11th Jan - On To Bern - A Boring Place Indeed!

I left Geneva, & my lovely hotel room, bound for the not-so-distant city of Bern. I arrived in Bern by train & walked 10 mins to my hotel. Could they really call themselves a hotel? More like a hostel really - horrible!! And I paid quite a bit for it too. So, it was really bothersome when I ventured outside & discovered Bern.
Bern is the capital of Switzerland – a surprise in itself. Apart from that, & perhaps also that Einstein spent many of his ingenious years here, there’s really not much more to say about this very boring city. Even the cafes, & the coffees, were boring. I was here for 2 nights only - just had to grin & bear it. My advice, just never go there...why would you?

8th Jan - Arrival in Geneva

After a relatively quick flight to Geneva, I found my way to the Info Centre. To my delight I learned that the Swiss really know how to treat their visitors – they offer free public transport to visitors for their stay there! So I jumped on my free train ride & shortly afterwards was in the central train station. My hotel was located conveniently just across the road.
I fronted up for check in at the Hotel Warwick. The staff there were so polite & professional – a huge step up from most of the other countries I’d travelled to. And, I got a free upgrade to a business suite – beautiful!! I knew for the next 3 nights, I would be relaxed & comfy.

Scratchy Sheets!

Now, I don’t think I’m too sensitive to detergents & chemicals, but the sheets used at the Crowne Plaza were sooooo irritable that for 2 solid nights I scratched so much I ended up having to wear long pants & a long-sleeve top to bed. I was covered with a rash over most of my body, especially my legs. When I complained about the sheets on check out, the duty manager said that he has the same problem when he stays here – amazing that they don’t do anything about it!!!!

1st Jan - Arrival & Chill Out Night in London

We got in to London about 7pm, jumped in a cab & went to the Crowne Plaza (darling!!!) for our last 2 nights of the holiday. The room was nice. We dumped our stuff & went out for a not-so-nice Indian dinner (hey, I thought all Indian food is meant to be great in London!?!). There were 3 Catholic priests in the table next to us chatting about contemporary Christianity as an extension of a seminar they’d been on that day. Well, yes, I did eavesdrop a bit & found the conversation quite fascinating – would have loved to join them for a chat.
Back at the hotel, Bec & I relaxed from a rather long arduous journey over a couple of movies...nice!

28th Dec - Arrival in Sweet Paris, Again

It was quite a way by train to Paris via Zurich. We had time enough at Zurich train station to grab a quick bite to eat in a smoke-filled cafe before connecting on to Paris.
Arriving in Paris late at night, there was no other acceptable option than grabbing a taxi to our hotel. I wasn’t expecting the high quality of Austria, even though it was still as expensive. And I’m glad my expectations weren’t set too high. The hotel was ok – clean & fairly roomy in a quite central location. We unpacked for the 4 nights we would stay there, then crashed. My second time in Paris this trip – people might think I’m becoming Bohemian!

22nd Dec - Getting to Vienna - Finally

Again the next day we got up really early – about 4am - & headed to the airport. The Aer Lingus flight to Vienna was so packed that we had to wait over 3 hours just to check in. Lucky for us the flight wasn’t cancelled (all Easyjet flights were). But the wait was extreme & delayed the flight by a few hours. People at the airport were getting really antsy too - arguing & yelling at the one person delegated the task of crowd control (poor guy!). But we finally boarded & in a couple of hours landed in Vienna.
We grabbed a local train which took us almost right to our hotel. When we got there, we relaxed (slept) for a couple of hours in order to renew our energy before venturing out.

21st Dec - Bloody Easyjet - Flight to Vienna Cancelled Too!

We woke up at about 3:30am & prepared to head to the airport. No details were as yet available about flights, but we’d heard many were cancelled the previous day.
When we got to the airport, we found out that our Easyjet flight was cancelled. We rushed to get booked on to another flight, but couldn’t get one that day. So we had to get a hotel room as well, & Gatwick was really packed as travellers waited out flight cancellations. We managed to get a room at a local hotel, luckily, & headed back there. Then we slept nearly all day, watched a couple of movies, & ordered room service cause we couldn’t be bothered going out. Complete chill out day!!!

