3/21/14. First day back from break. Actually that was yesterday, but I slept from breakfast time until well after the sun went down, so it kind of feels like that entire day never happened. Today is the first day back to school. Break was an experience unlike any I’ve had.

I, in the company of three individuals from my study abroad program, bounced from Montpellier to Barcelona, Dublin, London, Amsterdam, Berlin, and finally, Lyon. I must say that all of this was truly as incredible as it sounds. If I were to rank-order my preferences, it would look something like this: 1) London 2) Barcelona, Lyon, & Dublin tie for second place 3) Berlin.

London is a brilliant place. It feels a lot like home, (Bryn Mawr, PA), but in the form of a big, refined city. Everyone that I encountered was kind, helpful, and warm. The shopping scene was perfect. Healthy food is literally available everywhere, and the Whole Foods in downtown Kensington is a magical metropolis. Definitely booking future voyages to the mother country.

I found Barcelona and Lyon to be rather similar; perhaps this is because they’re not too far apart geographically (although Montpellier is closer…) In any case- the food, people, and weather were lovely in both places. The architecture was remarkable, with each part of town more ornate than the last. Especially in Spain- I’m a sucker for mosaics.

The Irish have a reputation for being nice. But one cannot understand quite how kind, how welcoming they really are without actually visiting the country. I barely noticed the cold, dark weather in Dublin, because the people were so cheery that their good spirits overshadowed all of the chilly winds and dark clouds.

My first and last trip to Berlin was, well, interesting. The area is cold and dark, the architecture unremarkable except for a few landmarks. Even the Berlin Wall was shockingly unimpressive, covered in profanity and explicit graffiti. All of the food that I consumed there was subpar, even the coffee at Starbucks tasted weird once I put milk in it (mistake).

It should be known that horrifying majorities of the people wear sneakers with jeans, and in such an urban area no less. The only upside to this is that I was not obviously distinguishable as a tourist while wearing my leggings and sneakers, but the fashion genocide did not go unnoticed.

Speaking of genocide, we visited Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin. I was disappointed by the framed displays arguably glorifying Nazi leaders (as individuals, not for their conquests,) but I found it to be inappropriate nonetheless. Also, quotes in the museum such as, “Concentration camps in Germany contributed only indirectly to the genocide,” attempted to displace blame in a way that is utterly inexcusable.

Political demonstrations downtown made the group that I was travelling with and I rather nervous, but not as nervous as we were in the airport! The experience was needlessly stressful and severe.

Back in Montpellier now; with eight weeks to go until I return to the States.

I’ll be writing,

RJB

Location: Barcelona, Dublin, London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Lyon, Montpellier