way better than summer camp

Procrastination at its Finest

2008-05-06T22:21:00.014-04:00

I've just one question: what did I do to procrastinate writing papers in college...before the blogging age? I can't remember. It was too long ago.

This post is brought to you by the letters P-R-O-C-R-A-S-T-I-N-A-T-I-O-N and the number 7 (remember that from Sesame Street? Why did they do that? Granted, they didn't spell out 5 syllable words...if they had, we might all be smarter for it!).

All right, here's the deal. I go to Harvard. Actually, Havahd. That's right, folks. I'm a student at one of the most prestigious Ivy League schools in America. What I am always quick to add is that I go to what is essentially Harvard Community College. That pretty much took all the prestige out of my Ivy League-ness, didn't it?

Harvard has what they call the Harvard Extension School. I like to think that they are the same professors, same classes, same difficulty...just offered to the Average Jane. There's no application, just enroll in the classes, pay tuition, and you can start earning undergrad or graduate credits with a Harvard sticker on it. Not too bad! I'm taking an Art History course on two American painters from the late 19th-century: James McNeill Whistler (Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait of the Painter's Mother, right) and John Singer Sargeant (The Daughters of Edward D. Boit, below) (apparently, back in the late-1800s it was en vogue to have three names...maybe I'll bring it back. Just call me Amy Rebecca B****). The course material has been fascinating. The field trip to the Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (note the three names again) was spectacular. My professor is interesting and well-read. All good things.

It has been slightly over 5 years since I graduated from the BYU. I've matured, become more responsible, adopted adult behaviors, etc. I thought at the beginning of the semester, I would for sure get on top of writing the paper that is due at the last class. I would write an outline, seek peer review, talk the subject matter over with my professor, engage in serious study and research, discover hidden gems of knowledge, and basically write the most incredible paper of my academic career. After all, I am 5 years older and wiser and have most definitely kicked my procrastination habit of yesteryear.

Hmmm....maybe I should outline that procrastination habit. It's a term familiar with many of the 18-24 crowd: the all-nighter. Yes, friends, I was the queen of nocturnal genius. I would procrastinate and stress for 4 months and then, finally, when the fear of failure and (Heaven forbid!) a grade lower than a B- threatened to embarrass me and my GPA, I would set to work.

My wonderful boss at the ORCA office would let me stay late. I would gear up with a 16-0z. Cherry Coke (most definitely bought off-campus) and all the books I could possibly find from the library remotely related to my topic and head to the 2nd floor of the ASB. I would spread out all my sources and start scouring. Going through, roughly, 2 pads of sticky notes, I would mark all relevant passages in between swigs of Cherry Coke and a quick run to the basement vending machines (which--in the dark building, at night, and all by myself--totally creeped me out) for Peanut M&Ms. Sometime around midnight, my brother, Brian, would call me up and see how I was doing. He was always good like that.

I would work tirelessly, melding quotes and paraphrased ideas into workable thoughts. I delighted in using the thesaurus to find interesting words that, while still sounding like my own "voice," would make me also sound like a scholar (sure fooled them!). I'd experiment with various fonts and letter spacing to make 2 measly 3-sentence paragraphs (double-spaced) fill the entire page, along with strategically placed images that had been carefully resized to be as large as possible without looking fuzzy. Yes, I had mastered the art of all-night paper writing.

Sometime around 7am, my boss would show up. Bleary-eyed and haggard, I would smile at him and say good morning. He learned to not be surprised to find me there the next morning. My late-night paper writing became a normal thing because I repeated the process every semester for the 3 1/2 years I worked at ORCA.

I would then head off to class, hoping to make it on time to turn my paper in. And, I may be bragging a touch, but I don't recall ever getting a grade lower than an A- on my research papers. I was pretty good at pressure-writing.

But, a lot can change in 5 years. As we've already established: I still procrastinate. Now, my fear is that I a) won't have the stamina to pull an all-nighter and b) have lost the nocturnal research-paper-writing genius that carried me through college. What if part of growing up is losing that seemingly innate ability to wordsmith and compose intelligent-sounding phrases out of the thin, 3am air??

If so, I'm sunk.

The paper is due Monday evening. I'll almost definitely be consulting sources in a frenzy and prying my eyelids open around 2am that morning. Hmmm...after a five-year all-nighter hiatus, maybe I'd better make it a 2-liter Cherry Coke.

Can it be?? A post?!

2008-03-30T23:08:00.010-04:00

Oh friends...I wish I could say, "For all of you who still check my blog with some frequency (because you haven't discovered Google Reader yet), I'm going to reward you with a juicy post full of exciting adventures!"

Yep. I *wish* I could say that.

So, here's the latest: It's almost April. The last time I posted was in November. Early-November. Yikes. I think it is high time I catch you all up on the adventures of a Bostonian-in-the-making.

Shortly after my last post in November, I took a position working for Fidelity Investments in their Real Estate division. I am [sigh] a peon. I work for the Design and Architecture group and it seemed kinda cushy and easy.

Until recently.

I am now working a TON, always busy, and slowly going crazy. I guess in a good way...if that's possible! I work with nice people and am busy. Though I feel that I am smarter than my job, it pays the bills and there are definitely opportunities to progress within Fidelity if I so choose. That is a nice thought.

Throughout the past 6 months, I have made a number of fabulous friends. It's difficult to put into words how incredible the people are here. I have met genuine friends who are wonderful, fun, down-to-Earth and really exceptional. And probably more amazing is that I continue to meet stellar people on a weekly basis! Just this weekend I have gotten to know more fantastic friends and I couldn't feel more blessed. I don't mean to offend Mom and Dad, but I haven't been homesick for even a moment here in Boston.

The holidays were very fun. My fantastic sister and brother-in-law, Jen and Mike, drove from Detroit, MI to Boston with my adorable niece, Taryn to spend Thanksgiving with me. My dear friend, Neal, came in from Washington DC, too. It was a blast to have family and close friends to share my *first* Thanksgiving dinner! It was a real rite of passage for me. I cooked the turkey and everything! My dear mother coached me through every step and made sure to have her phone on her at all times should any turkey-crisis arise.

December was spent surviving the cold in Boston and then off to Utah for a very short (I had no vacation time accrued yet) and very sick (we all got the stomach flu) Christmas holiday. It was absolutely miserable to travel from Boston to Utah and back. I was so happy to be with my family, but next year, I'm going to Bermuda!

The New Year came in with a bang! I had a visit from my good friend, Luke, and started 2008 off right by celebrating my birthday with so many of my amazing friends! 27 is looking to be an extremely good year.

A week later, off to NYC for a weekend adventure with my amazing and forever-friend, Tiffany! Friends since high school, folks! And still going strong! She was wonderful and did a number of "touristy" things with me, fed me, let me sleep in her roommates bed (don't tell the roommate!) and introduced me to a number of her good friends! This woman is definitely the hostess with the mostess! I adore her.

I still have so much to say. Considering the frequency with which I post, however, you can expect that one to come sometime around 2010.

The Fake Money Fiasco (April 23, 2007)

2007-11-05T18:42:00.000-05:00

Continuing my promised recap of my travels, we're back in Peru! Enjoy!

Monday morning we got up and found that the guarantee of 24-hour hot water was untrue. As we left, I paid the desk 100 soles and they gave me 50 soles back. Since no one takes big bills, I asked for sencillo (smaller bills) and was given two 20s and a 10.

We headed out to see Qoricancha and the Templo del Sol. We got a guide, Raul, and he took us through. We asked a lot of questions and were amazed at what we learned about the Inca religion. They believed in different different levels of the world, a trinity of sorts, consisting of the Father (thunder), the Son (lightning bolt), and the Brother (the lightning). We thought that was a pretty fascinating parallel to what we believe. There were temples to the sun, the moon, and stars...and a great veneration for the dead. Extremely interesting.

At the end of our tour, we had to pay Raul 15 soles for our tour. I gave him a 20 and, of course, he doesn't have 5 soles change and probably expected us to pay the 20 soles and call it good. But I was determined to only give him 15. He was good, but not that good! So we went to the desk at the entrance and asked the girl for smaller bills. Unable to conceal a smile, she barely glances as the 20 I had put down on the counter and says "Es falso" Fake?! What?! Raul said it wasn't and he'd take it anyway. I was so upset. I felt like it was all part of a big ploy to get our money...he doesn't have change, she won't exchange it because it's "fake." Aughhhh! Finally we gave him a 10 and 6 soles in coins. I asked for one back and got it (yes, I was being very tight-fisted). I was just completely floored by this supposed fake bill.

Alison had gotten a tutorial from a store owner the day before on fake money and compared the bill to another that we had and informed me that it was indeed fake. It was missing a watermark number, the security strip was on the wrong side...dang it! I had gotten that bill from the hotel that morning and was upset that they'd slipped me a fake bill!

We went to the Qorikancha museum that is under the grounds of Qorikancha (which is also a Dominican monastery) and it looked like a seventh grade fair exhibit. A number of the timelines and informative displays were made with construction paper and glue sticks! There were some items, pottery, replicas, photos and drawings, but nothing too fabulous. We followed the museum through to the end and the exit, which was up some stairs. The exit, however, did not lead back to the street. Rather, it opened to the middle of the fenced-off grounds. We popped our heads out and I asked Alison if she felt a bit like a gopher :)

We went back to the hotel to get our bags and I told the woman at the front desk, as non-confrontational as I could possibly be, that I had been given fake money when we checked out that morning. I showed her and I really didn't expect her to do anything about it. I mean, we had already left and could have gotten the bill somewhere else (which we hadn't). But, surprisingly, she called the girl who'd given me the wrong bill and the guy who had checked people in the night before. Apparently one of them accepted a false bill and that is how it got to me. After 20 to 25 minutes, the owner gave me a new 20 soles bill and I thanked her profusely for making it right. So good of her.

While we had been waiting for the other employees to show up, she gave me a lesson in fake money and how to recognize it. It made me all skeptical, so I checked all my bills. One suggestion was to "snap" the bill by tugging on it, to check if it was paper (fake) or cotton (real). As I was snapping one of the bills, I ripped the corner off a 20 soles bill! [Underestimated my own strength!] Alison was probably thinking, "Way to go, Amy!" It was kind of funny, after the whole issue we'd just gone through! The ripped corner automatically made it undesirable/unusable. Good grief!

I'm not dead yet...

2007-10-28T19:45:00.000-04:00

Due to my inability to regularly blog, few people even know I'm on the North American continent. SO, this is for all of you who have checked my blog within the last six months and been annoyed that there is nothing new!

When I returned to Kansas City from my fantastic trip to Chile and Peru (April 2007), I went back to my recruiting job in Overland Park. I was living with Mom and Dad--ultra-comfortable--and trying, desperately, to figure out where I wanted to be. I was too comfortable. And if you ever get to the point where you're too comfortable and it's starting to bug you, you know you need to seriously shake up your life.

I worked through the summer and tried to avoid being offered a permanent job as a recruiter. I worked with nice people, however, 50-60 hours a week recruiting and interviewing and doing all that jazz really got old fast. I was planning on moving somewhere but wanted to keep my job until the moving actually was a reality. So, I worked hard and a lot of hours, but did my best to avoid any talk about hiring me on permanently.

The plan all along had been to move to Washington DC. I know people there, love the city, and just needed to be around other young professionals. I was tired of feeling "old" in my social circles. I am, for the record, not old and was getting tired of the wide-eyed looks I occasionally received from the 20 and under crowd when I told them that not only had I graduated from college, but I'd also served a mission and worked for over two years!! With those quick high school math skills they hadn't had time to lose, they realized very fast that all that means Amy=old.

So, plunging myself into a young professionals atmosphere seemed like the right thing! Of course, being an adept waffler, I wasn't sure what to do. Jen put a little bug in my ear for Boston. I remember saying, "Sure, Jen. Right!" But, as I thought more and more on it, I thought why not. I definitely knew fewer people in Boston and was excited for an opportunity to spread my wings a little further. There's safety and comfort in going where you know people. I needed to get uncomfortable!

As I thought more on Boston, it seemed like a good option. And I am SO glad that I chose it! It has been one of the best changes of my life. Growing up, I hated changed. Loathed it. Now, I kind of relish it! I love meeting new people and having new experiences. I will try to be better about posting and let you know how my adventures in Boston go. Again, most of you know me...and well, let's just say "Don't hold your breath." :)

She's alive!!!

2007-10-02T17:54:00.000-04:00

Hello friends and family...anyone who still looks at this blog every now and then. I'm so sorry that I haven't done a good job of posting. I can't guarantee that I will be better in the future, but maybe when thing settle down a bit...just maybe.

Well, the latest news. I'm a Bostonian! Toward the latter half of August, I packed up my car with all my belongings (all that would fit in a Camry, at least) and headed East. It was an adventure!! I love a good adventure!

Along the way I got to visit some wonderful friends and family. I stopped in on Becky Jo to see how she was doing. She had brain surgery (!) recently and I am SO happy to see that she's doing better!

Years and miles may pass, but things never really change with your best friend, huh? :)

This is a picture with Becky, her husband, Brett, and their latest addition, Spencer.

Unfortunately, it was a short visit. I made a quick trip into Omaha to see my friend, Sheri. She was approximately 10 months pregnant at the time. However, I was unable to get any photos of her and Bryce, her little boy, because my batteries were dead. I'm not sure she would have let me take a picture of her anyway!

I drove across Iowa...dark and stormy-like. It was an overcast day and the drive was long. But it was beautiful. My friend, Jenny, was so sweet to put me up for the evening. It was fun to see my "nieces," Addy and Brinley. They're adorable!

I arrived in Detroit the next night to the open arms of my sister, Jenn. I wasn't sure if I was ever going to leave Detroit, really. The roads were awful and it was pretty hot and humid, but it was so much fun to spend time with Jenn and Taryn. Poor Mike had to work some pretty ridiculous hours which meant that Jenn and I had lots of time together. Taryn was the funnest. Yes, the funnest. She is such a doll.

I know this post is seriously lacking in substance and charm but it is after 2 a.m. Please forgive me and I hope to do some more updating soon-ish. Stay tuned!

I'm too Sacsay....(April 22, 2007 continued)

2007-05-22T23:34:00.000-04:00

There was a sign for Sacsayhuaman (pronounced, and I'm not joking, "sexy woman") and we asked someone where those ruins were...he told us over the hill. So, we climbed and rested, climbed some more and couldn't find any ruins! At the top of the hill, we asked again, and some ladies said, "No! You need to go down the hill (yeah, the one on which we'd just exhausted ourselves to climb it) and take the bus." Alison, always humoring me, follows me on the "short cuts" that I find. They never are short cuts, though. But Alison continues to walk along with me anyway.

We finally got on a bus and were dropped off at the road leading to Sacsayhuaman. We passed a man weaving a brightly colored poncho on a loom (takes him 8 days to weave the fabric, he said). Along the way, there were canchas (soccer fields) surrounded by sunken ruins. Taxistas (taxi drivers), with their taxis parked along the canchas, were drinking beer--makes ya feel safe on the road, huh?

We arrived at the grassy expanse in front of the ruins and sat there, trying to avoid the hawkers and tour guide offerings. Alison pulled out a set of headphones attached to nothing and "listened to music" while I buried my nose in my book. The ruins at Sacsayhuaman were pretty incredible. Three tiers of rock walls zig-zag along the grass. The stones fit perfectly one into another. It was amazing. All done with out concrete or mortar. Just stone upon stone, fitted to perfection. Maybe a jigsaw puzzle of the gods.

We climbed up and took a good look at the sun calendar. It was high above Cusco and the view was incredible. We were exhausted, though. We had walked about seven hours that day. With that in mind, we considered taking a taxi back to town but I didn't want to pay eight soles so we walked. It turned out to be a very pleasant, downhill, 15 minute walk.

On our way down, in San Blas, we were solicited by two competing restaurants (literally across the street from each other). We opted for Tuco, the restaurant by which I had been solicited. Our goal that night was to eat traditional Peruvian cuisine. Peru has nothing on Chile for sophistication, however their cuisine is, without a doubt, superior to Chile's. I opted for the alpaca a la plancha (alpaca steak) and Alison, brave soul that she is, ordered cuy (guinea pig!).

The salads were amazing...we'd really been missing fresh vegetables. That was probably the highlight of the meal. I tried Inca Cola (the flavor of Peru) and it wasn't too bad. Finally the big moment arrived. The main course! The alpaca steak was a grayish rectangle accompanied with slightly soggy fries. Nothing too exciting or worth writing home about. Alison's cuy, though...well, a picture speaks 1000 words. Just take a look. It was one of the most disgusting things I had ever seen!! She ordered a half cuy...cut right down the middle from head to tail. It laid flat, de-haired...cooked with a brown glaze on it. There was a head (no eyese, no teeth) and a front paw WITH claws!!! Ugh! I still have fleeting, disgusting thoughts of that little clawed, cooked paw moving up and down, trying to lift its dead, cooked corpse off the plate. Mmmm!! Eat up!

It was divided in 3 parts (head, upper body, and lower body). Alison bravely peeled back the skin of the upper body and tried to find some meat. Let's just put it this way: half a guinea pig contain much meat. She cut a little piece off and tried it. I tasted a teeny bit. Ugh! It tasted like it'd been cooked in the same oil used to fry the trout they were advertising that night. Not at all to my liking.

