Sometimes dreams come true.

I have yet to write about Dublin.  Oh Dublin.  Dublin was a hoot.  In a slightly ridiculous way.  You know your trip is going to be good when you think that you are going to be riding on a ferry from Wales (yup, found out I had been to Wales this weekend) to Ireland, and it turns out to be a mini-cruise ship.  Seriously, just like my cruise ship to Alaska, just a few floors smaller.  And no pool...that I could tell.

Anyway, we proceed to Dublin and I ask our taxi driver what to do in Dublin.  Keep in mind that I am in the passenger seat, but really the driver seat in the U.S....up there with the driver.  He says all there is to do in Dublin was to get drunk.  I decide to not get into a religious conversation and explain how I don't drink, and I decide to just go with the whole, "Oh, what if your underaged?"  He laughs and states that age doesn't really matter in Ireland.

Okkkaaayyyy...

We pull into Dublin and go to our VRBO. (Vacation rental by owner.)  However, it turns out to be a VRWO+SARAG.  That means: Vacation Rental With Owner plus Son and Random Asian Guy.  Oh, and I think the owner's wife was there too.  I am convinced that the Asian guy slept in the closest under the stairs because there weren't any rooms left in the apartment.  The owner was Boris, or that's what we called him.  The scent of the place was so strong that when I smelled my clothes in Phoenix, Arizona, they still reminded me of Boris and his hospitality.

Dublin was a beautiful city, full of pubs and stone buildings.  We went on a day tour of Wicklow National Park, and that was gorgeous.  Have you seen P.S. I Love You?  If you haven't, you need to.  It's filmed in the park, and it was even more beautiful than what was filmed in the movie.  We did see the bridge that's in that movie, hipster points for us.

But my dreams came true on our last day in Dublin.  A handsome Irish boy waltzed right into my life.  Ha, I wish.  No, instead, I got fancy hot chocolate.

When we were on our day tour, I described to Valon and Camille how I always wished that I could have hot chocolate that had a steamed milk design swirled in it, like you always see the fancy coffee drinks.  That night I even had a dream that I had that type of hot chocolate.

Well, the next day we went and got brunch. And I ordered hot chocolate.

'Nuff said.  Dreams come true.

(And the P.S. I Love You Bridge.  And some random people.  Who knows.)

And there we have it.  A completely ridiculous, superfluous post about hot chocolate with a design in it.  And great scenery.

#bloggerstatus
Elise

Verdun, France.

Since today is Veteran's Day, I figured I would write about my time in Verdun, France.  Verdun is a small town in France, really not strategically important by any means, but in World War I, the Germans considered this an important target because it had never been overtaken.

I remember driving in the minivan, listening to the tape my uncle had us listen to about Verdun's history.  I was trying so hard to stay awake and I was mad at myself because I had forgotten my sunglasses.  After 90 minutes of driving, we had arrived and I quickly forgot about my sunglasses.  (Partly because it was cloudy and cold, but still.)

I am so grateful that I had the chance to go to this battleground that was fought over for almost a year and where over 700,000 soldiers died.

In America, history is so young, we almost compulsively save it.  Something slightly important happened here?  Or something might have happened?  Memorial.

However, in France, it is completely different.  To preserve everything would require preserving the whole country.  The wars fought there were extremely close to home and personal.  When you look at the country surrounding this little village, you know there wasn't a piece of land untouched.

We walked around abandoned villages and forts that were slowly turning into caves.  We walked in a World War I trench that was slowly being filled by Nature.  Everywhere you looked were massive trees, brushes, and dips and dells.  We soon realized that those trees, or any tree, didn't exist during the war.  Vegetation was demolished during the war.  The innocent dells were not natural, but instead remnants of craters.  I have never been anywhere quite like the Verdun battle fields.  I doubt I ever will.

And we visited the Ossuary, the equivalent of our Arlington.  We walked into the cream building and saw a chapel filled with candles and statues.  However, it was the hallways that got to me.  We weren't allowed to take pictures, out of respect, but these pictures are impossible to forget.  They were massive, blown up pictures of the veterans.  The soldiers held pictures of themselves in uniform, from the war, and mimicked the pose.  A modern day veteran holding a picture of their past life.  In stark black and white.  In some, wives and children were visible.  Others had them holding their favorite toy.  Some soldiers had bright eyes and wide smiles.  Some had a look of despair and sadness.  They thing that touched my heart was the obvious way life had treated them.  You could see how their life had gotten better and you could plainly see the loss etched in their faces.

