Past travel thoughts

transferred from an old website of mine (and back dated to the date of the last one)

18 March 2002

I emailed hostels in Slovenia and Austria today to make reservations for this summer. I sent emails to the following hostels:

· Ljubljana – hotel@bit– center.net – arrive on 8 July 2002 and depart on 10 July 2002 (2 nights).

· Bled – niko_jakelj@hotmail.com – arrive on 9 July 2002 and depart on 11 July 2002 (2 nights).

· Vienna – info@hostelruthensteiner.com – arrive on 11 July 2002 and depart on 14 July 2002 (3 nights).

· Salzburg – office@yoho.at – arrive on 14 July 2002 and depart on 15 July 2002 (1 night).

16 March 2002

I emailed several hostels in Italy today to make reservations for this summer. I sent emails to the following hostels:

· Rome – p.alessandro@iol.it, mejplace@micanet.it, hostels@stargatehotels.com, info@yellowhostel.com, info@fawltytowers.org – arrive on 25 June 2002 and depart on 28 July 2002 (3 nights)

· Sorrento – info@hostel.it – arrive on 28 June 2002 and depart on 2 July 2002 (4 nights)

· Venice – info@hotelveniceonline.com – arrive on 2 July 2002 and depart on 5 July 2002 (3 nights)

3 March 2002

Venice – There is a 72-hour vaporetto ticket that gives unlimited travel. There are gondola rides that only cross the river, not the tourist rides that cost a lot of money.

12 January 2002

There’s a show on the Travel Channel on Memphis. They focus on Graceland, but also talk about other things such the Memphis Bell airplane, the Pyramid Arena, the Peabody Ducks (at the Peabody Hotel at 11am and 5pm), Mud Island model of the Mississippi River, The National Civil Rights Museum, the Fire Museum (has interactive exhibits), Beale Street (the “home of the blues”) for entertainment, and the Rendezvous for a pork BBQ dinner. Even though I have no interest in seeing Graceland, it seems like a nice place to visit and it seems to have great public transportation.

25 October 2001

I called the castle in Gniew and made a reservation for 1 November. The dormitory cost 27zl, however is closed that day, probably due to the holiday. I reserved a single room for 95zl. I haven’t decided if I’ll actually go or not, but made the reservation in case I do (if not, I’ll cancel). It’s a lot of money, but it might be worth it and might be fun to stay in a castle. Note to self: the phone # is 058 535 34 65. I also asked if there were any busses from Kwidzyn to Gniew, but they said that there wasn’t. I’d have to go back to Malbork (39km) and then catch a bus to Gniew.

24 October 2001

I checked timetables today to find about times from Gdansk to Kwidzyn and everything looked like a “go,” until I called the Gdansk hostel. They’re closed on 1 Nov, as they are on all holidays, so I cant stay there overnight and there aren’t any other hostels in Gdansk. There are some in the area, but they aren’t easy to get to. I made a reservation for 2 November.

I also did a bit of research on Kwidzyn and Gniew. The castle in Gniew is now a hotel, so I’ll call there tomorrow to see if they have dorms, or if not, how much a room would be.

22 October 2001

I just found out today that I have a 4-day weekend beginning on 1 November. So..where to go? I had hoped to go to Vilnius as it’s only 6 hour away, however now that there are only weekend busses, that’s impossible. So I’ll stay in Poland. 1 November I’ll go to Gdansk. I’ll take the 4h41 train if the weather is relatively warm! 2 November I’ll visit the castles in Kwidzyn, Gniew & Malbork. 3 November I’ll enjoy Gdansk and return home. If it’s raining, I wont go.

I also checked a few airfares..The lowest airfare to Spain is now $345. However, Swissair is no longer a OneWorld member! That’s good and bad. Good because I don’t have to fly them anymore! Bad because I have a return to use to the USA that I won’t get frequent flier miles on. However, LOT, our national carrier (and a great airline) as well as Sabena are both still working with American Airlines. I’ve emailed Swissair to find out when they left OneWorld and to see if they were planning on rejoining. They were on it when I came back to Poland last month as I got frequent flier miles.

21 October 2001

I walked by the bus station today to check the bus schedule to Vilnius. Now, there is only a bus on Fridays and Sundays. There used to be one on Wednesdays also.

15 October 2001

I called BA today. The $99 fare to London is based on departure (each way) on Saturdays, and you have to stay at least two weeks. They could have saved me a phone call by posting that on their website.