I ate my alpaca and fries and Alison tried some of mine. When Javier, the guide/university student at Puca Pucara, cornered us out there, he told us he was also a chef! Talk about a Renaissance man! He told us he would give us a discount if we came to his restaurant that night. We asked what kind of food they prepared and specifically asked about cuy and alpaca. He assured us that they served cuy and real alpaca. He warned us about restaurants that dishonestly serve regular mea rather than alpaca. Alpaca meat, he informed us, should be different. He said, "It should be soft, like your own flesh." Alison, without missing a beat, responded, "Well, I've never tried my own flesh." It was hilarious. Javier didn't get it.

So, my alpaca was a little tough and chewy...maybe it wasn't alpaca, but it was different than anything else I'd tried. Alison couldn't finish her cuy...and I couldn't blame her! I tried another, larger piece, just to make sure...and yep. It still tasted gross. The thought of that half guinea pig on a plate still gives me the heebie jeebies!! We checked out the skull...flipped it over and morbidly checked out the brains. Ick. As we picked at the cuy, the waiter told us that you normally eat it like you would ribs or a chicken leg...just pick it up in your hands and dig in. Skin and all. Blech.

After "dessert" of fruit (I don't understand how South Americans think that fruit is dessert!!) for Alison and a panqueque con dulce de leche for me, we walked back to the hostel and got ready for bed. I felt like the walking dead!! I was bushed! Dinner had been so hilarious because we were tired...and because Alison had half a rodent on her plate.

As soon as we got back to the hotel, though, we crashed...and it was only 8:30. Good night!

Peru: Don't forget the time change! (April 22, 2007)

2007-05-12T00:32:00.000-04:00

Sunday morning I woke up to darkness and the sound of rain trickling outside. It was so dark outside and my alarm clock said that we had at least two more hours. Good! I was too tired. So, the alarm went off at 6:00 and we got up. We had a lot to accomplish that morning before church at 8:00 a.m. After the shower fiasco (see the previous post), we got ready in the bedroom and it was pitch black outside. I asked Alison how much time I had and, glancing at my alarm clock, she told me it was 6:37. So, I had a little more than 20 minutes to pack up and get myself ready for an entire day of church and excursion. I grabbed my alarm clock and it slipped out of my hands. I asked Alison to check her watch and tell me the exact time to reset the clock. She said, "Quarter to six." Huh?! I had forgotten to change my alarm clock from Chile time to Peru time, so we had gotten up a WHOLE hour early!! Good grief! We had a good laugh about it, but I really could have used that extra hour of sleep.

In Cusco, you can barely go more than four steps in the Plaza de Armas without someone offering to sell you something...shoe shine, cheap reproduction paintings, dolls, their llama....It gets a little old.

First thing we needed to do that morning, at 7:30 and before 8:00 a.m. church, was go to the train station to buy our tickets to go to Aguas Calientes, otherwise known as Machu Picchu pueblo. We left Alison's debit card in my suitcase and decided that I would pay for the train tickets on my credit card. However, we learned that they don't take credit cards at the train station! Are you KIDDING me? I attempted to take money out of the ATM machine there, but it wouldn't recognize my card. 8:00 a.m. church was looking less and less likely.

We walked back up Avenida del Sol--the main drag--where the banks were. I finally found one, after numerous attempts, that would accept my debit card. Annoyed, we took a taxi back to the train station and had definitely missed the beginning of 8:00 a.m. church. Bummer. We bought our train tickets (which were rather expensive...they really suck everything they can out of the tourists) and the girl who sold us the tickets refused to give us change and NO ONE takes big bills! I was SO annoyed.

So, we decided to go to church at 10:00. In the mean time, we got our breakfast at a small family-run store. Alison asked the woman how she could identify fake money because it is a rampant problem in Peru and got a 15 minute lesson on how to recognize the falso. Meanwhile, not listening, I was trying to decide if the cheese they had in the "refrigerator case" ("refrigerator case" that was probably unplugged) was still edible. The bread wasn't as good as Chilean bread and the cheese tasted like dirty feet, but my mango juice was good...and I was carrying my trusty 2.5 liters of bottled water to drown my cold. So that helped.

We went to take some photos near the statue of Pachacutec, the Inka king and founder of Machu Picchu and the Sun god fountain on Avenida del Sol as we killed time waiting until we needed to go to church.

Typical to South America, the street signs are screwy. One side of the street has numbers completely unrelated to the ones on the opposite side. Despite the confusion, we were able to find the building where church was to start at 10 a.m. Strange, though, were the black tarps covering the inside of the gates and the newspaper covering the windows of the front doors. Hmmm....We waited, doubtfully, until 10:05 a.m. and not a soul had shown up to open the gates. Although, one man passing by did ask me to send someone from the church to see him. When I told him I wasn't a missionary, he apologized, shook my hand and walked away. You could still smell the alcohol a good 20 seconds after he left. We were both very bummed about missing church that day. We went back to our hotel, changed our clothes, had a little prayer and spiritual thought and headed out.

We were both pretty stressed out the day before because of unfamiliarity with the city and the fact that we hadn't really seen anything yet. The prices surprised us and the fact that we didn't know what to see stressed us out, too.

We took a taxi to the bus station and paid to go to Pisac to see some of the ruins. On the road to Pisac, it dawned on us that we didn't have enough time to go all the way to Pisac and really explore it and all the ruins outside Cusco. What do we do?? Should we squeeze past every person in the insanely crowded bus to get off in Tambomachay, the last ruins right before the long ride to Pisac, or just not make a big deal about it, save ourselves from having to displace half the bus as we crawl out, and go to Pisac? Next thing I know, Alison yells out (and loud, mind you) "BAJAMOS AQUI!" (We're getting off here!). It was hilarious to see this tall gringa yell that in the midst of a COMPLETELY packed Peruvian bus. We piled off the bus, permiso-ing as we squeezed past people. I nearly died laughing.

The ruins at Tambomachay have fountains/bathing places. We hiked around a bit with some other confused tourists who, like us, didn't know what there was to see. We hiked up a small hill and asked some local kids whose parents were planting on the hill if there was anything else to see. Not really. We shared our info with Michael, a nice German man who was with a group of three other friends. I talked to him a little about his travels. He's been to southeast Asia a lot. I love how well-traveled Europeans are. We walked to the next ruins, Puca Pucara, with the Germans and were quickly accosted by Javier.

Javier said he was a student at the university and wanted to help us understand the ruins better...so that they ended up being more than just rocks to us. He said he'd give us two minutes free and then we could tip him what "was born from [our] hearts." We listened, with the Germans, and tried to translate Javier's English into English the Germans could understand. After a couple minutes, we thanked Javier and decided to explore on our own. Javier kept bugging us and we kept telling him no. I hate being solicited. It makes me feel like I need to be on the defensive.

We sat on the grassy ruins, eating chocolate and drinking water, while gazing at the gorgeous, green Andes mountains (named for a tribe in the jungle, I learned from my guidebook that day). It was really beautiful.

We walked down the road, thinking we'd shortly come across more ruins. Not so! They were much farther apart than we realized. So, we walked and walked along the road. We were in the middle of nowhere. There was nothing around us...definitely NO bathrooms. So, Alison and I hunted for an ideal potty spot. I'll spare you all any more details. However, I found it pretty liberating to feel as though I wasn't controlled by whether or not there was a bathroom available. It truly is a man's world. I bet men rarely bring their own hand sanitizer, though. We definitely had that covered!

As we walked, we'd ask for directions of whomever we encountered how to get to Salumpunca, more ruins. With so much walking, we were grateful that the weather was nice. It was sunny and warm, however, it did threaten with saturated, dark grey clouds later in the afternoon. We ran into some cops on our way who tried to flirt with us a bit. It's nice to claim a boyfriend in those situations...makes it easy to get out of the awkwardness.

At Salumpunca, we saw the Temple of the Moon. Not much to say (and I don't even have a photo to show it!). We thought we weren't too far from Sacsayhuaman, the next set of ruins. We continued to walk and walk. It was pretty exhausting. We did try to stop at a small restaurant that said it served traditional Peruvian food (including cuy, guinea pig). We walked in and saw about six Peruvian men sitting in a semi-circle. Twelve eyes stared at us as if to say, "What are you two doing here?" but more in a curious way than a hostile way. We asked if they had cuy...but no, only trout. Nah.

"And to drink? Peru!!" (April 21-22, 2007)

2007-05-10T23:25:00.000-04:00

Two points to the first person to give me the movie that the title quote comes from.

I'm kicking myself. Absolutely kicking myself!! I pulled out my journal ONLY to find out that I had stopped writing halfway through the day I went to Machu Picchu! Who does that?! Me, apparently. Sheesh. So, let me give you some Peruvian highlights.

April 21: We arrived in Cusco. It was absolutely gorgeous! We were a little disoriented...it always takes a little time to get to know a city. We walked up, up, up through the hills of the city in search of a hostel (Alison's boyfriend had suggested going up because the view of the city is better...but after dragging my darn roller-bag through all those cobble-stone streets, I decided that "up" was definitely for the birds).

We stayed at a hostel, Hospedaje Inti Quilla, that is a little...well...scary. We were taken in by the beautiful and very modern looking glass door on the outside. However, modernity ended once you walked through it into the courtyard. We paid $10 for the night we were there...so part of me wants to say, "Well?!? Can you really complain?" Then again, when I saw OTHER places we could have stayed at for $10, I think, "You BET I can!" The room was bare, cement or earth walls, two twin beds that made you wonder about the other "bedfellows" you might be sleeping with that night. No, they didn't have fleas or bedbugs, but they DID have really lumpy pillows and rad "vintage" sheets (circa 1985). The door was locked from the inside with a padlock...which doubled as the door handle. We panicked a bit, before realizing the dual nature of the padlock, when we couldn't get the door open (although, why one would ever dream of leaving that idyllic domain is really beyond me). We learned the trick, though: you have to lace the padlock through the latch and yank really hard.

However, the topper definitely had to be the shower. Wooeee! Made me grateful for scary, potentially explosive gas califonts that we had in Chile. A califont is a box (please see picture at left) attached to your wall. You turn on the natural gas supply, light a match and stick it in the little hole where the pilot light ignites. Then, when the water is turned on, you hear this big WHOOSH as more gas pumps through and the whole inside of the box becomes a flaming blue mass...somehow it heats the water (topic for another post someday: how the heck does a califont work?). Anyway, those were a little intimidating in my mission. HOWEVER, not nearly as scary as the Peruvian showers. They're electric. Yes. Electric. You all recall those tags attached to your bathroom appliances, especially hair dryers, that talk about the risk of electrocution and/or death when one is used near the bathtub? Now, I thought that was because water and electricity don't mix. Au contraire, mon ami! Apparently now...in Peru...they DO! The next morning (April 22) Alison and I got up to get ready for church. There were two bathrooms and, apparently, the water in Alison's bathroom ran orange for a couple of minutes before it turned clear. Gross. I guess that bathroom hadn't been used for a while. Mine was fine...just ice cold. Alison opted out of the shower. Determined not to put my head under a freezing cold stream of water either, I changed my clothes and headed out of the baño. As I was stepping out, I heard a scary witch-like cackle ask, "¿Queire ducharse, señorita?" It was still dark out, so yes, the witch...I mean our little Peruvian landlady, made me jump. She showed me how to turn on the electricity to the shower and I decided to take the plunge...risking death by electric shock. I guess the water runs through electrically-heated coils and comes out hot. My shower was barely lukewarm. I learned a lesson, though. The hotter you want your water, the lower the water pressure should be. So, I kept turning the water down more and more until I had a slightly warmer than lukewarm trickle. Drip. Brr. Drip.

Catching up on the night before (April 21), we walked around a bit...and I felt sick. I had one of the worst colds I've had in years. It was really hard for me to enjoy myself...and, I'll admit, I complained quite a bit. Poor Alison had to put up with it. We went to the tourist info place, ATM, and searched for a restaurant. Both our guides mentioned Greens, so we headed to the listed address. As we walked down a back street, passing some young Peruvian men, one of them tried to grab me. I don't know what he was grabbing at (if it was my bum or chest, he SORELY missed and got my wrist), however, on top of feeling grumpy about my cold, that made me *MAD*! I yelled back at him, in Spanish, "Leave me alone!" and threw him the dirtiest look I could muster. Ugh...there went my perception of Peruvian men as quiet and non-threatening.

We arrived at the address for Greens only to find out that it has moved and a new restaurant, Velluto, has taken its place. Sigh. All right, whatever. We were so tired and hungry by then. It was a crepe place...interesting. Not what I expected in Peru. We were the only patrons there...it was pretty low-key and quiet. Our crepes came and were A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! And quite a work of food art, too!

After dinner, we headed to the Centro Qosqo de Arte Nativo (cultural center) to see some traditional Peruvian dances. Interesting. I'm not as well-versed (or appreciative) of folk dance as I'd like to be...but I'm working on it. The first dance we saw started with a full-grown MAN bounding and leaping around the stage with a loin cloth and antlers on his head. He was supposed to be a deer. I guess I should be grateful for the loin cloth. Most deer don't wear them, or so I hear. As the dance continued, he was "beaten and killed and the people did rejoice and sing in high-pitched voices while the girls whirled around and waved colored pom-pom scarves. " Oh...if only you could have seen it. Later in the evening was a war dance...and they reminded me a little of the sand people from Star Wars. I dunno...you be the judge:
After the dances, we walked up, up, up through the town to our humble little hostel and, decided en route, that it was just TOO far away. Near the Plaza de Armas, we found a little hotel that would charge us $15 a night. And it was MUCH closer to the center. We made our reservation, headed back to our hostel, and got ready for bed. I was so grateful for my sleep sheet...no creepy-crawly feelings and visions of bugs frolicking and munching on my skin for me!

Working backwards

2007-04-28T21:08:00.000-04:00

All right...I don't even know if anyone bothers to check my blog anymore because I haven't written for so long. My apologies. I've been busy.

So, I am going to do my absolute best to catch up on the highlights of the Year of the Travel as I call it. I am going to be doing it backwards, but don't worry...I'll put the date of "said travel experience" in the title of the entry.

This has been a great year. I can't believe it's over! I don't know what to do with myself if I'm not planning another trip somewhere!

Maybe this will help me adjust to life in the good ol' US of A.

Philadelphia...the cat's pajamas?? Jan 12-15

2007-02-06T03:15:00.000-05:00

Actor George Dzundza (I'll save you from having to look him up. He's been on Law & Order and Grey's Anatomy...both of which are shows I don't watch. It's no use commenting that I should watch them...if you know me, then you know I don't watch much TV.) once said:

I love Philadelphia. I was shocked at what a great city this is. For me, it is the cat's pajamas. I love everything about it. I love where I live. I love the people. I have been met with such kindness and affection here.

I think there are too few people who use the term "cat's pajamas" these days. But, Philadelphia is IT!

On Friday, January 12, I took the Chinatown bus from Washington DC to Philadelphia, PA. The trip went fairly quickly for me...mostly because of Matt, my seatmate. He's from England, living in DC, on his way to visit his girlfriend of 2 1/2 years who lives in Philadelphia. He was a great conversationalist, so the time passed quickly for me. Not to mention, I could listen to a good-looking British boy with nice teeth for hours :)

I quickly found the train station in Philadelphia...just not the elevators down to the tracks. So, I lugged my 2-ton bags down a few flights of stairs. I'm sure, when I come home, I will look a bit like a linebacker...huge shoulders, lats, etc. Not exactly the look I was going for, though.

I took the train to Norristown, about 50 minutes outside of Philadelphia, where my fabulous friend, Jessy, lives. She picked me up and asked what I wanted to do. Honestly, I just wanted to eat dinner and hang out with her, but she wanted to go to a bonfire being put on by her singles' branch. All right. So, we went and I'm glad we did. I met so many nice people. Jess had to work ALL day the next day, so I met some nice girls who were going into Philly to do the touristy stuff and decided to tag along with them.

The next morning, Saturday, I went to work with Jessy. She manages an ice cream shop and is resigning. So, in order to make it easier on the next manager, we decided to document everything on opening the store in the mornings. I suppose, if I never find my calling in life, I could always do "how to" manuals. :) She made me a nutritious breakfast: a delicious Belgian waffle dripping with ice cream, hot fudge, caramel and whipped cream. Mmmm!!!

Naomi, her brother, Raleigh, Ashley, Heather, Wayne and I (all new people to me) headed into Philadelphia. We had a blast that day! We saw the Liberty Bell, ate a Philly cheese steak sandwich (I chickened and got it without Cheez Whiz...I guess that's how the locals eat it), went to Independence Hall--where Jen joined us, and ran up the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art just like Rocky did.

It was a fun day...and I definitely liked Philly. We headed back to the ice cream shop where I got to meet Jen's cool friend, Russ and one of Jessy's cool friends, Becca. We all had ice cream and then, FINALLY, Jess was free to hang out. So, Becca, Jess, and I went to Jess's and watched Red Eye with Chris, a guy from Jess's ward. Chris left pretty soon after the movie and Jess, Becca, and I stayed up pretty late laughing and talking.

The next day Jess and I woke up at 11 a.m. completely exhausted. Church was good...I got to participate more than I thought most investigators should :) But, it drives me nuts when no one offers/participates at church. There was a munch and mingle afterwards and then we went home and figured out how and when I would go to NYC the next day.

Short trip, but definitely the cat's pajamas.

