I’ve been in Madrid for 4 days, this October, with my girlfriend.

We found Pop Hostel  on HostelWorld.com.  We got convinced by the low price and the high rating( 77%) and we’ve booked a double room for three nights. 

We hoped more from this hostel, but we got exactly what our money’s worth.

My rating for Pop Hostel is 7 out of 10.

Pros:

• The staff was nice and helpful;
• The breakfast was decent: toast, butter, milk, cereals and coffee;
• Reasonable priced;
• The location is pretty good, there are a lot of  local restaurants and bars around;
• 15minutes walk to the city center, Puerta del Sol;
• 3 minutes to the nearest Subway station(Tribunal);
• Free WiFi. Even in our room;

Cons:

• It’s located next to a fish store and  the building hallway smells like fish so bad(not in the hostel though);
• The double room is small. The shower cabinet in the room was the smallest I’d ever seen;
• We did not have a feeling of cleanness;
• The hostel needs a general cleaning/uplifting;

Overall, it was good enough considering the money we payed. But, next time I’ll visit Madrid, I will search for a different hostel.

For more reviews on Pop Hostel, Madrid check HostelWorld.com.

Our experience with Tryp Diana Hotel was kind of limited:  check in, shower, sleep, check-out.  Our plane landed on Barajas Airport late at night(about 1.30 a.m.) and that’s why we decided to spent that night at a hotel near the airport. We’ve checked out at 10.00 a.m.

We booked with TripAdvisor.com only two days before our trip and we payed about 45Euros for a double room for one night.

My rate for Tryp Diana is 4 out of 5.

Pros:

• The reception staff was polite;
• It was very clean;
• The bed was really comfortable;
• We were picked from the airport by the hotel’s shuttle bus;
• There’s a 10minutes walk from the hotel to the nearest Subway Station( Alameda de Osuna )

Cons:

• The minibar was empty.  So if you wake up in the middle of the night and you’re thirsty, don’t panic, there are some vending machines in the hotel lobby,  next to the reception.
• The rooms need some uplifting(at least the room we stayed in).

One thing is for sure: this hotel definitely is not a four stars hotel.  Maybe it could have passed as a four stars hotel in the 80′s . But today, the correct qualification has to be a decent three stars.

In conclusion, if you stuck in Barajas between flights, you missed your connecting flight or your flight got cancelled and you need a reasonable priced hotel to spend the night,  Tryp Diana is the best choice.

For more reviews on Tryp Diana Hotel in Madrid check TripAdvisor.com.

The full article is here.

Find a few interesting facts about Bucegi Mountains.

This is were I spent this last weekend. Two full days of outdoor and fresh air.

I’ve finally met the Sphinx and the Babele, two megaliths, shaped entirely by the wind and the rain, that are the symbols of the Bucegi mountains.

These rocks are placed  on the Bucegi plateau, at an altitude of 2216m and only 10minutes walk from each other.

Ascending

You can get on the plateau from Buşteni(two hours drive from Bucharest). You can choose to go up with the cable car, or if you feel up to it, by foot, coming through Valea Jepilor (Juniper Valley) ( about 1300m  of climb).

The Omu Peak

From the Sphinx you’re only two hours away from the highest peak of these mountains: Omu Peak, 2507m.  It’s a medium climb, no gear necessary, only decent boots.

The view along this route is just outstanding and once you get to the top, you’ll find Omu chalet, where you can reward yourself with a hot delicious soup. The secret of this soup is that you’ll be so hungry that everything will seem the best.

Descending

From Omu Peak there are different routes to descend. At least three I think. We chose to descend through a glacier bucket.

This bucket is a well known place were you can spot  black goats.  We were lucky enough to spot more tha a few.

We spent the night at Malaiesti chalet,  located  just at the bottom of the glacier bucket(about 1700m), no more than 3hours from Omu Peak.

From Malaiesti there’s a 5hours descending route , through the forest, down to Gura Diham. And from there, you can take a bus for 5km to get back to Buşteni.

If you love the mountain and never been to Bucegi National Park, start planning your trip right now!

