Down the Rabbit Hole and off to Carpe

Budapest, Budapest, Budapest.... where to even start with Budapest and the people that were there.

This city was by far some of the most fun I have had in all of my travels. The hostel while giving you the opportunity to go and sightsee and play tourist is not geared towards that type of traveller in any way shape or form.

Carpe Noctem (seize the night) is a party hostel and the people working and living there make it some of the most fun you will have in Europe provided that you are willing to be open and join in on all of the fun. Every night has a destination and usually a good drinks deal.

My first day there I had only had a bed for about 30 minutes when I was invited out in passing to Mongolian BBQ, which was 4000 florins and included unlimited food, beer and wine. The guys I went with turned out to be staff for the most part and this led to some great impressions of them as I learnt the wonderful back stories of a few of them. The day progressed quickly and then before I knew it tequila had been ordered, much to Suzi’s dismay. The three guys who were hitting it hard got some shit for their antics to put it lightly, in the end one of them even lost the battle with his stomach at the table and resulted in me making a hasty retreat while it was dealt with – not my problem is the phrase that came to mind.

That night was, like all at Carpe, one for going out, the exact specific destinations on that night eluding me at this point but there was drinking and more than one bar that we went to over the course of the night.

The drinking specifics is something that will come in a later post, after I grab the schedule from Carpe’s site.

More importantly is the fact that some sightseeing was enjoyed. On one day I went with three other people to the House of Terror/Horror which is based in the old headquarters of first the Nazi secret police and then the Soviet secret police. It was an experience to say the least, I had no real idea about the role that Hungary had played in the second world war, other than the fact I knew they were in it, and then the information about what the Soviets had done in their time in the country was a bit of a shock.

I recommend to anyone who heads to Budapest to go there, but at the same time make sure you have something to do afterwards that is a bit more uplifting as the museum in the end is depressing in the reality that it portrays.

After the museum I headed with one of the other guys to Hero Square which is one of the quintessential things that most people see in Budapest and it is on almost all of the post cards that you will get. It was nice and made, like so many sights in Budapest, for some nice pictures. We then wandered around for almost 3 hours in Budapest and took in the main tourist street, one that we were warned not to go near at night, and also the market hall and one of the main bridges in town which gave some nice views across the city.

The other main chunk of sight seeing that I did, embarrassingly, was not done until the day I was leaving, very hung over from the Shit Pub Pub-crawl, to be explained another time, I wandered quite some distance in a random direction and ended up at some of the sights I had not managed to get to the time before and even with the mediocre weather that day it made for some nice pictures and being able to get to almost all of the sights on the Pest side of Budapest.

This leaves the other city, with respect to my experience, unexplored and will probably prove to be the excuse for me going back there at some point for another drunken week of Carpe madness.

The time I was going to be spending in Budapest was only 4 nights, this number quickly changed once I checked the time tables for the buses and discovered that the bus to Kiev that ran on Fridays no longer existed – I had to stay till I got the bus on Monday night. This meant a weekend in Budapest which in the end was the best way to have it and it was just as fun as I expected it to be but once it was over the bus on Monday to Kiev was looming and it was not something I was going to miss.

After a goodbye that was almost on par with when I left Australia from the people at Carpe I went to the bus station and wait is something that I certainly did. The bus was scheduled to arrive in Budapest at 9 pm. Waiting there early as always 9 pm came and went, and with no bus in sight, concerned to say the least I waited, and waited and then over an hour late the bus arrived much to my relief. I go the last free seat on the bus and then we were away.

Prague, the city of a thousand spires

Prague was a different feel to the small place I had been the previous couple of nights, got there mid afternoon, got the bed, stored the stuff and then sorted dinner, then got my directions to the Pub Crawl, the main reason I had wanted to get into Prague on the Friday night. The crowd was massive and it looked to be a ton of fun.

The first Bar was from Euro trip, the English bar that the guys meet the football hooligans in, which made it cool, then was a couple of other places including one that had like 4 levels and an awesome Czech scar band playing in the basement, great for something different. The last place was a club, also in the movie Eurotrip, the one where the twins hook up, had an awesome time and with a little chemical help, danced like an idiot till 4 in the morning before pulling the pin and leaving. I discovered walking back that it was quite far from the hostel and that the buildings in Prague look amazing as the sun comes up at 4 am.

The next day was essentially a write off and not a whole lot was done at all.
The day after, the Sunday I was determined to do something more productive and I dragged my ass up so I could make the walking tour. It was good and like all of the free tours almost all of the good sights that you want to see you do.

On the tour I got talking to a couple of girls, an Aussie and an American and we all had the idea of meeting up the next day so we could sort out going to Kutna Hora and the Bone church which is there. The next day we met up near the castle and ended up spending a good chunk of the day hanging out and exploring around the castle and then some more of the old town, finally organizing the next day over coffee at Bohemian Bagel.
And the next day was Kutna Hora and the Bone Church…

I, the walker, move unto thee

So after a hiatus of far, far too long I am finally going to put a little bit of information on this wonderful blog of mine, probably with about 1 blog per city that I have been too so far.

