A four hour hop can change everything. Country, culture, currency, language. But it's not that different, is it? We're still just humans, being human. Cause what else do we know?
I arrive in Vienna and end up once more at the same hostel as the L.A. tourist from Prague, whose name is Derek. I am still feeling less than my best, but having Derek in my hostel wanting to do things has forced me to get out and be a tourist. Traveling by myself and being on my own schedule has been a fantastic experience, but every once in a while it's nice to feel accountable to someone else, even if it's only to have a partner to wander with. We float through rose gardens, sweet air filling our lungs, visit the Clock Museum, which was high on my list and held some truly impressive clocks spanning seven centuries. We venture below the city into the crypt at Stephansdom, where 11,000 victims of the Black Death are laid to rest, and spend hours eating, talking, and taking turns down streets that to me, appear random, but we always seem to end up where we need to be.
One point finds my eye caught by a small plaque on a fountain in German. I stare at it for a second before piecing it together..."Don't drink the water". Which is green and covered in algae.
"Ha! I'm sorry, but if drinking this seems like a good idea to someone, maybe they deserves whatever happens!"
Derek laughs. "I can't figure you out. One minute you're peace, and loving everyone, and the next minute, you want all the stupid people to die."
I consider this a moment before the laughter bursts forth, the idea of how others see me seeming absurd and humorous. "Yeah, well...it's both. I just don't have a filter anymore. I want to save everyone and watch the world burn. At the same time. It's really quite the conflict of interest."
Day Two in Vienna. After our run in with the Russian mobster yesterday, brought on by the pentacle tattooed on my arm, I have opted to wear long sleeves, despite the heat. Although he was pleased and considered us comrades (he was so excited...he spotted me, called out a greeting in Russian, and ran around the counter to talk to me and show me his mafia tattoo), I'd hate to have a run in of this kind with someone on the other side, especially with my ignorance on the matter. Better to be a little hot for now.
After feeling under the weather so long (it's been a week of coughing and sore throat, which may as well be forever when you're living in hostels) I'm starting to feel a bit limited in my adventure. I am surrounded by young people and energy, but in the hopes of healing faster, I have abstained from socializing since Derek left on Tuesday.
I am full of indecision, as I feel I've spent enough time here, but it is possible Jakob and Stefan, friends I made in Thailand four years ago, will be in Vienna for the weekend, and it feels absurd to miss them by only a day or two. In the infamous words of The Clash, "Should I stay or should I go now?"
As I'm still sick, I eventually decide to stay, though I'm not peaceful in this decision. I tell myself it will give me time to rest, and I really do want to see my friends after so long. So it's final.
I wake in the morning to find my friends are unable to come to Vienna after all. Shit, okay. I will use this day to be an adult. Do errands, restock supplies, rest...all is not lost.
This is how I discover, the hard way, that it's a holiday in Austria, effectively shutting down my plans as tightly as all the markets, stores, and government run buildings.
I am starting to feel a bit silly, walking through the sun-beaten streets with no real goal, and wondering what I am still doing here. Slowly I make my way toward a park. I will read and hula-hoop and all will be well again.
And for the first time all day, I am right!
As soon as I approach the lush grass I spot someone hula hooping and realize they have a big pile with them. I walk up to this small group without hesitation, "Hello! Can I join you?" I ask, showing them my hoop, and am welcomed.
One by one girls begin to emerge from all directions, carrying colorful hoops and greeting me as openly as they greet each other, and the sweatier and more tired I get, the more elated I feel, until finally I am thinking, "Okay, maybe this is why I am still here. I needed to find this group." I find myself surrounded by creative, passionate woman and I am full of inspiration. For the first time in forever I am learning new tricks and being asked to share the ones I have down. Everyone is so willing to teach and to learn.
After a few hours of this, I am exhausted. Sweaty and covered in dirt and grass stains, I throw myself to the ground, depleted but satisfied.
"Do you guys know if they are screening the opera on the outside of the opera house tonight?" I ask them, figuring I should catch some culture on my last night here.
"Yes, I think so," one of them answers me. "Are you traveling alone?"
"Yup."
"Well I'm free, should we do something?"
She rails off a list of suggestions, and we decide to check out a street festival on the canal she heard about.
And we're off.
Jasmine is amazing. She has a song for every occasion and I find myself immediately comfortable with her. We make an extra stop on the subway just for a traditional Austrian sweet she tells me I HAVE to have, but only from a specific shop because the rest are crap.
Eventually we make it to the street festival after much laughter, a small impromptu subway station dance party, and a few wrong turns (even locals get lost), and begin to browse the selection of jewelry, clothes, and food.
There is a small opening in the crowd and we seize the space to hoop to the DJ playing.
