31 December

The day started with us catching an early train for the airport. It was a little strange in that the train would separate during the trip in which the last car would proceed to the airport and the rest would continue on to some other cities. It was neat watching the cars separate and must have looked kind of funny to see a tiny little train head for the airport. Getting to our terminal and checking in was a simple process and we were slotted for group A which meant we would get first priority in seating. From there it was a boring wait during which I listened to the Pod and wandered about a last-minute gift shop. The flight over was uneventful and we all enjoyed listening to the British flight attendants. Customs was also fairly simple. Saket and Sachi passed through without a hitch but I was special since I’d be staying in the country for quite some time. When I told the official that I’d be staying until June, she kind of looked at me funny before I quickly told her that I wasn’t going to be staying a full six months, that I checked the timing beforehand. You see, Americans and most foreign nationals must apply for a visa if they intend to stay in the UK for six months or longer. I did not have a visa because I would be staying exactly 5 months and 12 days. I reassured her that I would definitely not be working (for that you need yet another special permit) and just studying hard. She gave me a tip of keeping a copy of all my King’s documents with me whenever I leave the UK in case they ask to see it upon re-entry. Since I’m an American I do not need a multiple-entry pass for the UK like many other foreigners do. She wished me good luck and I finally rejoined my siblings. Saket had a connecting flight at 4 and I wanted to head into the city as quickly as possible, so we parted ways soon after customs. I was sad to see him go since I won’t be seeing him again for over 5 months. The first thing Sachi and I did was pull out some money and then went in search of a place to buy coach tickets. Since the strike was on and the Tube was down, we decided to catch a coach (bus) into the city to Victoria Station and from there just walk to the hotel. There was some confusion as to where the buy the tickets and after some needless huffing around I found a desk and bought our tickets. We waited in line with some obnoxious and noxious Italians who were smoking like crazy and clearly looking forward to tonight’s festivities. I hate being stuck next to smokers who really don’t care that everyone around them does not smoke. They were also being really pushy in line which just grated on me further. It didn’t help matters much that we just missed the first bus and had to wait another 15 minutes in the smoke and cold for the next one. We boarded near the front and tried to enjoy the view while dozing intermittently. It was nice to be back in the city again and see the familiar sights. We drove by Tower Hill and Parliament and naturally everyone pulled out their camera phones and started taking pictures. I knew that I’d have plenty of time to shoot and didn’t bother. From Victoria it was a grueling walk to the hotel. I made a promise to myself never to pack a duffel bag that heavily if I intended to carry it around a lot. It hurt. With great relief we finally checked into our hotel room. It was already past 4 and I was too tired to find something to eat.

Our evening started out fairly low key with Sachi and me crashing in the hotel for a while and just resting. She took a little nap while I starting going through my papers and figuring out what I needed to get done in the next few days. After she woke up, we left for dinner. Saket, if you thought Switzerland was bad expense-wise, I think you'll have a heart attack here. Dinner for two at a "normal" Italian restaurant cost us £20.25 or $34.84. It didn't help that they charged 90 pence for a single piece of bread (we rather unwittingly and foolishly had one apiece) or that Sachi ordered a £2.80 glass of white wine (I had free tap water). At around 11:35 we left the hotel for the embankment to watch fireworks over the river Thames. The London Eye (that big fancy Ferris wheel) became a sort of cannon from which fireworks shot out in neat patterns. It was pretty, but the NYC July 4th show was much better. The crowd wasn't too bad where we were standing but there was definitely a lot of alcohol and even some festive sparklers...It was drizzling very lightly but not enough to warrant an umbrella or dampen the mood. We headed straight for the hotel after the show and I appreciated the company of the older and definitely sober British people who were heading in the same direction we were. We were surprisingly not that tired when we made it back to the hotel and watched some British comedies and sports highlights before finally going to sleep.

30 December

Yesterday Saket heard from Christian that he would be meeting us today at 11:30 by a fountain near the famous Glockenspiel (clock with little figures that dance around). I was eager to meet yet another one of his amazing corridor-mates but there was plenty to see before that. We left for the Marienplatz which is a famous square in München home to many shops and near several old churches. We admired it for a while in the daylight and then returned to the Dallmayr shop with some coffee for home and chocolate for our neighbors. We wasted some more time until 11 which is when the Glockenspiel was supposed to begin its twice-daily show. I had the camera out and ready right at 11 but after waiting an excruciating five minutes in which I nearly lost feeling in my fingers, I put the camera away in disgust. Not a minute after I did that, of course, the show started. We had seen another Glockenspiel in Prague that was supposed to be really neat but we were totally unimpressed. Consequently, our expectations for this show weren’t that high. Sachi had to remind us that these clocks were old and thus were not going to be very high tech but still; I want to see something more than a little skeleton ringing a bell and bouncing up and down! This clock was actually pretty neat with a mini jousting match which the Bavarian knight won (naturally) and some other little dancers and drummers. When it started repeating we decided that enough was enough and we were too cold to witness the “spectacle” any longer. We headed for a clothing shop to use the restroom and warm up and generally waste time until 11:30. Christian showed up right on time and brought his girlfriend Miriam with him. We were all feeling pretty hungry at this point and knowing we were keen on Indian food, the two had picked out a few places they thought we would like. We promptly headed for the subway and they took us to an area frequented by students where we found a small yet elegant Indian restaurant. Both Christian’s and Miriam’s English are excellent and they’re very agreeable and interesting people. Christian is studying law and hopes to one day become a law professor in Germany. Professors there are exalted amongst the law community and their briefs on certain laws are frequently used in court rulings. Miriam in studying business management which is a fairly intense program that requires 3 majors! She seems like an awfully bright girl though and I know she’ll have no problems. We had a long, luxurious lunch that was tasty though even Miriam commented that the food was not very spicy. We could talk about nearly anything with them including religion, politics, Red Cross issues…it was fun. Our next destination was the Deutsches Museum. The three of us had learned about the DM in our middle school German class and indeed it’s a world famous science and engineering museum. It has enough exhibits to satisfy even the geekiest person and naturally, the three of us were more than happy to get a chance to visit it. Christian is a science person like us though Miriam is not so she obligingly walked through a few exhibits with us before finding a corner and reading a newspaper for the next couple of hours. The exhibits were very nicely laid out and quite a few of them were hands-on which was nice for us and for all the kiddies. I was bored in the engine and motors rooms but found the optics, spaceflight, and mathematical instruments rooms (including a timekeeping room) fairly interesting. We wandered about until closing time where we picked up Miriam and our jackets in the foyer and then headed back into a chilly Bavarian night. A trip to München is simply incomplete without a stop at the Hofbrauhaus (main beer hall). This beer hall is world famous, enormous, raucous, and a great deal of fun. Seats are found in great big benched tables or along the wall with more benches. Unless you have a large party, you’ll seldom sit with people you know. It was fun to see the barmaids dressed in traditional Bavarian outfits walking by with four one-liter mugs in each hand just brimming with beer. Those things are heavy! We asked the Germans which beer would be best; Saket and Christian ordered Weissbier (white beer) that Saket tried and really liked in Sweden while the three of us girls chose to split a liter of the original house brew. I don’t know how many of you have drunk beer by the liter but let me tell you, the steins are enormous! I had a hard time holding one just by the handle when it was fun and chose to drink two-handed instead. It was the best beer I’ve tasted so far (though that still wasn’t saying much). It took the three of us, rather the two of us since Miriam prefers wine and didn’t drink much, a while to finish the liter. The Germans laughed and said that we would surely sleep well that night. As we left, Saket admitted this was the first time he actually felt something after drinking and I must confess I was feeling some slight (hardly noticeable) effects myself. They accompanied us to a big department store where we wanted to buy some gifts, including a thermos like what mom and dad bought so many years ago, and a nail clipper for me since my nails were driving me crazy. They live about 2 hours out from München by train and so we said farewell by a subway stop. Such wonderful people, and so kind to spend over 7 hours of their day touring around a city they themselves don’t visit very often just for us. We quickly found what we were looking for in the store and also stopped by an outdoor kiosk for some stein gifts for home as well. We wanted something light for dinner. Saket and Sachi opted for more falafel while I wanted something different so we went back to the train station so that Saket and Sachi could confirm our travel route to the airport and I could grab a bite. I found a sandwich shop and just got another ciabatta sandwich. We went back to the hostel to eat, check some last-minute e-mail, write our postcards, and then pack up. Content and pleased how this whole trip had gone so far, we went to sleep.