Check the entire Bucegi mountains gallery.

The tip: Don’t confuse Venezia Santa Lucia with Venezia Mestre.

Back in 2006, in Venice, I met Paris Hilton. I was with my friend Iulian(half way our Interrail Adventure) and Paris was with a girl friend and a bunch of bodyguards. The meeting took place in Piazza San Marco.

Unfortunately, she didn’t notice us, but we sure did notice her )). And managed to capture a few pics, too.

Bonus:

After a few years, going through these photos with some friends, I’ve found out that the girl next to Paris was no other than Kim Kardashian.   How cool is that? Too bad that Kim has her eyes closed in the photo.

Advice:

Get your Interrail Pass, jump on the first train and go to Venice! If you will not meet Paris Hilton you can comfort yourself by discovering one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

We found this hostel on our first train trip around Europe( The InterRail Adventure), back in 2006.  Budapest was the first stop. Keleti train station.

Here is also where we first found out about the Tourist Information Desk.  We picked Hungaria GuestHouse from a long list of hostels. The guy at the desk called the hostel and we were all set.

We booked for 2nights, only 12Euros per night.

Every year, if I happen to pass through Budapest, I always stop at Hungaria Guesthouse for at least one night.

I recommend this hostel with full confidence. It’s perfect for couples and small groups. The staff is friendly, it’s clean, it’s real quiet and affordable.

Check Hungaria Guesthouse‘s website for more details and up to date accommodation prices.

We got off the train(  Keleti train station ), we went to the “Tourist Information” desk and booked for two nights at Hungaria GuestHouse hostel, just a few blocks from the train station.  It was the perfect hostel: clean, quiet, friendly staff and only 12.5 Euros per night.

Two days are barely enough to see Budapest.  To get the best experience here’s my Budapest Sightseeing Guide:

• start with a  stroll along the Danube embankment;
• walk over at least three bridges across the Danube;
• cross the Chain Bridge to Adam Clark Square , take the Castle Hill Funicular and visit the Royal Castle(Buda Castle);
• climb the Gellért Hill to the Citadella and enjoy the view(available down both directions of the Danube);
• after many hours of sightseeing, stop somewhere in the historical downtown and try a good Hungarian beer;
• visit the most beautiful public buildings: the House of Parliament, St. Stephen’s Basilica, Hungarian National Museum;
• stroll along  Andrássy Avenue and stop to rest when you get to Heroes’ Square;
• if your hungry, you absolutely must try the famous Hungarian goulash;
• if your tired, on your way back to the hostel, travel with the metro under the Danube;

Me and my friend managed to do all this in just two days.  22 and 23 October 2006. 

Go and discover Budapest. Be amazed by the greatness of it’s buildings and their extraordinary architecture.

An interesting fact is that in those few days, in Budapest were a series of anti-government protests. On the streets were hundreds of demonstrators. We passed by a few groups, but they were all peaceful. We even took some pictures…

This photo was taken in front of the House of Parliament, during a protest.

Here’s few Budapest photos from our trip.

Whatever city your in(touristic city, capital), you can find a Tourist Information Desk in the train station, the airport or the touristic center.

Just look for the sign with the letter “i“.

If you’re planning a travel adventure that includes visiting a few places, surely you don’t want to be limited or conditioned  by some hostel bookings.  Maybe you don’t have a fix itinerary.  For example, after two days in Prague, you realize you haven’t had time to see everything you wanted.  So you can decide to stay another day or two.   This would be complicated if you have  a booking in Bratislava for the next night and another booking in Budapest after 3 days…

And where to go after Prague?  Kraków or Bratislava?  IT’S UP TO YOU!

Either way, you know you’ll  find a Tourist Information Desk with good accommodation offers, maps and everything.

Important notice:   The Tourist Information opening time is somewhere between 08.30/09.00 to 19.30/20.00 .   So, if you’re too late or too early(especially if you travel by train) a laptop would come in handy. You can always go online and find accommodation. Free WiFi at any McDonald’s  or KFC.