My third Euro Trip was several years in the making and quite delayed due to the Covid outbreak. The plan finally started to take shape in 2020 as soon as I knew Andres would be studying 2 more years abroad in Norway. Although I had been to Stockholm, Sweden I had never been to Norway and it was a country on my bucket list. My early association to the county was the Norwegians I had met in Costa Rica (2009) most notably Anette and Janne. I also knew the country had a beautiful landscape of mountains and fjords. I most definitely wanted to take advantage of having Andres' as my local contact to experience another European culture.
However due to the Covid outbreak I had to push the trip aside. In the winter of 2020-2021 I went thru a major Norwegian mythology and Viking phase due to the video game Assassin's Creed Valhalla. I wanted to visit Norway more than ever last year however still could not due to the difficult Covid protocols. So I pushed the trip aside another year, until a few months ago. I knew I had to visit Andres this springtime before he graduated and returned to the states. But an unexpected surprise came around the same time when I found out that Marc had accepted a new position in Czech Republic. Now my trip really began to take shape. By around mid-March I bought 3 plane tickets to visit Marc in Central Europe and Andres in Norway.
Dublin, Ireland
So after several weeks of planning and coordinating with Andres and Marc I was ready to travel for 10 days in Europe. I set off on Wednesday to drive from Indy to Chicago and leave my car parked at a nearby hotel for the week. This was the first time I had done long-term parking, but it worked out well with a fair rate at Best Western. There was a free shuttle that took me to the airport. I cleared security and was at my gate with a couple hours to spare. I knew I had a tight window to catch my connection from Dublin to Vienna so was really hoping the take-off process would go quick. That however was the opposite of what happened.
For starters the plane arrived late, which put our boarding process back a good 30 minutes. However even at that point the Aer Lingus staff informed us we would still hit our ETA. But the situation got worse when a tornado storm swept thru Chicago around 4pm, and put us back another 30 minutes. We finally boarded and took-off about an hour behind schedule. At this point I had accepted that I would probably miss my connection and would have to stay a day in Dublin. The flight was a quick one at 6 hours, of which I gave my seat to an Asian couple and watched 2 movies. However I was on edge thinking about whether I could still make the connection and how I would go about getting vouchers for Dublin.
So by the time the plane arrived and reached the gate at 6:20am, my connection flight to Vienna had already taken off. So I calmly accepted that I would stay the day in Dublin and make the most out of a city and country that was on my bucket list. It took me some time to find where the customer service for Aer Lingus was but I eventually did. The staff offered me an option to leave at 1pm with a connection in Amsterdam, but I decided I had flown enough that day and took their hotel voucher. It took me a little bit to find the shuttle, of which I had a conversation with a friendly Irish lady who reminded me of Ingrid. When I got to the hotel at around 8am, go figure the room would not be ready for another few hours. So I had to hangout in the lobby, enjoyed a nice free breakfast, and took an exploratory walk to find a store as I needed a phone charger.
I finally got into my hotel room at around 11:30am (5:30am in the states) and it would be quite fair to say I was very tired. But I knew I had to make the most of my time in Dublin, so I took a shower and caught an Uber to the city by around 12:30pm. The Uber driver was a very friendly Irish person and gave me a great history of the city as we drove in. He even showed me how there were still bullet holes in some of the buildings from the Troubles Era. My first destination was perhaps the most iconic, the St. Patrick's Cathedral. I took many pictures and took it all in. The city was loaded with pedestrians and tourists but for the most part I find it rather mundane (compared to other historical European cities).
I crossed the River Liffey and even sat on a bench for a while to take in my surroundings. After walking around for a couple hours I found a souvenir shop near the Temple Bar strip and bought some items to take home. I also went to a bar to use their Wifi to order a Guinness and an Uber back to my hotel. I made it back to the hotel around 3pm and had my complimentary lunch at the hotel. I then went back to my room, took a shower, watched some TV, and fell asleep by around 7pm. I however woke up around 1am, and could not fall back asleep. My flight out of Dublin to Vienna was at 6am, so I left the hotel early. I was beyond tired but so glad I made the most of the unexpected variable. I was now back on schedule as the flight took off to Vienna, city of music.
