living

so aaat the moment i am compiling my two blogs - just ignore any screw ups. iim completely aware that all the pics are messed up cooooool.

California Girls - oh that song is wayyy over played

Theres nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
These streets will make you feel brand new,
The lights will inspire you,
Lets here it for New York, New York, New York"

Three blondes took over New York. Courtney and I stayed with one of our sorority sister's (also my real sister's good friend) and her husband on Long Island. It was so nice to relax for two days, work out, catch up on things, and sleep in an uber comfy bed! The bad thing- we didn't make it into the city during the day. It was farrrrr too hot to step outside and we have both been there several times. :( BUT I have made major progress- I ate sushi- and actually liked it! I have come to realize that sushi is a common social outing so I need to suck it up and like it. We went to a fabulous sushi restaurant in the city, and finished the night dancing our tails off at a quaint little dance club.

"California girls
We're undeniable
Fine, fresh, fierce
We got it on lock
Westcoast represent
Now put your hands up
Oooooh oh oooooh"

You should have seen us rocking out to this song- classic.

From there we were off to Boston. We were there for less than 24 hours but made the most of it. We got a beer at Cheers, walked the parks and saw the tomb stones of Mother Goose and John Hancock! I found Hancock's tombstone a very interesting choice of design.


Strange? I think so
We had tapas and sangria at Tapeo on the famous Newbury Street (shout out to Andrew) then enjoyed a night out with some locals. Their bars there are set in basements to avoid noise complaints-smart! Funny story: we watched a man swim in a fountain in the middle of the park, in broad day light, stealing all the coins. My response "is this real?" and the kids next to us "well at least he is clean!" Hhaha. Anywhoo now we are chillaxing in Philly with my wonderful Aunt and Uncle. Today we ventured out to the Amish region in PA into a town called "Intercourse."


ohhh the Amish in Intercourse
YES spelled just like that, they even had tshirts that read 'I <3 Intercourse! haha we were cracking jokes all day- and they never got old! That combined with a tour of the Hershy museum completed the day. Headed into the city for some din! Ttyl

Count down til cruise to the Bahamas: 6 days

scurrrrry journey to NYC

First off, we have lost complete track of time, day, date, even the month! If I were to date this it would read: "there are no days here."

Further I want to share this quote by FDR- "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself." I fear the fact that I am scared of lightening storms. I used to love lightening and thunder, I thought they were beautiful and mysterious. Also only 70 people die a year from being struck, so no big deal-right? WRONG!

When I was in elementary school my dad and I were part of Indian Princesses (I guess it could be compared to the girl version of boy scouts.) I was "running flame" and he was "thunder bird," and we did everything from camping out on Catalina Island to skiing at Big Bear. My favorite was staying in the huge cabin in big bear- but one year things went haywire. A HUGE thunder storm rolled over and I have never heard thunder roar so loud in my life. We were all huddled in the cabin when next thing we heard was a bang, a snap, another bang, then a car alarm. YUP, the lightening struck a tree right outside the cabin, which fell onto a car-- and who's car-OURS! It took 15 men to lift the tree off of our silver volvo (aka "quicksilver") which was completely totaled. I recall being to small to sit in the front seat of the car at the time, but the tree had smashed the entire back in, so I had no where to sit but the front (of course I was a little excited about that.) And yes--we drove the smashed in car all the way home, vovlvo's back in the day were tanks, you couldn't do anything to make the damn things break even if you tried! (My first car was the exact same model but in blue- I hated it, but it was "the safest thing on the road")

Yesterday we encountered the second worst lightening storm of my life. Lightening shot from the sky less than a mile away from us, rain pored down like Niagara Falls, and the sky roared as if we were in a surround sound movie theatre. I was terrified. All i could do so pop one reeses pieces after another into my mouth, which I have realized is the WORST nervous habit ever. At first Courtney was cracking up, filming me almost crapping my pants, which of course only increased my fear. "Put the stupid camera down, you are going to get electrocuted!" As we sat in the parking lot of Target I darted my eyes around to make sure there was no trees, telephone poles, or anything that could fall on our car. I told Courtney my story about Big Bear, and she lost her composure and nervously began eating her gold fish. So there we were sitting in a parking lot, nearly crying, and shoving junk into our mouths to distract us- it was quite the experience. We waited for a lull and then darted out of there, Courtney drove while I painted my nails to distract myself (probably not the best idea, but we made it!)

