European Adventure: Day 4: Backwards Through Switzerland, Forwards Through France

Zurich 9:15am CEST; June 1st, 2018

I awoke to cheerings of "It made it! Its here! You can go to Paris with us!" It was clear what had arrived. The Eurail pass, that our mother so graciously overnighted across the world at a considerable cost, that allowed us to travel Europe at our leisure, had arrived on time. And not just on time, but just in time, as we were due to leave for Paris in less than an hour. As I packed my backpack for our weekend stay in Paris, the apartment was a hive of activity. All four people were getting ready. My sister and I for our tourist adventure, and Jennifer and David for the wedding that they were attending on Saturday.

The train was due to leave at 11:40am CEST, and this was Switzerland, it would leave then, no ifs ands or buts. Although it was late enough on Friday morning that we had missed the initial rush hour, we still had to walk to the tram stop, take the tram to the station, activate our Eurail pass, find the platform, and get on the train. All within the course of an hour and a half. Once again, thanks to the accuracy of Swiss timekeeping and transport, we knew we would be at the train station by 11am, but would the next 35 minutes be enough time to wait in line and activate our Eurail passes. Jennifer and David seemed confident that it would. My sister and I were not.

As we took the ticket to secure our place in line, we looked down at the number. 96. It didn't seem that bad, at least until we looked at the "Now Serving:" board, which displayed the number 72. 24 people were in front of us. By the time I worked this out, however, a ding went off and the number switched to 73. At least it went pretty fast, we might just make it after all. The ding went off again, and the number switched to 303. Oh no. There are multiple different groups all for the same area. The number of people in front of us went from 23 to 23 at the minimum. There could very well have been 230 people in front of us, there was no official way to tell. I spent the time trying to hack into the train station's wifi (unsuccessfully), and my sister was reading a book on her phone.

After what seemed like an eternity, our number was called. Five minutes later we had our passes verified and six minutes to find the correct platform and get on the train. Thanks to the many signs hanging from the station ceiling, it was not hard to find the correct platform and get on the train. That all being said, there was no time to spare, as the second we sat down, the train started moving. Que another major problem. Our seat reservation was facing backward from the direction of travel. Although not a problem for me and David, this was a monumental problem for Jennifer and Elizabeth, who are both very prone to motion sickness, and especially when travelling backwards. At first, we hoped that at some point the train would turn around, Basel was the first stop, so we hoped there, but that was still an hour away.

By putting on headphones and closing her eyes, Elizabeth was able to stave off her nausea for now, but that wouldn't last the four-hour duration of the trip. And I don't know about you, but I don't like dealing with that kind of thing in the slightest. So, Jennifer and I went to see if we could find a set of forward-facing seats that were free. We walked up and down the length of the train, but no dice. (As the train was travelling 150km/h I recorded my fastest and only marathon ever as it took 20 minutes to walk from the back of the train and back again. Which means that we walked 30.9 miles. (20min/60min =.33 | .33*93mph = 30.99 miles)) After we informed my sister of this terrible news, Jennifer had an idea: Maybe we could ask the train conductor to switch us seats with one of the other patrons. A fantastic idea. Once again we walked up and down the train (I don't know why people complain about marathons being hard, I did two that day and didn't even break a sweat!) trying to find the elusive conductor. Every assistant we found said he was in a different place.

Eventually, we stumbled upon him in the restaurant car. We explained to him the situation, and he did not look too pleased with the predicament that may befall him if he did not take action. Once again, we walked with him up and down the train. Nothing was said between the three of us during this. When we got back to the dining car, he opened the door marked "Staff Only" (I presume at least as it was in both French and German.)  There were two men, in the train uniform, sitting there playing cards. (It looked like a scene Agatha Christie would have described in Murder On the Orient Express to be honest. They were just missing the pipes or cigars.) They spoke for a bit, both in German and French, which made it a very confusing conversation to follow.

Finally, he turned to us, and told us that we could use the business car in the front of the train. However, we were not allowed to traverse the train, as we would be going through first class, and it might annoy the people who paid for first class that someone got an entire train car to themselves. We immediately agreed to these terms. He told us that we would be allowed to be able to change when we reached Basel, the first stop of the train's trip. We relayed this information to Elizabeth and David when we finally got back to our seats.

Basel 12:48pm CEST
We were waiting at the door of the train for it to open as we reached the platform. At the moment, we were the last car of the train, and in a few seconds, we would have to run between the crowded platform, full of people getting both on and off of the train. The train stopped, the conductors whistle sounded, and the door opened. We ran as fast as we could and made it onto the first car with just a few seconds to spare. We opened the door of the car, and were amazed. We had an entire train car, complete with complimentary wifi to ourselves. A few minutes after departure, the train manager came back to the car to check our tickets, and declared "Welcome to the business car. If you need anything, come and find me. Enjoy your trip!" Nothing of note happened for the rest of the journey, except for some of the scenery, which flashed by way to fast to take pictures of.

Paris 3:58pm CEST
Paris Gare de Lyon station is one of the three major train stations in Paris, and the one we arrived in. It also happened to be on the opposite side of the city from where our AirBnB was. Luckily for us, there was a Metro station at this station. Unluckily for us, it went nowhere near the stop that we needed. Luckily for us, David and Jennifer have lived a combined 8 years in Paris, and knew the city quite well. Three different trains later, we arrived at the station we needed. (The Metro that serviced this stop went to many of the major stops in Paris which proved to be quite useful, and will prevent the subsequent mentionings of the Metro in this series, except for later, but we'll get to that in due time.)

After some difficulty, and arguing over the map, (which was a phone map that almost walked you there step by step) we found the address for the AirBnB. We put in the password for the building, and made our way to the apartment. It was a very quaint two bedroom 1 bath apartment, with a small kitchen and living room. It was very nice, and very clearly someone's house, so we made extra care not to break anything. (AKA snoop too much into their personal lives from the pictures on the mantel and bedroom walls.) After settling in, we decided that Jennifer, Elizabeth, and I would go see the Louvre while David stayed back and did work for his upcoming conference.

