Why I'm still in Moscow (and have time to write this blog)

The plan was to arrive in St Pete around 8:30pm, walk to the hostel, check-in, meet some new people, grab some dinner, and maybe hit the town with anybody I could convince to hang out with me from the hostel. I wanted to scope out some bars, walk around the city during White Nights, and just enjoy a nice night before the crew arrived the next day for a busy and fun weekend.

That was the plan.

Until everything went wrong.

*******************

Alena was very nice to help me figure out which train station my train to St Petersburg left Moscow from. The trains to St Pete leave from different stations, so it's important to know the right one. Unfortunately for me, my ticket doesn't say the train station on it...but it's not in English anyway, so I would never know. She helped me determine that it was Leningradsky station. She told me that Leningradsky station is located just outside of a certain metro stop (I don't know how to write or say it in English, I just know how it looks in Cyrillic), and that I wouldn't miss it once I got outside. Sounded easy.

I left the office with plenty of time, got out of the Metro and saw about 10 train platforms in front of me. Seems easy enough...train station that I couldn't miss. It's about 4pm...30 minutes before my 4:30 departure. The train schedule is all in Cyrillic, but I see a listing for a train leaving at 4:30 and think that it's mine. Afterall, there was no other train leaving at 4:30. I had plenty of time, so I wandered around a little, took a couple pictures, then came back and waited.

The platform number for this train finally appeared, so I walked to the platform. I showed a lady my ticket to make sure, but she said "nyet" and pointed to the left of the platform. Hmmm. Now I am starting to think that I am at the wrong place.

I walk outside in the direction she pointed, and notice there is another train station right next door...so I go over there and see a train schedule with another train that says "4:30", again, not being able to read it. The time is 4:21pm.

Because it is cutting it close, I ask a guy to help me. He's about 30 years old, which usually means a decent English speaker in Poland. But this guy says he doesn't speak English (in English). He can't really tell me anything, but notices I wrote down "Leningradsky" on the ticket (I did it so I remembered the name). He says "Ohhhh, Leningradsky? This Yaroslavsky (or something like that). Leningradsky there" (and he points back towards the way I came). What? Why are there so many train stations here? The time is 4:24pm.

So I leave Wrong Place #2, run past Wrong Place #1, and see another building that looks like a train station (future Wrong Place #3). I go inside, and there are many booths, which look like ticket booths. I go to one that is empty, and ask a girl quickly "is this train for St Petersburg?" and she just points to a sign and shakes her head. The sign seemed to describe the break times of the person in the booth (it listed a bunch of times in 10 minute increments). So I guess she was on break and didn't want to help me. She was just sitting there, literally biting her nails. Gee thanks. So I frantically ask the security guard, and he says "No Leningradsky. Leningradsky there" (and points outside again). WTF???? It's 4:29pm. My train leaves in 1 minute and I can't find where it is.

I start running around, looking for something that looks like another train station while yelling "Leningradsky?" and looking around helplessly for some assistance. Nobody even looks at me. Finally I find another station, and see a wall where it says "St Petersburg" all over it. Must be the right place. I look at the clock...4:36. DAMN.

I run through the terminal with my suitcase and backpack, and finally reach the platforms. I noticed a train that says "St Pete" and SAPSAN (the train operator). I run to it, the security person asks "SAPSAN?", I say YES, and run for the train. I MADE IT!!!!! I am about to get on when one of the workers asks to see my ticket. First he points down to another car, but then takes a second look at my ticket. He says something in Russian, shakes his head, then he says "Your train gone". He has an evil smirk on his face and when I ask him what he is talking about, he shakes his head, throws his hands in the air, and backs away...as if he just shot a game winning 3 pointer in my face, and was enjoying that moment like it just won the NBA finals. The train doors close, and it pulls away. I felt defeated.

I can only think of two letters. F and U.

So I ask another guy, and he says sorry, but your train is gone. "You go buy ticket" and he showed me that the next train was at 7:45pm. Apparently there was a 4:30 train AND a 4:45 train...the 4:45 train pulled away as I was standing there, so my ticket wouldn't have worked anyway. Damn.