But as for now I am getting summoned to get ready for a night out into NYC! So I have to run, but will ttys (talk to you soon)

Fun Fact: Maine is the only state with one syllable

CANADA .. still

So here I am, sitting in my little dorm/hostel room, sipping some champagne I got for my 21st bday (thank you pops-it's a good celebration) and enjoying my last day (finally) in Niagara Falls. Today, Patrick (the hostel owner) asked Courtney and I to stay another week-for free- to work on another project.

ACBB Hostel- our "home"

Our response- "we will think about it." If you know me at all, then you know that means NO. I am extremely compulsive when it comes to things I want, and Court tends to get a little upset because she likes to think about things. For me, I say "sure-why not?" In this case, it was a no. We have already skipped out on Montreal and Maine, so there is no need to stay here for another week. The heat is getting to me, and there is no way I can stand more than another night without air conditioning!

BUT our time here has been nice. We met some amazing people and have made some great friends. Two named Owen and Dan- they are traveling from Australia and have been our roomies/partners in crime for the past three days. Our first day here we went out on a jet boat and fooled around in the Niagara River- and it was absolutely beautiful!

it was like a pool was dumped onto you!

Once you get past the touristy Clifton Hill Street (aka cheesy Disneyland on steroids) then Niagara Falls has a lot to offer. From there we went to the quaint and classy town called "Niagra-on-the-river" aka Gilmore Girls Town. From there we checked out a few wineries and headed 'home'-to our hostel

ohhh Clifton Hill

Day 2 here included more wine tasting, a hike at Niagara Gorge, and coffee and pastries in the Gilmore Town with the boys. Day 3 we walked along the falls, took some nice photos, and took a trip onto Maid of the Mist- which is a boat that takes you out right under the falls! It was beautiful- and we looked super sexy in matching blue ponchos-- hahahah NAWT! After that we enjoyed some ice cream overlooking the falls

and drove our boys to the train station :( They are offto Toronto, and our goodbyes were not an easy one. That is the beauty of hostels- you are given the opportunity to meet such a diverse group of people with at least one thing in common-- traveling! We will miss those two, but we exchanged contact info and will stay in contact (thanks to the beauty of the internet!)

Fun Fact: Actually a sad fact- less than 10% of American's own a passport!

Anywho, tomorrow we are off to NY! Wooohoooo finally I will have a phone that works (aka my iphone-aka my life!) The second we get over the border, I plan to buy some more mace (since the last one got taken,) and hit up cosco and target- boy how I miss those places. As for now ciao, hasta luego, adios!

CANADA

"Life is a series of intersecting lives and incidents, out of anyone's control."

So who knew it was illegal to have mace in Canada, because we sure didn't! My mace disguised as a perfume bottle was quickly taken and I was devastated! How was I going to defend myself? The Canadian response "buy a whistle." And to top it off the border patrol threatened to search the car, and my first thought "oh no-not the wine!" Our entrance into Canada was a little rocky but has been great ever since!

Our first night we spent in Toronto where we toured the city and went to the top of the CN tower. Sad story- I was overly excited to get a shwerma because they bring back so many amazing memories from Barcelona, but when I went to buy it the guy would not accept my debit card because it read 'visa.' I had no cash, no American money and no Canadian, so I handed the sandwich back. :( I walked out and rushed over to Subway. It is amazing how places like Subway and McDonald's have a sense of comfort and security when you are out of the US. Otherwise, I highly DISLIKE both places, but in this case a 6-inch turkey sandwich has never tasted so good.