14 October 2001

A place to visit in Italy – Urbano. I’ve never had much desire to visit Italy, but some day I will.

13 October 2001

Sky News reported last night that British Air is cutting fares, so when I used the internet today, I checked on specials from Poland. What I found was a $99 (plus tax) fare (has to be a Saturday departure) to London!! I’ll call them on Monday to see what the total price is and what restrictions may apply. If it’s not too much, I’m going!!

4 October 2001

Cardiff – South Wales (UK) – castle, bay area around the bay, etc.

2 October 2001

Tunisia – Tunis, Carthage, Tabarqa, Bulla Reggia (Roman Ruins, part above the ground, part below the ground), Douga (best Roman ruins in North Africa, unearthed in 1983), Jerba (tourist island in the south east), Tozeur (zoo is highly recommended), Matmata, Meta Laui ((spelled wrong) train ride through Red Rock Canyon), El Djem (highly recommended, especially the coliseum and the museum), Sousse (overly touristy, but recommended).

16 September 2001

Thailand – Koh Samui – beautiful island. Place to stay – Charlie’s Huts

4 March, 2001

There was a special on the Travel Channel about Barcelona today. Here’s some of the points of interest: the Columbus statue (and going up to the top of it), the Gothic quarter, Plaza de Catalonia (and a tourist bus that is hop on/hop off), La Rambla, the cable car that goes across the harbor and El Pueblo Espanol (The Spanish village).

26 February, 2001

Yet another email from my confusing relatives. They’ve decided not to make any plans until April, after they return from a month long ski holiday. I’ve emailed them that I’m going to make my plans without them, as I’m tired of waiting. They’ve asked if there is an alternative place that we can meet, other than Barcelona. I’ve given them choices of Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga or Sevilla. I’ve told them that I can’t afford to go traipsing all over Europe. However, I will make my plan so that it lets me be in the Barcelona area around the time that they think they will be there.

Also, I’ve decided that I want to attempt to save enough money to fly to Barcelona. The 50-hour bus ride doesn’t thrill me. This means that I’ll have to be very frugal with my money for the next few months, as it is 1800zl (one month’s pay) more to fly than take a bus. If I can’t afford it, then I will still take the bus.

24 February, 2001

I’ve heard from my relatives that are planning on meeting me in Spain this summer. At first we were talking about meeting in Barcelona in mid July. Then, they said that late July would be better in the Sevilla area. Now, they are back to early July in Barcelona or Madrid. I wish that they would make up their mind.

I guess if we meet in Barcelona, we could divide our time between Barcelona and Madrid. Actually, now that I think of it, it would be better to meet them in Madrid, spend a few days there, then go to Barcelona, where we can spend the rest of the time and then they can catch their Mediterranean cruse and I can get to the south of Spain.

18 January, 2001

As far as Easter Break goes, I am going to Kraków again. I will do it the same way I did last year, take the 5h bus to Warsaw and then an express train to Kraków. That is the quickest way I can get down there since I only have six days. I hope I can get to the symphony on Thrusday night like I did last year. That was great.

I will probably only spend four or five days there. Last year I took the night train back on Sunday however, maybe this year I’ll take a train to Warsaw and a bus home.

14 January, 2001

I’m starting to plan the summer trip now (after all, this is what are Sundays for)…Here’s a (very) rough sketch..

I’ll take a bus from Kraków to Barcelona 9 or 10 July. According to some of my students who were there recently, it’s 50-hour bus ride. In Barcelona, I’ll find a single room somewhere and sleep. I’ll need it by then. After that, spend two or three days in Barcelona seeing what I didn’t see when I was there last time (most of it). I’m not really into Barcelona’s party scene. I will probably spend one night out having fun, but that’s it. Plus, partying cost a lot of money.

Get from Barcelona to Attafulla or Coma-Ruga, a couple hours south. Spend a few days on the beach there then move down to Playa de Piles, which is where I stayed last time I was in Spain, for a week or two.

Or, and more preferably, take a ferry out to the Balearics (depending upon the cost) and spend a week or two on Mallorca. Return to Valencia. Actually, something else to figure into the cost of getting to the Balearics is that when I took a train from Valencia to Barcelona in 1998, it cost 3500pts. I guess that I can justify deducting that amount from the cost of getting to the Balearics, as long as I return to Valencia.

From there, I want to go to Alicante. I’ve never been there, but have read that is it nice. I’ve also talked to travelers who have been there and liked it.

