For months i have been trying to figure out if i want to stay in Brooklyn or move back to London and i have been completely missing it, i need a simple life. As i swam off the side of Rab,s old town at sunset this evening, i thought, this is really living. People are so lucky to be content to live the simple life, why cant i be one of them. As an old man leaned out of the window and watched us swimmers, i wondered how long he has lived on this island and what he does, what could i do. Run a post office perhaps, or a restaurant.
Rab is lovely, i arrived around 5pm by catamaran from Riejka that took about an hour and a half. I had stazed in Riejka onlz one night, i stazed in a hostel again as it was my only choice but i am quickly learning to plan ahead to avoid them in future. I shared a room with 3 school girls, part of some gymnastic troupe from Hungary and they were so wired at 6am this morning, i had to SSShhh them to stop them doing back flips across the room.
I had the morning in Riejka and although Riejka is an industrial port that reallz serves as a gateway to the islands, it does have its charms just out of the city. Just north of the city is Trsat. There is a church there that supposedly hosted Mary and joseph....snooze. I also went to my first Grad aka Castle all were very nice but what i really liked were all the houses on the walk up,i love just seeing where real people live. Talking of the walk, it helps to know the language around these parts as i could of taken a bus or walked an indirect route instead i approached some stairs, i should of known when there was noone around. When i got to the top, i estimated that i had walked up about 500 stairs and then felt i was exaggerating, i had to walk back down after the castle to count. 536 in total, my ass is going to thank me for it but my legs are unhappy.
Trsat though is very nice, i sense and Italian atmosphere, in fact it feels that waz in Rab too, i am closer to the coast and i guess closer to Italy so it makes sense.
The ride over to Rab was lovely, i spent too much time listening to Sun Kil Moon and feel really wistful, overly romantic and slightly depressed now that i am here as i am here alone and it is quite lovely. Have you ever listened to Carry Me Ohio, i must of listened to it 10 times just today, pay attention to the lyrics, they really resonate.
I am staying on the harbour and the very friendly Hotel Istra, i told them i was depsrate for a swim and they pointed me to a local spot where basically the town drops into the Adriatic sea. No beach, just a concrete lip, the sun going down over the island across with sail boats drifting by. The water was wonderfully fresh and cold and i felt the stress of travel completely leave me.
It's 8.30pm now and there is not much to do for a singleton like me but go to bed. Sometimes awesome is a room to myself, a small bed and Croatia's Got Super Talent on the telly.
Tomorrow i am kayaking to a little island not even in my guide book called Franjki or something like that. Apparently Prince Edward and Wallace Simpson had a love in there, it means love as well apparently...great. After that it's an overnight sail to Split. Im actually looking forward to meeting the others in Dubrovnik, some conversation, dinner and wine would be nice...oh and a wedding!
Listening to: Sun Kil Moon -Carry Me Ohio and Ocean Breathes Salty
Time zone GMT + 1
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Rab, Croatia
For months i have been trying to figure out if i want to stay in Brooklyn or move back to London and i have been completely missing it, i need a simple life. As i swam off the side of Rab,s old town at sunset this evening, i thought, this is really living. People are so lucky to be content to live the simple life, why cant i be one of them. As an old man leaned out of the window and watched us swimmers, i wondered how long he has lived on this island and what he does, what could i do. Run a post office perhaps, or a restaurant.
Rab is lovely, i arrived around 5pm by catamaran from Riejka that took about an hour and a half. I had stazed in Riejka onlz one night, i stazed in a hostel again as it was my only choice but i am quickly learning to plan ahead to avoid them in future. I shared a room with 3 school girls, part of some gymnastic troupe from Hungary and they were so wired at 6am this morning, i had to SSShhh them to stop them doing back flips across the room.
