Category Archives: Europe

Bern After Reading

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A friend I met in Death Valley two summers ago(while road-tripping along I-10 West, then back East…perhaps a different story…) met us at the station in Bern. We dropped our bags off and went out to a bar for sandwiches and beer. One thing we learned this night, was that here in Bern you don’t say “Danke,” you say “Merci” because there’s a town pretty near where they speak Francais(swirly thing below the ‘c’!). First, though, we had to get Swiss-Franks out, Euros don’t help too much here. And it’s true, what they say, about how Switzerland is expensive. It is.

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The next morning we awoke and walked all over town, from the Parliament building(great view from there) to the Barengraben(bear pit…the ‘a’ is supposed to have two little dots over it…), where we ate delicious traditional style Swiss meals(mine was like cheesy hash browns with bacon and apple-puree) and drank Marzen(again—two little dots above the ‘a’!) – beer that was sehr gute. The city Bern was actually named after the bear, as it was the first animal the people who came here saw. And now, you’ll see symbol of the bear everywhere in town.

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By request of Bailey and I, we walked by the statue of the giant eating a baby. We were curious, of course, when we read about it in this huge book of Europe Bailey’s been carrying around. It was as strange in real life(in the middle of the street) as it sounds in text.

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We went back to the apartment to catch the Greece/Czech Republic game, the Euro cup is going on right now – it’s a big deal. Czech won 2-1.

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We went out for doner(two dots above the ‘o’!) and caught some of the Poland/Russia game – the tension between the opposing fans was fierce, check it out:

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/euro2012/article-2158765/Euro-2012-UEFA-fine-Russia-FA-fans-violence-opening-match-Poland.html

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After eating, we walked to the Reitschule, an underground totally graffiti’d bar with a few other things including a women’s only club, a cinema, and a really f*ked up bar, apparently. It’s right by the train station. Reminded me of Tacheles in Berlin, but this isn’t as huge nor has it gotten as much publicity(at least its not streaming with tourists during the day time), but people live at the Reitschule, too, at the top. We got a beer from the main inside part, and then went off to a side room. The Poland/Russia match was on. By this point, I wasn’t surprised, and I was actually interested. It’s cool how the various nationalities come together in this sport, and how much belief is invested. The match ended(1-1) and we headed back.

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At this point, we realized how late we waited in finding hostels in Paris. We scrounged the internet and found nothing. It wasn’t till morning we booked our hotel for the night—finding a roof last minute sucks, we’d been spoiled by having such friends abroad to let us stay with them so much. But we got a place booked, and headed to the station, where I spent my remaining Swiss-Franks on donuts and a cheese sandwich.

I miss Berlin

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No, I’ve been having a great time catching trains and traveling to a city I’ve never been to every three days. But still, there’s something about Berlin that isn’t anywhere else. Maybe its something to do with the efficiency…East/West differences, the artistic attraction or the history the city holds. I don’t know, a “gestalt”, if you will.

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Anyway, here’s a link to the final project from my two weeks there:

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http://www.jou.ufl.edu/people/faculty/jfreeman/Berlin2012/Rachel-J-publish_to_web/index.html

Castles, Giants, and Bern– Oh my!

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Excerpt from travel journal:

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11/6/2012

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On the train from Milano to Bern, with Bailey this time!!

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We just passed a castle across a lake! Mountains all around us, going through a tunnel right now actually(so above us, too..) Its so green here.

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Loons, Bailey said. They might be here. They’re distinct — long and oily, sit very low in the water – white and black bill – very long and straight. Also, swans. They’ll be here.

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Out of the tunnel. A teal crane! Brighter than Venice canal water, for sure. And a green one! Wow, and to think all I see back home are plane old golden yellow.

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Man(another tunnel). And it smells…horrid. Bailey and I decided it’s the giant’s septic system.

 

Oops..

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Excerpts from travel journal:

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11/6/2012

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Well, I’ve lost Bailey. I went to get a pastry and she went to check the platform number. We said we’d meet back by one of those posts in front of the train station. When I returned, she wasn’t there, though her checking the platform shouldn’t have taken as long as my getting the pastry. I waited a bit, but the train was to leave from Venice to Milano in six minutes time. I didn’t see her.

