Looking Back

Hey everyone.

A year ago today, I started frantically googling "what to bring abroad" - which was followed by me sifting through every possession I owned and playing the suitcase jigsaw game with each selected item. Since then it's been an interesting year, so I thought I'd make a small list to remember, and to look forward ((I'm all about the lists).

looking back, in 2013 I:

• lived in a foreign country for five months
• traveled to four countries, sometimes alone. 
• read 38 books
• finished my penultimate semester of college (help me)
• saw three great concerts
• fell into the smartphone trap
• re-learned how to ice skate and knit
• unknowingly became a cat person
• probably many more things
• hopefully

It seems like that'll be a hard year to beat, though I've got a few exciting things already planned for 2014. On January 22 I leave for a two-week trip to Eastern Europe with the Gustavus Wind Orchestra, beginning in Prague. This means that I again will be lucky enough to spend my birthday in a magical European land. After Prague, we'll spend a few days in Krakow, and then move on to Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg, and Munich. I definitely can't wait to go back and see these places, especially in winter when we'll (hopefully) have snow-covered city landscapes.

In other news it's -13 F so I haven't set foot outside all day. People keep telling me how cold it'll be in Poland and the Czech Republic, but a quick search reveals the average temperature of Prague in January is 30 F.

Balmy.

Road Tripping

Every great road trip is fueled by three things: sugar, coffee, and good music (and good friends, but that's a given).

I love these things. They happen every day. Photo credit: Anna Nelson
(I was driving and commanded her to take a picture w/my camera.)

For this little summer adventure, Anna and I decided to head west to Omaha and Sioux Falls to visit our friends Zoë and Rebecca. We got going around eight on Friday, heading southwest with a beautifully distracting sunset in our eyes and Omaha on our GPS. Omaha is five-ish hours away from Saint Pete so our e.t.a. was one am, food stops and road construction notwithstanding.

I'd just come back from a relaxing weekend up north with Anna and some other friends currently in MN, but this trip was a great way to see some more "far away" college faces in the summertime (granted, Nebraska and South Dakota aren't too far away, but this definition varies inversely with gas prices. As gas prices increase, the amount of miles required to be "far away" decreases rapidly.).

Anyway, not many people were heading to Omaha on Friday night from the cities (SURPRISE!), so for most of the drive it seemed as if we were venturing into a black hole, having come from a black hole. One Oreo blizzard, root beer, bag of ritz chips, zebra cake, and peanut-butter chocolate chip cookie later, we arrived in Omaha. The next day we hit the town, wandering through some eclectic shops in the city and an area Zoë dubbed "hipster row". This block included an independent record label founded by Conor Oberst (of the indie rock band Bright Eyes), an independent coffee shop, Urban Outfitters, and a concert venue for smaller acts. Need I say more?

Act casual.

Downtown was filled with people for some sort of children's street party/festival, and just many humans in general - for good reason too; the weather was beautiful. Sunny and low 70's, a pretty mild day considering Nebraska's typical heat. We ended the day with some delicious late night sushi. The place was packed so we opted for the chilly outdoor seating. Being a bit cold even in my million-percent cotton sweatshirt, I didn't envy the bachelorette party we saw roaming the streets in short skirts and sleeveless tops. The next day we made a short trip down to Lincoln to visit Anna's friend Katie. She took us on a mini tour of the University of Nebraska - Lincoln, where we stopped at the Dairy Store to enjoy some freshly made ice cream.

The girl in question. Photo credit: Zoë May

We woke on a drizzly Monday determined to hit the famous Omaha Zoo. And so we did. Small children roamed everywhere, my favorite being a young girl who made it her mission to hug every goat in the Petting Zoo. She succeeded in adorable fashion. We spent most of the day at the zoo, seeing pretty much every single animal. My favorite parts were, predictably, the monkeys and gorillas. Later that evening we went to a bridge spanning two states, where you can have one foot in Nebraska and one foot in Iowa, befriended a segway security guard on said bridge, and ate some delicious 50¢ doughnuts.

