Amsterdam

Rain soaked our jeans while we ran to catch the 9:02 AM train to Amsterdam. Not the most ideal day for a mini-trip, but today was my last day to be able to do it. After an hour and a half train ride from Eindhoven, we arrived in a bustling city full of bicyclists, old brick buildings, and canals every other "Straat."

As soon as we arrived we walked into a shop to purchase a high-quality umbrella (velcro sewed by what could only be a professional seamstress... (sarcasm)). Due to the Umbrella Theory as Nathan later put it, the rain did stop the rest of the day.

Our first and main stop in Amsterdam was the Anne Frank House. When we located it, we noticed there was a line. The line stretched out the building and into the sidewalk. The line from the sidewalk took a 90 degree turn and started going down another street where the end was almost impossible to see. To pass time I bought a not-so-smart purchase of a 3.75 Euro Cappichino and did some eavesdropping on an English group behind us (talking about turbulance so bad on a plane a man in the bathroom hit his head on the ceiling so hard there was hair stuck up there and they had a crash land the plane). Surprisingly we got to the front and bought our tickets in about an hour.

The buildings were made into a museum attached to the actual hiding place of the Frank family and a few others during the Holocaust. We were not allowed to take pictures, but the samples and living quarters evoked some raw emotion. There were video clips, quotes from the diaries printed on the walls of the museum, but the things that struck me the most were the actual artifacts from Anne Frank. On the walls of her room were the actual clippings from magazines that she had tried to use to lighten up her mood. Each step to walk up the narrow, steep wooden stairs I found impossible to keep my knees from banging two more stairs. How could anyone keep quiet on the creaking wood? The actual diary of Anne Frank was displayed in a case right outside the "Secret Annex" and pictures of her father in 1960 brought my imagination of what it might actually be like to live under such persecution, struggle, and loss.

I ate a sandwich in the Centrum before heading towards home. I liked catching a glimpse into the city-- houses next to canals, watching men fascinated with a sewer hole, and a soccer team practicing their ball-handling skills. On our way back home we made a quick stop in Den Bosch to buy Bosch Balls.

Nathan, Tricia, and I met a few other people to eat Lasagna at an Italian restaurant. It was delicious and Bosch Balls for dessert were even better.

Now, the thing that has been on my mind this whole trip... Alaska. As I pack and prepare to arrive back home soon (depending if I am able to fly standby tomorrow morning), my mind hasn't been able to disconnect from the reality that my adventure in Alaska is just around the corner. Although Europe has been fun, I left for Europe already homesick because of Alaska. This adventure of mine might prove to be more challenging than I thought.

Porto, Portugal

Nicole, my very good friend, flew to Eindhoven last Tuesday night. She got a little look at Eindhoven while we traipsed over the cobblestone city centrum. The weather treated us well and we even got to make a quick circle around the block with a borrowed bike. Riding a bike in Holland seemed like an exciting adventure since it is a large part of the transportation and culture of Eindhoven. I packed when I got back to the apartment and tried to get even a few hours before waking up in the early dawn to head to Portugal.

Since Nate was able to drop us off before he headed to work, we were there plenty early. Our plane ended up being many hours late because of a French air strike, but luckily our layover in Madrid was lengthy so we had no issues. Our Portuguese flight attendant stated with his thick accent, "Our flight will be two hours and 25 minutes. We will be arriving much later than scheduled due to thee- uh, Frrrrench. (2 second pause) Air strike."

This reminds me that in our travels, we have realized that some countries have issues with their close neighbors and may slip out racial slurs or comments at times. For example, when we had been at a castle souvenir shop a man walked up to the counter with an information booklet and asked, "Excuse me, do you have this in French?"
The cashier pursed his lips and stated with sarcasm, "We are not a library."
The Frenchman went on, "You have it in Russian, you have it in Croatian, you have it in many languages, but not French?"
The cashier only looked at him silently.
It's interesting to see lasting attitudes from either politics or maybe immigration patterns?

When we arrived in Portugal, Nicole and I lucked out with most things-- information, transportation, beautiful 5 star hotel, and friendly/helpful people. Throughout the 4 night vacation in Porto, we started having so much boa sorte (good luck) we found ourselves often giving each other a usually discreet high-five whenever something good happened. Only at some times did we find ourselves giving a foot-five if we didn't want people to see us secretly celebrating our good fortune. I forget, but it may have been when we found the beautifully fine-pebbled beach in the hot sun when I told Nicole it might need a "four-membered high-five."

Our first full day, we rode the bus to downtown. Despite Nicole's embarrassment of me trying to take out the map occasionally and my camera constantly, I was able to take many pictures. Every few steps, a new building would come into view. I decided that looking like a tourist wasn't too hard when we were both blond-haired and blue-eyed. (We didn't meet another American the entire trip) Around 10 hours of walking allowed us to shop along Rua de Santa Cantarina, view lots of statues and VERY old architecture, and see the Douro River from above the Dom Luis Bridge built in the 1880's. We decided from atop the bridge that we wanted to go down below to see the river up close. I'm very glad we did.