Finnish Funn: Jan 30-Feb 3

2007-01-31T17:52:00.000-05:00

Tuesday I took an overnight "cruise." My friend, Mikael, me, and his mom and stepdad took the cruise ship from Stockholm to Helsinki. If you cage enough humans on a boat with alcohol and karaoke as the only means of entertainment, it can be pretty amusing. Have you ever seen Finnish karaoke? I have! There were gypsies, drunk men throwing up, icy waves, and one woman--who was, sadly, terribly drunk--that amused us all with her solo groove dancing. Wow!

Wednesday I had my first REAL sauna experience. I felt a bit like a roast in an oven. Mikael, Heikki (his stepdad) and I sat in the sauna. Mikael sat and translated for me because Heikki doesn´t speak English...just Finnish and Swedish. So, we sat there, sweating and sweating...Heikki throwing more and more water on the rocks, making the temperature go up and up (Mikael said that Finns have to show off for visitors). Then we ran outside, bare foot, and made snow angels in the snow. Mind you...we were all only wearing bathing suits. It was crazy fun!! I think I could get used to the sauna experience!

A week in Washington DC: Jan 6-12

2007-01-29T04:10:00.000-05:00

Ahhh...isn't Old Glory beautiful?? Maybe I've been away too long. So, in an effort to keep up on my blog (which I haven't done), I'm going to write up my week in DC. I'll try to lace it with lots of pictures, too!

My friends, Sheri and Derek, were going to be there for a class that Derek was doing through his MBA program at the University of Texas. Sheri, not wanting to be forced to see all the sights alone while Derek was in class all day, invited me along! I had a blast!

I arrived on Saturday, January 6 and met up with my friend, Rachel. We hadn't seen each other since before our missions (circa BYU days) and it was great to catch up! The weather that day had been a balmy 70 degrees...had me thinking that Baltimore is insanely beautiful and that yes, I think I could be an East coast girl.

I was able to get in touch with some of my old friends and went to church with Marissa, my amazingly talented, piano performance-majoring roommate who now lives in Ashburn--if anyone needs a great piano teacher. We saw Holly there, another incredibly fun roommate who is a workin' woman in DC.

I got in touch with old friend, Nikki Buckmiller, too. She and I had been on the ballroom team together. She's doing her PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy at the University of Maryland. I met her extremely nice husband of 2 weeks, Ben Jones. They have a cute little apartment where they invited me to dinner and showed me all the fun photos of their wedding that they'd just had! It was great to catch up!

That night, they dropped me off at the Residence Inn, where Sheri and Derek had a room with a hide-away couch. I slept well the whole week (Sheri assured me that my bed was probably more comfortable than theirs :)

So, the next day, Derek headed off to class and Sheri and I attacked the DC sights with vigor. We went to the National Gallery (I LOVED it!), the National History Museum to see the Hope Diamond and the dinosaurs, and the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress was amazing! What an incredible building. And free tours are always appreciated!

Tuesday was the walking day from Hades. We walked and walked and walked and walked. Ouch. It made for a LONG day we started out by going to Arlington National Cemetary, saw the changing of the guard, JFK's tomb with the eternal flame, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Very impressive and somber sight. We headed over to the Iwo Jima statue that is outside Arlington (which is a HUGE cemetary). That afternoon, we went to the National Portrait gallery and American Art Museum. Sheri was nice enough to not complain as I dragged her through room after room. She DID say that she liked the Portrait Gallery. We met up with Derek that evening and chose to see the monuments by night. More walking. We went from the Lincoln to the Vietnam to the WWII, to the Washington...which doesn't sound like much, but it was exhausting! However, the highlight of the whole day: at the Residence Inn, they have a "social hour" where they have food and all the guests can socialize in the evening. Well, I had the privilege of seeing the funniest sight of the week. Seated at a table was a man in his late 40's...a professional-looking type. He had on a business-blue button up shirt, khaki pants, and (here's the kicker) BLACK FISHNET STOCKINGS and RED, PATENT-LEATHER, OPEN-TOED 4" STACKED HIGH HEELS!!!!! Not kidding. I saw it as I was walking past...in the corner of my eye. But, upon further inspection (yes, I made Sheri and Derek walk past, too), he was sitting there by himself, calm as a summer morn...with his ankles daintily crossed. Derek wanted to ask if he'd lost a bet...I thought that would be more appropriate than telling him I loved his shoes and asking where he got them from! Hilarious!

Wednesday, January 10, was my 26th birthday! Happy Birthday to me!!! That morning, Sheri and I braved the cold (brrrrrr!! We were frozen) and went to the White House Visitor's Center and the National Archives. After lunch, we were tempted to go get gelato (in spite of the cold) to celebrate my birthday, but decided that we didn't have time before our Senate/Capitol building tour. We searched and searched for the Senate building in the freezing cold...and got there about 5 minutes late. Oops. The tour was very interesting and we got to see the inside of the Capitol building which I found fascinating.

That evening, I got together with old best friend from middle school, Erin Wilcox Jensen. Her very nice husband, Nathan, picked me up from the metro station and drove me to their nice townhome in Ashburn. Erin made a great dinner, I met her adorable kids, and we spent the next few hours catching up on the last 5 years of our lives. It was wonderful...so fun! Finally, around midnight, we decided to call it a night. Erin braved the winding roads (thank goodness for On-Star...we got turned around once or twice) and took me back to the hotel. It was great to see her! Happy Birthday, indeed!

Thursday, Sheri and I went to the National Zoo to see the pandas. They were adorable. We were lucky to see them while they were awake. The mama panda was busy polishing off a large stack of bamboo while the baby was laying spread-eagle on his belly, asleep in the grass. It was a cool, crisp day...but perfect to see the zoo. Sheri and I stopped at a sandwich shop not too far away and had the best sandwiches ever! That completed the whole trip to the zoo!

Derek didn't have class that afternoon, so we decided to see the Smithsonian museum that day. Sheri and I popped into the Freer Gallery while we waited to meet up with him and saw some gorgeous art. Whistler's Peacock Room is recreated in there and it was amazing! We met Derek at the Washington Monument, took the elevator up and saw DC from 500 feet above. Back down, we hoofed it over to the Smithsonian's Air and Space museum where we wandered around. The American History museum is being renovated, so they had a mini-exhibit there which showed some of the most famous American items (Dorothy's Ruby Red slippers and the droids R2-D2 and C3PO from Star Wars).

That night, I met up with Marissa and Holly for dinner in Alexandria. We went to a great little Italian place and laughed and talked just like we used to in roommate-days. Ahhh...I miss those girls! We walked around the area...very cute with cobble-stone streets and small brick shops. Cold, but great fun with friends.

Friday was the last day for DC. Sheri and I got up early and went to our tour of the White House. It was fun to see the East Wing and the State room and the "official" stuff. I lost track of the time and was late meeting up with Nancy Godfrey, another great friend from BYU days! Nancy made things easy on me by driving from Baltimore with her two adorable daughters to meet me near the Washington DC temple. We sat in the visitor's center and talked about life and what we were doing to keep busy. Her two daughters were busy little girls and kept us BOTH busy :) It was great to see her, though...and I'm looking forward to visitng her in San Diego (hint, hint Nanc!).

And then I had to say goodbye to the capitol city. I took the Chinatown bus from DC to Philadelphia to continue my East Coast Tour. The Philly chapter is coming!

Continent Hopping

2007-01-26T03:54:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends, Family, and others who care...

I'm sorry. I know, I know. I'm not quite the savvy blogger that some of my child-rearing friends are. I guess it's something that comes with motherhood. Who knew?!

Let me give you a brief rundown of where I've been for the past couple of months...and hopefully I can jump in again with posts and whatnot...and maybe, someday, catch up on the past (haha...right!). We'll see. I'm determined.

Ok. So, my last Europe I post said I was heading to London. I did. From London, I caught a flight to Copenhagen and spent some more time there. Loved it. But, reality did set in, I had to come home. I came back to the USA, grumpy that I had to, on September 6.
[Helsingør...I didn't find anything rotten in the State of Denmark]

I worked, played, spent time with friends and family. A few of those family members are under the age of 2 (check out their blogs for Taryn Michelle and Eric Brian) had a fabulous Thanksgiving/early Christmas because...

[The munchkins: Mari, Eric, David and Taryn]

I went to India!!! On December 10, I headed out on my own to Bangalore, India. My parents were on their way and arrived 12 hours after I did. My youngest brother, Eric, was finishing 2 years of missionary service in India and the three of us decided to pick him up. We spent 2 weeks there. It was incredible!! I promise, someday I'll post the photos!!!
[Eric, Me, and the Taj]

We went to Bangalore, Chennai (Madras), Mumbai (Bombay), Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur. It was incredible!! I rode a camel, an elephant, saw monkeys, the Taj Mahal, ate the best Indian food EVER. I even got sick!! It was a complete experience ;)

I barely had time to unpack and wash clothes before I had to pack up again for the next round. January 6, I went to Washington DC for a week with one of my good friends, Sheri. We spent the week touring the Nation's capitol...feeling patriotic. We even got to go inside the Capitol Building and the White House! Cool stuff!!
[Capitol Hill...found out it really is a hill. More on that later.]

I continued my East Coast tour by going to Philadelphia to visit a good friend, Jessy. I had a fun weekend with her and her friends. Everyone I met in Philadelphia was very nice. Who knew?! :) I saw the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and even ran up the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art like Rocky!! Yo Adrianne!
[Me, Naomi, and Jen in front of the Rocky statue]

Then I took the Chinatown Bus from Philly to New York City and maneuvered the subways to get to Wall Street where my fab friend, Sara, lives. She kindly let me crash at her place and I spent 4 days seeing the sights of the Big Apple. Great city!!! I'm ready to go back!
[NYC skyline...on a freezing cold day]

On the 18th, I headed to Newark, NJ to catch a $99 flight to Cologne, Germany. Arriving on the 19th, I took the train to Frankfurt, caught a flight to Copenhagen...and am here now enjoying the below freezing weather of Scandinavia in the winter. Brrr. No wonder those flights are so cheap.

The plan: go to my friend, Lindsay's, wedding reception here in Copenhagen, then to Sweden to visit some friends I met this summer, then to Helsinki, Finland to have a real sauna experience, and possibly to Estonia...because I can :)

I promise. Posts are coming!!!

Last Day in Brussels and a Change of Plans

2006-11-03T13:31:00.000-05:00

30 August 2006:

My last day in Belgium, I woke up, got breakfast and read by myself until a guy came over to ask for the butter and jam on my table. We exchanged "hostel pleasantries" (Where are you from? Where have you been? Etc.). He came from Toronto, but is originally from Trinidad. He invited me to sit with him and his wife. Judah is a black guy with dreads (cool ones, not the gross ones), a professional soccer player (looks the part) and married to Janet, a white girl from Toronto. They met at school in Miami. She'll be going to school in Brussels and he's going to try out for the football/soccer team. They were really nice, got jilted in their apartment deal and were trying to figure out their next step. Poor kids!

With my trip winding down (I was supposed to be flying out of London the next day), I wisely spent most of the morning at the internet café down the street from the hostel searching for airfare. I had this crazy idea of extending my trip one more time to go back to Copenhagen and surprise my "friend," Kristian. Was I nuts?? In the end, I accepted my insanity, changed my flight home, and called Mom and Dad to let them know—they were not happy!

With the morning completely gone and the hours in Brussels ticking down, I made a darted to the Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts. I flew through the rooms, taking in the fleshy Rubens, the disturbing Bosches as fast as I could; lamenting the time crunch as I sped past the detailed Brueghels (both Elder and Younger) and the masterful Rembrandts. It wasn’t nearly enough time to even remotely enjoy the museum. Afterwards, I dashed to the downtown area to buy some chocolates for Mom and Dad and to enjoy one last waffle with my last two euros fifty cents. I desperately searched for a waffle stand: they’re everywhere when you don’t want one, but no where when you have a train to catch in less than an hour!! I found a stand, finally, and ordered one with drippy chocolate sauce—mmmm! Hot and terribly delicious!

After the chocolate and waffle run, I was in a huge rush. The Eurostar does a TSA-type security check and border patrol. To go through the wanding, frisking, and questioning, you need to be 30 minutes early. I had 55 minutes to get from the waffle stand, back to my hostel for my bag, and downtown once more to the train station just to arrive before the train’s scheduled departure time! Running very much behind, I silently willed the metro car to go faster, mentally exhausting myself with worry of missing another train (Remember Barcelona??).

As though the gods were smiling down on me, the clocks slowed and I made it to my hostel and back to the train station in record time. 25 minutes before departure, I bought a few more chocolate bars, stood in a long security line, and made nice with the border patrol so he’d let me into his country. Getting the A-OK, I walked to the very last car on the platform, and settled into my seat for the speedy ride under the English Channel. My seat mate, a rare coin dealer, was pleasant but not terribly talkative. However, he gave me a big bar of Belgian chocolate and wished me luck in my travels when we departed! Score!! [The photo is when we were IN the Chunnel. I was just glad my seatmates were all busying themselves and not looking at the silly American girl taking a picture of the pitch-black insides of a tunnel!]

Belgian Waffles--a little piece of Heaven!

2006-11-03T13:27:00.000-05:00

29 August 2006:

I had the evening on my own in Brussels. I never felt unsafe on my trip, but venturing out for the first time in a city at night is a little scary. I am never quite sure that I'm going the right direction, never quite sure that I am sticking to the "good" neighborhoods, and never quite sure if I'll be able to get back to my hostel! However, I had limited time in Brussels and had heard that the light show at the Grand Palace was incredible. So I headed downtown.

Arriving before the 10:30 show, I went to see the pint-sized and irreverent Mannekin Pis. If you say it phonetically, that's what it basically is: a small statue of a naked, chubby boy, peeing until the end of time. And the Belgians are proud of it! There are all sorts of tacky souvenir shops displaying kitschy plates and key chains with the gleefully impertinent Mannekin Pis forever relieving himself. It's been said that locals will make costumes for the "fountain" to dress him up, but I saw him in all his "nekkid" glory. Right next door, I had the most incredible waffle!!! Fresh, hot, with chocolate chip ice cream and chocolate sauce melting drippily all over my sleeve and my bag...my fingers completely sticky from the sugary mess!!! Heaven!!!

I got a great seat for the light show and was getting ready to write about my day when two guys came and sat a couple of feet from me. I was bugged when one started to smoke, the breeze catching the smoke and sending it directly into my face. The other guy asked me the time and thus began my conversation with Victor and Joseph.

Victor is an Algerian/Italian who had been living in Belgium for a couple of months and has lived all over Europe. He's a henna tattoo artist and offered me a free one. Riiiiiight....Joseph the Smoker is French (should've guessed) and had lived in Spain and Italy for a while. We spoke a conglomerate of French, Italian, Spanish and English. It was a mess.

The light show, however, was spectacular. The main square in Brussels is flanked on four sides by gorgeous buildings. The Town Hall looks like an incredible ornate church! At 10:30, the lights go out in the square and the sounds of someone climbing up creaky steps of a clock tower, unlocking doors, and cranking the clock are heard over the loud speaker. The light show begins by bathing the cathedral in purples implying darkness before dawn. The music and lights continue representing the passing of the day from dawn through the afternoon until dusk and night falls again. The show closes with the sound of someone locking a door and climbing back down the creaky wooden steps. The square is left in darkness for a few moments and then returns to normal activity. It was great! I thanked my companions for the company and left, making sure they weren't planning on following me back to the hostel.

A Bagpiper in Brugges...

2006-10-09T19:54:00.000-04:00

August 28-29:

I took the train, first class (!), to Belgium! I lucked out with that youth discount! Thank goodness for being under 26!

At this point in my trip, I am starting to feel like it's about time to get home. Travel really wears on you physically, emotionally, mentally...it's just tiring. "All good things must come to an end..." and it's true. It's exhausting. If anyone tells me TRAVEL is VACATION, I will fervently disagree. The only time I got to "relax," which is what I normally associate with vacation, was when I was too tired to move my legs anymore, too tired to open my guide book and find another site to visit, and too tired to think about what to say to strangers. That is when I didn't mind sprawling out on a lawn or park bench and languidly people watch. Belgium, then London and then home. It will be good to be home.

The hostel in Brussels is nothing exceptional. Just 6 beds crammed into a room. I met Mary, a Canadian girl from Quebec. She seems pretty nice. But she's more of the bars and pubs type...not quite my thing.

The next morning (Aug 29), I was one of the first ones up. It is COLD outside!! I met an Aussie named Tina this morning and ended up sitting with her and her friend, Zoë, and another Aussie, Lizzie, at breakfast. Aside from every other comment being "f---" this and that, they were fun. Lizzie was going to Bruges today, so we decided to go together.

The train arrived around 11 a.m. It was nice to have someone to walk around with...she's an interesting girl. Young (19 years old). We don't share the same views, but she was good company.

The weather in Bruges was perfect!! It threatened rain as we left Brussels, but was sunny with big poofy clouds in Bruges. Our first stop was the Church of Our Lady to see the Michelangelo statue. It's the only Michelangelo statue to leave Italy during his lifetime. It was gorgeous. We visited a lot of churches. It was really enjoyable because they play appropriate choral music which creates a peaceful, almost touristy, atmosphere. But, I liked it. There was an incredible pulpit in the church that Lizzie brought to my attention. It was all wood and looked like a floating podium with wings. I liked being with Lizzie because she pointed out things that I would have missed, in spite of my art history background.

After the church, we wandered the streets trying to figure out where we wanted to go. We went to the Groening Museum, full of Flemish and Northern Renaissance work. As we walked around the museum, some interesting topics came up. She said that it wasn't my "fault" for being born in America...as though it were a bad thing! I assured her that, while I love to travel and would even enjoy living in a different country, I was happy to be an American. I kind of get that "pitied" approach from Aussies and Canadians. Strange.

