Of Sweet Dreams and Flying Machines

As I am writing this, it is my last night in England and as of now, the adventure is over. Soon, I will have to go back to the real world with traffic, cursing, smog, family, responsibilities, the beach, and Vietnamese food. Yet, while I am excited, and have been for a month or so, there is still a feeling of loss, of business left unfinished.

I was unsure of what I should call this feeling until suddenly talking to my best friend over the phone, it came to me.

It feels unreal. Like it happened to someone else and that I was just watching. It was not me on those trains, climbing up those mountains, seeing those sights. It was someone else and I was only dreaming. That's what it feels like: a long, tiring, exhilarating dream. It was the feeling I had after Paris and I had not felt it again until now. And I feel like at any moment, I am going to wake up and I will be back in California, getting ready to leave for England once again. Like this is all just a precursor to the next, great chapter. Which is an appropriate feeling considering that I am applying for graduate school this upcoming fall. At the same time, I never want this hazy dream to end but coincidentally, I cannot wait to wake up and find my way home.

I feel sad, as if I am saying good-bye to something forever (it seems like it with my British friends), something which I do not know I am ever going to see again. It's a feeling that you are losing something and at the same time, I am gaining my life back, the life I know and have grown up alongside.

Like most things, there are gains and losses, light and dark.

You always hear people say, "Before they die, I want to do this..." At the risk of sounding morbid, I know that if everything were to end tomorrow, I know that I would have gone at the height of it all. I would have seen some extraordinary things, met some of the best people I have ever met, and held the world in my hands. There will be no regrets and no options for sadness.

And that's the most perfect thing of all, the most perfect feeling to have, and the most poignant as well.

"I've seen fire and I've seen rain
I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end
I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend
But I always thought that I'd see you again" - James Taylor, "Fire and Rain"



P.S. The blog is not over, by the way. Though if you were here for my adventures and, like me, feel like it's time to come back to Earth, then now would be the time to stop reading. As for the rest, I will be continuing with my perceptions upon coming back, as well as miscellaneous abroad-related things. Thank you all for reading and see you on the other side.

Of Things I Will Miss About the UK

To wind down this blog (since I am going home in 1 day), I would like to address England and thank her for having me these past 6 months. And to begin my goodbyes, I would like to speak of the things I will miss about England

1) Teatime. Especially with cakes and scones filled with jam and clotted cream. My favorite memory of tea were when we visited Allison's family friend, Joan (who were good friends with Allison's mother), and she served us tea in china cups painted with English roses, as well as cakes on matching rose plates. I have never felt more proper and the tea tasted marvelous as well. Or, if it wasn't in china cups, it was just tea time with my flatmates on Sundays where we catch up on the past week or gossip, just like those British ladies on TV.

2) Wildflowers. The weather is not as kind to plants in California. Yet in England, all the rain means that everything is an intense shade of green and the flowers grow tall, large, and so lovely. I am still amazed upon coming back from Italy to find freshly grown daffodils that seem to spring up overnight. That's the magic of this place.

3) Chocolate. And by chocolate, I mean real chocolate such as Galaxy and Cadbury that has the right amount of cacao content in them to make them chocolate, different than dry, old Hershey bars. You can't get them at home for this cheap and definitely not in large bar form.

4) Small. The small size of everything, from the doorways to the streets. Everything here is built on a smaller scale which makes a short person like me feel strangely comforted. And most of the towns here are also built on a small scale with a main street. I will miss that old-fashion quality about it.

5) History. Europe has that air of regal history about her. America is the vivaciousness of youth. The buildings here are of an older, beautiful aged quality. Home is all slick skyrises and glass houses. I will miss the Elizabethan and Georgian style houses (with their corresponding names such as Lilac Cottage or Cranford House), in their small towns where everything is in walking distance, and the history of years behind them.

6) Public transport. I do complain quite a bit about the lack of punctuality in the British transport system but the plus thing about it is that it's there and it takes you everywhere in England. Living in the middle of a green field, I would be stuck if it were not for the 4 different bus lines that run through campus. So thank you Unibus, Travel Coventry, and Stagecoach buses, plus Virgin, London Midland, and other train lines for helping to transport me to strange, far off places as soon I got bored.

