Hope you had a brilliant festive break, and are coping as well as can be expected with the return to work and normality.
Here are some more miscellaneous ramblings for you on the London Life of Jas. Or rather, here is a thesis of miscellaneous ramblings, picking up from my Salzburg weekend away and filling you in on all my adventures since.
Salzburg (Christmas party & weekend away)
7th - 9th December
It was an early start as Fallon Air took off from Gatwick at an ungodly hour to land in Salzburg a few hours later amid mountains covered in snow. The English majority were quite amused at my immediate excitement, having not seen snow for about five years (since I was last over here) but none of the white stuff fell during our stay unfortunately.
7th - 9th December
It was an early start as Fallon Air took off from Gatwick at an ungodly hour to land in Salzburg a few hours later amid mountains covered in snow. The English majority were quite amused at my immediate excitement, having not seen snow for about five years (since I was last over here) but none of the white stuff fell during our stay unfortunately.
It was freezing without that reward.
We stayed at an amazing resort right on a lake by the mountains (Lake Wolfgang?), and started the day off with lunch & mulled wine - fuel for the Winter Games to follow, where our sawing, reflex, ice-carving and cross-country skiing & shooting skills were put to the test. A highly entertaining afternoon, and I'll take this opportunity to gloat that Team Oz (myself and another Aussie girl) were coming second for ages in the sawing, beating a few of the guy teams... jaws actually dropped. It was brilliant!
That evening consisted of dinner in a Michelin star restaurant (needless to say, very nice) and a boat cruise on the lake, followed by a return to our hotel, underneath which was the 'Mystic Underworld', to get the party started. Despite the name, the underground caves were actually quite cool, and the party went off.
We stayed at an amazing resort right on a lake by the mountains (Lake Wolfgang?), and started the day off with lunch & mulled wine - fuel for the Winter Games to follow, where our sawing, reflex, ice-carving and cross-country skiing & shooting skills were put to the test. A highly entertaining afternoon, and I'll take this opportunity to gloat that Team Oz (myself and another Aussie girl) were coming second for ages in the sawing, beating a few of the guy teams... jaws actually dropped. It was brilliant!
That evening consisted of dinner in a Michelin star restaurant (needless to say, very nice) and a boat cruise on the lake, followed by a return to our hotel, underneath which was the 'Mystic Underworld', to get the party started. Despite the name, the underground caves were actually quite cool, and the party went off.
From memory I forced myself to bed at about 4am, knowing Pete wouldn't be too impressed if I was completely out of it for the weekend of sightseeing ahead. And only 3 hours later, it was time to get up again and bus it back to Salzburg airport to meet him and head into the city itself while everyone else flew home. 
Salzburg is a really pretty city - not too big and not too much of a to-do city, where you have to tick the boxes in terms of sights you've seen. It's more a place to just wander around and get lost in, appreciating the sights along the way.
Needless to say Saturday involved lots of walking, stopping for regular apfel strudels and / or bratwurst & gluhwein along the way, to warm up (naturally, that was the official excuse).
Saturday night we went to Schloss Mirabell (an old palace in the
centre of town) for the Mozart concert, to listen to an amazing solo pianist doing her thing. She truly was amazing, but after being very civilised & cultured for an hour and a half or so, we were quite ready to return to the town centre to hang with the cool kids and enjoy some more mulled wine.
Sunday brought with it the Sound of Music tour and Pete was just beside himself with excitement... :)
Not quite. But he did very well to last the day. The tour was actually better than we both thought it would be - as it turns out, not all of the movie was shot in the heart of Salzburg, so the bus took us out to a gorgeous little town called Mondsee (to see the church where Maria & Capt. von Trapp got married) as well as back out to Lake Wolfgang, so Pete also got to see the gorgeous snowy scenery where I'd been a few days before. Well worth it.
Salzburg is a really pretty city - not too big and not too much of a to-do city, where you have to tick the boxes in terms of sights you've seen. It's more a place to just wander around and get lost in, appreciating the sights along the way.
Needless to say Saturday involved lots of walking, stopping for regular apfel strudels and / or bratwurst & gluhwein along the way, to warm up (naturally, that was the official excuse).