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I went inside and found the listing of the trains and departures. Milano — 11:50 — Platform 4. Alright, so maybe she’s at platform 4. She misinterpreted me and is standing in front of a post in front of the train. Nope. Four minutes.

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I look quickly, I walk more quickly back out, thinking about shouting “Bailey,” but the steps of the station were crowded with people and I didn’t want to draw unnecessary attention to myself. Two minutes.

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I rush back in and the train is gone. My heart stops a second and I say “Oh my God” out loud. What if Bailey was on it? I look up — Oh, okay, that’s platform 6, my train is potentially still here.

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I run over to platform 4 and it is. I hop into the first car and look out the window for Bailey. No sign. So I guessed she got on, too, realizing it was about to leave. We must’ve missed each other somewhere. I started walking down the aisles through the coaches, still looking. The train starts moving. Its leaving the station.

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I arrive at the final door and it won’t open. Must be the front of the train. Bailey isn’t on it.

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…

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Bailey doesn’t have a cell phone, or even my cell phone number I don’t think. She doesn’t have a computer or way to access the internet either. All we’ve got is our plan to reach Milano, hang out a few hours, and then catch the 18:25 train to Bern, Switzerland.

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Best case scenario, she’ll realize I’m not at the station and got on the train. She’ll catch the next train to Milano and I’ll be waiting for her at the station, where we’ll meet up again, go get something to eat, and make it back in plenty of time to catch the next train, together, to Switzerland.

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…

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And that’s what happened!

Sink, Venice, Sink

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First evening in Venice, I had four cheese gnocchi  for dinner and about three quarters of the way through, I decided I was done with pasta. We’d been in Italy for just about a week, and probably gained fifteen pounds each, and feeling my pockets’ tug at the euro as they left for more carbs prompted a trip to the grocery store for salad and cereal.  Of course, we still had pizza the past two days, but after our stop in Milano on our way to Switzerland tomorrow, it’ll be a long time before I see Italian food again. And I am okay with that.

 

Italy’s kind of like the Florida of Europe. Bright, hot, lots of people running around with cameras. Not my favorite place. I prefer the gray of Berlin or the purple of Prague to yellowing Italy.

 

Also, it’s kind of cruddy here. Yes, this city is sinking, but some narrow alleyways also stink. There’s no grass, but lots of dogs. This results in little piles of dog crap on the concrete. Hopefully, the alleyway is wide enough to easily skirt around it, and hopefully, a family of tourists isn’t blocking the sight of it before your shoe sinks in.

 

But despite the smell and the sinking, this place is really cool. I do love the twists and turns, the varying widths of the walkways, the bridges over teal water – it may take fifteen minutes longer to find a place because there’s no easy way to navigate by foot, but it keeps it interesting.

 

At night its great, no cameras, and quiet. You can actually maneuver through San Marco square. During the day, the empty alleys are cool, but the touristy areas are a bit overwhelming—too condensed.

 

Trees are rare, but perhaps to make up for it, everyone’s got plants hanging out of their windows. Colorful flowers to match the colorful clothes hang out there, too.

 

I’ve heard this city was supposed to be a romantic one, and I could see that during winter, maybe it’s less shabby-looking with less of a crowd, but maybe not.

 

In every city I’ve been to in Italy so far, men have stepped in front of me thrusting roses in my face, or the face of whatever guy is near me – not romantic at all, actually quite annoying. And they don’t understand what “No” means, either.

 

We went to the Dali museum, and I saw my favorite sculpture ever, that of Adam and Eve, the serpent and apple are there, too, of course. It’s quite sensual and alluring, pretty perfect. On the walls of the museum were Salvador Dali quotes, (an effectively confusing) one being, “What is important is to spread confusion, not eliminate it.”

 

My favorite was, “There are days when I think I’m going to die from an overdose of satisfaction.”

 

“I do not understand why, when I ask for grilled lobster in a restaurant, I’m never served a cooked telephone.” Okay, so that one was too good to leave out, especially as I’ve been eating in a lot of restaurants.

 

We took a waterbus to the other islands, Murano, Burano, and Torchello. Torchello’s pretty nature-y, with a church, but the church was closed for restoration, so there really wasn’t much to do there. Except, it was totally worth going to, because we saw the wedding of the guy who we saw in a pink robe and bonnet the night before, who had obviously had a bit to drink, and ended up in a fountain, with a little help from his friends.

