Semana Santa Travels 2010

Hola all!

So, I've reaaaaaallly been procrastinating on writing this post just because I knew that this post would be quite long. However, I've decided to give the Reader's Digest version and if you want more details, we can go get coffee and chat or something (assuming that I know you and you're not a creepy stalker). ;) Haha.

Basel, Switzerland
Saturday, 3 April - Tuesday, 6 April

My trip to Switzerland was actually quite long and tiring. I took the 4 AM bus from Valladolid to the Madrid Airport, that takes about two and a half hours without traffic (and we obviously had absolutely no traffic that morning, haha). For some reason, I wasn't able to sleep on the bus, nor in the airport, and therefore was quite tired by the time I arrived in Basel just after noon. My friend, Mike, and his wife, Isaline, picked me up from the airport at took me to their adorable flat that totally reminded me of a chalet in the mountains. I met Mike four years ago when the two of us were counselors at the summer camp, Redwood Camp, in 2006. Last year, in May, I had the amazing honor of being invited to Mike and Isaline's wedding in Switzerland and had a blast (see my post about the wedding). Anyways, this trip was basically to visit them, get to know Isaline better (I briefly talked with her for the first time at their wedding for maybe 2 minutes), and to discover a different part of Switzerland (Last year, I visited Geneva, Lausanne, Montreux, Gruyere, Croy, and Romainmôtier-Envy).

It was such a wonderful weekend. I was truly able to relax, have amazing conversations and fellowship, and celebrate Easter with some wonderful people. I actually didn't end up spending Easter with Mike and Isaline because I preferred to attend an English-speaking church (they go to a German-speaking church), so I met up with one of Mike's friends, Raphael, and went to his church. I had actually met Raphael and hung out with him for most of Mike and Isaline's wedding the year before because both him and I were flying solo at the wedding and didn't know anyone else there. After the sermon, I was invited to eat Easter lunch at Raphael's family's house with about 9 other foreigners. We had spicy lamb, which was amazing and redeemed lamb for me (I didn't like it before). We all ended up staying at the house, talking and joking around until quite late. I couldn't have imagined a better way to spend Easter in Switzerland. :) After Easter, I was able to go on a nice bikeride along a river to the point where Germany, France, and Switzerland meet, and also visit the ruins of an old castle, and eat some fantastic traditional Swiss food. I am so grateful for my friends in Switzerland.

Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Tuesday, 6 April - Friday, 9 April

Tuesday afternoon, after a wonderful hike through the gorgeous Swiss countryside with Mike and Isaline (I swear, I'm in love with Switzerland), Isaline drove me to the airport, and I was off to Amsterdam. My time in Amsterdam started out on a fantastic note: some native Amsterdammers (haha, okay, Dutch) helped me find the train station and even paid for my ticket into the city when I had problems with the machine! I was blown away! I was cracking up on the train when I saw a girl take off her shoes, step into her rollerblades and roll down the aisle as the train began to slow down (she started going quite fast!), and then she climbed up the stairs in her rollerblades and sped off. That was my first introduction to the city of pedestrians on wheels... everyone who is anyone in Amsterdam either bikes or rollerblades. It's crazy! And they act as if they have the right of way. If you hear a bike bell, you sure as hell better jump out of the way or else a collision will ensue. Between that and the crazy trams that zip up and down the streets, your chance of getting out of Amsterdam alive greatly decrease.

Anyways, I also had a fantastic time in Amsterdam. It was a completely different experience because I was there all by myself, staying in a hostel, and in the middle of the Red Light District (aka. prostitutes in the windows along the streets). I found myself talking to everyone and anyone and making quite a few friends, the first being a gal from South Africa, named Lauren. She gave me my first experience in Amsterdam... a tour of the freaking crazy Red Light District at night. Honestly, after having heard so much about the RLD, I was quite prepared for nearly anything, and truly thought that I would see naked women in the windows. It was a bit less extreme (at first glance) than I had been expecting. My constant feelings throughout my wanderings there were a mix of shock, disgust, and sadness for the "sex workers" (the P.C. term the Dutch use for prostitute). There were windows with women (and cross-dressing men) in them, selling themselves, and widows that advertised "live sex shows", sex stores with disgusting gadgets and torture devices for people who are into S&M (and it was shocking and horrendous!), windows full of dildoes (don´t know how to spell that one, haha), and one that had a strap on dildoe for lesbian women, and just disgusting souvenirs in the stores... wind-up plastic people doing favors for each other, penises of all sorts, decks of cards with porn on them, oy, it was a bit too much for me.

