The Pacific Crest Trail

I believe that life was created to live, not just to get by, or make money, or be complacent or comfortable. We, as human beings were made to push ourselves - so that is exactly what I am doing. Again.

My awesome, attractive, goofy, firefighter/wilderness God of a boyfriend has inspired me to take on the challenge of the Pacific Crest Trail. For those of you who have never heard of the PCT, it is a fantastically challenging trip of a lifetime in which Mark and I will hike over 2,660 miles stretching from the California-Mexico border to Manning Park (across the border into Canada).

The trip is sectioned off into about 5 months worth of hiking, and is the longest established trail in the world. During those months, the climate, terrain, and will power will vary from scorching hot to blisteringly cold, wet, and icy. We try to keep things interesting.

And so, I embark on a crazy journey (again) and leave my job and comfort behind (again) to explore yet another part of the world we live in. I am very excited, and am looking forward to sharing will all of you the ups and downs of my trip! Hopefully, a little bit more thoroughly than last time.

SOME IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION:

Since my boyfriend and I are doing a couples hike, we are creating a couples blog called Hiker Trash at its Finest.

• It can be conveniently found at hikertrashatitsfinest.blogspot.com
• The new blog will be geared towards a more technical description of how hiking the PCT works.
• I still plan on writing here, but most of my posts will be on the hiker trash blog.
• Also, Mark will be a co-author on the new blog, so you'll get a different perspective than you do here! After all, life is nothing but the perspective that you're looking at it with.

And with that, I leave now to begin this crazy adventure. I appreciate your patience with this blog and Hiker Trash, and am looking forward to sharing everything!

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Ask away.

-A

Adventure Never Sleeps

To start, I greatly apologize to all my readers who thought that I was raped and killed in Europe because I stopped posting. My incredibly lame excuse for that is that I fell ill after too many beers and too much fun, ending up in the hospital in Amsterdam. No serious problems (thanks for caring), but that combined with lack of decent internet was too much for me.

On a brighter, more interesting note, I will give you a 3 second run down on what has happened of the last few months:

(Extremely Brief) Europe Overview:

• 11 different countries 
• Met some amazing people along the way (as was expected)
• Favorite country: Portugal
• Favorite city: Amsterdam (no, I did not smoke or hire a talented female escort - even though that is what you are supposed to do)
• Questions? Ask away. I'm too distracted at the moment to add anything else.
• Oh, highly recommend to anyone - I felt completely empowered and self sufficient
• NO, I received no donations or funding from anyone but myself - yay self-sufficiency!

Life Overview: (main points only)

• Am lucky enough to have found an amazing boyfriend, Mark
• Quit my management position at Beanscene
• Decided spontaneously to hike the Pacific Crest Trail

And with that said, I would like to introduce my newest and greatest adventure yet: The Pacific Crest Trail. I have renewed enthusiasm for blogging and have a boyfriend to push me when I need a little extra umph.

Stay tuned!

-A

My Adopted City

I have talked to several people who mentioned having adopted cities around the world - you know, home away from home cities that really grab you and hold on for dear life. I have always wanted to learn Portuguese but never had any reason to until now, so I am officially adoption Porto, Portugal (and Portugal as a country in general).

Nothing in particular was incredibly spectacular, but maybe that's why I liked it so much. It was a normal city, with locals and culture and fantastic food and silly traditions like all countries and cities (should) have. The hostel I stayed in (Yes! Porto Hostel) was incredible and I met several older (27-32) friends there who openly shared their adventures and languages with me. My room had an amazing view or the city center and gave free shots to the guests at 11pm!

The city itself was wonderful as well. I went on two free walking tours with the same guide and feel like I really saw the center in the two days I was there. I attended a Porto football game (soccer for all you Americans) and supported the locals, ate traditional food, went Port wine tasting, bought pastries at the best bakery in the city, and more. I loved it. I love the language, the people, the relaxed atmosphere - I am already planning my trip back!