Saturday night we went to Schloss Mirabell (an old palace in the
centre of town) for the Mozart concert, to listen to an amazing solo pianist doing her thing. She truly was amazing, but after being very civilised & cultured for an hour and a half or so, we were quite ready to return to the town centre to hang with the cool kids and enjoy some more mulled wine.Sunday brought with it the Sound of Music tour and Pete was just beside himself with excitement... :)
Not quite. But he did very well to last the day. The tour was actually better than we both thought it would be - as it turns out, not all of the movie was shot in the heart of Salzburg, so the bus took us out to a gorgeous little town called Mondsee (to see the church where Maria & Capt. von Trapp got married) as well as back out to Lake Wolfgang, so Pete also got to see the gorgeous snowy scenery where I'd been a few days before. Well worth it.
So yet another brilliant weekend away! Apparently this one was too much fun though - I flew home with a slightly sore throat on the Sunday night which subsequently worsened to become tonsilitis. I had the entire following week off work with a high fever, literally unable to stand without holding on to walls for support and unable to eat for about 5 days.. lots of fun!
A week after my well-timed recovery, it was time to pack my bags once again for the Eastern Europe tour I'd booked for the Christmas break. I had a week off work (that wasn't coming out of my annual leave) and I wasn't about to let it go to waste!
I'd booked the tour on my own - Pete wasn't able to come with me (and was keen to spend Christmas with his family), and most of my friends were either in Australia or in places too cold for me to ever contemplate going in the wintertime (Scandinavia / Russia, etc.). So I found a Top Deck tour that sounded good and off I went! It was brilliant... details below (as abridged as possible).
London --> Berlin
Sat, 22nd December
Arrived at the hostel in the early afternoon, and made my first friend (another Aussie girl travelling alone who was my designated room-share buddy). Went for a bit of a wander around to explore the area we were in, which was basically the shopping heart of Berlin. How convenient :)
Met the tour leader & group that night - there were about 16 or so of us in total. ALL living in London, mainly Aussies & Kiwis (as usual) and generally around the 25 - 30ish age group with a few exceptions. Went out for the first German bratwurst & sauerkraut meal of the trip with a few of the other girls, wandered through the nearby Christmas markets, enjoyed some mulled wine (also the first of many to come), and called it a night.
Sat, 22nd December
Arrived at the hostel in the early afternoon, and made my first friend (another Aussie girl travelling alone who was my designated room-share buddy). Went for a bit of a wander around to explore the area we were in, which was basically the shopping heart of Berlin. How convenient :)
Met the tour leader & group that night - there were about 16 or so of us in total. ALL living in London, mainly Aussies & Kiwis (as usual) and generally around the 25 - 30ish age group with a few exceptions. Went out for the first German bratwurst & sauerkraut meal of the trip with a few of the other girls, wandered through the nearby Christmas markets, enjoyed some mulled wine (also the first of many to come), and called it a night.
Berlin
Sun, 23rd December
Our only full day in Berlin. We trained it to the Brandenburg Gate to begin our walking tour, five minutes into which (while we were still AT the Brandenburg Gate) I had already lost all feeling in my toes, due to the cold. Brilliant.
The tour was really interesting, it was great to hear all about German / Nazi history and simultaneously see the places so integral to that time. We wandered (hobbled / jogged whilst wiggling toes, trying to regain some feeling) for a few hours past the Gate, several remaining bits of the Berlin Wall, the Reichstag (with it's crazy cool glass tower thing), the Jewish Holocaust memorial (very cool).. past what used to be Hitler's bunker (which
is now a carpark), and Checkpoint Charlie - amongst a few other bits & pieces.
By the time we got to Charlie we were too cold to even look, let alone take photos. Our tour guide, already knowing us all too well took us to a beer hall for the traditional litre of beer & German pork knuckle.. SO GOOD.
Warmed up (by a brilliant combination of heating and beer) an hour or so later, we left the hall and returned to visit Charlie, and slowly made our way back towards the hostel via the Checkpoint Charlie museum, the Jewish Holocaust museum (underneath the memorial), a trip up the Reichstag crazy cool glass tower thing (for night-time views of Berlin) and past the now lit up Brandenburg Gate. Very pretty.
Sun, 23rd December
Our only full day in Berlin. We trained it to the Brandenburg Gate to begin our walking tour, five minutes into which (while we were still AT the Brandenburg Gate) I had already lost all feeling in my toes, due to the cold. Brilliant.
