Point of View

Peter and Grace's Day of Fun 2008

2008-08-20T17:13:00.006-07:00

With my future job looming only a week away and no real job to keep me occupied, i begged and pleaded with Peter to take a day off for another installment of Peter and Grace's Day of Fun. And when i say "begged and pleaded", i mean suggested and was quickly appeased. =) Our day began with a little sleeping in, and then a trip to Santa Cruz. First stop - Chaminade for checking out its potential weddingness. Next stop, Zoccoli's for our favorite sandwiches. Then on to the engineering building on UCSC campus to surprise Peter's college boss, Carol. We succeeded and were greeted with lots of hugs in addition to a picture of Peter taped to her wall. Carol loves him. Next stop, the catering department to chat about holding a wedding/reception on campus. Got some info, not a lot, but took some pics while we checked out one of the locations.After an afternoon in the sun and doing some wedding errands, we headed back downtown Santa Cruz to see a movie...no go...we missed the movie times. No problem! We can't be bothered on our day of fun, so back home to San Jose and a movie downtown. While all the other schmucks were waiting for work to end, Peter and I bought a package of two pitas, two bags of chips, two sodas, and two cookies, and two movie tickets courtesy of the Pita Pit's "Hot Date Night". Next a funny movie, Step Brothers, and candy. Since Peter and prefer different sugary treats, we each got out own candy. Sour Patch Kids for him, Whoppers for me. And to top it all off, on our walk back home, we passed the local hawaiian bbq/tapioca/slushy/frozen yogurt place and decided to treat ourselves to another treat. It was Peter and Grace's DOF, after all!

I encourage you all to play hooky and have a DOF!

2 Months Later

2008-08-18T21:31:00.012-07:00

Two months ago, I finished my first year of teaching at Oak Grove and I was beginning my summer job with Camp Galileo. During those two months i worked 7 weeks of camp, vacationed in Hawaii, got engaged, moved out of our Sunnyvale apartment to a townhouse in downtown San Jose, worked 2 weeks at the Tech Museum summer camp where I designed my own curriculum for Junior M.D. class, spent a stressful week interviewing for a job, and got a job back at Oak Grove for the upcoming school year. With only a week left before I reenter a high school classroom, I am amazed looking back on my summer how i managed to fit it all in.

Peter and I don't have many plans yet. We have made some small decisions but have not made time to find a location/date. Sometimes it can feel a little stressful, but today our joint checking account checks came in the mail with both our names on them. It was a nice little reminder that we are about to officially belong to each other. Enjoy the following adorable pictures of Peter an I in Hawaii. ;)

Our view from our condo in Poipu.

The beach outside our condo was rocky but beautiful. Luckily, the Sheridan Hotel was only yards away, so we took advantage of their beach and amenities quite a few times.

Peter and I at Spouting Horn moments before he proposed.

Peter's knee after he proposed.

And we also got a little dirty.

Ever since Hawaii, I've been trying to recapture it by wearing shorts or dresses which is extremely unusual for me. But since our trip, a pair of shorts brings flashes of relaxed, lazy, and carefree memories of being in the most beautiful place with the man I love.

Transitioning

2008-06-16T19:42:00.003-07:00

Today was the first day of Camp Galileo. Here's some proof of my transition from teaching high school science to teaching crime solving to first and second graders. I have spent the last hour photoshopping together an imaginary character called Indiana Chicken, who has traveled to the Temple of Karnak, only to find all the artifacts missing. Our task...solve the crime and recover the artifacts.

One down

2008-06-09T11:08:00.007-07:00

Last week, I finished my first year of teaching. When I say first year of teaching, I mean 8 months of teaching full time with half my curriculum already designed for me.

I was lucky to begin my teaching in my student teaching classroom. My master teacher took maternity leave in October, and I got to take all her classes AND get paid. Sweet. She had curriculum already for her physiology classes, so I was responsible for creating original material for only biology. That definitely lifted a weight off my shoulders. After watching my dad go through his first year of teaching only a few years ago, I feel very lucky to have found the position I did. And next year, I will have a head start with a bio and physio curriculum already in my possession.

The school year ended early for me since my master teacher had to return to work for the last two weeks of school which meant that I would leave, she would return, and our students would have to transition to a new teacher. I think the fact that I was leaving so unexpectedly made a bigger impact than if I had stayed the entire year. The students were nervous but extremely sweet even with one student trying to figure out if most of my 150 students rallied and contributed $10, maybe they could pay me to continue teaching for two weeks.

On my last day, during second period biology, we had finished early having just completed a test (yes, I give tests on my last day), a couple students asked me to the back of the room to answer some questions about next year; requirements for chemistry, expectations for physiology, etc... Then I heard a rustling sound behind me and quickly turned around (they say in school, never turn your back to our students. oops) and found other students hanging up a huge banner on my white board.

Here are a few favorite parts.

After second period, my other classes saw the poster and added their names and short messages. It turned out to be my version of a year book. On top of that, fourth period planned a party in my honor and got me cake and a card. It was a great day!

I miss my kids but I'm excited to have received my credential this year and have a year of teaching under my belt. Now I just have to find a job for next year!

Teaching in Review

2007-11-03T12:20:00.000-07:00

One bad thing about teaching. Not urinating. I have to hold it in all day so much that i forget to pee when i get home which is bad news for my bladder.

One good thing about teaching. At the beginning of the year making judgements about certain students who have now turned out to be some of my favorites.

Softball in Review

2007-05-12T17:04:00.000-07:00

Peter, Radhika, and I have joined a softball team with my old and Radhika's current employer, MyGym. The team is made up of the owner and some employees (myself being the only ex-employee) and significant others. I have been playing 3rd base recently which is way hard. Peter and i have been working on me not being afraid of grounders. I am always terrified that they will pop up out of my glove and hit me in the face.

