Oh no! Winding down!

I'm still currently in Mexborough, UK. I've had invaluable personal tours around this town and been given lessons on some of the history--and the best part of all is that I'm not surrounded by throngs of other tourists. I was taken to a church which still contains parts that were built in the 11th century. Try finding something that old in Canada!

Next up is Conisborough Castle--it is the best example of a Norman castle. Then I'll be carving pumpkins with my new cousins' kids tonight--I am beyond excited. Then I board a train tonight and head for Edinburgh! Wooo!

The change of pace while staying with my family has been a welcomed break. Not only have I been struggling to recover from bronchitis, but it's nice not having to look over my shoulder and lock up my things just to go to sleep. I've been enjoying learning about the subtle cultural differences between here and North America. The most interesting is the space constraints...

A rapidfire update!

After Berlin:

Cologne, Germany--what a stressful train ride. It was absolutely packed, and since I didn't make reservations, I was wandering around with my luggage and coat on, very sweaty, while the train had already left, trying to find a place to sit. I had to sit in an aisle and get up many, many times every time someone needed to pass by. I think this situation was made extra stressful because it was hard to understand what was going on and how I can tell whether I am allowed to sit in a given seat because everything was in German. Most Germans are taught English, but not all of them are proficient or willing to use it. And then the hostel I ended up in was gross and there were snoring boys in my room again...

Brussels, Belgium--I hated my stop here. First off, I got off at the wrong train station without realizing it. After wearily wandering around with my suitcase in the streets of Brussels, I stopped a very nice and trustworthy-looking couple and asked for help. Good thing one of them spoke English... he took one look at my map and started laughing at me saying I was extremely lost and that I had better come with him. He then drove me, through 15 minutes of rush hour traffic, to the front door of my hotel. He even apologized during the ride because the traffic was so bad--baffling, as he wouldn't even let me pay him for his trouble. The hotel was a nice change of pace (ie, the privacy) but the lady at reception was very non-helpful and it was difficult to finally find some grub to eat. Oh, and then I caught a cold while I was there. In the morning, I dragged my suitcase through this immense Turkish street market which was conveniently blocking the walking paths to the train station. I was literally crawling behind shoppers while they browsed at the different booths, while peddling men shouted back and forth. And the train station was a completely separate haven of frustration on top of that...

London, United Kingdom--I flew in from Brussels. I managed to find my hostel all right and get there without too much trouble. It was here where for the second time in my life, I saw the triple-tiered bunk bed. The first time I ever saw triple bunk beds was when I was at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Hmmm.... To make things even more interesting, I was in the middle bunk. When I got there, the guy at reception gave me a card that had the code for the front door written on it, and the code for my room written on it. I lumbered on upstairs and tried my code. I went down, and he pointed out to me that I was hitting a '4' instead of a 'y'. I went back upstairs and tried a few more times. I came down and told him the code wasn't working. He checked and realized that he had given me the code to the wrong room (how's that for a sense of security?). I went upstairs and tried the new code a few times, but to no avail. I went back down the 2 flights of narrow, steep stairs, quite exhausted at this point because I had been running around with a suitcase all day and I was sick, and told him that the code wasn't working. He looked again and it turns out that he wrote down the second code wrong. Unbelievable. Eventually I made it to my bunk, only to have a grunting, hacking, heavily breathing Italian guy amble on up to the bunk above me. How uncomfortable. hahaha.

Mexborough, United Kingdom--I took a train up from London to stay with family whom I haven't met before. I LOVE this family. Any kids who speak with a British accent are going to be 10x cuter than normal, but these kids are just sooooo terrific. By now, however, my 'cold' has worsened into what I suspect is bronchitis. I woke up at 3am today coughing. I something that I coughed up ended up obstructing my airway, and I quickly jolted into sitting position, gasping for air. Eventually the obstruction was dislodged and I was breathing again, but that was a scary 2 seconds... I thought I was going to die. Okay I know you're laughing and thinking I'm being dramatic, but it was like I was choking. I decided against seeing a doctor for now, seeing as how there is only a 10% chance that bacteria is causing this, and if it is indeed bacterial, they will need to do a lab test to confirm this before they will prescribe me antibiotics. I am going to try and just hang tight.

Okay this might not look rapidfire but I had to trick myself into thinking that catching my blog up was going to be easy and fast. Stay tuned, my dear family and friends. Thank you for checking up on me.

