JESSA'S EURO ADVENTURE 2005

Oh what a day!

2005-08-19T21:15:00.000-04:00

Traveling and being sick S-U-C-K-S. I have to say that this was perhaps the WORST day of the trip for Ette. She was still feeling terrible, and the heat wasn't letting up. We had to check out of the hostel at 11am, and then catch a 6 hour train to Granada in the evening. My heart went out to Ette who had to carry her pack through bouts of dizziness, weakness, and extreme heat. What a trooper. We spent the majority of our day laying in the cool marble foyer of Cats Hostel, then we braved the subway to get to the train station. I somehow managed to piece together enough Spanish to purchase 'dos billetos para Granada de hoy'. Where my Spanish was lacking, I improvised and used French. I got my point across. The train was small but they passed out headphones and were showing movies which we thought was pretty cool.

We arrived around 11pm and had to negotiate our way to our hostel which was an adventure.

After I nearly killed Ette because she had to walk with her super heavy pack, we finally found our hostel and that is where the real fun began! Our hostel owner didn't speak a word of English! Oh and did I mention the Corpus Christi festival?

Tales of Toledo

2005-08-19T20:40:00.000-04:00

WHAT a day! It was by far, the hottest day of the vacation.

2005-08-19T20:38:00.000-04:00

Toledo city walls - pretty magnificent eh?

2005-08-19T20:36:00.000-04:00

On the bridge

2005-08-19T20:34:00.000-04:00

At the beginning of our hike ... the goal was to make it to the bridge and watch the sunset

2005-08-19T20:33:00.000-04:00

Me and the Toledo travel crew: Cole, myself, Kate, and Kelly

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tourist views of the city

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The Cathedral in Toledo

The Narrow Streets.

2005-07-20T22:55:00.000-04:00

The streets of Toledo in the midday heat! Can I just tell you how much I felt like I was walking through a history book at this point? It was amazing. The entire city was decked out for the Corpus Christi festival. From every balcony there were tapestries and flowers displayed; the rooftops had linen runners suspended from them to give the streets some shade from the oppressive sunshine; and the smell of frankincense perfumed the air.

I felt as if I had traveled back in time at least 300 years to the height of Spanish world power. I could feel the history and culture of this place in everything from the cobblestone streets to the grand cathedral in the centre of town. I tried to capture all of my feelings and sensory delights in this picture, but it'll never do the town justice. This is somewhere that you need to see and experience to know what I am talking about.

Daytrip to Toledo Spain

2005-07-20T22:52:00.000-04:00

Princess Buttercup overlooking the newer part of Toledo. This was taken while she was chillin out on the old city walls. To give you an idea of what the day felt like, it was about 95 degrees and the sun was beating down relentlessly and there was NO shade to be found. We knew we were in for a hot day! Did I mention that Toldeo is on top of a big hill and the entire old city is a series of winding alleys that go up and downhill? I still loved it!

Toldeo is located about 45 minutes outside of Madrid and is known for its Gothic cathedral and for being one of the stops on Don Quxiote's travels through La Mancha. The entire old city has been preserved in its natural state, and is breath-takingly beautiful in the simple ornateness of its buildings and alleys.

End of the evening

2005-07-10T14:48:00.000-04:00

Woo woo. At this point, we had moved onto the second bar and we having lots of fun. We saw some Canadians who were staying in our hostel (who we later saw in Lagos Portugal), but were mostly having fun with our group of new travel buddies. Shortly after this I went back to the hostel and unintentionally got lost in the streets with Kate.

Don't trust these boys!

2005-07-10T14:46:00.000-04:00

Cole, Clay, and Jeret = TROUBLE.
lol, only joking. Well sorta...
All three were hilarious and great to chat with.
Notice how Jeret's hair is in a faux-hawk style? He was rockin' the Euro style with a little help from his friends.

Yummy?!?

2005-07-10T14:45:00.000-04:00

What happens when you get me drinking vodka and red bull?
THIS. This pic is all my fault. I apologize to all parties offended by this shot.
I was the one who dared Jeret to lick Ette's face.
I respect a man who doesn't go back on a dare, and he was so kind to repeat when my camera didn't snap this photo the first time around.
Can Ette's mouth get any bigger? Love it.

Crest Kids

2005-07-10T14:44:00.000-04:00

Blake, me, and Jeret.
My friends have dubbed this photo the Crest Kids photo because the 3 of us all have megawatt perfect smiles! I adore this pic cause it was lots of fun to take. What gal doesn't enjoy being sandwiched between 2 guys? tee hee hee.

Are we all wearing blue?

2005-07-10T14:43:00.000-04:00

Ette, Kate, and I.
Have I mentioned just how much fun we were having?? The best night on my entire vacation!!
What's funny about this pic is that it looks like the 3 of us are all in but shirts ... I am not. My beater just blends into my tanned chest! HAHAHAHA

Travel Buddies

2005-07-10T14:42:00.000-04:00

Jeret, Blake, me, Ette, and Clay
I had so much fun with these guys, and I'm so happy that they were part of my Euro adventures.
Clay mentioned how he's glad only half of his face is in this pic ... he has political aspirations!

Smiles I

2005-07-10T14:41:00.001-04:00

Ette, Jeret and I
Don't you just want to give the 3 of us a great big group hug? Lol. That's sorta how I felt about the entire night! I am using my patented 'hold the camera in my hand to take a pic of myself and my friends' technique. Shortly after this pic was taken I think that Ette and I began to bust a move on the dancefloor.

Smiles II

2005-07-10T14:41:00.000-04:00

Blake, me, and Ette
I'm not quite sure when this pic was taken, but I'm guessing that it was sometime between bustin' a move on the dance floor and leaving for the 2nd bar ... Later on Blake showed off his hip hop moves when the pub we were at played an old skool song, although I have no idea what it was ... it was one of the only hip hop songs we heard on the entire trip. The Euros adore their techno.

