A Destination Menu - May Travel Link Up

The topic for this month's travel link up is if travel was a menu, where would your palate take you?

I decided to go with a 5 course menu because who wants to limit life to 3 courses?

The good thing about this theme is that it doesn't just have to be places that you have already visited.

Soup

 

Soup: a liquid dish, typically savoury and made by boiling fish, meat or vegetables in stock or water.

Soup, to me, invokes visions of cold winter days warmed up in front of a log fire, eating soup.

Besides doing this in front of my Gran's fire eating chicken and noodle soup when I was younger, none of my previous travel has included freezing my ass off. My soup course comes straight from my wish list of visiting Russia.

http://russiatrek.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/khanty-people-cabins-winter-russia-1.jpg

Imagine rugging up in this cabin, in front of the fire, fortifying yourself with vodka soup.

Appetizer

Appetizer:  something to whet the appetite

 I don't have one particular destination in mind for this one, instead I have a full on 26 day group tour.

Last September I (and about 30 other people) did the Contiki Grand Southern which left Los Angeles, travelled through the southern states of the United States and up the East Coast, ending in New York.

Each place we stopped had a unique vibe and everywhere was different, from the deserted town of Seligman on Route 66, the smoky den of iniquity that is Las Vegas to the party scenes of Miami and the go-go-go of New York.

The road sign just outside of Seligman

getting the pre-drink photos done

horse riding in Durango, Colorado

bike tour in Miami

making friends with Lincoln

working it to Beyoncé's 'Run the World (Girls)



Last drinks with the Contiki family

Salad

Salad: Simple and easy to throw together

As I am currently living in London, I feel that this course belongs to the beautiful vibrant town of Brighton. Brighton is an easy 1 hour away from the Big Smoke by train and is a perfect spot to day trip to.

I went for a friend's birthday back in March 2014 and even though it was a bit on the chilly side, it was a lovely place to visit full of things to do. The arcade on the boardwalk is full of penny games and a great place to spend a few hours, especially if you have the opportunity to stay for the sunset.

sunset on the English Channel

Main

Main: the most substantial course



For the main I was trying to think of a destination that had it all - weather, culture, history, people, food. A few places popped into my mind but the one that really stands out has to be Turkey.

Turkey is a pretty big country that straddles Europe and Asia. Landscapes vary from the populated Istanbul to the fairy chimney rock formations of Cappadocia. 

Weather - I went in April/May for three weeks in 2014. The weather was mostly in the mid-twenties and up, although it did get chilly on the coast of the Marmara Sea when we camped overnight for Anzac Day.

Culture - due to the multi-ethnic, multi-religious Ottoman Empire, Turkey is a very diverse country.

History - Turkey has 16 World Heritage listed sites, including Pammukale, Troy and Ephesus.

People - all the people I met during my three weeks were incredibly nice and friendly. One Turkish man even bought dinner for me and my friend, showed us where to buy the best baklava and took us to play traditional Turkish games in a café in a cave.

Sunset in Fethiye

the pools of Pamukkale

Fairy Chimneys in Cappadocia

Hot air ballooning in Cappadocia

Dessert

Dessert: the sweet course eaten at the end of a meal

I was trying to think back to a place that I have been to that has invoked the sweetest memories. Then I had to go back and see if the photos I took were decent enough to include on a blog, so after ruling out Paris (more of an ideal than a great place - although I'm not writing it off just yet and plan to go back and give it another go at some stage), Dubrovnik (not enough quality photos) and the Swiss Alps (most of my photos include half naked Marines) I settled on Salzburg.

Salzburg is the second destination I visited solo. I spent around a week before travelling on to visit friends in Hanover, but the medieval city is absolutely stunning.


I chose to go Salzburg because I'm a big fan of The Sound of Music and modern history. I did the tour - complete with a sing-along on the bus and a visit to Eagle's Nest.

view of Salzburg from the Fortress

where Rolf and Liesl got it on (1940's style)

Eagle's Nest

Salzburg's Love Lock Bridge

How to link up your post
Just pop your post up over the first week of the month (the 1st - 7th May 2017), add it to the link up widget found below on Follow Your Sunshine, Adventures of a London Kiwi, SilverSpoon London, or on the blog of our lovely guest host Binny at Binny's Kitchen and Travel Diaries from the 1st.

There are no rules – basically all we ask is that you check out some of the other cool bloggers that are involved in that months travel link up; make a few comments here and there and tweet a few of the posts out to your followers that you think they will love. It’s a great way to meet some new travel bloggers and share some blogging love!

The Travel Link Up is open to all bloggers – as long as the post is relevant!

2 days in San Francisco

I just returned to London after a whirlwind 6 week trip in the states with 3 of my best friends.

The first part of our US holiday started with a stay in San Francisco. We stayed in the heart of the city – which also happened to be Crack Corner – at the Metropolis Hotel.

As we tried to save money anywhere we could, we quad shared. The 2 double bedded room did not give a lot of room for 4 suitcases, a carry-on case and 3 backpacks but we managed to not kill each other or trip over anything the 3 nights that we were there. This is probably because we didn’t spend much time inside.

Our first full day in San Francisco started with walking the scenic route to Fisherman's Wharf so we could catch our boat across to Alcatraz.

