9/19: The trip home

Today was a good day. A lot of driving, but a lot of excitement as well. Prague was tons of fun. Props to Bombay, which was my night club of choice. Two nights of fun there on a Sunday and Monday. Not too bad. We took off fairly early this morning, and I didn't enjoy the bus ride as much as I did in the past. But Nurnberg was pretty neat. It was Bavarian and had cool streets and great views. They gave us a really good lunch there too. I didn't get to see too much of Munich, but dinner was awesome. Dinner was the exact same as lunch: pork and potatoes. We were a little upset at first because we kind of felt like they were trying to steer us away from Octoberfest. But pretty much everyone on the trip bought a couple beers (i got 3) and we all hung out in the huge dining hall. The Germans go for both quality and quantity with their beer. Great beer in beer steins that are so big that they hurt your arm when you drink them. It was fun just to kick it with everyone before we took off for Florence. Things got pretty crazy, and there was a lot of cheering. Burke even stood before us and said some stuff in German and did a cheers. He was in prime form, just flat-out being the man. I got him to tell me a few good stories about Granddad.
Then we headed to the train station. Here's where things got a little exciting. A bunch of us had to use the bathroom pretty bad, but as usual, it was a toll bathroom at the station. One full Euro. With my huge pack on and all, I decided to jump over the gate and go straight in. The Garman lady came after me and demanded the fee. I gave her about 30 Eurocent that I had scrounged up from girls. A few of my buddies and I decided it would be the best idea to make the most out of our expensive bathroom break. I had my entire cosmetic bag with me, so we brushed our teeth and washed our faces with Proactive (both phases). I then shaved. I'm pretty sure the lady wasn't happy, but we had time to kill and wanted to get our money's worth.
The train ride's kinda cool. It's a random coachette, with five dudes and one girl. But it's comfy and I'm tired.
On another note, last night on my way home from Club Bombay, I came across a hedgehog. It just curled up in a ball when I approached it, so I spent some time petting it. I can add it to my interesting wildlife list along with the dog with glasses I saw in Krakow.
The ratio of girls to guys is over 2:1, which at first seems really cool. But at times, it can be a little overwhelming. I feel bad for the girls because they don't have as much to choose from. But I can't complain too much. It's been a blast so far and I can't wait to get to Florence.
Lowlights of Opening Tour

• Culture shock
• Long bus rides
• Food wasn't so good
• Dude got murdered in our hostel
• Paying to pee

Highlights of Opening Tour

• Krakow
• So many new friends already
• Kabobs
• Pilsner Urquell
• Way too many jokes and memories to list