Well our travels have almost come to an end. We just checked out of our Paris hotel and we are sitting in the lobby to kill time. Our flight for Athens leaves at 10:00 tonight, arriving around 2:00 a.m. It's gonna be a long night of traveling, since we can't check into our apartment until 9 or so. I'm not looking forward to it, but I am looking forward to settling down in Greece for a little bit. Four days in London and Paris was a good length of time to see everything, but not great for getting used to the daily routine and culture. Anyways, here's a recap of what happened during our last days in Paris:
Tuesday
-Tom Zimmer left early in the morning to head to Scotland, Tom and Craig to Sicily. It was odd to not have them around all day.
-Josh and I lucked out with our hotel rooms. We were supposed to check out of our 3 person room and trade down to a 2 person, but the hotel manager let us stay in our previous room with no extra cost.
-We headed to the train station to go to Versailles. Versailles is in the suburbs of Paris, so it was about an hour train ride.
-Got to Versailles around one and got tickets to the Palace tour. The tour was very cool, but we both thought it probably wasn't worth the 15 euro. We also thought the ticket included the gardens, but we found out that it was extra.
-We paid for the gardens anyways and walked around for a few hours. One of the nicest kept landscaping projects I've ever seen. They were huge. If we were ever to go to Versailles again, we would buy tickets to the garden and not the palace. You still get a good view of the palace from the outside.
-Finally got home around 8:30 after a long and crowded train ride. Reminder to everyone: don't take Metro 4 around 8. It's crazy and it smells really bad.
-Went to bed pretty early and enjoyed my last night in Paris.
Wednesday
-Got up and checked out of the hotel. We are planning on heading to a park to just kill time since we have our luggage in tow.
Stray observations from Paris:
-I'd been told by others that Paris was not a great city because of how snotty the people are. From what I saw in six days, that was completely false. Everyone we interacted with was very friendly, especially the hotel staff.
-I was surprised at how much French I actually remembered from high school. I was able to order food and read signs with no difficulty.
-The leaves fall early here, it almost seems like it's October.
-Hardly any insects around anywhere. We were able to sleep with our window wide open every night and not have to worry about mosquitoes.
-We ate so much bread this week. There were bakeries on every corner selling two foot long baguettes for a euro. It was delicious cheap food.
-Again like London, the streets have no order here. We wouldn't survive without a map. At home I think of our city grid system as boring, but it really is useful. Nowhere here will you find 45th Street followed by 46th Street.
-We figured we walked about ten miles a day. Our quads and calfs are in great shape.
-Made it this far without doing laundry. I think I can survive about three more days.
I'll get settled in my Athens apartment tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have a good internet connection there to blog. If you want to Skype just let me know, I'm sure we can find a time to make it work.
Thanks for following the blog! More to come.
Au revoir, αντίο
Dan
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Monday, August 27, 2012
Paris Days 3 & 4
Bonjour again!
Hard to believe we've only been traveling for a little over a week and it's already coming to a close. Josh and I will be in Paris until Wednesday evening, but Tom, Tom, and Craig head out early tomorrow morning. Here's the highlights of the last two days:
Sunday
-Woke up early to go to the Musee d'Orsay when it opened. The Orsay houses mostly 19th Century artists, with a lot of works from Monet and Van Gough. It was a bit of fresh air and I think we all enjoyed this one a little bit more than the Louvre. The Louvre was cool, but the impressionist paintings in the Orsay were really cool.
-Josh and I left the museum a bit early in order to make the 12:45 mass at Cathedral de Notre Dame. It was a really awesome experience. The mass was all in French, but I was able to keep up with most of it (besides the homily). It was just cool to sit down and marvel at a church that big and that old (built in 1163). Afterwords we enjoyed a crepe on the side of the road and explored the surrounding area.
-The other guys met us at Notre Dame a little later. We then walked through the Latin Quarter, one of the oldest parts of Paris. Stopped at Sorbonne University.
-Walked through the gardens at the Palais du Luxembourg. Really pretty area to relax.
-Walked a long ways to get the river for our boat tour later that night.
-Went on a one hour boat tour along the Seine. Really nice night and it was nice just to sit down for a little bit.
-Took the Metro home.
Monday
-Originally planned to see the Musee de l'Armee, but we were kind of sick of museums at that point and decided to skip it. We instead visited the Pere LaChaise Cemetery. LaChaise is Paris' biggest cemetery and it houses a lot of famous people. We saw, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Jim Morrison, and Frederic Chopin to name a few. It's also an interesting cemetery because there is hardly any grass. Almost every grave is a grand family monument. Here's what I mean:
-Afterwards we took the Metro north to the Monmartre, the biggest hill in Paris. On top of the hill sits the Sacre Coeur, a large cathedral. We spent most of the afternoon exploring the church as well as sitting on the hill and looking over the city
-We explored the area a little bit and found le Moulin Rouge, the famous cabaret.