Most of all, I will miss the wonderful people that I have met here, English, German, Swedish, Irish, and of course, other Americans. Without them, this experience would not have been as enriching, rewarding, and oh so fun. They have, for the lack of a better term, have taught me so much (one of which was proper British English). I gained a new understanding and knowledge of other cultures through these people, laughed and drank with them, and found a connection over common bonds which I did not think would be present. I learned that in the end, we are all the same, which is oddly comforting.

So I am saying my goodbyes, so long, farewells, and I hope one day to come back. So long England, and thanks for all the biscuits!


So long sheep, I think I'll miss you most of all

Of the Stage

"All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts..."

As quoted from Shakespeare's famous cross-dressing comedy, "As You Like It" and one of the most famous monologues in the Bard's repertoire. It was also the play that led me back into London, for the last time, to the Globe theater (the second version since the first version burned down during the English Renaissance). This was also where I got to play another part: groundlings.



We were the Elizabethan poor villagers who could not afford the seats but instead, could only stand. Despite that, where we were, in front of the center stage steps, were the best view in the house. Orlando and Rosaline were close enough to touch and from that vantage point, I could see every flicker of emotion that passed their faces and every quirk in their body language. I had never been so close before in the theater and now, the mezzanine will never be the same again.

In truth, it was the best 5 pounds I had ever spent and a poignant last overnight trip, at the place where I first came into England. In a way, listening to this speech was a fitting in since it is just indicative of the end of another act in my life. And as I'm writing this, two days before I fly back home, the Bard's words have never held more resonance. It is time for the scene to change and for the actress to bid adieu to the audience. Adieu!



"Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything."

P.S. To complete my Shakespearean experience, I also made a pilgrimage six days later to Stratford Upon Avon, the childhood home of the bard and the place where he died (now converted into a little Shakespeare town with matching Renaissance style buildings and streets). There, in the backyard of his childhood house, I also encountered the monologue again. We never escape the bard.

Of Le Art du Vin

To close off my postings about the Loire Valley (you can see how much I adored the region on how many postings I dedicated to it). I would like to dedicate a short posting to the art of wine tasting and wine making. France and wine have become synonymous with each other, with the French perfecting wine making down to an art. They invented the study of viticulture for goodness sakes so they do know a thing or two about wine.

The Loire Valley where I visited are known for their white wine, especially the sparkling variety. The best way to get a wine tour is to sign up with a tour company who will take you to a number of different wineries and allow you to get a tasting at each one. All in the course of one afternoon.

I found myself on a very private tour with just me, a French tour guide, and 2 Canadian ladies (who knew less about wine than I did, which was to some relief).

Wine tasting is a delicate affair, full of unspoken rules.



1) The wine tasting is never free. There is always a fee and if you request a tasting, they are going to expect you to buy a bottle of wine, out of courtesy. Thankfully, as part of the tour group, we were not under any such obligations.

2) When the wine is poured, swill it around the glass to let it breathe. Smell it, take in the aroma of the wine in order to pinpoint all of the notes it contains. Like a perfume, let each layer reach shyly towards you.

3) Swish the wine in your mouth to better savor the many flavors within. Take your time, this is not an event to rush but a privilege to be enjoy. A wine is going to taste different every year since the amount of rainfall or the quality of the dirt will change the flavor of the grapes, give it different qualities that it may lack from previous years. Different flavors of grapes will equal a unique wine that can only be found within that particular year.

4) When you are done savoring the wine, spit (that's what the silver bucket is for). Swallowing is fine if you are not driving and you are only tasting a couple of wines. Swallowing is not fine when you have 10 different wines to taste and prone to getting light-headed from the beverage. I speak from personal (and shameful) experience, though in my defense, the only people who spit out the wine was our French tour guide.

Lastly, the coolest thing that I saw were the storage units for the wines. No warehouses and electric refrigerators in France. Here, nature is the master, and only her own refrigerator will do. The quarries underneath the hillsides are deep, rocky, and absolutely frigid. Perfect for storing that 1873 Chinon Blanc (a real wine too, worth 200 euros, which I saw in person, as well as other 100+ year old wines).



I also found my favorite type of white wine: sparkling. Like champagne but sweeter, it is heaven in a flute glass. A wine so complicated that it takes a month to prepare the newly fermented wine for transport to wine shops (a process that includes tipping the bottle, freezing it, then leaving it for an additional couple of weeks for the shock to settle). The result is the only wine bottle I purchased that day, which I cannot wait to drink.

