Berlin has been great but I do like Munich better. we went on a free tour which was so cool and saw a lot of Berlin. we ended up doing the tour in reverse by ourselves and stopping in all the free museums. We went to the holocaust museum which was intense but very small and crowded. today we went to a concentration camp where the nazis perfected the concentration camp to impliment in other camps. it was very intense and i have not had time to process what I saw but just wanted to tell people I saw that and will probably tell you all about it in person in just a few day.
speaking of going home... I have very mixed feelings. on one hand I am ready to hang out with my friends and be in the comfort of my life at home and look forward to it. but on the other hand there are so many things I still want to see. I am already trying to figure out how I can come back. the lady I stayed with in Zurich offered me her apartment in the apls for free when ever I want it and it is very very tempting. I love Europe and would like to come back as soon as I can. getting a job and having a real life just isnt appealing! ok well that is all I have time for now. internet is expensive here!
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Monday, August 2, 2010
I love Munich it is so freaking amazing! That might just be the litter of German beer that I drank talking but it is truly a great city! I went to Ludwigs castle today and it rained all day but it was so much fun. We made so many new friends and learned so many things plus we saw the castle that inspired walt Disney! After the tour we went to a famous beer hall in Munich with some people from the tour and had beer and I had some Bavarian pork. Best pork I have ever had. I would like to go into detail about Munich but I am yet again updating on my iPod and I am too tired to say anymore. Oh the hostel we are in is top quality I love it! Anyways be home in 5 days I will probably update in Berlin too! We go there tomorrow!!!
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Ok so I am doing this on my iPod because I finally found a apple store to fix my Internet connection and Internet here and in Venice is like 3 dollars a min! Anyways I loved Venice it was a lot of shopping and a lot of pretty things. Our hotel had no ac so we had to sleep with the window open which was loud and full of bugs. The first day we explored and got lost but eventually found our way. It started to rain and people tried to sell us umbrellas buy we just skipped and said no thanks we are from Seattle! There was thunder and lightning which was so cool I saw a bolt! The next day we explored some more and eventually met up with some friends from home! It was so great to see Kayla and Emmy we had a picnic dinner on a bridge and just sat and talked about our differnt adventures. It was nice to have other people to talk to but it also made us a little home sick for our friends and family.
The next day on a suggestion we went to the island of maurano to see all the glass. We went to the museum and saw glass from the first century which was incredible! I wore shoes I got in Rome that day which was a horrible idea my feet were killing me because they had no support. We saw this guy blow glass but his show lasted all of 2 min. Then we rode a bus Aka a boat to San Marco square which was cool but they were setting up for a fashion show so you couldn't get the whole effect. The rest of our time in Venice we just explored, we saw probably the whole island. We did not do much touristy things which was a nice break from Florence and Rome.
Oh Florence! Well I loved it, it is so pretty we stayed in an old nunnery which was great! The best part was seeing david that statue is increadible! Oh and I also liked sitting on a bridge watching the sunset while listening to live music.
Ok so now Zurich, first of all I have 30 plus bug bites from Venice 15 of which are on my right arm! Needless to say I am itchy! It is nice to see mountains again and have bearable weather it is only about 27 here as opposed to 40s. We followed the river in from where we are staying (with this nice Swiss lady) it took us over am hour but was really cool. Then we followed this route on a map and saw the highlights of Zurich. We went to a market, fed swans, watched people dive into the river, I bought a watch, had some Swiss chocolate and many more things. The Swiss frank is almost par with the dollar so it feels cheeper but it isn't. A grande iced lemon habiscus from starbucks cost 8 franks! And a paper back book cost over 20. Other then the expense I love it here and would for sure come back! Can't believe there are only 8 days left!
The next day on a suggestion we went to the island of maurano to see all the glass. We went to the museum and saw glass from the first century which was incredible! I wore shoes I got in Rome that day which was a horrible idea my feet were killing me because they had no support. We saw this guy blow glass but his show lasted all of 2 min. Then we rode a bus Aka a boat to San Marco square which was cool but they were setting up for a fashion show so you couldn't get the whole effect. The rest of our time in Venice we just explored, we saw probably the whole island. We did not do much touristy things which was a nice break from Florence and Rome.
Oh Florence! Well I loved it, it is so pretty we stayed in an old nunnery which was great! The best part was seeing david that statue is increadible! Oh and I also liked sitting on a bridge watching the sunset while listening to live music.