Next, I will head down to Granada, as there appears to be a direct bus connection from Alicante.

Málaga might be the next stop. It seems like a good place to base myself out of for a while, while taking a few day trips inland. One of the day trips will be to Ronda. Another will be Gibraltar.

After that, I want to spend time in Sevilla. I’d been there before briefly, but want to go back and spend a few days, at least.

From there, I will head back to a beach area somewhere. I haven’t a clue as to where. Then, I’ll head back to Kraków.

Of course, this is all just speculation and is subject to change at any minute.

Basically, my goal is to split my time between the beach and sightseeing (with more time spent basking on the beach).

13 January, 2001

Possible good news..I used the internet today and did a bit more research on getting to the Balearics. There is a second company that goes from Barcelona to Ibiza that is about half the price of the major one. If I remember correctly, the rate (I assume at this time) was 5485pts round trip. That would be affordable. However, the cost will definitely go up in the summer. I hope it stays affordable.

Good and bad news…The good news is that I have a good idea where I will go while I am in Spain. The bad news is that the US$$ has gone down a lot. The other good news is that I will be traveling on Polish money, which has remained constant to the Peseta and other European currencies.

I haven’t really thought about going to La Tomatina again, but maybe.

A good thing about going to Spain in the summer is that I won’t have to take warm clothes. I plan on only taking one pair of long pants, one long sleeve shirt and my light jacket (just in case). Other than that, I’ll take shorts and short sleeve shirts. That should keep my backpack light.

4 January, 2001

11h – I’ve decided that I want to try to get to the Balearic Islands when I am in Spain this summer. It doesn’t appear to be too expensive to get there (my book is 4 years old, but then the price from Valencia to Ibiza was 5040 pts), so I will look for hostels out there to see what there is. I will also look for info on getting to the Canaries.

21h – I used the internet to check on ferries and hostels in the Canaries and the Balearics. The Canaries are prohibitively expensive to get to from Spain by ferry. The prices for the Baltics have gone up, but I cant tell by how much yet. The return price now is approximately 10600 pts, which would be about 250 pts from Valencia or Barcelona to Ibiza or Mallorca, and this is the off season. I might or might not be able to go depending how much the summer fares are.

10 December, 2000

Summer in Spain is starting to pan out. I’ve decided that I will stay mainly in Andalucia. In between exploring hostels close to the beach, I will also visit Cordoba, Ronda and Granada. I will also spend a few days in Madrid (including a visit to Toledo) and Barcelona. I probably wont go to La Tomatina like I did in 1998. I’ve already started to set up my budget. I plan to leave right after the Street Theatre Festival in Kraków is over (that should be 9 July). I can’t wait!

3 December, 2000

I’ve been thinking about next summer again. I think I’m going to spend it in Spain. I want to spend most of the time at the beach, something I wanted to do, but wasn’t able to last summer. Maybe I’ll go back to the great hostel on the beach I stayed at in 1998. I could spend a couple of weeks there then go sightseeing for a couple weeks, and then come back to that hostel. It could be where I base myself. Spain shouldn’t be too expensive if I don’t eat out a lot. However, I will budget so that I will be able to have paella once. YUMM!!

I think that for the winter holidays, 27 January – 11 February, I will go to the Baltics. After all, Lithuania is only 5 hours from me. I rush to see everything, but maybe most of what I want to see in Lithuania and parts of Latvia. I could catch the bus to Vilnius after work on 26 January.

2 December, 2000

I’ve found a few small hotels and emailed them about reservations in both Hamburg and Lübeck, Germany. I’m now thinking that I will go to Hamburg 24 – 27 December and then Lübeck for the rest of the trip, going to Neumünster early in the day that I will meet my friends, then leaving that evening for Poland.

30 November, 2000

I’ve been busy trying to book my trip to Germany over the internet. I’ve been in contact with hostels in Neumünster, Hamburg, Kiel, and Lübeck. All of them are closed 24 – 25 December. I’m now trying to find a hotel to stay in for those two nights. After that, I should be able to get a hostel either in Kiel or Lübeck. The Neumünster hostel is full from the day it reopens until after the beginning of the year. That is a slight problem, as that is where I am meeting my friends on 30 December, before catching a bus back to Poland.