I had the morning in Riejka and although Riejka is an industrial port that reallz serves as a gateway to the islands, it does have its charms just out of the city. Just north of the city is Trsat. There is a church there that supposedly hosted Mary and joseph....snooze. I also went to my first Grad aka Castle all were very nice but what i really liked were all the houses on the walk up,i love just seeing where real people live. Talking of the walk, it helps to know the language around these parts as i could of taken a bus or walked an indirect route instead i approached some stairs, i should of known when there was noone around. When i got to the top, i estimated that i had walked up about 500 stairs and then felt i was exaggerating, i had to walk back down after the castle to count. 536 in total, my ass is going to thank me for it but my legs are unhappy.
Trsat though is very nice, i sense and Italian atmosphere, in fact it feels that waz in Rab too, i am closer to the coast and i guess closer to Italy so it makes sense.
The ride over to Rab was lovely, i spent too much time listening to Sun Kil Moon and feel really wistful, overly romantic and slightly depressed now that i am here as i am here alone and it is quite lovely. Have you ever listened to Carry Me Ohio, i must of listened to it 10 times just today, pay attention to the lyrics, they really resonate.
I am staying on the harbour and the very friendly Hotel Istra, i told them i was depsrate for a swim and they pointed me to a local spot where basically the town drops into the Adriatic sea. No beach, just a concrete lip, the sun going down over the island across with sail boats drifting by. The water was wonderfully fresh and cold and i felt the stress of travel completely leave me.
It's 8.30pm now and there is not much to do for a singleton like me but go to bed. Sometimes awesome is a room to myself, a small bed and Croatia's Got Super Talent on the telly.
Tomorrow i am kayaking to a little island not even in my guide book called Franjki or something like that. Apparently Prince Edward and Wallace Simpson had a love in there, it means love as well apparently...great. After that it's an overnight sail to Split. Im actually looking forward to meeting the others in Dubrovnik, some conversation, dinner and wine would be nice...oh and a wedding!
Listening to: Sun Kil Moon -Carry Me Ohio and Ocean Breathes Salty
Time zone GMT + 1
Rab is lovely, i arrived around 5pm by catamaran from Riejka that took about an hour and a half. I had stazed in Riejka onlz one night, i stazed in a hostel again as it was my only choice but i am quickly learning to plan ahead to avoid them in future. I shared a room with 3 school girls, part of some gymnastic troupe from Hungary and they were so wired at 6am this morning, i had to SSShhh them to stop them doing back flips across the room.
I had the morning in Riejka and although Riejka is an industrial port that reallz serves as a gateway to the islands, it does have its charms just out of the city. Just north of the city is Trsat. There is a church there that supposedly hosted Mary and joseph....snooze. I also went to my first Grad aka Castle all were very nice but what i really liked were all the houses on the walk up,i love just seeing where real people live. Talking of the walk, it helps to know the language around these parts as i could of taken a bus or walked an indirect route instead i approached some stairs, i should of known when there was noone around. When i got to the top, i estimated that i had walked up about 500 stairs and then felt i was exaggerating, i had to walk back down after the castle to count. 536 in total, my ass is going to thank me for it but my legs are unhappy.
Trsat though is very nice, i sense and Italian atmosphere, in fact it feels that waz in Rab too, i am closer to the coast and i guess closer to Italy so it makes sense.
The ride over to Rab was lovely, i spent too much time listening to Sun Kil Moon and feel really wistful, overly romantic and slightly depressed now that i am here as i am here alone and it is quite lovely. Have you ever listened to Carry Me Ohio, i must of listened to it 10 times just today, pay attention to the lyrics, they really resonate.
I am staying on the harbour and the very friendly Hotel Istra, i told them i was depsrate for a swim and they pointed me to a local spot where basically the town drops into the Adriatic sea. No beach, just a concrete lip, the sun going down over the island across with sail boats drifting by. The water was wonderfully fresh and cold and i felt the stress of travel completely leave me.
It's 8.30pm now and there is not much to do for a singleton like me but go to bed. Sometimes awesome is a room to myself, a small bed and Croatia's Got Super Talent on the telly.
