I arrived in London Wednesday evening. I survived the plane trip, and am glad I don't have any more planned for the near future. I don't like flying.
Wednesday I arrived, made my way to my new flatmate's, and fell into bed since I was very tired (as anyone would be after taking two subways, a plane, a train, a bus and walking a bit on either end) and had a terrible headache from the plane.
Thursday, the two of us went grocery shopping, and she showed me some other places nearby. I also acquired a winter coat. I learned that it gets dark really early here – it was almost completely dark by 5pm. Then we returned home and cooked quesadillas and fajitas for dinner.
Today, I went into the city centre for my orientation (organized by the agency that I got my working holiday visa through), and then braved the crowds of Oxford Street and Tottenham Court Road to acquire my mobile phone and my computer.
So now I am at home, enjoying being connected to the world again. This weekend I will relax and explore the area, as well as acquire some more professional clothes for job-hunting, and then on Monday, the job search begins.
Now that I am somewhat settled here for the foreseeable future, updates on this blog will be less frequent, since there won't always be something interesting to report, but I will try to give updates weekly at least as to how things are going, what my future plans are, and so on. When I start travelling again, then there will be more frequent updates again.
Bye for now!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
More Porto
This morning, my host, a friend of hers and I went on a wine cellar tour and tasting (since Porto is known for Porto wines). It was interesting, and I learned about the different Porto wines and how they are classified and made.
After lunch, they went to class and I went up in the Torres dos Clerigos, the highest tower in Portugal. The views of the city from the top were stunning, but I was afraid I would fall off, because there were large gaps in the walls and it was windy. But I made it down safely.
I acquired my Portuguese Harry Potter book, and another book to read on the plane tomorrow (in English), and went back to my host´s flat, where I was soon met by her, another Couchsurfer (this one from Switzerland) and my host´s boyfriend, and then we all went out for dinner (along with her roommate), and then dessert somewhere else. Talking to them all was fun.
Not quite sure yet what I am doing tomorrow morning, it may just end up being repacking my bags for the flight, and then getting to the airport in the early afternoon.
Tomorrow evening I arrive in London! Hopefully the next post I write will be from my own computer, to be acquired in London in the next couple of days.
Até logo!
After lunch, they went to class and I went up in the Torres dos Clerigos, the highest tower in Portugal. The views of the city from the top were stunning, but I was afraid I would fall off, because there were large gaps in the walls and it was windy. But I made it down safely.
I acquired my Portuguese Harry Potter book, and another book to read on the plane tomorrow (in English), and went back to my host´s flat, where I was soon met by her, another Couchsurfer (this one from Switzerland) and my host´s boyfriend, and then we all went out for dinner (along with her roommate), and then dessert somewhere else. Talking to them all was fun.
Not quite sure yet what I am doing tomorrow morning, it may just end up being repacking my bags for the flight, and then getting to the airport in the early afternoon.
Tomorrow evening I arrive in London! Hopefully the next post I write will be from my own computer, to be acquired in London in the next couple of days.
Até logo!
Monday, November 24, 2008
Porto!
I have successfully arrived in Porto, Portugal!
It was mostly easy, though I didn´t know that Portugal is an hour behind Spain in terms of the time, and hence in the same time zone as the UK.
Was met by my Couchsurfing host, and am currently at her apartment. This afternoon while she was in class, I wandered about the main shopping street trying to acquire some new clothes, as I am absolutely sick of the ones I´ve been wearing for the past month, and prices here are better than they will be in the UK.
I found some pants, a shirt, socks and winter gloves, but was not able to find a winter coat like I wanted - sizes here seem to run really small for them, but other things fit without problem. Strange.
Tomorrow I will explore the city some more, and in the evening, another Couchsurfer will be arriving here as well. Then Wednesday, it is on to London!
It was mostly easy, though I didn´t know that Portugal is an hour behind Spain in terms of the time, and hence in the same time zone as the UK.
Was met by my Couchsurfing host, and am currently at her apartment. This afternoon while she was in class, I wandered about the main shopping street trying to acquire some new clothes, as I am absolutely sick of the ones I´ve been wearing for the past month, and prices here are better than they will be in the UK.
I found some pants, a shirt, socks and winter gloves, but was not able to find a winter coat like I wanted - sizes here seem to run really small for them, but other things fit without problem. Strange.
Tomorrow I will explore the city some more, and in the evening, another Couchsurfer will be arriving here as well. Then Wednesday, it is on to London!
