Goodbye Europa!

After 43 days abroad, we are going home! This trip has definitely been interesting. It's had it's ups and downs but overall has been pretty good. I have to say though, that is probably the last guided tour I take. Amsterdam has been by far one of my favorite cities. I loved going to the Anne Frank house, as well as the Van Gogh museum. Anyways, Europe was lovely and now it's time to go home.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Vertrekpassage,Schiphol,The Netherlands

Going down a Dutch Canal

Within the past the past four days I have travelled to Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and Amsterdam. Vienna was a drastic change from the mediterranean cities we had spent the past couple of weeks in. While in the city, we attended a Viennese Waltz concert, visited the royal palace of the Hapsburg dynasty, and ate Thai food in the main food market. From Vienna we travelled to Switzerland. The Swiss Alps were beautiful. It was funny to see signs in Hindi all over Mt.Titlis. Heck, it was funny to see old masis (aunties) climbing ice covered paths in saris. Germany, while brief, was worthwhile. Unfortunately, there was no time to go to Berlin. We did, however, take a cruise down the Rhine! After this short excursion we drove to Amsterdam. Right off the bat, I could tell everyone in my family liked the city. We wandered in the city center, took a canal cruise, and even (very briefly!) took a peek at the infamous red light district.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Volare! Cantare! Oh ohohhhh

Since my last post we have been to Sorrento, Rome, Athens, San Marino, and Venice. This tour is definitely jam packed and tightly scheduled.
Rome was beautiful. Getting to stand inside the Coliseum felt very surreal. All in all, Rome was amazing. Well with the exception of my Dad almost beIng pick pocketed on the subway.
While my overall conception of Athens has changed, Greece as a whole did fulfill some expectations. Driving into Athens, I instantly noticed that there was graffiti everywhere. Completely different from the pristine Greco style architecture I had imagined there would be. It seemed like every building was tagged with some sort of message. The Acropolis, however, was amazing. When I was younger I nerded out on Greek mythology, so getting to see the famous temples was really exciting. Of all the cities we have been to on this trip, my favorite by far has been Venice. My first time in the city was at night. I remember being just in awe. Even when I got out of the boat and into the actual city, I felt the city was rocking ever so slightly. Out of all the cities in Europe, Venice probably met my expectations the most.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Via Romea,,Italy

Hot Spanish Summer Porfavor and a Slice of Pisa

Looks like for the rest of this trip there will be really unreliable internet. Since my last post we have been to Barcelona, Monta Carlo, and Pisa. I loved Spain. The hot humid weather, the food, and the atmosphere were all great. While in Spain I was able to visit La Sagrada Familia and see a flamenco show. La Sagrada Familia is a site I've been wanting to see since jr.high and it did not disappoint. My family and I sat for almost an hour just sitting in the church. By far the best church I've seen so far. Besides Barcelona, I don't have much to say. Monte Carlo is just a playground for the rich and obnoxious. Unfortunately, I only spent an hour at Pisa and didn't manage to up the Leaning Tower of Pisa. But, we were lucky to see the tower given how late we were running.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Via Andrea Cesalpino,,Italy

Croissant and Cheese Please!

It has been quite a while since I posted and in that time my family and I have been to Paris and a couple of small towns in the south of France. Right now, it's 630 in the morning in Bourdeaux. We're about to leave for Barcelona! Traveling on a tour with a huge group and coach bus has been ...interesting. Most of my fellow travelers are Aussies.
Paris while extremely beautiful was not exactly what I was expecting. Even though its summer we where getting Seattle like weather aka extremely bipolar. The first night there we saw a cabaret show. It was a good show but really awkward for my poor 14 year old brother. My favorite part of Paris was the Louvre. I loved all the galleries. Trying to get close to the Mona Lisa was a hoot. So many people for such a tiny painting. We also went to Versailles. I cannot even imagine calling that place home. No wonder there was a revolution. With that much opulence of course the poor resented the monarchy.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Bourdeaux

