Swanky title about Greece

I decided to write about my trip to Greece first because frankly it was so much more fun/interesting/I think you’ll enjoy it more. It’s also going to take forever to write so I might as well get started. Also also, on my trip to Granada I thought of an idea for the book I want to write so I thought I might try that form out today. It’s pretty similar to what I’ve been doing but with a few changes, I’m thinking along the lines of a collection of short stories starting with a recommendation on what they should be enjoyed with. Let me know what y’all think! I’m always open to comments / criticism / suggestions.

 Note: “tomar un café” means to have a coffee, usually at a café. “Tomar algo” means to have something, in the same way. Also, please accept this as a draft, I’m all out of creative titles.

Tomar algo: Cappuccino with brown sugar and a bite sized chocolate chip cookie or two

My birthday trip got off to a somewhat rough start, about an hour before we got to Madrid, the lady I was sitting next to on the autobus got sick and threw up everywhere, I’m pretty sure she even passed out for a second. Luckily, my counselor/college student skills jumped into action to prevent her from 1. throwing up on me and 2. choking. It was a great way to wake up and get my blood pumping for the day. The bus got to the airport hours before my flight so I spent quite a while getting familiar with the floor in Terminal 2 before I could check in. A budget traveler’s life is rarely glamorous, so my breakfast matched my look.

Two vending machine cafes con leche (extra sugar) and a grocery store baguette with mermelada de frambuesa y mantequilla (raspberry jam and butter)

I spent my early morning hours contemplating the complexity of Don Quijote, a topic brought upon either by my deliriousness (I probably slept for a maximum of 15 minutes on the bus) or my impending final on the book and its author. For those who haven’t read at least part of the book (I certainly haven’t read it in its entirety yet), Quijote is surprisingly relevant today, especially to twentysomethings who aren’t content with the ideals of our demanding society and sitting still.

After several hours of both reveling in one of the greatest novels ever written and cursing the sloppiness and inconsistency of Cervantes it was finally time to board the plane. The flight was mostly uneventful due to the wonderful service (and food…a whole actual meal…for free!) of Aegean Airlines. But life wouldn’t be interesting if it was uneventful. While I have thus far been lucky with seating on planes, I got to spend three and a half hours listening to a Chinese/Spanish family yelling in both Chinese and Spanish AND I got to listen to three and a half hours of an Asian soap opera because apparently headphones are now optional. Maybe I should have played my country playlist out loud as well?

We flew into Greece as the sun was setting and it was magical. I didn’t realize how mountainous the country was and flying into the sunset over snowcapped mountains was amazing. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any more beautiful, Athens appeared from under the wing of the plane. The entire city was lit up against a purple sky and the deep blue sea. Simply breathtaking. I didn’t (couldn’t) even attempt to capture it in a picture. I think that’s when I fell in love with Greece.

I was staying with a friend, Matt, and he met me at the airport which was ideal because, as you may know, they speak Greek in Greece and I’m not sure that my exhausted, romance language filled mind could have navigated the (Greek) public transportation system. On our journey into Athens proper I got my first glimpse of Greek life: worry beads, Greek singing and dancing, riot police, and Christmas lights. After putting my stuff away in the apartment I was staying in, we set out for a mini night time tour of Athens. Since Matt is a classics major, I got the Spark Notes version of the several thousand year history of Greece as we walked by monuments like the Temple of Zeus. While it was all interesting, my favorite part was climbing up the huge hill that the Acropolis is on (not easy in a skirt) and having a panoramic view of Athens at night. It was amazing seeing the dark, imposing mountains turn into the sprawling, brightly lit city, turn into the equally dark sea. I’ve often been asked “mountains or sea?” and if I could give you an answer before, I certainly can’t now. Both are far too inspiring.

We met up with a friend of Matt’s for dinner at a taberna called “The Black Cat”. It was traditionally Greek, or so I was told, though it had a somewhat American feel to it but that might have just been the red and white checked table cloths and Christmas decorations. In enrich my first experience of Greek food we ordered a variety of appetizers to go with our meals.

A traditional Greek salad with possibly the best feta cheese I have ever had, saganaki (a fried cheese square), tzatziki (a spread), fresh bread, and a jar of Rosé complemented by my main dish-a piece of flaky, melt-in-your-mouth spinach pie

I think you could call dinner a success. As you might imagine, it was so nice to spend time with someone I knew. While one of my favorite parts of traveling is meeting new people, it can be exhausting. It’s nice to just slip into conversation without having to explain things or people or ways of thinking. After dinner we went out to a terrace bar for drinks. We ordered Rakomelo which is a traditional drink made from raki, a grape based bourbon, mixed with honey and spices, served warm. I was absolutely in heaven because it can only be explained in American terms as warm Jack Honey which is my favorite drink in the whole world. I’m a bit disappointed in myself because I never thought of trying it warm before. While we were out, sipping on our drinks, overlooking Poco Poco (a 24 hour eatery), midnight struck and it was my birthday. It was understandably uneventful, but then again was it? How many people get to celebrate their birthday in Athens?

