Contiki European Experience (Part 2: Hopfgarten – Amsterdam)

As a continent, Europe never ceases to amaze. Regardless of where I was or what I was doing I always managed to experience something new, meet someone great or just generally enjoy myself, and the practical embodiment of this concept was felt no more than the second half of the Contiki tour of which I found myself a part. I pick up where I left off in my previous post titled Contiki European Experience Part One (go figure), following a wonderful time in Venice we headed for the Austrian Alps, Hopfgarten to be more specific, where I was to have what I consider the greatest day of my life to date. Picture this; waking up and following a spot of breakfast heading up the alps on a mountain bike before venturing to a beautiful lake which featured crisp waters as well as a submerged trampoline and inflatable iceberg, and then hailing a cab back up into the alps to go paragliding with a view of the entirety of Hopfgarten. As far as individual days go, it simply cannot be beaten, and I am certain that as long as I live I will hark back to that day in Austria where I did experienced things beyond my wildest dreams and enjoyed myself to a level I was unaware possible.

That night we partied in true Contiki style, with a soiree in the theme of tight, white and bright and true to form I donned my tightest pair of jeans and danced the night away surrounded by members of my Contiki family as well as some new faces. In the morning we headed off to Munich by way of Dachau Concentration Camp, a different experience for myself having previously only experienced holocaust related attractions in the company of fellow Jews. However, it was rather the museum and presentation of the camp itself which slightly upset me rather than the company. As I wandered the museum’s 15 rooms I felt conflicted as the historian in me called for a more detailed history which was better structured and less tedious whilst the Jew in me called for a less matter of fact tone and more sympathetic narration towards the victims of Nazi atrocities committed upon the ground on which I stood. I just couldn’t win. I put it to the back of my mind, thankful that Contiki actually cares enough to send its groups to such a historical site and encourages its participants to feel the meaning and acknowledge the suffering related to one of the worst episodes in human history.

Any who, Munich was all I expected it to be, a bike tour in the rain showcased the cities monuments and perks before a visit to the Hofbrauhaus, a traditional beer-hall, gave most what they came for, all the beer they could drink served litre by litre ice cold. A fairly drunk bus ride home made for a cool addition to the memory bank, before an early night was had by most as we prepared for the longish ride to Switzerland’s Lauterbrunnen nestled deep in the alps. We visited Luzern on the way through, and a Swiss army knife and watch emporium therein which sported some rather nice albeit exorbitantly expensive products. Eventually we arrived in the alps and were greeted with cottage-style rooms which were uh, cosy, yes that will do. That night featured a swiss themed party in which fun was had by all. In the morning much of the group headed up Europe’s highest accessible peak without climbing, Jungfrau via steam railway. Being somewhat short on funds in addition to my hangover I forgoed the honour in lieu of what I soon found out was roughly a 7km round trip walk to the ‘nearby’ waterfall system. It was nice, but then again my splitting headache wasn’t. Eventually I headed back to bed for four hours directly in the middle of the day. I emerged a new man and a quiet day and night followed.

In the morning we departed for Germany’s St Goar with a stopover in Heidelberg. St Goar is a city which houses literally one street of stores, albeit two or three of those stores aren’t too bad! With a roughly halfprice Birkenstock store the majority of the girls were satisfied and some of the boys… but who am I to judge! The beer stein store was also rather entertaining aside from its price tags. That night I wasn’t in the best mood as I battled an illness which would stick with me for the rest of the tour. However, it was no worse than the next morning’s departure as I felt as though someone was literally holding a lighter to my forehead. I valiantly forged on and soon enough we arrived in Amsterdam, the stoner’s city of dreams. Not being a smoker I had no expectations of a city I figured would be much like the rest of Europe’s major cities… boy was I wrong. The red light district proved that with precisely one walk up the street as prostituted one and all emerged from their small glass rooms to attempt to lure me and my friends into an hour of ‘fun’ which would no doubt shortly be followed by a long and embarrassing stint in the doctor’s office. Regardless, if that didn’t disturb me enough we were soon taken to a sex show, where the joyless faces of the show’s ‘performers’ had me edging towards the exit with a grimace on my face. Nonetheless, Amsterdam was interesting?

Our final night out in Amsterdam was spent bar hopping and the like and it was an adequate ending and farewell to the 50 people who I had grown unbelievably close to in the preceding 20 days. Contiki was an experience which I would recommend to literally anyone. If you want to explore the world and do it in a way that will make you loads of friends and new experiences then Contiki is for you. Next stop London.