We headed toward the windmills and paid 1 euro to go in one. We were told our ticket was good for the next windmill down (there was a row of 4 or 5)...yet the next one was closed. We didn't realize he'd mean the one AFTER that (ya know, because in Belgium "next one" means the "next to next one." :) We saw some of the big cogs and wheels that run them. And, as you can see, we had a fun time taking windmill pictures.

We wandered toward the Markt and bought frites (glorified French fries that Belgians are supposedly famous for) and sat in the square, eating frites and listening to a bagpipe player. Go figure.

Afterwards, we went to the Basilica of the Holy Blood that, supposedly, houses the blood of Jesus. Riiiiiiight. But it was an incredible church with murals all over the walls. Very ornate and impressive!

After that, we went in search of a "whole in the wall." That's the Australian nickname for an ATM ;) We thought we'd find one at the train station, but no luck. On the way, I had my first Belgian waffle. They are incredible!! Rather than a batter, they are balls of dough with sugar crystals in them that heat on the waffle iron and get all sweet and gooey...it was fabulous! At 7 p.m., we made it to the train station and said our good-byes.

A perfectly Gothic afternoon...

2006-10-09T19:33:00.000-04:00

28 August 2006:

From Frankfurt, I planned a route to Belgium through Cologne, Germany. Cologne has the most incredible cathedral I have ever seen. I had heard it was amazing...I couldn't even fathom how imposing, intricate, and immense it is!! The sky was overcast and grey, an ideal backdrop for the dark, imposing gothic cathedral. I only spent 2 1/2 rainy hours in Cologne, but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the cathedral. You walk out of the train station and BAM! It's right there! I even saw a group of missionaries (awwww...) and talked to them for a little bit.

Just a quick stop...and I was back on the train, on my way to Brussels!

The rest of my trip!

2006-10-09T19:31:00.000-04:00

I know, I've been home for over a month now and there's nothing explaining what happened after Frankfurt. So...for the next few days, I am going to do my best to put snippets of my post-Frankfurt days in WITH pictures (yes, they're finally uploaded to the computer and accessible! Yahoo!!).

Enjoy!

The trip of a lifetime...

2006-09-27T14:20:00.000-04:00

create your personalized map of europe

Friends, Romans, Countrymen! Lend me your ears (or eyes, whatever)...and let me update this blog and wrap up the BEST trip of my life!!!

Above is the map...the final version (as of September 6, 2006). According to World 66, I have seen 23% of Europe. Not even a QUARTER of Europe?! When I rattle off, "Well, I went to London, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Germany, Austria, France, and Belgium" to everyone who asks where I've been, it feels like a lot more than 23%.

It's incredibly difficult to relate all the stories, verbalize all the emotions, and pay all the bills associated with this trip!! But, I wouldn't change a thing! Not one thing. All right...maybe one. I would have written more in my blog :)

Frankfurts in Frankfurt!

2006-08-27T15:23:00.000-04:00

25-27 August 2006:

I cannot believe this is my last weekend in Europe! The trip of a lifetime is winding down. Honestly, I am tired. I am sad to have to get back to the real world and the tedium that it is, but I am welcoming not having to change locations every two days, not having to worry about pickpockets, knowing that I can have clean laundry whenever I need it, and not carrying my passport everywhere. Clean beds, healthy food, normal life...it has its appeal!

I am in Frankfurt, the Manhattan of Germany. It is, actually, a very beautiful city! It does not have the "big city" feel that I thought it would. There is a beautiful old part of town. The sad thing is it was leveled during WWII and everything has been rebuilt. So, while the buildings are beautiful, there isn’t the "old world" feel that there normally is in Europe.

I arrived on Friday after an uneventful train ride from Paris. I met up with my Danish friend, Kristian, at the train station. He’s a good travel companion...does all the leg work like booking hostels, figuring out the in-city transportation, and speaking German...because I sure don’t!

Saturday, we went to Mainz, a small town outside of Frankfurt with the intent of taking a Rhine River cruise...but we didn’t make it in time :( I really had hoped to go on one! But, the weather was questionable...half rainy/half sunny anyway. We just walked around, saw a beautiful church with stained glass done by Chagall, the artist and saw a "Scottish" wedding leaving the church. It was kinda strange...almost like one of those medieval dress-up weddings. There weren’t many guests, but those that were there were dressed up in renaissance dress and the guys were all wearing kilts. Strange. It was a nice, relaxing day, though.

Today, I ate a real Frankfurter in Frankfurt. It’s the little things, like real Danish in Denmark, real Swedish fish in Sweden, real Weiner Schnitzel in Wein (Vienna) and now, a Frankfurter in Frankfurt. Too bad I didn’t eat a hamburger in Hamburg.

Tomorrow I head out. I want to go to Köln and see the cathedral there. It is supposed to be incredible! And then on to Brussels. I will be in Belgium for 2 days, then head to London for an evening and fly out on Thursday.

I cannot believe how fast it goes. If I don’t post until I come home, I apologize. But, I appreciate all you that have followed along on my little journey and I promise to put some good photos with some excellent captions in soon after I get home!!

Perhaps my next post will be from the States!

Crazy French Keyboards!

2006-08-23T17:25:00.000-04:00

22-24 August 2006:

Oi! Oi! I left the Eternal City (Rome) and am now in the City of Lights (Paris) enjoying more pastries than a girl of my size should. As far as I am concerned, the French can keep their language, their pride, and their courtesy (or lack thereof) but they gotta share their pastries! For all of you who have ever studied for a graduate school exam, you may recognize one of these: France is to Pastries as Italy is to Gelato.

Enough said.

All right, I will elaborate a bit. In Italy I had the poor habit of eating gelato 2 or 3 times a day (I blame it entirely on my Italian teacher who told us that when she is there, she does not waste her money on pasta and pizza. Rather, she lives on gelato and espresso!). Well, I have tried their ice cream here (even the city's best ice cream) and it doesn't even come close to comparison. My friend, Jen, told me to think of them as two different foods...which is true, cuz they are VERY different (gelato is SO much better). HOWEVER, the pastries are AMAZING! Let's just say I ate a lot of them today...and leave it at that.

Paris is beautiful and not terribly relaxing. It is my own fault, though. I have one short day left here and only allowing for 2.5 days in Paris is my own folly.

My hostel is in the heart of the Parisian red light district...so, if I ever feel the need to step out for a peep show or run down the street to the sex shop, it's nice to know I don't have to go far. Actually, it is quite repulsive. I haven't even *seen* anything, but just knowing what goes on behind those neon-lit exteriors is enough to make my stomach turn. However, my hostel is nice and quiet and clean. I can't ask for much more than that.

The Louvre was overwhelmingly AMAZING!!! I wish I had days to be there...preferably days that are not in the month of August (there are SO many tourists...and yes, I know I am contributing to the chaos). I did a speedy self-tour and saw the biggies. I booked through MANY rooms just looking for things I recognized. It was a pitiful way to see the most amazing art museum in the world. Being somewhat of an art zealot/pilgrim, the pilgrimage I made seems slightly blasphemous...considering how quickly I did it.

I went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. The view was all right...pretty hazy. I can only imagine that after the rain it is incredible. But 11 euros to do it! Ouch!

I was exhausted today, so I rested a little on the lawn under the Tower...dozed a bit and read a book. I REALLY needed that! If I had more time, I would spend days people-watching, lounging, and reading Jane Austen (Mansfield Park) in Paris.

So, Paris has been nice. Nothing too exciting to report. But, I can barely write anymore because this keyboard configuration is so bizarre!

Au revoir!

Back in Rome...

2006-08-19T15:06:00.001-04:00

19-21 August 2006:

I am back in Rome. It was not hard to leave Venice, as in love as I am with it. It is a great place to visit, but so small...and today was not the best weather...kinda overcast and rainy. So, riding the train away, I felt satisfied. I could go back, happily, and not feel like I've seen everything.

Last night I met Adam and Ocn. Adam is from the States and Ocn is Australian. She has as much of a gelato obsession as I did. She told me that she found a great gelato place with really exotic flavors and we decided to go for breakfast this morning. So, at 8:30 we headed out, only to be disappointed. It was closed! So, we ate the traditional backpacker breakfast instead: bread and Nutella. It was peaceful, in the little plaza we were sitting in.

I got to the train station and on my train, no problem. I may finally be getting the hang of these trains. Good thing.

Uneventful train ride to Rome. I went to the Galleria Borghese to make reservations. However, I lucked out, and got the last entry of the day! Talk about AMAZING! That visit made coming back to Rome worth it. I loved it! There were amazing statues by Bernini and a fabulous exhibit on Raphael. Talk about awesome!! So, the complete art nerd that I am, I loved it!

I even felt pretty cool when I caught a bus that went directly to my hostel (I remembered it from the last time I was here). Cool!

Ok...gotta jet!

I am in love...

2006-08-18T02:27:00.000-04:00

It is true. I have fallen in love. I didn't plan for it to happen (you never do). It just hit me like a ton of bricks. I have fell in love in Europe!! Great!! What to do?? There is no way to deal with these things across an ocean!!

So, yesterday, I stepped off the train and saw my new love: VENICE!!! Talk about THE most beautiful city I have been to. I loved Stockholm and it has its own beauty...but Venice has the romance...the mystery...the secrets. It has a feel to it, so old and so alive! I know, I know...I am starting to sound like a tour guide for Venice (actually, I just copied that all out of my guide book....JUST KIDDING!).

Ok...I called my parents yesterday and my Dad said that Oslo was my last update! Yikes! I am sorry! Here is the brief rundown:

From Oslo I caught a plane to Hamburg, Germany. It was really frustrating not being able to speak the language, read the signs, etc. German sounds so harsh. I was thinking that German should be my next foreign language...very useful, but...I just don't love it like I do Italian!!

In Hamburg I relaxed with my friend, Kristian. It was great to relax. We saw went to the art museum, the Japanese gardens, a church, walked around downtown, ate too much Italian food (in Germany, go figure!), and kebabs (these amazing pita sandwiches with shaved meat in them...they're amazing!! The best fast food I've had! I am definitely going to start a kebab stand when I get home!).

From Hamburg, I spent 3 wonderful days in Vienna with my friend, Dan. We saw tons...which I will update on soon. I have to get going.

I went from Vienna to Venice and am now in love. I am going to meet up with two Canadian girls I met on the train...and that is in 30 minutes.

More adventures coming!

Norway in a Nutshell

2006-08-07T15:47:00.000-04:00

Hey all! So, it's been a while since I've posted...and once again, I can't upload pictures. No worries, you're all invited to view my slide show when I get home...I only have 2000+ pictures right now...and there are still 3 weeks of vacation left!

So, let me update you a bit on what's been happening the past week. I am feeling much better. The strep throat left the next day, Monday. I feel blessed! I really do. I headed downtown...which had me a little concerned, since I'd never really wandered downtown alone. Oslo is a beautiful city! I was a little sad that i had such a short time to explore it!

I took a busboat to the peninsula Bygdøy. There are a few museums there that I wanted visit. I went to the Norwegian folk museum first. It was very quiet and sleepy...it's like a recreation of old Norwegian life. There are little houses and demonstrations...much like Old Nauvoo if you've ever visited. There are people in costume doing typical tasks of old Norwegian life. I participated in some folk dancing and singing. One guy was being lame about not wanting to participate and used the excuse, "I can't dance in flip flops" and I held out my flip-flopped foot and said, "Now that's a poor excuse, because I am!" Haha...he came and danced!

While I was resting outside one of the buildings, enjoying the summer heat and sunshine (an unusually warm and sunny summer for Norway), a girl came by and asked if she could sit by me. Her name is Femmy and she's from Holland. We walked around together and ended up spending the rest of the day together. She's 26 and just traveling Norway on her own as long as she feels like she wants to. It was great! She was so cool! We were laughing the whole day!!

We visited the Kon-Tiki Museum that documents the journeys of a Norwegian explorer who made several trips across large bodies of water (seas and oceans) on reed rafts. It was pretty awesome...I enjoyed it because there was a whole section dedicated to his exploration in the 1950's to Easter Island. Because of my time in Chile, I have a bit of a love of Easter Island.

We walked around town, toward the less expensive, ethnic area and got chicken tikka masala at an indian restaraunt. We talked about life, boys, jobs, family, everything...she was AWESOME! I really want to keep in touch with her!

I arrived at the apartment and talked with some of the kids hanging out there, packed up and got to bed a little after midnight...only to get up about 4.5 hours later to catch my early morning train from Oslo to Bergen. I got a ticket for one of the most scenic train rides in the world...and promised everyone that I wouldn't sleep on the train :)

Tuesday, I did "Norway in a Nutshell" which is this great train tour. I took the train from Oslo to Myrdal which is absolutely gorgeous! I met a really nice kid named Paul. We talked for 5 hours about life, love, politics, and school. He was only 21, but quite wise for his age. From Myrdal, I got on another train line and went to Flåm...you'll just have to see the photos. It's AMAZING!! I was kinda ticked because of all the tour groups that "reserved" cars even though there was a sign that said no seats were reserved. People kept kicking me out of seats (I should have been a brat and pretended to not understand them and rattle off something in Spanish). Eventually a nice couple from Brazil let me sit by them. We chatted a bit, me in Spanish, them in Portuguese.

From Flåm, we took a boat to Gudvagan (I think that's what it's called) and then a bus to Voss...and a train from Voss to Bergen. I met a really nice American girl from CA named Laura. We talked the entire train ride from Voss to Bergen and then grabbed dinner together. She was hilarious! I think we became fast friends as soon as she told me I looked like a homeless baboushka. Yeah...my style these days is non-existent. :)

While eating dinner, we noticed people across the park dancing and playing country music. So, we walked that way and there was this small group of people with a DJ dancing a funky swing style. I really wanted to dance, so when the guy came around passing out fliers, I asked him about it and then blurted, "Can I dance with you?" He put the fliers down, and there I was, in Bergen, Norway, dancing this funky Norwegian swing with a random Norwegian guy! Cool! Laura got it on video for me, so hopefully I'll have that if I hear from her again!

I went to the apartment of Lisbet and Nina. Camilla, a girl at Anne's apartment in Oslo, is from Bergen and called her friend, Nina, to see if I could sleep on their couch for a day or two. They were so nice! They're sisters...in their 30s. We sat up and talked until late...it was just like being with my sisters! They were great!

Wednesday morning I was supposed to meet Laura...but it didn't happen. I hope she's all right. I haven't heard from her at all. So, I spent the day on my own. It was rainy in Bergen (rains 280 days out of the year). I went to the Stave Church, an old church made of wood...it's the type of churches they built in Norway back in medieval times. It was so small and cozy. The ticket man knew so much about it, too, and explained some of the wood carvings and beliefs of the early Christians at that time.

I walked down by the fish market, saw whale meat (didn't get to try it, though!) and other amazing seafood. I walked Brygget (I think that's what it's called). They are these old buildingson the harbor that were built in the 1400's or 1500's and have survived but are getting more and more crooked as their foundations sink. They're pretty and very "Bergen." I hiked Mount Fløyen instead of taking the tram. It took me about an hour...and view was beautiful. The rain had quit, the sun was peaking through...it was nice. It would have been more fun to hang out with Laura, but sometimes things just don't work out.

It started to rain again...I'd bought an umbrella the day before as my souvenir from Bergen. I grabbed a sandwich for dinner and headed back to the apartment. Lisbet and Nina helped me do laundry (yahoo! Clean laundry!) and I talked with them until late that night.

I got up and gathered my clean laundry and headed to town. I had a ticket on a boat to go from Bergen to Stavanger at 10 a.m. It was a highspeed boat...which means you didn't spend much time on the deck. It was very loud and cold and windy! The fjords are beautiful, but 5 hours on the boat, I did eventually get tired of looking out the window and took a nap instead. The route leads to open waters (the ocean) and it got quite choppy. I don't get seasick, but I was close. I headed to the deck and sat there, in the cold and rain, talking to Jack, a 13 year old kid from Denver. He was a really neat kid, travelling with his grandma and sister. We chatted for about an hour and then headed back to our seats. He reminded me a lot of Eric, in a way. :)

I arrived in Stavanger, kinda rainy and overcast. I didn't know where to go, so I wandered a bit until I found the tourist information. I'd gone to Stavanger to do this incredible hike to a place called "Preacher's Stool." My guide book, however, was not very helpful. It said the hike would take 2-3 hours, so I thought I could do it that day and catch the night train to Oslo. Well, what the book didn't say is that it takes about 2 hours just to get to the hike and 2 hours to get back. I had a major scheduling problem, then...because I wouldn't be able to do the hike and catch a train back to Oslo in time to catch my flight out of Norway to Germany. I was bummed. It was quite an expensive detour!! But, Stavanger was a nice town and I had some friends there who met me for dinner. I met up with Bjarte, Moses, and Lathan...we ate kebabs and Moses and Bjarte walked me around the city, down by the harbor, and old Stavanger. It was a nice evening and they were sweet to hang out wiht me until my train left at 10:30.

Remember how much I adore the night train? That's only if you get a bed! It would have cost me over $100 to get a bed on the night train, so I opted, for experience sake, to sit up the whole night. AWFUL! I barely slept...and am paying for it now. The train stops all the time, my seat didn't recline, and every time the person next to you moves, you jolt awake. I'm glad I've experienced it so I never have to again now!