CN Tower

Now we are in Niagra Falls where after one thing led to another, we ended up in a hostel called ACBB (what that means- I have NO idea). I am sweating uncontrollably in this 90 degree humid weather with no air conditioning, and sitting next to two Brazilians turned American turned Canadian. I keep telling myself that this was meant to be. We were in route of Montreal, when we decided we were too tired to tour all day then drive 8 hours, so we slowly rolled around until we found a wi fi hot spot (so we could look up a hostel to stay in). We went onto hostelworld.com and typed the address into the Garmin (which I want to kill by the way- it doesn't stop talking!) and it said "approaching destination in 400 feet." Huh, this is strange we thought. So now here we are, staying here for a couple days free in return we help market this hostel which, besides the heat is a very nice/friendly place.

Niagara Falls

Our new game to kill time in the car= the saltine challenge. We can both successfully eat 4 crackers in 60 seconds, what can you do?

The truth behind the CN tower- it has been outdone by the Burg in Dubai standing as the tallest building in the world.

CHing chinG

Day 14 Chicago to Grand Rapids, Michigan

Sunset at Grand Rapids, Michigan

Since I don't have anything written for this day the following is from Courtney

"We pull up to Grand Rapids State Park couple hours before sunset at campsite four, about to pitch a red tent meant for the woods–in the sand. Kelly pulled the tent out amidst the cluttered, stuffed to the rim trunk. She thought she knew how to set up that tent. But when it came down to it, we were both kind of clueless.

That is until Mark showed up.

But there was another problem before Mark showed up. When Kelly and I pulled pulled up two tents were already pitched in lot four. The lady in the lot next to us said we better figure it out, because there was no way we were allowed to pitch our tent behind her massive camper. (Why? Not sure.) To help clear things up the park guard came over. Turned out that Frank was supposed to be at campsite number 87 for Monday night, and number 4 the following three nights. So when he got back from playing at the beach with his four kids, the guard broke the news. Mark had to pack all of his gear, tents and food back up into his South Carolina license plated mini-van.

Talk about awkward when he showed up. However, he felt silly for acting like a dyslexic, and helped us with our tent regardless. What took two hours for us to “attempt” to figure out, took two minutes for Mark. As you can imagine, we had most of it all wrong.

What a learning experience. But thanks to Mark I am now confident that the second time around, pitching will be a piece of cake.

I recommend Grand Haven for anyone traveling through Michigan. The sunsets are to die for. Bright rustic orange colored sky turns into a deep red, just as night falls.

Getting a little help from our new friend

Ciao Michigan! Onward, CANADA!!"

In my defense I DO know how to pitch a tent- it was a brand new one that I have never used before and the pictures were horrible

taaaa-daaaa

I may start blogging it up again

..

hmm decisions decisions

the end

Adios,

As I sit here looking at my half packed luggage I am overwhelmed with emotion. Tears are running down my face as I reminisce my experiences. I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to experience this once in a life time opportunity. I have grown so much as a person and I have a new outlook and appreciation to life and those I love. I have met the most amazing people here and it hurts to say good bye. Most of them live in California, so for those it was not goodbye, but I will see you soon. The lessons I have learned and the independency I have experienced has a profound impact on me. There is an endless list of things I have learned and grown form. I have learned who my true friends are. I have learned to live solely on my own and cook my own food. I have learned to travel the world and make all my own plans. I have learned to be strong and make smart decisions. Barcelona is my new home and it is hard to say good bye. I'm leaving my home for the first time and I wont be coming back. I am thankful for the people I have met, the places I have been, and everything I have learned in between. Coming home will be hard for me, I am so excited to see everyone but I fear reverse culture shock. When I arrived to Barcelona I instantly fell in love and did not experience this culture shock. Barcelona is the most amazing place I have been and I hope that someday I will come back. My time here has flown by and its my time to return home with no regrets.