To sit below the bridge on the cement ledge next to the water was a great way to give our feet some rest. We were watching local children jump off stairs into the water while listening to their quick Portuguese words as they teased each other playfully between loud laughter. The sun melted the sunscreen on my cheeks as I soaked in the warmth. Boats with old barrels for carrying Port wine slapped at the water while tugging at their anchors. Along the river held homes, businesses, and abandoned buildings which were built using the natural rock as part of the foundation.

On some buildings, colorful tiles of aqua green, orange, or blue-and-white Delftware covered the outside walls. In a city that originated during the 4th century or possibly earlier, most of the churches, forts, and structures were older than anything I had ever known. We decided to check out the boat tours to be able to travel up and down the river to see the city from a different view.

The next day, we visited a beach near the mouth of the river where the sand was very small rocks. Nicole said she didn't realize she could actually like a sand. When it didn't stick to skin, it was unique, and comfortable to walk on, she liked it.

Since we didn't know where to go for food and often ate dinner much to late after lounging in our room to recover from walking, we didn't find the best places to eat. I know Portugal must have some good food. People suggested trying the Bacalhau at certain restaurants but then we struggled with transportation at times and often got to hungry and settled for mediocre places. However, we were offered a discount price on breakfast buffets so every morning we ate very good Portuguese food.

Most of all, I'd like to mention the people. They were welcoming, open, genuine, and friendly. Anytime we needed a picture taken of us or directions, they were happy to help. I felt that Porto knew that life was worth living with lots of humor, time to relax, and take relationships with family and friends seriously. My first impression of the people in Portugal was when I would take a picture in the city and traffic stopped so I could get a good shot of the building and then the drivers would cheerfully drive on. Later on, I noticed how the men would very subtly take care of the women by offering a seat on the bus to help us avoid standing next to a bum. Or locals would describe Porto with such passion for its history and beauty and then bid us adeus with kisses on both cheeks and a contagious smile. Porto is definitely a special city. One I would gladly visit again. Soon, please?

The first few days

Dad took me to PDX airport.

After sitting at the gate with a plane overbooked by 5, anticipating if I could get on the plane using standby tickets, I was allowed to board the plane. The flight attendent looked at my ticket and pointed in a direction which I started walking toward until she beckoned me back and told me to sit in first class. First class? I have never enjoyed a 10 hour flight more. (However, the movies, food, and Finnish flight attendant distracted me from actually sleeping..)

After a train ride to Eindhoven, Nathan and Tricia picked me up. Then, after moving them from the hotel to the apartment, going shopping and walking around I finally took a nap for a couple hours. That night we went bowling with Nathan's co-workers (where I had a Red Bull in a glass bottle), ate at a restaurant where we cooked our meat on a medieval-type thing, and then went and met even more people at the city center. At 2:30AM we finally retired. That would be 5pm the day before at home. Gotta love jet lag.

The apartments I am staying at.

The view from the patio into the street.


After many hours of traveling, I made it!

Friday, not much happened except for walking around Eindhoven. Then that evening, we drove to Stuttgart, Germany and stayed in the Holiday Inn. By that time I was able to realize that almost all the Dutch speak English, the German are more hesitant to, and ... I feel less cool when I struggle to find the right accent to say "Dank u wel."

This weekend in Germany, we got to see three castles, hike above one of them, eat some authentic German food, see the Alps, laugh at their word for exit (Ausfart), and experience getting passed by Porsches and Alfa Romeos while we pushed the Kia to its max (111 MPH) on the Autobahn.
Nathan and I started to hike up further and further up a cliff to get a better view of the castle, the lake, the town below, and the Swiss Alps beyond.

Nate snapped a shot of me in front of the NeuSchwannstein Castle.

A view of the Burg Hohenzollern Castle's little garden in the middle.

The view of the landscape below the Hohenzollern castle.

Today, we were back to the usual walking around the city centrum. At lunch with Tricia and another girl, the waiter came up to us speaking Dutch. It only took a second after me saying, "Um..." and he says in a British accent, "Oh sorry! English!" Even my accent for UM is a dead give-away. So far in Eindhoven, I've tried Shoarma (a Turkish sandwhich with almost a pita bread with flavorful chicken and lettuce inside), Fried Calamari that came with Squidy the Octupus (I named him before knowing that he was of a different species..), Japanese noodles with bamboo and veggies in it, and various cafe type food.

Overall, a quick summary:
I fit in quite well due to genetic similarities
Food is good, but usually fried-- they love their frites (fries)
Toilets have a little shelf (maybe for viewing pleasure before you flush? I'm not sure.)
Every bathroom you walk into it has a new type of door handle, lock, sink, faucet, hand dryer, etc. something to throw you for a fun little loop of a guess-and-check game
American music is played at many places, but certain street musicians have instruments I've never seen before
The Grasshopper, a "coffeeshop", is not really a coffeeshop.
Light switches are big square flip-switches.
Ambulances sound like "nagging wives." Someone else's quote, not mine.
Hiking up onto cliffs above castles is exhilerating.
Germany is beautiful-- picture potatoes gunny sacks hanging on wooden houses, with flower pots spilling over wooden railings, with tan cows against the backdrop of the snow-capped Alps.

And that is my trip so far using only bits and pieces.