Our Barcelona Break

3 canceled flights

9 extra days
280 dollars
Experiences in Barcelona..

If I was to be completely honest, I would reveal that we weren't exactly thrilled when we found out our vacation got extended. Each time our flight got canceled, which happened 3 times, we were disappointed to not be going home and to be "stuck" spending more money on a vacation we hadn't planned on. At the time, it was hard to justify spending the money in Barcelona when we were hoping to use it to go to other places like Edinburgh. We also missed a whole week of classes which stressed us out even more since it meant we would have even more coursework to make up.

But when I look back on the extra time we spent in Barcelona I can come up with many reasons why I am glad we had that time.

First, we met so many amazing people that we never would have met if we had left Barcelona on the 16th like we were supposed to. Even if we would have gotten on the second or third flight we would have missed out on meeting some of the people we did. We met another Massachusetts Sean who helped to keep our Belfast Sean company since he had been amongst girls for 3 weeks. We had to start referring to Belfast Sean as Sean 1 and Manchester Sean as Sean 2 just to make it less confusing since Sean 2 became an integral part of our group. He stayed with us up until the end, when we parted ways for the airport. We met Aaron and Brian who were two missionaries that we had many talks about life and the need for the church to change its approach towards faith in the youth generations. Ben was a guy from California who graduated early and used the month from his last semester to transverse Europe. The 3 Brit boys never failed to amuse us. You would think Brits and Americans would be very similar. But nope, we could never agree on the rules for card games, even UNO!

Second, we got to truly know Barcelona. The first two days we were there we did as much as we could because we thought that was all we were going to see of Barcelona. Because of this we didnt really have much touristy things left to do for the following 9 days that we were in Barcelona. This meant that we explored areas of Barcelona that tourists might never have found. One example is the second hand English book store that we spent a good hour in one day. We also got to see the Magic Fountain which is truly spectacular. The shows are only on Friday and Saturday nights so we only got to see them since the flight was canceled. The show synchronizes the fountain with lights and music. It is definitely a must see in Barcelona. The Park Guell is also another must see in the city! It was like a real life Candy Land or Hansel and Gretel Candy Cottage!

Third, we got to see Montserrat. Montserrat is a monastery built in the mountains of Spain about an hour away from Barcelona. The view from the monastery was breathtaking! I could have sat on the mountaintop for hours just taking in the scenery. It was interesting to think of all the monks who used to climb all the way up the hillside to get to the monastery. Once you go up, I doubt you came back down. But just the shear dedication to get to the top is impressive.

Fourth, we got to experience Barcelona during Sant Jordi. It is like a Catalone Valentines Day in Barcelona. The men get their significant other a rose and the women get the men a book. Ironically that was the day we went to the second hand book store. I jokingly took Sean 2's book and gave it to him so that he was "given" a book on that day. One interesting observation that we made was that people seemed to expect the gift and it didn't really even seem like an act of love but an expected act. But on the other hand we decided it made it easier on the guys. All they had to do was get a single rose for their woman and not have to worry about coming up with something creative and original that beat the previous year.

Fifth, I already miss the relaxation of not having anything to do. Last night when I was lying in bed with the list of things I had to do running through my mind, I wished I could go back to the peace of Barcelona. It is amazing how relaxing it is knowing you have nothing to do the next day except for read a book and maybe wander around the city.

Sixth, I got to make tons of memories and spend extra time with my American friends. I figured this paragraph would be best done in a bullet format.

• We had Tinto de Verano and Principe cookies almost every night because it was cheap and soo good.
• We watched around 6 movies while in Barcelona, which served as good bonding time.
• We relaxed on the beach a few days and I soaked up the sound of waves since I don't get to hear that as often as all the others since I am in the Midwest.
• We learned a little more about each other.
• The memories and experiences we now have..
  

Priceless

Oh Eyjafjallajokull..

