November....

Here I am in Munich! During the weekend of Oct 21-22 I went to munich to celebrate my 24th birthday. My actual birthday is the 23rd of October, so that day I had a lovely dinner with friends. However I got to spend the day going around Munich and seeing the sights. I went all over the city, and eventually made it to Marienplatz. Its really a lovely place. I spent the night having dinner at Hofbrauhaus. Which was a lot of fun. Hofbrauhaus is like a oktoberfest everyday of the year.
The beer there is wonderful, the atmosphere playful and the food well is pretty good. The next day I ventured over to the Englischer Garten to see the sufers. Yes, they have surfers there! I was so excited to finally see them in person after seeing them in so many travel videos.

After my birthday things got really busy. I have been working quiet a bit and learning even more. 

I also joined a gym, my present to myself to get back into some sort of functional shape

after drinking so much delicious german beer. I love beer and well my figure sorta speaks for itself. Hopefully I will be able to get back to my pre germany figure, before the end of march. I think thats an attainable goal.  I have been learning a lot in my classes! I have somewhat more difficult classes, but they are by far more interesting than last year. I as well figured out I have about 2 terms left till I'm done with my bachelor degree. Its exciting but scary too! That means I need to figure out future plans a bit faster than I thought. I am starting to study for a German language exam and as well getting as much german as I can at work too. I am so grateful for my co-workers never ending patience with my german, it means a lot to me that they help me with my language skills. I really am happy to get to work with such a talented and awesome team. This past week I've been pretty sick and now am on the upside so I made myself some macaroni and cheese and even watched a whole tv show! Next week its back to work and school, which I welcome because I really dislike being ill. Lets hope my health keeps kicking this evil sick bugs butt. Enjoy the photo I took during November. Happy thanks giving to all!

Affenberg- Monkey mountain

Last weekend was filled with trains and monkeys. My friend Amy and I went to a special place in Germany in the town of Salem. It is  place called Affenberg( monkey mountain). Here you can feed monkeys from the palm of your hand popcorn. I am sure there are reasons why you feed them popcorn but I cant say I was interested in learning. I was way to busy by the pure awe of being so close to a wild monkey. Its really amazing. I can't describe it. They are tame because they are around humans a lot. However this is not a petting zoo. You are not allowed to pet them, you can watch them and feed them popcorn. You are only allowed to feed the ones on the wooden fence. The wooden fence serves as the only barrier between a path that is well not up a mountain but a hill from the Monkeys habitat. It is so odd when the monkey grabs the popcorn from your hand it looks you straight in the eye, then slowly takes the popcorn. Its like for a split second there is a animal human connection, and I tell you it is quiet awesome. I throughly enjoyed exploring this wildlife conservatory. In addition to the monkeys they have huge storks, a lake with fish and deer. Its a lovely place to spend a day. My friend Amy and I unfornately had to leave after spending about an hour and half  of feeding the monkeys to catch a train home. It was well worth it though.

on the edge...

Well I have had a lovely two and a half week vacation.
I got to see an amazing friend of mine get married, visit with friends whom I havent seen for a very long time, see and visit my family, enjoy the sunshine, and of course relax. I also got to go to my favorite places. I love the beach, as it was a central part of my childhood. I go to bastendorf beach daily when I am home, and just sit or stare  out into the ocean. To people who have not grown up on a coast you wont get this, but I have talked to many people who have grown up on the coast they get it. Its my place, the place I go to feel centered and where everything just feels okay. If that makes any sense. I also got to have some great coffee and chai. I got my hair cut a bit too. I begin the second year of my studies in germany, and I couldnt be more happier to have spent some of my break in sweet dear Oregon.

The photo of the beach is at bastendorf beach .

These two  photos are from the farmers market in my home town. I really like going there when I'm home and look at the things the local people are growing and selling. 

“The fool wanders, a wise man travels.” T.Fuller

dear people
who read this blog, thank you!

