in the crowd

I often wonder how many photographs I've been caught in, simply for being in the right place at the right time; or the wrong place, depending on how you look at it. I mean, think about it: I go to school in two cities that are heavily photographed, both by tourists and by artists. I'm bound to have walked into someone's shot, right?

And then I wonder if anyone ever notices me in their pictures and wonders about me, or creates a little history for me in his or her head. I mean, that's what I do. But perhaps I just have an overactive imagination...

simplicity.

i yearn for it.

the secret garden

While walking home today, I passed the florist, and had to stop and smell and admire all of the flowers on display. I've decided that, in the future, I need to have a giant garden in my house: either when I retire, should I live in the city for a while, or from the get-go. A giant garden filled to the brim with tulips and peonies in the spring, and roses and sunflowers in the summer heat.

It's funny, though, because whenever my parents wanted me to help out in the garden I always turned up my nose. Now, though, I am itching to plant something, to watch it grow; to create beauty. I want a giant garden of my own. I want to be able to take a walk through the grass, sprinkled with morning dew, and make a bouquet of home-grown flowers to put at the breakfast table. I want a beautiful place to entertain. I want a huge green lawn for kids and pets to run around in.

And I want a hammock strung between two trees so that I can read in peace.

may day

It's the first of May; a holiday here. No school, businesses are closed. And what a beautiful day for a holiday! The sun is out, the sky is blue. My orchid is on my windowsill enjoying some well-deserved sunshine.

But my orchid is not the fleur du jour, unfortunately. No, today is the day of the Lily of the Valley: my favorite flower. There's a picture of me the day I was brought home from the hospital, and I am clutching a bunch of lilies in my tiny little hand. So now it's tradition: lilies of the valley on my birthday chaque année. But today! Today there are flower sellers on every street corner selling these lovely, delicate little buds. There are even sprigs of the flower in the cakes at the boulangerie!

Happiness.

Happy Spring! Happy May Day.

just touched down in london town

The time has come for that London update! I guess I will begin at the beginning. This trip marks the first time that I have traveled alone, here in Europe, and I must say that it was very nice not having to wait for people and constantly worry about things. It also reaffirmed that yes, I can accomplish things by myself and find my way around. With the help of a good map, of course.

Anyway, I took the Eurostar to St. Pancras International. The train ride is about two and a half hours long, and probably 50% of the way is through tunnels. Therefore, my ears were going crazy trying to adjust to the constant changes in pressure. Going through the Chunnel was pretty cool, though, I suppose. I mean it was dark the whole time (about 20 minutes or so) but I got a text message on my phone the minute we sped into the countryside of Great Britain welcoming me, which made me feel pretty special. And hey, I've traveled through the Chunnel. Not everyone can say that.

Susie Q picked me up at the train station, and as soon as I walked outside I knew that I would like London. I stayed with Susie in her dorm room (yeah, sucks for NYU in London) but it was very clean and nice and perfect for the weekend. Let's see. What did we do the first day... After a lunch at Spaghetti House we spent some time exploring the National Gallery, and I got to see some very famous and very beautiful paintings. I must say, though, that late 19th century and 20th century art are definitely my favorite. And contemporary art. I am definitely not classic art's biggest fan. It all starts to look the same after a while; I like the originality and the innovation and the thought-provoking quality of modern art. But there were some Matisses and Monets, Magrittes and Picassos that I enjoyed. After the National Gallery we went to the London Eye and walked around the South Bank for a while, and got some snacks at Borough Market. That night we ate at a restaurant with the most ridiculous name ever: Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese. Yes. You read that correctly. I had myself some fish and chips with a side of mushy peas. Oh London. Later that night we hookah-ed and snuggled and I was a very happy camper.

The next day I walked Susie Q to class and saw the NYU in London building, which is pretty darn fancy. And then I was on my own until around 5 PM! Armed with my various maps and my itinerary, I attempted to take over London. I took a bus over to the Tate Modern, which took me a good forty-five minutes to find; it was only when I had given up on trying to find it when I actually found it. Funny how that happens. I blame it on poor road signs. Anyway, the Tate Modern was pretty cool. Much more up my alley. And I really love how museums are free! America should take note.

