Girl Meets World: septembre 2012

Hello everyone! Wow it’s been such a long time I feel like I might need to start by reintroducing myself. I’ll spare you that, but with school starting tomorrow for the boys, I will start with a vocabulary lesson. Webster defines “procrastination” as: putting off or delaying or deferring an action to a later time. While that might be all good and fine, Aubree defines the word as: an increasingly overwhelming feeling you get from shoving all the "to-do lists" under you bed into a deep dark corner where you hope and pray everyone will forget all about it! My overall attitude I’ve had about posting a new blog? The mantra of procrastination. As much as I enjoy writing, filling you guys in on my latest happenings, and knowing that later down the road I’ll have these to look back on, it is by no means as easy task that I can accomplish as quickly as needing to change my dreadfully chipping nail polish (or the bigger task, letting them dry). Okay, so I confess I was able to read the entire Fifty Shades trilogy before even putting my pen to paper. BUT, nevertheless, this self induced anxiety has not made me any less eager to tell you all about my summer where-abouts! So here it goes...

My summer officially started when my mom got here in the beginning of July. She was here two weeks and we spent a total of four nights here in Paris and the rest traveling around Italy. We landed in Pisa, did the quick stunt of holding up the Leaning Tower, then headed to Lucca where we spent three nights. Lucca was really small but cute and it was cool to see the original city walls still up that were used as form of defense from invasion way back when. We had a good time biking all around those walls. We did a day trip to Cinque Terre which was my favorite day we had. The quaint “five villages” (Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso) are all connected via trail or train and between all five the population is a mere 300. Pick up any Italy travel book and more than likely a picture of Cinque Terre is featured on the cover. It’s undeniably picturesque.

Next up was Florence where we stayed another three nights. We did a ton of walking around, shopping, eating, museums, but my favorite thing we did was a bike tour. The history was fun to hear about and it made you look at the city in a totally different perspective, as if you were traveling back in time and witnessing with your own eyes Michaelango sculpting David or Brunelleschi designing the Duomo... okay, not quite that vivid but you can catch my drift.

We rounded out our trip to one of the most gorgeous places I’ve ever been, Venice. After spending two nights there, I’ll never be able to look at Venice Beach in California quite the same way. You arrive in town and you quickly realize the only way to get to your hotel is by boat.. no cars allowed! The taxi’s, public transportation, the locals own ride... all boats! Venice was so beautiful and the warm summer nights made me never want to leave. Once we got back into Paris, we only had two more nights together. Our last day of walking around was great because the Tour de France finish was happening that day! We were on the Champs Elysees as we watched the cyclists do their victory laps. So cool! The Paris Plage was also going on where parts of the Seine are turned into man made beaches for people to go hang out and catch some rays. They do this every summer for one month and is just another thing to add to the long list that makes Paris so amazing.

Before I could even catch my breath, I said good bye to my mom and was headed to London to go meet up with Grace. But before that, as I was starting to exhale, Cat Walker came to visit. We spent a great couple days together and can now add our second European country to the list! As Cat left for the airport, I made my way to Gare de Nord to go to London. I made my Eurostar train by approximately two minutes and spent the entirety of the ride trying to stop the sweat dripping down my face from the sprint it took me to make it! Nothing like a good ole Parisienne Metro strike to spice things up. All that aside, I made it there safe and sound and was beyond excited to be reunited with my PIC (Partner In Crime).

London was a trip to say the least! I instantly fell in love with the city. Not for its charm, nor its beauty... for the English! And no, not the English men (although they weren’t much to complain about), I’m talking about the language! ... and with an accent?! Well played, London. It had been five months since I could stroll down a street and be able to eaves drop on a conversation happening around me and be able to understand what they were saying! Charlie Brown teacher babble no more. Suddenly, my world started to feel like Mel Gibson in What Women Want- sound sensory overload!

Besides throwing my apprehension to the wind whenever needing to ask someone a question, I truly loved London and all its unique characteristics. Tower Bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben, the Thymes river... Everything was so cool to see first hand and it bought back all those familiar feelings of seeing Paris for the first time.

For those of you that didn’t know, there was this little event going on in town called the Olympics :) Grace and I were not proactive enough to buy tickets beforehand but it actually worked out just fine. We were able to go see the Olympic Park, bump into a few Olympians, and also catch a glimpse of the running/cycling course around Buckingham Palace. The nicest part was that the Olympic Park was a bit on the outskirts of the city so while the hustle and bustle of the Olympics was evident, the city itself was not overly crowded. Overall, the sights, the nights, the people, London was amazing and I can’t wait to go back at the end of October to watch the Patriots vs Rams NFL exhibition game!