But it gets worse.

I wanted to ask if I could exchange or get some credit for my unused 4:30pm ticket, so I stood in line waiting to talk to someone. I was DRIPPING sweat from running around, and my light grey t-shirt was not doing well at hiding my armpit sweat. There are so many good looking girls in Russia, and I am so ashamed to look them in the eye. Finally I reach the front and the lady didn't understand anything I said. She was friendly, but didn't speak English. Finally she held up 1 finger, and pointed to a different window. Go to Window number 1. Ok, I understand.

I wait at window number 1 and there is another lady who is trying to cut me in line. But then she realizes this, and then smiles and nods, acknowledging that I am next. She was really nice and defended my spot in line to a couple other potential line jumpers. It was nice to have a friendly smiley face at that moment of frustration.

This whole time I am trying to text, BBM, Instant message, and call any of my friends who live in Moscow. I need some help explaining that I need to exchange a ticket. Nobody is answering.

Finally, I get to the front, give the lady my ticket, and say "Can I exchange this?" with my best smile and most polite voice. She looks at it, frowns, throws it back and me and starts saying a bunch of things in Russian. She does not look happy. I turn to the nice lady in line to translate, and she said she didn't speak English (but she smiled!). One of the guys who tried to cut me was standing there, and he just says "You...New ticket. Money gone" and shrugs his shoulders. ARGGGGH.

I finally got Alena on the phone, went back in line to the angry lady, and had Alena talk to her. She talks for 15 seconds, then passes the phone back to me...when I pick it up, Alena is still talking...so the lady "hung up" on her! So by now I have figured I need to buy a new ticket. I can just get one for the 7:45 train. It's not ideal, since it will get me there close to midnight, but it will have to do.

I go back to the line where you buy tickets, and Alena says "you will have to ask what is available". This worries me, because she explains that a lot of tickets are selling out. There is a chart on the wall with train times and numbers next to them. This indicates the number of tickets for each train available. Next to the 7:45pm train it says something like 25. A minute later is says 18. Then 12. And I haven't moved anywhere in line.

Alena asked me to take a picture of it so she could tell me what it says. I take a picture, and send it. By that time, the sign says SOLD OUT (in Russian). ARGHJAKFHAJKFHAJK:DFJKFAS!!!!!!

The line is still not moving! I panic, and think, if I am going to get any ticket at any possible time, I need to get to an electronic kiosk and skip this line to speak to a woman that won't understand me anyway. I get out of line, try the kiosk, and of course, nothing is in English. I press every possible button, and finally see a schedule of the trains. Then it seems to want my credit card. To say the least, I am a bit nervous to do that! I ask the guy next to me (guy in a suit in his 20s). He says "I don't know" and stops talking to me. Thanks man. I look around for some other help, and see a lady that works there. I motion her over, and she comes to the kiosk. Again, no English (I will stop saying this, since you can assume nobody speaks English), and she tries to click on the buttons for me. I have no idea what she is saying, but luckily, another friend, Maria, answers her phone when I call. I pass my phone to the woman, and she explains to the lady what I want. The lady clicks on some buttons, and wouldn't you know it, the 7:45pm train has some tickets left. YESSS. So she presses more buttons, I type in my name and passport number (we had to pass the phone back and forth so Maria could tell me what to do), and I'm ready to buy. Right when we press "Buy", the woman sighs. That can't be good. She motions for the phone and speaks to Maria. Right before we pressed BUY, the last ticket was sold. Can Moscow be against me any more than this????????????????

I feel so frustrated and now I just want anything. There are no tickets on the fast trains (4 hours), so there are only tickets on the slow, overnight trains (8 hours). I don't want to, but really, I have no other choice. The trains in the morning are all sold out. So finally we find a ticket, the lady tells Maria that there are only 7 left, so I just say "YES YES YES, hurry up and buy!!!" and the lady helps me out. So, now I am the proud owner of a 9:50pm departure, and a 5:45am arrival in St Pete. And my $150 ticket I bough earlier is worthless. I am super grateful for that woman, and Maria for speaking to her. Both were very patient and helpful. It was just not a good situation for me.

