Advertisement
Published: November 29th 2005
Edit Blog Post
Montpellier Blue Sky
A perfect day for drinking some tea and watching people go by. Hello Reader.
After the terror of losing a thousand songs from my Rio, Eric was nice enough to put some of the songs he had onto my player. Eighty-five. Over the next few days I listened to the music, and some of it was really, really good. I even liked a few of the metal songs he put on, (I am ususlly not a big fan of metal). Anyways, this gave me a great idea to just upload music from the people I meet and/or stay with, that way I can take a little bit of everyone with me. And by the end of my trip I will have an entire collection of songs from all over Europe. How's that for a souvenir?
Lyon will be remembered as a great city. I enjoyed all the sights and physical diversity in the different areas. There are tons of allyways and secret spots that are left to be discovered. I will remember the people most, and how inviting and accepting they are.
I made the train and double checked to make sure I was on the right one. Don't want to learn that lesson again. The train was not too
crowded and I was just buzzing through Harry Potter like it was the Sunday comics. I was in Montpellier before I knew it and I set out to the streets to look for my hostel, the address of which I got from the internet. I found it and checked in. Cheap, and one of those get-what-you-pay-for places. I would be there for three nights, leaving two full days to explore.
I headed to my room, which would be shared with three other guys. I walked into my room and almost passed out. In my high school there is a mens locker room that is home to sweaty gym clothes and old football uniforms and probably has not been cleaned in years, the hostel must have special ordered the smell of my room from my high school. It might have been the sheets that didn't look like they had been changed in several months, or it could have been the half a dozen pair of wet socks that were hanging over the radiator to dry. Either way, the smell hit me like that car on my birthday... hard and without stopping.
I escaped to the streets as soon as
Montpellier Grafiti
Really nice work done on a wall near my hostel. possible with my laundry, which would be washed (AND dried) in a laundromat. I found one, but I didn't have any coins to opperate the machines, so I stopped in every little store selling Kebap and last years shoe models until a couple of nice women in a bakery gave me change. Back to the 'mat,' but the detergent despenser was busted. Of course. It was getting dark. But I carried my heavy bag of clothes everywhere looking for detergent. Oh, and I was getting stares from everyone on the street because I was wearing a bubble jacket, no socks... and shorts (I don't think they even wear shorts when it's ninety degrees in the summer - but its Europe so it would be like one hundred and sixty degrees celsius). They contained their laughter.
I gave up on the detergent, dropped off my clothes, and went for a walk. I got a chicken and tomato sandwich and made my way underneath the festively lit streets of Montpellier until I got to an opening - a large square - with an impressive fountain and a building that was lit up like the Griswalds' hosue at Christmas. I sat and
Night Lights in the Park
The fountains were really great when lit up. people watched for a long time and then I went to bed, with great reticence, back in the hostel.
The next day I did laundry in the morning/afternoon in a freezing cold laundromat, and walked around the city until the evening. I barely talked to anyone and read most of the day. I wrote a few e-mails and set up my next couchsurfing host in Toulouse, Benny, before heading back to the abysmal stench that was my room. I slept in my sleeping bag evrey night, touching as little of anything that I could.
On Saturday, I awoke and was full of energy for some reason. I grabbed two chocolate croissants, a hot tea, and took a vitimin before riding the tram from one end of the city to the other. At the last stop I found a movie theater, and since I hadn't seen a movie in a while, decided to wait until one started in about an hour. I sat with my back to the wall of the theater and pulled out my book... then I saw it, like an oasis in a dessert... yes, it was enormous - I could clearly make out the bright
The Fountain Statue
He didn't mind getting wet. yellow letters on the blue background.
I stood up immidiately and started a quick walk towards the IKEA in the distance. I lost myself inside (which I think they try for) and planned out my future house. There was a restaurant I didn't eat at and lots of chairs that I wish I tested out, but didn't. I even bought a couch, leather with a pull-out, so I can host people even when I don't have an apartment. I hope it fits in my bag.
I forgot all about the movie and missed it, it's for the best though, I have never seen a bluer sky. I walked everywhere. Parks and industrial areas. A market and an Olympic-size swimming pool. I sat in a square and read for an hour or so. I headed to an internet cafe and chatted with a friend of mine, Anthony, for about four hours. It was good to talk to someone I knew, even if it was online.
I got another sandwich and watched a rugby game back in the hostel's common room. Red won. I tried to stay up as late as possible to avoid going back to the room, but eventually not even Harry Potter could keep my eyes open.
I ate breakfast at the hostel the next morning for the first time. I mean to say "breakfast" - with the finger quotations. There was milk and some tea bags, a slice of bread and some orange marmalade-looking goo that tasted more like goo than marmalade, and cereal from nineteen seventy-two. I ate a couple of sugar cubes and some napkins. I said good riddence, leaving the rest of my box of detergent in the room, (they need it far more than I do), and took off for the train station, where I finished Harry Potter before boarding the eleven o'clock to Toulouse.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.1s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 15; qc: 67; dbt: 0.0734s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
The German
non-member comment
Back to "real" backpacking...
Eli, it was so good to hear from you and to hear that you had nice people around you for Thanksgiving. Seems like the couchsurfing thing has turned out pretty well so far, which is great. I guess this experience was more like you had imagined it when we talked about your travels back in Germany: hostels, not much contact with people, etc. It seems like you still made the best of it and also seems like you cannot WAIT to meet more new people. Good luch with your next stop, hope you'll make it to Spain in time for Christmas. Its getting a bit chilly here in San Francisco now, but I may move into my new apartment this weekend- and then I will have to go to Ikea!!! Maybe you can be my consultant, now that you know their inventory by heart?! ;o)) All the VERY best for you, stay safe and keep having good time. You are definitely missed back in the US! Katrin