Of Le Jardin

I may have been a bit vague in that last posting about where I was and why and how I got there. Well, let us backtrack. I had always planned on going back to France, if only to visit an authentic French vineyard and participate in a tasting. Lana, one of my travel mates, and I had actually planned to go to Bordeaux - home of French wine - but at the last minute, she decided to take a solo trip to the Isle of Skye, which left me by my lonesome as the only person who wanted to go back to France.

Short of hating myself for the rest of my life for not going back to France, I decided to throw caution to the wind and buy myself a plane ticket to Tours, France in the Loire Valley, recommended by many travel websites for its white wine and chateaux. What commenced was five too-short days traveling completely alone. Why so short? Because any longer and my brother-in-law, the only person in my family who would not kill me for doing this, was the only person who knew.

And because for safety purposes, a 4'11'' Asian girl with a lack of street smarts traveling around for an extended period of time all by herself is a recipe for trouble.

The reasons I wanted to go to the Loire Valley was three-fold: self-examination (ruminated on in the prior post), the wine, and the chateaux, of which there were more than 300 in the valley. Oh to be a rich nobleman in France during the 17th-19th century...or to be his wife...

The first one is the most famous: the Chateau de Chenonceau, out of more than 300 chateaux in the Loire Valley (also known as "Le Jardin de France" because of the rolling green hillsides dotted with beautiful castles).

In the afternoon, I boarded a train from Tours to visit the chateau. Getting off of the train, there was nothing around except for the sound of the birds. Then, I followed a grove of trees which I recognized from so many historical dramas with the main heroine being taken to a secluded mansion in the countryside, hidden by a tree-lined path. That was what I felt like, except my carriage was my two feet and I was trying to look past the trees, to catch my first glimpse of the chateau.

Then, my breath caught in my chest as the trees, like curtains, opened up and presented me with this:

In the late spring sun, with the chirping of the birds all around, I was a lady, calling on the owner. The most beautiful part of the chateau, besides its 3 stories of tapestry filled rooms, where the gardens, filled with the scent of spring roses blooming in every color and arranged in romantic swirling patterns. Everything had that feminine touch of romance, which is no surprise since it was owned by Diane de Poitiers and Catherine de Medici (at different times), who were both involved with French monarchs.

And speaking of monarchs, the next day was the Chateau d'Amboise which I chose as a pilgrimage to the grave of Leonardo da Vinci, who died there. The chateau was located in the town of Amboise and overlooks it like a crown. Prior to coming, I wondered how I was going to be able to find the chateau if it was located in the town. To my surprise, it was not hard to find, as it was my first sight as I crossed the bridge from the train station into the little town of Amboise.

This one belonged to King Francois I. The rooms were a bit simpler than Chenonceau yet elegant all the same, with wooden chairs, decorated pillars, and gargoyles (indicative of a residual Gothic influence).

Afterward, I visited the Chateau du Close Luce, located about a couple of blocks north. This modest house, by royalty standards, here Leonardo spent the last 4 years of his life, at the request of King Francois I, who funded his experiments and art during that time. There was also a tunnel underneath the house that connected it to the Chateau d'Amboise, and where Francois could visit Leonardo whenever he wished.

It is also to this place that Leonardo brought the Mona Lisa when he finished it, not wanting to part with such a unique piece of art. Perhaps that is why the roses grown in the Renaissance-style garden are called Mona Lisa roses.

Visiting these chateaux, filled with so much history and beauty, one can't help but feel a little like royalty. Especially when they are not as well-known as Versailles and as such, you can walk the rooms alone and pretend you are a solitary visitor, a Renaissance noble, calling upon the master of the house. I almost did not want to leave this dream.

The Loire Valley, the photo album

Of Le Voyage Sentimental

The wine glass in my hand is cool to the touch. I examine the bubbles that steadily float to the surface, disappearing only to have a myriad of others take their place. I tip the glass. The wine touches my lips, sweet, a hint of fruit, and the bubbles flutter, a tickling sensation. An inexplicable giggle escapes me. I cannot pinpoint where exactly this pure delight came from. Perhaps it is the wine.

Or perhaps, it is something more broad. A combination of the place, of its sounds and sights. The taste of the wine on my tongue and the salad on my plate. In this place, this time, 8PM in Tours, France, surrounded by a stream of passing dialogue which I cannot understand, I feel something which had eluded me, which I had been trying to find as I rode on long train rides to far off destinations. Freedom. But most of all: invisibility.

