The start of the trip to South East Asia didn’t go so smoothly. My partner Grant mid flight over tapped me on the shoulder to say he didn’t feel well – seconds later he threw up on himself, down the plane isle and then all over the exit door and toilet. Also while attempting to make it to the toilet he managed to be sick on someone’s arm… it really could not have gone worse!

We were on a jetstar flight and had a few things to eat on flight but also ate hungry jacks just before boarding so we aren’t 100% sure what made him sick but he had 5 more hours left on the flight and a window seat. The seat no longer clean plus our friend Ammar and I were not willing to swap… sorry but we all have our friendship limits 💋.

The biggest disappointment was how JetStar dealt with this. It would be so hard as an employee to have to clean it up and I offered to do it but they were incredibly rude about it and asking why he was sick? Is he drunk? How much alcohol did he drink? (None, like I can afford paying for it). All asked with a lot of sass and an eye roll making him feel extremely anxious and embarrassed drawing more attention to him. The staff were rude and not offering to assist , no offering of water, a sick bag, paper towels.

Luckily for Grant our friend Ammar had a spare top . Let this be a lesson for flying to bring a change of clothes, I have been told to do this so many times before as airlines can misplace your luggage as well. However I will not forget this next time.

The most entertaining part about the experience was the man Grant threw up on was a massive strong gym guy . He was lovely and so forgiving about it however his friends kept laughing at him and saying “you have a stinky arm ey bro!”. Very funny, but the guy was a champion not even bothered and just said “accidents happen”.

Once we departed and got through customs, a very challenging task I’m sure we ended up just staying at an airport hotel. This was Grants second time overseas and spent the whole night extremely unwell therefor for the rest of the trip was very apprehensive as to what food to eat.

Experiences happen and lessons learnt. Be careful what you eat before and during flights, bring a change of clothes and to JetStar, if you could please show a little compassion to the person now stuck in economy on a flight with bad food poisoning unable to lay down nor have easy access to a bathroom that would be amazing.

But to conclude, Stay healthy everyone. Jetlag isn’t the only thing we need to watch out for. xx

The calm before the sick storm

Day 21 Prague
Prague is unlike any place I have ever been before in my life. Absolutely stunning and so different to any place I have been, walking over the Charles Bridge, through Hradčany Castle, the home of the original Bohemian Kings and to the Gothic St. Vitus Cathedral will be a real jaw dropping experience. Anyone who loves gothic or medieval then this is the town for them, the tight paved alleyways where you are bound to get lost and little shops and then the famous old town square  that the Astronomical clock lives that is a must see. I really fell in love with this place and can’t wait to go back it truly stole my heart.

Day 22 Prague to Munich
Today is a short journey to arrive in Munich Germany. We all have a walk around town and get to have a look at the Glockenspiel Gothic clock, complete with 32 dancing figures and 43 chiming bells. Beautiful!
Then we wandered off to the park to buy a beer and enjoy the sunshine and check out the Eisbach wave that people surf in a river in the middle of the park.

Day 23 Munich to Austrian Tyrol

On the road again and the next stop is spectacular! The mountains are a beautiful thing to see. There is an optional white water rafting activity that I would highly recommend as it goes through the hills where they filmed the sound of music and it is unforgettable. We also had the option to do tandem paragliding which over those hills even if you have a fear of heights I guarantee you won’t help but be at complete peace. Of corse the day is ended with yet another Contiki party 🥂

Day 24 Tyrol to Swiss Alps

On the way to the Swiss Alps you will stop off in Liechtenstein. A very expensive little country but an interesting pit stop on the way. We stayed in a Swiss Chalet and had a fondue dinner which as a cheese addict it couldn’t not be a better meal for me, I should have this more often. After stuffing ourselves of cheese there was a party downstairs in the bomb shelter bar with a red theme to go with being in Switzerland.

Day 25 Swiss Alps

There is the option for this day to go skiing or snowboarding if you wish however with such a limited amount of time on the Slopes we opted to go on our own adventure hiking up a close mountain. We hiked for a long time overlooking breathtaking mountain ranges, passing a mini town with a shop that had no shop keeper just a honesty box to put your money in. With having such a tiny population on the mountain they are able to have complete trust which is lovely. This day does stand out for me for the Contiki trip as the views and tiny neighborhood were a real joy. Nice to breath fresh air.

Day 26 Swiss Alps to Rhine Valley

During the bus ride today we went past the medieval castle in Heidelberg Germany and past vineyards. Once arrived at the Rhine Valley we went to a shop to learn how they make their famous beer Steins and get to purchase one and put your name on it if you wish and then to see the Lorelei clocks. The evening ended with a competition the bar has for each Contiki group and which one can have the most amount of shots. If your Contiki group wins you get your picture put up on the board. We gave it a good try however fell short after everyone passed out drunk.

Day 27 Rhine Valley to Amsterdam

Hangovers were high this day however the scenic drive through the Netherlands eases those banging heads a little. The houses and green landscape with huge windmills were spectacular! Then to head to a cheese factory that makes Edam cheese is like visiting heaven for me. I am a cheese addict. There is also a clog farm here that shows you how they make clogs and you can purchase some if you wish… I spent my money on the cheese!

Once we arrive in Amsterdam we all got ready to wander around the infamous red light district. Quite a strange place and we all have heard of it before. Women in windows (do not stare at them or someone will come out and yell at you), the cafes selling weed and hash cookies and magic mushrooms etc and you can just buy a joint only to try or buy something to help your anxiety. Just talk to the person at the cafe they know why tourists are coming in 🙂

Day 28 Amsterdam

Last day to spend on Contiki so we tried to make the most of it. We went to the river to ride those river bike boats around, turns out a lot harder than it looks and my legs were killing after an hour. After that we went to the Anne Frank museum which I recommend highly! You will have to wait in line but that is like a lot of attractions in Europe. Otherwise we spent the day just cruising the streets and wandering around before a final Contiki dinner on the river topped with some wine and followed by hitting the town for some dancing and parting to end the tour with everyone we had just spend under a month with. A last Contiki party.

