After Nice, France, we headed to Geneva, Switzerland. Geneva was a pretty town sitting right on Lake Geneva and looking out towards Mont Blanc. While I was there I toured the UN as well as the Red Cross Museum. Switzerland is a beautiful country, with picturesque landscape and villages spotting the hillsides. But it is also a very expensive country and it did quite a toll on my bank account. Just to get "cheap" food was equivalent to about $10. I now know though if I ever go back I want to go to the Alps.
After Geneva, it was onto Vienna, Austria. To get there we took a night train. This was a very interesting experience. Think plane seats but with 6 people crammed in a car facing each other while also trying to get a good nights sleep. Sounds comfortable doesn't it? I probably finally got 2 hours of sleep once I figured out I could push my seat down so I could be horizontal, but I really had to curl up in order to fit. However, once we got to Vienna we had the whole day ahead of us and it was a beautiful day. Vienna itself is a mecca of culture. There are art museums and operas and a wonderful market full of decadent foods.
One night in Vienna we waited in line to get standing tickets so we could see an Opera in Vienna. The line took about 2 hours, we got 4 quid tickets and then got to stand for 2 hours to watch just the first act of the opera in German. Need less to say, it was really interesting and we got our money's worth with just the first act. But it was rough to stand for that long.
After Vienna, we headed up to Prague, Czech Republic where we got to see the lively Easter Markets and learn about all the effects communism had on the area and see how some of those affects can still be felt.
After Prague, we were off to Berlin. Another city full of recent history that can still be seen and felt. It was interesting as well because Berlin is now a very liberal city. It went from being a city being oppressed by communism and Hitler's regime, to being one where alcohol can be drunk in the streets and marijuana can be smoked in the parks. However, it was a wonderful preparation for Amsterdam, a city of much controversy.
Yes, while I was there I walked through the red light district and enjoyed the atmosphere of a coffee shop. But once you go outside of this area there is a lot more culture than many know, including the Van Gogh Museum which was a wonderful display of many of Van Gogh's works.
This is where my trip ends. There are many more stories to tell and many more things that I saw and experienced. But this is just a synopsis. Now its back to essay writing in a currently sunny (crossed fingers) Leeds.
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