On Tuesday, Anna and I hit the road bound for Sioux Falls. Rebecca was free for the afternoon and we'd already decided to hit up the local juice shop upon another friend's recommendation. Jamba Juice has nothing on this place. Seriously, look at the extensive MENU. In the face of so many options, I turned to Rebecca's expertise and ordered a Sticky Wicket (bananas, raspberries, strawberries, lime sherbet, and raspberry juice).

JUICE. Essentially a full meal.

The Juice Stop seems like mainly a Midwest thing, with stores in Nebraska, Kansas, and South Dakota. The next logical option is clearly Minnesota (hint hint). We wandered downtown for awhile with our massive smoothies until it was time for Rebecca to work. Anna and I then paid Anna's grandma a surprise visit, since she lives in Sioux Falls. She was delighted. It's amazing how small things, such as dropping by for a 20-minute conversation, can have such large effects on someone's day. The little things matter.

In other news, time has yet again slipped away to reveal a new month. I have some fairly average plans for August, but stay tuned for a new blog layout and/or website, maybe. Apparently my brother has been awesomely working on something for it.
 

Enjoy the last month of summer. 

I'm looking forward to the cool air of Autumn.

Potpourri

Yesterday night I was watching North and South, the BBC's awesome adaption of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel, and heard a small nagging voice in the back of my head. I know this place, I thought, as the female protagonist meandered her way through a field overlooking the fictitious industrial city of "Milton". I know those steps, I thought, as the male protagonist sprinted down a narrow dark alleyway filled with stairs.

Upon looking up filming locations, I was right. The grassy area was Calton Hill, which offers a spectacular view of Edinburgh on non-misty days. The production crew used CGI to dot the landscape with 19th century smokestacks to keep the city in character. The steps were Warriston's Close, which were just as creepy at night in real life as they were in the film (almost as creepy as the nearby "Fleshmarket Close"). I've been back from Edinburgh for only a month and a half, but the experience already seems half a world away (see, it's funny because Edinburgh IS half a- yeah.)

I came back on May 26th, and on May 27th went down to Gustavus to visit friends who were still suffering through taking finals. The moment I stepped onto campus, I caught sight of a student rushing lately across the sidewalk (someone whom I'd often seen running around), and instantly I knew nothing had changed. That realization can be either reassuring or frightening; I still haven't figured out which.

After a week at home, I moved down to Gustavus to start working full time for Tech Services. Coming back to a familiar job with friendly faces was a nice thing to have. There are so many things I love about this job, but honestly, one of the best parts is the time from 8:00 am to 8:15 am. It's our little 'free time' before our daily meeting, which I use to peruse news sites and stories from across the world. When you're at college or university, it's so easy to get caught up in your own bubble of life that you forget about the other ~195 countries in the world (not to mention the events happening in your own country). But in the summer, I find that fifteen minutes is all it takes. It's nice (and sometimes not so nice) to know what's going on in this crazy world.

This post was so random that it doesn't really deserve a title and it's almost time for our daily Jeopardy watching at work. Ben is on a mad winning streak of $150k+. If you were wondering. Bye.

That Travelled World

I'm sitting here in sunny Edinburgh (just kidding, it's cloudy.) with one more week before I head home. I'd say it's hard to believe, but we all know how quickly time slips away. Yesterday I bade farewell to my parents after a great 1.5 weeks of traveling throughout England together. Over the past few weeks I walked along the coast in Bridlington, ate Yorkshire pudding in Yorkshire, watched Big Ben strike twelve, survived a terror drive from Cambridge to York, met a University of MN student in a Chip shop in York, and enjoyed a beautiful sunny day on Arthur's Seat. Many new memories to lie among many more made this semester.

The quote at the top of my blog comes from Lord Tennyson's poem Ulysses:

I am a part of all that I have met;
Yet all experience is an arch wherethrough
Gleams that untravelled world, whose margin fades
For ever and ever when I move.