When we got to the Louvre, we found it very crowded. More crowded than we figured it would be for a Friday evening. We later found out that it was because the first Fridays of the month are free admission for anyone under 26. Which two of us were able to capitalize on. The three of us also picked up the audio guide for five euro. (I highly recommend it, its a Nintendo 3DS that provides a live map of the museum, and offers multiple different tour options.)

We decided to go on the "Masters and Greatest Works" Tour, which showcased the greatest works in the Louvre, culminating in the greatest disappointment in art, the Mona Lisa. During the tour, we saw, well, the greatest works in the museum. All very pretty and very nice paintings and sculptures. And then we made it. The greatest painting of all time, supposedly, the Mona Lisa. (Let it be known that I despise the Mona Lisa. It is barely bigger than a 9x11 sheet of paper, and really is not that impressive.) However, if you really want to be impressed by art, go to the Louvre, walk to the Mona Lisa, Look at it for the half a second it takes you to turn 180 degrees, and appreciate the most beautiful painting in the entire museum. "The Wedding at Cana" by Paolo Veronese is a gorgeous painting that is absolutely giant. The attention to detail, and the execution of the scene is absolutely amazing. It is nice, however, that this painting is not the most famous one in the museum, because it allows you to walk right up to it, and see every brush stroke, and every detail.

The Venus de Milo in the Louvre

An artsy picture looking from the underground section of

the Louvre to the top of the glass Pyramid.

My favorite part of the museum, however, is the outside of the Louvre. It is completely free to walk around the courtyard, and is easily more beautiful than even "The Wedding at Cana." The outside is an architectural masterpiece, and the showpiece is the beautiful glass pyramid in the center of the courtyard. If you want to enjoy the Louvre, but you don't have the time to go and deal with the lines or the people, just go to walk through the courtyard, and take in the beauty that is all around you.

After leaving the Louvre, we walked through the center of the city to Ile Saint-Louis. This is where we were scheduled to meet up with David, and one of David's friends from school. He took us on a tour of the island, and then we met up with his wife before walking down the river Sienne toward the restaurant for tonight's dinner. At some point during this walk, mother nature decided that we were having too much of a nice time in Paris, and let the skies open. Within ten minutes all of us, well, those of us without umbrellas, were soaked.

The clock tower on the Ile Saint-Louis that showcases the two shields

that would later be combined to create the current French flag.

The quarter of the city the restaurant was in Le Marais, which used to be a marsh. Most of the land underneath the quarter is still very swampy, and because of this, they cannot build metro lines underneath this quarter of the city. Which means you have to walk everywhere. Very nice I presume on a beautiful evening, but not so much in the rain. When we got to the restaurant, because we missed our reservation, we had to wait until a table large enough was available. (Wow really? That's how restaurants work. Huh.) As we were waiting, Jennifer and David's other two friends arrived. As David and two of his friends were French, we crossed the street and watched the France-Italy friendly game at the bar.

Eventually, our table was called, so we were retrieved by Jennifer. The restaurant specialized in crepes, both sweet and savory. Personally, I preferred the sweet crepe to the savory, but they were both delicious. We ended up staying and talking amongst ourselves until almost 1am the next morning, however, I will end the story for today here, and pick back up tomorrow when we wake up. All there is to know is that I had some difficulty pulling the bed out of the couch, and then very quickly fell asleep.

European Adventure: Day 3: The Pink City

Zurich 11:30am CEST; May 31st, 2018
I awoke to the sound of my alarm, and my sister telling me to turn it off and get out of bed, which I was very reluctant to do. Our cousins had gone to work, and we had instructions to meet them at one of the tram stops by one o'clock. Seeing as I still had quite a bit of time, I took a shower while my sister made us both a double shot of espresso and warmed up two croissants in the oven. (A frozen croissant in the oven while preheating to 150C is just as flaky and delicious as a fresh one.) Over breakfast on the porch, and in between admiring the scenery we tried to determine our plan for the upcoming weekend if our Eurail passes did not arrive on time. We determined that we would rather not think of that scenario and hope that our plans would not be ruined by our colossal mistake.

After doing the dishes, we walked to the tram station to buy another daily pass. We spent more time than either of us would like to admit trying to decipher the German terminal before we noticed a button in the bottom right to change the language to English, which made the process much easier. By the time our tickets had printed from the machine, the tram was arriving. We could vaguely remember the tram number we were supposed to take, but we knew the name of the stop. After getting on the tram, we realized that there were three different ones that came to this station. So, we decided to gamble that this tram would end up taking us to the stop that we needed. Once again, we got lucky and saw our stop pop up at the bottom of the destinations screen.

We met up with Jennifer at the station, and she proceeded to tell us about the area we were in. It was the main university area of the city, and both the main campuses of the University of Zurich and ETH were located across the street from one another. It also turns out that while the universities compete for students, they share resources for the faculties and students. She explained this as we were walking towards the ETH library so she could pick up some materials she had requested. The building itself was almost classical Greek in architecture, but with a few differences that denote the almost universal style of architecture for universities.

The real treasure, from an architectural standpoint, was inside the building itself. From the outside, it looked like there were three different building, but from the inside, they were all connected to each other with what I consider an "inside-out" style courtyard between them all. It looked as though at one point they were not connected and instead of adding walls and a roof to each of the buildings to connect them, they just constructed one massive roof. (I realize this is rather confusing to visualize, but there is a picture below this paragraph which should sum it up.) In the main room of the center building was a room of columns that stretched from floor to each ceiling, with each floor culminating in an arch, to the top of the building, three stories above. All in all, it was a beautiful place to be.

The back of the building, leading into the green space.

Showcasing the old exterior of the building, the new windowed roof,

and the newer additions, such as staircases.

The columns and arches of the main room, with the gorgeous patterned

ceiling.

Leaving through the back of the building brought us into a beautiful courtyard, littered with students studying and eating lunch amidst the reflecting pools, and green spaces. One of these green spaces overlooked a good portion of the city below, and offered breathtaking views of the mixture of old and new styles.

The view from one of the balconies offered a view into one of the city's older districts.

As you can see here, a number of steeples dominated the older part of the city's skyline.

