Coming this Summer....Greece Blog and (Country TBD Blog) 2015

This summer my writing program will be in Greece!  Woohoo!
I can't wait.

I am hoping to get there a day or two early like I did with Prague last summer to help with the jet lag.
It's too bad I can't sleep on flights but I feel the pilots really need me to stay awake and help them out.  For example, if I'm asleep, who will grip the arm rests tightly when there is a lot of turbulence?   It's a lot of work and pressure which means I'm very tired when I arrive at an international destination.  ;)

I'm debating where to go after Greece.  I am currently thinking about Turkey.  On the other hand, maybe I should head to western Europe to Ireland.  Or, perhaps I should go further into the Middle East and to to Dubai.  So many choices...so little money.

Feel free to leave suggestions.  I need to wait until I get my tax refund before I can buy my ticket.  Hmm, perhaps I should finish my taxes first to make sure I'm getting a refund..

Berlin Blog #4 – The Epic Journey for Luggage

Today I decided to use my free time this afternoon (1^st semester students had some additional time today to ourselves) and begin my own “Hero’s Journey,” if you will, for an extra bag to back all the stuff that won’t fit in my current bag.

In my “Ordinary World” I was trying to cram as many of the gifts into my bags as possible.  On the way from Prague to Berlin, I had given in and used a shopping bag to hold my pillow (Yes, I needed my pillow from home…get over it) and the *cough, cough* lovely Kafka book, The Castle., and a couple of water bottles, I could not fit them into my bags.  I had even resorted to putting my computer in my tote/oversized purse so I could shove more things into my computer case.

All the metro stops had different looks

Call to Adventure – I had to buy things in Berlin!  I just had to!  But where would these new items fit? Around that time, a fellow student shared of a magical place.  A place where answers could be found to my luggage debacle.  A place who’s very name lit up the day. A TJ Maxx (although here it is called TK Maxx.) *sings commercial theme in head…da da da da da da da da TJ Maxx*  

Refusal of the call – It was too good to be true. I worried that it would be impossible to find.  It would require not only taking the metro but changing trains…and changing metro systems.  I didn’t think it would be possible to succeed in a land where the only German I spoke was what I learned in 5 minutes on an iPhone App.  Then another classmate announced that she was going to make the journey herself.  I figured I’d never see her again…

Lots of aggressive bike riders

Meeting with the Mentor – However, the classmate succeeded and returned in triumph telling tales of a land flowing with milk and honey…or…er…at least inexpensive luggage options.  She willingly bestowed her wisdom upon me and I recorded the directions step-by-step.

Crossing the Threshold – After the morning sessions were over, I checked the directions and headed to the metro station down the street.  After taking several minutes to figure out what type of ticket to purchase, I stepped foot onto the Berlin Metro car.

Tests, Allies and Enemies – There were many challenges.  I had to dodge bicyclists getting on and off the metro.  I had to read signs that were in different languages.  I had to walk from one metro system to another.  I had to deal with an ache in my side from doing who-knows-what to it while here.   I had to go in the opposite direction of all known Starbucks.

Back at the station near the hotel

Approach – At last I reached the station where all my luggage dreams were to come true.  I mentally prepared myself for the maximum amount I wanted to pay and what type of luggage I needed to focus on so I would not be distracted by the bells and whistles of luggage trying to woo me away from the ones I actually needed.

The Ordeal – I emerged from the metro station and saw the glorious sign of TK MAXX directly in front of me in a sort of outdoor mall area.  However, it was Sunday and the store was closed. NOOOOOOOoooooooo! 

McRib Sandwich

I do not know if I will have time to complete this hero’s journey where I get “the reward”, use “the road back,” get tested and have “the resurrection,” or “return with the elixir.”  However, I did find a McDonalds there and had a McRib sandwich which are sometimes difficult to find in the States.  I don’t think I’ve had one for a decade. 

I’ll let you know if I am able to complete my quest.

This website had more info about the hero’s journey story line:

http://www.thewritersjourney.com/hero's_journey.htm


Part 2:  The completion of the Hero's Journey:

So, let's not go into how many months later I am writing this portion.  I didn't want to leave you hanging wondering if I was successful in completing my quest.

The Reward - I finally had time during lunch on the last day of class to make one more run for the bag.  At least I knew how to get to the store now.  I dashed toward the metro when the morning sessions were complete.  Zipped along between the two connecting trains.  Sped up the stairs and into TK Maxx.  At last!  Triumph!  The store was open and they had bags.  I grabbed one and had to wait in a long line to pay.

The Road Back - Ugh!  The line was too long!  I needed to head back to my afternoon classes.  I was pressed for time.  As soon as I paid and my  new bag was marked as paid, I traced my steps back to the metro, went as quickly as I could between the connecting trains, and prayed that the metro would't be delayed for any reason.  

The Resurrection - There wasn't much time once I made it back to my temporary neighborhood on the metro.   I was almost to the hotel but was worried I didn't have time to go there first.  I decided to go for it.  I had to dodge cars, cobbled sidewalks, and aggressive cyclists (when I got too close to the bike lane.)  I made it to my room and dropped the bag off and grabbed some water that was severely needed after the adventure.  I then headed to class.

