Hello 22

Although there's nothing extraordinary about turning 22, I have a feeling this year will be full of surprises and adventure. Last year on my birthday, I went to a Spanish restaurant with all my coworkers in Germany and the year before I was celebrating at a karaoke night in Halifax, so it was nice to spend my birthday at home for a change. I dined with family and friends at Rioja, a Spanish restaurant in Houston where we asked the waiter to bring out a selection of their most popular tapas. There's something wonderful about eating family-style in a restaurant, sharing food with the people you love and slowly savoring each bite. I think it's something we've lost in the American food culture, and I wish we took the time to enjoy eating more often. After countless rounds of food (my favorites included the bacon-wrapped dates and the pulled pork over mashed potatoes drizzled in truffle oil), we continued with conversation and glasses of red wine. Just when we all thought we were too full to eat another bite, the server brought out a pan of paella big enough to cover the entire circumference of the adjacent table. Not wanting to let any go to waste, we each had a couple of forkfuls before having it divided between to-go containers. I enjoyed every moment of our Spanish smorgasbord, and I hope to make tapas an annual birthday tradition.

"If you’re twenty-two, physically fit, hungry to learn and be better, I urge you to travel— as far and as widely as possible. Sleep on floors if you have to. Find out how other people live and eat and cook. Learn from them —  wherever you go." -Anthony Bourdain 

New York: Why I Love You But Will Never Call You Home

I still remember my first trip to New York in the summer of 2006. It was the first megacity I had ever visited, and I was fascinated by its fast-paced vibe. The enormousness of everything felt so foreign to me. My fifteen year-old self was convinced that New York was the place for me; I was destined to live there. And when I came across this billboard on a walk, it was like a beacon from the heavens, reaffirming my decision to one day pick up and move to the big city.

I have since returned to New York three years in a row, and though I still love to visit, my sentiments toward living there have changed. The winters in NY are bitterly cold, and even when the sun is shining you are forced to walk in the cool shadows of tall buildings. I crave sunshine and need wide open skies every now and then. Having grown up in the south, it's also difficult for me to imagine daily dealings with strangers that don't slow down to ask you how you are doing. Life in New York is too chaotic for me; I could never keep up.

Thought it is unlikely that I will move to NY anytime soon, I have a strong admiration for the city. There is a certain creative energy and buzz that I find completely infectious. I love the overabundance of small independent shops and the endless options for ethnic food. I love that each borough has its own distinctive character and that I can hear a multitude of languages just sitting in a restaurant or on the subway. The city that never sleeps is always an exciting place to be, and I hope my semi-frequent visits won't discontinue along with my involvement in the Model United Nations conference.

Small Town Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year. And since I spent it in the Czech Republic last year, I was even more excited than usual to go home and eat a traditional Thanksgiving meal, lovingly prepared by my grandma. Though our holiday celebration is pretty low-key and basically consists of eating lunch, falling into a food-induced coma and watching the A&M/UT football game, I can still remember the the bygone traditions that use to excite me as a kid such as a game of baseball in the backyard, watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, fighting for the wishbone of the turkey, and helping my mom redecorate the house for Christmas. Going home always conjures up memories of my childhood and reminds me that sometimes the simplest things in life are the most important. I am truly blessed & have so much to be thankful for.

When we all left for college, my friends and I started a tradition of getting together every year for a Thanksgiving Leftovers Party. It was great to catch up with some of my classmates that I had not seen in months, even years. I love hearing about everyone's goals for the future--we've grown up a lot in just four years. Here's some snapshots and an appropriate soundtrack from my trip to my hometown for Thanksgiving.

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"For each new morning with its light, 

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food, for love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

I better wear some flowers in my hair...

 

because I'm going to San Francisco!

This weekend is my Fall Break at TCU, and I'm so excited to spend it in California visiting my friend Brittany.  I have been wanting to visit her ever since she started attending Stanford, and I figured I better go now before we both graduate in the spring. It's my first trip to the Bay Area and I can't wait to sample the shops & eats of the City. Have any of you ever been to SF or Palo Alto? I'd love to hear your recommendations on places to go!

Images: Feeling A Bit Artsy, Journey Inside My Head, SanFrancisco.travel, Unknown

Texas on my Mind

I keep running into little reminders of Texas everywhere I go. Perhaps they are signs that is about time for me to head back where I belong. This summer has been great, just not what I expected. I knew that working abroad would be a different experience from studying abroad, but I never imagined how completely opposite it would be. However, I'm glad that I took this internship opportunity. It took a courage that I did not even know I possessed to leave behind everything familiar at home and fly across the globe to a place where I knew nobody. Had I not taken this chance, I may have always wondered what it was like to live in Germany. 