The new train departs from another station. Maria explains how to get there...and I have to go back on the Metro, in rush hour. I go back to where I got out of the Metro and try to walk in. Just as I do, a wave of millions of people (literally millions) start coming out the doors. And it is impossible to go in. I have never seen so many people come out of doors like that. Then I notice a picture on the door of a guy walking and a red slash through it. That must mean I can't enter that way. So I walk around the building. The other side also has those pictures on the door, and millions of people exiting. Where the F*** do I go into the Metro???

I finally did the thing I said I'd never do: ask a Russian cop for help. Luckily this guy looked a bit Asian, and he was helpful. He pointed me to the way to get in (down the street, down a ramp). Why does it have to be so hard? I take the Metro to the station, 3 hours early (enough time to write this entry), and I'm waiting here, right in front of the schedule. I'm not taking any chances. And I really hope there is not a Part 2 to this story.

Now I just have to survive the overnight train. In Russia. Oh boy.

Warsaw Eagles: Poland's Team

The Eagles quarterback scans the defense before taking the snap and dropping back. He knows exactly what to do, because he's done it twice already in this game and the Owl's can't stop it. He fakes the hand-off to his right, then rolls left, shielding the ball so the D can't see it. The linebackers freeze, giving the QB time to turn and look upfield.  He spots his receiver 5 yards behind the safety and lets it fly. Jeremy Dixon has to slow down to catch the ball, but it's still no contest. He trots into the end zone, untouched.

Then the entire team does "the Bernie" dance to celebrate the touchdown. For the 5th time in the first quarter.

+++++++++++++

When I heard that there was an American football league in Poland, I knew I had to see it. To be honest, I didn't know what to expect, but I miss football so much that it didn't matter. The website, unfortunately, is not in English, and it isn't easy to figure out the schedule. When I finally found the season schedule, it didn't clearly state which games are home games, nor did it state the start time for any game except the nearest one.  With some help of some friends, I was able to figure it out, and made plans with some friends to go watch the last game of the season, against the Bielawa Owls.

Warsaw Eagles

From looking at the scores of earlier games, the Warsaw Eagles are pretty good. Or at least they are much better than the other teams. Scores of 55-0 and 69-0 stood out like the Huskies in the early 90's. They had one loss, and were 2nd place in the league. It seemed that, at the very least, the game would be exciting.

Plans were set for some "tailgating" at my apartment before the game (kielbasa and beer), and a bus ride to the stadium. I scheduled everything out, to make sure we'd be on time. Every game of the season had started at 4pm, so I assumed this one would start at 4 as well.

There were 10 of us going, including 4 Polish, 2 Bulgarians, a Romanian, and 3 Americans (5 guys and 5 girls). This was going to be a fun little outing.

As we went outside to walk towards the bus, the clouds above decided to play a very mean trick. Literally within a minute of being outside, the rain was dumping down so hard that we all had to run for cover and wait for it to pass. In my mind, I was thinking that there was no time in the schedule for "hide under trees, street signs, and awnings waiting for the monsoon to pass". I guess we were going to miss our bus, which would make us a little late. I guess I didn't really mind.

Hiding from the rain

Finally the rain died down, a few of us were soaked, in just our t-shirts.

We got to the bus stop to find out that the stop was closed. Since we had some Polish guys with us, I let them figure out what was happening, but even the signs at the stop didn't explain it. The bus stop just had a cover over the sign, saying that it was not in operation. There was some street racing that day, so it was probably part of the reason.

We walked down the street, to the next bus stop. And this was also a failure. Written on the stop was the number of our bus...with a big X through it. I'm still not sure what that means, but I'm gonna guess it's something like "you can stand here all you want, but your bus ain't coming".

So we called cabs, and waited. And it started raining again.

This is not how I planned it.

The cabs took 20 minutes or so to arrive, but we had a football with us (although flat), so we tossed that around. No offense to my Euro friends, but you can clearly tell when someone hasn't thrown a football before.  When they throw, the ball comes off their hands with either some crazy top spin, side spin, or no spin, and is hard to catch because it's like catching a knuckling punt. Basically they throw like girls. (j/k!)

