Triple A ... Austrian Alps Adventure

Innsbruck to Salzburg, July 24

I’m so dizzy!!! Our train is going backwards and my stomach is not particularly happy about this. Anyway, we’re just leaving Innsbruck on our way to Salzburg, Mozart’s birthplace. Our Alps trip was incredibly cool! Each night we would hike to a different hut up in the mountains. The word “hut,” though, as we use it in English, does not begin to cover how nice these places were. I would call them cabins or lodges, even though “hut” is an easier transition from the German “hütte.” All of them had full kitchens, heated common rooms, flush toilets and showers, and nice beds. For a family of backpackers, it was pretty hard to believe we could call this backpacking! It was a bit unexpected the first day to get in from our hike and be able to have hot soup, hot chocolate with whipped cream, or a cold beer right off the trail.

The hiking itself was also quite beautiful! Constantly surrounded by snowy peaks and lush green valleys, we couldn’t stop ourselves from taking hundreds of pictures. Actually, this ended up slowing us down quite a bit! We had to re-evaluate all the marked trail times, accounting for our slower, picture-taking pace. Much of our experiences out on the trail, however, reminded us that we were indeed on a backpacking trip. Probably our most rugged moment was a day when we had to hike over an 8500-foot pass to get to our next hut and it was snowing quite hard!! The steep trail was a bit intimidating in the icy wind and gusting snow but we made it to the top and got some killer views of the valleys on both sides and the peaks in the distance. Some German hikers we met at the hut that night even said they saw us while we were at the very top! It was actually lucky they were on the trail with us because later on, they caught up with us (like I said, pictures slowed us down quite significantly) in a meadow full of cows. These adorable but massive creatures were blocking the trail so the three of us were attempting to avoid the group when these hikers just headed right down the middle of the herd and they got up and scattered! We were so surprised but of course we followed their lead.

All of the people we met in the huts, hikers and staff alike, were friendly, outgoing, helpful, and patient with our attempts to communicate. My parents actually spent a lot of time learning German before leaving for the trip, so they’ve been getting us around. Personally, I lack pretty much any knowledge of German besides a few food-related words, basic numbers, a few pleasantries, and a lot of World War II terminology that will never be useful in daily conversation.

Most of the people at these huts were locals, from Austria or Germany. Checking through the guest logbooks, we found that, at one of the huts, we were the only Americans to pass through in at least a two-year period, perhaps ever. A few of the other huts had seen American groups but it was quite uncommon.

The food at these places was simply insane!! We’re used to backpacking dinners on the stove, trail mix, and oatmeal on our trips but these huts had excellent soups, noodle dishes, SALAD, desserts … it was pretty amazing to me the first day at lunch when I got fresh green beans and fried eggs. This was incredibly luxurious. They were even very accommodating with vegetarian dishes. One hut had a vegetable and cheese risotto that was pretty much the tastiest thing I have ever encountered. Actually, the same hut had something called “schmarrn” that all of us became obsessed with after trying it. Schmarrn is a sort of eggy pancake that, depending on other ingredients in the dish, can be either sweet or savory. Dad had one with pear, caramel, cinnamon, and walnuts that was a dessert while I had one with tomato, onion, and herbs. If you’re ever in Austria, you MUST try this dish. The moral of the story is, we ate quite well on the trip but were even additionally grateful as we’re usually eating backpacking food.

As if the food and the views weren’t enough, our packs, which usually weigh in at between forty and fifty pounds with food and gear, were probably only between twelve and fifteen for this trip, as we only had to carry clothing, toiletries, and a sheet liner for the beds.

So overall, between the gorgeous hikes, the friendly people, the cozy cabins, and the awesome food, it was just a great trip. Also, even though we had a lot of company at the cabins, we rarely encountered other hikers out on the trail so we could be as crazy as we are with no worries about freaking other people out ☺.

Leaving Paris

Paris to Zurich, July 17

Well, I’m sitting on a train to Zurich! It was a little hard to say goodbye to the City of Lights after so long, but at least I left with the feeling that I had taken advantage of every moment and done everything I had intended to do and more. About twenty minutes ago we grazed the German border but I believe we are currently in Switzerland. Our Eurail passes got us first class tickets so the seats are quite nice! It’s been fun to watch the landscape pass – there’s something about the view out of a train window that makes the whole countryside lovely, even in the rain under gloomy skies.

