Capital City Six: Germany - Berlin. 189 to go (part A)

April 24th 2010: Germany - Capital City: Berlin
189 Capital cities to go.

There is no picture as three of us were meant to fly into Berlin for a long weekend, a friend who had been there on many occasions and we had everything planned - it was like a military operation we had it all planned.  Where we were eating; where we were going out, it was that organised that my friend had rung up places and he'd managed to get us on guest lists to different clubs.
Sadly though with all great plans, there are some things you can't control - in our case this happened to be Iceland. Due to the volcanic ash, all planes were grounded and we were unable to fly out.
I have been to Berlin before in 2007 (see photo below) but hadn't started this challenge then had, I will re-attempt Berlin at a later date to get my proper photo.

Me standing at the Berlin Wall in 2007

Capital City Five - Brussels: Belguim - 190 to go.

February 28th 2010
Belgium - Capital City: Brussels
Picture with two local Policemen
190 Capital Cities to go.

Drove down to Dublin to catch the flight to Brussels, I ended up leaving my phone in the car, and stood debating for at least five minutes to go back for it. In the end I didn't, didn't want to risk catching the bus back to the car park then the bus back and be on time. (I have to bore you with this, as I bored myself with my self debating whether to go back for it or not).
Probably a good thing as after I had queued to go through security, I was informed that the printout of the ticket wasn't any good, (the bar code hadn't printed out) so I had to go queue at the check in desk, then get a printout, fight through the crowds, then re-queue to go back through security.
Usually before I go to a capital where I haven't been before I try to get some reading done about the place, this time, I hadn't - I didn't even know what language they spoke (in Brussels it's French). Not knowing anything about a place can be quite liberating, because you don't plan anything, you just work it all out when you get there.
I landed at Charleroi Airport and then caught a bus to the train station and walked to our hotel, stopping for food along the way.
I arrived at our Hotel 'Hotel Queen Ann' it seemed more like a youth hostel, no carpet in the bedroom, and just a bed and small portable TV in the corner of the room.
As I'd been up since 3.30am to get the flight, a nap was in order. Fell asleep to watching the Brussels version of 'Come Dine with Me'. Which from what I worked out, you get scored not only for the dinner, but for three categories, the food, the table setting and the entertainment.

In the evening I headed out and ended up at this Spectacular place - which was an Art Gallery and a bar, (I can't remember what it was called). You could get a drink whilst walking round to look at the Art pieces. There was also a cinematic Art piece which projected onto the wall.
The following day, I headed down to 'The Grand Place' it's a truly beautiful town square. This is where I got my picture with a local policeman, one of them wasn't that impressed - he reminded me of the man in Madrid.

Grand Place

I then and went and ate the biggest sickliest Belgium waffle ever, with ice cream and melted chocolate, even though I felt sick half way through, I carried on, it was amazing.
That night I went out,  and ended up in an Irish bar drinking White Russians the whole night.
It rained the day I left, and I got soaked walking to the train station. I Waited for the bus in the rain.
When it finally arrived, there was loads of pushing and shoving to try and got it, and it was that situation, if you can't beat them, join them.
 I managed to get on, but I stupidly walked past the only free seat at the front, and so did the other six people behind me. We all stood in the aisle of the bus, trying to look inconspicuous.
 The driver realising he'd put too many people on the coach, started to herd  the people off again, back into the rain, where we would all have to wait for another hour for the next bus then re-start the pushing and shoving. The thought filled my already soaked clothes with dread.
I hid!
I stood down into steps of side of the bus, and did that thing of - If I can't see him, then surely he can't see me. I didn't care that I would be stood for nearly an hour to the airport, I didn't want to stand back out into the rain.
 Whether the bus driver saw me and choose to ignore me, or just didn't see me, I don't know, and at that point I didn't care, at least I could dry off a bit.
 The actual journey to the airport was horrendous. It was chucking it down with rain, really windy. So windy that branches were coming off trees and lying in the road, this seemed to enrage the driver even more and drove with such anger that we nearly seemed to crash a few times.  Once at the airport, I proceeded to change my damp socks.
Charleroi Airport is an odd one. It's a tiny airport, one quick lap completes the airport, it's the sort of place you need to see, as it's the atmosphere which is an odd one.

Capital City Four - France: Paris 191 to go




 January 21st 2010. France - Capital City: Paris. Picture with a type of local Policeman. 191 Capital Cities to go.