Quick note: night life was good but not as good as Barcelona, but I had more friends in Spain which probably added to that. Currently in historical and fantastic Roma, Italia! Met a lovely French friend, Michael, and had drinks with my waiter from dinner last night who kept giving me free Lemoncello shots and drew a whipped cream heart on my tiramisu. Oh Italians... They are just as bad as I expected. More updates later!!

-A

Catch Up Time - Barcelona, Spain

Ahhh, beautiful Barcelona. So it is true - everything that I heard about Barcelona is true. It is absolutely fantastic and I now plan and staying for an extended period of time (maybe 6 months?) to learn Spanish and embrace their culture. I am disappointed that I did not get the chance to visit elsewhere in Spain, but maybe that is a good thing. I probably wouldn't ever leave...

I met a few really wonderful people durring my stay there including Ina, my fellow teanager (19), and Zach, a scary tattooed Canadian (secretly a big teady bear). My favorite part about Barcelona - besides the obvious architecture, culture, beaches, etc. - were the people I spent time with. My hostel is an infamous party place where the staff are just as involved with pub crawls and outings as the guests are. We ended up becoming very close - it was probably the booze, actually - and I plan on meeting up with them durring my travels!

Just to give you a visual, imagine walking down small pedestrian outdoor corridors to the beach, drinking cold beer and cider, hair being blown by the wind and kissed with the salty air. Picture getting lost in the local markets full to the brim with produce and eating gelato in the park. And then... The night life. Pub Crawling is a great way to see the local hang outs. It usually consists of  3 bars and a club, somtimes including free drinks or shots. Meet locals, and if your lucky you will get to watch a stripper dance in a giant martini glass full of water!

Quickly worth mentioning is the notorious shots bar around the corner. It offers 600 completely original shots ranging from the "Boy Scout" ( involves roasting a marshmello over flaming alcohol - my favorite) to "Exorcist" (involving a horribly mysterious mixture that I refused to try). Great atmosphere, although it gets pretty crazy and packed the closer you get to midnight.

I can't wait to visit again and see everything I didn't get a chance to see! Four days was definately not enough time to really experience the sites and absorbe the crowd.

Back for more soon,
-A

Communicating With the French Police

I apologize for being out of contact for the last few days (it seems like a blink of an eye to me, but it probably feels a lot longer for all my adoring fans back home). I will say that it was not my fault - the blame belongs to the French police and the jerks who stole my phone in the metro station. Let me debrief you:

So here I was, minding my own business, trying to get my shit together in the main metro station in Lyon, France. I was approached by four boys (and I do mean boys... the youngest was about 7) and was asked if I wanted to buy a metro ticket from them. I said no, because it was obviously a used ticket, and turned to buy my own, and then BAM - the youngest snatched my phone from my pocket and they were gone before I could turn around. Long story short, a woman called the cops and I was stuck in the police station trying to explain what happened (which I didn´t see) to French police men (who did not speak more than a word of English).

And now I know why French police men are so loved and respected by their people (sarcasm). Any who, I´ll give a quick update on what else has happened. I met a wonderful French/English man in Thonon-les-Bains, France - he was getting tattooed at the same time as me, and we bonded over our mutual pain. He is lovely and kind and proves that all French stereotypes have exceptions - so thank you Chris for making France worth every second of inconvenience that I did experience.

In other news, I stayed with a wonderful couple in Lyon. Mostly, I recovered from my sour first experience while in Lyon, but they walked me around and showed me a good time with their friends later on. I can´t wait to go back and truly experience Lyon! Old town is beautiful there, and I ate the best meal of my whole trip while there (including snail, which isn´t nearly as bad at you would think it is). 

Currently, I am in beautiful Barcelona, and there is a good chance I will never leave! That´s for a new post though. Ciao!

-A

Bucket List

Like many celebrated holidays, I don't see the point of Valentine's Day. No mater what, I end up being alone, whether I am currently single, dating, or in a relationship (frankly I'm not sure what I am right now) it doesn't matter. So, instead of celebrating this meaningless holiday that supports wasteful habits and consumerism, I am permanently reminding myself that life takes you where it wants to - whether you succeed or not depends on your ability to ride the waves so to speak. Today is the day that I will be tattooed by one of my favorite artists: Xoil (Loic) in Thonon-les-Bains, France at Needles Side Tattoo!

