Europe Day SIX

We had a crazy day today.  We got up on time for once.  At breakfast the cheese tasted and smelled like a chemical I used in biotech.  We also tried this cracker thing that tasted like cardboard and this cereal stuff. We then drove about an hour to Lucerne.  We took a walking tour and saw the old, beautiful buildings.  In Switzerland they paint windows on their buildings to make them symmetrical.  Half of the Windows are fake.  We saw the Famous Swiss Bridge.  It is a really cool bridge.  The bridge is made of wood with many baskets of flowers on the edge.  As you walk through the bridge, there is paintings on the ceiling depicting everyday activities from the time period the bridge was originally built.  It was burned down though, and later restored costing 2 million francs. Some of the original paintings also were restored, but many were lost.  We also went to this old church and from the outside, you would never guess the interior.  It was so gorgeous.  There was pastel yellow and pink decorations with a lot of gold. In the church the organ is at the back of the building. Someone is always in there playing it and filling the building with spiritual music.  After that we finally got to walk across the bridge.  We had free time for about 40 minutes and in that time we had to eat lunch.  Ashy and I went to pick up the knives we ordered for our families.  We then looked around because I really want to buy a swatch in Switzerland. We still had to find lunch because if we didn’t the food at the top of Mount Pilatus was around 30 Francs for one meal.  We found a place that was like a little sandwich shop.  I got a chicken avocado sandwich.  We found a little staircase to sit and eat in.  We were eating, and just talking and enjoying the view and a little bird came up.  Now is my time to freak out.  I don’t do birds.  Ash kept feeding it and it kept coming back. But as we left, I left some because he got scared away.  It was now time to meet the group.  Of course, we got way lost and turned around.  Turns out we were at the cities center not the edge.  We were 15 minutes late.  Oh great! We are dead meat.  We asked a construction guy if he knew English and he did, He gave us directions and then we started running.  He ran after us and said that there is another shop just like the one we were looking for the other way, so we ran that way.  We finally found it and got on the train.  We got a nice lecture, and lets just say no one was happy with us.  Then we headed back to Mount Pilatus and rode a ski lift type thing to the top.  While we were in the lift, it started raining and it was starting to get really chilly.  After we got to the top of the ski lift, we hopped onto the Gondola and went to the very top of the Swiss Alps. The Gondola fit most of our group.  As we were going up that it started to snow.  YAYYY! NOT! I am sick of the snow.  We just left the snow, us Utah kids.  We got to the top and went into the hotel up there.  We were given 2 hours to explore outside the Alps and hike on some of the trails up there.  Well considering it was snowing me and Ash looked at the Souvenirs and guess what I found….YES….a Swatch that I loved!  It is really cool and unique.  Then we decided to go outside and go in this little cave.  Turns out it was a giant pathway.  We followed, it had cuts in the rock for windows so you could see all the Alps.  We took tons of cute pictures but we also froze in the process.  It was seriously freezing.  We got super high and the view was so pretty.  You could see down and look at the fields and rocks.  You couldn’t see the bottom though because it was really foggy.  We got to the very tippy top and took a picture to prove we were there.  Then we started heading down so we weren’t late.  It was amazing to see the view.  When we made it all around and down the mountain we bought a postcard and switched money to change so we could have all the Swiss Franc coins.  Next on the list, we rode down the worlds steepest cogtrain.  It was cool to say that I have been on it and to see the mountain going down like you were walking. The view is outstanding! The weird thing about the Alps is, as you go down, its like you pass through all 4 seasons.  It is really weird.  We got to the bottom and found this cute little pier to wait for the boat to come and get us to take us back to Lucerne.  It was so peaceful to just walk on the boardwalk, sit at the end and just take in the country.  This whole place looks like a fairytale storybook.  It is also indescribable as most things in Europe are.  While we were waiting Ash fed a swan some baggette right out of her hand.  Talk about disgusting.  We walked a little more and the boat finally came.  We got on and sat against a wall so we could have a back rest. We swore that the wall had heaters in it, because it was so warm.  We asked Domitrious what language he thinks in and he said English.  Which is weird because that is the last language he learned.  We also asked about travel and he told us the places he’d gone.  We also got up and saw the steam engine.  You could see all the gears working as we were going.  They weren’t covered or anything.  Ash and I went to the very front where it was way windy and hard to walk.  Domitrious wanted to get up and walk so we went back to save the seats.  Then we just sailed peacefully talking and looking at the town.  Ash fell asleep and I tapped her to wake up and she said, “Why did you hit me?” I said to wake you up. Then she fell asleep again! I woke her up and she said, “I was thinking about braiding my hair, but then I pulled it” and she fell asleep again.  So I woke her up for the third time and I was just busting up laughing she was way confused and it all happened in a matter of 2 minutes.  I couldn’t even tell her the story I was laughing so hard.  We got back to Lucerne and had free time.  We went back to the knife shop to fix Ash’s brothers name cause it was spelled wrong, bought a few more souvenirs, and Swiss chocolate! Yum! I love Mocha Chocolate so much.  We just pretty much killed time and met back with the group, got on the bus and went back to the hotel for dinner.  I totally passed out! Then…for dinner we started with carrot soup.  I was hesitant to try it, but it was really good.  Then we had some rice which was good, the mystery meat again ): and a stuffed tomato.  For dessert it was this ice cream stuff and this is what people in my group said it tasted like: pepper, soap, orange, lemon, bitter, ice cream, cool whip, nasty.  Let’s just say it was super weird obviously and I hated it.  After we went to our rooms, repacked, and got ready to head to Germany in the morning.