Thanks for reading,

Jake

Contiki European Experience (part 1: Paris – Venice)

A 20 day whirlwind tour around Europe with 51 relative strangers played out exactly how it sounds… awesomely! Prior to beginning my premiere Contiki experience, I could only describe myself as apprehensive, and generally unaware of what to expect from the relationships and experiences I would be creating over the length of my tour. However, as I arrived at the Royal National Hotel in London prior for the briefing session the night before the commencement of the tour, fresh from a drawn out 24 hours in transit from Mykonos, my nerves were almost immediately subdued. I swiftly realised the all-round nice and easy-going attitudes of everyone I was to be sharing my Europe experience with and my mind was put at ease. The next day the coach was packed and we headed off on the way to our first stop, Paris, travelling via ferry across the English Channel between Dover and Calais. During the bus ride we became acquainted with each other via set of short introductory questions we had to answer for all to hear… hilarity ensued and first impressions were formed. Arriving in Paris it was very quickly clear who the party animals in our midst were as some opted for late nights while others struggled with jet lag and hit the hay what would soon be considered relatively early. My first night was the cliché Parisienne experience every tourist must have, dining on crepes and sipping champagne at the bottom of the world famous Eiffel Tower.

The following night we headed out to an optional Cabaret show which proved ridiculously entertaining as members of our group were thrust onto stage for audience participation in between traditional cabaret song and dance. That night more group bonding ensued as we all headed to a bar situated next door to the Moulin Rouge itself for drinks. The next day we headed off early to the France’s Beaujolais wine region where we stayed in Contiki’s very own chateau which we shared with a few other groups. Whilst there, we participated in a wine tasting including some of the finest wines from the region, we ventured off on a picnic up a mountain where we managed to get unseasonably lost and never actual find the picnic spot, and were treated to an awesome party in the chateau’s underground club known as the cave, with the theme being ‘p’ needless to say there were Parisiennes aplenty around… as with all Contiki parties numerous hilarious stories emerged the following day, but none rivalled Christian’s managing to urinate in Niqi’s bag on a routine drunken walk to the bathroom, which he missed by one door.

Next we headed for the French Riviera, and that night into the principality of Monaco and marvelled at its collection of ludicrously expensive cars as well as heading to the Monte Carlo casino where some fared better than others…. Personally I managed to lose my solitary betting capital (50 euro) in two hands of blackjack before recouping 5 euro on the slots. The next day saw us leave France and head towards the land of pizza and pasta; Italy. Initially what is perhaps the world’ most celebrated architectural mistake, the Leaning Tower of Pisa and a foray of touristy photos ensued. Next we headed to our campsite in Florence. Our first night in Florence was spent as the Red Garter, a karaoke bar which was filled by Contiki and top deck groups exclusively and as such proved unbelievably enjoyable. The following day we were left to our own devices in Florence, viewing a leather demonstration as well as surveying the various beautiful squares around the city. That night we partied at Space Electronic Disco, a decent club located in the heart of Florence, before retiring early enough thanks to our impending journey to Rome in the morning.

Arriving in Rome we began by visiting the stereotypically touristic sights, first up the colosseum followed by the old Roman ruins which surround it, needless to say cameras were not holstered for a solid period of time. The next day we departed Italy, albeit briefly, and headed into the world’s smallest sovereign state, Vatican City, home of the pope. We headed in on a particularly hot day and being a redhead with unbelievably fair skin I joked on the way there of the third degree sunburns I would be receiving come days end save for maybe one of those hilarious umbrella hats… which is exactly what I found 100m down the road and promptly purchased, and thus looked like a moron the entire rest of the day. That night another party was organised for us, with the theme “I heart Rome,” everyone was to wear an I heart Rome t shirt which was written on in texta with messages. The party was fun as per usual as the alcoholic heavyweights of the group continuing to flex their metaphorical muscles, extending their undefeated streak of drunk nights yet again. For some the streak continued to extend and lasted the entire trip, but not the fainthearted.

The next day we arrived in Venice, where we engaged in all the typical touristic Venetian activities, visiting a glass blowing demonstration and shop, cruising the canals on a traditional gondola, visiting the main square and eating Italian delicacies namely pizza and pasta. Yet again Contiki’s campsite did not disappoint as the food and lodgings were more than satisfactory.

To read about the rest of my Contiki adventures, click on the part 2 post!

Thanks for reading,

Jake