Blogs Percolating

Goodness, I'm behind as always - and even with my writing goal for this month, I've seriously been procrastinating.  I've got multiple blogs in the percolator, and better get to them before the my life hits me with more adventures.

Here's a look at what's to come (click a picture to go to the post):

The Nordics - part två (or Snus-aluffagus)

If you remember, I was last tootling around in Skagen and Gothenburg (in the Nordics - part ett).  And if you guessed that I would have my toes nibbled by little fish - you would be right!

For my weekend in Copenhagen, I was actually going to be spending it with my friend Carol!  I got there the night before she did - and happened to have booked a really delightful hotel - though I have to admit I was slightly worried because before I saw the actual building I saw this sign on the corner.  I found some great places near the hotel, and had dinner and a cocktail at Kalaset.  I walked around the block after, but decided to call it an early night back at the hotel (but not after trying the "world's best gin and tonic" - well it was the largest at least...

The next morning I found another eccentric restaurant for brunch - Bankeråt Café.  And walked around looking at the sidewalk sale while I waited with baited breath for Carol's arrival.  The day turned out to be fairly lovely, and Carol took me on a walking tour all over the city (including Christiania, which does not allow pictures).

And that night, we found ourselves headed to the festival in Malmö - which was just across the sound.  We never did meet up with her friends, but we had a great time listening to music, trying snus (which was pretty hilarious and messy), and having a few beers before heading back to Denmark (much cooler going between Denmark and Sweden than crossing the border between the US and Canada).  Sunday morning, we took it easy and checked out the spa before parting ways - her back to Aarhus and me to Malmö for work the next week!

The Snusperience

Work was work, but the team was fun and we had some street food during the music festival.  I also had planned out which bands to see after work - and drug my German colleague along for most of them :).  The Avett Brothers put on another fantastic outdoor concert, I also got to see a couple Swedish bands - The Royal Concept and the Shout Out Louds, and a Welsh band, The Joy Formidable.  We also caught a bit of Flogging Molly!

My third and final Nordic country on this little excursion was Iceland (with a week of work in Paris in between - nothing super exciting happened other than getting a bit of food poisoning from the tap water...).  I met up with my friend Rick in Iceland over Labor Day weekend (he popped over from Boston, me from Paris - so worldly we are).  I pulled it together enough when we landed (as I'd gotten the tap-bug the night before...) and we went to a local pub for a beer and boy did I wish I felt better that evening (if ya catch my drift, *wink* *wink*).

pic courtesy of dishyblokes.tumblr

On Saturday, we mercifully had a lazy morning and slept in for forever.  Once we ventured out, we realized it would be more economical (and convenient) to rent a car.  So yeah, the girl without a legal driver's license drove in another country since her passenger couldn't drive a stick...not that he didn't try - sorry to that rental company!  I also learned that Blackberry maps do not recognize any roads in Iceland, so it was useless for directions (you know, cuz there are no roads in Iceland...but we did make it to the Blue Lagoon).  And we both got the upgraded packages - so you know, we could get the robes and extra face masks...We watched (and judged) lots of people, put crap all over our faces, made a new friend, and learned that Of Monsters and Men were playing that evening!  After a couple hours in the lagoon, we popped out to head to the show with our new friend in tow.  It was a BIT of a cold evening in the rain to watch a show, but it was a cool experience nevertheless.

L-Whale, C-Strawberry mousse, R-Atlantic Bass

On Sunday, we were lazy again and stuck around town - going to a local pool and The Icelandic Phallological Museum.  Which I'm not sure was worth the 1200 króna...but oh well. We met up with our new friend again for dinner that night, and Rick got his puffin (and whale, and horse - yup, we went fully Icelandic with our meal). Dinner was pretty great, and we split at that point - Rick went home and I hung out with the new friend for a couple drinks. 

I can't say that we never broke any washing machines, or yelled out car windows that we liked some guy's jumper. Nor did we see a Grindr meet up at the local pool, or put our shorts on inside out...it was such a well behaved man-hunt we were on :). I guess that's where I should continue my search for a husband (that is if I don't get enough bearded-hipsters Seattle).