 

 

 

 

Europe Day FIVE

Today wasn’t a very interesting day.  It was pretty lame actually.  We got on a bus and drove to Switzerland.  We also made multiple stops, but the lunch stop was the best.  We stopped in a city called Beaune.  I am moving there.  It is the most perfect city on earth. It feels like nothing bad could ever happen. You know in movies, those old towns where everyone knows everyone and the same things happen at the same time everyday? That is Beaune. We ate a Creoul Sandwich which is just a chicken with a weird orange sauce.  It was huge and yummy and cheap. Can’t get better than that.  We just sat in the middle of the city and ate our lunch on a cute little bench.  Then we walked around and checked it out for a bit.  It is an old medieval city, so the streets are tiny and cobblestone.  The buildings have bars on them. Ash and I didn’t get the chance to try the Gelato in Paris so we tried it here.  Ashy got a really yummy chocolate one, and I got a banana chocolate. Both super delicious.  Then after an hour…back to the bus.  We finally got to our hotel at 8 o’clock at night in a city called Eidelstein in Switzerland.  Our hotel is called Hotel St. George.  Ha! Close to home.  We go in straight to dinner.  We started with a bread which was sourish.  Then we had some soup that tasted like cheese and Broccoli.  It definitely wasn’t though.  Then there was spaghetti with a meat.  We asked the server what kind of meat it was and he didn’t know, so he went to ask the chef. He didn’t know either and he made it…I am not about to eat it. Yuck.  For dessert they gave us a custard type thing with a caramel sauce on top.  So far, I am not a huge fan of Swiss food.  Then we go see our room.  It was a suite.  We get in and there is 5 beds but 6 girls.  The other suite had 6 beds and 5 girls.  We just switched.  We put our stuff down and explored our room.  There is a door leading outside, but no terrace or anything.  I guess it is an easy suicide jump or something?  In our shower, and on the single wall that isn’t glass, there is a full body length window. Okay? Weird.  We just shoved pillows in it so we could shower.  We went on a walk at like 11 o’clock at night.  It was so silent and beautiful.  I also learned that Switzerland is safer that West Point.  While walking, we saw a giant hippo.  Weird. Switzerland is definitely a weird place.  It is absolutely gorgeous though. Extremely beautiful. It is a completely different experience from the crazy Paris life.