Last Wednesday's game included the fastest ball to come my way so far. Naturally, I shrieked and avoided it. Not the proudest moment of my softball career, but it was scary! I did have one redeeming moment when i caught a line drive, though. Other highlights included hitting 3 for 3, getting hit in the chin by a bobbled toss, and losing the game by 20 runs.

Peter has played in a couple games but has to share his position in the line-up since we have more guys who want to play than there are positions. We generally have more girls than there are positions, but some are more hesitant to play than others. But i am in demand, so i always get to play the whole game. So even if i feel bad about a play, i have to remind myself that i rock.

Too much fun

2007-05-07T23:14:00.000-07:00

Peter and I needed a weekend from our weekend. We went to a Giants game on Friday night but left early in the afternoon to pick up tickets from the craigslist dude. We later found parking and waited for the gates to open to receive the promo for the game, giants blankets. Woo-hoo! something to keep me warm during the brisk San Francisco night at the ballpark. Giants came from behind to win and Peter and I headed to my parent's house to spend the night. Saturday morning meant pancakes and some time with the folks.

We left San Francisco Saturday afternoon and continued our fun weekend by heading to the park for some softball practice and aerobie. Check out Tracy's blog for details. Needless to say, we ended the night with homemade Lee family enchiladas and margaritas.

Sunday morning, Peter and I hopped an early train for San Francisco for yet another Giants game. But this was no ordinary trip. This trip included an autograph signing with J.T. Snow, my favorite Giants player. He played for the Giants for 9 seasons earning 6 gold gloves as a Giant and as an Angel. He was a player you could always count on defensively and offensively. He also happened to be very handsome, to boot. After years of swooning, i got an opportunity to be in his presence. Peter and I stood outside the new Giants Team Store across the street from the stadium to guarantee ourselves autographs. They were only letting in 250 people and we had no idea what the scene was going to be like. So, we got there around noon for a 3 pm signing. It must have been the hottest day ever in The City and we tried to do anything to protect ourselves from burning in the sun. Besides sunscreen, Peter covered himself in the blanket we got from Friday night's game.

Once inside the store, i got a glimpse of J.T. through some racks of t-shirts. I began to get jittery and squirrelly and on the verge of tears.
I wanted to tell him that first base hasn't been the same without him but all i could muster was a couple of thank yous. He asked how i was and i asked how he was doing, but i felt like a groupie instead of a huge fan of his mad skills. Peter took this incredible awkward picture of J.T. and I. I had no idea what to do with myself and stood there looking like a fool while i signed my shirt.

Now the problem is what to do with my shirt. I LOVE wearing my Snow shirt and want to continue wearing it. Now, it's even cooler with his signature. What's a girl to do? Should i continue wearing it, even though i may accidentally ruin it or put it in the wash? Or do i frame it and put it on my wall and never wear one of my favorite shirts ever again?

After the signing, Peter and I headed into the park. Lately, we have been hanging out in the bleachers during batting practice trying to nab some baseballs. But after sitting in the sun for 3 hours already, I opted to sit in the shade and watch batting practice. Eventually we moved to our seats overlooking right field and continued to sit in the sun for another 2 hours. The foul line pole kept us in the shade for a portion of the game, but i sat for several innings with my sweatshirt over my head keeping the sun out of my face. I guess i don't do well in sunlight. Maybe we should stick to night games.

The Giants lost, but it wasn't heartbreaking like some games. Afterward, Peter and I headed back to the train for our ride home. We settled in around 10 pm only to dread the coming morning of work and school. With three giants games under our belt this season, we are hooked. We are constantly looking for more tickets and more deals to get us back to the park. Here's looking at a great season of baseball. Go Giants!

Earth Day Celebration

2007-04-24T21:38:00.000-07:00

Peter and I celebrated Earth Day in an unexpected way. We went to Petsmart and bought new cat litter. We clean her littler box every night which means using plastic bags every night to dispose of litter. That means we have used a lot of plastic bags since we adopted Tulie. I would like to think i am Earth friendly, but i sure helped create a lot of trash. Supposedly it takes plastic bags 1,000 years to decompose. So Peter and I switched to "World's Best Cat Litter" and yes, that is its real name. It is biodegradable litter and is flushable. It is made from corn kernels. So Last night, we cleaned Tulie's catbox, flush it down the toilet and gave each other a high five. Yay! No more plastic bags to take out every night and no more plastic bags to cover the earth with.

Here are some Earth Day products to think about. We can make easy changes to what we use that can make a difference.
Worlds Best Cat Litter
Biobags

Was that the most boring blog ever? I guess that's why people hate hippies.

Uggggg....

2007-03-24T13:12:00.000-07:00

I am sore everywhere. I lied, i hate baseball.

Softball Practice

2007-03-23T22:26:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day of softball practice with the extended My Gym family's new softball team. Last time I picked up a bat, i played on the bench for my high school's summer softball league. By the end of the summer, i felt i was getting worse. I still love baseball and was very excited to play today. Batting practice was a little shaky. I have a late swing, so all my balls head straight done the right field foul line. I got a few good shots in, but overall batting practice was a little difficult. It makes me want to go back and improve. Anyone one wanna hit the batting cages with me? It feels so good when you connect with the ball correctly and it goes flying. I want that feeling more next time. Yay for summer time, long days, and baseball.

Are you smarter than a 5th grader?

2007-03-22T20:07:00.000-07:00

Friends, teachers, and classmates have been talking about the new show on Fox, "Are you smarter than a 5th grader". Tonight I watched the first 10 minutes of the program and i can't watch anymore. Tonight's contestents thought North America was in the eastern hemisphere and couldn't remember the realtionship between diameter and radius.
Is it unrealistic to imagine that adults should still know this stuff? I am pretty speechless...

