After Vienna we were up nice and early for our trip to Munich, Germany. We all slept the entire was so I hope we didn't miss too much beautiful scenery. We arrived in Munich and it was SO hot, 32 degrees! I know that doesn't seem that hot compared to how hot it gets in Perth, but I haven't seen the sun or felt the heat for a while. We didn't have long in the city to sightsee but we did as much as we could, as well as fitting in some shopping. One of the main attractions that Munich has to offer is the Town Hall, which houses a famous Glockenspiel. Every day it chimes and re-enacts two stories from the 16th century, to the amusement of mass crowds of tourists and locals. It consists of 43 bells and 32 life-sized figures. We were there to see it in action. It lasts for about 12-15 minutes, yet after about 2 we had all seen enough. It was cool too see but quiet boring to be honest. After this we headed to our hostel to get dressed and ready for our dinner at a local beer hall. As we sat down for dinner and were bombarded with 1 litre beer steins. Once I had a few sips and the novelty photos Lis and I of course stuck to wine. The waitress was SO RUDE, Our first bad encounter. There were endless stuff ups with the orders and she loved yelling and causing a scene! The boys certainly gave her a run for her money. LUCKILY the pork knuckle I ordered was scrumptious! My mouth is watering just thinking about how good it was, mum would have been in heaven. Lis had schnitzel so we shared and that was also good. There was some really awful German entertainment that a few of us choose to ditch in favour of a glass of wine with the locals, which was really nice. The bus ride home was hilarious with Jeff providing some great entertainment. At the hostel we went down the bar for a few drinks before bed, yet it was FULL of 15 year old children on a school trip. Apparently it was ok because they weren't drinking and just dancing, but it was just weird so we didn't stay long!
Up early for yet another awful hostel
breakfast (the camp sites are so much better as they are run by contiki staff)!
Heading back to Austria today except this time to the Austrian Tyrol. Our first
stop was about half an hour out of Munich, at Dachau Memorial Concentration
Camp. The first Nazi concentration camp to open in Germany. What an experience
it was. We saw the crematorium area which included a disinfecting room were
people were told to strip off because they were having a shower. Their clothes
were then burnt and they were pushed into a gas chamber, which was a room that
literally looked like shower heads were coming from the ceiling. Roughly 150
people were pushed in there at a time, and then their bodies were cremated! The
actual incinerators that we saw were absolutely awful; I can't even begin to
explain how bad seeing it was. Being at and seeing Dachau with my own eyes was
the most sombering experience. I didn't realise how much it would actually
affect me, let’s just say the bus ride afterwards was very quiet. I think
everyone was reflecting on what we had just witnessed. We arrived at our camp
in Hopfgarten, which was surrounded by pristine hills and lakes. After dinner
(more schnitzel) we had yet another themed party, this time it was it was
'tight, bright and sparkly'! Not so keen on the 'tight' side, luckily I had a
bright green dress to wear and got creative with mine and Lisa's makeup for the
'sparkly' aspect. We had another great night dancing up a storm and our tour
guide proceeded to get quite intoxicated which was hilarious! The night ended
about 3am with Lis and I resorting to a snack on the stairs before bed time.
Today we were up early and after
breakfast prepared ourselves for a 25km bike ride throughout the Austrian
mountains. Some people were feeling a little worse for wear from the night
before and others didn't even make it out of bed. Lis and I were just excited
to finally be doing some real exercise. The first part of the ride was ALL UP
HILL! I managed to stay with the front of the pack yet it was a struggle, I can
honestly say I don’t think anyone found it easy! We stopped half way for some
fresh natural spring water out of the stream... Bliss! Our way down was much
easier and fun, we built up quite a speed as we were up higher than I though.
