End-Note: Y, Yves, Yingnez, Yingzaghi

i dunno how many people will read this cos seriously we've been back for almost a week! i wonder if anyone still looks back. ha!

well we stopped at munster because after that we went back to bs's place and had a bbq and packed for home. the plane ride home was torturous. i wasn't sure if i wanted to be back. face work. face new problems. face old problems. leave new interesting place that i think i will never have enough. still so much to see! though peiyong keeps saying i can't get used to life there i would think i will survive sooner or later. hmph.

pudong had the decency to finally place people at the transit lounge this time to serve us specially. saves us all the hassle. sheesh. it was a much pleasant experience though peiyong looked weary from all that waiting for flights. they were ALL late. both of them. terrible. guess not everyone is an on-time airline like ryanair. though crap i very much appreciate their effort and stay amused by their ads.

back in singapore i stuffed myself with food. and now i'm broke. i very much wanna cut my hair but can't do so. oh well. at least it's obedient. guess i just have to wait one more week for pay day! but maybe i still won't cut it yet. heh. got other things in priority list like paying bs his money back! so that he can eat in singapore. we're all bankrupt folks now. but it was all worth it.

with all that behind and past there are a few things i wanna say. i wanna thank bs and peiyong. bs for spending all the time planning the flights. though he tried to leave me behind several times i'm glad i made it through safely. i very much believed that the 2 guys kept me outta trouble. and i feel less wary cos i have 2 guys with me. HAHAHA. my two bodyguards (or horsies!). thank you guys. i'm sorry if i haven't been the best companion but i had fun all the same. a very peaceful trip without slip-ups. (which reminds me. peiyong! must go back to huan shen!) though many things were closed and under renovation. we came back in one piece without losing ourselves and any personal belongings.

we were supposed to list the places and hostels we've been to so here goes.

cities

1. fussen (beautiful. need i say more?)
2. lausanne (rested and relaxed)
3. barcelona (only cos of the beach)
4. venice (i appreciate everything being the way it is)
5. rome (it was the most interesting place to walk and learn with many picture perfect moments)
6. amsterdam (cos it encompasses all the nice things above. canals and houses kept in its grandeur like venice. no beach but the bikini babes are replaced by those in lingerie. not as beautiful as fussen but has a nostalgic feel to it like fussen. rested and relaxed. memorable.)
7. prague (though the guys like it a lot i think i haven't seen enough to love it. but the hostel moves it up the ranking. i can't forget the courtyard.)
8. paris (only cos they speak french)
9. munich (wins 10 cos of good food!)
10. berlin (for 9,10 well... if only they didn't tear down so many things. everything looks too new.)
11. madrid (very nice place but the monuments can be better kept couldn't they?)

hostels

1. lausanne guesthouse (perfect rooms. perfect kitchen. perfect toilets. save on sheets. big private lockers. nice hostel mates!)
2. u melounu prague (perfect setting. clean rooms and toilets. lose to 1 by location in city and view from balcony. 1 is also bigger and more spacious.)
3. heart of gold berlin (clean rooms and big toilet. no view. no kitchen.)
4. los amigos madrid (nice room set-up. big windows. cooling. but shared bathroom.)
5. hello bcn barcelona (top security. nice lobby. but room and toilet a little cramped and can do better on cleanliness)
6. venice hotel (nice setting and good location by the nice courtyard. but was too hot and too many mosquitos!)
7. for you munich (room is too cramped! toilet can be better!)
8. m & j rome (cramped and dirty toilet. nice but deceiving lobby!)
9. stay okay amsterdam (army camp? 8 wasn't as stuffy.)
10. friends paris (cramped. dirty. low security. out of the way.)

a very refreshing trip before work starts.

Day 20: Münster

Thanks Christiane for the very nice and relaxing day at her house. Thanks for bringing us to the bar and simply being the friendliest host. She is one hip and hot mummy! I hope if I ever go on immersion one day I have a host mummy just like her. MUACKS!

-Y-

Really loved Christiane’s house. Close to being my dream house. More importantly, she was very hospitable – great dinner and brought us around the inner city and we went for a drink! A real hip mama!! Wonderful experience. A great end to the whole trip.
~PY~

Great to be back at Münster again, where I did my immersion 2 years ago. The whole house had not changed a bit although I almost could not recognise the area outside the Hauptbahnhof once I stepped out of it. Voted the most livable place in 2004 by some Gallup poll, Münster is indeed a great place to live in, especially the district where Christiane lives. Unfortunately she would be moving out at the end of this year, but some things like her happening nightlife will always be there.

