Day 8-Hopfgarten, Austria

This morning was great, I woke up refreshed and ready for more activities. Breakfast was great, instead of the usual continental breakfast we had been getting; Contiki treated us good with bacon and eggs, toast, cereal...yum! After we ate we headed outside to meet our mountain biking guides and get our equipment. Allie even led us in a group stretch to get us ready for our ride. I hadn't been on a bike in forever so I was a little nervous to start but we did some warm-ups in the driveway before heading out. They showed us how to change the gears and fit on a helmet, then we grabbed a bottle of water and were all set.

The first part of the ride was great, got me awake, refreshed and feeling good. The pace was good we got to take in the scenery and enjoy being outside. As we came to our first stop of the day we took a group photo. At this point we had an option, long way or short cut. They told us the length and elevation of each option then let us decide. Most people took the long way to get more of a ride and take in more scenery. However I choose the short cut with Nikki, Inna, Caitlin, and Carly; I hadn't been on a bike in forever and the seat was killing me, haha. The guide told us the way and gave us a map, then we were on our own and off into the Austrian countryside. The ride was great, there was a water stop along the way, and we all got to take a break and get some good photos in. When we arrived at the end we were at a restaurant, where they were preparing us an Austrian barbeque with sausage and potatoes, yum!! A little while later the group that didn't go biking arrived by van and the group from the long route showed up a little after that. After relaxing in the grass and finishing up our lunch it was time to head back down the mountain. The ride down was great, especially since we were going down hill, we just breezed on down and it took almost half the time.

Back in town we had our bikes for the rest of the day, and since Hopfgarten is tiny, it was the perfect was to get around. Ryan told us all the hot spots in town; there was a trout pond where you are guaranteed to catch something, then a outdoor playground with mini golf, a lake, swimming pool and other activites, then there were also some shops around town. Jen, Desiree, Dan, Erika, and I decided to stop in town first to mail some postcards, do some souvenir shopping, and costume shopping for the Pimps n Hos party we were having that night with our tour. Now the town can be covered in 30 minutes, yet it probably took us double that to find the post office, haha. After completing all the town business, we headed off to find the swimming lake and pool. The place was awesome everyone was just relaxing, the view of the mountains was great, and there was even a trampoline and climbing mountain in the lake. After taking a swim, we laid in the grass to catch some sun and dry off, then it was back in time to drop off the bikes and get ready for dinner.

Dinner was once again amazing, and afterwards it was time to get ready for the Pimps and Hos party. Everyone was borrowing clothes, getting make-up done, and secretly making costumes; it was like we were in sleep away summer camp. After all the prep work we headed downstairs to the bar in our accommodation, where the party would be with the other Contiki tour that was also staying there tonite. To start the night there was a battle of the sexes and then it was lots of dancing and some drinking, even the Contiki staff was partying with us, they were awesome. Tomorrow its off to Munich, Germany for some more adventures with my amazing Contiki friends, and Ryan said there are some special stop along the way too!!

Day 7-Hopfgarten, Austria

I was so excited this morning to be headng to Austria because we were going to the countryside for outdoor activities like white water rafting and mountain biking. Ryan told us we were staying at a special Contiki stopover which was owned and run by Contiki staff. Before getting into Hopfgarten we stopped in the Austrian Alps to go white water rafting with Feel Free Rafting company. Everyone got suited up in wetsuits, helmets, lifejackets, and booties, which made us all look super hot so of course we had to take a group picture. Then we all jumped in the boats.

There was supposed to be at least one guy in each boat for safety reasons, but my boat was awesome and all girls (Bethany, Allie, Liz, Jen, Kelsey, Krystina, and Christa), with the exception of our great guide, Mike. First we had to carry the boat over our heads down to the river, which was a chore in itself. They told us to jump in the water to get used to it before we headed down the river. It was absolutely FREEZING!! The whole time we were just getting pumped up and couldn't wait to get in. As we started down the river Mike set it up to flip the boat, and it was awesome. We were the first raft to flip and we were the all girls raft. Going through the rapids was a rush, everyone yelling and paddling, rapids splashing all over us; and Mike kept sending people to the head of the raft to ride out the rapids, it was great. Since we did so good with the flip, we tried doing a wheelie, putting one end of the raft sticking straight up in the air. Everyone fell out with the exception of Allie, haha, but it was so much fun.

