Europe – a lizard abroad

July 17, 2024 – Surfing in San Sebastian

November 3, 2024November 3, 2024Posted in Europe, SpainLeave a comment

Okay, back at the blog! Please excuse the hiatus.

When I left off, we were just tucking in for our last night in Munich.

We’d had the best day ever in Tegernsee, but unfortunately, we were up pretty late because we didn’t time the busses and trains very well to get home.

Pair that with our 8:30am flight to San Sebastian, and it meant that we were capital-T Tired in the morning.

We basically zombied to the airport, where I bought a super dense pastry that seemed promising but was not all that tasty (way too sweet).

We did get some good mountain views on the flight.

San Sebastian doesn’t have a giant airport nearby, so we saved some cash by flying into Bilbao. Planning this part of the trip was stressful, because I really wanted to explore both Bilbao (on the west side of San Sebastian) and the French town of Biarritz (on the east side). In the end, though, it seemed more trouble than it was worth to split the time up, so we hopped straight from the airport to a San Sebastian transfer bus.

We met our Airbnb host, Lukas, at the train station and he walked us to our stay. He was trying to find an electrical engineering job (Sean bonded with him over this) after deciding to take a break from acting and modeling. (He had pretty crazy blue/ teal eyes! Definitely fit the bill, hahahaha…..)

The architecture in the area was very cool. Kind of French, kind of like Barcelona. Lots of stone and intricate carvings, and most of the buildings were about six stories high.

I think I talked about this already, but I really do think my days of flying super early (especially if I’m with Sean) are behind me. When I’m on my own, at least I can force myself into bed, but having Sean to chat with in the evenings (and as a safety man/ body guard so I don’t feel pressured to get home before dark) mean it’s way too easy to stay up later! I can also just suffer by myself and push through when I’m alone, whereas with a travel buddy, somehow I’m both way more guilty about my travel companion being tired and also somehow feel way more empowered to be tired and lazy myself… It’s not a great combo!

All this to say, once Lukas showed us our room, I went horizontal and didn’t resurface for about three hours. Sorry, Sean!

Once I was somewhat revived but still very tired), our first stop was food. San Sebastian is in Basque country, a wild little area on the border of France and Spain that has its own language, culture, and history. Somehow, the Basque language is a “language isolate,” meaning it has no linguistic cousins or ties to other languages. Very strange! How does that even happen? Everyone on this side of the border speaks Spanish and Basque, and presumably everyone on the French side speaks Basque and French.

One of the big food themes in Basque territory are pintxos (pronounced pinchos), little small plate snacks or appetizers. Our favorites (and the most common type) were just a healthy slice of bread with various toppings. Basically, you just walk up to the counter, point out the ones you want, and then eat at the counter or take your plates back to your seat. I quickly discovered that anything with soft cheese or grilled onions was usually going to be my favorite at any given spot.

After the pintxos pick-me-up, we explored the nearby cathedral and some nearby parks.

I always get excited when I see swans!

Once we were in the center of town, all the streets were lined with shops, and I anticipated some possible shopping excursions.

For now, though, more food! Empanadas!

We got the chocolate banana (yum!) and I think the other one was either ham and cheese or chicken curry. Can’t quite remember.

Next, we walked down to explore the beaches. Sean was super excited about being here because 1) he had some kind of pull toward Spain, and 2) he wanted to go surfing.

There were so many bodies in the water! Dozens and dozens of surfers catching pretty big waves! It looked super overwhelming and crowded, but obviously they were probably all pros. The whole beach area had a super content, relaxed, and joyful vibe. Sean was digging the feel of this city already.

There were lots of people (and unsupervised kids!) playing volleyball and lounging around (often topless). There were also several groups playing some kind of ping-pong type game, but just keeping the ball volleying between paddles without a net or anything. They’d even dive into the sand sometimes. We took notes and considered buying a set of paddles ourselves to try.

Somewhere in the last day or two, I must have sat on my sunglasses, so once we left the beach, we had to stop in a little shop to get me a replacement pair, and I got super distracted by all the trinkets.

I was also tempted by the Basque cheesecake, but we weren’t hungry yet!

And then, ever distractible as I am, I found a Flying Tiger (my old favorite store) and had to do a lap!

We wandered through some more parks and eventually ended up in old town. There were Basque flags hanging off the buildings, and there was a marching band playing somewhere nearby. There were also lots of high school or college-aged kids in some kind of uniform gathering, dancing, and partying near the band. We thought about investigating, but we assumed it was something like a high school graduation party, so we decided to stay out of it.

There were some more pretty churches and cathedrals nearby that we explored.

And by then, we were right in the heart of old town, at the intersection of three different highly-rated and recommended pintxos places.

These places were hopping, and there were obviously no tables available in any of them. We actually putzed around for quite a while trying to figure out what to do, wandering in and out of the restaurants and trying (and failing) to get the attention of one of the bartenders. But then we heard a big commotion outside, so we wandered out to find that big marching band headed our way from down the street.

The band led the way, and all of the crowd stayed back at the other end, bouncing in anticipation. Then, at some signal in the song, they all rushed forward, singing and dancing, with confused and happy tourists trickling in behind them. It was quite a show!

We finally managed to the get the attention of a bartender to order a cerveza, a sangria (yum!) and a few pintxos. Then we brought them outside to eat on the steps. Delicioso!

If you know me, you know I was seriously smashed after that one sangria, bahahaha.

We snuck our way into another of the crowded restaurants for a couple more pintxos. I was super intrigued by one that “appeared” to be some kind of custard, but I was worried about the name, “crema de foie.” I knew “foie” was very likely related to “foie gras,” aka, duck liver. But I took a chance!

And in fact, it was liver, bahahaha.

It wasn’t bad, but it was so stinking rich that we could only eat a few bites. This restaurant definitely had some more outlandish pintxos compared to the rest of the places we’d seen so far. (Lots of sea urchins!)

Once full and properly tipsy, we continued our journey around the old town area and ended up near the water.

To our surprise, there was a full-on concert going on just right on the street by the waterfront. At first, I couldn’t tell if it was live, but it was live, all right, and the scene was poppin’!

Sean went into the throng of the crowd first while I stayed up above to view the mesmerizing line dance everybody seemed to know.

The music was so interesting! It was clearly Basque/ local music, but it was a very strong Celtic lilt to it. It basically sounded like Celtic music, but a little heavier and with Basque or Spanish lyrics there everybody in the crowd knew but us.

I joined Sean right behind the mixer, and he snuck off to find us some libations.

When he returned to me, he said, “That was crazy. There are like a dozen fifteen-year old girls just trying to get people alcohol as fast as possible. This sangria was like two euros!”

I’ll never complain about cheap sangria!

I took a picture of this little crab symbol because it was on the little bandanas all of the uniformed kids were wearing. I figured that was our best bet at figuring out what the heck was going on here.

Sean was in heaven and just about ready to move to San Sebastian. “What is going on? Is this just like a normal Wednesday here?!”

Thanks to that genius photo, I was later able to research and find out that the celebration was for the port’s patron saint Carmen. We were there on the very last day of a week’s worth of parties, parades, dances, and fanfare. It took me a long time to find more details because so little was in English, but I finally found a full schedule of the previous week’s activities. The one I’m most sad to have missed was the “Giants and Big Heads,” parades where people dress as giants (using stilts) and “big heads,” where they literally just wear giant fake costume heads, hahaha. Sounds so fun! I was just glad we were able to catch some of the party. That concert was seriously so serendipitous!

We tried to join in on some of the easier dances and watched with big smiles on our faces when we couldn’t keep up. Sean was positively flabbergasted that all of these high schoolers knew so many of the moves. I guess there really isn’t an equivalent in the US! Maybe it’s like everybody doing “Soulja Boy” back in middle school, but with way more moves and to over a dozen different songs, hahaha.

Every few songs, a little dance troupe took the stage and performed what was so like Irish step dancing it was crazy. Sean and I just got more and more confused (and delighted) as the night went on.

We stayed and partied through another sangria and then finally decided we were ready for bed. We left the party in a daze and then made our way along the waterfront, admiring the super shallow waters and the rising tide as it slowly ate up some gorgeous sand art leftover from the day.

We found some street art that I couldn’t pass up. The artist was sitting and painting new tiles fresh in real-time (my favorite!), but Sean really needed to pee, so I was forced to make a quick decision! I spent the whole walk back to our Airbnb terrified that I had made the wrong decision, but when we got back and I opened it up, I was thrilled! I don’t think I could have really chosen wrong in the end. Just look at these gorgeous things!

In the morning, we meandered to one of the restaurants right on our street for breakfast. We were basically no-budget at this point (yeesh), so we splurged on fresh OJ, coffee, and toast. I got jamon, and Sean got avocado and lox. Yum!

When we ordered, I was trying to do so in Spanish, so I just walked up and started ordering, but the barista stopped me and said (in English), “HELLOO… HOW ARE YOU? THAT’S HOW WE START HERE. HELLOOO….”

Lol, okay! So apparently I was being rude! I made a mental note to at least say, “Hola” in the future…. Or to just make Sean order.

We savored our breakfast, but we didn’t have much time to waste. We had a surf lesson scheduled!

Unfortunately, we didn’t get a single photo of the whole experience. We didn’t want to leave any phones unattended on the beach, and it was a big hubbub of commotion the whole time.

We arrived at the surf school to find that our private lesson had been changed into a group lesson… Lol. At least that made it cheaper. There would be six of us with our teacher, Enico. We were given little shortsie wet suits, and I had to size down THREE TIMES until I was in a child large. Bahaha.

We then had to carry our boats about ten minutes (so far!) to the beach. We were with a Belgian mom and daughter, a German girl (who sounded like a kiwi), and a French girl.

We had a quick beach lesson, and then we hit the waves. I’m pretty sure mine was the only name Enico learned. “Elizabet!” he would call before beckoning me forward. Either my name was easy to remember, we were just vibing, or I was the worst one in the group.

Unfortunately, I was pretty overwhelmed from the get-go. I fell off my board in the wrong direction on my second try, so the board hit me in the back of the head and kept me under for a second. I was fine, obviously, but it definitely freaked me out!

I took long breaks after that, just hanging out in the water and waving everyone forward to cut me, waving off Enico’s frequent efforts at calling me to him. Wish that hadn’t have happened!

In the end, I only had four runs, but I got up to a knee on my third try and stood to my feet on my fourth. Definitely not as good as Hawaii, but I think it was pretty good given the circumstances! The surf was also much closer to the shore than it had been on our Hawaii lesson, so you didn’t have as long to ride the wave. Oh, well! This was much cheaper!

Sean fared better than me, catching several waves, and we were all exhausted when Enico called time. The German girl said she felt like she was now 99% salt water, which I felt was an accurate description.

After we returned our boards, Sean and I walked back to the beach for a little more swim time, but the water wasn’t nearly as warm without the wet suits!

We rinsed off at the surf school, and then we (somewhat impishly) sat at an outdoor table at a nearby restaurant.

Lunch was tasty, but it was also possibly the most beautiful meal I’d ever eaten!!!

We got a pesco sour (10/10), bao sandwiches (they were just okay), cheesey bread puffs (yummy), some kind of crazy sushi/poke/seafood dish with a creamy sauce poured over it (I was obsessed with this), and creme brulee (yummy).

After this (way too rich but totally worth it) lunch, we zombied back to our Airbnb for some real showers and a proper rest.

We didn’t resurface until 7:30, at which point we found some snacks.

We definitely over did-it. Way too much chocolate and sugar! The smoothie was yummy, though.

And then we made our way to one of the hills encasing the port, this one with a funicular (a like a mix between a train and an elevator) that led to a hilltop amusement park.

All of the rides were closed because we spent the good daylight hours in bed, but it still offered some pretty views!

Sean was bummed (okay, I was bummed, too) that we couldn’t go on the rides, because they actually looked super cute and fun. Especially the coaster and the little boat ride!

The park was at the very top of the hill, so we got a 360 degree view of the bay and the sunset.

There was some… Very interesting art around the park, haha.

We wandered the sleepy amusement park for a while before catching the very last ride back down the mountain. Pretty sure we did not have the energy to walk.

We meandered back towards our Airbnb and stopped for some pintxos and a cocktail on the way.

And that’s a wrap on Day Two of San Sebastian! One more to come!

Zaindu/ take care,

Lizzy-wa

July 15, 2024 – Tegernsee!

September 8, 2024September 8, 2024Posted in Europe, GermanyLeave a comment

Our last day in Germany! Sean insisted I got to plan the day since Alpspitze had bean “Sean’s Day.”

Well, I didn’t hesitate with that kind of offer! My cousins had recommended the alpine town of Tegernsee, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity!

We started our day with a quick stop at the same cafe as before, and I treated myself to Breakfast Tiramisu and a delicious toasted ham and cheese croissant.

Our train was a little full, so we sat across from each other next to some young guys. I caught a tiny bit of their conversation and their unmistakeable American accents and decided to be friendly.

Turns out they were from the San Juan Islands in Washington! Small world! They were also way younger than I originally thought – one fresh out of high school and the other a “rising junior.” Always cracks me up when people describe themselves that way. I think it’s a prep school thing.

We chatted the whole train ride. I mostly partook when the conversation was about travel and home, and Sean jumped in when the talk took a turn towards engineering. Booo-ring!

The younger guy was pretty reserved until Sean started talking about books, and then he really came out of his shell. They were rapid-fire suggesting sci-fi books back and forth, and I quietly sat in the corner, knowing these boys would have no interest in Fourth Wing.

Once we arrived, we bid the boys farewell and wished them a good hike, and then we were off in search of some bikes.

We found a beautiful garden cemetery near the lake shore.

I had two dreams for this day: bike around the lake and rent a paddle boat. Our first plan was a bit tricky because there were no bike rentals on this side of the lake. We had to take a ferry to the other side, but that was kind of a fun little break.

The first bike shop we came to had one dude in it. He was extremely tan, had a shaved head, and was very persuasive. He immediately found us two e-mountain bikes and then made it seem like he was giving us a deal with the two all-day rentals for €80. (Turns out, compared to US prices, this was actually a screaming deal.)

We told him we wanted to bike around the lake, but he suggested we bike up into the valley between mountains instead. He said it would be about ten degrees cooler, and that it was the “perfect day” and the “perfect ride.”

