http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/brons/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from brons en-us Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:58:24 +0000 Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:58:24 +0000 Heading back to New York City from Washington D.C. was akin to heading back to Melbourne from Canberra. Whilst the capital city of each respective country has some interesting places to visit on its own merits the city essentially has no soul due to being planned too thoroughly. This is such an obvious contrast to those cities which develop upon themselves and as their needs demand providing the http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/New-York/New-York/Manhattan/blog-441948.html After the four and a half hour bus journey from New York City we scoffed down some lunch checked in to our excellent hostel and made our way to the White House. After taking the obligatory photo we noticed that there were security cameras hidden amongst the low lying bushes and there I was thinking what a lovely garden and lawn it was but it's just a cover for the security We resisted testi http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/District-of-Columbia/Washington/blog-441303.html Upon arrival at JFK Airport it was with stinging eyes due to watching about four or five films during the flight from Melbourne accompanied by a few splashes of red wine that we boarded the subway to make our way to our accommodation in Soho. After what seemed like an unending journey we finally arrived at our hostel only to be informed by a giant of man in a black leather coat and hat who sp http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/New-York/New-York/Manhattan/blog-440195.html On the morning of my birthday we boarded a bus before 6am on a bitterly cold Krakow morning to make our way to Vienna. To make the occasion special Marty had brought along some of my favourite foods for an early morning breakfast of cheese salami and bread accompanied by some orange juice. I doubt the other passengers many of whom had boarded the previous day in Lithuania appreciated the rustl http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/blog-360439.html Upon arrival in Warsaw I immediately noticed that the weather was markedly cooler than in Belgium therefore raising my hopes of experiencing a white Christmas for the first time in my life. For our first full day in the Polish capital we decided to visit the museum of the Warsaw Uprising which took place during the latter part of WWII. This was an excellent museum and I left there with an aware http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Poland/blog-358467.html We boarded our Eurostar train in London so early in the morning that when we emerged from the tunnel in France it was still dark actually it was darker than inside the dimly lit tunnel. Soon after we arrived in Brussels and changed trains to head up to Bruges the beautiful medieval city where we were to begin this second European jaunt.After dropping our bags off at our hostel I set out on f http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Belgium/blog-357072.html For my final full day in Egypt I decided to take a day trip to Alexandria as its fabled history fascinated me. In order to pass the time without having to look at the manner in which our brazen driver was tackling the road traffic myself and another guy from my group embarked upon game after game of cards. Before we could say Gee how on earth did we get away with our lives in tact we were i http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Mediterranean/Alexandria/blog-355862.html Our final stop was Luxor which is where the ancient capital of Thebes was situated. Our first site to visit was Karnak Temple which has been one of my absolute highlights of my time here in Egypt. Karnak Temple is the largest in Egypt with the entire complex spanning some twentythree acres. I had heard that this was an impressive place to visit and I had seen many pictures of it but nothing c http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Upper-Egypt/blog-354451.html After a tiring few days of seeing sights at a hectic pace combined with early morning departures it was a welcome relief to board our cruise boat that would be our home for the next few days. In a stroke of good fortune we were upgraded to a five star cruise boat so I felt very spoilt by the magnificent food and facilities as they are certainly not what I have been accustomed to throughout my http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Upper-Egypt/blog-354440.html After a 15 hour train journey I arrived in Aswan and was immediately struck by the picturesque setting of the city on the easten bank of the Nile with the hills of the Sahara dominating the western bank. After dropping off our bags we headed out to Philae Temple which is located on an island in the Aswan Dam. This entire temple had been moved piece by massive piece onto this island from its ori http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Upper-Egypt/blog-354170.html My lifelong dream has been realised I have set foot in Egypt and seen some of its wonders with my own eyes and touched them with my own hands.Cairo is an enormous dirty and polluted city yet I thoroughly enjoy being here. There are roughly 20 million people in Cairo and I am yet to meet one person who has not greeted me with a smile. In fact many have been quite keen to strike up a conversatio http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Cairo/blog-353047.html WE FINALLY GOT TO SEE THEM On the night of our return to Reykjavik from our drive along the south coast of Iceland we were at our hostel when we heard a group of school students running around outside in mad hysteria screaming that they could see the Northern Lights. Realising that we did not have to return our hire car until the following morning we decided to drive to a nearby national park http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Iceland/Southwest/Reykjavik/blog-340290.html For our third day in Iceland we decided to spend the day in Reykjavik and hope to see the Northern Lights after nightfall. We ventured into town and ate lunch at a restaurant I had spied two days earlier primarily because the name of the restaurant was 'Brons' Whilst there I thought it only appropriate to try a 'Viking' beer. I have been feeling quite welcome in Iceland and not just due to the http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Iceland/South/blog-339731.html This time two days ago we set out for Iceland from Heathrow after another typical delay on that hopeless airport's behalf which I was more than a little excited about after spending two months teaching a selection of the finest human beings that Essex has to offer...We arrived at our lodgings around three o'clock in the morning so we just crashed into bed at the Reykjavik City Hostel and hoped http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Iceland/Southwest/Reykjavik/blog-338649.html We began the Croatian leg of our journey by catching a train to Pula from Ljubljana. This short trip actually required three different trains but we got there in the end and found some accommodation in the home of a local family They were a friendly bunch who sat down with us for some tea and biscuits on the morning of our departure and despite the total lack of English on their behalf along wi http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Croatia/blog-315921.html After leaving the glorious Lake Bohinj we made our way to Kranj to meet up with a guy we had befriended during our time in Vietnam at the beginning of the year. Zima his nickname met us with the same infectious smile that we remembered from all those months ago and drove us to his home in the village of North Brnik Zgornji Brnik in Slovenian. We first stopped off for a beer at a local pub be http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Slovenia/blog-315696.html During the bus journey from Trieste to Lake Bohinj via Ljubljana I had planned to read a considerable amount of my novel however the stunningly beautiful scenery of Slovenia held me captivated and Jules Verne's descriptions of life under the sea had to take a back seat as I took in the sights of Slovenia. Lake Bohinj is located in the Julian Alps which are in the northwest of this tiny Europ http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Slovenia/blog-314600.html With the last few weeks through France and Italy involving the consumption of numerous delectable delights it only made sense to spend a night in Bologna to eat some bolognaise. Therefore after I checked in dropped off my backpack and had a shower complete with a showerhead that consisted of lights that covered the entire spectrum of the rainbow with a function that allowed you to either choo http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/blog-313556.html Having seen Michelangelo's David before I was unsure whether I would be as awestruck as I was the first time. In an unexpected turn of events I actually found myself even more spellbound than I was four years ago. The sheer scale of this masterpiece which he completed when he was only 29 is what struck me first but once I got closer and studied the perfect form of what I had to keep remindin http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/blog-311231.html For our visit to Pompeii we decided to stay in Naples and make a day trip to the excavated city. What we discovered about Naples however was that this is a city where you can never feel entirely safe or at ease. Maybe we were just staying in a dodgy part of town near the train station and Piazza Garibaldi but there was definitely a heightened sense of awareness for your safety when wandering t http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Campania/Pompei/blog-309398.html