Hope everyone has a wonderful 4th!
4th of July from Lady Bird Park
4th of July from Lady Bird Park
4th of July from Lady Bird Park
Packed for my trip to Machu Picchu
Here in the US a lot of people (though certainly not all) would cringe at the idea of “backpacking.” Walk through any European country and you’ll see tourist struggling with rolling bags while others with backpacks move with ease. Backpacking gives you more freedom then other forms of travel – just slip everything on your back and go!
Constantly on the move. Only a few days worth of clothes. You spend minimal time in your hotel (but why would you want to, your room is probably just a bed and a sink!). Constant movement and discovery. Rather than a sigh of relief (boring), backpacking is a breath of fresh air!
Traveling is a big deal in most other developed countries in the world. Its a “rite of passage” for a lot of young people all over the world to travel for months at a time to see the world (especially Australians and English/UK’s). The call it a “gap year”, save up money after high-school to travel for an extended period before college, or, after finishing college work enough to afford a big trip before starting the search for a “real” job. This doesn’t just apply to kids either – I’ve met many adults who have real jobs back home (in IT, finance, public sectors, etc.) on extended travel.
I find a bit of irony in this situation: when I tell fellow (foreign) travelers I’m only traveling for 2 or 3 weeks they can’t believe I’m taking such little time off – since most other developed countries get 3-4 times the paid vacation we do. Then, back at home, people here are amazed that I went 2 whole weeks without working! Wasn’t I worried about getting homesick? Getting lost? Getting killed? Or forgetting my American-ness!?
Embrace the backpack (or basically the 1 carry on bag and 1 personal item rule). You’ll be surprised with how little you can get by with. I normally only pack a weeks worth of underwear, two t-shirts, a few button downs, a pair of shorts, a pair of pants and some jeans. Most hostels (and a lot of hotels) have laundry and if you forgot something you can always buy it – I’ve never met someone that said “I wish I packed more.”
This post was written (with modifications) by Erik. Check out his running blog!
Nyhavn is a 17th-century waterfront, canal and entertainment district in Copenhagen, Denmark. Stretching from Kongens Nytorv to the harbor front just south of the Royal Playhouse and is featured on many post cards. It is lined by brightly colored 17th and early 18th century townhouses and bars, cafes and restaurants.
During my most recent trip to Europe to attend Oktoberfest – my friend and I decided to spend 1.5 days in Copenhagen before heading down to Germany. Wow! Is all I can say – Copenhagen is full of so much fun and wonder we could have easily spent a few more days here. While it’s not a “must-see” destination on your first trip to Europe – it’s a nice chill, enjoyable city that should be on anyone’s radar.
We chose to stay at Sleep in Heaven youth hostel. While not a terrible hostel by any means – the shower situation at this one left much to be desired. The rooms were small, which was nice, but every room in hall shared only 4 showers. They definitely got crowded in the early mornings. The people staying there seemed to be much more chill and relaxed which made meeting people easy. The wifi was fast and the beer specials during “happy hour” were cheap. Overall I’d stay here again but I think for my next visit I’ll look towards another hostel.
We didn’t do this but in hindsight we should have. The city is so bicycle friendly that its easy to get around on two wheels. There were a lot of shops (including our hostel) that offered cheap rentals. On several occasions we wished we had rented a bike – walking can take a lot out of you!
Tivoli opened on 15 August 1843 and is the second oldest amusement park in the world
Tivoli Gardens is an amusement park in the heart of Copenhagen. Opened in 1843, it is the second oldest amusement park in the world.
We bought, what I believe was the PULS package which included a meal and the multi-ride ticket. The rides were fun – we went on the Rutschebanen which is one of the world’s oldest roller coasters and was built in 1914. A must for any wooden roller coaster fan!
The bumper cars were also neat – and I believe dated from 1926. Overall Tivoli was a lot of fun for an amusement park directly in the middle of the city.
Graffiti in Christiania, Copenhagen
Christiana is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents in Copenhagen. Christiana is unlike anything else I’ve experienced before. Dogs run wild, cars are nowhere to be found and the air smells faintly of cannabis.
Worth it just to roam the pathways and streets alone, the area provides excellent people watching and some fun shops and restaurants to check out.
While known for it’s open-air drug market, we spent little time there (quite frankly it was a bit scary) – but the other parts were welcoming and fun to navigate. A must visit for any trip to Copenhagen.
Excellent veggie meal from Morgenstedet.
Morgenstedet is a vegetarian only restaurant in the heart of Christiania. With cooks that rotate often flavors change often too – the menu rotates daily. The space itself is small and intimate – it felt more like a home then a restaurant. The place was not without it’s Christiania roots – our cook at one point went out to smoke a joint during a lull!
The day we visited I head what turned out to be the best tomato soup I have ever had. Coupled with freshly baked bread it was a meal to remember and will be on my list to revisit when I return to Copenhagen.
Tap list at Mikkeller & Friends
Mikkeller & Friends, with over 40 draft beers, should be on any beer snobs list to visit while in Copenhagen.
Mikkeller is a “gypsy brewery” meaning they, themselves, do not own a physical brewery but instead use other extra space at other breweries to make collaborations or special one-off brews.
