München – Trip 1, Part 2 (Aug 2015)

So if you’ve been following my August 2015 adventure around Bayern (Bavaria) then you’ll know so far I’d split my time between München, Dachau and Augsburg.

I slept in a little on the Saturday morning whilst awaiting news from Nicole on our plans for the morning, sadly circumstances meant we didn’t get a chance to meet up again before leaving Germany so I made my way to the train station to head back to München for one night.

I was attempting to buy a ticket at one of the machines when some woman approached me asking if I was going to München – “how closely have you been watching me!?”

I replied that I was and she asked if I’d join her and her mother so we could all save some money. It sounded great but I had no idea if this was a legitimate thing so either had to decline or show a bit of faith, I opted for the latter and handed my money over to some complete stranger.

There was still no sign of this mythical mother at this point which added to my skepticism a little bit but sure enough we found her on the way to the platform. With that said I’d still seen no sight of the tickets so for all I knew I’d kindly paid for her mother’s ticket and then they’d plead ignorance once we were on the train
“I have no idea who he is conductor”.

I was feeling a little anxious as I saw the ticket conductor approaching our seats, fortunately my faith was repaid and although I couldn’t really understand what they were saying they clearly signalled that I was with them! Hurrah!
If you’re traveling in a group you can get discounted regional trains in Bayern, I didn’t know at the time but made good use of it a year later!

Munich!

With my faith in humanity intact the rest of the journey was a happy one and I was soon arriving in to München’s Hauptbahnhof (main train station).
I’d stayed in a hotel on my four previous nights in Germany but as I was now solo for the first time on the trip I decided I’d stay in a hostel – I did treat myself to a private room though.

I quickly found my hostel, dropped off my things and thought I’d spend the next couple of hours exploring stuff I hadn’t seen already before turning my focus towards evening entertainment. I wanted to see the Englischer Garten before leaving the city, Daniel had mentioned on Thursday night that it was worth a visit and that there were even surfers in the park which was a tad bizarre! It had me intrigued.

My search for it was pretty unsuccessful though. I like walking everywhere, particularly given it was during the summer so rather than use a map I just wandered in a vague direction I thought it was in and sadly didn’t stumble upon it. As the afternoon drifted away I just decided to skip it and save it for my next visit to München – dinner had become a bigger priority.

An example of the interesting things you see on foot!

I do try and eat local delicacies when I travel but I’d already had a few days in Germany to do that so I decided I’d indulge in one of my little travel guilty pleasures – the Hard Rock Café! Anyone following the blog for a while should know by now that I’ve been to a few (19 in total!).
In this instance it “killed two birds with one stone” too but I’ll come back to that shortly.

The Hard Rock Café’s are just a bit of a novelty experience really, the food is fine but certainly isn’t the best you’re ever going to have and it can be a bit pricey too but I like the overall atmosphere of them and they are an exception I’m happy to make when traveling.
In all honesty this wasn’t one of the better times I’ve had visiting HRC, I got stuck next to a rather obnoxious collective of people and it just ruined the mood for me. I spent most of my time just wanting to finish asap and move swiftly onwards.

Munich’s famous Hofbrauhaus!

On the plus side the HRC was in a killer (2 birds, one stone..) location for my next stop of the night. Directly opposite the HRC is München’s famous Hofbrauhaus – a tourist trap but I figure you’ve got to visit at least once on your first trip to München. I don’t think the exterior appearance prepares you for how big this place is, it was huge and yet I was struggling to find the bar to actually order a beer.

Eventually I realised all you need to do is take a seat and the beer will come to you so I plopped myself down at a large table and soon enough flagged down one of the waitresses, wearing traditional Bayern clothing that you’d expect to see in a German beer hall. Soon enough a beer was put down in front of me and to my surprise wasn’t as expensive as I thought it would be – it wasn’t that much more expensive than a beer elsewhere in München which made me realise how cynical England has made me.

“They’d have charged an extra pound or two for that in England, a further fiver in London, you’re missing a trick here München”.

Whilst the beer was cheaper than I’d anticipated it met my hopes in terms of taste. I didn’t plan to stay for long. One beer, two at the most but again it was another novelty experience to have had a beer in one of the most famous drinking spots in the world.

Being a tourist is always fun when beer is involved!

Maybe everybody’s just happier when beer is involved but despite being a tourist trap the atmosphere was great. The typical oompah band was playing to entertain the tourists and everybody seemed to be in cheery mood and you could see new friendships developing throughout the room. I can’t imagine you meet too many locals here but if you want to meet people generally it’s a pretty good place to get chatting over a beer. They do food too if you’re feeling peckish but obviously I’d just eaten.

True to my intention I did only have one beer. I figured I’d go back to the hostel for the evening and perhaps make new acquaintances there, I’d been given a free drinks voucher upon check-in so it seemed rude not to make use of it at the hostel bar.

Soon enough I was at a table with 5 other guys. Four British youngsters enjoying a summer Eurotrip together and then a solo Aussie. Conversation was flowing and the drinks were flowing just as quickly. The Aussie decided to get in a round of shots and I don’t enjoy being “in debt” when it comes to drinking so I had to follow it up with a round of my own.
If you’ve had the pleasure (or mispleasure?) of joining me on a night out you probably won’t be surprised to hear that I switched my round to Jagerbombs which was a decision the Aussie was particularly fond of.

After a few drinks we decided to move on from the hostel and off to find a bar in the city somewhere. The drinks were beginning to have an effect, soon after arriving I found myself dancing with one of the Brits on this tiny stage. I don’t know if we’d embarrassed the rest of the party but they’d disappeared and found themselves an outside table and were soon mixing with new friends and fellow travelers.

