This is extremely overdue, but I would never feel quite right if I didn't publish it. So without further ado, my Euro Trip playlist!
Note: Please keep in mind that these are not the only songs I listened to.
Hope it was worth the wait!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Future Reflections
I feel like I've been falling behind with blogging this summer. Or maybe I'm just embracing a more laid back strategy. Yeah, I'd like to think it's the latter.
As Back to Business days approach, I keep experiencing a weird sensation in the pit of my stomach. Butterflies wouldn't do the feeling justice. More like squirrels. I know it's because I'm nervous for the coming year. My parents keep assuring me that I'll be just fine, but somehow I know that this year is going to be the ultimate test. I seem to have a knack for taking on much more than I can handle. But then again, I've had that tendency for a long time. I'm starting to reconsider some of the decisions I made in the spring. This probably sounds exponentially vague, but you can mostly likely figure out that I'm talking about classes I signed up for. With 3 major AP classes overlapping, goals of doing well on the ACT and the PSAT (didn't forget about that, did you?), and an after-school job, I feel like I'm getting too close for comfort to my breaking point. I guess we'll know soon enough. That is not to say, of course, that I'm not extremely excited! I like to think that I might go to prom, get my license, and have a chance at all the other fun stuff I know this year will bring.
I know I haven't updated the spotlight section for a while now. It's not so much that I don't have time or that I don't know which artists I want to feature. I'm just... lazy. Also, I think I'm going to modify the way I do spotlights. Right now, they seem very stiff and formal. I'll have to fix that.
Speaking of being lazy, I'm not really feeling the travel log anymore. Should I continue? Please comment with your thoughts. Seriously.
Currently, I am still moping my braces. Yes, they were plastered onto my teeth this morning. To clear up any questions, I had to get re-treatment because apparently my orthodontists discovered at my last checkup that they had angled my upper teeth in a manner that could prove to be hazardous as I get older. So here I am, a metal mouth once again.
On Monday, I got my first paycheck. Okay, that's not true. I got my first paper paycheck. Normally, I have a direct deposit, but for some reason we're getting actual checks this month. It was quite empowering. My mom took me over to the bank to deposit it. I think the teller was amused by my glee at doing such an adult task.
I'm not completely sure about when I'm going to post next.
Maybe when I publish my pending Euro Trip playlist.
Maybe when I publish my pending Euro Trip playlist.
Until then,
Byee!
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Friday, August 12, 2011
Euro Trip - Day 1
July 29th
We landed in Paris at around 7:30 am (12:30 am our time) and proceeded to customs. Afterwards, we met James, our tour guide! James was British, so it logically follows that for the whole first day I was mostly paying attention to his accent rather than his dialogue. While waiting for our tour bus, we withdrew money from via ATM. Since the bus was stuck in traffic, we were waiting for a decent amount of time. One of the first things we noticed was that the cars were nice. Even the taxis were Mercedes-Benz.
When we finally got on the bus and arrived at our hotel, we dropped off our luggage in the dining room as our rooms weren't quite ready yet. We were quite hungry since all we'd had to eat was a cold banana and some juice on the airplane so we decided to eat some brunch. James led us to a very cute cafe at the top of a store called Printemps (think Macy's with eight floors). The cafe was on the terrace of Printemps and had a very nice panoramic view of Paris. It was at this time, while eating my yogurt parfait and bread roll, that it finally hit me. I was in Paris!
After brunch, we set out to enjoy our first day in the City of Lights. Is it just me but isn't Paris known as the City of Love? Anyway, we bought metro ticket packages known as Carnets that consisted of ten tickets and got a brief tutorial on how to use the metro. We used our first metro tickets to get to the Arc de Triomphe. Though we didn't go to the top because of the length of the line, the Arc was amazing. The intricacy of the engravings and sculptures on it were mind-blowing.
When we had exhausted the Arc, we were allowed to explore the one and only, Champs Ellyses. If given time, I would've been able to spend my entire day on that street. The stores were amazing, and the way they all fit together seemed impossible somehow. The restaurants, the people, even the street musicians were more classy than anywhere else in the world. For a quick lunch, we stopped to eat crepes. Most of us chose the Nutella and banana crepe, which tasted heavenly.
After enjoying our time on Champs Ellyses, we all met up again at the obelisk gifted to the French by the Egyptians. This was also where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were guillotined. We continued to the Tuileries Garden, which had a neighboring mini amusement park. From there, we walked to the Musee de l'Orangerie to see Monet's Water Lilies. For all you Euro kids, this is where Sister Wendy went swimming. Prod also told us about how the last time he was there, he was escorted out after loudly yelling "RETREAT" in response to some Picasso paintings. (see below)
We landed in Paris at around 7:30 am (12:30 am our time) and proceeded to customs. Afterwards, we met James, our tour guide! James was British, so it logically follows that for the whole first day I was mostly paying attention to his accent rather than his dialogue. While waiting for our tour bus, we withdrew money from via ATM. Since the bus was stuck in traffic, we were waiting for a decent amount of time. One of the first things we noticed was that the cars were nice. Even the taxis were Mercedes-Benz.
When we finally got on the bus and arrived at our hotel, we dropped off our luggage in the dining room as our rooms weren't quite ready yet. We were quite hungry since all we'd had to eat was a cold banana and some juice on the airplane so we decided to eat some brunch. James led us to a very cute cafe at the top of a store called Printemps (think Macy's with eight floors). The cafe was on the terrace of Printemps and had a very nice panoramic view of Paris. It was at this time, while eating my yogurt parfait and bread roll, that it finally hit me. I was in Paris!
