The last five days

Five days. Only five. I can't believe that I have been travelling for 41 days all over Europe. I am glad I chose

this tour though. I have meet some amazing people and found out a lot more about myself along the way.
Lauterbrunnan is one of the most beautiful places in the world that I have been to date. Our campsite was set in the Alps at the basin of a series of mountains and waterfalls. The grounds were lushly green and the mountains rose up like giants around us. It was unquestionably inspiring.
We had been given upgrades into cabins while we were there so we had warmth to return to at the end of the day.
Our full day in the Alps was my favourite free day. A group of us did the Murren Loop. We walked into town, stopping to squeal and ooh and aah over the cows in the fields because they all had cow bells on, all of them chiming. We then caught a very fast moving gondola up to the top of the ridge, around 900 metres up. From there we had the choice to walk or to catch the tram. I wanted to walk as did Sam and Amber so we struck out on our own. It was a bit misty but we could still see a few of the sights. It took us an hour and 20 minutes to walk the ridge and when we reached the the town of Murren it was a ghost town. From 12 noon to 3pm they shut all the shops and cafes and restaurants. Nothing is open. And when we walked through the town there was only a handful of people on the streets and a thick fog rolling in. It was something out of a horror movie. I kept expecting a crazy Swiss man to come running down the

mountain with an axe yodelling. At the other end of the town is another gondola so we caught that one down. It moved just as fast only going down and it was a little disconcerting when it started to swing madly between rungs. We even met up with Marika, William, Josh and Nicole on the way down. When we got to the bottom of the mountain we walked back along towards Trummelbachfalles. It was a series of 11 waterfalls inside a mountain.
The waterfalls were great. We caught a rickety old lift up inside the mountain and then walked up the rest, looking at the waterfalls as we went. I have never seen anything like it. When you think that the waterfalls and caverns have formed over thousands and thousands of years, dug out from persistent waters, it is awe-worthy.
After the waterfalls, the others, except for Sam and Amber, caught a bus back, but we walked back to the campsite. I couldn't get enough of the countryside and wanted to spend as much time as I could in it.

The next day we were off again to our second of last stop. Heidelberg. We got into the town in the afternoon and had a couple of hours where I went for a walk up to the castle. It was a steep hill to get up there and we couldn't even go inside the castle, but we could see the grounds. Not to mention the views from up at the castle were fantastic. Back at the bottom I had a look in a few touristy shops before finding the most yummy icecream and sorbet shop. Mmmmm. Sorbet. We got to the campsite and I upgraded to a cabin. I had made the call to stop tents at this point. I am sick of being cold and damp and tired so cabin it was.
The next morning we were up again, bright and early, heading to our final destination of Amsterdam. We

made one brief stop at a town called St Goa on the Rhine River where I bought a stein. It is a limited edition one, stamped and with a certificate and I am treating it as an heirloom and art piece. When I saw it I instantly liked it and it was easy to spend the money. I also got to see the largest free-standing cuckoo clock in the world.
Then we were in Amsterdam. I upgraded to a caravan with Will, Marika, Felicity, Marissa and Ella. Best decision ever. It rained the entire time we were there and it was freezing when we were all wet and damp.
Our full day in Amsterdam started out with a bike ride in Edam. I was not impressed at all. It had been drizzly all morning and by the time we arrived in Edam it was pouring with rain. It should have been cancelled, but no, they went a head with it. I, at least, had my waterproof pants and jacket so I was mostly dry. Others weren't so lucky.
We piled back on the bus and went into the city. Where it rained all day.
The others were all heading off to Anne Franks house so I headed off down the shopping street, my goal to find warm dry places to stay for the day. I didn't actually do much in Amsterdam. I found an exhibition of reproductions of Rembrandts art works. I got to see all 300 pieces in one place which was cool. Next I found a cafe and had a hot chocolate and a cookie. It was one of those places where the locals hang out so it was cheap and warm and dry and tasty. The last thing that I did was go to the sex museum. It was quite funny. Not like the one in Prague where it was more gadgets and toys. This one was more photos and statues. Some of them were quite funny. There was one of a hooker whaking off a guy on a street corner. It is all done with robots and the guy is making the most hillarious sounds. There is another one that you hear first. He goes 'Pssst, hey you' and when you look over to see what it is, this robot opens his coat and flashes you. One the way up the stairs is a series of boobs and bum moulds and when you pass one of them it farts and then there is this mad chuckling.
We all went out for dinner that evening, our last night, and after that about half of us headed into town for  drinks and a dance. It was a great way to end the tour. We didn't get back in till around 3am and then we had to get up at 5.30am.
I was so tired for the whole trip back to London and it was sad to say goodbye to everyone. We have been living in each others space for a month and a half. That is a long time. Last night I slept for 12 hours. I woke up three times trying to figure out where I was. It is going to take a while to get back to normal I think.