Blah Blah Blog

just thought i would let you know

2007-04-27T03:58:00.000-05:00

...that i did indeed have beer and calamares on the terrace, in Plaza Tirso de Molina....where I spent the whole afternoon acquiring rather fetching suntan marks.

Today is the beginning of a 5 day fiesta....and I am very excited about going to Salamanca to drink lots.

That is all

Liv x x

The sun has got his hat on, hip hip hip hooray!!!

2007-04-21T04:35:00.000-05:00

After weeks of schizophrenic weather (at the beginning of March I was wearing flip-flops, and 2 weeks ago it was pissing it down and freezing), Madrid, courtesy of global warming, has finally decided to join in with the whole "summer" thing.
Like the UK, Spain is set to experience a scorcher this year....so I am busy trying to figure out the best place to escape the heat come July and August. With predictions of 35 degrees and above, Madrid´s desert climate is not really an option!!

So....now I have to try and remember what I have been up to over the last month.

Well, my mother came to visit a coupe of weeks ago and brought beautiful English weather with her which reminded me of home, and didn´t make me feel homesick in the slightest. A little visit to the Roman city of Segovia and a yummy lunch of cochinillo (teeny-tiny-weeny baby pig) was delicous.
My brother (the bigger and bossier one) is coming to visit me this weekend, and in order to repay him for all his male-chauvinistic rants over the years I am going to drag him along for a girly weekend in the university town of Salamanca....which is famous for its... ahem...relaxed nightlife. My New Year´s resolution to cut back on the beer is very difficult in a country where it´s cold, refreshing, cheap, and usually served with free tapas.

I have been busy grabbing every opportunity to speak Spanish that I can, which mainly involves crashing Spanish parties and making the poor guests listen to me.

May is fiesta season.....(Madrid alone has 15 bank holidays a year), so I am going to spend most of the next month partying in the street to celebrate some random saints birthday, or something similar.
However, I am harding back to the UK between the 17th and 22nd May, so would be lovely to see people, whoever is around.

I´m about to run out of credit at the internet cafe, so must dash (and anyway...the sun is beckoning and giving me "beer and calamari on a terrace someplace nice" cravings.

I hope that everybody is well....and that the blog is enough to let you all know how I am. I am rubbish with email.

Hasta luego cara huevos

Liv x x x

I am probably the worst blogger ever

2007-03-14T12:02:00.000-05:00

Very sorry. It´s been nearly 2 months now, and I dont even have time to write a proper long entry.

Needless to say I have been working like a mad woman, and after a minor emotional breakdown brought on by lack of sleep and students pissing me off, I am beginning to feel normal again.
I have had a crazy couple of months......leaving the house at about 6.30am and getting home about 9pm 6 days a week. And I also seem to have the "I can´t say no to anything that might sound like it could be fun" disease, so I have managed to utterly wear myself out, resulting in me being unable to get out of bed one recent Monday morning.
However....after only a few days of actually getting some rest and staying in of an evening after work, I am feeling my usual splendid self!
This is also helped by the glorious weather - I went to the park on Sunday and had to go and sit in the shade because I was worried about getting sunburnt.

So...new things with me......

I have become a bit of a yoga addict - I go without fail every week (twice if possible) to enjoy the natural high that is brought on by Koodiyookigoogoo yoga (or something like that). It chills me out and makes me feel better about not doing any proper exercise. I can now also chant in both Spanish and Sanskrit, (which is useful) and my Spanish "body" vocabulary is really rather good.

I am now 23. I had a lovely birthday full of fun and practical presents (including a can of baked beans and a pair of knickers) and a birthday cake with candles at 8am. My students did not learn any English that day.

I went to the theatre. Which was interesting. It was a comedy about love and sex and was performed at such high speed that I just sat there looking abit puzzled while everyone around me roared with laughter. An interesting experience though.

I am making plans for Semana Santa (or Easter to us normal people). It is a BIG deal to all the Catholic peeps in this neck of the woods, and I get a whole week off work, so some day trips a little further afield are required. I cannot wait.....mainly because it means I won´t have to get out of bed until maybe...ooh...8am, and can eat all the seasonal delicacies that I am sure will abound.

I have not been robbed recently. Although someone on the metro did try...but I was quicker than he was the little bugger. I now leave the house expecting to come back empty-handed.

I am actually earning some real money. This is very exciting for me....as I am always poor....and I must remember not to spend it all in one go on ridiculous things like Spanish omelette and flamenco shoes.

I think my travel feet are getting itchy again, so I am busy planning a summer full of Spanish fun. I can´t wait to pack up my rucksack, get on a train and explore the country for 7 whole weeks! If anyone is out this way then, let me know and I will come and find you. We get the whole of July and August off, so I won´t have to be back at work until September. Yay!!

Ok, so that is me for now. I have to go now and chant my way to enlightenment in Yoga class.

Lots of love to you all.....and of course besos

Liv x x x

perdon!!!