Today is Sunday April 18th 2010. I have not had consistent internet so you will have a lapse in my travels until I get back to Belfast to fill it in. I figured it would be better to blog about what is happening now since it was a drastic change in our travels that all of you should be made aware of if you dont already know. We are stranded in Barcelona Spain because Volcano Eyjafjallajokull in Iceland erupted on Thursday cancelling our plans of returning to Belfast on Friday morning.

We got the news via a text message from aer lingus informing us that our flight was cancelled due to volcanic ash in the air. We had received a text earlier from a friend asking if our flight was cancelled too and we were quite confused. Once we got this text the pieces all fell together. We were stuck in Barcelona for at least 3 more days. We were tired, dirty, and travel worn but we had a few more days ahead of us. We found a place to stay and then started researching what was left to see for free in Barcelona.

Friday we went to Park Guell, which was designed by Gaudi the famous architect. The park was really awesome and started to made me feel better about the extra few days in Barcelona. We got some pasta and fruit to eat in the hostel and then went to see the Magic Fountain. The Magic Fountain was amazing! It was so awesome watching the water burst in unison with the music and lights. You should watch this Magic Fountain youtube video to full appreciate what I saw that night. After that show I was feeling even better about my unexpected time in Barcelona.

The next morning we had the best hostel breakfast we had ever had! It was so impressive that I am blogging about it! That should say enough! I had muffins with powder ontop and chocolate on the inside. They were so good! I also snuck out a kiwi and banana for later. We then went to Montserrat, a monestary in the mountains about an hour away from Barcelona. The view from the mountains around there was truly inspiring. I forgot how mountains can make you feel so humble, especially when you are surrounded by crosses on the hillside and a monastery in sight.

The monastery itself was impressive as it was build into the actual hillside. How the builders got up there in the first place is still a mystery to me. We took cable cars all the way to the top and the incline was very rugged and steep so I cannot imagine how hard it must have been. Once you came up, you rarely if ever came down.

That night we returned to Barcelona and found where our bus for the airport left from. We were going to catch the bus in a few hours and then sleep in the airport Saturday night to save some money since our flight was Sunday morning.

Unfortunately, we received yet another text message from aer lingus stating that our second flight was also cancelled. We started the cycle again. We were at first upset because we were tired, dirty, and ready to be home. We went to a local internet cafe and researched our options. We found ferries that could get us across the ocean to Belfast but we couldnt find an easy way to get to the cities where the ferry left.

After searching for awhile we decided to go as the people at the train station what our best option was. As we were standing in the information line a man infront of us told us about the French train strike. We were now stuck in Spain with buses as our only form of transportation out of Barcelona. After talking it over we decided that financially it was still a better idea to stay in Barcelona and lay on the beach everyday and wait for Wednesday to come when we would hopefully board a plane.

So today we just relaxed at the hostel since it was cloudy and windy outside. Sean and I went to the Picasso museum because it was free on Sunday! That was a nice perk since the others paid for it earlier in the week and we had decided not to to save money. But we still got to see it and didnt have to pay anything. I will have to say it was interesting seeing Picasso´s work and he is an amazing artist, but I am not a huge art lover. I would much rather go hiking or to the beach so I am still happy that I decided to spend 4 hours on the beach earlier in the week than pay for the museum.

We have met many other travelers that are in the same predicament. Some have found ways out, mainly via buses, but most are waiting around until Wednesday hoping that the ashes clear. So as we sit in Barcelona and wait for the ashes to clear, I ask you to pray for all us stranded souls that we find the best in our unexpected adventure and get home safe, yet soon.

Memories in Munchen

We arrived in Munich on Saturday April 10th 2010. I was soo excited to see Jakob, my best guy friend in Belfast. I hadnt seen him for a few weeks and was really missing him. He is the person I go to when I need to be cheered up and I hate going without my daily "Jakob talk".

