Days Left in Barcelona: 0
So...Mom successfully freaked me out about missing my flight. Thank you for that. Can't sleep for the life of me nor can I think of anything that's right to say now that I'm really actually leaving Barcelona. It's my birthday here - I'm 21. :) My heads all jumbled with birthday parties, funfetti cupcakes and Austin.
Once I'm home, I'll give my blog a proper send-off. For now, I'll just say that I love you all from Spain.
Besos y Abrazos
Friday, April 30, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
My Barcelona Lifesaver
Ever since that first night in the orientation hotel when we didn't know that our "queen" bed was actually two twin beds pushed together, Rebecca and I were perfect roommates. I want to give CEA a high five for how well their roommate matching software works. It's like magic. To the left is our wedding announcement photo - Enjoy!
I know she's going to read this, so I can't say anything mean about her (ha) but I wouldn't even be able to. Time and again, we have laughed ourselves through awkward situations and cried ourselves through miserable ones. We have spent the wee hours of the morning dancing in discotecas and pushed our beds together to watch a movie on our computers. We have spent days just the two of us, with no realization that other people in Barcelona even exist. To steal that line from that movie that I can't remember the name of or the real line, but... Barcelona would not have been the same without you. I would not have been the same without you.
Becks, my fox, meet me in Vegas, I'll tame you. I've gotta feeling, baby are you down down down, take me or leave me. <3 Te amo. Tu eres muy bonita y un pedazo de mi corazón estará siempre con usted y Barcelona.
Besos y Abrazos
Down the Rabbit Hole
Days left in Barcelona: ONE!!!!! :)
Here I am sitting at my computer, bags packed, struggling for words to describe the time I spent in Amsterdam. What was supposed to be 15 of our friends spending the weekend there turned into Rebecca and I, alone, stranded for nearly a week.
Before detailing the hilarity of this adventure, I would first like to defend Amsterdam. There is so much more to the city than the red-light district. The city somehow strikes a balance between being innappropriate yet charming. Never before have I been somewhere that accomplishes that. Sitting outside a cafe drinking a beer along the canals, you easily forget what kind of scandal is waiting around the corner. Plus, they have bagels there and of course, MariJuana is legal. Just kidding, Mom. Though that's obviously a really interesting part of the culture, too.
The first night we stayed in the Flying Pig hostel downtown, just a five minute walk from the middle of red-light. The people staying there were a quirky crew and we quickly assembled a gang of misfits - British furniture designer, U.S. student, 30 year old Asian, kid named Antonio, etc. In the first three nights, we stayed in three different hostels: The Flying Pig Downtown, StayOkay Vondelpark, and The Flying Pig Uptown, ultimately spending our days stranded at the Flying Pig Downtown where their moto is "Home is in your head." I was intent on ripping down that sign by the end of our stay.
I guess I should touch on the weed culture since I made that awful joke earlier. As a girl who despises anything that has to do with inhaling smoke (Thanks, Dad!), I didn't really enjoy smelling like Marijauna when I went to bed, but it was completely unavoidable. In Amsterdam, "Coffee Shops" don't in fact specialize in coffee, but sell Marijuana over the counter. While someone walking down the street in Barcelona is smoking a cigarette, someone walking down the street in Amsterdam is smoking a joint.
Personally, I preferred riding the bikes we rented down the canal streets and up through the countryside stopping to take a break to look at windmills. Holy heck, Amsterdam people know how to bike!! Their bike lanes and traffic signals are more extensive than the ones for cars. You can imagine me trying to ride a bike AND look at a map at the same time. Let's just say, I'm lucky to be alive... But that could be said for the whole trip haha.
We waited until Sunday morning when our flight was officially cancelled to be pro-active about finding an alternate way back to Barcelona. At the train station, we waited four hours to have the women tell us, "I can't help you. I can get you as far as Paris but then you're on your own." We tried asking if we could go through a city other than Paris, at which point she pulled out a map of Europe and laughed at us. Woa, lady, I know what Europe looks like. Utterly defeated by her rudeness, we set our sights on the bus station hoping for better results. Success!! We jumped at the opportunity for two bus tickets at 80 Euro each. Much cheaper than the train and we were guaranteed to get to Barcelona.
The only downside was having to stay in Amsterdam for another three days, but being the lovely ladies that we are, we took this as a sign that we were meant to have extra days of vacation, which we fully enjoyed. Early wednesday morning we boarded our bus and started the 24 hour ride. Finally, this part of the trip went completely smoothly! Except for that my seat was the only one that didn't recline and we stopped every hour to let the old folks go to the bathroom. Oh, and someone on our bus got arressted for terrorist suscipicions. But, yeah, other than that, totally perfect.
