First Berlin Experiences!

            Before we left the Netherlands we checked our trains, and lo and behold our second train was cancelled due to the flooding. We were a little nervous about that change in itinerary but figured out there wouldn’t be an issue getting to Berlin. Unfortunately, the change of trains made it so the trip was about an hour longer but still made it to Berlin!

            Once we finally made it to the place we were going to be staying the next five nights the host was not home, and we had to find an Internet café to contact them. We waited for them inside the building since they said they’d be home in about an hour. The landlord told us we couldn’t wait there and unfortunately he couldn’t speak English so we just walked out. They showed up a couple seconds later and led us up to the room. In hindsight we probably shouldn’t have waited in the building but we were so tired from the trains and waking up early we just wanted to get to the room and our backpacks off our back.

            The first day in Berlin it was heavily raining and wasn’t too much fun being outdoors, but we walked around the city and checked out the Berlin cathedral and museum island. We decided not to go in any of the museums since we’ve been in so many, weren’t in the museum mood and the lines were pretty long to enter.

            We found ourselves near “Checkpoint Charlie”, which dates back to when the Berlin Wall separated east and west (1961-1989). Controlled by the Western Allies it was the American Sector. Anybody who wanted to leave the communist Soviet controlled East Berlin would have to make their way through one of these checkpoints. The Soviets were not so lenient on who they would let through the wall to “freedom” so people would escape in some amazing and creative ways or die trying. There is a museum located at Checkpoint Charlie all about the wall and ways people escaped. I highly recommend checking it out if you find yourself in Berlin. Before your visit though, I would do some research about the wall and the quality of life they had to really understand the severity of a lot of the people’s situations. Just down the street there is a remaining piece of the wall, which is cool to check out as well.

            Our second day we decided to visit Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp Just outside of Berlin. Another place we highly recommend visiting if you find yourself traveling to Berlin.  You can take a paid tour from the city, but entrance into the museum/camp is free. I do advise getting an audio guide, located at the main entrance, to help navigate the camp and point out the important areas.

            The feeling of walking through the main entry to the camp where 200,000 innocent prisoners were led through, and where 30,000 people were murdered due to living conditions, humiliation, torture, and other horrific events is life changing. Having that weight on your shoulders while sauntering through the barracks, infirmary and seeing the ruins of the crematorium is something that you’ll never forget. Even though the camp is much smaller than the infamous Auschwitz it’s a powerful experience.

De Nederlands Part 2

     The next morning, we grabbed breakfast at Bagel and Beans (coffee, not refried) before touring the adorable town of Haarlem a little more. Haarlem is also referred to as "Little Amsterdam" because of the similar architecture and design of the city. It was unfortunately pouring all day again, but that didn't slow us down (until around 4pm). We walked through a few adorable back streets and saw the small, community gardens and even a playground with chickens (or kips!) and the fluffiest bunny we had ever seen. 

Rainy Haarlem

We walked through the street market in the main square and visited the beautiful cathedral, where the ground consists of hundreds of marble graves. For lunch we tried the traditional Dutch fast food: french fries with mayonnaise, ketchup, and onions and another order with mayonnaise, sauté sauce, and onions, as well as a beef croquette, a frikandel (sausage), and a kaassouffle (deep fried cheese pastry). I think we'll stick with our burgers and fries dipped in ketchup haha. Afterwards, we met up with Jara's friends and their adorable baby, Noa, at an old Jewish church which has been renovated into a brewery. Very cool place. Our desire for a homey rainy day comfort led us to see Man of Steel at the local cinema. The theater seats were extremely comfortable and the movie was great. It had Dutch subtitles which made things interesting as well (Fun fact: hamburgers is the Dutch word for citizens). After dinner, we made ourselves look nice and accompanied Jara to a Full Moon party at the restaurant she works at. Her coworkers decorated our faces with glow in the dark paint and we danced the night away, or for at least like 2 hours. 

Besties!

        The next day we traveled to a picture perfect Dutch countryside town complete with 9 windmills. We walked around, ate amazing caramel waffle cookies, and headed out to the beach! While the weather was finally cooperating, we had to overcome extreme winds on the shoreline to reach the restaurant for lunch. We also biked around Haarlem for awhile, which was super fun. Madi was a tad too short to gracefully mount the Dutch bicycles, sadly. It took her a few tries each time to get on and stabilized, but she did it. We didn't want to leave the Netherlands, but alas, it was time to move on. We had such an amazing time during our three days there and definitely hope to return someday. Again, a million thanks to Jara for being such a great friend! 

