wagamamamama

Traveling for 10 days is a true test of stamina; a test of which I think Jo and I aced. Well, except for a few minor miscalculations, but those were mostly directional so they don't actually count.

I honestly don't really know where to begin recapturing this journey. So much happened and I don't think anyone wants to read about it all- hence the list form that will incite after this paragraph. The main thing about this spring break that I realized was that I could actually travel by myself. I guess that is one of the main points of studying abroad: recognizing your independence. But once you have that realization, it really does feel great.

My adventures began in Paris, where I got to see MERYL. I needed a whole lot of Meryl in my life right about then, as the half way point of this adventure seemed to be dragging on a little. I love seeing other people's abroad situations, so that when we all return back to the states I'll have some idea of what they are talking about when they say, "Remember that time when...". Funny thing: We had a layover in London to get to Paris which was quite the treat...(I have no idea how this could even make sense at all...geographically, especially). It wasn't too bad except for the fact that Jo and I were SPRINTING through Heathrow Airport trying to catch our next flight. The weather was pretty rainy and windy outside which made for some heavy turbulence. But Jo knows how much I hate flying and always held my hand :).

Main things we did/saw in Paris:

1. Louvre: We really only did this because you have to go to the Louvre when you are in Paris for the first time. Of course we saw the Mona Lisa, but to be honest, its hyped up a little too much. The photo itself is like a celebrity: enclosed in a glass case surrounded by body guards preventing you from entering the imaginary sphere around the photo.

2. Les Vedettes du Pont Neuf boat ride across the Siene River where we got to see the Eiffe tower, Notre Dame Cathedral, Musee du Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, the Grand Palais and Pont Neuf (the oldest bridge in Paris), among many other sites. Although it was absolutely freezing and raining outside, we endured the cold and stood outside on the boat for most of the journey. I'd say it was well worth it. After our walk back to Meryl's apartment we ended the night properly: with a nice cup of hot chocolate and sweatshirts.

3. American Church in Paris: I went to my first church service on Easter!

4. Pompidou: museum of modern art. The outside of this museum is a tremendous piece of art itself. It looks like one huge science experiment. Inside we saw a ton of installation art work, of which I enjoyed. But what I don't understand is how these pieces of art are moved from exhibit to exhibit...are the simply meant to be temporary or are they replicated each time?

5. Falafel: If you want to have the best falafel, you need to go to the Jewish quarters in Paris. The long line is well worth the wait and quite reflective of just how good the falafel actually is.

6. Versailles: We decided to take a day trip to Versailles once we found out that it was only a 40 minute train ride away. Our plan was to wake up at get to the chateau by 9 am so that Meryl could be back in time for her 1:30 pm class. So, we buy tickets and wait for the train to come. Once we get on the train and it is almost at the last stop we realize that we don't think this is the right train. No one else is on the train and all the lights have been turned out. We had heard an announcement a few minutes ago, but none of us were paying attention. Most of the train ride is underground, so it became quite scary with all the lights off especially since we knew we were pretty far away from the center of the city. Needless to say, we decided to pull the emergency alarm to let the conductor know that we were stuck on it. It was a scene, for sure, and the observers at the train station loved seeing us walk shamefully off the train. But, nevertheless, an hour and a half later we did arrive at Versaille and we did get to walk down the hall of mirrors where at the end, there was a cardboard throne of Louis XIV's. Kind of disappointing, but nonetheless absolutely beautiful...and like most buildings in Paris, gigantic! I think the gardens in the back were my favorite, though.

7. Haircut: Meryl's host family lives right next door to a salon. So on Tuesday when it was pouring rain, I decided that there was nothing better to do but to get basically 8 inches cut of my hair. I'm getting more and more into each day and love the fact that my head feels way lighter now.

On Wednesday Jo and I travelled to London to visit Diana, whom lives above the pub called The Spotted Horse in Putney. What a great area. It's more of a residential neighborhood, yet the center of London is extremely easy to get to. My favorite sites in London:

1. National Portrait Gallery: We went and saw the Vanity Fair exhibit at this museum which was incredible. I was especially able to appreciate many of the photos because we have been discussing them in our photography class recently. It was interesting to see how the photographs have changed since the early 1900s. I think some of my favorite photos were taken by Man Ray and Nan Goldin.

2. Tate Museum: This museum is so big, we only made it to 2 floors. The third and the fifth-- The fifth floor dealth with 'states of flux' while the third floor included 'material gestures'. There was a ton of pop art and minimalistic art which I enjoyed.

3. Freud Museum: this museum is located in one of Freud's old houses in a beautiful residential area on the outskirts of the city.

4. Covent Garden, Leicester Square, Picadilly Circus....

5. Avenue Q: since Diana loves broadway shows, we thought it would only be appropriate for us to go to one with her. Avenue Q is absolutely hilarious, it was basically like a puppet show for adults. At first I was skeptical... but the show was really terrific. The show itself is about a recent college graduate who was an English major and now moves into this new neighborhood and embarks on a journey towards an elusive self discovery and purpose. (too bad the plot seemed a little too realistic for me at this time...)

6. Camden Market, Portobello Market: the perfect markets for vintage shoppers :). Although it was raining we still made our way through the streets of the infamous markets. Too bad the dollar means nothing in London. Literally. I could not believe how expensive everything was-- it was a good thing we were only there for 4 days.

7. Saturday was the Putney Boat Race which is basically like Class and Charter Day in Putney. Diana's bar was full of people from early in the morning, so we made our way trying to avoid the crowds, yet still enjoy the day. So, we sat on the curb of an alley eating subway.... there really were a ton of people there leaving our options quite minimal.

Somehow Johanna and I managed to make it home last night without any major catastrophes. Since we were travelling on the day of daylight savings time AND flying through a different time zone, I was pretty convinced we were going to miss our flight. But luckily our flight was 2 hours delayed because Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport is not really functioning at this moment. They opened the terminal about a week ago and between the lack of hired staff and the lack of staff who know how to use the luggage technology, flights are being cancelled and luggage is being lost. But regardless, we are back in Praha and it was a beautiful sunny day today! Hopefully spring is starting to bloom. I can't believe we have 5 weeks left. Time is seriously flying by...

Here is the album from break for those of you who read this far:

SpringBreak