Travel Proposal: Interail 2011

My plan next year is to travel using the Interail and this is my travel proposal. I have started off with some basic travel research about the European Inter-rail.

• Possible Dates:

I break up from University around the end of May 2011. I have to move out by the beginning of June. Possibly work the entire month of June to gather the last bit of money before i leave.  So, i intend to travel from the beginning of July right through to the end of July/ early August. 

• Cost:

There is a variety of Inter-rail tickets on offer. I am a youth since i am under twenty-six, so there is a discount available. Twenty-two days continuous travel is £249. One month continuous travel is £325. These are the possible time periods I hope to be away for. I have worked out that on average it is cheaper per day by forty-eight pence, to travel for a full month rather than twenty-two days. 

• Accommodation:

I defiantly want to stay at hostels throughout Europe to keep the cost of my trip to a minimum. Also the money that can be saved staying in cheap accommodation can be used elsewhere. 

• Where to go:

When my father was younger he travelled using the inter-rail. I have referred to his journey  for ideas and inspiration on where to go. This is his travel route:

However, due to lack of money he had to cut his journey short and return home after Italy. This  was initially one months worth of travelling. I personally feel it was a bit ambitious within the time limit. I think i will travel to less countries but will be able to experience the culture because i will have more time in each country. This is my proposed route:

       

I have tried to pick my route so that I travel in a circle-like motion. This is because i do no want to waste time and double back on myself. I especially want to visit Berlin, Germany as I have never been before and I used to learn the language. So i will allow myself at least five days there. I would like to see the Reichstag as the architecture designed by Norman Foster, has created  a prominent German symbol. The Holocaust Memorial is something I plan to visit. I have been to Auschwitz and have seen the Polish way of dealing with the war. I would be interested to see Germany's reaction through the memorial. My brother recently went to Berlin and brought me back an interesting collage painted by a contemporary artist Alex Rodin. I would quite like to see more of his work in and around the city which is paints. From there, the Czech Republic appeals to me because i know nothing about the country. This is my chance to find out about it. Austria will be my next stop. I have been to Austria before to highland dance but did not see much of its attractions so i would quite like to revisit Vienna to experience more of its culture. St Peters church is a must. I have that the interior is breath-taking compared to its exterior. I struggle to see the outside and inside can be in such contrast. After Austria, i intend to travel through Switzerland to arrive in Italy. As i have been to Florence, Bologna and Venice before i would like to explore Milan, therefore stay at the top of Italy. Apart from shopping, i would like to visit the Santa Maria della Grazie and experience local Italian flea markets at Fiera di Senigallia. From there, I would travel through France to Spain. Barcelona is one of my favourite cities and cannot be forgotten on this tour. Paris would be my final stop and then home.

Paris 2010.

Recently, I have just finished my second assignment named "Analysis of Precedent" project.  We were given a house to break down and analysis every aspect of that particular house. My group and I were given "La Maison Latapie" designed by the architects Anne Lacaton and Jean Philippe.  

"Maison Latapie" front view

"Maison Latapie" back view

This house is built in Floirac, France. In the summer I spent two weeks in Paris with my good friend Caitlin. Studying this house and where it was situated reminded me of my summer.  The design of this house is very different from what i have seen before, very much like most of the architecture in Paris for example, the Notre Dame and the Paris Opera house. Those two weeks were entirely enjoyable with new experiences. We stayed in the Ibis Hotel- Porte De Clichy. It was very well located with only around three metro stops to the centre of Paris. The metro system in Paris was very confusing. With so many lines and changes, we got lost quite a few times. One time the door shut with me in the train and Caitlin stuck on the platform! Eventually we began to get used to the crazy system and were able to find outr way around without taking a detour. I found out when i came back that Paris has one of the busiest metro systems with over 300 stations. So i think we did extremly well since we are both used to the Glasgow Subway system, which travels in a clockwise circle and has only fifeteen stops. We did most of the tourist attractions like the Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur, Musee de'Orsay, Arc de Triomphe, River Seine and the Louvre. The Louvre was one of my favourite trips. The sheer scale of the museum is extraordinary and the number of art pieces is amazing. The outside is just as spectacular as the inside. The pyramid (as seen in the middle picture) which juts outs is in complete contrast with the traditional architecture of the museum. There are mixed reviews of the pyramid but i feel it reminds us of how far art and architecture has come. Despite my different opinions of "Maison Latapie" I was pleased that I was able to study this building because it reminded me of my time in Paris.

18th Birthday!!

It was my 18th Birthday on the 24th of September. I was so excited to turn 18 and become Devon McCrea instead of stealing various other identities like Bethany Howit. I chose not to go home to Helensburgh, Glasgow on my birthday but stay here, in Heathfield, Dundee. My friends and i experienced Dundee's nightlife and had a very enjoyable night. 

Cicley, Rachel, me, Ross and Rhiannon on my 18th.

Reflecting back on my birthday, I remember feeling certain that my life would tramatically change once I had turned that pivotal age of 18. It has not. I feel that the anticipation around turning eighteen is built up and that the actual day is a slight anti-climax. Along with turning eighteen, i feel that there is automatically more responsibilities given. It also makes you more accountable for your actions therefore a lot more pressure is felt. I think a lot more is expected of me since i have turned eighteen and I hope to live up to those expectations despite the stress. Aswell as moving away from home, i find it hard to deal with the independence and act like a mature eighteen year old. People expect others to become more adult-like once they have turned eighteen but I think that being eighteen has not automatically turned me into an adult, only time and experience will.