I am all moved into my new room, aka it is roughly organized and decorated to my liking. I really like my new residence. It is smaller, and the view is not as superb. Yet it is more cozy and the floor is red. The wind is blue around the edges. I can move my bed, desk and side table. Being able to move my furniture is really important to me. The past year I have felt so weird about my bed being in one spot for the entire time. I love moving furniture. I have met only 4 of the people I will live with. I still have 11 people to meet. I look forward to meeting them, loving and disliking them. Because I know I wont get along with them all 100 % thats just life, but hey we'll learn to survive. Living with 15 other people sounds rather freaky, but this year I lived with 12 others, so its not that much of a change to be honest. The great thing about living with a hoard of people is you never are alone,which has some pros and cons. One if you really dislike the people you live with you are in trouble, but if you find some way to enjoy them then you are always going ot have someone to talk with or say hello in to in the kitchen.
( this is a photo of my room)

Secondly I took three yoga classes in German! yes, I dont know all the things they said in the class, but wow I felt great afterwards. I love yoga and I have missed it so much! What a treat to take class this past week. I still havent gone and found my bike yet, and I hope that it is still in La la land by the place know as Kaufland( a german grocery store that is similar to bimart) at a dorm. I hope to go there maybe on monday. Other wise it will have to wait for me till september.

Yes kids, I am coming home. For a bitsy.I will arrive into the lovely Eugene Airport on the 17th of August. Am I looking forward to this visit? Yes and No. I am not looking forward to a really long flight. I am not looking forward to changing planes. Culture shock, the fact that after every long flight I generally develope some sort of cold and cant eat for two or three days with out feeling sick. These are all the cons. I am glad to see my family, I miss them. I want to hug my grandparents, parents and extended family. I love my family SO much,all of them are incredible people. I can not wait to see them. One tidbit though, only my grandma, mom and dad really know I"m coming home. I hope to surprise the rest of them. I can't wait to see my friends. I will get to go to a wedding of a dear friend and I couldn't be happier for her. I am so blessed and grateful for all the wonderful people in my life. I am very excited to see them all.

The sad thing is that I will only be around for a short time. I wanted to be there short, because for me saying see you later is hard. It breaks my heart leaving, but I know that it is because I love everyone in my life so much. I love Germany and I love everything I do here, but sometimes the distance is difficult. However I am very fortunate in the fact I get to spend another year doing what I love. I get to be in Germany for another year,studying and learning about a place that is so amazing, I couldnt be happier. I really enjoy being in Germany. I sometimes forget I am not at home, because to be honest Germany has become home to me.

Anyways,the next post I do will be at Home!
Aufwiedersehen!

Ende Juli.......

Its been a bit since the 4th of July. Many things are happening here.
1. Almost everyone in my program, minus a few, have gone home. By home I mean back to the USA. While yours truly sits here in the lovely Germany, enjoying real German beer.
2. I have to move monday not excited as I have accumulated A LOT of unusual but necessary things.
3. The weather is more bipolar than I have ever imagined or seen.
4. I finished my last test last thrusday, hello summer.

That is July. Take it or leave it.

Open your eyes a bit more..The world is waiting.

When we opt out of experiences that challenge us, its usually because our pride is in the way. ~And "pride" is really just another word for fear- the fear of not being enough. It is our judgement that defeats us. We become our own executioners when we sit in judgment of our efforts.Only when we act without judgement can we truly flourish in our lives.
- John Chan-


I LOVE this quote. I find it really inspiring. I used to sit around a lot and think about fears that I have. I am scared of such silly and unusual things it is disgusting. I am scared of heights to begin with. I don't know why exactly, however Iast year I tried my hand at rock climbing anyways. It is probably one of the favorite things, even though I suck at it to be honest, and scariest things.  I think a lot of the time I often ponder the thoughts of not being enough. However I'm not going to let petty fears stop me from living. I believe that often people say after I finish this or when I graduate from that..blah blah I'm going to do this or that. I think thats stupid. I'm not saying be reckless by any means. Just dont wait to live your life, dont wait to finish something. If you want it and its worth it go for it. You don't get to plan tomorrow, and you have today. Enjoy it. If you have a dream, make it a reality. Make attainable goals. Surround yourself with positivity and get rid of the trash in your life. Yes it hurts to cut off the friend who taught you how to tie your shoes and is constantly complaining about their shit life. Trust me though once they are gone, you will have that much less negativity pulling you down under.  Fear causes negativity, and in it literally eats potential.  Acting with a positive outlook and getting rid of fears makes life a bit easier in my opinion.  I would suggest maybe opening your eyes and your heart a bit more, and act outside of your fears judgement on your life, and take a deep breath then go after your personal best.

Happy Hour, I mean happy 4th of July!