Bank Scandals and Scottish Pies

While in London I got the chance to sit on a session in the British Parliament's House of Lords. Right now, there is a lot of public outrage over the Libel rate fixing by Barclay Bank. Honestly, I don't understand the technicalities of what caused the national mortgage crash but hearing the political debate between the Government ( Whigs) and the Labour party was fascinating. The opposition kept calling for a public judicial hearing in order to regain public trust, while the government insisted upon a bi-partisan parliament investigation so that legal changes could be made. It was easy to see that banking scandal embarrassed both sides. At one point, the Attorney General demanded an apology from the Shadow Solicitor of the opposition since he was in office when the financial decisions that resulted in the scandal took place. Representatives from both sides stood up, yelled, and booed at random. The Madam Speaker of the House had to remind everyone that they were being watched by the public. I couldn't help but notice the constant comparison being made between the investigative bodies of the US and the UK. The UK officials kept driving home the point that unlike in the US, UK investigative bodies severely lacked political clout. Statements like this illustrated the sibling like relationship between the US and the UK; the UK being the younger brother who regularly compares himself to his big brother. Even though this debate bored my family, I was happy as a clam.
While I really enjoyed my time in London, I'm excited to be in a brand new country. The drive to Scotland took us about eight hours in total. To say that we were happy to get out of the car and start exploring Edinburgh is an understatement. One great thing about the UK is that the museums and galleries are free. I definitely took advantage of that today. Meandering around the National Gallery of Scotland was fantastic. My favorite exhibits were that of the French impressionists (Cezane) and the Scottish painters. Diana and Her Nymphs, painted by Scottish painter Burns really stood out from amongst the other paintings and happened to be my favorite in the entire gallery. On our way home we happened to pick up vegetarian Scottish pies. I can feel my arteries clogging as I write. Basically, nom nom nom.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:The Royal Mile,Edinburgh,United Kingdom

From Posing With Gandhi to Cake in Trafalgar

You know that relaxed, happy, and content feeling you get when you're in a city which you feel is the right fit for you? I definitely felt that tonight. The whole day overall has just been fantastic! In the morning we rode the tube to Baker Street; home to Sherlock Holmes and Madame Tussad's. Even though the wait for Madam Tussad's was pretty long, it was well worth it. My all time favorite part of the entire gallery was that of the world political leaders. I had my picture taken with Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, and several others. Not many people were interested in this portion of Tussad's, but I loved it.
We went to the London Eye and got a lovely view of the entire city. After, we went to King's Cross Station and took pictures at platform 9 3/4. Both Kunjal and I love Harry Potter so this was a must do on our list. From there we went to have mouthwatering Chinese food in Chinatown. My parents realized while at the restaurant that it was the same one they used to go to when we last lived in London!
Since it was my sister's Birthday, we bought cake and made our way to Trafalgar Square. We sat, ate, and soaked up London at night. Today has definitely made me think about maybe coming back to London in the future, not just for travel.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Bellot St,London,United Kingdom

From Spitafields to a Walk Down Memory Lane

The past two days have been jam packed to say the least. On Sunday, we decided to go to the famous Spitafields market in East London. While roaming around we got to see numerous artisans and their wares. I met a French woman selling hand made leather bags. She remarked that for some reason, she had seen more Americans at the market than usual. I noticed that there were Starbucks products sold, which I just found odd. Seems there is a Starbucks in every part of London now. After Spitafields, we went to Tooting, aka Brown Town. People were speaking Gujarati in the sweet shops!
This morning we drove out to Stonehenge. It's funny that for a sight so simple in architecture there was an enormous amount of visitors. Even though, they told us that the site had nothing to do with Astronomy, I like to think it does. There is a portion of the site called the TARDIS! Automatically Doctor Who comes to mind. From Stonehenge we traveled to Bath. There we had high tea in what I like to think was a room the Jane Austen might have visited. Veggie tarts and fries make this girl a very happy. With our stomachs full of tea and food, we toured the Roman Baths. I got to taste the spring water..which is not tasty at all.
Returning to London, we decided to go chocolate shopping. I now have enough chocolate to last me a very very long time. We then went to see the apartment I lived in as a baby until about ten years old. Weirdest feeling in the world. Everything in the area was smaller than I remember. Of course, I'm a good foot and a half taller so that effects my memory. We ended the night by eating the best Chinese food ever. Period. Good two days overall!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Bellot St,London,United Kingdom

Arrival

It's been almost 12 years since I've been in London. It's definitely a strange feeling. Even though I was born here, am a citizen, and lived here on and off for ten years, I'm a stranger to the city. I remember a lot, but so much has changed. A glaring example of which is the now present tax on congestion. Basically you're charged for contributing to traffic!
Anyways, we're all exhausted so we didn't really do much today. Walked around Greenwich and made dinner. Oh and we went to town on British chocolates. I will forever hold the opinion that British chocolate is the best. Later, Kunjal and I found a closet underneath the staircase in our apartment rental and being the sleep-deprived nerds that we are, started taking Harry Potter inspired photos. We drew on lightening bolt scars, dug out the hp books, and borrowed our Dad's glasses. Definitely the nerdiest and best moment of the day!
Hopefully, we catch up on sleep. I'm looking forward to exploring the city tomorrow!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:London

Beginning the Trek

I decided to create a blog so my family and friends can see what I'm up to while I'm abroad. I won't be able to update often but I'll be sure to when I can! I leave today and well lets just say I'm excited :D Soon I'll be on the other side of the pond! AHHHH