Life is a Trail Ride: September 2008

Well I am almost half way through my trip, only 3 more days and it will be exactly half!!!
Well I have moved from Berlin to Amsterdam and have spent the last 2 nights and tonight here. At first I was very scared of the city since I arrived at 8pm and had to walk through the Red Light District to get to my Hostel. This was very scary for me, but now I have come to see that other than for pickpocket's, the city is no more scary than any of the others. There is lots of history behind this city and it is really cool. I went into the Anne Frank House today and could never imagine being locked in a small place like that for 2 years. It really is an amazing story.
I rented a bike and rode all over the city. I saw a lot more then I would have seen on foot and it was an experiance riding a bike in a city like this. There were a few times I feared for my life.
Well now I must go to bed. Tomorrow I am off to Antwerpen and then Bruge. I will stay there for a few days then I is off to Paris!!!
Wish me luck.

Outside Anne Franks House

In front of the I Am-sterdam sign

One of the only 2 wooden houses left in Amsterdam

Street Art in Amsterdam

The skinniest house in Amsterdam!!!!

A cool looking church, the one that Anne Frank could hear from the secret Annex

A sculpture in the riding school Jo-Anne told me about

Love ya
Always
Evie

Well I have some time and the internet at my hostel is free for now so I thought I would take the time to update everyone one what I have been up to.

Well, lets see. I am not really sure what I have covered in my lasts posts so I am going to run over everything.

I started in Italy with my dad as most of you know. There I had a blast. We went to Rome, Florence, Senia, and Venice.

The Coliseum in Rome!

Dad and I at The Trevi Fountain in Rome!

Dad at the Vatican city in Rome!

The David!!! They did not want you taking pictures of it...oh well

Senia was my favorite, Dad and I went to the shop that he studied at all those years ago and then we had a great lunch. We sat and talked for almost 3 hours and I loved it. I will forever remember this trip with him and treasure it. Love ya Daddy...

The guys that Dad studied with all those years ago!!! and dad...

The Tower that Dad and I climbed to the top of in Senia!! it was Amazing only like 400 steps...

In Venice, just walking around

In Venice we met up with Aunty Jean and Alice.

Dad and Jean standing on the Lido Island near Venice

We had a good time there and finally had to say good bye. Dad and I learned a lesson the hard way here... We just hopped onto the first bus that said airport but did not think to ask if there were 2 airports... well we went to the wrong one and had to pay about $100 to get to the right one!!!

So now I was off on my own! I was really scared and not quite sure what to do but when I found my Hostel I set my stuff down and went for a walk. I ended up in front of the Spanish riding School so I went in to see what I could do. They were having a show that night! So I stayed and watched that. It was amazing. The next day I went back for a tour and learned that they now also accept women into their program! Mom asked if I was going to apply, but sadly I do not fit all the requirements.

The guys working with the horses at the Spanish Riding school

At a Palace Scholoumburg in Vennia

I had a harder time in Vennia as it was my first city and I was not sure what to do. So I left there after 3 nights and moved on to Salzburg.

I Loved Salzburg. Here I met Erika on the first morning, she did the Sound of Music tour with me.

The place they filmed I am Sixteen going on 17. and the love song...
They have locked the door to it cuz some 80 yr old woman broke her hip while reenacting the 16 going on 17 song!!!

At a stop on the Sound of Music tour.

Erika and I spent the next 4 days hanging out and stuff. We had a blast, met lots of people, Drank to much Beer and then had to part ways. I was only planning on staying 2 nights here and ended up staying 5!! Salzburg has been my favorite place so far, cuz there was tons to do and so many great people.

Look what a bad influence Erika was on me. We went to a brewery together and drank alot of beer...LOL

I moved to Innsbruck next but only stayed one night. It was cold and raining and I did not like it much so I went on to Munich.

Munich was fun too. I met a cool group of people on the first night in the hostel and what was supposed to be an early night turned into staying at the bar until 2 in the morning. Luckily it was the hostel bar so we did not have far to go...

This is the crazy group of people that I met in Munich on the first night at the hostel!
Kristen, Leonia, me, Hugh, Alex, Denise, Ala, and Dawn in the front!

The next morning we slept in and then went on a free tour of Munich.
At the very end the guide said something that I think is so great that I hope to live by it from now on. She said, "I hope that in life you strive to be the sand in the cogs of life and not the oil."
You can take this as you will but to me it had a profound meaning and I will never just slide by life and think that it does not concern me for without people to stand up for what is right who knows where the world would be now.

Denise, One of the guys we had met the night before decided that he wanted to cook for us so we had a really nice dinner at the hostel.

This is at the Famous Haufbrauhaus... I had to get a drink there. I had lunch with the people I met at the hostel.

Everyone left the next day so I walked around Munich a little more and went to Dachau, the first concentration camp. It was very sad to see but I think it was very important to see and learn so that it will not be repeated.

The gate into Dachau. The irony is that it says, "Work will set you free!"

I took a night train to Berlin from there and it was Ok. I did not sleep very well but there were not that many people on the train so I had some space.

Now I am In Berlin. I did a tour on the morning that I arrived and it covered alot. I went back the next day and really looked at what our guide had shown us. I like it here and have met some nice people here too.

The Book Burning memorial. It is just an empty room with space for all the books that were burned... There is a plaque nearby that has a quote by Heinrich Heine said in 1820, more than 100 years before the book burning that translates to, "what begins with burning books, will end with burning people" And that is exactly what happened I think it is the coolest thing here in Berlin

This is looking through a hole in the Berlin Wall!! The really cool thing is that where the wall used to run they put cobble stone down so you can still see how the city used to be divided! It is really cool.

This is checkpoint Charlie... It has become very touristy. But still cool
There is a cool story about someone getting across this check point, you should ask me sometime.

In front of the Brandenburg gate, Berlin.

Just me walking around in Berlin, It turned kind of cold

This trip I have learned a lot and I am not even half way yet!! I know know that I can travel on the other side of the world and be OK by myself. I also have seen that I am capable of more than I thought. I have learned that I really miss my family when I am not able to talk to them and I hope they all know how much I love them. I also miss my friends dearly. I think of them often and wish they could be here with me to do this. I call my parents and Sister every chance I get and tell them where I am. I call Sarah when I can too for I miss my Best Friend ALOT... And then there is AJ, he and I talk more than I thought we would...
In all, I am happy.

I love you all and hope you are also doing well.
Send me emails and I will try and respond.
Love Always
Evie

PS sorry about some of the pictures being the wrong way. It would not let me turn them