Today is Veteran's Day.  I won't pretend I know what it's like to go to war, or to sacrifice everything for my country, I've never been asked to.  I won't act like this is something people know how to sympathize with.  I won't pretend like this task to defend freedom was easy.

But, I hope, that throughout the course of my life, that I will be able to face a picture of a past me and see how good life was to me. I hope that I will be able to take the lesson these brave soldiers taught me.  That life is a beautiful, precious thing.  That life should be held in reverence and I should have respect those that have faced the possibility of losing that gift.

Ok...let's talk dynamics.

Not very many people get to travel the world at all...and I was lucky enough to travel with a pretty fantastic group of people!  But, one person in particular...my cousin Camille!

Oh Camille and I...we go back.  Back for a while.  I remember her coming to my house for a week during the summer and we would play for hours on end.  My Thanksgivings consisted of hanging out with this gorgeous girl (still do) but, now instead of playing trolls and Polly Pockets, we just sit and talk and talk and talk.

We spent four weeks together this summer.  First off, this was a dream come true for me.  Ever since I was little I wanted to spend this long with Camille.  Second, now it's time to spill all of the juicy drama we had over the trip.



0. Zippo. Zilch. Nada. None whatsoever.

Camille and I didn't have one single fight the entire four weeks we spent together.  And no, this isn't me just forgetting the little fights or drama.  It really didn't exist! This means that two teenage girls traveled to 7 countries, numerous apartments, to 3 world renowned cities, and various time zones together and didn't have one fight.  Miracles do happen!

In all seriousness though, I am so lucky to have one of my closest friends be my cousin.  Because she's kind of rad.

She's kind of gorgeous isn't she?

This is basically the girls when were in the car...driving anywhere.  This particular day was Sunday after we toured Wissenburg, or the White City.  In Germany.  I swear, I had the best sleep of my life in that van...

In summation, Camille was so much fun to be with!  I can't think of anyone else I would want to experience the trip with.

xo. Elise

Reality in Europe.

Reality.  Isn't that such a frustrating thing sometime?  The most hilarious thing is that reality really truly does happen everywhere!  So often after my trip people would ask me how it was.  Or during my trip I would think about if I was having fun.

And most of the time?  The answer was yes.  I was having an amazing time.

But something that people forget is that, even in Europe, reality hits.  And it always does while traveling.

Instances of reality in Europe:
1. It was so so so so hot the first few days.  The weather isn't perfect...even on the other side of the pond.
2. Ordering food was hard.  I typically didn't speak the language of the waiter or waitress and that was always awkward.  I felt uncomfortable having to ask in English and not understand the language they spoke.
3.  You're tired.  Jet lag wasn't too awful going there, but you are still tired.  Walking around all day is a lot of work.  I remember being so tired the first day in Paris and all we had done was walk to our apartment.
4. You can get hungry.  The first few days we tried to have a dinner of bratwursts at my uncle's house three times in a row.  We never did eat them...you just make do with whatever meals you have.
5. Sometimes you don't like the clothes you packed.  Go ahead and label me petty...I don't care.  But sometimes you didn't always feel cute or put together...sometimes you felt as rumpled as your suitcase.  Your hair isn't the same, you don't have the same routine as you do at home, or your favorite products, etc.

