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One Day in Paris

Recently one of my best friends from home, Cora, came to visit me here! She and her boyfriend, Brian, are both studying abroad this semester and they decided to meet in Paris for a long weekend. I made plans to meet Brian at his train station and help him surprise Cora by picking her up at the airport, as she wasn’t expecting him to get in until the next day. So, I met Brian and we started headed across the city to meet Cora at the shuttle station. (A word of warning, when flying Ryan Air, be prepared to fly into out of the way airports. Example: Paris-Beauvais is NOT in Paris, and there is not a cheap way to get to the city from Beauvais.) Cora’s shuttle from the airport was over an hour late, despite the website’s guarantee that shuttles ran every 20 minutes from the airport. Honestly, we should have known better, this is France after all, mais c’est pas grave. Luckily, Brian grew up in West Africa, and just so happens to be fluent in french, so he figured out what was going on. When Cora finally arrived she was shocked and a little flustered from all the confusion of her trip but almost as happy to see us as we were to see her. On the way back to Cergy she told us all about the issues she’d dealt with flying in from Italy, which is apparently just as disorganized as France.

They're here!

The rest of that night and all of Friday were spent catching up. I had class on Friday, so after I showed them the village and the village bakery, where Cora had her first real french pastry (!!), I gave them some destination options and sent them exploring for the afternoon. Cora is an art major, so when she heard that Auvers sur Oise, the town where Van Gogh is buried and spent the last years of his life, is just a few miles from Cergy she was pretty excited. So, the ever prepared and brilliant Brian found a map, figured out how to get there, and packed water and snacks. I had gone there earlier in the semester and told them it was about a 45 minute walk along the river. They set off, cameras in tow, and were gone for some time. About 5 hours later they returned, absolutely exhausted, telling me it was actually a two hour walk to Auvers sur Oise. Woops.

The next day we woke up bright and early, grabbed our friend Kody from upstairs, and headed to Paris. Neither Cora nor Brian knew too much about the city, but Cora knew she wanted to see the Louvre. I threw out a few more suggestions to them, and we finally settled on an itinerary:

-Louvre/Tuileries

-Notre Dame/Shakespeare & Co.

– Jardin Luxembourg

-Catacombs

-Eiffel Tower

-Père Lachaise

-Montmartre

These are, in my mind, the absolute, must-see spots in Paris. Unfortunately, as we found out later, there’s just no way to see them all in one day. This is at best a two day itinerary.

The Louvre was our first stop. We tried to get there early to avoid crowds, but avoiding tourist crowds on a Saturday at a world famous art museum just isn’t a possibility. Nevertheless, we managed quite well and spent 3 hours walking around just a few hallways so Cora could see some of the more famous works.

Shortly before she wandered off

This was only my second time to the museum, so we saw many of the things I saw the first time: the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, and various pieces by Michelangelo, Vermeer, Rembrandt, and El Greco. As amazing as seeing all of these things is, I think the most fascinating thing about the Louvre is watching the tourists swarming around. We had several run-ins with picture-taking zombie tour groups of every nationality, and after losing Cora, then finding her again, we finally emerged into the courtyard of the palace into the Tuileries gardens.

Brian, tuckered out in the Louvre

By this time, Cora and Brian, who hadn’t had a chance to fully recover from their walk and travels from the last two days, were absolutely exhausted. But I dragged them through the gardens which were really in bloom for the first time of the year. It was just gorgeous! The fountains had been turned on, flowers were in full bloom, and people were everywhere, lounging by the water, lingering in the mazes, sailing toy boats – it was fantastic.

One tired couple in the Tuileries metro station

It was at this point, noticing the time, and seeing how far behind us Cora and Brian were lagging, that Kody and I realized we weren’t going to be able to see everything we’d planned on that day. Instead, we decided to make it to the catacombs before the line got too long there, and then to head over to the Eiffel tower. So, dragging Cora along behind us, we cut out of the gardens to the nearest metro, and headed over to Montparnasse neighborhood to the entrance to the Catacombs.