Unexpected Fun = Most memorable night

2005-07-10T14:40:00.001-04:00

Ette and I at the Irish Pub.
We're tanned and glam despite not having the time to put our makeup on, OR do our hair. For those of you who know us, this is quite a rare occasion. At home, I would NEVER go to a bar without being done up ... but sometimes that just doesn't matter. This was one of those nights.
And yes, we're wearing wife beaters to a bar ... tee hee hee. I am bowing my head in shame as I type!
The drink in our hands is the infamous red bull and vodka. Yumma!

She's like my sister

2005-07-10T14:40:00.000-04:00

Ette and I.
This isn't the BEST pic that I have of the 2 of us, but I love it nevertheless because it captures the moment, and energy of the night perfectly. Our happiness and excitement shine through, and every time I see this pic it makes me smile!

2005-07-10T14:38:00.000-04:00

The Plaza Mayor.

2005-07-10T14:37:00.000-04:00

Ette and I enjoying the sunshine!

2005-07-10T14:35:00.000-04:00

The statue of Neptune outside of the Starbucks we had coffee at. Lovely view ... just down the road was the Prado.

2005-07-10T14:34:00.000-04:00

Outside of the Museo de Arte Renia Sophia

The party continues in Madrid.

2005-07-10T14:05:00.000-04:00

- Who knows what time we got to sleep at last night ... BUT we had to be up and out of our room by 10am. We barely made it as we were dragging our arses because we were exhausted from close to a week of hardly any sleep. Was I about to complain? Heck no.

- We got the keys for our new room and went back upstairs. When we walked in, I just about burst out laughing. We were in a 14 bed room, and the first person that I saw was Jeret, one of the Americans we met the night before. What a concidence eh? We got our bunks, and Blake was passed out next to mine. I got the scoop from Jeret about what happened to them after we left - a whole bunch of drama it turns out ... SUPER funny. However that's their story to tell and not mine. You'll just have to find out from them I guess. One hint, it involved ringing dorbells, sleeping in public parks, running from the police, and a homeless shelter! tee hee hee. Blake gave me a high-5 when he finally woke up. He had a thing for High-5's

- The boys had already made plans for the day, so Mariette and I went out on our own. We walked to the Museo de Arte Renia Sofia. It had a great collection of modern art that I was impressed with. The centerpiece of the museum is Picasso's last piece La Guerra. It was magnificant.

- Next was the Prado that is a collection of Renaissance art, with a heavy empahsis on Goya. Such a beutiful start to the day. We walked through a part and bought some postcards, then had coffee and juice at Starbucks ... so relaxing!

- Went to the Plaza Mayor. It was HUGE and very laid back with lots of brick work and cute balconies. We could have sat at a terrazza and had a few drinks but we decided to explore the winding streets around Puerta del Sol instead.

- We were tired and not in the mood for more sights so we went back to H&M and spent ANOTHER 2 hours shopping and looking around, and enjoying the air conditioning! Sigh, it was wonderful.

- Returned to the hostel, had the most amazing shower that took off all the grime of Madrid, chatted with Jeret and Blake and made plans to go out again at night, and went out for tapas.

- Dinner was interesting. We went out for tapas. We were famished because I don't think that we had eaten anything all day long because we were too hot and therefore not hungry. Tapas just means deep fried. I am convinced. I ordered calamari which was huge and delish, gazpacho (garlic, olive oil, and tomato puree soup served cold) which I didn't really care for, beer, and patas fritas with this spicy tomato sauce on it. I was SO stuffed and didn't eat half of my choices. Ette got toast with mushrooms, this odd mixture of friend potatoes, cheese, ham, and eggs (basically breakfast) and something else that was also deep fried, greasy, and gross. We left dinner feeling full and disgusted with the amount of grease we had consumed.

- Back at the hostel I realized just how exhausted I was. HOWEVER that never stops me from having fun. Mariette was also wiped out, but I convinced her to start drinking. And drink we did. She got some $1 wine from Cole, another American who had moved into our room from the night before. Another concidence. He was also very nice. Somehow, we assembled a group of about 15 people to go out with us. Not really sure how that happened, because I spent the night just chatting to everyone.

- The first place we went to was an Irish pub. Gotta love the Irish. I love the way the Spanish pour drinks. I ordered a vodka and red bull. They took a tall glass and filled it up about 80% then put a splash of red bull on it, and handed me the drink and the can of Red Bull. Hello I was drunk! lol. The entire night was a BLAST. We had so much fun and chatted with everyone and laughed our arses off. I dared Jeret to lick Mariette's face, gave out Euro kisses, danced, laughed, and just loved my life! It was the best night we had on our entire vacation!! Seriously.

- We moved to the next bar, I have no idea where it was, or how we got there. All I know is that by this time I wasn't seeing clearly and the bartender gave me his number. I wasn't interested. Next thing I know, I was being told that I give great hugs ... so nice to be told such a thing. lol. Then Mariette told me that she was leaving. I said my goodbyes, and Kate came with me to walk back to the hostel. I have no idea why we left cause when I got outside Mariette wasn't out there. I should have gone back into the bar and waited to go back with people who knew their way ... but I didn't. Instead Kate and I wandered around the streets and finally found our way back. This was at about 5am.

- I got back to my room and collapsed in bed, passed out is more like it, from sheer exhaustion. Mariette was already in bed but I woke her up. Just as I was falling asleep Jeret and Blake came in and starting making all of this noise and packing their backpacks and turning the lights on and off. I was SO tired, I couldn't move anything but my head. When I looked over at Blake he looked like he was swimming in his bed. I heard him say something about his hat and his sandal and not being able to find them, then Jeret told him to leave cause they were going to miss their train. The boys left.

- Then I went to sleep.

2005-07-10T14:03:00.000-04:00

The Gran Via as seen from our double decker. Shortly after this pic was taken we began our shopping spree at H&M!!

2005-07-10T14:02:00.000-04:00

A view of the Palacio from the Jardines de Sabatini

2005-07-10T14:01:00.000-04:00

The Palacio Real

2005-07-10T14:00:00.000-04:00

Princess Buttercup and Princess Petunia enjoying the water fountains outside of the Palacio Real.

2005-07-10T13:58:00.000-04:00

El Corte Ingles is the main department store in Spain. Right now they have Gisele doing all of their ads ... she was everywhere - in the metro, on buses, and on the side of all of their stores. She became an unofficial mascot for the trip.