2007-03-12T10:37:00.000-05:00

sorry.....will post a proper blog very soon i promise!!

i am alive and well and very busy...will tell you more about it soon

liv x

January.....is turning out to be rather odd

2007-01-20T14:01:00.000-05:00

Hello All

Well once again apologies for leaving it a whole month until my latest update. I think that this will be the case from now on - Im so busy that I just dont have the time to while away my days on the internet!! Anyhoo....it means I can save up months worth of news to entertain you all.

And Enero is proving to be an interesting month indeed. Ive been back in España for only 3 weeks (after a lovely xmas - was splendid to see you all tios) and have managed to compile a little collection of amusing "anecdotes" if you will to help you get through those post-christmas blues and pretend that there isn´t a hurricane raging through the UK. The weather here is super btw, was wearing sunglasses today because the sun was so strong!!

Anectode Numero Uno - My New Stalker.
Aaah yes, my number one fan, Francisco the devout Jehova´s Witness who seems to have fallen pasionately in love with yours truly and has reduced me to hiding behind the vending machines at the train station at 7am.
It all began innocently enough......I was sitting on the platform minding my own business when the chap next to me (about 50 odd and harmless looking) offered me his newspaper to sit on because the bench was so cold. Bless. I said no thank you, but my accent alerted him to the fact that I was not Española and we had a little chat about where I was from and what I did. Then he got on his train (the one that arrives 5 minutes before mine) and I thought nothing more of it.
But.....Monday morning - he comes running over to me and shouts "Olivia Olivia!!! Please....I must get my train now, but I want you to have this", and he thrust a little black Bible into my hand and jumped on the train. Abit odd, I thought. But then I opened the Bible and he had decorated the front page with love heart stickers and had written "Olivia and Francisco, forever in love, I will always be here for you and we can experience Christian love together". Followed by his telephone number. Now I was scared. I spent the next few mornings managing to hide from him by moving around the platform and standing behind a very fat man, but on Friday he found me again and gave me another book, which, despite my protests he pressed into my hands. This one was entitled "What the Bible really teaches us" and was a Jehova´s Witness scaremongering book. And yes, the front page was decorated with love hearts and Bible quotes saying how God wants us to be together.
Now, flattered as I am, I think this may be just a teeny bit inapproriate (albeit bloody funny) . On Monday, I think I´ll take the books with me and bash him over the head with his own Bible. That might get the message across.

Anectode Numero Dos - Guru Guru Wahje Guru
Despite the fact I, as a rule, loathe exercise, I have taken up yoga with my friend Rachael. I have done yoga before and I thought I knew what to expect - abit of Salutation to the Sun here, a bit of stretching there, all followed by a nice relaxing kip at the end. But I was not bargaining on the yoga teacher to be an ultra-spiritual, ultra-hippy yoga guru.
We did chanting. And we had to roll around on the floor with our tongues poking out. Then we had to sing. And that fact that the whole lesson was conducted in Spanish and they were burning some kind of incense which actually made me quite high, I got the giggles big time. But, I will be returning - mainly because I think the Guru knows what she´s on about but also because it gave me the best sleep I´ve ever had afterwards. So.....I shall be attending 3 hours of super spiritual yoga every week, and if I come back looking and chanting like Buddha re-incarnate, then you know why.

Anecdote Numero Tres - Los Niños
That´s right people - I am teaching children. On a Saturday. Now this is interesting for 2 reasons - 1, I don´t like children very much. They make too much noise and on the whole don´t really have anything interesting to say. And 2, I tend to get really rather drunk on a Friday night.
Therefore my kids classes have been interesting affairs to say the least. But so far this is what I have learned:
Talking to a bunch of 8 year old brats about guns, bombs and whether you would prefer Roberto Carlos to murder Britney Spears or Shakira is guaranteed to keep them interested.
Ditto with Wink Murder, or finding out who has a boyfriend/girlfriend and who doesn´t.
Turning up totally unprepared and still a little pissed doesn´t seem to hinder my performance at all....in fact I think it adds to it.
Never underestimate the power of Simon Says when you don´t know what else to do

There have also been several other amusing incidents, but I´m not sure I should put them down in writing. But all in all, I am having a very fun month of weirdness, which I hope will continue (well, tonight I´m off clubbing in Chueca, the uber-gay part of Madrid, so I think I can safely say that I will have some weirdness to report).

Vale, chicos. I must be off, as I need to get some food before the shops close in order to deal with the early-morning hunger pangs that I know will hit when I get home in the wee hours.

I hope you are all well, and please leave me little notes on my blog....then I know if anybody is actually reading it!!!

Besos

Liv x x x

Apologies.....

2006-12-15T05:33:00.000-05:00

....For my lame blog efforts. It has been nearly a month since my last entry. There are several contributing factors to my blog tardiness:

1 - I do not have a computer of my own
2 - I am out of my house for about 14 hours each working day
3 - I never get more than 6 hours sleep a night
4 - I am always tired (see numbers 2 and 4)
5 - I have discovered that extreme tiredness makes me very hyperactive and I cannot stay still long enough to compose a blog entry worth reading
6 - Madrid is so fun, that spending more than 30 minutes at a time in an internet cafe seems like a very boring way to pass my free time. There are cañas to be drunk, tapas to be eaten and fun to be had.

