a hui hou kakou

The below is really not finished yet. It's a work in progress, I've MANY more notes to integrate!

2006.04.07 14:23

I'm in Paris. I was pleased to find upon arrival feelings of shock. I thought I had traveled enough for the feelings to be forever in the past. However Paris was so crowded the countless thousands on every street. Now, after only a short time, that feeling has past. But it was exhilarating. I wonder at the cause of it. Six months in Iceland? But it isn't the first time. Perhaps I have become very set in my ways, going to work all day everyday. Ah and this is but a brief respite. Of course on my return the period of labour will be near an end. Soon is the summer, with whatever mysteries that might bring.

By Géraldine.

We're driving since 3 days across Europe and we are so exciting to discover Poland. We stayed one night in a youth hostel in East of Berlin. All was so industrial! We met some strange German people (quite dirty) and compared the east part to west part. We saw the colorful wall with peace ideas(against racism and for liberty). We also saw the Bundestag and Reichstag. It's crazy to compare the two sides of Berlin, almost 20 years after the fallen wall.

I like driving on the road to Poland. I feel me well and I think I will discover some new ways of thinking. It's the first time for me to go in east of Europe. I think about communism, country of J.P. II, Catholic, vodka, “Na zdrowie”, and movies like “blue”, “white” and “red”. But it's stereotype and I am sure that this trouble will change my ideas

It's difficult to travel with a visa here. We need cash: it's an emergency. “Dziekuje” - thank you!

2006.04.16 16:38

Now I am on a bus to Ternopil. It is in Ukraine but I have no idea where in Ukraine. So this should be an adventure. I've only left my friends in Lódz some two hours ago but the time seems long. Sitting down in a moving train brought almost immediate sleep. It was a wonderful week and a half. I enormously enjoy traveling with friends when it is possible.

2006.04.17 05:21

So on this trip that decided to go to Poland. Géraldine had a had a week and a half off from teaching and I flew to Paris to meet up. Paris is a city, it is grand and it is old, in many places it is dusty. It is silly but in Paris I love to eat a baguette and cheese, and croissants. Géraldine has a cute little flat up many many stairs in the city center, here there is a metro, going endlessly with the millions riding under the street. In Paris there were a couple days to sleep late, wander it the streets for hours and then just walk down and grab a train home.

Appendix I: Travel Timetable

Iceland-Reykjavik-Keflavik Wednesday April 5th bus to airport (01:00, 1100ISK) K, flight to Paris.

France-Paris Friday April 7th start of road trip to Poland.

Belgium

Netherlands Saturday April 8th driving on the road trip

Germany-Berlin Sunday April 9th driving on the road trip

Poland-Lodz-Warsawa-Lodz-Krakow-Lodz-Warsawa Sunday April 16th 14:31-19:24 (01:53, 24.12PLN) (D 33109) W, left my friends and took a bus from Warsawa to Ternopil

Ukraine-Ternopil-Kiev Monday April 17th 10:20-18:11(07:51 04.17, Cl 2, W 06, S 13, 32.10UAH) (D 74) K. Tuesday April 18th 19:05-07:00(11:55 04.19, 76.99UAH) (1998) C.

Transnistria

Moldova-Chisinau 18:00-~15:00 (46:00 04:21, 130EUR) P.

Romania

Hungary

Austria

Germany

France-Paris Monday April 24th flight to Keflavik on Iceland Air

Iceland-Keflavik-Reykjavik (01:00, 1100ISK) R

Appendix II: Exchange Rates (2006.08.01) Code USD/1 Unit Units/1 USD Currency EUR 1.27620 0.78370 Euro GBP 1.86520 0.53620 British Pound HUF 0.00470 213.56100 Hungarian Forint ISK 0.01379 72.80070 Iceland Krona MDL 0.07759 13.89130 Moldovan Leu PLN 0.32430 3.08970 Polish Zloty RON 0.36070 2.79200 Romanian New Lei UAH 0.20750 5.25760 Ukraine Hryvnia

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