Ok so now Zurich, first of all I have 30 plus bug bites from Venice 15 of which are on my right arm! Needless to say I am itchy! It is nice to see mountains again and have bearable weather it is only about 27 here as opposed to 40s. We followed the river in from where we are staying (with this nice Swiss lady) it took us over am hour but was really cool. Then we followed this route on a map and saw the highlights of Zurich. We went to a market, fed swans, watched people dive into the river, I bought a watch, had some Swiss chocolate and many more things. The Swiss frank is almost par with the dollar so it feels cheeper but it isn't. A grande iced lemon habiscus from starbucks cost 8 franks! And a paper back book cost over 20. Other then the expense I love it here and would for sure come back! Can't believe there are only 8 days left!
Friday, July 23, 2010
rome!
Ok so this is the second time I have written this blog update because I am on a computer without a click so I can only right click and the right click options are all in Italian so yeah...
First thing about Rome is it is bloody hot! yesterday it was 100 degrees plus humidity! you walk outside side and are instantly sweaty (fun!). our travels here went easy we found out our train to Florence will be free so that is great and we found our hostel very easily and we had no problems (yay STA!). we then went out to explore random things. so we started at the famous fountain, I know the name but cant be bothered to try to spell it so incase you are thinking fountain? there are tons of fountains in Rome I will narrow it down. this is the one in all the movies and you throw a coin in it with your right hand over your left shoulder. It is extreamly pretty and super crowded. we sat and looked at it for a little while which was cool to just enjoy the fountain. then we went off to find the Pantheon- we ended up following a tour group straight there. the pantheon was under construction in the front which was lame but the inside was fine and free! the thing about Rome is that when you go into a place like the Pantheon everyone is quiet it is a nice change from everywhere else. actually before all of this we had pizza and it was the best pizza I have ever had. then after the pantheon we had galato and I am going to say that it is a good thing we are walking miles upon miles because the food here is just too tasty! oh the gelato was made out of real fruit and was amazing especially on a hot day! then we went to this random little church that the tourist info guy said was not to be missed. it was super cool and the mosaic ceilings were increadible. it was great to see. then we took off to find the mouth of truth (you know the stone thing from roman holliday where Gregory Peck pretends that it ate his hand and Audrey Heporn gets all shocked). we found it but 3 min after it closed! I was very sad about this. then we went to find the spanish steps but on the way I went to the bathroom and it was the most interesting bathroom experince I have ever had. first I had to buy a 4 euro drink, then there was no toilet seat (this is very common actually), and then no toilet paper and no nifity water thing that starts with a b either, then no soap, then it smelt so strongly of chemicals that my eyes started to burn and then I got out to find the guy had kicked katie out of his shop. so funny. then we stumbled upon the most expensive shopping district we have found yet the only thing missing was Coco Channel. then we finally found the Spanish steps which if i remember correctly were designed by the Italians, payed for by the French, named after the Spanish, occupied by the British, and now Americans travel miles and miles to sit on them. we followed tradition and sat on them for a while. then i noticed people were going into the fountain and drinking the water so I decided when in Rome! and did it too, I was a bit worried about the quality of the water but it was fine and actually have found that everyone drinks from the fountains. then we came back to sleep and found that our ac in our hostel was broken so we baked all night.
Yesterday we got up at 6:30 to got to the Vatican before it filled with people. we got there when it opened walked right into the main building (that has a name) the sun was still low in the sky so there was a really cool light affect in the windows and everything was so pretty. then we eventually found the sistine chapel area. waited in line these people tried to tell us we would be waiting over an hour and wanted us to buy a tour but we got in like half an hour later. I have never seen so many statues in my life. I took a pic with a few ceasers including Julius. when we got to the actual chapel I was blown away. it is so amazing in there words just cant explain how awe inspiring it is. I tried to sneak pics but they werent very good... then we found the pope mobiles litterally. and then explored a bit more, I went into the square and took more pics. then we went over to the castle but did not go in and the we stopped to eat I got pasta it was amazing! then we went somewhere else I cant remember where and then we went back to the mouth of truth! I got my pic taken and it was everything I thought it would be! then we went up to the old part of the city saw the coloceum (i am perfectly aware that that is not how that is spelt) and lots of other ruins then we walked around saw some more fountains and yay. oh I bought some shoes yesterday at some point. over all great day. today we are going to see the old part of the city in more detail it is going to be awesome. I will update as soon as I can.
