Hi all,
I'm in Paris for the day before heading home tomorrow. The last three days were spent in Grenoble and in Mont-pres-Chambord with the Gaudins. It was bittersweet saying the goodbyes. Part of me feels like I've been in Europe for years and the other part feels like it's only been a few weeks. I can't wait to see all of you!
Au revoir et a bientot!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Munich part 2
Hi guys,
As most of you know the World Cup is currently going on. I happened to still be in Munich the night that Germany won 4-0 against Australia. Pure craziness is the only way I can describe that night. German people definitely know how to have a good time. I was at a beer garden and there were men, women and CHILDREN sitting there with their pints of beer, cheering on their team. I'll say that again. Children as young as 5 or 6 (future alcoholics) were throwing back a couple of pints of beer.
In other news, I went to the castle that is the model for the Disney one. So, so beautiful. It was raining that day and it literally looked like the castle was floating way up in the sky.
I'm in Frankfurt at the moment and then I'm headed back to Grenoble to say goodbye for the last time.
Go team USA!
As most of you know the World Cup is currently going on. I happened to still be in Munich the night that Germany won 4-0 against Australia. Pure craziness is the only way I can describe that night. German people definitely know how to have a good time. I was at a beer garden and there were men, women and CHILDREN sitting there with their pints of beer, cheering on their team. I'll say that again. Children as young as 5 or 6 (future alcoholics) were throwing back a couple of pints of beer.
In other news, I went to the castle that is the model for the Disney one. So, so beautiful. It was raining that day and it literally looked like the castle was floating way up in the sky.
I'm in Frankfurt at the moment and then I'm headed back to Grenoble to say goodbye for the last time.
Go team USA!
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Munich
Gutentag,
Today's my second day in Munich and I'm loving it. It's a very traditional city so there are plenty of men walking around in leiderhosen (the leather overalls) and the streets are full of musicians playing classical music. I went on a walking tour yesterday and we saw many of the sites where Hitler started his "career". Ninety percent of the city was destroyed during World War II so the buildings are all built within the last 60 years. However, they rebuilt them in the original style so it looks like it would've back in the day.
Today I went to Dachau, a concentration camp thirty minutes away from the city center. It was a very moving and educational experience. The Germans do not hide the dirty past as many countries do; they make sure that no one forgets so that it never happens again. I wish I had more time to spend here because there is so much to see and do, but time is short.
Ciao
Today's my second day in Munich and I'm loving it. It's a very traditional city so there are plenty of men walking around in leiderhosen (the leather overalls) and the streets are full of musicians playing classical music. I went on a walking tour yesterday and we saw many of the sites where Hitler started his "career". Ninety percent of the city was destroyed during World War II so the buildings are all built within the last 60 years. However, they rebuilt them in the original style so it looks like it would've back in the day.
Today I went to Dachau, a concentration camp thirty minutes away from the city center. It was a very moving and educational experience. The Germans do not hide the dirty past as many countries do; they make sure that no one forgets so that it never happens again. I wish I had more time to spend here because there is so much to see and do, but time is short.
Ciao
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Prague
Hello again,
Wow! Prague is an amazing city despite my airport adventures. It's like a real life DisneyWorld with turrets soaring overhead and a beautiful river winding through the center of town. I covered the entire city in about 5-6 hours so I had quite a bit of leisure time the rest of the day to wander.
My hostel is equally amazing. It has a sauna, pool, sand volleyball court and it's own enormous restaurant/bar--all for 5 bucks a night. I think I want to stay here extra time just to use the sauna more. I had sweat pouring from every pore in my body, but I felt so much better afterward. With all the walking I've been doing, my legs and feet are not happy with me.
Countdown: less than two weeks to go before I'm homeward bound and I'm not at all ready to leave. There's so much to see and so little time!
Wow! Prague is an amazing city despite my airport adventures. It's like a real life DisneyWorld with turrets soaring overhead and a beautiful river winding through the center of town. I covered the entire city in about 5-6 hours so I had quite a bit of leisure time the rest of the day to wander.
My hostel is equally amazing. It has a sauna, pool, sand volleyball court and it's own enormous restaurant/bar--all for 5 bucks a night. I think I want to stay here extra time just to use the sauna more. I had sweat pouring from every pore in my body, but I felt so much better afterward. With all the walking I've been doing, my legs and feet are not happy with me.
