Paris and beyond

Yikes it's been over a week! I was doing so well keeping up with this thing. Since I last wrote I have been really busy and bouncing all over the place. While in Rome, I did some more awesome tours of the crypts and catacombs, the colosseum and Roman forum, and a day trip to Assisi. All of them were fabulous and incredible to experience. I think the bone crypt in the monastery and the town of Assisi, home of St. Francis and St. Clare, were my favorites. I absolutely loved my time in Rome, but it was time to move on.

I took the train to Milan, Italy to Nice, France, and then to Paris. Is was a looooong travel day/night but I'm happy to report it's the last travel day on my EURail pass and I am DONE. WITH. TRAINS. I have been staying with a friend I made on the Camino and her husband in Paris. They were so kind to take me in for almost a week and let me use their apartment as a base while I go out and explore Paris each day. I have seen everything I wanted to see- Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, Louvre, Moulin Rouge, Arch de Triumph, and all of that good stuff. I have mastered the Paris metro and bus system and really am enjoying my time here in France.

I think the highlight of my time in Paris hasn't really been Paris itself even though I have been having a good time. Spending time with someone who completed the Camino with me, reminiscing, discussing, and sharing stories and experiences has been incredible. It's one of the things I needed before heading back to the States in order to keep the Camino alive and take with me what I have learned and experienced. Since the Camino I have been running wild through Morocco, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, and France. I've done bike tours, bus tours, bout tours, walking tours, camel riding, hiking, site seeing, and experiencing new foods and meeting new people as much as possible. It's been a wild 5 weeks since I finished walking with a lot of memories made. Not to mention Dublin is just around the corner where I will be meeting up with high school and college friends as I cheer on the Irish in the Emerald Isle Classic.

With all of this, it might be easy to look past the way I spent my first month in Europe. But spending these last days with a fellow pilgrim has been just what I needed to keep the lessons I've learned fresh in my mind and ready to be part of daily life when I return to the States.

As the months turned into weeks and now the weeks are turning into days, I am feeling so fortunate and blessed to have experienced all of this. A new school year is under two weeks away which excites me so much, as well as seeing the familiar faces of friends and family. It's an exciting time to say the least- living up the end of my trip as well as preparing for my return. With that said, I'll post again one last time from Dublin.

Kick off is 10 days, 2 hours, 41 minutes, and 3 seconds away in case you were wondering.

HERE COME THE IRISH!

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Vatican and Pompeii

I. Love. Rome. Wow is the first word that comes to mind. I have learned so much, seen so much, and absolutely loved my time here so far. Staying with Tiff has been a luxury- refrigerator, kitchen, washing machine... Amazing! On top of the comforts of her apartment, I have been on two amazing tours and seen so much in just the three days I've been here. My first day here, Tiff took mean a walk around the city. We covered some serious ground and I saw the colosseum, pantheon, trevi fountain, and lots of other cool stuff. Just walking around with her is incredible because she is a wealth of knowledge. It's honestly like a walking textbook and I've been learning so much. The next day was the Vatican tour. It's hard to describe how amazing it was to just be in Vatican City. Growing up Catholic, the Vatican is a big deal. I remember sitting in my principals office in high school, obviously skipping class, when they elected Pope Benedict XVI. Seeing the white smoke on TV was cool, but actually standing in St. Peter's Square was awesome. The church is the biggest in the world, and it doesn't disappoint. Seeing Blessed/Pope John Paul II's grave was really cool especially since he is only one step away from being a Saint. The history, the artifacts, the artwork, and the interesting stories and details made the Vatican tour pretty sweet. Having my friend from college do it and have her giving credit to her St. Mary's education- AWESOME!
Today Tiff set me up on a bus trip down south to Naples to see Mt. Vesuvius and Pompeii. I of course knew the story of the volcano and the preservation of Pompeii, but I learned so much hiking up to the top of Vesuvius and having a guided tour of the excavation site of Pompeii. I can't even behind to describe how neat it was to walk down the streets and take in all of this preserved history. You really feel like you are in 79AD right before Vesuvius erupted.
I'm not sure words can do justice for how much I am learning and loving it. I definitely took school for granted and have no problem admitting that. Recently I have noticed how much I enjoy learning new things and researching ideas I'm interested in even though I've been out of school for 3 years. Wth that said, these past couple of weeks could translate into 10 years of schooling. The best part is the living textbook of traveling and seeing everything first hand. I remember vividly the day I learned how to write my whole name in cursive in Mrs. Frain's second grade class. I also remember the day I memorized Sick by Shel Silverstein in Mrs. Bolam's 4th grade class, I successfully solved an equation before anyone else in Mrs. Kennedy's Algebra 2/Trig class in 11th grade, and getting my praxis score and calling my professor Mrs. Vanmeter to make sure that was passing (it was). These memories of my education will now be joined by so many new educational experiences this summer alone. And the best part is... I still have a couple of more days in Rome, as well as Paris and Dublin to explore.

