American Culture Shock

I am back on solid American soil. It was a long time coming but here I am. I am often asked if I miss Vienna and I know sometime soon I will but right now I am just grateful to be home with those I love. The flight back felt like a torture experiment. We had a brief flight to Paris where I was able to grab some lunch and pick up a Paris shot glass that I had forgotten to get when I first went to the city of lights. I collect shot glasses from places I've been and was kicking myself for not picking one up.
I had been craving Christmas in Vienna so while I sat in the airport waiting for the second plane, I read the short Christmas stories I had downloaded from the Amazon Kindle Store a week before. The first was "Christmas in Venice" by Meadow Taylor (do you think that's her real name? Because I have some yuletide doubts.) The second short story was "Christmas at Pebble Creek" by Vannetta Chapman. They were both free books and after spending three months in Europe my budget had been well depleted. I had never purchased a Kindle short story before but I figured they would take maybe a couple hours to read. Well, they took about twenty minutes. That's how short they were. That's not even a television show without commercials. That's like one half of a cartoon. I was very disappointed because I wanted that cozy feeling of reading a Christmas novel to keep me occupied during my wait. On the bright side, I feel confident that I could easily write a "short story" and publish it to Amazon sometime in the next few months. So stay tuned for more on that! 
On the second plane I sat next to an older gentleman who asked me how I was before introducing himself. When he sat down he handed me his customs card and told me he had forgotten his glasses in his checked luggage (ever notice you say luggage when you're on a plane? Maybe that's just me.). He handed me his passport and asked me to fill out the form for him. I definitely spelled the name of his town wrong but I'm going to chock that up to being away. His name was Elias and I informed him I have a nephew also with that name. He chuckled and gave me a nudge, "Now you have Uncle Elias and Nephew Elias." He was a nice old man but he definitely weird-ed me out. Mostly because I was tired and wanted to get home faster than the plane could take me. But partially because he kept hovering over me and getting up and coming back.
I usually love long flights. You have so much time to watch movies, listen to music, read books, and write. But this was the first time I had been on a plane and could barely watch the movies on the screen in front of me. I watched "The Heat", "The Way Way Back", and part of "The Great Gatsby." They were all good movies and I was glad to watch The Great Gatsby again but I could barely focus on them. My mind was on picking up my bags from baggage claim, seeing my parents, getting a Dunkin Donuts iced coffee, and seeing my puppies. In that order. It felt like Christmas Eve in a sense as I sat with great anticipation. 
As soon as I arrived I did those exact things in that order. When I got home I forced myself to stay up awhile longer but after passing out in my bed that felt gigantic after being in a tiny bed for three months, I woke up fully alert at 4 in the morning. As soon as my parents were up I was ready to go out to Target. I had missed Target probably most of all American stores. I wandered around Target looking at everything from blenders to socks to makeup. It felt so right. As I was walking around I eavesdropped on conversations, something I hadn't really been able to do for awhile. At some points I could barely understand what people were saying because I wasn't used to listening to English as well as I had. I was with English-speaking people during the trip but I hadn't been listening in on conversations as much. I was hyper-aware of the accents of people from my area though. I don't have much of an accent from this area but when I listened I felt like I was getting slammed with strange sounding words. Since then, it's become more normal to hear other American voices and it doesn't sound as harsh as it had that first day back. 
Little things felt overwhelmingly joyous to me for the first few days. I made small talk with cashiers and even some people in line. I was full of gratefulness at just being able to communicate. Nothing scared me. My knew motto became , "If you speak English, you don't scare me." Being back felt like the playing field had finally been leveled after months of being at the bottom of a ditch. Not being able to communicate simple things like, "I want that to go please" felt like being tormented. You were subjected to whatever the person decided they would do for you. Of course people spoke English as well but it always felt like a burden talking to them. Being able to speak my native language without judgement felt like a gift and I was grateful to everyone I came in contact with for it. 
While traveling I used to have to screenshot things I might need before leaving the apartment or search for a WIFI spot if it was important. Now I can just look up whatever I want whenever. It feels like I got a smartphone all over again and I've fallen back in love with it. My iPhone has never seemed so precious to me. Of course this means that my battery is drained much faster than it had been while in airplane mode. Little technology things like being able to used blogger.com in English make me so happy. 
I love being able to drive again as well. Now that I'm back to work I get to drive my car an hour and a half a day and I love it. I have my audio books and music and the open road. It is absolutely a beautiful feeling being able to control exactly where you want to go and not being crammed in a hot train with strangers. 
It's been a crazy ride coming home but I have been grateful every step of the way. I am thankful to being able to spend the holiday season with those I love the most. 
Yours Until the End of the Internet,
Eiggam

A Farewell to Vienna

This is one of the more difficult posts I've had to write. It's Thursday now and I fly out of Vienna on Friday morning. It's been a long three months here. I've befriended some lovely people and I've also met some people I was not very fond of. I have grown apart from some things and have valued other things much more highly. I'm no longer afraid of living in a city, public transportation seems much simpler, and traveling is a breeze. But I've also missed my family, getting to see my baby nephew learning his first words, spending Thanksgiving with my extended family and driving a car. 