But, today is Friday, I have the afternoon off, and therefore actually have the time to write this as well as do all the other things that must be done before I head home on Thursday for the festive season!!

So...where to start?? Well, the parentals paid me a little visit last week which was of course lovely. And not just because I got taken out for dinner and had Christmas presents bought for me - it was nice to see them too, obviously.
The Madrid sky pulled its finger out and decided to shine and sparkle brighter than it has done in a long while. I tell you, it´s almost worth getting up at 6am every morning in order to see the sky just before sunrise - it´s a deep velvet blue, that turns first yellow and then bright bright blue by 9am. And not a cloud. But....it is bloody freezing. A splendid, crisp cold that makes you want to brave having a caña in the beer gardens, all wrapped up in as many layers as you can fit under your jacket. But it´s also the kind of cold that splits the skin on your fingertips and turns your nose and cheeks a fetching shade of pink.

Believe it or not, I got robbed again. But this time, it was a pickpocket-on-the-metro affair. I got my wallet back though.....the culprit was a teeny-tiny woman who wasn´t really in a position to argue with me and Eugene when we caught her sauntering down the metro platform with my wallet down her trousers. It would seem that blonde hair and pale eyes mark me out as a foreigner only in negative ways, so the change in hair colour is booked for when I go home next week.

Work is going well - I am slowly settling into the routine of it, and the whole teaching thing is getting easier and less stressful, which is always good.

I am going home on the 21st for a week and I CANNOT WAIT to do nothing but eat, drink, sleep, eat some more, drink some more, maybe sleep some more for 8 whole days. Will be good to see all the friends too of course!!

So......have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and I will be back on line in 2007.

Besos

Liv x x x

Look here Mister, I am NOT a bloody cat....

2006-11-15T13:08:00.000-05:00

....or a dog, or any other kind of animal that can be clicked at, whistled at and (much to my disgust) hissed at.
It would seem that even in a cosmopolitan city like a Madrid.....a head of blonde hair in a sea of brunettes is a health hazard. A change of colour is required if I want to get through the rest of the year without slapping/punching/screaming at the offending chicos.

anyway...rant over.

Madrid is still lovely - the Christmas lights are up and ready to be switched on, the weather is cold, crisp and beautiful, and there´s a festive smell in the air. Yay...I love Christmas. Can´t afford it though....so will make do with just eating too much.

Lessons are still going well - hard work, and I think I´ve finally managed to pick up the bug that has been doing the rounds which makes the whole exercise just that little bit harder, but on the whole everything is great.

Speaking of bugs, my head is all fogged up and I can´t really think of anything else interesting to say...so I´m going to go.

Hope everyone is well, wherever you are

Luego

Liv x x x

A mugs game

2006-11-03T07:42:00.000-05:00

Good morning/afternoon/evening to you all, depending on your exact location in the world.

You will all be pleased to hear that I have been forced off my sofa and shoved into the world of work at last, more´s the pity. Yep....I am now a proper teacher with real students and everything. I work in an enormous Spanish engineering company teaching all the engineering boffins how to say "This isn´t a pen, it´s a book". Or....to my more advanced students "You jammy git", "I fancy a nice cuppa", "You´ve only gone and blown the bloody door off".
And...its actually quite fun. Each one of my groups is totally different...from the very serious older students to a group about my own age which, despite my best efforts seems to inevitably descend into an hour of laughing my ass off and teaching them wholly inappropriate language. So...all is going well on the work front!!

On a damper, darker and slightly scarier note.....I managed to get mugged last week. Which was lovely. It was about 2am and I was literally outside my apartment building when some charming South American guy launched himself at my handbag and managed to drag me halfway across the road before the reflex action of holding on to my possessions finally let go. So, it was with a bruised arse, ripped coat and minus my wallet and beloved MP3 player that I went to the police the next day and spent a surprisingly enjoyable morning with my friend Rachel looking at mugshots. Unfortunately my own Mr Mugger wasn´t amongst the little bastards. Oh well.....it´s only stuff and it could have been alot worse.
I´ve resolved to start carrying around a "dummy handbag" filled with either rocks or dog poo (i cant decide which would be worse) in order to give any future theives a nice little surprise.

But aside from minor street crime, am still loving Madrid and everting it has to offer. I must be off....have a busy weekend of socialising ahead of me and must be prepares.

Take care, y un beso para todo

Liv x x x

The Waiting Game

2006-10-09T10:45:00.000-05:00

Well......I am all teacher-trained and raring to go.....but have no work. Yet.

I have spent the last fortnight getting up very early for "theory" training in the morning, followed by 4 hours of actually teaching one-on-one lessons to local Spanairds. The first few lessons that I gave were surprisingly nerve-wracking, but I gradually got more relaxed and started to actually enjoy the lessons. Not sure the same can be said of my students though.