Return with Elixir - Later that evening, it was a glorious site to behold as I backed all my belongings that didn't fit in my one piece of luggage into my new bag.   It truly was an object that had the ability to transform my world...or at least my packing...into something beautiful.

Epilogue -
Yes, the bag (the purple one in the picture) is still in great shape and I plan on taking it with me this summer to the 2015 Spalding Summer Semester abroad.  :)

The purple bag that was goal for my Hero's Quest.

Berlin Blog #3 – The day full of (Awesome) classes

Today was a full day of school.  Since I didn’t get out much today (and during our long lunch I took a nap), I have decided to wax philosophical about Nutella.

Nutella.
Need I say more?

Yes, Nutella.  I realize it is now available in the US but my first exposure to it was in France in 2000.  I had it on Baguettes each morning.  Yum!

In both Prague and Berlin, it has been readily available to guests as part of the included breakfast.

Behold the glory of the small packets of Nutella!  --> 

Although I am part of the Writing for Children and Young Adults genre group, I have been inspired by the poetry genre group here and, of course, my mom (Shout-out to Mom’s poetry books…Hi Mom!) and have composed a poem off the top of my head about Nutella:

*clears throat*

Ode to Nutella

Part Hazelnutty, Part Chocolate

Is the flavor of Nutella.

Onto my toast and my croissants,

You go on so…wella.

*Bows*  Thank you.  Thank you very much.

I wonder if I should switch genres to poetry now?  ;)

Berlin Blog #2 – The Wall and Checkpoint Charlie

Picture of Police near where I had
previously been standing

Bradenburg Gate

Just in case you were wondering, it was purely a coincidence when I was near the Bradenburg Gate taking pictures that not one, not two, not even three but about ten police vans showed up and tons of policemen descended upon the square.    At first I was concerned that I had stared a little too long at the Starbucks on the other side of the square revealing my American Capitalism, or, maybe they were concerned because I was distracted looking at the hotel where Michael Jackson had famously (or infamously) dangled "Blanket" as a baby instead of marveling at the Bradenburg Gate.  But no, it was because of the protesters sitting not too far away from me.  Our tour guide wisely decided that we should head back to the bus at that time.  Unfortunately, I don’t think the pictures show the numbers of police too well.

We started the day listening to some awesome presentations including two guys that shared stories about living in Berlin (one in the west, one in the east) before, during, and after the wall came down.  Totally fascinating.

Berlin Wall facing West

Art on Berlin Wall facing East

After lunch time, we started on our tour.  We went to the longest stretch of the Berlin wall that is still standing.  It had been painted on the side facing the east by many different artists from around the world and now is referred to as the East Side Gallery.

Column with bullets holes
on Museum Island

Berlin Cathedral on
Museum Island

We drove through Museum Island but I wasn’t able to get many good pictures.  One of our tour guides was able to snap a photo for me (on the other side of the bus) of the numerous bullet holes visible in one of the columns that had not been touched up after the war.  Bombs destroyed much of Berlin during the war so many buildings have been reconstructed to look like they originally did and might not have much of the original structures standing.

Checkpoint Charlie

Checkpoint Charlie was the last part of the tour.  The museum near it was interesting but it was a tad too warm to want to linger and read the numerous, detailed, and abundant written information (did I mention there was a lot of writing?) present on every wall in many rooms and on multiple floors.  They have actors that now pretend to be American soldiers at the replica of Checkpoint Charlie at the original location. 

Checkpoint Charlie

Personal victory – Found another Starbucks aside from the one at the square mentioned earlier.  They had one Berlin mug left and I bought it.  :)

The Non-Prague-Blog Blog AKA Berlin Blog #1

Quick Greetings from Berlin!

I am around the corner from Checkpoint Charlie.

And yes, my first meal in Berlin was indeed Chicken Tacos.  Isn’t that what comes to mind immediately when you think of  Berlin?  *crickets chirping*

Dresden Opera House

Anyway…

We left this morning from Prague by bus.  It took about two hours to get to Dresden, Germany.  It is also a very pretty city and former UNESCO World Heritage site.  The rumor is the UNESCO people didn’t like a bridge that Dresden had built so UNESCO removed the status.

We had a couple of hours to walk around and have lunch.  (Spanish Tapas – Yum!)

I’ve included some photos of the lovely buildings that we visited.

Dresden: Courtyard of Zwinger Museum/Palace

 It took another 3ish hours to get to Berlin.  In case you’re wondering, some of the streets are not really built for big coach buses to travel along especially when impatient taxi drivers are still trying to go in the opposite direction.  I thought I heard scrapping of vehicles but I can not be sure they were real or imagined (the scraping sounds, not the taxis.)  ;)

Dresden: Neumarkt Square...I think

Bus on Autobahn

We also were able to make up some time on the autobahn.  I didn’t see any super-duper fast cars zooming by but we had a movie playing (to get us in the mood for Berlin) so I could have missed the speedsters.