I Met Tom Cruise 12/11

Well this weekend was supposed to be pretty uneventful. Saturday went as planned... I cleaned up my apartment to prepare for our inspection and packed one of my bags. Maybe a little early to be packing, but I'm just so excited to be going home. So I guess I felt like having a physical conformation that I'll be home in less than a week. But on Sunday, things got a little livelier than expected... I met TOM CRUISE! I shook his hand, introduced myself and was able to take a photo with him (my arm wrapped around his waist!). I feel like celebrities and traveling have become a combined experience for me, because George Clooney was on my flight home from India. Tom was a really nice guy and wished me a Merry Christmas.It was an awesome, unexpected highlight to my final weekend of the internship. Now I just have to power through the rest of the week, pack the rest of my belongings and get on the flight(s) home. Then I'll be home with friends and family, eating sushi and Mexican food, and celebrating Christmas!

Skiing in the Alps: Stubai Glacier, Austria 12/03-12/04

This weekend was so much fun! We went to Stubaier Glacier in Austria to ski on the Alps. The drive was long, seven hours, but so worth it. The Alps were incredibly gorgeous! Their beauty was really impossible to capture with a camera. The snow-capped mountains jutted into the air all around me. The runs were mostly easy and intermediate, so it was a perfect resort for me to ski at. I did pretty well skiing and only fell three times. One of the falls was pretty epic... I lost a ski and my pole smashed in to my arm leaving two big bruises. But otherwise it was smooth sailing on the runs. The resort was pretty large, and the runs were quite long. The conditions were pretty nice, but at the end of the day it was really icy. After all the skiing I finished the day with an ice-cold beer at the bottom of the mountain. It was really nice to get out and do something active, rather than just walking around and checking out the area and different sights. 

German Home: Landstuhl 11/24-11/27

This weekend was actually quite long, but ironically I just stayed home! It was a great, relaxing weekend, and I was able to appreciate my little German home, Landstuhl. I spend Thanksgiving day at a church service and potluck with a coworker. It was a great message and there was some good food. So it was a nice holiday overall. But nothing like being home with friends and family (and the stuffing just didn't even compare to my mom's!). Friday I saw Breaking Dawn with another coworker after we had dinner at Macaroni Grill (I had the lasagna like I usually do). It was a fun girls night out. I was pretty pleased with the movie, but some parts of it were just so cheesy! But I've learned not to expect too much from the films, so it was adequate. Saturday I wandered around Landstuhl and visited the castle overlooking the city. It was a surprisingly amazing castle. The structure had tree branches growing through the walls and some of the stone was rubbed away to reveal the sedimentary layers below. It was absolutely beautiful! I actually would rank it as my second favorite castle that I have visited in Europe, after the Prague Castle. And I was able to see the beautiful little town of Landstuhl below. I later went back in to town for the Christmas market. It was a pretty small affair, but had all the basic any Christmas market would need. I at a delicious meat-stuffed potato dumpling smothered in gravy and drank some delicious gluhbier. It is a sibling of gluhwein, a hot, mulled spicy wine. I found the gluhbier tastier, because it was not as strong as the gluhwein and still had the wonderful warming effect!

