Europe 2001: Going Home

This morning started off roughly.  I awoke, 20 minutes before our train would be arriving in Paris.  I had to use the bathroom, so I went down the car to get to the toilet.  There was shit, literally shit, all over the floor from someone's accident.  I gave up and went back to my compartment.  When the train arrived in Paris and we were collecting our things, I asked Amber where her bag of calendars, posters, and other stuff she had bought was.  She had left it at the train station in Nice.  It was not a good moment for either of us.  I still had to pee.  In our efforts to go to Notre Dame once more, we found that we had almost no cash, the change places were all closed, and we were walking entirely the wrong way.  I suggested that we abort and just head for the airport.  Along the way, we found probably the only change place in Paris that was open and got some cash.  Then, we found a McDonald's, where we had breakfast and I finally go to use a bathroom.  When we were rested and in better spirits, we took the half-hour metro and shuttle to the airport, a full 2 1/2 hours before our plane was to depart.  After an easy check-in, we boarded.

The flight went by surprisingly fast.  And, we arrived almost an hour ahead of time.  The in-flight meals were pretty yucky, but I was starving and didn't care.  I snoozed a little, but forced myself to stay awake so that my system wouldn't be all messed up by the time I got home.  I kept busy by writing additional details for this travel log.  We arrived in Detroit and went through customs without too much trouble.  I made a phone call home and we waited to board our last and final (7 hour) flight to Anchorage.  I dozed and dozed, barely woke up in time for the in-flight "meal" service and watched the movie to stay awake during the last of the flight.

I can’t believe I’m going into work tomorrow.

*In the aftermath of Amber’s luggage being stolen, she never received word that it had been recovered, and the London police never got her message about her train pass being stolen.  So, unfortunately, she ended up paying for two Eurail passes and could not be reimbursed for the lost one.  To this day I’m fairly upset by the way the staff at St. Christopher’s handled the situation (and their luggage policy in general) but I was impressed with Amber’s insistence that we continue our trip even though I would have completely understood if she wanted to pull the plug at the time.

Europe 2001: Monaco

Amber confided that she would have liked to stay another month in Nice.  I can understand, as Nice is such a wonderful city, except I miss my family.  I especially miss my bed at home.

We had an interesting day.  First, we checked out and stored our bags and caught the first train to Monaco.  I have to say I was not entirely impressed.  First of all, the air was unbearably humid and hot.  Next, the buildings that made up most of the city were really ugly.  We hiked up a 200-foot cliff to visit a castle, but it was overrun with tourist shops.  The view was really nice, however.  There was an overlook with a view of the small harbor.  We left early to go back to Nice for our last (real) dinner before we got home.

We're now on our night train to Paris, the first step in our journey home.  Our sleeper car is much much nicer than the one on our last train.  I actually have a clean pillow and blanket.

Europe 2001: Nice Continued

Today was as mellow as yesterday.  We got up early, ate breakfast, watched MTV, went to the beach for 5 hours, ate dinner, watched MTV, and now we are going to bed.  Tonight is our last night in Nice.  Tomorrow we will take a day trip to Monaco before catching our night train back to Paris for our return flight home.

Europe 2001: Another Day on the Beach

I'm hurting right now, but I'll get to that later.  First, I'll go over the events of the day.  We awoke this morning to the smell of the buffet breakfast downstairs.  After a quick call home, we went down to eat.  Oh, the food was wonderful.  I ate a lot of bread, cheese, eggs, fruit, cereal, and finished off with some hot tea.  Amber had about three plates piled full of food.  It was fun to watch some of the other guests watching her eat with looks of astonishment.  When we were done, we went back upstairs and sprawled out on the bed to take naps.  Later, around noonish, we went out to buy some grass mats to lie on before going to the beach for 5 hours.  Naturally, I forgot to put sunscreen on my back, so of course, now, I have hideously painful sunburns all over my back.  At first, it didn't hurt, but as I was getting dressed to go to dinner, I was in a lot of pain.  Amber was put in a bad mood at dinner.  She found a dead fly in her salad.  She was charged for it all the same, which made her even angrier.  Can’t really blame her there.

After dinner we each had some ice cream and then giant clouds of cotton candy.  Later we sat down on a bench along the promenade to take a break. A little while later, two men sat behind us.  One of them asked time it was.  I showed them my watch. They asked what time it was again.  I showed them my watch.  One asked if we spoke French.  Amber replied that she did.  They asked what time was again.  They kept asking Amber if we spoke French or not.  I was beginning to wonder if they spoke French at all themselves.   Finally I turned around and said, "She (pointing at Amber) speaks French, I (pointing at myself) do not, okay?"  They laughed and said something to Amber.  She answered back and the men laughed some more.  Suddenly, Amber stood up and we said our good-byes.  I asked Amber what she had said.  "Oh," she replied, "The one guy told me that I was charming and I told him that he was a liar."

Europe 2001: Nice

When we arrived in Nice, we were met with the sight of palm trees and the smell of lavender.  Luckily, our hotel had a room ready for us even though we had arrived early.  When we were ready to check out the city, I was began to realize how much I loved Nice already.  The people were friendly, things ran at a slower pace even though everything was bustling with activity, and there were wonderful restaurants everywhere.  Amber and I went to a very nice department store for 2 hours because we were in love with everything.  I bought a few gifts and Amber did too.  We wandered the streets, both of us eyeing the promenade and beach longingly.  We went back to our hotel room to drop our purchases and find Amber a bikini.  After an hour, Amber bought one she liked, and we rushed back to the hotel again to change.  We got to the beach, threw our stuff down, and jumped into the water.  We were swimming in the Mediterranean Sea.  I think we spent 2 1/2 hours there, frolicking and giggling before we went back to the hotel for showers. 

