oh man soooo much catching up to do....

I guess we're still on Germany, huh?

Okay... you know what? before it gets too far behind I'm just going to write in current stuff and when I get the chance I will fill the rest in. Sorry about that. Not that anyone reads this anyway though.

Okay... Nice, since I just got back from there.

Absolutely incredible!! So after being up until 3am to finish that hell hole known as midterm papers, I got to sleep for 2 hours before we had to get ready and get our cab to the airport. We made it in time, had a tired flight but when we were landing in Nice at around 10:30am I knew we had chosen the perfect vacation spot.

The view of the mountains, with little cottages in it, the cote d'azur, the beautiful blue waters, the pebbly beach (which is admittedly prettier to look at than to step on) was honestly, I can say, the most beautiful place I have ever been. (Or at least tied with La Isla Culebra, where I went in Puerto Rico.)

As soon as we got to the hotel, which was a little run down, a little shabby, but hey everyone was friendly, it was cheep and it worked. By the way, in France if your hotel comes with breakfast, that means a croissant, a baguette, orange juice, and a hot beverage.

We got to our room and we opened the window to let in the warm see air, it was supposed to rain the day we got there, but we had perfect weather the entire time. So much sun entered through our room, we took a nap and when we woke up Anna had a short tan line already.

Basically it was 5 days of lying on the beach (bliss), going in the ocean, eating amazing french food, and dancing on tables every night.

Oh and the whole getting lost in the french mountains. Definitely a well-deserved vacation. So much better than city hopping like everyone and their mom seemed to be doing, though it would have been fun to go to Madrid/Barcelona with chad.

so much

sorry for lagging behind, ive got to finish the germany blog and write the paris one but in the meantime...

Review of "Our Class" for DRA451 √

Group Paper on subcultures in Notting Hill / Portobello Markets --> Written, just need to wait for Iva to submit her revisions so we can edit and work on our class presentation. Due Tomorrow.

Description Piece on Sachsenhausen for WRT422 --> Need to edit. Due Friday

Paper on Starbucks in london for WRT422 --> Need to finish and Edit. Due Friday.

Paper for Visual Issues in the Media --> Need to start, finish, and edit. Due Friday.

Article for Zipped Magazine --> Need to start, finish, and edit. Due Today but I got an extention till Friday.

Weather in Nice when I get there... 71ºF makes it worth it.

Berlin, Deutschland - eine

It's interesting being in a foreign country with a different language. German is really cool and kind of hilarious. Growing up in a global city I' so used to people walking around gushing in some unrecognizable jargon. It's weird to think that in Berlin, this is me. While everyone here knows a little bit of English, just enough to get by, they don't really understand the language and our conversations in general are just nonsense to them. I find that neat. I fund a lot of things neat these days

-zwei-

We arrived in Berlin quite late and all very exhausted so after our meetings and dropping our stuff off in the, essentially, bachelorette pad that we were given, we wandered off and got pizza. Yes we are in Germany and had Italian food, but I don't care because it was amazing. Anna and I split the quattro frommagio and my wait line yelled at me a little. It's okay though, it was delicious.

-drei-

The next morning, bright and early, we got breakfast form the hostel, where I kind of ate my life away. Actually soo much food. chatted with Wolfgang, who is the shit, and met our hilarious, dorky, and opinionted tour guide, Gabriel who led us around for the day.

- vier -

Gabriel took us around this city and taught us the history of Berlin. There's something quite remarkable about Berlin in that so much of the city was rebuilt after it was destroyed in the war, yet below the new and modern buildings, the old Berlin very much still exists in a sort of alternative Universe.. It is very much still there, almost vivid really. Gabriel showed us where Hitler used to live. What's there now? Get this... a playground!! As in, for children. As cool of a city Berlin has now become, I don't think it's a place I could ever live or call home. Too much negative energy lurking it its streets.

right here, right now. London.

Yesterday (i wrote this over a week ago, but at the time i wrote "yesterday") for the very first time, I felt myself in London. There was nowhere else in the world I could possibly be except in this city. I know the exact moment it him me, it was subtle but recognizable none the less.