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En Route to Rome

So I'm en route to Rome and these sweet Italian trains have quite the hook up. Literally, I can charge my iPad so I thought I would write. Heading to Rome is pretty exciting for me. I refer to the Pope as my homeboy and here I am getting ready to go see his town. I of course want to see the Pope and the Vatican, but also the colosseum, pantheon, Trevi fountain, Sistine chapel, and on and on and on. Rome offers so much and I am ready to take it on full speed ahead.

Yesterday during my chill out relaxing in my hotel room, first night not on a top bunk in a hot crowded room in quite some time, I was able to be productive actually. Catching up with friends, researching some things, planning some things, it was great! Two of my friends have just returned from Ghana and hearing their stories and updates was amazing. The best was seeing their pictures and seeing how far the school is coming along as well as the bright smiles that still run across the kids faces. I am so thankful to be able to travel like I am and see the world. Europe has always been a destination I wanted to tackle and I really feel like I accomplished my goal this summer. With that said, I miss Ghana so much. Seeing the pictures and hearing the stories only added to that. I am going to need to find a balance between seeing the world and returning to Ghana every summer from now on.

Recently I heard from a student who was returning from a service trip this summer. Talking to her and hearing about her experiences was surprisingly fulfilling for me. Even though I didn't go on a service trip this summer, hearing her stories made me reflect on my own experiences in the past. She told me about her first day of work. She wasn't feeling to connected to it. Of course she was happy to be there but something was missing. After praying a bit she looked up and saw a rainbow across the sky. It was at that moment that she knew she was doing what she was supposed to do.

The Assumption of Mary is this week and I feel that this story from my student goes along with the Assumption perfectly. When the angel appeared and Mary agreed to have Jesus she was doing the work of God. In Luke it says "blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it." Doing service work is rewarding in many ways. When my student said she knew this is what she was supposed to be doing, it was a satisfaction that she felt that is unlike anything else. It's as if you're being rewarded by God, without actually being paid or given anything. I personally think this is the blessing Luke was referring to when you 'hear the word of God and observe it'. No one said following Gods word would be easy, but someone DID say you will blessed. Therefore, why not?

......

I've been in Rome for less than 24 hours and I've accomplished so much. I watched Roman Holiday, I did yoga for the first time, I went to church, and I even went to confession. I arrived in Rome and went to my meeting spot to meet up with my friend Tiffany. She was two years ahead of me at St. Mary's, but when I was a freshman her and some other juniors took me under their wing to show me the ropes. I havent seen her since her senior year so over 5 years. It's been really fun reminiscing about college and catching up.

Her job here in Rome is giving tours of the Vatican and other sites. She is totally hooking me up and I will be seeing Rome like few do. Even just walking down the street with her she is explaining things and answering my questions about stuff. I feel bad because during her time away from work she is getting the stupid tourist questions but she claims she doesn't mind. So far I can report that yes she really loves her job, Americans are not the dumbest ones on her tours (I won't say which country is...), and yes she has slipped and said 'poop' instead of 'Pope' before.

I went to church this morning at a beautiful basilica down the street from her apartment. I was a little early so I was just wandering around taking in the statues and paintings and things. I saw priests were doing confessions and when I saw one in English I thought why not. Like I said on Facebook, the Pope is on vacation so now I am in charge. I needed to be in a sinless state for my new title.

