Paleo

Haven't heard of Paleo have you? Neither had I. But its a music festival that happens each year in Nyon (about 20 minutes outside of Geneva). Think the Big Day Out but spread over an entire week. Every year they have a few big names that come through but usually this festival is for the up and coming artists. Mel got some tickets for the Saturday which she thought was probably the best day.

Because the festival is spread over an entire week each day it starts at about 4ish, with the better acts coming on later. I wanted to see the John Butler Trio (an Australian band and the only artist playing that I'd heard of!). We (me, Mel and Gulia, Mel's sister) headed out to catch the train to Nyon. We were a bit pushed for time so we set out at a fast'ish pace.

We got to the station just as the train turned up. I had my Eurail pass so was fine but the girls needed to buy a ticket quickly or else we risked missing the train and having to wait around for an hour until the next one arrived. For some reason the vending machine Gods were against us and it kept rejecting Gulia's coins.

We started to get nervous.

Gulia tried with different coins and had the same result.

Now we started to panic a little bit. She turned and told me to keep a train door open as it looked like the train was going to head off at any moment. I tried but the doors refused to open. Shit! I noticed that there were some guys on the last carriage that were holding the doors open but that was 20 meters away.

Unfortunately the vending machine was STILL rejecting everything we put into it. Then the train started to move off. Shit!!!!

Instinctively I ran towards the train as it was moving off and jumped through the door that the guys were forcing open. Gulia was in after me. I was helping to keep the doors open as well - they were surprisingly heavy, similar to forcing the doors of a lift open that are trying to shut but we eventually pulled Gulia inside. Mel was next, by this stage she was running at an almost sprint as the train was gathering speed. This was a pretty dangerous thing to do, but in the end we were able to pull her inside, in one piece. Fortunately there were no ticket checkers in the train otherwise we would have been in a lot of trouble (for one, entering onto a moving train, and two for not having a ticket!)

That episode set the tone for the night.

When we arrived we saw stages and acts everywhere (honestly, it was just like the Big Day Out).



[pic: Paleo]

We walked past a band called the Giant Killers that looked terrific.
We bought some alcohol at one of the stalls, and after meeting up with Gulia's friends saw the end of the John Butler Trio's set. They were pretty cool.



[pic: The John Butler Trio]

Afterwards, we got some more alcohol (I'm sure you can see a theme starting to arise?) and went all the way to the front for Paolo Nutini (a Scottish singer who has the hit "Hey Jenny don't be hasty!").



[pic: us waiting for Paulo Nutini, me, Mel and Gulia (getting squeezed, in the middle)]

I have never been so close to the front in a concert in my life. There looked to be about 12,000 people there and we were so close to the stage we were within spitting distance! We also got on tv a couple of times when the camera's showed pictures of the crowd. Paolo Nutini was hilarious, he came out and he was quite obviously drunk or high or both. Fortunately it didn't affect his singing. He was really superb.



[pic: Paulo Nutini in full drunken flight!]

At the end of his set we checked out another band (called the Klaxons, I think) and then decided we were in need of some more to drink. Gulia's friends had invited us back to the camp site they were staying at (about a kilometer away) and we thought they were bound to have some more alcohol there. The camp site was a lot of fun, even if they were staying in the most dirty site I'd ever seen and had named it something appalling (but fitting - see the picture...).



[pic: this is perhaps my favourtie picture of the trip so far, the camp site in all its glory. Gulia in the background in the grey cardigan and Mel just behind her]

By this stage Mel and I (but more Mel, if I'm being honest) came up with a plan to try and swap Gulia for some more alcohol. The plan was for Gulia to flirt with a guy we knew had something to drink and for us to request alcohol as well after he offered it to Gulia. This was dastardly.

It was a sad moment in my life, perhaps the moment when it dawned on me that I am in need of professional help (joking), when we tried to elicit free alcohol out of a bunch of 18 years olds! Even more depressingly, it didn't work!

In the end though we were able to find and tuck into some 15 CH wine. I felt a bit weird hanging out with all these 18 year-olds. Mel decided it would be funny if she dropped me in it and asked what I did for work in a voice that got everyone's attention. I lied and said that I was a Hollywood stunt man and was often used as a body double when an actor had a scene where he took his shirt off. Mel and Gulia were in hysterics when I said this but I got a few bemused looks from Gulia's friends. One guy laughed and asked whether I was a body double for Brad Pitt. I looked at him and with a completely straight face said that I haven't yet worked with Brad, but I had worked with Ben Affleck anbd Colin Farrell.