Altstadt in Münster

Domplatz

Day 18 and 19: Amsterdam

RESTRICTED AND CONFIDENTAL ENTRY

Thou shalt not say

The pretty side of Amsterdam
which looks a bit like Venice, with more life, activity, and vices

Not the kind of coffeeshop you'd think about

The pictures give a clue

Don't need much intelligence to figure out what place this is

Day 16 and 17: Lausanne

Part 1
Before I start to talk about Lausanne, let me first kaobei kaobu about Barcelona’s airport. Although it is a major international airport with great duty free shopping possibilities and better drinkable water than those in the city, I was quite amazed with 2 incidents. The first is about the “efficiency” of the airport traffic management. We left only 20minutes after the stipulated departure time. And most fantastically, the gate was changed 10minutes before the departure time, meaning we waited at the wrong gate. The information was not updated at the gate itself, until I went to the main departure screen to check. Luckily the corrected gate was only 2 gates away, or else if we miss the flight cos we remained at the original gate we can all call it a day and fly back to Singapore cos the next scheduled flight on the original gate is to Singapore.

The 2nd incident is the apparent bo-chupness on part of the custom officers. They anyhow stamped our passports, without looking at where is the appropriate place to stamp. I was so scared they stamped on my visa without looking, and PY’s got stamped on a page that say “the following countries are not valid”. This implies that maybe next time when he wants to enter Spain he will be denied entry.

And now back to Lausanne. I am glad that the weather here is something like Germany and not scorching like Barcelona cos I am totally sunburnt now and my skin is red hot. We arrived just in time to check into the guesthouse and I am glad I made the correct choice to book this guesthouse because its real homely like the one in Prag with a backyard garden and all the necessary facilities. The only downside is that there’s a fee for Wifi. This guesthouse is not listed in hostel booking websites and its owned by a family. The receptionist at the counter speaks German as though she is singing an opera which sounds very cute.

What I found amazingly expensive was that the prices of groceries in Lausanne are damn expensive. I am really surprised cos I dun remember the prices to be that high in Basel when I went there about 1.5 months ago. Like here in Lausanne, 200g of minced meat costs about 4€, which is like 3x the price in Germany! And 2 pieces of porkchop costs about 6€, while an uncooked chicken costs about 5€. That’s madness. It took me a real long time to source out the affordable food. Though we are only staying for 2 days, the high cost of living in Europe has taught me to be very prudent.

In 2 hours we covered most of the Innenstadt in Lausanne. Like most other cities (I would call Lausanne a town rather than a city actually), Lausanne is very walkable. Tomorrow we will be going to the lake to see the most beautiful part of the town.

Part 2
Woke up real late today (about 8+am), considered late by my standards in Europe. We left the place at 11am and went straight to the quarter of Ouchy, the port area where you’d see anchored boats floating around and swans all over the place. This is without doubt the most beautiful place in Lausanne, reminding me of Konstanz. As compared to yesterday, today’s walk was more sceneric and laid-back. After checking out the Olympic park, we continued the walk along the Quai de Belgique. We even had 1 hr of time to lay a groundsheet by the water and eat, slack, and sleep. And yes, we had bread and butter for lunch.

What I liked about Lausanne is that despite its wonderful scenery, it is not touristic at all. The Swiss people where were much more friendly than the French in Paris. (Lausanne is a French-speaking canton in Switzerland). The guesthouse was a big plus. It’s really not like your typical hostel because most of the people are here not to party and get drunk but we see lone travelers, families as well as a lot of Asians. We met a lot of people in the guesthouse and exchanged contacts (Singaporeans and Taiwanese), as well as this queer german guy who is on a holiday with the main mode of transport being his foot! And a very untypical german guy he is! And Ying appears to be quite interested in him… maybe she will write about him later lol

-benhardt

I’m the tour guide for Lausanne and I’m actually quite happy to be revising my French here. No chance to use it yet and I’m not very confident in spurting any it fluently. Words take very long to come out and for me to form a complete sentence. Sigh.

The hostel is probably on my number 1 spot now. I still have Amsterdam to evaluate but I’m very pleased with what I have seen so far. At first look we were already impressed with the exterior. It’s like we walked into some very expensive English country side resort. The interior did not disappoint. The reception area and lobby is very spacious and user friendly. And then the toilets rooms and kitchen were the cleanest so far. Although the toilets are shared they are sparkling. The room albeit simple is bright and cooling. The walk through the city was rather boring and I wait to be impressed by the lake. Apart from the beach, anything with water always excites me. Lakes waterfalls seas and oceans etc. Even though I am scared of water very unfortunately. Next to stars aqua is probably my next favourite sight. Lac Leman was a beautiful sight. Though I find the lake district, ambleside in the uk more attractive and the beach at Barcelona more interesting.