I have been trying to figure out what to do today in Oslo until my plane leaves. It was rainy this morning, but the clouds have cleared and the sun is shining. I am going to head to the art museum and then the airport to arrive in Hamburg, Germany tonight! It's strange to be leaving Scandinavia! I've been here for 3 weeks! And I haven't had to stay in a single hostel!! I've just met awesome people who are willing to help me out! Being in Scandinavia is like being at a supermodel convention, but people are so nice! [The photo REALLY was taken in Oslo. While I was sitting in the main square, I think they were shooting for America's Next Top Model or maybe an European version. Whatever it was, they were hilarious to watch. I was sitting next to two British girls and we mocked and joked about it for a good 20 minutes. It was great fun...and got even better when a MAN came out to show these amateurs how to walk on the catwalk. Wow.]

So, it's back to the continent tonight!

13%

2006-08-07T03:20:00.000-04:00

My friend, Jen, had a link on her blog to this map site that let's you track where you've been. I thought, "Great idea! Now that I'm really starting to see Europe, I'll be able to brag, visually, about all I've seen!" Haha...not really. According to the map, I've only visited 13% of Europe...and, for the record, I've only seen 4% of the entire world. 4% by age 25...how am I ever going to see it all before I die?!

create your personalized map of europe

Strep throat!

2006-08-06T10:56:00.000-04:00

All right! I get it! Obviously my body is trying to tell me to slow down because it's rebelling by not fighting this nasty case of strep throat that has attacked me!

As you might have read, the whole world kept rocking for me yesterday...and not in a "rock my world" sort of way. More of a "if this doesn't stop soon, I'm gonna pass out" way. I turned in pretty early, chills and hot flashes racking my fevered body.

I woke up before anyone in the apartment was up this morning, wanting to go back to sleep, but not being able to. It hurt so bad to swallow and I had the distinct feeling that I may be battling strep. I grabbed my flashlight, took a peek at my throat in the mirror...and what to my wondering eyes should appear? But little white patches all over my throat and swollen tonsils. Gross!

I painfully choked down breakfast and my antibiotics and tried to rest some more. My head, neck, and shoulders were tight and sore. I got ready and, semi-deliriously, shuffled my heels to church.

I couldn't concentrate in the classes because it was so hot, my head hurt, and I just wanted to lie down. I ended up waiting in the foyer until church was over.

I am feeling much better...my fever is gone and the world has stopped teetering back and forth. I think I will take a nap, though, and try to convince my body that I really am taking care of it and it can go back to fighting off bacterial infections!

Good morning, Oslo!

2006-08-05T03:19:00.000-04:00

Ahhhh!! The night train...one of my favorite inventions! Not only that, but the beds on the night train! You want to be rocked to sleep like a baby, take the train! I refuse to sleep sitting up which means I pay a little more for a bed. That's fine by me. The compartment I was in last night not only had a bed, but had access to a shower! Score! One thing I've learned as a backpacker is that you take advantage of the situtation RIGHT then! Don't sit and think about it...or the opportunity may have already passed you by.

I didn't hesitate to take a shower...you never know when you'll find the next one. I couldn't help but fret, a little, about the potential of the train jerking to one side and my naked body flying out the door into the hallway. Haha...good thing there are strong locks on the doors!

I stayed in a cabin with 2 other female travelers: Li Ping, a Chinese woman from Switzerland, and Christine, a 19 year old finishing her month long Europe stint. We got into Oslo at 8 a.m. I felt like a million bucks! Clean, ready for the day, a full night's sleep behind me. Ahhh! I sat in the station for a little while, reading my guide book about Oslo, trying to get my bearings...waiting until it was a little later so I could call Anne, my contact here in Oslo. Chris and Katarina, the couple I stayed with in Stockholm, hooked me up with Anne...a single girl who is so sweet! She came to the train station in her cute Peugot convertible and drove me, a complete stranger, to her apartment. She's moving to a new place and will stay there while I occupy her bed! She's amazingly nice!

She and some friends were going to go boating on the fjords around Oslo and they invited me along. Again, another split second decision: go to a museum by yourself, or go boating with 10 other Norwegians?! Easy! I grabbed my swimsuit and headed out the door with them!

I may start to sound redundant, but I met so many nice people today! Everyone on the boat was really cool! It was quite funny to see all of us, 11 in total, crowded onto every flat surface of this small boat. We putted out to a calm area and went swimming! I swam in the fjords of Norway! Check that one off the list of things to do before I die!

I got toasted a bit...it was warm and so deliciously summer outside! We all had a great time! I even tried a traditional Norwegian boating sandwich. Strange but true. They eat them open-faced...so I had a piece of bread, topped with mayo and shrimp that had been freshly caught (not by us), boiled in seawater, shelled and plopped on the sandwich! I can't remember the name of the sandwich in Norwegian...and it really just tasted like a lot of mayo, but hey...it's all part of the experience!

We got back to the apartment and Anne and Tone, the girls I went with, got ready for a wedding reception. I showered and walked down to the Vigelandsparken. It's a park near the apartment that is covered in statues by a Norwegian man named Vigeland. They are all men, women, and children, in the buff, in strange positions. No, it's not a sculpted karma sutra park...they're just in everyday poses...naked. There's one piece called the Monolith which is probably 30 or 40 feet high...naked body wrapped and tangled around naked body. It's pretty amazing. AND, unfortunately, I can't get this computer to upload my pictures! Again, sorry!

I sat down a bit, my head dizzy, the world rocking, my stomach rumbling. It was time to go. I hope it's just dehydration from the boat today. I bought some chicken curry on the way home and am here at the apartment, ready to crash into bed.

Tomorrow will be good...hopefully somewhat relaxing. I would like to go to the art museum tomorrow...maybe another museum, if there's time. I met Camilla, a girl who is staying at the apartment as a visitor as well...and she mentioned going to some island nearby on Monday morning. So, I may be doing that! I don't know how I'll find time for everything here in Norway! So much to do, so little time! It's been great, though! I just hope I can get the floor to stop rocking.

Chillin´in Copenhagen

2006-08-04T11:31:00.000-04:00

Well...this trip has turned out MUCH differently than I planned. First thing I would change: Get a Eurail pass with unlimited train rides instead of the 10-day Flexipass. It´s not really flexible at all. It feels a bit binding, since I don´t have the liberty to hop on ANY train I want...but have to figure out what would be the most cost-effective use of a day of travel.

Anyway, that´s just research for my next trip :) Stockholm was a blast. I loved it! I met a really nice girl named Christina who let me stay at her apartment with her sister and brother-in-law. They were so nice to me!! I went to church on Sunday with them. They invited me for lunch and offered to let me stay at their apartment another day if I needed to (which I did!). I spent the day with them and they were just so kind and helpful! We went to one of the largest lakes in Stockholm. It was beautiful! Lots of people out swimming and hanging out! It was fun! Niclas, Christina´s friend (whom I´d met at Fest I Nord) was also there with us. It was a great day!

Monday I got up early and did laundry!! Talk about one of the highlights of my trip! Real washing machines and dryers...it was awesome!! Katarina, Christina´s sister, even lent me clothes so I could wash EVERY last piece of laundry that I had! Sweet! I was in heaven. I packed up my stuff and Christina, Niclas and I headed downtown to buy my train ticket to Copenhagen and to take the canal tour. Stockholm is a very beautiful city! I love it! Pictures soon!! I promise!

I took the night train (no running to catch it, either! I was REALLY on time!) and arrived in Copenhagen Tuesday morning. Copenhagen is a pretty city. I think I´ve fallen in love with cities on a coast! How did I survive so long in the Midwest??

The best part of traveling is meeting people and making contacts! I´d met some great friends at Fest I Nord and they convinced me that I should further explore Scandinavia. In Copenhagen, I met up with Kristian, the guy I´d hung out with in Rome. It was great to see him! We had a blast together! There´s no better way to see Copenhagen than with an actual Dane!

I walked...a lot! Copenhagen has a great transportation system, but I wanted to get the lay of the land and feel more familiar with the city. The architecture is beautiful, there´s great statues and fountains. I love the canals and the lakes and the boats!

Wednesdays are free museum days! I went to the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek...an amazing art museum with tons of sculpture! I loved it! There were a lot of works by Rodin and some Danish artists that were incredible! I went to the National Museum, but was bored to tears! There´s a walking district with tons of stores and things that I walked through every day. It was pretty fun. I climbed the Round Tower and saw a good view of the cityscape. The weather was ugly...rainy and overcast. I decided, that day, that Copenhagen wasn´t very cool.

On Thursday, however, the sun came out! It couldn´t have been more than 72 degrees, sunny, blue skies, and a fabulous breeze! I decided, that day, that Copenhagen was AWESOME! I walked lots more! It was just so pleasant! I walked along the canals, visited the Little Mermaid statue, was disgusted with every man, boy, etc. that decided it was ok to grope her breasts (dirty!) and sat on the rocks, enjoying the breeze, the sun, eating candied almonds, fresh cherries, and relaxing! You can´t top that!!

Today...last day in Copenhagen! I went to the train station with plans to leave at noon and spend the whole day on the train (ick!). The ticketman told me that I could take a night train, though! Sweet! So, I had a whole day to walk around Copenhagen...again! This time, though, I solicited some company. I met two guys, John Henry and Ben (currently from Wyoming) who were there just for the day. We walked around town the whole day, visited the Royal Library, relaxed and chatted a bit in some of the green spaces...and had a great time! I LOVE meeting new people!

We said goodbye at the train station...they´re off to Berlin and I´m heading to Oslo.

Honestly, I can´t really put into words how much I´ve enjoyed Copenhagen! It was completely unplanned...definitely not part of my itinerary. But, I think that´s why I enjoyed it so much! The ability to be spontaneous is so much fun! I love it!

Pictures are coming...soon! :)

Still alive...in Stockholm!

2006-07-30T15:22:00.000-04:00

Hey all!! I am sorry, sorry, sorry!! I have been having such an awesome time the past week and a half that I haven't had time to do anything...haven't checked email, haven't posted on my blog (don't ask me when I'll make up the past couple weeks worth of funness!!)

So, let me give you a brief rundown:

I had a fab time at the Cinque Terre with Janelle and Natalie. I spent the next 4 days in Florence. I love Florence. I can't get over how amazing it was!! I saw so many wonderful places, beautiful works of art and architecture, and met some great people! Mark, an American guy that is living in Florence going to art school, showed me the city through a semi-Florentine's view (he's been there 10 months). Part of that semi-Florentine advantage: some of the most amazing gelato I´ve ever tried!! He took me to Vestri, a place that sells dark chocolate gelato with cayenne pepper in it. Sounds strange, but it was awesome! Gelato that bites back!

I took it easy in Florence, just enjoying the city. Finally, Friday came and I decided it was time to leave. I caught the train (not without plenty of difficulty, of course! If it's me and a train, you know there has to be problems). I looked at my ticket wrong and thought my arrival time was my departure time...so, AGAIN I changed the ticket. While I waited for my train to arrive (and it was delayed over 1.5 hours), I talked to two girls in the station who were also waiting. They were playing Uno, so I asked if I could join. Come to find out they are from Washington, DC. So, we had a nice chat about how amazing it is and how I should definitely move there. It was great.

I arrived in Rome and got to the hostel: BellaRoma. I felt dirty and tired. I took a shower...which didn´t really help because Rome is HOT! There were a couple of Americans in my room. One kid was from Tulsa, OK and it was his first time traveling...and he was traveling alone. You could see it in his face that he wasn't too sure about it. I assured him that traveling alone is fun and that there´s no reason to be homesick. I don´t think he believed me.

The next morning we all got up pretty early. There was one person who´d arrived late last night that finally stirred because we were so noisy. His name is Kristian and he´s from Denmark. I started talking to him and asked what he was planning on doing in Rome that day. He said he´d see the ancient sites. I had planned on seeing the Vatican, but I figured if I could have some company, maybe the ancient sites wouldn´t be such a bad idea.

So, we saw the Colossuem (pretty cool!) and Circus Maximus...and a bunch of other ruins. I really wish I knew more about Roman history. I think I would have enjoyed the ruins more. But, it was just really hot and looked like a bunch of rubble. Next time I go, I will read up on the history.

We walked all through the city, saw the Memorial to Victor Emanuel II...it´s also their Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It´s an incredible monument!! We saw the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain. I threw my coin in over my shoulder, so I´m sure to return to Rome someday.

Which is a good thing...because I didn´t have barely any time there! I went to church on Sunday. It was quite an ordeal trying to find it! There I met Rosa Rodriguez. She´s from Peru and was just so sweet to me! She invited me to her house for lunch and we had a great time. She´s in her 40´s and lives alone. It was just fun to talk with her...and her Italian is as Spanified as mine (Spanified meaning you slip in Spanish every few seconds). We spoke this mix of Spanish/Italian with each other...but, we knew exactly what the other was saying.

That afternoon Kristian and I walked around the city some more. It's just an incredible place! Rome overwhelmed me a bit...especially after being in Florence which is so much smaller and more manageable. I hear that Siena is even better than Florence! Something to look forward to!

Monday morning I packed up and headed to the airport. I thought I left with plenty of time to make my flight...but, true to Amy fashion, I cut it SO very close! There was a big problem with my luggage because it was too heavy to be a carry on and the line to pay for your luggage (you have to pay for each bag you check on Ryanair) was insanely long...and I was stressing like no other because my plane was going to leave in less than 10 minutes!!! I finally got my bag checked and sprinted to the gate...which had been closed. They let me pass...and had to take me out to the plane in a special little car. They were practically lifting the stairs to the plane as I was walking up them. Phew! I don´t know what I would have done if I´d missed the plane!

I arrived in Sweden...and it is ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!! It´s so clean and beautiful! I love it! I managed to make my way into Stockholm...and was just in awe of the beauty of the city and its buildings! From Stockholm I took the train to Enkoping where Fest I Nord would be held. Fest I Nord is a big young single adult conference that the church in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden holds every summer. Kids from 18-30 are invited to attend. It´s a week long party! And I loved it! I saw my favorite Finns (some of the kids I met in college) and met some great people!

One girl, Lindsay, an American working as an au pair in Denmark, and I became fast friends. I think it was the fact that we are both Americans, foreigners...the shared experiences, etc. She was wonderful! She and I are about the same size, so she outfitted me the entire week (her clothes were WAY cuter than my backpacker wardrobe that never seems to look clean now--note: the picture to the right is from the Decades Dance...her clothes weren't all 80's style) and she and I shared a double air mattress since I didn´t know you were supposed to bring your own blankets and bedding. She definitely made things easier on me this week! We had fun!

I met lots of Swedes and Finns. I wasn't sure if the Norwegians existed...and I met a few nice Danes. It was tons of fun just to meet new people and experience new things...and immerse myself in a new culture! We had dances every night, a sports day, a day of lectures, and plenty of time to socialize.

It went so fast! Before I knew it, it was Friday and we were packing up and leaving. I decided to stay the weekend in Stockholm...having made some good friends here. So, that´s the rough outline of my last week and a half. I hope that I can find time to write more consistently. I am sorry for those of you that thought I´d been snatched!!! :) Sorry for no pictures...I´ll work on it!

Love you all!

Photos from Fest I Nord and Stockholm:

Me and Otso, one of my favorite Finns

Me and Karoline, a fellow American

Me and Mikael, my date for the Gala Dance

Such hansome boys!! Michael (USA), Niclas (Sweden), Luke (New Zealand), Ami (Finland)

My Swedish friends: Evelina, Malin, Ilona, and me

Evelina showing her Viking roots!

Me and Lindsay...giving our Swedish boys a salute!

A walk in Gamla Stan: Kent, Evelina, Ilona, Alexandra, Mikael (as you see, the viking hat was a favorite of all!! It was a gift from Lindsay to me :)

Kent, Raul, and Janne

Janne strikes a pose...sassy!

Lindsay and I DID find Norwegians!! Bjarte, Martin, Eva, Moses, Trond, James, Rebekke, Daniel, and Lindsay

Me, Jenny, and Christina

My Swedish family: Christina, Katarina, and Chris

The Magic of Florence!

2006-07-20T05:12:00.000-04:00

Sorry I haven't written the past couple days! I've just been getting to know beautiful Florence!

On Tuesday I went to the Palazzo Vecchio and met two girls from Arkansas, Amanda and Tamara. They were signing up for the same tour as I was. It was fun to hang out with them a bit. They are both seniors in college...just having one last fling before they finished up. They invited me to go to dinner with them, but I was working on meeting up with someone that I'd met at church on Sunday.

Having a cell phone could be very handy! The only way I can contact people is through email. I had received an email from Mark, one of the expats I met at church on Sunday, offering to show me around Florence. He had mentioned the school he goes to and what time he got out of class...so, in a slightly stalker-esque fashion, I looked up the school and waited outside for him to finish. I looked at it this way: a) he thinks I'm a bit of a psycho for hunting him down like that, but at least I get to hang out with someone that night or b) I can worry that I appear like a stalker, not meet up with him, and spend the evening by myself in my hotel room since all the sights close around 6:30.

It's kinda fun not worrying what people think...you're only here for a short time, right? So, I went to the school, he showed me the art studio (it's an art school) and then we walked a bit around Florence. Mark showed me an awesome gelato place...and I had chocolate and cayenne gelato! It was awesome! We went over to the Palazzo Vecchio, sat in the piazza watching people, seeing the statues, commenting on the ridiculous rules imposed by the security guards (you're not allowed to sit cross-legged. You have to keep one foot on the ground, at least or they come over to you with their big dog and the guns strapped to their belt and point to you to put your feet on the ground). Strange.

