This past weekend I was in Brussels (remember, really cheap bus ride!) from Saturday through Monday afternoon. I went for a concert that took began at 10 pm on Saturday and ended at 6 am on Sunday and thus I can honestly say I didn't come with the worlds best tourist intentions. However, despite the fact that I didn't exactly do my research on Brussels I was pleasently surprised. That being said, I would not rush back to Brussels per say although I think I would definitely give another part of Belgium a try. I mean, you can only stay away from those waffles for so long after you've had your first. See below to understand. I had the strawberry, banana, and chocolate one (middle row, 2nd in on the left) and it was deeeelicious. Yum, I am actually getting hungry thinking about it now. Luckily I brought some Belgian chocolate back with me to remind me of such deliciousness. Do you want to know the best part? I got a box of 25 homemade chocolates! And in fact, I was told that they last anywhere between 2-3 months. While something tells me that my self-control isn't that good, I decided that these chocolates can be a little test. Lets see if I can have only one a day. I mean a chocolate a day keeps the doctor away... right? Besides, I have some type of chocolate everyday anyways (I just CAN'T not) so it might as well be Belgian! 

No, these are not all mine... they were in the window display, thank you very much. 

Bad News...


My basket was stolen! At least it wasn't my bike, but still! This is QUITE upsetting! Hence all the exclamation points!! 

I went for a run on Tuesday when it was sunny and now that I see some sun in the sky again I think I am actually contemplating a round 2 of this run. Hopefully this time it will be a little more running and a little less walking. But, then again, I'll just be proud of myself if I go at all.


Speaking of being proud, I have made one of my goals while I am abroad to read all the books my mom downloaded for me from her Kindle to my Ipad (Yes, to all of those Kindle/Ipad users out there, such an app exists) and I am starting to make some serious progress. I will keep you updated on how that progresses. Since we are on the topic of goals, I might as well just say I would love to run outside twice a week while I am here (maybe increase it to 3 times if the weather ever stays nice). While that may not seem like such a challenging goal, the sun does have to be out for me to do so. Easier said than done. 

I am getting way too good at sleeping through my alarm. Or, in my defense, casually "dismissing" my alarm as the blackberry likes to call it. And, believe it or not, much to my own surprise, I actually have work I need to get done between now and 9:45 am on Saturday when I take the bus to Brussels for the weekend. I am amazed by the fact that I am going to casually get on a bus on Saturday morning in the Netherlands and less than 3 hours later end up in Belgium. So cool! And cheap!


Side note: from the sound of it, the winds of Utrecht have returned. I may or may not make the executive decision to take the bus today. I have never been a fan of the wind. 

Londontown

London was great! It was so nice to be in a large city where everyone spoke English!! Who knew I'd miss English this much after only a month or so (and most people speak it here...). And of course it was even nicer to see my mom and my sister.


We did a lot in the short time we were there thanks to my mom's handy dandy "what to do in London in 2 days" print out. We started out at the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace which was rather irrelevant to me as I was too short to see anything anyways. Then we went to the cabinet War Rooms which I really enjoyed and appreciated much more now that I am 20 (I did a lot of these sites when I was in 5th grade... as you can imagine, I had a much easier time understanding what I was looking at this time around). We then saw the Big Ben and the London Eye and proceeded to wait in a long-ish line to go inside Westminster Abbey. Definitely worth the wait if you ask me. Westminster Abbey is so beautiful and it didn't hurt to know that in just a few weeks Prince William and Kate Middelton would be getting married in the same place that I was standing. Yes, I made sure to find out which part of the church the ceremony would be in. We then continued our Saturday by having lunch at Wagamama and exploring Harrods. To top it all off: dinner at Nobu.


Sunday was just as busy as Saturday although WAY too much time was spent at the Tower of London if you ask me. Put it this way, the crown jewels were just as shiny as they were the first time I saw them. And the armor that was on display could not have excited me less. I just feel sorry for my kids because I refuse to go back to the Tower of London ever again. 3 times is 2 times to many for me. Looks like there Dad will be taking care of that one! Harvey Nicks here I come. Anyways, we then went to the Tate Modern which was by far my favorite stop of the trip; my mom's "what to do in London in 2 days" guide definitely redeemed itself. First off, the Tate is a free museum! After going to a few exhibits in london you will most definitely appreciate anything that is free. Second of all, the two floors that you have unlimited access too without paying a cent have absolutely amazing artwork on them: Pollack's, Monet's, Picasso's, and many many more artists occupied these two floors. The gift shop wasn't too bad either. After that we walked over the Millennium Bridge and looked at St. Paul's Cathedral (in my defense, I have already climbed to the top) and finally called it a day. After a lovely high tea in our hotel we all rested in preparation for dinner and Eliza's midnight birthday celebration. After our late dinner that night we went into the hotel bar and had dessert and champagne for my sister's 18th. And yes, it was all legal! 