The people we met here are the most memorable part of the journey. Singaporeans serene and wenwei. Taiwanese on a ioa trip Chelsea and junming. German mr simon Schmidt. Mr Schmidt for a german doesn’t drink smoke and is vegetarian. So I casually said that this is one good guy to marry and jokingly asked bs to intro me to him. Which he did! That was really awkward. The last time I saw Schmidt he actually laughed at me. Argh. Bs keeps saying he’s on his path to becoming the next jesus. Oh well. I’d say he’s just a very decent guy and a most endangered species.

-Yves-

Lausanne was a great stop. Beautiful city and it’s at the top of “Best City to Nua” list. Furthermore, the Lausanne Guesthouse and Backpacker was comparable to the one in Prague. It’s really hard to decide between the two but I would vote for Hostel U Melounu since there was free breakfast. Apart from the lakes, there was nothing much sightseeing to be done. No cheap shopping either. However, the weather was great – windy and cooling. So, I would still rate Lausanne highly on my “City to Return” list – that’s if my financial allows. It is certainly a great place to relax – it does not have much of the hustle and bustle of the big cities. A place good enough to forget all the worries and to get revitalized. Oh yah, making your own meals would be the wisest things to do since the price of food there are rather steep. =)

~Pierre-ter-o~ (French-German-Italian)

Our wonderful guesthouse
The garden of the guesthouse
"Playing chess" at Ouchy
The Quay at Ouchy - probably the most beautiful spot in Lausanne



We had bread and butter for lunch

Day 13, 14 & 15: Barcelona

If Mozart is to Salzburg, then gaudi must be to Barcelona. Everyone is like trying to earn money from his name! the buildings that he designed all charged an exorbitant amount of money! Imagine going into istana for like 35 sing dollars~! Shocker huh? Just for entry. And you thought the Singapore flyer was a rip-off! Sheesh… other than that this place is a shopping paradise! Spending less than 50 euros (84 dollars approx) I got 3 dresses and a top. Total damage for this trip so far is about 105 euros and I got like 5 dresses (one with nice stars! 3 for work 3 for play. 1 extra cos one dress can be for both work and play J) and 2 tops! It’s madness! I like. Slurp! Bs did ask me if I wanted to shop at the factory outlet in germany and I said no. I didn’t plan to shop. I didn’t think of spending a day specially on shopping. I didn’t have that kind of money. But Barcelona has like their local brands that I haven’t seen in other cities (or trying not to see) and since we were sight seeing in that area I thought it would be convenient to go take a look. Even the guys went shopping. I was shocked to see bs tempted to buy things. heh.

I’m a self-proclaimed beach bum. One thing I can’t stand is cold weather which is why I have many jackets. But I love the sun. With my bikini and the sea I can conquer the beach anytime. Barcelona’s beach is full of people but the water is icy cool. Which means the sun is almost non-existent after soaking in it. I’m glad a got a darker tan though not ideal. The beach is calling me back to Barcelona and not the shopping or whatever dry fountain that py mentioned. I would like to stay near the beach though. I saw the houses there and they really appealed to me somehow. They were older and more simple with nice little coffee shops. I really do wish I can afford a small little house to myself and decorate it the way I want, SOON.

Stupid py and bs tried to come up with 101 reasons to persuade me to take off my bikini top like the rest of the girls. Like I would! I told them I’d consider if they were strangers and that I’d never see them again. But that as friends I preferred to avoid the awkwardness later on. If I would take my top off I would have gone for the naked spa!

We cooked seafood for 2 nights and I enjoyed the cheap dinner. We saw the prices at the restaurants and we were quite put off. Bs was happy to revise his cooking skills and I was just happy to taste my favourite seafood again though most of them were frozen. Hopefully Lausanne will be another slacking day. I need to mourn for federer’s lost in wimbledon. Sad to see him and his pretty ass kicked. Boo hoo. This year no one I support has been winning in the sports scene. Think I should stop supporting people so that they can win. Sigh.

