Morocco!

I am officially safe and sound in Marrakech! We arrived last night here at 5 am, and I woke up at 6 am to the sound of call to prayer. Definitely not in Kansas (or France) anymore.
Today we are going to have our big orientation, walk around the city, and tomorrow we will meet our host families!
-Michelle

Valencia, Spain

From Venice, Kevin and I took a Ryanair flight to Valencia, Spain. We decided to go here after I met a man on a train in Germany in September who told me it was his favorite place in Spain. Luckily Ryainair flew from venice to valencia!
Kevin and I stayed in a great hostel really close to the central market and a museum that used to be someone's house I think? Valencia is not very touristy so all information is printed in Catalan and Spanish...no english. No french. No German. So we kind of made due with the context of situations.

Valencia is famous for its oranges!

The next day, Kevin and I rented 2 bikes for the day from a place next to the hostel for only 8 euros! That is a great deal! We found the streets of Valencia to be a bit dangerous for those on bikes. 

Valencia used to have a large river running through it like most european cities, however it often flooded and the city had no choice but to divert its path around the city. They were left with a river bed and several beautiful bridges. They converted this dried up river into an amazing park stretching throughout the city! On a map it looks like a green river. There are playgrounds, tennis courts, soccer fields, gardens, and even a science center with some very modern architecture in the park. We found this was the best route to bike through and we could get to anywhere in the city following the "green river".

Here is a christmas dinosaur outside the science center!

Then we rode our way along the park to the beach where we spent most of the day, had a pic-nic, and enjoyed the sunshine and warm weather! Too bad the water was too cold to swim in!

This woman had a lot of trouble walking and used a cane. She was with her husband who looked on proudly as she rolled up her pant legs and walked along the shore in the cold water. It was a beautiful site to see. 

So happy to see the sun again!

On our way back through the city we stopped at one of the cities landmarks, the old tower gates, which offered great views of the city at sunset. 

On our last day in Valencia, Kevin and I visited the botanical gardens. They were amazing, especially the cactus garden. We also discovered the botanical gardens' stray cat infestation. No wonder there's a problem, people come into the gardens to feed them! Most of the cats were really beaten up from cat fights. Needless to stay I kept my distance from them unlike this boy:

That's all for Valencia!

I've had an amazing time in Munich so far with Kevin. We've been rock climbing, swimming at the roman baths, and yesterday we spent the day snowboarding in the Alps where it was sunny and warm. 

Today I'm packing my bags up and tomorrow I leave for Morocco! 

Wish me luck!

Love you all,

Michelle

Whirlwind adventure part 1: Venice

VENICE! After a bone chilling but cozy christmas in the austrian alps, I was content to move to a warmer climate. The train ride between Innsbruck and Venice was absolultely stunning! You go through countless tunnels, and over many bridges until you emerge from a mountain tunnel and see something rather strange...the color green!!! All of the sudden, we found ourselves in Italian wine country, low rolling hills, small cute italian style homes, and castles! My favorite part of the ride however was when our train rolled on tracks right over the ocean! I was so happy to see water that I leaped out of my seat and ran to the door with my backpack, ready to explore the island of Venice.

This is a photo of the Grand Canal that cuts through the Island. I was so happy to see color again, including the lovely colors of the sky! No more grey!

Despite Venice's reputation for being impossible to navigate, Kevin and I easily found our hotel and got comfortable in our room. 

Our room with a view of a side canal! So exciting!!!

Every morning I was awaken by the stirring below our window of Venetians getting ready for the day, like a normal city, but with BOATS instead! So cool! I would open the shutters and watch the sunrise, and look at the venetians below commuting to work or delivering supplies to the bakery across the "street". 

Our goals were to see St. Marks square, including the hoards of pigeons, spend time by the ocean in the sun, and get completely lost in the back alleys of Venice. I am happy to say we accomplished all 3. 

St. Marks was you typical touristy place to be. So very beautiful but kind of stressful. I was happy to spend time in the sun by the water, where we had a lovely pic-nic. 

Gondolas put away for the off-season

Oh no! Venice is flooding!

The next day we had a new goal. Take a gondola ride! Another success! They sure do drive a hard bargain. 

Our gondola boat:

Kevin and I in the boat with our gondola guide in the back:

Well we didn't call it a whirlwind trip for nothing!!! Luckily 2 days in venice was all we needed to see just about everything. We seemed to avoid the notoriously awful food they target to tourists and ate at some great places, including a Jewish kosher restaurant that made the second best falafel I've ever had!

Next up, Valencia, Spain!!!