Here, in this place, on my own, I am no one. I have no name, no identity. I do not need to speak with anyone nor is there anyone I desire to speak to. I do not need to follow anyone, to make any decisions for anyone. I only need myself and for once, I am comforted by that.

Here, I am just being.

I cannot say what compelled me to make this independent journey, bereft of the companionship of my friends. Perhaps it was because there was no one willing to come with me. Perhaps I did not look hard enough. Or perhaps, in reality, I wanted to do this one trip alone, to prove to myself that I was truly grown up, ready to make my own decisions, lead my own fate.

And this final trip is but a metaphor for my desired state of being.

They say as you grow older, more independent, you become more comfortable with yourself. And I cannot pinpoint the exact moments where I have turned into a different person, a more confident person. There are times where I feel insecure and insignificant. But not now, not at this moment in time. At this restaurant. At this time of night. Instead, I feel at ease, strangely happy to just be me. As the American poet William Carlos Williams once wrote, "I am lonely, lonely./I was born to be lonely,/I am best so!"

Indeed, sometimes, it's the best way to be.

Of Climbing in Wales

In Rogers and Hammerstein's "The Sound of Music," the Mother Superior says to a lovestruck, yet doubtful Maria that she must "climb every mountain, ford every stream, follow every river, until you find your dream!" And as I was trudging up Mount Snowdon in Northern Wales - ascending towards a meager, yet handsome 3000 feet and the highest point in the UK - the song kept repeating itself in my head.

What was also nagging at me was the desire to collapse and sleep for a thousand years.

But in my head, I heard my own Mother Superior telling me to "climb every mountain," not because of any intangible dream, but rather, "you've already been doing this for the last 3 hours, what's 1 more?" It was 1PM and the sun was beating down on us in what would turn out (coincidentally) to be the hottest day of the season. And I had forgotten to apply sunscreen (having forgotten that foreign method of protection). So onward...



How did I get myself into this situation with no sunscreen, no tissues for my sniffling nose, and the sun beating down on me? Well, the whole point of going to Wales was two-folds: Welsh castles and Snowdonia National Park. We were going to go back in February but according to the websites, Mount Snowdon was a "death trap" during the winter season. So we decided to go to Paris instead. And I was trudging up a particularly steep slope, it was a good choice to wait until now. Though I do wish we could have done it a couple of days ago when it was cloudy and misting. At least then I would not be sweating rivulets, wanting to dive into the nearest pool of water, and getting a horrible sunburn to boost (and future skin cancer).



We could have taken the steam train, which had its base in the town of Llanberis. But we decided that as young, athletic, strong walkers that we were, we would just save that 15 pounds round trip and do it the old fashion way.


Every...single...step

And 4 hours later, we were at the top.



A quick stop for lunch at the top of the world, where my ham sandwich and orange juice tasted like the most amazing meal I had ever had. An hour to enjoy the breeze. And what followed was the way down. And the fight continues...



I did soak my tired feet in the cold and clear mountain lake water at the bottom. And it felt amazing. In that needles and potential frost-bite kind of way.

P.S. And about that Welsh Castle? Big, stony, and filled with mysterious dark corridors. What else can you expect from a castle?


Caernarfon Castle. Built by King Edward I to suppress Welsh rebels and inspired by the Roman ruins at Constantinople.

Wales, the photo album

Of Wandering in the Lake District

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

The Lake District is considered one of the primary vacation spots in Britain, the place in many a Victorian novels and poetry where denizens of England can go, unwind, and relax beside the peaceful green hills, the wildflowers, the lakes, and, my personal favorite, the fabulous old-fashioned real estate that had names such as "Lilac Cottage" or "Lipwood"

Continuous as the stars that shine
and twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

Our main spot was the small town of Windermere, right next to the lake of a same name. Up on the overlook called Forest Head, we were able to get a view of the entire lake and hills and valleys beyond. It was cold, windy, and rainy, as England weather is oft to be this time of the year. If I were to look at this positively, I would just say it gave the landscape a sense of mystery, another edge that William Wordsworth certainly did not mention in his books about this place.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
in such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
what wealth the show to me had brought:

While in the tiny town of Grasmere, we came upon the house of William Wordsworth, where he lived there for 8 years with his sister. In his poems, he often spoke of walking and allowing the beauty of nature to move you, to seep into your senses and inspire you towards creativity. As a result, he wrote some of the richest and emotional poetry in the English language. Not a bad gift that nature gave him.