Tomorrow i am kayaking to a little island not even in my guide book called Franjki or something like that. Apparently Prince Edward and Wallace Simpson had a love in there, it means love as well apparently...great. After that it's an overnight sail to Split. Im actually looking forward to meeting the others in Dubrovnik, some conversation, dinner and wine would be nice...oh and a wedding!
Listening to: Sun Kil Moon -Carry Me Ohio and Ocean Breathes Salty
Time zone GMT + 1
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Zagreb, Croatia
The train ride from Ljubljana to Zagreb is very picturesque and a very easy 2 hours or so. Sit on the right side of the train, there is much more of the landscape to see than on the left. We arrived at the border for Croatia and were swarmed by police, i had thought it was a raid but it was just immigration. Here they board the train with bluetooth devices, calling in the names of non EU passport holders into little headsets before stamping and moving onto the next. It was like a military operation and was remaniscent of old war time movies.
The shame of the whole EU merger is the loss of all the weird and wonderful country stamps but the upside is if you are the holder of a EU passport there is no security check, very easy should yoube on the run. At the rate the EU is growing you could pretty much be on the run forever.
I treated myself and booked into a little designer hotel called the Arcotel Allegra near the train station, i have Sigmund Freud bed sheets.
After checking in i strolled into the Dolac region which is pretty much the center of town. Zagreb at night is very safe and very walkable although the tram system is excellent. Watch out as they come by fast and furious, waiting for no man or woman.
Starving, i stumbled upon a place that was packed with locals outside. I ventured in and found it was this sandwich bar that i had read about on some blog. It,s basically Croatian fast food, sandwiches, the Croatians absolutely love bread. It must come from the time of the conflict as bread is so simple to make, much as it was popular in British war times. Bread is with everything. The sandwich though was amazing, so much so that i went back today for lunch before my 4 hour train ride to Riejka. Last night i had the classic breaded pork with cheese in a Pita bread with lettuce, tomatos and some kind of dressing. So fresh and i was completely stuffed for 20 Kuna.
The Kuna as me just plain confused. Already coming from the states to the UK i am constantly converting between US and Sterling. Now i am converting the Kuna back to Euro back to Sterling back to dollar to get an idea of what i am spending. Currently it is around 7 Kuna to the Euro. So last nights sandwich at 4 Euro was good value...i think.
The shame of travelling solo is not sampling all the nice restaurants. I dont feel like sitting down to a 3 course meal alone. Zagreb is very socialable and cosmopolitan, much of its layout and architecture of some buildings reminds me of both Madrid and Mexico City. Id like to come back for a weekend perhaps although after today like Ljublana, i think i have covered it in 24 hours although as with Slovenia, id like the opportunity to go inland and do some hiking.
After my walk last night i ventured back to the hotel to use as many facilities as possible, namely the wellness spa which boasted jacuzzis and saunas. They werent lying and at first like with many hotels i though i was the only one using them. I wandered in and the place was silent, noone around, and then i saw a man laying on chair in a robe. We swapped Dobar Dans (Hello) and i went back to change. At first i believed he had thought i had left because when i returned he was standing butt naked outside the steam room. I quickly apologized for walking in on him and closed the door for a moment, as he put his robe back on. I then went into the steam room, wearing a swimsuit, this is a hotel for gods sake not a nudist colony. As i lay there perspiring away all my youth hostel dirt from the night before, in he walks completely balls naked and sits down on the bench, my eyes in direct line with his dangly bits. I dont know how i didnt burst out laughing. Have i mentioned the guy must of been in his late 50s to 60s, white hair...collar and cuffs! Well i remained cool and stayed for 5 minutes, before leaving, as i left he said ˝i hope i did not scare you ˝ i wanted to tell him ˝ not with that, no˝ but i didn't.
