A Letter To My Love

Dearest Switzerland,

I owe you an apology. Over the last three months, we've been spending a lot of time together, and honestly I started to take you for granted. You've been nothing but good to me since we first met in early January. That first week in Lugano was magical. I will forever cherish how special you made my 21st birthday. Our first weekend together was one for the books. Skiing Zermatt was hands down one of the best experiences of my life. You certainly inherited Mother Nature's best traits. 

Since then however, we've drawn apart. I take full blame. I started seeing other countries. First it was Italy, drawing me in with its delicious food. Then Germany with its endless supply of beer. Then England and its irresistible accent. Ireland stole my heart. I celebrated Valentine's Day with France. I went on a second date with Italy, who continued to woo me, this time with pesto. Belgium made me the world's best breakfast. Hungary was a cheap date. I gave Germany a second go. Prague and I really hit it off. Italy was determined to show me the wonders of Rome last weekend. 

I realize this isn't the best apology, but rather a list of my recent conquests. Keep reading. 

It had been over two months since our marvelous weekend together in Zermatt. Honestly, I was slightly bitter you wouldn't show me the Matterhorn, but I now realize you were simply playing hard to get. We had only just met, you weren't ready for that type of commitment. Clearly, I wasn't either. 

I realized that despite how long we've known each other now, we hadn't spent quality time together in quite a while. This weekend changed everything. Italy was practically begging me to visit Cinque Terre. Frankly, Italy was getting a little too clingy. Instead, I stayed with you. It was just the two of us and you showed me the world.

My journey to Interlaken was beautiful. You continue to teach me that it's the journey, not the destination. We were finally starting to click, and Friday you proved that. 

I woke up early Friday morning excited for my journey ahead to Jungfrau, the top of Europe. With stops in Lauterbrunnen Valley and Kleine Scheidegg, I was already blown away. Jungfraujoch took the cake. Words cannot describe your beauty, Switzerland.

Getting to Jungfraujoch required a simple train ride. Getting to it's peak at Mönchsjochhütte however, was not. You challenged me and I accepted. After an hour hike up the mountain, I made it. It's there that I fell in love with you all over again. I enjoyed a terrific lunch and one of the most beautiful views in the world.

Just when I thought the day couldn't get any better, you did this:

Thank you, Switzerland. While our time together is coming to an end in a few short weeks, I want you to know how great you are. I promise to come back and visit you, if you promise to be nicer to my wallet. 

With love,

Con amore,

Mit liebe,

Avec amour,

Bijan

When in Rome...

I arrived in Rome late in the evening on Thursday March 20, and stayed with my cousin Sam. As you may remember, I ran into him in Paris. I woke up early on Friday morning to explore the Vatican City. First stop was the Vatican Museum, where I met up with Nick, CJ, and RH. The museum was massive and held some of the most beautiful and elaborate works of art I have ever seen. From sculptures to rugs to paintings, the museum had it all. We spent about three hours in the museum before making it to the Sistine Chapel. The interior of the chapel is incredibly detailed. I am so glad I got a chance to visit the Vatican Museum.

We then made our way to St. Peter's Basilica. The St. Peter's Square, the plaza in front of the church was massive and chairs were set up to host thousands of people for Mass on Sunday. The church itself was absolutely breath taking. The interior appeared to be made entirely of gold and marble. At this point, I have been to a lot of churches in Europe. None lay a finger on St. Peter's Basilica. We easily spent an hour admiring the beauty of the church before venturing to the top. We climbed over 500 steps to the interior of the dome and had a view of the entire church from the inside. After climbing through a very narrow spiral staircase, we reached the outside. The view from atop the most powerful church in the world was inspiring. The world's smallest sovereign state, is also one if the most influential.

Following a great day at the Vatican City, I met Nick, Audris, Carmen, Kristina, Kyle, Morgan, and Ashley at our apartment. We struck gold with AirB&B yet again. The apartment was lavishly decorated, perfectly located, and very spacious. It was easily within walking distance of both the Vatican and the Colosseum.

Once we were all settled went around town for an early dinner. I enjoyed a delicious Penne Arrabiatta. Later in the evening we made a stop for gelato at Della Palma - home to over 150 flavors of gelato. I enjoyed a large cone of Chocolate Strawberry, Banana Mango, and a soy chocolate gelato. Delicious is an understatement.

