry was either going to be a miracle or a total failure. I was unspeakably relieved to wake up the next morning and find everything just about totally dry. A few things were a bit damp, so I put them between the sheets and stomped on the bed. That actually worked great, and didn’t get the bed more than a little bit damp!

This morning I left early to go see Versailles. Unfortunately I don’t know shit about the history and was too cheap to buy a guide, but it was truly beautiful. The architecture alone is absolutely astounding. The place was insanely crowded though, and during my tour I felt like a fish battling against a flowing river of tourists. Last night had totally convinced me to get out of Paris and head to Amsterdam, so after visiting the palace for most of the day, I went to the train station to try my hand at getting a ticket.

Turns out the trains were booked solid for the rest of the day. And for the next day too. I was pretty disappointed, but I had not entirely lost hope… I knew there was another station somewhere else in the city, I just had to find it and figure out how to get there. When I finally did, they were able to get me a seat to Brussels. That’s where I’m headed now, and once again I’m hoping that I can find a connection to Amsterdam. Let’s hope it works out…


While buying my ticket to Belgium, the ticket attendant accidentally wrote the activation date of my Eurail pass as tomorrow. When the conductor came by to check my pass on my way into Belgium, he told me that I was all set and began to hand back the pass… but before I could grab it, he took another look. Because the start date of the pass was for tomorrow, he told me that I was unable to use the pass and told me that I had to pay the difference of 75 Euros! He took the pass and refused to give it back until I had paid the difference.

I can’t imagine how red my face must’ve gotten when he told me that I couldn’t use the pass. I tried to argue with him, but it was not terribly productive as his English wasn’t great and I literally speak zero French. Certainly I should have checked what the attendant had written before getting on the train, but there was literally a stamp with today’s date on it! The conductor absolutely insisted that the written start date was the only thing that mattered and would not relent. I absolutely could not go on without my Eurail pass so I had to pay him, but boy am I going to bust his balls when this train stops. I am fucking pissed.



Wow!!! I tried to find that fuck of a conductor after we stopped, but of course he was nowhere to be found. I should’ve figured that would happen. I literally walked up and down the entire train, but there wasn’t a single person left. I wrote down as much information about the train as I could, so I will e-mail the train company when I get home.

Defeated, I began trying to decipher the text at the train terminal… I somehow managed to find a connection to Amsterdam. To make sure I was getting on the right train, I asked the Belgian conductors if I was headed the right way, and they were overjoyed to declare their fluency in English! I got the information that I needed, and then asked them about my Eurail start date issue. Without a single question, the conductor corrected my pass, signed it to verify that it was changed by an authorized official, and even jokingly taught me some Dutch! Suddenly I feel so much better.

Paris might’ve been the most expensive detour imaginable, but I got to see some great sights and I think I’m finally on the right track. Dear Brussels/Amsterdam, PLEASE be good to me! I just hope I can find a cheap place to stay.



Day 7 – Amsterdam
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? Kapsalon and locally-brewed Amstel!

I arrived by train in Amsterdam around 1am, but I got off at the wrong stop! I had to ask some locals how to get to the inner city. Luckily the people I asked were super nice and friendly and had PERFECT English and helped me find a bus into the city! After a bus ride full of funny, crazy drunk people I arrived into the inner city around 1:30! But holy… fucking… shit… I was NOT prepared for Amsterdam on a Saturday night!

The city was absolutely out of control. I could smell marijuana the instant that I stepped off the bus, and the streets were packed with people dancing, singing, and laughing. It took me about ninety minutes to finally find a hostel that I could talk down to twenty five Euro. Before I got here I had always thought that everyone exaggerated about what really goes on in this city… but no, they certainly did not. There is a smoke shop or sex shop visible from just about any point in the city.

As I was walking around, I ended up accidentally stumbling upon a large crowd of people that seemed to be watching something. Curious as to what was going on, I walked closer only to find that there was a girl dancing naked on the other side of a window. I looked around, and realized that I was surrounded by sex shops and erotic megastores. I was in the heart of the red light district, walking around with my backpack in the middle of the night. So far that was the only time I’ve genuinely been worried about my safety.

