and a great New Years to all! I will start to Blog again as the new year takes shape, so stay tuned!
Also, check out some of my links to the right here, a few friends and family blogs that will make your mind spin!
see ya soon!
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Travels, reflections, and what-not
Finally the motivation to make a new post has hit me. I Have been a bit lazy these days to be honest.
I will begin with a short description, as the order in the title suggests, of my recent travels. In late January, I took a trip to Athens. This trip, given its magnitude compared to the rest of my "travels", will surely remain amongst my favorites. I have never really had a full on trip outside of my place of residence prior to this - with the exception to my sudden move overseas. This being the case, Athens was monumental for me, and only served to scratch an itch that will never go away.
Spending five days in Athens at a strangers' house is something that few people ever get to do. Most will visit and stay in a hostel or hotel, see the big sights, and leave satisfied enough with what they have experienced. Shelby (my partner in crime for this trip) and I have a completely different story than most that visit this city and, I imagine, are much better for it. Between the pair of us we were able to experience so much with in little time, but for the sake of conciseness, here are the highlights:
Day 1: Upon arriving, my host Giannis, asked if I liked "what you would call soccer" and if I would like to play. For those of you who know even the slightest bit about me, this is all that needs to be said about day one: absolutely no better way to start off.
Day 2: With Giannis at work, Shelbs and I were at the mercy of our imaginations. We learned the transport system front and back, got lost many, many, times only to stumble across amazing things time after time.
Day 3: Tour to the Acropolis, as well as other sights. A run in with two musicians, dance session in the middle of street to aforementioned musicians' music, followed by the purchase of their self-made CD. A lunch that dreams are made of.
Day 4: More getting lost, getting found and lost again. Again, amazing discoveries along the way. Hiking and Photo shoots. A meal composed of the best food and wine I have ever consumed
Day 5: Quick run to the markets for last minute sundries, flight home with nothing to say, just smiles.
In the interest of space and an avoidance of my tendency to ramble a bit, I will end this posting here and follow it up with another very shortly (promise)
I will begin with a short description, as the order in the title suggests, of my recent travels. In late January, I took a trip to Athens. This trip, given its magnitude compared to the rest of my "travels", will surely remain amongst my favorites. I have never really had a full on trip outside of my place of residence prior to this - with the exception to my sudden move overseas. This being the case, Athens was monumental for me, and only served to scratch an itch that will never go away.
Spending five days in Athens at a strangers' house is something that few people ever get to do. Most will visit and stay in a hostel or hotel, see the big sights, and leave satisfied enough with what they have experienced. Shelby (my partner in crime for this trip) and I have a completely different story than most that visit this city and, I imagine, are much better for it. Between the pair of us we were able to experience so much with in little time, but for the sake of conciseness, here are the highlights:
Day 1: Upon arriving, my host Giannis, asked if I liked "what you would call soccer" and if I would like to play. For those of you who know even the slightest bit about me, this is all that needs to be said about day one: absolutely no better way to start off.
Day 2: With Giannis at work, Shelbs and I were at the mercy of our imaginations. We learned the transport system front and back, got lost many, many, times only to stumble across amazing things time after time.
Day 3: Tour to the Acropolis, as well as other sights. A run in with two musicians, dance session in the middle of street to aforementioned musicians' music, followed by the purchase of their self-made CD. A lunch that dreams are made of.
Day 5: Quick run to the markets for last minute sundries, flight home with nothing to say, just smiles.
In the interest of space and an avoidance of my tendency to ramble a bit, I will end this posting here and follow it up with another very shortly (promise)
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
End of year round-up and then some
Well, 2007 has been a pivotal year, the harbinger of my graduation from college and my first venture out of the U.S. No complaints, thus far, about how things have panned out. Yes, I am in debt - but who isn't? That aspect of life has been established for quite a while, so why not be in debt whilst traveling Europe?