After our sweet treat we made our way to the Trevi Fountain. I tossed a coin into the fountain, as per tradition, to ensure a return trip to Rome someday. An estimated 3,000 Euros are thrown into the fountain each day, and are used to subsidize a supermarket for the needy in Rome. We all took our obligatory photos with the fountain, and Kyle decided to take a swim.

On Saturday, my final day in the ancient city, we rushed to the Colosseum. We got a full tour of the facility, which was home to gladiator fights way back when Rome was an empire. We also got a tour of the Roman Forum and the ancient ruins.

Following the tour, I explored the ruins a bit before heading to the Pantheon. I only stopped in briefly, as I had a train to catch, but the Pantheon can't be missed. Unlike most of Rome's ancient architectural wonders, the Pantheon remains very well maintained.

While Rome wasn't built in a day, I saw a good bit of it in just over a day. A beautiful city indeed, I can't wait until I return. Ciao!

Checking out the Czech Republic

We left for Prague on Thursday morning for the third and final leg of our second spring break. Upon arriving at our hostel, conveniently located in the center of the old town square, I was greeted with a pleasant surprise. Directly next to our hostel was a vegetarian restaurant! My visit to Prague was off to a great start. I made a visit there almost immediately upon arriving, as well as twice each of the remaining days on my trip. The food was incredible. My time in Eastern Europe made me appreciate the laws in the US prohibiting smoking in restaurants. Upon returning from dinner and a stop at a bar my clothes reeked of smoke.

On Friday we woke up early for a tour of the city. We stopped for breakfast at Bohemia Bagels as per the recommendation of our terrific house moms in Lugano. As we waited to start our tour, countless men on Segways tried to recruit us to take a tour on wheels. While I wasn't willing to shell out 1200 Czech Crowns, or 60 USD, I gladly took a test ride. I had never ridden a Segway before but very much enjoyed my first ride. I may have to invest in one when I return to the States.

Located within 30 seconds walking distance of our hostel, we learned that the Old Town Square is one of Europe's most popular wedding destinations. Prior to our tour, we saw three sets of brides and grooms taking photos in front of the Church of Our Lady before Tyn.

We enjoyed a wonderful tour from a guide who lived through communism in what is now the Czech Republic. She explained to us how frequently the country experienced change in the last hundred years alone. Her grandmother had lived in the same town her entire life, but was a citizen of five different countries in her lifetime because the country had experienced so much political unrest and conflict with other nations. We were introduced to the astronomical clock in the Old Town Square, enjoyed an authentic Czech lunch including a heavy soup in a bread bowl and a Czech beer. We also stopped in the Jewish district and saw the Prague Metronome. The gigantic metronome was put in the place of a large statue built as a tribute to former Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. The metronome represents time as it passes since the end of conflict in what is now the Czech Republic. We ended our tour near the Charles Bridge, and made our way to the John Lennon Wall.

The Lennon Wall was once a normal wall, that was covered in graffiti by students expressing their distaste towards communism. The wall itself was first painted with the face of the famous Beatle in the 1980's. It has since been painted over numerous times but still represents the ideals of peace. One of my favorite parts of Prague, much like Ireland, was the live music. Live music could be heard at almost any time of day in the Old Town Square and throughout the city.

I enjoyed a perfect dinner at the vegetarian restaurant, and converted a few other friends to vegetarianism, at least for the evening. The cost for the entire meal was under 3 USD. That evening, 24 of us went on a Prague pub crawl. I made friends with three lovely Californian girls at the first bar, and hung out with them the rest of the night. We were guided to three different bars and ended at one of the largest clubs in all of Europe. The club was five floors including an ice bar and different genres of music on each floor.

Saturday was our final full day in Prague. We spent most of the day on a tour of Prague Castle. The castle is one of the largest in the world. Inside the castle walls there were multiple churches, restaurants, homes, and museums.

The president of the Czech Republic has a residence within the castle, although our tour guide did not hesitate to show his disgust towards their leader. Here's one reason why:

We ended our trip with a visit at Prague's Beer Factory, a restaurant with four taps at each table. A large screen at the front of the restaurant displayed the total number of liters consumed at each table throughout the evening. While 24 college students would never think of taking part in a race involving mass consumption if beer, if we did, we would have given the table of Germans across the way a run for their money.

