Bike City Berlin

Here's a great article on TreeHugger, a green lifestyle blog, on how wonderfully bike-friendly Berlin is. Once again, I am unable to make a link, so cut and paste, people.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/bike_city_berli.php

Awesome Site For City-Lovers

Through kayak.com, which is a great airplane ticket search engine, I was introduced to gridskipper.com. Right now I am totally unable to make the Kayak address a link, but I've added Gridskipper to my list of links on the right-hand side. Apologies about Kayak. Use it anyway.
Gridskipper only covers six or so cities, so it's not a total travel site. But if you are going to one of their six cities, it's a veritable font of information. Their authors pick a theme, such as great falafel in Berlin, and write little blurbs on their seven favorite falafel spots. Now, for the best part: the blurbs are accompanied by a Google map! I was very impressed when I saw this. Gridskipper has a variety of themed blurbs 'n' maps, allowing it to appeal to a variety of demographics. For example, I was interested in the "How to Dress Like a Berliner" blurbs, while I skipped right by "Jewelry in Berlin" due to its teaser's inclusion of the words "high-end." On my student budget, I'm looking out for the 3 € falafel.

Two Weeks To Go...

I feel like I should have something to say for this post, but I think I may be in a bit of denial about my upcoming trip. I leave two weeks from tomorrow, and it is just unbelievable, especially the length of time I will be overseas (ten months, if I decide to come back at all). It seems that school is coming up, what with my cousin moving up to Pittsburgh to attend Pitt and my brother starting again in a week, yet I'm not going to Toronto. It's an odd thought.

I bought a Moleskine City Guide for Berlin. Moleskine makes journals that apparently Hemingway and Da Vinci used, or something like that. They are too small for constructing novels, if you ask me. But my Berlin book is great! It is very minimalist and subtle, which is appealing as long as you don't need reading glasses. Otherwise, you probably won't be able to read any of the print in the book. It has 18 small maps of neighborhoods of Berlin, and one wonderful map of the U- and S-Bahn (subway/streetcar), plus plenty of blank pages for notes on things like yummy Thai restaurants.
My main guide is Moon Metro Berlin, which I really like the asthetic of. It has six maps, but they're pretty big, and pages full of recommended restaurants, stores, and attractions. Seems good so far, but only time will tell whether it's a worthwhile guide. I often find that travel guides are not overly student-friendly, i.e. everything recommended is pricey, in terms of a student's budget.

Right now, I find myself space-bagging winter clothes and making copies of my passport and debit card. Fun!

Oh, the Places I'll Go!

Hmm. This is tough. Here's a preliminary list, with destinations grouped in a hierarchy of importance:

1st tier (I must go): London, Prague, Istanbul, Italy (Rome, Florence? Milan? Venice?)
2nd tier (I will try hard to make it happen): Stockholm, Dubrovnik or Split, Brighton, Ljubljana, Izmir
3rd tier (it's not a priority, but I would be thrilled): Spain, Tunis, Kas (Turkey), Greece, Finland

I will of course be going to Paris, since two good friends are studying there, as well as Bratislava and Levice, Slovakia, for Christmas.
I leave seven weeks from Tuesday.

The Countdown

The idea that I'm going away to Berlin is becoming much more real. It's great, but since the trip has been in the works since February, it seemed surreal for a long time. I have purchased my ticket (why are one-way tickets so expensive?), and had a fun time at the bank trying to wire 220 euro to Humboldt's bank account for my residence deposit. AND now my mom's coming with me! Upon my dad's suggestion, we have put her on my same flight to come to Berlin as well. I think it'll be great, as I now have someone to buy cheapo bedsheets at Ikea for me.
We also may go to Dubrovnik for a couple of days (!).

Chicago Pictures

Here are some pictures are of cool old architecture (not sure if it counts as art deco) in Andersonville. Click on them for super-zoomed-in, detailed versions.

