Back in the good ol' U.S. of A.

Well, I'm back in California!

sorry I havent been writing... I have been without internet for the past week...

The end of last week was a little hectic and very chilly. Friday morning I woke up in Valencia to rain and freezing temperatures to make it to the airport for my flight to Milan. It has been cold and snowing in all of Europe and most flights and trains were either delayed or cancelled for a couple days. It is like Europe doesnt know what to do with the recent winter weather which they have not experienced in a long time. I finally made it to Bern, Switzerland on friday night at 11:30, only 3 hours past my original arrival time. My flight was late and the train was also a little delayed. I had to make an unexpected stop in Brig, Switzerland to switch trains, but was very happy to do so. I was surrounded by the Alps... The only thing lighting the station was the full moon and the sky full of stars. I stood there, in the middle of a foreign land, with tears in my eyes, warmth in my heart, and soaked in the surrounding landscape which I am positive I will never experience again in my life.

Switzerland was beautiful. Bern, the capital, was a quiet, quaint, little city that filled every expectation I had of the country. I was blown away by its beauty. I stayed on the main little street in Bern, where right outside the door were cobble stones, chocolate stores, cafes, markets, art stores and cathedrals... We were able to hear the bells peacefully ring every hour.. During the days we mainly just walked around the streets and sat in cafes. It was snowy and really cold, but the warmth of the people and the places were enough to make it one of my favorite destinations on the trip.

I had to board the train on Tuesday morning at 6am to make it to Frankfurt, Germany in order to catch my flight back home. I arrived in San Francisco around 4pm on Tuesday and was welcomed by 70 degree temperatures and sunshine... along with my mother and my little Poncho. From the moment the captain came on to announce our initial decend into SFO, I had a smile from ear to ear and tears of joy to finally be with my family again.

Although I am excited to be back, last night brought a very restless sleep. All I could think about were the amazing memories that I have made over the past month. My european adventure will be in my thoughts and in my heart for the rest of my life.

I am already counting the days to the moment when I step back onto European land, and get to experience more moments that will continue to create the person I am...

Europe 2008-2009: one of the best months in this girls life.

a lifetime of memories...

Status: Happy… and sad.
I honestly can’t believe it has almost been a month already.

We are currently in Valencia, Spain. We arrived yesterday morning by train and were greeted by Fran. Fran is a nice Spanish boy who Megan became friends with by studying in Denmark.

The last couple of days in Barcelona were a lot of fun. Saturday night we went to see #1 FC Barcelona play Mallorca. The stadium was unbelievable. It is actually the largest soccer stadium in Europe, so I was told. Sometimes it is hard to believe everything you hear because Europeans are so patriotic. Anyways, they easily won 3-1. It was quite funny, at the beginning of the game when both teams came onto the field to warm up, the crowd started whistling. Melanie and I figured that it was for Barcelona, and decided to whistle along. I don’t think it was until 10 minutes into the game that we realized, here in Spain, whistling is a bad thing. Throughout the game were cheering for Mallorca, and did not even realize it.

After the match, we decided to grab some Tapas by our hostel. They were mmm mmm good! I found the one thing I may miss the most about this trip: Papas Bravas and the Spanish Tortilla. They are both so delicious.

The days following the game were spent just exploring Barcelona; another trip to Gaudi Park, a visit to the Segrada Familia, some shopping, a lot of wine, and finally the 3 kings parade.
Valencia is like a whole new world compared to Barca. It is 3 hours south and a smaller, more modern, coastal city. I prefer to be here in Valencia because it is much less overwhelming, although, no one speaks English! Hopefully I don’t bring my habit of pointing to what I want back to the states with me.
Today we decided to walk around the city and do a little shopping. Yesterday was the 3 King’s holiday here in Spain, which is like their Christmas. So today was similar to black Friday in the states. Everything was at least 50% off, and people crowded the streets everywhere. Tomorrow will likely be the same.

Friday afternoon I am leaving for Switzerland. I am really excited, but a little sad because that is my final destination on this crazy adventure! Unfortunately, in a week from now reality must set in.

progress...

Red=Where Ive been

Green=Where Im going...

a few more photos....

Barcelona..

Happy 2009!!

Here we are in Barcelona, and it’s finally warm out! It has been in the 50s with some sunshine during the day. We arrived on Tuesday around 4pm and took the metro to our hostel. We were pleasantly surprised to find that our hostel is really nice. It is on the main shopping street in Barcelona and our room has a balcony that looks out onto it. We were told by some locals, and friends of Megan, that this is the best street in the city and we are really lucky to be here. We have a private room, but share a bathroom and kitchen. The shower is surprisingly really nice and really clean! Finally!

Yesterday we decided to go see Gaudi’s park. At the top there is a view of all of Barcelona. What an enormous city! We also walked around and saw the houses he designed. They are really unique and beautiful.

Last night was…. Interesting to say the least. We started the night with 4 bottles of champagne. Around 11 we all decided to head out to the Torre Agbar where we participated in Capanadas, which is a tradition when you eat 12 grapes in the last 12 seconds of 2008. It was really fun, until we discovered that our grapes had seeds in them… Hopefully we will still have good luck in 2009. After midnight we went to the Plaza Royale and it was insane!!! There was glass everywhere from people throwing champagne bottles at midnight, people selling alcohol and drugs on the streets, and madness everywhere. (here is a picture of me in the middle of all the glass, its kind of hard to tell)We decided we needed to get off the streets once a guy tried to grab Melanies purse out of her hand, and 20 euros from Megan. From there we went to a disco where people were dancing on the bar, on the tables, and celebrating 2009 in any way possible! Barcelona has had the craziest nightlife of any city we’ve been so far.
Today, since we got home at 6am, we woke up at 5pm. We went to dinner and just came back to our room. We all definitely needed the rest!

Upcoming events:

Tomorrow- visit Sagrada familia, which is the church designed by Gaudi. Saturday- Barcelona vs. Mallorca! Barcelona is currently #1 in the Spanish League. Sunday- the Picasso museum.