I had lunch at the Pret right outside the London Dungeon, and it was delicious, especially my dried mango slices. I then walked to the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London, and took lots of pictures, but didn't actually go in because it was too darn expensive. Looked cool, though. I walked around some more, taking photos, and then I ran around trying to find some place with WiFi so I could register for housing for next year. I ended up at a Pret, again, and munched on some more dried mango slices as I decided my fate for next year: Lafayette room #1001.

I met Molly and Ben on the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral afterwards, and we walked along the Thames and met up with Susie on the Jubilee Bridge. The four of us then walked by Parliament and Westminster Abbey, and then my feet began to feel like they were going to fall off. So we went back to Nido (the NYU dorm), I SHOWERED (exciting day!) and then we got dinner at a Caribbean-ish restaurant and it was scrumptious. The Bull and the Big Chill House that night. Yes.

Saturday was a pretty epic day. We all went back to Borough Market to get lunch, then spent a few hours laying around in Hyde Park, watching crazy people get arrested and pedal-boating. Hyde Park is beautiful and I loved laying in the grass sharing Stephen's iPod and feeling the sun warm my tired bones. My bones are tired. I am turning twenty in two weeks. Old.

We then walked around Notting Hill for a little bit, saw the Portobello Road market and got cupcakes at Hummingbird Bakery. Notting Hill, though it was really charming and quaint, was a bit of a disappointment because
a) I didn't get to see Abbey Road
b) Hummingbird was out of red velvet cupcakes
Oh well. I'll be back. Pretty sure I only saw about 35% of what I wanted to see in London.

Afterwards, Ben took us to Piccadilly Circus and Molly and I got cheapo tickets to see the Phantom of the Opera. She and I walked around Covent Garden and Theatreland for a while before the show, and I am completely and utterly in love with London. Granted, the weather probably had a lot to do with that, but I just really like the vibe of the city. Much more livable than Paris; at least where I'm living.

Anyway, Phantom blew my mind. I cried. I may or may not be a wimp, but I was very impressed with the performance. Then we made our way back to Nido, and subsequently went out and danced the night away at the Roxy.

And then I had to leave and I don't want to talk about it.

pensées du jour

I'll write about London soon.
But it's raining now. Thus, I am introspective.
Mint tea, Coconut Records,
and the sound of rain/against the windowpane
will do that to you.

I read a book for school this week.
It made me think. I love that.

Basically, trees are the only things that are free. I always thought birds were free, being able to fly wherever they please. Sometimes I wish I was a bird (even though I'm frightened of them). But this book says that trees are the only things that are free: they don't have to go anywhere. They don't have to do anything. They can just be and let the elements do their thing.

What do you think?
I wish I was a tree. Free.


In other news, I am making my bucket list.
The travel bug has bitten, and the eve of my twentieth rapidly approaches.

Life. It's all happening.

the travel bug bites

I suppose it's best just to jump right in: brace yourselves for a long (but hopefully interesting) entry!!

Barcelona

Despite ominous clouds threatening to dump water on us at any given moment and the chilly temperatures, and despite two of our party being sick and spending half their time here in the hostel, I really liked Barcelona. The sun did come out for brief periods of time, and all was right with the world.

Our hostel was right on the beach, which would have been ideal if the weather had felt like cooperating, but no matter: we were still close to Port Vell (above) and, thus, La Rambla, which is basically the main promenade in Barcelona. Let's see. Day One, we had some paella at a harbor-side restaurant, along with some two euro cerveza. Score. We then explored the Gothic Quarter a little bit, got gelato (of course) and had an amazing, amazing dinner: tapas are a great thing.

Day Two, the sun was out, despite Weather.com's warnings of "heavy rain." So we trucked it on up (rather, we took the subway) to Parc Guell, a park designed by Gaudi (below). This park is insane; it looks almost otherworldly! It was cool to walk around in this fantasy world and to see beautiful vistas of Barcelona and the ocean.

After that, we headed on down to Casa Mila, otherwise known as La Pedrera, and waited in line to see this ninety-degree-angle-free building for about two hours. No matter; it was worth it. I think I would have liked to meet Gaudi and talked to him for a little bit to find out what inspired him and what sorts of thoughts were in his head.