After that, we met up with a girl named Liz who is studying Italian. She's from Texas. We went to a small trattoria "Il Gatto e il Volpe" and met another student from the art studio, Joe. He's a 50 or 60 year old man from Ireland. So, the four of us had a nice dinner...and the great thing about Italy is you just sit and relax. The waiters don't come and bother you...and you can stay at the table as long as you like. We were there for about 3 hours...just eating and talking about all sorts of things. Liz is a really skinny girl who can't drink a lot of alcohol...and Joe, being polite, kept filling her glass with the wine he'd bought. She just kept getting funnier and funnier as the night went on. She wasn't drunk, just very buzzed. I'm happy to be the observer and not the participant in those situations, though!

So we all left and walked our different directions. Liz got on the bus to head to her host home and Mark and I walked around the city. We walked over to the river Arno...the Ponte Vecchio is a pretty happening place at night. He explained why it was so important. It was the only bridge not blown up by the Allies during WWII. It is so old...dates back to the Medici in the 1400s...so they could cross the river without having to mix among the commoners. It was a fun evening!

The next day I went to The Uffizi, the art museum. I really enjoyed it. Sat there in front of Boticelli's Birth of Venus for a VERY long time. It was my favorite painting while I was growing up...and I just enjoyed seeing it...the real thing. Big and beautiful! The Uffizi isn't a very museum-goer-friendly museum. I was not as impressed as I was at the National Gallery...and I hear the Louvre is even more amazing. But, it was beautiful and a great way to spend the morning. I met Mark for lunch and had some awesome pasta and tomatoes with mozzarella and basil! Mmm...I'd lost weight in Barcelona, but I think it's coming back here in Italy!

In the afternoon, the hot afternoon, I went to the Duomo museum and the Duomo. Beautiful buildings! This morning I was going to go to the Palazzo Pitti...but I have kinda wasted the morning. I've gotta learn to NOT do internet in the mornings. Take advantage of the time to go see things...and do Internet at night.

Anyway, not anything too exciting. But, I'm really enjoying Florence! I could definitely live here...it's a fabulous small city!

Baking in the Cinque Terre

2006-07-18T03:49:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was fabulous! Great locale, great travel companions, a great time all around. Sunday night, Janelle, Natalie, and I decided to take the earliest train out of Florence and go to Cinque Terre, the 5 coastal fishing villages on the Northwestern coast of Italy.

Trains, as you may have guessed, are no my forte, but we managed to get on an early one (6:50) and headed out. We rode through Pisa and strained to see the Tower...but no such luck. Apparently it's not right next to the train tracks.

We arrived in La Spezia, bought our 5 euro ticket to Cinque Terre...which allows you ride the trains from city to city all day and hike between them. We started off in Monterosso. All the cities are so cute and little and very "typical." It's exactly what you'd picture a coastal fishing village to be like.

The hike between Monterosso and Vernazza was the longest and most difficult. It was hot and the sun was pretty strong. Natalie and I ended up with a decent sunburn while Janelle, whose skin is better suited for the sun, probably got more of a tan. We chose to start at the fartherst city (Monterosso) and do that hard hike first so we could take it a little easier as we continued through the day.

WOW! It was gorgeous, hot and quite a difficult hike! Skinny 1-1 /2 foot wide trails, tons and tons of stairs made of rocks to climb up the steep coastal hills. Some gorgeous views, though! I was glad to have the company. It would have been WAY more tedious to have done that on my own like I'd been planning. We decided that Cinque Terre would be an ideal honeymoon spot, too...lots to do, very cute and charming...and, in the off season, would be quiet and AMAZING! There are small beaches, there are sunbathing rocks, there's the sea, the hills, the shopping, the restaurants. It was awesome!

In Vernazza we treated ourself to some much deserved gelato (I got a fruity sherbet kind) and then took the ferry from Vernazza, past Corniglia, to the 4th of the five towns (I can't remember its name right now). From there, we walked to Riomaggiore, the 5th town, decided we were hot, COMPLETELY exhausted, and ready to head back to Florence.

After the 2 1/2 hour train ride, we treated ourselves to dinner at a Florentine Trattoria. We bought a bruschetta appetizer...it had the toasted bread with different toppings. One was chopped olives (mmm!), another was smoked salmon and cheese (not that great), another was typical bruschetta with tomatoes, basil and olive oil (awesome) and the fourth was some sort of liver pate. It was weird...not my favorite, but not the most disgusting thing I'd ever eaten. I don't really plan on making it a habit of eating liver, though. I had spinach gnocchi in a pomadora sauce and tried Natalie's pesto pasta and Janelle's florentine crepes. Afterwards, we treated ourselves to a shared ice cream with fudge sauce. We thought it would be chocolate cake with ice cream, but at that point, in our exhausted state, we didn't care.

They head off to Rome today, so I said goodbye. It's strange...because I really felt like I'd become good friends with them in the short time we were together. And yes, we'll swap pictures, but beyond that, there's not a lot of foundation for friendships to be maintained. That's the hard thing, I think. It's meeting such great people...and then being willing to let them go. I guess that's a difficult thing for me to do. But, it's a good life lesson, too. You've got to know how to let go of people and enjoy the memories.

At my hotel, I washed my laundry, packed up and got to bed. I've got lots to do today...and not a lot of time to do it.

I'll try and add pictures later. Next time, though, I'm going to learn how to better use the technology available to me...BEFORE I go.

E bella la citta!

2006-07-16T15:15:00.000-04:00

14-16 July 2006:

Sheesh!! These computers are going so slow!! Sailing was...well, a no go. Sounded fabulous and great, but you've gotta go with your gut feeling. I met this kid, Landon, and his friend, Fai, at the Duomo. Nice kid, but I kinda got the impression that he couldn't care less if I went sailing with them or not. I know it was my decision, and he definitely left it up to me, but there was no "Sure...come! It'll be fun!" It was more of a, "If you want to, come. If you don't, no skin off my back." So...they went into the Duomo and that gave me five minutes to decide. I'd come up with a plan B earlier that day...and opted for plan B. I didn't have a BAD feeling about sailing with 5 guys on the Mediterranean, but I didn't feel all that welcome, either. So...Florence sounded like a great idea.

I broke the news to them (they were heartbroken...ha! Right!) and I headed off as quick as my legs could carry me to the trian station. I bought a ticket for Florence, the last train leaving that night. I rushed off to the internet hoping to find a hostel available. But, you can't book a hostel online for the very same day! Darn it! So, I was going into Florence, arriving at 11 p.m. with no place to stay. That was the major stress on my 3 hour trip.

I sat there, consulting my travel guide...writing down phone numbers of different places that I could possibly afford. I kept a mental monologue going...thinking, "Amy, it's not the FIRST time that someone has slept in a train station! Come on! No big deal!" "Amy, you have a credit card for a reason. If it costs you $100 for a room...for one night...it's not the end of the world." I just kept reminding myself that things would work out.

We arrived at the station and I bolted to a phone. After a couple of attempts trying to figure out how my Italian phone card worked, I started calling hostels and hotels. Finally, a lady said she'd have a room for me. It was going to cost me 60 euros. Not the end of the world...and it had air conditioning, it's own bathroom, and included breakfast! Sweet!

So, I walked to Tourist House, where my room was located. It wasn't too bad. Clean and quiet. I was so grateful!

I washed clothes in the bathroom and crashed in my bed. Exhausted!

I woke up the next morning refreshed and ready to go. I met a nice couple from Texas that is living in Milan. They were sweet...living the life I only dream of. They have 4 kids and they've moved them all from Texas to live in Milan for a year. She's a photographer, so she took my photo and got Mom's email address to let her know that her baby is doing all right...with a photo to prove it. A few minutes later, I met a girl from Bozeman, MT! She even knows who my Montana roommates are! Small world after all!

I went out looking for a place to stay and stumbled across a one star hotel: Hotel Desiree. It's located very near the station and it's nice! They gave me a great offer: 30 euros a night for a single, with air conditioning, breakfast, and my own bathroom. Sweet! So, I've been staying there and it's been so nice.

Yesterday I headed to the Accademmia...after an hour wait in the sun...and saw the MANY Italian Renaissance alterpieces. It's amazing stuff, but as Trevor asked me, "Seeing SO much of that stuff...doesn't it get old?" Yes. I got to the point where I'd just scan for names I had studied and look at those works rather than intensely study each and every piece. I proceeded through the museum and turned the corner...BOOM!
There he was. David! It was AMAZING!!! It's an absolutely beautiful sculpture! The setting is incredible...down the hall, set apart from any other statuary, arches...gorgeous! I walked past Michelangelo's Slaves/Prisoners...where he is "freeing" the work from the marble. They're pretty cool. But, not nearly as impressive as David!! It's just amazing. There's nothing quite like it.

Afterwards, I treated myself to gelato for dinner and then headed to the Piazzale Michelangelo. You cross the River Arno and I spied the Ponte Vecchio...I wish I knew what was so special about it...anyone want to inform me?

At the Piazzale Michelangelo, there's another David. Please note the effects of sun exposure. Protect your skin...unless you want to look like this!

I climbed up the hill to enjoy the sunset over the Arno and Firenze...I had lots of time, though. So, I people-watched and talked to a few. An old man sat next to me and we began to talk. He spoke English, which is great since my Italian is severely lacking! He offered to give me a guided tour of the church up there, San Miniato al Monte.

Piero, my guide, has such a passion for Florence. He knew so much about the church, it's symbolism, history, and I truly enjoyed my little guided tour! He was such a nice old man...until he turned a little...creepy.

The tour ended behind the church...no people around, really. He turns to me and, after an hour or more together, he says, "Amy, in this moment, I love you." Awww...that's sweet. I told him I felt very fortunate to have met him and to have such a great tour. He gives me a big hug (fine), kisses both my cheeks (fine), and then keeps his arms wrapped around my waist (not fine!). He's talking to me, arms around my waist...kinda like you might stand with your boyfriend or someone you are interested in at the end of a goodnight hug...I was weirded out! I tried my best to get out of it. He finally let go, but that didn't stop him from expressing how much he loved me (he claimed it was all the love of sharing beautiful things with a person who appreciates those beautiful things)...and he tried to kiss me on the mouth as we were walking...talk about awkward and really weird! I didn't want to be mean and shove him away...he'd been very kind. But he was getting WAY too touchy-feely for me! I thanked him again, promised to send him a postcard from my travels, and then he was off. I was relieved!! I immediately took my hand sanitizer and got the corner of my mouth, where he almost kissed me, disinfected. Ew. By the way, that's my nervous-smile in the picture with Piero...a little too big. Can't you hear my nervous giggle??

I called Mom and talked to her for a while. It was so nice. I've really enjoyed this trip. There are only a couple times that I've wished that someone were here with me...not anyone in particular...just someone to share the moments with. But, you can't beat going at your own pace!
I sat on the steps of the Piazzale with a few dozen other people and watched the sun cast rosy orange hues on the River Arno and through the Ponte Vecchio. It was pretty magical. I ate my toasted crackers and jam while cute couples shared bread, cheese, and wine with each other. That may be a reason to come with someone else :)

The sun went down and I headed back towards my albergo/hotel. I walked across the Ponte Vecchio...just a lot of people. I saw the lucky pig...the one that is in so many cities and if you rub it's snout, you have good luck. There's one in the Plaza in Kansas City...you've probably seen it.

I finally made it home and crashed in my bed. It was great!

I woke up and had a fabulous breakfast!! This albergo is awesome! I walked to church...which took a little longer than I expected. I understood quite a bit of Italian...which was fun for me! There are a number of Americans there...we even had an English-speaking Sunday School class. There are a few people studying art at some of the universities in Florence...what a blast! Florence is definitely a place I could get used to...I could even live here! There were 2 girls who I started to talk to after church. They're visiting...a 16 day trip to Europe. They are so nice and we became instant friends. Janelle, 27, is from California and teaches 2nd grade in Utah. Natalie, 26, is from Utah and teaches junior high. They are both returned missionaries, spanish-speaking missions...we have lots to talk about.

We decided to go to Fiozole this afternoon. It's a bus ride up a hill...about a kilometer or 2 outside of Florence. Talk about a view!! It was really nice to be with them...and it's when I'm with really nice, normal people that I wish I had someone to hang out with all the time. There's something so much better about sharing with people.

We tried to head back to Florence in time for a fireside at church, but didn't make it. The busses don't stop at all unless you are AT the bus stop. The bus from Fiozole passes every 1/2 hour...and saw us coming, but refused to stop. Punks!

Tomorrow I am going with the girls to Cinque Terre to hike between the 5 fishing villages. I was going to go Tues/Wed, but it's a blast to be with them...so I'll do it in one day and change my plans to accomodate the daytrip.

I've been searching for a hostel in Rome...that's proven to be pretty difficult. I've been spoiled with the A/C and don't want to get any room without it. I might have to lower my standards a bit, though.

I'm having a blast...it's fabulous to meet people and to see these things. It hits me a couple times a day as I'm just looking at the amazing things around me: I'm in Italy!!!

That's definitely a priceless feeling!

Ciao Milano!

2006-07-14T11:13:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! Great news: I made it out of Spain! Although, it was nothing short of a miracle. Yesterday I went to the train station, first thing, to change my ticket from Interlaken, Switzerland to Milan, Italy. I did some emailing/internet, got my 3rd bocadillo (the baguette sandwich with an egg omelet on it)...mmm!! And got ready to go to the beach.

What a cultural experience, to say the least. It's not that I was surprised...I wasn't. But, these women have NO qualms about taking that top off and walking around bare-breasted! And we're talking women of ALL ages...from the smallest 2 year old to the oldest 75+ woman...in all her glory! I didn't feel gutsy enough to bare it all...and I was probably the MOST covered girl on the beach with my tankini on. String bikinis are THE swimsuit on the beach in Barcelona.

I'm not much of a beach type...and going by myself was not the greatest. I was paranoid about leaving my things on my blanket and going into the water. I didn't want to get anything stolen. So, I would run into the water, keeping a sharp eye on my blanket, get out and read a book, run into the water, get out and read...it was getting old. After 2 hours, the sky got overcast and I decided that was a perfect time to head back to the Nield's apartment, gather up my things and go!

The Nields were just getting ready to leave when I came to their place. We talked for a little bit and then they headed out. I got a shower, packed up my things, double-checked to make sure I had everything, and went out. I stopped by the Instititute building, where they were teaching English lessons, so I could say goodbye. After a picture and a hug, I was on my way to the metro station.

I was definitely cutting it close, but I was sure I could make it. I got on the metro at 8:05 and my train left at 8:40. I had intended to already be at the station at 8 p.m., but those didn't happen. So, I willed the Metro to go faster. And it did...or at least it seemed to.

I got to the metro station for the train station around 8:30. I didn't see any signs, so I walked across the street and asked a guy. My first hint should have been the open container of wine...but, he was the only person around. I asked where the train station was and he said, "The other side of the street," as he pointed down the road. I asked, "Down the road?" He confirmed it.

I was getting stressed...less than 10 minutes to catch my train. I started to run, with the backpack. I was running along the walls of the train yard...so I knew I was NEAR the train station. I kept running and running...reminding myself that I had run a marathon without stopping, so there was no way I was going to stop running just because I had a backpack on my back. After a few minutes of all out running (and sweating), I STILL hadn't come to the entrance and I was freaking out. I asked a couple on the sidewalk where the entrance was and they pointed BACK the way I had come saying it was WAY down that way!!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?!

I turned-tail and sprinted, as best I could with the stupid 30 pound backpack on my back, and ran and ran. I wouldn't stop. I ran around the corner and still didn't see an entrance. I asked someone really quickly and they told me to keep going around the NEXT corner. GOODNESS! I ran and ran, ran into the empty station and threw my bag down on the conveyor belt for security check. The guy asked me "Milano?" I said yes (it was 8:39 at this point) and he told me to pick up my bag and get to the platform. I sprinted over to the platform and was the last person on. Whew!!!!!!

I sat in the first car I came to, soaked in sweat, my face redder than a sun-ripened tomato...and just fanned myself with my fan while I thanked the Lord that I had made it. What was I going to say if I missed my train a THIRD time?!? I tried not to curse the drunk man for giving me bad directions. I'm sure he didn't mean to...but I've learned to ask and ask again. Especially if it is important.

I walked down the small hallways...quite a sight! My shirt was soaked through and I was glowing a lobster-red (unfortunately, I caught a view of myself...scary stuff, folks!). I finally found my compartment and collapsed onto my seat. There were two women in there already (it was a female sleeper car). The first one, young like me, says, "Do you speak English?" When I said yes, she breathed a sigh of relief thinking that she would be stuck with foreign speakers for the whole trip.

Her name is Gina and she's doing a 31 day European tour with her husband. They're from Seattle. She's a teacher and her husband is a mechanical engineer (he was in an all-male dorm). She was really cool. We talked for the better part of 2 hours. The other woman, Claudia, is from Columbia but lives in Switzerland now. She was really sweet, too. I talked to both of them...serving as translator when they spoke to/about the other. It was fun.