The past week has been rather busy for me. However for the fourth of July I, along with my dear friend Genevieve decided we needed to eat. For me the fourth of July has always been that holiday where I get to blow things up and play with all sorts of fireworks. Unfortunately I live in Germany right now and didnt have any fireworks to play with. I love living in Germany, but I must say I really love to play with fire too. We went to a Mexican food place called El Chico. I know Mexican food is not really 4th of july-ish maybe, but Mexican food reminds me of home. I really miss good spicy mexican food, therefore I felt that Mexican food was the perfect choice for me to celebrate the 4th of July. One thing though is the salsa is well not spicy at all. I would say it is more like sweet and sour sauce. Germany still doesnt have the salsa down yet. Nonetheless the rest of the toppings and food were amazing. We had Enchiladas, chips with dip and Margaritas. The food was very filling. After stuffing our little faces, we played a game of rock paper scissors to see if we should 1. go home and sleep off the food coma or 2. go drink beer. Luckily I won, and we went to Neckarmuller, where we had some lovely beer with other friends. All in All it was  great 4th of July.

The delicious margaritas!

Genevieve reading the menu.

The weather was amazing on the 4th here so we got to sit on the terrace and enjoy our celebration!

Waiting for some yummy food!

Little trips...

The past few weeks I havent written on here, yes I am lazy, and really I havent had time either.
I have gone on a few adventures since I last wrote too. Not just cooking ones, mind you. I went to Amsterdam, Zurich, and Strasbourg. I saw a couple new cities in Germany too.

I went to amsterdam about two weeks ago, and go to see the lovely Colin & Janine Miiller. They are the lovely couple I had the great accident of meeting in Brussels. I really enjoyed Amsterdam, thanks to them. We even got to go to a festival in the Netherlands. This festival is named Pink Pop. It was a lot of fun. They even introduced me to their friend Theresa, who is Canadian as well. I went to the regular touristy places, Van Gogh and COBRA. Which are both fantastic art museums. No I didnt go to the Anne Frank house or take a canal cruise. It just didnt really fit for me. I'm really just happy to spend time with people to be honest, and I throughly enjoyed my time in Amsterdam.

After Amsterdam, my friends Chris, Ashley(x2), Kara and I rented a car to drive to Zurich. I had a really great time. Chris took control of the car, and went 127 mph on the Autobahn. Yes, this is pretty fast and very fun! Unfortunately it was really rainy and miserable in Zurich. The city we didnt really get to enjoy and ended up going home earlier than planned.

Last weekend my friends and I drove to Strasbourg, France. This lovely city lies on the border between Germany and France. We as well went to Kehl by accident and drove through the Black Forest to Freundstadt. I had a great time seeing the city and shopping with them.

“Amor Fati – “Love Your Fate”, which is in fact your life.”Friedrich Nietzsche

Well, hello, May was a successful and busy month. There was much fun, and happiness had.
I had a wonderful time cooking new things, and spending time with friends. I was really happy because one week, I was even able to have a short dinner party. We made mexican food together, which for me was a lot of fun. I really enjoy cooking with people, and just sharing time with one another.

I feel maybe I am a sentimental person, a lot of the time. I really enjoy just spending time with the amazing people in my life that I can call my friends. Time to me is such a valuable form of currency, we only have so much of it and if I get to spend it with positive caring people I am very grateful.

 I think making food with people here in Germany, is one of my favorite things. Right now I'm really busy with getting classes together, working on projects, and going through the motions of life. I  dislike the feeling of not embracing each moment with full awareness and curiosity. I hope that the month of June, allows me to really just enjoy the places with fresh eyes and appreciation. In about a week I am going  to Amsterdam, and will be seeing two wonderful people I met in Brussels. I am really excited. I'm not sure what Amsterdam holds for me, but I'm just excited to see a new place. I really am looking forward to having time to explore a new city and see more art. I am a huge art fan. I really love going to museums, and make it a point to see art that I really can connect with where ever I go on trips to.  Another thing I will doing in Amsterdam is I will be going to the Pink Pop Festival. I'm not really sure to expect, but I think it will be fun to get to hear music live. I haven't been to a music festival in a quite a while.

