eingeschlagen!!!!!

so.. where did leave off, paris.. well, yes, that was beautiful, great architecture.. etc.. but next was my favorite place so far.. zurich, where we stayed in the KISS room at the zic zack rock hostel.. hhaha.. anyway, i cannot wait to go back there and jump in that glorious lake!! I am a sucker for good looking swiss men and any type of water, especially when there are mountains in the background..so after a day of feeling like fancy people we got on a train to go to germany!! we hopped on a train to the beautiful alp foothills to see how disney modeled their castles.. the real deal.. so we got up to it and the largest thunder and lightening storm came over us, which ofcourse i loved, but we did get soaked..
anyway.. we made it out alive.. even though i think jenny was totally doubtful that we werent going to become fried monuments on the path up the hill!!
then we went to a beer garden.. where jenny got hit on by a 70 year old man, who could not even complete his german greeting!1.. we did eat sausages and pretzels though..
so.. skipping to today.. we decided to go to a concentration camp.. why not.. well, the reason why the only train there wasnt working.. was.. well, we were told by the train guide that they were excavating a land mine.. the best part was that he acted it out for us.. digging, told us about a bomb.. i suggested mine.. almost joking.. was he for real..he certainly was.. so needless to say.. we did not make it there and chose another path of history.. i must say though, the cute soldier at check point charlie was worth the change in plans, especially when he told jenny to put her purse on her other shoulder so that he could put his arm around her!!
this balances out the depressing stories that we heard here!!
i am so american.. but i cant believe that we are going to sweden tomorrow.. and jenny thinks that i have taken a ton of pictures.. watch out!!
OXOXOX

i saw the mona lisa!

yes.. when you're in paris.. you must see the mona lisa.. well, it's very anticlimactic.. and yes, it looks like she is staring at you, and it's very dark, and wierd that she is so famous, but i guess the mystery of her makes her stay so popular! that museum is so beautiful.. even the building alone.. you can get lost in there forever! jenny was a great tour guide ofcourse! using her academic knowledge.. and interpreting the french that i couldn't get!.. so, we had a great time on the metro people watching as well! no naked bikers today..
but, unfortunately, we witnessed a little boy get hit by a car on jenny's street! ahh.. it was so scary.. he was conscious, but the worst part was that the father, picked up his child and started to yell and punch the driver.. dropping his child on the ground!!! what a scene! we made sure that the ambulances came.. but oh my goodness.. so frustrating to see!
we had a great meal at a little cafe.. listening to all of the french conversation around us! now a nice quiet night that we decided would be a good idea.. before the white stripes concert and sight seeing tomorrow!
oxoxoxox

mice, naked bike riders.. notre dame!

yes.. the title is true to itself! so, today jenny was a fabulous walking tour guide of paris! we did most of the city on foot.. stopping at the tour de eiffel.. what an engineering marvel.. then we ventrued on to see almost the entire city.. we viewed the arc de triomphe.. what a crazy site to see from above.. all of the little people in the city.. shopping.. walking.. what perspective.. we are all such tiny little things in this crazy world! the architecture here is absolutely breath taking.. golden gates.. gardens.. we ate lunch at a little cafe on the champs elysees.. and saw so many of the high fashion stores.. pretty people... and art! so, as we were crossing the famous pont neuf.... all of a sudden an invasion of naked protesting bikers surrounded us.. what a site to see .... so the pride protests here as well! .. one minute we're in a see of nakedness.. the next in the beautiful notre dame! stain glass windows that take your breath away..
after walking along the river.. we came home to see some mice in poor jenny's apartment!!! another awesome day in paris.. i think we should see what it's like to adopt a cat tomorrow!

laissez le bon temps roulent!!

