So I've spent the last two weeks traveling around Europe with Eric, which has been really, really fun! We met in London, then proceeded to Paris and Rome, and he left this morning after spending a few days back in Konstanz with me.
I got to spend the afternoon in Zurich before leaving for London (my flight left from Zurich Airport so early in the morning that I had to spend the night in Zurich to get there on time). Zurich is really a beautiful city! I actually preferred it to Geneva or Interlaken. I didn't see very much--my hostel was in the old town so I spent the afternoon walking around there. But the old town is beautiful. There are two big churches, the Grossmunster and the Fraumunster, facing each other across the lake. Zurich is a big financial center now, apparently, but you wouldn't know it from the old town. So I wandered around for a few hours before having dinner and heading to my room to watch Hannah Montana in German (thought of you, Megan) and go to bed early. I had a taxi waiting at 4:30 am the next morning. My taxi driver didn't speak much English so I got to practice my German! We managed to hold a short conversation, which I was proud of myself for, since it was so early in the morning. I got to the airport (a ridiculous taxi fare later...why is Switzerland so expensive?!) before the ticket counters even opened, and had plenty of time.
So next stop, London! I had about two hours to wait before Eric got in, so I had breakfast, and then I started hearing people talking about flights from the US being delayed because of some bad storms around NY, so I got worried. Luckily Eric's flight was only a few minutes delayed and he zipped through customs and met me on time. We took the tube into London and started off our trip with a double-decker bus tour! We sat on the open top, which was great at first since it was about 70 degrees and sunny. The tour got stuck in traffic and took a little longer than expected, and 4 hours and some rain later, we were pretty cold and wet. But it was really fun to see so much of London right away! We ate dinner that night in a pub that had been there since 1723. Day 2 in London started out in Notting Hill, at the Saturday market on Portobello Road! It's a huuuuge flea market with tons of delicious food and funny stalls. We of course stopped at the travel bookshop featured in the movie, and ate delicious street food for lunch. Then we went to St. Paul's Cathedral, where the admission fee is so high that your "free" audioguide is an iTouch. Both the church and the view from the dome (523 steps later...) were gorgeous, however, although the audioguide was a little too much religious stuff for my taste. We spent the end of the day wandering around Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, one gigantic park in the center of London.
Day 3 began rainy, unfortunately, so the Yeoman Warder tours at the Tower of London were canceled, much to our disappointment--apparently the Yeomen don't like to get wet. But we spent several hours seeing all the exhibits in the tower--Eric really liked the armor one. The last time I was in London was mid-November, so I was shocked at all the crowds for everything. The line to see the Crown Jewels was so long we didn't bother. Then we headed off to the British Museum, since it was still pretty gross and rainy. It was insanely crowded! We started our final day in London by walking through St. James' Park to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard. Apparently it was the queen's birthday celebration, so we were treated to an hour-long performance by the royal band. Selections included a long Beatles medley (which was great, the whole crowd sang along) and the theme from the Incredibles. After that, we went to St. Martin in the Fields' Church for lunch at the Cafe in the Crypt--a cafeteria style lunch in a real church crypt! The food was delicious and it was certainly an interesting atmosphere. Next up was taking pictures with the lions in Trafalgar Square, and then Westminster Abbey, still my favorite part of London (and now Eric's too!). We ended the day at the National Gallery. Dinner was at a delicious fast-food place called Nando's recommended by my friend Ramya--their chicken was amazing!! Apparently they are coming to the US soon--here's hoping!
So the next morning it was off to the train station to take the Eurostar to Paris. After about two hours, we were in Gare du Nord and I felt like I was home again! We rented an apartment in Paris, the cheapest non-sketch lodging option, which was in the Latin Quarter, one of my favorite neighborhoods. We could see the Pantheon from the tiny balcony. After dropping off our things, I took Eric on a tour of the Latin Quarter: starting at Notre Dame, we saw the church and climbed the towers; then Sainte-Chapelle (Eric's favorite); then a nice walk down the Blvd Ste-Michel before dinner (I finally got to have escargots again!). We ended the day sitting in the Jardins de Luxembourg in gorgeous weather. I also enjoyed watching French TV in the evening. Day 2, I made Eric walk a lot. We started at the Arc de Triomphe, climbed up, then walked down the Champs-Elysees to the Place de la Concorde and the Tuileries. Then we did a quick Louvre visit--it was intensely crowded but we managed to see some exhibits I wanted to show him. Next, we went across the river to the Marais. We started at the Centre Pompidou, and then walked from there to the Place des Vosges while I took him on a little tour of the district, Paris' oldest neighborhood and now the Jewish/gay quarter. We finished the day on the Ile Ste-Louis at Berthillon for ice cream! After all that walking, we were exhausted, and we went home to freshen up before going to my host parents' apartment for dinner! I missed them so much and it felt so good to be in the place I used to live again! They were as kind and pleasant as always and after a few minutes my French came back with ease. After dinner and seeing some pictures of their two new grandchildren, my host dad took us on an abridged version of his famous "Paris par nuit"tour--we arrived at the Eiffel Tower just in time to see it sparkle! We were out late that night but it was worth it!