Mikkeller & Friends was an expansion bar of the original Mikkeller and showcases not only their own brews but some of their friends as well (hence the name, you get it??!!). For the true connoisseur ask to see their cellar list – I saw things such as Lou Pepe Geuze 2003, Framboos and Blabaer! The waitstaff is friendly and knowledgeable and the prices are fairly reasonable for a Scandinavian country. You couldn’t ask for more!
Copenhagen was a delightful country. I can’t wait to return one day and check more of the city out – there is so much more that I didn’t get to cover.
In preparation for my upcoming trip to Japan I’ve been rewatching some of my favorite movies and shows. One such movie is my all time favorite: Lost in Translation. It’s a tale of two people from different point of their lives both “lost” metaphorically and physically in the confusing and wonderful city of Tokyo.
The late, great Roger Ebert nailed the film perfectly in his review and it’s worth a read if you haven’t done so. Ebert, however, fails to capture what specifically draws me to the film. As one who loves to travel the movie reminds me exactly what it is I love about traveling – the awe and wonderment of being in a place where you have no bearings or sense of direction.
I love the opening scene where Bill is taking the taxi to the hotel and Sophia gives us great passing shots of all the wonderful and confusing neon signs along the way. I love that the big scene with the director is not subtitled – so that way you are just as lost as Bill. I love all the little nuances in the film that show just how focused the Japanese are to perfection. This is shown perfectly whenever the taxi pulls into the hotel and the doorman is there to direct it precisely in place.
One of my favorite scenes is when Scarlett stumbles into the ikebana class and is shown, without speaking, how to arrange the flowers. Art is great because it doesn’t need translation from one language to another and I feel this scene captures that aspect pefectly.
Lost in Translation is a wonderful film. I’m lucky and excited to be traveling to Japan this summer to check out some of my favorite scenes in person. I can’t wait to wonder the streets looking at pachinko halls, arcades and look at the dinosaur at Shibuya Crossing. There are so many great little tidbits about this film that its worth a second watch if you haven’t so far.
The Law of Unexpected Consequences may be in play with the Supreme Court’s ruling that Aereo was violating broadcaster copyright. Aereo, which provided a service that allowed viewers to “rent” an antenna to record and stream local broadcasts over the internet, was sued by broadcasters for copyright violation. The ruling found that Aereo was not a “private performance” and thus should be subjected to paying broadcast fees.
According to the Guardian, Fox seems to have been lying in wait and filed a motion the next day to strengthen its argument against Dish’s Hopper DVR, which allows users to record and stream their service over the internet.
Fox has cited Wednesday’s ruling – which found Aereo to be operating illegally – to bolster its claim against a service offered by Dish, America’s third largest pay TV service, which streams live TV programming over the internet to its subscribers and allows them to copy programmes onto tablet computers for viewing outside the home.
While the case against Aereo was based upon the paying of broadcast fees (which Dish does pay), it will be interesting to see how this plays out. The court ruled that Aereo was not re-airing a private performance (besides the fact that each user had their own personnel antenna) and was thus subject to the rebroadcast fees. Fox has been unable in the past to successfully shut down the Hopper service and it will be interesting to see if the court rules Hopper streaming to be a private or public transmission.
Is the law of unintended consequences at play? Let’s hope not. The Supreme Court proclaimed it “does not believe its decision will discourage the emergence or use of different kinds of technologies” – which in this case could be Hopper. Hopefully Fox is just blowing smoke and nothing will come out of their filing. It is scary though how quickly this ruling is being used to limit the types of services to consumers.
There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure – The Alchemist
In preparation for my upcoming stay at the Shōganji Zen Retreat in Japan I asked them if there is anything I should read before hand. Not wanting me to cloud my head with thoughts before my stay Pierre told me not to worry about reading anything before my stay (or as Pierre put it “There is nothing you need to be or know before you arrive.”)
However a short time later I get an email: “Actually, Paulo Cohelo’s The Alchemist just popped to mind…”
Looking the book up it seemed right up my alley – for those that don’t know it’s a story of a simple Shepard who yearns to travel. He has dreams of a far away treasure and is inspired to uproot himself and travel to the unknown to find this treasure. He has many trials and tribulations along the way and meets and is helped by many characters.
The Alchemist has many great lessons and quotes so here are some of my favorites:
It’s this: that at a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what’s happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate. That’s the world’s greatest lie
There is more truth to this one quote then most people recognize. I’ve lost count on how many times I’ve heard about people being “stuck” in some situation or another. They are “stuck” in a job or city they don’t like. The Alchemist is right, it truly is the world’s greatest lie. No matter the situation, there is always an alternative. Finding it may be a challenge – but it always exists.
Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams
I try to embody this quote more and more in my every day life. I tell my friends we only live once – why let the fear of failure get in between you and your dreams? At the very least you can be satisfied knowing you failed trying for what you loved rather then kicking yourself years from now wishing you had tried in the first place.
That’s what alchemist do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too
One should always strive to embetter themselves. By doing so you will give inspiration to others to do the same. It can be as simple as reading a book, reading the opposing viewpoint of a topic you are passionate about, or just simply stopping and listening.
I was happy Pierre suggested I read the Alchemist. It was a wonderful book filled with many thoughtful quotes. I would recommend it for anyone to read.