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Santiago/A Coruna
So Thursday and Friday were spent in Santiago, doing a variety of things, mostly in the company of the German guy.
Later on Friday night, after he had to head back to the family that was hosting him here in Santiago, I went back to my room at the pension (cheap hotel), and there in the pension I met a group of architecture students studying in the UK, and they invited me to come out to dinner with them and the rest of their group.
There was a group of about 28 of them from their program (students from all around the world studying in London), and they´d walked about a week of the Spanish part of the Portuguese Camino route (the route I walked was the French route, there are many different ones), since they´re working on a project about the pilgrim hostels, and ¨how to build a better pilgrim hostel¨.
The four that were staying in the same place with me consisted of two girls, one from Sweden and one from Poland, and two guys, one from New Zealand and one from Latvia! So now I´ve been able to use all of the languages I know or have studied on the Camino - Latvian was the last one I was waiting to use.
During the dinner, I was introduced to others from the program, and their supervisor, and they were all very impressed with the amount of walking that I had done. I got contact information for some of them, so I might meet up with them again when I get to London. I told them more about the pilgrim hostels I´d stayed in, and what was good and bad about them, to help them with their projects.
Saturday, the German guy and I made a spontaneous visit to A Coruna, on the northern coast of Spain - round-trip train tickets were only 8 euros, and the train took only an hour each way (unlike the bus to Finisterre, which takes three hours each way).
We walked around the city, visited the Tower of Hercules (the oldest working Roman lighthouse in the world, though it has been restored many times), walked along the beach, and walked a few kilometres of the English Camino (medieval English pilgrims to Santiago would take a ship to A Coruna and walk from there, and some people still do it today). Learned that the English Camino is terribly marked - the tourist office drew the route in on a map for us, but we only saw about three markings the entire way.
Then we returned to Santiago in the evening (almost missing the stop, since we both fell asleep on the train), and then it came time to part, since he was flying back to Germany early this morning. He has some things to do in Germany before he can continue his walking around the world. I hope to see him again at some point in time when we´re on the same continent, but I don´t know when that will be.
Today I´m wandering Santiago on my own, since everyone I know has headed home. And tomorrow morning I leave for Porto!
Hasta luego, for what is probably my last post in Spain!
Later on Friday night, after he had to head back to the family that was hosting him here in Santiago, I went back to my room at the pension (cheap hotel), and there in the pension I met a group of architecture students studying in the UK, and they invited me to come out to dinner with them and the rest of their group.
There was a group of about 28 of them from their program (students from all around the world studying in London), and they´d walked about a week of the Spanish part of the Portuguese Camino route (the route I walked was the French route, there are many different ones), since they´re working on a project about the pilgrim hostels, and ¨how to build a better pilgrim hostel¨.
The four that were staying in the same place with me consisted of two girls, one from Sweden and one from Poland, and two guys, one from New Zealand and one from Latvia! So now I´ve been able to use all of the languages I know or have studied on the Camino - Latvian was the last one I was waiting to use.
During the dinner, I was introduced to others from the program, and their supervisor, and they were all very impressed with the amount of walking that I had done. I got contact information for some of them, so I might meet up with them again when I get to London. I told them more about the pilgrim hostels I´d stayed in, and what was good and bad about them, to help them with their projects.
Saturday, the German guy and I made a spontaneous visit to A Coruna, on the northern coast of Spain - round-trip train tickets were only 8 euros, and the train took only an hour each way (unlike the bus to Finisterre, which takes three hours each way).
We walked around the city, visited the Tower of Hercules (the oldest working Roman lighthouse in the world, though it has been restored many times), walked along the beach, and walked a few kilometres of the English Camino (medieval English pilgrims to Santiago would take a ship to A Coruna and walk from there, and some people still do it today). Learned that the English Camino is terribly marked - the tourist office drew the route in on a map for us, but we only saw about three markings the entire way.
Then we returned to Santiago in the evening (almost missing the stop, since we both fell asleep on the train), and then it came time to part, since he was flying back to Germany early this morning. He has some things to do in Germany before he can continue his walking around the world. I hope to see him again at some point in time when we´re on the same continent, but I don´t know when that will be.
Today I´m wandering Santiago on my own, since everyone I know has headed home. And tomorrow morning I leave for Porto!
Hasta luego, for what is probably my last post in Spain!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Santiago!