Mike then told us to paddle fast to the side or we would miss our stop off, but we didn't want to, we had even gotten used to the freezing water haha. At the end we had to get out and carry the boat up the hill. To celebrate our awesome rafting skills everyone got a shot of Schnapps, which Austria is known for, a hot shower to warm us up, and goulash, another Austrian treat, to warm us up. After all our strenuous rafting we had time to chill out outside with everyone and our rafting guides too.

After rafting it was back to the coach and into Hopfgarten; Ryan told us how pumped the Contiki reps would be when we got there, and sure enough we pull up and they are all outside waving and smiling. From that welcome we knew Austria was gonna be a great time. After settling into our rooms we headed downstairs for some dinner, with some surprise servers. Dinner was delivered by the wonderful Helga and Hans, aka Ryan and Andy, and it was amazing. That night we went into town and stopped at the Silver Bullet, a local pub. Dan and Erika had a schnapps shot contest, trying 5 different kinds each. Erika beat Dan, and he was done for the night after that, haha, nah he was fine.

After the Silver Bullet Dan, Desiree, Jen, and I decided to check out the town. After a wander through the streets we headed back for an early night, since we have more outdoor activites tomorrow...mountain biking!!

Day 6-Venice, Italy

This morning it was back on the coach for some travel time to Venice; we went straight to the hotel to drop off our stuff so we could get the ferry to take us over to the city of canals. We, like most tourists, stay off the actual island of Venice because it is so tiny. I had been to Venice years ago as a kid and it was weird how familiar things were on the ferry ride over. First Ryan took us past the famous Bridge of Sighs then to St. Mark’s square, which would be our meeting place for later. After a crazy night in Florence I was ready for a relaxing stroll through Venice.

For lunch we just got some take away of paninis and pizza so we could wander, but when we ended up in a dead end we stopped to finish off our lunch as well. We hung around St. Mark's Square for a while with all the crazy pigeons. When James saw a kid walking around with a pigeon on his head James was determined to get on too. After a bag of food and like 15 minutes later, James finally got a pigeon to jump on his head for a few seconds, haha. Of course souvenir shopping took place; Jen and Desiree got great Venetian masks with these really long Pinocchio noses. I stopped along the way at an ATM to pick up some more Euros for the rest of the trip. **Travel Tip: When taking money out of the ATM if your card is rejected more than once, then move to a new machine because the ATM could eat your card, and then you’re out of luck.** Shopping makes people hungry so we stopped to fill up on gelato, which is amazing and I will miss it dearly when we leave Italy tomorrow.

After walking through Venice it was time for a new perspective, seeing Venice from the canals. Ryan is amazing and he treated each gondola to a bottle of champagne for the ride. Jen, Dan, Desiree, Erika, James, and I were in a gondola together and tried to get our gondolier to sing, but he said only in the shower. No worries, Jen had been practicing her Italian phrases from “Ryno in your Pocket” and told our gondolier in Italian “The gondola is sinking!!” He obviously didn’t believe it but he played along and proceeded to tip us sideways almost out of our gondola. Jen and Desiree’s faces were priceless.

After our gondola rides, Ryan said we had the opportunity to see a glass blowing demonstration, which Venice is famous for. It was amazing to watch how a blob of nothing because a colorful, beautiful snail within minutes. The rest of the glass gallery was amazing, but be cautious of the “you break it, you buy it” rule. The most expensive item I saw was a 59,000 Euro chandelier!! To end our day in Venice we went to another group dinner, where we were served platter after platter of pastas and meats. We even got serenaded by a man with a clarinet. We took a ferry back to the hotel and now I’m ready to catch up on some sleep before we head to Austria tomorrow. I’m looking forward to the activities like white water rafting and mountain biking in the countryside of Austria!

