Every Day is Mother’s Day (a.k.a. why my mom is better than your mom ;p)

Posted on May 13, 2012 by Julia

(Hi Mami,

Ich liebe dich sehr, und ich schreibe dir jetzt einen Blog, damit der Rest der Welt weiß warum dass so ist.

<3 Deine Luli)

Why I love my Mami: The Basics 😀

Okay, so maybe it’s rude to say that my mom is better than yours, especially on Mother’s Day. The majority of mothers, I would say, are pretty darn epic, and I’m sure yours is one of them. Mine just happens to be the most amazing one there is.

A Young Mami <3 Lookit, how pretty! My sister has a similar haircut right now :p

I can talk to her about anything. It doesn’t matter if she had a rough day at work or if she only has 20 minutes. When I have one of my existential crises, she is always at hand with pretty much the only advice that could help in that exact moment.

She, along with my dad, gave me the gift of bilingualism. Okay, not everyone can have that because a lot of parents aren’t bilingual, but hear me out. They could have chosen not to do it. For whatever reason, plenty of parents don’t teach their kids the second language they speak. Mine researched it, worked on it, and perfected it. My English is dominant, sure, but if I decide to sit down on my aunt’s couch in Germany to read a 400-page book in one day next month, I can do it. The way I think about myself, the world, and life in general is impacted profoundly by the fact that I speak two languages. It also gave me the courage to learn a third.

Speaking of me doing crazy things: I never would have gone to school in NYC if she hadn’t

Mami with her other soul mate, our poodle, Bunny. Probably on the phone with Rita.

inspired me. When we went to the first Macaulay open house, I felt smaller and smaller and smaller with each thing that was said on the stage. WHERE had these people gone? HOW MANY majors did that one girl have? HOW did that guy do that project? I felt completely incapable. “I will never accomplish anything like that,” thought I. “Let’s just go back upstate. I’ll live with my parents and go to community college. This city will eat me up alive.” What did my mom see when she watched those impressive alumni count up their victories? My future. As we meandered about the city later on, she told me that this is where I belonged, that Macaulay was perfect for me, and that there was no way they wouldn’t take me. I was baffled. Obviously I was not good enough to get free tuition from anywhere, that was for sure. Maybe a discount, but this? No way. Well, guess what? I got over my crippling fear of life, now didn’t I. Look up at this blog’s url, then back at me. Look at the url, then back at me. Yeah. If my mom hadn’t talked me out of my neuroses and into Macaulay, I would not have had the most epic first year of college ever, I would not have grown so much as a person last year, and I would NEVER have had the courage  to ask to delay mandatory classes in order to come to Spain for 9 months. I’m basically skipping a year of school to take advantage of the scholarship I was offered to study in Logroño.

Us in NYC when she came to visit during my freshman year

Ute Dancer knows how to be my friend while still being my mother. If you don’t believe me, check my facebook. 😉 She never used the disgustingly condescending phrase, “Because I said so” because there is always a reason for what your parents say and do, and you deserve to know it, even if you’re being a petulant child. The first thing she did when she figured out she’d have to raise these two screaming bundles that were deposited by a stork on that glowing May day was read up on child psych. A lot of people could avoid screwing up their kids a little more if they just opened a good psych book. She always let us express our points of view, and she treated us like PEOPLE. One mistake that a lot of parents make is treating their children like “just children.” Well, whose kids were so well behaved that dinner party invitations were phrased thusly: “No kids allowed, except for yours”? Yeah, not bragging about myself, bragging about my parents. We were always invited. It’s not that we were that special, it’s that our parents knew how to keep us respectful (and if not respectful, at least under control. One of my favorite stories is the one where my sis and I were being obnoxious at a gathering and our mom told us to play “dangerous worms.” It sounded fun, so we did it, therefore creating no more noise and taking up very little space on the carpet.)

Although there are so so so so so many reasons why my mom is amazing, the most important one, and the last one I will write down here today (I have to save a couple for next time!) is her happiness. She shines glee like a dancing, singing 27-year-old playing a high school student on fox. People can’t learn to be happy from someone who doesn’t understand what happy is. My mom gets it. Instead of complaining about all the things she ‘d have to do that day, she always came up with the most random reasons to expect greatness when I got up to have breakfast with her on weekdays. If “Look how pretty the sun is this morning!” wasn’t an option, she’d go for “How nice that it’s raining! Now I don’t have to water the plants.” (keep in mind that she is outdoors for a large part of her workday) She’s always got a song stuck in her head, and she will hum it to put a spring in her step. No matter what, she is always thankful for everything she has. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her take anything for granted. She inspires me. I learned how to be happy from this woman. There are very few things that make her angry, and one of them is hunger. When people at work notice her pep and her inspirational commentary about the awesomeness of her coworkers die down, somebody hands her a sandwich, and there you go.