Greece Part Two

A cappuccino, because café con leche isn’t a thing in Greece; toast with cheese, aka a grilled cheese; potato chips; free cookies

After breakfast we hit the ground running “seeing the sights”/“doing the sites” (I’m still not positive which one it was). We saw pretty much every historical site in the center of the city including the theater of Dionysus, the Parthenon, various temples and monuments, several parks and the Agora. My history lesson continued and I was impressed with how much I remembered from my Dance History class (note: Mark isn’t entirely crazy!). Photographing the monuments was equally fun and frustrating, as there’s always something that doesn’t belong. Maybe I’ll write a book on that, History or His-story? Failed attempts a photographing monuments and landmarks due to man’s need to be in the way. We did a lot of walking. I always forget how much of traveling is just being on your feet. After strolling through an outdoor market, Matt and I got lunch. The atmosphere was cool, the host was hilarious and the food was good, what else could you ask for?

Pasta with olive oil, tomato sauce, eggplant and a variety of other veggies that tasted like magic and summer and some of the most dense, flavorful bread that I’ve ever had

We stopped at Di Vinci’s for gelato after and I went out of my mint chocolate/ stracciatella comfort zone for caramel and chocolate strawberry, it was divine. After a bit of shopping (Greece is so cheap!) we went out to the sketchy/hipster part of town where we saw the remains of a protest and a really beat up university building. I think that it’s really important to see the “other side” of town when you are traveling. I had also wanted to see the refugees, but it was getting dark and Matt suggested that we not, I was a bit disappointed but completely agreed.  As magical as almost all of my travel experiences are, you can’t look at the world through rose-colored lenses, you have to take in everything. You have to be swept away by the beauty of the land, sea, and sky, you have to be amazed by ancient buildings and temples, and you have to be disturbed by human crisis. You should take inspiration, hope, and motivation, respectively, from your travels.

My afternoon concluded with a glorious pre-dinner nap. We were meeting up with a few of Matt’s other friends for dinner. Occasionally I have moments when I realize just how European I’m becoming, and my rejoicing at the message I got saying that we were not going to meet for dinner until nine was one of them. I loved meeting Matt’s friends, one, Rocío, was studying with him in Greece and the other was her friend, Jackie, who is spending the year in Copenhagen, which is exciting because now I have someone else to visit this spring! She also goes to Smith College, small world isn’t it? We had a great conversation about K-Pop and weird Korean movies. Dinner was good, though there was a bit of a mix up, as they brought my dinner out before the appetizer so we all ate that before realizing that it was my meal, but it was good nonetheless.

A salad with feta, balsamic vinaigrette, greens, and sundried tomatoes on crispy thin pita, grilled veggies topped with fried cheese, and a cool, refreshing white wine to wash it down

After we ate, we took a night paseo around the center of Athens and saw what can only be described as “Greek”; Christmas decorations lighting the riot police, the absolutely ridiculous presidential guards marching against a backdrop of orange trees and twinkling lights, stray but well fed and vaccinated cats and dogs being loved on by citizens, old men with their worry beads and crowds of young, H&M clad students bounding around the city center. We ended up at this hole in the wall bar that Matt had been to with a professor and it was great. I’m not one for clubs or crazy nights out so this was perfect. It was an old Turkish villa that had been transformed into a bar/art gallery. I’m not exactly sure what I got to drink because they kind of mixed up our order, but it was lemon-lime tasting and very good. The atmosphere was both hipster and upscale academic but then again, is there really a difference? With new friends and a drink in my hand, I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end my birthday.    

Greece part three

It was a good thing we didn’t stay out too late the night before because Sunday was just as long as Saturday. Our game plan for the day was Aegina, an island about an hour ferry ride away from Athens Port. We met Rocío and Jackie at a corner café.

Another cappuccino and Praise God Halleluiah a BAGEL AND PEANUT BUTTER, also a free cookie which appears to be customary in Greece

The lady working at the café was the sweetest and she only charged be half price for the peanut butter because she “didn’t have much”…there was plenty on my bagel. We got down to the dock and had to wait for about an hour for the next ferry, which was fine because sometimes you just have to sit and think about the world. It’s so easy to forget the magnitude of where you are what you are doing. Spending my birthday weekend in Greece? What? And just when you feel on top of the world you are hit with how small you are. How many people in the thousands of years of Greek history have sat here, looking out over the sea? Surely countless soldiers and immigrants, emigrants and historians, prisoners and lovers, have looked wistfully to the sea and the mountains and back again and here I am, just one girl in 2015 waiting for a ferry. ¿Impresionante, no?

Back to the boat. The ferry ride was a lot of fun. I had a nice conversation with a man out on the upper level. He showed me some of the pictures he’s taken of birds on the ferry, he’s a regular. The first thing we did when we got off the boat was go to the pistachio vendors because that’s all Matt had been talking about all weekend. I’ve never had pistachios; they’re one of the few foods that I still haven’t tried because of some arbitrary prejudice. I think it’s because I see pistachio ice cream as a mint chocolate chip imposter. Luckily I was able to put this aside, and after a ridiculous amount of free samples of pistachios, candied pistachios, pistachio butter, and pistachio ice cream I can say that I really like them.

We spent the morning strolling around the island. We went into a Greek Orthodox Church which was cool, but jarring as usual because where are all the Marys? I’ve never been in an orthodox church though so it was really interesting to see all the Byzantine inspired art. Aside from the port, it’s a relatively residential place with lots of old, beaten up, beautiful little houses. We walked down little streets, past pistachio fields and olive groves. I only wish that they spoke Spanish and not Greek so I would have a reason to spend my summer working there.

