Blue 1 Blew One

That may be my best title yet, so just go back and read it and savour it a little.

But I gues an explanation would help. So I had a flight booked on the airline Blue 1, basically it is the Scandinavian discount airline, from Helsinki to Warsaw, leaving at 9:40 in the morning. To put it lightly, that didn't quite work out and I didnt arrive into Warsaw until 10pm. Hence Blue 1 blew one.

We took off from Helsinki a bit late, maybe 10 minutes, but no big deal, we can make that up in the air. So the pilot comes on and says that there is heavy fog around Warsaw and that we are going to have to circle for half an hour. The flight was supposed to take 1hr 50min, so no big deal. But we just kept circling and circling. I couldn't understand what the pilot was saying half the time when he told us what was going on because his English was so bad, but after 3 hours in the air we started going straight for a while and I heard a flight attendant tell everyone that we had run out of fuel (alarming) and that we were headed to Berlin (cool) because we still couldn't land due to the fog.

So we head to Berlin and after 4 hours in the air we finally land. Initially they told us that they would try and get us all to Warsaw from Berlin, but it turns out all of the hotels, trains and other flights were booked solid. Apparently this fog had been hanging over Warsaw for a few days and a lot of flights had been cancelled or sent to Berlin. The plans then changed to taking us all back to Helsinki...another 2 hours on the plane, but first we all had to get off so that they could refuel. All of the passangers stood there beside the plan, on the tarmack, while they refueled. Then it was back on the plane.

On the flight back they offered us free coffee, but no food. I got up at 6am to get this flight and now its 2pm and I still am going on 2 croissants I had for breakfast and the tube of Pringles I had my bag. At first I found the whole thing funny. But as I got hungrier and hungrier I found is less and less amusing. But we made it to Helsinki, where it had become dark by this time (4pm, they are too far north!) and we all had to try and book onto the LOT flight leaving at 8pm. I was luckey, because my bag came out first and I got the booking counter ahead of most people and grabbed the last seat on the plane. Many people had to spend another night in Helsinki. So I took my meal voucher (25 euros, score!) and had some dinner made some calls and waited while they delayed the flight a few times.

Finally we took off, over an hour late, but conditions improved and finally I made it to Warsaw! After 12 hours of travel and enough time on various planes to make it to Canada and back, I landed at last. So here I am, a bit tired but glad to have made it at last. Dzido and I are reunited and the world is our oyster.

Finishing Finnish

And so we enter endgame.

And by that I mean my little nothern tour has come to an end. Tomorrow I fly to Warsaw to meet up with Dzido and figure out what on earth to do with my trip and my life.

I spent the rest of my time with my two Canadian buddies Laura and Kevin. We got along great. Travel has a way of making perfect strangers seem like your best friends ina very short period of time. With these too it was taken to an extreme level. They are headed back home to Canada, so I have one more day of solo travel.

Many stories from the last few days, but by far the most memorable was the 24 hour period from leaving Tallinn to arriving in Helsinki. First of all, my hostel was very nice (as I mentioned) but the drunk Aussies and Brits were in rare form the night we left. I have never slept so badly in a hostel before. Every half hour someone was coming into the room yelling and turning on the light. One guy was so drunk he couldnt stand, so he crashed headfirst into my bunkbed and then had to crawl to the bathroom to be sick. It was not fun.

Then the boatride. Tallinn seems to be a big destination for Fins who want to buy cheap beer (cheap because of the weak Estonian currency mostly). They take the ferry across, which is only 3 and half hours, stock up on cheap beer and then go back...drinking half of what they buy. It was so bizzare to see EVERYONE carrying special trollies with 4 or 5 cases of beer or wine or whatever they wanted. So we were going through customs and this drunk guy starts talking to us. I think it is the backpacks that makes us targets. He was slurring big time (it was 11:30am by the way) and was almost impossible to understand. He kept trying to get me to drink he Russian champagne. I guess this is pretty common because he went through customs with the open bottle and gave the officer his passport and there was no reaction. Very strange.

On the actual ferry the mayhem continued. This is a huge ferry, in fact it is the size a cruise ship. 10 floors, full of shops and bars. There were intoxicated people everywhere. One guy was parading around the halls wearing just a bedsheet as a toga. At least it was entertaining...until they tried talking to you. Overall, I didn't like the ferry. While I did think it was funny to see all of these people, I was feeling seasick most of the way. Too much swaying. Didn't help that I didnt sleep the night before.

