Final Travel Thoughts

Whew! Three straight weeks of traveling is a lot. Still, it was a great experience that I wouldn't have changed at all. Just in case you haven't already read, below are posts about a lot of the places I visited and some of the things I saw and took part in. Also, all of my pictures are now posted on Webshots for your perusal. But now for my concluding thoughts.

First, it was insane the different kinds of transportation I made use of. Automobile. Charter bus. Ferry. Streetcar. Metro. Local Train. Regional Train. National Train. Night Train. Airplane. Public bus. I pretty much did it all. Shows how well Europe is connected.

Second, I have come to the conclusion that everyone -- Americans that is -- should do Europe twice. Once as a student. There are just certain experiences people get traveling on the cheap that they would never get if they had money, such as staying at hostels and meeting the people there or eating at cafeterias. It's just a different and enjoyable way to travel. With that said, I also feel that people should go back to Europe when they have more money to truly enjoy some of the more expensive luxuries Europe affords such as great food. This is definitely a blueprint I plan on following.

Along some of those same lines the people I met, especially in Florence were great. It was also interesting to note the differences in ages and what that made the trip be for each person. For example, I met two college aged students that were taking some time off from school and just enjoying Europe. But then I also met two people that were 30+ who almost seemed to be escaping from certain aspects of their life by traveling to Europe. I found this dichotomy to be quite intriguing, and really nothing more.

So it was a great trip, but I am definitely not looking forward to going back to school. DIS doesn't do any favors as I have an exam on Friday and a presentation due in a week. But still, less than 2 months of classes, and then I'm done. Time has really been flying.

The last two months aren't just classes, though. I still have plenty of excitement to look forward to. First, my parents and brother will be here in less than two weeks to spend a week in Copenhagen and celebrate Thanksgiving with me and my family. Then a week later I will be taking a weekend trip to Vienna to experience that amazing city in the winter. Then finally, once classes are done I'll be spending a couple days in London before heading home. So I definitely have things besides classes to keep me occupied.

Snow and Palm Trees

The next day was another travel day as Liza and I left Genoa for Florence. This travel involved about 4 hours of train rides, which were highlighted by some interesting occurrences. For the first train ride we were going from Genoa to La Spieza, which took us on a route that hugged the coast. Despite the rain, we were greeted with some great views of mountains right on the coast of the sea, along with numerous palm trees. It had a very Florida like feel, except for the presence of the mountains. In La Spieza we changed trains as we began our trip to Florence. This also brought about a totally different kind of scenery. Now when we looked out our window we were once again greeted by mountains, but this time it was the southern edge of the Italian Alps, which already had seen some snowfall. Talk about a dichotomy of climates. Snow, coupled with palm trees, and neither being artificial!

Another crazy thing happened on the second train. Liza and I were enjoying our gourmet lunch of peanut butter and nutella sandwiches when another American couple, asked us what it was we were eating with the peanut butter. We explained about nutella, and started talking with them. Of course, they asked us if we were studying in Europe and where we went to school, etc. When we told them we went to Carleton and began to explain about it being a small liberal arts school in Minnesota they interrupted us, and quickly interjected that their son goes to Carleton. It gets better. He is also a junior. Still better. He was my next-door neighbor last year in Goodhue! Talk about a crazy small world. We ended up chatting with the couple for 20 minutes or so until they got off the train discussing traveling and studying in Europe, and various Carleton things as well, such as the new dorm to be built and the current status of the dinning halls. Who knows whom we’ll end up running into in Florence.

A City on a Hill

Genoa was exactly what I wanted. Exactly. A gorgeous Italian city on the Mediterranean with great weather. For example, what kind of flora first greeted me outside the train station? A palm tree, of course:

This city is famous for a few separate things. First, pesto and ravioli were invented here. Second, this is Christopher Columbus’ hometown. Third, it has a quite extensive medieval quarter. Fourth, it boasts the second largest aquarium in Europe. But that’s it. This is not your typical tourist destination, especially in comparison to other Italian cities. The amount of sights was perfect for my 1.5 days that I spent there.

