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Well, we finally find ourselves in Croatia, the pinnacle of our little adventure! But so much has happened since our last blog, so before I get ahead of myself I shall go back to Krakow...
After the success of our amazing bike tour in Berlin, we thought it would be best to do the same in Poland. All in all it was good fun, largely because the bikes were hilariously difficult to maneuver, and Abbott's made here look like a terribly serious mountain biker. We cycled 13km all around the city and amongst many things saw the ghettos as well as dodgy graffiti made by various football team supporters that are apparently so violent that Ross Kemp felt the need to make an episode on the 'gang culture' existing between them. An interesting, if slighlty odd tour!
From there we took a horrendous overnight train to Budapest. When we got there we weren't exactly sure what to do, so after a reccomendation from our hostel we went caving. Now, being the claustrophobic one of us three, I was a little aprehensive to say the least, but nothing prepared me for what was to come. We crawled through spaces that were so tiny that we had to turn our heads to a specific angle or our helmets wouldn't fit through the spaces. Seriously. I kid you not. Some of the guys in our group were pretty big and on a couple of occasions there were moments when we thought they'd get stuck... We were hopping on one leg through cracks in the rocks, wedging ourselves between walls to push ourselves upwards and pulling ourselves out of holes using bicep power only. BICEP POWER - this is particularly impressive since I believe I didn't even know I had biceps until that day. Anyway I'll stop ranting on, but I just wanted to convey the magnitude of our caving experience. It was awesome. A really unforgettable experience.
The next day was slightly less physical. We took a boat tour in the morning, which was quite something. A particularly memorable moment has to be when the guide pointed out (and this is a direct quote) 'to your right you will se a particularly fine piece of architecture, the InterContinental Hotel', which, I should add, is a large block of hideous block of contrete. But it was a lovely trip along the Danube nonetheless. Then after lunch we went to the incredible Museum of Terror, which was about the Nazi and Soviet rule in Hungary. Particularly noteworthy were the reconstructed Soviet prison cells in the basement of the museum. Creepy to sat the least.
That evening we went to some of the famous baths, which were lovely. Douglas was too chicken to submerge herself fully in the ice cold water after the sauna, but we all thoroughly enjoyed the huge hot pool for more time than was really healthy!
The next day was Sziget, Europe's largest music frestival. The Killers were a high point, as was the 'Ambience Tent' where a wailing woman drove me and Abbott crazy but somehow sent Douglas to sleep. A fantastic day!
So now we find ourselves in Hvar, Croatia, where the water is unbelievably blue and there is not a cloud in the sky. We've been spending our days lazing in the sun and relaxing in general (much needed after two weeks of hectic travelling). Yesterday we rented a little motor boat and took it out exploring. Idyllic indeed.
Other than that there's not much news to report. I have somehow managed to get a cold in this 35 degree heat (the irony does not escape me), but we're all happy and having an amazing time!
Love Aletta xxx
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