Le voyage « Being the accounts of a certain teenage girl

Home Again Home Again Giggy Gig

August 1, 2009, 3:02 am
Filed under: Books, Le voyage | Tags: airport, bed, book, cough, deprived, fall, flu, heathrow, home, london, shelf, sick, sleep, sneeze, space, swine, traveling, unpacking

I am so glad to be back home even though I am incredibly unaccustomed to the humidity. The flight was pretty uneventful though we were waiting in Heathrow London Airport for 4 hours. Because of the outbreak of swine flu in England, I was a bit more paranoid about germs than usual and when ever the opportunity to wash my hands presented itself I took it. Every time I heard someone cough or sneeze I subconsciously felt myself inch away from that person. I haven’t felt sick yet so I’m going to take that as a good sign so far

There is probably nothing better than sleeping in your own bed after a long time away from home. When we got home after a 4 hour drive down from D.C. it was 2:30 in the morning and I felt like the walking dead, moving my feet but not really thinking. I crawled into bed shortly after walking (or should I say staggering?) through the door, having not retrieved the the luggage from the car or brushed my teeth. A sense of peaceful euphoria came over me as I pulled my covers up to my chin and let the waves of sleep wash over me.

Now all that’s left to do is to unpack my bags and put everything away. Unpacking for me is no fun because it is just cleaning in disguise but with a twist. Instead of just placing pieces of disorder back into their respective place like regular cleaning, you have to find entirely new places to put things. Take for example, my shrinking bookcase. I brought back some books that I liked from Prague but when I tried to put them away I found that I barely had any space for them. This does not bode well for my collection of books that are physically attractive yet otherwise uninteresting.

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Potty? I think not

July 26, 2009, 9:14 pm
Filed under: Le voyage | Tags: bathroom, fee, funny, go, indoor, now, pee, plumbing, run, shrubbries

Today I ran in to one of those problems that you don’t know exist until you happen to stumble across it; or in my case run blindly into it rather quickly while trying to keep yourself composed. It’s not as if I was being chasing by a group of invisible demons but it comes pretty close. Grandpa took us out to town to introduce us to a whole part of the city that we’ve never seen before, this including the recently built mall in the area. I wandered around this gargantuan mall (Five stories high with stores from all around the world) with a gape-mouthed expression on my face trying to take it all in when suddenly I was struck with the most desperate need to go. The worst part was that it wasn’t the kind of thing that went away with a little wiggle; this was one of those if-you-don’t-locate-the-proper-facilities-soon-you’ll-have-a-very-unsightly-accident things to put it bluntly.

As you can imagine I made it my top priority to find a restroom a.s.a.p.; I set world records racing through the metro(because the mall was connected to it. Now that’s class ^_^) in search of one. During the final leg of my mission, with my goal in sight, I was intercepted by a woman at the door. I don’t know how it slipped my mind, maybe because of the heat of the moment, but I totally forgot about the bathroom fee in Prague. It works quite simply; you pay the attendant a certain amount of money (it varies depending on how popular the spot is) and they give you toilet paper. A fair exchange in my mind if not a bit annoying, and expensive. Frustrated, I had to run back to Grandpa to get the required amount, having spent the last of my money a looong time ago. Thank god for indoor plumbing.

It’s not as if this concept is new to me, like I said it just slipped my mind. I remember one time this one guy was charging females more than males, boy did that ruffle my feathers. After some angry side comment and a few dirty looks, I turned and took my business elsewhere. Thank god for shrubberies.

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Bizarre Bazaar

July 23, 2009, 1:49 pm
Filed under: Le voyage | Tags: bazaar, bizarre, forever, mood, sale, selling, shopping, things, waiting, yard

I’ve been in a yard saling mood lately but unfortunately most of the people living in the area don’t have a yard to sell things on. So my Dad thought that he’d take me to a couple of bazaars around town. A bazaar is pretty much a yard sale under a roof but with some really random stuff. We went to a bazaar that was selling beer cosies from all over the Czech Republic and for a pretty penny too. Once we got into the bazaar shopping mood Dad told me about this one near the zoo that sold nearly everything but the kitchen sink. Being slightly obsessed with the whole thing, I agreed wholeheartedly that we should go as soon as possible.