We soon caught up with them but we’d missed the introductions. I found myself sat next to some pretty Italian woman that I was instantly smitten with. I’m not a “pick up a girl at a bar” type and I’m not 100% sure how accurate my memory of the evening is but I felt like she was flirting with me. The alcohol seemed to have given me a little more confidence so I went with it. It wasn’t going to lead anywhere and was only a bit of harmless fun.

I’d missed the initial introductions so about 10-15 minutes in I finally realised that the guy sat opposite me was the Italian’s boyfriend. On the plus side it now made sense why he’d been giving me the death stare – “my bad!!”

We seemed to leave shortly after that as we’d all had a few too many drinks. I can’t really recall much of the walk back – I don’t know if that’s just because it was a short walk or whether it was just an uneventful walk back to our hostel but soon enough we’d all gone our separate ways.

My next memory was being awakened by housekeeping the next day. I’d completely slept through check-out, it’s the only time I can ever recall doing this which isn’t really that impressive keeping in mind a lot of places let you check out around midday.
That alone should have been embarrassing enough but oh no. The weather in München had been 30-35c all week so I must have seemingly made the decision that on this night I’d sleep naked.

So as if it wasn’t enough of a surprise for this poor woman finding someone in what was supposed to be an empty room, this idiotic Brit was also fully exposed. I don’t know how much she saw before the panic kicked in and I’d covered myself up, it all happened pretty quickly so I’d like to think not much and I was rather grateful that I’d slept with my back facing the door. I figure a rear view is slightly better than catching the frontal view although I’m sure she wasn’t appreciative of either.

I quickly dragged my disgraced self out of the room and faced the walk of shame to the reception desk to complete my late check out, accompanied with the hangover from hell which was perhaps some form of karma. I began the night drunken dancing with some British guy in an Irish bar. I swiftly moved on to flirt with some Italian woman in front of her boyfriend before ending my trip with a naked surprise for the hostel staff. It was a night with an interesting story but perhaps not my finest evening or proudest moment.

After checking out, the rest of my afternoon was left to recover and reflect in my self-disappointment. I made my way to the airport, ordinarily an airport beer-garden would have been a blessing but I couldn’t face another beer before catching my flight home from München. I’d had a cracking trip with lots of memories but it was time for me to go home.

A year later I was heading back to Bayern and you’ll be pleased (or maybe you won’t?) to hear that it was a much tamer affair. You’ll have to wait for that story though.

Next up: a trip to Belgium!

Advertisements

Augsburg – trip #1 (Aug 2015)

When Tottenham first announced that they’d be going to Munich in August 2015 two thoughts immediately passed through my brain.
First and foremost, Tottenham are playing in Munich – I have to go!! Secondly, I’m going to Bavaria which means I have to squeeze in a day to visit Augsburg.

Augsburg! (Sep 2016)

Augs-what-where-why?? Good question! I’ll be honest, for a long time I hadn’t heard of Augsburg either but then I met my favourite German, Nicole. Remember her? The potential romance? Salzburg? I promised she’d make a return to the blog and here we are! For those of you with short memories you can recap here (Part 4: Romance in Salzburg?) but whilst our first encounter had taken us to Austria, she actually lives in a city in Bavaria called Augsburg!

Whilst any hopes of a romantic future were long gone, I couldn’t come all the way to Munich and not visit Augsburg which was between 30-60 minutes away on the train! When you’ve got friends living overseas you’ve got to make the most of the opportunities when they come along. So I checked out of my hotel in Munich, hopped on a train and was soon making my way to Augsburg.

It’s funny how people can influence your opinions of a place purely through association. I loved Augsburg! I hadn’t actually stepped foot in the city yet but I was already fond of it just through the association. I can’t really explain why because Nicole had never sung the city’s praises but nevertheless I loved it. I find it very difficult to write about Augsburg and remain objective. I could give you a bunch of reasons to visit – its history (it’s Germany’s 3rd oldest city), its beautiful architecture, the friendliness of the people, its cool little beer gardens but none of those things are the reason for my fondness of the city. Had it been burning to the ground on arrival I would probably still have liked it.

Whilst it wasn’t burning to the ground when I arrived, it sure felt like it. What was this near 40C (100F-ish) weather about? Admittedly it was August and during Germany’s summer but I still hadn’t expected it to be this hot!

 

Es ist zu heiß!

I discovered where my hotel was to come back to later and then went off towards Königsplatz which was a busy road with lots of shops, restaurants and things nearby. I sat down at a little café and ordered myself a dessert – a birthday treat!

Oh, that’s right. It was my 27th birthday! I hadn’t specifically planned to be in Augsburg on my birthday, nor Germany at all to be honest but it’s just how it panned out. The earliest I could fly to Munich was on the Tuesday and if I wanted to be at home on the Friday (my birthday) it would have meant flying home on Thursday.
Theoretically I could have gone Tue-Thu but with two of those days occupied for football it would have meant not seeing Augsburg at all and seeing very little of Munich either which felt like a complete waste of a trip for pre-season football. So I extended my trip to overlap with my birthday and I figured if I’m not going to be home on my birthday I might aswell extend it all the way to the end of the weekend.

Anyway, following my birthday treat I wanted to see a little of the city. Nicole had work so we weren’t meeting up until later on so it gave me a good chance to melt in Augsburg’s excessive heat for the next few hours. I walked through the streets when I stumbled upon a little marketplace, there wasn’t a huge amount to it but it was cute and I saw an opportunity to pick up some postcards. I must have given off the impression I was a German speaker, which is great because I was learning German, but it gave this woman the chance to speak at me for a good minute without reply and I realised a few sentences in that I’d left it too late to tell her I couldn’t understand a word she was saying. My German was better than any previous visit to the country but I still had a long way to go!
However I’d successfully bluffed my way in to making her think I’d understood everything she said before she returned my change to me. She waved me off with a “Tschüss” and I responded in kind.