Vienna, Austria
The flight from Dublin to Vienna, was a couple hours, and I lost another couple hours due to the time zones. So I arrived in Vienna by around 10am local time, and caught an Uber to the hotel. I was so very happy to see Andres in the lobby. I had bought his ticket from Norway and we had coordinated that he meet Marc and I. He had arrived the previous night as planned and met with Marc. So now Andres and I had the afternoon to explore Vienna, while Marc was back at work in Brno, Czech. We went up to the room, only briefly though as they had to be checked out by noon. I put on a hat, t-shirt, and jeans and we set off to sightsee. It was a very hot day but I had a plan of action of sites that I wanted to see and things to do.
We first made it to the main plaza where the glorious St. Stephen's Cathedral stood. I had only recently found out about this classical work of architecture, but was very amazed by it's unique design. It had the look of a classic Gothic European cathedral, but also had a unique feature in it's colorful patterned roof of green, black, and yellow. We went inside the cathedral and took a lap, but the area was swarming with tourists. We then went searching for a place to eat lunch as I was very hungry. I was specifically searching for the Austrian's claim to fame, the Weiner schnitzel.
After a good lunch outside with the traditional fried veal and some tasty Weiss beers we continued to walk around. We then went in search of Mozart's house, which was a bit challenging to locate on the phone map. I bought us two tickets to take a tour of the famous house that Mozart lived in during the height of his career in the 1790s. The house had been turned into a museum of course but it was still quite amazing to imagine it was where he composed many of his greatest works. After the museum we walked around some more and we surprisingly found an Aldi's. We were very thirsty as it was a hot day, and bought some refreshing juices there and found a bench nearby to sit and relax.
By around 4 pm, we found a souvenir shop and then headed back to the hotel where we regrouped at the lobby for a little bit. The plan was then to catch an Uber ride from the hotel to a train station, and then take the train to the city of Brno. We had a little bit of time to spare at the train station and I bought us some apple strudels. The train from Vienna to Brno was about an hour ride, and I remember feeling very exhausted from the heat at that point. However I still enjoyed the view thru the countryside and it was nice to experience once again a European train ride.
Brno, Czech Republic
We arrived to Brno by around 6pm and I remember instantly feeling I had crossed into a new realm of Eastern Europe. The surrounding area reminded me of a gloomy, dirty, industrial, poorly managed city once owned by the Soviet Union. There was graffiti all over the walls and the trash cans were overflowing with garbage. The locals at the train station were also questionable with their gothic punk look, and I must confess to feeling a bit nervous as we were in search of Marc. After maybe ten minutes we finally found him and begin to walk to the hotel. This was a good 10 minute walk thru cobblestone streets to Marc's hotel. I took a quick shower once we got there, changed, and was ready to take on the very different city.
We first went to a bar named Stromboli after the popular Czech beer brand. This was not to be mistaken with their competitor Pilsner Urqell, which I foolishly requested from the waitress. According to Marc, Czech consumed the most beer per capita, and it was very cheap. So naturally I knew we would be drinking a lot in Czech. It was a very cool night, which was at first a nice contrast to the heat of Vienna, but eventually got uncomfortable. After a few drinks at the first outdoor bar, we found another restaurant outside in a busy plaza. One thing that was very interesting about Brno, is all the people out in the streets drinking beer. I had never seen anything quite like this as we walked around.
The restaurant was packed but we eventually found a table outside where a techno rave was happening in the plaza. This was the most eastern European thing I could imagine and was unfolding right before our eyes as we drank and ate. The food was incredibly delicious as we ordered a massive platter of ribs, bread, and sauerkraut. I had a couple more beers there, but really began to feel tired and knew I wasn't going to be able to party on with Andres and Marc (after all I had been awake since 1am that day). So I went back to the hotel around 10pm to get some much needed rest while Andres and Marc partied on. They did not return to the hotel until 4am.
Prague, Czech Republic
By Saturday morning I felt like I had finally caught up to European time and was ready as ever to make the most of my European trip. Marc was an incredible trooper, having partied until 4am in the morning he drove us out of Brno by around 10am. The drive to Prague was a couple hours but it flew by as we discussed our previous European trips. We stopped halfway to get some breakfast and coffee at a gas station, and arrived to Prague by around noon. Once we checked into the fancy hotel we wasted no time to check out the Old Town by the Vltava River.
The town square of Prague is quite incredible and reminded me very much of the Brussels main plaza. Surrounded by outdoor cafes and restaurants the focal point of the square is the impressive Tyn Church. The two spires of this church soar into the sky with smaller spires branching off from the main ones. It has a very Gothic dark and mysterious look to it, which is the allure to Prague. On the corner of the square is the iconic astronomical clock. Built in 1410 it is one of the oldest clocks of the kind still in operation. I have no idea how it works, but assume it tells the alignment of the planets and stars in conjunction with the time. It's a very impressive, colorful, and mystical design.