I am both nervous and excited - mostly nervous because I have no idea what my tattoo looks like, how long it will take, or how much it will cost. I'm being spontaneous,  I guess.

In other news, I see the mail truck outside, hopefully with my Eurorail Pass! And I have been thinking a lot these last few days about my life and what I want to accomplish, so I started a bucket list:

Amanda's Bucket List:

• Visit 30 countries by the time I'm 25
• Work with/train elephants in Sri Lanka or elsewhere in Asia
• Work with wildlife conservation through www.projects-abroad.co.uk
• Volunteer in an orphanage
• Get my Master Diving Certification
• Get my Paragliding Certification
• Do research in Antarctica
• Swim in the Red Sea
• Swim with great white sharks
• Touch a whale in the wild
• Hike to Base Camp (at least) on Mt. Everest
• Through-hike the PCT
• Learn 3 foreign languages

And so, with that I leave you. I will be sure to post pictures of my masterpiece when it is finished. Off to get tatted!

-A

P.S. Happy Valentine's Day to all those lucky couples who get to be with eachother today.

PICTURES!

Everyone, my lovely room mate Peter is letting me borrow his computer so that I can start to catch up on picture posting. Hang in there, and soon all the pictures will be up! yay!

A little piece of Heaven

On a personal note:

I stepped of the train into the small town of Interlaken, Switzerland a few days ago - having had a terrible day consisting of losing money, missing trains, and much more - and all my qualms and complaints were wiped clean away. The beauty of this quite city at 1 am astounded me and I much enjoyed my short walk through the light snow to my hostel.

I have been here now for 4 days or so with the intention of doing some awesome extreme sports like sky diving and bungee jumping, but have yet to do any of them. The weather here in Interlaken has been unceasingly snowy and cold, preventing any decent visibility. So I have opted to stay mostly inside of my hostel, relaxing and watching movies, going for short walks in the snow and cooking meals to save some extra money (still a good trip if you ask me...). Tomorrow, Saturday, is supposed to clear up and I might actually get a nice hike or crazy adventure in!

Meanwhile, I thought I would update all of you on where I am planning on going in my last month or so of traveling, so here is a very rough tentative schedule. If you or anyone you know has an available couch or floor, I would gladly trade a piece of art or pan of brownies for a roof! The more locals I can stay with, the better!

Amanda's Schedule:

• Interlaken, Switzerland
• Bern, Switzerland - Feb. 11th
• Geneva, Switzerland - Feb. 12th
• Thonon-les-Bains, France - Feb. 13th
• Lyon, France - Feb. 15th
• Barcelona, Spain - Feb. 17th
• Madrid, Spain/Porto, Portugal - Feb. 20th
• Lisbon, Portugal - Feb. 22nd
• Rome, Italy - Feb. 23rd
• Florence, Italy/ Verona, Italy - Feb. 27th
• Vienna, Italy - Mar. 1st
• Austria (not sure where yet...)
• Prague, Czech Republic - Mar. 4th
• Berlin, Germany - Mar. 6th
• London, England - Mar. 9th
• Frankfurt, Germany - Mar. 12th

Any questions? Going to be in the area? Want to meet me somewhere? Comment and let me know!

With a coffee in my hand - Cheers!
-A

Paris - Off the Beaten Path

Not only did I see all the obnoxious tourist sites in Paris, I tried my best to also check out some of the local hangouts and more culture-filled parts of the city. In doing so, I fell in love with Montmartre, a district (sort of recently adopted into the city of Paris) where famous painters, authors, and artists holed up in their studios working on some of the most famous works of art in history. It doesn't need to be said that this was right up my alley.

