Well the time has finally come, and I am in my final hours in Paris.  The last few days have been wonderful as well.  I spent most of my time zooming through the streets on a scooter (I wore a helmet) seeing many a sight including Notre Dame, Hotel des Invalides, and the Champs-Elysees. I went to a birthday party of a stranger and found out that my French is really horrible.  I saw the famous Musée D’Orsay and saw invaluable paintings that are much more incredible in real life. 

Now, it may seem like I lead a very cushy life, which I do, but traveling for two straight months can be stressful and downright exhausting at times.  Today I took the day for myself and spoiled myself a little, and had a luxurious day of using conditioner and a little toe nail polish.  Oh yes, and I went shopping, like a maniac.  Mango is a treacherous place for a bank account, let me tell you.  While on my shopping mission today though, I got a real feel for what Paris is like behind the glitz and glam of the icons of the city.  I walked near and far, discoverieng quartiers filled with peaceful parks and old men, as well as quaint backstreets filled with ordinary people toting groceries instead of Chanel.  I capped my day off with a lovely stroll by the Seine, which is truly beautiful and relaxing.  I am so satisfied having gotten to know Paris so well, and I look forward to my return!

I am just so clever sometimes.  I think that is what happens when I am sleepy, as I am in this moment.  I have had two exhilarating and exhausting days in Paris.  It really is a wonderfully beautiful and romantic city, and I am finally getting some mileage out of those years of French class!

This post is going to have to be short, so I will just put the pictures.  At any rate, I walked all over Paris today seeing such things as…

Sacre Coeur, the Jardin des Tuilleries, and the famous Venus de Milo

The Venus de Milo was of course inside the Louvre, which I got into for free!

The Louvre is pretty close to the Obelisque and the Tour Eiffel as well…

 Add some shopping into the mix, as well as grazing at outdoor cafes and getting lost, and it all adds up to a pretty hectic day!  Time for bed for me.

I admit it.  This photo isnt from Europe.  It is of Wollongong, in Australia, where I met my friend Roger.  Yesterday, we reunited after one and a half years in Paris! 

My first day in Paris is one that I will never forget.  The city really is magical, and Roger and his wonderful girlfriend Cindy certainly showed me a good time.  We kicked off our time together with a nostalgic drink at Cafe Oz, complete with Tooheys New and a qf for those in the know.  It was wonderful to catch up and reminisce, as well as practiquer mon français!  We had a lovely evening of looking at pictures and eating delicious French dinner, and then the biggest treat of all.  We headed down to the Eiffel Tower at about 1130 with some wine, brownies, and a guitar for a wonderful night of gazing and relaxing, and I now know why Paris is the City of Love.  It is so magical when the tower lights up and sparkles; the whole atmosphere is so enticing with French words floating about, warm summer air, and a twinkling city. 

Also, a correction from a past post, Monaco is a principality and not a country, no wonder I didnt need my passport!

This photo was taken secretively at the airport, but I think it shows how beautiful it is in Santorini.

The last four days of my life has been nothing short of spectacular!  I spent two more days in Greece since last writing, and they were funfilled indeed.  My last day in Santorini involved approximately six hours of beach time complete with sunscreen and smoothies, and the glorious event of finding running buddies to come up the local mountain with me.  It was definitely tougher than expected, but it was worth the view and so nice when we got to the bottom for a nice stretch at the beach. 

I also spent quite the hectic day in Athens running around seeing as much as I could, including the Acropolis, the Temple of Zeus, and the city itself which happens to be massive, with a very nice metro.  I also spent the night with a bungee jumping, photo taking cat lover named Eva who was very very nice, and we enjoyed some shopping and chatting and strawberries. 

I am in Greece! It is like a dream come true.  Words can’t start to describe the wonderfulness here, but I will try. 

So, after a long day of travel, I arrived in Santorini, a small island in the Aegean Sea off the coast of mainland Greece.  As I was checking into my hostel, I noticed a familiar face at the computers behind the reception desk.  Tamar.  A girl that I hadn’t seen since the last day of AP French Lit a good four years ago, just checking her email.  I was wondering when it was going to happen, but yes, the world is still small.

