Book Review: Travels

Travels by Michael Crichton is a little known auto-biography composed of stories about medicine, travel, and pseudo-science. Mr. Crichton started life as a medical student, but quit medicine to pursue his writing/producing career in Hollywood. As his career peaks, he decides that he needs to make some changes in his life. These changes encompass expanding his world-view in terms of people, places, and ideas. He starts to travel to remote parts of the globe including Africa, Nepal, Jamaica, etc. Like many travelers, Mr. Crichton's adventures challenge him in new ways that he couldn't experience at home.

While the pseudo-science chapters often seem kind of silly, I respect Mr. Crichton for approaching new ideas head-on. He channels spirits, meets Tarot card readers, and sleeps in the desert with a cactus. He clearly takes these alternative views seriously, but it is hard to come to the same conclusions he does. See a Q&A with Mr. Crichton on his website, here.

Book Review: Do Travel Writers Go To Hell?

I initially noticed this book in the travel section of the Harvard Co-op, and I'll admit the title intrigued me. I started reading the first chapter, and the idea of a playboy travel writer sounded like fun. I didn't finish the chapter, but I made a note of the book in my iPhone to get a copy. I purchased the book, and after receiving it, read it the next day, cover-to-cover. Through the first chapter, I really didn't care for the writer; the stories of public drunkenness, fist fights, and heavy drug use didn't seem all that glamorous. I really couldn't relate. Once the author ditched his job, his girlfriend, his mundane life for backpacking in South America, I was hooked. The stories of embracing life as an adventure, whatever may come, makes any working stiff's life seem like Bill Murray in Ground Hog day where he wakes up to the same nightmare over and over and over... I thought the writers observations about budget travelers and hostelling were right on the money, and it was clear he was trying hard to maintain his professionalism in the face of impossible demands. One of the biggest disappointments I came away with from this book was that Lonely Planet has to trade up to the mainstream hotel/resort travel market to be successful. The mainstream travel market is inundated with poseurs hawking resorts, cruises, and weekend getaways that aren't about discovering new people, cultures, and ideas, but are more about insulating people from new experiences. The moment you step outside of your comfort zone (your milieu), you learn something new about the world and yourself.

Hostel Review: Snuffel Backpacker Hostel [Bruges, Belgium]

I visited Bruges in late March of last year, and came away with a love for Belgian beer and waffles. Bruges is a beautiful old city with canals running throughout the city. The Snuffel Backpacker hostel a short distance outside the central square, I reached by walking down a narrow path along a canal that felt like a fairy tale. (see picture) The hostel like a neighborhood dive bar, was filled with more character than amenities. You take a spiral staircase from the first floor upto the dorm rooms, which surround a common area with big lockers. My room was in the back of another room on the second floor, and was relatively small with only 3 bunk beds sleeping 6 people. Unfortunately, the hostel only had one bathroom on my floor, and the bathrooms showers weren't great. Although, I found people in the hostel friendly, freely chatting in the lounge downstairs and around the lockers upstairs. At night the lounge became a local bar with cheap drinks and a cool vibe. The bar had a great selection of Belgian beers, and it was there that I fell in love with the doubles, triples, and quadrupels for which they are so famous.



After returning from this trip, I discovered "The Monk's Cell" at "The Publick House" restaurant in the Brookline neighborhood of Boston. This bar captures the vibe of the Snuffel Backpacker Hostel bar and having a Belgian beer at this bar allows me to relive the time I spent in Bruges.

Website Review: Hostel Management

Hostel Management
http://www.hostelmanagement.com

HostelManagement.com has an interesting look at the business of running a hostel. I was intrigued to read about people who had started hostels. Check out this interview with a hostel owner in Silverton, CO who turned a poorly managed hostel into a thriving business. I have only ever stayed at one hostel where I recognize the problems this guy was having. The Key West hostel had many drifters, and a guy was arrested in my dorm for drug posession one night. (I slept through it due to my ear plugs :) Keep posted for my hostel review of this dive.

They also include a great News section about new hostels, contests, and related travel news. This article suggests there is going to be a new hostel opening on the cape!

Hostel Review: Eastener Hostel [Berlin, Germany]

Eastener hostel is a small, inexpensive hostel with a kitchen and friendly atmosphere in Eastern Berlin. My room was smaller than the others, and luckily I had it all to myself during the week. The hostel also includes a public PC, kitchen, and there is a grocery store nearby. It was within walking distance of bars and cool music clubs. I saw a cool punk band at one bar, and a local tourist pub crawl came through the bar. Another band did a cover of Michael Jackson, something I have almost never seen in the US. A number of the bars/clubs were located in cool underground vaults and offered plenty of cheap beers. I was amazed when I walked in late to one of the shows, and they actually cut the cover charge in half. The eastern part of the city had a cool, young vibe, and I also stayed later at "The Circus" Hostel in Berlin.