jenny and i are settled in paris.. after almost not getting to her apartment, unable to find the correct metro as well as being unable to get a taxi.. but here we are.. jenny is awesome! we met her landlord and she just rattled off her francais as if it was her native language! we immediately told her landlord, also named michelle, that i was not as french savy as jenny was! we were already insulted by the immigrants at the market, who made fun of us for not weighing a pepper, along with the chinese grocery lady who instructed us on how to bag groceries.. we did get a few $2 bottles of vino and the best cheese in the entire world! all of which we are dining on while gazing at the eiffel tower that is a quick head turn to the right on jenny's balcony!! we are getting jenny settled and happy here.. even though we do miss the good looking and friendly people in dublin~! i ventured to the store on my own, which was funny.. at least it was closed so i didn't have to speak! .. oh the adventures of high fashion paris! i am in total shock.. but let me tell you that as much as they are critisizing our actions or lack of correct terminology, we are currently dancing around the apartment to american hits of the early 90s..they are obsessed with sting mommy!so funny.. a little dabble of pink floyd and .. some crazy z100 top hits!! !!.. hehe.. okay, time for more wine..we're creating a picture album on shutterfly for viewing pleasures!!.... but i have already seen the crazy french markets.. silly little dogs...too much chest hair showing.. fanny packs.. canadian tuxedos.. aka.. demin jacket with stone washed jeans.. not to fret, tomorrow i will be historically and culurally educated with all of the famous sites.. but for now, we are recovering from our 245 am wake up and transition to the french styles of 07.

48 hours in dublin!

so... jenny and made i to the airport.. after a fun trek through dublin in the wee hours!! ireland was great... not as many red heads as i was expecting, but many beautiful, friendly.. and yes, drunk people, who were entertaining to say the least.. we did the city by foot.. every where you turn there is a piece of history, and a pub to match.. each corner was more colorful and cuter than the next.. we hit up temple bar.. met some nice irish folks, partied and then toured the pretty countryside yesterday.. now, off to paris.. and funny highlights will come later.. it's 515 am and miss mia did not sleep last night.. in anticipation of the major french culture shock! i think as long as i don't open my mouth and try to speak the few words of french i salvaged from high school, i'll be fine!!
oxoxo

downsizing!

okay.. so my first leg on the train to hoboken was fun.. caught up with my great nursing buddy RJ!! we have plans to fish on her dad's boat when I get back!!.. i decided i could validate talking on the phone since there were one hundred other people doing the same thing.. along with nutty kids running up and down! so.. we talked about how nieve we are.. and i'm supposed to grow up a little on this trip.. so we'll assess when i return in one piece!
jenny and i spent the last hour downsizing.. i did not that many pairs of shoes and clothes.. seriously.. so our bags now are suited to the weight limit that an annoying airline is impossing.. but we can be creative, it's kind of annoyingly fun!
okay.. love to all...
cheers
oxoxo

overcome with excitement

yes, i am psyched.. i pretty much get excited about a cup of good coffee, or just a nice conversation, or a simple text message from someone you're crushing over- means that jenny is going to be annoyed by my excitement of just plain people watching at the airport- i love playing a game, wondering why they are going where they are going, why they chose that seat to sit in, etc.. so..
people say that you are never the same after going to another country, as if it changes you.. am i supposed to think about who i am tonight, write it down, and see if i can still relate when i get back.. that is just way to serious i guess.. my hopes are for me to realize just how special the world is, to learn more about other places, and myself ofcourse... or maybe i'll see that i am such a tiny, miniscule piece of this world, and want to contribute more, to give rather than to take!
i guess i'll have to see when i return, or when i am there.. or not at all!
no need for heaviness.. just a little perspective, with a possibility for self introspection, and some gosh darn fun!
rainy night, for some reason, i'm really into this yankee game tonight- the yanks are one strike away from taking the series.. the "rubber" game.. okay, I kinda just hope they win for all of their fans..!.. and low and behold, they WON!
goodnight!
shout out to mattie, who just put in my mom's new toilet.. !!!! talk about being happy!

next stop.. Goteborg!

so, when i was in high school, my mom always told me to read the op-ed section of the NYtimes so that i would fare better on the SATs.. well, I should have listened.. my mom always says that she is lucky to be married to the only carpenter who reads the times from cover to cover.. haha. I am kind of the blonde of the family, who secretly loves the times.. I have been trained to bring the times and starbucks to my mom whenever i visit.. but i sneak all the headlines before i hand it over.. and anyway.. the point is that i glanced at the travel section today, and what do you know.. a swedish city that jenny and i are traveling to was profiled, i'm not one for signs, etc.. i mean, i appreciate the sun rising through a cloudy day, and love a beautiful rainbow.. but don't really relate them to a certain moment, or a make it an association that this was meant to be.. i just enjoy them for what they are, and hope that the sun keeps shining!!
so.. to the point.. Goteborg was founded by King Adolf in 1621, and was built in part to get the Danes off of the west coast of Sweden.... Dutch architects were hired to build and given incentive to stay.. then came the East India co., followed by the an influx of Scots, and British.. okay, so treasures washed ashore.. but the cool part is that the article says that if you are Swedish-American, it is a good chance that your ancestors spent their last night in Sweden there! This was a massive departure point for the half million Swedes that headed to America!!!
okay.. yes, excuse the rambling, but i have a little bit of the family history bug-
other than that, there is supposed to be a lot of neat art and apsiration in this city, which just makes me even more excited to experience! so.. yes.. I can't wait!!!!!!!!
cheers to our swedish Opa.