I finished training on Friday, and now I just have to wait to be called and told that I have some teaching hours with some big company somewhere in Madrid. The upside to this is that I am getting paid for this month regardless of whether I work or not. The big fat downside to this is that in order to qualify for this payment I have agreed to be available to teach from 7.30am to 9.30pm. So I am preparing to wave goodbye to my life (and my sleep) by fitting as much into this week as possible. However, it would seem that the Madrileños have alot in common with those crazy party animals in Buenos Aires - sleeping is viewed as a ridiculous waste of time, and all fatigue can be overcome if only you drink enough coffee. My body is just about beginning to adjust.

The last couple of days has blessed Madrid with super duper weather. It was about 26 degrees today and not a cloud in the sky.....so this morning I made the decision to "walk Madrid". Which was fun and alot less stressful than I was anticipating. After 3 weeks of dashing about the city underground it´s been a pleasure to actually see the place from ground level, and have a proper look around at what the city has to offer......which on first impressions, seems to be alot!!

Neighbourhood communities (or barrios) are very important to the Spanish, and it would seem that after only a few weeks and some quizzical looks Ive been accepted into mine. I get an "¡Hola!" every morning from the people in my building and a "Buenos Dias"from the man who works in the garage next door but doesnt seem to do anything other than stand around in the street and talk to people. And the lovely young fellow in my greengrocers gave me a free avocado last week because he couldnt believe that was all I wanted to buy. (When people go grocery shopping here they buy the entire stock of fresh produce. I keep wondering who on earth all these little old ladies are feeding when they leave with two trolleys full of potatoes, cabbages and carrots).

I also went to a barrio fiesta in a suburb just north of Madrid. Which bascially involved about 5000 people having a giant party and getting very drunk in a huge carpark until about 7am. T´was fun. Fiestas and public hoildays abound.....there is one on Thursday, and then 4 more before Christmas..... they celebrate absolutely everything you could imagine. Apparently, in July, Madrid takes the day off work and celebrates "The Day of the Burial of the Sardine". Can´t wait for that one.

Anyhoo chicos.....just thought I´d update you on the happenings from the mainland, where the sun usually shines and the tapas is always good.

Muchos besos

Liv x x x x

All OK so far

2006-09-23T06:16:00.000-05:00

Hello All

Thought it was about time I let you know that I am alive and well, and, after the shortest flat-hunting experience ever, have a place to live. Im in a most super apartment to the north of the centre, in a funky neighbourhood full of latinos, shoe shops (very dangerous) and churrierias (I´ll let you look that one up). The fact that there is a branch of Zara just 10 minutes walk away had nothing to do with my decision to stay here of course.
There is an extremely comfortable double sofa bed in our living room just begging to be slept in........so visitors are more than welcome at any time!

Although Ive only been here a few days, I am feeling pretty settled already. I am in an extremely good mood today because I have just found a shop that sells proper fresh milk......and in a country that thinks fresh milk = UHT, that´s quite a find. The fact that the shop is 7 metro stops away is only a minor detail.

I start training for my job on Monday.....and have been warned to expect a heavy workload. I have no idea when I am going to fit Spanish lessons in, but I´m hoping that the permanent background noise of the local radio talk show in my room will have some subconscious effect, and I´ll be some super-fluent Spanish speaker in a couple of days.

Righty-ho, must be off. As it´s the weekend, there are a million and one markets to explore, which I am sure will keep me pretty content for at least a few hours.

Thank you for the emails people - its good to know all is well!!

Love Liv x

Im leeeeaaaving....On a jet plane!!! Dont know when I'll be back again!!

2006-09-18T11:19:00.000-05:00

Ok. Now Im not sure that any of you will still be reading this, but I have decided that I am going to stick with the blogging. It saves me writing lots of separate emails, clogging up peoples inboxes and getting confused.

For those of you who are not in the know, I am moving to Madrid to work as an English teacher. Tomorrow.
And I know NO-ONE in Spain, so would be grateful for any kind of correspondance. And as I am sure I have mentioned to absolutely everyone about million times, you are ALL welcome to come and stay with me at any time. God knows Im sure I could use the company!! So just drop me an email and jump on a plane.....and we can go out and paint the town red....or alternatively my personal favourite.......pink with green spots.

So....once again, if you would like to know how I am (and Im hoping that I can count at least 2 or 3 people who might) please check my blog, leave comments, email me, send me letters or parcels full of food and fun stuff and I will be eternally grateful.

Ok....well here goes, and let's just hope I dont get fired ;)

Liv x

Hasta luego, y gracias para leer

2006-08-23T13:53:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and it would seem that my travels are no exception.