Isn't she gorgeous? Doesn't she just LOOK like she's awesome??

My mother is honest and kind. My mother is helpful and witty. My mother is self-confident and intelligent. My mother knows how to pick ’em (stay tuned for why my dad is great. That’s another blog for another day). My Mami is special and loving and understanding. My Mami makes existing more fun. My Mami listens and she is a great cook and she has a great work ethic. My Mami understands me better than I understand myself. My Mami is supportive and funny and all-around wonderful.

Here’s to moms in general (I’m sorry I’m propping mine up so much, you all deserve a round of applause and a breakfast in bed today for dealing with our shenanigans)

Most of all, here’s to my mom. Thanks for deciding to have children because my life is epically amazing. Danke daß du nie aufgegeben hast mir beizubringen daß ich etwas wert bin. Danke daß du uns immer sagst wie toll wir sind. Danke daß wir uns immer vertragen müssen bevor wir aus dem Haus oder ins Bett gehen, nur falls etwas passieren könnte. Danke daß du mir jeden Tag zeigst wie mann leben sollte. Du bist ein Exemplar daß mein Leben verändert hat. Ohne dich wäre ich nicht einmal zur hälfte die Person die ich heute bin. Ohne dich wäre ich einsam und unglücklich und eigentlich ohne selbstbewusstsein. Ohne dich ist mein Leben einfach nicht komplett. “Ich mag’s auch bei mir zu sein!” sagt da jetzt die Mami. “Ja, mit mir macht alles mehr Spaß”

Ich liebe dich sehr, und ich hoffe daß du diesen Blog magst. (Obwohl du, unterstützend und liebevoll, immer von meinem Blog schwärmst <3)

I LOVE MAH MOMMAHH!!

Happy Mother’s Day.

Happy Schnootie Day. I miss you THIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS much, to the moon and back.

All Your Eldest Daughter’s Love,

Julia

 

PS– Here’s a shout-out to my Oma (yup. she’s quite wondeful, that one <3), to my dear Michele (who makes us grandkids feel super loved <3) and to my Grandma Bev (hope we meet someday <3)

 

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Everything is the opposite of illuminated (in sort of a good way?)

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Julia

Hi thurr. My name is Julia and I’m a Spain-a-holic. On Tuesday we climbed Paco (Monte Cantabria) again, with more people. I barely got out of bed because we hosted another international dinner until like 3am Monday night, but it was definitely worth the despertar-ing.

We had Tuesday off, and I didn’t realize how late in the trimester it was! It’s May!! Friends of mine are in Ibiza on a trip they began planning about a decade and a half ago, and my birthday is in two weeks! My friends will be taking me out for pasta at some adorable date-worthy restaurant, and (judging from giggles and whispery conversations) I’m pretty sure two of them are getting me a really sketch gag gift or something. It’s going to be so much fun!

hmmm... getting a NEW nano but not sure if I'm getting this kind :p they're pretty though!

You know what’s also fun? WINNING!!!! If I had put up my pics like I promised and polished this blog up a bit, maybe I would have won a bigger prize but I DON’T CARE BECAUSE I WON AN I-POD NANO AND AN AWARD!!! I’m so happy!!!

The best thing about TODAY, though, is that I went shopping with a friend who has been sick for two days. She ate nothing the first day because she was too nauseous, and she could barely get out of bed today. After I came back from school, though, she was craving a Big Mac. So, once I’d gone to teach English, we took the bus to Al Campo (a big mall on the other side of the city), ate at McDonald’s, and got a few groceries.

We also looked at bikinis, because I actually think I can wear one without feeling completely underdressed and nasty. It was fun, but I need to go to a lingerie store to buy a bikini….. some items cannot be bought cheaply if you hope to hide certain assets instead of looking like Pamela Anderson (sorry Pam)

Not that I need to look perfect when I go the largest of the Canary Islands. Nothing can happen there that leads to anything meaningful, so it’s not as if I need to do a three day boyfriend search haha. I’ll just be spending lots of quality time with my girls, feeling amazing for no longer being a teenager and spending no time at all thinking about leaving.