so much to be thankful for!

there has been so much going on in the past month i guess!
i should have been updating this, but shame on me, i guess i start chatting or get distracted, constantly think about what i'll write about, and then never get it down on here for mommy to read!
anyway... so here i am.. wow, i think that i'll start with graduation.. what an experience, one that would have in no way been the same without all of my awesome family and friends that made it special. Normally, I really would be the one to say, it's not a bid deal, but I can honestly say that i have never felt so loved and admired in my life. It felt like everything else just stopped. At pinning I sat there and looked behind me, the entire front row was filled from end to end with all of my parents, best friends, siblings, and even my best friends mom, each one of them believed in me when i didn't believe in myself, and needless to say, jenny told me that i had the biggest smile on my face in all of the auditorium, and i completely let myself smile and enjoy every minute. I didn't worry about what happened before that minute, or what was coming, just smiled, happy for every person in that room. We all had our moments, but this one was just great. I was so proud of everyone there, and hearing all those names just made me happy, lab partners, group projects, braniacs, annoying question askers, etc.. it did not matter, we all made it. my mom's blog actually sums it up better.. titled cleverly as.."what's a naturally blonde girl to do".. haha.. it makes my brother and i giggle and laugh, but oh how well your mom really does know you, it's almost scary, but just the way it should be!
so, thank you. everyone. mom, dad, aj... everyone.. it did mean the world to me that you were all there. each of you never stopped until you got what you wanted, why should i?
so, now what? over the past year and a half i have met so many new people, very, very interesting and special people, many of whom have made me realize that it's okay to just be myself, it's okay to let go, and most importantly, just to appreciate what you have, and to not let life's curve balls throw you off, but just to remind you of what you have to hold on to, or let in!
so, yes, i'm done with school.. well, have to pass those boards first, but i can't complain about them on here. but, next step... job.. yes, i went to graduation with a job, which validated all of the loans that i had taken out! but, as i have said before.. what was i going to do, just not go because i didn't want to have loans, fidn a job i may not have liked just to get by, pay the bills, go throught the motions? no way! that scares me. Boredom scares me.. loosing the spontaneity (sp?).. of what life has to offer, and wish that i had done something different.. no way. I just picked something that will pay off.
so, next stop.. europe! yes, jenny and i are leaving on tuesday afternoon! whoah, neither one of us can believe it! at work i didn't talk about it too much.. then i mentioned it and ofcourse got comments of excitement, and the less favorable ones of.."well, aren't you lucky.. or you have money to do that..".. the truth is, no, not really, but thanks to so many friends and families who are funding this trip, and most importantly, jenny brady, who will receive my first pay check! i am pulling this off.. and it will be fantastic. I'm going to see so many new things, and just relax.., totally out of the environment that i am used to.. talk about good people watching and site seeing!!! i feel so priveledged to go, and am happy i am letting myself go explore! it's part of my newly found zest for just being happy, not missing good opportunities that present themselves.
so, now i must finish my list of things to do before i go..
thank you notes, to all those people i didn't even realize were cheering me on, and packing lisa's pack.. so a part of her will be with me! and hanging out with some of the coolest people that i have met who have really enhanced my life recently. more on that subject later.!!
i do wish i could beam up to the farm before i go! but i'll have to wait until i am back and can tell my mom what the streets of sweden are really like!!!
lately, i have just discovered that seeing the same landscape with new eyes is a beautiful thing, so as much as europe will be amazing, i am so excited to come back to new jersey and begin a new adventure!
oxoxoox
smiles to all!