How Water Built a “Castle”

We learned from our guide that each terrace is a natural bowl of travertine, a limestone deposited when hot, calcium-carbonate spring water loses carbon dioxide and solidifies. Over millennia the process stacked basin upon basin, producing a 200-metre cliff that gleams as if it has never known a footprint.

UNESCO recognised both the geology and the adjacent Greco-Roman spa of Hierapolis in 1988, ensuring stricter water-flow management so the terraces retain their snowy coat.

Ruins with Stories in Stone

At the hilltop the ground levels into the ruins of Hierapolis, founded by the Attalid kings in the second century BCE.

The theatre dominates the skyline. We hiked up to the top an watched the sunset.

The city sits atop the Pamukkale fault zone, a geologically active area responsible for both the mineral-rich hot springs and the site’s seismic instability. Major earthquakes are recorded in 17 CE under Tiberius and again, even more devastatingly, in 60 CE under Nero. The city was rebuilt with Roman imperial funds, but the threat of further destruction always loomed. Additional earthquakes in the 14th and 17th centuries CE led to significant structural collapse and abandonment by the surviving population.

Within the ruins, stray animals call it home. Among the stray cats and dogs, a turtle stands out, a pet-trade species now ranked among the world’s most invasive reptiles.

The Myth of Cerberus

South-east of the stage lies the Ploutonion, once famed as “Pluto’s Gate”. Ancient writers described sacrificial bulls collapsing here while priests emerged unharmed. Modern gas probes explain the trick: a fissure still vents carbon dioxide strong enough to reach lethal concentrations near the ground.

From the viewing deck we could see the statue of Pluto and Cerberus guarding the gate to hell.

The Bare-Foot Gauntlet

The guide offered us two options to go back into town: 1) to take the bus back, or 2) walk down the terrace – reluctantly, I opted for the second option.

Visitors must walk the slope barefoot, a rule that protects the fragile crust but punishes one’s soles like walking on Lego.

We chose each step carefully, hunting for the smoothest stripes between ridges. The descent stretched only a few hundred metres, yet the stinging pressure made it feel closer to half an hour, each step a tactical decision rather than a stroll.

A Welcome Shift in Flavour

Once we all made it down, our guide took us to a restaurant that happened to be run by Chinese immigrants in Turkey. We slid chopsticks through shrimp fried noodles, a flavour more reminescent of home, something welcome especially by now I was slowly getting tired of Turkish food.

Hot Air Balloons

As we prepared to depart the next morning, we looked back to see hot air balloons launching into the morning sky.

See more of Pamukkale / Hierapolis here

Palaver Point: A Frigid Visit to a Chinstrap Penguin Colony

Palaver Point was our first destination, home to a colony of chinstrap penguins.

Unlike the gentoos and Adélies we had seen on previous days, these penguins seemed to stay close to their nesting areas, seemingly reluctant to venture far in the harsh conditions.

The harsh weather conditions may have contributed to this behaviour, as the penguins sought shelter from the intensifying Antarctic elements.

Despite their limited movement, the colony was surprisingly vocal. The penguins communicated with loud, persistent calls that echoed across the few colonies present. This vocalization might have been related to the weather conditions, or serving as a way for penguin families to maintain contact during limited visibility.

Our hike around Palaver Point proved more challenging than previous excursions. The combination of extremely dry air and intense cold caused my facial skin to dry out and crack. Without a balaclava for protection, my face remained numb throughout the entire expedition on land.

The Antarctic continent is technically classified as a desert due to its minimal precipitation, and the air contains almost no moisture, particularly in these coastal areas where temperatures can fluctuate dramatically. Riding the zodiac only intensified the cold, as the wind cut through every layer, making it hard to focus on anything other than staying warm.

Harry Island: A Zodiac Tour in Whiteout Conditions

In the afternoon, we joined the scheduled zodiac tour around Harry Island, despite the worsening weather conditions. The fear of missing out on a potential wildlife sighting or spectacular ice formation motivated our decision. As we set out, the visibility quickly deteriorated. Heavy snowfall and dense fog obscured the landscape, making it difficult to see much beyond the boat. The ride itself was far from smooth – the zodiac bounced over the rough waters rather than gliding through them, creating a jarring and prolonged exposure to the elements. The splashing got us all wet, making it us all even colder. We passed by a few seals lounging on ice floes, but it was difficult to even pay them any mind.