Day One

2007-02-28T16:32:00.000-08:00

Monday was my first day reporting to my student teaching assignment. I was given a packet of information for my master teacher. It included my name, the school i was reporting to, the classroom number, the time class began, and my teacher's name. For a week, i held on to that packet and memorized the info. I am going to Oak Grove high school for 4th period at 10:53 in classroom X2. I had a map, i wasn't going to get lost. I had a bell schedule, i was going to be on time. In fact, i was aiming to be at least a half an hour early to get my ID and parking permit.

So the morning finally came and i was up early to make sure i didn't forget anything. I double checked the address, got a map, and checked the bell schedule once more. All of a sudden, i noticed the Monday collaborative schedule. That couldn't be for EVERY Monday, could it? So i called the school, and of course, the schedule was different. Instead of reporting at 10:53, 4th period was starting at 9:46. Okay, it was 9:30 and it was going to take me at least 20 minutes to drive to Oak Grove. I was going to be late. Through a series of phone calls to the school, and the principle's sectretary, i got a message to my teacher that i was going to miss 4th but was on my way. The school called back saying that i could go to 5th period instead.
I finally arrived, found the administration building, got my ID, and went to 5th period. I was extremely embarrassed.

Instead of Monday being my first day with my future students, Tuesday was my first day. The kids seem okay. My teacher told me that they were kind of wild, but they were nothing crazy. I guess i will really find out over the next couple weeks while i observe and work with them.

The tentative schedule is that i am going to take over the class on March 26. I wil do a 3 week unit on physiology, which is way more exciting than other some units. My master teacher teaches explicitly to the state content standards and therefore his kids do well on the STAR test. But his own classroom tests don't require anything but regergatation of facts.
I have tentatively planned what i want to cover during my unit, but i have to make sure i teach the standards and give them a test that follows his format. He doesn't make lesson plans, so i am on my own for this.

I think i have a good plan so far, i just have to work out the details and create some cool activities. Wish me luck!

Adrenaline Rush

2007-02-13T20:58:00.000-08:00

I spend my tuesday nights in my methods course at SJSU. It is specifically for science teachers and is taught by two wonderful women who are also teachers.Tonight, some of us did 4 minute presentations on our hobby. I chose to talk about puzzles. I knew what i wanted to say but i hadn't made an exact plan of how it was actually going to come out of my mouth and i definitely hadn't practiced it. If i had, i probably wouldn't have talked as fast as i did. Even during my presentation, i knew i was going way too fast, but i couldn't stop myself. My fight or flight response had kicked in, and i was using that adrenaline to do neither. It probably didn't help that i was being recorded by two video cameras (for further review). But afterward, I got a nice comment from one of my classmates, which was a little calming. He said that i should talk more and that i was funny, or interesting, or something....it is all kinda hazy now. But it felt nice to hear that. Somebody wanted to hear more from me and know more about me.
As i was in the car driving home and i called Peter. He is of course still at work at 9 pm. And bless his heart, he listened while I ranted for a few minutes about my presentation and even while i got side tracked with a small case of road rage. The power of adrenaline is amazing.
I am hoping that i won't be such a freak in the classroom and that i can get myself under control.

Another surgery

2007-02-07T12:12:00.000-08:00

It's not me this time, but it is my little kitty, Tulie. Peter took her in yesterday morning to get spayed. Our cat rarely meows but Peter called me from the road on his way to the Humane Society and our little baby was crying the entire time. It was heart breaking. I spent the day alone for the first time in six months. I missed her follwing me from room to room and when ever i got up, i checked my heels but there was no cat behind me. It was incredibly lonely. I am so used to her keeping me company in the bathroom or when i am writing emails. I am used to having someone to talk to throughout the day. I treat her like she's my baby in many ways because I take care of her but today, i felt i was missing a friend.

The Humane Society called and said,"There's been an emergency and...." and my heart skipped beat. They continued. "we won't get a chance to spay Tulie. Can you bring her back tomorrow?" I was so relieved. What a scary way to start a sentence. So I took her in again this morning with her crying the entire time. But once we arrived, she stopped and was very calm. I spent the day alone again and received another call. This time her surgery was over and i could come pick her up. Tulie was calm on the ride home and has been acting as if nothing happened. I have to restrict her activity and make sure she doesn't lick her stitches (which she likes to do). Hopefully, i don't have to buy her a plastic collar.

It's so nice to have my kitty home again. Thank you Jackie and Sean for finding this beautiful, sweet, and silly kitty for Peter and I. We absolutely love her. Here are some of my favorite pics of her, including a new post-op picture.

Gone

2007-01-14T21:15:00.000-08:00

Well, it's finally gone and i don't miss it. Doctors removed my gallbladder last week and I am better for it. My surgeon told Peter that i had a pretty large stone in there so I am very anxious to ask for details at my post-op appointment. I had meant to ask my surgeon if they could take a picture and let me see/keep my stones, but i don't have any memory after saying good-bye to Peter and being rolled down a hallway. Opps, i should have asked the nurse earlier.
A week later, i am almost back to normal. My stomach still has four "stabs", as one nurse put it, and bruising, but i am feeling pretty good. Normally i love staying home and doing absolutely nothing, but this time, when i couldn't get off the couch by myself, i was incredibly bored.
I was also surprised at how much i wanted to see my parents after my surgery. I guess that means something.
It has been so fun eating foods that i have had to abstain from for the last two months. Tami's cookies, gravy, and other fatty yet delicious items. I had a huge chocolate eclair from Max's. It took me two nights to eat half of it, with Peter eating the other half, and it was a magical experience. All that chocolate, buttery pastry, and custard filling still makes me smile just thinking about it.
A few biological functions haven't returned from surgery. I haven't felt hungry or full which has been an odd sensation. I defintely wasn't expecting that. Otherwise, i am almost normal and looking forward to a normal life.