2005-07-10T13:56:00.000-04:00

Madrid buildings are all grand, all interesting, and all splendidly decorated with statues and iron work. Check out how blue the sky is!

Viva Madrid!

2005-07-10T13:05:00.000-04:00

- Arrived at Charmartin train station and took the metro to our hostel.

- Checked into Cats Hostel. LOVE it. It has this wicked Moroccan vibe - complete with a tiled lounge that has a fountain in the middle of it. There is also a bar, our room overlooks the street and has has a balcony, (although we cannot go out on it) and about 400 beds for fellow travellers. We're in a 6 bed room, but haven't met anyone in it yet.

- We went down for breakfast and had a rather unfortunate event. Mariette had her Nikon and some Euros stolen right out of her purse. We were very disturbed, and another girl had the same thing happen to her. When we approached the front desk about it, they said that they couldn't do anything about it ... I mean, we'd been warned about how many pickpockets there were in Madrid, but we didn't think that it'd happen in our hostel.

- Mariette was unwilling to let the events that occured over breakfast deter her from discovering Madrid. We hopped onto the metro and got off at Puerta del Sol. It's the geographical centre of Spain and has 8 roads that converge on the square. Very busy, hectic, and cool.

- We hopped on the Madrid Vision bus tour and it took us everywhere that we needed to go! It was the exact same concept as Barca, and made sightseeing a snap. On the bus, we saw: Palacio Real, Plaza de Espana, Gran Via, Museo Reina Sofia, Jardin Botanico, Museo del Prado, Plaza Colon, Puerta del Sol, Plaza de Opera , Parque del Retiro, ABC Serrano, El Corte Ingles, Puerta de Alcala, Altocha, Rastro, Plaza Mayor, and the Real Madrid stadium (but no David Beckham).

- After seeing everything (but going into nothing) we went to the Police Station at Puerta del Sol and made a police report for Mariette's stolen property. It's quite the experience trying to communicate to an officer in a language that you don't entirely understand or know how to speak. We managed to do it however.

- We decided that we needed to get some nourishment. Therfore went to this baquette shop with the coolest mini baquettes for lunch. SO YUMMY. In Spain, most sandwiches comes with some sort of ham and cheese combo. I am so over ham. I stuck to the cheese, jams, expresso, and pastries. GOD I LOVE BAKERY FOOD!!

- Hopped on the bus and went back to the Palacio Real and walked around the grounds and over to the Jardines de Sabatini where we sat and enjoyed our surroundings. The entire grounds of the palace were complete with manicured shrubs, water fountains, lots of flowers, and shaded benches. It was so peaceful and lovely compared to the hectic nature of the rest of Madrid.

- Caved and got some yumma gelato. OMG, so great! I dislike ice cream but adore gelato, it's so much lighter and the flavours are much more creative. I opted for raspberry sorbetto and it quenched the heat of the day. I swear, it's nearly 100 degrees!! We aren't prepared for this type of weather and need some more clothes. H&M anyone?

- Ok, so Ette and I made an executive decision when we spied an H&M on the Gran Via (think Times Square) and hopped off the bus. I am nearly embarassed to say this but not entirely ... we spent close to 2 hours going through the racks and getting lots and lots of stylish and fun clothes. Have I mentioned that H&M is super cheap and super stylin?? LOVE IT.

- By the time we got back to the hostel it was close to 8pm and we hadn't eaten since about noon. We were famished and went out for dinner with one of our hostel roomates.

- When we got back to Cats we had to make an important decision ... were we going to Morocco? We really liked the hostel but were only supposed to be staying for 1 night then going on to Morocco. However with the events of the morning, and after talking to fellow travelers about their experiences in Morocco, we began to reconsider our travel plans. After some debate, we decided to stay in Madrid and forego Morocco. We went downstairs to book 2 more nights, but were told that we'd have to change rooms. We didn't care, we wanted to stay at Cats and party it up.

- While debating in the bar, we met a really nice guy, Jeff from Vancouver. We were having fun with him until the bar closed. I'm really not sure what time this was because I never wear a watch, but I think that it was around 2am, maybe? Anyway, I wasn't ready to go to sleep and we weren't allowed to stay in the common area of the hostel. There were 3 guys just sitting on the stairwell drinking beer from the vending machine and I thought they didn't look ready to sleep either. The more the merrier is my mantra. I walked up to them, and asked if they might want to come out with us for drinks. The answer was yes, even though we had no idea where to go.

- They guys: Jeret, Blake, and Clay turned out to be Americans who had just gotten there that day. They wanted to go to a local dive bar, we thought that might be fun, and we went to this place up the road. Literally 1 block up.

- When we got to the bar it was SO sketchy. Seriously, there were people smoking and selling hash in the back room. We stuck to the front. Mariette, Jeff and I sat down and drank and chatted. Blake came over and we had an amusing convo that made me laugh a lot. He filled us in on how there are many Americans who put Canadian flag patches on their packs so that people would treat them better. How lame is that eh? It just proves my point that deep inside, all Americans want to be Canadians, lol. We weren't even travelling with flags on our packs. Miss social butterfly (me) then went up and over to the bar to chat with Jeret and Clay and they were also really nice and easy to talk to.

-We decided to leave because the place was getting sketchier. We left our new American friends behind because they were taking forever to get out of the bar. Back at the hostel, we sat outside and chatted some more, but were asked to move because the other hostellers were being too loud. Since it was about 4am, we took this as our cue and decided to call it a night.

- Went to bed! Sigh, at last...

2005-07-03T23:16:00.000-04:00

Ah the sleeper train. If you're never taken one, its an experience that you should go through at least once. 6 feet long and 3 feet wide is all the space you get for yourself and your pack. I used my pack as a body pillow. And yes, I really was that colour - a bit too much sun from my loooong days in Barca! The ride was bumpy, the train was loud, and the woman above me had smelly feet! Ewww.

2005-07-03T23:10:00.000-04:00

The narrow and winding roads of the Barri Gotic.

2005-07-03T23:05:00.000-04:00

Port Olimpic. The sun, sand, and beach volleyball centre of Barca.

