Sike- I had to rub in the ‘cliff’ jumping.

I actually went twice. Once while the Fs and locals watched… and another time completely by myself while only other tourists watched (I traveled to the Liguarian Coast by myself for one night so I really had no other choice and this ledge looked to jump-off-able, plus I knew so many people would be watching the extremely white girl jump that they could help if needed)

Here are the pics. The first is from Livorno on the Med (I mentioned already) and the next is from the 4th of the Cinque Terre on the Liguria Sea. I could only take the picture of the scene and not the actual jump, but hopefully you can picture it.

Now that is all. I will see you stateside soon. I visit Kasi’s first father tomorrow before my flight across the pond. I even get to watch a German futball game with him!

All 26 found!

S, A dragon enhanced light in Volterra. Volterra was my favorite Tuscan city besides the little town we stayed in. It had many fun, interesting little ‘touches’ like this dragon all over the city.

T- I really wanted to find my T in Volterra because of Twilight (you see, it begins with a T). I know what you’re thinking and that is completely fine with me! I’m pretty excited that I have not only seen Forks but also Volterra. For most of you out there that have no idea what I’m talking about, it’s ok. You either get it or you don’t. And if you get it, you like it or you don’t. I get it and like it. So with out anymore delay…

T is for Twilight in volTerra. Like I said before Volterra, the Alabaster City, was my favorite Tuscan city and I thought it was pretty interesting to see these ‘old school’ (in American terms) TV antennas all over the sky line. Interesting because ‘we’ think that might be ugly as tourists, but it shows that this city is still lived in and is not a tourist destination to many. It also proves my point that it will take a very long time before high definition takes over the world.

U and V – these two are both staged, but I had to give tribute to the pizza and wine. In case you can’t find the U, it’s the glass (the nice red wine glasses were already being used by other tenants, but i bet you get the point). For those of you wine experts out there, did you notice the rooster label? Fireball actually bought this bottle, but I helped drink it. It is sitting on the table where we spent many hours outside our apartment overlooking the olive grove and vineyard.

This V was taken from my first meal in Italy and it turned out to be one of my favorite. I ate at this same place two more times!

W – from the Duomo of Siena, the most amazing cathedral I saw. Period. I hope to write an entire update on my day in Siena. We were in Siena during the time of the Palio, a famous horse race that has been a tradition for hundreds of years.

X – as seen on the trail between the Cinque Terre (‘five cities’ in Italian).

If you have really good eyes, the same trail from the same angle is seen in the following picture. Amazing scene, huh?

Y – a Statue outside the Archaeological Museum of Tuscany in Castellina in Chianti, the little town we stayed in.

Z – On the Albatros I, a ferry I took to access Isola Palmeria from mainland Italy in the Ligurian Sea.

And now I know my ABCs, next time won’t you sing (dance, travel, laugh, cry) with me.

Due to time constraints and internet access, this will be my last update in this time zone. I will write a few more when I get home about my day in Siena, Cinque Terre, etc. I will see you soon!

A small update from Italy

I decided to take a day trip by myself outside of Tuscany and the hotel has free internet! I will not write long because there is much to see, nor will I post any pics!

Here are some facts of my Italian/Tuscan adventure so far.

I went cliff jumping in the Mediteranean. Technically, it was just a tall jumping point (just slightly bigger than the top of Mountain Gravel for those of you lucky enough to understand that reference)... but I will consider it cliff jumping because everyone around me was local and even my friends did not do it with me... so that adds about 20m to the jump. And it was in the Med Sea which is extra bonus points. One of the best experiences so far.

I know that blowing bubbles is an international language. I made friends for life because I entertained a French toddler that was staying next door in our Tuscan apartment with bubble solution and a bubble wand.

Nav was the way to go in Tuscany. My Auburn friend in NB was right, the streets are tiny and very (very) windy and hilly. I have had some of the best runs of my life due to the scenery and topography.

There are no vampires, that I saw at least, in Volterra.... damn.

I eat gelato at least once a day.

Americans eat more pizza than Italians and I do not understand why because it is leaps-and-bounds better here. (OK OK, there was one spot near the Brooklyn Bridge that is comparible)

I have yet to find olives in olive oil in cans, so my 'souvineres' had to change. Do not worry Roomy, I think you will still like it.

I want a Vespa even more than before.

Lightning, a Hamsterville friend, told me about Cinque Terre so that is where I am currently. I have not seen any of them yet but I am about to catch a train.

