Monday, May 2, 2011
First 2 Countries Pictures
Three countries+10 days= :)
Becca and I started our "fly by the seat of our pants" adventures through 3 different cities in 3 different countries at the Tampere, Finland airport. We arrived to find the airport was about the size of a small warehouse and looked like a bunch of portable classrooms duck taped together to make a terminal. We checked our bags and made our way to the restaurant section of the airport for a beer before our flight. Unfortunately for the both of us, we had to say a premature goodbye to our assistant coach Izmo that same morning, he wasn't going to be around when were to be back, to say the least we were sad and already missing him. Therefore the two beers we decided to purchase were just what the doctor ordered in that situation. Boarded the flight and were on our way to our first stop, Frankfurt, Germany.
Touching down in at the Frankfurt-hahn airport (approximately 2 hours by bus from the center) to the realization that the snow had melted long before we had gotten there and now it was what we thought was hot. The actual temperature was around 65-70, felt hot to us. With squinted eyes and already sweating armpits we de-planned, got our bags, grabbed a quick bite and headed to the bus for our 2 hour ride into the city. My dad was very kind to help us out with accommodations during our stay in Frankfurt, so our destination when we got to the central rail station was to head to the Marriot...which was 15 minutes walking down the main road. I had recently bought a new pair of high top shoes that I am in love with and thought it would be a good time to wear them...I was so wrong. By the time we got to the lobby of the hotel, I was hobbling around on the outsides of both feet, trying not to look like I was in extreme pain. What we didn't know was that there was a music trade show going on in the city at the time. There were a bunch of rocker style people walking around and a few world class musicians hanging out, some in our hotel. What we were not expecting was that the woman checking us in handing us an executive lounge key and then telling us that they were having happy hour at the moment...my heart just skipped a beat. We quickly got settled into our room, showered and headed up to the Exec lounge. They were serving food as well so we decided to eat a bit and have a couple drinks before we went out. To make a long story short, we ended our night at a salsa club with a world class Italian accordion player. I also met this man who apparently plays in a popular Hungarian heavy metal band, interesting night to say the least.
The next morning Becca and I rose to a misty hang over. We headed up stairs for a wonderful breakfast, ate as much as we could to last us through the day, showered and headed out for the day of exploring Frankfurt. Walked to the old town Romerberg via the Rhine river. It was a beautiful day, we got very lucky with the weather while we were there, it was warm and sunny the entire time. The buildings that surrounded us were a mixture of old and new. It was interesting to look at the skyline and see much older buildings shadowed by high rises. The rivers edge was the destination of our spontaneous afternoon picnic, which wasn't an uncommon idea among the residence of Frankfurt on that beautiful day. After the impromptu picnic we headed back to the hotel pretty exhausted from the days walking tour of the city and the partying that was had the night before. There was a sauna and steam room in the gym at the hotel which we decided to take advantage of, I am so glad we did. Relaxed and super tired we headed upstairs to eat and drink a little at the happy hour only to come back to our room, settle into our beds and rent a movie. I actually fell asleep half way through the movie with how tired I was. Plus the next morning we had a long long day so it was good we stayed in that night.