The tour was really interesting, it was great to hear all about German / Nazi history and simultaneously see the places so integral to that time. We wandered (hobbled / jogged whilst wiggling toes, trying to regain some feeling) for a few hours past the Gate, several remaining bits of the Berlin Wall, the Reichstag (with it's crazy cool glass tower thing), the Jewish Holocaust memorial (very cool).. past what used to be Hitler's bunker (which
is now a carpark), and Checkpoint Charlie - amongst a few other bits & pieces.By the time we got to Charlie we were too cold to even look, let alone take photos. Our tour guide, already knowing us all too well took us to a beer hall for the traditional litre of beer & German pork knuckle.. SO GOOD.
Warmed up (by a brilliant combination of heating and beer) an hour or so later, we left the hall and returned to visit Charlie, and slowly made our way back towards the hostel via the Checkpoint Charlie museum, the Jewish Holocaust museum (underneath the memorial), a trip up the Reichstag crazy cool glass tower thing (for night-time views of Berlin) and past the now lit up Brandenburg Gate. Very pretty.
Berlin --> Warsaw
Mon, 24th December
A very early start as we needed to get the 6:30am train to Warsaw. It was a 6-ish hour journey through which we primarily slept, with the odd 'ooooooh!!!' of whoever was awake and appreciating the growing mass of snow as we entered Poland.
Arrived, hugely thankful for the mini-bus awaiting our arrival to
take us on a bus tour around the city - the temperature was in the minuses (minus 2ish from memory, and snowing lightly) and we were far too freezing to walk. We did get off the bus for an hour or so to explore the old town - relatively small and largely damaged in WWII, but very cute. The tour guide took pity on the shaking Antipodeans in front of her though, and sped up the tour as much as possible, even pointing to a building as we walked past and saying she'd tell us about it on the bus so we didn't have to stand in the cold :) 
Mon, 24th December
A very early start as we needed to get the 6:30am train to Warsaw. It was a 6-ish hour journey through which we primarily slept, with the odd 'ooooooh!!!' of whoever was awake and appreciating the growing mass of snow as we entered Poland.
Arrived, hugely thankful for the mini-bus awaiting our arrival to
take us on a bus tour around the city - the temperature was in the minuses (minus 2ish from memory, and snowing lightly) and we were far too freezing to walk. We did get off the bus for an hour or so to explore the old town - relatively small and largely damaged in WWII, but very cute. The tour guide took pity on the shaking Antipodeans in front of her though, and sped up the tour as much as possible, even pointing to a building as we walked past and saying she'd tell us about it on the bus so we didn't have to stand in the cold :) 
That evening was interesting. Eastern Europeans celebrate Christmas Eve moreso than Christmas Day, and we'd been warned that nothing would be open that night (no bars, etc.), so to buy the odd bottle of wine and plan to hang out at our hotel for the evening. However, following our amazing pre-booked dinner at the hotel next door (which was the only place serving food that night, apparently, and fed us at 4pm so we'd be out by closing time at 6), we returned to our hotel to find that it didn't have a communal lounge area. Sixteen of us ended up squished into one of the tiny hotel rooms, crowded on and around the bed, for what turned out to be one of the biggest nights of the trip. Very random.
Warsaw --> Krakow
Tues, 25th December
Christmas day!
Another relatively early start following breakfast as we hopped on a train to Krakow. I spent most of the 2-ish hour journey on the phone to home & to Pete - minus Christmas trees and presents but in exactly the sort of white, snowy environment that makes that time of year so special.
Krakow is gorgeous. The old town is really beautiful, much bigger than Warsaw and with a town square that (I've subsequently learnt) is larger than any other in Europe. It's fair to say that Krakow, and most of the other places we saw throughout the tour, would be beautiful at any time of year, however they were just magical at Christmas.
Krakow was beautifully decorated, with Christmas markets (and the smell of mulled wine) filling the square, and Christmas trees on every corner. We did another walking tour with a brilliantly traditional-looking Polish man who clearly had no sympathy for the shaking Antipodeans in front of him (female guides are so much more motherly!) and led us around the old town for close to three (toe-numbing) hours.
The tour was brilliant, we walked through the square, passed many a gorgeous church and headed up to the top of Wawel Castle, with it's concentration of even more pretty churches & chapels from various eras, and views overlooking the city.
That evening we went out to a really nice nearby hotel (again, no restaurants were open) for a big group Christmas meal which was lovely, and following a few drinks, called it a night.