An accident in the parking lot

2006-05-12T21:12:00.000-07:00

That's what i told peter when i came home last night. I had a little accident in the parking lot. And for some reason he got worried. No, no, no...not that kind of accident. I was bringing home dinner which consisted of two soft drinks and a bag of fast food. While trying to get out of my car with said food, my purse, and car keys, i dropped the keys as soon as i opened my car door. So, the logical thing to do would be to squat down with all my drinks and food and try to pick up the keys. Right? Ummm...the problem with trying to bend over while half sitting in my car, and the other half of me reaching for the parking lot floor is that the cup holder isn't very secure. That's when my sprite splattered to the floor and all over the car next to me. Shit! So, the next logical step would be to place the other drink and bag of food on the trunk of my car while i wipe off my neighbor's car and remove any embarrassing evidence of a Wendy's cup in the middle of the parking lot. And while I sat wiping down some stranger's car, my bag of food came crashing down next to me. Two orders of fries and five chicken nuggets splattered on the floor next to me. I was extremely pleased that no one was in the parking lot while i scooped dirty fries back into their containers to throw away. So all i had left were two hamburgers and one soda. mmmmm....satisfying. I can no longer deny that i am truely a klutz.

OK....It's true

2006-02-15T17:31:00.000-08:00

It's true. I almost missed my flight home. Luckily, I had the universe working in my favor and I made it in time. Of course, my baggage missed the flight, but hey....it eventually arrived. I have to say thanks to Peter, my mom and dad, and Jesse for finding me and calling me in time to let me know my flight was leaving Paris in two hours.

That was quite an unexpected message to receive at 8:30 in the morning. "Grace...your dad keeps calling. He says that you think you are leaving tomorrow. But you leave today" You can imagine the panic and the laughter that ensued. But we called a cab and I made it there with a 20 minutes to spare and survived the rest of my 24 hour trip home.

I still can't figure out why I thought I bought a ticket for the 8th when I in fact was leaving the 7th.

The crazy thing about being home now where everything is the same as I left it, is that it feels like my trip never happened. Its like walking into Narnia, staying for years, only to return home without any time passing. I do have proof however. The magic of cameras has captured my trip and preserved it for me to look back on forever. Hahahahaha Narnia, I have exposed you!

a little bit from Milan

2006-02-04T10:27:00.000-08:00

Haven't been able to find any internet in Venice so i couldn't chronicle our shopping adventures. Basically instead of seeing any actually important sites in Venice, we window shopped. And honestly, after seeing all the art and churches in Italy and France, we wouldn't have appreciated them anyways. Today we are trying to head to Modane, a small town in France. Im still not sure how we are going to do it, but we will try. Can't type any more, they want to kick us out of here, pronto. more later..

love,
grace

Florence etc...

2006-01-31T09:14:00.000-08:00

I have no idea where i left off on my last blog since im pretty mentally exhausted. Since all the big museums in Florence are closed on Monday we went today. We stated with the Galleria Dell' Acedemia where Michelangelo' David is displayed. It is an amazing staue and it's height alone was impressive. It's 17 feet tall. Ginny and I were a little dissappointed in his hands. They seemed disproportionally big. Oh well, still beautiful and mind-blowing. After the Acedemia, off to other adventures around town and finally to the Uffizzi. Not sure about the spelling. They don't let you check your coat or luggage here so a warm museum plus my coat and day pack made walking around for a couple hours exhausting. Can barely remember much i liked besides Michelangelo's Holy Family and ....can't remember anything else. It's been a long day. After we escaped from the museums, we tried to get down to the river and relaxe and try to escape from the noisy busy city. But there are street vendors everywhere you go trying to make you buy their junk and noisey cars and scooters, so relaxing was very difficult. We walked home and immediately i collapsed in bed with my ipod. I think i deserved that nap after all that walking. Oh yeah, speaking of walking, ginny and I climbed the 414 steps to the top of the bell tower next to the duomo. Not bad. Ok, sorry of the poorly organized blog, but it's the best i can do in my current state. Why bother writing this, you may ask? well, this hostel offers free internet, so i saw a unoccupied computer and sat down. It-s very difficult to get a seat since there are only 5 computers. Ok, that's enough of that. Must eat some more pizza for dinner.

love,

grace

Lost in Rome

2006-01-28T09:49:00.000-08:00

Got separated from Ginny and Kelty in the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. No big deal, some lunch and internet can solve anything. Just got an email from Ginny and i know they are ok.

Turns out that the vatican owns a lot of stuff. I just walked through 4 miles of galleries and rooms. Now my own personal problem with loooking at the Sistine Chapel ceiling is that i have seen it thousands of times and in quite good detail from the 8,000 piece puzzle that Peter and I have been working on. And that means picking up the box over and over and scanning our puzzle a millions times. So, the ceiling didn't offer me much. Plus it was extremely crowded with security guards yelling at people to be quiet and to stop taking pictures. But they never stopped, so i left pretty quickly. The one thing the sistine chapel was able to offer me was the walls. I had never seen those peices of fresco before. Off to the Metro to meet Ginny. Ahhh, the wonders of technology. Once was lost but now i'm found.

love,

grace

Roman Ruins

2006-01-27T09:43:00.000-08:00

Went to the Borghese museum this morning. It requires reservations as they only allow certain amount of visiters in at once. That was really nice. I wish more museum did that. But then i guess you couldn't just walk in....oh well. So the big items at the Borghese are Bernini's Apollo and Daphne and The Rape of Proserpina. In Apollo and Daphne, he is chasing her and the moment he reaches her, she turns into a tree. Bernini somehow captures this which is really insane. With the Rape of Proserpina, Hades has kidnapped Proserpina and the most amazing part of the sculpture is his grip on her leg and how it succombs to his strengh. It is a awfully real experience. She is crying and you can see the veins in his arms. Click here to see the close up. Oi vay.

