We stepped off the plane in Toronto and were greeted by my aunt Cathy and shortly after we met up with my uncle Paul who was also flying into Toronto at the same time. Once everyone was there we made our way into the car and back to their house. We spent the next 3 nights relaxing in Toronto and other than enjoying some delicious meals with uncle Al and great aunt Mary we didn't get up to very much. We did spend one afternoon hanging out with Tom and Alex two of our friends from university, but the rest of the time in Toronto was spent adjusting to a new time zone and just relaxing now that our amazing trip had come to an end.
From Toronto we made our way down to London, Ontario where we spent a couple of days relaxing with Wendy and Lisa, Lianne's mom and sister. Again in London we didn't get up to anything super exciting but we really enjoyed our time there and felt quite relaxed afterwards.
Continuing on we made our way to Michigan, just outside of Detroit where we spent a few days with Ron and Nancy, Lianne's dad and step-mom. Again the time was nice and relaxing and a great way to end our world trip.
After a few days there I left Lianne, Ron and Nancy and returned to Toronto where I spent one more day with Cathy and Paul before getting on a plane for Calgary and home. I eventually returned home just under 13 months after leaving it for my absolutely trip. I hope you enjoyed hearing some of my stories and I'll try to update this blog whenever I go traveling again but until that point there won't be many entries, if any. Hope you enjoyed reading it.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Dijon and Belfort
We arrived in Dijon around noon and had the afternoon to tour around the city before meeting up with Celine, my cousin. So first thing that we did was find a place to store our bags for a few hours and then we made our way downtown. While wandering through the streets to get downtown we saw that there were several mechanical booths setup playing music on the street so we stopped to enjoy a few songs before we found a nice small park area to sit down and eat some lunch in. After lunch we toured around the city a little bit and generally just admired the beautiful architecture of the buildings, a few churches and of course we stopped off to buy some dijon mustard. One of the things that we made sure to do was to pet the lucky owl on the side of one of the churches but other than that we just strolled along the streets enjoying the mechanical music and the very pretty downtown area. After wandering the streets for a bit we decided to sit down in one of the sidewalk cafes for a drink before we had to meet up with Celine. After our drink we made our way back to the train station where we collected our bags and then went back downtown to meet Celine. Upon meeting up with Celine again she immediately took us to her dorm room where we were going to spend the night and after dropping our bags off there Celine took us out for a better tour of the city. After Celine's great tour of Dijon we figured it was time for some dinner as it was getting late and wound up having some delicious pizza before heading back to her dorm room where we spent the rest of the evening relaxing and watching a movie before all somehow sleeping in the small space.
The next morning after breakfast Celine took us around some more of the city including through the large market where it seemed that you could get anything from food to house supplies and clothes. After our short tour of downtown we decided to accompany Celine to her university campus as she had a class to attend so we walked through more of Dijon and got to see the less picturesque part that wasn't downtown. Once we got to Celine's university though she discovered that her class had been canceled so we quickly turned around and took the bus back to her dorm room. Back at Celine's room we made some lunch and were met by Celine's other sister Sandrine who took all of us to her new house in Belfort for the weekend. The rest of the afternoon was spent driving to Belfort and when we arrived in Belfort the evening was spent enjoying a delicious dinner and catching up with Sandrine and her husband Guillaume.
The following morning we got up and planned on taking a road trip to explore the Alsace region just to the north of Belfort. We started off the day by driving up the nearby mountains to the top of Grand Ballon, the second highest peak in the area at 1424 meters. At the top we spent some time walking around and admiring the sights that were available but unfortunately it was too cloudy to be able to see the alps in the distance. Once we finished our short walk we stopped off at a small cafe where we enjoyed some blueberry pie, something the area was famous for. After our delicious pie we returned to the car and continued to drive through the mountains, stopping occasionally to admire the views, until we came to Munster a picturesque little town that's home to storks at this time of the year. We spent a bit of time wandering around the town looking at the storks and the beautiful buildings before deciding to stop for some lunch. After lunch we returned to the car and continued the scenic drive to Colmar. At Colmar we got out of the car and wandered around the extremely picturesque streets of the downtown area admiring the gingerbread house like architecture of the buildings and the flower lined canal. The city was absolutely gorgeous and deserved a couple hours of wandering around it just to admire everything. After seeing most of Colmar we returned to the car and made our way back to Belfort along the less scenic, but faster, highway. Back in Belfort we enjoyed another delicious dinner at home and some more relaxing and sharing stories about our trip.
The next morning was our last day in Belfort and Guillaume and I decided to spend the morning going for a nice bike ride while the ladies went to the market. The nice bike ride turned out to be far more difficult than I expected as super Guillaume too me on a 60 km ride up to the top of the Grand Ballon and back, a nice 3 hour ride that left me nearly dead. When we returned back home we enjoyed a great lunch before heading out to see some sights in Belfort before having to catch our train back to Paris. Sandrine and Guillaume were great guides as they took us up to the large Belfort lion and the fort overlooking Belfort as well as wandering through the streets of the old town and out to the city walls. By the time that we had seen the downtown area of Belfort it was time for us to head to the train station where we said goodbye to everyone and caught our train back to Paris. We arrived in Paris at about 10 pm and quickly found our hostel where we dropped our bags off and rushed out to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. We got to the Eiffel Tower and had about 30 minutes to admire it before catching the last metro train back to our hostel at 1 am where we both fell asleep absolutely exhausted.
The next morning we got up and just made our way to the Charles de Gaulle airport and eventually got on our flight back across the Atlantic to Toronto. So our trip was coming to an end, just a short visit in Ontario and then on home to Calgary.
Some of the nice buildings in Dijon.
Sandrine, Guillaume, Lianne, and Celine on top of the Grand Ballon just outside of Belfort.
Some of the beautiful buildings in Colmar.
The flower lined canal in Colmar.
Guillaume, Sandrine, Celine, and Lianne standing at the top of the fort in Belfort.
Standing in front of the Eiffel Tower on our last night in Paris.
The next morning after breakfast Celine took us around some more of the city including through the large market where it seemed that you could get anything from food to house supplies and clothes. After our short tour of downtown we decided to accompany Celine to her university campus as she had a class to attend so we walked through more of Dijon and got to see the less picturesque part that wasn't downtown. Once we got to Celine's university though she discovered that her class had been canceled so we quickly turned around and took the bus back to her dorm room. Back at Celine's room we made some lunch and were met by Celine's other sister Sandrine who took all of us to her new house in Belfort for the weekend. The rest of the afternoon was spent driving to Belfort and when we arrived in Belfort the evening was spent enjoying a delicious dinner and catching up with Sandrine and her husband Guillaume.
The following morning we got up and planned on taking a road trip to explore the Alsace region just to the north of Belfort. We started off the day by driving up the nearby mountains to the top of Grand Ballon, the second highest peak in the area at 1424 meters. At the top we spent some time walking around and admiring the sights that were available but unfortunately it was too cloudy to be able to see the alps in the distance. Once we finished our short walk we stopped off at a small cafe where we enjoyed some blueberry pie, something the area was famous for. After our delicious pie we returned to the car and continued to drive through the mountains, stopping occasionally to admire the views, until we came to Munster a picturesque little town that's home to storks at this time of the year. We spent a bit of time wandering around the town looking at the storks and the beautiful buildings before deciding to stop for some lunch. After lunch we returned to the car and continued the scenic drive to Colmar. At Colmar we got out of the car and wandered around the extremely picturesque streets of the downtown area admiring the gingerbread house like architecture of the buildings and the flower lined canal. The city was absolutely gorgeous and deserved a couple hours of wandering around it just to admire everything. After seeing most of Colmar we returned to the car and made our way back to Belfort along the less scenic, but faster, highway. Back in Belfort we enjoyed another delicious dinner at home and some more relaxing and sharing stories about our trip.
The next morning was our last day in Belfort and Guillaume and I decided to spend the morning going for a nice bike ride while the ladies went to the market. The nice bike ride turned out to be far more difficult than I expected as super Guillaume too me on a 60 km ride up to the top of the Grand Ballon and back, a nice 3 hour ride that left me nearly dead. When we returned back home we enjoyed a great lunch before heading out to see some sights in Belfort before having to catch our train back to Paris. Sandrine and Guillaume were great guides as they took us up to the large Belfort lion and the fort overlooking Belfort as well as wandering through the streets of the old town and out to the city walls. By the time that we had seen the downtown area of Belfort it was time for us to head to the train station where we said goodbye to everyone and caught our train back to Paris. We arrived in Paris at about 10 pm and quickly found our hostel where we dropped our bags off and rushed out to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. We got to the Eiffel Tower and had about 30 minutes to admire it before catching the last metro train back to our hostel at 1 am where we both fell asleep absolutely exhausted.
The next morning we got up and just made our way to the Charles de Gaulle airport and eventually got on our flight back across the Atlantic to Toronto. So our trip was coming to an end, just a short visit in Ontario and then on home to Calgary.
Some of the nice buildings in Dijon.
Sandrine, Guillaume, Lianne, and Celine on top of the Grand Ballon just outside of Belfort.
Some of the beautiful buildings in Colmar.
The flower lined canal in Colmar.
Guillaume, Sandrine, Celine, and Lianne standing at the top of the fort in Belfort.