After 9 countries, 7 different currencies and more hell-raising, sleep-deprived train journeys than I care to remember, I am now in Madrid, getting ready for my journey home tomorrow. What I mean by "getting ready" is screwing all my clothes into teeny-tiny balls and shoving them in the bottom of my rucksack, safe in the knowledge that once they are (properly) washed I can put them in my wardrobe and not look at them, let alone even think about wearing them for at least 6 months. Wearing exactly the same select items for 6 weeks running definitely loses its appeal after about....ooh 6 days.

I am also looking forward to having clean feet. However hard I try, I cannot keep them clean. Gross I know, but pounding the pavements of Europe´s finest in my faithful flipflops leaves the soles of your feet a very fetching shade of.......grubby. Incidently, their appearance is not helped by the fact that I got a lovely farewell present from Italy in the form of a monster insect bite on my right foot which has caused it to swell to gargantuan proportions, giving me a rather attractive limp in the process.

Despite my grumblings, I have had an absolutely amazing trip. 6 weeks is nowhere near enough time to see all the thing that I would like to see......so I think that another trip will be called for sometime in the near future, once my bank balance has recovered from this one. (Here´s a tip-when in Venice, if you eat only sliced pizza for 2 euros a slice for your whole trip.....you may be able to afford to visit some museums, or have a drink, or something equally decadent).

So......until later, and thank you for reading ;)

Liv x

Romeo! O Romeo! Where for art thou Romeo?

2006-08-18T13:50:00.000-05:00

Hello All

Well, after a rather hellish overnight train journey from Salzburg to Venice (think a hot, packed train, and a fat grumpy man sat next to you) I arrived at Venice St Lucia train station at 9am Tuesday morning in a bit of a bad mood.
I got off the train, took one look at the hordes of screaming children, dithering tourists and mile long queues for everything, turned around and got straight back on the train. And ended up in Verona......200km down the road and made famous by being the setting for a romantic story of some kind written by some bloke called William something-or-other.

Naturally, I headed straight for Juliet's house and the famous balcony. It appeared that about 50 million other people had exactly the same idea at exactly the same time. No matter....it just means that all my photos of the balcony feature some slightly bemused Japanese/German/American calling to their loved one below. Very romantic.

But here's the thing. There is a bronze statue of Juliet outside the house, and legend has it that if you touch her heart and make a wish, true love will be yours forever. But it is Juliet's right breast that has been polished to a shine through years of groping.....and people were queueing up to have their photo taken with their hand on aforementioned right/wrong breast. Now call me a cynic, but I cant help but think that these poor people might be luckier in love if only they had a firmer grasp (excuse the pun) of the human anatomy.

Anyway.....Verona. Soooo pretty. All ringing church bells and little old nuns running around. But alas....the rain followed me from Austria for the first two days of my stay, and when your very beautiful but very boarding-school-like hostel deems it necessary to lock its occupants out of the building from 9 to 5 every day (it takes 8 hours to make my bed apparently), there are only so many ways you can occupy yourself in the rain. Lets just say I resorted to drinking alot of coffee and writing alot of emails.

Luckily, the rain held off for the performance of "Carmen" that I attended in the ancient Roman amphitheatre, which is a bit like a mini version of Rome's collesseum, only more intact. And this time I was far more prepared - I bought a synopsis of the opera in English beforehand (this one was sung in French) although I was still left a little baffled as to why Don Jose felt he just had to kill Carmen at the end. Sorry, didnt mean to ruin the ending.

I returned to the hell on earth that is Venice train station this morning and....prepare yourselves.....walked to my hostel which is on the other side of the canal......WITHOUT GETTING LOST. I cannot underestimate the importance of this statement. Everybody gets lost in Venice. It makes no sense. A higgeldy-piggeldy maze of a city that is floating on water. Finding the hostel without taking a single wrong turn is an achievement on a par with the moon landing, or the invention of the wheel, or mobile phones. Needless to say I arrived feeling very very smug.
I then struck out in search of a supermarket to buy something cheap and cheerful for dinner......6 hours later I still hadnt found one and had no idea where I was. When I finally made it back to the hostel I passed the big red sign pointing down the street next to it saying.........."Supermarket". Oh joy.

I am now very much looking forward to getting lost again tomorrow (although I will be more prepared this time and will take emergency rations) exploring this absolutely stunning city.

Right....heading off out for some drinks now. Perhaps I should take a sleeping bag with me just in case.

Ciao x

The Hills Are Alive With The Sound of Music!!!

2006-08-14T12:24:00.000-05:00

Quite literally. It would seem that I have stumbled into Austria in the middle of the biggest Salzburg festival celebrations since it started in 1920, due to the fact that it is a certain W.A Mozart´s 250th birthday this year.

So, despite the rain (damn this mountain weather) I have spent the last 4 days wandering the city and sampling all things musical, Mozart.......and free!!

I have sat through an act and a half of The Marriage of Figaro in the rain, but gave up when I could no longer feel my toes, and deciphering the plot when the opera was sung in Italian and subtitled in German was just more trouble than it was worth; spent a rather pleasant (non-rainy) afternoon in the Mirabell gardens listening to a brass band from some random village near Canada; and, thanks to Rose, my opera-singing room-mate, I attended the semi-final of what can only be described as Pop Idol for opera geeks, and ended up listening to the most amazing bass singer from Finland scare the crap out of me in what can only be described as the most terrifying German opera solo I have ever heard.