Prague 11/19-11/20

Wow, Prague. I fell in love with the city at first sight. And I can't even pinpoint what it is that makes Prague so great, but I would move there in a heart beat if the opportunity presented itself. The city just has a lively, warm vibe that is welcoming to anyone who comes to visit. And it is a mix of the best things of other cities I have visited. A day was definitely not long enough to explore the city, but we made the most of the few hours we had. We started the day with a tour of the underground city. Prague used to be about three or four kilometers lower than it is today and was subject to floods. So when a king dug a moat to protect the city, he killed two birds with one stone and used the removed dirt to raise the city. The houses and streets, which were made mostly of stone, remained bellow and were used as cellars and storage rooms. It was a neat secret to the city that was fun to stumble upon. Following that we had traditional Czech food at the Black Sun Restaurant. The three of us each had a different meal and shared, so we all were able to try a variety of delicious stick-to-your-ribs meals. After our lunch we joined in with a free tour group and saw various highlights of the city. We visited the astronomical clock and Jewish Quarter among other places. But the tour was moving to slowly, so we broke off and went to Prague Castle on our own. On the way to the castle we stumbled upon a Gloria Jean's Coffees. I was so incredibly excited, because it is some of the best coffee in the world and I haven't been to one in so long. I had a delicious chocolate macadamia nut latte that rocked my socks. We then hiked up to the castle. Prague Castle is the most beautiful castle I have ever seen, and quite possibly the most beautiful and magnificent building I have laid eyes on. It was truly breath-taking. The girls and I had a fun photo shoot in front of the castle and then headed back to the rest of the city over Charles Bridge. The bridge itself was also extraordinarily beautiful. Unfortunately we ran out of time to continue exploring and returned to the bus. I would love to return to Prague one day if I have the chance and really get to see the city. It was just a fabulous place!

Berlin 11/11-11/13

Oh joyous three-day weekend! It really worked out so well and was a great weekend in Berlin. We were able to get a ride to the city, and bought a hotel reservation at half price from a co-worker who could not use it. The bed only fit three of the five of us, so I had to sleep on the floor one night, but it was all in the good fun of traveling on a budget! Friday night (we got to Berlin around 4 p.m.; it was a seven hour drive) we walked around and found a Starbucks to warm us up. It was so cold! I purchased one of the Christmas flavor drinks and got a second free for the special they were running. But the barista made one of my drinks the wrong flavor, so I ended up with three coffees for the price of one and was able to try all of the Christmas flavors (White Chocolate Cranberry Mocha, Toffee Nut Latte and Gingerbread Latte, the best one). I was pretty excited about it. And the night just got better, because we had dinner at a MEXICAN restaurant! I was so giddy and grinning from ear to ear before my food even arrived. It has just been way to long since I've had Mexican food, and this place was really good. Not as good as the stuff from home, but delicious nonetheless. After dinner we found a man-made snow ramp and jumped on innertubes to slide down it. It was so much fun and was smack dab in a Christmas market. We capped off the night at a bar (I had the yummy Berliner beer) and met up with one of my friends from home. It was so good to see her. Saturday we went on a free walking tour of the city and saw most of the major spots in Berlin. Our tour guide was really great and gave us a lot of history about the city. She was really passionate and made everything interesting. I learned about Berlin and the Nazi party. Later we went shopping and then had soup for dinner. Saturday night we headed to Havanna, a night club on the outskirts of Berlin. It had four dance floors with salsa, merengue/bachata, reggaeton, and oldies. I was so excited to get my salsa/merengue/bachata on! I was really impressed with the salsa scene in Berlin, because a majority of the dancers were very good. It was a fun night. Sunday one of the other interns and I went to the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp. The camp was mostly empty, but had buildings with examples of the victim's everyday life at the camp. The crematorium, mass grave sites and death trench also remained in the camp. It was an eerie place, and I could not imagine being held captive there. I only had a blinking glimpse of how horrific it would have been. I am so glad that I was able to see a concentration camp while in Germany, because I think it is an essential part of visiting this country. The camps are evidence of a tragic and terrible time in history that can too easily be repeated if it is ignored, so I am glad that I was able to get a visual confirmation of just how real the Holocaust was.