I will see you all soon. xoxo

Kelly Courtney Barcelona

• On top of the world! More like on top of the castle, so pretty!

• The lovely castle

• Us at the half way point to Montjuic

• View of the port from above

• View from the finicular, Las Ramblas is the snakey line filled with trees. It used to be a river that divided the city.

• Just after I bought my stunner shades.

Hi again,

The other week Court and I had a Vicky Christina taking over Barcelona experience. It was a big touring day, and we got to see so many sights that I have been wanting to see! We first walked all the way down La Rambla to Port Vell. There were tons of fish so we decided to feed them. We took the bridge over to the Maremagnun (a mall) and I bought yellow sun glasses from a vendor! haha. Courntey got white. We did a little shopping in the Maremagnum. We found this cute little jewelry/bead shop and we decided to make friendship bracelets! hah they turned out very cute. We continued our journey to Buenos Amigos, a delicious little eatery with pizza on foccacia bread. It was delicious. We continued to walk along the port until we reached the entrance to the finicular. This finicular offers amazing views as it streams across the port up to Montjuic. Once at the top you have a view of the entire city it is absolutely spectacular. Further up Montjuic there is a castle that overlooks the port and ocean. We made our way up there and enjoyed the sunset. This adventure made me appreciate Barcelona so much more, it is gorgeous and has so much to offer. I wish my vacation wasn't coming to an end so soon! :(

• HAHAHAH Courtney getting bit by the horse in the Jewish Quarters

• The famous Charles Bridge

• Enjoying our hot wine and the view of the city! :)

• John Lennon Wall 

• My favorite part of the wall.

• Enjoying our first sight of snow in over a year! :) It made is so happy

Hi family and friends,

I am so sorry that I have been so horrible in keeping you up to date with my life. I have been stressed about all the work I to do with finals, papers, and presentations. The fact that I'm leaving Barcelona on the 20th is hitting me strong. I have been having the time of my life, but there is so much more I want to see and experience. This last week I'm trying to balance work and fun, but there is a lot of work! I aslo have to pack soon, and Leash, and Jenny are coming in two days! I am so excited, but I hope I can get everything done before they get here. Anyways November 22-24 I traveled to Prague with a bunch of my girl friends. Our first day there was a mellow sight seeing day that ended in a white xmas! The snow was absolutely beautiful and it peacefully fell from the sky. We tried caching the flakes in our mouths and throw snowballs. We were taken back to our childhood. In the main square where we were, there were tons of little stands that sold sausage sandwiches. Since Prague is known for their sausage, I had to try it! It was sausage and onion on a baguette.. absolutely delicious! The next day was our main touring day we crossed the Charels Bridge and headed over to the old side of the city. We made some purchases of enormous furry hats and headed over to the John Lennon wall. This was one of my main highlights of the trip. There are so many quotes and deep thoughts, people have so much to  say and this allowed a small portion of the world to see it. I tagged up the wall a little bit just putting my name and fall 08. After admiring the wall we proceed up the hill to the Lobkowicz Palace, and went inside the Cathedral. We got some hot wine and enjoyed the view of the city from a top. The view was spectacular, the buildings covered in snow, the sun shining down, and the water glimmering. That night we wanted to experience a typical Cezch meal so went to the first one we saw. We were told that the beef goulash is a must, so we ordered that. It was absolutely delicious, the beef goulash came in a big pot in which you spooned it out on top of crackling and bread dumplings. I wasn't sure what I was eating nor did I want to know, but it was fenominal. After the bartender suggested we try Becherovka, which is the Nations alcohol.  The only known spice is cinnamon and the other is unknown. Of course and I were trying it out, but no luck. The drink tasted like xmas in an alcohol form, it was tasty! Our trip to Prague was a success, I absolutely loved the atmosphere, the people, and the beautiful scenery, and the good food was a plus too! haha. Definitely a place to see. That's all for now I will try to write more before I'm off. Love you all and I hope all is well

xoxo,

ME

Another Day in Barca!

