Weekend in Italy

This past weekend, a friend and I migrated to warmer weather in the form of Italy. Winter is a little bland here in Germany. Very grey. And rainy. I actually don't mind the rain that much (especially when I get to use my yellow umbrella, inspiringly bought because of the yellow umbrella from HIMYM), but I'm not a huge fan of grey. I like color… color is happiness. Italy trumps Germany in the color department…and being there just for the weekend did the trick. It replenished my color deposit so that I can make it until Spring starts to bloom here in Germany.

We flew into Pisa very early on Friday morning, arriving at about 12 pm. Our plan was this:

Friday - Cinque Terre

Saturday - Florence

Sunday - Pisa

For the most part, our plan was a success. I won't go deep into the details of Friday, but we did not end up seeing Cinque Terre. I have been there once before, almost three years previously, and loved it. Great hiking, beautiful scenery. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that there had been a rockslide and most of the trail is unaccessible right now. One of the towns was even completely destroyed and is now vacated, which is really sad. So a lot of our Friday was spend on a train up the coast of Italy to Cinque Terre, a wrong train even more up the coast of Italy, then back down the coast of Italy to Pisa. The good part was that we got to see some amazingly beautiful views and play MASH, which is always fun, even at 23 years old.

So that was our Friday. Not entirely successful, but we still had fun times and the weather was warm, which makes everything better.

Saturday was amazing. It was our Florence day. I love art history; Botticelli is my main man. Last time I was in Florence, it was only for a few hours and I only had time to go see the Duomo and real David. This time, I was determined to see as much as possible in one day, and I'd say we accomplished that. We got there early, sat down outside the Duomo at a cafe, and drank a cappuccino while munching on some breakfast. All was delicious of course. We then explored the Duomo, walked over to the Ponte Vecchio, shopped, and bought some art. We went to the Uffizi so that I could see Botticelli's most famous paintings, which were incredible. After that, we needed some nourishment, so we went to find the lunch spot which was recommended to us by a local italian man. And let me tell you, it was possibly the best lunch that I have ever had. There's just something about eating in Italy that makes me extremely happy. Maybe it's the atmosphere or how Italians really love food, but food just tastes better in Italy. We each ordered some Bruschetta for appetizers, and I had pesto fettucini, while Jordan had an arrabiata sauce with spaghetti noodles. AH I want some more now. After lunch, we did a bit more shopping around the leather markets (Florence is the leather capital of the world), I accidentally bought 2 scarves and a gorgeous leather purse each for my mom and me.

gorgeous. and delicious.

the Duomo!

In front of the Duomo.

Gates of Paradise on the baptistery of the Duomo.

Piazza del Signoria… where the fake David rests.

Cute Italian street… loved the flags!

View from Ponte Vecchio.

On the Ponte Vecchio.

By the time we left Florence that night, I was in love.

We ate dinner at a pizza joint in Pisa. They were supposed to have the best pizza in town. After eating a slice, I totally believe it. Quite possibly the best pizza I've ever had. We ordered what the waitress recommended…eggplant and sausage, which apparently is a traditional italian pizza (maybe like our pepporoni pizza?). I must order pizza with eggplant more often. Oh so good.

Sunday, we slept in a bit then set out to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa, which was cooler than I thought it'd be. I figured it would look the same as in pictures, but it was a lot bigger and lean-ier (word, yes?) than I imagined. The area surrounding the tower was also pretty and where all the tourists were gathered, of course. The rest of Pisa is basically only locals, I think. Helps you to get the more authentic feel rather than staying in a city bombarded by tourists.

Leaning Tower…doesn't look so leaning here.

Good lean view! but still doesn't really show its true "lean".

We got on the plane back to Germany on Sunday afternoon. When we left Italy, it was a balmy 60 degrees and sunny. As soon as we flew into Germany and started our descent, it was raining and about 40 degrees. But that's OK…it will be spring soon enough and Germany will have sunshine again (I feel if I say this enough, it will come true).

I can't wait to go back again. Next time, I plan on staying for 3 weeks and eating nonstop. Who wants to go with me?

