The Whole Trip: Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Paris, Amsterdam, Seoul...

Yes, this is going to be a long one.... Go get yourself a cup (or a pot) of tea, and enjoy.

I was able to blog sporadically as I traveled, but I've decided to try to write everything that I did over the past (almost) 3 weeks. It was a long trip -- and one that felt like 3 or 4 separate vacations. I did a week with my Mom, a few days with Karin in Sweden, a few days on my own, and then had a rather adventurous weekend in Seoul before coming back to Mokpo.

Amsterdam and The Hague


The main reason I went to Europe in the first place was to see my Mom. We were able to meet up in Amsterdam, and we really hit the ground running on the first day. For all its history and status (and reputation) Amsterdam is actually quite a small city - well, the touristy part anyway - and I think we managed to see just about everything possible in only a few days.

Our first stop was the OudeKerk, the oldest building in Amsterdam. It's a 13th C. church whose floor is made up entirely of gravestones, meaning that you are pretty much walking over an indoor cemetary.


The Oudekerk happens to be located in the heart of the Red Light district, so we found ourselves wandering past lots of cafés and working girls as well. It was a pretty awesome first day, but jetlag got the better of me and I was fast asleep before 7pm.


It was probably a good thing for me to get that rest. The next day, we hit the museums - The Rijksmuseum (home of Rembrandt's famous Night Watch) and the Van Gogh museum (home of just about everything he ever painted). The best part of seeing any art museum is that my Mom is a natural artist. I can look at a painting or whatever and say, "Oh, that's pretty" while she points out the proportions and perspectives, where the light hits and what brush technique was used. It just adds something to it.

We spent the afternoon on a canal cruise, and probably couldn't have chosen a better time to do it - the sun was out and we ended up with a lovely, relaxing afternoon. The canals in Amsterdam are something else - they are still used for business and personal use, as well as a living space for people who live in houseboats. There is even a floating cat shelter!


Amsterdam-ites ride bikes more than any place in the world, I swear. Just to cross the street, you had to check for bikes, and cross, then check for tramcars, and cross, then check for cars, and cross, then bikes again... It is wonderful to see, though... people dressed up for office work, or wearing chic clothes, and all riding their bikes in a super relaxed way. And when you see a parking lot for bikes, it just hits you as to how many cars are not on the road. Could be a lesson here for us, don't you think?

Our decision to go to The Hague was mostly so that we could get to the seaside of Scheveningen.... my Mom had been there about 20 years earlier. We managed to pick a very very windy day, but it was still a perfect time to be there. While on the pier, we met up with a very old lady who told us about Canadian soldiers liberating her village during WWII.... yes, Canadians have still retained their reputation as good people throughout Europe, which is great.


The Hague is an awesome city for people watching too... nobody is slouching along in pyjama pants or a sweatshirt, but they aren't fashion victims either. For me, the best part of the day was going to Mauritshuis, which we thought was just an old nobleman's house. It turned out to be a smaller art museum than the Rijksmuseum, but somehow I liked it better. There were hundreds of works done by very well-known artists (like Rembrandt), but the highlight for me was "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by Ver Meer. Having read the book (and yes, seen the movie), I was absolutely blown away by the depth and strength of this image. It's absolutely haunting.

Our last day in Amsterdam was a rainy shopping day... and then we boarded our train for Copenhagen.



I'd booked our tickets online, so had really no idea what we were getting as a "couchette". Just watch the video to see where we ended up sleeping! And yes, my Mom, ever the trooper, was able to get all the way up the scary ladder and into her bunk.


Copenhagen

Not surprisingly, we didn't sleep super well on that train, which left us a bit tired for our first day in Copenhagen. With rainy weather looming over us, we decided to try to find Kronberg, site of the castle that Shakespeare used as the setting for Hamlet, which is probably my favourite of all his works. This meant taking another train for an hour, but it was well worth it.



The castle wasn't overly enormous, but it was just full of stuff to see. We started out by getting lost in the tunnels underneath the castle (which were very dark and very damp), then went through the royal apartments.


The whole place was hosting art exhibits, which meant that 16th C tapestries were cheek by jowl with a few odd modern art installations. Some of them were jarringly different, while others fit well with the other items that surrounded them.


After the castle we walked, in the rain, through the village.


Our next day in Copenhagen was a full-on tourist day. We started off by locating the Little Mermaid statue, which was swamped with tourists. Actually, most of Copenhagen was full of tourists, which is fine since we are also tourists, so we can't complain right? The city is full of old buildings, fountains, statues, parks... and it's a very nice place to just walk through. I went up the Round Tower - a spirally tower attached to an old church - and we continued on through the shopping area.