-Headed back to the hotel early so the guys could get organized for their flight tomorrow
Josh and I have two more days here, we might try and see Versailles tomorrow, then it's off to Athens!
Au Revoir,
Dan
Hard to believe we've only been traveling for a little over a week and it's already coming to a close. Josh and I will be in Paris until Wednesday evening, but Tom, Tom, and Craig head out early tomorrow morning. Here's the highlights of the last two days:
Sunday
-Woke up early to go to the Musee d'Orsay when it opened. The Orsay houses mostly 19th Century artists, with a lot of works from Monet and Van Gough. It was a bit of fresh air and I think we all enjoyed this one a little bit more than the Louvre. The Louvre was cool, but the impressionist paintings in the Orsay were really cool.
-Josh and I left the museum a bit early in order to make the 12:45 mass at Cathedral de Notre Dame. It was a really awesome experience. The mass was all in French, but I was able to keep up with most of it (besides the homily). It was just cool to sit down and marvel at a church that big and that old (built in 1163). Afterwords we enjoyed a crepe on the side of the road and explored the surrounding area.
-The other guys met us at Notre Dame a little later. We then walked through the Latin Quarter, one of the oldest parts of Paris. Stopped at Sorbonne University.
-Walked through the gardens at the Palais du Luxembourg. Really pretty area to relax.
-Walked a long ways to get the river for our boat tour later that night.
-Went on a one hour boat tour along the Seine. Really nice night and it was nice just to sit down for a little bit.
-Took the Metro home.
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| View from our Boat Tour on Bateaux Mouches |
Monday
-Originally planned to see the Musee de l'Armee, but we were kind of sick of museums at that point and decided to skip it. We instead visited the Pere LaChaise Cemetery. LaChaise is Paris' biggest cemetery and it houses a lot of famous people. We saw, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Jim Morrison, and Frederic Chopin to name a few. It's also an interesting cemetery because there is hardly any grass. Almost every grave is a grand family monument. Here's what I mean:
-Afterwards we took the Metro north to the Monmartre, the biggest hill in Paris. On top of the hill sits the Sacre Coeur, a large cathedral. We spent most of the afternoon exploring the church as well as sitting on the hill and looking over the city
-We explored the area a little bit and found le Moulin Rouge, the famous cabaret.
-Headed back to the hotel early so the guys could get organized for their flight tomorrow
Josh and I have two more days here, we might try and see Versailles tomorrow, then it's off to Athens!
Au Revoir,
Dan
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Paris Days 1 & 2
Bonjour! Or technically bon soir, since it is evening here. We've been in Paris for about a day and a half and we're having a great time. Paris has been much more relaxing for us. We are in a hotel instead of a hostel and have been more care free with our schedule. Here are the highlights thus far:
Friday
-Took a train early Friday morning from London. Arrived at the station just in the nick of time. We will leave earlier next time. The train ride was smooth and easy, got to Paris around 11:30
-Took the Metro to our hotel. We originally booked a three bed room. Upon arrival, we decided that was too small and booked a second room. We are much more comfortable now.
-Walked around our neighborhood, discovered some great cheap bakeries
-Took the Metro downtown to the Louvre. Spent time walking through the Jardin des tuileries and along the Seine. Ate a delicious foot long hot dog in a large baguette.
-Got into the Louvre for free after six. Saw basically everything in about four hours. We had to rush through a lot of stuff, you could really spend a week in there. Saw all the major pieces- Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Hammurabi Code, etc. We particularly enjoyed the French and German portraits of the 17th Century on.
-Sat in the park after the Louvre before heading back to our hotel
Saturday
-Decided to have a sleep in and relax day. Slept in until noon and then went and got some baked goods from down the street.
-Took the Metro to the Champs Elysess, Paris' most famous street. Really busy place with lots of shopping
-Walked to l'Arc de Triomphe. A lot bigger in person.
-Walked to the Eiffel Tower and it's surrounding areas. Again, a lot bigger in person.
-Went to Rue Cler market to buy wine, bread, and authentic French cheese.
-Brought our supplies to the park and had a picnic
-Relaxed by the tower, then went to the river and did the same.
-Ate a nice cafe and had some great food. My Croque Madame was delicious.
-Went back to the hotel.
Tomorrow we are planning on Notre Dame, Musee d'Orsay, and a boat tour of Paris.