But, if you balance it out with the amazingness factors of Europe:
1. The food.  I can honestly say I liked every single thing I tried in Europe.  All of it was sooooo good. The pastries.  Oh my.  The bread.  The cheese.  The chocolate.  The ice cream.  The sandwiches.  The schnitzel.  The salad.  The quiche.  Everything.  So so so good.
2.  I was actually content with what I packed...and the clothes there to buy!  I wish I could have bought bags and bags and bags of more clothes.  Primark baby.  That is where it's at.
3. The scenery and weather were beautiful.  I am still blown away by the views that I saw.  The German vineyards.  The rolling Irish hills.  The city of London.  The quaint villages of France.
4. The landmarks.  I had the opportunity to see a World War I trench.  Do you know how amazing that is?  Do you know how moving that is?  I saw a memorial of bones.  I saw the Eiffel Tower.  I saw Big Ben.  I saw the P.S. I Love You bridge.  (Cutest movie ever!)  I saw German castles after German castles.
5.  The boys.  Sorry American boys.  I highly doubt you can compete with Jacques.  He was attractive.  (Right Camille and Valon?).  But seriously....there were some cute boys!
6. The atmosphere.  Each country I went to had such a culture and chemistry.  I absolutely loved it.  Going to another country and seeing how people lived?  Priceless.
7. The humanity factor.  I got to interact with so many kind, humble, and sincere people while I was there.  People are much quieter and more respectful there, that's true, but they are nice.  They try to help you.  So many instances of kindness that I was privileged to witness.
8. The art.  I had the chance to go to the Louvre.  Ok, that alone was mind-blowing.  Seriously?  The Mona Lisa and Venus De Milo?  Code of Hammurabi?  Also, the British Library?  Two Magna Cartas, a Gutenburg, Beetles lyrics, Jane Austen's writing desk, Leonardo's notes.  Crazy.
9. I went with great people!  It was so much fun getting to know my aunts and uncles better and of course, my cousin and her friend.
10.  Europe.  The experience alone was so perfect, it couldn't have gotten any better.  I don't even have words to describe it.

See?  The good things double the reality of Europe.  I'm down with those odds.

Fish and Chips

To all of you Pinteresters (new word?) you have probably seen this.  This is copied off of my cousin's Bucket List board.  So what do we do when we are in London?  Cross things off the bucket list of course!  

Reader, I ate fish and chips in London.  

I wish I had a picture of the place we ate at, but here is the street we stayed on.  I was starving and I couldn't wait to eat some authentic fish and chips. We all order the large except for my cousin, who ordered the regular.  

And this, my friends, is the large.  Two hands long.  It is a full fish that is huuuuuugggeeee. The regular was maybe a quarter smaller?  Who know the portions were so big.  Sad news?  Not the most flavorful fried fish I've ever had.  Not even the vinegar helped.  

However, check that off a bucket list.  Two truths and lie fodder perhaps?

xoxo. Elise 

Across the Pond...

I'm back again, and this time with a summary of London.

Both my sister and I concur.  We would want to visit Paris and live in London.  I don't exactly know why London seemed so much more livable...but it did.  Part of it was probably the language.  It's nice to live somewhere where they actually speak English.  Part of it was probably that for all of the hype, London isn't exactly touristy.  Paris is full of landmark destinations and it is practically dripping with romance and tourist attractions, yet London seems to care less.

Before you get all huffy and try to explain that London is just as touristy (because that's something London wants to claim?), I will concede a few points. Westminster Abbey. Buckingham Palace. Tower of London. Big Ben. London Eye.

But all in all, London seems more like home.  A place where you visit Primark (the most amazing clothing store ever) on the weekends and then go to your apartment with fish and chips takeaway.

But London....sigh.  It was a dream come true.

They actually exist!  It was crazy just seeing these things on the street, like they weren't symbols of one of the best cities ever!

St. Paul's Cathedral.  We decided not to go in since it was expensive (London does seem to charge an arm and a leg for everything) and how many cathedrals can you go to?  

 Strange feeling to see the Union Jack places.  It is a gorgeous flag isn't it?

 The Parliament building.  Isn't it breathtaking?  I wish I could just take picture after picture of this building, it was gorgeous!

 Big Ben!!! Talk about visiting famous landmarks. 

And the girls!  Kudos to my cousin.  She didn't feel well the whole day we were in London, yet she never complained!  It was also fun for me to get to know her friend Valon (on the right).  I had never met her before the trip, but she was so great to become friends with!  

Story about Westminster Abbey: First, no cameras allowed in there.  It is, after all, a place of worship and they wanted that to be respected.  In some ways this was nice because if taking pictures had been allowed, I don't think I would have enjoyed it quite as much.  Sometimes it's nice to just put your camera down and see what is in front of you.  