 Later I was moaning for dinner, so we went to a place that we had passed several times during the day.  I had one of the best salads I have ever had in my life.  It was served on a huge plate, pilled high with lettuce, grapefruit, chicken, ham, cheese, olives, nuts, and topped with a light, wonderful dressing.  I inhaled it.  With our tummies full, Amber and I walked to the promenade and watched the sun set.  After it was dark, we went down back to the beach on the water and skipped rocks and sat for about and hour.  We decided to go home, but as we came back to the streets, quite a pleasant surprise met our eyes.  The streets were more alive at night than during the day.  Shops were open, street restaurants were all lit up.  There were musicians and merchants everywhere.  Amber and I stopped to watch a play that was being performed in the street.

Suddenly, there were loud explosions heard, coming from the south, the sea.  All at once, all of the locals hurriedly ran towards the shore.  Caught up in the excitement, we ran too.  When we rounded the next corner we saw a huge display of fireworks.  We climbed to higher ground and watched some of the most magnificent fireworks.  The people were cheering and exclaiming "bravo!" until it was all over.

Europe 2001: Last Day in Rome

What a last day in Rome!  We are going home in five days.  We started off by stuffing ourselves with pastries at Panneli and then walked down several main roads to do some shopping, though the only things I bought today were a shot glass for Lance and a new pen for my journal-writing.  Then, in search of the Capuchin Crypts, we walked a million miles to the edge of Rome (literally, we made it all the way to the ancient city walls) and back without ever finding the crypts.  Then, we walked all the way back.  By then it was 6 pm.

In the morning when we checked out, Naomi had told us that there was a small chance that we would be able to use their showers before we left for Nice (gosh, don’t I sound a little obsessed with bathing?).  The receptionist that was at the Beehive that evening did as we had hoped and allowed us to use their facilities.  I don't think I have ever stripped so fast in my whole life.  After my shower, I gorged down 2 cokes and spoke with Mr. Brighton before he left for Naples.  Then, Amber and I went to the net cafe up the street and did some emailing.  Next, after we ate some pizza a nearby restaurant, we sat for 3 hours to wait for our train.  I got some good reading done.  When the train arrived, things got interesting.  The train was late getting in.  In other words, it arrived ten minutes before it was slated for departure.  Suddenly, there was a mad dash of people rushing with baggage carts, duffels, suitcases, and animals for the 22nd platform.  Amber and I, pushed by the inertia of the crowd, found our train car and jumped inside to find our wretched second-class bunks.  The bunks really were awful, smelly, hot, and dirty.  Throughout the night I did not sleep well.

Europe 2001: Vatican City

 The morning was cool, so we left early to get breakfast at Panneli (yum!), and took the metro to the Vatican Museums and got in line for about an hour to see the Sistine Chapel.  Oh, it was so beautiful!  It was so amazing to see it in person.  After, we walked around the walls of the city to get to St. Peter's Basilica, where there are no bare shoulders or knees aloud.  I happened to be wearing a tank top and shorts.  Wasn't I smart?  I had bought a T-shirt at the Vatican Museum, but my knees were still exposed.  I was able to slip past the guards in front of the cathedral, which Amber said was very lucky.  When I got to the second set of guards, one man looked at me and sadly said, "Is really too short."  I gave him a really sad face and asked, "I can't go?"  He shrugged his shoulders and let me in.  Wow.  We got in line for what we thought was entrance to the cathedral itself.  As it turned out, we were in the line to go to the top of the Basilica di San Peitro.  What a LONG hike!  We went up a million gazillion steps to the base of the giant dome and were able to look down to the cathedral floor.  What a sight!  All the apostles and saints were represented in the form of intricate mosaics.  We went even further up, now INSIDE the very dome walls.  The walls were curving at almost 30-degree angles.  Then, the stairs changed and we were beginning to hit the top of the curve of the dome.  The last spiral staircase was so tight, that the handrail was nothing but a single thick rope hanging from ceiling to floor.  The sight of Rome from the top of the largest cathedral in the world was astounding.  We could see the Capitoline ruins, the Vatican Gardens, fountains, and mountains.  If anyone reading this ever visits the Vatican City, they MUST go to the top of the Basilica di San Peitro!  We spent about half an hour up there.  When we came down, we came right out into the church.  We went and saw the exquisite Pieta.  I think it is my favorite statue in the whole world.  Not very many people have seen the Pieta in person.  We wandered the cathedral some more and looked up into the dome we had scaled only an hour earlier.  

View from the top

 

 Looking back toward the Vatican Museums

When we left the Vatican City it was already 3 pm and really hot outside again.  We crossed the Tiber River and went to the Piazza Navona to get gelato and cash.  Next, we walked to the Trevi Fountain, which was okay.  There were lots of people there and I was more concerned about finding a cool place to sit and avoid pick pocketers than the scenery.  After a while we walked all the way to the other side of Rome to the best gelato shop we had been to on our whole trip.  After two doses of ice cream we went home, thinking that we would be eating dinner at a place a few doors down from our hostel.  Wrong.  Closed for the summer.  We went upstairs to drop our stuff and I received a note that my mom had called and wanted me to call back (to check that we were still alive).  No phones were at our disposal and the pay ones didn't work, so I went to the net cafe next door and emailed my mom.  We went and got some groceries to make pasta in the kitchen.  After we ate our fairly pitiful meal we went up for showers.  Later, I was feeling hungry, so we went back down to the kitchen so I could eat the cookies and soda I had bought.  We entered the kitchen to find a nice young man from Brighton cooking himself a dinner similar to ours, but it smelled much better.  We chatted for an hour.  Tomorrow is our last day in Rome before we go on the last leg of our journey.

Europe 2001: Rome!

