Oh the humor of the everyday...

...as I write this before I head to my first class, IN AMERICA!

So london, right?

It's like the youngest child in a family, who all her brothers and sisters get help with moving into college, because lets face it, they are loved the best. Then that last child comes along and her parents kick her to the curb and say "No! We won't help you move your heavy belongings! Get out of our house, we are replacing you with a dog!!!" (COMPLETELY KIDDING)

London is like that. All your effort goes into the first five cities of your journey, so by the time you reach London, you are about ready to drop kick the next tourist you see, and all you want to do is get a pedicure.

But alas, I was in London, so the Queen in me was adamant that I must get out and see my kingdom! The first day I immediately went to St. Pauls Cathedral. I think we all know why....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VwU_oS2ErQ

Then I crossed the Millennium bridge. The one the death eaters DESTROY! Don't worry. They didn't show up.

The Tate Modern was on the other side of the river. I got to see a Matisse painting; I got to see two Jackson Pollacks; and I got to see a painting by Monet.

Sometimes I think modern artists are a little full of it. One of the works was a mirror hanging in the Portrait Gallery. The idea of the mirror...oh I mean, art, was that we are there to see paintings, and we are looking at windows into other people's lives, so what happens when we look into a window of our OWN life? hmmmmm

So then I set down the side of the river looking for my subway station to take me to the Big Ben area. I must have passed it, because I just kept walking, and all of the sudden there it is! I saw Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. I walked up and saw St. James Park, and the area where they train the horses of the Queen's brigade (or something). I wrote the name down, but I left it in Asheville, along with anything else useful, ever.

I saw Piccadilly Circus after that, and went into lots of little shops, but by that point I was completely worn out, so i decided to go see Harry Potter. The theater is worth a paragraph in and of itself.

So I bought my ticket on a self-service machine, and it asks me to pick my seat. Hmmmm, ok. First I have to pick between the stage or the circle. I went ahead and picked the circle for fun. Then just picked random letters because there was no diagram! When I walk into the theater, there is an usher who is preapred to tell me where to go. This theater. is. massive. And I by chance, picked the second to last row in the entire theater! I ended up moving up a few rows once the movie started, but it was funny of all the seats I could have picked, I picked THAT one.

The next day was museum day. I started out at the British museum. I saw a piece of the Rosetta Stone, and an Easter Island head, along with lots of other interesting things. I went to the National Portrait Gallery which was surprisingly cool. I went because it was on the list of top museums, and it was right beside the National Gallery. I wasn't expecting a whole lot, but it ended up being really cool. Then I headed to the National Gallery, and basically saw the rest of the pieces from the Ren. Art class along with some other pieces.


Next I headed to the Natural History Museum and the science museum. Not culturally significant to London, but I never say no to a fun science museum. After that I shopped a little bit, and ventured around oxford circus.

My last day in the central part of London consisted of getting up early and realizing nothing was open yet because it was a sunday. So I ended up doing a little bit of wandering. I wandered around covent garden, and eventually wandered over to Buckingham palace. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH the palace...it was MAHHHH-velous. On my way back up the mall after seeing my palace I hear the clippity cloppy of little horses behind me and I turn around, and there are all these guards on horseback, and behind them I see this marching band, not playing, but just walking with their instruments. Then in perfect silence, they march into a gated area. Never to be seen of again.

After the mysterious soldiers and marching band, I walked back to Covent Garden once things had opened, and walked through some lovely shops.

After this part of my day, I was already exhausted, so I decided to walk back to my hostel and head on to my hotel at the airport, like the cool kid that I am. Getting all of my bags to the airport, through the metro, and through some above ground trains, was quite a feat, but I got there. Once I got there and the hotel was lovely, and it was airconditioned, and I even had a bathtub, I knew that my adventure was officially over. But I did go to bed at 8 that night, so that might have been as good an indication as any that my adventure was REALLY over.

I had a grand time! And outside of all the marvelous things that I did and saw, I just feel extremely gratified and proud of myself that I did it! The whole "traveling by myself" idea was questioned at many junctures in my adventure, but mainly because you realize you miss having someone to talk to. But all in all, I loved it! I feel more independent, and because of my wonderful parents and their child rearing, I know what situations to enjoy whole heartedly, and what situations from which to "hooligan dash."

I loved my trip and I can't wait for another one, but until then I have not a little adventure called my senior year of college.

What's gelato you ask?

Upon arriving home I have gotten some questions regarding gelato. What is it? How is it different from ice cream? Etc? And seeing as I have no good answer except..."umm...urhh...it's way better?"

Wikipedia saves the day!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelato

Did you all know that Paris has the same letter as Pairs?

hahaha...Best title to my travel blog written from my house, ever!

After Strasbourg I went to Paris! I had a two day metro pass, so I rode the metro to my hotel to check-in, running over many a french toe with my suitcase along the way. It had been a long day, so I had every intention of taking a shower before I took over Paris. When I got to my hotel, my room wasn't ready, so...bummer.