All in all, I am extremely proud of us. It was chaos and we did what we had to do to make it home. Now we can say that when the volcanic ash of 2010 grounded all European flights for four days, we were stranded in Amsterdam. Hey, that's a pretty cool story :)
Besos y Abrazos!
P.S. Towards the end of the trip, we started to look pretty "rugged" so be kind on your judgment of the pictures.
Here I am sitting at my computer, bags packed, struggling for words to describe the time I spent in Amsterdam. What was supposed to be 15 of our friends spending the weekend there turned into Rebecca and I, alone, stranded for nearly a week.
Before detailing the hilarity of this adventure, I would first like to defend Amsterdam. There is so much more to the city than the red-light district. The city somehow strikes a balance between being innappropriate yet charming. Never before have I been somewhere that accomplishes that. Sitting outside a cafe drinking a beer along the canals, you easily forget what kind of scandal is waiting around the corner. Plus, they have bagels there and of course, MariJuana is legal. Just kidding, Mom. Though that's obviously a really interesting part of the culture, too.
The first night we stayed in the Flying Pig hostel downtown, just a five minute walk from the middle of red-light. The people staying there were a quirky crew and we quickly assembled a gang of misfits - British furniture designer, U.S. student, 30 year old Asian, kid named Antonio, etc. In the first three nights, we stayed in three different hostels: The Flying Pig Downtown, StayOkay Vondelpark, and The Flying Pig Uptown, ultimately spending our days stranded at the Flying Pig Downtown where their moto is "Home is in your head." I was intent on ripping down that sign by the end of our stay.
I guess I should touch on the weed culture since I made that awful joke earlier. As a girl who despises anything that has to do with inhaling smoke (Thanks, Dad!), I didn't really enjoy smelling like Marijauna when I went to bed, but it was completely unavoidable. In Amsterdam, "Coffee Shops" don't in fact specialize in coffee, but sell Marijuana over the counter. While someone walking down the street in Barcelona is smoking a cigarette, someone walking down the street in Amsterdam is smoking a joint.
Personally, I preferred riding the bikes we rented down the canal streets and up through the countryside stopping to take a break to look at windmills. Holy heck, Amsterdam people know how to bike!! Their bike lanes and traffic signals are more extensive than the ones for cars. You can imagine me trying to ride a bike AND look at a map at the same time. Let's just say, I'm lucky to be alive... But that could be said for the whole trip haha.
We waited until Sunday morning when our flight was officially cancelled to be pro-active about finding an alternate way back to Barcelona. At the train station, we waited four hours to have the women tell us, "I can't help you. I can get you as far as Paris but then you're on your own." We tried asking if we could go through a city other than Paris, at which point she pulled out a map of Europe and laughed at us. Woa, lady, I know what Europe looks like. Utterly defeated by her rudeness, we set our sights on the bus station hoping for better results. Success!! We jumped at the opportunity for two bus tickets at 80 Euro each. Much cheaper than the train and we were guaranteed to get to Barcelona.
The only downside was having to stay in Amsterdam for another three days, but being the lovely ladies that we are, we took this as a sign that we were meant to have extra days of vacation, which we fully enjoyed. Early wednesday morning we boarded our bus and started the 24 hour ride. Finally, this part of the trip went completely smoothly! Except for that my seat was the only one that didn't recline and we stopped every hour to let the old folks go to the bathroom. Oh, and someone on our bus got arressted for terrorist suscipicions. But, yeah, other than that, totally perfect.
All in all, I am extremely proud of us. It was chaos and we did what we had to do to make it home. Now we can say that when the volcanic ash of 2010 grounded all European flights for four days, we were stranded in Amsterdam. Hey, that's a pretty cool story :)
Besos y Abrazos!
P.S. Towards the end of the trip, we started to look pretty "rugged" so be kind on your judgment of the pictures.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
European Vacation
Days left in Barcelona: 2-ish
Yet again, I prove how unreliable a blogger I am. Maybe 2 posts a day?? Oops. I'm not sure that I was thinking very realistically. When I haven't been studying for finals and doing powerpoints for presentations, I've been trying to catch as much sun as possible and go to all my favorite places in Barcelona.
Topic of this blog post: Mom, Dad, and Bridgie hit Barcelona. Oh man, where do I start? At the beginning, right. Read with caution: I think this one is gonna be a doozy
Due to unforseeable and unfortunate events, we spent our first day of their vacation in the police station, calling major credit card companies, and driving up and down the ramp at the rental car station. At the time, I remember thinking, "Oh, wow, I forgot what it was like to travel with my family." Now, I wish that I could do that trip 10 times over.
