I was so incredibly excited to get to Budapest- for many reasons. Here I was planning to host the first ever spin off of the traditional '12 Pubs of Christmas' pub crawl- known as '12 Pubs of Halloween'. I had organised it online and was very excited to get this underway, in a city that didnt have much going on at Halloween. Not only was this happening but I was reuniting with old friends- not just one but two of them- from two different parts of my life. I was super happy to be reuniting with Joao, my Brazilian friend from my first ship Silver Whisper and with Annaline my 'GLT' friend (Facebook group Girls Love Travel) who i had first met in Croatia and then again in Montenegro. This was turning into a spectacular weekend. I spent my first day exploring with Joao, who had just finished his contract. He took me across the amazing chain bridge and up to the Buda side of Budapest- Did you know they are two seperate areas on each side of the river? We explored the well kept grounds, gazed in awe at the view over the city from above and drank mulled wine while catching up on each others lives. That evening we popped into a few thrift shops (Humana & Cream are the best) in search of halloween costumes before meeting up with Everett, and American guy who recently moved here and volunteered to help us plan the route. We enjoyed some good beer and food at Csendes Vintage Bar and Cafe. This was one of my favourites- It was unique, quirky, had great food, great beers and cosy atmosphere. We continued to another more 'communist simple style' craft beer pub for a few more before heading home. That evening Annaline arrived from her long flight.

​We both stayed at Pals Hostel which was very central and so unique. Its dorms and rooms were all seperate apartments in heritage block building away fromt he reception. We had our own large apartment with two other girls including two seperate rooms, a loung and a kitchen. It was great! We explored Budapest the next day and looked for costumes and props again before the night started. That evening the group of us all met, dressed in Halloween atire and began to walk backwards to our first bar. Needless to say by the end of the night the group had dispersed but we had made it to at least 10 bars together as a group. We had swapped shoes, talked in foreign accents, made it through the 'silent' bar rule, danced to amazing jazz musicians at 'Szimpa Kert' and even been kicked out of a posh restaurant for mistaking it for a bar- (the funniest highlight). The next day we all woke in our beds around the city late in the afternoon but then managed to reunite for a lovely Hungarian meal later on that evening. Everett and myself took a stroll after dinner to the cool Gozsdu alley way which was full of unique bars with a lovely atmosphere. We stopped at 'Jardin Cocktail Bar-Vicky Barcelona' and had some of their delicious Sangria but we were so intrigued watchign the bar man make some fascinating cocktails behind the bar- it looked almost like a science experiment. Some of their cocktails included a popcorn cocktail and a cocktail served in a Camera.
​Overall, I couldnt have had a better experience in Budapest. I had new friends, old friends, experienced the ruin bars of Budapest, danced the night away, explored the historical city, tasted great food, discovered new and unique places whcih I would keep in mind for when I return. Im so thanful that my time in Budapest was a true success.

Along the way, many travellers told me to avoid Bratislava or at least only spend the day there. I spent one night/ 1 and a half days there and although I feel like this was indeed long enough- not because it is boring at all- but because It is very small and you can see and do a lot in a short time. Bratislava for me was one of the most beautfiul and quaint little medieval places I had seen so far. I always use these words to describe them because It is the most accuract description really. When i arrived to the bus station located in the centre of town, I walked throught the beautiful historical square by passing colourful trees, many statues and cute old buildings. I could barely take a few steps at a time without taking photos. It was so photogenic. I dropped off my bag at Wild Elephants hostel which was smack bang in the middle of the old town and had a lovely welcoming vibe- and an adoreable puppy there. I was just in time to join the Communism walking tour, which took us all around the old town and up to the grogeous castle overlooking the city, as well as describing the life of people here during the communism times. Our guide was a young student who was part Serbian and part Slovakian so she gave us a great insight into the differences between communism here and in Ex Yugoslavia from what her family had experienced. It was so interesting. On my way back I spotted the city tour which was starting by my hostel so i opted to join it. Three more hours- was I crazy? A third of the way through the tour, I opted to run away from the group and head back to the hostel- the guide was super annoying, over-rehearsed and irritating and I wanted to end on a high from my last tour. After the tour I went to a cafe in the old town for some craft beer and a vegan burger, before heading back to the hostel later on. Bratislava, the city in which the Iron curtain ended, was only a taste of Slovakia but I was so eager to see the rest of this small couuntry including the Tatras mountains which had been recommended to me. Unfortunatley, time was ticking and I needed to make my way to Budapest for some more reunions and events.