This scary guy that was WAY too interested in getting to know me and Gina stopped by our cabin and starts speaking in Italian. I answered back with my limited Italian. He's from Morocco and asked if Gina and I had boyfriends. I told him that Gina was married (he automatically looked at my hand and didn't see a ring...ummm...by the way, Mom, I lost the ring you lent me on the beach when I was putting sunscreen on. I'm sorry!!) and I quickly assured him that I had a boyfriend...a big one! With lots of muscles! All right, so I didn't add the big and muscle-y part, but I didn't feel bad telling him I had a boyfriend. He told me he was looking for a girlfriend...and she could be from anywhere, he didn't mind: American, German, English....

At that point I just wanted him to leave. I wished him luck and turned back to Gina. He stood at the door and listened to us jabber in English for another 2 minutes, completely ignoring him, and then he left. We promptly shut the door.

Creep.

I slept SO soundly on the train. Before I knew it, the night was over and we were flying through the Italian country-side. Gina had gotten off the train in Torino, so just me and Claudia were left in the cabin. She was very nice. She even treated me to breakfast in the dining car. I had hot chocolate with a croissant.

Again, the creepy guy came by and tried to talk to me and Claudia...but Claudia was very good at being short and formal with him. He left us alone after that.

We pulled into the station, I showed my passport to the customs people. They don't stamp it, though :( Bummer! I guess that whole EU thing means you don't get a stamp unless you come in from a non-EU country. At least, that's my guess.

I wandered around the station, looking for a place to stow my bag. I found the luggage-keep and started talking to the girl in line in front of me. She was by herself, so why not? Her name is Abi and she's from Scotland. She's 18 and doing her first solo European trip. So, we got to talking and I asked her what she was going to do in Milan. She wanted to see the Duomo and that was about it. So, I suggested we go together.

We went to the Duomo and were approached by this guy from Senegal. He had these "friendship bracelets" that he was trying to put on our wrists. I told him I wasn't going to buy anything. He said they were for luck and that they didn't cost anything. As soon as they were on our wrists, he asked for money. I told him he could take mine off if he wanted it because I wasn't paying. He just left. I've gotta be better at saying no and walking away.

The Duomo, like every other amazing building in Europe, is covered in scaffolding! We walked around it once and it's incredible!! The inside was beautiful with the stained glass...so pretty! It was good to have a friend with me to take pictures, too :) I'll post them when I get a chance. I left my cable in my backpack.

Afterwards, we wandered around the city a bit, saw the Gallaria V. Emanuele II, and headed to the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana. My book claimed that it housed the School of Athens by Raphael. I guess I should've known better, but it doesn't have the actual fresco. It's got Raphael's preliminary drawings. Not the same thing. But it was a neat museum.

I went to see Da Vinci's Last Supper and knew that you had to get reservations. I thought, maybe I'll get them for Sunday after I get back from the sailing trip. Their sold out through July!!! :( Shoot!! So, I don't know when I'll see the Last Supper. Dang!

I walked back towards the city center. There's not a ton to do in Milan. I bought my first gelato (Nutella!!) and ate it happily. That will due for lunch and dinner, I guess. I'm such a cheapskate and I definitely skimp by not eating.

I'm going to meet up with this kid to go sailing at 6:30. Should be a fun experience. We'll see.

Sorry there are no photos. They'll be coming.

Milan is not as "chic" as I thought it would be. But, whatever. I'm ready to leave this city and I've been here less than 12 hours.

Still in Bar-thel-ona!!!

2006-07-13T05:28:00.000-04:00

Well, I was planning on leaving on the 11th from Barcelona. It´s now the 13th. Yes, I seem to be stuck in the vortex known as Barcelona. I had seen all my "must sees" by the 11th. Still in Barcelona, I saw all my "would like to sees" on the 12th. It is now the 13th and, since there´s not much else I really have a desire to do, I´m going to the beach! Now, I´m not a beach bum by any means...and don´t know how well I´ll survive it. I´ve heard it´s crowded and since I´m on my own, there´s no one to watch my things as I go play in the ocean. But, I´ll try to make friends and be careful with my things. What other options do I have??

So, why didn´t Amy leave Barcelona? As you all know, I missed my train to Paris by 5 minutes or so. That was when I decided that Paris would have to be on another trip and that Southern Spain was sounding spectacular! However, due to Barcelona´s location (Northeastern coast of Spain), there´s no transportation that runs down the East coast to the South. You have to go through Madrid. That would take 12-14 hours. I couldn´t find a hostel for 2 nights and I hear it´s been 48 degrees Celsius...which is about 118 degrees Farenheit. No thanks. I´ll have to save Morocco and Granada for my Mediteranean cruise in a couple years.

I thought, instead, I´d take a change of pace and go to Interlaken, Switzerland. It´s all beautiful Alps and outdoor activities, no big city noise, less heat, and no museums. So, that was in the works.

Now, everyone has said, "Oh, Amy. You´ll learn a lot about yourself on this trip." Well...all I´ve learned so far is that I´m somewhat of a ditz when left on my own. Why? Well, yesterday night I was supposed to leave at 20.40 hours. For those of you who are comfortable with military time, you´d know that was 8:40 p.m. For ME (the airhead that I´m proving to be), I thought to myself, "Great! My train leaves at 10:40 p.m." I was packing up my bags at 9 when I double-checked my ticket and realized, to my frustrated amusement, that I had completely missed my train. GOOD GRIEF!

Elder and Hna. Nield, the nice CES couple who let me stay with them the other night, were kind enough to let me stay again. I´ve promised myself that I will definitely be leaving this country TONIGHT! Whether it is on the train I have a ticket for or not.

Hna. Nield let me wash clothes yesterday...so I´ve got clean clothes all ready for the next week or so. That´s so nice!

After checking my email and working on my blog yesterday morning, I went to Montjuic. It´s a area of Barcelona that is up a hill. Supposedly, whoever had control of the fortress at the top of Montjuic, which overlooks the city and the coast, had control of the city. It´s called Montjuic (Mountain of the Jews) because the fortress was built over a Jewish cemetary. I went up there and walked around, wrote some postcards, saw the gardens of the Fundacio Miro...where some of the sculpture works of the Miro, the artist, are displayed. The cable-car that goes from the main road up to the fortress is not running and there was no way I would walk up that hill in the heat. So, I went to the bus stop and started talking to a kid from Brazil. It was fun...he doesn´t speak Spanish or English...and I didn´t speak Portuguese, but Port and Spanish are so similar that we were able to converse and talked for the better part of 30 minutes. He was really nice and showed me pictures from his camera of the Fortress...and the views of the city. He said I really should go. All riiiiiiighht.

Thankfully, there´s a bus that goes up there, too! So, I caught the bus and walked around the fortress! It was really impressive! The views are amazing! There´s a fantastic view of the city and the Mediterreanean. It was gorgeous! I talked to a couple of women that were traveling together. One was from Greece and the other from London. They were very nice. I´m having a blast just talking with people!

I rode the bus down and saw the Plaza Espanya. Wow! It´s incredible! Barcelona is a beautifully layed out city. I did some shopping and went back to the Nield´s apartment (they´d given me a key) to pack up my things. I got to talking with them and, being under the impression that my train left after 10 pm, I didn´t feel too stressed. I took a shower, had dinner...and then realized my mistake! I ran to the station, got a 50% refund for my unused ticket and rescheduled for today to Interlaken.

WELL...after that, I went and did some emailing. My first Sunday in London, I met a couple at church. They told me their nephew is traveling by himself as well and that we should meet up somewhere...it´s just nice to meet people who are doing the same thing as you. So, I gave Cindy, this kid´s aunt, my email address and Landon (their nephew) and I have emailed about our travels. We figured out that our itineraries would coincide in Italy. He said he´d be going sailing with a friend in Milan and invited me along. Sailing on the Mediterranean!! Sounds fabulous! So, I changed my ticket this morning and will be taking a night train (at 20.40...which, for those of you that aren´t very savvy with the military clock, is 8:40 p.m.) to Milan. I WILL be leaving Spain tonight. Guaranteed.

So, that´s the plan. I don´t know when I´ll be able to post next. But, I´ll do my best!

Cultural note: there´s tons of goosing going on. Not to me, personally, but these people can´t seem to keep their hands off each other´s hinies!

Vive España!

Beautiful Barcelona!

2006-07-11T16:32:00.000-04:00

FYI: I just posted photos to the last blog entry...including the "haircut" picture!

The time is FLYING!!! I don´t remember what I´ve written...and there´s so much to write and catch up on...but I like this internet cafe, so I may be back tomorrow morning!
I´m still in Barcelona. I should have been on a train to Paris right now, but I missed the train and have decided that Paris will have to wait. I´ll admit, I was a little apprehensive about not speaking the language...and the cost of everything (SOOOO expensive)...and the fact that there´s a major holiday this weekend. I don´t know if I´d make it out! So, when I missed the train, I thought, "Well, Paris will still be there...maybe I can honeymoon there!" Of course, to all you future potential spouses that are reading my blog, I think I'd rather to to Easter Island. So, instead of Paris, I´m going to try Southern Spain!

The ABBA Hostel is on a major roadway. It´s noisy ALL day...and ALL night. There´s no air conditioning. It´s awful! No wonder they force you to book two nights there! The first night, I didn´t sleep very well. People came in at all hours and I don´t sleep well in new surroundings the first night. And it was hot and sticky.

I woke up, without my alarm, to the sirens of cop cars around 7:30 a.m. I got ready to go find church and was in good spirits. I talked to the management and found an electrical outlet by the front desk that worked...and plugged in my batteries so they could charge all day (and not be stolen) while I was out. I was all prepared to get to church early and enjoy the morning when I realized I had lost my locker key. This is a huge deal because my locker had my passport, credit cards, money, anything of value that I could possibly want to keep safe...in it! I was freaking out! I retraced my steps back to the hostel (and I´d gone quite far by then) and walked in...only to see my key on the reception counter. I´d left it there! Crisis averted! Whew! But, I think it was a lesson to me. I´ve been much more careful now.

Due to that little heart-attack-inducing incident, I was late to church. But, it was all right. I met some great people there, including Leticia, a girl from Chile! We became fast friends and spent the day together. She introduced me to a nice missionary couple, Elder and Hermana Nield. They´re from Arizona and are heading up the CES program in Barcelona. Elder Nield invited us to dinner. It was great to be with them.

After dinner, Leticia and I went to see the the Temple of the Sagrada Familia (Sacred Family). It´s INCREDIBLE! Pictures of it kinda look like an immense mess of stone, but it´s absolutely incredible and breath-taking! I wish my pictures did it justice! I also got to see the Plaza de Torros...and considered going to a bullfight, but opted out. I just didn´t feel good about watching a bull get tormented and killed for sport. But, I´d love to shout "Ole!" with a huge crowd!
Leticia had to meet a friend, so I walked around Barcelona and saw La Pedrera, a building designed by Gaudi. It´s awesome! It was really nice to just walk around. I wen to the Cathedral of Barcelona which, unfortunately, is covered in scaffolding.

That night, I got back to the hostel and talked to some of the girls in my room. They´re nice! Mandy is from Minnesota, Mariana is from Los Angeles, and Mariana´s cousin, Camila, is from Brazil. Mariana and I were commenting on how awful the hostel was, so we decided to try and find a better one for the three of us the next day.

We woke and headed out, barely got the last beds in this REALLY nice hostel...with AIR CONDITIONING!!! It´s clean and beautiful and not noisy!! Ahhhh! Then we decided to go to Parc Guell which has buildings and sculptures designed by Gaudi. We hopped on Bus No. 24 and headed up the hills. It was a REALLY hot day...like you feel like you´re swimming in your sweat kind of hot day. Ew. We walked around the park and got some great pictures.
The girls were really sweet. I´m glad I met up with them. It´s awesome to meet new people...and then strange to say "goodbye" instead of "see you later."

After the park, I decided to go to some museums and they were going to see La Sagrada Familia. So, we split. However, the museums are closed on Mondays (note to all you future Barcelona visitors). So, I ended up wandering around Las Ramblas...the downtown/shopping district. It´s really fun. I did some shopping and just enjoyed myself. I went to La Boqueria which is a big vegetable/fruit/meat/fish market. It was pretty neat.

That night I went to Family Home Evening at the institute building. A bunch of missionaries, a few people that are getting to know the church, and some less-active members. It was fun and nice to be around people. I had to say goodbye to Leticia. She´s such a sweetheart!
Afterwards, I went with the Nields to their apartment where I wrestled with my camera for an hour to get it to upload the photos onto a disc. We talked until midnight (senior missionaries, apparently, don´t have the same rules as the younger ones) and they´re convinced that I´m just the girl for their single son. There are more moms, dads, grandparents, and aunts and uncles that think I would be perfect for their son/grandson/nephew out there than I know what to do with! Too bad their sons/grandsons/nephews don´t realize what a catch I am!! ;)

Hna. Nield told me the metro stopped running at 1 a.m. When we got to the station, though, we found it stopped at midnight! I´d just missed it. Shoot! So, they walked around with me (for the better part of 45 minutes...and it´s after midnight, mind you) helping me find a bus. There aren´t many buses after midnight, either. There was a couple looking for the bus to the same area as I was...so we ended up splitting a taxi. And dear Elder Nield gave me 5 euros to pay for it. He´s so nice!

I arrived and walked into my 4-bed room...to find the 4th bed empty and two men in the other. Yikes! I was a little nervous. I saw Mariana in the bathroom and told her if she hears me scream, to come running.

There was no problem, though, sleeping. They woke up around the same time I did. We all apologized for being noisy...either the night before (me) or that morning (them). They were in their late 30´s...from Boston. Nice enough...we only talked for 2 minutes though.

I got ready, checked out and started into my day. I had an agenda to keep! I bought my ticket to Paris and then went to see the Picasso Museum. It was pretty cool. He did this study on Las Meninas that I just LOVE! It´s awesome. Can´t wait to show the postcards (sorry...no cameras in the museum). Then I bought a bocadillo de tortilla espanola...it´s a sandwich they make on a baguette that has an egg omelet with potatoes and onions...it´s SO good!!

I went to the Museum of the History of Barcelona. It´s been built, city upon city, over the past 2000 years. It´s interesting...they have done some excavations that are pretty cool to walk through! That one was a recommendation from Hna. Nield.
I did a little grocery shopping, some internet searching for a hostel...and talked to my Mom. I was late getting to the station...and, well...here I am. Going to Southern Spain instead! I´ve spent a lot of time on the internet today...talked to my family (gotta love Skype...and the video option, too!!).

I´ll try and get this posted tomorrow morning with photos!!
Sorry to play catch up like this! There´s just no time for anything!!

Cuidense, todos! Les quiero harto!

Cutting the apron strings...and other things!

2006-07-08T16:45:00.000-04:00

New place, new foreign language keyboard to get used to!

Wow! One week gone. Just yesterday, I was sitting in the hotel, enjoying the last of the luxury that is the Marriott...dreading future lodgings of dorm-style rooms without A/C in sweltering Southern Europe. Mmmmm...I loved nearly freezing to death at night because the air was on full-blast and enjoyed having a wonderful down duvet to cuddle up under!! But times, they are a changin´!

I am in Barcelona...beautiful Barcelona! And I have very little time to recap what I´ve done...so I´ll do my best in the short time I have.

I guess I didn´t do Thursday yet. Thursday we saw the highly overrated Changing of the Guard at Buckinham Palace. Then I went to the Cortauld Institute, like the art history nerd that I am, by myself. It was all right. Nothing to get too excited about. We were to meet up at the British Museum...but Erin was late. I was not a happy camper. I tried, my best(!) to get over it and we ended up going shopping and doing laundry that night. Ahh...the joys of travel!

Yesterday we went to see Westminster Abbey. Afterwards, we split up...I went to the Cabinet War Rooms and they went back to Portabello Road to buy some things. The Cabinet War Rooms and Churchill Museum were fascinating. I am really glad that I went!

We met up at the hotel an went to a show that night, ¨Sunday in the Park with George.¨ Strange...good, but strange. It´s about George Seurot, the French 19th century artist. I liked some aspects of it...but others were just odd.

Sorry, sorry, sorry...this isn´t nearly as interesting as it should be. I have 23 minutes left to get this silly thing posted...this guy closes his Internet cafe at 11. After packing up last night, we woke up early this morning and started getting everything put together. It was so fast...and before I knew it, Erin was crying and hugging me goodbye and telling me to be careful! She made me cry too...

And as I watched them drive away, I felt a little lost. I mean, I´d had them with me almost everywhere the past week...and now I was on my own. So, I went to Portabello Road and just enjoyed the atmosphere...and then I did something that we´d been talking about all week...that Erin and Kayla didn´t really think I would do. I didn´t really think I would do it, either.

Just take a look.

Yep, I cut my hair!! And short. Long hair seems to be the summer fashion and i was feeling pretty insecure about my boy cut. Then I saw two girls at the train station with the same haircut as me...and I felt a little better. Until they kissed each other. Yes, folks...I have a lesbian haircut!! Not kidding. Butch is one way to describe my hair =) I went into a salon where they spoke arabic to each other and very little to me and I told them to chop it off. The lady told me I had nice hair and kept asking if I were sure. I said, ¨Just do it.¨ I wasn´t sure myself. I told her I would cry, too...and I did. I think it was a combination of many things...my sister leaving, me being on my own, and then making the crazy decision to cut my hair!!! So, if I don´t show up in many photos on my blog, now...it´s because I don´t want you all to know how much I look like a boy!!

The flight was uneventful. I arrived in Reus, about 1.5 hours outside of Barcelona. I took a bus into town, found my hostel...OH BOY! A hostel life is DEFINITELY not for me =O The management is nice...it´s easier to speak Spanish with them than English...but the place is pretty ghetto. Thanks to good ol´Campus Plaza...it got me ready for living in less than spectacular conditions.