We spent the next couple days catching up over delicious Greek salads, feta, apple pie and other local delicacies, as well as touring around the island.  Santorini takes the cake when it comes to beauty, it is a green island covered in mountains, with edges of sheer cliffs, white towns built overlooking the deep blue sea.  I am living in the movie Troy.  Anyway, we spent our morning climbing a volcano (very cool, and I am pretty psyched to have been on two in the last five months, what a life!).  After that, we took a little boat over to the “hot” springs, which were very appealing to look at with their green water and red algae, however, I have never been in water so cold in my whole life without a wetsuit.  Shocking.  Other treats for the day included lunch on an island with only 250 inhabitants, and seeing a beautiful sunset in Oia. 

Yesterday the weather was a little rainy for the morning which allowed for relaxing, but by the afternoon I was able to take a long walk down the black volcanic sand beach near my hostel.  It provided a great opportunity to get to know some new friends, and I even convinced one to go running with me! That was a real treat.  We headed out into the countryside running through fields of daisies, when we came upon a large mountainous hill.  I love running up hills, don’t get me wrong, but this hill had no path.  We spent the next hour climbing up through jagged rocks and thorny bushes, but the view at the end was unbelievable.  I could see our small village, the next one, the sea, and even other islands in the distance.  I love running in Greece.  I also discovered the nightlife here, which is so fun when the bars are on the beach.  If it weren’t for wanting to accomplish good things in my life, I could easily stay here all summer, every summer working as a bar girl on the beach.  So tempting. 

Today the sun came out, and I spent my day on the beach napping, snacking, running, and relaxing.  My inner beach bum was so satisfied.  I still love life.  I have one more day here and I plan to go see a town frozen in time by lava, as well as run up a hill with a path before I hit up Athens and Paris.  I am looking forward to the rest of my trip, but also to seeing the most important people in my life and being able to drink delicious tap water with abandon again.  Signing off.

Over the last couple months, I have had very few time obligations, but the majority of the important ones include catching trains, planes, buses, and ferries.  After traveling with early birds as well as late stragglers, I have come to the conclusion that trying to just be simply right on time is really the best method of travel operation.  If too early, valuable friend and sightseeing time goes to waste while you have to wait at a probably dirty and uncomfortable station of sorts.  The implications of being late could result in being stuck outside all night in a sketchy Barcelona bus station (the bus was late, but I was worried).   Lately, this point was illustrated on my trip from Florence to Santorini (a lovely Greek island).  I planned on leaving Florence in the afternoon, but soon was enticed to stay for dinner and catch the later train to Bologna where my flight left from.  I did have to scramble around the train station frantically to locate the correct platform, but because of my sacrifice of a wee bit of sanity, I enjoyed a wonderful dinner of gnocchi with friends.  These escapades continued through the night, like trying to find the hostel (6k out of town of course) before reception closed, and catching the morning bus as well.  Walking through the orange fuzzy early morning circa 5am, the words of my parents echoed in my head: “What is your backup plan?” I laughed to myself because there was no other option to finding the bus station lest I miss my expensive 730am flight and the connecting one in Athens.  This time crunch, however,is necessary for being an efficient and successful traveller.  Without the additional pressure, it is easy to ride aimlessly on buses for four hours  in Lisbon or the like, where if there is no contingency time, you can become more effective and efficient in travel, thus optimizing your experience.  I highly recommend being on time to all, not early.  Sorry Mom.

Hello! Sorry for my complete lack of updates, I really have just been having way too much fun and running around too much to spend time blogging indoors lately.  A lot has happened though, including setting a personal travel record of seeing three beautiful countries in 24 hours (France, Monaco, Italia).  Whew! So, I am low on time now even so the pictures will have to speak for themselves, but I will try to describe a little….