After that I have a holiday from classes, and will hopefully get caught up with homework, that I have been slacking on.  The quote is by Friedrich Nietzsche, and I chose it as my headliner, because I really have been thinking about Fate. This quote spoke to me. I could go on about all my thoughts and ideas regarding life and my thoughts on it. But then this blog entry may be REALLY long. I am curious what are your thoughts on Fate and Life? Are you happy with your life? do you love your decisions past present and future? I'm still working on embracing all these ideas, and myself.  

Heres to June, and to positivity.

Easy Spicy Vegetarian Chili...

Wednesday has been busy, to say the least. I've been out searching for a new place to live next year already , as housing in Tubingen fills up super fast. When there are 28,000 students new/happy places are rather difficult to find. In order find some inner peace and spicy-ness I decided to make some yummy soul food. I love spicy food.

I have to admit when I make food I generally just look at recipes for a list of ingredients. I think just sorta throw things together. Taste test and roll it out. This probably isn't how everyone cooks but I like to change things up.
Here is a link to the ingredient/recipe I sorta adhered to:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Insanely-Easy-Vegetarian-Chili/Detail.aspx

I changed it however-
this is the what I used:

1 can 250g kidney beans, 1 can 250g corn, 1 can 250g whole tomatoes, 3 stocks of asparagus, 1/3 of a zucchini cubed, 1 carrot, 2 mushrooms, 1 of a green pepper, 1 half of a red pepper, 1 whole purple onion sliced into small bits, 3 cloves of garlic. For seasoning I used probably about 1/2 tablespoon cayanee pepper, 1 tsp basil, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp oregano and 1/4 cup olive oil.

1 deep frying pan with a lid

1. wash, cut all your veggies
2.  Put the carrots, and zucchini into the pan about a minute before all the other veggies.
3. throw all the remaining veggies in pan.( onions, garlic, mushrooms ect.)

4. Add seasonings and sautee all of veggies till tender- aka the onions will be softer/clearer. It took me about 10 mins.
5. Open all the canned items- corn, kidney beans and tomatoes. I like to put them in a measuring cup so they dont spill all over, but do as you wish, and pour them into the veggies.
6. Cover all the ingredients and bring to a simmer for about 20 mins. If it isnt thick enough add a pinch of flour and stir.
7. Good luck :)

Banana bread, Zucchini bread, sauteed asparagus spears....whats next?

Okay, I'll admit it, I've been on a rather baking/cooking with vegetables craze the past couple weeks. One reason is that being a vegetarian in a foreign country can sometimes be difficult and not leave you many options besides pasta or salad, especially if youre a student with not a ton of time. Basically it started about two weeks ago with my need to have, maybe  need is better than have,  Banana Bread. I saw over ripe bananas sitting sadly on the counter, so I decided action was needed. I really dislike wasting food, especially fruit and vegetables. Therefore I began my cooking adventure. Last weekend I made Zucchini bread. It turned out way better than i expected. I dont have measuring spoons and all the recipes I do find I have to convert to the metric system( which is really for the most part painless thanks to online conversion sites for baking). Secondly I always want to change up recipes. Tonight was no exception. I made sauteed asparagus, and added some oil with a bit of butter and garlic. Superb. I am really excited about cooking for once, it doesnt feel like a chore but an adventure. In the next weeks I am planning try some new recipes and try to make the following one at a time:

1. Carrot Cake with cream cheese frosting- one of my favorite things
2. Chickpea Potato Curry- for some reason I really want to make curry
3.Spicy Vegetarian Chili- well because chili is awesome
4.Zucchini Fritters- I just like fritters in general and zucchini ones sound fun
5.Vegetarian Brownies
6.Vegan Chocolate Cake
7.Vegan Strawberry cobbler
8.Vegan Strawberry and Spinach Salad

Hopefully these will keep me busy, and help me learn more about Vegan options as well.

here are the links to the places I got the recipes for my past adventures!


http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_bread/

- I really liked this recipe because it was super simple and requires very little to make it.

Plastic trees in May with Friends.

