Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Eleven Months and Counting...

It is amazing how much can happen in a year and how quickly the time passes. One year ago today I packed my car and left Los Angeles beginning my adventure of moving abroad. Eleven months ago I landed in Switzerland. Today, I am two weeks away from packing again to begin the path towards returning home. I feel confident about the choice to end this stage of my life but it is still bitter sweet.

While living with another family and working as an Au Pair has made living in Switzerland possible I cannot wait to return to working as an interior designer and having my independence back. But of course that also means that I won't be able to hop a mere 12 minute train ride to Zürich and venture the thousand year old streets. I can't hop on a train and find myself in Italy 3 hours later. I can't adventure Europe on a whim.

I have no idea what will happen when I return to Los Angeles in November (as I have no certain job yet) but I have certainty that the next three months are going to be some of the most exciting months of my life. As you may have noticed on the right sidebar I have added quite a few countdowns to various adventures that I am persuing over the next three months. Here is the official breakdown:

On August 11 my current Au Pair job is officially over. I pack my bags and move everything to my aunt's house across the lake...but not for long!

From August 12-15 I am Rome, Italy adventuring, touring the Vatican, hanging out with Michelangelo, and fighting with the Gladiators in the Colosseum.

On August 16 I move in with another family (neighbors of my current host family) to work as an Au Pair for them for two weeks.

On August 29 I meet up with a certain Michael (refer to December 2 blog about Starbucks. Turns out he is basically the coolest person I know) to go to Greece for a week! We are going to Athens for two days and then are headed to Santorini to do whatever we want until we fly back to Zürich on September 5.

From September 5-26 I will be living with my aunt in Adliswil while hopefully getting plenty of babysitting jobs to save up some money and hopefully travel to Paris.

On September 27 I hop on a plane bound for the USA. Fortunately, I was able to use frequent flyer miles to book my flight back to Denver. Unfortunately, I fly from Zürich to JFK to Columbus, Ohio to Chicago to Denver. Yeah...tackling the USA one hour flights at a time.

Once I am home in Boulder I have some time to relax...and by relax I mean pack all of my worldly belongings into Abby (my 2005 Honda Civic EX which is way better than a certain 2007 Honda Civic SI) and drive to Los Angeles on October 1-2. FINALLY I will be back at my permanent home...

But not really because three days later I fly to New Zealand on October 5 for three weeks to visit my sister and brother-in-law! I was lucky to purchase a ticket on Virgin Australia that actually gives me a 12 hour layover in Brisbane, Australia which is plenty of time to hang out and see the city for a day! I haven't seen my sister in almost two years and hanging out with her in Dunedin, helping her work on her new house, and making some small adventures around the south island is going to be beyond awesome. Besides, when I start working in the corporate world again I can kiss three week vacations goodbye forever (silly USA two week vacation allowances).

On October 28 I fly back to Los Angeles where I will remain indefinitely until an earthquake or God tells me otherwise.

Looking into the short future there are still a lot of unknowns, but I don't really need to worry about them because I know that God already has a plan for me (Jeremiah 29:11). Besides, I have enough on my plate for the next three months to keep me busy until then!

So cheers to the last year and the next three months because although I didn't actually live the lifestyle of the rich and famous it sure feels that way sometimes. :)

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Czech Me Out - I went to Prague!

(I apologize for the tardiness)

Two weeks ago my parents arrived in Switzerland - just in time to hop a plane to Prague, Czech Republic. After living in Switzerland for 10 months (queue the gasps of astonishment) and traveling with a variety of types of people and sometimes even alone, it is interesting to see the differences in the ways certain people travel. For example, my host family makes spontaneous day trips but ultimately seeks relaxation with a splash of adventure here and there. When I travel alone I book a train ticket and figure all the rest out when I get there, including my accommodations. My parents, on the other hand, plan and research months in advance spending hours reading about the history and sites before even stepping out of their living room. When we got to Prague wherever we ventured my mother, tour guide in hand, was able to share some very interesting tidbits along the way. Unbeknownst to me Prague actually has a fascinating history so this blog will be a little more focused on what I learned about the things we saw than other travel blogs I have written in the past.

