the lasts.

I feel like it's time to write again. I'm sorry I never wrote the rest of any happenings from Europe... writing began to feel like a chore, and that's about the time I feel like it's no fun anymore. Which is why I don't think I can ever be a journalist. Though I'm going into Public Relations... figure that out.

Anyways, after my last entry I wrote, a group including Bethany and Laura went to Italy- Cinque Terre and Venice, while Meredith and I and a couple of other girls stayed in Vienna for the weekend. We had a huge paper due the coming week, plus I was getting really tired of traveling. However it was a productive weekend... I got a pea coat and we visited the Christkindlmarkt (Christmas Market) at the Rathaus, which quickly became one of my very most favorite things from Vienna (in fact I really only ever want to go back at Christmas time).

The next weekend, Bethany and I headed off on our own to Mannheim, Germany to go see Phoenix perform. We made it there safely and everything went really well while we were there. Mannheim was actually very friendly and very beautiful. This is also where I got my first taste of champagne. Ha. The concert was AMAZING. We were about the first two in line so we got right up to the stage. This proved hazardous later when we realized that we had to move with the crowd to save our lives.

I never want to go to a concert where i have to stand again. I felt very violated... The bands were great, we got cute t-shirts, and we left unscathed... physically, maybe not mentally.

The next morning we got up super early to catch a train to Bruges to meet the rest of our group. It took us a long time but we made it there. Bruges is a terribly confusing place but GORGEOUS. Maybe the coolest laid out city we went to. We met up with our group (after some mass confusion and frustration) and went to the Christmas market that was in their square. After that we went to the Chocolate Museum which was pretty boring but yummy. :) We headed back to the train station to catch a train to Brussels, from Brussels to Frankfurt, and then a night train to Vienna. My last night train and I slept the best. Maybe I was just completely exhausted.

The next weekend we went as a huge group to Zell Am See, Austria. Most of the group was going to go ski but with my bad knees I didn't even want to try. We spent that weekend studying for finals, walking to the downtown of the city (past a terribly gorgeous lake) with baby Stella, and eating. So much eating!! But it was all really yummy.

The next few days we spent about the town and doing our favorite things around the city. I was sad about leaving but was super ready to head back. In fact it didn't really hit me until we left Venezia for the last time that we were really leaving.

But we headed out. It was a super long journey but luckily I had the 10 hour plane ride seat to myself. As excited as I was to get home though, I was super nervous to get off the plane. I didn't know what home held for me.

And it sucked. I'm not going to sugar coat it. By the second day home I wanted to go back to Austria. I saw my parents and loved on them but Europe was just so much better. No pesky boys to deal with.

The past few weeks have been some of the hardest to go through. I lost the love of my life. And he doesn't seem to care how I feel about any of it, more interested in the one who moved in in my absence. My parents are super stressed out by family issues and I just feel helpless. I was stranded at home with no friends for a week and was super relieved when my friends started trickling back home. Never under estimate the power of friendship and a good hug. They were the firsts to make me feel like myself again, and with the help from them and the wonderful power of prayer, I have begun to start feeling ok about all of this. I'm a catch and worth so much. I really think this is for the better, however bad I feel about losing a friend.

I hope in the future we're able to become friends again. It might take me being a better person and loads of forgiveness, but I think it can happen one day.

I thank the Lord for my super wonderful family and the best friends a girl could ever ask for.

now is not the time to think about life.

I really have no idea what I want to do with my life. I've gone from wanting to be a News Anchor, a History teacher, Graphic Designer, someone who works in Marketing (what are they even called?), and now I'm onto Public Relations. I thought this would be really awesome because I love to talk. I also love being able to persuade people.

So today as I was trying to write my paper, I got distracted by looking up possible internships with Disney. They even have a PR Co-Op for this next summer (which I won't do since I won't have ANY PR classes til this next semester), but I have hope for 2011. However my hopes were dashed when I learned someone else was equally as excited about that chance, someone who is and will probably always be better than me at this. So of course I let that person get in front of me in my mind.

This has happened with my dream of being a photographer, a Broadway singer, and a writer. There is always someone better than me, so I shouldn't even try. I shouldn't even try for that internship because there is going to be someone better versed, more colloquial, and more attractive than I am, and he or she WILL get what I'm aiming for.

I let this battle in my head start and end without any effort on my part. I will never be good enough for the positions I want in life, so I should just resign to what comes easily.

I stopped my brain today and realized that I HAVE to figure out what I'm willing to fight for. Otherwise I will be stuck working at McDonald's for the rest of my life. So is that photography? Singing? Public Relationing? I have no idea. I wish someone could tell me what I'm best at and let me figure out a way to shine at it.

Bratislava, Budapest, & Salzburg

Well I'm unsure why I write these, I think they are mainly for my parent's enjoyment, and I guess they deserve to know what their money has gone towards. Haha. But here is the latest installment of my journeys in Europe.

Last weekend we were all still pretty exhausted from our misadventures over fall break on top of working non stop on 12 pages worth of papers, (I could probably draw you my hotel room dirty clothes and all with my eyes closed.) so we decided to take it easy and just do day trips.

Thursday we went to Bratislava, Slovakia since Dr. McVey told us he was going to take us when he was here (never did). We left around 2ish to walk over to Sudbahnhof to catch a train. We got to the station at 2:20 and the train left at 2:30. So we booked it to the platform, and made it on just in time for it to roll away. When we made it to Slovakia it was about 3:40 and since the time change happened, it's been getting dark here very early.

We walked around a little bit looking for a tourism office in the train station to no avail. So we just set out on foot looking for something promising to do. We saw a steeple and headed towards it since we knew there was some church that was supposed to be cool there. But when we got inside we found it pretty grungy and a ladies service going on. Though we never figured out where the lady speaking was...

We decided that we should ask for directions to the city center or for a tourism office and luckily no one spoke any English. Seriously, if you are going to have english as your second language on ALL your signs, please be able to speak it, I have never learned a lick of Czech.

So we wandered aimlessly, unsure why anyone would ever want to come to this place, and just decided to head back to the train station since it was getting dark and sketchier by the minute. So alas our journey to Bratislava was a fail. But I got my patch (though it's a shameful patch) and that's all that matters.

We came home on a 5:45 train and then made our way to VaPiano's to eat dinner, since everyone in our group was cursing us because we hadn't been yet. VaPiano's is a cafeteria like restaurant where the people cook in front of you and ask you specifically what you want in your dish. You can choose from a myriad of pastas, pizzas, salads, or desserts. I got the shrimp and spinach campanelle pasta. It was alright, but the smell was better. I want to go back when I'm not feeling especially sick though.

The next morning we decided to go to Budapest. The UBahn was running slow and stopping a lot and we were really afraid we weren't going to make our train. So at 9:47 we're sprinting from the UBahn to the train platform for the train to leave at 9:50. Luckily though, it's been delayed and we don't actually leave until 10:10. Good heavens.

We made it to Budapest alright, left the train station after figuring out the Hop On Hop Off bus thing, and headed to the bank. We each extracted 10,000 florints. My goodness what a crazy amount! However, that only equaled to about $50. We went to find the bus stop and decided to eat somewhere before the bus came. We stopped at this place called Sloppy Joes (sounds American right?), and I got a chicken caesar salad (chicken was the only good part) and the others got burgers and sandwiches. Apparently the burgers were absolutely disgusting, requiring us to go to Burger King afterwards to get fries. We made it back in time to get on the bus and thus our tour began.

It was pretty rainy out, so none of us got good pictures from the bus windows, but the city was beautiful. Definitely didn't know that Hungary was so shaken by WWII. There are still several buildings will bullet holes everywhere. :/ Oh and did you know that Budapest is actually two different cities? Buda is on one side of the river and Pest is on the other. I think I definitely liked the Buda side better. However, we weren't able to make it off of the bus in time to explore anything since they pulled away so quickly, but it might be something I would want to go back to in the summer sometime.

Our main focus after this was to find food and a patch. So we got off at this one stop that looked really great, like there would be some souvenir stores around, but alas, another sketchy dark place, because even though it was 4:30 it was pitch black. So we walked towards the train station hoping to stumble across something but never did. We went to Burger King for dinner combining the money we had left over (check my facebook for the money picture, that's what was left) and ate. But we still had a bunch left so we finally found a souvenir store in the train station which wasn't even in like the main strip of stores, it was in this secluded side section. We got our patches and postcards but still had money left over. We found a food store and bought so much stuff, and still had about $5 for each of us. I guess that's going in my scrapbook.

We made it back safely and were quite thankful for our beds.

Saturday morning we got up and headed to Salzburg. When we got there we headed towards our hotel which was called the Vier Jahreseizten or the Four Seasons. :) It definitely had some charm or could have had some charm... I mean Pavarotti stayed there it must have been good at some point! We got to the room which was actually two combined with a separate toilet and bath area. The bed Bethany and I shared was this huge king sized one which was fabulous but the one Meredith and Laura shared was rock hard. And I still apologize for that. :/

We went to find lunch before the Sound of Music tour and found this really really cute foresty place. We all got schnitzel or schnizzle as we're called it now but unfortunately actually getting the food took a good 40 minutes. We were supposed to be back at the hotel at 1:40 for them to pick us up and it was already 1:30. So as soon as we got the food we scarfed it down and ran back down the street. I'm sure we looked completely ridiculous and like we dined and dashed but we paid I promise! I was pretty sad about running out on that meal though, it was the best schnizzle I'd had so far in Austria.

