Berlin/Prague

The world clock in Alexanderplatz

On the ferry from Denmark to Germany

Berlin tower!

Berliner Dom

Brandenburg Gate

Inside the Dom 

Berlin Wall

At the top of Prague!

Charles bridge and castle

On the bridge, everyone touches the gold spots and prays to the cross above it

On the Charles Bridge in Prague

He didn't want a kiss :( Zoo in Prague

A lot of buildings were painted, so cool!

Lennon Wall in Prague

famous clock in old town

   So much has happened since I've checked in last, sorry its been so long! I visited Berlin and Prague for my Easter break with a bunch of my friends from school. We went to Berlin first and stayed with one of Sebastiano's friends that is working as a programmer in the city. It was nice because then we also had a tour guide! Although, 9 people in a flat was something new for me, but we managed! It only took about two hours for us all to shower and get ready in the morning. After getting settled in, the next day we went all around. We went to Alexanderplatz where there are a bunch of street shops with food and little goodies, the world clock you see up above, and more. From there we walked the "Alexanderplatz street" which led us to the Berliner Dom. It was remarkable. Three of us went inside to tour around the main floor, crypt, and very top of the dome. While we were sitting and taking in all of the architecture and art, we even got to listen to the organist play for a while. It was really a neat experience. From the Dom we traveled to the Brandenburg gate, and Jewish memorial. I had to make a stop into the Mercedes gallery on the way, the cars were just too tempting.... maybe one day I can afford half of one that was on display. Anyone is welcome to pitch in, I wouldn't mind. 

    The next day we went to a nice brunch, all you can eat buffet. We were all in heaven for about an hour. We managed to get out of our chairs instead of napping and went on to see the Berlin Wall. The art covering it was magnificent and very colorful. They ended up tearing down a few pieces the day after we visited, so I'm curious to know which parts. I payed a euro to get my passport stamped with the "checkpoint charlie" stamp. Maybe a little overpriced but still really cool. After the wall, a few of us went on the to Jewish museum where we spent a few hours learning more about Jewish traditions, culture, the Holocaust, and viewing possessions donated by families who lost loved ones. 

   On Monday, Nicola (Sebatiano's friend) had to work so we met up with him for lunch down past the Berlin wall before heading to Prague. We then took a bus for about 4 and a half hours to Prague. We got in around 8 and met up with some other friends also visiting the city form DTU in old town. Its weird how big yet small the world is. I met another kid that goes to KU and is studying abroad in Barcelona that is cousins with one of my friends. I couldn't get over the concept! Tuesday, we saw the Charles Bridge, Jewish cemetery, the home of the Prague philharmonic, the castle, the clock in old town, a few palaces, and the Lennon Wall. A lot of walking but definitely well worth it. 

    On Wednesday, our last full day, we went to the zoo and Cafe Imperial. The zoo was awesome, all of the places to view animals were so up close it was even more fascinating to watch the animals. The animals were also all very active and liked to show off and pose. I was able to get some really neat pictures. The Cafe Imperial was founded around 1913 and was very famous among the Czech people. Then, during WWII, the Nazis took over it and used the facility to wine and dine in luxury. It then became less popular since the people did not look up to the Nazis. Once the war was over, it was slowly restored back to its former glory and now its a place for Europeans and travelers to visit for an exquisite meal. I could eat there every night no problem... 

   Sadly, we had to leave on Thursday and head back home. Now I get to study and work, I forget I'm here for school sometimes. Tomorrow I'm going to host an Easter brunch for all of my friends. 

Happy Easter everyone!! 

    

