Nein Days in Germany

Pork Schnitzel + banana beer. I wish I took a picture of my bananenweisen because it is literally the most amazing beer I have ever tasted in my life.

Made myself a flower bracelet because I'm dumb and didn't bring my passport so I couldn't get into my cousin's military base.

Hm.

My cousin sitting across on the other side of the cable car.

It'd be amazing to have a wedding by this gazebo.

The cousins.

Candy + I overlooking Rüdesheim and neighboring cities.

Embarrassingly enough, I can't remember what this statue was for.

You called?

A cute, quaint little restaurant in Rüdesheim where we had lunch.

German portions are literally 800x French portions.

Tekken, just like the old days. Not much has changed.

Sergeant Kim reporting on duty for band leader.

My cousin bought this for me in the American base commissary store and it's probably the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me.

The yellow stuff you see is used to make canola oil. We saw bright, yellow fields like this everywhere on our way to Berlin.

I was perplexed as to what this was, and it turns out it was just rain.

Our hostel's kitchen/bar had lamps made out of pictures of composers.

Our hostel had weird sculptures on their back lawn and even its own art gallery. Only Berlin.

Back wall of the art gallery. I love Berlin.

I really like cotton candy.

Apparently, there's a guy who just goes around painting the number 6 everywhere on walls.

Pretty much.

I still dream about this beer.

Sad that Yaam is shutting down. Capitalism, man.

I had to take a picture by every cool wall. (Because how could I NOT?)

Oh, Yaam is also a beach.

There was reggae music fit for the reggae bar and reggae people playing soccer next to the bar.

Zach Galifinakis?

Brandenburg Gate + I.

At White Trash.

No, c'est moi en fait.

Goodbye, Berlin.


I went to Germany to visit my cousins, Candace and John, for our birthdays. (Our birthdays are just a few weeks apart) My cousin is working in the American base at Wiesbaden and my cousin is studying abroad in some other city. It was nice to travel with family for obvious reasons such as comfort. After spending a few days in Wiesbaden, John drove to Berlin, where we spent a few more days with his friend, Chen.
Berlin is definitely in my top 3 favorite cities of all time. Actually, it's probably in first place. There's just something about Berlin that I can't place my finger on. It's such a strange place. I feel this weird sense of belonging and an inexplicable feeling of attachment to a city that I know nothing about. I know it sounds super cheesy, but the more I walked around and explored the city, the more positive I was that this was my city. Everything from the street art to the hippies to the kids who have this vibe like they're stuck in the post 80s was attractive to me. Berlin is one of those places I'd go to if I was having some kind of a midlife crisis and was desperate to do something crazy and needed to move somewhere new. It's like the crazy cool biker gang boyfriend that I date because of the thrill but would never settle down with.

In the Morrow of Morocco

Yaya, our hostel host, took us out for our first dinner.

Breakfast on the rooftop terrace.

Fancy a cup of tea?

Look at us with our travel backpacks and Indiana Jones hat, looking like super travelers.

Spices and leather galore.

This guy just rolls this cart around town selling strawberries!

There was a tree in our hostel.

I don't think there was ever a moment when we weren't drinking coffee or tea.

Felines everywhere.

Me too.

The mosques had speakers so that people could do their five prayers no matter where they were.

Orange + cinnamon. Their oranges were honestly the most amazing oranges I'd ever had.

Velcome to our lair.

Eating tagine with our hands like the locals we are.

Near the city center.

Jardin Majorelle was such a beautiful place.

Kaixi + YSL house.

Me + YSL house.

Yves Saint Laurent's memorial in Morocco.

The girlies.

Mira looking super excited that Devon's taking a selfie with our horse taxi driver.

I can't help but reiterate how amazing the oranges here were.

"Smile, guys!"

The center was just one big bazaar.

Can't come to Morocco and not get a henna.

A new friend, Hassan!

Devon + mysterious gypsie woman.

One of the villages off the route of Marrakech.

This cool guys who wanted a picture with us.

The view from up above.

Selfie with some rocks, I guess.

Our snappy tour guide.

Funny story about this guy. He was telling us the history of his ancestors of the berbers and the rich culture of the rugs he was selling, and half an hour later, we see him again on the streets in normal clothes chilling with his friends. He was basically putting on a show so that we'd buy his rugs. Don't buy their rugs, it's overpriced and they scam tourists!

Girlies.

Our tour guide. He kept calling me his wife and insisting I become his "Arabian Princess."

I was too slow and couldn't get down there with them, but I'm the only one who was ready for the camera, so WHAT NOW HM.

Felines everywhere. Meow.

Houdini (from Liverpool).

Necessary group jumping picture.

Le sol.

Back story: A woman standing next to this stream calls over Mia and me and asks if we're married or dating anyone. We answer no and tells us that if we take a sip from this body of water, that we'll find our true love. So, naturally, Mia and I immediately proceed to do so. (Interestingly enough, I got sick a few days later. It could've just been all the tagine I'd been eating, or this water, but either way, I actually did find my true love when I got back, so I'm not complaining)

A tiny gem I found on the tour bus.

The place we had lunch at was beautiful, and Kaixi, being my forever favorite model, helped me encapsulate this memory with this picture.

Camel riding into the depths of the Sahara desert.

Riding away from the sunset.

A truly unforgettable experience.

You can tell from my uncomfortable and stiff expression that the camel ride was surprisingly pretty painful.

Selfie with my baby.

Bonfire and live drums.

I ask him to take a picture for me and proceeds to take a selfie. Love it.

Kaixi + my right foot.

I was too scared to walk across the ledge so I had to scooch my booty across.

Relaxing outside after being bedridden for 27 hours.

Wild lapin!

Morocco, I miss your mint tea.

I don't think I can eat Moroccan food again for another ten years.

Kaixi ignoring the security guard yelling at her to get off the tree.

Morocco has beautiful gardens. Yes, we know, you're welcome for gracing you with OUR beauty.

Just beautiful.

Goodbye, Morocco.

Morocco was probably one of my most memorable trips. First of all, I went to AFRICA?! Go, me. To give you all the boring, general background information first, my friends and I traveled to Marseilles and then took RyanAir to Marrakech, stayed there for about a week, went to Fes, and took a direct flight home. The original plan was to go to Marseilles, Marrakech, Fes, Nador, back to Marseilles, and then home. A lot of traveling, I know. I didn't mind the stopovers too much, but while I was in Fes, I caught something and couldn't get out of bed for an entire day. I honestly thought I was going to die then and there so I just cancelled all my future flights and bought a new ticket to go back to Lyon. It sucks getting sick while traveling. Be careful, guys!
On a brighter note, Morocco was still amazing. (Maybe not the angry Arab men grabbing on me to buy their leather sandals and cheap jewelry...) Oh man, the food, though. OK, admittedly, it was great at first, but I couldn't eat any more tagine and couscous after about four days. It was just too much :( I think my favorite experience was when we got to ride camels out to a campsite in the Sahara desert and spend the night dancing around the bonfire, sleep in a tent, and ride our camels back. Or when Hassan, a worker at the hostel, took us to an African live music club and I danced up on the stage with the band.
I've left fragments of my free-spirited soul in Morocco, and instead, took some unforgettable souvenirs that I call memories. I'll come back for you one day, Morocco!