So needless to say I almost knocked him over when I gave him a hug on the train platform in Munich. haha We went back to his apartment where we met Jonathan Noe his flatmate. His nickname is NoeNoe and at first it was weird calling a guy "No, No" and it served as a funny joke for the remainder of our time there. NoeNoe and I ended up being really similar and Jakob had his hands full when we realized that we have a lot of funny "blackmail" stories about him. We both serve as Jakob's confidant so we shared a lot of stories and laughed at Jakob's expense. But he handled our teasing very well. :) haha

The first night we made fajitas, Jakob and my favorite dinner! Very German we know. ;) We also got three types of beers to try out. They were augustiner, franziskaner weißbier (a wheat beer) and Radler (a lemonady beer). I have never really liked wheat beer, but I really liked this one! It was actually one of the best beers I've ever had! So Billy you should be happy to know that I have acquired the taste for wheat beer since you love it so much. :)

We went out to three different bars that night. The second one was my favorite as there was a dance floor! We also got some sausage and chips (french fries) while we were out. I asked for ketchup with it and forgot that ketchup in Germany and some other European countries does not taste like American ketchup. My advice is to stick to American ketchup if you ever want some overseas. European ketchup is just not up to par in my opinion, and I'm not even a ketchup fanatic. haha

The next morning NoeNoe and Jakob cooked us a traditional Bavarian breakfast, weißwurst-frühstück. It consisted of white sausage, honey mustard, pretzels, and franziskaner weißbier. It was such a good breakfast and I seemed to crave it the next few mornings I woke up. I have told Jakob that we should try to find the stuff in Ireland so we can make the breakfast again! :)That day we just relaxed and watched movies in Jakob's flat. We also wandered around Munich for a bit, but we mainly just hungout at his place.

The next day Mackenzie, Sean, and I fulfilled our tourist duties and went on another Sandeman's free walking tour. Our tour guide was an Irish guy so we enjoyed listening to an Irish accent once again. I have come to realize that I can tell English accents apart a lot better than when I arrived in Ireland. It is much easier for me to pick out an Irish, Aussie, British, or American from the crowd. What the person is wearing is also a good indication of where they are from. Take Americans for example, they are probably the easiest to spot just look for someone with a north face, baseball cap, baggy jeans, athletic sneakers, or a tshirt on. Most Europeans dress up more when they got out in public. Americans on the other hand don't care what others think of their sweatpants. Aussies are probably the closest to Americans in style as they also don't have a problem wearing just a plain tshirt and jeans around. Europeans on the other hand will occasionally wear a tshirt and jeans in public but that is the rare exception.

I learned some interesting facts on the tour. For example, Germany is a younger COUNTRY than America is. Germany did not become a country until 1871. Before that it was a collection of so called states. Munich was a city that was greatly involved in the "white gold" trade, which as some of you have probably guessed is salt. Munich also goes by another common name, Munchen.

That night was our last in Munich so we all went out again. We went to a fooseball bar where we stayed for quite some time. Jakob and NoeNoe obviously frequent that bar quite often as they were very good at fooseball. We stayed there for awhile and then returned to Jakob's flat for the rest of the night. The next morning we headed out for our long day of traveling to Barcelona.

We had 5 hours of chilling at an airport to wait for Lainey to meet up with us!

Break Time in Austria

I figured since I have written so much for every other day it would be okay to combine a few days into this one post since we did a lot of relaxing while in Austria and I do not want to bore you.

Tuesday night we went by train to Venice. It was a 7 hour trip but we were lucky enough to not have any cabin companions so we got the thing all to ourselves and could pull the seats down to make a bed. Mackenzie and I slept most of the way and I was shocked to find out 4 hours had passed when the train conductor woke me up to check our tickets. On the train we met a girl from China who translated our names into Chinese. My three syllables meant something like ouch, waltz, and determined. So we decided that meant that I was determined to always find the best in life and even during hard times I can find reasons to dance. This reminded me of Jeni since one of her favorite quotes is "Its not about waiting for the rain to pass, but it is about learning to dance in the rain."