Standing in front of the Eiffel Tower on our last night in Paris.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Narbonne and Nimes
We finally got to Narbonne in the early afternoon and went straight to my cousin's apartment. We spent a little bit of time at the apartment while we unloaded the car and said hello to everyone but then we decided to go out and explore the town for a bit. We walked to downtown where we were pleased to find that all of the attractions were open free of charge to the public so we went to the city hall where we first toured through a nice art gallery before heading up to the roof. We enjoyed the views over the city from the roof of city hall for a while before making our way back down to the street. Outside again we continued to wander around the city for a bit and went into a church where we enjoyed a few minutes of a free concert before leaving to make our way back home. When we reached the apartment Lianne and I left everyone to continue going for a short walk along the canal while everyone else had to go get dinner started. When Lianne and I returned back to the apartment we spent the rest of the evening enjoying a few drinks, a delicious dinner and just spent the rest of the time relaxing there.
The next morning we got up and took our time getting ready for the day out, there are lots of chores to do when you need to look after a little boy. Unfortunately Phillipe had to go away on a 3 week course so we wouldn't get a chance to see him again and Claudine had to work all day so it was just Sheila, Christian, Alex, Lianne and myself for the day. After lunch we got moving and made our way out to a hiking area just off the coast where Lianne and I went for a slightly longer hike while Sheila and Christian made a rock collection with Alex on a shorter one. At the end of the hike we all met back up near a pretty lake and eventually made our way back to the car. After the hike we drove along the coast for a bit and saw some nice stretches of beach where Alex would sometimes come play although by this point it started to rain so instead of staying long we just slowly made our way back to the apartment in Narbonne. That evening Claudine returned home and again we spent the evening enjoying another delicious dinner and playing a few card games once Alex had gone to bed.
The following morning was our last in Narbonne and after saying good bye to Claudine we enjoyed our breakfast and got ready to set off for the day. Once we were all set we piled into the car made our way up the coast towards Montpellier. We made our way to Montpellier and then out to a small summer tourist town right on the coast where we found a nice restaurant pretty much right on the waterfront to have lunch in. After lunch we proceeded to make our way back to the car where we continued our trip up towards Nimes. On the way to Nimes we stopped off at Aigues Mortes which is small city that has extremely well preserved city walls. We spent an hour or wandering around the small streets within the city walls enjoying all of the shops, churches and ambiance of the picturesque city. After a bit of wandering around here we made our way back to the car and finished our journey to Nimes. We eventually found the hostel we booked in Nimes thanks to Christian's GPS and here Lianne and I said goodbye to Sheila, Christian, and Alex as they had to return to Narbonne that night. We had arrived at the hostel around 5pm and so the rest of the night was spent walking to the nearest grocery store to buy dinner supplies and then we spent the rest of the time at our hostel enjoying our dinner and some drinks before heading to bed.
The next day was our one full day to explore Nimes and the surrouding area so we got up really early and planned on catching a bus out to the Pont du Gard. However when we got to the bus station we couldn't find the bus that would take us out there and instead had to change our plans by exploring the city sights before catching a later bus out to the Pont du Gard. So we started off the day by visiting the Maison Carree an extremely well preserved rectangular Roman temple which is now home to an archive. From the Maison Carree we wandered to the Jardins de la Fontaine which is a nice area full of fountains at the base of a big park. Climbing up through the park we emerged at the Tour Magne, a Roman watchtower built at the highest point in Nimes and still in pretty good shape. After seeing the Tour Magne we made our way back down to Les Arenes, an extremely well preserved second century Roman Amphitheatre which used to hold gladiator fights and now has bull fights. In Les Arenes we got a great audio guide that provided some interesting stories about the different gladiators and audience that would come to watch the gladiators fight. By this time we were able to return to the bus station where we found the bus that would take us out to the Pont du Gard and eventually made our way out there. The Pont du Gard is a 275 meter long aqueduct built by Emperor Augustus' son-in-law Agrippa around 19 BC. We spent several hours wandering around the area and admiring the 49 meter high aqueduct over the Gard River. The aqueduct was absolutely amazing and we admired the amount of work the Romans went through to get fresh water to Nimes and how well they're construction has stood up over the past 2000 years. Once we decided to leave the Pont du Gard we found out we had to walk nearly 3km to a nearby city in order to catch a bus back to Nimes so we did this and eventually got back to the city. Back in Nimes we spent the rest of the evening running a few errands before making our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed another night of our home cooked dinner out in the hastel garden before heading to bed.
The following morning we woke up and made our way down to the train station where we quickly boarded a high speed train that would take us up to Dijon, our next destination.
A view of the cathedral where we enjoyed the free concert from the top of the city hall in Narbonne.
A view down the canal in Narbonne.
Sheila and Alex walking along the waterfront near Montpellier.
A look at one of the fountains in the Jardins de la Fontaine in Nimes.
Lianne standing in front of Les Arenes in Nimes.
Standing in Les Arenes.
Lianne and I standing in front of the Pont du Gard.
The next morning we got up and took our time getting ready for the day out, there are lots of chores to do when you need to look after a little boy. Unfortunately Phillipe had to go away on a 3 week course so we wouldn't get a chance to see him again and Claudine had to work all day so it was just Sheila, Christian, Alex, Lianne and myself for the day. After lunch we got moving and made our way out to a hiking area just off the coast where Lianne and I went for a slightly longer hike while Sheila and Christian made a rock collection with Alex on a shorter one. At the end of the hike we all met back up near a pretty lake and eventually made our way back to the car. After the hike we drove along the coast for a bit and saw some nice stretches of beach where Alex would sometimes come play although by this point it started to rain so instead of staying long we just slowly made our way back to the apartment in Narbonne. That evening Claudine returned home and again we spent the evening enjoying another delicious dinner and playing a few card games once Alex had gone to bed.
The following morning was our last in Narbonne and after saying good bye to Claudine we enjoyed our breakfast and got ready to set off for the day. Once we were all set we piled into the car made our way up the coast towards Montpellier. We made our way to Montpellier and then out to a small summer tourist town right on the coast where we found a nice restaurant pretty much right on the waterfront to have lunch in. After lunch we proceeded to make our way back to the car where we continued our trip up towards Nimes. On the way to Nimes we stopped off at Aigues Mortes which is small city that has extremely well preserved city walls. We spent an hour or wandering around the small streets within the city walls enjoying all of the shops, churches and ambiance of the picturesque city. After a bit of wandering around here we made our way back to the car and finished our journey to Nimes. We eventually found the hostel we booked in Nimes thanks to Christian's GPS and here Lianne and I said goodbye to Sheila, Christian, and Alex as they had to return to Narbonne that night. We had arrived at the hostel around 5pm and so the rest of the night was spent walking to the nearest grocery store to buy dinner supplies and then we spent the rest of the time at our hostel enjoying our dinner and some drinks before heading to bed.
The next day was our one full day to explore Nimes and the surrouding area so we got up really early and planned on catching a bus out to the Pont du Gard. However when we got to the bus station we couldn't find the bus that would take us out there and instead had to change our plans by exploring the city sights before catching a later bus out to the Pont du Gard. So we started off the day by visiting the Maison Carree an extremely well preserved rectangular Roman temple which is now home to an archive. From the Maison Carree we wandered to the Jardins de la Fontaine which is a nice area full of fountains at the base of a big park. Climbing up through the park we emerged at the Tour Magne, a Roman watchtower built at the highest point in Nimes and still in pretty good shape. After seeing the Tour Magne we made our way back down to Les Arenes, an extremely well preserved second century Roman Amphitheatre which used to hold gladiator fights and now has bull fights. In Les Arenes we got a great audio guide that provided some interesting stories about the different gladiators and audience that would come to watch the gladiators fight. By this time we were able to return to the bus station where we found the bus that would take us out to the Pont du Gard and eventually made our way out there. The Pont du Gard is a 275 meter long aqueduct built by Emperor Augustus' son-in-law Agrippa around 19 BC. We spent several hours wandering around the area and admiring the 49 meter high aqueduct over the Gard River. The aqueduct was absolutely amazing and we admired the amount of work the Romans went through to get fresh water to Nimes and how well they're construction has stood up over the past 2000 years. Once we decided to leave the Pont du Gard we found out we had to walk nearly 3km to a nearby city in order to catch a bus back to Nimes so we did this and eventually got back to the city. Back in Nimes we spent the rest of the evening running a few errands before making our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed another night of our home cooked dinner out in the hastel garden before heading to bed.
The following morning we woke up and made our way down to the train station where we quickly boarded a high speed train that would take us up to Dijon, our next destination.
A view of the cathedral where we enjoyed the free concert from the top of the city hall in Narbonne.
A view down the canal in Narbonne.
Sheila and Alex walking along the waterfront near Montpellier.
A look at one of the fountains in the Jardins de la Fontaine in Nimes.
Lianne standing in front of Les Arenes in Nimes.
Standing in Les Arenes.
Lianne and I standing in front of the Pont du Gard.
Paris
We were met at the airport in Paris by my Aunt Sheila and she proceeded to take us to her house in Plaisir. The rest of the evening was spent relaxing in their house and catching up before heading to bed.
