And now Budapest...

Hi all, Villach was wonderful. I had a very restful time with cousin Kath, Stefan and baby Maike. Sightseeing wasn't a priority but I did get to see around the area and enjoy the scenery. It is postcard Austria with lovely little houses dotted around all with flowerboxes that are overflowing with colourful flowers. While I was here I also backed up all my photos. Thank you to some of you for your offers of coloured pencils to capture the lost images but I think that any attempts might not necessarily capture the detail - I am more comfortable in the post modern (read unintelligible) genre than anything resembling realism. Also thank you for the suggestion that I change my blog name to 'what kim lost next' but I am hoping to not make this a habit.

I arrived in Budapest yesterday evening. It is a wonderful city but I think the highlight has definitely been seeing Eszter and Gabor again and meeting their daughters Hanna and Gerda. I have loved spending time with them and the girls certainly seem intrigued with someone who doesn't speak Hungarian. Today I went on the hop on hop off bus (or 'look at me - I'm a tourist' bus) which is actually a great way of getting an overview of the city. I met some lovely germans who adopted me for the boat trip afterwards. I will go back into the city tomorrow to see some more things but I have to be careful because I am on the verge of getting travel fatigue. I am not complaining about this because everything is going well but I think Turkey will be pretty full on and I don't want to get too exhausted to enjoy it.

After two weeks in Turkey (I will try and email during the trip but it might be tricky) I will go to London. Thanks to Kath, I now have my hawks scarf and will be able to wear it proudly come September. Sorry Kristina - I technically didn't pack it because someone brought it over for me. While I am in Turkey I will need someone to text me the results so I don't care who but someone needs to step up (I am thinking a Thorn might need to do this for me...)

I have just found the exclamation mark on this keyboard! Hooray - now I can properly show my enthusiasm! I know I overuse it but I think perhaps it's ok given the circumstances. I hope everyone is well and that the Melbourne weather (for those in Melbourne) is warming up a bit for you. Keep up the emails - it's great to hear your news and what you have all been up to. Kim

Prague to Vienna to Villach - the best and worst of times

Hi all, I have realised that some people are actually reading this blog so I should be a little better at updating it. Prague was my longest stint in any place but definitely by choice. The city is beautiful and has avoided becoming too touristy even though it is overrun by tourists. There are so many people there and you do get used to it but when I saw the Charles Bridge early one morning without as many tourists I realised how crowded it really is! Prague was a bit of a revolving door for friends! I said goodbye to Robyn and then Pam, Graeme and Kath arrived! We did some exploring and then Steph arrived! What was nice was that I did different things with everyone.

The Jewish quarter was interesting and very moving. I went to the palace with Pam, Greame and Kath and that was different again but this is when disaster struck (hence the title - "the worst of times") because I accidentally deleted ALL of my photos. The only photos I have of my first month are the ones I downloaded for my blog. I avoided the meltdown phase and when straight to disappointment (Pam, Graeme and Kath can vouch for this!) and now am in the philosophical phase of coping with this. I went back to my diary and wrote in more detail to help me remember things and they are just photos. I have been learning about the the jews in Prague who lost everything and how everyone suffered under communism and me losing some photos doesn't seem quite as dramatic.

I was going to stay in Prague Saturday night and then catch the train to Villach via Vienna on Sunday but eight nights in Prague felt like enough. I sent a text to a friend I met in Prague (hi Nic - I told you I would put you in the blog!) who said she would be in Vienna as well so that sealed the deal. We had a great time in Vienna and I took some photos to fill in the blanks. Over some traditional Weiner Schnitzel and great Austrian red wine we made some important holiday resolutions (Nic - we need to hold ourselves to them!) and it was a great way to end the first part of my trip.

I am now in Villach and it is so restful and great to be with family. Will write more soon!

Hope everyone is well! Kim

Paris to Prague

Paris was wonderful and the rest of the time was spent walking, resting and enjoying the atmosphere. Since my last blog I went to an amazing concert in Notre Dame and on my last day I went on a boat tour. The boat tour covered most of the places I had already visited but it was great to see them from the river and it was also a relaxing way to tour the city. It was sad to leave but once again Orly airport proved to be the airport of disasters. For those who don't know, it was at Orly airport that Deb and i missed our flight. We ended up spending a ridiculous amount of money and time and had to cope with an incredibly rude french man (he actually changed the course of my life because at that time I was considering staying in Paris forever!!). I thought I would be open minded but to no avail because Orly is now the proud holder of my credit card! This would be fine if I was still there but as I am not it is a pain. Thankfully I have a spare card and so now I just have to negotiate the National Bank (which is an adventure in itself). It has been annoying but manageable and hasn't dimmed my view of Paris.

