I have left the office

And now the serious work begins. Yesterday was my last day in the office, which was awfully strange and probably won't fully sink in until Tuesday when I don't have to wake up to go in to work. My wonderful colleagues bought me an amazing leaving present package (not to mention the excellent send-off drinks on Thursday night), which consisted of the Rough Guide to Europe on a Budget, a lock for my back pack, a very handy head torch and a sleeping bag liner. Yay for excellent friends!

This morning I decided to start searching for a few tips on Prague, one of our first stops on the trip, and found a great article on the Hostel Bookers website. Here's what it had to said about the Czech republic's capital city:

Prague

With charming cobbled streets and Gothic spires, it’s no surprise that backpackers think Prague is one of the best cities in Eastern Europe. Prague is enchanting. Winter months are spent popping in and out of cosy cafes for a steaming hot chocolate or sitting in bars with roaring fires. It might be a popular stag destination but there’s plenty of nightlife that avoids these crowds.
History: Wandering between the tombstones of the Old Jewish Cemetery (Starý Židovský hřbitov) can be both a haunting and peaceful experience.
Culture: For a miniature entrance fee of €3, marvel at artworks inside the Museum of Miniatures (Strahov Monastery). Some fit inside the eye of a needle and require a microscope.
Cafe: For that serious cup of steaming hot chocolate, Cukrkávalimonáda cafe (7 lázeňská) offers a gloriously rich 70% cocoa variety. Sip this devilishly delicious drink beneath an ornately decorated ceiling.

Bar: Beer is what the Czechs do best. Pivovarský dům (15 Ječná/Lípová) is a micro-brewery where you can sample an assortment of wonderful light, dark, sour cherry or banana beers. Inside, two large copper vats dominate the bar and the rest of the brewery is visible through a small window. If you’re feeling strong Prague is the place to visit the Green Fairy (drinking absinthe) and since this place is off the tourist route, the barman has time to show you how to prepare the 70% ABV drink.
Area: Laze on the grass beside the watermill in Kampa near Újezd and enjoy a cold and refreshing beer in summer months.
Top Tip: Hop on tram no. 9 (line 58 at night) for a cheap tour of the city. Take your pick of some of the best bars that pass by.
Youth hostel Prague: The brand spanking new St Christopher’s at Mosaic House is a budget traveller’s dream. Top reviews compliment the staff, cleanliness, live music, terrace garden and the historic city centre location. Private and dorm rooms from €12pppn.

Boxer Rebellion's film debut tonight

My friend Piers' band The Boxer Rebellion have been fighting the good fight for the past 10 years. Eighteen months ago they were approached with a proposal; to appear in a new Drew Barrymore film and record the lead single for the soundtrack. Tonight the film, Going the Distance, premieres in Leicester Square! To be honest, I don't care if it's awful or a revolution in the rom com genre, I'm so proud of the band.

You can listen to the single, If You Run here - http://www.myspace.com/theboxerrebellion or watch the video

My buddy Piers, the day after his wedding!
How many good things can happen to one dude in the same summer?

In other news, my friend Sarah has just confirmed that she will be joining me in Dubrovnik and Kotor in September. What was already a very exciting part of the trip just got even better!

Megafaun and Macedonia

Two wonderful things today:
1) I learned how to say 'Hello', 'Please' and 'Do you speak English' in Macedonian,
2) I found out Megafaun are playing in London tonight so I'm going to see them live at the Slaughtered Lamb.
ZDRAVO - Hello
VE MOLAM - Please
ZBORUVATE LI ANGLISKI - Do you speak English
So I'm all set for the stopover in Skopje now. I suppose I just need to learn the same phrases in Czech, Hungarian, Serbian, Croatian, Greek and Italian. Excellent. I'm well on my way.


And having spent most of the morning listening to Megafaun, reminding me how great folk music can really give you a feeling for the country it comes from, I am quite excited about the kind of music I'll hear on my travels. Might be a good idea to bring a little recorder with me... Especially like this great little tune 'Worried Mind' that they performed live with Bon Iver.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcI1AHH1H3U

Interrail. It's on baby.

August 13th - the perfect time to start blogging about my journey which will begin on September 13th. This is the basic idea for my upcoming trip. Most people say it can't (shouldn't) be done in a month. But I am on a tight schedule (I'm cheap) and can't be traipsing around for more than a month at a time (interrail charge by the month)! So I've set myself a task, see at least two things I would never be able to see anywhere else in each city I visit and write about them, tweet them, capture a picture, keep some sort of proof that I've been to these places and I managed it in a month!
The other, slightly more important task? Don't be broke by October 13th.

Howdy friends

That's me, I like a good hat.

Someone told me, 'You should start a blog'. Not for any particular reason mind you. I'm not some clever bugger who entertains crowds with my wit or wisdom. I think they just meant, 'I'm not really that interested in listening to you prattle on about your upcoming travels, your life plans or your sudden determination to get back into music, so perhaps writing about it somewhere out there where people can choose or not choose to read it, would be a better idea.' So here I am!



The plan is to chat, observe, relate the stories of my daily life from now until whenever, and let anyone who's interested read and comment. I've just resigned from my job of two and a half years and am leaving London to go travelling around Europe for a month, with my very tall little brother. Following that, the idea is to head to Barcelona and attempt to learn Spanish while working in a bar. Most people might say 'Why pack in your well-paying job to jet off around Europe without any firm plans for the future?' I say, the job was in the public sector (if that's not a good enough reason to quit at this time, I don't know what is), I haven't seen half of the places around this continent that I want to, and it will be getting cold (even colder, August and already cold!) soon, whereas Southern Europe and Barcelona will have sunshine for a bit longer.

So off I go! Updates to come