Washing, an integral part of living out of a back pack and a precious commodity in the middle of summer therefore a super expensive necessity at any hostel or camping ground. Most places charge around 10euros to wash and dry about 5 kilos.
My idea, simple yet brilliant, save myself money by first of all throwing out dirty clothes and wearing clean ones until I could fit my newly bought tent in my bag. Secondly by going to the super market and buy concentrated Greek laundry detergent, (I can tell from the pictures on the side and the size of the bottle that you only have to use a little bit, good for travelling with I thought) and washing the clothes I’d been wearing for the day in the shower, or in the sink, just before I go to sleep. I hang them up and by the morning like magic they’re dry and smell like flowers (literally it’s kind of weird). I do this trick with all my clothes as I travel the next 4weeks. It’s not till I get to my Aunt and Uncles place to use a proper washing machine (which the clothes really needed, hand washing doesn’t seem to work as well as machines), that my uncle, being able to read the Dutch on the side, informs me that my money saving, energy efficient substitute was actually fabric softener.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Scooters- Italy
Scooters... Ah Scooters, I grew fond of scooters after I was house sitting for a friend of mine and was given the opportunity to use his car, shortly after the first drive I blew one of the hoses and the car was no longer an option. He had a scooter, I used it to travel an hour in the winter to and from work, raining and dark. They're a lot of fun and are constantly on 'Full-Tit' mode, even with head down, tail winds and down hill they reach a max of 60kmph. You look like an idiot driving them in Australia or NZ.
But in Italy, wow, only the coolest of cool kids drive, and when I say drive man can they drive them! I've seen:
Wheelings and dealings,
Overtaking buses on hairpin blind corners (practically 1 lane anyway)
I've seen ones with two wheels on the front,
Ones with a small cab and a ute flat deck on the back (I like to call them a Scooter+ute = Scute) which has one wheel at the front and two at the back to hold up the deck
I've been on one with two other people holding onto the plastic at the back bouncing on cobble stone streets to a pizzaria
I've seen families of four on them, kid stands in the front dad holds onto kid and steers, mum's on the back holding onto second kid in front of her.
I've seen the second person on the scooter reading a full sized news paper
I've seen the second person on the scooter holding on to a baby
I've seen the first person holding a frappè and smoking
No one wears helmets
Everyone toots and raises arms at each other
But my hat is tipped, whenever I see them outside a cafè leaning up against their vespas with a cigarette hanging out their mouth.
They deserve it, they may not live till they're 30 but their antics and skill on a 50cc beast is amazing to all that are able to catch a glimpse of them fly by
But in Italy, wow, only the coolest of cool kids drive, and when I say drive man can they drive them! I've seen:
Wheelings and dealings,
Overtaking buses on hairpin blind corners (practically 1 lane anyway)
I've seen ones with two wheels on the front,
Ones with a small cab and a ute flat deck on the back (I like to call them a Scooter+ute = Scute) which has one wheel at the front and two at the back to hold up the deck
I've been on one with two other people holding onto the plastic at the back bouncing on cobble stone streets to a pizzaria
I've seen families of four on them, kid stands in the front dad holds onto kid and steers, mum's on the back holding onto second kid in front of her.
I've seen the second person on the scooter reading a full sized news paper
I've seen the second person on the scooter holding on to a baby
I've seen the first person holding a frappè and smoking
No one wears helmets
Everyone toots and raises arms at each other
But my hat is tipped, whenever I see them outside a cafè leaning up against their vespas with a cigarette hanging out their mouth.
They deserve it, they may not live till they're 30 but their antics and skill on a 50cc beast is amazing to all that are able to catch a glimpse of them fly by
The Shower Battle
I imagine this happens in hostels but from my experience it happens mostly in camping grounds:
One person gets in a shower.
Another person gets into the shower cubical next to them.
Showers go on,
Battle begins.
The struggle between hot and cold, good and evil wages.
The burning, the freezing the half second of pure brilliance!
There is no exact middle point where both parties can experience pure shower nirvana or 'Show-Vana' because of the underlying inner struggle, or,
'Selftunerability'; The inability to find ones equilibrium of Show-Vana on their own.
This battle one can wage without an opposing force.
The distance between fire and ice is less than 1, 10th of a millimeter.
Often coupled with 'Single-Fire Nozzlesyndrome'; when it doesn't Rain as such but more Firehoses you to a state of Clean. Or the beloved Side or even Backward 'Singlefinespray' ; just so fine that you don't notice it but just enough so that it soaks both your clothes and your towel by the time you need them.
A good way to start the trip, but at least you know now why us travellers get the name "dirty backpackers"
One person gets in a shower.
Another person gets into the shower cubical next to them.
Showers go on,
Battle begins.
The struggle between hot and cold, good and evil wages.
The burning, the freezing the half second of pure brilliance!
There is no exact middle point where both parties can experience pure shower nirvana or 'Show-Vana' because of the underlying inner struggle, or,
'Selftunerability'; The inability to find ones equilibrium of Show-Vana on their own.
This battle one can wage without an opposing force.
The distance between fire and ice is less than 1, 10th of a millimeter.
Often coupled with 'Single-Fire Nozzlesyndrome'; when it doesn't Rain as such but more Firehoses you to a state of Clean. Or the beloved Side or even Backward 'Singlefinespray' ; just so fine that you don't notice it but just enough so that it soaks both your clothes and your towel by the time you need them.
A good way to start the trip, but at least you know now why us travellers get the name "dirty backpackers"
The start
Ok, so I guess I should introduce this:
I'm a kiwi travelling around Europe (for the moment), by myself. Something pretty much every kiwi does usually between High school and University or between University and finding a 'real job'. I did neither of these things.
I started working straight after High school, drank lots (like my friends who were at Uni were doing) spent every small dollar I earned. I eventually saved enough to get a flight over to Australia and earn some proper money and after spending 3 years there surfing, working and enjoying getting paid almost twice the wage (and spending twice the wage) I saved up enough money to do something I've always wanted to do. Travel Europe alone, to grow, learn and find out for myself what the rest of the world has that NZ doesn't. So these are my view on things as I see them or experience them I hope you enjoy.
I'm a kiwi travelling around Europe (for the moment), by myself. Something pretty much every kiwi does usually between High school and University or between University and finding a 'real job'. I did neither of these things.
I started working straight after High school, drank lots (like my friends who were at Uni were doing) spent every small dollar I earned. I eventually saved enough to get a flight over to Australia and earn some proper money and after spending 3 years there surfing, working and enjoying getting paid almost twice the wage (and spending twice the wage) I saved up enough money to do something I've always wanted to do. Travel Europe alone, to grow, learn and find out for myself what the rest of the world has that NZ doesn't. So these are my view on things as I see them or experience them I hope you enjoy.
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