 

Murano had exquisite glass chandeliers, and other easily breakable pieces, non-ideal for travelers, or any transportation, really. Burano was wild—canals still running through it, but each house a different bright color than the next. Burano’s known for its lace.

 

We’ve been staying at VeniceGold, and the guy here recommended Peter Pan for cheap pizza. They also have kabobs and felafels, but we stuck with the pizza. It wasn’t Gusto Pizza, but it wasn’t bad. What we’re really happy with though, is the cereal Muesli Croccante– hazelnuts, chocolate, granola, and really tasty.

 

We started working out yesterday(pasta-pizza-pizza-pizza-pasta—you get the idea), and after tonight’s work out and some salad we celebrate with a Bueno bar for our last night in Italy. I kept hearing brief catches of Beatles songs while here, so I asked Bailey which song to play.  She said “something dramatic” just as I came across ‘Revolution’. We danced, and ate our chocolate.

When in Rome…

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We arrived in Rome Tuesday evening, met up with my best friend from the fifth grade(who I haven’t seen in a decade) and grilled burgers on her balcony reminiscing over good ole Catholic school days.

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We walked to the smallest country on Earth, where we realized we had made it to Rome in perfect time to catch papal mass, which occurs in the Vatican in front of St. Peter’s basilica every Wednesday.

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But of course, you need a ticket. And you need to get the tickets ahead of time…which we hadn’t done.

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We awoke early enough anyway, put on our dresses(shoulders covered, thighs covered—there’s a dress code), and starting headed down to the Vatican walls. Parallel to the wall, a man walked near and asked, “You girls speak English? These are for the Pope.” And in his hand were two tickets for papal mass that morning.

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We got there a little after eight, so we had pretty good seats. The Pope came gliding out a little after 10:30 waving to a mass of cheers from all over the world. He stood on this white Toyota that encircled the crowds and was surrounded by men in suits. The vehicle even made it up the steps of St. Peters, where he got off and sat in the shade.

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The following proceedings included a calling-out of the many “groups of pilgrims” who had made it here today, including a chorus from Sri Lanka, who had the reserved seats directly in front of us, and a choir from Singapore, caddy-corner to us. During the wait that morning, they sang back and forth and even joined forces for the Hallelujah when the Singapore conductor brought in the Sri Lankan choir with a wave of his hand.

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The most mass-like thing was the “Our Father” led by the Pope in Latin at the end. It was printed on the back of the ticket, so we all could join in with him. It was quite an experience.

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Following mass, we evaded the crowd and snuck down a side street for gelato and a sandwich. We then caught the A line to Termini and caught the B line to Colloseo to see the Colluseum, and the archeological site with the Forum across the street.

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Bailey and I stomped and cheered in the passageways of the Colloseum, trying to envision the energy of the people the events brought there, but not so much the gore of the games.

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That night we went out for drinks and aperitivo, appetizer-like foods brought out like pre-dinner snacks with drinks, served all over in bars in Italy. After, we went out for a cannoli – cinnamon crust, with a ricotta cream with chocolate chips and pistachio(mmm).

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The next morning, we walked to the place of chariot races and bath houses in Circus Maximus(The stop on the train says Circo Massimo).

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We stopped by the Mouth of Truth(if you’ve lied, your hand will get bitten off! Watch out for the scorpions…) and then walked across the street to the Temple of Hercules.

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We saw a fountain designed by Bernini, with the four major rivers represented, the Niles’ face turned away since they didn’t know where it started.

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We walked in the Pantheon, which was free because it’s technically a Catholic Church now, and it was great, but the number of people in that place was discomforting. It’s pretty big, but seeing the floor to take in the space could have been cool. There was an even worse problem in the Sistine Chapel, and no respect there –yes, Micheal Angelo painted it, but it is a chapel and we’re asked to keep it down and not take pictures. It was almost overwhelming to be in there with so many colors, people, and noise.

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After the Pantheon we went for the oldest gelato place in Rome, and arguably one of the most popular– Giolitti.

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We made it to the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, and the oldest McDonald’s in Rome before heading from the Spagna stop down the line to the Vatican again, where we went in St. Peters and then the Vatican Museum. By the time we finally made it to the museum, our feet were beat.

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That night we had delicious Roman pizza at Falcini.