Anyways, made it to Helsinki. The city is...well....pretty disappointing actually. It is not my kind of place. There are some beautiful streets that are done up very nice with Christmas lights and everything, but most of the city feels like a shopping mall and there is very little character to the buildings. They have so much seafront, but nowhere nice to walk along the coast. It lacks the charm that medieval Tallinn had. The people are very nice and I have eaten well, including having Reindeer Stew at a Finnish restaurant. The other thing is that everything is VERY expensive here, certainly compared to places that are not on the euro. I will be glad to try a new place after this.

So that is the end of this leg of the trip. I end by holding 7 currencies on me (Dollars, Pounds, Euros, Krooni, Lats, Litas, and Zlotys), most of it in coins that I can't exchange, but it is neat to have.

I have literally no idea what I am doing next. There are many ideas bouncing around, which I will keep you updated about. I will also post a ton of pictures as soon as I can.

Taking it Easy in Estonia

Estonia! You are so lovely. Well at least you would be if it wasn't raining and raining and raining. Remember how I said I had such good weather in Vienna? Well it has not come back since. 2 straight weeks of rain. Its not that I mind it so much, but when its cold and raining it makes wandering cities a lot less fun. On the plus side I have been in some great cafes and I have read a lot of books.

I am now traveling solo only in name. At the bus station in Riga I met Kevin and Laura who are from Quebec and PEI respectively. We chatted on the bus, stayed at the same hostel and we are going to Helsinki together tomorrow. They are a lot of fun. I think they appreciate another voice besides just the other person and I am glad for the companionship. But dont worry, I still miss you Dzido.

The hostel I am staying at is alright. My room is also a min-gold course, which is kinda cool. But there are too many drunk Australians. As for Tallinn itself, this is about as close as you get to a medieval village without a time travel machine. The buildings are authentically medieval. A castle still overlooks the cobblestone streets and townhall that was built in 1402. Its really amazing to see. When you see a car drive by it looks out of place. Almost like watching a period movie and then seeing a BWM plow through and ruin the shot. Definitely one of the most beautiful cities I have been to, though I think I say that a lot.

Tomorrow I am off to Helsinki and the high prices of Scandinavia. No train or bus this time, I am traveling in style on a ferry!

Again, sorry about the lack of pictures, I am limited by the technology :(

Happy 88th Latvia

Riga is one of the most beautiful cities that I have visited yet. The old town has the feel of a small medieval village. It is easy to get lost just wandering the narrow streets, but just as easy to find your way back since it is relativly small. On my first night here, I was wandering the city when I heard what sounded like a marching band. I followed the sound and came across a huge military parade. I must confess that I am woefully ignorant on current events in Latvia, so I wasn't sure if this was a real invaison or just a pretend one. There were only a few people around and they didn't seem too concerned, but I asked anyways and found out that this was the practice run for the big parade the next day for Freedom Day, Latvia's independence day. I came within about 3 feet of the President of Latvia who gave me a wave. I felt so accepted already.

The city was buzzing the next day as there were many events for the big 88th birthday celebration. Fireworks at night, speeches and videos about Latvia. I spent part of the day taking in the museum of occupation, dedicated to the 3 different times Latvia has been occupied in the 20th century. It was fairly busy that day, but worth it to get a really good sense of the history of Latvia. The rest of the day I just wandered the city, enjoying the atmosphere.

My hostel has been a bit of a pain. There are some good things. It is located right in the heart of the old city, it has satalite TV which allowed me to watch the NFL and (a day late on tape delay) the Grey Cup! But the rooms are crammed and it is very noisy. I am kinda glad that the weekend partying is over so I can get some rest. There are sooo many Brits here. I tell ya, once Ryan Air flies into a place it just gets overrun! But tonight my 12 person room that had been full will only have 4 people in it, so that is kinda nice.

Yesterday I went on a day trip to a place called Sigulda. I went there in the hope that I would get to try bobsledding (or bobsleigh as the Brits call it). They have a track there and you can go down it for just 2L. Sadly when I made my way there (with some British guys I met who also wanted to go) they said it was closed because it wasn't cold enough yet. So sad. But I did get to explore the ruins of some cool castles, so that made the trip worth while. Also, there was a cable car ride involved. However, this place did make me aware of something I knew before: Loney Planet Guide Books are VERY VERY misleading. They called this place "The Switzerland of Latvia." Now that implies alot. First of all, mountains. These were hills, and barely even that. Secondly, you think of nice houses and smiling people. This appeared to be an impovrished part of country and the people looked at me like I had 5 eyes. But it was beautiful.

