Portoroz, Piran, Postojna, sLOVEnia

May 22-25, 2009 Sun+BBQ+Drinks = Memorial Day Weekend...in the USA :) In Europe it means long weekend and ample travel time! So Matt and I drove to Portoroz, Slovenia for a four-day weekend. It was gorgeous! There is a chain of hotels called the Life Class Hotels overlooking the water/port. There are 4, 4 star sister hotels and one "mother" hotel that is 5 stars. They are all connected by enclosed walking tunnels. I can't say that their standards were quite up to US four star standards but it was still nice. Portoroz is a big spa/thermal area, so the chain of hotels had a large thermal swimming pool and 7 saunas. We went swimming in the thermal water but it was cooler than it should have been and not as nice as Erding so we skipped out on the sauns...I mean, only 7 saunas, come on! that's nothing! Erding has at least 30 (or something like that). One evening we walked to Piran (3 km away) for dinner - we had awesome sea food while watching the sun set. On our drive home we stopped at the Postojna Caves, the longest caves (20km) in Slovenia. We rode a little train into the caves....flying through the stalagtites and stalgmites...literally ducking and dodging the cave growths! Then we walked 3-4km through the caves checking out several different rooms. The weekend was nice, relaxing, hot, and of course, too short! but a beach get away was just what I needed! Can I just say how much I loved waking up every morning to read my book on the balcony while the sun was rising and Matt was still sleeping....yes, awesome!!

the Life Class hotels, beach front

ahh, the LIFE!!!

cute restaurant in Piran

Piran's main square

Postojna Caves

more pictures here!!

Slovenia

April 24-26, 2009 Bled, Slovenia for my birthday. To celebrate my birthday Courtney drove us to Lake Bled, Slovenia. We arrived Friday night and stayed through Sunday morning at which point we drove to Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, and then home. It was a very beautiful and relaxing birthday trip. Some highlights included walking around the lake, bottling my own wine, using a saber, yes a saber, to open a bottle of champagne, and shopping at the market and eating by the water in Ljubljana.

Lake Bled

Using a saber to open a bottle of champagne..."so all I have to do is slide the saber along the neck of the bottle?" ...Courtney is not buying it and I'd be scared if I were her too!

POP! screams ahhh

enjoying some of the best red, semi-dry, champagne I've ever drank...10:30am is never too early to start drinking!

The island from the pathway going around the lake

Courtney rowed us to the island

Me having a photo shoot while Courtney rowed

Our row boat, Bled

More pictures of our adventures in Slovenia

Progressive Dinner, Bavarian Wedding, Bday/Going Away Party

April 12-23, 2009 A few random things here and there...We had a progressive dinner in the Abrams -- appetizers here, dips there, games and shots! It was a fun evening venturing through the Abrams and enjoying good food/entertainment/games and company.

Starting the night off in Lisa Marie and Marcie's room -- spinach artichoke dip!! and fruit with dip

Then, on the 17th Terri (my old roommate) got married! She married a local and they had a super cute, traditional Bavarian wedding. They got married at the courthouse midday and Sebastian's (groom) father popped 5 bottles of champagne to celebrate! Then, later that night Terri and Sebastian hosted a reception at a local hut with lots of good beer and food.

Courtney, myself, and Lisa Marie at the wedding

Then, the following week it was my 24th birthday annnd Lisa Marie's last night in the GAP :( So, we went to Bei Marcus, a bistro type restaurant that Lisa Marie and I had both been wanting to go to for a while. The food was out of this world!!!! There is a limited menu (3 or appetizer options, 3 main courses, and maybe 2 or 3 dessert options). Every single dish was absolutely delicious! We had a blast throughout the night at the restaurant -- lots of wine, food, and then a homemade cake compliments of Bonnie! :)

Matt and I at Bei Marcus

Lisa Marie and I with our wine from Terri and Sebastian :)

Click here to view more pictures of all of the above events

Home

March 21 - April 4, 2009 HOME ok, ok, ok yes, I know it has been a long time since I posted...since I told you I was going home for to visit and go to a conference...what can I say? Time flies when you're having fun :) This will be the first of a series of posts to catch you up on what I've been up to.