The problem then became actually getting into the bazaar. We rode a few days ago to check it out but the shop was closed. Yesterday before we went on our historic tram ride we walked by again but the door was closed with a hastily made sticker on the door saying the owner was out on lunch break and would be back at 2 o’ clock. It was 2:30 when we walked by. Today was our third attempt to visit the shop and to about and hour or so I thought that we were unsuccessful yet again.

We left the house around 10-ish, an educated guess because neither Dad or I could remember what time the bazaar opened for it opened at a different time everyday of the week. As it turned out that on Wednesdays the store opened at 10:30 so we had some time to kill before it opened. After a slow walk around the area (there happened to be another bazaar that we looked at not to far from the one we were persistently staking out that had some nice stuff) and at 10:38 we were back at the front door of the store, still as stubbornly padlocked as it was when we left. Figuring that the lazy store owner would show up eventually, Dad and I went for coffee at the cafe across the street. When we finished our cups of espresso at 11:10 we went back to the bazaar. This time there was another sticker on the door saying he’d be back in 15 minutes… I almost lost it ^-^’ It was quite frustrating because I saw all this interesting stuff on the other side of the window and there was little hope of getting to it. I’ve never stalked anything before but I’m sure that waiting outside the store for the man with a key to arrive is diffinately up there. Just as I was about to suggest that we leave, a rather voluminous man waddled down the street and opened the door, finally. It was 11:20. As you can imagine we practically pushed him out of the way in our haste to get in, just in case he decided to take another break.

The store itself was incredibly dusty, coating some of the things on display in at least an inch of dust. After digging through the merchandise the tips of my fingers were black with the stuff (Don’t let the dust bunnies get you!!) Dad was right with the amount of random stuff; there were small souvenirs from all over the globe and in the back a few sets of hubcabs (which I’m pretty sure got there illegaly) One thing that really catch my eye was this little ceramic snake about the size of a dollar coin. When I went to pay the man for it (he was probably already counting the minutes to lunch) he gave it to me for free. All in all I think that it was worth the prolonged wait.

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Tram Time

July 22, 2009, 8:50 pm
Filed under: Le voyage | Tags: brother, excited, fun, little, metro, round, seeing, sight, slang, tram, trip

Today, my little brother Willy got to taste of the city on board one of the historic trams that circulate through Prague every hour and show you what riding a tram a hundred years ago was like. They work like any other tram in service except that the only place where you can come aboard is at the tram shed, the first stop of the route. Besides that you can leave the tram at any of the stops along the way. The main purpose of our trip was to let Willy ride on the metro and the trains, which he loves with the burning passion of three suns. In his own little Willy slang he dubbed the metro “tunnel train” and the tram “sun train”. When our tram pulled into the station he could barely keep himself from jumping up and down.

The “sun train” made a loose circle around Prague giving any tourists on board (like me *cough cough*) a great chance to take pictures of the city. While I was shooting pictures like crazy I thought that I might as well give you something the other trams to compare with what I rode in today. The round pill-like one is the kind of tram that I am most familiar with because it’s the kind that I have been riding all my life. The sleek turbo one is seemingly a new addition to the tram family and is most likely the kind of tram that I will be riding in the future.

: Past

: Present

: Future

: Pan Průvodčí

: The Interloper

: Ponderous Thoughts

: Strangely

: Look up

: Ohhh…

: Alley way

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Karlovy Vary

July 21, 2009, 9:28 pm
Filed under: Le voyage, Uncategorized | Tags: activity, awful, Czech, drinking, fountain, health, karlovy, metal, mineral, mug, myth, Republic, taste, vary, volcano, water

Every city has something that it’s famous for; in Plzeň it’s the beer, in Prague it’s the churches and cathedrals. For the city that we visited today, Karlovy Vary, it’s the water. Near the northern border of the Czech Republic, nestled in a wooded valley lies the scenic town of Karlovy Vary. This town sits on a natural hot spring that is said to have special health effects to those who drink it. Back in the 17th century when the royal families would take their summer tours of Europe Karlovy Vary was on the list. They would stop here to recuperate from the trials of traveling and to soak in the minerals of the “magic water”; exactly why we decided to take the trip.

