Barcelona & Madrid

My first day in Barcelona I spent walking around for a few hours. I saw the cathedral, not the Gaudi one but the normal one that has been there for a few hundred years. It was hard to see because it is no longer tourist season so they put up scaffolding everywhere to do restorations and renovations. I walkd down Las Ramblas, which is like the main tourist drag in Barcelona. It has all these performers dressed up in costumes, there are people selling small animals in cages, there are artists doing sketches of people and of course there are the souvenir stands. Just off of Las Ramblas was a market where I had some fresh fruit juice and it was bright pink but it tasted like coconut. The next day I spent on the beach. The weather was quite nice by Vancouver standards but you could see the locals in their heavy winter coats and still looking cold. It was very nice taking the day off to just lounge on the beach.

The following day I went and saw Gaudi's Temple de la Sagrada Familia which is a spectacle, no doubt about it. It has spires sticking out all over the place and the detail is quite ... odd. There are skeletons and all kinds of crazy stuff you don't normally see on a cathedral. It looked like a cross between Dr. Suess and Tim Burton. That is all I really did during the day. But that night I went to see FC Barcelona, the major soccer team in Barcelona, play Almeria. It was pretty exciting being at a game like that. They know how to celebrate a goal in Barcelona let me tell you. Otherwise it was much like any major sporting event, they jeered when the ref made a bad call. I think if they had been playing a better team the intensity if the arena would have been higher but also I probably wouldn't have been able to get a ticket.

There was some strike on in Barcelona and I had to take a bus, for an hour and a half, from the train station to the other train station were the trains were to get to Madrid. It was kinda fun. I am not spending much time in Madrid because there isn't much there. I walked around for a few hours and saw some of the sights. I saw the statue that is the symbol of the city. It is a bear standing on its hind legs leaning against a tree trying to eat the fruit. I walked through a park that had a small lake where people were rowing around. I thought it wouldn't be to much fun to do it by myself so I passed.

I am going to San Sebastian next.

Nice

I spent a few days in Nice. The beach there is amazing except the weather really wasn't warm enough to lay on the beach or go for a swim. Most of the town is quite new, there is a small old town that only takes a half an hour to walk around. In the old town there is a hill with an old castle. There isn't much of the castle left but there were some great views from the top. There isn't much to see in Nice so it only took me about 2 hours to see everything.

After walking around Nice I took a bus to a place called Eze which is a tiny medieval village perched on top of a small mountain. It is tiny, it only took me 10 mintues to walk around the entire town. But it is very medieval, the streets are very narrow and everything looks like it is from the medieval period. There was a viewing platform at the top were a castle use to be but they were charging 5 euros just to go up there.

I then spent some time in Monte-Carlo, Monaco. It is one of those places that makes you feel poor when you walk around. There were a lot of Bentley's and Ferrari's. I saw the famous Monte Carlo Casino but I wasn't aloud in because of some dress code, plus there is a 10 euro cover. I didn't spend much time in Monaco because I felt like I couldn't afford to stay.

I am spending time in Barcelona after Nice.

Naples & Pompei

I went to Naples so I could see Pompei. Naples itself does have some stuff to see, for instance there are a French and a Spanish castles, the Basilica in Naples is quite grand and there is a section of town that has 6 or 7 old churches in a few block radius. I saw most things though I just walked around them but didn't go into any. Naples isn't very clean, there is garbage everywhere and a lot more street vendors per area than anywhere else I have been. The Sunday I was in Naples the Pope was doing a ceremony. I didn't go to see him but a few people at the hostel did and they said it was crazy, he flew in in a helicopter and then rode the Popemobile to the Basilica and everywhere he went there were masses of people following him. The Pope is a rockstar.

Again, the reason I went to Naples was so I could see Pompei and I did. It was incredible. I saw Roman ruins in Rome but it really doesn't compare to this. Most of the structures are mostly destroyed but then there are some houses where the marble is still intact on the counters or the floor. There are other structures that still have roofs or incredible mosaics. And Pompei is huge. I walked around for 3 hours and I only saw a quarter of it, most of it you don't really need to see because it is mostly destroyed. I also saw some plaster castings of the people they found there. It was eerie and strange but interesting to see these people.

Picture of me in Berlin

I had a request to upload a picture of me so here is one of me in Berlin. I have other photos of me but I haven't had time to upload them yet.