Montmartre Tour:

        The amazing people of Culturefish! Tours also had a free tour of the Montmartre district - just as full of history, fun facts, and cultural habits of the French as the last tour. Honestly,. I don't think my stay in Paris would have been as lovely as it was without the amazing Pierre. Despite us both (Pierre and I) being sick as dogs, coughing up a storm, we handled the cold just fine and spent three wonderful hours exploring the beautiful narrow cobblestone alleys and windmills that the artist found so inspiring. I felt like whipping out my canvas and paintbrush and joining the crowd! We also passed by the Montmartre Museum (didn't go inside, but it has a wonderful amount of history attached to it) and a few breathtaking cathedrals with views of the entire city. I could write pages about all I saw and loved in Montmartre - the street artists, the only vineyards left in Paris, Van Gogh's old apartment - but I would go on forever. One thing you may have heard of though is Moulin Rouge, the famous cabaret in Paris where some of the best dancers from all over the world came to dance at (Oh and there was that movie about it in 2001 with Nicole Kidman...) I did not attend a show unfortunately, it was rediculously over priced and I heard the food wasn't that great.

I also wanted to take a second to mention a few things I did not get a chance to explore in Paris. One being an awesome street art tour of the city (either by foot or on bike) recommended by Culturefish! Tours, and another being the Catacombs -  an underground tomb holding the remains of nearly 6 million people. I will most certainly be back in Paris to do these and  more - there is an old myth that says if you turn 360 degrees in a circle over the center of Paris, you will be back in the city within 7 years of doing so (which I did before I left.).

Ciao for now, more on Switzerland coming up next!

-A

Finding Myself in Paris

Ah, Paris. So much history and passion is wrapped up in this city and its people. It has become the iconic city of France, representing French value, culture, cuisine and more - finally I have experienced Paris, France for myself. I decided to prepare myself by starting with a walking tour hosted by Culturefish! Tours - a tour company started by three American-born siblings who grew up with a French mother and decided to share their passion for culture clash and history together in Paris (Check them out at www.culturefishtours.com).

Walking Tour of Paris:

        Our walking tour covered the most substantial parts of Paris (within reasonable walking distance of each other - sorry no Eiffel Tower!) in roughly 3 - 3.5 hours, with the only downside to this being that it is all outdoors (which happens to be cold in winter...) and there are no restroom or snack breaks. The tour is completely free with the guides working only on tips - a "pay what you think it was worth" system. Some sites we saw (the outside of) included Notre Dame, the Lock Bridge, the Louvre, City Hall and several other cathedrals and statues along the way. The most interesting part, I must say, would have to be the cultural tips that my guide, Pierre, provided. As a part of their tour they help tourists understand the important, though sometimes subtle, actions that sometimes lead to culture clash and generalizations about the French. Noted: running into people on the streets is not rude, but talking loudly is extraordinarily rude in public.

Museums:

        So, apparently the first Sunday of every month is Free Museum Day, which landed perfectly in the middle of my time in London. Taking advantage of no admission charges, I visited all the museums on my list: The Louvre, The d`Orsay, and Centre Pompidou.

        The most impressive thing about the Louvre was the sheer size of it. If you spent 60 seconds in front of everything in there, you would spend over 5 years in the museum (not including bathroom and snack breaks). My method was to simply pick a few things I wanted to see and go from there. I loved the statue wing and of course saw the Mona Lisa (she is definitely smiling). If you check out the museum for yourself, don`t forget to look up - the ceilings and architecture of the building itself are a work of art!

        The d`Orsay (no photography) was my favorite of the museums in Paris, and one of my favorites in Europe. Though still massive, you are able to see it in a day, unlike the Louvre. The museum holds everything from statues to paintings to artifacts from hundreds of years ago to modern times - my favorite (go figure) is the very nice collection of Van Gogh paintings upstairs. I walked through that section at least three times (it is very crowded, consider yourself warned) and could have sat in there all day!

        The Pompidou was very interesting (being a modern art museum) but I really enjoyed walking through it. They have two parts, a permanent collection wing and a featured artist wing (I went only to the permanent collection, but Dali was featured in the other and it looked like a wonderful exhibit). The building itself is a work of modern art with all the guts of the building (water lines, air conditioning, etc.) being on the outside of the building, painted and color coded, while the inside remains clean, white and open - fantastic! Pictures cannot do it justice.