With the snow reducing visibility, the highlights of the tour were limited to a rock tower emerging from the water and a small grotto. While these geological formations were interesting, the extreme conditions made it difficult to appreciate them fully. It didn’t help either when our zodiac driver was an older fellow who droned on about Antarctic poetry – of all things – while the wind whipped across the open water. Poetry and subzero temperatures are not a great combination. In retrospect, skipping this tour might have been the better choice, and we later learned that many others had opted to stay on the ship instead of braving the cold.

Nature Always Has the Upper Hand

The sixth day of our Antarctic journey provided a valuable lesson in respecting the continent’s unpredictable and extreme environment. They remind us that we are visitors in one of Earth’s most extreme environments, where conditions can change rapidly and where nature always maintains the upper hand.

Gentoo Penguin Colony at Neko Harbour

Our visit to Neko Harbour brought us face-to-face with a colony of gentoo penguins. Due to the colder, windier conditions, many of the adult penguins were sitting tightly on their chicks, shielding them from the elements.

The penguins cope with Antarctic temperatures through a combination of dense feathers, thick subcutaneous fat layers, and specialized circulatory systems that minimize heat loss in their extremities.

Gentoo penguins are the fastest of all penguin species, capable of reaching speeds up to 36 km/h underwater. Watching them swim was almost like seeing a laser beam darting through the icy waters.

They still look goofy when they walk on land, and this awkward movement on land contrasts sharply with their remarkable swimming abilities.

We also observed their well-worn “penguin highways” – small, carved-out paths in the snow they use to travel between their colony and the beach. These highways are formed by the repeated passage of penguins, gradually compressing the snow into defined trails.

When crossing these highways during our hike, we followed strict instructions to give the penguins right of way and to avoid stopping at any intersections that crossed their paths. We observed the gentoo penguins’ distinctive waddling gait as they travelled along these highways.

Reaching the colony required a challenging uphill walk. The increasing wind made it even more difficult, and by the time we reached the top, my face had gone numb. However, the effort was worth it, as the higher vantage point provided a sweeping view of the harbour, with icebergs floating in the bay below.

Across the water, a massive glacier towered in the distance with massive crevasses. Every glacier, ice shelf, iceberg, etc. was like a natural sculpture.

Wildlife Spotting in Paradise Bay

In the afternoon, we embarked on a zodiac cruise around Paradise Bay. The purpose of this excursion was to get closer to the inactive research bases in the area and to observe wildlife from the water.

During our cruise, we spotted a small vessel in the distance. Our guide informed us that it was likely a private expedition and noted that such a small boat would have faced a much more challenging journey across the Drake Passage than our ship. While our crossing of the Drake Passage took approximately two days, a vessel of that size might require 8 to 10 days to navigate the same waters, not to mention being thrown around a lot harder in the waves.

The wildlife sightings began with more gentoo penguins resting on ice floes. It’s remarkable to see these penguins in these places, so far from their colonies. They have adapted to life in Antarctica through specialized features including dense waterproof feathers and the ability to drink salt water. Their bodies contain special glands that filter excess salt, which they expel through their nasal passages.

Our cruise transformed into an impromptu whale-watching expedition when we encountered several humpback whales swimming nearby.

We paused to observe them, and soon discovered that we were surrounded. As we focused on one pod of whales, another would surface elsewhere, reminiscent of a game of whac-a-mole. The whales appeared curious about our presence, with one even swimming directly underneath our zodiac, briefly making me worry it might tip us over. Fortunately, these gentle giants seemed aware of our presence and moved carefully around us.

While we saw many whales, none of them breached as dramatically as the whalewatching tour brochures often depict. Our guide explained that breaching is not as common as people expect, making it a rare sight even on dedicated whale-watching excursions (very misleading in those whalewatching brochures). In 20 to 30 minutes, we saw more whales than in the entire expedition combined.

Seals were also scattered across the icebergs, resting and occasionally glancing at our boat.

Each iceberg presented a different shape, texture, and blue hue, appearing as naturally sculpted art installations drifting across the bay. The distinctive blue colour results from the ice’s unique crystalline structure which absorbs red light while reflecting blue wavelengths. Some icebergs contain ice that fell as snow thousands of years ago, preserving ancient atmospheric conditions within their frozen layers.

We spent so much time watching the whales, and the other wildlife that we ran out of time and didn’t even make it to go see the abandoned research bases. This was totally okay, seeing the whales was better than doing a drive-by of the abandoned research base.