Anyway, that night I was awakened around 5am by someone claiming that I was sleeping in his bed. I told him that I’d paid for the bed and the guy at the desk literally showed me which bed was mine. The hostel literally had zero other open beds, so the guy ended up convincing a girl in the room to let him spoon with her in the top bunk. He and his friend were from Florida and were kind of being assholes about it. They didn’t give me any legitimate trouble, but were “jokingly threatening” me.


I was awoken again around 7am by the receptionist, and he was pissed. He was demanding I get out of the bed, and insisted I tell him who let me into the hostel. Clearly he did not recall me checking in that night, paying him, or him pointing out the exact bed that I was to sleep in. I think he realized that he was mistaken when I showed him my receipt and key card, but he was too proud to admit he’d screwed up and overbooked the bed. Somehow a bed in one of the other rooms was open [Post-mortem: No idea HOW a bed was freed up because that place was packed full just a few hours before] so he changed the sheets and made me sleep there. It was a highly discussed topic the next morning.

From there, I went found “The Flying Pig Hostel”. I’d read about it online and apparently it s a must-stay hostel when in Amsterdam. They had a reduced price for Sunday so I got a bit cheaper than I was expecting… but wow was it was a nice hostel! There I played pool with some other hostelers, got drunk at the bar and stoned in the smoke room. I met a guy from Norway and we walked around the city for about ninety minutes just to see the sights.

The rest of the night was spend just talking with others while trying not to fall asleep. The next morning (this morning), I had cocoa krispies, toast with chocolate frosting, and some weird fucking tea for breakfast. It was all so good! Today I found myself a nice cheap hostel for eleven Euro, so even though there’s no free breakfast it’s still nice. I walked around the park for a good while, and now I’m going to go book tickets for my train to Brussels and maybe I’ll check out the vodka museum after.

Oh and yesterday the Netherlands were playing soccer in some sort of championship and people were all wearing uniforms and screaming and cheering and waving flags all day long. It was crazy! None of the bars had enough space inside to fit everyone so lots of people were crammed inside and spilling out onto the streets. The city absolutely exploded when they won, and they even had police patrolling around to prevent riots! What a blast! Amsterdam is awesome!!!



Day 8 – Amsterdam
My final hostel was basically a hotel room with four beds and a sink. The bar was totally empty and the bathroom was so small that even I had to literally SQUEEZE to get the door to close. But the lack of common room was the real problem because my knee is finally too painful to walk. I couldn’t go out last night because it was too hard to get around, so I ended up going to bed and thus waking up early.

I used my extra time this morning to check out the vodka museum; a tour led by a cute Russian girl that included three “free” shots! I learned that the Russian army used to mandate that its soldiers drink at least one shot of VERY strong vodka per day because it had been scientifically proven that a single shot provided enough calories to give you energy for the day. I tried some vodka that was very smooth and literally had no smell! I also learned that it is not uncommon for Russians to drink PURE vodka by itself… as much as fifteen liters per day! I swear it’s true!
Now I’m headed to Brussels to meet up with Meaghan! WOO!!!



Day 10 – Brussels
Belgium was fun! When I arrived, Meaghan showed me around a bit until we settled into a bar to try a sampling of the renowned “cookie beer”. Apparently it had gone bad or something because when the guy cracked open the beers they sort of exploded and fizzled away. And since they didn’t have any more, we had to leave empty-handed. We ended up heading back to her place and just hanging out.

The next morning, I went to see the Basilica and it was pretty neat! After getting lost and seeing what there was to see, I wandered around a bit and ended up finding a museum of military history. When I first entered, I spoke to the person at the desk to confirm that there was no admission charge. He said that I was correct and allowed me entrance into the museum.

After a few minutes, I was yelled at from across the museum by someone in French. I was in search of the bathroom, so for some completely nonsensical reason I assumed that the guy was telling me that I was going the wrong way through the exhibits. I thanked him and started going down another hallway. He yelled at me once again, this time in English: “SIR! NO BAGS ALLOWED!” Embarrassed for not being smart enough to explain that I didn’t understand what he said the first time, I started walking toward the exit of the museum.