Rome

I was only in Pisa a few hours before I travelled to Rome. There isn't much in Pisa besides the leaning tower. I had a great time in Rome. The first day I was there I went on a tour of the Vatican and it is massive, apparently the museum there has a total length of seven kilometres. It also has the world's largest collection of pagan art, kinda makes you think. Well, the reason they have so much pagan art is because there was a pope during the Renisannce, the Renisannce is the rebirth of classical ideas, so he bought all the classical art he coulde gets his hands on. I saw the Sistine Chapel, Saint Peters Basilica and Michelangelo's famous first statue that he carved his name into. I also saw the old pope apartments that were painted by Rapheal.

The next day I saw the Colosseum, which isn't in the greatest shape. The reason being when they were building Saint Peter's Basilica they took all the marble from the Colosseum and used it to build the Basilica. So no all you see today is the internal structure, but if you use your imagination a little you can get a good visual. I also saw the Palatine Hill which is one of the two hills where Rome was founded and where the imperial palace for the Roman emperor was built and now you can see the ruins.

I spent the next day walking around and I saw many of the sights that I hadn't seen yet like the Patheon, Tomb of the Unknown Solider and the ruins of the Roman forum. There is so much to see in Rome I would need a lot more time to see everything but I think I saw all the important sights this time around.

I am on to Naples, specifically to see Pompei

Florence & Pisa

After my stay in Venice I went to Florence. Florence was very cool, I have definitely saw the best art there so far on my trip. The first day I saw Michelangelo's David, which was incredible. It is a massive statue, it must stand 20 feet high and it is raised about 6 feet off the ground so it really towers over you. Additionally, as a piece of art it is amazing, the detail of it is unbelievable, it is so good you can see veins in his arms but you need to remember that this statue was carved out of a solid piece of marble. Also on my first day I went to the museum in Florence and I saw two painting by Da Vinci and several by Michelangelo and Botticelli. It was a very impressive city for its art.

The next day I went to the Duomo, which is a cathedral with a dome, it was very sparse inside and they had a huge area blocked off which didn't allow you to get a good view of the dome. I didn't have to pay to get in but there were roman ruins, which the church is built on top of, that I paid 3 euros to see, it wasn't worth it because it was badly lit, an over all underwhelming experience. I recently read a book on Machiavelli and I went to the building where he worked for the government. Again it was kinda sparse and not really that interesting. I spent some time walking around the city and it really looks how I imagined Italy to look.

I was on my way to Rome and I decided to stop in Pisa to see the leaning tower. Pisa isn't exactly on the way to Rome but I thought it was a worthy side trip. The leaning tower was very interesting. It was leaning quite a bit and when I saw it I was surprised that it hadn't fallen over. It is very tall but not that wide; the perportionality of those dimensions may have something to do with the lean. But there isn't much else to see in Pisa, at least not that I read, so I saw the tower and went on to Rome.

Venice

Venice is everything you expect it to be and slightly more. It has canals, just like you see in the movies or on tv, but no one tells you that the canals smell really bad. Luckily, when I was wandering around the city there was a strong breeze and the breeze smelled like ocean so it was all good. There is quite a bit to do on such a small island, or islands.

I went to the island of Murano which is where all the Venician glass comes from. I saw two demonstrations on how they make glass. I was amazed at how quickly they can produce a vase or a little horse, which they made in both demonstrations. Essentially the only thing on Murano is the glass stores and the glass blowing workshops and of course eateries for the tourists. There are some incredibly expensive pieces of glass on that island.

I want to an art gallery on the main island, it didn't house famous works, it was more of a historical progression of art in Venice. It was interesting but not only did they not provide english commentary the commentary was few and far between.

Walking in Venice is as confusing as everyone says it is. It is not hard to go from one major plaza to the next because there are signs pointing the way. It is hard when you try to take a short cut and every street you try ends in either a wall or a canal.

Now on to Florence.

Austria

After Zurich I made my way to Innsbruck, Austria. I was warned that Austria looks a lot like western Canada and they were right. At least Innsbruck does, though it is completely surrounded by moutains and there is only a narrow river alongside the city and of course much of the old town is older than Canada. But the newer, more modern, parts of town are very recognizable. I didn't really do much in Innsbruck, I only was there one night and I left early for Vienna.

I had a good time in Vienna, again I didn't do much. I walked around for quite awhile, I did go to an art gallery and it had an interesting array of artists, I haven't really seen any famous works yet, I have seen many famous artists, but that could be because I haven't gone to any famous art galleries. I also went to a museum in the Kurt Godel Research Centre for Mathmatical Logic, as you all know Kurt Godel is my favorite logician, but it was a medical museum and I wasn't at all interested.

