This weekend I took an unexpected trip to Yosemite...more on that soon.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Itinerary Thoughts
So I’ve been trying to come up with a good itinerary for the Europe trip. I will be spending about 4 weeks backpacking with my friend around Europe, and I want to come up with a trip that will be fun, interesting, and fairly new. We are both pretty seasoned when it comes to our travel experiences in Europe since Emily lives in Scotland and I have been going to Europe since I was a kid.
The trip officially starts for us when I separate from my parents in Prague. From there I have considered a route that looks something like this:
a couple of nights in Prague (I don’t think Emily has ever been there, so it seems fair to stay extra in a city that, from all accounts is a pretty cool one)
Salzburg
Munich à day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle
Luzern
Gimmelwald
Cannes
Paris
London
The only problem with this itinerary is that it doesn’t account for almost a week of our time on the road. I don’t want to end up with a schedule that is too heavy on one country, like Switzerland, or too heavy on places we’ve already been (which are pretty numerous at this point). I’m actually not sure about this itinerary at all –maybe we should do some of Northern Italy, too? Hmmm….well, any comments or suggestions on great places to see in that general region would be welcome.
The trip officially starts for us when I separate from my parents in Prague. From there I have considered a route that looks something like this:
a couple of nights in Prague (I don’t think Emily has ever been there, so it seems fair to stay extra in a city that, from all accounts is a pretty cool one)
Salzburg
Munich à day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle
Luzern
Gimmelwald
Cannes
Paris
London
The only problem with this itinerary is that it doesn’t account for almost a week of our time on the road. I don’t want to end up with a schedule that is too heavy on one country, like Switzerland, or too heavy on places we’ve already been (which are pretty numerous at this point). I’m actually not sure about this itinerary at all –maybe we should do some of Northern Italy, too? Hmmm….well, any comments or suggestions on great places to see in that general region would be welcome.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Safety in Europe - You'll be OK
The first time I traveled to Europe was with my parents when I was eight years old. After getting some rare overtime hours at work and setting it aside, my parents decided - rather courageously, I think - to take their three kids on a three-week European vacation. There were some stipulations for us on this trip: you could take one carry-on size bag (this is pre-9/11 airport security), a backpack, and you had to be able to carry all of you stuff by yourself. So that’s what we did.
Nearly fifteen years later and the trip rules have changed only slightly, but now Europe isn’t some mysterious and distant land, but rather a place that feels as much to me like home as home does. So it surprises me when I hear that people are worried about the safety of going to Europe. When my mom suggested to a family friend that her daughter join in on the backpacking trip I’m taking later this summer, she expressed a lot of concern about our safety. Since I have been so emotionally connected to Europe and the travel experience as a whole, I continually keep my ears open about issues of safety and civil unrest around the world. Because of this, I know that Europe, including Eastern Europe is actually incredibly safe. In fact, things like violent crime are much more likely to occur in the United States than in Europe (there are approximately 10,000 people killed by handguns in the States compared to fewer than 400 in Britain, France or Germany*). But because she questioned our safety (which is always a fair question when travel is concerned) I decided to do a little research into what some major guidebook sources have to say about it all.
My go-to guide for any European travel is first and foremost Rick Steves. Rick Steves has been traveling to Europe since the mid 70s, and when it comes to European travel guides, there is currently no one out there more legit than Rick Steves. So I turned to his 2008 Europe Through the Back Door to see what he said about safety in Europe. Rather than refer to the chapter in his book as ‘Safety’ it is entitled ‘Perspectives’ which I think is more suitable, since he delicately assuages the reader not to worry too much about things essentially beyond their control. Issues like terrorism and political unrest are a constant no matter where you live in the world, and often tourists aren’t the targets of such attacks if they do happen. Rick’s main suggestion is also the most common – blend in. Rick suggests not taking fancy luggage or getting too high-profile in the way you travel as not only a safety suggestion, but as a style of traveling that will make the experience more exciting and profound. I think Rick sums up my feelings about it really well when he says, “Travel is a celebration of life and freedom. Terrorists will not take that away from me. My mission in life is to inspire Americans to travel, one by one…to absorb and savor the wonders of Europe.” –Well said, Rick!
My other reference guide is Let’s Go, a travel guide series written by Harvard grads, giving travel options for people on ‘shoestring’ budgets. Why only Harvard grads are capable of dispelling this kind of information is beyond me, but until those of us less blessed with the right Alma Mater start producing our own guidebooks, I’m still relying on the Let’s Go books to tell me where the grocery store is in Liechtenstein. In the 2009 version of Let’s Go: Europe they cover the safety basics hard and fast suggesting what I would consider the ‘common sense’ safety advice that most travel books offer. Respecting the local culture in dress, familiarizing yourself with the location, and walking with an air of confidence are all things the books suggests. Carrying a money belt and bringing a lock with you are other good tips the book offers up.
