The End

We are back in America and it is even better than we remembered! Its been great to reunite with our families and friends and just spend time at home. I was driving in the country outside my hometown (Ness City, KS) and was in awe of the arching blue sky, the billowy white clouds, and the endless wheat fields that are reaching waist-height. After all the places I've seen in the past year (including 12 countries!) there is a beauty about my home that I didn't find anywhere else. Likewise, when we went to Ben's home, Omaha, it was great to re-unite with our other long lost American friends....Chipotle, Red Robin, Panera Bread, and other good ol' fast food!

As our year of life in the Old World ends, we are eager to start a year in the New World. I have been placed with my company, Scoular Grain, at a grain elevator in Fremont, NE. I will be at this location for a year before receiving my 'permanent' placement in another location. We are eager to begin our life in America, but first I wanted to spend some time creating a 'Best of Europe' list, where I disclose what my 'favorites' are from my travels over the past year; and then I created a 'Top 10' list where I listed my 10 absolute favorite sights, experiences, or cities from the past year in descending order of favorite (it was really difficult to only choose 10!).

Best of Europe
Best food..... Italy (but France was a close second)

Best desserts..... France
Best beer..... Ireland (Guinness, of course!)
Best wine..... Italy
Best scenery..... Austria
Best natural view..... Cliffs of Moher, Ireland
Best man-made view..... Parliament in London, England
Best English accent..... Scotland
Most shocking..... Red Light District (Amsterdam, Holland)
Most moving..... Normandy, France (Omaha Beach, Pointe du Hoc, and the American Cemetery)
Most clean..... Switzerland
Most unique..... Prague, Czech Republic

Most romantic..... Paris, France

Most decadent..... Vienna, Austria
Most American-like..... Germany
Most un-American..... Italy
Favorite "big" city..... Paris (for me; but for Ben, it was Rome)

Favorite "small" city..... Salzburg
Oldest city..... Edinburgh, Scotland
Biggest adventure..... Skiing in the Alps

Top 10
1. Salzburg, Austria (everything about it!)

2. Our Italian Christmas (Rome, Venice, Florence, and Udine with Lety's family)

3. Prague, Czech Republic

4. Skiing in the Alps (St. Anton, Austria; and our day ski trip to St. Cristoph's)

5. Normandy, France (Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach, and the American Cemetery)

6. Aran Islands, Ireland
7. Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland (+ Carrick-a-rede Bridge and Dark Hedges)

8. Opera House in Paris, France

9. Edinburgh, Scotland's Royal Mile

10. Romer Square in Frankfurt, Germany

This year of living, learning, and traveling in Europe has been astounding. Its funny because as I traveled more and more, the world seemed to get bigger, not smaller. Now, my list of 'places to see' has grown and I am eager to continue prioritizing travel in my life. I love to travel; I love it because each place we visited this year had a soul; a unique personality that was all its own. The feeling that I got walking the streets of Paris was entirely different than the feeling I got in Prague, or Edinburgh; and its exciting to experience the living, breathing, soul and history that each of these European cities had.

Thanks to Rotary for the Ambassadorial scholarship, and for allowing me to meet my fellow scholar from Italy, Lety, who I know will be my life-long friend. Thanks also to all our family and friends who have been so supportive and have kept in touch with us over the year. We learned so much and there are so many things we will do differently and view differently after this year in Europe. For the new perspective, knowledge, and insight this year has given us, we are so lucky. Also, for the way this year challenged, strengthened, and shaped our marriage in its first year, and deepened our faith in a new way, we are blessed and grateful.

This is Molly, signing off.

7 Days, 7 Cities

As our year in Europe came to a close, Ben and I spent a week traveling around mainland Europe. It was quite an ambitious trip – we visited 7 cities in 7 days, spanning across five countries, including two flights and six trains. But, it was well worth it – we loved every city we visited, and even found our new ‘favorite’ European city!


Amsterdam, Holland
We flew into Amsterdam for our first day. After dropping off our luggage, we immediately caught a train to Zaanse Schans – a small Dutch village that is preserved as it was in olden days (for Nebraskans reading this blog… think of it as the 'Pioneer Village' of Holland). Here we had lunch of pancakes covered with cheese and bacon – a Dutch meal that was absolutely delicious! We then spent the afternoon walking around the village and taking in the sights – including a wooden clog factory, cheese tasting, and windmills that made peanut oil and fabric dye. Here we were able to see all things stereotypically 'Dutch': wooden clogs, windmills, cheese, and tulips! I have included a couple of pictures of Zaanse Schans in this paragraph.