Yes, this is a short blog. No, there are not many pictures. But hey, here’s a song that a friend of mine just got me to listen to. We were talking about love and how it sucks. I’m frustrated with not understanding where it’s hiding, and he knows where it is but can’t have it. So here’s a 2:49 a.m. shout-out to all the singles out there. Maroon 5’s got your back.

 

Much Platonic Love :p

Julia

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44 days til Germany… (and how to become a sports fan late in life)

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Julia

Okay so the first part of the title is me being quite anal, and the second part is something that I am def not that great at explaining…. Having said that, HELLO 😀

I just got the best news ever when I found out that my CCNY Bursar’s office stop had been taken off, and that I could now make my schedule. Yay! Here’s my sched, for all of you nutty stalkers out there: (my dad will not love this and probably call me about not publishing private info :p <3 )

Keep in mind this is tentative and not super seguro, kay?

So, if anyone has advice about living in the now, go crazy. I’ve learned how to do it a bit, but the fact that I’m going “home” to my grandparents, uncle, aunt, and cousins in 44 days, and then “home” to Upstate NY a week later just makes me crazy. Me saca de mis casillas que mi tiempo aquí vaya a acabar.

Also, I miss my home and my family and my bed and my kitchen and that lost, excited, adventure feeling of getting back to NYC after being with my parents. That bus ride in, when you look over from NJ and are like, “I am an adult, and I WILL conquer this crazy place!” is THE BEST. <3

My Opa with the lil tree! Aaawwwww...... ^.^

While going through old pics I haven’t yet encountered a pic of the view from the megabus, but I did find christmas with my grandparents. That was the bestest of times. My grandpa was always watching football (soccer) on TV. SO, since I enjoyed the weekend’s Madrid-Barcelona game and the balomano game my friend was in, I decided that I need to be fan to some sportsteam.

My grandfather in Germany (my Opa) is obsessed with FC Nürnberg, so my mom recommended that.. but can you decide to be a real fan of something? Don’t you have to be raised on it to have it in your blood and care as if it was life or death? I mean, I can be quite dramatic, but it would take me a while to learn to be in love with a soccer team.

I’m sorry, my heart isn’t really in this blog right now. I still have the mixed emotions caused by things that aren’t happening for another two months swirling around in my head. Why can’t we split ourselves in half? Feeling like I don’t want to go scares me because it makes me think that I need a good counselor to kick me in the bum. On the other hand, wanting to go home instills in me a strange notion that I don’t appreciate everything that I have done here, and everything I still have time to do.

So I shall look up sports games to watch because I believe that getting completely loca about men running around and kicking a ball into a big net is much better than considering the fact that my life is changing greatly in 44 days.

Spain will no longer be my home, so I am off to search for more nostalgia shots of adorable things I’ve seen here. I’m making a folder right now so that I can put the important ones on here. Don’t worry, it’s not because I am not a procrastinator, it’s because I think it’ll give me a better chance of getting recognized in the Macaulay Eportfolio Expooooo

<3 <3

You know I love you, guys (aka my mom, who definitely reads every blog :B). Thanks for stopping by, friends, family, and possible crazy stalkers who are only here for my schedule. You are all appreciated, and I shall now go to bed to avoid saying more gooey things.

 

😀

Julia

 

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Why a new environment can make you a new person (the how is up to you! Also, you should join pottermore :)

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Julia

Yes, inspirational, gooey Julia is back. Why? I just did a workout at 7 am with a new friend that I got to know this trimester. We rocked it, and now I’m drinking chamomile tea, eating Müsli with soymilk, and blogging. Afterwards I’m going to shower and play a geography game so I know where the world is, while listening to the NPR Hourly News Summary.

*See above for how I am the person that I want to be*

I’ve always wanted to be an informed person that works out, has a blog, and keeps learning her entire life. Before coming to Spain, I felt that I was only half succeeding.

“Was it Spain?” you ask, “Can I never be who I want to be unless I go there?”

Okay, so I stole this from a Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month website, but it gets across my point. Also, knowing me, where else would I get it from?