We got to the van and the lady took us to the bus which was just around the corner... we totally could've walked there. :/ Oh well. Our tour guide lady was named Trudy and she was a crazy Brit. But she definitely loved the Sound of Music, so over all she was pretty good. We drove around to a lot of locations, the Mirabelle Gardens, the Nonnburg Abbey, the Mozart Bridge, to Mondsee to see the church where the wedding was filmed (also the scene where the kids are hanging in the trees), Lake Wolfgang (which wasn't in the movie but was proof that God exists), Hellbrunn Palace where the exteriors of the house were shot, and to Leopoldskron Palace which was where all the backyard scenes were shot.

It was absolutely amazing. I can't get over how beautiful Salzburg is. Quite possibly on my top 3 list of favorite cities. Sunday we went to Mirabelle Gardens since it was supposed to be the last thing on our tour but since it gets so dark so early we weren't able to. It was so cute, though I'm not sure how they filmed some of the scenes because it was pretty small. Especially the last scene of Do Re Mi where the kids are hopping up and down those stairs. There's this huge ledge thing right in front of it that would not allow them to have the proper angle for that shot... Movie magic I guess.

We played on the Pegasus fountain, found the little gnome they all patted, and ran around the mazes playing Harry Potter. After the gardens we went over the river to the shopping area. Not very much was open but we found a little merry go round (probably meant for people an 8th of my weight) and hopped on. We were especially excited about the Gartenzwerg I rode. We walked up and down that street getting souvenirs and what not, and then found a place for lunch. I really enjoyed it. It was down under other shops and was really cozy and warm. I got bacon and cheese spatzle which was deeeelicious. We walked around some more and had hints of what the Christmas markets were going to look like and then decided it was probably time to head back.

I have to definitely recommend that hotel though. The staff was so friendly. One of the guys even let us order pizza for Saturday night's dinner even though his boss wouldn't allow it. But he told us he wasn't there, and he just wouldn't look. He was even helpful enough to order it for us and give directions to the delivery man. Definitely a keeper. :)

So that was my weekend. Pretty low key but pretty fun.

This weekend Meredith and I are staying in Vienna along with Brynn, Abbie, and Meghan. Homework plays a huge factor in that decision, but there are also several things I need to get done for this next week. Sketches, about 11 pages worth of papers, two tests, and a soccer game would have done me in stress and health wise if I didn't stay to get stuff done. But Christmas markets start this Saturday(!!!!!) so we're going to hit those up as well as finish visits and go see other things we haven't gotten to yet. Overall I'm glad we're staying, even if that did mean giving up Cinque Terre and Venice. (that's ok. the cruise I wanna go on for my honeymoon goes to both those places ;) ) I think I'm a bit tired of traveling as well. I just need a weekend away from trains and staying in one place for a bit.

Three weeks from today I'll be home. Almost under 20 days.

Paris, Luxembourg, Barcelona, Geneva (gag), and Zurich

Fall break had the effect of making me never want to travel again.

However, it was an incredible 10 days, full of adventure and problems, laughter and heavy prayers.

We started the trip off with a night train to Paris which the boys happened to be on. We talked to them for a while and then got pounded at through the wall to shut up and go to bed. When we arrived in Strasbourg the next morning we were greeted with this creepy creepy sound that are exclusive only to French train stations. Pretty foreboding.

We made it safely and easily to our hotel after fighting for a Metro card and were a initially pretty sketched out by it. But the staff was friendly and helpful and we were reassured by the fact that the only people there besides us was a group of teens from the UK. After we dropped off all of our stuff we went to find lunch and came upon an incredibly cute cafe, however the food was not that great.

We decided to go on another free tour where we met at St Michel's Square. Our guide was Alex, definitely not as good as Travis, and he spit a lot. :/ But still adequate. He showed us all around the city and told us little quirky stories like how on one of the bridges there are about 400 faces, and these faces are representative of drunk wedding guests the king had sculpted. We went across the artist's bridge, saw where some of the Bourne Identity was shot, and ended up in one of the most beautiful gardens I have ever been to.

I got some pretty magnificent pictures that day, and I can't wait to print them off.

The next day we went to the Notre Dame, the Louvre, and to the outside of the Opera House. I have seen all of them before, and since I'm quite tired of art, I was pretty exhausted by the museum by the end. After a ridiculous dinner, we went to the Opera House and took pictures of the facade, and a picture with a very random French dude, but he was hot, so we didn't mind. ;)

Later Bethany and Laura decided to go to the Arc de Triomphe while Meredith and I decided to go to a movie. We saw The Informant! with Matt Damon and we rather enjoyed it. It was actually a really good head case movie, you could never tell who was wrong and who was right.

The next day we decided to go to Luxembourg. What a glorious place. In my next life I for real would love to live there. And the only thing stopping me now is that my family is in the states and I don't gots lots o' money. Though we never paid much for food or entrance fees to anything... so who knows.

I just know that it's gorgeous, friendly, safe, and easy. Probably my second favorite city behind Vienna right now.

We went to the city museum first and were very pleasantly surprised at how modern it was. Cool elevators, hands on exhibits, AND English in the displays. Who could ask for more!? The history of the city and country was pretty interesting, they broke off of Germany and were ruled by the Austrians for a really long time. They speak Luxembourgish. A mix of English, German, and French... no point in me ever trying to learn it!

My favorite part of the museum was actually the creepiest. They had a temporary exhibit going on called Murder and ManSlaughter where they delved into people's motives for killing others, from September 11th to serial killers to companies deciding that recalling something on a car was far more expensive than letting people get in car wrecks (Momma and Daddy, they had the Pinto as an example of this, apparently a lot of the engines just randomly burst into flames but the car company didn't recall any of them). The most unique part of the exhibit though was the end, they gave you a card and told you to place it into the box labeled for what you would kill for, self-defense, revenge, jealousy, embarrassment, kill a tyrant, etc. I was glad to know that the box the most full was the self defense, but there were some even in the embarrassment one which really scared me for some reason.

After the museum we went to the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was gorgeous inside. Warmer and friendlier than any other European churches I've been into so far. Next we went to the castle ruins and took a tour of the crypts beneath. We went to Michealskirche and then headed back to the train station to depart for Paris again. But not before we got an authentic Luxemburger! ;)

That night we met up with about 10 of our group to go up into the Eiffel Tower. I hadn't realized how much I missed them until we saw all of their smiling faces. We rode up to the top and took several pictures all the while catching up on our adventures so far from the trip.

Monday we tried our hardest to get to Brussels. But French people (especially train station employees) are mean and very unhelpful. They only way we could get there was to pay 41 euro. One way. I mean I really do want to go to Belgium, but not potentially for 80 euros when I have a perfectly good Eurailpass my parents paid 784 euro for. Nope sorry evil lady, I will not pay that.

So after being sad for a little bit, we decided to just check out Montmartre but got off at the wrong stop and were practically eye raped by sketchy sketchy SKETCHY men. And surprisingly in this district there were bridal stores every single place you looked... Luckily a nice fellow in the Virgin Megastore pointed us to the right stop and we got back on track. We took a sky liftish thing to the top of the mountain and paused to take pictures, listen to a great harpist, and watch a very interesting man do yoga on grass I'm not sure he was supposed to be on.

After we checked out Sacre Coure, we explored just about every single tourist shop on the top of the hill, got lunch (QUICHE!!), and then explored the artist's ring where I got a really neat canvas Eiffel Tower and some cute prints from this precious Asian man.

We then went to see Moulin Rouge and even though it was perfect daylight I was still sketched out by the numerous men just standing outside of sex shops just appraising every female human being that walked by. But we got our pictures, I got coffee and we were off to try and tour the Opera house. Unfortunately it was just about to close so we decided to just go back to the Arc to take pictures but we ended up just watching traffic go by. Actually much more fun than you'd expect, especially with 12 lanes of traffic going around at once and people trying to run across it.

We went down the Champs Elysees in search of the Disney Store (for my project) and dinner. We came upon some really awesome break dancers and a really nice couple from New York who willingly took a picture for us. We made our way to the store, I got my picture and we decided to find grub. We went to a pizzeria, but all of us got burgers (we're sad I know), and then we headed out to find ice cream.

The next morning we slept in a little bit, checked out, and then stopped at a near by grocery store to get food for our Eiffel Tower picnic. Then we took our bags to the train station we were leaving from that night and were pretty sketched out again. The stations we had been to previously were large and light but this one seemed run down and we had to put our luggage through a metal detector just to put it in lockers. And it broke our baguette. :(

We then made our way to the Eiffel Tower, found a nice bench, and had a bread war. I think Laura won that war... We were enjoying our picnic of bread, cheese, turkey, chips, chocolate, and cookies when this gypsy approaches. Everyone had warned us about them, so I froze not know what to do. But she was just asking for food, and I obviously don't need it all (I mean have you seen me lately?) so I handed her some bread, cheese, and turkey and she went on her way. Then I proceed to get pooped on yet again. UGHHH. I guess God was trying to tell me that I did in fact have much more to give her. So another one approaches and this time I give her money and Bethany hands her the rest of our cheese package. I guess even the least of these like cheese right?