I was pretty hesitant, but luckily Sean was gung-ho. Thank goodness I deferred to him!

The ride was, in fact, perfect and beautiful. It took us a little while to find the right path, but once we did, we were cruising on a trail through the hills. Sometimes we were on shaded forest paths. Sometimes the way was wide open and sunny. It was magical! It also made me want an e-mountain bike. That thing was slick.

I am not super skilled when it comes to riding, so I have very few pictures! I’m just not comfortable fiddling with a phone while riding along. Sean was able to take a few on his glasses, but he was a bit too pumped about the ride to keep my leisurely pace. (My bike had four levels of power, and he kept asking me to boost it up a bit, haha. I’m sorry! I just do not have – and never have had – a need for speed.)

When I finally caught up to him, I found him casually waiting for me amongst a few new bovine friends.

Almost every house in this area had an entire exterior wall lined with firewood. It was crazy! Must get cold in the winter!

We’d come to a little restaurant tucked into the hills, and it seemed the perfect spot for lunch.

I found some hammock chairs with a great view of the mountains, and then we ordered a radler to share.

I (foolishly) ordered a bratwurst while Sean asked for the most popular dish. Our waiter recommended the fresh mushrooms, and we agreed. He ran back at the last second to say, “Or the deer!” But we stuck with the mushrooms.

I cannot adequately express the deliciousness that was this mushroom soup. So creamy and rich, and topped with a big dumpling. Thank goodness Sean let us trade meals back and forth! I’m not sure I would have been as generous….

Partway through the meal, a group of men and women stood up around the table behind us and began singing the most lovely song. We recorded it and marveled at their harmonies, wondering what the song was all about! (A German friend later insisted it was not, in fact, a birthday song, but just a tune wishing someone good health, beer, and good schnapps.)

I could have stayed tucked away in those little hammocks for the rest of the day, slowly sipping radlers and ordering more mushroom soup when I got hungry, but Sean insisted there were other wonderful things waiting for us back in Tegernsee.

A cow was blocking the gateway to the restaurant, so we had to jump the fence, but then we were off again, back down the hill to complete our loop.

We found some very cool carved statue men along the way.

And Sean got some nice snippets of me!

Back in town, we explored the shoreline a little and considered hanging at the beach, but I wanted some how time!

Then, around five, we finally found a peddle boat rental place. All my dreams really were coming true today!

The guy running the place was a funny little dude. He was shirtless, tan, and had a big straw hat on. Very chill.

I debated for a minute between the peddle boat and an electric boat (the prices were so stinking cheap), but we went for the peddle in the end.

Just as the guy was pushing us away from the dock, Sean asked if there was anywhere we could peddle to along the shore to buy a beer.

The boat man paused before saying, “Uhhh… Hmmm, no….” Sean waved it off, but then the man said, “I have beer. Two euros!” He then ran to grab a beer from his stash and explained that this Munich beer was better than the Tegernsee stuff he had, and we were off again. It was pretty hilarious.

It didn’t take long before Sean, beer in hand, said, “This is my kind of vacation.”

We peddled around a bit, and as we did, we heard a big band start a performance on the shore. It felt pretty silly – almost too perfect, you know?

The band played some classical songs, but mostly they played classic hits – ABBA’s Dancing Queen, etc. I was singing along while Sean and I took turns peddling and I worked up the courage to finally jump in the water.

The water was cool but not cold. Nice and refreshing. I swam around the boat, climbed back in, and then jumped in again.

It always takes me a while to jump in the first time. I’m not sure why! Something about it always scares me!

Sean opted to stay warm and dry, and then he eventually peddled us back to shore so we could catch the tail end of the performance.

The whole band was dressed in lederhosen. It was very adorable.

After the show, we walked along the lake a little bit to admire the flowers and the setting sun.

We grabbed a table at a busy outdoor restaurant, and after being recommended the deer for the second time in one day, we decided we’d better try it.

We got an adorable tiny salad, a big side of deliciously sweet cabbage, and a couple of house special ginger lemonades. (We saw them at another table and immediately ordered two of them!)

The deer also came with a heaping portion of obviously handmade spatzle. The little flat noodles were so funny!

The deer was just okay, but as a whole, the meal was lovely, and we were stuffed at the end. Perhaps foolishly, we ordered some peach-filled donuts things for dessert.

They were so good (super soft and fluffy), but we were so full! It was hard to clean the plate.

Our last chore was to drop off our bikes again.

It was a loooong day, and we should have definitely planned better around our train back to Munich. It only came once an hour, so we were dilly-dallying waiting for the bus to the station for quite a while, and we were so exhausted by the time we got home around eleven.

Still, we consider this to be one of our favorite days of the trip! So magical and dreamy. Mountains, water, e-bikes, spontaneous serenades… What more can you ask for?

More to come (believe it or not).

Until next time,

Auf wiedersehen!

-Lizzy-wa

July 14, 2024 – Alpspitze

August 12, 2024August 13, 2024Posted in Europe, GermanyLeave a comment

Day two in Germany! Overwhelmed by the hubbub of the city, we planned a day out of town.

First thing in the morning, we headed out in search of breakfast. We were loading up for a day in the mountains, so I got a yogurt parfait, a pistachio croissant (yum!), and a hot chocolate. Sean got a coffee, a chocolate croissant, and an omelette flatbread thing.

Once satisfied, we went back to the hotel to check on our still drying laundry, and to our utter dismay (yet not to my surprise), it was still damp in the machine. We frantically hang-dried everything all over our room in the end before rushing out to catch our bus.

When we were planning this trip, the one thing Sean really, really wanted to do was hike in the Alps. I’m not sure how he managed it, but he found a giant gondola that runs up to a mountain called Alpspitze. I spent a ton of time researching to try and determine whether we should go Sunday or Monday for the weather. Both days suggested thunderstorms in the afternoon, but Monday seemed like it would be sunnier in the morning. I worried if there were too many clouds, we would miss out on the views!

After searching several weather sites, we settled on Sunday. We had to first take a bus to the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

When I was doing research on the bus, I learned that Alpspitze was right next to Germany’s tallest peak, Zugspitze. I hoped we could stick to the Alpspitze plan, though, as the images online seemed a lot prettier to me.

The bus ride was gorgeous as we approached the mountains.

Once we arrived in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the view was even more spectacular! We spent a bit of time trying to figure out exactly how to get to the gondola, and Sean ran a brief campaign to visit Zugspitze instead, but in the end, he agreed we could stick to the original plan.

We took a city bus up to the gondola and were shocked to find one of those directional arrow things that included both Seattle and Whistler! Perhaps a PNW native works at this restaurant??

And then it was time for the gondola ride.

Quite possibly the most gorgeous gondola ride in history. We shared the cabin with a couple families and several paragliders.

I couldn’t decide what was prettier – the mountains above us or the valley below!

Once at the top, it kind of felt like a race against the clock to avoid being rained or clouded-out! (Spoiler – neither really happened in the end.)

At the top was a restaurant and lots of people heading out or returning from various adventures. It was up to us to decide how to proceed!

Wildflowers were poppin’ off – in all colors and all shapes and sizes. I was in heaven!

We saw several paragliders taking off!

We were at the top of Osterfelderkopf, and Sean’s big dream was to summit Alpspitze. Unfortunately, we learned during our research that this summit climb was to be completed “via ferrata,” or “with harness.” It wasn’t in the cards for us, dressed to the nines in our poorly-tractioned sneakers and light sweaters. Maybe next time.

In consolation, we first rounded the top of Osterfelder and made our way towards the valley behind. Sean braved a risky climb (his shoes had much better traction) while I stayed and waited for a full report.

I was pretty nervous, but there was a cute little employee man who was likely doing some sort trail or weather condition reconnaissance in the area. He was wearing no better shoes than Sean, and he hiked up and around these rocky trails, using the chains when necessary, to secure various pictures on his phone. I figured if he could do it, I shouldn’t worry about Sean.

From the top of the little crag, Sean proclaimed that the view was spectacular and shouldn’t be missed, but we decided to see if I could view it from down in the valley to avoid the sketchy climb.

Alas! The view was viewed!

These pictures really don’t do it justice. It’s hard to portray just how expansive, green, and beautiful this valley was. *sigh…*

There’s actually a little hotel down in the valley that you can hike to! Would be a fun adventure.

We had perfect timing, too, because not ten minutes after we entered the valley, a mass of clouds swept in and completely obscured the view!

It was crazy! It happened so fast. I wanted to race back to the other side and see if it had suffered the same fate.

Luckily, though, the clouds stayed in the smaller valley and didn’t creep over.

We’d been kind of leapfrogging with this sweet older German lady on the path, and I took the opportunity to ask for a photo. That’s the cover photo for this post! So pretty.

I also convinced Sean to take some fun pictures, haha.

Too gorgeous, right?!

Next, it was time to try our hand at the Alpspitze trail. We agreed to venture as far as we could safely without gear (or whenever we made it up into the clouds and no longer had a view) before returning.

There was one little steel-cable zone, but Sean encouraged me and we made it through no problemo.

There was some crazy rock over here, and suddenly every person we saw was equipped with a harness and helmet. We had officially left the busy hub and entered the true adventurer zone. Sean was very jealous.

He went up to investigate one ferrata section, only to return and report that it looked super fun and he wanted to live here so that he could climb this thing every day. I sat on a pretty rock while he did so and tried not to feel like a doofus with my purse and little sweater every time somebody passed me in their helmet. Talk about feeling underdressed!

The next part of the path was a cave-tunnel carved into the side of the mountain. Very dark and drippy! We had to go slow so I wouldn’t soak through my shoes.

It felt very cool and silly. Not what I’d expected to be doing that day!

Somehow, the clouds rolled in, again within minutes, and soon the view was nearly entirely obscured.

A deal’s a deal, and we were basically at the end of the harness-less section anyway, so it was time to turn around and call it a day.

I don’t care if it’s not Austria. I found a field to frolic in, and I could not resist the pull. Sean waited nearby while I meandered to the center, sung, “The hills are aliiiiiiiiive” in my head, and spun around with my arms outstretched. It felt good. Sean watched and tried not to be embarrassed.

With a new spring in my step, we walked the path back to the gondola hub and restaurant.

Lunch was delicious! Goulash soup, spatzle with cheese sauce, a pretzel, and a cappuccino. Yum, yum, yum. It was heeeeaavy, and we couldn’t quite finish all the goulash.

We had a mountain-side table, and it was just a dream.

At one point near the end of the meal, Sean said something like, “Don’t look behind you.”

Of course I looked. But I was expecting to see a person or a dog embarrassing themselves in the near distance.

What I did not expect to find was a giant yellow-beaked crow approximately twelve inches from my face making intense and expectant eye contact with me!

It was honestly quite terrifying but also very hilarious. The crow was mostly just confused as to what I was so worried about and why I wasn’t feeding him.

After the crow encounter, we cleared our plates and it was time to reluctantly join the queue for the downloading gondola. We really should have planned out the local transit a bit better, though, because our bus to lake Eibsee only ran every hour, and we were not lined up!

First we had to wait for the bus back to Garmisch, and then once we were at our transfer stop, there was a whole debacle. Basically, we waited over forty minutes while both Sean and I tried (and failed) to employ various Uber and and taxi apps, only to realize at the last second that we weren’t even waiting at the correct stop.

We ran for the correct stop, but we couldn’t find it, and then the bus (that only runs once per hour) zoomed past us.

Talk about disappointment. It was devastating.

Somehow, after another twenty minutes or so, we managed to run across the street and flag down a taxi minivan to take us to Eibsee.

The driver was a chatty British man who’d lived in the area for decades. He was talking about his dreams about getting a Range Rover for his next taxi vehicle, which I found to be pretty hilarious. He was also apparently a very successful tour guide pre-covid, but his business hasn’t recovered since. I was pretty tired and a little frustrated from the bus failure still, so I let Sean take the lead on the conversation. ‘Twas cute.

(Do you see the Zugspitze gondola going up into the clouds? I’d say we made the right choice to get the good views!)

By the time we made it to Eibsee, the bike and boat rentals were all closed for the day, so we took a leisurely walk around the southern section of the lake. Lots of baby ducks, and the water was pristine!

It was pretty fun seeing local kids zoom in on their bikes (often loaded with multiple kids per cycle), strip down to swimmers, and jump in the lake. Seems like a nice way to grow up.

Far too soon, it was time to (successfully) catch our bus back to Garmisch.

We wandered the main section of town for a while and almost crashed Mass in the pretty town church, and then Sean suddenly got a craving for a beer.

We popped down at a little tavern and ordered “one beer” and then were chastised a bit for wanting to pay with card. Germany still likes its cash!

I discovered on this German adventure that I am quite the radler fan. It’s half beer, half lemonade! We didn’t get a radler this time, though, so Sean got most of the beer to himself.

We had the same super grumpy driver on our return to Munich that we’d had in the morning. As we waited to board with other riders, we heard several mumbles from people around us. Turns out they knew the driver, too.

One of the first guys to disembark the bus said to us aside, “Best bus driver ever!” Bahahaha. That had us giggling.

We actually did see him joke with one girl as she loaded her bags, so maybe he wasn’t 100% grump? Unclear.

Our bus ride was nice and scenic.

When we got back to the Munich bus station, we walked up the stairs, and I was delighted to see that the bridge was filled with people hanging out and enjoying the sunset.

Like, the kids had literally climbed the bridge struts and were sitting up high on the rafters.

We walked for a while, but Sean finally realized I wanted to do it, too.

Was it as great and magical as I thought it would be? Yes. Absolutely.

Everybody else seemed to have brought a full picnic or bottles of wine, but it still felt cool to be part of the club.

As we climbed back down (Sean said I did this very gracefully – he just jumped!) we found a little bracelet attached to a strut on the bridge. I originally put it on and walked away happily with my find, but then Sean mirrored my thoughts by suggesting it may be some sort of bad luck to take something off a bridge, so I reluctantly reattached it a few struts down. Rats!

As if that wasn’t enough activity for one day, I then convinced myself to go swing dancing. I’d tried the night before for a special monthly “snowball” event, but I couldn’t muster the energy. Tonight was my last chance to try swinging out in Europe!

I passed lots of football (soccer) fans spilling out of bars on my way to the dance, a short twelve minute walk away. All I brought was my phone, some cash, and Sean’s sweater. Traveling light!