Day 29 Departure
Today is the official end of the trip and the option to catch the bus back to London however we chose to stay in Amsterdam and continue travelling. From this point on our trip we definitely missed the bus history lessons on the way to every stop but this was such a good way to ease ourselves into what Europe has to offer and where we would like to go back to in the future.

Day 10. Rome
The day started with a walking tour of the city passing important sights.
We then walked over to the colosseum. It was quite a sight to see, as I was standing there trying to imagine being in that stadium during its prime with a roaring crowd surrounding me while watching
After the colosseum we walked to the Vatican City to have a guided tour of the Vatican. Where the popes bedroom is was pointed out, we walked down a long hallway with ceiling to floor tapestry’s which instantly made me think of how much my mother would appreciate seeing that, then into the famous Sistine Chapel roof painting by Michel Angelo, Naturally this was incredibly impressive and without a doubt a must see on anyone’s Europe trip

That night we had a party which a white board theme. Wear a white T-shirt and people write in permanent marker all over it. I can’t remember if I still have that t-shirt now however I have a feeling it could possibly still be in an old set of draws at my parents’ house. Contiki partys tend to get pretty wild and my memory of the night is limited to a dance floor and that’s about it.

Day 11 Rome to Pompeii to Greece Corfu
I woke up on this day very rough. One of my worst hangovers, I was convinced I didn’t care in the morning enough and wanted to miss the bus however I managed to finally just make it on with a bag in hand, a pair of sunnies, and a pillow. I slept the whole way to Pompeii however I imagine the landscape was supposed to be lovely. The walk through Pompeii unfortunately was far from pleasurable for me since at this point I was struggling so much I could barely keep my eyes open let alone walk around in blistering heat. It was however even through the hangover when I look back a pretty special place to be.
After Pompeii we drove all the way down to Southern Italy (also sure this would have been a beautiful view) where we boarded an overnight ferry to head to Greece. I really enjoyed my time on the ferry, we had beds and the gentle rock of the boat on waves made me have a very peaceful sleep.

Day 12, 13 and 14. Greece
One of the first things I learnt about Greece as we headed to where we were staying was how they live by “local time” meaning, nothing has a sure time. The bus will come or the shops will open around the time displayed, or if it is a beautiful sunny day the bus may not come at all or if it is raining the shops may not open.
My first 2 days I spent in bed or tried to lay beside the pool feeling extremely ill with swollen tonsils so my friends when into town and got me some antibiotics as in Greece they have it over the counter. The second night I was up still feeling ill but well enough to go to a toga party. We all wrapped ourselves up and headed out. Classic contiki style the party was big.

On my last day in Greece myself and a friend got a bazillion wax from a local salon which took 3 people assisting in the wax for some reason also if someone wanted to get to the hair salon they walked through the room to get there. It was no place to feel shy, bizarre however I did not ask questions and then late went on a boat cruise called ‘Georges Boat”. Nonstop drinks and his home made Tzatziki while cruising around in the hot sun was just the perfect way to spend your half way point for the tour. We got a chance to hop off and sit on the beach on a lounge chair while sipping a cocktail and possibly take part in some water sports. Some went snorkelling or stand up paddle boarding, I chose to go parasailing. Myself and a friend loaded with parachutes while strapped also to a boat with a long cord ran off the deck until the parachute launched and we went sailing in the air as the boat pulled us along for about 20 minutes. It was so peaceful and amazing to have a panoramic view from so high. We concluded the cruise with everyone stripping naked and jumping into the ocean from the boat desk.  We are in Europe after all.

Day 15 Corfu to Venice
Today we relaxed by the pool then hopped on an overnight ferry from Corfu to Venice Italy.

Day 16 Venice
We open the day with a guided tour through the streets and laneways of Venice while learning some historical facts about the city. We went to a glass blowing factory where they showed us how they make their famous Venice stained glass and you can purchase beautiful ornaments or jewellery very cheap. I bought an orange band watch with colourful glass flowers around the outside of the clock face. We also got to have a private boat tour down the canals and islands in the warm sun while checking out the houses and shops on the river front.

Day 17 Venice
Today we hired bicycled to ride around the city and see as much as possible. At one point we road completely off the tourist map we were given so we had lunch beside the canal. My friend ordered a latte. In Europe a latte is just frothed milk, you need to say café latte. It took some convincing but finally she politely asked if she could have a coffee shot put in h frothed milk. This was a good day just spent riding around and finding this with no real intent. A nice break from racing around.

Day 18 Venice to Vienna
Bus ride past beautiful countryside and Chalets and Villages to get to Vienna was a beautiful time.
In the evening we went to a Mozart and Strauss concert is an amazing historical building. This was such a pleasure, and really reminded me of my brother and his passion for music. The gardens around were also filled with hedges shaped as musical notes and fairy lights setting a magical scene.

Day 19 Vienna
Time for some sightseeing; There’s the imperial grandeur of Schönbrunn Palace, the elegantly ornate State Opera House and The gothic St. Stephen’s Cathedral  followed by a walk down the main street called Kärntner Strasse. After we had free time and we chose to have a local coffee and lunch in the gardens and after we all went to the old schnapps museum to try a few samples and of course a schnitzel dinner that was the biggest meal I have ever had!

Day 20 Vienna to Prague
Standard bus journey day then we got to have a wander through Český Krumlov for our first experience of this unbelievable town.