The day has come for us to return to the states! After BOTH of us were pulled aside in the airport by security, and our luggage was torn apart, we boarded our delayed plane only for more delays. What a perfect time for us to reflect.
After thinking about all the people we met, and the different cultures we were exposed to, there is no doubt in our minds that we will do this again. Our trip could not have been any more exciting or fulfilling, and when J and Cs Excellent Movie is made you will all see first hand. Here are just a few of the things that we have learned from our experiences:
In Switzerland:
1. When you say you are "full" it means you are drunk
2. Cars wait patiently for cows to wander through the street
3. Fly swatters are a frequent decor but infrequently used
4.Two way streets are only big enough for one car
5. Extra cream is used on EVERYTHING but coffee
In Italy:
1. Italian drivers take the cake for craziest driving, as seen by the number of times we were run into bushes on our bikes
2. Pig, olive oil and salt are used excessively in every meal
3. It has been documented that there are 200 restaurants in Brazil that serve Italian pasta
4. Ducks can hiss
5. Just because you make bread for a living does NOT mean that it is good
In France:
1. Beaches made of rock are still crowded
2. The honor system is used on trains, therefore we saved a lot of money
3. Sing alongs are fully embraced on trains
4. "Meeting Nelson Mandela" means something very different
5. Research a hostel before staying there
In Spain:
1. 2am (our bedtime) is when the night life is just getting started
2. Prostitutes do not like being videotaped
3. Restaurants think that yelling at you to eat there will entice you
4. People on the streets making duck noises are not there to entertain
5. Never live on a street where a taxi cab refuses to drive down
In all of Europe:
1. People think we are spanish sisters, as in the words of Marcello, we "do not look like WASPs"
3. Toilet paper is infrequently used, as are bras
4. Peanut butter is a very rare commodity
5. Restaurants do not even open for dinner until 8pm
6. European fashion consists of sweaters around the neck and waist, clothes as tight as possible, solid color outfits, and belly shirts.
7. Many people who lack university degrees are smarter, know more languages, and have a whole lot more money in their pockets.
8. We will return both to europe and to WWOOFing, hopefully sooner rather than later.
Who's joining us in Brazil??
-J and C
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Day 21: Embracing the Rain
Being our last day in Europe, we had a plan to do as much as possible. We made a fair attempt even though we woke up to a rainy, muggy day.
We got dressed for another hike, with the addition of raincoats (we almost thought we weren't going to have to use them). We set out to find Parc Guel, Gaudi's Park. We took the metro as far as possible because we had little to no energy. We got out and began our "hike" that didn't last very long. Maybe we really are pros now.
Parc Guel was really beautiful. It had a view of all of Barcelona. Only thing, it was so foggy we could barely see everything. We were still able to admire the architecture of the park, though. The intricate designs and mosaics were really stunning, even if we were soaking wet due to faulty raincoats.
After our hike we set out to the "Champagneria," a local secret that we were lucky to hear about from an inside source (thanks Reid). We ordered pollo con queso, as directed, and were each given a glass of champagne and delicious fresh sandwiches cooked to order. Definitely our best lunch choice. Of course we were taking pictures documenting our lunch, simultaneously getting stares and looks of disapproval from locals. Used to it.
After lunch, we made an attempt to buy souvenirs for all of you people, but after walking around La Rambla for TWO HOURS in the rain looking for one particular store (in order to avoid junky tourist gifts) we had to throw in the towel.
We were drenched and exhausted so we headed back to the room and passed out for an hour or so.
We woke up not so refreshed, but excited for our upcoming meal. After a few days of researching. Henrik found out what were hoping would be the perfect ending meal in Europe. We got dressed in our nicest clothes and set out to find the restaurant.
Knowing the address, we were heading in the correct direction, but when we hit the beach before the number of the building, we were a little confused. We knew the restaurant was the highest one in Barcelona, so when we spotted a tower, we thought we should inquire. The tower, though, looked like a water tower. We walked up to it anyways and it certainly was it.
We took an elevator up to the top where we were stunned by the gorgeous views. We were seated right at the window overlooking ALL of Barcelona. Move over cloudy Gaudi, we were able to see the ENTIRE city from here.
