Last stop: Spain!

Spain was wonderful. It was one of those things where I didn't look up hardly anything, and had almost no clue what exactly to expect. After I left Cyprus on May 16th, I met up with Natalie in Barcelona. We visited the Sagrada Familia [the unfinished church that the infamous Guadi designed] The church had so much character and symbolism, that even after all the cathedrals I've been to in the past four months, this one still took my breath away. My favorite part of Barcelona was the Magic Fountain. It reminded me of Disney World, with its colors lit up and set to a playlist of music.

After Barcelona, we ventured to Sevilla, a smaller city in the Southern part of Spain. Sevilla was by far both of ours favorite. The streets wound around and if you didn't pay attention closely, it was easy to get lost. We ate tapas, drank Sangria, went to a Bull Fight, watched a Flamenco show, and rode bikes around a beautiful park. It was relaxing and warm and exactly what I would picture the "real" Spanish life to be like.

Sadly, we left Sevilla for the island Ibiza. The tickets were cheap, the hotel was cheap, and we figured "We'll be on an Island-what could go wrong?" Well, let me tell you. Our hotel was... well... not the nicest. Our bathtub growled at us anytime we wanted to shower, and we had to pay 10euro just to rent a remote for the TV [which in most cases, we wouldn't have needed, but you'll learn why as I continue] The people in Ibiza weren't exactly the Spanish residents or international travelers we were expecting. Most everyone had too many tattoos, bright colored hair, mid-drift tanktops, and honestly, I thought I had just gone to Daytona Beach for vacation. We ended up making the best of it by going to the beach everyday, went snorkeling, and ended the vacation at the spa, but that first night... we we're a little afraid to leave our room! It all makes for a better story tho, right?!

Leaving Cyprus was hard, but leaving Spain was easy. At this point, I couldn't wait to be home. I wanted so badly to see my family and eat American food [without inchworms or purple meat ;/] And I couldn't wait to sleep in my own bed and do my laundry. For weeks I had been dreading coming home, and then suddenly a switch went off inside of me and there was no place I'd rather be.

...can't go back now.

"I can't really say why everybody wishes they were somewhere else.

But in the end the only steps that matter are the ones you take all by yourself.

And you. And me. Walk on, walk on, walk on.

'Cause you can't go back now..."

Save tonight, fight the break of dawn. Come tomorrow, tomorrow I'll be gone.

These past few days-actually this whole past week-will hold some of my greatest memories so far. Our last weekend in Ayia Napa was perfect, where almost everyone in the whole program rented fourwheelers and took them out along the coast of the Mediterranean, jumped off a 40 foot cliff, got all scratched up from trying to climb back up, rented a paddle boat with a slide, layed out at Nissi beach, went out to eat together, and then shared memories on the beach at night... And since we've been back, we've been nothing but inseperable. We've had more family dinners, parties, sleepovers and just M309 hangouts than ever on this whole trip.

It's strange, time, ya know? When you want it to hurry up and go fast, it seems to go by so. dang. slow. And then, right about now, when I wish I could just pause it, freeze these moments, just for awhile... I've never felt like time has moved so fast. But the time has come, and this completely epic semester is almost over. I'm leaving Cyprus and off to Spain to meet up with Natalie for one last adventure. It's bittersweet, but it's not goodbye...

"The hills are alive with the sound of music"

Week two started off with Austria! We went to Salzburg first, then Vienna. Salzburg is incredible. I visited Chelsea there two years ago, and it was just like I'd remembered it. There were beautiful flowers everywhere, and people laying out by the river. All with the Alps and the Salzburg castle for a backdrop. The Mirabell gardens were my favorite [there's a shot in The Sound of Music of them!] Vienna wasn't anything like I thought it'd be. It was kind of just another big city... I wish we'd have been able to go into the little towns around it. But the schnitzel and brats were very good, of course!
On Easter Sunday we ate lunch in Bratislava, Slovakia, then headed to Prague, Czech Republic. It was really sad not being home for Easter... I missed wearing an Easter dress and going to church and eating Easter brunch and Easter bread. I missed my family a lot [but my Momma did send me an Easter basket in the mail, which made it a little better :) You're the best Mom, thank you!] We ended up eating dinner at one of the Medieval restaurants in Prague, which was very fun. Prague was one of my other favorites. For Easter Monday, they have a special tradition where all the girls walk around with baskets full of their colored eggs and the guys have these kind of decorated sticks that serve as whips. The guys are suppose to hit the girls in the butt with the whips, and then the girls give them an egg! What kind of Easter tradition is that?! Me and a few of my friends actually did get whipped too, but we didn't have any eggs to give them! Haha. There was also tons of booths set up everywhere for the festivals celebrating Easter, where we all got lots of goodies and listened to some music. My favorite parts about Prague were all the beautiful architecture and bridges and the John Lennon wall. It was this huge wall where people paint Beatles lyrics or inspirational sayings. It was just really fun.

"Imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will be as one." -John Lennon

On to sights unseen...

After Paris, Amsterdam comes in a close second for my favorite city we visited on the trip. Apart from the Red Light District, everything is so beautiful. I did walk through the Red Light District for about 5 minutes. It's a strange experience... you have a river in the middle of the road with swans swimming around, all while prostitutes and standing in red lit windows beckoning anyone willing to come in. It made me want to go wash myself off. Anyways, for most of our time in Amsterdam we rented bikes and hung out at a "hippie" park called Vondelpark. It was so pretty with all the flowers and lakes and people just hanging out.
After Amsterdam, we went on to Brussels where we did nothing but eat! Belgium beer, Belgium waffels, Belgium chocolates, and Belgium fries. Their beer really is the best... Oh, and saw the peeing boy statue that Brussels is so famous for!

Next, we went saw Luxembourg, Strasbourg, and the Dachua concentration camp. It was kind of eerie to see, and I learned a lot about the Holocaust that I didn't know before.

Good Americans, when they die, go to Paris.

The first stop in my trip throughout all of Central Europe started off in Paris. I can't even begin to tell you how amazing the first three days here were. Bekah, Carli, Jenalee andI started it off by climbing 700 stairs to the middle of the Eiffel Tower [you have to take a cable car up the rest of the way!] and then ate at the oldest restaurant in Paris: A La Petite Chaise. We were seated in a room that could have been someone's dining room, and served by men in black bow ties. We completely spoiled ourselves and ordered the most amazing french onion soup, red wine, and the filet mignon with chantal cheese sauce. I've never been so satisfied with a meal ever.

The next day we went to The Lourve. It's a beautiful museum and I got to see the Mona Lisa [which looks like it should just be a painting above a mantel piece] and the Victory at Samothrace [my favorite statue, the Nike] We also saw the Notre Dame and Shakespeare & Co. [which is the cutest little bookstore that writers like Oscar Wilde use to hang out at!] Then brought baguettes, cheese, and wine and sat on the lawn in front of the Eiffel Tower to see it all lit up at night.

The last day we went to the Paris Opera house where they filmed The Phantom of the Opera. It was beautiful, I really wished I could have seen a show there. Then, for the rest of our last day, we did what the Parisians do best: shop!