Yes and no. As I’m pretty sure I’ve said before, I think it is easier to change key elements of your life in a new environment. You are independent, yet alone. You have new friends, yet nothing to do. In a search for belonging, for hobbies, for a job, for good grades and whatnot, you can reinvent yourself bit by bit. Maybe you go to the gym more, sign up for a dance class. As a study abroad student, you often have less to do than at home because you need to familiarize yourself with the area and what it has to offer. The new friends you find are going to be like you, because similar people gravitate towards each other.

Also, here’s a piece of advice from my mom (which I think she read somewhere, but I like to pretend that every great idea she imparts is originally hers): “Surround yourself with people that are the way you want to be.”

Why do you think I decided to go to Macaulay? Because I thought I was worth it? NOOOO. Because my mom thought I was worth it and because I wanted to be around really intelligent, knowledgeable, interesting people. In New York City.

Do you want to know which song I work out to the most? International Love! Do you know why? Because New York City is in it. Going to New York inspired me so much that it gave me the pre-push to the real changes that happened while I was here, in Europe, taking in the world. It wasn’t so much where I was physically as where I was mentally.

I could’ve become a happier person and made my life the way I wanted to in the U.S. Actually, I would’ve, eventually, had I stayed there. However, starting over yet again, searching for new friends once more, attempting to fill my day with some activities, I found the Julia that’s been waiting to come out.

If all of this is too inspirational for you, I’m sorry. I’ve also done a few things that I’m not super proud of here, I just don’t want to talk about them. For example, I gained weight when I first arrived. Let’s just say I prefer to look at the positives. LIKE HOW POTTERMORE IS OPEN TO THE WORLD NOW.

I have a Hawthorn Unicorn 10 3/4 inches Unyielding wand, a Western Green Toad that my friend helped me name (Lilypaddles), and I was sorted into Gryffindor.

Look!

Point I’d like to make: Two years ago, I’d have been sorted into Ravenclaw because I had smartness potential, but no courage potential. EVEN J.K. Rowling can tell that I’ve changed.

And this is where I nerd out too much to be public about it.

If you need me, I’ll be playing geography games and checking my pottermore <3

Miss all my nerds in Upstate NY and NYC!!

 

Much love,

Julia

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If the world doesn’t end… (no, not gonna talk about the Mayans and you can’t make me!)

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Julia

People used to be afraid of the end of the world… in a different way. Remember all those old maps with the lil monsters scribbled on the side? Spain here, Italy here….  bit of ocean…. Kraken?

yeah it's not the best picture but it's the best monster!

maybe some witches? sirens? Who knows, but the ends of the earth used to be scary. I have a theory, though. Those guys were so bored of drawing maps that their creativity just bubbled out in an unsolicited manner. The dude who paid them to draw the world was like, “What the eff is this? There’s a monster next to that island?”

“um..” *scratches head* “Yeah, actually. I saw it. With my own eyes. Look at the detail on that back fin. Gotta watch out for those suckers.. They eat boats. Nutritional value of wood and all…” *gets paid and runs away*

So since there are no monsters anywhere but in the Bermuda triangle, I think that I’m safe getting on a boat. Titanic happened 100 years ago but my mom still mentions it like recent news. Don’t worry about the cruise ships that sink because captains are not able to read maps.. why is my mom not getting on this boat? “Julia, didn’t you see Titanic?”

Yeah. I love that woman.

Speaking of love, Rome was epic. Speaking of my mom, I’M GOING HOME IN 64 DAYYYYYYS!

HERE ARE SOME FEELINGS:

(that caps lock was by accident, I swear)

I had a half hour convo with my best friend about how I could just quit school in NY and move to Spain. or Germany. About how I don’t want to come back. He obviously had a few reasons why that is a bad plan, and he got me thinking about this summer a lot.

And then I had a gigantic night of talking to him on facebook, skyping my NY roomie Diana, and skyping my mom. Yeah. I miss being home. I miss Upstate New York. I miss my friends from home. Advice for future study abroad students: Don’t try to avoid the feelings. When you leave home, you’re going to have a skittles rainbow of emotions. It’ll be sweet and yummy, but you don’t really like the purple one cuz it tastes like crap. When you come back, you’re going to have a NY-sized gay pride parade rainbow of emotion. (hint, the second one is bigger and better.. but a little scary)

However, since it’s a rainbow, all colors are invited… even the obscure ones that nobody cares about, like fuchsia. Fuchsia being a metaphor for some random emotion that you don’t even want to feel. That moment where you’re like, I am glad to be going back to see my family. That’s rational. The crying when you say goodbye to all your friends in the country you’ve been in for months. <–makes sense.

