Well its been a while since the last update and not sure when the next time will be.Am currently sitting in the town of Omis on the Croatian coast.It's a place that used to be well known for its pirates. Very exciting! Though the only pirates to be seen where drunk aussies dressed up as pirates (as all the boats have a pirate party).Looks of interesting looks from the locals and other tourists.Think they would be used to it considering all the busabout boats do it each time they are in Omis.Seven days of sailing onboard a vintage sailing boat (with Busabout adventures) are almost at near.Its been a tough week.Sleeping, eating, drinking, sunbathing, swimming, sleeping, sleeping some more.The water here in Croatia is incredibly clear.Makes up for the fact that the beaches are pebble and not sand.So its been close to three weeks since I started the Contiki adventure. The first day involved getting up nice and early to make it to the bus.Lots of tired faces.After a bit of driving we crossed the Channel by ferry.A few of the other aussies in the group (the majority of the group were Australian - travel around the world to meet people and everyone is Australian) game decided to start drinking on board the ferry.Fairly rough seas which resulted in a little kid throwing up on the ferry and then an older lady slipping in it.Felt very sorry for her as I can't imagine she would have enjoyed the rest of her trip.Some more driving and we finally arrived at our campsite in France.Had some nice French champagne and some delicious snails as a welcome.Snails aren't so bad though they were covered in a garlic sauce so that might have helped.A demonstration in setting up the tents which we would be staying in for the next 16 days.Our tents were very basic and would have been modern about 20 years ago.Still not bad and we even had air mattresses to sleep on.Camping in style.After dinner a quick night tour of Paris.The next day a full day to spend exploring the sights and sounds of Paris.A walk down the Champs Elysee past plenty of shops.Lots of designer brands and huge cosmetic shops.Cant say it was that tempting though some nice car dealerships and was tempted there.Though unfortunately my travel funds did not provide for any such expenditure. Walked past the Notre Dame, L'Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower.At night we went to a French Cabaret show.Very interesting though the dancers seemed to be past their prime.Had the pleasure of being chosen to get up on stage and take part in a dance competition.Very nervous and funny considering I can't dance.Luckily everyone else had had a lot to drink so standards were low.Not surprisingly I didn't win (my brother would be very disappointed - if only I could remember his moves).Back to the campsite for some more drinking.The next day an early wake up and pack up before heading through Belgium to Amsterdamage (aka Amsterdam).The bus rides are all about trying to get as much sleep as possible (which is not easy considering there is not much space).Arrived in the late afternoon in Amsterdam and after dinner we headed in for a sex show.Was not the most exciting sex show - very very mechanical! Though for some reason I was once again picked to go on stage (I got my two lots of 15 seconds of fame!!!) and this time I had to eat a banana that was placed in an interesting location.I normally would not eat a banana this way but it was a new experience.After the show we headed to a hostel that had 1 euro shots and 2 for 1 beers and spirits.Good fun especially getting back early in the morning and walking past a tent that was moving a lot considering the lack of wind.What happens on contiki stays on contiki! Think the culprits were a little bit embarrassed the next day.Another full day in Amsterdam.A quick cheese and clog (dutch wooden shoes) making demonstration followed by a nice bike ride around Edam.Everyone was given "Oma" bikes (which are basically grandmother bikes - you have to peddle backwards to brake).No one ended up in the canals surprisingly.Walked through the Red Light district (have never received so many looks of desire from women before!) and then proceeded to sample some of Amsterdams' finest.Dinner was supposed to be an authentic Indonesian "rijstafel" but was rather more Chinese than anything else.A bit of a disappointment. Another early start and sleeping on the bus as we proceeded to Heidelberg, Germany.A stop in St. Goar to have a look a beer stein, a Birkenstock, and a cuckoo clock shop.The afternoon in beautiful Heidelberg, a small little town right near the river.A walk up to a castle to see a 227,000 litre wine vat that was made in 1750.Very impressive (the Germans know how to drink).The night was spent at the campsite and was deemed to be Tequila Tuesday.Not much more needs to be said.One of the games ended with people taking off their pants (while they were sitting on the road) and then a minute later a car came by.Very funny seeing people trying to get out of the way with their pants on their