Robyn and I arrived in Prague and if there was ever a city to help you get over leaving Paris it is Prague. I fell in love with it immediately. You will just have to imagine it if you haven't been there but it is colourful beautiful buildings, narrow curly streets and if you get lost people are more than happy to help out. I have got lost a few times but i am pleased to say that I am getting much better with my sense of direction (I couldn't get worse!) and following maps is easy. I have Moscow to thank for this because if I can noegotiate Moscow then anything is a breeze.

I am in Prague at a significant time. On Wednesday it will be 40 years since the Russian tanks entered Prague to occupy it. There was a brilliant photography exhibition of photos that were smuggled out of the country at the time and they were so confronting ( I bought the book of the exhibition) and on Wednesday they will actually have tanks rolling into to St Wenceslas Square to mark the event. I am thrilled that I will be there for this. I met a really nice English girl who is also keen to come along and hopefully Kath, Pam and Graeme will also want to see it. It will be crowded but worth it.

Oops - a queue for the internet - I better go but I will write more on Prague because I haven't even begun to tell you about the great hostel I found or the Jewish quarter!

Bye!

Kim

By the way, I changed the blog so people can post comments so if you have trouble with it let me know!

Bonjour Paris!

I arrived safely in Paris on Saturday 9 August and it has been great to be in the one place for more than three nights! Paris is a beautiful city and I am enjoying visiting galleries and exploring. On Sunday night Robyn and I went for a bike ride into the city and walked along the Seine. We rode under the Eiffel Tower and past the Musee D'Orsay. The evenings are so mild that lots of people are out walking and bands are playing. The atmosphere was very relaxed.
I have been spending my days visiting galleries and walking in the gardens. The galleries have been pretty crowded which hasn't really been a problem but it is funny to watch people walk up to the painting, take a photo and move on! I can't believe how many people are doing this.


Most days I have a relaxed breakfast and then catch the metro to visit whatever I have planned for the day and then meet Robyn after work. Tonight we are going to a concert at Notre Dame which will be fun. I am actually hoping to do a tour of Notre Dame this afternoon.


Visiting the Arc de Triomphe seems to be a requirement based on the number of people so not wanting to shirk my responsibility I joined the queue. It is over 200 steps to walk to the top but the views are worth it. I took some great photos and helped out an American family in distress who were trying to take a photo of themselves with the Eiffel Tower in the background. People are very easygoing here and most French people have appreciated me making the attempt in French but politely reply in English. Obviously my astoundingly good french accent still needs a little work!

Basically, I love Paris and could easily stay another week but Prague should be lots of fun as well. Unless I have anything I have to write about before Friday - see you in Prague!

Innsbruck

Innsbruck is a lovely town. I got a little sick while I was there so I didn't get to do much but I was able to do some exploring.

I took the cable car to the top of the mountain. It is usually for skiing but in summer without the snow there are many walkers and tourists. The view was incredible (see the photo!) and I just sat and enjoyed sitting in the sun. It seems so perfect in some of these places and the people are so nice. Language hasn't been an issue at all. Most people speak English at least a little so if my German isn't clear enough I don't get into trouble.




I stayed in a fabulous hotel in the old city. I am starting to develop a habit of alternating between hotels and hostels but it is amazing how cheap some of these hotels are. I was able to find one which was only about $15 more than the hostel in Salzburg but it included breakfast and was really central.
















I included this photo because it is typical of the scenery of the train trip from Innsbruck to Bern. It was a four hour trip and most of the scenery looked like this!!

The train was a little late so I was a little late into Bern but I was there for two nights so it didn't really matter. I had a lovely time in Bern catching up with old friends and exploring familiar territory. I also rested because I was still recovering from the tummy bug. I watched the opening ceremony of the Olympics in the afternoon and cheered Australia when they walked on. I'm not homesick yet but it was nice to see some Australian faces!!

My time in Switzerland was over very quickly and Saturday morning I caught the train to Paris but more on that later...

Extra cheese in Salzburg...