Today Court got a package from her mommy and it made our day! :) She sent us candy (butterfinger, twix, red vines, sour worms, and kit kat) all the goodies we can't get here and candy we missed out on, on Halloweeny. She also sent Thanksgiving place mats and X-Mas hand towels. She even sent us ranch! Which is one of the main things we have been missing, they have NOTHING like it. Then we roamed around Barca and we actually found a bagel shop! The only one in Barca is only a couple blocks from our flat, but we just found it. It was amazing, it feels like I haven't had a bagel in years. I got a cheese bagel with pesto, sun dried tomato, ricotta cheese, and grilled zucchini, it was amazing! We also found a sports shop where I had a buy a mouth guard because I have been grinding uncontrollably :( it wreally whurts. Oh and I dropped 90 euros on a new computer charger, but now I am on top of my updates! Also this weekend a couple of my friends (the three that stayed in Barca) and I found an AMAZING mexican food restaurant called La Cantella. Sorry m and d, but it was better than the place I took you :/ they even had mango margs! I was in heaven, Mexican food and margs in barca my life can't get any better than that. After din we met up with some locals, one of them is a trainer at the gym. We went and got some drinks and a local place, which was a good change, I hang out with Americans 24/7! I'm off to Prague this weekend with my best friends but I'll be back soon enough with an update. Well the bed is calling me.. bed time!

xoxoxo

Tapas and More!

• Half of  us with all of our gourmet spanish food! :)

• Court and I put our Sevilla aprons to use as everyone else had plastic aprons, they were so jealous! haha

Sorry it has taken me so long to post, my computer charger is broken! :( I'm using my roommates computer until I can get a new one, but I won't be able to upload pics until then sorry!

Last Thursday our program took us to a tapas cooking class. We learned all the tricks of the spanish trade and learned how to cook tapas. We made crab salad on a baguette, pork and green peppers on bread, potatoes fritas with homemade garlic mayo and red sauce, and a spanish omlette (potoatoes and egg). I have been very open minded to all foods while I have been abroad. Eventhough I do not eat seafood, I gave the crab a try, and I didn't think it was too bad! I have also tried squid, escargo, and all types of weird sausages, my dad would be so proud! After we were done making it about 15 of us had a nice family dinner, it was so much fun! Also last week I went on a field trip with my Spanish class to an old fresh market that used to a monk sanctuary. There we interviewed clerks and clients in ONLY Spanish, it was a lot of fun and good practice. but there was a downside. One of the butchers was chopping the skull of a baby cow right in front of me and I nearly had a panic attack and I had to run outside! It was so sad :( I am an animal lover and I can't stand to see that stuff! This weekend I spent a relaxing weekend home alone. It was weird, but nice to have some down time. Next weekend im off to Prague!! Until then take care!
xoxo

Sevilla and Sunday Funday

• Our boys :)

• The beautiful Sunday Funday at the port.

• La Inglesia inside the Cathedral.. like our church apparel?!

• Using my photography skills in Sevilla.

• The cathedral in Sevilla

• The girls of the trip!

• Inside the castle.. so pretty.

