Madrid, Spain (Europe)

Hi, this was the 17th of 34 countries in the World tour and the last stop before I go home from the around the world ticket . The first time I was here I was with my dad in Lloret de Mar and we went to Barcelona. This time I was in the capital city, Madrid.

My shuttle was booked for 5:55am to take me to the airport for the 8:55am flight from Los Angeles to Chicago. Of course I got up late and the reception rung my phone at 6:30am so I run around packing everything in my suitcase as I intended to stay up and pack my things but fell asleep. Half of my clothes were in the wardrobe and I totally forgot them so when I got to Chicago I rung the Hilton Hotel in Universal City in Los Angeles and they said they would only send it to England with Fed Ex which would cost about £120. When I asked them just to box it up and send it in the normal post they refused. I told them where to go, I left nothing valuable which was good and I could buy a whole new set of clothes with what they wanted.

I got to Madrid, Spain at 7am and in the airport looked for the ticket desk for Iberia airlines. I found it and booked tickets to Lisbon, Portugal and Copenhagen, Denmark. I also booked hotels for one night in both locations, I booked the same hotel as I had been in before in Lisbon but a different hotel in Copenhagen. For the rest of the day I had a walk around the city looking in shops and looking at places I could go the following day. After all this I got back to the hotel and went to sleep as I had not had any sleep for a day at least.

On Wednesday I went around the city seeing the various buildings in the city using the metro to get about and that was about it really. I noticed a lot of prostitutes and offered me there services which I politely refused.

On Thursday I went to the Santiago Bernabeu stadium which is the home of Real Madrid. Tour tour allowed in different stands of the stadium, in the dugouts and in the visiting teams dressing room. The stadium was easy to get to as the metro took you right outside the stadium.

After this I went to Lisbon, Portugal and Copenhagen, Denmark to revisit and over the next 2 weeks I will be trying to arrange a day trip to Amsterdam, Netherlands and a night in Tallinn, Estonia. As well as that I will have 2 night breaks in Edinburgh, Scotland and Cardiff, Wales. In between will be Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and I will end it all in Cayo Guillermo, Cuba and hopefully I can get on the Access course for next year at my local college. Still a lot to do and keep myself occupied with.

26 Cities in 16 Countries in 4 Continents
21 Flights and 40,500 Miles Flown on 8 Airlines
1 Man around the World in 68 days

Next will be Edinburgh, Scotland for 2 nights on the 14th March 2008.

Take care.

Robert

Copenhagen, Denmark (Europe)

Hi, this was the 12th country in the 34 country World tour. I went here the day after Julie Lambert's leaving do but unlike Lisbon and the Sound of Music singalong I managed to get out of bed the morning after. Must of been all the singing.

I managed to book a cheap hotel next to the Central Railway Station and I was very lucky as when I arrived the hotel was turning people away as they were fully booked. The first thing I did was go to the tourist information centre to book a tour and it was closed. They shut at 4pm, they must think nobody arrives after 4pm. As they were shut and it was getting dark I decided to head back to the hotel for some sleep and get up early and try to get around as many places as I can with the time I had left.

I woke up at 6am and had my breakfast in the hotel as it was included in the price. The first place I went to was the City Square and the City Hall. Then on to Tivoli Gardens where I remember I had lots of fun the last time I was in Copenhagen going on all the rides. Unfortunately I went when it was out of season and it will not open back up until the 17th April 2008. Next thing I did was go to the train station and get a 24 hour S-Train ticket so I can go where ever I want. I took the train to Osterport Station and walked the Little Mermaid statue which comes from the Little Mermaid book written by the Danish author Hans C. Andersen. I then walked down to the Amalienborg Palace which is made up of 4 palaces and is like the Buckingham Palace of Denmark. I walked from there to the side of the water to look at the Opera House which was a gift from the largest container ship operator in the World, Maersk. After that I walked to the Rosenborg Castle which is like the Tower of London as it is a museum and holds the crown jewels. After that I jumped on the train and went to Enghave Station which is next to the Carlsberg Brewery. I took pictures of the stone elephants and walked around the outside. Then I got back on the train and went back to Copenhagen Central Station and walked up to Christiansborg Palace which is owned by the state and is the only building in the World to hold the 3 supreme powers, legislative, executive and judicial.

After running about I then got the train back to the airport and went back to Madrid. There is no pictures as I forgot my camera and took all my pictures on a disposable camera. If I have worked with you I will of sent plenty of pictures around before.

Take care.

Robert