The Nordics - part ett (1)

My time in Europe is fast coming to a close.  And sadly, my time in Holland has been less in the last 2 months - as my work travel was all shoved together at one time (thank you travel bans).  For the month of August, most of my time was spent in some Scandinavian country or another (with the exception of my week in France).

Following my return back from the states (it was a short 4 day trip book-ended by St. Emilion and Pride Festival in Amsterdam), I left in short order to head to Denmark.  After much debating, and some consultation with a friend who has advice for just about everything, I followed said advice and booked a night train to Skagen - he'd said the beach was the best.  I'll admit, if the weather had been sunny (as I would EXPECT in AUGUST!), I'm sure it would have been.  But with my luck, weather in Europe has been only so-so while I've been living here (and it stands to reason that the NW has had one of the best summers ever...).  And I found myself stuck in yet ANOTHER torrential downpour, this time including hail (remember Cannes and my flip flops floating away...?).

I will tell you though, don't take the night train unless you know you can check into your hotel early.  I arrived around 8:30... and they would only let me store my bag there.  I was kind of exhausted (left at 23:00, with 2 changes), but I had a lot of hours to kill.  I searched out breakfast - and then set off on the long walk to the tip of Denmark - where the Baltic Sea and the North Sea meet in a smashing sort of fashion.

I could see the thunderstorms approaching land behind me, and KNEW that the wind was blowing my direction (literally, not figuratively), and I prayed that God would hold up the rain until I reached the little restaurant.  And it did, but I decided to risk it and kept walking...guess what happened?  Yup, not 5 min after I passed by shelter the skies opened up and I was quickly drenched.  People started heading back, but I wasn't sure why - I mean, it wasn't going to let up in 5 min, and the shelter was not close...I decided to pull a Cheri, and enjoy singing in the rain ;) (ok I didn't literally, I just laughed like a maniac at the fact that I was caught in a storm with only a jean jacket as protection).

It stopped before I got to the tip (#twss), and as I wasn't looking for a man, it was nice to not care that I looked like a drowned rat :).  After my long, wet walk (#twss), I had a little brownie and Irish coffee...for lunch - I love being an adult!  I eventually got to check in, take a nap and a hot shower, and headed out for food and drinks at a local place.  They had live music, and it ended up being a fun night.  The next day, I walked around the town and fishing docks, couldn't bring myself to have any dried herring, but I did enjoy not being wet all day! (#twss, damn, I'm funny!)

 

Feels like I was able to shove a lot into that day and a half (hehehe, #twss again!) as the next day I was on a ferry across the sea to Gothenburg, Sweden.

I was there for work for the week, and I must say, the Swedes there were more attractive than the Swedes in Stockholm.  They had a music festival in the city, and we got the chance to see The Sounds...who performed horribly.  What can ya do?  Gothenburg looks like a really old industrial city. We stayed in a nice hotel, and work was reasonably enjoyable.  Best thing about all Nordic countries - is the music festivals - a free city festival, and everyone comes out for it.  A much better week experiencing Sweden than the 1st time...and I still had 1 more week to go!  On Friday we left Gothenburg, to head south.  Me to Copenhagen, and my coworker back home to Germany.  I won't try to fit this all in 1 post, you may be bored by now, but I just have a little more to go :)...will I stay dry? Will I meet any cute men? Will I get my feet eaten by fish?  Stay tuned to find out!

Some Rock and Roll cover band

The Sounds (WAY up in front)

There is no Czech mix in Prague

If I left my heart in Lisbon, I left my liver in Prague.

I decided on going to Prague based on music (if you can't tell, I'm driven by 2 things when I travel - concerts and cocktails).  Damien Rice was FINALLY playing shows this summer, and I found a weekend that worked to go see him.  I was happier than a kid the night before Disneyland.  I left on a Thursday night (guess what, of course, my flight was delayed - but I did get to run into a good friend at the airport, that put a nice smile on my face - though he really should have just come with me to Prague in the first place).