Chicago, I Love You

Chicago blew us away-- no windy pun intended. My mom, aunt, and I were there for a long weekend, getting back today. They participated in a twins study at the U of Chicago on Friday, and had invited me along. I now am a devoted fan of the city, and am most likely moving there, perhaps tomorrow. It was great.

On Friday, I was by myself while my mom and Steph were subjected to boring tests, interviews, and an MRI. After finally finding a place in the vicinity of our hotel where I could buy a CTA (public transport) pass, I went to Andersonville, which is on the Near North Side. I was starving by the time I got off the El after a 30-minute ride. The El was nice, but sort of scary because you are above the ground without being able to see the tracks beneath you. It was also very efficient; the CTA gets an A+ from me, considering that it's in the US. I loved that it was very straightforward, and I wasn't going to accidentally end up anywhere I didn't want to (last summer Olivia and I accidentally went to Brooklyn trying to get to Century 21). When I got down to street level, I walked as fast as possible through a really nice residential neighborhood to north Clark, the main drag in Andersonville. I ate breakfast at Ann Sather's, which I highly, highly recommend. It was basically my idea of heaven. I had a two cinnamon rolls, a wonderful omlette loaded with spinach and feta, and warm cinnamon apples. Oh, and a bottomless cup of coffee, thanks to my waitress. I drove Mutti and Steph crazy the rest of the weekend with my constant chatter about Ann Sather's.

After that, I went to a few stores, picked up some cool earrings and a scarf, and then got back on the El and went south a bit to Lakeview, a really nice neighborhood. There, I went to a few vintage shops, then went back into downtown. After catching my breath, I went to the Museum of Contemporary Art, which had a big photography exhibit on.We ate dinner at Cafe Iberico, which was recommended by my friend Kate. After some tapas, we were thoroughly exhausted.

The next day we shopped almost all day. That night, we ate at Papa Milano's, which is unfortunately being demolished next week. It was another great meal, full of fresh pasta. When we were walking back from the restaurant, we ran into Ja'net, who had helped us in the Macy's shoe department earlier. We started talking to her, but she was on her way to meet up with her husband, who just finished playing jazz piano at a restaurant. Instead of saying bye, we went along with her, and then ended up meeting her sister, LaVonne, as well. The ensuing conversations were full of laughter due to the effusiveness of the sisters. My favorite line was from LaVonne: "I can't drive, I don't got no license. The only thing I can do is drive men crazy."

I loved Chicago because nearly everyone was as friendly as Ja'net and LaVonne. Everybody says "hi" and smiles and talks to the people around them. It was refreshing, and it reflected some of the best of American personality, both in the city and in its residents. I'm so glad I was invited along on this trip, and I can't wait to go back.

Back in da 'Burgh

I am back in Pittsburgh, or, to be more specific, Mt Lebanon, for the summer, and it's quite different. I feel that this can perhaps be summed up by one feeling: an odd sense of relief whenever I see Asian people. Going from U of T, which is either half Asian or just seems like it, to all-white Mt Lebanon, is a change. Naturally, then, I feel right at home when walking past the CMU campus.
I'm also on a campaign to become a supercool commuter cyclist since I'm not able to do the same in Toronto (the parents won't let me take my bike, but I don't really need it anyway). I have biked uptown (Mt Lebo) twice, gotten weird looks all the way, and loved it! Finally, my dreams of being a well-dressed girl on a bike who doesn't sweat have been realized.
I've found a job: selling Pittsburgh Post-Gazette subscriptions. It's not glamorous, as my dad was quick to remind me, but by looking at the commission chart, it seems like hard work can really equal hefty earnings. Perfect for the various trips to Ljubljana and Tunis I've been planning. I was in the PPG building the other day, and I couldn't help feeling like a true Pittsburgher because I'm working for them. The best part of the job, though, will be spending lots of time in the city. Pittsburgh's great, always vibrant, and I have often wished I spent more time downtown. Now, hopefully, I will be manning a kiosk in the Strip every Saturday morning! Note that I haven't started work yet, which has led to my overly-romanticized view.
I am going to Oakland, home of the universities, soon, and would like to take some pictures and post again.