Amsterdam 11/05-11/06

Amsterdam! The weekend started out rather precariously. The cab we called took forever to get to us, and when it arrived it was too small even though we specified that we needed a cab for five people. But I didn't let that deter us. We all shoved inside the cab, and I told the taxi man to go. We got to the bus about five minutes before it left and luckily found seats next to each other. The bus ride there didn't get much better. We were stuck for two hours on the freeway behind an accident, and then had to reverse to an offramp to get off the freeway. We finally made it to Amsterdam, but the bus was too tall for a bridge, and the top section was scrapped off. I seriously thought we took a chunk of bridge down, but the bus was no match for it. Once we got off the bus, things picked up. We were late for our reservation at the Anne Frank House, but they graciously let us in. I was amazed at how large the house was. It was so cool walking in the same areas that the families walked in, especially through the secret bookcase passageway. After the house we headed to the Iamsterdam letters. There were crowds of people taking pictures, so it was hard to get a decent shot, but it was still fun to check them out. And I was so excited to take a picture with the T! We spent the rest of the day walking around and exploring the city. I had some tasty pumpkin soup for dinner. The trees are changing orange and red and yellow here, and it is becoming so beautiful. I love that it is starting to look like Fall. It's such a fabulous time of year.

Kaiserslautern 10/29-10/30

This weekend was a bit of a disappointment. I really wanted to go to Frankenstein's Castle to have a fun, Halloween adventure, but tickets were sold out. Happily we found that out before making the three-hour train ride there. Instead we headed to Kaiserslautern for its Halloween parade. It was a pretty cool event, but not as exciting as a haunted house would have been. After the parade we had dinner at a cute little Italian restaurant, and I ate a yummy pizza. Sunday was a nice and relaxing day. I spent the day watching movies, finishing up on homework and eating good food. It was a good end to a mostly uneventful weekend.

Frankfurt 10/22-10/23

This weekend was a nice mix of fun and exciting and chill and relaxing. Saturday was a leisurely day of walking around and visiting the various sites, mostly churches, in Frankfurt. I bought a really cute ring from a street vendor who bent metal into different types of jewelry. He was really impressed by my metal earrings from Paris and tried to figure out how they were made. He kept touching them and marveling. It was pretty comical. After a short nap at the hostel, we woke up for the hostel's free pasta party and got some free dinner. It was bland and tasted a little watered down, but most importantly it was free so still good! We then went on a pub crawl organized by a group in Frankfurt. It was a good deal, because our entry was covered to each of the four clubs. But it should have been called a pub marathon, because each of the clubs were about five or more blocks apart... something my heel-clad feet did not appreciate. We started out in a salsa club, which of course set me in a great mood. It was so much fun getting in a little salsa, bachata and merengue. Then we walked all the way to our second club... more of a chill lounge area with thumping techno music. The third club was a sweaty, steamy mass of people shuffling to techno. The final club was my favorite and the perfect place to end. It was a good mix of techno and hip hop with a large dance floor and an exuberant crowd. I thoroughly enjoyed getting my ghetto dance on! Sunday we went to the German Cinematography museum, which is probably the coolest museum I have ever been to. It was such a comprehensive museum and had examples of cameras, costumes, lighting and every component that goes in to film over its lifespan. There was even an Academy Award and a prop Darth Vader mask that special effects artists referenced for lighting purposes. My favorite part of the museum was a set of four large TV screens that different movie clips were projected on simultaneously and one at a time. It was a total movie experience, which is what movies are really about, and brought together threads of similarities between different films. I could have sat there all day. But we eventually left and got some lunch. I was thrilled to have some Pho, because I have been craving it for a while. Sadly it was not as good as the Pho I've had at home, but it was still warm and tasty. We wrapped up the weekend by stopping at the Kaiserslautern festival on our way home. It wasn't really that exciting, because I have already been to so many German festivals and they are all so similar. But I did get some delicious chocolate-covered pineapple, so it wasn't a total loss. The evening was wrapped up with a Doner Kebab for dinner, a happy ending.

Koln 10/15-10/16

 