Even though a three-day trip to Paris may seem like quite the teaser, I think we were able to cram a lot of amazing things into such a short visit. I took Mom and Dad to some of my favorite spots, discovered over the past month. Luckily, we made it out to Jardin du Luxembourg the first day (Bastille Day, July 14th) while it was still sunny and also made it to Angelina for some hot chocolate, Shakespeare and Co., Notre Dame, Victor Hugo’s house, the Eiffel Tower, the Champs Elysees, Ernest Hemingway’s house, the Pantheon, my favorite crepe stand next to my hotel/apartment, and even got to hear Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in Saint-Chapelle cathedral. Quite a packed few days! I’m really glad I got them to go to Angelina because it really is easily the best hot chocolate I have ever tasted. And we did two walking tours that were quite reminiscent of the structure of my classes during the program. Mom joked that they got a taste of my experience for a much lower tuition rate.

After we check into our hotel in Zurich, we will be heading up to Bern, a quaint little mountain village that is actually the capital of Switzerland (surprise!!). I’m excited to be seeing new things and experiencing a whole new environment but I’m a little nervous to not speak the language at all. And I really don’t like German. I just don’t think it sounds very nice. Quite the change from romantic, enchanting, flowery French.

Facebook

I just had the idea of posting my facebook status updates since I've been here in order to save them instead of having them disappear into cyberspace so here goes:

June 18 - July 11, bringing us up to the present. I seem to be quite fond of exclamation points.

Well, my next status update will be in the City of Lights!! Au revoir!!

Eiffel Tower sighting!!!!

Highlight of my day is a three-way tie between having a crepe in the park, remembering how much I love Teo, and watching the Eiffel Tower lights glitter about ten minutes ago. Stunning!!!

Walked along the Seine, tried the best ice cream in France, and then explored Notre Dame. Couldn't find Quasimodo or Esmerelda but enjoyed the stunning rose windows nonetheless :)

Oh, you know, just some Jews chillin in a 19th century cathedral. No big deal. What a wonderful day!! Ari Gruys Michelle Klein So much fun to run around Paris, not mention nomming on crepes with nutella ... mmmmmmmmmm Wait, also, Judaica in French?!?! Cool!!! Joshua Melamed

Somehow sitting in Le Pierrot sipping Chardonnay and reading Hemingway is much more satisfying than sitting in B Caf with my soy latte trying to get through Chaucer assignments. Additional benefit -- overheard conversations consist of people speaking French beautifully instead of whining about exams.

Vaux le Vicomte by candlelight ... simply stunning

Nicely done, New York!!! How appropriate that today in Paris was the Gay Pride Parade and celebration.

Loooooove Paris!!!!! It's interesting how I have so much more fun when it's sunny :P Simply lovely!!

On such a hot afternoon in Paris, a walk through the flower market and a cold citron frappe make for quite the refreshing experience. Aaaahh.

Pretty sure seeing Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" performed live by a string orchestra in Saint Chapelle was the most beautiful and inspiring experience of my life. "Transcendental"!!! :P Stunning music, stunning stained glass. Incredible!!

Reading Hemingway while sitting in Brasserie Lipp was probably the nerdiest thing I've done here so far but so gratifyingly redundant!! And delicious!

Frickin stupid little gypsy kid tried to rob me. Fortunately, the operative word there is "tried." Freaky. Note to self: stay out of creepy deserted alleys. This seems intuitive, no? Oof.

Walking along the Champs Elysees with Danielle Hershman and Sarina Raby when SUDDENLY I see Amber Basore and Morgan Kendall!!!! Whaaaaat?!?! Surprise!!

Diane Bani and I go sight-seeing ... meaning we check out French guys on the Metro. Had the best Thai food ever tonight!!! Also, the D'Orsay was amazing!! Vincennes was nice too. And the canals were cute. All around a great day. :)

Walking around the room cleaning and listening to Sinatra, I saw the Eiffel Tower lights glittering and literally believed him that I could just fly away. I'm just the luckiest person alive. This city is so much fun! Versailles tomorrow!!

Versailles. Is. Gorgeous. Hall of Mirrors for the win!!! The gardens are also incredible!

Had so much fun wandering and exploring with Sahar Raz and Carmel Lev!!! Strolling along by Notre Dame, exploring my new favorite bookstore ever (Shakespeare and Co), and just loving life. Taking Shabbat to a whole new level, Paris style. :)

Went and got a crepe from my favorite crepe stand. The guy who works there said I looked pretty today so I said thanks. Then he said something else I didn't quite understand so I asked him to translate and he said, "you look pretty every day." I love Paris :P

Never thought it was possible but I have, in fact, found a line longer than that of Splash Mountain on a hot day ... the entrance line for the Louvre on free museum day. Not willing to wait for FOUR HOURS IN LINE so we hit up some other tight museums and got delicious sweets.

