~Travels Through Europe~

Hi everyone! Wow, it has been a crazy but amazing 11 days. I met up in Madrid with Amanda and Peter and my friend Alison and we hit the ground running. We went to Madrid, Barcelona, Florence, Lucca, Bologna, Munich, Paris, and now I am back in Madrid. There are so many stories to tell… I might have to do two posts. I am going to try to highlight the biggest thing in each city. Here we go…

Madrid. Well, I was so very excited to see Amanda and Peter and Alison and be able to speak English. They immediately caught on to my newly found Spanish accent. They made fun of my “uhms” and “vale” but then had fun with me being able to somewhat speak the language. They picked up keywords very quickly. Well--highlight of Madrid was staying up until 6am for the second night in a row because Alison and I wanted to experience the clubs in Madrid. We had such a good time and met some really cool people. I was able to speak all night to them in Spanish so that was super fun for me! The next night was equally fun because we all went to a rooftop bar and got a whole bunch of different tapas and pinchos (similar to small appetizers). Amanda named the waiter “Massimo” and decided that she wanted him to be my husband. He was very nice and helped us with our food. He spoke broken English because he studied in Australia for six months. Maybe there was something in her wine, because it is very unlike Amanda to encourage me to talk to a boy let alone ask him to marry me…

All right, next city. Barcelona. Now let me just say I loved Barcelona, especially compared to Madrid. It just had a lot to offer and was really pretty. We had “el menú del día” there where Amanda, Peter, and Alison got to try it and they loved it. The bridge over the water was pretty and we got to see La Rambla which is similar to the 16th street mall in Denver. However, it is also where the terrorist attack happened and so there were tons of flowers and candles and it was both scary and sad to think of what took place there. Since we are kinda on a sad note already, let me tell you about another heartbreaking incident (but on more of a lighter and less meaningful note). So, because Amanda and Peter won’t be with me for my 21st birthday, they wanted to do something special for me. I was in need of some comfy walking sandals since it was so hot and we were doing a ton of walking. Well, there was a mall by the water in Barcelona. We walked in, I found a shoe store, found the perfect (and I mean perfect) shoes. They were the right size, right style, perfect color, everything. Amanda and Peter bought them for me and then we went to another store and Alison and I went crazy trying on shirts and dresses. I took all my stuff into the fitting room, tried on something, and stepped out to show Amanda and Alison. I finally found a shirt that I really liked and as Alison and I were in the checkout line, I realized I was missing a bag...my shoe bag!! I ran back to the fitting room and someone was in it. I waited impatiently for the person to come out and in the meantime, asked the person working about them. He asked the front but no one had seen them. As the person came out, to my horrible dismay, it was empty. My shoes were gone. I searched all over the store but they said Barcelona is known for petty theft and I had become a victim of it. Less than an hour after they were bought, they were gone. I went back to the shoe store to try to buy another pair but that had been the last pair. I am still so sad about it. Amanda, Peter, and I decided to have a memorial service for my shoes eventually. So that definitely put a damper on Barcelona. That and the fact that the language is so hard to understand because it is NOT Spanish. They speak Catalan--ugh! Another language to try to understand… really though, I did enjoy Barcelona even if it doesn’t seem like it.

Florence. Well, it was very hot and we didn’t stay overnight in Florence so we had our backpacks the entire day. Oh, and I forgot to mention. So Amanda and Peter and Alison only brought backpacks. Well, I wasn’t quite prepared to literally backpack through Europe because I had a school backpack but definitely not one meant for clothes and stuff. There was too much on my mind a month ago when I was packing--I didn’t think to bring a travel backpack. I made do with the one I had, but it was definitely challenging so I might have been a little cranky at times… Anyway, our flight from Barcelona to Florence was at 6am so we decided to stay up all night before. In Barcelona, we had a rooftop in our airbnb (which was fantastic by the way) and so we just sat up there until 2am and then we headed to the airport. Let me tell you, I have pulled way too many all-nighters in the past 11 days. So, we were also exhausted when we reached Florence but where we were, there was so much to see. There was gelado everywhere--it was like heaven! We also ate at this super delicious restaurant and ordered risotto which I could eat, yay! We then made our way to the train station and headed to Lucca. Oh! And I found some real Italian leather, red sandals in Florence. They won’t replace the hole in my heart from the other shoes but these ones are actually super adorable and comfy and they look European, so I love them.