As pretty as it is, Copenhagen is quite expensive. Add to this that we were trying to calculate how to convert Danish Kroners to Euros and back to either Canadian or Korean, and it was the sort of mental gymnastics that makes you put down the souvenir you were holding and just walk away.


Our last morning together, my Mom walked me to the train station and stood on the platform while my train took me away to Sweden (yes, I cried when we had to say goodbye). We had a very good week together, lots of good food and experiences as well as a few giggly fits in unlikely places...

Gothenburg

I never thought that I would ever get to a place like Sweden.... it's a far more exotic destination in my mind than, say, Thailand or something. I was up there to visit with a girl named Karin who I had met by chance in an airport in Indonesia. I really didn't know much about this country... but I was pleasantly surprised by the whole experience (oh, and yes, they have IKEA there...).


She met me at the train station, and we started to explore the city. Gothenburg is the rival to Stockholm when it comes to history and economy in Sweden. The city is modern and old, and very lively (especially since there was a big festival happening at the time that I was there).


As Gothenburg is on the coast, we grabbed a ferry the next morning and went to a small island with gorgeous houses and gardens that reminded me a lot of Kamouraska in Quebec. Actually, all of Sweden - the nature, the houses, the lifestyle - reminded me of Canada... just the Swedish are waaaay better looking than the average Canadian. We returned to Gothenburg in time to go to Karin's uncle's birthday party. Her family made me feel so welcome with their hospitality and generosity.... just unbelievable.

The next day, we did a cycling tour of the whole city, stopping at a maritime museum made of all sorts of ships (including a submarine) linked together with gangplanks, and then on to the World Culture Museum (probably one of my favourite stops on the whole vacation).

Then, we rode around Gothenburg some more, searching for, of all things, MOOSE. And we found them!!

We were exhausted by the time we got back to her mother's place, but there was no rest for the wicked, as her mom was hosting a special traditional Swedish party that night.... and I had a bus to catch back to Copenhagen at 3am.



The premise is this: wear funny hats, eat a lot, and sing every 5 minutes AND finish each song with a shot of straight booze. I brought some soju from Korea, and showed them all how to drink it with proper Korean etiquette.

Feeling a bit tipsy (ha!), Karin and I headed to one of her friend's apartments where they were having a party. And from there, we walked through the downtown area where they put me on my bus, and I was able to sleep until the bus driver woke me up in Copenhagen.

I had planned to visit Copenhagen a bit that morning, but realized that a lack of sleep (and a few too many shots the night before??) would have made it a bit too difficult. Instead, I found myself stranded at the airport as my flight to Paris changed gates 3 times before being delayed 2 hours.... but I eventually made it there.

Paris!!!

There is absolutely no way that I can write my day in Paris that will do justice to the whole experience.

This is the city that I have dreamt of visiting since I first started learning French. In high school and University, as I studied French, I learned about the city, French history and culture as I read just about every poet and author that France has produced in the past 1000 years (and that's a lot!). And now, to see it all there in front of me??? Just. Wow.


Starting super early in the morning, and with no idea just how close or how far anything was from anything else, I got on the Metro - and got lost - but eventually found myself at Le Louvre. It was too early to go inside, but it was a perfect starting point. I walked from there, through the Tuileries (gardens), and straight along the Place de la Concorde to the Champs-Elysées. I ended my morning walk at the Arc de Triomphe, which was much bigger and more spectacular than I expected. As I walked along, I was actually laughing to myself - I was so thrilled to be there.


I grabbed the Metro to the Eiffel Tower and, instead of waiting in the horrible line for the elevator, started climbing the stairs. I made it to the 2nd main level, but didn't feel that I had enough time (or energy) to climb all the way to the top. Still, it was spectacular to see, touch and be there. I'll have to climb all the way to the top the next time I go.



One thing I'd really been looking forward to in Paris was the Catacombs. It was going to take me a bit out of my way, but I figured it would be worth it. Ha! Just my luck, after missioning around for about 45 minutes, I found them... and they were CLOSED ON MONDAYS.


Next stop was the Luxemburg gardens, where I met a very charming older man and his grandson. He was just really awesome and insisted that I must go to the Panthéon and that he, and his grandson, would walk me there. A small aside here: People in Paris are extremely friendly - they do not deserve their reputation for being haughty and snobby at all!!!


