England, Ireland, France, Spain

Since we last met in Germany, the travels and adventures have continued. After spending four days in fascinating Berlin, I flew to London to see my friends Andrew and Alexis. I spent days walking around the city, and evenings drinking in pubs with them. The weather was beautiful, and I took advantage of the sun by just wandering around London and spending more time in the parks than in the museums. It was SO great to see Andrew and Alexis again, and to play in the sophisticated city. We rented a car to go up to the Lake District and my boyfriend Arnaud flew up from Carcassonne to see me and come with us.

We spent four very romantic days in the Lake District, staying in bed & breakfasts, and one night at Andrew's aunt's house. Arnaud was introduced to the fine cuisines and pastimes of England (scotch he enjoyed, “cured beef” not so much). We went back to London for one night, and Arnaud and I walked around the city til 4am looking for something to eat, see, or do. But there was NOTHING going on! We were shocked! London is Europe's biggest city, and nothing was open in the night. Arnaud left the next day, and I stayed in London for three more days, hanging out with my friends and having picnics.

After a few days in England, I flew to Dublin to meet my mom. We spent two nights in Dublin, during which we tried to see and do everything, but alas, we didn't make it to the Guinness Factory! So, who's going back with me? After a couple of days in Dublin, we rented a car and drove to Cork, in the SouthWest of Ireland. We stayed in that area for three nights, seeing the Ring of Kerry, the Dingle Peninsula, and lots of castles.

The experience was pretty amazing, not to mention stressful, with my mom driving on the opposite side of the road and me navigating our way through the most ridiculous tangle of streets and cities! We were both exhausted by the end of the trip, but we had a great time!

Mom and I flew then to Paris to meet her best friend Bev. We stayed for two nights in Paris, and went to Versailles, which was pretty incredible. I also took my mom to Giverny to see Monet's garden, and that was quite lovely! After Paris, all three of us took the train to Carcassonne, and here met my auntie and uncle. We spent the weekend together (ok, I ditched them a couple of times to see Arnaud, but for the most part we were all together), visiting Carcassonne. Then on Monday, Mom, Bev, and I rented a car and went to the Perigord for a week.

We stayed in Bergerac, Brantome, and Sarlat, and saw so many villages, castles, and gorgeous things that I can't even keep it straight now! At the end of the week, I was so tired. I had planned this whole trip, and was trying to take care of every detail since meeting my mom in Dublin. While we were in France, it was great because I knew our surroundings a bit, but very tiring because there I did everything from ordering dinner to translating entire tours and documents. It was a good experience, though, and made me start thinking a lot about what I want to do in the future.

We came back to Carcassonne, Bev left to go to Rome, and mom and I hung out for a couple of days. She met Arnaud, which went very well, and she met many of my friends, which made me happy! On Monday, we left to go to Barcelona. We spent two nights in Barcelona in a beautiful apartment/hotel that I found, and my mom finally saw things that she had always dreamed of, like the Sagrada Familia. We had so much fun together, but I was freaking out about my trip to Greece. It had been bothering me for several weeks, and the last few days before leaving, I was really stressing about it. I'd just had enough of traveling for the moment, and just wanted to be home. I know it's ridiculous, and just in my head, but it really made me panic.

In the end, I knew I couldn't go. I don't know why I freaked out so badly, but I did, and I had to call the girls that I would have been traveling with and tell them that I wasn't going. I am so nervous about what they think of me, and I hope that they are not too angry. I called Arnaud, I was nervous about that too because I didn't want him to think that I am as weak and ridiculous as I am, and told him that I was going to take the train and come home. He said that he would come pick me up in Barcelona, and we could spend the weekend there.

So, I took my mom to the airport and said goodbye to her. That was hard, especially since we'd spent the last three weeks together every day and night. Then I went back into town to wait for Arnaud. I spent all afternoon at the port in the sun, and got a nice sunburn on my legs! Arnaud came around 6pm, and we got a drink and looked for a hotel. There was absolutely NOTHING available because Friday was a holiday and everything was full. So, we decided to just party and stay up all night. We ate dinner around 11 and then found a bar. Around 3am we went to a nightclub, and hung out till 5, when we left and hung out with the other kids in the street. At seven, we were desperately seeking coffee, but finding nothing open, settled in for a quick nap on a park bench. Around 9, we found coffee and (finally) the car, which we had lost underground somewhere. We started the drive back home, which took longer than usual, and getting off the autoroute to eat, we had a small car accident. We were stopped in traffic, and a huge truck ran into the door. So, we had to deal with that, and Arnaud was stressed about it cause his car is actually a work car, and he'll have to tell his boss about it. We finally got back to Narbonne where Arnaud lives and slept for about 14 hours!

This morning, I woke up around 11am, and ate the croissant that Arnaud had brought for me from the boulangerie. Then we got ready to leave, and went to have lunch in town. After, he took me to Lagrasse to visit the abbey. We drove back to Carcassonne and went to la cite, and finally I went home and saw some friends.

Now I'm back in Carcassonne trying to figure the next steps (looking for jobs, making plans, etc.).

WHEW!! I think that very briefly catches up the last month! Hope you are all well!