Milan and Jara

De Nederlands Part 1

     Our journey from London to Amsterdam went according to plan, thank goodness. After reuniting with our good friend Jara at the train station, we hopped onto a smaller train to Haarlem (about 15 minutes away) where she lives. We were so grateful to be able to stay with a friend and Jara was the most amazing host. We seriously cannot thank her enough. She took off all three days we were there to show us the best parts of Holland and she made amazing home cooked meals for us every night! She also bought a few traditional Dutch snacks for us to try, such as breakfast cake, a kind of gingerbread cookie (so good), and black licorice drops.
     So after we stopped by the market and enjoyed the amazing dinner Jara whipped up for us (fajita flavored chicken on tortillas with tons of veggies), we got cleaned up a bit and headed down to a neighborhood pub to meet up with a few of Jara's good friends and have a few drinks. Everyone was so kind and funny. We had a great night and didn't feel like tourists at all. And we made some new friends which is always a bonus!
     The next morning, we woke up bright and early for a full day in Amsterdam. We started at the Anne Frank House which was incredibly moving. Walking through the building and standing in the rooms in which 8 people lived in hiding for 2 years was a surreal feeling. Anne's actual diary was on display along with many other pages of her writing. We would highly recommend visiting this museum if you ever get a chance. It gives a very strong connection to the book and further insight into what it was like living in constant fear at that time.
      We met up with Jara at a cafe and relaxed with coffee and hot cocoa before setting out in the rain. We are really unlucky with weather so far on our trip. But no matter! We walked down a street lined with flower market stalls and cheese shops and enjoyed the beautiful buildings, bridges over canals, and a crazy amount of bicycles.

Bike Parking...

     We headed over to the Van Gogh Museum to be further awed and amazed by his many masterpieces. We stopped for lunch before walking through Vondelpark and the Red Light District. It felt strange to see the groups of men peering in at the windows with small red lights and even stranger to see the girls sitting there ourselves. The reality of the situation is very sad. While young women can choose to enter into this profession themselves, it seems as though the majority of them are from different countries, especially from eastern European countries, and sex trafficking is a major concern. There are several campaigns fighting to end trafficking and working with the government to lessen the chances of vulnerability and exploitation.

The Greatest Tour Guide

      This part of the city is extremely beautiful, however, and interestingly enough, the safest area in Amsterdam due to the increased presence of police. It also finally stopped raining by this point so we were able to further appreciate the beauty. The leaning and crookedness of some of the buildings due to the water over time was really interesting to see. We loved hanging out in Amsterdam, but we were eager to get back and dry off.
      Jara made us an amazing chicken pesto pasta and we watched some clips from the video she made as an exchange student at our high school. It was so fun to reminisce and watch the hilarious/adorable clips of us from our junior year. So crazy that 5 years have already passed from when we met Jara! It was about time we payed her a visit.

Au Revior France

    First on the agenda for our last day in Paris was the Musee d'Orsay (after our usual breakfast of baguettes and croissants from one of the local bakeries). Seeing the works painted by Monet and Van Gogh was incredible. We lucked out with amazing weather so next we headed over to the Luxembourg gardens and palace. We attempted a picnic in the park with some wine and strawberries that didn't work out so well. On the way to the park Madi's purse strap broke, and sunglasses came apart. Once we made it to the park we were greeted by at least 600 children adorned in red caps running rampant through the gardens, making a quiet spot impossible to find. But seriously it was a beautiful place. Unfortunately the strawberries we purchased for the park were extremely sour, the pigeons wouldn't even indulge. 