2005-07-03T22:57:00.000-04:00

Port Vell. Sailboat HEAVEN. For those of you not in the know, both mine and Mariette's dads are obsessed with sailing. I think that its begun to rub off on us too ... sailing on the blue waters of the Mediterrainian ... THAT would have been awesome

2005-07-03T22:53:00.000-04:00

The Olympic torch. In the 1992 Olympics it was lit when an archer shot a flaming arrow towards the top needle. In rehersals during the day the archer kept missing his mark, but made the shot when it mattered.

2005-07-03T22:51:00.000-04:00

The MNAC. Breath-taking isn't it? Could you imagine living here?? Now it's an art museum, but it used to be a royal residence.

2005-07-03T22:49:00.000-04:00

The Placa d'Espanya as seen from the steps of the MNAC. Lovely breeze and beautiful sunshine made this the perfect day!

2005-07-03T22:48:00.000-04:00

More of La Pederra, there is a hollow courtyard in the middle of the building so that every apartment gets sunlight.

2005-07-03T22:46:00.000-04:00

A rooftop chimney on La Pederra. They are supposed to look like soliders on the lookout! I adore the mosaic, and yes the sky was literally that brilliant and blue!

2005-07-03T22:39:00.000-04:00

The magnificant Sagrada Familia which is still under construction. As we were there my perfect shot was interrupted by a busload of Japanese tourists ...

Barca Day 2

2005-07-03T22:22:00.000-04:00

This is where I stopped writing in my travel journal and just made point form notes of the notable things we did, people we met, and places we saw. I figured that I'd had enough of being a literary genius and just needed to have fun! lol. I can fill in the gaps and add details, so no worries there.

HOWEVER I plan on staying true to form and will transcribe exactly what's in my journal, which isn't a hell of a lot. Oh well ... the pictures speak a thousand words. By now you've prob seen them. I'm going to post my favourites.

So back to the story ....

Day 2

- began at Placa de Caulunya where we went to the Corte Ingles for food

- got ourselves baquettes, nuts, water, Red Bull, and fruit

- Hopped onto the Bus Turistic and went to La Sagrada Familia. OMG. Breathtaking, amazing, so detailed, INSANE. Sensory overload.

- Walked to La Pederra and went straight to the roof. LOVE LOVE LOVE Gaudi. I bow down to his design genius. The man is a great, and pictures do not do his works of art justice.

- Hopped back on the bus and went to the Placa D'Espanya and walked up ALL the stairs to the MNAC. WHAT A VIEW. From this vantage point I can picture history occurring before my eyes. How many times have tanks rolled through the Placa? How many people have protested? How many lives have the decisions made in this area affected?? Gorgeous photo op!

- The Olympic park and torch were on the other side of the hill, but for some reason we had a little difficulty finding the entrance. No worries, we did. I just sat there on the steps of the Olympic stadium thinking to myself how I remember watching the 1992 opening ceremonies and seeing that torch get lit. Surreal.

- Back on the bus to the Port Vell. Walked the entire distance from the Colom Monument to the Port Olimpic. It felt like forever and we were starving at this point. HOWEVER the beach was beautiful and so were the hotties playing volleyball. We ate dinner at the beach and got back onto the bus.

- Walked around the Barri Gotic. Very impressed with the old architecture.

- Headed back to hostel, got the most hated backpacks, and got back onto the Metro to the estaction de sants. Bought a ticket on an overnight train to Madrid and waited around.

- Got onto the train and into our bunks without incident. I cannot wait to see what Madrid has in store for us....

2005-07-03T22:12:00.000-04:00

The new haircut ... modeled in part after what I saw on the streets of Barca. I couldn't commit to a full shorty long however - I just don't think that it'd work at my office.

2005-07-02T15:21:00.000-04:00

Ashley the firemen. All of his mates made fun of him cause he waxes his chest and they all had full on Robbie Williams hairy chests. We didn't mind.

2005-07-02T15:19:00.000-04:00

Ette and I out and about in the Placa Reial

I wanna speak to the Canadians!!

2005-07-02T14:18:00.000-04:00

When you're traveling where you're from becomes your name. People tend to remember your country/location easier than your name for whatever reason, and its true. Mariette and I were collectively referred to as "The Canadians" for most of our trip, which we thought was sorta cute. We would have preferred "The Canadian Hotties" but you really cannot be too picky eh?

Anyway, after the siesta and refreshing shower - we were ready to go out and take the town by storm. However, one small drawback to our plan, it was raining.

Undeterred we headed to the Placa Reial and had dinner at Les Quince Nits. It was a lovely and cheap restaurant. I think that it was a mix of tapas and dinners ... we opted to try a Spanish specialty - Paella. Paella is a rice dish that made with a mix of veggies and meat. We decided to try it out and be adventurous. To quell our hunger (we hadn't eaten since the infamous sangria on Las Ramblas) we ordered a litre of wine and damn was it delish! Anyway, dinner arrived and Ette and I just sorta stared at the plate infront of us. It was an interesting assortment of mystery meat on a bone, shrimp (complete with their eyes and tentacles), tentacles, mini sausages, and mussels. The rice was really delish and so was most of the meat, although I have to be honest; it was really unappetizing to look at. I think that Ette was really freaked out by the seafood and she stuck to the rice and mini ribs. Lol, thankfully there was the wine!

After the meal we went back to Las Ramblas to have a look about. We were harassed the entire way by men trying to sell us cans of beer. To be honest, I really didn't feel safe as they were getting up in our faces and being really aggressive. SO we cut into a gelato shop, had some ice cream, and walked back to the more mellow Placa Reial. There we stumbled upon an outdoor cafe and sat down right next to a big table of about 12 guys. Yes, it was on purpose. The whole point of traveling is to meet new people and they looked like fun. PLUS girls can be total bitches when in groups because there is this unwritten competition between them, so Ette and I decided to chat with the guys. They were hilarious! It turns out they were a bachelor party from Derby UK (yup, I made a stop there to see my family) and they were out for fun. The most entertaining was Ashley who was a firemen. Coincidentally they were staying in our hostel on the same floor as us! We had been warned by our hostelmates that these guys were loud and boisterous and really annoying so to stay away from them. We thought that they were hilarious!