While watching the sunset, we indulged in foie gras, steak, and even some pigeon and UNLIMITED bread (officially making this Christine's favorite restaurant). We had a delicious (free) chocolate ending and we were beyond full. It was a really great meal (thanks mom and dad).
We fit in with the classy businessmen and women that were patrons of the restaurant by playing with an odd figurine that was strangely used as a centerpiece. For about 15 minutes, we were posing this odd robot-like toy around the table for a photo shoot. We are thinking of selling them to the restaurant to use a decor.
We waddled out of the restaurant after eating wayyy too much and headed back to the hostel to hang out with our friends for a bit. Mostly everyone had left that morning, so it was a little sad and not nearly as entertaining. We decided that going out last night and dinner tonight was a good ending.
We are sad to be leaving, but we had an experience of a lifetime.
-J and C
P.S.- This is not the last post, one more to come. :)
We got dressed for another hike, with the addition of raincoats (we almost thought we weren't going to have to use them). We set out to find Parc Guel, Gaudi's Park. We took the metro as far as possible because we had little to no energy. We got out and began our "hike" that didn't last very long. Maybe we really are pros now.
Parc Guel was really beautiful. It had a view of all of Barcelona. Only thing, it was so foggy we could barely see everything. We were still able to admire the architecture of the park, though. The intricate designs and mosaics were really stunning, even if we were soaking wet due to faulty raincoats.
After our hike we set out to the "Champagneria," a local secret that we were lucky to hear about from an inside source (thanks Reid). We ordered pollo con queso, as directed, and were each given a glass of champagne and delicious fresh sandwiches cooked to order. Definitely our best lunch choice. Of course we were taking pictures documenting our lunch, simultaneously getting stares and looks of disapproval from locals. Used to it.
After lunch, we made an attempt to buy souvenirs for all of you people, but after walking around La Rambla for TWO HOURS in the rain looking for one particular store (in order to avoid junky tourist gifts) we had to throw in the towel.
We were drenched and exhausted so we headed back to the room and passed out for an hour or so.
We woke up not so refreshed, but excited for our upcoming meal. After a few days of researching. Henrik found out what were hoping would be the perfect ending meal in Europe. We got dressed in our nicest clothes and set out to find the restaurant.
Knowing the address, we were heading in the correct direction, but when we hit the beach before the number of the building, we were a little confused. We knew the restaurant was the highest one in Barcelona, so when we spotted a tower, we thought we should inquire. The tower, though, looked like a water tower. We walked up to it anyways and it certainly was it.
We took an elevator up to the top where we were stunned by the gorgeous views. We were seated right at the window overlooking ALL of Barcelona. Move over cloudy Gaudi, we were able to see the ENTIRE city from here.
While watching the sunset, we indulged in foie gras, steak, and even some pigeon and UNLIMITED bread (officially making this Christine's favorite restaurant). We had a delicious (free) chocolate ending and we were beyond full. It was a really great meal (thanks mom and dad).
We fit in with the classy businessmen and women that were patrons of the restaurant by playing with an odd figurine that was strangely used as a centerpiece. For about 15 minutes, we were posing this odd robot-like toy around the table for a photo shoot. We are thinking of selling them to the restaurant to use a decor.
We waddled out of the restaurant after eating wayyy too much and headed back to the hostel to hang out with our friends for a bit. Mostly everyone had left that morning, so it was a little sad and not nearly as entertaining. We decided that going out last night and dinner tonight was a good ending.
We are sad to be leaving, but we had an experience of a lifetime.
-J and C
P.S.- This is not the last post, one more to come. :)
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Day 20: Pro-Hikers
Unlike our previous morning, today we woke up early so we could have a full day at the beach. We headed straight to the hostel common room to gather the group for the beach. When we arrived half of our friends were still asleep and the other half were moving very slowly. After about an hour everybody was finally ready to go. We headed out on our first mission, to find a spanish specialty, churros con chocolate. We asked every restaurant we passed until we finally found churros con chocolate! To our surprise they gave us some churros with a mug of hot chocolate to dip them in. Delicious but strange.
After filling up on churros it was beach time! We joined the hundreds of other people on the beach and relaxed as tons of people husstled us about tattoes and massages. No gracias. The water was absolutely beautiful and we spent hours soaking in the sun.
After our bodies started turning red we left the beach for another visit to the Boqueria. We drank the most delicious fruit smoothies imaginable and bought more fresh fruit to make sandwhiches.
