German Lumberjack Olympics and B2Run Company 6k!

My internship is not just about learning the corporate law ropes and interacting with German trainees and international clients ... it's about bonding with the firm as a whole.  To do that, we've had some pretty intense events in the past couple of weeks.  

The first was the "Lumberjack Olympics," a retreat about an hour outside of Munich where we participated in odd, traditional Bavarian games (e.g., milking fake cows, driving ATVs around obstacle courses, archery, kicking boots into a bucket, and more).  

We were treated to all the Bavarian specialties...

The second was a few days ago, and I am still having trouble walking because I am so sore - the "B2Run" Munich 6k, where hundreds of businesses and law firms participate in teams in a 6 kilometer run around the Olympia Park (the site of the 1972 Olympic Games).  There were about 30,000 participants, and my time ranked me at about 3,000th place, so I am fairly pleased with myself.  What I am not as pleased with is the fact that two days later, I am confined to my apartment because I literally cannot walk.  It seems that I will need to get back into shape one of these days ...

Weekend in Amsterdam

Amsterdam Museum, #9 on the map below

Never have I been to a city that reminded me so much of every other city I've ever been to.  Amsterdam is a kind of magical, time-stops-when-you're-there, grown-up Disneyland town - it's crooked and whimsical, grand and quaint, relaxed and vibrant all at once.  Amsterdam has a beautiful canal system (like a less confusing to navigate Venice), there are trees and green everywhere (like in Munich), the stretches of park next to the museums are laid out with gravel pathways (like Tuilleries in Paris), and the weather was wet and rainy when we were there (which reminded me of San Francisco and London).  Pockets of the city also reminded me of Athens, Cambridge, and Boston for their various quirks and demographics.

The Oldest Map of Amsterdam

Amsterdam is also the type of city where you can walk and walk and see everything in a matter of hours without realizing how much ground you've covered.  What was strangest to me (and most liberating as well) was that for the first time, I visited a city and didn't even look at a map - I let my friend Chip figure out where we were and direct us to our destinations, which made the experience all the more stress-free and fun.  I arrived on Friday evening at around 8 pm ... however, because Amsterdam is so far north, it was still very bright out and didn't feel later than 5.

Approximately where the #2 is on the drawn map

The area we walked around the most was the Old Town of Amsterdam, by Dam Plein, or Dam Square.  There is an incredible Royal Palace there, built during the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century, which was considered to be the 8th Wonder of the World in its time.  There are also the Old and New Churches (Oude and Nieuwe Kerks) in that vicinity, built around 1300 and 1400 respectively.  The New Church was partially destroyed early on and rebuilt in a Gothic style - now, it is used for exhibitions because of its extraordinary space, no longer for services.

Dam Square

Royal Palace

Old Church

Inside the New Church

Along the central canal

On Saturday, we left our hotel in the morning and wandered around the nearby Museumplein for a while, a district with a high concentration of museums and more residential neighborhoods (see #9 on the map).  The ambiance was much less crowded and more peaceful than in the center of the city.  Throughout the day we walked probably 10 kilometers, people-watched, and ate delicious food and Dutch treats ... it was exhausting but so fun.  There was wind and rain nonstop and I was wearing a sundress because I had failed to pack weather-appropriately, but we remained tough and battled out the elements for most of the afternoon.

Yummy!

People enjoying the fresh air .... despite the lack of sunshine

A pee wee soccer match in Dam Plein

Last night, as it was still raining, we decided to go see Harry Potter - it had Dutch subtitles, so the experience was cultural, of course.  This morning, I had to leave for the airport early so we left the hotel and walked around, got breakfast, and I caught a tram to the train to the airport back to Munich.  It was one of those weekends that goes by far too quickly - there was not nearly enough time to do everything I would have liked to while there.  But, Amsterdam has touched a special place in my heart and I am so grateful to have visited.  Hopefully I will be able to return soon, and explore more!  It is such an eclectic and diverse city, and everyone there seems so alive ... I loved it.

More pictures are in the Amsterdam Album linked to the right!  And more on Munich soon.

Schloss Nymphenburg Palace and Gardens

Hello beautiful people!

My computer is back in action - hooray!