After brunch, we set out to enjoy our first day in the City of Lights. Is it just me but isn't Paris known as the City of Love? Anyway, we bought metro ticket packages known as Carnets that consisted of ten tickets and got a brief tutorial on how to use the metro. We used our first metro tickets to get to the Arc de Triomphe. Though we didn't go to the top because of the length of the line, the Arc was amazing. The intricacy of the engravings and sculptures on it were mind-blowing.
When we had exhausted the Arc, we were allowed to explore the one and only, Champs Ellyses. If given time, I would've been able to spend my entire day on that street. The stores were amazing, and the way they all fit together seemed impossible somehow. The restaurants, the people, even the street musicians were more classy than anywhere else in the world. For a quick lunch, we stopped to eat crepes. Most of us chose the Nutella and banana crepe, which tasted heavenly.
After enjoying our time on Champs Ellyses, we all met up again at the obelisk gifted to the French by the Egyptians. This was also where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were guillotined. We continued to the Tuileries Garden, which had a neighboring mini amusement park. From there, we walked to the Musee de l'Orangerie to see Monet's Water Lilies. For all you Euro kids, this is where Sister Wendy went swimming. Prod also told us about how the last time he was there, he was escorted out after loudly yelling "RETREAT" in response to some Picasso paintings. (see below)
Apparently, they're supposed to be women. I'm thinking more like half-giants.
After the Orangeries, we went back to the hotel and got our room assignments. I ended up in a trio with Mara and Summer and we got a room on the sixth floor. Our first order of business was to get familiar with our television and find the music channel. We then refreshed ourselves and then left for dinner at Chez Clements.
Dinner was... disappointing. As a flexi-vegan, finding a hearty meal away from home is difficult and for our first French dinner all I ate was peas and potatoes. Not exactly satisfying to my palate. James, however, assured me that Switzerland and Germany would be much more satisfying for a vegetarian because in a big city like Paris, it's hard to avoid non-veg cuisines. This was comforting but at the same time it meant two more dinners of less than satisfying food. However, the city made up for this pitfall in other ways.
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Thursday, August 11, 2011
Euro Trip - The Flight
July 28th
The one thing I remember the most about the flight would be the screaming little girl right behind us. Initially I was sympathetic but that changed quickly. For such a small person, she was quite relentless and taxed her vocal chords for most of the flight. Naturally, as someone who has trouble sleeping on airplanes without loud children, I barely slept. However, I did make the most of my time awake and watched the movie Just Go With It. Now that I look back on it, I feel bad for the people sitting near me because my hysterical laughter must have gotten quite obnoxious. Long story short, it is a hilarious movie and everyone should see it. In summary, the flight was around nine hours and consisted of terrible food, loud babies, and a good movie.
The one thing I remember the most about the flight would be the screaming little girl right behind us. Initially I was sympathetic but that changed quickly. For such a small person, she was quite relentless and taxed her vocal chords for most of the flight. Naturally, as someone who has trouble sleeping on airplanes without loud children, I barely slept. However, I did make the most of my time awake and watched the movie Just Go With It. Now that I look back on it, I feel bad for the people sitting near me because my hysterical laughter must have gotten quite obnoxious. Long story short, it is a hilarious movie and everyone should see it. In summary, the flight was around nine hours and consisted of terrible food, loud babies, and a good movie.
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Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Home Sweet Home
It's official. I'm home.
To say I enjoyed the trip to Europe would be the understatement of the century. Currently, I am having trouble expressing my thoughts because I usually experience incoherence when elated. Along with the gratification of traveling Europe, the trip also gave me oodles of confidence. In the past, whenever I've been on trips, my parents usually take care of everything and my sister and I usually sit back and enjoy the fruit of their careful planning. For the first time, I got to experience all the responsibility of traveling abroad and I think I did pretty well, if I do say so myself. I also feel like I learned a lot more about myself and my personality while on the trip. I became friends with people I had never talked to before the trip and definitely surprised myself with the independence I displayed while on the trip.
For those of you who probably won't see me before school starts or until much later, and want a more detailed account of the trip, fear not! I will blog about the entire trip under a new tab, so keep an eye out!
Though I did have an indescribable time in Europe, I cannot be more glad to be home. To sleep in one's own bed and be allowed unrestrained use of the bathroom are pleasures all on their own. However, if there was something I do miss from the trip, it would be the constant presence of Nutella. I'm going to have to make sure my mom purchases some the next time she is at the grocery store.
I hope everyone missed me!
Byee :)
To say I enjoyed the trip to Europe would be the understatement of the century. Currently, I am having trouble expressing my thoughts because I usually experience incoherence when elated. Along with the gratification of traveling Europe, the trip also gave me oodles of confidence. In the past, whenever I've been on trips, my parents usually take care of everything and my sister and I usually sit back and enjoy the fruit of their careful planning. For the first time, I got to experience all the responsibility of traveling abroad and I think I did pretty well, if I do say so myself. I also feel like I learned a lot more about myself and my personality while on the trip. I became friends with people I had never talked to before the trip and definitely surprised myself with the independence I displayed while on the trip.
For those of you who probably won't see me before school starts or until much later, and want a more detailed account of the trip, fear not! I will blog about the entire trip under a new tab, so keep an eye out!
Though I did have an indescribable time in Europe, I cannot be more glad to be home. To sleep in one's own bed and be allowed unrestrained use of the bathroom are pleasures all on their own. However, if there was something I do miss from the trip, it would be the constant presence of Nutella. I'm going to have to make sure my mom purchases some the next time she is at the grocery store.
I hope everyone missed me!
Byee :)
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