It wasn't the bright red double decker busses or all the drivers on the "wrong" side of the car. It wasn't the castles or mansion that we've toured or the brilliant accents escaping each man's tongue. it was not the pubs crowding each corner of every single street with men in suits crowding around each day. it wasn't being at the Globe for the first time, though that experience was magical indeed.

It was something else, a feeling, a vibe. I was alone, exploring trying to find a way to use my time. Searching for London, perhaps? With a cup of tea in my hand and a theatre ticket in my purse, I was ready to explore.

My venture started at Cecil ct. the little alley way that JK Rowling based Diagon Alley on. This tine street is filled with little antique shops, miniature art galleries, but most importantly, bookshops. These shops were unique and wonderful, each one so different from the next. Each one so old. Each so quintessential. Almost pristine in a dusty, odd way.

I love books, and these stores were just so incredible for me to stumble upon. My favorite was the spirituality one, I must go back there to get a palm reading. (judge me all you want, but I find that stuff really neat.) I wish I could work there. I could feel the jist of London poking at me, I knew it was near but the click didn't occur yet. It was coming.

I continued walking on and passed this tiny alleyway it was so small, I can't imagine people could go in more than single file. Maybe double if both people were small. Inside this alley there were back doors to all the pubs and restaurants that had entrances on the main streets. I headed towards it but the first 1/2 was dark and I got nervous and went back to the main road.

However, I ended up on the other side of this alley, the entrance just slightly bigger and there was this kind of cheery feeling there, lots of chaps (yes, chaps, that is the right word) were drinking beers outside these pubs in this alley just chatting, drinking, perhaps having a fag (British slang for a cigarette, not an anti-gay slur... obviously.) And gosh, I can't explain it, but everything just clicked. This is London. You are here. Right here. Right now. Yes.

that being said...

I love london, really it's great, I'm having a wonderful time here and feel totally at home. But that being said, I couldn't live here forever, I miss New York wayy too much.

I miss the coffeeshop on the corner of 86th and 1st open all night long that fulfills my 3am cravings of mozzarella sticks and french fries. nothing is open that late here, well almost nothing.

I miss the bright lights and dizzying crowds of times square, the tourist attraction the New Yorkers are supposed to loathe, yet it is the place I love. Rowdy crowds and luminous marquees is the place I all home.

I miss the food, oh the food. Block after block of every cuising you cold ever imagine. Open all night long (did I mention that?)

Little Italy, I don't go there much, but oh the food. Gelato and Cannolies all the time, open all night long (did I mention that?)

I miss my shows. Hair, In the Heights, Next to normal, Rent. Oh that's right, Rent closed. Well I miss it even more.

I miss all the shows being in one small street, not knowing what to see being completely okay. I miss the sponteineity.

I miss knowing where everything is. Not needing to consult a subway map everytime I need to get from A to B. And not getting lost everywhere I go. Okay, that isn't true, but I have a general sense of orientation in New York that I don't have here.

I guess it's not just New York I miss, but rather MY New York, the city I know, I miss knowing the place that I live.

I miss my friends, my family, my comfortable bed, my shower, my kitchen, my closet, my space. I miss the view from my terrace fro the 27th floor looking over the river to the east and a the gaggle of sky scrpaers to the west.

I do miss a lot of things, but I love London and am thankful for this opportunity to be here.

Hamstead Heath

Okay, so I'm going to start little by little and a bit out of order but here goes...

There is something so poetic about hamstead heath that really compels you to write. You just want the visions in your mind and the thoughts in your brain to articulate themselves into structures that do the beuaty justice. You want to reach out, let everyone around you know the connection that you have made with such tranquility.

What I love about Hamstead is that there is an air of calm, litterally a forest with trails and hills and large plains of grass and archaic watering holes. This park, if you can call it that, is then surrounded by brilliant crafted homes and gardens. On top of that, this little patch of serenity is right in the center of this crazy, busy, international city.

Would love to live here someday.

get excited

there will be lots of updating soon. brace yourselves. In the meantime, sweet dreams chicos.