Frankfurt, Castles, and more!

 I realize it has been over a week since I last posted... Oops! So here we go, I will fill you in on what's been going on!

For the most part, last week was spent just catching up on sleep and adjusting to life in Germany. I can't complain, I've been able to sleep in quite a bit which is amazing. I don't think I've ever had this much relaxation time! But, I have been making big efforts towards working on my research paper, so I can at least feel a little productive about that! Also, I've kept up with running while here, which makes me feel good and not quite so lazy! Me and the girl I'm living with, Marie, went running a few different times now. The past 2 times we ran in a wooded area with lots of trails, and its such a beautiful area to run. On one of our runs, it started raining. Not pouring, but enough to get us pretty wet. But of course it stopped right when we got back to the car. To our surprise, however, there was a bright, vibrant double rainbow that arched over the woods and a field. It was so beautiful! 

 Last Friday I took a train into Frankfurt. I was walking around and ready to take pictures, but when I went to take out my camera,  I discovered my camera battery was dead. So I spent the first hour of my downtown trip trying to figure out a place where I could by a new camera battery. Not part of the plan but oh well, it happens! 

Sunday was very fun, I went to my first Castle! It belonged to Prince Philip, and the Grimm Brothers grew up in this castle. So there was a whole section of the castle dedicated to them and the stories they wrote. There was even a 'theater' room where they would host plays that were put on with paper dolls and paper settings. It was pretty funny, actually. They were kinda creepy looking, but made me laugh. It was interesting, I'll just leave it at that. And, almost every room in the castle had a chandelier. Each were unique and gorgeous! 

That night I went with Marie and some of her volleyball teammates to the men's national volleyball game, Germany vs. Brazil. I had no idea volleyball could be so exciting! I loved it! And we sat right by the court, front row seats. At the time we were taking our seats, the German team had just come out to start warming up and stretching. A few of the players came over to the railing, like right in front of were I was sitting, to use the railing to stretch. It was so hard to keep a straight face! I was blushing, haha. I could have reached out and touched them, but I thought that might have been a little weird... I also thought of taking a picture, but that might have been even more weird. So I refrained myself, but still took some pictures of the game. Even though Germany lost, it was still a fun time. 

Today I went to Hanau, which is a city closer to where I live. I couldn't help but splurge a little while shopping.  There are a bunch of bakeries and cafes around though, so I can imagine that I'll be returning, even if its not to shop, but just to have a relaxing afternoon enjoying life in Germany :)

Ok, a few more photos and I'm done... I live in a village that is kind of out in the country. Back behind the neighborhood is a large field with paths that the farmers use to take their tractors into the fields, but people also use them as hiking and biking trails (and also horseback riding trails! I've seen lots of horse riders out there, too). These fields are up on a hill, and when you get to the top, there's a nice view of the village and surrounding area with big foothills in the background. The pictures aren't enough, you can't really tell, but I think it's a beautiful area and have made it almost a daily habit to walk around the fields. Its so lovely :) 

Next time I won't wait so long to blog so that the blogs don't get really long! 

"There will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path... But this, far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb." -Sir Winsten Churchill

Guten Tag!

I've been in Germany for 3 days now, so it's about time I blog again!

But first, I'll finish with my last day in Paris. Besides eating more crepes and riding the metro all over Paris, I've still kept busy with seeing and doing so many great things! Tuesday was kinda a rainy day, but I went with a large group to Notre Dame for a second time. That building is just so beautiful! This time we decided to climb up one of the towers. It was so fun, the view from the top is amazing! And you can even touch the gargoyles. 

We also went to a bookstore where Shakespeare spent a lot of time writing. It's this little hole-in-the-wall kind of place, but it was packed full of books! It was really sweet.

Thursday was probably one of the most nerve-wracking days of my life! I had to board a train all alone and head off to a new country. I kind of had an idea of where I was going when I got to the train station, but I think I checked to make sure I was at the right platform and boarding the right train at least a dozen times. But as soon as I was on the train and knew that I was on my way to Frankfurt, I was finally at peace. It was so great to see my host family right when I got off the train! 

My first few days in Germany have been so nice. I found out that I'm actually not that close to Frankfurt. The town I'm staying in, called Bruchkobel (its really hard to pronounce), is about a half hour drive from down town. I've mostly just been relaxing, spending time with my host family, getting used to things here, and trying to learn lot a lot of german. I slept for over 13 hours the first night, it was amazing :) I got to see my first handball game, too. It's a really fun sport to watch- its like a mix between basketball, lacrosse, and soccer. 

Tomorrow I'm going to start working on my research project, and hopefully sometime this week I'll begin my first interviews and will start to get to know some college students in the area. In brief, basically what I will be doing here is an huge research project, and then also writing two smaller research papers that compare cultural differences between Germany and the U.S. (this is how I'm earning 12 credits). For my research project, I'm examining the connection between social media networks/new technology-such as facebook, cell phones, internet, etc.- and social relationships. But to be more specific, this project focuses on college students. So I'm surveying 30 American and 30 German college students on how they use facebook, cellphones, email, and how they think it influences their relationships with friends, peers, family members, etc.  Anyways- I will hopefully be spending a lot of time around the University of Frankfurt and getting to know some other college students. I'm really looking forward to it! So many things to look forward to, I'm so glad to be here... :) 

" You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do."- Psalm 139:3 

Paris Continued...

I've been doing so much the past few days, so it is time for an update!