Prague from the Old Town Hall Tower
First, I would like to set the tone of the trip with a funny story about the immediate 5 minutes after getting off the plane in Prague. I have been looking to buy a new perfume for some time now and I finally got a great suggestion from a friend of a rare perfume that has gotten rave reviews. Well, being a rare perfume it is also an expensive perfume, so duty free was my best opportunity to hopefully find and purchase this new scent. I was beyond lucky to find a bottle in the duty free shop. Unfortunately, the currency of Czech Crona means nothing to me so I simply asked my dad what the exchange rate was. He said, "How much is it?" I told him, "1,659 Crona," to which he replied, "Great, now divide that by 13."

Thanks Dad, but if I could divide 1,659 by 13 in my head I would be an architect, not an interior designer.

Old Town Hall
Anyways, we arrived in Prague on a Wednesday morning and after the help of a nice Albanian man living in the area we found our way to the city center and then to our hotel. Prague is divided into four distinct quadrants: Old Town, New Town, The Little Quarter, and the Jewish Quarter. Seeing as we stayed in Old Town, we ventured there first. We stayed at Hotel Josef, which was a swanky mondern hotel about a five minute walk from Old Town Square.

Old Town Square is famous for lots of buildings but most known for the old astronomical clock on the Old Town Hall. Built in 1490, the clock does not show the time, but actually the supposed orbits of the sun and moon around the earth (idiots).

The next thing that we went to see was the Old Jewish Quarter. In the Middle Ages all of the Jews in Prague were confined to live in one enclosed ghetto of the city. In the 16th century all of the Jews were required to wear yellow circles as a mark of shame. It wasn't until 1850 that the area was officially incorporated as a part of Prague. Almost all of it was torn down for lack of sanitation reasons, but a few significant buildings were protected.

The Pinkas Synagogue is probably one of the most tragically moving buildings I have ever been inside. The synagogue serves as a memorial for the Jewish Czechoslovak citizens that were imprisioned in various concentration camps and later transported to Nazi extermination camps. The names of almost 80,000 people are alphabetically inscribed on the walls along with the date of birth and last known date that they were seen alive in Prague. Upstairs there was an exhibit of drawings made by the children at the Terezin concentration camp. (I respected the no photography rule in the synagogue so you should look at the pictures on google images. It is worth seeing.)

After wandering through the synagogue we made our way outside to the Jewish cemetary that was the only permitted burial ground for Jews for over 300 years. Because of the lack of space some of the people had to be burried on top of each other (sometimes 12 layers deep). Additionally, it has close to 12,000 gravestones crammed into the small yard. While walking through the gravestones it was hard not to notice the small coins, stones, candles, and folded up notes that people left on the gravestones as prayers for the lives lost during the holocaust and those burried in the graveyard.




















We visited three other synagogues all housing the world's largest and most important collection of Jewish artifacts. After an afternoon filled with nothing but tragic Jewish history we stopped at a restaurant for a much needed beer and then after dinner turned in for the night for our next adventure.

In the morning we were on a mission to see the Prague castle and the Charles Bridge. The Charles Bridge connects the Old Town with the Little Quarter and functions today as a pedestrian street lined with statues and sale booths with art and jewelry.

The Charles Bridge
Each statue on the bridge is different and depicts mostly kings and royalty along with pivital Biblical figures and stories. The one that I found to be the most moving was the statue of the cricifixion (but interestingly enough, not for obvious reasons). For about 200 years this was the only statue on the bridge. The guilded Christ dates back to 1629 and the Hebrew words "Holy Holy Holy Lord" were paid for by a Jew as punishment for blasphemy (pictured below on the left). To make a Jew pay for the golden Christian words I found beyond tragic.




















We crossed the Charles Bridge and headed up to the Prague Castle just in time for the big changing of the guards at noon. The whole thing lasted about 20 minutes and included a little instrumental part which made standing in the hot sun a little more bearable. Once inside the castle walls we headed off to explore St. Vitus' Cathedral, the Royal Palace, and the Golden Lane.