On another subject, also went to the Colloseum and the Roman Forum. Using Rick Steve's walking tour we ended up in the ruins of old palaces above the forum. We were wondering about for so long, we ended up being the last ones to leave the whole forum. We hadn't seen anyone for a while which was great since its rare to explore anything without a group of tourists and their tour guide getting in the way. I hadn't heard as much english as i did today.

TTFN

love,

grace

checking in

2006-01-26T05:28:00.000-08:00

In Rome currently. Went to St. Peter's and that was completely insane. Ginny and i met a nice canadian girl from calgery. She happens to be a very good catholic and knows lots about everything catholic. So we got a good history standing in front of all the statues and all the tombs of various popes. The craziest part was in the the center of the basilica with four huge statues around this 70 ft bronze canapoy by Bernini. I am not sure what it was, just that it exusted all the bronze in Rome to build. They melted everything they could get their hand on to complete it. But the statues around it were of St. Helena (who found and excevated the jesus's cross), St. Veronica (the woman who wiped Jesus's face as he carried his cross and the imprint of his face appeared on her veil), St. Andrew ( who was crusified on a sideways cross) and St. Longinus (who stabbed Jesus in the side when he was put on the cross). The best part is the reliquaries above them. Above helena is a piece of the cross. Above Veronica is her veil, above Andrew was his head, and above Longinus is the spear he used. That was the most amazing part for me.

Didn't make it to the sistine chapel in time. It closed at 12.20. Very strange. Will have to go tomorrow.

Ta Ta For Now

Ciao,

grace

PS. Also went to the crypt and saw Pope John Paul's tomb. Crazy.

Italy so far...

2006-01-25T05:12:00.000-08:00

We arrived in Milan at night and made our way from the train station to the hostel using the Metro. We mastered the Metro with ease, even if we had to ask for help the first time. Luckily, we both bought memberships to an International Hosteling group, so we were able to stay at this place. We met a crazy french-canadian named Hugo (pronounced Ugo). He is working in a hostel up in the Alps in France, so Ginny and I really want to go to now. The hostel is situated between to mountains where most people go skiing, but we can only afford to go snowshoeing. But shoeshoeing in the Alps seems like a great way to end our trip. So if our schedule works out, we are definitly going. Oops, i kinda got sidetracked. Right, Milan...

Went to the Duomo which was pretty insane. After seeing some many cathedrals in Paris, i thought i had seen them all. But i was terribly mistaken. The Duomo in Milan is so huge and ornate that it almost seems like too much. You can only stand there and think about the work that went into building it. Apparently, it took over 500 years to complete.

We went to go see the Last Supper, but the church where it is kept was closed. So then we went and visited a castle which was very exciting, even if the museum was also closed.

We left Milan for Monterosso, which is one of the cities that makes up Cinque Terra. These 5 cities are all connected to each other by trails along the cliff where no cars can access. We found a hostel online the day before and once we successful arrived, we found it closed for the season. I would like to state that i did try calling first, but it just rang, which seems to be normal for some hostels. Like the hostel, the city was pretty much closed. Everyone who owned a hotel came out as we walked by and asked if we needed a room. There were absolutely no tourists there but us and one american who directed us to where he found his hotel. But we settled on a hotel which was run by a very nice old italian couple. It was their grand daughter's first birthday that night and she was very small and quite captivated by my gloves. Since Cinque terre was pretty dead we decided we ought to move on to our next cities since we have only 2 weeks left and the rest of italy to see.

So we hopped on an early morning train to Pisa and walked over to the Tower which is very funny once it is right in front of you. That builing should never have existed. Aparently they noticed the lean after the third floor was put together but then the decided to keep going. Those crazy italians.

We off to Rome in only a few more minutes so i must go and walk to the train station.

TTFN

love,

grace

train rides

2006-01-22T12:43:00.000-08:00

A few interesting train experiences

Jan 18th. Leaving Dijon for Aix

Try to speak with woman behind counter about reservations and how to get to Aix. She holds up a lot of signs with one including Aix and the time 18h15. So Ginny and i settle in to wait for 4 hours until our train leaves. About a half an hour later i take out the ticket and notice that we are doing some transfering and that we end up in Aix around 1800. And that we leave Dijon in 5 minutes. So we figure out the track and run upstirs. I ask a guy which direction is car 6 and all he says is, "Hurry! Go go go. " We run and just barely make it on the train before the train pulls out of the station. There is a little confusion about which car we end up in and which seats are ours, but we eventually settle in.

Next stop in in Lyon where we have to switch trains. We have about a half an hour so we go and find the restrooms. As we are walking back, the clock says we have 5 minutes before our next train leaves. So more running and hopping on the train.

Jan 22nd. Leaving Aix for Milan

Have to wait in the Marseille waiting room for our Connection to Nice, where we connect to go to Milan. As we are sitting and waiting a junkie approaches Ginny and asks for fire. No luck here since neither of us smoke. So he sits on the other side of the waiting room for a while and then returns all creepy like and sits next to Ginny. She is busy pretending to read a newspaper and thus ignores him until he offers her some drugs. We stay a little longer since i notice that everyone in the waiting room has their eyes on him. But we make our escape shortly and get on the train very easily since we leave the waiting room half an hour early.

Aix and Marseille

2006-01-21T16:17:00.000-08:00

We have been staying in Aix-en-Provence for 4 nights now but i will say we've only been here for 2 days. Today we did a day trip to Marseille. We went with a friend we met here in Aix and he showed us around and got us around on all the right busses and metro. It's kinda crazy trusting someone you just met, but he has been very nice and we trust him completely.