Yingnez

Indeed like what the girl said, Barcelona is totally affiliated to Gaudi as though the whole city worships him. Well not surprisingly cos he architected some of the most bizarre buildings in the city, the most prominent and still uncompleted Sagrada Familia, using themes of nature to make the whole church look like a forest. I found Barcelona to be more interesting in Madrid, because there are more sightseeing possibilities available, and I am quite surprised that despite being the most important tourist magnet in Spain, you do not get blatant and aggressive touts (yah they do exist everywhere but they’re very tame here unlike in Rome and Paris)

What I liked about Barcelona
-very modern metro system. It is IMPOSSIBLE to forget which stop you have to get on to cos the metro map in the train is electronic and the next stop will blink. I found it to be very tourist friendly.
-we met this friendly American guy who’s travelling with 2 other American girls, and he’s real different in a sense that he does not drink or party or get wasted. And we spent the first night talking over very interesting issues.
-very walkable, its hard to get missing, and to a large extent, we did not need to refer to our maps after the first day actually.
-great place to shop actually, lots of shops selling clothes and the male clothes are much more fashionable than those pathetic ones in Singapore.
-the supermarkets are open on Sundays, something that I have not experienced for a real long long long time already. Indeed, even on a Sunday the streets are bustling with activities not like in germany where all we do on a Sunday is to sleep all day at home or recover from too much drinking the night before.
-the harbour and the Montjuic castle (we could get a fantastic view of the city as well as the clear blue waters of the harbour – without having to pay a single cent!!!! Not like yesterday when we visited the cathedral and paid 2.50€ each to take the lift up to the cathedral tower to get views of the city but it was pathetic)
-the Barcelona beach – great place to bask under the sun, and the waters are clear and clean, great place to sit and look at girls too. And many of the girls are sunbathing half-naked so that gives an extra point to the place. And I got myself sunburnt… feeling the heat on my skin now….

Tml we are taking the plane to Geneva, Switzerland, where we will transit to a train that brings us to Lausanne, our next stop. I have seen the guesthouse in Lausanne already and it looks very great from their website. Hopefully it is really what its depicted online.

-binito

Barcelona is much better than Madrid. Although the monuments (except Sagrada Familia) are not as magnificent as what we have seen in Rome or other some other cities, it was an interesting pace nonetheless. The Sagrada Familia was a temple designed by Gaudi – whose architectural buildings can be found all over Barcelona, and it is one which is still in the midst of construction. Its construction started in late 19th century and is due to complete only in 2020. A place worth popping by for its architectural style and meticulous (mathematical) designs. Aside from monuments, there’s a nice beach (though I’m not a great fan) and great shopping area too. I basically burst my budget, falling into the discount-trap. Nonetheless, the quantity certainly made up for it.

The hostel (HelloBCN) that we are staying in now is good too. Their doors and lockers have to be opened using RFID (Radio Frequency Identification Device). Damn cool! Hence, they are ranked one of the safest hostels. The kitchen is well-equipped as we cooked for two nights in a row – partly to minimize spending after our more lavish first part of the tour.

Barcelona is definitely a place worth coming for a short stay. But for a person who only likes sightseeing, then other cities may be a better alternative. As for those who want everything, it is a city worth considering.

We will be heading to Geneva and Laussane tomorrow. 6 more days to flying home.

PS: Just watched a great Wimbledon final between Nadal and Federer. Wonderful exchanges and winners. Nadal finally overcame Federer on grass – 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7. Looks like it’s a great period for Spanish athletes!

Day 12 and 13: Madrid

Many people whom I have spoken to have told me that Madrid is a pathetically boring place and you will just need 1 day to see what all there is to offer. To a certain extent, this is true. I can’t help to think that Madrid is the smallest capital in Europe. Some of the more interesting aspects in Madrid, or Spain in general
-it's the place where we saw lots of gay couples, probably because there was a party event going on, and we saw with our own eyes that they’re behaving very blatantly.
-the shops tend to open till 10pm which is wonderful when you compare it to Germany when by 8pm the streets will be empty although the sun is still shining bright
-there seems to be a great-spain-sale going on. I got myself the German National Team jersey for 39€, original price being 65€ (and 70€ in Germany itself). Pretty ironic that the German jersey actually costs much cheaper in Spain, the country that beat Germany in the Euro 2008. But maybe that’s why its so cheap.
-there was this guy who tried to cook some story, claiming he was from Iran (he had a Iranian bill in his wallet) and he wanted to see how a Euro look like cos he “never seen it before” – we did not want to take out our wallets cos we did not know what would happen. Not that I had money in my wallet cos I have used up all my Euros, but the cards in my wallet are impt. I had some Czech crowns though, and would be happy to show him that and tell him that’s Euro and see his reaction.
-there’s this chio gal from Belgium who slept in our room and she’s real friendly! Maybe Y or PY will write something bout her.