Day Three was Easter Sunday, so we went to church at Santa Maria de somethingorother. I only understood snippets of the Mass, since it was, of course, in Catalan, but it was cool to just get lost in the words and focus on the general ritual and the general feeling that I get whenever I'm inside a place of worship. I feel a lot more peaceful, and I reflected a lot about the current state of things in my mind. It started pouring after lunch, and it was probably about negative thirty degrees, so our visit to Sagrada Familia consisted of running outside the subway stop, snapping two or three pictures, and running right back to the subway. Easter dinner was absolutely scrumptious though; we decided to splurge and eat at a pretty ritzy restaurant. Let's just say my stomach was very, very happy, but my wallet was a little light afterwards.

Morocco (aka what you've all been waiting for)

All right. First up, and most importantly, Marrakech.

I am completely and utterly in love with Marrakech, in retrospect. While I was there I felt a little uncomfortable, for a couple of reasons. First of all, the men are very, very forward in their advances; worse even than European men. It is very disconcerting to walk past a café (which, in Morocco, are solely the men's domain) and to be hissed at, whistled at, and leered at. Some of the pickup lines were funny: I was called a Spice Girl, and Jennifer Lopez, and one guy told me he'd seen my Facebook, but I couldn't help but feel pretty uncomfortable. It takes a lot of getting used to. We also attracted a lot of strange looks from the locals because our group was entirely female, and a lot of skin was exposed. Relative to the locals, of course. But by the end of our three days in Marrakech I was getting the hang of the winding streets and I am now a pro at ignoring men. Oh well. I'll be back.

Anyway, Marrakech! We saw so many beautiful and exotic things that I don't even know where to begin. I suppose I could begin with our hostel, which was incredible. If you're ever in Marrakech, definitely stay at Equity Point: a rooftop terrace, delicious traditional Moroccan breakfast, lots of lounges with plush pillows and colorscolorscolors everywhere--and our rooms were pretty sweet too. It was basically a hotel: for 18 euros a night. Rough life, I know.

Day One: First up, Koutoubia minaret and gardens. This is the tallest minaret in Marrakech, which is quite a feat, considering that there are probably about 70 mosques in the medina (the old city) alone. We, as nonbelievers, were not allowed near the mosque, but its gardens are a breeding ground for tourists, and we joined their ranks. Marrakech is truly the city of roses.

We then headed to some more gardens: this time, Jardins Majorelle (above), which were maintained by Yves Saint Laurent (RIP). I thought I had found paradise on Earth, and I am not even kidding. I would definitely not mind living here.

Tangent: The more time I spend travelling, the more I realize that being around nature is very important to me. Beach, mountains, forests...I need it. And it's weird because I always thought that I was a city girl, going to school in NYC and Paris and everything. Looks like I'm going to need to compromise. West Coast here I come??

Day Two: I can officially say that I have ridden a camel. Well, a dromedary, but still. I have ridden one. Through an African oasis in the Palmeraies of Marrakech. Chicka chicka yeahhh. What else. We saw the Marrakech Museum, the Medersa Ben Youssef, and a 12th century mosque. I thought my eyes were going to go crazy from all those mosaics! Good thing I had all that thé à la menthe to calm me down.. Yummy. Moroccan food is incredible. Goodness, day two was busy. After lunch we plunged into the souks, or the artisan street markets to do some shopping. Haggling with vendors is intimidating! But I got the hang of it, and I got my parents some nice presents. Oh and a sweet ring for myself. Yes. And after that Sarah, Teresa and I ventured into the Djemaa el Fna, the main square in Marrakech. Snake charmers, trained monkeys, musicians, storytellers, fresh-squeezed orange juice for three dirhams (thirty centimes!) ... My favorite place. So much energy, so many colors, so much life! And what were we doing there? Getting henna tattoos, of course! Oh Marrakech. How I love thee.

Casablanca....did not live up to my expectations. I suppose I was imagining the Casablanca out of the movie, even though I knew that it wasn't actually filmed there. The real Casablanca is a dirty, gritty city. The buildings are white, though, and there were lots of palm trees (above) to distract me from the bidonvilles and stray cats everywhere. The second biggest mosque in the world (Mosquée Hassan II) was pretty impressive as well, and having cheesecake at Rick's Café (a tourist trap) was pretty nice as well. We could have gone to the beach, I suppose, but the clouds followed us to Casablanca as well. Oh well. Now I know!

Next up: London!