Pamilla Ore's Blog

The End in the Beginning

2012-01-12T22:31:00.001+01:00

Yes I have ripped off the Bones episode title. No it does I am not going to be talking about it. I just think it kind of describes what happened between Charlotte and I in the last five months.

I mentioned that when she first saw me that she hugged me. I think it really set the tone for things. She would be warm to me when we were in class. She acted as if we were friends. She also like making sure I was engaged in classes. Outside of class though she did not really return my emails. It would annoy me and frustrate me but then she would apologise and I would forgive her.

This was the pattern for most of the semester. However, there came a point where I just got annoyed and resolved to ignore her as well. I stemmed from a few things I had asked but not received answers to. The next class opened with her asking me point blank if I remembered a question I had asked her three weeks prior. I said I did not remember. She attempted to jog my memory but I reiterated that I did not know. I then spent the next ninety minutes avoiding eye contact. I also did get hungry so I started nibbling on some biscuits which apparently afforded me some weird looks. We then took a fifteen minute break in which I decided to rest my eyes. I was still chatting to my roommate when Charlotte came up. She apologised quite profusely and being the lovesick sucker that I am I forgave her. She also indicated that she had thought that I was staying for the year. Not sure just where she got that from. She made continual promises of catching up. The next bit though is when I begin to break the holding pattern.

The next weekend I went to the UK for a conference and she went to Bosnia. As such she cancelled our Monday class. I did however see her the next day. As such I emailed her among other things requesting her to act as a reference on an application to volunteer at a community legal centre which I needed by the end of the week. However, unsurprisingly she did not respond. This was frustrating. Add to this that that week I was not in a good place. I was really overwhelmed by certain things and very angry at the same time. As such I took my anger out at Charlotte. She was someone I cared about and loved who had disappointed me so it was an issue of convenience more then anything. I then went on to vent to my best friend. After doing so I realised just how rude I had been to Charlotte who was still my lecturer. Now it was my turn to apologise profusely. I explained vaguely what had happened. She was upset but forgave me and asked me to come talk to her during her consultation hours the following week. So I went where I began my apologising again. She then asked me what was going on. So I told her. I actually came out to her. She was truly amazing and caring. She then went on to apologise for how she had acted towards me including an entire vent session on her work, her PhD and her health. I honestly have no ideas where the boundaries are.

This continued for the next few weeks in that I would visit during her consultation hours and we would talk for a few hours. We soon reached the end of the semester. She organised a moot assignment for us which involved us going out to a cafe/ bar. The whole night she acted more as my friend then my teacher. I did gave her one of those novelty koala souvenirs. She loved it and gave me a kiss on the cheek. She then paid for my drinks but no on else’s. Then she made sure I knew exactly what bus I needed to get on to get home. So sweet. That was the last time I saw her.

She had hoped to meet up with me around Christmas but she got back to Brno on the same day as I left for the UK. Yet that is not the end of the story. I actually after I made sure my grade was entered into the system emailed her again. In this email I told her that I loved her. I told her everything. I was expecting some kind of response though after a week and a bit I have heard nothing. So I guess that means that it is the end of our relationship as friends or whatever before we ever really got anyway. However, I do not have any regrets. I mean it is better telling people. Telling her everything gave me closure. Telling her was never actually about her but me. It was about me being able to move past her to find someone who loves me in the same way. I hope she got that out of what I said.

Where has Pamilla been?

2012-01-12T22:01:00.001+01:00

Okay, so firstly things just seemed to get busy. As such it has been awhile since I last posted. Originally I had intended to one day catch up with a post about each place I visited during the rest of my time in Europe. However, these would include weekends or trips to Hartenberg, Karlovy Vary, Pernstejn, Bratislava, Slovak Mountains of Tatra and Fatra, Radegast, Krakow, London, Prague, Budapest, Olomouc, Palava, Terezin and Karlstejn. This is not included my current trip which will be three weeks around the United Kingdom and Ireland before a week visiting my roommate in the Netherlands. Anyway, as you can tell it would be a lot to back date. I guess that brings me to just what I need to vent to someone about. A lot has happened on the personal front too. I mean a lot.

I guess I also want to say things that I cannot say to people without upsetting them. I guess when it comes to this it is mostly in regards to going back to Australia. Australia is a place I have by and large spent the last two and a bit decades living in. However, I do not think it has ever been a place I have wanted to stay and settle down. This is not a new sentiment for me. In fact, I am sure I have said such a thing on more then one occasion. What has become clear to me though is that Brno did feel like home. I did only live there for about four and a half months but I had the life I wanted. I mean I had an internship, a job (albeit unpaid), friends and I was actually studying things I really wanted to. I know I sound like I am whining but for some long I was desperately wanting to be engaged in life and have the life I wanted. I might not have had it completely in Brno but it was a great step in the right direction. Now, however, I have to go ‘home’ to the same old routine.

I do have a lot of other things to say about what I have been up to but I might post them later.

Orientation

2011-10-19T18:19:00.001+02:00

So I honestly doubt that it will be possible to write daily entries from the point where I arrived in Brno. However I do promise to keep you up to date with everything which us going on.
So how did I spend my first week in Brno? Well settling in is I think the most apt phrase. Besides registration and making sure everything was organized I spent my days for the most part simply acquiring everything I would need. For example food, travel pass and cooking implements. Also I spent four afternoons from two until five thirty taking Czech language classes. I really loved the classes and we learned a lot of very practical things. Highlights would be firstly that my teacher never got my name right. I gave up after the fourth time of correcting her. Second would be my teacher imitating the noise a dog makes in Czech when giving a hint as to what the word for dog meant. It was cute and very funny. The third and final highlight was when the teacher separated the Canadians and then finished class early because too many people had answered yes when asked if they had a hangover.

Also during the week, I went on a city tour of Brno, organised my internship and we to a lecture on Czech culture, society and humour. The week finished with a trip to some caves and a local brewery. The caves were really interesting and cold. Although I have to admit that the second half of the tour when we were on a boat was rather scary. This was because it was rather small in some parts and I was sitting on the edge. We went from there to a nearby brewery. It was interesting being able to walk through and see where they make beer. We even got to tap a keg and try some. I can say I am not a huge fan. I spent most of the day with my exchange coordinator and the ISC student who came with us. They kept asking me and my time in Brno last time and the program I did whilst here.

I will also mention that my first official week of classes was not that involved either. I mean I only had one class that first week. Most classes did not start until the second week for some unknown reason. I meant I had a fairly breezy first two weeks in Brno.

A Note on Charlotte

2011-10-17T20:26:00.001+02:00

Okay so an update on the Charlotte front. Well as soon as she saw me she gave me a hug. I guess it was a bit weird. I mean ignore my personal feelings for a second and focus on the fact that I just got hugged by my teacher. I guess the additional complication of her being someone I would have at one point considered a friend you have me treading a very thin line. Do not get me wrong there are some things I like about it. For one, she knows me and keeps me engaged in class. This is not because class is boring but as she said I am a bit more advanced then most others. I also like being the one she goes to and relies upon. Once again this is without my own feelings even coming into consideration. When you do consider them? Charlotte will always be incredibly special to me. I am also still attracted to her. However, I am not sure whether it is more then that any more.

Okay, yes we still talk, a lot. I mean emails, in class and whenever we run into each other. I also still care about her. I do enjoy and want to spend time with her. It is just half the time I find myself daydreaming about the girl with no name. Granted the other half is generally about Charlotte. I guess the only update I have is just how confused I am about everything I feel for her. Sorry I guess at the end of it that sounds far more anti-climatic then I anticipated but it is the truth. As I have said over and over I will always care about her it is just about figuring out where the boundaries are. Oh did I mention she just got married?

A Week in the Life of an Exchange Student

2011-10-17T15:46:00.001+02:00

Okay so I have already explained what classes I am actually doing but there is far more to Erasmusing then just studying. If you do not know what Erasmus is I suggest looking it up in YouTube. It could be very informative.

Anyway, so on Mondays besides international criminal law I spend an hour teaching English at the university’s International Student Club. It is purely on a voluntary basis but it is an interesting and worthwhile experience in my opinion. I have also found Monday mornings to be a good time to do my grocery shopping. It is the bane of my existent but completely necessary if I desire food to live.

Tuesdays as I mentioned my first class is at nine-thirty and my last class finishes a bit after six. I generally use the gap in between class to study, catch up on readings or type up my notes. Lunch is usually something purchased from the nearby Billa. Thursday actually run in a similar fashion so I will not comment twice. However, I will mention that I might be also taking Czech lessons for an hour on Thursday morning as well.

Wednesday. On Wednesday my class is over by eleven. Mostly I will go back to the residence after this. However, later in the day I usually head over to Club Wash and do my laundry. After getting that done sometimes I go to the country presentations hosted by the ISC. I find them really quite interesting and as I have already done mine I feel as if I can just chill.

All this leaves is my weekend, Friday through Sunday. The beauty of having such a long weekend is that if I want to I can easily spend time away in different places over the weekend or even just do day trips around Brno. However, a lot can be said for exploring the city of Brno itself and sometimes it is nice just to chill for a weekend.

Classes

2011-10-17T15:45:00.001+02:00

So I thought I would tell you guys a bit about the classes I am taking this semester. First cab of the rank is International Criminal Law. I have this class for three hours every two weeks. I really love this class. I mean I am a long way ahead of most of the class in terms of actual knowledge of the subject area but Charlotte keeps me engaged. Um, did I forget to mention that bit? Well, Charlotte is taking the class. Her and I do spend some time out of class furthering in the class discussion but I am learning quite a bit.

Next come my Tuesday classes. In the mornings is Czech Legal Culture. I have only had two of these classes so far but the class does seem interesting. It is very comparative in its structure. As in the focus is comparing our prospective legal systems with that in the Czech Republic. Furthermore, a big component of the course seems to be how other things effect law for example the interchange between law and philosophy, arts and media. Also on a Tuesday is Czech Constitutional Law. Now to be honest I was not a fan of Constitutional Law the first time round. However, this time is different. The Czech Constitution seems far more interesting then ours and covers far more then the powers of government. It even contains detailed rights aspects which I am looking forward to. It also helps that I know one of the lecturers from my time here last time.

On Wednesdays I have Software Law. I call this my horse in a herd of zebras. I am sure people will get the reference by the end. I can not say much about this course yet as the first class I went to was last week. I know week four sounds like a weird time for a first class and it is. However, there is a long story to that.

Thursdays is another double. My morning begins with European Union Law at eight. The first couple of classes have been kind of dull, a fact amplified by the time, but I feel it should get better as we begin to move away from the developmental history and structure of the EU. Also, on Thursdays I have, at twenty to five in the afternoon, Human Rights in Europe. This is taken by the same lectures who take my constitutional class. Once again very interesting. It is also the second class I have with my roommate (the other being International Criminal Law).

So those are my classes this semester. I should also mention that, with the exception of international criminal law, all my classes go for ninety minutes.

Tale of the Lonely Heart

2011-09-13T21:55:00.001+02:00

I know I have promised to finish and upload my backdated posts regarding the last week or so of my travels but I have something else on my mind at the moment. My emotions are just in a weird state of flux at the moment.

Okay, so yes I have been watching a lot of Lost Girl lately. It is a totally great show but so not what I am blogging about. I mean kind of but not really. I guess the topic of conversation is actually relationships. I think watching a show like that which has some great relationships has made me somewhat introspective regarding my own relationships. I mean I miss my friends and family but I am actually referring to the relationships I making on this trip. Not the transient ones of the Busabout people I pick up along the way although those are all great people. I think in honesty I am talking about the people from Salzburg and those Czech people I know. Yes, I am back on Charlotte, the girl with no name and the friend. I think given the time to dwell on it which I clearly am I miss them. I mean not Charlotte as much because it has been like a year and a half so it is different. However, the girl with no name and the friend were both incredibly significant people at least for the two weeks I was in Salzburg. I guess it goes back to a point I am sure I have made previously that is when you see someone virtually every moment of the day for fourteen consecutive days you get to know them really well, really quickly. I guess I miss the part of being able to talk about anything with someone you care about. Do not get me wrong I also miss them quite a bit.

So, what is the point of all this lamenting? On one hand I have found myself desperately missing both the girl with no name and the friend. I have always been so willing to write off the girl with no name as some pure attraction with nothing more. However, in the last few weeks I have found myself wanting more. In this sense, I mean both more then the transient relationships but also more with her. I know at the beginning I said it was just because I missed Charlotte. I still do not disagree with that view however it has changed somewhat. It is also become on some level a fear that things have changed in eighteen months. See, I saw the girl with no name and the friend last month. I find it very hard to believe that anyone could change drastically in such a small space of time. However, it is entirely possible that Charlotte has. In essence, I guess I am clinging to something good out of fear that the one thing i have cherished has lost any and all of its intrinsic value. Yet Charlotte is still and will always be someone I cherish. This leaves me in part yearning and equally in part hoping to desperately avoid what I sense is inevitable disappointment. Then again it seems only fitting that the first person I think I could have loved turned out being the first person to break my heart.

Sorry about all of that. I think I have reached the point of over analysis that it is failing to make sense anymore, even to me. I promise to get on those other posts though.

London to Brno

2011-09-10T18:58:00.000+02:00

Arriving in Brno today! I was feeling a lot of different things this morning. Fear, apprehension, excitement and anticipation. as you can tell a lot of contradictory feelings too. So I began the day with a nice and much missed and highly anticipated English breakfast. I was so good. I even had a nice cup of tea. I then organised my suitcase, hoping to get as much as possible in my duffel to even out the weights (did not quite work though), before chatting on Skype to my parents.

At about ten, I checked out and caught the shuttle across to the airport. When there I checked in and dealt with the airline company regarding excess baggage. They seriously get me every time. Okay so after checking my baggage and clearing security I was left with a decent amount of hang time. I spent this time buying more books for myself. On the plus side I limited myself to three. On the side that I am a compulsive book purchaser I bought three more books which I will have to take home with me.

The flight was pretty standard. I got a window seat and read my book. I also did not take me long to clear customs when we landed and my bags were just coming around the conveyor belt when I walked through. I then managed to find the girl who was supposed to be meeting me, or well she found me. We then caught a bus to the main train station, hlavni nadrazi. From there we caught tram number one to a stop called lipova. From here we walked up past the Faculty of Economics to reach Vinarska, my home until January at least.

When I made it to my room I found my roommate. She is from the Netherlands and very nice. I then spent some time unpacking before crashing relatively early due to exhaustion from so much travelling.

Paris to London

2011-09-09T18:58:00.000+02:00

Day three of my epic travel adventure. However today started even earlier then any other day because I needed to be checked out by seven in the morning to make it to the bus station in time for the bus. Not as much of a write-off as yesterday but close. Okay besides getting up insanely early to get to the bus station what happened? Well the bus left like half an hour late which was annoying. What seemed to make it worse was the bus was full and the driver only spoke Spanish (or possibly Portuguese not sure which) and French not English. We also crossed the channel by ferry not train. This was an interesting experience where people actually spoke English but meant the journey took even longer. Although it was nice and impressive to see the white cliffs of Dover. I should mention why being late was frustrating. Firstly, I was exhausted. Secondly, I had already booked and paid for the bus which would take me on to my hotel near the airport. In terms of this I had left an hour and a half between when my bus from Paris was supposed to get in and the next bus. You can just tell that we are not going to make it right?

Well, we might have if the bus driver had not side-swiped a car going around a roundabout. Not kidding. I was sitting on the side facing the car and you could just watch the bus getting closer and closer until crunch. Poor little car did not stand a chance. Anyway, this lead to the bus driver stopping the bus just off the roundabout which in itself was a very dumb idea and getting a passenger to translate for him. Why was leaving us there a dumb idea? Well we did almost get hit two more times. Anyway, eventually we were on our way again. However, we go to Victoria Coach Station very late so I missed my bus. I was lucky I was able to buy a ticket for another one leaving in ten minutes. Granted it was not direct and took almost two hours to reach the airport but it did get me there. From the airport I caught the hotel’s shuttle service to the hotel before showering and crashing.

Munich to Paris

2011-09-08T18:57:00.000+02:00

I honestly have to say that today was an absolute right off. I got up and got on the bus at eight in the morning. The bus was kind of empty and I did not know our guide. However, the lovely bus driver from yesterday paid me out for my suitcase again. I then slept from Munich to Stuttgart and the guide woke me up just before we got there. I then bought some snacks for the next couple of days before saying goodbye to our bus driver who despite everything is an absolute sweetheart. I then got on the bus at what was about eleven. We reached the hostel in Paris at nine thirty that evening. In between I slept and watched the first two Bourne movies. We also stopped at several Autogrills. I will be so happy if I never see another ever again. After reaching the hostel, I crashed because I had to be up early the next morning. I am serious the day was an absolute write off. Nothing interesting happened in the slightest.

Lauterbrunnen to Munich

2011-09-07T18:57:00.000+02:00

Okay so just another early morning for bus travel. It began with the bus driver pay me out regarding the size of my suitcase which he has been doing since I met him in Amsterdam two months ago. We also had the same guide we had coming from Nice which was pretty cool. Although we did only have like ten people on the bus. We left Lauterbrunnen for Lucerne. It was at least my first opportunity to see the pass into Switzerland which we had missed three days ago due to being so late.

Our stop in Lucerne was relatively short. We were just dropping of two people however, as it turned out we did not pick any one else up. After getting back on the bus we were given free rein of the movie selection as most of us were at the end of our time on Busabout. I also spent time trying to count out all my coins to give to our guide to pay for a tour of Neuschwanstein Castle. I pretty much gave her all my shrapnel which meant, the at least I did not have it. We did make one more stop within the the Swiss border before heading on directly to Neuschwanstein. Neuschwanstein is a castle which was built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria. It is also the castle used by Disney as Snow White’s Castle so has become a very iconic image in Western culture. There is a fairly impressive hike up to the castle which I did with our guide and another guy from our bus. I got to spend some time taking pictures and chatting with our guide before going on the tour. Now guided tours are actually the only way you can see the interior of the castle. As it only costs about thirteen euro I would say it is definitely worth it. After the tour the guy and I walked back down to the bus park taking pictures as we went. After getting back on the bus it was only a few hours to Munich and Wombats. After arriving I said goodbye to ‘Mum and Dad’ for the last time before checking in. My room was actually across the hall from where I had stayed last time I was there. I also got a dinner invitation from the guy I had more or less spent the day with. We had met early on the bus from Florence to Nice but he had only spent the night in Nice and five nights in Lauterbrunnen. We ended up going to one of the Augustiner Beer Houses. The food there was pretty traditional German and tasted really nice. I had venison meatballs in gravy with swabian noodles and cranberry sauce. On our walk back we stopped for gelato before returning to the hostel. At the hostel we ran into our guide in the lobby and spent about our hour talking. The guide and I then decided to go to bed as we both needed to be up early so we all said goodnight.

Lauterbrunnen: Day Two

2011-09-06T18:57:00.000+02:00

So as opposed to yesterday, today dawned bright and clear even if it was still freezing. I even got some really nice photos of the first sun hitting the snow capped mountains. As I was being the very happy tourist I ran into ‘Mum and Dad’. Together we walked into the town from the campsite. From Lauterbrunnen (800 metres above sea level) we caught the cable car up the mountain to, Grutschalp (1486 metres), where we could catch the train across to Murren (1638 metres). Once there we caught this cute little train across to Murren. The train ride gave us a very impressive view of the valley as well as the mountains opposite. Once we arrived at the train station we needed to walk through town to get to where the cable cars went up and down. It was really a cute little town with everything you would expect from a quaint, little mountainside Swiss town. After reaching the cable car station we headed up towards Schilthorn stopping briefly in Birg (2677 metres) to change cable cars. Schilthorn is 2970 metres above sea level. The James Bond film ‘Her Majesty's Secret Service’ was filmed here. The mountain and particularly its lookout and revolving restaurant offer some of the best and most stunning views of nearby Eiger (3970 metres), Monch (4107 metres) and Jungfrau (4158 metres). However, I should point out that when going to Jungfrau the train station, Jungfraujoch is at an altitude of 3454 metres. On clear days like today was it is even possible to see not just Lake Thunersee but also as far as Germany’s Black Forest. The view was absolutely breathtaking. We spent maybe an hour and a half to two hours up there complete with hot chocolate.

After arriving back in Murren I left ‘Mum and Dad’ to return back to the campsite. Back at the campsite I picked up my Swiss Army Knives from the shop and got rid of my extra jacket before heading to Trummelbach Falls. The falls are about three kilometres from Lauterbrunnen and probably under thirty minutes walking depending on pace and the number of stops you make for photos. I also ran into ‘Mum and Dad’ again. They were coming back from the falls. I also got to see some base jumpers which were scary but impressive.

Trummelbach Falls consist of ten glacier-waterfalls inside a mountain which has been made accessible by a tunnel-lift and a series of paths. The falls alone drain the glacier defiles of Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau. Approximately 20,000 litres of water pass through per second. It is the only glacier-waterfalls in Europe which are inside a mountain and still accessible. It was also phenomenally impressive to see. You would seriously never want to drop anything over the edge. However, it does get rather cold inside so make sure you take a jacket. After spending some time at the falls I headed back to the campsite. When there I spent my time repacking my suitcase and chilling. I also spent the last of my Swiss money before having dinner. Dinner was a meat pie with chips. It had been so long since I have had a meat pie and it was really nice. After that I crashed rather early if only in preparation of the next four days of hellish travel.

Lauterbrunnen: Day One

2011-09-05T18:56:00.000+02:00

Okay so the somewhat disappointing weather of yesterday continued today. It was cold, wet and windy pretty much culminating in the kind of times when you want to stay curled up in bed just listening to the rain on the roof. Honestly, not that far off how I spent my day either.

So, I began my day laundry. Boring I know but it was somewhat necessary. Plus it was virtually my last opportunity before reaching Brno. I once again ran into ‘Mum and Dad’. They were doing their washing as well. The three of us also spent some time talking with our guide from yesterday. as it happens she has two days in Lauterbrunnen and will be taking us to Munich. She also liked my idea of getting my dad a Swiss army knife for his birthday. The problem I found was deciding which one to get him. I even ended up getting it engraved for him. I also watched the season premiere of Lost Girl. It was really good. I then spent the afternoon uploading photos before going for a short walk around the camp site. Also, the part I was staying in not really a campsite. It was definitely more along the lines of the Treehouse. There were also no tents. Considering the mountain temperatures in Switzerland tents are probably not the most advisable thing in the world. I also booked my ticket to go up to Schilthorn tomorrow afternoon making sure the weather would clear up.

For dinner I made sure I tried a Swiss Rosti. I understand why the guide said it was a heart attack on a plate but at the same absolutely amazing. A rosti basically is shredded potato which has been cooked then covered in an arrange of toppings. Mine had bacon, cheese, mushroom and onion. As I said absolutely amazing. However somewhat expensive. Arguably though Switzerland is a very expensive country. Our guide told us that you pay for the Swiss efficiency which I do not necessarily disagree with. I once again called it a night rather early mainly because I had to be up early to go to Schilthorn and also because the Contiki people with their obnoxious and loud drinking game in our building were annoying me. I mean they have their Chalet why did they have to be in our building?

Nice to Lauterbrunnen

2011-09-04T18:56:00.000+02:00

So once again as I am writing this in retrospect I can begin with a few comments about the day. In a sentence, it was long, boring and wet. I am serious. On the bus there was like ten of us. I think most people from Nice actually head the other way on the West loop as opposed to finishing the South loop. We also had a guide that although I had seen yesterday had not had previously. The reason was because she had spent the last three months doing the Greek Isles loop before doing La Tomatina. Florence to Nice the day before was literally her first coach day the whole season. She was actually also really nice, funny and sweet. She even worked on getting the refund for me and ‘Mum and Dad’.

So we left France, entering Monaco briefly again, before heading back to Italy. We had two service stops in the morning at Autogrills. It was also raining quite heavily which meant a soaking in getting from bus to Autogrill and back. I did find a nice packet of cheese, salami and crackers for lunch. We also watched the King’s Speech and then I slept for a bit. We then reached Milan where we dropped off a couple of people and got a couple more. Not long after leaving Milan we crossed the Swiss border and when I say border I mean actual border. Although, we did not get stopped or anything which was a little disappointing. Our guide was then telling us about Switzerland’s Red Button Policy and how they can virtually seal off their entire country if ever invaded. It is definitely impressive and if true somewhat paranoid. As we got further into Switzerland we got closer to the Saint Gotthard tunnel. This is a tunnel approximately seventeen kilometres through a mountain. However, as we got closer the traffic got worse. We ended up getting stuck waiting for almost three hours and needed to take another stop to clear the driving hours. Now I understand why they only let a certain number of people through the tunnel at any given time. I mean if something happened and people got stuck in the tunnel it would an absolute disaster however such a practice does inevitable lead to bad traffic. However, this was apparently worse then the bus driver had ever seen. We did eventually manage to clear the tunnel by about seven. Now this is significant because we were supposed to arrive by six-thirty and we were still at least two hours away from Lauterbrunnen. Also, because it was now so dark and still raining is was impossible to see any what another guide had called the most beautiful of all the bus trips. However, we eventually arrived at the campsite at about nine-thirty. They did keep the restaurant open for us but I just wanted to crash. I guess it also helped that I had my own room too.

Nice: Day Two

2011-09-03T18:55:00.000+02:00

Okay so in retrospect this was kind of another lazy day in the beautiful little town of Nice. In the morning I climbed the hill again. However this time I walked. I also got some really nice panoramic pictures plus I played which luxury yacht would like today. I did have a nice morning wandering around. I then walked down the hill and walked through the old city. Today is a Saturday which meant that there was this really cute fruit and vegetable market which was just cool to wander through. I also found a fish and meat market both of which were really interesting. I had intended to go to the Marmac today. However, I found it a little confusing to even get in the door so I gave that up. At that point I did some more window shopping through an really nice shopping centre halfway between the city centre and the hotel. I then stopped at McDonalds for lunch, mainly because of the Magnum McFlurry they had, before going back to the hotel. I do have a comment about the hotel, well several. The people that worked there were all really nice. I got offered free food several times when I was sitting in the lobby using the free Wi-Fi-. They had even upgraded me fore free from the six person room to a four person room. This is only significant if you have been sharing rooms with a large number of girls for the last two months. Girls, myself included, always take a really long time in the bathroom with hair dryers and straighteners and everything else.

Anyway, this afternoon the two new busloads of people arrived. I ran into the girl who got the job at the Treehouse, my friend from Munich and a couple of girls from Florence. I spent a lot of time talking to all of them before crashing early in preparation for another early bus trip.

Nice: Day One

2011-09-02T18:55:00.000+02:00

Okay so I began the day with the breakfast of Champions that I had so desperately wanted yesterday. Yes I had a bacon and egg mcmuffin from McDonalds with an ice tea. I am so glad that French McDonalds do serve breakfast. After that I walked down Avenue Jean Medecin again. This time I spent more time photo taking and window shopping. I reached Place Massena and my plan from there was to walk along the promenade to reach the Chateau to climb. However, I ran into ‘Mum and Dad’. They said they wanted to go up the hill as well but told me about a tourist train called Le Petite Train which took you on a tour of the city before going up there. I thought it sounded cool so I joined them. They really are sweet and seem to have at least in part adopted me as a surrogate travel daughter at least. The train tour was really nice. It took as around all the main sites in the old city with complete commentary. From there it took us up the hill where we had breathtaking views over the city and the gorgeous coastline. I would say beach but I feel as if a beach should have sand not pebbles. After getting of the train I decided to spend some time walking through the city before heading back to the hotel. I spent the afternoon watching Lost Girl before calling it an early night.

Yes I did not do much. However, in my defence I think I just needed a chill day plus it was really hot. I do find I am needing more and more days to relax though. Maybe that is just me coming to the end of my trip and needed more time to recharge the batteries. Not long now until I arrive in Brno. I am so looking forward to unpacking my suitcase.

Florence to Nice

2011-09-01T18:54:00.000+02:00

So today was another bus day. It was also a rather busy bus day. It did not help that I was really feelings the effects of the day before. I will not say hangover but I was quite under the weather. I did however, meet up with the girl from Munich. We sat together on the bus so it did not really matter that I did not have a seat to myself. We also had the really cool guide that I had from Munich to Venice. I can say that she really knows her history. Our first stop of the day was actually in Pisa.

Now it was definitely cool to see the Leaning Tower however it is somewhat overrated I think. It is also a lot smaller then I imagined it. Anyway, after seeing the Tower my friend and I grabbed breakfast at McDonalds. I do not understand why McDonalds in Italy do not sell breakfast items though. I really could have done for a bacon and egg mcmuffin. I settled on what they call McToast. It is basically a cheeseburger bun turned inside out with ham and cheese inside then toasted. I do like, however, that European McDonalds sell ice-tea. Anyway, after my pseudo-breakfast and watching one gut try and eat five cheeseburgers in five minutes without a drink it was time to leave.

After leaving Pisa we actually passed the marble quarries which Michelangelo used to make David from. It was pretty strange seeing all these mountains which were white but because of marble. Anyway, out next stop was the drop-off in La Spezia. In itself I am told La Spezia is nothing special. It is however, a gateway to the Cinque Terra or five towns. Now, because I was on a time schedule I did not have the chance to visit however, I really would like to go back. Also, most of our bus including my friend got off with much fewer people getting on. This meant I had a seat to myself. After we left La Spezia it was only about two hours until our next service stop at another Autogrill. Here I asked ‘mom and dad’ whether they had been double charged because I knew that a couple of other people had. They directed me to our guide who took my receipt and emailed her boss.

After getting on the bus, I then decided to sleep. I am sure I missed a lot of very beautiful countryside but well I was tired. The ‘sleep’ I had was not the most restful. I also do not actually remember being asleep but I think I must have at some point because I was not conscious when the guide came to give me back my receipt. Um, I was awake at the point we crossed the border into France though. I was also awake when we drove through Monaco. Yes I was in three different countries in the space of a day. Anyway, not far after leaving Monaco we arrived in Nice. The coast and the French Riviera were definitely beautiful.

After arriving at our hotel, yes it was a hotel not a hostel, and settling in a Busabout girl in my room and I decided to go out for dinner. We began by walking down Avenue Jean Medecin to Place Massena and the old city centre. We walked through some nice markets on our way to finding a nice place for dinner. Along the way we did find this lovely little gelato store which I would recommend if you are ever in Nice. Anyway, we soon found a nice, cheap place for dinner. I had a nice ravioli with a creamy mushroom sauce and cheery tomatoes. After dinner we walked back to the gelato store called Fennichio. As I said it was amazing. It literally had eighty different flavours. Yes it had the standards, also the alcohol flavoured and those with different chocolates and lollies but they also had some far out ones. For example, lavender, rose, tomato and basil. I did say weird. I tried the vanilla meringue with a caramel flavour. We then spent some time walking around before heading back to the markets and walking back to the hotel.

Florence: Day Two

2011-08-31T18:54:00.000+02:00

Honestly, I have to say that my second day in Florence was actually spent doing a wine tasting tour of Tuscany. However, Florence is the capital of Tuscany so it does not matter and is semi-accurate that it was my second day in Florence. So I started my day with another nice breakfast. Whilst there I was chatting to the girl I had sat beside on the way from Rome. Conveniently she was also going on the wine tasting so we agreed to walk over together as well as with another couple who had conveniently walked into the restaurant at the time.

I can say that I took no part in the directing to the meeting place. I am just not a very assertive person and prefer not to say anything. I did like one comment that was made though. One of the guys as we reached the place we thought was the right one said “Look there is Mum and Dad. We must be in the place.” Now I think I have mentioned ‘mum and dad’ just maybe not by that monica. They were the older couple that I met on the way from Venice. Both of them are police officers and the man was the one who knew instantly about the Hague thing. Anyway, turned out we were in the right lace so we left on our little tour.