My second impression of the city – my first was based on the palm tree sighting – was that I felt like I was backpacking as I rode the bus to the hostel for the first night. Never before in my life had I seen so many switchbacks on a road. That’s pretty much all we took the entire way up. What it does create is this very interesting cityscape as the building right next to the one you are in is only 5 feet away, but its also 10 feet lower. This pattern continues all the way to the water’s edge. Supposedly, this is similar to how San Francisco is constructed. I’ve never been to California, so I have no idea.

The first morning Liza and I walked down into town, which was awesome. We went down these narrow alleys and lanes, and numerous staircases, amongst all the houses that line the hill. It gave a really interesting perspective of the city itself. Eventually, we made our way down to the more touristy areas with the old buildings and churches, along with the famous Italian piazzas. We walked around for quite a while until we made our way to the aforementioned aquarium. Of course we went in. It was pretty fun, and of course, to demonstrate that there are connections to other people throughout the world at all times, one of the exhibits was on the biodiversity of Madagascar, which is where one of Liza and my mutual friends is studying. We then ate lunch on a bench near the water and enjoyed the warming effects of the sun’s rays – I had not seen the sun for about a week previously. We then continued to walk around the historic center, where we found an internet café where Liza excitedly learned that the Red Sox swept the Rockies to win the World Series. I guess if the Indians had to lose to someone in the playoffs its good that it was the eventual league champions. Another interesting find during our walking was Genoa’s “red light” street. Walking down one narrow alley we intersected another one that was completely lined with prostitutes, and this was at two in the afternoon no less! A more important and useful find was a gelato shop, where I had amazing raspberry gelato. Oh, do the Italians know how to do food. All this walking also led me to another impression of Genoa. If Copenhagen is known for everyone riding bikes – and rightfully so – then Genoa needs to be known for everyone riding scooters. Take a look:

The other interesting tidbit regarding Genoa that came about was the hostel where I was staying. First, it is the only hostel in the city so there are not a lot of options for those travelling on a budget. Still, I was shocked by the clientele making use of the accommodations. There were only a handful of students like me. Otherwise, you hadyoung families, old families, old couples, young couples, and older travelers going along. I have never seen such a hodgepodge of characters at a hostel. Normally, fine accommodations such as these are reserved only for students like me – on a very tight budget.

Just because we were staying somewhere cheap doesn’t mean that our dining followed the same pattern – it tended to be cheap, but very good. For example, that night Liza and I ate at a self-service place off of the main shopping street in Genoa. Imagine a high scale cafeteria. For 13 euro I was able to get a 2-course dinner, salad, fruit salad, and bread, and this was a high quality meal no less. Liza and I were both proud of our find, even if it was recommended to us by a website. We finished dinner around 9pm and when we left we were absolutely shocked to find the streets of Genoa deserted and all the stores closed. Apparently, Genoa isn’t much of a party city. That night another trend continued as I was greeted by fireworks from the harbor as I was getting ready for bed. I never figured out exactly why there were fireworks, but it was an impressive display, and very interesting to see from the perspective of being on top of the hill, which allowed me to look down upon them. This was the third time I had seen fireworks in the last 3 weeks, though. It will be interesting to see if that trend continues. In my room that night I also met a really interesting guy. His name was Guillermo, and he hailed form Le Mans, France. He was 7 months in to a 2-3 year trip biking around Europe. He was not using a motorbike, but rather the standard bicycle. So far he had gone through France, the entire coast of Spain and Portugal, back through France, and was just starting Italy. He hopes to continue along the Mediterranean until he works his way to Egypt and Turkey. There, he’ll make the executive decision about continuing on to Asia, which he wants to do if he has enough money, or to continue through Eastern Europe and eventually head back home. Not bad for 3 years of travel.