Woke up at 6:30am, took a quick shower and headed to the train station on foot. Being that it was a Saturday, there weren't very many people on the street which was great for us, since we were hauling our big bags. Got to the station and realized were all the people were, they were in the train station. Today we were on our way to Klagenfurt, Austria to see our guy friends who were playing volleyball there. Our time on the train was to accumulate up to 9 hours, yess! The ride wasn't that bad though, there was a lot to see and it was yet another beautiful day. Slept a little but the movement of the train kept me awake. Once we got close to Klagenfurt we both changed into something more appropriate for the match we were going to see. One of our mutual friends, Jake, gave my detailed directions on how to get to their gym from the station. Their match wasn't until 6 and we arrived at 5:20 so I believed we could afford to take our time. We grabbed a small sandwich each and some water then headed out on our trek. I must have read his directions wrong because we ended up walking 2 kilometers in the wrong direction. We gave up at a gas station and opted to call a taxi. Becca and I were a little tired and frustrated about going in the wrong direction that we also purchased beers while we waited for our savior to come get us. We arrived at the gym laughing about the whole situation and literally seeing where we had gone wrong. Walking inside the gym we were stopped by this guy who asked if we were Becca and Whitney. As he went to get something, we wondered what we had done wrong this time only to realize he was bringing back two white roses, from Jake for us both. He told us if we needed anything, beer, food, anything to let him know, so I said that we would love a beer when we got out of the bathroom. Walked into the gym and continued to watch our boys unfortunately lose the match. Only got to see two sets since we were 30 minutes late. We met up with one of our friends girlfriends who was visiting from the states, while we waited for them to shower and come out from the locker room.
A small side story: Becca went to college with Jake and Matt. I met Matt for the first time at a mixed adults volleyball game happening every wednesday in El Segundo last summer. I was introduced to Jake at the same volleyball night but later on in the summer. I have been talking to Jake on skype a lot ever since then. Needless to say, it was a very happy reunion for us all.
I got to meet a lot of the guys that I had been hearing so much about and one turned out to be the funniest Austrian I have ever met. I also met their famously confusing and weird coach, turns out, he was just the person I thought he was, no surprise there. We all piled into his van, some of us sitting on laps, and headed back to the boys flat in Viktring, 30 minutes away. Becca and I showered quickly, threw on some going out clothes and then headed to the bar the guys always go to. The boys decided to buy a huge over sized bottle of Jameson for the back room, which is where we were. Filled our glasses with Whiskey and coke, continued to drink in celebration of the boys being done with their season. The night was a glorious one thats for sure. The next day, Matt, Jake, Aryl, Becca, and myself walked to the Monostary located a couple blocks from where they lived. It was such a beautiful day for a walk and plus the trees were showing themselves in full bloom. Afterward we walked up to a restaurant the guys swore by and had a great meal outside on the patio in the sun. Heading back to their flat, Jake mentioned the lake near the town which was about a 30 minute walk, being that I didn't want to go inside and I was looking to hang out with Jake a bit one on one, I was down for that walk. We ended up walking down to and around the lake for about 2 hours, well worth the sore feet later. Got back to the house and was told it was to be a wine night, so perfect after the day of walking around in the sun was over. We decided on a movie that night which was a good call since the night before was a long one of partying.
Visiting the center of Klagenfurt was top of the list the next morning. We headed out fairly early, stopping to get a chocolate dipped croissant on the way. The center was decorated in time for Easter weekend. There were many kiosks selling wooden bunnies, elaborately decorated eggs, fake colorful birds, countless assortments of jewelry, and food. The trees were adorned with egg ornaments and the streets were lined with egg lights. Needless to say they were ready for Easter. We met up with Aryl and Matt for a afternoon drink. I must say the European lifestyle is something to be valued, relaxing outside with coffee or beer at any time of the day is the norm. Im going to miss that about Europe. After the drink in the center we decided to make it sort of a sunday funday, only it was monday instead. The guys took us to a "locals only" bar, had a drink then traveled to the next bar which was the same bar we went to 2 nights before. A few drinking games later we were home getting ready for the night. Ate an amazing Italian dinner at a restaurant in Viktring, got ready, and headed out for night two in Klagenfurt. We went back to the bar we were at before and proceeded to have one of the best nights of the trip. The owner of the bar handed the keys over to a bartender and said to lock up when we were finished….we left at 5am that morning, great night! Our last couple hours of the trip were spent laying around and packing for Becca and my next adventure, London. We said our goodbyes to everyone and headed to the airport. Luckily Jake came, so he and I were able to say a proper goodbye :) London here we come.
*Pictures of Frankfurt and Klagenfurt are on the next blog page.
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