The Changing of the Guards at the Prague Castle
St. Vitus' Cathedral is one of the more impressive of the many impressive buildings in Prague. The church began construction in 1344 but wasn't completed until the 19th and 20th centuries. (I know that construction always runs behind schedule, but I find 7 centuries to be a bit ridiculous). The exterior I thought was a little more impressive than the interior because of the unusual spires (the pointy things on top of the towers with the spikes for those not architecturally savvy). The interior was a little less interesting especially due to "technical problems" that closed the tour of the crypt and St. Wenceslas Chapel. (Please tell me, what possible "technical problems" could there be on a 667 year old building?)





The Crests of the clerks who worked here from 1561-1774
Next we went and saw the Royal Palace. Built in the 11th century, the palace held such events as the public market, balls, and even indoor jousting. It also functioned as the location where the law was enforced. One of my favorite stories about the castle, although grim, is the Defenestration. For those of you unfamiliar with the word, in German, "fenster" is the word for "window." It shouldn't take you too long to figure out what it means when someone is "de-windowed," but here is the story: In 1618 more than 100 Protestant nobles marched into the palace to protest against the succession of the throne to some duke (I am sure you care about his name even less than I do). The two Catholic Governers appointed by the intolerant duke were then confronted and thrown out of the east window along with their secretaries. Falling about 50 ft. they survived the fall by landing in a huge pile of horse poop below. The event signaled the begin of the 30 Years War and the survival of the people was thought to be intervention of angels. (In reading about the various sites around Prague, it is amazing how many people were thrown out of windows, and off buildings and bridges).

The Window
The Fall




















After my guilty chuckle over the people that got "de-windowed" (it's ok to laugh because they survived, right?), we headed through some more windy streets before coming to the Golden Lane. This street is along the outer castle wall where small cottages were built into the wall in the late 16th century for the castle's guards and gunners. Today some have been restored to show what the homes may have looked like while other cottages are used as souvenir shops.

After venturing through all there was to see in the castle (including me dragging my mom down to the dungeon to see medieval torture divices), we decided to meander our way back towards the Charles Bridge to find some authentic Czech food. I ordered rabbit and practically licked my plate clean (my apologies to Peter Rabbit and Cottontail). We wandered through the streets, checked out some classic tourist shops so I could purchase a beer mug for my growing collection, and then headed off to bed.

Friday was our last day in Prague before our early evening flight back to Zürich. We decided to check out all the cathedrals in Old Town that we had skipped before, including climbing to the top of the Old Town Hall tower to see Prague from above. We were also lucky enough to watch all the people below gather to watch the clock chime noon and hear the trumpet player play his song. It turns out that I am "that tourist" who got so far in his way that he actually had to ask me to move. After my utter embarassment we headed off to see St. Wenceslas Square, which was like any over popularized tourist location in a large city. Designer stores, tourist shops, banks, and of course, McDonalds.



We may or may not have eaten lunch at McDonalds, but I cannot disclose any further information. Ok, I had the Big Mac...and a McFlurry (with Toblerone chocolate!).

People gathered to watch the clock


Me in the Old Town Hall Tower (in the background: Church of Our Lady before Tyn)
Our trip had come to an end and, thanks to my Mommy and Daddy, I learned more about the history of Prague than I have learned about the history of any other city I have visited in Europe combined. While it may not be completely my style to rock the Eyewitness Travel book everywhere I go, I am grateful for the experience I had traveling with two of the world's most wonderful people. Without them I wouldn't be the woman I am today, nor have the strength or means to live abroad for an entire year. I love you Mommy and Daddy!!

Monday, July 4, 2011

Espania

Hola mi amogos! Unfortunately that is about the extent of my Spanish since I have started to learn German, but it didn't slow me down on my trip to ESPANIA!

Barcelona Coastline
This is the second trip that I have taken with my host family, and despite working on vacation, I could hardly complain. Traveling alone has its advantages, but staying in a hotel with a California King sized bed, a jaccuzi, indoor and outdoor swimming pool, and fancy breakfast - yes please! I took advantage of all the perks because opportunites like this don't come knocking twice.