Sidenote – the Germans have a reputation for saying everything angrily but I swear “Tschüss” never sounds anything other than adorable. It’s just a friendlier way of saying goodbye than “Auf Wiedersehen”.

Market life in Augsburg!

Having picked up some postcards I took a stroll towards one of the main squares in the city, home to Augsburg’s Rathaus (town hall). I don’t know what it is about Germany’s town halls but they are always absolutely stunning and Augsburg’s was no exception to the rule (see first photo – taken on my 2nd trip). They were setting up for an event of some sort in the square so I happily got a few photos and then made an exit in direction of my hotel – hoping I’d be able to check in.

Fortunately I could which allowed me to drop my stuff off and more importantly freshen up. I needed to cool down, shower and just escape from the sun for a little while. Feeling a little more refreshed I headed back in to the city and returned to where I’d left off. From the Rathaus I followed the road down to the St Ulrich’s church, passing a row of colourful buildings on the way made up of little shops and restaurants.

Pretty Augsburg!

The church was a little misleading, it looks huge on the outside but there wasn’t much to it on the inside or certainly not that the public had access to anyway. It was cute though and another escape from the sun. I took a little wander outside and soon stumbled upon this little hut hidden amongst the trees – it was an Irish bar! Well, actually the bar itself was across the street but here laid a pretty beer garden with the trees providing perfect shade to enjoy a beer. I had a bit of time to kill before meeting Nicole and couldn’t resist stopping here given how pretty the setting was.

Murdock’s! There were more benches and stuff to the left of this photo in the shade!

After a couple of beers I went back to the square with the Rathaus and waited for Nicole to meet me. She gave me a little tour whilst we waited for a friend of hers (Alex) and then the three of us went off for dinner at some restaurant hidden away behind the town hall. It was a nice setting and a nice evening all round. The food was good, the company even better plus gave us a chance to catch up and also put my German to the test a little (it needed a lot of work but was an improvement on my time in Salzburg!).

Nicole had elsewhere to be so it wasn’t a particularly late night but it had been fun and I was pleased to have spent some time together in her hometown. We arranged to meet up for breakfast/brunch before I headed back to Munich but as family stuff came up we had to cancel. It was unfortunate but I figured I’d be back sometime.

I was! Just over a year later I would be heading back to Bavaria but that story will have to wait a while.

Next up: Munich, trip 1, part 2!

München – Trip 1, part 1

I announced my return to the blog at the end of August and intended to have posted again before now. Part of my struggle was because I was torn on what to post next. Should I jump straight in to the USA summer trip or do I stick to the blog theme of posting about my trips chronologically? I opted for the latter.

So now that my summer fun in the US is over with, let’s rewind. Last time out on the blog we were focusing on Bilbao (May 2015), three months later I was readying myself for the next trip: München aka Munich!

For the third consecutive year I was going to Germany, having only first visited the country for the first time in 2013 (Köln) before visiting Berlin (2014). My growing fondness of Germany could probably be attributed to two common interests: beer and football! Whilst both are loved all over Germany, nowhere does that seem to be truer than in München (Munich) who happen to be world-famous for their beer (Oktoberfest anyone?) and are also home to Germany’s biggest football club – Bayern München.

It was the latter that was the inspiration for visiting (although I may have had a beer or two whilst in Germany too) as my beloved Tottenham Hotspur announced they’d be going to München for a pre-season tournament. Spurs in the Allianz Arena with no importance on the result? Sign me up! I knew I had to go!

Outside Allianz Arena on the Wednesday!

On the Tuesday I flew out to München, it was a tad frustrating I couldn’t fly any earlier but such were the circumstances at the time. I landed with the intention to rush over to München’s Allianz Arena via my hotel to drop off my things. Having never been to München before I ended up jumping on the wrong S-train, it still took me to central München but seemed to have more stops than the other direction, not ideal given my flight had been delayed so I was stretched for time to get to the stadium. I dropped off my things at the hotel as quickly as possible and then made a quick dash for München’s U-Bahn (tube / metro / subway).

Nevertheless it was clear I wasn’t going to get there on time, admittedly it was only pre-season so it wasn’t a major issue but given Tottenham were playing first (in the first of 2 games) I’d hoped to catch the start. It wasn’t to be and as I strolled up to the Allianz Arena it was deserted, not helped by being in the middle of nowhere but most spectators were already in their seats.

I walked up to the gate and was prepared for a quick body search before entry which put my German to the test for the first time. On my two previous trips to Germany I knew nothing so it was nice coming back with some basic vocabulary in the locker. As the security guard searched me he threw a question in my direction: “Schlüssel? he asked.

Damn, I know that word! What is it? Bowl..? No, that’s schüssel – no L! Why would he ask that anyway you idiot? Hmm.. key..? KEY! Yes, there’s a key in my pocket! That makes sense!

“Ja.. Schlüssel” I replied perhaps a bit too enthusiastically.

Entry accepted, I made my way in to the stadium feeling pretty smug with myself. “Wow, I’m practically fluent”
Of course I wasn’t, I still struggled a lot throughout this trip but it was a sign that I was going in the right direction at least in terms of learning the language. I could come to Germany and not be solely dependent on English for once!

Allianz Arena, Munich

The Allianz Arena is a cracking stadium, up there with one of my favourites in the 40+ football stadiums I’ve visited. German football really is the pinnacle for me in terms of fan experience and it was a nice novelty walking in and grabbing a beer before finding my seat – a decent beer too! I’d missed the first half to find Spurs were losing but soon found my friend Daniel in our seats enjoying the experience. Following our game there was another game with the two winners and two losers set to play the following day, of which we were the latter.