From here we walked to another one of Zurich's seibons, the UBS Polybahn. Named after the bank, this funicular is operated by Zurich Public Transport and offers rides ever quarter hour. It connects the main campus of ETH with the main tram station. At a grade of 23%, this little car carries around 1.6 million people a year up, or down, 41 meters Monday through Friday. In my opinion, the most interesting thing about this funicular is that because there are two cars that have to pass each other, there is a switch system for the track. This confused me for multiple rides until I finally figured out that one cable goes over one side and the other cable stays to the other side. Because the cables pull the cars up, they'll follow the cables which prevents the need for a mechanical switch device. Really interesting if you're into that sort of thing.

After we took the Polybahn down to the main tram station ("Central"), the three of us walked along the river, taking in the sights. There were swimmers in the river, and a few particularly brave souls jumping from the bridges into the river below to the delight of their friends. We followed the river a good distance before we started to get hungry. We stopped to look at the map and Jennifer realized that we were close to one of the more "hipster" areas of town which offered fresh produce and many lunch options.

From the outside, it looked like nothing special, except the vast amounts of people eating their lunches gave away the location's very obvious secret. Inside, however, was a completely different story. If you live in Cleveland, or have ever been to the West Side Market in the Ohio City neighborhood of Cleveland, you can kind of picture this. The only difference is that 3/4 of the stands on the inner ring are gone and are replaced with a flower shop at one end, and a fancy restaurant at the other. All around are lunch options, ranging from shepherd's pies to pizza to pasta, and to the sandwiches that we got. Of course, the occasional ice cream and chocolatier were dotted around the inside as well.

After lunch, we made our way to the Viadukt, an open-air mall that is built into the side of, well, a viaduct. What once carried water from one part of the city now houses the city's most hip shopping, dining, and nightclubs. We said goodbye to Jennifer, as she had both a dentist's appointment and a meeting to attend, discussed a meeting point for later, and then my sister and I set off down the street. Mostly due to her penchant for window shopping, we weaved in and out of stores for the better part of an hour before deciding to head back to the old town to check out a few of the churches that our cousins recommended touring.

Que another tram ride, and my sister continually questioning my sense of direction. (Another thing that would become a theme for the trip, but not exciting enough to mention. Just assume that when we are by ourselves and we head from one place to another, my sister is questioning my map reading abilities until we are actually inside the place we are looking for.) The first tram took us to the central station, and then a quick look at the lines told us we could have stayed on that tram for a few more stops to reach our destination. Because they come relatively often (at least once every 10 minutes during the busier parts of the day) we took the time to fill our water bottles at the fountain, and wait for the tram we just got off to come back again.

Although we could have taken the tram to the inside of the old town, we decided to get off on the outskirts, so we could walk through most of the area as possible. While following the directions on the map to get to the first of the three churches, we came across something that I would not believe actually happened if I had not taken any pictures of it. The entire square in front of this church was bright pink. And I don't mean entire square in a superficial and exaggerating for the enjoyment of my readers entire square, I actually mean the entire square. The keen-eyed reader will realize that the descriptions and pictures to follow give way to the title of this day's adventure.

What I presume used to be a stone square ringed in brick sidewalks, was now a bright pink astroturf square ringed in brick sidewalks. And I mean bright pink. At one end of the square (It was ovular in shape but they're still called squares for some reason) was a giant water fountain, both a nice showpiece, and providing drinking water for the public. At the other end of the not square square was a giant pink cube. It seemed to serve no purpose, save for its own existence. Affixed to every light post and building were white and pink banners which seemed to advertise the coming of some festival happening through the month of June.

The very pink not square square with its bright pink cube. Directly behind

this picture is one of the churches we were looking for. We were so distracted

by the pink square that we passed by it about three times before finally "finding" it.

The other end of the square featuring the fountain.

Showcasing some of the banners along with the fountain.

After our encounter with the bright pink square, we continued wandering around the old town "looking" for the churches. One ended up being closed, and we couldn't find the other for some time because it was right next to the very distracting pink square. However, we did end up finding a local chocolatier, and enjoyed their delicious gelato while contemplating where to spend the next two hours of the day before we were to meet back up with our cousins.

One of the smaller streets in the old town, proudly flying the Swiss flag.

After wandering aimlessly for about a half hour (which drew many complaints from my sister that we weren't actually going anywhere. Which to be fair, was entirely true. But our preferred types of travel are very different. I prefer to wander and explore randomly and at my own leisure, while she prefers to stick to a guidebook and major attractions. This will be another common theme for the trip, to each of our annoyances.) we came across a very small river leading into Lake Zurich. (After a quick look at the map, it appears to be a branch off of the main river.) There was a sidewalk/dock at the water's edge, which we did not know if we were allowed to walk on, but determined that if no one came to stop us than it was probably for public use. We followed this pathway all the way to the lake, and spent some time taking pictures, and admiring the views.

The secluded and possibly forbidden path down the river.

Instead of having pedestrians wait to cross the six-lane main road,

there was a tunnel underneath. Although you cannot tell from

this picture, the walkway was below the waterline.

Once you exit the tunnel you are greeted by Lake Zurich.

It seemed to be a good place to take some "aesthetic" pictures.

The view of the lake from here was beautiful.

This little tunnel also provided views into one of the city's

private harbors.

We stayed here for a good half hour, admiring the views, and of course, Elizabeth had me take some pictures of her for the "gram". We continued our wandering up the main river, away from the lake, and trying to stay away from as many main streets as possible. (One thing I highly recommend in any city as you might find your favorite things along these routes.) One of the breaks in the floodwall gave us some fantastic views of the other side of the river, and Grossmunster, a 12th-century cathedral.

Grossmunster from the old town side of the river.

One of the city's many clocktowers.

When we finally made our way back to the Central tram station we realized that we still had another hour before we were to meet back up with our cousins. We took this time to explore the other side of the river and take in what it had to offer. This turned out to be a lot of window shopping, and gawking at the prices in a city where the majority of its residents are extremely wealthy. To be fair, we did find a few things that we could afford at a small candy shop in which we were definitely the oldest people in the store aside from the cashier, who was very friendly, but spoke no English at all. (I was also a good two feet taller than most of the other patrons as well!)