I´m sorry this is so ridiculously uninformative. I´ve got to find a church tomorrow, too!!

Love you all and I´ll try and post photos tomorrow!

₤1=$1.84?!?!?!

2006-07-05T20:31:00.000-04:00

4-5 July 2006:

If anything, being in London is painful...PAINFULLY EXPENSIVE! Good grief! The dollar is terribly weak, the pound is insanely strong...and the dumb Americans that come for holiday during "high" season get to pay for it! Oh, for the record: I'm the dumb American paying insanely high prices to play in London.

Then again, I've heard that London is good anytime of year...or was that Paris? Hmmm....

Well, since the last post (which, if you'd already read, I've updated it with photos), I've done more stuff ;) Of course! Here goes:

On the Fourth of July, I remembered the birth of our Nation...although the Brits didn't seem to care. I think they're just sore losers. Tuesday morning my sister and I got up early to go to the London Temple with a friend I met at church on Sunday. Conveniently enough, he had rented a car for his excursion around London and drove us there. It was a beautiful and long drive out of the city, to the suburbs. I really enjoyed being there and particularly enjoyed getting out of congested London and its noise and craziness.

Riding on the "driver's side" but not being behind a steering wheel was quite trippy! When Larry, the kid we were going with, came to pick us up, he got out of the car (on the right side) and walked to the left side of the car. My sister hopped in back and I said, "Oh, all right...I'll take the front!" and walked over to the right side (American passenger side)...and both Larry and Erin were like, "Duh! Amy, it's on the other side!" I'm learning, all right!

We were later than we expected coming back from the temple. Around 2:30 we got to the hotel and met up with Trevor. From there we ran (literally) to the British museum to catch a "highlights" tour. I could have given the tour! Good grief! All right, I'll admit, our tour guide, Ros, this old, fiesty British lady, had some interesting bits to share with us, but I was a little disappointed...because I thought there would be more stuff in our tour! We saw the Rosetta Stone (very cool!), the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon (loved it!), and the Portland Vase (pronounced vauz, of course). After the tour, we walked around some, visited the amazing Reading Room, saw the Mummies, and then went to a pub to fill our tummies.

I'm a poet and now you all know it ;)

Like I said, we left the museum to go get some food. All of us were famished. We hadn't really eaten all day. Then we walked around the area on our way to the theatre district. We wanted to see Mary Poppins. Trevor and Erin like to get the best seats in the house...and we did have great seats...at a great price! But, the musical was spectacular! They rearranged the songs, used them in a little different context, made the story line a bit different and added some depth...it was "Practically Perfect" as Mary would say! Definitely a crowd-pleaser...and I'll admit, I teared up when Michael Banks said, "Mary Poppins, I love you." I'm a sap.

We left to the crowds in the street watching the big soccer game. I think it was Italy vs. Germany.

Today, July 5, we lazied around and finally got out of the hotel around 10 a.m. We went to St. Paul's cathedral...oh how I love that place! I could spend hours in there...however, my travel companions weren't too keen on doing that. So, we walked around a little and then started climbing the 1000+ steps to the top! Not kidding. We climbed to the Whispering Gallery that is at the base of the dome. If you whisper into the wall, you can hear it on the other side of the dome...it's awesome!

Like I said, we climbed and climbed. Kayla, who is on this trip with her father--Rick--who is Trevor's business partner, decided that she wasn't too keen on climbing the last 152 steps to reach the highest point. Erin and I were gung-ho, however. Erin, ignoring her fear of heights, pushed on, higher and higher, and we came out on top. Literally. And what a view! I love it!

A nice American woman offered to take our picture. I could tell she was LDS and asked her where she was from. "Utah," she replied. That confirmed our suspicions. :) She was in London to meet up with a man she met online! Yikes! And people think I'm brave to just travel by myself. Maybe I am brave and she's crazy. Anyway, as we were talking to her, I was swapping out the batteries in my camera and, butterfingers that I am, one slipped out and rolled off the ledge!! I was so ticked!! It fell into a trough that's about 15 feet below where we were. I could see it!! And I only had 4 batteries (now 3), and I needed all of them for my camera! Shoot!!

Anyway, we went down and asked the worker on duty if it would be possible to get the battery back...I thought it was a ridiculous question, but couldn't hurt to ask. They said that they do go in there and retrieve things every now and then, but it wouldn't be for a couple days. So I gave them the hotel name and phone number...hopefully they'll have it for me soon.

Now, you ask, why doesn't Amy just buy another battery?! Is she really that much of a tightwad? Well...yes. BUT...let me finish! This afternoon, we stopped by an electronics store near our hotel on the slim chance that they sell the same, rechargeable, Energizer batteries. Lo and behold, THEY DO! So, I grabbed a package of 4...without the charger. Now, here's some background: before leaving the good ol' US of A, I bought my Energizer recharger and 4 batteries for $18 at Wal-Mart. I took the 4 batteries (sans charger) up to the counter and asked how much it would cost.

₤20.

Now, if you didn't catch the title of this post, that's nearly $40!!! FOR 4 BATTERIES!!!! WITHOUT THE SILLY CHARGER!!!!

Whoa! So, I'm praying the nice men at St. Paul's will crawl into the trough that is 600+ feet above the ground to get my one battery that cost me under $4 a each. ;)

We RAN (we seem to do that a lot) from St. Paul's to the hotel because we had to change into our "smart" clothes for tea. Yes, Erin, Kayla, and I went to have tea at the Ritz Hotel. Mind you, not any Ritz Hotel...but THE Ritz Hotel. We were running exceptionally late, so we got a taxi and headed out. Nothing makes you feel cooler than pulling up to THE Ritz, in a black taxi, in London, in your "smartest" clothes! We walked in and it was incredible!!

Tea was a blast! It's not cheap...but it was a gift, so I will refrain from stating how much Erin spent on it...but it was near obscene. We were tucked away at a table and were fed finger sandwiches, scones, and pastries. Instead of tea, we opted for hot cocoa. The experience was divine! It is something I'll probably never get to do again!

There's a poem on the menu and it describes it perfectly:

I'm feeling sublime
For I've passed back in time,
Surrounded by glamour and glitz.
As I sip my Earl Grey [or cocoa, in my case]
All life's cares pass away,
For I'm having Tea at the Ritz.

It's friendly, no fuss,
But it's luxury plus
Cocooned in a creamy gold light.
There's a 'Tea for Two' mood
As the waiters bring food,
Displayed on three tiers of delight.

There are scones jam and cream
Straight out of a dream
And sandwiches minus the crust.
Pastries good to the eye
So they can't be passed by,
And fruity fruit cake - that's a must.

To accompany this,
Is a pianist, what bliss,
As music of old fills the air.
One fancies that it's
The right theme for the Ritz.
And a Nightingale's in Berkeley Square.

~Jill Rundle

That, my friends, perfectly describes Tea at the Ritz. Splendid!

We came back to the hotel and picked up Trevor and Rick. Then we all headed out to see the National Gallery. The last time I was in London me and my two friends, Jenn and Sara, played in the fountains at Trafalgar Square. Well...the sign below is now placed in the fountains. I don't know if that means we should be watching out for health problems or what.... ;)

I have a small love affair with the National Gallery. It's open until 9 p.m. on Wednesday nights and we didn't leave the hotel until 7. It broke my heart. Not that I didn't spend a short lifetime perusing the galleries the last time I was here...but, I just LOVE it! I knew, however, that my companions weren't as keen on reading and enjoying the works like I do...so I took them on my own highlights tour. I think it was about right for them. It was like giving me a lick of an ice cream cone and then telling me I wouldn't be allowed to have anymore, though.

After the National Gallery, we had dinner at a restaurant nearby called Garfunkel's. It was lots of business talk between Erin, Rick, and Trevor...and I was bored. But, you don't turn down a free meal...ever. :) And I enjoy being with my family.

Anyway, we're back at the hotel...it's nearl 3 a.m. and I should be in bed. 7:30 is going to come early and we've gotta do laundry.

Cheerio!

<--P.S. You can't beat the advertisements in the Tube!!!Dad, Mike...you might just consider it ;) Just kidding!

Hullo Love!

2006-07-03T18:17:00.000-04:00

1-4 July 2006:

Well, I've arrived! I left Mom and Dad a the Kansas City International Airport at 2:55 p.m. on July 1. The flight was a beast. I arrived at 7:30 a.m. on July 2. I had set my watch ahead and was just dreading the major jetlag that I would experience. I convinced myself not to try and figure out what time it would be at home...because that would just exhaust me! It's not so bad in the evenings when it's 10 p.m. here and 4 p.m. at home...but when it's 10 a.m. here and 4 a.m. there...I'm sure I'd miss my sleep!

Surprisingly, I haven't felt the effects of jetlag much. I don't have any secret remedy (just drink lots of water) but I've been doing pretty well! I'm just getting myself on a British schedule and sticking to it!

I was pretty proud of myself at the airport. After 1 1/2 hours of waiting to get through customs, I went directly to the train and confidently headed into London. Since it was Sunday, I wanted to go to church. I located the Tube station nearest the church building which happens to be by the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Natural History Museum. I was walking up the road, soaking in the feeling, the sights, the smells, staring at the buildings...just excited to be back! It was SO hot...and I was sweating with the big backpack on my back (I swear it was under 25 lbs., but it seemed to have gained some serious weight as it crossed the Atlantic). I felt gross.

I'm walking and walking and walking...and almost arrive at Kensington. Wait a second! I KNOW that it's on Exhibition Road (of which I'd just walked the entire length) and Exhibition Road ends at Kensington. Hmmm...all right, turn around!

So, I walk down the road, still with the backpack, still sweating...and ask a nice doorman for directions. He says, "Oh, it's just down the street...you can't miss it. Oh, wait, I gues you have!" Haha. Funny guy, huh? ;)

At church, I saw Erin and Trevor...and they headed back to the hotel (they'd arrived for the earlier meeting) and I stayed for the Spanish meeting...thinking I'd be able to understand. Well...this was "Portuguese Sunday." Great! So, amidst all the "shhshhshh"ing Spanish that those crazy Brazilians and Ports speak, I could pull out a few things here and there.

I took the Tube back to the hotel and felt SO much better to take a shower and change my clothes! A new woman! Not to mention, my body thought it was 9 a.m....and time to get up and get moving!

We went to the Tower of London (2nd time...and I'm not doing it again, I don't care WHO comes with me...you're on your own). It's not that thrilling...unless you like armor and guns. No art, no furnishings....boring!

Trevor wouldn't even jump the short fence into the grassy area where the ravens were sitting and flap his arms around like a giant stork shouting "Kaw! Kaw!" No fun! Although, Trevor claims it was due to the sign (at left) that he opted out of the stork charades. I don't believe him. :)

Then we went over to the London Eye...and, having learned my lesson last time I was here, I stayed on the ground while Erin and Trevor went up. It's all right to do once, but nothing wonderful! Instead, I went with Kayla (the daughter of Trevor's boss) down along the bank and saw a "professional street entertainer" [at least that's what he called himself] work his body through a coat hanger...successfully and COMPLETELY disjointing his right shoulder out of the socket. Gross!

We got dinner at a pretty good Indian restaurant...and I started to realize...again...how expensive London is.

We went to Portabello Road today (not realizing that it's Saturday that has the bustling street market). That was a little disappointing. Then we went to Harrod's deparment store. More than the hundreds of dollars you could spend on designer handbags and shoes, I am amazed by the foods! You can get ANYTHING! It's amazing. Last time I was there, my good friend, Jenn Alder, and I thought it'd be a great idea to buy one of their delicious salads. Well, it ended up costing us WAY more than we expected. So, in honor of Jenn Alder, I took a picture at the salad counter at Harrod's.

Then, we came back to the hotel, figured out a decent itinerary for the rest of the week, and then headed out. Erin and Kayla went to Kensington Palace (been there, done that) and I went to the Cortauld Institute's Art Gallery. I LOVED IT! I'll admit, I'm a bit of an art history geek...but I adore walking through a museum at my own pace, oohing and awwwing over things that I've studied in books...and there they are, right in front of your face!

I saw Van Gogh's self-portrait with the bandaged ear, a bazillion Rubens, many by Manet, a few Renoir, Degas, etc. etc. I LOVED it! It was good I was on my own, though. I mosied through at a snails pace, reading all the placards I could care to read. Ahhh...I need to remember those sorts of experiences when I wonder what I should study when I grow up!

Outside the Cortauld in the courtyard, there are these foutains that shoot up from the cobblestone and people come to play in the fountain on the hot summer days! I would have loved to join them...and even contemplated it, but didn't have the time...nor the spare change of clothes. :)

Tonight we went to this fancy-schmancy restaurant with a business associate of Trevor's. We went to The Tenth, an amazing restaurant on the 10th floor of a hotel that overlooked Hyde Park. And the food...incredible! It was one of those restaurants where they actually name the chef on the menu and where presentation of the food is 1/2 the price! I had scones, focaccia bread, duck pate, sea bass in a tomatoe sauce with basil gnocchi, rhubarb creme brulee with ginger tart, and a chocolate after-dinner truffle. HOLY COW...good food! And the bill...244 pounds for 6 of us (that's about a $440 meal). But hey! You don't turn down free food...especially one that's $70 a plate!

And now we're back at the hotel. I'm tired...which I should be. It's nearly midnight.

I don't know when I'll be able to upload photos...hopefully they'll come soon!

London is a blast, though! It's good to be back!

Cheers!

36 hours and counting

2006-06-30T02:27:00.000-04:00

29 June 2006:

Hard to believe! I'm gearing up for one of the biggest adventures of my life thus far! For those of you who haven't heard, I am going to Europe. Yes, Europe. Not only am I going to Europe, but I am going for 6 1/2 weeks! Yes, 6 1/2 weeks. Not ONLY am I going to Europe for 6 1/2 weeks, but 5 1/2 of those weeks I will be on my own! YES, on my own! Let me sum up here: I will be in EUROPE for 5 1/2 (+1) WEEKS on my OWN!!!!

It all started when I had a bit of an awakening in the fall of 1999. I was a student at BYU, enjoying my new job as a secretary in the Office of Research and Creative Activities (ORCA). As is my nature, I was working feverishly to stay on top of my work (all right...I was probably checking my email and planning my schedule for the next 4 years), when my fabulous older brother, Brian, called me and said:

"Hey Amy...I found a $400 round-trip ticket to Madrid. Wanna go?"

WOW! Of course I wanted to go! My incredible older sister, Erin, my awesome younger brother, Eric, and my great roommate, Alicia, came along and we had a blast. There was only one problem....

I got bit. BAD! By the travel bug.

It was amazing to me how a little blue book with your picture and name on the inside could open up worlds to you! I could go ANYWHERE! (Well...almost. I hear those Cubans don't let you in even with a little blue book.) The entire world was at my disposal!

So, the wheels started turning. Classes in art history, humanities, and Spanish didn't help. I wanted to go...and BAD!

The summer of 2002, I did a Study Abroad program in England for 7 weeks which was WONDERFUL, but it wasn't enough. I wanted to be a backpacker. I wanted to be a vagabond. I wanted to cart all my possessions on my back, smell like I'd been in a cramped train car for 8 hours, deliriously stumble onto an obscure train platform, avoid professional pick-pockets that posed as small children, and not know where in the world I was going to sleep that night! I wanted to participate in the coming-of-age experience of a lifetime as a crazy, young, careless (as in, without a care) European backpacker.

Well, years passed. Time flew by. And before I realized it, I was staring my last summer under the age of 26 in the face! Under 26 is considered a "youth" in Europe...which makes train tickets, hostels, and all sorts of other things considerably cheaper. My dream to do Europe on the cheap was quickly fading away as the hands of time ticked onward!

Erin and her husband, Trevor, were planning a trip to England...and I jumped on the bandwagon. And, as long as I'd already spent a small fortune to get across the ocean, I thought: why not stick around and see all those things I've been dying to see? Why not backpack like I've been dying to backpack? I had to make it happen! It hadn't fallen into my lap in the last 7 years. Obviously I was going to have to do it myself!

So I did. I am. I will.

Europe, here I come!

I leave July 1 and will return August 17. The planned itinerary goes a little something like this:

July 1: fly out of Kansas City International Airport, through Cleveland and then arrive at London Gatwick on the morning of July 2 (with my body, due to the 6 hour time difference, feeling as though it were 2 a.m.)
July 2-8: London, England
July 8-11: Barcelona, Spain
July 11-15: Paris, France
July 15-16: Milan, Italy
July 16-18: Cinque Terre, Italy
July 18: Pisa, Italy
July 19-24: Rome, Italy
July 24-29: Stockholm, Sweden (including the fabulous Fest I Nord!)
July 29-August 1: Florence, Italy
August 1-3: Venice, Italy
August 3-5: Interlaken, Switzerland
August 5-7: Vienna, Austria
August 7-9: Prague, Czech Republic
August 9-12: Romantic Road, Germany
August 12-14: Cologne, Germany
August 14-16: Brussels, Belgium
August 16-17: London, England
August 17: Fly out of London Gatwick, through Newark, New Jersey and arrive in Kansas City International Airport the afternoon of August 17 (with my body, due to the 6 hour time difference, feeling as though it were 2 a.m.)

That was probably WAY more than you wanted to know, but there it is! Welcome to my European Adventure!