I knew I was in the right place once I entered the building and heard swing music flowing down from an upper floor. I climbed the stairs and got one confused look from a man leaving the dance, and then I arrived. A very cute little dance bar! But…. There were about a dozen older people and that’s about it.

It was not a good sign. Small crowd, 40 minutes from the dance’s end, and I find that the older crowd tends to stick together at dances. Hard to infiltrate the clique! I debated (both to myself and to the young bartender) whether it was worth staying at all.

He confirmed that the previous night had been much busier, and when I asked if this night had been busier earlier in the dance, he shook his head and said, “No, because… It’s the finals.” He then revealed his phone hiding behind the bar, playing the EuroCup Final match. That explains the lively bar crowds I’d passed!

I stayed and pondered for a while longer, and a German lady approached to check on the score. “Eins – eins?” She asked. (One – one.) The bartender responded, “Ja,” and then lifted his phone for her to see.

The lady then went into a little conversation, all in German, laughing and chatting with the bartender and me. (Yep, you heard that right!) She kept looking at me, leaning over conspiratorially, then facing the bartender again, going on and on and on.

When she paused to take a breath, I laughed and leaned in to apologize and say that I didn’t speak German, but I guess whatever she had to say was funny, because she just laughed too and continued on!

This happened at least four times, and every time, our laughter got more and more hysterical. Finally, after one last good laughter bout and a few more words, she wandered back to the dance floor. I think we really bonded.

Once she was out of earshot, I looked to the bartender, who asked, “Did you understand….?” And I said, “Not at all.” We shared another good laugh.

In the end, I decided to join the dance and sip on a sweet elderberry spritz. Unfortunately, as predicted, I was never asked to dance! I just sat there watching as the music switched heavily from swing into rockabilly. Finally, as the crowd thinned even more, I took the plunge and asked someone to dance after putting my empty glass on the bar. We got two good dances in, and then I ran outta there and back to the hotel.

Such a long day! I was exhausted! Time for bed, and more stories to come!

Auf wiedersehen!

-Lizzy-wa

July 13, 2024 – Much Ado About Munich

August 2, 2024Posted in Europe, GermanyLeave a comment

Guten morgen! We’re in Germany now!

By this point we had perfected the coffee-and-breakfast-at-the-airport routine, and we were treated with some great views from the plane.

Unfortunately, we landed in Munich feeling like doo-doo. Our jet lag had officially worn off, and we were officially Not Morning People Anymore.

Our hotel didn’t allow check-in until 4pm though, so we had a long day ahead of us.

After dropping off our bags, our first stop was the church down the block. Very pretty, and a great way to find our way home!

Sean was determined to see the daily glockenspiel performance at the Marienplatz, so we had to rush a bit to make it there by 11.

As we rounded the corner into the square, we could hear the music, but I was confused as to why everyone was ignoring the performance and instead staring and pointing their cameras up at the town hall.

Turns out, the glockenspiels are not played by humans, but rather, by the mechanical instrument in the giant clock tower.

The music was super discordant, and not entirely pleasant. Very much not what we were expecting, but I was thoroughly entertained. We also noticed some of the gargoyles on the building were creepy AF.

Sean basically wanted to get the heck out of there, but he let me stay and take lots of pictures of the pretty building. Afterwards, we continued around the corner to the market in search of sustenance.

Sean ordered his first bratwurst, and I made the mistake of not getting one myself. Sorry, darling!

He was reluctant but graciously allowed me a few bites. My high school lunch crew did not call me Moochey for nothing.

When he was ordering it, the lady asked if he wanted all beef, or (what I thought was) horse meat. Then Sean smiled and nodded, opting for the “house meat.” In my head, I was like, “You dummy! You just ordered horse meat and misunderstood her accent!”

But in the end, I was the dummy, and he heard correctly. Bahahaha. The house meat was delicious.

Sean had some blisters on his pinky toes from all of our sweaty hiking over the past few days, so we were taking it easy. I learned my lesson when I brought my friend Kristina to Barcelona and she got ELEVEN blisters on her feet. I was super annoying and whiney about going slow until she counted, and when I got the tiniest blister ever a couple weeks later and could barely stand the pain of walking, I felt like the hugest jerk alive.

Never again! You must respect the blister pain!

We rested in a very pretty church for a while.

And then I convinced Sean to embark on what was quite possibly one of the worst and most stressful tower experiences of my life.

First, we had to wait in a line that was not moving for about ten minutes. Turns out they let people up in groups, but they weren’t communicating that, so it was kind of awkward and confusing.

Then we got to the top, and the pathway around the tower was quite narrow. Sean and I were immediately separated and cordoned off by strangers. Honestly, there was room for me to squeeze by people if I really wanted to, but everybody was super serious about holding their ground for some reason. The result was so frustrating and claustrophobic. We basically had to stand for multiple minutes in one spot before the line of people would shift about 5-10 feet, and then it would freeze again. I can’t imagine anybody wanted to be up there as long as we were up there!

I did get some nice views, but I was overwhelmed by the frustration and could simply not enjoy it. Huge bummer!

When we got to the bottom, Sean simply said, “I’m not doing that again.” Don’t blame him! And he was having a way better time than I was! The running joke for the rest of the trip was for me to point out the staircase in every other tower and suggest we climb it. (Spoiler – we never did.)

We explored the buildings around the square a little more and admired some street performers. There was a guy doing very impressive juggling tricks with a soccer ball, and I couldn’t help but wonder whether he was any good at actual soccer. Sean was most impressed that he never repeated a trick.

As we were leaving the square, a barrage of bachelor and bachelorette parties appeared and began taking very loud and chaotic group photos. They were clearly not associated with each other, but they just somehow all ended up in the same place. One group of guys were all dressed as surgeons. Sean thought they might be real doctors, but the one dressed as a sexy nurse kind of gave it away. He must have been the groom.

Pretty fancy to go to Munich for a bach party!

Honestly, after the relative calm and slow pace of Cinque Terre, I found Munich to be super overwhelming in general. The people! The big buildings! The loud music! I usually like the big cities, and I thought if anyone would be nonplussed, it would be Sean. Not sure what’s happening to me! #IdentityCrisis

We did learn something fun in a nearby palace – Munich has lots of sister cities, including Cincinnati, Ohio! I’ve only been to one of these cities – can you guess which??

We wandered out of the busy part of town to another large, pretty church that had some really gorgeous stained glass windows.

We enjoyed some street art.

And admired the National Theater.

And then we popped down for some real lunch! I definitely don’t think “yum” when I think of German food, but we actually had pretty great luck on this trip.

Two people at the next table over were eating some sort of crispy roasted pork with super fluffy, bulbous potato dumplings, and it smelled divine. We opted to share, and Sean got his first German beer. Everybody around us was drinking giant half liters, but he decided to start with moderation.

I tried to order some rhubarb juice, and the waiter did not understand what I was asking. I finally showed him the menu, and he said, “Oh! Ra-ba-ba. Ja, ja,” and then it all made sense to him. “Ra-ba-ba” instantly became a new favorite word. Bahahaha.

The pork came with a side of cabbage, and it was all soooo yummy. Sean was particularly obsessed with the potato dumplings. We’ll have to see if we can recreate them at home. It was the perfect meal!

We did find it hard to get the waiter’s attention, and that would become another theme of the trip. Unclear what the etiquette is! We spent so long between sitting, ordering, eating, and paying. I think we either need to be more aggressive or more relaxed…

After lunch, we wandered some more through town and ended up at Odeonsplatz.

The square was filled with rows of chairs, and they were performing sound checks in a big temple-like building. The acoustics were crazy! Apparently they were performing a big concert that night, but we were heartbroken to learn that tickets were sold out already.

We stayed for the sound check, though, and my favorite part was hearing the opening of Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter. We heard it as we sat inside the church next door, and it was quite ethereal sounding!

Next door was the Hofgarten, the royal gardens in front of an old palace.

We stumbled upon what was quite the bocce ball gathering! Dozens of games were happening, and it all seemed quite serious! Old people, young people, nerdy people, tough guys. Everyone seemed to be involved in a game. It was quite the sight!

The flowers lining the lawns were beautiful, and under a little gazebo, a man was playing a Ukrainian harp-like instrument.

Again, the acoustics were crazy! Sean and I found a seat and enjoyed several classical songs and several covers of modern songs. Shallows from A Star is Born, and Wicked Game by Chris Isaak were a couple we remember. It was a nice little consolation concert for us. Interestingly, people clapped and tipped way more when he played classical songs!

Next, we walked across the street to the English Gardens, a city park larger than Central Park. My favorite part was the wild flowers.

We barely scraped the surface of the park before calling it quits. My one regret is that we didn’t walk over to the manmade river where people surf in the giant artificial wave! At the time, the twenty minute walked seemed insurmountable, and we assumed we would return a different day. No cigar, though!

We made our way back to our hotel via some snazzy revamped subways, and I was delighted to find the hotel was every bit as adorable as the photos promised.

Then commenced a three-hour rest. 2016 Lizzy would be aghast at our daily rest sessions, but I’m just not as young as I used to be!

We did haul ourselves out of bed for a nice dinner, yet another success! Sean had a beer and I had a wild lillet berry spritz. I’m still unclear what a lillet berry is, but it was the perfect amount of sweet!

So far, we’d had good luck asking waiters for their suggestions, but this one gave us a hard time. I ordered the goulash (yum), and Sean said, “I’m trying to decide between three things.”

The waiter shook his head and said, “Jesus Christ,” and then he said something about us being indecisive. It was super funny and unexpected because he had been a perfect little gentleman up until that point. He did recommend the dish I wanted to try most, though, so I was pleased! It was like a little taster platter – meatloaf, sausage, pork, sauerkraut, and Sean’s new favorite potato dumpling. He was very possessive of his potato dumpling, but luckily I had two, so I could share. Another great meal!

We spent the rest of the night fighting with the washing machine. We were officially at our halfway point, and we were officially running low on clean clothes. Initially, we were thrilled that the hotel had free laundry, but they were the silly washer-dryer combos that never work very well.

The first wash-dry cycle (2 hours, 34 minutes) was started before we went to dinner, but when I went to check on it afterwards, it was still showing a run time of 2 hours, 32 minutes. It was also spinning super fast and spraying soapy water on the clothes, and after five minutes of staring, the time was still stuck on 2:32.

Exhausted and exasperated, I canceled it and ran a quick wash-and-dry (50 minutes). When I returned 50 minutes later, though, the clothes were still wet.

Then commenced an all night and all morning fight to get our clothes dry. We really should have just hung them up immediately. Gah.

Stay tuned for more on the laundry saga.

Auf wiedersehen!

-Lizzy-wa

July 12, 2024 – Cinque Terre and Pisa

July 21, 2024July 21, 2024Posted in Europe, ItalyLeave a comment

Last day in Cinque Terre! It was really nice staying in the same place for a few days, especially because the room was cozy and Riomaggiore had great food options.

When we woke up, Sean went out to get coffee for himself and breakfast for both of us. Our previous day’s breakfast haunt wasn’t open for some reason, so we had to settle for some less-than-amazing chocolate croissants. It’s a hard life!

Our only goal for the day was to complete the Cinque Terre trek.

We were a little slower going than I wanted, and it was really to no fault but my own. We kept waking up early and then just sitting in bed for some reason, wasting away the cooler early morning hours. When we did finally make it to the train station, there was a short line at the ticket machine, and there was an older lady in front of us that was very slow and a bit confused.

I noticed that she was operating the machine in French and having issues, so I finally hopped in and just did the transaction for her. She was very sweet, and because I responded with a quick, “Oui,” she assumed I spoke French! It was actually very fun to get a tiny bit of French conversation in, despite… Missing our train lololol. You win some; you lose some.

A half hour later, we hopped on a train to Corniglia to pick up where we left off.

I’m so glad we saved this trek for a separate day because it is the longest of the four segments. After the stairs from the train station to Corniglia proper, we were met with yet more stairs, and more steps, and more up, up, up!

Corniglia was super cute from above.

Like the previous day, I chose to hike in my swimwear. It’s long-sleeved for sun coverage, and I don’t feel gross if I get soaked in sweat!

Most of this hike was through winding, shaded forests and vineyards. We passed several of these rickety single-track cart lines that allow the growers to easily navigate their hilly plots of land.

At the very top, we were delighted to find a little wine bar tucked into the vineyard hills. We got a glass of local wine and a plate of bruschetta plus Chinotto, some kind of delicious sarsaparilla-type soda. Hit the spot!

When the employee was pouring our glass of wine, he was like – pour, pour…. Eh. And then he essentially shrugged and just dumped the rest of the bottle in, bahahaha. The result was a very full glass of wine! A stark contrast to what was essentially a tasting pour at dinner the night before for twice the price!

The man also noticed and commented on Sean’s camera sunglasses. They’ve come quite in handy when we don’t want to pull out our phones. Some of the pictures in this blog were even taken with them!

I could have just stayed at the wine bar for a while, but eventually, Sean prodded me on to the downhill portion of our hike.

Manarola got closer and closer!

Huzzah! We made it. Does this look like a fairytale land out of a Disney cartoon, or what?!

To celebrate, we got some (stupidly expensive) mocktails at a little bar with a great view of the town. I think mine was maybe passion fruit, and Sean’s was a violet something. Tasted like a flower!

We’d already been to Manarola once before, but we wandered down to the water to look at the swimming hole again.

I was being super annoying and fickle about whether we should swim, but Sean was a good sport and didn’t get cranky when I changed my mind about six times.

In the end, we swam!

It was super fun and very worth it. We jumped into the refreshing water and swam around the little path between the rocks. Then I found a cozy spot in the shade to float in while Sean climbed the center rock and jumped off! Some kiddos gave him some encouragement. It was very cute.

After our swim, I had a big smile on my face, and we decided to keep up the momentum by taking a ferry back to Monterosso.

I’ll be honest – I like the towns a lot better from the land side, haha. They’re just so tiny from the water! And you can’t fully appreciate the pretty colors of the buildings!

When we disembarked, we wandered in search of a snack. Again, I was being annoying and fickle and Sean just wanted to rest on the beach, but I was very hungry, and he was very patient with me! Thank you, honey!

We settled on some delicious toasts. Mine had burrata, tomato, and pesto. Sean’s had burrata, olives, and sundried tomatoes. So tasty!