Now, I am not a big drinker at all. However, I have always been partial to my wines. I also did not think that there would be as much wine as there ultimately turned out to be but I will get to that part. The bus trip started in that very traditional way tour guides start. That is asking people which countries they came from. However, it was really funny when eighty per cent of the people said they were Australian. This was followed by the question who here is from Busabout. I suppose they know just where the largest portion of their clientele is coming from. We arrived at our first winery after about an hour on the bus. Whilst there we tried five different wines as well as a truffle oil, an extra virgin olive oil and a balsamic vinegar. Now I should just point out that when I say tried and it comes tot he wine I mean they give you full serves of wine which generally has an alcohol per cent near twenty and expect you to drink it within a couple of minutes. I can also say that I did this. Most of the wines were fairly nice. We had one white, three red and a dessert wine. With the dessert wine we even got given biscotti to dip in and try. The dessert wine was my favourite. However, the truffle oil and the balsamic vinegar what absolutely amazing. At this point, everyone was getting a bit boisterous and a bit happier.

After leaving the first winery we reached the second within ten minutes. Here we actually got a tour and a bit of an explanation regarding just how they make wine. We then got to try a white, a rosé and a red. However, I did tap out after the white. We also got lunch which had a few different antipasto followed with some pasta. One girl actually collapsed or more passed out as well. From this vineyard we travelled to the nearby town of San Gimignano. The town is incredibly beautiful. The Italians even refer to it as the medieval, Tuscan New York. That is because it has all this towers built centuries ago. It also has a breathtaking view because like Oriveto it is built on the top of a hill. In the city I just walked around and took some pictures. I did also try some gelato. We then returned to Florence getting in at around five. I then had a cheeseburger and chips from the hostel for dinner and crashed fairly early. I do have to say one thing though. The Italians can make amazing pasta. I would even say that make some good wine and gelato. I am so not commenting on the pizza but they cannot make a cheeseburger to save themselves. I also found out that I had been double charged on my credit card by Busabout for the wine tasting tour.

Florence: Day One

2011-08-30T18:52:00.000+02:00

I was not honestly motivated to do much at all today. I think I made it to breakfast at around nine and sat there to almost ten-thirty. It was nice breakfast though with eggs, bacon and mushrooms. I also started chatting to a nice girl who gave me a couple of good recommendations for places to visit. When I finally decided to finish breakfast I had to start my laundry. Whilst waiting for that I watched some more Lost Girl. Can anyone else tell that I really love that show? After my laundry was done I decided to go for a walk. So I left the hostel I walked in a similar direction as last night down to the Doumo. Here I bought some more postcards. I then walked to the Dante’s Museum. I did not actually go into the Museum itself but I did but ‘The Divine Comedy’. From there I walked down to the Uffizi Gallery and then on in the direction of the river. Here I reached Ponte Vecchio. I think I would have to work very hard to afford anything sold on that bridge but it was cool to look at. After crossing the river I walked along the bank before climbing the hill to reach Piazzale Michelangelo. Here is situated another fake David. There is also really nice gelato. I had chocolate and mint before deciding to walk leisurely back to the hostel. I had planned to visit the Academia Gallery at night when the entry would be free. However, I was feeling sick so I just ate a Hawaiian Pizza and watched Lost Girl.

Rome to Florence

2011-08-29T22:57:00.000+02:00

Now this day began like pretty much everyday bus day with an eight o’clock departure has. By that I mean shower, pack, check out and wait for the bus. This bus trip was also not scheduled to be a long one. We had our first stop after an hour and a half in the Etruscan city of Orivieto. It was the plan of the guide, who I will just say is the slightly eccentric one who dances up the aisles, was for us to catch the funicular up to the city. However, that was broken so we caught a bus. His next great idea was to go to this recommended place for a pork sandwich. The place was closed. I left at that point, took some pictures and heading back down to the bus. I did stop for ice cream though. It was actually really weird. Ever had the experience that when you are listening to a song a lot it is on whenever you walk into a random place. Well that is what happened.I walk into the little store at the station and Adele’s Set Fire to the Rain is playing. Now I have virtually had that song on repeat. I was listening to it on the bus this morning and there it is. Sure it is coincidence but still weird.

Anyway, from Orivieto we went to Sienna. Here we dropped people of and got some new ones but we did not stay very long. I actually saw a couple who I met all the way back in Amsterdam. Strangely enough I seem to be catching up with some of the people I started my bus trip with. From there it was a short drive to the city of Florence. We arrived at the hostel a bit after three which gave me a little under two hours before our Busabout walking tour left that evening.

The walking tour itself was okay. I mean the walking part only lasted about an hour but we pretty much saw a lot of Florence. It says in a lot of the guidebooks that tourists who do not usually visit museums will in Florence. A friend said that was because there is nothing much else to do in the city. Anyway, our tour took us past Piazza San Marco, the Accademia Gallery, the Medici Chapels, the Baptistery of San Giovani, the Basilica of San Lorenzo, the Duomo (officially the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore), the Church of Santa Maria Novella, the Palazzo Vecchio (where I say one of the many fake David sculptures) and finally the Uffizi Gallery. After the end of the walking part of the tour we saw demonstration at a leather making shop. They explained how they make the Florentine jewellery boxes and how to tell real leather from fake. We then got to see some of their jewellery collection including puzzle rings. I have never seen them in a store until this one. However, my ring was so much cooler then any of theirs. After the demonstration we walked over to a restaurant for dinner. It started with a bruschetta. This was followed by two types of pasta- one with tomato and the other with a pesto sauce. Then came the main where I choose Mediterranean chicken. After that came a dessert of gelato. Our guide then wanted us all to go next door to the Red Garter. It is what he called an institution of European backpacking. He even talked me into coming even if it was only for five minutes. I then managed to navigate my way back to the hostel without a map and completely by memory. I have to say I have an incredibly good sense of direction. I followed that up with some Lost Girl before bed.

Rome: Day Two

2011-08-28T20:28:00.000+02:00

Okay so today started later then yesterday. Well theoretically it did anyway as I did not leave the campsite until eleven. This got me into the city by noon even on a Sunday. I first walked to the Trevi Fountain from the Barberini Metro station. At the Fountain I even saw a bride arriving for her a wedding at a nearby church. From the Trevi Fountain I walked to Piazza Venezia to the monument to Vittorio Emanuele the Second and the Roman Forum. From there I walked to the Colosseum before taking a right past Palatine Hill to reach the Circo Massimo. Here whilst waiting for my walking tour to start I indulged in some very nice gelato. The flavours were chocolate and triple chocolate. I do freely admit that I am somewhat addicted to chocolate. Anyway, then I had my walking tour. We walked from the Circo Massimo past the Mouth of Truth to the Teatro Marcello and the Jewish Ghetto. From there we walked to the Pantheon via Area Sacra Argentina. After visiting the Pantheon we stopped for a short break. We then walked to Piazza Venezia and followed my earlier route to the Colosseum. The history given on the tour was really interesting. I mean yes I am a bit of a nerd for history as has been evidenced in this trip but Roman history has always taken the cake for me so to speak. However, the guide as she later confirmed was very inexperienced and was not necessarily the most engaging or enthusiastic of tour guides. It just seems to be the thing for when I pay upfront for tours. Some are brilliant and some just suck.

Anyway, after some picture taking I hoped the metro and the bus all the way back to the campsite. This meant I got back at around seven. I pretty much crashed after that. I guess it helped that I was due for an early start the nest day.

Rome: Day One

2011-08-27T21:18:00.000+02:00

Okay, so on the agenda for today was a tour of the Vatican City which I had booked through Busabout. To get into the city I needed to catch a bus to the metro station. From the metro station it was a train into the city. Travel was also far cheaper with a day pass costing only four euro. Now I arrived in the Piazza della Repubblica, where the meeting point was, about an hour early. I was just worried about making sure I got to the place with plenty of time. I had planned to grab breakfast. I did find a McDonald’s but oddly they did not sell breakfast and only opened at ten. I ended up settling on a crispy bacon cheeseburger with an ice tea. I can I just say I love the menu options in Europe. They are so much better then at home. I also checked the Basilica that is located in the square. I can say that the Italians definitely know how to make their churches along with their pasta, pizza and gelato too.

The tour began by catching a bus down towards the Tiber River. We stopped at the Bridge of Angels or Ponte Sant’ Angelo. From there we walked across to Hadrian’s Tomb or what is now called Castel Sant’ Angelo. There we had what we were told was the second best view of St Peter’s Basilica. We then walked along Borgo Sant’ Angelo and Via dei Corridori to reach the Pope’s Residence and see the Swiss Guard. Then we walked along the Vatican wall in the direction of the Vatican Museum. However, we did stop at a sandwich shop for a break. The sandwiches were great. I had prosciutto, Italian cheese and mushroom sauce on Turkish bread. As I said they were really good sandwiches. From there we walked to the Vatican Museum. Whilst inside we walked through the Museo Pio-Clementino, the Galleria delle Carte Geografiche and several other decadent galleries and courtyards on the way to the Sistine Chapel. After taking a few covert photos of the frescos inside the Chapel we left and headed to St Peter’s Basilica. After that the tour came to an end after fiver hours of sights and the history of Catholicism. I then walked to the closest metro station and then worked my way back to the campsite. I then spent some time downloading Lost Girl, having dinner and using the Internet. All in all it was a great day. The tour was really interesting and well Lost Girl is my new favourite show.

I have to say that the Vatican was definitely impressive. However, seeing everything and hearing the history of the development of Catholicism only added to my rapidly growing doubts. I actually changed my religious views on Facebook to considering it. I just need to find a way to align faith with my other beliefs without one cancelling the other out.

Venice to Rome

2011-08-26T21:36:00.000+02:00

I have to say that at this point I am so looking forward to Brno. Not that I am not loving the sights and everything I am doing and the people I a meeting. However, I have reached a point where I am just looking forward to unpacking my suitcase and settling in. I also think part of it is that I am, on some level, craving that next hit of my drug of choice, international criminal law. What can I say? I think I have been pretty clear on my inherent geek status. I almost hesitating now on the Charlotte front. I mean I have changed in the year and a half. I would say that she has too. Plus I wonder if I have not blown things up in my own head.

Anyway, the bus from Venice to Rome via Ancona. Okay so I have said that the previous bus trip from Munich to Venice was the longest trip so far however this took the prize, for now at least. We spent the morning driving along the coast of Italy. They do have an impressive coastline. I have yet to see a decent beach but coastline and sea they have definitely do have. We reached Ancona at about one. Also, before I forget that I had a seat to myself all day. A lot of people did get off at Ancona. It is a port city which serves as a ferry port for reaching Croatia and Greece. After leaving Ancona we left the coast and the East side of Italy. We, instead, drove through the mountains of Italy. They were impressive. I will always love seeing this huge mountains with towns perched on the sides. I think I am at the point where I also prefer the travel days. I mean the friend was right in that Australia is a beautiful country. However, we do not have the breathtaking scenery that I see with every glance out the bus window. Also on the way from Ancona we watched the topical movie ‘Gladiator’. It did not really interest me that much. I mean I remember watching that in high school as part of ancient history. Also, another cool thing. We drove through a tunnel under a mountain which someone said was seven kilometres long. Another thing we do not have.

We reached the campsite at about six-thirty. In comparison to Venice this one was much better. Yes I did not really have internet in my room all the time but I did have my own bathroom and air conditioning. The restaurant was also much nicer with some really nice pastas and pizzas. So I guess that was my day.

Venice: Day Two

2011-08-25T21:36:00.000+02:00

So, I did not actually go into Venice today. It was more of a day to chill, unwind and relax. I am really beginning to count the days until I reach Brno. I mean do not get me wrong I am having a great time but the constant travelling is beginning to wear thin. Plus dragging my heavy suitcase everywhere is not helping either. I also really just want to settle down in Brno and learn something. Reading back on that last sentence I realise just how much of law nerd I truly am. Or maybe just the comment about international criminal law is ringing true. Or maybe it is Charlotte and everyone else I got to know last time I was there.

I spent my day watching more of the first season of ‘Lost Girl’. I seriously love that show. I also managed to upload a lot of photos from Salzburg through to the very beginning of Venice. I also had dinner of chips and ice tea before calling it a day. Although I did not do much it was definitely restful. I would apologise about the length but there is not much I can say when I did not do much.

Venice: Day One

2011-08-24T21:28:00.000+02:00

Now I mentioned that the campsite was a bit of a way out of Venice. To get to Venice there were two options. The first is buy a ticket for the campsites shuttle bus. Now the bus went honestly at really inopportune times, was expensive and did not actually drop you on the island on which the main city of Venice is. You actually had to catch a monorail and that only got you to the point where the public bus dropped you off. The monorail also cost money. The second option and the one I choose was the public transport system. You caught a bus from outside the campsite. The bus trip was about five minutes to the point where you needed to get off and change buses. After waiting for the second bus it took about half an hour at the most to get into the city. Originally it had been my plan to catch the water bus from there but it was early and not that warm so I decided to walk from Pizzale Roma to San Marco, the main tourist spot.

Now, people say that everyone gets lost in the city of Venice. I did not. Beside my inherently good sense of direction I have another explanation. That is do not use maps, follow the tourists and it that fails follow the signs to San Marco. Seriously, in a city which was very few signed roads maps are just confusing. Also, in doing so you get to see sights that people often miss with their nose buried in a map. However, I cannot honestly tell you just where I walked besides that at some point I crossed the Grand Canal and walked past the Academie. I did however find some nice gelato. I had chocolate and dark chocolate. Seriously in weather like this, I heard somewhere that Italy is in the middle of a heatwave, ice cream at ten in the morning is a necessity. I did spend time walking around San Marco when I got there. I also took plenty of pictures. I did really want to a mask too. However, I did not. It was not an issue of the money. I mean I am not spending anywhere near close to my daily budgets. It was more the fact that I have two more weeks of bus trips plus at least one flight and I would still have to get it home somehow. The masks were just way too delicate to have made in home in one piece. Unfortunate yes but practical at the same time.

From San Marco I caught the water bus up the Grand Canal back to the bus stop at Pizzale Roma. I then hopped a bus back to the campsite. I must confess that the return trip was not that simple though. Now I am not sure if all Italian public transport is this way but the buses here left a lot to be desired. There is not clear signage even if you know more or less where you want to go. Also bus stops have like an area or town name. What they do not tell you is that there can be up to twelve stops in a single town and all stops carry the same name. So I missed the stop but it was fairly easy to hop a bus back to where I was supposed to. From there I got another bus back to the campsite.

I spent the afternoon chilling and using the free internet. I have also found a new show to watch. It is a Canadian show called ‘Lost Girl’. It is really a sci-fi come fantasy show but so very cool. It is also undeniably sexy. One description called it ‘Buffy’ cross ‘the L Word’. If you have never watched I recommend you check it out. I have to say I am so totally Team Lauren. Plus the second season starts the beginning of September. I also had dinner of lasagne. I have never had one so nice. Seriously everyone I have from this day forward will be compared to an authentic Italian lasagne. Also before I forget it is official I have approval for my visa.

Munich to Rome

2011-08-23T21:38:00.000+02:00

Another early start to make an early bus departure. This was also my longest Busabout trip so far just beating out Amsterdam to Berlin. Also, I was in three different countries today, which I personally found impressive. The bus was not overly full on the way there. I mean I had a seat to myself. We also passed some incredibly beautiful city as we began our climb into the Alps. Our first stop was in the beautiful Austrian city of Innsbruck. Now, we did have to pick up some people from this city. However, we were also given an hour to wander around a beautiful city nestled in the Austrian mountains. I took so many pictures. I also found a McDonalds where I had a cheeseburger and a chocolate doughnut for two euro. Now even without a map I did not get lost. I more or less knew the direction I had to head in to get back to the bus without retracing my steps. What can I say? I have a great sense of direction.

The bus was full after leaving Innsbruck. I even lost my free seat. However, the view outside was a great consolation prize. By this time we were in the Alps heading into northern Italy and it was breathtaking. The movie of the day was ‘The Tourist’. Can I say I totally hate the ending. I also finished my Mary Boleyn Biography. It was pretty good. This means I now have my biography on Empress Sisi of Austria before my Franz Kafka book. Let’s just hope they make the eighteen days until I reach Brno. Not sure whether I should actually buy another book. My suitcase is too heavy as it is. I also want to say that I pretty much liked our guide today. As it was my first day on the South Loop I had never met her before but she was really nice and funny. Plus she loved her history and gave us all a pretty good overview of Italian history.

We arrived at the campsite at about five-thirty. Yes I did just say campsite. Apparently, popular tourist cities in Italy charge a tax for each night you stay in a hotel or hostel. The further one is out of the city the less the tax. Therefore, the drop-off spot is a campsite roughly half an hour out of Venice proper. However, I am not in a tent. I have this tiny little cabin all to myself. Granted it has no bathroom or even a mirror but it was a very good fan. This was particularly useful as it was so incredibly hot. After I unpacked a bit and got changed I headed over to the camp restaurant for dinner. I ended up being invited to sit with a couple from the bus. They were really nice and it meant I was not sitting like a Nigel No Friends. I had an ice tea and ham and mushroom pizza. The pizza could have used some pineapple but I suppose that would not be proper Italian then. After dinner, I just used some Internet which I can get in my cabin before showering and going to bed. I did strategically place the fan though on top of my suitcase some the cool air combated the stifling heat.

Dreams, Hopes, Fears and Aspirations

2011-08-23T07:01:00.001+02:00

I know it has been a long time since my last semi-autobiographical post but I have been busy and it is not like I have been neglecting my blog in any respect. Also, I honestly cannot remember what I promised would be my next post in this series. I guess that could be counted as another indication of just how long it has been. So I decided to pick hopes and dreams. It seems rather apt particularly considering the last couple of weeks. My next post in this series in a rather odd segway will be on my experiences with Queensland’s existing system of education. Yes I do realise that is backwards but when have I ever done anything which makes sense. I do not need an answer to that as I only feel as if I will be insulted. Anyway, hopes, dreams, fears and aspirations.

Well, I study law so I am sure lawyer will be a safe bet. No I specifically want to go into the are of human rights development and protection and international criminal law. Ideally I want to work in the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court. How do I get there? Now that bit is where some of the fear kicks in. I will also point out that this stuff is professionally. I do however have personal hopes and dreams which will follow after the professional ones. That is also not an indication of their relative priorities in my life. It was just I have been doing things recently that places professional at the forefront. Although, even that is arguable considering the girl with no name.

Okay, so how do I plan to reach the ICC? That is kind of a long story but I will try and explain. Okay so even now I have placed my life on a path which I hope will eventually land me at the ICC. For example, my semester exchange and the Salzburg program. I am also hoping to undertake an internship through Masaryk University’s human rights centre. I also plan to complete my honours thesis upon my return to Griffith. After that the master plan becomes a bit divergent. I intend to return to Salzburg for the 15th program but that is the only definitive thing. I mean I would love to undertake an internship with the ICC at that point but I do have possible alternatives in mind in case I do not get that internship. The following years I hope to begin my masters. Ideally once again I want it to be an Advanced Masters in International Criminal Law at Leiden but alternatives do exist. After the completion of my masters I think considering my age I am going to start my PhD straight away. No idea just where yet. I will need a lot more information before I reach that decision but as the moment I am leaning towards Leiden or Salzburg purely for the quality of programs they offer. After that I will definitely try to find work somewhere within the ICC but I have no real issue with staying in academia for awhile. So that is the hopes and the dreams. What about the fears? Well I think that part would be obvious. What if I do not get in? What if I do not have enough money? What if I am not good enough? In other words the myriad of other associated questions which plague everybody, I assume, are my fears.

So that was professional, what about personal? Personal hopes and dreams. Well they are the classics. That is fall in love, marry the love of my life, have a couple of kids after a few years, own a labradoodle and that is the gist of my personal fairy tales. Fears? Well when it comes to relationships are my standards too high? Is my Prince Charming really out there? Honestly , in this respect I do not think I will have to settle. I have met, even in the last few years, several amazing guys with each being a bit better then the last culminating with my Slovak friend. However, I should point out that they have all had girlfriends as far otherwise I would probably want to be dating one of them right now. However, also in saying all of this I make my eternal optimist show through big time. Do I hope that the one is just around the corner? Yes I do and that is all I have to say on that matter.

Munich: Day Two

2011-08-22T21:19:00.000+02:00

Okay so what did I do today? Firstly, I bought sunscreen, hand sanitiser and conditioner. Some much needed essentials. Then I went out to see more of the Old Town and the English Gardens. I pretty much began by retracing my steps from yesterday to Marienplatz. However I did stop in the Frauenkirche to see the devil’s footprint among other things. From Marienplatz, I then headed north to where my walking tour yesterday finished at Odeonsplatz. Along the way I found a really good bookstore. It only sold books in English and after much time perusing and chilling in air conditioning I purchased one of Franz Kafka’s short stories. From Odeonsplatz I walked through the Englischer Gartens. The Englischer Gartens or the English Gardens were really nice. I mean yes there were nude sunbathers but there was also the surfers. The surfers was pretty cool. I mean I was originally sceptical as a girl from the Coast who can surf just a bit. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I mean they are a long way from Fanning and Gilmore but it was definitely an interesting sight. From there I retraced my steps all the way down to Marienplatz this time via the Residenz just catching up on the photos I missed the previous day. I then headed back to the hostel. I did do some shopping on the way back though. Also as it was just after one at this stage I stopped at a little cafe an ordered lunch. I had a chicken and mushroom pasta with ice tea. I then made it back to the hostel to spend some time of the internet and pack my things for the trip to Rome tomorrow. I also crashed kind of early. I was all by myself for awhile. Most people had gone out. So I had no issue being in bed before ten. It was close to ten but before.

Understanding Cultural Appreciation

2011-08-22T08:30:00.001+02:00

Culture is a multi-faceted and incredibly complicated thing. Even when I googled the definition one of the first things there was a statement the culture is highly misunderstood and misused. In my opinion, I feel that is because culture is not static but dynamic. A country’s culture is heavily influenced by their historical experiences. I have always said that one of the best things about travelling is experiencing the different culture. However, there is a hidden aspect to that I have become especially aware of and it relates back to my comment about history. People are sensitive when it comes to their historical failings as a culture, nation or people.

That being said their is a fine line between appreciation and bastardisation. Need an example? Okay so I have an easy one- the Sound of Music. Okay so who in the Western world does not in at least some respect now the basic plot line of the classic Hollywood film ‘The Sound of Music’. I mean it is one of the main reasons why tourists flock to the Austrian city of Salzburg. Now if you have been reading my posts in the previous couple of weeks you probably would have seen several comments on aspects in where the real story differs substantially from the movie. Honestly, you could position the two points at the opposite ends of a game of Chinese Whispers. Yes to a certain extent Hollywood got the gist but in terms of the detail they missed the mark. How does this illustrate my point? Well, honestly Austrians do not get why tourists love the Sound of Music so much. Why? The reason for this is when the watch the movie, if they ever have, they do not see anything which is truly authentically Austrian. For example, the popular song ‘Edelweiss’ written strictly for the preceding Broadway musical. It is not a little Austrian folk song and when asked because I did hear someone ask they do not know the words. In no uncertain terms Hollywood took a real story changed the facts rather haphazardly before bastardising authentic Austrian culture to make a movie with primarily American and English audiences in mind. Do not even get me started on the fact that the movie ends with the family climbing the mountains to escape to Switzerland. Clearly, they were hoping that no one actually looked at a map either as Switzerland is not near Salzburg. The mountains around Salzburg are actually part of the Bavarian Alps. Meaning if people know their war history escaping into those mountains would have meant going not only into Germany but relatively close to the Eagles Nest, the holiday home of Hitler. Good escape plan.

In all of this what is my point? Well as a tourist you tread a fine line between appreciating a nation’s culture and buying into the bastardised and often stereotyped notion that is permeated through such things as popular culture. Just go to any place in the world and you will be absolutely amazed at just how much the perception differs from the reality.

Munich: Day One

2011-08-21T22:34:00.000+02:00

Okay so Day One started slightly later then usual. I suppose I have found the one drawback to having a bathroom in the room when you share it with five other girls. That is it is not always possible or considerate for me to have showers when I first wake up. So this morning I actually just laid in bed for a while. I mean it was not like I had to be anywhere any time soon. After I did eventually get up and shower I went to the lobby to Skype my mum. In the process of the conversation I think I insulted my sister. I mean I called her a weirdo but who is not a weirdo these days. Anyway, After awhile I decided to find some breakfast. I was not in the mood for more continental breakfasts so I went to the main train station which is across the road. I bought for breakfast strawberry yoghurt (complete with a spoon which I have kept), real apple juice and ice tea. Realistically it was all liquid but with how hot it has been I needed all the fluids I could get. I also managed to find a post-box. Not sure if I did things right but I put my postcards in one of the boxes. Hopefully they will find their way to the recipients at some point. After that I returned to the hostel in time for the free walking tour which they organise.

Before I start explaining just where I went today can I just say this was definitely one of the best tours I have done so far. I think it would at the moment be a toss up between the Third Reich tour in Berlin and this one today as the two best. The guide was really good. I mean he really knew his history and he could use that to explain a lot of different attitudes people have and also he described the original of a lot of the internal tension between particularly the north and the south. For those of you who are unaware the entity that we understand as Germany is a relatively new one which realistically only came into existence about one hundred and forty years ago. I mean Germany has always had some presence in Europe whether through the Holy Roman Empire or Prussia or something else. However, the complete unification of the German states into an entity which we recognise is Germany, as I said, only took place after the Austro-Prussian War. This war was between Prussia and the Austro-Hungarian Empire for control of the southern regions of what is now Germany. As Prussia won it claimed control over the southern regions however Germany did not unify completely until the following war with France. As such in places like Munich people still very much consider themselves as coming from the State of Bavaria which is a part of Germany not specifically German. Also, the State of Bavaria of which Munich is a part is generally considered as a separatist state. It remains the only one of the sixteen states which constitute Germany to have never signed the constitution. It is a State with its own Constitution, laws and systems of government. Also, there was a point just after World War I where Bavaria wanted to separate entirely and break off in a similar fashion to Luxemburg, Liechtenstein and Austria, all of which at one stage or another fell under the entity in control of the Germanic region. However, Hitler kind of stopped that from happening. As you can tell I did and always do find these incredibly complex historical stories absolutely fascinating. At times it almost makes me wish I had spent more time studying history. Also, I like all the connections. I mean in Munich they have a relatively strong connection to Salzburg from the salt trade so you see a lot of these histories begin to line up. I mean when something is mentioned you think yes I remember something about that from here or I remember who that was. Maybe it is just my inherent geek coming out but I truly love it. Okay I promise that is the end of the history lesson. If you want to know more look it up or come to Munich yourself and do a tour.

Now on to what I actually did whilst on the tour. So we left the hostel and walked along Bayerstrasse towards Karlsplatz or Stachus. Here we entered the old city proper through the old west gate. We then walked down to St Michael’s and the Frauenkirche which is the home church of our current Pope. From there we walked to Marienplatz to see the Glockenspiel as well as the Rathaus and the Column of the Virgin Mary. We even saw the Glockenspiel go at midday, some of which I recorded on my camera. From there we walked over to the beer garden at Viktualienmarkt. From there we walked past a couple of beer halls to reach the legendary Hofbrauhaus.It was first founded over four under years ago by Duke William V of Bavaria. The traditional festival hall upstairs is also where Hitler made some of his first speeches and where the Beer Hall Putsch began in 1923. From there we walked up to Maximilian Strasse to reach Max-Joseph Platz. There we saw the Reisidenz before following the path of the Beer Hall Putsch to Odeonsplatz. Here the tour ended after almost four hours. Now I have already said just how much I loved it so I will not repeat myself. After the tour finished I walked back to the hostel which took me about twenty minutes. It was just really hot, my camera was dead and I was pretty sure I was sunburnt.

Once back a the hostel I did two loads of laundry, checked my Facebook and met a Canadian girl who was new in my room. I then went to a nearby kebab shop for dinner. I actually even asked the man if he spoke English in German. I was so proud of myself. For dinner I ended up getting what they called a doner teller. It had the salad, meat and chips on a plate. There was so much food though and the guy just kept giving my free lavish bread. After Dinner I returned to the hostel where I nearly entered a food coma. No I spent a lot of time talking with the Canadian and Australian girls. The Australian was actually telling us a story from when she went to Dachau that day. She had clearly been offended by it and so was I actually. Now, most people are aware that more then Jews were killed in the Holocaust. Hitler targeted anyone he thought was a ‘deviant’. These ‘deviants’ were assigned coloured triangles to represent who they were. Now at Dachau, which was the first concentration camp, they have erected a memorial. The memorial uses all the different coloured triangles but three. The first was the one to represent criminals. The second was the pink triangle which was used to represent homosexuals whilst the third triangle was black and used to represent the Romani and other minorities. Now as I said these three were omitted by the Government from the memorial. The story does continue on about protests but by and large these three entities have been largely ignored by history and such governments in their memorials. This lead the conversation to the very interesting topic I have raised numerous times over the last three weeks. That is the whole never again spiel which well did happen again and depending on how one views Syria and Libya is still happening. I guess that is the thing. The Allies vowed never again but no one really learnt except for Germany and maybe Austria. I suppose it just goes to show that more then anything history is just recycled. What goes around comes around. I know more then anything that is just one reason why I want to do what I want to do.

Salzburg to Munich

2011-08-21T08:46:00.001+02:00

Okay so yesterday I said goodbye to all the people I had gotten to know through the Summer School and today I said goodbye to the city. I did end up going into the old city this morning. I left the residence, after checking out, at about eight and caught the bus to Mirabellplatz. I walked through the gardens until I reached the Sacher Hotel. I then crossed the foot bridge to reach the old city. I then walked all the way down to the university building we had been having lectures in for the last two weeks. From there I pretty much zigzagged my way across the city taking almost two hundred photos within an hour and a half. What can I say I have a gift for useless photography which will only be seen by my Facebook page. From there I hopped a bus back to the main train station where I bought myself a baguette and a couple of varieties of chocolate. I then caught another bus back to the residence. I stayed there until about twelve using the internet before I got my suitcase and headed towards the Busabout pick up point. However, i did get there about an hour early so I had some time to chill on the side of the road. The bus trip in itself was uneventful except for the horrible traffic. What is it with Saturday afternoon traffic around Salzburg? Seriously. Anyway, we arrived at the hostel in Munich a bit after five. The hostel seems fairly nice. I am sharing a room with six other girls but only for three nights. I think every hostel in Italy I am by myself. It is weird I found myself thinking about the girl with no name on the bus this afternoon. It was this really weird sense of deja vu I guess. I mean on a bus on a Saturday afternoon with quite a bit of traffic and ‘Born This Way’ comes on just like last Saturday on the way back from the caves. I even remember exactly what I was feeling in those moments. It is also weird that I am so nostalgic. I am not an overly emotional person but the last three days I have been tearing up at almost everything. I do miss everyone so much. I just want us all to be back at Salzburg. Well maybe I would pick and choose just who I would want back in the cacoon but I would like to be back. Not just for the people though also for the learning.

Anyway, after my bout of nostalgia I went back to my room and ran into a girl who had been on my bus. She invited me to go out with her that night. Originally, she wanted to find a beer house but we changed to a small Italian restaurant not far from the hostel. It had really nice, huge, cheap pizza. I also had a peach ice tea. From there we decided we wanted ice cream. It was really hot. We lapped the block a couple of times and ended up coming back to the hostel just to ask where we could get some. They told us of a close one. It had cheap and nice ice cream. I had dark chocolate and caramel. We wandered a bit just talking before heading back to the hostel. We then went up to our room. I was tried but it took me forever to get to sleep because it was uncomfortably hot. Even with a fan on it was really bad.

