I have to say I am really loving doing the Flashback Friday posts! It is fun to remember such a great trip. Plus, who doesn’t love to look at travel pictures? Thanks Janetha for starting such a fun post idea! This week’s Flashback Friday will show my stops in Amsterdam & Munich during my 2 month exploration of Europe. Let the party begin! Unlike the party I will be attending this afternoon. Dentist appointments are so fun, right? *please note the sarcasm*

Oh, Amsterdam. I’m sure you would think this would be the highlight of our vacation. You would be very mistaken. I was pretty disappointed with Amsterdam and would have much rather spent the few days we stayed there elsewhere. When we planned the trip my friend & I were both in our intense partying phase. When the trip actually came…not so much. We still decided to hit up Amsterdam because we had heard things about how beautiful it is and the history is interesting. Plus, we had to say we at least went!

It is true that Amsterdam is pretty. Especially the Amstel River that runs through the city. And it is true that there is interesting history. Visiting Anne Frank’s house was pretty cool.

It is also true that the Red Light District has hookers in windows and pot is readily available. We were offered some within 10 minutes of our arrival. No, I did not have any. I have never had the desire for it, and so have never tried it. Below is a picture of the Red Light District (mid afternoon and clean version), but also a scandalous shot of a carving in the ground. Can you tell what it is?

Another part of Amsterdam that was nice was the countryside area. We walked about 2.5 hours out to some windmills. I must admit we were mildly disappointed it was summer and not spring, so there were no fields of tulips to admire. Also, please excuse the poor picture quality from bad cameras and scanned photos.

And that was about all the excitement we had in Amsterdam. No crazy stories to share. Munich was better though. Not only did it have interesting history, but also fun in the name of the Hofbrauhaus. 😀

In Munich, we stayed in a hostel called The Tent. It was actually more comfortable than some places, even though we were sleeping on the floor.

We also went on a free tour that included the Marienplatz square, a funny music tower…

…and biergartens. Now those are fun places! Who doesn’t like being outside with a bunch of music, food, beer, and fun? We tried out a real bratwurst at the biergarten.

We did save the majority of our beer fun for the well known beer hall called the Hofbrauhaus. We enjoyed a pint of beer and a ginormo pretzel. Yes, I put down all of that. Best beer I have ever had. I don’t even like beer much, but could have had two of those suckers.

Also, the World Cup was in Germany at this time so there were a ton of crazy soccer fans all around. We bonded with some cute Swedish dudes. I was even dubbed an honorary Swede, since that is why they originally approached us. I can’t tell you how many people asked if I was from Sweden. Or just spoke to me in Swedish expecting me to understand.

It wasn’t all fun and games in Munich, however. We did take a short trip outside the city to visit Dachau, one of the biggest concentration camps during the Holocaust. It was so disheartening to see.

Even with some examples of what they endured right in front of us (unbearable living conditions, gas chambers, photos of the executions on display, etc), it was hard to fathom what it must have been like for those people. I do not understand that level of hatred. And while reading The Help, it is obvious that we have been guilty of the same types of things here in the US. Sadly, hatred like that still exists and I long for the time where we don’t have to live with it anymore.

• What things of history interest you a lot? I have never been a big History fan. But I will say that World War 2 and all that happened during it actually touches me and draws me in way more than anything else. It was weird to actually see parts of it on my trip.
• Do you like beer? I am very much a wine, margarita, and martini girl. Those are the only drinks I ever get. But, I would be a bigger beer drinker if beer like that was more readily available.

Raise your hand if you're happy it's Friday. I have both hands up. Although, I must admit Friday is my 3rd favorite day. Saturday is my favorite because it's the main day of the weekend. Sunday is my 2nd because of church. But Friday is still something to get excited about. What is your favorite day of the week?

Something else to get excited about? Entering my giveaway for Amazing Grass. You have until my 2nd favorite day to get those entries in, so get to it! And check the end of this post for more great giveaways you can check out.

Oh, and one more thing. I thank you for all of your supportive comments on my recent Intuitive Eating post. 🙂 Some of you mentioned writing a book on it. Lucky for you, there already is an amazing book on it, where I get the principles and some of the other information I share. This is just my personal take on Intuitive Eating, why I think it is important, and things that have worked for me. Each of the principles and tips like "the 3 mindsets to adopt to battle the food police" are credited to the authors Resch & Tribole, like I mention in my posts. But thanks for thinking I could write a book! How awesome is that?! 😀

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So, Friday's are my newly scheduled yoga days. I am still loving yoga since it helps me to feel strong and also at peace. Kind of like how my next stop on my Flashback Friday trip through Europe left me feeling. 😉 After traveling to London and Paris, we hit up the Swiss Alps in a little town called Interlaken.

Upon arriving in Switzerland, we had to take about a 30 minute walk to the hostel. Not the easiest feat with a 40 lb pack on your back. But when we arrived here...

Our Hostel

...we realized it was all worth it. I mean how can you beat having a view like those mountains from a $15/night room? Even if the room comes with some whiny girls donning matching Burberry headbands and complaining about the lack of things to do.  Don't ask me what they were doing in the Swiss Alps. Hiking was obviously not on their agenda.

Hiking was definitely on our agenda, but we decided to wait on it to have a couple full days to explore. It was already afternoon when we arrived, so we headed into town to find some dinner and do some shopping. I just loved the little houses and all the lush greenery.

You can bet that one thing on our shopping list was some real Swiss Chocolate. It did not disappoint. And now I am sad to not have any pictures of it. Why couldn't my blogging days have started sooner? The smooth, creamy, rich, dark goodness deserved to be captured in photos. Thank you Newman's Own for giving me dark chocolate to satisfy the chocolate craving this post is giving me.

Various Chocolates

Although this was before my blogging days, I was still one to appreciate high quality fresh food. There was a ginormous co-op there that was open to the public. We took full advantage and stocked up on fruits, cheeses, yogurts, breads, gourmet salads, and some all natural granola bars. I was in foodie heaven. Apparently I am more foodie than I originally thought. I spent an entire PAGE of my journal talking about this store.

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The next couple of days revolved around hikes. We always started early to get in as much time as we could. Only problem with that is it would quickly warm up so we would wear shorts, and my jacket was a little big. Left some things open to the imagination of those Swiss men.

There were so many trails to explore. And we found our way to many beautiful sights. Here are just a couple pictures from a river we stopped by for some lunch.

Now, this part of the trip hands down had the most beautiful sights. Except for one. After getting back to the hostel from our last hike, I went to the restroom to discover a little visitor. A tick. Where? None other than UNDER MY PANTIES! It apparently decided to hop on during a previous potty break in the mountains. A girl's gotta pee, ya know!  So take note: guard your girly bits when squatting in the wilderness. Or buy one of these.

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Who knows how long it was there? But it was burrowed in and not coming up. I was thanking my lucky stars that my friend & I were roommates and have seen it all before, so there was no embarrassment asking for her help. We just laughed about it. Until we couldn't get it out and discovered the best way to remove that sucker was to burn. it. out. Yea. We had to bum a cigarette off the clerk and hold the tip up to my hooha to smoke that little bugger. In the end, we dominated it, but to this day that was the longest couple of minutes of my life. Crotches should not be on fire in that way, ever. Nevertheless, I can assure you I will never forget my hike through the Swiss Alps. They do say pain and beauty go hand in hand. 😉

• What was the craziest thing to happen to you on a trip?
• What is the best chocolate you have ever had?

**Other awesome giveaways: Janetha's, Sami's, and Lily's!