As the end of the school year quickly approached I was very sad to have to say goodbye to my students, colleagues and friends in Prague. It's amazing how fast you can connect with new people in a short year together. But amid all the sadness of 'goodbye for now' (thank you facebook, skype, and all forms of modern technology..) I was also bursting with excitement for my long-awaited 2 week adventure in France. My good friend from UW-Eau Claire, Margot, took her holiday time to meet me in Paris and travel around the French Riviera with me for the first two weeks of June.
''11 cities. 14 days.'' That was our mantra. I arrived in Paris sleep deprived and completely fried, and only Margot would greet that Natalie with a huge hug, grab my 3 HUGE suitcases and run down the streets of Paris in her wedge sandals fast enough so we would make our train to the south. She is a rockstar and such a good travel companion.
We visited the cities and towns of Monaco, Eze-sur-Mer, Cannes, Antibes, Menton and Nice in the Cote d'Azur. Next we moved further west along the coast to the second largest city in France, Marseille. From there we did a day trip to the tiny town of Cassis (aka Heaven) Then moved away from the sea into the heart of Provence to Aix-en-Provence and Avignon.
Our tour-de-southern France was absolutely picture perfect. I ate my weight in moules (mussels) and soaked in all things French. I got to practise my favourite language and was even told by a few natives that I was quite good! We said au revoir to the south and went back to Paris where we met my good friend Melissa who flew in for her birthday weekend. The three of us took Paris by storm, getting in all the sights possible in 3 short days.
Here is a slideshow of my last 2 weeks in Europe, in France. (You're welcome for editing my 800 pics from those two weeks to a mere 200)
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
23 June 2011
26 April 2011
Easter Monday in south Bohemia
Easter Monday-the real holiday in the Czech Republic- was spent in the popular southern town of Cesky Krumlov. Ben and Gerry spent the night en route to Vienna while I made it as a day trip. It is a very historic small town of 15,000 with lots of character, great architecture and a fantastic setting in a bend of the river Vlatava. The best thing to do here is simply walk around and soak in the atmosphere along the river and go up to the castle grounds for a better view. We ate, drank the local Eggenberg beer, and tried to find as many 5-petaled roses engraved around town representing the founding Ruzmberk family from 1302. Enjoy the pictures from our lovely and relaxing day in Krumlov!
12 April 2011
spring break 2011: central/eastern europe
What a whirlwind of a week-- I was SO excited about Erica coming to visit, then we had a FABULOUS spring break holiday (obviously), and now I'm back at school..
I know that we would have a blast no matter the time or place, but spring in Prague is probably the best time to visit. The Easter markets are up, the forsythia plants in full bloom, and green grass and trees make a nice contrast to the colorful architechture and natural beauty already in place. We took advantage of every minute possible!
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| view from the top of Petrin (mini Eiffel tower) in Prague |
When I picked Erica up at the airport it was as if the past 8 months happened in 1 day- we chatted non stop for the whole week, got to visit a very interesting part of eastern europe, and enjoyed the gorgeous spring weather. One reality-check moment was her getting to meet and spend time with my new friends and collegues here in Prague. It was strange at first to be sitting in the Zizkov beer garden with my Praha bff's AND sister, but after about 3 seconds I realized this is absolutely perrrfect.
After Erica stepped off the plane we were tourist-monsters. We spent our week doing walking tours, hiking up hills in Prague and Budapest, and walking off delicious 'traditional' meals. Needless to say the 6 hours we spent at the Hungarian baths was completely necessary and worth every HU forint. Mother Nature behaved appropriately and blessed us with a full week without rain (minus the 1-hour blip in Budapest, but we were already in the restaurant for dinner so nbd) and we even got sunburned thanks to the strong sun and temps in the 70s!
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| heavenly natural thermal baths in Budapest |
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| springy sisters! |
27 March 2011
Sister is coming to town!
This week is FINALLY here-- Erica comes to visit on Friday!! If you can't already tell, I am pretty excited.
For our week-long holiday we have a few days planned in Budapest, Hungary, a day trip (weather permitting) to another town in the Czech Republic, and to spend the weekends in Prague. I am so happy that Erica will get to see the city I've been living in for the past 8 months, to meet all of my friends here and to be able to travel together once again.
Western Europe endured the Judd (and Welle!) ladies invasion of 2006, now it's central Europe's turn.
For our week-long holiday we have a few days planned in Budapest, Hungary, a day trip (weather permitting) to another town in the Czech Republic, and to spend the weekends in Prague. I am so happy that Erica will get to see the city I've been living in for the past 8 months, to meet all of my friends here and to be able to travel together once again.
Western Europe endured the Judd (and Welle!) ladies invasion of 2006, now it's central Europe's turn.
12 March 2011
SPRING is in the air
It has been a long time since my last post, so I'll give a quick Prague update.
