Land Trip - Europe (Day 35: Venice, Italy)

4 Sept 2011 (Day 35)

Walked out of Venice train station as if I was Johnny Depp. Took out my map and waited for Angelina Jolie to pick me up on a water boat. She didn't come.

I moved on.

Got my ticket for the water-bus and it costs 6.50 Euros! Double whammy. Why Angelina Jolie didn't come to pick me up?

Anyway, I was so excited to be in one of the loveliest cities in the world!

Getting around the filming location of The Tourist was an adventure in itself. The city comprises of more than 100 canals in the city and 118 islands in the main districts. Venice is like a water city to me. 

The city is very walkable with more than 400 bridges connecting the islands. Of course, the best way to experience the city is by water-taxi or water-bus. Gondolas are too expensive to even consider. Average price is about 80 Euros (SGD $140)! No, I didn't take the Gondola. Maybe next time with my wife?

(In Lido. Just found this funny.)

Went to Lido island to meet Charles Lim and Li Lin. They are the talented people behind the only Singapore nominated film in the 68th Venice International Film Festival. Charles is the director of "All the lines flow out" which was in Venice for competition. Really privileged to meet them.

Because of them, I got a Film Delegation Pass which allowed me to go almost anywhere in the Oldest Film Festival in the world! Anyone can visit the Film Fest but you need to buy tickets to get in. And usually, the priority to watch a screening is given to the press and people in the industry. (They are the ones who have special passes, like mine!)

Since I was there, I need to make the best use of the Pass that I got. Some of the popular screenings were difficult to catch because you need to be there early to queue for it. And once the theater is full, you can't go in. I missed a screening because it was full before I got there and quickly looked for another screening at that time. Went to the next building and waited in the queue. And I got in! They let me go in first because I have the pass! I have no idea what I was watching because it was in Italian (I think). I just wanted to watch something there. Hey, it was the Venice Film Festival ok! So, I pretended to understand and pretended that I know how to appreciate the film.

Still don't understand. 

(The Red Carpet & main stage)

Oh, and I saw Al Pacino at the red carpet. I saw other celebrities but I'm not sure who they are! Maybe you can tell me when you watch the video.

When I saw the Singapore Flag flying high above the Red Carpet, I was speechless. So proud that Charles was representing Singapore in the Prestigious Venice Film Fest. Go Singapore go!

(Singapore Flag flying above the Red Carpet. In a very prominent position too!)

In the short day that I was in Venice, I managed to squeeze out some time to visit the other islands. Wanted to see some of their main attractions. The only problem was that there was a boat race going on and the water-bus from Lido only goes to one station in Venice. The rest of the station were closed due to the race. That meant that I had to walk quite a fair bit (30mins) to reach the main sights. 

Was running half the time to Piazza San Marco. 

(Winged Lion - the symbol of San Marco.)

(I trained the bird to fly pass on cue! Cool right?)

(Bell Tower of Saint Mark)

After a day of running about, I went back to the Railway Station late at night and left for Rome, Italy!

After attending the 68th Venice Film Festival, MY LIFE, WAS NEVER, EEEEEEEEEEE....................................EEEE...............................EEVER, THE SAME, AGAIN!!!

Land Trip - Europe (Day 33-34: Vienna, Austria)

2 Sept 2011 (Day 33)
Time difference: 6 hours behind Singapore.
Took a very nice train to Vienna. I love this train.

Arrived at the capital of Austria after 1pm. Weather was hot!

Went to Museum Quartier, which is a place with different museums. Didn't go into any because it costs quite a bit.

Sigmund Freud's former residence was a place that I wanted to visit. Of course, anybody who studied psychology would have heard of his name.

(The Couch)

Next house to visit? The greatest composer of all time - Mozart! 

Then I got lost! Well sort of. And I met Peter (not me), a very nice Austrian gentlemen who not only directed me to Mozart's House but walked with me all the way there!

(Mozart's House)

Peter also recommended a fast food place to eat affordable seafood. A lot of locals eat there, including him. So I went.