Zodiac Tour Through Ice and Water

Our excursion took place entirely by zodiac, allowing us to navigate the icy waters and get a closer look at the Antarctic terrain. The weather was exceptionally clear, offering remarkable visibility.

As we floated through the frigid waters, the landscape around us displayed a fascinating variety – flat, smooth snowbanks, jagged cliffs, towering icebergs, and sprawling glaciers.

One of the more intriguing phenomena we observed was “scalloping” on icebergs. This process forms small, golf ball-like divots on the surface of the ice, created by the uneven melting. I tried looking into the science, but it’s actually quite technical, requiring an understanding of fluid mechanics.

Some icebergs even featured long icicles, a testament to the dynamic and ever-changing nature of Antarctica’s frozen landscape.

In some places, the water was remarkably still and reflective, creating mirror-like surfaces that doubled the visual impact of the surrounding landscape.

Humpback Whale Encounter

As we ventured further, we spotted several humpback whales surfacing in the distance. Each whale’s fin pattern is as unique as a human fingerprint. A website, HappyWhale, allows citizen scientists to upload images of whale fins, contributing to global tracking efforts and expanding our understanding of whale migration patterns.

We watched as they gracefully moved through the water, occasionally expelling misty bursts from their blowholes.

Lounging Crabeater Seals

Seals were another common sight throughout the day. We encountered a few crabeater seals resting on ice floes. Despite their misleading name, crabeater seals primarily feed on krill, using their specialized teeth to filter these small crustaceans from the water.

Up close, these seals are surprisingly cute with their expressive faces that appear to be smiling when relaxed. Their primarily white coats with scattered dark speckles help them blend into the snowy environment. When resting on ice, they often adopt a contented pose with eyes half-closed and flippers positioned as if waving to passing boats.

One of the seals rolled over lazily, seemingly indifferent to our presence. The narrator pointed out that it was a female, identifying it by its ventral slit.

It was a simple but fascinating moment – one of those times when I’m reminded how cool it is to watch animals just doing their thing in the wild.

Gentoo Penguin Spotted

We also saw our first gentoo penguin, perched alone on an iceberg.

The moment was made slightly awkward when one of the guests on our zodiac made an odd catcalling noise toward the penguin only to be swiftly shut down by our zodiac driver.

Sailing Onward

After returning to the ship and setting sail for our next destination, we continued to spot small icebergs with seals lounging on them. One particularly interesting sight was a seal resting on an ice floe marked with what appeared to be either guano or blood stains – perhaps evidence of a recent penguin meal.

The crew has yet again planned another successful excursion allowing us to again see another dimension of Antarctica we did not see before.

Even in peak summer in the southern hemisphere, January in Antarctica still experiences freezing temperatures with wind chill, and we needed to dress accordingly. In addition to layering up, they provided each guest a pair of boots and a lifejacket to use for the cruise that would be used for the landings. The expedition staff would call us by group for us to board Zodiacs (a brand of rugged, inflatable boats), to take us from the ship to the shore. We were warned that landings could happen on rocky beaches with water up to the knees.

Red Rock Ridge: Adelie Penguin Colony

As we waited in anticipation of the first landing, I chatted with a friendly crew member who was visiting the shore with us about the ship like its power systems, tech stuff, and later it turned out that the fellow was actually the captain himself – I couldn’t tell since he was bundled up. He was with his wife, who took time off to join him on this particular voyage. We met them several times later on the cruise and they were both very nice people to talk to.

The expedition staff had chosen a rocky shore for us to make the wet landing. We stepped off the Zodiac into water that went about up to our shins, and they helped us out of the water. This was it, we finally made it.

The mountainous landscape challenged our preconceptions of Antarctica; instead of flat ice shelves, jagged peaks and volcanic rock rose before us, their exposed rock faces contrasting starkly against the white snow and ice. In some places, the ground was a mix of snow, rocks, and mossy patches of hardy lichen—the only vegetation capable of surviving in this extreme climate. Surprisingly, it wasn’t cold – the air temperature hovered around freezing, but without any wind chill.

The key highlight of this landing was the chance to observe an Adelie penguin colony. Adelie penguins are most southerly distributed penguin species, perfectly adapted to Antarctica’s extreme conditions. Their distinctive white eye-ring against black head feathers gives them a distinctive “tuxedo with goggles” appearance. The penguins showed curious interest in their human visitors, keeping a respectful distance while clearly observing us. We arrived during their breeding season, so we saw a mixture of adults and newly hatched chicks.