But please dont worry, all this cultural development was balanced out by this afternoon´s ultra-tacky, kitsch as you like Sound of Music tour!! Unfortunately my bike-riding, curtain-wearing dreams weren´t quite realised, but I did get a chance to see all the fun stuff from the movie and sing-a-long to the soundtrack on the bus.

Although Salzburg has been utterly charming, the rain is starting to depress me (not to mention wash away my hard-earned Croatian tan) so I am now sat in the train station awaiting my midnight train to Venice. Which is in 5 hours time. It´s at times like this you really need someone to talk to!
I am not entirely sure what I am going to do when I get to Venice.......as I dont think I can afford to stay in Italy´s most expensive city until my flight on the 21st......so the plan is to hop off the train in the morning and ask Tourist Information if they have any fun, affordable suggestions. Like a beach or something. All this culture and musical dramatics has left me craving the simple pleasures of sun, sea and sand.

I will have to update you on my whereabouts when I know myself, so fingers crossed I´ll end up somewhere fun!

Take care all and keep in touch

Liv x

Slovenia

2006-08-10T11:10:00.000-05:00

After 3 very relaxing day spent in the incredibly beautiful Lake Bled in Slovenia, walking, swimming and navel-gazing, I am now back in Ljubijlana (I still dont know if Im spelling that right) awaiting my morning train to Salzburg.

Slovenia has been really lovely. Its an absolutely tiny country- you can just base yourself in the capital and travel out to see its mountains and caves and forests. Ive had to start really watching the budget though- now I am officially out of Eastern Europe the prices have rocketed!!

With regards Salzburg.....I wasnt planning on going to Austria....but these two girls I met in the hostel told me that I had to go to Salzburg to do the Sound of Music Tour. So I am!!!
Not just for that though, its supposed to be a great city and a lot of fun......although I have to admit I am looking forward to spending my days spinning around on the Austrian Alps Julie Andrews-stylee and cycling through the streets wearing a dress made from curtains with 7 Doh-Ray-Meeing brats in tow (and who wouldnt??).

So I am leaving Gen in the morning and heading off to the land of Von Trapp.

Rather bizarrely, Im also getting really quite excited about the prospect of using the Euro. So far I have dealt in Czech Crowns, Polish Zloty, Hungarian Forint, Croatian Kuna, Bosnian Marks and Slovenian Tolar (and at 337 Tolar to the Pound its a bit of a head-bake I can tell you) so Im really looking forward to not having to stand at a shop counter/bus terminal/hostel reception scratching my head and looking like a loon while I try to figure out if Im getting ripped off or not.

So......a quiet night for me this evening as Im trying to save the pennies for Austria and then Italy!!

Although Im sure I could stretch to just one beer......

Liv x

Sarajevo Roses

2006-08-06T04:19:00.000-05:00

Hello All.

Gen and I have been in Sarajevo for a couple of days now, and I think that it is one of my favourite places that I have visited so far. Its just absolutely fascinating.

We are staying in the Old Turkish quarter where Bosniak Muslims in headscarfs mingle with Jews, Croatian Catholics and Serbian Orthodox. There are copper-smiths everywhere creating beautiful coffee sets and ornate vases, mosques next to synagogues, little old ladies selling flowers on the corner, and all enveloped by the intoxicating smell of Turkish coffee which you can ACTUALLY stand a spoon up in....before drinking it and blowing your head off.

Absolutely everywhere the buildings are showered in bullet holes, and the streets bear the marks of the Sarajevo Roses - huge indentations in the pavement where shells have hit and been poignantly filled in with red cement to mark a particularly high loss of life.

We went to the Sarajevo tunnels yesterday - during the seige of the city between 1992 and 1995 the citizens built an 800m tunnel running underneath the airport runway in order to bring food and weapons and fuel to the city which had been completely cut off from the outside world by the Serbian army. We were able to walk along the tunnel for abit....and true to form I whacked my head on one of the low beams and now have a huge bruise on my head!!!

The Bosnian people have definitely been some of the friendliest so far.....and the almost total lack of tourists (apart from curious backpackers such as myself) means that you actually feel like you are in a different country and culture....instead of like Prague where there are more Chinese and Japanese tourists in the city than actual Czech residents.
However....this place is just itching for a tourist boom which no doubt will occur in the next few years. Im just glad that I got to visit it before then!!

We are catching an overnight bus to Lubijlania in Slovenia tonight.....something that I am looking forward to as I have nothing but good things about the country. I am then planning on spending about 10 days exploring Slovenia before heading to Venice, Madrid, then home on the 24th.

So......hope all is well at home and elsewhere.....keep me updated....

Love Liv x

PS - when we were having dinner in Dubrovnik in Croatia who should walk into the restaurant and plonk herself about 3 tables away?? Bjork!! Totally random!