29 December

After a short huff to the train station and a brief wait at the tracks, we were on our way to Munich. Having slept fairly well the past couple of nights and happy to finally be using my iPod, I stayed awake for most of the train ride. It was enchanting to watch the Swiss and German countryside become gradually lit by the rising sun. At one point I watched the sun pop above and below mountains of the Alps and excitedly pointed it out to Saket and Sachi. They smiled in return and I just sat back happily in my chair; it was beautiful. I also tried in vain to capture some of the beauty on camera but I’m sure those shots didn’t turn out too well. Oh well; this time memory will have to suffice. There are several landscapes I have not yet had the pleasure of viewing, including vast grain fields, empty ocean spreading out for miles around, and snow covered fields. The last I finally got to see from the train and loved the sight of it. Tiny houses with highly slanted roofs with snow stubbornly clinging to them, fences half buried in snow and trees covered with a frosting of ice…all of these I saw from my seat. My favorite fields were the pristine ones in which I could no footprints or any other signs of passage. Here and there, jet-black birds hopped about and provided a neat contrast to the nearly blinding white. The scene reminded me of a painting I had once made in an elementary school art class. The theme was black, white, and gray and I chose to paint a tiny blackbird flying above a field of white snow. I find now I definitely prefer the real thing (I am clearly not meant to be an artist!). The ride was proceeding smoothly until the ticket collector came to us. Our Eurail passes had served us very well to this point and as usual we confidently handed them to him. Much to our surprise, he said we still needed a ticket for this trip. Naturally, we asked why and he informed us that the train would be passing through Austria for about 25 kilometers. Our passes were only good for Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Germany, and Switzerland. I think we all felt our insides sinking for a moment before he told us the price would be 12 Euros total for all of us. A note to future travelers: Conductors and such are VERY PICKY about tickets; they can fine you lots of money if you do not have the appropriate passes. After he left, we breathed a huge sigh of relief and I made it a point to check next time exactly where the train would be passing through. The rest of the journey passed uneventfully and finally we pulled into the Hauptbahnhof (main station) of München (the German spelling of Munich). No French was spoken here and we reveled in our ability to really make use of our German and finally use Euros again (Switzerland uses the Swiss franc that seriously looks like Monopoly money). To our delight we found that our hostel was only a 3 minute walk from the train station. It’s called the Euro Youth Hostel and I highly recommend it for anyone interested in visiting München. The location is central, the rooms are very nice, and the price is the best we found anywhere; we got four beds (making the room private) for a total of $16 per person per day!! Paris cost more than that and the accommodations were crap there. Check-in wasn’t until 2 so we had to struggle to store our baggage in the tiny storeroom they had. We picked up the essentials and headed out into the city. Breakfast was light this morning so we went back near the train station for a bite to eat. A Chinese noodle shop next door to a Chinese grocery store caught our eye and we ordered a simple vegetable platter with rice. It was nice to eat some ethnic, non-falafel food for a change. Feeling thirsty, Saket decided to get a Coke Light. The area by the drinks cooler in the shop was crowded so he went to the grocery store to buy his drink. He opened it at the table and took only a couple of sips before a woman in the shop came over demanding (in German) where he had bought the drink from. He pointed to the grocery store and I caught the words, “Das geht nicht!” which means “that’s not right.” Her rapid German was rather hard to follow and we were all a bit startled. Saket fished out the receipt for the Coke and gave it to her. She promptly took the receipt and Coke to the grocery counter and returned it. Saket followed her while Sachi and I just watched. The woman then took the Coke to the counter at the shop and repurchased the drink. We left soon after that and were glad to do so. Outside, Saket informed us that the woman was apparently trying either to save him money or credit the drink purchase to her store. Saket also told us something Christian (a German on Saket’s corridor whom he befriended) said about drinks in Germany; a different value added tax (VAT) is added to drinks sold in grocery stores versus restaurants, the former being slightly higher. By purchasing the drink at the shop, Saket saved 10 Euro cents. On the whole, he didn’t care what he saved he just wanted his Coke hassle-free! That was certainly one of our more memorable lunches…Our first destination was the Olympic Park and Stadium so we headed down to the subway and caught a train heading there. I knew München would be the coldest stop on our trip and it definitely lived up to its expectation. I was freezing! The gloves….they do nothing! At least they don’t function too well in damp and windy conditions. The park was pretty, all snow-covered with children riding on sleds down the hills that normally would be covered with picnicking tourists during the summer season. The Olympic Park was built for summer games and unfortunately most of the arenas were closed. The Olympic Tower was open, however, and it stands an impressive 190 meters tall. We rode an elevator to an elevation of 185.5m and enjoyed a breathtaking view of München. The staff had marked on the glass where all the famous sights were and that certainly helped in identifying them. We stayed up there for about 10 or 15 minutes before heading down and out. We had seen the BMW headquarters (I think that’s what it was; definitely an important BMW building) on the way in and Saket considered visiting the nearby BMW museum. He figured he probably wouldn’t be able to see anything anyway and so we scratched that idea and returned to the train station. I finally warmed up again once we got back to the city proper and we headed straight back to the hostel to check-in and really warm up. After relaxing for a bit, we walked out to the aptly named Kaufingestrasse which literally means “shopping street.” It reminded me of Paris’ Champs-Elysees except whiter because of all the snow. One of the first shops we passed by was a C&A which is the apparent rival to the ubiquitous H&M since it offers essentially the same type of clothing at comparable prices. Saket and I saw fleece jackets on sale for 9 Euros for one and 15 for two. Intrigued, and desperately desiring another sweater after wearing the same one for basically two weeks, I checked them out. I liked what I saw. In a rare shopping impulse, we both bought one right there and there. Moving on, we checked out more shops and as came closer to the Frauenkirche (huge famous church) I pulled out the camera and started taking pictures even though my fingers started freezing moments after taking them out of my pockets. Along the street, we saw little kiosks selling a variety of roasted nuts and so we decided to try some. Saket ordered a packet of “mandeln” which took us forever to realize were simply almonds. The roasting made them absolutely delicious and yet unrecognizable (to inexperienced palates like ours) as almonds. They were a delicious treat that served us well until we found a coffee shop that also sold sandwiches. We stopped in there to warm up and eat a bite. The tomato+mozzarella+pesto sandwich I had was grilled and fantastic. Saket and Sachi enjoyed their coffees. Refreshed, we continued our trek down Kaufingestrasse and moved further down near the old palace of the Bavarian rulers. Before arriving, Saket told me about his friend Christian and how Christian told him he must stop at a store called Dallmayr that has the best coffee in Bayern (state of which München is the capital) if not in all of Germany. As we were heading back towards Kaufingestrasse, I spotted the store and calmly asked Saket, “is that the store Christian was talking about?” Excitedly, he gave his affirmation and we immediately went in. As soon as you walk in you are met by rows upon rows of wine bottles and other alcoholic drinks for prices ranging from 15 Euros for peach cider to 1,390 Euros for a bottle of ancient and elaborately bottled Scotch whiskey. Move a little further and you encounter the coffees and teas on one side and chocolates on the others. I wanted to take pictures of the chocolates here because they were as beautiful as those I saw in that famous bakery in Paris. They were selling off their Christmas specials for a bargain so Sachi picked up some of that. Saket bought coffee for Christian. There was a huge market in the back selling meat, cheese, bread, fruits and vegetables from all over the world, and lots of ready made snacks and meal options. This area we explored (that is the right word for it) the next day because we were hungry and wanted some dinner in a more reasonably priced place. Once again we went for pizza and pasta but it was good and worth our money. After dinner we went back to the hostel where Saket and Sachi surfed the internet for a while (free wireless!) and had a drink while I chilled in the room with my iPod. I was feeling very sleepy by the time they returned and within minutes was soundly asleep.