Second-Tier Cities in Europe

I saw this interesting article in the NY Times today. The basic idea is that forgoing touristy sites (and subsequently touristy cities) will save you lots of money, and even some sanity. Second-tier cities offer laid-back atmospheres and chances to sit in cafes with the locals. Looking back on my experience in Dubrovnik, Croatia, I can say that is accurate. Dubrovnik is somewhat of a tourist destination, but the beaches aren't overcrowded, and a delicious pizza is still under $8.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/travel/22surfacing.html?_r=1&8dpc&oref=slogin

This Summer

Well, the State Department doesn't want me-- I was turned down by the Turkish scholarship people. I certainly was hoping to be selected, but I think I did a good job of preparing myself for this possibility. In my rejection email (disturbingly similar to those college rejection letters), I found out just how competitive the scholarship was: I had a 6% chance of being chosen. When I found this out, I got un-upset real quick. I had no idea it was so competitive! 550 people applied for the 35 Turkish spots alone.

There are a lot of upsides to these plans being dashed. Of course I'm not happy. But I was wondering a few days ago if it was really the best idea to not be working the summer before going abroad. Now, I will go back to having 2 jobs to make as much money as possible, and I know the motivation of being able to spend a few extra days in the south of Croatia will be enough to keep a smile on my face. I'll be going to Chicago and NYC, looking forward to seeing both. And then, come September, I'm off to Berlin.

Now It's Istanbul

I've also applied to go to Istanbul this summer. I would be taking part in a 2-month intensive study of the language at Boğazıçı University (or "Boz," as my friend Ece affectionately referred to it) that would be paid for by the US State Department. I'd love to go to Istanbul for 2 months on the State Department's bill, so cross your fingers! I should find out in about 3 weeks, give or take.

Meteorological Blues

The weather in the T-dot has been horrible lately, and it's truly getting everyone down. It snowed intermittently today, and is probably hovering around 30 degrees right now. I asked two friends if this is at all normal, and I received two emphatic "no"s. I will be fed up with this cold spell after about 2 days of it, but it seems that it isn't going to let up any time soon. There's a big party held in the quad next Friday to celebrate the end of classes, and I'm worried everyone's going to move indoors if the weather doesn't shape up.
Climate Change 1, Us 0.

"this beat gon' kill everyone"

Everyone needs to see this video by M.I.A. of her song "Bird Flu." She named the song as such due to the reason given in the title of this post. If it wasn't almost 1 am, I'd write about what M.I.A. means in the context of our society. Maybe later.

Inaugural Address

In light of being accepted for an exchange program at Humboldt University in Berlin next year, I've decided to start this so that those who are near and dear can keep tabs on what I'm up to. Or, it'll possibly be easier than mass emails that attempt to contain lots of pictures as I travel Europe.

A few words on my title: I feel that I don't really like staying in any place too long, and U of T has proved to be far from an exception. I'm thrilled that I'm getting a break from Toronto next year. I've certainly gotten a lot out of going to school in Canada, something that I will never deny, but I will be glad to graduate. Then again, I would be glad to graduate from anywhere. As the years have gone on, I've realized that typical schooling doesn't really agree with me. I'm quick to lose motivation if I don't like the task at hand, and at a rigorous school like my high school or U of T, that carries a lot of consequences. So when I get down on the idea of post-secondary schooling, I remind myself of my one goal: to join the Peace Corps. I hope to get sent to Central Asia (the 'stans), where I will start my NGO career. My interest in Central Asia started with an assignment to be the delegation from Uzbekistan for Model UN one year. Thus, when I'm tired of studying economics, I really start longing for the cotton field of Uzbekistan.