Well it has been quite a while since my last post. When I got back from Christmas things really got busy around here. It was hard coming back to get into the swing of things but a few days later I woke up and decided not to be sad anymore, since then things have been great. My first big event since Christmas was having Nick's mom Rita and sister Lauren visit! There visit was so much fun and we even got to travel together. Over the weekend we went to Venice with my roommate Ashlee. We loved walking around and eating our way through the city. One day we ate dinner then walked to the next restaurant and got another dinner. The pasta was just so good and we only had two days!! We also walked around Brussels a lot and the grand place was one of their favorite things in Europe!
After they left was my birthday! It was a great birthday and I am lucky to have such wonderful people here to celebrate with. It was also a friend of mine, Erin's birthday so we combined forces and had a get together at our house then out to the bars. We went to a very interesting karaoke bar in the city for a bit before dancing. For my actual birthday I had French class. But before we went to class some of the girls grabbed drinks at an outdoor cafe since it was a beautiful day! The fact that we were at the bar for "happy time" made French class a bit more difficult. I also brought some cake and wine to class. It was a great time.
The next weekend I set off to Croatia with Ashlee. We did not really know what to expect here and were delightfully surprised! The weather was nice and the city was beautiful, but the best part was the weekend we happened to chose to go. When we checked in the person at the desk informed us that it was the 100th year of the football team there. They had a big celebration all weekend. At one point we were at the ATM and Ashlee saw a bunch of guys in warm ups and said , is that the team? I told her there was no way, but we followed them anyway. Turns out it was the team walking down the street and they were going to this square to be honored. They set off flares from the bell tour as it went off. That night at midnight before the game the street was flooded with people. Everyone set off fireworks and starting chanting soccer chants. It was crazy but so much fun!
Next was Nick’s visit here!! He planned it to come on my break to celebrate our one year and it was amazing!! We first relaxed and explored Brussels. We enjoyed some days out seeing the city and some days being lazy, reading together and enjoying each others company. It was perfect. Then we headed to Paris to explore. We did museums and walked all around. The weather was a bit rainy but the rain made paris feel even more romantic. We even enjoyed an amazing, romantic meal on the 2nd floor of the Eiffel tower! After seeing all the sites and enjoyed lots of crème brulee we headed off to London. There we were supposed to see Arsenal play a game but it got cancelled so instead we did our own tour of football stadiums around the city one day. We also went to see Love Story the musical which was amazing and I cried the entire time! After the show we went out for drinks and were drawn into a bar by the loud soccer chants. Nick loved it so much he was taking videos of these intense fans. Later he was approached by this large bald man who asked if he was a cop. After much convincing the guy told him he would not head butt him and throw him into the river Thames. It was a bit horrifying but then we befriended him. He went on to explain that he was a fan of the team that was playing arsenal the next day. He explained that he loves his team and would die for them. Him and all of his friends showed us their chains and tattoos in honor of the team. I thought sox and Yankees fans were bad, but this is like nothing I had ever seen before! We survived that night and then headed back to Brussels the next day. On Monday it was our anniversary and I had to work. When I got home Nick had cleaned my place for me I was so excited. We got ready for a nice dinner and went out. It was a nice night and a great way to end his trip. It was really hard to say goodbye but I am excited that I am so close to coming home for good!
The weekend after Nick’s visit I went to Copenhagen with Ashlee to cheer up! Again we did not know what to expect and of course we loved it there. The city was just so nice. They had beautiful sites, great cafes and some of the best street music I have ever heard. We just walked our way through the city drinking coffee and stopping to listen to music. It was a wonderfully relaxing weekend that definitely cheered me up.
This past week Jen and Jeremy have been visiting. It has been so great having them here! As soon as they got here we went to Amsterdam. The weather was great so after the Van Gogh museum we walked all around the city. It was a long day, especially since they had not slept in a while but we really enjoyed it with our caffeine highs! We have been enjoying walking around Brussels as well and eating as much waffles and frites as we can. I have loved having them around and when they try to convince me to live in Rochester it is hard to say no :). Tonight is there last night so we are going out for a nice dinner and drink. Tomorrow when they go to the airport I will go with them and head to Berlin with Ashlee, her brother and his wife!
