Last Day in Dublin

This was it. Our trip was almost done, so tonight being our last night it was time to go hard and then go home. We headed out to the pubs with a few others that were staying in our hostel. Of course the pubs were crawling with people. Everyone was in a festive mood considering Christmas was right around the corner. The music was fantastic and there were so many people to talk to. We ended up Irish Dancing with an older man who swept both of us off of our feet and dragged us to the center of the floor, where everyone formed a circle around us and began to clap with the music. Although our dancing skill are not fantastic, we did have a blast and must say by the end of the night we were Irish dancing quite a lot. We also hung out with a French bachelor group, where one of the fellows was getting married shortly, saved a girl from an old man creeper by puling her to the dance floor, and talked with people from Germany and Amsterdam. The night was a success and the next morning we finished our stay in Dublin with a full Irish breakfast of meat, meat, and more meat :)

Camera Mishap... Again

We finally made it back to Dublin after spending an interesting night in the airport. Fortunately, we stayed up with salt and vinegar chips, a number of random old school games (literally) such as MASH, and walking around aimlessly for hours. By the time we were back at our hostel, we were exhausted and fell asleep instantly until someone came into the room and yelled out "what smells like moldy feet?" 

Although, we would like to say we were wondering the same thing, in actuality we knew exactly what smelt like moldy feet. It was us... so shower time it was. And it felt so nice to not only take a shower, but to wear clean clothes again. 

After being as clean as we were ever going to be on this trip, we had a mission- find a new camera for Kristen's friend Bernard. So remember how when it comes to technology we always seem to break it. Well it happened again. What a surprise. This time it happened with the camera that we had ended up borrowing from Bernard. We had put the camera into the same bag as the detergent and lo and behold the digital camera screen ended up ruined due to the detergent. (Disclaimer- we were not trying to wash the camera with detergent as the camera guy may have thought when we told him what happened.) Anyways although the camera still worked for the most part, we couldn't give Bernard his damaged camera back without feeling completely awful about it. He had been so generous in the first place to even let us, of all people, borrow his camera. So after some looking around and some funny looks from the camera salesman, we found a camera to replace his other one. We think that will be the last time anyone lets us use their stuff again, especially techy stuff. There seriously is a curse on us. 

A Shopping Muesum… You say what?!

After getting a semi decent night of rest after trudging our way to our hostel at two in the morning in London, we were ready to explore. However, it wasn’t the typical London sightseeing because we had already seen all of that our last trip to London. No, this was a girl kind of day and we were excited. We were going to go and see the shopping stores that people couldn’t stop talking about- Harrods and Kara Harvey.

We walked through Kensington Park, looked at Kensington Palace (we were too cheap to actually buy tickets to tour the place) and rented bikes for half an hour until we finally made it to our destination.

Now you may be thinking how ridiculous it was of us to go to London and go shopping when not only are there way more magnificent sights in London but we are two broke girls with absolutely no cash. And yes that all sounds about right, but then if you actually went to Harrods you would probably beg to differ. Harrods is an absolute spetactical. Not only because it is Christmas, but this store was basically like a shopping museum or a “Disney World” for adults. It had absolutely everything and anything you would want. Every floor was a maze of the best designer fashions, décor, and the like. It was absolutely incredible and both of us could not stop gawking at what we saw. Although we could probably not even afford the toilet paper that we used in Harrods, we decided to splurge and at least have tea time because that is what the English do. Our waitress brought us out five little delicious desserts and hot vanilla tea. It was perfect. By this time our feet were also killing us from walking all day, so we sat for hours just conversing over our teacups. To end the night, we walked through a Winter Wonderland festival in the park, listening to Rockabilly music for a little bit and then hustled back through the dark and foggy park, where the light was literally flickering and Kristen’s arm almost fell off because Brittany was clenching it so hard. Luckily we made it back to our hostel and fell asleep in seconds after a long day of shopping, or more so watching other people shop.

Going into Hysteria

So overall our trip has been great. We have met some wonderful and interesting people. We have seen so many spectacular sights. And we have eaten some of the greatest food. But our time is winding down and with that we have become exhausted.