I have really enjoyed Aix. Thank you to Aunt Rickie and the swedish girls from Amsterdam for recommending it. The town is really old and is kind of based around water. They have natural hot springs and have set up fountains all over town. One of the oldest ones, runs through the large city center square. It is fed by a natural hot spring and therefore all this moss has been growing all over it for hundreds of years now. you can't even see the fountain, it's just moss with water coming out of it. I went out tonight looking for some last minute post cards (no luck) and the fountain had steam coming out of it. I tried to take a picture but the light was low and my camera couldn't handle it.

The city streets here are very old in the center city and very confusing. But they are filled with shops, boutiques, and restaurants. Also, since there are a lot of student here, there is more of a night life. So restaurants are open later and there are a lot of people on the street. One night we went to a jazz club and a french band played a whole lot of crazy covers. Below is their crazy set list,

First set:

Radio Head (Fake Plastic Trees)

Eagle Eye Cherry ( Save Tonight)

Aretha Franklin (Chain of Fools)

Beatles (Ticket to Ride) / Them (GLORIA)

spanish reggea/ french reggae/ Sunny and Cher ( I got you babe)/ Shaggy (Bombastic)/ Bob Marley (Stir it up)/ Shaggy/ Sunny and Cher

Second Set:

some french rock

Rage Against The Machine (Killing in the Name)

Blur (Song 5)

Nirvana (Rape Me)

White Stripes ( Seven Nation Army)

Pretty crazy, n' est pas?

As far as Marseille goes, the best part was reaching the ocean again. We did some walking and saw some parts of the city, but took a bus out of town and walked to a nearby area just as sunset approached. I found a place to sit and took some notes as i watched the sun dip below the horizon. The most surprising thing was how green the sky became and how long it stayed that way. The white sea birds became black against the bright back drop of sunset and the light from the island light house finally became visible and I became much colder. But it was incredible to sit out there until it got dark and cold and i loved every moment of it.

love,

grace

New French Cities

2006-01-18T14:31:00.000-08:00

New French Cities
Current mood:

I hope this email ends up spelled correctly. I am sitting in a cyber cafe in Aix-en-Provence and many of the keys are switched. So please forgive me when I mix As with Qs and etc...

Ginny and I arrived in Dijon yesterday and it rained all day. We really felt like we hated the city. But we found a nice pizza place and we were the only customers, so we ended up staying longer and having another glass of wine before we left. After our nice dinner, we walked home and didn't hate Dijon as much.

We didn't find a hostel so we got ourselves a cheap hotel. But it did have a shower, so that was pretty exciting.

The next morning, it did manage to stop raining so we went to the Museum of Fine Arts. It was quite good but going into any descriptions will take too much energy to figure out how to type.

Next stop, Aix-en-Provence where we went on q never ending hunt for a resonqbly priced hotel. Our first try was in a plqce where we got co,pletely ignored. Ginny peaked into one of the rooms, saw the crappy, dirty room and we were out of there.

Picked another hotel, and ate some cheese and bread in bed. Then off to find some dessert and maybe some wine. But everything is sooooo expensive. Found an internet cafe and here we are. Our next job is to find a youth hostel near the center of town.

Maybe i will be able to write more at another cafe where the keyboqrd isn't so crazy.

A Walk Through the Middle of Nowhere

2006-01-16T13:57:00.000-08:00

After visiting the flea/ farmer's market this morning in San Florentine- where Ginny tried on a sweater in the back of the guy's white, windowless van and i kept a look out- Ginny and I packed a picnic and headed out of Vaudevanne to the town of Chailley where there is this cemetary on the side of the tallest hill in town. And on the very top is a chapel. So we did a long walk through farmland, got our shoes covered in who knows what, hiked up the hill, and enjoyed our lunch with our freezing fingers. It's awfully hard to eat an orange with gloves on. After some fun pictures we headed home, got a little lost, walked through someone's backyard and found our way home. It was so nice coming back to a warm house and clean clothes.

a few notes

2006-01-16T13:50:00.000-08:00

I forgot to mention that yesterday we visited one of Anna's freinds here who lives in a chateau. Her son is a big deal at Shell and bought the place. The house even has a moat around it. Well, it could have a moat, they had it drained while they do construction. It's official name is Chataeu de Percey

Visited Noyers and Chablis yesterday

Took a great shower today. Felt like i was emersed in the warmest water. Extremely hard to get out of.

Aunt Anna

2006-01-15T10:56:00.000-08:00

Many thanks to Benny's aunt Anna who has been taking great care of Ginny and I here at her home in Vaudevanne (not sure about the spelling). She moved at here about 4 years ago at the advise of friends and doctors who told her she needed to live more stress free or she would have a heart attack. So now, she lives in the country and lives stress-free.

Today she took us around to some really old villages. Noyers was really amazing. Everything was very old, starting from the 12th century. A small river runs through the town and we were there around dusk so it was even more beautiful.
Im still sick so i was coughing a lot and drinking a lot of water on our little excursion so my bladder filled quite quickly. But it being Sunday and all, everything was closed. So i had to do something i haven't done since i was a child. I peed on the side of the road. Luckily i had tissues and Anna had little sanitary wipes. The funny thing about doing it was that i had to pee so bad that i couldn't be modest or embarrassed about it. I just let it go =)

Tomorrow Ginny and I are going to go on a hike through the woods nearby and pack a picnic. It's so incredible out here.

