Glad to see the back of Athens and trying to grasp some of the Turkish language

About time for my bi-monthly post I think!

Well as you may tell from the title, when it got down to it, I didn't particularly enjoy Athens.

There were a few reasons for this. The main complaints were that it was probably the most touristey city I've been to, usually yeah, it's escapable and you can find somewhere away from the crowds. With Athens though, you'd lose the crowds, and there'd be absolutely nothing of interest to reward the wanderer. I did manage to get a haircut though, despite the language barrier, for a mere 5€ - luckily I had an appropriate picture on the wall to point at. Have to say I'm not quite worked up enough to get it all shaved off!

Anyway another reason I didn't quite enjoy Athens was that the place didn't feel Greek once you'd looked past the tourism. Yeah there was the Akropolis and the other associated relics, and the new museum wasn't bad, but aside from that it didn't feel genuine anymore. Maybe I was missing something, but 4 days was definitely too long for Athens!

Anyway, moving on from that downer...

From Athens I worked out a little bit of island hopping. First to Santorini, then to Paros. From Paros I would then hop to Samos, and to Turkey again. 

Both islands were beautiful, and I wish I'd allowed more than a day on each one, and they certainly did feel Greek. There was more of a relaxed attitude and lifestyle on the islands, and outside of the port areas, not much in the way of a police presence. 

Santorini was a picturesque, postcard island, with the typical white, stonewashed houses, beautiful beaches and perhaps an over excessive amount of quad bikes and scooters whizzing around. I decided I was going to eat out that evening and wanted to sample some Greek cuisine outside of the brilliant, but samey Pork Souflakis (think of a kebab, but with Tzatziki and fries).

I ended up going with a recommendation for 'The Volcano' restaurant. It was the most packed place and I had to wait for 15 minutes or so, but in the end it was worth it.

On my way I'd be browsing all the other overpriced menus and shrugging off the 'specials' some of the waiters would try and decide for you. A good way of being left alone was to say I had already eaten, and was looking for tomorrow.

It was a round 10€ I paid for a moreish Moussaka (think Lasagne, but Greek) and a side of stuffed vine leaves, with some Amstel. It felt like money well spent.

I was staying in the only hostel on the island, which turned out to be okay, and participated in daft drinking games until the wee hours.

Which brings me back to the lawless nature of the islands.. 

It got to something like 3am and some people were lining their stomaches with some indulgent crepes (not sure why Greece have adopted these, not that I'm complaining) to finish a night of drinking.

Out of the blue a guy parks next to the Creperie and, barely being able to walk or stand upright, with a huge grin drawn on his face, orders a crepe. The guy was obviously trousered and the locals barely battered an eyelid as he poured himself back into his car and drove off. Obviously we gave him a wide berth before walking back to the hostel!

The next day, after retracing last night's steps to the Creperie and getting something to set me up for the day, I went for a bit of a wander before my ferry at 3 o'clock that afternoon. I wasn't able to go too far, but I did find a church that looked like it was carved into one of the hills and so in the meditteranean? heat I clambered up the crumbling steps to get a closer look.

It was worth the buckets of sweat and the views up there were something else. I sat in the tiny bit of shade there was left (unfortunately the church was locked) and caught my breath while enjoying the landscape laid out before me.

Paros had the similar white houses and shops but had a slightly different feel to it. There were thankfully a lot less bikes to drown your brain. I stuck pretty much to the small town my hostel was in and wandered through the narrow market streets and took in the fresh sea air. Later on, the sunset was incredible aswell. This felt like an island I could spend weeks on, away from the madness of city life and free to go at my own pace.

Then it was back toward Turkey again.

This was after the hideous overnight ferry from 1105. I was allocated an open-deck seat, but I wasn't up to that so I upgraded for 6€ to get something a little more respectable, but not quite sleep-friendly. I managed a few uncomfortable fragments of sleep, before arriving in Samos at 5.30am.

So after a very cheap bus ride from the port town in Turkey and readjusting to the Turkish Lira, I was in Izmir for 4 days. 

I enjoyed this city. It's home to the huge Kemeralti market area (covering maybe 3km?) where I bought myself a kilo of Turkish Delight for 3TYL / 1,5€, which I probably shouldn't do too often. It was great to get lost in the endless streets, knowing full well that if you carried on straight, you'd eventually make it out, back into the real world again.

There are lots of little tea (chai) houses everywhere, aswell as men with kettles and glasses walking around the grassy areas, serving tea to anyone with a few coins.

The clock tower and the Konak pier are also apparently quite famous, the clock featuring on Izmir posters around town. It also, like everywhere in Turkey, has its fair share of mosques, with four or so prayer songs that are broadcast on the loudspeakers. 