Instead i went to one of the jacuzzis, how awesome that they had personal jacuzzis that you start with your room key, it sprays in detergent and cleans it before filling with water and starts the jets. It was fantastic, lights went on in the tub and calming music played. Definitely what i needed.
Today i walk around town, went to Zagreb Kathedral, my first place of worship on this trip but not my last i am sure. Actually i followed it up by going to St Marks church which has god awful tiling that form flags on the roof and then to a stone gate. I then went up a path that lined the city and gave sweeping views of its rooftops and spires.
I stopped by the market in the Dolac, starting first with the flower market, the smell of lavender was intoxicating, this was then followed by all the fresh fruits and vegetables and the women selling their cheeses, The area was brimming with people at outdoor cafes and what i really like is that these people are older but what is odd to see is rarely are these groups of mixed gender. The older generation certainly seem to socialise with their own. Women outside cafes drinking lattes and wine, the men smoking cigars across the street, cold beer in one hand cards in the other. Everybody watching each other.
Zagreb in fall is lovely. Still warm and sunny in the day, cool at night. The leaves are starting to leave the trees and the streets are full of conkers which streetside vendors roast and sell in the evenings. I have only ever seen that in England before so it made me smile.
Iwent back for a sandwich at Pingvins, this time a seabass in ciabatta with lettuce, tartar sauce and tomatos. I am not a sandwich fan but these were nom nom.
Now, i run for a train to Riejka, the gate way to the coast and where i swap trains for boats.
Listening to: Alexi Murdoch - Time without Consequnces (great trainride soundtrack)
Watching: Charlie,s Angels - The drew barrymore movie. Hadn´t seen it before, somehow i think the subtitled version is better.
The shame of the whole EU merger is the loss of all the weird and wonderful country stamps but the upside is if you are the holder of a EU passport there is no security check, very easy should yoube on the run. At the rate the EU is growing you could pretty much be on the run forever.
I treated myself and booked into a little designer hotel called the Arcotel Allegra near the train station, i have Sigmund Freud bed sheets.
After checking in i strolled into the Dolac region which is pretty much the center of town. Zagreb at night is very safe and very walkable although the tram system is excellent. Watch out as they come by fast and furious, waiting for no man or woman.
Starving, i stumbled upon a place that was packed with locals outside. I ventured in and found it was this sandwich bar that i had read about on some blog. It,s basically Croatian fast food, sandwiches, the Croatians absolutely love bread. It must come from the time of the conflict as bread is so simple to make, much as it was popular in British war times. Bread is with everything. The sandwich though was amazing, so much so that i went back today for lunch before my 4 hour train ride to Riejka. Last night i had the classic breaded pork with cheese in a Pita bread with lettuce, tomatos and some kind of dressing. So fresh and i was completely stuffed for 20 Kuna.
The Kuna as me just plain confused. Already coming from the states to the UK i am constantly converting between US and Sterling. Now i am converting the Kuna back to Euro back to Sterling back to dollar to get an idea of what i am spending. Currently it is around 7 Kuna to the Euro. So last nights sandwich at 4 Euro was good value...i think.
The shame of travelling solo is not sampling all the nice restaurants. I dont feel like sitting down to a 3 course meal alone. Zagreb is very socialable and cosmopolitan, much of its layout and architecture of some buildings reminds me of both Madrid and Mexico City. Id like to come back for a weekend perhaps although after today like Ljublana, i think i have covered it in 24 hours although as with Slovenia, id like the opportunity to go inland and do some hiking.
