Germany and Czech Republic.....AWESOME!!!!

So, I know I have been lagging on my blog, but life as a traveler has been crazy, exciting, and always adventurous. For the past 2 weeks we have really been discovering both the north and the south of Germany, as well as Prague and other regions of the Czech Republic.,....and with all the adventures, I have had little time to blog or email or pretty much do anything but eat, drink, explore and sleep...but it is a great life!!!

AS of about two weeks ago, we left Amsterdam and the beauty of Holland, to venture south to Frankfurt and Geissen, which sits on the western side of Germany. We stayed there with a friend of Jessie's for a few days, and then headed northeast to Braunschweig, which is just east of Hannover....to stay with a good friend of mine, who I grew up with but havent seen since college. Braunschweig was definitely a sanctuary. We spent 4 nights there and ate and drank the local grub and grog everyday. I can officially say that I think I have tried every kind of sausage and German delicasie...including a makority of the German beers...which are delicious. After a great time in Brauschweig, we headed east to Berlin, where we had a bit of a layover in trains...then headed on one of the most beautiful trains rides I have ever been on down to Prague (or Praha). The train ride alone was spectacular. The majority of the time we crusied along this beautiful ride and small little villages all the way down to the Czech Republic...which is like no place I have ever been to. Once we arrived in Prague and got settled in our hotel, we cruised the city, looking for a good buddy of mine who runs the Prague Pub Crawl. Now, if any of you really know me...Im not a big club person...but these clubs in Prague are crazy. We went to the first couple of bars and tried the local beers, then headed to a couple of bigger clubs...that were fun...but at about 2 or 3 am...i was exhausted from traveling all day. We headed home and on the way home got one of the best Gyros I have ever had. It was deeeliiiicccciooous!

For the next few days, we explored every bit of Prague by foot. We visited the city center, walked up to the castle that overlooks the city, ate wodnerful food...including a delicious goolash and local roasted pork plates. Wow...the Czechs love good food. Then...on our last day in Czech...we took a day trip to a small town called Cesky Krumlov...that was absolutely beautiful. The town and the river that runs through town is spectacular...and the castle that over looks the city is unreal...also, they have bears and a waterfall in the mote of the castle....Only in Czech.

The next day we got an early train south, back into Germany, and about 3 pm we arrived in Munich! WOW:....i love this place. We have one more night here and we are going to the Hofbrauhaus again...we visited there on the first night as well as a local brewery...but if you have never been to Munich...then you have never seen a proper beer garden. These places are massive!!! The food is delicious, the beer is even better...esp. b\c all you can order are liters of beer...and these gardens can hold up to 10,000 people, including grandparents, children, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc....absolutely awesome! oh ya...I also got to surf while I was in Munich. They have this massive English Garden that has a big river running through it and there is a standing wave. There were a handful of people surifng it...so I asked to borrow a board and gave it a go. I ate shit a couple of times...but I did briefly surf it...before slamming my shouldeer into the ground. Oh well...atleast I can now say that I have surfed in Germany.

Today we got up early and took a tour out to Dauchau...the Nazi concentration camp...which was very interesting to see. Not the most upbeat place...but definitely a place worth checking out and to learn about the culture, the propaganda, and the history of Germany. As of tomorrow, we are heading south into Switzerland, where we are staying at some mates houses...then heading to south Swiss, where we are going to celebrate their indepence day...it looks to be a great time!! After that...Jessie is heading south to Italy, and I am going to go explore the Swiss Alps by myself for a few days. Ever since I was a kid, I have always wanted to climb the Alps....so when in Switzerland. Who knows...maybe ill even climb or visit the Materhorn. Anyways, after Switzerland, I am heading to Italy, where I am meeting Chasa in Venice...and I am absolutely STOKED!!! We are going to spend the last 2 weeks of my trip together, traveling around Italy, including, Venice, Florence, Cinque Terra, and then Rome. I am sooo excited to share this experience with Chasa, and I am very excited of rekindeling a great love in what better place than Italia. ANyways, I hope I will be able to continue to blog throughout my trip...but if not...just know that I am doing wonderful and exploring every bit of this planet that I can. Until next time...wish me luck in the Alps and great adventures through Italy. Much love to all and PROST from Germany!

AMSTERDAM!!!! One of the best places yet...

