castle
Crazy for Copenhagen!
Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Copenhagen. I am just crazy for Denmark! It is one of my favourite countries in the world and I got to stay in one of the best cities! I would love to go back and cannot wait for next time I visit! Hopefully that will be very soon!
First off, the hostel I stayed at was amazing. It was called the Generator Hostel Copenhagen.For the first time on that backpacking trip, I got a private room and it felt amazing to be alone for a while. The common area had a bunch of couches in the sitting arrangement and a multitudes of televisions you can watch. It had a bar, pool table, and a restaurant in the hostel! I met a lot of other travelers and it was great for socializing!
One of the first things I saw while there was Kogens Have (The King’s Garden) and the Rosenberg Castle. This is a renaissance styled castle that was used as a summerhouse for Christian VI. It is much different than other castles I have seen. It was not overly glamorous and it was very simplistic. It was nice to see a castle different from the stereotypical renaissance glitz.
Something different I tried, for the first time, was going to an escape room. I met a girl from San Diego, California and we decided to give it a go. The place was called Timequest and was very entertaining! We did the 2 persons escape room where we were locked in a jail cell and had to get out within the 60 minutes. Needless to say, we did not succeed. Although we lost, it was a lot of fun. I won’t get into details though because I wouldn’t want to spoil it for you just in case you wanted to try! If you do want to try, make sure you book the escape room in advance!
Another area I suggest everyone to see is Nyhavn. It is a 17th century waterfront, canal and entertainment district. It is one of the most picturesque part of the city and probably one of the most spectacular things I have ever seen! When you walk up and down the harbourfront, all you can see are these houses in multiple colours. Red, blue, green, look below for a stunning picture! It is the common, colourful Northern European architecture! A great thing about Nyhavn is that there are restaurants along the strip, but they are more than regular restaurants. Cause, y’know, tourists love it there. Hint, hint, nudge, nudge, tourist trap.
Unfortunately, this time I did not get to see Tivoli Gardens. It is an amusement park in the heart of Copenhagen. It is on my bucketlist for the next time I go to Copenhagen! Something that may be on your bucket list is the Copenhagen Airport. As strange as that sounds, it is one of the best airports I have flown from! It is beautiful, a lot of shops and places to eat! It is very expansive, definitely feels like an attraction itself!
One thing I did, that I always suggest for backpackers, is the free walking tour! It started at the city’s central square and stopped at various locations of the downtown core of the Copenhagen. The tour ended at the base of Freetown Christiania, which will be the blog for next week. Stayed tuned for the city within Copenhagen and the relaxing life in Christiania!
Until Next Time,
Matt C
A Taste of Slovenia
Welcome to Part 2 of my blog post on Slovenia! Here I will be talking about the attractions of Ljubljana and Piran, and the areas themselves! First off, I’m going to start with Ljubljana. It is the capital of the country of Slovenia and has a population of 272 thousand people. It is a growing tourist hub that you need to see and will fall in love with. As for its name, no one knows the origins of it. The only tidbit of information I can give you on it is the phonetic spelling [lyoo-BLYAH-nah].
As the city lies on a river, it has four major bridges. The first must-see bridge is the Dragons Bridge. This bridge has four dragons placed on each of the four corners of it and overlooks the surrounding areas. The next one is the Triple Bridge. The triple bridge is three bridges that start at different points at one side of the river, and have a central drop off at Congress Square. These bridges were originally made to tackle traffic density. Next is Butcher’s Bridge. This bridge connects Ljubljana’s Market to the other side of the city. This bridge has a number of structures that have a rustic, eastern feel to them around and surrounding the bridge. The last bridge is Cobbler’s Bridge. The white bridge is the oldest bridge in Ljubljana. It is a medieval bridge that dates back to the 13th Century.
Another major landmark in Ljubljana is the Ljubljana Castle. The castle is perched on a hill high above the city. To get up to the castle, you must take a little monorail ride. This rides gives you a fantastic view of the city! You can take a guided tour or self-tour of the castle. Most of the rooms are available to see and there is a little movie shown for the history of the castle and city. As for the castle itself, it is beautiful. It was probably one of my favourites because it was so different from the others we saw. It wasn’t the typical glitzy Western European castle. It had a strong Eastern feeling and culture to it, which caused me to fall in love with it.
A cool site that is in Ljubljana is the Pr’Skelet Disco Bar. It is a club located outside of the Congress Square. It is known for its different approach to attracting nightlife. I bet you can guess what it does. It attracts people because of its scary ideas, images, and by not being the typical bar. Skeletons surround the wall, and the club is known for its spookiness. I personally haven’t been, but I know some friends who have went and loved it! According to my friends, it is a must-see when you go to Ljubljana!