Leaving the YOHO was an interesting time, I had many a drink with Phil on the Monday night and then spent my time with Gail on Tuesday, saying good bye was not an easy thing for either one of us I think, and I hope she took it well considering I think I was acting rather cold near the end, the future can only hold that answer and I am sure we will meet again. The Tuesday night I think some of the people at the hostel may have been around in an attempt to say goodbye but I wasn’t there, I headed out to O’Malley’s to have a couple of beers and say my farewells to the staff there that I had gotten to know to a certain degree. Getting back late I packed the very last of my things and crashed out so I could be up for my early train. I was up at half five, late believe it or not, had a quick shower and was out of the YOHO before 6 without more than a quick goodbye to the night porter, who was someone new and didn’t even know the significance of it. That wonderful overused T.S. Elliot quote came to mind as I walked to the train station.

[So] This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.

I missed the train I was aiming to get, but managed to get one not 10 minutes after to the same initial destination. What I did not realize was that those 10 minutes would result in a 2 hour wait in Linz train station waiting for the next train to Summerau where I would get my connection into the Czech republic before getting a third train to Cesky Kromlov.
In a way the trip was great going out to Summerau, it was empty grain fields in a sea of green on a beautiful clear day and just gave that great feeling that things were headed for change. The stop itself was in the middle of nowhere, not even platforms to wait on really. The wait was short lived as I boarded the third, train of the morning and it rattled its way to České Budějovice where after waiting a short time I made my way on the final train for my trip through Eastern Europe to the town of Cesky Kromlov.

The town was great and the stop was exactly what I needed to get myself out of work mode after being at the YOHO and working myself into the ground. There was a free keg on the Wednesday when I got there and it was a great treat to have. The night was an enjoyable one with the crowd that was at the hostel, one of the best I have ever been to when it comes to atmosphere and fun, Hostel99.

The next day was a search for a memory card to take its place in the camera that Gail had given me as a go between before I got my new one. After much searching I finally got a chip for it and played tourist for a little while. Then I heading back to the hostel I ran into a group of people from the hostel that were going to the local brewery for a tour…. Great idea.
The tour was a bunch of fun and for 180 Krone you got the tour, 2 draught beers and a “gift pack” of 4 more.

Straight after the tour there was more fun to be had, the “Rafting tour”. This was a 6 hour leisurely tour down the river on inflatable rafts on a wonderful clear and warm day with 4 stops at places to buy beer along the way, not to mention the beer you had already had before getting on the raft and then the stuff you drank on the rafts as well…. It was a great and thoroughly enjoyable day.
The night was a comparatively early one but the rest was well earned and Prague was on the horizon for the weekend. The next day was a slow pack up and then I made my way to get the bus to Prague; it was faster and cheaper to get the bus than it was to get a train.
And then I was in Prague by day’s end…

Paris - Sam and Robert

Next day was one consisting of a good chunk of required sleep, killing a few hours and then heading to the hotel where I was meeting up with Sam and Robert. Got there, waited for a bit and then they arrived... A familiar face after all of this time is a bit beyond words, we chilled for a bit, then headed out for dinner at a random restaurant which we found on the main square thing near by where we were staying- good enough for us to go back every night for the rest of the stay. After dinner and chillaxing for a bit we headed out in search of a bar and a couple of drinks... this was an effort to say the least, after walking for fucking ages we came across a small place that met the standards of the guys, I would have been happy with alot less but they are picky bastards. Two beers later I get to see in person just how much of a light weight Sam is when it comes to drinking... but that's what he gets for not drinking for almost 2 years or something before he came overseas. Headed back not too soon after that and crashed out... the next day required a level head.

The next day was awesome fun.

Disney Land!

I didn't quite know what to think when it came to the idea of Disneyland, it was an idea that Sam had been fixated on since before we left Oz and we were planning all of this shit out. It turned out to be pretty fucking awesome, some cool rides and the novelty of now being able to say that I have been to Disneyland... worth it in the end... that and I got some cool merchandise for both me and some other people back home which they should like.

That night we got back and recovered a little bit, got some more food and then got the crazy idea of heading out, this time however we got a tip on at least the right direction to walk in to find some decent places to be, Bastille. Got there, still walked for fucking ages but eventually found a street with bars/clubs and got into one as soon as we could, naturally though Sam and his impeccable standards told us we had to go somewhere better than one of the places that were right there so me and Robert said fuck it and decided that we would move on. We got to a taxi and managed to convey that not only did we want a club... we wanted a strip club, at least I can now say that I have been to one in Paris too. Got there, wasn't too bad, the place was a normal club before 11pm and it was pretty cranking for the most part. Stayed until the change over when the girls came out and they were nothing that spectacular, I'm not the biggest fan of skin clubs, why should I pay when I can work that little bit harder and get a full show for free?