After returning from Zaanse Schans, we took a stroll along the infamous Red Light District. Ben and I both agreed it was probably the most shocking thing we have seen in Europe. Yes… girls really do stand in the windows wearing basically nothing, negotiating deals with the passerbys. It was quite a sight! I would love to share pictures but was warned that taking pictures of the girls in the windows is NOT allowed, and pimps will pop out of the house to snatch your camera so fast, you won’t know what hit you. Needless to say, it wasn’t a risk we were willing to take. But I found a picture online to post here. We were so full from our Dutch pancakes that we just stopped at a cafe called Café Fonteyn in Niewnmarkt – a nearby district – for some beer, wine and snacks. After that we retired to our hotel - the Old Nickel - for the night.

The following day we also spent in Amsterdam. After breakfast we went to the Anne Frank House. The house that Anne Frank and her family hid in during WWII has been turned into a museum. Here we were able to go behind the ‘secret bookshelf’ and enter the ‘secret annex’ where the Frank family hid from the Nazis. It was so well preserved – we could see marks on the wallpaper where Anne’s parents had marked the heights of Anne and her sister Margot throughout the time they were in hiding. We could also see a map of Normandy that Anne’s father, Otto Frank, had on the wall and used push pins to follow the Allies’ advancement. In Anne’s room, we could see the pictures she had pasted on the wall, and her original diary was on display. The Frank family was eventually found out and sent to Auschwitz. It was never discovered who betrayed the secret hiding place, but it resulted in the death of everyone except the father, Otto. Seeing their hiding place was quite a site.

We then walked to the Bloemenmarkt – which is a big flower market along one of Amsterdam’s many canals – and then went to the Van Gogh Museum, which is home to the largest Van Gogh collection in the world. Van Gogh is one of my favorites, so I was happy; but after a flower market and an art museum, Ben was verging on the side of irritable. We then walked to Rembrandtplein – a square in the heart of Amsterdam – and Ben had ‘vlaamse frites’, which is a big paper cone full of French fries, topped with mayonnaise and ketchup. These cheered him right up! We then stopped for a drink at Café Rembrandt in the square, and then walked to a restaurant on Zeedijk street for dinner. In case you can’t tell, we ate very well in Holland! A couple of observations about Amsterdam: 1) The architecture was intricate and very unique, 2) There were bicycles everywhere– definitely the main form of transportation, 3) This was the country we found the most difficult to navigate for English-speakers – it was the only city we visited that did not have English subtitles on public signs and public transportation. However, we did feel that most of the people could speak English. I am not saying I expect this in foreign countries, but it sure makes it easier on us! 4) We found the people of Amsterdam to be the least friendly of any European city we had been to. Despite these challenges, we really enjoyed our time in Amsterdam. It is a very unique city!


Prague, Czech Republic
That night we took a train from Amsterdam to Prague. It was a long ride (14 hours!), but we were able to sleep through the night; so it went quickly. Plus, we rode through Germany along the Rhine and the Black Forrest, so it was beautiful. Upon our arrival in Prague, we dropped our luggage and walked along Wenceslaus Street, where we stopped at a street vendor for a sandwich. We then went to the Jewish Ghetto – comprised of a Jewish Cemetery, a Jewish Museum, and seven synagogues – including the oldest synagogue in the world. After leaving, we walked along Charles Bridge to the Prague Castle – which is over 1,000 years old and is the largest castle in the world. Furthermore, this castle is the home to Good King Wenceslaus! The hike up to the castle was steep, because it was high on a hill overlooking the city; but we stopped for coffee along the hike and had a beautiful view of Prague. We then walked to Old Town Square where we had a delicious Czech dinner. That night we stayed at Hotel Tivoli – which was the best hotel of the week, and SO inexpensive! We loved Prague very, very much – it is easily top 3 European cities for us. It felt like it was the oldest city we have seen in Europe and it was fun to see the Bohemian culture and the splendor of Prague, the ‘Golden City’.