Last weekend, I spent Saturday at the Nymphenburg Palace and Gardens, which is a beautiful estate on the western edge of Munich.  It was built by the Elector Ferdinand Maria and his wife in 1664, but several annexes and new buildings have been added since then.  It reminded me of Versailles in that the layout of the building and the gardens are inspired by French castles, but the parks extending beyond the gardens reminded me very much of estates in England, such as Blenheim Palace (where Winston Churchill grew up). 

The day I went was beautiful - when I first arrived by tram and began the long walk up the gravel driveway, the clouds kind of exploded and rain started pouring for about five minutes, then stopped.  There were patches of blue sky everywhere so the effect was kind of mystical, and I couldn't help but feel like I had been transported to Narnia.  By the end of the day the sky was blue, so after walking through the palace I was really able to enjoy the park, and walked through it for hours.

The palace itself is gorgeous, and the highlight for me was the "Gallery of Beauties."  Ludwig I commissioned Joseph Stieler to paint various portraits of young women that caught his eye, and they have since been placed in Nymphenburg, in a wonderful collection.  This was a kind of pervert-move at the time, but it has contributed to a beautiful room with an interesting array of women - they range from princesses to blacksmiths' daughters.  

In the gardens, there are several different buildings and small palaces that were built for various purposes, such as hunting lodges, grottoes, and one of the most exciting, a huge carriage house.  The Marstallmuseum, where hundreds of carriages and sleighs are stored that once belonged to Bavarian leaders, is incredible.  

Overall, a wonderful day ... it was gorgeous out, and there were adorable geese and ducks and swans everywhere.  I decided to walk almost all the way home (across the whole city, practically), and I was struck (as I am every day) by how beautiful and safe this city is.  I love it here!  I just need to work on my German ...

For full albums of Athens, Crete, Munich, and Schloss Nymphenburg, check out my links to the right!!!

Flashback to Florence

Ciao all!

I never was able to fully report on what I was doing in Florence.  It was a busy few days, and I was overwhelmed with the insane world of fashion - both fantastically fun and ridiculously intimidating.  But as I mentioned before, I was a contributing reporter for The Icon Concierge, and quite a few articles I wrote and photos I took were featured on their site!  Here are the links to the articles I wrote for Editor and founder Sade Strehlke, with accompanying photos:

Welcome to Florence!

Window-Shopping in Florence

My favorite - Personal Shopping Experience at Luisa via Roma!

Pitti Uomo

Pitti W - Women's Collection

Dress Like a Man Fashion Show

Feature on New Shoe Designer Elena Iachi

Interview with the PR Manager of Dockers

Band of Outsiders Show and AfterParty

Featured Guest: Piombo

It was such a fun time and I met so many incredibly talented individuals - what a unique and exciting opportunity it was!  So Sade, thank you again.

The blog lives ... Athens and Crete Recap

I'm slightly embarassed by the time that's elapsed between my last post and now ... two weeks, and a lot has happened!  First I was in Athens, with no internet access really, and then I was in Crete, where my laptop's screen was killed by a suitcase ... until I find a replacement/some solution and am able to upload my own photos, blogging will be photo-less (or in today's case, replete with Google images).  I'm also only able to go online at work, so unless something spectacular happens, I'll not be blogging very often until my computer situation is resolved.

So, a couple weeks ago I landed in Athens, Greece, where I was welcomed by the wonderful "cousins" Soulis and Voula.  I stayed at their second apartment for a few days, ate a lot of delicious Voula-meals, and wandered around the city until my mom, dad, and sister arrived!  We spent the next few days sightseeing and relaxing in the Grand Bretagne's lovely spa (as my family-members recovered from jet lag after a 24-hour trip to Greece from CA).  One of the highlights was seeing the new Acropolis Museum, which was not yet finished last time I was here ... finally, Greece has a wonderful place to house it's incredible relics from the past thousands of years and early civilizations, and the setting (at the base of the Acropolis) is magnificent.  The other: experiencing the riots and protests in Syntagma Square.  The actual events are much calmer than they are portrayed in the media to be, but there are thousands upon thousands of people gathering each night, and everyone is very frustrated with the government.  The general sentiment from people I spoke to, including my Greek relatives, is a resentment toward a government who cares more about the banks than the people, and little for the poor (under the new austerity plan, people with lower incomes will have higher taxes than before).  I also heard a lot of "Papandreou ees noht GREEK, he ees Amehrican jew!"  It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.  [Note: the sentiments expressed above are simply observations, not my own opinions.]