We packed dinner and sent out to hike Mount Juic to take in a great view of the city. We walked uphill for a little bit until we reached all these closed gates and "do not enter" signs. We came o the conclusion that it was under construction and took our pictures as needed. On our way out we found a majical staircase that we hadn't seen before. We went up and again were left in a dead end. We found this random pathway through the woods and since we expected a great hike decided to explore. After we got through all the brush we ended up in a main road with lots of people walking around and a restaurant up ahead. We walked around the beautiful garden and took pictures of things we thought could be the castle that we heard of. After eating our dinner and dicussing our great hiking skilss (since we barely broke a sweat) we re-looked at the map and realized we were not even a third of the way to the top of the mountain. Whoops.
We headed up, this time using the map, and ended up at the real castle! Bellisimo! We got there just as it was closing time, however, so we were only able to admire the beautiful views and outside of the castle. After a successful hike we headed back down the mountain and back to the hostel to meet up with the group.
The two boys from Brazil put on a show with their mini guitar and tam-tam, and we sang along in spanish, english and french. After a lot of singing we headed out to Chupitos for another celebration. This time we tried all different shooters, relying heavily on reccomendations from the bartenders. So many delicious ones, especially all those involving chocolate and pop rocks. It has been decided that a Chupitos USA coming soon. Get ready.
-J and C
After filling up on churros it was beach time! We joined the hundreds of other people on the beach and relaxed as tons of people husstled us about tattoes and massages. No gracias. The water was absolutely beautiful and we spent hours soaking in the sun.
After our bodies started turning red we left the beach for another visit to the Boqueria. We drank the most delicious fruit smoothies imaginable and bought more fresh fruit to make sandwhiches.
We packed dinner and sent out to hike Mount Juic to take in a great view of the city. We walked uphill for a little bit until we reached all these closed gates and "do not enter" signs. We came o the conclusion that it was under construction and took our pictures as needed. On our way out we found a majical staircase that we hadn't seen before. We went up and again were left in a dead end. We found this random pathway through the woods and since we expected a great hike decided to explore. After we got through all the brush we ended up in a main road with lots of people walking around and a restaurant up ahead. We walked around the beautiful garden and took pictures of things we thought could be the castle that we heard of. After eating our dinner and dicussing our great hiking skilss (since we barely broke a sweat) we re-looked at the map and realized we were not even a third of the way to the top of the mountain. Whoops.
We headed up, this time using the map, and ended up at the real castle! Bellisimo! We got there just as it was closing time, however, so we were only able to admire the beautiful views and outside of the castle. After a successful hike we headed back down the mountain and back to the hostel to meet up with the group.
The two boys from Brazil put on a show with their mini guitar and tam-tam, and we sang along in spanish, english and french. After a lot of singing we headed out to Chupitos for another celebration. This time we tried all different shooters, relying heavily on reccomendations from the bartenders. So many delicious ones, especially all those involving chocolate and pop rocks. It has been decided that a Chupitos USA coming soon. Get ready.
-J and C
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Day 19: I Guess Prostitutes DON'T Want To Be Movie Stars
We woke up extra late today in attempt to skip the Barcelona six-o'clock nap. We met our friends from yesterday at the hostel and set out to see the Gaudi sights. We walked down La Rambla and Passeig de Gracia and saw several Gaudi buildings. We finally made it to the other side of Barcelona where we admired the incredible Sagrada Familia.
We headed back to get a quick lunch at the cheap supermarket. Since this morning was one of our tourist days, of course we had our cameras out. I was videotaping the area, and all of a sudden, about five big scary prostitutes began surrounding me and yelling at me. They were trying to see what I was filming. Yikes. As we said, prostitutes probably have already given up on their dreams to be on the big screen in order to pursue...other carreer paths. Christine realized I was being hasseled and she came to my rescue. She grabbed my hand as they were grabbing me and we RAN. One chased after us and proceeded to slap my butt. I guess it was an easy target. We ran for the life of us and hid in a market until we caught our breaths. I don't think we will be walking through that street ever again. Marcello and those prostitues may haunt our dreams for a while.
After we regained our courage, we bought some bread, cheese and popcorn for lunch and enjoyed it in our lovely apartment style hostel room. Since it was already late in the afternoon we decided to save our beach day until tomorrow.
