Groundhog Day

Do you ever wake up and feel like you're stuck in the set of the movie "Groundhog Day"? You know, same routine-different day of the week. Wake up, eat your breakfast, go to work, come home, eat dinner, go to bed and on and on and on.

Let me tell you....being home from this adventure of a lifetime suddenly feels like I'm trapped in Groundhog Day! I just spent three and a half months facing a new adventure everyday. New places and people and excitement from the moment I woke up in the morning to the moment I finally put my head to the pillow at night.

Now I am back home and...well...it's back to the same ole, same ole! I have to say, adjusting to life back home is MUCH harder than I expected it to be! It's not the jet lag or the exhaustion that's got me feeling blah. It's missing the sheer adventure and excitement of each day. It's the people, the places, the foods, the cultures.....I may have had some rough bumps in my journey, but I LOVED every second of it. Man, do I miss it already!

Don't get me wrong, I love my home in Texas. And I was DYING for a bowl of queso, family hugs, and friendly faces I love. And I'm surprising myself with my sudden lack of interest for the place I've always boasted about. I LOVE TEXAS. I am a proud Texan through and through. There are endless reasons why I love my home. I've traveled the world before my trip, so why all of the sudden am I dying to get out of home and go on another adventure?? What was different about this trip than all of the others I've taken before?

I forced myself out of my comfort zone and made life changing decisions from the moment I decided to take my trip. I did it MYSELF and I achieved things worth being proud of. Maybe I'm just not ready to let go of that adrenaline rush.

No matter the reason, this trip has opened my mind to a whole new world of ideas and journeys I want to take in life. I'm no longer scared of the unknown. I think I've come to embrace it. I'm no longer scared of change. I think I've come to challenge it. I'm no longer content with familiar. I think I'm come to dislike it.

Who knows what will come next for me. I've been thinking of writing a book? Creating my own company? Going back on another journey? Applying to teach overseas? Or...who knows....maybe my travel road is over for now and it's back to teaching I go? Lots to think about over the next few weeks as I head back to the office and start saving up my money again. (Shout out to the train strike in France for allowing me to achieve my FIRST credit card payments.)

All I know is....right now I am currently in the hump of, as Phil says in the movie, "Well, what if there is no tomorrow? There wasn't one today."

Bandy Ball Game: One more mark off the ole checklist!

I have to start out by saying there is no way in the world that I think I could survive a Scandinavian winter!! It is not even winter here in Sweden yet, but it's possible that I am slowly freezing to death. It is cold, sometimes snowy, always icy, with the sun down by 3:30 in the afternoon. Dreary and bone chilling and not my cup of tea in the least! It IS beautiful though.....from the window....or a postcard! I can't even imagine the depth of winter here when the sun is only out for a few hours and it is -20C! EEK!

Ice Skating rinks throughout the middle of the city!

That said...I don't know HOW Ola convinced me that I would enjoy going to see a game of Bandy Ball outside at night here. I suppose it was the pure curiosity plus my love of sports that talked my little mind into it. I've never seen, no make that HEARD, of this game. Of course, I HAD to see it first hand; even if it was going to be my first and last ever live game of bandy! I bought another scarf, hat, mittens, etc. and off I went to see this intriguing sport!

For Mommy: Me all bundled up & ready to brave the cold!

The game is kind of like hockey. A few differences are that there are more guys on the rink, the rink is larger, the players don't wear pads, and instead of a puck they play with a little ball. If you're interested, YouTube the rules of the game. It was actually very interesting and very fun to watch! I liked that it was even more fast paced than hockey. Always something going on throughout the game...nonstop action.

Behind the rink was a HUGE pile of ice/snow that the kids were climbing on. Not gonna lie...I wanted to join them. But, the fact that 5 minutes in and I couldn't feel my legs kind of kept me to my senses about playing in ice.

It was fun to see the crowd. The Swedes were just as proud of their team as they were at the soccer game I attended in August. They sang and cheered the whole game through. People brought Thermoses full of Glogg, Irish Coffee (even brought whipped cream!), beers, and foam stands to keep themselves warmed up throughout the game. Here's my half frozen attempt at a quick video. It's a bit shaky and uneven because I was so cold and my mittens did not make it easy to work the camera! But, nonetheless, try to enjoy & hear the cheering :)

I have to admit that I was a weenie. I was absolutely frozen to the core! But, I toughed it out to watch the entire game. It was fun to see that the home team, Hammarby, won 6-1! The ball is so small and the goal is so huge! It really was a fun game. Perhaps I'll coach a Bandy Ball team in Texas?!? :P Doubtful!

