The end is near

I am in Liverpool, England right now. The reason I haven't updated my blog for so long is I forgot about it to be honest, and just remembered yesterday. I've been to many places since Budapest. I stayed in Vienna for 3 nights. My second day there I walked by the Hapsburg palace, the cathedral, rested in the 'stadtpark' (city park), and rode a city tram (which are popular in central Europe). The following day I visited the Sigmund Freud museum (actually his former residence before moving to London in 1939), then met up my friend Taylor (whom I know from university residence). We lunched at a Pakistani restaurant called Die Weiner deewan, which is special because you pay by donation (however much you want), but the food was great and there were many people there. My other friend Jeremie Rodger, a world traveller of sorts, recommended it to me. After that, Taylor took me to the Hapsburgs' summer palace, which has very pretty grounds. That night I hung out at my friends' residence. The next day, April 22, I took a train to Salzburg, near the German border. I stayed there 3 nights. It is a lovely little city. The second day I saw the cathedral, Mozart's two childhood/youth residences, an abbey, the castle, and walked along this long ridge. The weather was very nice. Salzburg (the salt fortress) is known for its historic mining importance, Mozart's being raised there, and its setting for the film the Sound of Music. On the third day I went to a palace where the gazebo from the film is, then I saw an Austrian folk museum, a theatre carved in conglomerate rock, and rested in a field where many other people were resting, picknicking, and playing sports. That night I saw a movie in English at a cinema. It was an independent film called New York, I Love You. The next day, the 25th, I hopped on a train to return to Italy. Stopping in Verona for about 90 minutes, I made it to Florence by night fall. i was very tired by the time I got to the hostel. The next morning I check out, went to buy a souvenir for someone, and caught a train to Camucia-Cortona. There, I bused up the hill to buy some wine for Dan Fuoco, rested at the park, got some gelato (from the gelateria that was closed during the winter), and picked up my big suitcase from the Ostello San Marco). It was much warmer than it had been during the school term. I really enjoyed being back in Cortona, if only for a couple hours. Then I had to go back to Camucia, and take a train to Rome. I stayed at a hostel downtown. The next morning I had to get up at 6am, and go to the airport for my flight at 10:55. like that, I left Italy until I don't know when. Being there again made me realise how much I missed it. I guess it is always like that when you return to somewhere you have lived before; it brings back good memories. The plane landed in London past 1 pm. i stayed there for three nights. My hostel was near Russel Square, in the centre, but the centre is very large. the next day I saw a lot: Buckingham Palace (and during the change of the guard, which was a treat), Hyde Park, Westminster Abbey, Parliament and Big Ben, the London Eye (a great big ferris wheel), the Globe theatre (where I bought a ticket for Macbeth the following night), London Bridge, Tower Bridge, the Tower of London and St. Paul's Cathedral. phew! The next day (the 29th), I visited the British Museum during the day, and went to the Shakespeare play at night. I very much enjoyed it. The people standing on the bottom floor were draped with a clothe, with holes for their heads. This symbolised the underworld; Macbeth is a dark play. Some friends and I made a short film in grade eleven, so it was special for me to see the play at the Globe! The next day I took a bus to Manchester, where I stayed for two nights. A group of people (Scots, English and two French) staying in the same bedroom as I invited me to go out with them, so I did. We went to two bars, before I retired back to the hostel. The next day I took a bus to the stadium of the Manchester United Football (soccer) club. By chance, there was a game that afternoon, so I bought a ticket and stuck around. It was not a regular season game, just a fundraiser match, so the ticket cost just 15 pounds (about 24 CAD). it was cool to be in the stadium. Man U is a very famous soccer team. I was tired when I got back so went to bed early. Next morning I rose early to see more of the city before leaving. I went to the museum of science and industry, but it was closed. Manchester was the first industrialised city. I realised it was Sunday, and 8 am too, of course. So I just walked around, popped into the Anglican cathedral for communion (my second time at an Anglican church mass), walked by the place where Marx and Engels wrought one of their tracts, and returned for my bag.Then I took a bus to Liverpool, only half an hour and 3 pounds away. After checking out and settling in, I set out for the downtown to visit the Cavern, where the Beatles played befsore they were super famous in the early 60s, and the Albert dock, where there is a Beatles museum, but which was closed. i bought some souvenirs at the shop though. It was 5 pm already. i went back to the hostel. Today (May 3), I returned to the museum, and I spent a good 4 hours reading, seeing, and listening to the Beatles story. It was wonderful. It is evening now and I am back at the hostel. Tomorrow I will go to Birmingham, perhaps stopping at Chester on the way. The journey is almost over; the return to London (and from there, Canada) begins.
mike