Culture Analysis

I believe a lot of the world sees Americans as people without a lot of culture. I think that is how I have heard America and Americans described the most while I’ve been over here. But when you get right down to it, I think America has just as much culture as Europe. Of course it’s a different type of culture – it’s definitely more modern, and while we are not made up of a lot of small countries, we are instead made up of people from all over the world. Not to mention, our different sections of the country definitely have different cultures…the West coast, New England, The South, The Midwest, Texas, etc. A good friend of mine that grew up in South Carolina moved out to California after graduating college, and it took her a while to get used to the different personalities and ways of life there. Just because we are in the same country, doesn’t mean we don’t have different cultures. It’s the same way Bavaria clashes with the rest of Germany, Belgium consists of French-speaking parts as well as Flemish-speaking, how Spain has many different dialects of Spanish all in the same country, or how Italian cuisine is completely different depending if you are in the North or South.

Look at our food for instance. Yes, we get a bad rap for our unhealthy food choices, and most of the time when I am having a conversation with a European, one of the first things they bring up is our food and how fat everyone is. I think our obese situation is greatly exaggerated in Europeans’ eyes. The good thing about our love (obsession) with food is that I don’t believe there is anywhere in Europe that has as many food choices as we do. And I wouldn’t have it any other way. Say I’m in Louisville… I can find pretty much any type of food I want in a 15-mile radius. Maybe even smaller. How is that for culture?

While I’ve been here, I’ve been trying to embrace as many cultures as possible. When I travel to new cities, I try to be as much like the inhabitants as possible in order to try and understand the city as in depth as I can. But it’s hard to really familiarize yourself with cultural differences in a few days’ time. Europe does have a lot of culture… a lot of this is from all of the immigrants. Düsseldorf has the largest Japanese population in all of Europe, and where I live, there is a huge population of Greek people (just as an example). There’s such a mixture of cultures in every city here. Sound familiar? It’s exactly the same way in America. Where you find cities, you find a mixing a culture, traditions and philosophies, with Chinatowns and Little Italys and other neighborhoods filled with immigrants and their cultures’ decorum and atmosphere. The same way we don’t take on the different cultures and change our personalities when we step in Little Italy, Germans don’t take on the personality of the French. That is why we have different cultures, because most people stay tuned to the culture they grew up in. Somehow it is being read that we don’t have much culture. Just because America is not surrounded by other countries and most Americans don’t fluently speak more than one language, doesn’t mean that we aren’t filled with different customs and personalities. We have our own unique culture that is different than any other country.

Today, I went to the British Things Store to get some tea and see what else they had. A very nice British gentleman owns it, and we talked about England and America for a bit. His 15-year-old daughter wants to move to and live permanently in New York oh-so-badly, he told me, to the point where she GoogleMapped it (GoogleMaps can be a verb, right?) the other day in order to look at the street view of Manhattan. He has been to America a few times (mostly California, I believe) and thinks that American people are super nice and friendly and he loves us. Smart guy. I love talking to people about America, whether they’re saying good things or bad things, just to see how the rest of the world views us. It’s really interesting. I just like to see what Europe has picked up about us from TV shows and news. (As a side note, he also asked me how I was seemingly intelligent when all he has heard of the school system in America is that it is horrible (from Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien). That’s the first time someone has brought up that topic with me, and growing up with both parents being teachers, I’ve heard a lot of shall we say, opinions, about the school system throughout my life. I thought about countering by asking him how it was possible that he had nice teeth when all I hear about dentistry in England is how everyone is walking around with yellow, crooked teeth.)

A lot of what I’ve learned here is to throw pre-conceived notions about other cultures out the window and form a fresh opinion. Hopefully I’m showing some people to do the same thing about America.

…and that was a bit of a rant, but all true, so there you go. Also, I apologize for my over-use of the word “culture”, but there is really no good synonym to encase the whole meaning.

Love this video. LEARN embodies culture the most, I think, but so does its two mates: EAT and MOVE (my favorite). Look them up. They'll inspire you.

The Middle

If you remember from my first post, I spoke of an article (list, more like) of 36 things to do before you settle down. This was written at the beginning of my adventure, and I had already marked off a good amount of these things. Now, 6 months later, and about 3 months left to go, I figured I'd look into it again and see what else I can mark off from the time I have been here.




To Build Your Confidence...
2. Lift weights. Easy.
7. Go to a scary doctor's appointment by yourself. I didn't think about this one before, but I've actually already done this after getting in a wreck by myself in Florida.
9. Fly to a foreign country by yourself. Done this a couple times over by now.


To Get Perspective...
17. Be a good wingwoman. (Jordan :))


To Make the Most of Your Free Time...
28. Throw Yourself into something time-consuming, like learning a foreign language. Well, learning a foreign language I have definitely done here, as well as starting a few other things, like learning Piano.