The first three days we stayed at Hotel Mas Salvi in Pals, Spain, about 2 hours north or Barcelona in Coasta Brava. The hotel, opened only for a few months of the year and used mostly for weddings, is romantically secluded in the small town and gave me little wiggle room to entertain an energetic almost-3-year-old. As we were there to attend a wedding of a friend of my host dad's, I was in charge of the kid nearly 24 hours a day and even shared a room with the tyke. During the day I was with my host family and we took some day trips to neighboring towns or trips to the beach. I even did Tequila shots with my host dad on the beach, which was an experience in itself (the kid tried to steal it, which was highly entertatining).


The following three days after the wedding, we moved to Hotel Sa Punta which was a little more family oriented and closer to the beach. There was a huge pool, a nice yard, and most importantly I had my own room. We spend a lot of time at the beach and I did my best to get my tan on while protecting against skin cancer and a giant sunburn. I may have failed at not getting a sunburn since I am pretty sure I am borderline albino.



One of the highlights of the trip was a spontaneous evening in which one of the waitors at the hotel approached me one night and asked me to join him for a drink after work. I was in the mood for adventure and at half past midnight jumped in his car to find myself returning in the wee hours of the morning after a night full of dancing and glowing drinks (seriously, the water glowed!). While some might call me crazy for going out with a stranger in a foreign country in the middle of the night, I find that the locals are the best people to give a real experience so why pass up the opportunity to see the night life? I had a blast!

After six days with the family we parted ways, I hopped on a bus, and slept the 2 hour ride into Barcelona to meet my brother, Chris, and his girlfriend, Courtney, who were flying in from Paris that afternoon. After meeting at the hotel we soon realized there was a problem - apparently when the reservation was made it was made for 2 adults and a cot. Well aparently a "cot" means "baby bed" not "fold-out bed." I know I am an au pair and supposed to buck up in certain situations and take my place in the caste system, but sleeping in a crib is where I draw the line. I feed, clothe, and raise babies, I refuse to sleep like one too. So we canceled the reservation and ended up finding a cheaper place, in a better part of town, with a bedroom, living room, bathroom, and kitchenette. Yeah, baller.

Arc de Triomf
So if you have ever met me or my brother, you know that when we are together we are....something awesome. The night began with some light champagne and tapas and ended many hours later with an advil in the morning. The next day we got a slow start at about 11am when we headed for the beach. The three of us bummed on the beach for a few hours turning down all sorts of services offered by all sorts of nationalities trying to make a living off the thousands of tourists. I have to admit, it was almost as annoying as Mexico. Eventually we found our way wandering down the beach in the direction of Ice Barcelona, an ice bar on the beach (yeah, get jealous). We finally found our way there and after a short drink outside we met up with my my college friend, Scott, who happened to be in Barcelona the same weekend. Then, in my bathing suit and summer dress, I put on a sub-zero parka and fleece gloves and headed into the -11 degree celcuis bar. It was one of the coolest bars (pun intended) I have ever been in. The drink I had inside was delicious and it was hard work to keep the liquid from spilling out of my cup made of ice from my unavoidable shivering. That night was a repeat of the night before, including the delicious food and amazing mixed drinks. I have been to many countries, but Barcelona has by far the best mixed drinks of any other country I have ever been to. And that is a Fact.

Me and Chris at Ice Barcelona
Me in front of an ice sculpture of Sagrada Familia (Gaudi)
Dolce & Gabana Stilettos
The next day was my last full day in Barcelona before heading back to Zürich the following morning. I had two items on my agenda: Gaudi architecture and shopping. Courtney and I woke up early in the morning and left my brother behind to sleep and relax while we hit the stores. I have to say that Courtney is probably one of the best people in the world to shop with. She can spot cute stores with good deals and will be honest about how you look when you try things on. Oh, and if it is your birthday, she will downright spoil you. Chris has my everlasting approval of this chick for sure. After an entire morning of shopping I had bought a pair of flat shoes, a shirt from Desigual, a faux leather jacket, and a pair of Dolce & Gabana stilletos. Success is an understatement. In the afternoon we met up with my brother and after confirming that Rebecca Steiner should never ride a bike, we split ways so the couple could do a biking tour of the city and I could wander ever so slowly by foot to the various Gaudi masterpieces.

Well seeing as this blog is already ridiculously long and Gaudi is probably one of the few architects that is impossible to describe, I have attached a slideshow of my photos so you can get confused all by yourself. Enjoy!