We did not dress correctly for the weather so by midday we were sweating, though in our defense it was only forty degrees at night. From the minute we got back to the edge of the island I couldn’t stop thinking about jumping in the crystal clear water. I’ve never seen water so blue and beautiful. We played around a bit in an inlet and joked about stealing a boat that was docked there. We kept walking. We came to another inlet. I looked longingly at the sea and luckily I wasn’t the only one. We started to walk away and Jackie said it, “I want to go swimming”. After some discussion, justifying it by “we’re in Greece” and by the old man who was swimming and didn’t look very cold at all, we were stripping off our winter layers and making our way into the Aegean sea. It was cold, but not as cold as Maine and it was salty, but not quite as salty as two girls wearing the same dress at a party. Us girls hung out for a bit, forced Matt to do the necessary photoshoot (“pics or it didn’t happen”), and then got out. It was good. It was necessary. After drying off a bit we headed back towards civilization for a 4pm lunch. It was a grab-and-go bocadilla, nothing special.

We ended our island adventure at an archeological site. We whined about going, but it was free and Matt wanted to so we did. It’s probably my favorite ancient ruins that I’ve been to because we got to climb on it (Were we actually allowed to? I don’t know). We watched what was easily the most magical sunset of my entire life. I had a field day both photographing it and simply enjoying it. I am a strong believer in the power of language, but as a writer of English and Spanish I can confidently say that I don’t have the vocabulary to describe that sunset to you. I’m not going to say anything other than that “I am an entirely different person having seen the sun set on the other side of the world”.

Back in Athens we went searching for a protest before dinner, but were unsuccessful…apparently it wasn’t happening until later. In going against everything I’ve been told in Spain I tried one of the oranges off the orange trees that line the streets, both in Sevilla and Athens. I will say that the orange itself wasn’t bad, it was a bit bitter which I was expecting because they are used to make bitter marmalade, which I have tried. The juice, however, was so acidic that it made my sun burned lips feel like they were bubbling and made me hyper aware of the hundreds of teeny-tiny cuts that I apparently have all over my fingers. Good experience though, cross that one off the bucket list.

We all went back to our respective apartments and I met Megan, whose room I had been staying in, and one of her friends. They had been in Berlin for the weekend and I loved hearing about the Christmas markets they went to, the mulled wine sounded delightful and I tried some of the candied nuts that they brought back. A big group of people from Matt’s program got together and we all went out to Mystic Pizza for dinner. 

Thick crust, wood fired pizza with mozzarella, feta, peppers, olives, mushrooms, tomatoes, and onions, too many glasses of red vine, and free dark chocolate, nut filled desserts

It was a lot of fun hearing about everyone’s experience. It was interesting too because their program is so different from JYS, they don’t live with host families and their classes are taken at the program center as opposed to at an actual Greek University. After finished, I think it was close to or after midnight, a few of us bought some wine at a street kiosk and went back to Megan’s room. We sat up and chatted about everything under the sun. Eventually, around 2 or 3am responsible Holly came out and decided it was time to go to bed. I took a shower and died a bit as I set my alarm for 5:40am.

Greece part four

Trying not to think too much about the time, I rolled out of bed, followed Megan’s directions to Poco Poco (conveniently stored in the notes section of my phone) and met Matt at 6…well closer to 6:10.

Half of a double cappuccino and maybe a third of a deliciously beautiful chocolate crepe that did not sit well with my still wine-y stomach

I was disappointed that I didn’t get to enjoy my breakfast but I had to be on the metro by 6:30, so I should have gotten up earlier. After 45 minutes on the train, airport security, a marathon of postcard writing, and a 10 minute bus ride from the gate to the plane, I was comfortably strapped in to an Aegean jet once again. My onboard breakfast was delightful as was the rest of my journey. I elected to take the AVE home instead of the bus, mostly because I didn’t want to wait twelve hours for the next bus to leave.

I came home to the Christmas lights in Sevilla all turned on for the first time and the traditional post-adventure tortilla and soup for dinner.  [Note: not happy with this ending yet]

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It’s still amazing to me how much Sevilla has become home and how familiar Spanish is after hearing a different language all weekend. With that, my final trip of the semester is on the books and I’ll be enjoying la vida sevillana until after Christmas.  

Ireland: Land of Sunshine and Vegans

[Note: Ireland is not in fact the land of sunshine and vegans, but more on that later]

I waited a bit longer to start this post because I really wanted to think about how I was going to say what I wanted to say. How you say something can be (and usually is) more important than what you say, in both “real life” and in writing. Sometimes it’s more effective to write elegantly, with sweeping sentences and whimsical descriptions and other times humor gets the point across, but occasionally there’s no other way to say it and you have to be blunt: I loved Dublin. That’s all. End of story. It was amazing. See you next week.

As tempting as it is to leave you hanging, I of course wouldn’t do that because mother (and whoever else reads this regularly) would be mad and also because I am selfish and love to write, so here goes nothing:

I’m not exactly sure how such an unplanned trip managed to go off without a hitch. With my past trips I have made detailed lists of things I wanted to do and see and eat and I usually follow them. I made a list for Dublin too but I actually only ended up doing one thing on it. I know that I realized in Amsterdam that letting the city takeover is the best way to travel, at least for me, but I wasn’t thinking about that as I was jetting off to the Emerald Isle. Also with my past trips I travelled with other people from JYS so we would talk about what we wanted to do before the trip so there was sort of a group consensus about how the trip would go, resulting in less room for movement. I stayed with a friend from home (hey Chris!) who is studying at University College Dublin (UCD) and my only “planning” with him involved me sending him a list of things I wanted to do and him saying “okay, but you are only here for a weekend…”.