So, I spent a whirlwind two days in Nice after Marseilles, where I mostly just enjoyed the beach and delicious food (again). It is beautiful there, and the beach is made of pebbles. The water is still Chilly. I also took a quick trip to Monaco, the poshest of all countries, which is like Beverly Hills, but nicer, with more yachts, and everywhere.

After that, I took a night train over to Florence to visit my dear friend Katie, who is currently studying abroad. 

We have spent our time walking around and seeing the sights, and doing wonderful Italian things including shopping! and gelato! both in moderation.  I have also discovered that I am interested in history, particularly when so close to it:  when else can you say that you were standing over Michelangelos body?! Also, the David is AMAZING in real life.
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In conclusion, France is wonderful, Italy is wonderful, Monaco is wonderful, life is wonderful, and I am thouroughly enjoying life, and somewhat apprehensive about returning to reality.  On the plus side, I am headed to the Greek island of Santorini tomorrow!

My sixth grade suspicions were indeed correct.  I love France: the culture, the language, the country, the food.  Did I mention the food?

After some seriously delayed buses and 15 hours, I arrived in Aix-en-Provence, a cute little town that is currently where my long time (since age 2!) cohort Lauren is spending her semester.  Due to some lack of communication, I set about the city alone, where I discovered the beautiful Cours Mirabeaux, and took an extended bus tour (getting lost is so helpful sometimes!) into the green hills filled with flowering spring trees.  I did end up reuniting with Lauren though, as well as meeting two fun fun girls at my hostel.  Katie, on the left, is a Canadian soon to be Londoner, who has excellent organic style, and Lacey is an amazing gal from Chicago whose three straight years of travel is enough to inspire anyone to get out and see the world.

Before anything else though, I must profess my love for French food.  It is so good.  Close your eyes and imagine fresh fruit markets on nearly every corner, patisseries selling the flakiest and sweetest bakery temptations, freshly made cheese leering from the corners of shops everywhere, and Provencal wine abounding at a mere 3 Euros for a wonderful bottle that could easily cost 20 USD.  Mmmmmmmmm.

Anyway, after leaving quaint Aix, Katie, Lacey and I hopped a bus to Marseille, where we had even more fun together.  We discovered an amazing hostel in the middle of nowhere, walked to the beach, abused McDonalds bathrooms like the sneaky devils we are, cooked wonderful food, walked all throughout the city, trekked up to the giant church on the hill, and talked all about love and life.  It is so nice to have girlfriends around.  I am really looking forward to that when I get home as well, and today as a matter of fact, as soon as I track down my friend here in Firenze!

Easter is a very different experience in Spain than it is in the US to say the least. Instead of a few dyed eggs and a bunny, it is a week long celebration filled with fun in the sun, vacations, and endless sangria with friends. Needless to say, I think that the latter is a little more exciting.

I arrived in Barcelona a few days ago to visit my friend and fellow business planner, Mr. Nathan Clark (we enjoed solar glory in a beach sense instead of market analysis sense, also much more enjoyable). He met me in Placa Catalunya, a lively square at the head of La Rambla, a bustling street filled with shops, bars, markets, and all sorts of characters. Due to the holiday that we hadn’t anticipated, it was a huge human traffic jam. Literally no moveent was to be had for minutes at a time. We battled the crowds though, and we saw a lot, although probably only a slice of the glory that Barcelona has to offer.

We spent quite a bit of time exploring the different tastes and sights of the city, and found absolutely nothing wrong with it; in fact, Barcelona is spectacular. We enjoyed the architectural workings of the architect Gaudi, including his famous Parc Guell which is filled with twisting turrets and palm trees, and looks like the ultimate dream haven for one Dr. Seuss. We saw the many piazzas filled with sculptures, perfected the science of locating unsung and intricate urban parks, and of course soaked up some sun on the beach.