We spent the train ride Sunday morning reminiscing on the peaks and pits of our second spring break. Our break wasn't completely over, however. Before the start of our break, Nick noticed that our train home had a ninety minute layover in Munich, home of our favorite beers. As soon as our train arrived, Nick, Kyle, Trip, Taylor and I b-lined it to the city center for Augustiner Beer Hall. Within minutes we arrived and were seated enjoying pretzels and a final liter of what is arguably the world's greatest brew. We made it back to the train station just in time.

It's hard to believe another 10-day is in the books. We started our final class of the semester this week. I am headed to Rome for the three day weekend. Ciao!

Berlin runs on Dunkin

We arrived in Berlin around 9am on Monday. During our first thirty minutes of transport from the main train station to our hostel, we walked by at least three Dunkin Donuts. While the commercials remind us that "America Runs on Dunkin" it quickly became evident that Berlin does too. I can confidently say that I saw more Dunkin Donuts in my three days in Berlin than I ever have in the United States. The eleven of us had a nice lunch before making our way to the Brandenburg Gate for the start of our tour. As we waited for the start, we enjoyed the antics of street performers dressed as soldiers, and others making art with bubbles.

Our tour was highly informative, explaining the history of a city that was the heart of global conflict just decades ago. We started our tour at the Brandenburg Gate, which used to symbolize the division of the city but has become Berlin's symbol of unity since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The next stop was the Holocaust Memorial. The monument consists of 2,711 concrete slabs, all of which are the same shape, but vary in size, height and position. While it resembles a large cemetery, our tour guide noted that the monument is left open to interpretation. It serves as a memorial for those who died and a reminder that while we as humans are all different, we are fundamentally the same. 

We continued to the spot where Adolf Hitler committed suicide, which is now a parking lot. The bunker however still remains in tact beneath the lot. We continued to one of the longest remaining portions of the Berlin Wall followed by Checkpoint Charlie and ended our tour at museum island.

After our tour we made a brief stop at a bar recommended by our tour guide that housed over 100 varieties of beer. It was there that I tried a beer that tastes like bacon. Fear not, my vegetarianism lives on, as the beer was completely vegetarian and was simply smoked, giving it that delicious bacon flavor. That evening, we learned the hard way that bars and clubs are generally not open on Mondays in Berlin.

On Tuesday morning we made our way to Charlottenburg Palace, Berlin's largest palace. The palace once belonged to the Hohenzollern family. The palace was huge and the grounds were beautiful. Much like Versailles, I imagine Charlottenburg Palace is even more astonishing in the summer.

That afternoon I met up with my former babysitter and one of my favorite people in the world, Sepi! We spent the afternoon together, as she showed me all around the city. She took me to a park with one of the best panoramic views of the city imaginable. After a delightful stop for ice cream, we hopped on the metro to check out the East Side Gallery. This was the portion of the wall that was painted after the wall was torn down, as a form of self expression. As the sun began to drop we made our way for an early dinner. We enjoyed a divine Mexican meal, my first encounter with tacos since arriving in Europe in January.

After dinner, I met back up work the rest of the gang. We made our way to the Sony Center, as recommended by my close friend and German beer expert, Joe Brendler. The Sony Center is Sony's European Headquarters and played a large role in rejuvenating the city after World War II. At night the center is lit up and serves as home to several restaurants. It was there that I tried the "1 Meter Beer" a sampler of four different beers. I needed help from some friends, but we managed to finish it. Matrix, one of Berlin's most popular clubs, was our next stop. We spent the evening celebrating both Justine and Morgan's birthdays.

The monster they call the "1 Meter Beer"

The Sony Center

We woke up Wednesday and made our way back to the Berlin Wall's East Gallery. Sepi and I saw most of it, but the rest of the group didn't get a chance to see it, so I gladly made a return visit. We then returned to the city center to visit the Panoramapunkt, one of Berlin's tallest buildings, to get a view of the city from the sky. We took a trip to the top in Europe's fastest elevator. As the sun began to set, I made a trip to the Holocaust Memorial museum to gain a better understanding of the memorial itself, and learn more about the role Berlin played in the atrocities of World War II. The museum is a must for anyone visiting Berlin.

Nick and I decided to take advantage of the opportunity to visit the Berlin Philharmonic while we could. We made it to the eight o'clock show just in time. We spent the next two hours enjoying the sounds of Bach's son's work in a wonderful venue. The unity of the orchestra was astounding. While Nick is far more musically talented than I am, we both played cello back in the day, and were able to enjoy the show wholeheartedly. My favorite part of the performance was the enthusiasm of the conductor, as his conducting style resembled that of Bugs Bunny.

