Fuzzy Wuz

Today was a spectacular day! Especially since yesterday wasn’t that great. At the suggestion of my friend Christina, I took a day trip to Wurzburg, Germany. It was so much fun! The town is so pretty. The buildings all seem to be Romanesque or Gothic and it was really neat to walk from one shop to the next (which caused me to buy a pair of shoes—and I wonder why I can’t lift my bag) and then all of the sudden there was another huge gothic structure in front of you. The colors also seemed to jump out at you, although today was overcast without a hint of the sun, so I feel like all the pictures came out dark. Oh well. The main sight to see (at least for me) is the Fortress Marienberg, which is on top of a hill surrounded by what appears to be grape vines. The hike up to the top meanders through the vines and the best part was looking back at the city. What you don’t realize while you are walking around the historical structures is that none of the buildings surrounding them are as high. So, the coolest part of the climb was that you are basically eye-level with all the towers, spires and domes, they all just stick out above everything else. I got some great pictures! I absolutely loved it. For some reason it reminded me of Mary Poppins—when they are on the rooftop, I don’t know, thoughts? Another highlight of my day was that I got lost while trying to navigate the streets with my limited German vocabulary, and I happened across a Mexican restaurant—I stayed safe and ordered nachos (you can’t really screw those up) and a margarita, which actually wasn’t bad at all. So, hopefully that cured my Mexican cravings for awhile—at least until I can get close with Spanish food! Oh yeah, and I made some friends today, you can check them out in my pictures (I might be losing it, but maybe it’s “my gnome” for Europe). ;) And…cheers to the completion of my first month abroad, 12 cities in 6 countries and still looking forward to more!

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Hotels

So I feel they keep getting weirder (is that a word even?). We stayed at a farm one night in Ireland and you had to pull a switch “on” to get the water to come out of the shower, mine never had hot water and then stopped completely after about 5 minutes. I gave up and went downstairs to another room. Amsterdam didn’t have a shower curtain, everything was stone, so it dried…but what about all my stuff on the shelf that I didn’t want to get wet? The minibar was weighted—so if I picked anything up (or God forbid accidentally knock it over), I was charged. I cordoned off the area to ensure no accidents happened, my luck I’d take out a 6-pack and not even enjoy it. Then, there’s no top sheet, just the bottom sheet and then a comforter. This trend continued to Cologne. So basically, if anybody sweats, that’s what I’m sleeping with? They don’t wash the comforter after each guest, I wouldn’t think. The top sheet was always my safety net from germs. The other strange thing in my current abode, I guess I have an alarm, once I get into the room I have to put my key into another slot to get the buzzing to stop. I guess it’s a good safety feature, but it freaks me out every time, like I’ve just been caught red-handed. My favorite part though…they left fruit snacks on my pillow to welcome me…they are shaped like sheep and the package has pictures of sheep with numbers on them. How cute is that! O.K., maybe I need some sleep.

Amsterdam--Check

I guess I should have mentioned exactly what I have been doing in Amsterdam. I did explore Vondelpark, the Van Gogh museum, and all the old churches. I think my favorite sight may have been the flower market. It was so pretty, and I was amazed at some of the flowers, I had no idea some looked like onions before planted. So today I finished up my to-do list with a canal boat ride. Today was overcast, damp, and there was a chill in the air, so being enclosed in a boat for an hour was nice. It was fun, interesting, I got to see several bike parks, or storage areas for the bikes. I looked it up, in a city with approximately 738K people, there are about 600K bikes. That's insane is all I have to say. I fell in love with a falafel place on the corner, I've never had it before, but the lines were ridiculous so I figured I had to try it. I've now had it three times and will miss it once I move on. Who knew. Now the rest of my evening will be spent trying to pack and shove my belongings into my suitcase. I'm not adding anything, but somehow everything keeps getting heavier. Ugh