The guy who had yelled at me followed closely behind me, which I had assumed was just to ensure that I was actually leaving. Instead, he offered to put my bag into their storage lockers. He politely welcomed me back into the museum and I enjoyed seeing the rest of the exhibits. [Post-mortem: I still am so embarrassed for letting that happen. I’m a bit surprised the first person at the desk didn’t stop me, but I was just an idiot to not tell the guy walking around that I did not understand what he said to me at first. And while he was angry that I ignored him the first time he warned me, I’m astounded that he was so polite after I surrendered my bag. I can’t imagine that ever scenario ever going well for a foreigner here in America.]

At another exhibit, further in the museum, I saw a sign with a hand crossed out. I thought that it meant “don’t touch”, so while I thought it seemed a bit silly of a way to remind people, I walked by it. Things seemed a bit suspect at first, but my suspicions were confirmed when I got in trouble for being in a restricted area! Luckily this time I used my French to explain that I didn’t understand what he was saying, and the guy was nice about explaining that I was somewhere I wasn’t supposed to be.


As I was walking around nearby, some kids started going into the roped-off areas in the exhibits. They were touching the displays, and ended up setting of an alarm right next to me! The guy who had just told me I was in a restricted area came rushing upstairs and started yelling at me in French! I must have looked really flustered because he said something along the lines of “Oh yeah, English…” The comfort of a language that I understood seemed to enable me to muster the words “It wasn’t me! It was them!” The trouble makers continued to follow me around the museum, but I ended up getting through the rest of it without any trouble.

I wandered around various parks until Meaghan got out of work. When she did we bought some groceries and she showed me some strange ducks in a pond. I used her computer to legitimately map out the rest of the trains and hostels for the remainder of my trip. There are still so many places left in my trip that I want to see, I want to minimize the time spent wandering! I woke up at like 5am this morning and I’m now on a train to Munich!



Day 12 – Munich
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? The beer in the beer gardens!

I learned a valuable lesson today… hangovers aren’t any easier in Europe. But I also learned that Germany is absolutely, unquestionably awesome. I found my hostel in Munich pretty easily, and then checked out my first beer garden! Somehow there I lost the only map of the city I had, but managed to follow signs and guess my way to Marienplatz, the city’s downtown. It was there that I met up with Eric (aka zatic) from teamliquid. We got dinner at a Japanese restaurant where I successfully navigated chop sticks for my first time.

After dinner he took me to the English Garden where we got beer at the Chinese tower. Apparently that’s how they do it in Munich; seven Euro for a mug the size of your head full of beer. You just sit around in nice parks and drink beer and have a good time! After chatting a bit, he was nice enough to offer to take me to Heidelberg for the weekend. I decided to cancel my reservation at the hostel and join him.

We drove on the autobahn at night while it was raining and lightning. Maybe I’m simple, but I thought it was a really neat experience! When the weather cleared up, Eric offered to let me drive. I was reluctant at first, but eventually came around. His car is really fucking nice, and I hit somewhere around 230KM/H.

Heidelberg is an absolutely beautiful little city wedged in the valley between two mountains and split gently in half by a large river. Eric recommended that I check out a really nice hike called the “Philosopher’s Way”. It was a great hike and the views were breathtaking. But I’m a bit disappointed in myself… I was foolish enough to leave his apartment in the morning without my spare camera battery, and it died before I even reached the base of the hike. Fuck! The view of the quaint little houses along the river will have to be just something I remember. I also saw the Heidelberger Schloss castle, which for the same reason I have no pictures of… Ugh I am so mad at myself!

That night we got dinner at a nearby German restaurant where I learned the fine art of European dining, haha! I tried schnitzel with lemon and it was damn good! It was a bit pricey, but good. Afterwards we met up with some of his friends to go to a university party where I watched a drunken idiot rip an innocent sign in half! We also checked out a few of the local bars, where I got to try absinthe for the first time. Mixed with water, it really wasn’t all that it’s cracked up to be – just really strong alcohol.


We were all out until about 3am when things started to close. The other two went home while Eric and I went to a place aptly named “The Cave”, as it literally was an underground cave. We talked to a couple of girls, but they didn’t stick around so we ended up heading back home. It was now around 430am and we decided to get one last drink before the night was up. The owner was drunk and crazy, buying shots for people left and right. Par for the course, I’m told.

