A Rainy Day in Trier

Arrived in Trier at 4:30pm on Tuesday. Melina and her mom Claudia gave me a cute little bear with the German soccer team jearsey on it and a US flag. cute! We then had a 2-2.5 hour drive back to Trier, which was full of stories and lots of rain. My first meal in Germany was at a Chinese restaurant. Haha, but a yummy Chinese restaurant! Then Claudia took us to the grocery store to stock up Melina´s kictchen. We really almost had to tie her down to not buy everything, haha, shes a hoot. Finally got to see Melina´s flat, which is adorable I might say, and day one ended pretty early for all of us.

Yesterday I met up with Raphael and Andy, old friends from Sister Cities. Andy was only around for a bit, since he had to get ready to leave for FW (and there is a train workers strike, so he had to get another train). But our day was pretty full! Raphael took me to a cafe, the Roman baths, and then we met Andy at the ampitheater. Rained the whole time we walked around, but we dodged the heavy spells. The guys were set on trying to find a hot dog for me to have for the 4th of July... but the scarcity soon changed their minds, and we had pizza. We stayed there for quite a while, slow European service haha! Afterwards we walked around Trier a bit, looking at shops... I bought an English version of a German book called The Swarm for my long stay at the airport on the way back. Andy left to go get his bags and get ready... so Raphael and I went to the Porta Nigra and then had some yummy German ice cream in a shop just next to it. When the rain picked up soon after, we took refuge in watching Die Hard (and I saw it in German, too!), which I have to admit, wasnt too bad! We soon saw Andy off at the train station, and we ended our day in a local bar to have a beer. I cannot believe we did so much in one day, but everything in Trier is so close, its easy! The reality of its smallness was so clear, that the guys ran into 2 new ILA participants, and I ran into an SU student-- granted I did know he was there, but I didnt expect to see him! All in all, despite the rain and 50 degree weather, the day was a fabulous one!

Adios Madrid, Guten Tag Trier

The last day in Madrid flew by... a class presentation (which even the professor didnt want to be there for I think ahah), helping everyone with their last minute shopping, eating our favorite foods one last time (for me: a Napolitana de chocolate for breakfast and a chicken kebap for dinner), and saying our goodbyes at "our bar." Was pretty comical that the bar staff was so sad to see us all go... but we felt pretty special and a little sad ourselves when wee had group pictures with everyone. Actually got to see 4 of my sorority sisters who just arrived in Madrid yesterday for some sightseeing- always nice to see familiar faces. Spent the hours before bed packing, or rather cramming, my bags together, watching movies with my fabulous roommates, and counting the hours until my flight. Im so grateful to ISA for giving two of my bags a home while I'm in Trier... so much less to carry- and no need for a taxi!

When I write again, I'll have arrived in Frankfurt and will find myself with old friends... Melina and her mother are picking me up- I dont think I counld ask for a better welcoming party!

Missing Madrid already, but also very ready to try someplace new! Off to the airport now--yipee :)