A rather creepy man at the end of a rather creepy tunnel

Now, let me tell you, my information in my last post concerning the catacombs wasn’t correct. These aren’t Roman catacombs, but instead, these underground tunnels began as quarries.

This well had some sort of appropriately menacing name and purpose. Unfortunately, I can't remember what they were.

Sometime in the 18th century, after a disease outbreak due to a mass grave in another part of the city, it was decided that the bodies in the grave would be transported to the quarries and buried underground. The remains were carted through the city accompanied by priests swinging incense and chanting the last rites.

The first thing you see when you walk into the ossuary.

Later, bodies from several other cemeteries throughout Paris were moved to what is now known as the catacombs. It was opened as a tourist sight in the 19th century, and today, as I was very creepily informed by a guard while looking at a pile of skulls in the ossuary, 6 million people are buried, or rather stacked, in the catacombs. As creepy as it sounds, and it is creepy, this is definitely a must-see, but I’d go during the spring so that when you come up from underground, you walk out to find birds chirping and the sun shining rather than cold and darkness. You’ll need a bit of a pick-me-up afterwards.

"You know how many dead people? Six... million..."

The mile long trail, and the 87 steep, winding steps leading out of the catacombs nearly finished Cora and Brian off. So, when we emerged, we stopped at a nearby market to get fruit for a picnic we were planning under the Eiffel Tower. Then we jumped on the metro and headed towards that symbol of all things beautiful in the world, making just a short detour to grab some baguettes from a nearby bakery.

French marching band, yellow plastic cowboy hats, and tubas. Just an average day at the Eiffel Tower

Yes!

It seemed like the rest of the city had the same idea we did, but it didn’t matter, it was gorgeous out. We had our picnic of bread, cheese, sausage, apples, and wine and laid in the sun talking for hours. Brian and Kody noticed a group playing frisbee and went over to join, while I napped and Cora caught up with her friend, Grace, who had come to meet us. It was just the thing we needed to recharge. And even though I don’t think I could think of a more cliché experience than eating cheese and drinking wine on the champs de mars under the eiffel tower, I can’t help but think that it’s cliché for a reason. It was easily one of the best times I’ve had in the city.

Frisbee?!

Soaking up the sun - post-frisbee

As the sun started to go down, Kody and I realized that there was only one place in Paris where we could see the sunset that could live up to those last few hours laying in the sun. We rallied Cora and Brian, said goodbye to Grace, and raced to Montmartre to make it in time for the sunset. I assured Cora, again and again, that the walk up the steep hill would be worth it, but I don’t think she needed convincing at that point.

The view of the city from Montmartre at dusk

The way up the hill seemed to be lined with more street performers than usual, and the charm of Montmartre was really in full swing. My friend Ali, who is also a Valpo student studying abroad with the Boston program in Paris this semester (you can check out her blog here), met us at the basilica. After watching a dance troupe perform, we turned around to watch the sun set over the most breathtaking view in Paris. That’s when Brian had a great idea, he pulled a jar of nutella, a bag of crepes, and a knife out of his backpack, and started passing the delicious little things around. Now, these weren’t properly served, and the bottle of wine he pulled out his bag a few seconds later wasn’t of the best quality, and yes, we were speaking english, but there really couldn’t have been a better way to end the day. We stood there talking, laughing, eating, and drinking for quite some time, not wanting the day to end and definitely not wanting to say goodbye. The Eiffel tower lit up behind us, sparkling from the other side of the city. We took one last look and headed down the hill to start the trip back to Cergy so Cora and Brian could get an earlystart home the next day.

Save a day for Montmartre

April 10, 2011 / Emily Royer / 0 Comments

Sunset and the Eiffel Tower over the rooftops of Montmartre

If you’ve seen the French film Amélie, or know a bit about Paris, you may be familiar with the neighborhood of Paris known as Montmartre. It’s probably most well known for the Sacré Cœur Basilica which sits on top of the highest hill in Paris over looking the city. Though this is easily one of the most breathtaking sites in Paris (both the basilica and the view of the city), Montmartre itself is easily one of the most rewarding ways to spend your time in Paris.

