Day 10 - The Sea!
In the morning we hop on a bus that will take us across a very long bridge to the islands that make up the city of Venice. As we reach the outskirts, the bus parks and we get off to wend our way through the labyrinthine streets and bridges to St. Mark's Square. Our tour leader tells us that maps are fairly useless here, instead we should try to follow the occasional signs to Venice's landmarks and let ourselves get lost. There are no road vehicles in this city, traffic is by foot and by water only. In St. Mark's square we catch our gondola ride. The gondolier takes us through small roadless canals, under bridges, and through the grand canal. He even sings a little. The gondoliers strike me as a funny lot, chatting to each other as they pass, taking cell phone calls, all while maneuvering between other boats and down narrow ways.
Candice tells us that not too many people actually live in Venice anymore, mostly tourist wander the streets which are lined with shops selling Venetian lace, blown glass, and fancy masks. After the gondola ride, we take a guided tour of the main island, mostly just around the central square. We keep to the shade as much as possible because it is still boiling hot. We see the Bridge of Sighs, the basilica, and the sea. Just seeing salt water in motion makes me me relax. After the tour we see a short lace making demonstration and then head to the Rialto bridge for shopping and lunch. Later, we take a crowded vaporetto on the grand canal back to where the shuttle bus will meet us and return to the campground.
Day 11 - Clouds arrive
It's an early morning on the bus. We are headed to Austria and there are a lot of people hoping to sky dive, so we hope to arrive early enough to let them. Unfortunately, as we travel north we encounter the first poor weather of the trip. It begins to cloud over, get windy, and then the rain starts. By the time we get to Austria, skydiving has been canceled and paragliding is in jeopardy. It turns out that the only extreme sport to go forward, the cheapest option, is Canyoning...and I am signed up. We take two van taxis out to the shop where they dress us in wet suits and climbing gear. Then we head up to a gorge...and rappel down into it next to a waterfall. We jump into plunge pools, slide through chutes, and rappel some more. Cold, scary, and too short, but overall fun. I, of course, had been getting a cold on the way to Austria and now it begins to take over. After a few whiskey cokes in the basement bar, I turn in somewhat early.
I found my pirate in the Austrian Gasthof
Day 12 - The Rhine
It is again a bus day, this time we are off to the Rhine Valley in Germany. When we arrive, we check into a medieval castle that has been transformed into a modern hostel. It is actually a bit strange, the outside and inside do not match whatsoever. The view from the castle hill is quite lovely. We are surrounded by vineyards that cling to the steep slopes. In the evening, we get back on our bus which drives us down the river a ways to a beer stein shop and a cuckoo clock shop. On the way we see a number of other castles, some in use, some in ruins. I would have loved to have time to explore them. But, alas, the rhine is just a way-stop to our real destination, Amsterdam. We spend some time in the stein shop where Steph spends an absolute fortune. I just get a large one for me and a smaller one for my dad. After shopping, the bus takes us on to a campsite where the proprietor, Hermy, is going to have us do a wine tasting of local wines. We sip out of large shot glasses. H. turns out to be a riot. After that we head back up the river to the narrow streets of the town we are staying in and are off to bed.
Day 13 - Cheese & Windmills
Off to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The weather clears up for a bit as we arrive at our cheese & clog making demonstration just outside of the city. I revel in the cool crisp breeze as we step off the bus. The temperature has plummeted as we have moved northwards through Europe. The farmer who gives the demonstration is quite a character. As with all the men in Europe who have given us demonstration, he invites all the ladies to the front and wants us to get up nice and close. He also speaks a dozen or more languages, making us feel rather uneducated. The cheese is quite tasty but I opt out of purchasing anything at the shop and instead go back outside to wait for everyone else to finish up.
We head onward to our hostel where we check in and then have some free time to explore and get dinner before heading on to our evening entertainment. We soon learn that walking in Amsterdam can be hazardous to your health. The roads are shared with bicycles, cars, and trams. The bikers are particularly crazy. We head down to a touristy district and have dinner at an irish pub. Amsterdam feels a lot more like a city in America to us than some of the other places we have been, still it is quite different from home.
For our evening, we are taking a quick tour with Candace through Amsterdam with our final destination a sex show in the red light district. Two drinks are included with admission which is probably a good idea because I end up right in the front row next to the stage where the ladies proceed to do their acts including a candle show, writing on an audience member holding the marker down below, pulling a ribbon out of it, live sex with one of the ugliest men I have seen, and a banana show. More than anything else, it was funny. Then we wended our way through skinny alley to see the ladies in windows and that was about it for the night.
Day 14 - Iffy weather
In the morning we take a bike tour of the city. I think I am going to be run over several times, especially when I get stuck behind some of the people from our group who really cannot ride bikes. It starts to rain about halfway through and I am the only one whose bike is not equipped with a rain jacket. Thanks. So, I get wet along with having a head cold. Not my favorite excursion. The guide tells us that it rains almost every day in Amsterdam. Would have been nice to know before going out.
After the bike tour, we head out to the Anne Frank House where we have to wait in line for some time. But, the wait is worth it. The museum is laid out extremely well. Definitely a must see for those visiting the city. We also visit the Van Gogh Museum which is also interesting but way too crowded with people. For dinner we meet up with our group again and head to the Sea Palace, a floating chinese restaurant. Dinner is followed up by a canal cruise where I proceed to get incredibly toasted on red wine. When we alight from the cruise, we head to a bar where it happens to be karaoke night. We meet a fellow guy from CT, drink more, and I am eventually left behind when Sarah decides that she needs to take the also incredibly toasted Steph home. Luckily, some of the other tour girls are still in the bar and I make my drunken way home with Candace.
Day 15 - Ick
Bus to Brugges then to Calais and the ferry back to Dover. Incredibly hung over, I barely make it through the day alive.
Day 16 - London Part 2
We wander London for the second time and see the outside of the Tower of London, the Globe Theatre, and a few other highlights. We wander over the London Bridge, by the London Dungeon where tons of people are lined up the street in both directions to get spooked. Funds are running low, so we don't actually do much, just walk around. We end the day by walking through Trafalgar square, having dinner, and heading back to the hostel.
Day 17 - Flight
Flight from hell, well, ok, not quite that bad, but we leave an hour late because of problems packing the plane. When we reach America, there are terrible thunderstorms in New York and JFK has been closed, so we end up landing at a smaller airport where we get refueled and wait. After a few hours we take off again and are finally able to land at JFK. All in all, we spend about and extra four hours on the plane. Fun. But, we are back.
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