Interlaken

We left Paris on Monday morning and arrived in Interlaken, Switzerland in the afternoon. The train ride through the Swiss countryside was beautiful. There were lakes with crystal blue water and gorgeous houses and farms along the coast. The hostel we are staying at is very nice too, probably the nicest so far in our trip. We were only planning on staying in Interlaken for one night, but we ended up staying for three and are leaving for Rome tomorrow. Interlaken is hands down my favorite place we have visited it so far. It is such a cute little town and the mountain tops and trails are amazing, the view never gets old to me. There is so much to do outdoors, like hiking, rafting, skydiving, swimming, etc.

Yesterday Kelly and I went canyoning which was a blast. We climbed to the top of a mountain and used a combination of jumping, sliding and climbing to get down the canyon through the water. While we were doing that, Kyle and Nina went on a hike through a few towns near Interlaken and had a great time. I think it was definitely a birthday that Kyle will remember! After our canyoning trip, Kelly and I met up with some of my friends from OU that I went to Greece with (that we randomly ran into) and went on a hike. The hike was so challenging, it was so steep at some parts, but the views made it totally worth it.

Today we went white water rafting. The rapids were insane, we went through some class 3 rapids and even one class 4 rapids - definitely a great experience. Here are some pics from our time in Interlaken

Just another weekend in Paris...

Sorry for the delay in posts, it has been hard to find an internet connection in the last few days. Brussels was a really cool city and we were all very glad that we spontaneously decided to spend a night there. The first thing we did there when we arrived was dabble in some authentic Belgian crepés and waffles with fresh fruit; needless to say, it was delicious. We ate lunch at a tavern where we sat outside on a nice patio right along a nice street in the city. When we checked into our hotel, we set our bags down and layed down in our beds...we ended up falling asleep for 4 hours, I guess we needed it!!! The next morning we caught our train to Paris....

Paris definitely lives up to the hype. The city is so beautiful and there is so much history and culture here. I think the Eiffel Tower is my favorite monument we have visited so far in our trip. Also, we went to the Louvre yesterday and although many people have told us the Mona Lisa is disappointing, we all enjoyed it. We all wore our DJD Fight On shirts and got some good photos taken around the city. The first night we ate at a restaurant called Fontaine de Mars, which is the restaurant Barack Obama dined at when he visited Paris. We drank wine and ate French delicacies and it was delicious. Last night we went on a dinner cruise through the city. It was another really cool experience and it was a fun way to see the city. Today we visited Notre Dame and a few other cathedrals. We also toured the Catacombs, which is an underground tomb for millions of Parisians. The bones of over 6 million people were transported from cemeteries to these underground tunnels in order to improve sanitary conditions in the city. All in all, it was a very enlightening and interesting day.

Tomorrow we are catching our train to Interlaken, Switzerland, my most anticipated destination!! Also, Kyle turns 22 on the 14th while we are there.

The first picture was taken at Grand Place in Brussels which is in the center of the city. The next one is the Eiffel Tower at night and the last one is inside the Triangle at The Louvre.

Bedankt...tot zien!!!

We arrived in amsterdam on tuesday morning after our overnight ferry from london. The ferry was really nice, there was even a casino and roulette was calling my name, but I resisted the urge! We were woken up in the morning by a steward knocking on our door saying "you must leave now!!" We almost didn't make it off the boat...so much for the wake up call we thought we were getting.
Amsterdam is a very interesting city. There is, of course, the redlight district, but the rest of the city is very beautiful and inviting. Today we went to the Vincent Van Gogh museum, which was pretty cool (even for someone who is not really into art). We decided to cut our trip short and go to Belgium tomorrow. We are catching a train at 8am tomorrow and are expecting to arrive in Brussels around11am.

Oh, and we saw Lil Jon yesterday on the street and I snapped a photo to prove it!

london

I arrived in london yesterday around 4pm and met up with the rest of my eurotrip crew at around 5pm at our hotel. The first 2 weeks of my trip I spent in Greece definitely flew by, I can't believe its over. I am, however, very excited to be with Nina, Kelly, and Kyle and start the 2nd half of my trip!