Versailles:

        On my last day in Paris, I decided it was worth the 28 euros to take a guided tour of the Palace Versailles - and it absolutely was. Originally I thought that it was throughout the whole palace, but when I arrived I found that it was only through the gardens (which are massive enough). My lovely guide Onno took us through a nice chunk of the miles and miles of garden that good old King Louie thought was necessary to show off his wealth and power. Getting the historical background of the grounds and palace was wonderful, and I am beginning to connect all the history I have learned about throughout Europe - very cool! If you get a chance to go, I absolutely would (though the cafe is overpriced and it is 15 euros to get into the palace, and twice as expensive to visit in the summer when the fountains are on). Check out the pictures (coming soon...)

-A

Ghent, Belgium

Although I only spent part of a day here in Ghent (Gent), my trip was made very special and extra enjoyable by the lovely Lisa, a local who introduced herself on the train there.

Mostly, my trip to Ghent consisted of walking around the main part of town, which is very cozy and friendly, and Lisa pointing out the pest places to eat, drink, and just soak in the beauty. There were narrow cobblestone streets lined with old stone buildings covered in ivy. We walked through the popular street art alley where anyone is welcome to show their spray painting talents off.

We also stopped at a wonderful little chocolate cafe, unique (of course) to Ghent, where they served everything from chocolate brownies to chocolate milk, coffee, and liqueur. I enjoyed a chocolate coffee (or mocha for all my fellow coffee shop go-ers) and a brownie - some of the best chocolate goods I have ever had! Another (interesting) treat I had in Ghent were the best fries in all of Belgium. Did you know that "French Fries" are not French at all? They are actually originally from Belgium, and so natually it was necessary that I tried them the locals way with brown sauce (basically gravy made from a cornicopia of meat drippings) and mayonaise (which normally I despise, but it was actually not as horrible as in the States).

Other fun things I did besides walking around and enjoying the city were visiting the castle (which I did not go in because it technically is not a real castle... shhh) and taking a look through the modern art museum (S.M.A.C. standing for who knows what...). The museum was very interesting... as most modern museums are. One of my favorite pieces was a massive piece of linnen, probably the size of a football field, covered in blue ball point pen scribbles. Talk about getting the creative juices flowing!

I appologize for the delayed posting again, but I will be catching up A.S.A.P.! Thank you for your understanding. Peace and love,

-A

Bruxelles, Belgium

I have at this point moved on from my stay in Brussels, but as I reflect upon what was there, I am slightly dissapointed at myself for not exploring more durring my stay. Perhaps I compared it too much to the fabulous Edinburgh, Scotland. Maybe getting into the city late in the day tainted my view - either way I am sure Brussels has more to offer than what I experienced (not to say that I didn't enjoy my stay). Location wise, I was not exactly in an ideal place to enjoy downtown, so I definitely recommend staying as close to the main city center as possible.

Actually, I found myself wandering around a lot, probably because it was the first truely foreign country I have been to alone (everyone speaks french/dutch and they have an entirely different culture). It was certainly rich in culture and that became apparent when in the town centre. Here's the good things I saw:

Musée des Instruments de Musique:
        Right in the middle of the museum square downtown is a really interesting musical instruments museum. I had been recommended this by the company Use-It (geared toward free/affordable youth tourism - check them out at www.use-it.travel) and was not at all expecting what was inside. The tour comes with a free audio guide and as you walk around looking at the thousands of different instruments, it automatically plays music played by the instrument infront of you! I had never experienced such a thing, and was really impressed by how high-tech everything was.

Musée Margritte: (no photography, but I snuck a few)
        This was by far my favorite museum in Belgium, and probably my favorite museum in Europe so far. Dedicated to famous contemporary artist René Margritte (reh-neh mahr-greet), this museum holds the largest personal collection of paintings done by Margritte, aswell as a full history of his life and accomplishments. Having not been very familiar with him, I was reluctant about going at first, but for a very reasonable €2 it was worst every bit. I even bought a book from the gift shop (which typically is against everything I stand for), and so with that, I leave you to google more of his artwork and see for yourself.

