Kobi & Brian: Europe 2013-2014: Contiki

Goedemorgen, Guten tag, buongiorno, bonjour!

Weve just finished our first Contiki, European Magic. This Contiki was a bit different to the other three were doing - rather than spending a few days in each city, were hitting 8 countries in 9 days - so a whirlwind tour of some of the highlights of Europe. We've travelled mainly on the Contiki coach, with some ferries and trains thrown in too.

After getting on the coach in London, we drove straight through Belgium and France, and caught the ferry to Amsterdam from Dover where we saw the famous white cliffs. We knew very little about Amsterdam, and most of what we did know was red light district related. So we were pretty blown away when we arrived in a beautiful city full of canals, bridges, wonky houses and fairy lights. And bikes. I have never seen so many bikes.

Things we've loved about Amsterdam:

Amsterdam has the worlds biggest car park for bikes, it's incredible. Our tour manager John (an Aussie!) was constantly saying 'Look left, look right, think bike' but I'm still surprised none of us got hit by one.
At sunset we had a canal cruise with the group, with free wine and beer. It was the best icebreaker, and by the end of the cruise most of us were fast friends. Which was lucky because we definitely needed to be able to have a laugh together at our next stop... A live sex show.
Walking through the red light district which was just unlike anything we will ever see again. Rows and rows of rooms with glass doors, and girls standing behind the glass competing for customers. It's completely legal and fully regulated in Amsterdam so there were people everywhere, it was just crazy. The sex show was what we expected, with the exception of Brian getting chosen with 4 others from our tour to go on stage and dance with the stripper. I then stupidly got my camera out to take a photo, and got hauled out by security and had my camera searched. Doh!

The next day our coach headed into the Rhine Valley, past lots of tiny German villages and all along the Rhine river.

Things we've loved about Germany:

Spending the night in tiny St Goar, home of the worlds largest cuckoo clock but not much else besides some amazing scenery and spooky castles.
Everything about Munich! It is such an awesome city. There are so many ancient buildings and churches, but it mixes so well with the modern stuff too. We did a bike tour of the city (again, with an Australian guide!) which was the best way to see everything, and get a full run down of modern german history around WWI and II. Our guide showed us buildings such as government house which still has shell damage on the front pillars, and the opera house where the swastikas have been painted over. Munich was the home of the Beer Hall Putsch, Hitlers infamous failed grab for power which landed him in jail, so it was a really interesting tour.
Drinking at the beerhall where Hitler attempted to gain the support of the government. Pretzels, beer, pork knuckles...it was about as German as it gets.
The English Garden, which is bigger than Central Park. Just be warned that in the warmer months, the main entrance to the park is a nude area!
Watching people stationary surf in one of the waterways that run off the Rhine.

Next stop was Austria. We drove through the Tyrol mountains to Innsbruck, and this drive was probably the most amazing thing I have ever been on. The mountains were beyond beautiful as there was still snow everywhere. We pulled over to take some photos and Brian touched snow for the first time in the car park. It was just perfect as it was sunny and warm, but there was snow and little streams all over the mountains (which were the same mountains The Sound of Music was filmed in.)

Things we've loved about Austria:

Snow!
The big green lakes at the base of the mountains.
Getting bread, ham and cheese in Innsbruck, and sitting in the plaza in the middle of the town
The little sausage dog in a Bavarian hat busking
Walking down the street, and looking up to see snowy mountains above the town
Seeing our first squirrel

Next stop was fair Verona, which wasn't originally on our itinerary, but as we weren't able to go bobsledding in Austria due to ice conditions, our tour manager added Verona to the list instead. We didn't get long there, but were able to visit Juliets balcony and squeeze in time for limone gelato.

Still in Italy, we hit Venice next. What a crazy city, including the fact that it is slowly sinking (1cm per year). We have no idea how they manage electricity, water and gas seeing as its an island off the mainland and you have to catch a ferry to get there. There are no cars at all, and everyone's houses are surrounded by water. When it's hot it gets a bit stinky, but it wasn't bad while we were there.

Things we've loved about Venice:

Our gondola ride through the canals drinking champagne at 10am
The fact that our gondolier wore a stripey shirt and whistled tunes
People watching while eating gelato
Having the whole day to ourselves (it doesn't happen much on Contiki!)
Eating giant slices of pizza and drinking prosecco on the canals with friends

From the hot sun in Venice to the freezing rain in Switzerland, Lucerne was bloody cold! Unfortunately it rained almost the entire time we were there, so our cable car up Staserhorn mountain was cancelled as apparently it would have been a white out and waste of money. We had a cruise down the Swiss canals that night too - while we had a good time with our group, you couldn't see anything due to rain. It was such a shame as we knew it would be an awesome view if it wasn't all foggy. Switzerland redeemed itself in the morning though - we woke up to it snowing! Not 'good' snow according to the Canadians on our tour (who had just left -50 degrees celsius at home!!!) but we're not fussy.

After Switzerland we had a 9 hour drive to Paris. Which sounds bad but the night before we had all slept in a refurbished jail (seriously, in a cell) so no one slept very well and happily passed out on the coach.

Onto Paris! From the second we arrived we understood why Paris gets 16 million tourists per year. Holy moly. Everything is just so grand! Statues, fountains and amazing old cathedrals everywhere. It's just so pretty, you could sit back and watch it all go by for hours.

Things we loved in Paris:

Going to the top of the Eiffel Tower at night
Visiting the worlds craziest roundabout and seeing the Arc de Triomph
The Moulin Rouge with our tour group. A 3 course meal, real champagne and a really good show, we couldn't have been happier.
Planning a big itinerary of sightseeing, and then not doing any of them because we decided to sit on the Champs del Mar in front of the Eiffel Tower with champagne and baguettes all afternoon.
Nutella crepes. Enough said
Dogs being allowed in shops
The Louvre and its gardens
Going to see Notre Dame and finding a full orchestra and choir in there performing for all the visitors
The Sacre Coer

So now it's all over! First Contiki done. We had the best time, but are in need of some recovery time for sure. So we have an extra couple of days in Paris to relax and try to take it all in. It was definitely a whirlwind (Eiffel tower, Venetian canals, Swiss mountains, German beer halls and Dutch cafes) but has only made us even more confident that booking four Contikis is the best way to do it.

Turning in for some much needed sleep,
Kobi & Brian