Stuttgart

As already mentioned I stayed with Julian and Serina Clark in Stuttgart. Julian is an old school friend of my Dad's and he and his wife are both involved with Eurythmy. If you don't know what that is (I was ignorant before staying with Julian) look it up. It's a form of modern dance......sort of.

Anyway, Julian and Serina continued my huge list of fantastic hosts that I've had so far on my travels and I had a great time staying with them. Whilst I was there I went to Freiburg and Strasbourg (as already described), watched England get knocked out of the world cup, visited the zoo with Julian, visited the Benz Museum (as in Mercedes Benz) and generally visited Stuttgart.The Stuttgart Zoo was really nice. It wasn't particulary massive nor did it have particulary exotic wildlife, but it was very nice. Other than New Zealand zoos I've never really been into a zoo so seeing the bears and beavers and things was nice as well as the baby snow leopard. I also went past the Keas and Kakas to say Kia ora. =)The Daimler Benz Museum was only completed in May 2006, so it was brand new and no expense had been spared. Everyone is issued with a little palm-top computer which is activated whenever you press a button near each exibit where it gives detailled information on every display as well as following the history of the development of the automobile, mostly from the companies point of view. After all, it was Daimler who invented the petrol-powered high speed engine that made cars possible. They even had a racing simulator, although unfortunately I had neither the time nor the budget to have a go.What I rather liked about Stuttgart is that it's actually one of the greenest cities in Europe (according to my guide book) with extensive parks throughout the city which were lovely to wander through. Unfortunately I didn't think to photograph them, but it makes Stuttgart a very nice, modern, city.

Freiburg and Strasbourg

After attending my last game in Hanover I headed South to Stuttgart to stay with my Dad's friend Julian Clark and his wife, Serina - but more about that later. The next day I went on a day trip down the Southwest border of Germany to visit Freiburg and then back via Strasbourg which is in France, just the other side of the border.

Freiburg was a nice old town with cobbled streets, old buildings and, of course, a lovely old Minster. Don't ask me what the difference is between a Minster and a Cathedral although someone once told me it was something to do with whether or not there was a resident bishop? There was a market on and the place was really pleasant with my favourite aspect being that most buildings had some kind of shield in a mosaic on the footpath outside that seemed to be related to the activity in the building (butchery type stuff outside a butcher, govermenty stuff outside the town hall etc.), although I'm not sure what type of building was supposed to be next to this shield, I just liked it.


Strasbourg was also very beautiful. The Catherdral, I'm pretty sure that this one was a Cathedral, was huge and I think that I liked the interior of this one more than any of the others. Could't really say why, it just appealed to me somehow I guess.

Stasbourg was another quaint old medieval town which has grown into a city and the contrast between the modern areas and the old town was dramatic. They had some lovely canals running through the area coming off a river which runs into the Rhine which marks the German-French border at this point. The old town is lovely and great to walk through, the problem is that they know it and the commercialisation is such that, in conclusion, I actually enjoyed the quieter and significantly less known Freiburg quite a lot more. Overall, a fantastic day =)

Hannover and Nearby

After Berlin my next and last game was in Hannover. However, my Uncle Nigel's friend (Maria) whose brother in law we stayed with in Berlin lives in the country nearby and so I gratefully accepted the offer of lodgings with Maria and her family. Maria is a Magician and very lively and bubbly person and so staying with them for one night was great fun. The nearest railway station is Uelzen which has been decorated by Hundertwasser (the one that designed those toilets in some small town in Northland, New Zealand) which seemed very appropriate when staying with a magician.

They took me briefly to see Lüneberg (a nice old town with cobbled streets and things) which was very nice and I had a rather relaxing time which included plenty of football!
On the day of the game I travelled into Hannover in the evening for the 9pm kickoff, deposited my bag at my lodging and then went off to see the game, Spain - France. My seat was in the corner again but this time 15 rows back, so a much better view. I was hoping Spain would win, but alas 'twas not to be. It was a good game, as a spectecal, and the atmosphere was once again amazing although still not as good as the Korean fans in Frankfurt!