At home, everyone hoops, and I am used to being largely ignored in crowds when I do this, which I am good with. This was not the case. Within minutes the crowd opens around us and we have a huge space to hoop and a captive audience. Filming and cheering. We play for at least 45 minutes, and eventually I feel I will pass out. Unable to catch my breathe, sweat pouring down my face. Signs of a good time ;) When we grab our bags and it becomes obvious we are done the crowd erupts in cheers and applause and I feel my eyes go wide, Jasmine and I staring at each other in disbelief, and laughing.
People come to talk to us, a few admitting they thought we were part of the festival as hired entertainment, which makes me chuckle, considering that's exactly what I used to do.
A local guy, Lukas, approaches and the three of us click and band together to form my favorite impromptu group thus far, once again putting my trust and faith in total strangers. But they already feel like friends.
To our surprise and dismay, the music shuts off at 11pm, and no one is ready to leave yet. I feel disgusting though, from hooping and dancing so long, and voice this to the others.
"Let's go swimming!" Lukas suggests, which receives immediate, excited agreement from Jasmine. This is how I find myself stripped down at midnight in the Donaukanal, bathed in the light of an almost full moon, watching the reflections of the city on the perfectly still water, ducks and hedgehogs keeping us company.
This moment is magic.
This moment is everything I came for.
When I make it back to my hostel and consider the last twenty four hours, I have to laugh at myself. No matter how many times I think I have learned my lesson, I am still having to relearn to trust the moment. The start of the day saw me low...questioning my decision to stay and finding myself dissatisfied with it. But of course I had to stay. I had to meet Jasmine and Lukas. I am still learning to trust myself and the universe. Maybe one day this lesson will stick.
Jasmine has me promise to come back, already making plans for what we will do next time.
"You're my first flowmie!" She exclaims (using the examples of bromance and hoop sisters to explain this term, making me giggle). "You have to come back, it has been such a wonderful time." And I tell them I will come in July, because it really has been.
And now, I am free to leave. Purpose fulfilled. I head onward to Budapest.
For the third and final time, Derek and I end up at the same hostel in Budapest. Three hostels, three cities, across three countries, we've separated and come back together, reminding me once again just how small the world really is. And smaller every day. Upon my arrival we head to a mom and pop restaurant and stuff ourselves silly for dinner. In the morning when I come down to say goodbye, I am truly saddened to see my new friend leave, this time for good, as he's heading back to L.A. But this is travel, and I'm grateful for the time we were able to share with each other. He says he's returning with a renewed sense of self and I am overjoyed for the discoveries he has and will make, and silently wishing him the best as he ventures back out into the world.
I am beginning to get tired, used to going one place and staying a few weeks, all these quick hops between major cities, while still not 100% is starting to wear on me. For this reason I am lazy before I venture to Budapest and unlike the other cities, I have not done any research into what I might like to do here before I arrived. But this makes no difference. My first morning in the hostel, while trying to get work done, a Brazilian girl sits down with me and asks me if I'd like to go on a walking tour of the city.
Yeah, might as well!
I pack up my computer and put away my work, heading out with her. It's the first walking tour I've done and it's amazing. The guide is clever and full of great information on whatever you could ask, whether historically relevant, or simply dinner suggestions. I learn about the many occupations of Hungary, from the Turks to the Soviets. She tells us about Pest and Buda being two independent cities until they finally decided to unite in 1873 as it made the most sense. She tells us about the president of Hungary waking up one morning and deciding to bomb the palace in front of the White House simply because it blocked his view to the hills, and how the government hasn't figured out what to do with the ruins since then, so they are simply fenced off and left there in the castle grounds.
Learning the histories of the buildings I spend all day looking at greatly enhances the experience, and by the end of the three hours, my appreciation for the history I am standing in is raised to new heights.
The next day I am once again spared from the need to plan, as I meet some girls from Seattle and they invite me to come to the Turkish baths with them and spend the day swimming and soaking. We band up with a guy from Kentucky and the four of us turn it into an 8 hour adventure, effectively feeling like noodles by the two mile walk back to our beds.
And now...a bus to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. I could easily have spent more time in Budapest, but as I said, all this moving is beginning to wear me out, and more time in a city where you may be offered drug, sex, and shitty hip-hop (not quite the same ring as rock&roll, huh?) on every corner, is probably not where I will find my rest and recuperation.
Though I'm not kidding myself that I will find it in Zagreb either, as I am going to work at a hostel for three weeks, and I'm pretty sure partying is literally in the job description. But I'm open to the adventure and happy to see where I will end up!