I played him in blackjack and beat him two out of three times (using the blackjack equivalent of cheese), so I got three shots for three euro. That guy was the man. Daylight made it home before we did, as I don’t think I went to sleep before 6am. And while did I have a nasty hangover this morning, I had a lot of fun. I’m now on my way into Switzerland, but it was not without a hiccup.

[Post-mortem, before proceeding: Thanks for showing me a good time, Eric! I had a blast in Germany! I hope to visit again someday, so perhaps we’ll get the chance to get a few TL members together next time. As I said before, if you ever visit the US and need a place to stay near Boston or someone to just show you around, let me know and I’d be happy to return the favor!]

A section on the track was broken so the train couldn’t go through it… I think they must have told people what was going on over the intercom because EVERYONE got off at the stop where the train stopped. This was a scheduled stop, but not the end of the line so I decided to stay on the train and see where I ended up. I was suspicious, but new people were getting onboard so I knew I had to at least be going somewhere. The sign still read the destination that I wanted to get to, so instead of asking for directions I sat quietly for about ten minutes.

I knew I’d made a mistake when the train started to move… I was headed back in the direction that I came from! The train brought me back to Freiberg (where I’d made a connection from Heidelberg in order to get into Switzerland), so I got off and tried to find my bearings! A girl randomly came up to me who looked like she was going to try to solicit a donation from me until she found out I was American. She told me about the situation and informed me that they had busses waiting at the stop where the train turns around that I should take to the next train stop, where I then get back on and continue my journey. Thank goodness for European hospitality!



Day 13 – Lucerne
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? The cat with Big Mac sauce…

I have arrived in Switzerland… and Lucerne is absolutely beautiful! I got in just before 10pm so I didn’t get to do too much wandering around. And unfortunately everything is closed around here on Sunday, so I’m stuck in the hostel waiting for the rain to clear. Last night I went to pay for the hostel with my debit card, but the place didn’t accept them! The guy is instead letting me go to a “cash machine” (as they call them here in Europe) at my convenience and paying when I leave. Go Swiss!

This hostel, while a bit pricey, is really nice and cheap compared to the other places in the area. Plus my one roommate in the four-bed room was this really interesting Asian girl named Mickey! We talked about various things from about 12am to 230am – she seems really nice! And cute too!

This morning I walked around, found the lion monument that is so popular around here, and also found the glacier museum / hall of mirrors. Both very interesting! For lunch I ate what I’m pretty sure was a cat and french fries covered in big Mac sauce from one of the few food places open around here. It was good though!



Day 14 – Lucerne
I made a friend! Mickey is VERY cool! J After having my attempt to go hiking thwarted by rain yesterday, I went out after the storm cleared to try a second time… This time I got to where I thought I was pretty close, but then suddenly it started hailing and pouring like I’ve never seen it! I waited a bit to see if it would go away, but when it did not subside I was forced to give up and go back to the hostel once again.

I brought a rain coat out with me so I stayed mostly dry except for my shoes and socks. They were absolutely soaking. I used my special hiking towel to fill the shoes and then stomped on them to soak up most of the water. After doing that a few times, the shoes actually dried in a few hours! But now my towel smells… I ended up going out yet a third time, and got some amazing photos of the sunset. When it started to get dark, I headed back to the hostel and Mickey was there!

We decided to go out for a walk. We stopped on a covered bridge where the city lights twinkled elegantly against the skyline. The occasional flash of lightning would light the sky enough to see the outline of the mountains, painting a scene so marvelous that my lack of artistic eloquence could never do justice. We were out for three hours or so, during which she insisted that I try Burger King! “You’re an American, you have to try it here so you can compare!” I did, and the only notable difference was the price: about $5USD for a single hamburger! Yikes!

When we got back to the hostel, we talked some more and I learned a whole bunch of stuff about Chinese education and culture. I also learned that she thinks eating cats and dogs is terrible, so that stereotype is broken for me! Since we were parting ways the next day, we exchanged e-mails and I hope we keep in touch. She was a lot of fun!