This is our second to last destination.  Our morning was very interesting.  First we got up at 4:30 am.  We put our stuff together and left for the train station at 5:00 am.  On our way, we spotted a McDonald's that was open and stopped for breakfast.  I got a chicken sandwich sort of thing and Amber got some fries.  In a hurry to get to the train station, I slipped off the curb and fell down onto my bare knees on the stone road.  I was unhurt but having some difficulty standing up, as I was at a weird angle.  I was leaning over my duffle that was wrapped around my shoulders in the usual fashion and my feet were still on the raised curb.  I must have looked fairly ridiculous.  Amber grabbed one arm, and a policeman rushed to my aid and grabbed the other arm.  I was hauled onto my feet and we went on our way.  I snoozed a little on the way to Rome, but my sleep was interrupted every half hour when the conductor would make some sort of announcement on the speaker system.  When we arrived in Rome I was surprised at how cool the weather was.  We headed in the direction of our hostel.  It was kind of funny: Most of the street names and signs were different from the ones on my map, so after being lost for 45 minutes, we got to our hotel eventually.  Our room would not be ready until 4 pm.  I left my big bag and we set off for a grueling all-day hike in 90-degree heat.  The first thing we were going to have to do was find a change bank, as I only had 3000 lira in my possession (about $1.50).  As it turned out, the change place we found was also a net cafe.  Currently, it was "happy hour" (free), so we decided it wouldn't hurt to do a little emailing.  There was an episode where I was quite rude to Amber about a poem she shared with me, but after a slightly ungracious apology on my part the rest of the day was fun.

After the Colosseum, we wandered under the hot sun in search of a bathroom.  It seemed like all the shops were closed.  Nothing was available.  Finally, a security guard for a really ritzy hotel took pity on us and let us use the hotel bathroom.  When we left we wandered past the Circus Maximus to the Santa Maria in Cosmedin where the Mouth of Truth is (of Roman Holiday fame).  It was really funny to see all the tourists who had formed a line of their own to wait for the chance to go and take a picture with their hands in the mouth.  I just sat in the shade and watched the giddy travelers, and later went inside the church where I bought two really nice calendars at the gift shop.  

 

 Beware the Mouth of Truth!

We went to Capitoline Hill.  It was really beautiful, but the heat was unbearable.  I had barely enough energy to realize where I was actually walking because I was so affected by the heat.  I had to take "shade breaks" about every ten paces.  The ruins were really magnificent.  There were walls and archways and fallen columns and remains of lower basement structures that were neat to look at.  Next, we wandered up the street about a quarter mile to the "Wedding Cake" building, which was beautiful.  There was a fountain in which people were cooling their feet.  Amber and I joined in.  The water was freezing cold, but I loved it.  We sat there for about 20 minutes until a policewoman chased everyone away.  We next went to the Piazza Navona.  By this time it was REALLY hot out and I lost all my steam REALLY fast.  I plopped down in the shade and Amber ate the ice cream she had purchased.  When I had the energy, we wandered to the Pantheon and then I got some ice cream for myself.  We had the idea to buy groceries and cook dinner at the hostel, but it was going to be a 2-mile walk back to the hostel in all of the heat.  I did not want to be hauling groceries!  We headed for home, and along the way Amber bought a peach and some grapes.  Tired, sweaty, and relieved, we made it back to the hostel.  Our dinner was said fruit, since everything was now closed.  We went to our room and listened to music and went to bed.

Europe 2001: Florence (There Might Be Such a Thing as Too Much Gelato)

Awful train ride this morning.  It was raining hard as we went through Italy and the seats were very very uncomfortable.  When we arrived in Florence I was glad that it was sunny and warm outside, without nearly as much humidity as Venice.  We found our hotel easily, and the room had a fabulous brick wall view.  We wandered through the markets and rounded a corner that led to the Duomo, which had an exquisite exterior, but the inside was very plain compared to the other churches and cathedrals we had been in but still, it was very impressive.  We went up the millions of steps in a very narrow stairwell to the top of the Duomo's tower.  Along the way, we ran into a very grumpy Australian who was cursing loudly.

We heard his echoes while we went further up.  When we reached the top, I decided the view was well worth the strain (and five dollars).  The breeze felt good and we could see the surrounding rolling hills and the Uffizi Gallery, which would be our next stop.

We came back down, and as we walked to our next destination we passed a sweet shop where I bought some chocolate covered coffee beans and Amber bought some nougat.  Next we got some gelato (to be prepared for the long wait in line).  We waited for 2 1/2 hours.  Good thing we were early.  The Uffizi Gallery was okay.  I liked the Botticelli masterpiece, but I liked many of the lesser-known paintings much better.  I bought a book about Leonardo di Vinci.  Next we wandered the streets and markets.  I found a beautiful piece of pottery for Penny.  I hope she likes it.  As we were walking around, one man waved to me as he went by on his scooter and another told me I was cute.  Afterwards, Amber was on a mission to wash her clothes, so we found a laundro-mat around the corner and put our stuff in the washer.  I had seen an internet cafe along our way, so we went and I sent a quick email to my mom.  I got sick from the ice cream I had eaten earlier but I found a bar that would let me use their bathroom.  I'm okay now.  After our clothes were done and dry we went back to our hotel room. As we were on our way back to our hotel, we could hear a child wailing.  We rounded a corner to find a little boy standing on a scale that measures your weight after inserting a few coins.  The boy, clearly in need of a nap, was crying and screaming while his mother was trying to get him to leave.  "I've seen women act that way after they've found out how much they really weigh," Amber commented.  I laughed hysterically for the next three blocks.  When we got to our hotel we crashed early since we have a 6:05 am train to Rome tomorrow.

Europe 2001: Venice II

It was another scorcher of a day in Venice.  I hate the idea of leaving.  Also, we have only one week left of our vacation.  I'm going to be really tan when I get home.  When we left our hotel for the day, we saw my little receptionist friend.
        "Bonjourno, Ms. LaVictoire" he said.
        "Bonjourno," I replied.
        "How are you this morning?"
        "Fine, how are you?"
        "Very bad, thank you.”