Julia picked us up at 4am when we arrived in Venice. We were all excited to see her but pretty tired from the trip. Her moms boyfriend has a flat that he works in and he allowed us to stay there for our whole time in Salzburg. It is a really nice place and we are all enjoying the space to spread out and relax.

After taking a much needed nap we walked around Salzburg and saw a lot of the famous sights and where Julia grew up. One thing we saw was the shopping district with all their old signs outside the doors which the street is famous for.


That night Mackenzie and I went out with Julia and her friend Marion. We went to a bar where their friend is the bartender. Let me tell you.. that is the way to go if you want to have a lot of fun and not pay a ton of money for drinks. We drank a lot that night and stayed out pretty late since the bars didnt have a closing time. My favorite memory of the night was Mackenzie and I dancing to "born in the USA". We couldnt be more proud to be from the states at that moment. This might have to become our American drinking theme song since every other country seems to have one but us!

The next day we slept in and then went to do some more sight seeing. We saw a lot of the scenes from the Sound of Music which was really neat. Laura, I thought of you when I wandered around to the various sights. I didnt get up into the meadow where she sings because it was quite a drive or I would have had to pay for a Sound of Music tour and we were playing it pretty cheap. So I saw all the sights around Salzburg and that was pretty much it. I will definitely be watching the movie soon though to see if I recognize the scenery that I saw in the movie.

We also took the time in Salzburg to relax. We watched three movies that night. We watched Eurotrip, Dear John, and When in Rome. I loved When in Rome! It was such a cute movie and was fun to see monuments and buildings that we had just seen in Rome. It was cool watching a movie and being able to know the significance of the buildings I was seeing. It was a very similar feeling watching Eurotrip as a lot of those places I had been as well.

While in Salzburg we ate a lot of good homecooked meals! It made me miss home and the yummy food that I get there. I am excited to have homecooked meals again. In Salzburg we had schnitzel, two other awesome meat dishes, and spaghetti and shrimp. It was such a nice change of pace from our bread and nutella meals that we were having..

Venice - Canals of Love

Monday morning we awoke bright and early to start our trip to Venice. We arrived in Venice around 2:30 in the afternoon. On the bus ride there were two men sitting beside us from Persia. They had limited English, but were really nice. In the little communication we had one of them offered me a beer at 10 am and teased me multiple times about writing in my journal so much.

Once in Venice we found our hostel and dropped off our huge bags. Our hostel was actually in Mestre which is a suburb of Venice so once we got settled in we took the train to Venice to wander around. We had pasta at Kreb a kind of "fast food" Italian place. It was pretty cheap and still pretty good!

We then spent the night walking around Venice and enjoying the canal roads. There were no cars allowed in Venice so all transportation was either walking or by boat. I truly loved the city because I love water sooo much! It was probably my favorite Italian city of them all.

The next day we spent it walking around Venice and just enjoying the city. We took sometime to just relax on the canal side. Man did I enjoy that. It was truly awesome just taking time to really think where I am and why I am here. I have been so blessed to be given the plot I have in life. I have great friends, an amazing family, and tons of opportunities to pursue my interests. In the last 2 weeks I have traveled around Italy, endulged in Salzburg, and rallied in Munich. The next few days I will be experiencing all that Barcelona has to offer me. And I am able to do all of this because I was so blessed. So thank you Lord for all your blessings and the opportunities you have allowed me to have.

So as I sat on the canals of Venice Italy I thought of everything that I am thankful for. I thought of all of you, whom I love. So thank you to everyone who has supported me and helped to make this adventure possible.

Easter Sunday!!!

Sunday started early as Sean and I, mainly I, wanted good seats for Easter mass. We got to St. Peters square around 8:30 in the morning and there was already a pretty long line. We got through the security around 9 and made a mad dash to the seats. We got in about the 30th row! Unfortunately, this was the first day where it rained the whole day. So pretty much the whole mass we had our umbrella out and once we stood for the first time we didnt sit back down because our seat was soaked!