Almost like clockwork, as March arrived so did the feeling of a new season. Days are noticably longer, green buds appeared on trees and warm sun has allowed me to leave heavy winter gear at home. Spring is here!!
Classes are going well- my post secondary students are deep into Cambridge exam preparation and almost all of them passed their first Mock Test last month. We will do another practise exam in April before the real deal in June. I have started a new business client, Gemalto, a France-based security company. Every Thursday for three hours I meet with about 15 IT security students who have excellent English skills thanks to their international staff and regular classes. I also have a new public conversation class on Wednesday afternoons with a nice mix of University students and middle-aged working women who returned from my autumn course.
When I'm not at school I am busily planning out trips for the next three months, going for walks around the neighborhood or out with friends enjoying Praha in the springtime.
Next week is spring holiday for the post-secondary students so Deanna, Melissa and I are spending the weekend in Munich, Germany. Then, sister comes 1 April!! I took the whole week off so we are going to spend some time in Prague, Budapest, Hungary, and a day trip somewhere else in the Czech Republic. Can't wait!
That is all for now as it looks like another beautiful day!
Almost like clockwork, as March arrived so did the feeling of a new season. Days are noticably longer, green buds appeared on trees and warm sun has allowed me to leave heavy winter gear at home. Spring is here!!
Classes are going well- my post secondary students are deep into Cambridge exam preparation and almost all of them passed their first Mock Test last month. We will do another practise exam in April before the real deal in June. I have started a new business client, Gemalto, a France-based security company. Every Thursday for three hours I meet with about 15 IT security students who have excellent English skills thanks to their international staff and regular classes. I also have a new public conversation class on Wednesday afternoons with a nice mix of University students and middle-aged working women who returned from my autumn course.
When I'm not at school I am busily planning out trips for the next three months, going for walks around the neighborhood or out with friends enjoying Praha in the springtime.
Next week is spring holiday for the post-secondary students so Deanna, Melissa and I are spending the weekend in Munich, Germany. Then, sister comes 1 April!! I took the whole week off so we are going to spend some time in Prague, Budapest, Hungary, and a day trip somewhere else in the Czech Republic. Can't wait!
That is all for now as it looks like another beautiful day!
27 February 2011
Olomouc, Czech Republic
This week Melissa, Zach and I decided it was about time to do a day trip somewhere in the Czech Republic. In our hostel in Vienna a couple weekends ago we spotted a newspaper article about a town 3 hours east of Prague called Olomouc. The article called Olomous a 'mini-Prague' that was not as well known for some reason to travellers. I checked our Rick Steves' guide book and didn't find any information about it, so with help from "Uncle Google" (direct quote from a student) I did a bit of research about this ancient town in Moravia. Saturday morning we hopped on a 7:15 am train to check it out.
It was indeed a scaled-down version of Prague which made it even more walkable and quaint. It is known for its statues and fountains from mythology as well as its gothic and baroque style churches (like everywhere else in Europe, right?). It had a nice botanical garden area and an old palace that has now been renovated into a health center.. rather strange but it was still lovely. We had brisk but sunny weather and spent the whole day taking photos, reading about the town, and enjoying a new part of the Czech Republic.
It was indeed a scaled-down version of Prague which made it even more walkable and quaint. It is known for its statues and fountains from mythology as well as its gothic and baroque style churches (like everywhere else in Europe, right?). It had a nice botanical garden area and an old palace that has now been renovated into a health center.. rather strange but it was still lovely. We had brisk but sunny weather and spent the whole day taking photos, reading about the town, and enjoying a new part of the Czech Republic.
08 February 2011
a weekend in Wien
Since Friday was a day off from classes Matthew, Melissa and I decided to venture to Vienna for a long weekend. Just under 5 hours by bus ,Vienna was the perfect place to spend 3 relaxing days going in and out of museums, palaces, and restaurants.
We learned a lot about Vienna's history including-and most importantly- the royal family that reigned for over 600 years, the Habsburgs. We toured both of their palaces in Vienna, the Hofburg palace right in the city center and their quaint 'summer home' just a 20 minute walk from Hofburg. At the first palace we saw a great collection of diningware and silver that was actually quite fantastic. Then we learned more about the Empress Elisabeth 'Sisi' from the 1800s and her dramatic entrance into the world of royalty... and its equally dramatic exit. Finally we were able to tour the imperial apartments and see their digs. With a nice audio guide we left both palaces feeling the spirit of Sisi et al around us for the remaining time in Vienna.
With nice weather all weekend we successfully completed Rick Steves' walking tour of the city on Saturday afternoon. One VERY important stop was to the original Sacher cafe, home of the Sacher torte aka the best chocolate cake I've ever had in my whole life. I got a recipe but to be honest I don't think that magic can be recreated in my current kitchen-condition.