After we went around the Tower again we decided to head off to the Opera. The fee was small, and I was so terribly glad we went. It was like walking into a movie, and one of my favorites no doubt. I felt like I was at the Masquerade waiting for Patrick Wilson or Gerard Butler to just pop up somewhere, which would have been ahhhhhmazing. :)

We had some time to explore before we needed to catch our train so we went to the Galleries Lafeyette which is a huge 7 story mall that umm well I will never be able to afford, however I did get me some sour jelly beans for 2 euro. Score! It was so incredibly beautiful inside though but very very crowded. We made our way to the top floor and out onto a terrace and took some incredible pictures of Paris at sunset.

We made our way to the Hard Rock for dinner. I know a waste, but it was as much if not cheaper than anything else in Paris, why not? I got a salad and it was glorious. I really never though salads were going to be really the only food I miss from America. In fact I want my welcome home dinner to be at Pei Wei just so I can get their Asian Chopped Chicken Salad, or Panera if the Fandango salad is still a possibility to get.

We found a Starbucks to just chill in for a few hours until it was time to go to the station. We were all freaking out because this train ride was going to be the one with two other people and we were very afraid that they would be super weird or creepy and that we'd have to sleep in shifts so our stuff didn't get stolen, but the Lord answered our (and I'm sure many of your) prayers that night and sent us a little old couple who hardly spoke to us but made their presence known in snores and flatulence.

We made it safely to Cerbere, France but had to wait in the most deserted lonely station for about an hour until our train was supposed to get there, however it was an hour late so we spent some crazy time laying on the pavement "sunning our backsides". :) The train finally arrived and I felt like I was climbing aboard a Spanish family's RV. It was a little crazy but they were friendly, though they made fun of me for not switching my clock on my backpack back an hour for daylight savings time.

The train itself looked like it was made in seventies, with think woolen curtains you could pull across to keep the sun out and bouncy squeaky seats. And to make me feel a little more uneasy, a bunch of police man came barging through our carriage to check passports and tickets. Not just a ticket checker man, but 6 police man... I guess Spain is intense about their security!

We move along the tracks for about 4 minutes and stop and suddenly we're in Spain. So close!

We finally pick up speed and make it to Barcelona about an hour after we were supposed to. We were all starving and desperate to get to the hostel so we tried to quickly get directions to our stop on the metro and get tickets. So Barcelona's stations might be super sweaty, but their trains are super nice. We got off at our stop (which is entitled Clot. Clot? Really? How much more disgusting of a name can you think of??) and walk towards our hostel. I'd looked it up previously so when I saw the skyscraper in front of us I knew we had made it. Our room was super nice. Just no AC... and there were tons of kinder there so no internet access the whole time (you see they don't have the decency to keep up with the 15 minute time limit).

We went in search of food and found a place called DinoPan where we got pizza, a drink, and a dessert for under 5 euro. I was super impressed. By that time it was getting pretty late so we decided to try and find something worth visiting. We came upon the Sagrada Familia, which is this church that has been under construction since 1882. And there's no sign of stopping. It was kinda cool on the outside to see all the different parts of the structure, but odd because they didn't really all go together. One side was like dripping candle wax, while the other was rigid figures telling of the Crucifixion. We all paid the 9 euro to get in (while I made a fool of myself trying to go through the spinny counter thing to which the ticket man got a nice laugh out of) and took the tour. Though it wasn't much of one. Everything inside is under construction as well. I mean it'll be nifty when it's finished but they basically are getting a donation from you for something that they just need to hurry up on.

We did some souvenir shopping after that, found dinner (yes I got some tapas, and they were pretty good!), and then headed back to go to bed. Since I didn't get any sleep on the train (due to my overwhelming claustrophobia) I crashed as soon as I had brushed my teeth.

The next morning we went to find a free tour but stumbled upon a bus tour instead. It was just 21 euro and we could hop on and hop off at any stop there was. We took the east tour first which was basically in the hills and included the FCBarcelona stadium, the Olympic stadium, and the National museum. We rode it til the end and got off to get lunch. We found this cute place called Divinus where we got a 3 course meal including rolls and a drink for 10,95. I got Caesar salad, a whole chicken, and ananas (pineapple, but I just enjoy saying ananas). :) It was all very wonderful. We got back on the bus and took the West tour and got off at the beach. Sigh... I love the beach. It was so beautiful and so warm. We took a lot of fun pictures and enjoyed the cute kids that were playing around us even though the threw sand in our direction repeatedly.

We got back on the bus and decided to head towards Park Guell, a famous park by Gaudi full of mosaic animals and other designs. It was getting pretty dark so I don't think we got to enjoy it fully but it was still cool to look out on the city. We got back on the bus and stayed on until we made it to the train station to book tickets for the next days trip. After wards we found an Italian place and I got beef medallions. They were super tasty. And cheap. You go Barcelona, you go.

We got snacks for the next day at a sketch store where the owner gave us like 8 bendy rulers and that we were able to wield as soon as we stepped out the door. We made it back to the hostel and prepared for the next day.

Friday was the beginning of the longest 50 hours of my life. We got on our train to Montpellier fine, but when we got to Montpellier there was a huge line to buy other tickets. Oh yeah that's another thing I hate about the French... You can only buy train tickets leaving from anywhere in France in France. They are real persnickety about letting you be responsible and book before the day of your journey.

So we stand in this line for about 45 minutes, missing our original train to Geneva. The ticket guy gives us another way where we'd be getting in about 11 pm. Not too bad, but definitely a lot later than the original 7:30. We get on a train to Valence, France and then from Valence to Geneva. Little did we know that the train to Geneva just happened to split in the middle with one side going to Geneva and the other to Annecy. Guess which one we were on.

Yup. So we land in Annecy, believing it's just a different name for the Geneva train station, grab up our stuff and get out. But then we hear the awful bum buh da dah! and realize we are still in France. We try to get someone to help us, and luckily we run into a man (from West Virginia, now lives in Berlin, and has heard of Lipscomb!) who tells us what has happened and that we now have to get on a bus to Annemasse, France and take a taxi into Switzerland. A kindly conductor takes pity on the 15 of us who made the same mistake (seriously there were NO train people on board to tell us we were on the wrong side!!!) and lets us get on the bus for free, after the bus ticket machine wouldn't take any of our cards and no one had 9,50 in coinage.

The bus is already packed and we're jammed into the seats with our huge packs in our laps completely separated from each other. There were these strange guys on the bus who just insisted on being completely ridiculous and tried to talk to Bethany multiple times. But then the mean bus driver gets on and starts shoving us off. Apparently he had sold enough tickets and we were taking up space. But the kindly conductor saves us again and orders a special bus for us. So the 11 of us pile on and we are taken pretty haphazardly to AnneMasse. We arrive and there is absolutely nothing but some creepy hotels that looked like they belonged in a ghost town and some cafes. Our WV friend is still with us and calls the taxi company. He just needs to get to Geneva because he's staying with a friend, so he lets us take the first taxi. Since there were four of us I took the front and I became the driver's walky talky holder, but not before he grazed my leg a couple of times.

The ride was 10 euro each but when we finally made it to the train station we realized that the last train to Zurich left 45 minutes ago. Great, there goes that hotel reservation. We looked at all the close hotels to figure out if there was at least some place we could stay but every hotel was around 180 to 220 euro a night per room. So pay the 90 euro or risk our safety? Well we risked our safety.

I called the hotel and told him we had to cancel and he got all mad at me but I was just like if I could be there I would be dude. And he had to charge the full amount to my card... however I think that card was mostly gone anyway so boo on you man.

The first hour at the train station consisted of playing MASH and watching every passer by really closely. We all got pretty chilly since there were no enclosed parts of the station so we decided to go to the bar across the street. We actually got carded or rather passported when all we had were Cokes. But going there wasn't much use since they closed at 2. We went back to the train station and sat in this hallway with these creepy woodchucks (which I think were actually our protectors) until 3 when the train station kicked us out. They told us we could go to an underground mall and stay, so we removed ourselves to that location. I've never felt more like a homeless person in my life. There were actual homeless people (who were probably a lot warmer than me at that point) in that area with us. And all these men who decided to try and talk to us but we just didn't look at them. There was this man who was standing around us the whole time just talking to himself and oddly I felt more at peace with him there.

Do you ever encounter people or realize certain people around you that were sent to protect you? I felt like he would've had our backs if something happened with those sketchy men. He looked at the same display of books for the entire hour we were down there, just 2o feet away from us. I felt the same way about those old people on the train to Barcelona. They were silent and just there probably to be the fillers to keep other people out.

After we could go back up to the station we sat back in our spot until we couldn't take the cold anymore so we got our bags out of the locker and put more layers on. We found what platform our train was on and went back to sit in the hallway. Meredith started to rearrange her backpack when suddenly this greasy gross large large man with sausage hands came over to us and asked us if he could sleep in front of us. He got on his hands and knees and just started mumbling. Bethany and I grabbed for our bags since he was so close and he mockingly grabbed for them as well. I sprang up and he started laughing at us and tried to give his bag to Bethany telling her his wasn't worth as much as hers. He got up as well and I just pointed towards the opposite side of the hall way and told him to go. He got the message and left but not before he found it necessary to bow to us. Definitely glad this happened in the last 30 minutes we were there and not the beginning.

The train finally came, and as soon as we got on, pottied, and tried to find food, we all crashed on top of our bags taking up two seats for ourselves. The next time I woke up our cabin was full and I just assume that everyone walking by took pity on us poor weary travelers.