This weekend was so much fun, and I was able to experience things I love doing at home (i.e. I got my Latin dance on and ate some sushi). Friday night the girls put on a get together. Someone mentioned salsa dancing, so naturally I was all over it and discovered that one of the guys knew how to dance. He got his iPod filled with the necessary jams and we proceeded to have a Latin dance party, salsa, merengue and bachata included! It was so much fun! I had an ear-to-ear smile the whole time I was dancing. It had been way to long since I was able to bust out the salsa moves, so I thoroughly enjoyed having the opportunity. Saturday I headed to Koln (Cologne). The train ride there was really long (5 hours), but I read an entire book during the trip there and back, so it was nice to have the time to read! (really long side note: I love the library here! I have read several books already... Emily Giffin is a fabulous author... and watched some movies from the library. There are also travel books that have helped me plan some of these weekend trips. I also have increased my music collection, especially with international music. The library is such a wonderful resource that I feel so lucky to have access to) Koln was a cool city and had some very interesting buildings. The Dom was huge... I really had to strain my neck to look up at the top of the building. There were several churches throughout the whole city, one of which was in ruins. That one was my favorite, because it had more depth and character. I did some shopping while I was there, because Koln has one of the best and biggest pedestrian shopping boulevards in Germany. There were so many stores! I spent the day strolling around and checking out the sites. It seemed to be the weekend for bachelor and bachelorette parties, because I saw at least four groups celebrating their friends' last day of singlehood. I also ate sushi for dinner. I was so excited to have sushi, because it had been at least two and a half months since the last time I had it, which is far too long! It was really delicious and totally hit the spot. Sunday I was able to go to church and then spend the last of the day relaxing. It was a wonderful weekend all around filled with things I love to do and eat.

Paris 10/08-10/10

 

Well it was a miracle that we even made it to Paris, and I'm so glad that we did! I absolutely loved the city and would certainly visit it again. Our bus was scheduled to leave at midnight Friday. We got to our bus stop about 20 minutes early and proceeded to wait and worry, wait and worry, repeat. We were at a random city bus stop with no station in sight, very little light and out in the cold. By the time 1 a.m. rolled around and we had yet to see a bus (but plenty of teasing semi trucks) the worry really started to escalate. Fifteen minutes later we decided to throw in the towel, assuming that we got scammed, and called a taxi. A beat later we saw a glorious, magnificent tour bus with "Eurolines" painted in large letters on the side... It was our bus! Our bus! I don't think I've ever been so excited to see a bus. The drive in to Paris was pretty uneventful and filled with fitful sleep.
Saturday we headed straight to the hostel to drop off our luggage and scored on an extra day of free breakfast. Our first stop in the city was, of course, the Eiffel Tower. It was a surreal moment, because I thought I'd never make it to the city, but here I was looking at the iconic image of Paris! We walked around for most of the day, stopping to see the Statue of Liberty's sister, a bridge that I'm fairly certain was in the movie Inception the Arc de Triomphe and the famous shopping boulevard Champs-Elysees. Later that night we saw the Moulin Rouge and then headed to a club called Showcase that our hostel receptionist recommended. His directions were all turned around, but we managed to find it with a taxi man's aid. It was a fairly fun club, but only pumped out techno all night, which was a bit of a disappointment after the hostel man promised hip hop, techno and dub step. He was just wrong on most counts. Getting home after the club was another challenge. We left late, and as we walked up to the top of the steps to get down to the metro, the gate closed. So we tried to hail a taxi. Well apparently everyone else was doing the same thing, because it took us TWO HOURS to finally find a free taxi with a driver (thank God for Mark!) willing to take us all the way to our hostel (it was a fair drive out of the main part of the city).
Sunday morning we got up early and headed to the Louvre getting there about half an hour before it opened. It was the best decision, because we got pictures outside of the museum without tons of people milling around, and we were first in line at the main entrance. We got through the museum in a little over two hours. Had we come an hour later, we would have spent that time in line to get into the museum and buy tickets. And another great thing was that we were able to get in for free, because we are international students studying in Europe. It was fabulous! The rest of the day we saw Notre Dame, Sacre Coeur and the Montmartre district. The district was my favorite part of Paris. Artists showcased their work along cobble-stoned streets lined with shops and restaurants. And it is where we discovered hang music. The hang is a percussion instrument that has only been (hand)made since 2001. The sounds is so beautiful and unique, but familiar because it has hints of steel drum and tablas. Everyone walking by the musicians performing on the street was captivated by the relaxing music and had to stop to see what was happening. Happily I bought the CD that was available. We finished the night off with dinner at Cafe de France in Place d'italie, complete with French onion soup, a mozzarella tomato sandwich and creme brulee. Our final stop was the Eiffel Tower lit up at night, making it even more beautiful than during the day. Monday was a relaxing day. We went to Tuileries Gardens, which were exquisite and provided a glimpse of the Louvre, Obelisque, Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower. It was a great summation of the trip. We had lunch at a little cafe and then stocked up on some delicious pastries (croissant included) before heading home.

