Germany

Merry Christmas!!

A day late yes but you cant expect me to blog on christmas day, we were too busy feasting and sleeping for that! Now, other current events and important dates in order. Welcome home Monkey and Plummers!! wow must be amazing to finally be home after such a huge adventure! Swan and Greg must be over the moon! And Happy Birthday Sammy up in Scotland, ill be there soon! And seeing as this post will be much closer (without going over) than my next one Happy Birthday Linden! Hope you have an amazing beach celebration! Then of course Happy New Year!! Plan for me is reuniting with James and Sam up in Edinburgh along with Jus to rock Hogmany!

But, enough of now and future, follow me now on a journey through time and space... back to a couple of weeks ago in Berlin. Sam and I chilled out a fair bit that first day before we walked all around the city (first on our own then on a free tour) including going down Unter Den Linden, checking out the wall and going into a crazy crackden. Then it was time to celebrate, and that we did knocking back some boots and hitting a club (in tshirts, so so cold between the two) before bed. oh and i bought a new camera.... here are some photos from it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/21750162@N05/

Now it was train to Hamburg time. of course we took the cheapest and slowest option getting us in late and there was only really time for dinner and bed. The next day we explored a little down the harbour and met with shirley for a couple of beers. The next day Babs, Bert and Anja took Sam and I out to an Argentinian Restaraunt for a steak which was so so good! mmm, im still full of christmas goose and that steak sounds delicious! then it was time for sam and I to train to Holland!

N!ojh met us at the train station at 2am and showed us to his house in Delft. Awesome catching up with old Roger as all we did the next day was have a short look at Delft (from the top of a church spire) before retiring to his room for drinking, eating, watching episodes and playing a little poker (i still owe N!ojh €5, but he probably wont see penny one from me). Then it was time for us to head off to Amsterdam and let N!ojh get back to studying for his exams.

Amsterdam, was pretty fun. This is where sam and i were to part ways after a pretty fun month so we made sure to enjoy ourselves while there. Cant say we saw much of the city although we did walk every street in the redlight district, although window-shopping was all we did. Other than that we went to some coffeeshops and drank a beer or two, ate some food, the usual. then it was time to part. wont be the same without sammy but we reunite for a couple of days soon.

My trains messed up leaving me waiting for 2 hours then when i did arrive in Hamburg I ran to catch the S-bahn. I ran down the stairs and jumped on the train that was leaving on my platform and as i looked back at the sigh it said that it was not in service... Why were the friggin doors open then? hahaha so i ended up in the train yard parked with all the other trains and had to walk back to the station which took like 20 mins. Luckily i got the last train home with 2 mins to spare. Whew.

Since then I have been in Hamburg living the hedonistic life of amazing food, presents, no job and sleeping. ridiuclous. We have had a couple of outings. I was taken to the Rat Haus (Town Hall) and to a Bach Concert (in the Michael) both of which were really good! The town hall is very ornate which i wasnt expecting and really cool, and the concert was huge, 2000 people and really good! Also today Bert and Anja walked me around Blankenese and showed me where my german roots come from, with a gluewhine of course. But generally Christmas has been very relaxing at the house.

There were kids and a dog and all sorts of fun with presents and the food, i keep coming back to it. Babs outdid herself over and over, culminating in a roast Goose today which was awesome! I hadnt had it before and it was delicious. oh and this is all over the place, but somewhere in there I hit the town with Robbie again. it was a saturday night and everyone was out so i thought i had better be also! so we rocked some random irish pub but it was a heap of fun! I didnt get home till 6am and Robbie fell asleep in the club so theres an indication of how boozed we were.... erg i just remembered all the jagermeister....

So, there you have the past couple of weeks and all my Christmas best wishes so I can get back to my stressfull life. Tomorrow we are off to the beach-house in St Peter.

Ok, take care and have a great new years!
lots of love
hutch

Hey gang!

So since we have last spoken it had been quite a journey. From Turkey to Munich, Rothenburg, Frankfurt to London. And i had best start with Munich and Oktoberfest. Now as Im sure many of you are aware how this ended up, you will have to wait as it didnt happen on the first day.

So James and I arrived in Munich, excited and thirsty. We trained to Peter and Julianes house. It was a long way out of town. we were starting to get worried as we left all civilisation and were now speeding through cornfields and forrests. Soon however we got off and as we followed Peters directions we had some breathtaking views over the plains with the alps in the background. wow.

So the house was beautiful and the welcoming hospitality amazing. Showered and refreshed James and I were eager beavers so we went in and joined the laderhosen wearing locals and drunken tourists for a litre or two of Spatenbrau (in the Schottenhamel tent) before training home to meet Sara and Westy at the station. Apparently they couldnt follow the exact same instructions I followed.

So then the next morning we got up to arrive at the fest right when they started serving. Forced to sit at tables reserved after 3pm we thought that would be ok cos we had to be home for a family dinner with Anja and we didnt want to be that drunk. from the flickr photos you can piece together a better memory of it than i can. All i remember is 4 rounds of beers (apparently there was a fifth) then I woke up in the first aid tent. From the bill of €106 i concluded that I was suffering from alcohol intoxication and that I needed to be warmed up for two hours because i had hyperthermia. Anyway, so i missed dinner, am quite embarrassed and dont really know what happened to me at all.

So the next day i had some making up to do. 9am arrival with friends of Anja reserving us a table worked a treat and we were seated while thousands scrambled for places. Not that there was much sitting. The day was filled with snuff-tabac, big lowenbraus and lots of stein swaying singing. Oh and there were twisty cigars. and lots and lots of sausages.

This time i made it home. unscathed, dry and with my dignity although i did have the wobbly boot on. The next day was spent organising our way out of Munich (harder than u think at this time of year) then we left the following morning. To.....Rothenburg.

Rothenburg is and was sweet. A totally walled castle. And James and I finally, Finally, FINALLY, got two single rooms instead of a twin room. And with an amazing breakfast all for €20 each. Oh it was awesome! slept like a baby. And the town is soo cool! its a totally walled, overly bavarian city. We ate like kings, drank like kings and slept like kings. Oh, it was sooo good. Walking the town walls was great and eating amazing (mainly sausage based) meals with amazing (mainly wheat based) beers was just what we needed.

Then it was time to skip to Frankfurt and fly from there to Old Londontown.

London. Ok, so I have no idea where James is living, but i am living in a stinky, small, dirty house sharing a room with Paulie (Lachies mate and old housemate) in White City. Thats west london and I am working in a pub called the Green, in Shepards Bush, which is the next suburb over and about 20 mins walk. Not a bad job. they have cool pump ales that you have to pump into glasses and everyone is pretty cool. I do a lot of waiting on people which i spose is good practice. Oh and on my first night I had a gay guy buy me a drink, a group of 4 chicks tell me im "well fit" and some random chick say "your a very wanted man". when i replied "by who". She laughed and said "by me you prat". I think its just cos im not ridiculously white and I brush my fairly straight teeth. Although my bosses girlfriend came in especially to listen to my accent so I dunno. I think it was just a first day thing as today I got dougnuts (thats means nothing mum).

Anyway, so thats the update. Everything is expensive as hell. and I cook almost all my meals because of that in my stinky little hovel. but its starting to get better. im cleaning slowly.

Theres a couple of pics of Oktoberfest and ill put some Rothenburg pics up soon on the flickr.

Talk soon everyone,
Miss you all as usual. Except you daino, as usual.
Hahaha, nah ur alright daino.

Take care
Hutch