Countdown: less than two weeks to go before I'm homeward bound and I'm not at all ready to leave. There's so much to see and so little time!
Monday, June 7, 2010
Berlin, Amsterdam and Prague
Hello,
The weeks have literally flown by. People in hostels always make fun of each other because no one knows what day it is. This is not an exaggeration folks. I could not tell you what today is, but I do know that this is day 1 of 4 in Prague and that it's June now. Most time I don't even know what time it is most of the time since my watch was stolen and I kind of prefer it that way. Life is relaxed and life is good (for the most part). Life on the road is great with the exception of having to lug a backpack all over the Europe and not having someone to make sure I wake up in time for my train or have my fly zipped up, etc.
Anyway, Berlin...wow. I was not expecting it to be the way it was. When I think of Germany, images of clean streets and order, in general, come to mind. First, it is enormous (two cities merged together). Three days was absolutely not enough time to see everything, unfortunately. Some people at my hostel went to see a concentration camp an hour away and reported that almost all of them threw up because of the stentch that still hovers over the camp. I decided not to go there because I didn't have enough time to spare. Instead, I joined a walking tour with a friend from my hostel. We both noticed how much grafitti there is. Almost every single building is covered in amazing artwork. Another interesting sight was the Berlin Wall which is not as tall as I expected. There are only a few parts left standing, but some of the original grafitti is left.
Amsterdam. I spent too much time here. Two days is sufficient to cover the entire city and the museums, but I had four. However, it was nice to see the city again 9 years later. Dutch people are extremely friendly and most of them speak English fluently. People constantly spoke to me Dutch, so maybe the family has some Dutch roots from way back when? Took a stroll through the Red Light District at night. It was extremely entertaining to see the type of people who walkout out of live porn shows.
Just arrived in Prague and had a hellish first two hours. The Czech Rep. is not on the Euro so I had to take out some money to pay for a bus ride. The ATM only gave out 1000czh bills which is about 20 bucks. The bus drivers would not give me change for that large a bill and nothing was open to buy something to get change because it was 10pm so I had to take a taxi which cost me as much as three nights at a hostel costs. Arrrrr!
Ciao
The weeks have literally flown by. People in hostels always make fun of each other because no one knows what day it is. This is not an exaggeration folks. I could not tell you what today is, but I do know that this is day 1 of 4 in Prague and that it's June now. Most time I don't even know what time it is most of the time since my watch was stolen and I kind of prefer it that way. Life is relaxed and life is good (for the most part). Life on the road is great with the exception of having to lug a backpack all over the Europe and not having someone to make sure I wake up in time for my train or have my fly zipped up, etc.
Anyway, Berlin...wow. I was not expecting it to be the way it was. When I think of Germany, images of clean streets and order, in general, come to mind. First, it is enormous (two cities merged together). Three days was absolutely not enough time to see everything, unfortunately. Some people at my hostel went to see a concentration camp an hour away and reported that almost all of them threw up because of the stentch that still hovers over the camp. I decided not to go there because I didn't have enough time to spare. Instead, I joined a walking tour with a friend from my hostel. We both noticed how much grafitti there is. Almost every single building is covered in amazing artwork. Another interesting sight was the Berlin Wall which is not as tall as I expected. There are only a few parts left standing, but some of the original grafitti is left.
Amsterdam. I spent too much time here. Two days is sufficient to cover the entire city and the museums, but I had four. However, it was nice to see the city again 9 years later. Dutch people are extremely friendly and most of them speak English fluently. People constantly spoke to me Dutch, so maybe the family has some Dutch roots from way back when? Took a stroll through the Red Light District at night. It was extremely entertaining to see the type of people who walkout out of live porn shows.
Just arrived in Prague and had a hellish first two hours. The Czech Rep. is not on the Euro so I had to take out some money to pay for a bus ride. The ATM only gave out 1000czh bills which is about 20 bucks. The bus drivers would not give me change for that large a bill and nothing was open to buy something to get change because it was 10pm so I had to take a taxi which cost me as much as three nights at a hostel costs. Arrrrr!
