St. Pauli and the Reeperbahn

Hamburg

Came to Hamburg to experience the beatiful city and to meet my gymnasium Deutch-klasse exchange student . It was fun to see again, talk about everything what happened after - I was happy to see her again and that she offered to be my host again (thank you facebook!).She was happy to show me the different parts of city where we couldn´t go with our teachers when we were 16 years old! And, about the fact my things in life are pretty much better than exactly 5 years ago when she visited.

We visited Planten un Blumen -park and just walked around - there´s many intresting places in Hamburg, more than I remembered!

She made me a luch at her place and then she took me a couple of more intresting places.

 

  It was raining heavily so I didn´t took any pictures about the tivoli which was there - we were walking to the clubbing area, Kiez, when I only saw narcomans and punkrockers in every corner of the street and every second bar was toppless- or tabledance-bar... When I noticed the S-bahn station sign called "Reeperbahn", I understood.

 

Then we took the S-bahn to Sternschanze, where are to coolest bars to hang out  and, which I found the most intresting area of Hamburg! Indiebars, cute café´s, lovely shops I really did wish I´d had time to visit!

 

We went bed early because I had early morning - and I needed that sleep. To have energy to go to Copenhagen next morning.

PS. I love Germany. I wish I´d had more time to Berlin and Hamburg.

Swear of a gipsywoman

So, the interrail.

 why a cup of coffee says "HUHTAMAKI" in a München-Verona -train?

I had a plan to meet my Finnish friend at Verona and start interrail there. We weren´t planning anything else - not booking hostel or anything - we just wanted to see each other so badly that we met in Verona, although we knew it doesn´t really make sense.

So we met. And talked. And planned to book a hostel. I opened my laptop and the gipsywoman came, asked money but we didn´t gave anything. Then she sweared us maybe 5 minutes.

So we didn´t have any hostel left because there was some kind of Opera-Festival. We waited six hours in the trainstation and tryed to get the night train but there wasn´t any space. So there wasn´t any other option left than sleep at the train station....

 So now I can say I´ve been in Verona but can´t say that I have seen anything else than trainstation...

Next day we went to Munich, wash laundry, went to the Volksfest, had fun time and sad final goodbyes to part of my Munich friends.(And, were happy about the fact we had a warm, safety room and soft beds to sleep!) I was sad leaving Munich, but exited about going to Berlin!

At Sunday, when we arrived to our huge Generator -hostel, we just took our backpacks to our room and then decided to have a look to the hostel-bar. And what we found! My best aupair-friends from Munich! That must have been faith!

But the Monday. My Finnish friend was having so irritating flue that our only option was going to the hospital. We had to wait 5 hours there - luckily we didn´t have any schedule for Monday. But my friend wasn´t having anything else than a basic flue, and the doctor was hot. The doctor also sad that my friend should just rest a few days. In a middle of interrail? Yeah, right....

My friend was sleeping the rest of the day and I just took a walk around with my aupair-friends.

Tuesday we just walked around, lost couple times - just enough to found some beatiful bohemian place and intresting mexican restaurant called Frida Kahlo.  They had also old man playing quitar like a rock star - and this little boy was his biggest fan!

At Wednesday morning my friend stayed at Berlin and I took a train to Hamburg.

At home. Busy but happy.

Came home 16 days ago. Felt first just weird, then I surprised myself to remembering how much I love this place where I am now. Feels good to have so much to do with studies - little pressure just feels good. My summerwork didn´t felt like a work at all. I am happy that my summer was so great and I met so many people, I learned better German and English, now I have places to stay at UK and Canada. And great friends there!

           in Berlin they know how to cut grass
 
Part of me miss Munich very much. I miss speaking German, holding a Mass in my hand, Dirndls and Lederhosens, Jäger´s hostel, family-kids, great friends... But mostly I feel I am in the right place now. Studying, student-theatre, being a mentor, all the friends here - making sushi together, going around fleamarkets, having sauna-evenings! 

I am sure that this wasn´t my last time working, or spending time abroad. Exprerience was so great, and I have now more self-considence about what I can do. I mean, it´s not about what I can do anymore. It´s about what I want.

