Friends in a Distant Land

European friends and fun adventures

There are definitely all kinds of friends.  There are the instant friends- where you connect right away and just get along.  There are the dosage friends- where you are friends but you can only take so much of each other.  There are the friends that you have been friends with forever- not sure what first caused you to be friends- but you know that you are in it for the long haul.  There are the friends that you don’t have to talk to all the time but when you do, you know that it will go right back to the way it was- the way it has always been between the two of you- Easy and relaxed.  There are the friends that were only in your life for a short period of time, but that they taught you something during that time and then you both moved on. 

I have learned a lot about friendship over the past two years- good and bad.  I actually would have said, before moving here, that I knew a lot about friendship.  I pride myself on being a really good friend- one that I would want to have in my life.  I also thought that I had gotten past the stage in my life when I would still have drama with my friends.  But I have learned that lessons come in the form of people throughout your life J

While being here there have definitely been some highs and some lows, and some good times and some bad.  But I have realized that everyone here has contributed to making this experience an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and for that I am grateful.

As any real friendship will do, I have also learned a lot about me.  I usually proceed into things with caution.  In college, I actually didn’t say a single word to the swim team for six months because I wanted to “feel things out.”  I was fine with that and only made one friend, Anne Warner, and sat back and took everyone else in.  I really did NOT talk or interact at all. The entire swim team was shocked when I opened my mouth and actually said something funny and my swim coach was relieved because he had already informed the seniors that he had suspicions that I was suicidal.  Hard to believe someone would think this, if you know me.  Easy to see if you saw how withdrawn I was those first months in a new setting.

Coming here was different.  I have always said that I can be really outgoing and social if I have one person that I am comfortable with.  I guess I use them as my safety net.  Anne Warner was my swim team safety net.  She allowed me to have someone to be friends with and be comfortable while figuring out everyone else before I made my move.  Here my safety net came with the move because it was the reason that I moved here… It was obviously in the form of my sister, Gretchen.  So I bypassed the six months of silence and just jumped right in.  Ready to have a good time and make some new friends.

There was good and bad that came from this.  One of the good things is that it took me out of my comfort zone.  One of the bad things is that it took me out of my comfort zone. 

I became friends with people and the friendships here are more like an extended family.  You let people in and you let people in to your life that you usually don’t. I think you instantly think that people get you and you instantly want to get them.  But you soon realize that nothing can substitute time and really getting to know someone.  This place also throws a crazy curveball because it is a different setting unlike any other and I think it brings out different sides of people.  

So what has happened is that I have had some of the best times of my life and some not so great times.  I have laughed really loud and truthfully cried more as an adult than I thought possible.  I have lost some friends along the way and that does sadden me.  But I realized that I do truly believe that some people only come into your life for short periods of time and give you gifts or lessons and then go their separate ways.  I do think it is important though to focus on the good times and not the bad (even though it is much easier to dwell on the negative).

I wanted to make a video of all the good times that I have had here with friends.  This video really is for me (but I think a few of you might enjoy it too).  I want to be able to watch it and be appreciative of the great people and good times that Baumholder has allowed me to meet and the people that I got to enjoy this crazy journey with.  Everyone in this video has been a big part of my Baumholder days and for that I am very appreciative for each and every one of them.  

(Link to the video is on top of this post)

All the Pretty Things

The orginal purpose of this blog site was to focus on travel and adventures. My goal was to document my time in Europe for myself and those of you that would like to live vicarously through me. I have seriously failed documenting all of my travels and for that I apologize. But I am going to try to make it up somewhat by blogging about one of my favorite places: Florence, Italy.



I just went on my third trip to Florence this weekend. Somehow I always find myself in Firenze in May with two other women. All three times this has been the situation and three times have been amazing.