Ok, so I haven't been able to check off a lot more, but I'm also not exactly looking at this list and trying to check things off. In fact, I don't think I've looked at it since I wrote the first blog. It's more just of a checkpoint to look at every few months to see what I've done and maybe get ideas for new things to do. Also, a lot of the things on this list I can't do until I get back to the states, like "get my finances in order". No way that one is happening while I'm over here. I'm more working on a list of my own of things I want to do here, places I want to go, etc. Maybe I'll share that at the end.


Actually, writing this blog has made me realize I might have a list problem. Maybe I should try to limit the amount of lists I make. If I decide to do that, though, then it will go on my "2012 Goals" list. Which would prove my point. And speaking of lists, Evernote is my new best friend. Seriously, if you like lists, and don't have Evernote or have never heard of it, download it now. It's like Christmas. I think I have about 12 different lists going on right now in Evernote. They even have little check boxes so you can actually check them off! How awesome is that? I feel so productive every time I check one of the boxes. Sometimes I just add things on there so that I can check a box. That's sad, isn't it? Maybe I really do have a problem. I was half-joking before. But nope, I'm definitely an over-lister. I guess I could be worse things.


Anyways, off track again... that is my update on this particular list. Now I'm off to go make a grocery list for tomorrow.


Merry list-making, my fellow over-listers.

Take Note

Since I’ve been here, I’ve been keeping a sort of list (imagine that…me, a list??) of things that I miss about America, as well as things that I love and will miss about Europe, or in some cases, Germany specifically. When my mom was here over Christmas, she helped me fine-tune the list with a new and fresh perspective, christening it the “Take Note” list. I figured I would share if with all of you now, and if you have any additions, feel free to comment!

Take Note, America: 

(what America needs to change)

+The train/tram/bus systems. I want to be able to hop on a train to Greenville if I feel like it.

+The windows that are virtually in every house/building/business here in Germany open two different ways. You can open it like a door on its hinges, or you can open it so that the top angles inward and lets in a nice draft of air (but not too much). They rock.

+More H&M’s.

+Christmas Markets in every town. So beautiful and fun.

+Dogs allowed everywhere. I’ve seen them in the grocery stores here. They can go everywhere. And if there is a building that doesn’t allow dogs (I’ve seen very few), they have a “doggy parking spot” outside with a place to tie them up while you run inside. (Quickly, please, as you shouldn’t leave your dog alone outside too long. Actually, I personally never would.)

+Recycling. The recycling here is on an unbelievable level. They recycle everything. You know how we have giant green trashcans and small recycling bins? Well, it’s reversed here. Their recycling towers over everything else, while their trash bin is smaller than our recycling bins. They also have a separate pick-up for compost. Come on, America, let’s get it together.

+Assigned seating at movies. I haven’t completely made up my mind whether this is a good thing or not. I think it needs an in-between. Like for movies that will possibly be sold-out, have assigned seating so you don’t have to arrive eight months beforehand to get a decent seat. The way they do it is like buying a concert ticket: when you buy your ticket, they show you the seating chart and you pick a seat.

+McDonald’s. I really don’t eat at McDonald’s that much, but when I do, I’d like them to look like the ones here. It’s like eating in a castle compared to the McDonald’s we have in the states.

+Separate Comforters on the beds. I think this one is just in Germany, but everyone has their own twin-sized comforter, so you always get your own. No more cover-hogging arguments = fewer divorces.

+Mercedes Taxis. I know that Europe pretty much has the monopoly on nice cars and it’s easier and cheaper for them to get Mercedes, but you’d think our Taxis could at least smell nice and have comfortable, clean (important word being clean) leather seats like the Taxis in Europe.

Take Note Europe:

(what Europe needs to recognize)

+Drink Prices. Quit making people pay more for their drinks than they do for their food. I don’t want to have to pay more for water than a regular drink and when I pay €2.50 for a Cola Light, I would like to get a bigger size than XXS. I will drink that before my meal even comes, and then I’ll have to order 3 more. Which brings it to €10 in drinks alone.

+To go along with drink prices...obviously, free refills would be appreciated with water, soda, and tea. I know they have fountain machines here, so there is no excuse for not having free refills. Except you’re just being mean. Also: ice. ‘nough said.