The game plan is to stay here for about 5 or 6 days. I will be doing St. Peter's and Vatican tour, the colosseum tour, a tour to Assisi to say what up to St. Francis' hometown, the Pantheon as well as the Roman Forum, and hopefully reenacting a chariot race at some point. The list is long but I am pretty excited about everything.


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Venice and Florence

I haven't written in a couple of days so I thought I should catch up on what I have been up to. Its nothing fancy just some random stories. Salzburg was awesome. The Sound of Music was clearly the highlight, but everything else was pretty cool too. I met lots of nice people and saw some neat things.
I complained a lot about Venice but in reality it wasn't too bad. It was my own fault for getting lost. I didn't really have a map. I just had a mental picture that I was trusting myself to find my way with. I'm not sure what I was thinking actually. Besides that, Italy is just super hot which is expected for August. I think the crowds are frustrating me too. So i think the heat and people got the best of me and I took it out on Venice. In reality, it was pretty cool. There isn't a whole lot to see, but I am glad I got to experience the vibe and flow of the city. I think the most interesting thing was the line to see San Marco was the longest line I have ever seen. When I realized there was a mass at 10 I got to sneak in a side door. There were a million people in line yet only 7 people in the mass in the side chapel. Kinda sad. However, I then walked right into the church without waiting in any line and thanked Jesus for that one!

Overall, Italy is beautiful. The art and architecture is incredible. I've been in Florence for a couple of days and actually got a little burned out. Running around crazy from city to city, arriving in Florence and trying to see the David and Duomo and all of that stuff had me absolutely exhausted. I decided to get a hotel and chill for a day before heading to Rome. It was a good decision and here I am refreshed and ready to meet up with my friend Tiff from Saint Mary's who has been living in Rome for almost 5 years. I'm catching a one o'clock train and will be in Rome before 3. Not too bad!


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The Hills Are Alive...

I arrived in Salzburg, Austria yesterday with one thing on my mind- The Sound of Music. I think some guy named Mozart is from this town, but let's be honest with ourselves. Salzburg can only have one hero and that is Fräulein Maria. I even watched the movie on the train on the way here to get all siked up. Very similar to the way I watched "Rudy" every day in high school...

Now many of you know after being kicked out of the convent, my grandmother got married and had nine kids. I am not sure if me being able to relate to the story line makes me absolutely love it- or just the fact that the movie is SO GREAT. From the music, to the scenery, to Captain Von Trap looking oh so good, there are so many possible reasons to love this movie. And today, on the Fräulein Maria Bike Tour, I was able to witness first hand where all of the magic took place from the movie. From dancing in the garden, to singing on my bike, and even looking for nuns at the abbey- I was livin' the Sound of Music dream.

It was last Sunday when I was in Munich, I went to church and once again found myself not understanding a single word. It was my first mass in German which was quite entertaining but that's just because I think German sounds funny. After mass I looked up the gospel to fill myself in on what they were talking about. It was a gospel that many of us are probably familiar with- when Jesus fed 5,000 people with just 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish.

I like this story a lot because besides the fact it's a miracle, it is also a clear depiction of what to do when we are in a tough spot. You see, Jesus told the disciples to feed the people and all they had was a little bit of food- no where near enough to feed the crowd. So what did they do? They brought what they had to Jesus, a little bread and a couple of fish, and he took care of it. He managed to feed everyone there. Just like the disciples, when we are in a bind, we should take what we have and bring it to Jesus. He will take care of us just as he took care of the huge crowd of people. In fact, he took such good care of them that they even had leftovers.

When I was watching the Sound of Music yesterday, one scene stood out that I don't remember that well. When the Reverened Mother sang CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN, I found myself getting all pumped up very similarly to when I watch Rudy and he gets to play in his first Notre Dame football game. She had such passion and the way she sang that song to Maria inspired me all the way through my iPad. I love the message of both the Sound of Music and Rudy. Even when you work hard you might think you are coming up short. But Maria ended up falling in love and marrying one good looking guy, and Rudy ended up playing for the Irish, both of them thought they were in a bind. But God ending up taking care of them.