28 December (Happy Birthday!)

Happy Birthday!! Instead of an alarm waking us up, it was the phone! Our parents, desperate to hear our voices and wish us a happy birthday, called around 7 a.m. our time. I was closest to the phone and it took me a while to realize it was ringing and pick it up. Hearing the sleep still heavy in my voice, my mom said she would call back in half an hour. An hour later the phone rang again and this time both Saket and Sachi got to talk to them. We talked for a while before hanging up and catching some more sleep. We finally woke up late around 10:30. To celebrate we took it real easy that day. Ate a latish brunch at Starbucks then walked around the city for a while rather aimlessly. We tried to get to the Medical History museum but that was a failed attempt since we had a hard time even reaching the place and when we got close we found out it was closed. Bummer, since Sachi really wanted to see it. Since that didn’t work out we went to the Art History museum instead which was pretty neat. They had a special exhibit on Fuselli who apparently illustrated many of Shakespeare’s works as well as passages from Milton’s Paradise Lost. I’m a fan of both writers but don’t know much of the artist and didn’t feel it worth paying the 8 Euros to see his exhibition. The rest of the museum was free which was pretty nice. We spent about an hour and half there and then we walked down to the lake. Saket was itching to buy a Swiss Army knife the whole time we were in Switzerland and seeing how this was our last day, he finally bit the bullet and bought one for 24 Euros. It’s quite a price to pay but he did get the official and original knife the Swiss government issued to its soldiers. We wandered the city some more and admired the lights at night before heading back to the hostel to warm up and get ready for an early dinner at the Indian restaurant on the first floor of the hostel. It’s name was Khan’s and it was a tiny yet swanky place. I could hear Hindi in the kitchen and knew the food was going to be good. Saket and Sachi both ordered glasses of wine, he went with a white and she a red, while I stuck with water. One sip was enough to convince me that I didn’t need one with my meal. The food was delicious and elegantly served and we all enjoyed the meal very much. It was the heaviest and best meal we’d had in a long time and we really needed it. After we finished we just headed back to our room to write postcards and pack up for tomorrow. We were catching a train to Munich in the morning and didn’t want to waste a lot of our morning packing. We wished each other a very happy birthday and then went to sleep.

27 December

We got an early start (again) this morning and made the “grueling” 6 minute walk to the train station. As usual we grabbed some fresh-baked pastries and orange juice at the station before boarding our train. The ride was uneventful and it was nice to finally hear more German than French. The first thing we did at the Zurich train station was look for an information desk where we could pick up some maps and travel tips for the city. A note to future train travelers; the information desks at stations will usually be labeled with a big lowercase “i” and will usually be located fairly close to the tracks. The people here can be wonderfully helpful and these are also great places to pick up free maps. Their English is also usually spot-on so don’t be afraid to ask them anything. Better to find out information from these people than people on the street (though they are usually pretty nice and helpful, be careful who you ask. Some could be setting you up to be pick pocketed ‘cause it’s so obvious you’re a tourist). For a change I took on the role of navigator and started leading us in the direction of the hostel. The walk was much longer than I expected and since the map I had failed to include the smaller side streets, I started to get a little worried. Right when I was about to ask for help, I saw the street we were supposed to get on and felt immediately okay. The hostel we stayed at was called the “Zic-Zac Rock Hotel” and had interesting décor. I guess they tried to be cool and really embraced the “rock” theme by hanging up posters of various rock artists all over the place and naming rooms after bands. We stayed in “Queen” with U2 and Kate Bush just down the hall. Weird. At least the bathrooms and showers were much cleaner here than at Aloha and the room wasn’t too bad either. Another weird detail was the sink for washing hands and brushing teeth was in the hallway. A little awkward, but luckily there were very few people with us on the hall so it wasn’t too bad. After a bit of unpacking and resting, we walked out into the city. Saket had seen some boots on the way to the hotel that he was rather keen on so we stopped by there to check them out. The price was kind of reasonable but since he wasn’t so sure about the quality he elected to forego the investment and we moved on. There’s a big street in Zurich known as Bahnhofstrasse which is literally “train station road” but is outfitted like a major shopping street. It was nicely lit and fun to walk down. All the Christmas market stalls were closing and so we didn’t get to see any neat displays. We went off in search of a couple of famous Zurich churches and walked through them for a bit. Zurich is also known for having churches with the largest clock faces in Europe. We spotted this faces intermittently through buildings but simply good not get close enough or position ourselves in the right place for a good shot. Finally we walked out into a square where I just stopped and snapped several pictures of the face. We were feeling a little hungry so we stopped by a Starbucks for some coffee and snacks. I had an espresso brownie that was pretty good. Saket and Sachi enjoyed some coffee while I just had a few sips of theirs. A light snow was falling and the ground was turning steadily white which was quite pretty though it made picture taking a little dodgy since we were paranoid about getting moisture on the lens. As night fell we continued just wandering around the city streets. We were feeling hungry for dinner and since tomorrow was our birthday and we knew we’d be splurging then, we decided to go real cheap for dinner and picked up some sandwiches and small grocery snacks. It was too cold outside (and not great conditions for picture taking either) to really have any fun after dinner so we just hung out in the hostel and worked on postcards and such. Then we went to sleep.

26 December

Keeping my promise not to shower in this horrid dorm, I didn’t and proceeded to get ready as quickly as possible. We inevitably woke Shri up but it was fine ‘cause he had somewhere to be too. We easily boarded the train to Geneva and we kept the Pods safe in our bags. Saket and Sachi decided to return theirs so we didn’t want to let them get messed up in any way. The train ride was boring until we found out from the man checking tickets that the train would not be continuing to Geneva and that we would have to get on a connecting train at a certain stop. The people next to us spoke some English and helped us understand what he was saying. We then stayed awake to keep our eyes peeled for that stop. The transfer went quite smoothly because a lady at the station clearly pointed out which train it was we were supposed to catch. “Geneva? Blue!” Ah, international communication at its clearest. The ride to Geneva was uneventful and our hotel was fortunately quite close to the train station. None of us had showered and we all decided to wait until evening to do so. Since our batteries needed charging and we could not leave for sightseeing until they were ready, we briefly freshened up and left in search of money and lunch. We found both and had some more falafels and fries that were actually quite good. After this quick lunch we went back to the hotel. I had opened my iPod at this point and Saket and I started playing with it, much to Sachi’s annoyance. She was ready to go sightseeing while Saket and I were more interested in my new toy. We finally dragged ourselves away from it and left for the Red Cross Museum. Since this was our only day in Geneva we had to make the most of it. Transport proved to be quite expensive and a little inefficient. After a good walk from the tram stop we made it to the museum and stayed there for a while. It was nicely made though I found it a little boring and repetitive. On the way out we found that the tram ticket machine required exact change and did not accept bills. There was also a sign saying you must buy the ticket before boarding. Frustrated with those facts, we decided to forego the tram and just walk. It was a long walk in cold, misty, and generally miserable weather which did not contribute to the least to our enjoyment of the city. There was definitely some snow and slush on the ground and Geneva proved to be our coldest city yet. We were told about the famous Geneva fountain or “Jet” as Dave (from Paris) called it and headed to Lake Geneva in order to see it. Upon arrival we found that it only operates up till 4 during winter and only if the temperature is above 2 degrees Celsius. We got there at 4:45. I think at this point Saket and I were a little delirious and certainly disappointed with Geneva. I mean, it’s hard to follow up Paris. Sachi was the master sightseeing planner of our group and so we consulted her as to what we should see next. She named a transportation museum which we both vetoed followed by the old town part of the district which we also vetoed due to miserable weather. The best suggestion was a, get this, HORSE RAMP built to accommodate horse and buggy travel. Saket and I just lost it at this point and burst out in an incontrollable fit of laughter. Sachi also realized the absurdity of the suggestion and joined us. I think the locals and other tourists probably thought we had lost it but we were certainly enjoying ourselves. Since we had clearly abandoned any aspirations for sightseeing at this point, we decided to do some shopping and headed over to an H&M and some watch stores. I think Saket bought a nice cotton long-sleeves shirt but neither Sachi nor I got anything. After some shopping, we grabbed yet another pizza dinner that was pretty decent before heading back to the hotel for some showers and serious chilling. The British television show, “The Office” was on and so we happily watched that for a while. It’s hilarious. We all also took some time to shower and wash our hairs that badly needed it. After some more playing with my new Pod we all went to sleep. Like always, we had an early train to catch for Zurich.