+FREE bathrooms. And if you’re going to charge people 50 cents – €2 to use the bathroom, don’t make them have exact change, too. Seriously, again, that’s just mean. Everyone here must have permanent UTIs from having to hold it all the time.

+Slow down and take a chill pill, people. We are not having a “Who’s the most stressed” contest. I thought Europeans were supposed to me more relaxed? Not in Germany. Also, learn to say, “I’m sorry”.

+Good Sushi. I miss you.

+Free sauces with meals. Again, don’t want to pay €1.50 for ketchup. It’s ketchup for crying out loud, not a port wine demi glaze. Oh, and add honey mustard to your repertoire.

+More Christmas Decorations. While the Christmas Markets here are lovely, people do not decorate their homes much for Christmas. It’s kind of sad.

 For the most part, there aren’t a whole lot of huge differences, but some things just smack me in the face in how different they are. I would say the biggest differences are the people and culture of all the different countries, but this is also the most interesting and rewarding part for me.

Again...if you have any other differences, comment below!

Heidelberg

The month of January has been spent on small trips, to cities that are close to me in Germany. One Sunday, my friend Alita (another au pair mädchen here in M'gladbach, who originates from Spain), another friend, Bea, from Spain that is here studying piano, and I set out to visit Aachen: the town built by Charlemagne. It's located (as of now) in Germany about an hour train ride from our residence. It lies very near to the borders of both Belgium and the Netherlands, which is why it has been fought over for centuries, and explains why the citizens of Aachen speak four languages (french, dutch, german, and english). Apart from being one of Charlemagne's favorite residences, it is famous for the hot springs located throughout the city. The city itself is not very large, but it has a lot of history and character. The cathedral, called the Dom, is worth seeing a lot in part because it supposedly holds Charlemagne's ashes in a large, gold, trunk-looking contraption (which I think is very neat). It also has very ornate, beautiful, sparkly, gold-leaf tiling throughout the inside. Pictures just can't do it justice. Apart from the Dom, we visited the Rathaus (Government seat), the hot springs, the Theatre, and the beautiful streets that surround the altstadt (old part of the city).

In front of the Dom in Aachen

The next trip of January was to Heidelberg in celebration Alita's birthday. Orlane, one of our other au-pair friends (this time from France) accompanied us this time. This city holds a special place in my heart because I am a graphics major. And anyone that majored in graphics or printing should know about Heidelberg because of the fact that they are the home to the largest manufacturer of offset printing presses worldwide (holding 47% of the market share). Basically, I learned A LOT about Heidelberg (the printing presses, not the town) when I was in college. After the name Heidelberg is ingrained in your head for four straight years, and then you live in Germany for a year not far from the actual town, well, you have to visit, right? And I'm glad I did. Now I will remember Heidelberg for the gorgeous, historic town that it is as well as for their printing presses.


Heidelberg is occupied by the oldest University in Germany, and has a lot of international students. We went to the University Bibliothek (library) and were stunned by how beautiful it was on the outside. The inside, for the most part, did not retain it's historic charm, but the outside was gorgeous. We saw the famous churches, visited the castle, went to an apothecary museum (very cool) and walked around the altstadt (Sounds familiar, right? This is basically what we do in every european town). Alita and I decided that we want to live in Heidelberg: perfect size, university town, charming...a lot like the town where I grew up.

On our way to Heidelberg. (Orlane in middle, Alita on right).

The Alte Brücke (old bridge) and part of the city.

The courtyard of the castle (Schloss).

View from the castle's patio.

Summary: I would definitely recommend visiting Heidelberg. Aachen is nice for a day visit if you are passing through the area, but doesn't have a lot to do for an entire weekend.


We're planning on making some more 2-day trips in the next couple of months to Frankfurt and Stuttgart, which are also in der Nähe (not far) from us.


bis gleich.

Greener Grass

I was a little shocked this weekend when I realized I haven't said much at all about shopping in Europe yet. To friends and family, it will not come as a shock that I have already done plenty of shopping here. Too much, really, considering in less than 4 months, I will have to figure out a clever way to get it all back to the states. But it can't be helped...when I think about the fact that I won't be able to shop at Zara, Pimpkie, or Mango anymore when I get home, I start to panic a little bit. I mean, I have to buy as much as I can while I'm here, right? At least H&M is available in the states, even if it does require a trip to Atlanta or some other large city.