First thing about Rome is it is bloody hot! yesterday it was 100 degrees plus humidity! you walk outside side and are instantly sweaty (fun!). our travels here went easy we found out our train to Florence will be free so that is great and we found our hostel very easily and we had no problems (yay STA!). we then went out to explore random things. so we started at the famous fountain, I know the name but cant be bothered to try to spell it so incase you are thinking fountain? there are tons of fountains in Rome I will narrow it down. this is the one in all the movies and you throw a coin in it with your right hand over your left shoulder. It is extreamly pretty and super crowded. we sat and looked at it for a little while which was cool to just enjoy the fountain. then we went off to find the Pantheon- we ended up following a tour group straight there. the pantheon was under construction in the front which was lame but the inside was fine and free! the thing about Rome is that when you go into a place like the Pantheon everyone is quiet it is a nice change from everywhere else. actually before all of this we had pizza and it was the best pizza I have ever had. then after the pantheon we had galato and I am going to say that it is a good thing we are walking miles upon miles because the food here is just too tasty! oh the gelato was made out of real fruit and was amazing especially on a hot day! then we went to this random little church that the tourist info guy said was not to be missed. it was super cool and the mosaic ceilings were increadible. it was great to see. then we took off to find the mouth of truth (you know the stone thing from roman holliday where Gregory Peck pretends that it ate his hand and Audrey Heporn gets all shocked). we found it but 3 min after it closed! I was very sad about this. then we went to find the spanish steps but on the way I went to the bathroom and it was the most interesting bathroom experince I have ever had. first I had to buy a 4 euro drink, then there was no toilet seat (this is very common actually), and then no toilet paper and no nifity water thing that starts with a b either, then no soap, then it smelt so strongly of chemicals that my eyes started to burn and then I got out to find the guy had kicked katie out of his shop. so funny. then we stumbled upon the most expensive shopping district we have found yet the only thing missing was Coco Channel. then we finally found the Spanish steps which if i remember correctly were designed by the Italians, payed for by the French, named after the Spanish, occupied by the British, and now Americans travel miles and miles to sit on them. we followed tradition and sat on them for a while. then i noticed people were going into the fountain and drinking the water so I decided when in Rome! and did it too, I was a bit worried about the quality of the water but it was fine and actually have found that everyone drinks from the fountains. then we came back to sleep and found that our ac in our hostel was broken so we baked all night.
Yesterday we got up at 6:30 to got to the Vatican before it filled with people. we got there when it opened walked right into the main building (that has a name) the sun was still low in the sky so there was a really cool light affect in the windows and everything was so pretty. then we eventually found the sistine chapel area. waited in line these people tried to tell us we would be waiting over an hour and wanted us to buy a tour but we got in like half an hour later. I have never seen so many statues in my life. I took a pic with a few ceasers including Julius. when we got to the actual chapel I was blown away. it is so amazing in there words just cant explain how awe inspiring it is. I tried to sneak pics but they werent very good... then we found the pope mobiles litterally. and then explored a bit more, I went into the square and took more pics. then we went over to the castle but did not go in and the we stopped to eat I got pasta it was amazing! then we went somewhere else I cant remember where and then we went back to the mouth of truth! I got my pic taken and it was everything I thought it would be! then we went up to the old part of the city saw the coloceum (i am perfectly aware that that is not how that is spelt) and lots of other ruins then we walked around saw some more fountains and yay. oh I bought some shoes yesterday at some point. over all great day. today we are going to see the old part of the city in more detail it is going to be awesome. I will update as soon as I can.
Monday, July 19, 2010
real quick
I do not have too much time but I am alive! First happy birthday scooter miss you! ok now malaga was a week of relaxation. I swam, slept, went on a day long adventure to pick up a practical joke from the post office, saw the ocean, read a book a day and well basically that is it. oh and drank a lot because apparently Spain is where you become an alcoholic. Barcelona started off bad aka the day from hell we waited in a 2 hour line to reserve tickets to Rome only to have a grumpy lady say she couldnt do it (she so could she was just lazy and grumpy) and she sent us to the info line, where we waited for 20 min and then were sent back to the 2 hour line which was only about an hour the second time. we got a very nice man who got us the cheepest easiest route. so that is fixed. then we got to our hostel where we were informed that hostel world only reserved one bed one night and 2 beds for the second. so we had to find an alternative and still pay for it. but we are in a hotel which is pretty nice except (this may be too much info for some of you but it is what is happening)our neighbors have sex all night and the walls are paper thin. so my ipod is my new best friend. when we first discovered the noise katie was in the bathroom and I was sitting in the room and she finally said is that what i think it is? that better be the tv! it was very funny. the next day we saw the Picasso museum and the cathedral of Bacelona and the arc de trump and a bunch of other things. I bought fans from this lady who I bonded with over our dislike of people bringing ice cream into her store and me pretending to understand everything she said to me. and I made friends with her dog. it was very fun. today we saw lots of Gaudi and the beach and wondered a long time. I like Barcelona but I am excited for Italy! we are taking a night train to Italy tomorrow which is going to take 2 days off of Rome but we had so much time there it should be fine. Well that is about it. love you all!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