25 December

Ah, Christmas morning. Both Alison and Shri planned on getting an early start and I heard them get ready in the morning. The three of us decided to sleep in late because it was Christmas and we didn’t have much planned for the day. We woke up too late for breakfast and after showering and dressing, we left for the city center. DO NOT STAY AT THE ALOHA HOSTEL!!! I said before that I was glad I didn’t shower for two reasons. One was that we probably would have missed our train if I did because we caught it just in time. The second was that they were SIMPLY DISGUSTING. I’m not sure if that shower had been cleaned for the past several weeks. I was all too glad that I brought my shower shoes with me. I was a little annoyed that neither of the other two had knowing full well that we’d be staying in hostels at some point during our stay. I shuddered the whole time I was in the shower and swore never to go back in there again. We left late and grabbed some breakfast at a McDonald’s on the Champs-Elysees. The street is beautiful and we definitely enjoyed walking down it. From there we went to the Sacre-Couer on top of the highest point in Paris. The view was simply stunning from there. I bought my shot glass in the souvenir store at the church which was selling them for much less than other places I had seen. From there we walked to an old palace and Cleopatra’s Needle. We were supposed to meet Eddy, another one of Saket’s French friends, for coffee at 5 and so we went from the palace to the church we were meeting him at around 4:30. We killed some time in the church and walking down the tiny set of shops along the street. We saw a man carving beautiful shapes out of vegetables and I took pictures of some of his handiwork. While we were watching the cars outside the church, Saket saw a model and commented that Eddy drove one just like that. From Saket’s description of him, I had this feeling that of all of his friends, Eddy would be the one to show up in a car. Sure enough, not two minutes after thinking that and just moments after Saket’s comment, we hear a honk and a guy saying, “Hey Saket! [with an emphasis on the second syllable of his name] I’m just going to park!” and waving his hand at us. Eddy had arrived just as I surmised. A few minutes later he joined us and greeted Sachi and I with the whole fake kissing on both cheeks that is very French. We were cold and ready for some drinks and so he led us to a nearby café. The area, he explained, was frequented by students and artists, and even some famous celebrities. Sure enough, one of Eddy’s favorite film actors walked into the café soon after us and was seated behind us. I could see him clearly and wanted to take pictures of him, but I was afraid he wouldn’t like that and the couple next to him kept on getting in my way anyway. The waitstaff proceeded to ignore us completely and it took a long time for Saket and Eddy to get the waiter’s attention. Saket ordered coffee while the rest of us ordered hot chocolate. After another long wait, the waiter returned with the opposite order. Eddy, a little upset at the service at this point, then called the guy back and explained the error in the delivery. After yet another long wait we finally got our drinks. Too bad the chocolate wasn’t good enough to warrant the long delay! The conversation was quite nice though and it was fun talking to Eddy. He had to leave us shortly after our snack but graciously directed us to some nice dinner places and the best bakery in Paris before he left. The bakery was simply amazing and while Saket was busy ordering our breakfast and some tasty macaroon snacks, I was ogling the chocolates on display. I saw a single box of chocolates worth over 100 Euros! That’s over $120!! The treats looked simply amazing and I’m sure the staff was wondering if I’d gone mad. After Eddy left we went in search of dinner and chose yet another pizza/pasta place (ugh!). We admired the Champs-Elysees again at night as well as the Arc de Triomphe and used up the remaining memory and battery of the camera on them. Once those were spent we went back to the hostel.

Shri was not back yet and so we had the room to ourselves. Since it was Christmas we decided to cheat on the presents our parents had bought for us and started by opening just one, Sachi’s. We had made a wager earlier that they were not iPods with me saying no and Sachi saying yes. In the next few minutes, I proceeded to steadily lose my 15 Euros. Hers was a 1GB Shuffle. I opened mine next and found a shiny 30 GB black photo Pod. It was beautiful! Saket shortly followed and found a 2 GB black nano!! How ironic that he got the nano since he specifically told Dad how against the iPods he was and especially against the nano. It’s not that he thinks they are bad devices, just overrated and too popular and he wouldn’t be caught dead owning one. Sachi also had made it clear that she didn’t need a Pod since she has a working MP3 player. In fact, we all do. My computer went on the fritz during the last week of classes and is still kind of shaky. I decided to keep mine so that I could back up all my important files. While those two debated on which ones they would keep, I made up my mind to keep mine. Thanks mom and dad!! Though this trip was seriously present enough, I still really appreciate the gesture. I promise to take care of it and get your money’s worth out of it. We had yet another early train for Geneva the next morning so after packing up our essentials, we hit the sack.

24 December

Dave got up early the next morning and we didn’t see him leave. We also planned to get up early, around 6, but Julie had to sort of wake us at 6:30. She left shortly for Brussels and we never saw them again. The quiet girl was still asleep and didn’t move during the time it took us to get ready. Since we were running rather late I decided not to shower and am glad of that decision. The bathrooms were simply deplorable on our floor. There were exactly two toilets for about 40 people. One of them had a sink but no soap or hand towels and the other did not have a sink. We had sinks in our room but you could not stopper them well so I forewent putting on my contacts for a few days. After getting ready as quietly as possible, we left for the train station. While the metro is clear to ride on, the local train stations are a little confusing and not very foreigner friendly. Hardly anything is in English and it took us some time to find an information desk. The metro ride over took longer than we expected and since we also left a little late, we just got on the train not five to ten minutes before it left. Saket and Sachi quickly bought some pastries for breakfast and we ate them on the train. The ride to Caen took nearly three hours and since it was early and I couldn’t see much of the countryside, I decided to sleep. I slept pretty much the entire ride which was rather nice. Poor Saket didn’t get a wink of sleep. He brought his laptop with him and my spare batteries because he knew he would be taking tons of pictures (which he definitely did while there; he must have emptied his camera 2-3 times and believe me, it can hold a lot of pictures). We grabbed some more pastries at the Caen station before catching the next 15-min train to Bayeaux. Our tour was scheduled to start at 13.00 and since we were really early, we decided to explore Bayeaux for a bit and grab something more substantial for lunch. I saw a BP station down the road and led us there. We bought some cookies and drinks there but that wasn’t a real lunch so we continued down into town. I saw a sign for “City Center” and figured that would be the best place to go. The center was about a ten minute walk from the station and we had about an hour to explore and eat before heading back to the station. Since it was the 24^th a lot of shops were closed and finding food was a little tricky. We settled for a grocery store and bought, surprise, surprise, more bread and cheese and orange juice! How boring can you get! But hey, it does the trick and it’s cheap. We also stopped at a post office for some money to pay the tour guide and then reached the station about 20 min before 13.00 We sat outside in the cold munching on our lunch and then a van finally pulled up with “Sightseeing Tours” brightly painted on it. Our guide had arrived. He hopped out of the van and held up a sign that said “Vora” on it. He also informed us that we would be his only visitors so we would get a private tour. His English was excellent and he turned out to be a wonderful and knowledgeable guide. I had a lot more to learn about the place and WWII than Saket and Sachi because they have read and seen so much more about it than I have. I don’t really remember the details of the places we visited so for those you’ll have to read Saket’s blog when he has it updated. He’s at http://saketvora.blogspot.com. Maybe strange places and strangers make me kind of nervous, but I couldn’t but feel a little unsettled as we went driving through fields and back roads along the coast. I had this Mafia-esque feeling that our guide could just stop the car, rob us, and then just leave us in the countryside and we’d be lost because we couldn’t speak French and had no idea where we were. He was a nice and honest man and of course, that didn’t happen. It was still a little nerve-wracking though, I must admit. The trip was fun and it was rather surreal to visit the locations of so much horror and destruction and yet of so much bravery and sacrifice. The boys at Normandy really did have a huge role in saving the world. Olivier, our guide, has relatives who served in the war and lived in the area during the occupation of France. He knows so much WWII history from growing up in Bayeaux. Our tour ended promptly at 5 and we waited in a freezing waiting room at the station before boarding one of the last trains bound for Caen. Fortunately the same train would take us all the way to Paris so we didn’t have to worry about changing trains. Sachi and I slept again nearly the whole way back to Paris and again Saket didn’t sleep because he was editing the pictures on his computer. We were exhausted upon arriving to Paris and had little to eat for dinner. Saket and Sachi wanted to check e-mail and so I returned to the room to find a new roommate there. Her name was Alison and she was almost as quiet as the other quiet girl from the night before who had left during the day. Alison seemed more interested in reading her book and listening to her music so I left her alone while I unpacked and prepared for bed. Soon after I got in I heard a knock on the door and to my surprise I opened it to a strange face. We had yet another roommate. His name was Shri and he came in from Dubai. He’s done with college and decided to travel around Europe for a month before returning to work. I’m not sure how much traveling he’s done ‘cause he definitely had way too much luggage with him for just one person. You cannot backpack around Europe if you need two trips to handle your luggage! He turned out to be a nice guy though and after talking for a while, we went to sleep.