All in all I think these books offer good advice for calming the average person’s fears about traveling to a European country. I think the best way to stay safe anywhere is to pay attention about what is going on around you. If you wouldn’t walk down the street at night alone while at home, why would you do it in a big European city? If all the other women were wearing a skirt inside the local Cathedral, wouldn’t it seem appropriate to do the same?
All in all, I’d say I’ve had many things happen to me while abroad that weren’t part of the plan. I’ve stumbled upon anti-American protests in Thailand, I’ve had my luggage stolen out of the car in France, and I’ve lost my passport while parasailing (again in Thailand) and the most important thing I’ve learned is this: I’m OK.
If you keep your wits about you, you’ll find - as I did - that you will be OK. If you keep quiet and go down another road, the protesters won’t bother you, and you will be OK. If you go to the police and file a report of stolen luggage, sure you’ll miss that new pair of jeans you had in there, but you will be ok. And, if you ask for help from the locals, you can get yourself to the nearest consulate and have your passport replaced. Sure, you will have lost some cool traveling stamps you acquired along the way, but you will be OK. Having lived through these hardships I have come to realize that most problems we face while on vacation are inconveniences, nothing we can’t look at later on and say to our friends that it was wild, bizarre, upsetting, but after all of it we are, well, we’re ok.
*Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door 2008
Nearly fifteen years later and the trip rules have changed only slightly, but now Europe isn’t some mysterious and distant land, but rather a place that feels as much to me like home as home does. So it surprises me when I hear that people are worried about the safety of going to Europe. When my mom suggested to a family friend that her daughter join in on the backpacking trip I’m taking later this summer, she expressed a lot of concern about our safety. Since I have been so emotionally connected to Europe and the travel experience as a whole, I continually keep my ears open about issues of safety and civil unrest around the world. Because of this, I know that Europe, including Eastern Europe is actually incredibly safe. In fact, things like violent crime are much more likely to occur in the United States than in Europe (there are approximately 10,000 people killed by handguns in the States compared to fewer than 400 in Britain, France or Germany*). But because she questioned our safety (which is always a fair question when travel is concerned) I decided to do a little research into what some major guidebook sources have to say about it all.
My go-to guide for any European travel is first and foremost Rick Steves. Rick Steves has been traveling to Europe since the mid 70s, and when it comes to European travel guides, there is currently no one out there more legit than Rick Steves. So I turned to his 2008 Europe Through the Back Door to see what he said about safety in Europe. Rather than refer to the chapter in his book as ‘Safety’ it is entitled ‘Perspectives’ which I think is more suitable, since he delicately assuages the reader not to worry too much about things essentially beyond their control. Issues like terrorism and political unrest are a constant no matter where you live in the world, and often tourists aren’t the targets of such attacks if they do happen. Rick’s main suggestion is also the most common – blend in. Rick suggests not taking fancy luggage or getting too high-profile in the way you travel as not only a safety suggestion, but as a style of traveling that will make the experience more exciting and profound. I think Rick sums up my feelings about it really well when he says, “Travel is a celebration of life and freedom. Terrorists will not take that away from me. My mission in life is to inspire Americans to travel, one by one…to absorb and savor the wonders of Europe.” –Well said, Rick!
My other reference guide is Let’s Go, a travel guide series written by Harvard grads, giving travel options for people on ‘shoestring’ budgets. Why only Harvard grads are capable of dispelling this kind of information is beyond me, but until those of us less blessed with the right Alma Mater start producing our own guidebooks, I’m still relying on the Let’s Go books to tell me where the grocery store is in Liechtenstein. In the 2009 version of Let’s Go: Europe they cover the safety basics hard and fast suggesting what I would consider the ‘common sense’ safety advice that most travel books offer. Respecting the local culture in dress, familiarizing yourself with the location, and walking with an air of confidence are all things the books suggests. Carrying a money belt and bringing a lock with you are other good tips the book offers up.
All in all I think these books offer good advice for calming the average person’s fears about traveling to a European country. I think the best way to stay safe anywhere is to pay attention about what is going on around you. If you wouldn’t walk down the street at night alone while at home, why would you do it in a big European city? If all the other women were wearing a skirt inside the local Cathedral, wouldn’t it seem appropriate to do the same?
All in all, I’d say I’ve had many things happen to me while abroad that weren’t part of the plan. I’ve stumbled upon anti-American protests in Thailand, I’ve had my luggage stolen out of the car in France, and I’ve lost my passport while parasailing (again in Thailand) and the most important thing I’ve learned is this: I’m OK.