I've learned a lot here. I've learned about history, art, politics, and cultures. I've learned about myself. I've learned what I care about and what I don't need. I have had so many experiences that I never would have if I had sat at home. I have stories that fill my head from people I've met. I now have lots of material for my writing from this adventure. 

I did not get as homesick as I imagined I would. It wasn't until the end that I started longing for it. I think a part of me knew it would be hard to handle if I thought too much about it. 

Vienna is a beautiful city with more charm than you could imagine. But the holiday season is well upon us now and as the song goes, "There's no place like home for the holidays no matter how far away you roam, when you long for the sunshine of a friendly gaze - for the holidays you can't beat home sweet home." So as lovely and delightful as Vienna is, it is not home. It's felt like home after bad days and long journeys but with the holidays being here I know it is not. I've never been away from home at Thanksgiving until today. I've always been surrounded by my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, parents and brothers at Thanksgiving. Being away has made me value that time so much more than I had before.

Packing for Vienna was tough. I was going to a country I had been to with a group of people I didn't know. I was scared and I had no guarantee what it would be like. Packing for home was bittersweet. I packed up things that were filled with new memories and put them in a suitcase without knowing when I will ever be back. On the other hand, I'm going back to my family, my dogs, my friends, my job, my home, and my country. I have guarantees where I'm going and that's great. But it was an incredible experience getting to put myself out there and praying everything would work out. I'm so grateful that it did. 

Vienna, you will always have a special place in my heart. I will be back someday. All my love. 

Yours until the end of the Internet, 

Eiggam

Europe Tales Part 2

After Amsterdam, I left the other girls and flew back to Vienna. Flying from one country to another and not having either of those countries be America was a peculiar feeling. I was sitting on a plane with mostly Dutch and German speakers and all I could do was laugh. One old man was playing Bejeweled Blitz on an iPad before the plane started to descend, the flight attendant warned him to turn off the game and he nodded, acting like he was just about it. Another flight attendant came by and told him the same thing. He nodded and acted like he was closing the cover until they walked away. This happened a few more times and while the plane was landing he was still playing his game. 
For some reason my phone had been deleting music to make room for all the pictures I had on it. I spent five hours in the airport, two on a plane, and another hour on a train back into the city all the time listening to about 30 different songs. Do you know how frustrating that is? I love my iPhone but having it mess up like that and not having any way to fix it, plus not having access to wifi at all? That is twenty-first century hell on earth. 
When I finally got off at my subway stop, I felt like I was at home. After nearly two months of living in Vienna, I realized that it had actually become like home to me. I can't explain the joy of being able to walk down familiar streets after so much time in unfamiliar cities. My parents were scheduled to arrive in a couple days so I got to recharge with some downtime and Netflix. 
When my parents finally flew in, it was time to start showing them my city. My dad gave me a card when they arrived that had a bright orange leaf from home pressed inside. I have it up on my wall here in Vienna to remind me of my parents and home in the middle of this experience. I told them the couple local stories I knew and pointed out a lot of famous buildings and landmarks. The great thing about Vienna is how most everything famous is concentrated in one area about a mile long. My parents and I toured the imperial apartments at Schönbrunn Palace. I became fascinated with the history of the Hapsburgs and bought a book called The Reluctant Empress by Brigitte Hamman. 
After a couple days spent in the city of music, we boarded a train to one of my least favorite places: Prague. I was not very in love with Prague the first time I went but I was willing to give it a second chance to redeem itself. I showed my parents the few sights I had seen in Prague such as the Prague castle, the Charles' Bridge, and the astronomical clock. 

We went to see a quartet that played some lovely classical music. We went to a few restaurants that were very good and the people were a little nicer than they had been the first time I visited. But I still I stand by my original feelings about Prague: Prague is beautiful from above. When you look down over the city, it looks like a fairytale. But when you walk down into it you are surrounded by the effects of years of communism.
After a little too much time in Prague for one lifetime, we were headed for Berlin. Once again I found myself feeling relieved to see and hear German after the disorienting language of Czech. The first night I knew Berlin would be better than Prague was when I saw this: 

That pink sign was like a beacon of nostalgia. At home, Dunkin Donuts are everywhere. It would not be uncommon to see two across the street from each other. Unfortunately, while I was in Berlin it was freezing so the iced coffee I had been craving since leaving home did not sound as appealing. The hot chocolate they had was absolutely lovely and was the absolute perfect temperature for drinking right away (why can't they do that in America?!). They had donuts there that were the size of my face and lavishly decorated. I loved the Berlin Dunkins but they were missing the flavor shots I love. 

