2009 Adventures

That’s right, I’m in Ireland. Dublin, to be exact, which is a grey city filled with tourists…I’m pretty sure there aren’t any actual Irish people in a 10-mile radius. They’ve all fled the hordes of loud Americans and Aussies and Brits that have descended on the city to have an overpriced pint in Temple Bar.

Dublin is not beautiful, but is nonetheless appealing–I think Ireland can’t help but be charming. Everywhere I travel, the Irish I meet are unfailingly friendly and cheerful, and the few locals I’ve met in Ireland have lived up to the same standard. On the flight from Prague, my seatmate was an older accordion player from Galway who gave me heaps of helpful advice. Within 15 minutes, he’d written down his entire performance schedule and insisted I come to meet the band and hear “real, traditional Irish music, not like the stuff you’ll hear in Dublin.” As Galway is only 3 hours and 10 euros by bus, I think I’ll take him up on that. A girl working at my hostel also said that Galway is the place to be for music lovers, so I’m sold.

No photos yet; I’m having a nice, non-tourist week in Dublin and can’t be bothered to bust out the camera. Soon, though, when the rain stops and I gather the motivation. But for now, I’m going to relax with a cup of tea and a book and hope my health and energy return!

Lots of photos today, from three cities and three countries. First, an album with some sunny-day photos in Sofia, Bulgaria and a few of my day in Thessaloniki, Greece. I took an overnight train from Sofia to Thessaloniki and then spent 12 hours wandering–on no sleep. And when I got to the airport, I found that my shampoo had exploded in my toiletry bag and leaked out into my clothing. But, on the bright side, my backpack was 19.8 kilos, exactly .2 of a kilo under the limit. Good thing I paid for the extra 5 in advance!

http://picasaweb.google.com/eekauppi/SofiaThessaloniki?feat=directlink

Sofia & Thessaloniki

My flight landed in Prague last night at midnight…and I didn’t realize that my directions to the hostel were only correct until midnight, when the metro shuts down and tram routes change. So I arrived at the closed metro station, waited an hour in the rain for the only tram, rode with about 30 drunk people, guessed at the stop, walked around for a while…and then gave up and got a taxi. I crawled into bed at 3am, only to be woken at 8 by someone’s obnoxious alarm.

BUT not to worry, because I’m in Prague! If only I could tell you how beautiful the city is, or take a photo to do it for me. Alas, it was rainy and cloudy today, so my photos are less than thrilling. They don’t capture how tall the buildings are, or how ornate, or how colorful, or how gorgeous. The combination of all that architectural beauty in one place is just overwhelming…and add to it the street musicians and the cobblestones and the palpable sense of history, and it’s almost too much to bear. I kid you not, I got teary when I was trying to take it all in in the old town square today. (but then, maybe that was the sheer exhaustion) A few photos:

http://picasaweb.google.com/eekauppi/Prague1?feat=directlink

Prague1

The Cyrillic alphabet makes my head spin. The title means “a source of warmth” (at least according to the internet translation).

After a pleasant three hour bus ride through some lovely tree-covered hills, I’ve arrived in beautiful Veliko Tarnovo. When I say beautiful, I don’t mean grand-scale gorgeous, like Florence, but small-scale gorgeous. Buildings here are crumbling and the outskirts of town are downright ugly, but the old quarter is absolutely charming. Rough stone streets, ancient buildings, and twisty hillside roads are all watched over by a hilltop fortress. People smile at me, however reluctantly (Bulgarians are not disposed to giddiness)–I’m delighted by the place, and perhaps they can’t help but smile at the idiotic grinning tourist. I can explore in peace, I’m away from the city, there’s a view of the hills from my room, and the air smells like trees. What more could I ask for?

A few photos to start the day (more coming):

http://picasaweb.google.com/eekauppi/VelikoTarnovo?feat=directlink

Veliko Tarnovo

Two weeks in Istanbul is too much. Too much heat, too many crowds, too much traffic, too many obnoxious men. My work laptop broke at the end of my first week, which meant that I spent day after day in the heat, running from computer store to computer store, trying to explain technical things with a combination of English and sign language. Oy–just added frustration to an already stressful situation.

BUT I escaped last night, and I’m Bulgaria now. Why not? I’m loosely planning to make my way overland to Prague before heading to Dublin to watch Lucy run the marathon. But right now, it’s almost 8am, and I’ve been sitting in my hostel in Sofia, waiting to be able to check in. My bus arrived early–unheard of–and I’ve been here since 6:30 after a mostly sleepless night on the bus.

More when I’ve had a few hours of sleep, and a few last pictures from Istanbul.