My favorite part, though, was the Sciacchetra – it’s a local dessert wine, and it was sooooo yummy. So sweet – it was almost like a syrup. Sort of like mead. I was very pleased!

Monterosso was very pretty in the twilight as we made our way to the beach.

I was almost in big trouble for procrastinating our beach time because the first umbrella spot we came to was already closed for the night! Luckily, the next was open and running a late-afternoon discount. Phew!

It felt so nice to relax on the beach. I jumped in the water right away to cool off, and then Sean and I took turns going for a dip and then on the lounge chairs.

I had to keep scooting my chair forward to stay out of the sun, and I did actually get a little chilly! Better that than sunburn, though. Half the other loungers were turned to face directly to the setting sun for the warmth and the tan. Different priorities!

I think I may have also finished my book right around this time. It was a bummer, for sure! On the one hand, it meant I would finally have the discipline to work on the blog. On the other hand, I wanted to keep reading! Sean was also enjoying some peace and quiet (and his own audiobook) with me so preoccupied, hahaha. Even when I wasn’t reading (like while we were hiking), I was often just thinking about my book. He’s probably never seen me so quiet! I’ll have to retrain him to entertain my neediness again.

Our Airbnb was really starting to feel like home, and it sure felt good to get back and shower. We made a dinner reservation on our way in at a restaurant right outside our door and admired the golden hour.

The restaurant ended up being pretty fancy!

We got these tiny meatball tasters before a mackerel dish to start. Then I had some super rich tortellini (with 70-month-aged parmesan that was soooo rich), and Sean had some sort of veal dish. All with a nice view, too!

I really liked my pasta, but the rest of the food was maybe a 7-8 out of 10. Not all pretty food is the best tasting! Still better than our other dinners in the area.

This was our first night awake to see the city in the dark.

And then it was time to hit the hay!

In the morning, I wandered all the way down to the water. Though we were staying in Riomaggiore this whole time, we’d never actually ventured all the way through the town!

For breakfast, I had a super yummy smoothie bowl, and Sean had a pita sandwich thing. There was quite the line for breakfast, but it was worth it, and the ladies working there were super sweet. So many different toppings!

On my walk through town, I saw a couple drinking/ eating some THICK drinking chocolate, and I decided that I needed some in my life. Unfortunately, the waitress mistakenly assumed I wanted American hot chocolate, so that’s what I got, instead.

Bummer. Still one of the best hot chocolates I’ve ever had, so I can’t complain too much. It was deliciously rich and chocolatey.

We had one last pretty walk through town, and I bought a watercolor of Riomaggiore.

And then it was time for our train to Pisa! I almost had a meltdown trying to buy our train tickets. It was not pretty.

There were only a couple ticket machines spread throughout the station, and the main one had a pretty long line. To try and beat the rush, I went to a different kiosk inside, but the two groups in front of me in line either didn’t know how to work the machine or didn’t know what ticket they wanted to buy. It was completely irrational, because we had thirty minutes until our train anyway, but I got to the point where every passing second just grated and grated on my nerves so that I was wound tighter and tighter into Frustrated, Angry Lizzy Zone.

After nearly ten minutes, it was finally my turn, and then the machine wouldn’t accept my credit card! I’m not sure why, but this keeps happening at ticket vending machines, though it works literally everywhere else. It’s also not every time – sometimes it works; sometimes it doesn’t.

I had to start the transaction over multiple times, and I even pulled out my debit card to try, and that also didn’t take! By now, there was a small line behind me, and I was the problem.

All bets were off. I was officially Angry Lizzy, feared by boyfriends and travel companions everywhere.

Sean had been waiting for me on a bench, and he’d even called to see if I was having issues. I stormed out of the station, threw my backpack onto the bench next to him, and got in line at the original ticket machine without a single word. I figured that at least my card had worked there before, so maybe I would have some luck.

The poor English lady in front of me could tell I was impatient, and she even apologized that she took so long after I (somewhat curtly) helped her figure out the machine.

And then, lo and behold, neither card worked again! I was dangerously close to angry-crying before I finally decided to try my backup credit card, and it somehow worked finally.

I think the moral of the story here is to either find a ticket machine that doesn’t have anyone in line, have cash handy, or tap in your travel companion when things get dicey emotionally. I will keep these things in mind in the future.

I made sure to be on the northeast side of the train this time for the views, and they did not disappoint! The pictures didn’t come out well due to window glare, but trust me that the mountains were very pretty!

When we arrived in Pisa, we dropped our bags off at the station. This is one of my absolute favorite traveling abilities, and it’s a huge bummer that a lot of cities don’t provide lockers in their airports and train stations. Most of them cite security and safety reasons. Meh. The existing ones don’t seem to have an issue! And it is so nice to trust that your bags are safe while you wander unencumbered!

Our first order of business was a snack and another coffee. (Sean has been hitting the caffeine HARD, and I have been rising to the occasion, myself.)

Somehow a salad sounded like just the thing, and I was aghast that Sean ordered a caramel macchiato after I ordered an iced coffee! His tasted so much better than mine, and he refused to trade! Bahahaha.

The salad and coffee really did hit the spot, and it re-energized us to continue on.

I had originally planned for us to split our day between Pisa and Lucca, but because of our slower start, I removed Lucca from our itinerary. I’m very glad Sean was onboard for whatever, because this ended up being a very full and fun day even without Lucca involved.

It’s funny because I have very intact memories of the Tower of Pisa, the field and church buildings around it, and the old city walls. However, as we made our way in that direction, I realized I didn’t have any memory of the big, bustling city that is Pisa today. That’s the funny thing about these ancient cities – most of them are alive and breathing, modern and filled with shops and universities and people, and their borders extend far beyond their original walls.

It was like I was experiencing the city for the first time. Very fun, indeed!

Sean lost track of me at one point when I was sidetracked by a bag store. I’ve been eyeballing this one style of purse for nearly a decade, and every time I see it in Europe, I pine after it and then somehow decide I don’t need it. But it is always there, waiting for me to change my mind!

By 3pm, we made it to the Tower. Sean stood in line to fill our water bottles at a fountain, and I had the foresight to check on tickets. Good thing! The earliest available slot was 5:15pm, and tickets were running out. I quickly purchased the package that allowed entry to the surrounding buildings.

I love this fallen angel statue, and Sean was equally obsessed:

The first building we entered was Camposanto Monumentale, a cemetery. We spent a lot of time here enjoying the cool shade and admiring the artwork. Sean was even getting tattoo ideas from some of the symbols on the graves. For himself or someone else? Unclear!

I’m not sure why, but we stared at this fresco for a very long time. It seemed very random that demons seemed to be stealing people away on the right side of the image, but on the left side, some dude was just busy milking his deer. We had a good laugh about that.

Next, we wandered outside a bit before entering the baptistry.

There was a cute little guard doing laps around the top floor. I feel like security guards are usually pretty bored seeming, but this guy was just zooming around and around, belly first. It was pretty hilarious.

At one point, an employee walked into the center of the building and began singing a wordless, haunting melody. He cupped his hands around his mouth and purposefully rotated as he sang to help the sound echo through the chamber. It was so beautiful! At first we thought somebody random was just making echo noises, but it was very official, haha.

Next was the cathedral itself. The ceiling here is one of the most beautiful things!

The brass doors are also very beautiful.

We still had some time before our tower climb, and we were both a bit peckish, so we snuck off to find some quick dinner. Please enjoy these tower-righting attempts on our way:

For a restaurant right next to a big attraction like the Tower, the one we chose was 10/10! Sean got a smoothie and the most adorable little pesto gnocchi balls, and I got ragu tagliatelle (at the recommendation of our waiter) with a mimosa. Both pastas were fresh and handmade. Yum!!!

Our waiter made fun of us for rushing the heck out of dinner. I had to get a little box for my leftovers, and when we asked for the check less than 10 minutes after getting our food, the waiter stopped in his tracks. I can’t remember his exact words, but the effect was something like, “You eat, you go? Stay! No? You eat, you go? Okay, okay!” As we tried to laughingly explain that we had to make our tower climbing time slot. We assured him that everything was delicious, though!

We had just a few minutes for some tower shenanigans. Notice the perma-red face from this heat! Yikes!

And then it was time for our climb!

It’s a fun climb and a fun tower with a great view! You can really feel the lean from the top floors.

We spent quite a long time up at the top! Was very nice and relaxing.

Buuuuuttt… I still needed some more relaxation, haha. I think I had a little bit of a headache – probably from the heat. So we did the sensible thing and napped it out in the shade of the cathedral. 10/10. (Peep Sean’s glasses reflection!)

When Sean finally roused my from my rest, we had a few more shenanigans.

And then it was time to walk the old city walls! The views are so good!

When we were still near the Piazza del Duomo, we heard a little girl screaming and laughing. But at some point, it became hard to tell whether she was screaming with laughter or terror. When we were able to look down into the lawn, we saw her being chased by a puppy. “Aw, that’s sweet,” we thought, until her screams shifted into shear terror zone, and we realized the dog was not hers. She began screaming, “Ma-ma! Ma-ma!” Interspersed with pure fright.

The parents were not concerned, nor was the dog owner. As far as we can tell, she originally thought the game of chase was fun, and then, when it didn’t stop, she decided it was no longer enjoyable, hahaha. It was pretty entertaining, and the dog left her alone once she finally just stopped running and went to her parents.

Sean really liked the walk once we got going and the sun started going down. Such a relaxing way to end the day, and the clouds were putting on a show!

Unfortunately, I messed up with my long nap, and we got kicked off the wall early for closing time. Dangit!

But I was a tiny bit excited because we ended up seeing this beautiful flower patch we would not have noticed otherwise!

Off the walls, we were forced to walk the streets like normal people, but it was still nice and pleasant.

And check out this gorgeous sunset!

Please also enjoy our Airbnb’s wifi password, hahahaha.

We managed to find an Airbnb that was literally a 5 minute walk from the airport. Somehow, we never heard any loud plane noises, but it came SO in handy for our 6:30am flight the next day.

After check-out, I was heartbroken to receive my first bad Airbnb review! The host called me “uncommunicative and resevered” despite leaving the house “in great condition.” I’m sorry I didn’t have time to respond while I was out and about all day! Seriously so sad. Meh.

In the end, though, a very fun trip to Italy. I thoroughly enjoyed it, despite the heat and sweat. I’m glad Sean got to hike and eat lots of pesto. Two happy campers.

Until next time!

Ciao!

Lizzy-wa

July 10, 2024 – Hiking Cinque Terre

July 20, 2024July 20, 2024Posted in Europe, ItalyLeave a comment

Ciao! We made it to one of my favorite places ever – Italia! I’ve yet to meet an Italian city I didn’t like, and I was so excited to share this place with Sean.

We played rock-paper-scissors for the window seat, and thank goodness I won! Check out these gorgeous views!

The canals of the Netherlands and the Alps from above are two of my favorite plane sights. So nice to see them again!

Does anybody know what these crazy pockets of turquoise are in the water outside the northern Italian coast?

There was also a crazy split in the water that Sean insisted was normal, though I’ve never seen anything like it before!

The first thing I did when we landed was buy a vending machine coffee. It was either a chococcino or a mochaccino, but either way, it was delicious!

We landed in Pisa and had an hour before our train ride, so we popped into the city for a quick snack and a drink. Sean had a yummy iced coffee, and I started my morning off right with a Bellini. I hesitated when I realized it was only 10am, but I’m on vacation, and it was already so hot! Bahahaha.

Our train ride along the coast was fun, but it was a bit crowded, so Sean and I were separated. I was also bummed to be on the wrong side of the train – all the views were on the other side! I made a mental note of which side to sit on for our return trip.

However, I did feel like it was all worth it when I glanced out the window to see an Italian man tanning face-down, butt-naked on a lounge chair in his backyard only twenty yards from the train tracks. Guy’s got some guts, and no tan lines! Bahahahahaha.

We arrived in Riomaggiore (“ra-mah-jee-or-ay” with rolled R’s, not “rio-mah-jee-ore” as I had been saying, lol), and good golly was it hot out! The sun was beating down, and it felt like we were moving so slow!

It took a few frantic, exhausted minutes to find our Airbnb, but once we did, the air conditioning was heaven, and the view from our window was simply magical.

We were somehow so wiped out from the journey and the heat that we just had to take a little rest. Sean played on his phone while I read, or maybe he even took a nap? I cannot remember. But we did feel a little better afterwards, and ready to take on the rest of the afternoon.

Riomaggiore is the southernmost town of Cinque Terre, five towns cut into the coastline between Pisa and Genoa. This coast is HILLY, or maybe even mountainous? Either way, while it is very possible to walk from one town to the rest, it is definitely a hike. The first three towns are actually connected with fairly flat coastal pathways anchored to the side of the cliffs, but both paths were closed from recent landslides! We had no option but to hoof it.

We started by exploring our surroundings a bit, including the nearby parish church with whose bells we would become well acquainted.

Then we made our way back down to the train station, foolishly skipping the panoramic elevator that we would soon come to rely on.

This wasn’t even the main part of town, and I was already smitten! I had a big smile on my face from my first Italian interaction (ciao, uno, prego, gratzie), and came away with a limone sorbetto.

Re-energized, we began our ascent to Manarola, the next town over.

Breathtaking or what?!

And I was doing it all (perhaps foolishly) in a dress!

I remarked that it didn’t bode well for us that everyone going in the other direction (downhill) was dressed in real workout clothes, sweating and sunburned to the nines, and seemed to be very near death. Sean pointed out that we were probably just in better shape than them. It wasn’t until the next day I realized some of them were possibly finishing a trek of all five cities!

And make no mistake. Just twenty minutes in, Sean was already sweating more than I have ever seen, and my whole face somehow felt like a giant tomato of hotness. The heat (hovering near 90F), plus the humidity (over 50%) was brutal.

We actually reached the top in about 30 minutes, but it was basically just (steep) stairs the whole way up. A lot of work, for sure! Soon, Manarola came into view below us, tucked into the valley between the terraced mountains.

The descent took about twenty minutes. Maybe 15 minutes down, some gals in dresses and sandals passed us going up, and they stopped to ask how much further to the top. Lol! They were already dying. We told them about 20-30 minutes, and one gal was shocked, the second was crestfallen, and the third was insistent that her phone said they were almost there. When we reached the bottom minutes later, we were like, dude, you just started! Bahahahaha. We got a kick out of that.