Salzburg: Day Thirteen

2011-08-20T07:27:00.001+02:00

So, my last full day in Salzburg. I leave for Munich tomorrow. I once again started the day early but this meant I got to say goodbye to my Slovak friend. He was carrying the koala I gave him around this morning which was so cute. He actually told me that he was not going to say goodbye because I would see him soon in Bratislava. If I ever fall in love with a guy I would want one like him. After that I pretty much camped myself out on the couch in the lobby saying goodbyes to everyone. It was so sad. I was almost in tears so many times not to mention right now. I also got heartfelt goodbyes and hugs from both the girl with no name and the friend. Most people left by ten because that was check out however there was a small contingent that did not have trains or flights until later in the day. Therefore, after most people had left, including the girl with no name and the friend, I decided to go with them to the city centre. I also said goodbye to my roommate when I grabbed my bag from my room. However, there was a slight flaw in the plan. That was for some unknown reason my keys got caught in my back pocket. I walked back to the lobby trying to get them out. I ended up getting help from representatives of Belgium, Italy, Georgia and Kazakhstan with the aid of a pair of scissors to get the keys off my jeans. Thankfully my jeans are still fine. However, I must admit it was a pretty odd sight to have so many crowded around my but. The friend even returned because she had forgotten to hand back her key to find the guy from Italy with his hands in my pocket. I even believe some pictures were taken which could look quite compromising. Anyway, eventually my jeans were separated from my keys. This meant after one last lot of goodbyes we left for the city centre. Unlike the last couple of days the sky was incredibly overcast. I suppose it was just a product of the pretty big summer we got last night after all the heat of the yesterday. Some people did say though that Salzburg was sad that we were leaving. We did make one stop at the main train station for a couple of people to buy train tickets before we reached the city centre. We pretty much spent the time walking around and shopping before it poured down. We took temporary shelter in a little entrance before moving to the closest H&M. After shopping for a bit, we went to a small cafe because one of the girls was hungry. We then left the city to return to the residence. Everyone else gathered their luggage and I said goodbye because I was going to stay and finish my postcards. I eventually finished my postcards and a bit of a Google search before I decided to attempt to find a post office, which I have since decided could just be easier in Munich. I guess it depends on what I do tomorrow. Anyway, I thought there was a post office at the main station. There was one but not exactly the kind I needed to I decided to go shopping instead. I, after nearly a month of travel, however many countries and cities, finally found a new pair of sunnies. Right after that I ran into one of the guys I spent the morning with who told me that the group I had said goodbye to where sitting in the McDonalds so I went and joined them. However, after losing one member we relocated to a nearby cafe for a drink. By this stage it was the guy from Kazakhstan, the guy from Italy and the girl from Belgium. In other words three of the four people who helped be detach myself from my keys. After we finished our drinks it was time for them to go to the airport. I said goodbye to all of them again. I think this made it the third time I had said goodbye to the Italian. I waved them goodbye as their bus left before I hopped on one to take me back to the residence. It was really too hot to spend much more time walking around. I think I might just go to the city centre really early tomorrow morning and be back up here by midday at the latest. That will give me plenty of time to catch my bus. I also packed my suitcase this afternoon. It is so full and I would guess at least a few kilograms heavier. I then spent the last hour until dinner on Facebook and typing up blogs. I even wrote and uploaded my reflections post. Yes I do know that it is weird that my reflections is up before I have even uploaded this one or left Salzburg but if you read it you will understand why. In other words, it is not quite like my previous reflection posts because I am less reflecting on what I have done but more what I have experienced. The girl with no name did like my little Facebook comment to her as well. Also, my Slovak friend sent all of us an email saying thank you. I also paid what I owed for tonight’s extra accommodation. I can say that this place is not cheap but it was definitely better then going to the YoHos for one night or anything else. That was pretty much it for my last full day in Salzburg. Although, I am planning on doing a quick run around the city centre tomorrow morning and grabbing some early lunch before coming back to the residence and heading off to meet my bus.

Reflections on Salzburg

2011-08-19T19:05:00.001+02:00

So, what can I say about my time in Salzburg? Honestly, coming into I cannot say that I had high expectations. Yes I expected to learn a lot and meet interesting people but I never anticipated the extent of that. Having done a short term program previously I never expected that I would have a remotely similar experience as the one I had then. That experience was what I have always honestly called one of the best experiences of my life. Yet I have to say that this one has almost totally surpassed it.

There is so much I could say to describe my time in Salzburg but I will try and be as succinct as possible. I loved meeting and having the opportunity to meet so many truly amazing people who participated in the program. They came from so many diverse backgrounds with so many contrasting ideas yet they, by and large, had one thing in common. That was their passion. I could also say their dedication as well.

Another thing was the calibre of the people taking the sessions. I would never have expected to meet so many dedicated, passionate and inspiring people. It is quite definitely not something I have had the opportunity to do beforehand and I doubt ever would have happened anywhere else.

Also, the phenomenal efforts done by the people who ran the administrative side of things as well as the social program and also those people themselves. Their efforts along the way were quite possibly the best thing. They took us not only to university nearly every day but to Trick Fountains, Beer Houses, Ice Caves, City Tours as well as organising farewell parties and campfires. I think they worked harder than anyone else.

I met people who after two weeks I would consider as friends. I fell much harder for someone I knew I should not have and had my heart broken a lot sooner than I thought it would have been. I learnt more than I thought would have been possible. I got to see and experience a part of a country and a city I would even like to call home someday. There were definite high points just as there were very definite low points. At the end of the day, I was inspired to preserve to reach my goals and fulfil my dreams no matter how far away or difficult they seem.

I know one thing I have said a lot of in the past few days is thank you and I am. That is I am so incredible thankful for every single person who made this experience so amazing, wonderful, meaningful and truly unforgettable.

So, where does that leave me, at the end of almost two weeks in Salzburg? The answer is actually simple. Wanting and craving more. I truly understand how this life, this specialisation I am choosing is a drug. It is addictive. The desire and want for knowledge, for understanding, for everything that this life can give is just as powerful now as it was eighteen months ago. The difference now is I can put a name of it. That is passion for this aspect of law itself.

Salzburg: Day Twelve

2011-08-19T17:43:00.001+02:00

Okay so up to day twelve and sadly the last day of the course. Um what happened today? Well on an interesting note there was a crazy, homeless guy in the dinning hall in the morning. Someone called the police and they took him away but it was a bit weird and a little scary all the same. Um, besides my comments in the corresponding girl with no name post not much else happened whilst at the residence that morning.

The morning session was on two things. The first was the prosecution of sexual violence in the context of armed conflict followed by positive complementarity and capacity building. Both were relatively interesting. After the morning session came lunch. I had something with chicken but since I cannot remember the last time I had a grilled chicken breast it was amazing. After lunch I just walked around a bit before returning to the university.

Our afternoon session was as I mentioned more of just a final conclusion. It began with the Professor speaking on the outcome of this year’s session. He also reflected on what worked and what needed to be changed for the future. He also thanked both the girl with no name and the friend. He then with the aid of the girl with no name handed out certificates to everyone who attended. He then went on to acknowledge both the friend and another women who were both leaving. I suppose as someone else commented it leaves the girl with no name as heir apparent if the summer school is to continue he is eventual absence. Then came the closing reception complete with champagne. I also gave a koala to my Slovak friend which he was really happy and thankful about. I then as mentioned had a bit of a chat with the friend. I did hang around for a bit but my knee was hurting so I returned to the residence.

I spent the afternoon besides sending the letter to the friend and the girl with name equally divided between Facebook and getting ready for the party. Although I have to admit I spent the last forty-five minutes before it was supposed to start just sitting on a coach with the guy from Kazakhstan. The party itself was fun. I mean I have mentioned a lot of my involvement in my corresponding post. However, I also took a few photos mainly with other people’s cameras and just had a great time. Only bad thing was that it was so hot. I was in just a singlet but it was nearly unbearable at times. I was also quite tired so I crashed just after ten. I know this is really short but it a significant downside of writing two posts for the one day.

G.W.N.N.- Quite Possibly the Last

2011-08-19T17:23:00.001+02:00

I realistically assume that this will be the last one of these. Who knows I might see either of them tomorrow morning but I doubt anything truly significant or worthy of a dedicated post will actually happen. So unless something extraordinary happens tomorrow this will be the last girl with no name post. However, I once again feel the need to point out that they are becoming more and more about the friend then the girl with no name. Not to say that the girl with no name is not still seriously hot and I am still attracted to her. I mean today she is wearing a white summer dress with wedges. She has these thin spaghetti straps and her hair swept up and as I said seriously hot. However, I have still not spoken to her since our dispute the other day.

Um well how did my girl with no name slash the friend centric day begin? I guess it started more or less like it has quite consistently over the last couple of days. That is with a lovely hello from the friend. She actually complemented how nice the photos were and even expressed that she loved them so much that she was coming to Australia next year. Seriously, convincing my person at a time to visit Australia is good enough for me. I would love for her to come particularly if she visits the Gold Coast, which I would recommend to any potential tourists. Am I slightly biased? Maybe but I am pretty sure everyone is if their hometown has such a thriving tourism industry. Would I recommend a visit to my hometown if I came from a small country town? Somehow I think that would be less interesting. I did also see the girl with no name later after this.

Also, in a very consistent fashion both were present at the beginning of the morning session and handing out meal tickets during the break. Not a lot was said by anyone except for another comment from the friend regarding the pictures. Our afternoon session which I will elaborate more on later was our final session and more of a conclusion slash graduation thing. The two girls were present throughout most of it. The girl with no name was reading out the names on the certificates whilst later the Professor gave a special thank you to the friend because she was leaving after this. She loves her home town to much and is going to work there now that her thesis is almost finished. At this point the girl with no name was outside opening bottles of champagne at very well timed moments. Then came the reception. The friend was trying to convince me to drink before settling on me drinking at the party that night. I did get two photos with her as well. I mean besides my Slovak friend I have spent the most time with her. I did end up getting a drink though. The girl with no name gave me straight orange juice. She just offered which was nice. After the reception when back at the residence I decided to send the letter that I had wrote for the two of them. It had been my intention originally to wait until I was in Munich but it was a spontaneous decision. Plus I did not think they would have the time to read it until after check out tomorrow. I did also see them both a couple of times before the party but nothing was actually said.

Now we get to the party. Well it started with the girl with no name recruiting all the boys to carry things downstairs. She even asked me to go and find more boys to carry things. Then when we were set up downstairs she went around offering lollies before she randomly disappeared for awhile. Meanwhile I spent the time plus actually most of the night chatting to the friend. There was a little encouragement to drink but she did not push the issue. Besides that our conversation covered a lot of different topics. For example, we talked about Australia and the Gold Coast, my future plans and hers, braces and oral surgery, my age and my immediate travel plans and hers. Both the girl with no name and the friend were also given a bouquet of flowers each on behalf of all of us. They both seemed happy to be so appreciated by everyone. After that I briefly hit Facebook to, among other things, leave another small thank you note for both of them.

Salzburg: Day Eleven

2011-08-18T16:43:00.001+02:00

I have honestly no idea what day I am up to any more. I actually have to keep checking what number post I last wrote. Anyway, today was the day of the Salzburg Summer School Moot Competition. As I have surely mentioned the topic was a discussion whether the interventions Kosovo, Iraq and Libya were on the basis of liberty or regime change. We were also divided into three groups: Prosecution, Defence and Victims. If anyone actually wants to read some of the arguments raised just go to my Twitter page. I think I have at least fifty tweets from the first two hours of arguments before the battery on my laptop died. I also managed to get a couple of photos with me and the trophy before the start of the session. I also was on Skype to my Mum. The girl with no name, my Slovak friend and another student were talking down the front whilst I was talking to Mum. She wanted to see what was going on so I turned my webcam around just as my Slovak friend was pretending to drink from the trophy. We both laughed and I told him that my Mum could see him. Actually speaking of which I had had breakfast with him that morning. I told him that my Mum really seemed to like him. He said that mothers always like him but the daughters not so much. I told him that I liked him. Okay so back to the moot.

Things all actually came together today. All the arguments were really well presented and although I did not necessarily agree with all the arguments they were very well presented and researched. As I said if you want to read what some of the arguments were just check out my Twitter feed. The relevant posts all begin with the tag ‘SLS Moot’. Um after all of the opening arguments and halfway through the rights of replies we stopped for lunch. I spent lunch with the friend and my Slovak friend. I have already mentioned most of the conversation in my corresponding G.W.N.N. Post for the day. After lunch I visited a few book stores and looked at some postcards before returning back to the lecture hall. After we finished the right of replies we took our coffee break to allow our judges to converse and nominate the winner. It was in this time that I spoke to the friend again. After the break the judges announced the winner. Generally, the were so happy with the incredible standards of arguments and speakers. They thought we all did a great job. After they announced the winner, who was the Defence representative on behalf of Libya, we had a short talk upon potential career trajectories in the field of international criminal law. I found it interesting just because so many of the opportunities that were discussed I was unaware of. After the session finished it was time to head back to the residence. On the way I did buy postcards and stamps although I still have to find somewhere I can post them from. Also, on the way back to the residence, on the bus, I fell into a chair and have subsequently bruised all my knee. It was also relatively swollen as well.

I spent the afternoon uploading photos as requested by the friend. I was happy to oblige because most of them were photos I would have liked to upload in the first place. I think I just forgot at the time. After that I had dinner before jumping back on Facebook for the evening. I had been invited to go out. I declined mainly because I could not really walk by this stage. I doubt I would have said yes anyway but that is the excuse and valid one at that which I used. It also meant I got a really early bedtime.

Return of G.W.N.N.

2011-08-18T16:42:00.001+02:00

So those of you who follow my twitter account besides being overwhelmed by the number of posts from this morning are also aware that I have more or less abandoned what I have called Project Elephant or the avoidance of the girl with no name and the friend. More in terms of the friend however I have mutually applied leniency and my forgiveness in the situation. So now that I explained that I can explain what happened today. Like most times I actually saw a lot more of the friend then of the girl with no name. I am almost at the point that if it was not too late I would retitle these extra posts after the friend. However, just what other alternative name I would give her. I mean her real name is not far of that of Charlotte’s real name.

Anyway, the morning involvement was limited to just the two of them walking past me and saying hi of which I returned and acknowledging. I had abandoned Project Elephant before this. I then also saw them before the morning session and things went in their usual fashion. Additionally, I probably would have seen one of them when they were handing out the meal tickets. However, I was asleep and it was just placed in front of me.

At lunch though I saw a lot of the friend. She actually had lunch with me and my Slovak friend. We talked about the moot, my visa, my travels, the Sound of Music, my social networking addiction and my photos. I did show her a couple of the photos I had on my phone and she promised to look at them during the afternoon session. I did not get the chance to ask her about doing PhD studies though. However, she is really sweet and I really like talking to her. Anyway, she had to leave so I headed off to.

I saw the friend again during the break in the afternoon session. She told me that she had tried looking at my Facebook photos. However, there were only ones from holidays. Clearly, I had forgotten to upload the old MySpace ones. MySpace how old is that? She told me I had to do it that afternoon, which honestly I did. She even asked me about it when I saw her when she was on the way to dinner. After I told her I had uploaded them she said she would have to look at them. Then she asked me whether I was going to dinner. She looked a little crestfallen when I told her I already ate. How cute.

I am also going to point out the besides this morning I have not even seen with the girl with no name. These posts involve the friend a lot more lately. Seriously, I would change the name if the last day was not tomorrow. Although, I doubt that very little will happen after eight o’clock at night I am still hesitant to post this because you never know just what will happen. However, nothing more actually did happen.

Salzburg: Day Ten

2011-08-17T07:25:00.001+02:00

I know I have been a bit behind with posting and writing but I am finally up to date at least for now. Okay so today my pretty much a normal day. I had breakfast and then chatted on Skype to my Mum. I do have to say that unlike the last couple of days though I was sitting in the lobby. This meant a lot of people walked past. A couple of them will come into my corresponding blog as will my own personal reaction after the events of yesterday. I also acknowledge that a lot of people would think I was a bit of a freak but I am seriously and honestly beyond the point of caring. I also was back to my usual schedule of leaving the residence relatively earl so I have about half an hour to sit on campus before the lecture begins. Just also on a random note though on my walk there I waled past a little cafe and saw a sign written in Japanese. Now I actually mean handwritten. Just a little comment on the increasing multiculturalism that we are seeing in a globalising world.

Once at the university my Mum and sister Skyped my again for a bit of a chat. I have to say that was weirder because I did not have my headphones. Some random did look in but as I said beyond the point of actually caring. After the call ended a couple of other people showed up the Professor started speaking about something. I honestly find it really difficult to follow what he is talking about sometimes. I mean when it comes to international criminal law the man is an absolute legend. He is also clearly phenomenally intelligent. However, I need to see the little links in his leaps of logic to make sense of what he is talking about. Anyway, this morning the session was on firstly the national war crimes tribunal in Bosnia and then we started talking about the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Once again there was a lot of procedural stuff but the whole context and issues faced by these tribunals was incredibly fascinating. I am seriously beginning to reconsider my one-minded approach to wanting to work for the Prosecution of the ICC. I mean you listen to these men speak and in the field of international criminal law we are so far from actually having fair and impartial trials. The odds are heavily weighted in the favour of the prosecution and that goes against everything which was been ingrained in me at law school. I mean one of the first principles is that every single person who comes before the court is entitled to legal representation and a fair trial. I mean yes I want to be a prosecutor but I would also like to see significant reform in the aspects of defence and to further clarification in terms of the rules of procedure. Maybe I just see the rules of procedure before international courts because the UCPR is so incredibly comprehensive. Sorry for that rather random tangent.

We only actually had a morning session today. There was an optional exam in the afternoon if people wanted to take it. It was an oral exam and as I alluded to I seem to have an inability to follow the Professor who was to be taking the exam plus my university seems to be refuses my credit queries so I decided to abstain. This meant that I had an afternoon to myself. I did finally manage to buy shampoo, conditioner and toothpaste before walking to the bus stop to return to the residence. I spent my afternoon catching up on my blogs as well as other personal administrative stuff such as my ever changing personal budget and similar things. After I had done pretty much everything I could think of I spent some time downloading new apps for my phone. I then played several games of Mahjong before going up for dinner. Can I just say that I am so glad that I did not do the exam? At about six there were still people doing it. They started at like two-thirty. People have said he like usual was a bit difficult to follow. If I ever come back in two years then I might be more confident to do the exam. After dinner, I pretty much spent my time listening to Molotov Jukebox on repeat whilst considering postgraduate study options.

I did eventually join my group for the moot. My Slovak friend was freaking out a bit because he is our nominated speaker. I think by and large people are over-thinking the whole thing. It is simple. Was the intervention into Iraq on the basis of liberty or regime change? Same question for Kosovo and Libya. However, maybe it is just me who sees the simplicity. Maybe it is a common law versus civil law thing. On any account it has nearly driven my Slovak friend to smoke he has been that stressed. I tried to talk him down but then my Mum called. However the two of them actually had a conversation. I think it was kind of cute that he was chatting to my Mum about how he was taking care of me. He is so sweet and my Mum loved him. Anyway, after that I again reminded my Slovak friend to just keep breathing except not the cigarettes before I crashed. I am so tired lately. I do not think I am sleeping all that well and it is catching up with me.

G.W.N.N., Me and the Elephant

2011-08-17T07:19:00.001+02:00

No there was no actual elephant. I am referring to the metaphorical one which plagued me today. However, I do wonder if in the situation it is just me who is seeing the elephant. I mean if it was your responsibility to oversee a program with something like fifty participants would you even notice if one of them was ignoring and avoiding you? If you did would you even care? This is the questions I found myself asking myself today. However, I did not stop from ignoring the girl with no name even if it was only for personal satisfaction.

Now, I mentioned that the girl with no name and the friend both walked past me this morning whilst on Skype. Well, I alluded to it anyway. The friend was actually kind of funny. I am sitting there right and she walks past. She waves and I wave back. Meanwhile I am saying something to my mum. The friend then stops hesitates for a bit before continuing into the dinning room. Not exactly sure what she was thinking besides something along the lines of the weird Australian but I can deal. The girl with no name also walked past. She said hi and I did not really make any response to her. A return of the personal satisfaction.

After that I just pretty much ignored the girl with no name. No smiles or hellos or anything. Well, almost. I could not help but check her out. There was this one time she was leaning across something up on the stage and she was all stretched out and she is seriously hot. In my defence it was dark and she could not see me. I did avert my eyes when the lights came back on. I also feel as if by extension I was sort of ignoring the friend. I mean by and large they are a two part act. Still I got the feeling she wanted to say something to me. Maybe I am completely wrong but I have always pegged her as someone far more perceptive then the girl with no name. However, as of yet I have been avoiding her so I have yet to give her the opportunity. Actually come to think of it the reason I am avoiding her is slightly different. She is perceptive so I am on some level more worried that she has picked up on something. I mean my feelings do go a bit beyond the norm of how a normal person would react. So I suppose she could always what is wrong but how would I answer that? Um well I kind of have a big crush on your friend and as such it really upset me when she was so rude yesterday. Really? I vote avoidance as the best tack. However, I am hungry so I will have to run the gambit of the dinning room. My strategy? Get there as soon as dinner starts and leave as soon as possible. I suppose I will tell you whether that works when I try it. I do also dread the questions: where were you at lunch? My answer playing the game anywhere but there. Somehow not sure how well that will work.

After dinner update, my strategy proved effective. I know the friend is in the residence somewhere but she is probably involved in her thesis and I managed to avoid her. As for the girl with no name, I am not even sure if she is back from campus yet. As far as I know people are still doing the exam at twenty to seven. Glad I decided to abstain. I am have now stationed myself in the Wi-Fi room so I doubt I will be found. I actually think this could be an interesting game. That is just how long can I avoid talking to either of them. I will see how well I go.

Okay so I have come to a slight flaw in the plan. I think the best person to ask about completing a PhD is someone undertaking that kind of study. Therefore, the best people to ask would be either the girl with no name or the friend. See my problem. I want to talk to them about what the undertaking is like but I an trying to avoid them? I might see if I can find the friend at some point over the next two days. Apart from that avoidance all the way I say.

G.W.N.N.- The End of a Dream

2011-08-16T14:30:00.001+02:00

Okay so the girl with no name public holiday edition. There was a few interesting things which happened that I am still a little bitter about. Now I know the events I may describe may not amount significantly to anything that most people could consider as overly serious or warranting of my reaction. However, I am going to reiterate two things for you all. The first is that I am a relatively shy and introverted person. As such when I do ultimately feel the need to contribute my opinion on an issue I do kind of want to be listened to. This is just a common courtesy that most evolved and courteous people are capable of achieving. The second thing is this is a person I sort of liked who has shown my complete and utter disrespect. Factored into my huge trust issues one can begin to see my I acted in the way I did. Furthermore, there is a very clear reason as to why fantasy is best relegated to the imaginations of children. It fills us with a false sense of hope and when those fantasies are crushed so are we. However, I am yet to get to this point so I will start at the beginning.

Okay so the beginning. Well I guess that beginning is that both the girl with no name and the friend showed up to sessions today. They did a lot of what they normally do during the morning session. That is set up everything and spend some time handing out the little tickets which show which meals we have nominated. Then after the morning session they walked us to the restaurant where we were having lunch. I had not intended to seat myself at the same table as them. I had decided to sit with my Slovak friend and a few other people who I had come to know a bit other the course of the last week. However, coincidentally I did find myself at the same table. There was one person between me and the friend whilst the girl with no name sat on the end of the table at the friend’s right. Now I was not really talking to either of them until the girl across from raised the issue of the moot and the use of internet on campus. The girl with no name stated rather rudely that only students of the University of Salzburg could use the internet after first being convinced that we were even supposed to be able to use it for the moot. Now I at this point intervened. I attempted to say that most university students could use the internet through the eduroam system. Now this is a system that most universities have in place in conjunction with their standard wireless connection. It enables any university student or academic to access the internet through their home institution. However, as I have found it does not always work. It drops out sometimes but half the time it does work rather well. This is what I was attempting to explain to the girl with no name. However, without even listening she just cuts me off repeatedly with the same condescending the internet is for students of the University of Salzburg line. Thankfully I bit my tongue to prevent me from saying just shut up, let me talk and you may just learn something. Now what she said was rude. I was trying to be helpful and she was being downright disrespectful and as I said condescending.

When we returned to campus and my internet was working I did however throw kind of a dummy spit by the way of three posts. The first said “I understand you have a point of view but if you do not shut up you will not hear mine”. The second said “I do not talk much but when I do I like to feel as if people are listening to me. Just trying to be helpful and explain something”. The third was just a link to the eduroam site. It was later pointed out to me that that was a bit immature and I was commenting on one of the women who have effectively been running this program. My response and defence? Yes I made this comments on Facebook but nowhere do I explicitly mention names. Of the people who heard my ‘discussion’ with the girl with no name I have only the friend and the girl with no name herself as friends on Facebook. Even when asked what we were fighting about subsequently I just said it was about internet usage. So there will be people who may or may not read it who will have no idea what it is about. The only two people who may actually know are the two people who besides myself were closest to it and does it really matter if they know how upset and hurt I was by it?

I did not actually see much of them or speak to them much after that. I mean there were a few incidents whilst at lunch but maybe I am reading too much into it. However, I by and large avoided both of them for the rest of the day. Actually going back to the previous point I will tell you and let you personally be the judge of whether I am reading too much into it.

Event Number One: Okay so we were at fairly large tables and there were only two alternative main courses. My choice of the pork came first as there were a lot less. When it came to the other dish both the girl with no name and the friend passed their dishes all the way to the end and they went last. Now when it came to dessert things went slightly differently. No for the most part they were passed down until my end of the table. The waitress the brought out three more plates for the remaining four people. The girl with no name, the friend and the guy to my right all I got one. Now I am not complaining about the service. I mean fifty people in a single group is a huge demand. However, I was left waiting for several minutes. Now my question is this? Did they just not know or did they not care this time around?

Event Number Two: Another instance of ignoring me. Now we get given little tickets with our meal choices on them. The girl with no name was going around collecting them. Three times I tried to give mine to her only to be summarily ignored. I ended up throwing it up the table so it landed near where she was sitting. Juvenile? I would say quite definitely but what about her? maybe she just did not see me? Although I have to say to not see someone trying to give you something so many times does seem a little far-fetched.

I do not know. I leave you to formulate your own decisions.

Salzburg: Day Nine

2011-08-16T14:10:00.001+02:00

Monday. Monday. Monday. I seriously think this is one of the most depressing days of the week. However, I will push through and write you all an account of my day. Now, today was actually a public holiday however, we did not get the day off. That kind of sucks in my opinion but some people here do not seem to believe I even deserve to voice my opinion. Sorry I will actually explain that in my girl with no name post for today.

Now, as it was a public holiday it meant there were a lot less buses running. The best one which I took with a handful of people left at twenty past and got there and about twenty to. However, the next bus which most people seemed to catch left at ten to and got there at almost ten past. This meant that a lot of people were really quite late. Okay, the topics for today’s morning session were the ‘Defences and other grounds for excluding criminal responsibility’ and the ‘Bangladesh War Crimes Tribunal- The Devil is in the Detail’. I honestly thought they were both very interesting and enlightening. Now after the morning session we had lunch. Now but because it was the public holiday I mentioned the cafeteria we normally have lunch at was closed. So this meant we got to go to a relatively nice restaurant. The food was good. First we had soup. Then next course we had either pasta or roast pork with potatoes. After that we had a dessert of apple strudel. There was also Wi-Fi but that became too complicated a process. Now there was a conversation which took place at lunch which I alluded to earlier. However, as I said it will be dealt with in my corresponding piece for today. I also was talking about Gold Coast beaches with the guy sitting next to me which was nice. It is so weird that as soon as I cannot go to the beach everyday I suddenly desire very much to do so.

After lunch we had our afternoon session. This was a case study involving the development of the Kenya cases before the ICC. It was a bit long and really heavy on the procedural aspects but after one semester of Civil Procedure I have become fairly good at absorbing all of it and remaining interested. After the session finished I headed back to the residence and spent the evening working on the moot. Sorry, but a lot more of the discussion of the day will be in my next post. However, just a warning things have changed in my personal opinions on certain things. However, on a random note I did manage to get a refund for my Sound of Salzburg ticket. I also chatted to a friend from Griffith who is also on exchange last night. He is in Belgium and told me to visit if I am ever in the area. I am seriously getting offers from everywhere.

Salzburg: Day Eight

2011-08-16T08:51:00.001+02:00

So, my eighth day in Salzburg. Otherwise referred to as the Sunday I do my Sound of Music tour and go see the Sound of Salzburg. Well at least the day I intended to do those things. Okay so the day started with me going to Mirabellplatz to begin my Sound of Music tour. I did have some time before hand to walk around the gardens and take a lot of photos. I did try and find all the spots from the movie but I am not sure whether I got them all. Then I walked to get on the bus. There were twelve other people on our tour. We began by driving out to Hellbrunn Palace. On the way besides getting numerous very good photos we drove past the original Von Trapp Villa and the train station the original family used to escape. We were also given a very detailed history of the original family as opposed to the story represented in the popular Hollywood movie. At the Palace, we saw the place where Maria gets off the bus and the road she walks down whilst singing ‘Confidence’. We also saw the famous gazebo. However, there was apparently two. The one in Austria is actually quite small and not the one used for any of the interior shots. That gazebo was one recreated in sound studios. Seriously I have almost ruined my appreciation of that movie. Oh well, I think it is better to know the complete truth then believe in a lie. So from Hellbrunn we drove past another place which was used as the front of the Von Trapp Villa to get to the other Palace which was used as the back exterior of the house and the lake. They were both very pretty. We were not however, allowed to go inside because both of them are now private residences.From there we stooped at Nonnberg Abbey. This is another place you cannot actually go inside. However, that is because it is a Benedictine Abbey and outside visitors are not permitted inside the walls. We did have a very good view of the Abbey and the fortress though. From there we drove out to Mondsee. We passed two other lakes. These were Wolfgang Lake and Lake Fuschl. There was a lot of traffic on the way there as it was the first completely sunny day in like a week. However, after at least half the soundtrack to the movie plus the original family singing ‘Waltzing Matilda’ we arrived in the very picturesque town of Mondsee. In Mondsee, is the Cathedral in which the Captain and Maria were married in the film. After visiting the Cathedral, I walked around a bit. I even bought myself an ice cream cone for ninety cents. I took so many photos but it was so pretty.

After about forty-five minutes walking around the town it was time to get back on the bus and head back to Salzburg. The bus dropped us back at Mirabellplatz. I then caught the bus back to the residence. When there I uploaded six hundred and ninety nine photos to my Facebook page. I also spent quite a bit of time on Facebook. Some of my posts got quite a bit wacky but I did chat to a couple of friends. I have often said that law school can lead to insanity. I have proof of this. One of my Facebook posts for today read as follows: “The sole of my shoe decided to separate today. I do hope it does not make a complete separation. I fear over the welfare of my shoe in the custody agreement.” Point and case, ladies and gentlemen. That or I am just exhausted and still have to face a further four more days of classes.

I then spent some time working on the moot question because we had a scheduled victims group meeting that night. However, I had to leave after about half an hour because I had my ticket to see the Sound of Salzburg. However, by the time I got there I was informed that they had cancelled the show for that night because of a lack of reservations. Well, thank you so much for that information. Not. Suffice it to say I was very annoyed. So I managed to make it back to the residence before sending off an email in which I very politely requested a refund for my wasted thirty euros. Then when I returned to my room calm but exhausted I had to wait thirty minutes for my roommate to get out of the shower before I could shower and sleep.

My Weekend Edition of G.W.N.N.