The next morning Sheila wanted to take Lianne and I on a tour of Versailles so once we got all ready we left the house. Pulling up to the Palace of Versailles both Lianne and I were gazing forward and upon seeing what we thought was the palace we were amazed and commented on it only to be told by Sheila that we were looking at the stables and the palace was behind us. After parking the car we set off to explore the immense grounds of the palace where we planned on spending the rest of the day. Our first stop was to wander around the huge gardens which made the gardens at Schloss Schonbrunn in Vienna look tiny in comparison. We spent a couple of hours wandering around the paths, almost getting lost a few times, admiring all of the different trees and flowers and the spectacular fountains which were unfortunately mostly turned off. After admiring the beauty of the gardens for a while we enjoyed a quick bite to eat in a small cafe in the gardens before getting our tickets to tour the interior of the palace. Inside the palace we got to enjoy a great audio guide while wandering through several different rooms, all furnished from the time when they were used, including: meeting rooms, bedrooms, the newly renovated hall of mirrors where the Treaty of Versailles was signed after WWI, dining rooms, studies, and many more. The tour through the palace was fantastic and we enjoyed spending a few hours wandering the magnificent rooms of the palace before we made our way to visit the Grand Trianon and the Petit Trianon where we hoped to visit the gardens but were told our ticket didn't work so we just set off to return home. That evening we enjoyed a delicious home cooked meal for the first time in a long time and spent the night relaxing and watching a movie with Celine.
The following day was our one day tour of Paris which was to be given by Celine. So after an early morning and a quick breakfast we set off to explore Paris. Our day in Paris was absolutely jam packed and we tried to see absolutely everything there was to see in only the one day so we started off with the Jardin des Plantes which was a beautiful garden located in the heart of Paris before moving off to see the Arenes de Lutece, an ancient Roman theatre. We then proceeded to wander around some beautiful streets and stopped to enjoy a french pastry outside the unusual front of the Pompidou Museum. We then made our way to see the Hotel de Ville before making our way to Notre Dame. Notre Dame was the first building that we entered on our city tour and the interior of the church was even more spectacular than the outside. From Notre Dame we crossed the Seine to the entered the ground for the Louvre where we walked around the glass pyramid of the entrance hall but due to time constraints we decided not to enter it. Instead we went to a nice park just in front of the Louvre where we were able to sit down and enjoy our packed lunch. After enjoying our lunch at in front of the Louvre we proceeded to walk down the shop filled avenue of Champs-Elysees before finding ourselves at the Arc de Triomphe. After admiring the Arc de Triomphe we hopped on the metro to head to the Eiffel Tower, Paris's most famous landmark. We spent a while wandering around the Eiffel Tower although we elected not to join the enormous lineup to ride to the top as there were still other sights that we wanted to see. Leaving the Eiffel Tower we got back on the metro and made our way to the Sacre Coeur, a church that sits atop the highest point in Paris. In the neighbourhood of the Sacre Coeur we also saw the Moulin Rouge burlesque palace and wandered around an artsy area of Paris. By this point it was getting fairly late in the day so we made our way to the Opera House for a quick visit before heading back to the train station to catch a train back to Plaisir. That night we again enjoyed a deliciously home cooked meal and relaxed at home with a movie before heading to bed.
The next morning was our last day in Paris and so for the morning Celine gave us a short tour around Plaisir including several of the places she used to hang out while growing up. After the tour of Plaisir we returned back to Celine's house for lunch before Celine set off to Dijon for university and we started to make our way south with my aunt and uncle south to Narbonne. The majority of the afternoon was spent driving south but towards the end of the afternoon we made a stop in Vichy to wander around the city for a while. Vichy is a picturesque city that contains some medicinal thermal springs which we saw. After wandering around the town we found a place and enjoyed dinner before continuing down the road a bit more to find a hotel for the night.
The next morning we set off again nice and early to get to Narbonne. We spent most of the morning in the car and stopped only for a short lunch break and sightseeing stop at the Millau Viaduct, a large bridge that was recently completed. That afternoon we continued to Narbonne where we met Claudine, my cousin, her husband Phillipe and their son Alexandre.
Lianne and I standing in front of one of the fountains in the garden at the Palace of Versailles.
The newly renovated Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles.
Our tour guide Celine and myself standing in front of the Notre Dame.
The Arc de Triomphe.
Lianne, Celine and myself standing in front of the Eiffel Tower.
Sacre Coeur, the highest point in Paris.
The next morning Sheila wanted to take Lianne and I on a tour of Versailles so once we got all ready we left the house. Pulling up to the Palace of Versailles both Lianne and I were gazing forward and upon seeing what we thought was the palace we were amazed and commented on it only to be told by Sheila that we were looking at the stables and the palace was behind us. After parking the car we set off to explore the immense grounds of the palace where we planned on spending the rest of the day. Our first stop was to wander around the huge gardens which made the gardens at Schloss Schonbrunn in Vienna look tiny in comparison. We spent a couple of hours wandering around the paths, almost getting lost a few times, admiring all of the different trees and flowers and the spectacular fountains which were unfortunately mostly turned off. After admiring the beauty of the gardens for a while we enjoyed a quick bite to eat in a small cafe in the gardens before getting our tickets to tour the interior of the palace. Inside the palace we got to enjoy a great audio guide while wandering through several different rooms, all furnished from the time when they were used, including: meeting rooms, bedrooms, the newly renovated hall of mirrors where the Treaty of Versailles was signed after WWI, dining rooms, studies, and many more. The tour through the palace was fantastic and we enjoyed spending a few hours wandering the magnificent rooms of the palace before we made our way to visit the Grand Trianon and the Petit Trianon where we hoped to visit the gardens but were told our ticket didn't work so we just set off to return home. That evening we enjoyed a delicious home cooked meal for the first time in a long time and spent the night relaxing and watching a movie with Celine.
The following day was our one day tour of Paris which was to be given by Celine. So after an early morning and a quick breakfast we set off to explore Paris. Our day in Paris was absolutely jam packed and we tried to see absolutely everything there was to see in only the one day so we started off with the Jardin des Plantes which was a beautiful garden located in the heart of Paris before moving off to see the Arenes de Lutece, an ancient Roman theatre. We then proceeded to wander around some beautiful streets and stopped to enjoy a french pastry outside the unusual front of the Pompidou Museum. We then made our way to see the Hotel de Ville before making our way to Notre Dame. Notre Dame was the first building that we entered on our city tour and the interior of the church was even more spectacular than the outside. From Notre Dame we crossed the Seine to the entered the ground for the Louvre where we walked around the glass pyramid of the entrance hall but due to time constraints we decided not to enter it. Instead we went to a nice park just in front of the Louvre where we were able to sit down and enjoy our packed lunch. After enjoying our lunch at in front of the Louvre we proceeded to walk down the shop filled avenue of Champs-Elysees before finding ourselves at the Arc de Triomphe. After admiring the Arc de Triomphe we hopped on the metro to head to the Eiffel Tower, Paris's most famous landmark. We spent a while wandering around the Eiffel Tower although we elected not to join the enormous lineup to ride to the top as there were still other sights that we wanted to see. Leaving the Eiffel Tower we got back on the metro and made our way to the Sacre Coeur, a church that sits atop the highest point in Paris. In the neighbourhood of the Sacre Coeur we also saw the Moulin Rouge burlesque palace and wandered around an artsy area of Paris. By this point it was getting fairly late in the day so we made our way to the Opera House for a quick visit before heading back to the train station to catch a train back to Plaisir. That night we again enjoyed a deliciously home cooked meal and relaxed at home with a movie before heading to bed.
The next morning was our last day in Paris and so for the morning Celine gave us a short tour around Plaisir including several of the places she used to hang out while growing up. After the tour of Plaisir we returned back to Celine's house for lunch before Celine set off to Dijon for university and we started to make our way south with my aunt and uncle south to Narbonne. The majority of the afternoon was spent driving south but towards the end of the afternoon we made a stop in Vichy to wander around the city for a while. Vichy is a picturesque city that contains some medicinal thermal springs which we saw. After wandering around the town we found a place and enjoyed dinner before continuing down the road a bit more to find a hotel for the night.
The next morning we set off again nice and early to get to Narbonne. We spent most of the morning in the car and stopped only for a short lunch break and sightseeing stop at the Millau Viaduct, a large bridge that was recently completed. That afternoon we continued to Narbonne where we met Claudine, my cousin, her husband Phillipe and their son Alexandre.
Lianne and I standing in front of one of the fountains in the garden at the Palace of Versailles.
The newly renovated Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles.
Our tour guide Celine and myself standing in front of the Notre Dame.
The Arc de Triomphe.
Lianne, Celine and myself standing in front of the Eiffel Tower.
Sacre Coeur, the highest point in Paris.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Prague
We arrived in Prague at about noon and set off immediately to find the hostel that we had booked. Once we found our hostel we dumped our bags off and set out to spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the city. Our first stop was Wenceslas Square which was really just a really broad avenue with shops along the edge and a statue of St Wenceslas at one end. Once we reached the square we found a cheap place to grab a bite to eat and to plan the rest of the day. From Wenceslas Square we made our way to the Old Town Square passing by the Municipal House and Estates Theatre on the way. At the Old Town Square we wandered around admiring the architecture of Tyn Church, St Nicholas Church and of course the famous Clock Tower which contains the astronomical clock. Unfortunately we arrived just after the hour so we would have to catch the show of clock at a later point. Once we had seen both of the churches we made our way to the tourist information centre where we inquired about possibly going to see a hockey game. We were in luck as there was a game in town that night but it was scheduled to start at 5pm which wasn't very far away at this point so after learning this information we just made our way back to the hostel to get ready to go to the game. We easily navigated the public transport system and found the arena (it wasn't too hard as we just had to follow all of the fans) where we bought a couple of tickets and proceeded to get ready to watch some Czech hockey. The game was lots of fun (especially since I hadn't seen a game in over a year) and although the arena was only maybe a third full (we think it was only an exhibition game) the crowd was really into it making lots of noise and all having fun. After watching the game we made our way back to the tourist area of Prague and decided that we would just have a fairly early night and returned to the hostel.