My favorite part of Berlin was getting to see famous sights like the Brandenburg Gate above. Traveling makes history come to life in a way that books and movies will never be able to. Being able to walk in the same spots that others long before us did is powerful. In Berlin there is a famous memorial known as the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe by architect Peter Eisenman and engineer Buro Happold. The memorial consists of 2,711 concrete blocks that vary in height. As you walk through these slabs of concrete you feel like you're suffocating. It is one of the most uncomfortable feelings I have experienced while abroad. It put a lot of things in perspective and helped me gain a better understanding of how art can play on your emotions. 

My parents and I flew back to Vienna to spend one last day together. We visited Belvedere Palace on our last night together. 

My parents and I had a tearful goodbye and as my time is winding down I am counting the days until I can see them again. Afterall, there's no place like home for the holidays and the holidays are coming up faster than I can believe. 

Yours until the end of the Internet,

Eiggam 

Europe Tales Part 1

The past couple months have been a whirlwind of trains, research papers, buses, and useless maps. During October I spent one week traveling with three friends to a few different countries. 

The first place we went was Salzburg which many know as where part of the Sound of Music was filmed. Now, I am going to be extremely honest with you about my traveling ordeals. Salzburg was extremely boring. We wanted to see Mozart's house, because he's from there but we didn't actually find it until the end of the day thanks to a very untrustworthy map. On the bright side, we did find a giant slide that was absolutely terrifying to climb up to and was faster than any slide I have ever been on. I swear there must be some kind of playground codes I don't know about because I don't think we would let kids on a slide like that at home. 

Because we clearly had not gotten enough of heights during our slide escapade, someone made the decision to climb up to a castle. At first, this did not seem like a big deal. The hill was high but the path didn't look bad. The path was bad. By the time we got in view of the actual castle there was a much steeper driveway we had to climb up. Already sweating we started to climb up that one. An Asian man laughed at the four of us seeing that we were vacillating between pain and humor that we were putting ourselves through this. When we finally got to the to the gate where they sold the tickets for entrance (which included climbing further up), we paused to catch our breath and take a few photos. The man that had been laughing at us motioned at us with his camera. Thinking he wanted a picture of the castle we nodded and stepped out of his way. Then he aimed his camera at us and we smiled most likely the most awkward smiles that have ever been captured and he took our picture. We eventually ended the day and spent an absurd amount outside in the cold just waiting for the train eating grocery store bought sandwiches on benches. 
We got on a train to Munich. Because it was so cold we bought coffees so we could sit inside Burger King. The problem was that we had about two hours before our train to Paris would arrive. Our solution was to make fun of the German music videos and play pick up sticks with coffee stirrers and empty sugar packets. 
The night train to Paris was a nightmare. At first it seemed exciting though! We got to sit in this cabin that looked like the ones on the Hogwarts Express. But then we realized there were no outlets to charge our nearly dead phones, which by the way are completely useless abroad, and a French businessman joined us in the cabin. There was nothing wrong with the man except that we felt like we couldn't talk much with him around. There was a group of girls, probably around our age in the cabin directly behind us. As the train made its way to Paris the girls starting talking really loudly in English. One girl really enjoyed talking about how she was British and all American girls kept asking her questions. So imagine really wanting and needing sleep, being in a very small room with a stranger, knowing your only sometime connection to the outside world was dying, and not being able to do a single thing about any of it. That was my night on the train to Paris (which split in half at 2 am). 
Eventually 12 pm rolled around and Paris rolled into view. At this point we had developed our system of finding a hotel and getting a map of the city from their endless brochure racks. Deciding we would go to the eiffel tower first so we had to get on the subway. The subway (metro, T, ubahn, whatever you want to call it) was literally packed with people. In order to get into the train you had to actually squish yourself between people. I don't mean awkwardly slide by some people to get to a spot to stand. No, you had to squeeze between strangers and remain there until God-willing enough people would get off at the next stop. After a bunch of wrong turns we finally made it to the Eiffel Tower. 

I had never cared about the Eiffel Tower. I wasn't even sure that I actually wanted to go up it because why would I pay for something I didn't care about? Plus, I don't care for heights either and that was also making me skeptical. But for only three euros it was a decent deal. The spiral steps were fairly nauseating and it was far higher than I expected but in all honesty the view was stunning. 

After our descent we went in search of lunch. You know those cafes that the world goes on and on about. Yeah, they're ridiculously overpriced and offer few substantial meals. We ended up getting pizzas at a restaurant that included a waitress that laughed at us and a dog that thought he was better than us too. Paris is not a friendly place. But they do have delicious candy stands, crepes and macaroons. I saw a few of the famous landmarks like Notre Dame (I've never seen the Disney movie but I have been there) and Arc de Triumphe.  Part way through the day we realized our plan to stay up all night was not going to work out since our night train was a disaster and we were already tired. Now we had to suddenly find a hostel with four free beds, preferably close to the station where we had to catch a train from in the morning. However, we had to find a hostel by using McDonald's internet on our fast dying phones. Once we had booked one we decided to go back to the eiffel tower to climb it at night. Still not my idea but by this point I decided I didn't really ever want to go back to Paris. Seeing the eiffel tower at night was even more spectacular though. 