My actual journey to Dublin was hella long. I was flying out of Madrid so at about 11:45 on Thursday night I trekked from Los Remedios to the bus station on the far side of Triana (it’s much worse going the other way at 6am). When I boarded the bus I was pleased to find out that not only was I in seat #1 but that there was no one sitting next to me. The ride was about 6 and a half hours and honestly wasn’t too bad. I don’t think I slept very much but I definitely floated in and out of consciousness, though I couldn’t have been certain if it weren’t for my ipod stopping at the end of my playlists. I did have a bit of a cold last week so the one stop we made was great because I really needed (sugar free) cough drops. We got to Madrid and stopped at the bus station and after a bit of confusion I was reassured that yes the bus would actually be going to the airport, but hey it was a good way to practice the Spanish. I haven’t had the best experiences with the Madrid Airport but this one went well (aka I could connect my phone to wifi AND the espresso vending matching was working).  I had to check my bag because it was a crowded flight, which was fine, but it was super weird and very nice to go through security with only a purse. The flight was good, and before I knew it I was flying over the greenest land I had seen in months.

I was briefly interrogated by a customs officer who actually ended up being hilarious. He asked (after a series of question that made me feel like I was on the stand for murder) where I was from and when I said Western Mass he immediately asked, “So you must be a hick then?” I was impressed not only had that he known there was a western side of Massachusetts but also that he knew who lived there. Thinking back, I wish I asked why he knew that! Then I hopped on a bus and got my first glimpses of Dublin before being dumped at a bus station outside of UCD. I knew where I was supposed to be meeting Chris but I realized after I got off the bus (which had wifi) that I of course had no idea how to get there. I got really excited because there was this one kid who looked EXACTLY like Chris at the bus stop and was like “Yay he realized I don’t know where I’m going!” I proceeded to stand there for at least 30 seconds before realizing that no, this was not Chris and that this kid must think I am crazy for standing here staring at him. I walked in what I thought was the right direction and then asked 3 different groups of people how to get to the elusive “Centra”. After a nice mini-tour of campus I got where I was going. It was legitimately so nice so see someone I knew after two months of new people.

After changing and eating a peanut butter sandwich my game plan was the Old Library at Trinity College and the Book of Kells. We headed into the city, about a 3 mile walk (because buses are for quitters), and the weather was surprisingly nice (unseasonably nice, because Mother Nature knew I was coming) even as the sun was starting to set. We walked through St. Stephen’s Green before getting to Trinity. The library was closed. I was disappointed but not as much as I thought I would be, there’s always tomorrow right? We walked around a bit and ended up getting dinner at The Teller Room. It was yummy, as was my first Guinness. I was very pleasantly surprised because as a general rule, I don’t drink beer (frat parties have ruined me).

The rest of the evening was very much the classic “Irish pub experience”. 

[Note: everything after this was written after the Paris terrorist attacks, I’m trying to keep the parts cohesive but you just don’t see things in the same light after something like this]

We spent time listening to music both in pubs and on the street. I absolutely loved the mix of traditional Irish music, modern popular music, country music, and “the classics”. The atmosphere was so much fun, a change from the intense flamenco that I’m used to hearing. One band that was playing in the street was really good and we actually ended up buying CDs. Apparently they’re really popular in Ireland. I will say that I think they were better live. The pub we went to was full of dancing and singing and it was also international redhead day and a bunch of peoples’ birthdays so it was extra festive.

I joked before the trip that I was going to find my husband in Dublin, but forgot that when you travel with a guy it makes you appear to be “off limits”. At one point Chris went to the bar and I was immediately descended upon by a decently intoxicated and kind of attractive Irish man. The result was lots of hand kissing, being spun around, and questions about why I didn’t have an Irish accent. My story of course was that I was from America but that I had family here and was tracing my roots. That’s basically true, right? It’s also nice not to stand out! After we were done at the pub, Chris and I went into a few shops (ugh, I should have bought candy at the candy shop) and then started the trek home. Three miles, a housing development, and a random field later I got into bed and passed out.

The first place we went on Saturday morning was St. Patrick’s Cathedral. I liked it except that the gift shop was set up right in the entrance. It was cool to see a completely gothic style church, it seemed to be right out of the palace in Sleeping Beauty with the stained glass and flags. I faced the usual struggle of trying to take pictures that don’t include random people or objects that don’t belong. The green behind the church was pretty as well. After that I wanted to go see the Book of Kells at Trinity but on our way there it started pouring. We ducked into the cutest little café called “Peacock Green” for lunch. Our main priority was hot chocolate and it was phenomenal there. I actually could go for some right now. I got a veggie frittata for lunch and it was pretty horrible so I got a berry scone as well. It was amazing. The café was really adorable, it had books and a loft and quotes and lots of pretty little things. I could have spent the rest of the day watching the rain from in there. I decided then that I didn’t really want to go to Trinity and that I didn’t want to do anymore touristy things. After we finished eating the rest of the day was spent exploring and window shopping sans map. We went into woolen stores, looked at Christmas decorations, found food, books, and map markets, went into a photo gallery put on by the National Library, and found the coolest book stores including “The Library Project” and “The Winding Stair”. I would have spent all day there. Oh, we also briefly considered crashing a wedding, but were not dressed properly for the occasion.

One of the more interesting things we saw was various animal rights activists. I signed a petition banning the use of furs and talked to some people promoting veganism. I really did like being a vegan and want to continue when I get back home and am cooking my own food. Interesting note, my friend Lily who is studying abroad in Buenos Aires also saw a huge vegan promotion that day, International Day of the Vegan?