(Nordsee - I ate fish filet sandwich)

I heard that Vienna's Coffee is supposedly very good. I tried it earlier in the afternoon but it wasn't to my liking. Clearly, I was disappointed. So I went to Hotel Sacher, which is famous for their specialty - Sachertorte Chocolate Cake. Ordered their famous Chocolate Cake and a cup of coffee. I was determined to find better Vienna Coffee! 

The Sachertorte Chocolate Cake is good for those who like bitter Chocolate. It is the not-so-sweet type of chocolate. But the chocolate is very strong and thick and worth trying. I prefer the sweet type. Fortunately for me, they served with whipped cream and the combination of whipped cream and the chocolate cake was simply delicious! Maybe that was THE way to eat the cake?

(Sachertorte Chocolate Cake)

The coffee was way better than the one I tried earlier. However, if you ask me, I still prefer the coffee in Vietnam. Just my preference.

3 Sept 2011 (Day 34)

Schonbrunn Palace was my first destination of the day. The Palace has a long and colourful history and is one of the most important cultural monuments in Austria. The area is so big that it consists of a Palace, a Garden Park and a ZOO!!!

When I was younger, I saw on TV that there is this Weird House in Vienna that was conceptualized by Austrian Artist, Hundertwasser. It is beautiful! And definitely weird! Hey, he was an artist not an architect. 

The building features undulating floors, a roof covered with earth and grass, and large trees growing from inside the rooms, with limbs extending from windows! I really wonder how it was built.

(Hundertwasser House)

Left the city that Sigmund Freud, Mozart & Beethoven (among many others) lived in and off I went to Venice, Italy!

After visiting Vienna, my LIFE WAS NEVER, EEEEEEEEEE......................................EEEE......................EEVER, THE SAME, AGAIN!!!

Land Trip - Europe (Day 32: Budapest, Hungary)

1 Sept 2011 (Day 32)

Oh my! I've been traveling for more than 1 month already! Losing track of time...

After checking in to my hostel, I went to a nearby cafe/restaurant to have lunch. I heard that that the Pork Knuckle in Budapest is very good so I had to try. The hostel staff recommend this particular cafe that was nearby and I probably had the best Pork Knuckle in my life! I have not been to Germany to try theirs yet, so this is way up on my list for now.

(Best Pork Knuckle!)

Then I went to experience authentic Turkish Bath at Rudas Bath. A scene from the movie Red Heat, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, was shot there. Rudas Bath is a thermal and medicinal bath built in 1550. That was almost 500 years ago!

When I went in, they passed me a small piece of cloth, supposedly to cover my privates. But when I looked around, I realised that the small piece of cloth didn't make much of a difference. So I wore trunks, and that piece of cloth, of course. Sorry, no cameras allowed inside = no pictures. Have to use a little of your imagination!

There are different therapy pools inside and each pool is of a different temperature. I went to each pool one by one and the pool that I had problem getting in was the coldest pool. It was icy cold! I had to force my myself to jump in and after a while, it was all good. Hey, I had to do it because I paid good money to enter and furthermore, it was supposed to be good for my body right? 

I can't believe I traveled all the way to Budapest to "bathe" with 30 other naked men. But I really felt good after the soaking in the bath. I felt kinda "lighter" if you know what I mean.

Budapest is divided into 2 cities - Buda & Pest. (How convenient right?) Buda is the hilly West side of the Danube River and Pest is the flat East side of the Danube River. I was staying at the Pest side of Budapest and Rudas Bath is located at the Buda side of Budapest.

(I'm at the Buda side. On my left side across the Danube River is Pest.)

Went to Castle Hill, which is at Buda and quite near to Rudas Bath. 

 

Went back to hostel to rest for 1 night. Need to wake up early the next morning to catch a train to Vienna, Austria!!!

After taking a "bath" with 30 naked men, MY LIFE WAS NEVER, EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE..........................EEEE........................................EEVER, THE SAME, AGAIN!!!

Land Trip - Europe (Day 30-31: Krakow, Poland)

30 Aug 2011 (Day 30)

The train didn't stop at Glowny Station in Krakow. That was where it was supposed to stop. And I didn't even know! The announcements in the train were in Polish. When the train stopped at a particular station (I can't remember where it was), I asked another passenger, who is from Krakow, and he told me that the train will stop at the station before Glowny.