Dresden

I visited Dresden on my way between Berlin and my next game in Hannover because the guide book encouraged me to "Explore the treasures and gran buildings of this baroque beauty beauty bisected by the majestic Elbe River". So, after quickly looking up the word 'baroque' http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/baroque I was on my way.

Well, Dresden did not disappoint! Up there with Luxembourg this was really one of the most beautiful cities I have visited so far. Around every corner was another truely amazing building and it is easy to see that they are in with a good shoot at the 'International City of Culture' prize. I'll let pictures do the talking again other than to say that the panorama (second photo) was taken from the top of the, newly reconstructed after WWII bombing, church shown in the first photo.

Berlin

Berlin is spectacular. The magestic buildings in the city are truely amazing and all the promenant ones are located at the ends of vast, wide avenues which make for a very grand and impressive approach. I was only there for two days, about half that time was spent either at the football or watching football. I will be back here later for the World Cup final and should be able to find time to see more as I barely scratched the surface of this famous (and infamous) city.

Now that finally have found somewhere that will let me upload photos I will let them do the describing of the places I visited, but in summary I saw:

The somethingorothermonument whose name escapes me and I will confirm later
The Soviet War Memorial (curiously located in old West Berlin for reasons that I won't discuss here)
The Brandenburg Gate
The RiechstagThe Jewish Memorial (which, despite my normal dislike of modern art, I really liked)Checkpoint Charlie (an old East/West Berlin checkpoint)and last but most definately not least, Charlottenburg Schloss (Palace) which was huge and amazing and, I'm told, tiny compared to Potsdam Palace just outside Berlin which I really must see.
The was, of course, the small matter of Ukraine vs Tunisia as well =)Whilst the seats were not so good being three rows from the very front behind one of the corner flags and the game itself was not much for a football match, the excitement of visiting the newly renovated Olympic Stadion where the Berlin Olymics were hosted in, I think, 1936 was amazing. Seating 72,000, it is a marvellous arena and the atmosphere was great.

Overall, my visit to Berlin continued the very high standard that my German experience is currently achieving as my Uncle and I stayed with Hajo, Nigel's friends brother-in-law, and family. Hajo designs board games, on of which I now have, and was another excellent, and very interesting, host.

I think I've written plenty for one post. Please send me email or leave comments as I really want to know what you're all up to in NZ!!

Köln

I had another fantastic time in Köln thanks largely to the welcome of Mechtild, Reimund, Miriam and Miriams boyfriend Amir. Mechtild is the sister of Michaela who I stayed with in Frankfurt. Miriam spent 4 months in New Zealand staying with my Mum's friend and so was keen to show me around, which was great. Here's a photo of, from left to right, Reimund, Mechtild, Miriam and Amir.

Köln is famous to most for its Cathedral (der Dom in German) which is HUGE and very impressive. We climbed the 509 steps to the top which gave us marvellous views of the surrounding city. The photos hardly do it justice as you really have to see it but here are a couple of pictures anyway.

I also visited the museum dedicated to Köln's Roman Heritage and I took a photo with a couple of friends I met there =P
The other thing that Köln is famous for (which I'm afraid I was ignorant of before arriving) is the Carnival. It's origins lie in catholicism and so it is during the days leading up to Lent prior to Easter. Basically the entire city stops work, dresses up in costumes and holds massive parades. The whole thing lasts for about three days officially but probably more like six I am told. It sounds like masses (excuse the pun) of fun and I shall have to return in 2007 to see what it's like =)

The atmosphere in Köln was electric with the Brazilians in particular making a lot of noise. When I went into town at night there were fans everywhere waving their flags around and having a great time with nothing more than friendly rivalry (no football hooligans thank goodness) which made the whole experience wonderful.

Viva Kölonia!

Luxembourg

Luxembourg City was absolutely fabulous (although not in the manner of the tv show). The modern city is what has become of the medieval fortress founded in 900 and something A.D. It is nestled (excuse the cliche) amougst the forests of central Europe with a deep ravine on one side where two rivers meet and rolling hills on the other. It is both a beautiful and remarkable place as it must of been very easy to defend in the past.