Austria was fun but I am excited about Italy which is the next country on my tour.

Switzerland

I spent two nights in Switzerland, I feel like that is not the way to spell Switzerland. I spent a night in Bern and a night in Zurich. It all started after I took the night train from Berlin to Basel. I had a nice time walking around Basel. However, the best part was the art museum. It had many Picasso's with a few works of Dali, Monet, Rembrandt, Pizarro, Van Gogh and a slew of other artists, I don't know a great deal about art. There is definitely something different about seeing the original work of art live and in colour.

I moved on to Bern and it reminded me alot of Luxembourg. There is a river that runs around three sides of the old town and it is kinda on a hilly mound though not quite as pronounced as Luxembourg. I saw Einstein's house where he wrote is now famous theories. I didn't go in because it was closed but I don't really think his house would be that interesting. There are a lot of fountains in Bern.

On to Zurich then. There is a lake, Lake Zurich in fact, and there is a spectacular view if you stand by the lake, of the Alps. I didn't get to see it because it was cloudy but I saw a postcard and it was breathtaking. I did have a great time at an Irish bar, throwing darts with two Irishmen and a American who went to a boarding school in Mill Bay, which is on Vancouver Island for those unfamiliar. I meet the American at the hostel I was staying at and the two Irishmen were already drunk at the bar, throwing darts, when we got there. It was an honorable match though they beat us three legs to one.

Now for a quick stint in Austria then I am on to Italy!

Berlin

I spent a few days in Berlin after travelling from Copenhagen. I went to a museum there, it had an impressive exhibit on Babalyon, I don't think I spelt that right but the spell checker here is in German or French, I am currently in Zurich, so it shows just about every word as incorrect and the only suggestion for Babalyon is Battaillon. Other than that the city is quite modern.

There is a lot of World War II and Cold War history here, that is pretty much the only history you will find in Berlin. I am not complaining, I am not that interested in that period. There are statues for Marx and Engels, there is a massive soviet memorial for the troops from World War II, there is a open-air exhibit on the Nazi secret police, their name eludes me now, which was built on the site of their prison and headquarters, you can still see some of the foundations of the buildings. Just about everything to do with the Nazi's has been destroyed, however there is still alot of the Berlin Wall still standing around Berlin. It was kinda funny because I was looking for the Wall but I couldn't find it only to realize I had walked right passed it, not three feet from it.

Copenhagen & Denmark

So my trips in Denmark were not too successful except in Copenhagen. As you all know I had a little trouble when I first went to Denmark and was planning on staying in Arhus but ended up spending two extra days in Copenhagen. I then tried to go to the city in Denmark where Shakespeare's Hamlet is suppose to be set and see the castle in which the King of Denmark was suppose to have lived. However, I got the name of the town mixed up and I ended up in a small, quaint town that really had nothing going on.

Copenhagen on the other hand was excellent and is my favorite city by far, thus far on the trip. I was able to meet a relative here that almost no one in my family has met and I had a great time with him. He showed me around Copenhagen, he took me to see the Little Mermaid, the statue not the movie, he took me out to lunch twice for old fashion Danish food, which I am quite fond of and he also took me to the opera. There is a new opera house in Copenhagen that was built by the richest man in Denmark and then was given to the state. This however didn't work out too well beacuse the opera house is situated in a place in Copenhaen where there is little parking and the only way to get to it by foot is by a ferry that comes once every twenty minutes. Anyway, the opera I saw was Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffman, which is a french opera and is very lovely. My great uncle Kjeld lent me a book on the opera and I was able to read the story before hand so I knew what was going on. I won't go into the details of the opera because it is actually a complex story that would take too much space and time to recount.

Copenhagen the city is very beautiful, unlike most major cities in Europe it was not completely destoryed in World War II and many of the older buildings still remain. I was able to see the National Museum which is suppose to have magnificent collection of prehistoric viking artifacts but the exhibit was close until May 2008 for renovations. It did have a very interesting exhibit on medival Denmark. I was also able to see, for free, the Glyptotek which contained thousands of acient Roman, Greek and Egyptian statues. I even took a picture of Pompey the great friend of Juilius Caesar, but I didn't find one of Caeser himself. Apparently, the Glyptotek was the house of Carlsberg, the man of brewery fame, and he had purchased many of the statues on his many trips to Italy. I had a wonderful time on Copenhagen.

I am now in Berlin and plan on going to Switzerland, then Austria then on to Italy.