Day 5-Florence, Italy

Before leaving this morning we were reminded by Ryan, that “church clothes” would be necessary if we wanted to go into some of the churches and historic places, meaning girls needed their knees and shoulders covered. This morning’s walking tour was a perfect way to start exploring Florence. Our tour started in a square with a fake David statue, which I opted to picture as the real thing, since it can take hours to see the actual David in the Academia. We finished our tour at the Duomo, which was beautiful and has two overlooks that you can climb to the top of for only a few euros. Our guide was interesting and informative; she told us all the history to appreciate Florence better.

We then had time to explore the city on our own. Luckily for Jen, Erika, Desiree and I, Dan had studied abroad in Florence, so we once again had our own personal tour guide. After grabbing bottles of water to combat the summer heat we went to the Biboli gardens. Outside the gardens was this statue with super long legs so after a few fun photos we went inside. Once in the gardens we kept running into our statue man and even more crazy sculptures. The gardens were beautiful, and something different than wandering through churches and museums. After we ran out of statues we decided to get some lunch and found this great place with air conditioning, a two-course lunch special, and a comfy couch with our table.

After a rest and maybe even a quick nap we went back into town for a leather and jewelry demonstration, which Ryan set up if we wanted to go. The girl at the leather shop was hysterical; she figured broken English would be better than speaking to us in Albanian. She told us all the misconceptions, which I previously had believed all of, and she showed us how to purchase quality leather products. Then it was on to the jewelry room, where I bought a puzzle ring, but if it ever falls apart I don’t think I will be able to get it back together, even after the demonstration. After a full day in Florence I was ready for a nap, but it was time to get ready for a big night.

Before going to our group dinner we took our official group photo at this beautiful hilltop that had the most amazing overview of the city of Florence. Dinner was in another beautiful location, and we got to meet up again with some of the Contiki groups we saw last night. To add to our Italian experience, a woman entertained us with live opera singing, and the notes she hit were amazing. I guess someone got inspired by the romantic singing because a guy on one of the other tours proposed to his girlfriend, right there at dinner. We began to dance and things when the dance floor opened us and the DJ started playing some music, the Macarena and even New York, New York. The night was just getting started because after dinner we went to Space Electronica Discoteque. Our first drinks were free and Ryan introduced us to a bartender whose specialty was Long Island Ice Teas. The start treatment continued upstairs on the dance floor when Kyle and Kevin hooked us up with the VIP room. It was amazing, I felt like a celebrity. The VIP room overlooked the dace floor with huge glass windows; we even had our own bouncer guy at the door.

After a night of drinking and dancing we took some cabs back to the hotel, but the night wasn’t over yet. Some of us got the late night munchies and Kevin found a street cart open down the block. **Travel Tip: To experience the local culture, look for locals, usually places like surrounded with locals will be popular and good to try.** Hoping for some authentic Italian street food we asked the guy what was the best thing he had, needless to say we were surprised when he said hamburgezas. So we went with the recommendation, and Kevin, Brandon, Simmy, Nikki, and I got hamburgezas. It was probably the worst hamburger I’ve ever had but it was a great way to end an amazing day and night. Tomorrow it’s off to Venice to wander alleyways and canals as we finish off the Italian leg of our tour, can’t wait!

Day 4-Florence, Italy

Although today we were heading to Florence we had one final morning stop…the Swiss Alps of course! We began our way to the top on a vertical railroad. We even had an extra traveler with us, a dog, who was brought along by some hikers. At the end of the line, gondola cable cars were waiting to take us the rest of the way up. At the top the views were amazing. There was a platform that hung out over the valley, so we checked out the mountains and it was the perfect place for group photo-op. After some more pictures and a little souvenir shopping we headed down the mountain to start our drive to Florence.

As we approached Florence in the afternoon Ryan gave us all maps of the city to show us where the highlights were, like the David and the Duomo. Florence is a tiny city with skinny streets so it’s not exactly made to have a Contiki coach driving through, so because of this we stay just outside the city limits. Contiki had dinner set up for us tonight so we headed straight to the hotel to get ready for a night out in a new city. Dinner was in a restaurant that reminded me of an underground wine cellar. As my first Italian meal of the trip the food was great, but it just kept coming and coming. There was salad, then trays of pasta, ravioli, and meats. To finish off dinner and get the night started Ryan and Andy got us Limoncello, a dessert shot which was really delicious.