We arrived in Karlovy Vary after battling through semi-standtill traffic and made our way to where the springs meet the surface. The water comes up from the ground in drinking fountains that are located in various spots of the town though they are mostly cluttered together. Each of the fountains are different and depending on which one you drink from determine the temperature of the water and the kind of minerals you take in.

The proper etiquette for drinking from one of these fountains is to buy one of the mugs that were available for sale in one of the many knick knack stores lining the town. It’s looked down upon to bring your own glass (They’ve got to make money some how ) These mugs ranged from sizes a little larger than thimbles to mugs the that could double as beer cups. The one thing that they all had in common was this straw-like attachment so that you could sip the water that you collected from the fountains. Grandpa bought this really cute pink one for me to use that happened to fit perfectly into the pocket of my jacket (it was a sign!) I was genuinely excited to sample some of this legendary water and was a bit impatient when I had to preform the customary mug-washing to get rid of the dust and any other unwanted small things. As I took a sip from my souvenir mug my tongue was greeted with an onslaught of tastes, and not many of them good. The water is, of course, made of all-natural minerals and is heated by volcanic activity which also adds a sulfuric taste so when you drink it the water kind of tastes like blood; salty, warm, and tasting of metal. The first sip that I took almost resulted in a spitting up. I was amazed how some of the older people present drank it like it was a coke or a soda, not some heated cocktail laced with funky-tasting minerals. Barely anybody I saw drank it with a grimace on their face, me not being one of them. Keeping in mind the mythical properties, I choked down two mugs of the stuff I wondered what magical health changes I’d witness in my body.

: Rear view Gone

: Posh Villa

: Drinking Plaza

: Didgeridoo Dude

: Water Bearer

: Telegraf

: Together

: Countryside I

: Countryside II

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Up the Petřín Tower

July 17, 2009, 10:48 am
Filed under: Le voyage | Tags: bells, climb, hot, metro, Petřín, Prague, praha, tired, toll, tower, tram, travel, trip, weather

You know those elliptical machines found in some YMCAs that act like a never ending stair case from some bad horror movie so that you can exercise those thigh muscles? Those cramps that you feel after working on one of those things for a while are the exactly the same as the ones you get from actually climbing up real steps. Amazing isn’t it? Believe it or not we have our very own 1/5 scale model of the Eiffel Tower here in Prague and I climbed it today. Petřín, as it is called, sits on a nice sloping hill (or should I say sheer cliff?) surrounded by recreational parks. To get to the top of Petřín you have to hike up 300 steps, which may not sound like a lot but really is. Do I sound sore today today? Because I really am (hahaha punny)

I went on the little trip with just my sister’s and my Dad (Grandpa, probably having more sense then the lot of us put together stayed home) We took the long way around so that we could ride one of the longest escalators that I’ve ever seen. The weather was hotter today than it has been in a long time so we had to periodically stop for ice cream now and then to ward away the “bad travel vibes” I got to ride on the lanovka, a train that is built to be able to go up the side of a steep hill, to conserve my energy for the climb ahead. Going up Petřín wasn’t really so bad. Near the top of the tower there was a nice breeze blowing that kept you cooled off as you enjoyed the view of the city below; my Dad took some really nice bird’s eye view shots. It was when you got to the bottom that the jelly legs began to kick in and on wobbly legs we made our way to a nearby monastery. Quite by accident, we timed our arrival at the strike of noon and were able to hear the bells toll the hour (for five minutes) If you’ve ever hear church bells ring then you know that it’s kind of a surreal experience to listen to the bells hum and chime together. When after they had finished I could still hear the faint ringing caused by the final vibrations of the bell. Even thought I was tired like nobody’s business I found that I could still appreciate the roses on the side on the road.

: Up, up, up… up

: Daaaad

: In the Shadows of Giants

: Brochure Photo

: Castle Aloft

: Karlův Most

: Bell Tower

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Flea Market?