There were no hostels in Izmir, but I did find a cosy little budget hostel that worked out at maybe £13 a night for a single room, with TV, air conditioning and some affectionate mosquitoes. 

I was happy to spend hours walking and getting lost and trying new and incredibly cheap foods. It's also easy to see why Turks drink buckets of tea, which is drunk black, in a little glass so you can see the blood red colour of it. It has to be said though, that I'm really missing having a kitchen at my disposal... at this point I'm crying out for something not containing pastry, meat, cheese or all the above. There's also a huge array of spices just waiting to be sampled.

Now, once again, I am back in Istanbul.

I arrived yesterday evening from a comfortable bus and ferry combination, and chilled at the hostel.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I've been saving up my facial hair in order to go for a real Turkish shave, cut throat razor and all. I'll see if I can stumble into somewhere that's reasonable.

Anyway, time to run, I'll see if I can find some vegetables to chew on.

Hamburg, Dresden, Prague

Hamburg was nice enough, though with the saving of money I wasn't upto much other than the usual wandering around. I ventured into the town and watched a bit of the Polizei(sp?) band playing some jumpy numbers before they packed it in when the rain started to sprinkle.

Dresden was beautiful. I enjoyed the Altstadt (old town) side of the bridge more than the Neustadt side, though the new town did have the golden horserider. Bet that's worth a pretty penny. Twas t-shirt-clingingly-hot again.

Following that I was out of Germany and into Prague to give it a proper once over this time, and it didn't disappoint.

Though obviously suffocated with tourists during most of the day, there is too much in Prague to pass on. Yesterday I spent a good 6 hours walking around the Old Town attractions including the Cathedral, the Old Town Hall, the Astronomnical Clock and of course Charles bridge (which was sadly half covered in scaffolding). The main square had a nice array of various food stands, from Jewish cuisine to chicken kebabs on a skewer... and of course pints of draught beer for less than a quid. Didn't take me too long to figure out the currency (1€ = 25Kc), can't wait until the denominations get ridiculous...

I've been gradually getting into meeting people in hostels again, though I was perhaps slightly indifferent at first (the conversations can tend to be a bit samey). Today a very talkative and upbeat chap introduced himself when I was sat alone like a plum, eating breakfast I'd bought, when unknown to me, it was provided free in the hostel. 

Anthony was another Couch Surfer and he spent a good amount of time showing me the ins and outs of the system. All I need to do now is pluck up some courage to give it a try, apparently at least 2 weeks in advance is a good time if you're looking for a couch to sleep on. 

Before rushing off to catch his plane back to London, Anthony showed an interest in meeting me in Turkey inbetween September 20th and October 20th, which would be cool.

After he he disappeared I got myself lost on the way into town. Might have had something to do with getting the tram in the wrong direction! This time amongst the beer drinking I caught the Jubilee Synagogue and Prazsky Hrad (Prague Castle) and more pavement pounding. 

Tomorrow is going to contain at least 15 hours of trains, aswell as a disgusting 840 start from Nadrazi Holesovice train station so I treated myself to a nice meal this evening, totalling about 200Kc / 8€ / £7someting. I had a good old beef goulash with a side of grilled veg and a pint of cold Gambrinus lager.

I've come to understand that its only reading books that keeps me awake on long train journeys. Music, computer and view gazing all do little to prevent the inevitable slip into daydreaming some 20 or 30 minutes after departure. Little bit irritating to be fair.

Anyway I can't believe tomorrow it will be a week already since I left home... time flies. Going to short my clobber out then try and get a good night's sleep.

here we go again..

Well here I am again, after a very swift 4 weeks at home - I'm back travelling again. This time I could easily be away for upto 2 years, but I'm insured until November 2010, so we'll see how long I last.

Just a quick recap of my itinerary:-

Kicking off with two months in Europe, planning on spending a chunk of time in and around Romania and a solid month in Turkey.

From Istanbul I will be catching a plane to Sydney on October 20th, where I will see about fruitpicking for 6 months. If circumstances are good I could spend an extra 6 months in Australia, only I won't be working as my working visa will have expired*. In that time I will try my best to get to New Zealand, before then heading to South East Asia.

Meanwhile in the present..

I'm on my second day at the time of writing, arrived in Hamburg at about 9something o'clock and making use of the free wi-fi in the hostel lobby. Yesterday I was in the Belgian city of Brugges.

Brugges was a very pretty little city, the buildings reminded me of Munich architecture with the triangular-shaped roofs. All very cute and village-like. I'd like to go there again for a couple of weeks.

I was pretty knackered by the time I had arrived so after a small wander and grabbing some frites covered in a 'samurai' sauce, I returned to hostel, necked a cool beer, and turned in.

