I’ve always been told there is a stark contrast between the western and eastern portions of Europe. During my first tour of Europe while on exchange in Milan, I visited Slovakia and Hungary naïvely expecting to see a region of the world heavily influenced by the old Soviet era. Much to my surprise, the countries were beautiful and my assumptions were completely wrong. Even on my recent trip through Krakow I harbored similar expectation that likewise proved to be completely unfounded. Geographically I was on the eastern side of Europe, but where on earth is this “Eastern Europe” everyone keeps talking about? Well my friends, I just needed to go a little further east and cross into Ukraine.
Since I began my trip, numerous people have asked me what it is like to travel as a backpacker and how I specifically get from one city to another. My usual response is “it depends,” but such an answer is far from satisfying and doesn’t serve to clarify anything. In reality, every leg of my trip is different and when I travel there are so many variables to account for that I simply figure things out as I go. I've tried creating travel itineraries, but they are usually rendered useless within a few hours when my situation changes unexpectedly. While the majority of my transit stories are not particularly fascinating for readers back home, Ukraine threw me a few curveballs that I think my readers back home may find rather entertaining.
Of all the historical events, eras, and sagas taught in grade school history classes, none is more rigorously discussed that the Second World War and, more specifically, the atrocities of the Holocaust. While I learned a great deal about topic during my formal education, sadly the vast majority of my knowledge developed solely out of a need to pass an exam. I remember hearing unbelievably emotional stories from friends who visited concentration camps such as Auschwitz and vowed to visit at least one of these camps during my lifetime. More than a simple social obligation, I felt the need to see Auschwitz with my own two eyes to gain a better understanding of the events that transpired in this region of the world. Since the poster child for atrocities committed during WWII - Auschwitz II Birkenau - is located just outside of Krakow, I could not leave Poland without a visit.
I can’t seem to get enough of Germany. There is just something about this great country that I find fascinating. It might be that everything here is so much cheaper than the rest of Europe, that transportation is wonderfully efficient, that a beer cost as much as a bottle of soda, that the food is spectacular, or that the people here are so welcoming, but damn if I'm not in love with this country. From Ireland, I booked a cheap flight to Oslo for €20, but once I realized how absurdly expensive Norway is, I was not keen on spending the next month of my life hemorrhaging money in Scandinavia. I debated returning to Germany, until a friend of mine from the US, Jon, told me he had one week off between jobs and wanted to visit Berlin. I was all too happy to skip my flight to Oslo and book a new flight to Germany at the last minute.
Since this blog’s inception, I've made it a point to write every entry from my perspective at the time when the events/adventures occurred. Even though these entries are now many, many months behind their respective dates, I always try to stay true to the moment even it means stating things I know do not occur in the future. Initially, this long turnaround rate was a severe thorn in my side, but I’ve come to appreciate the delay in publishing my stories to the public domain as it gives me the chance to personally relive the tales as well edit for content or length. Now that I’ve finally reached my trip to Dublin though, I find myself in a bit of a quandary and feel it necessary to break from tradition.
If you’ve followed my blog even haphazardly over the last few months, you know that I spent a semester abroad in college in Milan, Italy on exchange at Bocconi University. I’ve made reference to this six-month period of my life more times than I can count and will continue to do so for one very important reason - it was the first time I ever stepped foot outside the US. It was a monumental moment in my life, and my experiences during that semester still influence my decisions and outlook in life to this day. In fact, one of underlying reasons why I left my life in NYC to travel the world is directly linked to my time in Milan all those years ago.
Most people in the US believe hitchhiking is a method of travel “below” them reserved only for the homeless, hippies, or criminals of society, but after my first hitchhiking trip I can honestly say this is untrue. Now this isn’t to say you won’t encounter these particular demographics of the population while hitchhiking, but much to my surprise I discovered there are important skills that can be cultivated by traveling in this manner. So instead of shelling out money for a self-improvement class, consider packing a bag and heading for the highway! Here are the top ten things I learned from my first hitchhiking trip!