One thing I should tell you about Latvia is that prices make absolutely no sense here. They peg their currency, so 1 Lat= 1 GBP, but most things are still cheap. Still, here is a breakdown of what I have paid for some basic things:
Train ticket, 53 miles: 0.71L
Beer: 1.00L
Meal at a fancy restaurant: 9.00L
5 nights in a hostel: 36L

It is all very confusing. I could travel across the entire country for the same price as a beer? Like I said, it makes little sense.

So I have one more day in Latvia (another day trip I think) and then I am off to Estonia. Big fun!

Sorry about the lack of pictures. These computers are being disagreeable (that is not the word I used in my head). Take Care!

Rocking Riga

Again... I like alliteration.

My time in Lithuania passed quickly since there was no room in any hostel for Friday night, I decided to move on. Apparently I wasnt the only one since I met a guy on the bus to Riga who said that he was turned away everywhere he went too. Who knew Vilnus was so busy?

I spent a day exploring the city. So far Vilnus has been the one city where I have seen a very clear cultural difference from the rest of Europe. Vienna is special, Poland is great, but they are fundamentally western countries (Poland less so, but still). Lithuania is clealy still a bit stuck in the old communist ways. For the vast majority of people in the country their second language is Russian, for a few it is German, but almost no one speaks English. That is fair enough, but there is just something in the air that is not...friendly? welcoming? I can't put my finger on it. As you walk around the city you can still see where the hand of communism left its mark. Many buildings remain unoccupied and have clearly been like that for a while. Apparently it is getting better, but there is still an odd feeling in the air. Good to experience, but not somewhere I would want to spend a lot of time.

I was probably the only backpacker in the whole city. Well maybe not, but I didnt see any other travellers. Vilnus is actually quite small with a population of only 600 000 people, making it smaller than Mississauga. There are more chuches per square kilometer than anywhere I have ever been. Many are still in disrepair from neglect under communism and most are very simple on the inside. There is a big hill in the middle of the city that has the reminants of the city castle, which was very interesting and gave a great view of the city.

By far the most interesting aspect of the city was the Genocide Victims Museum. I wish that everyone could go and see it. Too often we forget the horrors that so many people endured under the repressive Soviet regime, especially in Eastern Europe. Lithuania had it especially bad as it was occupied by the Soviets, then the Nazis, then the Soviets again (a familar pattern in Eastern Europe). Hundreds of thousands of people were killed or deported from their homeland. While number like that are hard to grasp, this museum makes you feel every one of them. With indepth stories of people who were moved to Siberia or worse, pictures and personal effects, it was hard to read about some of the atrocities committed. Even today there are 35 suspected mass graves around Vilnus. The most authentic part of the museum is the basement, which was used as a place of interogation by the KGB and has been kept as it was. I walked through it completely alone, into the rooms that held prisioners. I sat on the beds they used and was horrified by the solitary confinement room. There was even a room that was half filled with ice-cold water. The prisoner was stipped down and had to stand on a single pole in the middle of the room for hours. It was stunning to see such a place and really brought to life the horrors of what the Soviets did to so many people. Without seeing a place like that the number have no real meaning. Seeing the faces of those who suffered brings it to life.

I should point out that in fact I did not stay in Vilnus...well not if you ask the locals of the area that I stayed in. I stayed in a place called The Republic of Uzupis, which is an unofficial republic of artists and drunks that declared indepndence from the rest of Vilnus. The area had long been poor and undeveloped and as often happens the artists moved in. They have their own constitution with rules like "Everyone has the right to feed the cat" and "Everyone has the right to be happy". It is very interesting part of the city to say the least.

So that ends my story of Vilnus. I am in Riga now and will give you a full account of the city in a couple of days and will post some pictures as soon as I can. In the meantime, best wishes to all back home!

