I was staying with a wonderful family of three. They were responsible for my fantastic stay. They had ten days left before they had to move House. Ten stressful days of packing, cleaning and preparing the House and garden for the next lodgers.

Via WorkAway, I ended up volunteering and helping them out. It was great fun – loads of work, but even that was satisfying. And, in between the lugging of heavy boxes and the weeding, the family went out of their way to show me the surroundings and introduce me to the Swiss way of life.

They took me up the Fribourg mountains, along a trail that belongs in romanticised novels of green slopes, massive bell-bearing cows and mud. Loads of glorious mud. And Amanda and I snuck out for some chocolate fondue – the best in the world, no doubt about it!

And Montreux was a wonderful town to explore, set on the lake, with mountains all around (like the scene from Jurassic Park I when they approach the Island for the first time and you see the jagged mountains, or maybe that's just me).

And everything was ridiculously expensive. Geneve is actually ranked as the forth most expensive city in the world – and I really do not want to visit the top three; I felt ripped off!

But then to redeem it, Geneve also has the UN headquarters (although what that three-legged chair is all about, I have no clue!

And the beautiful lake and jet.

And pianos scattered around public areas where musicians, talented or otherwise, can entertain passers-by. So it's not all bad. There's also a beautiful cathedral, some canons that I stumbled upon whose significance I am still uncertain of, and a charming old man whom I asked to take a photo of me and who promptly offered up his son as my 'arm candy'. :D

Poor guy. He was really embarrassed.

Then there was the rather entertaining series of protest-comics displayed along the lake – even one by Zapiro, a South African cartoonist.

I was staying with, surprise surprise, a guy who works at a bank. It was his first time hosting, and he did really well! He went out of his way to make sure I was comfortable and took me out to dinner by the lake with some friends.

The following day I was accosted by a girl trying to get interviews from people about Geneve. Like an idiot, I felt sorry for her and decided to participate in the survey.... Forty-five minutes later I was still trying to explain that, “Yes, I have honestly been travelling for the past several months, and, I do actually have enough knowledge of other metropolitan cities to be able to rank Geneve, and, no, I do not want to tell you exactly what my plans for Geneve are as I honestly do not have any plans, and, and, and...”

I got rather frustrated with her down-the-nose attitude, to tell you the truth.
]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=304448 0 46.2 6.1666667 Montpelier was quite a spontaneous decision. I was fortunate enough to get a few last-minute hosts, one of them being Pat, a wonderful guy who met me at the train station. I was rather exhausted the first evening, so an early bed was apt.

The following day I met up with another couchsurfer who showed me around the city, the touristy and the not-so-touristy spots – one of which included a trip up an elevator coated in graffiti to the roof of a dilapidated apartment with the best view of the city imaginable.

I then had the comical experience of ordering a baguette in a garble of Spanish and French: “Ola! erm, uh. Bonjour. Uno... baguette, por favour - uh, merci. Uh, s'il vous plaît. Uh...” Oh, dear.... The man then proceeded to respond in perfect English.

Moving swiftly along. Montpelier was beautiful. Rue Foch in particular, with the beautiful triumphal arch and garden (although I could only see the botanical garden from the outside as it was closed).

I then finally accepted the fact that my shoes were a lost cause, gave in and bought some new ones from a cheap thrift store.

A few moments later I was approached by a man, who had been standing just opposite me. "Gaudi's work really is extraordinary, isn't it?"

Gaudi? Hmmm. That name did sound familiar and the man seemed to say it like one would Raphael or Da Vinci, so I nodded, did my whole goofy smile thing, and mumbled, "Yeah. It really is."

Thankfully the man then launched into all the details of his work - actually teaching art, so Gaudi's work was particularly special to him. I felt a bit of an ignoramus, by anyway.

My tour started pretty soon after that, and I got chatting to a German girl, Melly, who is doing ERASMAS in Barcelona. And then I met two guys, SOUTH AFRICAN GUYS!!! And it took me ages to realise they were from home, but then I saw his Springbok hat!

I nearly died.