We began the morning with the hotel's complimentary buffet breakfast and then went to Venice's Academia, which had a lot of religious paintings dating as far back as the 1100-ish A.D.  Next, we went to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum.  It is located inside a gorgeous palace on the Grande Canal, which used to be Peggy's house (and is where her grave is).  I saw some really wonderful modern and strange art.  After the Guggenheim Museum we wandered around, got lunch, and ended up in San Marco Square again, where we went to the top of the Basilica di San Marco and sat on the shaded side of the roof to cool off.  After an hour we went to get ice cream, underwear for Amber, and Venetian carnival masks for me.  Our shopping was very successful, and along the way to get ice cream we passed some street musicians who were playing didgeridoos and drums.  After we were done, we wandered back to our hotel, hot and sweaty, and ready for showers.  I was so glad to have washed some clothes the day before, so now I have CLEAN UNDERWEAR, jeans, shorts, and a CLEAN SHIRT.  Ah, little comforts.  Tomorrow, we have an 8:33 am train that will take us to Florence.

Europe 2001: Venice

I awoke by accident and pure luck at ten till five, the alarm clock was beeping frantically.  Our train was leaving in fifty-five minutes.  I hit Amber and told her that we had to move fast.  We threw our stuff together and ran downstairs.  No receptionist.  Oh crap.  We had just finished writing a letter with my credit card information and billing address when someone stumbled sleepily out of the staff office.  We checked out and proceeded to run through the streets of Milan in the dark, trying to read our map and praying that it wouldn't take long to get to the station.  We made it 15 minutes before the train was to leave.  I was extremely sweaty from the whole ordeal since I was wearing a sweater and jeans.  I collapsed into my seat and tore my sweater off to cool down.  As it turned out, we were sharing our compartment with two other American women from Illinois.  When we got to the car they were putting on nail polish and makeup and using eyelash curlers and primping to the max.  They were really sweet and fun characters.  I dozed off on the train.  When we arrived in Venice, it was 9 am and even more humid than Milan.  We said goodbye to the Illinois women and went to a tourist office to ask for directions to our hotel (which I could not find on my rotten map).  It was literally right around the corner.  I love Venice.

First thing we went to our hotel to check in (and met a really flirtatious, cheeky, and cheerful receptionist) and dropped my bag before setting forth.  The day was generally unplanned, which was nice.  We took the waterbus to San Marco Square, where Amber did some really good shopping in the surrounding streets (at this point, she still only had the clothes on her back).  We ended up at the Rialto Bridge, which was crowded with tourists, but I'll bet they didn't even know why it is so significant.  There are lots of bridges in Venice, but the importance of the Rialto Bridge is that it was the first ever built to connect the northern and southern sides of Venice and the first bridge to cross the Grande Canal.  It was 1:00 pm and the heat was too much for me to bear, so we went back to our hotel for showers and naps.  After, we did some exploring.  We wandered aimlessly through the streets for about 5 miles and we were able to trace our exact steps back.  It was really funny because on our way back we were asked by two young USAF pilots for directions to the train station.  I told them to follow us because we were headed that way.  Later they abandoned us to go buy a map, but about an hour after we had gotten back and eaten dinner, we said hello as they walked past us.  After dinner Amber and I sat on the edge of the Grande Canal while the effects of Amber's Guinness wore off and then we went back to the hotel for yet more showers.  After a brief thunder storm, we slept.

St. Mark's Square

Europe 2001: Milan

I awoke at around 5 am to the sight of the gorgeous Italian countryside.  Rolling hills and brightly painted houses were sprawled across the expanse outside the compartment window.  When the train pulled into the station, Amber and I happily leapt off and headed for our hotel.  I sort of half-guessingly found our way through the metros and asked a police officer how to find a road on our map, then we were at our hotel, which was fairly pleasant.  It had a nice big bed, a shower with really great water pressure, and even a side lounge with a couch and chair.  We had a balcony that overlooked a  large garden.  The receptionist was very charming, and even though we were three hours ahead of check-in, our room was ready.  We went straight up and took showers, called our families, changed clothes, and went to the Duomo.

The Duomo is so far the most ornate cathedral of all the others we had seen (but the Notre Dame is still very special).  There were hundreds of spires, tiled floors, and marvelous stained glass windows.  We bought tickets to climb up to the roof and wandered around the spires and statues, taking pictures.  It began to rain, but we didn't care.  When we were on the ground again, we saw some really funny children chasing and screaming at pigeons.  As we were leaving the Duomo grounds, as street person shoved a piece of colored string into my hands.  "Peace and love," he muttered.  "Give it back!  Give it back!"  Amber pushed me in the direction of the street person.  I turned around to do so, but the man was already wandering away, passing out his brightly colored strings to others.  

We wandered into an interesting square that was covered by a curved glass roof and ate some lunch, which was extremely good.  As we finished our gelato, the sun came out.  Next on our itinerary was a museum called the Museo Poldi-Pezzoli.  I couldn't even remember why we had wanted to go there in the first place.  As it turned out, we went to the strangest museum I've ever been in: Old lace, books, religious paintings, Spanish armor, old compasses, French tea cups, old sundials, ancient Roman artifacts, and old furniture.  Next, we took a long walk to the Santa Maria Della Grazie church, where da Vinci’s Last Supper is.  We didn't see the painting, as we needed reservations, but the courtyard in the church was very peaceful.  We sat in the shade on the warm stones and looked at the fountain with goldfish and gurgling frog waterspouts.  It was the first bit of real relaxation we had experienced on the whole trip.  

 Next, we wandered back towards the Duomo and into the glass-enclosed mall and went into a music and video store.  Amber bought a cd and I did too.  I was glad to have some new music to listen to.  Then, we went back to our hotel and had hot showers.  As we chatted about things and wrote in our journals, we listened to our music on my cd player.  Then we realized that we would have to wake up at 4:30 am to catch tomorrow’s train to Venice and went to bed soon after.

The view from our balcony

Europe 2001: Can't We Just Leave France? Please?

We awoke kind of late, but we needed the sleep.  We had a lot that we wanted to cover today, but as we were mentally scarred from our last hotel experience, we took all of our bags with us instead of leaving them.  This meant that Amber still had her one backpack, but I had a big and very bulky duffle wrapped around my shoulders so that it hung at my belly, and then I was carrying a backpack.  First thing, we went to the Pere-Lachaise Cemetery and wandered around all morning.  It was a very peaceful and beautiful cemetery.  Everywhere you looked there were rows upon rows of tombs, like little houses.  Most were covered with delicate green moss and ivy.  It was very hard for me to leave.