On our way back to the U-Bahn after the two games it had become clear Daniel was drunker than I realised, he’d made the most of arriving in München a day earlier and had squeezed in some beers earlier in the day which was highly amusing for me. Whilst I’d seen Daniel drunk before it was possibly the drunkest I’d seen him so the strength of the German beers had seemingly gone to his head. Not that it stopped us making a pub-stop back in the centre of the city. We’d found an Irish bar with a scattering of Spurs fans enjoying the trip and grabbed a quick beer before calling it a night.

Wednesday had much more of the same in store. Whilst tamer than a competitive European away game we were still planning to soak up some of the pre-game atmosphere. We agreed to meet around lunch so beforehand I woke up early and joined a ‘free’ walking tour, always a great way to see the city.

It’s a good way to familiarise yourself with a new city and they’re usually pretty educational too, it was a chance to learn that München wasn’t all beer and lederhosen and had quite an interesting history too! The tour covered the role the city played in the rise of Hitler and also told some more light-hearted stories with the help of the Glockenspiel – found in München’s Marienplatz. Every day you’ll find hordes of tourists looking up at the belltower as a couple of historical stories are played out.

Marienplatz, Munich – September, 2016

The rest of Wednesday was football-focused and consisted of a bit of singing, plenty of beers and another two enjoyable games of football (Spurs success this time too!).

We made our way back in to the city centre after the football, had a beer or two and then called it a night. My plan for Thursday was to take a daytrip somewhere, I was tempted to visit the famous Neuschwanstein Schloss (castle that was inspiration for Disney) and also the Dachau concentration camp. Those of you following the blog for a while will know I opted for the latter which you can read about here: A lesson learned in Dachau or a look in to the future?

Dachau was moving, it’s hard to visit somewhere like that and not feel something. Germany has the best pick-me-up though and that’s good beer! I got back to München late on Thursday afternoon and arranged to meet up with Daniel, we decided to spend our last night together with some beers at the Viktualienmarkt. They have a number of food options and additionally a cracking beer garden – perfect given the weather. We had a fun evening and were probably one of the last to leave, the staff clearing tables and stacking benches was a good hint that it was time for us to go.

It was a good end to our third European adventure together following Lisboa and Firenze, on Friday Daniel was heading home and I’d be temporarily saying goodbye to München too. I’d be back on Saturday so it wasn’t a long farewell but it does mean you’ll have to wait for part 2.

Next up was a daytrip to Augsburg on the Friday! Stay tuned!

Jason

The big 3-0: a terrible summary

Extra, extra, read all about it: your favourite blogger is back! The 29 year old you once knew is gone and has been replaced by a 30 year old! That makes me older and wiser, right?

If you’ve been living under a rock and somehow missed the news (See you in September!), the reason for my little blogging hiatus is because I was in the US for thirty days! Thirty! How mad is that?

I got back to work on Tuesday and inevitably there was one question on everyone’s lips: how was it?

“Before you start, keep it short, yeah?”

This disclaimer hasn’t at any point actually been stated but as I explained in my Weetabix Boy post (here) this is my problem with social interaction and small talk in particular. I appreciate the effort in taking an interest but it’s another workplace conversation-filler isn’t it? How much is an acceptable amount of information to actually tell you? When does reflection become outright gloating about the trip?

So.. “yeah, it was really good!”.

It’s so vague but how do you adequately summarise a month long trip spanning six states, several cities, climates and cultures? It’s not in my nature to chew your ear off anyway but the trip has left me rather speechless. I don’t know how to answer that question, I don’t even know where to begin in attempting to.

Bean life

Logically you might suggest Chicago, that’s where I started the trip right? Alright, let’s do that!
The crazy cab driver, fireworks on Navy Pier within hours of arriving, late night Shake Shack, the Bean, the Skydeck disaster, another Hard Rock Café visit, awesome street art, the Chicago pizza, a never-ending tunnel, consequently nearly missing my Greyhound bus and voila! Only 29 days left to summarise!

I could say so much about this trip and consequently trying to summarise it has me struggling to say anything whatsoever. I saw two beautiful friends get married, road-tripped the West Coast with the woman I love, met a footballing idol, danced in the streets of New Orleans, successfully got off of Alcatraz island, fed alpacas, drunk plenty, ate even more plus an endless list of other experiences.

A trip to Alcatraz!

 

At some point I’ll blog about each place more thoroughly but right now I’m humbled more than anything. This trip has been in the works for roughly two years and I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity.

Things went wrong, I had fraudulent activity on my bank account and was crapped on by a bird on my first day in San Francisco just to name a couple of instances but honestly there’s no summary that could do this trip justice. It surpassed any high expectations I had for this trip of a lifetime.

So if “really good” seems a little vague, understand that it’s because it has to be. There’s no genuine summary coming, this was a terrible effort but I can honestly say it’s a summer I’ll never forget.

I’m so thankful to anyone that I crossed paths with this summer and a special shout-out to Maddie and Cassie who were the sole reason this trip happened and lastly to Haleigh who I spent the bulk of my time with. I loved it all so thank you!

The Redwoods with Haleigh

There will be more to come regarding this trip in the future but for now that’s it. I hope you enjoyed the “summary” and hopefully you’re pleased to see me back on the blog!

All the best!

Jason

See you in September!

Those of you that have been following the blog for a while, or are connected to me on other social media platforms will surely know about my upcoming trip.
However for those of you that aren’t aware let’s recap – on Saturday I’m going to the USA for 30 days!