So the cabs come, and take us to the game. The total cost of the cab is like $7. It's so cheap that basically we should have just planned on that to begin with, without worrying about the buses. But don't worry, we'll get another chance to take a cab to the game (foreshadowing...).

As we approached the stadium, I get a text from Basia saying "we just got here, but there's nobody here". I figured, well, it's not that popular, so I'm not surprised if it's a small stadium, plus it just got done monsooning, so maybe people are scared of coming outside.

When we pulled up, I realized what she meant. Really, there was NOBODY there. What is happening??? I walk into the lobby area of what looks like a small high school stadium, and see a poster. The game doesn't start at 4pm. It starts at 7pm. DOH!

Now what? We decide to head to La Playa, a beach bar on the Wisla river, since the sun was coming back out, and we wanted something interesting for Tailgate Party II. We had a good time at La Playa, and afterwards, 4 of us went back to the game, for the real start time. 6 of us had more interesting plans.

Everyone at La Playa during Tailgate Party part II

View of Old Town across the river from La Playa

When we arrived, it was already a rout. It was only 10 zl to get in (less than $4), and the seating was open. It was like a small high school atmosphere. There were a few hundred non-hooligan (nice) people in the stands (dressed in Orange, and loving every minute of it), 8 cheerleaders in jean shorts and jerseys, and a guy leading the crowd in 2 main cheers. One was "DE-FENSE!", like the one we all know. They did this one about half of the time. The other cheer? It was the ever popular and creative "OFF-ENSE!". LOL. He also led the crowd in the wave, but since it was just a couple sections of bleachers, the wave only lasted 3 seconds before ending. Oh and he was wearing a shirt that said "I am the American Dream". So great!

The Hype Man

"Dreamgirls"

By halftime the Eagles were up 61-0. Nope, that is not a typo. They scored by throwing bombs to Jeremy Dixon, one of their 2 Americans (each team is allowed 2 Americans on the field). You can tell he's not Polish, because, well, the name on his jersey is Dixon, and he's African American. Their other American is their QB. The final score was 68-6. The Owls kept it close after halftime.

Jeremy Dixon (middle), celebrates a touchdown (where are all the Owl defenders?)

Part of the problem is that the Owls only had 13 players. TOTAL. There were 2 guys on the bench, and it looked like one guy was injured. Most of the team played both ways (obviously) and it was pretty clear they were pretty new to football. QB pitches went to nobody, people were running into their own teammates, returners were dropping kick-offs (which there were a lot of), and I even heard their coach yelling (in American) "Hey! Do we have 10 or 11 guys out there!!???". Coach, when you only have 13 people on your team, you can probably just look at your bench, and if you see more than 2 people, you don't have enough on the field.

Confused Owls take the field


The big boys wait at the line of scrimmage (the ref was a girl, which was awesome!)

This raises the question...how do these guys learn to play to begin with? Do they have high school club teams? I'm still not sure. And do they get paid? If there were only a few hundred fans, who paid 10 zl each, there's only like $10 to pass around to each player, which doesn't include the costs of the stadium, transportation, equipment, vendors, workers, coaches, trainers, referees, etc. Who pays for it??? Or is it like a grown-up recreation league, where the players pay and the coaches volunteer?

My favorite part was that  everyone did the Bernie dance after every touchdown (players, fans,and the crowd), and there was even one time where the players were dancing with the cheerleaders. I'm sure this would have been a 15 yard penalty in the US.

Players and cheerleaders have a dance party during a break


I couldn't capture them doing the Bernie, but here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRBLmogRL4c

The stadium sold "American style" hamburgers (with lettuce, tomato, and "real beef"), but they didn't sell beer (do they realize this is Poland???). There was a jumping castle, and a baseball batting cage and a separate batting tee, where you could hit into a net. It seems they are trying to promote American sports, and it also seems that the Polish people find American sports interesting, but are not very good at them. We befriended a Polish kid (who spoke English to us), who just wanted to throw the football around in the next field over.  He didn't understand the concept of running to receive a pass. He would just turn and face me to catch the ball, even when I told him to run (and demonstrated for him), and threw it to one side of him to try to make him move.  He just looked at the ball bounce 10 feet to his side, probably wondering "why don't you throw it TO ME, you American idiot". Nice kid though. And I'm impressed how fearless he was to speak in English to us, and how he just wanted to try.