The scenery for the entire 25km was simply breathtaking. The luscious green
hillside, perfect tiny cottages and some beautiful streams made for probably
the most picturesque bike ride I will ever do. We made it back to camp for a
BBQ lunch to reward our hard efforts and it was surprisingly ok. After lunch it
was time for some more adventure sports...PARAGLIDING! Something I never
thought I’d do, yet I was in Austrian and it just felt right. Lisa was super
excited and I was secretly crapping myself. I’m not the best with heights and
to be honest I’ve cried on rollercoasters before, so it was going to be
interesting. Obviously not everyone choose to do this optional and surprisingly
most of the boys opted out. We arrived at the bottom of the mountain and met
our tandem partners. Mine seemed nice; I just prayed he knew how to open a
parachute! We hopped on a cable car that took us to the top. As we were going
up I was realising very quickly how high we were actually going as the ride
seemed to take forever (about 2000m high). We got off and my tandem driver
strapped me up. He explained that I had to run as fast as I could off the edge
of the cliff (WHAT?!) and that the wind would pick us up and he would do the
rest! All I could think was 'please don’t die I have 3 more weeks of travelling
to do'! Before I could back out we were sprinting off the edge of the cliff and
then we were UP UP AND AWAY! I could not believe what I was actually doing,
pretty much flying over the Austrian Tyrol. It was absolutely amazing. Yes I
panicked at the start when I saw how high we were and had butterflies most of
the way, but those feelings were overcome by the stunning surroundings. After
about 10 minutes in the sky, where I did some recording, we slowly made our way
back down and landed safely on our bottoms. It was the most exhilarating thing I
have ever done and I’m so glad I did it. Back at camp we freshened up after
such an action packed morning and then Sam, Monique, Sarah, Elli, Lis and I decided
to head to the local trout farm for a spot of fishing. We paid €8 and were
kitted out with some bait and a rode. The lake we were fishing in was
beautiful. I was the first to catch a fish, dad would be proud! As much as
growing up with brothers and being quite the tom boy, I couldn’t bring myself
to whack it with a piece of wood like the owner was insisting, so he had to do
the honours and kill it for me. Not long after Lis and the other girls caught
one too so the owners cleaned them up and cooked it for us to enjoy.
Considering I don’t like fish, it was really nice and I was highly impressed.
Monique was the only one to kill her own fish and I was very proud of her. We
had such a fun and random afternoon, it was great. Back at camp for dinner
which we didn’t eat as we were full from our fish. Afterwards everyone headed
to the Aussie bar in town. The tiny town of Hopfgarten relies heavily on
tourists, hence the Aussie bar. We were so exhausted from our day so didn’t
last long before we headed home to bed. I have absolutely loved this part of
Austria and it is certainly one of my favourite spots. So many great memories
have been made here and the place itself, I could not fault. It just keeps
getting better.
On the bus bright and early for a
trip to Switzerland. Our first stop was at Swarovski crystal world. This place
was pretty incredible. It held the world’s largest cut crystal and a 10 meter high
wall full of crystals that ran the full length of the building. I resisted
temptation and didn’t buy anything yet admired it all. Some girls spent €500 on
rings!! Back on the bus where we then stopped off for lunch in Lichtenstein, one
of the smallest countries in the world. It’s doubly land blocked by Austria and
Switzerland and is the only country to lie entirely within the Alps. From what
we saw it was pretty cool, we got our passports stamped too. The thing with
this trip is because we drive everywhere we don’t get our passports stamped to
remember where we have been. Luckily I brought lots of postcards and have my
trusty blog. After lunch we headed for Lucerne in Switzerland. It is located on
the shore of Lake Lucerne and one of the city’s most famous landmarks is the
Chapel Bridge, which was built in the 14th century. The bridge was remarkable
and looked so perfect running over the lake. It was pouring with rain which
dampened (literally) the afternoon a little. We visited a Swiss army knife shop
which didn’t appeal to me at all and then a Swiss watch shop which was ok but
nothing jumped out at me. Lis and I then snuck off and found a much more
appealing shop for us both, SWISS CHOCOLATE. We brought some delicious chocolates
that’s we ate on the way back to the bus, they were SO good! Where we were
staying in the Alps was another two hour drive from Lucerne up a long and windy
mountain. Unfortunately I was looking at photos for longer than I should have
and got travel sick. Lis was quick to get me a bag and the boys on the back
seat where great. It was one of the only times I just wanted to get off the
bus. We finally arrived at camp which was certainly set in the most beautiful
spot yet. We were surrounded my mountain ranges and incredible running
waterfalls, I can’t explain how beautiful it was. After dinner everyone took in
the scenery for a while before heading to bed.
