Rome 2006

Rome was hot. Not only was it hot, but it was muggy too. There was culture all over the place, so much that it eventually became overwhelming. I will say, though, that the food was excellent, even if it could have been cooked by just leaving it outside,
One day we went to Pompei, which was a complete and utter disaster. Every train we got on that day was late and packed and broken. I finally understood why people said about Mussolini, "At least he made the trains run on time." When we got to the ruins, I decided that that name was very apropos, because the city looked as if it had been shelled.
The major takeaway I got from Italy was that personal space is a uniquely American phenomenon. On all of the trains and metros we took we were packed like sardines




An entire dimension for Tony Danza? Can I never go there?




Monument to Victor Emmanuel II. They call it the Wedding Cake, for obvious reasons.




Where Julius Caesar was cremated. Or so we're told

Florence 2006

On our way to Florence, we stopped in Milan. To sum it up in 2 words: Milan sucks. The city was ugly and dirty, even worse than Prague. I can't believe this place is the fashion capital of the world because it looks like the filth capital.
We hop back on the train and get to Florence. Florence is a much better city than Milan. Our first night in Florence was the World Cup final, so we watched it in this little hole in the wall restaurant with some assorted other patrons and most of the kitchen staff. Italy won and the entire city went nuts. We got to see (but mostly hear) the party until late in the night.
We saw various historical things throughout the city, including the Cathedral (with El Duomo) and the Uffizi Gallery. Paintings, culture etc.
While staying in Florence we took daytrips to Pisa and Venice. Pisa was rather unimpressive, one big cathedral and one poorly engineering towered, nothing that special. Venice was a strange place. While it looked very beautiful and had some of the best scenery of the entire trip, it smelled terrible, as if the entire city was a sewer. It was nice to see it before it eventually sinks into the sea.
On our last night in Florence we ate at this great restaurant called Acqua al Du. My steak in a blueberry reduction was exquisite, as if angels had taken up cooking. It appears that they have a restaurant in San Diego, I will have to go.




A view of El Duomo and the Ponte Vecchio. Those are important Florence things they tell me.




In Venice, Ponte Rialto and a Gondolier following us




View from the Campanile in St. Mark's Square

Switzerland 2006

Getting to Zermatt was an experience. We had to change trains in Zurich, Geneva and Visp, which is in fact a town, not a crappy nightclub. Luckily we didn't miss any trains and we made it to Zermatt just fine.
In Zermatt we stayed at the nicest hotel of the entire trip, where my parents stayed during their trip to Europe 20 years ago. We rode the funicular up to the top of the Gornergrat, a mountain in the Swiss Alps. There was a Swiss Army store on top of this mountain (yes, really) and, being myself, I had to buy a knife there. We then took a leisurely stroll back down the mountain, eventually happening upon the Zermatt Marathon, which started in town and ended up in a mountain valley. The runners were insane.
Oh, and I had real fondue. It was quite good, although the cheese fondue had about equal parts wine and cheese.




The whole family in front of the Matterhorn, which was covered by clouds from the time we got there until about 15 minutes before we left.




The Matterhorn. Sans clouds (except for that little one)

Germany 2006: The Sequel

After Vienna we went back through Germany, stopping in Munich. We got to Munich taking a sleeper train and from that experience I can confidently say that that is something I don't think I ever want to do again. In Munich, we took a tour with Mike's Bikes and I have to say, it is probably the best tour I've ever taken. The guides were hilarious, we had a great time touring the English Gardens and seeing the river surfers.
The next day we took a tour of Fussen, where the Castle Neuschwanstein (the basis for Cinderella's Castle) is. The guy who had it built, Baron Ludwig I believe, was absolutely bat-shit insane. Oh, and as we were leaving we got hit by a thunderstorm that was absolutely insane. Our tour bus was shaking from side to side from the driving raining. The lightning came within a mile of our location, but thankfully we didn't get hit.




The Chinese Pagoda. In the English Gardens. In Munich. Yeah, figure that one out.




Surfers? In my river?