Vienna, Austria
The next morning we trained to Vienna. Upon arriving at Vienna we walked to Imperial Vienna – which is a part of the section that is enclosed by a gate and made up of buildings, courtyards, and gardens. Here we walked along the Imperial Palace, Imperial Apartments, and through the beautiful St. Michael’s Gate; among other buildings. We then walked to Stephansplatz – a square in the center of the city next to Stephansdom – a huge Gothic-style church. We loved this square, and stopped here for dinner and gelato. We thought Vienna was absolutely beautiful – and it felt very rich and upscale; something about it just seemed to drip with class and eloquence. Furthermore, in our two Austrian cities – Vienna and Salzburg – we were able to see the homes of Beethoven and Mozart, respectively.


Salzburg, Austria
That evening we trained through the 'pre-Alps' to Salzburg - where the 'Sound of Music' took place. We went immediately to our hotel – Hotel Trumer-Stube – a small, family-run hotel in the heart of Salzburg for a great price (I’m not getting paid to plug these hotels, I just think if they deserve it, they should get it). Salzburg was our absolute favorite European city. It is wonderful. Even if you’re not obsessed with the Sound of Music like I am – you will still love everything about Salzburg. It exceeded my expectations, which were very high. I loved it because it is gorgeous - you almost can’t believe people get to wake up to that fresh mountain air and breathtaking scenery every morning; it is historical – so many churches, fortresses, and monasteries to see; it is small - its no secret I love small towns, and they are so much more relaxing to visit than bigger cities; and it is unique – it had a romantic, peaceful, spiritual, and refreshing feeling that I have never felt as strongly anywhere else in the world.

The first thing we did was go to Mass in the morning at the Franciscan Monastery (or Franziskanerkloster, in German). We then hiked the Kapuzinerberg – an Alp foothill. The hike was along a path dotted with the stations of the cross, and at the top we were able to see a panoramic view of Salzburg. Salzburg is separated into “old” and “new” town by the Salzach River, and from the Kapuzinerberg we had an excellent view of old town. After descending back into Salzburg, we walked to Alter Market – or “old Market Square”. Salzburg is famous for its markets, and this was the best market we have seen in Europe – stalls and tents full of meat, cheese, bread, pastries, souvenirs, you name it! It was great to just peruse along the markets and take in the atmosphere.

We then hiked up yet another foothill to the Festurg Hohensalzburg – or the Salzburg Fortress. It was a huge fortress built on the hill as the protector of Salzburg, including a torture room and a huge organ played every morning in the olden days to wake up the villagers. Music played on the organ was composed by Salzburg's local composer, Mozart! After descending back down the steep hill (I’m talking steep), we visited the Cathedral of Salzburg. Then, we had to go back to the market to pick up some sandwiches that Ben was eyeing earlier. After eating these for lunch, we walked through St. Peter’s Abbey and Cemetery, and then walked along the Salzach River to the Mirabell Palace and Gardens. These gardens were where the von Trapp family ‘do-re-mi-ed’, and as I walked through the gardens I could see spots where specific scenes from the movie the Sound of Music were filmed. I could hardly contain my excitement as I pointed out these scenes to Ben. I think he was quite alarmed by my detailed knowledge of the movie!

After leaving the Mirabell Gardens, we walked to the Cemetery of St. Sebastian, which is where the scene at the end of the Sound of Music is filmed (where the von Trapps are trying to escape from the Nazis). Having had enough Sound of Music sights for one day, Ben convinced me to go eat dinner; so we ate in a square near our hotel, and then had a few glasses of wine at a wine market that was set up in a square in the village (I’m telling you, these markets were everywhere!). Salzburg was the closest place to heaven on earth I think I have been (except for Ness City, of course....).


Munich, Germany
That evening we trained to Munich, and went to crash at Hotel Herzog. The next morning we walked to Marienplatz – which is the ‘Square of our Lady’ and saw the Frauenkirche (a church) and Neues Rathaus (City Hall). This was a beautiful square, and then we walked to the Viktualienmarkt – another big market, followed by breakfast at the Hoffbrauhaus. The Haffbrauhaus is the world’s most famous beer hall and is hundreds of years old. The hall was huge and very cool; it was destroyed by two bombs in 1944 and has been rebuilt. Here we had breakfast of bratwurst, pretzels, and beer. Ben ordered one of those huge one liter beers, and he was in hog heaven drinking that thing at 9:30 a.m. for breakfast (no problem in Germany!). We really enjoyed the Bavarian culture that was full force in Munich.