Potentially my biggest worry on this trip is overdosing ... ON WINNING!! Going back to Shakespeare and Co. tonight. AAAAGGGHHH!!!! Cutest store ever!!

Had my cocktail with a lit sparkler in it while looking at Notre Dame followed by the best crepe ever with grilled veggies and Fontina cheese! The perfect follow-up to the perfect evening at Shakespeare and Co. -- it seems like every five minutes someone else is playing their piano!

I'm in Louvre with the love. Spent the day chillin with my besties -- Mona, Venus, Madonna, Nike, Hammurabi. You know, the crew.

Being out and about in Paris is teaching me so much French!!! Spoke with the cab driver the whole way back. Rochelle says I speak a lot of French for someone who doesn't speak French hahahahaha

I feel like Parisians pre-game every meal. You have a crepe around noon then lunch at three ... olives and a baguette around five but dinner at nine-thirty. So totally down with this!!

You know you're hella fancy when the raspberries on top of your chocolate cream mousse cake have GOLD FLAKES ON THEM! Cool!!

Had so much fun at the Museum of Jewish History and Culture!!! What an amazing opportunity to learn about the history of Jews in Europe throughout history as we study society as a whole through the ages. Seeing 16th century Torah scrolls and siddurs pretty much blew my mind!! Beautiful!!

Pumped for the Musee Marmatton-Monet and then Shabbat on the Champs Elysees!!

The only thing better than spending an afternoon with Monet's paintings yesterday was spending today exploring his gardens and adorable house.

I can have the best day in the world, but then looking out my bedroom window at the sparkling Eiffel Tower lights makes it 100 times better. Glorious! So iconic! Never gets old!

In a city so alive, only a freak would spend the afternoon among the dead. Guess I'm that freak. The Catacombs were super cool!!! Totally weird but worth the wait!

Such an incredible, fun, delicious night!! Just goes to show, you don't have to stick to the big spots on the to-do list in order to have a splendid time in Paris. This may have been my favorite night of the trip!!! Three hour dinner for the win!! Thanks for the ballin' recommendation, Calvin Lee!! We owe you one. :)

Can Wednesday get here faster? I'm in dire need of "Harry Potter Et Les Reliques De La Mort." Aaaaaaagggghhhhh!!!!!

Sitting in Jardin du Luxembourg reading and some guy comes up next to me and tells me in French that I'm pretty like the flowers. Swear my life is a movie. "Tea and Tattered Pages" was so cute!! What a great idea to put tea and used books in the same establishment!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Explorations

Stampede... I mean the Mona Lisa room

Giverny! Monet's Japanese bridge

Catacombs!

Jardin du Luxembourg

Tea and Tattered Pages

After spending the morning in Montmarte, the most touristy part of Paris after the Eiffel Tower itself, it felt good to branch out and do some exploring in smaller groups. I brought a group of friends to my favorite little Thai restaurant by the Louvre where we are always the only group speaking English (quite an uncommon feature of most of our dining experiences). Later in the afternoon, I checked out a little tea shop called "Tea and Tattered Pages" that sells used books but is also a tearoom. I was going to head to Les Deux Magots, one of the cafes Hemingway repeatedly mentions, but I ended up out reading in Jardin du Luxembourg instead. It was the perfect evening for it -- I got there a little before 7, I think, but it was still bright and sunny up until I left an hour and a half later. Cooked dinner in the "apartment" again!! Also finally did real laundry tonight (as opposed to sink laundry). Yes, it's close to the end of the program but I'm not down to travel for another two weeks with only semi-clean socks and underwear!! I've almost reached my goal of riding every Metro line!!

La Vie En Rose

As I spend more and more time here, I feel more and more comfortable instead of touristy. That's not to say that I don't partake in tourist activities on a daily basis (or should I say hourly...) but I get to experience a lot of things characteristic of normal life here such as grocery shopping, cooking a meal in my "apartment," walking around just for fun, or familiarity with the Metro system. In fact, I feel more comfortable navigating around the Paris Metro than BART at home. In my time in La Ville Lumiere, the City of Lights, I've gotten to see and do some pretty incredible things, from historical sights and monuments to museums, streets, and cafes.

Hall of Mirrors, Versailles!!

Luxembourg Gardens

Cocktails next to Notre Dame

Paris desserts are top notch every time!!

Versailles Gardens