Hi all,

Last weekend my program took us all to Sevila, which is a small city south of Barcelna. We left on an overnight train Thursday night and got home Sunday morning. Sevilla is much smaller than Barcelona, but the people were much friendlier and warm. The streets were wide with cable cars and horse drawn carrides. It kind of had a Disneyland feel to it. The first day there our group took us on a tour of a castle, gardens, and the cathedral, it was all very beautiful. That night we had a buffet dinner and hung out at a local bar and the next day was a free day. My roommate Courtney, my guy friends and spent the day wandering. We had lunch overlooking the central river where the food was horrible but the atmosphere was beautiful. This is how bad the food was..we ordered a "pepper and onion salad" and were shocked to get a slab of tuna, absolutely NO lettuce and just peppers and onions, and we all know I highly dislike seafood (but I tried it). My guy friend ordered a seafood salad and received a plate of mayo and canned seafood that nearly made him throw up. As each plate came to our tables we would crack up, it was quite entertaining. After lunch we went to an International Trade Fair where they had booths selling goods from all over the world. There were so many neat little gadgets and I helped the boys pick out scarfs for their moms, so cute. We enjoyed some Coronitas and continued roaming. We watched the sunset over the river and Court and I got some apron souveniers, which are so cute! We took the overnight train home and got back to Barcelona Sunday morning. Court and I went to the Catherdral for mass which was an amazing experience. There were seven head men leading the service, all in their 70-80's. They sang beautiful music and all wore white robes. There was inscence that was thrown all over the bible and the audience. Since the service took place in Catalon, we didn't understand a word they were saying, but the atmosphere and the experience was all the worthwhile. After church we went to the port and enjoyed the beautiful day, had lunch at a cute little eatery and saw two movies! And yes they were in English, it was so exciting! We saw Vicky Christina Barcelona and High School Musical 3, which I love since I think Zac Efron is such a cutie.Vicky Christina was fun to watch because it was filmed in Barca and showed all the sights that I have been too, such as Park Guell and La Pedrera. Our Sunday was a productive success and our trip to Sevilla was perfect! I hope everyone had an amzing past weekend and I will write again soon.

With love,
ME xoxo

HOLA

• My crazy guy friends.. rented those dancer costumes for 100 euros!! the shoes were crazy too.. too funny!

• The roomies the first night.. two devils, a rocker, and a pirate arrr

• The vacas of the night

Hola que pasa?!!?

First off, Halloween in Barcelona does not compare to the craziness of Santa Barbara, but it was AMAZING. They don't really celebrate it too much here, but there were a couple of parties and clubs that everyone in my program went to. (and reminder drinking age is 16 crazzzzyy!) The first night I was a devil and the second night I was una vaca (cow!) haha it was fun cow tipping my friends all night! Also, this week I had my first Spanish speaking partner and it was quite the experience! They kind of took over both the Spanish speaking time and the English, but it was still good practice, and I definitely want to do it again! Today I went on a field trip to the Picasso museum (again), but this time got to ask my professor all the questions I had. Tomorrow I am off to Sevilla with my program (planned by the program). There are two groups and all my best guy and girl friends are going this weekend so it's going to be a blast, I will fill you in when I get back. Also, I would like to stress what an experience it was to wake up in Spain and find out who the president of the United States was. It was so weird for the election to take place while I am out of the country, making this election twice as grand from me. Also, despite your personal choice, I would like to inform you that people around the world were voting for Obama. American's will now be treated with a little more respect... hopefully. Thats all for now, take care!

with love,

ME :)

HALLOWEEN

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

happy birthday ALEXIS!!!!!

In the spirit of Halloween I have a joke..

Why couldn't the witch have babies?

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because her husband had a HALLOWweeny

hheheeh happy holidays, it's not like crazy santa barbara here... but I'm still dressing up ;) that's all that matters

My Parents Visit

• In Sitges I decided to buy a purple wig.. and my mom and I posed with the sand masterpiece of Homer Simpson.. impressive huh!?

• The beaches of Sitges.. too bad it was cold so we couldn't see any nudes! hhaha

• Dadser and I at the top of Monterserrat, such a beautiful view!

• The fab rissotto I made for my parents! :)