Contrary to popular animated depictions, penguins don’t simply slide everywhere. They use their feet to push themselves along when belly-flopping across the ice, and they genuinely waddle when walking.

Despite their adorable behaviour, the colony had a strong, unmistakable odour. The birds live amid their own waste, referred to as guano, which accumulates in their breeding areas. This guano is so pungent that one expedition staff member remarked, “if you get it on your clothes, you may as well just burn them.” Their guano stained the snow and the penguins themselves with orange patches. The term “guano” comes from the Quechua language of Peru and was originally used to describe the excrement of seabirds, bats, and seals that was collected for use as fertilizer due to its high nitrogen content.

Antarctic skuas patrolled the skies above the penguin colony, providing a glimpse into Antarctica’s harsh food chain. These large, gull-like birds are relentless predators, known for their aggressive tactics in hunting penguin eggs and chicks. With their powerful build and hooked bills, skuas can dive-bomb distracted penguin parents and snatch their vulnerable offspring in seconds. They also practice kleptoparasitism – stealing food from other birds – and will scavenge from carcasses when available. They’re are important components of the Antarctic ecosystem, though their predatory nature often earns them an unfair villainous reputation among visitors sympathetic to the penguins.

When we returned to the ship, we followed biosecurity measures to protect Antarctica’s fragile ecosystem, by washing our boots in a cleaning fluid to prevent the transfer of contaminants between landing sites.

Stonington Island: Traces of Human History

Our second landing brought us to Stonington Island, where the continent’s sparse human history became evident through abandoned research stations.

Despite Antarctica’s remote location and harsh conditions, humans have maintained a presence here for scientific purposes since the early 20th century.

Stonington Island houses two historic research bases: East Base (American, established 1939) and Base E (British, established 1946). These stations served as important outposts for early scientific exploration in Antarctica, supporting research in geology, meteorology, and biology.

Despite its remoteness, Stonington Island was not devoid of life. A few penguins slid across the ice while a solitary seal lounged in the distance. Penguins always seem to walk single file, and the ones in the back like to wait until their “leader” makes the first move.

Witnessing a piece of ice calve from the nearby ice shelf was another highlight. A massive chunk broke off, crashing into the water and creating a wave large enough to flip over before settling into its new position.

Reflections

Our expedition to Antarctica provided rare insights into one of Earth’s last truly wild places, especially having the opportunity to cross the Antartic Circle. After returning from the entire cruise, I had followed the cruise company’s ship tracker, and I haven’t seen it cross the Antarctic Circle on its other voyages so far, which made the experience more special, and that the crew was serious that they said how rare it was go sail this far south.

Each experience today deepened our appreciation for this extraordinary continent. As temporary visitors to this frozen realm, we left with only photographs and memories. We eagerly awaited the adventures to follow in the next few days.

We flew into Israel from Tel Aviv and boarded a train to Jerusalem. I totally expected the Middle East to be pretty warm in February, but nope, it was snowing tiny little flakes in Jerusalem. If it weren’t for the Europe trip before this, I would have actually not brought any winter clothes, so I definitely lucked out there.

The Way of the Cross

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ is probably what Jerusalem is most well known for. The Way of the Cross (aka Via Dolorosa) in Jerusalem is what is believed to be the actual path that Jesus walked during his crucifixion – regardless of whether you’re religious or not, it’s still pretty cool to see. This was a key event in the establishment of Christianity. The crucifixion of Jesus is considered to be historically true even by non-religious scholars.

The Way of the Cross begins with Jesus’ encouter with Pontius Pilate, the man who orders Jesus’ crucifixion. The Church of the Flagellation is built on the spot where Jesus was flogged by Roman soldiers before he carries the cross.

It’s said he falls three times during his walk.

Along the way, Jesus encounters several people (although some of these encounters are disputed):

• Mary – his mother
• Simon of Cyrene – he helps Jesus carry the cross
• Veronica – she wipes the sweat off of Jesus’ face, and so Jesus’ image was then supernaturally imprinted on the piece of cloth, now known as the Veil of Veronica
• the pious women – Jesus stops and gives a sermon

Eventually he makes his way to the location where he is nailed to the cross. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is built on the spot where it is believed he was nailed to the cross, and his subsequent death.

