A month or so ago Megabus was having this awesome promotion of giving away free tickets. So on another spontaneous trip decision (I like these), Sally and I got ourselves tickets to Pittsburgh for MLK weekend -- ended up not being free, but close enough.
Poor Sally. She was in Oklahoma City for work during the week and was going to fly into Cincy on Friday in time to catch our bus to the 'burgh. After many many delayed flights, and finally convincing the airlines to get her a ticket straight to Pittsburgh (b/c she'd be too late for the bus), she ended up coming in at 10pm. She spent the whole day at airports. Awesome.
So anywho. I had made it, another awesome couchsurfer had picked me up, and then we got Sally. Adam was a savior. Not only did he respond to our last minute request, he MADE Pittsburgh the awesomeness that it is for us. Here's what we learned while we were there:
- The correct way of saying Carnegie. It's CarnEgie, bitchez.
- That the Science Center is the funnest place no matter what age you are
- 16 degrees is cold. And windchills don't help. And thank god for someone willing to drive us around
- There's 3 rivers, but really it's TWO rivers... and they become the Ohio River. And they're different colors.
- Batman sometimes lives there
- Pittsburgh is like Cincy, but bigger
- You can be crazy and own a farm and make 60 types of jams. And be missing the top of your middle finger
- Said crazy person can also know everything about the crow migration
- It will take you an average of 30 min to shop for the perfect winter hat in the Strip District
- Not all Cathedrals are for praying. Some are for Learning. And have crazy culture rooms.
- Beer is popular here. And everyone knows their beer.
- Scientific proof that Sally and I are in fact Yellow.
- There are many variations of Holly, like Skydiver Holly, Rafting Holly, Safari Holly, and Asian Holly
- It's cool and fun to mix random ingredients into your waffles and ice cream (Oh Yeah!)
- Apparently there's no steel business left in Pittsburgh
- Lightning Reaction is both the funnest and scariest game ever
- No matter how many times I try, I can't do coffee
Ok, so maybe this seems random and doesn't make sense to you guys, but in time, you will understand if you visit Pittsburgh. or if you ask me why. Fun fun times. Fun fun people.
I'ma visit you when it's warm some time...
I should never be allowed to own a camera anymore. I just can't keep a long lasting relationship with one. #1 was stolen in Brazil. #2 was stolen in New Orleans. #3... well, it was either stolen in Paris or I lost it. I want to claim it being stolen because that fits nicely with the theme. So alas, this post might be a harder read since there are no pictures to distract you with ;)
So 2.5 weeks in Europe. An excellent mix of family, friends, shenanigans, and culture. Let me begin...
12/22-12/28 Den Haag
Fam time! Saw my mom, got to see my sister and brother and nieces, the whole caboodle. My almost-10 year old niece left me a note at the computer that said: "Dear aunt nadia, i miss you a lot now already. until whenever. xxx Aline." That's right. My heart melted.
This was also Stuff-your-face-with-Dutch-and-Indonesian-food time! I ate. so much. Pannekoeken, loempia, bapao, rendang, the list goes on.
12/26+12/28 Utrecht
My friend Bas lives in Utrecht. Coincidentally, Jennifer was in Holland the same time and invited me to an 80s party in Utrecht on the 26th, so we all went. Thing I learned that night? I do not know my 80's dutch songs. Danced the night away anyway. The 3 of us were taking the bus to Paris on the 29th from Utrecht, so night in before with help from the Beer Ambulance (that's right... amazing concept... they come deliver alcohol TO YOU!)
12/29-01/02 Paris
With all the cliches, I thought it was going to be too hyped up. WRONG. I still freakin' fell in love with this city! First time in Paris and it was everything people had told me it would be (except I didn't get the run in with American-hating Parisians). First thing we did: drank some beers in the gardens of the Louvre watching the African street vendors selling mini replicas of Eiffel towers being chased by police on rollerblades.
We stayed with an awesome couchsurfer right smack in the 1e arrondissement. 5 of us stayed in this adorable studio with a loft and kept cozy. Again, I ate a lot. Pretty much stopped at every crepes stand I passed.
We did all (well almost all) things touristy: the Louvre, Centre Pompidou, Grand Palais, Eiffel tower, walked around...everywhere. We walked a lot. I think I also sat for like half an hour in the Louvre b/c I was tired of walking. All spectacular. Sadly did not go to the Catacombes because they closed early the day we went.
OH! I failed to mention of all the wonderful people who were also coincidentally there. First off, my 3-week roommie Kim was visiting her boyfriend, and my friend Mohamed was there with his friends as well! With a lot of coordination skillz, we all got to hang out a good bit :) For New Year's Eve, we headed to the Champs Elysees. While we heard that there'd be no fireworks and no alcohol past 8pm, we made sure to stock up on bottles at the grocery store before hand. That's the night my camera disappeared... No comment.
01/02-01/05 Vienna
Bas and Jennifer left the night before and went back to Holland and I met up with Emilie in Vienna. When I got there, I discovered that Venetians do not like Germans. or lost backpackers asking for directions. interesting.
I was exhausted from planning the daily activities, so I gave Emilie the go-ahead in planning and said I would just follow her wherever she went. We saw a lot of museums, a lot of neat architecture, and a lot of fancy coffee shops :) Definitely a culture trip. Even saw an orchestra performance in a church and an operette in the Opera. Look who's got class :P Also met up with my stepbrother who joined us in a day of wandering around the city.
01/05-01/07 Prague
Ah Prague... its architecture is just as beautiful as Vienna, but it's almost more... common and less uppity. Confused citizens were eager to help us with directions even if they didn't know the way. While they definitely come off more stoic, they are quick to open up.
More walking in this city (surprised?). Neat cobblestone ways and more good food (reoccuring theme?). We spend a day perusing Old Town and a day at the Palace and surrounding areas. See some awesome street musicians (NO idea what they were singing, but great nonetheless).
01/07-01/08 Amsterdam
Flew back for my last night in Amsterdam before flying back to the US the next day. My awesome friend Nic delayed his flight a couple of days to hang out with me and also met up with Koen who I hadn't seen since Brazil :) Hit up a couple of bars at the Leidseplein and finally called it a night...
01/09 Back at work in Cincy
Time for some exciting changes, 2012! :D
Next weekend was MLK weekend in Pittsburgh... but that's another post.