The next morning we set off in the rain to check out Prague castle. This started with walking over Charles Bridge which was the first bridge built in Prague and is lined with about 30 statues. Today it is purely a tourist bridge and all along it are vendors who set up little stalls selling trinkets but thankfully due to some construction while we were there it didn't seem too bad. From the end of the bridge we started to walk up hill towards the castle but stopped en route at St Nicholas Church (a different one from yesterday) which is one of Prague's most famous churches. We spent some time touring around the interior and admired the frescoes all over the walls and the beautiful alters inside. After seeing St Nicholas Church we continued up to Prague Castle where we entered the grounds to see an enormous lineup for tickets. Thinking it was the only place to purchase entrance tickets we proceeded to stand in line for about an hour in the most unorganized system ever to get our tickets and audio guide. Once we had our tickets we entered to the third courtyard of the castle which was dominated by the impressive St Vitus Cathedral. We started our audio guide tour and entered St Vitus Cathedral which was very absolutely huge and contained about 25 alters on the side in addition to the main chapel. The interior of the church was gorgeous however the audio guide turned out to be very dull and just seemed to go on forever so we ended up skipping most of it while it described every saint that each alter was about. After being bored to death by the audio guide in the church we set off to explore the rest of the castle and to hopefully gain some enjoyment from our visit there. Outside the church we saw the Golden Gate which is a triple arched doorway into the church before we made our way to Vladislav Hall. Vladislav Hall is just a large vaulted hall that used to house everything from some small markets to indoor jousts. In an adjoining room to the hall is the Chancellery where in 1618 2 councilors were thrown out of the window by irate nobles and started the 30 years war. After the Chancellery we went again outside to the Basilica of St George which is a small chapel built in the 12th century. Finally the last part of the castle that we saw was the Golden Lane, a 16th century tradesmen quarters with tiny houses built into the castle walls. Now the houses are all turned into souvenir shops and the lane is packed with tourists trying to jam themselves into the small shops. Leaving the castle we walked down the hill and by the Wallenstein Palace which is home to the Czech Republic's Senate. After admiring the exterior of the Palace we entered the Wallenstein Gardens which is a nice little garden right in the middle of Prague complete with a fake stalactite wall full of hidden animal and monster faces. The last thing that we visited that afternoon was the Strahov Library which is the country's largest monastic library. The halls of the library are beautifully decorated and contain spectacular ceiling frescoes, unfortunately one of the halls was under reparations so we could only see one of the two halls. Along with the beautiful halls the library has some interesting collections including books about trees bound in the bark of the tree they describe and dried specimen of several marine animals including a few dried whales' penises. By this time it was getting late in the afternoon so we returned back to our hostel for a quick break before heading out for dinner and a few drinks.
The following morning we made our way to the train station where we got on a train bound for Kutna Hora where we planned on spending the day. We arrived in Kutna Hora and made our way to the Sedlec Ossuary where in 1870 the Schwarzenberg family allowed a local wood carver to create several sculptures with the bones of 40 000 people. In the ossuary there were 4 giant pyramids of stacked bones in the four corners, a central chandelier that is said to contain every bone in the human body and even a Schwarzenberg coat of arms made from bones. The display was quite unique and very interesting. After exploring the ossuary we made our way into the centre of Kutna Hora where we toured around the Italian Court which contains a mint museum as Kutna Hora was once prosperous for mining silver ore and minting the groschen, the main currency of Central Europe for some time. In Kutna Hora we also visited the Cathedral of St Barbara which rivals Prague's St Vitus in magnificence. Unfortunately we weren't able to tour around the silver mining museum in Kutna Hora and instead just got on a train back to Prague were we spent the rest of the afternoon checking out the small but well done Museum of Communism. That night we enjoyed dinner near our hostel and went out for a few drinks to some bars that we had noticed nearby.
The next morning was our last day in Prague and the Czech Republic so after checking out of our room and storing our bags at the reception we set off to explore some more of the city. We decided to spend the day checking out the Jewish Quarter of Prague, called Josefov, and so we spent a few hours entering different Synagogues in the area. Most of the Synagogues had been turned into museums showing different aspects of Jewish culture which were interesting. We also got to see an old Jewish Cemetery which was a small plot of land just packed with tombstones and apparently with graves layered up to 12 deep. The last synagogue that we entered was the Pinkas Synagogue and its walls were entirely covered in the names of Czech Jews that dies in the holocaust, 77 297 in total, it was quite moving. After checking out the Jewish Quarter we spent our last few hours watching the changing of the guard at the castle and the hourly ringing of the astronomical clock in the old town square. By the time we had done this we had to return to our hostel pick up our bags and make our way to the airport where we eventually boarded a flight to Paris, France our final country on this trip.
A face-off at centre ice during the hockey game that we went to in Prague.
The exterior of St Vitus Cathedral looking at the Golden Gate with some other tourists braving the rain to explore Prague.
A view of the tiny houses in the Golden Lane.
Lianne looking up at the fake stalactite wall in the Wallenstein Gardens.
The Schwarzenberg coat of arms made out of bones in the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutna Hora.
The central chandelier in the Sedlec Ossuary which contains every bone from the human body.
The interior of one of the Jewish Synagogues that we visited.
The next morning we set off in the rain to check out Prague castle. This started with walking over Charles Bridge which was the first bridge built in Prague and is lined with about 30 statues. Today it is purely a tourist bridge and all along it are vendors who set up little stalls selling trinkets but thankfully due to some construction while we were there it didn't seem too bad. From the end of the bridge we started to walk up hill towards the castle but stopped en route at St Nicholas Church (a different one from yesterday) which is one of Prague's most famous churches. We spent some time touring around the interior and admired the frescoes all over the walls and the beautiful alters inside. After seeing St Nicholas Church we continued up to Prague Castle where we entered the grounds to see an enormous lineup for tickets. Thinking it was the only place to purchase entrance tickets we proceeded to stand in line for about an hour in the most unorganized system ever to get our tickets and audio guide. Once we had our tickets we entered to the third courtyard of the castle which was dominated by the impressive St Vitus Cathedral. We started our audio guide tour and entered St Vitus Cathedral which was very absolutely huge and contained about 25 alters on the side in addition to the main chapel. The interior of the church was gorgeous however the audio guide turned out to be very dull and just seemed to go on forever so we ended up skipping most of it while it described every saint that each alter was about. After being bored to death by the audio guide in the church we set off to explore the rest of the castle and to hopefully gain some enjoyment from our visit there. Outside the church we saw the Golden Gate which is a triple arched doorway into the church before we made our way to Vladislav Hall. Vladislav Hall is just a large vaulted hall that used to house everything from some small markets to indoor jousts. In an adjoining room to the hall is the Chancellery where in 1618 2 councilors were thrown out of the window by irate nobles and started the 30 years war. After the Chancellery we went again outside to the Basilica of St George which is a small chapel built in the 12th century. Finally the last part of the castle that we saw was the Golden Lane, a 16th century tradesmen quarters with tiny houses built into the castle walls. Now the houses are all turned into souvenir shops and the lane is packed with tourists trying to jam themselves into the small shops. Leaving the castle we walked down the hill and by the Wallenstein Palace which is home to the Czech Republic's Senate. After admiring the exterior of the Palace we entered the Wallenstein Gardens which is a nice little garden right in the middle of Prague complete with a fake stalactite wall full of hidden animal and monster faces. The last thing that we visited that afternoon was the Strahov Library which is the country's largest monastic library. The halls of the library are beautifully decorated and contain spectacular ceiling frescoes, unfortunately one of the halls was under reparations so we could only see one of the two halls. Along with the beautiful halls the library has some interesting collections including books about trees bound in the bark of the tree they describe and dried specimen of several marine animals including a few dried whales' penises. By this time it was getting late in the afternoon so we returned back to our hostel for a quick break before heading out for dinner and a few drinks.
The following morning we made our way to the train station where we got on a train bound for Kutna Hora where we planned on spending the day. We arrived in Kutna Hora and made our way to the Sedlec Ossuary where in 1870 the Schwarzenberg family allowed a local wood carver to create several sculptures with the bones of 40 000 people. In the ossuary there were 4 giant pyramids of stacked bones in the four corners, a central chandelier that is said to contain every bone in the human body and even a Schwarzenberg coat of arms made from bones. The display was quite unique and very interesting. After exploring the ossuary we made our way into the centre of Kutna Hora where we toured around the Italian Court which contains a mint museum as Kutna Hora was once prosperous for mining silver ore and minting the groschen, the main currency of Central Europe for some time. In Kutna Hora we also visited the Cathedral of St Barbara which rivals Prague's St Vitus in magnificence. Unfortunately we weren't able to tour around the silver mining museum in Kutna Hora and instead just got on a train back to Prague were we spent the rest of the afternoon checking out the small but well done Museum of Communism. That night we enjoyed dinner near our hostel and went out for a few drinks to some bars that we had noticed nearby.