Thirty bloody days!! I’ll be partly celebrating a wedding, partly celebrating my 30th birthday and partly just appeasing my need to travel. You can read more about it here (Read me!) but just to summarise I’ll be visiting Illinois, Minnesota, Louisiana, Washington State, Oregon and California. The purpose of this post wasn’t to brag (“you’re definitely bragging Jason”) but more a way to say goodbye to y’all. Am I fitting in yet? No?

Another USA trip!

Anyway.. consequently “Jason Likes To Travel” is officially on hiatus. Credit to all of the bloggers, influencers and Youtubers out there that “work from anywhere” because as glamourous as the lifestyle sometimes sounds, you’ve still got to work. Who knew?

I have days where I wish I was doing it opposed to working in an office, sat on a beach in the Caribbean whilst I work but then I remember that I’d actually have to work whereas in reality the only appeal to me is the sitting on a beach part.

On July 27th my out of office is going on and it’s not coming off until August 28th. As a professional blogger or social media influencer you don’t get that same luxury. You can’t just switch off for a month, even when you want to you’re probably curating some sort of content for a later date.
By contrast, this is a hobby for me. I’ll be out of England until the end of August and consequently don’t expect to see any blog posts until at least September.

“September, whaaaat? How am I going to cope that long?”

I’m flattered folks but I promise, the withdrawal symptoms won’t be too bad, you’ll manage! However I appreciate it’s going to be a struggle so here’s five temporary solutions to keep you going until I’m back from the USA.

Check out other bloggers!
I’m going to let you in on a little secret but there are other bloggers out there!

“Whoa Jason, you’re pushing your readers away and steering them to other blogs?” – crazy right? However much like reading a good book, your love of one doesn’t mean you can’t read others!
However, where do you even start?

Well fear not because I’m going to link you to a few of my favourites below that I’m pretty fond of reading myself.
Got the Postcard
Love Travelling Blog
The 88
Caffeine and Foxes
Life and its adventures
Travels by Lucy
Seeking Sammy
Jamie chance travels
Timo Travels
The Campervan Man

Apologies if you didn’t get a mention, it was hard narrowing it down to ten as it was!

Time to fly!

Travel! 
Surprise! The travel blogger suggests you go traveling – original, right? However with blogging season at its end, what better time to go on a trip? You can take a well-earned break, safe in the knowledge that you’re not missing anything from your favourite blogger!

Catch up on other things! 
All of those things you’ve put off doing or missed out on? Now you’ve got the time to do them! Catch up on the latest Netflix show, arrange dinner with a friend, maybe even get that bedroom decorated whilst you’ve got the chance!
The possibilities are endless and you can make time for all your loved ones, other hobbies and errands that need doing!

When was the last time you explored your hometown? Now’s your chance!

Re-read older posts!
Good news! If you don’t think you’ll manage going cold turkey, you don’t have to! All of my old blog posts are still going to be visible and you can re-read them to your hearts content over and over again! You can remind yourself of all your favourite posts and perhaps take the opportunity to read any that you’ve previously missed.

Instagram! 
Lastly, what happens if none of the above remedies have been successful? Well, you can keep up to date with what I’m doing “on the gram!”

Instagram is by far my most used social media app. I don’t want to be using it as much whilst I’m away but I will be uploading some photos whilst I’m in the US so if you’re desperate for fresh and current content this is the place for you!
I don’t know if you can view my profile without signing up, hopefully you can do bur you’ll find me over at: Jason Likes To Travel

So there you have it, I’m gone! I will be back to blogging around September and I’ll have a million more stories once I’m home but until then you’ll have to amuse yourself in other ways. Sorry!

Take care!

Jason

Weetabix boy goes traveling!

I spoke about anxiety on the blog ( here! ) a while back and proclaimed myself to be “Sickboy” – I joked that my superhero name needed a little work. I went back to the drawing board and I’m proud to introduce you to “Weetabix boy”
I’m nailing these superhero names, right?

First and foremost, some of you might be wondering “what the hell is Weetabix?” which is a fair question I suppose. Weetabix is one of the leading cereals in the UK and is exported to over 80 countries worldwide. It’s a healthy and popular breakfast option for both children and adults alike and something I’m personally a big fan of.

I say I’m fond of Weetabix but that might be underselling it a little. I’ve eaten two Weetabix a day for pretty much most of my life, including today of course.
Let’s crunch the numbers. 30 years (give or take) x 365.25 days a year x 2 Weetabix a day = roughly 21,915 Weetabix in my lifetime. Although for clarity, the number eaten definitely won’t be an odd number! You’re not eating odd-numbered Weetabix in the Reid household you savages! Just thinking about it is a cause of nightmares!

For accuracy I want to acknowledge there have had to be exceptions (usually holidays) where I haven’t had Weetabix every day, so I’m going to round down to a nice even 20,000 Weetabix consumed. However I wouldn’t be surprised if it is actually much higher than that (I haven’t been counting).

I promise this post isn’t sponsored by Weetabix but the point is that it’s a fitting Superhero name – I am Weetabix boy and if they were ever looking for a brand ambassador then I am that guy!
Whilst “Weetabix Boy” probably won’t be making an appearance in Hollywood any time soon, it is a little reflective of myself.

You get the Weetabix story because it perfectly highlights how predictable I am. I thrive off of familiarity, I like routine, I find comfort in the safer choice. Throw in an introverted personality plus some autistic traits (I’ve never been diagnosed and this is no self-diagnosis) and it can be a little surprising that I’ve traveled so much.

To take a commonly used phrase in football – “on paper” I’m not well suited to traveling.

“Sorry, I’m not staying here. Your buffet breakfast doesn’t even have Weetabix”
“So try something else Sir”
“Are you crazy?”