After our rocky start, we finally got in the car to start the adventure through the French Riviera. With the help of the Garmin GPS system, which I lovingly dubbed "The Gremlin" because I could never remember the real name, we made it to our destination of Nice, France - of course, not without a couple of bumps along the way.
We all had our "jobs". Dad drove. I worked the Gremlin. Mom read guide books and looked at maps. Jet read books, slept, and took pictures - I would have traded with her in a heartbeat. Navigating the way wasn't the easiest job. At one point, Mom handed me a map to consult. It wasn't a map, it was a lifesize poster. When unfolded, I couldn't even see the road. On the way we stopped in Arles, a beautiful French town complete with Roman ruins. Other towns/country we visted were Monaco, Lourmarin, Bonnieux, Lacoste, and L'Isle Sur le Sorgue. The towns atop cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean charmed me. The hike up wouldn't thrill me on a daily basis, but I wouldn't mind sitting on a bench up there all day looking out at the ocean. The hilltowns of France were equally charming. We all caught ourselves saying, "Wow, I hadn't realized how beautiful the south of France was." To which Mom respond, "Didn't any of you look at the links I sent you or do any research?" I did the most out of the three of us and that's really not saying much. I actually think Austin knew more about the places we were going than I did - go figure. Dad saved his research for on sight. I think he now knows more about the structure of Roman ruins than we could have ever imagined. He's got an eye for that kind of stuff and he also spent a lot of time walking around the outerwalls of the towns. One time, I was a great daughter and walked to the top of Lacoste to see the Marquis de Sade's castle. Totally creepy but worth the trip.
We ate at some delicious French cafes courtesy of Rick Steves's advice. He really knows his stuff. Though, again it proved difficult to try and order things in French. Mom picked up pretty quickly, remembering how to count to two and what the names for different foods were. We also ate at a few not so good places which I blame on my constant cravings for American food. Mom rolled her eyes, and in retrospect I should have to, when I suggested going to a Buffalo grille. It was...odd. They served us popcorn as an appetizer. Laughable though to consider that's what they think of American food. There were also pictures of Native Americans adorning the walls. Wow. Speaking of wow, had the BEST gelato of my life in Nice. Score 2 for Rick Steves!!
After a beautiful 5 days in the South of France, we came back to Barcelona to enjoy my city for a few days. I gave them a personal tour of MY Barcelona, which was a lot of walking and ultimately resulted in an exhausted family. Dad made fun of me for taking them to the same restaurants that I took Megan and the girls to, but hey, stick with what you know is good, right? We also did a bus tour of the city which made me realize just how little I get to see of Barcelona on a daily basis. I felt a bit embarrassed not to be able to answer their questions - What's this? What's that? Um...I stay in the same 30 minute walking zone all the time.
All in all, it was an absolutely amazing trip. After the fears of them not being able to come due to British Airways strikes, I felt very lucky to have them here. Hugging me goodbye, Mom said, "I feel like a bad parent leaving you in this big city all by yourself." To which I laughed, because I had been in this "big, scary" city for nearly 3 months. I came back to my room feeling more homesick than I have my whole 106 days here. Now here I am, being able to say that I go home the day after tomorrow. Time really really does fly.
I got the backpack back from lost and found. It is currently haphazardly packed away in my suitcase. I had to ductape it to get it to fit... So thanks for that, Mom, it actually did come in handy.
P.S. Pictures to follow.
Besos y Abrazos <3
Yet again, I prove how unreliable a blogger I am. Maybe 2 posts a day?? Oops. I'm not sure that I was thinking very realistically. When I haven't been studying for finals and doing powerpoints for presentations, I've been trying to catch as much sun as possible and go to all my favorite places in Barcelona.
Topic of this blog post: Mom, Dad, and Bridgie hit Barcelona. Oh man, where do I start? At the beginning, right. Read with caution: I think this one is gonna be a doozy
Due to unforseeable and unfortunate events, we spent our first day of their vacation in the police station, calling major credit card companies, and driving up and down the ramp at the rental car station. At the time, I remember thinking, "Oh, wow, I forgot what it was like to travel with my family." Now, I wish that I could do that trip 10 times over.
After our rocky start, we finally got in the car to start the adventure through the French Riviera. With the help of the Garmin GPS system, which I lovingly dubbed "The Gremlin" because I could never remember the real name, we made it to our destination of Nice, France - of course, not without a couple of bumps along the way.
