Birthday in Berlin... Family in Antibes!

First of all... Thank you to everyone for all the wonderful birthday wishes!!! Now to start my story of my trip to Berlin! My good friend Eliza and I decided a while ago to go to Germany again and I wanted to go for my birthday! Unfortunately... the flights didn't really work in our favor, because they didn't have any flights flying out later on Sunday and earlier on Friday... so it was a short and sweet trip, but well worth it! We left about 10am on Friday morning from Nice, flying with Swiss Air! Normally, we take easy-jet, which gets us there all the same... but Swiss Air was SOOO nice! The seats were nice and big, comfy... we got free food, drinks AND swiss chocolate (sooo yummy)... now I ALWAYS want to fly Swiss Air!!! Our first flight took us to Zurich for a short layover before heading to Berlin! Once again, we were on Swiss Air ... and got the same spacious plane, with yummy FREE food (always a plus for poor college kids)! We then arrived in Berlin around two o'clock in the afternoon! We quickly got our bags (had to pack heavy for the cold weather)... and found the bus that took us to our hostel! Being from a small town... I would never think that they would have really bad traffic... but the traffic at this time was CRAZY!!! We were on the bus for about an hour and 20 minutes (normally a 30 minute bus ride)... luckily seated, not having to stand and move for everyone at each stop.  After our long bus ride.. our behinds sore and all... we arrived at our stop for the hostel.  It took us a few minutes to find it, but after a little searching, we found it! We walked into a bar/reception full of fun! This was by far the best hostel I have stayed in!!! It was AWESOME!!! We checked in, put our stuff up into our room, got our warm clothes on... and went to discover what Berlin had to offer! We wandered around the streets close to our hostel, finding a few neat shops to look through, and of course, getting beer (for SUPER cheap)! After a little bit of discovering, we found a place to get a snack and beer! We ended up at a restaurant that served Tapas (traditional catalan food... if I'm not mistaken)... the Tapas were pretty yummy, but what wasn't... was this nasty RED beer that the woman served us... oh my, was it yucky! Luckily, we decided to get some traditional German beer after that, to cover up the nasty taste of the red beer! After our "snack," we headed back to the hostel to get ready to go on a pub crawl! We met a woman who took us to five different bars around the area, and gave us free shots all night... it was very fun! We were able to experience all the different types of bars Germany offers, as well as the different drinks that they love (white russians, hot chocolate and baileys... YUMMY)! We had a great deal of fun... even meeting a few other americans, which was refreshing! The next day, we woke up early to go sight-seeing! We first got some warm coffee at Starbucks, before we headed off to walk along the streets towards all the major sights! We saw a cute market, which had tons of local painters, crafts people... etc! This market had some of the coolest hand-made objects I have come across! We rummaged through, finding many things we liked! We then wandered down the street finding lots of historical buildings, including the Berlin Dome, Reichstagsgebaude, and Brendenberg Gate! They were all sooooo beautifully constructed!!! I loved finding all of these on our journey! We then ate some traditional German food for lunch... which was delicious!!! We had currywurst, potato, potato salad and soup.  After our filling lunch, we wandered down another street and ran into a cute little festival going on.  They had a snowy hill that you could slide down... but most of all SNOW!!! Something I was reallllyyyyyyyyyyy missing for my birthday was that I wouldn't have snow... and then we ran into this little festival, and there, was, SNOW!!! I was SOOOO excited! Eliza and I both went down the hill twice! We also checked out the rest of the festival, which had a little fire, and a few shops, as well as places to get traditional german food, drink, and deserts! It was like Oktoberfest, only instead of beer, they served hot chocolate with baileys, and glug! It was the homeiest feeling I have had so far! We then decided to head back to the hostel after our long day of wandering around, and get ready for dinner! We decided to eat dinner at a restaurant that the hostel suggested that was close to the train station.  We got seated right away, which was awesome because it was VERY busy! We order quite a few Tapas (again), only this time, they were REALLY good, whereas the night before, they were okay... we also split this awesome Velenzian dish which had chicken, duck, beef, and rice... it was soooooo soooo good!!! I LOVED it!!! We also got this spectacular sangria... SOOO yummy!!! Lots of fresh fruit... very very tasty! After dinner, we headed to a different part of Berlin where the Berlin Wall still stood... and boy was that neat to see! It was graffitied everywhere, but it was sooo cool to see! We headed to a bar around that area, before venturing to find the club that was around there as well! After the bar, we went to look for the club, but we couldn't find it, so we decided to head back to the hostel area! We got back to hostel and I was able to skype with Mom, Jackie, Nick... and a few friends from home... Derek and Erik! It was VERY fun... they were able to wish me a happy birthday, which was soooo fun! On Sunday morning, we had to take off quite early (around 8:30am) because we weren't sure how long the bus would take us! It took about 40 minutes, which was perfect for us!!! We checked our bags, got some coffee and then headed through security! Security took SOOOO long... they had you go through one person at a time... it was VERY weird! But after we got through, we were able to get on the plane right away.  We had a short flight to Munich, for a  2 hour layover. Once in Munich, we got some AWESOME lunch... both of us getting traditional german food once again! It was reallllllllllyyyy impressive for airport food! Our flights were smooth sailing, and easy! We got back home, and a few friends and I went out to dinner for my birthday! My birthday was SO much fun... but even better was when I got to see Nick and Mom!