Falling into a ten minute melancholy fest because I won’t be able to buy decent red wine for only 3 euros (or even buy wine at all) when I get home….. well, I’m sorry to say this, ladies and gentlemen, but that is a fuchsia emotion. Nobody cares about it. It exists purely because I’m unconsciously avoiding things that matter. Like sky blue and orange.

The lack of cheap, good red wine is completely and epically nothing next to the idea of cuddling my puppies irl. I’m going to cry a lot when I leave Spain because it’s home. I am going to miss my friends a bunch. Eating my sister’s banana bread or going out to breakfast with my dad in some random country diner can make this better. Moving in with one of my best friends in NYC and going back to school to study International studies sound freakishly amazing. Possibly having the time for a real relationship with some cool new guy in the city that doesn’t sleep…. kind of exciting.

Listening to: Thanks for the Memories from Fallout Boy

Hanging with: Charlotte and Emily in the dorms

Obsessed with: Dane Cook and Aziz Ansari

and instead of wondering why this blog has no rhyme, reason, or conclusion…..
reminisce about how dane cook is awesome and watch this ten minute video ^.^

Still to do: Homework, 5 hours of Spanish class tomorrow, and thinking a lot about the eportfolio expo

Oh and I’m going out tomorrow. Because it’s Friday (okay, just realized it’s friday the 13th… which doesn’t shock me as much as the fact that my dad’s birthday is in two days and I was about to forget it again this year. Bad daughter), and if I don’t dance for at least three hours straight, I will have wasted a perfectly good mood on sitting home and being on facebook. Not okay. We need to jump around to crappy pop music.

Julia out

love you guys 🙂

 

P.S. add New Zealand to the list of places I still wanna go. Also, I’m thinking of combining my Brasil and Colombia trips into one. Because, you know, I’m made of money. <3

 

 

 

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Confused in a Good Way+Comfy and Fed. (oh and btw I went to Rome)

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Julia

Ciao everyone! I went nuts with my scribbling on loose sheets of paper today, so here’s a smidgeon of my crazy, al dente. (as always, when I’m traveling, the pics won’t cooperate, so please take breaks while reading, and imagine pretty stuff, thanks)

Expectations of Rome: Huge, lots of yellow and orange and red tones/lots of sun, very expressive people, too many tourists, great gelato, rushing a bit/a bit of a rush, friendly atmosphere, painfully stylish Europeans… Me, water, an apple, some gelato, minimal stress, and seven and a half hours of strolling through cobblestone streets.

Scribbled thoughts:

*I feel again like I missed everything. Rome-not built in a day. Me- calmly sitting on a park bench with the jacket I almost lost because I ignored the boy who said “Scusi!” to let me know I had dropped it.

*Thinking about all the museums I didn’t go to, all the art I didn’t see. Nope, not cultured. Just sitting here on a park bench in some random part of Villa Borghese, watching a dad play soccer with three boys. The little one is determined to get the green and yellow ball into the fountain. His brother is thinking about killing him, and I’m thinking about the dynamics of this curious foursome. Are they all brothers? Do they get along? Is their mother alive? Maybe that older lady that just chatted with the dad is one of their grandmothers, or maybe the dad is the uncle, or a family friend.

*I’d like to be a traveling writer in this moment. I’d like to have observing and feeling and recording as my only responsibilities. Let’s move to Europe and write a few books!

*I need to be honest right now and admit that I travelgasm. Today I Colloseogasmed and Forogasmed and Treegasmed and Villa Borghesegasmed. Some people (hi mom) might find this way of expressing it distasteful, and I understand that. Part of me also reaches back to those puritan roots and distrusts pure bliss because I unconsciously associate it with gluttony. This uglifies it and makes the idea dirty. However, I try to accept the “-gasm” suffix as pure and fit to be used in this blog.

*I’m deeply considering making a real website because this address is too hard to remember. Crazy Julia is also super fond of the idea of the traveling blogger, who scribbles loose thoughts on a google maps printout of Via dei Fori Imperiali meeting Via dei Corso, and people read it even though she left her camera in Seville. (No worries, I borrowed my friend’s cam today)

*There’s music coming from speakers (I later found out it was real people and real instruments. Also, the statue of liberty was there. I think she was a guy.) in Piazza de Popolo. I found another fountain and one of the rarest sights in springy Rome: Yup, you guessed it. A young couple deeply engrossed in making out.