We hit the shops. This time they were open. We found some cool stores and thought we should support them with our money. After burning a hole in our pockets, we decided to get a budge, yet delicious, dinner from the market. This isn't just any market, it is a fruit, meat, cheese and candy HAVEN. We spent only a few Euro each and got fresh ingredients to make a great salad. We also stopped at our favorite supermarket to get a sixty cent baguette. We are now regulars at that shop.
We ate our dinner with the ipod blasting and then got ready to go out (ipod still blasting). We headed over to the hostel to meet up with our friends. We played more drinking games. This time we taught them an American game. It was a ton of fun just like the night before. The different languages are so interesting. We can all be so different, yet so similar.
We went out to find a bar that is infamous for its numerous amounts of flaming shots. On the long walk, we started having a sing-a-long (you all could have guessed by now). There was one boy from Brazil who didn't speak a word of English, only Spanish and Portuguese. But he DID know every word to a Justin Bieber song. Who would have thunk.
We found Chupitos and had a great time there. S'mores, chocolate, reeses, how could it get better? We didn't stay too long because we were all starting to get tired. Even they are not used to staying up all night every night (us Americans seem like champs next to them). We set out for the long walk home where we had a few dance breaks and song sessions. We also taught one of the French boys different expressions in English in exchange for the French equivalents. We explained to him that Americans don't "pose pepe," we simply go to the bathroom. And that saying (in French) that you have a cigar at the tip of your lips does NOT mean you are about to smoke a cigar.
It was a really fun day, but still extremely tiring. Beach nap tomorrow is a MUST.
-J and C
We headed back to get a quick lunch at the cheap supermarket. Since this morning was one of our tourist days, of course we had our cameras out. I was videotaping the area, and all of a sudden, about five big scary prostitutes began surrounding me and yelling at me. They were trying to see what I was filming. Yikes. As we said, prostitutes probably have already given up on their dreams to be on the big screen in order to pursue...other carreer paths. Christine realized I was being hasseled and she came to my rescue. She grabbed my hand as they were grabbing me and we RAN. One chased after us and proceeded to slap my butt. I guess it was an easy target. We ran for the life of us and hid in a market until we caught our breaths. I don't think we will be walking through that street ever again. Marcello and those prostitues may haunt our dreams for a while.
After we regained our courage, we bought some bread, cheese and popcorn for lunch and enjoyed it in our lovely apartment style hostel room. Since it was already late in the afternoon we decided to save our beach day until tomorrow.
We hit the shops. This time they were open. We found some cool stores and thought we should support them with our money. After burning a hole in our pockets, we decided to get a budge, yet delicious, dinner from the market. This isn't just any market, it is a fruit, meat, cheese and candy HAVEN. We spent only a few Euro each and got fresh ingredients to make a great salad. We also stopped at our favorite supermarket to get a sixty cent baguette. We are now regulars at that shop.
We ate our dinner with the ipod blasting and then got ready to go out (ipod still blasting). We headed over to the hostel to meet up with our friends. We played more drinking games. This time we taught them an American game. It was a ton of fun just like the night before. The different languages are so interesting. We can all be so different, yet so similar.
We went out to find a bar that is infamous for its numerous amounts of flaming shots. On the long walk, we started having a sing-a-long (you all could have guessed by now). There was one boy from Brazil who didn't speak a word of English, only Spanish and Portuguese. But he DID know every word to a Justin Bieber song. Who would have thunk.
We found Chupitos and had a great time there. S'mores, chocolate, reeses, how could it get better? We didn't stay too long because we were all starting to get tired. Even they are not used to staying up all night every night (us Americans seem like champs next to them). We set out for the long walk home where we had a few dance breaks and song sessions. We also taught one of the French boys different expressions in English in exchange for the French equivalents. We explained to him that Americans don't "pose pepe," we simply go to the bathroom. And that saying (in French) that you have a cigar at the tip of your lips does NOT mean you are about to smoke a cigar.
It was a really fun day, but still extremely tiring. Beach nap tomorrow is a MUST.
-J and C
Monday, June 7, 2010
Day 18
This morning we woke up in our bunk beds very excited to get the free breakfast from the hostel. We knew it wouldn't be a buffet from Ritz but were still a little disappointed by the pile of white bread and bowl of corn flakes. At least there were multiple jars of nutella. We ate our bread with the hopes of making some hostel friends. I walked over to a group of boys to say intorduce myself and asked them where they were from. I got 5 blank stares and a one word response of "Germany." I'm going to assume none of them understand English.