Once I was showered and rested or as they saw in Paris...le rested, I headed out. I was originally going to go to the champs elysees first and sing this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAMuNfs89yE

At the top of my lungs.

BUT on the metro I saw the stop for the Notre Dame, and just got too excited so I hopped right off. I got there right as the bells were ringing. I then sang this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwnh-sxaBwk

(not at the top of my lungs)

After that, I walked over to the champs Elysees and saw many fun things along the way. I saw Saint Chapelle, Place de la Concorde, Arc du Triomphe...

I also treated myself to a nutella and banana crepe.

The fashionista in me giddily walked down Avenue Montaigne where all the really huge names are. I even saw the headquarters of one of my favorite couture designers. I took pictures, but then scurried away when the stores guards glared at me.

Then, in the distance I saw it. I saw the eiffel tower! It was just so surreal. I don't think it hit me that I was in PARIS till I saw it. But I walked around the tower and ate dinner waiting for the light show.

It was then that I headed back to the hotel, but not before my metro pass stopped working. So I wondered if it was just a bad station (I know, its illogical). So I walked to the next station (2 minute walk), and I said "God, if you could help me get to my hotel." And I walked down the steps, and this station was having a computer problem, so all of the gates were open just to walk through. Thank you God.

The next day, I head to the louvre first off. Now, you may say that it is dumb that I just spent a month studying Renaissance art in the Birthplace of the Renaissance, why oh why would I head to the Renaissance paintings first? But it was just the perfect extension to my studies, because there were so many pieces that we studied, that I couldn't see because they were in Paris (or London, Ill get to that later). I did get to see the Mona Lisa, but there were other pieces that I was audibly giddy about seeing. I may have gotten some funny stares but I got to round off the pieces I have seen by Ghirlandaio (the man on whom i focused for my final paper in art class) who had five or six pieces at the louvre.

After the louvre I got together a picnic and enjoyed a lovely afternoon in the Tuileries. Annnnd I sang this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlMuwdmBhTk

(Screaming at the top of my lungs...ok maybe not)

After my picnic, and singing time, I headed to the luxemborg gardens. On the way I saw lots of important things, one of the minor things being the headquarters for my glasses designer. I went in to maybe snag for serial numbers, or just to see how different their selection is in Europe. I found some frames that I really liked, and when I asked the woman if I could write the item number down to order them in America, she replied to me "Oh, these are our designs, you cannot get our designs in America."

umm...I think you can because they are resting ON MY FACE!

Anyway, I got the number and was on my way. But the gardens were Bee-a-yooo-tiful. Idiot that I am, left my camera in the hotel room. There was even a Medici fountain. The Medici family was the most powerful family in Florence Italy, and is the reason for a good portion of the Renaissance art. It was like one last little goodbye for Florence.

Afterwards I decided to walk back to the hotel, which ended up being a half hour walk. But it was a nice way to wind up the day, and subsequently, Paris. I got dinner in my hotel's neighborhood which was really cool. The hotel was surrounded by boulangeries (pastry shops), so every morning it was a task to figure out which place was making the street smell the best.

Paris was wonderful, but it was time to move on.

Strasbourg...oui (sp?)

So…I love Strasbourg. It is that perfect balance between smaller city charm (everyone rides bikes, and you can walk almost everywhere if you are ambitious- but you don’t have to because there is a really cool public transportation system- think subways above ground) but it still has the business of a bigger city. It reminds me a lot of Florence in the sense that is it small enough to walk everywhere, but you still find little pieces of history around every corner. ANYWHO!

As far as touristy things that I did….I paid a visit to some stunning cathedrals. I find it fascinating to compare these churches to the ones in Florence, because coming here I realized, “yeah, they may have their differences, but at the root of it, they are pretty much all the same…big pretty and intricate.” After my renaissance art class it is really cool to see the different fresco styles, the different architecture, and the different style of altar pieces. There really is a huge difference. At the second church I visited today they had a huge astronomical clock. I haven’t had a chance to put up my pictures yet, but it was a sight to behold! It was really cool! Unfortunately I wasn’t around to hear the chime go off signaling an hour, but the church was really stunning.

Afterwards I walked to le petite France. It. Was. Beautiful. I’m throwing that phrase around so much that it’s starting to lose meaning, but genuinely I just keep going from one beautiful city to another.
Afterwards I grabbed dinner (I am STILL trying to talk to people in Italian. This woman from whom I was ordering is speaking to me in French, and without thinking I am talking to her in muddled Italian and English…I don’t think she appreciates the “grazie” I accidentally sent her at the very end) and ate it on a bench beside the river. The sun was shining just so, and the weeping willow was blowing gracefully around me. Yeah, I may not have seen some alps because of some rain, but this was one of the most picturesque moments I have had on the entire trip.