This put Gulia and Mel into even more hysterics but I think some of her friends couldn't quite tell if I was joking!

It was a really fun night (even if freezing cold at the camp site) and we got home at about 3am.

Believe it or not we also felt okay the next day - no mean feat when you spend a night knocking back cheap wine!

Switzerland

I have to say, I'm very impressed with Switzerland so far!

I took the train from Bologna (via Milan) up through the Swiss Alps. The first thing that struck me was that the Swiss landscape is very similar to the South Island of New Zealand. They have the same mountains and lakes, and we even went past a fair amount of farms!

Needless to say it was pretty spectacular, and struck me as a place that I could live in (as opposed to most other area's I've been to in Europe, which are great to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there). Unfortunately I couldn't get a direct train to Bern and had to go via Zurich. I was very amused that the train from Zurich to Bern left EXACTLY on time.



[pic: the view from outside the window of the train, somewhere between Lugano and Zurich]

Bern is a quiet town that is very pretty. There isn't much to see there, but its in the centre (more or less) of Switzerland so is surrounded by mountains and has a river that runs through it.



[pic: Bern from a good vantage point on my first night]

My first night at the hostel was typical. When you arrive they gave you the linen to make up your bed. I did so and went to sleep early that night. Our room was divided by a wall that went through the centre. On one side there were two bunk beds and on the other there was only one bunk bed. Being unlucky I got landed in the side with two bunk beds and the guy sleeping in the bunk undearneath me snored (of course). At about midnight I'd had enough so decided to crash in the other area of the room with the spare bunk beds (which appeared to be empty).

I got to the spare bunk beds and I noticed that there was linen that was folded on the table next to the bed. So I took it, quickly made up the bed and went to sleep. After about an hour it then dawned on me that as we get our linen when we arrived the likelihood is a person WAS sleeping in that bed, but just didn't bother to make up the bed before they went out. So they would come back and see me sleeping in their bed, with their linen!

In the end I decided to risk it and fortunately no one was sleeping there so i got a good night's sleep!

The next day I discovered a favourite pasttime of the Swiss that live here is to jump into the river (at a chilly 19 degrees celsius) and let the very strong current take you down stream. I was told when I arrived there that, although fun, the river is very dangerous and each year about 10 people die swimming in it (mainly, because if you miss the last area to "bail out" there is nothing to stop you except for the dam further down stream...). Also, when you get close to the river there are signs in every language under the sun that you swim there at your own risk.

Because of this I decided to give it a miss, but I got some great photo's of people being taken downstream by the river. In all about 1,000 were all doing it at the same time. Looked like a lot of fun (and if I'm being honest I kinda wish I'd given it a go)!



[pic: a lady contemplating whether to jump into the river at Bern. If you look closely you can see people in the river floating downstream]

After Bern it was a two hour trip to Geneva where I met up with Mel and her family. After a month by myself it was terrific to see a familiar face! Also, staying in a proper house, in a cool, dark room by myself, is absolute luxury. Mel's family are great value and have been very acommodating. One thing which made me laugh is Colin (Mel's Dad) remembers fondly that fateful golf game with Dad in Malaysia...

I had an explore around Geneva and found it to be different to what I had pictured. I thought there would be at least some high rise buildings, and have more intimidating architecture. I found it to be very quaint and modest. It looks to be a really nice place to live. We have done the touristy things, like taking pictures in front of the the Jet d'eau (water fountain), visiting the cathedral, taking pictures in front of the cannons, seeing the UN building and seeing the flower clock.



[pic: me posing in front of the Jet d'deau]



[pic: me posing on a cannon...and mel put me up to doing that!]



[pic: at the top of the cathedral with geneva in the background]

There is also a music festival on here atm and we are hoping to go to that tomorrow and also have a day trip up the Swiss Alps. Should be a lot of fun!

Fortunately Mel hasn't yet got me completely drunk and taken pictures but I'll keep you posted...

Talk soon

Anthony

Ahhhh Venice (and Florence)

Before this trip started I was most excited about visiting Venice. It didnt disappoint. Venice was exactly how I imagined it would be in my mind. Its a very beautiful place, similar to any city in Europe but instead of roads they have canals. Its a cool experince wondering the streets there.



[pic: Ahhhh Venice]

Apart from visiting the main center and basilica the thing that I wanted to do most was to get a picture in front of the library/converted church from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Now this is easier said than done, Venice is notoriously difficult to navigate around and I had no idea what the library/church was called! Even after I googled it it was almost impossible to find the area of the city to start looking. Even worse there are literally hundreds of places that look very similar everywhere you go. So its hard to work out whether youre on the right track.