Luxembourg has succesfully preserved many of its ancient buildings and almost all of the new buildings in the centre of town have been built in the same character. The effect, especially on a fine summer's day, is magnificent and has created the most pictuesque location I have ever visited. I've included only a few of the many photos I've taken and they really don't do it justice. If you have not already been here then no trip to Europe would be complete without a stop here.

The first photo is of the Dukal Palace (which I am taking to mean that, technically, Luxembourg is a Duchy and not a country). Whilst this is a very flambouyant building it is the combination of all the buildings, rather than any one or two individually, that makes Luxembourg so nice.
This next photo is of one of the views looking over the ravine. It's the only decent photo that proves I was actually there!The third photo is of inside the catherdral. Having a lovely old catherdral is pretty much compulsory in any decent European city.
This last picture is my favourite view looking out over the river and at a couple of the bridges crossing the ravine.

South Korea 2 - 1 Togo

South Korea vs Togo was a really fantastic game! The seat I had claimed to be 'Restricted view', but as you can see from the photo this was not at all the case. I was sitting very close to where the cameras film the game and had perhaps one of the best seats in the house!! The atmosphere was amazing! The Korean fans are the loudest I have ever encountered and I left the game with my ears ringing like after a rock concert! It was fantastic! The game itself was very exciting as you may knoew if you watched it yourself and I cannot wait for the next one in Berlin between Ukraine and Tunisia. I'll be down near a corner flag so if you are able to watch the game look out for my New Zealand Silver Fern Flag!!

Auf Wierderhören


PS I am only able to upload one photo due to time restrictions and slow internet. However I am now contactable on my mobile phone on +491624935895. It now costs mee nothing tro recieve calls and texts but unfortunately costs me about twice NZ calling rates so I will not use it frequently.

Frankfurt

Oddly enough, I almost met more people from Afganistan in my first couple of days than Germans. I was staying with my Mum's friend's friend (Michaela) and her family. They were wonderfully kind and friendly and my hearties thanks go out to them. The reason for all the Afgans is that Mechaela is married to Tahir who is an Afgan. So I went out a couple of times with him to a restaurant in Weisbaden that his friend owns and operates. It was great fun and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. The city of Frankfurt itself is very nice. It has (as all cities in Europe do) a very nice Cathedral (Photo 1) and also has many pedestrian only streets lined with shops and cafes. Having been in Germany for a while now I've realised that this is very common, but still very nice to stroll through in the beautiful weather we're having here. The entire place is alive with football fans which creates a great atmosphere.

As they say, a picture speaks a thousand words so here are a few from Frankfurt. Firstly the Cathedral, as mentioned:

One of the lovely town square/pedestrian areas alive with fans!

And last but not least a good photo of the city skyline take from a rooftop cafe. =)

Dubai - Sand, Sea and Snow

Well, I would like to relate to your here a tale of the wonders of Dubai. Unfortunately, I would either have to say only a very little or outright lie to you. I have not really had a fantastic time here and my overall impression is that Dubai is not a very nice place at all, I'm afraid. Now, my opinion is somewhat bias by the fact that I lost my wallet here so the whole experience has been rather trying. But basically I found Dubai to be very difficult to manage which is probably in a large part due to the cultural difference. I think it's easy to see why westerners and arabs clash as we have very different cultures. So, bearing that in mind, I found that Dubai was brutally hot, often smelly, very few people are polite (by western standards) and very few people are helpful. Whilst there are many construction wonders to behold such as the Burj Al Arab (photo 1) and Ski Dubai - the indoor ski slope (photo 2) - the traffic and public transport is worse than Auckland (I kid you not), and most of the streets are very dirty. If you stay purely on the tourist route you may well get a different impression and I am truly sorry if I have offended anyone with this review - it is just an account of the impression Dubai made on me.

Enjoy the photos.

Photos of Bangkok and Hong Kong

The first three photos are of the Bangkok Imperial Palace. It's amazing! So much shinyness squashed into a small space. These photos hardly do it justice and only show some parts of the entire complex.

The last three are of Hong Kong. The first is the 'Big Buddha' which sits on a mountain top which was enshrouded in cloud that day (very atmospheric). The second is the view, at night, from the hostel I stayed at and the final photo is of the worlds biggest combined road AND rail suspension bridge =)