Luxembourg Palace

     We took a stroll over to the Centre Pompidou and relaxed at the Stravinsky Fountain nearby. There was some really amazing street art to check out there. We headed over to the Eiffel Tower for the last time to take some pictures in the sunshine. After not too long it started to rain, so we started toward the nearest metro station. Then it started pouring, so we quickly took shelter in a small restaurant where we had some awesome pasta and tiramisu. We headed back to our apartment for our last night in Paris. We loved seeing the sights, admiring the art and architecture, and eating the carbs of course, but overall, we both agree that we are not completely in love with Paris. The atmosphere is a tad more rushed/stressful/confusing/dirty/sketchy as a whole compared to London.
     We slept in the next morning and took our time cleaning and packing up before out train to Amsterdam. We had our favorite Parisian breakfast one more time before bidding Paris au revior and setting off to new experiences in Holland.

Stravinsky Fountain

Perfect Balcony in our Apartment

      

The Proposal!

He said:
     Our second day in Paris we decided to start in Versailles, which is a town about 10 miles outside of Paris. The popular attractions are the palace there, and the gardens that are just behind it. In the gardens are a bunch of beautifully created fountains, walkways, a huge canal, and a village built for Marie Antoinette. Originally we had planned to go to Versailles, check out the palace and the gardens, then go and see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night, which I thought would be a perfect time to propose so I packed the ring safely with me for the day.
           We started our day early, around 8:30 or so to get a good jump on things. Bought our tickets pretty easily, it was a little packed but it was something we were very used to by this point, and we were on our way! When we first arrived we followed to signs to the palace along with the rest of the flocking tourists. After we made the final corner we saw how incredibly packed the entire palace courtyard was, it was the busiest thing we've seen on the entire trip. To enter the palace the line ran out of the door, up and down the palace courtyard like a game of snake. Since the line to enter had to be at least a 2-3 hour wait or at least 400 people we decided to just walk over to the gardens. The wait to get into the gardens only took about 15 minutes. It was incredible to see how massive the gardens were they were easily the size of a small town and would take you at least an hour to walk to the end.
     We were a little overwhelmed with the size, the masses of people everywhere and the heat when we noticed bike rentals. We found a little kiosk where we were able to rent a bike and got one for an hour to just cruise around the gardens and take in some of the greenery. It was fun to bike around the gardens and go to some places where nobody else was other then the occasional jogger or cyclist.
     At the very end of the great canal I had an idea to setup the self timer on the bike and we can stand in the grass for pictures getting the whole canal, the gardens and the palace in the background. It was picture perfect, and I knew that it was a perfect spot to propose. There was nobody around us as we were taking self timed pictures, and I was really nervous to ask the question. Not because I was scared she would say no, but because I just wanted it to be perfect. As the pictures were being taken I said "I love you more than anything." and told her I was nervous because I wanted to ask her something. She said "What" and I knelt down and asked "Madison Michelle Williams, Will you marry me?" and of course she said yes. It seemed like she didn't believe it was happening, and stupid me I still had the ring in my pocket thinking I could just slip it out but my jeans wouldn't permit such actions. So, I stood up and showed her the ring and eventually slipped it onto the right finger. She still looked like it wasn't happening, she asked "Are you serious..?" multiple times while staring at the ring on her finger. The camera shooting pictures got the perfect shots of us, and we are both so happy I decided to do it there and not in Paris.
     With all of the excitement of the day we decided to turn in early. We just went back to our flat in Paris, Madi had a fun time updating everyone. We thank everyone for your well wishes and congratulations.



She said:

     After being terrible tourists and saying "Non merci" to the main palace, we were still a little put off by the hordes of people and yard work occurring in the gardens. So we made the greatest decision ever to rent bikes and were having so much fun, when we both simultaneously pulled over at the perfect photo spot at the very end of the grand canal. The view of the palace was so beautiful and we just stared in awe as the camera began taking a progression of photos. Todd went over to the bike to adjust the camera, insisting we stay a few extra minutes. As I never turn down the opportunity for more photos, I was perfectly happy to oblige.
     We stood there looking at each other and looking out at the view, holding hands and hugging while the shutter clicked away. Todd kept telling me how much he loves me, "more than anything", as I laughed and assured him that I feel the same. As he held both of my hands in his, I could feel how nervous he was. He then confessed, "I'm nervous. I have something to ask you." He then knelt down onto one knee and asked, "Madison Michelle Williams, will you marry me?" I honestly have no idea exactly how I responded. I know it included a huge giddy smile, an incredulous question of "seriously?" and of course, yes! Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was also wondering if he had a ring for me. Todd quickly stood up to retrieve the ring from his pocket, attempting to place it on the ring finger of my right hand. I corrected him, still laughing out of excitement, not able to believe what had just happened was real life. He kissed me, hugged me tightly, lifted me off the ground. The setting was perfect, the ring was so so beautiful, and we were both in a heightened state of pure joy. As the reality had finally begun to sink in, I started to cry in expressing this joy.
     I had dreamt of this day for so long, and even hoped it would occur on our trip, but I could have never imagined it to be so perfectly beautiful. I couldn't take my eyes off of the ring for the remainder of the day, and even now I catch myself glancing down at it every few seconds. I am so impressed with how well this future husband of mine pulled it off and I am so, so happy.