Now I had to figure out how to get to Glowny Station because I need to get the tickets for my train to Hungary in advance. My hostel was near Glowny Station too!

After settling down in the hostel, I took the public bus and went to the Wieliczka Salt Mine.

I am impressed with the Salt Mine to say the least. A few "Wow!" moments during the tour. (No one is allowed to enter on their own and all must follow a tour guide.) Had a crash course in Chemistry during the tour as well! Learned more about Sodium Chloride than ever before.

The Salt Mine, which is in on the southeast outskirts of Krakow, has been worked for 900 years. That is nine centuries of mining! The touring touring route for visitors is 3.5km and that is less than 1% of the length of the mine's passages! To get down to the first level of the mine, which is 64 meters underground, I had to descend a wooden stairway of 378 steps! The mine actually reached a depth of 327 meters but the tour only allowed us to go 135 meters underground.

My jaw dropped when I saw an entire Chapel underground that was craved out of rock salt by the miners. It was huge and had beautiful cravings on the wall. Everything is made of salt. If you touch the "wall" with your fingers and lick it, it is salty. Yes, I did that. 

Went to Wawel Castle next.

Then to the Old Town. (I'm not sure how many Old Towns I've been to!)

And I like this sign!

31 Aug 2011 (Day 31)

This was quite a depressing day. Not because anything happened but because I got to see the worst of mankind in Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 

Auschwitz was the largest of the Nazi Concentration Camps during World War II. The use of camps equipped with gas chambers for the purpose of systematic mass extermination of peoples was a unique feature of the Holocaust and unprecedented in history. It was just inhuman and sad. 

After going through a depressing crash course in History, I went to the Old Jewish Quarter in Kazimierz. That was the place where Steven Spielberg shot the critically acclaimed movie, Schindler's List. 

Got food from the Supermarket to settle my dinner and off I went to Glowny Station to catch my train to Budapest, Hungary!!!

After visiting the Nazi Concentration Camps, MY LIFE WAS NEVER, EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.......................EEE..........................EEVER, THE SAME, AGAIN!!!

Land Trip - Europe (Day 29: Warsaw, Poland)

29 Aug 2011 (Day 29)
Time difference: 6 hours behind Singapore.

6am. Reached the capital of Poland and went to get train tickets for Krakow on the same night. Since I wasn't staying overnight in Warsaw, I put my HUGE Haversack in a locker at the train station. It costs me 12 Zloty (Polish currency).

I needed to get information to explore Warsaw and I didn't have a hostel to get maps and information. So I went to the Marriott Hotel, just opposite the train station, and pretended I was staying there and asked for information! And got maps too! Talk about resourcefulness!

The Marriott Hotel staff recommended the best Money Exchange in the city and I took their Metro to get there. The Money Exchange was in a office building and it wasn't open until 9am. It was 7:50am when I got there. Rested at the lobby and used their free wi-fi.

Went to the Old Town after buying Polish Zloty.

Walked and explored more of Warsaw.

(Warsaw Uprising Monument)

(Ruin of Pawiak Prison Gate)

After leaving Pawiak Prison, I walked to the Jewish Cemetery. It was quite a long walk and along the way, I saw a salon at a residential area and decided that I should cut my hair. The hairdresser didn't speak much English and even after showing her a picture of how I wanted my hair to be cut, she couldn't do it. So it became shorter and shorter and shorter...

On the way back to the train station, I walked past Carrefour and bought half a chicken for myself. It was probably the cheapest good dinner for my trip so far. I had no place to eat the chicken properly so I sat at a bench outside a shopping mall and devoured the chicken (half of it at least).

(My new haircut. Eating my dinner along the street.)

It really took me some time to get used to my new haircut. Each time I looked at the mirror, I had to look at myself for a few more seconds before I could wash my hands!