Vilified in Vilnus

Whew! I have made it to the Baltics. Just letting everyone know that I am alive and well. I stayed an extra day in Warsaw with Dzido. I needed to do some winter-clothes shopping and him and I needed to catch up. I mean come on, we were apart for a whole month! Gotta say, Poland is a great place for bagin shopping. Forget heading to the US for deals, just hitch a ride to Warsaw. The prices are the same as they would be in Canada, except they are in zloty. So a warm winter jacket cost me 220zl, which equals about 40 British pounds (sorry that is the currency I have, so that is what I convert to now, I am so chic!). Even in Canadian dollars that is a bargin! So I am equipped for whatever these Baltic countries throw at me in terms of weather.

The train to Vilnus was a bit long. Left at 7am from Warsaw and arrived at 5:45pm, but there was a time change of one hour in there that I was unaware of. Still, I was glad to get off the train...that is until I tried to find the bus to my hostel. The bus station is a extremely complicated in Vilnus. Well, not really, it is very simple but my brain was failing me and it took me a good half hour to find where the bus I needed was. But I made it to the hostel and I have a nice little dorm room with only one other person in it (for now). I begin exploring this wonderful looking country tomorrow and will get some pictures up.

PS- title of the blog isn't refering to anything, I just like alliteration.

A Day In Durnstein

Still kicking it in Vienna. I just can't seem to leave this city. Today (sunday) I am going to find an American bar and watch football with my friend from South Carolina Jon, who is at the hostel with me. I do miss the football.

Tomorrow I will finally leave this wonderful city for a tour of...The Baltic States. My dear sister was night to remind me of how important it is to get off the beaten path. So I will be galavanting around the Baltic Sea in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland, before flying into Warsaw on the 29th of November. I have a nice little 2 weeks planned and will be sure to keep updating the blog.

Yesterday I decided to get out of the city for a little while and took a day trip to Durnstein, which is just over an hour away by train. The town lies on the Danube and has a beautiful view. I was a little worried when I for there and found that the tourist office is closed until April. Actually, that tends to be true for a lot of things in Durnstein. There were only 2 cafes in the city that were open this time of year and the one I went to was only open on weekends. The town is small, in fact in the 2001 census, only 931 people lived there!

The town itself is beautiful. It is still enclosed by medieval walls and you can walk from one end to the other in about 10 minutes. The claim to fame for Durnstein is that Richard the Lion-Hearted of England was imprisioned here after his dispute with Duke Leopold V during the 3rd Crusade. The result was that Richard was locked up and England was forced to pay a huge ransom to get him back. Why would they do that? Richard was hero in England and since he left his brother John (a right wanker) had been running the show and pissing off everyone. There is not much left of the castle that Richard was imprisioned in, as you can see from the picture. It is a bit of a hike to get up to the ruins, but well worth it. The site is completely open and free. In fact there is a sign as you get close to the ruins saying that you enter at your own risk, translation: great fun! I made it all the way to the top and got a great view of the Danube Vally. This picture is enhanced by the zoom, but still gives you some idea of what it looked like.

Here is a picture of me looking regal. It is a lot harder to get photos of myself now that I am traveling alone, but the auto-shot does a pretty good job. I am off for football, then the beginnings of another great adventure. Keep checking back!

A Call For Help

I am in a bit of a situation. I am still in Vienna and completely undecided as to where to go next. I will be going to meet Dzido in Warsaw, but I need to travel for a week or two before hand. I have narrowed it down to 2 possible routes:

1) The Baltic States
The Plan: Go through Poland up to the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and then come back down to Poland.

The Pros:

• Exotic and relatively untouristy.
• These places are big with backpackers these days.
• I would get to see some old towns and be somewhere new.

The Cons:

• Traveling is hard.
• There are few easy ways to get between places and even then it takes hours to move a small distance.
• The language barrier is tough.
• It is DAMN cold there.

2) Germany

The Pros:

• Much less language barrier.
• Easy transport.
• Awsome country.

The Cons:

• I have been to Germany before.
• More expensive.

So that is my dilemma. I know that is is one that isn't really a serious one and that I will have fun in either one. And sure we could be spending our time trying to solve problems like Iraq or world hunger. But I am important too damn it! So post some thoughts!

Vienna

Hello!

Look at that, back on the posting-train! Please excuse the occasional misplaced "z" since these German keyboards are a bit odd.

