Epilogue

When we last joined our hero, he was enjoying Berlin getting ready to leave Germany for home, and finish his Langan Adventure once and for all!

Well, it's all over, I guess. I'm back in england now, and everything's a little like a weird dream, A place I sort of remember...and love! It's really good to be back home, I've been dieing to get back for a bit. I've been home about 4 days now.
Looking back at the whole trip...It really was the best thing I've ever done. I couldn't recommend it more, the whole experience of saving, planning and then going (and also coming back!) is such an experience, you really can't get it anywhere else. repeat. you can't get it anywhere else!
I didn't go for as long as some people, I didn't come back especially changed. So it's not like I'm enlightened or anything. But its just so worthwhile living a life where you jump from exciting amazing place at will, money in your pocket doing what you want, where you want. I mean, it really is the whole world at your feet and if you have enough of the green, you can do whatever, whenever. And that's an exciting concept. If you have the sand you can stick with it and save and get out there. I definitely have the bug now, there are so many places I want to go, south america, the middle east, the united states, europe...
I guess I really feel traveling is more of a way of life than anything else...once you get settled into something like that it just IS a way of life! You meet so many great people, do so many great things...I mean, it's not all good. Mostly it's mixed, you know, loving some things and hating others, just like the people you meet!
So now I'm settling down, doing bits and pieces, unpacking, seeing friends. Getting ready for uni, that's the next big thing. and learning how to drive! I hope I see anyone reading this soon, I've missed a lot of people.
Anyhoo, Its been great, and these blogs have been a real statue in my travels, a place I can record thoughts and feelings. So I hope you've enjoyed reading them, and I hope people who've been reading them maybe have thought about going traveling themselves, lifes too short NOT to do something like this.
So thankyou all for joining me on my Langan Adventure, it's been real.

Laurence Langan

14th May 08

Berlin, Loving Europe and missing home (or am I?)

When we last joined our hero, he was in Prague leaving for Berlin, and but a week away from the end of his magnificent Langan Adventure...

First off, I think I love Berlin as much if not more than Prague. We're staying in this fun and convinent little hostel in the east, right outside the tube. Graffitti ranging from gang tags to gigantic muriels adorn the streets, and the more you get into Berlin the more you see how varied it is. Some places are a concrete urban nightmare, others gothic masterpieces, others plastic and glass buisness goliaths and others brutal reminders of a deeply disturbing history...
Plenty to do as a tourist. We saw bits of the Wall, the reichstag, checkpoint charlie, museums, galleries, climbed a huge tower...its really interesting to see up high which used to be east and which used to be west. Its clear thanks to the concrete blocks juttinmg out of the eastern landscape.
The city feels cultured like prague just deeper. More complex. The tube is larger, but just as easy to get round, plenty of places to shop too! Methinks joe would like this arty city.
Me and sam found on our second night the best bar ever, part 70's shiek part leftovers of east berlin, th eplace is warm and friendly serving lots of beer and absinthe. Great city.
Dad got in yesterday! I feel I'm settling back into family life (and british life) already! Tonight we went to the Opera! The Magic Flute, no less!
Europe is a wonderful place, its cemented in my 'places I want to come back to' list. Apart from the fact we've been eating out of lidyl till dad got here, its been great!
It's just now...well tommorow I'm coming home. Back in India I couldn't wait later on in Europe I could have waited longer, and now I just don't know. Do I want to get back to the comforts of home? But I love this life so much! But its full of stres, and those comforts get dull and old real quick...but its normal and theres money and stability, not to mention comic books...and GTA4!
Tonight I feel like its a little bit of lose-lose, win-win. I'm tired. Sigh. But I also feel like I've fulfilled all the places I want to go travelling for now...obviously theres still hundreds of places Iw ant to go, but for now I'm ready to settle...or am I? I heard a couple of times that coming home was the hardest part, but not in the way I expected!
I think I just want to get it over with, whatever. Let tommorow rush past, and be home in time for breakfast. and my own bed. Which has got a fair amount fo use from cath and her friends, I hope all have vacated by the time I get back. (Hint hint, cath cath, clean clean, my room room)
Tommorow is relaxing by a lake just outside of Berlin. Our flights in the evening, we'll be beack super early in the morning and the next day...perhaps my final blog!
Oh and for those less clever than me, or those to busy playing GTA4 (or medal of honour apparentley, Joe you have a funny way for compensating for a lack of next gen...) there IS a NEW DARK KNIGHT TRAILER online, you would be fools to miss it. Not to mention an awesome incredible hulk second trailer too! (the first one also kicks ass). I'll be seeing you all very soon!!!!!

Partying, accomadation shrinkage and a new langan

When we last joined our hero, he was in Prague, getting ready to sample it's famous nightlife...

Well...they weren't far off about the nightlife! Prague really has something for every party hound. In the nights I've been here I've had some fun, albeit expensive, nights. Pub Crawls are essential, the great thing about a pub crawl is its an automatic group of friends to all go out and party with! Especially since there always offering you free beer and free shots and free absinth...slight headache this morning. Wonder why. Anyhoo, the clubs are a lot of fun too, if your into that sort of thing, I visited a heavy dancehall club, which was a fun experience, ad a club with 5 (yes 5!) floors, with music ranging from trance to r and b and of course the inevitable cheese room (doing a conga lineto Kiss by prince was a highlight). I'd love to come back to prague someday, just as long as I know I won't come back with any money, since that's how Its starting to look like over this end! Europe is very expensive, but money is there to be spent. Just not on presents for anyone at home...
I've had culture to, though! the visit to the dali/mucha museum was great, exactly what I came to europe for! Museums too, the national one and the torture museum and er...the sex machines museum. They'll be getting my therapy bills...just don't ask me about the ever changing fetish slideshow.
I saw as well the awesome film, Iron Man. it was at something called a 'cine party' which meant afterwards you had robotic dancers and a competition to build the best iron man suit out of cardboard and dressing up materials in one minute. not to mention free KFC and beer.
Accomadation has gotten a little crazy, when we got here places right in the centre were completley free and easy, we werehaving no problems. Now out of nowhere, its not just Prague that's completley booked up, it's thewhole of europe! which is unfrotanate because we've decided to go on to Berlin which could prove to be slightly more costly...
But that's not too important, because a great plus of going to Berlin is we're going to meet up with our dad for the last couple of days of our trip! yay! so tonight it's off to germany, and eactly one week today we'll be off to Britain! Tally Ho!