My plan this morning was to leave very early and hike Mt. Pilatus! I wasn’t exactly sure how to get there, so in an attempt to save time I went to the tourist information desk first thing in the morning. Someone in the city (I don’t remember who) had told me that I could leave from Lucerne, hike Pilatus, and be back all in half a day. Sadly they were mistaken; it would definitely be a full day trip, and that’s assuming I didn’t stop to take a million photos.

So instead I’m on my way to Milano, but the train is delayed twenty minutes… I think that means I will miss my reservation for Milano to Genova. I don’t know what I’ll do if the next train is booked, but I am not worried. It’s been an adventure this far and at this point I feel like I could handle anything.

Italy is my last country, so my trip is very much nearing its end… I have strange feelings and mixed emotions. It is amazing over here and I never want to leave! But it certainly is a bit lonely, and I am looking forward to the comfort of my own bed and cleanliness. I can’t really describe it right now. I don’t know. Also there were two groups of tourists in Lucerne looking for help so I showed them the maps and helped them figure out how to get around. Originally I was hoping it would set me up for good karma, but really I think it’s only fair because everyone has been so nice and so helpful to me over here.



Day 14 Pt 2. – Genova
No trouble with the late train. The folks in Milano didn’t ask any questions after they saw that I was coming from the late train, and moved my reservation to the next one no problem. Really they just stamped my ticket to say I was OK on the next one, so the whole time I was worried that I would be in someone’s seat or that the conductors would give me trouble and I wouldn’t be able to communicate!

It was really only worrisome because I can’t seem to remember my frickin Italian. I’ve got the key phrases from my book memorized well enough that I can recite them on my own, but under pressure I have been totally blanking. Which happens to be terribly inconvenient because the bus in Genova makes absolutely no fucking sense whatsoever. And I had no idea that it’s REALLY hot in Italy. Ultimately I’m glad I got here early because it took me FOREVER to find the hostel that I’d booked… It was pretty much hidden at the top of the mountain that is this city.

Comically enough, once I got to the hostel they also did not accept debit cards so I had to go all the way back down the giant “mountain” to find an ATM. But tomorrow is Cinque Terre (pronounced “chinq-way ter-ray”). Some of the girls I met in the hostel earlier told me that it’s a rather rigorous hike so hopefully carrying my pack in this heat won’t be the death of me. And after leaving my soap at zatic’s place, I’ve been buying small little bits that I wouldn’t have to carry around in my bag… and I forgot to buy some when I went to go to the ATM! Today’s been hot so I think I will at least rinse off in the shower. Holy shit I am going to smell GREAT tomorrow.



Day 15 – Cinque Terre
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? Italian spaghetti! Turns out it’s pretty much the same as American spaghetti, just better (as is standard for Italy). Beer: Birra Moretti

…And smell great I do. I woke up early this morning, and once again that turned out to be lucky because I did not realize that it was a two hour bus ride from Genova to the Cinque Terre. For breakfast this morning I had a wonderfully fresh and tasty croissant with some cracker-like biscuits. Both with nutella, hot cocoa, and a juice box! On the trail this morning, it was hot as fuck and I was soaking with sweat after my first hour.

By the time I arrived in the first CT village, I was hungry, thirsty, and willing to splurge. I sat outside at a fancy Italian restaurant and treated myself so some authentic spaghetti, literally nine pieces of bread, an entire wine-bottle of water, and a local beer. All of the above were unreasonably expensive, but were also very good.

The next section of the trail was closed, and the people suggested that I take the train. But I had come here to hike, and found out that there was an alternative route along the “high road”. It was much longer, and much tougher than the original trail, but it would allow me to get to the next area without taking a train. Which reminds me…


I got another train fine today because I didn’t get my reservation stamped in an obscure ticket machine before getting on the train. I think they make things difficult on purpose so as to get easy fines from tourists! The guy tried to charge me fifty Euros (FUCK!!!), but I lied and said I didn’t have the money. He then quickly settled for five Euros. And I’m finally getting better at recalling my Italian under pressure.

Anyway, I had to climb about five million stairs just to get to the start of the difficult alternative route. Everyone I saw on my way up the stairs was headed the other direction and it made me happy to know that I was likely going to be hiking the section nearly alone!