To be honest I pretty much gave up on the idea after searching for about half an hour. Then, the next day when I was wondering around I stumbled upon it. Result! I got a few cool pictures in front of it as well which I am pretty pleased with.



[pic: "tht doesn't look much like a library...looks like a converted church."]

I only spent two nights in Venice and, as beautiful a it is, I was ready to move on. There isnt much to do in terms of tourist attractions and it is the most expensive city in Italy so I was churning through the cash at an alarming rate.

From Venice it was a two and a half hour train ride to Florence. The hostel I stayed in there was realy nice and had...wait for it....AIR CONDITIONING!!!!!! That was an absolute God send as things have been horrendeosly hot in Europe for the last month (in fact I saw a news article that people were wondering around in bikinis in MOSCOW; now thats a heat wave!)

Florence is a very beautiful place as well, probably after Venice the second most beautiful place Ive been to in Italy. I had been there once before but there was much I didnt get to do and see. The highlights were probably the Uffizi gallery, which houses some of the most well known paintings around, including a couple from Leonardo Da Vinci. As an interesting side note, I was bored the other day so Wikipedied Leonardo. Wikipedia told me that only about 15 of his paintings survive today and in the last month and a half Ive seen about 10 of them! Standing in line for an hour and a half to get into the Uffizi was not a highlight though!

Yesterday I went to the museaum that houses Michaelangelos David.



[pic: me posing ridiculously below a replica of Michaelangelo's David]

That too was very impressive as too were the half finished sculptures on either side. That night we (Id made friends with an English girl in the hostel and a New Zealand guy) went to Michaelangelos piazza to view the sunset, which we had been told was a "must do" in Florence. It was absolutely breathtaking and again I have some amazing pictures.



[pic: sunset at the piazza]



[pic: sunset in Florence again; me showing off my guns haha]

After three nights it was time to move on though and Im currently in Bologna. As i got here a few hours ago there isnt much to report yet but watch this space!

Anthony

Milan

Hey

Just a quick post to update eveyone and answer a frequently asked question, that is: how are you enjoying travelling by yourself?

Truth be told its fine. There are a few ups and downs and it would be great to have someone to share the good times and bad times with but there are a lot of positioves as well (mainly, that you can do everything at your own pace). I've adjusted to the hostel life pretty quickly which is good. Its actually a really good way to do things, and if you have cool room mates its a lot of fun. Of course the opposite is true as well and if you're room mates are creepy it can be a real drag. There's a certain honour amoungst travellers in hostels which I've noticed, and which helps a lot. Similar to how in golf you never walk on someone's line, in hostels there are things which are not done either, such as:
> if you get in late you try to make as little noise as possible; and
> you never turn on the light if someone's trying to sleep.

I've also noticed that everyone (myself included) goes out of their way to be nice to the other room mates. This is mainly because (I think) that everyone is worried that they might get their stuff stolen. So you try and take measures to ensure that it stays safe, like locking your bags and being super nice to everyone. The logic is that if there is a thief in the room if you're really nice to them they won't steal your stuff, they will steal from the other, less nice person. Of course this logic is totally flawed but it does mean that you are constantly meeting new people and everyone seems to get along quite well.

Of course there are some people who don't follow this ettiquette, like my last room mate here who I'm certain was an ex prostitute or drug addict. She (who for the purposes of this post I will call the Crack Whore) had a disgustingly weathered face and masculine voice, coughed and spluttered like a diseased person and had those crazy eyes. Naturally I tried to be nice for fear she might stab me in the middle of the night or something. She was constantly getting up in the middle of the night and switching ALL the lights and when I woke up the next morning she was smoking a cigarette in bed. Needless to say I was pretty annoyed. Fortunately though the Crack Whore went that day and my new room mates seem okay.

Milan itself is pretty cool. Went to the Duomo, which is a large cathedral in the centre of town.



[pic: Duomo in Milan]

Was pretty cool but didn't find the body that Mum told me was there....

Also saw Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper. Was blown away by that. And I have to say (my art historian friends may not like this next part) that I'm convinced that the figure on the left of Jesus is a woman. I know that traditionally John is depicted as young and effeminate (and often even asleep on Jesus' shoulder) and I agree with the logic art historians use as to why that figure is not a woman but when you look at the painting you see a woman. Presumably its Mary Magdeline. Also telling (in my view) is the painting at the other end of the hall. This showns the crucifixion and Mary Magdeline IS depicted in it. Both paintings were done at the same time and Mary Magdeline is wearing the same clothes (in roughly the same shade) as the figure in The Last Supper.