Europe Day FOUR

Today we started off this morning at Versailles.  It was the palace of King Louis the 14- King Louis the 16.  We went and took a guided tour and wore these headsets that we felt like we were in the CIA.  It was so we could hear in the palace.  I didn’t really like the guide because we spent a lot of time in the rooms and we got to the Hall of Mirrors and he rushed right through it.  Like who does that? Ash and I stayed back for awhile and we looked at the hall and took pictures.  We were waiting the whole tour for this and we weren’t just going to be rushed through it.  We couldn’t hear our guide and couldn’t hear where he was.  We figured we would just walk through until we found them.  We caught up towards the end and then they took us outside and gave us about an hour and a half to explore the Versailles Gardens.  Some girls in our group just sat at the top of the stairs.  Me and Ash said, “Deuces suckas.” So we ditched them, and went exploring.  The gardens are the most beautiful things on the planet earth! Like I say that about a lot of things, but this is definitely my real favorite place on earth.  Its away from all the sound and hectic city.  You can think and feel your stress, problems, and fears drop out of care and you can seriously relax there.  I think there is a spell there where its always the good life and nothing can ruin it.  I loved it there! If I could have stayed there forever I wouldn’t have complained.  At certain points in the garden there were fountains, statues, and different theater and colloseums.  They were really pretty.  It is literally indescribable.  The best writer in the world could not put the beauty and perfection of this place into words.  Most beautiful place on planet earth. It was time to head back and I almost felt my heart break.  I did not want to leave.  We met up with our group in the front of the palace and walked down the street to lunch.  It was like a little café where there is tons of options and you pick one. They cook in and then call your number.  I got real pizza. Not American pizza, which is nasty compared to the pizza in Europe.  It had a slice of ham on it and also just some cheese and parsley.  It was really good.  While sitting at lunch Ashy started teaching me French.  I learned the days of the week which are Lundi, Mardi, Mercerde, Judi, Vondradee, Sumdi, and Damach. (Don’t judge me on the spelling.)  Ash was quizzing me and she said, “What’s Friday?” I said, “Vanity!” hahahahahah!!! We died laughing.  Then I learned that jour is day, and nuit is night. So Bonjour means good day, and bonnuit means goodnight! Then I learned the numbers 1-10.  un, du, twa, cat, sank, sies, set, wheat, noof, dis. (again….i’m an American kid sounding out French words.) Ash told me thee single most funniest joke I have ever heard.  Here it is:  There was 2 cats. The first cats name was one, two, three. The other cats name was un, du, twa. They were both on one side of the River.  They had a race, who got to the other side first? **************** One, Two, Three did because un, du, twa cat sank!

BAHAHAHAHAHA End of story, but you know that is the best joke ever.