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils. - "I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud" by William Wordsworth

What certainly filled my heart with pleasure was not so much the daffodils (being dead this time of year) but rather, something else that danced, that smelled like heaven, and that brought a sense of warmth to an otherwise cold day: Grasmere gingerbread. Part biscuit, part cake, this special recipe can only be found in the little town of Grasmere in the Lake District and the scent of it brought home images of warm tea and cakes in beautiful china cups. And the ginger, oddly enough, reminded me of home so for a while, instead of wandering in a little town in England, I wanted to wander home. Time to leave and continue on...

The Lake District, the photo album

Of Friendly Locals in Inverness

After 8 European countries and countless interactions with the locals later, I can safely say that the Scottish are the friendliest people in Europe. Example: we are walking down Church Street in Inverness trying to find a place to eat dinner and at the same time, find Hootenanny's, a pub that was supposed to have live Scottish music. We are discussing the horrid music played at clubs these days when suddenly, an older Scottish gentleman inquired as to what kind of music we listened to.

"We're looking for traditional Scottish music," I said.

He then proceeded to lead us to Hootenanny's, recommending it for both the music and the Thai food (strange combination), as well as giving us two more places we could have dinner. There were no questions asked, no creepy aura, only an inherent friendliness and a desire to talk to newcomers.


Inverness, on the bank of the river Ness

We also made small talk with a souvenir shopkeeper the next day, bonding over common experiences in Lucerne and Paris, while realizing that for young Americans, we have traveled and seen quite a lot. He also gave us a map and pointed us towards the bay near town for dolphin watching. Sadly, you needed a car to get there and I again curse my lack of a car.

Apparently, in order to fully enjoy the Scottish Highlands, you need a car. Or you can sign up for a tour of the area, which is what we did, giving us a bus tour of the area and a boat tour.



Which leads us to Loch Ness, where we sailed down the Caledonian Canal that connects Loch Ness to the North Sea and then proceeded to get splashed by cold Loch Ness water while the other passengers laughed at our soaked frames.

Though we did not find Nessie, Loch Ness did not disappoint as it gave us the right amount of grey clouds to make the lake sufficiently foreboding and mysterious. And out of the mists was the picturesque Scottish ruins of Urquhart Castle. It may have been cold, windy, and slightly misty but I expected that from Scotland. What I did not expect were the friendliness of the locals so every place, as my dad would say, does have its good side. And the Scottish music at Hootenanny's ended up being very good. They even played an old American folk song, "Shenandoah." So ends this part of the UK. Next stop: the Lake District.


According to the shopkeeper, Inverness is deep enough to hold 2 Eiffel Towers.

Inverness, the photo album

Of Ghost Hunting in Edinburgh

The wonderful (and I use this term lightly) thing about living in the UK is that winter, unlike California, feels like winter. It is cloudy, rainy, sometimes snowy, and all the time cold. The real cold, under 40 degrees Fahrenheit and actually warranting of wearing hats, scarves, gloves, and (God help me), Ugg boots. However, the downside of the UK in the winter is that traveling around it is not the brightest of ideas, as exhibited by Allison who went to Scotland in April and assured me that was mind-numbingly freezing (especially the water). Which was why we left places like Scotland, Northern England, and Wales for the latter part of our time here. And Paris ended up being the perfect winter destination anyway so no momentum was lost.

And so it brings me to the first of the handful of last travelogue postings: Edinburgh, Scotland. Or as its known to by those who live there, "the most haunted city in the UK." Did we find ghost? Well, you shall see...

Edinburgh, Scotland's main city and the land of 1000 tartan kilts

Like most cities that we have visited so far, we decided to stay as far away from the center of the city as possible (see Paris, Amsterdam, Venice, Rome). Yet this time, being cheap did not really bite us in the back since the view we got of the North Sea under the sunset was breathtaking. The water was so clear along the shorelines and since this was the first time I had been on a beach since I've come here, it felt almost like home (well, home sans the frigid water and the beautiful shells that I found).

Then, there was the obligatory castle which, according to our tour guide, was defended against foreign invaders (at one point) by only 30 troops. It looks like building castles on the edge of cliffs does have its perks.

