I had been in hiding for practically 4 months.
Hiding from my professors, hiding from my peers/colleagues,
hiding even from my parents.
I was hiding the fact that I planned to hit all the major
spots of Europe…alone.
Yep, all by my lonesome.
But it wasn’t the solo part that I was hiding.
No, I was hiding from my parents because my mom has a way of
discouraging all plans and my dad will pretty much follow suit with her.
In fact, I literally told my mom the day before I embarked
on my European journey and she told me “I feel a sense of doom”. Yeah mom
reaaallll helpful when I am about to be on a 15-hour flight! I laughed her off.
I had to.
I had to ignore her and all the “omg are you crazy” kind of
comments from the cyber world….who probably knew more about my plans than anyone in
the real world (only close friends knew where I was going but they had no specific details until the day prior---for no other reason than it became more relevant and urgent then).
I hid from people at school for a completely different
reason.
I hid from them because of the reason people would try to
hide a vacation from a boss—I didn’t want to be taken as a less serious doctoral
student.
Of course, facebook pictures of all my travels helped word
travel real fast and, though I never mentioned, I am sure everybody knows my
little secret! Fortunately, I came back at the end of the summer and passed my
Methods/Statistics qualifying exam outright. Six students took it, and I was
the only one who passed unanimously. How’s that for serious?
Mojo—that’s what Europe gave me.
I came back a raving mad woman—more productive than ever. Europe gave me the juice.
Iceland
Rocking my spaghetti straps, flip flops, and short shorts, I
was ready for a European summer.
Too bad no one told me it was going to be freezing.
I took the Iceland route en route to meet my uncle in
Amsterdam.
In Iceland, everyone was staring at me. I could not tell
whether it was because I looked American or because I looked chocolate and
American or whether my clothes/hair/face looked funny.
It’s only now in retrospect that I realize it’s
because I looked American….and cold.
I only got to see the Iceland airport which was chill, lots
of green colors as I recall. But outside look remarkably dreary, cold, dark. I
couldn’t wait to get to Amsterdam.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
I was moody when I arrived in Amsterdam. I
only got to see the winter-looking darkness in Iceland from the inside but when
I got to Amsterdam, I got to be IN it. Wonderful.
After a nice reunion with my uncle, I felt embarrassed from
all the eyes looking at my short shorts while it rained in a grey, downcast backdrop.
I asked my uncle on the ride to the house, “It’s almost June—when
is the sun coming out?” He replies, “We rarely get sun, but when we do, we
enjoy it!”
My heart sank.
Internally I was screaming.
Noooooooooooooo.
How the @#%! could I have planned so carefully for this
moment and forgotten to check the damn weather?!
It was sincerely cold enough in late May to wear a winter
coat. And indeed my uncle was wearing one.
I ended up layering several pieces of summer clothing.
After many greetings from my uncle’s friends over the next
couple days, we went out with a dear friend of his to a festival. We listened
to live jazz and traditional Dutch bands while walking the streets and dancing
to Latin music…and paid 50 cents to use public restrooms. Oh. I recalled my other trips to Europe in
which I had to pay to use public restrooms. Boy, how lucky I was to be an
American.
We snacked on one of Europe’s best culinary ideas—fries with
mayo. The mayo in Europe is different though—thicker, richer, sweeter….prime
for fries. We also ate fresh churros.
But don’t get thirsty in Europe! You will get tiny cups and no refills. Pace
yourself. And don’t even think of a free cup of water like in the US. You will pay the same or more for a cup of
water as you would for a cup of soda….or sometimes wine. Oh, to be an American!
My uncle did a great job of helping me tour Alkmaar where I
saw historical Dutch reenactment of how they produced and packaged and shipped
cheese in the cheese market in the 1600s. I also got to hear my uncle on the
radio, join in on his meetings, visit his church and go to some get-togethers
with him. We also went to the relaxing oceanfront of Vollendam, a popular place
for tourists.
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| Cheese Market in Alkmaar |
My aunt took me to Amsterdam museums and made me her
fabulous vegetable lasagna. It was great also seeing my cousin, a good kid who
was once a baby model in Netherlands (who also recently learned English), but
he was getting into his teen years---and I think those years pretty much
universally suck. I hope to see him when he has become his former warm self
right around his 20s. I felt very much at home.
I also very much enjoyed Amsterdam on my own. Just remind me
not to have fries at the more famous Manneken Pis but the one NEXT DOOR that is
smaller and near KFC. Suriname, Thai and Japanese food is also amazing in
Amsterdam.