After my walk last night i ventured back to the hotel to use as many facilities as possible, namely the wellness spa which boasted jacuzzis and saunas. They werent lying and at first like with many hotels i though i was the only one using them. I wandered in and the place was silent, noone around, and then i saw a man laying on chair in a robe. We swapped Dobar Dans (Hello) and i went back to change. At first i believed he had thought i had left because when i returned he was standing butt naked outside the steam room. I quickly apologized for walking in on him and closed the door for a moment, as he put his robe back on. I then went into the steam room, wearing a swimsuit, this is a hotel for gods sake not a nudist colony. As i lay there perspiring away all my youth hostel dirt from the night before, in he walks completely balls naked and sits down on the bench, my eyes in direct line with his dangly bits. I dont know how i didnt burst out laughing. Have i mentioned the guy must of been in his late 50s to 60s, white hair...collar and cuffs! Well i remained cool and stayed for 5 minutes, before leaving, as i left he said ˝i hope i did not scare you ˝ i wanted to tell him ˝ not with that, no˝ but i didn't.
Instead i went to one of the jacuzzis, how awesome that they had personal jacuzzis that you start with your room key, it sprays in detergent and cleans it before filling with water and starts the jets. It was fantastic, lights went on in the tub and calming music played. Definitely what i needed.
Today i walk around town, went to Zagreb Kathedral, my first place of worship on this trip but not my last i am sure. Actually i followed it up by going to St Marks church which has god awful tiling that form flags on the roof and then to a stone gate. I then went up a path that lined the city and gave sweeping views of its rooftops and spires.
I stopped by the market in the Dolac, starting first with the flower market, the smell of lavender was intoxicating, this was then followed by all the fresh fruits and vegetables and the women selling their cheeses, The area was brimming with people at outdoor cafes and what i really like is that these people are older but what is odd to see is rarely are these groups of mixed gender. The older generation certainly seem to socialise with their own. Women outside cafes drinking lattes and wine, the men smoking cigars across the street, cold beer in one hand cards in the other. Everybody watching each other.
Zagreb in fall is lovely. Still warm and sunny in the day, cool at night. The leaves are starting to leave the trees and the streets are full of conkers which streetside vendors roast and sell in the evenings. I have only ever seen that in England before so it made me smile.
Iwent back for a sandwich at Pingvins, this time a seabass in ciabatta with lettuce, tartar sauce and tomatos. I am not a sandwich fan but these were nom nom.
Now, i run for a train to Riejka, the gate way to the coast and where i swap trains for boats.
Listening to: Alexi Murdoch - Time without Consequnces (great trainride soundtrack)
Watching: Charlie,s Angels - The drew barrymore movie. Hadn´t seen it before, somehow i think the subtitled version is better.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Slovenia looks like Oregon from above. Very lush & forestry. I really hadn´t thought much about this trip with so much going on in my life at the moment so i arrived in Ljubljana without any expections, not even a place to spend the night.
I found a bus to the city center and found myself sitting next to an aussie guy, Matt & a Portuguese guy, Luis. The latter spoke very little Spanish. I had planned to stay in a hotel but they convinced me to go to a hostel with them, the hostel Celica which is rated as one of the best in the world. Yeah, it was full . So we ended up somewhere that was probably rated the worst. Hotel Park which doubles as both a hotel and a hostel. As i found myself having to share with what was supposed to be 3 strange women, i decided it was not one of my best ideas and as i opened the door to the corridor that lead to my room and was greeted with very loud dance music, very loud shit dance music i wanted to run. I inched my way to my room & edged open the door, dreading what might be inside. It was quiet. Phew! Hang on a minute though, what the F is that? On one of the bunks was some kind of breathing device, a machine with a tube coming off of it and mouth piece. It was huge and very, very creepy. Nothing else, the bunk relatively untouched. As i eyed it, somebody on the bunk next to me said hello. I jumped. Hardly surprising as i am the jumpiest person in the world.
The voice was attached to Lena, a very nice 24 year old teacher from Minnesota. She was equally creeped out by the medical device. It wasnt hers. The owner was a mystery to both of us.
I convinced Lena to come out with me, i was thinking i would set her up with Matt or Luis but i just wanted to get out of the room.