Tues, 25th December
Christmas day!
Another relatively early start following breakfast as we hopped on a train to Krakow. I spent most of the 2-ish hour journey on the phone to home & to Pete - minus Christmas trees and presents but in exactly the sort of white, snowy environment that makes that time of year so special.
Krakow is gorgeous. The old town is really beautiful, much bigger than Warsaw and with a town square that (I've subsequently learnt) is larger than any other in Europe. It's fair to say that Krakow, and most of the other places we saw throughout the tour, would be beautiful at any time of year, however they were just magical at Christmas.
Krakow was beautifully decorated, with Christmas markets (and the smell of mulled wine) filling the square, and Christmas trees on every corner. We did another walking tour with a brilliantly traditional-looking Polish man who clearly had no sympathy for the shaking Antipodeans in front of him (female guides are so much more motherly!) and led us around the old town for close to three (toe-numbing) hours.
The tour was brilliant, we walked through the square, passed many a gorgeous church and headed up to the top of Wawel Castle, with it's concentration of even more pretty churches & chapels from various eras, and views overlooking the city.
That evening we went out to a really nice nearby hotel (again, no restaurants were open) for a big group Christmas meal which was lovely, and following a few drinks, called it a night.
Zakopane (Polish mountains)
Wed, 26th December
We hopped on a mini-bus following breakfast, for the start of our daytrip excursion into the Polish mountains. Zakopane is a lovely Polish resort, where the expected ski runs compete with numerous other winter activities, as well as cute market stalls for those that simply want to wander round and enjoy the sunshine.
We didn't have enough time to hit the slopes, but had all booked in for our 'one horse open sleigh' ride through the snow to celebrate Christmas in style.
The temperature was actually quite mild compared to Warsaw & Krakow, probably close to 0 or even +1, and after the usual photo frenzy that accompanies Antipodeans in the snow, we hopped on our sleighs and took off.
I feel compelled to say the ride was lovely - and the scenery truly was - but I felt sick for most of the trip due to (a) going
backwards for an hour over numerous bumps, but more importantly (b) the ongoing sound effects (and accompanying odours) coming from the backside of our horse, which was unfortunately positioned quite close to my head. Needless to say I was quite glad when our ride was over!
Next was the second activity of the day - ice-skating on a frozen lake. So much fun (she says, conveniently forgetting the terror of stepping onto the ice - sans handrail - for the first time in about 10 years). Managed to keep my bum dry, thanks to my lovely fellow Top Decker friends who stepped up and offered their arms for the grabbing when required.
That night we bussed it back to Krakow and after changing out of our Michelin man / woman attire, we completed the evening with a lovely dinner at a Jewish restaurant in the Jewish quarter.
Wed, 26th December
We hopped on a mini-bus following breakfast, for the start of our daytrip excursion into the Polish mountains. Zakopane is a lovely Polish resort, where the expected ski runs compete with numerous other winter activities, as well as cute market stalls for those that simply want to wander round and enjoy the sunshine.
We didn't have enough time to hit the slopes, but had all booked in for our 'one horse open sleigh' ride through the snow to celebrate Christmas in style.The temperature was actually quite mild compared to Warsaw & Krakow, probably close to 0 or even +1, and after the usual photo frenzy that accompanies Antipodeans in the snow, we hopped on our sleighs and took off.
I feel compelled to say the ride was lovely - and the scenery truly was - but I felt sick for most of the trip due to (a) going
backwards for an hour over numerous bumps, but more importantly (b) the ongoing sound effects (and accompanying odours) coming from the backside of our horse, which was unfortunately positioned quite close to my head. Needless to say I was quite glad when our ride was over!Next was the second activity of the day - ice-skating on a frozen lake. So much fun (she says, conveniently forgetting the terror of stepping onto the ice - sans handrail - for the first time in about 10 years). Managed to keep my bum dry, thanks to my lovely fellow Top Decker friends who stepped up and offered their arms for the grabbing when required.
That night we bussed it back to Krakow and after changing out of our Michelin man / woman attire, we completed the evening with a lovely dinner at a Jewish restaurant in the Jewish quarter.
Auschwitz & Birkenau (--> Prague)
Thurs, 27th December
Another mini-bus daytrip with the group to visit the Auschwitz & Birkenau concentration camps just outside of Krakow. I can't really say the day was enjoyable, but it was certainly an eye-opening and amazing (in the educational sense) experience to be at a place with so much history.