The last place in Slovenia I went to was Piran. It is a little coastal town that is known for its renowned sun and waters. Two of my friends went to go watch the sunrise at 6:30am and they said it was beautiful. It was way too early for me even to attempt to get out of bed! My favourite part of Piran is just being by the waters. At the coast of the city, you get a beautiful view of the Adriatic Sea. If you go to the very tip of the city and look to your left, you can see the coast of Croatia. If you look to your right, you can see the coast of Italy. It is a beautiful sight and I am definitely going back when I can!
My favourite part of Piran was swimming. The water felt amazing and was must-do while there! There are no actual beaches in Piran. They have huge rocks that line the coastal areas of the town and little staircases that go out into the ocean. As for the town itself, it is beautiful. The town has a Venetian influence since it was taken over a couple times. Also a heads-up, there are no roads in part of the town. Some parts consist of narrow alleys and streets. It was very cool to see and it reminded me of a mini-Venice. Piran is a must-see if you are in Slovenia!
Sorry for the delay on this blog post. As I said in the last post, I am crazy busy right now! I am trying my best to get these posts on time. Anyways I hope you enjoyed this post! My next one will be on Venice, Italy! Don’t forget to check it out!
Until Next Time,
Matt C
Exploring and Hiking in Heidelberg
Hello fellow travelers! This week I will be talking about a town in Germany called Heidelberg. To be honest, I did not know anything at all about this town before travelling here. Once I got here, I was kind of sad that I didn’t do my research beforehand. The town has so much to offer and is beautiful! There are a couple things I did learn and observe about the town while there. In the old town area, there is not much traffic. On that note, Heidelberg is a lot of walking. Bring your walking shoes and prepare yourself for strenuous activities. Another thing was that Heidelberg is home to one of the oldest universities in Europe! Now that education is free in Germany, maybe I will consider it for future endeavours!
The hostel we stayed in Heidelberg was probably one of the best hostels I have ever been too. It was clean, the showers were wonderful, and the owner is fantastic. The hostel was called The Lotte Backpackers! One of the best things about the hostel is the owner, Carmen. She is very warm and makes you feel like you are at home! She has travelled all over the world and has been backpacking before. She loves to share her stories, photos and experiences. It is very fun to hear her stories, compare experiences and get travel advice. If you ever go, I suggest staying here! Check out her website and book at http://www.lotte-heidelberg.de/en/home.html. Believe me, you will not regret it!
Even though our stay in Heidelberg wasn’t long, we only got to see quite a few attractions for the two days we were there. The first attraction was the Heidelberg castle. This castle is one of the most recognized attractions in Heidelberg. The castle costs 10€ for adults to enter. For students, reduced rates are offered if student cards are shown. There are also guided walking tours offered for 4€. The castle overlooks the town and you can see the mountain ranges. The view is spectacular and breathtaking from the balcony. The castle takes about an hour to walk around and see all different rooms of it. A bonus to this attraction is that the castle is located right above The Lotte Backpackers. If you stay at the hostel, you can take a 5 minute walk up the pathway to see the castle!
The next attractions we saw were a three in one. We went on the Philosopher’s Way which was on the other side of the river. We took the Philosopher’s Way high up into the mountain which brings you to a Nazi Amphitheatre (Thingstätte). After we took a five minute steep walk up the mountain to the Ancient Monastery ruins. The Philosopher’s Way hike took us about 2 hours. Halfway through the hike up to the Amphitheatre, you get to a sightseeing station. From this station you can see neighbouring cities and see into the surrounding nature. It is a beautiful sight and you gaze in awe.
Finally, we got up to the Nazi Amphitheatre. Personally, this was one of my favourite thing about Heidelberg. Thingsätte was built in 1935 for rallies and solstice festivals. The day that we went there, it was a German holiday called Ascension Day. Some of the locals were out drinking beer and having fun. Unfortunately, we couldn’t join since we were not aware of the holiday! Lastly, we went to the ancient monastery ruins called St. Michael’s. These ruins date back to 1023 and has some buildings intact. It is very interesting to see the different parts of the monastery and explore. After the long journey of sightseeing, it was very nice to crawl into bed and relax!
Well that brings us to the end of Heidelberg, Germany. Next week, the blog will be about Munich, Germany!
Until Next Time,
Matt C
Trekking & Travels 