I had a "Natalie schedule" for the weekend... I stayed in 4 hotels for 4 nights.  Yeah, not the best idea, but that's just the way it works sometimes.  After 1 night in Prague, I left the next morning for the Colours of Ostrava (yes, Colours is spelled that way, I'm not just trying to be annoying).  If you ever want to go to an outdoor music festival, I'd definitely recommend this one.  If I didn't want to see Prague so bad, I may have planned to stay.  But I was there for Damien alone, and booked a decent hotel close to the venue - but not close to the city centre (see there, I was trying to be annoying).  And the hotel ended up being a great choice to creepy stalk band members... no I did not camp out in front to wait for Damien to arrive/leave.

I got to the festival around 4, and I gotta say going to a music festival alone is a little weird.  I am that creepy person for sure.  But, really, if I didn't go, I would regret it.  I'd checked out a few bands I wanted to see while I waited.  There were some decent ones, and me being Natalie, of course, I'd met someone at the hotel who I'd planned to meet up with later (with the band called the Inspiral Carpets - don't let their lead picture fool you - they are old men now).  I saw 3-4 other bands, nothing super sensational, but it was a beautiful day and such a fun venue.  And of course, there was the 0.29 CZK beer...go ahead, look that up, I'll wait...I know, right?!  And imagine that my first beer I "wasted" a whole 0.89! Bah, all for a wheat.

2 pts for who can guess what song he's gonna sing...

After piddling around, chatting with my hotel friends, I headed over for prime real estate for Damien.  A few more friends were made (though I wished I hadn't, the one guy was all about singing loudly, off-key, and with the wrong lyrics...), they were still safe company to keep. The show was fantastic, I mean Damien could have played all night for all I cared.  Even though he did look a bit homeless...

Concert over, I ditched the loud singer and what proved to be a very handsy Aussie and re-found my hotel friends.  And then discovered the love of my life...Woodkid.  I still can't get over what an amazing, unreal experience that show was.  Didn't even matter that I didn't know a single song (what DID matter was that the band was residing at my hotel, and I saw them, knew they had to be a band, but not being familiar with them...I didn't get a chance to go completely nutso...poo on that).

Such a fun night, and now for the rest of the story...I had a train out of town at 6am or something to head BACK to Prague.  Guess I was in the wrong frame of mind, because I was not ready for a train beer at this hour, unlike the biker train companions...

I spent the next 2 days meandering around Prague, I gave myself the walking tour, went to the Kafka museum (WEIRD), found the Hemingway Bar (and didn't break a rule there!), wandered around the Wallenstein Palace, the Prague Castle complex, the St. Vitus Cathedral, the Jewish cemetery, and "illegally" took pictures in the Black Angel's speakeasy.

I really enjoyed this central European country/city.  It was everything I would have expected with it's Gothic architecture and industrial feel.  Some highlights of the weekend:

1. Chatting with a man on the plane, who drew me a map of the city and gave me a free train pass (and then turning him down when he offered me a ride...)
2. Of course - seeing Damien Rice play again, but finding a new favorite artist
3. Hanging out backstage with the roadies
4. The random parade of Corvettes in the midst of all the old architecture and tourists
5. Meeting an east coast Jew (who is a chef in Houston) in the Jewish Cemetery, then while looking for food, having him talk to a couple of random guys on the bench, only to get pointed towards a great, authentic Czech restaurant.
6. Being grateful my camera battery hung in there for most of the trip and taking too many pictures to reasonably fit on this blog :)

It's Always Sunny in Deutschland

You decided to jump on the German bandwagon, huh?  Here is where that wagon leads.

Your trip to Germany starts well, you have a few hours on the train, a book in your ears and one in your hand.  Your travel takes you through the Netherlands across to Germany.  Unfortunately, no one stamps your passport. :( The announcement comes, last stop in Holland, and from then on, you feel at home.  Like you're in a place you know you belong.  Being the Germans that they are, your train is running early and has to actually stop for 30 min to get back on track.

On older guy starts talking to you in Dutch, of course you give a blank stare and say "I don't speak Dutch", so he switches to English.  He fills you in on what is going on, and says he is going to get coffee...you agree that's a good use of time and get off the train.  You chat amicably, and you think you hear him say "he is a model"... with that leathery skin and old face?!?  Coffee in Germany is half the cost, well, it ended up being free as he paid.  You stand outside and make small talk, and start to realize it is getting close to time.  As you turn to get on the train, the doors are shutting.  Oh shit.  The train people say they won't open again, and you have to run to the front of the cars.  You are regretting this silly conversation with this "male model" (he does show you pictures he has taken...I guess they do need someone to do the prune juice ads...?).