We got kicked out of our first bar for being too loud, so we went to a nearby Pub the Temple Bar which we didn't know at the time, but its a replica of the Dublin pub (we later went to the real deal in Dublin). There we drank more and joked around. Then we got a creepy vibe from the guys and so we decided to split. Back safe in our hostel we drifted off to sleep.

Around 4am we were awoken by a loud bang on our door. One of the guys in our room got up and was like "what the fuck do you want?". It was Ashley at the door, and shouting at the top of his lungs he told the guy that he "Wanted to speak to the Canadians!" The guy told him to fuck off and get to bed. Mariette and I layed quietly in our bunks not saying a word. There came another loud bang at 5:30am, this time Ashley had brought some of his buddies along and they wouldn't quit until someone went to the door. He said "I know they're in there, I want to speak to the Canadians!! Let me in to see them" The guy said, "Well then what are their names?" And Ashley said "Maryanne and Jessica" At this point Ette and I were dying in our beds, almost ready to start laughing. Anyway, a girl got up and said "Fuck off wankers. You were trying to get with the Danish the other night, and the Yanks the night before that, now you want the Canadians but NONE OF THEM WANT YOU" Then she slammed the door in his face. Immediately I knew that I had to say something, so I made up this story about how we were in a pub and they came up and were harassing us, so then we had to leave. Luckily everyone bought the story! Phew.

Omg, too funny. The way the night ended just made me giggle myself to sleep.

2005-07-02T14:11:00.000-04:00

Princess Buttercup and Princess Petunia on the Bus Turistic

2005-07-02T14:08:00.000-04:00

Ette and I on the bus Turistic in Barca!

Make Poverty History

2005-07-02T12:18:00.000-04:00

If you've been living with your head in the sand, then perhaps you haven't heard about the Live 8 Concert. It's going on in 8 venues around the world today in an attempt to bring the world's attention to the issues surrounding poverty alleviation in the world's poorest nations. While a concert in itself cannot alleviate poverty, it IS bringing the issue to the forefront of the global media. SO if you haven't already done so, PLEASE add your name to the list of people who have had enough with bureaucracy and want to Make Poverty History NOW.

If you're interested in the concert, you can get a live webcast from AOL here.
If you want to know more about the issues, and you should, read about them here.

If you have any questions about the issues, ask me. This is what I studied. AND if you want to know where this campaign originated, take the time to read Jeffrey Sach's book, The End of Poverty. It's an excellent read that I highly reccomend to anyone interested.

Jess

BARCA in a haze

2005-06-18T15:50:00.000-04:00

After dutifully beginning to drink our drinks, Mariette and I realized that we may have gotten ourselves in over our heads. It was only 12pm ... and while the people watching was fun, I think that we were having more fun drinking our sangria and commenting on that! LOL.

1pm and I am drunk. WHAT a way to begin our first day of sightseeing ... oh well! Ette and I decided to get a move on and start walking up Las Ramblas and took in the chaos. There were street performers and buskers. There were lots of people my age about and they were SUCH eurotrash! I felt that I had gone to heaven! You know how much I adore the rocking euro styles! So anyway the guys were wearing the faux-hawk mullets and pumas. The chicas were in pumas, shorty-longs and lots of fluorescent. I was SO amused because everyone was just so stylish and bright!

We ended up at the Placa de Catalunya and took in a typical Barca Sunday afternoon. There was a tin drum band, people everywhere, street performers, fountains, and lots and lots of sunshine ... this is what I recall anyway. Ette and I hopped on the Bus Turistic which is a bus that takes you to all of the major tourist sights around the city and you can hop on and hop off. The plan was to see everything by bus then spend day 2 going back to all of the sights that we really enjoyed on day 1.

We began in the L'Eixample district. The entire area is full of buildings built in the Modernism style that is rampant across all of Barca. The streets in this district are home to wealthy residents, designer boutiques, corporate buildings, and lots of restaurants. The area was first developed in C19 by Ildefons Cerdia. His intent was to build a utopian-esque development were people from all social lasses could live side by side.

The first building we stopped at was the Fundacio Antoni Tapies. He's Cayalunya's best known artist (a cross between surrealism and magicism). The outside of the building is decorated with the "Cloud with Chair" wire sculpture. It's so cool because the entire outside of the building is covered in mosaic tile work and looks like fish scales because the colours change depending on how the sun hits the building.

Next, we walked down the street to La Pederra. I think that this might have been my favourite building in Barca. The outside is white concrete shaped like waves. Each window has its own unique wrought-iron balcony. The center of the apartment building is hollow, and the roof has the infamous chimney's made of stone, marble, and glass. The building was designed and built by Antoni Gaudi and is spectacular and beautiful.

We got back on the Bus Turistic and continued our tour of Barca ON THE BUS. The sun was shining and it was super hot, so we figured that we would just see everything on day one, then go back on Day 2 and visit the places that we really liked and wanted to go into. The bus was awesome because it was an open top double decker and took us everywhere. So we got the see everything, save our energy for the night, and work on our tans. Really, is there a better way to see the city??

With that said, we were able to see the following on our first day: Placa d'Espanya, Poble Espanyol, Musau Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC), Anella Olimpica, Monument de Colom, Port Vell, Port Olimpic, Parc de la Ciutadella, Placa de Palau, Barri Gotic, Sagrada Familia, Park Guell, Palau Reial, and Futbol Club Barcelona. That's just the main sights!

Phew!! After all of this, we returned to our lovely hostel for a much needed siesta before going out to dinner.

2005-06-17T20:14:00.000-04:00

Mariette, me, and our 1.5 L steins of Sangria. Ole! Sloppy drunk at noon is truly the way to be in Barca - the locals wouldn't have it any other way.

2005-06-17T20:13:00.000-04:00

Placa Reial in full swing Sunday am

2005-06-17T20:11:00.000-04:00

On the street outside of the Sun and Moon Hostel

Barca Sunday am.