The next morning was our last day in Prague and the Czech Republic so after checking out of our room and storing our bags at the reception we set off to explore some more of the city. We decided to spend the day checking out the Jewish Quarter of Prague, called Josefov, and so we spent a few hours entering different Synagogues in the area. Most of the Synagogues had been turned into museums showing different aspects of Jewish culture which were interesting. We also got to see an old Jewish Cemetery which was a small plot of land just packed with tombstones and apparently with graves layered up to 12 deep. The last synagogue that we entered was the Pinkas Synagogue and its walls were entirely covered in the names of Czech Jews that dies in the holocaust, 77 297 in total, it was quite moving. After checking out the Jewish Quarter we spent our last few hours watching the changing of the guard at the castle and the hourly ringing of the astronomical clock in the old town square. By the time we had done this we had to return to our hostel pick up our bags and make our way to the airport where we eventually boarded a flight to Paris, France our final country on this trip.
A face-off at centre ice during the hockey game that we went to in Prague.
The exterior of St Vitus Cathedral looking at the Golden Gate with some other tourists braving the rain to explore Prague.
A view of the tiny houses in the Golden Lane.
Lianne looking up at the fake stalactite wall in the Wallenstein Gardens.
The Schwarzenberg coat of arms made out of bones in the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutna Hora.
The central chandelier in the Sedlec Ossuary which contains every bone from the human body.
The interior of one of the Jewish Synagogues that we visited.
Plzen
We arrived in Plzen in mid afternoon and quickly got orientated and found our hostel. By the time that we got settled in and organized it was pretty much dinner time so we made our way out and towards the city center in search of a place to eat. After wandering around for a little bit we eventually found a decent place and sat down to enjoy a delicious meal. After dinner we decided to check out some of the night life and so we spent the rest of the evening in one of the pubs enjoying the locally brewed Pilsner beer.
The next morning we made our way back into the city center where we admired the Church of St Bartholomew and several other old building faces in nam Republiky (old town square). After checking out the town square we made our way to the Brewery Museum which is located in an authentic medieval malt house. At the museum we learned that beneath the city of Plzen there are several kilometers of tunnels where the residents would hide in times of danger, store food and beer, and collect water from wells. So at the museum we signed up for an hour long guided tour through some of the tunnels and got to see some old wells, storage chambers, and artifacts that had been uncovered in them. After touring the tunnels we wandered through the fascinating Brewery Museum and got to see several of the old instruments used for brewing beer as well as learn how it was done. By the time that we finished with the museum we had just enough time to grab a bite to eat and run over to the Pilsner Urquell Brewery for their daily guided tour. The tour through this brewery, which is just as famous if not more so than the Budweiser Budvar Brewery, was interesting although I thought the one at the Budweiser Budvar Brewery was better. During the tour we saw much of the same stuff as the Budweiser tour but also some multimedia presentations which just advertised their beer. The free beer at the end was still really tasty though. After our brewery tour we returned to our hostel for a short rest before heading out to get some dinner. That night we ate at the Brewery Museum's restaurant, which was rated the 3rd best pub in the Czech Republic according to the Pilsner Brewery, and then just returned to our hostel for a fairly early night.
The following morning we decided that we had seen all there was to see in Plzen so instead of spending half the day there as we planned to we just packed our bags and made our way to the train station. At the train station we quickly boarded a train bound for Prague which was our next destination.
The town hall in Plzen with a statue to its left.
The Church of St Bartholomew in the old town square.
A manikin sifting through malt in the Brewery Museum.
The next morning we made our way back into the city center where we admired the Church of St Bartholomew and several other old building faces in nam Republiky (old town square). After checking out the town square we made our way to the Brewery Museum which is located in an authentic medieval malt house. At the museum we learned that beneath the city of Plzen there are several kilometers of tunnels where the residents would hide in times of danger, store food and beer, and collect water from wells. So at the museum we signed up for an hour long guided tour through some of the tunnels and got to see some old wells, storage chambers, and artifacts that had been uncovered in them. After touring the tunnels we wandered through the fascinating Brewery Museum and got to see several of the old instruments used for brewing beer as well as learn how it was done. By the time that we finished with the museum we had just enough time to grab a bite to eat and run over to the Pilsner Urquell Brewery for their daily guided tour. The tour through this brewery, which is just as famous if not more so than the Budweiser Budvar Brewery, was interesting although I thought the one at the Budweiser Budvar Brewery was better. During the tour we saw much of the same stuff as the Budweiser tour but also some multimedia presentations which just advertised their beer. The free beer at the end was still really tasty though. After our brewery tour we returned to our hostel for a short rest before heading out to get some dinner. That night we ate at the Brewery Museum's restaurant, which was rated the 3rd best pub in the Czech Republic according to the Pilsner Brewery, and then just returned to our hostel for a fairly early night.
The following morning we decided that we had seen all there was to see in Plzen so instead of spending half the day there as we planned to we just packed our bags and made our way to the train station. At the train station we quickly boarded a train bound for Prague which was our next destination.
The town hall in Plzen with a statue to its left.
The Church of St Bartholomew in the old town square.
A manikin sifting through malt in the Brewery Museum.
Ceske Budejovice and Cesky Krumlov
We finally arrived in Ceske Budejovice at 1am and thankfully the hostel that we had booked was only a couple of blocks away from the train station so we were quickly able to find it and get to bed.
The next morning we got up and set off to explore the city as it was our only day that we were spending there. Our first stop was the large Nam Premysla Otakara II (the town square) where we enjoyed wandering around looking at the buildings facing it including the town hall and the tall black tower. We spent the rest of the morning wandering around the city centre looking at old buildings and churches before heading just north of the city centre to the Budweiser Budvar Brewery which is where the famous Budweiser Budvar Lager is brewed. Arriving at the brewery we went for a short tour of the brewery seeing everything the fermentation tanks to the brewing room to the bottling plant and of course it included a delicious taste test. After enjoying our delicious beer on the great tour we returned to the city centre where we spent the afternoon using the internet and climbing the Black Tower for superb views over the city. That evening we enjoyed a delicious pork filled dinner, but unfortunately it was accompanied by Plzen beer (Czech Republic's other famous beer), before returning to our hostel for the night.
The next morning we packed up our bags and hopped on a bus bound for Cesky Krumlov which is a picturesque town just 45 minutes south of Ceske Budejovice. Arriving at Cesky Krumlov we made our way to the tourist information office where we were helped to find a hostel for the night. After dropping our bags off at the hostel we set off to explore the charming alleyways of the Unesco World Heritage Listed town. After wandering the streets for a bit we decided to enjoy a bit of lunch in a little sidewalk cafe before we made our way up to Cesky Krumlov Castle. Arriving at the castle we walked over a drawbridge that spanned a moat containing 3 bears so we stopped to watch them for a while. Inside the castle complex we joined a tour that took us through a small chapel and the lavish apartments that Rozmberk and Schwarzenberg families used to live in. The tour was quite detailed and the tour guide had a great sense of humor so it was thoroughly enjoyable and a great way to learn about the different rooms of the castle. After the tour we wandered around the expansive gardens and courtyards around the castle. We spent the remainder of the afternoon walking around the charming town before enjoying another delicious pork filled dinner this time accompanied by Budweiser Budvar beer.
The following morning we got up and had planned on doing an easy canoe trip along the Vltava River which snakes through the town. However, the day was overcast and quite cold so we decided to wait and hope that it would warm up before floating down the river. So instead we passed some time wandering around the charming town some more and visiting the torture museum which wasn't all that interesting. By midday it hadn't warmed up any more so we scraped the idea of floating down the river and just grabbed our bags and made our way to the bus station. At the bus station we boarded a bus bound for Ceske Budejovice where we changed to a train heading to Plzen, our next destination.
The fountain in the middle of Nam Premysla Otakara II.
Our brewery tour guide holding up a glass of Budweiser Budvar lager in one of the fermentation rooms.
The view from the top of the Black Tower overlooking the main square in Ceske Budejovice.
Lianne standing with the Cesky Krumlov Castle in the background.
A view over the Vltava River and the centre of Cesky Krumlov from one point in the castle.
Looking up at the fairytale looking Round Tower of the Cesky Krumlov Castle.
The next morning we got up and set off to explore the city as it was our only day that we were spending there. Our first stop was the large Nam Premysla Otakara II (the town square) where we enjoyed wandering around looking at the buildings facing it including the town hall and the tall black tower. We spent the rest of the morning wandering around the city centre looking at old buildings and churches before heading just north of the city centre to the Budweiser Budvar Brewery which is where the famous Budweiser Budvar Lager is brewed. Arriving at the brewery we went for a short tour of the brewery seeing everything the fermentation tanks to the brewing room to the bottling plant and of course it included a delicious taste test. After enjoying our delicious beer on the great tour we returned to the city centre where we spent the afternoon using the internet and climbing the Black Tower for superb views over the city. That evening we enjoyed a delicious pork filled dinner, but unfortunately it was accompanied by Plzen beer (Czech Republic's other famous beer), before returning to our hostel for the night.