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Red Light Green Light Go

Another beautiful day in Amsterdam. It's a very interesting city. There is beautiful architecture and then not so, the canals are cool, but similar to Venice, dirty, the exterior of the historic buildings are filled with souvenir shops--I don't know, it's a little weird. I like it though. There are so many outdoor cafes and restaurants it's ridiculous. This is what all New Yorkers ache for once the weather changes. The best part about it is that the buildings aren't skyscrapers, so most places are in the sun until late afternoon. I'm thoroughly enjoying the sunshine! (yes I have on SPF mom--and it's reversing the signs of aging at the same time, thank you Oil of Olay!) So the cool part of my day today was my visit to the Anne Frank House. Very moving and extremely sad. I would like to say I can't imagine living in such a small, cramped space, but it was bigger than my studio, sooo. I'm probably going to hell for that statement. Oh well, add it to the list. (kidding, of course;) What was impossible to imagine was being trapped in these small rooms without the ability to step outside--ever, for fear of being captured by the Germans. The only time they saw the sun was through a small hole in the curtains, I can't imagine being so confined and how awful it must have been. After that I continued to walk around the city and then finally completed my tour today with a jaunt through the Red Light District. Hmmm, that was interesting. I felt like a lesbian, what else was a girl on her own doing walking down a street with hookers and such in the window? I was actually glad when the toasted rasta man asked me for a drink, I turned him down, ducked around a corner and got a drink on my own. I enjoyed a Heineken while people watching along one of the canals and patting myself on the back for my bravery. lol. Apparently my old age has turned me into a prude...I just don't need to see that, or the men practically stripping off their clothes before they get through the door. Anyways, I went and I saw and I can now mark the Red Light District off my list! Tour complete.

Pack Mentality

So today was my first day in Amsterdam. There are bicycles everywhere, like pollen in the spring; I cannot get over how many there are. A few bike tours, but mainly locals who use them as their daily mode of transportation. They are trendy, complete with basket or a knapsack on the back, a makeshift seat for friends, and most importantly a bell to alert me that I'm about to be run over. The confusing thing about Amsterdam (to me, at least) is that in order to cross the street, you can't walk to what appears to be the edge of the sidewalk, but rather 4-feet prior to the edge because there is a bike lane that bears a striking resemblance to the sidewalk. So, I quickly learned to mirror my fellow pedestrians and cross when they do. The tram, car, or bike can't fatally injure us all--and I always make sure to be on the inside so that I am merely knocked down and not run over. This strategy is very similar to Manhattan, which I often refer to as a daily game of frogger--except I feel that this is an advanced level that requires much more effort. Either way, I'm begining to get the hang of it, but my strengths at "dodgeball" has convinced me that a bike tour through Amsterdam is not in my cards. I fancy myself as an athletic person and I remember learning to ride my pink flowered banana seat bike on the paved sidewalk in front of my house in Chicago; and as they say, it's just like riding a bike, you just get back on, but me and bikes just don't seem to mesh anymore. Megan Walsh can vouch for me, as our bike tour in 2001 through Brugges and Munich seemed to turn me into a complete klutz--broken sunglasses, knocking over my fellow tour members (including my cousin) all because I forgot how to hold a bike steady (while stopped mind you), going down the wrong way of a two-way bike path and causing the local to veer into the grass (while using words I thankfully didn't understand), and the only one to be covered in a wall of water when the bus drove by. I feel my ability to no longer be seriously injured on a bike may have run its course (and lets face it, I'm not a spring chicken anymore ha-ha). I would prefer to avoid the label of the tourist that took out the pack of locals because I used the bell instead of the break. Looks like more museums tomorrow. Lastly, my punishment for being lame and going to see a movie in Amsterdam is that the theater had mice, one that was a chair over to my right. I fled to the back (I really wanted to see the movie) and managed to develop a nervous twitch in my leg that kept my chair shaking the entire time, in an effort to scare the mice away from me. It seemed to work, although I haven't checked my bag yet. Sweet dreams.