2005-06-17T19:53:00.000-04:00

After living like princesses for 1 night, Mariette and I woke up to reality ... vacation had begun and we had to somehow get our arses to a hostel - any hostel asap. We randomly chose the Sun and Moon Hostel which is just off Las Ramblas near the Placa Reial. NOW for those of you who are hardcore partiers - take a lesson from us and stay at Kabul. It's insane. We should have been there but you learn from experience right?

Anyway, after navigating our way through the easily laid out subway system we got off at the LIECU stop and emerged onto Las Ramblas - the main pedi thoroughfare in Barca. Sunday morning people watchers were out in full force, and I got my first taste of needing to use my Spanish skills when asking how to find our street. Very easy - 2 blocks up on the left. Got to the hostel but weren't allowed to check in until 2pm so we dropped out packs in the luggage room and set out for our first day of adventure and excitement in Barcelona!

Since I am a master with a map (HAHA - that my friends is a total joke as I somehow manage to ALWAYS take off in the wrong direction no matter how hard I try) we decided to leave it behind and just sorta find our way around. Directly infront of the door of our hostel was a little alley and we walked down it not knowing what to expect .... WELL let me tell you we were delighted to stumble upon the Placa Reial. It's a big square lined with palm trees, outdoor cafes, and Spanish style architecture. LOVED IT!

What I didn't love was the fact that the moment I emerged into this wonderful little square I was shit on by a bird! SERIOUSLY. What's up with that eh? I guess its good luck - but I wasn't really thrilled. Luckily my emergency pack had travel wipes in it so clean-up was a snap. Shit free, we wandered through the Sunday morning flea market and back onto Las Ramblas.

The main purpose of Las Ramblas is to people watch. So we figured that there was no better way to do it than at a sidewalk cafe. We chose a pita shop and decided to split a schwarma plate. In true Spanish tradition, we thought a sangria would be the best way to quench our thirst. When the waiter asked if we wanted a small or a large we opted for the large.

5 minutes later we learnt that large in Spanish = 1.5 litres! I am serious. 2 girls on empty stomachs splitting a pita, each with her own 1.5L beer stein full of sangria is an adventure waiting to happen. Oh, did I mention that it was only 11am? Yea....

COMMENTS WELCOME!

2005-06-17T19:38:00.000-04:00

Hi!

So I just wanted you to know that I set the comments section to public which means that anyone can post a comment without having to sign in.

I was hoping that all of my travel buddies could leave a little note with their thoughts and memories on the things that we did.

Comments from Friends living vicariously through my adventures, and people who have visited the same places are also always welcome!

Thanks!

Jessa the Eurotrashed Princessa

2005-06-15T18:35:00.000-04:00

1/3 of the view from our picture window (that went from the ceiling to the floor and was the entire width of the room)

Are all pilots drunks?

2005-06-15T18:11:00.000-04:00

May 21 2005; 3pm; Stansted Airport

Cost of Stansted Express: GBP 15 return
Weight of my pack: 14.5 kilos
Ette's Pack weight: 9.5 kilos
Bought a pair of jeans from Monsoon and prompty threw out the shitty jeans that kept falling off my ass - which started out as really cute when at home and freshly washed! {eye for an eye}
Tempted by Starbucks but decided that I would wait for the real thing in Spain

6:05 pm; Somewhere over France
At the moment I am on the flight from hell to Reus Spain. We're flying Ryan Air and I think that our pilot may have been drinking before takeoff. He thinks that we're speeding and making sharp turns for fun! Everytime he goes to change direction there's so chick up near the front that screams. Sigh - get me outta here! They're offering liquor in a bag - buy one get one free. The concept is like a one time use shot of alcohol in a clear plastic container that looks like a wet-nap packet. I think that I might need a shot to calm my nerves!

2:05am; Sants Hotel Barcelona
We're finally in Barcelona! After the plane landed we were happy and a bit surprised to find out that there was a direct bus to Barcelona. FYI Reus is 1.5 hours outside of Barcelona and in the RyanAir info there was no indication that there would be ANY connection to Barcelona waiting for us. We took it and arrived at the main train station. By this time it was nearly 12am and we were a bit leery of just wondering around in the dark having NO clue where we were going. We decided to splurge and get a room at this posh business hotel. Our room is beautiful and we have the most amazing view of Barcelona! We're living big pimpin' style for one night and go back to dirty backpackers in the morning. We made good use of our time by working out a trip plan and list of everything that we want to see in Beautiful Barca. I cannot wait for tomorrow - we're going to have the BEST time here ...

2005-06-15T18:10:00.000-04:00

Arrival in Barcelona after the WORST flight I have ever been on.

I HATE BAGGAGE

2005-06-15T10:48:00.000-04:00

May 20th 2005.
I am here and safe in Mariette's flat. Upon arrival at Heathrow at 6am this morning, it has taken me 4.5 hours to get to where I currently am at the University of Essex in Colchester UK. Hrmph. This is a country that doesn't believe in lifts. I had to drag my sorry luggage up and down countless flights of stairs while hungover. I am SO not impressed at this point. I think that I'm on the verge of a crash ... hopefully I will drift away into the happy abyss of sleepy time ASAP and awake renewed and refreshed and ready to take on Europe. I somehow doubt that.

Let me just outline how I got here ... FIRST I had to go through customs and the biatch there was almost NOT going to let me into the country because I didn't have Mariette's address. I had to break out the whole I work for the Government of Canada line blah blah blah ... and then give out Ette's digits to convince her that I wasn't up to anything sinister. WHATEVER. She was just pissed off cause she had a bad haircut and bad breath - SO not my fault! Ok, so from the airport I jumped onto the Heathrow Express which took me into the heart of London at Paddington Station. From there I had to get onto the tube (Circle line) to Liverpool St. Station where I had to transfer onto a light rail train to Colchester. Once in Colchester I had to get onto the bus and travel to the University Keys. The bus driver thought he was a bloody sports car driver and took each turn with absolute peril. Upon arrival at the University I had to make my way to the accommodations office. Once there I needed to produce photo id - my passport. I absolutely freaked out cause I thought that I had lost my passport until I realized that it was in the money belt that was attached to my leg. NOT my finest moment. One last exercise in torture - I had to walk up 2 flights of stairs with my f-ing suitcase to get to Ette's flat. They seriously don't believe in lifts here! Now I am safe inside her room and ready to sleep.... super excited to see Mariette though.