Downside?  I know my memories will fade fast.  But, imagine this: it's essentially a cemetery in there.  Elaborate graves and memorials everywhere!  I felt bad because it seemed I was constantly stepping on someone's grave or memorial.  My eyes couldn't open large enough to see every name and date and gilded surface.  If anything, the British know how to do elaborate.  It was crazy to walk down the aisle where Kate and William walked to get married. (Congrats on the baby by the way! :) To see the chair that had been there since the 13th century that has been used for every coronation since.  To see the graves of Mary Queen of Scots and King Edward was mind-blowing.  

They also had a corner dedicated simply to writers.  I took a moment to stand in front of Jane Austen's and think about my time spent in A.P. English researching, reading, annotating (last annotation ever in that book!) about her book Pride and Prejudice.  It feels like I was raised on the six-hour, Colin Firth version of P&P (in Camille's home actually) so it felt like a full circle to stand in front of her grave and think about what she accomplished.  It felt all very sentimental (the thing my sister and I love) and warm fuzzy and just so perfect.

Jokes on me, Jane Austen's grave is actually in Winchester Cathedral.  Wherever that is.  I had a nice moment with a stone, not her grave.  

xoxo. Elise

Paris holds the Key.

Oh Paris.  I fell head over heels in love with Paris...of course, after I came to terms that we weren't going to be mugged while wondering around with our suitcases lost for about an hour.  Other than that.  True love.

Honestly, Paris is such an experience.  Everything is just..different.  A little better.  A little more amplified.  A little brighter.  People are more classy.  The language is more gentle.  The food is not as sweet.  The culture is enveloping.  I sincerely loved every minute of Paris (except for the above-mentioned lost part.)

We rode the Metro everywhere, and it was so hilarious seeing all of the Metro stops and their names.  It would go something like this:

"Ok, so we need to go to the Eiffel Tower.  We need to get off at E-coli Military (or Ecole Militaire for those of you that speak French)."

And then the little Metro voice announcing the stops would say:

"Eco Milay"

That is not an exaggeration.  You would tilt your head, look at the map, and hurry off hoping that you were getting off at the right stop.  Half of the word would just be dropped, I guess that's how they pronounce things?  Don't look at me, I can barely speak ten words of Spanish.

This is my reaction when I first saw the Eiffel Tower:

I could not stop smiling.  It was amazing. One of those surreal moments.

I feel like the pictures say it all...

Surreal is how I would explain my time there.  And a little magical.  It's a completely bizarre to be there and see all of these sites that you never actually thought you would and go see, and then all of a sudden you're there.  With all of the other tourists, classy French people, and the little kids on their third grade field trip (most of whom were better dressed then I was).   

Paris was my fave.

xo. Elise

A little country hopping for ya!

I've been all over the U.S.  Crossed so many state borders, I've lost track.  I live half an hour away from a state border for heaven's sake!

So imagine my surprise when crossing country borders....was kind of the same thing.  Except maybe even more anticlimactic because we didn't even cheer as we crossed.

See, over in Europe a lot of the countries are all part of the European Union.  Because of this union, there isn't any border control whatsoever.  Going from Germany to France to Luxembourg to Belgium was very similar to going from Utah to Idaho to Wyoming to Colorado.

Downside?  No passport stamps.

The first day we stop in Trier, the oldest city in Germany.  It's home to a Roman Gate (yes, as in bajillion years old Romans) that is nicknamed 'The Black Gate' because, well, it's black.

There were all of these kids everywhere on a field trip...and I wonder what type of life they live.  I mean, who goes on a school field trip to a Roman gate...in Germany.  Don't mind me, I just went to the Kingman Power House year after year after year.  (Kingmanites, you know what I'm talking about). 

Keep in mind it was 90 degrees over here.  Yes, 90 degrees and so humid it felt like a permanent sauna.  That is why my face felt like it was melting off.  This is when we vowed to never put any effort in our appearance in Europe ever again.  (That lasted until the next day).  We also visited some Roman Baths, a beautiful cathedral, and had the most amazing gelato ever.  I had blood orange and, oh my, it was heavenly.  Helped my craving for something cold.  Fun fact about Germany: they have no ice.  Anywhere.  They probably don't even know what ice is.  And their drinks?  Cool, not cold, at best.  

