Recap!

Lots has happened. The last week plus some has contained my continued quest to conquer the Black Forest, my last big European trip and a plan formulated to fully understand Freiburg. For the sake of ease, I'm going to do a day by day summary.

Friday (June 27th... I know, we are starting a while ago):
At 6:30pm, I met Kat and Schlimpi at the train station. They had invited me to a music festival in Memmingen, a town on the border of Baden-Würtemburg and Bayern. Our plan was to stay the night at Schlimpi's parents' house in Schönwald and then head out early to Memmingen on Saturday morning. The visit was wonderful. Sometimes I forget what it is like to have a warm meal, a cozy clean bed and parents around. I must say it was one of the most German experiences of my life thus far.

Saturday (28th):
Yummy Brötchen and coffee for breakfast and then we were on our way. We had to cross down to the Bodensee (Lake Constance) before heading back north, a total three hour drive. Since the Rents visited, I'm quite the pro at backseat road trips. I even sat in the middle seat with my shoes off, despite crappy memories. Schlimpi's friends drove in another car, and I've concluded that European boys driving is a scary thing and if I calculate kilometers to miles right, they were going damn fast.

The music festival was fun: food, beer, music. The music was a local blend of Reggae, hiphop and indie, and I really liked some groups.

That night, instead of pitching a tent, Schlimpi drove us home. He ended up getting a little lost and we found ourselves in Austria... how often can one say that, though?

Sunday (29)
More pleasant memories at Schlimpi's parents' house. That night Germany lost the Euro2008 cup to Spain, oh well.

Monday (30)
Had my Literature class. I decided I'm going to write my final essay on the generation crisis found in the books "Frühlings Erwachen" and "Die Ratten". Quite a mature and challenging topic, shows just how far my German has come this year... which makes me really happy.

Tuesday (1)
Flew to Rome! All my trains, buses, planes and taxis worked out wonderfully and around 8pm I was embracing my high school best friend in Rome. In Rome!

Wednesday (2)
Jess gave me a small tour of her neighborhood. She lives right in the middle of everything, so on our tour I saw the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain and old buildings GALORE. It really doesn't matter what you see in Rome I've determined... it's more about feeling the energy of the city. Rome felt like a canvas that kept getting re-painted over and over again throughout the years. One can see the really ancient stuff, with a layer of Renaissance riches, a layer of today's modern international techy gadgets and all the layers in between. Unfortunately it was near 100 degrees every day, so taking a nap in the afternoon is a must.

Thursday (3)
Jess and her friends planned a trip to Tuscany to get out of the city for a while (I know, I just got in -- but no complaints from me!). We went to this city called Siena and stayed at the most peaceful bed and breakfast on one of the rolling Tuscan hills. The place had a pool and Jess and I swam the afternoon away. Then we took a break to soak up the sun and read our books. Current book: "Tortilla Flat" by Steinbeck, I just can't get enough, it's my 5th book from him.

Friday (4)
Horseback riding!! I would have made my auntie Claudie proud of my excellent posture and energy focusing I practiced on my horse Bruta. The horseback riding was offered at a big family's ranch (duh the family was big -- they're Italian!). For lunch I had the true Italian meal, spaghetti and constant Italian chatting. I must say that I haven't always had such an affinity for Italians, but at least from this experience I can say that I enjoy their loud laughs and excellent, EXCELLENT noodle-oodle-oos.

I wasn't a very American day, but in my head I tried to repeat often: america, fuck yea! And the spaghetti did go with delicious bbq meat.

Saturday (5)
Back to Rome, hung out with Jess's friends for the evening.

Sunday (6)
Woke up at 7:30am, on the streets at 7:45am. I had said goodbye to Jess Saturday night, choosing Sunday to be my private exploration day. Waking up early was the best decision ever. As I walked the empty streets, only Italians were up, getting ready for the masses. I climbed the steps to the capital and looked out on the ancient ruins of the Forum. The world seemed so quiet and I was in the busiest city. I have to recommend trying this early tactic when in huge cities like Rome, you'll feel like the grand city is yours.
Then I went to a museum and saw some old statues. When I got out, the world had repopulated, there wasn't a person in sight without a camera in their hands. I made my way to the Colosseum and from the metro station there, I said: Let's go home.
Metro to metro to bus to plane to bus to train to Strassbahn to home.

Monday (7)
Lit class, kinda boring. Although I have a clear idea for both essays I must write (7 page and a 10 page), it feels close to impossible to actually start them. For the rest of the day Monday I procrastinated... I'm not even sure what I did.

Tuesday (8)
Cleaned my room and ran some errands. In the evening I met my friends Alex and Gabe and we went to the Weinfest going on at the Münster. We all "Prost!"ed to experiencing Freiburg before it is too late. Then listened to the old men sing German folk songs and drank some fresh delicious wine.

Today
Gotta go to class, like now.
Later I have planned two Freiburg-based walks. One to Zahringen with Andrea. One to Rieselfeld with Alex and Gabe. It should be a fun day :)