I arrive in Vienna and end up once more at the same hostel as the L.A. tourist from Prague, whose name is Derek. I am still feeling less than my best, but having Derek in my hostel wanting to do things has forced me to get out and be a tourist. Traveling by myself and being on my own schedule has been a fantastic experience, but every once in a while it's nice to feel accountable to someone else, even if it's only to have a partner to wander with. We float through rose gardens, sweet air filling our lungs, visit the Clock Museum, which was high on my list and held some truly impressive clocks spanning seven centuries. We venture below the city into the crypt at Stephansdom, where 11,000 victims of the Black Death are laid to rest, and spend hours eating, talking, and taking turns down streets that to me, appear random, but we always seem to end up where we need to be.
One point finds my eye caught by a small plaque on a fountain in German. I stare at it for a second before piecing it together..."Don't drink the water". Which is green and covered in algae.
"Ha! I'm sorry, but if drinking this seems like a good idea to someone, maybe they deserves whatever happens!"
Derek laughs. "I can't figure you out. One minute you're peace, and loving everyone, and the next minute, you want all the stupid people to die."
I consider this a moment before the laughter bursts forth, the idea of how others see me seeming absurd and humorous. "Yeah, well...it's both. I just don't have a filter anymore. I want to save everyone and watch the world burn. At the same time. It's really quite the conflict of interest."
After feeling under the weather so long (it's been a week of coughing and sore throat, which may as well be forever when you're living in hostels) I'm starting to feel a bit limited in my adventure. I am surrounded by young people and energy, but in the hopes of healing faster, I have abstained from socializing since Derek left on Tuesday.
I am full of indecision, as I feel I've spent enough time here, but it is possible Jakob and Stefan, friends I made in Thailand four years ago, will be in Vienna for the weekend, and it feels absurd to miss them by only a day or two. In the infamous words of The Clash, "Should I stay or should I go now?"
As I'm still sick, I eventually decide to stay, though I'm not peaceful in this decision. I tell myself it will give me time to rest, and I really do want to see my friends after so long. So it's final.
I wake in the morning to find my friends are unable to come to Vienna after all. Shit, okay. I will use this day to be an adult. Do errands, restock supplies, rest...all is not lost.
This is how I discover, the hard way, that it's a holiday in Austria, effectively shutting down my plans as tightly as all the markets, stores, and government run buildings.
I am starting to feel a bit silly, walking through the sun-beaten streets with no real goal, and wondering what I am still doing here. Slowly I make my way toward a park. I will read and hula-hoop and all will be well again.
And for the first time all day, I am right!
As soon as I approach the lush grass I spot someone hula hooping and realize they have a big pile with them. I walk up to this small group without hesitation, "Hello! Can I join you?" I ask, showing them my hoop, and am welcomed.
One by one girls begin to emerge from all directions, carrying colorful hoops and greeting me as openly as they greet each other, and the sweatier and more tired I get, the more elated I feel, until finally I am thinking, "Okay, maybe this is why I am still here. I needed to find this group." I find myself surrounded by creative, passionate woman and I am full of inspiration. For the first time in forever I am learning new tricks and being asked to share the ones I have down. Everyone is so willing to teach and to learn.
After a few hours of this, I am exhausted. Sweaty and covered in dirt and grass stains, I throw myself to the ground, depleted but satisfied.
"Do you guys know if they are screening the opera on the outside of the opera house tonight?" I ask them, figuring I should catch some culture on my last night here.
"Yes, I think so," one of them answers me. "Are you traveling alone?"
"Yup."
"Well I'm free, should we do something?"
She rails off a list of suggestions, and we decide to check out a street festival on the canal she heard about.
And we're off.
Jasmine is amazing. She has a song for every occasion and I find myself immediately comfortable with her. We make an extra stop on the subway just for a traditional Austrian sweet she tells me I HAVE to have, but only from a specific shop because the rest are crap.
Eventually we make it to the street festival after much laughter, a small impromptu subway station dance party, and a few wrong turns (even locals get lost), and begin to browse the selection of jewelry, clothes, and food.
There is a small opening in the crowd and we seize the space to hoop to the DJ playing.
At home, everyone hoops, and I am used to being largely ignored in crowds when I do this, which I am good with. This was not the case. Within minutes the crowd opens around us and we have a huge space to hoop and a captive audience. Filming and cheering. We play for at least 45 minutes, and eventually I feel I will pass out. Unable to catch my breathe, sweat pouring down my face. Signs of a good time ;) When we grab our bags and it becomes obvious we are done the crowd erupts in cheers and applause and I feel my eyes go wide, Jasmine and I staring at each other in disbelief, and laughing.
People come to talk to us, a few admitting they thought we were part of the festival as hired entertainment, which makes me chuckle, considering that's exactly what I used to do.
A local guy, Lukas, approaches and the three of us click and band together to form my favorite impromptu group thus far, once again putting my trust and faith in total strangers. But they already feel like friends.