2011-08-15T14:40:00.001+02:00

Okay so I mentioned I would be doing a weekend edition of G.W.N.N. so here it is. It actually starts seemingly once again with the friend. I was chatting to my mother and sister on Skype before we were due to go to the Ice Caves when the friend walked into the lobby and waved at me. She then asked if I was going in for breakfast so I said goodbye to my family and joined the group for a cup of tea. After that I went back to my room before bringing my stuff up to the lobby to wait for the bus. As I was sitting there, the girl with no name walks out, in slippers I point out, and exclaims that the bus is here. She then runs off to get ready after telling everyone that the bus was here. Now before I go much further I did mention the support the two of them offered to me whilst talking with my mother. She wanted me to pass on her thanks. That is important for later in the story. Now we eventually all get on the bus minus the friend who drove out to the mountain and met us there. I can also pretty much confirm that yes the girl with no name’s tattoo is a butterfly. Once we reached the car park for the caves we began out first hike up the mountain. I spent most of that time walking with the friend. We had a nice conversation. It mainly consisted about what Australia was like and a few other random things. We then reached the cable car where we once again rode up together. Turns out the friend has quite a bad fear of heights and was not overly comfortable with it. I just kept reminding her to breath and that because of the rain and clouds you could not really see anything. When we got out of the cable car we waited for the rest of the group. Whilst waiting, I mentioned what my mother had said. She responded that it was perfectly fine. We then continued up the mountain. She even offered to take a picture of me. During our walk through the Ice Caves I pretty much stayed at the back with the friend and the girl with no name. The girl with no name did ask me several times if I was okay and even offered to carry my bag for me. As I told her my bag only actually had a drink bottle and a camera in it and I was fine just paranoid that I would trip, fall over and set myself on fire with the kerosene lamp that the friend had asked me to carry instead of her. After the cave tour I did not see much of them. I mean yes the girl with no name did sit the seat in front of me the whole way home but she was mostly trying to sleep. It was kind of cute though. Her hair was all messy but thankfully I resisted the urge to fix it. She also has a pretty good singing voice. I heard her singing along to a couple of songs of the radio and as I said she is really quite good. We were even both singing along to Nickleback’s ‘If today was your last day’.

Um, on Sunday I did not see either of them although I did add both of them on Facebook. As I am writing this retrospectively I can say that both of them showed up on Monday so those posts will continue as normal for the next four or five days until the end of the program.

Salzburg: Day Seven

2011-08-14T16:36:00.001+02:00

I have actually been in Salzburg a whole week. It is kind of surprising to think how quickly the time has gone and a little sad to acknowledge that this time next week I will be safely in Munich, at least determined from at the time of writing. So that day began with going on Skype to talk to my mother. I spent a bit of time chatting to her and my sister before I saw the friend asking me if I was having breakfast. I was not exactly in the mood for food but deciding to have a cup of tea anyway. After that I went back to my room, gathered my things and went to sit in the lobby for a minutes until the bus arrived. I will also mention that it was raining this morning. Anyway, the bus ride took about fifty minutes. It took us through the most beautiful scenery I think I have ever seen. We even drove through tunnels under the mountain. I mean yes I know tunnels through mountains are fairly standard but one was one kilometre long with the other being two kilometres. However, we eventually arrived in the small town of Wefren. Here we picked up the friend before beginning our ascent up the mountain. Now the bus going up the mountain was not really that scary until right at the end. Now to park the bus the bus driver had to do a u-turn. Sitting at the front of the bus it nearly looked like he was going to drive of the cliff as he was doing it. That is definitely one way to get the heart racing another is of course to hike up a huge mountain. I do not think I needed to do both though.

So from where the bus parked we walked up to the entrance, From the entrance, which is situated at 1000 metres above sea level, to the cable car is a walk of roughly fifteen minutes uphill. In total you ascend about eighty metres. There are actually two ways you can walk up. The first is a scenic route whilst the other is a tunnel through the mountain. Due to that fact that it was raining we unanimously decided it would be better to remain as dry as possible and go through the tunnel. I spent most of my time walking with the friend. She is really good company and is so sweet. She also stopped we from walking under several leaks in the roof of the tunnel. After about fifteen minutes we reached the cable car. The cable car in itself I would guess at being maybe one metre by two metres at the absolute maximum. There is also only standing room as they fit as many people as possible in there. The ride takes approximately three minutes, however, you ascend just under five hundred metres in the process. You are also at times suspended I would guess at close to one hundred metres above the ground. This was absolutely terrifying for the friend who has as she explained a fear of heights. For me it was cool except for the fact that all the rain and fog made it almost impossible to see anything. I must admit however even me clearly fearless felt my heart skip a beat when we reached about midway. At this point the cable car kind of evens out a bit before it tips rather violently backwards. It is not serious enough to cause injury but it is really quite scary. After that point I stopped telling the friend that she should just keep breathing and that the clouds prevented anything overly scary. However, we soon reached solid ground at an altitude of one thousand five hundred and seven five metres. Here this is even a small restaurant. We needed to wait for the rest of the group as we ended up being spread across several cars due to the large number of us. Eventually however the girl with no name who was bringing up the rear arrived and we began our second climb. Much like the first this one generally takes about twenty minutes. However, the path is a bit steeper and in some parts is a bit more precarious due to lose stones and the like. In this climb you ascend approximately sixty- five metres to reach the entrance to the caves. The view is absolutely breathtaking despite how cloudy it was. I also got my second photo with me in it. I can say my mother would be so proud.

Now at this altitude some people had a bit of trouble breathing. My hears just hurt from the pressure however that quickly subsided. I do think that all the crazy changes in altitude lately that I am not use to could be the cause of my headaches and earaches. Just a theory but we will see. Anyway, after all of this we were finally at the actual entrance to the Ice Caves. Now these Ice Caves are the largest in the world with a total length of over forty kilometres. However, it was quite possibly the most amazing thing I have ever seen. Now they actually have a door on the entrance. That is to prevent the warm air in summer from rushing into the caves and melting the ice. This means that when they open the door so you can enter there is a rush of freezing cold air. You seriously have to mind any hats or beanies. You might just lose them. There is also no electricity inside the caves so they distribute some open flame kerosene lamps among the group. I thought I was lucky not to be given one until the friend gave me hers. I am still not sure why. This meant that for most of the time in the cave I was terrified of setting myself or someone else on fire. This was further complicated by all the stairs. So I was super careful of every step that I took. This actually lead to the girl with no name asking me a couple of times if everything was alright. My answer sure just paranoid I am going to trip, fall and set myself on fire. She agreed that that was probably not a good thing and stopped asking. She also asked once whether I wanted her to take my bag. I honestly found that a little strange and kind of insulting. I mean firstly, there was only my water bottle, camera and wallet in there so it was really quite light. Secondly, I mean I have done enough camping and hiking to know that if you want to bring it you have to carry it. I mean that has even resulted in my near reluctance to ask for help when it comes to my suitcase this trip. However, I acknowledge that maybe her heart was in the right place it still kind of irked me. Anyway, the caves were absolutely amazing. I would include photos however you are actually prohibited from doing so and they are fairly strict on that. I should also mention that within the caves themselves you climb a further seven hundred steps before descending seven hundred steps. At the highest point of the cave you reach an altitude of almost one thousand eight hundred metres. There are also some amazing natural ice sculptures. There was even a polar bear and an elephant which lost it head and was becoming more like a camel. Almost on the descent you walk through an entire tunnel made of ice. It is almost unbelievable that a place like that even exists. However, our tour after almost an hour and a half came to and end. From there we walked back down to the restaurant for lunch. Lunch consisted of a noodle soup and a Wiener schnitzel with bakes potatoes and salad. There was another option of what they called macaroni and cheese. However, it looked more like risotto except made with pasta. It was nice though. The guy sitting next to me let me try some of it. After lunch we once again entered the cable cars for our descent. By this time however, the rain and clouds had cleared giving us a very clear view of the ground. I once again ended up next to the friend however she managed to gather her courage and take a quick peak. After the cable cars we slowly walked back down to the bus taking a lot of photos as we went. We also dropped the friend off back at her car. I am pretty sure she went straight home from there. I know she mentioned that he had a swimming competition on Sunday and was spending her public holiday on Monday with her family before returning to Salzburg on Monday night.

I think people were pretty zonked the trip back. Most people slept or tried to included the girl with no name seated in front of me. We did however, after a very long day return to the residence at a bit after three. I spent the afternoon on the Internet before a dinner of crumbed chicken with a cheese filling served with salad and chips and a chocolate mouse for dessert. My roommate also showed up. I am really not sure about her. Half the time she annoys the hell out of me but the other half the time is a relatively okay person. I still do not know why she decided not to come though. I mean the Law School paid for our private bus, the entrance fee of seventeen Euro and our lunch costing nearly fifteen Euro. I mean that is a lot that we got for free. Why would you not take advantage of such an amazing opportunity? Anyway, I was still really tried after dinner so I crashed really early. Plus, I had the Sound of Music tour the next day. Last thing, some events will be covered in more detail in my Weekend Edition of the G.W.N.N.

Salzburg: Day Six

2011-08-13T17:31:00.001+02:00

Okay so day six in Salzburg was another relatively sunny one. I also got to the university rather early again but there is an important breakfast story in tell first. Okay, so every morning I wake up fairly early, have a shower, get dressed and go have breakfast. Now breakfast starts at six-thirty so when I stroll in at about six-thirty five it is usually just me. That, however, was not the case this morning. The dinning room was packed. This horde of people had also eaten all the food. I mean yes they probably brought out more after but this horde were shovelling it down. Now I always feel bad because I generally take two pieces of cheese and two pieces of ham for my bread roll. The person in front of me, well more likely the person who pushed in front of me, took the last five pieces. I was able to have cereal and had some cheap imitation Nutella on my bread roll but it tasted cheap so I did not eat it all. Also, this morning I got a lovely message from I woman I knew from Brno. She just asked how I was and if my time in Vienna was any better this time around. She also asked if I was still in Europe.

So, anyway, I got to university this morning and I started working on the moot. I just typed up a bit of an outline after my conversation with my Slovak friend and added some relevant articles I found. Soon, though, the morning session was about to begin. However, I was a bit thrown when as I was logging onto my email to email my moot notes to my Slovak friend I saw an email from the Czech Consulate. It turns out that some relevant authority wants to change the reason for my visit from study to other. If they do I will have to pay an additional one hundred and thirty five Australian Dollars and it will quite possibly throw a massive time delay in the processing of my visa. Now understandably as I mentioned I was upset. I mean I have already had some many problems with this visa application that I have at times felt like telling them to stuff and I will just stay at Griffith. Now though I mean what option do I have? I am stuck in Europe. If I cannot get a visa does that mean I have to go home? I mean ignore all the money I have already spent of flights, accommodation deposits and all sorts of other things, I would also have to outlay huge amounts of money just to get home. I also do not understand about why they want to change my reason for visiting. I am a university student attending an exchange semester at a university under an accepted bilateral agreement. That kind of says study to me. I think this one thing has so completely soured my desire to go on exchange. I think I will have to tell Griffith that no I cannot talk at any events because I will tell them you will experience hell on earth just trying to get into the country. What would have happened if I had not have emailed them though? I think that is quite possibly the most scary part. I did actual make it through the session to the break however listening to the annoying lecturer who likes the sound of his own voice did not help matters. After he finished we had our break. During this time I tried contacting my parents via phone and Skype to no avail. However, I did think that I sent two text messages telling my parents that it was about my visa and that the internet was not working.

Now the events that follow are somewhat explained in my previous post. That is the friend noticed that I was really quite upset and asked me what was wrong. As I was explaining the situation to her the girl with no name came up. Basically they managed to calm me down fairly well and I even got a hug. After this I walked in slightly late to the session as it had resumed whilst I was outside. I actually missed the name of the speaker and I still do not know it. However, he spoke on the relationships between the Security Council and the ICC and the ICC and the African Union. It was actually really quite interesting. However, all too soon it was lunchtime. I walked to the cafeteria with my Slovak friend. We had a really good conversation. He even invited me to visit him in Bratislava at some point when I am in Brno. Now i had decided I did not need to call my parents because I thought my third text message had gotten through. So after I finished lunch I kindly thanked the girl with no name and her friend. I then went and just walked around taking pictures. I also found a British novelty shop which was pretty cool. I bought Skittles and dark Aero.

After lunch we had our afternoon session. This was delivered by an American military lawyer who to put it bluntly is in charge of Guantanamo Bay. It was rather interesting. He really carried on from the previous day’s English military lawyer and a lot of things linked up rather well. However, he was as I said later a real Teflon man. It was impossible to get him on anything. It seemed like he had a perfectly politically correct answer for every provocative questions asked. After the session which again ran long I headed back to the residence for dinner. Dinner was spent talking with my Slovak friend and the friend. I think I alluded to this conversation in an earlier post. the conversation began with me teaching English expressions to my Slovak friend. Here it went to the languages we could each speak and the inherent difficulties in learning and mastering those languages. From there I think we went to where in our studies we were and the friend started explaining her doctoral thesis. At this point my Slovak friend left and the friend and I tried to have a hot chocolate. However, the machine was not working so we pretty much left instead. I then went and spent some time on the internet before heading off to bed.

T.G.I.F. with G.W.N.N.

2011-08-12T19:35:00.001+02:00

Seriously I just wanted a title that was almost all in acronyms and longer then my previous titles. Okay a lot about today I will cover in my daily recount so I will focus more on my interactions with the girl with no name and her friend and cover the rest later.

So, the day started rather normally with a bit of before session hottie watching. However, things got very bad for me personally rather quickly. Now I am not going to go in to it here. Nor is it necessary to understand much more then the following basic outline of events. I got some news from the Czech Consulate regarding my visa application. In essence no it has not been completely processed yet and there some issues regarding the classification of my reason for visiting. Besides the huge amount of time it has taken to date it could potentially cost me additionally a couple more hundred dollars. Clearly, I was upset. I just wanted to talk to my Mum. However, I have no credit and the internet was not working so that did not happen. Consequently, I got rather upset. The friend noticed this and when I was outside asked me if everything was okay. So I started explaining the situation to her. Things are always better when you talk about things. However, when I was a bit of the way through the girl with no name walked up and asked what was wrong. I began the story again after the friend explained. The girl with no name then offered to take me to the post office at lunch where I could call. She then gave me a hug, a proper one, and told me everything would be okay. I just have a huge thanks to both of them. I mean they listened and offered to help and that was so sweet and amazing of the both of them. Granted neither of them read this, or at least hopefully do not read this, but I still feel the need to express my thanks.

Okay so after lunch I mentioned they offered to take me to a post office where I could call my parents. However, by this time it would have been almost ten o’clock on a Friday night plus I managed to get a single text to my Mum saying I would explain as soon as I could. So because I am a very considerate person I thanked them both personally but told them I did not need to go to the post office.

There was not a lot more of the girl with no name after this point. There was a bit of hottie watching during the afternoon session but that was fairly minimal. I should also point out that every time she sees me now she at a minimum says hello and gives me a smile. I think it is more because of the koala and campfire bonding then anything else but I can dream. I did see her after the session finished. I was walking out and after she said hi she did ask if the session was over. However, that has been all. I know that today is not over but I doubt there will be anything more tonight. However, there is more of a story with the friend.

My Slovak friend and I were seating eating dinner when she came in and sat down. The three of us had a fairly interesting conversation ranging from the languages we spoke, English figures of speech, degrees and theses, Australia and weekend plans. We left together, my Slovak friend had already left, after we could not get any hot chocolate. She was going to go and work on her doctoral thesis on humanitarian law and terrorists. I told her to have fun in a truly sarcastic way. I am actually becoming a little torn. Do I have an attraction to the girl with no name? Yes and the last couple of day have been really good. However, I am becoming increasingly closer to the friend. She was the one who noticed I was upset and asked me what was wrong. I get on so well with her and she always includes me in whatever conversation is going on. I really like her. Can you see the whole torn aspect? I have already acknowledged that nothing is going to happen with either regardless but it is interesting all the same, I think. A perfect comparison of the two types of relationships I develop. The first instant attraction which may or may not develop. The second friendship which grows deeper over time. Granted I doubt my relationship with the friend could develop into something that deep in one more week. It is just a good illustrations of the point. Do you know what would be perfect for me? Like a combination of the two. Someone who yes I am instantly attracted to yet also develop a friendship which grows deeper over time. I guess I am a firm believer in the thought that you should marry your best friend. Um also not sure about whether I will write a G.W.N.N. post tomorrow or the day after. I know the friend is coming to the ice caves tomorrow but I will not see either of them on Sunday and I will not see the friend on Monday either. If I do it will be like the weekend edition. That is all combined into one although probably written progressively.

Salzburg: Day Five

2011-08-12T19:14:00.001+02:00

Okay so my previous post of G.W.N.N the Fourth was written progressively throughout the day as opposed to this one written after the fact. Therefore, there will be a lot of overlap. However, I do not particularly want to repeat myself so I will refer you to the other post at points.

Okay so I actually left the residence early this morning and got to the university at about eight-thirty. This gave me an opportunity to catch up on some personal administrative things and also go on Facebook. The sessions of the day were pretty good. The morning session was on the interplay between Shar’ia and Islamic Law and the system of post-conflict justice. It was rather interesting. However, I was surprised to find I was one of only five who had any substantial knowledge of Islamic Law. Even then my knowledge was purely basic. I salute my university’s haphazard commitment to educating their law students in regards to comparative legal systems. I then had to go to the printers again before lunch but I had plenty of time to fit everything in. I even had time to find a random YouTube video which spoke about regime change and compared the situations in Kosovo, Iraq and Libya. It was in essence our moot topic. I am also going to acknowledge the shameless hottie watching mentioned in my previous post.

The day’s second session was delivered by a former military lawyer from the United Kingdom. He was really good and interesting. I really liked his speech. It was informative and engaging. However, thanks to the one who likes the sound of his own voice lecturer the session ran until almost five-thirty. I then headed back to the residence and spent time on the Internet before giving the koalas to the girl with no name and her friend. I did have a nice conversation with the friend about whether pink was my favourite colour. I understand her assumption particularly when considering the fact I had a pink shirt on with my pink laptop and pink folder. However, that was purely a coincidence. She later after I gave the girl with no name her koala asked me what I was doing. I have never been so glad that I was not blogging. Otherwise it could have been very interesting in a very uncomfortable and awkward way. After the gifting of koalas it was almost time for their “barbeque”. However, as I said I refuse to call it that because a campfire is not a barbeque. So I went out to find the girl with no name with her little fire which as I said nearly went out. In her defence, it had been going rather well until the wood fell over. The fire was rescued by one of the guys.

The campfire itself was pretty good even besides the moments I have previously mentioned. I did eat my body weight in pretzels and marshmallows though. Also, these Europeans do not know how to toast marshmallows. It is so nice it you actually burn the outside then pull it off and eat it. Then you are left with the gooey inside which is so yummy. Anyway, I called it a night rather early but I did manage to discuss our moot my with Slovak friend.

G.W.N.N. the Fourth

2011-08-12T19:13:00.001+02:00

There is one very good thing about warm weather. That is hottie watching gets so much better. I mean baby doll dress and tights. Seriously fine. I still cannot tell what the tattoo is though. Okay so picking up a little later a certain hottie put on a jumper. I should mention that I am pretty much struggling to keep laughter in in the middle of the lecture hall. At least I can always use the excuse that I am on the Internet. Okay, so it looked like the jumper would come off but I was sadly disappointed. I think I need to come up with a better excuse the just the Internet. I also have a funny feeling I might not be as subtle as I think I am. It is so hard not to look though. Yes, if you must know I am truly amusing myself although I have a funny feeling the friend (my alias finding abilities seem to have taken a hit this week) may be catching on to something. She is seriously smart or maybe I am just far less secretive then I thought. Maybe I am not all that subtle. I could be a product of complete naivety when it comes to flirting and relationships. Seriously, the friend is a ninja. Sorry, that was kind of random but I am sitting in the middle of a crowded lecture hall typing this up and she just kept popping up behind me. Maybe I also need to improve my discretion and sense of timing.

I am also going to apologise for the way this kind of jumps all over the place. It is what happens when I attempt to write things progressively as they happen as opposed to sitting down at the end of the day or the following day and collating everything. I was thinking though and yes this is related to the girl with no name that I should give her and the friend one of my koalas. Not for an sappy or unrequited thing at all. It would purely be as a thank you for everything they have done and the huge amount that they have organised. Plus the koalas are Australian and although small it is a cute little keepsake. I actually feel that was one regret I had after Brno last time. I mean we had the people who had done so much to organise it and we all forgot to bring anything Australian as a thank you and reminder. The questions is though when would be best to give it to them. I mean the end of next week makes the most logical sense. However, what if I do not get an opportunity. I think it might be better to do the thanking now and possibly in advance just to make sure it gets done. So maybe I will start carrying Koalas around in my bag. A little bit weird but that way I know that whatever I have to say will not be rushed or forgotten.

Okay so yes I followed through with the plan. I managed to get the friend before she walked into dinner and just thanked her and gave her the koala. The two of them, the girl with no name and the friend, both walked from dinner at the same time. This actually worked because I think the friend may have told her something because she actually sat down next to me. So I gave the koala to the girl with no name. Just thanked her and I got a side hug which has got me smiling again. I seriously cannot stop these days. I am also glad that I got to say thank you and give them both something kind of unique. The hug just made things a little bit nicer.

After that came the campfire. They called it a barbeque but my inherent Aussie-ness refuses to call it that. So the when I walked over the girl with no name was by herself having started a fire. It was actually going well until some of the wood fell over and the fire pretty much went out. Boys came to rescue and fire was rescued before they scampered off to carry benches out. I am being succinct because most of this will be explained in my account of the day. Anyway, that left us alone again at which point she started Dr House impersonations which were really quite funny. There was another related moment when one of the guys made a comment about wanting the stick and we looked at each other and just laughed. I also came to her defence and acted as her witness regarding her abilities to start a fire. The last thing was when she bent down and started toasting a marshmallow right in front of where I was sitting and a couple of other times we were sitting rather closely. I am pretty sure her tattoo is a butterfly because I did have the opportunity to just look. Although it kind of looks like it is side on as opposed to the two wings my sister has. There was also a funny moment where after I set my marshmallow on fire, entirely on purpose because it is better that way, she tried to use the flame to toast her own marshmallow.

Final comments about the day. She is funny and affectionate. She is a very loyal friend and a genuinely good person.

Salzburg: Day Four

2011-08-11T11:41:00.001+02:00

Okay so day four. I do not understand why the more tired I am and the later I go to bed it seems as if I wake up earlier. I mean I was awake at five thirty this morning. When I same that I mean awake not coherent or functioning. It took a really big cup of tea for that to happen. Today, we discussed the relative failure of Kampala in regards to the crime of aggression and the discretion of the Prosecutor of the ICC. Can I just say that the two lecturers just kept seeming to interrupt each other. It was clear they had relatively different opinions and that they had toned down their relative antagonism from previous years but they were seriously competitive. Anyway, it was a relatively short day today since we only had classes until one not five-thirty like usual. However, before I went to find lunch I went in search of the copy shop I had received rather bad directions for the day before. Okay well not bad just somewhat confusing. I actually have to go back again tomorrow and get more stuff printed. Anyway, after lunch, which I am not going to even question what it was, there was an organised city tour. However, I had with me my laptop plus my folder and did not really feel like carrying them all over town. Therefore, I headed back to the residence to catch up some personal administrative stuff before sitting down to actually study. I did actually study but then my laptop died and I got bored so I gave up but I did do something. I also want to acknowledge that we have had a lovely sunny afternoon and night so far. Anyway, then I had dinner which involved a very interesting conversation about the moot that no one knows anything about. Helpful seeing as it is next week. Well, I did find a random piece of information whilst randomly on Google which I decided to share. That bit was actually funny because I brought my laptop up to dinner after we had this conversation. It was then suggested to me that I should try random searches on YouTube which proved ineffective but then I put on the classic law school video ‘Snail in a Bottle’. It was quite loud and I felt people looking at me but I found it funny. I then sadly had to explain what Donoghue v Stevenson was to a table of lawyers trained in the civil law tradition of continental Europe. However, I amused myself. I then got paid out for being at the table for so long. Um, after that pretty much came the final moment in my G.W.N.N: Three of a Kind post. After that I went back to my room where I had a really interesting conversation with my roommate. It was really nice. She gave me a scarf from Pakistan and I gave her a Koala from Australia. I also do not think I mentioned that one of the guys from Kazakhstan gave us all a lolly from his country which was really sweet.

G.W.N.N: Three of a Kind

2011-08-10T20:13:00.001+02:00

Okay so I found a random Facebook group which inspire this post and I really do not feel like going to type out my notes so it also serves as a form of procrastination. It was this group about how you ignore the ones who adore you and adore the ones who ignore you and a couple others along those lines. Now, of course I am am talking about the girl with no name. Do I want her to notice me? Yes I do. Well, I should mention that she remembered my name today. I guess we are making progress. I mean on some level I think it does not matter but that other side just wants a little bit of attention from the one you kind if like. It is weird I know. Actually, it sounds almost a like masochistic but it is true. I actually get a bit of attention from the friend of the girl with no name and the other administrative person. She always includes me in her conversations if I am around and she always has a nice chat with me. She also remembered who I was before the girl with no name. I am not saying I am attracted to the friend. She is just nice and sweet and more acquaintance bordering on friend material. Come to think of it that is probably a better position. I mean it takes a lot for me to trust people. I have recognised my own significant trust issues. However, I clearly view the friend as someone I am capable of trusting which I personally think a lot of. This whole girl with no name is rapidly approaching a daily serial. It was not supposed to I swear but I guess her and the friend are going to be in every day of my life for the next eight days. So maybe it will make a daily serial. Alongside my daily almost diary entries there will also be a daily post on my musing regarding the girl with no name. I almost want to come up with a new name but I kind of almost like a girl with no name. I am not saying it was fitting or anything but I have just gotten used to it. I actually did a bit of very subtle checking out of the girl with no name today. I will explain. We were sitting at one of the tables for dinner. I had already eaten and run and got my laptop and was just on Facebook whilst the others kind of talked. Then the girl with no name and the friend got up and were stacking their dishes. I had a very nice view too. She has a little tattoo on her right shoulder blade although I could not really tell what it was. It was also partially obscured by her singlet and bra strap. It still plays into my whole just a little rough around the edges description though. Is it wrong to check very attractive people out? I do not think so. I mean what would we all do if we could not do some hottie watching. Speaking of which a certain hottie just walked in. I am so trying to smile and look but I cannot help it. I am secretly amusing myself. Okay so she is gone now. Still living up to the rough around the edges thing with a bit of swearing. Seriously I seem to be relatively good at reading people. Or maybe she just reminded of Marilyn. I actually think that is something. She is not really Charlotte Light although to a certain extent she is. However, the better description is halfway between Charlotte and Marilyn. I do not know why I did not see that bit before. Maybe that was the subconscious thing. Maybe it was not all about Charlotte but also about missing Marilyn and I found a single person who personified a bit of them both. I will continue to think about that but now I really should get back to some serious study.

Anyone else notice just how comfortable I am becoming with all of this? I mean six months ago I was close enough to worrying myself sick. Now, I am happy enough to joke about it and to secretly check people out when they are not watching. Let me just hope and pray that everyone else will end up as happy as me. Somehow, I doubt it. Maybe I will just wait until a definite committed relationship before I drop that bombshell on my family.

Redux to a G.W.N.N

2011-08-10T14:46:00.001+02:00

Okay so after posting a girl with no name I had an attack of, I am not going to say attack of conscious because I never actually said anything to be ashamed about. However, I had an attack of something similar. So I am not going to take back anything I have said because I am not that kind of person but I want to put some caveats in place all the same.

I am not exactly sure though what I want to say though. The frustrating conundrum of knowing you have something to say just not sure what it is. Okay here goes something. I have been very clear on my feelings for Charlotte. I have never concealed these ever. Charlotte will always be phenomenally special to me and I honestly think anyone else I ever meet will be compared to her. However, my feelings for the girl with no name are different. I do not love her or care deeply for her. It is purely a crush, an attraction. I acknowledge that it is possible for such a thing to develop into something more as was the case with Charlotte however I struggle to see this happening in eight days. Just because this is the case does not mean that I am not going to have fun though. I feel as if my biggest regret was how things ended with Marilyn. This is not necessarily the same either but the experience has made me far more inclined to “go with it” and just accept things then pretend things do not exist only to my own detriment and hurt. I should also acknowledge that if it was more then eight more days things could be different with the outcome of my feelings. Maybe. I mean she is funny, smart and very mischievous as last night proved. Just mentioning why she was the only one who knew where the water came out in each place yet refused to tell people. I am also sure I said pretty but very much a tomboy who you can just imagine pouting when forced to wear a dress. I do not think I have seen her in anything but pants anyway. She is cute and little and on some level delicate. There is a lot to care about and even love. Only problem would be the smoking but that is a different matter entirely.

I hope I have been able to clarify just what I mean and what I intended. It pains me to think that any negative connotations were made by my words. I only hope I have been able to rectify that. So, I guess this brings to an end my redux.

Salzburg: Day Three

2011-08-10T14:45:00.001+02:00

So, day three in the beautiful Salzburg where it has not really stopped raining since the day I got here. No I lie there was an hour of sun today but I am not at that point yet. Okay so after catching the bus to university we started our second full day of the program. We had several very interesting lectures on topics of the responsibility to protect, complementarity and the effect of international justice on the rights of victims. We it came to lunch I had a curry which I did not think I ordered but we actually had to find our way there ourselves. I also failed to find the copy shop I was directed to by the G.W.N.N (it is shorter then writing out the full title). After class we returned back to the residence for dinner. Dinner was fish sticks with potato and had a very interesting conversation with one of our lecturers regarding the responsibility to protect and the use of Article 16 of the Rome Statue. After dinner we assembled to head out to the Trick Fountains at Hellbrun Palace. This involved one trolley bus and one bus taking approximately forty-five minutes. Now, the Trick Fountains would have been a great idea if it had not been very wet and incredibly cold. Why? Um, well the trick is you getting saturated. Funny? Only when it happens to someone else. No, it was really interesting and fun just to see the really amazing things they can do just with water. The not fun part was getting wet. By this I mean by the end, I had wet hair, wet jeans both front and back, wet jacket and wet shoes. We then had to catch the buses home. Besides being abandoned by the two women running things we waited out in the rain at ten o’clock at night for twenty minutes for a bus. Then when we eventually reached the stop we normally catch the trolley bus from in the afternoons about ten of us got off. This was because we saw the trolley bus was arriving in about two minutes and we would have to change at some point. So we got on the trolley bus. The next stop there was everyone else standing out in the rain waiting. We all laughed at them. I have to say though I was the first one back to the residence. It was weird though. I got back, organised my stuff for tomorrow, showered and then was in bed for ten minutes with no sign from my roommate. No idea where she went.

I can say that to this point, I have had a lot of fun. I have met several very interesting people and learned a lot of things. I am also considering changing the topic I had picked for my honours thesis. Not sure but I am thinking this new one could be better.

Girl With No Name

2011-08-09T18:41:00.003+02:00

Okay, so I am finding it really difficult to come up with an alias for the mystery crush I mentioned. When I mean difficult I mean really, really difficult. I also think the girl without an alias, although apt, is not exactly a good option. I do acknowledge though that it is rather funny and could easily be used to excuse my current smile. This is of course ignoring the fact that she just walked in the room. What can I say besides that I am a romantic sap? The was another alias I cam up with but I still remain undecided about that one and it is almost more confusing. I mean attraction is a difficult thing for the human brain to logically explain. Attraction is a emotion or feeling which arises without logic or rationale reason. I think what is so confusing is just why this person? I sincerely hope it is not that I am just missing and wanting to see Charlotte that I have settled on a ‘light’ option. Yes, if you must know the alias was Charlotte Light. I understand just how much Charlotte means to me but I am not okay with being attracted to someone who gives me a fleeting reminder of her. Yes that is what happened with Artemis but she in so many ways was the absolute opposite of Charlotte and my feelings for Artemis are also different. But this time I remain unsure but wanting. However, that in itself is undeniably confusing for me. Is the wanting a product of my subconscious settling for someone until I can see Charlotte or is my conscious so clouded by Charlotte that I am unable to see just what my subconscious finds so attractive. Is it possible to sit my subconscious down for a serious conversation and get some answers? I ask that hypothetically because I feel as if until I get an answer I am going to be stuck confusing my deep and acknowledge feelings for Charlotte for a passing attraction with a girl with no name. Why do feelings have to be so complicated? What happened to easy? Am I blowing this up into something bigger then it is? I honestly do not have any answers to these questions. I truly wish I did but until I do let me introduce to the girl with no name.