Poor guy isn't sure how to swing at the tee

After watching about 15 minutes of the game from the stands, and running around playing catch for about an hour, we decided to head back to town.

Another mission in Warsaw accomplished.

When I was almost a Polish TV star



I walked outside on Saturday, about noon, just like any normal weekend day (ok, I'll admit, usually I'm still in bed at noon on a weekend day). Anyway, I was headed to the PwC office picnic, and I thought about bringing my camera in case I wanted to take some pictures. I decided not to, because what exciting things could possibly be seen at the PwC office picnic???  Plus, I could always take some pics with my Blackberry if I needed to (on a side note, the picnic ended up being a lot of fun, with many photo opps).

I opened the front door of my apartment building to see a bunch of antique cars and people dressed in old clothes. I wondered if it was some holiday where people dress up, because that kind of thing doesn't surprise me here anymore.  There was an elderly man riding a rickety bicycle, wearing an old fedora, a woman pulling a wagon of vegetables, and a guy that looked like a German WWII soldier.  Strange, but not too strange, right? 

Wait a minute, a German WWII soldier?  I had just watched the complete series of "Band of Brothers", and my imagination went wild for about 2 seconds.  What's going on??? Is this real life?

I thought to myself "I should have brought my camera", and like any good Japanese tourist, I quickly pulled out my BB to take a picture of the scene in front of me.

But dangit, I kept messing up my password!

That's when I noticed that everyone stopped what they were doing and started staring at me, including the soldier, who was carrying a luger (a very scary gun). Startled, I turned and looked down the street and saw a huge crowd of people.  I wondered "what are those regular-dressed people looking at? And what are those video cameras for"?

Then a man yelled at me 'Halo! Szybko, szybko!' (Hurry!), clearly upset, waving a walkie talkie in the air.

That's when it hit me: I'm standing in the middle of their film set, and I came outside into the middle of their filming. I tried to smile and wave at the camera, but a sense of shock and embarrassment prevented me. After a few seconds of not knowing what to do (did I still have time to take a picture???), I decided I probably shouldn't just stand there anymore, looking like an idiot.  So I ran down the street, past the cameras, past the crowd, and pretended nothing happened. I didn't take a picture because clearly they weren't happy with me.  And that guy had a luger. 

I guess they didn't want an Asian wearing jeans and a t-shirt in their show.

Later, I asked my neighbor Ania about it.  She had taken a few pictures from her window, and told me it was filming for a Polish TV show called "Czas Honoru" (Time of Honor), about WWII.  I guess that explains the German soldier (whew). 

Just another abnormal day in Warsaw

If you saw this guy walking down the street, you'd be nervous too, right? (Or have I been watching too many WWII movies?)

Kiss Me, I'm Confused

I never thought I'd get so stressed about how to say hello to someone.

When I was growing up, the handshake became so complicated, I didn't know what to do. Do I go for the traditional business-handshake? Or are the other person and me "cool" enough for the handshake where you angle your fingers up, rather than down? And if you do that, do you follow it with gripping their curled fingers? And how about a fist bump? Then we had to consider whether or not we put our left hand on the back of the other person as a sort of hug. And if the hand was open like a pat on the back, or if it was in a fist, like "I'm afraid to touch you, but this is still a nice gesture". Or did we just lean in with the shoulder, without wrapping the left arm around? Confused? So was I.

Mr. and Mrs. President fist bumping

Is this the cool way to shake hands now?

If I was meeting a female friend, it was always a hug; my head on the left side, over her right shoulder, my right arm over her left shoulder, and her right arm over my left shoulder. It could get a little awkward if we went for the same side, head-wise or arm-wise, but for the most part, there was an un-written rule about where to put your head and arms.  And everyone followed it.

People here kiss each other on the cheek. It's no big deal, and even in NYC and San Jose it was a common greeting/farewell among my friends.  But there seems to be so many variations here, and people playing by all different rules. I just don't get it.