An average day at the Sacré Cœur -tourists, tourists, tourists

I have yet to see this, but apparently when it rains, the basilica shines even whiter

Admittedly, the draw for me to this part of town was to be one of so many Amélie tourists, I didn’t even care about the fact that the Moulin Rouge is right in front of the metro stop. I mean, of course I made a point of seeing it, but it wasn’t top on my list.

Attempting to be Amélie at the Café des deux moulins

I was sure to eat crème brulée at the café de deux moulins (the restaurant where Amélie works in the movie), and then reenacted with a friend and fellow Amélie fan, perhaps a little too enthusiastically, the scene where Amélie has Nino run up the stairs in front of the Sacré Cœur to retrieve his photo album. Now, these were rewarding enough, but the art and generally-in-love-with-everything-quaint enthusiast in me was just enamored by this neighborhood.

The vineyard in Montmartre

One of several street performers on the basilica's steps

Moulin Rouge!

Montmartre used to be a bohemian commune of sorts. The moulin rouge, cafés like the chat noir and the café Lux attracted artists like Toulouse Lautrec, Salvador Dali, and so many other modernist and surrealist influences living in Paris at the time. Housing was cheap, and peers were plentiful. These days, Montmartre is a bit more touristy (ok, a lot more) but artists can still be found lining the streets, painting and selling their works in the market area just next to the basilica.

Yes, this man is juggling bowling pins while balancing a fish bowl on his head

This dance group performs everyday in front of the basilica. They're amazing

The remaining moulin in Montmartre

The word “moulin” or windmill is a theme throughout the neighborhood thanks to the two windmills that used to be working over the city. These days, only one is still hanging around, and you can’t actually get too close to it, but it’s worth checking out if you’re a fellow fan of quaint things. Montmartre is also home to the only remaining vineyard in the city of Paris. There’s a wine festival here every year, though unfortunately it’s in October, so I won’t get the chance to engage in the festivities.

Despite all the views, and all the sights Montmartre has to offer though, this is also the part of Paris I’ve come to love the most purely for personal reasons. Some of my best memories of the city happened on these extremely steep, narrow streets. I’ve heard Vespers in the basilica, conversed with darling women who routinely come with tuna at 5pm to what we’ve come to call “the Cat Forest” to feed its inhabitants, found a scooter, watched the sunset behind the Eiffel Tower, attempted to watch the sunrise after one very long walk, and shared laughs and a meal of sorts with good friends. The Eiffel Tower might be the symbol of Paris for most, but when I think back on my time in this gorgeous city, my time spent on the hill of Montmartre, in the shade of the Sacré Cœur, will be the first to my mind.

Found a scooter!

An unscientific poll

April 10, 2011 / Nick Derda / 0 Comments

Me and some of the other international students who participated in my informal survey.

My time in Mexico will be coming to an end soon, which means “real life” will be starting up again (sad face). I know what I’ve thought of this experience, and you’ve probably been able to tell how I felt through my posts. With that being said, I conducted a highly unscientific poll over this past week to find out what other people thought of their experiences in Mexico (the good, bad, the awesome, and the terrible). Here’s what people had to say:

U.S.A.: “Mexico is a vegetarian’s nightmare. All you can eat here is Vitamin T–tacos, tamales, tortas and tequila.”

Germany: “I’m never leaving!!!!”

France: “People say that Mexico is one of the most dangerous places in the world, but they think that because they believe everything that’s on the news. I actually feel a lot safer at UDLAP than I do at my Uni back home.”

Australia: “It was hard at first, but my Spanish is finally getting better!”

Honduras: “I love Mexico!”

U.S.A: “Mexico has been the worst and best experience of my life. There are things I wish I could change, but really I’m so glad that I came here this semester.”

Australia: “Clubbing and drinking are fun for about a week, but then you kind of get burned out.”