This is supposedly the spot where Jesus dies on the cross (below)

He is then taken down from the cross and anointed on the stone slab below. Anointing is a ceremonial ritual where a person’s body is smeared in aromatic oil to introduce a divine influence on the body.

Finally he is laid to rest in his tomb.

Of course his body isn’t physically in there, because supposedly after his ressurection, he ascended to heaven.

The entire Way of the Cross and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was extremely crowded and people lined up everywhere to pray in all the spiritual locations, like Jesus’ tomb, the home of the Virgin Mary, the Stone of Anointing, etc. People even touched all the surfaces that Jesus was said to have touched and I could see them in deep prayer.

Western / Wailing Wall

In Judaism, the Western Wall is one of its holiest sites. The actual holiest site lines behind the wall, the Temple Mount, but due to restrictions, Jews are not allowed to pray there, and thus the wall became the place where Jews went to pray.

Some Jews go on a pilgrimage to the Western Wall, some spend hours praying there. If you look closely in the video below, there’s a fellow running in circles and singing while people around him are rubbing their beards against the wall.

The Temple Mount

The Temple Mount is a flat plaza built on top of four retaining walls (the Western Wall among them). Although Jews are not allowed to enter for prayer (e.g. praying, singing, or other religious displays), people are allowed to enter the area as tourists.

The Dome of the Rock is one of the Islamic structures built on the Temple Mount. Unfortunately, non Muslims are not allowed to enter. Inside the dome is the Foundation Stone, and has religious significance to both Jews and Muslims.

Yad Vashem

This is Israel’s official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. The entire memorial consists of a museum dedicated to the history of Jewish persecution throughout Nazi Germany and the places it conquered.

The eternal flame honours the victims of the holocaust. In front of it is a stone crypt containing the ashes of the victims.

The Hall of Names pictured above contains the the names of millions of Holocaust victims. The shelves around the room contain the names, while the cone above display photographs of the victims. The people standing in the photo are all Israeli soldiers – Jerusalem had a huge police presence with a lot of them openly carrying assault rifles (I felt very safe). Even some men in public that I saw had buzz cuts – presumably they are/were in the military. A few days before we arrived, there was a terrorist attack where a driver rammed a car into Israeli soldiers.

This train car is an example of the cattle cars that Nazi Germany used to perpretrate the Holocaust.

The Garden Tomb

Some sects of Christianity don’t believe that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre contains the real tomb of Jesus Christ. They assert that the real tomb is actually elsewhere, which they dubbed the Garden Tomb

Outside Jerusalem’s old town

Because Israel has so many Jewish people, McDonald’s started a special chain that serves only Kosher food. Even though it’s kosher, it tastes the exact same as regular McDonald’s which is pretty amazing for what it is.

Oskar Schindler is famous for saving 1200 Jews during the holocaust. He is now buried in Jerusalem. Putting stones and pebbles on the grave is an ancient Jewish tradition to honour the deceased.

There are also a lot of stray cats everywhere! I didn’t see any dogs though, just lots and lots of stray cats everywhere. People must take care of them though because they all look pretty well groomed.

Photo album: here

Vaduz

Vaduz is the capital of Liechtenstein, a country that some people have probably never heard of before, and people who have heard of it probably don’t know where it is on the map. In fact, it’s a tiny country that’s sandwiched between Switzerland and Austria. Miraculously, this country, originally a part of the Holy Roman Empire, never got conquered. It survived empires rising and falling around it, namely Holy Roman Empire, Napoleon’s French Empire, Austria-Hungary, the German Empire, and Nazi Germany, just to name a few. Because it survived the political upheaval around it, it is still ruled by a prince (i.e. a principality) like it always was.

The above image shows the residence of the prince. It feels like some strange anachronism – a prince living in a castle on top of a hill ruling over his subjects, but in a modern time.

Even though it’s the capital of Liechtenstein, it only has ~5000 inhabitants – by no means large at all. Its vibe is quite different from other European cities – it doesn’t have a fancy old town or anything, but there are several museums of art and history, as well as the Princely Wine Cellars, which is a vineyard where guests can do wine tastings.

I jokingly asked the fellow at the tourist info centre if he’d ever met the Prince of Liechtenstein, and he actually said yes! He said that everyone who turns 18 gets invited to an event called the Young Citizens Celebration (Jungbürgerfeier) to meet the prince.