Similarly to Maria and Rudy, I found myself struggling to look for a job when I was finishing my year in Ghana. A professor of mine told me to stop worrying about applications and stressing myself out. She told me I was doing Gods work, so give it up to him, and he will take care of me. I thought, "not a bad idea" and totally left it in is hands. I could not have been more blessed to have the amazing job I have now at St. Catherine's. I'd like to say this shows that not only in movies does following the gospel ring true. (But if anyone wants to make a movie about me, I'm all for it!)

If we take what we have, give everything we got, and give it up to God- He will take care of the rest.

Climb every mountain,
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
'Till you find your dream.

A dream that will need
All the love you can give,
Every day of your life
For as long as you live.

...

How do you solve a problem like Maria?
Give it up to God.


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Munich and Dachau

I haven't written for awhile so I figured it was about time. I am currently in Munich, Germany and loving it! I didn't know much about Munich, but that is part of the fun. I took a bike tour around the city visiting beer gardens, buildings, parks, monuments, and all of that exciting stuff. Seeing Munich by bike is definitely the way to go. My tour guide, Antonio, was so knowledgable it was incredible. The way he took us around town, told stories, and did so with humor and from a bike was awesome. I think I'm going to start teaching while riding a bike around the classroom.

The kings and princes were interesting to learn about, but it was Hitler and the Third Reich that was absolutely mind blowing. The way we were riding past the exact places and looking at buildings, replicas of the old ones before Munich was bombed, made the history so real. The inside stories and little tidbits of information that no book or movie could teach you or show you made the bike tour one of my favorite things I've done in Europe so far. 

Today I went to Dachau Concentration Camp. I met a tour group at the train station, and off we went about 30 minutes outside of Munich. Dachau is a really old town in Germany that happened to have the first concentration camp on the outskirts of the town. I knew it would be a depressing day, but there was no way to prepare for the experience I had today. 

I remember reading NIGHT by Elie Weisel in high school. It really painted a picture of life in the concentration camps with Weisel's descriptions and personal story. I also remember an interview from my Oprah DVD's when Weisel told Oprah that it wasn't until he took his son to the camp that he understood what his dad had gone through. Even reading his dad's book wouldn't do it justice, but rather, he had to SEE it. After seeing Dachau today, walking through the front gate, the rooms, the gas chamber, the crematorium, and compound as a whole painted a picture all to clear. And I would agree with Elie Wiesel, you have to SEE it.

You learn about the Holocaust in school, you see movies, you read books like NIGHT, but there is nothing like seeing it all first hand. I remember going to the Pentagon after September 11th, and feeling over powered when I saw the chapel built as a memorial when thinking it was exactly here where the plane came through and all those people lost their lives. The same thing at the slave castle in Cape Coast, Ghana where so many people were dehumanized before even getting on the ship. It was exactly here where all those terrible things happened. Not that any tragedy can be compared to another one, but seeing things first hand paints a picture all too clear. Just like my bike tour not only taught me, but showed me the role Munich played in Nazi Germany- there is something to be said for seeing things first hand to get a clearer picture.

I know it's so easy to turn off the TV, not read the newspaper, and just pretend we don't see the injustices happening in our world. The keyword here is pretend. We know its happening but we pretend like its not. By turning off the TV or not opening the newspaper is not stopping the injustice. And I think Elie Wiesel makes a valid point when he says, "We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." But who am I to make a difference? Who are we to stop all the injustices in the world? Isn't the Holocaust over? Yes, in 1945 American troops liberated those survivors in Dachau. But there are plenty of injustices right here in our neighborhoods as well as in our world that are being ignored or turned off from our minds.

I'm no Elie Wiesel, and I have never gone through anything even comparable to what he did or those did at Dachau. But all of us have gone through some type of injustice at some point in our lives. It's so easy for us to say "Why God?", "Why me?" or something on those lines. I personally think these are the wrong questions. We can't change what happened, why they happened, or why people have so much hatred. But what we can do, is ask "What now?" In Corinthians it tells us that faith, hope, and love will last forever. Yes, injustices happen. But we should stop asking why, and instead do something about it. And if your actions are through faith, hope, or love I'm pretty sure you're on the right track. When it comes to injustices and other people struggling and hard times please don't ignore them. They won't go away. DO something, or better yet, BE something. 
BE A LAMP; shed light, help someone understand 
BE A LIFEBOAT; save a life, be there in a time of need 
BE A LADDER; help out, reach new heights