Anybody else heard of this sport? What's your favorite sport to watch live? Thinking after all of this time in Europe I will definitely be adding soccer to my DVR list!

Denmark marks the spot for a return trip for sure!

One of the best spur-of-the-moment trip decisions I made was stopping into Copenhagen, Denmark for a couple of nights on my way back up to Sweden. I LOVED this city!

Adam decided to start his backpacking adventure at the time I was leaving Milan, so I got lucky and got a travel buddy for this trip! We went from Milan to Munich and only got to stay in Munich for a short night. I took him for some schnitzel, (SO GOOD), and walked around the city even though it was 11pm and rainy. I LOVED Munich so much that I didn't even care that I was exhausted and frozen, I wanted to show off this city that gave me memories of a lifetime. I wish we were there in the day so I could have seen sweet Anna and Nadine, but we had a train to Copenhagen to catch in the morning.

We spent two nights in Copenhagen. Though the hostels were again not the best places I've stayed, the city completely captivated my attention.

I had the most delicious traditional Danish meal I could have imagined! The receptionist at the hostel recommended a cafe to eat at. It was so good that I think I need to give it its own blog. However, I'll cheat and tell you that this cafe is so old Hans Christian Anderson used to eat there. I had roast beef on rye bread with lettuce, a friend egg, and cucumbers on top. OH EM GEE AMAZING!!!

After that, I knew I was going to fall in love with Denmark. Adam and I got a map from the hostel as well that showed a great route to walk the city and see all of the sites. Even though it was very cold outside, we decided that would be better than joining a tour or taking the bus. Turned out that this was the best decision. We saw SO MUCH in just one day!

If you love beautiful places, rich history, stunning views, great food, nice people.....well, go to Denmark!

After our walking tour, which took all day, we stopped in a little pub for a warm drink. They had a sign for a drink called Glogg. We asked the bartender what Glogg was and as he told us, he let us sample it. YUM!! It is a delicious hot Danish drink that warms you right up from the cold! They served it with little ginger cookies. It was so delicious I could have sat by a fire drinking that all day. But, considering just some of the ingredients include red wine, port wine, and schnapps...I opted for just the one glass. I would love to try to make this for a cold holiday night at home!! I looked this up online and asked my Danish friend about it and it is a traditional drink during the Christmas season. One more thing to add to my recipe book!

Next up for our day in Copenhagen was also awesome! Remember the Danish guys that I met at Oktoberfest? The ones we played Uno with and ended up having a ball? Well, I facebooked them and told them I would be in Copenhagen so they met up with Adam and me. First we met them at a pub where we watched a soccer, excuse me, football, game. Was really fun! Then, they took us for a bite to eat, (at my starving request!), and then to one of their favorite bars. We had a great time and it was so fun to see them again! I hope someday they come to Texas so I can get a turn being a hostess to someone who has never been to my country. It is so fun to see and experience things the "locals" do rather than just your typical tourist attractions. I have been so blessed and so lucky to meet so many generous and welcoming friends along my journey!!

I will have to write another blog and take you through my tour of Copenhagen. This country is definitely on my list of places I plan to come back to and spend more time! If you're considering Denmark, keep in mind that like many places in Northern Europe, it is pricey if you're on a budget. Average meal was about $20-$30, average drink $10, average hostel $50....and that was me choosing things according to a budget. Adds up quickly but SO.WORTH.IT!!!

Jeg elskede den smukke by København!

 

Swiss MISS: A misadventure in Switzerland

I have gotten really bad about finding Internet these past couple of weeks, (Sorry Mom)! So, where to start….?? I came back to Italy, already, and have been staying in Milan with some old friends from school days, Bryan and Adam. We were staying in an apartment that Bryan’s aunt owns in Milan.