Manarola was another beautiful, colorful little town with narrow paths between buildings. And to be fair, though the girls had just started the actual trail, there was still another chunk of elevation to reach the bottom of the town.

Face so red! Almost blends into my sunglasses. Bahahaha.

We wandered the main street lined with shops and tried to catch our breath as we enjoyed the soft breeze.

Down at the coastline, there was one of the coolest swimming holes I’ve ever seen!

And boy did it look like a nice way to cool off. We were bummed we didn’t have swimsuits on, but we vowed to come back another day. For now, all we could do was live vicariously through the swimmers and cliff jumpers.

For dinner, we had some seafood pasta. The waiter was initially kind and polite, but as the restaurant filled with a group of Asian tourists, he became increasingly snappy and curt. He even tried to make a guy leave if he didn’t want food, (“This is restaurant, not bar!”) even though they obviously sold drinks. Why not sell the guy a drink??? It was pretty weird.

After dinner, we walked around a little more and ventured down to the swimming area to get a different perspective of the town above.

Very pretty! After a quick train ride, we were back in Riomaggiore, where we gratefully took some nice showers and Sean promptly passed the heck out.

I spent a little longer reading and enjoying the crazy view from our window before joining him.

You wanna know the problem with falling asleep at eight? You wake up in the wee hours of the morning!

I fell asleep at a much more reasonable 9:30pm, and I was quite flabbergasted when Sean turned over in the morning and informed me, “It’s after five.”

“Um…. And????” Lolol. I reminded him that he fell asleep hours before me, and he graciously allowed me to sleep until seven. Thank goodness!

It was actually kind of difficult to find a place to eat this early, but there’s always at least one cafe with early risers. It was just us and some smoking locals for a while as we enjoyed our (super warm, fresh, and heavy) chocolate croissants, cappuccino, and latte.

Yep, I’ve been partaking in much more coffee than usual, because it just seems so tasty! Must avoid the caffeine addiction, though.

I really wanted one of these North Face Cinque Terre t-shirts, but the store didn’t open until 11. The shop owner told us as much but simply wagging her finger in slow, silent disapproval and allowing us to find the “Open at 11” sign on our own.

Once fed and prepped for the day ahead, we boarded the train again, this time to the northernmost town of Monterosso.

We wandered along the coastline, and I bought an adorable miniature Cinque Terre house, resisting the urge to buy an original watercolor.

At one end of the town was a giant holding up a platform, the better part of his right leg missing. We stood and admired him (and his very bumpy muscles) for quite a while.

Then we ventured in and up a bit, exploring deeper into the town. Monterosso is the largest of the five towns, and I think it’s the only one with more than one main street.

Sean voiced his desire to come back for a beach day soon, and I couldn’t ignore how nice laying under a shaded umbrella sounded!

Once we found the real main street lined with shops and bougainvillea, I was quickly sidetracked by some tiramisu. Apparently I’ve been going easy on the cocoa powder, because there was so much on this one that both Sean and I had coughing attacks from cocoa inhalation on our first bites.

Cinque Terre is also apparently famous for its lemons (there were lemon trees poppin’ off everywhere, to be fair), so I also indulged in a shot of homemade Limoncello. Sean got a smoothie, and it sure hit the spot.

A little more wandering, and a lot more heat later, we finally said goodbye to Monterosso.

It was time to start our trek to the next town over.

It was slow and steady going, and it took about an hour for this ascent. Near the top, an accordion player sat with his (very hot and fluffy) puppy, and his song rang out around the valley. It was so nice!

Soon, Vernazza came into view.

It was kind of fun being able to see the town and have it grow larger and closer as we descended into the valley over the course of about twenty minutes.

These streets were small, colorful, and bustling like Manarola, but people had a little more energy earlier in the day.

We wasted no time getting some gelato to cool off. Sean ordered speckled mint (a play on stracciatella – something like mentiatella), and then topped it with stracciatella – vanilla laced with chocolate speckles. His pronunciation was pretty cute, and got a sweet smile and lesson from the gelato lady. I opted for fruity – passion fruit and mango. It was so good!

We took our time wandering the street and made our way down to the water to spend some time envying the swimmers and beach-goers. We were prepared for water time today, so after some debate, we hopped in! The water was cool and refreshing, but not cold. We waded in up to our necks, but we were too nervous to leave our bags unattended to do any real swimming. It was still lovely anyway!

We both basically stood with our backs to the water so we could keep our bags in sight, and every time I turned around, Sean would be another ten feet out. We both ended up to our necks!

A sweet British mother-daughter duo took our picture once we were dressed and ready to hike again.

I didn’t take a photo, but after our swim, we got a little flatbread pita pocket-type sandwich to share, filled with veggies and prosciutto. We sat on some steps to eat it, and we got so many longing glances from passersby! It was pretty funny. Finally, one man even approached to ask where we had gotten it. I guess we were good advertising!

Our appetites and sugar cravings somewhat sated, we made the bold decision to continue on.

The view of Vernazza was fun from the other direction, and note the tower that I (for once in my life) had no interest in climbing! I couldn’t stomach the thought of climbing any extra stairs.

Just look at the non-optional ones!

At the top of the steps was a little lemonade stand with very friendly (and chaotic) people running the place. Somehow we were convinced to investigate the “special lemonade,” packed with syrups and fresh fruit.

Sean is convinced that the guy making the lemonade was “drunk AF” because he was kind of a mess. Very smiley and happy, but a definitive mess.

We decided to share one lemonade, and when the man asked “still or sparkling water,” I asked if he could do half and half. Boy, oh boy, was that a tall order! “Halve and halve, mmm, halve and halve, okay, okay.” Meanwhile, his counterpart in the little building next to him, a Swedish woman who looked exactly like Meryl Streep, shook her head and said something about us being, “so difficult.” She was joking, but I really didn’t think it would be such a big ask!

After fulfilling the previous order, the lemonade man finally started on ours and two others’ behind us. Meryl continuously tried to get the man to focus on our drink instead of asking about the people behind us, but the man couldn’t be stopped. Once he started really making our drink, he got confused again and thought I wanted the half and half and Sean wanted something else. This prompted Meryl to exclaim, “No!” And then she covered her face in her hands and shook her head in laughing exasperation before finally giving up her efforts.

We did eventually get our lemonade, and the man gave us “half” a watermelon slice for our “halve and halve” lemonade drink.

As we sipped on it nearby, we heard him telling the next customers that everybody would get “halve and halve” from now on, lol.

Thoroughly satisfied and entertained, we continued our trek and began our descent to Corniglia. The center town, this is the only one without a port because it’s built so high up on its rocky outcropping.

Enjoy some pretty buildings and long pathways:

Down in the town, we wandered the streets again.

I think I may have had a bit of heat exhaustion, because I was feeling a tad nauseous at this point. We found a little cafe and ordered a “smoothie” (it was more like a juice) and a Panna Cotta. Yum!

We did feel pretty silly for sitting inside the tiny cafe and then later realizing they had a big outdoor terrace across the street with a view of the water. Oops!

It was after five by the time we were ready to move again, but the thought of trekking to the last town while feeling slightly nauseous (and facing the heat yet again) just did not sound like a fun or responsible time.

So instead, we decided to come back to finish the trek tomorrow and take the train home for now.

The stairs down to the Corniglia station were gnarly, and I was not looking forward to going up them the following day!

Back in Riomaggiore, we showered and rested until we both felt better.

Then it was time to hit the town for dinner.

The waitress was very fun – seemed like she may have been from New York based on her accent, but she spoke rapid Italian with the locals and her wait staff. She may have actually been the owner, honestly.

We got a cute little outdoor table and each got a glass of local wine. We started with the beef tartare, and then I had ravioli and Sean had pesto with some very funny homemade noodles.

Overall, I would say the experience was good, but the food was not outstanding. Still a nice evening out!

We got to see Riomaggiore by twilight as we headed back for another nice long sleep to prepare for our last day in the area. I’ll fill you in on that next time!

Ciao!

-Lizzy-wa

July 8, 2024 – Starting in Amsterdam

July 17, 2024July 17, 2024Posted in Europe, NetherlandsLeave a comment

Back on the road! In the skies? Out of the country?

Either way, I’m not home, and this time, I have my main squeeze with me. Unclear why my hair looks so greasy in the title photo, but I cannot go back and wash it. Lol.

Sean has time off between jobs, and half my team was taking big chunks of vacation time this summer, so I decided a two-week trip was in order.

We’ve been loosely planning this for nearly a year, and that is the longest I’ve ever thought about a trip. It all started last August when I booked tickets to see Taylor Swift in Munich at the end of July. It was silly and expensive, but I later lucked out with tickets to Vancouver, BC for a quarter of the price. Once that was all in order, I decided I would re-sell the Munich tickets. Sean’s never been to Europe, though, so I still wanted to do the trip anyway.

Ridiculously, even with eleven months to plan, we didn’t book our main flight until a week or two ago, and I booked everything else last week. Not my best performance, but we made it here!

After a week with Sean’s family in Idaho, we flew from Spokane to Minneapolis for a layover before continuing on to Amsterdam. Delta’s basic economy was playing major mind games with us, and they booked us purposefully separated from each other on both legs. Luckily, on the first leg, we both got window seats. Mine was directly in front of his, but it was oddly attached to an emergency exit, so there was no chair in front of me. That meant no space to store my bag and no movie screen, which for some reason sent me into a mild panic.

After lots of discussion, Sean and I decided to switch seats. (Okay, I decided, haha.) But he wasn’t planning on using the TV screen, and that way he got a bunch of extra leg room! Seems like a win-win.

I watched the Odd Life of Timothy Green before reading a bit, but I was uber stressed about our 50 minute layover in an unfamiliar airport. Then, to add misery to madness, there were some weather delays that meant our plane landed twenty minutes late.

Sean was not pleased with my insistence on skipping a bathroom break, but we made it onto the plane and were able to pee before boarding closed.

Once boarding closed, there were plenty of empty seats around us. So, despite our terrible seat assignments, so we were able to rearrange and sit next to each other near the aisle. I was VERY happy and relieved.

I treated myself to a rum and coke (for free!) and read for many hours on this flight, so the time just flew by. I did regret pushing through one serious pull of sleep because I was hooked on my book. By the time I put the book down and tried to sleep a bit, the window had passed. I didn’t manage to fall asleep until about thirty minutes before breakfast service. Bummer.

We landed in Amsterdam at 11am, weary and woozy, and made our way straight for the Rijksmuseum. I can’t remember if I’ve been here before, but it was a treat, nonetheless. We were able to store our bags in the coat check and wander unencumbered.

Delirious with fatigue, we slodged through the first wing and a fun stop-motion exhibition before beelining for the cafe. I needed food and Sean needed caffeine, stat!

Sean’s hazelnut iced latte did not disappoint, nor did my lemongrass lemonade, spring vegetable curry, or Sean’s chicken sandwich. Museum cafes are one of my favorite indulgences!

Mildly invigorated (or maybe we were just fooling ourselves), we soldiered on. Please enjoy this barrage of model ships and art.

I took a nice long pause in the library. I love me a good library.

For some reason, I was also very intrigued by these ink drawings of major naval battles. I mean, there have to be a hundred ships out there. Is that really possible? Was that possible? In that kind of proximity to each other and in those numbers? My mind was boggled.

The great hall had some fun paintings by Rembrandt and others, but the architecture of the space (and the benches to rest on) were my favorite parts.

By this point, Sean had essentially given up fighting his body’s insistent desire to sleep, so I ran through the last floor (and possibly my favorite floor) by myself.

I’m not gonna lie – my body felt it too. It’s a very specific and unpleasant feeling, the certainty that a night of sleep has been squandered or missed entirely. I’ve felt it on many travel days and after many exams. It’s not fun!

We boarded a tram, unwilling or unable to walk the twenty minutes to our Airbnb, and then spent a few minutes enjoying the canals in the area.

We were thoroughly underwhelmed by our lodgings (small room, shared bathroom, nowhere to hang our towels, mild smell of sewage), but our bodies were indifferent. I’m not proud of this, but I decided to let Sean take the wheel, so it was decided that we would go to bed then and there, at 5 o’clock in the evening.

There was plenty of tossing and turning. I woke up around 6:30, then again at 9, and then we both woke up for a while at 2. But all said and done, we finally woke for real at 7, and I guess we probably deserved it.

As much as I have never been and probably never will be a morning person, I sure do love early mornings when my body allows it. The sun was bright, the air was crisp, and the streets were quiet.

Let it be known that Amsterdam is not an early-rise town! It was actually quite challenging to find a place open for breakfast at 8! But we managed, and I had my first fresh OJ of the trip. Spilled half of it on myself, too, haha.

Sean and I got into a small squabble because I didn’t want to stop reading, but I eventually pried myself away long enough to continue our adventure.

I delighted in the spring and summer flowers lining the streets and canals. So many varieties and colors! We acknowledged how impressive it is that the city has so much green since it’s mostly made of bricks and concrete. They really put a lot of effort into stocking the streets with pots and planters.

I hope you enjoy this tiny car as much as I did:

We visited Centraal Station and passed the Anne Frank House on our way.

And then we walked along the water to Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder, a Catholic church hidden in the top floors of a home from a time when non-protestant religions were banned from public practice.

There was some interesting detective work done on the paint so they could restore the church to its 1800’s style!

Some fun features besides the church included nice views of the city and rooms furnished like the 1800s, including some “box bed” bedrooms.

Sean noticed that all of the canal houses have hooks for pulley systems, and once we noticed, we couldn’t stop seeing it! Turns out it was (and probably still is) the only way to get large furniture to the top floors of the canal houses because the staircases are so steep and narrow!

We had another coffee in the museum cafe (did I mention the jet lag was hitting Sean?), and then we took a walk through the red light district. (Not too active during the day, but there were a couple of bored ladies sitting in their rooms on their phones, haha).

We also so a guy almost get hit by a motorcycle because he was walking in the middle of the street. The biker had to swerve and his bike fell on him. He was physically fine, but he was NOT happy and chased the pedestrian down yelling in Dutch that I don’t think the pedestrian understood. He just kept saying, “Sorry! Sorry!” Sean tried to help, but it was fruitless because the guy was so angry. Yikes!

At the Nieumarkt (New Market), we stopped at a juice stand. We asked the seller for his recommendation, and I opted for the beet and ginger juice that “makes his wife very happy.” Rather than mixing the juices together, though, he simply poured me a shot of ginger and handed it to me, saying, “I bet you are hard core, yes?”