SO last time you heard from me, I was discovering Belgium one beer and one chocolate at a time. As of now, we are actually in a small town outside of Frankfurt, Germany, after spending 6 wonderful days in Amsterdam, Holland. This place was AWESOME!!! We met up with some friends of mine from traveling, and they really showed us the true beauty of Amsterdam. The canals are spectacular and the buildings are phenomenal. The food is good too, esp the brownies and cakes...that one is for you Evan...and we even tried the famous french fries with mayonnaise....interesting...but not my style. Other than that we had a great time here. Everyday we would wake up at our hotel....which we didn't realize was located at the heart of the red light district when we booked it...with our window facing the main street and a giant neon yellow, vertical sign spelling H-O-T-E-L out our window. Each morning we would have some breaky and head out on the town as soon as possible. We spent 5 nights there....with not a lot of sleep, but hey, when in Amsterdam. Anyways, everyday we decided to explore a different part of the city, and what a beautiful and picturesque place. I can see how Van Gogh, Rembrandt, and many other artists flourished here. What a spectacular view around every corner...and no, I am not talking about the flashy red lights....although they were quite a distraction for Jessie....if you didnt know, she loves bright flashy things....so Amsterdam was filled with constant visual stimulations. But once you get out of the downtown and red light area...the culture, the people, the pace of life, and the openness to all walks of life, are all spectacular. I could definitely see myself coming back here...if not owning a flat or canal boat here at some point in my life...what a great place to have a vacation getaway.



We spent the first two days touring the city, the next at the Van Gogh museum, the next wandering around aimlessly and sitting on random benches and visiting the many cafes of Amsterdam. We also spent a day meandering through the canals, which then brought us to a very long line to see the Anne Frank House...but it was completely worth it...The museum and the historical facts and figures were very well done. Overall, the trip to Amsterdam was absolutely wonderful. On our last day in town, we decided to make a road trip by train...with a small detour, due to the fact that we were quite distracted by the beautiful countryside of Holland, to an area outside of Amsterdam, called Zaandam...where some mates we met in Belgium are from. They took us out there and really showed us the more local side of the Holland. What a beautiful country, both inside and out. We then spent the last night at our hotel, where I had a few pints and watched a local Dutch band rock out to Led Zep, Skynard, Sublime, Bob Marley, Rolling Stones, etc...which was a perfect way to end our last night in Holland. This morning, we got on a train heading south to Frankfurt, Germany...and I will do my best to put it into words, but the countryside of The Netherlands and Germany is BEAUTIFUL! From lush, green, rolling hills filled with pastures and wheat fields, to dense oak forests, the countryside is filled with character. So far we have been in Germany for about 12 hours and I already love it. We are planning on spending the next few days around the Frankfurt coutryside, and then heading north to visit a good buddy of mine from back in the day...Mr. Sean Whitty...who is completing his PhD in Germany. We are going to stay with him in his hometown of Braunschweig...and then east towards Berlin and then south to Prague.



Jessie and I are truely seeing the beauty of every place we go to, and everyday awaits new dreams and adventures. This trip has been very insightful and has shown me some wonderful places, as well as the true beauty of what life has to offer. I feel this journey has given me, and my mind, a great chance to wander and to really look inside myself for what life is and where I might be going with it. Who knows what path I am heading down, but I do know that my mind is clear, by body is able, and my heart is leading the way. To whatever dreams and adventures hold in my future...I look forward to embracing them with open arms and a progressive step forward. Until next time....be well, live well, and laugh often. Cheers to all.

From Paris to Belgium....The Land of Beer and Chocolate

So besides Paris being absolutely beautiful, we found the people, the culture, and the food to be superb. After a wonderful tour of Paris the day before, we spent the following day at the Palace of Versaille and the amazing gardens around the palace. We ate some sandwiches, drank some wine, and took heaps of pictures around the area. That night, we were treated to a TRUE French cuisine at a delicious restaurant. I would have to say that France has some of the most amazing food and wine I have ever had. After a wonderful dinner, we toured around Paris, visited the Lourve, the Arch de Triumph, and the Moulin Rouge....followed by a great walk to the highest point in Paris, with the most amazing view of the city at night....WOW...what a spectacular city.

The following day, we had a very nice breakfast, and then jumped on a train to Brussels, Belgium. After getting entirely lost in the skid row district of Brussels, we finally got a cab to our hotel and then got lost again, before we finally found the city center. At this point, we were ready for a pint and luckily we found a great little pub with a free concert playing directly in front. What a great way to turn around our impression of Brussels. We then toured about the town, looking for breweries...but the town was very confusing so we found a small little pub...where we proceeded to meet the bartender and the owner...and after they found out my love for beer...the decided to have me taste almost every Belgium beer possible. Needless to say, we spent the remainder of the night there, and I definitely got introduced to Belgium beers properly. Their hospitality was great and we had a wonderful time. The next day, we had a chillaxed out day. We toured the city a bit, ate some kebabs, and low and behold, we turned a corner, and we were back at the pub from the night before. So, we decided to sit down and have a pint....it would have been rude not to. Anyways, we met up with the owner again, as well as a group of dutch travelers who also knew the owner, and we spent the next few hours chillen out with some wonderful people. We had a great dinner with them last night, and then called it an early one...for we left for Bruges this morning.

