Where in the world is HK? (Part I)

February 27th, 2010

Freshly showered, smelling of vanilla with a hint of baby powder (thanks to Lacoste "Inspiration") and drinking my current addiction: Viennese Café I can honestly say that i finally have time to update this blog. It's been a long and interesting 3 weeks but i learned so much while have a lot of fun. Just to put it in perspective I went to 7 different cities and 4 countries in 2 weeks so needless to say i was a bit exhausted when i returned. I went on this adventure with four really good friends who are also assistants. I'd like to give a special thanks to Blair for planning the trip and organizing everything.

I will now attempt to recount my mini adventure without boring you to death.

Geneva, Switzerland: I really loved this city, it's grand, rich, and full of energy. It was incredibly modern, filled with chic stores and people from various backgrounds. The first day we went to the the port to see the Jet D'eau which is a large water fountain, i know it sounds less than magnificent but it shoots up water into the air at a height of 459 feet. The only problem was when we went the fountain wasn't turned on, apparently due to the wind but that didn't stop us from taking loads of photos, after-all it was a gorgeous day. The one thing i gravitated most towards was it's diversity. At any given moment you could hear people speaking English, Spanish, French etc. Of course that may be because Geneva is home to the United Nations Headquarters and UNICEF''s regional office for Europe. I was very intrigued by this because they are both organizations that i would love to work for one day. I was a bit disappointed with the actual buildings, i expected them to be a little more magnificent.... you know the kind with thousands of draping flags flowing against the wind. After some research on the internet before leaving for my trip i found out that Geneva has a specialty store selling various American goods. I had told my French family about root beer floats and decided that while in Geneva i would bring back some root beer: Mission Accomplished :-)

Budapest, Hungary: Unfortunately for me, Geneva had me fooled into thinking that the weather was going to be warm everywhere we went. I almost forgot we were traveling through the alps but Budapest definitely reminded me fairly quickly. The icy wind hit my cheeks with a sting as soon as i stepped off the plane and the snow was littered all around us. I'm not going to lie I'm not huge fan of winter and snow but i have to admit there is something about snow crushing beneath the soles of your feet that leave you feeling a bit tranquil. Also, it was my very first hostel experience and I'm happy to report it was a good one :-) We stayed at Homemade Hostel and i would recommend it to anyone. The two girls who worked there were very friendly and readily available to give us vital information on sites to see and cheap places to eat. Per their recommendation we went to a very popular Budapest spa/bath. At first I was apprehensive at the idea of going into an outdoor pool (albeit warmed) in the middle of the snow but it was one of the most exhilarating and relaxing experiences of my life. Each bath offers a different thermal and health enrichment. We also went to Hero's Square and the Millennium Monument.


I will talk about the other places i visited in my next blog post but first i have some unfnished business to take care of. As promised i scanned the article in question from my last blog post and here it is, sorry for it's size:







Until next time folks!

Bisous,

HK