The next morning we packed up our bags and hopped on a bus bound for Cesky Krumlov which is a picturesque town just 45 minutes south of Ceske Budejovice. Arriving at Cesky Krumlov we made our way to the tourist information office where we were helped to find a hostel for the night. After dropping our bags off at the hostel we set off to explore the charming alleyways of the Unesco World Heritage Listed town. After wandering the streets for a bit we decided to enjoy a bit of lunch in a little sidewalk cafe before we made our way up to Cesky Krumlov Castle. Arriving at the castle we walked over a drawbridge that spanned a moat containing 3 bears so we stopped to watch them for a while. Inside the castle complex we joined a tour that took us through a small chapel and the lavish apartments that Rozmberk and Schwarzenberg families used to live in. The tour was quite detailed and the tour guide had a great sense of humor so it was thoroughly enjoyable and a great way to learn about the different rooms of the castle. After the tour we wandered around the expansive gardens and courtyards around the castle. We spent the remainder of the afternoon walking around the charming town before enjoying another delicious pork filled dinner this time accompanied by Budweiser Budvar beer.
The following morning we got up and had planned on doing an easy canoe trip along the Vltava River which snakes through the town. However, the day was overcast and quite cold so we decided to wait and hope that it would warm up before floating down the river. So instead we passed some time wandering around the charming town some more and visiting the torture museum which wasn't all that interesting. By midday it hadn't warmed up any more so we scraped the idea of floating down the river and just grabbed our bags and made our way to the bus station. At the bus station we boarded a bus bound for Ceske Budejovice where we changed to a train heading to Plzen, our next destination.
The fountain in the middle of Nam Premysla Otakara II.
Our brewery tour guide holding up a glass of Budweiser Budvar lager in one of the fermentation rooms.
The view from the top of the Black Tower overlooking the main square in Ceske Budejovice.
Lianne standing with the Cesky Krumlov Castle in the background.
A view over the Vltava River and the centre of Cesky Krumlov from one point in the castle.
Looking up at the fairytale looking Round Tower of the Cesky Krumlov Castle.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Zakopane
We got off the bus in Zakopane at about 5pm and decided that we could walk to the hostel that we had picked out. So we set off down the road for what we thought would be a long, but fairly straight forward walk to the hostel. The directions that we had gotten seemed to be working fairly well and after about 30 minutes of walking we turned down what we thought was the road that the hostel was on. After walking down the road for about 5 minutes we decided that the hostel wasn't there so seeing a couple of locals out for a walk we approached them to ask for directions. After a bit of trying to figure it all out they got their neighbor who spoke great English to explain that it was back out on the main road and one block further down. So we set off again and about 10 minutes later we found the hostel hidden down a small road and tucked into the middle of nowhere, almost impossible to find. By the time we finally settled down and got a room it was pretty late so we decided to go to the only nearby restaurant for a spot of dinner since everything else was either closed or miles away. The dinner was pretty good although we definitely felt like we were interrupting the locals by being there so after having a quick bite we returned to the hostel where we just relaxed for a bit before heading to bed.
The next morning we got up and got prepared to go out for a hike. Only it was pouring outside so we took a little while with the last bit of preparation since we were hoping it would dry up. Thankfully it did seemed to stop raining so we set off for the 30 minute walk to the start of the hike that was recommended. The hike started at the base of a ski lift and by the time that we got there the rain had started again so instead of heading up the mountain we decided to enjoy a nice cup of hot chocolate and wait out the rain again. Of course as soon as we got our hot chocolate the rain stopped so after our short break enjoying our delicious beverages we started off. Our chosen hike started off up the mountain and after an hour of walking we came out to an open ridge where we were rewarded with some nice views of the landscape below us and over the town of Zakopane. Continuing on we climber over a small pass and continued up a valley until we came to a hut where we enjoyed our lunch and watching the hoards of people hiking by us. After lunch we continued for another 30 minutes until we came to a nice lake surrounded on three sides by mountain walls. We spent a few minutes relaxing by the lake and taking pictures but we decided that we should start heading back as it still looked like it could rain so we didn't want to be caught in that. The hike back to the base of the ski lift was fairly uneventful and after finishing it we made our way back to the hostel stopping at a small grocery store on the way. That evening we relaxed at the hostel watching a movie and cooking dinner as the hostel was too far from anything to go out. So once the movie ended we just had a fairly early night.
The following morning we got up early and after a quick breakfast we made our way out. Today to get to our starting point for our hike we had to take a short bus ride from the bus station in Zakopane so after squishing onto a bus with the rest of Zakopane we got to the bus station from our hostel where we jumped on another bus that took us to the valley Dolina Chocholowska. Arriving at the start of our hike we proceeded to start walking up a nice wide and flat valley getting passed every once in a while by a horse drawn carriage taking other tourists further up the valley. After about an hour of walking through the valley we came to a cave that passed through the mountain to a point further down the trail. After a short climb up to the cave entrance we got to enter almost right away and spent the next 15 minutes squeezing through some narrow passages to the other side. The interior of the cave wasn't anything spectacular but it was quite long and fun to have to squeeze through. At the far end of the cave we descended back down to the main trail where we continued on to a small hut located at the end of the valley. After a short break at the hut we started to climb up to the top of a small pass where we took a break to enjoy our lunch while sitting on the grass. After lunch we continued down the other side of the pass until we came to the valley Dolina Koscielika which we walked down until we came out back at the road. Once at the end of the hike we hopped on a bus and got back into Zakopane. Back in Zakopane we picked up some food for dinner and made our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed another evening of movies and home cooked dinner before going to bed.
The next morning Lianne and I had to get up extremely early as we were leaving Celine and Adam since they were heading to Slovakia and us to the Czech Republic. So after saying goodbye to them we made our way out the door and to the bus station where we got on an early bus back to Poprad in Slovakia. Once in Poprad we bought some food for lunch and then got on a train for a very long ride to Prague in Czech Republic. Once we reached Prague though our day of traveling still wasn't done so after waiting in the train station for a couple of hours we boarded a train bound for Ceske Budejovice our destination for that day.
Celine, Lianne and Adam standing on the ridge with a nice view in the background on our first day hike.
Celine and me standing in front of the lake on our first day hike.
Lianne walking through the cave that we passed through on our second day of hiking.
Adam, Lianne, and Celine enjoying lunch on top of the small pass on the second day hike.
Standing in front of the beautiful green forest and a small waterfall on the last part of our second day hike.
The next morning we got up and got prepared to go out for a hike. Only it was pouring outside so we took a little while with the last bit of preparation since we were hoping it would dry up. Thankfully it did seemed to stop raining so we set off for the 30 minute walk to the start of the hike that was recommended. The hike started at the base of a ski lift and by the time that we got there the rain had started again so instead of heading up the mountain we decided to enjoy a nice cup of hot chocolate and wait out the rain again. Of course as soon as we got our hot chocolate the rain stopped so after our short break enjoying our delicious beverages we started off. Our chosen hike started off up the mountain and after an hour of walking we came out to an open ridge where we were rewarded with some nice views of the landscape below us and over the town of Zakopane. Continuing on we climber over a small pass and continued up a valley until we came to a hut where we enjoyed our lunch and watching the hoards of people hiking by us. After lunch we continued for another 30 minutes until we came to a nice lake surrounded on three sides by mountain walls. We spent a few minutes relaxing by the lake and taking pictures but we decided that we should start heading back as it still looked like it could rain so we didn't want to be caught in that. The hike back to the base of the ski lift was fairly uneventful and after finishing it we made our way back to the hostel stopping at a small grocery store on the way. That evening we relaxed at the hostel watching a movie and cooking dinner as the hostel was too far from anything to go out. So once the movie ended we just had a fairly early night.
The following morning we got up early and after a quick breakfast we made our way out. Today to get to our starting point for our hike we had to take a short bus ride from the bus station in Zakopane so after squishing onto a bus with the rest of Zakopane we got to the bus station from our hostel where we jumped on another bus that took us to the valley Dolina Chocholowska. Arriving at the start of our hike we proceeded to start walking up a nice wide and flat valley getting passed every once in a while by a horse drawn carriage taking other tourists further up the valley. After about an hour of walking through the valley we came to a cave that passed through the mountain to a point further down the trail. After a short climb up to the cave entrance we got to enter almost right away and spent the next 15 minutes squeezing through some narrow passages to the other side. The interior of the cave wasn't anything spectacular but it was quite long and fun to have to squeeze through. At the far end of the cave we descended back down to the main trail where we continued on to a small hut located at the end of the valley. After a short break at the hut we started to climb up to the top of a small pass where we took a break to enjoy our lunch while sitting on the grass. After lunch we continued down the other side of the pass until we came to the valley Dolina Koscielika which we walked down until we came out back at the road. Once at the end of the hike we hopped on a bus and got back into Zakopane. Back in Zakopane we picked up some food for dinner and made our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed another evening of movies and home cooked dinner before going to bed.
The next morning Lianne and I had to get up extremely early as we were leaving Celine and Adam since they were heading to Slovakia and us to the Czech Republic. So after saying goodbye to them we made our way out the door and to the bus station where we got on an early bus back to Poprad in Slovakia. Once in Poprad we bought some food for lunch and then got on a train for a very long ride to Prague in Czech Republic. Once we reached Prague though our day of traveling still wasn't done so after waiting in the train station for a couple of hours we boarded a train bound for Ceske Budejovice our destination for that day.
Celine, Lianne and Adam standing on the ridge with a nice view in the background on our first day hike.
Celine and me standing in front of the lake on our first day hike.