Living abroad and meeting people from all walks and talks of life has been eye-opening. This, of course, is a gross understatement. Those that have entered my life since the fateful decision to make my home in Germany have become, in many cases, family. Not family in the traditional sense, but in that we are all experiencing the same removal and nearly complete separation from that which was once familiar. This fact, I feel, inspires a quicker-than-usual attachment than many have experienced before. I have made friends here that I am certain will last a lifetime because of the months spent here away from family, away from life-long friends; and has inspired, recently, a delving into my own concept of the world and life in general. Without going on too long here, it suffices to say that I have grown a fair amount in the few months that I have been here. That being said, let us move on to things more informative and fun!
NEW YEARS EVE
I have decided to forgo Christmas for two reasons: 1) It didn't feel like Christmas as I have always known it, and as such it passed very much like any other day. 2) All I did was work.
New Year's Eve was, safe to say, if not the best night of my life, then damn close. From the onset, the night was of questionable fun value. I, along with many of my close friends, were scheduled to work until 11:30 operating a children's program at the hotel. We were, rightfully so, fearful that the parents would get caught up in the festivities and want to leave their children until just before midnight, thus robbing us of our chance to effectively celebrate the holiday. Thankfully, this happened to be a well thought-out concern of my lovely boss for the evening, Andrea. She had every kid checked out around 11:15. I had phoned a friend of mine that owned a cab and arranged for a ride to the center of Garmisch, and to pick us up at 11:30. We hopped in the cab and was there in plenty of time for the count down.
Now, just imagine a place where fireworks are legal, in fact seemingly encouraged. A place where there is no Citibank-sponsored firework show, but rather hundreds of people firing away at will, and you would have Garmisch on New Years' Eve. As midnight approached, Garmischers were setting off every type of pyrotechnic imaginable all around us as we stood in the middle of the pedestrian district. Encircled by nothing but smoke, flickering lights, and explosions, the experience was nothing short of magical - made especially so by the snow that was falling on us in chunks that could have blocked out the sun had it been present.
Living abroad and meeting people from all walks and talks of life has been eye-opening. This, of course, is a gross understatement. Those that have entered my life since the fateful decision to make my home in Germany have become, in many cases, family. Not family in the traditional sense, but in that we are all experiencing the same removal and nearly complete separation from that which was once familiar. This fact, I feel, inspires a quicker-than-usual attachment than many have experienced before. I have made friends here that I am certain will last a lifetime because of the months spent here away from family, away from life-long friends; and has inspired, recently, a delving into my own concept of the world and life in general. Without going on too long here, it suffices to say that I have grown a fair amount in the few months that I have been here. That being said, let us move on to things more informative and fun!
NEW YEARS EVE
I have decided to forgo Christmas for two reasons: 1) It didn't feel like Christmas as I have always known it, and as such it passed very much like any other day. 2) All I did was work.
New Year's Eve was, safe to say, if not the best night of my life, then damn close. From the onset, the night was of questionable fun value. I, along with many of my close friends, were scheduled to work until 11:30 operating a children's program at the hotel. We were, rightfully so, fearful that the parents would get caught up in the festivities and want to leave their children until just before midnight, thus robbing us of our chance to effectively celebrate the holiday. Thankfully, this happened to be a well thought-out concern of my lovely boss for the evening, Andrea. She had every kid checked out around 11:15. I had phoned a friend of mine that owned a cab and arranged for a ride to the center of Garmisch, and to pick us up at 11:30. We hopped in the cab and was there in plenty of time for the count down.
Now, just imagine a place where fireworks are legal, in fact seemingly encouraged. A place where there is no Citibank-sponsored firework show, but rather hundreds of people firing away at will, and you would have Garmisch on New Years' Eve. As midnight approached, Garmischers were setting off every type of pyrotechnic imaginable all around us as we stood in the middle of the pedestrian district. Encircled by nothing but smoke, flickering lights, and explosions, the experience was nothing short of magical - made especially so by the snow that was falling on us in chunks that could have blocked out the sun had it been present.
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