Europe

  • Frankfurt, the Block Forrest, and an authentic Oktoberfest

    Day vier, fünf und sechs (4, 5, and 6) If you are just starting here, read my post documenting my Day 1 or Days 2+3 first. Frankfurt Woke up in Frankfurt and spent the day exploring the city. The city itself is pretty modern and reminds me of a big American city—but with everything in German. According to Dario, the majority of the city was destroyed in the war, however there is an “old city” in the center where there a lot of old churches, Court houses, and other buildings dating back to the 12th and 13th century. Here are some cool pictures. While there I got to eat a…

  • Above the Clouds in Deutschland

    Day zwei (2) of my week-long trip to Germany (if you are just starting here, read about my day eins (1) experience first) We woke up in Bavaria at 6am and drove into Austria. From there we could access the base of the tallest mountain in Germany, Zugspitze (its the tallest because the peak is in Germany). The climb was pretty exhausting and got pretty sketchy about 1/4th of the way up and around half way there started to be a metal rope to help us. Some of my favorite photos that I took are when we climbed above the clouds. Half way up there is a hut you can…

  • Bavarian Food and German Castles

    Day eins (1) of my week-long trip to Germany For those who do not know, I have a friend, Dario, who lives in Frankfurt, Germany. I figured while I am studying abroad, I should go to Oktoberfest (since I will probably never get another chance to do it in Germany), so I contacted him and he said he would be happy to host me. However, instead of going to the main Oktoberfest in Munich, we bought tickets for a more local Oktoberfest called Wasen (where we get 4 liters of beer and half a chicken with our ticket!) Well after looking at flights and my class schedule, I realized I…

  • Rugby Matches and the Scottish Highland Bus Tour

    This past weekend was pretty full for me. On Saturday I went to the St Andrews vs University of Edinburgh Varsity Rugby Match. Edinburgh DESTROYED in both games (42-0 for the women’s and 25 – 17 in mens). I met and made friends with people from both Finland and the Netherlands and basically spent the entire time cheering because I did not quite fully understand what was happening in the game.The best part was at the end when a guy dressed in full white ran onto the field and was then chased around the stands for the next 15 minutes (see the video below). On Sunday, I went with three friends…

  • Climbing Ben Nevis (aka The Cobbler)

    Ben Arthur, also known as The Cobbler, is a mountain located in the Loch Lomond region. According to Wikipedia, it has one of the most distinctive mountain outlines in the country, and an altitude of 884 meters. However, in true Scottish fashion, when I arrived there yesterday morning (along with the whole Mountaineering society), it was blanketed in fog. According to the Scot’s I climbed with, the weather was “dreich” (similar to when I visited The Isle of Skye for the first time), which means it was wet, dull, gloomy, dismal, dreary or any combination of these. For those who know me, I enjoy a good hike. However this has…