The weather here is beautiful, sunny and about 80ish. Today we explored the city a little bit and covered a lot of ground. We went to buckingham palace, abbey road studios, and hyde park. It is so refreshing to be in a city that speaks english, I definitely take communication for granted when I am back home. It was so relaxing to go to a restaurant last night and order my dinner without having to point to the menu and receive confused looks from the server.

The picture of the four of us is in front of the fountain at Buckingham Palace and Nina, Kelly and I are doing our best impression of Sherlock Holmes at the Sherlock Holmes Museum. Hope everyone had a great 4th of July!

weekend at the beach

This weekend we went to a resort at a beach in Halikidiki, which is about an hour and half away from Thessaloniki. A lot of families who live in the city vacation there for the weekends. The beaches were gorgeous again, as you can tell from the pictures. The one of us in the water is myself and 4 other girls from OU (making coach sano proud, for any of you OUFH'ers out there!). I went on a run yesterday by the beach and had an interesting experience. There are lots of stray dogs in Greece and at one point I turned around and I had a team of about 5 dogs running along with me! At first I started sprinting away from them, but I realized they were harmless.

Today we are back at work again for our client, trying to crack down on our project. We are going out into the city today to hand out surveys to stores that carry our client's products. The last picture I posted is a picture of my group that I have been working with, 3 OU students, one Bulgarian student, and one Greek student - we are a pretty solid group!

Tomorrow night we are taking a sailing trip. I'm looking forward to that, it will be a nice way to spend an evening.

I was happy to hear that the DJD Fight On Golf Tournament went well. I'm glad the weather was nice and that everyone had a great time helping out a good cause. I'm excited to see pictures and hear who the winning foursome was!

hard at work

Yesterday my consulting group that I will be working with (myself and 4 others) got to meet with our client. The company we are working with is called The Pyramis Group and they manufacture sinks and also sell kitchen appliances and bathroom fixtures. They are one of the largest companies in Greece and are headquartered in Thessanoliki. When we arrived at their office, they led us to an amazing conference room, I felt like I was on The Apprentice. The general manager of the company was there and also the son of one of the most successful businessmen in Greece. Needless to say, it was a great experience and I think we will learn a lot in the next to weeks.

Last night we went to a really nice steakhouse and I had a phenomenal filet with a creamy mushroom sauce on top (almost as good as my dad makes). The owner of the restaurant appeared to love Americans and kept giving us free food and drinks and yelling "Opa!". Sometimes it is very challenging to order food at a restaurant if the workers do not speak Greek. We do a lot of pointing and nodding. We only know about 5 Greek phrases, but we use them whenever we can.

The people in Greece are crazy drivers. It seems like there are no traffic laws because I haven't seen a single car pulled over since we've been here. On a two lane highway when cars merge, no one stops to let them on. They just share the lane with you until someone pulls ahead. Don't worry mom, I'm wearing my seatbelt with pride!

Time to get back to work for me - looking forward to our time at Halkidiki Beach this weekend!!

thessaloniki beaches

Yesterday was my favorite day so far. We got to go to Sani Beach in Thessaloniki for the entire day. The weather was perfect and the water was crystal clear and the beaches were filled with white sand. I spent the day lounging on the beach, reading, and listening to music. It was our last day before our consulting project begins, so everyone was trying to soak up as much relaxation as possible.

Thessaloniki is a lot more interesting than most people would think. It is the second largest city in Greece, and in 1997, the European Commision of Commerce declared the city the "cultural center of Europe". There is so much history here. It is amazing to think people have been living here since 315 BC. One of the things I noticed the most here is the pace of the lifestyle. Everyone seems to be so much more laid back than in America. It really makes you appreciate the moment and not to rush through your days in haste. We also go to try some awesome Greek food at lunch yesterday. I discovered how much I love feta cheese, tomatoes, and cucumbers.

The first picture I posted is a picture of the city along the water at sunset. The second picture is a picture of my rommate Lindsey, who is from OU, and our professor Dr. V. The last picture is a picture of the city along the water with the White Tower in the distance. It is a famous landmark in Thessaloniki, and was part of the city wall a long, long time ago. Enjoy!