 We “got in line” to see the Musee d'Orsay.  We were in line for 1 1/2 hours, in the rain, with all of our luggage.  Good thing the wait was worth it.  I saw some really awesome Monets and Van Gohs and works by my favorite impressionist, Degas.  I thought it was interesting how the ceiling of the museum was carved in the same fashion as the underside of the Arc de Triumph.  My favorite part of the museum was gallery that featured architecture of the Opera House.  There was a really big to-scale model of a cross-sectional view of the building, which I spent too much time just staring and peering at.  When we were done at the museum it was getting late, but all I cared about seeing was Notre Dame Cathedral, so we went.  Oh, it was everything that I had expected!  It is one of my favorite buildings in the world.  I loved the architecture so much!  I lost Amber.  I had last seen her over by the altar, and then they turned down the lights for mass.  I went outside.  No Amber.  The weather was brutal.  I went back inside and stood in one place, so if she were looking for me, she would find me.  Ten minutes later, still no Amber.  I figured that she must be doing the same thing, so I went in search of her.  I found her sitting in one of the pews, waiting for me.  I sat next to her and we listened to the organs play.  It was really eerie, sad, and somber music.  Beautiful.

After we left, we knew what was coming:  Our overnight train to Milan.  Amber had lost her train pass with her luggage and needed a new one.  In addition she needed a couchette reservation for tonight’s train.  Luckily all the other reservations for our trip were in my name and I still had the papers.

It was raining.  A perfect setting for the events that would unfold.  We went to the nearest metro and bought more tickets.  We got to Paris-Bercy station.  We were told that in order for Amber to get a new train pass, she would have to go to Gare de Lyon station.  As we were leaving, I lost my balance and fell down a flight of stairs and into a puddle with all of my luggage about my neck.  When we got to Gare de Lyon station we were told that ticket counters were closed.  After several minutes of Amber trying to explain her situation to the ticket seller (in French), I pressed my rail pass up to the glass and asked if Amber could purchase one.  Yes.  Thank God.  But we were going to have to get the couchette reservation at Paris-Bercy.  Fine.  Amber bought a new rail pass and we left.  Amber, bent on not taking another Paris metro, since we had been having bad luck with them all day, decided we would take a taxi.  After failing to hail one, we walked.  I was freaking out because I didn't know where we were, and up until this point Amber had been relying on me for navigation.

To add insult to injury, in my distress I kicked right through a pile of dog shit on the sidewalk.  Amber began to laugh.  I wanted to cry.  I kicked my boot through a puddle and continued walking.  Somehow, we made it back to Paris-Bercy.  We were told that Amber would have to buy the reservation from the conductor.  I was nastily screamed at by a conductor for not knowing what compartment to be in.  We climbed into our bunks and I slumped down after kicking off my shoes.  A creepy sort of man go into the bunk opposite and upper.  An Italian man hung out outside, he would be bunking across from me.  The evil conductor came in to collect passports, tickets, and reservations.  Amber tried to explain that she needed a new reservation -"No, must have reservation," he interrupted.  Amber was hauled away to another car.  Not knowing what to do, I curled up in my bunk with the thought that at least we were guaranteed to arrive in Milan on the same train.  The Italian, who was now in his bunk, I could see out of the corner of my eye, was staring at me.  "Oh, great," I thought.

"Excuse me," he said.  I turned around.  He continued to speak in broken English, but what he basically said was that he was going to see his friend a few cars over soon and he would try to trade places with Amber if it were possible.  I told him that he was very kind but that I was just thankful that we were on the same train and that we had been through a rough time.  Fifteen minutes later, the compartment door flew open and there stood Amber and the conductor.  She had been forced to buy a first class reservation because second class was filled up, but she told the conductor that she had the last empty couchette, so he let her come back.  After we settled down thankfully I fell asleep.

Europe 2001: Paris

The morning was equally frustrating.  As it turned out, Amber had forgotten to include a claim to her missing train pass in the police report yesterday.  She thought she could file a report with the French Police, so we spent our whole morning wandering the streets, being sent from station to station, looking for the "baggage claim police”.  I kept telling Amber to forget about her bag and just concentrate on her rail pass, and that her 24 hours were running out.  We were finally told by a French policeman that since it happened in London, there was nothing he could do.  We bought a new phone card (as ours wouldn't work) and tried to get a hold of the London Police from a pay phone booth.

We picked up the receiver.  "Please insert card."  Inserted the card.  Beeeeeeep...hang up and remove card."  Slam!  Click.  "Please insert card."  Click.
        "Please wait...dial number."  Beep beep boop.  "The area code you dialed is no longer available, please hang up and-" Slam!  Click.
        "Beeeeep....please remove card."  SLAM! SLAM! SLAM!

This went on for a little while longer before we were able to get through to the London Police.  We got an answering machine.  Amber left a message for the police to add her rail pass to her report.  Who knows if anyone even got it?

We decided that we weren't going to let the whole day be a bust (since it WAS only noon) and went to the Sacre Couer, which was a big, huge, cathedral sitting on top of the highest hill in Paris.  The inside of the building was okay, but the outside was the most impressive, just because of it's huge dome and the stairs leading up to it.  There were street vendors all over the place.

After wandering past some pretty pricey tourist shops (almost $3.00 for a bottle of water) we went to the Arc de Triumph, Amber's favorite place.  I could see why it was her favorite.  You can see all of downtown Paris and Champs Elysee and only reluctantly does one descend back to street level.  The decorations on the underside were really amazing.  Afterwards, we strolled down towards the Opera House.  Getting there was an event in itself.  The metros were less than user-friendly, and when we emerged from the underground, I saw some kind of large building in front of me.  Nah, couldn't be the Opera House.  I turned around and looked at my map.  "I don't understand, it's supposed to be right here!"  I complained to Amber.  I had been waiting for years to see this building and I didn't even recognize it.  We went inside.  I was a little disappointed that I couldn't tour around the whole building, but the Grande Staircase was breathtaking enough to make me happy.  It was all intricately carved marble with romantic statues decorating the handrails.  There was a fountain and a mirrored lobby with a comfy circular couch in the middle.