Lis and I woke up super early today
to get a shower in, as for the first time they were communal! After breakfast
we met up with some of our friends for our adventure in Switzerland today. We
took the old fashioned cog railway up to the top of the Jungfrau Mountain, also
known as 'The top of Europe'! It took two hours to reach the top and at 3571
meters we were up super high. The temperature was about -5.8 degrees and the
wind was so icy, yet the sun was shining. We played in the Ice, writing our
names and eating some whilst acting like we were 10 years old! It was so great,
the first time Lis had seen and touched snow and we got to do it together, we
really have done it all! The sun made it so bright and glary that if you didn't
have sunglasses you would have struggled. Once the first snowball was thrown we
got away quick smart, as we didn't want to be soaking wet for our journey back
to camp. The change in altitude made my asthma play up slightly but we had been
warned it would, so I had my puffer in tow. We had a nice hot chocolate to
finish our day in the snow. On the way down the view was mesmerising. From snow
and Alps to lush green hillsides with flowing waterfalls. We got back to camp
and joined the boys for a debrief of our fun afternoon and a few drinks. After
dinner we had another party that was Swiss themed. As I had nothing red or
white it was the only party I didn't dress up for. Lis and I enjoyed some Champagne
which we hadn’t had in a while, but as the bar was underground it was so hot. I
felt like a smoker going outside for air every 5 minutes. Another great night
was had and the realisation was starting to sink in that there wouldn't be many
more nights like this to enjoy together.
Today we were heading to the Rhine
Valley in Germany for the night. We stopped off at a small town half way there
for a coffee and Lis did a spot of shopping. We then stopped at another town
for an awful contiki dinner (all dinners they supply are awful). Afterwards we
had a demonstration at a beer stein and cuckoo clock shop; we got into the spirit
of it all, but resisted the temptation to buy anything. The shops they take us
too are so overpriced; they must live off naive coktiki travellers. You wonder
down the street and find the same thing at half the price! People still love
the concept though and some people brought up big. Unfortunately I missed it
last night, but Mike one of the Greek boys from Melbourne who we love was quite
intoxicated and proposed to Lisa (our roommate from Sydney not my Lisa)! So it
was this big joke today and as we were staying the night in the middle of
nowhere with not a lot to do, everyone decided it would make for some great
entertainment if we planned a mock wedding for the two of them! Mike even
printed invitations at one of our stops. Monique and I picked flowers and found
a veil. Lisa the bride is so shy so the whole thing is quite hilarious. yet I loved
every minute of it. After we got the necessities we headed to wine tasting in
this really old cellar. We tried some beautiful wines including ice wine which
I had never heard of! It was way too sweet, but Lis loved it and purchased a
bottle to take home. We made it to the hostel and it was time to prep for the
Big Wedding, a first in contiki history apparently! Lis, Monique, Sam and I
were bridesmaids so we made bouquets and wore long dresses and Mike had all the
Greek boys as his groomsmen. There was a page boy, flower girl, mother and
father of the bride and Jimmy our tour leader was the Priest of course. The
whole thing was hilarious, it got a little wired at some points but everyone
had a laugh and enjoyed Champagne to celebrate.
Heading to Amsterdam today everyone
was excited, although it meant our last few days together. Our first stop was a
little town in the Netherlands called Edam. We were scheduled to have a bike
ride, yet this was cancelled due to the rain. Instead we headed to a cheese and
clog factory. It was so cute. We had a demonstration on how they make clogs and
tasted too much cheese. Lis and I brought a smoked black pepper block to enjoy while
we were in Amsterdam. Back on the bus where our tour leader gave a speech all
about drugs and the difference between cafes and coffee shops (where you buy
marijuana), I'm glad he cleared that one up! We arrived at our hotel and had a
pretty nice room with the four of us girls. We headed into town and did a bit
of a walking tour. We strolled through the red light district which was
certainly an eye opener. Girls in windows EVERYWHERE! I didn’t realise how many
there would be and certainly didn’t expect them to be as beautiful as they
were! It was extremely seedy though, so I’m glad we didn’t spend all night
there. After seeing a few more attractions we headed to a bar for a few drinks
and then a few of us left to go for a dance. We headed home about 2am and had a
little picnic with our group and indulged in the cheese we brought.
Today is our last full day together
as a whole group. We started the morning by exploring the city on canal bikes.
Canal bikes are little boats you peddle around the canals. Lis and I paired up
with James and Chris because you needed four people per boat. Weird considering
only two of you can peddle at a time. James and Chris did most of the peddling because
Lisa and I sucked! Firstly we could barely reach the paddles and then it seemed
we lacked the coordination to peddle and steer at the same time! We had a few
close encounters with the sides. The boys were great though and Lis and I
thoroughly enjoyed the ride. We sore some beautiful parts of Amsterdam, which
was a nice change from the red light district. The house and canals are really
cute and make Amsterdam a beautiful city. After two hours on the canals we
stopped and the four of us headed off to get lost in the city. We walked
through an extremely dodgy gypsie fleet market and then down the main shopping
streets (a lot like London I think)! After some lunch we headed back to the
hotel to get ready for our last night. We started the night with a canal
cruise, this was really nice and the driver was telling us all about the famous
monuments and places. To be honest not many people were paying attention as
everyone want to get there last photos with everyone. We arrived at our
'floating restaurant' the 'Sea Palace' which was a Chinese buffet. Strange, but
we hadn't had any Asian food in weeks so it was a nice change. We sat with our
favourite group of 10 and the food was actually really enjoyable. The free wine
was drinkable too which was a bonus. After dinner we headed out for one last
farewell pub crawl. I lasted until about 2am and then made my way home.