One of the girls in our group wanted to see the tower "twinkle" which is something that it does every night. Another girl and I didn't care about the twinkling because by then it was late and we wanted to get to the hostel. So leaving two of them to wait for the twinkling we went to wait inside the warm train station where we had stored our bags. When we got to the station we decided we would just get our bags and wait so we could leave earlier for the hostel. We arrived at 10:50 and apparently the place that we thought was open 24 hours where we had stored our baggage which included our passports actually closed at 11 and didn't open until 6 am. Our train was supposed to leave at 6 am from another train station. You would think it would still be possible to at least walk in, but for some reason the guy running it that night decided it would be okay to lock up early. This was literally the most terrifying moment of my entire three months. We caught the attention of the guy who was pulling on his coat to leave and he came over. We asked if we could really quickly grab our bags, he told us we had one minute and we ran. 
With our bags safely in tow, we began to make our way to the hostel we had booked. After a few more wrong turns, we found the hostel and rang the doorbell for reception. No response. We rang again and no response. We rang probably twenty more times before a girl who was clearly a hostel guest came to the door and let us in. By the time we checked into our hostel it was around one in the morning. We made sure we could check out by 4:30 the next morning. The receptionist told us we could and to "have a nice nap." 
Only a couple hours later we were back on the streets of Paris with our useless map trying to find our way to this train station. After half an hour of trying to find some kind of street that would lead us to the train station, we decided that we needed a cab. That was the best decision we had made the whole trip thus far. With an amazing amount of luck we made our train and were on our way out of the claws of Paris. 
The next stop was Amsterdam. I have had an obsession with the Netherlands since I was in eighth grade. Amsterdam felt like a breath of fresh air. To start with, food was incredibly easy to find. We found a nice little place that sold - wait for it - apple, bacon pancakes with chocolate sauce.

When I say bacon I don't mean the American way of including bacon in food. The Dutch way of including bacon was putting in layers of bacon. It was absolutely one of the most delightful things I have eaten in Europe. In addition to this after years of waiting, I was able to try the famous Dutch fries with special sauce. And it was everything I ever hoped it to be. In addition to the world of culinary Dutch delights, I also got to see the gorgeous buildings. 

Amsterdam felt like a small town that happened to have a mass amount of people. 

To Be Continued....

Yours until the end of the Internet, 
Eiggam 

Topsy Turvy Time

St. Stephen's Cathedral 

The first week in Vienna was filled with getting to know the group of people I'm living with, orienting myself with the German language, and getting used to city noises and the time change.
The time change was probably the easiest thing to adapt to. The first day wore me out so I was able to sleep through the night. However, I live in the middle of nowhere at home and usually the only time I wake up to any noises at school is on the weekends when people are drunk and noisy. Now I've suddenly been dropped in a city where the garbage and recycling comes at 3 am every night, you hear millions of bottles being smashed simultaneously, police cars and ambulances jet through the streets at random, and dogs bark randomly at each other.
I have fallen in love not only with the city of Vienna but also the German language. I have to take a "German for Travelers" class while I'm over here. I figured that German was similar enough to English that I could get along well enough without needing to devote my energy to learning it. I was very wrong about that. Fortunately, German is similar to Spanish which helps with some things but I have found that not everyone speaks English as I had hoped. On the bright side I've rediscovered my love of languages through the process of learning German. I hadn't been fully submersed into a country of another language since tenth grade. When I travel I like to blend in so being able to actually speak the language helps a lot more with that, or at least navigating which bathroom is yours correctly (Damen - women, Herren - men). Also, turns out, we've all been greeting people informally which is not very nice. We've been saying Hallo instead of GruBs gott. Oops. 
I've come to love the people I live with in a short amount of time. It is great to have a small group to go on adventures with instead of a large group of people that are clearly tourists (again with the blending- I know). With smaller groups we can pop in and out of stores, find tables at cafes, make spur of the moment decisions, and make friends with locals more easily. 

Wiener Melange

Our first week was fueled by delicious coffee. We explored the coffee culture a bit around where we live. 
Here's an interesting tidbit - you don't need to rush at cafes in Vienna. In the states, you order drinks, then food, then you eat and you leave. You are not very welcomed to stick around for an hour without ordering anything else. Here though, you can order a single espresso (which comes with a very delightful cup of water) and just sit around for the rest of the afternoon with a book reading. No one rushes over to you or even asks if you want the bill, you're just welcomed to enjoy your day. At first this made me really uncomfortable. I sat down, I drank my coffee and I wanted to go. I felt like I was doing something wrong by just sitting there. Turns out, that's just the thing to do. Now instead of going to a library for homework we are all looking forward to grabbing a Wiener Melange and sitting down with our laptops connecting to WIFI. Also! Splitting an omelette two ways is completely acceptable! Same with just about anything else you want to share because your stipend for food is so small. 

In addition to the German language, I've found a new appreciation for street art. American definitely needs to start following this trend. Walking down a street and seeing beautiful works of art like this brightens my day immensely. 