Our Day in Paris

Our first full day in Paris was a lot of fun and full of sightseeing. We

started our day at the famous Louvre museum. It is seriously difficult to navigate but we made our way to the main pieces we wanted to see, such as: The Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, The Winged Victory, old Egyptian artifacts and a ton more. Standing in front of some of the most famous and priceless pieces of art is pretty incredible, an almost surreal feeling. A lot of the captions for each piece were written in French, so we couldn't really understand a lot of the history of the pieces but they were interesting still.

After the Museum we found our way to a bridge that's been nicknamed the "love-lock bridge", where thousands of people have taken padlocks and locked them to the sides of the bridge, and then thrown the key into the river. Once the key is thrown away, the couple's love is here to stay haha. Madi was really excited for this part, as I knew she would be.

Our lock at the "Love Lock" Bridge.

She brought with us a little lock of our own to lock to the bridge. It is pretty impressive to see so many locks on the bridge, I can't imagine how many there actually are but it's way too many to count.
     After the bridge we went to the Notre Dame cathedral and climbed to the top. Pretty sure it was something like 500-ish steps and then a handful more to the very top, but it was well worth the burn. From the top of the cathedral, you can see most every popular spot in the city. I was looking forward to seeing the gargoyles on top of Notre Dame and they were also really awesome to behold. The architecture was just as impressive as what we saw in London, and a lot of the buildings in Paris are spectacular to look at.                                              

   After Notre Dame, we ate at a little place across the river and had some Italian style pizza which was amazing! We walked down Champs-Elysee, a popular street in Paris for shopping, and bought some amazing macaroons from Laduree and took refuge from the rain for a couple minutes.
   At the end of the street there is the famous Arc De Triomphe, which is a huge arch in what seems like the middle of the city. We climbed to the top of it and had a wonderful view of the entire city, (Making it our third awesome view of the day).
     Last but certainly not least we visited the Eiffel Tower! It's really cool to see thee Eiffel Tower in person. We didn't feel like making the journey to the top since we already had three amazing views of the city and our passes didn't cover it. We walked underneath it and sat in a little park next to it. What Madi didn't know is that I had her engagement ring in my pocket waiting for the perfect time to give it to her. Unfortunately, the area we were at wasn't good enough. There were too many tourists around and a ridiculous amount of street vendors trying to sell roses and small Eiffel Tower souvenirs. So, I held onto the secret until a better time arose, which happened to be the next day.

From London to Paris

We were very sad to leave London, but we were glad we saw everything we had wanted to see and more. It was a little sad walking out of our Brixton flat for the last time.
       So to get to Paris we took the Eurostar which is supposed to take two and a half hours... supposed to... Apparently we hit somebody on the tracks and the trip ended up taking almost 6 hours.
     Once we made it to the Paris train station we instantly noticed it was dirtier and a little more sketchy than London ever felt to us. However, right away somebody helped us out by letting us through a subway checkpoint that wasn't working with our tickets. Interestingly enough, everyone who we interacted with was very kind to us contrary to the popular stereotype in America (Madi was right). It was a little daunting being in a place that does not primarily speak English, but nothing to worry about since many English speakers vacation there.

Madi in front of the Sacre Coeur

 The first day in Paris we just went to our flat (unfortunately three hours late due to the fatality on the tracks), explored the neighborhood we were staying in (Montmartre) and went to the highest point in Paris (Sacre Coeur). It's a beautiful cathedral that overlooks most of Paris, and it is a nice place to relax. There are a ton of locals, tourists, street performers and unfortunately a lot of very aggressive street vendors that flood the location.

The steps in front of the Sacre Coeur