We got to Zurich, found lockers, and found breakfast. Or rather I found coffee, the donut was disgusting. Then we planned on going up a mountain to go look at the Alps. The train was actually pretty cool and the foliage at the top was beautimous. I got more coffee and we explored and then as we came back down, we all fell asleep on the train. After that we got lunch and went to find the trolley tour we signed up for. Good thing we paid 33 francs for that since we all completely fell asleep on that as well. However we got to see more of Zurich than just the train station which was good.

After that we went shopping and Laura and I got Swiss Army Knives. It's totally girly and purple and I love it. :) Then we tried to find dinner and settled on chinese. I have been craving chinese practically since we got to Europe, so even though it was 27 francs I completely enjoyed it.

We made our way back to the train station and met up with some girls who were on our night train back home. We sat in the waiting room for probably 3 hours just waiting for our train to show up on the board. But it was good catching up with them and hearing their stories. I think we definitely had the worst story out of the group. Oh well, it's a good story to tell.

We finally got on the train and were ready for a night's sleep. However when we found our cabin some Middle Eastern men were making their way towards us, we looked into our cabin and there were five sets of bedding instead of the four that we booked for ourselves. We all instantly put the two together, threw ourselves into the cabin and started praying fervently. If we had to be with this man, none of us would be able to sleep and we couldn't do that for a second night. But as soon as we all stopped praying there was a knock on our door and this young lady not much older than us tells us she is supposed to be in there with us. We all breathe a sigh of relief. She was another example of the people there to guard us. They are silent and just fillers. But i know God placed them all there to be our protectors and they probably didn't even realize it.

The train pulled in to Wien Westbahnhof at precisely 8:03 and I cannot tell you how excited I have been to see a trainstation before. I love Vienna and was very excited to come home.

On another completely different note, I think my home sickness has just hit full force. I'm realizing my relationships at home are completely failing and I hate not being there to do anything about it. I miss my Mommy & Daddy, Elizabeth, Rob, my kitty, my car, my bed, my friends, Lipscomb, choir (surprisingly enough), my job, and texting. I have 28 days til I go home and I cannot wait.

However depressing or ungrateful this sounds I have completely enjoyed this experience. Perhaps not all the lame work we have to do, or the countless art I have had to glue my eyeballs to, but the traveling and the people have been wonderful. There are so many countless laughs shared, so many adventures we'll have to tell, and incredible bonding ties that will last forever. I'm so glad my parents were able to send me on this trip, it's one that will be forever cemented in my mind.

italian stallions and german mermen.

decided it’s about time I wrote about my recent travels.

Italy first I suppose.

I was not way thrilled to be going back to either Rome or Florence because neither of them were favorites from last year’s trip to Italy. Rome was where we stood in ankle deep water to listen to the Pope and Florence was so quick the only thing I really got from it was Michelangelo’s David and a really really good Panini. So I felt like I had checked these two cities off on my list of places to see in life, and was ready to get onto new travels. Alas, I still had to go.

So Saturday afternoon we packed up our lives here in Vienna to move out for a week, stuffed our packs to the brim, and got on a train to Roma. It was an overnight train and when we got into the compartments we were all pretty excited about it. And even though we had all slept until 11:30 am that day, we were quickly lulled into a stupor and decided to go to bed. But even though we were super comfortable sitting up, we were not lying down. I woke up with every stop, I was too hot, or people were sooooper loud. Plus we had all been freaked out my stories from people getting their things stolen in night trains, so I had that running through my mind all night.

We arrived the next morning safe but tired in Rome. We got on a bus that took us to the Baths of Caracalla. I actually hadn’t been there yet, and for the billionth time in my life I wished that I could time travel and see it in its’ former glory. The walls were super tall and even more were missing. Our sweet guide Roberta told us that all the walls we saw and even floors were covered in mosaics and marble. I can’t even begin to imagine how long and what type of skill that required.

Next we saw the Forum and the Colosseum and that night I had the best chicken of my entire life. :) We saw the Catacombs of San Callista, the Borghese gallery, the Vatican Museum, and St Peter's. I think St Peter's is the best church I've ever seen in my life. I wouldn't say that I felt God there just because of it's grandeur, but every where I looked I saw something glorious. I also really enjoyed the Sistine Ceiling. I wish that they had had couches to lay down on so you could look up without hurting your neck.

Even though I was/am really tired of art, the Borghese was worth the time and effort to go. They had several Bernini sculptures and I'm pretty sure I have found my favorite artist. All the sculptures and things we have looked at thus far have been rigid and stiff and just examples of perfect beings. But Bernini as we learned was on the cusp of High Baroque where they were experimenting with more emotion and movement. His David was the first one we've seen that hasn't just been standing there placidly, he was in the movement of throwing the stone at Goliath, biting his lip, and putting all his energy into killing this terrible giant. Apollo and Daphne were equally or more beautiful. It tells the story of Apollo chasing Daphne and her being turned into a tree. Her arms were turning into leaves and her feet into roots. So magnificent!

That night we went to find the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish steps. We got on one bus which happened to have to go to the bus wasteland. So we were on this one bus for about an hour and a half. And then the bus which took us back to the hotel didn't come for like 40 minutes and while we were waiting we had several buses, cars, and Vespas honk or blow kisses at us. We probably looked like the most modest hookers ever to be on the side of the street. But when bus 49 FINALLY came, there happened to be about 12 other Lipscomb kids on there as well. Apparently they had been waiting for awhile as well.

Wednesday we went to Pompei. What an adventure. We had to get up really early to catch the train and barely made it. We took a EuroStar to Naples which was wonderful but that was the only train whole day that was non-sketch. Then we hopped a train to Salerno, thinking that we would get off in Pompei, however it didn't. But I'm so glad we ended up in Salerno. It was absolutely gorgeous. I still can't get over that landscape. When we finally got back to the train station the train we got on was like a huge piece of scrap metal grating along a track. There was graffiti everywhere, no seats where there should've been, and it kept breaking down. We finally made it to Pompei and then had to walk a ways to actually get to the site. Daniel had hired this cute old guy to be our guide for the day.

Even though I had been there once before, I was surprised because this cute old man took us on a completely different tour. I didn't learn anything new, but at least the scenes were. Afterwards we got some pizza and drinks and did souvenir shopping and headed back. The train to Naples wasn't so bad, but the Rome one was horrible. There were so many people on the train that they were having to kick people off, and it was hot and stuffy and I was so cramped.

Our final dinner in Rome was alright, we went to some restaurant run by nuns from different countries who dressed up in their traditional garb. We had pasta, chicken, and GREEN BEANS. mmmm I had missed vegetables. When we got back to the hotel I wanted a shower but Meredith got in first and somehow the knob to make the shower work broke off so she decided to just lay down in the tub and try it that way. Well soon I hear laughing and apparently when she soaped up she just slid around a lot and did barrel rolls. I obviously decided to not take a shower that night.

We had to get up super early again to go to Florence and we got there ok. We had an hour and a half to eat and we found this place that was a little shady but alright and we all got our own liter of water. Because for some reason Austria is about the only place that is ok with giving you free water... We went to the Accademia to see David (and saw a man who had more back and chest hair than head hair, and decided that it was ok to let it poke out from his shirt thus giving him a fur collar), the Medici family tombs by Michelangelo, and to the town hall where the copy of David is outside. We were all dead, our feet hurt, and several of our group wasn't feeling well, so we came back to the hotel to take a nap. We woke up and walked back to the Il Duomo to meet up with the group for dinner. Out dinner was pretty awesome- pesto/red sauce pasta, pork chops and fries, and then some rum ice cream cake. That was actually pretty gross, as well as every salad they have here. Why do they feel it necessary to put such nasty dressing on it?

Friday was quite a day. We went to three museums that day, which was bad enough, but it was rainy and my shoes wouldn't stay tied, so I was dragging my laces through water, and then I feel something hit my head, and what is it? Yup bird poop. Luckily not the white kind, though I hate to think that some bird peed on me. Ewwww. Laura was very kind to me though and got as much out as she could.

The first museum we got to was Casa Buonarotti which was the family home of Michelangelo and housed several of his original sketches and pieces that were either never finished or never put on display. Next was the Il Bargello or the National Museum. There was so much stuff there that I didn't really get to look at, but I was basically more impressed with the building itself than the artwork inside. For our lunch break we went to the pharmacy for assorted drugs for people, the bank, and then to the sandwich shop my dad, Robin and I found last year when we were there. I still can't get over how yum-tastic those sandwiches are. We met up at the Gallery Ufizzi after lunch. It was actually very interesting, though it went on forever and I don't think I've ever seen so many Madonna and Childs in my life. Good grief.

I actually think my favorite part of that museum was the view of the Ponte Vicchio bridge and of the river. We actually went to the bridge first to look for shopping but everything was basically the same and basically way too expensive for me. So we headed to the market, and umm I'm a little ashamed to say how much money I spent there. :/ I think I spent 260 euro on two leather purses, a leather jacket, a leather journal, 6 scarves, a ring, and some keychains. But I felt like that was pretty good, especially since I had to kiss my way down from 220 to 150 for the jacket. Is that a good price for a real Italian leather jacket? I dunno.