After the show we met back up with the gang for our last night out. We made our way to one of the most exclusive clubs in Berlin, Watergate, only to find out first hand just how exclusive it was. We were told the club was too full for any other entrants, only to watch countless other people ushered in behind us. We headed back down the street to Matrix. To our surprise the interior of the club looked entirely different from the previous evening as new rooms were opened, and the bars and stages had be relocated. A good night was had by all, and we returned home for rest before an early morning train to our final destination, Prague.

I went into Berlin with very high expectations following my great experiences in Munich. Berlin was very different but still very enjoyable. Next stop, Prague!

Auf Wiedersehen, Berlin!

Budapest: A Tale of Two Cities

We started our second spring break in Budapest. We arrived in the late afternoon on Friday, hungry in Hungary after our overnight train from Lugano. We made our way to an authentic Hungarian restaurant suggested to us at our hostel. I tried Hungarian beer and potatoes with a thick garlic cream sauce. After a delicious and very filling lunch, we explored the city a bit. The currency in Hungary is heavily inflated. One US Dollar is the equivalent of 220 Hungarian forints. With that, we treated ourselves while in Budapest. During our explorations, we came across a Doctor Fish shop, and treated ourselves to fish pedicures. I was hesitant at first, the idea of fish eating at my feet was not my idea of a good time. After watching a few of the others try it however, I had to give it a go. It was surprisingly relaxing and my feet felt refreshingly smooth afterwards. It was a 3000 forints (13 USD) well spent. That evening we ate like kings at a fancy all you can eat and drink restaurant.

Buda on the left, Pest on the right.

Budapest is a city split in two, Buda and Pest. At first, I thought this was a joke. It's not, Buda is the residential side of the city and Pest is the city. On Saturday, Madison and I took a tour through the city. At the start of the tour, our guide wished us all a Happy Ladies Day. Before we left the guide asked us if we had any questions. I wasn't familiar with "Ladies Day" and made the mistake of asking what it was. Upon asking I immediately got glares from every girl on the tour. Madison and I were the only Americans on the tour, and apparently the only ones unaware of the holiday. I was under the impression the holiday was of Hungarian culture, but quickly learned that our guide was referring to International Women's Day. I was rather embarrassed, but somehow avoided harm from the mass of European women who put me on their hit list.

During the tour we explored Pest and made our way to Buda. The tour offered incredible insight into a city I knew very little about. We made stops at St. Stephen's Basilica, the Chain Bridge, Buda Castle, and the Fisherman's Bastion, among other important spots.

Hungarian Parliament Building

We learned of the influences Hungarians have made on the world, including but not limited to the rubik's cube, Shrek, and Yoda's dialect. We learned that Jedi Master Yoda's script was not originally considered alien-like, so the producers translated his script to Hungarian, and then back to English. We also made a stop at Buda Castle where Katy Perry filmed her music video Firework.

Buda Castle

Following our tour, Madison and I had a long list of Hungarian foods we wanted to try. First on our list was Langos, a pizza of sorts made on fried potato bread and topped with sour cream, cheese, and your choice of toppings. We stopped at the Central Market Hall, the largest and oldest indoor market in Budapest, where we had our first taste of this Hungarian delight. From what I experienced, Hungarian food was very heavy. I left each meal feeling as though I had  eaten Thanksgiving dinner. Frankly, I found it difficult to be hungry in Hungary. After the market, we met back up with the rest of the group, who had spent their day exploring the city on a beer bike. We ended the night at the ruin bar, Szimpla. The bar was huge, with several floors and was built around the ruins of Budapest.

One of the highlights of the trip to Budapest was our visit to the Széchenyi Hungarian Bath on Sunday. Upon arrival, I was surprised to see it looked like a glorified pool. A few of us, myself included, started to think we were scammed and had wasted our money. It wasn't until we got in the baths that we realized our money was well spent. Upon stepping foot in the water, there was immediate relief. The gigantic natural hot tubs were just what the doctor ordered. We spent several hours relaxing before catching our late night train to Berlin.

I have no clue when I'll return to Budapest. Hungary was the first country I have visited with no prior exposure to the language and was my first trip to Eastern Europe. While I would have loved to spend more time there, new adventures were ahead in Berlin. Viszlát, Hungary! 