After finally meeting back up with our cousins, we took the time to go grocery shopping for that evening's dinner. I believe it was a Greek salad that was delicous, but that may have been a different evening, I do not remember. After dinner, we took our final adventure of the day, a walk around the short hiking path near their apartment. The hills were steep, and we were very out of breath when we reached the top of the trail, but it gave us a glorious view of the city and the lake. It also showed us the impending rainstorm that was coming for us if we stayed too long looking at the view.

Altogether a beautiful view. Lake Zurich, the mountains in the background,

and the barley field in front of us all came together to form one spectacular sight.

As you may have expected, with a view like the one above, we stayed and admired it just a bit too long, and were caught in the storm as we made our way back down the trail. By the time we had made it back to the apartment, all four of us were completely soaked, not to mention exhausted. So we dried off, recapped the day, watched another episode of Arrested Development, and went to bed hoping the Eurail pass would be in the mailbox by the time we woke up.

European Adventure: Day 2: Part 2: Stop and Smell the Flowers

Zurich 2:45pm CEST; May, 30th, 2018
After leaving the Zurich airport, we plunged into the heart of Zurich's industrial district. The area looks sleek and modern, as if it was just built yesterday. Those who are used to the grimy-ness of even the newest American industrial districts would not believe the cleanliness of the one here in Zurich. We were not in the district long, however, because we immediately stepped on the tram. The tram system in Zurich is the city's main form of public transportation. There are some underground trains, however, the stops are few and far between, and are mostly meant to shuffle passengers from the airport to the main train station in Zurich so they can then go all over Switzerland and Europe.

My sister and cousin were deep in conversation about the plan for the next two weeks for the entirety of the first tram ride. I must confess I did not hear a word they were saying as I was constantly whipping my head left and right to take in as many sights I could see. As the tram continued along its journey, we transitioned from the industrial district to the old town. The stark contrast in architecture was immediate. From the sleek and modern buildings and warehouses to classical and turn of the century German architecture. I almost expected the tram to stop using the overhead lines and transition to steam power for this part of the journey to comply with the scenery. That was not the case however as the old city was dripping with 21st-century tech.

Our stay in this section of Zurich did not last long however as tram travel was quick and efficient. At some point we switched trams, however, I was still too filled with wonder for my surroundings to notice where. It was at this point our cousin told us she had a surprise in store for us in terms of getting to their apartment. Getting to this surprise allowed us to leave the old town, and progress through the new town. A beautiful mix of turn of the century, mid-century, and modern architecture, all laid out together and in perfect harmony with each other. The surprise came in the way of another of Zurich's public transport solutions, the seibon! Or as we later found out, the English translation: funicular. (Seibon is German and a very common name for the machine) The seibon/funicular is essentially a cable car that's constructed like a set of stairs. They are made to be quick and easy transport up even the steepest slopes. Our cousin informed us that her and her husband particularly enjoyed this funicular as it was a short walk from their apartment, and had a convenient grocery store at the bottom of the slope.

The funicular offered beautiful views of downtown Zurich as it made its way up the hill, and into one of the city's residential zones. This particular area where my cousins lived is well known for its views of Lake Zurich, the downtown area, and, on a particularly clear day, views of the surrounding mountains off in the distance. A short ten-minute walk or so from the funicular, which seemed to be lengthened considerably by my heavy luggage, brought us to their apartment building. A modern but understated affair that offered six residents spectacular views of the lake and all of its splendors. I will save you from the monotony that is unpacking and refreshing ourselves from the flights, and a quick lunch.

As it was Wednesday, our cousin, a Ph.D. holder in Psychology who teaches and works at the University of Zurich, along with her husband, a Doctor in Economics who also works at the university, informed us that it was lecture day. Every Wednesday someone from somewhere in Europe comes to give a lecture on what they are currently working on. However, it turns out that her office is in the University's botanical garden, which was one of the attractions in Zurich. Once we got to the botanical gardens, I did not expect to take as many pictures as I did! A selection of some of my favorites is below.

(Please note all pictures were taken by my Google Pixel XL unless otherwise noted!)

This is my sister photographing the white flowers below.

These were quite annoying to get a picture of, as they were very small

and the wind kept moving them around.

These were growing on the side of rocks and were quite large!

Along with these, there were many other flowers, plants, bugs, and bees around. I will not be posting all of the pictures here for the sake of space, however, I may be able to link the album at some point in the future! We spent a good hour or so walking around the paths of the garden before we headed towards Lake Zurich. We were supposed to go the way our cousin had described, however, we ended up getting rather lost looking for the "Picture of a fox on a pinkish-red building." Sometimes when you get lost you end up someplace much better than what you were actually looking for, and this was absolutely the case today.

While wandering around the smaller streets on the outskirts of the city, we (Elizabeth and I) came across an antique bookstore. Antique bookstores always seem to have a certain magic around them, and this one was no different. The small aisles in the corner store were made even more cramped by the stacks of new and old inventory that just didn't fit on the shelves. The door to a back room was open, and more large stacks of books could be seen. As we were leaving this shop, there was a younger woman at the register who I swear was not there when we walked in. She gave us this smile as if to thank us for stopping in, and not knocking anything over with our backpacks. However, her face looked much older than the person who was wearing it, and further deepened the questions I have about that mysterious little shop.

As we continued down the street, Elizabeth spotted a small child running with an ice cream cone. This made her very excited as she has a love affair with ice cream that cannot be satiated. Naturally, we spent the next 45 minutes of our evening looking for the elusive ice cream shop/stand. When we finally came across one, however, it had just closed for the day. (This annoyed her quite a lot and put her in a bit of a mood for the rest of the day.) As luck would have it, the hunt for the frozen treat brought us to a very peaceful alcove on the lake where a few people were laying on the grass, having picnics and swimming in the lake.

Not seen is the portly old man to the left, laying in the grass,

sporting a speedo that was way too small.