Yesterday, was the first real weekend in May where I got the chance to go out exploring. I was lucky the weather was superb. I met a friend, kyu who had just recently returned from a trip to the USA where he visited friends. I as well met with another dear friend of mine, Genevieve  who is from Oregon and studies here in the same university as me. I was really glad to get to see them both, as I dont see them often. My friend Kyu and I went to a flohmarket, which is like a huge sidewalk sale with all kinds of interesting  used trinkets and treasures to be found. Its quiet fun to see all the tables with eccentric things on them and mixed about. I happened to find a red plastic inflatable christmas tree. I know what am I going to do with a red inflatable tree, right. I just couldn't resist, it was just so perfect. It will be nice to have a decoration in my room that is rather silly and cheerful. Not to mention I'm ready for christmas and going to an area with water having a floatation device that is a tree shape. Anyway despite its silliness I'm very happy with my purchase. My friend Kyu bought a small drum covered with animal hair and a cup, maybe a bit more useful.

After this we all met and went to Neckarmuller, which is a place in tubingen that has both a Beer Garden and a Restuarant. We all got enjoy eachothers company while having a nice beer outside in the beer garden by the neckar river.  

It was so nice to get to see both Kyu and Genevieve, I was really glad about it. So all in all a good start to May.

Erste Woche für Seminar....

( My first Easter picture from 2009 in Luneburg Germany.)

This week was the first week I started classes at the university after a very long much needed break. I admit I really do like having a really long semester break in the middle of the year, its nice. Anyway I began my classes on Tuesday afternoon. I really enjoy most of my classes, minus the one that begins at the crack of dawn. I think this class will be kicked to the curb sadly because I find it really difficult to focus in the early hours of morning. The rest of my classes i found really interesting and fun.

Secondly this week is Ostern, Easter! The first Easter I spent in Germany was in 2009 in Luneburg Germany during my first study abroad program. I studied at Leuphana Universitat in Luneburg,Germany. I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a special service at beautiful church and have dinner with friends in my program. The church program was unique in that it started at 3am in the morning and went on till the mid morning. We got to see the sunrise, sing German hymn and have candles. The church was pitch black and I had my first service in German. It was a really interesting and fun way to celebrate this holiday for me. The church as well is famous for a composer who went to school there for some years. After that we decided to go to the park and enjoy ice cream. It was a really great time for me and I hope that  everyone has a fun Easter however they celebrate it :)

 My friend Brandi and I during my first Easter in Luneburg Germany 2009 at the Park. Brandi is a dear friend and neighbor of mine that I had while I studied in Luneburg. She is an amazing and talented person. I am so very grateful to her for her help and friendship. Right now she is doing a Fullbright program in Vienna,Austria. 

 Easter basket a combination of German and American Candy. 

busy...

Since I have been back life has gotten back to its unorganized chaos. 

Today I had to register for my classes that I will take at the DaF( Deutsches Als Fremdsprache Programm) program. This is the program which is at the university where they teach all the German as a foreign language classes. I really enjoy these classes and have learned a lot ! My German has improved so much these past 6 months its really quiet astonishing. Last weekend was quiet fun too. I went to this outlet place nearby with a friend of mine for 6 hours of shopping. It was epic. Six hours of hard core shopping, and naturally two coffee breaks. Sunday I hiked with my boss and her daughter, and one of their friends to celebrate her birthday. It was the perfect day for a hike I have to say. We got a tad lost on the way there, but we got help from our fellow German hikers. The path led to an old Castle that had a fantastic outdoor eatery. The view is really lovely too. I have to say that this weekend was quiet busy, but nice too. I am really glad that I got to spend time with the people around me and enjoy the lovely allergy inducing weather.

Spring.

Well the sun came back to Germany, a good and bad thing.
Good because I am sick of the snow that I thought was NEVER going to leave and the fact that I am happier when I wake up. Its sorta a bad thing though because I sneeze a lot more than I would like to. Allergies aside it is nice to see more green around and the little buds of flowers coming to life. This week has so far been uneventful. I started back to work yesterday, and found out I will be switching to a different office. This means I will start doing different things than I have been doing. I look forward to a challenge, but am sad to change offices. It should be interesting though regardless and a great opportunity to grow. I start school in a little under two weeks too. Ekkk I'm excited but then again not look forward to the mundane homework load. Lastly sunshine means pause...More time to run! Yay. I am so excited for running again! Okay that is all.

Short adventures.

I recently finished a 9 day trip on my own. I really have to say it was one of the best trips I have ever taken. I went to Belgium,Denmark and Czech Republic. I have to say though, I planned a trip that went way beyond my expectations. I had an amazing time. I thought that I would spend more time alone honestly, reflecting and just getting used to being on my own. That was far from the truth. I was very lucky to meet several wonderful people on my trip. I am so grateful to all the people I met, and shared conversations with. Learning about other people and having them share their time is something I really am truly grateful for.