We had an incredible lunch outside in the busy town square overlooking the Tyn Church. I ordered a couple beers and the country Bohemian platter which was a feast of duck, sausage, pork roast, cabbage, and bread. We then continued to walk towards the Vltava River and it's iconic Charles Bridge with its massive tower. Far away perched on a hill is the Prague Castle (which consists of other cathedrals). We decided to take a boat tour on the river, which turned out to be a much longer wait than we had anticipated. During the wait we scoped out the Charles Bridge museum, which was included with our admission. It took however almost an hour and a half to finally board our boat. The tour on the river was however quite worth it and offered some breathtaking views of Prague.
By the time we got off the boat it was evening and we were still considering our night plans. I suggested we get some opera tickets before the big UEFA champions league final match between Liverpool and Madrid. I bought us all tickets for an hour long concert of opera, classical music, and ballet. I had quite the scare when I could not find the tickets but later realized we never picked them up at the ticket booth. Before the show at 8pm, we went back to the hotel to rest and have a few pre-game drinks. Andres wanted to further rest while Marc and I walked to the theatre with a beer in our hands. Andres later joined us right before the show started. The show was a very impressive and enjoyable experience to the music of Mozart, Anton Dvorak, and Johann Strauss.
We went into the opera show assuming we would likely miss the start of the big soccer championship and might not even find a place to watch the game due to overcrowding. However as soon as the show was finished we darted out of the theatre in search of a bar to watch the game. Marc somehow located a TV screen inside a bar at the main square. It was actually a Spanish restaurant that had some space in it. What was even more surprising though was the game had been delayed 30 minutes, and we actually had the chance to catch the whole thing. We were able to convince the bartender to let us sit and watch the game near his check-out screen.
The waiter treated us like royalty and let us sit at the bar, and even reserved us a table in the corner to eat and order food. As the game began, many other customers seeking to watch the game were turned away since there was no space. And yet we had front row views to the game, and even our own reserved table to eat. Andres ordered his food at the start of the game, but Marc and I ordered our food at halftime. I got some yummy grilled chicken and potatoes. Andres left at halftime, since he was still very tired from his previous night of partying. Unfortunately Real Madrid beat Liverpool 1-0 but Marc and I were still just getting started into the night.
At the Spanish restaurant we met an Indian person from Toronto named David, who was a soccer enthusiast like me. After the game he took us to a British bar to meet his other friends where the music was jamming. I had several beers here and was really starting to have fun. Later on Marc wanted to following David and his friends to another bar, but I hesitated as it meant taking an Uber to the outskirts. I was able to convince Marc to stay at the British bar and we parted ways from David. We then went to a Czech dance club which was incredible fun. The club was packed and played all American music. I remember feeling so proud to know all the words to the songs, and felt like everyone was gravitating towards us. We stayed at this bar until maybe 2am, and then Marc convinced me to join him at a casino where we played some roulette for a while. I remember on the way out bumping into some flirtatious Bulgarian girls but nothing happened there. We did not get back to the hotel room until 4am. It was one of the funnest nights I have had in a very long time.
That next morning I woke up around 10am, head pounding but quickly popped out of bed to continue the adventure. Our plan for that Sunday was to walk to the castle, which was almost a 3 mile walk from our hotel. We had a late lunch in the castle grounds and I ordered a very refreshing chicken Caesar salad. We saw some cathedrals and buildings within the castle grounds, but had to cut our tour somewhat short as it began to rain. The walk back from the castle was quite challenging not to slip on the wet stones as we descended downward. At the Charles Bridge we climbed the tower there to get a better view of the river and the city. It truly is one the most beautiful cities in the world on par with Paris, Rome, or London. It has such a gothic and romantic element to it, almost like something out of a dark fantasy.
That evening we went back to the hotel, rested for a bit then got some pizza and beer for dinner. I was quite unimpressed with the pizza there but it did the job. After dinner I was able to find us a show that evening that was a Black Light Theatre Show. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before that used a black light illusion to create a truly magical visuals. The show was entertaining but also very hypnotic and we all struggled from dozing off. It was around 9pm by the time the show ended and we took one final lap got some desert then headed back to the hotel. Andres went out to meet a friend that night, while Marc and I went to bed around 10ish. The next morning Marc had to leave early for work, and this brought an end to the Central Europe phase. I was so very thankful for his hosting and what a great time we had with him.
