ReiseReise

None but natives ever master the art of surf-bathing thoroughly. (Mark Twain) Mornings in Morocco are still cold in February, easily below 10°C, and the thought of spending most of the day jumping in and out of the waves suddenly seems a little less appealing than before. We huddle around the breakfast table outside on the terrace for our first Moroccan breakfast. It turns out the staple is bread—the same flat, round breads we had with dinner—eggs and jam. One thing on the table is unique and exciting—a bowl of runny almond butter called Almou. I never thought peanut butter had any competition, but I'm beginning to question my affiliations. Predictably, this little bowl is what we fight for every morning—a good reason to get up early for breakfast –until it runs out on ... read more

“Бесплатный сыр бывает только в мышеловке.” - “Cheese is only free in a mouse trap”. - Old Russian saying Keeping this saying in mind I read and re-read the rep's manual for my coming trip to Austria, my bible for the next nine days which will hopefully have the answers to all questions beginning with “what”, “how”, “where”, “who”, “when” and many others which I am expecting to have. No matter how many times I read these notes however, I don't seem to acquire much more of an idea regarding what my job will actually entail – it's as if the words that I see on paper, together with everything I heard at the training course a few months ago, were turning into mush in my brain. Not particularly encouraging is also the fact that I ... read more

Prague has always been a dream destination, considered by many to be the most beautiful city in Central Europe, a fairy-tale of castles, towers and spires. Even more exciting for me is the fact that I can get there from Germany by train and bus as well as flying – somehow travelling has started feeling a lot more real when it is done on land, and despite my love of long-haul flights I now much prefer spending long hours watching the scenery pass outside the train window. That and sleeping – I never seem to be able to avoid dozing off, or sometimes even falling into a deep slumber for at least part of my journey. Something that is also much easier to do on a 10-hour train ride than on a short flights within the ... read more

Everyone knows that public transport in Germany is the definition of perfection itself. Despite a comment in my first blog, trains are very rarely late in this part of the world (unless they are trains to my climbing gym - could this be a sign?). But my favourite part of the Deutsche Bahn are the so called Landestickets - tickets that allow you unlimited travel within one of the German federal states for 24 hours. These are often the cheapest way to travel, as long as you are travelling within the borders of the state - a rule that made me slightly regret being based in Nordrhein-Westfalen at first, a state with neither the most beautiful cities, nor the cheapest Landestickets. Unlike all other German states, where such a ticket costs 20 Euros for a single ... read more

My trip to the south is significant in more than one way, namely that the city of Konstanz directly borders Switzerland, its snowy mountain peaks visible from across the lake. As such it's only an hour by train to Winterthur - the town where I spent 8 months of my life during my year abroad, not too gladly if I'm being honest. And from there it's a mere 15 minute journey to the village of Bassersdorf, the home of yet another close relative, my cousin Tatiana. I haven't been back to Switzerland since that year I spend there, having had quite enough of being unable to understand a single word of the pseudo-German spoken in this part of Europe. I am now finally ready to make a trip back in time, a visit that will bring ... read more