Tomorrow I am going to Paris. I am nervous and excited all at the same time! I am nervous because a couple people, and by a couple I mean 25 people, told me to watch Taken so now any time a guy walks within 3 feet of me I have flashes of Liam Nieson (sp?) beating people up, and think about how fast I could get to my pepper spray. But its PARIS! How could I not be excited about PARIS! …Right?

Milan...then ciao Italy! Guten Tag Lucerne!

Sorry these are coming a few days late…inconsistent sources of internet, so I am writing these when they happen, but posting them when I can.

I didn’t realize when I was scheduling my little jaunt what I was really getting myself into. I’ll be ALONE for 9 ½ days!!! Not a single friendly face!! It’s not that I feel unsafe, its just that you realize the value of someone to talk to who you don’t have to do the different language sign language game. Pointing frantically at your ticket then pointing at the train means “is this the correct ticket that will take me my destination?” That’s just the first round. The lightning round consists of sound effects. “pfft” with your hands expanding, coming from the French girl in my hostel means “hello fellow young lady, seeing as you are typing in the dark, but I am about to leave the room, would you like me to turn on the light to ease the strain on your eyes.” THAT is how the game is played folks.

But anyway, I also didn’t know what I was getting myself into when I scheduled my first day in Milan, on August 1, 2009. During my month in Florence, I learned that Italians tend to go on vacation for the entire month of august. Therefore, everything I had PLANNED on, was closed. However, there were some awfully fortuitous moments in Milan! I was on my way to a designer outlet, but got turned around. Not only did I find Milan’s monument to the fashion industry (a giant threaded needle, with the knot of the needle coming out of the ground about 20 feet away, it looked like it was stitching the sidewalk), but I also found myself a CASTLE! They had changed it into a big park with a couple museums added as well. I also found an exhibit that displayed two pages of leonardo da vinci's sketches. I saw some cool things!

After that I was peacefully sitting in the shade to cool down, and a man comes up to me selling what I can only describe as those friendship bracelets you make at camp. He kind of ruined the moment.

After that I rode the subway back to Brera (the neighborhood I liked so much the first time around), and walked around, found a cool, CLOSED store. Next time I guess. Then I had my last Italian pizza. One of the restaurants that was still open, had the pizza that was made just for ME. It was thin crust, no cheese, olives, and anchovies. I got two pieces of that and some foccacia just to munch on. All the gelato places were closed, so I ended up waltzing my way back to the hotel.

The next morning I left for Lucerne. Milan had no direct trains to Lucerne, so I had to go from Milan to arth-goldau to Lucerne. It was a long travel day.

Once in Lucerne, I was just in awe. It was one of the prettiest cities I have ever seen. It also felt like the coldest city in existence. I even loged for that baking feeling I got as I was crossing in front of the santa croce. It was very rainy and windy, and I even got to wear the sweatshirt I have been dragging around this entire trip.

In Lucerne: day 1, I saw the Old Chapel Bridge, the water spiking, the lion monument, and a picnic by the lake. The lion Monument remembers the swiss soldiers that were defending Louis the XVI during the French revolution, but he had already left the building, they just weren’t informed yet. The monument is dedicated to the loyalty and bravery of the swiss.

Before you get any ideas, water spiking is when giant spikes are lowered into the water to raise the level, which in turns get it to flow faster (no flooding). Unfortunately, I missed out because they are trying to get it to flow as fast as possible at the moment, so the spikes are lowered into the water indefinitely.

Lucerne day 2: I had such grand plans for my second day of Lucerne. But what do they about people planning stuff and God crying cause he is laughing so hard? I don’t remember. But I do remember that I was going to climb to the top of a mountain (with the help of the worlds steepest cogwheel train), I was going to walk the Musseg wall, instead of just look at it. But When I woke up this morning, it was sprinkling. Still, no big downer. Then as I am buying my lunch, it starts to pour.

The funniest part about the whole thing is I looked at my umbrella this morning and said “nah.” Dumb. Dumb and stupid.

So I end up trying to find attractions that don’t involve me being outside, but ALAS, I only find a handful. I saw the inside of some really cool churches. I walked the Old Chapel Bridge about 5 times. But other than that, I just got soaked. Then I started hopping from store to store hoping and praying that the rain would let up so I could at least SEE the alps in the distance, to no avail. I finally grabbed dinner and headed back to my hostel with my tail between my soaked to the bone legs. Dang. Or as the royalty in me will say in a few days “snippety snoppet!”

I struggled with the german. No matter how many times I accidentally said things to them in Italian, for SOME reason it did not ease the language barrier! Go figure! And for some ungodly reason, this was the only german running through my head AT ALL....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72_icHFx7ys&feature=related

I leave for Strasbourg tomorrow. I swear, if it rains, the clouds and I are having words.

Swiss Miss

Im in switzerland and Im alive! leaving Italy was hard, but it is gorgeous here! Im inLucerne....google it, then come here, youll thank me. Much like I need to thank graandmamma!!!! She suggested lucerne, and it is just breathtaking.

Internet it running low, so must run!!!

Love all of you...Hoo