The mass was really interesting and I had a good view of the pope, in between umbrellas that is.. The mass was mainly in latin but there were parts that were in other languages. The whole second reading was in English. It wasnt that hard to follow along but sometimes I would get lost and have to find where we were based off the priests behind us.

At communion it was a mad dash to the priests. I was one of the lucky people to actually get communion! So my Easter morning was spent in St. Peters square listening to the pope and having communion in the rain in Rome.

After mass we went to find Mackenzie because she had just gotten in. She happened to be walking right outside the caffe we were in when she called me so it was a lot easier to find her than we thought it would be! So after our reunion we started to wander the city again!

We saw the pantheon, colosseum during the day, and the forum. The forum is the old ruins of the city. We got some pretty awesome pictures of all of them. Occasionally we would jump into a museum or building to get out of the rain. We got some wine and chocolate eggs in a "grocery store" for later that night.

We then went to the campsite to drop off our stuff and relax a bit. Once we got back into the city we got our tickets for Venice the next day. To truly celebrate Easter we went to a traditional Italian meal. Of course I had lasagna and wine to top it off! It was a really yummy meal and we took our time eating it so we could take in the moment. We were eating lasagna in Italy on Easter!!


That night we had our eggs and wine to finish off our Easter celebration! :)

Saturday Stroll in Rome

Saturday Sean and I relaxed and slept in til ten! woot woot! Then we made our way into Rome to see the Sistine Chapel. We had a reservation for admission at 12:30 but got there an hour early and it was a good thing we did because there was still a pretty long line for reservations. The normal line without reservations was probably about 8 blocks long. It just keep going and going..

In line I met a girl from Pennsylvania who studies at UNI an is studying in Spain for the fall semester. Her grandma had come over to visit her and they were traveling around for her 10 day easter break. She was a really nice girl and we had a good time chatting about how much we love and miss Iowa!

If you have never been to the Sistine Chapel you have to walk through tons of rooms before you even get to the chapel. To be honest some of the rooms before the chapel were more interesting to me. We werent supposed to take pictures in the chapel but I did anyway. I got one really good picture that is similar to a postcard that I got later in the day.

We then spent the rest of the night wandering around Rome and seeing the sights. We visited the basilica of St. Mary and inside there is a arch that has Regina ingraved on it. I immediately was filled with a warm feeling when I saw that. I know that Grandma Ryan is looking after me and making sure that my travels are safe. I dont think I know anyone else who would have wanted to be in Rome during holy week as much as she would have. She had a travelers heart and I am definitely following in her footsteps. If you look closely you can see Regina engraved on the arch in the picture. It was hard to get a good photo of it.

That night we continued to wander around and then decided to get on the internet at a internet caffe. As I was writing one of my blogs and was browsing facebook John got on and messaged me. The whole family was together having Easter lunch at Davids house so they quickly downloaded skype and I got to see and talk to my whole family on Easter while I was in Rome! It was so good to get to see everyone. Unfortunately their mic didnt work so I couldnt hear them so I was basically narrating my last few days to them and watching their reactions. Talking to all of them made my night and I couldnt stop smiling the whole ride home!

Pompei Friday

This is the first time I have had access to the internet in the last few days so i will try to update you on everything that has been happening. I am typing on a German keyboard so excuse a few missspelled words if they appear, I am not fully used to the y and z being in different spots.

Friday Sean and I went to Pompei, the city that was completed ruined when Mt Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. It was an interesting experience wandering through dilapidated buildings which one were the homes of prominent merchants thousands of years ago. One of the quotes was by Charles Dickens and it sums up my day and feelings of the experience quite well.

"Stand at the bottom of the great market-place of Pompeii, and look up the silent streets, through the ruined temples of Jupiter and Isis, over the broken houses with their inmost sanctuaries open to the day, away to Mount Vesuvius, bright and snowy in the peaceful distance; and lose all count of time, and heed of other things, in the strange and melancholy sensation of seeing the Destroyed and the Destroyer making this quiet picture in the sun."