1pm ... much refreshed after the nap!
Ette is back from her exam and its been lovely seeing her! It feels like we haven't been apart for more than a day and I have been caught up on everything that's new and ab-fab with her! We're about to go up to the campus to meet her law school friends and I am SO nervous about meeting them ... I hope they like me.

12am ... what a day!
Sigh, I feel like I have been going and going for years without a pause for rest. Ette and I walked up to school (a 20 minute trek over this bridge thing and nature area that I found a bit odd) and I met all of the people in her program. They were all heaps of fun. I especially had fun with Intense Chris from Detroit. He is a close talker and really adamant with his opinions. I called him a cracker and he couldn't stop laughing ... it was only cause he was going on and on about hip hop and its importance to Dee-troit's image. He grew up in the white 'burbs and like me rocks out to Jay-Z and NAS. Total cracker. I also ADORE Ette's friend Claire. She is SO sweet and has nicknamed Ette Petal. Really cute. After the law school party we walked to Tesco's to get dinner. I met her roomie Abby. INTERESTING PERSON. She told me that my accent makes her ears bleed. I am not joking. I think that is possibly the most ignorant and rude thing anyone has ever said to me after knowing me for only 20 minutes ... but who's counting right? After dinner I helped Ette pack for our vacation that officially begins tomorrow. Once bags were packed we went BACK to the Uni for a pint, then BACK to Tesco's to pick up some last minute stuff for our travels ... I cannot wait to drift off into sleep tonight, it's going to be wonderful.

The Flight Over - Such Promise!

2005-06-15T08:34:00.000-04:00

4:30pm May 19th 2005
I'm sitting in Detroit airport and waiting for my plane to depart. I'm actually going to Europe! I seriously cannot believe it ... I've been waiting for this moment for the past 7 years and now its finally here ... and it just seems surreal.

In my fluster I have begun the trip by doing something rather silly - I checked my baggage without any id on it whatsoever! No luggage tags, no coloured ribbons ... NOTHING. I have no idea what was going through my head - I just hope I can find my suitcase when I get to Heathrow - if the suitcase even makes it to Heathrow.

Anyway, I'm super excited to be going to Europe, and now that I'm sitting here in the terminal it finally feels like its for real. I'm going to Europa! How wicked awesome is that eh? Heck ya! This happiness is seriously overwhelming and I don't think that my head is on straight....

8:30pm somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean ...
I just had dinner and it was soooo yummy. Not like the standard airline crap that they try to serve you. British Airways rocks for 2 reasons: First, free liquor. Second individual screens so you can watch whatever you feel like on their 12 channels of inflight entertainment! Yea so I think that right now I am trashed ... they were giving out free mini bottles of wine and I think that I've drank 4 of them ... the white wine is great! What a way to begin my Euro adventure eh? Oh, and they also gave out Cadbury chocolate for dessert - SO British. I am SO happy right now, and absolutely cannot fathom the fact that in the next 4 hours I'm going to be on European soil. That's just INSANE. I doubt if I'll be sleeping much - but that's just cause I've been drinking. There isn't anyone to talk to - just a school group from Windsor but they're too young for me - still in high school which means the boys aren't legal. I'm not into that shit. Younger guys are great fun - but you have to draw the line somewhere and my line is 22. LOL. OK, so I am going to try to upgrade to business class on the way home. IT'S AWESOME! They have these little individual seats that fully recline into beds, and little privacy screens, and free copies of the Economist, and their drinks are served in glasses NOT plastic cups. Seriously big pimpin' style - I didn't get a glance at first class but I'm sure its even better! Ok, mini confession to make - I took a bunch of straws from McDonald's in the airport. It's cause I don't want to ruin my wonderfully white teeth with all of the coffee and red wine I anticipate on drinking... that is just crazy! Life is great! 3.5 weeks of fun and adventures are just about 3 hours away I think ... I have lost count of how long we've been up in the air but it feels like forever! Ok, I am going back to the movie - Life Aquatic which is campy and funny. I adore Wes Anderson!

Guidebooks - Are they worth it?

2005-06-14T22:06:00.000-04:00

The simple answer is YES. Guidebooks are great for restaurant and sightseeing suggestions. As far as accommodations go, I would suggest that you ignore the places outlined in the books.

Perhaps we had a bad experience ... when in Seville we went to a hostel that sounded really cool in the guidebook. When we got there, we were disappointed to find out that our rooftop terrace room was more like a tin shack on top of a house. HOWEVER whenever we stayed at a hostel featured on Hostel World we were super happy with our choices and always met great people. I suppose its all about what you're looking for. If you want to find that hidden gem that will give you serenity in the midst of a hectic vacation go for the guidebook suggestions ... if you want to party - stick with hostels.

Now remember, not all guidebooks are created equal. I find that the Let's Go series are the best written and most geared towards the young and adventuresome traveler on a budget. Thier maps are fairly accurate and information up to date. The biggest disappointment in a guidebook is the Lonely Planet Guides. After comparing the Let's Go and Lonely Planet series, I was surprised at how much the LP's were lacking info and how unorganized it was when provided. That's just my opinion however. I noticed that most of the people I came across were toting Let's Go guides and had ripped out the maps to carry around with them. Ripping pages out of books isn't cool - but SO necessary when spending the day on your feet.

Any comments about my guidebook observations?

2005-06-14T22:01:00.000-04:00

Heading out to the continent with my small backpack ... I don't know what happened as it quickly got so full I had to buy another bag to carry my excess baggage around.