In a literal sense, yes you can travel and live life exactly the same way you do at home. Particularly as a Westerner, you’ll find Western food, brands and so on all over the world so if you want to travel that way so be it but is it really traveling?
I can’t erase the image from my head that my first impression of Bonn (Germany) was seeing a big yellow M. Of all the architecture and sights that could have caught my eye – bam! McDonalds, very German! I hate that it’s the first thing I associate with Bonn (rather than some ‘famous’ bloke called Beethoven for instance).

Beethoven, Bonn, Germany

Realistically that isn’t travel. You’ve got to dip your toes in to the culture, try new foods, meet new people and enjoy new experiences if you really want to get the best from traveling. I’m not saying you can’t indulge in some home comforts whilst you’re away but you don’t want to spend your entire trip doing so.

It’s easier said than done though isn’t it? My parents often had to admit defeat to a fussy child (why Natasha?). I vividly remember being at Universal Studios one year and my parents were contemplating nearby food options to appease the fussy one. Maybe it was the adrenaline still running high from all of the rollercoasters but we ended up at the Hard Rock Café and not wanting to cause too much fuss I “stepped up”. I was “super-adventurous” and had my first ever.. *drumroll” .. burger! Wow! Sadly this was in an era before photographing your food was a trend so you’ll have to believe me – wild child, right? Whatever next?

Cool vehicle in Hamburg!

I’m a creature of habit and those habits weren’t just limited to what I ate. In order to make the most of seeing the world I’ve had to adapt and challenge my thought process a little. My parents often used to pack Weetabix when we were going on trips, it was a controllable measure and ensured they’d get one fuss-free meal a day out of the way. It’s something I appreciated them doing for me but it’s not how I want to live and travel for the rest of my life.

So here’s a few villains “Weetabix boy” has had to battle in my quest for world-travel-status.

The Arch Nemesis – the small talker!
If you’ve ever met me in person you’ll know I’m not a talker, perhaps hard to believe with the rambling I do online but I’m a quiet-natured person. I was often described as a shy kid, I 100% was but as I’ve gotten older my confidence has started to build and I’ve strayed from describing myself as shy.

I’m still quiet but there’s a difference. If I can add to a conversation I will do but I’m just as happy listening or sat in silence. The problem with adding to a conversation is I’ve never had good conversational skills and small talk is my arch enemy.

We’ve never got along but it’s the starting point to any conversation isn’t it? Admittedly I’ve got better at understanding what constitutes good small talk and what constitutes bad small talk, plus all of the rules that come with it, but I don’t actually understand the logic behind it.

For instance, it’s a social pleasantry to ask how someone is but of course I can’t actually tell you how I am.. “Heartbroken..”
Whoa, whoa, whoa Jason – read the script mate.
“Oh shit, my bad. I’m fine. How are you?”
“Fine” (depressed)

I must have been sick the day they were handing out rulebooks to my peers because I’ve never understood the need for forced conversation opposed to silence.

You: “Beautiful day out there..”
Me: “It is. Did you see that red car drive by?
You “erm..no.. that’s erm.. really interesting Jason..” (what a nutjob!)

My bad, I thought we were making pointless observations from outside. I can see it’s sunny. The person responsible for creating windows only did so with the intention of avoiding these daily exchanges, true story (probably not at all true).

I’ve got better at it but the problem is once you start analysing what constitutes good small talk opposed to bad you can then do the same for any conversation. Is this interesting to you or are you just being polite? FYI, if you have a spare copy of the script (small talk 101) it’d be much appreciated.

To an extent “Weetabix Boy” can get by in daily life. You form relationships and familiarities with people but meeting new people? Back to the small talk because you have to do that before you establish the connection with someone and the interesting conversations.
“On a scale of 1-10 how much do you love Weetabix?”.
“Erm.. a 5? Sorry, excuse me. I’ve just got to run to the toilet but I’ll 100% be back for this super-interesting conversation”

Traveling solo has definitely forced me out of my comfort zone. I’ve met people from all over the world of various different backgrounds and subsequently improved my conversational skills further. It might only be sharing a love of travel with the person you’re sharing a hostel with or getting caught talking to a local and discovering their love of the place they live in but travel has helped “Weetabix boy” grow his confidence and become a conversational wizard (alright, stretching it a bit far).

The last minute folk!
“Weetabix boy, pub tonight?”
Let me check my diary, oh no!! I have absolutely nothing planned and I can’t get out of it. Let’s reschedule?

This is very much the introvert within me but last minute plans are the bane of my existence.
“Why didn’t you ask me yesterday?”
“Well, I only decided to go out like 10 minutes ago”
“You monster!”

I still struggle with this. I like social situations, I like going out and doing things but if I’ve mentally prepared myself for an evening of no plans, all of my instincts are to stick to that plan. I’m trying to challenge myself more because in my brain I know once I’m out, more often than not, I’ll have a good time but I have to push myself out.

My instant reaction to last minute plans will almost always be “no!” and trying to re-configure your brain to say “YES” isn’t something that just happens overnight. In some scenarios it is justifiable saying no in which case I don’t feel guilty for it, sometimes you don’t have the finances for plans for instance but it’s trying to rewire your brain in the instances where you have no excuse.

“Coming out tonight?”
“Sorry, Weetabix to eat”
“Yeah Jason, that’s not a valid excuse. I’ll pick you up in 10”

Traveling often puts you in a scenario where last minute things come up. Two Spanish guys invite you out to a bar playing Fado music? GO!
Pub crawl in Bratislava? Bring it on!
Bike tour in Berlin? “JA! (to be honest it was a maybe at best but peer pressure helped).
Roadtrip to Oklahoma? I’m ready!

Travel has forced “Weetabix Boy” to say Yes, Ja, Si and soforth with more regularity.

Bike tour in Berlin? JA!