Let’s just say my mouth burned and my tummy hurt for a while after that, hahahaha. I guess I wasn’t as hard core as he thought!

After another long walk along the water, we ended up at NEMO, a science museum recommended by my Dutch friend Bart.

Technically, he suggested we try out the rooftop restaurant and skip the museum, but Sean wanted the full experience, so I (somewhat reluctantly) relented.

The museum was definitely targeted for kids and families, but I’ll admit I had fun once I got into it. Basically everything was interactive. There was a giant Rube Goldberg machine and five levels of themed exhibitions all about electronics, the senses, building techniques, etc.

Several exhibits required a partner. One space had boxes filled with 3 device components, and you had to show your partner the pieces one at a time and see if they could guess what the device was. I was frustrated that I never guessed correctly before the final piece (which always gave it away), whereas Sean correctly guessed the electric toothbrush and one other device. Mine were a bike bell and a computer mouse. Some mechanical engineer, huh?

We tried to build a dam at one point using little silicone blocks, but we were also not very good at that and had to cheat by copying some kids farther upriver.

There was also a little laboratory where you did some kind of experiment with chemicals. We didn’t try it, but it was pretty cute that you had to wear a lab coat inside.

My favorite zone, by far, was the fifth floor. It was all about humans – our tendencies, our senses, our bodies. It was so fun! There was a small area about sex that was QUITE explicit – pretty surprising in a kids’ museum! (Does the g-spot exist, how big is the clitoris, etc…. lolol.)

One exhibit had some interesting cameras that allowed you to look directly at your own ear or to look closely at your own iris. Very cool.

Another had you walk in a straight line towards a Kinect and then had you try to guess which motion-detected skeleton was you. I was fascinated to learn that Sean has quite the swagger to his walk, which I’d never noticed before. His little skeleton head dramatically swung side to side with each step, whereas my head stays basically in one place the whole time.

Quite possibly the most hilarious experience was one where you took a picture of yourself, input information about your parents’ appearance, and then the computer spit out images of alternative versions of yourself based on genetic possibilities.

Why I decided to take the photo with this dumb look on my face is beyond me, but the results had us laughing out loud for a loooonnngg time, bahahahaha.

All-in-all, a pretty fun and hilarious experience. I kind of wish we’d just spent all of our time up on the fifth floor, though. I won’t explain every single exhibit, but I kind of want to, haha. The fact that I only took eight photos the entire time is evidence that I was having too much fun, I guess.

Hours later, we made it to the roof for a nice lunch with a view.

After we ate, I stood to watch the view and heard some loud clinking at our table behind me. I assumed it was a staff member cleaning our table, but when I turned around, I saw it was two pigeons going to TOWN on our scraps! Lol!

Sean humored me by allowing a visit to the library. I love me a good library, and this one had some nice water views.

We were both pretty exhausted at this point, so we had one more walk before breaking down and taking a bus back to our Airbnb for a nap.

Why did I stop putting my hand on my hip for photos? This straight-arm pose makes me look like a doofus! Haha.

Around eight, we rolled out of bed and forced ourselves to get some dinner.

One of the annoying things about Sean is that he never tells me when my hair is crazy. Either he thinks I’m always gorgeous or always insane-looking, but the result is the same.

Who in their right mind takes this picture without telling me to fix my hair or my face first? Bahahahah.

Oh, it was quite funny! We kept seeing people with Taylor Swift merch on, and it turns out she had just played Amsterdam the weekend before we arrived. This restaurant had a special that was, “I knew you were truffle when you walked in” omelette, “we are never ever getting back to cheddar” cheese, and “taters gonna tate tate tate” rosti, hahaha.

After dinner, we were treated with the most gorgeous sunset!

And then we braved the city one last time to visit the Red Light District by night. It’s not permitted to take photos in the area, for obvious reasons, but trust me that it was an interesting experience!

There were also several “live sex show” theaters and “sexy” public toilets, lol. We did chance the erotic museum, just for fun. There were surprisingly several original sketches by Picasso and John Lennon.

We finally made it back home for bed after a nice walk in the dark.

It wasn’t even too painful to wake up at 5 for our flight. Thanks, jet lag!

Do you see the pulleys lining the top of this building? So fun!

As much as I am not a morning person, I sure do love being outside in the quiet early hours.

Until next time!

Venlig hilsen/ Hartelijke groet,

Lizzy-wa

Feb 11, 2024 – Layover in Istanbul

March 1, 2024Posted in Asia, Europe, TurkiyeLeave a comment

Heeeeyyyy! I thought I’d write a blog dedicated to my long journey home from Lesotho. (Spoiler: the return trip was significantly better than the outgoing journey.)

Most of why my outgoing trip sucked was that I was so tired the whole time. 39 hours door-to-door, starting at 4pm Seattle time and ending around 5pm Lesotho time two days later. I didn’t sleep enough the night before because I always stress about packing the right things, and then I didn’t sleep hardly at all for basically two full days.

This time would be different! For one, I was well-rested from a normal night’s sleep. I decided to be daring and throw caution and good advice out the window by indulging in a glass of free wine on my first little leg to Johannesburg. No regrets.

I sipped my wine and enjoyed my last views of the beautiful mountains of Lesotho and this area of South Africa.

I had a quick two hour layover in Johannesburg, and I was in a pretty good mood thanks to the wine. Tehe. First I got a couple souvenirs and pondered how one would bring home an ostrich egg without breaking it in transit.

When I was checking out, the cashier was being reeeall cheeky!

“Do you have someone special to celebrate Valentine’s Day with? Ah, he must be very lucky to have a beautiful smile from you. Am I making you blush?”

And then as I was walking away, “Keep being beautiful.” Bahahahahaha. I’ll take it!

Then I pulled the ultimate power move to avoid getting hungry and avoid buying airport food before I would be fed dinner on my next flight. I asked a barista for a cup of hot water, and then I mixed in some instant oats. Bazinga! #winning

Once on the plane, I tried to have pasta for dinner, but they were fresh out, so I had to have fish. It wasn’t bad. I again indulged in some free wine – Turkish, this time.

I was in the middle section of the plane (as in, there were three columns of seats, and I was in the section surrounded by two aisles), but I was on the aisle seat, and the two middle seats before the other person in my row were empty. Shortly after takeoff, I moved in so that I had an empty seat on either side of me. I tried to watch Into the Woods, but I could not get into it. Then, I lay my body down onto my aisle seat, put my feet on the foot rest, donned my eye mask and earplugs, and passed the heck out.

Woohoo for sleep! I really got a good couple hours in, as well as some good blogging time and another movie. (Wonder – very sweet!) Breakfast was a bread pudding (pretty yummy) with some fruit and cheese (the cheese was not great), and I went against internet advice again and had some tea. Yum.

The tea was justified, though! After ten hours of flying, I was just one time zone from where I started, so it was 6am, and I had a fun adventure planned!

I wanted to get out of the airport on this nine hour layover since it would be daylight, and I didn’t want to spend another eight hours wandering this ridiculous place. Istanbul is far from the airport, though, so it would be a relative pain to get there and back.

Turkish Airlines to the rescue! Turns out they offer FREE tours for passengers with layovers at least six hours! Amazing! I had time to leisurely make my way through the airport, sort out the reservation, and rest before they loaded us onto two giant charter buses.

The sun was just rising as we left the airport, and as we got closer to the city, we could see more and more housing and apartment buildings. Our guide said Istanbul has a population of 21 million people???? Google says 15.5 million, but still. New York City has only 8.5, and Denmark has only 5.8. This place is populated!!!

Soon, the lady in front of me began nodding off, and she kept hitting her head against the window before springing awake. I felt so bad for her, haha.

As we neared the city center, our guide began pointing out buildings and sharing more fun facts about Istanbul. Apparently it straddles both the European and Asian continents, and the two sides have varying degrees of European and Asian influence.

The fun facts weren’t enough for the man next to me, though, who began pointing out extra things to me. Turned out he’d visited the city before, and he’d even been on these Turkish Airlines layover tours before, including this very one! Haha. Always nice to have an extra tour guide as your friend. I never did get his name, but he was an Argentinian man who had spent the last 25 years living in Spain, and he loved to travel. We chatted about my trip to Lesotho and his trip to Vietnam.

Soon, we made it to the old city walls of Constantinople and the palace, which was covered in scaffolding. I hope I can come back some day and walk around, but this was just a short bus tour to fill in my short layover.

We passed several grand mosques, and we could see the tall towers (I learned that these are called minarets) of many more in the distance. I saw my first of these on my trip to Mostar last spring!

We eventually made our first of two stops on the Galata bridge. It was a fairly big and busy bridge, but the unusual thing was the dozens and dozens of people fishing off the edge! I’ve never seen anything like it!

The bridge was also pretty slippery from the overnight rain, so I was giggling as I made my way slowly across it, barely keeping my footing.

There were some stairs to go down to a cafe, but I didn’t venture down since we only had ten minutes. Now that I’m doing some googling, I feel like a doofus! Turns out this is a double decker bridge, and the bottom is filled with restaurants, cafés, and shops! Next time, I guess…

After our ten minutes on the bridge, we piled back onto the bus until our next stop – breakfast! We stopped between a large mosque and a large palace at a cafe, and we were all served a free simit and Turkish tea. Yummy!

They even brought around some Turkish delights to sample at the end, and I got some Turkish coffee grounds to bring home to Sean.

Then it was off to explore a bit! My first stop was the nearby mosque. To enter, I had to cover my hair with my scarf, and I also had to put an extra skirt on over the one I was already wearing so that my ankles would be covered. The security man winked at me to signal that I was ready to enter, haha.

You have to remove your shoes to enter the mosque, which is entirely carpeted, presumably to make praying more comfortable. Very cozy.

My next stop was less romantic – the bathroom. Anybody know what this washing station is for adjacent to the sinks? The only thing I can figure is for washing your feet if you use the squatting toilet, but then… Won’t your shoes and legs be all wet? Unclear!

Next, I wandered along the water and watched the stray doggos and kitties for a while. There was food left out for them, but they were mostly just lounging around. Not a bad life.

I bent down to take a photo of this pretty orange tabby, and he quickly walked up for a nuzzle, haha.

Then I walked to the palace gardens to admire the walkways and the clock tower.

No time to enter the palace itself, and thank goodness! Turkish citizens had $5 entry, but foreigners had a $30 entry! I do wonder what was inside, though!

I rounded out our stop with a yummy-looking fruit cup.

I vaguely regret eating the fruit with my hands. The pomegranate seeds at the bottom of the cup were especially awkward! Luckily I had saved about six wet wipes from various plane rides, and one of those came in quite handy after my snack!

When we all boarded the bus, our guide asked, “Is everyone here?” Then followed an awkward silence where nobody really knew how to answer, so he said, “If you are here, say ‘I am here.'” Bahahaha. That got some laughs, and we were off, hopefully with everyone in-tow!

Back at the airport, we passed a giant new mosque.

Then it was time for multiple security checkpoints. Not sure why. We had to go through a checkpoint just to enter the airport, and then again to enter the actual terminal. I still had a couple hours until my flight, so I used the opportunity to lazily shop, which I hadn’t had the energy for on my last layover.

I picked up a new book (Daisy Jones and the Six) and a cute pair of tennis shoes. I didn’t have to worry about packing light anymore! Home was just one stop away!

I kept seeing statues pointing to the “airport museum,” but I was disappointed to learn there was an entry fee. I think it was €15, but the desk man said it only took 20 minutes to walk around the museum. Too rich for my blood!

I was eyeing the fancier looking restaurants and considering splurging on something nice to avoid a repeat of my $30 for a cup of noodles + matcha + cheesecake debacle of last week.

Then lo and behold! I saw a bunch of people cleaning their bowls of what looked like soup, and that sounded delightful. Turns out it was kind of like an IKEA-style restaurant. Grab a tray, point at what you want, get as much as you want, and pay a la carte! The food was all so colorful and yummy looking.

I got a bowl of hot soup and a side bowl of some kind of sweet medley, and I was giddy with excitement. And this cost less than $15. I felt so dumb. I literally walked right past this place on my last layover and didn’t notice it because it looked too expensive. Gah!

The soup was perfect and hit the spot. The sweet stuff was… Interesting. Topped with pomegranate seeds, pistachio chunks, other nut pieces, and dried fruit, the base was soooo sweet! I thought it was oats and white beans, but upon some googling, it seems the “oats” were actually “wheat berries.” Not sure I’ve ever eaten rolled wheat berries! These were all soaked in some kind of sweet syrup concoction. It’s called ashure, or Noah’s pudding. It was yummy, but it was a bit overpowering with the sweetness, and the soup had filled me up, so I got a coffee cup and piled the rest of the pudding inside for the road.

There was a really weird security check AT my gate. Like, the check was only for the gate to Seattle and for no other flights. They opened and looked inside every bag like at a theater, and then they gave every person a pat down.

I was super confused and a little displeased. I’ve never seen something like that before. Was it from the Turkiye side or for going to the US?? I have no idea! Very strange. Very off-putting.

But once that was behind me, it was just one long plane ride between here and home. Finally!

There were (yet again) a few nearby people coughing constantly. I wish there was a rule that you need to wear a mask if you’re constantly coughing in en enclosed space like a plane or a theater! Meh.

There was also a child a few rows behind me who started screaming bloody murder a few minutes before take off. It wasn’t clear what he wanted. And he really wasn’t just crying – he was SCREAMING. Probably about four or five years old. I’m guessing he was just tired, but I found myself wondering what the heck we would do if he kept it up the whole flight. He got to the point where he started coughing as if he might puke from screaming so hard!!! Once we took off, a flight attendant tried to soothe him, and it didn’t seem to work at first, but he did quiet down after another five minutes or so. It was a very long and loud fifteen minutes.

I felt kind of guilty because I had purchased a window seat, and there was nobody in the two seats next to me, so I moved to the middle seat to discourage others from sharing my row…. Hahaha. I suck, I know. I wanted that good sleep, though! And it ended up being a good thing, because once we took off, I moved back to the window to look outside, and the person in front of me let their seat all the way back and it hit me in the forehead! She didn’t even apologize! It was very awkward and I was pretty tiffed. Luckily I could move to the middle seat to watch a movie and not have her in my lap the whole time.