Anyway, the tour was fantastic. An overload of information, but at least I learnt who Gaudi was. We were also saw a mansion in which a king died of viagra overdose (actually herbs given to him to induce *ahem* gave him stomach problems, but a viagra overdose is much more amusing).

That night I went to a couchsurfing event - meeting in a tiny pub in the backstreets of Barcelona, and I met loads of people, including a British guy, Nick. He was only there for a day (on a business trip, actually), but we ended up trawling through the streets in the middle of the night.

Then I realised the metro in Barcelona shuts at midnight on Thursdays.... Remember how I mentioned how far out of the centre my hostel was? Yup. SCREWED.

I ended up staying out all night (thank Jungle Bars that pubs and clubs actually stay open all that time), and I think Nick was hungover for his business meeting, but anyway. I arrived at my hostel feeling shattered, the guy there (luckily one I'd been chatting to earlier) burst out laughing and, even though I was meant to check out, led me to a bed downstairs that the staff use.

I collapsed.

Four in the afternoon I stumbled out, managed to find another hostel, make my way there and collapse again.

Then Rob called.

Oh, and it was pouring with rain by then.

I managed to drag myself out of bed, throw some clothes on, and make my way to Barceloneta tube stop. And there was Rob, with NO UMBRELLA, standing outside a off license alcohol store - typical. :D

We decided to risk the rain and make our way to Sagrada Familia - Gaudi's masterpiece of a basilica.

FIFTEEN EUROS. But worth every cent. Nature influenced all of Gaudi's work, and this is most visible inside. The massive pillars and curved ceiling makes it all congruent with what I imagine Elven architecture to be like. And the exterior is so detailed it would take forever to examine each figure - time we really didn't have while running around beneath an umbrella, dodging raindrops.

It's apparently only going to be finished in 2023. So that gives me another excuse to visit Barcelona again.

That night I went out with Rob and Charlie - Rob's housemate. Alcohol. So much alcohol. And I ended up crashing at their place (once again making my hostel stay redundant).

The next day, I just wandered around, down La Ramblas, along the beachfront, through the parks, before meeting up for a party on the beach.

And the water was so warm, even in the middle of the night!

So, all in all, Barcelona was a fantastic experience.]]> Sat, 11 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=303678 0 41.3833333 2.1833333

He also took me everywhere, showed me his favourite restaurants and clubs, took me for a delicious meal with his brother and then we went for a wonderful walk along the coast. It was beautiful!

The worst bit was saying goodbye. I hated that. ]]> Tue, 07 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=219111 0 39.4666667 -0.3666667

Probably the most beautiful place I have ever seen!

And it was my first hostel experience - absolutely wonderful. I stayed in the Cat's Hostel - chosen not only for it's name, but also for it's affordability (I am a backpacker, after all). It was brilliant! I stayed in a dorm of 12 beds, but that really didn't matter. A bed is a bed, all you need it for is sleep. Time in the hostel was spent socialising in the common room, the bar area and the Cat's cave (downstairs pub).

Time outside of the hostel was spent with various other travellers who I relished in blaming for our getting lost - again and again.

I met so many people! It was wonderful! The only problem was trying to remember everyone's name.

The first day I toured the area with two American guys, both studying architecture - which was great because I didn't miss any of the important buildings.

Honestly, I am quite terrible. Every city I arrive in, I know nothing about. The main attractions, the best museums, parks, etc. - I know nothing. So I definitely have been fortunate in the people I meet.

The following morning after a delicious bowl of cereal - no one really seems to understand just how much I love cereal and how rarely I get it while travelling - I joined the free hostel walking tour and ended up with a huge bunch of Americans.

Go to Madrid. Meet more Americans than Spanish. They weren't even together!

Anyway, we saw loads. The palace and the changing of the guards. The cathedral. Numerous other breath-taking buildings whose names I can't recall. Plazas. Parks. Protests in the main square. And more. I even managed to wade through a fountain to get to an Egyptian monument.

Later on, the Americans and I ended up scouring the area for a supermercados to buy some stuff for lunch. Needless to say, we couldn't find a single one of the thousands we'd seen earlier. Eventually we ended up going to a tiny corner shop and found everything we needed - wine, sangria, bread and stuff to go on the bread.

