Ah.....home at last. I arrived back in Phoenix at about 7 pm on Sunday, October 30th, after a long 10-hour flight from London. When I left Hamburg in the morning, it was a cool 50-degree sunny morning. It was a beautiful fall day in Hamburg - the leaves are turning yellow and red everywhere. Leaves are falling on the ground and some shops are already starting to sell Christmas ornaments. You can feel Christmas is in the air.
It's hard to believe that I am home. I've been traveling in Europe for more than 2 months and got used to being in tight spaces and on the move every 2-3 days. All this time I've been living with a small and a large backpack. I was getting good at stretching my clothes in-between washes. I learned how to sleep in a room with as many as 10 people of both sexes and share a common bathroom with others. Best of all, I enjoyed all the food and all the wine and beer in all these countries. I learned how to use olive oil liberally on my food, especially salad, and appreciate the different kinds of cheese. I love the abundance of fresh seafood, meat, fruits and vegetables. Most important of all, I met friendly people everywhere I went, whether they are fellow-travelers or locals. I had so many interesting conversations with so many people. I wish I can remember them all.
Here are some numbers for my journey:
Number of days: 72
Number of countries: 18
Number of cities: 33
Number of train journeys: 37, including 4 overnight trains.
Number of bus trips: 8
Number of pictures taken: 3,891
Looking back, there was one thing that Ralph and I were concerned about when we started on the trip. We were afraid of losing some important items: passport, Eurail pass, laptop, camera, wallet, and our backpacks, in order of importance. Luckily, neither of us lost any of the above. We were constantly vigilant. Everywhere we went, we were warned to be on the lookout for pickpockets or scam artists. We came close many times. We lost things mostly through them being displaced, but not stolen.
One experience I noticed is that in Europe you may get pick-pocketed or scammed but there is never any fear of violence. We were never faced with any safety issues. Unfortunately, the gypsies are the ones who get the brunt of the accusations for most of these petty crime. We ran into them almost everywhere we went. They are actually more fearful of what they are doing because the police are constantly on the lookout for them and harassing them. Even raising your voice is enough to drive them away because it attracts attention from the police.
I've been very blessed to have been able to make this trip. You have to have a combination of time, money and health to do a backpacking trip like this. Most of the travelers I met are in their 20s'. When they find out my age and how long my trip is, they were very surprised. Some hostels would not even allow anyone over 40 to stay there. However, this kind of trip is not for everyone. If you have limited time and prefer to have some privacy, I suggest a group tour. There are quite a few budget tour companies that put together some very good European tours. Europe is an amazing continent because of its history, culture, diversity and language. Food, wine and beer are so good; I am missing it already.
To all my family and friends, thanks for coming on this journey with me on this blog. I understand some of you have difficulty adding comments to the blog. You can send me an email at k.meng.tay@gmail. com and let me know your thoughts or if you have any questions. I love to hear from you.
It's hard to believe that I am home. I've been traveling in Europe for more than 2 months and got used to being in tight spaces and on the move every 2-3 days. All this time I've been living with a small and a large backpack. I was getting good at stretching my clothes in-between washes. I learned how to sleep in a room with as many as 10 people of both sexes and share a common bathroom with others. Best of all, I enjoyed all the food and all the wine and beer in all these countries. I learned how to use olive oil liberally on my food, especially salad, and appreciate the different kinds of cheese. I love the abundance of fresh seafood, meat, fruits and vegetables. Most important of all, I met friendly people everywhere I went, whether they are fellow-travelers or locals. I had so many interesting conversations with so many people. I wish I can remember them all.
Here are some numbers for my journey:
Number of days: 72
Number of countries: 18
Number of cities: 33
Number of train journeys: 37, including 4 overnight trains.
Number of bus trips: 8
Number of pictures taken: 3,891
Looking back, there was one thing that Ralph and I were concerned about when we started on the trip. We were afraid of losing some important items: passport, Eurail pass, laptop, camera, wallet, and our backpacks, in order of importance. Luckily, neither of us lost any of the above. We were constantly vigilant. Everywhere we went, we were warned to be on the lookout for pickpockets or scam artists. We came close many times. We lost things mostly through them being displaced, but not stolen.
One experience I noticed is that in Europe you may get pick-pocketed or scammed but there is never any fear of violence. We were never faced with any safety issues. Unfortunately, the gypsies are the ones who get the brunt of the accusations for most of these petty crime. We ran into them almost everywhere we went. They are actually more fearful of what they are doing because the police are constantly on the lookout for them and harassing them. Even raising your voice is enough to drive them away because it attracts attention from the police.
I've been very blessed to have been able to make this trip. You have to have a combination of time, money and health to do a backpacking trip like this. Most of the travelers I met are in their 20s'. When they find out my age and how long my trip is, they were very surprised. Some hostels would not even allow anyone over 40 to stay there. However, this kind of trip is not for everyone. If you have limited time and prefer to have some privacy, I suggest a group tour. There are quite a few budget tour companies that put together some very good European tours. Europe is an amazing continent because of its history, culture, diversity and language. Food, wine and beer are so good; I am missing it already.
To all my family and friends, thanks for coming on this journey with me on this blog. I understand some of you have difficulty adding comments to the blog. You can send me an email at k.meng.tay@gmail. com and let me know your thoughts or if you have any questions. I love to hear from you.
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| Our worn-out Eurail Pass |
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| We covered almost all of Europe |