Hohenzollern Castle

From Vaduz, we drove into Germany, to where the House of Hohenzollern began, Hohenzollern Castle. These are the same Hohenzollerns, whose family members once ruled Prussia and the German Empire, among other places. Even the last Kaiser of the German Empire, Kaiser Wilhelm II, is a Hohenzollern. Today, the castle is still privately owned by the family,

The only way to see the interior of the castle is to pay for the guided tour, and on that guided tour there are no photos allowed. The coolest part of the guided tour is the room showing the entire known family tree of the Hohenzollerns. It even goes into detail as to which branch of the family is part of the Catholic Swabian branch, or the Protestant Franconian branch.

Today was the first day of the trip that actually snowed! The last several days were a bit windy and cool, but still above zero centigrade, but suddenly today, the weather dipped and it started snowing!

It’s kind of nice driving while it’s snowing as long as it’s not a total blizzard.

Stuttgart

In 2011, I spent eight months in Stuttgart for an internship while I was in university, and since then I went back again in 2013 and now again in 2020. I remember in 2013, it still felt pretty nostalgic, but now nine years later, I found that I’ve forgotten a lot of places and barely knew my way around. The feeling was totally different. It felt a lot more distant – like a place I used to know.

Before we left, we planned to eat at Sophie’s Brauhaus, the brewery that my friends and I used to go a lot to. I knew what I wanted to order before we even went – spaetzle with lentils and sausage. Spaetzle is a German pasta with eggs (as a opposed to other types of pasta which may not have as much egg in it). It’s easily one of the most Swabian dishes there is (Swabia is a region in Germany with its own culture and language). And of course we ordered beers, because after all we were at a brewery. I even ordered a bananenweizen – a wheat beer mixed with banana juice (yes, it’s a thing).

When I ate the dish, it didn’t connect with my nostalgia at all, I just remembered having nostalgia for it. Same with the beer I had. This was the place I had my first real German beer, and now there was zero connection between what I tasted now and the nostalgia. I mean the food and the beer was still delicious, but in my head, I definitely was looking for that emotional connection.

Photos

• Vaduz
• Hohenzollern Castle
• Stuttgart

Strasbourg

Strasbourg is in the historic region of Alsace-Lorraine. The unique thing about Alsace-Lorraine is that in the span of 100 years it has flipped back and forth multiple times between France and Germany as a result of three wars (the Franco-Prussian War, World War I, and World War II). As a result, the city shares cultures from both countries. This is super evident in a part of town called Petite France, most notably the timber framing around each building. The local dialect Alsatian, also has Germanic origins.

It’s also the home of the European Parliament. This is where over 700 democratically elected Members of European Parliament pass legislation.

Thus far, in France, I had been speaking my very limited French here and there whenever I needed it. As we waited for the tour, a Middle Eastern fellow struck up a conversation with me in French, kind of just asking us where we were from etc. It was kind of weird, but we went along with it anyway – it didn’t seem like he was a pickpocket or anything. I managed to get pretty far in the conversation in French actually, which surprised me quite a bit. He told me that he had moved to France from Afghanistan after working there as part of the local security forces, and even showed me his old Afghan ID, and a bomb scar he had.

The conversation got super weird when he started asking about our yearly salary, and it seemed like he was asking us for money (but it’s possible some of that was lost in translation). At that point, we totally understood why he started the conversation in the first place. We basically told him that we’re not that well off either and he tried to give ME money, and I still don’t understand what was going on there. When the tour started, it seemed like he was still staying within our general vicinity, which made it even weirder. Eventually he picked up on that and left us alone. We even checked if he followed us back to our car (just in case).

Strasbourg appears pretty proud of their cuisine – even their postcards have pictures of recipes of different Alsatian dishes. One that we had was called Flammekueche (in German it’s Flammkuchen, so it’s easy to see the German influence in the language here, at least in this word). I think the closest analogue that English speakers would know would be a flatbread pizza, but with more French style ingredients like fromage blanc, and uses crème fraîche as a base as opposed to tomatoes.

From Strasbourg, we began our journey to Switzerland. At the border, we bought our vignette (it’s a required sticker on the car for driving in the country). I spoke to the lady in German and I got a nice feeling speaking and listening to a language that I understood again.