Frankfurt, Germany
After breakfast we trained to Frankfurt, where we walked to Romerberg Square. I loved this square – one of my favorites in Europe (and in case you can’t tell, there are a LOT of ‘squares’ in European cities). It was full of personality and had that traditional German architecture that I was so excited to see. We stopped in the square for a beer (another one of those liters for Ben). The square was completely demolished during WWII, but has been rebuilt, and we thoroughly enjoyed Romerberg and Frankfurt in general. We then walked to the Sachsenhausen district – which is the oldest district in Frankfurt and the only one to survive WWII. Here we had dinner, and then called it a night at the Hotel am Berg – an excellent B&B in a very old mansion. We were lucky enough to get the room that had the tower attached to it – so we had a nook with a table and chairs in the tower.


Brussels, Belgium
The following morning we trained to Brussels to fly home. We had a few hours in Brussels where we were able to eat some waffles (of course) and the world-famous Belgian chocolate. By this point we were so exhausted, and worried the ash cloud would strand us in Belgium (not a place you want to be stranded), that we went to the airport early to wait it out.


We are now back on American soil! Fortunately, the ash cloud did not hinder any of our flights. It is great to be home, relaxing with our families. I will probably blog a couple of more times – I’m going to recap the year with a list of my favorites and top ten destinations, so I will let everyone know when this blog will no longer be active.

Volcanic Ash Part II

Seems like I am in need of another sequel entry... the volcanic ash spewing from the Icelandic volcano has flared up again. Flights in and out of Ireland have been cancelled sporadically over the past week. Our guest, John, was supposed to fly home today, but that flight was cancelled; then he was supposed to fly home tomorrow, but that one has been cancelled as well; and now he will be trying to fly home on Thursday. Unfortunately he has to move to a hotel tomorrow because we (hopefully) begin our final European trip of the year!

Ben and I are planning to fly to Amsterdam tomorrow morning for a week-long trip around Europe, including cities in Holland, Belgium, Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic. So... fingers crossed that we are able to make our flights to and from mainland Europe, and then back to the States next week! We are ready to get back! I will not blog again for a week or two, and will post a few more entries - including a summary of our travels around mainland Europe. Pray that the ash clears up...

American Stereotypes Part II

Greetings! I wanted to post a brief sequel to my 'American Stereotypes' post, because I've heard a couple more that I thought were worth sharing.

1) Americans are gun-slinging war fanatics...

This is a two part stereotype. The first is that Americans are obsessed with guns. Guns are definitely a part of most American's lives either directly or indirectly in the form of hunting or armed police officers (by the way... police officers don't carry guns in Europe, to my knowledge...). However, I don't know many people who are 'gun obsessed'. As for the 'war fanatics' accusation, it goes without saying that America is not the most peaceful country, but no Americans I know are 'fanatic' about the harsh reality of war.

2) Americans are church-going bible beaters
So... church isn't really a part of the European lifestyle. Religion isn't too big of a deal and church-going is definitely not regular, nor expected. This is certainly not the case in the U.S.; almost everyone I know attends church fairly regularly, or at least belongs to a church. Even though you'd think 'church-going' would be a desirable attribute (because, it is in the U.S.), church-going is almost scoffed at by most Europeans. I think they see it as a very 'naive' or 'old-fashioned' activity, and view it with condescending eyes...

I was browsing through a book store in Dublin yesterday when a book called 'Coming to America' by Stephen Frye caught my eye. Frye is a British man who spent time traveling through every state in America, then wrote a book about his experience. I just skimmed through the conclusion and wanted to share a two-paragraph excerpt from it (keep in mind he is British):

'Europeans are quick to criticize Americans. American ignorance, American crassness, American isolationism, American materialism. In truth, these criticisms reveal more about us than Americans. The truth is, we are offended by the clear fact that so many Americans know and care so little about us. They can get along without us a lot better than we can get along without them and our pride is wounded. Thus, we react with superiority and conceit, as do most people who feel inferior...

...The American characteristics that we criticize - the brassness, the vulgarity, the worship of money, the gun obsession, the distressing religiosity, the ignorance of the rest of the world, the blame culture, the junk food, and the strip malls... these are all found in America; but they are found alongside the hope, the self-belief, the optimism, the warmth, consideration, kindness, sharp wit, will power, pride, wry self-awareness, independence, openness, and generosity'.