The four of us walked along the river which was buzzing with cafes and bars and people. Its a university town so there are lots of young people around. We ended up finding a bar called The Cutty Sark which sold beer and pizza. I did try to ask locals to find out where we could get some local food from, apparently Ljubljana does not do local food. I was pointed to a Chinese place, an Italian and two Mexicans. Mexican food is Slovenia? Thats just wrong.
I sat and chatted with the younguns for a while, until they caught wind that i was 30 something and looked a little disappointed when i said i would not go in on a bottle of vodka and roam the benches of Ljubljana. They decided it wasnt cool either and we went back together, Lena and i was anxious to find out who the owner of the medical device was. NOt before Lena signed on to You Tube and showed us clips of fainting goats which was quite hilarious and we were all molested by the massage chair in the hotel lobby, at one point it tried to penetrate places where i would think it illegal in Eastern Europe.
Our floor was crazy, a party of German teenagers filling the corridor with guitars and booze and lots of singing. Confused into thinking we were all American they tried to get us to sing Tom Waits songs, Bob Marley and then talk turned to Jim Morrison and how amazing her was? Um...how old are these people? What year is this? As modern as Eastern Europe has become, so much of it is still stuck in 80s and stone wash denim and crazy haircuts rule. I made a swift exit to my room. I heard the slow hum of the medical device immdiately but i was a complete scaredy cat and didnt look, it was dark anyway so i just jumped on my bunk and fell asleep to the soudns of Richard Hawley crooning in my ear.
As uncomfortable in my environment as i was, i managed to sleep. Lena left early for a hike which left me with what i thought was 2 strange females in the opposite bunk bed. Well, imagine my surprise when one of them had a deep voice, a hairy back, a bald head and wore tiny pants. Urgh! they had put a man in our room and he was the owner of the breathing contraption. I feined sleep until they showered and left before doing so myself.
Today i rented a bike and rode all over Ljubljana, its very small and tidy so easily done in a few hours. I love that thez have bike lanes on both the pavement and the roads, easily identifiable in red. Good job too as while i was riding my pedal fell off, almost plowing me into traffic so i had to walk it back all the way from the castle. The castle is a big tourist attraction, its pretty from the outside but too modern and restored on the inside.
Im losing weight fast as i am hardly eating and not drinking. I have had no appetite and im disappointed that Ljubljana seems to be low on fresh local food, i didnt feel like anything until... i went for a stroll around the market which was nice, lots of fruit and vegetables, badly made clothes and souvenirs. I suddenly caught a waft of Sardines, i love Sardines. I followed the smell and came across a food truck selling whitebait, calamari & sardines which all the locals were scrambling for. I ordered myself some Sardines that arrived deliciously crispy with fresh garlic and lemon. I sat and people watched for a good hour. Slovenians are a social bunch, lots of milling aroud outside cafes with wine from as early as 11am, bikes everywhere. I love that nobody locks their bikes up.
I like Ljubljana, its very relaxing, the people are amazingly approachable and friendly, ashamedly they all speak great English which i have had to rely quite heavily on. Slovenian not being latin based i have struggled to understand a single word so have shyed away from trying anything more than a hello or thank you. The river is great and i love how vibrant it is in the evening, many of the bars look fun and some restaurants look interesting enough. The problem is, i am not feeling very inspired. I have hardy taken any photos and haven,t written anything more than my blog. So i am taking my own advice where i say if you aren,t feeling inspired by a place then move on. So, i am going to take an earlier train to Zagreb.
Timezone: GMT +1
Reading: John Updike - Couples
I found a bus to the city center and found myself sitting next to an aussie guy, Matt & a Portuguese guy, Luis. The latter spoke very little Spanish. I had planned to stay in a hotel but they convinced me to go to a hostel with them, the hostel Celica which is rated as one of the best in the world. Yeah, it was full . So we ended up somewhere that was probably rated the worst. Hotel Park which doubles as both a hotel and a hostel. As i found myself having to share with what was supposed to be 3 strange women, i decided it was not one of my best ideas and as i opened the door to the corridor that lead to my room and was greeted with very loud dance music, very loud shit dance music i wanted to run. I inched my way to my room & edged open the door, dreading what might be inside. It was quiet. Phew! Hang on a minute though, what the F is that? On one of the bunks was some kind of breathing device, a machine with a tube coming off of it and mouth piece. It was huge and very, very creepy. Nothing else, the bunk relatively untouched. As i eyed it, somebody on the bunk next to me said hello. I jumped. Hardly surprising as i am the jumpiest person in the world.