That´s the Red Light District. However, if you go out of that area, the city seems somewhat normal, except for the "Coffe Shops" where you go to smoke or eat weed. FYI, my tour guide told me that eating weed (special brownies) has a much stronger effect than smoking it. Don´t worry, I didn´t indulge in any of the things going on in Amsterdam... well, except the museums, haha. I went to the Van Gogh Museum, which I loved (and I´m normally not an art museum type), and the Anne Frank House, which was definitely worth it. I met some great people at the breakfast table and through Lauren (A gal from Croatia, and another from New York, and some dudes from Germany and the States). We all hung out and gasped at everything that we saw. It was a ton of fun sharing that adventure with them. The gal from Croatia, Marina, was such a sweetheart. She made my experience at the Van Gogh Museum so much better because as we walked from painting to painting, she told me the sad story of his life and of the differences between the paintings (I prefer his paintings from him time in France). Here are a couple paintings that I really enjoyed: Landscape at Twilight, Olive Grove, Boulevard de Cliche, Almond Blossom, and Seascape Near Les Saintes - Maries de la Mar, among many others. I guess I just really appreciate the crazy lines, dots, and curves that Van Gogh used to create his amazingly unique (at least at the time) masterpieces. It's just too bad that he died before receiving any recognition for the genius of his work.

The Anne Frank House was amazing too. It was much bigger than I expected, and, unfortunately, the entire outside of the house was completely redone so that it looks completely modern. You would never guess that it was the Anne Frank House by just looking at the architecture. It was a very touching exhibit and I am so glad that I went.

So, after a few awesome days strolling the streets of Amsterdam and dodging the bikers, I was off to Brussels to meet with a friend who I hadn't seen since 2002. Crazy.

Brussels & Bruge, Belgium
Friday, 9 April - 12 April.

I arrived in Brussels mid-afternoon and was picked up at the bus station by my friend, François, and his Uruguayan girlfriend, Beatriz. I know Francois from high school when he was a foreign exchange student for a year at my high school. He was good friends with Eric Kim and Jimmy, so, naturally, I got to know him as well. Francois is a born and raised Brusseleer (not kidding, that's what people from there are called in English), and he met Beatriz in Uruguay when he went there to film a documentary. I stayed with the two of them, just outside of the center and had such a fun time with them. Like Isaline and Mike, they made me feel so welcome and right at home, and cooked some great meals as well. I had a great few days in Belgium. I was able to meet up with my friend, Marleen, who is a Dutch gal who I met in Barcelona last year when we were both au pairs. One of my days in Belgium, I went on a day trip to Bruge, which is a beautiful Medieval city that, unfortunately, has become overrun by tourists and cheesy and ridiculous tourist attractions. I have fallen in love with Belgian chocolate and beer. When I get back to Seattle, I'm definitely going to find a pub that carries Duvel beer, because that is now my favorite.

Done. Yes, I said that I would give you the Reader's Digest Version (and, trust me, that was it)... and I'm surprised that it is this long. In summary, I had a fantastic vacation. Even though I moved around quite a bit within those 10 days, I had plenty of rest and fun time that I never felt tired. I met a ton of awesome people from all over while sitting on public transportation: Two Mexican dudes, a guy from Sardinia (Italy), two hairdressers in Brussels (from Italy and Cuba), all of Raphael's friends at the church (mostly from the US), and all of the awesome people that I met at the hostel in Amsterdam. I absolutely love traveling, but mostly for the encounters and friendships formed with random people that I meet. There's nothing like meeting someone from another country and sharing stories with them... and for me, since I've begun speaking Spanish, it has been even more rewarding and fun being able to relate with other people in Spanish. Knowing another language opens so many doors and is so incredibly rewarding. I just hope to really keep it up after going home.

Speaking of going home. I'll be back in under 8 weeks. June 22nd! Mark your calendars! :)

This is good for now. I have had quite a few other things happen since Semana Santa, but those can wait for later... Semana Santa in Valladolid, Fiesta de Pan y Queso, Las Ferias in Sevilla, and my upcoming trip to London on May 8th.

Hasta muy pronto!

Take care,
Linnell

Semana Santa Travels

These next two weeks are going to be quite busy but exciting.

April 1st and 2nd: Valladolid, Spain to see the crazy Catholic traditions.

April 3rd - 6th: Basel, Switzerland to visit Mike and his wife, Isaline

April 6th - 9th: Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Holland), to see the Anne Frank house and Van Gogh Museum... and of course, The Red Light District (but only during the day, don't worry, haha).

April 9th - 12th: Brussels, Belgium to visit Francois, who was an exchange student at my high school. Day trip to Bruges, I hope.

I can't wait!!

P.S. I had a mullet for a day... so I got my hair re-cut and now it's alright. I'm not super happy with my new short hair, but it'll do.