We walked a bit along the river and ran into several monuments including the potato famine one which was really amazing. We also took in the harp bridge, a tall ship, a sideways building and a pretty remarkable sunset.

Saturday night we went out to another pub to eat, we had been looking for a specific one but couldn’t find it so we ended up at another place which ended up being great. I had spring rolls and fries and opted for dessert instead of a craft beer because I didn’t want to take more money out of the ATM. I’m not sure if it was the right choice but that warm brownie with ice cream was on point. I was tired after so we trekked back and had a relaxing night…so necessary because my feet were dead. I don’t think heeled boots were the right shoe choice but they looked good, so it worked out. Also sometimes it’s good to just eat chocolate, drink wine, and talk about life.

Sunday morning was rainy. It rained on the way to breakfast, it rained on the way to the bus station, it rained at the airport. My trip back to Madrid was uneventful as was my bus ride home to Sevilla. I did have a nice conversation with a guy from Madrid while I was waiting for the bus. I didn’t sleep much on the bus, I was in that awkward hallucinating, in between sleep and awake stage, during which I convinced myself about five times I was on the wrong bus and also came up with nifty catch phrases like “You can’t start without art”. Luckily I did get on the right bus and we got to Sevilla around 6:15am. I dragged my suitcase back to my house and crawled into bed around 7. I didn’t go to sleep because I had to be up at 8. Monday was filled with my internship and falling asleep/hallucinating in class. It was worth it though.

Writing this now, I wonder how the attacks in Paris will change my future trips. I have never been a crowd person, even so, maybe it’s a good thing that I’ve discovered that my favorite way to travel is to keep off the beaten path, not that that guarantees anything. I’ll still use public transportation and eat in restaurants and see landmarks. Will I continue to be as excited and at home at the airport? What will I be too afraid to do? Will I have a streak of rebellious courage when it comes to traveling? I guess only time will tell.

To finish: a memory and a quote

Coming home and sitting in my bed and finding the un-opened map I got at a tourist center, the feeling of both things missed and things I never would have found if I had used it

“Let’s not travel to tick things off lists or collect half-hearted semi treasures to be placed in dusty drawers in empty rooms. Rather, we’ll travel to find grounds and rooftops and tiny hidden parks, where we’ll sit and dismiss the passing time, spun in the city’s web ’til we’ve surrendered, content to be spent and consumed. I need to feel a place while I’m in it.”

Le Grá (With Love),

Holly

Pray for Paris

I am working on several blog posts including the one from my recent trip to Dublin, but I feel that it is necessary to take some time to talk about the terrorist attacks last night in Paris. I was out with friends when one of them checked her phone and saw the news updates. At that moment it was hard to comprehend the magnitude of what was happening it was also very difficult knowing that I have friends in and around Paris with no way to contact them. I did what I always like to do in these situations, ignore it until I can sit down and read about it and process the information in a logical way. I got home at 5am and sat in my room, stunned at what I saw. I quickly responded to the various messages from family members, because it is very like me to travel without announcing to the world where I'm going until I'm there. At one point in the semester I actually was planning on going to France this weekend but it didn't work out. I quickly scanned Facebook, checking up on everyone I know in France, Paris or not. I read a few news updates and felt sick to my stomach, both at the terrifying events and at how people seemed to be having normal conversations about normal things as this tragedy was playing out.

 After a couple hours of sleep and some food and retail therapy I find myself again reading about these events with two main feelings. The first is frustration. This attack is terrifying, but so are all the other ISIS attacks, so are all the Boko Haram attacks, so are North Korea's labor camps, so is the refugee crisis, so are sweatshops. There are so many terrible abuses in the world that we seem to overlook, even with how connected we are. I realize that it's impossible to be on top of everything all the time and honestly that would be exhausting, but it's frustrating to see some events more "supported" than others. Regardless, the outpouring and concern is amazing.

 The other feeling is terror. I have said over and over that I feel safer here than I do at home. I walk home alone at night all the time, not afraid of being shot or stabbed. The most I have to put up with is occasional cat-calling and the worst I have to worry about is someone taking my purse, not my life. Reading the statements from ISIS is horrifying. I don't want to read them but ignoring the graveness of this issue is not an option:

 According to Buzzfeed, a recording was released by ISIS: “We want to tell France and all of the countries who are the same as France, they are the target and goal. The smell of death will never leave their noses because they died for the campaign. They hated our Prophet Muhammad. We are happy about what we did to the hostages. They hurt the land with their airplanes. These bombings are the first step. It’s a warning for other countries who have the same mindset of France.” and in a written statement said that France would “remain on the top of the list of targets” and “This attack is the first of the storm and a warning to those who wish to learn". 

 *Note: no, Islam does not condone killing/terrorism

 It is both terrifying and incomprehensible to be that humans can be like this. What kind of creatures are we? We are blessed with the beautiful and complex gifts of knowledge and language and the ability to make forward thinking decisions but we also are the only creatures who have wars and organized killings and attacks like this? WHY? How is it possible for us to be so cruel? How is it that we use our abilities for such atrocities? I can't understand. I can look at it from an evolutionary perspective, from various sociological perspectives and I've got nothing. What have we done? 

