There are two things that I like to do very much. I like to write and I love to travel. My writing allows me to share my stories and my travelling provides me with learning experiences.
It has been difficult to make many of the decisions I have had to make to leave my small First Nation community and head out into the world. I had to be strong and I had to fight for what I wanted to do. It was not easy, as most of my family and friends did not understand why I would want to head out into the world and start a new life. I had been brought up with a fear of leaving the community and travelling to distant places. However, I knew from a young age, after reading many books, that I wanted to travel and see the world. I encourage young First Nation people like me to get out there and learn as much as they can about the world. It is exciting and beneficial to discover new cultures and places.
It is not that difficult to travel and it is not dangerous. The most dangerous part of my trip was the journey by car from Northern Ontario to Toronto on the icy highway which was very busy with transport truck traffic. You need to get a passport which can be obtained by filling out a form that you can pick up at your nearest post office. You need to save enough money for a trip. If you want to go to Europe for a month you would need about a $1,000 for a return trip by air. If you are travelling by train or bus in Europe you can go to many different places in two weeks or a month. You would need about $2,000 for a month for hostels and food.
At the moment, as I am writing this, I am travelling in Germany. Germany is a very easy country to travel in because many people are able to speak English. Their currency is based on the Euro and at the present time one Euro equals about $1.60 Canadian. You will find that hostel or hotel accommodations are about the same cost as in Canada. Sometimes I stay in very inexpensive hostels or pensions (hotels) and sometimes I stay in a high quality hotel if I can get a good price. The price here in Germany for a room for a night has been as cheap as 18 Euro which is about $28 Canadian. Most of the time this price includes a great breakfast so that is a pretty good deal. Much of the time I average about 25 Euro a night for a room which is about $40 Canadian.
Right now I am in the city of Weiden near Nuremberg and close to the border of Czechoslovakia. I am staying at the beautiful Hotel Admira which is located close to the downtown. Travelling in Germany is made easy because of the great help you can find at the local tourist information centres which are located in cities and towns across the country. I was very happy to be assisted by Gerhard Hagler, a local director of tourism in Weiden. He and his assistants, Christine and Melanie helped me to find a hotel, filled me in on all of the sights to see in the area and provided me with information on Weiden in English. Weiden is an interesting old city and like many places in Germany it has a wonderful old or ancient part of the city with typical and quaint houses, cobble stone streets and interesting shops. Most of the old parts of German cities are closed to vehicle traffic so it is very enjoyable to walk along the narrow pedestrian streets. As with most German cities there are castles near Weiden. There are castles all through the country near most towns and cities. There are also amazing and huge cathedrals. These castles and cathedrals are hundreds of years old.
Meegwetch to the Creator for providing me with the opportunity and good fortune to travel to this part of the world. Danke (thanks) also to all of the good people that I am meeting on my journey in Germany and who have helped me in some way.