But the truth is, I feel like a fish out of water here. It's cold and rainy most days, and I just miss the summer weather I used to know, the beach, Mexican food, and my family and friends. Three months (or a quarter of a year really) is a long time to be in one place, when that place isn't home. The grass always seems greener on the other side, even though I know that it is much greener here than in the drought-ridden land I said goodbye to in May. And maybe when I'm back in Sealy sweating in the 100+ degree heat or stressed out of my mind at school in Fort Worth, I'll long for the lazy, grey days in Saarbrücken when I had few responsibilities. But right now, I simply desire to feel the warmth of the sun upon my face, to eat a Chilly Willy snow cone, and wear sandals and shorts again. Is that too much to ask for? Twelve days until I'm home. Let the countdown begin...

graffiti along the Saar River

I'm not sure what is so Texan about pepperoni pizza, but they sell this in Ihr Platz

it may be hard to find Dr. P on the East Coast, but it's here in Germany

cowboy boots in Paris (France, not TX)

[[Currently on repeat: "Texas" by The Damnwells]]

“For a few precious moments… I am back in Old Texas, under a high sky, where all things are again possible and the wind blows free.” - Larry L. King

"A Texan outside of Texas is a foreigner." –John Steinbeck

4. Juli

Independence Day is one of my favorite American holidays, and this is the second year in a row that I have celebrated it away from the homeland. But just like last summer in Capri, I found other Americans to share the day with. Youlia, Necco, and I (or "Team America" as we like to call ourselves) invited the rest of our colleagues to celebrate with us in a true American fashion. After work, we all walked to Daniel's garden where we had a BBQ. It is a summer tradition here in the Saarland to cook meat over a special swinging grill called a Schwenker (pictured below). The meal was delicious and afterwards we introduced everyone to an American campfire favorite--s'mores! Only instead of graham crackers & Hershey's squares, we used Butterkekse and Nutella. Yum! We also had sparklers (which took me almost 2 hours to find in town and I was so excited when I finally found them, that I bought over 100!) It was a great celebration and certainly a Fourth of July I won't soon forget. Happy 235th America!

"Oh, it's home again and home again, America for me!

I want a ship that's westward bound to plough the rolling sea
To the blessed land of Room Enough beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars."  

-Henry Van Dyke

Chasing the American Dream: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

Semester at Sea has changed my life. Over the summer I met the most amazing people and shared fantastic adventures with them. I became more knowledgeable about other countries. And I also discovered my passion for global marketing, leading me to change my major when I returned to school this fall. But the most unexpected change for me was the new perspective I have gained of my own country--the United States of America.

Before sailing on the MV Explorer, I had never before considered the culture of America. Knowing that the United States is known as "the melting pot," I assumed our culture was a blend of the nations that our ancestors emigrated from. I now see that America does in fact have its own distinctive culture and traditions.

The United States has an adolescent culture, which stems from the fact that our founding fathers were rebels who "ran away from home." This idea is taken from a book I read for my international marketing class called The Culture Code by Dr. Clotaire Rapaille. Our adolescence plays into almost everything we do. "Looking at our culture through this set of glasses explains why we are so successful around the world selling the trappings of adolescence: Coca-Cola, Nike shoes, fast food, blue jeans, and loud, violent movies. America has never produced a world-class classical composer, but has successfully exported rock, hip-hop, and R&B-- the music of adolescence--to every corner of the globe." This also explains our fascination with celebrities and all the adolescent blunders they make, and why NBA basketball players have significantly higher salaries than scientists and educators.  

The books delves into the way that Americans view work, health, love, beauty, home, food, quality, money, and shopping. It also has a chapter on what people from other countries think of Americans and how we see ourselves. My favorite code of the book is the American Culture Code for America: DREAM. “Dreams have driven this culture from its earliest days. The dream of explorers discovering the New World. The dream of pioneers opening the West. The dream of the Founding Fathers imagining a new form of union. The dream of entrepreneurs forging the Industrial Revolution. The dream of immigrants coming to a land of hope. The dream of a new group of explorers landing safely on the moon. Our constitution is the expression of a dream for a better society. We created Hollywood and Disneyland and the Internet to project our dreams into the world. We are the products of dreams and we are the makers of dreams.”

“Our notion of abundance is a dream: it is the dream of limitless opportunity that we believe is synonymous with being American. Our need for constant movement is the expression of a dream in which we can always do more, always create and accomplish. Even our cultural adolescence is a dream: we want to believe we are forever young and that we never truly have to grow up.”

“We have the most powerful, most influential culture in the world because we believe in the power of dreams. Optimism is not only absolutely on Code, it is essential to keeping our culture vibrant. We do the ‘impossible’ because we believe that it is our destiny.” Americans should never close the window to exploration and discovery. Though it is foolish and incredibly expensive, the space program is important to the United States. The landing on the moon was a landmark in our history and what set us apart from other nations. Rather than shutting down the space program, we should set higher goals. If going to Mars seems impossible, that is all the more reason to get there. “Dreams are priceless.” Additionally, the US should never completely close its door to new immigrants, because that would mean denying hopeful people the American dream. “If someone wants to come here and embrace our culture, that makes our culture stronger and at the same time reminds us why America is unique.”

Through my Semester at Sea courses and Mediterranean travels, I have realized that I am 100% American. I value freedom above all things, but also accomplishment, competition, convenience, individualism, and equal opportunities. My sheer positivity and entrepreneurial mindset are supported by the culture of America. I hope I never again take for granted all the freedoms and opportunities that are provided to me for being born in this great nation.

This summer I caught the travel bug. I never want to stop learning, exploring, trying new things, and experiencing different cultures. I intend to continue traveling in whatever way I can afford. But I know no matter where I go or what I end up doing in life, I will always be an American.

Halloween 2010

“Sometimes people call me an idealist.  Well, that is the way I know I am an American.  America is the only idealistic nation in the world.”  -Woodrow Wilson

“May I never wake up from the American dream.”  -Carrie Latet

Rapaille, Clotaire. The Culture Code. Copyright © 2006