U.S.A.: “Mexican girls should not be allowed to wear high heels if they don’t know how to walk in them.”

U.S.A.: “I decided to stay here another semester because I love it so much.”

U.S.A.: “I still don’t understand why they eat pizza with ketchup here!”

Australia: “I was supposed to go back after this semester because I’m graduating. But I’m getting a job teaching English. I never want to leave!”

U.S.A: “I’ve had a good time so far, but I am starting to feel a little bit homesick. I think it’s time to head back to the States.”

U.S.A.: “Mexico equals Love!!!!!!!!”

That was just some the feedback I got during my random and rather awkward poll. Remember everyone’s study abroad experience is going to be different. Even if you have a rocky time know that wherever you go, you will never be the same when you come back. So take a risk and go on an adventure…today!!!!

My Mexican Playlist Part 2

April 10, 2011 / Nick Derda / 0 Comments

Me "chillin with my ladies" at Voodoo Mama, a great place to go to when you're tired of the usual Mexican club scene.

After a brief hiatus from going out, I’ve started heading out to more nightclubs, bars, and general hotspots to find you all the music that you have to know if you want to fit in in Cholula. With that said, here’s my second top five songs of Mexico:

5. The title kind of makes you feel dirty, but the lyrics are so catchy that you’ll find yourself singing it in the shower. At #5, here’s Plastilina Mosh with “Pervert Pop Song.” And if you’re worried that this song will be a little too risque for your liking, please just take a listen. The song is more about what you want out of a good relationship than being about pervy spanish-speakers.

4. Whether your a Kurt fan or feel something special for the cheerleading Brittany, you have to admit that the songs from Glee are pretty catchy. Coming in at #4 is the Glee version of “Teenage Dream.” Be forewarned, the only thing that Mexicans like better than Glee is High School Music. Even if you’re not a fan of either, just try to be accepting of people who like these shows.

3. Sometimes you just feel like your life is out of control. Sometimes you just want someone to tell you what to do because you keep making bad decisions. If you feel this way, then you should probably take a listen to “Take Over Control” by Afrojack featuring Eva Simons. So take a break from the hectic life of studying abroad, head over o Kurandera and just let the music take you over.

2. You thought that Mexicans only listened to clubby, danceable music. Well that’s just because you were in the wrong places. You want clubbing tunes, head over to Kurandera, Zambesi or Unit. But if you want more chill, more alternative tuneskies, then head over to Voodoo Mama, Pacha Mama (before 11 that is), or BarFly. I nearly freaked out when I heard the Queens of the Stone Age come on. Coming in at #2 for the inner hipster in all of us is “Nobody Knows.”

1. Some people think they’re amazing. Other people think their lyrics are banal and repetitive. And then they’re are those of us who are completely indifferent to them. Whatever category you fit (or maybe you don’t fit) into, you have to admit that no clubbing experience is complete without listening to at least one Black Eye Peas’ song. So here it is at # 1 the Black Eyed Peas with their smash hit “The Time (dirty bit).”

Hope you enjoy rocking out to this songs! Peace.

Sick…Not fun!!

April 2, 2011 / Lydia Mertz / 0 Comments

Hello dear readers,

I knew it was going to happen. It was going to happen SOMETIME!

And “that” is being sick. Somebody once told me last semester that it is not possible to travel and live abroad without getting sick at least once. I tried to fight it but shoot, I am battling an inflammed colon and intestines right now. I won’t go into details but yeah being sick abroad is part of the experience.

What to do? Go to the doctor, drink tea, do NOT eat spicy tacos and just relax…..besides it’ll pass and remember to be grateful for all your blessings…in the good and bad times!

Saludos!

Always an Adventure Part III: Spring Break!

April 1, 2011 / Molly Kestner / 0 Comments

The final installment of my adventure blog is about my rafting trip on the Orange River! Sorry this took so long!