Giant's Causeway +++

Our visitors - my cousin Emily and Ben's friend John - arrived last Tuesday and we've spent the past week traveling around Dublin and Northern Ireland. In Dublin, we visited the usual spots - St. Stephen's Green, Grafton Street, Temple Bar and Ha'Penney Bridge. We also ate out at pubs in both Ranelagh (the village we live in) and Ballsbridge (the village next to us). After a couple days in Dublin, we rented a car and headed to Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland seemed in every way almost exactly like Ireland... with the only difference being the accent. The accent in the North is quite similar to the Scottish accent. We drove up to Bushmills, where we spent two nights at the Valley View B&B. This was my favorite B&B because the breakfast was excellent - including homemade brown bread, soda bread, and potato bread! Also, this was my favorite scenery we've seen on the Emerald Isle; it was very rural and farm-oriented, so I found it homey, tranquil, and beautiful.

The first thing we saw in Northern Ireland was the Carrick-a-rede Rope Bridge (I know the name sounds oddly similar to 'rickety' rope bridge, and for good reason...). This included a beautiful pathway that led us to the rope bridge, built by salmon fisherman to connect two cliffs over the Irish Sea. It was quite a perilous bridge, and for those of us who are afraid of heights, it was quite a challenge to cross. Still, all four of us made it across the bridge and were rewarded with views from a beautiful island on the Irish Sea. Then, we had to cross the bridge back to the mainland! After, we drove nearby to a row of trees called the 'Dark Hedges' or the 'Magical Trees'. They look like something out of a fairy tale! I've incuded a picture of the bridge and the trees in this paragraph. We drove to Ballycastle - a quaint little village near Bushmills - for seafood dinner at O'Connor's Pub and a drink at McHenry's Pub.

The next morning, we went to Giant's Causeway. Here, we walked along the Cliff Path for about a mile. The path was dotted with some gorgeous views, and took us to the 'Shepherd's Path' which was a steep path of 162 steps that led us down from the cliff tops. We walked down the path and continued walking along the Giant's Causeway sites. Giant's Causeway is essentially a natural wonder that was created 60 million years ago by volcanic activity. The result is 38,000 hexagonal-shaped columns at various heights. It really is interesting (and beautiful)! Although volcanic activity is the scientific explanation, legend has it that an Irish giant named Finn MacCool built the causeway to connect Ireland and Scotland to duel with the Scottish Giant, named Benandonner. However, upon seeing that the Scottish giant was bigger than himself, Finn MacCool dressed up like a baby. When Benandonner saw what he thought was a baby, he was very scared to meet the baby's father, so he ran back to Scotland, tearing up the connecting path along the way. Hence, the stone formations on both the Irish and Scottish coast. In addition to seeing these stone formations, we saw the 'Giant's boot' and the 'Giant's organ'. The organ was especially neat - the formations looked like huge organ pipes. I've included a picture of the Giant's Causeway and the Giant's organ in this paragraph.

After leaving the Causeway, we drove to Dunluce Castle - a nearby castle from the 16th century. Like Ireland itself, this castle had a very turbulent and violent history. The castle was beautiful, built right on the edge of a cliff. At the end of the 16th century, the kitchen in the castle fell into the ocean during a dinner party, taking some of the servants with it! Since then, the castle was abandoned and fell into ruin. Also, there was an underground cave that allowed for emergency escape to the ocean via boat if ever under attack. It was a beautiful castle. We then went to the Bushmills Whiskey Distillery, which is the oldest legal distillery in the world. Here we learned about the process of making whiskey, and tasted a shot (it was strong). A picture of Dunluce Castle is shown here.

We headed back to Dublin the next morning, stopping in the village of Howth on the way. Howth is a fishing village just north of Dublin, and it was quaint. We walked along the sea here and then drove to Johnnie Foxs, a pub in the Wicklow Mountains - and our favorite pub! It is so full of character and atmosphere, always has live music, and the food is great! That evening we went to watch some live Irish music and dancing at a pub in Temple Bar. All in all, it was a great trip, and we had so much fun with our visitors. Ben and I both agreed that Giant's Causeway was one of our absolute favorite things we've seen on the Irish island, second only to the Aran Islands. My cousin has now returned home, and I will be getting to work in preparation for my exams this week. John is staying another week, and he and Ben returned to Howth to golf today. I've included a picture of Howth in this paragraph.