*A stampede of students just went by, and I think it’s time to find the subway and my way home. I’m expected back for dinner 🙂

A summary (not in order.. at all :B):

I saw the Forum and the Colosseum. I now have a very strong urge to watch Gladiator. I saw about five gazillion Piazzas and Rome’s “fifth ave.” I had the best gelato in town, as recommended by my lovely Italian friend. I saw a beautiful park with lots of cherry blossoms and children and couples. There were a bunch of pretty dogs. Some Bangladeshi guy with a bunch of roses called me pretty and made me buy one for two euros because he is poor. What was I supposed to do? I gave it to Sara when I got home. The subway is not hard to use, but it’s clogged because every time the Romans try to dig another subway tunnel they find new archeological digs that they also can’t afford. The Roman statues were all beautiful, and the Palatine Hill museum was quite cute, with its many severed statue heads and missing male genitals. There were way too many people at the Trevi Fountain and on the Spanish Steps, but I took pics of both anyway. Easter=crazytime for everything remotely Catholic or even slightly into the Pope (my grandma once served him food in one of his friend’s houses before he got all papal, by the way. She’s super proud.) Rome is gorgeous. There were a lot of people on bikes and motorbikes and in cars on the side streets. I felt close to death only once. Go me.

Way too tired to work out tonight or make sense of this gibberish, so soak it all in. If it’s not enough, come to Roma yourself!!! 😀 Comes highly recommended from this end. I am def coming back, and then I’m doing an Italy trip with Sara.

 It’s going on the long list of the impossibly possible life journeys and travels I still have ahead of me. Right below a weekend visit to my Spain roomie and her Basque lover in Montreal, a day trip to Washington, D.C. with my best friend,  a wedding in Brazil, a Bed and Breakfast in Ireland with my cousin, a summer in Colombia with my NY roomie, the peace corps in.. wherever they send me, China with… well, everyone I know in China, and every other place that I haven’t mentioned yet. India?

Shutting up now. Oh and I also have boy problems (yes, I am turning 20 next month and I still use that term). Go figure.

Buonanotte!

Julia

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Moneyless Student in Rome Finds Loving Home (like a lil micio)

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Julia

Is there a god? I don’t know, but when in Rome… be cheesy and say that line. Apparently the Romans, and their Vatican neighbors, know how to throw a hell (whoops) of an easter. I just came here to see a dear friend and because I have vacation now, but the fact (?) that Jesus rose from the dead is sort of a cute little plus. I guess I’ll go to a famous church or two, and I actually did pray on the plane on the way here..

I get to spend a family holiday staying with an actual family. I know I didn’t have it as bad as some of my comrades during Christmas because I went to stay with my family in Germany, which was epic. I missed my Mami and Daddy, but I got to see my cousins, my aunt and uncle, and my lovely Oma and Opa for a month.

I’m running out of travel funds and I miss my family so much. The fact that I’m going home in 10 weeks seems completely unreal, insanely awesome, and incredibly frightening. I can’t leave. Europe changed me so much. I owe a lot to my stay in Spain. It was like a superlong vacation during which I accidentally picked up some Spanish here and there (and in the three plus hours of class I have every weekday:p)

From now until the 10th, I get to stay with my friend, Sara, who studied at my high school for a year (2009-10). Her english is great, my italian is quite iffy.. to the point where I speak spanish to her parents and sister when they don’t understand my grunts and/or hand gestures. I got here today. Tomorrow we are resting and planning my visits to the center of the city. On saturday we’re skyping a mutual friend (my BFF <3)

I’ll probably only go into the city for two of the days that I’m here: Friday and part of Saturday. I know Rome is big, but I’m here to see a friend. I don’t want to go traipsing around all over the place. I want to chill with her family and paint easter eggs with her.. I decided it’s vegan because I’m not eating them :B

Every day is better than the last. This is my second to last visit to another city before I go to the US via Germany. Seeing old friends is fantastic.

Thanks for reading that mess of a ramble 😉

Love,

Julia

ps: too lazy to post pics. It is now 1:40 am and I shall sleep.