London Bridges

So Friday was a mad dash to Belfast where I had just enough time to ditch the military jeep I had been traveling in all week and board a coach bus for the 3 hour jaunt back to Dublin to catch a flight to London. The weather was colder than usual, but no rain, which was fantastic! Spent some time with my old roommate Suzanne (thank-you Suzi and Iain for your hospitality and the hangover on Saturday) and then was able to spend some time just outside of London in Harpendon, with my old co-worker Caroline (thank-you Caroline and David for your hospitality and the pub tour). All in all it was a great weekend and fun to catch up. Now I am in Amsterdam where I will be "stationed" until Friday. My plan right now is to head over to Cologne, Germany for the weekend, then drop down to Vienna, finishing out next week in Berlin and Hamburg. I depart Copenhagen April 12th and spend a week in Crete with my friend Cortney and her husband Ken. I'm really looking forward to getting some beach time in. Will update more from Amsterdam once I experience it! :) (that means museums and culture people, keep it clean)

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County Antrim

So today was the last day of my tour. I think it was my favorite day yet. Could be because it was sunny and beautiful in Ireland today. The weather was amazing, finally warmer, I didn’t freeze throughout the day and there wasn’t a drop of rain or hail to pelt my face. Lovely. We trekked through the remains of Dunluce Castle (claim to fame was that a storm once blew the kitchen into the sea), then on to Giant’s Causeway which is a really cool volcanic rock formation on the coast. As usual, the setting was gorgeous. After a lovely picnic lunch overlooking the Atlantic, we headed off to Carrick-A-Rede-Rope Bridge, which is 80 feet above sea level and you cross it in order to access the salmon fishery on the tiny island across the way (or cross it just for kicks, like us). Luckily I am not afraid of heights, otherwise climbing along the rocks on the Giant’s Causeway and balancing across the Carrick Rope Bridge would have been nauseating. It was a beautiful sight. The coastline of Northern Ireland is the most picturesque place I have ever been. It’s absolutely amazing. Because of the instability in Northern Ireland, tourists haven’t really seen or been exposed to the beauty of the North. Within the last 8-10 years though, the terrorist attacks have declined and the peace agreements are finally being enacted. We did a walking history tour through Derry the day before, which was a town that was almost completely destroyed with all the bombing, but as our guide said, they have turned a corner and looking forward to a peaceful future. It was such an interesting place to experience. So much sadness and destruction has taken place and it’s nice to see both sides working together. So, if you make it to Ireland, I highly recommend the Northern Coast in County Antrim, it’s like walking through a wall calendar. Everything corner you turn is breathtaking. So glad I got to see it.

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County Donegal

Today we woke up to bright, clear, and sunny skies. Of course it hailed and then snowed later, with the sun breaking through here and there. I am so looking forward to sitting on a beach and basking in the sun—sweating! Again, more amazingly beautiful coastline. It’s absolutely incredible how gorgeous everything is over here. The beaches are huge, the cliffs are amazing. We went to see Slieve League, which are the highest sea cliffs in Europe. Meg—they are 3-4 times higher than the Cliffs of Mohr, 1,962 feet high. I got the coolest shot of them (see the picture), it was right after a hail storm passed and there was a rainbow going across, which you can see. So pretty. After that we went to see Kilclooney Dolmen, which is a type of stone grave, ala Stone Henge. The one we saw was sort of triangular, three pillars, with a huge flat stone covering the tops of the pillars. It makes no sense how on earth people managed to lift huge stones on top of pillars thousands of years ago. None. So tomorrow we’re crossing the border into Northern Ireland. I’m traveling with a mother, and her two children. She’s very up on current politics in Ireland and is an avid supporter of Sin Feinn, which has added an interesting dynamic, as people aren’t as vocal here about their support or non-support of the IRA. Needless to say, I’m hoping in town settings we all keep quiet and only stick out as lovely Americans.