Luckily, there is a silver lining in every cloud. One of my favorite quotes is from Mr. Rogers:"My mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.' To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother's words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers — so many caring people in this world." One of these goose-bumps inducing responses (in a good way) is #PorteOuverte. The French used the hashtag on social media to let stranded people in their area know that they could come seek shelter at their house by sending them their address. Taxis also took people places for free, as all public transportation was suspended. The good during these events gives me faith in humanity. So what does all of this mean for me? Well the thought of traveling is terrifying right now, but so is living a life in fear. We must be aware and we must be careful, but we cannot stop living or they have already won.

Amsterdam: a tale of two cities

In VondelPark

I learned so many things this past weekend on my trip to Amsterdam; one being that there is no way to singularly describe this (or any other) city. Of course I was aware of this, but Amsterdam seems to be a city of extremes. On one hand you have the beautiful canals and the historic homes that line them and the delft and diamond dealers and the beautiful Dutch people biking to and from work, and on the other hand you have the red-light district and nightclubs and the coffee shops and the ever present smell of weed everywhere you go. Of course you can’t forget about the artists and the hippie communities that don’t neatly fit in to either of those categories.  There are historical relics all over the city, some sad, some scary, some beautiful as well as secret (or not so secret) gardens and parks that can make you forget you are in a city at all. This eclectic mix of identities is something that I am still trying to make sense of. While I continue pondering this dynamic, let me tell you about my trip.

Thursday night: I had finished all of my mid-terms, had a posttest treat, and was all packed. After dinner I was planning on showering and curling up in bed to watch “Nightmare before Christmas”. These plans were of course changed when I realized that 1. I couldn’t have a personal item on my flight and 2. I didn’t have any room to bring back any gifts/souvenirs. Decisions were made, outfits were consolidated, and things were left behind. I decided that I was not going to bring my winter coat, a controversial decision that I justified by packing my gloves (thanks for the pro-tip Jordyn!). I affirmed that I was an adult and I could do whatever I wanted, but I wasn’t allowed to complain about it (note: I didn’t). After packing and re-packing several times, I got into bed ready to wake up bright (but not because the sun isn’t up at 6am) and early. I of course couldn’t sleep because for me the night before traveling is like the night before Christmas. I love the overwhelming feeling of “something amazing is about to happen”. I would also like to note, when I find someone that gives me butterflies like the ones I get while packing for a trip I’ll know they’re the one.

In VondelPark

Friday Morning: I woke up, got dressed, ate some breakfast, and headed out to the bus stop to catch the airport bus. It was much easier than I thought and before I knew it I was on my way to Amsterdam. I of course got to the airport way earlier than necessary but that gave me time to relax, journal, and eat a bit of my bocadilla. The flight to Amsterdam was only 3 hours and, besides being a little cold it was not bad at all. Once I got to the Schiphol Airport and somehow managed to hop on the right train and got to Amsterdam Centraal by 3pm.  I will say, the Dutch countryside that I flew over was absolutely beautiful. Though I did leave Amsterdam for a bit (more on that later) I wish I had even more time to explore the country side. Also, from my side of the plane it looked like we were about to land on grass, I had a mini heart attack.

Friday Afternoon: I met Madeline (a friend from the JYS program) at the train station. I was a bit frustrated that I got there so late in the day because the sun sets around 5pm this time of year. Once we met up we walked around looking for somewhere to eat. I will admit, I’m terrible about eating consistently while I travel. I was already aware of this but it was reinforced quite often during this trip…I got very grumpy and very frustrated because of not eating properly. Anyway, we found a café were Madeline had lunch and I had a snack, coffee and a croissant with jam and butter. I also got my first introduction to Dutch, by learning that “check” is “rekening” though I wrote it phonetically as “lake-a-ning”. It’s interesting how Dutch reminds me so much of the Amish. I mean it makes sense but it’s just such a distinct language. It is similar to English but the vocalization makes it sound very different. After we ate we walked around a bit more trying to get oriented. The sun was setting so we started to make the trek out to the house we were staying at. The Anne Frank house was sort of on the way (later in the weekend we realized that it was directly on the way) so we decided to go check that out, though we knew we wouldn’t have time to go in it. Eventually we found it, but I was honestly very disappointed when I saw it. Maybe my opinion is controversial but I did not like how modernized the first level of the house was and that there was a totally modern addition on to the side of it. I realize that it is a world class monument but I feel that it could have been more powerful if it wasn’t so “flashy”. I am sure that the inside is moving, but I was so put off by the modern design that I opted not to go inside at all.

Holly Berries

Madeline and I opted to couch-surf this trip for two main reasons, the first is that the plane tickets were quite pricey and the second is that hostels/hotels in Amsterdam are also quite pricey. I wasn’t very nervous about couch surfing until we walked the two miles (!!) from the city center and were standing outside of a door where no one was home and we had no wi-fi (read: way to contact our host). After waiting for a bit we decided to go to the Domino’s down the street, assuming that they had wi-fi. They of course didn’t but luckily they were very nice and let us use their phone and actually ended up dialing for me. After the first number we had didn’t work, we finally got ahold of our host and he came and met us at the Domino’s. Apparently the streets in Amsterdam are not the same as the States because we had to go to the second part of the street to get to his apartment. Our host gave us directions and his keys and then headed to his doctor’s appointment. When we got to his apartment we met his roommate. I’ve learned since being in Spain that it’s very difficult to read people who are not speaking their first language. I couldn’t tell how I felt about our host’s roommate, if he was sketchy or if we couldn’t appreciate his sense of humor. Overall he was pretty nice and also just getting over the flu. He told a bit about what was around and reminded us to watch our drinks. He also told us about this hippie community type thing called Ruigoord that I actually really wanted to check out but never ended up getting a chance to. He also bought into the “American college girl” stereotype and was very confused when we said we weren’t going out that night #notwalkinganother2miles. We decided to go to the grocery store and buy some breakfast/lunch food and decide what to do for dinner. I bought bread and a jar of peanut butter. I have never been so happy to see reasonably priced peanut butter in my life. We got a pizza from Domino’s which was very yummy, but a “medium” in Amsterdam is actually a “small” (smalls don’t exist) so that was rough. Our host came back as did two other girls from Thailand who were also spending the night. Since none of us were up for going out our host suggested we watch a movie. It was a stoner flick because *surprise* our host was a big smoker #welcometoAmsterdam. The first night was really rough sleep-wise because the sleeper couch, though big enough for the four of us, was a bit cozy for my liking. Also one of the girls from Thailand breathed SO LOUD ALL NIGHT. I couldn’t sleep.