Those of us, who wanted to stay out, went to a place called the Red Garter. There were other Contiki tours hanging out there too, so we got to mix it up with even more travelers. Tonight was a really chill night and a lot of fun, we had some drinks, danced, and there was even karaoke. The guy working karaoke was hogging the mic, but James and some of the girls were able to sneak in some Spice Girls, great throwback. A group of us then headed back to the hotel. **Travel Tip: arrange with your roommate who will have the key, if you don’t both have one, my roommate and I got confused and ended up not realizing who had the key; if possible leave the key at the front desk and whoever gets back first can pick it up.**

Tomorrow morning we have an included walking city tour with a professional guide. Ryan has been an amazing tour guide so far, but in Italy you have to be a professional guide in order to do tours. Time to get some sleep, tomorrow is going to be a day of exploring Florence!

Day 3-Lucerne, Swizterland

After another late start due to alarm clock issues, Christa and I made it to the coach just in time to head to Switzerland. Since it was our first real travel day on the coach Ryan went over some basics like rest stops, and crossing over borders, and then pretty much everyone took a nap. As we approached our first stop of the day we learned Ryan’s fun way to wake us up. How does blasting Budweiser’s Real Men of Genuis commercials sound? Haha, I guess its better than some alternatives.

As we crossed over the border Ryan took time to give us a little more info on our destination of Lucerne, Switzerland. Basically the Swiss are rich and paranoid. Everyone is issued a Swiss Army knife, tunnels are all curved to prevent bombs from traveling through them and airports are covered in grass for disguise. We got dropped off in town with some free time to explore or purchase some quality Swiss souvenirs like watches, Swiss Army knives, even cuckoo clocks and of course chocolate! **Travel Tip: Even though Switzerland isn’t part of the EU most places will accept Euros, and then you can even get change in Swiss Franks** I decided to get a Swiss Army knife because those can always be useful and engraving on them was free! **Travel Tip: Its good to keep souvenirs in your carry on in case your luggage gets lost, but if you get a Swiss Army knife make sure you put it in your checked baggage, you don’t want to have security issues at the airport!**

Desiree and I met up to do a little chocolate shopping and then took a wander through town down to the river. Entering this part of town was like a fairytale, it was so quaint and picturesque. This wooden bridge was beautiful, lined around the sides with overflowing with flowers, swans on the river below; it was like the front of a puzzle box. After crossing over the bridge we had views of the Swiss Alps and ran into some more of our Contiki travelers. Krystina was getting ready to jump in with the swans because there were steps leading right into the river. She settled for just getting her feet wet. Tonight was our cultural dinner; as we entered the restaurant we were greeted by staff in their traditional dress and live entertainment. Our meal was started with bread and cheese fondue, which is how Jen learned that Swiss cheese is from Switzerland. Haha what a clever name for it! During dinner the action got started on stage; it started off with the Alpine horn (think of the Ricola commercials) which is apparently harder than it looks according to Dan, Becky, and Kevin who gave it a try. Then it seemed like they went to a closet and just grabbed anything because they began playing the cow bells, broom, glass bottles, and even the saw. Kyle and John showed off for Contiki, by getting up for a yodeling competition and they were pretty good. However they did even better when it turned into a chugging contest, but who would have thought two college guys could be out done by a middle aged woman? Haha.

After the music came the dancing. First it was a traditional Swiss dance, which Erika and James perfected on stage. Then when they figured out a lot of people were Americans they did a conga line and the chicken dance. All our guys were quickly out done when a man of about 80 started rocking it with all our girls, especially Daniella.