Heidelberg 10/01-10/02

I want to move to Heidelberg after spending Saturday there. It has been my favorite German city that I have visited so far. Heidelberg reminded me a lot of Brugge with its cobblestone streets and the river running through the city, but the architecture wasn't quite as cute. We visited Heidelberg Castle, which I actually enjoyed more than Neuschwanstein. It had more of a rustic feel and actually had crumbling walls. I liked that it was still standing even though part of it was in ruin. And there were beautiful, massive gardens surrounding the castle. The walls encasing the castle stretched out to the best view of the city down below. It was a gorgeous expanse of buildings cut in the middle by a large river filled with boats and straddled by bridges. After the castle we meandered around the city's market square and popped into stores along the way. We discovered a place that made a large variety of liqueurs, including a hazelnut (I love that so many things are hazelnut, and for that matter, blueberry flavored, because they are so good) liqueur that was on sale. It was absolutely delicious, so I bought a bottle! While walking down the main street, a herd of zombies edged their way through the crowd. It was totally unexpected, but so much fun! I loved the vibe of the moment, and it just made me like the young, hip, relaxed feel of the city.
Sunday was the best one I've spent while in Germany. I took a solo trip down to Landstuhl and wandered around the city taking pictures. It was the first time I've really gotten to explore my German hometown, so i really enjoyed getting a feel for the place I live in. I finally got to try this bakery, Barbarossa, that is at the end of "Cardiac Hill" (the steep hill that connects the post to Landstuhl, which is about a 15 to 20 minute walk). Every time I've passed by it has been crowded with people teeming out with delicious looking treats. I had the best pastry of my life. It was like a croissant, bear claw and baklava all rolled into one with only the best parts of each. And the best part about it was that it was only about $1.25, making it one of the cheapest items in the joint (which conveniently is a chain bakery, so I have access to these magnificent treats while on the road). After trekking back up Cardiac Hill, I headed to church on post for the Protestant service. It was the first time I've been to church since being here, and I absolutely loved it. The service and worship weren't anything spectacular, but it just felt so wonderful to be back in His presence. It was a fabulous, relaxing, fulfilling weekend.

Munich 09/24-09/25

 OKTOBERFEST!!!! This weekend was liters of fun. Mass beers (each 1 liter) and giant pretzels while cheering, singing and having a good ol' time in the tents starting at 9:30 in the morning... it was a fabulous weekend. The festival was a such a great German experience, and I'm so glad that I was able to attend such a huge and famous event. The tents were crowded with people all jammed into tables starting in the wee hours of the morning. And the whole time barmaids in dirndls (oh how I wish I had a dirndl) were carting liter after liter of beer to every table. The liveliness and camaraderie among the attendees was infectious in the best way. Spectators cheered on men and women who proudly stood on tables and chugged their mass beers from top to bottom. The theme song of the event seemed to be "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes... but only the melody sung to da da das every 15 minutes or so. And a traditional German band belted out songs throughout the afternoon, keeping the drinkers singing and clinking mugs while shouting "Prost!" When we finally left the tent, we explored the festival grounds, which were packed with rides and food booths and more beer tents. Later in the afternoon we explored Munich. I really loved the city. I saw the Glockenspiel when it went off at 5 p.m. and had a beer and pretzel at the Hofbrauhaus. It was truly a German experience. We capped off the evening with a Ferris wheel ride back at Oktoberfest. The view of the city and the festival was breathtaking. It was a fantastic and unforgettable weekend.