She is one of the women in charge of handling the administrative aspect of the program. She is definitely pretty. Not the enchanting innocence which Artemis always personified. Neither does she have Charlotte’s stunning good looks. She is quite pretty with a beautiful smile and a vivacious personality. I love the look on her face whenever she forgets my name. She is always so incredibly sorry. When she smiles her whole face lights up. She is also very obviously incredibly intelligent. She is also helpful, caring and undeniably sweet. However, at the same time you can just tell she is an absolute tomboy who loves being a little bit rough around the edges.

From all of this do you know what I have decided? Well, I have decided just to go with it. Not in the way that I would actually do anything though. More in the respect that after next Thursday I am probably never going to see her ever again. So for the first time in my life I am actually going to accept what I feel and not ignore it and pretend it is not there. It is just a crush. Also, in one month time I am going to be in the Czech Republic and I get to see Charlotte again and that is something which makes me really happy. So even if she does not remember my name it really does not matter because at the heart of it and in my heart she is not Charlotte. Charlotte is the one I care about and that is what matters not a girl with no name.

Salzburg: Day Two

2011-08-09T18:41:00.001+02:00

Okay, day two also means first official day of the Salzburg Program I came here for. Um, well the progression of events is pretty standard until the point where we leave the residence for the opening session of the program. It was also raining which was a bit annoying. However, we walked in the rain to the nearest bus stop. I was in my nice new blouse and flats with my skirt, which made it a little bit less fun. Anyway, we needed to catch the bus to get to where the university buildings were. I suppose it was a good thing they gave us travel passes for the two weeks. Anyway, we soon reached where we were having our opening ceremony I suppose you could call it. It pretty much involved welcome speeches from both the law faculty dean and the former dean. Then came the keynote address by the Second Vice-President at the ICC. He spoke on the current challenges and perspectives facing the ICC. We then had our next speaker, Professor Benjamin Ferencz speak for about half an hour. I will come back to Professor Ferencz though. After that there was a reception where I had half a glass of orange juice and champagne. I know drinking during the middle of the day what will become of me? After that we walked to the law school building where we had lunch. Now lunch consisted of a clear soup, salad and a dish with noodles and a tomato sauce. I have to say I have met a lot of very interesting people. Most of them are really nice and will just strike up a conversation. I did meet another Australian. She is undertaking her masters and living in Germany which is pretty cool in my opinion. I do feel really quite young though. That is mainly because most of them seem to be at least undertaking masters programs if not practising lawyers.

After lunch we headed to where the majority of our lectures will take place from now on. We also received all our materials. It is like five books. There is no way my suitcase will ever make it to under twenty kilograms for the RyanAir flight. I am resigned to the fact that I am in fact doomed to needing to purchase another piece of luggage. Now let me introduce Professor Benjamin Ferencz. First impression a bit along the lines of Bilbo Baggins at the beginning of the Lord of the Rings. He is so cute and little. It is actually really cool though. He was actually one of the Chief Prosecutors during the Nuremberg Trials. He was like at the very beginning of International Criminal Law. It also means he is ninety-two. But is is a little surreal to be in the same room as someone who pioneered the very field you desire to go into. He was also really engaging, funny and charismatic. At the same time he was shocking. He could give you a blow by blow account of what he personally found as the concentration camps were liberated at the end of the War. As a result he was really passionate. I think it would be hard to be in that situation and not want rather desperately to prevent it from ever happening again.

All in all I really loved the conference today. I fill so fortunate to be a part of this. Now, there was also a welcome drink tonight but after continuing the job of tearing off the nail I ran over in Paris plus being fairly wiped I was not in the mood to travel an hour just to watch other people consume alcohol. Well, I would not mind seeing one particular person but that is another story entirely.

I should mention that I cannot stop thinking about Charlotte lately. I am not sure whether it is my impending exchange semester, studying international criminal law or something else but I cannot seem to get her out of my head at the moment. I guess that brings me to the something else and that one particular person. Yes I have a bit of a crush. I am going to be hard pressed thinking of an alias for this one. I am not sure where I am going with it either. I guess when I know so will you.

I am not actually sure if there is anywhere truly appropriate to add this bit. So, tacking it on at the end seemed the best option. That is dinner was quite nice. It was some pasta with spicy ham dish. I know it does not sound interesting but it tasted good and that is the deciding vote when it comes to my stomach and taste buds.

Salzburg: Day One

2011-08-08T08:23:00.001+02:00

Okay, so I have to admit that I now feel kind of silly. Why the considerate among you may ask? Well, after I very diligently posted my account of yesterday, more stuff happened. I try to do a good thing and it blows up in my face. Not really. Not much actually happened but I do feel kind of silly about premature posting. I mean I honestly thought it would have been a quite night of fan fiction with an early bedtime. Well, yes there was fan fiction. There was also a relatively early bedtime. However, my roommate for my time in Salzburg also made her first appearance. She is a lawyer from Pakistan who works for an NGO. First Impressions are she is very nice and definitely considerate almost to the point of irritation. Beyond that only time will tell. Also, I want to talk about my plans for my time in Salzburg. Yes I acknowledge that I am here predominately to further my education. However, I must also be a tourist and sight see. I know that they have a planned but optional couple hour sightseeing trip in a couple of days which is good. I know there is also plans for the ice caves on what I am guessing will be next Saturday. Apart from that the only thing I really want to do at this stage is see the ‘Sound of Music’ sights including Mondsee. Now I am two free days in which to do this. I think it sounds doable. So, this is the plan.

Now on to my first full day in the lovely city of Salzburg. After last night’s summer storm it was kind of overcast and a little cooler then yesterday which pretty much continued all. It is rather disappointing on the first day I decide to wear a skirt that I change into jeans because I am too cold. I still spent the day in a skirt and a singlet though. Breakfast was another continental breakfast. I miss eggs, bacon, sausage and pancakes. I am actually looking forward to getting back to England just so I can have a decent breakfast. How sad is that? Then again after my return to England I quickly head off to Brno where things settle done, well almost anyway. I also decided that later this week I am going to go a dinner show called the ‘Sound of Salzburg’. It is largely a tribute to the Sound of Music. I also Skyped my Mum again this morning and started what turned out to be a very long process of doing my washing. However, I remain unconvinced regarding the dryer so my clothes are pretty much hanging up all over the place. I think most of it will dry pretty quickly so it does not really matter.

Okay, so apart from laundry I spent the day watching videos on YouTube, reading fanfiction, messaging friends and trying to find a way to watch Sound of Music online. I was successful in all endeavours except for the last. Anyway, it was soon three-thirty which meant I could register for this summer school program. Officially that meant not much except I now have travel passes for the two weeks and a good idea of when I can work my own thing around the social program. Everyone should be very proud as I signed up to pretty much every activity. After that I again did not much until dinner. It was just pasta with a tomato sauce but I was hungry. Nothing near Gerhardt but I suppose I have to get use to mediocre cafeteria style food again.

I really do not know what has been going on with me lately but I had another two headaches today. I am drinking plenty of water, I have been wearing my glasses so it is not overuse of my laptop and I have nothing to be stressed, tense or worried about. This leaves me with a mystery cause of the persistent headaches over the last couple of days.

Also, back to the roommate. I at this point of the day remain ambivalent. I mean yes she is nice like I said but she does not come across as the kind of that I usually get on well with. However, I should admit that I always have issues with friends and it takes me a long time to make them. However, on some topic which is only weirdly related in my own head I want to go back to BrizMUN next year. I mean I wanted to do it this year but I was on a cruise. However, if nothing comes up I definitely intend to do it next year. I might even do the one in Sydney. I am also going to apply for the Youth Parliament thing. I always seem to be highly motivated by these kinds of things. I also think I will stop here while I still have relatively coherent, conscious thought.

I’m Single

2011-08-07T06:51:00.001+02:00

Okay, so I am single. However, I am not referring to my relationship status, although I am in fact single on that account as well. I am talking about being a single traveller. Now a lot of things get said about travelling by oneself particularly if you are female. I also acknowledge my own tendency to but into this stereotype. However, it is only a stereotype. In what is nearing a month of travel I have a few insights to share.

The first is it is fine to travel solo. There is nothing wrong with it and in my situation if I wanted to travel I had to go solo. I honestly did not have any friends who were willingly or able to come with me. Why is this fine? In most of the cities I have been to I have never really been alone. I mean you go on free walking tours. You share a room at a hostel. You even sit next to people on a bus. I have picked up people to hang out with whenever I have wanted to and with relative ease which means a lot from a self-professed inherently shy and introverted person. I have had the opportunity to meet some incredible people that I doubt I would have had the chance to meet if I came with a friend. I mean if I came with a friend I would not have sat next to girl on the bus from TreeHouse that I did today and we had a great conversation. Travelling by yourself, you also have almost complete freedom. You do not need to accommodate anyone else’s wants or needs. you can do things at your own pace and if you do not feel up to something you are not letting someone else down. In fact in some circumstances it is easier to go solo and trust me if you do you will never truly be alone.

The second is try the local cuisine. I have said it before and I will say it again. You get a much better feel of the culture if you do. Plus, it is generally cheaper. Also, who does not want a crêpe in France, some fries in Belgium, a kebab in Germany or a schnitzel in Austria?

Third, okay, yes, English is the universal language of travellers but make an effort. It will garner you a lot more goodwill and get you further. Even if you only learn and use hello and thank you, i can assure you it will be much appreciated. I know I have told you the French story possibly many times by this point but I have another to illustrate my point. Whilst in Cesky Krumlov we were cautioned by the man running the hostel from using the local post office. Now this is a strange thing to tell travellers. His reasoning was this, the workers at the post office had become so infuriated at the unwillingness of tourists to attempt to use Czech that besides being rude they spat in people’s faces. Now, it is quite possible this is an exaggeration but how often when you are at home, if home is an English speaking country, and you get frustrated by people who cannot speak English? Double standard, case and point, right there ladies and gentlemen. If you never find yourself nearing frustration I commend you for being a truly virtuous person far superior in morality then myself or a complete sociopath for lying to oneself so comfortable or not from a country where English is a native language. Take your pick.

Fourth pearl of wisdom. No one cares if you dine alone. Been there and done that. Do you know what a waitress told me once? She said, “Don’t be shy.” The people around you do not care and the people serving you do not care. These are the facts of life. Most of the time we are too self-absorbed in what is going on in our immediate orbit to care what anyone else is doing. Also, dining solo good opportunity to people watch for all you wannabe actors, writer, psychologists and criminal profilers. For the rest of us, although arguably I can oscillate from one group to the other, it is just fun.

So that is all I have for now. If I come up with anymore pearls of wisdom I sincerely promise to pass them along. You can also tell that secretly I want to be a comedian. What do you think? Do I have a chance? No, I do not think I do either. Oh, how painful is the death of dreams. Kidding. I am just in a weird and wacky mood. I am thinking it is a cross between dehydration, panadol and choc chip cookies plus I have songs from the ‘Sound of Music’ on repeat in my head. Maybe it is just that last one. However, I am now in Salzburg which makes it completely alright. I hesitate to say normal though. I am going to stop here before things take an even weirder turn.

Reflections on Gruenau

2011-08-06T17:08:00.001+02:00

I think my feelings regarding Gruenau can be summed up in a single word. That is ‘amazing’. I know I have used that word a lot lately but it is so apt to describe my time in Gruenau. Now I would recommend Gruenau and the TreeHouse to absolutely anyone. It can be such a relaxing time if you want it to be. If not then you can have a lot of fun enjoying the great outdoors by foot, bike or horseback. Gerhardt, the man who owns and runs the hotel, is the nicest and most accommodating man you will ever meet. He knows your name within an hour of you checking in. If you want to do something he will do everything he can to make it happen. He will even pick you up or drop you off at the nearest train station. He is also a phenomenal chef. His home cooked three course meals are among the nicest food I have had this entire trip. The atmosphere there is also really different from anywhere else. It is like you are part of this family for the duration of your stay. I do not think it is possible to speak more highly of Gerhardt, the TreeHouse or my time in Gruenau. If you are ever in Austria make sure you visit. You will find a truly amazing place.

Gruenau to Salzburg

2011-08-06T17:06:00.001+02:00

Okay so another day where my infernal body clock got the best of me. The only plus side to all of that is that I usually get to spend several hours by myself using free Wi-Fi in whichever hostel or hotel I may be in. Also, if I am sharing a room with other people getting up and leaving is far more respectful then remaining in the room only to make noise. Anyway, this morning I spoke to my Mum again. Then I had breakfast before packing my suitcase, again, and getting one of the guys to carry it down the stairs. From then we just waited until the bus arrived, which it did at about twenty-five past eleven. After some people had lunch we loaded our suitcases onto the bus and were underway. I have to say I am so sick of people commenting on the size of my suitcase. Yes I know it is kind of large. Yes I know it is kind of heavy. I am however, travelling and studying in Europe for seven months I needed things. That was just my rant of today. Now, it was only about an hour and a half to Salzburg which we spent driving through beautiful Austrian countryside. The bus was kind of full, so I was sitting next to this girl I met in Gruenau. She was very nice and we had a really long conversation. Now she is a Kiwi and considering the All-Backs just thrashed the Wallabies I cannot hold it against her. She stayed in Gruenau four nights but on her first day she had told the owner how much she had loved it and it really was amazing. She also asked how she could get a job working there. He apparently asked her what she does. To which she answered she is a chef, a pastry chef to be precise, but she had also done some waitressing and bartending. He pretty much turned around and offered her a job over this winter. I honestly think that was really cool. Anyway, we spent the bus trip discussing dreams, ambitions, travel plans, the ‘Sound of Music’, puzzle rings and jewellery. It was really fun to talk to her and really easy to do so as well. I mean I read somewhere recently that the secret to getting an introvert to talk is to skip small talk and talk about stuff they are interested in and we did. We also passed this beautiful and breathtaking little town. It is called Mondsee. On one side it has this sheer cliffs and on the other side is an incredibly beautiful lake. It is also home to the church where Maria and the Captain from the "’Sound of Music’ were married. Also, just outside the town is where Maria and the children were seen riding bikes by the lake. That was just in my guidebook. I thought it important to acknowledge that. Also, I almost forgot to tell you that the guide we had today was the same one I had on the bus from Amsterdam to Berlin. I like keeping track of these things. I wonder how many loops they will have done by the time I get back on the bus in a few weeks. I think quite possibly a lot. Anyway, not long after that we pulled into Salzburg. Now this is the first and only city where I am not staying at the drop off point. This is because I am spending two weeks in Salzburg participating in the 13th Annual Summer School on International Criminal Law hosted by the University of Salzburg. Anyway, after getting off the bus and consulting my map I quickly worked out where I had to go. This involved walking a couple of blocks to where the nearest bus stop was. I then caught a trolley bus for about five minutes. After getting off the bus I continued for a couple more blocks for I reached the university accommodation. Can I also say that today has been the hottest day, at least in my personal opinion, since I have been in Europe. I guess dragging a suitcase in the sun did not help matters very much though. Anyway, the university accommodation is really quite nice. They also have free Wi-Fi in the lobby which I intend to use. I also managed to find the laundry so I have to do that tomorrow morning as well as finding a store which sells deodorant. It means you have been away for a bit when all your toiletries begin to run out. It seems mostly residential around here but I might go for a walk later just to have a look around. Although I am thinking that if I want dinner it might be better going in to town. I will get back to you about that.

Okay, so I am back. I found an Aldi nearby. Actually, I have been meaning to ask this for a while but does anyone know why Aldi is not called Aldi in German speaking countries. I always thought Aldi was German. It just seems strange that Aldi is not called Aldi. I mean the sign and logo is exactly the same. It even as the A on it for Aldi yet it is called Hofer. Granted I could see how that may not look or sound as nice in English but it just seems weird. So, I found a nearby Aldi. It was only like two hundred meters as the crow flies from the accommodation. However, I am not a crow. Therefore, it took me much longer to get there because for some unknown reason there is no bridge over the railway tracks to make it convenient. My rant is done now, I promise. I managed to buy deodorant as well dinner which consists of a apple and strawberry smoothie and choc chip cookies. I miss Gerhardt's home cooked meals already. By the way, did I tell you that as the bus was leaving he stood outside waving. More about him will be in the reflections.

Gruenau

2011-08-06T09:42:00.001+02:00

Okay so I am not calling this day one because I did quite a bit yesterday but it is not really day two. It is also my only full day in Gruenau so it can just be called Gruenau. Anyway, there was talk of riding the twenty kilometres to the nearest lake but I had a horrible headache and ear ache. I did walk around a bit in the morning taking photos and patting the dogs. I also Skyped my Mum for like an hour in the morning mainly because even after a late night I was still up obscenely early. There was also breakfast. I mean it was relatively standard in terms of continental breakfasts but they had these delicious freshly baked rolls which are seriously addictive. I love the food here so much. Also a breakfast I was wearing my ‘I’m Single’ shirt from Prague. Now my necklace with my name was hanging outside my shirt so it looked like it said ‘I’m (insert name here), single and ready to mingle’. When it was pointed out to me it sounded kind of lame but funny so I thought I would share that. So back to my headache/ ear ache. I just ended up taking multiple doses of panadol and relaxing in my room all day. I know it was not much but I think every once and a while you just need a day off to do nothing. I did spend some time on my most recent story idea. I honestly hope that by the end of this trip I have a lot of this fleshed out rather well so I only have to fill in the detail. That is the hope anyway. I also think that if I finish polishing off ‘The Last Enemy’ I might always be ready to try sending it off to a couple of publishers. Well maybe. I can dream even if I doubt anything I ever write will be published. I suppose I can always tell my future children fascinating stories and help them develop incredible imaginations. Okay so back to the day. I cam downstairs a bit before six just so I was down for dinner. Dinner tonight had another salad for the first course. This was followed by a very traditional pork schnitzel and chips. Nowhere near as big as the one from Vienna but amazing. This was all followed by a chocolate and apricot cake for dessert. After dinner I was feeling a little off again so I went to my room and crashed rather early. I should also mention I got another wave of homesickness. It did not cause the headache though. It was just talking to my mum, then mentioning how many days until I go home and then playing with the dogs made me miss my own dogs. I did not last very long but as I am documenting everything I thought I would share.

Vienna to Gruenau

2011-08-06T09:26:00.001+02:00

Okay so today I caught another early morning bus from Vienna to Gruenau. It dawned a rather dull, grey, cold and wet day. I actually was kind of glad that I was going to be on a bus. Anyway, we reached the lovely town of Gruenau at about eleven-thirty. Now I doubt many people will know anything about Gruenau so I will fill you in about this little town. Now, when I say town I really mean town. It has a population of roughly two and a half thousand people. It is situated in the Austrian mountains about an hour from Salzburg. It is incredibly small and it really has that warm and friendly rural feel to it. The hostel where we are staying is called the Treehouse and it is really cute. Now after we got into our rooms, I joined a group of people who had decided to walk up to the waterfalls. Now the sign said it would take us roughly three and a half hours. We also received relatively simple directions. These were follow the road until you can cross the river and keep following the river until you reach the waterfalls. Sounds really quite simple right? The reality was quite an adventure. First we walked for maybe forty minutes along the road. However, after this point the sealed tarmac ended leaving us with a dirt road which branched four ways with an additional road crossing the river and continuing on the other bank. Now, we decided that we should cross the river as per our directions. Now we waded across this river which came to my knees. This involved hitching my jeans up as far as possible and carrying my thongs. Now after we crossed we continued along this road for about twenty minutes but this road was taking us increasingly further away from the river before it doubled back on itself. It was at this point we decided we were going the wrong way had headed back the way we came. It was also here that Blair Witch and Ivan Milat came up in conversation whilst walking through a huge forest. So eventually we reached the river. Now four of us girls stayed on this little island in the middle. The fifth girl decided she had had enough of the rain and walking and river crossing. The one guy of the group was running around checking all the houses and cars he could find to see if he could get some directions. However, he did not find anyone and we as we had no idea if any of the four roads would lead us to the waterfalls we did the best thing we could think of. That was follow the river. This involved wading across the river following the banks as far as we could. Now I should mention that this river came from the snow on top of the mountains melting and flowing down into the valley. This meant the water was absolutely freezing. Eventually, we found a bit of a path so we returned to the bank. This path I am still not sure the point. This is because the path was ultimately a loop which ran past some scenes from fairy tales and folk stories. I suppose it was some thing designed for kids. Although, I am still not sure what all of the sets were supposed to represent. There were signs but they were in German and although it was easy to guess some but others I had never heard of. I actually googled one. I typed in donkey, dog, cat and rooster. Turns out it was an old German folk story called the ‘Town Musicians of Bremen’. I have never heard of it before but I suppose it is of German origin and we are very close to the border. Anyway, we soon came to the point where the path looped back on itself. Here we decided to jump the fence and continue on along the riverbank. The riverbank also ran out so we continued wading upstream through the river. However, it quickly became rather difficult. From here are some scouting we continued through the forest alongside the river for some time. I should also point out that it was still raining at this point and three of us were in thongs. Anyway, we eventually came to part where the opposite bank had been cleared and there was a dirt road. We once again crossed the river. We followed the track, through an open gate, alongside the river until we an actual river crossing. We crossed the river and found the road suddenly got quite steep. However, as soon as we crested the hill we found we were at the base of the mountains and there were all these waterfalls. Now I should acknowledge that they were not like waterfalls that I have seen previously. There was no real torrent of water gushing over a vertical drop. What there was was all these little streams of water flowing through all this worn out grooves in the mountain. It was impressive yes. Particularly the largest one where we stopped but not what I was expecting. We stayed there for about half an hour before deciding to head back. I should also say that it took us a bit under three hours to reach the waterfalls. On the way back we decided to follow the dirt road we had found for as far as we could. Well it turns out that the road took as back to the place were the road branched. In all the journey from the waterfalls to the hostel took us fifty minutes. That meant we got back to the hostel at a little after five. I can say no matter how cold and wet we were or how muddy and sore we were, we had an adventure. It was definitely experience. I mean how many people can say they trekked through the Austrian mountains to find waterfalls. There was even talk that we could make our own ‘Man vs. Wild’ show. Anyway, when he we got back we all headed for the shower to get clean and warm in time for dinner. Dinner was amazing. The first course, yes there were courses, was a very nice salad with lettuce, cucumber, tomato and capsicum. Have I said that I am getting healthier. I mean a walk estimated at fourteen kilometres and salad at dinner. Anyway, second course was a grilled chicken fillet with a really nice white sauce served with pasta and steamed vegetables. That was followed with an apricot tea cake. The meal as I said was amazing. I guess it helps that the guy is a chef. After dinner, I joined two of the girls and the guy who I went to the waterfalls with in watching ‘Sound of Music’. Can I say I love that movie. It has been ages since I saw it but it is still just as good. It was actually kind of cute sitting there and watching this old video on a VCR. However, we forgot to watch the short little ‘Sights of Salzburg’ which followed the movie. I mean in our salute to Salzburg we forgot about the actually featurette about Salzburg. Anyway, after that I was pretty wiped so I went to sleep.

Reflections on Vienna & Day Two

2011-08-03T18:30:00.000+02:00

Okay, so as I really did not do a lot on my second full day in Vienna I decided to just combine it with my reflections. So, On my second day I hit the markets outside the hostel. I walked down through them down to the shops around Stephansplatz. That was pretty much it. I visited several book and souvenir shops. I did buy another book. This one is a biography on Mary Boleyn. I know it is another biography but it seems to be a thing I am on at the moment. Yes, I realise my day was really boring and rather small. There is a reason why I am combining them.

Okay so on to my reflections. Um, my time in Vienna went a lot better this time around then last time. However, at the same time I did manage to enjoy myself. I was able to see a lot more sights and was able to do a lot more of my own thing. I also really liked the food. I mean the dinner on the first night sealed for me the fact that Vienna has great food. Um, other then that I am not sure what else to say. There is a lot to do in Vienna. I would recommend that if you can not get a hotel in the centre of the city find one on one of the U-Bahn lines. That way you can pretty much go anywhere. Also, try the local food. Actually, most of these recommendations go for any city. Sorry, I know that compared to previous entries that was really lame but I cannot think of what else to say. I promise to do better.

Vienna: Day One

2011-08-02T20:12:00.000+02:00

Okay so as I struggle to write this I feel the effects of one really late night followed but one early morning combined with one full day and a sugar crash. I apologise to you all in advance. Or I will just go eat more of my Milka chocolate bar to get me through. Anyway, despite the late night last night my insane genetically hardwired internal clock decided to wake me up at six o’clock this morning. It took me two cups of tea with my all you can eat breakfast of fruit and ham and cheese rolls to make me bothered to even leave the hostel this morning but I did manage to make it out the door and down to the closest U-Bahn station. Yes, it was a U-Bahn because Austria is a German speaking country. Well, they speak a funny German. It is by and large the same as what one would use in Berlin, for example, except they also have their own words for things. I would use dialect but I am not sure accurate it would be plus Austrians use both German and Austrian-German relatively interchangeably just to confuse tourists I suspect. Anyway, so after purchasing my twenty-four pass I caught the U-Bahn to Schonbrunn Station. I will also point out that for the most part I cannot add the individual letter stresses and accents so frequently found in German words. I do also try to spell things as best as I can. Now, Schonbrunn station is the closest station to the Hapsburg summer palace called the Schonbrunn Palace. Is that not clever? Now you can pay to enter the Palace itself or a couple of other things on the grounds like the Zoo or the Labyrinthine however it is just as good to wander around the grounds themselves. They are literally huge and very pretty. They have a lot of nice fountains and rose gardens. They even have cute little squirrels. Do not judge the fact that I took at least a dozen photos of a squirrel today. It is just we do not have them in Australia and I had only ever seen one once before today and that was in London three weeks ago. I would say it is comparable to a Japanese tourist with a koala or kangaroo. Also, whilst at the Palace I bought myself a book. I honestly even knowing myself think that I would be able to finish three relatively big books in three weeks. So in keeping with my biographical theme I bought a book about the life of Austrian Empress Elisabteh. If you want a point of reference she was the ‘People’s Princess’ long before Dianna. The Austrians just love her.

So after spending about an hour and a half at the Palace I headed off to my next destination. However, this involved two different U-Bahn trains followed by a tram ride and can I say I have never been more bored. Now I got on the tram on like its third stop the place I was going was its last. I took almost an hour on the tram. However, I eventually arrived at Zentralfriedhof. This is a huge cemetery in Austria. It dwarfs the one I visited in Paris. The central cemetery itself was opened in 1874 and at least two and a half million people have been buried there since then. You will find, if you have a map that is, a section, Ehrengraber where composers, writers, artists and politicians are buried, These include Brahms, Schubert, Strauss and Beethoven. Mozart also has a memorial here but was in fact buried at the nearby St Marx cemetery. Now, as you may have guessed I was not given a map which meant for a very interesting time before I found the place where all the tourists were looking at the famous sites. I, sadly, at the beginning of my travels spot a big group of people and was hoping to follow them. That was until I got closer and realised they were all in black and had just come from a funeral. My bad. I would also like it if something could tell me who Carl Bittner was? As I took a photo of his tombstone and have no idea who is. I am entirely sorry for that. Anyway, after some time wandering in a cemetery I decided that I had gotten enough sunburn and had disturbed enough people that I should leave. I had tentatively planned to head on to St Marx Cemetery before going to Belvedere Palace but it was just too hot. So I caught another tram, much shorter this time, and two U-Bahn trains to get back near my hostel.

Now, as well as planning my day I had also wanted to purchase more shampoo and conditioner, ear buds and withdraw more euros to pay for my accommodation in the next city in visit. I would say it but they have given us two somewhat different name and I do not know how to spell either. Now I found the ATM and the ear buds relatively easy. I mean one Billa did the trick. The shampoo and conditioner were a bit more difficult. I tried five different Billas. Three of which are on the same street as the hostel. I even got to Stephanplatz with out finding a single drug store until I stumbled across a revelation in a back street. This one chain store that I think I had passed like three of at that point where like the equivalent of an Australian Priceline. This my friends is the downside to not knowing foreign chain stores. I mean a walked past three in my travels and the only things I saw in the window displays were backpacks. seriously mixed and confusing messages. However, I did in fact succeed. I then returned to my hostel to spend the next hour and forty doing laundry. Apart from all of that not a lot happened today. I am thinking kind of a lazy day tomorrow. I might check out the markets and a couple of good bookstores i saw today but nothing much before I have to once again repack my suitcase. It is an annoying paradox that even though I do not take out eighty per cent of the stuff in there it always needs repacking. I do not understand. Anyway, I am thinking that ten past eight is a mighty fine time to shower and then go to bed. I am seriously not a night person. Just one of the many reasons why I do not go out clubbing.

Reflections on Cesky Krumlov

2011-08-01T19:32:00.000+02:00

What can I say? I loved Cesky Krumlov. Yes the weather was horrible and it was freezing but I loved this little town. I think when people hear the words Cesky Krumlov they think castle and that is all. I also think this is the main reason why they have so many day tripping tourists. Yes the castle is spectacular. It is huge and absolutely stunning and they have the world’s best bears. Sorry I had to add that last bit, it was a running joke between a couple of us Busabout people. In al seriousness, they were great bears. However there is a lot more then a castle to this Bohemian jewel. Just walking around the city is such an amazing and authentic experience. They have cute little restaurants which serve amazing traditional Czech food. They have street vendors who make this traditional Czech style donut things and make crêpes as you order them. They have little shops everywhere selling the coolest things. They also have a very interesting and informative museum which tracks the towns entire history and I mean from like first ever settlors archaeological dig history stuff. Also, a very cool thing which I did not have the chance to do was go rafting. As the city is built on and around a river, well more of a creek to be honest, a lot of tourists do river pub crawls. However, even if you do not do the whole pub crawl aspect it is still a lot of fun to do rafting. There are also some spectacular ruins not far from the city which one can visit. If you only take away one single piece of advise from all my reflections blogs let it be this one. Cesky Krumlov deserves more then just a few hours or a day trip so it give it a couple of days. It will surprise you. If it does not then it is still an amazing little town to chill back and relax in.