Yay!!!!!

2006-08-03T09:21:00.000-05:00

Quick update - disaster averted. Some very wonderful angel-person handed my card into the bank!!!! I could have kissed the bank man when he handed it to me. Luckily I didnt though.....could have been abit awkward.

It was just in time too - we left Korcula this morning after spending 4 great great days staying in the Big Happy Fun Hostel with the crazy owner Žee; a South Efricen and a bit of a legend around these parts due to his participation in South Efricen Big Brother 2 years ago. After lots of swimming, sunbathing and only a little bit of drinking we were all fully rested and ready to move on.
We are now in the beautiful, magical Dubrovnik. Ive just finished walking the walls......I really didnt realise I was so unfit. All good though. Got some super duper photos of the city - It is an incredible place....a bit like Disneyland. Only real, and minus the Mouse and the Americans.

Although I am only here for 24 hours unfortunately. Anne is off home on Saturday so am heading to Sarajevo tomorrow morning with my new found travel buddy, Gen from Sydney. So Mum......no need to worry about me too much just yet.
Although I will have to remember to avoid those unexploded landmines.........I dont want to come back with only one leg.

Anyhoo, must be off......am meeting Jen for a beer in the Old Town (as you do) then going for some fish!

Take care all and am loving the emails

Liv x

PS - Daddy......dont worry am having super time despite bugs and card-swallowing ATMs. Its just that the mishaps are always so much more fun to write about than than the successes!!

Doh

2006-08-02T13:09:00.000-05:00

Its official. I am a fully certified, beyond-belief plonker.

I left my bloody credit card in the ATM machine. I am very very cross with myself. But dont worry - I have smacked myself in the head enough times already so no one else needs to do it for me. I actually have a bruise.

There is a teeny-weeny itsy-bitsy chance that someone has handed it into the bank (Korcula seems an honest enough island) but to be honest I am not getting my hopes up.

I do have other means of finances.......but thats not the point.

I am now going to get drunk. That will definitely help the situation.

Doh indeed

x

Bite me......

2006-07-29T05:34:00.000-05:00

.............And join the hundreds of nasty, creepy, so-disgusting-I-cant-bear-to-think-about-it-because-it-makes-me-feel-sick Hungarian bedbugs.
Yes....bedbugs. Brings a whole new meaning to the "sleep tight, dont let the bedbugs bite" nursery rhyme.

Our hostel in Budapest wasnt the greatest- too crowded and the rooms were unbearably hot - but the addition of bedbugs just pushed us over the edge. At first we just thought we were all getting heat/sweat rash from the indescriably oppressive weather......but after a couple of conversations with some fellow travellers we realised we were being eaten alive by the little blighters. Gross.

Needless to say we were NOT impressed by this little addition to our bedclothes....and seeing as the hostel was massive and they paid absolutely no attention to us nor had no idea who we were....we decided to do a runner. And Dad....I am blaming you entirely for making me think that this is ever ok!

Most hostels make you pay up front for at least one night, but Bedbugs-Are-Us had just asked for some ID to hold on to then we could pay at check out. They had wanted my passport....but I am SO glad I decided to hand over my drivers licence instead. So on the morning of checkout at 10am, we packed our bags....locked our lockers and room, pocketed the keys (HA HA!) then walked straight out the front door. Easy Peasy!!! My drivers licence was a casulaty of the great escape, but no matter - we had just saved on 4 nights accommodation!!!

So....Helen then bid her farewells and hopped on a flight back to Heathrow looking forward to some air conditioning and a good de-lousing, while Anne and I made for the train station for the 16 hour journey to Split, Croatia. Lack of sleep and an overactive imagination had turned me into a bit of a paranoid android, and I spent the whole journey panicking everytime I saw a policeman or border control guard. Such a wally.

Sooooo.....the journey to Croatia. Was actually very similar to the sauna at the spas in Budapest. For 15 hours I sat as still as possible - even moving my head caused a river of sweat to run down my back. It actually became abit of a race to stay hydrated - how fast I could drink versus how fast my body could sweat out every ounce of moisture it possessed. Needless to say I was about half a stone lighter and very very smelly when Anne and I arrived in Split yesterday morning.

We are now in Hvar, a beautiful medieval island along the Dalmatian coast....and I have to say that after the horrors of Budapest....I couldnt be happier. Never underestimate the power of a sea breeze and a cold beer!!!
After playing "grab-a-granny" at the ferry terminal we are staying in the beautiful, clean and bedbug-free home of a local woman and her husband, spending our days swimming in the Adriatic and our nights eating as much fresh fish as our tummies allow. Bliss!!!!

The plan is to head to the neighbouring island of Korcula tomorrow night. It is supposed to be just as charming but a little less expensive - Hvar is full of people with too much money and not enough taste (ooh Im such a snob) - and after a couple of nights there we are getting another boat to Dubrovnik, from where Anne will be flying home on the 2nd August.