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County Sligo

I rsvp’ed myself for a 5-day tour through Northwestern and Northern Ireland. There were too many things I wanted to see and I wasn’t comfortable driving in the passenger seat, so I opted for a guided tour instead. My tour guide, Dave, is great. He is extremely knowledgeable on Irish culture, history, and lore. Highly entertaining. We started touring County Sligo and the countryside is gorgeous. Very scenic. We hiked up a mountain to see a 5-1/2 thousand year-old tomb, which we were able to crawl inside and then stand in to investigate. It was small on the inside, but there were three small rooms that had been built to house the graves (bones and ashes), very cool. The wind was insane on Monday as seen in the picture by the direction of my hair. It was so strong you could lean forward and not fall on your face. We hiked up a second mountain to see Queen Maeve’s tomb (Celtic warrior queen), and I thought I might die. The wind picked up just before we got to the top and it was difficult to walk, as the wind kept wanting to blow us back down the mountain. To add to the difficulty level, it’s been snowy, sleeting, and hailing off and on for a couple days, so the ground was damp and muddy, making conditions quite slippery. Lore has it that when you climb up to Queen Maeve’s Tomb, you are supposed to bring a rock from the climb and place it on top of her tomb, if you don’t, it’s bad luck or something. So, I climbed to the very top, and try as I might to place my rock in the rock pile, but I couldn’t it. The minute I got to the top, the wind gusts picked up, you had to crouch close to the ground to prevent yourself from being knocked over. On top of that, it had started to hail, and with the wind, it felt as though somebody was stabbing myface over and over again. And did I mention how cold it was, the wind chill (which was trying to knock me over), had to definitely be below freezing. After two attempts to get my rock on the pile, I just threw it in the direction of the pile and hoped it wouldn’t get flung back via the wind and knock me out. I couldn’t feel my fingers or toes until we got to the hotel (about an hour later) and I swear the heat in my room was cranked up to 90 all night just so I could get rid of the chill. Ugh. Beautiful and worth it (because I didn’t die), but I would highly suggest visiting later in the season.

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St. Patty’s Day-Dublin Style

Celebrating the day of drinking in Dublin was only slightly different than in New York. I think I may have enjoyed Ireland better. Here’s why—I think NYC may have a better parade than Dublin, only because we have so many visitors from Ireland that walk in the parade with their family or town coat of arms, which I think is cool. The most enjoyable part about Dublin was that the teenagers (or insert almost everyone) weren’t sloshed by noon. According to the locals I spoke to at the pub (who were also kind enough to school me in the rules of rugby), it gets real ugly later in the evening, but as I explained to them, NYC is ugly by the early afternoon. I was able to enjoy the parade and the people around me, without having to deal with a bunch of drunken idiots. As some might say, St. Patrick’s Day is amateur night. So, I had a couple pints of Guinness and called it an early night, very glad I made it over to surround myself with the Irish, on Ireland’s day of fame. I finished up my weekend in Dublin running around Trinity College and dodging sporadic hail and snow storms, apparently an artic storm decided to roll in just in time for my visit. Yeah.

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Wind and Wings

So I arrived in Ireland today, just in time to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with the locals. Getting here was quite a journey. Flew out of Paris, but it was the airport near Disney, so it took a train, an automobile, and then finally a plane to get to Dublin. Now, to say it was windy in Dublin today, is like saying it's sometimes humid in August in Houston. Needless to say, today was the first time I didn't silently make fun of people for clapping when we landed safely. You know how people tell stories about an airplane experience and they say "I thought the wing was going to come off," just to add effect. Well, today we almost lost the right wing of the plane, and I mean that 100% wholeheartedly, no effect needed. We hit some major turbulence just before landing, and right as the wheels hit the ground, the plane decided to pop a wheelie, yes, pop a wheelie, and everyone was thrown to their right. Passengers on the right side of the plane (like myself) had no choice but to look out the window (as I was just tossed in that direction) and I was waiting to see sparks and then fishtail out on the runway. It was surreal and thankfully so shocking that I didn't have enough time to fear for my life long enough to give myself a heart attack. And shockingly, I still have not had a drink today (saving up for tomorrow). So, here's to hoping it's a calm day upon my departure to London. Happy early St. Patrick's Day--here's to the luck of the Irish, Cheers!