Cesky Krumlov to Vienna

2011-08-01T19:20:00.000+02:00

Okay so it dawned another relatively cold day in Cesky Krumlov. I spent the morning packing for another bus ride. Breakfast was another chocolate muffin and a toasted ham and cheese croissant. I spent most of the time whilst waiting for the bus on Skype to my mother, my sister and my grandparents, which was pretty good. The bus was a bit late getting to Cesky Krumlov but apparently we were all very quick with dragging all our stuff all the way to the bus. We also had the very eccentric guide that I had from Berlin to Dresden. He literally spent the first forty-five minutes on the bus talking non-stop. What he was saying was incredibly funny ranging from prostitutes on the sides of roads to Croatia joining the European Union. The bus trip was a little under five hours including a service stop. We also got to watch Top Gear’s Botswana Special. We also got a very interesting overview of Austrian history from our guide. Apparently, the croissant originated in Austria. Is anything that is identified with the French really French? I mean in this trip alone I have learned that the French fry belongs to the Belgians and now the croissant is Austrian. Anyway, we eventually arrived in Vienna. The hostel is really nice. It is relatively new so is a lot more modern then some. My room is on the top floor, that would be the fifth floor. However, it is one of those old attic style rooms. As in the walls sloop inwards and the windows face the sky. My room also has a double bed and I mean a proper one not two single mattresses together under one cover sheet. Now I have to admit that even with the time I spent looking at maps figuring out what I was going to do in Vienna I never put together the street the hostel is on with a street with anything else on it that I had been to. That does not really make sense. Um, okay, so driving into Vienna I had no idea where the hostel was in relation to significant sights. I mean I knew what a lot of the sights were because I have been to Vienna previously but a two dimensional map does not necessarily convey a lot. However, I look out my window for the first time when I get to my room. I instantly know what street we are on. Why? Well, I remembered visiting the relatively famous street market which is right outside our hostel. I instantly knew where I was and what was where after seeing it. Anyway, after a very short time spent dumping my stuff and freshening up a bit I went down to the lobby for Busabout’s ‘Walk and Fork Tour’. What the tour is is they take on a two and a half to three hour walking tour which ends a lovely little restaurant where you have Wiener Schnitzel and apple strudel for dinner. Now from the hostel we walked out to the market outside, Naschmarkt. We walked down through the Naschmarkt to the Opera Concert Hall. From there we continued past the Albertina, the Sacher Hotel, a thought provoking war memorial, eventually arriving at Stephansplatz and St Stephans Cathedral. Here we were giving a free fifteen minutes. I have to say that it was a bit surreal walking into the church again. You know I was always just a little apprehensive about travelling alone for this trip. However, I got through London, Paris and Amsterdam just fine. So those little nagging fears went away. I was not even overly worried about coming to Vienna. I was being safe, careful and cautious but there was just something about being back in that square. I think knowing where we were going just let that little fear and apprehension build and fester. Then given a free fifteen minutes. I can say there was a minor freak out. I keep it together on the outside but seeing the church, the shops and the coffee shop just brought back really vivid flashbacks on that day in Vienna. Looking back to felt okay to face all of that though. To look back and consider all that I have learnt since that point. I should clarify that if you have no idea what I am talking about it was something that happened when I was last in the city of Vienna. I am not going to go into details but the gist of the story is that whilst outside of St Stephens a man approached me, propositioned me and when I left followed me. He continued to follow me, even after I said I was not interested and to leave me alone until I began to call Charlotte, ironically, at which point he backed off rather quickly.

Anyway, after we left St Stephens we walked through a couple of streets of shops. I was really happy. Now there is this golden bee on the roof of a building along this street and ever since I was here last time I have wanted a picture of that bee. Do not ask me why because I honestly have no idea. However, I never took a picture of the bee last time because right before that was where my camera battery died. So, in a weird way, finding that bee made me fill a lot better. Anyway, we eventually reached the Hofburg Palace. I also want to add that our guide, not bus guide but walking tour guide, so incredibly inappropriate. He told us one story of how he liked to go to the women’s lingerie department of H&M and watch women pick out lingerie. That was also not that worst thing he said all night. Anyway after walking through the Hofburg Palace grounds we walked down through Volksgartin to the Rathaus and Rathaus Park. From there we walked back up to Parliament. From there we walked over to Museumsquartier before ending our tour in a little restaurant in the streets behind the museums.

Now, we are at the part about the schnitzel and strudel. The meal began with a drink and salad. The salad was a little weird but fairly good. Then came the schnitzel with chips. However, these schnitzels were huge. I mean I have little hands but a fairly decent sized schnitzel is about one of my hands spread out. These schnitzels covered the entire plate and they were at leats two of my hands plus all the chips. There were not a lot, if any, girls who finished theirs. I certainly did not. They boys quite liked that because it meant they got even more. Anyway, after that came the apple strudel with whipped cream. The whole meal was amazing particularly considering that the walking tour plus meal cost twenty two euro. To put this in perspective a walking tour will usually cost about ten to twelve euro which means a three course meal for ten euro is seriously unheard of. By this stage it was after ten and all the people smoking were really beginning to get to me and two other girls I had met in Cesky Krumlov so we decided to leave. Now we had directions back to my hostel, they needed to catch the train from my hostel, and we had heard another girl say earlier in the day that the restaurant was just around the corner from the hostel. Can I say no it was not. It took us between fifteen and twenty minutes to find the hostel even with directions. I would not liked to have been doing that by myself at ten-thirty at night. Anyway, we eventually found our way back at which point i crashed and so my day ended. Another one of the few days I have been up when it is dark.

Also, I will add, rather belatedly, a pinch and a punch for the first day of the month everyone!

Cesky Krumlov: Day One

2011-07-31T17:26:00.000+02:00

Now I really hate the fact that for absolutely no reason at all I woke up at six o’clock this morning. Even after half an hour of just laying in bed willing myself to go back to sleep I cannot. So I get up, get ready and use so free Wi-Fi for a bit. I was going to wait until ten when I could have a nice warm breakfast. However, it started raining and got really so cold I settled on a chocolate muffin in my room leaving my breakfast for tomorrow after I check out. Anyway, it was also still raining this morning but not as much so I decided to check out the lovely city of Cesky Krumlov. I walked down the main straight past the castle to the main square. From there I walked up past a church to the local museum. I spent some time inside there before walking back to the castle. At the castle I decided to walk through the grounds up to the gardens. There were some pretty stunning views along the way. After reaching the gardens I walked down the very, very large hill past the river. From the river I walked back to the hostel passing some really amazing architecture. Once back at the hostel I used some more Internet before getting a very nice toasted sandwich with chicken, cheese, bacon and tomato for a late lunch. After that I retired to my room where I spent the afternoon working on another one of my novels. Seriously, the ideas just keep coming. I leave for a couple of days in Vienna tomorrow. Also, it is not long now until I reach Salzburg. I promise to start work on my next semi-autobiographical piece. I cannot quite remember what I said it would be so I will also look into that. I now this is short but I plan to elaborate more in my reflections blog which I will do tomorrow morning.

Prague to Cesky Krumlov

2011-07-31T07:50:00.001+02:00

Now I am not sure how many people have actually heard of Cesky Krumlov so I will just fill you in on where I am headed today before I start recounting what has happened today. Not that much happened before reaching Cesky Krumlov but I like to at least attempt to keep things organised. Now Cesky Krumlov is a relatively small town in the southern parts of the Czech Republic. It is approximately two to three hours south of Prague and maybe a little closer but to the west of Brno. Large parts of the town if not the entire old town, I am not sure which, are UNESCO World Heritage designated sites. The town is somewhat popular with tourist day trips however very few, Busabout groups being the main exception stay for long periods of time.To quote from the guidebook I have “crowned by a stunning castle and centred on an old-town square, Cesky Krumlov’s Renaissance and baroque buildings enclose the meandering arc of the Vltava River. Now that is a bit of a blurb about Cesky Krumlov and I will describe more of it in just second.

Okay so last night would have to have been one of my worst night’s sleep of this whole trip so far. Honestly, it had absolutely nothing to do with the bed or the room so I completely absolve the hostel for responsibility. It was just that people whenever they were getting back from their night of drinking and partying were so incredibly loud. They were generally being the really obnoxious kind of drunk people and then slamming all their doors. I eventually gave up on the whole idea of sleep and showered at about five in the morning which although usually for me not super early it kind of is considering the time I have been sleeping into on this trip. Anyway, after packing and checking out I just kind of waited until I could get on the bus. It was also raining which made the whole process rather unpleasant. The bus itself was pretty good. I had the same guide as I did yesterday (from Dresden to Prague) as well as when I came from Bruges to Amsterdam. We stopped at McDonald’s for breakfast and although the breakfast menu looked really great the service was absolutely terrible so I gave up and bought myself a sandwich. After another hour and a half we reached beautiful Cesky Krumlov. As I alluded to before there is an old town and a new town. The hostel we are staying at is just on the edge of the old town. The hostel itself is more like what I remember high school camps to be in just the way that is a family operated really quaint little hostel. Once again I indulged and got myself a private room which is stunning. This room right is in a different building to the hostel. You take these little stairs down until you are behind the main building and it is this cute little room with a double bed and an ensuite. However, that is not even the best thing. What is? The view. I look out of my window straight at the river. Right now I have a view of people leisurely canoeing down and there are a lot of trees. It is really kind of peaceful. I also walked into the main square today just for a quick look around although I am going to take a better look tomorrow as well as seeing the castle. I also got a really nice crepe with ham and cheese for only sixty koruna. That equates to maybe two to two fifty euro or about three dollars Australian. So for what is a relatively big and filling meal, it costs next to nothing. I suppose though that is a bit characteristic of Eastern Europe. I honestly do not understand why people are reluctant to visit places like the Czech republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland. They are generally just as beautiful if not more and mostly half the price. Dinner tonight is probably just going to be in the restaurant attached to the hostel. It is a little on the pricey end with a meal but I have been severely under budget the last couple of days so I deserve a nice meal particularly if it has salad. That is one downside of this trip I am not eating healthy enough. I mean most breakfasts are pretty good. I am generally skipping lunch and with something relatively small for dinner and plenty of water for good measure but as my next countries are Austria and Italy I think I should have all the salad I can at the moment. I will probably add a brief little memo about dinner later. Also while I have a moment I feel as if I should comment on my spelling. I have a feeling it is morphing into a weird hybrid of American and British English. That is because whatever spellcheck is on this has serious issues with half my words but I do not know how to change the settings as one would do in a Word document. Anyway, I am now off to check out the whole free Wi-Fi situation and maybe plan my Christmas break a bit but I will report back regarding dinner later.

Um okay so the whole Wi-Fi thing was a bit of a bust. Yes they have it but it really was not working. Also I need to amend my categorisation of the restaurant. It is in fact relatively cheap with meals costing between five and seven euro. Sorry that was my bad in terms of reading prices. Not exactly sure what I was thinking there.

Okay another note I did not end up going anywhere for food. It was and is still raining fairly heavy and I did not have much of an appetite so I am just going to wait for my very nice sounding English breakfast in the morning. I also thought I would mention that I am back working on the Last Enemy. I think one more read through and it will been finished. Yesterday, I also started writing another story but not one related to Eretz. Europe has inspired me plus I finished my last book so I was kind of bored.

Popular Culture and its effects on my life

2011-07-31T07:49:00.001+02:00

First, I feel as if I should define what the term popular culture means to me at least. I have always considered popular culture to be and I found a very good quote which I will use here. That is “the opposite of high cultural art forms, such as the opera, historic art, classical music, traditional theatre or literature; popular culture includes many forms of cultural communication including newspapers, television, advertising, comics, pop music, radio, cheap novels, movies, jazz, etc.” Actually, I think that does a fairly good job of summarising but I will realistically only be touching on the television and internet aspects of the idea of popular culture.

Next before I even start, I think from the title itself I need to defend and justify everything I am about to write. What can I say? If I am being honest then it is very true that I am child of a very technologically driven generation. We are seemingly permanently attached to our iPods, smartphones and laptops. We assume that we will and should always be connected to the the Internet at all times. We spend the first few minutes whenever we arrive somewhere searching for free Wi-Fi. We like to constantly know what our ‘friends’ are doing and we do so by checking their Facebook and Twitter pages and not by talking to them. I once heard someone say that my generation is the most connected but we connect with the people around us and the world generally the least. In my own defence and in defence of my generation this is not necessarily a bad thing. We have at our fingertips a wealth of information. We as a generation spend so many of our formative years travelling. This is in itself a direct result of improved technology and an increasing global interconnectedness. Even our favourite television are different. Shows now are also ranked through the amount in which they interact with their fans. Without technology, the media and popular culture my generation would not have half as many experiences as we do. Clearly, therefore, all of these things have a profound impact. All of these have had a profound impact on my life.

Where to begin? I guess the best place is with the stalwart- television. Okay so television is a relatively easy one. I am continually inspired but what I see on television. I know that seems lame but hear me out for a second. You the times when you just need someone to remind you why you are doing something. I got this from a television show. It was because of this one episode that I decided to take the plunge and apply to go to the Czech Republic, the first time. If I had never gone, I would not be at the point I am at right now. I would not have been Europe twice and I would never have met Charlotte. I probably would have sold out to corporate law a long time ago. A second example would be the episode which preceded me telling the first person about my feelings. As I believe I have mentioned numerous times it was a very almost iconic episode of Glee and from what I understand it moved a lot of people in a similar way. Would I have come to terms with my feelings without this episode? I would have to say definitely. I can say though that it would have been a far longed road that would have become more difficult by the day. I am better for having confronted who I was and allowed to come to terms with what I found.

The next key thing would be my good friend social networking. I know it is a subsection of the internet, which I promise to address, but I feel as if it needs its own salute. In my personal opinion social networking may quite possibly be the best thing since sliced bread. I am kidding. Well mostly kidding anyway. Social networking when you consider it is quite an impressive thing. It has certainly changed the way we as human beings interact. It is now possible to have a simple conversation with someone on the other side of the world instantaneously and relatively cheaply through chats and Skype. It is possible to see in an instant news and what your friends and family and doing and what they are thinking. We can also interact with our favourite celebrities through things like Twitter. Television shows are even now being rated on how ‘socially interactive’ they are through online platforms. Social networking has not just changed how we communicate it has changed the scope of our reach when it comes to who we communicate with. We can now actively seek out, converse and share ideas with like-minded people on the other side of the globe. We can have entire conversations with people we have never met. Also, companies are increasingly looking at social networking platforms to recruit new and young professionals. Quite simply social networking has changed the very way we interact. Personally, I love that. It means that I am now able to talk to people who I would never have come across in any other aspect of my life. I can also easily connect with family and friends who are on the other side of the world. These are the joys of social networking.

This brings me at last to the Internet itself, which I feel will be the last topic which I will mention. I remember when the Internet was still in its fledgling years linked to the development of technology and the computer, it was a luxury which often meant one was unable to use their landline because of the dial up connection. Now we have Wi-Fi and high speed broadband access accessible not just on computers but also smartphones. In a way this links in with social networking platforms but we now have access to a huge array of information. We can book flights, accommodation and transport all online. We can conduct detailed research combining through piles of scholarly articles and books. There are also things like Wikipedia which although the great bane of an educator collate the vast information out there into the simplest form possible. This is fact makes it a great starting point.

I know what I am trying to see say is not necessary clear. I think everyone has their own person view on this subject and it is difficult to convey mine. What I am saying in essence though is: technology, popular culture or whatever else have played a significant role in the way I see things, learn things and interact with things. It is not the be all and end all but when it comes down to it it has rapidly become a critical aspect of each and everyone of our daily routines and lives. Try as we may to pretend this is not the case would be like denying that we had things like amazing advancements in areas like medical technology, transportation and the development of food and agriculture. I may have pointed out very basic things that have had a more acknowledgeable effect on the progression of my life but my salute also goes out to those other less spoken of things that often get ignored and forgotten about. Not sure if this is what you expected, it is definitely not what I expected, but I have written all I really need to say. I know a lot of it I have already said at one point or another but putting it altogether was more the point of this piece then anything else.

Dresden to Prague

2011-07-29T17:50:00.000+02:00

Now today was pretty much a day in which I did not a lot at all. I did have plans that I when I was going to arrive in Prague to go and see the Franz Kafka Museum but to jump to the end of the story I ultimately abstained from this because I was pretty sick but I will get to that part of the story. Okay so once again I opted out of the rip-off breakfast I purchased my lovely apple pastry. After that I pretty much packed up my stuff and checked-out before waiting for the bus. When the bus eventually arrived and I dragged my suitcase to it, the bus was fairly empty again which meant another seat to myself. The bus ride itself was pretty straight-forward and nothing overly exciting. The hostel in Prague was pretty good for my whole one night stay. I once again had a room to myself but all the rooms in this hostel had private ensuites which even had decent showers. I also bought myself a t-shirt from the hostel. It says in big letters “I am single” and in smaller letters “and I am ready to mingle”. It is supposed to be a part of some what kind of traveller are you promotion but for ten dollars it was a fairly nice shirt. You may think it is lame but I think it is cool, so that is all that matters. As I said called off any majors plans for the day because I was feeling kind of sick. Well, more my debilitating cramps which turn into debilitating back pain. It is so much fun this time of the month. I thought I should point out my sarcasm with that last point because it is not always a concepts that translates well into written word. I also was not exactly bugged about not seeing much of Prague. I mean come September I will be spending five to six months living about two or three hours away. It is not as if it is not possible for me to come back to Prague for a couple of days. I am actually planning on coming back over what I hope could be my Christmas break. Prague is supposed to be really good to see at Christmas. Well that is the plan anyway. That was also my day. As I said really quite boring. However, I am off to Cesky Krumlov tomorrow on another early morning bus ride.

Reflections on Dresden

2011-07-29T10:31:00.001+02:00

Okay the one thing, maybe one of many things, that I think is really good about Busabout is that each time you stay in a city, such as Dresden, it is relatively easy by the end of the stay to realise a couple of things. The first is whether you ever want to come back? If this is answered in the affirmative the next questions is a fairly straight forward one. That is, what do you want to do? I found that within a day or two you can work out all the major things you want to do as a tourist in the area. Honestly, most of the time you do not get to do it all. However, that is what next time is for. As I said whilst in London I was able to do a lot more because I did not necessarily do everything I had done previously. It also gives you a fairly good estimate of just how long to spend in each place. For example, five days in Amsterdam without doing day trips was two long but the time in Berlin was not quite long enough. Dresden is much the same. I did see a lot but at the same time there is always more to see. I would also like very much to come back to Dresden. There is a lot more that I want to see. I would like to take my time next time and go inside the castle and visit a few museums. I know the frequent comment made about Dresden is that it is the Florence on the Elbe. Having not been to Florence I find it a little hard to comment on the veracity of that statement. However, I can say this. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. Like every place I have visited so far there is something very unique about Dresden and it is a great place to visit. I also would encourage people to try the local food as I would at any place you visit. I find nothing worse then someone who travels who insists on only eating McDonalds. I acknowledge that one two or three occasions I have had McDonalds but I have also tried ham and cheese crêpes from street vendors, Feebo, waffles from a café in a trailer and kebabs from little stores. These are experiences that are yes obtainable at home but there is something special having chocolate and chips in Belgium and kebabs in Germany. I suggest you try it. I know not much of a reflection on Dresden but I only have two more things to say and that is that hostels really need to get elevators and offer free English breakfasts. Those are my own personal and unsolicited opinions.

Dresden: Day Two

2011-07-29T07:33:00.001+02:00

So, my only full day in Dresden before I am off to Prague. Now once again the hostel wants you to pay for breakfast. This time it was six euros for cereal and toast. So I was not doing that. Instead I walked next door to a nice little bakery where I found myself a nice little pastry with apple for less then a euro and it was so much better then cereal. Anyway, after breakfast and a minor incident in which I flooded a bathroom I decided to leave the hostel headed the Altstadt side of the city or the Old Town. I first walked past the New Synagogue before walking down towards Rathausplatz where the City Hall is located. From there I walked up to Kreuzkirche. It has a very plain and minimalistic interior in remembrance to the war and it has also been destroyed five times in its history. It is also possible to climb to the top of its tower. It is relatively cheap to do so and the panorama view available is truly breathtaking. From there I walked through Altmarkt to a small International Bookstore. I mean I am almost finished my last of the three books I brought with me. However, I did not find anything very interesting that was in English. I am thinking I might get something from the Franz Kafka Museum if I go whilst in Prague. Anyway, from there I walked past the Philharmonic up to Altmarkt. Here is another very beautiful church called the Frauenkirche or the Church of Our Lady. It too was bombed and destroyed during the war, as was most of the old city, but was rebuilt after reunification. Also as most of the money to rebuild the church came from the British it is viewed as a sign of conciliation between the two countries. The interior is also very lavish but I really recommend going to see it. It is also possible to ascend the tower but it is far cheaper to do so at Kreuzkirche and the view there is just as good. From there I wandered past the Procession of Princes in the direction of Theaterplatz. This part of Dresden is truly beautiful. It has if possible even more churches, the Opera House and the Dresden Castle. Even if you do not pay to go inside any of these buildings it is still great just to walk around. Also, if in the Zwinger check out the Nymph Bath fountain. It is a very pretty little place just to stop for a moment. From there I walked along the Bruhlsche Terrasse or the so called ‘Balcony of Europe’. It is a five hundred metre stretch of beautiful baroque architecture. It is situated on top of the old renaissance fort, which apparently is the oldest part of the town. The terrace is also home to the Academy of Fine Arts, the Lipisiusbau and the Albertinum. From here I headed back to my hostel mainly because my camera died and it started to rain. When back at my hostel besides repacking, I finally uploading my photos from Paris to Dresden. I eventually ventured back out to cross the road to visit the market where they sell Milka chocolate bars for seventy cents before returning to the kebab store from yesterday where I had another fine dinner. I had planned to try some currywurst but the whole curry thing turned me off a bit. I should also pay special tribute to my ‘Use-It Europe’ map of Dresden. Not only was it helpful in navigating myself around the city but it is the source of a lot of the above information.

Berlin to Dresden & Dresden: Day One

2011-07-29T06:57:00.001+02:00

Okay so this was actually a really interesting bus ride to Dresden. Although it started in a relatively odd fashion. Okay like always there were two buses but as opposed to all the other times when about the half the people go on one bus with the other half on the other they did something different. That was they put all the people going to Prague on one bus, which would then not stop in Dresden, whilst all the people going to Dresden were put on another bus. Now this is great in theory. I mean the people going to Prague should arrive up to an hour before the other bus. However, there was one major flaw in this plan. That is that there were something like forty people on the bus for Prague and fourteen on the bus for Dresden and about half of those people were going to Prague. In other words there was a really full bus and a really empty bus. Also the really empty bus was about twenty to thirty minutes ahead of the other bus by the time we reached Dresden. This was because they other bus got pulled over by the German police for a random inspection. Therefore, all things considered both buses probably would have arrived in Prague at about the same time. Also, our tour guide was a little wacky. I mean he was dancing up the aisle whilst playing the song “From Paris to Berlin” and a couple of random speeches by former US Presidents. Anyway, we after a couple of hours arrived in beautiful Saxon Germany. I have to say Dresden is quite pretty. BY the time we reached our hostel after a few cross-country attempts with our suitcases it was still only about eleven-thirty so we were not able to check in yet. Therefore, I spent a few hours using the free Wi-Fi in the bar and also Skyped my sister. After getting into my private room which I got a fifty percent discount on I decided to take a walk through the city. I decided to say on the Neustadt side of the River Elbe but just felt like taking a walk and getting some good photos. Now I would tell you exactly where I walked but some of the streets of the map have funny looking letters which I do not want to guess at and get wrong. So I will just say I walked past several very pretty churches and buildings to Albertplatz. From there I walked down past several shops to Neustadter Markt and the golden statute of August the Strong referred to on my map as “the town’s shiny landmark”. I am serious. That is what it said. Anyway, I spent some time down around the river taking quite a few photos. Eventually I decided to head back to the hostel. On my way I stopped at a little kebab shop where I had the nicest dinner. It was called a pom-doner. Basically to explain it it is like a doner kebab but with chips. It was so nice. After dinner I did not really do much but spend some more time on the internet and planned where I was going to go tomorrow.

Reflections On Berlin

2011-07-26T21:15:00.000+02:00

Before I start my little reflections piece I just wanted to give an update on my popular culture piece. I have written a substantial piece of what really seems to be turning out to be a huge undertaking. I am contemplating splitting the piece into two parts and uploaded the first half I have now however I remain undecided on this point. If I eventually decide not to do this it is because I will probably have a substantial amount of time over the next couple of days considering stops in Dresden, Prague, Cesky Krumlov and Vienna. Also, at most of the places I do have a private room which may help a bit more.

Anyway so reflections on Berlin. We were told when we were arriving into Berlin on the bus by our guide that she had heard Berlin described as Melbourne on steroids. At first I doubted the validity of her statement. Three days later I am still hesitant to use such a phrase. I can however understand why such a phrase would be used. Berlin is not a city which is entirely beautiful like Amsterdam or Bruges. Do not get me wrong there are a lot of very beautiful areas with very beautiful buildings. However, by and large they city is a lot more edgy. Everything seems harsher. Maybe because it is. Berlin is still a city which carries some horrific scars first from World War II and then the subsequent Cold War. For a bit of perspective the Berlin Wall fell only twenty-two years ago. In that time the government has spent huge amounts of money getting the former area of East Berlin up to standard. The country itself is also one which only as of September last year finished paying the reparations owing out of the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I.

Berlin is a city though that in my opinion just has something about it. There is just a feel to Berlin that is unlike anywhere I have ever been previously. Maybe this is because of its history and what its people have lived through. Maybe it is also because of what the country is still going through today- debt, high unemployment, etc. Berlin is a city which I feel for better or worse will always carry the scars of the past. However, I strongly recommend a journey here. It is a place which makes all the lessons learned in history classes real because here those lessons were people’s lives. I think sometimes it is easy to forget that.

Berlin: Day Two

2011-07-26T20:58:00.000+02:00

Okay so I thought I would add a interesting little quote that I heard on my walking tour today to start off my account of my last full day in Berlin. That is “Not all Germans were Nazis. Not all Nazis were German. Hitler was from Austria”. I think this once again gets to a point I raised yesterday. That is there has been a lot of guilt at times inappropriately laid at the feet of the Germans over the years. Also much like yesterday this tour largely looked at the effects World War II and additionally the Cold War had on Berlin. However, it also, briefly, looked at how Berlin first came into existence and the effect that the Kaisers had on the development of the city. Now, generally the tour was pretty good. I mean yes it was informative but I honestly did not like it as much as my tour yesterday. Maybe that was just me. Anyway, before I get to the tour I am going to say I had sausages and scrambled eggs for breakfast. In terms of breakfasts it was a bit below par but considering that I have been craving a warm breakfast it was much appreciated. It was also a little weird that there was sliced cucumber on the plate but that is another story.

Anyway, so unlike yesterday the tour began very near to my hostel at a coffee shop outside of the Hackescher Markt. We began the tour by walking through the Markt to reach Monbijou Park. Here we had a really good view of Museuminsel and the Berliner Dom. We did cross over to the island walking past the Museums and the Cathedral. Here we also saw the remnants of the Prussian Palace. We then crossed the Prussian Palace Bridge to reach Unter den Linden or the Royal Boulevard. Here we saw the Neue Wache and HUmboldt University. We then crossed over to Bebelplatz where the Nazis burned approximately twenty thousand books. We then walked the Cathedrals of Gendarmenmarket. Not far from here we stopped for a short coffee break. After a break we continued down to where Checkpoint Charlie once stood. We then headed down the street to the same stretch of Berlin Wall that I visited yesterday. From this point the tour progressed in a relatively similar fashion to Hitler’s Bunker. After stooping at the Bunker we continued on to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews. From here we walked up to Brandenburg Gate and the Parsier Platz. It was here that the tour ended. I then managed, entirely on my own, to catch the U-Bahn from Bradenburger Tor to Friedrichstrsse before changing to the U-Bahn to return back to Hackescher Markt. I then returned briefly to the hostel before walking to the Pergomonmuseum. I did not go in however as there was a massive queue. I then walked back to the hostel through Hackescher Markt. I also stopped for dinner which was a Big Mac and a McFlurry. Although I have to mention it was the best McFlurry flavour ever. Do you want to guess what it was? I do not think you will able to. It was was Magnum Brownie. It was absolutely amazing. Anyway, after McDonalds I returned to the hostel where I used some more internet, picked up my laundry and repacked my suitcase ready to leave for Dresden tomorrow.

I once again apologise if I have misseplt any German words.

Berlin: Day One

2011-07-26T07:00:00.001+02:00

Now I once again got up rather early. I mean an inability to sleep in seems almost ingrained in my personality. Now I should just mention one thing before I go anywhere else. The showers at this hostel are the worst. I mean despite how small and cramped they were at least normal showers. I mean the had a tap which you turned and water came out. For the previous hostels they actually had buttons which you pressed and you had about two minutes worth of water. Now the showers here are along similar lines except that the water lasts for about thirty seconds and is so highly pressured it hurts. Then we get to breakfast. I still it is not far that I have to pay but there is also the option of eggs and sausages so maybe not so bad. Anyway, the plan for the day was doing a Third Reich walking tour. This involved a catching the S-Bahn from near the hostel five stops. I honestly felt very proud of myself in getting to the station, buying the ticket, getting on the right train and then not only getting off at the right stop but finding the designated meeting spot with no hassles. I have become so independent. The tour itself started near the S-Bahn station Zoologischer Garten. We saw the Memorial Church, which was virtually destroyed during the Allied bombing campaign of Berlin in World War II. The Church also contains the Cross of Coventry and the Madonna of Stalingrad. I personally I find this interesting and an impressive symbol of just how everyone has come. We also saw the Zoo for which the station gets it name. After this we headed across to the station also a mark of the former Nazi regime. We then caught the S-Bahn to Hanuptbahnhof. Whilst on the train there was a very interesting conversation regarding accents. Our guide was saying she was generally pretty good at picking accents. Then someone asked her where she was from. She responded by saying Australia before listing a few different cities she had lived in. I responded by saying a little bit of everything to which she comments and now there is an Australian accent. We soon reached the station. Here our guide showed us a map of Berlin with Hitler’s plans for Berlin if he had won the war superimposed over then, most specifically his Hall of the People. From there we walked across the only bridge over the river Spree which survived the War. As such we traced the path the Soviets travelled as the slowly marched upon on the Reichstag Building. From there we walked towards the Brandenburg Gate to reach one of the Soviet War Memorials flanked with T-34 Tanks and Red Army Howitzers. From there we walked through Tiergarten to reach the T4 site. It was here that the first mass sterilisations and later killings had their origin. From there we walked past a few buildings still bearing the scars of war to reach the German Resistance Museum. Here we heard the story on which the Tom Cruise movie Valkyrie is based on. We also saw the place where these resistance heroes tragically died. From there we hopped a bus to up to the Topography of Terror and a remaining length of the Berlin Wall. We continued along this road passing the remnants and reminders of the Nazi regime including Goering’s Air Defence Ministry, Goebbels’ Propaganda Ministry and the ruins of Himmler’s SS and Gestapo Headquarters as well as where Hitler’s Reich Chancellery used to stand. We ended our tour at the simple parking lot below which the Fuher Bunker was once located. The tour was incredibly informative and well researched. Yet at the same time it ended on what was a very poignant note. Firstly, it was that as a people the Germans carry with them a lot of guilt and shame regarding the events of World War II. This is particularly true when it comes to the older generations. However, it is not something they always need to be reminded about, particularly younger generations. There is quite simply a lot more to Germany, its history and its identity then just World War II and the time leading up to it. The second thing is that no matter how far we move away from those events, even after the eventual deaths of the last Holocaust survivors we need to find way to remember the tragedies which occurred otherwise it will become too easy for history to repeat itself. Or maybe we did not learn the lessons we should have in the first place? I mean great incidents of genocide have still happened in Africa, Asia and the Baltics. I think that is all I will say on that point though. Just consider it something to contemplate.

After the tour, I, with much help from our great Australian tour guide, headed back to the closest U-Bahn station where I hoped a train to Alexanderplatz, which is one of the locations from the Bourne Supremacy. From there I managed to find my hostel. Locating the TV Tower were actually given as relatively reasonable directions. I then dumped a few things I had purchased before heading over to Museuminsel. I had wanted to go to the Pergamon Museum but unfortunately it is closed on Mondays, so maybe tomorrow. I then visited the nearby Berliner Dom. It is a truly breathtaking church. However, it also houses the Kaiser Crypts. I actually found the Crypts themselves upsetting. I mean there were too many child sized coffins in there. Usually I am not necessarily an overly emotional person but I found this relatively upsetting. From there I headed to the TV tower through the Marx Engels Forum. I had been my attention to go up the TV Tower except there was a huge wait and it would have been really expensive. I then decided to hit a local kebab shop for dinner, because the kebab actually originated in Germany. I am not kidding. The country has the largest Turkish population outside of Turkey itself. I have to say that even with all the salad stuff I am not usually partial to it was really nice and also really cheap. After that I once again returned to the hostel where I spent the time alternating between listening to ‘Laid to Rest’ and ‘I Need It (Body Language Cha Cha)’ both by Molotov Jukebox and writing more blogs.

I should also explain the difference between U-Bahn and S-Bahn. The U-Bahn are the trains underground, hence the U, whilst the S-Bahn run above ground. I also apologise if some of my German spellings are a little wrong I was trying to read them of my map but it did not always have the entire name written so I just tried my best. Also, tomorrow I am doing a full walking tour of Berlin so I should probably see a lot more different sites.