So I'm pretty convinced. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Dan Brown was right, I'm just saying that Leonardo, for reasons only known to him, decided to paint Mary Magdeline in the Last Supper...maybe he thought it was funny or something.



[pic: a copy of the Last Supper, I wasn't able to take a picture of the actual painting!]

One thing that also made me laugh is that there is an archway that intrudes onto the bottom of the picture (google the picture and you'll see what I mean). Apparently years after it was painted the decision was made to build an arch and the moron that did it decided to cut into Leoonardo's masterpeice. Why you would do this is just beyond me. I hope that man didn't get his Christmas bonus that year!

I was supposed to head to Lake Como today but unfortunately there was a train strike (not even the metro was working) so I wasn't able to. Looks like I'll have to do that tomorrow. That sort of killed the day a bit for me so I've just been taking it easy. I also decided to get out of the way a few of the more mundane things and even got my haircut. The barber didn't speak a word of English and my Italian is pretty non existant so its no surprise that I'm now sporting a pretty terrible haircut! Haha



[pic: Where I had dinner that night - designed by Leonardo Da Vinci]

Anthony

Living it up on the French Riveira

So I'm loving the French Riviera. The hostel I'm staying in in Nice is the best I've been in so far. Its comfortable, you can get meals for 6 Euros, they have one Euro beers and they even have a big screen so you can watch the football. Pretty cool set up. Its only drawback is that its a little bit out from the city centre (but considering they have a bar that serves beer for one Euro its not THAT much of a drawback...) The room I was put in for the first two nights was incredibly hot (my terrible luck continues...) however they were nice enough (no pun intended) to move me around for the next three nights to let me have a cooler room.



[pic: the view from the hostel of Nice]

Have been meeting a few hard case people in the dorm rooms. Probably the funniest was an Irish-man called Jay. I met Jay at the worst possible time, I had decided to have a night off drinking, but he, being the stereotypical Irishman (ie, drinks like a fish, foulmouthed (but because of his accent no-one takes offence) and good fun) managed to talk me out of it. Needless to say it was a big night, probably most memorable because Jay kept introducing himself to new comers, putting on an Australian accent and saying: "Oi! Do yoouuu like Ostraaaalia? 'Cos if yooouu don't yoouu can get the f**k ouuuutttt!" Then laughed hysterically.

Something about the Irish...I was horrified when he did it the first time, but everyone thought it was hilarious, even if about half thought he actually was from Australia, and not one person took offence to it!

Been having a few day trips here. Went to Villefranche the first day which was terrific. It was there that I discovered the secret to getting into and out of the pebble beaches: you go in up to your shins, then emerce yourself in the water as best you can and crawl out to sea. Not only does this ensure that you dont break your ankle, it looks graceful as well (haha...yeah right!) When I did it the first time I was mocked by all but by the end of the day we were all doing it!



[pic: Villefranche]

I also decided that when I'm a billionaire I will be buying a house in Villefranche, its beyond awesome.

And speaking of billionaires the next day I went to Monaco. The amount of money that's there is ridiculous. Lets just say that if you drive round in Monaco in anything less than a Bentley you'd be considered poor. I went for a stroll down by the port and saw row after row of super yachts. Perhaps just as impressive was the sort of cars in the carpark. Within 35 meters I saw a Maclaren Mercedes SLR and 3 Ferrari's (including a Ferrari Enzo). Wow.



[pic: one of the ports at Monaco. Trust me, the super yachts were a lot bigger than they look in this picture!]



[pic: the view from the steps of the Casino in Monaco]

To be honest though I'm not that big a fan of Monaco. Its cool, but its a bit stupid at the same time (you got the impression that the billionaires that lived there just wanted to have the huge super yacht and fast car to show off a bit). I far preferred Villefranche or Nice.

I also went to Cannes and loved that place as well. Perhaps the most impressive part of Cannes was the beach, which, shockingly, had sand on it! Was a welcome change.



[pic: OMG a sandy beach! Its a miracle!]

Today I just had a wonder around Nice. Again I really enjoyed it. However, I did notice that the guys who ask for tickets on the trams are on a bit of a power trip. They're all militant looking types, dressed in combat boots and white polo shirts. They also have pepper spray and all of them seem to have army style haircuts. You get the impression that they'd really love to be in Stazi or something...If you're caught on the tram without a validated ticket they go a bit mental. We witnessed one kid yesterday who got on their bad side and was pined up against the wall by four of them and forced to pay the 43 Euro fine (and just so you know the price of a ticket is 1 Euro). Admittedly this kid was an idiot and tried to act all tough, but you still don't need four militants to pin one 15 year old skinny kid up against the wall...