Ciao
Monday, May 31, 2010
Eurotrip continued
Hello everyone,
I am in love with Spain. The weather, the mentality, and the history are so wonderful. The only complaint I have is the pickpockets. I was congratulating myself for spending almost two weeks in Spain and not getting robbed. My last night in Barcelona I got robbed. It could have been a lot worse because all I lost was 20 euros and my $10 watch, but I'm still angry about it.
In better news, I'm now in Berlin. It's a very historic city but we couldn't have any worse weather. It really makes me want to go back to Spain despite all the cool things to see. The guy who owns the hostel I'm staying in is from East Berlin and he was telling all of us stories about his youth. I haven't seen the actual wall yet, but that's on the agenda for tomorrow. I like Germany, but it's very diferent from what I expected. People keep assuming that I speak German so I have picked up a couple of phrases, but am lost for the most part. Interesting fact: German words are so long that street signs are double the length of US ones.
Days are flying past so I have been slacking on keeping up with this.
Ciao
I am in love with Spain. The weather, the mentality, and the history are so wonderful. The only complaint I have is the pickpockets. I was congratulating myself for spending almost two weeks in Spain and not getting robbed. My last night in Barcelona I got robbed. It could have been a lot worse because all I lost was 20 euros and my $10 watch, but I'm still angry about it.
In better news, I'm now in Berlin. It's a very historic city but we couldn't have any worse weather. It really makes me want to go back to Spain despite all the cool things to see. The guy who owns the hostel I'm staying in is from East Berlin and he was telling all of us stories about his youth. I haven't seen the actual wall yet, but that's on the agenda for tomorrow. I like Germany, but it's very diferent from what I expected. People keep assuming that I speak German so I have picked up a couple of phrases, but am lost for the most part. Interesting fact: German words are so long that street signs are double the length of US ones.
Days are flying past so I have been slacking on keeping up with this.
Ciao
Sunday, May 23, 2010
So much to say so little time
This post is going to be like turning a novel into a paragraph, but I'll give the highlights.
Madrid is absolutely amazing! I had a great time walking the city and the hostel I stayed in was amazing. I saw a flamenco show which was incredible, but the highlight was a bullfight. I have always had the impression that the bullfighters had their fun with the bull and then it was let go. Not so. It is actually a slaughter. For each show six bulls are killed by being stabbed with saber thingies and then finally with a sword. I happened to get a ticket in the first row so I saw the show in all its gruesome glory. It wasn't just the bulls that got bloody though. One matador got gored in the butt and trampled on, but was fine. The second matador was not so lucky. The bull horn went through his hand. He left in an ambulance. The Spanish people loved it. They came in their best clothes and had their gin and tonics at 5 in the afternoon.
The saving grace of the fight is the fact that it is very tasty. I befriended some French people at my hostel and we had a tapas meal of bull testicles. They liked it but I thought it tasted like fried snot. I'm considering it a cultural experience.
Other than that, it's been great exploring through the windy streets and seeing the sights. I thought Spain would be dirty, but it isn't at all. People are friendly, too. They do not, however, speak English so I have been struggling to communicate. All the more reason to learn Spanish next year.
Ciao!
Madrid is absolutely amazing! I had a great time walking the city and the hostel I stayed in was amazing. I saw a flamenco show which was incredible, but the highlight was a bullfight. I have always had the impression that the bullfighters had their fun with the bull and then it was let go. Not so. It is actually a slaughter. For each show six bulls are killed by being stabbed with saber thingies and then finally with a sword. I happened to get a ticket in the first row so I saw the show in all its gruesome glory. It wasn't just the bulls that got bloody though. One matador got gored in the butt and trampled on, but was fine. The second matador was not so lucky. The bull horn went through his hand. He left in an ambulance. The Spanish people loved it. They came in their best clothes and had their gin and tonics at 5 in the afternoon.
The saving grace of the fight is the fact that it is very tasty. I befriended some French people at my hostel and we had a tapas meal of bull testicles. They liked it but I thought it tasted like fried snot. I'm considering it a cultural experience.
Other than that, it's been great exploring through the windy streets and seeing the sights. I thought Spain would be dirty, but it isn't at all. People are friendly, too. They do not, however, speak English so I have been struggling to communicate. All the more reason to learn Spanish next year.
Ciao!
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