Ivory Tower

2011-07-25T06:51:00.001+02:00

This is another one of the posts I promised earlier. As I said it was largely inspired by a piece of poetry I wrote but I later transformed into this. I have felt that this always needed a lot of work and on some level I still feel as if this is not perfect. This was originally inspired by Marilyn however I think it could be indicative of any good relationship. However, Marilyn was the inspiration. I should also reiterate I did originally write this back in April and things have happened since then but the feelings remain the same. It is also in a similar vein to my recent secret love letter post. The poem, which I said this was based on, I seemed to have misplaced so I have not included everything that was once a part of the Ivory Tower original conception. Besides my personal criticisms however it is better publishing it at some point and expressing it then just letting it sit on my hard drive. Anyway, here is the Ivory Tower.

I spend so much time in an ivory tower. I spend my time locked away from everyone. But this is of my own choosing. I choose to lock myself away to protect myself from the damage, pain and hurt which others can inflict upon me. However, at the same time I have locked myself away from all the love and affection I could be given. Until someone broke through my walls, brought them tumbling down. They chased away all my fears. They fought my battles like my knight in shining armour. I have struggled so much lately to find a bit of happiness but they brought it to me. All they had to do was smile and it would light up my day. I feel so incredibly blessed just to know this person.

I always thought I was like the wizard of Oz, hiding behind the curtain, away from the world, never being seen. I always thought I was the puppet master but never appearing on stage. That was until someone took me by the hand and pulled me out from behind the curtain.Now I stand on stage in the spotlight. I have grown so much and it is all because of that person. I could never thank them enough.

I will never be able to repay this debt of mine for things done quite possibly unintentionally. I am, however, forever changed. They chased away my demons when they were becoming overwhelmingly. They brought light to the darkness when I needed it the most. They are my hero that saved me from the world’s evils, both self-imposed and those external.

They saved me from my ivory tower and from my thankless role as the wizard. You have forever changed me. You have forever impacted my life for the better. I just want you to know that.

Consider This

2011-07-25T06:49:00.001+02:00

Okay before I start this is one of my promised posts. It is the spontaneous outpouring one if anyone needed clarification. Also, it is written like a letter because it is a letter just one I will never send to Charlotte or let her ever see. I just felt as if I should share what I had written if only to keep a record for posterity’s sake. Other then that it pretty much talks for itself.

Dear Charlotte,

I would not normally write something like this and I never intend for you to hear or read these words. Although, they are for you, me saying everything I need to say would change us forever. I value you and our relationship far too much to ever let that happen. However, if I do not take this opportunity (that is currently experiencing a slight contact high from a coffee shop in Amsterdam) I feel as if I will regret it. I feel as if I will carry this burden like Atlas for the rest of my days, unable to set it down for fear that the very world will crumble. But how will I ever be able to say everything I need to say? How can I tell you everything you need to know when words are just not enough? Where do I even attempt to begin?

When I first met you I was captivated by not just your stunning beauty but your incredible intelligence, I once thought this was just a passing crush, just puppy love. But as each passes my feelings just continue to grow. I thought this was just a passing phase I would outgrow. But the love I have for you has made me grow. The person I am now is a far better person then I was two years ago and you set me on this path. You took the half-formed person I was, took away the undesired parts of me and carved me into the person I truly desired and deserved to be.

You are my everything. I think of you when the curtains close and when the sun rises. I want to tell you about everything in my day no matter how small. I want you in every aspect of my life. I want the light you bring.

You were my hero when I needed rescuing. You held me and whispered sweet nothings to me. I thought I had been broken irrevocably but you pieced me back together and held the pieces together until I was ready to hold them myself.

You will always be my first love and I will remember you until my eyes dim and the world is forgotten.

These are the things I want to tell you but never will. Consider this my secret love letter to you.

You have my heart always.

Reflections On Amsterdam

2011-07-24T20:42:00.000+02:00

I think it is best to begin this reflection by reflecting on the hostel. Now the hostel was okay. Was it the worst hostel I have stayed in so far? Yes, it was but I cane tell you why that was the case. The first and obvious place is the stairs. I mean I understand the rationale that it was not a big hostel but it did have five flours and a lot of stairs. I think I counted seventy from my room on the third floor to get out the front door which in itself involved going down and then up and then down again. The whole thing was very tiring and convoluted and that was without heavy luggage. Also all the rooms themselves were relatively cramped. There was not a lot of room anyway. My private room in Bruges was bigger then a six person room at the hostel. The showers and toilets were the same in that they were tiny and cramped rooms. Also there was nowhere in the shower to put you stuff. I am not, however, going to pass judgment on the room for smoking pot though. I think that is just a part of what it is like to be staying in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam in general was a really nice city. I think come day three I was finding I might have decided to stay a little too long for what I ended up doing but that was mainly because I got sick. So in that respect I did not mind a few days of not much to recover. The city itself is very colourful and a beautiful city. I think the beautiful part is often left out in the telling though. It was also a city in which during daylight I was relatively comfortable walking around by myself unlike Paris. I think the main reason for that is, as I think I have mentioned before, that they are completely upfront about the more out there aspects to life in their city. In other their seedy underbelly is not much of an underbelly. Most, if not all, tourists are well aware of the nature of things in Amsterdam so not much comes as a surprise at any point. I think I am a long way from being in love with Amsterdam but it was definitely a really great city to visit for a couple of days and it was an experience I would recommend even if you only ever do it once. Not much of a reflection I know but I think most of my daily posts have been relatively heavy when it came to my impressions of Amsterdam as a whole.

Amsterdam to Berlin

2011-07-24T20:25:00.000+02:00

Now like most bus days this day started nice and early. I would usually say bright but the correct term to describe the weather in Amsterdam this morning would be overcast at best and wet at worst. This was also a long bus day. We left Amsterdam at eight in the morning and were not scheduled to reach the hostel in Berlin until six-thirty but I will get to that bit. Anyway, so Leaving Amsterdam. It is all interesting to hear guides say that if you purchased any drugs in Amsterdam please dispose of it at our first stop before me reach the German border. This is apparently because German police have been known to search buses and it is illegal to traffic drugs or other illicit substances across the border. Our first stop was actually akin to what I acknowledge as a service station. That is petrol bowsers, a shop with one counter and a small, free bathroom. However, when you have small petrol station combined with at least fifty-tourists and rain you do not get the best of combinations. I should also mention that we watched the Hangover on the way out of Amsterdam. About thirty minutes after we left our first stop we crossed the German border and were not pulled over. We also finished the Hangover and started the Bourne Supremacy. The Bourne Supremacy was a good movie but I think it would have been better if I have seen the previous film and the foreign language bits had English subtitles. Otherwise, it had a great cast most of whom I recognised and it was very interesting. Anyway, we soon reached our second stop. It was a much bigger stop. The rest stop even had their own Burger King. It also cost seventy cents in Euro to use the restroom but you get a voucher for fifty cents of a purchase from the store. I did have a nice sandwich for lunch. I could not really tell you what was on it though. I know there was some kind of meat, ham I think, cheese and what looked like cream cheese with red and green chopped vegetables of some kind. It was nice so I do not really care. Also by this time it had stopped raining it was just incredibly cold and windy. Anyway, then we got back on the bus where we finished the movie and also booked our tours for Berlin. I decided to do a general walking tour and a Third Reich walking tour. After this we reached our third and final service stop. This one was pretty cool as it was right next to where Checkpoint Alpha had originally stood. They have since turned it into a museum so tourists can see not just how a checkpoint operated but also how East Germany during the Cold War functioned. It was somewhat sobering but also interesting. Anyway from there it was maybe two hours to Berlin. In that time I managed to finish my Kirby biography. I also kind of like Berlin from what I have seen. Not sure whether I agree with a guide’s assertion that it is Melbourne on steroids but time will tell. Anyway at a bit before five-thirty we reached the hostel. Thankfully there was no real bag dragging as we were dropped right at the front door. I also have a really nice room. It is so big compared to the Flying Pig one. Plus the room only as one bunk bed, which I am not sleeping on so no sitting up and smacking my head. We even have a table and chairs in the room however from what I say the bigger rooms with eight people are not the same. Downside however it seems like it is necessary to pay for breakfast. More about the hostel will probably feature in my reflections on Berlin so look forward to that. I have three nights in Berlin before going to Dresden which I am also excited about.

Reinforcing My Convictions

2011-07-24T20:20:00.000+02:00

I should begin that this post is not one I mentioned in my previous post. This is something that just popped into my head as I was reflecting on where I was at the moment and what I had seen up to that point. I was at the time at Checkpoint Alpha in Germany. It was a fairly significant landmark in German history and the history of post-World War II and Cold War Europe. Other things I had seen would primarily include the Anne Frank House. Anyway, there has not really ever been a point, in the last two years, when I have been unsure or waivered in my convictions to work in international criminal law and human rights development and protection. However, I have found the last few days as strengthening and reinforcing my convictions. Now this is more than my usual European law buildings get me hot and inspired law nerd stuff I have spouted before. This is different. This time I mean visiting places like those I mentioned I always get really overwhelmed by a few things. The first is the enormous amount of history in these places. The second is the sheer strength of the human spirit and a human’s ability to persevere. The third is the intolerable cruelty that one human is capable of inflicting on another. The great man is a wolf to another man quote is one that comes first and foremost to mind. I think it is this last point that truly motivates me the most. In my relatively short life time I have seen too many tragic events play out. These are events which I think have had a profound impact on my life. As such after witnessing and hearing of such things I feel compelled to do everything in my power to either prevent the next Yugoslavia, Rwanda or Holocaust and if I cannot then do everything in my power to bring the perpetrators to justice. Is that my blind and passionate idealism? Quite simply yes it is. Does it change what I feel? No. I mean yes I am idealistic but that is tempered with my inherent realism and pessimism. However, that does not stop me from ardently wanting to do something. To right the wrongs of past injustices no matter how futile my efforts and those of others ultimately are. Maybe in that respect the idealism tempered with pessimism is a good thing. I mean an idealistic optimist will more than likely burn themselves out or they become so downtrodden and disheartened they lose everything that was good about them in the first place. On the other had the realist and pessimist would argue that that is the way the world is always going to be and there is no point in doing anything at all because it is all ultimately futile. I and I am sure many others do as well straddle the line between drawing from both and being the more suitable people in the long term as a result.

Running Up That Hill

2011-07-24T20:10:00.000+02:00

Seriously I have no idea what has gotten into me lately but I did another odd thing. It was so completely out of the blue. I am seriously thinking that all this pride-filled and liberated Europeans are getting to me. However, before I explain what it was I feel it is necessary to explain a bit of back story. Also, before I get there an explanation regarding the title. It comes from a relatively old song by Placebo. Anyway, there is phrase in the song which I was thinking as a title but was a bit too long but the song came to mind. It is a good song if you have not heard it. Now I knew this girl from back in high school. Although we were the same age she was a year below me. We were friendly and were on the same APS tennis team for a couple of years. Now I always guessed that she liked another girl at our school on exchange. She never actually came out and said but it always seemed as if there was something there. I guess I never asked and she never told but in guess in that kind of ultra conservative Christian school no one actually would. Anyway, so now you the back story to the key issues I will continue with explaining the weird thing I did today. I guess lately I had been thinking about her just in the sense that I wanted to talk to her about stuff. I mean since I acknowledged my feelings I have not actually had the opportunity to talk with someone who was gay and well I kind of want to and feel as if I need to. Anyway, long story short I decided to reach out to her today. I mean I just kind of tested the waters to see if my gaydar at sixteen was any good but it would be nice to talk to someone especially with her because our backgrounds are relatively similar. Anyway that is the thing that I thought I would share with you all. This time last year I was hardly blogging at all and now you get a daily word vomit of even the most insignificant of things that I do. Does that not make you so happy? I can actually tell that it does from all the page views but can I say that I also love comments. Hint, hint, nudge, nudge.

On a side note, my popular culture blog is still in the works. It all really depends on how much time I have to sit and write at any given point. Plus most of the time I do have is either going to my daily travel entries or to typing out posts I have written on my phone throughout the day. However, I do promise to have it finished within the next. I also have another little draft post sitting on my laptop which I hope to refine and finish as soon as I can. I think I started writing it when I went on the cruise in April so it is kind of old. However, it is an interesting little piece more in the style of my earlier stream of consciousness only with punctuation blogs. Specifically it was written with Marilyn in mind but it is also easily applicable to a couple of really important people in my life. I also have another piece in a spontaneous out pouring of feelings. Seriously I have been in a wacky mood. Maybe it was all that pot smoke around everywhere that I have been passively inhaling. I actually think I mention that in the last of the mentioned posts.

Amsterdam: Day Four

2011-07-23T19:10:00.000+02:00

Okay so my last full day in Amsterdam before my early morning and truly epic bus ride to Berlin, Germany. Once again I did not really end up doing much but I should point out that the combination of huge orange juice uptake and a lot of salad meant I am, fingers crossed, pretty much over my cold. This morning kind of started rather early with some kind of alarm going off at three in the morning. Do not ask me what it was for because we did not actually get up. I mean it only sounded once and then stopped so it cannot have been all that important. I did manage to get back to sleep, eventually. Anyway after breakfast and a few hours surfing the Internet, using the hostel’s free Wi-Fi I decided to leave for the museum. According to the guidebook the Stedelijk Museum features “around 100,000 pieces including Impressionist works from Monet, Picasso and Chagall and pop art from Warhol and Lichtenstein. Now I have heard of and studied all of these artists and I would number Warhol and Lichtenstein amongst my favourites. However, I did not see them. In fact I saw none of the promised pieces. There was a lot of really good art there, do not get me wrong. However, it was the kind of really abstract art that makes you think way too much to be enjoying. Also oddly enough in the Museum store I found works by Foucault and other post-modernists I had once learned about in Jurisprudence lectures.

After the museum I wandered to the nearby Museumplein. Here is where the famous Amsterdam sign is. It was also here where I had some amazing waffles. The waffles came with ice cream and chocolate and were as I said delicious. After my waffles I strolled past a few more shops on the way to the hostel. Back at the hostel I spent a lot of hours on the Internet. I had planned to repack my suitcase but when I went up to the room my two slightly odd roommates were asleep at four in the afternoon. If they are not up by happy hour I might go out for dinner somewhere. Okay so late addition. No they were not up when I went back but as I was putting my laptop away in came two of the other girls turning on the light and making noise. Sufficed to say that they did not remain asleep for very long so I chilled in there the rest of the night.

Amsterdam: Day Three

2011-07-23T08:52:00.001+02:00

Okay so as I was still attempting to get over my cold it was another day that I did not do much. However, before I get to that I just want to say that I still desperately want to see someone get a couch into a window. I suppose that needs explanation. If you have ever been in Amsterdam you will notice a couple of things about the houses there. Generally they are very narrow but very high. That is the smallest house in Amsterdam is approximately one hundred and eighty centimetres wide. I am seriously not kidding. Anyway, because they have these incredibly narrow, high houses they have very narrow and steep staircases as I can personally attest to. Therefore, it is literally impossible to carry large items of furniture for example up the staircases. They have therefore designed their houses in a very specific way to counteract this. That is the houses lean forwards slightly and have a protruding wooden bar with an attached hook at the top. Why? Well because of the stairs the main way to get large items to the upper storeys of the house is haul them using a pulley system up the exterior of the house. Therefore, the house slops forwards to prevent items dragging on the exterior of the house. Anyway, I still do not see how they could get something like a bed in through the windows hence my desire to see one. Anyway, day three. Okay so today I went to the Anne Frank House. It was a bit of a wait to get, something like fifty minutes, but it really was worth it. I mean I read Anne Frank’s Diary whilst in high school but to actually be in the secret annexe was moving and surreal. I am not sure what else I can say besides that but I really encourage people to go if ever in Amsterdam. I think there a lot of places you can go in Europe to see the reminders of World War II but this lets you see the plight of the Jews of the time through the eyes of a very scared young girl. I also encourage people to read the book if you have not already. Anyway, after that I wandered back to Dam Square where I used my spare coins to buy another korket from Febo. Then I caught the tram back before doing some retail therapy at H&M. After this I headed back to the hostel however I spent most of the afternoon sitting in the bar because two of my roommates were oddly enough still asleep. I then decided to go for a walk around the nearby Vondel Park. The Park is incredibly pretty and I took several very good photos. I then went out for dinner before returning to my hostel. I then crashed kind of early. I have managed to confine my thesis question. I have a pretty good idea about want kind of things I want to say, which is a good thing.

Amsterdam: Day Two

2011-07-22T07:43:00.001+02:00

Okay so I have not really done much today. I went to the Van Gogh Museum in the morning which was pretty good. I liked walking around and knowing about the periods of his life that I picked up from tour guides in Paris. I also liked knowing where Montmartre was. After I walked to some shops where I brought some rather boring toothpaste. I honestly did not do much because I have not felt very well today. As such I am thinking of giving the Hague a miss tomorrow particularly if it keeps raining. I know going to the Hague was something I really wanted to do but it is better take it easy and get better rather then push myself and get worse. Getting worse really would ruin a lot of really good cities I am visiting over the next month. I am also thinking I can come back at some point throughout the semester. I could probably even get a tour of the ICC then which would be really cool. I do plan on travelling a bit in conjunction with study maybe see a bit of Greece, Croatia, Hungary and Poland. I am pretty sure I will have time to visit the Hague and devote more then a couple of hours to it. Anyway, after that very long side track I came back to the hostel where I caught up with two of the girls from yesterday. We went for lunch and some really nice sandwiches. Then I did some more wandering past shops before walking to the big ‘I am Amsterdam’ sign. On may way back it started pouring which meant I got very very wet. It was pretty much at this point that I started to feel really sick so crashed kind of early.

Not A Home

2011-07-21T09:23:00.001+02:00

Growing up in Australia I always believed that as a nation we were progressive and at the forefront on development. We had long since abolished the discriminatory policies targeted at racial and gender minorities. This was what I thought at least. This has most recently changed. Maybe it is being in one of the most liberal and tolerant cities in the world. Maybe it is just although the debate I am hearing now regarding marriage equality. I think for the most part it is the combination of the two. It also comes on the tail of the historic passing of the marriage equality bill in New York just recently. However, in all of this it still seems that homophobia is rampant particularly in my home country. I find it generally appalling. Particularly with a Catholic group preparing to rally against marriage equality at Parliament house soon. Another example is that of a high school teacher unable to reveal his sexual orientation in his place of work because he will more then likely lose his job if he did. In no uncertain terms is homophobia rampant in Australia, I personally thought we as a people had evolved enough that we no longer held such blinding and hateful prejudices. However, this not obviously not the case, a fact which saddens me greatly. I feel as if until we see real and substantial change Australia will continue to be a haven for the white, heterosexual, middle class male but everyone else is shunted to the sidelines. Australia has always a discriminatory history. This is odd considering that virtually all of the nation’s citizens are immigrants with a lot tracing heritage to convicts. You would think that all of this would contribute to an open and tolerant society. However, the only thing which has happened in the wave of tolerance and anti-discrimination movement is that the discrimination has become hidden, boiling just beneath the surface. It makes me sad to realise that a nation I have considered my home for the last twenty-one years is no longer a nation I desire to show my allegiance to any more. It is a nation which has a government and public policy which in no uncertain terms sickens me. Will it ever change? I honestly hope so. Maybe there is a benefit to having the Greens control the Senate and to having independents hold the balance of power in the House of Representatives. Maybe the necessary change is on the wind? I mean recent polls show that more people support marriage equality then those that do not. This has yet to translate into political action though. Until it does the progressive, tolerant and liberal nations of Europe look more and more enticing.

Amsterdam: Day One

2011-07-21T09:02:00.001+02:00

So, Amsterdam is a very interesting city. Also, it appears as some of my information may have been slightly misinformed. Firstly, marijuana is not legal and nor is it criminal. Basically, police do not care. It allows then to focus far more on issues of hard drugs of which at present there is not much an issue of in Amsterdam. Secondly, smoking of tobacco is legal in some circumstances just not in ‘coffee shops’.

Okay so I am not exactly sure where to start the account of this very interesting day but as good a place as any is the hostel itself. The Flying Pig is very typical Amsterdam building. That is it is nor very wide but very tall. It also only has stairs. That meant I had to carry my suitcase up the three flights of stairs to my room yesterday. Granted it was with the help of the receptionist. The hostel also has a smoking room where one can smoke pot.

Anyway so I came down for breakfast kind of early yesterday is only to use the internet which only seems to work in the bar. I had several hours to spare as the free walking tour I had decided to go on did not leave the hostel until ten-thirty. Anyway, a bit before ten a Busabout girl I shared a room came down and decided to go on the walking tour with me. We went on the walking tour with three others from the hostel also from Busabout. Anyway from the hostel we needed to get to Dam Square where the tour would in fact start. This involved just minor fare evasion on a tram.

The tour itself was rather good. We went from Dam Square to the Old Church at the edge of the Red Light district. We continued to wander through the Red Light district before crossing into the Jewish Quarter. Let me say the Red Light district even at daylight was more then a little confronting. I mean it was weird walking past that had these prostitutes standing in their underwear just looking out at you and these windows were everywhere in the Red Light District. I should also mention that we were warned they do not under any circumstances tolerate their photograph being taken. Anyway, from the Jewish Quarter we passed the Office of the Dutch East India Company as well as a couple of churches, the Marijuana Museum and a couple of other odd eccentricities which are simply Amsterdam. We eventually returned to Dam Square where we were given a fifteen minute break. Our tour guide recommended we try krokets from a place called Febo. Febo is a fast-food takeaway place. However, you do not need to go up to the counter and place your order, although I should point out that you can. However most of the food at Febo is food in vending machine still things. You place your money in and open a door and take out the food you want. Now the krokets were very nice. I had one with a spicy peanut and beef ragout inside. After this break, we headed across to the other side of Amsterdam. We saw more churches, beautiful squares, museums, the canal belt, the nine streets, the biggest bridge and the smallest house. At the biggest bridge near the smallest house we even tried some legendary Dutch cheese which was absolutely amazing. From there we continued on to our final destination, a big church just near the Anne Frank House. Outside this church there is even a gay pride monument allegedly the first in the world. As I said it was hear the tour finished. I have to say though that their was one underlying message of the tour. That was that no matter what kind of person you are no matter what gender, race or sexual orientation you are welcome in Amsterdam. The people are tolerant and to a certain extent understanding. The understood that there may be a lesser known reason of just why people flock to Amsterdam each year separate to the drugs and Red Light district. That is they desire to be accepted and in one of the most eccentric cities in the world they can be, they can just be themselves.

Anyway, after the tour the four people I was with decided they would like to hit a coffee shop to buy a space cake. I should also point out that a coffee shop in Amsterdam is not the same as a café. They are two vey different things. So the five of us went into this little dingy store where a couple of people were smoking joints and the other four shared a space cake between them. We then headed back to Dam Square for food. Most of us hit Febo again where I had a veal kroket this time. After eating we decided to head back in the direction of our hostel. We caught the tram again although we needed to pay this time. When we got close to the hostel they decided to hit another coffee shop. We found relatively close but it was more or less a gangster bar and we kind of stood out. We then hit a chain store back near where we got of the tram. This time only three of them shared a space cake with my roommate opting out. We then walked back to the hostel through a local park. I think everyone was pretty much out of it either though exhaustion or well because they were high. My roommate and I crashed for a couple of hours before hitting a nearby steakhouse for dinner. The food was really nice and it was good to have a steak. We then headed back to the hostel where she eventually decided she would go on the pub crawl.

A few last comments about Amsterdam. It is a very beautiful city. Also be careful of the people on bicycles. They will run you over if you get in their way. It is also a city that is very upfront about what goes on. Nothing is hidden. You get to see a city warts and all and yes parts of it may be confronting but you are prepared from the beginning. I hope to hit the museums and the Anne Frank house tomorrow with maybe making the trip to the Hague on Friday if I am feeling better.

Red Sky

2011-07-18T20:14:00.000+02:00

A saying goes a red sky at dawn shepherds warning, a red sky at night shepherds delight. My question is it dawn or dusk?

I did an interesting thing today although not necessarily in the same vein as my travel and sightseeing. I should actually preface this with the statement that it is not related to my biographical or travel posts. It is entirely unrelated.

It was weird but for some reason yesterday afternoon I thought about Charlotte. I mean I have not seen her in almost two years and have only spoken to her a handful of times in that period but it was the first time in a while that I thought about seeing her again. I mean I have thought about seeing her but it has always been so entwined with a lot of other things. Seeing her again would mean I had taken several steps towards my ultimate career goal, for example. Therefore, just seeing her again would mean a lot in my life, particularly career wise, and such. This time, however, was completely devoid of that. It was the pure desire to see someone you care deeply for and of itself. Maybe actually expressing my feelings for the first time no matter what form brought everything up. However, this is not what the worst part is, arguably anyway. The worst part is that not only do I continue to care for but I am still deeply attracted to her. Now why is this worst part? Despite the inherent complexities associated with falling for a friend or, which she is both, she will also be my teacher, again, in my upcoming exchange semester. It is the trifecta. My friend, teacher and mentor and after all of this I am still attracted to her.

All of this brings me to the interesting thing I did today. That is against every shred of better judgement I possess I sent her a message. Granted it was under the friend/ mentor guise as opposed to anything else but I reached out to her. I might be experiencing the effects of a contact high but honestly I am not sure that that bodes well for the next six months. Let me just decide right here and now to swallow those feelings and pretend they do not exist except of course here. I mean I do need an outlet for all of this and yes when it comes to her venting is the only thing I will ever be prepared to do. I will probably be spending a lot of time posting of the next few months.

In answer to my question, well I do not know. Is it better to have a warning of the future to come? I will leave that to you.

On an unrelated side note: Yes, I am working on my next biographical piece. It will be on the effects of popular culture on my life. Not sure when I will find the time to finish it. After that there will be a commentary on the education system, specifically how it is becoming purely a business.

Bruges to Amsterdam

2011-07-18T19:48:00.000+02:00

Okay so I the bus for Amsterdam was not due to Bruges until one and check-out of the hostel was ten-thirty today. This meant I filled my morning with internet usage and much needed laundry. When the bus finally arrived, it was late, we then had to walk out of the old city and across the canal to the waiting bus. This was hampered by the drawbridge (yes I just said drawbridge) being raised to allow two barges to pass through the canal. The bus ride itself was fairly straight forward. We had one stop at what was actually a really nice service stop on the border between Belgium and the Netherlands. I caved my no fast food rule but I really wanted a cheeseburger. Anyway, you know you are heading for Amsterdam when your tour guide says these words: “There is a fourth tour which is not in the guide books. It is a sex tour”. Only in Amsterdam. Also only in Amsterdam is it apparently illegal smoke tobacco but legal to smoke pot. I kid you not. Also only in Amsterdam are you on the third floor of a four story walk up. I, thankfully with the help of a Flying Pig employee, had to carry my suitcase up several very steep steps. The stairway also reeks of pot because they do have a smoking room in the basement. When another girl from the bus walked into our room it was to find two somewhat stoned guys and a third is currently sleeping ti off right now. Besides this very seedy aspect to Amsterdam which I am sure is enticing to many it is quite a beautiful looking city. It is situated around several canals and has a lot of very nice looking gardens. I am thinking going on a walking tour tomorrow. In the days that follow I will probably hit the museums and Anne Frank’s house. I also hope to do a day trip to the Hague at some point during the next couple of days. I have to say though I am kind of looking forward to it being Sunday and heading to Berlin. Nothing against Amsterdam but not sure if this is a city I fit very well in.

Bruges

2011-07-17T19:33:00.000+02:00

Before I start I wanted to make a couple of small comments. The first is I am not sure what is going on with the order of the posts. I know some are showing up earlier in the timeline then they should and I apologise if it is confusing. My second comments is I miss English breakfasts. I mean do not get me wrong I will not turn down a free breakfast. However, continental breakfasts are not quite what I have in mind. What is a continental breakfast? Basically it consists of some form of bread (it was bagels in France and rolls in Belgium) not toasted at all with some of jam, cereal and juice. There may also be coffee but in essence that is a continental breakfast. Depending on the establishment cold cuts of meat and cheese may also be added into the mix. Anyway, Bruges. Bruges is a beautiful city that decided to run with its medieval origins. It is a canal city akin to Venice and Amsterdam. It even has entire streets with cobbled stones. My first and sadly only full day in Bruges was basically spent wandering the city. From the hostel I walked into the two main city squares. Here is the Belfort. It is a church with a large tower. The tower has four hundred steps capable of being climbed as long as you are fit and have no fear of heights or claustrophobia. From here I meandered past canals, bridges and gardens to the very edge of the old city. I passed canal boats, horse drawn carriages and swans. The city is also home to several art museums and more churches. From there I headed back through the city centre to the other side of town. It was here that I reached the Frite or Fry Museum. It is really interesting. It tells you the history of the humble potato to how the fry was developed. It also corrects the assumption that the French actually created the ‘French fry’. It was in fact the Belgians. After all of this you have the chance to try authentic Belgian fries. Can I say the fries I had there were the nicest fries I have ever had particularly with mayonnaise. Totally amazing. I would recommend Belgian just for its fries but its other delicacies are just as good or so I am told. From there I headed across to the Chocolate museum which begins with a free sample. My favourite kind of museum I swear. Chocolate is the second of Belgium’s three delicacies with the third being beer. Anyway, this museum like the fry museum takes you through the development of chocolate. This museum ends with watching live demonstrations with how chocolate is made before yet another free sample. After I eventually tore myself away from this amazing place I continued my journey meandering through the city before ultimately arriving back at my hostel. When there I made great use of the free Wi-Fi in my room before calling it quits for the day.

Paris: Day Three

2011-07-17T13:38:00.001+02:00

So today was my last day in the city of Paris, well at least until I am back for a day in September. As I said I was going to be going around with the three Canadians. We decided to hit Notre Dame in the morning. It was incredibly beautiful but nowhere near as big as it seemed in the movie. There was also a huge queue to get in but it was free. Also out the front in the Zero Point. From what I understand it is the point from which all distances in Paris or quite possibly France are measured. After Notre Dame we visited a couple of tourist shops before grabbing crepes with ham and cheese. They were so nice. After that we caught a couple of trains in order to go on a walking tour of the Montmartre district. In transit I also managed to fall over on the stairs jarring my back. This now takes my holiday injury toll to multiple blisters, a bruised wrist from when I nearly fell over on a bus in London, two bloodied and bruised toes from where I ran over my own foot with my suitcase, a jarred back, a pulled muscle in my calf and inflammation in the tendons in my foot which is a hallmark of an earlier injury. I can honestly not imagine the state of my body in two months time when I reach Brno in the Czech Republic. I will probably be a very sad and sorry sight. Anyway, the tour of Montmartre. Montmartre is the red light district of Paris. Our tour started outside of the Moulin Rouge. From there we began our climb uphill. We saw the Café des Deux Moulins from the movie Amelie, one of the last windmills in the district, Van Gogh’s house, the last vineyard in Montmartre, a statute of St Denis, La Place Dalida, Lapin Agile before cresting the hill at Sacre Coeur with its breathtaking views of Paris. From there we walked through the Artists’ Square to Picasso’s studio. From there we headed to a quaint little bar where we got our free glass of wine or what was in my case, coke. It was here that the tour ended. Then my Canadians friends and I headed back up through the Artists’ Square to visit Sacre Coeur. It was another truly beautiful Cathedral. From there we decided to work our way back to the hostel. I know they are going out to climb the Eiffel Tower tonight but I , however, need to not only get up early tomorrow morning but I am also not even sure I can get up now because of my back. Anyway, tomorrow I catch my first Busabout bus to Bruges in Belgium.