Chocolate Square and the Chocolate Museum:
        For everyones information, the Chocolate Museum is not located in Chocolate Square... Easily missed (and I can see why) is the Chocolate Museum in Brussels which in my mind is not worth the Euros I paid for it. The museum gives a full historical backround on the cocao bean and chocolate as a whole, as well as a chocolate making demonstration (which I missed) and a chocolate sampling (which was pretty delicious) Available for purchase are overpriced chocolate bars and other paraphernalia. Chocolate Square got its nickname through being the home of every gourmet Belgian chocolate shop you can think of (and then some). Its located mjust down from museum square and is a real pleasure to walk around in, although I did not purchase any chocolate because the prices were absurd. If you have the money, I recommend it, but being on a backpacker budget that was out of the question.

Manneken Pis:
        The famous statue of a boy doing his business - not the best thing but a must see if in Brussels. There are also rumors that they now have a female version and a dog version somewhere in the city!

There were plenty of other good things about the city, but thays for you to find out when you are on your own trip! Questions? Comments? Write to me below!

-A

Edinburgh by Night

Over my first day or so, I really didn't expect much as far as night life in Edinburgh due to the quaint, historic architecture - Not the case. I happened to get to Scotland just as Burns Day (January 25th)  and Australia Day (January 26th)were in full swing, solidifying the fact that Scots will look for an excuse to drink whisky and beer (even if it isn't relevant to their country or people...).

Burns Day:

         Personally, I had no idea that Burns Day even existed until I got to Edinburgh Castle, and so I celebrated (a bit later than most) with whisky sampling, and later on, with a couple locally brewed beers. One thing I did notice were the random posters and signs written in traditional Scots (like this: A'd like tae veesit Scotland ae day.) Although most of the time, I couldn't understand what the signs were trying to communicate to me, I appreciate the throw back to ye old days.

Australia Day:

         Australia Day happens to fall on the day directly after Burns Day, and I found that many locals (and the Australians) tend to just keep drinking right through both days. That isn't exactly my preferred method of celebration, but hey, you only live once, right? After taking a rest and recoup break, I joined in the early afternoon with a few beers after my tour. Nothing like Bangers and Mash and a cold local beer after three hours of walking! Once the evening came, that's when the real fun started... look for my adventures in the Pubs and Clubs section!

Ghost Tour:

         There are options that don't involve alcohol in Edinburgh, although they're not as easy to find. I did, however, go on a great "scary" tour of the city, lead by good old James from earlier, which went through the darker side of the city's history. It involved ghosts and graveyards, witches and mythical creatures, murder and cannibalism and more. It didn't shake me out of my boots, but it was still very interesting and fun! This tour however is not free, but a pint is included in the ticket price (of course..), and there is also a Pub Crawl offered by the same company that is supposed to be awesome! On my to do list for next time.

Pubs and Clubs:

        I had some great experienced in pubs in Edinburgh! This is where the life of the city is, and you get to see so much of their culture pub hopping. Centred around alcohol, you can get a bit fuzzy toward the end of the night though. Clubs here close at 3am (very different than 12am in London) and the party keeps coming until then and after! It was a pub that I tried my first Haggis with my new friends and room mates - to my surprise it was actually really good (coming from an ex-vegetarian that means a lot). On Australia day, we decided to go check out the music scene and stopped in a few places with live music and cheap beer, and after some great (and not so great) pubs we hit a club called The Liquid Room, filled with people dancing and drinking and enjoying the night. One of my favourite night time hang outs now!

Any questions or if you would like further reviews of certain places, comment below and I'll do my best to help out!

-A

Edinburgh By Day

This is dedicated to all the beautiful sites I saw while in Edinburgh, and there are lost of them!

Edinburgh Castle:

        Edinburgh Castle was the first site I saw (considering that it had been staring me in the face as soon as I arrived at my hostel). Although there is a charge for admission, it was definitely worth the few pounds I paid. Once inside, I learned that there were free whisky and haggis sampling in honour of Burns Day (a celebratory day in Scotland commemorating poet Robert Burns) - a good start if I may say so myself. Also provided by the castle are free outdoor walking tours of the grounds, which I participated in (even though it was below freezing and snowing outside) and very much enjoyed. Sending love and thanks to my guide, Laura! Something to check out while in the castle is The National War Museum - very interesting collection of Scottish history.