You get to see and truly appreciate how horrific life would have been there, especially given the sub-zero temperature. It snowed quite heavily during our tour and as expected we all froze, whilst wearing numerous layers of warm clothing. I don't even want to imagine what life would have been like in a pyjama-like uniform and wooden clogs with the living conditions (or lack thereof) that we saw.
Auschwitz was the original administration camp where those that were fit for work were based, with only (!) one gas chamber. It's relatively intact and the bulk of our tour was spent there as the buildings in which people lived are now part of the Auschwitz museum. We passed through them with our brilliant guide learning more about the atrocities, walking past deep, wall-sized glass cabinets filled with human hair, or glasses, clothes, shoes, suitcases... prosthetic limbs. It was unbelievably disturbing and one look at each of them was enough to make me leave the room quite quickly.
In contrast to Auschwitz, where the majority of people lived and worked (until they died of the cold, or poor hygiene), Birkenau was known as the Death Camp, housing the major gas chambers. It was largely destroyed with the Nazi's fleeing attempts to remove all evidence of their atrocities, so the tour here was brief.
Overall, it was definitely a worthwhile excursion and I'm really glad I've seen the camps for myself, but the day was sombre to say the least.
Upon our return that evening, we had a few hours left in Krakow before hopping on our overnight train to Prague.
Thurs, 27th December
Another mini-bus daytrip with the group to visit the Auschwitz & Birkenau concentration camps just outside of Krakow. I can't really say the day was enjoyable, but it was certainly an eye-opening and amazing (in the educational sense) experience to be at a place with so much history.
You get to see and truly appreciate how horrific life would have been there, especially given the sub-zero temperature. It snowed quite heavily during our tour and as expected we all froze, whilst wearing numerous layers of warm clothing. I don't even want to imagine what life would have been like in a pyjama-like uniform and wooden clogs with the living conditions (or lack thereof) that we saw.Auschwitz was the original administration camp where those that were fit for work were based, with only (!) one gas chamber. It's relatively intact and the bulk of our tour was spent there as the buildings in which people lived are now part of the Auschwitz museum. We passed through them with our brilliant guide learning more about the atrocities, walking past deep, wall-sized glass cabinets filled with human hair, or glasses, clothes, shoes, suitcases... prosthetic limbs. It was unbelievably disturbing and one look at each of them was enough to make me leave the room quite quickly.
In contrast to Auschwitz, where the majority of people lived and worked (until they died of the cold, or poor hygiene), Birkenau was known as the Death Camp, housing the major gas chambers. It was largely destroyed with the Nazi's fleeing attempts to remove all evidence of their atrocities, so the tour here was brief.
Overall, it was definitely a worthwhile excursion and I'm really glad I've seen the camps for myself, but the day was sombre to say the least.
Upon our return that evening, we had a few hours left in Krakow before hopping on our overnight train to Prague.
Not quite five star accommodation, I must say - six of us squished into a compartment the size of two toilet cubicles (!), three-tiered bunks on each side with about a metre's space in between. Not the best night's sleep I've ever had, but another experience that's for sure!
Prague
Fri, 28th December
Arrived in Prague in the dark, early hours of the morning and made our way to the hotel for a quick shower and buffet breakfast. An hour later, feeling human again, we set off into town for the start of our walking tour in the balmy 0-ish degree weather.
We began the tour in Wenceslas Square in front of the National Museum, and wandered through gorgeous streets filled with souvenir shops selling Bohemian crystal, amber and garnet jewellery in every possible design, along with Russian dolls and the usual tacky t-shirts, finally reaching the gorgeous old town square. Again - what would normally have been a pretty town square anyway was just gorgeous, with a huge Christmas tree in the centre surrounded by Christmas market stalls selling more touristy gifts, as well as the usual mulled wine and local delicacies.
We wandered on through the Jewish Quarter, towards Charles' Bridge with its amazing views up to Hradcany Castle and its buzz of activity, and up to the castle itself for absolutely stunning views of the city.
They say Prague is the 'city of a hundred spires' and it truly did look that way from high above - oddly enough there were also sections of it that reminded me of Dubrovnik with its red-roof houses as well. It's just gorgeous.