Went to Dam Square pretty much daily and constantly fell in
love with this beautiful, charming city. From the gorgeous canals, to the
parks, to the shops, trams, museums, food, markets, lovely beautiful people,
beautiful red brick-buildings everywhere, the bikes the Bikes the BIKES (I
swear they are better here), awesome English bookstore called THE AMERICAN
BOOKSTORE, the phenomenal Amsterdam library (one of the best I have ever seen),
etc etc etc. I was in love. And it felt like home.
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| Centraal Station |
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| Dam Square |
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| The Country of Bikes |
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| Beautiful Canals |
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| One of many beautiful rooms in the Amsterdam library |
TOO BAD Europe has a THING for hardwood floors. I am a
carpet girl. Preferably plush. It was almost as if I was gauging the practicality
of living in Europe in the future. You
never know. If not for my good uncle’s hectic lifestyle and his voracious encouragement
to be as hectic, Amsterdam would be a gem of a place to live. I could throw
carpet on the floor after all.
****
Taking the intercity train, I would make my way to the big
PRIMARK (a store that was sweeping across the continent) in Zaandam at least 4
times. Because there were lots of little treats to be had there—adorable
wallets for 4 euro, nice professional shoes for 7 euro, little bracelets for
1.50 euro, little cute purses for 7 euro, perfect bikini bottoms for 5 euro, cute
glasses for 2.50 euro, strong bras for 3 euro, etc. OMG, it is a DREAM for a frugal budget. And
FANTASTIC for little souvenirs.
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| A few goodies from Primark in Zaandam |
Granted, the quality of Primark items were much better back
in 2009 when I made my first bathing suit purchase there. But almost everything
EUROPEAN was a much better quality…THEN. The wardrobe quality everywhere I
looked in Europe looked quite low compared to when I was there last. Nothing
looked as rich as before—even the jackets! I was astonished.
Last time I was in Europe, much of the clothes looked
significantly richer in quality than the average American item. Now it was
pretty much on-par. I asked my uncle where I could find nice quality clothing.
And he said, “everything is cheap now”, meaning cheap in quality. Europeans
will spend more money on a few key quality pieces than buy a ton of cheap
clothes. Unfortunately, the quality clothing in Europe was always more quality
than the quality clothing in the US—but not anymore.
And the clothing fad at the time was telling—leather jackets
and sneakers. The majority of “fashionable” people in Amsterdam were wearing
leather jackets. It made the jacket so uncool….borderline tacky. It’s certainly
no longer edgy if everyone is wearing it. Everyone was wearing sneakers….that
used to be an American thing. Now I love American casual. I truly do. But I did
not come to Europe to get America. I came to Europe for Europe. Fashion was
mostly a let-down this trip.
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| Leather jacket and sneakers in Amsterdam |
And yet SHOPPING was my whole deal this trip! And it seemed
everyone was shopping with me. PRIMARK was mostly PACKED…all over Europe. So
much so, next year 2015 they will be debuting in America in Boston.
I would so market Primark as a smart stop for a quick pop.
No one here is expecting their clothing to last forever. But for at least one
night, you can step out with an accessory or flair that is just right to
complete a look you were going for but struggled to find. It’s such a date-night/last-minute
store to me. I enjoyed every single
Primark store I visited in every country.
Of all the countries, I spent the most time in Amsterdam and
I truly do feel lucky for that opportunity because I love the cottagey/villagey
yet city-like feel here. I just couldn’t get over that it was cold well into
June with sprinkles of sunlight. I was spoiled.
London, England
I felt no fear whatsoever traveling solo.
I left at night. On a bus-ferry-bus through Eurolines bus to
London. I was harassed by the people who have to ask you questions before
getting into the country. They asked me for my passport, my itinerary, my
student ID card…I thought the guy would ask for my birth certificate. I wasn’t
sure if I was getting into this country! Even the other guardians of the UK
were looking at my interrogator funny. I was finally released.
I loved the ferry over to London—it felt like a mini cruise.
Once I landed in London, I walked and walked and wouldn’t stop walking. It was
my second time in London. I liked it more now though. It kind of just reminded
me of America in Europe. It was a smooth transition country to stop in first.