Habsburg Castle

Our first destination in Switzerland was the Habsburg Castle. This is where the House of Habsburg began. This is THE Habsburgs that wielded enourmous power in Europe for centuries, most notably the Holy Roman Empire, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The castle looks quite modest compared to other European castles like Neuschwanstein, but this is because it was originally constructed almost 1000 years ago.

Zürich

As we drove through Switzerland, we expected mountain passes full of snow, but there were actually very few mountains along that route! We probaly would have seen some in Zürich itself, but too bad it was nighttime.

We arrived in Zürich just in time for a fondue and raclette dinner, because that’s what the stereotypes say. Of all places we found though, we found the most touristy one. I’m pretty sure everybody in there was a tourist.

As we were chatting while eating, I was trolling my friend, saying he comes from China even though he’s actually from Taiwan, since Taiwanese people stereotypically like to assert that Taiwan is not the same as China. A lady at our neighbouring table heard us and actually confronted us about it. She seemed so pissed off! She seemed fine once we told her we were just messing around, and that I’m from Hong Kong (people from there generally side with Taiwan). But imagine travelling all the way to Switzerland and hearing someone trashtalking your country!

This concludes our fourth day. Stay tuned for day five!

• Strasbourg
• Habsburg Castle
• Zürich

The tour started at 9am, and since it was winter, the sun was only starting to rise at around 10am. Our tour guide was a fellow from France who fell in love with an Icelandic girl and moved to Iceland to be with her. Now he works as a tour guide and has aspirations to run his own tour company.

As a part of the tour, we got all the gear. Hiking boots with crampons, an icepick and a harness in case we fell and needed a rope to get back out. I didn’t have real waterproof pants, and the next best thing I had were water resistant bike pants with jeans underneath.

When we walked over large patches of ice, we’d have the crampons on, and when the terrain went back to rocks, we’d take them off. Along the way, I chatted with the tour guide and the other tourists. One guy was visiting from Dallas, Texas and does work in the film industry doing post processing work. I had no idea that kind of profession paid that much considering he was travelling around Iceland and talked about his Porsche!

After about 30 minutes of walking, we got to the first cave. The cave walls were made of ice, but were either black or blue depending on how much volcanic ash was inside the ice.

Here’s another cave.

And another.

For the last stop of the tour, we reached the coast and got an amazing view of the glacier touching the water.

Afterward, we walked back all the way to where we parked and drove back to the meeting point. We thanked the tour guide and wished him all the best in starting his tour company. Next, I drove back to Reykjavik in the snow.

That snow eventually turned into heavy heavy wind and rain. As chance would have it, that’s when I needed to fill up my car. I stopped by the gas station to fill up only to realize that my inferior American credit card wouldn’t work on those machines because my card didn’t have a pin set up. The gas station didn’t have an attendant either. Luckily I found another gas station further down the road, and I was able to fill up and continue the rest of my journey.

Photos: here

First stop: the dam just off of the Stone Arch Bridge.

When I rented a bike, I expected a city cruiser, not a full carbon fiber road bike with Ultegra Di2 and electronic shifting! Not sure what year the bike was, but a new one would probably cost around $5000 USD.

I headed south, past the University of Minneapolis and eventually to Minnehaha Falls. A couple had brought a Lego Thor and Loki for some photos and I managed to snap a picture of it too. Perfect timing for Avengers Infinity War opening weekend I guess.

I really lucked out on the weather because there had been a giant snow storm a week or two before. It wasn’t too warm nor too cold either. Hot enough for sunburns though.

Eventually I made my way to Fort Snelling.

Then I headed west to bike past some lakes. Even though the weather was just a bit colder than T-shirt weather, there was still ice on the lakes slowly melting.

I had read online that Minneapolis has places that serve camel meat, so I ventured to the Midtown Global Market to find it. To be honest the meat didn’t look that appetizing and it tasted just like regular lean meat with nothing distinct about it.

Next I made my way to the sculpture park, where the famous cherry on a spoon sculpture is.

Nearby, was the Basilica of Saint Mary. And I thought cool looking churches was a European thing!!

In total, I biked around 70km on a really fancy bike and toured a lot of stuff in the city. Before flying out the next day, I spent some time at the Mall of America. Most awesome Lego store is right here.

The centre of the mall is an indoor amusement park!!

Unluckily for me, I somehow got sick the day after the bike ride, so I was quite impatient to go home that day. It’s no fun getting on a plane while sick… Once I got home, I didn’t even unpack and went straight to bed.

Link to photos: here