After we ate, we deicided to use our first day in Barcelona to explore the area and do a little shopping. Since it was Sunday and almost every single store was closed, we walked around the city admiring the beautiful architecture. After hours of exploring, and remembering all the stores we needed to come back to, we decided to treat ourselves to a big spanish lunch consisting of tapas and paella! Due to our grumbling bellies we walked into the first place we found (which looked really great from the bar area) and ordered a tapas and paella special. We eagerly awaited the feast we had been dreaming of. When the food arrived it did not look as delicious as we had pictured it, and it tasted just as bland and mushy as it looked. Let's just say we were not impressed. And when we asked for some free bread like the couple next to us received they refused to give any to us. I don't think they liked us very much due to our fuss over wanting TAP water, with ice, por favor. We were still hopefull for the dessert that was included in the meal until our waiter plopped down a yellow custardy thing in front of us both. After one bite we exited the restaurant in search of a gelateria (we couldn't break our streak now).
After delicious gelato (the best yet in Spain!) we returned back to our hostel and rested up with a long nap. We woke up for dinner time. Since we were disappointed by our lunch feast we were determined to have a great dinner. We took Reid up on his recommendation of a Mexican restaurant (the only thing we crave more than peanut butter is chips and salsa). The tacos and margaritas were great and definitely made up for our previous meal. We left the restaurant full and happy and got ready to make another attempt at making some hostel friends.
We went to the hostel common room and quickly got asked to join a group of french, canadian, and brazilian people who were playing card games. The group could not have been friendlier, and hours were spent playing games in french, spanish, portugese, and english. Despite some language barriers the group bonded over games that were familiar to everyone. We learned that we had to "take a glu" instead of taking a sip. The different pronunciations of "ace" was also a continuous joke throughout the night.
The group of us finally made it out in search of a bar near the beach that has 300 different types of shots. Unfortunately we got to the bar so late that we were not allowed inside. We were even too late for Barcelona. Instead we wandered to the beach and hung out while some braved the ocean. We, however, refused to go in the water for fear of our shoes getting stolen from the beach. Maybe tomorrow night when we have our bathing suits.
We took a long walk home learning different expressions in different languages and perfecting our french/spanish accents. We are ready to hit the sack and turning our alarm off for a good nights sleep.
-J and C
After we ate, we deicided to use our first day in Barcelona to explore the area and do a little shopping. Since it was Sunday and almost every single store was closed, we walked around the city admiring the beautiful architecture. After hours of exploring, and remembering all the stores we needed to come back to, we decided to treat ourselves to a big spanish lunch consisting of tapas and paella! Due to our grumbling bellies we walked into the first place we found (which looked really great from the bar area) and ordered a tapas and paella special. We eagerly awaited the feast we had been dreaming of. When the food arrived it did not look as delicious as we had pictured it, and it tasted just as bland and mushy as it looked. Let's just say we were not impressed. And when we asked for some free bread like the couple next to us received they refused to give any to us. I don't think they liked us very much due to our fuss over wanting TAP water, with ice, por favor. We were still hopefull for the dessert that was included in the meal until our waiter plopped down a yellow custardy thing in front of us both. After one bite we exited the restaurant in search of a gelateria (we couldn't break our streak now).
After delicious gelato (the best yet in Spain!) we returned back to our hostel and rested up with a long nap. We woke up for dinner time. Since we were disappointed by our lunch feast we were determined to have a great dinner. We took Reid up on his recommendation of a Mexican restaurant (the only thing we crave more than peanut butter is chips and salsa). The tacos and margaritas were great and definitely made up for our previous meal. We left the restaurant full and happy and got ready to make another attempt at making some hostel friends.
We went to the hostel common room and quickly got asked to join a group of french, canadian, and brazilian people who were playing card games. The group could not have been friendlier, and hours were spent playing games in french, spanish, portugese, and english. Despite some language barriers the group bonded over games that were familiar to everyone. We learned that we had to "take a glu" instead of taking a sip. The different pronunciations of "ace" was also a continuous joke throughout the night.