Then, we all flew to Crete!  We spent a few magical days at the Blue Palace Resort in Plaka, in the Spinalonga Bay (Spinalonga is an island that used to be a leper colony - yummy!).  It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to, and spending time in such a relaxed and amazing setting with my family, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins was incredible!  The rocky beach was picturesque, there were celebrity guests (the cast of America's Next Top Model, as well as Lady Gaga, who had stayed in our family's villa a few weeks before us!), and the food was delicious (I probably gained a good five pounds in three days).

Unfortunately, I had to leave after a short time in Crete, but my whole family will be there for a couple more weeks.  While I'm jealous that they get to indulge in sun and sand and Greek food, I couldn't be more excited to be in Munich, and it's also nice to be able to call them without much of a time difference right now.

So now, I am in Munich!!! I can't believe I have never been to Germany before ... the people are so warm and light-hearted, and Munich has a million fantastic little restaurants, shops, and markets.  There is an abundance of museums, castles, lakes, river beaches, and other sights to explore here, and I'm so happy that I'll be here for seven weeks.  Munich reminds me a bit of northern California - moderate weather, lots of green spaces, a Berkeley-esque college atmosphere (there are 100,000 students at the University here), and an outdoorsy vibe (everyone rides bikes).  All in all, being in Germany will be a fantastic experience for both myself personally, and for my career ... work is great so far and I'm really enjoying my internship at Bird & Bird.  Unfotunately, there isn't much gelato in Munich ... but there IS lots of Haribo candy.



Magic in Firenze

So much to report!  At the moment I'm busy keeping The Icon Concierge updated with top stories and events from Pitti Uomo and Pitti W fashion shows (read them here), so for now I will just say that in the past day and a half I have already:

1) Previewed multiple fashion lines for Spring/Summer 2012 as a member of the press (press pass and all!!)

2) Had my photo taken by street-fashion photographers (and pretended I was on the phone to seem nonchalant about it - I mean it happens all the time, right?)

3) Attended a private fashion/art show featuring iconic Italian models from the 80s and 90s, and

4) Was invited to a private dinner (with those models!) hosted by the PR firm that is putting on all of this week's special events.

Yes, those are shoes on her head.

I'm sleepy now, and it has been overwhelming ... BUT, I am thrilled for this opportunity!  I feel like I'm Anne Hathaway in Devil Wears Prada, with an amazing friend giving me this experience in place of an evil boss.  It's a fairy-tale trip to Florence!  Although I must say, I'm glad that I'll be in an industry (legal) where I won't have to rely on my outfit to be successful ... high-fashion can be uncomfortable.  I'll just stick to "good personal style" for now.

Dinner tonight was incredible, definitely the best meal I've had in a long while.  In fact, it's the first time I've eaten dinner out in ages ... in Venice, I made most of my meals at home, and it was difficult to find wonderful restaurants in my price range.  This meal was free, so it was in my price range.  We ate at Trattoria I due G, a family-run yet glamorous restaurant that serves classic Tuscan cuisine.  They served incredible pâté, tomato salad, and rice-crusted meat, then beautiful vegetable risotto dishes for the table to share, followed by delicious red meat with white beans and roasted vegetables.  I finished my meal with Semifreddo alla menta e cioccolata and an espresso... divine.  The people I met (European and New Yorkers, in fashion and journalism) were lovely, and Flint, the PR contact who invited me, was so friendly and welcoming.

On another, more personal note, I stopped drinking a year ago today!  Needless to say, I am proud and happy to have reached this landmark, and want to thank everyone who supported me.  I'm happier today than I've ever been, knowing that I've opened a space in my life to make room for more personal growth than I ever thought possible.  Being abroad has only been an aid in reaffirming that my choices have been right for me, and I appreciate all the support and love and understanding my friends and family have shown me this year - so thank you!

So to snap out of the sappy, here's a picture of a kind of grody but sexy man I saw today at the fashion fairgrounds!  Oh Italians ... I will miss them un po ' ... And more updates soon to come, ciao tutti!

Arrivederci, Venezia!