To our surprise and dismay, the music shuts off at 11pm, and no one is ready to leave yet. I feel disgusting though, from hooping and dancing so long, and voice this to the others.
"Let's go swimming!" Lukas suggests, which receives immediate, excited agreement from Jasmine. This is how I find myself stripped down at midnight in the Donaukanal, bathed in the light of an almost full moon, watching the reflections of the city on the perfectly still water, ducks and hedgehogs keeping us company.
This moment is magic.
This moment is everything I came for.
When I make it back to my hostel and consider the last twenty four hours, I have to laugh at myself. No matter how many times I think I have learned my lesson, I am still having to relearn to trust the moment. The start of the day saw me low...questioning my decision to stay and finding myself dissatisfied with it. But of course I had to stay. I had to meet Jasmine and Lukas. I am still learning to trust myself and the universe. Maybe one day this lesson will stick.
Jasmine has me promise to come back, already making plans for what we will do next time.
"You're my first flowmie!" She exclaims (using the examples of bromance and hoop sisters to explain this term, making me giggle). "You have to come back, it has been such a wonderful time." And I tell them I will come in July, because it really has been.
And now, I am free to leave. Purpose fulfilled. I head onward to Budapest.
 |
| Side story...this is "Pick a Poem", orchestrated by one man on a certain bridge in Vienna. He keeps putting these here and you're welcome to take the one you like. Jasmine told me he's been doing it for years and years and everyone knows about him. The police threatened to fine and arrest him for doing this, and the people got very angry at the threat. This is one of the coolest ninja art projects I have seen. Spread the love and spread the art <3 |
For the third and final time, Derek and I end up at the same hostel in Budapest. Three hostels, three cities, across three countries, we've separated and come back together, reminding me once again just how small the world really is. And smaller every day. Upon my arrival we head to a mom and pop restaurant and stuff ourselves silly for dinner. In the morning when I come down to say goodbye, I am truly saddened to see my new friend leave, this time for good, as he's heading back to L.A. But this is travel, and I'm grateful for the time we were able to share with each other. He says he's returning with a renewed sense of self and I am overjoyed for the discoveries he has and will make, and silently wishing him the best as he ventures back out into the world.
I am beginning to get tired, used to going one place and staying a few weeks, all these quick hops between major cities, while still not 100% is starting to wear on me. For this reason I am lazy before I venture to Budapest and unlike the other cities, I have not done any research into what I might like to do here before I arrived. But this makes no difference. My first morning in the hostel, while trying to get work done, a Brazilian girl sits down with me and asks me if I'd like to go on a walking tour of the city.
Yeah, might as well!
I pack up my computer and put away my work, heading out with her. It's the first walking tour I've done and it's amazing. The guide is clever and full of great information on whatever you could ask, whether historically relevant, or simply dinner suggestions. I learn about the many occupations of Hungary, from the Turks to the Soviets. She tells us about Pest and Buda being two independent cities until they finally decided to unite in 1873 as it made the most sense. She tells us about the president of Hungary waking up one morning and deciding to bomb the palace in front of the White House simply because it blocked his view to the hills, and how the government hasn't figured out what to do with the ruins since then, so they are simply fenced off and left there in the castle grounds.
Learning the histories of the buildings I spend all day looking at greatly enhances the experience, and by the end of the three hours, my appreciation for the history I am standing in is raised to new heights.
The next day I am once again spared from the need to plan, as I meet some girls from Seattle and they invite me to come to the Turkish baths with them and spend the day swimming and soaking. We band up with a guy from Kentucky and the four of us turn it into an 8 hour adventure, effectively feeling like noodles by the two mile walk back to our beds.
And now...a bus to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. I could easily have spent more time in Budapest, but as I said, all this moving is beginning to wear me out, and more time in a city where you may be offered drug, sex, and shitty hip-hop (not quite the same ring as rock&roll, huh?) on every corner, is probably not where I will find my rest and recuperation.
Though I'm not kidding myself that I will find it in Zagreb either, as I am going to work at a hostel for three weeks, and I'm pretty sure partying is literally in the job description. But I'm open to the adventure and happy to see where I will end up!
Here's to yet another chapter.
Thanks for sticking with me, y'all <3
Captions! We want captions for all those magnificent photos you include with your narrative!
ReplyDeleteWhat architectur!🙃
They don't make em like that anymore.
Sorry to hear that youvyo been under the weather. Green smoothie! Seriously though are you feeling any better? Msg me when can. Good episode 😎
XOXO
Thanks, dad! I added more captions in this weeks post, just for you ;) I am feeling mostly okay, but I'm pretty congested. It's lasted so long now I'm just used to it. haha
DeleteLove you!