Ciao

This just in

We are not bringing a computer with us to Italy. If I get a little internet time, I hope to write something, but I will not be posting any pics. I will have S-Z when I get back to Germany, then I only have a few days until I fly home. "See" you next week!

Stinky cheese man

No one caught that I didn’t actually post a P with my last update, including me. I am actually glad about this because the P I was going to use is subpar to the one I took today.

This is pic is self explanatory once you know the P is the flag. It was actually pretty comical. We looked for Karl Marx house for quite a while. We finally asked a shopowner and she basically just pointed 3 doors down and to this flag. Ha. If it was a snake it would have bitten us just about 4 times.

Q- taken in a German Beer Garden where I drank my new favorite drink: a rattle snake. YUM! Everyone please plan on drinking one with me because the ingredients are found all over the US as well.

R – I know I know, this is not very interesting but I wanted to document my favorite place in Luxemburg (where we went instead of Holland, though we hope to go to Holland after Italy). This was taken in a very cute and very yummy little café in the Neideranven district. Next door is where I purchased the most rank cheese I have ever smelled. It took us about 15 minutes to realize where the smell was coming from. O. M. G. Multiply stankass socks to the 32nd power and you might understand. I think after this experience with ‘fine’ French cheese has proven that I need to enter in the shallow and maybe swim very (very very) slowly to the ‘fine’ cheese deep end. I have been told it’s an acquired taste.

That is about it. We are relaxing, organizing and packing for Italy. We leave tomorrow!

Oh yes- I have bought a really cute pair of pants that I love even more because they are a size 2! I love European sizing, it doesn’t remind me that I won’t be able to fit into my jeans when I return. J I hope to be able to update from Italy, but I make no promises.

You can take the girl out of NB but you can’t take NB out of the girl

Today was a great Germarkable day (I do like melting words together, don’t I?). We were planning on taking a boat tour to see castles from the Rhine but we woke up to typical Hamsterville fall weather: misty, foggish, and chilly. Terrible weather to view distant structures! Fireball decided it would be a good day to take a historical tour of the town she currently lives in and also visit our hometown’s origin: Braunfels, Germany.

This is one pronoun I can not ignore. In 1845 Prince Carl Solms from Braunfels, Germany founded New Braunfels, Texas and I am one of many river-rats that have visited the mothership. It was everything I pictured and more! Braunfels is a quaint little German town nestled in a region that looks exactly like the Texas Hill Country. I even had my first German made apple strudel here! Lecker!

Then it was time to tour the Castle. The people responsible for the tour are not the biggest fans of English-only-speakers so I had many watchful eyes on me, but I managed to ‘steal’ two quick pictures from inside the castle. Please note that I risked loosing my hand or camera for this picture and I just love it. Out of all the armor, posh antique furniture, and famous art, I decided to take a picture of the stained glass window that had SOLMS and the family crest. I also took a picture of Carl himself (but that is not making the blog, just the private memory album).

Then we went to a different town for a celebration, though I have not figured out what it honored. Let’s just say it was the closest thing I have had to Wurstfest (ten day salute to sausage festival in New Braunfels every November) in over 5 years. It was amazing. Potatoes pancakes, bratwurst and beer… what more could a girl ask for? Oh yes, I know! An amazing fireworks show over the Rhine with a castle and ships all around. Could this day get any better? Yep- while the fireworks went off, the band played La-la-la-la-bomba, and Glory-glory-halleluiah (his truth is marching on…).

Tomorrow we’re taking a day trip to Holland then we're off to Italy midweek. I have had issues uploading pics and I'm not sure of the internet availability in Italy (FYI).

Elle Emin Opee

L
This one is ‘left over’ from Prague and is the West Entrance to St. Charles’ Bridge.

M
Is found in the ceiling of a church in Andernach, the town Fireball lives in. The church was built in the mid 1200s. It is the first church I have seen the inside of in Europe. One of F’s friends attends here (thus the reason I thought it was ok to walk in since the friend was with us). There is another story of this same woman in ‘O’.

N
When I think of Germany, I picture fachwerk houses. Fachwerk is constructional design of a house that is from medial times with cross word work This N was found in the main center of Braunfels, Germany. An entire update will be dedicated to this town. Check back later.

O
One of Fireball’s good friends is a direct descendant of one of the oldest families in Andernach (second oldest town in Germany). The shop she owns has been in her family for over 300 years and is the oldest store of its kind in Germany. She even lives in the castle’s wall! Her mother is the last candle-master in Germany (though the shop doesn’t sell candles, which I find odd). This O is the front door to the house she lived in as a girl and was also the storefront’s door for many (many) years. Even though I have found many O’s, I thought this one had a good story.