I (regretfully) opted for the Turkish meatballs instead of the pasta for dinner. It was just too much meat for me! Fairly tasty, though. I also treated myself to another free glass of wine.

I reluctantly finished Into the Woods, and then I watched The Creator (I liked it!), and I started Chocolat, but wasn’t able to finish before we landed because the “time until landing” feature was freaking out. With the full row to myself, I was free to visit the restroom whenever I wanted, look out the window at will, and lay entirely flat for several hours of good sleep! I felt so spoiled! It was honestly such night and day compared to my lack of sleep on my outgoing flights.

Enjoy some fun aerial images and some fun shots from the plane cameras.

(Can you really see the curvature of the Earth when you’re flying a plane this high, or is that just some effect of the camera lens??)

Just before landing, we were served lasagna (got some free red wine this time) and the BEST dessert ever! Apparently it was tres leches cake, but I’m not usually a fan, and this was heavenly. It was extra moist, so it was more like a custard than a cake. So light and just the right amount of sweetness. Gah! Now I’m craving it.

I knew I was home when we landed to grey skies and rain drops on the windows. Woohoo! Hahahaha. I was so thrilled to see Sean after a speedy walk through customs (thanks, Nexus), and I managed to stay awake until 8pm or so before the time difference caught up with me.

All in all, a pretty great journey home! Way less painful than the way there!

And that’s a wrap on my quick trip to Lesotho! I hope to see more of Turkiye another time, but not too shabby for a layover.

Bye for now!

Saygılarımla/ best regards!

-Lizzy-wa

May 23, 2023 – Last Days in Malta

May 28, 2023June 7, 2023Posted in Europe, Malta2 Comments

The last blog of the trip! It’s here!

I started my second morning in Malta with another giant breakfast prepared by Francine. This one included a fried egg, a hot dog, a slice of salami, fresh tomatoes, fried zucchini, fresh peas, this very yummy and garlicky lima bean thing, fresh orange juice, peach yogurt, watermelon, bread with spreads, and sweets. Uh, yeah. It was a lot of food! So much so that at the end of it, I had a lot of food left on my plate and told Francine that it would probably be better not to prepare the plate for me the next day. It’s just too much food for breakfast! I usually only have a bowl of cereal or oats to start my day!

We argued back and forth about whether she should cook the next day until finally she said, “If that’s what you want!” Hahaha.

I started my day with a walk through the neighborhood and a very frustrating wait for the bus. The buses often come very late or not at all, so when my bus came 25 minutes after I arrived at the stop, I was APPALLED when it ZOOMED right by me without even slowing down!!!!! I was sooooo angry. I thought about putting the whole day in the can. Public transit can be so frustrating when it doesn’t work for you.

I waited another thirty minutes for the next bus and rode to the northwest corner of the island in a huff. I did see some fun things along the way, though, including a huge round church. I was so curious what it looked like inside!

I was here to catch a ferry to a different island in Malta called Gozo.

Gozo is much smaller than Malta, which is already quite small to begin with. In fact, one thing that surprised me over and over again was just how much history, life, and activity there is on Malta despite its small size. To compare, it is about a fourth the size of the island of Kauai, and you can drive the circumference of Kauai in about two hours! Yet there are only towns in Kauai – no real cities. Malta, by contrast, is filled with cities and villages and traffic and buildings that are hundreds of years old. Very cool.

When I arrived at the port of Gozo, I took a bus into its capital, still in the center of the island, called Victoria. I wandered the pretty streets and peeked into a few churches.

I don’t know what it is with the old Maltese men, but when I first entered the city and was navigating the streets crowded with outdoor cafes, a man made eye contact with me and said, “HellOH! How nice you are!” What the heck?! I’m just trying to live my life!!

I digress, haha.

One thing Malta is apparently famous for are its “feasts.” Feasts are basically big celebrations in honor of saints. They used to happen a few times a year in a few cities, but I guess now everybody wants an excuse to eat and light up the night, so there is a feast practically every week somewhere in Malta! Many churches are strung up with lights all year long so they don’t have to reinstall them every year, and the feasts often end in a big fireworks show.

Obviously, I was curious about these feasts, but it was really hard for me to figure out where or when they were happening online. I’d pretty much resolved not to attend one because I couldn’t verify any were happening, but it was clear one was happening in Gozo the next day! The churches were all plastered with posters proclaiming the feast for Santa Rita, and I heard a nanny explaining to a bunch of children that they had to get ready for the feast tomorrow. So fun! Too bad it didn’t land on the same day I was there.

Because it took me so much time to get to the Gozo capital (an hour waiting for the bus, over an hour on the bus, half hour on the ferry, and then another half hour bus ride), I was quite hungry by this point. In an effort to avoid my silly move from the previous night’s dinner, I decided to just step into the first restaurant I saw that looked good and interesting.

The front was filled with a bachelorette party and lots of people, so I was shown a table in the equally-crowded back area near a table of French people. I ordered a seafood risotto and a glass of white wine, but I was surprised with a basket of bread before my main course arrived.

This bread blew my mind. There was one whole wheat dinner roll which I only took one bite of, but there were also two thick slices of this super soft bread with cherry tomatoes cooked in, and it was still hot to the touch. It was kind of like a very thick focaccia. It came with a sun-dried tomato and caper spread and Maltese sheep cheese spread. That sheep cheese spread was SO stinking good!!! Seriously, I wish I could have taken that cheese and bread home with me!! I knew I was going to fill up before my lunch arrived, but I couldn’t help myself!

The main course was pretty intense. Lots of clams, muscles, and cuttlefish. The cuttlefish was surprisingly chewy, and I ended up not eating much of it because I was so full. I loved the muscles though – very tender and flavorful. I worked slowly, enough so that when I was done, I was the only person left in the restaurant, haha. I finished most of the risotto, though!

I had a glass of local Gozo wine, and surprisingly, I was allergic to it! What a bummer! I am often allergic to small-batch ciders, but I don’t think that’s ever happened before with wine. Maybe I’m allergic to small-batch wine? Haha.

After lunch, I walked to the main attraction in Victoria: the Citadella. This was the old walled city, and let me tell you – I will be okay if I never see another old walled city again. Hahaha. I think this is like the eighth one I’ve seen on this trip!!!!

The center of the town is the large cathedral, which has many stairs to the entrance and a beautiful interior.

There was one little craft shop that I entered, and I was immediately drawn to these beautiful rings! I don’t normally like jewelry enough to buy it. Most of the time the prettiest things are earrings, and I don’t have my ears pierced. I have gone through necklace and ring phases, but right now I only wear one ring every day that I got from my grandma.

So I surprised myself by loving these rings so much I bought two! They were charged by weight, and I wasn’t even looking at the second one I got, but it was only €12, and I really love how it looks next to my grandma’s ring! Francine later told me they were “very nice” and that they were created using a very typical Maltese filigree technique!

Higher up in the old city lay the city ruins, a maze of low stone walls with a view of the entire surrounding island. I loved the look of the place up here.

During the time of frequent attacks, there was a law that required all citizens to sleep within the castle walls, so you could see that the spaces and individual homes were very cramped. Once the country existed in safer times, they abolished this law and people got the heck out of there. The homes collapsed and were never rebuilt, leaving just this maze of ruins.

It was already past five by the time I made it to the Citadella, so most of the businesses and museums were closed. It was nice to just wander the space, though.

There was one art installation that was open and free.

With nowhere better to be, and still very full from my late lunch, I basically did a second round of explorations in the same spaces.

As I was making to leave, the church bells started ringing, and I swear they never stopped! As they rang, dozens of Maltese people dressed in their absolute best came rushing up the many steps for Mass. Little boys in choir uniforms and suits, ladies in fancy pants. It was so cute! I wanted to stay for Mass to see what all the fuss was about, but then I saw that Mass wasn’t for another half hour. And guess what? Those bells rang for that full half hour! Craziness!

I, myself, made my way back into the modern city, through some botanical gardens, past the largest “free little library” I’ve ever seen, and then back on my long journey to my Airbnb. The chill from the ocean wind was quite strong as the sun began to set, and I was so pleased to return finally to bed.

On my last morning with Francine, as discussed, there was no plate of food for breakfast. Thank goodness! In its place, she left a bowl so that I could choose one of the many cereals. And she still left fresh honeydew, yogurt, fresh squeezed orange juice, the bread with spreads, and Maltese sweets. ‘Twas perfect!

Because I’d originally only planned three nights in Malta, it was time to bid this home farewell. I packed up my things, walked twenty minutes, waited way too long for a bus, transferred to another bus at a very confusing highway intersection, and then eventually made it to my new Airbnb on the Southeast coast. This town was called Marsaskala, and it had a very different vibe than my last home base. I liked it immediately and was surprisingly glad for the change of scenery!

First on the agenda was lunch – I was in search of sushi, but instead, I opted for some pizza with Maltese sausage and Maltese wine on the water. Not too shabby!

It was a relief to have left the Croatian coast where a lot of businesses (including my hostels) still required cash. It was such a pain to either search for low-fee ATMs or cough up the extra $5-6 just to take out cash every couple days. Since Zagreb, I hadn’t spent hardly any of my cash, so now I was on a quest to get rid of my last forty euros! In one day! Haha. But Malta was fairly cheap, and this meal was only €12, so I had my work cut out for me.

Because this was my “bonus” day in Malta, and I’d already managed to see all of my original desired sights, I deemed this a fun, easy day of wandering.

I started along the coast to the north and found an old WWII bunker overlooking the sea. When I climbed up to its roof and took a seat, it kind of felt like I was the last person on Earth! There wasn’t a soul in sight, and all I could hear were the waves. I ignored the ships in the distance (haha) and pondered this possibility. Then I sent a silly video to my boyfriend about being the last woman alive. Just me and my pizza leftovers.

I sat up there for quite a while, just enjoying the breeze.

When I climbed back down, I headed back the way I came, but along the water instead of through the streets this time. I was SO EXCITED to find a bunch of abandoned salt pans cut into the rock by the sea!!!

This was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen! It felt similar to the terraced rice paddies I loved in Vietnam! I love it when man forms nature in a way that still feels…. Natural somehow? No machinery, no buildings. Just feels very special.

These pans would catch ocean water as it washed ashore and then evaporate to leave harvest-able salt. Not sure why there wasn’t any salt in them! Less salt in the ocean?? Or maybe something else needs to happen? Unclear. But it looked so cool, and I had a blast wandering among them for hours.

I called my dad to talk about the science (and safety) of still ocean water, and then I took a dip of the toes! The water was warm in the sun, and I stood here for a long time chatting on the phone with my sister.

The sun was starting to make its way down by this point, so I reluctantly let my feet air-dry and then hit the pathway again. I found a billboard displaying the many jellyfish that live in the area (no thanks!), and I made a friend while I was reading.

This kitty was so, so sweet. He kept rubbing himself all over my legs like he wanted me to take him home. I wanted to cuddle but I’m very allergic and didn’t want to have a bad night! Instead, I just stood and let him cuddle up on me for a good five minutes until he was distracted by some other kitties nearby.

I continued my walk into the bay, where I stopped to refill my bottle with bubbly water for 15¢. (Worth a shot, but I just don’t like bubbly water!) Then I stopped in a cafe for a decaf cappuccino and a tiramisu. Neither were very impressive, but it was a nice rest.

Then I continued along the far side of the bay as the sun set behind me, wishing I was walking in the other direction! Haha.

I came upon some more salt pans and spent more time oggling.

And then I thought, what the heck? Why not do a photoshoot?!

I call this “One Blurry Foot,” because I had to choose which foot would be blurry. They reached the apex of the jump one frame apart, haha.

The featured photo for this post? That one is called, ‘Checking the Deodorant.”

When I got back to my Airbnb, I had a nice funny wash up in one of those bathtubs that doesn’t have a curtain or a stand for the shower, so you kind of half to squat and hold the shower head. I always get a kick out of those.

I slept awfully, probably because I was worried about waking up at 5:40am for my flight, so I ended up getting very little sleep. I even had a dream I woke up at 9:26 and missed my flight. Oof!

In actuality, I woke up when the sun did and made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare.

I had a panic moment when my name was paged and it turned out I had to go through customs since I was leaving the EU. My name was paged two more times as I waited in line, and when I finally got to the gate in a tizzy, the gate agent took my passport and asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yes?” I said.

“Okay,” she said, as she handed back my passport.

“Do you need anything from me?” I asked, confused.

She smiled sweetly and said, “No.”

Then why did you page me three times and give me a heart attack?!? Goodness gracious.

I was thrilled to have a window and a row to myself on the plane. We flew right over Malta, Gozo, and the smaller island of Comino.

We also flew right over Sicily! So even though I didn’t visit on this trip, I still got to see it! Haha.

I had lots of snacks and saw lots of beautiful mountains (the Alps?)

Unfortunately, I was stressed the whole flight. I had a 1-hour 45-minute layover in London because the only other option was to spend hundreds more or to spend the night in London. This should have been fine except that the Malta flight had a communication issue, so we stayed grounded for an extra thirty minutes. Commence unease. Norse Airlines also would not let me check-in online, which meant I would have to go to the check-in counter and stand in line. Check-in closes one hour before take off, though, so the math didn’t add up well!!!! Commence second round of panic for the day!!

Halfway through the flight, an attendant moved me to the middle of the plane so I could get off faster, but that meant no more fun window views. Worth it for a 2% increase in peace of mind.

I speed walked through the airport and was so thankful that Gatwick got their customs ish in order! I’ve spent over an hour in customs several times in the UK, but this time I was SO relieved to find automated kiosks to can my passport with no lines. Easy breezy two minutes.

When I made it to the check-in desk, there were over a dozen others on the same flight in similar predicaments, and we were assured check-in would stay open for us. Thank goodness! I was a little worried about the bag restrictions, but I narrowly made it through with my trusty backpack, hiding my extra bag under the counter, lol.

On my long flight to New York, I got double windows. (Score!) I was also excited because there was a lady in the middle seat next to me and nobody on the aisle. I couldn’t wait for the doors to close so she could move over and we could both spread out!

But then… She didn’t…..!!

I was like, dude, lady, what are you doing?! Why do you want to sit next to me?! What is going on?!