2005-06-14T21:59:00.000-04:00

Euro Princessa's Jess & Ette

Trip Details

2005-06-14T21:50:00.000-04:00

After all was said and done, this is where we were during our trip:

May 19th - flight from Detroit to London Heathrow
May 20th - arrived in London and took train to Colchester
May 21st - afternoon plane to Barcelona
May 21st - May 23rd Barcelona
May 24th - May 27th Madrid w. day trip to Toledo
May 27th - May 29th Grenada
May 29th - May 30th Seville
May 30 - June 2nd Lagos
June 2nd - June 3rd Lisbon w. day trip to Sintra
June 4th - Fatima/Porto
June 5th - June 6th Porto
June 6th flight to London and bus back to Colchester
June 7th London
June 8th - June 9th Dublin
June 10th Derby
June 11th London
June 12th flight home to Detroit

Lessons Learned

2005-06-14T21:43:00.000-04:00

1. PACK LIGHT!!
2. Hostels are great ways to meet people. The bigger the hostel the better the party
3. Cobblestone streets are really slippery. Therefore shoes need good treads to stay on foot
4. Cuttlefish = baby squid. ONLY order fish that you can see first so you know what you're getting yourself into
5. Keep your valuables on your lap at all times
6. Walking up and down steep hills with a backpack = everyone's personal hell. Don't expect people to be chipper after trekking through subways, alleys, and hills searching for the elusive hostel that has bad directions
7. Swapping emails is essential. This way, when you forget something at the hostel you can email your friends who are still there and try to convince them to mail it home to you

I'm home!

2005-06-14T01:00:00.000-04:00

Ola!

So my plane touched down last night in Detroit and I was on the verge of sheding a tear because it meant that my Euro Adventure had officially ended. How distraught was I? Very. Seriously, I really didn't want to come home - I wish that I had 3.5 months instead of 3.5 weeks. Oh well - there is always vacation time for next year. I WILL be returning to Europe for sure.

I had the best vacation of my life and met the most amazing people! I also had a blast with my best friend in the world - Mariette. And yes, for all of you out there wondering, we are still talking and respecting each other. It's rare to find a friend that you can travel with - but we just click.

Anyway, for the benefit of my vocal chords, I am going to chronicle my adventures here so that I don't have to repeat all of my awesome stories over and over again. I think that its going to take me forever to get everything up on here - but I'll try to get it up sooner. I'll also supplement the stories with links to pictures. The purpose is to make you feel like you were there with me. Alright? Alright.

So anyway, going to start working on those updates ...

Jessa the Euro Princessa

LESSONS LEARNED: What I should have packed

2005-06-13T22:58:00.000-04:00

This is what I would reccomend to any gal out there to pack. Seriously it might seem a bit harsh but I am one of the most fashion conscious gals out there - and this is totally do-able. PLUS you know that you're going to buy things when you get there so why not pack light as an excuse to get more cute stuff?

Lesson Learned: We were told by numerous people that Madrid and Portugal would be cooler at this time of year. When we got there we were shocked (but happy) that is was HOT - were talking 30+ the entire time of our trip. HOWEVER we hadn't packed hot weather clothes and had to go out to get stuff (at H&M - the greatest cheap clothing store ever). Therefore learn from me and wait until you get where you're going to scope out the trends and get new clothes.

With that said, here are my packing reccomendations:

1 pair of jeans
2 pairs of capris
2 skirts
1 cardigan
6 tops
1 scarf
trainers, sandals with great tread, flip flops
backpack tee (necessary to wear a tee when carrying pack to avoid strap burn)
pj bottoms and top
enough undergarments for 1 week
1 belt, ample accessories
towel; sleep sheet; make-up [bare mimimum]; shower stuff; sunglasses, sun hat; sunscreen; daypack, going out purse; camera; travel journal; pens; jacket; rain poncho; compass; ziploc baggies; travel sickness remedies; tissues; flashlight; combination lock; extra batteries

**Ladies, for those of you who love your flat iron may I make a suggestion... I didn't do this but towards the end of the trip I was regretting not doing it. If you ever plan to go to Europe or Australia multiple times in your lifetime might I suggest getting yourself to a department store and purchasing a ceramic one there. In Barcelona and Madrid you could get one at El Corte Ingles (the major dept store) for about 40 Euros - which is a steal of a deal to guarantee always having perfect hair. Seriously, in Canada good ceramics retail for $150+ and my exact model was available for Euro 40 - which was about $100 cheaper than what I paid here. Hrmph.

Jessa the Princessa

Packing List

2005-06-13T22:36:00.000-04:00

This is a list of what I decided to pack for my trip. I was foolish and like everyone who travels for the first time, thought that I was keeping my backpack contents to "just the essentials". I was SO wrong. Next time, I am going to listen to the guidebook suggestions and pack hella less clothing. Seriously, I don't know what I was thinking! A tip to all of you fashionista's out there - there ARE washing machines in Europe, in fact most hostels will wash your clothes for you while you're out sightseeing during the day. TAKE advantage of this offer and save your back! NOTHING is worse than walking uphill with a backpack full of clothing that weighs a ton! When I flew to Barcelona, my backpack weighed 14.5 kilos. When I flew back from Porto it had gained the weight that I had lost and weighed in at 18.9 kilos! Yikes. Moral of the story - PACK LIGHT because you ARE going to buy shit when on vacation.

PACKING LIST: [DO NOT PACK AS MUCH AS I DID]

3 pairs of jeans
3 pairs of capris
1 skirt
4 cardigans
2 3/4 sleeve shirts
14 tank tops and camisoles
Pumas, black dressy sandals, brown leather sandals, black flip flops
Jacket and scarf
1 belt, Accessories
Money belt for leg; Cash; Documents and photocopies; Daypack; Camera; Extra batteries; Memory card; Plastic baggies; Watch; Earplugs; First aid kit; Medicine and vitamins; Toiletries; Towel; Sewing kit; Travel info; Notepad & pen; Sunglasses; Sunscreen; Hair dryer; Travel iron; Book/magazine; Deck of cards; Journal; Office supplies; Umbrella; Tiny locks; Spot remover; Rain poncho; Hostel sheet;Compass; Black purse; Black hat; Combination lock

*not all of the cold weather gear was in my pack. Knowing that Ireland and the UK would be cooler, I left half of the cool weather gear in England - and the backpack was in use in Spain and Portugal.

**most of the misc. stuff that I packed came in really handy. The only things that didn't make it into the backpack were the iron, blow dryer [no converters], deck of cards, and travel alarm clock [my fault, but would have been handy]

Jessa the Fashionista Princessa