Le Tour de Waffle: Brussels, Belgium

I laughed more this weekend than I ever remember laughing in a three day span. Dana, Madison, Jenny, Justine, Ashley, Trip, Kyle and I made our way to Brussels, Belgium for the weekend. The city had been hyped up by two other groups on our trip, and it exceeded expectations. After a ten hour train ride, we arrived what would quickly become one of my favorite cities in the world.

We woke up early on Saturday morning to begin the Tour de Waffle. Trip, Madison, and I wanted to eat as many waffles as possible in the 27 hours we were in Brussels. My personal goal was eight. We started with two for breakfast. One brussels waffle and one liege waffle. As a waffle connoisseur, I can tell you that both were divine. The classic brussels waffle was light and airy, far less cakey than waffles in the United States. It was loaded with strawberries and molten Belgian chocolate. The liege waffle is in a league of its own. Far more dense than any other waffle on the market, with chunks of sugar baked into the middle, the liege waffle is truly the breakfast of champions. Hidden somewhere under a mountain of chocolate, strawberries, bananas, and more chocolate hides the caramelized brilliance that is the liege waffle.

There's a vibe in Brussels that I can't quite explain. It's a strange mix between relaxed and hustling at the same time. There's so much to do but the sense of urgency isn't there. It's hard to pinpoint, but I liked it. After breakfast and second breakfast, We made our way to the Brussels Town Hall, an incredibly elaborate building. The crowded town square was surrounded by old buildings with towers invading the skyline.

The Manneken Pis Statue is one of Brussels most famous landmarks. I'm not entirely sure why, but it is. The sculpture of the naked child urinating was clothed when we visited. He dawned a bright orange jacket and a large brown hat. We later learned that the outfit is ceremoniously changed when we saw a parade headed toward the statue. The sculpture was put in place in the early 1600's and draws quite the crowd.

 

About twenty minutes from the city center by metro, we visited the Atomium. On the metro we met a cheery Irish couple from Dublin. They were headed in the same direction, and we had a chance to talk to them a bit about how much we love their country. As expected, they were incredibly kind. The Atomium was constructed for the 1958 World Fair. While we weren't able to make it to the top, the eight of us did our best to recreate what CNN calls "Europe's most bizarre building."

When we returned to the city, Kyle, Trip and I made a stop at a store that had over 250 varieties of beer. We purchased an assorted box of ten Belgian beers and did a taste test after dinner. The flavors varied from blueberry to Belgian Tripel. Belgian beer was much sweeter than what we had in Germany. I enjoyed it in both countries, but they were very different. Munich prided itself on the lack of ingredients in their beer, while Belgium seemed to add any flavor imaginable to beer.

Following our beer tasting, we made our way to Delirium Bar. On the way we stopped at two waffle shops to bring our total to five in the first twelve hours of the Tour de Waffle. The first shop had a sign out front that read "World Champion Waffles" which is the equivalent of a sign that reads "World's Best Cup of Coffee." While the waffle's were delicious, they certainly weren't deserving of a world championship. Trip however, made sure to congratulate the owner anyway, just like this:

Everyone I know that has been to Brussels, has insisted that we spend a night at Delirium. Delirium holds the Guinness World Record for most varieties of beer commercially available, with 2004. Our night there was very enjoyable. The bar was unique, with three levels as well as separate bars attached devoted solely to rhum and other varieties of alcohol.

On Sunday morning, we made our way back to the city center for waffles and some more exploring. Madison and Trip had one each, so I went for two. This brought my running count to seven, one ahead of them. We explored the city a bit and came across a vintage market. We spent a while there before heading back to catch our train home to Lugano. We stopped for one last waffle on the way to the train station. I enjoyed my final waffle of the trip, taking a solid lead with my eighth waffle in 27 hours. Trip and Madison would have tied for second, had Madison not slipped me a Euro to purchase one more waffle for her. She hid the waffle in her jacket until we got on the train. As we pulled away from the train station, this happened:

We took a ten hour train ride back, and laughed the entire time. It was another memorable weekend and I would go back to Brussels in a heartbeat. This week we are wrapping up our Marketing Research class. We will be taking our final exam on Thursday and beginning our 2nd Spring Break in the evening. Next week I'll be headed to Budapest, Berlin, and Prague. Until then, ciao!