My train to Krakow was at 1:30am and I waited at a nearby shopping mall until it was closed at 11pm. Then I waited in the train station for 2 hours. It was a bad experience because it was dark, smelly and cold. There were a few homeless people there trying to sleep and the Station Officers kept chasing them away. Was tired but couldn't sleep. 

The train was delayed and had to wait again at the platform. 

When it came, I was happy to leave the station and off I went to Krakow, Poland!

After walking the city of Warsaw for the whole day, MY LIFE WAS NEVER, EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE...............EEEE...........................EEVER, THE SAME, AGAIN!!!

Land Trip - Europe (Day 27-28: Riga, Latvia)

27 Aug 2011 (Day 27)

Took an overnight bus to leave the former Soviet Union and St Petersburg (MY CITY, remember?).

Arrived in the capital of Latvia slightly after 6am. It was cold at that time. Very cold. I asked around and found my Hostel in Riga in less than 15 mins.

Riga is the largest city in Latvia but small compared to St Petersburg. In the day, it is a peaceful and quiet town. When night falls, the city comes alive! Clubs, bars and pubs are jam-packed with people. Especially in the Old Town. It didn't earn its reputation as having the best nightlife in Europe for nothing.

Had early breakfast and went to the train station to buy tickets to Majori - a major beach destination in Riga. Majori is the centre of Jurmala - the largest beach resort in the Baltic States.

The train ride took close to 30mins and I was greeted by cool sea breeze and tranquility when I got down.Walked along the beach in polo-tee and long pants!!! Talk about being overdressed?

Jurmala has 32 km of white sand beach and it was a beautiful stroll for me. Of course, I didn't walk 32km. It was entertaining for me just watching people, the sand, the sea and the activities that were going on.

Took the train back to Riga and bought a train ticket to Sigulda. Sigula has a huge national park and is the place to do outdoor activities. Me? My purpose of going there was do Bungee from a cable car!

When I got there, the staff at the ticket booth wouldn't let me buy the ticket. And she couldn't speak English. So I had a hard time understanding her. Then I read on a notice that says tickets for the Bungee will be sold only 5 mins before the stipulated time of the jump. The first jump was 6:30pm. I was there at 6pm. I waited till 6:25pm but it still wasn't open. At 6:30pm, they started the sales of the tickets but guess what? People had to make an online reservation before they could buy the tickets. What? I didn't know that.

Then the counter staff told me that the only way that I could get the ticket was to wait and see if there were any no-shows. I will then be able to take their place. I traveled all the way there to do the Bungee and now I might not be able to do it? I crossed my fingers.

Finally, when the cable car came up, there was still a place for me!!! Thank God!

Hopped into the Cable Car and off I went to the centre of the Gauja River. When it came to my turn, I got a little nervous. Just a little. Hey, after all, I did a Bungee Jump in Auckland before. I counted to 3 and jumped off the cable car to experience free-fall for the second time in my life!

(In the Cable Car - Before the Bungee Jump)

The experience was somewhat different from my first jump. But it was still exhilarating! Definitely worth all the trouble, time and money getting there.

Explored the Old Town in Riga to see the nightlife and went back to sleep.

28 Aug 2011 (Day 28)

I wanted to go to places where the locals go to so I went to Central Market. It kinda became a tourist attraction already. But it is still a market where locals go to get their groceries and other necessities. 

The thing that I don't understand here is that 80% of the stalls were selling the same items. Watermelon, grapes, oranges, apples, etc. And the next stall beside it was selling watermelon, grapes, oranges, apples, etc.

(Central Market)

I decided to join a free walking tour of Riga and rushed to the meeting place at St Peter's Cathedral. Got there just in time. Had a crash course of the history of Riga & Latvia and I enjoyed the tour. It was free, duh. 

Heard that there was a street that was good for taking pictures and I went there immediately after the tour. Alberta Iela is a place full of buildings with interesting architecture. 

Walked to the Freedom Monument, a landmark in Riga, to take some more pictures.

(Freedom Monument)

Went back to my hostel and prepared for my bus ride to Warsaw, Poland!

After doing Bungee for the 2nd time, MY LIFE WAS NEVER, EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE......................EEEE.............................EEVER, THE SAME AGAIN!!!