Gastronaumically speaking, we also had quite the field day. From amazing gnocci to Juicy Jones ( a delicious veggie restaurant, a refreshing change!) and chocolate croissants, our tummies were always smiling. I discovered that my favorite drink could very well be a glass of smooth Spanish sangria, bursting with fresh fruit and bubbling with a trace of champagne… so nice. We also enjoyed a feast in Cambrils because of Easter, which was amazing too.

We took an hour and a half train down the coast to the lovely beach town of Cambrils, where we soaked up some sun before meeting Nate’s friends Javier and Asun from Spain and Mexico respectively. They are amazingly kind people, and quite the pleasure to hang out with. We spent our day enjoying zumo de pina in the marina before a siesta and a lovely dinner made by Javi’s extremely generous parents. It was a wonderful experience connecting with the Spanish culture, and I got to work on my Spanish which remains underwhelmingly marginal. That night, the night of Easter sunday, we went out in a town up the coast called Salou, and I finally experienced the club life in Europe. Needless to say, it was filled with heart thumping music and we stayed out until 5am, but I did enjoy it rather thouroughly. We enjoyed the next day by sleeping in, walking the town, having afternoon wine and a siesta, enjoying a major easter feast, enjoying beautiful views of the coast, and loving life. I love life!

On Mallorca and being an SFT: 

 I have been here on the island for some 5 days now, 3 spent in Palma de Mallorca, one in Soller, and one in Deia.  I am concluding my 20 day stint of travelling alone, as an SFT (single female traveller as Rachel coined it), through Switzerland, Portugal, and now Mallorca, and I have had many lovely times, as well as some lonely ones. 

Time here on the island of Mallorca has had strange qualities, sometimes rushing past in great bursts, other times very slowly. Of the times that have rushed by, they have all been amazing.  In beautiful, rushing, cosmopolitan Palma, the yachts are afloat and I enjoyed myself by napping in a park in the sunshine on cushy grass, making friends with all of the Australians and Kiwis that habitate outside of Oceania, running through parks of wildflowers up to ancient castles, and stealthily searching for WC´s not generally available to the public (a new favorite passtime).  In Deia I enjoyed exploring lost beaches covered in rocks (and tourists),  and scrambling through the village made of stones hundreds of years ago, unchanged for the most part.  Soller was filled with rain, but I still enjoyed some soggy trekking through fields and fields of flowering lemon and orange trees.  

Other times have been lonely, in single rooms in mostly empty hostels, with no one to speak English with,  accompanied with my book of the moment (Lolita, would recommend to a friend with a temperament for twistedness and a torrid trysts, like Matt, not AL) .  I have had the full range of experiences that a solo traveller would have.  I have enjoyed days upon days of leisure on my schedule, waking, walking, and doing what and when I please.  I have made friends that I wouldn´t have otherwise, and noticed minute details that would have remained undiscovered had I been more absorbed in my travel mates.  I have also had the loneliness bug a bit, craving someone who I could speak to on a deeper level than is normal after an hour or so of conversation with a new single serving friend.  Overall though, times are good when travelling alone, and my conclusion is that everyone should at least try it.  It will put you outside your comfort zone, make you more social, more creative with amusement activities, and will allow you plenty of time to relax and reflect.  Moreover, you can cultivate your relationship with your ipod and journal, your new best friends. 

Despite the glories of solo time, however, there is something significant to be said about having company.  Good times and beautiful places are even more wonderful when shared with someone wonderful, and with that thought in mind, I am excited to go see my friends in the near future: Nate in Barcelona (tomorrow!), Lauren in Aix en Provence, and Katie in Firenze.  I am sure the adventures will be in full swing within 24 hours, and hopefully I can stop the dreaded curse of the foul weather that I bring with me to each new place :). 

 A quick note: when I learn how to work my blog, I intend to make a links page. Until then, I encourage you to look at the blogs of some other solo travelers that I have met along the way.

1. Infamously wonderful Rachel: http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Rachel-Conquers-Europe/

2. Running Buddy Matthew: http://kiwihobbit.blogspot.com/

3. Sledding Amigo Evan: http://evaninprague.blogspot.com/