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Interlaken

A lot of people were skeptical when I told them I was traveling solo for almost 3 months. I think the main concern was safety, but I just told the doubters I would be carrying a knife. Others thought boredom would be an issue, but traveling throughout Europe is far from boring. For me, the perks outweigh the downfalls by a lot. When I travel solo, I am more inclined to meet new people and I enjoy my experiences so much more. If I mess up or make a bad decision to do something boring or not worth it- I don't feel guilty for ruining someone else's trip. Instead, I challenge myself to turn that mishap into something fun. If I do something awesome or find something super cool to see, I can soak up the glory because the success was my own. When I'm tired, I rest. When I want adventure, I go for it. No questions, no debating, it's just me and my backpack taking on Europe.

With that said, there have been a lot of mishaps and a lot of awesome experiences thus far in my trip. Switzerland has been a breath of fresh air. It's absolutely beautiful and there is so much to do. Most of it is way above my price range, however, the past 2 days have been jam packed with fun and adventure without totally breaking the bank.

My first day in Interlaken I couldn't help but look up constantly. All day long I was just taking in the views. At one point I saw a building on top of the mountain which caught my attention. I asked about it and learned you can hike or take a cable car type contraption up to it for amazing views. When I heard that, it was a done deal- I was going up there.

I chose to take the cable car up and hike down. I was happy with my decision because on the hike down I was thinking there was no way I would have enjoyed this post-camino. When I got on the cable car and we started moving, I thought to myself "these Swiss are some crazy people" because literally they just build tracks and ropes and cables and take trains, cable cars, and other devices up thousands of feet like it's nothing. My initial opinion of the Swiss engineers has only been proven throughout my stay here because I have seen and rode on some wild, crazy, and absolutely incredible rides.

When I got to the top the view was absolutely breath taking. Finally I didn't have to look up but instead I could look straight ahead to the snow capped peaks, or look down to the lush, green landscapes and crystal blue lakes. The hike down was steep but fun. It was about 2 hrs down and reminded me of my camino days. I was happy not to be doing 30k, and the quiet, solo trek was just what I wanted/needed. When I got to the bottom the trail spit me out right along the river. I followed the river walk for a while, stopped for lunch, and headed back to my hostel. I met some cool kids from UVA, Princeton, Duke, and Chicago. We had dinner together and everyone was telling stories of their bungee jumps, skydives, parasailing, canyon jumping, rafting, and things like that. I just sat back and listened. All of these excursions are like 300 bucks. I think I might do one but I want to hear about all of them before I decide. I actually felt old and realized I couldn't keep up with college kids. I held my own for awhile before the grandma in me decided it was time for bed.

When I woke up today the weather was beautiful. It was actually pretty hot and so I thought I would go on the free boat ride on the lake. I went to catch the bus, got on the wrong bus, and ended up at the waterfalls. Not a bad mistake, I just had to laugh at my inability to read a map. I took the bus to a small town in the mountains. From there, I walked about 3 miles through town taking in the mountains and about 5 waterfalls. I kept seeing signs for this waterfall thing and I didn't quite understand. There were waterfalls in every direction why was this one so special? I followed the signs and ended up looking at a mountain with no waterfall. I was really confused until I saw this cave contraption. Once again, the Swiss engineers rock my world. Inside this cave, there is a train car thingy ma bob that takes you up inside the mountain. Once you get out, there are 10 glacier waterfalls inside the mountain that have carved corkscrew slide looking tunnels with water just flowing. It was really mind boggling to take in what I was looking at. How they built this thing I have no idea- but reaping the benefits was something I was happy to do.

This is where the traveling solo thing just took over. I wandered through this town, wound up at a cable car, took it straight up the mountain, took a train across the mountain, then took a cable car back down the mountain. I had no idea what I was doing, where I was going, but it all worked out perfectly. The views of course were stunning, the towns I went through precious, and the people I met who kept pointing me in the right direction were awesome.

Since I missed the boat ride today - that is on the agenda for tomorrowa. I also want to bike and explore this area on two wheels. Besides the hiking and the mountains, the cheese and chocolate are pretty great, too. So far so good Switzerland.
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