some pictures from the last week... [View Full Entry]

---

---

After my brief visit to Preston it was time to start my travels properly so I flew from Liverpool Airport to Budapest. The first thing that came into my had was that this felt so wierd...going off on my own for 5 weeks to travel around places I'd never really even thought of before. The journey was pretty uneventful despite the people I'd sat next to (an old couple from Southport) who decided to talk incessantly all the way through the flight...I think the man's wife was happy for him to drone on to someone else for a few hours. Once [View Full Entry]

---

---

Man, I so didn’t sleep well last night. Not sure if I mentioned this before, but I was sharing a room with 2 Canadian girls and an Australian girl. Unfortunately for me, the 2 Canadians left at 6am and the Australian left at 8. This means that I didn’t get more than 2 hours uninterrupted sleep all night. To make things worse, I was basically hoping the hostel would have extra spaces tonight. Unfortunately, Andrew told me they were 100% booked for the next week and a half. Damn. When I was in Athens, I got an email from my original [View Full Entry]

---

---

And then there were five, although Rayman made up for McGregors absence with his effervescent wit and northern charm (well Swindonian). Thanks to the logistic and organisational prowess of Ms Puddleduck Budapest was a resounding success. We arrived late at the Domino Hostel and found ourselves sharing a room with two Americans who were thoroughly encapsulating. To the extent that we spent every night in the hostel drinking till inebriated enough to discuss politics and international relations at length (they also taught us King Cups- the best card game ever). Day one was spent on the Pest side of the city [View Full Entry]

---

---

I woke up today refreshed and ready to explore. After getting such a good reception in the HomePlus hostel from Andrew, I instantly felt comfortable here in Budapest. Like I mentioned before, I was worried the language barrier here in Budapest. No longer though. So I woke up this morning, got ready and wanted to check out the Castle Hill District. I promptly hopped on the nearest tram by the bridge and headed to Moscow Square. Luckily, I read in several guide books and blogs that they rarely (if ever) check your ticket. I decided to take the gamble and [View Full Entry]

---

---

I woke up a little late today. After going to bed at 6am, I wasn’t feeling waking up early anyways. So I got up, got ready, and headed out there door. However, as soon as I got outside, I noticed there was a torrential downpour. Damnit. I stood there for a second and debated whether I should brave the rain looking for an umbrella. In the end, reason and laziness prevailed. I figured since I REALLY needed to do laundry (and since I was 2 weeks behind on my blog) I would stay in, hang out, do laundry, etc. Today was [View Full Entry]

---

---

Arrived at Julia's relatives [View Full Entry]

---

---

Haha. Not really hungry, but rather IN HungAry. Our hostel is okay...we are safe and sound. Today we walked around the city of Pest...see Budapest is really made up of 2 citites...Buda and Pest. We went to some thermal Turkish style baths today and that was a lot of fun. It looked like the baths in England, except cooler cuz you can actually swim in them. We did quite a bit of walking around, saw Parliament and Heroes Square among other things. We are here for one more day and will walk around Buda tomorrow. Then its off to Venice. We [View Full Entry]

---

---

I somehow woke up before my alarm clock even rang today. I think I was so worried about missing my flight that my internal clock forced me to get up pronto. I did the triple S combo in the morning. From there I grabbed one last gyro from my favorite local spot and headed to the station to catch a 45-60 min. train ride to the airport. Everything went rather smoothly on the administrative end and I caught my flight. Unfortunately, I ended up having to do a 5 hour lay over in Nuremberg. It also kind of sucked that I [View Full Entry]

---

---

I have not written because i have been on a train forever and in greece seeing things i saw before but with the fam seeing them with Peter made me appreciate small travelling groups highlights: i vomited in a bag with a small hole in it on the back of the bus on the way to Delphi while eating dinner in the crowded streets of touristy Plaka in Athens a table of Austrian men sang a beautiful toasting song in three part harmony i looked over at them and they toasted emphatically one of them struck up a conversation with us [View Full Entry]

---

---