Up Next

Well, I guess I'm going to China pretty soon. I've wanted to go to China for quite a while, so I'm excited to finally check it out.

Pictures from Salzburg

So now that I've had time to reaclimate and upload my photos on the computer, I thought you might like to see some of the places I've been writing about. So lets start with Salzburg.
There's something about the color of Salzburg that caught me off guard. I'd say it was the green, but that doesn't quite do it justice. It's the color of the water here: opaque, seafoam, Baroque. It penetrates everything, the whole glow of the town. You feel bright and fresh, soft and warm when you walk down the streets. Like so many places we visited, Salzburg was lovely. The kind of beautiful that you don't often see at home. The kind that represents a whole part of time where people loved light and swirls and beautful things just because they were beautiful. Maybe that was because everything else was so seemingly dark.

While we were sitting in one of the Baroque churches, Emily joked to me that it was so pink and full of swirls, that it was funny that a man would have designed it. That made me laugh. But she was right, you know?

At the fortress on top of the mountain, there was this random bull, so of course, we got on and took pictures on it, haha:

We also went into the marionette "museum" on the fortress grounds, which consisted of one room and a couple of posters you could stick your head through. I figured, 'when in Salzburg...'

I'm Lame

Ok, so I realize that I've done a terrible job of writing on this thing. I can't say I'm going to make up for it just yet. I'll be heading home tomorrow and once I get a good computer to work on, I will put up some pictures and other thoughts, so stay tuned!

Amsterdam

Emily and I spent a pretty uneventful night in Cologne. Most of the city was destroyed in the war except for the big Cathedral which, after almost 2 months in Europe wasn't much to write home about. The rest of the city is big and generic and in general, I can't see going back any time soon. So on to Amsterdam....

I've had a lot of thoughts about being in Amsterdam. Most people, when you mention that you are going to Amsterdam smile and give a knowing look, as in 'I know why you're really going to Amsterdam!' and sure, while there is the whole coffee shop culture, I feel that it is an unfair assessment of the city as a whole. Amsterdam is an incredibly beautiful city with a rich history of tolerance. After walking around much of it, it makes me think twice about the way pot is viewed. While I do agree that it is probably a better use of the government's time and money to focus on harder drugs to crack down on, I find that much of the marijuana culture sullies the rest of the city. I think this happens in part because the city has become a haven for people coming to smoke, rather than just a city in which pot is tolerated. I think about a place like San Francisco and the people there who would like to see pot legalized, but after being in Amsterdam, I think I would be opposed to it. To federally address the subject is something different, but I would hate to see San Francisco's beautiful streets and cafes fill up with people who were just interested in doing drugs.

Cologne

Emily and I are in Cologne now! woo!

Strasbourg was a lovely city. Our first day there, we got a good lay of the land and walked to the Cathedral (there's always a Cathedral, isn't there?). It is known for its original stained glass which is old school and VERY beautiful.

After, Emily and I decide we wanted to tour the Kronenbourg factory which is located in Strasbourg. For those of you who are not as well informed on the beer situation in France, Kronenbourg is sort of like the national beer of France. We had a great time learning all about the history and process of the beer making and then got to have a petit degustation at the end! Very enjoyable, indeed.

The next day, we decided to head to Colmar, a small city just outside of Strasbourg that is known for being in the Alsatian wine region. Again, we had a look around and enjoyed a tasting of the local wine from a local Alsatian producer. It was very informative and Emily and I both patted ourselves on the back for our fine upbringing in destinguishing the flavors of the wine (lol).

In the evening in Strasbourg, we happened upon the Cathedral and to our surprise, saw a great light show on the facade of the building. It was an entire light spectacular set to classical music. What a great thing to see!

We have just arrived in Cologne and it is very hot and muggy here. We will be heading for the Cathedral, which apparently was one fo the few things to survive the bombings in the 2nd world war. Only one night here and then off to Amsterdam tomorrow!

Oh, and the food is pretty good! Lets just say the budget is low for that sort of thing, but it is easy to have something good to eat when you are in France. Always good cheese and good bread!!

Strasbourg

Emily and I ahve arrived in Strasbourg and boy is it beautiful! No more time to update, although there's not a lot to say yet.

à Cannes

So after a long journey in which Emily and I went from outside Interlaken all the way to Cannes in the South of France, we arrived, hot, sweaty and tired au collège. It's great to be back here. Since Emily was a boursier last summer, she definitely knows more people who are here now than I do. But in typical collège fashion, everyone has been laidback and nice and I feel just as at home as ever. As a result of getting back into the groove, we have decided to extend our time here and cancel our plans to go to Lyon. This will allow us more time in Cannes and an opportunity to save some money, as our accomodations for the second part of Cannes will be in the home of a family friend of Emily's. We will still be going to Strasbourg and neither of us was committed to Lyon. I think we are at a point in the trip where resting and being at a place that we recognize is just what we need.

There likely won't be a ton to update on as I'll probably just be hanging around and beaching it up.

Hope you are all well. Me