malaga
Well first I will say I miss Madrid, well if I was being honest I miss the new friends I made in Madrid more than the actual place. It was nice to have other people to hang out with and have random intence discussions with and to awkwardly dance with these random people who were trying (but failed) to start a dance party. I miss it! Malaga is pretty great so far but I kind of miss having something to do everyday. I have already read about 3 books but they were books from the lending library so they are not quality books. I have been sleeping a lot and I got really sunburned the first day ( I guess I need a mother like figure to pester me to reapply sunscreen) watching the game was amazing but not nearly as fun as watching it in madrid. but Spain won! I am looking forward to Barcelona where we can start being adventurous agian. We have tv here which is nice but also not nice because I got used to not having it and now it is just so tempting! I cannot believe we are halfway done with our trip it is going so fast. the second half of our trip is a lot slower, we are staying in each place longer which will be a nice change of pace. I love spain and am going to miss it when we leave. I for sure want to come back but maybe in their winter because the middle of the summer is super hot believe it or not!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
ESPAÑA
So I went to this stadium in Madrid to watch the España vs Germany game with a whole bunch of people from my hostel! it was so much fun! I had a jersey (not a real one) and a spanish flag as a skirt. It was funny because when I thought about it I dont own an American flag or have ever considered dressing up all in my countries colors because I think in the US that would be super weird. but here it is perfectly normal! so I just went all out and we were in this huge crowd and were trying our best to copy the chants that everyone was saying. as I don´t speak spanish i was really just mummbeling everything except España. I have never seen anything like this ever! when spain scored it was madness I was being pushed around and people where hugging and jumping up and down. then people shot off fireworks in the crowd. all of a sudden we were pushed back and everyone in front of us was covering thier ears then BOOM! it was insane! I am so glad I had that experience. afterwards we tried to get back to the hostel via metro but they were not letting people through the metro stop so we went to a bar for a while and then tried again. I made so many new friends and have some new inside jokes it was such a great experience. after the game when we finally got on the metro a whole bunch of German fans got on and so we started cheering/chanting and they cheered too it was really funny to have a cheer off on the metro. but the German fans still had their pride and were still in relitivly good spirts.
Madrid has been an entirly different experience. it is so hot here (40c and higher which to put that into perspective 32c is 90 degrees f) so it is so hot that you cannot do anything hardly at all during the day. I have been napping because it is just too hot. the afternoon ends at 9pm and that is when everyone comes out. it is insane and a compleatly different experince. the first day we were here we were so hungry that we just went on a 10 euro tapas tour. it was fun to have a bunch of different things I tried 3 different kinds of drinks and 4 different tapas. I loved this potato salad thing that isnt normal potato salad it was amazing! after we wandered around in the shaded areas and found this Flamanco company what was doing a Flamanco version of Carmen so we decided to go to that. I went in not knowing much about Carmen, I only knew the ending and I came out knowing just about the same amount. but the dancing was so cool! I want a skirt that twirls like that! it was very pretty and a lot of fun so see. afterwards we went and found a bar to watch the holland game and I ordered sangreia (Sp?) and well I got the biggest glass that wasnt a pitcher that I have ever seen. it took me the whole game to finish drinking it. and i had some traditional spanish rice dish that I keep forgetting the name of. it was fun watching the game there, we were the youngest people there. but everyone else except the people who worked there were cheering for holland so that was kind of cool. we do not really know what to see here so we took another free walking tour but we still dont know what to see so we are just relaxing and enjoying the city. tomorrow I think we will go to this park with a pool and maybe some other things. I am excited to still be in spain for the world cup final.
Madrid has been an entirly different experience. it is so hot here (40c and higher which to put that into perspective 32c is 90 degrees f) so it is so hot that you cannot do anything hardly at all during the day. I have been napping because it is just too hot. the afternoon ends at 9pm and that is when everyone comes out. it is insane and a compleatly different experince. the first day we were here we were so hungry that we just went on a 10 euro tapas tour. it was fun to have a bunch of different things I tried 3 different kinds of drinks and 4 different tapas. I loved this potato salad thing that isnt normal potato salad it was amazing! after we wandered around in the shaded areas and found this Flamanco company what was doing a Flamanco version of Carmen so we decided to go to that. I went in not knowing much about Carmen, I only knew the ending and I came out knowing just about the same amount. but the dancing was so cool! I want a skirt that twirls like that! it was very pretty and a lot of fun so see. afterwards we went and found a bar to watch the holland game and I ordered sangreia (Sp?) and well I got the biggest glass that wasnt a pitcher that I have ever seen. it took me the whole game to finish drinking it. and i had some traditional spanish rice dish that I keep forgetting the name of. it was fun watching the game there, we were the youngest people there. but everyone else except the people who worked there were cheering for holland so that was kind of cool. we do not really know what to see here so we took another free walking tour but we still dont know what to see so we are just relaxing and enjoying the city. tomorrow I think we will go to this park with a pool and maybe some other things. I am excited to still be in spain for the world cup final.
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