Humph

Even though I have some really great stories from Prague, I only have one that was caught on digital film. I am also hoping the humor of the situation will be enhanced by the language barrier.
GP is actually pretty good at Czech in everyday situations. He knows how to order almost anything on the menu, he understands the mass transit system and he can drink a lot of beer (very important when in the Czech Republic and is its own language of sorts). Before this day, his only inspiration for learning anymore Czech was to talk/flirt with the women (and let’s just say, they are beautiful and that is an understatement. W.O.W.) After this day, he might also want to learn some estuarine words as well.

The day started like any other in Prague: waking up with just enough time to go to lunch with friends. (Oh yes, the food is amazing, too. Though I would do it no justice trying to describe it. I can show pictures later). I only had a few more hours before my flight and GP was enjoying doing more ‘touristy’ things than normal. There were a few things he hadn’t even done in years. We went to observation deck on the TV tower and then went paddle-boating in the Vltava River near the St. Charles Bridge, National Theatre and Dancing Building. We had just about an hour before we had to leave so I could pack for my flight.

Aren’t the views from the water incredible?

We decided to turn around with 30 minutes left on the stop watch and *crack*… GP’s peddles broke. Now I know what some of you are thinking... why couldn’t I just paddle us back with my own brute strength? Mine would still work but would only turn a half of rotation in either direction due to whatever happened on GP’s side. Humph.
What to do?

We decided to ask another two-some that were leisurely paddling if they knew English. “Yes”. Oh good! Our saviors! Could you please go back to the dock and tell them our paddle boat has broken before we go over the little falls that our paddle boat will surely not make it over. “Yes”. Then they continued to leisurely paddle. Humph.

We then saw a man sun bathing (or taking a nap between fishing casts) with a small motor boat. We drifted close enough to say “excuse me’ loudly in Czech. He looked up and walked down the very convilently placed wall to come talk to us. We say we don’t know much Czech but I try to use body language. It must have worked because this is what he said, “ Broke. Paddleboat. Sh!t”. Yay! He understood. He walked back down the wall to his boat and side-tied us. We then were wisked away back to the dock.

Do you notice the cast on his hand? When I pointed to the hand and said ‘broke’ (remember, it’s an English word he knows) he answered “Fight” with LOTS of enthusiasm and an air-punch. I really wish I could have heard the story! I tried to teach him to answer “you should see the other guy” when English-speakers asked him, but it didn’t translate. Humph.

Actually, due to being towed by a motor boat, we made it back faster than if we had paddled the whole way. The people gave us another 30 minutes for free, which we gladly took (I had factored lots of ‘give’ in my schedule to get to the airport). But this time we stayed in yelling distance of the dock!

No one puts Babies in the corner

G- I found it! This is a fence on Vinohrady where GP and I decided we were lost and turned around . When the houses got nice enough to have fences like this, we knew we had gone the wrong direction! I do not know how to crop on this computer (the picture editing software is in German, but I can figure some things out) but I hope you can find the G. It's in the center of lower half of the picture.

H- There are actually two H’s I really liked and I have decided to show both. I have taken multiple of many letters and I hope to only choose one of each, but I really can’t pick between these two.

The first is taken from a Kompa Park along the Vltava River and is lowercase. I wanted to show it because it captures the most random-tastic I could find in Prague (can someone say hoo?) Seriously, what are those yellow penguins for?

The capital H is facing the Cathedral in Prague Castle. If you look closely, you can see the cathedral in the window’s reflection.

I- The TV Tower was finished just over 25 years ago and is the tallest structure in Prague. If you look closely, you can see Babies climbing it. Yes, larger-than-life babies. (Ok, so maybe this is the most random site in Prague, you can decide).

Just so you know how big these babies are, the artist that designed them displayed some in Kompa Park. I couldn’t resist the following picture.

J - Apartment (flat) complex from a bird's eye view from TV Tower's observation deck.

K – The Tancici dum (Dancing Building). The newest famous building in Prague, built in 1996. From a different perspective, the building looks like a couple dancing and the building is also sometimes called ‘Fred and Ginger’.

I've got two words for you: sideways

All of the letters in this post will be sides. GP decided that is cheating towards the end of my Prague adventure, so I will try my best to find most of the other letters in true, upright form. He agreed that the letters could be backwards, but not upside down or sideways.