Thankfully you are able to board the train, much to the train staff's frustration for now making them 2 minutes late.  You're not keen on continuing to talk to this man, so you sit down and put your headphones in and your nose in your book.  But of course, some people never take hints and talk to you still...

He disembarks at the next stop, and you're glad to be rid of him.  The rest of the ride is pleasant, and you arrive safely in Osnabrück, Germany.  Being the navigator you are, you use your "super helpful Blackberry" to find your hotel...this is done by making a wide circle and basically ending up where you started.  The hotel faces the train station. :P

See the station through the window??

You check out the city on your handy map, and set off by foot, following the signs to the center.  You found a place that seemed decent for lunch, but you didn't realize that the geriatric committee was meeting there.  Never-mind, a good bowl of soup, a glass of wine, and a sandwich will make you happy.  It's raining a little, but nothing too imposing.

After your late lunch, you walk around a little more - find the 2 opposing churches - protestant vs catholic.  You also seek out the local brewery... what else is there to do, this isn't the most populous, touristic city.  You'd checked and the concert was at 7, so you have time - but you would be missing most of the German (Munich Bayern vs Dortmund game that ALL of Germany was watching).

You head back to the hotel to get ready, have dinner, and walk to the venue....only to find that, it was 8...great, lots of time to kill... Tweedledee.  You do spot your lover (Rocky), his tour manager, and the brother eating at a restaurant, but decide it's too creepy to go in there yourself.  So back to the hotel you head.

Locally brewed beer and very thick bread.

When you arrive again (you creepy person you), you learn, nope, the show doesn't start until 9....you stop for fried ice cream.  Good choice, by the way.  And by the time it's all said and done you can finally arrive at the concert at 9... when he won't even go on until 9:30...but you pass the time talking to the tour manager, who you'd met at the last show you went to (stalker).  

The fried ice cream

Klein Freiheit

Finally, Denison Witmer comes on, and as promised, his music is good, but his wit between songs better (he makes fun of the venue name - Klein Freiheit - which means little freedom, he jokes that us Americans are ambassodors of freedom to the Germans...).  You must have his cd, and tell him how much you like Philly.

Denison Witmer

The Man and his Brother

Finally, the moment has arrived, Rocky and Cody are playing.  You're a little unsure where to stand, the place isn't packed, but you don't want to push to the front and show everyone the creepy person that you are....but your spirit is lifted, and you know you made the right choice in coming here.  You even get a song that is dedicated to you (if some idiot could have stopped singing and swaying along, you could hear it...here's someone else's recording with an intro that may have fit why he dedicated it to you...).

 You are on cloud 9, and can't stop smiling.

After it is all over, you stick around and talk to the "band" a little, you point out that you and Cody have a mutual friend (acquaintance, whathaveyou), Rocky hugs you and thanks you for coming.  You couldn't have asked for a better evening.

You thought about grabbing a drink at the hotel bar, but not after the way those dudes in the corner were looking at you.  Instead, you make use of the bathtub (I mean comeon, they are few and far between in Europe!), and enjoy reading more of Ender's Game before drifting to sleep.  

Such a lonely statue

On Sunday, there isn't much open (ok, there really isn't ANYTHING open).  You dawdled getting ready and reading over breakfast at the hotel, and now, you're tired of walking... so you find a coffee shop to sit for a bit.  You've worn out this little town, and are ready to get back on the train.  

I should have zoomed in more - there is a "fire fighter" looking like Mannken Pis
(which you would know about if you went on a Brussels adventure)

The yellow flowers - Rapeseed - or as we know it "canola oil"

The train ride home is eventful, as you have a few hard stops and then have to get off and board another 2 car train to the next station, where you get off and have to change again...no matter, you're back in Holland and know your way now.  You congratulate yourself on choosing the right path and not being tempted by fame and fortune.  I hope you choose as well on your next adventure my friend!

This was taken in Holland,
but I wasn't going to make him pose again in Germany.