Lianne walking through the cave that we passed through on our second day of hiking.
Adam, Lianne, and Celine enjoying lunch on top of the small pass on the second day hike.
Standing in front of the beautiful green forest and a small waterfall on the last part of our second day hike.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Krakow
After spending a few hours on buses we eventually arrived in Krakow around noon and from the bus station we made the short walk to the hostel. Once we arrived at the hostel we quickly dumped our bags in our room and were greeted by Celine, my cousin from France. We spent the next couple of hours catching up and grabbing a quick bite to eat while we waited for Adam, Celine's boyfriend, to arrive. When Adam got to the hostel we decided to set off and explore a bit of Krakow before the day ended so we made our way to Rynek Glowny (Main Market Square) which is Europe's largest medieval town square. At Rynek Glowny we wandered around and admired the cloth hall (which used to be an old market but is just a souvenir market now), the exterior of St Mary's Church, and the town hall tower complete with a statue of a large head at its base. After seeing Rynek Glowny we just wandered around the old town for a bit seeing the side of Wawel castle, lots more churches and the Florian Gate. By this time it was getting fairly late so we just made our way back to the hostel where we enjoyed cooking our dinner (and eating it) before heading out to a nearby bar for a quick drink.
The next morning we set off to explore more of the Krakow city and started with Wawel castle. On top of Wawel Hill (the hill with the castle on it) we got to wander around the small but nice gardens and to admire the exterior of the buildings. We then decided that we should see the interior of some of the buildings so after reading about all of them (and seeing what was open) we decided that the only part that really interested us was the Wawel Cathedral which was absolutely magnificent inside. Other than being just a place of worship and the coronation place of the Polish royalty there were the royal tombs and a magnificent bell tower containing several huge bells. After touring the Cathedral we decided that we had seen enough of Wawel Hill and returned down to a nearby park where we got to enjoy our small picnic lunch. After lunch we walked along the river front for a bit towards Kazimierz which was the Jewish quarter during WWII. In Kazimierz we wandered around the area looking into a few of the synagogues which had been turned into small museums or galleries and at the slightly different architecture. The last place that we visited in Kazimierz was the Old Synagogue which is now the Jewish Museum and has a great exhibition on Jewish customs and traditions. After visiting the Jewish Quarter we made our way across the river, after a short break, to find Schindler's Factory, the factory that was owned by the person portrayed in Steven Spielberg's movie Schindler's List. The building was fairly plain and at this point there wasn't any reason to really visit it as they were in the process of turning it into a museum but it wouldn't be completed until 2010. After Schindler's Factory we wandered around another Jewish camp from WWII before making our way to a nice park nearby where we spent the last bit of the afternoon before returning to the hostel. Once at the hostel we enjoyed another home cooked meal and spent the rest of the evening just relaxing at the hostel and watching some TV and movies.
The following morning we got up and made our way to the bus station where we quickly hopped on a bus bound for Auschwitz to see the Nazi concentration camps. We arrived at the Auschwitz camp just in time to catch one of the mandatory tours and so after only a short delay we were off. The tour took us through several of the remaining buildings, as the Nazis weren't able to destroy all of them when they fled, and had very moving displays about what happened to prisoners at the camps and how they were treated. There were lots of displays showing from how far away Jews were shipped to Auschwitz to be part of the camps and lots of piles showing all the stuff that had been confiscated from them such as shoes, suitcases, eyeglasses, and even their hair after it was shaved off. One interesting fact was that the highest concentration of survivors had worked in one area of the camp called the Canadian Factory which was the place where all the new arrivals luggage was sorted. It was called the Canadian Factory because it was the best job available to them and to them Canada was the promise land. After touring around Auschwitz we caught the shuttle bus over to Birkenau, a second and even larger concentration camp in the area. When we arrived at Birkenau we were pleased to find that we were the only 4 from our tour group to arrive so we got a private tour through the camp. Most of the buildings at Birkenau had been destroyed as they were mostly made from wood, but of the few remaining we got to see the buildings where prisoners lived and how they were absolutely crammed into the buildings. We also got to see an exact replica of the gas chambers where hundreds of thousands of people were killed. After getting a tour around Birkenau we caught the bus back to Krakow where we returned to our hostel and spent the evening relaxing in the common room watching movies and eating dinner.
Our last morning in Krakow we got up and packed our bags before heading off to check out the nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine. Arriving at the salt mine we quickly made our way to the entrance and signed up for a tour of the Unesco World Heritage Listed mine. The mine was quite fascinating and was mined right up until the mid 20th century. Inside the mine is a labyrinth of pits, chambers and tunnels with everything inside these being hewn right from the rock salt. There were tons of statues in different rooms depicting scenes of miners and other statues of famous people who had visited the mine with each statue being carved by old miners during their breaks. The highlight of the mine though would have to be the huge Chapel of the Blessed Knight, one of several chapels carved into the mine, where everything was again carved out of salt including the chandeliers and all of the alters over a 30 year period. After our tour of the salt mine we got back on a bus and made our way back to our hostel where we grabbed our bags and made our way to the bus station. Arriving at the bus station we quickly got on a bus bound for Zakopane where we planned to spend the next few days doing some hiking in the Polish side of the Tatra Mountains.
A picture of the Wawel Cathedral from the castle grounds on Wawel Hill.
At the base of Wawel Hill there was a cool statue of a dragon that if you sent a text message to him he would breath fire.
Looking down between two barbed wire fences where guards would patrol to keep the Jews under control.
Looking down the train tracks where prisoners would have to depart the train in Birkenau. In the distance is the main gateway to the site where everyone had to enter through.
Looking down one of the roadways in the Birkenau camp surrounded with huge barbwire fences.
Standing in a guard tower overlooking the Birkenau camp so that you can see the enormous size of it.
The next morning we set off to explore more of the Krakow city and started with Wawel castle. On top of Wawel Hill (the hill with the castle on it) we got to wander around the small but nice gardens and to admire the exterior of the buildings. We then decided that we should see the interior of some of the buildings so after reading about all of them (and seeing what was open) we decided that the only part that really interested us was the Wawel Cathedral which was absolutely magnificent inside. Other than being just a place of worship and the coronation place of the Polish royalty there were the royal tombs and a magnificent bell tower containing several huge bells. After touring the Cathedral we decided that we had seen enough of Wawel Hill and returned down to a nearby park where we got to enjoy our small picnic lunch. After lunch we walked along the river front for a bit towards Kazimierz which was the Jewish quarter during WWII. In Kazimierz we wandered around the area looking into a few of the synagogues which had been turned into small museums or galleries and at the slightly different architecture. The last place that we visited in Kazimierz was the Old Synagogue which is now the Jewish Museum and has a great exhibition on Jewish customs and traditions. After visiting the Jewish Quarter we made our way across the river, after a short break, to find Schindler's Factory, the factory that was owned by the person portrayed in Steven Spielberg's movie Schindler's List. The building was fairly plain and at this point there wasn't any reason to really visit it as they were in the process of turning it into a museum but it wouldn't be completed until 2010. After Schindler's Factory we wandered around another Jewish camp from WWII before making our way to a nice park nearby where we spent the last bit of the afternoon before returning to the hostel. Once at the hostel we enjoyed another home cooked meal and spent the rest of the evening just relaxing at the hostel and watching some TV and movies.
The following morning we got up and made our way to the bus station where we quickly hopped on a bus bound for Auschwitz to see the Nazi concentration camps. We arrived at the Auschwitz camp just in time to catch one of the mandatory tours and so after only a short delay we were off. The tour took us through several of the remaining buildings, as the Nazis weren't able to destroy all of them when they fled, and had very moving displays about what happened to prisoners at the camps and how they were treated. There were lots of displays showing from how far away Jews were shipped to Auschwitz to be part of the camps and lots of piles showing all the stuff that had been confiscated from them such as shoes, suitcases, eyeglasses, and even their hair after it was shaved off. One interesting fact was that the highest concentration of survivors had worked in one area of the camp called the Canadian Factory which was the place where all the new arrivals luggage was sorted. It was called the Canadian Factory because it was the best job available to them and to them Canada was the promise land. After touring around Auschwitz we caught the shuttle bus over to Birkenau, a second and even larger concentration camp in the area. When we arrived at Birkenau we were pleased to find that we were the only 4 from our tour group to arrive so we got a private tour through the camp. Most of the buildings at Birkenau had been destroyed as they were mostly made from wood, but of the few remaining we got to see the buildings where prisoners lived and how they were absolutely crammed into the buildings. We also got to see an exact replica of the gas chambers where hundreds of thousands of people were killed. After getting a tour around Birkenau we caught the bus back to Krakow where we returned to our hostel and spent the evening relaxing in the common room watching movies and eating dinner.
Our last morning in Krakow we got up and packed our bags before heading off to check out the nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine. Arriving at the salt mine we quickly made our way to the entrance and signed up for a tour of the Unesco World Heritage Listed mine. The mine was quite fascinating and was mined right up until the mid 20th century. Inside the mine is a labyrinth of pits, chambers and tunnels with everything inside these being hewn right from the rock salt. There were tons of statues in different rooms depicting scenes of miners and other statues of famous people who had visited the mine with each statue being carved by old miners during their breaks. The highlight of the mine though would have to be the huge Chapel of the Blessed Knight, one of several chapels carved into the mine, where everything was again carved out of salt including the chandeliers and all of the alters over a 30 year period. After our tour of the salt mine we got back on a bus and made our way back to our hostel where we grabbed our bags and made our way to the bus station. Arriving at the bus station we quickly got on a bus bound for Zakopane where we planned to spend the next few days doing some hiking in the Polish side of the Tatra Mountains.