Happy birthday again Lize! xxxx 


p.s. My camera is not connecting to the computer. Hence why I didn't post any pictures... grr 

I am off to London tomorrow afternoon with Rachel to go meet my mom and my sister! I cannot wait! Could not be more excited!! Although I'm not sure if I am more excited to see them or if I am more excited to sleep in a nice hotel and eat good food all weekend...


Jokes. My mom and sister win that one. But Nobu on Saturday night comes in a close second. 


Speaking of which, I just called the concierge to try to get us into a restaurant that was recommended to me for dinner on Sunday night and the conversation got a little uhh.. awkward. While I realize the Amex guy is half way across the world, on the phone none the less, I could only imagine the situation had the two of us been having this conversation in person. Lets just say my uncomfortable feelings peaked when I went to say thank you and good night only to chuckle and realize I should be saying good afternoon as he is in the US and not Europe. Then he had a little chuckle and then we overlapped in our chuckling which prompted me to immediately say thank you and hang up the phone. If only I knew his name so I could attempt to find out who was on the other line... then I would really have an in with getting reservations considering we hit it off so well. How romantic I know. 

While it may seem as if I am a chef at heart, I am in a serious fight with the microwave and/or whomever keeps on deciding to defrost things in the microwave. Why the anger, you may ask. Simply put, oatmeal does not heat up when the setting is on defrost. After two failed attempts, and then finally realizing the problem, I poured myself yet again another bowl of oatmeal and finally successfully made breakfast. Talk about a rough morning.

I just cooked Rachel and I dinner. The proof is below. While this may not seem like a big deal to most, I am not exactly the chef of my family. And, for the past two and a half years at school, I have not had a kitchen so I haven't exactly been practicing. Yet, here is proof that there is somewhat of a chef inside of me. Yes, I know its pasta and salad but everyone starts somewhere!

And my post dinner activity? What is it you may ask...

Laundry! Who knew abroad could be such a domesticating experience.

Oh how I have missed you...

While I would never call myself a Starbucks fan when I am in the vicinity of Kaldi's coffee in St. Louis, I often go back to my Starbucks roots when I am home in Long Island. And while Prague may not be home, it housed way too many Starbucks for me to make any kind of effort to find a local Czech coffee shop for me to frequent on my weekend visit. Best of all, Starbucks in Prague, like Starbucks in Long Island (and everywhere in the US for that matter) had Sweet'NLow which means my pockets became awfully full every time I got a coffee. 

Thanks Starbucks in Prague 1! You have made the next couple weeks of coffee for me that much better.  

Praha

After a some-what tiring afternoon of traveling, I got home to my apartment last night with my pre-made salad in hand, only to put balsamic vinegar on it, thinking it would perfectly complement the tomatoes and mozzarella, and wonder why it was tasting so salty... and so japanese like. Well, the answer is, I poured soy sauce all over my salad rather than balsamic vinegar. Like I've said before, you win some and you lose some. I'd say this was on the losing side of things. And yes, sadly, I still ate it. I know, I know... but I was hungry!

Regardless of the soy-sauce mishap, I had a really great weekend in Prague. I stayed with two friends from WashU on Friday and Saturday night and one of my best friends from camp on Sunday night. I did a lot of touring, yet didn't have to wake up super early which I am realizing is an added bonus of not having Monday classes... in fact, I did some solo-touring on Monday when my camp friend was in class. While it may not be that exciting to tour around alone, I was just happy that I figured out how to get to and from our meeting point without totally getting lost. I also happened to go to Prague on a weekend where the sun was out, which I appreciated tremendously considering Utrecht and the sun do not seem to get along very well. The Charles Bridge on a sunny day is great since you can see so far out. I also got to go to the top of the Dancing Building and look over all of the city right as the sun was setting. And earlier that day, I went to Prague Castle and got a view of the city from that angle as well. Lets just say, I have a seriously good collection of what one would call "picturesque" moments in Prague. 

Sunset in Prague from the top of the Dancing Building

View from the Charles Bridge... All hail the sun!!

My favorite part of my trip was when I visited the Jewish Quarter, specifically the Pinkas Synagogue which housed the permanent exhibition "Children's Drawings from Terezin 1942-2944". The museum has over 4,000 original drawings by the children who were imprisoned in the Terezin ghetto, many of which were on display. 

By Ruth Gutmannova

While Terezin was not a death-camp by definition, many who were imprisoned there never made it home, mostly because they were later sent to a death-camp if they did not first come to their death on their own. Among the Terezin prisoners, there were 10,000 children under the age of 15, with over 8,000 of them being deported to death-camps by the end of the war. These drawings are one of the ways in which these children's stories can be told to later generations; I guess whoever coined the phrase "A picture's worth a thousand words" wasn't so crazy after all. The drawings were truly amazing to see, especially when I took a step back and realized that the fact that the children had the ability to create artwork in such a terrible place was amazing it itself. I read that the adults created somewhat of an underground school for the children, and art was one of the "classes" that was given as the adults felt that  art was just as valuable as any other form of learning and of course was also a way for the children to express themselves. If you are as fascinated as I am, here is the official website for you to learn more about this collection of drawings: http://www.jewishmuseum.cz/en/acollectpict.htm

By Margit Koretzova