more walking

2006-01-11T13:48:00.000-08:00

So, more walking today. Ginny, Mayra, and I left the hostel around 10 this morning and took the metro to the Pablo Picasso Museum. That was really great, except it was too short. We went around the place and then ending up back where we started. The upper levels were roped off for some reason. But it was wonderful anyways. After that, off to the Pompidou where there is a modern art museum. That was a little hard to negotiate to get to the right floor, but once we found it, it was huge and took a couple hours. For me, modern art can be really exciting and interesting, but i really can't remember anything in paticular that i really liked. Oh well. Next on the list was some shopping on our way to the Louvre. The day before, Ginny and I found some great coats at this one store but decided to buy them later on our trip when we return to Paris. But today, every store, and i mean EVERY STORE, was having a huge sale. The store only had two coats left, one in gray (the one i liked) and one in brown (which Ginny liked) and they both happened to be our sizes that we tried on yesterday. And to top it all off, they were 50% off. It was fate. So Ginny and I came home with great coats and at an unbelievable price. After some more shopping and not purchasing anything, we went to the Lourvre. It was pretty empty. No lines at least. We were able to walk right up to the Mona Lisa. But my favorite was the Wingged Victory stature (not sure about the name there) and Cupid and Psyche sculpture. It was so soft and delicate looking. We didn't get to see everything since that would take days, so we headed home knowing that Ginny and I would return next month and finish it.

As far as the Eiffel Tower goes, aparently the top is closed for a month, so Ginny and I will try again when we come back.

TTFN

love,

grace

sore feet

2006-01-10T12:44:00.000-08:00

Today Ginny and I went on a walking tour, thanks to Rick Steves, of Notre Dame and the surrounding area. Jesse and I started this tour when we were here last week but never finished it due to a lack of daylight and a lot of snow. So Ginny and I walked around Notre Dame. I gave here the few tidbits that i rememebred from the audio tour i took. Then we walked around the neighborhood, she went to Saint Chapelle, then more walking and ending near the Lovre. So we decide to continue and walk to the Lovre. Turns out, the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays. So i take out the map and the Pompidou isn't very far so we walk there and stop and try on some great coats. We make it to the Pompidou and that is also closed. Then after some more walking around the neighborhood we decide to take the metro to the Eiffel Tower. So we walk back to the metro and arrive at the Tour Eiffel after sunset, so the tower is all lit up. We deciede to take the stairs up instead of the elevator even if our feet are already sore. In addition, Ginny has got some sore calves and my knee and acheilles heal are hurting. But we take it slowly and eventually arrive at the 2nd floor about 400 feet up. The top is 1000 feet up. Now, im not sure if the stairs don't go to the top at all or what, but we couldn't find any stairs. Then we wait by the elevator but nothing shows up. I asked a guy in the souvenir shop about it and he said the top was closed. I was extremely upset. We walked almost halfway up the tower and get DENIED. We stood around for along time feeling like idiots and then had to head back down. So we opt for the stairs since there is a massive crowd waiting for the lift back down. We get down to the first level and find the stairs closed to get to the ground floor. So then we had to wait for the elevator anyways to get down all the way. That made me even more upset. So after that we retreated home very tired and not have accomplished much for the day except a lot of exercise. I guess our litttle adventure today is definitely worth remembering if only for how unclimatic is was. Anywho, im not sure what we are going to do tomorrow since everything will be open. So many choices.

TTFN

love,

grace

Dublin (in review)

2006-01-09T08:42:00.000-08:00

This is in fact the second time i am posting this blog. Somehow i lost the first one. So i will try and recapture the magic of the first.Right now I am writing from Paris as I have just arrived from Dublin his afternoon.

We arrived in Dublin on the 5th and Casey, our fearless leader, got us from the airport to our budget hotel. It was more of a hostel than a hotel, except the fact that they didn't kick us out during the day. The four of us shared a room with a guy named Ben, an american studying guitar in Brussels. We also shared our room two of our nights there with a really smelly dude. We barely saw him as he appeared in the middle of the night and left early in the morning (not showering I should add). We did manage to smell him, even if we couldn't see him. The second night we made sure to sleep with the windows open despite the cold weather and the noise outside. We stayed in a very busy neighborhood with lots of great food and lots of pubs. People were out late and all the noise came through our windows. The worst past was this guy downstairs who was emptying all the pub's glass bottles into the recylcing. He would toss one botle at a time into the conainer. So it was a constant clang/crash every 5 seconds.

We explored the city mostly on foot and some by bus. Our first day we started with the Modern art Museum and then we went to an old jail that housed common criminals and the political prisoners during the revolutions for indepence from the British. After that we went to the Guinness factory and took the tour. The tour ended in the bar at the top where you can see all around Dublin and drink your complementary pint. I couldn't finish mine since i just had a hot chocolate minutes earlier. We also saw Christ Church, the oldest curch in Ireland from the 12th century and the National Art Museum. Our last day we took a tour ouyt of Dublin to see old tombs and old celtic sites. We went to this one tomb that was older than the pyramids. We learned a lot about old Irish history and the current history between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The tour was great and our guide was this great old man named Patrick who even played us a tune on his flute. It was a great experience.

The next morning, we packed left for he airport, took a bus for an hour and a half into Paris, took two metro trains to the hostel and found Ginny safe and sound waiting for me here.

Tonight is Jesse's last night here in Europe and I have to continue without him, which is going to be really sad. He's been a great travel companion and guide. Im sure we will all go out and celebrate Jesse's last night.

TTFN

love,

grace

Amsterdam

2006-01-03T03:07:00.000-08:00

Jesse and I arrived in amsterdamn in the late afternoon on January first. We met up with his friends Casey and Mayra and went out for dutch pancakes for dinner. It's just a weird pancake with food on top. It was a little weird, not the best thing ive had along my trip (the food in paris was wonderful). Casey, who has been living here for a year, said that the Dutch are known for their bland food. After dinner we went back to his studio where the 4 of us are sleeping. It may sound cramped, but it's better than a hostel. Later that night we went to a local bar here whose walls were covered in great graffiti art. Aparently they change the art on the walls constantly. It was really nice hanging out in the the amsterdam bar except that most of the beers here have twice the alcohol content as the beer back home, so i definitly had to slow down. I only had 2 beers the whole time we were there.