On Day 3 in Paris, we started at the Musee d'Orsay--unfortunately it's under construction so a lot of it was rearranged, but it was still beautiful. Next up was the Musee Rodin and Les Invalides, Napoleon's tomb. We kept it short so we'd have energy for Day 4, which was Versailles! Unfortunately it was INSANELY crowded and much colder than forecasted. We got all the way out into the gardens, as far from the chateau as you could be, when it started pouring rain (we hadn't brought umbrellas either). So we ran the mile back to the castle and the other half-mile to the train station, and headed back home to dry off before dinner with my old friend Orlando! He showed us around the Jussieu area of Paris, and the part of the Seine where they do salsa dancing classes! I saw some things that were even new to me, which was exciting. On our last day in Paris, we started in Montmartre, which I correctly guessed would be Eric's favorite (except for the harassment by street vendors, of course). We saw Sacre-Coeur and then wandered some of the tiny windy streets, and ate lunch at a bakery, protected by an awning while it poured again. Next up was the Opera Garnier--we got there just as a rehearsal was ending so we got to see the sets on stage! Then I got to do a little shopping on the Rue Sainte-Honore--we saw a wedding at La Madeleine before stopping at Laduree for macaroons and at the Longchamp boutique! We capped off our stay in Paris with a trip to La Tour Eiffel. My one regret about Paris in June (although the weather was gorgeous), other than the crowds of tourists, was that it doesn't get dark until almost 11 pm, and Paris is most beautiful at night, I think. So we ate dinner and then went up the Eiffel Tower to wait for sunset. We stayed until about 10:30, when it was semi-dark, to enjoy the lights, and then came down in time to see the 11 pm sparkling from Trocadero. (The Eiffel Tower sparkles at night on the hour for five minutes)
The next afternoon we arrived in Rome. It was really, really hot. London had been rainy and in the high 60s; Paris, sunshine and clouds and in the low to mid 70s. Rome was easily mid-80s, persistently sunny, and humid. I did not like that. After dropping our things at the B&B we were staying at, we spent the end of the afternoon at the Coliseum before resting up for the next day. We started Day 2 (just as hot and sunny and humid) at the Roman Forums, which Eric really enjoyed--it's all the archaeological ruins of ancient Rome. After a few hours there, we headed down the Via del Corso to see the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps. We ended the day in Trastevere, eating at La Cisterna, a place where my parents ate on their honeymoon! La Cisterna means "the well" in Italian, and it's called that because of the excavation of an underground well underneath the restaurant, which they take you on a tour of after dinner! I was proud of myself because we got directions to the restaurant in Italian and I understood them--the street is really hard to find and not on maps so we had to ask people, but we found it! We spent our final day in Vatican City: the museums and St. Peter's, then back into Rome to see the Catacombs of San Callisto and the San Giovanni in Laterano church. Vatican City was so crowded that I was getting really uncomfortable in the museums, since I'm claustrophobic. I was glad to be out. I've now been to Rome twice and don't plan to go again. The weather in summer is terrible (in my opinion) and the city is dirty, smelly, sketchy, poorly maintained, inefficient, and CROWDED. The train from Termini Station to the main airport is actually programmed to tell you how late it is upon arrival. There's a lot more of Italy I want to see, but Rome I am completely done with.
So the next day we spent all day traveling back to Konstanz. We flew from Rome to Vienna, Austria, where we had a layover before flying to Zurich and taking a train back to Konstanz. Four countries in one day. We arrived home in time for dinner in the pouring rain. The next day was a national holiday I'd had no idea about, and I had literally no food in my apartment since I'd been gone for two weeks. So we tried some restaurants in Konstanz and walked around the city a bit, but everything was closed. We had German food that night with my friends Thorin and Alessia! The next day we went grocery shopping and went to Meersburg with my language partner, Ulf. We walked around the town a bit and had some gelati! On Eric's last day here, I showed him Konstanz, since everything was open--the harbor, the funny statues, the shops, etc. We tried some Turkish food for dinner and then he got ready to leave. He started his trip back to the US a few hours ago, and now it's back to work for me!