 Belvedere Palace

 Belvedere Palace

(with Steph, Paige, Me, & Chelsea)

On Saturday, we were given a closer look at Vienna through our professor who we lovingly call Uncle Martin (behind his back).  Uncle Martin is the sweetest man who loves to show off the city where he grew up and has lived for many years. He also teaches elementary school children so he has an excellent demeanor and is excited for us to learn and explore. We had a few grimy spots on the wall that our own college professor pointed out in concern to him and our landlords. In response, Uncle Martin offered us a book of Klimt paintings he had for fifteen years to tear out and tack up so that we would have something nice to look at (we are refusing and are only holding onto the book for him as a favor, it will be given back intact at the end of our stay). Uncle Martin took us to Theresianum Academy where he used to teach. The school had been a palace for the royal family of Vienna. We then went on to the Belvedere Palace. Belvedere is one of the most beautiful places I have seen in my life. It is the ultimate idea of what regal is. It is surrounded by a beautiful artificial pond in the front and a number of fountains and manicured lawns in the back. 

Hofburg Palace

Hofburg Palace I've probably gone by about fifteen times at this point but the largeness of does not cease to astound me. I swear one of these days I'm going to break something by staring up at all this architecture. It too was an Imperial Palace and is now used by the prime minister of Austria as his offices.  

View from the Vienna Woods

After a quick swing by a gelato place where they make the most delicious raspberry gelato I have ever dreamed of, we ventured up into the Vienna Woods. All the pictures I have of this place does not begin to do it justice. There is something so ethereal about being in a quiet place after being surrounded by people and noise for more than a week. The peacefulness filled me up an rejuvenated me for more time in the City of Dreams. 

Vanille Kirkuchen

To end our day three of my friends and I swung by a small Konditorei (a bakery specializing in cakes) and split a vanille kirkuchen and a zitrone kuchen. 

Stadionbad

The next day, Sunday, we went looking for a pool we heard about from two of our professors. What we found were some professional Austrian football players (not soccer but American football) and an expansive water park that cost only three euros to get into. It had a wave pool, diving boards, a wet bar, a lap pool, and water slides. 

All in all, it was an incredible first week. Now we're getting into the swing of classes and planning weekend excursions. 

Auf Wiedersehen! 
Yours until the end of the Internet,
Eiggam

Vienna Waits for You

For about eight years my favorite song has been Vienna by Billy Joel. It's the song that I put on the first mix cd I make for anyone I care about and it's the song that I cherished in my darkest hours. But despite my love for the song, I never really dreamed I would end up here.
I took what I would normally fit into my SUV and trimmed it down to fit in a suitcase and a backpack.
I'm ecstatic but also scared out of my mind since I only know a few people on this trip and barely at that. The person who had been planning to join me on this trip backed out and I know that I would never forgive myself if I did the same. But so far everyone has been really nice and friendly so it's great!
On the flight over it hadn't hit me what was going on. It felt like I was just on a long flight to anywhere and there happened to be some people I knew on the plane. We were all lined up in a strange alphabetical order in the very middle of the plane so sitting down you might not even have known we all were a group. I didn't get any sleep on that first long flight to our connection in Amsterdam. We made it through customs and a second security checkpoint then speed walked through the airport to find our connecting flight at what felt like 1:30 in the morning. We waited to board and saw a beautiful sunrise as we sat there.

We were all pretty antsy to get on the plane to get to our final destination of Vienna. On the flight they spoke Dutch very rapidly and then translated it in English. I used to want to learn Dutch but German will have to do for now. When we got on the plane they served us chicken sandwiches which didn't make any sense to either of the timezones I was currently operating under. It was good and came in a little box with a windmill on it and instructions on how to make your own wheat bread (in English) but my stomach was hurting from the strange dinner I ate on the plane before so I couldn't really enjoy it.
Our group split up with six of us going to one apartment and five of us going to the other. We settled in and then journeyed out with our professor to go (as we later figured out) grocery shopping. It took us five minutes to figure out which water we were buying and then our professor told us which one was what we actually wanted before we bought it. Who knew there was "mild" water?

When we got back to the apartment I crashed like I never had before. I put on pajama shorts and before changing my shirt as I had been planning I fell asleep. After we woke up we went out to dinner with the whole group and were served a variety of things I couldn't pronounce but boiled down to a soup with "small sliced pancakes" which was surprisingly delicious (frittatensuppe), basically a fried dough with pork in it (weiner schnitzel), and an apple strudel with whipped cream (apfelstrudel).
It was all delicious and was a huge relief after eating plane food. Now I have plans to get breakfast at a cafe with the girls in the apartment and then plan the rest of the day.

Auf Wiedersehen!

Yours until the end of the Internet,
Eiggam

As the Sun Sets on Summer

The clock is ticking down now. As of this weekend I will be unemployed for the next three months, which is a scary thought since I haven't been unemployed for longer than a couple weeks since I started working. But it's all for a good purpose. As I've mentioned before I will be studying in Vienna, Austria for the upcoming semester.