Edinburgh Castle

Yet, this time, it was not the big structures that were unforgettable. Rather, it was the more unconventional things that were memorable. After all, at this point, I have already seen more than my fair share of ancient castles, large museums, and medieval districts (though it won't be the last of it, as you will see in future blog posts). Like, for example, I dined at the Elephant Castle, where JK Rowling first wrote Harry Potter on pieces of napkin. Sadly I did not receive any artistic inspiration while sitting there but the meat pie and tea was pretty good.

The most unconventional thing was, my favorite part, the ghost tour. Thus far, it had only been sight seeing and picturesque moments so to do something like this was out of the ordinary for us. Yet, it was also some of the most fun times that we had on this trip if only because of the (allegedly) true ghost stories that were told as we walked around the Royal Mile (center of medieval Edinburgh). There were stories of bloody public executions consisting of mutilations and public floggings. Then there was one of a wandering ghost in the many closes of old city, of a man who was executed for murder and now takes to walking around in the mists, scaring passersby with his echoing footsteps.

Or of the friendly cobbler ghosts hanging around the underground tunnels of Edinburgh who has a penchant for shoes. I'm not entirely sure if any of this was true since I do not entirely believe in ghosts. Yet, what I do believe is the otherworldly aura of Edinburgh, especially those tunnels, with their cold stillness from lack of air flow. I do agree that there is something about those underground tunnels that did make the hair on the back of your neck stand on ends and your heart to race, despite the fact that nothing was moving there.

There was moment when I did scream and I'm not sure if it was the story (of a woman who awoke from a coma but found herself in a coffin and her fingers being chopped off by grave robbers), the scream the pierced the air that was both mine and the tour guide, or maybe just the claustrophobic nature of those underground rooms and passageways. Let's just say that I was glad to step outside again.

Until we paid a 10PM visit to a cemetery and my friend Allison took a picture of a moon that wasn't there. I'm not so sure if there's anything after death but sometimes...you just don't know.

It looks like a stray camera light but it only shows up in this particular photo.

Edinburgh, the photo album

Of Isabelle

I would like to take this time to take us away from our normal programming to talk about events back home, most of all, the birth of a very special little girl.

Meet Isabelle.



She is the daughter of Tieu and my second oldest sister, Thu. She was born at 10PM California time on June 9, 2009. Weighing at just 4 pounds, 10 ounces, she is the smallest baby I have ever seen. And apparently, she is also very adventurous since she came almost 3 weeks early. Maybe one day she'll go abroad and write a blog about it too.

She is also the first baby girl in the family since me, and she is my first niece. Who has a lot of pink, poofy dresses coming towards her because after two nephews and many blue pant suits later, I finally get to shop in the little girl section.

Of Tumultuous Weather

I am sitting in my room, 24 hours and 600 words from being finished with my last Warwick Uni essay (ironically enough, the highest essay score I have received yet was on one that I absolutely abhorred writing. Which always seems to be the case in University). And it just down-poured for a good 10 minutes before clearing up back into greyness.

I am not one for stereotypes but times like these, I do find that sticking to the British stereotype of massive amounts of rainfall is the most likely way to predict British weather. At this point, I have given trying to look up the day's forecast on weather.com because I know that in one day during this season, it can go from overcast to drizzle to downpour then to sun. Sometimes all in the span of one hour. I guess that's part of that British charm; like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get when it comes to the weather here. I have also had a couple of really hot days here that were comparable to California summer. But like most things British, it was quickly eclipsed the next day with rain.

One thing that I can say positively about British weather is, though tumultuous, it is a lot more lenient to its denizens than California spring. Case in point: wildflowers. You never see this kind of bed in Orange County.

Oh look! It just got sunny again!

Of Music in Vienna

Looking back on Vienna (the last stop on my Eurotrip this past April), I think I will always put it as one of my biggest regrets. Forgetting that I was going to Austria, I did not plan anything in advance in anticipation of it, even though in the back of my head, it occurred to me that the city was the mecca of classical music and opera and that I should probably try to see some sort of show (especially when standing room tickets at the opera house and concert halls were only 5 euros). Alas, this wonderful thought did not occur to me until I was riding on the train to Vienna and thinking, "Oh wait, Vienna was my contribution to this part of the trip, where should we go?" That's what happens when you get trapped into the complacency that comes with being mellow and letting other people lead you around.