We walked to the Eiffel Tower, where the lines were unbearably long.  I sort of wanted to go to the top, but Amber didn't (understandably so).  I didn't want to go on my own or leave Amber, so I looked up at it from the ground, said goodbye, and we set off for Champs Elysee to do some shopping.  We bought an alarm clock (after a series of embarrassing pantomime on my part) and then went to the giant Sephora store and bought some really awesome makeup.  It was getting late, so we bought some groceries and went back to our hotel for a smorgasbord of cheese, crackers, salami, cookies, and yogurt.  We tried to go to the Louvre, but it was closed.  Actually, I wasn't entirely disappointed because the building itself was astounding enough to look at.  It just seemed to stretch on forever.  It became dark quickly and we walked about two miles along the river to Pont Nuef (Bridge Nine) for a night boat ride.  The cold air felt really good.  I wasn't really paying attention to what the tour guide was saying.  I was watching the scenery go by and looking at the Eiffel Tower, which was all lit up.  When the tour was over, we rushed to the nearest metro station.  It was bath time!

We had been sliding back and forth between metro stations to get back to our hotel.  We were finally at the last train change station.  As Amber and I were walking through the tunnels we could hear the sound of what might have been our train approaching.  "Go!" Amber exclaimed.  In a sudden rush of silliness we both took off, running through the tunnels and leaping down the stairs.  The sound was getting louder.  We ran faster.  Suddenly, we could hear many voices echoing around us.  Someone, or some people, were yelling in Italian.  Thinking they were yelling at me to slow down, I ran even faster, so as not to be caught.  I could hear Amber running behind me.  Five Italian boys came dashing out of another tunnel and we all raced down the stairs, me, jumping from the fourth to last step.  When I landed, I could see our train.  "Go, go, go!" I yelled.  We were all yelling.  We were all running at breakneck speed to reach the already closing doors of the train.  I jumped up and tried to force the doors open, the Italians helped me, and we all tumbled into the car as the doors slammed shut right behind Amber.  We all fell into peals of laughter, including some of the other passengers who had seen us racing to the train.

When we got to our hotel, all we wanted were hot baths.  I took mine first, then it was Amber's turn.  After she had been in the bathroom for a while, I began to worry a little after it became very silent.  In fact, there were no noises at all coming from the bathroom.  She had been in there hour when I could hear light snoring sounds.  I bolted up and opened the door.  The light was off.  I flicked it on to find Amber fast asleep in the bathtub.

Europe 2001: What Luggage?

For the most part our trip so far has not exactly been following our itinerary.  Today, our itinerary was the last thing on our minds.  It all began in the morning when we went to check out. When we got to the reception desk we asked if we could leave our bags until later.  The girl at the counter told us that we could, but that we would have to stow them under the stairs of the adjoining restaurant.  The idea of leaving our bags alone in an empty restaurant bothered me quite a bit, but we left our large bags and took our backpacks anyway.  We headed off to the Portobello Markets.

We didn’t arrive until 2 hours later because we were lost wandering the streets of Notting Hill, but the urban scenery was pleasant.  When we finally arrived at the markets after asking for directions, we saw what you’d expect to find if everyone on your street had a garage sale at the same time: vintage clothes, antiques, old jewelry, cds, records, etc. 

It was when we went back to the hostel to get our bags that the problems began.  Under the restaurant stairs, which had previously been empty, was now completely packed with other travelers’ suitcases.

As it turned out, Amber’s suitcase was missing.  My big duffel bag was still there.  All of Amber’s train tickets and passes had been inside of her suitcase.

I told Amber to keep digging through the bags.  In the meantime, I ran upstairs to inform the receptionist that the bag was missing.  There were two of them, watching the TV and stuffing their faces with popcorn.
        “My friend’s bag is missing,” I announced.
        One of the receptionists looked up at me, “What?”
        “My friend and I left our bags here earlier.  My friend’s bag is gone.  Stolen, I think.”
        “Oh,” the receptionist responded, without getting up, “look some more, I don’t know how I can help.”

When I finally found a manager, we confirmed the fact that Amber's bag was indeed gone.  The manager was kind enough to take us through every single room in the hostel to see if someone had accidentally grabbed the suitcase.  Not to my surprise, unfortunately, we did not find Amber's bag.  I asked Amber if she had her pass protection plan paperwork with her (which refunds 100% the purchase of any tickets or passes in the event of the train pass being lost or stolen).  She had it.  She had 24 hours to make a police report.  The helpful manager pointed amber in the direction of the police station down the road.  In the mean time, I was stuffing down a salad and orange juice that I had bought earlier.  I did offer to go with Amber down to the station, but she distractedly told me it was okay and she went on her own.  I looked at the clock.  We had missed our train to Paris.  Oh, well.  I tried to find out when we could catch a later train.  The helpful manager had gone.  The dumbass receptionists were the only other employees present.  I asked them for a ticket to use their internet cafe.

"Sorry, the other computers are shut down and we just sold the last ticket."  So I asked if they knew where I could buy Eurostar train tickets.  Don't know.  Do they have a phone book?  Yes, but the sections that I need have been ripped out some time in the past.  I tried the pay phone.  Couldn't get it to work.  Would the receptionists help me?  No, why would they do that?  In disgust, I left the hostel to find Amber since she had been gone for half an hour.

I got to the police station to find Amber still waiting to file a report.  We hung out until it was her turn.  After she was done, we went to the train station.  When we showed up we found a very kind agent who sold us new tickets to Paris.  We got aboard our train and everything was all right (or so we would think).

The train that took us through the Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, was interesting.  It is a very fast train that takes you under the English Channel from London to Paris in just under 3 hours.  I was very pleased to get to see the beautiful English countryside, and then we spent 20 minutes in a dark tunnel that took us to the French countryside.

