Giddy Up Europe

Germany, Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Greece, Italy, Vatican, Monaco, Spain...

Sunday, May 15, 2005

Gearing Up

I leave for my 75 day excursion to Europe on Thursday, so in the meantime I have been collecting appropriate equipment for the trip and general electronic upgrades. So far I have compiled:
• Flight tickets
o JFK to Stuttgart, via London on May 19
o Madrid to JFK, via London on August 2
• Eurailpass flexi
o Any 10 days through 17 countries
• International Student ID card
• Travel backpack
• IPOD mini with some accessories
• 1.0 GB flash drive
• 512 MB digital camera memory card
• Portable camera memory card reader/writer
• Spare camera battery
• Universal German phrasebook
• General European phrasebook
• German travel guide
• European travel guide
• Birkenstocks
• Keen hiking sandals
• Wallet
• Caribiners
I already have a Northface asspack (which I will probably just wear around my shoulder), but I will also need:
• Light duffle bag
• Gifts for my host family and international coordinator
• Nalgene
• Blue jeans
• Power converter
• Travel alarm clock
• Binder and paper
Aside from my six weeks at the University of Stuttgart, Germany, I haven't really created my itinerary yet. I do, however, have a basic idea of where I want to go. Apparantly the MTV Hip Hop Open 2005 will be hosted in Stuttgart the day the program is done, so I might stick around for that, since the city has become a European hip hop center. After that, I will have four weeks to go to:
• Berlin, for the 1.5 million person, techno Love Parade (if it is still on this year)
• Amsterdam, because it's Amsterdam
• France, to hit a check-point or two on the Tour de France
• Rome, Venice, Italian beaches, etc., though I was there when I was really young
• Athens, on a quest to find Bos' relatives
• Ibiza, to party with outrageous Spaniards off the Spanish coast
• Madrid, to eat tapas and hit clubs like Joy and Kapital before coming home
If I have time, I might try to hit some other countries, but I think this will keep me well occupied. Unfortunately, I will not be able to check out:
• Running of the bulls in Pamplona
• La Tomatina in Bunol (a 30000 person tomato fight with 125000 kg of tomatoes)
The best way to contact me overseas is via email at
Adam.C.Dick@gmail.com, especially if you:
• Will be in Europe between May 20 and August 2
• Want me to send you a postcard (post or email me your address)
• Have any suggestions or comments for my trip
• Want to say hi
My pictures will be linked from my
Michigan web site. As a pre-departure photo, here's an NYC subway billboard. Apparantly you might want to take a Kaplan class to get into my high school. Hit me up with suggestions or comments. Ciao.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home