After a little while the guys realized what I already had, that the place was pretty shit and over priced to all fuck, Pulled the pin and headed back to the hotel.

Another morning where I was feeling great as always, I didn't give the guys a choice in the matter, they were going on the free walking tour that I had done and I was going to the Louvre. I dropped them at the spot where the tour was starting, got them signed up and then bailed on them, walked to Notre Dam, Got a couple of good pictures and then meandered to the Louvre, headed in and was greeted by the busiest Museum that you can ever imagine, after getting through the security and then heading to one of the wings I got the big name out of the way and saw the Mona Lisa, over rated but I had assumed that it was going to be, the GIANT picture on the opposite wall has much more too it and it gains such little notice in comparison, did I mention that the fucking thing is probably about 7 meters tall and 13 wide. I wandered around that wing for some time and then headed to another area and looked at a great variety of oddities and interesting pieces of art. They have an awesome collection of Egyptian stuff and similar areas. Looped back at one point and had a better look at the Venus De Milo, that one does live up to the hype a bit more. Wandered aimlessly in the galleries for a while and then made my way back to the central atrium, got some cool shots of the pyramid and the cool effects you can play with, then headed to the second entrance, the inverted pyramid and got some shots of that.

Being in another art gallery I just had to go and get some prints, all 90 Euro's of them. Then headed back to the spot where I was meeting Sam, met up with him, went back to the hotel and then after yet another good dinner went to meet up with the pub crawl.

Oh the Pub Crawl... jebus!

Drinking, a bit more drinking, a little more drinking, a Girl called Cindy from the US, a night club and a bit more drinking.

That sums up the entire night briefly with the only bit I will elaborate on being that it could have been a better night if either of us had had a room that we weren't sharing with friends already.

I eventually got back to the hotel, alone, and crashed out.

-five hours after that Robert came back from the Girl he had taken home, WOOF!

The next day we were determined to do stuff... we went to the Arc de Triomphe and took a good chunk of pictures, then we went to the tower, again for me but a first for the guys. More pictures and stuff and after that everyone was fucked and we decided to head back and crash for a couple more hours. Upon rising Sam had decided to go to dinner with someone he had met the night before, a group of them, but me and Rob weren't keen so we stayed at the hotel, buried almost 2 bottles of vodka between us and then headed out to club REX, one of the biggest and best in Paris.

It was a blast and somewhere I could say I would go again if I had the chance.

Got back at around 4am, slept for a few hours and then the guys had to make a move as their train back to England was at around 11.30am. Still rather glazed from the night before we packed up, made a move.

I said my farewells and then headed to the airport a few hours early, I was written off so I figured somewhere comfortable to read my book would be a good idea.

Hours passed and eventually I boarded, got back to Munich and then got a train back here to Salzburg as tired as all hell around midnight

Paris - the beginning

So since the last little chunk of a post I put up a few weeks ago a couple of things have happened, nothing too bad, a few good things to be honest.

After the week passed and we made our way into the joyous month of March I had done some interesting shifts at work as always... think a little over 30 hours from Friday morning through till Sunday night. Then after packing like mad and making sure I hadn't forgotten anything I made my way to Munich to get the plane from there to Paris... uneventful and easy in all.

My second time through Paris was by far a distinct improvement on the first time through, my love of the metro system continued in roaring fashion, being able to get trains almost anywhere in next to no time at all either is beyond awesome.

I got to Paris on the Monday afternoon/night and made my way to the St. Christopher's hostel, one I can easily recommend to any prospective backpacker or even budget traveler. Great bar and atmosphere, awesome rooms and just a great feel in all. Drank my first night away without much hesitation and was even joined by my boss from here in Salzburg as they were in Paris doing a marketing meeting for the group.

I'm also pretty sure that the manager of the hostel from Amsterdam, a cute blonde, was flirting up a storm with me but I, while being flirtatious in kind, avoided the possible repercussions of such actions if I decide to go back to Amsterdam, for work or otherwise - although a section of my brain was still thinking, "You're only in Europe once," meh - these things come and go.

The next day, after dragging myself out of bed feeling rather shabby to get the breakfast that was included, after getting six times my RDI of caffeine I waited for the group from the walking tour, free, to leave from the hostel at around 10am, the group at the door got to a reasonable size but there was no sign of the guide that was meant to be picking us up. Once 10.15 came around we pulled the pin on waiting for the guide and decided to catch the tube to the spot where we were meant to be meeting the rest of the people on the tour. Easy as always on the tube. Did a massive tour of the city lasting around 4 hours and met a few random people as you do, then proceeded to go to the Eiffel tower after the tour had finished with the people I had met up with. hung around with them for a few hours, then went back to the hostel, got warmer clothes and then headed out to dinner with the before mentioned people. Fun times, more drinking and getting back to the hostel on one of the last tubes running.