I was thinking about my 3 days in Vienna as I was walking to this internet cafe and I thought I would start by writting about what fantastic weather I have had. I was told that it snowed here a few days before I arrived, but I could see no evidence of it. I have had 3 sunny days and the temperature has been warm enough for November. This picture shows the run and is a picture of the Kuntshistoriche Museum (my favourite museum in the world).No need to buy that ski jacket yet. But of course as I was thinking that some big black clouds rolled in and it poured. It wasnt the rain I minded so much as the wind, which rendered my umbrella fairly useless. The wind just blew the water into my face, soaking my front completely but leaving the back of mz body completely dry.

Aside from that, it has been a great few days. I have walked around Vienna more than I thought possible, but it is great to get some exercise and to be around a big city after Weymouth. My hostel is simple, but nice. Since it is low season there are only 4 of us staying there right now, which is good because there is only one toliet and 2 showers (if you asked me thís ratio should be reversed). There is a lockout from 10am until noon, so everyone is up at around the same time, we eat breakfast together and then head off. At night we come home and all chat and make dinner. It is a great atmosphere.

I have been doing a lot of typical stuff in Vienna. Visiting palaces and museums, drinking coffee in coffeehouses and soaking in the atmosphere of this amazing city. One of my favourite monuments here is the Soviet War Memorial. Not something you see too much of in Europe, but this is a huge structure dedicated to the memory of the Soviet soldiers who liberated Vienna and all the inscriptions are in Russian.

I also went to the Impreial Treasury. Lets face it, the Hapsburgs were very powerful for a very long time. They ruled an empire that streched from the New World to Holland, Spain and into the Balkans and in the process they picked up a lot of cool stuff. Most of it has ended up in the treasury. There is the 10th century crown of King Otto I (or II, they dont know), the horn a unicorn (actually from a narwhal whale), a piece of the true cross and the spear that pierced Jesus' side. Not bad little set of toys.

In the afternoon of the second day I went for stoll around the Belvadere Palace that was build for Prince Eugene and has a great view of the city of Vienna. I walked around the vast gardens for while. Here is a picture of me in some bamboo. Am I in China? Nope just Vienna.

I decided that since Vienna is one of the great cities of modern art I should give the modern art museum a try. Generally, I find there is a lot not to like about modern art. I find that it tends to be either overly pretencious or completely incomprehensible. But this museum had one thing that attacted me to it: on the side if a house that looks as if it is falling off the top of a building. I had to give it a shot. I didn't like all of it, but there were some interesting pieces. One was called "Fat Car" by Edwin Wurm. It is a porche that has been made fat. Every part of the car is bulging from the seats to the metal. I dont know what else to say except that it is a fat car and it sits next to a fat house in a big room. I liked it a lot.

I also stopped by the military history museum. The Hapsburg conquered a lot of people for a long time and fought a ton of wars, so there was a lot of cool stuff there. Perhaps the most intersting and morbid is the exhibition of Franz Ferdinarnd (the guy, not the band). His assassination in Sarjevo led to the start of World War I when Austria tried to punish Serbia for the killing and Russia came to Austria's aid. After that it was off to the races with everyone declaring war on everyone else. The exhibition on Franz Ferdinand (who was a member of the Hapsburg family) includes the sofa on which he died, the clothes in which he was shot and the car he was in when he was shot (which I snuck a picture of). The audio guide points out the bullet hole in the car where the first shot went through the metal and into the stomach of Sofia, his wife, and killed her. The audio guide even points out the bullet whole on the uniform where the bullet entered Franz, hitting his neck and killing him. There is still a lot of blood on the uniform. Quite the exhbit. Those Viennese certainly do like their death.

So that has been my stay in Vienna. I am leaving tomorrow, though I still undecided as to where I shall go. Perhaps Salyburg or maybe Krakow en route to Warsaw. I leave you with 2 strange signs that I snapped pictures of while out today:

This is some graffiti I found. For some reason someone reallz doesn't like Nemo. I am suprised they don't mock his gimpy fin.

I dont know what these guys want to do with my bulbs, but I wouldnt let someone near me if they drove a van with this on the side. If someone can translate this I will be forever greatful.