I've had a great summer of interning and nannying. I've learned more through my internship than I have so far in my courses. My favorite part of interning was this: I had a really sadistic teacher last semester tell me that my writing skills were poor and that I should go to the writing center for help. I never went because I am that stubborn. A large part of my internship revolved around writing: emails, blogs, statuses, pitches, press releases etc. etc. My bosses and coworkers thought I did a great job. They were impressed enough to ask me to write for some client blogs when I return to school. So Professor Lady Bowl-Cut, it turns out my writing skills are good enough to make it in the real world and that is good enough for me.

When I was three my grandmother used to sit down with me and write out stories together. My grandmother is a fantastic writer and has written for numerous publications. She's part of the reason that I'm going to try to update this blog more. She loves to read what I'm up to and she is always encouraging me with my writing. (I love you Granny!)

Nannying was also a great experience. I spent time watching over a two year old boy and a three year old girl. I had toys thrown past me and bruised my cheekbone from the little boy leaning his head back way too fast but I also got countless hugs and giggles to get me through. They were my break from the office and helped me know that I can still laugh at a snail climbing up a rock, blow bubbles and color with crayons. I don't have to be a full-time grown up but I can be an adult who can smile at the little things.

My summer was like night and day compared to last summer. Last year I had people yelling at each other all around me and criticizing at every turn for no reason but to make themselves feel better. This year I got to work on an excellent public relations team that encouraged each other, stood up for one another and wanted to do the best job they could. The only yelling I heard was from cranky toddlers and instead of broken plates there were breaks of laughter. I had a great summer. I was able to my longest friend get married, spend time with my whole family and lay on the beach. I am sad to see it come to an end but I am excitedly nervous about moving onto Vienna.

Yours until the end of the internet,
Eiggam

Over the River with your Parents and Boyfriend

How to plan for a long car ride with your parents and boyfriend:

Parents and your boyfriend in one long car ride up to a wedding (bound to be awkward insinuations there, right?) in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the summer? Don't gouge your eyes yet! It is possible and you will survive (just like that song says).

1. Wear Layers: you will probably be in the backseat and the a/c in small cars can be fidgety. My parents like it cold and I like it a bit warmer if possible. Wear shorts and bring a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt to yank on if you feel like you're skiing all of a sudden because your mom pointed the a/c right at you.

2. CD's acceptable by most: I am breaking a cardinal teenage/young adult rule by not recommending ear buds on a trip with your parents. There is a reason behind my madness: Conversation. If you and your boyfriend have ear buds in conversation stops and it can make things last a lot longer. Especially if your parents want to tell you something and one or both of you have to keep pausing your music to listen and respond. You're not going to win everybody's heart with your music selection but use it as an opportunity to make some neat mix cds to create memories to play again.

3. Dramamine. I have never been one of those people that get motion sickness. I always have seen car rides as a time for reading. My parents on the other hand can't go on kiddie rides at carnivals without feeling nauseous and as I get older I am realizing I believe I have caught that gene. I'm almost certain it is because of driving so much more by myself in the past year that sitting in the backseat feels like a life sentence. Packing some Dramamine and taking it before you even climb into your cell helps make it more bearable.

4. Books/Magazines: I said no to ear buds but I will say yes to a book or magazine. I'd recommend both so you can have some light reading with a magazine to buffer drags in conversations or have a book to cope with long silences.

5. A small pillow: Don’t go overboard bringing your body pillow. Just have on hand a small throw pillow. You won’t bang your head as hard on the window if you feel like snoozing and if your back is hurting it can provide some relief.

6. Codigo Cube: This is something I’ll be trying for the first time in a car. Codigo Cube is a trivia game that all you need is your phone and the little one inch by one inch cube. Everyone can compete in this game even the driver if someone rolls the cube for them. It’s very easy to do and you can select different levels for playing. You roll the cube. Scan the QR code. The person answers the question. Then passes it to the next player. Or you can play it as teams. Your parents against you and your boyfriend or guys against girls. Whatever and it’s a fun little game that can be as short or as long as you want.

7. Phone car chargers: The worst days are usually when my phone dies. I love checking up on twitter and this trip I will be partially working so I need to maintain access to my email. Both of these things will suck up your battery so make sure you have a car charger for your phone or tablet if you plan on using them in the car.

8. Snacks and Drinks: Bring some light snacks and a bag for trash. Nothing that requires extra utensils, nothing that makes a giant mess, nothing that will leave a lingering odor. Think granola bars or baby carrots. Find out what people would like to drink. I love juices but am not a huge fan of just water.

9. Sunglasses: I get headaches easily and sunglasses keep me from cringing from the light. (On that note don’t forget Tylenol either). Plus sunglasses make you look cool. And isn’t that what’s important in a road trip?

10. Enjoy the Ride: Sit back, watch the cars go by, and relax. You’re not in the office and you’re surrounded by people you care about. Enjoy your drive. 

Rock-a-Bye Royal Baby

Okay, I have to admit. I am not that fascinated by the royal baby stuff. 