After we wore out the old man, Ryan’s local friend took us to a really nice bar with a dance floor downstairs. He also gave us the inside scoop that buying a bottle of alcohol was cheaper then all buying separate drinks. So Dan, Jen, Erika, Desiree, and I split Citron Absolut for the night. Then everyone started heading downstairs, but someone learned the effects of mixing beer, wine, and liquor, so I headed back with some other to the hotel early for the night. After relaxing for a bit, my roommate Christa came back with some people and we all headed up to the roof for some views of Switzerland. I found out they headed to a beach club after the first bar, and there was real sand on the floor of this club. I’m definitely keeping that in mind for my next trip to Lucerne.

Overall I loved Switzerland; the people were friendly, and the sights gorgeous. Tonight’s dinner was amazing because I really got to know my new Contiki friends, from opening up and doing silly things like the chicken dance together. I’m excited to see the rest of Europe with them, so tomorrow its off to Florence, Italy!

Day 2-Paris, France

A croissant with Nutella was the perfect way to start my first morning in Paris. After breakfast with Ryan, April, and Christa, everyone headed for the coach to get into Paris and have a free day in Paris. On the drive Ryan told us they would be doing two drop offs, one at the Notre Dame and one and the Arc de Triomphe; this was so convenient because they were main areas of the city and we didn’t have to navigate the Metro. Ryan also gave us “Ryno in your Pocket”, which was his personalized travel sheet for us, which included info, directions to sites, and even some French phrases so we could get to know Paris better. Everyone then headed in different directions; some went shopping on Champs Elysee, to the Louvre, to Sacre de Coure, even down by the River Siene. Dan, Jen, Desiree, Simmy and I went a little off the beaten path and headed to the catacombs. Since Dan had studied abroad in France he became our personal tour guide so we walked there which gave us more of the real Paris.

Entering the catacombs I didn’t know what to expected, I had heard about them being a place of bones but just couldn’t picture it. After climbing down spiral staircases and walking along underground passageways we were surrounded by surreal history. I learned that all the bones stacked in the catacombs were from overflowing cemeteries after a plague ran rampant through Paris. This was one of the most unique experiences I’ve had while traveling; it’s definitely a worthwhile trip for your next stop in Paris. After the catacombs we headed back towards the city through these gorgeous gardens and stopped along the way for the essential Parisian treat…Crepes!! **Travel Tip: Savory crepes are just as good as Sweet crepes.** Everyone went for dessert crepes, but Simmy and I wanted to try a savory crepe also. So I got a banana/nutella crepe, which was heavenly, and then Simmy and I split a ham and cheese crepe, which was so good too there were all these seasonings in it to make it amazing.

After crepes we split up, Jen and Dan went on the Ferris wheel near the Louvre, while Desiree, Simmy and I headed for the Mona Lisa. Ryan,our amazing Contiki guide, had given us the inside scoop of an alternate entrance to the Louvre so that we didn’t have to wait at the Pyramid entrance with all the other tourists.

Since we were running short on time, we went straight for the Mona Lisa, and after getting there it wasn’t clear as to why this painting is so famous. The Louvre is way too large to see everything, so rather than get lost we just left and headed back to the coach, along the way we did some souvenir shopping at the little stands along the River Siene. Back at the hotel everyone got fancied up for our big night out in Paris at the Moulin Rouge. I once again didn’t have much knowledge of the Moulin Rouge but was excited to see this Parisian favorite.

After a few group photos outside we went inside and enjoyed dinner and wine before the show. Throughout the show we saw acrobatics, magic, topless dancers, comedians and more; it was quite the variety show. The Moulin Rouge was amazing, everyone had a great time. After the show some people went out, but I like most people just went to bed. We need some rest for our first day on the coach as we head to Switzerland tomorrow!

Day 1-Paris, France

After about 12 hours of flying from New York, I finally landed in Paris and was so excited to start my Contiki adventure. I got to meet up with some other early arrivals and our first stop was Notre Dame. It was amazing I was only in Paris for a few hours and was already wisked to one of the most famous places in the city. The line to get into the Notre Dame was quite long, but we shuffled our way in and I soon fell in love with the architecture of stained glass and vaulted ceilings.