My first day had its share of stress. As a result of my outstanding organisational skills I was late for my train from Sheffield and had to fork out another £61 to get to London St. Pancras. Upon arriving I was lucky enough to be chosen to have my bag checked. So much fun having the entire contents of your bag emptied into a box, with less than ten minutes until your Eurostar is about to depart..

They didn't even confiscate the two penknives I've taken with me.

So, after shoving everything back into my bag with my fist and sprinting up the escalator to some tutting train attendants, I was safe.

It was a much better first day than that of my other trip, in Paris, but very tiring nevertheless.

Today has been more lengthy train rides, so I haven't seen much of anything apart from the insides of carriages. I'm staying in Hamburg for 2 nights though, so I'll see at least a few non-train related things. 

Everywhere is incredibly hot.

* Just a quick note on this. Though I won't be able to do anymore fruitpicking after my working visa has finished, I have read about doing things like cleaning in some hostels in order to get free board, which is completely legit.

Venice

Despite the crowds, and there were a lot of crowds, this was a worthy stop. I stayed on the outskirts of Venice in a funky campsite, in a kind of lightweight cabin, for 1 night. 

It turned out one day walking around the centre was plenty of time. It is a fun place to get lost (and you will get lost) but you never stay lost for too long. 

Luckily it was pretty easy to escape the crowds and the expensive restaurants / stalls simply by walking around a couple of corners. 

 

Seville

Yo. At The Ole Hostel today, which, luckily enough, has internet that doesn´t time out every 3 seconds.

Seville is incredibly hot. The sun just relentlessly pounds into you. It caught me a little off guard at first and I was getting a little light headed, but then I was fine when I started to up my water intake. Yeah, I know.. rule #1 of hot weather.

As you walk around the place you are almost fighting for shade space with other walkers. Going from the sunlight to shade, seems like you´ve just taken off a winter coat. Its 34c consistently. I have no idea how I will cope when I get to the Australian fruit fields.

Earlier on in my Spanish expeditions I wasn´t too fussed about the need to siesta come 2-5´o clock, but since arriving in Seville yesterday its becoming more and more appealing. It is near impossible to do anything really, other than crawl around in the shade (if you´re full of energy) or just have a big kip.

Last night´s hostel was ok - it was in an old building in the middle of a bustling town centre, with original banisters and such and from the ground floor you could see through to the roof (up 3 floors). It was just a shame the facilities were a little dire - no kitchen, no common room, etc.

I went out for drinks with a group of people from the hostel. Some Australians, Irish, Canadians, and a South African too. We attempted to get to a flamenco night, but after circling around for about 45 mins we completely missed the show. In the end we just hung around another bar until it closed, which happened to have music - a guy on guitar and another clapping. There was also a guy in a pink shirt dancing around, it was fun to watch.


So today I managed to book 4 nights accommodation in Granada for 44€ and have booked a ticket to see the Alhambra on Monday evening for 13€, cant wait! I´m going to take Michael, the Irish guy´s advice, and approach it from behind via the river. His theory was that you will enjoy it much more if you leave the best part until last, and don´t go the same way as everyone else.

Aside from that, so far today I have done very little, but, as explained earlier, thats the way to go. I will get some food to cook with later on.

I´ve been taking advantage of the Menu del Dias (fixed menu of the day) too much recently... they´re just so good! Yesterday afternoon´s one was only 7€ aswell. I looked at the main place in my guidebook and it looked a little overpriced, so wandered around a bit and stumbled on the little bar / restaurant that must rarely see any kind of tourist.

There were just 3 people in the place. There was the guy leaning against the bar, the bartender and a man spending too much money on a slot machine, going back and forth to the bar to get more change. They didn´t seem to mind my intrusion though and didn´t feel the need to give the prolonged staring you sometimes get.

I had a fish paella (beautiful), another plate of some small, breadcrumbed fish that tasted a little of cod and some bread and wine. Just as I was finishing the second course the guy on the slot machine won and there was some brief, quiet joy. I got the impression this was just a typical day round here.

I finished For Whom the Bell Tolls (really great book, sad ending) and am now reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It was quite a challenge to find a bookshop that had more than Danielle Steele books in English, but I eventually found one with Sam the Lahndaner in Madrid.

Some more pictures:



i - The cathedral in Seville, stunning
ii - Duff beer! Was actually pretty nice. Made in Spain.
iii - Some of the guys I camped with at the SWR festival, Barroselas, north of Porto (Nunu "Fish" at the back, "Fatal" infront of him, and Mendez in the bottom right). All safe as fuck.
iv - Pont Luis, Porto... I have far too many pictures of this bridge
v - This is along Alemeda de Hercules, Seville
vi - Another shot of the cathedral in Seville