The group of us finally made it out in search of a bar near the beach that has 300 different types of shots. Unfortunately we got to the bar so late that we were not allowed inside. We were even too late for Barcelona. Instead we wandered to the beach and hung out while some braved the ocean. We, however, refused to go in the water for fear of our shoes getting stolen from the beach. Maybe tomorrow night when we have our bathing suits.
We took a long walk home learning different expressions in different languages and perfecting our french/spanish accents. We are ready to hit the sack and turning our alarm off for a good nights sleep.
-J and C
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Day 17: "You Guys Had the Right Idea With the Wine
We woke up to a gorgeous view out of our hotel window of someone elses backyard and several Texas-like buildings. So we quickly packed up our stuff in attempt to leave as soon as possible.
At the train station in Montpellier we tried to purchase the next ticket out of there, destination: Perpignan. Because the line was moving like an escargot, we attempted the ticket machines. Of course, this would have been to easy. None of the machines seem to like American credit cards. We were running around the station, with people attempting to help us, for about a half hour until we realized our train was due to depart shortly. We decided to do the unspeakable: board the train with NO ticket. Such rebels. AND, we sat in first class.
The whole ride, we held our breath as each person made their way past us in hopes that they were NOT the conductor. By the time we reached the second to last stop, we decided we were lucky enough to make it this far for free, so we might as well get off before we are charged extra for an onboard ticket. Bonjour Narbonne.
We bought tickets to Barcelona, but of course we had to wait four hours until our train. With much time to spare, we set out to find a beach. We rolled our luggage around for about ten minutes before we decided to ask someone which way we should actually be headed. He laughed and told us it was about 50km away. I guess that means we can't walk there. He offered us a ride on his bike. Seriously. Thanks, but no thanks.
We walked back to the station and entertained ourselves for hours with no ipod. We played the few songs that were saved on our phone. A boy asked if we had any family from the Netherlands because "he had seen us before." We tried to tell him that it was just because we were famous. I don't think he believed us.
After over two weeks of no iced coffee, I felt that all the spare time we had left would be enough to attempt at requesting this foreign drink. I tried to explain the concept to the man at the coffee bar, but he simply did not understand. So I asked for a coffee and a glass of ice. He gave me a weird look when I poured sugar into the glass of ice, but finally he understood when I poured the coffee in there. I may have started a revolution of ice coffee in France.
Finally it was time to bored the train. As we got on the train, we could not find a single unoccupied seat. This led us to another opportunity to make friends as we propped our suitcases on the floor and using them as seats. To add to this, we popped a bottle of wine to make the trip go a little faster. Four hours on the floor would not be so fun. To make even MORE friends, we started singing. A woman stood up and gave us a thumbs up. Success.
After a few stops we found two seats that were previously occupied by a woman and her cat. This is when we began our real concert. We started singing a variety of songs. A woman stood up and said "que bien" to us and began clapping along with her friend. We noticed a boy who had a guitar and we begged him to begin playing and we would be the lead vocals. Finally, he agreed and we started a sing-a-long with half the train car. We sang James Taylor, Neil Diamond, Jack Johnson, etc. Something for everyones entertainment. Multiple people took out their video cameras to tape this scene. Let's just say after a four hour train ride, we were sad for it to come to an end. Best train ride EVER.
Finally, we have reached our final destination: Barcelona. We dropped our bags in our hostel and set out to find some good (cheap) food. We found an area filled with Turkish food, and picked the best looking one (the one with the most people inside). It was really delicious (and cheap).
Then we headed back to the hostel, got dressed and headed out on our typical American companion finding mission. This was the most difficult one yet. Especially since everyone thinks we are locals, they don't seem to be too friendly until we start talking, it is the exact OPPOSITE reaction with the locals.
We snuck onto a bar crawl without paying the unaffordable 18 Euro. We got free drinks, we got into the clubs for free and met some great people. We are probably the most economical tourists around. It was a good night. Only problem is, Barcelona stays up too late and smokes inside way too much.
-J and C
At the train station in Montpellier we tried to purchase the next ticket out of there, destination: Perpignan. Because the line was moving like an escargot, we attempted the ticket machines. Of course, this would have been to easy. None of the machines seem to like American credit cards. We were running around the station, with people attempting to help us, for about a half hour until we realized our train was due to depart shortly. We decided to do the unspeakable: board the train with NO ticket. Such rebels. AND, we sat in first class.