Trains, wurst, and history

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE the train systems I've been using while abroad? They are just so neat! Winnipeg has enough people for a train system, but the layout of our city is not conducive to this. Shame.

It has been fun having German foods that I'm used to having back home due to my German heritage. There was bockwurst in my kartoffel (potato) soup, I had bratwurst on a bun, and I got a REAL, authentic European wiener from a deli to snack on (Ellice Meat Market style, if you know what I mean).

Now for the serious part: I did a free walking tour of Berlin, and it is steeped in WW2 + aftermath history. I knew bits and pieces of this history beforehand, but to have someone logically connect the dots for me was great. I saw the Holocaust memorial in Berlin, and I stood in the parking lot above Hitler's bunker. I saw remnants of the Berlin wall and imagined a city split in half over night. The next day, I went to the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, which is just outside Berlin. I foolishly anticipated it to be light fare because it wasn't an outright extermination camp such as Auschwitz, but I was dead wrong. The horrors and backbreaking labour that the men and women at this camp went through is not something I'd have been capable of, which means I would have been beaten every time I wasn't able to comply, which would have made me even more unable to work, which would have resulted in more beatings, etc. I would have been dead in a week, no doubt about it. The words on the gate, "ARBEIT MACHT FREI" (work will set you free) told a cruel truth--allow yourself to be worked to the bone, and you will find freedom in your inevitable death. Awful stuff.

So I'm in Cologne now, which was a 4.5 hour train ride west from Berlin. When I got out of the train station, I was greeted by the Dom. That thing is just crazy. Also, there were about 50 Polizei (police) in the square, and about 10 police vans. Seeing the antsy crowd around, I asked a few people what was going on. Turns out, there is a soccer game on tonight, so I guess there needs to be a heavy police presence for these psychotic European 'football' fans. A true Euro experience, that's for sure!

Berlin, Baby

Yep, in Berlin now! I have to say, landing in Berlin was 10 times more exciting than landing in Dublin for some reason. Was it because I was a zombie when I landed in Dublin, or was it my heart's desire to see the fatherland? I think it's a little from column a, and a little from column b. This is making me rethink the plans I make for after Berlin.

By the time I got settled in my hostel, it was after 4pm local time. I asked the front desk gal what is good to see in the area, and it just so happens that I was two steps away from the famed East Side Gallery. I'd never heard that name before today, but basically, it's a bunch of art on what used to be a section of the Berlin Wall. Not bad for my first day!

Tomorrow I'm planning on going on a concentration camp tour... I'll get to see some roll call place, a place of execution/crematory, and other such things. Should be good!

Hiya from Ireland

My apologies for anyone who was waiting for an update... I've been pretty busy, aside from today.

My first 3 nights were in Dublin. I don't know if I ever got fully comfortable there, but it had its moments. Some of the highlights included going for a walk and losing my way as it started to get dark, visiting a pub with an Irish acoustic guitar band, seeing Kilmainham jail, and going to the Old Jameson Distillery. The hostel was decent--the staff were amazing and I was able to lock my things up in the room. I haven't been able to do that since.

The next 3 nights were in Belfast. The train ride was so peaceful. I still can't get over all the livestock you see in the countryside as you travel the highways or on rail--I don't think the Irish know anything about cramming cattle into tiny stalls. The best part of all is the sheep, especially when you see one laying down and sleeping.

Belfast was very interesting. First off, I had a bad experience with a fellow Canadian whom I met at the hostel. We went to a pub and then a bar after, and it turned out that he was a total sleaze. I learned my lesson though. Also, I knew there had been political violence in Belfast, but I never knew to what extent. They have murals everywhere commemorating various things, including the building of the Titanic.

While I was in Belfast, I took a day tour to see some things on the coast. It was so beautiful. The tour also stopped in Derry, the scene of Bloody Sunday (referenced in the U2 song of similar name). The hostel I stayed at in Belfast was a joke and I wouldn't stay there again!

I took a train from Belfast back to Dublin, and the sight of Dublin made me want to see it again, which I have the opportunity to do in a few days. Once in Dublin, I had to hop onto the Luas (tram) to switch train stations, and catch a train to Galway. Unfortunately, I was waiting at the wrong stop and missed the first bus. I noticed two women who looked just as confused as me, so I talked to them and found out they were trying to go the same way as me. Eventually we figured it out, but time was running out to get to the next station and catch the Galway train. It ended in a full out sprint, during which I almost twisted my ankle trying to run with a 30lb backpack on. I made the train, along with one of the women. I had a great conversation with her about the Republic of Ireland vs Northern Ireland (UK).