Normandy

Where to begin, Wow. What a trip. The drive took forever, 400 miles roundtrip and both times we were helping keep our driver awake, I dozed off twice at least. We started out walking around the main American offensive on Omaha Beach. Omaha Beach as it turns out is a long stretch of beach, which we would see from three different spots. The picture included shows an overview of the main offensive, which is where the Germans were hunkered down in their bunkers. One of the reasons this battle was successful was because of the air support they received. If you look at the picture, you are not looking at rolling hills, but rather holes in the earth created by the bombs that were dropped. It was incredible to see up close. We visited the American Cemetery and it was amazing. Over 9 thousand graves, all aligned so whichever direction you look, they are in a straight line. It was so peaceful and tranquil. Such a beautiful place, the Americans have done an incredible job keeping everything well manicured. We went to another part of the beach to see the remains of some of the mulberry’s that were used, which are still washed up on the shore. Low-tide can cause the water to recede more than 45 meters. The beaches were huge. Sadly, that is why so many soldiers were lost in the first wave, as they landed in low-tide and several drowned once the tide rolled in (they were carrying approximately 90 lbs of gear each). It was a fascinating day. I have more pictures, which are hopefully accessible via a link, but I’m not sure how that works either. So much that I learned but I’m exhausted and have to pack and get on an early train for the airport tomorrow morning. Hopefully I’ll remember enough to write it all in my journal tomorrow.

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Tourism

So the part I like best about Paris is all the outdoor space. There are parks everywhere with plenty of places to sit, chairs that nobody steals, benches that people are willing to share (even if you have to get cozy), and lots of grass to lounge on. Since I’ve been here a couple times before and don’t need to actually “see” anything, I’ve been walking around the city soaking up the neighborhoods, and enjoying the sun while reading outside. I have at least walked by the major sites (except the Eiffel Tower, that was from a distance because my feet hurt and I couldn’t go any further), and the one good thing about being on my own is I get to watch everybody else a little more closely. I’ve learned the best place to people watch is at the major city sites watching people pose for pictures. Today in front of Notre Dame was fabulous. People from all over, striking a pose alone, with a group, cuddling next to a sweetheart and throwing his scarf over her shoulder, you name it, I got to see it. I need to remember to do this in NYC; it’s just an interesting experiment, what people do when they think nobody else is looking. Besides that, I made friends with a 5-year old girl. She sat next to me for about an hour and kept singing to me and randomly putting her face in front of mine and smiling and shaking her head. By the end she was talking to me, but I had no clue what she was saying—she spoke French. It’s funny, you expect not to be able to understand adults, but not being able to communicate with children kind of threw me. No clue why, but it was a shock, she was so cute and very entertaining, I would have loved to have known what she was saying. So I’ve included a picture of me in front of Notre Dame, so I can confirm that in fact, I did go through with this. The other two photos are of my current shoebox in Paris. Small, but not bad, my only complaint is the terrible lighting in my room; however, the lighting is excellent in the bathroom, which highlights the fact that I haven’t touched my eyebrows in two weeks and I have a year or two left before I have to dye my gray hair. Lovely!