ankles.The next day a long drive to Prague (plenty of recovery time from Tequila Tuesday).A quick drive through Prague before setting up camp for dinner.The night began with a visit to a place called the Beer Factory.Not really a factory but rather a bar where you sit on tables and you pour your own beers.Each tables consumption is put up on a board so it was a bit of competition to see who could drink the most.Especially fun considering beer in Prague is very cheap.Then on to the biggest nightclub in Eastern Europe.Lots of levels but the majority of our group seemed to stay on the 80s and 90s section.Lots of backstreet boys, spice girls, and other classic songs.Had to get used to smoke everywhere.Its funny how you notice that coming from a place where you cannot smoke inside.A morning walk through Prague followed by a lunch time cruise.Way too much food and nice views.Afternoon at the campsite swimming and drinking more cheap beer.It's a tough life!Prague is definitely one of the nicest places I have visited.The next day we were off to Vienna.Had the pleasure of packing the tent up in the rain (the weather had been on and off for most of the trip - seemed to beautiful weather when we were on the bus and then rain when we had a day off).The night started with a classical music/opera concert.Very cultural of me!A few of us decided to try and sample Vienna's nightlife.Lots of walking around and seemed to be only able to find gentlemen's clubs.Eventually we decided to have a beer at the Australian Bar (yes there is an Australian bar in Vienna!) and were amazed at the fact that they were selling VB (which is some of the cheapest beer in Australia) for 4 euros a bottle.After a few drinks we headed to another bar/nightclub called Flex.A lot more beers and everyone had forgotten all the walking that had been required.Returned at about 4:30 in the morning to find my side (just my side for some reason) of the tent was flooded so everything was wet. Managed about one hour of sleep.Wet sleeping bags are not very nice to sleep in. Another early morning and we were off to Budapest.Lots of driving through the beautiful countryside.That night we went to a Hungarian karaoke bar.Very nice mixture of Hungarian and English classics.A bit of struggle with the Hungarian.Morning walking through beautiful Budapest (probably one of my top destinations for sights).Cobblestone streets and lots of beautiful architecture everywhere.Clear skies only added to its beauty.Would definitely recommend Budapest as a destination.An incredible nighttime cruise along the Danube river seeing all the monuments illuminated.Lots of drinking and eating (yes, it's a bit of consistent theme!)The following day we were off to Belgrade, Serbia.Had to spent about an hour at customs and the lady who checked our passports seemed to be having a bad day and looked like she wanted to hit someone with the back of her gun.Very warm welcome to the country.A few hours to walk around part of Belgrade including a visit to a fort.Certainly a country that is picking itself up from years of war and communism.The night was spent getting eaten alive by mosquitoes at the campsite.Nothing seemed to be able to stop them.Only one night in Belgrade and then we were off to Sarajevo, Bosnia.Traveled along the picturesque Drina river valley.Lots of spectacular mountain forests.Another few hours sightseeing in Sarajevo.Looked at the bridge on which the Archiduke Francis Ferdinand was assinated in 1914 triggering WWI.Incredible to see all these buildings with bullet holes in them from the recent war.Next day we visited a building that had been one of the entrance points to a tunnel used by the Bosnians to smuggle goods and people in while they were under siege from the Serbs.Incredible to think what these people have been through in their lives.Once again bullet holes everywhere.A lunchtime stop at a town called Mostar.A swim in the river and a fun 10m high platform to jump off.Very refreshing considering how hot it was becoming.A beautiful drive along the coast of the Croatian town of Dubrovnik.Three nights in Dubrovnik to relax and unwind.Campsite was only a few minutes away from the beach so plenty of swimming and just lying around in the shade trying to avoid the heat.Two weeks of drinking and multiple cases of food poisoning certainly was taking its toll. A walk through the old town and a night out at a place that offered 3 litre cocktails for those that could move.Some rather disastrous consequences.A relaxing day cruise to two islands gave me a taste of the sailing to come.The final day of the Contiki trip and what was meant to be a 2-3 hour drive to the town of Split lasted about 6 hours thanks to bad traffic. Meant a very hasty farewell to those not coming on the sailing trip (only 13 out of the 41 contiki group went sailing).And now almost seven days of sailing in the sun (not actual sailing) and I feel very relaxed (first time in a very very long time that I have not had anything to do other than sit around and relax.