My trip home was great! It was so great to be home and visit friends and family. Unfortunately I was really sick when I first got home but I finally got smart and went to the doctor and was shortly thereafter able to eat all the yummy American food my mouth had been watering for -- California Pizza Kitchen, Plaza (best cheap Mexican food), Chicken with Cashew nuts (the best dish in the world comes from a Thai restaurant in Harrisonburg, VA), Cheese Shop and a few other random treats :) While I was home I went out for Marty's birthday, reunited with my Alpha Phi sisters in DC, went outlet shopping, relaxed, and hung out in my "spare" time for the first week. Then, I drove to MD for a weeklong conference to learn about NAF Human Resources. It was a very relaxing and productive trip and I couldn't have asked for much more!

Marty, Ashleigh, myself, and Colleen at the Clarendon Grill -- it was so great to hear live music! The Benjamins were awesome!

Sophmore Year apartment mates :)

Alpha Phis at Mai Thai in DC :) with my biggie, Amanda (left) and college roomie, Huck (right)

Alpha Phis at Mai Thai

My fabulous table at the NAF HR Conference

HOME!!!

haha so of course after I posted the snow pictures yesterday on my lunch break it started snowing an hour or so later and today we have almost 3 inches of snow!!!! oops!

Anyway, I'm off to the States!!!! I can't wait to hang out with friends and family! and then I'll be at a conference for a week to learn about Human Resources!!

See you when I get back!

Snow

Now that there is almost no more snow I thought I'd post some of my pictures from the snow blizzard last month! (February 18 - 19, 2009)

view from my balcony when I woke up in the morning

view from my office patio

It was weird how there were a few trees that the snow wasn't sticking to their trunks

Paris Sneak Peak

February 13 - 16, 2009 Paris for Valentine's Day weekend...Matt was supposed to go with me but it didn't work out due to work/passport issues. I still had a blast and saw the "Top 10" sites of Paris. You can only imagine how many pictures I took! Here's a little sneak peak. more pictures

Me with Mona Lisa...much better than the shot I have from 10 years ago...there's a tall man standing behind me and it looks like I have big, poofy hair!! haha thanks mom

Louvre at night

Pompidou Center

Eiffel Tower

Sacre Coeur

Rothenburg/Heidelberg Sneak Peak

February 7-9, 2009 So, it's been a while...I have many, many, many pictures to go through and do some picking and choosing as to which ones to share...til then, here a few faves from my trip to Dinkelsbuhl, Rothenburg and Heidelberg. more pictures

Rothenburg

Rothenburg by night...on our tour with the city's night watchman

Rothenburg

Castle in Heidelberg

Heidelberg from above

Regensburg

January 31, 2009 Sometimes you just need to get out of Garmisch and breathe...that's how I was feeling this day. As soon as I got out of Garmisch the clouds cleared, the sun started shining and I could finally breathe! Sometimes you just feel so suffocated and sheltered in Garmisch because we're literally living in our own, secluded world...surrounded by the mountains, which don't get me wrong, are beautiful! but sometimes you just need to escape! So, Regensburg was my safe haven. I sent my mom and her friend there this summer not having ever visited the town but knowing it is a popular city in Germany, so I felt as though I should check this city out before I recommend it to anyone else. It was definitely worth the trip - beautiful buildings and the gorgeous Gothic Dom, which dominated the city. There were also numerous rock/mineral stores with cheap jewelry, at which I couldn't resist making a purchase or two! more pictures

A few faves

Here are a few of my favorite photos...I put these photos aside to chose from for my sorority's photo contest.

Pont du Gard, France

Mount Tiede, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

Cinque Terre, Italy

Cinque Terre, Italy

Brugge, Belgium

Brugge, Belgium

Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

Ramsau bei Berchtesgaden

Gothenburg, Sweden

Vienna, Austria

Alpsptize, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany (view from balcony!)