-binito

I realized I have less and less things to write as the trip goes on. And it’s not just lethargy but the spain part of the trip was disappointing other than the shopping part. The shops are like having big slashes off their prices and I’ve gotten a new dress for work at just 40 odd bucks sing dollars. And it’s pretty good quality and has a nice formal cut like those you see in probably zara. Even bs was tempted by the sale. Actually only cos it was the germany jersey. Never seen him so happy to buy something. Ha! Py and I are planning to do more shopping at Barcelona. Hope the sales are as good. Best thing is they close later than shops in other cities. Other than that I am simply not as impressed.

I thought the buildings in paris was better. I thought the history of germany was more moving. I thought the traffic at italy was less disturbing. This place is a bustling old town with nothing much I can be stunned with. I blame it on myself though. For not knowing more about the history of this place. Maybe then I would understand the place and sights better. But I do also think everything I’ve seen here has been seen somewhere else. And it’s probably not spain’s fault. But yeah. And the thyssen borhemisza museum was impressive but… it’s just a museum. Not that museums are boring but that museum can be anywhere else you know what I mean? Ok maybe not. But I just wouldn’t recommend paying for it.

Other than the funny Iranian that bs mentioned I shall elaborate on the Belgium girl which I just can’t keep my eyes off! I thought she was gorgeous and I told py in Chinese that I bet she was a supermodel. And she turned out to be it! Or rather something like that. When py and bs were busy updating this blog I went back to my room to read a book I bought in Thyssen museum. More about it later. I chatted with her and she was apparently called to Madrid to work! She seemed a little reluctant to tell me what she was working as at first but I just kept asking cos I was curious. And she’s some promoter girl who’s supposed to be here to give out pamphlets. I regret not talking more to her after she told me her job cos in retrospect I came across as someone who looked down on her and her job. But I did not! I wanted to tell her I expected her to be some model or something. I wanted to tell her she was beautiful. But I held back and I think I shouldn’t have! But oh well… we didn’t even get her name! sigh. I wish I could go back to Madrid and tell her now I’m so envious of her cos she’s so pretty!!! L first big regret of the trip.

Anyway I bought a book called “life with Picasso” written by francoise gillot, picasso’s third and last wife (not including the mistresses he had). She was 21 when she met him and he was 61. they fell in love and got married. I admit the old-men fetish attracted me to the book but there was also the allure of a relationship between a man and a woman both with quick wit. I always enjoyed quick witty exchanges like that in Gilmore girls. Part of the book is about explaining picasso’s art through his character but it’s also about how their relationship is like. Two people attracted to each other’s brains instead of lust and beauty. You can borrow the book after I’ve finished! I enjoyed it so far. More about the love story than the interpretation of art. The book is translated from French so it can be a bit hard to read and there are a lot of references to other famous French and English authors that can be a bit hard to digest. But I’ve learnt to ignore and just skim through those parts without trying too hard to understand. I hope to finish it by the end of the trip cos once work starts I’ll have tons to read!

Sigh. That reminds me. When I get back I have to work! Apprehensive about the challenges that’ll come but i hope I can perform. At the same time I wish teresa darling all the best in getting that new job. I love you and I wish all things best for you. Everytime I enter one of those churches I think of you and I hope you will be blessed with good things to come. If you don’t deserve it I don’t know who does. The same goes for all of my dearest friends including the 2 guys with me now. I look forward to my wish at the trevi fountain coming true.

Yingnez

Madrid is really an easy place to cover. Not just that there was a shortage of monuments and interesting places to visit, the city center is just small. The original plan was to cover Madrid proper on the second day since we arrived in the evening. However, by the end of the night, we covered half of the thing we were supposed to see as a part of them can be found along a road! It was a slack second day and that gave us some time to shop. It was a great time because the discounts were fantastic – a lot of prices were slashed by 50%!! I didn’t really see anything that I liked but was trying to hold out till Barcelona, hoping that there will be sales there too, especially we are going to spend more time there.

The only interesting thing is our “visit” to a major street party along Gran Via. It seemed like a gay party too. Actually, we wanted to go to a place there for tapas but coincidentally, the party was held there. So we had to maneuver our way through and headed out to the main street. Not bad for an experience.
As you can see, there’s really nothing much to write about Madrid. Therefore, so long till we meet again in Barcelona!

Plaza Mayor

Sol - the main shopping area in Madrid, where I got my German jersey for only 39€
'Still' statues, this one is covered with mud, keep seeing them in Spain


Crystal Palace built in the late 1800s

Day 11: Dachau and Füssen

Füssen looks more beautiful in winter than in summer, although moving around in summer was definitely much more easier and less dangerous. Neuschwanstein still looks the same, however the trees were beaming with leaves and the air was clear, not like in march when it was hailing with snow. Having been to Neuschwanstein on both occasions, I would still prefer to go back in winter. Maybe one day when I am rich to stay in one of the hotels at the foot of the mountain, doing nothing but slacking by the Alpsee, smoking cigarettes and eating grill and drinking beer, and spa-ing in one of the bathhouses.

