The Summary

Well, beautiful people, there is no logical way for me to completely update you on the past month of travels. I wish I could type up my journal entries and allow you to relive my experiences with me, but that would take an incredible amount of effort and would be slightly unethical, don't you think? So my plan is to give you a summary, because for the first time all month I've had the time and energy to pen one for you.

London: How completely wonderful is London? I LOVE IT. London is most certainly the town for me. Hoping to live there in a year or so, at least that's the plan at present. Stayed in London for 5 days, seeing all the major sites (Tate Modern, Tower Bridge, Tower of London, Big Ben, House of Parliament, Westminster, the London Eye)... in short, everything I've always dreamed of seeing and more. It was like a fairytale, and I'm sorry to use that reference, but I honestly don't know how else to describe it. Scenes from movies suddenly came to life for me -- the most memorable being Tower Bridge and Big Ben. First off, I totally thought London Bridge was Tower Bridge. It's not. It's a totally different bridge... whoops. When I realized this, I took the obligatory picture on London Bridge before walking briskly down the riverside to Tower Bridge. As I walked across it, pictures from the Lindsay Lohan version of the Parent Trap ran through my mind, complete with "Here Comes the Sun" playing in the background. IT WAS UNREAL. And Big Ben? Yeah. I mosey up the stairs from the Westminster Tube stop, look up to my right, and BAM. There was Big Ben in all it's glory. That moment will stay with me forever... We completed our absolutely perfect stay in London by seeing The Lion King in London's West End. When the curtains opened and The Circle of Life began, I started crying it was so beautiful. And once again, unreal. I never would have imagined that I would be sitting in a theatre at West End watching the Lion King live. So incredible.

Greece: Let's take this in parts, shall we?
Athens: Oh Athens. It was nothing like I expected it to be. We had some serious travel/accommodations mishaps, costing us over 140 euros to find ourselves in a safe location. My suitcase wheels will never be the same after dragging my 15 kilo duffle around the pothole laden, grimy streets of rainy Athens. Athens redeeming grace is found in the amazingly helpful staff at the Pan Hotel, the little bakery up the street from where we were staying, and of course, the Pantheon. The only way to really show you how much I appreciated the historical beauty of these ancient buildings is to raid my pictures when I have a chance to upload them in a week or so, so I highly recommend this :)
Olympia: Another travel adventure. Oh the bus system. Kind of terrifying, really, especially the bus workers who breathe fire. When we finally arrived, we realized that there was absolutely nothing open, and that there wouldn't be as it wasn't tourist season, and that there wouldn't be a bus out of there for two days because of its remote location. Again, Olympia's saving grace was in its amazing monuments and the gargantuan ruins of Zeus's Temple, which is considered one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. It is breathtaking to imagine that I actually have seen these ancient temples. Truly amazing. Although the town was shut down, it was lovely to be in the mountains, eating oranges straight off the trees. However, I don't think I'll eat an orange for a very long time: to save money, they became a huge part of our diet.
Nafplion: Nafplion, oh Nafplion. We almost died getting there by haphazard bus/taxi driving on winding mountain roads (did you know that it's perfectly safe to drive a coach bus on a mountain while laughing hysterically on the phone and writing things down? I didn't know this either. Wow, we learn new things every day, don't we?) And I kind of thought the taxi driver, who didn't speak English, might kill us with his own bare hands when he started punching the air while HE was on the phone. When we finally got to our hotel, I was more relieved than I have ever been to find that I was alive. Nafplion, cradled on the coast of the Aegean Sea, was more beautiful than I could have believed. With three fortresses nestled in the mountains and a turquoise blue sea surrounding the peninsula dotted with palm trees and seaside restaurants, Nafplion was everything I had hoped to heaven it would be. We spend several amazing days reveling in the beauty of this secluded haven, cut off from the busy, dirty, and often dangerous other parts of Greece we had previously encountered. Christmas we spent in Athens, waiting for our plane, but in the end, Greece was worth it.

Geneva, Switzerland: Geneva was SO CLEAN. And gorgeous as well, not as cold as I had thought it would be. It was so much fun to be surrounded with French, although I can barely speak it, and to be in a hostel that was conveniently located, clean, and safe. Again, check out my pictures when you get a chance, because descriptions just won't cut it. A wonderful way to unwind and breathe some fresh air (quite literally).

Germany, Part I = Kassel: Another transportation adventure, with canceled flights, rebookings, and running around the airport by myself with my head nearly cut off. I have never felt like more of an adult in my life, and besides the welling up a little bit at the information desk, I think I handled the situation competently. Finally at a friend's home, I was welcomed in true German fashion, with meat and beer almost every night, and an incredible amount of sweets. I'm just lucky they don't weigh passengers as well as luggage, because I'd undoubtedly be paying some sort of fee... Lots of time to relax and enjoy the community of family and friends, and to explore the German countryside, which was invariably familiar to that of Minnesota. This is where the homesickness sets in.
Germany, Part II = Hamburg: More learning how to travel on my own, and feeling glad that I have mastered another city's public transportation system :) I'm such a city person. I love it. Company has been wonderful here, also great to have my own room once again. Here I feel like I can adequately prepare for exams and the rest of my life (which is approaching much too rapidly to feel any sense of security at all).

Onto London in a few days. Beloved London. I cannot wait to be back. Much thanks and everlasting gratitude to those that have graciously welcomed me into their homes and families this past month. My journeys would not have been the same without you all.

If I have learned anything, it is that I am fully capable of surviving on my own. I can navigate sprawling cities, 5 languages, and bipass transportation disasters with more ease than I ever would have believed had you asked me a year ago. I am coming into my own, and I am finding myself to be competent, confident, and able. However, I am getting lonely. Lonelier than I thought I would. I miss my family at Nott, as much as I miss my family at home. I'm ready to be back with the familiarity of friendly faces and little quircks and my roommate's Indian singing in the shower. I miss these things. And what I have realized most of all is that no matter where I go, or what amazing things I am blessed to see, it is never as meaningful if I see and experience them alone.
I have learned that I can completely survive on my own, and that I pray I never have to. After all, what imprints us the most will not be the things that we see, but the people we meet and let into our lives. It is people that make life worth living, not buildings and monuments. And I never intend to live without community, without love, without my people. I miss my people. And as much as I have adored traveling, I am ready to be back in that flat in Nottingham, with all my people.