A Day of Travel

Getting around Europe on public transportation has already been an adventure. Luckily, this trip, while more complicated than my travel plans from a couple days ago, went much more smoothly. Still, it was a get-on, get-off journey. First, we had to walk about 5 minutes from Liza’s flat to the tram stop nearby. We took the tram a couple stops until we reached the metro station. The metro was utilized until the end of its line, which stopped at a bus station. We then rode the bus for another 30 minutes or so to the airport. At the airport, our plane ended up being delayed by an hour or so, which seemed to be pretty typical of all the flights leaving the terminal – mind you, it was the budget terminal. We also didn’t immediately get on the plane either – we had to take a bus to board the plane. After the hour and a half flight to Milan, we then took another bus to disembark from the plane to the terminal in Milan. Once we gathered our luggage it was yet another bus ride, this time about an hour, to get into the city central and the main train station. There, we bought our ticket for that night and grabbed a quick dinner from a pizza stand. On a side note, maybe it’s the mental realization that I was in Italy and thus the Italian food should be really good, but the calzones I had were amazing. We then caught an hour and a half train south to Genoa, which is the first stop on our weeklong Italian sojourn. Still, once we arrived in Genoa we weren’t done. It was another 40-minute bus ride up to the hostel (more on this later) before we could finally say we were done traveling for the day. Time of departure: 12:45 pm. Time of arrival 10:35 pm. Quite a day.

2 Weeks of Traveling: Recap Time

So I've just arrived back in the CPH -- or the KBH if I'm feeling quite Danish -- after two great weeks of quite contrasting travel. The first week, as you'll read, was highlighted by the amazing "visceral" experience of being outdoors climbing and trekking, while the second week was a who's who of art and culture. I'll be formating these posts in a similar fashion to what I did for the first week, which will slowly work their way to my most current thoughts with each post being written relatively recently after the events took place. Enjoy!

And Phase Two Is Commencing

It has been odd being back in Copenhagen for 36 hours. It was great sharing meals with my host family again, and to have their good cooking, but it just feels so weird to be packing so soon after unpacking. Anyways last night I watched my last Indians game for the season, which they unfortunately were demolished in by the Red Sox. Even if Cleveland wins game 7 tonight, I'll be missing the World Series while I travel. Nonetheless, it's been a really fun season to watch. Hopefully next year they'll be just as successful, if not more.

Still, in under an hour I will be off on another bus adventure. This time a trip of about 15 hours awaits me as I head for Cesky Raj in the Czech Republic. This is the beginning of my 2 straight weeks of travel. It will be a crazy time transversing Europe from Copenhagen, to Cesky Raj, to Prague, to Budapest, to Milan, to Genoa, to Florence, to Siena, back to Milan, and finally back to Copenhagen. I'm excited and nervous, and cannot wait to get started. And of course I will share all the lovely details I experience and all the impressions I am left with. And in case you haven't already read, posted below are my thoughts on the first week of study break. They are in reverse order in a sense, so the most recent day is on top. Time to finish packing.

Pre-game thoughts...and a lot more

T-minus 20 minutes until game 1 of the ALCS. I'm sucking it up and planning on staying up tonight to watch the game. Granted, this is the farthest the Indians have made it in 10 years so I feel like sacrificing some sleep is worth it. The whole situation gives me a feeling of deja vu from this spring when the Cavs were in the NBA playoffs. They were viewed as the underdog a large way through the playoffs, but still managed to make it to the finals. Hopefully, the Indians can emulate that run.

Besides that point I have a lot of other thoughts to share. Part of the reason for this "outburst" is the fact that I'm half way done with my time in Denmark. Hard to imagine, but I only have 5-6 more weeks in Denmark itself. This is because starting Sunday for the next 3 weeks I'll be traveling around Europe on a mini, well I guess much more than a mini, vacation. I'll definitely be sharing my thoughts on my travels during and after the trip (all dependent on when I can get internet access), but I'll at least let you know where I'll be going. The first stop is back to my stomping grounds two summers ago as we spend a couple days in Berlin, Germany. After that I'll be heading further east to spend a couple days in Poznan, Poland. I'll be going to both of these cities with other DIS students from the Medical Practice & Policy program as part of our long study tour. Following a night back in Copenhagen I'll be back on the road with other DIS students heading to the Czech country side and Prague. Post Prague will involve a train ride to Budapest and a day spent there. Next will be a flight to Milan, immediately followed by a train to Genoa, where I'll be spending a couple days. I'll then move eastward to Florence and then to Siena for the next couple days. Finally, it will be wrapped up with a train to Milan and a flight back to Copenhagen. It's a crazy schedule and I couldn't be more excited!