A late lunch naturally consisted of the staple beer, sausages and potatoes (they don't really do greens in Eastern Europe, I found), and from there the rest of the day was ours to wander aimlessly and get lost in the gorgeous city streets, each as pretty as the next. We wandered back up to the castle a few hours later for even more amazing (if that's possible) views of Prague at night, and completed the evening with yet another big fat meal. When in Rome....
Fri, 28th December
Arrived in Prague in the dark, early hours of the morning and made our way to the hotel for a quick shower and buffet breakfast. An hour later, feeling human again, we set off into town for the start of our walking tour in the balmy 0-ish degree weather.
We began the tour in Wenceslas Square in front of the National Museum, and wandered through gorgeous streets filled with souvenir shops selling Bohemian crystal, amber and garnet jewellery in every possible design, along with Russian dolls and the usual tacky t-shirts, finally reaching the gorgeous old town square. Again - what would normally have been a pretty town square anyway was just gorgeous, with a huge Christmas tree in the centre surrounded by Christmas market stalls selling more touristy gifts, as well as the usual mulled wine and local delicacies.
We wandered on through the Jewish Quarter, towards Charles' Bridge with its amazing views up to Hradcany Castle and its buzz of activity, and up to the castle itself for absolutely stunning views of the city.
They say Prague is the 'city of a hundred spires' and it truly did look that way from high above - oddly enough there were also sections of it that reminded me of Dubrovnik with its red-roof houses as well. It's just gorgeous.
A late lunch naturally consisted of the staple beer, sausages and potatoes (they don't really do greens in Eastern Europe, I found), and from there the rest of the day was ours to wander aimlessly and get lost in the gorgeous city streets, each as pretty as the next. We wandered back up to the castle a few hours later for even more amazing (if that's possible) views of Prague at night, and completed the evening with yet another big fat meal. When in Rome....
Cesky Krumlov
Sat, 29th December
Saturday was a free day for the Top Deck gang to wander around and explore Prague on their own, however since a few of us had late flights back to London (or were staying in Prague for NYE) following the tour, we organised a 'tour within a tour', and booked a day trip out to Cesky Krumlov.
Cesky is a little town about two and a half hours out of Prague by bus, and is a UNESCO World Heritage listed site - absolutely gorgeous, right out of a fairy tale. No major sights to see other than the castle, but a really picturesque city (with the added magic of a covering of snow) to appreciate.
After completing our walking tour in less than ten minutes (literally - the old town is tiny!), we sat down for a 3-course lunch we were pleased to learn was included within the tour price. To exemplify the apparent 'no greens' policy of the Czech Republic, we were offered a choice of four side dishes to accompany our mains - (a) mashed potato, (b) fried potato, (c) baked potato, and (d) potato salad. The Death By Potato challenge aside, the
meal was amazing, with the best apple strudel of the trip for dessert. Nothing like a healthy strudel with cream & ice cream to compliment a carb overdose.
Following further wanderings around gorgeous Cesky (we're on a first name basis these days), we bussed it back to Prague to meet up with the rest of our fellow Top Deck buddies for The Final Supper. Yes. More food.
A quarter of a duck with sauerkraut and dumplings (oh, and hot strawberries in ice cream, for dessert) later, I felt truly ill but (disgustingly, looking back) satisfied I had ticked all the mandatories off my 'to-eat list' of Eastern Europe. Success! :)
Sat, 29th December
Saturday was a free day for the Top Deck gang to wander around and explore Prague on their own, however since a few of us had late flights back to London (or were staying in Prague for NYE) following the tour, we organised a 'tour within a tour', and booked a day trip out to Cesky Krumlov.
Cesky is a little town about two and a half hours out of Prague by bus, and is a UNESCO World Heritage listed site - absolutely gorgeous, right out of a fairy tale. No major sights to see other than the castle, but a really picturesque city (with the added magic of a covering of snow) to appreciate.
After completing our walking tour in less than ten minutes (literally - the old town is tiny!), we sat down for a 3-course lunch we were pleased to learn was included within the tour price. To exemplify the apparent 'no greens' policy of the Czech Republic, we were offered a choice of four side dishes to accompany our mains - (a) mashed potato, (b) fried potato, (c) baked potato, and (d) potato salad. The Death By Potato challenge aside, the
meal was amazing, with the best apple strudel of the trip for dessert. Nothing like a healthy strudel with cream & ice cream to compliment a carb overdose.Following further wanderings around gorgeous Cesky (we're on a first name basis these days), we bussed it back to Prague to meet up with the rest of our fellow Top Deck buddies for The Final Supper. Yes. More food.