I checked into my little abode through airbnb.com and bought
some little things at the grocery store (since it reminded me so much of
America, it was easy to find small foods here).
 |
| Bed and Breakfast in London |
I watched Wicked that first night and it was a treat though
it wasn’t as wowzer as people make it seem, which is fine because I paid $30
for only slightly obstructed seating as opposed to paying $140 I may have paid
for nosebleeds on Broadway. I LOVE West End theatre!!! It feels easier to
navigate and it has fair prices and it has all the hot theatre musicals.
 |
| Wicked musical |
I got through London using only my credit card (unlike other
countries where it was difficult to use my credit cards because they didn’t
have a chip). I luckily never had to trade my euro for pounds the entire time. Granted,
I must have paid for it in fees but it just didn’t feel as psychologically
painful as trading physical dollars, or even euros, for pounds. Score.
I would watch the Lion King for the 7
th or 8
th
time in my life in London and I would deeply appreciate it as always. I even
got those booth seats that always look exclusively for royalty. And I felt like
royalty.
 |
| The Lion King Royal Circle |
London is an amazing place to visit, shop and watch
musicals. But I never get a “home” vibe from London. Plus the residential areas
can be quite ugly-looking to me.
Paris, France
Oui oui, Paris! If there is ever a place that feels like “home”
to me in Europe, it’s here. The BEAUTY. The beauty alone enchants me. But to know
it inspires and draws artists and intellects worldwide…my people, my people…that
just about sends me over the moon. I could come here to live for at least a few
months in the future. No, I definitely will come to live in Paris someday. It’s
only a matter of when.
 |
| An extravagant gate into an Abercrombie and Fitch in Paris |
My favorite city in the world is Washington DC. I know, I
know. Strange choice. But I feel IT. It has IT. It’s the magic of being on the
edge of changes, of feeling powerful and monumental, of being cultured. If Paris
is Beauty and Elegance, Washington DC is Sophistication. These are the charms
of my favorite cities that call me, reach out to me, whisper in my ear. It
helps that DC is also a major part of the DMV and Maryland—another beautiful
place—is hands-down my favorite state to live period.
I felt the magic in the air in Paris….but it took awhile to
feel it again. In fact, after my bus-ferry-bus ride through Megabus, I
seriously questioned why I had fallen in love with Paris so much the first time.
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| Bed and Breakfast in Creteil, France |
I really had high hopes for a summer in Paris and it was still a bit chilly and
dark. Not what I was planning.
But when I visited the area of the Invalides metro station,
I remembered WHY the hell PARIS was the place to be!
 |
| The doors of heaven opened and let me in at the Petit Palais. |
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| Pont Alexandre |
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| In front of the Petit Palais. |
THE MAJESTY. Paris….YOUR MAJESTY. And I knew I
had to come back.
I visited the Eiffel,
several museums, stopped by to take
pics at the Louvre, purchased lots of Parisian scarves, shopped at Primark,
walked through the beautiful parks, strolled along the Siene River, walked by
Notre Dame…and repeatedly fell in pure love.
 |
| Standing in the middle of the street, taking a pic of Arc du Triomphe |
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| Champs du Elysees |
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| Siene River |
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| Sunset on the Siene River |
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| The Louvre |
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| Me and the Eiffel |
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| The Eiffel Tower |
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| Architecture |
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| Hotel de Ville |
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| More Siene River |
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| Me at Notre Dame |
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| Notre Dame |
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| Parisian selfies |
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| The Cheeseburger and Fries of Life at Majestic Sandwicherie in Creteil, France with ketchup, mayo and algerienne sauce. Parisian cusine pretty much did not move me except this. |
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| Primark in Creteil, France |
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| Architecture |
They even cleaned up that filthy metro.
 |
| Clean metro |
But you know what they didn’t clean up? The filthy mouths of
the French. Ugh, what rude snobs. They treat tourists as though they are an
infection. They are known for this worldwide. Clean up your crap.
Fortunately, this city redeems them. For why would anyone
deal with the French if they didn’t have to?
My only desire to learn the language is to live peaceably in
France, not out of love of the culture. Maybe I would be more interested in the
culture, if I was more interested in the people.
My host told me that it’s strictly a Parisian thing, not a
French thing. I hope she was right because I intend to tour more of France at a
later date and hopefully enjoy the culture.
Barcelona, Spain
Hopped on the next flight to Barcelona.
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| Bed and Breakfast in Barcelona in the Gothic Quarters |
Kidding. I had already pre-paid my flight months in advance.
The Spanish were nice people, don’t get me wrong. But if I
wasn’t talking to them, they would—or could—barely look at me. If I spoke to
them, they were quite nice and helpful. I do not think that my experience is
universal whatsoever. It could very well be an exception.
I couldn’t help feeling invisible in Spain. I am not sure
what it was. But it’s as if people looked through me. No, not into me. Just
literally through me. Like I wasn’t there. In other places, I was the pleasant,
curious tourist. Here, I was a ghost.