We then sat in one of the many stunning parks and had a picnic on the grass.

Quite lovely.

Then there was the Museo de Prado (free entry on Wednesday's between 18:00 and 20:00) with amazing artwork and statues - one in particular which stood out: a marble statue of a woman wearing a veil. I would never have thought it possible to carve something transparent, but this artist (Camillo Torreggiani) did so.

And then, as if the day hadn't been awesome enough, I decided to do a pub crawl. Really good fun. More because of the people I did it with than because it was anything all that amazing. I still can't dance, but I sure did have fun stomping on the toes of the guys I danced with. :D

I even ended up ditching my shoes. Not because of the alcohol consumption, but because one of them broke and I needed new ones anyway.

Somehow (I just followed an American guy) I managed to make it back to the hostel, where I went straight to sleep - no doubt dreaming of the bowl of cereal awaiting me in the morning.]]> Wed, 01 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=217275 0 40.4 -3.6833333 At the moment I am sitting on a night train to Madrid Chamartin station. I hate overnight trains. I never sleep properly, constantly need to maintain some semblance of consciousness. And the air is always stiflingly dry.

And it doesn't help that I'm sunburnt.

But, I still get the feeling of 'I'm going to somewhere new, I don't know what's there, I don't know what will happen, but I'm sure I'll love it'. And that makes it all worthwhile.

This morning, a hectic packing session was followed by a hectic cooking session - Kristi and I determined to serve a fabulous meal for our wonderful host. He has done so much for us, despite his not being here, and we honestly are grateful. Arriving at Faro station slightly short of time, I managed to grab a ticket and hop on a train. Then, I spent the rest of the train ride (all three hours and forty-five minutes of it) wondering where on earth I was setting off for, as I had somehow failed to ensure that I hopped onto the right train.

Nevertheless, despite that, I managed to get to Lisboa Oriente station a full two hours before the next leg of train travel. I am due to arrive in Madrid at nine in the morning, and I have decided to stay in a hostel for a change. Couchsurfing is absolutely wonderful, but I feel I need a bit of a break from it. And it will be fascinating to see what hostel life is like.

My incomparable planning has left the future completely unmapped. Generally, I think I'm heading for Sevilla in two days. Then Granada. Valencia (maybe, but people say it's not that great). And then Barcelona on the 9th - that date is more fixed. Then up to Montpellier for a few days and, finally, up to Geneva on the 14th (when my Eurail pass expires).

In Geneva, I plan to find some workaway for ten or so days, otherwise I'll just have to couch-hop to kill time while I wait for the parents to arrive and come and pay for everything and take control of the maps and tickets and money and everything. That'll be really nice. Relaxing. And I do kind of miss them. Maybe. Just a little.

:)]]> Mon, 30 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=217262 0 37.0166667 -7.9333333

My wonderful host, Miguel, has done everything to ensure that Kristi (another couchsurfer), her kid and I are taken care of. He's refused to let us pay for anything, even the mountains of food we acquired at the supermarket and, despite his setting off for Porto this weekend, has given us the keys to his apartment.

Needless to say, we spent all of yesterday and today at the beach, getting sunburnt. And, for the first time on this trip, the water was actually warm! I spent most of the time in amongst the waves or falling asleep on the sand.

This is a vacation, a proper vacation. No one needs to tell me how lucky I am.

]]> Fri, 27 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=216075 0 37.0166667 -7.9333333 Sintra is, as Hans Christian Anderson put it, "the most beautiful place in Portugal. It is where fairytales live. Castles and forests and parks and lakes and hidden torrets and mossy stone walls and cobbled streets. The hike up to the castle was highly entertaining as I soon discovered that flip-flops were not invented for high gradient hiking. Slipping and sliding and losing the odd shoe here and there, nearly knocking a tourist over one of the walls, and eventually I made it to the top - where they charged me 6 euros...

At first I was ranting. SIX euros. What the hell would be worth six euros? It seemed ridiculous!

But then I climbed up the stone stairs and looked over the wall, saw the view and realised, Oh, so this is what is worth six euros.