Stavanger, Norway
Andres and I had breakfast at the hotel and caught an Uber to the airport by around 10:30am. We had two flights that afternoon, Prague to Oslo, then Oslo to Stavanger. I believe we arrived to Stavanger by around 4pm, and thankfully Andres had coordinated us a pickup by one of his friends. Turns out this friend, was his study abroad mentor, named Lars and was letting us stay in his basement (which he rented out as a BnB). This was going to save us a lot of money and I was very grateful to both Andres and Lars. He was a bit older than I had expected, in his early 40s, but was a very friendly person and a great insight to local Stavanger and Norwegian culture.
That evening Lars drove us to a nearby waterfall to go for a hike. On the way there we stopped in at a local store to get some snacks and beer. I quickly discovered how expensive things were as I spent 30$ for a 12 pack case of beer. The hike was quite challenging as we climbed uphill having to use a chain rail to hang on. There was also a light rain in the air, which made for a real authentic rural experience. The surroundings were quite incredible in this mountainous green valley and it reminded me of my time hiking thru the mountains of San Vicente in Costa Rica. The view of the waterfall was very impressive and very worth the hike.
That evening Lars let me drive his electric car, in preparation for the next day as I was to drive us to our next hike. For some strange reason Andres could not drive in the country but I could. Although I really did not want to drive in Europe, I knew I had to in order to make our plans come thru. The challenging part was not the drive but getting familiar with Lar's electric car which drove a little different (and probably better then most cars). On our way back we stopped at an incredible view of a fjord and then went to downtown Stavanger. I was so shocked to find out that it was almost 10pm, even though it was still a rather clear night out. Lars explained to us that it was only dark for a short period in Norway. For dinner all the restaurants were at closing point so we had to settle for some hamburgers at a 7/11 store (which were very tasty I might add). We made it back to Lars' house by around 11pm and went to bed.
The next morning was to be our big hike at the Preikestolen Fjord (also known as the Pulpit Rock). The drive was about an hour away which I drove thru the winding hills and into underground tunnels (including the longest underwater tunnel in the world). We made it to the natural park by around 10ish and began our long hike. It was once again very challenging uphill hike, on a trail ascending stones. This time there were many other hikers with us, most of which had their hiking poles and raincoats on. We had hoped to beat the rain, but sure enough it did start to rain about 30 minutes into our hike. Andres and I were probably the only ones not wearing raincoats, however it was a very light rain and added to the adventure for me.
It took us about two hours to make it to the top peak of the fjord and was truly a breathtaking view. My heart was pumping as we decided to take a picture along the very high ledge of the fjord. We then sat for a bit and had some snacks at the rock, watching other tourists take pictures. Some of which were jumping and sitting along the deathly ledge. I was very to have seen the view and even more so to clear away from the deadly fall. The downward hike was of course even more challenging, especially with the wet rocks but thankfully neither of us fell. I think we finally made it back to our car by 3pm and it made for a 6 mile hike. We had to pick up Lars on the way home and then stopped at a grocery store to get some food. Lars treated us that evening to a typical Norwegian meal, I ordered fish, bacon, potatoes, and peas. It was actually quite tasty. That night we stayed in and watched the Djokovic-Nadal quarterfinal tennis match. Lars joined us for a few casual drinks in the basement.
On the third day in Stavanger we finally got to sleep in. Andres went out and bought some groceries on the bus while I chillaxed on the couch and read my book. We did not leave the house until about 1 in the afternoon when one of Andres' friends took us to the Stavanger Oil Museum. His name was Evan and he was a local Norwegian dating one of Andres' classmates, Christiana a girl from Serbia. She met us at the museum and the four of us walked around the museum and then took a tour of Stavanger. Evan was quite knowledgeable and proud of Stavanger culture and history. We ate lunch at a fancy seafood restaurant near the port. My food was somewhat bland and paid a shocking $70 for mine and Andres meals (along with 2 beers). After lunch Evan took us thru old town Stavanger which was a nicely kept neighborhood with cobblestone street and beautiful plants and flowers.
We then invited Evan and Christina back to our basement area to have a few beers. Evan could not partake since Norway had a zero tolerance for drinking and driving but Christina had a beer with us. We sat outside and had a riveting conversation about professional tennis and soccer. Before we knew it, it was time to meet Andres' other university friends downtown for drinks. Lars and his daughter gave us a ride to the first bar we went to. It was probably around 8pm by this point and I met Andres' best friend and roommate, a Indonesian girl named Kim. She was a bartender there and a very interesting person with a Norwegian accent. She treated us to several of the crafted beers there, as well as some Viking mead, spicy chicken wings, and truffle fries. I offered to pay but she kindly said it was on the house.