We keep on going because that is what we have to do, but we smell (if you don’t know how bad we smell read the post from before…), our feet are sore, and our eyes keep on getting smaller every single day due to the lack of sleep. Don’t get us wrong we are still enjoying ourselves but at the same time, we are to the point of getting very excited about being home in our own beds, smelling clean, driving around on our own terms and not being broke out of our minds.

But with a few days left we can handle it and with it comes a lit bit of craziness, some silence, and a lot of hysteria. We have taken a crazy amount of stupid pictures, half the time can’t understand each other because one of us is speaking in tongues, and have laughed for long periods of time about absolutely nothing. It gets really bad when everyone else in the hostel is sleeping and you come into the room and start laughing for no apparent reason and can’t stop. Oh we are having a blast, but we will both be happy when we get home and are able to become normal human beings again.

Peace Out Greece!

Well, we have done what we have set out to do in Greece- relax. But now it is time to head on off to London. We are glad we went to Greece and probably would do it again, preferably in the summer next time. 

So what we observed in Thessaloniki... most of the guys are gorgeous with their dark hair, light complexion, and nice face features. The women are also very pretty for the most part, but the ones we seemed to encounter were not the nicest. There are quite a lot of street vendors and homeless people and the city is not that clean. It does, however, have beautiful views of both the mountains and ocean. They have a lot of cool cafes/ bars. The food, especially in the bakeries, is very cheap. For the most part everyone speaks English so you can get along quite easily. They have quite a lot of Starbucks- Yay caffeine! We probably wouldn't head to Thessaloniki for the shopping because for some reason the stores seem like they are selling pre-worn clothes, but if you are looking for shoes they do have quite a lot of those. 

Also when you are in Greece you must eat a gyro. They are super cheap and quite tasty, but for warning that it may upset your stomach later... 

Greece is great, but we are ready to see something new again! 

It's Movie Time!!!!

Like we said, we were planning on being lazy in Greece and doing pretty much nothing and we have succeeded. For the past few days, we literally have sat at cafes, eaten gyros and watched movies all day long. The list so far... American Beauty, V for Vendetta, Wedding Crashers, Bad Santa, The Usual Suspects, Casablanca, and Sound of Music. Maybe a little ridiculous, but we have enjoyed every minute of it! Yesterday it was cold and wet outside and neither of us really felt like walking around. 

But while being recluses in our room, we have laughed hysterically (maybe we are becoming a little crazy in the coconut after spending so many hours with just ourselves) and have been beyond honest with each other. It has come to the point where Brittany may punch Kristen or Brittany will be tackled by Kristen, but even though each of us knows what really gets under the other person's skin, we still are really enjoying each others company :) 

So Fresh and So Clean

Okay so we are going to be real with you folks who are still reading our blog. We smell. Real bad. We are on our twelfth day of sharing the six shirts that we packed between us and the selection of semi-clean clothes is dwindling right before our eyes. Although Kristen’s sense of smell is very limited, Brittany has made it clear that we are literally living in stink at the moment. Not only are both of us somewhat ashamed of going out in public, but Brittany literally can’t even wrap up in her own sheets because she smells “Brittany stink.”

Not that we haven’t tried to stay clean and smelling nice. We have deodorant, body spray works to a point, and then Brittany came up with the genius idea of rubbing nice smelling dryer sheets on our clothes as well. But after awhile even these techniques don’t make much of a difference after between the two of us we wear the same shirt at least two days in a row.

Traveling… we take the bad (or should we stay stink) with the good! Hey at least we haven’t come to the point our friend Mike has come to where the store owner was literally spraying him with Febreeze when he walked into the store… 

Soaking Up The Sunshine :)

Ahhhhhh... there is not much more to say than it feels really nice to feel the sun beaming down on our skin again. It has been way too long since either of us have felt more than a few minutes of sunshine, but yesterday we were able to go to a fancy coffee shop right next to the water and sit outside for a good few hours, people watch, and get a little sun on our face. Besides the fact of being pestered by street vendors every few minutes, both of us couldn't help but smile and enjoy the weather and the greatness of not doing anything all day.

You could call us lazy, but we are on vacation and it was exactly what we needed. Last night we even had the opportunity to go out and meet some new people, but we decided to stay in, eat lots of delicious bread and anchovies (Brittany's pick), and watch The Sound of Music and American Beauty (both really good movies btw). We were laughing about how lame we looked, but we were enjoying every minute of it... and to be honest the exact same thing may happen again today and we are okay with that! 