We spent a half hour exploring the public parks on this side of the city. Elizabeth brought her camera and was taking many pictures of the gorgeous lake and scenery. We met up with our cousin shortly after, and were discussing what we wanted to do for dinner when the rain hit. A small drizzle at first, it picked up rather quickly and was soon a full-on downpour and thunderstorm. As we took refuge under a few trees with a group of people, one of the street performers took the crowd as an opportunity to show off his craft. It was one of those moments that seem surreal but the occasional freezing cold raindrop down the back of my shirt kept bring me back to reality.

We decide to make a run for it during a break in the rain to try and catch a tram so we could go to where we decided to eat for dinner. Tibbits, a Vegetarian and Vegan cafe and restaurant that offered a plentiful buffet, and charged by weight of the plate. A clever idea, I must admit but I was not hungry at all. My sister and cousin both got plates of food, and will admit I stole bits from their plates. I was very enthralled by my iced vanilla chai latte. (I feel way too blogger-y typing that sentence.) We chilled in the restaurant for a good amount of time playing a new app on our phones. (The game is called SpaceTeam and I highly recommend it for groups of friends to play. Yes, it is cross compatible.)

After looking at the radar after around 2 hours we saw that it was going to rain for the rest of the evening. So we decided to make another run for it to the tram stop. The trip to the apartment was very uneventful, other than being soaked by the rain. (You will find this to be a common theme for this trip!) We ended the day welcoming our cousin's husband when he walked in the door, and watching the first episode of the new season of Arrested Development with our cousins. I have never seen the show before in my life, and I was thoroughly confused by the whole show. It was very good though. Finally, just around midnight we climbed into our beds (an air mattress for me) and fell into a much needed deep sleep.

European Adventure Day 2: Part 1: Hurry-Up and Wait

I am awoken to the bouncing of the plane in the turbulence, and by an announcement from the pilot. Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We will be beginning our descent into Reykjavik shortly. There are light rain showers around the airport, so the descent may be a bit bumpy. The local time in Reykjavik is 6:30am GMT. Thank you for flying with us today! Hold on, what do you mean 6:30am GMT and we're still in the air. Boarding for our connection to Zurich starts at 6:45am GMT! Apparently, due to the turbulence, the flight ended up taking longer than the pilot anticipated. On top of the both of us forgetting the Eurail tickets, this made her stress like crazy. I was more calm about the situation, as there was nothing I could do about it, but I was still slightly annoyed.

Reykjavik 6:40am GMT; May, 30th, 2018
When we finally got to the gate after we landed at 6:40, my hope was dwindling and my sister's was non-existent. I was perpetually asked the question "Do you think they'll hold the plane if enough people aren't there on time?" My response was either the go to I don't know noise and shrug combo, you know the one, or 'Probably not.' The biggest problem with the whole ordeal was that we didn't know if we would have to go through passport control here in Iceland or in Switzerland. We hoped Switzerland for the sake of time, however that turned out not to be the case as we would find out in just a few minutes.

Thankfully, through the chaos of leaving the airplane and trying our best to decipher the hieroglyphics the Icelandics call words, we were able to make a quick phone call to our mother describing both the situations with the Eurail Pass, and the fact that we might not make our connecting flight to Zurich. However, as we were nearing our correct gate, we saw something that destroyed all the hope and time we made up while running through the airport. Passport control. Initially this made us worry that we had accidentally found the exit of the airport and were completely lost, but then we remembered that by landing in Iceland we had officially entered the European Union. Thankfully unlike the Department of Homeland Security officers at home, the Icelandics appeared to actually enjoy their jobs which made the endless task of stamping passports and making sure you weren't a serial killer or a fugitive much easier and quicker. All told we probably spent 15 minutes where we expected to spend hours.

We finally arrive at the gate for the connection with Zurich to find that the boarding had been delayed by 20 minutes. This was both fantastic for us as it meant that we were able to board the plane, but was also rather annoying as we just ran from one side of the airport to the other while trying to talk on the phone and figure out where we were going all at the same time. When boarding finally started, the might of Icelandic thinking showed again and we were in the air within 10 minutes of the gate opening. Thankfully, the only thing of note for this flight was that we were in the emergency exit row, which meant I did not have to sit with my knees at my chin for the entirety of the flight again.

Zurich 1:20pm CEST; May 30th, 2018
For the most parts, all airports look exactly the same. The type of place you don't want to spend too much time in because even the shortest amount of time can feel like an eternity. I was expecting more of the same when we landed in Zurich, but I could not have been more wrong. The buildings looked sleek and futuristic, as if they were ready to welcome the spacefarers and reopen as a spaceport. The gates were reminiscent of a giant living room, and the concourses appeared as if they were first designed as a shopping mall. There was even a gift shop you had to walk through to get to the baggage claim. A GIFT SHOP. Baggage claim is another one of those things that makes the whole airport experience nothing more than a hassle. You finally get to your destination, everyone rushes directly to the bathroom or baggage claim, and then you just sit there waiting for your bag to arrive.

Luckily, however, Zurich is in the German part of Switzerland, so everything is as efficient as humanly possible. It seems to be timed just perfectly so that when you make it to the baggage claim, wait in line for the bathroom, and then come out of the bathroom, the luggage starts coming out of the chute. It was a welcome surprise to say the least. Leaving the baggage claim while dragging luggage and trying to figure out where to go from there was the most stressful part of my day. My sister was texting our cousin that we had landed, but had not yet received any response due to the poor connection underground. We knew we were supposed to meet her there, but we didn't count on the airport being the size of a small suburb. Through what seemed like dumb luck, we made it out of one door and she was just standing there, arms open and waiting for a hug.

She asked us a myriad of questions ranging from how were the flights? (good), How was the airline food? (not provided and expensive so we didn't get any), Are you hungry? (more thirsty than anything). After that response she told us to follow her, so we did of course. While walking back into the airport and through sections we didn't even know existed she was telling us about the whole Eurail pass fiasco. Essentially, our mother, our aunt (her mother) and her were up all night (morning for her) trying to figure out how to solve the problem. The first thing they tried was to see if the paper pass was just for fun and you could access the entire pass online, which turned out to not be possible. They then looked into sending scanned copies, however, they only accept actual passes at the train stations.  They even looked into purchasing a new one while we were there, which ended up costing much more than the option they chose, overnighting them in the mail. However, as we were 6 hours ahead of home, they wouldn't be shipped till the FedEx at the airport opened in the morning. Which meant that before they even got sorted by their system it would be the start of Thursday here. And we had reservations for an 11am train on Friday to Paris. The estimated delivery was 9am, but it was not specified if it was EST or CEST.