Rijksmuseum

Saturday Morning: Our game plan for Saturday was museums. We wanted to start off the day by hitting the library that (we thought) was on the way to the Rijiksmuseum. Unfortunately it was not the library we were looking for but instead a smaller library that had closed a few years ago. Fortunately it lead us to a really cool street market, the best part was when we stopped to talk to these guys who were manning the hummus display. We got to sample a bunch of different types of hummus (my favorites being grilled veggie, mango, and “spicy”) with pita. It was cool to talk to them too, the older one was telling us how he walked the Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage route from France (to Santiago de Compostela, Spain). After we spent a bit more time walking around the market we headed to the Rijksmuseum. When we got there we found out that they didn’t do discounted student tickets. I had wanted to see the museum but I wasn’t about to pay almost 20 euros for it. I like my art but not that much. Madeline decided to go in so we agreed to meet up several hours later. I went off to explore a bit on my own and really enjoyed it. I went into Coster’s Diamonds where I got to watch jewelers polishing and cutting diamonds, a small theater, a cheese store that had tons of samples, the bloemenmarkt (a long semi-outdoor market that lines a canal and sell a variety of things related to flowers/tulips), the Royal Delft Experience, the Waterloo flea market, and the National Ballet/Opera theater (I only saw it from the outside). It was really nice to wander around without having anywhere to be. I also picked up a map before I set out so I didn’t have to use the app on my phone. When Madeline and I met up later we went and bought out stroopwafels (which were amazing) and hung out for a bit by the Iamsterdam sign. We did another market, hopped on a tram, went to the HUGE library downtown, and then decided to get dinner.

Hummus 

One of the things about the trip that really disappointed me was the way I choose to (not) spend my money. Since I had myself on a tight budget I can’t help but feel that I didn’t get the full experience. For example, we ate dinner at a small Italian-ish restaurant and got the famous apple cake for dessert, it wasn’t good because it was frozen.  I also never ended up getting the chocolate and M&M waffle I wanted or Flemmish fries from a good place (both Dutch foods). I am happy with the gifts I bought but as far as treating myself, it’s something I have to work on, even if I am on a budget.

Saturday Night: Saturday night was Halloween. Madeline and I were tired because we left our host’s house at 9am and decided not to back until after we “went out” that night. Our host wanted to go out with us, which was fine but also kind of awkward. We met at a bar in the red-light district and he bought us each a drink (yay cocktails because I never spend money on nice drinks). We sat in the back of the bar, which was pretty cool, the walls were all graffiti. It’s really weird because you can smoke in all the bars but you can’t smoke cigarettes, the waitresses are super vigilant about making sure no one has cigarettes. It’s really different than in Spain and the US as well. My favorite part of the night was meeting our host’s friend from Norway.  They had worked together in Dublin before he moved here. She was a little bit older but super cool, she was kind of like an edgy, Nordic, feminist mother figure. She lives in a flat with a bunch of other people and they all have a big brunch on Sundays, it sounds amazing…that’s definitely something I’m going to do when I’m back at SBC in an apartment! It was also interesting listening to her talk about politics and how Amsterdam is getting stricter and that no one wants the monarchy and all that jazz. We also learned more about our host and how he ended up here (it’s an interesting story to say the least…ask me about it sometime). After we were done at the bar, we all split some fries and our host took us on a tour of the Red-light district.

I had wanted to see the Red-light district mostly because I wasn’t sure what my opinion on it was. After seeing it I’m still conflicted but I think I’m leaning more towards the “I don’t like it” side. I realize that it’s good that prostitution can be regulated and the sex workers can have rights and unions and have access to resources but I think my issue with it is more at the core, why are people paying strangers to have sex? I don’t know, I’m just not on board with that idea. I also hated how touristy the whole situation was, maybe it was worse because it was Halloween but it was kind of obnoxious with all the tourists running around. Also, despite being totally inconspicuous during the day, one of the streets that had women working on it also had a kindergarten! During the tour I also struggled with my host’s insensitive comments/jokes (about various things, not just the RLD), maybe I was being too “politically correct” or don’t have the same sense of humor (doubtful, as my sense of humor is ridiculously dry) but I did not appreciate them.  All and all, I’m glad I got to see the Red-light district with someone who could explain the different parts because I would have been lost by myself. And as they say, you learn from what makes you uncomfortable.

Our host wanted to go out to a club but I was cold, tired, and a bit frustrated with him. I also didn’t want to pay a cover to get in and wasn’t convinced that clubbing with him would be fun. We all hopped on a tram that brought us surprisingly close to his house and watched another (terrible) movie to finish off the night.