Saturday we went to Siena. Again, absolutely gorgeous. Very hilly which was strange and hard to maneuver but the view was worth it. My feet don't even hurt that much but perhaps I'm just used to hard core walking all the time. We went to the basilica where St Catherine's head and finger are, some other church place (I think called the Duomo as well) that had a pretty awesome library with illuminated manuscripts in it, and the town hall square where they had horse races twice a summer. They let us go for lunch and we went to this place that had student prices, so for 7,50 I got a pizza, coffee, and water. Definitely the cheapest meal we had the whole time we were in Italy. We talked to a girl at the cafe where we ate at because she was obviously American and she told us that she was from Seattle, had studied abroad there 3 years ago, met her husband, and now lives here with him. We have met so many people here that were just willing to pack up and move to be with a person they loved. I find it incredibly romantic, but on the other hand, I'm not sure I could be THAT far away from home.

Later that night when we were meeting for dinner this guy started watching Meredith and even when she was in the huge group of kids he was still eyeing her. Since we were around a huge tourist area, there was a man with roses, so he got one for her and had the guts to walk up to her and give it to her. They talked for a bit and he gave her his number and email. And he wasn't even the sketchy one of the night. The sketchy one was the one who came up to Laura and I and kept trying to kiss and hug her. Too bad none of the guys in our group are observant or care enough to come rescue us.

That dinner was alright, pasta chicken and potatoes, what more can you ask for? Plus the waiter was the epitome of Italiano and liked singing to loud arias to us. Daniel said his goodbyes there and we were all pretty sad. He was such a great guide and I really will miss him when we go on other trips.

On our way home we were having the discussion of where we would rather be studying... Italy or Vienna. And a bunch of people said Italy, but I'm unsure of why. I love Austria almost as much as I love America. It's clean, friendly, lively, and beautiful. I missed Vienna two days into the Italy trip. Every time we couldn't have free water, or when I had to pay to use a bathroom with out toilet paper or a toilet seat, I just ask why, why in the world would you want to live anywhere else in Europe but Vienna!? In Italy I would always feel like a tourist and have my space invaded. Yuck.

Sunday was possibly the most uncomfortable day of my life here so far. The first train was ok, though we're always stared at on trains regardless of whether we're actually talking or not... but I had drank a huge carton of orange juice and needed to go to the bathroom badly before we hopped on a three hour bus to Villach. Meredith and I ran back to the train station and found the toilet, but it wasn't much of one. I'm unsure of why a sliver of a bowl of a toilet on the floor counts as a toilet at all. I'm just glad I got out quickly and without paying for that one. We ran back to the bus since it was there and we tried to get to our seats and quickly as possible, however a bunch of women were sitting in our seats and since the bus started moving I just tried to sit in the closest empty one possible. But as I swung around to plop down, my right knee didn't come with me and I heard this really awful popping sound. Bethany told me later that my face scared her to death, and I'm pretty sure it's a face I've never made in my life.

That bus ride got much better though. We drove through some of the best scenery ever. High mountains and deep green valleys, foamy rivers and blue blue skies. It was the epitome of Austrian hill sides and it was continued in our trip from Villach to Vienna. Cute little churches nestled into hills... yes I could definitely live here.

School is boring, so I won't say much about that, though I was pretty surprised by the weather changes. We went from 80s in Italy to 40s and snow in Austria.

Thursday afternoon we hopped onto a train headed to Munchen. It was actually a pretty fabulous train compared to anything we had ridden in Italy and we didn't even need to get reservations. After a fairly short 4 hour trip we made it to the city and were instantly impressed. The train station alone was superb. Clean and indoors with a really awesome food court, I really wouldn't mind having to stay there for a little bit.

Meredith's parents were actually staying in the city for the night before they headed back home so they met us at the train station and walked with us to our hostel. The hostel actually turned out to be pretty good. Pretty nice lobby and bar area and the room wasn't bad at all. Two bunkbeds, four lockers, and the bare minimum in the bathroom, but I guess that's all you need for a few nights anyway.

After we put everything away we walked to the Hofbrauhaus which is this huge beer hall and is exactly what I think of when I think of Germany. No joke. Loud music, loud people, it was warm, and you had to sit with other people picnic table style. Which was really awesome, we ended up talking and practicing our German with these two guys sitting next to us. They were from Kassel and were in Munich working on tanks for the army. They happened to both be named Andy or Andreas... one actually told me to look him up on Facebook, so I guess I should maybe get on that.

Friday we got up and went to Marienplatz which was where we were meeting a guide to take us to see Dachau, the first ever concentration camp. What a day. It was probably the most depressing day I've had in a while, the weather was awful and even though it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, just knowing that so many people were tortured and basically murdered here hurt my heart to no end. I think the saddest part was seeing all the things people had brought with them and were no longer allowed to have, including baby pictures and wedding photos, it really hit me that these people were just ripped from their families, unsure of whether they would be back or not. We watched a video and they even showed all the bodies that the Americans found when the troops arrived there. It was horrifying that people could find it in themselves to treat other humans that way.

By the time we made it back to the city we were all starving and depressed so we decided to go back to the Hard Rock Cafe we had seen the previous night. Our waiter was Canadian so we were excited to be talking to someone who understood us. We had REAL burgers with cheddar (not something you find a lot here) and BACON. MMMM best burger I've had on this side of the pond. Plus free refills. He completely made our night, so I asked him if he knew he was our hero and the wind beneath our wings, and he said "What are you guys? Like hard core Christians?" We kinda laughed, I guess that is better than being asked if we were Mormons for the hundredth time, but still I didn't think Canada was far enough away to not get Bette Midler references...

Saturday we got up early to go to Neuschwanstein, the castle that Cinderella's castle is based off of, and also one of my sites for my project. We had to make a connection in Buchloe and in Kaufbereun, and actually successfully made them. We met up with the Swanns, Cari, Sarah, Ricki, and Leah and made our way to the castle. They were all hungry so we stopped to get some grub and talk. Apparently they had had a much worse time in their hostel than we had. :/

We got tickets and started our hike up the mountain. And it WAS a mountain. I'm actually quite proud of ourselves. The guide said it would take 40 minutes but it really only took us about 20. We made it to the top and were just completely blown away at the beauty of it. This was the first castle I've ever been to and I've got to say, it was definitely one of the coolest things I've ever done. We went inside and just were in awe of all the things that this Mad King Ludwig II did. But he had some rich taste... Everything was lavishly decorated like it should be in the Renaissance/Baroque era, but I was surprised to learn that it was built in the mid to late 1800s. Nothing really even happened in this castle, Ludwig actually died before it was even completed. But I was still very very excited to visit it!

On our long journey home we met this guy named Jeff, who actually happened to be from Canada as well. He was very friendly and we invited him to come to dinner with us.

I think that's my favorite part about Europe. Just how many people you can actually meet. Every single day we met someone and got to know people from all over the place. Whether they were there on business or traveling or for love, it was awesome to realize that people are friendly wherever you are. And I've also learned that I don't ever meet a stranger, anyone I talk to is going to get a small dose of my personal life (all perfectly safe I promise, no addresses or anything). But I like it. :)

Sunday we were going to get up really early and catch a train to Salzburg so we could take the Sound of Music tour and get it out of the way, but I had misread the time and we were going to be about 30 minutes late for it. So we all ended up just getting back into bed and sleeping for another hour and a half before the free tour of Munich started. We were actually afraid we were going to miss that tour as well because we couldn't find anyone speaking English around the square, but when we did finally find them the tour guide happened to be the same guy who did the Dachau tour, Travis. He was from Australia and came here to be with his girlfriend after he had lost his job. He was a great tour guide and we were all really glad we got him again.

After the tour we made our way back to the train station and got on the train headed to Wien.

I really enjoyed this weekend. It was low key but busy and exciting all at the same time. I didn't feel stressed out at all, and actually really enjoyed the few days off from school. So now that we're back I am back to worrying about tests, projects, and papers. Woo!

Next up: Fall Break including Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Luxembourg, Barcelona, and Zurich :)

i'm not dead yet!

Hey loyal followers, I am here still. Quite alive. However, being away for a week (oh and what a week it was, you will definitely want to hear the Italy update), has definitely created lots of other things to attend to. But I AM going to write one, no fear!

love you all!

zwanzig.

In an hour here, and 8 at home, I will be twenty years old, or umm Ich bin zwanzig Jahre alt. Two decades!! How did that go by so quickly? Granted I wasn't aware for a good bit of it, but I can remember a lot.

My earliest memory is when I was three, having a dream about a painting in my grandmother's (memaw mac) dining room turning into the evil witch from Snow White, and to this day I can't watch that movie without thinking about that dream.

I remember lipsyncing to Aladdin songs at Disney World when I was 4, but maybe that is just what I got from video tapes, though I can still vividly picture my mom getting mad at me for not being still enough to take a picture.

I remember this 4 piece outfit I had in Kindergarten with pants, a skirt, a t shirt, and a vest and I would take off the pants because I just liked the skirt, but Mrs. Newman wouldn't let me. I remember every girl having 2 piece windbreaker suits that year, and the little chinese girl getting stuck in a chair, and Robin Lynch getting a bean stuck in her ear.

I remember being in the hospital and the broth being my favorite thing because it was the only thing with practically any taste. I remember the ridiculous amounts of balloons and flowers I got and watching Heidi on tv.

I remember countless Gatlinburg trips in the fall, the numerous Beanie Babies bought (and later stuffed into plastic boxes, because they WOULD pay for our college someday!!!), the ridiculous amounts of fudge and rock candy consumed, and the cheesy pictures with my toothless smiles.

Learning multiplication and division and how to write in cursive, the countless recesses and learning to get on top of the monkey bars, the numerous crushes and Mary Kate and Ashley videos. Wanting a scooter so badly because everyone else wanted one but never using it. American Girl dolls every Christmas. Barbies, bikes, swimming birthday parties, and a trip to the ER.