The whole ride, we held our breath as each person made their way past us in hopes that they were NOT the conductor. By the time we reached the second to last stop, we decided we were lucky enough to make it this far for free, so we might as well get off before we are charged extra for an onboard ticket. Bonjour Narbonne.
We bought tickets to Barcelona, but of course we had to wait four hours until our train. With much time to spare, we set out to find a beach. We rolled our luggage around for about ten minutes before we decided to ask someone which way we should actually be headed. He laughed and told us it was about 50km away. I guess that means we can't walk there. He offered us a ride on his bike. Seriously. Thanks, but no thanks.
We walked back to the station and entertained ourselves for hours with no ipod. We played the few songs that were saved on our phone. A boy asked if we had any family from the Netherlands because "he had seen us before." We tried to tell him that it was just because we were famous. I don't think he believed us.
After over two weeks of no iced coffee, I felt that all the spare time we had left would be enough to attempt at requesting this foreign drink. I tried to explain the concept to the man at the coffee bar, but he simply did not understand. So I asked for a coffee and a glass of ice. He gave me a weird look when I poured sugar into the glass of ice, but finally he understood when I poured the coffee in there. I may have started a revolution of ice coffee in France.
Finally it was time to bored the train. As we got on the train, we could not find a single unoccupied seat. This led us to another opportunity to make friends as we propped our suitcases on the floor and using them as seats. To add to this, we popped a bottle of wine to make the trip go a little faster. Four hours on the floor would not be so fun. To make even MORE friends, we started singing. A woman stood up and gave us a thumbs up. Success.
After a few stops we found two seats that were previously occupied by a woman and her cat. This is when we began our real concert. We started singing a variety of songs. A woman stood up and said "que bien" to us and began clapping along with her friend. We noticed a boy who had a guitar and we begged him to begin playing and we would be the lead vocals. Finally, he agreed and we started a sing-a-long with half the train car. We sang James Taylor, Neil Diamond, Jack Johnson, etc. Something for everyones entertainment. Multiple people took out their video cameras to tape this scene. Let's just say after a four hour train ride, we were sad for it to come to an end. Best train ride EVER.
Finally, we have reached our final destination: Barcelona. We dropped our bags in our hostel and set out to find some good (cheap) food. We found an area filled with Turkish food, and picked the best looking one (the one with the most people inside). It was really delicious (and cheap).
Then we headed back to the hostel, got dressed and headed out on our typical American companion finding mission. This was the most difficult one yet. Especially since everyone thinks we are locals, they don't seem to be too friendly until we start talking, it is the exact OPPOSITE reaction with the locals.
We snuck onto a bar crawl without paying the unaffordable 18 Euro. We got free drinks, we got into the clubs for free and met some great people. We are probably the most economical tourists around. It was a good night. Only problem is, Barcelona stays up too late and smokes inside way too much.
-J and C
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Day 16: Nice Knowing You
This morning we had a plan. It was to find the H&M in Nice. After eating Henriette's delicious hommade pancakes for breakfast we hit the shops. We asked girls on the street for directions to H&M and finally found our beloved store. Some great purchases were made to replace the appearance of our farm clothes. We swear none of these things could have been found in America.
Then we set out to find the restaurant where we would have our pre-planned huge french feast. We walked around checking every menu and basing our decision on the prices, how many people were eating at the restaurant, and how much sun was shining on the seats. After going into almost every restaurant in town we ended up just grabbing cheap pinini's and eating outside. We finally had the chance to put the Coke Light / Coke Zero test into action. Jaime failed her blind taste test and she concluded that they both taste exactly like Coke. I, however, continue to only buy Coke Light and Jaime only Coke Zero on principle.
This economically sound lunch enabled us to continue our gelato streak. We turned down one gelateria due to their "no sample" policy and found what has been the best gelato in France yet! Much more needs to be tasted.
We walked back to Henriette's in an attempt to burn off some of that gelato and see the city one last time. We entered a few grocery stores on the way to check out their peanut butter status. At this point we have come to terms with the unlikelihood of purchasing any peanut butter and are more collecting data for a future European peanut butter business. We did, however, buy cheap wine and delicious french bread for dinner. When we got back to henriette's she had another pancake-like treat ready for us before our travels to Montpellier.