Lapland pt. II

   The rest of my week in lapland was extraordinary. After my husky ride I had an arctic tour, which last one day, a ski/sledding day, a reindeer sleigh ride, and of course, the northern lights. On the arctic tour we crossed the border from Finland to Norway and spent a few hours in a small town on the beach. Here we got to swim, if you were brave enough, eat some homemade salmon soup at the church and walk around. The ocean was absolutely freezing but they had a sauna so all the crazy tourists that want to swim in the arctic ocean can not die of hypothermia. I guess I'm classified as a crazy tourist. After this we got to peer out the bus window for reindeer roaming the mountain side, view a bunch of magnificent scenery, and shop at a local store on our way back. I bought myself some nice Scandinavian mittens so my fingers wouldn't freeze off skiing the next day, good thing I remembered to bring gloves from home.... Anyways, skiing was incredible.
   They have awesome snow here considering it snows blizzard style almost every day. The powder was great and renting gear and a pass really wasn't all that expensive. I have some pictures from skiing but it will be a little while before I can get them from my Belgian friend to post. After skiing we went on the longest sledding hill in Europe, a 1.5 km long hill! Although going down on a one person sled with two people wasn't all that smart, it was still a blast. Walking back up the hill really wasn't that fun so I only went down a few times :)
  The very last night we were there we got to see the northern lights from the top of the hill (the picture is the best one a guy in our group could manage).We had our Italian physicist with us to explain what was happening with the ionization of the molecules so that was also very helpful. The northern lights were such a crazy/amazing thing so see, but the stars were equally as cool I thought. We were in a town near no other towns so there were no lights, no pollution, and we were directly under the northern star.    
 After we checked out and left our mountain villa, we traveled to a reindeer farm where we got to enjoy a nice sleigh ride in pairs. We picked the one with the biggest antlers because he looked awesome.. he turned out to be their meanest reindeer at the farm, go figure. After the sleigh ride, we went into a traditional style Saami house (the people of Lapland are called Saami people) and had sausages cooked by the fire, some tea, and learned about the reindeers, Saami culture, and got to hear the lady sing a traditional Saami song. It was all very fascinating. From here we ventured to Helsinki, toured the city and the national history museum and then headed to Copenhagen. After a long 27 hours, we finally made it home!

Arctic circle

   My second day in Lapland and I haven't turned into an icicle yet, so off to a good start! After traveling on a bus for a total of 24 hours, we visited the Kemi snow castle, Santa in the arctic circle with the official post office and tree and all, seen the northern lights, and got to mush a husky sleigh on a safari adventure. It has been an incredible experience despite the cold! At the Kemi snow castle they had a chapel, cafe area, an ice slide through tunnels (yes I went down), sculptures, rooms with beds (just for show I think), and more. My second picture is the "beauty and the beast" sculpture and all you see in the first three pictures is made from either snow or ice. It was surprisingly warm for being in a cave of snow. 

  In Santa's village there was a massive tree with flags from all around the world, a sign pointing to all main cities, a post office where his elves were working, and of course, his own building where he was talking with people from all around the world. Santa and I had a nice chat and took a photo, he's quite a jolly fellow :) I tried a reindeer burger also!! It was surprisingly really good... I felt kind of guilty being in Santa's circle in all though. It was snowing heavily but beautifully, which made it all the more magical.

  Then, arriving at midnight, we finally were at our resort! There is a group of 8 of us in a mountain villa at the top of Saariselkä, the name of the town we're in. We have an awesome view and at about 1 am we could go outside and see the northern lights. I then brushed up on my quantum physics so I could understand what exactly was happening. Extraordinary how the universe works. 

  We got up this morning and ventured out for our Husky safari, becoming experts on the sleigh. We partnered up and got to take turns mushing the huskies. I had a great time and would do it again in a heart beat. I got to pet all the puppies too so I was in heaven. I want one now... ahem.. mom, dad... :D       

  We warmed up in a log cabin with some warm cider and a cookie and then headed back home. I walked to the center for some wifi so I could update my blog and do some homework.. we'll see how much I can get done. Tonight we're heading out to walk to the top of the mountain to get a better view of the Northern lights. I hope I'll be able to get a picture but it may be too dark/too hard for my camera. 

Off for now, but there will be more to come!

Danish tour

   I am back from my Denmark adventure and now packing for my Finland adventure! It was a great weekend with awesome weather. We traveled first to Skagen, to the beaches and sand dunes. The beach was incredible and I got to stand at the northernmost tip where the North sea and Baltic sea meet. The water was a little cold, but it was worth it! At the dunes, we found a really steep hill and decided it was a good idea to roll down it... it was super fun, but finding sand the next 3 days in all my clothes was not. Definitely worth it though. From there we traveled to Aalborg. I loved it and thought it was very quaint. We stayed the night there and also got a tour of the city. The next day we headed to Aarhus, which is the second largest city in Denmark where we visited the ARoS art museum (it has a rainbow circular observation area at the top where I have one of my pictures) and toured the city. I met the Danish soccer team when we went out as well so that was pretty neat. I played fussball with the goalie of the team, but I think I need a little more practice... I wasn't a very good team mate. From there we went to Odense, the third and oldest city in Denmark, wandered around and got to see Hans Christian Andersen's house as well as the museum. The trip was an incredible few days full of new people and new places. I think I will definitely travel back to some of the cities at the end of the semester. Now I'm off for a week in Finland where it will be negative four degrees Fahrenheit to ten degrees, but it is supposedly the best year, and best weekend to see the Northern lights. I'm extremely excited and can't wait to share what I experience when I get home!