Vienna - 2 days

So what did happen in Vienna, besides the marathon that was going on as we were within the city that weekend, were 4 Americans stumbling around like zombies trying to enjoy the city but in actuality, just wanting to lay down and sleep for 100 years. At this point, after having been to 5 other countries this month alone, I was mentally tired and was not in the right state to thoroughly enjoy such a beautiful city.

Yet, what did hit me was how grand and beautiful the city center was. I can go on record to say that Vienna has one of the most beautiful city centers that I have ever seen. The road around that area were lined with trees and it was filled with public parks that were blooming with flowers, trees, and the occasional monument to a famous composer (I only saw three when we were there but trying to find them is like a scavenger hunt, they are scattered all through the city).


Monument to Mozart, who was buried in an unmarked grave outside of the city (which I regret not going to, Beethoven and countless other composers are buried nearby there too!)

The weekend we were there, there was a chance to go into one palace, we picked the Hofburg Imperial Palace which was built with a mixture of Baroque, Rococo, and Neoclassical styles. Walking within the royal apartments, I was subtly reminded of Versailles but a more Neoclassical, simpler version that did not contain as much gold. Sadly, the royal apartments was the only place we went into since every component of the Hofburg had a separate entrance fee (and they don't even let you take pictures!)



Another educational experience was our tour of the Burgtheatre, built by Empress Marie Theresa (mother of Marie Antoinette) in the 1700's and filled with paintings from Gustave Klimt. You cannot help but feel like royalty when you walk up the more than 200 year old entrance hall, the grandeur of everything and being able to pretend that you were seeing a play there does help you feel like a million dollars. I even sat in a box for the first time in my life, my next goal is being able to afford to sit in a box to see a show. One of these days...


Come right in your highness...

Of course, a trip to Vienna would not be complete without trying the coffee. And despite the fact that I was not able to hear any classical music in one of the grand concert halls, I did hear a pianist during our afternoon coffee break play Leonard Bernstein "I Feel Pretty" while having a wonderful cappuccino. So it was not a complete loss. Yet, just walking around the city and listening to everything gave me a taste as to why so many famous composers wrote their best pieces here. The whole city is filled with music, I could hear it from the festivals that were going on in front of the Rathaus to the music from the street players beside the Danube Canal (the Danube River is located outside of the city), to just the chattering of people sitting in the park. It was not a symphony played with a full orchestra but it was musical nevertheless.


Eiskaffee, coffee with vanilla ice cream and my favorite thing about Austria.

Vienna, the photo album

Of Up!

Now, here is another conundrum about living across the pond.

Why is it that while America is the land that gave birth to Hollywood and thus, the first movie stars and celebrities, and where a majority of films and film companies originate, movies are so much more expensive over there than in Britain. I went to the local electronics store and saw a two disk special edition of Sweeney Todd priced at 10 pounds! That's 15 dollars! Wanna know how much that goes for on Amazon.com $22.99, retail price $34.99. In what world does that make sense?

Of course, that's just one example, I'm not counting the myriad of new releases that were all priced at 5 pounds. And at that point, I cursed US Region 1 DVD players.

Another thing that's cheaper in the UK, Ipods. And I am sure that Apple is not even remotely British. But that's another issue.

Yet, what does make me sad about being in the UK is missing the release of movies, since - "Lord of the Rings" and "Harry Potter" aside, the US tends to get first dibs on movie release dates. I will be missing the premiere of "Up" while I'm here and when I go back to California, guess what's going to get its first worldwide release in London? "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince." Like the new "Wolverine" movie, this sucks.

And now, to alleviate the pain, the new trailer of Pixar's "Up," which opened the Cannes Film Festival. At least some film juries take animated pictures seriously, ie: no one in the Academy, whom I will never forgive for snubbing "Wall-E" in the Best Picture nomination. But again, that's another story.

Of the Nature Boy

There was a boy...A very strange enchanted boy

19th century King Ludwig II of Bavaria. The tour guides said he was "eccentric." We think he just was not ready to be King of Bavaria which is why he chose to retreat into a world of fairy tales and music.

They say he wandered very far...Very far...

Hohenschwengau, located next to the Bavarian Alps and the nearby town of Fussen (where we stayed), and the summer palace of the Bavarian Royal Family. Yet, Ludwig was not satisfied and sought to build his own dream world. It was in Hohenschwengau where he retreated to oversee the construction of his magnum opus.