The Panthéon is pretty much a monument to the authors, poets and philosophers of France.... and a perfect place for someone like me (French Literature degree, anyone?). I hadn't planned to go, so I am certainly happy that Yahya and Adele brought me there.


Stopping for lunch at a streetside cafe, I considered my next plan of action and decided to check out the Notre Dame cathedral -- which just happened to be directly across the street from me! I couldn't figure out how to get up on top, but quite enjoyed my quick walk-through.


Since everyone had told me that I should take a cruise on the Seine, that was my next stop. It was, unfortunately, a bit disappointing. Overcrowded, hot and uncomfortable.... but it got me back to Le Louvre.

So, Le Louvre is about 50 million times bigger than you think it is. That's the only way I can possibly describe this place -- it's huge... and then some. Every inch of wall space is covered with art, every corridor contains a dozen sculptures and, in some cases, even the ceiling and floor are decorated too. Yes, I saw the Mona Lisa and yes, I saw the Venus de Milo - with 400 other people crowded around me. But then... you can wander off to a different room and find yourself almost completely alone - like in the Egyptian Treasures. I obviously didn't have enough time to see all that Le Louvre had to offer, but I am so glad that I treated myself to a quick visit.


By this time, I had been running around Paris for about 10 hours, and my feet were throbbing. I had enough time for another streetside restaurant meal (ahhhh, LOVE that about Paris. The chairs are all on one side of the table so you have no choice but to people watch!), then early to bed to be up in time for my morning train back to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam (again)

With another afternoon in Amsterdam, and coming to the end of my Euros, I wasn't quite sure what to do.... so, I got a tattoo!

My latest tattoo is on my wrist, made up of pink and green stars and includes an unbroken wishbone (because if it's not broken, you obviously have everything you need, and need not wish for anything else....).


With my wrist a bit tender and wrapped in plastic (umm, yeah), I explored the Red Light district a bit more (it's really not all that, but it is interesting to see families and such walking through there too), as well as the area around Dam Square and the train station.

And, the next day, I started my full day of flying and airport stopovers back to Korea, which brings me to ...

Seoul

As I was returning home, and Ty was flying out to South Africa, the only place we could really see each other for a few days was Seoul.

On Friday, I met up with one of my former students from Suncheon. Yebin has dropped out of high school and is attending a private academy in the hopes of continuing into the military. She's a really bright girl who just didn't fit into the Korean system. She's got to face the stigma of dropping out too - which is a pretty big deal in Korea. However, she'll still be able to do her SATs and get into a good University too.


From there, I met up with Nicola for our last afternoon together. She's now back in New Zealand -- meaning I've lost one of the most important people of my time here in Korea. We've known each other now for over 2 years, and we've both grown and changed so much over that time. I'm sure that our paths will cross again some day... I hope so, anyway.


We went to a really nice sauna near the Yongsan station, where we were able to do just about everything from massage chairs and salt saunas to an outdoor spa tub. And, of course, we talked the whole way through, until I had to go back to the train station to meet Ty who was coming into Seoul with our friend Zach.... I'll spare you the details of our first meeting after over 2 weeks apart.

Feeling jet-laggy and sad to lose Nicola, and with a cold that comes from 20+ hours of flying in a plane... well, you can just imagine how hard it was to know that I was only seeing Ty for 2 days before saying goodbye again for 2 weeks.

On Saturday night, we met up with friends and went out in the Hongdae area of Seoul. At one point, I was dancing and suddenly felt something weird on my foot. I looked at my left foot and realized that the whole toenail of my left big toe was bent completely back and hanging on by a thread.... and bleeding.

Oh.
My.
God.
The pain.

Ty, Dave and Camille got me to a nearby hospital, where I continued to cry like a little girl while they held my hand through x-rays and about a million needles. I hate hospitals, and I am not the world's best patient....

This definitely made the next day, Sunday, a bit of a wash - we didn't leave the hospital until 6am - yup, all night in emergency - and then it seemed that we were back at the train station, getting ready to say goodbye again.

However, we ended on a very good note: There was a Euro-Festival going on at the mall near the train station, and they had a sort of dress-up photo kiosk. And so, one final picture... me and my Knight in Shining Armour (literally):


Thanks for reading this far... it's been a long, strange trip with a lot of experiences and memories that are going to stay with me for a long time. I was lucky enough to see my Mom, visit 4 different countries, view an uncountable number of incredibly timeless works of art, and come back to find myself with the bittersweet experience of saying goodbye to friends, but returning to the familiarity of "home".