Appreciating the Simple Things in Life

Ahhh... the life of a traveler. If there is one thing that a traveler has to be it would be- not being picky. After Roma, we have finally stepped foot in Greece, where for the next few days we are just going to take it easy, enjoy the water, and sit in cafes all day and basically do nothing. ( If you haven't realized yet, traveling takes a lot out of you and every once in awhile you just need some rest and relaxation, so that is exactly what we are going to do.) 

Although we are not complainers, our last hostel in Rome was pretty disgusting. Everyone there was sick and who knows if some bug was just going around there or if it was the mold growing in the shower, but it was dirty and you never felt very clean there (It could also have been the fact that we are sharing six shirts between the two of us for the sixteen days we are not in Ireland, but whatever...). Furthermore, our beds were super squeaky and it felt as if you were basically just sleeping on some springs and every move you made sounded as if the bed was literally going to collapse :( 

However, because the circumstances in Rome were so bad, when we came to Greece, we both felt like we were in heaven in some sense. We are not sharing a room with complete strangers, but instead we have our own room!!!!! Not only that, but in our room we have one twin bed, and one double bed. It is kind of mind blowing! They also brought us a heater, so we can actually be warm. And one of the best things about this whole thing is Kristen actually bought face wash at the market this time instead of lotion as she had done in Rome, so our faces can actually be clean. Actually the best, best thing about Greece is the food is super cheap and the gyros are to die for!

The thing is when in another country (especially one that does not speak English) it can be difficult to get around. (You can't even guess what the Greek are saying with their alphabet because it is just so different... ) But it makes the simple things such as buying face wash or getting where you want to go that more exciting when it actually does happen :) 

P.S.- The guys here are not so bad to look at either!

In the Nick of Time

Wednesday was another travel day. We had seen enough of Rome and we were ready for our next European destination! At this point, we both would probably consider ourselves pretty savvy when it comes to traveling. We know what we are allowed to bring, how to go through airport security and where to go once we get to our next destination; however, man, were we wrong this time...

We had gotten through airport security, we were two hours earlier than our flight, and at this point had nothing specific to do but to take it easy, people watch, and just wait for our flight. (Unfortunately our computer had run out of juice, so we could only people watch while at the airport, but we did have a great spot, so we weren't complaining). After analyzing probably the entire terminal population, our flight was finally called to board. We got into line and when we got to the front desk, where a lady was checking our tickets, she looked at us stupidly and said that we did not have our tickets stamped and needed to go back out to the front desk and get them stamped in order to board the plane. 

We both looked at each other in a panic, but we really had no other option so we ridiculously ran to the security gate and asked if we could get our tickets stamped there without having to go all the way back through security again. The guard looked at us as if we had four heads and said no, so we ran under the security tape and went up to the next place we thought would help us out- the information desk. The lady there just told us that we need to go to desk three. 

At this point, ten minutes had passed and we both were losing hope. We only had ten minutes left before our plane took off. Not knowing how we were ever going to get through the long line of people waiting to get their tickets stamped and pass through security in time, we decided our best option would be to go to the front of the line and ask as nicely as possible if we could skip in line. Luckily, we found a couple who spoke English and they were more than open to let us go ahead of them (We probably looked so pathetic and on the verge of tears that they thought this would be the least of our worries). 

We finally got our tickets stamped and there was less than ten minutes until the flight was supposed to take off. We were pushing it to the limit. We ran to the security and asked if we could jump in line. At first they were hesitant, but then they allowed us to (again it was probably our sad looks that helped). 

We kicked off our shoes, threw our back packs into bins and stepped through the metal detectors as quickly as possible. When our stuff went through the machine, we literally threw our shoes on, grabbed our bags and ran like prison escapees back to our gate. Fortunately for us, the airport was on the smaller size, but that didn't change the fact that we looked like complete idiots while racing through the airport. If we didn't make it, we had no idea what we would do because there was only one flight there. 

When we got to our gate, there was one man there waiting for us. After checking our stamps, he opened the door and a bus was waiting for us to take us to our plane. We had made it! Both of us were shaking with adrenalin when we sat down on the plane, but then we couldn't help but laugh. We felt as if we were just part of an action film and we had just made our deadline before a huge bomb went off (okay, maybe a little extravagant, but it was crazy). The airplane doors closed and we finally could breathe again. We were off to Greece!  