One thing that surprised me about Pompei is that it is a modern city: it is not just a place of ruins but a bustling city as well. I was very surprised by that because I just expected to be dropped off in front of ruins! On the walk to the ruins we saw an Amato caffe. That is the last name of my Sicilian uncle so I got a picture for him to put on the wall of his deli in Omaha! I figured it would be a good talking point for him with new and regular customers.

That night we went back to Rome to watch the stations of the cross. The colosseum was all lite up with flood lights and candles as well. There were so many people there that we didnt really get a great spot to see the pope. We did get to see him; however, none of my pictures turned out so you will have to take my word for it. The stations were said in many different languages which added a level of intrique to the experience.

Our Traveling Thursday..

Thursday April 1st we woke up early to start our day traveling. The first train was from Florence to Rome where we jumped off to get our tickets for Easter Mass. We passed by some pretty buildings and monuments on our quick intro to Rome. We went into a basicila of St. Mary and it is the most beautiful church I have ever seen. On one of the arches my grandmother, Reginas, name was engraved. It felt like a sign that she was watching over me and protecting me as I traveled around. She was a traveler herself and she might be where I inherited my heart for traveling. She was also very religious so being in Rome during Holy Week is where I am sure she would have loved to be. I have a feeling she is with me in spirit and is making sure I am kept safe. So Mom, dont worry Grandma is taking great care of me. Too bad I couldnt have some of her potato salad and chex mix too..

After our adventure in Rome we boarded the train for Naples. Right outside of the station we had our first experience of the hectic chaos that Naples truly is. To be honest, I was dissapointed with Naples from the start. It was not an inchanting or charming Italian city but grungy, dirty, and overpopulated. It was a long treck to our Hostel and we got lost again. But there were two very nice Italians who tried to help us find our way. The was one of the few redeeming qualities about Naples was that there were a few friendly people. The majority of the population however seemed to be in a rush to get somewhere and didnt really care if you were in the path of their moped. The whole city seemed to be driving mopeds. They were all over the place! I was worried that I was either going to get run over or mugged as the city was pretty sketchy as well.

On one of our wanders we came across an alley with laundry hanging from almost every balcony. Talk about a stereotype! Of course I got a picture of that. Unfortunately, my picture is not that great but it will serve to remind me of the view. We also went into a Duomo which was another minor redeeming factor for the city. It was very pretty inside and we were looking around during a mass so that added a level of intrique as well. There was something enchanting about listening to a choir sing in another language as you look at an old gorgeous church. I also saw a famous Italian actor, or so I believe. He looked super familiar and I couldnt place him. The next morning I realized that he has to be an actor. So if anyone knows of famous Italian actors send their names my way. When I have more time I will try to figure out who it was.

Even though it was hard to find the hostel, I really liked it. The vibe was very relaxed and the walls had interesting paintings on them and the common room usually had a person or two relaxing. We met a few Americans and Canadians along with an Australian and British girl. The later ran the place. We had many great conversations with them and a few had just visited Rome and one lived there so they gave us tons of insider advice on where to visit and where to eat.

That night we ate the best pizza in all of Naples. And since Naples is known for having the best pizza in the world we ate the best pizza in the whole world! Let me tell you for 4 euros for a medium it was amazing! It was a margharita pizza from Pizza de Michele.

As we relaxed in the hostel that night I decided to read what the travel book has to say about Iowa. In the central Iowa section it says there are more pigs than people. Way to try and get tourists to come to Iowa! haha But I have to admit that unless you have someone you know there it might not have the same touristy pull as Rome or Florence.. But I would take it anyday over Naples!

So that was my day in Naples. I will be blogging as much as I can but currently I am on a pay as you go internet cafe computer. So have a great Easter and know that I love you and am praying for you! Enjoy your chocolate eggs!!!