Au Revoir!
Dan
Friday
-Took a train early Friday morning from London. Arrived at the station just in the nick of time. We will leave earlier next time. The train ride was smooth and easy, got to Paris around 11:30
-Took the Metro to our hotel. We originally booked a three bed room. Upon arrival, we decided that was too small and booked a second room. We are much more comfortable now.
-Walked around our neighborhood, discovered some great cheap bakeries
-Took the Metro downtown to the Louvre. Spent time walking through the Jardin des tuileries and along the Seine. Ate a delicious foot long hot dog in a large baguette.
-Got into the Louvre for free after six. Saw basically everything in about four hours. We had to rush through a lot of stuff, you could really spend a week in there. Saw all the major pieces- Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Hammurabi Code, etc. We particularly enjoyed the French and German portraits of the 17th Century on.
-Sat in the park after the Louvre before heading back to our hotel
Saturday
-Decided to have a sleep in and relax day. Slept in until noon and then went and got some baked goods from down the street.
-Took the Metro to the Champs Elysess, Paris' most famous street. Really busy place with lots of shopping
-Walked to l'Arc de Triomphe. A lot bigger in person.
-Walked to the Eiffel Tower and it's surrounding areas. Again, a lot bigger in person.
-Went to Rue Cler market to buy wine, bread, and authentic French cheese.
-Brought our supplies to the park and had a picnic
-Relaxed by the tower, then went to the river and did the same.
-Ate a nice cafe and had some great food. My Croque Madame was delicious.
-Went back to the hotel.
Tomorrow we are planning on Notre Dame, Musee d'Orsay, and a boat tour of Paris.
Au Revoir!
Dan
Thursday, August 23, 2012
London Wrap-Up
Well it's our last night in London, hard to believe the four days are already gone. We've had a lot of fun in such an awesome city.
Some recap from day 4:
-Woke up extra early to make it to London Tower when it opened. Bought some bread on the way and ate it on the tube for our breakfast. We were all really impressed with the Tower. Basically a giant medieval castle built in 1060 and served as the royal court for over 500 years. Took an awesome tour with a guy named Bob who told us of all the famous executions that took place in the Tower. Spent all morning here.
-Checked out Tower Bridge, we were a little disappointed the olympic rings were not out.
-Walked to St. Paul's Cathedral, the biggest in London. Paid extra money for the self-guided tour, really cool experience. Then climbed 550 steps to the very top of the cathedral dome. Best view of London, although it made us feel a little claustrophobic at the top.
-Walked across Millennium Bridge, took a nap in the park across from Tate Modern Art Museum.
-Craig also saw the Churchill War Rooms, Josh went to Olympic park
-Met back up at the hostel and went to Camden Market for food. Lots of authentic street food and a really cool area.
I'm currently uploading about 75 pictures to my Facebook page. It's easier to upload them there than try to put them on here.
Other random London thoughts:
-The city is a lot more international than I anticipated
-We were some of the few American tourists around, at least from what we saw
-Getting tickets to a West End show was a lot easier and cheaper than going on Broadway
-Overall very friendly people
-Service in restaurants was not the best by American standards, but that just might be the culture here
-Within five minutes of checking in to the hostel, Craig almost got hit by a bus on the street. Guess we weren't used to looking the opposite way when crossing
-Streets here have no sense of order. They go every which way and seem to switch names every block.
-You can find a Pret A Manger and Bella Italia on every block
-Mars Chocolate Malt Milk is delicious, as well as all kinds of Cider drinks
-Our hostel roommates are from Germany. They don't speak much English so we haven't talked much, but they seem nice
-TGI Fridays, almost as good as TOIT (Thank Odin It's Thorsday)
-Zimmer's had some rough luck. Forgot his tennis shoes at home. Debit card got hacked. Lost his digital camera. Still has a positive attitude though.
-Just figured out on the last night that there is a ladder up to the top of my very tall bunk. Three days wasted climbing up the side
-The women here are all very good looking. That is all I will say.
Paris tomorrow!
Au revoir, Dan
Some recap from day 4:
-Woke up extra early to make it to London Tower when it opened. Bought some bread on the way and ate it on the tube for our breakfast. We were all really impressed with the Tower. Basically a giant medieval castle built in 1060 and served as the royal court for over 500 years. Took an awesome tour with a guy named Bob who told us of all the famous executions that took place in the Tower. Spent all morning here.
-Checked out Tower Bridge, we were a little disappointed the olympic rings were not out.