A Visit from Our Aussie Friend

While in Rome, Brittany had been staying in contact with our Aussie friend, Hamish, who we had met  back in Dublin. (Now in previous posts, we may have said his name was Hamlet or something of the like, but his real name actually is Hamish). He was in London and being the awesome person he is, he decided to fly to Rome for a couple of days to hang out with us before he headed back home. 

It was absolutely great! Although we had only hung out with him in Ireland for a few days, it was nice to see a familiar face again. At this point too, both of us were pretty exhausted and sick, not knowing what exactly to do in Rome anymore, so Hamish was able to help us out (not to mention he is a great photographer). 

We walked everywhere. First we had an Italian breakfast- which is a cappuccino (it is very small compared to Starbuck's sizes) and a croissant. Then we went and saw the magnificent Vatican, all the grandiose statues inside, and the castle near by. Then we ate some more pizza and pasta. (We probably will never get tired of Italian food). After sitting and talking at the cafe for a couple of hours and our waiter bringing us free mochas (we have realized that if you stay at a place for long enough, they start bringing you free stuff... not sure if they just feel bad for us or they actually are just being kind, but either we take it gratefully), we went and saw the famous four river statue and walked around the small Christmas market. 

Sadly, it was really beginning to rain and although Hamish had other ideas of places we could go, at this point we were just cold and wanted to go back to the hostel and watch a movie. However, on our walk back to the hostel, we took the most random pictures ever. It was hilarious and although everyone around us were probably staring and thinking how stupid we looked, we didn't have a care in the world (Well Hamish may have, but he looked stupid with us anyways). We ended up cuddling up under the covers and watching Angels and Demons since most of it is filmed right in Rome and it seemed appropriate. 

Half way through the movie, we had to take a break and go out and meet Hamish's friend Franny, who is Australian as well but is in Italy studying Italian. She was supper sweet and we ended up eating delicious gelato and going to a bar where we met many of her fellow classmates who were from around the world. 

It was a successful day and we were glad that Hamish was able to come to Rome and meet up with us. We are thinking the next place we should meet him is in Australia ;)

Money, Money, Money

"When in Rome..." That seems to be the only thing that we can say with certainty about Rome. Last Thursday, Brittany went to the ATM to take some money out; however, when the ATM said that the money would be dispensing, nothing actually came out. At first Brittany thought that she just lost her mind, but then Kristen looked around too and it was true- the money never came out. Now maybe you are thinking someone stole it while we weren't watching, but that was not the case either. Kristen had been standing guard the entire time (actually she was just standing there waiting, but same thing). The worst thing about this whole situation was that, Brittany being her tree hugging self (not really), didn't ask for a receipt, so there was not even a shred of evidence that she really did take out money. At this point, it looked as if Brittany's two hundred and fifty Euros disappeared into thin air. 

But already being tight with money, we decided our best option would be to go into the bank and tell them the situation. We walked into the entrance, and we were completely at a loss of what to do. Before actually getting into the bank, you had to put your bag into a locker, then you had to walk into what looked like a time capsule, place your thumb on some kind of reader (we guess), and hope they accepted you. Furthermore, only one person could go into it at a time. Once you were in the thingy majig (that is the only way to really describe it), the entrance to the actual bank would possibly open, possibly not. It was a complete game of chance. After being denied at least five times into the bank, we didn't know if it was us or the actual door (it was very temperamental), but at this point, we both were ready to just give up completely. Eventually the door did slide open for Brittany and she quickly slid in before the door randomly decided to deny her access again. 

Sadly, the only news she got was that she would need to call the bank in a few days or so when things got processed and then they would see what they could do. We were not expecting much considering that dealing with banks in general are a mess, and we were in a different country. At this point we gathered that they probably just thought of us as "stupid Americans" spinning lies, even though that was not the case at all. 