I made it to Galway, and the guy at the front desk is from Winnipeg. Unbelievable. I booked a tour for the Cliffs of Moher for today, but ended up skipping it in favour of taking a break and relaxing. I'll be taking the tour tomorrow instead. I searched the internet to see if there was a bead store nearby, and there was! I headed over there, bought some beads, and then got a mocha at a coffee shop and started working on a couple of pieces. Also, there was a little black cat who almost came through the kitchen window at the hostel. Awww! I miss Sasha and Leila! And my birds too!

The hostel I'm at in Galway is like a palace compared to the last one I stayed in. It is so clean and modern, and the WIFI actually works. Downside--some 60 year old man is staying in this room. This dude is an accomplished snorer, and when he tries to talk to me in his thick Irish accent, I have to get him to repeat it a few times. Happily, 5 American girls showed up today so I'm not all alone this time around.

Things I'm having trouble adjusting to (but am not complaining about):
- Everything closes so early
- It's hard to come by a McDonalds (yes I know I shouldn't be concerning myself with that, but I can't help it)
- The air is so full of smog... or something or other. I can tell.
- I can't get my socks to smell clean

Stay tuned!

Belfast!

I feel that there are a few important things that I need to say at the top of this post:

1. A very special thanks to the American girl whom I met at the Dublin Airport. In my opinion, it was no accident that two young North American women, wearing their enormous backpacks as identity, ended up on the same bus at the same time and were booked to stay in the same area of town for the same amount of time. Thank you, Jesus. I spent a lot of time with this girl, and we helped each other out over the past few days as we got settled in Dublin. We’re both at the very beginning of our Europe trips—mine lasts for a month, hers for 3—and the companionship we offered each other was just so needed.
2. I am struggling to adjust so much more than I expected, and I feel quite humbled and weak. I’m waiting for when I actually get the hang of living out of a backpack.
3. One of the biggest things I have noticed since the moment I hit Dublin was the lack in air quality. I’m spoiled in Winnipeg. There wasn’t a place I could go where I wasn’t breathing in some sort of chemical particulate.

Now that those points are out of the way, let’s get on with it. I’m on a train to Belfast at the moment. This morning I had the worst stomach ache in the history of Janice. As I made my way downstairs to check out of the Dublin hostel, the gentleman at the front desk could tell immediately that something was wrong. He set me up in a bed in a room by myself, took my backpack off my hands, and offered twice to go to the “chemist” if I needed anything. Initially, I felt so awful that I told him I’d be staying another night and I phoned the hostel in Belfast to cancel. But after a nice nap, I felt so much better and decided to head for Belfast anyways.

I keep getting these stomach aches, although the one I had yesterday wasn’t as bad as today’s. Any ideas from the peanut gallery as to why? I’ll note that I’ve eaten 12 bananas in the past 3 days, and my anxiety has caused stomach aches before. I probably answered my own question.

The view of Dublin out this train window is lovely. Via Rail’s slogan is accurate—this really is a more human way to travel. I can’t wait to see the countryside! And we just passed what I can only presume is a carwash on-the-go for trains!

Officially in Europe!

I'm here! I'm not as thrilled to be in Dublin at the moment as I anticipated, but I'm positive that it's because I've officially been up for 24 hours, with only 3 hours of sleep at the start. I'm literally shaking because I'm so tired.

I found a North American comrade, also with a backpack, so we teamed up to find our lodgings. I'd like to think that we'll cheer each other on and prevent each other from going to sleep any earlier than 6pm tonight so that we can both set our clocks to this new time zone.

Aer Lingus, the airline into Ireland, was delightful! I cannot believe the functions and capabilities those LCD screens at the back of each seat have. I could have played Battleship if I wanted to. Instead, I watched some music videos, a movie, and listened to music.

Okay this update is getting a bit boring so I'm signing off for now.

...aaaaaaaannndd LIFTOFF!!!

Okay, so I'm not quite in Europe yet, but I'm in Chicago!