She then invited us to sit with a local American there named Andy. He was 30 years old from Pennsylvania and a literature student. He was one of the more interesting American's I have met in a very long while as he was very cultured. We had an engaging conversation about literature, that left everyone else at the table rather dumfounded. He could not stop talking about the writings of the Colombian author, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. He was also very much in a celebratory mood as he had just accepted a new job teaching literature in Vienna. We finally parted ways with him and went to the next club.
The night club was packed and we had to wait in line for a bit, until one of the staff there welcomed Andres into the backdoor. Apparently he had VIP status since he worked for a different bar. This was great not to have to wait in line anymore. I ordered our small group of 4 a round of beer (we had recruited another of Andres' friend while we waited in line). I was especially eager to pay Kim back for her very generous offerings at the first bar. I felt a little overaged at first at the bar, but then started to loosen up. I remember after the third round I tripped over the foot railing at the bar while trying to get the bartenders attention. This was quite embarrassing as I was not even drunk. I later got over this though as several blonde Norwegian girls started dancing with me on the floor.
After the club we went to another busy bar and ordered a few more drinks. I was once again so impressed by the local girls and how aggressive on the dance floor they were. We were all having a good time and I met a lot of Andres' bartending coworkers and his college friends. We decided to leave around 2:30am and waited a good half hour at the bus stop. This wasn't so bad though because Andres bumped into another friend and she talked with us while we waited. We then got on the bus, and got off to early ending up in some remote farm fields. I had to navigate us home using my phone map, which was a mile walk thru country fields at 3am. We walked thru high grasses in the rain and it made for an incredible adventure. We were happy to finally get home by 4am after yet another very fun night in Europe.
On my last day there we once again got to sleep in. I think I finally got out of bed by around 11am, and made us a tortellini lunch. We then caught the bus to Andres' campus where he was to give a speech about Indiana. This was also a great experience to see Andres' presentation and his campus. I was so impressed by the diverse culture that had amassed in this coffee shop to hear his presentation which was a total success. After this we explored the campus with Kim for a bit, then returned to Stavanger to buy some souvenirs and presents for Lars. Kim once again joined us in town and we had another walk around the city. She was so very friendly to us, and was one of the favorite people I met in my four days in Stavanger.
That evening we were treated to a local dinner by Lars' family which was a fresh shrimp meal. It was customary for them to peel the shrimps together and make very tasty sandwiches with mayonnaise, avocado, and herbs. We had wine with our meal and conversed for several hours. I presented them some fancy chocolate and coffee as a sign of gratitude (which was nowhere near enough). Andres stayed up conversing with Lars while I began to pack. That evening Lars joined us to watch the Serbia-Norway soccer match. He bid me farewell and I once again told him I grateful I was for his hospitality. It was thru Lars hosting that I got an incredible insider view into Norwegian culture.
The next morning on Friday I bid farewell to Andres after a very memorable and busy week long of adventure. We were both ready to get back to our routines and relax a bit. But first I had one more very busy travel day ahead and it was once again filled with challenges. I caught the Uber to the airport around 9am, and had to take a Covid test there in order to return to the states. Thankfully I tested negative, even though it cost me nearly 100$. I then had three flights ahead of me; Stavagner-Oslo, Oslo-Copenhagen, and Copenhagen-Chicago. My connection in Copenhagen was a very tight one, and I was hit was an epic panic when they told me I should have gone thru security check again. Luckily there was a security check at the gate and I was able to board the plane (almost the last one on the plane to Chicago).
The plane ride home was a very long uncomforting one, for a good 8 hours. I watched 3 movies to help pass the time. We finally landed around 5pm Chicago time and I was so glad to be off that plane. The customs check actually went pretty quick and my next challenge was to find a ride to the hotel where my car was parked. I decided to call the hotel to send a shuttle thinking it was a long shot, but they actually did. It was free of charge and I had bypassed the cost and challenge of catching an Uber at the airport. I was so very happy at this point as I now finally felt in control again. My car was in good shape just as I had left it. I went to the hotel bathroom and then embarked on the long drive from Chicago to Indy. This was a good 4 hour drive due to traffic, and the final 2 hours were very challenging to stay awake. I finally made it home in Indy at around 12am and went straight to bed. This marked the end to a very adventurous European experience.
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