Over land and sea...

You cannot take pictures inside the castle except for the view out of the windows. And what a view it was. If you could wake up every day and see such a sight from your window, anyone would feel like royalty. You can see my pink camera floating on top of the lake.

A little shy, and sad of eye...But very wise was he...

Neuschwanstein castle, Ludwig's legacy and fantasy come true. It was the unfinished product of personal funds, 14 years worth of work, and of dreams. Today, it's one of the most visited places in Germany and the model for Sleeping Beauty's castle in Disneyland. It also has a cave (complete with waterfall) within one of its many rooms and a large concert room for Richard Wagner, Ludwig's close friend and favorite composer. Like the inside of Hohenschwengau, you can only enter the castle via a tour, which you buy tickets for at the foot of the mountain. But it was well worth it just for the panoramic view of the Bavarian countryside, the mountains, and the image of the quintessential fantasy castle come to life.

And then one day
One magic day he passed my way
And while we spoke of many things...
Fools and kings...
This he said to me...

Sadly, after a mere 100 days within the castle, Ludwig was declared mentally insane and overthrown. 3 days later, his body was found floating in Starnberger Lake, a sign that the world is not kind to dreamers...

Despite his tragic and untimely death, for 100 days, Ludwig got to do what so many of us can only dream of someday doing: live in his perfect, fantasy world. That is some consolation.


"The greatest thing, you'll ever learn, is just to love
And be loved, in return" - Eden Ahbez, "Nature Boy"

Fussen, the photo album

Of Wow in Switzerland

Wow, that's all I could really say about Switzerland...just wow. The amazing part was, I did not expect it to be as breath taking as it was. I was just speechless when I set foot out of the train station and before me was Lake Lucerne and the freakin' Alps! Imagine waking up to this every morning:


Lucerne. Time spent: 2 days.

Thinking about Switzerland, I always imagined things like chocolate, rolling hillsides, and yodeling. There wasn't much yodeling but there were a lot of green hills, farm animals, and beautiful, beautiful scenery. Lucerne was that perfect size between metropolitan city and small town. There were just enough cars and shops to give it life but not too big that it was stifling. We spent the better part of the day just walking by the lakeside and looking out at the waters. I found myself taking pictures of the same thing over and over again since every time I thought I had a good view of the lake and the mountains, I got an even better one a couple of yards up.



Of course, the downside with Lucerne was the hefty pricetag. Since the Swiss Franc was equal in value to the dollar, everything looked more expensive (I had gotten used to a small number on the price tag, even if sometimes that number equaled something exponentially bigger in dollars) and in actuality, it was more expensive. $18 for a souvenir little boy t-shirt...oy vey. Suffice to say, all I have from Lucerne are memories and a LOT of Lindt chocolate, which was the cheapest thing and which came in fun flavors such as creme brulee, chocolate mousse, and cherry and chili. For the latter, I'm not entirely sure how it tastes, that's what the people back home are for when I give it to them as a Swiss souvenir.

Yet, the best part about Lucerne, the one that made up for the hefty pricetag, were the Alps. At a cost of 50 euros (after a discount since we had a Eurail pass), a ski lift took us all the way up 7000 feet to the top of Mount Pilatus where according to local legend, a dragon is supposed to be buried there. Of course, I didn't go for the dragon but rather, I went for this view:



I remember going to Yosemite National Park in California when I was 8 and there was a sign that said that because of smog, that visibility from the top of those mountains had decreased. Which is why, standing on top of the world, and being able to see far and wide, even out to Germany, I just felt so lucky to be able to see something like that. It seemed to me that this was nature at its purist, no trace of smog, no hint of civilization, just clouds, water, fields, and snow for miles around. Though there was a small trace, a cross and church on a summit, probably because it was the closest thing to heaven. But in that part of the world, that high up, that little structure eemed like something that was not built humans but rather, by God (or whoever God is called). You couldn't help feeling so small and minuscule, like in so many sublime paintings of the wilderness and the grandeur of everything just threatened to overlap you.



Afterward, we went into the restaurant and warmed ourselves up from the icy cold with a bowl of potato soup and a cappuccino. So ended a day at the top of the world.


Beware of the swans, they bite.

Lucerne, the photo album