The Hostel Snorer!
I’m an introvert and I think one of the misconceptions is that we aren’t sociable people and like to hide away in a dark room away from people for eternity. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve done the lonesome teenager lifestyle (and excelled at it) but I like to think I’m always game for a social occasion.

At the end of it all though I need to wind down. Social situations are exhausting, traveling is also exhausting. Often I’ll re-energise by winding down at the end of a day and indulging in a little “me time”. I need that bit of personal space which is fine in your every day life but it’s not so easy when traveling.

Sometimes you’re traveling as part of a group and you’ll find yourself in close confinement 24/7 for the entirety of your trip – no escape! Alternatively I’ll travel solo and often find my “winding down” time period isn’t a solo experience. I want to relax and you’re bloody snoring on the bunk below!

I’ve been forced to adapt, you can’t stick to your usual rituals and you’ve just got to go with the flow. You can’t start your day with Weetabix as you do at home and similarly you can’t walk around a hostel dorm naked in the same way you might in a hotel. I still need that wind-down or personal space but I’ve had to reinvigorate the ways I do so when I travel.

Breakfast time in a hostel, NYC

The chef
I touched on this already but I was a fussy child. Leaving a 1 star hotel review because Weetabix was not on the breakfast buffet is not okay! Before any of you get the wrong idea, I swear I’ve never done this! I’m not THAT bad!

I’m nowhere near as fussy as I was when I was a child. I eat a lot better and with a lot more variety now and I don’t want to be eating at all of the same places I do at home. Nevertheless I get trapped in this little food bubble of wanting to be adventurous and simultaneously ordering the same thing every single time. “What do you mean you’ve changed your menu? Why would you do that?” – a true disaster!

There are a lot more foods that I eat now compared to when I was a child but the temptation to order something I know I’ll eat opposed to something I may / may not enjoy when traveling is a difficult one to overcome. I went to Lille on a daytrip to Lille recently and committed to trying a local delicacy – the potjevleesch – there’s no way I’d have done something like that five years ago. Can’t I just have pizza instead? That’s exotic foreign food, right?

In the last 12 months I’ve tried a range of different foods for the first time, from churros to sushi to corndogs and it still blows my mind a little bit. Whilst Weetabix should definitely be on any reputable breakfast menu I’ve learned to adapt a little when traveling. Sometimes you’ve just got to get the pancakes and you’ll appreciate that Weetabix a little bit more when you’re home again.

Breakfast alternative in Washington DC!

The chameleon!
I mentioned “Weetabix Boy” has encountered a few “villains” and whilst these have mostly been travel-related I thought I’d end on a fun little anomaly because there were occasions even at home where I’d have something different for breakfast. These instances were few and far between, I was still a fussy child and why would you really want anything other than Weetabix, right?

“So you’d have something else? Intriguing Jason, do tell!” Rice Krispies? Crunchie Nut? Corn Flakes? Sugar Puffs? Cheerios? No. I’ve never, to my recollection, even tried any of these but one cereal brand that occasionally questioned my loyalty was ”Ready Brek”, a porridge like cereal. It wasn’t something I ate often, I was more than happy eating Weetabix daily but it was an occasional treat and change from the norm.

I recently discovered who actually own the Ready Brek brand and couldn’t help but chuckle, remarkably Ready Brek are owned by none other than Weetabix Limited. So rather ironically, even when surrendering to other temptations, Weetabix Boy’s loyalty was never in doubt!

I hope you enjoyed an insight in to my crazy little world. What are your breakfast favourites? Can you match my Weetabix consumption levels? Let me know!

All the best!

Jason aka Weetabix Boy

P.S – no need to actually start calling me this!

Bilbao – May 2015

Last time out on the blog we were in Italy, following my adventures to Pisa and Firenze in February 2015. Three months later, rather tragically, I still had no travel plans! I was beginning to get itchy feet and knew I needed a trip ASAP!

I asked at work if I could take next week off and after agreeing time off I was quickly planning a last minute trip away! For how close it was there was no need for a countdown but there was a need for a destination! Where should I go?

After compiling a list of various destinations across Europe naturally I ended up somewhere that wasn’t even on the list – Bilbao! Why? I don’t really know. Cheap flights and a reasonably priced hotel (with an outdoor pool) was enough to tempt me so I figured why not?

I finally had my destination and before I knew it I was preparing to head to a city I knew very little about in the North of Spain. I was excited, I had a minuscule amount of knowledge of Bilbao but it was a relatively unknown place for me. I was a little worried at how rusty my Spanish was but I was excited to visit a new region of Spain – the Basque country!

Oh no! The Basque country! I was worried my Spanish was bad and it suddenly dawned on me that they might not even speak Spanish. Whilst internationally this might be considered Spain, locally they considered themselves proud Basque citizens first and foremost. I don’t know any Basque!

I struggled by. I wanted to speak Spanish as much as possible throughout the trip but I was more dependent on my English than I would have liked. That’s not to say I spoke solely English, I was focused on learning German at the time and “Dankeschon” and “Bitte” were phrases I regularly used throughout my trip.

“Shit, wrong language, I meant Gracias” I would think to myself but it was always too late, it had slipped out and I was left cursing my stupid brain every single time. My brain appeared to only have two configurations – English and non-English with the latter determined to default to German irrespective of it being of absolutely no use to me here!

Anyway back to my trip. I’d arrived and was ready for three nights in the Basque country! I say I’d arrived but I have no idea how, I’m usually good at remembering the little details but my first memory of this trip was stood in the centre of Bilbao. How I’d got there? A mystery!