Yet Another Night with Little Sleep

For some reason, perhaps over-tiredness, I couldn’t get to sleep. I hadn’t had any alcohol & I was completely exhausted. But when I went to bed at 22:20, my heart was racing & I just couldn’t sleep. And this was even though I was sleeping alone - i.e. didn’t have a room mate. I did manage to get perhaps 2 hours sleep in before the next full day of touring, but I had dark circles under my eyes & again felt like crap.

From Fulda to Cologne (Koln)

Pretty boring little train trip really. Only took a couple of hours of listening to Eckhardt Tolle's, The Power of Now, on my ipod & I was there.
Finding my hotel ended up being a bit of a nightmare. Firstly, finding someone who could tell me where to head, & then getting there.
Walking for 30 mins with a 18-20kg backpack on my back on a very warm day isn't my idea of fun. The budget hotel ended up being down the back end of the city. And when I got there, my little single room was located up 5 flights of stairs that I had to walk up with my pack - crap!

Da Vinci Hotel in Prague

I couldn’t book a single room at a hostel in Prague cause I had been too fussy & all the good rooms had been taken. I wanted something close to the old town which wasn’t too pricey. So I had to opt for a hotel on the edge of the old town (right on the edge) that was still way over my budget. Beggars can’t be choosers though.
The Da Vinci Hotel was meant to be 4-star…’meant to be’ is an important phrase in putting this hotel in context. Everything looks nice at this hotel - all the furnishings are new. But the reception staff were quite rude at times & not at all helpful. My hairdryer didn’t work & they scoffed when I asked for a replacement dryer. And the pillows were far too high for my rather small head &, as a consequence, I had quite a sore neck the first morning.
On top of all this, they expect you to pay for all these little extras: safe in your room; safety deposit box downstairs, internet access (even when their free option ISP had been blocked by my McAfee Security centre as one which takes info off your computer).
So, would never recommend you go there.

Chill Out Afternoon

Sometimes I just need some chill out time - travelling can be really tiring. After visiting the Warsaw Uprising Museum this morning, struggling through all the Poles visiting on their anniversary day, I needed a break. And what better place to have a break than in my comfy Westin room?
A movie - Harry Potter - watched from bed in the afternoon. Some writing later on. Popped out for dinner downstairs. Then back to my room to pack my backpack for an early departure tomorrow. And finally, a lavender bath to complete the chill out day. Lovely!!!!!

A Backpacker at the Westin!!!!!

After much deliberation, I’d decided to treat myself to staying at the 5-star Westin (darling!!!) as it only cost 50 euros per night (bargain), as much as you would pay for a 2 or 3-star in Western Europe.
The guy at the front desk first thought that my rate (I booked on Booking.com) was only a part payment before realising it was just a bloody good deal. He must have liked me (he wanted to go to Australia to live) & he gave me an upgrade. I was now an official ‘preferred guest’! I told him I loved him - this was safe cause he was gay.
And gee, the cost was certainly worth it! The ‘Heavenly Bed’ (check my bliss photo) was just that, & I found myself struggling more than usual getting out of bed in the morning. And I had a bath for the first time in a few months. So I bought some bath salts to treat myself - two nights in a row. The view from the 16th floor over Warsaw was amazing. And even the lift with its open glass sides gave me a thrill each time I rode in it - I let out a “weeeeee” each time. I did forego the 120PLN breakfast (about $60 AUD) & bought some fruit for myself instead.
But overall, as a typical comfort loving Taurean, I loved it!!!

My Hotel Treat in Paris

After feeling a bit low over the last few days, I'd decided to treat myself to a nice hotel in Paris. Don't get excited, I'm only talking about a 3-star instead of a 1 or 2-star. I'd found a great deal on booking.com for a place called Hotel Gabriel near the Republique in Paris (not too far out & easy Metro access). It was 139 euros per night - not bad for Paris.

So it was with great pleasure that I first beheld the sight of my room - ahhhh. The bed was exquisite, especially after the bloody hard beds in China & the too soft beds in London. I was sleeping on a cloud. The only issue I had with the hotel was the noise that you hear in the mornings from the cleaners - they do start their vacuums a bit too early for my liking.

Nevertheless, I looked forward to coming back to my comfy room every night!