-bs

Fussen is officially my favourite city in germany! Before I get all excited and talk about that I’ve gotta cover our first stop of the day dachau. It was apparently the first concentration camp the germans built during the world war 2 and you get the witness the worsening conditions in the camp and the lives the prisoners had to lead. Not forgetting the horrible tortures and heartless killings. It was a cold place. And it inevitably brought sadness to my heart. The crematorium still had a stink to it. It was rather creepy. Although the rooms were clean and refurbished the thought of the number of people who died there and how they were laid out as carcasses was chilling. Given a choice I would never go back there again. Too sad. But as a part of history it is very important. Throughout the whole journey I can only think of the quote from the Hitler movie. “the only way for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing”. How true. Let’s hope we have the strength to stand up to evil IF ever such an atrocity or any atrocities were to happen.

Next stop was more heart warming! I have been looking forward to the trip cos bs said the castles in schwangau, fussen looked like the one in Disneyland! And if you haven’t forgotten my husband mickey mouse owns that place and I would really love to see how this place looked and boy was I impressed! The first thought that came to my mind is that I don’t mind staying here the rest of my life reading books and catching up on my favourite shows on dvd in a small house that sits near the lake. Then I can suntan take walks and perhaps swim. If there has to be a favourite place in this trip it has to be this place cos no matter how beautiful rome and Venice is I wouldn’t wanna live there. Schwangau has just became the next place after ambleside in uk that I would love to stay forever. In winter spring or summer.

But the horsies! Omg! I know people travel by horse carriages but up the hill to the castle?! Two horsies have to carry like 12 people at any one time to the top of the hill. And they looked so agonized! I strongly believe that the amount of shit on the ground is not cos they eat too much but cos they put in too much effort to climb that hill with a bloody heavy load. Gek sai they call it. Sigh. Poor things. a tinge of sadness in this beautiful place. I hope people realize what they are doing to these animals while they are enjoying the stupid ride! Hmph! a normal saloon car with more than 2 horsepower can only carry 5 people max at each time. Going to genting is already rather difficult. Imagine 2 horses with 12 people! Mercedes and bmw should be impressed.

And talk about Singaporeans being kiasu! I tell you Europeans are not much better. They are as uncivilized when it comes to getting on the bus and snatching good seats on trains buses and planes. Sheeesshhh… and don’t ever believe the mags when they say Singaporeans dress poorly. The Europeans and westerners (at least those I saw) are not much better. Not everyone can dress like superstars ok. They aim very much for comfort too. So horseshit for making us look bad all the time!

Dinner was at another beer hall again and though the one that closed was supposed to reopen today it still didn’t. nonetheless we still had a good meal. It didn’t disappoint at all. Though it was expensive and from the next day on bs said we should cook to save money. Well more money for shopping then! J

-Y-

A packed day as we had to rush to Dahau and then to Füssen. The visit to Dahau was basically a trip to the first concentration camp under Hitler. Similar to Berlin, it was a great educational trip. This really made me want to organize an educational trip to Germany for my students when I do become a teacher. There is no way better to learn than to be at a place to see.

Due to the time constraint, it was a rush to Füssen. Füssen is a totally different place from Dahau. A breathtaking scenic place with a beautiful castle named Neuschwanstein. One of the best sight so far. However, the beauty of the place was spoilt when I saw the poor horses pulling a wagon of people up the mountain. The horses really looked tired and I really felt like suing them for cruelty to animal. The horses practically had to drag the people’s fat asses up the high and steep slope – when they could have organized alternatives like small buses to go up. It’s just one of those evil things that some humans are capable of. Nevertheless, it is a place worth going to. One can spend more time by staying at the resorts while slacking by the nice lake.

It was Bavarian feast again after a quick trip to the Olympic Stadium again. In short, dinner was great! At the same time, this also marked the end of the first leg of the Euro tour. Tomorrow will be a quick stop-over in Mannheim before heading to Madrid. It also meant the countdown to “Back to Singapore” starts.

~Pieter~

Sleeping beds for the prisoners in DachauCremating berth for the prisoners after they have been executed

Neuschwanstein - literally new swan stone - the palace of all palaces, the disneyland palace
Hohenschwangau - literally high swan village
In front of Neuschwanstein

At the Marienbrücke, the best view of the Neuschwanstein

View of the Alpsee, Bavarian Alps and the HohenschwangauOlympic Stadium in München at sunset, the very stadium where we (sadly for me) saw Germany lost to Spain.