If you keep your wits about you, you’ll find - as I did - that you will be OK. If you keep quiet and go down another road, the protesters won’t bother you, and you will be OK. If you go to the police and file a report of stolen luggage, sure you’ll miss that new pair of jeans you had in there, but you will be ok. And, if you ask for help from the locals, you can get yourself to the nearest consulate and have your passport replaced. Sure, you will have lost some cool traveling stamps you acquired along the way, but you will be OK. Having lived through these hardships I have come to realize that most problems we face while on vacation are inconveniences, nothing we can’t look at later on and say to our friends that it was wild, bizarre, upsetting, but after all of it we are, well, we’re ok.
*Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door 2008
Friday, May 15, 2009
City Streets and the People Who Drive on Them
The traffic in a major city can say so much about where you are. It isn’t just that your cab driver speaks the language of the town you’re in, it’s something more that can tell you about the way people there live, the way life is run. The French refer to it as a mode de vivre, a way of living. And in a sense, I guess, riding in a car with a French person can tell you as much about their life as driving on a rickshaw in the middle of Delhi, India.
The traffic circle surrounding the Arc de Triomphe is probably best known for its fender-benders than anything else, but I think it’s as good a place as any when examining the driving phenomena. It takes a little bit of insanity (or stupidity, depending on who you are) to get into a car in the first place. After all, it is a two-ton ball of metal hurtling across the road and it can just as easily helmed by someone as cool as Barack Obama, or as foolish as your just-turned-sixteen- kid brother ready to take the world by storm. Turning your car onto a notorious jumble of terrified and slightly maniacal drivers may be crazy. But it doesn’t surprise me so much when I think about it.
If you were to look at Paris from a bird’s eye view, you’d see a couple of things. You’d likely notice that there is a river, the Seine, more precisely, cutting across the city. Then you’d probably notice the distinctive color of a city whose buildings are awash with elegant facades of white plaster, paying homage to Napoleon and his attempts to beautify the city. You’d see the way the rays of the gray clouds covering the city give a mystery to old buildings. The history, it seems is built right into the sunshine here, and you may suddenly feel deeply in you that the city of light isn’t
just a reference to the electric lights of the 20th century, but also a call to the beauty of a great city covered in its own unique light. Then you’d notice that this city is designed in a giant circular flow, a snail’s gray shell, rather than a perfect grid. All of its streets come together at the base of the Arc de Triomphe. A grand meeting of points at Arch of Triumph.
There’s something about the way the French live their lives, they call it the joie de vivre, the joy of living, and I think it says everything about what it means to be French. It means to enjoy all the little things in life, to savor the best – from the best coffee to the best bread, to the best – whatever. It means, too that what is central to life is not the acquisition of things, rather but moments that define our happiness in life. So, to some, they may look upon the wild ride of a French driver and label him a madman for driving just a little too fast. Or they could see that this driver isn’t just speeding out of impatience, but because every part of him is living in this moment, enjoying the power behind the wheel of his Citroen and nothing will get in his way from performing this act at full tilt – living this moment full speed.
It doesn’t surprise me that the French always seem to be driving at full keel, not one bit. Driving fast and furiously is one of those ingrained things – kind of the way the American can’t help but be the loudest person in the room. The French have never done anything half way, so it’s no shock that they would get in their cars and go go go, like there was no tomorrow.
So perhaps circling the Arc is just a wild dash to the other side of town, but maybe, just maybe, it’s just the French being, well, French.
The traffic circle surrounding the Arc de Triomphe is probably best known for its fender-benders than anything else, but I think it’s as good a place as any when examining the driving phenomena. It takes a little bit of insanity (or stupidity, depending on who you are) to get into a car in the first place. After all, it is a two-ton ball of metal hurtling across the road and it can just as easily helmed by someone as cool as Barack Obama, or as foolish as your just-turned-sixteen- kid brother ready to take the world by storm. Turning your car onto a notorious jumble of terrified and slightly maniacal drivers may be crazy. But it doesn’t surprise me so much when I think about it.
If you were to look at Paris from a bird’s eye view, you’d see a couple of things. You’d likely notice that there is a river, the Seine, more precisely, cutting across the city. Then you’d probably notice the distinctive color of a city whose buildings are awash with elegant facades of white plaster, paying homage to Napoleon and his attempts to beautify the city. You’d see the way the rays of the gray clouds covering the city give a mystery to old buildings. The history, it seems is built right into the sunshine here, and you may suddenly feel deeply in you that the city of light isn’t
just a reference to the electric lights of the 20th century, but also a call to the beauty of a great city covered in its own unique light. Then you’d notice that this city is designed in a giant circular flow, a snail’s gray shell, rather than a perfect grid. All of its streets come together at the base of the Arc de Triomphe. A grand meeting of points at Arch of Triumph.There’s something about the way the French live their lives, they call it the joie de vivre, the joy of living, and I think it says everything about what it means to be French. It means to enjoy all the little things in life, to savor the best – from the best coffee to the best bread, to the best – whatever. It means, too that what is central to life is not the acquisition of things, rather but moments that define our happiness in life. So, to some, they may look upon the wild ride of a French driver and label him a madman for driving just a little too fast. Or they could see that this driver isn’t just speeding out of impatience, but because every part of him is living in this moment, enjoying the power behind the wheel of his Citroen and nothing will get in his way from performing this act at full tilt – living this moment full speed.