Because the topic of the Eurail passes was so important I was not paying attention at all until we arrived at a grocery store. In an airport. And not a small one either, it was massive. I won't get into details about a grocery store mostly because you've probably been in one before. Just picture that and change all the English words to German and you've got the picture. After we purchased our drinks, we walked through what looked like a shopping mall mixed with a city center. It was all indoors and all part of the airport. Apparently, some people go there to do all of their shopping, or just even hang out. Finally, at 2:20pm CEST, we left the airport and plunged directly into the heart of Zurich.

European Adventure Day 1: Taking Flight

The day is Wednesday, May 30th, 2018. The time is 3:30pm EDT and I have still yet to finish packing. This is just the way I am, always procrastinating, and of course, making my mother insanely nervous as we need to be at the airport in two and a half hours. This would make many people nervous, as packing two weeks worth of clothes and necessities in such a short amount of time leads to many a forgotten item. However, I was not bothered by this as I continued to sit on the couch and finish my episode of Futurama. Fast forward two hours, and I had completely finished packing, and was waiting for my sister to return from the store to pick up a few things she had forgotten to purchase since January when we planned this adventure. Thankfully, five minutes later she got back and announced that she had finished packing for the trip. Good thing too as we were leaving for the airport as soon as she had returned.

Luckily, my dad works for the Cleveland airport, and because of this, we live within a five-minute drive from the airport, and we always know the status of flights, weather, security lines, customs, the lot. Additionally, we do not have to deal with the hassle of the departures drop off section of the airport, as he has parking privileges near the check-in counters. We arrived at the ticket counter to see the one thing that we did not account for. Golfers. If you have ever traveled with a set of golf clubs as luggage, you may know of the hassles associated with it. Golf clubs are actually pretty heavy, cumbersome, and worst of all, expensive, so you are keen that the airline takes the best of care with them so as not to break any of the clubs. Because of these bags of clubs, an estimated five minute wait time for the line to the ticket counter was immediately bumped up to 25, and the stress began. The time is now 6:30pm EDT, boarding starts in one hour and ten minutes, and we haven't even gotten through one of the biggest nightmares in modern travel history. Security.

(If you are familiar with Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, you will know that it is not the biggest airport in the world, and after Continental was bought by United, it ceased operations as a major airline hub. This was bad news for the airport as its major customer had picked up and left within the course of two years. Revenue slowed, and because of this the airport started slacking on some of the major maintenance that had been planned, and was very much needed. After around five years of questioning whether the airport should keep one of its major concourses open, a new breed of airline arrived on the scene, and ultimately at Hopkins. The economy hoppers. Airlines such as Spirit, and Frontier which offered cheap flights and an a la carte method of pricing. These airlines were never predicted to last and were seen as the final hurrah of the airport before its eventual demise. However, once people started realizing that they could take cheap weekend trips around the country to see family, or have quick vacations, these airlines started to flourish, and more and more kept popping up. This gave the airport new money and allowed it to start working on projects that it finally had the cash for. Ultimately, this will be fantastic for the airport, and for its customers. However, currently is a different story as the airport is working at the fullest capacity it has had in 10 years while simultaneously fixing and upgrading itself for the newfound travelers.)

Security at any airport is always a... well... its a shitshow let's be real here. Security at an airport that is experiencing its highest traveler numbers in 10 years while working at the same time to accommodate them. Needless to say, Security took forever. As we are finally cleared, its 7:20pm EDT and boarding starts in 20 minutes. The absolute worst part though, in my opinion, was the fact that the gate where we were boarding did not have a view of the aircraft so we were not able to see if the airplane was even there. This was an issue, as the plane had been delayed the previous two days by 30 minutes. Granted, this was not terrible in terms of flight delays, however, our layover was only 50 minutes, and we had no time to spare.

There was a slight delay in boarding which caused quite a bit of stress, as the time of departure was supposed to be 8:20pm EDT, and Icelandair did not start boarding the aircraft until 8:10pm EDT. If you have ever been on an airplane before you know of the one thing that has stumped even the greatest thinkers of the modern age. Boarding. This is mostly because first class is normally boarded first to make them feel special, and business class is the next to board, to give busy men and women the illusion of doing things on time. and then everyone else basically boards at the same time and it's a crapshoot to get to the plane while inevitably being held up by either an old woman who can't lift her carryon to the luggage compartment, or a family trying to juggle three kids and the same amount of carryons. You've been there, you know how it goes.

Well, apparently, someone in Iceland has nothing to do and was able to come up with a solution that makes the most sense and takes less than 15 minutes. Why not load the plane from the back first? I know. It makes perfect sense, and who cares if rich people get snooty and the business types get stressed if everyone boards 20 minutes faster? Certainly not me, that's for sure. We left the gate at 8:22pm EDT and were in the air by 8:30pm EDT. Major crisis averted, still a little worried that we will miss our connection in Reykjavik, but at this point, it was out of our hands. As if he had heard my thoughts, an announcement comes over the loudspeaker, first in Icelandic, then in English: Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Today's flight is from Cleveland to Reykjavik. We will be cruising around 18 thousand meters. We should have a smooth flight, except for a few patches of turbulence over Greenland. Tonight's flight should be around five and a half hours. The stewardesses should be around shortly with refreshments available to purchase. Thank you for choosing Icelandair. Five and a half hours!? We might just be making this connection after all. As I swipe through the screen in the headrest in front of me, looking for something to watch, my sister turns to me and says "Did you bring the Eurail pass? Because I didn't." Well. Shit.

Book Review: A Hero of Our Time

A Hero of Our Time
Mikhail Lermontov
Psychological Fiction
1840

Book Summary:

A Hero of Our Time can be best described as a novel pretending to be a biography. The novel starts out with the Preface before it turns to the short Biography of Bella. During Bella's story, we hear about a man named Pechorin, and Maxim Maximych who has his own story after that of Bella. Then we have the Foreword which we presume to be written by the same person who wrote both the story of Bella and Maximych. Next up is the story of Pechorin, told by Pechorin after his death through the reading of his journal. In Pechorin's Journal, there are three other stories which can be summed up by the main character in each, besides Pechorin of course. The stories of Taman, Princess Mary, and the Fatalist each take place in different parts of Pechorin's life.