First of all, you have to decide if you're close enough with the person to warrant a cheek kiss. You don't have to be best of friends for it...just basic acquaintances is probably enough. But that's where the confusion starts. Do you know each other well enough for the cheek kiss? Or is she just going to want to shake your hand (or just give a polite wave and a smile)? Unfortunately there is no rule as to what makes you close enough for the cheek kiss. Maybe if you are Facebook friends? Or maybe if you have ever sms'd that person? I don't know. And what about if it's a guy? Are there certain cultures that expect man-to-man cheek kissing?

I can't think of too many things more awkward...

Potential embarrassing moment #1: Leaning in for the cheek kiss, while she reaches out to shake your hand. Your momentum is too strong to stop your lean-in, but she doesn't commit to the kiss because you catch her off-guard. You end up in an awkward half hug, half cheek-rub (which is really awkward, like bumping faces), half her pushing you away (I know that makes 3 halves, but that's how uncomfortable it is). The good part about this is that the next time you see her, you'll just get the polite smile and wave. It's even worse if she is cheek kissing everyone else in the group, but then still reaches out to shake your hand. Ouch.

If you are greeting someone who is undoubtedly close enough for the cheek kiss, that doesn't mean it's straight-forward. Usually, like a hug, you go over her right shoulder (to her right cheek). The hard part now is knowing how close to get your body, if you add a little hug to it (and with which hand(s)), how much of an angle your face will make toward her cheek, and how much sound to make with the kiss. All four of these can be a source of embarrassment.

Potential embarrassing moments #2-5: Going for the cheek kiss, getting your body too close, so it's almost like a half-hug, not knowing what to do with your hands, as they kinda hug her, but kinda don't, and your face angles towards her enough that your lips fully touch her cheek, in a creepy "I just smelled your face" sort of way. This is a sure-fire way to keep the girl from making eye contact with you ever again.

Even if you master the arms, the lean, the face angle, the pucker, and how much "muah" sound to make when you lean in, there's still more to figure out.

Apparently different countries have a different number of kisses they do as a greeting. It's written into their constitutions or something. Some do two (one on each cheek), and some do three (switching sides twice). Personally, I'm normally a single cheek kiss type of guy (afterall, I'm just an amateur). And when I first moved here, it seemed like most of my friends were one-timers as well. But recently, some two-timers and three-timers have infiltrated my group, and now my friends do two and/or three kisses sometimes, without warning me! Come on! Give me a sign that says "I am a double kisser and you better be too" to save me confusion!

Potential embarrassing moment #6a: You go in for the double-kiss, and when you are switching sides to her other cheek, she pulls away, disengaging from the greeting, already greeting the next person. You're standing there (off-balance) with your left cheek foolishly sticking out, lips puckered, fishing for some action. But it doesn't come. At least hopefully your eyes are open (whoops, if not). Then you play it off like you were looking down the street at something (that's why your face was turned), and your nose itches (which is why you looked like you were puckering your lips, which, of course, you were NOT doing).

Potential embarrassing moment #6b: When you are the one doing the single-kiss, but she is waiting for the double. She has her face dangling out, lips puckered, but you have disengaged, and have stepped back. Now you see her standing there helpless, hoping for the second kiss. You're already on your heels, talking about something else, and in order to go back in, it takes a few extra seconds to re-balance and commit to it. By this time, everyone has noticed how awkward it is, and she might even pull away while you are going back in. This can get very uncomfortable, as now YOU are the one left hanging there. The worst part is that next time, you won't know what to do when you greet that person. You'll probably go for the double-kiss, so not to leave her hanging again, but she will go for the single, so not to be embarrassed again. And then you are back at scenario #6a. Good luck.

A well-executed double kiss leaves her happy

Potential embarrassing moment #7: Just like #6, but this time, when a triple-kiss is involved. Seriously, who has time for a triple-kiss? Why is it necessary? In a group setting, if you triple-kiss everyone, it can take forever! Once you triple kiss one person, everyone is watching, and is expecting a triple kiss of their own. It takes so long that once people see that the triples are coming, they end up forming a queue. It's like one of those booths where you pay 5 cents for a smooch with a pretty girl. My thought on the triple is that the more kisses involved, the more opportunities for embarrassing moments. And I don't like those odds.