CGE allows us just over a week to do our own traveling wherever we may want to go. Most people in our group headed to Zimbabwe and Botswana to see Victoria Falls. That was the trip I had originally planned on taking, but when we discussed our Spring Break options, a few relaxing days on a river just seemed to call to me. Truthfully, I really want to go to Vic Falls when I can sit in the pool on the edge, but that’s not an option in this extra-rainy season!

Myself and two Clark University students, Amanda Major and Katie McGonagle, drove all the way to the South to reach the Orange which forms the border between South Africa and Namibia. As usual, the landscape continually amazes me and this trip was no exception. While we were in the North, we saw flat, flooded, grassy lands. Now we were seeing the exact opposite. The lands became desert, like on our trip to Swakopmund, but this time the land seemed more orange than brown. Eventually we hit a long series of plateaus that seemed so out of place. After 9 or so hours, we reached the border in over 90 degree heat!

We thought there would be other students on our trip because it was a special student price, but it ended up just being the three of us and our rafting guides! Pine was a 40 something stereotypical adventure guide and Frans was 24 and new to being a rafting guide. Pine also brought his crazy girlfriend Kelly. The three of them made for a great time! We woke up the next day and had to go back to the border post and stamp back into Namibia since our trip would be ending on the opposite side of the river. We finally set out on our trip and I knew it was going to be great – the water was warm and calm and the scenery was beautiful. We spent the next 3 days navigating the Orange while swimming or drinking whenever we pleased and sleeping under the stars and the full moon. Talking to our guides about their lives in South Africa was also a highlight of the trip. Pine had been in the forces fighting against the Namibian freedom fighters in the 80s, so it was definitely interesting to get his perspective since we’ve been studying so much Namibia history.

When it comes to deciding on your own travel, I say go wherever your heart desires! I still would love to go to Victoria Falls someday, but rafting called to me as soon as I heard about it. And I don’t regret it one bit! It was nice to get away from the big group for a while and I had an amazing time!

OH! I forgot to mention before that my friends and I got our picture in the Namibian, the newspaper here! We were at an Elemotho concert at a local restaurant (he’s pretty good, by the way!) when they took our picture, and sure enough it turned up in the “Faces and Places” section the next week! We all thought it was pretty exciting.

Our free weekends are dwindling in numbers, so I’m off to find something new to do in this place before I run out of time!

My Mexican Playlist Part 1

March 29, 2011 / Nick Derda / 1 Comment

Me at the infamous Unit with some of my Mexican friends. Yes, Johnny, la gente está muy loca.

Most of the Mexican students at UDLAP keep a constantly running playlist of the same music. Club music rules here. If you’re not listening to the latest David Guetta track or Katy Perry’s new hit single, then you’re nothing more than a poser. Although I’ve grown tired of listening to these I-can’t-get-these-out-of-my-head-tracks-no-matter-how-hard-I-try, I thought I would share some with you all. So here’s my top 5 Mexico Playlist of Spring Semester 2011:

5. She’s a neo-liberal’s dream with her catchy tune that praises the underdog in all of us. It’s Katy Perry’s “Firework.” Don’t be surprised if you see actual fireworks going off in Kurandera when this song comes on.

4. Are you feeling sentimental? Want to tell that special someone how you really feel about them? Check out Reik’s “Inolvidable.” It comes on in the clubs at about 2am when it’s time to take a breather from all that hard-core rocking out. So grab a partner and dance the night away.

3. Americans love her, Mexicans worship her, and people named Alejandro probably hate her. Coming in at #3 is Lady Gaga with “Alejandro.” After spending nearly a semester in this country, I can attest to the fact that Gaga got it right when she said Alejandro was “hot like Mexico.”

2. What’s that? You think Barbara Streisand is a washed-out, has-been from the 80s who’s completely irrelevant to contemporary pop culture. Well guess again! At number #2, here’s Ducksauce with “Barbra Streisand.” Do Do Do dooo dooo doo doo do. Be careful with this one. It’s been known to stay in people’s heads for weeks at a time.