Arrived in Santiago at the Cathedral yesterday around 5:30pm in the company of the German guy, and we met back up with the Italian not long after we arrived.
Got our Compostelas, and the Italian had already found a good place to stay - 13 euros a night, single rooms, and just around the corner from the Cathedral.
After the evening mass (where they swung the botafumeiro, a gigantic incense burner that requires several men to power the ropes), a celebratory dinner, which continuing in the trend of the past month, was twice as expensive as the place to sleep (most pilgrim hostels were 3 to 5 euros). A huge pile of seafood - crab, scallops, and so on. Yum yum.
Anyways, lots to do in Santiago today, so I must be going. Not sure of my plans for the next few days, I´ll let you all know when I do.
Hasta luego!
Got our Compostelas, and the Italian had already found a good place to stay - 13 euros a night, single rooms, and just around the corner from the Cathedral.
After the evening mass (where they swung the botafumeiro, a gigantic incense burner that requires several men to power the ropes), a celebratory dinner, which continuing in the trend of the past month, was twice as expensive as the place to sleep (most pilgrim hostels were 3 to 5 euros). A huge pile of seafood - crab, scallops, and so on. Yum yum.
Anyways, lots to do in Santiago today, so I must be going. Not sure of my plans for the next few days, I´ll let you all know when I do.
Hasta luego!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Arca!
Arrived in Arca today, 19km or so. Spent most of the walk chatting with the German guy I mentioned yesterday.
Now we are in a private pilgrim hostel here - more expensive, but so much nicer. It has Internet (unlike the public hostels run by the Galician government), and lots of space, and since most people seem to be going to the public one, it is quieter as well. There are only six of us here right now, but more people might come.
There is also a pastry shop across the street. This could be a problem, because I love Spanish pastries, and will eat them as often as I can. I´ll try not to be tempted too much today, but since I haven´t had a bocadillo (Spanish sandwich) today, I might get lured in by the chocolate eclairs and other assorted pastries.
Tomorrow - Santiago! About another 18km I think.
Mixed feelings on it - on the one hand, that means the Camino is over and I don´t have to carry my bag for 20km or so everyday. On the other hand, there comes the uncertainty of what comes next. I´ve arranged things with a Couchsurfer in Porto, but nothing is clear for the UK yet. Nor is what I will be doing between Thursday morning and Monday morning, when I leave for Porto. I will take the bus to Finisterre at some point, but I don´t know for how long I´ll stay there. I´m sure everything will work out.
Hasta luego!
Now we are in a private pilgrim hostel here - more expensive, but so much nicer. It has Internet (unlike the public hostels run by the Galician government), and lots of space, and since most people seem to be going to the public one, it is quieter as well. There are only six of us here right now, but more people might come.
There is also a pastry shop across the street. This could be a problem, because I love Spanish pastries, and will eat them as often as I can. I´ll try not to be tempted too much today, but since I haven´t had a bocadillo (Spanish sandwich) today, I might get lured in by the chocolate eclairs and other assorted pastries.
Tomorrow - Santiago! About another 18km I think.
Mixed feelings on it - on the one hand, that means the Camino is over and I don´t have to carry my bag for 20km or so everyday. On the other hand, there comes the uncertainty of what comes next. I´ve arranged things with a Couchsurfer in Porto, but nothing is clear for the UK yet. Nor is what I will be doing between Thursday morning and Monday morning, when I leave for Porto. I will take the bus to Finisterre at some point, but I don´t know for how long I´ll stay there. I´m sure everything will work out.
Hasta luego!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Arzua
In Arzua now, another 15km or so.
Walk was pretty uneventful, the path was exactly like the guidebook said, up and down, up and down.
Had my octopus yesterday. It was good, but not something I particularly want to eat again. Shared it with a German guy who wants to walk around the world - the Camino is just the beginning. Very ambitious project. Exchanged contact information so we can share information in the future about our travels.
Tomorrow - Arca. Then Wednesday we arrive in Santiago!
Hasta luego!
Walk was pretty uneventful, the path was exactly like the guidebook said, up and down, up and down.
Had my octopus yesterday. It was good, but not something I particularly want to eat again. Shared it with a German guy who wants to walk around the world - the Camino is just the beginning. Very ambitious project. Exchanged contact information so we can share information in the future about our travels.
Tomorrow - Arca. Then Wednesday we arrive in Santiago!
Hasta luego!
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