Austria 2006

Vienna is a nice city. Very polite and cosmopolitan, but at the same time kinda bland. It seems kinda like a template for a European city. It lacks London's shitty weather or Prague's filthiness. Frankly, there are worse places in the world, but there are also better.
The one thing we did in Vienna that I loved was a segway tour. Yeah, we rolled around Vienna on Segways. We looked like idiots, but I don't care. I got to ride a segway.
We left Vienna on the Fourth of July, which we commemorated by going to a McDonalds and getting Apple Pies. Oh yeah, hella American.




A giant chessboard at our hotel. I didn't win a single game




A random roller coaster in a random theme park. I, of course, rode on it

Prague 2006

I'm not saying Czech Republic because we never left Prague. But when we did, I can say that I was never more happy to leave a place in my life. Everything about Prague made me uncomfortable, especially the people. The city was dirty, the people were unfriendly and as we were leaving, we saw a guy get the crap kicked out of him in public. The city did have some redeeming qualities though, like the ornate castle and Charles Bridge, which had the greatest busker I've ever seen, like the guy in Mary Poppins.
My second-most memorable World Cup story (after Berlin) happened in a basement restaurant in Prague. We were eating our Czech food (which wasn't bad, except for the spinach goulash that looked like someone had already eaten and digested it). We watched one of the semi-finals of the World Cup with a group of Dutchmen who were rooting against the Portuguese, who had knocked the Dutch out of the tournament. They convinced us to join them, but unfortunately Portugal prevailed over England on penalties.




The Castle in Prague. I forgot what it's actually called.




Does a mime texting count as cheating?

Germany 2006

We were in Berlin during the quarterfinals of the World Cup 2006. While Germany was playing. In Berlin. The city was insanely packed, but insanely fun. We went to the World Cup fanfest in the city's central park with a million of our (new) closest (literally) friends. We also saw some cultural things, but that was less fun.

Checkpoint Charlie, the old border checkpoint between East and West Berlin. Sadly, it is now a privately owned tourist trap.




At the fanfest during the Germany/Argentina quarterfinal match. Official tally, 1 million people in the park.

Belgium and The Netherlands 2006

I'm combining these countries into one post because we only had a train layover in Brussels. Amsterdam was a lovely place to visit, I'd love to go back. Cars are almost unheard of, people ride bikes everywhere, as if the entire city is a college campus. I love it. The museums there are quite nice, and the Heineken Brewey tour is great.

Mannekin Pis, a famous fountain in Brussels of a little boy, well, you get the idea.

I AMsterdam sign outside the Rijksmuseum. Probably my favorite public art piece ever, plus you can climb all over it.

France 2006

I'll be honest, I can see why people love to come to Paris and why it's called the City of Love, but frankly, it just wasn't for me. I did enjoy the architecture and the historic nature of much of the city. And I rather enjoyed visiting Normandy, even though my parents had the brilliant idea of walking to the beach from the train station, through the entire rain-soaked town.

The Pompidou Center. The architectural design is inside out, that is in fact an escalator on the outside of the building. The inside is equally screwy.

The Arc d' Triomphe. Taken from the middle of crosswalk, Parisians sure don't like that.

Inside an old German artillery battery in Normandy. I'm surrendering to Dan, definitely don't look ridiculous.

Racing to the Atlantic Ocean. I won.

England 2006

The first leg of our "grand tour" of Europe, as my dad put it. London was an amazing city to visit. Sure it was a bit cramped, but the entire city felt so lively and connected. It seemed like the entire city was watching the World Cup and pulling for England. That's the kind of universal camaraderie that I rarely see.

Good ol' Honest Abe. To his left is Winston Churchill. In a park in London. Okay

Picadilly Circus. My initials up in giant lights. I like it

Banff 2006

We had an 8 hour layover in Calgary (yes, Calgary) before our flight to London, so we drove to Lake Louise in Banff, Alberta to kill time. We had lunch at a very nice resort, which happened to have a statue for some reason. I, of course, could not resist mugging for a picture.

Dan, unfortunately, chose to make me look ridiculous by comparison. Thanks Dan.