I saw them again today, acting all macho and tough, but then they greated each other by kissing on both cheeks!

I know its a European thing but it still cracked me up.

Off to Milan tomorrow for 4 nights, so will be in touch soon.

Anthony

Frustrating times in Bordeaux...

So my love affair with the French is officially over.

After an incredibly enjoyable four days at San Sebastian I went to Bordeaux. There's only one hostel in Bordeaux so I had to book into a hotel: no problem though, to be honest I was actually looking forward to getting a few decent nights sleep.

After I checked in I explored Bordeaux. Its a pretty place that reminded me a lot of New Orleans.

[pic: A cool water fountain thing in Bordeaux]


[pic: Bordeaux again]

There was also a food festival on and all the restaurants in town all set up tent in the main street so I was spoiled for choice as to where to go. Unfortunately none of the menus were in English but in the end I was able to order a steak and some red wine (the steak was average but the red wine was amazing). After that it was home James for a good nights sleep.

Unfortunately for me the hotel, although comfortable, was sweltering hot and had no air conditioning. The water from the taps was also warm so I didn't have the option of having a cold shower to cool off. Even worse, outside the hotel was a fountain that got lit up at night. However most of the light also shone directly into my room!

Let me tell you it was horrific. Needless to say what followed was perhaps the worst nights sleep of my life. At four in the morning I decided that I wanted out, so I booked myself into another hotel for the next night (even though I'd paid for the second nights accommodation in advance at the first hotel).

By the morning I was hot, tired and frustrated. I then went to check out, wondering whether the lady behind the counter spoke English:

"Bonjour monsieur" the lady behind the counter said.
"Bonjour. Parlez-vous Anglais?"
"yes"

I was in business.

"I'm staying in room 116. I've booked for two nights but I'd like to check out now please"
"pardon?"
"I've booked for two nights but I'd like to check out now please"
"ohh, oui. So how many nights would you like to stay?"
"no no. I'm checking out"

This went on for a while: her English was average and my french was non-existent!

Eventually she understood and printed off another bill (despite me insisting that I'd already paid; in the end I had to dig up my receipt and give it to her to prove it). I also said that I needed to pay for breakfast (a complete rip off at 8 euros) and she asked whether I wanted breakfast tomorrow morning as well!

"no no no no no. I'm checking out now, I won't be here tomorrow"
"but do you want breakfast tomorrow?"
"I'm not going to be here tomorrow! I'm going forever!"
"oh, pardon, my English is not very good."
"thats okay"

In the end I though we had it sorted and I "checked out" only for her to say "see you tonight". Then we had to start all over again!

Grrrrrr

My next hotel was terrific; albeit out a little bit in a dodgy neighbourhood.

Bordeaux is a nice place but here is my advice if you go there: spend extra and stay at the best hotel you can find right in the heart of the city. Trust me on this one.

From there my frustrations grew as my train was delayed (or retard, in French) by 2.5 hours. This meant that I missed my next train in Toulouse and had another long wait (naturally I didn't get a refund on what I'd paid for the ticket of the train that I missed). Then my next train got delayed!

My scheduled arrival in Marseille was 6pm and I ended up getting in at past midnight. So frustrating times indeed...

Marseille is an okay place but its a bit dodgy. I was always looking over my shoulder as trouble felt like it was close by. That day I tried to go to the prison island in the centre of the bay. (the Alcatraz of Europe) Its called Chateau d'if (I think anyway) and was the prison from the book, and later movie, The Count of Monte Christo. I say "tried" as I accidentally got off at the wrong island (the announcements were all in French so I thought I'd follow the crowd, wrongly assuming that they'd all be going to the prison!) Although I went to the wrong place I had a good time at the other island and got some cool pictures which I hope to post on here as soon as I can.



[pic: the view from the main train station in Marseille]



[pic: the view od the harbour. As I found out Chateau d'if is the island on the left...]

I'm currently in Nice and am loving it! It really is a nice place (hehe). Had my first swim in the Mediterranean which was awesome. The stones on the beach were less awesome but at least the water was warm and the sun is out! The hostel here is great as well so it should be a fun, relaxing few days.


[pic: Ahhhh, Nice...]

Anyway got to go, happy hour at the hostel is about to start....

Anthony