First Time through Europa

Yesterday I did my final presentation. It went really well. Everyone was very enthusiastic about my research and my findings.

After, the family and I went out for pizza with all the other students in the program. It was really bitter sweet to be with all of them, but know that some of them have to leave, or that eventually I will leave and not see many of them.

It was really raining, a lot. I realized how important these next two weeks are for me. I am going to travel with someone who could be my mother's mother. What I mean is that it's really special that Tia Lupe is traveling with us, because it means there are three generations of our family traveling together.

Stay tuned for more stories. Today we are going to Brussels and Brugges! Then Madrid, tomorrow!! We are taking a sleeper train.
More pics, soon!

In our last day and a half in Berlin we walked around a bit and were actually surprised that everything was closed. This was because it was Sunday and we did not know that on this "holy" day everything shuts down. Good thing the trams and metros don't shut down.

We did manage to buy some new Birkenstock's for Jessa and I. My mother decided not to get any for her, but she was really happy to get some for us, as she really wanted to buy these famous shoes from the country they came from.

Here's a picture of Jessa with a clown/mime:

We also went to see Beethoven's 7th symphony in the Chamber room of the Philharmonic in Berlin!!

The ceiling was incredible!! So was the conductor!

I was really impressed with all the musicians.

Later that day we decided to walk along "the wall" (some of it is gone and all that remains is cobble stones in the ground) towards check point charlie. On the way we got to meet a famous painter who makes paintings for auction in charity for the "East Side Gallery."
(Check out their website: http://www.eastsidegallery-berlin.com
We had actually been to this gallery the day before so we were all really excited to meet this painter. My mom, in particular, had fallen in love with a certain painting, and it was a neat coincidence to find out that he was, in fact, the one who painted it. We took a picture with him:

His name is: Kani Alavi and his website is:
http://www.kanialavi.com

This is a picture of a really neat statue that we found:

Then we had an easy night and the next day we went out to buy some postcards, and took the train home.

The following day, which was yesterday, we traveled to a smaller city called The Hauge (Den Haag).
Here's the train:

We took the tram to a place called "Madurodam" which is a miniature version of the Netherlands.

Jessa also got into the big "Klompa"

Then my mom stood by the power source and tried to electrocute herself

My mom and aunt had a blast as they both love little things. They kept saying, "oh, how cute!!"

Then we went to the beach (Scheveningen). It was beautiful. I have been here before and it was windy and cold. Yesterday the sand was warm and there was no wind. We all had a blast looking for sea shells. It was a big deal to touch the water of the North Sea!

So, continuing on, or I should say, just beginning our journey. On Wednesday we traveled to Oirsbeek to visit Christiaan's family.

We met Christiaan in Utrecht and traveled together. Once we were down there we enjoyed ourselves a lot. Christiaan's aunt made a wonderful dinner. Her hospitality was amazing.

It made me really happy to walk around Oirsbeek after dinner because I wanted my mom to know this charming village.

My family saw their first mill!!

After that everyone was really tired, so we stayed up a bit longer looking at family fotos.

This whole time I had wanted to buy a camera. I really needed a digital one so I could update as I go along...

(BTW, that same day I met with my advisor and she said my thesis is going in a great direction and that she was happy with the different contributions I would be making to the academic debates I am engaging with!)

So, that night, we slept soundly.

The next day we had another wonderful meal at Marlies'. After which we went to the castle (forgot the city name). We walked around and saw a church (first of many . As we were leaving it started to rain and we got drenched... empapadas, in Spanish.

We dried off in the car and left for Maastricht.

Here we had some coffee and enjoyed this old, old city. Marlies played our tour guide and showed us many things. We visited the old wall of this city and some gorgeous side streets.

On the train back to Amsterdam, my mom and aunt said they would come back to Europa in five years! I guess I was off on my previous calculations ... hehe. In any case, the five of us are just embarking on a long journey.

We got up early this morning and left for Berlin. The train ride was six hours but it went by really quickly. I tried to get some school work done but ended up talking with Jessa the whole time. It is really nice to spend some time with her.

When we arrived we made it easily to our rooms. They are beautiful.
I will post pictures soon, as the other news is that my obessesion with fotos and wanting to share them with you all (virual souls) has come to some fruition. Arthur, Jessa and I traveled to the nearest Media Markt and I bought a nice camera. I am excited to go play with it, actually... I am going now, tot ziens!

They arrived half an hour early. I was waiting with these beautiful pink flowers that I have never seen anywhere but Holland. My mother was really happy to see me, and I was happy to see everyone. It was surreal.

Surreal to show them my home and how I get there by tram. This is my world, and they are part of the another world, so it felt like two things coming together.

After we ate (I made yummy ficoccia sandwiches with mozzarella, pesto, and tomatoes) we walked to the nearest supermarket. They all had fun seeing all the different products and packaging. We bought stuff for tomorrow morning, for sandwiches and for a nice dinner on Thursday.
We even bought fresh bread!

Then they unpacked their things and started to settle in. My mom brought me some of my summer clothes and summer shoes, as I completely forgot these things and it's now getting really hot. She also brought me tons of mac and cheese, which I am really happy about. She brought some Santa Maria seasoning, Tapatio, toritallas, and some Airbone. (all necessary items for this young Mexican woman's life) .

Tomorrow the plan is to relax a bit and possibly see some of Amsterdam. I will be in class and visiting with my thesis advisor. I think she is not to happy to hear that I am turning in my thesis for the August deadline, but alas.

Then at 2pm we are taking off to travel to Oirsbeek, in Limburg, which is where Christiaan's grandparent's live. This will be a nice quiet part of the journey. I am excited because they will get a chance to see the Dutch country side, and a very small town.

We looked online today and we may go see "Alegria" in Paris, which is one of the first Cirque Du Soleil shows that was created. I love the music and am excited to see it. Also, we are looking into seeing a bullfight. Not really my cup of tea, but my aunt (god love her) wants to see it.

On reflection, I am constantly amazed by my aunt. Since the day I found out she was gun ho about coming. She is really old, well, old in the sense that she is legally blind. But she's still really funny and spirited. More importantly, I wonder how she feels about this trip... Is it the last time she'll see Spain? Is this one of the last times she'll fly to Europe? How does she take this trip and what kind of milestone is it for her?

Same for my mom... this is her first time and I often wonder about her sentiments. Does she have a lot of pride for being here and coming so far in her life, from a teenage mother in Mexico? I would.

I shall try to investigate more and tell later. A good plan would be to talk about these ideas over some beers

My mother, her boyfriend, my great aunt, and my sister arrive today.

I am picking them up at the airport with flowers and a big smile on my face. I have had this smile on my face all last week and through the weekend.

Christiaan and I cleaned the apartment, which took all of our Saturday.

Only today am I starting to think about what clubs we can visit in Europe as we travel around. As some of you may know, my mother and her boy friend love to dance, so that won't be a problem. My sister's down, for sure. So what you might be asking yourself is, what about Zaira's great aunt? Well, she's old, but she loves to have fun and she's really energetic.

We are going to Berlin this weekend! Then we have some time in Amsterdam, as I prepare to give my master's thesis presentation. That's next Friday.

Then we leave again and head for Belgium, Spain, and end up in France last.
I am going to buy a digital camera today, so I will be posting pictures along the way.

It's my mom's first time in Europa!!