Triberg 09/17-09/18

This weekend was a breath of fresh air. We went to Triberg in the Black Forest and saw Germany’s tallest waterfalls. It was insanely beautiful and everything was so green. The waterfalls were sectioned off into different tiers, which created a beautiful effect. I loved being out in nature and hiking around. There were trees everywhere. It was a nice change of pace after spending several weekends traveling to cities. I was also excited to check out the cuckoo clocks. The stores were bursting with clocks of all shapes, designs and sizes. I was amazed at the intricacy of each of the clocks and the variety of designs. The city itself was pretty slow-paced and most of the stores were closed, but it was still a worthwhile area to check out because it was so gorgeous. 

Bad Durkheim 09/10-09/11

The weekend was much closer to home and full of festivity. The girls and I went to the Nachtshift club and enjoyed a night of dancing Friday. The club was fabulous, because there was a room with hip hop music and another with techno. I really enjoyed dancing in both rooms and being able to let loose.
The next day we headed to Bad Durkheim for the largest wine festival in the world. It was like a town carnival on steroids. Bratwurst, wine, beer and candy vendors overflowed in the area with a variety of delicious offerings. I had a delicious bratwurst and tried the best beer of my life! It was so smooth and tasty.
Sunday we checked out the festival in our German hometown. It was about a tenth of the size of the Bad Durkheim festival, but it was great in its own right. My favorite part of the festival were the chocolate covered strawberries on a skewer. They were hands down the best I've ever had. Chocolate in Germany is far superior to that in the States. It must be because of their higher quality dairy. Whatever it is, it's amazing, and I'm going to have to take so much chocolate home so I don't have withdrawals or have to settle for our slighted chocolate!

Brugge and Brussels 09/03-09/05

 

Three-day weekend! We definitely made the most of it. Saturday we went to Brugge, Belgium. It is a quaint little city that looks like it is right out of the Medieval times. Cobblestone streets twist in complicated maze-like paths with tall stone buildings erected all around, and canals run watery paths through the city. Sunday morning we were lucky enough to stumble upon a farmer's market in Brugge. Dozens of vendors handed out samples of cheese, so I was in heaven trying all the delicious dairy products surrounding countries came to offer. In the afternoon we moved on to Brussels, Belgium. It was a much bigger city and had the ironic juxtaposition of modern skyscrapers and old cathedrals. I enjoyed checking out the Grand Place, the Atomium and Manneken Pis--it was so tiny! And of course I tried waffles (with chocolate, strawberries and whipped cream, yum!), chocolate and Belgian beer. All of it was absolutely scrumptious. My favorite of the Belgian beers was a raspberry one.

Monday we had breakfast in our hostel (HI Hostel Jacques Brel, which was incredibly nice and highly recommend) and then headed to Luxembourg. Luxembourg was very beautiful and had a deep river canyon in the middle of the city. It was such a green and lush place that my eyes were overwhelmed. Our outing in Luxembourg was very rushed, and one of the girls almost got left behind, because she nearly missed the bus. However, I made a total jerk of myself by insisting that the bus driver pull over to pick her up from the other side of the street where she tried, but failed to get food (it wasn't ready in time). I literally stood in the front window of the bus and frantically waved her down so she would run to the bus. The bus driver was nice enough to pull over, so we all got home together. It was a moment of panic, but now we all just crack up about it. Overall I really enjoyed getting out and utilizing my three-day weekend to see such beautiful countries!

Neuschwanstein 08/27-08/28

Such a delightful weekend visiting Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Linderhof. Schloss Neuschwanstein is the magnificent castle that the Disneyland Castle is modeled after. It was insanely intricate inside and stuffed from wall to wall with ornate objects. Schloss Linderhof was a little less extravagant, but worthy of its title of castle none the less. It had a vast and gorgeous garden area, which was my favorite part of the places we visited that weekend. Unfortunately the beginning of our day started with a downpour of rain, but by the time we got to Linderhof, the sun graced us with its presence and warmed us with its rays. It turned out to be a very beautiful day.