My Trip around Europe

A couple of years ago i went over to London on a working visa. I didn't really have a plan. But i had small savings from working in the mines.

I tried working in hospitality.
I did one nightshift social event, carrying wine on a tray beforehand, serving food & wine during the meal, even learnt to fold those flash napkins you see on the table at silver service.
By the time we finished that night the tube had stopped running, so i caught the night busses home. Took an hour and a half with one bus change. I got home at around 3-3:30am had a couple hours sleep & then had to catch the underground back to work breakfast.
Needless to say, i did one more shift and then quit.
By this time, i was staying in a house with 5 other Aussies and a Brit, I had a UK bank account and a UK phone number.
I did some touristy things around London, (museums, aquarium, parliament house... ect) and i took a daytrip out to Bath & Stonehenge. Had a tour of the roman baths.
I then booked a rail ticket in Europe. Eurail i think it was called. I could just rock up at any station & fill out my ticket with the details of the next train, then it was stamped and i could travel. Easy.
I travelled the country mostly by night train. I had to pay about 40Euros for a sleeper cabin(still cheaper than most people had to pay) and 30-40 euros was about the cost of a backpackers. Except on a train i could wakeup in another country.
So anyway...
Here are a few photos i picked out of the hundreds i took.
Enjoy.

My going away party in Kalgoorlie, Australia

I'm the handsome devil on the right. The photo was taken in a local pub.

London, UK


Stonehenge


Bath, UK

Rotterdam, Netherlands


Paris, France


Paris


the Louvre, Paris

the Mona Lisa

the Louvre


Nice, France


Rome, Italy


Vatican City


Amsterdam, Netherlands

 

my second trip to Amsterdam... or was it third?

Swans in the redlight district

 

Nice pictures. How did you manage a work visa in England?

I'm in England right now, maybe flying over to Brussels, to Germany for work next week,then back to England before heading back to the USA.

I want to live in England, but they make it very difficult for a US citizen.

 

a 2year work visa wasn't too hard. Filled out alot of paperwork. Jumped through alot of hoops.
Germany was great. Berlin was a beautiful city. Museum island (German: Museumsinsel) was interesting to walk through even if you don't go into any museums. Plus i recommend the free walking tours in any European city you can find them in. Berlin was one city, plus Amsterdam, Madrid probably Paris & any other big city. The guides will pick you up from a few backpackers, or you can meet them in some central place. The guides speak many languages, are really entertaining & informative. The bloke in Madrid made us all dance a few steps of the flamenco. It's a free tour, you just have to tip the guide whatever you think it was worth at the end.

Something i saw on Museum island...

 

Very cool pics, Taliesin.

Question: Is the giant butt-plug that Santa Claus is holding for Bumble the Abominable Snowman?
Apparently, I missed that scene from Rudolph, the Red-nosed Reindeer.

 

Hahaha, you know, in 2 years noone has ever asked me about the giant gnome with a buttplug
I have no idea what it was about. It was one of the first things i found on my Europe adventure.

*edit*
I see now it's santa, i never noticed. But that's a bell he's holding! ha

 

Would that buttplug be for someone who is naughty or nice?

 

I can also recommend Dresden, 120miles from Berlin.
I only went there on a whim.
I was scanning online for a future backpackers when i found one with a kangaroo painted on the side on the building.
Being Australian i had to visit the kangaroo. I met a few other Aussies there and we had a good night walking from store to store just buying beers as we needed them.
Loved the no street drinking laws, and the cheap beers.

 

Dresden is a beautiful city, even though it's at the very eastern fringes of Germany.

Been there many times and always happy to return.