The next day we got a late start. We left the house around 2pm. We went out walking around the neighborhood and all the popular streets around here. The funny thing about the streets here is that there is the road for cars, a bike lane for bicycles or a sidewalk for bicylces, and then a sidewalk for pedestrians. Everyone here rides around town on one-speed bicycles. For dinner that night we went to this great restaurant with great food with some swedish friends of Casey. Sweden sounds really great. Beatiful country, free health insurance, they pay you to go to college. Later that night we rode our bikes over to the casino. I had a wet bike seat and walked around all night with a wet butt cheek. Maybe it brought me luck though, since i won 50euro at roulette. After the casino, time for the late-night snack around here. French fries. Mayonaise is pretty popular with your fries, but Mayra and I opted for ketchup instead.

It is now tuesday around noon, and my butt is very sore from riding aorund town last night. Not sure what today holds for us. I think Casey has some museum passes, so i think we are going somewhere. I really don't know much about Amsterdam so it's kinda nice just having a tour guide tell us where to go. TTFN. Ta ta for now.

love,
grace

NYE

2006-01-02T08:51:00.000-08:00

New Years Eve in Paris was much different than I expected. During the day, Jesse and i left early and went to the musee d'orsay, napaleon's tomb, and the eiffel tower. After a day of walking, i opted for a nap. Jesse skipped his. Turned out to be a bad choice. Later that night, we found the least expensive restaurant on our street (everything was marked up 35%-50%) and i ordered escargot and enjoyed it as long as i wasn't looking at it. Jesse was soo tired he could barely hold his head up. He left me at the restaurant to take care of the bill while he tried to take a power nap since everyone else in the hostel was ready to go to the eiffel tower. I came back to wake up Jesse and he can't be budged. So i went out with 12 other people to the eiffel tower.

The metro was packed, just like expected. everyone in town is going exactly where we are. I was pushed up against a pole with some people packed in so tight they had nothing to hold to. That meant that every time the metro started and stopped, i had the weight of 2 or 3 full grown adults pushing me into the pole. The best part of the train trip there was the soccer calls going on through out the car. Everyone was chanting and yelling.

Once all 13 of us met up at the station we immediately got separtated. So i spent the evening with a french canadian girl from Montreal, two mexican surgeons who work in spain, and a guy from argentina.

Once it was midnight, the eiffel tower lit up and sparkeled. And then everybody started to leave. We stayed for maybe a half an hour because i refused to believe that there weren't any fireworks. And then we learned from people there that the eiffel tower lights up every night at every hour. So new year's eve did nothing differnt than any other night. It was a huge let down.

The night really began once we tried to head home. The french canadian had to pee so bad she asked some SWAT looking police where the bathrooms were. We eventually found an empty street and she peed between to cars while i covered with my jacket and the boys stood on the corners looking out for people. After that we headed toward the next subway stop. On there way there, the eiffel tower lit up again since it was now 1 o'clock. Great.....We finally found the subway but it was so full of people we decied to walk home instead of being crushed to death in the metro station.

Once we left, it was a long walk home, since all the taxis were full. While walking we came across the only open restaurant we saw all night. We all decided a cup of hot chocolate or coffee sounded good. turns out, the didn't have anything hot there, only cold drinks. So i ordered an orange juice. When we got the bill, i found out that my OJ was 5.40 euros. That's like 6 bucks.

We finally got home around 3:30 and met up with everyone who we got separated from the night. Everyone walked home since the subways were either to crazy or closed. Some girls from Vancouver Island had an even worse night that included seeing a dead body and being accosted by an algerian kissing party.

That sweetest part was that jesse had woken up and come downstairs looking for me and apparently got very worried i wan't home yet and walking the streets of paris. So thanks jesse for worrying. =)

The next morning, Jesse and i headed to train station for Amsterdam. More on Amsterdam later when i get a better chance.

love,
grace

I have arrived

2005-12-29T08:52:00.000-08:00

Today was our first full day in Paris. Jesse and I must have gone into 5 churches by now. We hit several by accidennt, but some on purpose. Luckily, we are pretty close to Notre Dame and walked there. For the first half of the day, everytime it began to snow, i emitted a small chirp of excitement. Luckily, it's snowing here instead of raining since it's so freaking cold. I've been told that it hasn't been this cold in Paris in a long time. So, on one hand it's really cold, but at least it's not raining.

The first place we went to this morning was the breakfast downstairs. I was pretty excited that they were going to feed us, but it was only bread, butter, and orange marmalade. So we bought some fruit on our way to the Patheon. It's the hugest thing ive ever seen. The pantheon that is, not the fruit. The dome on top just keeps going. We didn't know it but France's heros are all entombed there and you get to go downstairs to the crypts and walk around. Pretty cool if you ask me. And i know this is dorky and kinda weird but it was crazy standing at Marie Currie's tomb. It was kinda exciting since she was a childhood hero of mine, but kinda weird because i was standing beside her tomb, ya know? I think she was the only woman entombed there.

Then some more walking to Notre Dame, which was great. A mass started while we walked around which was crazy. Then we started a walking tour, thanks to Rick Steves. We came across some great little streets, got lured into a resturant by their rotisserie in the window, waited in line for Saint-Chapelle for an hour in the snow, and then rushed back to the hostel since it was getting dark and very cold. Saint-Chappelle was amaing even though we had to wait. The walls were all stained glass. Extrememly beautiful.

Anywho, im almost out of minutes here (which is really cool to say since you guys always said that in your emails when you were abroad)

Au revoir,

Grace

My European Adventure

2005-12-26T03:04:00.000-08:00

OK, so my wishful plans are to make entries here from Internet Cafes along the way.
Peace,
Grace