And, the interrail was... wow. Well, I have some things to say about it. Posting is coming.

1-2-3-4 GO!

So much happening and going to happen that I really haven´t much time to do postings.. 


- I lost my phone in the biggest night-club area of Europe - I have been searching that about a week and don´t think I will find it anymore.

-That happened while my friend was visiting for me for one weekend - we also visited Schloss Schleissheim at Saturday and Pinakothek der Moderne at Sunday

-Family left me. We had long conversations with the mom and I got my best reference ever. 6-year-old asked, if he could come to my birthdayparty to Finland, and gave me his favorite football-card "because you always had time to play with us and we could play football with you". Well I was being sensitive, too...

And I was being truely kindergartenteacher at some point. Months in Turkish, German, Finnish

-Tomorrow we are having a goodbyeparty. 6 of us are going back to the home country for studies. We are going first to Jäger´s and then some Australian place for Karaoke. I now it´s gonna be bad but I am pretty sure we are gonna sing Spice Girls - Goodbye my friends


-I am also buying my interrail ticket and starting my trip to home.

- I knew it all the time and I still don´t get it. I am BACKPACKING.

-to HOME!

Minne katosi päivät?

Only one week working anymore. Then family leaves to Turkey for their summerholidays, and I have only couple of days here left.


Where did this summer went? First I missed my home - mostly people, now I wouldn´t want to leave this place anymore. I mean, of course I want to see all the people in Finland I have missed talking and being with, I can´t say I don´t, but really - this summer has been crazy. Work - mostly babysitting - doesn´t feel like work. Family has been great. Children and the mother of the family had became very close to me. I have met great people all over the world and learned many things about them and from myself - even things from Finland and Finnish people.


Many Germans are fans of Finnish school system. Many Americans and even Europeans don´t know which country Finland is from the "Scandinavians". Many people keep wondering why we have to pay so high taxes and why prices are so high - but I keep wondering tuitions - my tuitions for whole year in Turku  University costs something around 100 euros and my friend who studies in Yale, States, pays 8000 US dollars (near 6200 euros)  for a year.


Of course I miss my friends. But going back to Finland means so many things: So, the higher prices of everything ( exept tuitions), no more doing weekend-trips all over Europe (well, if you see the map, Munich actually is the central point of Europe), no more evenings at Jaeger´s hostell meeting some random backpackers all over the world (last Friday boys from my upper secondary high school too!), no more making kids happy with playing football and drawing pink kittens.


Goin back means something like going back to the reality. I have to force myself study harder that first year in Uni - I have been working in insurance company, played in student theatre, lead some dance lessons and well - partying  having fun with my friends, so... I have made only seventy per sent of all I should have done in first year. So - I have promised myself that I will say "no" for any job exept that one week tutoring new students before I have made all the undone first year -stuff.


All this feels... contradictory. Good and bad. Leaving this place feels bad, but I know when I reach my home, it actually feels like home.

Prague

One weekend in Prague is a way too short time to visit there. We took a train from Munich to Prague and it took 6 hours to get there - Friday was a funny thing because we girls founded free beer random Bachelor-party in a train and somehow they could speak some Finnish too!

So, Saturday we just walked around in the Old Town, and took a free tour. It was raining at some point but we didn´t mind that.

There were Absint -places everywhere. Prague is full of art, bohemians and history.

I don´t have pictures about the Saturday-night - we went to the Pub Crawl, whic means paying 15 euros for entry, drinking free drinks (absinthe, wine, beer, vodka) one hour, having t-shirt and lot of fun in that 5 -floors bar and hoping remembering something in the next morning.

So, Sunday we crossed the Charles Bridge and went to the Medieval church and that was amazing thing.

 We saw a lot - of things - but only a tiny bit of the place. There is so many museums and art-exhibitions, kubik-things, art-deco and well, the Old Town just is wonderful.

I can recommend Prague for anyone!

Just wanted to say

that Prague was amazing and one weekend was really too short time visiting.

But. Now my family is visiting and I am posting about that lovely weekend another time!