Note: I visited this hostel in April 2007

Hostel Review: Bull Dog Hostel [Amsterdam, Netherlands]

The Bull Dog Hostel also affiliated with the Bull Dog "Coffee Shop", is the most commercial and character-less hostel I have ever stayed at. It is located in the Red-light district, convenient for tourists looking to take part in the vices of Amsterdam. I went to see a Jazz band playing in the Red-light district, but I turned out to be one of the only 5 people who showed up. I also went to see a show at Paradiso, which featured an opening rock band that was cool. There was some loud dance stuff playing after that, so I left early. I attended a film screening at the new Amsterdam concert hall that offered free drinks and h'ordeurves. I think it was a restored silent film, but the introduction was all read in Dutch. Luckily the film was captioned in English. I loaded up on free drinks, which was an awesome deal.

Hostel Review: Flying Pig Beach Hostel [Noordwijk, Netherlands]

I arrived at the Flying Pig Beach hostel over Easter Weekend, since the Amsterdam hostels were full. It's location also offered a quick trip to see the beautiful tulips that were blooming. The hostel was close to the boardwalk and the beach, and the hostel bar offered a great happy hour deal. The hostel had a very friendly atmosphere and contained a small kitchen for cooking while also offering a free breakfast. The hostel was small and didn't have many bathrooms, but had a certain gritty charm. The hostel was accessible by bus from Leiden, but wasn't exactly an easy find.

Hostel Review: Wombat's Hostel [Vienna, Austria]

Wombat's Vienna Hostel
I learned about the wombat's hostel from a Top 10 list of hostels on Hostelworld. This hostel was one of the nicest and cleanest hostels I have ever stayed in. It felt new and clean, and the rooms were large with accompanying bathrooms. I traveled there probably in the summer of 2003 or 2004, after visiting Venice. The hostel was kind of out of the way, but convenient to get to tourist destinations. I enjoyed Schonbrun castle and the musical film festival they held. Vienna was a nice city, but I wouldn't put on a top ten list. The hostel had a bar and outdoor lounge, but I don't recall a kitchen.

City Review: Las Vegas

Don't bother; crass to the extreme.

Hostel Review: Cat's Hostel - Madrid

Cat's Hostel in Madrid is one of the most beautiful hostels I have stayed in. It isn't much to look at from the street, but inside is a 17th century palace with a great courtyard and mosaics. It is located within a few blocks of the subway, and it is within easy walking distance to a grocery store. The hostel also includes a bar in the basement which hosts local music groups. They had a cheap payaya night that was very tasty, and they served a free continental breakfast when I was there. They also offered a beer vending machine but no kitchen. The hostel had 3 computers with internet access that were often in use, but there was also free wifi in the hostel.

I think the biggest drawback to this hostel was the small room size, and I would recommend getting a room with the fewest possible number of beds. The beds were about 2 feet apart, and my room contained a snorer as usual.

The Vineyard [Martha's Vineyard, MA]

I spent Labor Day weekend on "The Vineyard" for a very reasonable sum.
Approximate expenses:
$64 - round-trip bus and ferry from Boston's South Station subway stop to Vineyard Haven [town on the island].
$15 - 3 day bus pass on the island
$25 - groceries of sandwiches and salmon steaks
$86 - 3 nights at the hostel [w/ $25 off coupon]
$11 - dinner and liquor in Wood's hole

I left Boston on the 3 pm Bonanza bus. You can just buy the tickets at the bus terminal before you leave and I think the buses leave about every hour or so. The traffic was pretty bad so we missed the 5 pm ferry. We arrived early for the 6:15 ferry, so I stopped at the burger restaurant and liquor store around the corner. I bought a $5 burger and a Bacardi and Dr. Pepper. On the island I caught the bus to Edgartown and loaded up on groceries at the Stop 'N Shop. I then headed over to the hostel in West Tisbury [bus from Church St. in Edgartown]

I relaxed at the hostel and cooked my salmon steaks in the kitchen oven. They came out great and cost less than the lunch meat I bought. The hostel also had a smore's cookout, and I roasted up some marshmallows with graham crackers and chocolate.

On Saturday, it rained most of the day, so I hung out in the hostel reading an Agatha Christie novel. I don't think I have ever read an entire one all the way through. It was ok, but it seemed geared towards old people. I then went out to Oak Bluffs and had a few drinks. I ran into some fellow Texans at the bar who were playing dominoes in the lounge. Weird.

I met Jacob, a guy from Montreal on the bus back to the hostel, and we hung out with two french girls the next day at Aquinnah. That didn't work out as well as I had hoped since I didn't know any French. I got a medium burn in all the places I didn't put suntan lotion, but it wasn't too bad.

I caught the ferry back on Monday, which was pretty uneventful. (other than me finishing the murder mystery ;)

I found on the web that there is another bus company that goes to the ferry for Nantucket and futher up Cape Cod. [Plymouth & Brockton Street Railway http://www.p-b.com ] I'd like to check out some more of those hostels. [http://www.capecodhostels.org]

I think my next travel adventure will be to Montreal.

Note: this hostel has 2 free computers and free wifi.