From the top I could actually see numerous castles and palaces scattered in the overgrown forests surround the hill. And I could see for miles and miles. The Moorish Castle - probably the most worthwhile tourist expendature that I have ever seen. I just wanted to settle down there, pull out my notebook and start writing about knights and chivalry and quests and dragons and every other fantastical thing you can imagine. {

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And then I tried to find my way back to the town centre, and again, I got lost and ended up with this lovely guy who walked me right to the centre (with a minor detour into a park because he wanted to show me the view). And there I ate a travesseiro - yet another delicious pastry that Portugal has to offer.

That evening, I ended up going with Rui for a wonderful tour through the hidden spots of Lisbon, seeing the best views, drinking kyporinyas and beers as we walked through streets where the nightlife was just beginning, sliding down handrails, and taking loads of photos (the latter was mainly on my part).

Afterwards it was time for the feature of the night... Brazilian dancing.

And I learned something. Dancing is not my forte. Definitely not. But it was great fun anyway and lovely to watch! But, with the heat, after five seconds of being on the dance floor, everyone was sweating buckets! We ended up hitching the fan so it remained facing in our direction.

All in all, Lisbon has been a pretty fantastic experience. But I need to leave Portugal soon, very soon. This food is way too good. I think my last stop in Portugal is going to be Faro, and I'm heading there tomorrow. It's by the coast (the actual coast), so it should have some great beaches. And then I'll re-enter Spain and make my way up to Barcelona, where I will go and annoy Robert. That should be fun.
]]> Tue, 24 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=216072 0 38.8 -9.3833333 I arrived in Lisbon, full of expectations: it's one of the main tourist destinations in Portugal, so there must be something worthwhile, right? Exactly.

So I headed for the metro station, looked at the tube map, and realised that I had absolutely no idea where to go for any of the 'attractions'.

I chose a random stop and headed out into the heat. I was on a main road, so that seemed as good a place as any to start my adventure. I would just find a tourist information office and go on from there. Well, that was my plan.

"Peldonna... disculp... er... English?" Topped off with a helpless look on my face. "Turisma? Er...."

Then the guy responded, in perfect English, "You'd have better luck finding a tourist office in the city centre." He gave me a grin and pulled me out of the road....

Yes, I had been asking someone directions while standing in the middle of a street. I am actually that oblivious.

Anyway, what the guy had failed to tell me was where the city centre actually was. I hopped back on the metro, tried another spot right on the coast - or, rather, what I thought was the coast.

I stepped out, found the shore and ended up chatting to this old couple, and after a while I announced that I absolutely adored the ocean.... It's a river. To be fair, it is a very large river and it is really near the coast, but still. You can imagine how stupid I felt when they corrected me.

Then, I left to go and meet my new host. Rui, who then provided me with maps (tourist maps, clearly marking the tourist attractions), and I was all geared up for an afternoon of exploration.

With the map, I actually discovered which tube stop was in the centre. And then I realised that I had been walking around (almost in circles) around the centre, and that if I had just chosen one road to stick on, I would have reached one of the many massive squares.

Eventually I made it to the massive archway, walked through it and out into a massive quad, centred with a statue of a guy on horseback, and with a view of the bridge, Born Jesus, and the river. I was there just as the sun was setting, and the temperature was also becoming a lot more pleasant, and it was beautiful. Then I dutifully called a few people who threaten to slaughter me if I don't make it easy for them to keep track of me.

That evening I was given a traditional Portuguese swarma - delicious - and a nata from the store that they originated from - absolutely delectible and I could eat a billion of them and never get tired of them, and then I got a bit more of tour and saw one of the most beautiful monastories I have ever seen, accompanied by a stunning park and fountain.

That was day one in Lisbon. ]]> Mon, 23 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=216067 0 38.7166667 -9.1333333

Rob (a Polish couchsurfer) and I set off for Guimares, the place where Portugal was born. We wandered around with our free tourism booklet and got lost and ate local dishes and climbed up the castle and got the backs of our heads in the footage of some communist party's interview. It was great fun! ]]> Sat, 21 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=214493 0 41.45 -8.3

I've been really lucky. Quite honestly, I have no idea what I did to deserve such luck. I had a wonderful host who made me feel completely welcome and who showed me a bit of the city the night I arrived (which was actually the night Porto defeated Barcelona in football, so EVERYONE was out, hanging out of passing cars, hooting, shouting, waving their team's flag). And the river, by night and by day, is beautiful.