Over the course of the last five months, my own sphere of 'travelled world' has expanded. Four stamps now sit on the previous plain white pages of my passport, stamps which represent so much more than just the name of a country. Thanks to this semester, I've gained a much greater appreciation of my friends, family, and school back home, while enjoying the company of new friends and a new school here in Edinburgh.

I am a part of all that I have met, and Edinburgh is now a part of me.

Thanks for reading. I'll see you soon across the pond.  
(also I'll probably keep this blog open to write things occasionally, since I like to do that.)

Jeans and Jean Action

Jeans and Jean Action: a class studying the, ultimately revolutionary, impact of the worldwide denim craze from 1960s to present.*

Oh, wait, you mean it was GENES and Gene Action...?

I had my two hardest exams this past week - Celtic Civ + Genes and Gene Action. That means I have a nice two-and-a-half week break before my easiest, German, on May 21st. After spending the past two weeks essentially locked in my room or the library studying, my mind can barely comprehend this freedom.

It's hard to believe I head home in about three weeks, though I feel like I'm ready to go back to my friends and family in MN. A semester was the perfect amount of time to be in Edinburgh. In about an hour I'm off to the train station to begin my travels through England. I haven't had the opportunity to spend much time there, apart from my Lake District trip and homestay, so I'm really looking forward to seeing more.

I don't think I'll have the time nor the willpower for an update before I get back for my last exam, so see you in a few weeks.

Perhaps literally.  

*credit for this goes to someone else in my class

The Break Breakdown

Here's a little breakdown of my trip in lieu of a massive update, at least for now.

# of days traveling: 15
# of pictures taken: 1435
# of gelato dishes consumed: 6
# of pizzas eaten: 5
# of hours spent cursing the Roman bus system: 71 (every waking hour in Rome except one. I had one beautifully executed bus journey.)
# of miles walked: ~50
# of items lost/left behind: somehow, only one. One pair of headphones.

A List of Amazing Coincidences

1. One girl in my hostel in Paris was from Forest Lake, MN
2. Running into Madison on the streets of Rome. Madison is from my college, studying abroad in Rome. She just happened to be coming back from class at the same time we were heading out to dinner. 
3. One woman in my hostel room in Rome, from Sweden, lived in Eden Prairie MN the year I was born.
4. A girl I met in my hostel in Rome is in the same Celtic Civ class with me in Edinburgh, also studying abroad there from the USA.
5.  I had dinner with my Swedish roommates on my last night in Rome, and while eating, two men sat down at a table nearby. They were speaking Swedish. Turns out the men were from the same town in Sweden as my roommates

Yvonne, the friend with whom I was traveling, also bumped into a few people that she knew while in Florence. Small world.

Here are a few pictures from each spot..

With our friend Mona at the Louvre

Laduree, a Parisian bakery

The tower and I.

Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome

Via Appia in Rome

Florence from the top of the Duomo

The Ponte Veccio in Florence

Sunset from the Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence

Day trip to Cinque Terre, Italy

Westfalen Park in Dortmund, Germany

 I also just got back from a weekend trip to the Isle of Skye with my program, which was also amazing. Back to studying for now, though.

Eurotrip/Life

I know it's bad to post your whole itinerary on the internet since thieves can break into your house while you're away and steal all your valuables but I have no valuables so have fun, thieves.

April 1-6: Last week of classes
April 5-7th: Paris, France
April 7-11: Rome, Italy
April 11-15: Florence, Italy
April 15-18: Dortmund, Germany
April 19-21: Isle of Skye, Scotland

I'm going to Paris, Rome, and Florence with my friend Yvonne. We're going to be in Florence at the same time as some other friends in our program though, so we'll likely meet up/plan things with them. The Isle of Skye trip is with my program, so they'll take all 50-60 of us up there.

April 29 - Celtic final
May 2 - Bio final
May 3? - 9th: Northern England
May 9-19: London + More England/Wales/Scotland
May 21: German final
May 26: home!

That's my life for the next two months.

My laptop is currently in the shop, broken (I have termed it The Great Milk Disaster of 2013), so that's not optimal. I'll try to update some while on my trip, though.