The tour of Alcatraz is self paced and has an audio guide within the main penitentiary building. The audio is presented by past prisoners of the island and is full of stories of their time there, including a daring escape!

After walking up and down and all over the island, we were hungry! Luckily we were able to find this gem of an American icon on the wharf.

I was quite excited when the waiter told me the ribs (including the sauce!) was gluten free.

Especially seeing as I didn't like seafood at this point. After trying Jess' 'shrimp on a stick' however I had to get my own!

Nicole and Jess

Me and Kyle

The afternoon was spent walking around the city and signing up to the great discounts that Safeway offer!

Our night was spent at AT&T Park where we watched the San Francisco Giants take on the St Louis Cardinals. Baseball is quite an interesting game to watch, goes a bit long though. We stayed warm with our new beanies and the best hot cocoa I've ever had.

The next day we had a bit of a sleep in, before making our way back to Fisherman's Wharf to do a cruise of the Bay (thanks to our Flight Centre travel agent for this freebie!)

Unfortunately it was a bit foggy so we couldn't get a clear photo of the Golden Gate Bridge, but this was one of my favourites.

A trip to San Francisco isn't complete without taking a ride on the historic cable car. We made our way back to Union Square and waited for around half an hour in line - entertained by the buskers and homeless dancers - before getting on.

The tram starts at the junction of Powell and Market Streets and makes it way through the streets to Fisherman's Wharf. Tickets are US$7 one way.

We also managed to find and begin our love affair with Ross in San Francisco.

For those not familiar with the store, it's a bit like TK Maxx. Nicole, Jess and I had fun trying on the discounted bargains and I picked up a pair of Sketchers for $35 (I love my Sketchers. Might be because I don't have a Prada backpack!)

Capela Dos Ossos - Alcantarilha

As part of my job I was lucky enough to go to Portugal last month with one of my clients (I work as a live-in carer - not an escort!) and two of his friends. 

We stayed in a lovely apartment just on the outskirts of Lagos that was decked out with all the equipment that we could need. Hazel and Bryn, the owners of Funchal Ridge, recommended many places in the Algarve to visit. We decided to follow them up on the recommendation of Capela Dos Ossos in the small town of Alcantarilha. 

We skipped the new main motorway and stuck to the old highway (got to keep away from those tolls!) following directions from a road map!

We came of the highway and straight on to tight, cobblestoned roads.

As well as the map we had the use of phone GPS as we weren't entirely sure of the exact location of the Chapel. We came to a T-junction and followed the GPS and a very vague sign and ended up 5km away in a little village that seemed to be closed for siesta. Executing a quick u-turn, turns out the Chapel was where the T-junction was!

Looking up to the main church in Alcantarilha

The Chapel is situated behind the Church of Nossa Senhora da Conceição and was constructed in the 16th Century and built on the site of the old church cemetery. 

The interior is lined with skulls and thigh bones of dead parishioners. 

                                    


The Chapel is about 4m x 4m and the doorway is barred so that the bones can not be stolen. 
 A crucifix of Jesus Christ is placed high on the back wall. 


                     

                              

                                        

I personally didn't find the Chapel eerie or scary, but that could have been due to the sunlight streaming through the doors behind me. 



We ended up having dinner with my client's family near Carvoeira and didn't arrive back to Lagos until after dark. 

Despite the cold night air that had come in, the darkness worked in our favour as we found this beauty in the middle of a roundabout coming through Lagos. 

Massive chairs!

Of course we had to take a few photos of them!

                                              

A Harrowing Photo Essay: Auschwitz-Birkenau

Around an hour drive from Krakow lies the town of Oswiecim. During the years of 1940 and 1941 around 17,000 Polish residents were expelled from the area and 8 surrounding villages destroyed. 

All this so the Nazis could keep the existence of Auschwitz-Birkenau a secret.

Between September 1941 and January 1945 over 1.1 million people, including Jews, Roma and Sinti gypsies, Poles, Soviet POWS, homosexuals and Jehovah's Witnesses, were murdered. 

Work Will Set You Free

Left over cylinders of Zyklon B gas

While many victims were gassed, many prisoners died of starvation, forced labour, infectious diseases, executions and medical experiments. 

The Jewish victims were told that they were being transported to a resettlement. 

The plundered possessions included pots, pans, toothbrushes, hairbrushes, suitcases, clothing, eyeglasses, 

Artificial limbs

Victims of Auschwitz 

double electrified barbed wire fence with guard tower

hanging post

Birkenau

transport carriage

As many as 50 people were squeezed into an unventilated carriage like the one above, including their luggage. There was no food and water provided and only a bucket in the corner for waste. 

Many transports came from as far away as Norway in these conditions. 

Foundations and chimneys of blocks at Birkenau

bunks 3 high

Prisoners were 5 to a bunk with no mattress or blankets. It was unbearably cold in the winter with the bottom bunk getting flooded due to the leaky roof and turning into mud.

Crematorium

Before the evacuation the Nazis attempted to blow up the crematorium to hide their crimes. 

After liberation buried notes were found from the Sonderkommando detailing the horrors of the gas chambers. 

The sheer size of the camps is unbelievable. Birkenau was set up for 100,000 prisoners and standing in front of the train entrance either side goes for kilometres.