Now on to my other random thoughts.

First, there was quite a stir amongst DIS students two or so weeks ago as former President Bill Clinton was in Copenhagen. Apparently he was giving a speech somewhere in the city, with tickets running close to 1000 DKK or about $200. However, he was also signing copies of his new book at bookstore right by the DIS center, which a fair number of people managed to get in line for. In fact, one of my friends from Carleton went to see him and they ended up in conversation about how great Carleton is (Clinton gave the commencement speech in 2000). I would never dream to meet a former or current US President in the states, but then when I go to study abroad in Denmark I find a President. What are the odds?

Indians update: 1-0 Tribe, heading into the bottom of the 1st.

On another political note, I have begun to notice my own increased interest in the current political climate back in the states, especially in regards to the potential presidential candidates. My only explanation for this is that the primary elections to be held in March will be my first foray into voting in a presidential election and I want to be informed when making a decision Just an interesting observation on my part.

Do you know that if it wasn't for polio you might have health insurance provided by the government? Let me explain. In Health Care in Scandinavia we just read a text discussing different kinds of welfare states. When he was explaining the social democrat model, which includes almost all of Scandinavia (Side tangent: interestingly enough, my professor highlighted that one of the main keys to the Danish welfare system is homogeneity -- of culture, race, ethnicity, and goals. Without it he doesn't imagine it could succeed. This is perhaps an indication that a welfare state could not work in the US.), he states that this was the path the United States was on under FDR's New Deal programs. I wonder what would have happened if his 4th term wasn't cut short by polio, maybe health insurance?

Indians update: 1-1, heading into the top of the 2nd.

I'm having quite the unique experience in my Impact of Epidemic Disease course. The main text that the course is based on, Plagues and Peoples (1998) by William H. McNeil, is consistently contradicted by my professor. It's just so odd to do the reading before class only to have the professor completely rip it to shreds in class the next day. An interesting dynamic to say the least.

After being in Denmark for 7 weeks now, I think I have finally found a couple things that I miss. Granted there have been a ton of things that I have had moments of longing for, but none of those longings have been consistent over my entire time here. The two exceptions relate directly with Carleton. The first is fall colors. I want nothing more than to be able to see a line of sugar maples completely golden, glimmering in the sun. I miss how beautiful Carleton is in the fall. The second thing I am missing is the stars in the Minnesotan sky. Typically, when walking back from the libe or from somewhere on campus I entertain myself by looking up in the sky at the stars shining down on me. I just cannot replicate these things in Denmark.

Finally, I had an interesting night tonight. Once a year almost all of the cultural locations in Copenhagen are open for a one time fee. It's called Copenhagen's Night of Culture. There are literally over 100 different locations that have various programs for the public to enjoy. My host family offered to take me, and I gladly accepted. We started off the evening with dinner at a cafe much like the community restaurant I described a few weeks ago. We then headed to our first cultural event which was taking a look at Black Diamond, which is the University of Copenhagen's newest branch of the Royal Library. It is an absolutely gorgeous building and it was cool to finally see. We then walked around the ground of the Parliament a little bit, which included a quick stop at the Danish Armament Museum. Then for the true experience of the night we drove over to the zoo! It was completely open, and completely dark. It was definitely a different way to experience the zoo, and while interesting, I'm not sure I'd recommend it. Animals sleeping is only so exciting. Regardless, it was still a great evening and a unique way to see Copenhagen, and especially appropriate as I'll be leaving this town (my 3rd/4th home) for the next 3 weeks.

Alright, C.C. doesn't have his stuff tonight -- again. He's throwing too hard and letting the playoffs get to him. It's so frustrating because I, and all the other Indians fans, know how good of a pitcher he can be if he just stays under control. Top of the 4th, Cleveland 1, Boston 5.