22 November, 2000

I’m starting to plan out a route for next summer. I didn’t get to go to the Baltics, Russia and Ukraine last summer as I went back to the USA. I am still thinking of going, possibly next summer, but I haven’t decided yet. The cost of a Ukraine visa will be about $100 US and a Russian visa will be about $35 US. That’s $135 just to be able to enter the country not to mention the mound of paperwork involved with both. That would equal 620zl, which is enough to pay for a month of hostels in Poland for the summer (divided by 30 days, that would be 20.66zl per day), or a round trip bus ticket to Spain plus a few nights of accommodations.

12 January, 2000

I’ve started to work on a travel route for this summer. I plan on developing two routes, one in case I am able to travel for two months, and a backup plan for in case I can only travel for one month. I as of now, I am thinking that I will purchase an Eurolines (bus) pass. A one-month pass cost 1190zl, and a two-month pass cost 1430zl. That appears to be much less expensive than an Interrail pass (the cost of a one-month Interrail pass is the same as a two-month Eurolines Pass). I have emailed Eurolines for a detailed time schedule to be sent to me so I can plan better, as well as clarification on a few of their “rules” for the pass. As much as I prefer train travel, I can’t justify the cost of the train pass.

Here is what I am thinking so far about my summer trip:

Regardless of whether I do the one or two-month trip, I will start in Poland do a loop of Lithuania (Vilnius and Trakai)- Latvia (Riga and Jurmala)-Estonia (Tallinn, Tartu, and Pärnu)-Finland (Helsinki )-Russia (Vyborg-St. Petersburg-Moscow). I am not exactly sure what part I will visit first (I might go to St. Petersburg first (via Vilnius), as their White Nights festival is the last 10 days of June) That loop should take me about 2 weeks I will probably end up back in Poland.

Continuing on with a two month trip:

I am thinking about going down through Poland and Slovakia to Budapest for a night or two (I still love that city). Then, on to Romania (Bucharest), Bulgaria (Sofia) and down to Turkey (Istanbul). Or, I might go from Poland to Prague (I still love that city also), Budapest, and them down to the Croatian coast (via Zagreb). Or, there are a few other options. I am glad that I still have 5 months to decide.

22 December, 1999

Just a few more things to add. I remembered I also want to get to Bruges, the Balearic Islands, and the Grand Canaries (the latter two are areas of Spain).

Also, I saw something on the Travel Channel about Switzerland having a fantastic alpine train system that I would like to explore sometime (the Alps, not the trains).

What I might do this summer is to get to London to book a few last minute travel deals. I did that last summer with Bulgaria and it worked out very well.

Here are the parts of India I have heard about and want to visit: Goa, Punjab, Delhi, and Calcutta.

18 December, 1999

I hope to travel Europe again this summer. I won’t make a lot of money in Poland, but I hope to save enough to go out for a couple months. After living in Europe for 6 months (that will be May 16, 2000), I will be eligible for an Interrail (train) Pass. It’s cheaper and much more extensive than a Eurail Pass (a train pass for non-Europeans). However, I also have to compare that to the price of an Eurolines (bus) Pass. Even though I much prefer train travel, I would consider bus travel if there was a significant difference in price. Also, some trains require a supplement to be paid for a seat reservation, and that is never required on buses.

I would love to get back to Spain and explore a lot of what I didn’t have time to see when I was there before. I would love to get back to London and Paris. What a great cities. I also hope visit friends in Amsterdam, Berne, and Luxembourg. I want to finally get to Venice as well as explore a lot of Croatia. Dubrovnik has been on my list of places to see for many years (I been fascinated with it every since I first read about it more than 15 years ago). I also need to make it to Stockholm, and, since I would be in Scandinavia again, I would have to get back to Norway (especially Bergen) and Denmark, as well as start exploring Finland.

I would also like to explore more of the east. The Baltics are within easy reach of where I am now, as is Russia. I feel visits to Moscow and St. Petersburg coming on this summer. I haven’t been to Romania yet either. Will I ever finally get tired of exploring Europe and be able to move on ? It might be a while before that happens.

However, when it does, India is on the top of my long list of places to visit. There is a (don’t laugh) cooking show on BBC World that has an Indian lady (Mahrud Jaffrey) going around India and cooking local dishes from different parts of that country. The main reason I watch it is because she visits many different parts of India and she also explores different cities and towns as well as different temples and monuments. What a fascinating country.

I would also love to get to the Middle East. I would love to see the holy sights of Israel, the Pyramids and Valley of the Gods in Egypt, as well as Damascus, Syria, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and the Petra region of Jordan.