Hangs head in shame...It's been two months.

Have you missed me? It's been a long summer. How does the quote go? "Life is what happens while your busy making other plans." I had really planned on being a better "blogger", but I got caught up in summer school, going to Europe, and trying to stay healthy. I'm back. As "back" as one can be that is. I start my last semester of classes in two weeks and really need to find a new job, but my recent excursion to Europe is much more exciting than that. Let's talk about that instead.

I went to Austria, Germany, and Switzerland with these people:

and

plus 32 other people.

We rode on this:

(If it looks like the bus is broken down on the side of the autobahn, that's because it is or it did. However you phrase it, we sat on the side of the Austrian interstate for two hours basking (or was it baking) in the sun.

We saw this:

(Castle on the Danube River)

and this:

It was an amazing experience made even better by

1. The Amsterdam airport personnel thought that my grandmother looked like their queen. Here is my grandmother on the left and Queen Beatrix on the right.

2. and meeting wonderful new friends and playing with my new camera.

3. My grandmother said things like:

" I am about to strangle your grandfather. He cannot, for the life of him, fasten my bra.(She dislocated her shoulder in the amsterdam airport -post Queen scenario and had to wear a sling the whole trip). I told him it was just a simply hook and eye. MEN! They are just generally better at taking off bras than putting them on."

AHHHHHH..... I can't believe she said that. Actually I can, but my ears are still burning. :)

In closing, I should add that we ate weinerschnitzel out the wazoo, drank Shandy(lemonade beer), watched the Passion Play, climbed a mountain, sang songs to the sound of music, and traversed many a country meadow. More (fingers crossed this time) posts to come!