German, French, and Italian

German food, French wine, and the Italian lifestyle.. push 'em all together, and the sensational outcome is Switzerland. My karma points must be running pretty high: I got 2 days in Zurich, Switzerland!

















Downtown Zurich


















More downtown


















About half the crew, dinner at Raclette Stube!












Of course the food!










The fondue at this place was out of this world amazing! The fondue cheese was half Raclette and half Gruyère. Then pears, pineapples, sweet onions, pickles, and a mountain of bread for dipping. Something is wrong if you leave hungry...

The following day a few of us took the train down to Luzern, a smaller city south of Zurich.

















The old water tower of Luzern, apparently one of the most photographed spots in Switzerland.

Also near Luzern is Mount Pilatus, one of the smaller pre-Alps mountains. Head up to the top via the steepest Cog Wheel track in the world? Yes, please!










Cog Wheel Car




























The view around 5000ft


















The top had a few cave/tunnels you could walk through. Very Lonely Mountain, just waiting for Smaug around every corner!


















We spent at least 3 and half minutes debating how anyone got to this little church. We never came to any conclusive decision...


















And the view from 7000ft!










The wonderful girls who took me around the city :)










Verdict: Zurich is definitely in my top 3 favorite places, behind The Netherlands and Capetown. Also I've added a bulletin to my bucket list: have a safety deposit box at a Swiss bank. Why, yes, I am an international spy.

Sydney, Birthday, and Pumpkins

Vacation in Sydney for 2 weeks. It was perfect.









Some downtown Sydney




























The Victoria Building, downtown


















King's Cross, the redlight district of Sydney, by night. SO much energy and life going on in this little section - great fun!


















Meet Trent. See Trent dance. See Trent blog at www.TrentInOz.com.
Trent is a friend from home who is traveling around Australia, filming as he goes! We were able to catch up in Sydney which is really what made the vacation.
'A place is just a place'. I am currently exploring this phrase on many different levels, one being physical location.. Sydney was just the city I happened to be in, so apologies for the lack of photographic evidence of the trip! :)


















Then back home to celebrate 24 years. Mid-twenties. Yikes! But looking forward to the rest!























And what better way to end out the month but Halloween?! And pumpkin carving!










Meet Miles. His curly-cues almost took too much effort. He was worth it.








Next: Zurich, Switzerland!

Tapas, Cathedrals, and Playas

Barcelona! I picked it up at the last moment, and my Mom was able to come along! Spain, my favorite. A few of us went out on a bike tour of the city - best way to go!










Cathedral at the Gothic Square


















La Sagrada Familia church
by Gaudi





















Zoom-in of Sagrada Familia front


















Stairs where Christopher Columbus presented his findings to Ferdinand and Isabella

























At the beach!


















Barcelona's Arc de Triomphe

After the bike tour, we went out tapa-ing. Some lomo and cheese at one place. Mushrooms, olives, shrimp at another. Delicious!

File Size Too Large for 1 Post

It's been awhile! It's been a very busy few weeks with some great trips! Instead of talking about it, we're just going to upload as many pictures as will fit... you'll see the story progress through those.

Mexico City with a side trip to the Pyramids of Teotihuacan
And Mom came along! (After a very dramatic almost missed the flight for a number of reasons commute)

















Pyramid of the Moon

















Pyramid of the Sun

















Me atop the Pyramid of the Sun.. though barely visible..

















Temple of Queztalcoatl (Teotihuacan god, that's a relief of him on the right)

















Pulque! Fermented juice... it was different.


And on to Santiago, Chile!
All-nighter flight both ways was a bit tough, but worth it.

















A very interesting fort/museum/chapel located in the middle of the city. We never did find out exactly what it was...











But it offered a fantastic view!



















La Virgen













Huge statue sitting atop a smaller mountain, you can see her from most anywhere in the city below.









The ride down the mountain













Then a quick trip to Springfield, MA which very luckily is close enough to Worcester for Jon to come rescue me from the hotel!










Springfield's City Hall Bell Tower
















Dinner at The Student Prince German Restaurant: Schnitzel and sausage. Could it get any better?









Atlanta!

















Dinner with Baron at Tamarind Seed.. and then Gladys Knight Chicken & Waffles.. and then diet for a week.. :) So worth it! But really, why do anything that isn't worth doing?









Happy Birthday! Love you long time!