We then stopped at a U.S. military cemetery in Luxembourg.  This was amazing.  It was sobering to look at all of those white crosses in row after perfect row of people who died so I could live in a free country.  

 Luxembourg was gorgeous.  It is one of the wealthiest countries in the world (I guess their big income is banking? Who knew!), and you could tell.  Everything was clean and nice. Seriously, I would probably move there in heartbeat...actually, I would move there in a heartbeat.

Belgium was only about a half an hour away...so why not?  We tried some French fries from a little roadside stand.  Fun fact number 2: French fries are from Belgium. World War II soldiers were given some from soldiers that spoke French so they assumed they were from France, but they were actually from Belgium.  These fries were heavenly...fresh and hot.  We also had an assortment of sauces to taste test.  (Curried ketch-up?  Thumbs down.)

Our last stop was a war memorial, Battle of the Bulge to be exact.  This was an amazing experience for me because I had just learned about this battle, the history behind the name, and the significance of it.  The memorial was huge, and I would highly recommend looking up the story.  Again, it made me so proud to be an American.  It also reminded me of the great world we live in, at risk of sounding corny, it was a great reminder that there are good people out there.

('Scuse the appearance...it was a long day and as mentioned, I basically melted).

Sorry this was so long...when you do three countries in one day, it takes a while.

xo. Elise

A thing with wings.

I had always heard about the long flight to Europe...I mean, traveling across an ocean isn't exactly easy, but I always thought it would be a tad longer.  The actually leg across the ocean (to Dublin, Ireland) was only 6 and half hours.  That's manageable, right? But factor in my one-hour flight to Phoenix, 3 hour flight to Chicago, 6.5 to Dublin, 1 to London, and finally 1.5 to Strasbourg, France, it was a long 36 hours.  You also lose time flying to Europe.  We left on the morning of the 17th and landed in France the afternoon of the 18th.  Not going to lie, I started panicking when I thought of the day lost somewhere crossing the ocean.  It meant one day less in Europe.

On the two short flights we flew the airline Ryanair.  This was one of the most painful experiences I've ever had while traveling.  First off, I was mad about having to check my bag because it didn't fit in their strict regulations.  Second, the inside of their planes were a bright, pukey (yes, that is with a 'y') looking neon yellow.  I wish I was coherent enough to snap a picture...but you know.  The seats didn't move back and there were no tray tables.  I was so exhausted I feel asleep in the frigid ice block of the plane.  However, I was cheerfully awakened by the landing announcement.

(Insert the most annoying, loud, obnoxious trumpet noise you can conjure up).  Welcome to (insert whatever airport/city you just landed in)!  This is yet another on-time flight by Ryanair.  Last year 90% of our flights were on time, the best record for any airline.

Obviously they take their statistics seriously.

But the discomfort was all forgotten when we landed in France.  My cousin kept exclaiming, this is Europe air!  These are Europe water splotches!  This is a Europe road!  It's mind-blowing how much France actually looks like the animated set of Beauty and the Beast.  Seriously, take a second to picture how you think France would look like.....boom.  That is exactly what it does look like.

In Strasbourg there is a gorgeous cathedral.  You walk past a building and babam!  There it is.

This cathedral was my cousin's favorite...my favorite one was in Metz, France, but really, how can you choose?

xo. Elise

March 4th

On March 4, 2013 I was sitting doing my homework like any other day.  It was the end of the trimester and I was busy doing whatever mountain of homework I had to get done that day.  My phone buzzes, but I don't open it for a while.  I finally get a minute and check it.  It's a text from cousin and it reads:

"Hey, my family is going to Europe this summer.  Do you want to come?"

Fairly sure my response was an anomaly...it was something along the lines of "heck yes, why haven't we done this a bajillion years ago?" :)

And then on June 17th I boarded a plane by myself to fly to...Phoenix!  (And proceed to Chicago, Dublin, London, and finally Strasburg, France.)

I figured I would write a little bit about it.  Since Europe basically blows my mind every time I think about it.

Pretty much.

xo. Elise