A quarter of a duck with sauerkraut and dumplings (oh, and hot strawberries in ice cream, for dessert) later, I felt truly ill but (disgustingly, looking back) satisfied I had ticked all the mandatories off my 'to-eat list' of Eastern Europe. Success! :)
Prague --> London
Sun, 30th December
The Top Deck tour officially ended after breakfast, so it was time to say goodbye to our new friends and vow to find each other on facebook (honestly, where would the world be without it??).
My flight wasn't until later that night, so I wandered back into town on my own for a final day of aimless wandering, a bit of shopping and the odd hot chocolate to warm up. I was even inspired to send a postcard back home (my 2nd in 10 months) which says something about my love of Prague. The last postcard I sent was from the first city I visited after leaving home (Seville), when travelling was still a novelty and not yet a fortnightly occurence :)
My evening flight home landed at Gatwick at roughly 11pm, in 6 degree weather. Balmy!! Bring on London, if I can handle the Eastern European cold (with my Urticaria 'condition'), London winter is a piece of cake!
Sun, 30th December
The Top Deck tour officially ended after breakfast, so it was time to say goodbye to our new friends and vow to find each other on facebook (honestly, where would the world be without it??).
My flight wasn't until later that night, so I wandered back into town on my own for a final day of aimless wandering, a bit of shopping and the odd hot chocolate to warm up. I was even inspired to send a postcard back home (my 2nd in 10 months) which says something about my love of Prague. The last postcard I sent was from the first city I visited after leaving home (Seville), when travelling was still a novelty and not yet a fortnightly occurence :)
My evening flight home landed at Gatwick at roughly 11pm, in 6 degree weather. Balmy!! Bring on London, if I can handle the Eastern European cold (with my Urticaria 'condition'), London winter is a piece of cake!
So that was that.
Home again after an amazing, last minute 9-day trip away, having finally ticked the Eastern Europe box that had been on my to-see list for some time. I returned with over 300 photos, a thousand more memories and a few extra kilos... well worth it! :)
Home again after an amazing, last minute 9-day trip away, having finally ticked the Eastern Europe box that had been on my to-see list for some time. I returned with over 300 photos, a thousand more memories and a few extra kilos... well worth it! :)
New Year's Eve was the following day, and after sleeping till 2pm (having arrived home from Gatwick at 1:30am), I geared up for the night ahead. A few of my 
housemates were actually throwing a party at our place, however Pete and I did our own thing and went into town to watch the fireworks.
housemates were actually throwing a party at our place, however Pete and I did our own thing and went into town to watch the fireworks. I'm not planning on spending another NYE in London (too many places to travel, bring on New York next year!) so I wasn't keen to stay at home. 
We had booked tickets to Tattershall's Castle, which is a boat-pub on the Thames, right across from the London Eye. Prime position, at a prime price! But well worth it. We had a few drinks on the top deck, ooooh-ed and ahhhh-ed over the amazing fireworks at midnight, and spent the rest of the night / morning downstairs in the club section of the boat, dancing in the new year! It was brilliant.
We had booked tickets to Tattershall's Castle, which is a boat-pub on the Thames, right across from the London Eye. Prime position, at a prime price! But well worth it. We had a few drinks on the top deck, ooooh-ed and ahhhh-ed over the amazing fireworks at midnight, and spent the rest of the night / morning downstairs in the club section of the boat, dancing in the new year! It was brilliant.
Since then, London life has been the usual - work, work, work, catch up with friends to hear about their Christmas / new year's adventures, party on the weekend, and hit the gym with a vengeance upon the return to work the following week. And repeat.
Fortunately for me, I've had another holiday to look forward to since coming back - Australia!!
I actually leave tonight (!) and arrive on the morning of Saturday, 19th Jan. I've sent out an invite for my farewell drinks (take 2) on facebook so will hopefully see some of you there, if I haven't had a chance to catch you beforehand.
I actually leave tonight (!) and arrive on the morning of Saturday, 19th Jan. I've sent out an invite for my farewell drinks (take 2) on facebook so will hopefully see some of you there, if I haven't had a chance to catch you beforehand.
Anyway - I'll leave it there (finally :)
Hope all's well & see you soon!
Hope all's well & see you soon!
Until next time....
x