View of San Marco from San Giorgio Maggiore

My time in Venice has already drawn to a close.  I'm writing this entry from a lovely family-run pensione in Florence, where I am staying for a few days.  The hotel is right by the train station, so when I arrived earlier this morning I quickly dropped off my bags and have already walked around central Firenze for a few hours.   I'm really looking forward to this trip, but more on that in a bit ...

Giudecca

View of Dorsoduro

This past weekend was a wonderful opportunity to have a final exploration into areas I hadn't seen, visit the "sights" I hadn't yet touristed, and essentially, say goodbye to Venice.  I was able to take some cool photos of the view from the campanile at San Giorgio Maggiore (a church on a small island right across the water from San Marco).  I also happened upon an INCREDIBLE free exhibit on Giudecca called Modernikon: Contemporary art from Russia.  The show was housed in a beautiful old palace with large, light spaces,  high ceilings, ornate moldings and gorgeous windows - the contrast of the contemporary sculptures, paintings, photos and documentaries displayed there was lovely, as was the entire exhibit in general.  I have a soft spot for Russian art and history, and I'm not sure where it came from.  For some reason, (maybe the strong influence of Russian ballet instructors throughout my formative years) I have always loved taking courses on Russian socio-political structures, historical trends, and art ... this exhibit combined the work of established and up-and-coming Russian artists, who have made political statements using contemporary artistic means, commenting on the merging of the past and present in Russia.  There were some very moving pieces, and I thought it was one of the best contemporary art shows I've ever seen.  Photos of the show, with descriptive captions, are also in the photo-link above.

Andrey Kuzkin's "levitation Heroes" - made from bread (used as a plaster), they represent conflicting symbolical meanings such as life and death, disintegration and elevation, and symbolism and materialism.  They were ENORMOUS

This guy was my favorite ... he seemed so soulful, I just wanted to touch his face! (Actually, I did, shhh) ... and the drawing is a sketch by an artist whose name I can't recall, but his somewhat satirical allusions to popular Russian and Soviet culture in his drawings reminded me of a Russian Daumier. 

School and consistent fun made the past three weeks pass by so quickly, and I can't believe that I was in Venice for almost a month.  It's not the type of city one visits for an extended period of time, generally.  When I came with my family as a 13 year-old, we stayed for three magical days, saw all of the important monuments, got lost in streets and allies and walked through markets ... but living in Venice changes the way you see it, and the city loses some of its mystery.  After a week I was no longer lost every time I tried to find my way home, and after two I actually knew my way around.  Still, Venice is not a city that you can comfortably call home, even when it becomes more than a tourist destination.  

Random Crew Competition on the Grand Canal ... that shut down the entire vaporetto system!

But, I loved it.  It was fun to walk amongst the tourists and think, I'm one of you, but I know more than you do ... I still feel out of place ... but so does everyone on this island so does that mean we're all in the same boat? (heh heh - boat).  The overarching point I'm trying to make in my ramblings:  I have a feeling that no matter how long you stay in Venice, no matter how familiar you are with it, you'll always feel like a tourist ... and that makes it a unique and really exciting place to stay.  Being too comfortable is easy, and it was an amazing experience to live and study in such a remarkable and quixotic fairyland.  

My last gelato in Venice ... was "monumental," to say the least ...

I left my apartment at 6:30 this morning, and no one was out yet ... there were hardly any boats on the Grand Canal, and taking the water-bus from Rialto to Ferrovia Station was like a private last tour of the city.  I will miss Venice ... but I am ready to be on the mainland again.

Bye bye Venice!

Buongiorno Firenze!!!

The first thing I noticed upon arriving in Florence were the cars!  I had forgotten about those things ... they're kind of scary.  This week should be exciting because (a) I will reintegrate myself into the world of endangered pedestrians and (b) I'm here covering a fashion tradeshow event in Florence, Pitti Imaggine.  I have a friend from college, Sade Strehlke, who graduated USC a year before me and recently started her own online fashion editorial, The Icon Concierge (check out her amazing site!)  She is launching an Italian edition of the website in November, and wanted to attend this week's events but unfortunately had conflicts - luckily for the both of us, I happened to have this week off and was already in Italy!  So, she has had all the press passes transferred over to my name and I will be reporting as European Correspondent for TIC in Firenze, Italia.  

Press Pass and Inivitations!

Check out The Icon Concierge's site for my guest posts, and I'll put stuff up here as well :) Stay tuned ...