A picture of the Wawel Cathedral from the castle grounds on Wawel Hill.
At the base of Wawel Hill there was a cool statue of a dragon that if you sent a text message to him he would breath fire.
Looking down between two barbed wire fences where guards would patrol to keep the Jews under control.
Looking down the train tracks where prisoners would have to depart the train in Birkenau. In the distance is the main gateway to the site where everyone had to enter through.
Looking down one of the roadways in the Birkenau camp surrounded with huge barbwire fences.
Standing in a guard tower overlooking the Birkenau camp so that you can see the enormous size of it.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Poprad
After we left Spisska Nova Ves we took a short bus ride to Poprad, a fairly insignificant city in Slovakia however it is a great place to base ourselves for some hiking in the Tatra Mountains. Arriving in Poprad we quickly went to the tourist information office and were given a list of available accommodation in Poprad so we set off to find a room for the next few days. We eventually found a nice and cheap place however it was fully booked for the first night so we decided to stay in a cheap hotel for that night before moving the next day. After dropping our bags off in the hotel we set off to explore the city for the rest of the afternoon and after finding that there wasn't much there we just found an internet cafe to spend the rest of the afternoon in. That evening we just enjoyed a delicious dinner in one of the only restaurants that we could find before heading back to the hotel for an early night.
The next morning we got up early and quickly checked out of our hotel so that we could drop off our luggage at our new room. After dumping our bags there we wasted no time in catching the train which quickly got us up to Stary Smokovec, a small mountain village where several trail heads started. Unfortunately once we reach Stary Smokovec it really started to pour so instead of starting a hike we just decided to enjoy a cup of coffee in one of the several cafes and wait out the rain. Luckily after an hour or so it seemed to stop raining so we set off up the trial to start hiking in the Tatras, but the rain started again quickly so we decided to just give up and return to Poprad. Back in Poprad we just relaxed in our room for the last bit of the afternoon before another great dinner and an early night.
The following morning we got up early and made our way straight to the electric train to return to Stary Smokovec. Thankfully when we reached Stary Smokovec it wasn't raining so we were able to start hiking right away on the trail that we started on the day before. Our day hike took us up into the mountains and past several huts and a couple of waterfalls. There were also a few nice viewpoints over the surrounding countryside although it was slightly cloudy so it wasn't perfect. We climbed up a beautiful valley to reach a high mountain hut. At the hut we enjoyed a fast lunch break since it was too cold to stay still very long. After lunch we continued up to climb over a pass so that we could return back down a different valley. Climbing up the to the top of the pass was extremely fun as the last 100 meters or so we had to haul ourselves up a near cliff face using chains. Once we reached the top of the pass we continued on down the slightly easier other side and after a few more hours of walking through another stunning valley we found ourselves back down near the start of the trail. Once we got back to Stary Smokovec we quickly returned to Poprad where after a bit of relaxing we enjoyed another simple dinner and an early night.
The following day we decided to take a day off from hiking and explore the nearby village of Kezmarok. When we got off the bus in Kezmarok we started to walk around the town and quickly found the Old Wooden Evangelical Church, which was our main reason for visiting Kezmarok. We were quite disappointed looking at the exterior of the church as it was quite plain but once we were inside it we were amazed. The wooden church was built entirely out of wood, not even any nails, and the interior was all beautifully carved and painted. It was truly amazing to see and the day trip to Kezmarok was worth it just for the church. Outside of the wooden church we wandered around the town and followed the historical walk which took as by a few more churches, a small castle and an old cemetery which were all fairly interesting. After spending a few hours checking out the town we made our way back to Poprad where we spent the last bit of the afternoon using the internet and relaxing. That night we enjoyed a nice dinner and a few drinks in one of the only restaurants that we could find before heading to bed.
The next day was our last full day in Slovakia and again we got up early to catch the train up to the Tatras; but this time we continued past Stary Smokovec to Strbske Pleso where we were planning to start our hike from. We started off our hike by walking around the beautiful lake in Strbske Pleso before heading up another stunning valley. The hike today took us up through one valley where we enjoyed some beautiful views before our lunch at the top of the valley in the sunny weather. After lunch we again climbed up over a pass but this time there were hardly any chains that we needed to use so it wasn't as thrilling. Climbing back down the other valley we were awarded some more great views in the sunny weather before we eventually returned to Strbske Pleso and caught a train back to Poprad. That evening was again spent pretty quietly as we were both tired from our long day of hiking.
The next morning was our last in Slovakia so after a simple breakfast we packed up and made our way to the bus station. At the bus station we got on an early bus that took us along a beautiful road to Zakopane in Poland. Once we arrived in Zakopane we just got off a bus and hopped on another one right away that took us to Krakow which was our next destination and where we were meeting up with my cousin Celine and her boyfriend Adam.
Lianne freezing at our lunch stop on our first day hike in the Tatras.
Lianne using the chains to haul herself up the cliff face to the pass on the first day hike.
Looking down the valley on the first day hike. This was some of the typical scenery that we got to hike through and it was absolutely beautiful.
The lake at Strbske Pleso which was stunning to walk around.
Standing in the valley that we hiked up through on the second day hike.
Standing at the pass that we crossed over on our second day hike.
The next morning we got up early and quickly checked out of our hotel so that we could drop off our luggage at our new room. After dumping our bags there we wasted no time in catching the train which quickly got us up to Stary Smokovec, a small mountain village where several trail heads started. Unfortunately once we reach Stary Smokovec it really started to pour so instead of starting a hike we just decided to enjoy a cup of coffee in one of the several cafes and wait out the rain. Luckily after an hour or so it seemed to stop raining so we set off up the trial to start hiking in the Tatras, but the rain started again quickly so we decided to just give up and return to Poprad. Back in Poprad we just relaxed in our room for the last bit of the afternoon before another great dinner and an early night.
The following morning we got up early and made our way straight to the electric train to return to Stary Smokovec. Thankfully when we reached Stary Smokovec it wasn't raining so we were able to start hiking right away on the trail that we started on the day before. Our day hike took us up into the mountains and past several huts and a couple of waterfalls. There were also a few nice viewpoints over the surrounding countryside although it was slightly cloudy so it wasn't perfect. We climbed up a beautiful valley to reach a high mountain hut. At the hut we enjoyed a fast lunch break since it was too cold to stay still very long. After lunch we continued up to climb over a pass so that we could return back down a different valley. Climbing up the to the top of the pass was extremely fun as the last 100 meters or so we had to haul ourselves up a near cliff face using chains. Once we reached the top of the pass we continued on down the slightly easier other side and after a few more hours of walking through another stunning valley we found ourselves back down near the start of the trail. Once we got back to Stary Smokovec we quickly returned to Poprad where after a bit of relaxing we enjoyed another simple dinner and an early night.
The following day we decided to take a day off from hiking and explore the nearby village of Kezmarok. When we got off the bus in Kezmarok we started to walk around the town and quickly found the Old Wooden Evangelical Church, which was our main reason for visiting Kezmarok. We were quite disappointed looking at the exterior of the church as it was quite plain but once we were inside it we were amazed. The wooden church was built entirely out of wood, not even any nails, and the interior was all beautifully carved and painted. It was truly amazing to see and the day trip to Kezmarok was worth it just for the church. Outside of the wooden church we wandered around the town and followed the historical walk which took as by a few more churches, a small castle and an old cemetery which were all fairly interesting. After spending a few hours checking out the town we made our way back to Poprad where we spent the last bit of the afternoon using the internet and relaxing. That night we enjoyed a nice dinner and a few drinks in one of the only restaurants that we could find before heading to bed.
The next day was our last full day in Slovakia and again we got up early to catch the train up to the Tatras; but this time we continued past Stary Smokovec to Strbske Pleso where we were planning to start our hike from. We started off our hike by walking around the beautiful lake in Strbske Pleso before heading up another stunning valley. The hike today took us up through one valley where we enjoyed some beautiful views before our lunch at the top of the valley in the sunny weather. After lunch we again climbed up over a pass but this time there were hardly any chains that we needed to use so it wasn't as thrilling. Climbing back down the other valley we were awarded some more great views in the sunny weather before we eventually returned to Strbske Pleso and caught a train back to Poprad. That evening was again spent pretty quietly as we were both tired from our long day of hiking.
The next morning was our last in Slovakia so after a simple breakfast we packed up and made our way to the bus station. At the bus station we got on an early bus that took us along a beautiful road to Zakopane in Poland. Once we arrived in Zakopane we just got off a bus and hopped on another one right away that took us to Krakow which was our next destination and where we were meeting up with my cousin Celine and her boyfriend Adam.
Lianne freezing at our lunch stop on our first day hike in the Tatras.
Lianne using the chains to haul herself up the cliff face to the pass on the first day hike.
Looking down the valley on the first day hike. This was some of the typical scenery that we got to hike through and it was absolutely beautiful.
The lake at Strbske Pleso which was stunning to walk around.
Standing in the valley that we hiked up through on the second day hike.
Standing at the pass that we crossed over on our second day hike.
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