Lucca is known as the walled city. We had a very spacious place and it was a great location. Really, Amanda did amazing in her planning because they were all great locations. This place was a little bit more low key which was a nice change of pace. We found a supermarket (like we did in every city, let me tell you) and also toured pretty much the entire town. The wall was three miles around, we figured. So it was a very cute town. Highlight of this city was all the gluten free Italian food! I had gluten free pizza one night and gluten free pasta the next. It was all very delicious. Amanda was thriving in her Italian cities since she had a special bond with Italy due to her studying abroad in Italy exactly seven years ago. This is where we caught up on all our sleep.

Bologna. This was probably my favorite city in Italy. It was just full of shops and cool places. We had an awesome airbnb and there were so many places to eat and so many supermarkets (I think I actually have an obsession with supermarkets…). Oh, and the red wine--mm delicious. It was so good! I was sad because Alison left for her program in Scotland from Bologna, but I was so happy she was with us as long as she was. We had such an amazing time! This was a very short trip so I don’t have a lot to say about Bologna.

Then Munich. Well, the train ride was interesting. It was six hours and we had our tickets, but no seat numbers. Well, people got on the train and kept taking the seats we were sitting in. We were so confused until we found out, I guess they sell tickets that allow you access on the train, and then they sell more expensive tickets that guarantee you a seat--but you have to book them six months in advance. This was all news to us so that was fun playing musical chairs for six hours. Poor Peter had to stand for four of the six hours. Also, there was only one working bathroom in the entire train...that does not work. Well, we finally made it and I found I really enjoyed Munich. I love Germany! The people are so nice and we just had such a pleasant time. Then, here comes the best part. We got to visit Neuschwanstein Castle!!! In case you don’t know, it is one of the most famous castles in Europe and it is the castle that the Disney castle is based off of. We took a bus to the little town and--can I just tell you--it was the most amazing experience ever. I mean I have been seeing some pretty amazing stuff but there was nothing like this castle and the town. Amanda and I were two princesses in our fairy world. It was rainy and chilly and we had no warm clothes but I had a rain jacket so we made do. It actually turned out to be the perfect weather because we hiked up the hill to the castle and toured it and the walk was long, but kept us very warm. It was all so beautiful. You will see many, many pictures of it when I post my pictures because there were just so many beautiful parts to see. The castle inside was very cool and had so much history to it, so that was amazing to tour as well. Amanda and Peter did this for me also as my 21st birthday present. Aren’t they incredible? Who else can say that for their 21st birthday, they received a ticket to a castle in one of the most beautiful places in the world? I’m spoiled for sure. Everything about that day was perfect.

Well, last but not least. Paris. Okay, don’t get me wrong Paris is great. It was just SO much different than what I was expecting. First of all, I didn’t see the Eiffel tower for forever and I couldn’t believe that I was missing it. I expected it to be huge, but I finally figured out that it’s my perception of Paris that was skewed. I thought everything revolved around the Eiffel tower, but actually it is located a little far from everything else. Paris is also MASSIVE and I just wasn’t expecting that. We walked--wait for it--35,000 steps yesterday (which equals over 15 miles, in case you were wondering). Amanda and Peter are crazy, but also I am very proud. We ended up seeing a lot of different places, enjoying crepes and macchiatos, and getting a feel for how people live in Paris. MY FAVORITE PART = WE GOT CHIPOTLE. I have been craving chipotle for over a month and I was finally satisfied. I know; I’m lame. I could not resist knowing it was within my grasp.

I am sure there are many details I missed, but at least this gives an overall summary of the biggest things that came to mind of our travels in Europe. I have decided it would be easiest to post pictures on facebook since we took a bazillion, so that’s where the photos will be. I am now in Madrid and have officially started my Sevilla program. We are in Madrid until tomorrow night where we will then go to Toledo and then we are off to Sevilla. Pray for me as it is supposed to be 100 degrees in Sevilla………….yeah. Well, thanks for reading and I hope and pray all is well with all of you. Adios for now and I’ll talk to you guys soon!