Bruges is beautiful, and as soon as we got here this morning, we dropped off our bags and headed out. We toured all the sights, had some fries with spicy mayonnaisse....weird...but great...and then went downtown to check out the local brewery. We got a great tour and tasted some delicious beer...and as of now...we are looking forward to a local night tour and pub crawl. Good times in Belgium...and until next time...which will be from Amsterdam.....CHEERS....

Nous sommes à Paris

We have arrived in Paris...and of course been having a blast again. After a hectic train ride from London and a short flight to Paris, we arrived and were greated by an old friend, Lionel, who used to study abroad in San Diego and stay with my family in Poway. He and his mate offered us a free flat to stay in while his sister is away on holiday, so we have a free flat to stay at in Paris, right downtown in the Latin Quarter...i dont think life could get any better...well maybe a little surf from time to time....but hey, WE ARE IN PARIS!!! Anyways after a short nap, we spent the evening touring around Paris, visiting the local parks, avenues, Notre Dame...which is amazing, and then had dinner at a small, classic French crepe restaurant...which was delicious. We then had a short little walk around town, followed by a tour by car to the Eiffel Tour and the Arch de Triumph at midnight.....WOW...it really is more beautiful in person. I saw the Eiffel Tour and couldnt take my eyes off of it...what a spectacular creation. We then drove around a bit more, finished with a glass of French wine and looking forward to tomorrow, where we are going on a private tour to Versaille, and all the other amazing things Paris has to offer. As for now... Au revoir avant la prochaine fois.

London, great mates, and heaps of sunshine

After leaving Edinburgh and flying to London, we found that no matter where we went we have been taking the California sunshine with us...which the locals seem to thoroughly enjoy. We got all of Ireland, Scotland, and most of our time in England without ANY rain...which is unheard of here. Needless to say, we have been welcomed back to all our places of visit so far. Actually, after my last post, which I wrote in the Orkney Islands north of Scotland, we decided to go grab a pint at the local pub, and of course...knowing Jessie and I, we started chatting it up with the locals. We ended up having a couple more pints, and carried on talking with them to the early hours of the morning. We were then offered personalized tours of the Orkney Islands the next day, and since they were locals, everywhere we went was free and/or behind the scenes of the tourist sites. We also got to visit the Orkney Island brewery, where they make the Viking beer called Skull Splitter, and tastes very similar to our Strong Ale at OAW. IT WAS DELICIOUS. After traveling around with them during the day, we were welcomed back to the Orkney Isl. for life....which I am def. going to take them up on. It was an amazing place and I will def. be going back there someday....who knows....maybe to brew or teach there. Anyways, after the Orkneys, we took the ferry back to Scotland, then drove all the way back to Edinburgh. We spent the next day going to the Roslin Chapel (Da Vinci Code church) and drove about the Scottish countryside one last time, which was beautiful! We then flew out of Edinburgh to London later that afternoon day.

Ever since we have been in London, we have been greatly looked after. For the first few days, we stayed at some good mates of mine from New Zealand, Mark and Erika, who I actually lived and worked with at the Raglan Surf School, and then proceeded to travel much of New Zealand together. They moved back to London a few years ago and have been some excellent hosts. Also, this past weekend, we took a road trip to the west country of England with a great mate of mine, Olly, who I snowboarded with in Whistler, Canada, as well as came to stay with me and my family in San Diego about 5 years ago. We have been staying with him in downtown London, as well as had a wicked time with he, his girlfriend, Jennie, and his family this past weekend in a beautiful part of the countryside, called Somerset. After arriving to a huge lunch with his family, we went hiking to a beautiful view of the entire western edge of England, had a great bbq feast, as well as a lovely proper English breakfast this morning. Basicly, for the past few days all we have been doing is eating heaps of food, laughing and telling stories with Olly's family, drinking the local Ales, and discovering the beautiful countryside of England. After saying our goodbyes to his family, we continued on our adventure to Stonehenge, which was a site to see. There were way tooo many tourists and the line to get in was almost 3 hours long, so we took pictures from a little ways away, and then proceeded to have a beautiful picnic in the field overlooking Stonehenge....not a bad Sunday afternoon. We then came back to London and toured Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, and the royal courtyards of central London...which was beautiful....and of course....filled with sunshine. We are staying a couple more days in London, spending time with mates, touring the city, and of course....shopping for Jessie... at least that gives me some time to visit the local pubs and to try as many of the English Ales as possible....hahaha..and trust me...there are plenty to try and they are DELICIOUS!!!!

On Wednesday, we are flying from London to Paris, where we will spend a few days touring Paris and then head northbound on the Eurorail towards Belgium, Holland, and Germany. So far it has been a phenomenal trip; filled with plenty of adventures, wonderful conversations with the locals (esp. about beer and non touristy stuff to do), as well as the opportunity to see and do so many things that I never thought possible.
Until next time....remember to support your local pubs, eat delicious foods, and to laugh as often as possible with family and friends....for that is what this trip (and life) is all about. Much love to all....and always....CHEERS!!!!