Halfway Point Awards

So to switch it up we are going to do a mid-trip awards list... Keep in mind this is only the winners so far... We still have 3 weeks ish left! We also filled these out separately hoping to get different answers :) So here goes!

Best and worst:

Best hostel:
  Karin: Jager Hostel... Oh Oktoberfest!
  Melanie: Jager Hostel in Munich :)
Worst hostel:
  K: Mel will say Paris I guess but
  minus the shower (I'll get over being
  dirty) and creepy men (out of their
  control, bad luck) I liked it okay. I
  say worst is Rome my bed made me
  want to die, plus Mosquitos!
  M: Paris for sure. Although we met
    Cameron which was a plus and our
    Wolf pack, but also had to meet
    bendy Jody. The opposite of a plus.
Best train ride:
  K: Hands down overnighter to
  Barcelona from Paris. Who can't call
  kicked out of the bar trolley a good
  time?!
  M: Paris to Barcelona overnighter!
  We got kicked out of the food/bev
  train because we were too loud! Me
  too loud? Never! :)
Worst train ride:
  K: Cinque Terre to Florence. I barely
  remember it in my tired, drunken
  stupor. It was a hassel plus we missed
  the first one, silly Bar Centrale, you
  ruin my life! And we got off at the
  wrong stop. Not a good travel day
  for us.
  M: Also Paris to Barcelona... Threw up
  on the train. That's a first! Definitely
  had nothing to do with the beverage
  train we got kicked out of!
Best view:
  K: Cinque Terre
  M: Walking the path in Cinque Terre.
  The color of the water looked fake, it
  was so amazing. I mean the pictures
  & postcards don't even begin to do it
  justice. It's hard to even find the
  right words...
Best wine:
  K: I liked the wine we drank on the
  beach in Nice best. The first one ;)
  M: 3€ for a bottle the size of my
  head? Yes please!
Best local beer:
  K: what did we drink in cinque terre
  during beersbee? Melanie might
  remember. I pick that. Oktoberfest
  stein beer is a close 2nd. Compared
  back to back Munichs might win
  actually-- it was just too long ago
  to remember perfectly ha!
  M: mmm... Peroni, native to Italy.
  Brings back memories of my first
  trip to Italy! And of course beersbie!
Best budget location:
  K: Munich. I'm not sure if it's true
  but, free wifi and minus the high
  Hostel cost, everything we ate
  & drank was pretty cheap.
  M: Cinque Terre; did I mention the 3€
  bottle of wine the size of my head?
Best drink:
  K: well whatever the opposite of that
  nasty martini crap we drank in
  France or sambucca. In all seriousness
  I'd say the sangria in Barcelona we
  got when we went out to dinner (And
  I didn't realize that non alcoholic
  drinks count).
  M: I think the Greek Frappe drink.
  It's just coffee, lots of sugar and
  a touch of amazingness! :) definitely
  not Sambuca going down or coming
  up!
Best meal:
  K: Pasta at the nice restaurant our
  1st night in Florence.
  M: Souvlaki in Greece. Yum slum! And
  I ate plenty of it for sure! I don't
  think I'll be able to find that in TX!
Best dessert:
  K: Nutella crepes on Nice. (ooh and
  those waffle things, forgot about
  them!)
  M: Toss up between nutella crepes
  & Belgium waffles with nutella... But
  I think the winner has to be crepes!!!
Best quote:
  K: Do less, Pickle, Do way less!-
  Lighter rave night.
  M: Do less, Pickle, Do way less! ---
  Sam, of our australian boyfriends,
  yelled this to Pickle during his
  Lighter party around 3 am!
Best night out:
  K: Cinque Terre. All.
  M: Drinking wine with Kare on the
  beach in Nice. We talked about life!
  It's funny that we haven't run out
  of things to talk about! And I mean
  honestly she knows everything about
  me already! And knows all the stories
  from college! And we've yet to shut
  up! :)
Best single moment:
  K: when we were in Florence and out
  of nowhere the crazy Aussies had
  found us again in an entirely different
  city. Still think they were probably
  stalking us...
  M: I laughed so hard I cried when the
  Kenyan/Asian had stomach issues &
  told us she needed to use cream. I
  mean what in the world!!
Best weather:
  K: Nice.
  M: Nice, France. Swimsuit weather.
  Cinque Terre was nice too, but a little
  chillier!
Worst weather:
  K: Florence.
  M: For sure Florence. Didn't help that
  I had the swine flu there and kept
  telling kare that I felt my fever break!
Best shopping:
  K: Greece
  M: Well my vote is anywhere with a
  Louis Vuitton! In Nice I had beautiful
  dreams about all my future purchases
  because our hotel was above a store!
Best English speakers:
  K: Oktoberfest or Greece. Its a toss up
  M: Greece hands down. Oktoberfest
  was filled with Aussies and Yanks but
  everyone in Greece starts learning
  English in 3rd grade which is helpful!
Best shower:
  K: Ahhh... We were so dirty!
  Barcelona because I felt so gross and
  it was my first full fledged shower
  of the whole trip... Over a week in?
  Gross haha.
  M: Stefanos. He had a nice bath tub
  which I took full advantage of!
  Bubbles and all! I've come to appreciate
  Showers but nothing compares to a
  Bath which i take 2-3 times a day
  in the states!
Best public transport:
  K: Paris. So easy.
  M: Paris. Lots of lines for the
  Metro... We did pretty well there!
  May have even surprised ourselves!
Worst public transport:
  K: Barcelona jut because I'm still mad
  about that stop saying we could
  change metros there but it really
  kicks you onto the street. And we got
  lost.
  M: Barcelona! They had circles and
  Stations that looked like they
  connected but didn't! Or maybe we
  were confused! Either way, worst
  Ever!!!