23 December

Once more, we caught an early morning train for Paris and arrived in the City of Lights around 10 in the morning. We left our luggage in the hostel and then headed to the Eiffel Tower. Before we left Brussels Saket received a text message from one of his Parisian corridor-mates named Laure (drop the “re” when pronouncing it) which said that she would meet us at the fountain near Saint-Michel at noon. We were all delighted to hear this news and I couldn’t wait to meet one of his friends. The Eiffel Tower was simply beautiful and seeing that felt a little surreal. When you’ve seen something mostly in photographs or movies and such, it doesn’t really feel real. Standing before the Eiffel Tower meant we were truly in Paris because it is such an iconic artifact of that city that simply does not exist anywhere else in the world. We were lucky that the sun finally came out that morning and as we stood on the lawn in front of the tower, sunlight started to creep down the face. We snapped several shots of the tower and then moved on to other parts of the city. We were really just killing time instead of doing any serious sightseeing because we were all checking our watches and at least I know I was willing the hour hand closer to 12. Around 11:30 we caught a metro train to Saint-Michel and waited there for Laure. I must say, as Saket told nearly everyone we met, that the Paris metro system is one of, if not the, best I have ever ridden. Maps abound everywhere you look and spell out very clearly which train you must catch to get to your stop. The trains are fast, clean, and also have clear maps. Laure showed up right on time and it was a happy reunion for her and Saket. Sachi and I got our first taste of the French custom of fake kissing on both cheeks which is so natural for them but a little weird for Americans. Laure informed us that another friend from Sweden, Kahina, would also be joining us. She showed up in about five minutes after a few minutes of chit-chat, we headed for a place to eat lunch. Laure and Kahina took us to a street frequented by the college crowd. Lunch was delightful and they served us free cocktails too. We toasted each other and I found the cocktail better tasting than the beers, but not by much. Laure and Kahina are wonderful girls who helped us out immensely while we were there in addition to being great guides to Paris. Kahina brought with her this sightseeing guide that had museum timings which was really helpful for us since we needed to know what was open on Christmas Day. After a long, luxurious lunch we walked to the old part of Paris by Notre Dame (we didn’t go inside ‘cause no one really wanted to) and then to a local metro/train station. The girls informed us that we might need reservations for our train to Caen (on the way to Normandy) and so they took us to a desk where we learned later that none of the people manning it spoke English. They acted as translators and negotiators for us, much to the amusement of the woman behind the desk. At one point Laure was relaying a question in French from the lady to Saket and instead of translating the question in English she repeated it in French. We all kind of laughed at that and poor Laure visibly blushed before translating for us. It was a really cute moment and totally understandable as anyone who’s ever translated knows how easy it is to slip. Kahina had to leave us after that to do some last-minute Christmas shopping and get back to her family. We were sad to see her go after helping us so much. Laure stuck with us a little bit longer and spent some time with us at the Louvre. We saw of course Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo statue, and many other famous works of art. Most of what we saw was Renaissance religious paintings and while they were beautiful, they started to get repetitive and it was getting close to Laure’s leaving time so we headed back to the main entrance. She left us there, much to Saket’s understandable sadness. After only knowing her for less than half a day I already like her and can see why Saket will miss her. She’s a wonderful girl. The three of us rested for a bit and then agreed to walk around for another 45 minutes before meeting up again at the entrance. I headed over to the Egyptian art section but what I wanted to see was closed off and I ended up getting a bit lost and going around in circles which wasted much of my time. I finally made it to the entrance about 10 minutes early and just slumped to the floor to wait for the other two. I took some pictures from there which I thought were pretty neat. It was also fun just to watch the other visitors and realize that they would literally be from all over the world. We were all very hungry leaving the Louvre and so found a pizza/pasta nearby to eat in. Considering the location the food was not only good but reasonably priced. It also felt like the first really decent meal in a while and it helped us recover our strength. We trotted around the area a bit and tried to do some gift and souvenir shopping. Since we were leaving for Normandy the next day and Christmas was the day after, we figured we should get all our shopping in as soon as possible. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find anything good so we just headed back to the hostel. We checked in and I found the staff at the Aloha Hostel quite unhelpful. We also found out the key was already taken since our roommates had already moved in. This was the first time I know Sachi and I have ever shared a room in a hostel and we weren’t sure what to expect. After hauling our bags up two flights (no elevator!) we made it to our room. I was the first to reach the room and it was opened by a girl with an Australian accent whose stuff was scattered all over the room. Another boy was on the bunk behind her. I said hello and started moving my stuff in. Saket and Sachi followed shortly with sheets and such and we started to get cozy. I’m terrible with introductions (something I badly need to work on) and in my nervousness+ exhaustion I failed to introduce myself. As I was changing in the extremely tiny shower in the room, I thought to myself how I would tell mom about our Paris roommates. I thought of calling them Julia and Dave. As I was leaving I found myself in a debate over the word “dear” and its proper usage. “Dave” said that “dear” could not be used as a synonym for “costly” or “expensive” as “Julia” was insisting and when asked my opinion I quickly answered that Julia was right, which is true. “Dave” is originally from the States and “Julia” is in fact Australian. Both are studying at the University of Birmingham. Shortly after the debate, Saket remembered to make introductions. Much to my surprise, “Julia” introduced herself as Julie! I was completely shocked! None of us quite caught “Dave”’s name so I will from here on call him Dave. If I was right with Julie then I’ll bank on the fact that I might at least have been close with “Dave.” For someone pretty bad with names, I must be psychic…Julie and “Dave” turned out to be nice, funny people who were actually leaving the next day for Brussels. Coincidentally, we had just arrived from Brussels and we soon found out they had arrived a couple of days ago from Geneva! Naturally, we exchanged travel tips and maps of the respective cities. Another girl joined us but she was rather strange in that she said hello to Julie but not a word to any of us. I wasn’t sure that she even spoke English but she stayed up for a while just watching us and listening to our conversation. After a while she just went to bed without saying a word. The rest of us were tired but not quite ready for bed yet so we continued chatting for a while before gradually dropping off to sleep. I noticed old bloodstains on my bed sheet and a nail clipping on my blanket but was too tired to complain. I tried my best to forget those details and just go to sleep.

22 December

We slept in a little bit this morning and then headed out to catch a train to the Atomium. During a World’s Fair many years back, someone built an enormous model of an iron model for Brussels. This atom is something like several billion times larger than actual size and is truly a sight to behold (being the science geeks we are). I think you would like this one, Kevin. Unfortunately for us though, the top third of the atom was shrouded in mist and thus we could not get the nice pictures we wanted. People are allowed to climb the atom but we also refrained some doing this because of the poor weather. After spending only 15 minutes at the Atomium, we boarded a train back to Brussels and headed to the so-called Euro City. The Euro City is a complex of buildings in which a lot of the important business of the European Union is conducted. As a sight it was nothing impressive; just a lot of glass-paned buildings. From the Euro City we took a local train to the city of Bruges which was a quaint and pretty Belgian town. Its multitude of bridges and canals reminded us of Amsterdam. Probably the best part of Bruges was a tall belfry that looked remarkably like the tower of Orthanc from Lord of the Rings. The belfry had over 360 steps which was quite a hike but definitely worth it. We were lucky to get a wonderful panoramic view of the city near sunset. After Orthanc (which we probably took more pictures of than anything else in Belgium) we walked around the city some more and then caught an early evening train back to Brussels. Upon returning to Brussels we made our way back to the Grand Place to see some of the light show again and to the Christmas Market to enjoy a warm chocolate-covered Belgian waffle. It was delicious. From the Market it was back to the hotel for some much-needed rest, packing, and postcard writing.