In VondelPark

Sunday Morning: Our goal had been to bike to Zaanse Schans to see windmills and a shoe maker, but that didn’t exactly happen. We rented the classic black pedal back bikes (which are not made for short people, I have the shin bruises to prove it), hopped on a ferry up to North Amsterdam and biked for nearly five hours. We didn’t have a map and we got some faulty directions so while I think we got close, we gave up as it got later in the day because we didn’t want to ride back in the dark. We saw a lot of cool things, my favorite being the cobblestone streets of little houses we rode by. I was surprised by the abundance of holly plants. It was also interesting because it was foggy all day and around 2:30-3pm the sun finally started to burn through and it was beautiful!

Sunday Night: After we returned our bikes we were starving (because it was 4pm) so we stopped at a falafel place to get fries. I would have gotten falafel as well but I’m too cheap and we also didn’t know what we wanted to do for dinner yet. We ended up heading back to the house because it was getting cold and dark, though we did stop to look at the Anne Frank house again. I still felt the same way. It was walking home Sunday night that I really had the opportunity to admire the beauty of the historical houses and canals. It felt like I was walking through a fairy tale, this part of the city seemed to be frozen in time. It was pretty magical. When we got back to our host’s house there were two new girls who were really cool. They all went out for a bit and Madeline and I ordered Thai food in (halleluiah tofu!). The night was spent watching a final stoner flick and drinking the yummy vodka milkshakes that our host made us. We all went to bed decently early because we had plans for early in the morning.

Trust Amsterdam

Monday: We left for the train station by 7:15 and left our suitcases in left luggage. Our first stop that morning was the Begijnhof which was a community of single Catholic women who were dedicated to the church but didn’t want to be nuns. During the time of Catholic persecution they were largely left alone. Today the apartments are rented to single women but there aren’t any beguines left. We went to a mass in the chapel which was really cool. I realized that going to church is a great way to learn a language because you can follow along in the books and also hear the pronunciation of the other people. Note: the pews were definitely made for women in the 15^th century…they were tiny. One of the things I really liked was that everyone got to go up to the altar and light a candle during the middle of the service.

My yummy broodje

After mass we headed up to VondelPark which was super cool! I’m a country girl at heart so I loved being surrounded by nature. The fall foliage was gorgeous. We took lots of pictures and I dragged Madeline through various little paths and mini forests. One of my favorite parts was an area by the children’s playground where there were all sorts of things like tee-pees and lean-tos for the kids to play in. It reminded me of “wald-schools” (forest kindergartens) and I could definitely see myself taking my kids to play there! I really would have liked to spend the whole day there with a picnic lunch but we had some other things to see. We went back to the Albert Cuyp market because Madeline wanted a sweatshirt and I’m really glad that we did! While I she was looking at things I noticed the coolest café ever. It’s called Trust and it’s got a bit of a hippie vibe to it but it’s a “pay what you feel” restaurant. I had to go in and check it out. It was super inspiring to read about them and the atmosphere was great. The menu was also amazing and I ended up getting a broodje (typical Dutch sandwich, usually open-faced) to go (Madeline wanted something with meat on it). It was called the “Renaissance Broodje” and had grilled aubergine with pesto, hummus, and baby greens. Fantastic. Our last stop before leaving was the Portuguese synagogue. We walked through a really cool neighborhood to get there. There was a “Kilo shop” for vintage clothes (pay by weight) and I totally would have stopped there if I had any more room in my suitcase. I didn’t go in the synagogue because I didn’t want to pay so I sat in the courtyard and journaled while Madeline looked around. Afterwards we headed to the train station.

We had noted that the gates to the trains were always open at the station (you didn’t need to use a card) and that at the airport there were no gates, so we decided not to buy train tickets. A somewhat risky decision but I had my list of back-up excuses. After feeling like a criminal every time one of the train personnel walked by, we got off at the airport with no problems.  I bought my “Holland” sticker for my suitcase, I was not about to buy an Amsterdam one with marijuana on it, and despite a slight delay we were back in Sevilla before we knew it. Note: there were a ton of Spanish speaking people in Amsterdam.

Final Thoughts: My experience in Amsterdam wasn’t the crazy party one that most people have or tend to think of but I’m really happy with how it turned out. I don’t think I would stay with the same person if I went back and there were a couple of things I missed out on that I’d like to do. I loved the historical parts of the city and the amazing variety of ethnic foods that they had, especially Middle Eastern.  Based on the people I talked to, the Dutch are both very nice and very beautiful.  I’m not sure if I could live there, but I think if I was a bit farther from the center I’d be okay. [Note: I’ve discovered that my travels are basically a big search for the answer to “where are you going to live when you grow up?”] One of the things I struggle with while traveling with other people is getting frustrated very easily because when you travel with someone you spend a lot of time with them. Luckily Madeline and I are pretty similar so that wasn’t really a problem. All and all it was a good trip and I think it would be cool to get back to the Netherlands in the spring when the country is in full bloom. I am very excited for my next couple of trips though because I’m meeting up with people I know from home. This is nice because 1. Familiar faces and 2. I’m very slow to trust people when it comes to going out and drinking so my “salida por la noche” experiences have been pretty minimal up to now.

Anyways, I hope you’ve enjoyed hearing about Amsterdam!

That’s all for now, my 3 day week is already almost 2/3 over and I have so much to do!

Talk to y’all soon!

Holly