I certainly got my shopping gene honestly. From a young age, I have been coached on this subject by every female in my family. I'm pretty sure that my family from Mississippi comes to visit us in South Carolina just to come shopping. But it's good family bonding, right? Who needs to play games and make pot roasts together when you can shop together? [Although to be fair, we do play our fair share of Mexican Train Dominoes (is that politically correct?) and eat enough to feed an army (food, not dominoes)].

Like I said (other than H&M), Zara, Pimpkie, and Mango are my other three favorite stores here. (Such cool names, am I right?) They're all the kind of stores where you get lots of bang for your buck. The people here just don't appreciate them as much as they should. Instead, they just talk about wanting a navy blue sweatshirt from Gap that says GAP on the front of it (for the record, they do have some Gaps here, just not everywhere). But seriously, I could come back to Europe with suitcases of these sweatshirts and be rich. Or Levis. I was asked how much Levis are in the states, and had no idea. I don't think I've ever owned a pair of Levis in my life. Not that I'm against them. They're just not a huge novelty to us (or me, at least). Plus, I'll admit I'm kind of a snob about what jeans I wear. They're the only things I am willing to spend lots of money on. For everything else, H&M, Forever 21, and the three stores noted above are my treasure troves for clothes.

Oh yes, and speaking of American stores that are coveted here, this is a good one. When Mom and I were in Paris over Christmas, we of course walked down des Champs Elysees, mostly just to see the store-fronts decorated to the nines for Christmas. About halfway down, we noticed a line of people waiting to get in somewhere. We were confused because it looked like a line waiting to get into a club. The velvet ropes were black and the line was growing by the second. At the front of the line stood a large, fancy iron and gold-leaf gate with two bouncers in matching outfits standing in front. So Mom and I think okay, either this is a really swanky new club or a designer store, right? Wrong. We walked past all of the people waiting in line and I look at the gates, beside which is a plaque. Can you guess what the plaque says? Don't want y'all peeking ahead... Click Here to See. Also, here is a picture of the Gate. Mom and I were flabbergasted by this. That is the only word that correctly conveys how surprised we were. Flabbergasted. A line and gates and bouncers? Seems crazy to us.

I guess it really is a case of the grass is always greener. I'm sure a lot of Europeans would trade me Pimpkie for Hollister. Maybe before I leave, I can make some kind of deal. I'll wager 2 Gaps, 5 J. Crews, and 3 Banana Republics for 5 Pimpkies, 3 Zaras, and 1 Mango in the southeastern US... think the higher powers of shopping that be will go for that?

Visit & Venture Part 3 (trois)

Riding a train is the absolute best way to relax. All you have to do is sit back and ride. There’s nothing to worry about except getting off at your stop. If I sit down at home to read, my brain jumps from one thing to another, thinking of all of the tasks I need to complete on my To Do List. But on a train, there's nothing to do but wait, so my brain is allowed to shut off completely except for the power needed to read my book. For some reason, planes do not function the same way for me. Maybe because they're so uncomfortable compared with trains. So, when Mom and I got on the train from Antwerp to Amsterdam, I was planning to read and eat chocolate. Turns out that was not in the cards. Instead, we were to have the honor of a comedian in our midst, whether he knew that he was our entertainment for the night or not. The ride did start out quiet, with a very empty train car. There was a dark haired, smartly-dressed man with a sweet face in the row opposite us (I'll call him Frank because that's what he looked like), and a few other couples dispersed throughout the car. We read our respective books and ate our snacks for half an hour in contented silence, while Frank  worked on his computer. This is when it began. First, the train started slowing down in the middle of nowhere and the loudspeaker voice announced that they were having technical problems. Mom and I began to hear whisperings behind us. At first they were just mutterings that we could not very well distinguish into actual words, so we kept reading while listening to these mutterings in the back of our minds. We could already tell they were not sweet nothings being whispered from one person to another. After a while, they grew louder and louder. Then we began to smell cigarette smoke. Someone was smoking on the train!? What, are we in the 1940’s again? Today, smoking on trains is not allowed. Well, at that moment, the power in the train went out so we were left in almost complete darkness. Mom and I looked around and we could barely see Smokey McSmokerson standing right outside the glass doors that separated our 2^nd Class seats from 1^st Class. He was stuck in the passage between the electronic doors, talking through the glass and knocking on the door. A few minutes later, the power came back on and he returned to our carriage, sitting a few seats behind us and we realized he was the before unidentified mumbler. Except now they were no longer mumblings… they were coherent sentences. Once our train started moving again and we could understand his mumblings, Mom and I could barely keep ourselves from howling with laughter. Obviously, he was a bit (read: A LOT) drunk, and he didn't appear to have any plans to stop drinking in the near future. This is pretty normal on trains - very different from America. Most young people always have a beer on the trains if it's after 5 on the weekends. Most of them aren't this hammered, though. Now, I will not repeat here exactly what he was muttering for the sake of my grandparents, but I don’t think Mom or I have laughed that hard in a REALLY long time. I had to hold my nose and cover my hand with my mouth so that I wouldn’t laugh out loud and tears were streaming down both of our faces. We looked across at Frank and he met our stares with laughter in his eyes, too. It’s not that Smokey had that much to say. He really repeated the same thing over and over and over and over. He was from England and apparently had a problem with French people. He actually had a rather interesting opinion (although not something many people would agree with) on a lot of countries and their inhabitants. Again, nothing I can repeat here without my grandparent’s eyes burning. We three (Mom, Frank, and me) sat there for the remainder of the trip just listening to him and trying not to sob with laughter, although one hackle did escape from me once and I cringed at the thought of him coming and asking what I was laughing at. Not that he was scary, per say, but he was doing a good job of yelling at people and when someone yells at me, I cry. Can’t help it.