I must say that I got the A+ tour of Prague thanks to GP and some other old friends. It was just the right mix of tourist stops as well as local and expat hangouts. My lodging was also included and only cost me a few extra people on my tab at lunch and in the beer garden.

No more delays, here are my first three letters from Prague along with the associated stories.

D – The excalator was actually really long (thus the reason I thought it would be a cool picture) but it took me a while to get a good picture without too much hand motion. To help you picture how long this as, this picture attempt was number 7 and I messed around with camera settings between each one. I arrived in Prague at night and this was the best I could do for my first night there. Very modern and un-Prague-esk.

E –I know this is a staged letter, but I had to capture the famous Czech beer somehow. This was taken in Riegrovy Sady beer garden where I only drank this one round, I swear Mom! (just kidding). You might also be able to see the big outdoor projection screen where people are watching soccer.

F- Prague Castle as seen from GP’s favorite spot in Vysehrad.

In case anyone does not know, my current Hamsterville roommate is Czech and fluent in the language. In hindsight, there are a few phrases and words I wish we would have gone over.

‘Thank you’ and ‘thanks’ happen to be tough words for English-speakers to get until many days of practice. Or maybe, it was just me (I will pretend this word is hard for many many many people just so I don’t feel un-teachable in the linqistical arts.)

Another statement I wish I would have asked Roomy the Czech translation is: ‘My boat it broken, can you tow us back to shore while telling us the really great story that goes along with that cast on your hand, pretty please?!’

I will let you marinate on that and await for the associated update with anticipation.

Until next time…

PS- The title is to remind me of another really good story I hope to do justice once back home.

ABCs

In the short amount of time I have been in Germany, I can say their breakfasts and pillows are better! Way better. All the ingredients to a typical German breakfast are available in Hamsterville (lecker* cheeses, meats, and bread), but now I know they make a much better breakfast than lunch. Maybe that means I will eat cereal for lunch?! Humm… not sure about that yet.

As promised, I would reveal the photo scavenger mission Mom gave me in due time. She suggested that I find the alphabet while on my trip. Where you ask? In architecture. See below for my A, B and C. Associated captions are where and when I ‘found’ them. (Upon my return, I hope to show a slideshow of my favorite of each letter and I also hope to update in alphabetical order. I will state now: I am a little nervous about G and Q.)





A: The nearest bridge to cross the Rhine near Abernach, Germany. It’s only a few kilometers from Fireball’s house. It’s not the best ‘A’ nor the most exciting bridge, but it serves the purpose of proving I’m near a very gorgeous river and reflects my nerdy fascination with structures.

B: Pretzel maker’s shop near old town Altstadt, Germany.

C: Fountain in front of Sparkassa bank (where I used the ATM) in Linz, Germany. These fountains are found all over Linz and I love them! I even saw one that semi-circled patio furniture being used by a couple for lunch. It’s like they dining half surrounded by their own personal river.

The last picture I want to show is me in a vineyard across the Rhine from Abernach in a small town Fireball had only drank the wine from before and had never stopped. We had to stop at this location because jetlag almost got the best of me! Fireball will definitely return and maybe, just maybe (depending on custom laws) I will bring some bottles back from here! It was amazing.

I have finished my update with enough time to spare to take a walk around her little town all by myself. I will be back here to get my bag for a train to the airport. Destination Prague! I am assuming I will not have access while in Prague, so expect my next update at the end of the week.

*lecker means ‘yummy’ and word I have already added to my vocab.

Training - Hoping

Yes, I have been in training for this trip. Maybe not the type of training you would assume. I have not taken any German, Italian or Czech languages classes… though Roomy has taught me a few need-to-know Czech words. I have also not joined any obstacle course Italian race car (palindrome) driving sessions. Rick Steves did not even get a penny from me this year for European tourism suggestions. As all good women with a slower than desirable metabolism should do before going to Italy, I have been in sweat camp training. I paid an ungodly sum to loose weight before my trip and it has been successful. 1998, my junior year of high school, was the last time the scale registered something this small. I am pretty proud of myself, but I can not wait to feel guiltless while dining in Europe. Local, authentic cuisine here I come! J

Now on to ranting a bit.

I believe the iThingamajigs and MPwidgets have changed traveling for the worst. Train rides and mass transportation commutes aren’t like they used to be. It seems the majority of passengers are ‘busy’ being ‘entertained’ and are not open for friendly, random, spontaneous 3D conversation. I do hope this is different in Europe. Two dimensional communication is really the pits, plus I am a really great Texashingtonian that all Europeans should aspire to meet. I need entertaining too by golly!