Nick and Mom were able to come on Monday... but of course, I had class ALLLLLL day! I was in class from 1pm til 10pm... long long day... but I made mom and Nick stay up so that they could see me, and get used to the time change! I got to their hotel around 10:30pm and was SOOO excited to see them!!! Seeing them was the best gift... and I can't wait to see Jackie on Saturday... SOOO very excited!!!

Yesterday (the 15th), I was able to show Mom and Nick around the area I live! We were able to drink wine by the beach and watch the sun set... I took them to a few traditional french food places near where I live, and love it here! This morning, I set them off to Rome, for there few days without me leading them around, speaking French for them... then I fly to Florence on Saturday! Jackie flies from Chicago to Florence... and mom and Nick from Rome to Florence! I can't wait to finally have our whole family all in one place in the world... SOOO excited!!!

I will continue to blog about our family trips, and of course all the wonderful things it will bring!!!

ps... I was able to speak German quite well in Berlin, getting Eliza and I around! I needed it A LOT more than I thought I would, and it was SO much fun!!!

Love to all of my friends and family... Hope everyone is taking care!!!

Thank you again for all the birthday wishes!!! I can't wait to see everyone in a month!!!

The Beautiful City of Lights....

This past weekend I traveled to the Northern part of France... yes, we went to Paris- the city of lights! The adventure began on Friday, when my roommate McKenzie and I boarded our 5 hour train ride to Paris! It was pouring rain here... and apparently it stormed like crazy here the whole weekend... but being in the train, we had a lot of room to spread out, as it was very early! We slept for the better part of the adventure! I studied for my French midterm that is coming up this week... which was very hard as the scenery was very pretty! When we finally got to the amazing city... we took the metro to our hostel, where we met up with our friends Matus and Taylor! We immediately started exploring the area around our hostel! Our first stop was to eat a french meal at a little cafe! I had amazing soup, which was something I have been wanting since I arrived (they don't really eat soup over here... which is disappointing because I LOVE soup)! But finally, I was able to satisfy (or tease) my taste buds with some amazing soup! After our meal, we went and saw a beautiful cathedral, which over looked the city! It was amazing!!! We then decided to head to de la Tour Eiffel... also known as the Eiffel Tower! I had never thought that the Eiffel Tower was that amazing.... until I saw it! I then realized how incredible it was to see in person!!! Holy cows... was it just glorious to see!!! We took a few pictures in the park by it (which were beautiful as it is fall and the colors were amazing...)! We then headed to the bigger viewing part, where you saw people doing all kinds of fun things in front of the tower! We saw a guy holding a girl straight up in the air... and she was upside down... it was NUTS!!! We admired the tower for quite some time... it was eventually night by the time we left, so we were able to see the tower light up, and were surprised when the tower started twinkling... which was ABSOLUTELY amazing!!! Just soooo beautiful!!! We then decided to go explore a new area and look for a place to eat! We were told there was a Chipotle in Paris... so we googled the address and went to go find it... and of course, there wasn't one! After about 40 minutes of searching... we gave up, and headed back to our area to bring McKenzie to her hostel! We ended up just grabbing some asian food just down the street, and then headed back to our own hostel to get ready to go out! A lot of friends came to Paris this weekend, so it was really fun to meet up and do things together... such as go to a club called Queen on Champs Élysées, which was featuring the world famous DJ Afrojack! It was very expensive to get in, for college kids anyway... and the drinks were quite expensive as well, but once Afrojack came on, he was AWESOME!!! Unfortunately, we were very tired, and headed home early so we could wake up early and enjoy the city again the next day! Saturday morning, Taylor, Matus and I woke up and started exploring the area by our hostel, because our friend Erica was coming sometime in the morning... so we stuck around so we could meet up with her and explore the city! While exploring we found the Moulin Rouge! It was very interesting hear about the area around the Moulin Rouge (because we caught up with a tour guide who showed us around the area a bit)... we also learned that the area was known for having the best shops for food... best cheeses, baguettes, wine, fresh fish, meat, fruits etc. It was very interesting... then we found Erica, grabbed some food, and headed to Notre Dome! We met up with some friends from school, and got a tour of the cathedral... the woman was very dry, so it wasn't that fun... plus her accent was really hard to understand... she said apostles and I heard applesauce... if that gives you any idea of how funny her accent was! Haha... after the tour (which was free), we walked outside and around the area... we were going to go up into the tower (where the hunch back lived), but we had to pay money... so we decided against it! We then ventured around to the Latin Quarter, and found some amazing sites... afterwards, we decided to go to the Champs Élysées, to explore the shops, and what was offered there! We met up with some more friends... and ate a lovely dinner at a cafe just off Champs Élysées... which was AMAZING... the food was really good, and very reasonably priced!!! I had mashed potatoes for the first time since... I don't even know when! Haha... it was awesome! Afterwards... Erica, Matus, Taylor and I decided to head back to Eiffel Tower! We stopped and got a few bottles of wine first, which we drank before we went up the tower! We were going to go to the top... but they closed it two people before we got to the window (sooo bummed), so we only went to the 2nd floor... which was amazing! We were able to see the entire city... and it was just flooring how amazing Paris really is! Paris was one of the places I wanted to go... but only because I live in France! I didn't give this city much credit... until I went!!! I guess it has been shown in movies and television so much, that I figured I had seen it all already... but it is completely different seeing it on television versus actually being there! After our adventure up the tower, it was time to head back to the hostel! We were all exhausted, and fell asleep almost instantly! The next morning, we woke up and headed out to the museums! In France, the first Sunday of each month, they have free admission to the Museums! We decided to go to Musee d'Orsay... which was absolutely GLORIOUS... I can not even describe how amazing the paintings were! I once again... can not believe how amazing they were, compared to the images I have seen on the computer or on television! I love impressionist art, so I was very interested in the art at this museum! We didn't have time to go to the Louvre, because I had a train to catch at 5:40pm or so... so we went and saw Arc de Triomphe! Which was very interesting... I wish I had gone up, but we were REALLY hungry, so went and got some food instead! I then parted ways with my friends, and headed back to the hostel to get my stuff, before getting on the train to come back to Antibes! On the train ride back, I reflected all of the fun I had, and I am SOOOO glad that I am going to Paris again in two weeks with Mom, Nick, and Jackie!!! Thank GOODNESS!!! There is still so much I didn't see, and do.... that I want to yet! The adventure was amazing, and I loved it! I can't wait to go back!!!