The following day, I was left to my own devices and was fortunate enough to hear from Fernando, the couchsurfing king. The consequential events were beyond anything I could have expected. I met up with him for lunch, where we were joined by two other couchsurfers who he was hosting. After the delicious lunch, Fernando's tour began.

We saw everything. EVERYTHING. And we learned the history and the facts behind it all, punctuated by Fernando's many jokes. It was fantastic. We saw the tourist attractions and we saw the local attractions. We tried numerous treats (I think we all expanded during the few days we spent with Fernando) and drank Port and vintage. We crossed the bridge and walked along the river. And by the time our tour was over, it was time for another delicious meal.

I love Porto!
]]> Fri, 20 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=214492 0 41.15 -8.6166667

]]> Wed, 18 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=213809 0 42.8833333 -8.55 Spain is wonderful. It truly is. There is something so unique about it. Wandering through the streets, watching the people inside cafes as they ate and laughed and drank beer, seeing the kids ride their bikes around, while a woman dusted out a mat from a window above - I have had a fantastic day.

And there is so much water! Endless beaches and boats and harbours, rocks and sand. A Coruna is a peninsula that juts out and makes it impossible to determine which way to go. Usually having the sea as your landmark works, but here.... I have gotten lost so often, just in the past hour! But even getting lost is fun because you see little corners of the city that you wouldn't have found if you had been trying.

Although getting lost to the point of not even remembering the number of the place I'm staying at is quite terrible. I am an awful traveller! I was with Arjen at the time, and neither of us could recall what the place even looked like. Once we managed to find the street, I ended up trying the key in every door, until finally finding the correct one. It was highly entertaining!

Today, I was better, and actually managed to find my way to the castle (all on my own!) and then my wonderful host, Millán, joined me for a stunning walk along the coast and through a bit of the Old City, where we had tapas and beer in a charming little cafe that I would never have found if not for him. Delicious food! And I now know a new recipe - Spanish Tortilla.

I am setting off to Santiago de Compostella later on today, and at the moment I am just waiting for siesta time to end so I can go and buy some food to take with. Honestly, siesta time springs out of nowhere and suddenly EVERYTHING is shut. It's awesome (except when you're hungry).

:D]]> Mon, 16 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=213164 0 43.3666667 -8.3833333

Gijon, the town I was staying in, isn't really a must-see, but I definitely enjoyed it.

At the moment I am sitting on a bus heading to A Coruna. Five hours... at least I have my music.

And cookies. And homemade strawberry jam (a gift from my fabulous host).

Oh, and the scenery. There is that.

I really prefer this side of the North of Spain. It's a lot more rural, more natural and sparcely populated. And people just seem that little bit more friendly.

We went to a CS (couchsurfing) meeting, a language exchange night, and it was really good fun. I met wonderful people. Why are there so many wonderful people? I woke up with several business cards, numbers, contact details for people in various places dotted around Europe that I can stay with on this trip, and a list of places I just HAVE to go to (everywhere...).

The worst bit is that I lost a few napkins that had more contact details, so some of the people I met I will never be able to speak to again. It's quite upsetting, actually.

There are so many great people in this world. And I really want to get to know them all.
]]> Sat, 14 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=212625 0 43.5411111 -5.6644444

Santander. Not really all that impressive. The coast is great, loads of beaches, a mediocre bird park, some ships, a castle/palace thing, some trees, a few parks, Pizza Hut, more beaches, statues of surfers and a creepy kid statue on a hill.

But then there's the city. The buildings... pretty depressing. Huge apartment blocks, grey, clothes hanging out windows, water stains, peeling paint... well, you get the picture.

So, if you like beaches, sure. But beyond that. At least this is one place I haven't fallen in love with. :)]]> Wed, 11 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=24601 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=212404 0 43.4647222 -3.8044444