Favorite...

Site:
  K: Palentine hill. Awesome tour,
  unexpected, overlooking the
  Colloseum and roman forum...
  Amazing.
  M: Roman Forum in Rome. So grand,
  & well preserved. You could really
  picture it the way it looked so long
  ago. It was breathtaking!
Americans we've met:
  K: The Joshi's in Rome. Loved them.
  M: Nishan and Meera from LA.
  Nishan is so fun!! And Meera.. let's
  just say she made us
  sound quiet! They were so fun!
  Wish we had more time with them!
  Oh and the hottie we met at
  Oktoberfest from San Fransisco. :)
Foreigners we've met:
  K: Our crazy Aussie friends
  M: if we are talking about natives,
  it would have to be matt and andrew,
  our Passport to Paris dates. But if you
  consider our Aussie boyfriends as
  foreign, they win!
  They make us more fun, or more
  tired...! They're great guys and so
  Crazy!
Food we could eat over and over:
  K: Paninis. I love bread.
  M: Whoa this is a hard one! Hmmm.
  I think I might say gelato! There are
  a lot of choices so it's hard to get sick
  of, and we have convinced ourselves
  that everything we are eating here
  is lowfat and calorie free! :)
Day so far:
  K: Day we saw the colloseum and
  everything in Rome & the CT
  hike.
  M: I am going to have to say it's a
  tie! (idk if this is allowed but
  whatev!) historically, I loved our day
  in Rome that was filled with the
  Colloseum, Palantine hill, and the
  Roman Forum... It was epic! But also
  the day in CT when we played disc
  with our Aussies in 2 cities, learned
  Beersbie, Frisbee with a little spice,
  Kare borrowing some Italians boat
  rope, Sam climbing down to retrieve
  his bff Disc aka the frisbee, meeting
  Pickle, going to THE bar with
  everyone, finishing with a lighter
  dance party that none of us will
  soon forget! :)
Thing about Europe:
  K: Meeting people and seeing
  everything! Really makes you
  understand different countries;
  I love that.
  M: The train system! So much better
  than airplanes and security blah blah
  blah!
Thing about the US:
  K: Wow our lives are convienent.
  Everything at our fingertips,
  inexpensive, hot showers, English,
  no dubbing tv... Mexican food!"
  M: My cell phone and my mom!

Others:

Hottest:
  K: People? Australians. Every one
  we've met. Idk what's in the water
  down there...
  M: Country: France, Cops: Greece,
  Person: :)
Craziest:
  K: See above.
  M: Pickle--- not only did he invent
  the lighter party, he stripped naked
  to jump in the public pool, booty
  danced for everyone then shaved his
  head into a mowhawk while really
  not sober and woke up this next am
  & loved it! :)
Nicest people:
  K: Greeks and drunk people at
  Oktoberfest
  M: hmmm the Romans were very
  helpful!
Rudest people:
  K: Stupid Parisians.
  M: I will refrain from saying the
  French, but more the residents of
  Paris... We must have american
  girls written across our forehead.
Most romantic:
  K: Nice. Melanie and I already had a
  hot date on the beach, I can only
  imagine if we had boys there too.
  M: Paris. The shopping and Eiffle
  Tower... Anyone that can afford to
  take me shopping there wins :)
Would like to live:
  K: Nice or Rome. Rome because there
  is so much to do and Nice because it
  is very beautiful and liveable.
  M: French Riviera. I think St. Tropez
  or Monaco is just the place for me!!
Safest:
  K: Rome/Greece/Munich
  M: Nice! So safe... Except the
  wandering eyes of the men! Take
  a picture, it lasts longer!
Most unsafe:
  K: Paris, maybe Barcelona. Helped
  that we had our wolfpack with us.
  M: Paris around the ghetto train
  station we got off at a 9am, groggy
  from Oktoberfest and the overnight
  train. Not to mention we were
  very lost. We learned our lesson,
  always have directions to hostel
  from the train station!
Most annoying street vendors:
  K: Mother of God, Florence!
  M: Well they are all annoying! But
  the ones with umbrellas especially!
  If I am holding an umbrella, I don't
  want to buy one! Duh!
Creepiest guys:
  K: Rome. I know one by name, pass
  out under a bush lately?
  M: Those Italian stallions or lack
  there of! Come on take a hint! And
  hold your wine better! Two American
  girls schooled you!
Biggest thing we have learned about eachother:
  K: Melanie incessantly cracks her
  knuckles and everything else.
  M: without me, she would have a
  stack of postcards still in her bag
  waiting to be sent. And she self
  diagnosis herself with cancer and
  other crazy ideas!
Most likely to return to:
  K: Paris/Rome/Cinque Terre
  M: The French Riviera and Greece.
  We are already planning our next
  trip and excuse to put off growing
  up! And Paris... But with a lover! :)

And the grand finale:

Favorite city so far:
  K: Paris/Rome/Cinque Terre
  M: Rome! And it was my second
  time! Can't beat the history and it's
  so well preserved!


Well there you have it! Funny that some of our answers are the same and some aren't! We are PERFECT traveling buddies, Kare makes me less paranoid and I make kare more organized :)

Everyone tells us they can't belive we have yet to fight or shut up. We just ignore each other when we're in one of our moods!

Reminder this list only includes Munich, Paris, Barcelona, Nice, Cinque Terre (CT), Florence, Rome and Athens!

Love and hugs...
Melanie