21 December

The train ride to Brussels was thankfully uneventful and after our arrival at the station, it took us a little while to orient ourselves and find our hotel. Once we did, we were extremely pleased by its appearance and even more happy when we realized it was a four-star hotel. Sachi was the one who found it and scored major points with Saket and me. We freshened up and rested for a short while before heading back out into the city. Since we were situated close to the grand palace and a gorgeous city square called the Grand Place, we went there first and admired the pretty Christmas decorations there. The citizens had built these huge snow globes with small trees in them covered in flashing lights. All the main buildings in that square dated from the late 1700s and looked remarkably good for their age. There was a Christmas market near the square which we happily walked through. Christmas markets are popular in Europe according to Saket as he saw them in Stockholm, Oslo, and Lund. Vendors set up wooden stands and show off goods ranging from freshly made waffles to jewelry to winter accessories. We tried some Glühwein which is simply hot red wine and a German winter tradition. Like the beer in Amsterdam, I didn’t like this much either and even though the warmth of it felt good, the taste was enough for me to refrain from more than a couple of sips. From the Market we headed for a famous cathedral and admired its interior for a bit. It was late afternoon by this time as since we were all feeling a bit hungry, we decided to hunt for some dinner. Traditional Belgian food is not very vegetarian friendly and so we chose a Pizza Hut. The food was all right and it looked much like the Pizza Huts at home. It was a boring choice, yes, but we still had a good meal. On the way back to the hotel we stopped by the Grand Place again to see it lit up. A light show was designed for the square in which the façade of one building was used as a screen for a quaint Christmas slideshow. Images from several European Union countries (Brussels is the HQ for the Union, after all) were displayed as was Santa Claus on his sleigh. It was a pretty sight and nice end to our day. We found a grocery store nearby from which we purchased some bread, cheese, juice, and chocolate for breakfast and a late night snack. Grocery stores are great for travelers on a budget as you can get wholesome food for much cheaper prices than what you’d pay in restaurants. In the hotel we checked out what was on television and found a Bayern-Munich versus Hamburg football match. Saket learned a bit about European and German football in particular from some German corridor-mates of his and proceeded to educated Sachi and me as to the finer elements of the game. The match was fun to watch and we shared a bottle of Leffe, a type of Belgian beer, and some chocolate while watching. I found the Leffe as disgusting as the Amsterdam brew so Saket and Sachi really shared that one. I started feeling very sleepy during the match and after it was over we all went to sleep.

20 December

Today morning we strolled through Vondel Park which despite the morning chill was filled with bikers, runners, and dogs. After a short trek through the city we visited the Amsterdam Historisches Museum, or the Amsterdam History Museum. It was more interesting than I thought it would be as it shed light on the remarkable growth of a small town into a bustling city. I was surprised at how much the Hollanders changed the landscape in order to build the town. In the early afternoon we saw the infamous “red-light district” which is nothing special during a winter’s day but apparently really lights up during summer nights…If anyone is planning on visiting Amsterdam and hopes to enjoy some of the ubiquitous European sidewalk cafés, I must warn you of what you might find in Amsterdam. If the shop is a “coffee-house,” it is NOT selling coffee but instead marijuana and possibly other drugs. If the shop has “café” in the name, then it’s all right and you can be sure to purchase coffee there. Also, apparently you are not supposed to take pictures in the red-light district. Our guide says people will try to break your camera. During the latter part of the afternoon we saw some of the industrial part of the city, finished some souvenir shopping, then headed to a swanky Indian restaurant for dinner. Service was surprisingly slow considering we were the only customers there for our entire meal. While we were leaving, our waiter noticed how tall Sachi is and commented by saying, “Damn, you’re tall! Do you play basketball?” After Sachi answered in the negative, he went on to say, “Good luck on finding a man!” Yes, Sachi is surprisingly tall for an Indian female and her height has elicited comments from many people, but this guy definitely showed the least amount of tact. After dinner we admired the city at night for a short while, then headed back to the hotel to write postcards and get some rest for our early morning train to Brussels.

19 December

We headed out early today. They served a nice breakfast in our hotel and the array of cheeses, tomatoes, cucumbers, and sliced bread gave me the idea of making our lunch at breakfast. Saket and Sachi quickly agreed so we proceeded to do just that as inconspicuously as possible. It worked marvelously and we did the same every day at that hotel. Our destination of interest that day was The Hague, known in Holland as “den Haag.” Thus, you can pronounce it with a long “a” or a short “ah” and you would be correct. The train ride there was uneventful though the weather looked dishearteningly somber. It wasn’t until around noon that the clouds finally broke in the city and we could appreciate its features better. For those not in the know, den Haag is a center for world affairs. The ICC, or International Criminal Court, is located just 15 minutes by car outside the city. The Ministry of Justice, Peace Palace, and such are also located there. Many shops and attractions in Europe are closed on Monday and businesses usually do not open until later in the day, so we found ourselves on mostly empty streets for the first couple of hours in den Haag. The buildings were not as impressive as those I saw in Vienna and the construction present everywhere both reminded me of UNC and definitely detracted from what beauty the city had. Around 2 or so, we ate lunch then headed north to the beach by the North Sea. The sky was still cloudy though we got extremely lucky after we walked out onto this pier-like shopping center [insert awesome picture here]. The sun burst through the clouds at the perfect moment and you can see here how happy I am to feel the sun on my face [insert picture here]. It was a nice view though the weather was quite cold and thus we left shortly after the sun ducked behind the clouds again. From the beach we went to this small town called Delft that is world-famous for its porcelain. Its layout is similar to Amsterdam though the buildings and streets were prettier and we spent about 2 hours total there. We tried to find this placed that apparently shows off Delft’s porcelain but after walking for nearly 25 minutes and no luck, we gave up on it and found a tram and train back to Amsterdam Centraal. Upon returning to Amsterdam we went to the Anne Frank House and Museum. I’m sure many of you remember reading the diary in middle or high school but I must say you cannot really appreciate what she must have gone through until you see for yourself where she lived. I cannot imagine living for years in such tiny rooms without being able to go outside or laugh and play carefree. After that sobering visit we walked around the city some more, found purely vegetarian restaurant for dinner (a bit expensive but good food), and then back to the hotel for sleep and planning for the next day. We had purchased some local brew at a grocery store which we shared, or rather, which Saket and Sachi split and I had two sips of. It was my first taste of beer and I must confess I found the taste simply awful. I am not found of bitter drinks in general, like chash (an Indian drink of some spices and yogurt) and coffee, so I wasn’t too surprised to find beer distasteful. I am afraid this dislike may prove troublesome in England where nearly every college student drinks (there’s even a pub in my dorm), but either I’ll eventually acquire a taste for it or just stick with some sweeter drinks.

