Home... *sigh*
Europe was... truly something special. It has been a very long time since I have gone on vacation, and I seriously needed it.
Madrid- loved it. Went to the Prado, and the Reina Sofia. Guernica was highlighted at the latter and was amazing. There was an exhibition on de Goya in the Prado that was quite fascinating- enjoyed both placed, though I was so jet lagged that at times I was almost sleepwalking. Other than the museums, I loved the culture- I like the idea of staying out late, and going out, and so much life in the city. People are friendly. Overall, positive.
Weirdness there- we stayed with a high school acquaintance of my father's. He and his wife are both Freudian psychoanalysts, and I slept in her office, on her couch. Very cool but strange. They have a daughter whose life parallels mine more than expected, from returning home and to college, to her suffering from bouts of depression (her worst bouts seemed to coexist at the same time as mine), to even her having the exact same knee injury, having gotten it at about the same time and in the same way. As my father says, she is the Madrid version of me. At least in some ways. (She's lived abroad much more than me, has had more experience with guys, has different interests in study, not really into the same hobbies....)
Toledo- went for a day. Very quaint and lovely. The fact that it is so old and yet people live there is great. I liked the architecture. I wish that El Greco's house and museum had been open. The cathedral was interesting. Enjoyable.
Barcelona- I don't know. I loved Gaudi, and not just because of the name. But... there was something cold about the city. Maybe it was just so full of tourists. It was beautiful- but somehow, I liked Madrid more. It felt more real, and the people were friendlier there. The idea of squeezing a tomato onto bread and then throwing away the tomato flesh, very common in the cuisine, also baffled me- but since it was bread and tomato, in any form, of course I loved it.
Small food snafu- We were invited to my mom's coworker's parents' party that they decided to have in Barcelona because their daughter was visiting. So to be polite, I went, if only for the appetizers. Now, I am vegetarian, and have been for 14-15 years. I do try not to eat any meat, and other than three occasions, think I have succeeded. However, my mother passed me what she said were fried potato puffs, and they were delicious, even if they tasted nothing like potato. I ate like ten. I should have known. They were fried fish paste puffs. The idea sounds gross, and the fact that I enjoyed them so grosses me out more. Who knew fish paste could be so tasty?
Angers and St. Jean du Montmord- stayed with some old friends of my mother. Very pretty, very rustic, very different from Spain. I tried to help a 12 year old who barely spoke English with his English homework. Hard, since I don't speak French. Oh well. I was a little bored with the countryside, to tell the truth. We did go to this fantastic abbey where Richard the Lionhearted is buried. That was definitely the highlight, as well as seeing old friends of my mother's.
Paris- final stop. Amazing beyond belief. We walked so much, my knee ached so much, but I would have walked more and more if the day were longer. The Louvre- amazing. I liked La Giaconda, but Venus di Milo and Michaelangelo's slave statues impressed me more. I wish I could have seen the Code of Hammurabi, but it was in transit between exhibits within the museum. Rodin's museum- beautiful, again, loved it. I never knew I loved sculpture so much- now I really want to go to Italy to see more! Orsay- lovely. Eiffel Tower, and Arc of Triumph- I know they are overhyped, but I was excited, and really enjoyed both. Maybe the Arc more? It's just so... large. Notre Dame- wonderful, even if gypsies were pickpocketing outside. Basilica of the Sacred Heart- pretty, but what made it one of my favorites was the location, Montmarte. I wish I could have spent more time there. There were so many artists on the streets- and I met several really kind people there.
Of course, now my vacation is over, and I am home, and I find that someone has stolen my credit card number- in the US, since I didn't use it in Europe! and that my medical insurance has decided to bitch out on me again. Fuck them all. I want to be back in Europe, away from it all- too bad it's so freaking expensive and I don't really have any money at the moment.
Madrid- loved it. Went to the Prado, and the Reina Sofia. Guernica was highlighted at the latter and was amazing. There was an exhibition on de Goya in the Prado that was quite fascinating- enjoyed both placed, though I was so jet lagged that at times I was almost sleepwalking. Other than the museums, I loved the culture- I like the idea of staying out late, and going out, and so much life in the city. People are friendly. Overall, positive.
Weirdness there- we stayed with a high school acquaintance of my father's. He and his wife are both Freudian psychoanalysts, and I slept in her office, on her couch. Very cool but strange. They have a daughter whose life parallels mine more than expected, from returning home and to college, to her suffering from bouts of depression (her worst bouts seemed to coexist at the same time as mine), to even her having the exact same knee injury, having gotten it at about the same time and in the same way. As my father says, she is the Madrid version of me. At least in some ways. (She's lived abroad much more than me, has had more experience with guys, has different interests in study, not really into the same hobbies....)
Toledo- went for a day. Very quaint and lovely. The fact that it is so old and yet people live there is great. I liked the architecture. I wish that El Greco's house and museum had been open. The cathedral was interesting. Enjoyable.
Barcelona- I don't know. I loved Gaudi, and not just because of the name. But... there was something cold about the city. Maybe it was just so full of tourists. It was beautiful- but somehow, I liked Madrid more. It felt more real, and the people were friendlier there. The idea of squeezing a tomato onto bread and then throwing away the tomato flesh, very common in the cuisine, also baffled me- but since it was bread and tomato, in any form, of course I loved it.
Small food snafu- We were invited to my mom's coworker's parents' party that they decided to have in Barcelona because their daughter was visiting. So to be polite, I went, if only for the appetizers. Now, I am vegetarian, and have been for 14-15 years. I do try not to eat any meat, and other than three occasions, think I have succeeded. However, my mother passed me what she said were fried potato puffs, and they were delicious, even if they tasted nothing like potato. I ate like ten. I should have known. They were fried fish paste puffs. The idea sounds gross, and the fact that I enjoyed them so grosses me out more. Who knew fish paste could be so tasty?
Angers and St. Jean du Montmord- stayed with some old friends of my mother. Very pretty, very rustic, very different from Spain. I tried to help a 12 year old who barely spoke English with his English homework. Hard, since I don't speak French. Oh well. I was a little bored with the countryside, to tell the truth. We did go to this fantastic abbey where Richard the Lionhearted is buried. That was definitely the highlight, as well as seeing old friends of my mother's.
Paris- final stop. Amazing beyond belief. We walked so much, my knee ached so much, but I would have walked more and more if the day were longer. The Louvre- amazing. I liked La Giaconda, but Venus di Milo and Michaelangelo's slave statues impressed me more. I wish I could have seen the Code of Hammurabi, but it was in transit between exhibits within the museum. Rodin's museum- beautiful, again, loved it. I never knew I loved sculpture so much- now I really want to go to Italy to see more! Orsay- lovely. Eiffel Tower, and Arc of Triumph- I know they are overhyped, but I was excited, and really enjoyed both. Maybe the Arc more? It's just so... large. Notre Dame- wonderful, even if gypsies were pickpocketing outside. Basilica of the Sacred Heart- pretty, but what made it one of my favorites was the location, Montmarte. I wish I could have spent more time there. There were so many artists on the streets- and I met several really kind people there.
Of course, now my vacation is over, and I am home, and I find that someone has stolen my credit card number- in the US, since I didn't use it in Europe! and that my medical insurance has decided to bitch out on me again. Fuck them all. I want to be back in Europe, away from it all- too bad it's so freaking expensive and I don't really have any money at the moment.