I was due to fly to Paris at 7pm, but ended up with a five hour delay at the airport - so with any delay we decided to drink the time away. In the bar also waiting out the delay, was a couple in their fifties, and a man travelling by himself.  Now because I travel through airports quite alot by myself, I have the ability to end up speaking to all sorts of people. This guy seemed a bit odd, but I thought he would offer me  some entertainment, and I wasn't wrong!! After several drinks I made my way to the busy gate. I sat on the floor and waited, and Mr Odd Ball saw me and sat besides me, he was very drunk by then and started to become quite rowdy, even yelling at kids  - it was at this point I tried to make a metal note to heed my mum's advice and 'not to talk to strangers!' He fell into a drunken stupor and I quietly got up and went elsewhere leaving Mr Odd Ball looking odder, sat in the middle of the floor by himself, asleep, whilst people walked around him. 

I had wished that there was a way to take a picture, but I thought the flash might wake him, and I didn't want him speaking to me again.

At Paris Airport I had to get a Taxi, as by the time I landed the trains were no longer running, but being patrolled by guards and their big dogs!!

I got to the hotel (ATN Hotel) which was three minutes from St-Lazare train station. The hotel itself, was really cute, amazing decor and lighting throughout the hotel, and it has the smallest lift ever. When I say small, I mean so small, that only one person and their bag is about all that can fit in it.

The Smallest "glitter lift" ever.

The first day I spent wandering around Paris, I walked to ‘The Arc de Triomphe’ (the closest metro is ‘Charles de Gaulle’).

The monument is colossal standing at about 50m, It stands in an exceptionally busy roundabout, where twelve major avenues lead to it. Just seeing how mental the traffic is, is worth alone going to see. There are no road markings, no traffic lights just a heavy police presence. It’s the only place in Paris where accidents are not judged. Each driver is considered equally to blame, and Insurance Companies split the cost fifty-fifty. (I do love facts :0))

There is an underpass to get to the Arc de Triomphe, and you can reach the top either by climbing the 284 steps or taking the lift then just climbing the mere 46 steps!

Arc de Triomphe

To complete the touristy thing I then walked down to the Eiffel Tower, it’s mad to think that still to this day, it gets painted approximately every seven years still with brushes!! Would you want that job? It stands 324 meters,  tall which is about the same height as an 81-storey building, and get painted in three different shades of brown – the darkest at the bottom in order to maintain a uniform appearance to the observer on the ground. (I am on a fact roll!!)

We didn’t go up the Tower, I was far too interested in watching someone on the ground walking around in a Chimp suit!!!

Chimp Boy!!

         

After a busy day, we made our way to a bar, passing along the way, Pont Alexandre III bridge which has these amazing gold statues, and we seemed to pass alot of Traffic Policemen, it was this day that I got my photo.

Traffic Policemen

I awoke the next day with a huge hangover, we were meant to go to Disney land early but I was being too much of a weasel to get out of bed. 

A strong Starbucks coffee and a good talking to myself and I was out. I checked on the website and it said that it was open until 8pm. I caught the tube, where we saw the majority of men just jumping over the gates. I got there at 5pm only to discover it actually closed at 6pm. That meant rushing around to get on the best rides - with one them breaking down just as I got on it!! 

After Disneyland, I headed back to the hotel and went out for dinner, not a heavy night as I was flying back the next day. Gave 20 euros to a homeless man (I hate seeing homeless people).

Following morning I caught the train from Gare St-Lazare to the airport. thankfully no delays going back.

 

Pont Alexandre III

Capital City Three - Ireland:Dublin 192 to go

January 10th 2010 Ireland - Capital city: Dublin

Picture with two Local City Council Workers 192 Capital cities to go.

The Dublin picture I was always looking forward to, because I was staying with a friend at her house; aka 'Heart Break Hotel' for the weekend. Aptly named because hers is the best house to go to after a break up, lots of advice, lots of drink and food is dispensed. Not always in that order mind! This time I was heading down, there were no break ups, but just a catch up.
I headed down on the train from Belfast, in my mind ideally I wanted a stereotypical picture with a Priest or a ginger haired Garda (Irish policemen). I did spy a Nun on the train, but lost her when i got off, I really don't know how as it's not like she could have blended in with the crowd.
Spent the weekend watching hilariously rubbish DVDs. It snowed heavily throughout the whole weekend, and much of the time was spent sitting in, wine in hand spying on all the people maing their way through the falling snow. Walking to the train station; the day was as grey as the picture taken.
Clearing up the snow, two City Council Workers were working. It felt good to have a got a picture with two locals, instead of my usual one.

Capital City Two - Spain:Madrid 193 to go.