Friends that stuck with me from Kindergarten til now. They're few, but I treasure them so much more for that. LBL, Disney World (finally made it back after 8 years! and now it's been another 8, wink wink! ;) ), graduation to middle school.

Braces, belts, and getting into our now incredibly awkward bodies. Awful awful teachers and an even worse principal, and probably the worst two school years of my life.

Loving school and everything else that went along with it. Numerous hours spent on asphalt but fewer performing. Loving every trip I ever took. Making friends and being ridiculously social. Class secretary and later ASB Historian. Learning that I had to do SOMETHING with graphic design as a major. Developing a passion for photography. Being given a chance to find my voice and learning that the stage is where I feel most at home. Having the greatest senior year I ever could. And finally making it to big kid school where yes it took me a while to fit in, but by the end of the year I felt right at home. And now, here I am turning twenty in a foreign country. I think three people actually know it's my birthday, but that's ok, I think as we get older birthdays just aren't as fun anymore.

I guess if I could blow out candles on a cake I would wish for true happiness and safety on this trip.

I hope that everyone has a fantastic October 3rd. :)

kasekrainers are deeeelicious!

Hi. It's me again!

Not too much has happened this past week, but I guess enough to write about.

Saturday we went to the Schonnbrunn and took the inside tour as well as a train to the Gloriette on the top of the hill. I would definitely say that the train was the best investment we made all day. After we left the palace we headed towards Cafe Landtmann, since it was one of Meredith's needed visits, and enjoyed some great dessert for dinner. I probably won't head back there anytime soon because it was pretty pricey, but it was enjoyable for one night. But on our way out there we decided to take the UBahn to the end of the line and not get off at the last stop. Well we did so, and the train just stopped. The sign in the train said Haltepunkt which is stop point in german. We were freaking out because we were the only ones on the train and were afraid that we'd be stuck there all night. But the driver just had to switch ends, that's all. :) However we did enjoy our trip to the twilight zone.

Sunday we went to church at Augustinerkirche. I wasn't a fan, but then again I'm not really ever a fan of Catholic masses. However, we talked to this man, who I later found out was named Willburt, but oddly pronounced Villeberrt (roll those rrrrs), who told us that anyone who wanted to, could sing with the choir. Sarah and I were pretty excited by it because they were phenomenal. They even made our Vienna guide books! We told him we'd definitely be back on Wednesday to sing.

I used that afternoon to catch up on homework and get ready for the coming week. Nothing too exciting ;)

Monday after class we went to investigate Renaissance Vienna, and let me just say there is not much left. That was done quickly and we went around Stephansdom just exploring little shops. One of the stores we found was a cute little bookstore with a great children's section, and I found a cute cartoony German version of the Grimm's tales that I'm going to get help on from Frau Swann. Woo! One visit down for me. We also found a class Wien tradition... Manner. This store is located right next to Stephansdom and offers a large array of chocolates. I got the classic Neopolitan wafer things, and ohhhh boy, people at home get ready, because that's what I'm bringing you!! It was beyond wonderful. mmmmm

Tuesday we investigated a couple more parks- Ressel which is in front of Karlskirche and Augarten which is wayyyyy out in the boonies. The way we went in was kinda sketch, I felt like I was walking into the beginning of a really bad horror film. It was empty and the trees were dead and the leaves were just blowing across our paths... not to mention that there was this huge looming tower in front of us that happened to be an old Nazi watch tower. :/ I couldn't stand being there for very long. :/ That night we went to find Cafe Central, but to no avail, and found Cafe Palffy, a little ways down from the Opera house. I got the Alt Wiener Suppe because I wasn't feeling too well, but I had a few bits of other people's Wiener Schnitzel and it was pretty tasty.

Wednesday we went back to the KHM to look at Renaissance art, and after we were done sketching an art work (which I'm terribly proud of mine... :) ) we left and went to our favorite place in the city, Venezia. I got a salmon tortellini which was amazing, and for lunch they had free soup which was some spinach cream thing. It was so super delicious I ate mine and Meredith's and probably could've gone for another... :)

That afternoon I dyed my hair with the help of Lauren. It is now a dark red, and while I'll probably grow pretty sick of it soon, I kinda like the change now. It's different, and I already feel like I'm supposed to be a different person here anyhow, so why not change a little bit of me?

Later that night Sarah and I went to the choir rehearsal and had such a great time. Everyone there was so friendly, from Ernestos the kindly old man and this lady who reminded me of Memawmac, to girls my age Lissi and Katrin. They were all helpful in telling me where we were or what the director had said. The choir was beyond amazing too. They were excellent sight readers, since this was the first time looking at most of the music. They are even recording it in a few days for an upcoming Christmas cd! I could not believe that a group could sound this good without having to work at it for months and months at a time. After the rehearsal we went downstairs to a small get together. Apparently this is typical for Viennese, but they had breads, cheeses, meats, tomatoes, hard boiled eggs, and wine just waiting to be consumed. I hadn't eaten yet, so I got myself some meat, cheese, bread, eggs, AND some tomatoes. I actually think by the time it was over I ate an entire tomato. Yes Momma you should be proud!

But I was so impressed by this group. They were all so kind and helpful and congenial just like I expect people from churches in the States to be. We made quick friends with Katrin, a mathematics and music student at the University of Wien, and she told us she would take us to Linz (her hometown) and show us around some weekend, because it is the cultural capitol of Europe this year.

I was so glad I went last night, even though I was tired and needed to study for a test this morning. I feel like I experienced something most students on our trip won't get to witness while they're here. We were invited into a family setting and were accepted even though there was a slight language barrier. I promised the people I met though that I would learn to be more fluent with their help. Even if they make fun of me for it. :)

This morning was our first Bible test. It was all essay and I felt like it was ok in hardness. I was the first one done, which is never a good sign to me, but I read and reread my answers about 6 times and know that that was about all I could put. Crossing my fingers that I did alright!

Tonight we're studying for our first German test and resting since we stayed up pretty late last night. Tomorrow we're going to do a quick thing of laundry, clean up, and pack up all our things since the hotel wants to give away our rooms for the week we're in Italy. Understandable I guess, but it's going to be a hassle.

But Saturday (at some point, not sure what point that will be) we're leaving for Italy. I think we're only going to Florence, Rome, and Siena. I'm excited, but since I've already been there, I kind of wish I could use this time to be going somewhere else I haven't been yet. But it will be fun, hopefully there won't be as much rain as last time!

I should go actually study now... blech.

what a week!

Tuesday afternoon we FINALLY found the laundromat. And 8,20 euros later, I had clean clothes. I guess we waited two weeks to do it, but hopefully we won't have to do it as frequently after it gets cooler and we stop sweating like pigs everywhere we walk.

That night we got all gussied up and went out to the staatoper (state opera) house to see Madama Butterfly. Which is awful. Don't see it. The music was night, but the plot was senseless, and long. I think that's my problem with operas is that they take so long to say one thing. Just spit it out. Really. Apparently all the operas are sold out, but the only "seats" that are left over are the standing room only ones, which they only sell an hour before the performance. When we walked up to our seats, I was pretty amazed at how small the theater was. I felt much closer to the stage than I expected to. I was not how ever amazed at our "seats". They were like cow pens, and they herded more people into the area than there was railing, so I felt more claustrophobic than normal and they were breaking all sorts of fire codes. I was also wearing new flats, that were not nice to my heels and I could never find a comfortable position to stand in, so I was shifting every 30 seconds. Poor Amy and Leah, they probably were mad at me for standing in front of them. The only good thing was that I only spent 4 euro and I got my opera performance out of the way. I was in so much pain I couldn't even make it to gelato.

Wednesday after class we trekked out to the soccer stadium to buy tickets for that night's game (or spiel) and I found some awesome stickers that I'm excited about using in my scrapbook. Oh scrapbooking. I'm going to have a blast working on that when I get home. Thank goodness I have like a month or so at home to work on it.

Anywho, so later that night we went to the game with most of our group and had an absolute blast. The cheering section had a call for every player and every play, and we tried to play along, but I'm sure we looked really dumb. And luckily I had bought a jersey on Monday, so I fit in a little bit more than people who didn't have one. The team tied and the game was over, which I was surprised by, but Andy said that teams are given points based on whether they won, tied, or lost, so it's like ehh if they tied.

The crowd getting out was crazy, but we finally made it to the bus stop after losing most of our group and went to get some Tichy Eis since it's closing today, actually. I tried hazelnuss and kaffee, and wooo I'm mad at myself for never choosing the former before. (And yes mother, I know it's hazelnut but I didn't feel bad!!) Cari and Sarah went back for a third cone of the day, taking their total up to 9 scoops in one day. Way to go girls!

Thursday we went to the Sacred and Secular Treasury of Vienna with our CIVA class, and I must admit I'm pretty unimpressed. We went to see the sacred lance, which is what pierced Christ's side, pieces of the cross, the Imperial crown which makes the emperor believe that he is in the lineage of Christ and all the noble kings of the Bible, and the Veil of Veronica, which was said to be given to Jesus to wipe off his face as he passed carrying the cross, and which had a distinct outline of his face now.... So I guess it's all in what you choose to believe, but it was all very ehhhh to me.