July 16, 2009, 8:27 pm
Filed under: Le voyage | Tags: flea, haggle, lions, market, money, pounce, Prague, shopping, vendors

Why are flea markets called flea markets? Because fleas don’t really have anything to do with markets, do they? But anyways, today we visited the flea market with my Dad in tow, newly arrived from Kuala Lumpur. This giant flea market spanned a huge area, encompassing several empty lots and any surrounding buildings. Most of the stall owners were Vietnamese and, dare I say it, had really funny accents in Czech. We cruised through the stalls looking at the merchandise, which was all surprisingly similar from stall to stall, while at the same time trying to dodge the steely grips of the owners. I have to hand it to those Vietnamese, never have I felt so overwhelmed while shopping until now. If I were to simply point out a nice shirt to my sister, the stall owner would immediately come over and start negotiating prices. If I picked up a watch that I thought was cool the stall owner would whip out five more like it each in a different color. As we walked through the crowded side streets of the market they pounced on us like a lion would to a zebra. After carefully placing themselves in a position that would make passing rather difficult, the vendor would then ask you a series of questions. These questions ranged from every like “Can I help you?” (Which in their accents sounded like can I have you?) to “I have many things in the back come, would you come and see?” If you politely refused to answer their questions then they took your silence as confusion and tried again in a different language. We practically had to wrestle our way past, leaving a trail of disgruntled vendors in our wake.

I honestly enjoyed haggling with the vendors. Andy probably did the best out of all of us in haggling her purchase. She saw a belt that caught her eye and had come closer to look. *Que the vendor descending for the kill* The guy wanted 150 for the belt and wouldn’t take any less but Andy only had 100 to spend. When she told him that the vendor acted offended (or maybe he really was) and began to list the notable qualities of the belt. Without the money to pay to it Andy lost interest and began to walk away. This was when the vendor panicked and called after her that he’d take 100 and the purchase was made. Of course when the guy held out his hand for the money Andy realized that she only had 75 and not wanting to push the poor guy over the edge I had to dug into my pockets for the remaining 25. What a good girl am I…

Shopping we go

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Butterfly Bones

July 14, 2009, 5:17 pm
Filed under: Le voyage | Tags: bees, bugs, bush, butterfly, Czech, flowers, house, insects, plzeň, trip, vacation, voyage, weekend

At my Grandparents weekend house there is a bush that seems to draw every flying insect within a half mile radius. This bush is an airport for at least 10 different species of bugs (though I don’t know if my head count was very accurate) including bees, wasps, ants, and butterflies. I must confess that I do not know the name of said bush but I did spend a greater part of this afternoon sitting near it, listening to the bugs and thinking. When you stand four feet away from the bush, you can hear the constant buzzing of the bees. I read somewhere that the general bee population of the world has dropped 40% in the last few years and as I watched countless bees dutifully pollinating the bush I couldn’t help but think that maybe the bees have Czech relatives too.

The best insects were, of course, the butterflies. I used the last of the cameras battery snapping shots of butterflies fluttering from flower to flower. Their delicate way of moving around makes them fascinating to watch. I myself have a slight butterfly obsession and know a bunch of random facts about them like, for example, did you know that every butterfly has six bones in their bodies? One of my favorites though was a certain little, brown butterfly. Unlike some of the other butterflies who had fluorescent spots on their wings (They were pretty too though) this butterfly was monochromatic with the typical pattern on his wings. Because of his bland coloring, I almost looked right over him but then his left wing caught my eye. Something had tried to take a bite out of this poor butterfly and missed, seemingly settling for the chunk of wing they got instead. That chunk was about a third of the butterfly’s wing in the space of a ragged semicircle hole. The butterfly’s flaw was beautiful in my eyes because it defined the rules of symmetry and not to mention the rules of survival. All butterflies are symmetric or, for you non-art students, would be the same on both sides if you split it in half. The hole in the wing provided artistic relief from the other side of the butterfly. I would have loved to take a picture of this butterfly but, alas the camera ran out of juice before I spotted him.