-Walked to St. Paul's Cathedral, the biggest in London. Paid extra money for the self-guided tour, really cool experience. Then climbed 550 steps to the very top of the cathedral dome. Best view of London, although it made us feel a little claustrophobic at the top.
-Walked across Millennium Bridge, took a nap in the park across from Tate Modern Art Museum.
-Craig also saw the Churchill War Rooms, Josh went to Olympic park
-Met back up at the hostel and went to Camden Market for food. Lots of authentic street food and a really cool area.
I'm currently uploading about 75 pictures to my Facebook page. It's easier to upload them there than try to put them on here.
Other random London thoughts:
-The city is a lot more international than I anticipated
-We were some of the few American tourists around, at least from what we saw
-Getting tickets to a West End show was a lot easier and cheaper than going on Broadway
-Overall very friendly people
-Service in restaurants was not the best by American standards, but that just might be the culture here
-Within five minutes of checking in to the hostel, Craig almost got hit by a bus on the street. Guess we weren't used to looking the opposite way when crossing
-Streets here have no sense of order. They go every which way and seem to switch names every block.
-You can find a Pret A Manger and Bella Italia on every block
-Mars Chocolate Malt Milk is delicious, as well as all kinds of Cider drinks
-Our hostel roommates are from Germany. They don't speak much English so we haven't talked much, but they seem nice
-TGI Fridays, almost as good as TOIT (Thank Odin It's Thorsday)
-Zimmer's had some rough luck. Forgot his tennis shoes at home. Debit card got hacked. Lost his digital camera. Still has a positive attitude though.
-Just figured out on the last night that there is a ladder up to the top of my very tall bunk. Three days wasted climbing up the side
-The women here are all very good looking. That is all I will say.
Paris tomorrow!
Au revoir, Dan
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
London Day 2 and 3 Recap
Day 3 in London is officially in the books. The internet here isn't working the best so I'll have to make this brief. Hopefully I'll have more time to do a more complete post later.
Anyways, here's some highlights.
Day 2
-Took the tube to South of the river to the Imperial War Museum. Lots of World War I and II artifacts. Spent about three hours here.
-Headed back across the river to see the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey.
-Walked up St. James Park to Buckingham Palace
-Took tube to Natural History Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum. Quickly walked through the dinosaur exhibit, spend a lot of time at V&A, lots of old artifacts and art. Found a Roman statue that looked exactly like Zimmer.
-Walked to Hyde Park. Sat across from the Royal Albert Hall, walked to Kensington Palace and the Italian Gardens.
-Ate dinner at a grill near Oxford Street.
-Walked to Picadilly Circus, then to Leicester Square, sort of like Times Square in NY. People watched for quite a while.
-Went back to Camden and went to a blues bar to see a band play, then hit the hay
Day 3
-Got up early to go to the British Museum. Spent 3-4 hours on the lower levels, lots to see. Rosetta Stone, ancient Egyptian art and sculpture, ancient Greek and Roman. Basically if anything important happened in history, it was here. Walked to an Italian cafe for lunch and then hit the rest of the floors of the museum after lunch.
-Tom W, Josh, and I split up from Zimmer and Craig. We went to Trafalgar Square and hung out on the monument.
-We got discount tickets for a West End production of Sweeney Todd.
-Went down to a park by the river to relax, then got a bite to eat at a nice restaurant in the West End.
-Went to Sweeney Todd, really great production.
-Took the tube back home.
Tomorrow we are planning to see the Tower of London, St. Paul's Cathedral, and Globe Theater. Off to Paris on Friday. I'll post pictures when I can!
Dan
Anyways, here's some highlights.
Day 2
-Took the tube to South of the river to the Imperial War Museum. Lots of World War I and II artifacts. Spent about three hours here.
-Headed back across the river to see the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey.
-Walked up St. James Park to Buckingham Palace
-Took tube to Natural History Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum. Quickly walked through the dinosaur exhibit, spend a lot of time at V&A, lots of old artifacts and art. Found a Roman statue that looked exactly like Zimmer.
-Walked to Hyde Park. Sat across from the Royal Albert Hall, walked to Kensington Palace and the Italian Gardens.
-Ate dinner at a grill near Oxford Street.
-Walked to Picadilly Circus, then to Leicester Square, sort of like Times Square in NY. People watched for quite a while.
-Went back to Camden and went to a blues bar to see a band play, then hit the hay
Day 3
-Got up early to go to the British Museum. Spent 3-4 hours on the lower levels, lots to see. Rosetta Stone, ancient Egyptian art and sculpture, ancient Greek and Roman. Basically if anything important happened in history, it was here. Walked to an Italian cafe for lunch and then hit the rest of the floors of the museum after lunch.