Seriously, the next time you’re on a train, bus, ferry, subway or hot air balloon, try turning off your mass storage gadget that is podcasting the latest Hollywood scandal, streaming NPR, or bumping the most hippest, never officially released secret track and talk to the person next to you. Just because their playlist might not be as awesome or they might not have the latest version of the sleekest doohickey doesn’t mean they can’t enhance the (nonexistent) conversation, if only for a while. I guess if my expectations of European travelers are squashed, I can always read a book. Maybe someone will be hip and brave enough to talk GGK or DRR with me. ;)

Random warning: Man, now I really want to take an Italian race car out on an obstacle course. Also, the spell check actually knew thingamajig and doohickey. You can test it yourself. Odd.

Nav, Scavenge and Concerns... oh my!

There have been a few questions, comments and concerns that have surfaced due to my first post.

1) No, I did not loose my job. I am just taking time off from my responsibilities but I will have every single one of them upon my return, probably three fold. Work will build up, the knowledge I have gained on school related subjects will probably need some priming and Beastly will need to accompany me on three marathons in a row to calm down.

2) I will be gone for most of the month of August. It's easier to say the whole month, but it's really 3.5 weeks (See: one month is much easier and more impressive to say than 3.5 weeks).

3) Even though I also see myself having major anxiety about traveling by car through Europe, I have to remind myself and yall (can you believe I actually first typed 'you all' instead? My Texas roots almost just failed me) that I am going to be there with Europeans. We have rented our car through a reputable company that costs a bit more and Fireball has nav. (I believe that is the new hip way of saying navigation. I personally have not experienced how the additional cost are justified but this trip might make me a believer).

One more item of business for now.

Has anyone seen my perfect passport pouch? I bought it for my first international trip and have used it ever since. I just can't remember where it went. Actually, it's on the tip of my head-tongue. You know the feeling. It's like forgetting a person's name or a certain word, you can't really concentrate on tasks at hand until your mind randomly remembers... That is how I'm feeling about this silly pouch. Any help is appreciated.

Ok, I lied, one other item.

I want to do a digital photo scavenger hunt while I am there. Does anyone have any suggestions on the theme or objective? Mom has given me a pretty good one and if a better one (or more attainable one) does not come along, I will share the idea shortly (hopefully with my first found European picture post). Seriously, I love scavenger hunts and I want ideas!

Closing for now but leaving you with a picture I took yesterday that I personally think is awesome. and it's eatable! I also wonder if it's a representation of Fibonacci's number. Can anyone tell?

T Minus 7 Days

Please check back here for updates and pictures from my trip to Europe. Wow, I am ready to get some distance from Bellingham and shake the dust off my travel legs. YAY!

The saddest part of my trip? I am leaving during the end of Berry and Cherry Season in Washington, the land where 90 degrees is a ‘scorcher’ in August. Oh, and of course, leaving Beastly behind. If only she should shrink to pocketsize! But I will rest well at night knowing she is in GREAT hands.

Here is the rough itinerary:
Germany-Prague-Germany-Italy-Germany.

Andernach, Germany will be my ‘base camp’ and is where Fireball lives. Fireball is a friend I have known for many years but have not seen in while. Let’s just say a 3dimensional conversation between Fireball and I is LONG overdue. Thank goodness for email, or I would have missed her dearly . I will spend a few days at basecamp getting over jetlag and soaking up as much Fireball as I can before flying on to Prague.

I will leave her behind for my Czech adventure. Prague has been calling my name for years and I now get to experience it with a few locals. I will meet up with another longtime friend, GP, in Prague. Every time I think of GP a story involving Guatemala Pants comes to mind, so it’s a very fitting blog-nickname.

I will then return to basecamp where I will spend lots of time with Fireball and Fraulein, her best friend. We will drink wine and tour the part of Germany they live in, but mostly rest for Italy. Yes, all three of us are taking a vacation to Italy together! The Fs and I have rented a Tuscan apartment and a car where we will do day trips from. It was the most budget worthy plan and how awesome is it that I will have a Tuscan apartment and car for 10 days?

Then it’s back to basecamp for a week where Fireball is off from work. Can anyone say Germany staycation? Eeek! I am looking forward to this week the most.

That is really all I know for now.

Thanks for stopping by. Feel free to come back and peek in on my trip anytime.

In case you didn’t catch on, I do not like using actual given first names. I prefer blog nicknames. Please use this preference when commenting. Feel free to even make up a nickname of yourself in your comments that I can use in my blog!

Ok, enough for now.