17-18 December

It’s go time! After waking up a little too late at 10:30 (I went to bed at 3 a.m…), I started frantically finishing some final packing. Sachi and my dad went to get pre-departure haircuts and since I’ve been meaning to get one too, I went as soon as they came back. Before I left for my trim, I called my bank and credit card company to inform them that the upcoming foreign charges and transactions would be legitimate and my own. If anyone is planning on going abroad, I strongly recommend you do the same before you leave. Banks may put a hold on your ATM card if they suddenly see withdrawals from foreign countries when the rest of yours have been from say Chapel Hill. Don’t let this happen to you, especially if you don’t have much of the local currency! The cut I got lets my hair fall just above my shoulders and is a bit of change from what I’ve since January when I got a similar cut in India. Short hair is infinitely better than long hair while traveling: shorter drying time, less shampoo required, and a shorter brushing time. It’s a little inconvenient on windy days when you’ve forgotten your hair-tie or it doesn’t quite hold all the hair. But enough of that…We planned on leaving for the airport at 4:15 and to meet this deadline I resolved to finish packing by 2. Final weight of my big bag: 46 pounds out of an allotted 50. Final weight of my duffel bag after my parents threw in some birthday presents (which were totally uncalled for since our little two-week European extravaganza is surely present enough for the three of us) and some Indian food: 28.6 pounds. 28.6 pounds is a lot heavier than many might think, especially when one shoulder or arm is bearing all the weight. I’m writing this on Saket’s laptop in Amsterdam on 20 Dec at 3:14 p.m. local time and my shoulder still hurts a bit! It’s just that I’m weak; Saket said it was unusually heavy too. So there. Anyway, back to the 17^th. After making some final packing arrangements, eating some delicious homemade Indian food for lunch, and saying goodbye to the house and neighborhood, we were on our way at 4:15. I expected a Christmas rush as this was the last weekend before Christmas Eve, but to my surprise the airport was hardly busy and even the line for security was all but empty. Sachi and I said farewell to my parents and we were off. For reading material, I bought The Rule of Four by a couple of Princeton graduates. This book is apparently an international bestseller, but after only reading a few pages I started to wonder why this book did so well. It could be that after a semester of Shakespeare in the fall and reading Jane Austen in the spring could spoil one on fine language, but I found The Rule of Four almost painfully amateur. As a burgeoning writer myself, I look for examples of what not to do in order to improve my writing. One thing I’ve noticed about less than stellar writing is the tendency to over-describe a scene: “‘You’re going to do fine,’ he said confidently, keeping his eyes turned from mine as he absently toed the floor. I lifted my head slowly to look at him as I wondered at this sudden change in attitude.” I made this up, but it’s an example of what I found in RoF. The writers are young, fresh from college, and clearly excited about the material on which they’re writing, which I always respect from an author. I cannot claim to write better than they do, but I can see places where they can improve which increases my hopes that I may be able to publish before I leave college. Anyway, I hardly touched this book before we boarded and haven’t opened it since because I tried (in vain) to sleep on the transatlantic flight and then mistakenly left the book in my backpack at King’s. The flight to Gatwick was uneventful but unfortunately I couldn’t sleep a wink. We reached London at 7:25 a.m. local time and after customs we proceeded immediately to the Gatwick Express train bound for Victoria station. From there we hailed a cab for King’s College Hall and although our cabbie didn’t seem too confident about knowing where it was at first, we got there all right for 15.4 pounds. The porter at the desk wasn’t much help in directions to Luton (a small airport north of London where smaller carriers ferry passengers to and around the Continent) but let me lock up my luggage in a room, which was really nice. He called down a senior student curiously named Bambi who turned out to be an amazingly friendly and helpful guy. In just 10 minutes he acted as though he’s known me for a while and even kidded me about not bringing a UNC jersey to cheer them on in March. The poor guy has to be at the dorm for most of the holidays (he only gets four days off out of just over three weeks!) which is bad for him but good for me since he can help me get oriented in the hall and the city. The hall looks more impressive in the brochure than in person, but I cannot really comment since I saw so little of it (my room won’t be ready until the 1^st, so I couldn’t see it). Unfortunately, I’ll have to take the bus everyday to get to the Strand campus and I hate relying on the bus for transportation; it’s far too constrictive time wise for my taste. After talking with Bambi for about 30 minutes, we found the nearby bus station and soon left for Luton. By the time we reached Saket in Amsterdam, Sachi and I had been traveling nearly continuously for nearly 25 hours. From our home to our hotel in Amsterdam, the modes of transportation we used ran as such: caràplaneàsubway trainàcabàbusàover ground trainàplaneàtrainàtram. Sachi and I both slept soundly on the plane from Luton to Amsterdam which was an enormous relief to me since it was my one hour of sleep after 24 hours waking time. Our meeting with Saket was nothing short of joyous as we haven’t seen him for over four months. In nearly 21 years, the three of us have never been separated for so long. After Saket and Sachi checked the map and consulted the guidebook, we found a tram and made it safely to our hotel. As it was still not too late at night, we refreshed ourselves a little and headed back out for some night-sightseeing and dinner. We found a falafel place a few blocks from the hotel and got some take-away. The owners had this adorable cat there just chilling on the barstools. That, and the fact that the man cutting the vegetables wasn’t wearing gloves probably broke several food safety codes didn’t seem to matter here while in America that establishment would probably have scored a 50. We ate in the room and then we watched “Klovikka,” the movie Saket made with his corridor mates in Sweden while on vacation in Norway. Klovikka is the name of the house in which they stayed. It’s campy, funny, and extremely well-made for an amateur film. The DVD itself is quite remarkable and quite honestly it’s menu system (especially for the chapters) is better than most professional DVDs I’ve seen. Sachi and I enjoyed finally getting to see the movie and I don’t think Saket will ever tire of watching it. Mom and Dad called around 9 p.m. our time but unfortunately ate up the remaining money in Saket’s phone in about two minutes. Oh well. At least we touched base for a bit. Movie over, we got ready for bed and finally received some much welcome sleep. Cheers!

I have a place! and December trip

Great news! I finally heard back from the Accommodations Office at King's and now have a place to stay: King's College Hall, Champion Hill (street), London, SE5 8AN, England. Unfortunately, it's about the furthest residence hall from the Strand campus of all the ones offered. On the other hand, it's also the unofficial "international hall" which means, like Saket, I'll get to live with students from all over the world. It's also a catered hall, so I won't have to cook all my meals, just most of them (and even that will vary depending on how many vegetarian options I find. I know, pizza is always a choice, but not more than two meals in a row...) As soon as I send in my "damages deposit" which is refundable at the end of the semester, assuming I don't trash the place, the room will be mine! It's a single on a co-ed hall with shared bath which is fine. The hall has been around for over a century but is apparently, and fortunately, wired for internet access (a girl I met at UNC who was there last year said King's College Hall wasn't wired at the time, but a recent brochure on their site says otherwise). As soon as I work out my luggage plans, finish packing, cleaning up my dorm room and home room, and finally take all my exams, I'll really be ready to go. We've finalized our travel plans and gotten all our hotels booked and such. Our "21st Triplet Birthday European Extravaganza" will proceed as follows:
17 Dec: Sachi and I leave RDU for London
18 Dec: Sachi and I arrive in London and leave for Amsterdam where we meet up with Saket and stay the night.
19-20 Dec: Amsterdam and day trip to The Hague.
21-22 Dec: Brussels
23-25 Dec: Paris and Normandy
26 Dec: Geneva
27-28 Dec: Zurich and birthday (28th)!!
29-30 Dec: Munich
31 Dec: Sachi and I fly back to London, Saket flies to Lund to check out
3 Jan: Saket flies home to Raleigh
5 Jan: Sachi flies home to Raleigh while I have day 1 of orientation at King's

From there, those two are home and I'm on my own! I promise we'll take loads of pictures and send you postcards as often as we remember to. You only turn 21 once, so you might as well do a good job of it. I figured toasting each other with champagne in the Swiss Alps (or thereabout) may not be such a bad way of going about it...No parents on this trip, but that's probably for the best as the three of us may not see as much of each other in the upcoming years as we always have. Although undergraduate college did not do much to separate us, I have a feeling graduate school really will. Saket and Sachi, here's to you!

That's all for now. Cheers!

The Countdown Begins...

As I write this it is 2:34 a.m. on November 19th. I've recently returned from viewing of the latest Harry Potter movie, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." A good show, better than the first three but not entirely satisfying (didn't think much of the ending). I guess I felt somewhat dissatisfied because it only made me even more anxious to finally get to England and be surrounded by all those marvelous accents.
In other news, we've finally booked our departure and return tickets from Raleigh to London (17 Dec-11 Jun, for me if you're interested and 17 Dec-5 Jan for Sach). Our intercontinental tickets, however, have yet to be settled but should be by the end of the weekend. Currently, the plan is for Sachi and I to meet up with Saket in Amsterdam, travel through France, Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland, and then for us to part ways on 31 Dec when Saket returns to Lund to check-out and Sachi and I head to London to check me in. We'll mostly be traveling by rail with those wonderful Eurail tickets though we'll be flying one of those cheap intercontinental airlines to get from Munich back to our final destinations. Rather a shame we'll be in transit for much of the 31st, but the good news is that Sachi and I will probably be in Leicester (pronounced "lester") Square by midnight (if we're still up to going). We're all terribly excited about this winter break trip and I'll be sure to keep you all informed as often as I can about our little adventures. At the very least you'll get a belated posting in January.
As for studying abroad, all of the important forms have been mailed or faxed off (acceptance letter, housing form, etc) and all that remains are getting several passport-sized photographs and PACKING PACKING PACKING. At our last study abroad (known as SA from here forth) meeting I met a girl who spent her junior year at King's who is now sort of allied with the British Council, a sect of the British Embassy, and helps other American students SA in the UK. She handed out lots of useful maps and guides which I of course picked up. According to one such guide, I should pack everything I think I'll need, then remove a third. I usually pack far too much luggage for ordinary trips, and this being an extraordinary trip will require even more attention and diligence than normal. SA has become another class for me on top of researching graduate school options (but that's a whole other topic). Anyway, the focus of this blog was to keep you all updated on SA progress and not every minute detail of my life, a story which does not make for great entertainment (at least not yet), I will try my best to stick to SA topics only. I have a penchant for digression, however, so consider yourself warned. I like to write. I often like to ramble; and it's so much easier to ramble when your audience is reading and not actually listening.
So please excuse all this loquacity
And if you demonstrate tenacity
In reading all these verbose paragraphs
You'll find yourself in future epigraphs.

Did I mention I still need to pack? If you have any advice on SA packing, please let me know!

Cheers!

I'm in (for real) !!

I must say, I got the most wonderful e-mail this morning:

Dear Sapana,

Thank you for your application to study at King's College London for the
Spring 2006 Semester. I am delighted to inform you that you have been
accepted as an Exchange student within the Departments of English and
War studies for the following courses:

Contemporary Security Issues
Sociolinguistics
Court Cultures on the Age of Elizabeth I
1st World War Literature

Is there any better way to start the day? 11 days of waiting and wondering have finally come to a close and I can rest easy...for maybe a day or so. Now preparations really need to kick into high gear because it's already the last day of October and I'm planning on leaving right after exams. Eek! But hey, that's what Thanksgiving break is for. If any of you have advice on traveling/living in London, I would love to hear it. Anyway, I thought I'd share the good news before heading back to more pressing business, i.e. an essay on T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" (which, although quite an interesting poem, is terribly complex and deep and confusing: characteristics which make writing intelligently about it understandably difficult. But alas, such are the toils of an English major. "And I will show you something different from either / Your shadow at morning striding behind you / Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you; / I will show you fear in a handful of dust." Isn't that marvelous? There is just something so ominous and mysterious about those lines, a sort of prophetic warning touched with a sense of horror...) Yes, so back to the paper. Cheers!