Habsburgs, museums, german, schnitzel, and good company took over the weekend and here I am back in Prague in the middle of another work week. Time is flying by and school is as busy as ever with Cambridge exam prep round the clock and new business clients scattered throught the city.
PS pictures to come--I'm uploading over 200 now to my Picasa web album but the central European internet speed is taking it's precious time... will share the link soon I hope!
We learned a lot about Vienna's history including-and most importantly- the royal family that reigned for over 600 years, the Habsburgs. We toured both of their palaces in Vienna, the Hofburg palace right in the city center and their quaint 'summer home' just a 20 minute walk from Hofburg. At the first palace we saw a great collection of diningware and silver that was actually quite fantastic. Then we learned more about the Empress Elisabeth 'Sisi' from the 1800s and her dramatic entrance into the world of royalty... and its equally dramatic exit. Finally we were able to tour the imperial apartments and see their digs. With a nice audio guide we left both palaces feeling the spirit of Sisi et al around us for the remaining time in Vienna.
With nice weather all weekend we successfully completed Rick Steves' walking tour of the city on Saturday afternoon. One VERY important stop was to the original Sacher cafe, home of the Sacher torte aka the best chocolate cake I've ever had in my whole life. I got a recipe but to be honest I don't think that magic can be recreated in my current kitchen-condition.
Habsburgs, museums, german, schnitzel, and good company took over the weekend and here I am back in Prague in the middle of another work week. Time is flying by and school is as busy as ever with Cambridge exam prep round the clock and new business clients scattered throught the city.
PS pictures to come--I'm uploading over 200 now to my Picasa web album but the central European internet speed is taking it's precious time... will share the link soon I hope!
02 January 2011
Christmas in London
I was lucky enough to spend the holidays with cousins Ben and Gerry in London. I arrived early Christmas Eve and stayed (thanks to my missed flight...) until the first of January. It was a perfect mix of relaxation and sightseeing that was needed during my holiday break from school. I was able to spend time with family and tour more of London that I missed in October.
Highlights include meeting some of their friends, attempting a dance lesson, visiting the Wallace collection and Soane museum, and having a relaxing Christmas at their flat with good food, films, and company. Although Skype failed to work for our Christmas communication plans to the US, we managed some phone calls to family to wish everyone a happy holiday!
Now I'm back in Prague and have the harsh 'back-to-school' reality tomorrow morning..
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| YAY for my warm scarf, candy canes, and Beyonce |
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| impromptu NYE with Gerry and Ben |
I was lucky enough to spend the holidays with cousins Ben and Gerry in London. I arrived early Christmas Eve and stayed (thanks to my missed flight...) until the first of January. It was a perfect mix of relaxation and sightseeing that was needed during my holiday break from school. I was able to spend time with family and tour more of London that I missed in October.
Highlights include meeting some of their friends, attempting a dance lesson, visiting the Wallace collection and Soane museum, and having a relaxing Christmas at their flat with good food, films, and company. Although Skype failed to work for our Christmas communication plans to the US, we managed some phone calls to family to wish everyone a happy holiday!
Now I'm back in Prague and have the harsh 'back-to-school' reality tomorrow morning..
04 November 2010
fun with Zoey
The alarm went off at 4:14 am this morning, forcing Zoey and I to say goodbye after a fantastically full 2 weeks together. Here are some pics from our holiday:
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| 1 pound scarves |
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| Vampire Diaries tees from Barbie |
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| Krakow, Poland |
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| Big Ben |
09 October 2010
Countdown: 11 days!!
My best friend from school, Zoey, is coming to visit!!! We're in the process of planning a trip to London to visit my cousins Ben and Gerry and possibly another weekend trip. So far plans for Spain have taken a too-expensive route, so we're still brainstorming. Any ideas??
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| we love scarves. |
06 August 2010
The trek
3 bags. 2 arms.
3 layovers. 26 hours of no sleep.
0 language comprehension.
Yet somehow, I'm in Prague.
I didn't miss a flight, immigration let me through without a return flight, and i have keys to an apartment. These are all good things that have led me to an indoor shopping mall (Galerie Fenix) in NE Prague that is central to my new neighborhood, and has free wifi (as well as a gym called "I'm Fit!")
Due to the rain/my overall exhaustion there are no pictures to post yet. However, Sunday we will be going on a group walking tour of the city so i will snap some goodies then!
3 layovers. 26 hours of no sleep.
0 language comprehension.
Yet somehow, I'm in Prague.
I didn't miss a flight, immigration let me through without a return flight, and i have keys to an apartment. These are all good things that have led me to an indoor shopping mall (Galerie Fenix) in NE Prague that is central to my new neighborhood, and has free wifi (as well as a gym called "I'm Fit!")
Due to the rain/my overall exhaustion there are no pictures to post yet. However, Sunday we will be going on a group walking tour of the city so i will snap some goodies then!
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