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Where the Grass is ACTUALLY Greener (and other tales)

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Julia

So, I bet you’ve heard the saying “The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.” Well, while staring at the beautiful Irish countryside between Dublin and Galway last week, I realized something. Something great. I’ve never seen grass that green, and I think it’s a sign. There is no other side of the fence. That Emerald Isle breaks the cycle of the other side being somewhere else.

In that one moment on that tour bus I thought to myself, “Julia,” I thought, “the grass is greener on this side of the fence.”

Photos of Healy Tours, Galway
This photo of Healy Tours is courtesy of TripAdvisor
(The above pic is of a lil castle we saw on the way to the Cliffs of Moher on a Healy Tours trip to Galway)

Obviously, the green grass in Ireland is not the reason why I’m thinking of going to grad school on that wonderful island, but it jump-started a new train of thought.

I am definitely joining the Peace Corps, be it a part of my Masters program or not. The idea of attending school here in Europe is just becoming more and more attractive as a recurring activity. How can I spend only a few months here when I have my whole life ahead of me?! Spain has even changed the way I think about the future. What if I just want to keep teaching English all my life? What if I go to Latin America and China? Maybe even Africa?

People!

Buildings!

The thing is, traveling changes you. Going to a new place and seeing things you could never have imagined with people you never knew you needed to meet just makes you want to do it all over again…. and again and again and again. Why do people stay in one place? For me, it’s now impossible. The world is so big, and no longer a vague concept. Every place is just a place, with buildings, and people and problems and politics and an unsavory past, but that’s just what makes it so fascinating. What gives a city its character? How does a village acquire its unique lil flavor? Why isn’t Berlin exactly like Barcelona? There are people and there are buildings, but what you get is a sense of the culture.

Getting lost on purpose is the best agent of this process. While meandering near Dublin, my cousin, Kim, and I accidentally found a castle. When I walked aimlessly in Granada, I found a little bit of peace and a part of myself I didn’t know was there. On the other hand, I knew exactly where I was going when I lost my camera in Sevilla, so there you go. Sometimes the best plan is no plan. (It makes sense in my head right now, shhh)

So now I’ve learned to be comfortably aimless. Yes, we usually have plans (and by “we” I mean “I,” and by “have plans” I mean “am neurotic”). However, the rules are more like guidelines, anyway, aren’t they, Captain Jack?

When you travel with something loosely plan-like, but not set in its planny ways, you are magically adaptable. You are able to adjust to the cool people you meet every once in a while, and spend a few hours doing the opposite of what you thought you’d be up to for the next five hours.

The people who understood me in high school were few and far between. I loved my first year of college because I was on the same wavelength with everyone about schoolwork and other nerd-related things. I met some super awesome people. However, I have met more people that understand me while traveling than ever before in my life. Thanks to two smart fellows whose paths intersected with mine in Granada, I think I know why. People who travel are like people who travel. (“DUH,” you say?) We want more from the world. We want to see, hear, taste, touch, and sometimes even smell other cultures. We learn to be independent and then can’t let go of that freedom. Do new things, learn new languages. Home will be there when you get back, if it even was “home” to begin with. The people who love you will still love you if they need to skype you for a while and can’t hug you until next year, or the year after. Your perfectly screwy family will be the same screwy family every time you call them. Sure, missing people is part of the deal, but I won’t count myself as having reached another life goal until I miss people from at least two more continents. Although, let’s face it, I’m already on my way there.

And I am SO RELAXED about it. Two more years in New York seem perfect to me because I think even three would feel like too much. On to the next adventure, I say. There’s only so much time left to be young and stupid. If I have to get a masters (which I REALLY WANT), I might as well do it in a new and exciting place… like the Midwest :p

The Peace Corps is not a question because the world needs help, I want to attempt giving it, and apparently nothing makes me happier than being immersed in a new culture for at least a couple months. Two years and three months might get it out of my system enough to have a family before I’m thirty.

There’s always the U.S. roadtrip for when the travel bug bites me and makes me want that good old freedom of the closest I can get to planlessness.

A mortgage and a security blanket can wait, yes sir, because the other side of the fence is greener and, until I lost my camera, I had the pictures to prove it.