We left lunch and went to the Arc De Triomphe.  We had to go underground to get there though because it is so crazy at the roundabout.  We met Henson there and decided to go to the top and the bonus? It was FREEEEE!! WHOOOO whOOOO! We hiked 294 stairs up and 294 stairs down.  In Europe it always seems like your on stairs.  The Arc De Triomphe is beautiful on top.  You can see all around Paris! It is so cool! The Eiffel Tower is pretty close.  It is really breathtaking to see the city of Paris from the top of the Arc De Triomphe. We walked around up there for awhile and then we went down and walked the Champs Elysees.  It was wonderful shopping.  We visited the I <3 Paris store and took some pictures.  Then we went and visited the Swarovski Crystal Staircase.  So pretty and probably 100 quadrillion million dollars. (Later learned it was 200 Million)  It is entirely made of Swarovski Crystals.  I felt like a movie star walking on it.  Ash and I were set free to go off by ourselves.  We successfully navigated for the first time on the Metro.  We are pretty much professionals.  We took the Metro from the Arc de Triomphe to the Lock Bridge.  Yeah buddy! The Lock Bridge is also known as the Lovers Bridge.  You lock your love to it and throw the keys in the ocean. It was awesome writing on it and then throwing the keys into the Seine.  So naturally my love is locked.  We also did a friend lock and wrote Ash, Kena, Bay, and Brady. Friend Forever 2013 on it.  The lock bridge is literally cool.  There isn’t one spot on the bridge that is open.  I would say there is 500,000 locks on one side.  It’s amazing and I am so glad I got the opportunity to do it.  A part of me will always be in Paris.  After that we ran to the Metro had to buy a metro ticket for 1,70 Euro on a debit card. So dumb.  We were so worried we were going to be late for dinner.  There was a super sketchy dude who followed us and moved every time we did.  He didn’t get off when we did, so its all good.  We met our grouop for dinner and ate at a place called Flems.  They served us Flemmekuche which is my absolute newest favorite, yummiest food ever.  It is a really thin crust with a weird cheese, onions, and Ham slices on it.  So yummy and really difficult to describe but it is incredible.  We also had a white chocolate and apple cinnamon flemmakuche.  I liked the apple cinnamon one best out of the dessert ones.  Dinner was over and we headed to the Eiffel Tower! We had been waiting our lives for this still…since last night.  We got on the Metro and walked to the beloved tower.  We get there and no one was there, so we are like Sweet! This will go buy really quickly. NOPE. The fetchin workers went on strike. Yup. The one time and only time I get to live my dream and go to the top.  It just wasn’t going to happen.  I was really disappointed but I guess that means I just need to go back and visit again sometime.  Cause it was such depressing news and my dreams were shattered in one moment.  After that we had loads of free time.  Henson let me and Ash go off alone because we proved to her we could use the metro.  First item on the list, since we couldn’t go to the top, I HAD to kiss someone.  We walked through the big park under the Eiffel Tower and I kept saying No, not him, no. Not him either.  Finally a group of boys was spotted.  One was way cute but I wasn’t about to go up and ask.  If I were to get denied it would be in front of so many boys and I just couldn’t let that happen. We were leaving and I was really disappointed I couldn’t get a kiss either cause Ash said, “We have stuff to do, hurry, its just not going to happen.”  So we started leaving and we were standing by the corner of the park.  Then the same boys walked out right by us.  I knew it was now or never, so I worked up the courage and said, “Hey will one of you kiss me under the Eiffel Tower so I can cross it off my bucket list?”  They did what boys do and pushed each other around and kept saying, “Eff it. Eff it.” Finally one who was probably 25 said, “What do you want?” and I said, “A kiss under the Eiffel Tower.” He said, “On the mouth?” and I said yeah then he just went for it, and I said, “wait I have to get a picture.” One of the best, worst, most awkward, and funniest moments in my life all at once. I am so glad it is over cause it was almost a horrible good. Ha! But bucket list item…CHECK.  Then me and Ash were headed to the Moulin Rouge.  On the way we got stopped by a barterer.  These guys are literally everywhere.  We needed a big Eiffel tower anyway.  So we got good this time.  We got 3 big Eiffel towers and 5 little ones for 10 Euros.  We felt pretty good.  Once again, back on the Metro.  We got to the Moulin Rouge in the Red Light District and took pictures really quick because Ms. Henson said not to stay.  We stood on this big platform that blew your hair and clothes everywhere. Makes sense to have in the Red Light District right? We needed an ATM and got directions to this fetchin SKETCHY AS ALL HECK one.  We got out some Euros and went to buy more tickets to the Metro so we could get out of this place.  We bought some and used one to get on Line 2 and Bam its broken. GREEAAAT! We stood there talking to a lady that called herself Crazy Daisy.  We cleared up for her that Mormons don’t have 9 wives, they don’t have to serve a mission and they didn’t come on the Mayflower.  We talked a good 20 minutes to this lady about religion and college.  Then we decided to get off and walk to the montmarne and the Sacre Coeur.  While walking we saw a market.  We went in and bought some candy.  I bought a caramel chocolate bar and “Smarties.” They taste kind of like m&ms in America.  We got to the check out and Ash asks if the lady knew English.  She grumpily says, “yes I know English!” We ask her directions and then ask for some coins so we can finish our collection.  Their 1 cent pieces are TEENY!  We left and headed to Montmarne.  We finally get there and its closed. Dang. The night time view is beautiful though.  We also hiked 650 stairs to get to the Sacre Coeur which is a church still running today.  While there we were walking down the stairs to get a better view and some guy throws beer bottles at us. Jerk. We decided we better get back so we started walking and my bag rips. Awesome. We make it back to the Port De Versaille with 3ish minutes left until the 11:55 curfew.  Then we get lost, have to go back in, look around, and we can’t find it.  So we go and ask the worker for help and they print us a map and point us in the right direction.  We finally made it back to the hotel about 12:10, only 15 minutes late. Oh well! Life Happens even in the perfect city.  Today was my favorite day in Paris. Perfect way to end my dream come true.