It doesn’t surprise me that the French always seem to be driving at full keel, not one bit. Driving fast and furiously is one of those ingrained things – kind of the way the American can’t help but be the loudest person in the room. The French have never done anything half way, so it’s no shock that they would get in their cars and go go go, like there was no tomorrow.
So perhaps circling the Arc is just a wild dash to the other side of town, but maybe, just maybe, it’s just the French being, well, French.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Prized Possession
Alright, I'll admit it: I'm a history nerd. It's actually no surprise if you really think about it. I mean I love books, I love traveling and I love a great story. History is putting all those things together and then admitting that it's all real in the end. Amazing. Nothing better. So when I stumbled upon this baby, you know I was flipping out with excitment.
This a 1961 version of Arthur Frommer's Europe on $5 a Day that I found at a hotel in India. Yes, India. During the middle of our trip, the hotel we were staying at (I hesitate to use the word hotel here, since there would probably be some sort of association with an opulence that didn't exist) had a 'take a book, leave a book' shelf that included an inordinate number of German-language books and very few interesting English-language books. But when I found this little gem, I nearly jumped with excitement over it.
Despite the fact that the cover is missing and it is in delicate shape, I'd say this book is a treasure trove of information as a primary source document. After all, Arthur Frommer wrote the book (literally) on accessible travel to Europe. When it comes right down to it, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone as influential as Arthur Frommer in the modern travel industry.
Some highlights from the book:
*Frommer's suggestions of both Berlin and Madrid as destinations.
In the Berlin section he says "You can glimpse first-hand the meaning of tyranny simply by staring across the street into the Soviet zone...the contrast between the bleakness in that area, and the life of West Berlin, is startling" Nearly twenty years after the fall of the Berlin wall leaves young people my age with little to no memory of the Berlin Frommer describes. Berlin today is a testament to growth, change and the possibility to the end of tyranny.
Of Madrid he says, "..the economic backwardness of Spain and the poverty of its people...the amazingly low prices are not the product of progress, but of decline. " He continues, "...it is the fervent wish of this book that the Spanish people will have a better future, and that Spain, in years to come, won't be so darn easy to visit on $5 a day."
It's hard to believe for someone of my generation that these places were so terribly distraught and it is even more incredible to imagine the progess that has been made since 1961 for so many people in Europe. Spain today is on the cutting edge of just about everything and its membership in the EU is the benefactor of its progress.
*The packing list for ladies (by Mrs. Arthur Frommer ;))
Remember Ladies, don't forget your petticoats and travel suits!
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
The Plan
So there are two parts to this little trip to Europe of mine. The first part will be with my parents and we're going to do a loop of Eastern Europe which will probably include: Prague, Krakow, Budapest, and Vienna (I'm not sure if that's all of them). Basically, my dad is fully in charge of that part of the trip and I'm focusing on the part after my parents leave, when my friend Emily and I will be backpacking around. I'd like to do some Germany and Switzerland, because I haven't spent much time there. We also want to got o the South of France to see our friends in Cannes. I have to admit that the idea of travelling to the Cote d'Azur in August is frightening, mainly because apparently the whole of France jumps in their citroen and decides to go to the beach. We'll see what the exact itinerary will be after Miss Emily is done with her exams.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
A Lil' Update
Almost two years ago I spent a semester of college studying abroad in the South of France. For purely academic reasons (seriously) I decided after a lot of consideration to studying the tiny town of Cannes, most known for its glamorous film festival that draws some of the biggest stars from around the world for a couple of weeks to this otherwise insignificant city on the French Riviera. After studying at the College International de Cannes and interning at the festival, I strapped on a backpack and traveled the fabulously diverse Europe with two friends I'd made while abroad. You can read all about it here: http://www.katieincannes.blogspot.com.
Fast forward two years later and here I am, back in California and getting ready to venture back to one of my favorite parts of the world. I decided to make a blog that was more of a "catch-all" for my travel adventures - which tend to be numerous - than my old blog was. In addition to the travels abroad I take, I'll also blog about the small trips I may take around California or the rest of the good old ol' US of A.
Fast forward two years later and here I am, back in California and getting ready to venture back to one of my favorite parts of the world. I decided to make a blog that was more of a "catch-all" for my travel adventures - which tend to be numerous - than my old blog was. In addition to the travels abroad I take, I'll also blog about the small trips I may take around California or the rest of the good old ol' US of A.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
"Not All Who Wander are Lost."
“It’s a dangerous business going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.” --J.R.R. Tolkein
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