We all had our "jobs". Dad drove. I worked the Gremlin. Mom read guide books and looked at maps. Jet read books, slept, and took pictures - I would have traded with her in a heartbeat. Navigating the way wasn't the easiest job. At one point, Mom handed me a map to consult. It wasn't a map, it was a lifesize poster. When unfolded, I couldn't even see the road. On the way we stopped in Arles, a beautiful French town complete with Roman ruins. Other towns/country we visted were Monaco, Lourmarin, Bonnieux, Lacoste, and L'Isle Sur le Sorgue. The towns atop cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean charmed me. The hike up wouldn't thrill me on a daily basis, but I wouldn't mind sitting on a bench up there all day looking out at the ocean. The hilltowns of France were equally charming. We all caught ourselves saying, "Wow, I hadn't realized how beautiful the south of France was." To which Mom respond, "Didn't any of you look at the links I sent you or do any research?" I did the most out of the three of us and that's really not saying much. I actually think Austin knew more about the places we were going than I did - go figure. Dad saved his research for on sight. I think he now knows more about the structure of Roman ruins than we could have ever imagined. He's got an eye for that kind of stuff and he also spent a lot of time walking around the outerwalls of the towns. One time, I was a great daughter and walked to the top of Lacoste to see the Marquis de Sade's castle. Totally creepy but worth the trip.
We ate at some delicious French cafes courtesy of Rick Steves's advice. He really knows his stuff. Though, again it proved difficult to try and order things in French. Mom picked up pretty quickly, remembering how to count to two and what the names for different foods were. We also ate at a few not so good places which I blame on my constant cravings for American food. Mom rolled her eyes, and in retrospect I should have to, when I suggested going to a Buffalo grille. It was...odd. They served us popcorn as an appetizer. Laughable though to consider that's what they think of American food. There were also pictures of Native Americans adorning the walls. Wow. Speaking of wow, had the BEST gelato of my life in Nice. Score 2 for Rick Steves!!
After a beautiful 5 days in the South of France, we came back to Barcelona to enjoy my city for a few days. I gave them a personal tour of MY Barcelona, which was a lot of walking and ultimately resulted in an exhausted family. Dad made fun of me for taking them to the same restaurants that I took Megan and the girls to, but hey, stick with what you know is good, right? We also did a bus tour of the city which made me realize just how little I get to see of Barcelona on a daily basis. I felt a bit embarrassed not to be able to answer their questions - What's this? What's that? Um...I stay in the same 30 minute walking zone all the time.
All in all, it was an absolutely amazing trip. After the fears of them not being able to come due to British Airways strikes, I felt very lucky to have them here. Hugging me goodbye, Mom said, "I feel like a bad parent leaving you in this big city all by yourself." To which I laughed, because I had been in this "big, scary" city for nearly 3 months. I came back to my room feeling more homesick than I have my whole 106 days here. Now here I am, being able to say that I go home the day after tomorrow. Time really really does fly.
I got the backpack back from lost and found. It is currently haphazardly packed away in my suitcase. I had to ductape it to get it to fit... So thanks for that, Mom, it actually did come in handy.
P.S. Pictures to follow.
Besos y Abrazos <3
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Je T'aime Paris!
Days left in Barcelona: Still 5
Okay, this one has been a long time coming. Even though it was only a little more than a month ago that I was there, it feels like forever ago. I had always heard mixed reviews about Paris. People either said they loved it or that it was overrated. I loved it. I would never want to live there, but a weekend visit was absolute perfection.
Four things I will always remember about Paris:
There's a beautiful historical building on every corner.
I could eat a crepe every day of my life.
Never before have I felt like such a minority.
It has rightfully earned the reputation of being the most romantic city in Europe.
Paris, like most European cities, puts American history to shame. The Louvre, Versailles, Notre Dame - they all make you question how it is possible that human hands could build these absolutely amazing works of art. I do admit that I had a couple of Davinci Code moments where I could picture myself sneaking around the city searching for ancient secrets. Austin, if we make it on The Amazing Race, my dreams might just come true.
Holy heck. I hate Spanish food. On a bright note, though, had I been studying in France, I probably would have gained 20 pounds. And after freshman year, that NEVER needs to happen again. It did prove quite the challenge trying to order this delicious food, though. My french could use some work.