1. You’ve seen people eat pizza with ketchup. You’ve heard Mexican hipsters hopelessly trying to use their Nextels at Bambukos while the music was blaring. And you’ve felt sweaty people awkwardly rub up against you at Unit. Do you ever just have those moments when you want to say, “Johnny, la gente está muy loca.” Topping off this unofficial chart at #1 is Sak Noel’s “Loca People” aka the official theme song of my semester in Mexico.

Always an Adventure Part II: I SAW AN ELEPHANT!

March 25, 2011 / Molly Kestner / 0 Comments

Only one, but I had been starting to lose hope about seeing any, and then finally it was right there, eating a tree! It was wonderful. Some friends headed to Botswana later and were able to see a lot more, but since I didn’t, I was happy to see any at all!

I should backtrack and say that this happened in Etosha National Park which is where we spent the last two days of our trip to the North. It’s one of the best places for wildlife viewing in Southern Africa and we saw plenty of zebras and giraffes and everything else you can imagine that you probably saw in The Lion King. It was amazing.

The best way to share my experience is through pictures, so I’ll post a few here and the rest on my Picasa! The pictures really don’t do the animals justice; it really is something you have to see for yourself. Going to Disney’s Animal Kingdom is pretty cool, but it doesn’t get nearly as good as seeing these animals in their true environment!

I could have watched these giraffes all day long.

So if you look very closely under the tree on the left, you can see lions relaxing underneath. We watched this giraffe and his friends play chicken with these lions for a good 20 minutes. This was really all the farther the giraffes got, but we couldn’t figure out why they would want to get that close at all!

One of my favorite photos of zebras at a water hole.

This was all I truly wanted to see!

Vultures snackin' on some giraffe.

Needless to say, Etosha was breathtaking and certainly something I’ll never forget! Now I’m going to donate my laptop to the good of the house so we can relax and watch a movie, but I’ll provide a summary of my spring break trip on the Orange River soon!

Always an Adventure Part I: Exploring the North

March 24, 2011 / Molly Kestner / 0 Comments

I do not even know where to start, so these past 2 1/2 weeks will be split into 3 posts.

I am now back in Windhoek after 12 days in the Northern regions of the country and another 5 days in the South on the Orange River. Some of us drove the length of Namibia in two days and it was all worth it. This first post is all about the first week or so in the North where we did a rural homestay and traveled around to different schools and speakers.

Some highlights: Ruacana Falls. Cattle in the road. Juiced marula fruits. Donkeys in the road. Ate a caterpillar. Goats in the road. Woke to the sound of roosters. Slept under mosquito nets. Wore more bug spray than ever. Sat through an 8 hour bishop installation service. Saw President Pohamba in person. Stepped foot in Angola. Learned how to pound and cook mahangu. Witnessed multiple beautiful sunsets and sunrises. And saw SO MANY amazing animals!

My homestay was a good experience; my family was warm and welcoming and I stayed in a home that was an

The Marula Fruit!

interesting mix between traditional and modern. It was actually the biggest house I have stayed in yet, but their homestead also included traditional huts and buildings for cooking and storage. My parents and one of my sisters spoke english pretty well, but another woman in the house knew little more than “good morning.” However, I felt very accomplished when we were able to communicate while working together even if we didn’t understand the language. I

Traditional storage hut at my homestay.

was really excited to help them juice the marula fruits which are only ripe and ready at this time of year and I was even more excited when I got to drink the juice we made! I was also taught how to pound a very popular grain called mahangu which is a staple in the diet of the Ovambo people. Pounding it is a workout and I only did it for a few minutes! Afterwards, they usually make it into a porridge using boiling water and some flour and it is served with almost every meal.

Yes, I did say I ate a caterpillar. They are popular here and it wasn’t just a little thing, it was a fat juicy green one. They cook and season them, but I still couldn’t quite handle it. One bite was enough for me, I gave the rest back to my host mother! At least I can say I tried it…

Everyday really was an adventure. Aside from the streets of Windhoek and the main roads through the country, the majority of other roads are informal and unpaved. This meant that getting to our homes in the rainy season required maneuvering through fields and puddles and hitting some major bumps. We liked to cheer on our CGE drivers every time they made it through a difficult spot; and of course my homestay family was equally skilled in driving through the dirt and mud. The livestock in the North kind of graze freely and that often meant that they decided to stand in the middle of the road, creating yet another obstacle for drivers. We all found it pretty humorous though.