We got to Paris and to our Hotel, St. Germain's, safely.  The hotel was very clean and had an interesting circular staircase.  Amber began telling the receptionist about our reservation and the man very grumpily said, "Please, speak English."  I piped up and told him that we wanted to check in.  We got our key and went up to our room.  One nice big bed and a nice big bathroom.  Our next step was the quest for dinner.  We were very hungry after the day's earlier events, so we went downstairs.  I handed our key to the grumpy receptionist.  The time was 8 pm.
        "Where are you going?" he asked.
        "To get some dinner." I replied.
        "It is late.  Be back by eleven," the receptionist gruffed at us.

Almost everything was closed (it was a Sunday night).  Luckily, we found a place nearby and seated ourselves right next to a couple from St. Paul Minnesota (who told us that they had run into some other Alaskans earlier).  After a good dinner we went up to our hotel and took turns in the bathroom for hot baths, which were a godsend after our long day.  It was especially nice because the bathtub was extra long so us long-legged ladies could recline and the tub was extra deep.  After a nice bath I organized my stuff for the next day and called my mom.  I informed her that we were okay and that everything was fine, and hung up, tearfully.  I missed my home, Amber was distressed over her lost luggage, and I knew tomorrow was going to be rough.        

Europe 2001: The Tower

After we saw our roommates off the day began at the Tower of London.   It was so cool!  We had a really fun and entertaining tour guide (Beefeater / Yeoman Warder).  After a briefing of what all the buildings and towers were all about and a little history lesson, we were left to explore on our own.  I got my picture taken with two of the huge resident ravens at the tower.  They were really beautiful and an important part of the site’s history and superstition.  According to our brochure: “Charles II was warned that should the Ravens leave the Tower, the monarchy would fall, and he therefore ordered that henceforth a small population should always remain.”  Just in case, six ravens are kept at the tower in their own cages, with food, and toys.  Their wings are clipped, so they are allowed to roam the grounds.  We saw the crown jewels.  I think that my favorite was Victoria’s small crown, just because it was so intricate for its size.  Our next stop was to the top of the south wall, where I took a panoramic series of photos.  We left the tower and went down to the riverbank for sandwiches while we browsed a gift shop.

 Oh, silly tourists

A raven curiously looking down at me

Panorama inside the main courtyard, White Tower shown

Next, we went to Westminster Abbey.  The sheer size was almost overwhelming as I gazed up at the spires that blocked out the sun at high noon.  There were the usual Gothic-Revival features: Gargoyles, stained glass, niche statues, etc.  Notably, there were memorials for Shakespeare, the Bronte Sisters, and many of the Royal Family members.  Before we got to do very much exploring, however, Amber suddenly had to use the bathroom.  We soon found out that even though Westminster Abbey is a big and popular tourist attraction, there are no public toilets.  While we paused in our search, the wall we were standing next too suddenly opened and a small priest emerged, carrying a large iron ring full of old-fashioned keys.
        “Can I help you?”
        “I need a bathroom.” Amber replied.
        “Oh,” the priest said rather quickly, “If you would just follow the hall down to the end, turn right, and tell the man in red that you’ll be back but that you are just going to use the restroom - because there is are none in the building - you’ll have to go across the street.”

We thanked him and slightly bemused, we began to make our way to where we thought the priest had pointed us.  He ushered us to another helpful man.  Amber thanked him while I was giggling at how helpful the priest had been to make absolutely certain that Amber made it to the loo.  Upon return we were able to inspect the chapels and nave more closely.  We found the tomb of Elizabeth I and her sister Mary.  The step leading to their enclosure had been trod on by so many centuries of visitors that the stone was worn down several inches.  

 We were supposed to go to Westminster Cathedral next, but I was worried that we’d miss the London Butterfly House, so we got aboard our subway train and went to Gunnersbury station.

After some helpful directions from a nice lady who knew more about London than the information center guy, we climbed aboard our first double-decker bus.  After a premature stop and bus change, we finally made it to Syon Park.  The Butterfly House was amazing.  There is a green house type of building, where there are trees, ponds, and fragrant flowers.  The building is 78-degrees F and 80% humidity.  As pretty as they were, the hundreds to thousands of butterflies were a little disturbing at first, because they tend to fly right at your face.

Later, we took the double-decker bus back to our tube station.  This time, we sat on the top.  It was pretty fun, but it always seemed as though we were going to smash the car in front of us every time we stopped because of the perspective.  When we got to our tube, we went to the Piccadilly Circus area of London to eat dinner, or so I thought.  Amber’s determination to find well-rated nosh (according to her guide book) dragged me through heavy downpour for about an hour before I lost my patience and asked whether she wanted to eat or go on a walk.  I have a tendency to get very cranky when I’m hungry.  We passed by Buckingham Palace, but I was too tired and soaked to care.  I just gazed at it dumbly as we went further down the road.  Finally, we entered a pub where I had some pretty good pesto and chicken pasta.  When we made it back to our hotel, Amber begged for us to go down to the pub below us so she could have some Guinness.  Later when we went to bed we found we were now sharing the room with three men, two taking up the other bunks and one on the floor, snoring loudly.  The noises of the street below our window kept me awake for an hour before I was able to fall asleep.

*Looking back, I am especially annoyed at how this hostel was run.  When we made our reservations, we requested single-sex dorms, and to come back to a small dark room with two dudes sleeping in the other empty bunk bed and two more sleeping on the floor.  The room was supposed to house only four people.  As you will see with the next day’s entry, our situation became even more preposterous.

Europe 2001: Museums and Murder

We woke up at 6 am (without an alarm clock since I left mine in Anchorage; I still need to get one) and wandered around the neighborhood in search of breakfast.  I enjoyed seeing London with rested eyes (and without rain).  After Amber found a place to get her espresso, I found a place for bacon, eggs, sausage, and toast.