Cannot believe the customs officer... I walked up and got my hand ready to be fingerprinted, as per the HUGE sign giving instructions for this, and the border guy said, "WHAT are you DOING" with utter disgust. I pulled my hand back
"I don't know..... I've never done this before!" He replied, "did I tell you to do that?"
Flustered, I countered, "no, but I was just trying to be fast so that people won't have to wait." Snide and smug, he replied, "if you really wanted to not hold up the line, you'd have had your passport ready," in reference to the fact that it took me about 9 seconds to recover my passport and boarding pass from my bag. I wasn't prepared and I forgot where I put it in my stuffed bag.
I just glared at him. He handed my passport back, and said, "you're not a schoolteacher, are you?"
"No."
"Good. Have a nice day."
I shot him the death look. It's like someone had stuffed one of those metal detector wands that the security guys use up his bung hole.

Yes I was like a lost puppy in the airport, but I'm pretty sure it has to do with the fact that I had hardly any sleep. Logic and memory and concentration are out the window at the moment! Don't worry mom, I'm still hypervigilant and am conducting myself on the assumption that everyone wants to steal my bag.

Anyways, I was on the plane to Chicago, realizing that the fact that I'll be in Europe--solo--for a whole month has not hit me yet. And I'm currently taking bets on when it will hit me. My money is on when I board the plane for Dublin.

The guy at Caribou Coffee thought it would be a good idea to see the eastern part of Europe. Which is what I said, but I have a good number of folks advising me against it. We'll see.

I took a train from O'Hare to downtown Chicago. I walked around trying to find the Chicago Cultural Center, and ended up in a Caribou Coffee where I talked to 2 very nice coffee barist...os? (They were guys). I got 10% off my coffee for answering the trivia question: What is the name of Hank Hill's dog? AWESOME!

There's some Flamenco and Indian music going on right now. Not at the same time... Byebye til next post!

3 more sleeps!

Unbelievable... I just have to wake up 3 more times before I board the plane for Chicago! Things are falling into place nicely. At one point this afternoon, I was wishing that I could just get on the plane TOMORROW already!

Special thanks for a friend for letting me borrow her gear and giving me tips about her solo Euro trip from a few years back. Also, special thanks so a certain second cousin for the information, tips, maps/guides, and encouragement!

I've confirmed that I can indeed wander Chicago for the day while I wait for my flight to Dublin to happen. Cool! I bought 2 magnetic games just bigger than a deck of cards in case I can make a friend who will want to play Chinese Checkers or Chess with me on the plane, train, or in the hostel.

But now I have some loose ends to tie up... Still quite a lot of things to do before I leave. Packing is probably the biggest on the list. Yipeeeee!

My First Booking!

I'm already learning my lesson and I haven't even left the province yet. Did you know that you pay 20% more on a Eurail pass when you purchase it when you're actually IN Europe? So now I have to pay a $35 fee to have it EXPEDITED because I didn't bother ordering one yet. Oh well.

Despite my mother's urgings, which usually causes me to act contrary to her will, I have decided to book my hostel in Dublin. My logic originally was, "I'm arriving in Dublin at 8 AM... I have all day to find a hostel". But I was reading on one of my favourite go-to sites, backpackeurope.com, and the writer said that when arriving on a Friday or Saturday, it's best to have your accommodations booked ahead of time. This contradicts the free-spirited policy that I'm trying to enact for my trip, but I'm sure I'll have plenty of opportunities to be spontaneous.

So here it is, folks:
The Abbey Court hostel. It is right near the Temple Bar District, which is Dublin's answer to Winnipeg's Osborne Village. I usually don't count myself as 'hip' enough to frequent Osborne Village, but I'm giving this District a go! I've heard a lot of good things about it. Apparently it's bumpin'!

6 more sleeps! aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!

8 more sleeps......

When I said in my last post that it was getting harder to breathe, I really wasn't kidding. And it's hard to breathe right now too. I constantly feel my heart fluttering in my chest, just thinking about what I got into. Nevertheless, onward ho!

There's a bunch of trivial last-minute things to do that don't sound very glamorous. Dye my hair (because in 3 weeks time, I won't want to be running around Europe with dreadful roots), gather up all the addresses of the people I want to send postcards to, acquire those, borrow this, sew that, tie up some loose ends, etc.

Did I mention that there's only 8 MORE SLEEPS until I get on that plane to Chicago? (And then have a 9 hour layover before I board the plan for DUBLIN?!) Let's think about this, folks... My head is literally going to hit the pillow 8 MORE TIMES before I leave (not including naps)! Insanity! I cannot communicate the sensation of butterflies clogging up my chest cavity well enough.