Big Changes

It sure has been a busy few days. Where to start? Well, a few days ago the pub caught fire. That was an interesting night. We lit the fire in the new fireplace to get the pub all toasty now that the cold has started to settle in. As it turns out, when they renovated the pub, they did it cheap and used combustable materials to build the wall around the fireplace. Soon there was smoke coming out of the walls as they were on fire. 7 fire trucks and 2 support vehicles showed up. Our roof is made of thatch, which is extremely flamable, so they wanted to be very careful. Luckily the damage was minor. The wall was burnt out, but the roof is in tact and no one was hurt. Mostly it was just a funny experience. I was impressed by how many guests thought enough to bring their drinks out into the cold with them. Oh those English!

The other big news is that I no longer live or work in England. I quit my job and am on the road again! Actually I am only on the road again for a little while. I was pretty sick of living in Weymouth, which is far too small for my liking. I thought, who do I know who lives in a big city in Europe? Wasnt there some Polish guy I used to live with in Warsaw or something? Indeed there was! I had already booked a trip to Vienna, so I decided that I would not come back and instead travel in Eastern Europe for a few weeks and then go live with Dzido in Warsaw. Thats right, we will have parted only for a month before we reunite. I have enough cash to live there for a little while and that is what I aim to do. So I have 5 days in Vienna and then who knows? I bought a Polish phrase book at the airport. I figure I need to know more than "tak" (yes) to get by.

This morning I spent some time at my favourite museum in the world: the Kunsthistoriche museum. It has a great collection of painting and is housed in a beautiful building. I could have spent all day there, and in fact did spend 4 hours looking at paintings. Weymouth has made me very culture-hungry. I have spent the rest of the day wandering Vienna, which has been a lot of fun. I really love this city. The buildings are all so impressive, it just makes you feel as though you are back in the 19th century and thinking "Wow, the Hapsburgs rock!"

So keep ckecking in for updates. I am doing exciting stuff again!

Walking on a Cloud (with photos now!)

Back after a long break. I must apologize to my loyal blog readers for my lack of posts over the past few weeks. I wish I could say I was out doing exciting things, but the fact is that I have been working like a dog and am usually too tired to do anything on my days off but sleep. However, I can assure you that I am back. I am going to Vienna next week and in December I will be traveling again (probably to Germany).

My latest day off, I decided to break with the routine of sleep, checking e-mails and then sleeping some more. I planned to take to the Dorset coastal path for a long walk up the stunning coast of southern England. When I woke up Monday morning I was like a kid on Christmas, hoping for the clear weather that the forecast had predicted. Sadly, I was disappointed. It was another dreary day. I had to make a decision. Do I go out for a walk and get a bit wet or do I wait for a nicer day. Given that it was already the end of October and that the clocks had been set back the night before, I wasn’t sure I would get a day as warm as this one (it was 16 degrees, not bad). Plus, who wants to see England in the sun? It is just not natural. For the same reason that I wouldn’t go to Sweden in the summer, I would rather do England in the rain. So I set out with the special kind of determination that comes from doing something foolish and being determined to enjoy it.

I started off on the beach in Weymouth, which is actually little more than a lot of rocks together beside some water. Usually the view across the harbour is quite nice, but today I could barely see the far end of the path I was walking. As I walked along, I noticed that the benches that I was passing had plaques on them. I stopped to read a few and realized that they were commemorative plaques, likely placed by loving family members when their relatives passed away. I couldn’t help but think that when archeologists of the future dig up our civilization and find these benches that they will wonder why people melted down their loved ones and fashioned them into benches.

As I pressed on the rain did die away and I was left in a sort of mist as I found myself off the beach and on the proper coastal path. Within a few minutes I had a good amount of mud on my shoes and trousers. I say ‘trousers’ because the word ‘pants’ in England means underwear wouldn’t want to confuse anybody about the attire I chose the travel in.

A little known fact about England is that it is disappearing. Not quickly or anything. It will still be there long enough for me to work. But the poor little island is slowly eroding from the south. In fact England used to be a peninsula of Europe, but that was a long while ago. There are plenty of helpful signs that remind you of this fact as the coastal path has had to be moved several times in order to allow for this erosion. Here is one such sign saying that the path I just walked on was unsafe. Very helpful. However, not all signs are so unhelpful along the coastal path. There are many of these small little stone markers that tell you how to far the next village is and give you an approximate direction. Personally, I think they look a little too much like tombstones, but maybe I am just being dramatic.