Maybe call me naive, but in my mind, I pictured French people walking around in fur coats walking Dalmations. They are all supposed to be really well-dressed, ridiculously good-looking, a little bit snobby, and be smoking those really long cigarettes and drinking coffee in outdoor cafes, right? Um...no. Well, at least not completely. I hadn't realized how diverse Paris was - a European megacenter of Africa, Asia, the Middle East. My friend Desiree that I was traveling with is Persian. 9 out of 10 times I sat down on a Metro, I was the only freckled white girl on it. It was, well, really enlightening. If any experience has humbled me and made me realize just how big the world is, it might be those moments sitting on the metro.
I'm not sure what they put in their water, but there are people in love EVERYWHERE. And it's not obnoxious like in Barcelona where you see 14 year olds making out on the street corners. In Paris, couples are holding hands, staring at eachother and acting like nothing else in the world exists. I found myself creepily taking pictures of couples because they were just so in love. I think that something about the Seine and the Eiffel Tower sparkling at night makes people go crazy.
Besos y Abrazos <3
Okay, this one has been a long time coming. Even though it was only a little more than a month ago that I was there, it feels like forever ago. I had always heard mixed reviews about Paris. People either said they loved it or that it was overrated. I loved it. I would never want to live there, but a weekend visit was absolute perfection.
Four things I will always remember about Paris:
There's a beautiful historical building on every corner.
I could eat a crepe every day of my life.
Never before have I felt like such a minority.
It has rightfully earned the reputation of being the most romantic city in Europe.
Paris, like most European cities, puts American history to shame. The Louvre, Versailles, Notre Dame - they all make you question how it is possible that human hands could build these absolutely amazing works of art. I do admit that I had a couple of Davinci Code moments where I could picture myself sneaking around the city searching for ancient secrets. Austin, if we make it on The Amazing Race, my dreams might just come true.
Holy heck. I hate Spanish food. On a bright note, though, had I been studying in France, I probably would have gained 20 pounds. And after freshman year, that NEVER needs to happen again. It did prove quite the challenge trying to order this delicious food, though. My french could use some work.
Maybe call me naive, but in my mind, I pictured French people walking around in fur coats walking Dalmations. They are all supposed to be really well-dressed, ridiculously good-looking, a little bit snobby, and be smoking those really long cigarettes and drinking coffee in outdoor cafes, right? Um...no. Well, at least not completely. I hadn't realized how diverse Paris was - a European megacenter of Africa, Asia, the Middle East. My friend Desiree that I was traveling with is Persian. 9 out of 10 times I sat down on a Metro, I was the only freckled white girl on it. It was, well, really enlightening. If any experience has humbled me and made me realize just how big the world is, it might be those moments sitting on the metro.
I'm not sure what they put in their water, but there are people in love EVERYWHERE. And it's not obnoxious like in Barcelona where you see 14 year olds making out on the street corners. In Paris, couples are holding hands, staring at eachother and acting like nothing else in the world exists. I found myself creepily taking pictures of couples because they were just so in love. I think that something about the Seine and the Eiffel Tower sparkling at night makes people go crazy.
Besos y Abrazos <3
Wrapping it Up
Day: I have completely lost count.
But for the remainder of my time it will now read as...
Days Left in Barcelona: 5
So it's been a month since I last wrote anything in my blog. Over the past three months I have really come to appreciate people who are able to keep up with their adventures on the internet. My mom told me that I shouldn't leave my blog unfinished, and she's completely right. As out of order and random it may be, it is the closest you'll get to my thoughts throughout this time. So, for your reading pleasure, you'll get a blog post a day (maybe even 2) until I'm on a plane heading for America. It is beautiful and sunny outside, but school plays this mean trick on you called final exams and presentations the last week here. Since I'm already confined to my computer, I will be sure to find breaks to show my bloggie a little attention...starting in about a half hour after I jam out to wedding songs and drink a bit of champagne.
BESOS Y ABRAZOS!!!
But for the remainder of my time it will now read as...
Days Left in Barcelona: 5
So it's been a month since I last wrote anything in my blog. Over the past three months I have really come to appreciate people who are able to keep up with their adventures on the internet. My mom told me that I shouldn't leave my blog unfinished, and she's completely right. As out of order and random it may be, it is the closest you'll get to my thoughts throughout this time. So, for your reading pleasure, you'll get a blog post a day (maybe even 2) until I'm on a plane heading for America. It is beautiful and sunny outside, but school plays this mean trick on you called final exams and presentations the last week here. Since I'm already confined to my computer, I will be sure to find breaks to show my bloggie a little attention...starting in about a half hour after I jam out to wedding songs and drink a bit of champagne.
BESOS Y ABRAZOS!!!
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