Day 10: Salzburg and München

Mozart Mozart Mozart… you can hear his “deng deng deng deng” song as we ran through the train station to catch the train to Salzburg. Then when we reached Salzburg we see him everywhere. And they are trying to make money outta him. His work place his birth place. I don’t know how the chocolates came about but yeah. They put his name on chocolates. Then the postcards and everything was Mozart. It was more of a scenic walk for me so nothing much to say. Just enjoyed the cool weather and the nice houses and sights.

Back to munich we went in search of the nice pork knuckles and beer bs talked about. But it was closed! Disappointing. A lot of things has closed on us. So we went further down the road to a more unknown place instead. The food and beer turned out not bad at all and I finally got to enjoy sauerkraut! I tried it once at broitzeit and it was horrible! Too sour. This time it was just right! The pork knuckles were a bit oily but very tasty. So is everything else on the plate! Very full after the meal. I couldn’t button up my pants!

Halfway out of the shop to the metro we met with a whole line of night skaters who blocked the road. At first we thought we will just let them pass first but for a whole 15-20 min the line of skaters did not end! It was madness.

After that the guys decided they wanted to go to Allianz arena to take photo of the stadium. Apparently the whole stadium lights up and it changes colour every half an hour. It will light up in blue white and red and bs was determined to get a photo of it in red. And when we reached there me and py was desperate to pee. Since py is a guy there was no problem. But me! We had to find some secluded staircase so that I can pee. And man was it dark. Luckily I didn’t fall down the stairs. After about half an hour of waiting the lights of the stadium switched off! And we realized we’ve waited in vain. Hahahaha… the walk to the stadium was good for digestion though.

Our late night back to our hostel woke up some of our hostel mates and one of the girls gave a very mean stare. This mean stare continued the next morning when she woke up. One thing I can’t stand about people living in hostels is that they expect 5 star hotel service. Peaceful sleep at night. People to tidy up their room for them. Like that time in Prague when 2 very late check-in guests came they found one of the beds they were supposed to sleep on disheveled and insisted the hostel guy changed it for them. Seeing that I went forward and helped him change and the girl just stood there with no thought of lending a hand. Though bs and py called me hua chi (cos the guy was really quite cute) I just thought it was the right thing to do. You are staying in the hostel! And like the signs they put up in the hostel kitchens you did not bring your mother with you so work! Sheesh… to think they are supposedly backpackers. Alright maybe she’s just tired and cranky like the girl we woke up in the hostel but I really would be better off without your attitude. In any way these people only serve as a lesson than irritants. To NOT be like them.

-Y-

Today was the start of the Munich leg proper. However, it was first to Salzburg, Austria for a half day tour. Salzburg was pretty much like Hidelburg but it was the land of Mozart. There are numerous “Mozart-related” things – from chocolates to fragrances. Nothing really exciting except for the scenery. Headed back to Munich where the best was waiting for us – pork knuckles. We toured the city centre and the best monument would be the Asam Kirche which was literally filled with gold. Almost every corner was covered with gold. After that (and a few more places), it was dinner time!! BS brought us to this beer hall – Augustiner Bräuhaus. The first was under renovation so we headed down to another branch. I must say the pork knuckles was damn good and the stew meat and roast duck was excellent too. Together with 1 liter of beer, it was a heavenly match. It is difficult to imagine the taste and excellence – head down there yourself!! *drools* Ended the day with a rather useless trip to the Allianz Arena (Bayern Munich’s Stadium). We waited for the exterior lights of the stadium to turn red but it went off!! So I only caught the picture when it was white.

Tomorrow will be Munich again but we’ll be heading out to Dachau and Füssen.

Mirabell Palace Gardens
Inside the Asamkirche, München
View of Salzburg, alps and the river Salz
Salzburger Dom
1 Mass (litre) of beer The real reason to come to Germany
We finished all!

Day 9: München – EM - Fußballfinale

Welcome to Europameisterschaft (EM - means Euro 2008)

We took the 9.16am train from Prag to München which lasted 6 hrs. Actually I had scheduled to arrive in München at 11pm instead, but since Germany got into the finals I decided to bring forward our departure from Prag, which meant yesterday we really cheonged everything in Prag in a day.

