This one time when I was in Europe...

This one time in Europe...I rode the trams and buses basically for free since no one is around to check if you have a ticket or not. Every once in a while Erica and I would pick up a ticket just because they were around $1 each and the fine was 500-1000 Euros (so the book claimed). NOT worth it. While we were in Budapest on our way back to our hostel from the Hungarian baths, we took the underground metro and decided to bypass the buying a ticket stage. Our stop was Deak Ferenc Ter. Let me quote my travel book here, "...while it may seem easy just to jump on for the ride without paying, be careful...inspectors in red armbands prowl the Deak Ferenc Ter metro stop in particular, and are especially likely to stop tourists." Are we stupid, or what? Yes, the inspectors in red armbands were there. So we dodged them in a very strategic manner. Woah, close. Little did I know this is a multi-tram stop so there were more. My heart starts racing again and Erica is saying 'Well, if we get a ticket, we just don't pay it and leave the country...' What am I supposed to say to that? We head back down stairs since the inspectors won't check tickets on the way down or so we hope (my heart is beating so hard I think I'm going to have a heart attack). We get to the same metro we were at before and ride it to the next stop hoping and praying that there won't be inspectors at this one. Sometimes they wait at the top of the escalator so my heart is thumping all the way up...yaya we get outside with no ticket. I survive with no heart attack!



This one time in Europe...I had the map. Now, to anyone who knows me semi-well, you'd know this means getting lost, walking in circles, etc. That is exactly what we do. At times we walk so far before Erica looks at the map that we have to ask for directions. Here is a picture of erica attempting to break the language barrier and ask for directions from a cab driver in the middle of Pest...




This one time in Europe...I bathed. So my general body hygiene upkeep has been at an all time high the whole time I've been here. Amazingly enough I can't rub dirt off me. This never happens. So towards the beginning of our trip Erica (she is not one to brag about personal hygiene either) says, "Should we shower today?" and my immediate response was, "Didn't we just do that yesterday?" As if even the thought of showering two days in a row is unheard of. She agreed and we didn't shower.


This one time in Europe...I sat down to have a meal with Erica on the Bosphorus river on a rooftop restaurant. We were having a lovely conversation when a man sat down at our table and started bragging about how much money he had. Of course, I am gullable and believe any story told to me, so he is going on and on about all his wonderful, expensive travels and I am inthralled. Next thing I know, he turns out to be a little cookoo. Fine. He gets up and another guy sits down claiming to be the owner of the restaurant. His friend/employee sits down and starts hitting on Erica. This guy was creepy, both were. But the guy (the one who claims to own the restaurant) asks me if Erica is wild and I sarcastically go along with it. Then he asks if she is permiscuious (sp?) and I immediately shut him down and am disgusted. CREEPY TURKISH MEN. They were everywhere. Erica immediately turns down their offer to go out on their yacht for the night...we pay for our dinner and get the hell out of there.


This one time in Europe...I forgot to pack my swimsuit. A turkish bath was on my agenda but I always assumed no one wore clothes. This does occasionally happened and it happened with Erica and I. Talk about awkward...I just kept my eyes close until the end. This is what the room looks like before the naked massage:



And this is sort of how it is when you are getting massaged. Of course these are not photos of me, but ones that I found off the internet...not only did I not have clothes on, but also no camera.



This one time in Europe...Erica and I wanted to explore the circular thing at the Hungarian bath. So we make our way over to it, little did we know there was such a strong current. How those children got in and out of that thing is beyond me since Erica couldn't get in, I had to pull her has she rammed her body into the wall then we both couldn't get out...