And back in Birmingham for another birthday fiesta









Martín, silly-stringed at midnight by only the best. And then cake.. that might have tasted like silly string.. but still better than the pulque.

Welcome to Miami

Miami! So, no it doesn't look like it does on the screens of CSI: Miami, but it was still great fun! South Beach/Miami Beach is quite glamorous still. And, of course, I loved the Spanish there. Another flight attendant and I took the bus over to Miami Beach for the afternoon. It felt like a tropical New York almost! Small nook-stores, street vendors, eclectic restaurants, street food vendors, Spanish. Just.. with palm trees!


















Lincoln Rd, the main drag of Miami Beach

















The beach!







Chips & salsa, fish tacos, and horchata (a rice-based nut and cinnamon drink) for lunch!
























Strawberry tart for dessert at Paul (a French patisserie only in Miami and DC in the States!)








Crazy busy downtown Miami-Dade

Continent Hopping

After sitting standby specifically for the Africa trips for over a year, I finally finally nabbed it. And one of the last trips going, too! Sweet fulfillment, at last. Thanks, scheduling.

Dakar, Senegal
Very third-world-feeling, but insanely expensive!

















Ngor Island off the coast of Dakar. It was supposed to be the surfing hotspot... hm.

















Gorée Island. This is the portal of basically all the West African slave trade.










The 'Door of no Return'











If a slave was unacceptable/unsellable, they were pushed out of this door into the ocean. Otherwise, this is where the ships docked to load the slaves on. Either way, you weren't coming back. Intense.

















The magnitude of human trafficking.

















Local cuisine, of course. Some Yassa chicken: marinated in lemon juice, cooked in an onion mushroom concoction.


Capetown, South Africa
This has now topped my list as my favorite destination. And, being on reserve and not packed for this trip, this was an exciting transition. Dakar was 90 degrees...Capetown 50. First stop was Woolworth's department store for jeans, shirts, and a jacket. It felt like a gameshow! Bargain hunting for things I like in strange sizes with a 30-min timer before leaving for dinner with the crew. I won!
Dinner at Karibu South African Restaurant at The Wharf

















Ostrich Carpaccio! Absolutely fantastic!

















Left: Waterblommetjie (lamb stew with waterblommetjie , an aquatic plant that tastes like artichokes) Right: Chakalaka! (tastes like spicy baked beans)

















Table Mountain in the center of Capetown. Huge plateau. Huge.

A group of us rented cars and drove down (about 2 hours) to Cape Point and The Cape of Good Hope.









The Cape of Good Hope (from standing on Cape Point where the lighthouse is)
















Midway climbing up the Cape (with Cape Point in the background)

















Top of the Cape of Good Hope

















Because the last picture doesn't convey the altitude

















Wild Ostriches! Makes me hungry...

















And wild Baboons!

How do you sum up 10 days in Africa? So many thoughts, emotions, ideas, desires, plans and retrospects come from this trip. At least, too many for this space! What an experience.

Some notes for the future:
>If you fall asleep under a palm tree for an hour, the equatorial sun moves a little faster than we're used to.. when you wake up you will no longer be in the soothing shade. And you will be burned.
>Bug spray that is 30% Deet will eat through your clothes. It might just be worth it.
>The spots where Deet was sprayed on are burned the worst. I don't know if that was worth it.
>Flies on the islands love Fanta. I mean, love it like they'll never get to buzz around again. Just avoid it next time.
>Africans don't burn, so you can forget about finding some Aloe at the local pharmacy. Now you're burned and peeling. But with no mosquito bites!

Finally back in the States after a week and a half. And Jeanne Danielle calls, she has a trip to Moscow the next day, and it's her birthday! Now what kind of adventure-seeking traveler would I be if I spent my days off at home!? So, after not even 24 hrs at home, I headed to Moscow!











Red Square and the Kremlin Palace





















St Basil's at the Kremlin!










We shopped the markets for souvenir nesting dolls, faux-fur hats, and of course gas masks (?). Followed by a delicious dinner of Goulash soup, spinach casserole, deer burger, and apple strudel, but we were too famished to take a photo before we demolished it...







Cupcakes for dessert! Happy Birthday Jeanne! Though it got a bit roughed up on its travels from Alabama...








I have now been to North/Central America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. 6/7. Antarctica... maybe we'll get there one day.