Yes, I went on the Sound of Music tour in Salzburg. We visited the palaces that are used as the their house (the photo below is the one used in all the lake scenes) and the avenue of trees where they played dressed in their curtain clothes and also the park where they danced around on the day they learnt to sing. I loved the movie and I was very excited about the tour but I have to say that it was a little too cheesy for me. It was however a good chance to drive around Salzburg, hear some interesting trivia about the movie but when the whole bus started singing 'Climb Every Mountain' (yes - this DID happen) I chose to sink as low as possible in my seat and put on my sunglasses. I look happy below and I was happy - I was on holiday but I also decided to try and be as inconspicuous as possible. This was the sort of tour that they might well have picked the quiet one to lead the singing for 'My Favourite Things'!

I don't regret going but take my experience as a warning!!

As a city, Salzburg is very beautiful and after the tour I wandered around the old town and enjoyed the atmosphere. There is a music festival there at the moment so there was a good atmosphere. At the hostel I met some really nice canadian girls and we had dinner and ended up sharing a taxi to the station the next day because I decided to go on to Innsbruck!

Photos at last! Moscow metro station, me with a russian hat, cathedral (beautiful!!), a russian McDonalds, the hermitage

Helsinki to Vienna

Helsinki was great. I am really pleased a decided to spend the day there. There was much more I could have done but what I did was good. I wandered around the city and explored the markets and food halls and visited their cathedral. The contrast between the cathedral in Helsinki versus Russian cathedrals couldn't have been greater. In Helsinki the cathedral was simple and very scandinavian as opposed to the Russian cathedrals which were covered in icons and mosiacs.

In keeping with someone's advice to always try the local food, I had reindeer. It was delicious! I could have stayed another day (in Helsinki - definitely not the hostel!!) but I had an early flight to Vienna....

Vienna! It is a beautiful city. When I arrived I was taking so many photos I had to pace myself. I spent the afternoon wandering around and getting lost which sounds very carefree but it was more because I have no sense of direction so kept getting lost. Maybe it was a bit of a reaction to the hostel but I decided to check in to a nice hotel in the centre of town and it was a good decision. I have a really cute attic room (so a bit cheaper!) and I slept well. The breakfasts are great but they had scroggin! I am not complaining about this however because I wrapped some in a serviette and had it for lunch.

The galleries are great. I went to an exhibition of a private collection. It was one couple who donated their collection. Now I'll emphasise this - it was ONE couple and in their collection they had paintings by many famous artists including Monet, Matisse, Cezanne, Chagall, Miro, Picasso and Kandinsky. I picked a few I wanted to take home but chose to buy the catalogue instead. The catalogue was so heavy I had to drop by the hotel so I didn't have to carry it around. Why did I buy it??? I will have to post it home. I won't detail the whole day but after this I went for a ride on the ferris wheel that featured in 'The Third Man' (with Orsen Welles if you don't know it). I like ferris wheels anyway but this was especially fun because of the movie. They also have great museums. I went to a music one which was crowded but a nice canadian man offered to share his headphones with me so I went around the exhibition with him.

In terms of food - yes I am in Vienna so I had a wienner schnitzel for dinner last night and this afternoon I had a hot chocolate with cardamom which was delicious and will probably be my dinner.

The updates are getting longer but that's the advantage of a blog - only the people who are interested have to read it.

Russia and then...

I loved Saint Petersburg! It was definitely the highlight for me. Saint Petersburg is called the Paris of the east and the Venice of the west. When I heard this I thought they were being a little over the top (but Russians can be very intimidating so I didn't say anything) but it is true. Canals and rivers move through the city unobtrusively and the bridges are all beautiful and unique. Walking down a street is a treat with each building being a different colour (pink, white, blue etc) or slightly different design. One of my favourite buildings was the Singer building. It was the building that the singer sewing machine was invented and is now a big book shop. So imagine walking down streets enjoying the scenery and then turn a corner and see the Church of the Saviour on the Spilt Blood (I am sorry for the lack of photos but in a few weeks I will update the posts with some pictures.) The church is based on St Basils Cathedral in Moscow but I think it much better. The domes are all bright blue and greens with tiles and gold. The inside is spectacular with gold mosaics all over the walls. I took heaps of photos but unfortunately I don't think they will do them justice.

I did the Russian thing and had vodka and caviar on my last night. I will post this picture as well!

I could have spent some extra days in Saint Petersburg but maybe that means I will go back again sometime.

I am now in Helsinki and pleased I spent an extra day here exploring even though I have mostly been spending it in a internet cafe!!