Later that afternoon Bethany and I decided to go out to some parks and we chose Volksgarten and Burgarten. Volks was very formal, with lots of roses, chairs, and old people, and we weren't allowed to get on the grass. But Burg was beautiful and we were allowed to just sprawl out on the grass with anything you wanted to do. It was even soft. I wish I had a blanket here with me for those days.

One of the only things I have to complain about here in Vienna is the beggars. They will get in your face, yelling in German, and annoying you until you escape them. Or even when you say nein danke or nein deutsch... it doesn't help. They are on par with the people who just stare in the UBahn. Yes I KNOW I'm obviously an American, you don't have to stare at me because of it!

Rawr.

Anywho, today we took the afternoon off from doing anything productive and went shopping. And ummm I'm embarrassed to say that I probably shouldn't have done that. I knew I loved H&M, but today good grief, I could've bought out the entire store. But I'm proud of myself, I got 2 dresses, 1 skirt, 1 sweater, 2 shirts, and some eyeshadow (because I'm already very sick of the sparse makeup I brought) for 95 euro.

We also found this store called Monsoon and I found THE perfect formal dress. Too bad it was 235 euro and umm here in Europe. :/ Oh well. I'll find something at home.

I'm so sad I'm missing pledging. But I guess I'll get my fill of it in the spring.

This still feels like a perpetual vacation, but if it were I should've been going home by now. But I do feel like it's homier now.

Anywho, I need to be going! We have a group dinner tonight. Lets see what that brings!

Praha- czech czech czech it out! p

Sorry I haven't written in a while, homework and uneventful Vienna Visits have been consuming my life. Plus after that last post I feel like my next one should be as good or better, though free money will always rule over all. :)

I think we are definitely beginning to blend in like tourists. In the past few days we've gotten asked directions and if we were Austrians and it has been great! Although I still feel foolish trying to speak German. They teach us these phrases, but not the standard responses, so it's pretty pointless. haha.

Anyways... quick recap.

Last tuesday we went to a few parks, got followed by such a creepy man, and got a grocery store dinner.

Wednesday we went museum hopping from the Art Museum and the Natural History Museum. I really enjoyed both these museums. I felt like the art museum went on for forever, and luckily its now free to us because i need to go back and just peruse.

Thursday afternoon we got out early and were productive with writing in our journals and our presentations since it was rainy and grey out. It was also perfect napping weather :)

Friday we searched for the laundromat with no avail and finally resigned to coming back and studying for the test that was today.

Saturday we headed to Prague. I was pretty excited to be going there because it's just another country I get to add to my "Where I've Been" list on Facebook, and another place to get a patch from. :)

I'm not sure how I felt about this country. The language is absurd and the money is even crazier. When we got there our tour guide Daniel told us to get about 400 czech crowns out. I was pretty worried, because I really didn't want to have a ridiculous amount of crowns to change back into euros. I ended up taking out 600 kcs (I KNOW!! KCS!! How exciting, I have my own currency!!) but that only really totaled into about $35. And that was definitely not enough.

We had a free afternoon on Saturday so we sought out food and got pretty distracted in souvenir shops. And I do mean pretty distracted. I would like to mention everything I got, but alas the recipients read this blog, so I cannot divulge. :) Lets just say I'm happy with my creative choices.

After we finally made it to lunch, Bethany and I split a yummy four cheese pizza and were astounded that the check for 6 people was over 1400 crowns. I never got used to seeing things being over a hundred the whole time we were there. My group made it to St Wenceslas square where there was a huge market going on, and I got more wonderful things. I could definitely tell that Prague was more touristy, practically everyone spoke English and was very helpful when they could be. Maybe a bit pushy, but always kind. We finally made our way to Charles Bridge, because that was about all we knew about Prague. (seriously we should have done more research before we left). The bridge was under construction and was so full it was pushing my claustrophobia levels almost to their breaking point. But I walked quickly with a firm hand on my bag the whole time.

I got several other things that I'm mighty proud of on that bridge and cannot WAIT for Christmas to come so I can give them to their respective owners. I reallllly think to give is better to receive. It gives me such a better feeling inside. :)

anywho, dinner was gelato, as it is many nights and we headed back to our meeting point to go to the hotel. and umm that hotel was just weird. i felt like i was in an asian las vegas. i'm pretty sure i saw more asians this weekend than i have in my entire life. But the hotel had a casino, a restaurant, a bowling alley, swimming pool, spa, and exercise room but guess what? Everything cost something, so a few girls wound up just sitting around and talking over fantas and cappys. I think Saturday night was definitely the lowest I've felt on this trip so far. I felt like wallpaper, alone and unused, something thats always there and never really looked at. It was the worst I've felt in a very long time.

But I think God needed me to feel that I wasn't alone because he sent a pack of 9 drunk very blonde teenagers to sit beneath my hotel window and sing loudly. It caused me to get up to possibly tell them to be quiet, but as I became conscience enough to get up they started "All Praises Be" in perfect harmony which is one of my absolute favorite 4 part hymns. I smiled and when I finally got up I watched them march away (yes nazi style), and they never returned. It was bizarre but perhaps they were really sent from God to renew my heart and mind.

Sunday morning I didn't feel that much better, but was a little helped by the very informative tour we went on. Ava, our tour guide was really cute, and I was very surprised to learn that up until 1918 which was when Czechloslovakia got their independence they all spoke German and after that they all spoke Czech. I mean how does an entire nation just switch languages!?

But after she let us go, a few of us just wanted food, so we found this cute cafe that looked like it belonged in the twenties. Our waiter was hysterical and so friendly, and I was sad that we had just found it the last day we were there, because it was delish. :) I got chicken crepes with creme of mushroom on top and it really reminded me of Front Porch, which made me extremely happy, it was a little slice of home again. As we were walking back to meet our group again I found fudge and Bethany and Meghan found this really delicious bread round thing that was coated in cinnamon and sugar at some festival going on. That's what I've been loving about Europe. There is a festival on just about every weekend full of yummy food and fascinating sights.

We were all anxious to get back home though. I have begun to recognize German, and for that I'm very thankful. Even though I can't speak it or really understand it, I feel more comfortable with it. Or more comfortable than I was with the crazy mash up of letters and symbols that is the Czech language.

And what was even more comforting was the little rest area we found on the Austria/Czech border. It was called Excalibur and it was crazy. Totally themed in dragons and Merlin and warrior butch women, I really never stopped laughing at what they decided was ok to use in their theming....

I think the best part of the trip though was the devo on the bus. Singing always puts me in a better mood. It's where I feel God the most, and I needed Him to create a new spirit within me so badly. I sang full heartedly, realizing that I hadn't really sang in two weeks. I instantly felt better and just praised Him for giving me the power of song.

We made it home and I felt instantly at home. Weird that you can already begin to miss something after 10 days of "living" there.

Today we tried to work out our fall break, and tentatively we are going to Zurich-Geneva-Barcelona-Paris-Brussels and then back home. Four countries sounds pretty good right?

But I've got to head to bed, didn't get much sleep the past two nights. Love you all!

Ich Liebe Wien.

Saturday we went shopping with our small groups at Millenium City which was this huge complex on the outskirts of town. I wasn't too impressed. It was a smelly mall that didn't really have many interesting stores except for H&M and I was (and am still) very apprehensive about spending money at all. I doubt I'd go back, except that it DID have a movie theater, so I may have to be traveling all the way out there for New Moon or something as equally impressive ;)

That afternoon we went to the Belvedere. I think I was more impressed by this place than even the Schonnbrunn because the view of the city was beyond believable. I felt like I was looking at one of those Phil Ponder pictures where you can see every individual important rooftop of a city. Again we didn't go into anything there, but it's a place I'm going to make it back to. I really want to see the museums and the orangery, because that just sounds fun.

Later that night we went to Prater, which is the amusement park in Vienna. We looked around a little bit and then got this guy to take our picture but he tried to walk off with it and everyone else knew he was kidding but I about had a heart attack.

We went to get dinner, and we were giant fatties and got these things called "langos" which is basically just a fried piece of bread slathered in butter and garlic. But boy was that thing delicious. I would go back there just for one of those.

We went and rode the "LARGEST FERRISWHEEL IN THE WORLD" for Meredith, even though it was 7,50. And that was even the student discount price. :/ But it was worth it. We went up when all the lights were coming on, and we had really amazing scenes of the city. There was this family in the compartment with us who had a really cute set of twin boys who were running to the opposite sides to make the bucket tip. The family seemed really nice and we were surprised to find that they were from Vienna when we asked where they were from. They even took several pictures of us with their sons. Which was weird....

We found our first patch there, and hopefully we'll be able to collect several more as we go to different countries.

Sunday morning we went to mass at Stephansdom. It was glorious inside. I felt like I was in the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Unfortunately I was stuck behind a column for the actual service, but we were right beside the choir and the orchestra and I was perfectly fine with it. They were spectacular. I could have listened to them all day long. And they had this glorious french horn. Sigh. Being in Vienna is making me want to be in band again.

After mass we went through the Hapsburg Complex and stumbled upon the Harvest Festival. It was like a giant Jazz Fest and I loved it. However, I couldn't understand what any booth was selling so we all stuck with giant hot dogs. It was really tasty, though the bread was really crunchy so all I ate was the meat. We got some gelato after that. I kind of feel like I've over done the gelato already. It just doesn't even sound appetizing anymore. :/

We then headed to Kahlensburg, which was atop a mountain. After catching two subways and a bus we made it to the top. This was the height of wine country. It was absolutely gorgeous. You could see for miles. Herr McVey even told us we could see to Hungary. This was definitely the upside to the day, because later on they told us we were hiking down the mountain. Whew. What a hike. The lesson learned yesterday is never stop for grape pictures, because you WILL get lost.

