We are already in Germany?

Kim and I made it to Berlin on Wednesday night after a long journey of delays and unexpected stops in strange towns. We are staying with a good friend, Staci, who graduated from Purdue 3 years ago and is now living in Germany. She is a very daring and patient girl to offer to host us for the five days we decided to stick around. So far it has been a lot of fun and very relaxing after many days of hostel hopping. We are staying in her dorm room (she is currently working on her masters) which is quite small but if it can fit a Vawter, it can house a family of 12. The day after we arrived Staci had to work since she expected us a lot later than we had lead on in the beginning of the week. This was okay cause Kimberly and I got the chance to run around and look at some real touristy things that Staci for sure didnt wanna see again and again. Things have definitely got a lot more interesting here cause you dont find as many people who speak english and the ones that do you find yourself doing a combination of pictionary and sign language more than speaking actual words. We got to experience the taste of a famous Currywurst and walked down the street with an ice cold beer with no worries. The things we saw for the few hours while staci was working was definitely an eye opening experience. Although we have seen it in history books and on the big screen, seeing land marks such as remains of the berlin wall and holocaust memorial are unreal. Berlin in general is just a different kind of city, walking and biking around gives you a sort of vibe that is unexplainable.

Today was a different sort of day. We chose to keep it a little more low key since the weather called for unbearable heat. We were able to borrow some extra bikes from some friends of Stacis and boy do they REALLY bike ride around here. Last night we only had two bikes for the day so we had to get used to one person sitting on the back where a basket would potentially go. Somehow I seemed to be the guinea pig in this experiment. Lets just say it ended in tears--but the good kind of tears. Kim and I were unstoppable and I am sure we had the whole neighborhood on their balconys by the time we got the hang of it. I know ive mentioned this before with bikers in europe but damn, you gotta watch your backside or else youll find yourself face down waiting to be peeled off the sidewalk. Now when it comes to actually biking next to these people you gotta make sure you keep the pace and utilize those little bells you thought you would never actually use for a real purpose. As we were headed off to get the 3rd bike we conveniently passed a piercing shop...ill let kim tell you about that one. Then we were off to the canal area where for a few euros we went out onto a dock to lay in the sun and attached was a swimming pool that was actually set into the canal...i dont know, its weird! By the end of that it was later in the day and I was soo exhausted from the heat that I could barely stay awake to bike home...dont worry, a fire was lit under my___by the time we hit the bike trail. We will be up before the sun tomorrow since we are catching an early train up to northern germany to spend the day on the Baltic Sea in the expected mid 90 degree weather. Tomorrow is of course the Germany-Argentina game so the atmosphere around this place has already begun to get a little tense. I am sure no matter what the outcome this place will be insane. We will spend the 4th of July with our fellow American and head out to Prague on Monday morning---heard that place was awesome. We will, once again, be unstoppable!!!

Do you have a two for one deal?

A night out in Amsterdam is no cake walk! After freshening up for the evening we headed down to our hostel lobby for a few free beers. We had about a half hour to kill before we needed to head to the pub crawl. We have found out that no matter how late you went out, the sun never seems to really set so drinking by 8:30 didn't seem so bad. We payed 20 euro for a night around the city, free pub shirt, unlimited shots between venues and 6 beers or wine (we didn't quite make it that far). For being wrapped up by a bunch of promotions staff earlier that day it was extremely packed with students from all over. Our first stop was empty, being 8:30 and all, and we started off with their famous 0 degree heineken. They would literally walk around with bottles pouring shots in your mouth...that could get outta hand in no time! We eventually found out the hard way that you have to pay to use the bathroom at the pubs after a certain hour. Well, this hour had approached and we thought we might be able to slide into one stall - you know, two for one deal - but that didn't slide with the potty police. They seem to treat pub crawls a little different around here cause by about 11:30 we were only at the 3rd bar. This called for a little intermission cause we were starving and of course had waited until we were dancing in our chairs to use the bathroom. Mcdonalds being next door and food choices not being a priority we were both in line in no time. Without hesitation I walked up to the cashier and with complete confidence asked for 'a double cheeseburger with fries'. Well, this may be mcdonalds but supposedly they don't follow the diet of us Americans and I was forced to settle for a single patty and no fries... Oh and you had to pay for ketchup? We never made it back to the pub crawl and chose to sit by the canal as Kim ate some nasty Asian dish and we watched some crawlers crawl past. We met a few Australians from the crawl who Kim really enjoyed, many people we met were from Australia, they told us all about their journey around Europe and then 7 more weeks in the states!! They walked us home to ensure a safe arrival and when we walked into our queen sized room it looked like a bomb went off. Our new bunk mates, about 10 students from Spain, had taken over the place like it was their own. A few short hours of sleep later we were back up and heading out to Berlin, we are sitting on the train about 4 1/2 hours into the 6 hour ride. Kim is passed out cold with her mouth wide open like an animal and her shoes are tied tight..technically this makes her a perfect victim for torture but there is still 4 more weeks left... ;-)