National Museum of Scotland:

        I briefly walked though this very odd museum on my first night in Edinburgh, and it certainly left an interesting taste in my mouth. The museum itself is really fantastic, don't get me wrong, but the exhibits seem to be a bit thrown together and disorganized. The museum is very modern in comparison to the surrounding buildings, and stands out as something new and exciting. Particularly, I liked the exhibit on space and the animal kingdom, but there are many more viewing options ranging from the evolution of phones to ancient Asian war tactics.

Historic Walking Tour:

        Sandeman's tour company has been kind enough to set up a free historical walking tour of Old Town Edinburgh, readily available in the centre of town to all who wish to join. My tour guide, James, made the three hours (outdoors of course) incredible enjoyable - in fact I went back later that day to check out the Ghost Tour he was hosting. The walking tour takes you on a journey past the touristy sites, but also down more local streets such as Victoria St. and Grassmarket. Overall a lovely tour with lovely company - I highly suggest checking it out, plus it's free!

St. Giles' Cathedral:

        Although my visit to the cathedral was fairly quick, it didn't take away from the beauty of the building whatsoever. On my walking tour, James mentioned that this cathedral (which, in fact, isn't actually a cathedral... the Scots just liked the name) houses one of only three angels playing the bagpipes. The main reason for going into the cathedral was to find said angel, but unfortunately I didn't look hard enough!  If anyone finds the angel, feel free to post a picture in a comment! I'm dying to see.

The Elephant House:

        Many of you probably don't care about one little café surrounded by hundreds more in Old Town Edinburgh, but think again before passing this up. Famous author J.K. Rowling of the Harry Potter series was known to sit by the window in this lovely place for hours in order to write in peace and save on her heating bill at home! I thought that is was worth checking out and ordered a delicious pesto panini and bowl of soup, and proceeded to sit in the same spot as Rowling, pondering whether I should write a book (yeah right...). The Elephant House even provides paper and pens in the drawers of the tables in case your writers block spontaneously subsides.

Also checked out The Scots Monument and climbed all 200+ steps to the top. Victoria Street is full of cosy shops, vintage clothing, second hand book stores, etc. I walked down The Royal Mile and climbed to the top of Arthur's Seat, only to get rained on the entire walk back (but it was still a great view!). I looked at Holyrood Palace and the Parliament building (also very modern) from the outside in because the cost of entering was ridiculous, and so much more!

Pictures to come... still haven't found a USB port!

-A

A'd like tae veesit Scotland ae day.

dssssls

After being in Scotland for over twenty four hours, I have decided that it would be to my benefit to learn some Scottish phrases, because frankly the dialect hear is absolutely insane (in an awesome type way). Before I jump right in to the sites, I would like to do a quick review of my hostel for all of you who plan on visiting Edinburgh, Scotland.

Castle Rock Hostel:

Location, location, location:

        As most of you are familiar with, it's very important to find accommodations in a relatively "happenin" area of town (especially for the young ones out there). I believe that being directly across the street from one of the top attractions in the city qualifies as a good location. Edinburgh Castle is but the beginning of a long list which includes popular pubs, clubs, shopping, museums and more.

Staff and Accommodations:

       As soon as I walked in, the lovely girl at the front desk was very helpful and full of friendly, welcoming smiles. Turns out that a lot of the staff live in the hostel and work for their accommodations, so most know their way around pretty well. Provided for you are great lockers and safes in the room as well as breakfast, towels, and pretty much anything else you need for a minimal cost.

Company:

        I met some really wonderful people during my stay in Edinburgh and all of them stemmed from the hostel. My 6 new American room mates from Boston were all really nice and soon became good. Friends of mine! While pulling an all nighter on Australia Day I also met a dashing young New Zealander who sang me love songs all night and several Italians and South Americans who were equally good company. Tip: stay up until 5am and you'll know who hangs out in the lounge pretty well.