I’m not proud of this, but I spent the next four hours being more and more, uhm… Spacious in an effort to get her to move over, hahahaha. Finally, after enjoying the English countryside (I love the puffy trees and bushes they put between all their fields), watching Mrs. Harris goes to Paris (was cute!), snacking a lot on UK meal deals (main, drink, and snack for five pounds!), I succeeded! I woke up from a short nap, leaning heavily to the left, to find her in the aisle seat. Finally!

After my nap, I snacked some more, watched The Theory of Everything (very good but very sad), and worked on the blog. Eventually, we were making our descent into New York, with the skyline visible in the far distance!

I was so excited to be here! In the States! Even though I wasn’t quite home yet, I was visiting friends and had visited New York several times before, so it really felt like I was kind of already home. All kinds of excited. Cutting my trip short was bold and unexpected, but the excitement I felt at being “finished” with my trip told me that it was 100% the right decision.

All in all, I averaged around 20,000 steps a day – with that one exception of nearly 36,000 steps in Bled. Yeesh! My sleep was kind of all over the place, starting strong and getting worse toward the end. It was fun to have a Fitbit on this trip for the first time!

Thank you so much for following along on another adventure. I really hope you’ve had fun reading and browsing pictures. I may be (a little bit) older and less spunky, but I’m sure this will not be my last trip abroad. I’ll just take this trip as a lesson for planning the next one! But for now, I’d love nothing more than to get the heck home, unpack this silly backpack, and take a bath for the first time in a month. That sounds delightful.

Cheers, ciao, and all the best!

-Lizzy-wa

May 20, 2023 – Made it to Malta!

May 26, 2023June 7, 2023Posted in Europe, MaltaLeave a comment

The last stop! We made it! I made it!

With my travel plans changing, I was able to get a refund from all of my hostel and Airbnb stays with one €50 euro exception. I’ll say goodbye to my non-refundable Ryanair flights, 3 in total, which probably make around $200. I was able to get my original flight home mostly refunded. So all in all, not a bad deal. As I said before, I’m definitely saving money by cutting ten days off my trip!

One of the travel tweaks also meant I got to spend four days in Malta instead of three. I marveled at the architectural design in the Zagreb Airport before hopping over, and I was delighted to see some more fun islands on my way out.

I also had some disappointing snacks that I’d bought in a hurry.

As we came into Malta, I was a bit confused. The landscape was so tan! All of it! Very, very little green, and very flat. I hadn’t done any research really, so I didn’t know what to expect.

I went straight to my Airbnb, which was in the center of the island. The place was so stinking cheap, and it had amazing reviews about the hospitality of its host, Francine. Apparently she cooks a mean breakfast.

My walk through the neighborhood from the bus stop continued to confirm my suspicions: everything was tan! Practically every building seemed to be made of limestone, and the sandy-colored dust seemed to just kind of sit on every other surface, too. It was quite windy, and I kept getting sand in my eyes, so I had to put my sunglasses on!

It was pretty, though, and very different-feeling from Croatia. I liked it instantly.

Upon arriving at my Airbnb, I was thrilled to see I had a private bathroom again. Huzzah!!!! I was so stinking tired of those hostels! Wearing flip flops in the shower, balancing my clean clothes and towel on the single provided hook, and then attempting to change into all of it before walking across the hall back to my bunk was getting really old.

Francine had left me snacks and tea, which I delighted in as I planned out my evening. Though I’d gone straight to the airport in the morning, it was already almost three in the afternoon when I arrived at my Airbnb. I dilly dallied for a while before deciding to partake in The Three Villages Walk, a route outlined in a pamphlet I got at the airport. Turns out I was staying smack inside one of those villages! How convenient!

The route sent me meandering through quiet sandy streets, and the gusty wind sent a chill up my legs despite the relative warmth. I loved the abundance of bougainvillea and weathered limestone.

The path had dozens of interest points: churches, buildings, etc., and each of these had an informational placard.

The whole point of this walk is that these are believed to be some of the first villages on the island. Though we’re mostly used to big cities and capitals being located on the water for trade, the first large settlements of Malta, and the historic capital, are all in the center of the island to avoid pirates and attacks. This particular house is believed to exist in the exact center of Malta.

At one point, I was standing aimlessly between some flowers and some cats who were meowing loudly at a door. A car stopped near me and I realized the driver was talking to me. “Do you need help with something?” he asked.

“Oh, no, thank you!” I responded, but felt I needed to provide more information. I added, “I was just listening to the cats!” Lol. He laughed and drove off.

This would not be the last beautiful red church I would enter! Nor the last I’d see in service! The Maltese practice Catholicism like no other!

After a couple hours, I was getting hungry and tired, and I had to pee, but no restaurants were open for dinner until seven! I settled for a tiny slice of packaged chocolate chip bread and sat on a bench to rest for a while near this fun house-turned-roundabout.

I found another beautiful red church on my way to dinner and had a major faux-pas. To activate my phone’s camera quickly, I can double-tap the power button. However, if I hold it for too long or click it too many times, I have learned that a safety alarm goes off!! Very loudly! And if I don’t deactivate it within five seconds, it will alert emergency services!

A great feature in general. Not a great feature in church. And not a great feature when I’m constantly clicking my phone button for pictures! It’s happened like three times now on this trip, and never before!

For dinner, I found a lovely Italian restaurant owned by a lady from Genoa, Italy. I walked in to find her and a new employee talking about life over wine and spritz, and I was immediately welcomed into the family.

Adele (pronounced Adella), the owner, was all, Elizabeth this, and Elizabeth that! It was pretty funny. She literally described every item on the menu to me and what kind of vibe each dish gave off.

I started with a prosecco and ordered a homemade tagliatelle with pork cheek and tomato sauce. It was a little pricey, but it was a goooood pasta, let me tell you. And just the perfect serving size.

For dessert, I had some panna cotta, which I’d been craving for about a week.

Then after I paid, Adele offered me a sipping glass of limoncello! How nice! “Elizabeth (pronounced ee-LITZ-a-bet), if you need anything, anything, you know.” She said this as she handed me her business card. Very sweet. We even chatted quite a bit about Malta, Italy, my travels, Covid, etc. A very nice end to an evening!

On my first morning in Malta, I was shown that, indeed, Francine made a huge breakfast.

How am I supposed to eat all of this?! That’s a fried egg, a hot dog(?), baked beans, fried zucchini, ham, fresh peas (I don’t think I’ve ever had fresh peas before!), fresh orange juice, strawberries, toast with about a dozen spreads, a dozen cereals, and a small plate of sweets. Crazy!

Needless to say, I did not quite finish the hot dog or beans, and I abstained from the cereal, but I did a good job on everything else! I was very full.

Francine herself had woken and eaten at five in the morning, but she plopped herself down in an armchair near the dining table and chatted with me the whole time I ate. She was so sweet. Really like a mama bear. Born and raised Maltese, with a son and daughter who both still live and work close by, and two granddaughters. One of those granddaughters wanted a pet, so a little blue parrot lived in a cage in the living room. I’d thought I’d heard bird sounds the night before!

When I made my way outside for the day, I found evidence of what Francine called “sandy rain.” Apparently wind sweeps up sand from the Sahara Desert, mixes with the clouds in the atmosphere, and dumps it all on Malta. I’ve never heard of such a thing! But everything was stained orange! All of the cars looked like they’d just done some SERIOUS off-roading, and all of the benches were coated in dried orange droplets. How strange!

My first stop for the day was Mdina, the historic capital of Malta. I was set up for a walking tour of this walled city and its neighbor Rabat, which literally means “suburb.”

Apparently this gate was one of the entrances to King’s Landing. Game of Thrones is following me!

The walls and buildings of this city were narrow, high, and close. Helps make the city harder to invade. It sure was a maze, though!

Our guide, Micah, told us all about how poor Malta had been under so many different rules throughout time. It had also been abandoned for lack of water at one point and then taken up by new Arab settlers. Then eventually some English knights took over and converted everyone to Christianity. Then the French and Spanish had a visit. All of this led to quite a mixed culture! Maltese has words from all of these cultures, and they even pray to Allah in Catholic church, which I think is very cool.

One of the most interesting things she told us was that the Maltese used to pay a lot of money to the church in an attempt to speed their way through purgatory in the after life. When people didn’t have enough money to pay in their lifetime, they would instead sign contracts with the church such that anyone who bought their house or lived in it thereafter would pay an annual fee to the church in that person’s stead. Our guide lives in one of these houses, under a contract hundreds of years old! The fee is twenty-two euros per year for the house. However, it has since been split into eight apartments, one of which Micah owns, and each of the eight apartments must pay the entire annual fee! So strange!

We walked along the city walls and got some nice views of the surrounding fields.

We made a stop for a classic Maltese snack – pastizzi, from one of the most famous shops. There was a little old man moving tray after tray of these goodies in and out of the oven! Flavor choices were ricotta, peas, chicken, and mushrooms. I went with ricotta. Yum!

I was getting pretty tired by this point. I thought it would be a 1.5 – 2 hour tour, but our break was nearly two hours in! I was straight up exhausted and hardly even listening by the end of it. The heat didn’t help!

At the recommendation of the guide, I decided to visit the St. Paul catacombs. Regrets! I don’t like catacombs! But she talked it up so much. Idk. I mostly don’t love that this place that was once a graveyard is now… Empty of bodies. Anything that disrupts the dead and puts it on display (especially mummies!) really rubs me the wrong way.

The only cool part (besides the cool underground air) were these stone “tables” that family members came to feast upon to honor the dead and send them off to the afterlife. Seems strange but wholesome.

There were also some tomb covers that dictated what kind of life the person lived. So this one belonged to a doctor or a surgeon! Neat!

When I surfaced, I wandered toward some churches and found a museum that actually had a much better lit, less creepy set of catacombs ruins that had been converted into WWII shelters. There was also art. I enjoyed this space much better. And when I thought back, I realized the guide told us the museum wasn’t worth it! Her recommendations were all wrong for me, haha.

I was really craving something cold and fruity, so I got this manufactured gelato thing. It was like pebbles of frozen smoothie that was ground back into a smoothie by a machine. Strange, and way overpriced, but it really hit the spot. It was called a Fruitiamo.

For another snack before leaving Mdina and Rabat, I grabbed a couple more local treats – imqarets. Most of the sweets here are Arabic – lots of dates, nuts, etc. I got one with dates and one with Nutella!

Then I hopped on a bus to get to the modern capital city – Valetta.

I was supposed to do a second walking tour here, but I made the big old choice to cancel last minute. I just couldn’t imagine walking around listening to someone talk for another two hours! A lot of the history would likely overlap, too.

But mainly, my feet needed a break.

The tour was supposed to meet at this place where they fire a ceremonial cannon every day at 4pm. This was my view, haha:

When the cannons went off and the crowds cleared, I got a better angle.

I decided to just hang out here on a bench in the shade and eat my imqarets while reading for a while. A tiny, tiny lady bug landed on my palm at one point! Hard to tell in the shadow, but it really was a tiny lady bug!

I also saw a young couple kiss in front of me. Like a very quick peck. But it reminded me of my boyfriend and I was instantly crying big crocodile tears. Hahaha. I just let the tears pool in the rim of my sunglasses so I wouldn’t get weird looks for crying in a public place. Wouldn’t be the first time!

Once I recovered and gained some energy, I patted myself on the back for my genius decision to skip the tour, and then I took a leisurely walk through the city and along its walls. Lots of stairs in this city!

I found some pretty gardens further down and watched the waves crashing against the bridges and walls. Some of the waves were pretty fierce!

I continued wandering, going into the depths of the city, walking among the busy shops and outdoor restaurants. I even found my once-favorite store, Flying Tiger Copenhagen! I bought some stickers.

I was really hoping to find some yummy food at the “food market” on the map, but it was mostly food from around the world, and I wanted something more local. I got a bottle of fresh orange juice, though!

Now, here’s where I went wrong. I went past so many restaurants that probably would have been really tasty, but they were all either a little too pricey or the music was way too loud and pumpin’. For some reason, this cheap restaurant I’d passed before was calling to me. I suspected the food might not actually be very good, but again, I went without reason.

The second I walked in, I knew for sure it was going to be a bad restaurant, hahahaha. Just the feel of it. Also, there was a dude on a keyboard singing with a backing soundtrack, and the volume was way too loud. I was quickly seated directly in front of him, lol.

This guy’s song choices were cracking me up. He sang a few country songs (with a country accent), some Elvis songs (like an Elvis impersonator), and some classics. When he sang “Amazed” by Lonestar, I was originally dying of laughter inside. But then he sang one particularly romantic line that reminded me of Sean, and I was on the verge of tears again. What a mess!! Hahaha.

My dinner was a “spaghetti rabbit sauce,” but there was no rabbit to be seen and lots of peas. It was one of the most unimpressive and uninteresting plates of spaghetti I have ever eaten, hahahaha. Not bad, certainly. But very much like low-tier cafeteria food.

The real shocker came when an older Maltese man started talking to me from the table behind me! The first thing he asked, twice, was, “You need another?” while pointing in my general direction. I finally understood that he was trying to buy me another glass of wine. At this point, I was maybe 20% into my current glass, so no, I did not need another.

Then he offered coke, sprite, etc. I declined again and tried to pointedly return to my book and my food with my back to him.

But he kept on going!

“You like Maltese dinner?”

“Are you taking holiday?”

“Are you having a boyfriend?”

Oh, boy, you should have heard his disappointed, “.. Oh ..” after I said yes to that one!!!

“Why did he leave you alone?!”

And then, the real kicker: “You like fishing?” I hmm’d and hawed, to which he asked, “Do you want to have a drink with me after? Nothing serious. See my boat, is maybe 50 by six. Is in Marsaloxx. You know it?”

This seventy year old man literally wanted me to drive twenty minutes with him to the other side of the island to his fishing boat at 9:30 at night to have a drink with him!!!! Like, what?! Has this worked for him before?! Did he really think I was going to say yes to that? Or to more than that?!!!

Let me tell you one thing for sure: even if I was very single and he was forty years younger, I would have still said no.

I worried at that point about whether he might try following me when I left, but luckily he left about five minutes later with a brief, “Enjoy your evening.” What a crazy encounter.

I managed to finish that entire plate of spaghetti and the whole glass of wine, and then I enjoyed the lights on my way back to my Airbnb.

I think I’ll split my Malta visit into two posts so I don’t tire you out with my chatting and my pictures! So stay tuned for part two!

Ciao,

-Lizzy-wa