Then…dun dun dun….Aunt Ralfy’s friend was coming into town and she wanted her to stay in that apartment. So, that afternoon we found ourselves with nowhere to stay. **Cue bright idea from Holly**

“Hey guys, why don’t we just buy a train ticket and go check out Austria?” says Holly. Considering we had nowhere to go and all hostels in Milan were completely booked, the guys were in for this idea.

We headed to the train station with our bags and asked the lady for 3 tickets to Austria. There were no trains until that night and it was going to be an expensive overnight train ride for the guys. So we asked her, “Where is a good place to go that won’t take long from here?” She suggested we go research some places and come back with a better location than “Austria”, (where in Austria she kept asking before. We were like….uhhhh the central station? We don’t know…)

So we go upstairs and chit chat and decide we have a new master plan. We go back down to the ticket counter, wait in line again, and when it’s our turn she says “Where to?” Thinking we worked out the kinks to our master plan….“Athens, Greece” we say. “Ummm….you have to take a boat there.” She laughed. Riiiiiiight. About that…

So, strike 2. Next we say “What about Switzerland? Just send us to a main city there.” She starts naming cities and we all liked the sound of Zurich. “Zurich it is!” we said. This ticket lady thought we were completely nuts. Oh boy, were we in for a treat with this decision.

The train ride to Zurich was longer than scheduled, so we got in at about 7:30pm. We were starving, sick of carrying our backpacks, and had nowhere to stay yet. We walked until we found a hotel. In we went to book a room. The receptionist was very friendly and told us it would be about 200 Swiss Franks….PER PERSON. That’s a bit over $600 for a night…for a 3 star hotel.

Ummmmm….we started asking questions about hotels over there. She was telling us that we wouldn’t find cheaper so she started calling hostels for us. Booked. Booked. Booked. Cha-ching…she found one and if we could get there by 10pm we were in! Woo Hoo!

Then, in true form, we walked the totally wrong way to the hostel and ended up having to take a taxi. When we arrived, we walked in circles looking for the actual hostel and then found a small sign, “City Backpackers Hostel”. This hostel was actually in a questionable dark alley underneath a spaghetti warehouse. You literally walked past the open doors of the restaurant kitchen. We went in and walked up, up, up about 4 flights of stairs and found ourselves in the most disgusting hostel I’ve seen. I mean gross. The showers and bathrooms were co-ed, just a tiny curtain to decide your fate from creepsters. I was certain that this place was packed with fleas and bed bugs. Considering it was 9pm, we couldn’t afford anywhere else, and we managed to snag the last 3 beds in the hostel. Our fate was sealed. What a treat! We had a crazy Polish roommate in our ghetto dorm room who liked to chit chat while in his underwear. Just thought I’d toss in that fun tid bit. 

We were all dying of starvation and none of us were even wanting to talk to each other at this point, so we decided to find somewhere to eat dinner. That’s when we found the Mexican restaurant.  All the way to Switzerland for Mexican food, you say? Well, yes. At this point, I would have eaten out of the trash can.

I went simple, a small soup, chips and salsa, and water. Only set me back about 40 USD. Yep, $40!! And I’m pretty sure the “salsa” was tomato paste. Mmm Mmmm.  Now we were feeling a little depressed about our random trip to Switzerland so we decided to get some wifi and look up things to do. What were the first things that kept popping up online?? “Most expensive country in Europe.” “Switzerland: Impossible on a Budget.” “Things to do in Switzerland on a budget: go for a walk.” Hmph. Should have done our research first I suppose J

We walked back to our bunk and SOMEBODY dropped a bag that had a bottle of whiskey in it. When I came back into the room my entire backpack was SOAKED. Laundromat, here I come. Pretty sure at this point that I was about in tears and mentally checked out!!

The beds were so nasty. I slept with my shoes on, my coat on, and stole Bryan’s jacket to put under my head for good measure. After a night of tossing and turning and feeling like bugs were crawling all over me, I opted to skip the shower and even the bathroom in the morning. Still though, as with all adventures so far this trip, I wouldn’t take it back or trade it at all. Horrible unpredicted messes make the best memories!

However, the area was stunning! Beautiful scenery, beautiful buildings, clean, friendly people, and you can’t beat the mountain views. Just wish we knew what we were in for financially on this adventure! I am definitely putting Switzerland on my list of places I want to vacation. I’d love to come back here one day and actually do it right…aka…skip the Mexican nachos and hit the Alps!