Vienna

The second stop on my mid-term break was Vienna.

After the train trip from Prague, we arrived in Vienna, tired, cold and grumpy. But some coffee that came in a bowl- literally- and some nutella, we felt a lot better. Once again, we were staying in a great hostel called "Wombats Naasctmarket" in a very central area in Vienna. We had a good room, and there was a great bar there too, full of travelers from all over- even some other South Africans!

We started with a walk around the area, which had a market selling lots of random scarfs and hats, as well as lovely food- falafels, cheese, olives among others. It reminded me of the early morning famers market in Shogweni in KZN- one of my favourite places! After roaming around there, we moved to the old town. Vienna's main sites are the old town, the centre and the palace. So, on day one, we did the old town- looking at the Opera house, state offices and other old building we did not really know. We stopped for some beer and french fries, then added a pretzel to that because everyone loves pretzels!







We wandered into the centre to find this famous cake shop where they supposably have the best cake and hot chocolate in Vienna. We weren't that impressed but it was still good. Vienna is known for its cake shops!





We went back to the hostel once darkness hit (at like 4pm!), took a much needed nap and then headed to the bar where we made friends with some spanish people studying abroad in poland. They introduced us to a toxic drink- pouring shots of vodka into beer...sounded like a good idea at the time but we paid for it the next day! We went out to the 'party place' in Vienna but were there too early for things to get started and were too tired to stay later, so headed home, and got some sleep.

The next day, we headed to the Schroonburg Palace and gardens. We decided against going into the palace because once you have been into Versaille, nothing will really compare. We took a walk through the gardens, which are amazing! The trees are orange, leaves falling everywhere. It is the perfect vision of fall! We walked through the gardens which are spectacular and then headed for the zoo. The zoo boasts holding Pandas, Polar Beers and Koala's among others. It is also supposed to be one of the oldest zoos in existence. It was exciting, we saw some animals but a lot of them i had seem before since i am from Africa.

We then headed to starbucks to de-thaw because it was COLD! And then walked around the centre again. After looking at some shops, we went to find the XXL Schnitzel which is supposed to be the biggest schnitzel in Vienna and man oh man was it BIG! I am amazed we finished them! It was reallllly good too! We decided to get an early night that night because Abi had to be up at 3am to get a flight home. On the way back to the hostel, we stumbled upon another really nice area- very alternative and studenty with nice shops and coffee shops, and stopped into a very intellectual cafe for some amazing hot chocolate!

The last day we were there, we took it easy. Abi has gone back to Paris to meet her aunt, so Katie and I wandered around and the visited the dinosaurs in the Natural History Museum. Vienna has a whole museum quartier, full of unique and interesting places!

That evening we caught the train to our last stop- Krakow! It was an...interesting train ride, which i will write about in my next post!

Vienna is a beautiful city but not my favourite. I could live there and definitely study there but as a tourist place, there is not too much to see. It would be great if we had a guide book or something, but on your own, it is hard to know what is what. Nevertheless, i have never seen parks that beautiful and the leaves are just unbelievable. I am very glad i went and will always look back fondly on it!

Prague!

Over my mid-term break, I set off to Prague, Vienna and Krakow. I went with two girlfriends, each of us choosing a city: Abi choosing Prague, myself choosing Vienna and Katie choosing Krakow. We were only in each place for two days which is far too short to do them justice but enough to make me want to go back!

We left bright and early on Monday morning, via plane to Prague. A mere few hours later we arrived at our hostel which was definitely one of the nicest I have ever stayed in. It was called St Christopher's Mosaic Hostel and it was like a freaking hotel! It was huge, with a great restaurant and bar and lots of friendly people! Plus the bed was probably more comfy than my bed at home! I definitely recommend it.

After dropping our stuff off, we set off for some traditional Prague food- schnitzel, potatoes and beer! And man, was it good ands cheap too! They use the Czech Crown in Prague and it is 22 Crown to a Euro, so we felt rich even if we weren't! The city overall is quite cheap, although everywhere is cheap compared to Paris! After lunch we set off the Prague Castel which is stunning. The building itself and the Cathedral is spectacular, especially because we were there in twilight, so the lightening was amazing. We even saw a changing of the guards, which was entertaining.




We then strolled back to the city, looked at some shops, had some hot chocolate and crepes and then set home to take a nap before heading out.



The hostel had a bar crawl that evening which we decided to join. We made friends with some American Jews who were doing a little Eurotrip and spent the evening with them drinking wine and beer and talking about our travels thus far. Abi and I, however, did not last long and headed home early to get some sleep.

The next day we were up early, had breakfast and set off on a free walking tour of the city, and it was great. There is so much history to Prague that I do not know. I know my history of World War II is not great, but i feel this trip i learnt a lot! We saw the famous Astrological clock, the town square and the Jewish district, ending by the river and St Charles Bridge. It was really a great tour!