A few days later after many failed attempts to call the bank, we walked into the same bank (after another long time of trying to get through the doors again...) hoping that some how we would be lucky and guess what... we were! After waiting no more than ten minutes, Brittany got her two hundred and fifty Euros and we walked out of the bank with tears of joy! (In all seriousness, it probably took longer to actually get into the bank, then to actually get the money). So Brittany got her money back and life was good again. We think the only thing that would make it better is if banks could just give us free money and contribute to our  great travels :)

A Little Bit About Rome

Some people like living here, others hate it. We have decided that it is a nice place to hang out for a little bit, but we both wouldn’t want to live here for a long time. The monuments and fountains are huge, but after awhile they all begin to look the same. There is tons of shopping, but with having little money the only shopping we can do is window shopping. There are tons of delicious food, but if we were staying any longer than a week we would get very fat. The metro is very easy to use and the streets are semi- easy to navigate. There are quite a lot of little streets that go all over the place. 

Then there are the people. Some are nice, but most are very much just to themselves (they are not like the Irish people at all). The only exception would be the umbrella men who are constantly badgering the tourists to buy an umbrella for only "three euros!" At one point, Kristen was in such an awful mood that she considered pushing one of the umbrella men to the ground, but fortunately she controlled herself. For the most part all they seem to do here is work and we have yet to find a place where they actually hang out to meet others. It seems for the most part they stick to what and who they know. Also, they have a terrible sense of direction. One person is always telling us one thing and the next person is telling us the complete opposite. Rome is its own place, and it has been great to visit but we think only to visit

Family Dinner!

Being away from home sometimes can be difficult. Not only are we sleeping on some of the most uncomfortable beds (the ones we are in currently squeak uncontrollably and make it seem as if some one else is in bed with you, even if that is not the case... yeah a little embarrassing), but we are also living out of suitcases that have begun to smell (according to Brittany like moldy peaches) and we miss our families at home. 

However, in these situations you also have to make the best of it and that is why meeting people and having those "family" moments are so crucial, even if we only have met them for a few hours these people, in some sense become your "family," and that is why last night was so great. 

We had met these two American girls named Maddie and Kara, who actually reminded us a lot of ourselves the first time we went backpacking because they were only eighteen and had just graduated from high school. Anyways, us and a few other people from our hostel ended up making an Italian dinner at their hostel (because sadly, our hostel only has a microwave).

It was perfect. Mike, worked his magic in the kitchen, since he was an experienced chef back in the states, and the rest of us just watched in amazement, dipped our fresh bread in the hot butter/garlic sauce and listened to classic American Christmas music. After diner, we even had cake and ice cream and sat for hours just listening to music, talking, and laughing. 

The funny thing is even though none of us really knew each other, we all had a great time and it really did feel like a family dinner. We guess that is what happens when you travel for awhile- just the smallest sense of home can make those special "family" moments with strangers.

The People We Have Met Along the Way

Since we are always staying in hostels, we are constantly meeting new people. Emanuel, Flavio, Mike, Cassidy, Picalo, Marco, Kara, Hugo are just a few we have met along the way. (After awhile the names start to all mix together and you really can’t remember who you were just talking to, but that is another story).

It is so great, though, because everyone is open to meeting new people. A lot of people even travel on their own, so when they do finally make it to a hostel they are looking for people to hang out with too. Whether it is just sitting around and sharing stories of travel or asking about where to go and what to see next, there is always something to talk about. It is so neat meeting so many people, each with his or her own story and life. Don’t get us wrong there are sometimes those creepers that we just try to avoid, but for the most part hostels are the best and probably safest way to meet some of the most memorable people. What is even greater is if the person that we meet really is interesting, we can usually hang out with them the next day so we never get too bored of just being with each other :) 

When It Rains, It Pours

Sadly, the rain from Ireland decided to follow us to Rome. But we are in Rome, so rain or shine we were going to go out and walk the streets, taking in all the grandiose buildings and eating the best Italian food. Although Brittany was still waking up and Kristen was awake but for some reason had woken up on the wrong side of the bed, we took to the streets anyways.

When we say that we walked the entire city in one day, we really did. We walked everywhere. Sometimes we were lost (actually most times we were) and sometimes we had to go just a few blocks further to see the next greatest sight. For the most part, however, our heads were always down because of the constant rainfall. We literally walked in the rain for a good four hours and by the end of the day, both of our feet were numb to the cold wet rain and our nose were dripping. But we ended up seeing so much.  It probably wasn’t the brightest idea considering that we now both our fighting awful colds, but we did get to see The Coliseum, The Trevi Fountain, The Pantheon, and a bunch of other really old statues in the rain.