Friday, September 19, 2014

European Solo Excursion, Summer 2014: The Majesty and the Pinnacle

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.

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.

Centraal Station


Dam Square

The Country of Bikes

Beautiful Canals




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.

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.

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.
Walked through Hyde Park, walked up and down the famous Oxford Street while shopping, walked on Strand, walked by the old telephone booths….

Primark in London


Hyde Park

Legendary telephone booth
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.

Later, I would see the London Eye, Big Ben, a swath of museums, Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, etc. I had laid out an extensive itinerary for each country before coming and it definitely came in handy. I knew where to be, how to get there (especially) and what to enjoy about it. However, getting around London cheaply is quite difficult—but those double-decker buses will save your life!


Street


Guards at Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace




Big Ben

London Eye

Tower Bridge

Tower of London

National Gallery

Double-decker bus

I would watch the Lion King for the 7th or 8th 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.
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.







Pont Alexandre








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

Champs du Elysees

Siene River

Sunset on the Siene River

The Louvre







Me and the Eiffel

The Eiffel Tower








Architecture


Hotel de Ville



More Siene River




Me at Notre Dame

Notre Dame

Parisian selfies















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.

Primark in Creteil, France
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.


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 Barcelona was…omg…let me breathe…gorgeous. Breathtakingly gorgeous. I would go even as far as to say more beautiful than Paris. Even the sidewalk had beautiful patterns in Barcelona and everything had diverse shapes and colors unlike Paris. Barcelona was definitely charming, and I was blessed enough to be able to stay for an entire week.


Sidewalk

Door at Casa Mila

Street

Architecture
Citadel Park



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.
While there, I checked out Barceloneta (the beach), Las Ramblas, PRIMARK and Gaudi architecture. I did plenty of just roaming the streets.


Barceloneta










Parc Guell

Top of mountain at Parc Guell



Gaudi House

Las Ramblas


La Boqueria market



La Sagrada Familia
Primark in Barcelona

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. 

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

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


Brussels is a chill place with lots of hills that no one wants to walk up. It was cold coming back to Brussels from Rome. There are plenty of restaurants in the main part of the city, and they were fair.
Fries and mayo


Thai

Pasta

And then there is the European parliament here. And then what….nothing. Nothing to write home about.

European parliament


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.