We then headed for some more traditional Czech food consisting of Goulash Soup! Very exciting! We walked over the bridge, rubbed the statue of a women for good luck, and headed home to nap. That evening we decided we had to go and see the "14th biggest club in Europe" which was five stories high and boasted different music on each floor. However, sadly for us, it was a tuesday night and not too full, so only floors one, two and three were open. But it was still pretty cool to see!







Our train to Vienna was at 4:30am, so we decided there was little point in sleeping, so we went straight from the club, to get our bags and headed for the train, which we found with no problems and prompting feel asleep on the journey.

It was way too short to spend in this lovely city. Prague is small and based on toursim, so everywhere there are tours, hostels and bars and restaurants. The city is cheap and the food is good; the scenery is beautiful and it was not that cold! I am so glad i saw this place and got to spend some time here. It truly is one of my favourite places now- a perfect mix of history, beauty and fun! The language is impossible but that is part of the fun!

If you have a chance, make sure you give Prague a visit!

Normandy

The next place I visited was Normandy. Normandy is the sight of a lot of WWII history. Simply put, it is where British and American troops invaded France to get rid of the Germans. It is a collection of smaller French towns each with their own unique beauty and things to offer.

We visited four towns in Normandy- Pont Saint Michel, Caen, Hornfleur and Deauville. These were not our choices but were the places chosen by the Erasmus people who organised the trip.

Once again we found ourselves on a bus where it was party central. This time it was 7am on a Saturday and once again I found myself not wanting to par-take in the partying. However, this was not an option as everyone found it very exciting that I was from South Africa and Tafadzwa (the other UCT student) was from Zimbabwe. This involved a lot of shouting of “Waka Waka” and “Mandela”. Sooooooo Awesome!

We arrived a few hours later at Pont Saint Michel, which is a huge church/abby on top of a mountain surrounded by water. It is beautiful, but as churches go, I have seen better. It is pretty cool that it is on a mountain and is an island and like a whole little town exists in it with restaurants etc.

We then moved onto Caen which is the sight of another famous WWII battle. It has a huge wall in the middle of it which kept the bad guys out. My history of WWII is pretty lacking, as you can tell. It is a nice town, but we arrived in the evening so did not see much of it. We did see the canal it has through the middle, which is pretty cool and it has a good Quick Burger, where we got some food. And maybe one of the worst clubs I have ever been too- but this could have been because he was playing music popular in the 50s as the main attraction for the evening.

The next day we went to Hornfleur and Deauville. These are beautiful seaside towns, surrounded by the English Channel and apparently where Parisians take their summer holidays. I have never been to the Hamptons but it sounds a lot like the Hampton in France. They are small with old houses and lovely beaches. Not much to do with WWII here, but did have lots of seagulls, ducks and really good food!




Sadly we did not get to go to the D-day beaches, which is were I wanted to go. Erasmus is a bit dumb- don’t go on trips organised by them! But besides that, it was really nice to get out of Paris and see some more of France. It is very different to Paris- much more relaxed, the people don’t smoke as much, they actually eat food and are really nice to you.

I am definitely glad I went and I hope I get to see a bit more of France before I leave. There is definitely more to France than just Paris!

Munich and Oktoberfest!

The next place I visited after Barcelona was Munich for Oktoberfest for the first weekend in October.

We left Paris at 11pm on Thursday evening on a bus full of people ready to drink excessive amount of beer for three days. My plan was to not drink any beer being offered on the bus because…well…I need to sleep. However, this was not the plan of many others, and it quite literally turned into a ‘party bus’.


We arrived in Munich at 10am the next day and it was sunny and lovely and we were all exhausted, needing a shower and a nap. Of course we could not check in until 3pm so we had to postpone those needs for a couple of hours. We decided to use the time to roam around Munich and explore the city. This started with some traditional Bavarian food and drink. After the nourishment, we walked around and saw some amazing things. It is an incredibly beautiful city; one I would not hesitate to not only visit again but could easily live in. It is not too big, has an amazing transport system, is clean, organised and yet full of history. Contrary to what I had been told, the people were incredibly nice to us and very helpful.


The next day was Oktoberfest day. We arrived at 7:30am because we decided we wanted to get into the Hakker Tent, which is a very popular tent in Germany. How it works is that you do not pay anything to get in; it is totally open to the public, but you have to be seated at a table to get served a beer and you cannot easily reserve a table. Hence the getting there at 7:30am. We did get a table which was excellent and we drank a lot. Now, when someone explained Oktoberfest to me, I was like-um, you sit around and drink beer all day, well that’s lame. But no, it is so much more than that. It is 2000 people all dressed up in traditional Bavarian costumes, standing on tables and singing songs in German, drinking litres of beer and eating some of the best chicken and pretzels I have ever had! There are literally no words to describe this event and I really think that everyone should go at least once in their lives! Some make it a habit, like the man we met who was at his 22nd Oktoberfest. There are people from all over the world, but actually there are also a lot of Germans there.




Once you leave the tent, it is pretty hard to get back inside. But outside the tents there are rides and food and souvenirs etc. I guess it is like a music festival but the tents are for drinking beer and not for music.