Eleven of us had done so, and by the time we were on our way again we had completely lost the group. We were supposed to have a devo in a vineyard, but we never saw anyone again. So not know what else to do, we just kept on walking. We walked for about an hour and a half until we found something that could lead us back into the city which just happened to be a street car. I found it a very neat way to travel. We got back to the Ubahn and finally made our way back home. After an exhausting afternoon we were ready for some food so we stopped at Venezia again for some pizza. And what an interesting dinner conversation that was. Oh well, bonding time I guess!

Today we started classes. I think they seem like they are going to be pretty fun. I love our German teacher even if he is a wee bit intimidating. I still don't think some of the things he's saying sound any different, and that might be a problem. :/ But humanities is still going well, and I'm excited about Wednesday when we get to get out of the class room and go to the Natural History museum.

After class we came back to eat lunch and everyone had completely disappeared. I can't wait to get cell phones so we can call each other. We went to La Favorita and I got tortellini quatro formaggi and it was soooo delicious. We sat there trying to decide what to do in the afternoon and finally decided upon Rathaus.

Meredith opted out of going with us because she said she had a lot to catch up on (which I do too, I can't believe how much I feel like I'm already behind!!) so Bethany, Laura, and I went out to check it out. We made it to the Rathaus stop and as soon as we made it up the steps of the Ubahn we were swarmed by these huge black dogs that looked like bears! They didn't have a leash on but we looked around and their owner was standing there watching them. Unfortunately not well enough because they attacked this other dog that was walking by with his master on a leash. It was really sad and we all almost started crying. Thus the slight problem of allowing dogs anywhere.

We finally made it to the Rathaus, which was right in front of us, but we were dumb and couldn't figure it out. We stopped in on of the courtyards and found benches that we could sit and sketch on. The building was really neat, I loved the architecture of it. My drawing is awful, but who ever said I was an artist?

When we were done with that, we decided to check out the front facade, since it's what the Rathaus is recognized for. As soon as we turned the corner we saw the circus. Yes a circus. Just sitting in front of this historic building. And it was an actual big top. Not like something in the states that is in an arena or event center. I was instantly dying to go.

While we were admiring the front, we saw these couples on segways. We heard them talking in english so I was smiling at them because the men (who were like 50) were just going around doing figure 8s not even listening to the guide. We kept walking but when we made it to the street, they came up behind us and went to a little sweets cart that was sitting there. I was still laughing at the men because they were obviously having a great time, and when they got some food I asked one of the ladies what was in what she was eating, because it looked wonderful. She offered us some and told us to take the rest of the bag. They realized we were from America as well and started asking us where we were from. They were from Phoenix and I told them I had grandparents there. One of the men whips out a business card and hands it to me. He said "Tell your grandma to come in, I'll give her a free bottle of perfume." (So Memaw or Kristy if you are reading this, you better cash in on this, this place looked SWANKY.)

I looked down at the card and it said Fine Jewelers. Hmm he had to be rich.... Well we started talking to him about the segway tour and they were all just going on and on about how much they loved it and how much they were having fun. We asked them how much it cost and they were like hmmm I dunno! So we asked the lady for a brochure and it was 70 euro. We were all standing there like Dang that's a lot of money. So then the man whips out his money clip and hands me $300. He was like here, go do it! It's such an awesome tour! And then speeds away. So we are all kinda hoping that this whole "we're not allowed to ride motorized vehicles" rule doesn't apply to segways...

After that I got this huge cannoli for 2,20 and we went on our way. We checked out the 2nd Hand store, but didn't find much except for traditional wear that we wanted, but it was pretty expensive...

Now we've been sitting in our beds for a few hours just reading, watching movies, and surfing the net.

Also while we were shopping, I learned that I could not live well in this country because they hardly have any size ten shoes. And I need my shoes!! ;)

But I do know one thing.

I Love Vienna. :)

kebaps, melange, and citron. mmmm

I feel like I have failed at a lot of stuff here so far. Last night was a fail at getting food for Laura, our trying to spreken ze deutsch, and trying to get the check. We were very sad. This morning I failed at working the shower correctly so our entire bathroom floor was flooded. Sorry pants, guess I'm gonna have to wash you now. Great. Oh and then I couldn't open my shampoo bottle... (just used a squirt of Mere's, thanks by the way ;) )

But the day got tremendously better. Breakfast was amazing, and after bandaging my pinky toe and switching to my New Balances my feet were close to feeling brand new. We walked back to school for presentations and what not and then headed to the Naschmarkt for lunch. Meredith, Bethany, Laura, and I ate at a kebap place. The guy was really friendly, so I think we felt bad for walking away after he gave us free samples. But I'm glad we stayed. A huge meal for 3,90 (however the crap you do the euro sign). Which was awesome. It made me feel better about spending 25 later. ha. Which reminds me that I need to visit an ATM soon.

We took the Ubahn down to Schonnbronn Palace afterwards and walked around the grounds. We're definitely taking Cari back soon. I want to take a tour inside and visit the zoo and the hill. It was so beautiful there, I can put up pictures in a few minutes if you want to check them out. :)

We were all pretty worn out still so we went back to the hotel and stopped at BIPA (which is amazing. Basically like an all girls Walgreens) and got shampoo conditioner and toothpaste. And then I stopped by Anker because I wanted a coffee and a pastry. Both were very very tasty.

We came back and just relaxed for a bit and then went back down to meet with our groups for dinner. My group (Kirk, Rachel, Leah, Meredith, and I) went to Venezia just up the street and down a block for some pizza. This dinner was quite possibly the best meal so far. Huge personal pizza (very shareable though, I'll remember that for the next time) and the best waiter. His name was Ali, and we will be visiting his lovely demeanor again. :)

We went to Tichy Eis (pronounced Tiki Ice) after for some gelato. I got citron and it was wonderful. I think I liked Venice's better, but this was nice as well. I was a little sketched out by the rats wondering around the park by it though.

Our Ubahn back to the hotel was very interesting. Meredith was basically stared down by this man while we were waiting for the train, and even when we moved further down the train he followed us, and when we sat by people he just sat on the opposite side. Luckily he didn't follow us when we got off though, because I was really worried about him finding out where we were staying.

I think I'm going to start a list of things I find cool/different/or just interesting about Vienna or Europe in general.

For today: There are dogs everywhere. In restaurants, outside of stores, in stores, with muzzles, without muzzles, leashes, no leashes. And then it astounds me that they are all so well behaved. They are plastered to their master's side like they have belonged there all along. I wish it were like this in America. Where no one had to worry about their dogs being too loud or getting into anything. They just know it's like a normal day.

Oh and I abhor smoking. Whether it be smokeless or not. It's nasty. Smells bad, and people just look stupid doing it. I don't and will never see the point in doing something that degrading to your system.

favorite conversation for the day (after I put in my 50 cents to go potty only to see it ONLY accepted 50 cent pieces and not any others):

B- Why don't you go on the grass like that guy earlier?

K-Because I don't have anything to aim with.

L- I could let you borrow mine.

perhaps you should've just been there. :)

guten nacht!

28 hours and counting.

Wow. What a weird first day. I have never ever ever walked that much, and my head and my left pinky toe are mad at me for not breaking in my shoes better. Sigh but where to start?

Yesterday morning was emotional enough. I was upset, nervous, anxious, flipping excited, and crazy sad to be leaving. I was stressed that my ticket wasn't in an obvious spot, that my bag was going to be over weight, and that I was going to forget one thing. Just one tiny thing that would ultimately for-ruin the entire trip for me (ex. no iPod on the Winter Tour last January). But I made it to the airport with everything packed right and just one emotional break down in the car ride there. I saw my friends and instantly I was fully excited. Then one prayer and a glance at all the mothers and I was an emotional basket case again. Was I really doing this? Going over seas for three whole months without the ones I love the most in the world? Why? What would ever possess me to do this?

But then I remembered that every single person I had talked to previously told me that this was one of the most favorite things they had ever done. And others had said it was the one thing that they missed out on in college. So I talked myself up and got onto a plane. Charlotte was fine, I got to know the Swanns a bit better. To Munich not so much. I swear I think I saw every kind of European stereotype on that plane.

There was the big hairy man with the thick black unibrow, the cute old man in his fedora and suit from Romania, the loud fat German ladies (who fortunately sat behind me, so every time they got up they pulled me back for leverage), and the well dressed and well oiled Italian men. I even had a little ray of sunshine sitting beside me who threw a fit because she didn't want to sit beside me, and she couldn't understand why her Nana and Mom were making her do so. Oh she also threw some punches in her sleep. And to top it off since my last name so awesomely starts with a "W" I get to sit in the back, with no one from our group around me. Mmmm planes.

To Vienna wasn't much better. Squished by the window and a large German man (who smelled pretty good) named Margarita Maqua (doesn't sound German does it?) and was told I couldn't eat the cookie because it had coconut in it. So then I tried to give it away to old Maggie, but he just wouldn't take it. Oh well, the seat got a treat.

But we got here. And it's beautiful. And not what I was expecting. And I love our room. And the weather. And the streets. And I'm ready to go to sleep, but I know we have to cram one more meal in before I get to. Sigh. Dang jet lag.

:)