The morning was still giving us sunny weather when we arrived at St. Paul’s Cathedral.  It is such a beautiful building!  The ceiling is very high and there are paintings or mosaics and the wrought iron gates are really exquisite.  We climbed the 540 steps up to the Whispering Gallery, which puts you level with the base of the main dome.  If you were to stand on one side of the gallery, and have a friend on the opposite (200 feet away), you can have a conversation without having to raise your voice.  Next, we continued up another really steep staircase to the roof.  It was very satisfying to be on top of a huge, beautiful building whilst looking over a huge city.  We went down to the crypts, which weren't all that great, but the cafe had some good pastries.  We left the cathedral just as masses of tourists were beginning to show up.

Adventure Amber

Southwest view from St. Paul's.  The London Eye is partially visible through the haze.

We walked about a mile down the road to the Museum of London.  There were some interesting displays covering the Roman, Saxon, and Renaissance eras, the great fire of 1666 (caused by the royal baker on Pudding Lane), and modern London.

Then, we went to the British Museum, which I absolutely loved.  The building itself was extremely impressive.  There were massive staircases and high ceilings to allow for the giant Egyptian ruins that were inside.  We also saw Roman artifacts, mummies, artifacts from Greece, and the Rosetta stone (one of the high points of my experience).

 

After a light lunch in the cafeteria we went to the National Portrait Gallery, where we saw some Rembrandts, Raphaels, Da Vincis, and Botticellis.  Afterwards we went through Trafalgar Square (where I saw a man kick a pigeon quite savagely) and ate our first good meal so far, at a pizza place.  After dinner we took the tube up to Tower Hill where we discovered to our dismay that the Tower of London had just closed.  The weather began to clear up and we took a walk around several corners to St. Nicholas’s (400 year old) church and sat among the ruined headstones for a while.  We went back to Tower Hill for the Jack the Ripper Tour.  I was expecting see more of the murder sites, and we only saw one.  Amber liked it a lot.  I found it interesting, however, I was tired from standing walking all day.  After a slightly lost and confused trip home, we met the girls from Kansas who were sharing our dorm room at St. Christopher’s.  They gave us some tips about where to eat in Rome shortly before we went to bed.   

 

Tower Bridge

 

Mitre Square, site of Catherine Eddowes' murder

Europe 2001: Waxy Entertainment

A little groggy: I have been up for over 48 hours haven’t eaten much.

We were able to figure out the metro tubes without any problems.  After we got aboard our subway train, we realized that in stead of dropping our luggage at the hostel before check-in we were going have to go to Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum since our ticket reservation time had come and gone.

When we arrived I was very glad that I had made reservations online.  There was a line wrapping all the way around the building and it was pouring rain.  Amber and I, with all of our luggage, marched to the front of the line, gave the staff our reservation number, and went straight inside.  We entered a dark, blue-lit room that was somewhat reminiscent of a lagoon, where we saw statues of the likes of Jerry Springer and Samuel L. Jackson.  Next, we went into a room that was dedicated to famous Olympic athletes.  I wish I could remember any of their names.  Then we went into a room that shows how the wax artists make the statues according to Madame Tussaud’s secret method.  The next room was dedicated to Hollywood: Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Steven Spielberg, Whoopie Goldberg, Nicholas Cage, and Marilyn Monroe (but to name a few).  When we thought there were no more rooms to explore, we found the HOUSE OF HORRORS.  Very creepy and realistic, it featured the Black Plague, hangings, martyrs, torture,  the Body Snatchers, Jack the Ripper, Guillotines, and other historic macabre interests.  Very last, there as an amusement park ride called "The Spirit of London".  As we were leaving the museum, I noticed a lone statue of Mr. T sitting over in a corner.  I pity the fool who put him there all by himself (haw haw).

By the time we left Tussaud’s, it was only 3 pm, but we were so tired and grungy, we had to go to our hostel, St. Christopher's, and shower.  After, we skipped our plans to see the Tower of London and Tower Bridge for dinner and the nightly Jack the Ripper Tour in east London.  After walking in the rain for an hour, when we had no feeling or energy left, we wandered into what we thought was a grocery store.  A stout woman emerged from between the aisles and ushered us upstairs into her restaurant.  Like children, Amber and I followed without a word and we let ourselves be seated.  My meal was slightly appalling.  It was some sort of over-curried chicken and onions all dumped onto fries.  I still cringe just thinking about it.  Unfortunately, our dinners were only a precursor to the rest of our evening.  We got lost on the subway and missed our Ripper Tour.  Then, we got slightly lost walking around in east London during a sorry attempt to conduct our own tour, since I thought I would be able to use my map and find our way to all of the murder sites.

Our beds were a very welcome sight when we returned to the hostel.

  

A very worn transport pass and tube map

Europe 2001: Crossing the Pond

 Here is the account of my very first solo (-ish) vacation!  Me and one of my best friends, Amber, decided during our senior year of high school that we should finally make good on our promise to travel together, and so we scraped together our savings and bought tickets to Europe.  The plan: Visit seven cities across three countries in a little under three weeks!

 Our plane from Anchorage to Seattle was uneventful.  We arrived in Seattle at 6:00 am.  Our plane from Seattle to London wasn’t leaving until 6:00 pm.  What does one do during a 12-hour layover?  We left our luggage in a locker (2 dollars per 4 hours of security) and wandered around.  Later we collected our bags and went to the USO to take naps.

We stayed until noon, but I was not able to sleep very well because I was worried we might sleep beyond our flight time by accident.  When we left the USO we stopped at a bookstore where I bought a copy of “Into Thin Air”.  We went to the terminal where our flight was supposed to be and waited for boarding time to roll around.

We checked in at the gate and found out that we could not take our bags onto the flight because they were too heavy.  We moved some stuff into our backpacks and let the British Airways people take our luggage to the cargo bay.

The flight, had I not been up for over 36 hours already, was somewhat tolerable.  I was unable to sleep very much because of uncontrollable leg spasms brought on by the cramped seats.

My brother, me, Amber, and my mom.  Remember the days when you could go through airport security even if you weren't flying?  This picture was taken six weeks before 9/11