We left around 7pm and fell into a deep beer-induced sleep! The next day, some decided to visit Oktoberfest again but we instead went to the English Garden which was amazing. A huge park in the middle of a city, with a pond and ducks et alles! It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon.



We then spent another 12 hours on the bus, which again turned into a party bus. Some people just have a lot more stamina than I do. We arrived back in Paris at 6am, and luckily for me, my Monday classes had been cancelled!

I cannot say I saw the whole of Munich but I saw enough to know that it is beautiful and an amazing city! Definitely worth a 12 hour bus ride!

Barcelona!

I have not been very good and keeping things up to date here at all, but have some time now and will blog about the past few months.

I have been in Paris for nearly 4 months and have 2 months to go. It has gone incredibly fast and has been full of fun and not so fun things.

I have been very lucky to travel so much so far. For a weekend in September I went to Barcelona. It was lovely. It is a beautiful city. One that is not full of history or lovely old building like Paris or Rome but it has an amazing beach (where the sand is imported from Morocco???) and has amazing party life. The clubs get going at 1am. If you arrive before 11pm, chances are they will not be open. They are incredibly trendy and incredibly pretentious- perhaps someone like Camps Bay places. They have half-naked women dancing on poles (and no they are not strip clubs) and are pretty cheap (or perhaps it is because everywhere seems cheap compared to Paris). We stayed in a great hostel which organised nights out and movie nights and alles- i fully recommend it for anyone going to Barcelone (http://www.santjordihostels.com/).



The reason we decided to go to Barcelone that weekend was because there was the La Merce festival going on, which included parades by very huge doll-like things fireworks, light-shows and random dancing and singing acts. There were lots of people everywhere and lots of interesting things to see.




The weather was not perfect all the time- we had a day of rain but we had two days of sunshine, where one was spent lying on the man-made beach. The sangria is amazing! Even if you do not like red wine, you will like it! The food is great. I am sure it is better if you like seafood, which i do not, so i stuck to tapas. It is cheap! Super cheap! And the shopping is amazing too. Zara is so cheap- like Mr Price there! Well maybe not that cheap but cheaper than in Paris!





It reminded me of home because it is a chilled city with a beach and people just want to relax and have a good time. It is not a huge city, which is nice- much easier to get around and see things. Although, i am definitely not claiming to have seen everything there is to see in Barcelona!



It was a nice change from the fast-pace of Paris and i would love to see the rest of Spain! I would definitely recommend Barcelona for anyone who wants to relax on a beach with men who bring you mojitos and party until dawn...literally!

a cheesy motivation!

This morning i woke up and thought "you should know what you want and what you deserve".

Now sure why but i just did and thought i would share but i cannot put it on facebook otherwise people will destroy my cheesiness! SO now I have blogged :-)

Many people settle for things and people not good enough and put up with stuff they shouldn't, and i am an excellent example of that! But you should draw the line and take a stand otherwise you will become a doormat and setting yourself up for a sub-par life.

Anyway, I must go now!
Have a good day!

p.s. Leave for SA in two months! I am too excited to come home!

Funny things about Paris

I have been meaning to write this post for about a hundred years now but just have not. And i have many many that i should write and will get to i promise. As of friday, I am work free for a bit and will try do blog posts from this term in Paris then.

But...while i procrastinate some time away from reading about sustainable development and the environment, I will write about some funny things I have noticed about Paris so far.

1) Bedrooms NEVER have a roof light. They only ever have side-lamps. Not even lights attached to the wall, but side-lamps you have to put in. It is tres bizaar. Perhaps it is to aid the ambiance for the bedroom.....

2) Bathrooms are often for men and women; it is rare to have single-sex bathrooms. Perhaps this is to promote the bedroom action....

3) Often lights in bathrooms are timed- they go on when you open the door and off after a specific time period. So if you are chilling in the loo, it will go dark after a while. This one i think is to preserve electricity, but could be for the other thing too...

4) You cannot get filter coffee in a normal size coffee cup; you can get "cafe" aka. espresso in a tiny cup, "cafe lait", cafe latter but still in a 250ml cup MAX, "cappuccino" but in a small cup and only 'weaklings' drink this after 10am! At Sciences Po, you get coffee out of a vending machine for 50c, so i usually buy about ten a day which makes up like one normal cup of coffee! It is VERY ANNOYING!

5) Homeless people always have dogs and suitcases. It is like they are just moving from spot to spot with their louise vutton rolly bag and beautifully groomed dog...

6) Everything has eggs on it! Even pizza! Not little egg bits but somma a fried egg blomp on the pizza. If you do not like eggs, like i do not, this becomes a bit of an issue!

Those are indeed the main things i can think of right now.

Besides the obvious, every one smokes, no one eats, no one exercises...it is a miracle they are alive past 30! And there are no real problems like crime. Apparently "up north" is dangerous at night but i think that means there are homeless people there and not real crime. The only real issue people have is the environment which is why there are five bins for everything everywhere and the light thing.

Life up in the first world is pretty easy as far as life goes.
Mais, c'est tres bizaar!