I can’t explain it. But I felt it.
But it definitely wasn’t Paris. Paris is like a stunning
queen while Barcelona is like an exquisite supermodel. Clearly one is likely
more beautiful, being both paid to be beautiful and obliged to showcase that
beauty with high frequency—the dial on that beauty is turned up high for all to
see. This is Barcelona. But Paris. Is. Everything. Paris is the palace herself.
She rules. She’s power. Her beauty is consequential—just striking enough to
ensnare you but there is so much more behind her doors. If you can enter the
palace, you have long since looked past the runway. You can now watch the throne.
Of course, you don’t throw away a supermodel. She sells. She
has the power to persuade. She’s fierce. The streets of Barcelona are clean,
moving and dripping in beauty.
I entered Barcelona with a strict mission: Operation DON’T
GET JACKED.
This city is the number one city in the world for
pickpockets. I would staple laminated euros to my under garments if I had to.
Rome, Italy
I safely made it out of Barcelona with my wallet intact.
Then, I flew to Rome. And so, the mission continued. Because when in Rome, you
leave your valuables at home.
Thankfully, like in Barcelona, Rome was warm. I was quite
happy about this. And like in Barcelona, I felt actually very safe in Rome--no sarcasm.
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| Bed and breakfast in Rome |
After checking into my sweet bed and breakfast room, my
first stop was for PASTA! And GELATO! The gelato did not disappoint but the
pasta did…miserably. How did I come all the way to Rome and eat some Chef
Boyardee type stuff?
 |
| Gelato |
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| Pasta |
I would try again later at a different restaurant, and it
was still blah.
But most of the places I tasted gelato tasted quite good. It
seemed that I needed to go to a mom and pop evening-only restaurant but I always
missed these ones because I wasn’t in the business of eating late at the time.
Pizza, unfortunately, was also blah. Why was I dying for Mcdonald’s in Italy?
Rome was a tragedy in more ways than one.
One look at the Colosseum and I thought, “is this it?!” And
there was so much construction that blocked a big piece of it.
 |
| Colosseum |
One look at the
line at the Vatican and I turned right
back around. It went on for blocks and blocks, into a completely different section of the city. Not me. Not today. (I looked forward to coming back one day to visit the Vatican, the most highly visited museum in the world--even more than Louvre. Next time, I will pre-pay and go on the expedited line!)
 |
| Vatican |
These were real tragedies but there was no greater tragedy
in Rome than me being ill-prepared for the QUALITY of Italian shoes and purses.
THIS country was the ONLY country in which I was BLOWN away by the pure, glorious
QUALITY of clothing items. You know people say nice things about certain
countries and you think “I’ll believe it when I see it”. You have to see it to
believe it. Even the cheap 10 euro Italian purses sold on the street would
knock some of the mid-range purses in the US off the market.
I had no reason to return to Italy except to see somewhere
other than Rome, taste REAL pasta and buy a LOAD of nice purses, shoes, suits
and any other glorious things I can get my hands on.
Rome was not beautiful. Small pieces of Rome touched me here
and there as magnificent, historical, rich.
 |
| Capitoline Museum |
But mostly Rome did not move me at
all.
On yeah, and I went to Primark.
Brussels, Belgium
The waffle. The waffle. That is pretty much all Brussels has
going for it.
For just 1 euro. The Belgium waffle (or Liege waffle) is a
gem. Oh, and of course the chocolate.
 |
| Street |
 |
| Real Belgian Waffle |
However, Brussel’s biggest monument, the Manneken Pis, may
quite literally be 2 feet tall.
 |
| Mannekin Pis |
A little itty bitty city with a whole lotta heart.
 |
| Center of Brussels |
Cologne, Germany
I stopped in Germany en route to meet a relative. I ended up
seeing the major sights and chatted up a Dunkin Donuts worker while I waited
for my train.
 |
| Cologne Cathedral |
I found that I wasn’t too crazy about the trains. Of all the
transportation, I preferred the bus because getting on and off was easy,
focusing on your own stop was simpler, and the movement of luggage was like a
charm. I could even sleep better on the bus.
I also shopped at PRIMARK in Cologne. I loved this one for
some reason. I stayed at an amazing and clean hostel overnight called Die
Wohngemeinschaft . The only hostel I stayed at my whole trip. It was lovely
because the beds came with full curtains and electric outlets. The beds were
large, clean and comfortable, and the people were quiet and respectful.
 |
| Hostel |
 |
| Primark in Cologne |
Gosh, I loved the German people. I did not expect to love
the Germans. For some reason, I had the thought that Germans might be harsh.