The voice was attached to Lena, a very nice 24 year old teacher from Minnesota. She was equally creeped out by the medical device. It wasnt hers. The owner was a mystery to both of us.
I convinced Lena to come out with me, i was thinking i would set her up with Matt or Luis but i just wanted to get out of the room.
The four of us walked along the river which was buzzing with cafes and bars and people. Its a university town so there are lots of young people around. We ended up finding a bar called The Cutty Sark which sold beer and pizza. I did try to ask locals to find out where we could get some local food from, apparently Ljubljana does not do local food. I was pointed to a Chinese place, an Italian and two Mexicans. Mexican food is Slovenia? Thats just wrong.
I sat and chatted with the younguns for a while, until they caught wind that i was 30 something and looked a little disappointed when i said i would not go in on a bottle of vodka and roam the benches of Ljubljana. They decided it wasnt cool either and we went back together, Lena and i was anxious to find out who the owner of the medical device was. NOt before Lena signed on to You Tube and showed us clips of fainting goats which was quite hilarious and we were all molested by the massage chair in the hotel lobby, at one point it tried to penetrate places where i would think it illegal in Eastern Europe.
Our floor was crazy, a party of German teenagers filling the corridor with guitars and booze and lots of singing. Confused into thinking we were all American they tried to get us to sing Tom Waits songs, Bob Marley and then talk turned to Jim Morrison and how amazing her was? Um...how old are these people? What year is this? As modern as Eastern Europe has become, so much of it is still stuck in 80s and stone wash denim and crazy haircuts rule. I made a swift exit to my room. I heard the slow hum of the medical device immdiately but i was a complete scaredy cat and didnt look, it was dark anyway so i just jumped on my bunk and fell asleep to the soudns of Richard Hawley crooning in my ear.
As uncomfortable in my environment as i was, i managed to sleep. Lena left early for a hike which left me with what i thought was 2 strange females in the opposite bunk bed. Well, imagine my surprise when one of them had a deep voice, a hairy back, a bald head and wore tiny pants. Urgh! they had put a man in our room and he was the owner of the breathing contraption. I feined sleep until they showered and left before doing so myself.
Today i rented a bike and rode all over Ljubljana, its very small and tidy so easily done in a few hours. I love that thez have bike lanes on both the pavement and the roads, easily identifiable in red. Good job too as while i was riding my pedal fell off, almost plowing me into traffic so i had to walk it back all the way from the castle. The castle is a big tourist attraction, its pretty from the outside but too modern and restored on the inside.
Im losing weight fast as i am hardly eating and not drinking. I have had no appetite and im disappointed that Ljubljana seems to be low on fresh local food, i didnt feel like anything until... i went for a stroll around the market which was nice, lots of fruit and vegetables, badly made clothes and souvenirs. I suddenly caught a waft of Sardines, i love Sardines. I followed the smell and came across a food truck selling whitebait, calamari & sardines which all the locals were scrambling for. I ordered myself some Sardines that arrived deliciously crispy with fresh garlic and lemon. I sat and people watched for a good hour. Slovenians are a social bunch, lots of milling aroud outside cafes with wine from as early as 11am, bikes everywhere. I love that nobody locks their bikes up.