So there is this really great travel service in France called Coiverterage, but to any average American it sounds a tad sketchy. Henriette showed us how frequently it is used throughout the country and set us up with a ride from Nice to Montpellier. Our driver, Mattheiu, was a very nice young gentleman who spoke a little English. He laughed at us when we told him that this kind of service would never work in America and he asked us to tell him if we had to "make pee-pee."
Three hours later we arrived in Montpellier and got dropped at the Tram. the Tram ride to our hotel was rediculously long, but gave us more time to discuss all the wonderful things about French public transportation, such as the frequented butt rests. We finally arrived at our stop and headed off to find the Buffalo grill, the only landmark we could understand on the phone.
The Prime Hotel was not so prime. We entered through the back door as a creepy woman onlooker lurked behind us. We searched the hotel for the place that they hid our keys. We found many hidden keys, but all with other names on them. We thought maybe the hotel guy got our name wrong so we took one of the keys and checked out the room. Since the name "Dreamline" was nothing close to "Goldstein" we left our stuff in the room and continued to search for OUR keys.
Finally we found keys hidden in a second floor wall pannel labeled "Joldstin". No wonder he was having trouble getting our email addresses right. Now that we had they keys to our real room we had to get our stuff out of "Dreamline's" room and return the keys to their hidding place. Easier said than done when you have creppy woman onlooker popping out of random doors.
When we finally got all of our stuff to our room via mission impossible style it was too late to head back into the city. Trapped, we decided to watch Scrubs in french in our surprisingly comfortable bed.
Our two bottles of wine will have to wait until tomorrow.
-J and C
Then we set out to find the restaurant where we would have our pre-planned huge french feast. We walked around checking every menu and basing our decision on the prices, how many people were eating at the restaurant, and how much sun was shining on the seats. After going into almost every restaurant in town we ended up just grabbing cheap pinini's and eating outside. We finally had the chance to put the Coke Light / Coke Zero test into action. Jaime failed her blind taste test and she concluded that they both taste exactly like Coke. I, however, continue to only buy Coke Light and Jaime only Coke Zero on principle.
This economically sound lunch enabled us to continue our gelato streak. We turned down one gelateria due to their "no sample" policy and found what has been the best gelato in France yet! Much more needs to be tasted.
We walked back to Henriette's in an attempt to burn off some of that gelato and see the city one last time. We entered a few grocery stores on the way to check out their peanut butter status. At this point we have come to terms with the unlikelihood of purchasing any peanut butter and are more collecting data for a future European peanut butter business. We did, however, buy cheap wine and delicious french bread for dinner. When we got back to henriette's she had another pancake-like treat ready for us before our travels to Montpellier.
So there is this really great travel service in France called Coiverterage, but to any average American it sounds a tad sketchy. Henriette showed us how frequently it is used throughout the country and set us up with a ride from Nice to Montpellier. Our driver, Mattheiu, was a very nice young gentleman who spoke a little English. He laughed at us when we told him that this kind of service would never work in America and he asked us to tell him if we had to "make pee-pee."
Three hours later we arrived in Montpellier and got dropped at the Tram. the Tram ride to our hotel was rediculously long, but gave us more time to discuss all the wonderful things about French public transportation, such as the frequented butt rests. We finally arrived at our stop and headed off to find the Buffalo grill, the only landmark we could understand on the phone.
The Prime Hotel was not so prime. We entered through the back door as a creepy woman onlooker lurked behind us. We searched the hotel for the place that they hid our keys. We found many hidden keys, but all with other names on them. We thought maybe the hotel guy got our name wrong so we took one of the keys and checked out the room. Since the name "Dreamline" was nothing close to "Goldstein" we left our stuff in the room and continued to search for OUR keys.
Finally we found keys hidden in a second floor wall pannel labeled "Joldstin". No wonder he was having trouble getting our email addresses right. Now that we had they keys to our real room we had to get our stuff out of "Dreamline's" room and return the keys to their hidding place. Easier said than done when you have creppy woman onlooker popping out of random doors.
When we finally got all of our stuff to our room via mission impossible style it was too late to head back into the city. Trapped, we decided to watch Scrubs in french in our surprisingly comfortable bed.
Our two bottles of wine will have to wait until tomorrow.
-J and C
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