Desiree, Dan, Christa, Elise, Simmy and I then headed to a café, where I felt compelled ordered the Parisian baguette as my first meal in Paris. Then we headed to the coach and met up with everyone else and met our Tour Manager, Ryan, and Tour Driver, Andy. Right from the start I knew Ryan would be awesome because he was a Kiwi, and I had just gotten back from a Contiki in New Zealand. Everyone started introducing themselves on the coach and we quickly arrived at the hotel then Ryan told us we would have about 2 hours to nap, shower, or just relax. **Travel Tip: When traveling have a reliable alarm clock** My roommate, Christa, and I decided a nap would be a good idea, recover a little from jet lag and be recharged for a night in Paris. However we overslept, missed the coach to dinner, and thought we would miss our first experience in Paris. We ran into Patrick in the lobby, who also missed the coach, but luckily caught up with Becky who had arrived on a late flight. We then navigated the Paris Metro and made it to the restaurant in time to eat some dinner before we headed to the Eiffel Tower.

When we arrived Ryan went and got our tickets so we were able to bypass the other tourist, which is of course a perk of going with a group like Contiki. The way up gave us time to take pictures and get to know more of our fellow Contikiers. Before getting to the top Ryan told us what time to be back at the coach and that it is usually quicker to take the stairs down rather than the elevators. The top of the Eiffel was amazing, you could see for miles and the sun was setting as we took in the 360 views. Paris is called the City of Love and we experienced that as we witnessed an engagement atop the Eiffel Tower, and looking out over the city we saw a huge heart mowed into the lawn below.

After taking in the gorgeous views from the top of the Eiffel Tower, it quickly became to head back to the coach so Kevin, John, Simmy, Desiree and I made a made dash down the Eiffel Tower, which included no shoes and getting lost once. At the bottom we ran into Mark, who showed us how to take awesome pictures in front of the Eiffel Tower.

Back on the coach we had our Illuminations Tour, Andy drove us to throughout the beautiful City of Lights while Ryan gave us all the inside info on Paris. Andy navigated the narrow arches through the Louvre, took us down Champs Elysee, past the Opera House and so many other highlights. It was then back to the hotel for some much needed rest before a free day in Paris tomorrow.

Less than 12 hours!!

Well since I will be embarking on the trip of a lifetime in less than 12 hours, I figured it is about time to share the details.

Here's a little info first...I am a senior at St. John's University and recently spent a semester abroad in Australia and had the most amazing experiences ever. Since it takes over a day to get to the South Pacific from NY I had to make a pit spot in New Zealand on the way home. After traveling to Australia solo, I was looking for something more in New Zealand, and that's when found Contiki! So I booked a 13 day Contiki tour of New Zealand and hoped for the best, but what I got was the most amazing 2 weeks ever. On this trip I did things I could never have imagined doing before like bungee jumping, black water rafting, glacier hiking, at it was all thanks to Contiki and my great tour group. Just think of two weeks with amazing people, action packed days, and awesome nights. Contiki introduced me to people around the world, who I still talk to and even have plans to meet up with again as we cross paths through travel. I began my journey solo and returned home with heaps of stories and heaps of new friends.

So back to 12 hours from now...I will be en route to Paris, where I will begin a 13 day tour of 6 European countries with Contiki once again. Although I've been to Europe in the past, I'm expecting a completely different experience. Many of our destinations are unfamiliar to me like Paris, Switzerland, Florence, and Prague. Then there are also the few familiar places of Venice, Austria, and Munich. With me on this journey will be over 40 other college students, whom I've never met, which makes the trip even more exciting because not only do I get to experience a whole new world, but I get to do it with a whole new group of people. Also different about this trip is the Contiki staff, they offer the best excursions and know all the inside details about where to eat and where to go out at night. Soon I'll be riding a gondola down the canals in Venice, standing atop the Eiffel Tower, and white water rafting through Austria.

With my 12 hours quickly becoming only 11, I'm going to finish up my last minute packing, but I'll be back soon with details from Paris!

Bye!
Christine :)

P.S. Wanderlust-irresistible impulse to travel and get out and see the world!