Dream Destinations

Since I’ve been living in Germany, I’ve started a rough list of the places I would like to visit during my time here over the next year. This list is not complete, but includes a few ideas. Hopefully, I will be able to go on 1-2 trips each month. I have no idea if I’ll make it to all or even half of the places on here, but a girl can dream, right? J

(In no particular order)

·         Ireland (Dublin)

·         Greece (Athens)

·         Egypt (Cairo) Bonus: in Africa!

·         England (London)

·         Italy (Cinque Terra, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Valencia)

·         Somewhere in the Mediterranean

·         Croatia (Dubrovnik)

·         Spain (Barcelona, Madrid)

·         Turkey (Istanbul) Bonus: partly in Europe, partly in Asia!

·         Denmark (Copenhagen)

·         Scotland (Edinburgh)

·         Portugal (Lisbon)

·         Belgium (Brussels, Bruge)

·         Morocco (In Africa!)

·         Switzerland (Zurich)

·         Slovenia (Lake Bled)

·         France

Ambitious? Yes. Crazy? Maybe. Possible? Absolutely!

Last summer, I was able to travel to:

·         Germany (Munich, Berlin)

·         Netherlands (Amsterdam)

·         Italy (Rome)

·         Austria (Salzburg)

·         Hungary (Budapest)

·         Czech Republic (Prague)

·         France (Paris)

I would love to hear comments or recommendations on the places I’ve listed or any other places, so feel free to leave a comment! Thanks!

 

My Job in a Nutshell

I work at the Edelweiss Lodge and Resort which serves American military personnel. It is an incredibly beautiful facility with a rustic, woodsy feel. Besides the various hotel rooms and suites, it features a pool, outdoor hot tub, gift shop, convenience/ coffee shop, arcade, small casino, and many tours throughout Germany and the surrounding areas available to guests. There are also cabins and camp sites available. The three restaurants within the hotel are Market Station (buffet), Zuggy’s Base Camp (sports bar and family dining) and Pullman Place (fancier, food is prepared in front of you).

Before you get here, it is made clear that they will place you in whatever job that they need to be filled when you arrive, which could mean front desk, housekeeping, working at one of the three restaurants, custodial duties, security, conferencing, or working as a recreation aid in Alpine Adventures (the gift shop and place to reserve tours, etc.) I was lucky enough to become a recreation aid in Alpine Adventures.

My main duties include assisting guests in booking tours, selling merchandise in the gift shop, implementing kid’s programs that we offer to guests, and hopefully leading tours in the future. Working in the shop is a little stressful right now because of all the information that you are expected to know, but I love the people that I work with and the variety in tasks that this position has. Since I have been here, I have also done other odds and ends jobs, which keeps things interesting. I have worked at karaoke night a couple of times in Zuggy’s, which somehow led to me singing a duet, “Summer Nights,” from the movie, Grease, and “That Don’t Impress Me Much,” by Shania Twain. Not sure it sounded the best, but it got the crowd pumped up! I’ve also had to do set-up for an event the hotel hosts on holidays, called Kid’s World, where we inflate bouncy castles and a huge slide. Some of us employees graciously tested out the slide, just to make sure they were safe for the children, of course. J During that same weekend, there are events for adults, too. We hosted “Minute to Win It,” where we choose hotel guests to compete in relatively difficult and obscure tasks within a minute to win a prize.

Recently, I’ve started to work on a personal project which involves revamping the kid’s center for the kids programs we offer. I’m currently going through all of the arts and crafts to see what we can use, reorganizing materials and redecorating to spice it up a little bit. I’m very eager to see the final product! All in all, I really like the fact that there is so much variety in my job, and feel incredibly lucky that I was placed in this position!

How in the world did I end up halfway across the world?

Four years ago, I began my college education at the University of Iowa. Going into college, I knew that I wanted to travel abroad, whether it be studying abroad or finding another way. After discovering a program called Camp Adventure, I knew I had a found a way to do just that. My first summer working as a camp counselor for Camp Adventure was spent in Key West, Florida. It wasn’t as far as I would have hoped to travel, but it was definitely an incredible summer that I will never forget. After that, I was able to travel to Oahu, Hawaii for a week-long Spring Break camp. And, last summer, Camp Adventure sent me to Garmisch, Germany.

Maggie M, myself, Courtney, Maggie A, and Kay - my favorite Camp A girls!

I had the time of my life last summer while living in Garmisch and travelling to Rome, Paris, Prague, Salzburg, Budapest, Berlin, Munich and Amsterdam. This experience fueled my desire to continue travelling and to see the world. So, after talking with people who worked at the Edelweiss Lodge and Resort, I decided that coming back here to work would be my main priority to pursue during my senior year at Iowa.

The interview process couldn’t have gone better, I drove down with two friends, Aleena (who also applied) and Lauren (who came along for a girl’s getaway weekend in Louisville) in late February 2012. Aleena and I both got offered jobs in our interviews and went out to celebrate later that night in Louisville!

Aleena, myself and Lauren in Louisville!

 

Fast forward to July 8, 2012, when I waved goodbye to my family and grandparents and jet-setted to Garmisch, Germany. I was about to find out what was in store for me and about to embark on one of the greatest adventures of my life. 

Sarah took this photo as I am about to walk through the gates at the Cedar Rapids Airport. Ciao Iowa!

Long Overdue First Blog Post

A wise man once said, “Life isn’t about the destination, but instead is about the journey.” I was recently reminded of this in a short letter from my mother. In this case, perhaps life is about the journey, as well as, the (geographical) destination. If you would have asked me about what I would be doing after graduating from college, I never would have thought, in a million years, that I would be working in Germany, halfway across the world, for thirteen months.

In college, the ultimate goal is to land a decent job, usually in the United States. I took a different route, for better or for worse, applying to work at the Edelweiss Lodge and Resort on a U.S. military base in Garmisch, Germany. Although this is not the typical route to take, it was the only route that I was genuinely excited about and actively pursued during my senior year of college.

In this blog, I plan to record my adventures while living abroad in Europe, and allow my family and friends to follow and share in my unique opportunity that I am taking part in. I hope to live in the moment and enjoy this wonderful journey that I am on and so fortunate to have.