The first place that I went was Brussels, Belgium. I decided upon Brussels for many reasons. One of them being well chocolate. I love chocolate, and of course waffles. But there is so much more to this city than that. It is literally bursting with life and is so incredible. I was lucky enough to stay close to the Grand Place. I got to go explore the city at my own pace and see the mixture of cultures. Brussels is truly a gem. There is so much to do there, and I believe I only tapped an ounce of the surface area. I went to Brugge too. This city so lovely, no wonder it is a UNESCO historical site. It was rather cloudy though, and my tour only gave me a short glimpse of the area. I met a daughter and father traveling together there. We shared the tour together and had a wonderful time conversing. I had a wonderful time to say the least.  On the way back I met another person. She was from singapore! We decided since we were both on our own we would do dinner together. This turned out to be an adventure hahaha. We got cat called by almost every waiter in a door that we passed, which was hilarious. The next day was equally cool, as we did some sightseeing together too. Later on when I went to this pub called homemade near the grand place. There I met an amazing and interesting couple from Canada. They are spending a year doing their honey moon and making it a honey year. I think that is a superb idea personally. Their names are Colin and Janine. They live in the Netherlands as their base, and travel about. They were kind enough to invite me to visit them sometime, which I hope to do in the near future. I really have to say I enjoyed my time there a lot. I saw the Renee' Magritte Museum, the Cartoon Museum and Hotel de'Ville. I even saw the famous Mannekan Piis.

The next place I traveled was Copenhagen, Denmark. Given the fact my flight was delayed and I only really had a full day there I had quiet the adventure at the Brussels airport. I met a fabulous guy from Malmo, Sweden and another amazing guy from San Francisco. The guy from San Fransico, whose name is Andrew was a true expert on Copenhagen! Luckily he volunteered to help me find my way around from the airport to the city center of Copenhagen. He  had great tips and stories that he shared with me. It turned out that Andrew was a great person to meet when it comes to food information, because he is a personal chef in Brussels! He had great food advice on places to eat in Copenhagen. I  was so excited to meet someone who knew about Copenhagen's food scene, and really understood it. The other guy from sweden, whose name is Evaen was really interesting to talk to as well. He lives in Malmo, which is one the most technologically advanced cities in northern Europe! So cool. I  ran into a dear friend of mine on the street, which was ironic! We hung out the next day. I guess I look rather Danish and many people liked my accent. I was told several times to just keep talking. It was interesting, and it had great benefits too. I got all kinds of awesome discounts, including a tour a almost no cost! I was really glad for the tour, because I had been walking quiet a bit and was excited to have a bus to ride around on. I really enjoyed Copenhagen, as it is very easy to get around and the people there are really friendly. I really liked that they had Nachos everywhere I went too. I was so excited to have REAL Spicy food after living in Germany the past 6 and a half months.

Lastly I went to Prague, Czech Republic on what was probably the scariest flight of my natural life. I realize that it was budget airline, but it felt like I was in a pop can being shook about. This was not a good way to start my day thank you very much. I was a tad apprehensive about Prague to be honest. I chose the city on a whim, and the fact that it has such a rich history. Being a former east block country, it was really interesting to see for me. I had never been to a former east block country so it was really a different experience for  me personally. I stayed at what was a stunning hotel for a very low price, and I was really amazed by yes, the architecture. It was almost untouched during world war two, so the architecture is stunning. Prague is teeming with a rich history and equally interesting residents. I stayed near a bus station called Florenc near Old Town. Florenc is not the prettiest area of Prague, but the hotel Designhotel Elephant was probably the most beautiful thing about it. The interior is very modern and gorgeous. I loved it there to be honest. It was my favorite hotel that I stayed at the entire time I was on my trip. The old town area of Prague is breath taking, although swarming with tourists.

 I was able to do a tour of the Kings route and Charles bridge. On this tour I met 4 lovely ladies! Three were from Montana and the last from England. I really enjoyed talking to them and we had lunch together. The one woman from England invited me to visit her ! I am so excited, and I look forward to venturing back to England sometime soon. One of the other ladies is traveling around Europe and ran in the Prague Marathon that was going on the Saturday I left. I wish I had had more time to hang out with them, because they were just so fun and interesting.