Walking along the coastal path, one is struck by the many contrasts. The roaring sea on one side of you is offset by the calm green fields to the other side. Cows moo happily and seem oblivious to the raging waters just feet from where they are standing. At times the path is open and you can see a great distance. At other times I found myself in fairly dense trees, slightly afraid of being attacked by hoodlums. Here is a picture of my fear. I am not sure what the wind did to my hair, but I kind of like it.

As I was walking, I noticed that something kept moving just ahead of me. Each time I turned a corner, it seemed to jump to the side to avoid detection. I had no idea what I was following, but having seen too many episodes of ‘Lost’ I wasn’t sure I wanted to find out. I slowed my pace and kept my attention on the path ahead. No black fog appeared and I wasn’t sucked into any underground cavern. It turns out I was following a wild rabbit. You can just make him out in the centre of this picture if you look very closely.

The coastal path is interrupted at many points by farmer’s fences. From what I can tell, they keep them enclosed for legal reasons, but the helpful people that build the trails simply build little benches to help you climb over them. I wasn’t sure what to make of these little wooden helpers when I first came to them. I thought it very strange to put a wooden bench running through a fence with a little bit on each side. Perhaps these were to commemorate the lives of people not good enough for benches on the beach. In fact they are an ingenious way to help you over the fence that must remain intact so that the cows do not wander off the side of a cliff.

I continued my walk until I came across something familiar: work! The Smuggler’s Inn lies on the coastal path. In fact there is a sign that points directly to the pub labeled ‘Coastal Path’ and I have often had to explain to people that in fact the path bends around the pub. Usually they buy a pint anyways and stop for a rest. So in their proud tradition, I bought myself some lunch and a pint of flat, English ale. I have actually come to appreciate the taste and as I walked through the English countryside, I thought I had better blend in and have a pint of ale. I also got some friends to take some picture of my in my raincoat, which is actually little more than a glorified clear garbage bag. I also saw some ducks on the way down.

Soon after leaving Smuggler’s, I came across two interesting historical relics. The first was two fortifications made during the Second World War. At first I thought they were cheap seaside balconies for the poor tourist. But in fact they are pill boxes, constructed at the height of the fear of a Nazi invasion. They are open to the public, or at least the barbwire is easy to crawl under, so I had a little look around and imagined myself defending this beautiful coastline from Nazi-scum.

A little further along was another relic of the war (Britons refer to World War II as ‘the war’ as if no other conflict has happened before or since). An old radar station, complete with a plaque explaining its significance sat tucked besides from trees. One of the reasons Britain was able to hold out against the German air assault during the Second World War was because of their new technology called radar. They were able to detect the German attack and scramble their fighters before it was too late. This particular site was better preserved and had ‘National Trust’ signs on it. Despite being completely alone, I decided not to try and investigate further and continued on my way.

As I climbed higher up the cliffs, it became foggier and foggier. At times I couldn’t see more than 10 feet in front of my and I became quite concerned that I may walk off one of the high cliffs at any moment. It is very hard to describe the weather that I was finding. It was cool and yet it was humid. It was not raining, but it was wet. It was as if I was standing in a cloud as it was forming. This cow is one example of how misty it was as I was actually standing quite close to it. I walked trying to make out where the coast was, I turned my head and all of sudden I was facing this old building. I don’t know if it appeared from the ground just as I arrived, but it made me jump when I turned my head. I investigated it and it appeared to be an abandoned school. There was an old well outside and the windows were covered in drapes. On a sunny day I may have investigated further, but the mist made me feel quite isolated and I decided against it.

At times the mist would clear and I got to take some great pictures of the chalky cliffs of southern England. These views look majestic, but let me say, they are a bit of pain to walk up and down all of the time. It was also quiet isolated along the path. I walked 13km, taking about 6 hours to cover the distance and only saw 2 other people. It was great.

At long last I made it to Durdle Dor. You can see the place that is known as ‘the door’. If it wasn’t for the harsh wind and low temperatures, I could have sworn that I was somewhere tropical. The landscape looks like it is straight out of southeast Asia or the Caribbean. I was very proud of myself for making it without any major stumbles and most importantly without walking off one of those tall cliffs in the middle of the fog.

Today (or the day I wrote this) is Halloween. While the English don’t make as big a deal of it as we do in North America, the pub is decorated and I am dressed as Vampire as I write this. In fact, I am head vampire. The promotions just keep coming. So Happy Halloween to all! And check back soon for posts about Vienna.