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Published: June 20th 2010
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Since my last post about a month ago, I have had my last day of school and entered into my summer vacation 😊 To kick it off I spent 3 weeks on a bus with 56 other exchange students as we traveled all around Europe. I'll try and give the highlights from each city we stopped in...
First Stop: Berlin.
We saw the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie. It's one thing to read about events in history books and to learn about them in school. After visiting Berlin, we discovered how different it is to actually stand in the place where history happened. To see the Berlin Wall and imagine the struggles that the city of Berlin has seen really shocked me and I feel as though I have a better understanding now. My friends and I also danced with a street performer, ran through the rain, and rode on a sex person bicycle. Our day in Berlin was quite captivating.
Next stop: Prague.
Our first night in Prague, our lovely leaders took us to see a light/water show with a palace and a full moon in the background. It was absolutely beautiful. The next day we went to a castle
and then we were set free in the city of Prague. We walked across the Charles Bridge and wandered through the streets. The streets are quite narrow and everything in Prague is so compact. It makes it quite easy to get lost as we found out...
Next stop: Vienna.
First stop in Vienna was the emperors palace. It's full of elaborate paintings and decor. However the audio tour provided to us was really informational and I quite enjoyed it. The next morning we visited the Hundertwasser house. The art is very original and riveting. Afterwords we were let off in the center of the city. Some girls and I got some lunch and took the opportunity to do some shopping. Then we got a horse and carriage tour through the entire city. In between our loud obnoxious singing from The Sound of Music, the tour guide was quite friendly and really knowledgeable. Later that evening, I attended a Mozart Concert which was absolutely beautiful that it gave me goosebumps. 😊
Next up: Lido di Jesolo. (Italy)
My favorite place out of all the cities. We had a beautiful hotel room, within 2 minutes walk from the beach. Delicious Italian food
(including ice cream) The first day in Italy we were given free. Jacq and I roamed through the town visiting local shops and getting lunch. We then spent the rest of the day on the beach with the exchange students. It was a really relaxing day 😊 The next day we were off to Venice! I was extremely excited about getting to see Venice. I actually found it to be a bit over rated. It's magical of course, just way too much tourism and not enough real culture left. But all in all it was a beautiful city. 😊
Next (pit) stop: Verona & Leaning Tower of Pisa
We stopped for just a short period at each of these places. In Verona we saw Juliette's Balcony and we able to write on the wall there. 😊 And we made a quick (unplanned) stop at the Leaning Tower of Pisa. I'm really grateful for out brief stops in both of these places.
Next city: Monaco.
Monaco is absolutely beautiful. The waters are clear blue and the mountains and everything...it was like a fairytale 😊 We visited the aquarium and the palace there. Both were really fun and beautiful.
Next city: Avignon.
In Avignon we stayed at a camping place across the river with a perfect view of the castle and the halfway bridge. It was absolutely gorgeous. We spent one day exploring the city and then we were put on the bus again and shipped off to...
Paris!
We arrived in Paris around dinner time. We had dinner and then rushed off to take a boat tour of the city at night time. It was absolutely beautiful to see Paris by night. Every moment was enchanting. The next day we visited the Eiffel Tower and then were set free for the next two days. During those two days I visited Arc De Triomphe, Notre Dame, Climbed the Eiffel Tower, Moulin Rouge, the Opera House, and of course the Louvre. And yes, we ate snails. :D There is so much to see in Paris and every moment is enchanting and romantic. Paris was also one of my favorite places to be.
The last few days of the tour we stopped in Brussels for a very short evening and then we were able to have a canal tour of Amsterdam. Both cities are absolutely gorgeous and I regret not being able
to have more time to spend in them.
After my 3 week Eurotour, I spent 3 days at home and then we were off on a 5 day tour of the Limfjord. Limfjorden is shallow sound in Northern Jutland which separates the northern tip of the mainland from the rest of the peninsula. Me, and 37 other exchange students were able to have a 5 day tour of Limfjorden. We visited Rotary clubs every day in various cities. We went to things such as Zoos, a City Hall, Limfjord Museum, and a fossil site. It was a very amazing tour that Rotary put together and I had an amazing time.
That about sums up the past month of my life. The time has gone by much too quickly and I'll be spending the last 24 days of my exchange with my friends and family here. This past year has been much too incredible for words to explain. I've learned so much about a different culture and perhaps even more about myself. I have friends that I will never forget and memories that are sure to stay with me forever. I'm beginning to have mixed feelings as the
time comes for my exchange to end. I love my family and friends in New York, but I never want to leave my life here in Denmark.
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