I know I use the word interesting alot to describe the people I met, but truly I dont know how else to describe them. I feel incredbibly blessed and thankful for all the wonderful people I met on my adventures, and for all the help hotel staff gave to me. I as well am thankful for the strangers on the street who helped me, find my way and gave me useful insights.  This was one of my greatest adventures and I am so glad I went off on my own. I wouldn't suggest this type of adventure to everyone though. It takes a lot of planning, patience, trust and self knowledge to accomplish this type of travel. Only do it if you want to learn how to be confident in yourself, are able to handle anything that comes up and willing to trust your gut so to speak.  That said I have grown as a person on this trip to and learned so much about myself. It really woke me up to how wonderful humanity is, and how beautiful it is to share time with people.

just keep swimming.....

Today was lovely in the land of Germany. The sun came out, finally! I got the day off even, and went for a nice run. I then went on to planning various tours for my upcoming trips. I booked a tour to Brugge. No I have not seen the movie In Brugge but maybe I will before I go there. I know that they have a chocolate museum, which sounds rad. I am also excited to see the canals there, as it looks very beautiful. I read it has been a UNESCO heritage site since 2000, and has really amazing architecture too. So it should be interesting.  Secondly I can't wait till this weekend to see my sister! ekkk.... I know a bit to excited maybe but whatever. I read the OMG news today, one of my favorite gossipy pages I read on a semi regular basis along with my news paper needs. I find it really funny to see the candid shots they take of celebrities. Like really who cares if Britney spears goes to Whole foods or Starbucks?  So weird. I as well have been reading about the Japan crisis. It is so sad, and I really feel sorry for the people that are going through all this right now. I hope that good things begin to happen there and that this disaster will end.

earmilk....its like nourishment for your ears!

http://www.earmilk.com/

So I had to share this link, Earmilk.com, its one of my new favorite places to visit on the web. It has a lot of great music that you can listen to or read about. I especially like the monday mash-up. It contains some their mixes on all different genre's of music.
As for this weekend, well it has been rather uneventful, big surprise. I know.
cheers!

März....

I haven't had a chance to solidly place a good, long blog post in a bit.
I decided to change my background today, give it  little more "pep". I had just finished admiring my friend
Jordan's lovely background, and read where she got the background for her blog. Thank you for that link dear Jordan!
Here has what has been going on.
I have been on a quasi break since Feb. from school. I have to admit it has been nice to do nothing much, wake up unreasonably late, eat at random times, and catch up on my doing nothing skills. I went to Paris at the beginning of my break, where I got to see my mom and aunt. What a fantastic trip I had seeing them and exploring a lovely city as well. I finally got to see Paris with fresh eyes and really appreciate its beauty.

I then came home to relax for a very long two weeks, it seemed. I decided mid two week relaxation time to go to Erlangen. I went to Erlangen to see my friend Emi, who lives there and is attend the University there. I had a wonderful time.
After coming home from that weekend with Emi, I felt really happy. Oh my was I tired though, so I decided to rest. Although it didn't last long, until I was awoken by my sad little ghetto cellphone. I love to hate on my ghetto phone, but the thing works pretty good to be honest. I got offered a small job, helping at the Uni in Germany. I was so excited. The only problem was I had just finished planning an amazing two week adventure. I went and talked to the department that was interested in hiring me, and surprisingly they were okay with my two week adventure plans. I now have a job here, and I am thrilled. Its not the most interesting job, to be honest, but it is good to be doing something aside from doing nothing and waiting for school to start.
Another great thing that is going to happen soon, is I get to see my dear little sister. Well she isn't so little I guess, but to me she will always be that 3 year old with the goofy hat running around in her pjs all day. She is flying to London for a week and meeting me, for a whole week. I am really excited, as I haven't seen her since September when I left out of Seattle.  After I see her I will go on a week and a half adventure to Brussels, Copenhagen and Prague. Short adventures, but adventures none the less. It should be interesting to see these places during this time of the year.