I see London, I see France...

We came, we saw, our jaws hit the floor! This place is absolutely insane with the people and places we've seen. Culture shock I believe is what its called, or maybe thats the three (yes, only 3) beers I had on our Heineken tour. Its unbelievable how different it is going from Brugge, a small innocent city, to this! Our Heineken tour was awesome, although costing 15 euro it was 100% worth it!! We arrived in Amsterdam, after a few delays along the way, last night at about 10:30pm. Our hostel is only a few steps from the station and in the heart of all the action. Now this room we are staying in at "the flying pig" is quiet an experience.It fits 16 queen size BUNK beds holding, obviously, 32 people both male and female. I dont think you could experience this in any other city but Amsterdam. We kept the pattern alive and stopped for something to eat once we got settled in this zoo, since afterall-brazil and the netherlands competed in 'football' last night. We chose to take the journey down the red light district to get it over with, although Kim seemed to enjoy it a bit more than was necessary. I am shocked at what people will do for money and what people will pay for...ugh. I guess it wouldnt be Amsterdam without it!! And then of course the smell of pot, everywhere!! and oh ya..our hostel has a bar in it with a special smoking room in the back, is this real life? Made sure to wear the most hippie looking outfit I had to avoid sticking out like a sore thumb...haha ;-) It is crazy to see the amount of people who travel on bike, you almost have to watch getting hit by a biker more than a bus, train or car...those Europeans are crazy on the two wheelers! Today was one of the days we took advantage of sleeping in since we will be here for two days. We left this morning to see the Ann Frank museum which was very interesing! Tonight we are going on a pub crawl with some other people in the hostel. Sounds a bit sketchy but its Amsterdam, if its not a pub crawl its another stroll down the red light-im good, thanks! Tomorrow afternoon we head to Berlin to see STACI for a few days :-)...watch out, damage done by THREE americans can be fatal!!

Stole 3 men and went to Amsterdam

Yesterday we had a very relaxing day walking around Brugge and enjoying the peaceful town. We stopped for some vegetarian fries, chocolate, and waffles..all extremely healthy but very good Belgian staples. Dont worry the flow of beer came later that day...never underestimate the appetite of two girls on a 5 week adventure. We later went out to a nice outdoor restaurant that was recommended by our hostel desk man. We again didn't make it out for food till about 10 pm after another full day of hanging around the city. We enjoyed some good local dishes and a few beers recommended by the waitress (thanks barb and Doug for the bday dinner!!!). About an hour into our meal a few business men came in for a few beers and struck up some entertaining convo. After playing twenty questions, jealousy and confusion was painted all over their faces. I think they were trying to figure out why they didn't have such a brilliant idea and are now stuck with eachother bickering like little school girls on this work trip ;-) Needless to say they begged, like children, for us to kidnap them so this painful thing called a job would disappear (how's that for a shout out fellas? It was fun, thanks for making it interesting) Moving on...we decided to find a pub for one more drink before heading back to the hostel. I'm beginning to think that everyone can tell by just looking at us that we're American, the hellos and how are yous in English come without hesitation. This morning we woke early to rent some bikes for the day, we decided to take a trip to the beach. This nice leisurely stroll passing through a nearby village was supposed to be an hour trip. Let's just say it took us 2 hours and we made friends with quite a few meaty cows, sheep and I believe some geese...Indiana really knows how to haunt us. All in all it was worth it in the end, the beach was pretty and we saw some amazing views, it was the ride back that we were really dreading. We're now on the train headed to Amsterdam to "the flying pig" can't wait to see what kind of stories this brings...

