Posted in travel blog on 11/27/2004 02:50 am by Queenkv
heading to Ireland soon…
I know I must have missed something….France…Italy…the Czech Republic….Damn…three months is not enough to do Europe….
I still wanted to hit Madrid, Amsterdam, Venice, Berlin, Athens…..I don’t think it’s going to happen in these last two weeks.
Let’s see….in Paris - I loved the little crepe stands open until the early morning hours….I loved picking up fresh baguettes for dinner and a bottle of super-cheap wine at the little market. I miss that lovely Paris summer - hot enough for a skirt and a tank top. I miss going to mass at Norte Dame. I’d loved being able to order food in French. Bien Sur! I loved filming Paris….and hopping onto the Metro with my camera…and people letting me film because they thought I was just a tourist. …ah yes…and on our last day of classes….drinking hot chocolate at Deux Maggot…rain fall and good conversation….swooning over a drink that tastes like melted chocolate. When I was younger….my family spent only a few days in Paris and I loved it. I wish I could have stayed longer - we took a boat trip down the Seine River. I lit a candle at Norte Dame. My dad took a bunch of pictures. I remembering wishing we could have went to mass - it didn’t seem right to me to walk into this beautiful church without saying ‘what’s up’ to God. Well…I got my wish. I came back and spent more than just a few days.
In Italy….I miss the food - fresh pasta, rich sauces, hearty meats and veggies. I miss touching history - from the Colosseum to St. Peter’s Basilica. I miss wandering down alleyways of cobblestone. The art - I loved drinking it all in….letting myself be dazzled by the skill and the passion of these pieces…..Da Vinci, Michaelangelo, Raphael…..the Catholic art was also lovely and inspiring.
In the Czech Republic….damn, I loved the Czech Currency…..last night…I had a craving for sausages….gee…thanks Sara. Ah yes….last weekend in Prague - we walked down from the Museum metro stop and found a sausage stand with something like 7 different types of sausages……served up hot and slathered with mustard. We drowned them with pilsners…at least, Mark and I did so….Sara just held on to my can when I felt like taking pictues of her. So….cheap food, friendly people and beautiful buildings. Stare Mesto was a delightful part of town - cobblestone streets, horse-drawn carriages and neo-gothic churches reading for the sky. And the first snow fall…before Chicago - I loved the snow….every day was a play day - snow meant a trip up to Tahoe or some ski resort. Snow meant tromping through a virgin path of white powder and warming up inside the ski lodge. Snow was fun! Then I LIVED in the snow…..by Lake Michigan. Holy crap! Icicle grew inside my nose…it was so cold. I wore pants leggings under my jeans, thick socks, a few layers of sweaters and a huge trench coat……people laughed at the little Cali girl - bundling up for the MidWest winter….but hey, at least I didn’t get sick - trying to look cute in that weather…..there were times when snow was magical - listening to the Postal Service, “Such Great Heights” and walking down Emerson in the snow fall - the synth beats seemed to synch up with the snowflakes falling. But most of the time - snow was a bitch - try interviewing people for a MOS (man-on the-street) story - as they’re trying to get out of the snow. People just don’t want to stop and talk - they want to get inside where it’s WARM. So….I hated snow. Snow was bad….until I got to Prague….the first snowfall…..it was lovely….ok…I was bit a buzzed - so I was warm enough to enjoy the first snowfall. Prague re-kindled my love for snow.
And London….well, I ‘ll start that list when I get back to the States.
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