Sunday was a very full day. After breakfast and a long meeting with the group, me and several other students went to the Louve! Sundays are free museum days, so it was really nice to not have to pay to get in. However, this meant that it was also very, very busy! I didn't know that the Louve was so huge! But I did get to see the Mona Lisa, and that was really neat. It was hard to see her because there were so many people crowding around, but I did get close enough to see her and get a nice picture :)

There are so many paintings, sculptures, and other various forms of art there, and its from all over the world. It was really cool to see that, and also be surrounded by people from all over the world too. It got pretty overwhelming and exhausting after a while, so we were there for about 4 hours, and maybe got to see half of what was there. That just goes to show how big it is! That night a large group of us went to the Eiffel Tower to see it light up and sparkle. It was so much fun!  We had wine, cheese and crackers, and some dessert to share. An authentic French evening :) 

Monday was much more laid back. After yet again, another long meeting, me and three other girls went shopping! There are lots of stores, restaurants, and cafes in the area so it was easy to find a place for lunch and good stores to shop in. I had to refrain from buying too much, and limited myself to one shirt which I look forward to wearing and always remembering Paris. We got an assignment earlier that morning to get into groups and go explore a market. So that afternoon my group and I went to check out a market on the north side of Paris. When we got there, we saw that it was closed, just some misinformation but thats okay. But when we got back on the metro train to head back to the hostel, it was packed! There was so many people there, I think it might have been rush hour. We were so squished on the train, and it was really hot. Not a very good experience, but an interesting one, that is for sure! 

Today was also pretty laid back, but there's always so much to do and see. Since we didn't get to the market yesterday, we had to go this morning. There's a transportation strike going on, just for today, so all of the metro stations were closed which us to limited where we were able to go. It was suppose to be just a 15 minute walk from the hostel, but it ended up being a little longer than that. But once we got there, it was really great. Lots of food, and I bought some kind of roll that had like a jelly fixing in the center with raisins wrapped in it, it was really good, but then again, I love any kind of pastry. Later that afternoon I went for a run across the street around the Luxembourg Gardens. That's one thing I've noticed here- there are so many runners, its great!  It was a perfect day for a run, and the gardens is a great place to run around.  After that I went to Notre Dame. It is very beautiful inside, and there were many tourists there. I wanted to climb up to the top, but it was closed. So I think we're going to try to go again tomorrow, or I hope so! I also really want to go up the Eiffel Tower, so I hope to get there again tomorrow too. I also found my way around a very beautiful area of Paris, where there were so many gelato/ice cream shops,  I just had to get some. It was probably some of the best ice cream I've ever had! 

Only one full day left in Paris, and then I'm off to my next destination: Frankfurt, Germany! I'm so excited and can't wait to be with the Mehlitz's, my host family. This has already been quite the adventure, but I'm really looking forward to what is to come! 

"Go forth seeking adventure. Open your eyes, your ears, your mind, your heart, your spirit, and you'll find adventure everywhere." -Wilferd A. Peterson

First Few Days

This is my third day in Paris, and it's still hard to believe I'm actually here!

It took a little while to get over the jet lag, but today feels like a normal day. It's 7 hours ahead here so its really weird to think that while its about 4:00 here, it's only 10:00 back home! We got to the hostel around noon yesterday and were ready to go back to bed, but the leaders made us stay awake to try and get on european time.

We're staying at a youth hostel in a neighborhood a little south of the main area of Paris. But from the terrace on top of the building is a clear view of the Eiffel tower. It's really sweet! And you can see all over Paris. So after a little meeting and getting settled into our rooms, we went for a walking tour around the city, led by one of the group leaders. Not even a block away from our hostel is the Luxembourg Gardens. It is gorgeous, with lots of colorful flowers, giant fountains,  and even palm trees- which really made me happy :) After the gardens we went and saw a bunch of old cathedrals, one of them was the oldest in Paris-St. Germain Des Pres. While walking around I had my first purchase in Paris- a caramel macchiato from Starbucks.... you would think I would get something that's authentic and french, but no. I really needed coffee after being up for 30 hours! But, for dinner I got a crepe with nutella and banana. It was so so good! It was more like a dessert than a real meal, but I don't care, I am in Paris :)

Today we had a short meeting with the group and learned how to use the metro station, which is an underground subway. We all bought some tickets and were on our way. I was surprised at how easy it is, even though everything is in another language! Thats one thing that is so crazy- everyone here looks like they could be American (but they're a little more upscale and trendy), but when they open their mouths and speak French, it quickly reminds me that I'm not in the States. I'm picking up on some french phrases pretty fast, which makes sense when you're around it all the time. Anyways- after getting the metro tickets we made our way to MoneMartre, the highest point in Paris. On top of the hill is the Sacre Coeur Cathedral. It was a climb to get up but once we got there it was a beautiful view of the whole city.  There was so many people there. Some people trying to sell little toys and souvenirs were all over the place! The group started splitting up, so me and two other girls went to the Moulin Rouge. A very interesting part of Paris, but I was kind of surprised at how small it was. I was happy to see the red windmill on top of the building, just like in the movie.

We got on the metro again and made our way to the Arc de Triomphe. That was really neat! Surrounding it is this intersection where 7 major streets come together, its absolutely crazy madness. I would not like to drive in that area! This neighborhood, the Champs-Elyees, is kind of a major hub with numerous shops and restaurants. They were all designer brand stores that were way out of my price range but it was still fun to see the Louis Vuitton of Paris. I really like this area of Paris, it was very busy with lots of people, but so much fun!

It's been so much fun so far and I'm getting to know the other students on the trip pretty well- I guess that happens when you're all thrown together in a foreign country! I look forward to sharing other amazing memories, and hopefully getting some pictures up soon too!


 "Adventure is worthwhile in itself."- Amelia Earhert