Nevertheless I’d got here somehow and the first task of my afternoon was to find my hotel. I had a vague idea of the direction my hotel was in so I figured I’d try my luck finding it on foot. I suppose how you measure the success of that hunt is purely based on your perspective – did I find my hotel? No. However I found myself exploring parts of the city I probably wouldn’t have otherwise seen so in that respect I have no regrets. It was a sunny afternoon so it wasn’t a bad thing that I had no idea where I was going.

Imagine playing football to that background!

Although eventually I had to admit defeat and hopped in a taxi to my hotel, which was a little further away than I’d anticipated. After checking in and dropping off my things I went to get dinner. I ordered a beer and was quickly disappointed to find the waitress sit a minuscule beer in front of me. It was a common theme throughout my stay as it appeared a pint-sized beer just isn’t a thing in Bilbao.

As if that wasn’t disappointing enough, I then had the longest wait for my dinner. If you have to wait for a table or you can see it’s particularly busy you accept you might have a bit of a wait. However I’d ordered pretty quickly and similarly the place was dead so how it took the best part of an hour for my food to arrive was beyond me – has the chef gone for a siesta mid-preparation? Feed me, damnit!

After dinner I decided I’d have a little wander close to my hotel and then the rain hit! Excuse me Spain, I didn’t come here for this! I ducked in to a bar full of locals which was decorated in red and white (the colours of the local football team, Athletic Bilbao) and enjoyed the atmosphere with another mini-beer. I soon called it an early-ish night and chilled back at my hotel for a little while, keen to get exploring properly in the morning.

I didn’t really have any plans for my time in Bilbao, with the exception of the Guggenheim museum it isn’t really a touristy city. If you want a trip full of sights and attractions then this probably isn’t the place for you but if you want an insight in to Basque / Spanish culture then it’s probably a place you’ll enjoy.

As I walked through the streets the following morning I quickly realised I was surrounded by locals. Kids were playing games together, there were bars and coffee shops occupied by people chatting away, the streets were littered with people doing their shopping and it felt a very homely place. I looked up and the streets were decorated with more red and white banners, I wasn’t sure if this was a regular occurrence in Bilbao or whether it was just a timely display of colour ahead of the upcoming Copa del Rey (Spanish cup final) that Athletic Bilbao were participating in, whatever the reason I was fond of it.

Despite another downpour I was enjoying the architecture, street art and scenery the city had to offer. Eventually I arrived at the Guggenheim museum and figured I’d pay a visit given it was so highly rated – it’s one of Spain’s (sorry!) most visited museums so I was keen to see what all the fuss was about.

Honestly, I was left a little underwhelmed. It’s quite similar to London’s Tate museum, another I wasn’t particularly fond of and I’d be hard-pushed to genuinely recommend it. Parts of it were enjoyable but overall it just wasn’t for me. The irony also wasn’t lost on me that my two favourite pieces of art had been OUTSIDE of the museum which further questioned whether I’d actually had value for money. However if you’re a fan of the Tate you’ll quite possibly enjoy Bilbao’s Guggenheim museum too.

Following on from the Guggenheim I took a funicular ride up to one of Bilbao’s best vantage points for the views over the city. It wasn’t particularly crowded (no tourists remember) but one pale white guy caught my eye as, like myself, he stuck out like a sore thumb. “You’re English” I thought to myself and pondered if it was right to make such a snap judgment of some stranger.

I didn’t realise how high up we’d actually be going, even some of Bilbao’s tallest buildings looked tiny from here as I admired the view. Moments later I was being approached by a familiar voice – it was English – something I hadn’t heard for a while.
As I turned to see where it had come from I was greeted by my pasty friend from the funicular ride. “I WAS RIGHT!”

He was traveling around Spain solo and asked if I could take a photo, which gave me the opportunity to ask him of the same afterwards. A couple of photos later we went our separate ways, I took in more of the views before eventually making my way back in to the heart of Bilbao and finding a place for some food.

With the two touristy things to do in Bilbao out of the way I didn’t really do much else over the next couple of days. My last trip had been to Florence, which is still Italy of course but from the thousands of Spurs fans to the massive presence of American students that occupy the city you could be forgiven for forgetting you were in Italy at times.
In Bilbao there was no mistake and with nothing that I was desperate to do I just indulged in Bilbao’s authenticity. I was content people watching in pretty squares and little tapas bars, it was a great way to pass the time for the rest of my stay.

My only other intention had been to take a day-trip to nearby San Sebastian but, combined with the poor weather, I ended up on the wrong train and took it as a sign that it wasn’t meant to be. Abandoning my journey at a random station I retreated back to Bilbao and decided San Sebastian would have to be a city I returned to in the future.

My final morning in Bilbao came around and I made the most of a little lay in before leaving the hotel, checking out a little bitter that I’d had no opportunity to use the pool because of the weather. Sidenote, I swear I’m cursed as every time my hotel has a pool it goes wasted!

Anyway, I wandered back in to the centre of the city to have one last look around and enjoy my final few hours in Bilbao. I stumbled upon some square with a bit of life to it with locals all doing their own thing and soaking up a rare morning of sunshine with many sat at tables in the sun. I popped in to this little bar which was largely full of old men, it looked like this was a regular meet-up for them over some tapas and a couple of drinks. My thinking was much the same as I grabbed some lunch, a couple of beers and spent my final couple of hours in Bilbao just people-watching.

Eventually it was time to go, I hopped in a taxi to the airport and was soon sitting admiring the scenic airport views whilst reflecting on my trip. I don’t know if I could ever call Bilbao a must visit or even a place I’ll return to but there was something homely about Bilbao that left me leaving with fond impressions of the city.

It might not attract the same numbers that Barcelona or Madrid do but this region of Spain has its own charm and keeps me inspired to make a return to the Basque country.
Thanks again for the memories Bilbao and who knows, maybe like Köln, I’ll find myself returning to you some day!

All the best!

Jason