Love to all of my friends and family back home... I can't wait to see everyone in a month!!! 

Our First Site... I forgot the name...

McKenzie and I, in front of the Eiffel Tower!

Just a beautiful picture!!!

The tower twinkling... absolutely amazing!

Notre Dome!

Barcelona!!!

This past weekend, I was able to go to Barcelona, Spain... and boy was it fun! This was my favorite trip so far... probably because of all the dancing we did! My roommate Kim and I got up early Friday morning to catch our train to the beautiful city of Barcelona! It was a long day of traveling on the train... but finally, we arrived! It was really awesome, because Kim's boyfriend is studying there, so he came and picked us up from the train station... and we were able to stay at his place because his roommates were gone! YAY!!! So much money saved, because we didn't have to spend money on a silly hostel!!! When we got there, we showered and got ready to go dancing at the clubs! Clubs are a big thing in Barcelona, and it was an absolute BLAST!!! We got in quite late, and were exhausted from traveling and dancing!!! The next morning, we slept in... then finally got up and went to do some sight seeing! Kim's boyfriend, Ian, took us to an awesome viewpoint of the city! We took a cute trolly ride half way up the mountain... and then got on a cable-car type thing, and road the rest of the way to the top! It was a little disappointing, because it was REALLY cloudy up there, so you couldn't see a whole lot... but on the way up, we were able to see the whole city!!! It was awesome! At the top of the mountain, there was a beautiful church, and an amusement park.... very odd to have an amusement park up there, but it was really cool! We didn't ride any of the rides... although, if it was not so chilly up there, and cloudy, we probably would have! We did go into the church, only to discover that there was a wedding going on!!! OOOPPPSSYYY!!! Luckily, we weren't the only ones who walked in on the wedding... and it was really weird, because it was a museum type church, so we were allowed to be in there... veryyy weird!!! The church was really beautiful though... so I could see why a couple would want to marry in it! After exploring the mountain... we headed back down the mountain! Our next destination... was a bar where we could watch the college football games!!! I was alllll about that!!! On the way... they showed me a few of the different streets, and the districts of Barcelona, which was really cool! We also got the traditional food called Tapas... which is essentially appetizers! They were awesome! After the college game... we headed back to go out dancing again! We decided to try two different clubs this time... and both were SUPER fun!!! The first club, the DJ was a lot better, but it was all fun nonetheless!!! We got in late, once again... and I instantly went to bed, as I had an early train to catch! I woke up quite early to get to the train station! It was realllllyyy different though because at this train station, they made you go through security... and your ticket was checked BEFORE you got on the train... I have NEVER had to show my ticket before boarding the train... nor have I ever gone through ANY type of security at ANY train station thus far.... so it caught me a little off guard! The train ride back consisted of me mostly sleeping! It was lovely to see all the scenery when I was falling asleep! One very weird thing I noticed on the way back (which I didn't on the way, because it was dark...) was that somewhere between the border of Spain, and the city of Montpollier, the train track goes LITERALLY through the middle of a swamp!!! I woke up and I couldn't even see the land under us... it was SOOOO weird!!! My trip to Barcelona was short... but LOADED with fun fun funnn!!! I loved it there, and would go back in a heart beat!!! Next time, I hope to attend a soccer game... that would be SUPER cool!!!

I will be posting often, as soooo many fun trips are planned until the end of the semester!!!

Love to alllll of my friends and family!!! Take care!