-Tom W, Josh, and I split up from Zimmer and Craig. We went to Trafalgar Square and hung out on the monument.
-We got discount tickets for a West End production of Sweeney Todd.
-Went down to a park by the river to relax, then got a bite to eat at a nice restaurant in the West End.
-Went to Sweeney Todd, really great production.
-Took the tube back home.
Tomorrow we are planning to see the Tower of London, St. Paul's Cathedral, and Globe Theater. Off to Paris on Friday. I'll post pictures when I can!
Dan
Monday, August 20, 2012
The 36 Hour Day
Greetings from London! We are finally on our way exploring our first European city. Let me tell ya, it's been a long day. Sunday started with a family brunch, a round of golf, and frantic packing to get ready for my 7:30 flight. I was surprised I was able to fit so much into just two small backpacks.
We all met at the airport and said our goodbye's. It was also great to meet up with some college friends heading out to Norway for the next two weeks. We grabbed dinner after we passed security.
The first flight was to Reykjavik, running around 6 hours. Ideally, we would all sleep on this flight to adjust to the upcoming time difference. Easier said than done, especially when IcelandAir has an endless selection of movies and tv shows to watch on your own personal touch screen. I was able to get about half an hour of sleep before the sun came up and we touched down in Iceland.
We were in Reykjavik airport for no longer than fifteen minutes before our plane to London boarded. I quickly paid 750 krona for a sandwich and we were on our way again. All of us were able to sleep a little more, but the flight was only a little more than 2 hours. We touched down in London with no food in our bellies and less than 3 hours of sleep.
We took the Underground into the city from the airport, about an hour ride. I think all of us just about fell asleep on the commute. The train took us to Camden Town, where we will be staying the next four nights. The hostel is very small, but it could be a lot worse. Currently Tom Zimmer, Tom Ward, Josh, and I are sharing a room with 3 Germans, who we have yet to meet. Craig is in a room downstairs with some Spanish girls, lucky him.
 |
| In front of the British Library |
After settling in, we grabbed some lunch at a cafe and then headed to the British Library, which featured many ancient and modern texts. We we're allowed to take pictures in the gallery, but it was really something to behold.
Some highlights included Shakespeare's original plays, Handel's Messiah written out on scratch paper, the Magna Carta, The Gospel of John dating back to the 3rd Century, The first Gutenberg bible, and many famous Beatles songs as they were originally written (mostly on napkins and postcards).
After the museum we trekked back through Camden Town and on to Primrose Hill.
 |
| Camden Town, where we are staying |
 |
| Telephone booth at Primrose Hill |
 |
| The view of London looking from Primrose Hill |
By the time we reached the top of Primrose hill, we were pretty wiped. Josh took a nap on the hill for about an hour, the rest of us just rested. We then went down the hill into Regents Park and into Queen Mary's Gardens. The gardens were huge and very neatly kept.
 |
| Craig enjoying the gardens |
 |
| Fountain at the gardens |
 |
| Stopping to smell the roses |
After a lot of walking (7.2 miles calculated), we headed back to our hostel. Being up for 36 straight hours with jet lag is tough on the body. We ate dinner and had a beer at the local bar before heading off to bed early.
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| Tom and Josh enjoy a brew after a long day |
Whew, that's a lot of writing for one day. I may not have time to do this every travel day, but I thought I'd put the effort in since it was the first day. We'll be in London for three more days, still lots to see!
Cheers,
Dan
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Almost There- An Overview
August 16, three days before departure. I have yet to start packing, but I am ready to go. I wanted to get this blog up and running before I left. This will be a good way of seeing what I'm up to abroad, and I will try to update it frequently.
Here's just an overview of the trip:
August 19th- Depart from Minneapolis
August 20th-29th- London and Paris with high school friends Tom Ward, Craig Larsen, Josh Lindquist, and Tom Zimmer
August 30th-Mid October- Athens with students from CSB/SJU
Mid October-December 15th- Rome with students from CSB/SJU
Return home December 15th.
I'm sure there will be random travels throughout the semester. The next post will hopefully find me on European soil.
αντίο φίλους!
Dan
Here's just an overview of the trip:
August 19th- Depart from Minneapolis
August 20th-29th- London and Paris with high school friends Tom Ward, Craig Larsen, Josh Lindquist, and Tom Zimmer
August 30th-Mid October- Athens with students from CSB/SJU
Mid October-December 15th- Rome with students from CSB/SJU
Return home December 15th.
I'm sure there will be random travels throughout the semester. The next post will hopefully find me on European soil.
αντίο φίλους!
Dan
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