Grace and I got back to Paris, once again, not even with enough time to catch our breaths. A quick potty break and we were off to the South of France! We landed in Nice bright and early and had the whole day to lay out by the beach... oh, how it made me miss sunny San Diego! Nice is absolutely breath taking and at the same time has an old, calm, relaxed feel. The highlight of our first day in Nice had to be our “experience” with our hostel. Because Nice is so small, the quality of hostel choices is slim pickin’. Our hostel manager, Frank, asked Grace and I if we wanted to “upgrade” to a private room free of charge. Cautiously, we accept the offer as he quickly says “Great! Follow me.” He leads us not only out of the building, but a few streets away to the heart of Old Town Nice. We hike up four stories (and I’m using the word ‘hike’ very lightly- these stairs were intense!) as he opens the door to our very own studio! A double bed, kitchen, and newly remodeled bathroom... we’ll take it! Okay, so the outlets didn’t carry enough power even for my straightener (not that we could use it anyways it was so blistering hot and the Europeans don’t believe in AC), the stove didn’t work for more than 10 seconds at a time, the massive rain shower head was “out of order” and as Michael and Andrew mentioned, if you were a guy, you had to sit to pee because of the angled roof... but isn’t that all part of the beauty of traveling at our age? We loved it!

Leslie had a friend from home, Kelly, visiting as well. The four of us got together for a Sushi date before we went to Nice and we all instantly hit it off. And once in the South of France, the fiesta continued! The first night, the four of us danced our faces off ((literally, there was not a trace of make up left on my face after being in that hot box Nice famously calls, Wayne’s Restaurant (but a MUST go if you ever visit- best nachos ever and the place to be any night of the week!) ))

The following day, Michael and Andrew Storer, two very good friends from home came and met us as well. They were living in Lucca, Italy at the time and heard we were going so one all nighter train and something like fifteen hours later, they made it! The six of us had a blast together whether it was cliff jumping off a forty-five foot plank, the boys cooking a bomb dinner for us at the hostel and walking with all our food back to the studio (hence the stove not working), or going skinny dipping at 3 am after leaving Wayne’s (don’t worry- panties and bra were left on!)

But the one thing I can’t forget to mention nor will I ever forget is the day trip the six of us took to St. Tropez. From Nice, you have to take an hour train ride, followed by an hour boat ride (which turned into a rowdy, obnoxious Americans, booze cruise) just to get there. But if you reallyyy want to see St. Tropez for all it’s glory and infamous beaches, you have to take another thirty minute “taxi” ride (see picture below for how we rode in style) to finally reach your destination. Two words, Nikki Beach. If you haven’t heard of it, simply google it or turn on your favorite rap song. More than likely you’ll hear Jay Z, P Diddy, or Kanye “singing” about how crazy this place is. White cabañas. White sand. White everything. Accompanied with loud techno music, this place is full of the richer than rich, to the point that the six of us felt uncomfortable simply walking through to get to the public beach area. Looking back on that day, it’s hard not to laugh as I envision the six of us rolling up in our “taxi” to the Nikki Beach Valet where we feasted our eyes on the most ridiculously tricked out Lamborghini’s, Rolls Royces, Phantoms, Bentleys, Ferrari’s, etc. you could ever imagine. We are not in Kansas anymore. The rest of the day was full of soaking in the sun, enjoying the aqua blue water, and people (and yatch) watching. By the end of the day, the six of us had come up with the most absurb story of us being sextuplets (Grace was the questionably adopted one- too exotic looking to the rest!) but everywhere we went, people bought it. Overall, the trip couldn’t have gone better nor the six of us enjoyed each other’s company any more. Not to mention the South of France being pretty remarkable. I will be thoroughly disappointed if a reunion doesn’t happen once Leslie and I are back state side.

Notching these three great trips in my belt, I couldn’t imagine anything topping them.. but then we went to Budapest, Vienna, and Prague. Don’t worry, once getting back from Nice, Grace and I finally got some well earned and needed sleep, rest, and lounge time. We spent a week here in Paris with the house all to ourselves as my host family was bouncing all around France and the Alps. Lucky for me, Grace is less than the most enthused tourist so I took my sweet time playing tour guide for the upt-eenth time. Me: “And here is the Arc de Triomphe...” Grace: “Cool” Me: “Nap time?” Grace: “Yeah.” Nevertheless, by the time she left she had not only seen everything there is to see, but also experienced the culture, the nightlight, the umm.. friendly.. French, and my favorite, the oh so frustrating... language.

