It's just near the huge castle

After a painless train ride from Kings Cross in London I arrived in Edinburgh. The first thing you notice about the city is the massive castle on top of the massive rocky hill. It's kinda hard to miss. Now that a rain coat and umbrella are staple items in my bag, the amazing view makes up for walking around in the rain.

On my first night in Scotland I went out to dinner to try Haggis, which was actually quite nice. I also spent a day seeing the tourist sights including the Castle and school which JK Rowling based Hogwarts on, and the cafe where she wrote the first two books.

The rest of my time has been spent drifting between street performances and from one free fringe show to another (The Edinburgh Fringe is like the Adelaide Fringe but bigger, and with more castles). After meeting with Jess we staked out the best free shows and avoided the hecklers with flyers. The shows were mainly comedy but we found an amazing magic show with Dave, the ginger ninja magician. I also thought it was obligatory to see Macbeth while in Scotland.

The city has had an amazing atmosphere because of the Fringe Festival but tomorrow I will head back down south to Cardiff and Bath.

It's been just over a month since I left home and not long now until I settle down in Paris. I wish I had more time to see more of Europe, but I guess it just means I'll have to come back again!

From Scotland

xxxx

Another cup of tea?

Londoners really do drink a lot of tea. Which only begins to be a problem when you don't have a British Bladder, and have to catch the tube everywhere. Over my travels I have become increasingly aware of how bad the Adelaide Metro system is, and the London public transport makes this super clear. All you need is a multicoloured tube map and you are on your way to discovering the massive city.

I have been here 5 days (4 if you don't count one spent sick in bed) and I feel like I have only just scratched the surface. I have caught a ferry up the Thames all the way east to Grenwich, which would have been beautiful, if not for the dreary British summer weather. Have taken the tube out west to Richmond and zipped around in a red mini with a childhood television star (who happens to be a second cousin) passed Mick Jagger's house, Pete Townshend's house and various deer and squirrels. I have walked across the heath and had Sunday morning breakfast in Hampstead; been shopping along Oxford Circus and seen some of the major attractions and monuments.

Yet, I feel as though I need another week to see all London has to offer; Notting hill, Camden Markets, Portobello Road, the Churchill war rooms, Brick Lane, the London eye, Abbey Rd just to name a few. Needless to say, I will be coming back to London in the near future.

I have found Londoners to be the most helpful people and I have been taking full advantage of being in my first English speaking country, asking questions at every opportunity. They also happen to have particularly cute children, and dress very well, especially the teenage boys.

Tomorrow I head up to Edinburgh for the Fringe festival, then Cardiff and Bath.

Adios Amigos

Sarah

xx

Chorus of Coughs

Last night was the end of the Topdeck tour and I am already missing it! I met so many cool people and saw so many amazing places. Even if everyone was sick and coughing like they had the black lung.

From our tour of Auswitch we moved on towards Prague for a slightly less depressing evening.

After an unwanted encounter with Czech authorities for apparently invalid metro tickets, the group headed into town to party. We headed to the famous 5 story club and spent most of the time breaking it down to golden oldies before attempting to find a taxi home as dawn broke over Prague. Two hours of sleep later, we somehow managed to get out of bed and wander the beautiful city before dinner and a quiet night.

On Sunday we drove to Berlin with a stop in Dresden. Because the city had been flattened in W

WII, it is a gorgeous mix between modern and reconstructed old buildings. We arrived in Berlin to a hostel that had no light globes, but bunny rabbits in the garden; which is clearly a fair trade. Monday was spent exploring Berlin, going to the National Museum and taking a walking tour of the famous sights. It is incredible how rich in history the city is, and how recent all of the events took place. The night was full of white t-shirts, permanent markers, free drinks and loud music.

Moving on to Amsterdam, a gorgeous city where no two buildings are the same and where I have never seen so many bikes in my life! We did a bike tour, visited the Van Gough Museum, got lost several times and generally experienced the local culture. It was the last dinner together as the Topdeck group so as usual, we all went out again to celebrate.

From Amsterdam we had an early start, stopped in Brugge, Belgium, to stock up on the best chocolate in the world, and caught the ferry to England.

I arrived in London to meet my mums cousin and a warm bed, so much better than the hostel beds! Unfortunately, I spent most of today in bed nursing my cough and head cold, but I managed to get out for an hour or two.

I am currently sipping on ginger tea with honey in an attempt to cure my cough.

I can't wait until I am back to full health!

Until Then

Sarah

xoxo

Three currencies in as many days

After a long drive and a huge schnitzel we arrived in Vienna on another day of my tour ( I have lost track of days something terrible). First stop was the 'summer house' of the Hutsberg royal family, complete with their own zoo, then the next morning was free to explore the beautiful city which included castles, the natural history museum and, of course, sachetort with ice cream and coff

ee for morning tea. It's always essential to try the local cuisine! Hence, morning tea was followed by a tour of the original schnapps museum, taste testing included. After a quick change and a struggle finding dinner in the rain, we had a taste of Opera and classical music to top off the evening.

Everyone on the bus has some sort of cold, and if you don't you will soon. So at our stop in Slovakia on the

way from Vienna to Buapest, we decided lunch should be Chinese hot and sour soup to clear the nose. Sniffing all the way, we arrived in beautiful Budapest. I immediately knew that I

love the city and I can't wait for the chance to go back and explore it properly. After the biggest meal I have ever had (and that's a big call from me) the group caught cabs to one of the big bars in the city. As usual, youths in Europe clearly have nowhere to be in the morning and party well into the night. The next day was spent wandering the castle district and streets of Budapest trying to understand their currency, where a chocolate bar costs 300forents.

Next came Krakow, Poland (with another currency, this time easier to understand). We did a somber tour of the Jewish ghettos and Schindlers list followed by more street wandering.

Tomorrow we have an early start to go to Aushwich and Birkenau on the way to Prague.

Sorry about the lack of pictures, hostel Internet is unreliable. I'll try and add some more soon.

Managed to get some internet that works!

Until then

Love

Sarah

Non Stop

Busy busy busy! So mush has been happening since I last wrote. I spent many an hour wandering the streets of Rome. My goodness, those Romans were a smart bunch. Just wandering past Gucci and Prada and there was just a 2000 year old ruin on the side of the road. No big deal ...

So I went to the Vatican and St Peters Basilica which were both beautiful. Suprisingly there was a big section about Aboriginal culture in the Vatican Museum. Then with some new friends, we went back o see the Trevi fountain, the Spanish steps and the Colosseum lit up at night. They were all gorgeous, but we did have an hour long adventure on the bus ride home (which should have only taken 10)

On Wesnesday I started my Topdeck tour. Getting there was an adventure in itself, getting off at the wrong bus stop with a friend who happened to be in the same room as me in Rome. We bused to Verona and saw Juliets balcony before heading to Venice.

Today was spen catching Gondolas around the watery city and eating pizza and gelato, as you must in Italy.

I'm currently relaxing in the sun by the pool and tomorrow will head to Vienna for Schnapps and Classical music.

Sarah

Xxx