Attack of the Pigeons

I never thought a place could have more pigeons (aka flying rats) than NYC; but, Paris reigns number one in my book. There are birds everywhere, trying to attack me I feel like, I had a sparrow buzz my head the other day and I swear the wings grazed my ear! A pigeon pooped on my hand this morning, I didn’t know what it was at first and tried to shake it off until I realized what had fallen out of the tree (not a bug). Of course today was the day I forgot to put my antiseptic wipes in my bag, thank goodness for the metal pole that was next to me and the abundance of antibacterial gel I was carrying (how would I have eaten my éclair?). I guess I should be thankful it wasn’t my head. Note to self: remember to always carry a hat from now on. Five years in NYC and never an incident, 4 days in Paris and ick! I hate those things.

Serenade

So today was another lazy day...unemployment seems to suite me well so far. Walked around and had lunch in a brasserie, ham and cheese this time, no conversations with my food. The weather has been amazing, I can't complain. Hiked up to Sacre Coeur in the afternoon and just sat out on the steps reading, enjoying the view and then watching the sunset. There was a red-headed woman, probably in her 40's, who kept belting out into song all throughout the afternoon, so she provided much entertainment. She managed to get a small group of elementary school kids to join her in song, which brought laughter to the crowd around us. Then, she decided to sing to a larger group of high school students from Barcelona, who clapped and encouraged her to sing more...which led to her dancing down the steps and such. I guess you had to see it, luckily, the singing wasn't bad, otherwise it would have ruined it. So my hopes to tour the champagne region have been dashed, apparently the tour is only available on Tuesday's until April and I didn't book enough in advance. So, hoping to head off to the Loire Valley tomorrow and then Normandy on Thursday. I haven't figured out how to post pictures on this thing yet, hopefully I can figure it out eventually. And yes Drew, heard about the food for the week and I am jealous, mainly because I'm craving enchiladas, not Q...so thanks for rubbing it in you big meanie! No wine for you!! ;)

Bonjourno

Arrived in Paris this morning and left the entourage at the airport to seek some peace and quiet on my own. So far so good. I was a complete waste of space today, made it to my hotel, finding the place without any help from the locals (although I did ask and the man with the dog ignored me, welcome to Paris). So, I checked in and took a nap...I figured after the lack of sleep for a week I needed it. Not to mention I was up at 5 a.m. this morning and a tinge hungover, and the nausea was only accentuated by the massive amount of turbulence I experienced going over the mountains out of Pisa. It was pretty much 2 hours of hitting airpockets and losing my stomach. Nice way to start the day. So, the nap in my shoebox was enjoyable (and I do mean shoebox, I've tripped over my bags twice already, I feel so at home), but the room is just what I need for a home base for the next couple days. I ventured out this evening to get some fresh air and food. Managed to bypass the comfort zone of McDonalds and ate outside at a cafe. Steak and fries...I'll have to remember to order things medium here, as medium rare means I can enjoy a conversation with the cow on my plate. Yum. Plan on touring the city tomorrow, then venturing off to Normandy and most likely the champagne region, as my liver might be going through withdrawal by then (ha-ha). I'll try to post pictures later this week, the views in Italy were spectacular, it was such a beautiful place. I can't spell good-bye in French--so, Ciao.

Boobs Saved A Life

What we have concluded in Tuscany is that saline is very useful and can be a life-saving device. For instance, when falling face first, they can be used as a buoy device and prevent your chin/face from hitting the floor. While the boobs will not save the wine glass you're carrying, the face is most important; as if you look good, the bartender will allow you to order another. Unfortunately, the boobs are not meant to save elbows.

This is our lesson for the week.

Ciao Bella

Made it to Italy, safe and sound. Have been touring around Tuscany, and by tour I mean everytime I'm in the car on the way home, we get lost. It could be a 5 mile drive down the hill and somehow we end up in a roundabout and are spit out in the wrong direction. To make it more entertaining, there are no street lights, the roads are windy, and somebody always has to pee--so the simple task of getting home has turned into quite an adventure! Plenty of laughs, thankfully. I've yet to hit the big citys, choosing instead to enjoy the wine region to it's fullest, and so far it's delicious. I'm really enjoying this unemployment thing. :)