Feb.U.hairy

OHHH thank goodness. End of the semester is here. Woo.
So after a uneventful trip to London, I am now celebrating the end of a semester.
I am happy its over because well January was not fun. I had a presentation or a paper due each week
which can really wear down your health and happiness levels.
Tomorrow I go to Paris. I am excited, because I get to see my mom and my aunt.
I am especially excited to see them because its been awhile since I have seen any family.
Like family I'm related to. I have many friends whom I would consider family too though.
There has been little events to document in Germany. It snowed again, but has since melted. I am really quiet happy about that to be honest. I cant take the snow much longer. A friend of mine introduced me to the most amazing wine place in town and a bakery where everything is half price. exciting !  hmmm what else. nothing really has been going on. I am sure I will have lots to write about when I get back from my Paris escapades.
bis spater!
I thought I would include a photo from a while ago that was taken when I went to Erfurt/Gera to see a dear friend of mine. It was a great adventure, in this park.

Der Schnee kommt zuruck!

Sooo its nearing the end of January....
There is not much to say...
Except I have been doing a lot of homework. I have been cramming homework down my throat these days, I am becoming so utterly educated it hurts.
Also the snow has decided to show its little scrunched up face again. woo. Back to winter clothes which I thought I could retire a few weeks ago. I was so ready to send you silly winter shoes back to the US with my dear mom ...Lucky for you that wont be happening ~

My very dear friend Caroline and I went
on a hike on christmas day. This is us at the top and the photo below is the view.

Over christmas I went to Norway and visited my other family ~ The family that has adopted me. I adore them and had a lovely time spending the holiday with them :) Here are some fotos of my Norwegian Christmas :) Enjoy -

<<< Christmas with Caroline ~

cheer

This was meant to be my  holiday post, but due to some technical difficulties with my mac book I have just now been able to post it. ~

Sitting on a chilly train ride with the retched smell  from the bathroom creeping on me each time the door is swung open, I see the most beautiful of sights. Parts of Barvarian forest and hills covered in fluffy white snow. I have decided to reflect upon the beauty of Christmas. I think as an exchange student it is difficult at times to say good bye to seeing your family or signifgant others that mean the world to you and more, especially when you cant see them during the holidy. Here though, it is easy to get lost and ponder ones thoughts.I wonder if you haven’t felt seasonal cheer wrap around you and pull you under its snowy blanket with green,red and silver bows. The spirit of Christmas is here,and I’m not talking about discount prices or free wrapping It doesn’t hide behind price tags or fake smiles either that we are often tortured with in the US. I feel here in Germany Christmas is for some reason more alive. It hangs on the trees in the form snow, it takes you by the hand and warms you with sweet pungent Gluhwein. It brings cheer too, in all different forms to the heart,  to feel this you can just gaze upon the children ice skating and sense the sheer enjoyment. Germany will touch each sense simply and take you away with seasonal delights. The lights dancing on the high wires down each walking path,will imprint the idea of a time far from the modern commercialized garbage. I haven’t felt this kind of joy for Christmas for a long time. I always feel bombared  with having to make other people happy( thanks to retail work) and rather stressed during this time of the year. All the loud Christmas music that is pasted on each department stores speakers and employees donning fake green and red attire make me want to vomit. You want a unique present for a person you love and care about? How about spending time with the person you care about and strolling through one of the various paths in a German city. The lights and the atmosphere will enchant you. Christmas markets that are special to each city will turn your eyes. Crafts of various colors made by artisitans and craftsman alike. Ribbons float in the wind with cookies caked with frosting. Chocolates and treats are showcased with warming golden lights. Hold the hand of a loved one and smile as your heart becomes warm with cheer. Christmas isn’t about the greatest gift or the most money spent. I think we often get lost in the monetary value of material things. We often forget in our individualized lives that it isn’t what someone purchases it is the time that they spent with you or the memories you have accumulated over a number of experiences. I catch myself staring into space often alone during this time of year as I look back on christmas’s from the past. I remember being a child. Christmas as a child is so vibrant and fresh. Each sense takes you away, and you let it. I wish for a child like appreciation for the holidays, I wish for joy and love to capture me and take me away. I hope for time with loved ones and for lasting memories to be made.  I cannot tell you how forward I am looking to spending time with my dear friend in Norway. I treasure her friendship, I think without her, well life would not be so wonderful.I may not be able to go home and see the most amazing people in my life that I have the honor to call my family. I miss them dearly, and I care for them more than any word in any language can ever express. I hope they have a very amazing Christmas. The friends that are in my life that I don’t get to see each day and talk to, I miss you all too. I hope you all have a beautiful time this holiday. Just take a moment and feel the Christmas spirit, its there.