Along the way I did meet a few hardcore hikers, one of whom stopped to chat with me. His name was John and he was from Bavaria in Germany. He was just this crazy old guy who wanted to visit San Francisco someday and proclaimed that “America produces hardened men… you will be fine on this trail!” He had lost his girlfriend on the trail, so I told him that if I passed anyone matching his quick description I’d try to direct them to the town. Unfortunately I never did, so I hope John found his girlfriend without too much trouble!

The hike was tough, but not the hardest I’ve done. The hard part was really just carrying the pack in the heat. I’m truly grateful that I spent the money on a good pack before leaving because it didn’t hurt my back or shoulders; it was just hot and heavy! But WOW were the views worth every bit! I love hiking anyway, but this hike had some of the best, if not the best views I’ve ever seen on a hike. I feel so bad for all of the people who took the train because they missed out on something truly amazing. As has become standard for this adventure, none of the pictures will do this place justice.


At one point on the high road I began to get genuinely worried that I was headed the wrong way because I was following markers through the middle of a small village, and as the markers began to get more and more spread out it became difficult to know whether or not I was on track. Ultimately the markers led me out to a highway where I walked for a few solid minutes. There was eventually a small break in the highway barrier with a small marker indicating to go that way, but the path did not seem to match my map so I hesitated.

While standing there, a couple drove up and pulled over to observe the beautiful view from the highway. I took the opportunity to ask them if they spoke any English, and they did! They were able to assure me that I was indeed supposed to head down this sketchy trail off the highway and head toward the ocean. From there the hike was downhill until the end of the trail. At the final stop of the trail, they have a small bus that runs to nearby areas that is primarily intended to help locals get up and down the mountain that is the southernmost village in the Cinque Terre.

The driver was super nice, and though he didn’t speak much English, drove me as closely as he was allowed to toward my hostel. He then gave me walking directions for the two miles down a highway through a huge tunnel that I had left until I reached the town where I would be spending the night. It felt like some sort of adventure out of a movie! But I finally made it, and I’ll be in Rome by tomorrow afternoon. There’s not much left now, but I’m still excited!


Day 18 – Rome
What notable local food / beer did I try in this city? Ice cream, Potato Pizza

I think the fact that I’ve taken around eight-hundred photos of Rome says it all. After a second successful attempt at sink laundry with just socks and underwear, I was ready this morning to head to my final destination! On the train, the woman sitting across from me (who reminded me of an Italian Mrs. Resende [my sister-in-law’s mother]) offered me some of her biscuits! Biscuits are all the rage around here, and they’re pretty much like a cross between cookies and crackers. She didn’t speak much English, but enough to ask out of the blue, “Would you like a biscuit?”

To give you an idea of how hot it gets out here, we passed a pretty large spontaneous field fire on our travels today. You won’t see those near Boston!


The metro was easy to figure out as there are only two lines, and my hostel directions were really good. I dropped my things off, ate a ham and cheese Panini while I waited for a small rain storm to pass, and then went out to explore the city. I saw the Colosseum and the Palatine / Roman Forum area. That night I met a girl from Tennessee who was pretty cool. We talked while I tried a pizza with potatoes instead of sauce. It was great!

The next day I saw a whole bunch of stuff: the Vatican, the outside of a castle that I didn’t know existed, a random but totally awesome park overlooking busy city streets, the Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain. Rome has SO MUCH to see and do… gah! I tried ice cream here and HOLY SHIT!!! I mean it’s basically the same as back home, but they have flavors that are way better than home and are all really high fucking quality! I love love love ice cream so I’m glad that the ice cream lived up to my high expectations.


This trip has been great. And luckily my subway train last night died so I had to take a bus, and since I didn’t know when to get off, I ended up seeing an easy route to my train to the airport. And when I checked out today, the random Indian guy at the desk who I exchanged about ten words with gave me a man-hug high-five! It will be so sad to go back to the States where the status quo is to pretend like those around you don’t exist.

I am not looking forward to the nine hour flight home, but one of my roommates gave me a Hemingway novel to read, so hopefully I won’t die of boredom.