We got up bright and early to say
goodbye to the bus as it was heading back to London. Half of our group
including us where staying in Amsterdam for another night before continuing on
with other travels. Most of our favourites where staying too so we didn’t have
to say too many sad goodbyes. Monique who had become Lis and I's new bestie was
heading back to London unfortunately, so it was really sad saying goodbye to
her. She was really upset and didn’t want to leave. I knew we had made friends
for life and would see each other again soon (we have since skyped 3 times)! We
waved goodbye to the bus, our transport for the last 4 weeks and the great
memories that came with it. We were now on our own, with no guide or structure
to our days. The left overs all hung around down stairs for a while before
having to say goodbye to Sam, Lisa and Michael, our roommates who were flying
to Greece. That was sad too and our 'A' team was no more. Time for lunch so
myself Lis and the boys all headed in to town for some food and a general
wonder. We met up with the rest of the left overs for dinner together before
saying a few more goodbyes. We were all pretty exhausted from today, so headed
back to the hotel early. Lis and I had booked our extra nights at the same
hotel and were lucky that we didn't have to change rooms. James, Costa, Chris
and Michael or the 'Greek Boys' as we like to call them were flying to Greece
at 5am and didn’t have a room booked, so lucky for them we had the extra beds
they could use.
This morning saw more sad goodbyes,
this time to the 'Greek Boys'! These guys provided us with so much
entertainment and were honestly the best. All so different, yet so much fun. We
had all become really close and they loved eating with us because we always
knew the best places to go. I cannot wait to visit them in Melbourne. Today Lis
and I ventured out by ourselves to explore the Anne Frank Museum. We actually
got to walk through and experience the annex where she and her family hid
during the holocaust. It was so real, interesting and super sad. Especially
considering we had been to Dachau concentration camp and seen that side of it
and now to experience this. We saw letters she had written and mocks of how she
had her room set up. It was something I had really wanted to see and I am so
glad we went. We took photos out the front of her actual house a couple of
doors down too. We then found a little Dutch restaurant for lunch where we
indulged in croquettes and bitterbollens, a Dutch speciality that were really
tasty. Time to visit the Van Gough Museum. It was good, but hard not to compare
it to the Louvre. Let’s face it, nothing compares to that beauty. We did get to
see the famous 'Sunflowers' portrait though which was great. Time to meet up
with the remaining group which was only about ten of us. Kate and Elli are two
beautiful girls from Adelaide who we have become close to on tour and are
staying at the same hotel as us, so we all hang out together. After dinner we
headed back to the hotel for a quiet night. It’s so strange being by ourselves
and not having had a drink for two days!
Our last day in Amsterdam saw Lisa
wake up with suspected conjunctivitis and myself with the awful rash I have had
back home that makes my whole body swell and is extremely uncomfortable. The
doctors have no idea what it is and it sure beats me. I can’t believe our last
day and we are both a mess. It didn't stop us though. As bad as we felt we had
to get out for our last day. Lis had to buy a suitcase as hers broke on the
first day and we managed to sneak in a well needed pedicure. We met up with
Joel, Nick, Kate and Elli for a tour of the Heineken factory, where we got to
see the history, how the beer is made and finally got to try some actual beer.
I didn’t enjoy myself as much as I could have because I just wasn’t feeling the
best, but it was good. Our final goodbyes
to Kate and Elli which were sad and then Nick and Joel, we had become super
close to these two and I’m going to miss them so much. Hopefully our paths will
cross again as they are spending 6 months in Europe. Lis and I then headed back
to our hotel to grab our cases before going to the airport for our 10pm flight
to Spain and then onto Croatia.
Never in a million years did I think
I would have as much fun on contiki as I did. From the places we saw, food we
indulged in, people we met and every experience in between was just perfect. I
met people I will be friends with for life andgot to make so many amazing
memories along the way with my best friend.
My next blog will cover our sail
through Croatia, the Greek Islands, the Olympics and life back in London town.
Until next week...
Xxx
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