Some hints that I've discovered:

- Don't be the first kiss-greeter. Wait for someone else to do it, so you can watch and know how many kisses you're expected to give

- Normally you can touch the person with your right hand on the lower part of her back (it helps with balancing). Excess hand touching is awkward and frowned upon.

- Don't fully pull away after the first kiss. Only pull away a little bit. That way, you're in good position for a second kiss, in case they are looking for it.

- Same as above for after the second kiss, in case they want three

- Move away after three kisses. Nobody wants four.

- Be ready to talk about something immediately after the kiss, in case it gets awkward. An interesting question or compliment about her clothes can take all attention away from the awkwardness of the greeting

Let it be known that I am a single-cheek-kisser.

Or maybe I will just bring back the high five.

If you still need help, you can read this website on how to do it: http://www.wikihow.com/Air-Kiss

But now I have to figure out a more complicated (and way more awkward) greeting: The cheek kiss.

10 Side Trips to Take When You Visit Me Because I Really Want to Go to There (part 2 of 2)

This is part 2 of 10 possible International side trips for when you visit me in Poland.  Make sure you start planning now!!

5. Transylvania, Romania

Dracula lives there.  Need I say more?

Transylvania is littered with castles, like Dracula's

4. Talinn, Estonia and Helsinki, Finland

Talinn is a beautiful city, and like the other Baltic countries, Estonia doesn't get it's due from the Western World.  How can you not want to visit this?  Helsinki is just a ferry ride away, across the sea, to make for an easy side trip, from this side trip.

Helsinki, Finland

3. Ljubljana, Slovenia

Nobody really knows about Slovenia, but many people in the region love this little city, and rank it among their favorites in Europe. 

2. Croatia

Like Montenegro, the coast of Croatia is beautiful.  I'd love to drive up the coast, visiting places such as Dubrovnik, Split, and Istria along the way

Dubrovnik

1. Munich, Germany for Oktoberfest 2011

My hotel is already booked for 22-25 September.  Let me know if you want to join!!

Inside an Oktoberfest tent

Munich

I hope this was enough to book your ticket to visit! 

Don't forget to check out the reasons to visit Poland too!

http://tristanaroundtheworld.blogspot.com/2011/02/10-reasons-to-visit-me-in-poland-10-6.html

http://tristanaroundtheworld.blogspot.com/2011/02/10-reasons-to-visit-me-in-poland-5-1.html

10 Side Trips to Take When You Visit Me Because I Really Want to Go to There (part 1 of 2)

This list features 10 places in Central/Eastern Europe (some obscure) that I really want to see. I wanted to share them with you so that you will come here to go to there with me. I don't mention the "usual" places like Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Turkey, Sweden, and a million other places, but I clearly would like to go to there as well.

I also don't mention Sarajevo, Riga, Prague or Budapest because I've been there - but I can definitely recommend them if you want to go!

10. Vienna, Austria and Bratislava, Slovakia

Vienna and Bratislava are merely 40 miles apart. If you visit one, a trip to the other seems like a necessity.

Vienna

Bratislava Castle

Bratislava at night

9. Berlin, Germany

Berlin is only a few hours away on the train.  It's the closest big city to Warsaw, and obviously has a lot of history to learn about there. 

 8. Ukraine

There are a lot of places to visit in Ukraine, but Kiev and Lviv are what I am most interested in.  Like many Eastern European cities, the history and culture is quite fascinating.  Ukraine also has cheap vodka and beautiful women (supposedly!)

 Kiev

 Lviv

7. Montenegro

Everyone raves about the coast of Montenegro.  Just take a look at these pictures and you will see why.  Let's go!

6. St. Petersburg, Russia

I will actually be going to St. Pete in a few weeks as an add-on to a work trip to Moscow.  It will be White Nights (it won't get dark), so look for my post about it!

St. Pete at night

 Bridges


When you are finally ready to visit, we can think about some side trips, such as these.  Start planning now!!