Parliament Square

Hello all,

These following events are a few days old, I just haven't had a chance to post them yet. I am currently in Edinburgh, Scotland, but I should probably finish up with London before I even get started on that! (I just got in today. Don't worry, you aren't missing too much.

Westminster Abbey: (no photography allowed)
        No picture in the world can prepare you for the incredible beauty that exists within this church. I am terribly disappointed that they did not allow photography in most of the church, which means you all must go see it in person (if you haven't already.) When you walk in, it's like nothing else in the world exists. Only you. Well, and of course all the dead royalty. Included in the ticket price is a free audio guided tour, which I decided to participate in, and it made the experience that much better! Walking around not knowing who's who can be very intimidating - with the audio guide I immediately flash back to 10th grade World History 101. Even if I didn't particularly like history, it was absolutely incredible being in such an ancient, holy place. Utterly surreal.

The House of Parliament:
        Now, I didn't actually go into the parliament building, particularly because the ticket was expensive and the line was really long - it was cold outside, can you blame me? I did however get some pretty awesome pictures of the fantastic architecture outside! I also finally saw Big Ben (that has been on my list for quite some time), and the day I went was the clearest day all week in London. (FYI: there is Persian rave music playing in the other room. Just so you all can visualize where I'm at... okay and now the Wicked soundtrack. Interesting.)

The London Eye:
        Everyone that I talked to before I left told me that I MUST go to the Eye. For once, I listened! It was very cool being up so high. I could see from a completely different perspective what I saw from the ground! However, there was a few people in the bubble with me that were talking rather obnoxiously in Italian to everyone in their contacts list. So that was fun, but other than that I really did enjoy it. Not as breathtaking as Westminster Abbey, but still worth going on!

The Tower of London:
        Okay, this was one of the sites I didn't have my heart set on seeing, but it ended up being one of my favorites. Similar to Parliament Square, this building had a whole lot of history attached to it. You stand in the place that the Prince was murdered in, and look at the same gate that those who committed treason were brought through to be sentenced. Call me dark, but that is pretty damn cool. Plus, the Tower of London  is where the Crown Jewels are held. Though very crowded, I almost peed my pants of excitement when I saw the Imperial State Crown (no photography allowed, unfortunately).

And that my friends pretty much wraps up all that I did in London. If you every go see for yourself, I highly recommend all that I saw, as well as King's Street (my favorite of all the shopping I did... which isn't much.). Shout out to my mate Bryan Sammis and his band The Neighbourhood. I got the privilege of catching up with him a bit before he left - have an awesome show tonight Mr. Sammis!

Rock on Earthlings.
-A

The Royal Treatment

All of my days are beginning to blend together here in London, and it is getting to the point where all I remember is where I've been, but not in which order! This post, therefore, will be dedicated to the royal grounds I have seen in England...

Hampton Court Palace:

        On Sunday (I'm pretty sure...), my sister, brother-in-law and I all went on a local outing. We had originally planned to head to Oxford and fawn over the countryside, but unfortunatly weather conditions did not permit. We did however find great pleasure in learning about good old Henry VIII's past. Hampton Court Palace is beautifully located on the outskirts of London, and was home to King Henry VIII and his 6 wives (not all at the same time). Of the wives, two were beheaded, two divorced, one died in childbirth, and the last widowed.

        We walked through the halls, rooms, apartments, kitchens and everything in between on our visit. Sadly, the Maze and the Gardens were closed due to snowfall, but that gives me something to see the next time around!

Odd wooden people were placed in the courtyard for "effect"

View through the gates into part of the garden

The royal "do not disturb room," as I like to call it.

The Royal Throne

Buckingham Palace: (no public entry) 

        Monday I was all by myself again and decided to go explore the Queen's side of town. Luckily, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and it was a perfect day for walking (although maybe not in my leather boots that I wore...). So I did, and this is what I saw:

Green Park

Gates of Buckingham Palace 

Victoria's Memorial

And so, with that I leave you tonight. More tomorrow.

-A