But of all the groups the Germans were the nicest and most helpful. I got lost
a couple times and every German graciously spoke to me in English. Even though
I wasn’t looking so hot, some hotel desk people let me use the hotel restroom
for FREE---that’s a huge deal in Europe. I even sat in a random store for a
half hour doing nothing and nobody disturbed me. They were fairly jolly to me.
The streets were quiet, safe, clean and comfortable. I even like the smoothness
of the transportation in the city. If Germany were only more beautiful, I would
come to live.
Unfortunately, the beauty of the people did not overcome the
lack of beauty of the environment. If given the chance, I would visit Germany
again and again. But to live, the vultures of Paris have me twisted up.
Friedrichsafen, Germany (also Switzerland and Austria)
I met a relative here and enjoyed the suburban lifestyle of Germany
(although suburb has a very negative connotation in Europe because it sounds
more like “inner city” to them; this was actually a place that looked like
surburban America). In Germany they were so warm and welcoming.
My relative lived right on the edge of Germany, Switzerland
and Austria so we drove through all of them and took lots of pics.
I got to enjoy the Germany game as they won the World Cup!
Lots of honking!! Unbelievable energy.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
I wrapped up my trip
spending time with family.
On my flight home, I was harassed again my by the
guardians of Amsterdam who asked for my itinerary from all the countries I
traveled to including transportation and activities, looked me up and down and round and round and finally let me pass…..only
to find when looking at my passport that I had been in Amsterdam several times before, then sheepishly
saying “Come again next year!”
 |
| Transportation Souvenirs |
My entire trip of 1.5 months in Europe (from late May to mid-July) ended up costing me
$2700 including roundtrip transportation from the US ($800), inter-country transportation
in Europe for 3 weeks ($250), accommodations for 3 weeks ($300), and other trip
expenses including intracity transport,
shopping, food, entertainment, museums, etc ($1350).
I used Megabus to save on transportation and the
cheapest trains and flights around. I used exactly 3 flights within Europe (remind me never to take ryanair flights
again because they will charge like 50 pounds for bags bigger than a finger, 50
pounds for not *printing* your ticket within 2 days of your flight, charge
exhorbitant fees if you didn’t pre-pay your checked baggage, charge fees for
water and tiny snacks on-board, they will charge for checking in like an hour
before the flight leaves, missing the line they inadequately marked, they will
make you stand in multiple different lines just to check in and then make you
enter multiple lines before you board the flight, oh yeah and if you are from
the US make sure to wait on the unclearly demarcated line to get your printed
ticket stamped before you board the plane---buying cheap here severely costed
me).
I used airbnb.com for bed and
breakfasts. I found the best way to walk and save money or most cost-effective
transport options. I rarely ever used a taxi. I seldom ate in big restaurants
but used grocery trips as an adventure all their own. I shopped heavily in
Primark and bought plenty of Parisian scarves (not that this was inexpensive but I
was lucky enough to squeeze all this in there).
I looked at this trip as a blessing upon a blessing. I had
just come back from a 3 week trip in Vegas before embarking on this one. This
was an EPIC trip because when next would I be able to just take time off like
that especially when I begin my career? When would I see vacation time like
this when companies have policies, values and cultures that limit people’s
ability to take vacations so much so that even a CEO either does not have time
to vacay like this or takes work on their vacay? Who in the world has the luxury
to take vacations this long except for the superwealthy (or the vagabonds)? Can
you even say that celebrities get to enjoy time like this when touring the
globe in truth is just a business trip? Who gets to see the world pure,
unadulterated, immersed with no handle bars to grab onto? I am humbled. I am grateful.
This summer will go done in history. I spent my sweet time relaxing in Vegas, then quickly waved at the Icelanders, schmoozed with the Dutch, caught up with the English, frolicked with the French, spent time with the Spanish, lingered with the Italians, hobnobed with the Flemish, mingled with the Germans and entertained the Swiss.
And I came back to America, grateful. Grateful for the experience. Grateful to be American.
When you go out into the world and see different things, you come back more appreciative of what you have. I spent more time with family on my return, soaked up my surroundings, traveled to more American cities. Yes, we have an overworked, individualistic society with lots of problems. But we also have free refills, free public bathrooms, free water and free wifi. I like free. Home of the free and the brave. Cheers, I'll drink to that.
Water of course.
Free water, that is.