I was the most excited to get to Vienna, not juts because of the obvious fact that its an amazingly eye pleasing city with lots of culture and history but mainly because for the first time in years I would reunite with my old friend Dory. Arriving in Vienna, with no battery and no real meeting poimt, Dory and I struggled to find each other for almost three hours, despite this glitch in our plan making, we finally reunited and she welcomed me into her beautiful home and to this great city. The best thing about reuniting with people is that you always get to have a true unique non touristy experience, where you actually get to hang out with locals and do coolt things. Dory took me to her friends place where we had a beautiful dinner together prepared by her friends. We laughed and chatted all evening and I was so thankful to be where i was. During my time in Vienna, Dory took me to some of the most beautiful parts of the city, showing me not only, the beautiful palaces and museums but also her Harry Potter like University. We hung out with many groups of friends which gave me a chance to brush up on my German understanding skills, which i definitely need to work on, but also opened my eyes to how different the 'Austrian' German was to the 'German' German which I hadnt noticed before. I got to meet super interesting people on these nights out to the city, to her boyfriends movie night and during our group night in and during my free days, I explored the city and did some walking tours, as i do! Vienna was so captivating and so extraordinarily 'wealthy' looking, I think i could have spent at least a week there taking in the beauty and also the history- Hitler worked in Vienna, and the even showed us his office on the walking tour. Needless to say, they didnt continue too much into the history of Hitler, but having travelled the Balkans and hearing countless times about the Austro- Hungarian empire, the pieces of the historical puzzle were all fitting together nicely. I stayed in Vienna for three nights in which I saw and did plenty of diverse activities but theres no doubt that I will keep Vienna, and the rest of Austria in my future plans.

Prague was somwhere that in recent years had become a hit with western travellers especially for city breaks. It was now easy to go there for the weekend due to cheaper flights, more connections and it was affordable to stay there. It had also became very popular with stag and hen parties alike. For me however, I was here for the city itself, of course for the history, the food and definitely the famous Czech beer. I had taken an overnight bus from Krakow to Prague which got me there super early. I dropped my bag at Hostel Marrakesh which wasnt far out of the city, and headed off for a free wlaking tour (definitely the thing to do in Europe). The tour here was so bug it had to be divided into two groups and it lasted 3 hours, taking us all around the city and even to a restaurant for some beer and a break. The tour was great and our guide Katrina seemed to know a lot. She took us all over the city and explained fine details about things you wouldnt normally know. She talked about communism, Pragues velvet revolution amongst other topics which gave us all a great view on the cities former and present state. On the tour I met two lovely guys Mo from Mauritius and Pate from Oz, we hung out for the afternoon that day and the next day we explored Prague Castle together. That evening I came across a sign for Swan Lake on my way back home, I was just in time. I hurried back, changed and headed back to the theatre to tick this one of my bucket list. I had seen 'Die Fledermaus' in Riga and now 'Swan Lake' in Prague. Prague was such a beautiful city and I could definitely see why people visited. It was very affordable, the food was delicous and the sweet smell of Chimney Cakes sweeped through every street. We visited the famous Charles Bridge dotted with artists and musicians as well as a beautiful view of the city, we visited the John Lennon wall, super cool even if it was crowded with selfie driven Asian tourists and we explored many small windy alleys on both sides of the bridge. The architechture was beautiful but I couldnt help but think that even though I was there in low season, the city was full of people, I couldnt imagine it in summer time.

Arriving from Vilnius, I planned to spend the day exploring Warsaw before taking a bus to Krakow later on. The rain was pelting down the entire day but thank god for my preperation this trip, i didnt suffer too much. I walked an hour from the bus station to the centre of the city- because Im crazy and love to wlak when possible. I headed for the Museum of Jews in Poland where I was able to leave my bag, grab an audio guide and spend a few hours. I was due to catch a bus in the afternoon. I enjoyed my time in Warsaw so much that I even extended my bus two hours to have more time to explore. I spent at least two hours in the museum which was amazing and gave me such an insight into the history in Poland and the holocaust. After this I walked aroudn the city and had a delcious bowl of hot ramen and a glass of wine in the old town. The old town was very pretty apart from the rain. I had always heard people saying to avoid Warsaw and go to Krakow/Gdansk instead but I could have spent a second day there. Needless to say, I had a bus to catch and I was reuniting with my travel buddy Anthony again in Krakow. (Pronounced Krakov) 

When I got to Krakow it was pretty late so I wandered through the small cities parks and old town to find my hostel 'Hostel Benedykta'. It had been sold out so Anthony stayed at a different hostel for the first night. The next day I had my free breakfast, met Anthony and we headed out to explore the old town. We did the free wlaking tour but soon ran away out of boredom, but that didnt stop us from joinign the free Ghost Stories tour in the evening which proved to be so much better. The old town of Karakow was beautiful and was a lot bigger than that of Warsaw. We got our tickets to go to Auschwitz- Birkenau concentration camp the next day which both of us were eager to see. I recommend not buying from hostels, but instead buy from the kiosks by the square as its a lot cheaper. It wa sthat evening that i discovered an actual Pierogieria Restaurant serving all types of sweet and savoury 'pierogies' or Polish dumplings (first discovered in Manitoba, Canada in 2010, but originating from Poland/Ukraine). I think we went here two or three times during our stay in Krakow as it was such a charming restaurant with locals and tourists, it was cheap and the food was always so tasty.

The next day we took the tour to Auschwitz- Birkenau where we were guided around the concentration camp by a very good guide. She talked about the living conditions in the camps, brought us to different buildings and explained what each one was in detail and with such emotion that there was nothing but silence within our large group. We were in shock. Its one thing hearing about this camp during your lifetime through school, people talking, media etc but to come here and be surrounded by this unexplainable feeling was truly surreal and added so much to my journey through history. I had learned so much so far about war, communism, genocide, racism and now the holocaust. It was truly astounding.

The next day I was planning to leave to Prague, Czech Republic and onwards making my way to Budapest, Hungary eventually so it was time to say goodbye to Anthony and this great city of Krakow which taught me so much. I cant wait to go back again some day.