My Review:

It has been a very long time since I have read something that made me sit back and rethink my life after reading it. However, this beautiful story was something extraordinary. Although the writing style is very different than what I am used to, and I had no idea where many of the locations and nationalities were, every page was a journey. Not only did I stop to research the locations, and the long-forgotten nationalities that this story speaks of, but I also stopped to reflect on each story after it had finished.

All of this being said, it was not by any means an easy read. It took me many months to get through the book, and I must admit that I was not always pleased with it. However, unlike many novels you will have read in your life, this one does not feel like a story. You start to connect with the characters as if they were lifelong friends, and feel in their pain when things do not go as planned. Lermontov was somehow able to make 300 pages seem like an entire lifetime.

Review Summary:

Readability: 2.5/5

Characters: 4/5

Writing Style: 5/5

Total Pages: 287 (Varies by version)

Reading Time: 48 hours

Would I Recommend This Book: Definitely Yes

Book Review: Humanity's Hope

Humanity's Hope

Pembroke Sinclair

Young Adult / Apocalyptic

2017

Note: I was contacted by the author's PA about doing a review of this book.** I was given a free e-copy of the book to read for the review.

Book Summary:

Taken from GoodReads.com

Caleb, a 17-year-old boy, survived the zombie uprising, but he didn’t come out of the ordeal unscathed. He’s been scarred—both mentally and physically. The rest of humanity is trying to rebuild, to make the world normal again. Caleb is trying to return to a normal life also, but after all he’s seen, after the loss of his family and friends, the transition is difficult. The darkness that led him down a path of self-doubt and self-harm keeps trying to creep back into his mind.

Things only become worse when he discovers he’s immune to whatever makes a zombie a zombie. Fighting zombies was predictable. He knew what to expect. Fighting humans is volatile. They are malicious and treacherous. They won’t stop to get what they want, and Caleb has to figure out exactly what that is.

My Review:

First things first, I will be the first to admit that I absolutely loathe the entire idea of a zombie. I hate all the shows about them, all the books, games, and movies. However, I do love a good apocalypse story, but I am always left wondering what happens after that apocalypse. This time around though, Sinclair has given us the "what next" of all apocalypse stories. It showcases what humanity is, and how it reacts to devastating disasters. It rebuilds, starts again, makes it better, and I think that is what people need to hear about themselves. 

I have a problem with Young Adult novels that I've had ever since I myself was a young adult who was reading them. The Fate of the World Rests in the Hands of a Teenager is the tagline of this book, and it just makes you wonder "... Why?" And I think that's how anybody who isn't a young adult sees a book like this. However, I do remember as a teenager that it certainly felt like the fate of the world was depending on me. Sure my world at the time was worrying about getting papers and lab reports turned in on time and trying to get into college, but it felt the same way. So much pressure on one person for no reason.

These two problems from my own psyche aside, I was able to identify with the main character, Caleb, from a mental health standpoint. I was able to completely understand why he acted the way he did, and even sympathize with some of his thoughts. However, because of the aforementioned problems, this relatively short novel, in comparison to what I have been reading recently, took me forever to get through. The novel was definitely not a page-turner, but it was a pleasant reading experience. I do not feel like I have wasted my time reading this novel, but nor am I particularly pleased with myself for reading it. I appreciate being reached out to personally for a review of this book, but alas, I feel ashamed for not enjoying the book as much as I would have liked.

Review Summary:

Readability: 2.5/5

Characters: 4/5

Writing Style: 4.5/5

Total Pages: 253

Reading Time: 26 hours

Would I recommend this book: Probably

**If you would like to contact me for a review request, hop on over to my "About the Blogger" page! There you will find my contact information so you can get in touch. I will leave an honest review no matter what, so just keep that in mind.

Weekday Arduino Project #2

Decode IR Remote Buttons

The Project:

Decode the signals from an IR remote to use in other projects.

Pictures:

Why?:

For later projects, and to decode any of your IR remotes for later usability.

What you need:

1. Arduino Uno Board
2. 3 pin IR receiver
3. IR remote
4. Breadboard
5. Arduino software

The Schematic:

The Code:

// Include all needed libraries
#include <IRLib.h>
#include <IRLibMatch.h>
#include <IRLibRData.h>
#include <IRLibTimer.h>

// Create a receiver object to listen on pin 11
IRrecv My_Receiver(6);

// Create a decoder object
IRdecode My_Decoder;

void setup()
{
  Serial.begin(9600);
  My_Receiver.enableIRIn();   // Start the receiver
}

void loop() {
// Continuously look for results. When you have them pass them to the decoder
  if (My_Receiver.GetResults(&My_Decoder)) {
    My_Decoder.decode();   // Decode the data
    My_Decoder.DumpResults(); // Show the results on serial monitor
    My_Receiver.resume(); // Restart the receiver
  }

}

The Library:

• IRmaster Library download link

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions!

Book Review Robinson Crusoe

Robinson Crusoe

Daniel Defoe

Historical Fiction / Adventure

1719

Book Summary:

Taken from SparkNotes
Robinson Crusoe is an Englishman from the town of York in the seventeenth century, the youngest son of a merchant of German origin. Encouraged by his father to study law, Crusoe expresses his wish to go to sea instead. His family is against Crusoe going out to sea, and his father explains that it is better to seek a modest, secure life for oneself. Initially, Robinson is committed to obeying his father, but he eventually succumbs to temptation and embarks on a ship bound for London with a friend. When a storm causes the near deaths of Crusoe and his friend, the friend is dissuaded from sea travel, but Crusoe still goes on to set himself up as a merchant on a ship leaving London. This trip is financially successful, and Crusoe plans another, leaving his early profits in the care of a friendly widow. The second voyage does not prove as fortunate: the ship is seized by Moorish pirates, and Crusoe is enslaved to a potentate in the North African town of Sallee. While on a fishing expedition, he and a slave boy break free and sail down the African coast. A kindly Portuguese captain picks them up, buys the slave boy from Crusoe, and takes Crusoe to Brazil. In Brazil, Crusoe establishes himself as a plantation owner and soon becomes successful. Eager for slave labor and its economic advantages, he embarks on a slave-gathering expedition to West Africa but ends up shipwrecked off of the coast of Trinidad.