Now about this 9 hour layover... yes, I could probably phone someone to ask about moving my flight around, but I kinda want to venture out into Chicago for the day. It'll be nice to be back there! And how many people visit Chicago on their EuroTrip? Probably no one!

10 more sleeps!....

....and it's sure getting tough to breathe, these days. I'm serious--it actually feels like I can't get enough breath into my lungs. That is a sure sign that there is some anxiety going on in my head!

What is there to update since my last post? A lot of thinking. My original trip was to stick exclusively with Ireland and England, but I decided, what the heck--I have a whole month, and Europe isn't geographically built like Canada, so at the very least, I may as well see how many countries I can tag in that allotted time.

I went driving with my brother a few days ago, and it went so smoothly. But he claims that his Golf is super easy to drive without stalling. I was doing very well, until I came to a stop at a busy 4-way stop and tried to start in third (accidentally). Flustered by the subsequent stall, it took me another 5 tries to get going again. And my brother was surprisingly good about it! He helped me keep my cool for sure.

I haven't done much researching in the car-hire-Ireland department, probably because I'm afraid of what I'm going to find. One article I read suggested budgeting $750 per week of using a rental car. If that figure is in any way realistic, forget the car! I guess my biggest worry is figuring out exactly what type of insurance is necessary without grossly overpaying.

Getting nervous!

T plus 3 weeks and counting

I got my International Driving Permit today. It basically looks like an old brochure-booklet with my picture pasted to it and a couple of semiofficial-looking stamps on it. It seems to me like it would be easy to doctor one of these up!

I'm trying to find a compass-thermometer keychain. I'm not really sure why, it's just that this one list that I'm consulting says I should have one. Perhaps for getting lost. Which is perfect, because knowing where I am oriented in relation to the cardinal directions will surely be helpful... not. I found one at Canadian Tire but it was $7 and I'm too cheap to spend 7 dollars on such a thing unless it were to function as an alarm clock as well.

I ordered currency today! Yay! I picked up some other small supplies too. There's still some major work to do though--acquire a cell phone and corresponding SIM cards to use while I'm away, buy a new camera, research rental vehicles, practise driving a manual transmission, and get more of a plan together for what kinds of things I might want to see. Things are looking kind of blurry right now, but less blurry than yesterday and the day before that.

PS
The commonly used phrase "T minus 3 weeks" would in actuality refer to 3 weeks after my trip started. That is why I said "T plus 3 weeks".

23 More Sleeps

The planning is going at a relaxed pace at this point. A colleague has informed me that he has contacts in Dublin with whom he will get me in touch with so that I can do a little bit of serving, ie volunteering, during my time in Europe. I've become stuck on a Bible passage recently: James 1:19-27, which states that we should be doers, and it also gives us a reminder that the most tangible way to love people the way Jesus does is to look after the 'orphans and widows'. I personally believe that I ought to be giving back, and travelling is no excuse for me not to.

I had pictures taken today for my International Driving Permit. I'm still deciding whether I will rent a car in Ireland to more efficiently see the countryside and less-touristy places. There is this thing called the "Young Driver Surcharge", which essentially penalizes 23- and 24-year-olds for renting a car, to the tune of €10 per day. That's almost as much as the cost to rent a vehicle per day to begin with! Argh!

I've decided on my main footwear and acquired a sweet jacket for my backpacking adventures. Things are coming along well! I'm getting met with a lot of encouragement and optimism from the people around me, with the exception of, I don't know, let's say 4 individuals in my life!! haha. But I know they are only thinking of my well being.

The Journey Begins Today

Just a few days ago, I bought a plane ticket for Dublin. I'm leaving for less than a month, and I'll be staying for a month--all on my own.

"You're nuts" said Dad. But am I really nuts? I don't think so. I'm on the verge of starting a new chapter in my life--taking a leave from University, finding a second job, and buying a house--so doesn't it make sense to do the trip now as opposed to later? Plus, I need some distance and some life experience. And I haven't done the obligatory Euro-trip or YWAM adventure that most people in my life do, almost as a rite of passage.

I was planning on just writing in this blog to report on my daily travels, but since prepping for an overseas trip in less than a month's time is going to be very interesting, I thought I'd start now. Besides, I have plenty of feelings of nervousness and anxiety which will make for great blog fodder.

Come along!