P.S. The post right before this one (bed bugs) has been pushed down before this next one for some reason-can't miss the highlights of brussels...

One down, nine to go

Well, Kim and I have visited and seen all we could see in London as of 4 today. Considering how much pain my body is in from unusual travel and excessive exercise, I would say we did quite a bit. Today we decided to visit a local market on Notting hill, which is practically in our backyard. It was very cool with all the different food and clothing people brought to sell. Let me just add that this trip wouldn't be a kim vawter trip without a little controversy. Apparently a little photo shoot of this womans amazing pastries didn't push her in the right direction...actually to be honest she was PISSED. If Kim would have actually realized she was yelling at her I'm sure there would have been words exchanged, wonder what side of the bed she woke up on. After that nice encounter we were going to go see the changing of the guards at buckingham palace but just missed it. Another market just a few trains stops away was even more intense, this was focused a lot more on food from all over the world...a little bit overwhelming at times and in a very 'unque' area. We also decided this was a good time to make an appearance at another pub and after exploring their beer tap i asked the nice gentleman for half guiness, half cider (black velvet for those of you who know what a good combo is). I then of course received a very odd stare from not only him but a few bar guests and after my failure to convince them it was good he went on to make it anyway. Since we only had part of the day, we had to head back to the house to get our packs and head over to the station. You could never imagine how awkward and time consuming it is to walk around with these puppies. OH and we have booked our hostel in Amsterdam this week in a place called 'the flying pig' can't wait to experience that one...maybe letting Kim book the first hostel was a good enough lesson, I guess we'll find out...

Um, Kim...is this a bed bug?

Kim and I made it to Brugge thankfully yesterday afternoon! So our stop in Brussels wasn't all that necessary, we should have listened to those helpful tour books we bought. It was a little sad to see how run down it was, the trash all over the street and the graffiti all over land marks and statues. We chose to get up and out as soon as possible, tour what we thought might be worth it and be on our way to Brugge before lunch. Although we were put up in a hotel, it was a far cry from what we were both expecting. Not only did we get off the train at about 1030pm, we were exhausted from the day and travel, we had no idea where we were going nor do we speak french or dutch. We managed to survive after a restless night and a knot in my stomach and held my breath as I came across a bed bug on the wall. We crossed our fingers as we left our packs in the storage room at the hotel and "toured" the city for a few hours. We were out of our hotel by 9am, the one thing we did not realize was it was Sunday so the streets were empty and silent to the point where u could hear a pin drop. Although there was nothing open or anyone around we walked around the square and in a matter of time store keepers began opening their shops and locals emerged from their hiding places. The best part of this very short stay in Brussels was a local beer tour we did in the basement of a building in the 'Grand Place'. The barteneder/tour guide/beer specialist was hilarious and very helpful, he encouraged departure from Brussels and to head to Brugge ASAP! (if that doesn't make you wanna leave, I don't know what else would...) We also met two other tour goers who were from England taking a 'university trip' around parts of Europe. Funny enough, one of the guys had just been to the U.S., to Chicago and Indianapolis, he visited his friend at near by university... Purdue!!! "Brothers and Harrys Bar were just brilliant", small world!! Needless to say, directly after we felt comfortable seeing all we could see at this place called Brussels, we were off to Brugge. We were extremely excited since we had heard so many great things and had been concerned after seeing what Brussels had (or didn't have) to offer. A one hour train ride later we made it to the small town of Brugge. Right when we got off the train I could right away it was going to be a much better experience. After trying to figure out what direction to start walking in, we made it to the outskirts of town and began making our way through a maze of quiet, peaceful, well kept streets and eventually stumbled across our FIRST hostel!! We arrived earlier than expected so we grabbed lunch at a local cafe and decided which places to go see. After dropping our packs and freshening up we headed to the market to check out some shops and local areas. Now it's Monday night so we are off to catch the train to the Amsterdam...more on brugge to come :-) see ya in the red light district!!!