Our time in the North was definitely a different experience for all of us. We all learned some lessons in traditional Namibian life like the importance of extended family and how to deal with gender roles. In my home, there were about 6 people under the age of 20 but none of them were my immediate brothers and sisters; they were all what we consider extended family. They are treated just the same though. It was also clear in my house that women fulfilled a very traditional role when it came to cooking and housework and that this was just the norm for them. It was not difficult to take part in, but it was definitely a change from what most of us are used to at home.

Sunset overlooking my homestay.

I could go on, but as usual, I could go on forever. So if you have more questions about what we saw or did then feel free to ask! Next up is Etosha National Park…

Just and Update

March 22, 2011 / Hayden O'Shaughnessy / 0 Comments

I haven’t written in a while; so, I thought I’d give ya’ll an update. Germany is amazing; it was a little iffy there for a while when I had a few bouts of homesickness…though I had a few instigating factors. One instigator was when my professor gave me a B+ on a 3-page paper because it “wasn’t enough like a newspaper article.” W.T.Heck?! There is no such thing as a 3-page newspaper article! In my almost 8 years of journalism I have learned enough to know that your editor would KILL you if you wrote a 3-page article. Then, I hurt my back and couldn’t walk. I went to the doctor and he gave me a script for 600mg of Ibuprofen and a shot of what I am pretty sure was saline. Thanks, Doc, I keep 200mg of Ibuprofen in my purse, and I know how to multiply. Then, we had a few conflicts with in the R-87 group, but we’ve worked it out. Tension within the group always happens during this time of the semester; people just get tired of each other. To future study abroad students, it’s okay to want to kick your fellow classmates in the teeth. People are generally obnoxious creatures, (with the exception of myself, of course) and spending almost all of your time together doesn’t help matters. I found that venting really helps. If you are looking for someone to vent to, you can always Skype with me. My screen name is digginfordollars. Also, taking a nice long walk always helps ease stress.

Don’t worry things have definitely improved since my bout of homesickness. We recently activated our Eurail passes, and we have been making quite good use of them. That is partly the reason why I haven’t posted in a while. So far I have traveled to Budapest, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Spain. They all were amazing!

I finished both my Beer and Wine degrees, and I am thinking about putting it on my resume right next to the part where I mention that I am a Reverend. Don’t believe me? I have the certificate to prove it! My friend Hanna came for the weekend and we got a diploma together; she got her wine and I got my beer. We ended up playing Go Fish with coasters that night, and the funny part is that it actually worked! We both have keen imaginations.

Bethany in Barcelona

Since my last post, I have also acquired a pet duck named Bethany, and I love her. We have been traveling the world together. Get ready for some amazing pictures. She is currently sitting next to me while I write this little blurb. (Don’t worry she’s a stuffed animal.)

Let see, what else can I tell you…I started reading Catcher in the Rye again. I love Holden Caulfield. I really do. I identify with him. I feel bad for not actually reading it in high school. Sorry, Mr. Hill. It’s not that I didn’t like you; I just didn’t like being told what to read. I think I might have Oppositional Defiance Disorder. It’s a real disorder look it up on Google. I’ve always wanted to use that as an excuse. “I’m sorry I didn’t finish the homework professor, I have a ODD.” How far do you think that would get me? I’ve also always wanted to ask a teacher how to spell a word during a spelling test. What do you think they’d do? Now I am off track. I hate it when I do that. I was telling you about life in Germany. Like I said before, Germany is pretty much amazing. I have discovered 3 new addictions: Bretzels, Haribo candy, and Rittersport. And that is pretty much the summary of the Life of Hayden at the moment. Stay tuned for more in the days to come. Ciao!

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