The royal wedding? A million times yes! I was in front of my tv waiting to see them. 

Finding out she was pregnant? Okay that happens. I didn't think about it again. 

Prince George Alexander Louis was born? Can the world please just stop? I am avoiding Google News now even though it's part of my job. 

The kid looks a little cute and I'll probably be more intersted in things like: his outfit was from blah blah, and his stroller retails for money! As pathetic as that sounds it's true. He also looks like my youngest nephew a little except my nephew was born with strawberry-blonde hair. But they both have that alien look going on that I honestly don't associate with all newborns but is true for these two boys.

On the bright side, it's only about a month before I fly off to Vienna! And that's Vienna, Austria. Not Venice. Why do people keep asking me about Venice? "Oh I love Italy." Yeah, me too but that's not where I'm going...It's awkward but if you guys could not think that- yeah that'd be splendid! 

I'm in the middle of an internship this summer and nannying part-time. Both of which are a lot of fun and shockingly less stressful than working at a restaurant on a tourist filled island. I feel like I'm now on the other side of things: picking up food instead of making it and getting paid for facebooking and tweeting. You get people like Fox and CNN emailing you and it gets a little nerve wracking but the whole experience has made me believe I chose the right field to pursue. 

This summer is going too quickly but I can't wait for my vacation. I want to sit on the beach with a pile of books and a refreshing drink of the nonalcoholic variety. And then I want to get in a plane and fly away. 

Yours until the end of the internet, 

Eiggam

Harry's World

Disney may call itself the happiest place on earth but they must never have been on the Making of Harry Potter Studio Tour outside of London. I had tears of joy before even starting the tour. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
When Cyrena and I first started talking about our trip she insisted we go to the Harry Potter Tour. I had honestly no idea what she was talking about until I looked it up. After a thorough google search I was in love and insisting upon the visit as well.
The morning of the tour started with a cup of Costa coffee and a confusion about what Tube station to take (quite like every morning of our stay in that sense). Our first stop was to pick up the car we were renting for the day. I expected to end up with my knees up to my chin in the backseat of a tiny electric car. Instead, we received a shiny black Mercedes Benz
Crossing streets in a busy city is difficult. Crossing streets in London when you're from America is stressful because you don't have any idea which way the cars are coming from. Having your dad drive the streets in London, trying to understand the GPS and not having the tiniest clue of where you're going, now that's a nightmare. My dad's a good driver in America. He was a driving instructor when he was younger and he taught me and my two brothers how to drive. But London was a test for everyone's nerves. First, that pretty Mercedes Benz? Yeah the engine shuts off when you come to a stop. The air vents were louder than the GPS with no conceivable way of lowering them without turning them off completely. Plus the driver's seat was obviously on the other side than what I'm used to. The GPS would say turn left but you would have to turn right to turn left.
Our next stop was Stonehenge. Arriving at Stonehenge was a breath of fresh air after our days in the city. The calm of the area felt like walking into a library. The stones were great and I got to recreate a photo I took with my dad at age 2.Then it was back in the car and heading to the studio with a quick stop at a gas station to get Costa and a potato dog (absolutely delicious and highly recommended). I was starving at that point and the potato dog and granola bar I had felt like my own little slice of heaven.
From Stonehenge to Leavesden, the driving was smooth sailing. We got our tickets and decided to get some more lunch. This part I will remember until I die or get Alzheimer's: I ordered a Thai chicken salad and almost as soon as we found a spot to wait for our food in the crowded cafeteria of the studio the fire alarm went off. Everyone was ushered out the doors and we waited back in the car until the doors opened. When we got back and our food was ready my poor Thai chicken was dried through and as tough as stone.
The rest of our wait before we got in line was spent looking at the amazing gift shop. Cyrena and I lost my parents in the crowd and pointed out what we would get for her sisters, our friends and my roommates.
Now before I bring you into the tour I want to give you a bit of background information at this point about how I came to know Harry and his friends. The books started when I was in kindergarten and by the time the first movie came out I was not allowed to watch or read anything Harry Potter related (because of "witchcraft" which my mom thought would turn me evil). When I was in second grade some of the kids in my school would point and whisper (how kids "whisper" at least aka talking with their hands cupped over their mouths) that that girl looked like "Hermione." I didn't have a clue who Hermione was so I just glared at them. I started hating Harry Potter for awhile after that. In fifth grade my mom finally told me I could watch the movies if I wanted to but I felt so deprived that I refused. Fast forward to the end of eleventh grade. I didn't look much like the "Harry Potter girl" by then and people were only reading the books when a new movie was about to come back. One weekend I was invited by some friends to go see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (the sixth movie). I went and was hooked. I began reading all the books that summer. I brought them everywhere: the pool, vacation, doctor's offices, the mall, etc etc. Wherever I went, Harry went. When I finished a book I watched the movie and by the time Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 premiered, I was caught up.
All of this is to admit, I didn't grow up with Harry Potter. A lot of my friends did and to this day they know the details far better than me but I love Harry Potter in spite of my own shortcomings. And now I love Hermione and I can see the similarities between young me and her when looking back.
After waiting in the infinite line we were ushered into a dark room where a brief clip played about the magic of Harry Potter and J.K. Rowling. And tough old me who hates public crying as much as being stung by a bee, cried a few tears of joy. Just being in that building made me feel apart of something as all readers of the series are.
On the tour I got to see up close all the things I never dreamed I would. I saw the horcruxes, the Griffindor common room, the Weasley's home, 4 Privet Drive, Snape's Potions class, wardrobes from all the movies, the Knight Bus, the Potter's house, the bridge to Hogwarts, Dumbledore's office, brooms, wands, and Hogwarts! I drank butterbeer and sat in the Weasley's flying car!
That tour was one of the most magical days of my life. You got to walk through at your own pace and get these little passports stamped. I felt on top of the world that day and I want to go back there as soon as I possibly can.
Yours until the end of the Internet,
Eiggam