• Mommacita and I in Costa Brava

• Mexican Dinner

My parents left last Thursday and I miss them so much! We had so much fun and had time to go on three side trips and some sight seeing of Barca. The first night we planned our week and walked along Las Ramblas, where my dad got gropped by a Nigerian prostitute, and Lynn got real mad and threw the large buff lady off. It was quite interesting. We then went to a bar called Dow Jones where the drinks are sold as if it were the stock market.. prices go up and down according to the sales. It was so much fun! The next day was our first day in Barca, I let the rents sleep in of course and then spent the rest of the day touring. They got to see my  "flat" and experience the stairs of death, which they officially decided that a picture does not do it justice. Later we went to the Picasso museum, which was huge but very interesting because all of the rooms were separated according to the time period. He went through so many changes in his life and it was interesting to see how his art changed as well. That night (Sat) we went out to dinner to a mexican restaurant. They had a live marriachi band and authentic Mexican food! It was so so good, but of course not enough salsa for the spicy king Steve! haha. Sunday we went on a day trip to Costa Brava, which is an hour north of Barca. It is a gorgeous little beach town with hiking along the beach. We enjoyed lunch on the beach, hiking, and a little shopping. That night I invited them over and cooked them dinner. I made rissotto with sausage, chicken, and all types of veggies. They said they loved it.. but who knows! hah. That night I took them to my favorite little Sunday night bar with kareoke called George Paynes. We didn't sing, but my parents got to meet some other parents and meet some of my friends. The next day I got out of class at 12 and we were off to Mount Serrat, which is a monk town on top of a huge hill. We took a cable car up and walk around, it was gorgeous. This trip was filled of laughing and jokes and beautiful sight seeing. That night we went to popular restaurant near my parents apartment called La Fonda. The food was typical Catalon, which for the most part is not my favorite, but I got a spanish omelet and it was delicious. The next day we were off to Sitges, which is an hour south of Barca. It is a small little gay beach town with gorgeous beaches, swanky little shops, and stylish restaurants. We enjoyed the relaxing day walking around, shopping, and eating of course! Sitges was beautiful and I want to go back soon so I can go shopping! When we got back I took them to a really popular shot bar called Chupitos which is shots in Spanish. They light all their shots on fire and some have some that you take out of oranges. Every shot is like a show and a hit place for tourists. The next day was their last day :( we went to breakfast and we had to say our good byes. I had so much fun with them and now I am officially home sick. I miss them so much and want them to come back! Overall we had an amazing time and they lucked out because it is raining all this week! If anyone else wants to visit PLEASE DO! That's all for now. 

Love always,

ME

xoxo

My parents are coming today!!!!!!!!!! :)

Amsterdam

• At the Van Gough museum 

• Some cool building.

• All us in front of the I AMsterdam letters

Hello again,

I just got back from Amsterdam and it was much more than I expected! I wasn't expecting anything spectacular, but I wanted to check it out. Amsterdam turned out being amazing, it was beautiful, filled with tons of canals, leaves that were actually falling to the ground (aka Fall that we don't experience in CA), wonderful food, and tons of sights to see. We had the opportunity to see Anne Frank's house, which I have been interested in since I was a kid. We also got to see the Van Gough museum and the I AMSTERDAM letters. One night we went on a bar crawl which was very similar to Ben and Jilly's but on foot. We met tons of other American's and Aussies. Those Aussies get around, I have met them everywhere! The next day we went on a boat cruise around the canal and learned about the history of Amsterdam. That night we went to the Red Light District, and boy was that interesting. A must see in Amsterdam, but degrading to women. Girls stand in apartment type rooms half naked and eye men until they come in and then they close the drapes. Dirty men! We also roamed a beautiful park with colorful trees, ponds with fountains, and live music. The city was very laid back and pretty. Overall I had a great time!

Post Cards

Hi,

So I have been accumulating post cards that I would love to send to everyone, but I need your addresses. I know that both Aunt Jenny and Aunt Tara wanted me to send one for the girls. I have so many I want to send so PLEASE send me your addresses.

Last week and J'Adore Paris

• The travelers. :)

• Notre-Dame

• One of the beautiful stained glass windows

• Birth of Venus by Bouguereau, one of my favs :)

• Eifel Tower of course

Bonjour!!