Although this is my 2nd time in München, I never got bored of the place. Simply due to the great beer, food and atmosphere. Moreover everyone was in a very high mood today cos of the finals. I absolutely never regreted bringing them to the Olyimpic Stadium to watch the game. It was also a great place to really check out German girls where they all come together for this occassion. Although I am quite sad that germany lost, I have to admit that they played terribly. Together with about 50,000 other Germans in the München Olympic Stadium, we saw how the Spanish slaughtered them. The match aside, it was a great experience for PY n YY to be soaking in such atmosphere, although I am not sure if they enjoyed being shoving and sandwiched while we’re trying to squeeze our buttocks to beat the queue into the stadium.

Tml I am bringing them to Salzburg, the 4th largest city from Austria which is a 2hr train ride from München. Salzburg is beautiful due to the river Salz that flow through it as well as the Bavarian alps as the backdrop. It is also a cultural centre with everything associated with Mozart. Hopefully they will like it.

-bs

I can’t believe I took a 4 hours train ride and queued and waited almost 4 hours for a soccer match. It’s madness. But it’s one of those things the guys said I must try. I admit I wasn’t all that enthusiastic. I mean it’s not like italy or the Czechs are playing. But I still went and gave my full support to germany due to geographical convenience. Well since I’m there I decided to make full use of the time. Tried the beer and food there. Not too bad but very expensive. Then halfway eating we got shoved around and py’s pretzel was inedible. I decided to get rid of my sausages as well. I mean who knows where it has been in all that shoving. I was not too uncomfortable though. Taking advantage and leaning on a german man while waiting. Heh. The atmosphere was great but the wait was boring. People cheering as though germany already won?!! Sheeessshhh…

The game started and the atmosphere got more tensed. People cheered and booed together. When the game ended, bs looked so dejected! (in case you didn’t know germany lost.) but the whole stadium was still cheering all the way till the train station. It was madness! Think they are too used to losing. I remembered people crying when their team lost and thought I can see some grown men cry like babies. Disappointed. Ha! Oh well. Early night for me! Cos no one’s celebrating!

I’m still sad that the Czechs can’t make it. SIGH.

-Y-
Woohoo…Watched the Euro Finals on the live screen in Munich’s Olympic Stadium!! Although it was a mad rush from Prague, it was well worth the madness and squeeze in the train. Luckily, BS managed to get us seats as the people who reserved it probably couldn’t get to that end of the train. Best of all, we got a free ride as no one came to check our Eurail pass. Before I get to the match proper, it was a great 6 hour ride for I finished “The Kite Runner” on the train. It was a great book – at times, it really made eyes welled. I believe if I had read it at home, I would probably tear uncontrollably. I had to discontinue the reading for a few seconds before continuing. The way the story developed and the way Hosseini described, I can almost feel and picture the characters and the surroundings. The part about how Hassan protected Amir simply touches me deeply and the plight of Shohab and the things he had to go through just made my heart wrenched. It is definitely a book worth reading. Looking forward to reading his second book.

Now, back to Germany vs Spain. Upon reaching Munich, we saw that the whole city was already getting ready for the big match. German flags, jerseys and other German accessories were everywhere. Hence, we wasted no time as we headed straight for the stadium after dumping our luggage in our hostel room. A sea of soccer fans (of course, most are Germans) greeted us as we stepped out of the train. These scenes really pumped me up for the match. It was near mayhem as we jostled and squeezed our way into the stadium after crowding and cramping outside the entrance for close to an hour. By the time we got in, our remaining currywurst, pretzel and rostwurst were practically crushed. So we got our beer and found seats that were near enough to the screen. We waited for 4 hours as fans streamed into the stadium, chanting and singing “Deustchland”.

Finally, the match started and the whole stadium exploded with excitement as Germany had the upper hand in the opening minutes. The atmosphere was tremendous as (almost) everyone sang and cheered in unison and on cue. BS was certainly enjoying himself, at least for the opening exchanges, including singing the Deustchland national anthem. He has certainly integrated in the German culture. It was real interesting to see the stadium stood in anticipation with every German offense and sighed in relief as Spain missed. However, Spain, true to their recent form, got back and dominated the match. It was a pity that I’m in Germany supporting Spain. I would most likely go crazy with the Spanish if I was watching in Spain when Fernando Torres scored. Too bad, I was in a stadium filled with down-casted fans. Though Spain had numerous chances to finish off a lackluster German team, 1-0 was enough to win them their first major trophy since Euro 1964. At last, they are underachievers no more. Congratulation to SPAIN – the newly crowned EURO 2008 CHAMPION. Woohoo!!!

Coming up next – Munich and PORK KNUCKLES!!! *slurps and drools*

~Pieter~

my future Frau