After a week of sight seeing, vegging out on the couch watching the Olympics and movies, and being semi-nocturnal (hey, isn’t that what summer is all about?!), we finally bid France au revoir and jetted off to Budapest, Hungary. Just thinking about our two night stay there brings a smile to my face. When we arrived we were famished so we found a cool outdoor restaurant that was playing the USA men’s basketball final game (which we met a player and coach while on the Underground in London). Four Italian guys sitting close by started talking to us and their first question was “are you going to Sziget?” (pronounced see-get) Grace and quizzically look at each other. “Umm... no? What’s that?” “Oh, it’s only the biggest music festival in all of Europe. It’s a week long and tonight is the last night. LMFAO is on in two hours followed by The Ting Tings and The Killers.” .... “Check please!” Grace and I rush through our first good meal we’ve had on this entire European adventure and bee line back to our hostel with just enough time to change.. forget showering! This is the backpacking, hostel-living, sleep-lacking, always-sorta-dirty way to be. Within an hour of these Italian guys first mentioning the word “Sziget” to us, we are now standing in line waiting to buy a ticket and our hearts begin to race as we hear the bright lights and loud music up head.

The night was epic to say the least and waking up the next morning in our hostel room I wish I had on tape because we were in a eight person mixed room which apparently all eight of us had been at Sziget the night before. Somehow around 11 we all wake up simultaneously as I pan the room squinty, half-eyed open, I assess that everyone looks like they had a good time last night. I peep below me to a sleepy Grace in the bottom bunk, hair everywhere, make up smeared, and face paint still on. I immediately bust out laughing until she tells me I should think twice about that and look in the mirror. YIKES! (see below.) Once we were able to piece ourselves back together, it was off to see the city! Back in London, Grace and I become big fans of the Hop On Hop Off bus tours as you can see everything, hear all about it on the audio guide, and not have to move a muscle. Budapest was no exception and it turned out to be great there as well! Our second night there we made friends with our British and Italian roomies and all went out together... great night. Budapest exceeded any expectation I had. The city is so rad and eccentric. The river, Duna, is massive and along the river are huge cool buildings like parliament and the old Russian royal palace.

Next stop, Vienna, Austria. We took a three and half hour train there which got us in mid day, enough to drop our things at the hostel and get to sight seeing! We did another bus tour which Grace really enjoyed! (See below, sorry Grace for putting you on blast!) I loved it and loved the city as well. My favorite thing about Vienna was the canal and the man made sandy beaches they’re created along it and turned into hang outs/bars with lounge chairs everywhere. The city overall is very old and has a lot of unique buildings and history yet on the other side of the river, the Danube, is a very up and coming metropolitan area. While in Vienna we also discovered this old WWII watch tower that you can now climb up for a great view of the city. Things like that along with St. Stephen’s Square, their Open Air Theatre, the Danube river and island, and their big ferris wheel all made this city truly enjoyable and definitely worth seeing!

Unfortunately, being on a budget meant not being able to stay days at a time in each city. We were in Vienna a total of 26 hours before we trained to our last, but certainly not least spot, Prague, Czech Republic.

The five hour train ride to Prague was much more pleasant than expected. We ended up having our own six person cabin which we took full advantage of as we each sprawled out across three seats and took a well earned nap most the way. Finally finding our hostel, the Czech Inn (highly recommend!), we didn’t miss a beat as we put out stuff in our room and decided to take a stroll around the town. Little did we know (okay, who am I kidding, yes we knew), we ended up at Prague’s notorious club, Karlovy Lazne. This five story club is the biggest club in eastern Europe and attracts locals and travelers alike. The first night there (yes, we ended up there all three nights) we had our first Ice Bar experience! Brrrr. See below but this place was awesome! From the cups we drank out of to the bar counter to the walls... all ice!

After having a semi “mellow” night, we spent the next day doing another Bike Tour which was really great and informative (except our mildly creepy tour guide). We road all over Prague and I instantly fell in love with this city. Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock, the Charles Bridge, Prague Castle, the Jewish Quarter, the Lennon Wall... there was not one thing I didn’t like!

Our second and third day there were amazing as well, especially because we were able to meet up with Joe’s best friend, Josh, and another good friend of both Joe and I, Utkarsh. The previous week Grace and I spent in Paris, Josh and Utkarsh visited as they started their own Eurotrip. The few days we spent with them in Paris were very fun and it just so happened that our days overlapped with us all being in Prague. Getting a taste of home never gets old and getting to spend time hanging with these two fools was no exception.

As our trip came to an end, for the first time since I moved here, I was sad to be going back to Paris. Not because I liked these cities better than Paris (Paris is still my #1), but because it meant Grace leaving, the end of summer, and back to reality. Even after writing this exasperatingly long blog, I can’t put into words how phenomenally exceptional my summer was. My summer I spent in Boston three years ago had held the reign of “best summer ever” but hands down, without a second thought, this summer easily swept that title. Two months and six countries later, I feel so blessed for the travel and experiences I’m having here and a big thanks to all my family and friends who have given me nothing but love and support throughout this journey!

((... My plan was to briefly talk about what’s up next for me, as I have less than four months left here (how time flies)! But lets be honest, I’m exhausted from writing this, you’re probably exhausted from reading this (if you actually made it all the way, congrats). However, there are fun and exciting things I still have planned before returning to the states but I’ll save that for the next one! ))

Cheers :)