I like Ljubljana, its very relaxing, the people are amazingly approachable and friendly, ashamedly they all speak great English which i have had to rely quite heavily on. Slovenian not being latin based i have struggled to understand a single word so have shyed away from trying anything more than a hello or thank you. The river is great and i love how vibrant it is in the evening, many of the bars look fun and some restaurants look interesting enough. The problem is, i am not feeling very inspired. I have hardy taken any photos and haven,t written anything more than my blog. So i am taking my own advice where i say if you aren,t feeling inspired by a place then move on. So, i am going to take an earlier train to Zagreb.
Timezone: GMT +1
Reading: John Updike - Couples
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Geneva, Switzerland
Travelling is so hard on a hangover. As much as i knew my journey today would involve a bus, two trains, a plane and a car ride i still thought it best to stay out until 3am.
Somehow i woke in time and made my way down the mountain and caught the train first from Les Chable to Martigny and then onto Geneva airport. Thank god for sunglasses and Ira Glass. I slept most of the way.
Got home to Nana in time for a sunday roast and An Affair To Remember on the tv. I love Cary Grant, alway have and this film quite possibly started my love affair with NY.
Listening to: This American Life Podcast - Separated at Birth
Watching: An Affair To Remember
Somehow i woke in time and made my way down the mountain and caught the train first from Les Chable to Martigny and then onto Geneva airport. Thank god for sunglasses and Ira Glass. I slept most of the way.
Got home to Nana in time for a sunday roast and An Affair To Remember on the tv. I love Cary Grant, alway have and this film quite possibly started my love affair with NY.
Listening to: This American Life Podcast - Separated at Birth
Watching: An Affair To Remember
Saturday, September 12, 2009
G & C got married yesterday in the beautiful little village of Le Chable. I've searched the internetz and there is very little on Le Chable no matter how you spell it. It was a civil ceremony, in a lovely old private house once lived in by a poet and now used as a registry office for weddings.
Earlier this week G had asked me to translate the ceremony as it was to be in French. I can tell you now that my French is passable should i need to find the swimming pool (piscine) or want a room with 2 beds and a bathroom (Je Voudrais un chambre avec deux lit & un salle de bain). So i was a little surprised. Luckily she has it all translated and all i had to do was recognise enough to know when i had to step in. I thought it an honor, she said it was just because i had a sexy voice and nothing to do with the fact we had known each other for over 20 years (eek!) i had hoped to ask S who is third in our friendship ring but she felt she hadn't yet dropped her mockney accent and was mortified at the thought of having to speak publicly.
What i did not know was that the size of the room was the size of my apartment and i was sitting practically on top of G & C in full view of the congregation. I had hoped that i would be at the back, behind a curtain somewhere. Alas no. The pressure was on me but i think i did a sterling job and unknowingly deceived everyone including G's family that i was fluent in French and did not have the translation in front of me. It would come to bite me on the arse later when JC, the local French speaking Snowboarding hero would try to chat me up.
Did i mention that G looked absolutely beautiful. She is a stunning girl and i think every girl looks especially beautiful on their wedding day, had she wore a white bin bag her smile would of made her radiant. Her dress though was very adult & classic, reminded me of a Ginger Rogers style dress, ivory, sleeveless, with slight jewel placement and long trains that flowed from her shoulders. C looked expecially dashing too.
The ceremony was fun, quick but not hurried and really very personal. After a few photo's, very few formal ones (yippee!) we all headed back up the mountain to Verbier for a much needed drink & dance.
The reception was back at the Hotel Nevai, 3 course dinner and lots & lots of Champagne. DJ Dave played some fantastic track and i managed to dance until 2am before i took my 5 inch heels off. Great meal, hilarious speeches, old friends and new friends made it a fantastic evening. I eventually got home at 9am after an after party but the less said about that the better. I managed to avoid JC, M & NA, i think mostly due to my high tolerance to champagen. I will say though that the scandal did not involve us singletons.
Today was a post wedding bbq of Ostrich & Chicken. Hangovers cured with Pimms & Bloody Mary's. People were avoided & sunglasses were stuck to most people's faces.
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