It's Not Just What You Know, But Who You Know

Ok, so I'm not talking schmoozing your way up the corporate ladder or getting appointed to choice political positions based on befriending the powers that be (Miers, anyone?). First, a little background: My dad is a great guy. He worked hard at IBM/Big Blue/ Daddy-of-Computers-Before-Those-Other-Guys-Came-Along for 35 years this year (though now he's with Lenovo, but that's not very relevant here). He has helped my siblings and I through our school years with sage advice and near, though not ungentle, constant prodding to be the best we could be. My mom played an equally important role in our upbringing and education, but I'll tell her story later. During this time, it seemed as though he had few hobbies besides reading, playing bridge, watching TV, and listening to the radio. As long as I've known him, he never seriously played any sports though he often accompanied us on the tennis and occasionally on the basketball courts.
I knew he had an interest in golf, but never saw any significant manifestation of it until recently. All of a sudden (and of course while the three of us are merrily off at college and not at home to keep an eye on him), he buys over $300 worth of golf clubs, gloves, balls, shoes, and tees. We were stunned. This is a guy seldom spends more than $50 on any shopping trip and watches his finances very carefully. Here's a man who took us to a driving range a few times and never watches golf on television. In short, my dad went from Mr. No-Real-Hobby to Mr. Amateur-Golf-Enthusiast in a matter of days. It's amazing what you miss when you don't live at home anymore. I think it's a change for the better except that he bought left-handed clubs and my sister and I are right-handed; though this is no real problem for me since I don't care much for the game, but Sachi sure would've loved to swing a few with those clubs.
Anyway, we were talking about connections. Although the clubs are useless to me, one of the men my dad plays with has turned out to be a goldmine of information and help concerning my (still hopefully) upcoming trip abroad. Mr. Sunil Patel, former British solicitor (lawyer for most of you) and current hotel/motel owner lived in London for some time and has family and friends there. When he found out I might be going to study in London, he immediately offered help and advice; where to go, what places to avoid after dark. And of course, typical Indian hospitality: "I'll have someone pick you up at the airport, and you can stay at my brother's house for a night" before I fly off to meet Saket in Sweden or wherever he'll be at the time. Ah, how great is that? Mr. Patel said that there are some people my age I can meet up with, so maybe we can go traveling together (it ain't safe now, nor never really has been unfortunately, for a gal to bum around foreign countries by herself). Anyway, this man is wonderful and now makes me all the more impatient to hear back from King's ('cause now there's one more person I could disappoint by not getting in).

And now for something completely different.

I created this blog in imitation of my brother's (which you can visit at http://saketvora.blogspot.com ; yes, I even used the same server...but hey, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?) and like him, I don't want to just fill it with King's information despite the title. Everyone could use a soapbox, open microphone, blank wall, empty page, or a few free megabytes of webspace to just express themselves without reproof, restraint, or rebuttal. The art of listening is diminishing in our society as many strive to simply out-talk the other instead of really listening to what the other has to say. Some people just need to be heard. To stifle our ideas is to slowly kill them and yet we must regulate their expression in order to maintain an orderly society. One should not stand up in a movie theater and start loudly describe their life story to the audience. That's just not appropriate. Blogs, however, are a rather novel and effective way to soapbox in the 21st century. So if you came here just for King's, I'll try to make it obvious which posts are about King's and which are me just speechifying. :)
Having said that, I have nothing more to say at the moment. Well, not really; I'm hungry. So, for now...Cheers!

Hmmm...and now I wait

So, perhaps I celebrated (rather foolishly, it seems) a little too early. UNC has given me permission to enroll at King's. King's, however, received my application today (the 20th) and will take some time to review it. Ah well, so now I wait. Saket went through a similar experience this spring when Lund University took forever in getting back to him. In the meanwhile, I have not been idle and have done some preliminary research on housing, transportation, etc, you know, trying to be a good student and actually prepare for my (quite likely) time abroad.
I feel as though I am turning into something of an Anglophile, though I have found some occasion to dispel those notions. The whole incident with the Elgin marbles from Greece (think Parthenon friezes) and especially some of India's finest diamonds deviously stolen (Hope diamond, anyone? Not to mention the whole centuries-of-colonization thing...) would be enough to make some cast a wary eye on those island inhabitants. You can blame the want of tact of Lord Elgin for the theft of those sacred marbles and the egomaniacal/greediness of the colonizers for the subjugation of India. However, I would love for someone to give me a good reason for the following:
4 farthings = 1 penny
12 pence/pennies = 1 shilling
2 shillings = 1 florin
5 shillings = 1 crown
20 sh. = 1 pound/sovereign
21 shillings = 1 guinea
240 pence = 1 pound
halfpence/halfpenny = two farthings
twopence/tuppence = 1/6 shilling or half groat
4 pence = 1 groat = 1/3 shilling
sixpence = 1/2 shilling
26 pence = 1/2 crown
1 quid (Col.) = 1 pound
1 tanner = sixpence = 1/2 shilling
3 deniers (Fr.) = 1/2 farthing
1/2 penny = 1 sou (Fr.)
1 bob (Col.) = 1 shilling
1 noble = 8 shillings + 4 pence (8/4) = 100 pence = 5/12 pound
L/s/d = pounds/shillings/pence
Fr. = French Col. = colloquial
And the Brits often think we're crazy...To be fair, though, the British decimalized (a real word, mind you) their monetary system early in the 1970s. A pound is now equivalent to 100 pennies (new pennies, as they are called) and they've all but done away with many of the minor divisions. I should note as well that back when the British Empire was at its height (when the sun never set on it and such) the pound was worth a great deal more than it does today. Hence, the smaller divisions were equivalent to our five and ten dollar notes. For example, at one point, the British silver penny was worth what a pound sterling is worth today! And a penny was only 1/240th of a pound! British currency went through a whole flurry of devaluations due to wars and recessions (most notably the Great Depression of the early 20th century) and today the pound sterling (basically, the pound) is worth about $1.77 (www.xe.com).
As a side note, the pound gets its funny looking "L" symbol from the Latin "L" for librum which means pound. The pound got its name from the weight in silver of a particular sized coin. The "s" for shilling is not its first letter but comes from the Latin solidus which means, not surprisingly, solid. The "d" for pence comes from the Latin denarius which was a small silver coin that was the most common coin in the Roman Empire. See? Read my blog and get free history lessons!
For someone claiming to be only a lukewarm Anglophile, I seem to have spent an inordinate amount of time researching Britain's monetary system. Well, I did so more out of curiosity sake (I should learn a thing or two about the people whose country I'll hopefully be invading shortly before I do so) and so that I can better understand my Shakespeare readings. Several of his puns depend on an understanding of the monetary system (most notably on "sovereigns" and "nobles") and I want to be able to understand at least some of the puns without having to consult the footnotes. And yes, I may be the only person you know who concerns herself about such a thing. I'm an English major; it's what we do.
Anyway, I feel as though I've rambled enough for today and will call it a night. Cheers!

Huzzah!

Ah, what wonderful news I received this morning. I've been accepted into King's!! The Study Abroad office said they would begin sending out notifications today, but knowing how delays are inherent in any such venture (and with some personal experience with Saket), I did not expect to hear back from them until next week. Oh sweet joy! I did not harbor many doubts as to my acceptance (just see the title of this blog for evidence of that!), but I have learned not to take things for granted. My heart definitely started racing as my application page loaded...Now that the wait is over the real work must begin. Saket is planning a grand WWII adventure with Nader in the last weeks of the year which sounds tempting, but we need to talk more before making any definite plans. Well, I'm off to relax and celebrate because today is a great day. Cheers!

I've applied! Let the waiting begin...

So I managed to get all of my materials together and submitted the packet on September 30th. Now, all I have to do is wait until the 14th for them to decide my doom. Of course, I won't be entirely idle until that time. There is still plenty of research to do about King's: housing, food, commuting, etc., and other study abroad stuff specific to UNC. I'll have a better sense of what to expect in about a week. Right now, though, there's a paper just calling out my name that I must attend to.