 Trip 1- Emily J, Mama "Oh hell" J, and me May 2011

Now I might love Florence so much because my first experience was so grand. I went last May with Emily J and her mother. And we had an amazing time. We did a little shopping (not the amount that I have done in other visits) but had a great taste of the city. We laughed, we ate, we drank, we conversed about life, and we say many great views (many of them we had to climb to). I left wanting more of the city.

Trip 2- Gretch, Kelly, and I May 2011

So three weeks later, I went back with my sister and Kelly. Maybe I love Florence because this trip was also one of the best that I have taken. I still think about that trip and smile. This trip did more damage to all of our pocketbooks though because we pretty much just drank wine and shopped... and found out the dangers of combining these two activities. Italian wine makes everything better and it makes every purchase seem necessary.

Trip 3- Dana, Alexis, and me May 2012

After that trip, I needed a year for my bank account to recover. When the opportunity presented for Dana and I to go there and meet up with Alexis, I booked the ticket 30 minutes after I found out that it was an option.



Some of my fellow European travelers love to go to as many places as possible. And I understand this... each place has a different feel and something different to offer. And plus you do get a little sense of pride when you can talk about all the different places that you have traveled. I, on the other hand, love to revisit the places that I love. Florence, small town Ireland, Sardinia, Scotland, and Austria are places that I would go back every weekend if had the chance. So call me boring but I have a little case of monogamy when it comes to traveling...  I guess not really monogamy but I definitely have a few favorites.

There are so many great things about Florence.  The San Lorenzo Market is full of gorgeous leather products and amazingly colorful fruit, veggies, olive oil, cheese, meat, and wine.  So each trip started with venturing through the market.

Florence is also the kind of city you want to get lost in because the architect and sculptures are really something that I have never seen anywhere else.  They are just downright mind boggling.  And these were all done in a time when computers were not utilized.

And then there is the food and wine.  Dining out is really an art form in Italy.  The Italians definitely know how to make a party in your mouth and each dining experience is unique and very enjoyable.

Florence really is a city for the senses:
1. Delicious food that is an artform to eat
2. Beautiful amazing architect and art to see
3. Gorgeous leather to feel
4. The romantic Italian language to listen to
5. And the smell of lots of money leaving your wallet

Each trip allowed me to enjoy a different part of the city.  My first trip with the Jorgensen women really let me enjoy the art of the city.  We went to the Accademia and saw David and went to the Uffizi and looked at copious amounts of Renaissance pictures.  There are many things that I have seen in Europe and not been that impressed, but when I saw David it was more amazing than anything I could ever imagine.  It is large, detailed, and done in marble- little room for error.  Wow!  This trip also included enjoying the beauty of the city.  We climbed the 400+ stairs of the Duomo tower to see the city.  Angie got a glimpse of European towers because they are very confined and small.  She would turn the corner and see all the stairs leading up and the smaller and smaller space allowed and say "oh hell" over and over again.  We also went up to the Piazza Michaelangelo to watch the sun go down.  We learned there that many teenage American exchange students live in Florence.  

My second trip really was laid back fun.  The three of us really came, saw, drank wine, and shopped.  It ended with us having a "homeless moment" on a park bench for two hours drinking out of a bottle of Prosecco because we didn't have money to spend on lunch.  I would say that was a successful Florence trip.

This trip was just so much fun with Dana and Alexis.  We definitely bought a lot.  I went thinking I already owned everything from Florence that I needed and wanted.  I proved myself wrong and went shopping crazy.  I guess I can chalk it up to buying myself some grown up necessities.  We also got an inside scoop on the city because Alexis is studying there for two weeks so she had some cool things to share about the city.

So now I will admit to my purchases.. and here comes the time in my blog when you are allowed to judge. Because I left Florence with many souvenirs and all beautiful things that I can't believe I lived without for so long!!! Beautiful red leather bags, leather boots, a leather jacket, scarves and jewelry.... and some great life-long memories! I left with a happy heart and an empty pocketbook.  Til next time Firenze... Arrividerci!!!