 September 13th 2009 Spain - Capital City: Madrid

              Picture with local Park Attendant 193 Capital Cities to go.

Madrid; I thought was going to be an easy Capital to do. I had been there before and was travelling from Alicante, so all I had to do was catch a train up there, stay the night get a picture and head back down.

I boarded the train at Alicante, and I found a fat Spanish lady sat in my seat. As my Spanish is very basic, I pointed to the seat she was sat in and my ticket, to indicate that it was my seat, she was having none of it and just removed her bag from the seat next to her and I had to take that. Three and half hours squashed on the inside sat the next to the lady with the longest toenails to date.

The train station in Madrid was amazing, with massive trees in it and water, you could sit and people watch all day. I had learnt the basic phrase in Spanish 'I have photograph with you'. That night I went out and passed quite a lot of Policemen, but they all looked quite scary and busy, and I didn't think that I could explain I wanted a photograph with them without them looking scarier.

                                Train Station in Madrid

I stayed out for awhile drinking, so that night I returned back to the hotel (Ayre Grande Hotel Colon) drunk and photo-less.
In the morning I left the hotel to go back to the train station; back to Alicante, on the look out for photo opportunities. Whilst walking through the park, I remembered a park attendant working there yesterday, we got to the entrance and to my joy there he was.

Whilst pretending to take photo's of the park I went up to him and with my much practised phrase asked him for a photo with me. He didn't seem that enthusiastic, so I slipped my arm round him and yelled to my boyfriend at the time, 'take the picture, take the picture'. He doesn't that happy on the picture; me - I was ecstatic. I could finally relax - I had gotten my photo.

Except that I couldn't relax because; we got to the train station to travel back to Alicante, only to be told that all the trains were full that day, all SIX of them. I was stuck. I enquired about going to Valencia then onto Alicante but there would be no train to Alicante from Valencia till the next day at 7.20am. My mind whirled with ideas, whilst the queue behind me grew. I settled on a bus option. Just needed to find the bus station. I got into a taxi to take me there but was told it was just round the corner so he wouldn't take me - walking over forty minutes to it - round the corner my ass!!

Arriving at the bus station before 5pm, there was a bus going, I read the tickets and it was leaving at 5.55pm stand 49. That was okay I had time to get food. I then queued for the bus, getting to the front of the queue, the bus driver looked at my ticket and refused me on and speaking to me in Spanish, my face met his with a blank stare - I didn't understand him. I left the queue and ended up googling what it read on the ticket.
That would be not stand 49 but ticket number 49. It wasn't departing at 5.55pm but it was the time 5.05pm in when I got my ticket, the printer wasn't very clear and the middle zero looked like a 5.

Back into the main bus station to look for times, in a bit of a hurry as there was a lot of buses about to leave, I found the bus times. The bus I was booked on wasn't leaving until 12 midnight. Six hours to kill. I headed back into Madrid city centre, what can you do to kill time on a Sunday evening - eat and drink!
Heading back to the bus station I caught the metro accidentally instead of the train, I say accidentally, it was my fault thinking it was the way back, I realised after one stop, that no it wasn't the way, so I got off running, to get the metro back.

I finally got back to the bus station and boarded the bus, I ended back in Alicante at 6.30am.

Capital city one - UK:London 194 to go

August 15th 2009. UK -Capital City:London.
Picture with local Policeman. 194 Capital Cities to go.

Well what started as a conversation about how I'd love to visit every Country in the world, has finished with a challenge to myself. That I visit every recognised Capital in the world. There are 195 so it may take awhile, for it to be recognised that I have been there - I want to stay the night in the Capital (so no sneaky airport changes, though i know that this may not always be possible) and have a picture with a local person ie someone working in a uniform. So this means all the capitals I have previously visited I have to visit again for it to count.

So the first capital seemed a no brainer - London.
 I was heading over for my cousin's hen party so flew from Belfast into Stanstead, then I made my way across London and stayed in Greenwich.

The hen party was in the theme of 'Alice in Wonderland' where we all had to dress up as a character and we proceeded to have a delightful tea party in Greenwich park.

My opportunity for a photo came when I spied a Policeman in a Metropolitan Police car. I went up to him explained to him I was in the process of visiting every Capital in the world could I have a photo with him. He asked how many I had done, and as this was officially my first on this mission I found myself saying twenty-two! I have no idea why, I think that I thought I wanted it to sound like it was a serious mission, and didn't want him to say no, after all I was stood there in a bunny costume as the White Rabbit!

It didn't phase him, and I got my photo. Sadly I didn't get his name.
I had officially started my mission.