And then I will be all alone! A little scary but very very exciting. The only thing that concerns me slightly is the train journeys alone. It turns out that on the Krakow-Budapest train when the people in the surrounding carraiges got robbed and we didnt, that we were all actually gassed. They put a sleeping gas through the vents in the carriages which knocks you out for a couple of hours, then come in and take your things. Totally explains why all three of us slept so deeply for the whole journey - I in particular tend to wake up a lot and potter about. We think that we didnt get robbed because Anne was on the floor and her feet were jamming the door shut...whilst our bags were all at the other end of the carriage.

So...I am sure that I will be fine...will just make sure I sit with other (preferably female) travellers, and sleep with my arms and legs wrapped round my bag!!!

For my sake more than anything Im going to put down the (very rough) itinary, so I hopefully remeber where to go next!!!

Dubrovnik to Mostar (Bosnia)
Mostar to Sarajevo
Sarajevo to Zagreb (Croatia)
Zagreb to Llubiljana (Slovenia)
Llubiljana to Venice
Venice to Milan
Milan to Madrid (is this possible??? I hope so!)

Then either Madrid to London....or if finances and my older brother allow....I might pop down to the Costa del Sol to crash his lads holiday and top up the tan before I head home!!

Wow....Ive just read this one back and its really long. Sorry for rambling!!!
Thanks for all your emails people - its lovely to hear from you as always!!!

Will write again soon

Love Liv x

Thank god for thunderstorms......

2006-07-24T07:37:00.000-05:00

We are in Budapest right now, which is absolutely sweltering. So so hot - we ventured out of the hostel after dark yesterday in the hope that it would be cooler, but after walking 100 metres I had already broken out in a sweat. Lovely. It is also too hot to eat....which is good. Hopefully wont be getting too fat on this trip then!!

But...as I type the sky has clouded over and there are some almighty thunder-cracks and heavy rain. Its lovely!!!

We arrived in Hungary after another super-exciting journey on the Hogwarts express. Abit of an eye-opener though as the travellers in the two carriages next to us both has their bags stolen. Lukily Anne was sleeping on the floor of our compartment.....and obviously put off any potential theives.

Krakow was incredible - far far nicer than any of us had expected. Very beautiful and a very relaxed, friendly vibe. I would recommend anyone planning a little city break to head to Poland!!!

Whilst there we took a tour to Auschwitz and Birkenau which was very interesting, and pretty shocking. Biekenau especially - the sacle of the place was mindblowing.

Budapest is abit more hectic than both Prague or Krakow.....abit more down and dirty, with a seedier, less touristy feel. But it's good nonetheless and we are planning on spending all day tomorrow bumming round the ancient Turkish baths to cool off. Lovely.

Okey dokey.....signing off now. Heading to the marketplace in Pest later to pick up some some souvenir tat, then heading over the bridge to Buda to find a Shisha bar!! All good fun. Hard work this travelling lark

I hope that you are all coping in the heat (I feel especially sorry for you London kids.....you must be dying) and that you are all taking care.

Love Liv x

ps - James I hope everything went well today. Let me know how its going if you get a break at any point!!

Prague and Krakow

2006-07-20T04:50:00.000-05:00

After 3 very pleasant days in Prague (beautiful city.....but full of Chinese tourists doing the 'peace' sign at every significant monument in the city) we took the night train to Krakow, Poland.

I got quite pathetically over-excited during the overnight train journey. It was the most old fashioned train ever, with little carraiges with leather seats and pull down windows. The whole thing was abit like being onboard the Hogwarts Express......only without all the rats and toads and flying cars and stuff.

We arrived in Krakow at 6 0 Clock this morning, and my first experience of Polish hospitality was an irate little man who would not let me go to the toilet unless I gave him some money. the fact that I didnt actually have any Polish currency (only Czech) due to the total lack of ATMs for about a mile and that if I didnt get to the toilet soon I would make a mess of his lovely clean bathroom was totally lost on him. We even offered him some of Helen's ciggarettes as payment, but he was having none of it. Well neither was I, so I just went to the loo despite his rantings. I was bigger than him anyway.......but I dont think I made a desperately good first impression on Poland. Oops.

We have just woken up from a much-needed nap in the Hostel Giraffe (??) and are contemplating going outside into the heat. But only to sit in the beautiful square and have a beer mind.......nothing strenuous obviously.

Planning to take a little daytrip to Auschwitz and Birkenau tomorrow which will be an informative experience at least. Will update you all on the visit later.

Hope everyone is well

Liv x

So, this is a blog???

2006-07-12T15:30:00.000-05:00

Hmmmmmm.......a blog.As I am obviously too lazy to keep in touch with my friends and family through the normal methods of communication, I have decided to jump on the band-wagon and enjoy the narcissistic delights of the blog. My European inter-railing travels begins oh-so-soon and I've managed to line up an interview for a teaching position in Madrid, so I may well be moving to Espana somewhere in the near future.

So you can read all about my adventures here. But only if you want to ;)