Much love and happy thoughts,

Julia

 

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It’s Saint Patrick’s Day!! (and I am DEFINITELY not getting pinched)

Posted on March 17, 2012 by Julia

At this hostel… nope HOTEL (which is why it costs more even though it’s super far away from the center) the computers are pay as you go.. soooo I forked over 2 euros for 20 minutes of facebook and blogging time. Yesterday, we went to the mall, Kim and I went on the worst spending spree we have ever seen, and then bought some smoothies to christen our epic brokeness. But I got my shamrock tights!

Because it was rainy, the time we spent in the epicness of the St. Stephen’s Green mall-which I am not sure but think might be the biggest mall in Europe-was actually good. Upon exiting the green frenzy of pre-St. Patty’s shoppers, I forced Kim to learn a random dance with me. There was a stage set up and a guy teaching steps to the crowd while a team of four dancers on the stage did it. The big screen showed the four dancers for a while and then cut to the crowd. If you look hard you can see the back of my head. The pic will be up soon, I just have no way of uploading it 🙁

We ended up going to Temple Bar, like all the other tourists and the brave locals that can deal with the idiot foreigners hehehehe… There was a really cool band on the street outside the bar we were at, so we listened for a while. There was also a Papa John’s, so I bought myself a small veggie pizza and replaced the cheese with pineapple. Awkward vegan veggie-fruit combo for the win! It was yummyyyyy

The hotel is nice. It’s a hotel. We have pillows and blankets and our own showers. Although I preferred the shower at Avalon House :p

The ride on the bus takes a while, but reaching the center of Dublin isn’t a hassle. There’s a million other green tourists hopping around down here in the lobby at the moment. It’s 9:16, I have 4 minutes left on my computer time, and the parade starts at 12. Also, I haven’t had breakfast.

I am wearing shamrock tights, a green dress that I bought at Logrostock, a giant green bow on my head, and the zippery boots that I got from a friend.

Love to all and HAPPY SAINT PATRICK’S DAY!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

-Julia

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IRLANDAAAA

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Julia

Hey, my loves. This is morning number two waking up in the Avalon House. It’s an adorable little hostel on the list of Europe’s best hostels, and it lives up to it’s rep. My three travel buddies and I have a-four person dorm together, so we’re not worrying about our stuff at all. No reason to lock up your crap if your door locks and you’re all together!!!

Seeing Kim again was epic. I almost cried but she is less of an ocean of emotion, so I held back. We both decided that finding hot guys in Ireland is sadly the same as finding them in any other country…. but when they start talking it doesn’t matter what they look like *sigh*

Since there’s a 20 minute time limit on these computers, and other last-minute free breakfasters will be finishing their food and coming on over, I can’t say everything I want to…

but: Dublin is sweet. We’re going to Bray today and then Kelly’s boyfriend has Bilbao Atleti shirts for us to wear because they’re playing Manchester tonight…. and we have to cheer on that Basque Country!!! We’re going to a sports bar and we’re a bit worried about being for the Basque team, but Ireland and England aren’t exactly best buds anyway.

Also, the nice/pushy Kebab guy who hit on me when I was buying food with Kim yesrday told me that Dublin is super safe. And then he gave me his number. hahaha

I’m not calling him.

So, the plan is Bray and Atleti today. Tomorrow, we’re moving hostels (North Swords) and we’ll be far away hahhahh… But since it’ll be the 16th, St. Pattie’s activities are starting, so we’ll come back here to partay: aka learn how to jig in the streets because, if I’m not mistaken, Irish dances are activity number one on the four day St. Patravaganza. Yeah, I’m that corny American girl with the dumb names for things. That’s me. Hi!

The 17th is St. Patties (PARADE!!). The 18th has a St. Pattie’s day activity too, but I don’t remember. The 19th does too. and it’s my best friend’s birthday… and we’re moving back to Avalon House. On the 20th we’re taking an epic day trip.. more about that later. It includes cliffs and Galway.. and a farm.. amd walking in the mountains. and it only costs 40  per person for the entire day!!! On the 21st we are flying back to Madrid and then I’m going right down to Andalucia to meet up with two lovely gals from Utahhh.

That is all for now. The screwy window on this computer is annoying me and we should go kick the others out of bed.

Much love,

Julia

P.S. My mom wants me to follow through on my idea of moving to Ireland because she wants to visit me here. Story of every time I go somewhere haha

P.P.S. I tried to insert a pic but couldn’t.. might do so later. For now, just deal with my boring blog with no images and lots of typing.. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHHHAAAAAAAAHHH

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