So after our unintentional ab workout, we made it to Amsterdam at around 11. We hopped in a taxi and promptly realized that driving in Amsterdam is a lot like Paris. No rules. They just drive wherever they feel like driving, whether that’s on the wrong side of the road or over a sidewalk and a couple pedestrians, who cares! After 20 minutes of Mom and I squeezing our eyes shut and muttering “Oh no, did we hit her!?”, we made it to our hotel. Our beautiful, warm, eco-friendly hotel. With an actual bathroom that had a toilet, shower, and sink, as all bathrooms should, but which apparently is not common in all of northern Europe. I turned on the TV when we got settled in the room and what was on TV, but Saved by the Bell!!! Let me tell you: that was exciting, that was.

We slept very well that night, then got up to enjoy the day in Amsterdam. We were only staying in Amsterdam the one night, then going to a nearby town called Leiden to say, which had just as much charm as Amsterdam, if not more. Over the next few days, we travelled back and forth between Amsterdam and Leiden, enjoying both towns. One thing that Mom and I both really wanted to do was go to the Anne Frank House. After figuring out their tram/bus system, we finally made it that way only to see a seriously long line. Like 2.5 hour-wait line. They said the lines are shorter in the late afternoon and we decided to try back then. Instead, we went on a canal tour, which was really nice and relaxing, ate a good lunch, went to the Rubens & Van Dyck exhibit at The Hermitage Museum (awesome, by the way), and wandered around the old canal districts. When we went back to the Anne Frank House 30 minutes before closing as instructed, they were already closing and said they were too full. Then they told us to try back again on Sunday (the day we were leaving) and come right when they open. So we did that and the line was even LONGER. We didn’t have time to wait in it before our train back to Germany left, so we didn’t get to see the inside of the Anne Frank House. But that’s ok, we still got to see a good bit of Amsterdam and get an idea of the city. Basically, there’s not too much to write home about. Yes, it’s a neat town to visit, but now that I’ve been, there are other places I’d much rather go back to than Amsterdam. Not as beautiful and culturally interesting as seen in photos or magazines. Maybe Brugge ruined me because it was so magestic. Who knows? I still love The Netherlands and the people that live there.

The Hermitage

New Year’s Eve was spent in Leiden. We took a train to the nearby beach and enjoyed that for a while (but not too long because it was FREEZING). Then on the train ride back to Leiden, we watched fireworks out of our windows and contemplated what we would do for the rest of the evening. We didn’t really know what to do and we were worn out from all of our travels and would be leaving early the next day, so we decided to go back to our B&B to eat junk food, watch a movie, and listen/watch the fireworks out of our window. And let me tell you, the dutch know all about fireworks. We learned that The Netherlands purchases the most fireworks out of any other country in Europe and I believe it. Fireworks blasted all around us until the early hours of the morning. It sounded like we were in a war zone, but it made for a good show.

Freezing on the North Sea :)

Sadly, our train ride back to Germany was uneventful without any crazy people to keep us entertained. We passed the ride reading our books and eating chocolate. Mom resided in Moenchengladbach, and we explored the town a little more until she hopped on a plane back to the states on the 4^th.