Hope everyone is doing well. I miss you all. But it is time to fill you in. Last week I went to Circus de Solei the Quidam show. It was my first one and I loved it! The shapes those people can put their bodies in is UNREAL! On Thursday I went on a field trip with my architecture class. We got to see the casa batllo and casa amatller, both designed by Gaudi. I have a new found love for architecture :) and I got the chance to see more amazing buildings in Paris! We set off on Thursday night and met up with one of our friends that is studying in Rome. We stayed at this happening little hostel with a tiny little club below. The first night we just hung out and learned some French. Friday was our BIG sight seeing day, we went to Notre-Dam cathedral, Musee D'orsay, a little shopping, a nice French lunch, the Opera House, and the eifel tower. Notre-Dam was absolutely beautiful, stained glass windows filled the interior, and once again I loved the architecture. I loved Musee D'orsay, I had the opportunity to see the works of some of my favorite artists such as Bouguereau and Monet. That night we enjoyed a French four course mean for only 10 euros! It was good, fun, and cheap. Our second day we saw the Louve, went to the top of the eifel tower, and saw festivals in the streets, such as a chinese dance. In all I love Paris and I was surprised how large the city was. The metro system was HUGE and confusing, but we figured it out. That's all for now I am jetting off to Amsterdam this weekend so I will keep you all updated. xoxoxox 

Milan and Switzerland

• Canyoning. haha they made us jump like that!

• Castello Sfozesco in Milan

• The cathedral in Milan

• Interlaken.. so pretty!

• The fake looking river.. Interlaken is BEAUTIFUL

Ciao! 

I just got home from an amazing weekend in Milan, Italy and Interlaken, Switzerland. We didn't have school last Weds. so we had a four day weekend and decided to jet off to Milan for fashion week and Interlaken, the adventure sports capital of Europe. We flew into Milan on Weds. night and we didn't know what we were getting ourselves into! We took a taxi to ABC "hotel" more like a "hostel". It was pitch dark outside and inside. We had to buzz in and maze ourselves through the darkness and up some stairs to get to the reception. There was NO ONE in sight. My friends said it reminded them of the movie Hostel, but I refused to see that movie. We got ready real quick and hopped in a cab and managed to tell him to take us to the nicest/most lively restaurant in Milan. He took us to this place called Gininnios. The second we got there we saw Naomi Campbell!! The dinner was delicious, the best Italian food ever! The bill was very pricey but some how some Italians paid for it. The next day we went to Castello Sforzesco, a gorgeous Castle that was used as a military protection. We viewed the cathedral and the city and then we had to go shopping! We mostly window shopped, everything was sooo super expensive. The next day we took a train to Switzerland. We stayed in the most amazing little Hostel called Balmers. It was cute and was the happening place. We met people from all over the world, and even ran into some kids that are studying in Barcelona with us... so random. The next day we went canyon-ing. Interlaken is one of the only places to do it in the world. The best way to explain it is.. its like white water rafting but without the raft. You are constantly jumping off waterfalls, climbing through caves, and repelling down cliffs. It was amazing and soo beautiful. We wore three layers and a helmet.. it was soo cold! That night we got some mexican food... yes they have mexican food in switzerland.. it was soo good! The next day we spent traveling back to Barcelona. It was weird I got this feeling of being happy to go back, Barcelona is officially my home!!:)

My Trip to Pyrenees

• The Creek that ran through the entire walk.

• So pretty!

• The girls, my roommate and I on the ends and the girls in the middle we met here.

Hola!

As many of you don't know as part of my program we have organized trips and field trips. Two weekends ago was our first overnight trip to the Pyrenees Mountains in Northern Spain. It was beautiful, we stayed there for one night and it was so nice to be cold for once! (Barcelona is humid and hot). We left on a Friday and stayed in a very small town named Taull. The population was only 100 people!!! On Saturday we went on a 5 hour hike, more like a nature walk, but it was absolutely BEAUTIFUL! Rivers snaked throughout and cows roamed throughout the beautiful greenery. It was nice to get out of the city and enjoy nature and the clean air. Our trip was two days and one night, but it was perfect all of you would have loved it!!