Paris to Bruges

2011-07-16T18:14:00.000+02:00

Before I actually started I wanted to add to my injury count two cases of sunburn. There was also something else I wanted to add but for the life of me I cannot remember what it was. Anyway, the day started nice and early as the bus from Paris to Bruges left the hostel at eight o’clock in the morning. It was not actually a long trip but we passed a lot of very beautiful countryside. During the trip we watched Zoolander and started Casino Royale. We arrived in the beautiful town of Bruges in Belgium just after noon. It was a bit of a walk from bus to hostel as the streets in the city centre are too narrow for the buses. When we arrived at the hostel it took a while to get everyone checked in and even then we were not allowed into our rooms as they had not been cleaned yet. Whilst I waited I decided to use the free Wi-Fi to upload all my photos from London and Paris to my Facebook page. Eventually, I got my room key. The room itself besides being a private room is very nice. Anyway, after putting my stuff in my room I decided to go for a walk through the city. However, my walk was cut short but a massive downpour of rain. I can however say this about the city of Bruges. In the short amount of time I have been here it has easily surpassed Budapest and Bath as the most beautiful cities I have ever been too. It is immensely beautiful. The city also, much to my liking, has both museums for chocolate and fries because as it turns out fries actually originated in Belgium. Also about Belgium I am a little unsure which would be the best language to attempt to have a conversation. That actually reminds me of the other thing. I mean in Paris no matter how bad your French is you are better walking into wherever you go and saying “bonjour”. If you do most French will then use English because for some reason they know that you do not speak French. However, if you open with English the will without a doubt refuse to use English. The Belgians however have not one but have three official languages. These are Dutch, French and German. However, most also speak quite a bit of English. Anyway, I truly would recommend the city of Bruges to anyone in Europe. I would also like to comment that me in Europe is so healthy. I mean I virtually walk everywhere and at times I drag my very heavy suitcase. I also am not eating no where near as much junk. Anyway, I will follow this up with an account of tomorrow, my full day at Bruges.

Deadbeat and Absent

2011-07-16T09:58:00.001+02:00

What can I say my father is the clichéd deadbeat and absentee father? Thankfully I do not have any real daddy issues otherwise well let’s not go there. Why was my father a deadbeat?

Well it began after the separation when allegedly I might add he originally wanted nothing to do with my sister and I. He only became truly interested after he meet my step-mother. However, I remain unsure as to just why this is the case. Apart from that there was not really a time when he was not a part-time father. I understand that there was a custody agreement and my mum lived with us in a different city but one weekend a fortnight and a three minute phone call a week? He barely even made an effort. When he did though it generally turned out worse? Like one time just before my seventh birthday he point blank refusing to return my sister and me to my mother. He or quite possibly my step-mother went out and bought us all new uniforms and new things for school. I turned up for school in tears. It was also the only birthday to date that I have not seen my mother for.

In saying this, my general impression of my father is spineless. He seems incapable of standing up to my overbearing step-mother. Whatever she wants he does. I think I almost blame him more than my step-mother in terms of the abuse thing because he was aware yet did nothing.

Anyway, after the age of twelve everything changed. I had just finished primary school and was going into high school. My father also said things which now I cannot remember but after years of abuse and neglect it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I thereafter refused to visit him and according to the family court I was old enough to make my own decisions. I also refused to speak with him because he initially tried to use the whole guilt trip thing to get me to see him. In the next five years I only saw my father a bare handful of times. These were generally when he was picking up or dropping off my sister however that too soon stopped. That distance continues to day in fact. Any brief and limited conversations I do have with my father consist of the same questions. This are: '”how are you?” “How is university?” “How is the driving going?” and “have you got a boyfriend yet?” These are his standard go to questions. As such we barely even have a conversation when we talk. I should also point out that the reason he is a deadbeat is because he for virtually all my life refused to pay child support and support his children.

At times do I wish that he cared about me? Maybe but on the other hand I have an amazing step-father who more than makes up for my father’s shortcomings. Also, too much water has passed under the bridge to even think of repairing our relationship. He has hurt me and let me done too many times for me to even care. He forgets my birthdays, Christmases and Easters regularly as well. He has done too little for me to even care anymore.

To Law With Love

2011-07-16T09:57:00.001+02:00

In a break from a running commentary on my life with my parents and step-parents I thought I would continue my autobiographical serious talking about one of the great loves of my life. Yes, it is the law. I reiterate that I am in fact a law nerd. There is something about the great court buildings that fire me up in a way few other things do. There is something there that I am not sure I even understand in its entirety but I will get to that.

We begin this love story when any good story should start. That is rightly at the beginning unless of course it is done in literature or media for dramatic effect. I however digress. I like to think that I and other legal professionals started out as relatively normal. I mean yes I am intelligent and driven but before I go any further I can say the law has changed how I view myself. I am now entirely confident that I am capable and intelligent. I suppose this stems purely from the fact that to get into law school one needs to be intelligent. I remember the year I applied for university the OP cut-off for my program was a six with some other double degree later native going up to an eight. In that respect we are automatically talking about some of the brightest, talented and most capable students that apply for entry into university. Over time that cohort that began with you begins to shrink, rather rapidly. By the time you reach the midpoint of you degree you stop being a university student studying law. You are without realising it capable of dispensing advice, of telling people what to do in legal matters. You start thinking about events in terms of their legal implications and what advice you would give. In no uncertain terms you have become a lawyer in your mind and in the minds of those around you. Am I making this up? No. Consider for a moment how your law lectures refer to you. I guarantee that nine times out of ten they will treat you as a mature and professional young professional. You may be a young and inexperienced in a practical sense but you are still a lawyer.

I am not making these comments to appear elitist either. One of the most frequent comments made about me to me by my family in particular is that I am stuck up or a snob or elitist. This is not entirely the case. It is just that as someone who has a good understanding of the law I find the ignorance of most laymen to be affronting. I also view myself as just another link in a profession and system which was existed for many a millennia. I mean the legal profession is probably one of the oldest professions known to man. The Bible has entire books relating purely to law, Leviticus being one. It is just that I am a part of something. This something might be something very like Hobbes’ Leviathan. It is present in virtually every aspect of our daily lives and I am a part of it. Better yet I understand it and know it. That is when I look about some of how great law buildings specifically the old court buildings I am moved. That is, the very principles which I am taught in my humble law school lecture had some of their origins in these halls. Some of the greats have passed through these buildings and I am here following in their footsteps, both literally and figuratively.

I have found most recently at least that no matter how hard, boring or time consuming my studies may be I would not and have no desire to change to something else. It is more than that I am more than halfway and should just finish it. It is more than I have already accumulated a rather substantial HECS debt and need a high paying career for it all to be worth it. It is more then I enjoy what I am doing because I do very much. It is for quite possible the first time in my life I feel as if not only am I connected to something great but I am on the road to do something. I feel as all the years of study and everything else I have done up to this point is beginning to mean something.

It is more than a deep respect that I have for the law. It is in fact a love which I have for it. I cannot consider my life without and nor do I want to. The law has also made me a better person. I am more confident and self-assured because of the presence it has in my life. Also I should mention that my relationship with the law is the most substantial relationship I have had in my adult life with the exclusion of my family. It has become a huge facet of my life and I would not have it any other way.

Before I bring this to a close, I feel as if I should pre-empt a good portion of criticism I may or may not receive from these comments. I do not feel as if I am personifying an intangible and inanimate object. The law grows and changes in time. It is very much alive to me. It is not the dead hand of the past but a forever growing tree.

Coming Out

2011-07-16T09:56:00.001+02:00

A lot of things have been said about me in the last twelve months. There have been several instances in which the word ‘lesbian’ has been hurled at me as if it is some sort of accusation. Let me be clear about one thing no I am not a lesbian. I feel the need to clarify that particularly to my sister. She seemingly like most of the people in my life believe that sexuality exists on one of two polar opposites. That is straight or gay. You are one or the other and there is nothing in between. However, if I am sure about anything, regarding who I am, it is that I at least at this stage do not clearly identify with either. I have and am attracted to men. However, I am also and sometimes at the same time I am equally attracted to women. This in itself was a difficult thing to admit at first.

I was raised very conservatively. I went to Sunday school, was an altar girl and went to an incredibly conservative Christian high school. Although, I have never had a problem with homosexuality I have always heard the Christians in my life be quite damning towards them. These are people who read the Bible down to the letter yet feel free to pick and choose which pieces they find as applicable. This was a faith that though I subscribed to, I never actually felt connected to. It was always as if something was missing yet I went through the motions to appease the people around me. I did what good little Christian girls do. I was not until my years in university that I truly began to explore just who I was as a person. That is a person who existed outside of the doctrine I had been told for the better part of twelve years. Do not get me wrong I have met some truly amazing Christians. I just find the hypocrisy within the Church a little difficult to follow. Anyway, at first when I started realising my attraction to women it caused some obvious problems. That is one thing good Christians girls do not do. Honestly, I hated that I was feeling that way. I hated myself. I thought there was something wrong with me. It was really hard. I mean I had never thought that I was anything less than straight. It was not something I had even contemplated. Then I met Charlotte. She changed everything for me. I also spent a lot more time online searching for answers to the questions I was asking myself. I quickly reached the conclusion that there was not something wrong with but there were things wrong with the doctrine I had been fed. I took almost twelve months to catalogue everything I was feeling. The results were this: when I fall in love whoever it may be I will love them for who they with gender, race, class or orientation not playing a role in the slightest. In short gender plays not role in my attractions. I actually read a funny little thing which further explains this point. When, as a woman, you are checking someone out you are not disappointed if they turn around and are a female. However, in saying that I reached this conclusion it took me many more months to admit anything out load to anyone else. I owe Glee’s episode of ‘Sexy” being the thing that gave me the courage, the thing which compelled me to ask God for someone to talk to. Even from that point it took me nearly two weeks to tell my closest friend. Do you know how she responded when I told her? She already knew because God had told her two weeks previous. I know a lot of people in the LGBT community are bitter when it comes to religion. I also know that a lot of religious people very firmly believe that homosexuality is a sin. However, the moment my friend said what she said I knew without a doubt that God had not only been listening to my prayers but loved me. He made me who I am. I was born this way and there is nothing that I want to do that will change that.

Relationships

2011-07-16T09:55:00.001+02:00

The past two years have been an interesting and challenging time for me personally and emotionally. By and large this has been characterised by my last three ‘crushes’. I hesitate to use the word crush but honestly unsure just what would be a better characterisation. Maybe attraction could be more appropriate. To me I remain unsure but I will leave it you to form your own opinions. I will also point out that I am continuing my own personal policy in not revealing true names on my site in order to respect the privacy of others. As such understand that all names used are pseudonyms assigned by me.

I will begin with Charlotte because that is honestly where this story begins. I first met Charlotte whilst I was overseas a little more than a year and a half ago. From the moment I first laid eyes on her I was intrigued and attracted to her. She was by large where I wanted to be in my career in about five to ten years’ time. However, it was more than that. She was intelligent, funny, engaging and incredibly beautiful. I also learnt in time that she was incredibly generous and compassionate. I think the thing that truly solidified my feelings for her was when I was at my most vulnerable. I will not go into the matter itself as it is one that even today I remain uncomfortable talking about. Instead I will generalise the situation. I found myself alone in a situation I found not only uncomfortable but scary and potentially dangerous. However, when I called Charlotte she came and found me. She stayed with me for as long as I needed her. She was even able to relate to the situation. She was open and willingly to listen to whatever I wanted to say when I was ready. In short she was my ‘white knight’. I have always found it difficult to trust and open up to people but with her it was easy. Nothing ever happened. I returned home and she remained where she was. Even if that had not have been the case I doubt anything would have resulted anyway. She was older, already involved and a teacher of mine. To me, however, it does not matter. She was the first person I truly fell for. It was beyond the puppy love crushes of my childhood and teens. She will always be the first person I might of loved this is ignoring one close friend in high school who in hindsight I had always hoped would be something more. I gave her a part of me that I know I will never get back but I am content because the scar left behind is only a reminder of good times and better memories.

Next is Artemis. Even now I do not know what it was about her that drew me in. On some level I think it was her similarities to Charlotte. However, the two of them have no real physical similarities and have entirely different temperaments. Maybe it was just one of those things that just happened with no real explanations. She like Charlotte was very beautiful but to Charlotte’s peaches and cream and honey she was ivory and oak. She also had the most expressive and engaging eyes I have ever seen. She was quiet and soft-spoken but inherently passionate. She was kind, gentle, giving and warm. She was always supportive and nurturing. She had this ability to be exactly what you needed just as you needed it. I still she her, infrequently though. Yet no matter how much time passes I still get those butterflies every time I see her and her beautiful and warm smile.

Third but in no way least is Marilyn. I think Marilyn, with her platinum blonde her and chocolate coloured eyes, was the most surprising. That is my attraction to her was not instantaneous like those with Charlotte and (Artemis). She was someone who I had known for years. I think I have known her for at least five or six years. Even then we had a tendency to regularly orbit into each other’s lives. Even then there had never been anything there until I was first asked to define my feelings for her but that comes later in the story. At the tail end of last year I was having a lot of problems personally and emotionally. I was frustrated and struggling to organise and align the inherent conflict and paradoxes I found within myself. To say the least I was unhappy with my life in general. I pushed the people I cared about away in order to remain ‘safe’ and insulated but this just made be lonely and miserable. I had one solace in all of this and ironically it was work. Marilyn no matter how hard she appeared on the exterior was always great to me the minute I walked in the door. She just by smiling and asking me how I was could make me feel infinitely better. It was as if nothing else mattered. She literally could light me up like a Christmas tree. When it came to me she was kind, caring, genuine and fiercely protective. I did enjoy it yes but consciously thought not a lot of it. She was simply a friend who I cared for deeply. That changed when I first began to acknowledge who I was at least to other people. I think it had been something I had danced around for a while but then you have that one crystallising moment when everything just makes sense. It is also a relief, like you have been relieved of a burden you did not even know you were carrying, when you tell someone. In the process of that first conversation this other friend asked about Marilyn and the relationship I had with her. I talking about it and defining it I realised that my feelings for her went beyond deep friendship and for some time it seemed had been developing into something more. I, however, resolved to do nothing about it. I cherished our friendship and could not live without that. Unfortunately, consequences and fate seemed to intervene. Firstly, as adamant as I was that I did not want our relationship to change it did. When you admit to having feelings for someone it is very difficult to continue being oblivious. As such I became difficult to be around her no matter how much you desperately want to at the same time. It almost hurts being there yet at the same time you crave them. I guess beyond that it is difficult to explain. Anyway, I think she did pick up on the distance I put in place if only to protect myself. However, before much could be said I went on holidays for three weeks. I thought the time would provide me with some perspective. When I got back I did not pay much attention to the fact that Marilyn and I did not work together for a few weeks. I realistically worked fairly minimal hours. But weeks stretched into months when she came through in her uniform but headed somewhere else. To this day I am unsure just where she transferred to and now I am away again. In choosing to not do anything in order to preserve what we had I irrevocably changed what we had. Out of the three, the way my relationship with Marilyn ended is the only one I regret. I still think about her every day, just wondering what she is doing. I guess in this case I need the closure that was never necessary with Charlotte and Artemis. Maybe that is because there was a whole history that came before. There was a whole relationship that still means a lot to me.

So that is the end of my tales regarding these three. I do not think this is where their influence will end. I am sure I will come across all three of them again. I just wanted and needed to tell the story of how important these people were to me particularly over the last two years but in my life in general. I am not saying these have been my only significant and important relationships. My family and my close friends have also been incredibly significant. There was also the boy from high school I mentioned. These three and my relationships with them just represent something special and they were a part of my life during a significant emotional upheaval and I will never forget that.

The Good and the Bad

2011-07-16T09:43:00.001+02:00

Have you ever noticed that there are generally two different depictions of step-parents in popular culture? The first is the amazing step-parent who steps in and fills the parenting void. The other is generally one which is different or downright horrible. I hesitate to say that all step-parents fall into one of these two categories. I have not personally been introduced to every single step-parent out there and therefore, I am reluctant to make bold generalisations. I can however I say that of my two step-parents one does fall into the good camp whilst the other is just plain bad. As I mentioned previously my parents divorced when I was quite young. Both of my parents, clearly, also remarried after their divorce. I should also clarify that both of my parents had been married before they married each other. It was from this marriage that my half-brother, my father’s first child, comes from. Anyway, I mother started seeing and ultimately married a man who was our next door neighbour when I was young. Yes he is the neighbour my father has insinuated my mother had an affair with. He, as in my step-father, was also married with three children. His wife, however, left him just after the birth of his son and third child. My step-brother is in fact older just marginally anyway then my sister. In other words his marriage at least was over long before my parents. I, also, think this was not a result of his making. His ex-wife despite having several very serious issues was always somewhat manipulative and incredibly vindictive. I mean she moved his three children to the other side of the country and somewhat out of reach. My mother and step-father ultimately married just after my eighth birthday. There were several obstacles to even reach that point. One of which includes my step-mother feeding my sister lies and manipulating her into accusing my step-father of child abuse. Despite the allegations being entirely fabricated it meant he was unable to live with us for some time. Despite all of this did still clearly marry my mother and he loves her so very much. There a lot of things I personally feel a father should do for and with his children. These include driving his children to team sport practices and games, attending school graduations and first days, being present at formals, driving children to and from their part-time jobs, picking them up when their car breaks down and organising to have it fixed and providing them with life’s necessities. Honestly, it has been my step-father not my biological father who has done every one of these things. In fact my biological has not done a single one of these things. In additional to all my step-father has done he has always supported and loved me. He helped my organise my schoolies trip, took me on driving lessons, organised for us to go on a cruise for my twenty-first and has without a doubt been there every moment of every day when I need him or not. He besides being an amazing man is my father in every way except for genetically. He is a man I love and adore. He is a man who knows me and knows what is going on with me. He is a man who knows what I want. He is the man who will be walking me down the aisle and giving me away at my wedding whenever that happens.

The complete opposite to this is my step-mother who I prefer to call the Wicked Witch of the North (she lives with my father in Brisbane, north of my home in the Gold Coast). Now I should also point that after Wicked I truly believe that no one is entirely wicked. There is a reason or rational as to why they are in fact acting the way they are. Even then a perception of wickedness may in fact be a bias perception. This is partially true but just why that is will make better sense just why I find my step-mother so horrible. My father and step-mother married a moth before my ninth birthday. This gave me three additional step-siblings to the three from my step-father. Now when most people hear bad step-parent I am sure a couple of possible things jump into their mind, of which I am sure abuse is one. Was my step-mother abusive? Yes, she was but not entirely in the way people assume. I mean yes she was physically abused me about the far more prevalent type of abusive she inflicted was emotional. In short she belittled me destroying the little shred of self-confidence I had. To explain I need to back track a just a bit. I will not go into a huge amount of details but when I was in the second grade I was placed in a class designed to give additional support to students struggling to read. It has always been a sore subject for me as I could actually read and the reason my school had done what they did was to receive additional money from the government. However, in later years when I truly began to succeed in my academics I liked to tell me. It was not bragging. I suppose it was my way of showing the people around me that I was in fact intelligent and I did not deserve the label given to me in the second grade. Now in my last years of primary school and into high school I had numerous academic achievements but there was one particular one that illustrates the way my step-mother treated me. I was in the seventh grade and they gave all the students in my year a reading level test. By this time, I had already developed a true love of reading. The test itself is straight forward. That is you read through a serious of sentences that increasingly more difficult words. If can make three mistakes in relation to word pronunciation or that kind of thing before they stop you. The last sentence you read correctly is a general indication of the level which you are reading. As I said I was in grade seven and I do not think I had turned twelve yet but I almost finished the test reading at the level of someone almost fifteen. Considering what I had been told regarding my reading ability previously I was immensely proud my achievements. Do not judge I was eleven. Anyway, I told people very proudly as I already said. One of the people that I told was my step-mother. Do you know how she responded? She commented that her middle child had successfully completed those tests when she was much younger than me. That was basically her modus operandi. She would belittle me and my achievements. I would continuously be compared less favourably to her children. I continues to this day when recently she boasted that her eldest is undertaking masters while I remain completing my bachelor degree. Besides this very prevalent emotional abuse which she subjected me to she did physically abuse me as I mentioned. I learnt in recent years that my step-mother and her own siblings had been abused at the hands of her father. As such I acknowledge that she was just as much of a victim in the cycle of abuse. However, I do not think nor will I ever think that that excuses someone when it comes to abusing a child. Child abuse is inexcusable in my opinion. Anyway, there you have it, an account of why I feel as if I have one amazing step-parent and one truly horrible step-parent.

Humble Beginnings

2011-07-16T09:42:00.003+02:00

My beginnings in life were simple and humble. I was the first child of my parent’s marriage although in terms of my biological father not his first born child. I think my position as first born was really defining for me. There have been a lot of studies done on how order of birth affects personality and character development. I feel as if I personally share a lot of those traits. I am by and large mature, responsible, independent, a perfectionist and very driven. I should also point out that although my mother at least was delighted about my birth not everyone was. I have since learned that my grandmother in particular had serious misgivings; however that was more borne of an intense dislike of my father then any personal opinion on me. She also commented that she thought I looked like a lizard. It is not exactly my granddaughter was the cutest baby rhetoric. I was also not the best of babies. I have had several people tell me that I spent a lot of time in my early years crying my head off. It was apparently so bad that people, my grandmother once again, were shocked the mother wanted to and ultimately fell pregnant so quickly after my birth. In fact my sister was born only eighteen months after my birth. She was from what I understand overdue so there was not exactly a long turnover. My mother commented that if she had of waited she would have convinced herself not to have a second child despite her strong desire not to raise an only child. It is possible to say at least in hindsight that she might not have been able to fall pregnant much later. This is because within two years of my sister’s birth my parents had separated and my mother had been diagnosed with a terminal lung disease called lymphangioleiomyomatosis or LAM. I am not entirely sure just what caused the end of my parents’ marriage. If I listen to my grandmother she never thought my father was good enough or even right for mother. She also states that my father left after my mother was diagnosed with a terminal disease. I suppose this could have been the reason. I mean at that stage doctors knew even less about LAM then what they know now, which is honestly not much. They did not even have a way to treat her. They pretty much sent her home to die and giving her only a handful of years to live. I understand that this could be a hard thing for a spouse with two small children to come to terms with. However, I remain unsure as to whether my mother’s illness predated my parents’ separation. I have also heard it said that my father was not the best of drunks a state in which he seemed to be somewhat frequently. I should note that he never touched my mother, my sister or me. He did however punch walls and furniture. Another reason given I have heard my sister say that my father had was that my mother was at some stage having an affair with a next door neighbour. Honestly, I doubt this one more than anything. It is truly not in my mother’s nature. She is before anything else loyal no matter how badly the other person acts. I have seen her go to bat for my sister no matter what she has done more than I can count. I suppose if I truly did want answers not a rehashed version of events I could ask my mother. However, it is not something I ever really want to do. Not because the events are in any way painful. It is just that I do not much care. I am not a child or now adult who has ever carried the secret dream that my parents who get back together. This is because I have no actual memories of my parents together and happy. My only views of their relationship began with a bitter divorce and custody battle ending in years of avoiding and ignoring each other. As such it has never been important to me just why my parents’ marriage failed. To me we have no fault divorce in Australia. All one needs to show is the irrevocable breakdown of marriage. I know that happened to my parents and that is enough of the story for me. Do not assume from my nonchalance that these events have not affected because I honestly feel the opposite to be true. Although both my parents found love and ultimately remarried I personally feel deeply afraid of my own future of marriage. I mean I feel as if I carry this fear of my spouse leaving me. I guess it is a fear of being placed in a similar situation as my mother was, that is one of a single working mother. Maybe this has contributed to my fears of intimacy and commitment. I think it will be a long time until I truly know the answer to this. It also says something that I even consider divorce as a distinct possibility to a marriage. I am at heart a romantic and feel I would fight hard if I ever had a marriage at stake I am however also a realist, a pessimist and a pragmatist. Considering the marriage/ divorce statistics I feel it ignorant to even say that divorce will never be an option. I may not want it to be an option but only a fool would say never in today’s world. However, I can say that this is my beginning. This is an account of the first years of my life and just how these things, namely the divorce of my parents, have affected me.

Biographies

2011-07-16T09:39:00.001+02:00

Although somewhat ascertainable by the title I feel I should point out this is not a part of my travel blogging. For the most part biographies are not something I read frequently.I have however found myself reading a lot of biographies lately. I just recently finished Bossypants by Tina Fey which I really loved. Granted I love Tina Fey and think she is a genius when it comes to comedic writing. In fact I think my opinion of her has only grown since reading her autobiography. For a woman who is so incredibly talented and has won so many awards she is by and large incredibly humble. She is also very honest and frank. I would really recommend it. It is very, very funny, too. I am also reading Michael Kirby: Paradoxes and Principles by one of my former law lecturers AJ Brown. My copy was even signed by both Justice Kirby and AJ. It is another book that I really love. It is very inspiring to read about Kirby. The third of the biographies is a book I found during the closing down sale at Borders. It is a book by Chris Stephen about the trial of Slobodan Milosevic before the ICC. Now I have not started this book yet. But from the blurb I understand that it follows the trial of Milosevic as well as looking at international criminal law somewhat broadly. Anyway, all of this reading past, present and future have kind of got me thinking about my own life story. I mean at twenty-one I hope I still have a lot more life left but I have just been thinking about attempting a bit of an autobiography. Granted it would not be entirely chronological. Instead I think I would link topics together like something about my parents and another chapter about education. Also I=it would probably just be posts on here but the effect is the same. I am not sure when I will do this or if I will finish this but I do promise to try.

A View of Things to Come

2011-07-16T09:36:00.001+02:00

I mentioned that I was wanting to write a couple of semi-autobiography posts. Well more like my running commentary on my life. So as I sit in a hotel room in London why not begin? Let’s start at the beginning. Do not expect any of these to be entirely chronological order. I will try but I am not writing my life as a story from start to present. That is not my intention here. My intention is to comment of events in my life and provide my own hindsight critique of certain things such as the state of the Australian education system and the step-parent/ step-child dynamic as well as the effects that divorce has on a family. I will also attempt to use my own personal experiences to encourage people to seek help in certain circumstances and connect with the people around them. I will also spend a bit of time talking about my own dreams and aspirations. I do hope also to comment on the people who have truly inspired me in life particularly juxtaposed with the people who have disappointed me the most. Sadly however there is at least one person who has transitioned from the first list to the second and I do not expect them to be the only one. Also, for those I will talk about the effects of popular culture of my life. Yes, I am a product of a very technologically driven generation and I feel it is necessary to comment of the impact this has had on my life. So consider this a little view of things to come. It might take me I while and I assume that most things will change with time but for now consider this the beginning.

Reflections on Paris

2011-07-15T20:20:00.000+02:00

Okay so what are my reflections on Paris. It is an incredibly beautiful city with a whole lot of history. Like any great city it has its iconic landmarks. It is filled with some truly beautiful building. The food is also amazing. The French seem capable of putting chocolate on pretty much anything, which works for me. Downside the Metro as the most efficient way to get around is inherently complex. Yes it is possible to figure about but that is not an easy achievement of any kind. The stations themselves are also almost like a warren of corridors zigzagging all over the place. Another downside compared to London being generally immaculate Paris just insistent always. You can often walk along in real tourist areas to see multiple bags of trash just sitting on the ground. This does not give the best of impressions. Another downside is that at times Paris is just plain seedy. I mean ignoring the whole pickpocket thing which I think you will find just about wherever you go there are all these ‘beggars’ all through the metro and especially at the tourist hotspots. Now my heart goes out to the less fortunate people out there but I honestly doubt that for these people begging is the only option. I mean call me cynical but I think by and large these people and scammers and con artist. Does the at time blatant ingenuity make it difficult to consider those truly in need? Yes it does. I also want to comment on the eccentricity of the weather. Yesterday, it was so hot and sunny and I got really, really sunburnt. Today, overcast and rainy most of the day with cold wind gusts. It is like in the space of forty-eight hours we have covered all the seasons.

Now, Paris is a beautiful city. It is a great place to visit, if you bring your macho six foot boyfriend, some could even say better then that. However, I can not consider my relationship with Paris continuing much beyond that point.

On an unrelated point, I was looking at around the world flights this morning and I have had an idea. I think according to the flights anyway that it would be easier to reverse my trip. As in New Zealand then the US and then Europe and the Middle East. I suppose that way I could also do Contiki tours if I am unable to find someone to do this epic adventure with me.

Paris: Day Two

2011-07-14T19:50:00.001+02:00

Okay so because of the events of the previous night day two started somewhat later. I also did not have any idea just what I wanted to do in Paris. I mean I knew maybe the Louvre and Arc de Triomphe but that was as far as my thought process had gone when it came to just what to see and do in Paris. Plus I was a bit apprehensive regarding the Metro. I mean I know I had caught it by myself the previous day but the simple of idea of being alone in an unfamiliar city was a bit unnerving. I mean if something, God forbid, ever happened? Just who would I call? My parents? Not going to be a lot of help. My exchange co-ordinator? Along similar lines to my parents. My travel insurer? No I do not think so. I mean I honestly have no one if it all go really bad. Anyway, turns out fate would intervene. As I sit at breakfast, which consisted of two bagets with nutella, I see that the hostel has free guided walking tours. Well, as it turns out the signage was a bit misleading. In truth they have someone who takes you to a meeting point from which a company offers guiding walking tours but the difference is not entirely important. As it also turned out the guy supposed to walk us to the spot called in sick. That left seven people, one of whom luckily knew exactly where we needed to go. It also meant I had some people to do the walking tour with. The walking tour itself was a lot of fun. Our guide was a very funny young Australian woman. The tour itself started at St. Michel’s Fountain in the Latin Quarter. From there we there we walked along Boulevard St Michel and Boulevard de Palais. We then saw Notre Dame and the Palais De Justice. We then walked alongside the Seine towards Pont Neuf, passing several very interesting things along the way. From there we walked down Quai de Conti to Pont Carrousel and Academie Francaise. Once we again crossed the Seine we reached Musee du Louvre or the Louvre. Once we left the Louvre we saw the Palais Royal before stopping for a quick break. After the break in which a very scary incident occurred we walked down Rue de Rivoli to reach the Place du Carrousel and the Jardin des Tuileries which we walked the length of to reach the Obelisque at Place de la Concord. Then we walked up Avenue des Champs-Elysees to reach the Grand Palais and Petit Palais. It was this point with a view of Napoleon’s Tomb that the tour ended. At this point I tagged along with three Canadians I had meet from the hostel. We continued down Avenue des Champs-Elysees to reach the Arc de Triomphe. From there we visited a really big and famous cemetery whose name I unfortunately do not know. I do know however, that James Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Proust and Chopin are all buried there. After leaving the cemetery we headed back to the Louvre to grab some dinner at a cute little Italian restaurant. The food was good and relatively cheap. However, the Cesar salad I had there was the least like any other Cesar salad I have ever seen. Anyway, after dinner we did a drive by shooting of the Louvre. We got in free but only had about forty-five minutes before it closed. It still gave us enough time to see the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and a lot of very cool Greek, Roman and Egyptian stuff. Then as it was almost ten so we headed back to the hostel. I also got an invite to spend the next day with the three Canadians.

Also before I end I feel I should describe the scary incident which took place outside a Starbucks. Now whenever you travel you always hear people’s war stories and you yourself witness some pretty bad things but this was seriously extreme. Now our tour guide who had just left the Starbucks not long before me came into contact with a dirty old homeless man. I am not sure what exactly happened but she said he kissed her breast. As she was understandably outraged by such a gross indecency she said a lot of stuff in French which she later said were obscenities. He then slapped her before spitting at at which point she went back inside the Starbucks. However, that left a group of us outside watching the creepy homeless guy. He walked up and down the street asking people for money before limping away just moments before the tour guide returns with a big burly guy from Starbucks. After this she gave us a few more horror stories regarding the liberties that some European men will take with women as well as outlining some cons perpetrated on tourists. All of this only served to reinforce my reluctance to go anyway in Paris by myself.