Crusoe soon learns he is the sole survivor of the expedition and seeks shelter and food for himself. He returns to the wreck’s remains twelve times to salvage guns, powder, food, and other items. Onshore, he finds goats he can graze for meat and builds himself a shelter. He erects a cross that he inscribes with the date of his arrival, September 1, 1659, and makes a notch every day in order never to lose track of time. He also keeps a journal of his household activities, noting his attempts to make candles, his lucky discovery of sprouting grain, and his construction of a cellar, among other events. In June 1660, he falls ill and hallucinates that an angel visits, warning him to repent. Drinking tobacco-steeped rum, Crusoe experiences a religious illumination and realizes that God has delivered him from his earlier sins. After recovering, Crusoe makes a survey of the area and discovers he is on an island. He finds a pleasant valley abounding in grapes, where he builds a shady retreat. Crusoe begins to feel more optimistic about being on the island, describing himself as its “king.” He trains a pet parrot, takes a goat as a pet, and develops skills in basket weaving, bread making, and pottery. He cuts down an enormous cedar tree and builds a huge canoe from its trunk, but he discovers that he cannot move it to the sea. After building a smaller boat, he rows around the island but nearly perishes when swept away by a powerful current. Reaching shore, he hears his parrot calling his name and is thankful for being saved once again. He spends several years in peace.

One day Crusoe is shocked to discover a man’s footprint on the beach. He first assumes the footprint is the devil’s, then decides it must belong to one of the cannibals said to live in the region. Terrified, he arms himself and remains on the lookout for cannibals. He also builds an underground cellar in which to herd his goats at night and devises a way to cook underground. One evening he hears gunshots, and the next day he is able to see a shipwrecked on his coast. It is empty when he arrives on the scene to investigate. Crusoe once again thanks Providence for having been saved. Soon afterward, Crusoe discovers that the shore has been strewn with human carnage, apparently the remains of a cannibal feast. He is alarmed and continues to be vigilant. Later Crusoe catches sight of thirty cannibals heading for shore with their victims. One of the victims is killed. Another one, waiting to be slaughtered, suddenly breaks free and runs toward Crusoe’s dwelling. Crusoe protects him, killing one of the pursuers and injuring the other, whom the victim finally kills. Well-armed, Crusoe defeats most of the cannibals onshore. The victim vows total submission to Crusoe in gratitude for his liberation. Crusoe names him Friday, to commemorate the day on which his life was saved, and takes him as his servant.

Finding Friday cheerful and intelligent, Crusoe teaches him some English words and some elementary Christian concepts. Friday, in turn, explains that the cannibals are divided into distinct nations and that they only eat their enemies. Friday also informs Crusoe that the cannibals saved the men from the shipwreck Crusoe witnessed earlier and that those men, Spaniards, are living nearby. Friday expresses a longing to return to his people, and Crusoe is upset at the prospect of losing Friday. Crusoe then entertains the idea of making contact with the Spaniards, and Friday admits that he would rather die than lose Crusoe. The two build a boat to visit the cannibals’ land together. Before they have a chance to leave, they are surprised by the arrival of twenty-one cannibals in canoes. The cannibals are holding three victims, one of whom is in European dress. Friday and Crusoe kill most of the cannibals and release the European, a Spaniard. Friday is overjoyed to discover that another of the rescued victims is his father. The four men return to Crusoe’s dwelling for food and rest. Crusoe prepares to welcome them into his community permanently. He sends Friday’s father and the Spaniard out in a canoe to explore the nearby land.

Eight days later, the sight of an approaching English ship alarms Friday. Crusoe is suspicious. Friday and Crusoe watch as eleven men take three captives onshore in a boat. Nine of the men explore the land, leaving two to guard the captives. Friday and Crusoe overpower these men and release the captives, one of whom is the captain of the ship, which has been taken in a mutiny. Shouting to the remaining mutineers from different points, Friday and Crusoe confuse and tire the men by making them run from place to place. Eventually, they confront the mutineers, telling them that all may escape with their lives except the ringleader. The men surrender. Crusoe and the captain pretend that the island is an imperial territory and that the governor has spared their lives in order to send them all to England to face justice. Keeping five men as hostages, Crusoe sends the other men out to seize the ship. When the ship is brought in, Crusoe nearly faints.

On December 19, 1686, Crusoe boards the ship to return to England. There, he finds his family is deceased except for two sisters. His widow friend has kept Crusoe’s money safe, and after traveling to Lisbon, Crusoe learns from the Portuguese captain that his plantations in Brazil have been highly profitable. He arranges to sell his Brazilian lands. Wary of sea travel, Crusoe attempts to return to England by land but is threatened by bad weather and wild animals in northern Spain. Finally arriving back in England, Crusoe receives word that the sale of his plantations has been completed and that he has made a considerable fortune. After donating a portion to the widow and his sisters, Crusoe is restless and considers returning to Brazil, but he is dissuaded by the thought that he would have to become Catholic. He marries, and his wife dies. Crusoe finally departs for the East Indies as a trader in 1694. He revisits his island, finding that the Spaniards are governing it well and that it has become a prosperous colony.

My Review:

This is most definitely a work of its time. However, unlike many works that are caged by their era, this story cannot be forgotten in the annals of history. Defoe had created a time machine with this novel. Just enough historical fact paired with a healthy dose of historical fiction, and a big slice of adventure pie for dessert. This is one of those stories that takes you there. All in all a highly recommended read!

Review Summary:

Readability: 3/5

Characters: 4.5/5

Writing Style: 5/5

Total Pages: 599

Reading Time: 15 hours

Would I recommend this book? Yes

Book Challange Qualifications:

Back to the Classics 2017: A Classic Published Before 1800