Hungarian Baths

Buda and Pest

If you have never spent 10 plus hours on a rickety night train that slowly but surely chugs along through central Europe, you should.  The cabins may be cramped and smelly, but it's a great way to get from one place to another while hopefully sleeping.  That being said, this is how I arrived in the land of Budapest, Hungary.  Originally two different towns separated by a river, Budapest is now a thriving and overlooked destination for many travelers.  On the first day, we walked all throughout the city stopping at the Great Market Hall for goulash soup and some window shopping, crossed the river and climbed to the top of the hill to view the city, visited the largest Parliament building in Europe, and visited a memorial for the Hungarian Jewish children who died in WWII.  For the size of the city it was quite walk-able, enabling us to see numerous parts of it.  And on the plus side, a Hungarian Forint, or Huf, goes a long way.  Although it is somewhat concerning to go to an ATM and request 25,000 regardless of the currency.  Budapest had a great number of young people making the city hip, fun, and fresh and boasted great neighborhoods for us to hang out in.  On day two we ventured past Hero's Square to the famous Hungarian Baths.  We spent the day in the warm outdoor hot springs situated in the middle of a park.  Later that night, our hostel, along with three sister hostels in the city, organized a trip to and enormous indoor water park - quite the adventure.  I never thought I'd be hitting up water slides at midnight in the middle of November with a group of foreigners in Hungary.  Then again, it's always good to be surprised.  Budapest is definitely a place that is deserving of more of my time in the future.

The David

Courtesy of Michelangelo 

Italia: land of pasta, gelato, and David

The latest addition to my non-stop itinerary of travelling was a wonderful 5 day trip to Italy.  It truly was love at first sight as I flew over the Italian alps descending into the Milano airport.  Beautiful snow capped mountains surrounded us and the sun was shining (currently a rare phenomenon in Prague).  Upon arriving in the city center, our first stop was, of course, pizza, of which there was much to come.  The center of Milan is very upscale with gorgeous buildings ornately covered and more designer labels than one can count.  The city was a lot larger than I had imagined and finding our bearings was slightly difficult.  But, we were able to oggle at the main church and soak up the class.  The next day we toured San Siro, the local football (soccer) stadium where AC Milan and Inter Milan play.  I could feel the intensity of Italians jeering at each other rampantly.  We got to visit the locker rooms and sit in the chair where David Beckham once laced up his cleats.  He, by the way, is coincidentally not the David the title refers to.  Next was a visit to a museum all about Michelangelo and his inventions.  Quite an intellectual, that one was.  Then, it was off to Florence!  We stayed right near the duomo, possibly the largest and in many ways most magnificent church I've ever seen.  Then it was pasta, vino, gelato, and more pasta.  We went to visit the David (yes, the one the title refers to). Having seen a number of pictures of this monumental statue, I thought it would be just another statue among a long line I have seen thus far during my travels.  But David was far and away the most impressive statue of them all.  Each of us stood under it somewhat bewildered by its presence.  Touche, Michelangelo, touche.  With this, we headed over the river on the famous ponte vechio to the other side of the city.  With no metro station and sort of limited public transportation, we were able to walk a good deal of the city and see things off the beaten path.  We hiked up a hill dubbed Michelangelo Hill and were able to see the entire city of Florence and surrounding bits of Tuscany.  It was absolutely amazing...note to self: someday when I'm rich, buy a house in the hills of Tuscany.  We were quite surprised by the number of Americans we met in Florence, especially around our age.  It was a pleasant surprise to hear English again, but made me thankful for the true immersion we get in Prague.  Quite the successful trip of sightseeing, wandering, eating, and taking in the gorgeous Italian culture.

I AMsterdam

Amsterdam may have a relatively controversial reputation and taboo connotation for those of us who live in America, but I have to say that after visiting for a weekend, it is so much more than that.  It is probably my favorite place I've been on this journey so far (with the obvious exception of Prague which has a different, yet larger place in my heart).  The maze of canals, massive parks filled with changing leaves, ponds, and trails, and the main mode of transportation, the bicycle, made me fall in love with the city.  Not to mention that the national food of the Netherlands is the french fry...duh!  I walked (and biked) the city so thoroughly that my socks were poking out the soles of my boots.  While not wandering the cobbled streets, I visited the Van Gogh museum, Vandel Park, the famous I AMsterdam sign, the Heineken experience, and stood outside of the Anne Frank House.  We also boarded a small ship and sailed through the canals, a great way to see the city and to get out onto a larger body of water.  We stayed right in the heart of the city on the edge of the Red Light District (don't worry, it wasn't too intense) and were able to get to all of the attractions easily.  On our final day we rented bikes and rode around as much as we could.  I haven't used a bike with foot brakes since I was a little girl, so getting used to the bike and the crazy traffic and bells took a little while.  Even during the first week in November, Christmas season was in full swing in Amsterdam with lights hanging above every street.  I was not ready to leave the city and will definitely be returning to this wonderful place.

Do they celebrate Halloween in Prague???

All Hallow's Eve has a different meaning in each nation, and after celebrating it here I'm now relatively certain that its meaning in the Czech Republic is this: hype up a holiday for the sole purpose of making money off of Americans between the ages of 18 and 26 who may or may not be studying in the vicinity.  Nevertheless, we enjoyed the holiday by hitting up thrift stores to find something costume worthy and dancing the night away.  It was a more subdued version of Halloween than college students in the states may expect, but I think I preferred it.  Oh, and I did happen to see one Czech native wearing all orange and black :)

Berlin

My program recently took all of us on an overnight trip to Berlin, Germany.  We started off with a walking tour of West Berlin and a bus tour of East Berlin.  In many ways Berlin reminded me of a metropolis in the United States with large city streets and business.  But the history was also abundantly apparent.  We were able to see pieces of the Berlin wall that are still standing, memorials to those who suffered during WWII, and museums dedicated to the history of Germany.  Free time was dedicated to exploring the city, hanging out in a large park, and eating the wonderful Doner kebab and currywurst.  My favorite part was the East Side Gallery, a huge stretch of the wall that spans many blocks of East Germany and is now a public art space along the river.  Graffiti artists are commissioned from around the world to create images on the wall.  Some are political, some are random, and some commemorate the falling of the wall and what it stood for.  One night in Berlin was much too short; I hope to go back someday and explore more of what the city has to offer.