London Called and I Answered

I went to London with my parents and one of my best friends Cyrena. I actually have loads of my own pictures but I went with the one you see above from something I found on Pinterest just because I can and I don't want to have a competition between my favorite London photos.
London was one of the most incredible places I've been. Let's get this straight though because I promised myself I would tell you these two things.
1. The crowds will make you want to curl up in a ball in front of a store entrance.
2. Harrods is the biggest time waster in the world in will make you feel like you belong in a trash can.
Let's address number one. I'm usually okay with crowds and the ones in London were horrible. Wall-to-wall people pushing and shoving. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible.
The second. I have heard the name Harrods since I was two years old when my mom bought me a dress from there when we were there the first time. I read in all the travel guides: "Harrods: Must See!" I promise you it is not. Go sit in Costa if someone suggests going in. Or really I would recommend standing in the rain instead of going into Harrods for even a minute.
Torrential downpour? Bring it!
Wait inside the door for me at Harrods? Same to you buddy! I never liked you either!
You will not know what floor you're on when you're there. You will not know which door you entered. You will never find the person you entered with ever again. They have maps of the store though! I promise you will still have all of these questions. You will barely glance at a price of an eraser and you will realize that unless you are a multi-millionaire, you need to go stand on the curb asking for spare change to get by in this world.
Even after reading this, you might find yourself in London with lots of people saying "You have to go to Harrods!" and maybe you will and learn for yourself. I know though I will sleep better knowing that I warned those I could.
Okay so blah blah blah negative negative negative. I went to London and all I can do is complain?? No way Jose. (Are you reading this Jose? I don't know any Jose's but I hope one somewhere will read this.)
I will list my top ten favorite things about London starting from the bottom.
10. The Red Telephone Booths
They're real. I'm not kidding. They don't all have phones in them but they exist and that keeps me going.
9. Baker Street
I'm not the biggest Sherlock Holmes fan in the world but that street was pretty neat for all the Sherlockian things the incorporated into the area. The statue, the subway tiles, the replica house. All really neat to just see.
8. Pizza Express
I'm human. I love pizza but few pizzas have made me feel as alive as Pizza Express Padana pizza. It had my favorite things: onions, garlic, spinach, mozzarella AND goat cheese. I ate that pizza twice in a single week. I dream about this pizza on occasion. It was life changing.
7. Bus 42
This late night double decker bus was the perfect outing. I got to see Big Ben, the Tower of London, Belmont prison etc. etc. Not even kidding there was a stop for a prison. I haven't laughed as hard as I did on Bus 42 in a very long time.
6. King's Cross Station and Paddington Station
I love Harry Potter. And I love Paddington bear. It was just really neat to go to those places.
5. Costa Coffee
Honeycomb Lattes. America learn about honeycomb and embrace it with everything you have. Make it be here all the time. Every latte I had was delicious. But honeycomb, man that made me disappointed in America. Why we're on the topic of honeycomb: Crunchies. Honeycomb covered in chocolate. It's a candybar. Eat, love it, you're welcome.
4. London Eye
It was really cool to see a city that way. Every city needs one of these but let's bring the price down then okay? I wish I could see my hometown from something like that.
3. The Parks
In the midst of the craziness that is London there are beautiful, peaceful, gorgeous parks. I would spend so much time in those parks if I lived there. In Regent's Park there is a little coffee place called The Cow and the Coffee Bean. On a cold January day walking through the park that latte was the best decision I made that day. I spilled some on my gloves and Cyrena laughed at me but hey, memories rock.
2. Hotel Wifi
I love the internet. I have my phone in my hand or close to it constantly. I need Internet. Wifi in the hotel was my life saver. After a day of touring I could snuggle into my bed, post beautiful photos to Instagram, text my boyfriend and tweet until my heart's content. It was the greatest comfort in the world.
1. Harry Potter Studio Tour
Okay. The Harry Potter Studio Tour was one of the best experiences of my life. Without a doubt and for that reason I am going to leave you hanging until the next post. (It'll be sooner than the last I promise.)
Yours until the end of the internet,
Eiggam