LONDON – PARIS – SWITZERLAND

(Asia)

London:

In my opinion London looks like San Francisco, besides Big Ben and other monumental stuff. My highlights were going to the London Eye, seeing Big Ben, getting to go inside the Bucking ham palace for the Changing of the Guards when everybody else had to wait on the outside of the gates. It felt like being a celebrity! When you’re on top of the London Eye you basically see everything since it’s so tall! The Big Ben looks exactly like it does in pictures. But I felt really puny being next to it. It was named out Sir Benjamin Hall who oversaw the installation of the clock. Also, on our first day we took an underground train to London Square. Where Big Ben was close too and where there are a lot of stores, restaurants, and other random things. There was a big variety of people, probably from all over the world.

I went to Changing of the Guards on my second day and it was alright. It sucked sitting on gravel, but it was worth seeing the guards up close. After we went to the Windsor Castle where the queen and kings are buried and where the queen grew up. I saw those guards that just stood there. They always keep a straight face and never move, unless it’s routine. We all took pictures with him. Their hats look really fluffy. Well, after we left to eat at an Indian Cuisine. After the theatre people left and the rest of us went to Oxford Street to go shopping! Its nice there but mostly brand names so it was expensive. Went back to the hotel and that was the end of my day.
On my last day of London I went to see Pax Lodge, Big Ben and London Eye. I learned a lot in the Girl Scout world center! It was cool knowing that people from all over the world could be in the same room as I was! We toured around the building, got pinned, and learned more about WAGGGS. Then we left. When we got off the bus everyone started taking pictures of them and Big Ben. We all separated into little groups and started adventuring. I went to go around, and saw a lot of different stuff. We went to a bathroom where we had to pay 50 pence per person just to use it! When we met up with everyone we went straight to the London eye. It was scary being all the way on the top, but the view was really nice! It was the perfect place to see London. Most people were panicking, it was funny. At the end we ate fish and chips! A popular English food! It was the best out of all the dinners we ate while I was in London. We went to Jack and the Ripper walk after. It was alright. The guy was weird and locals would laugh when they saw him. I would if I were them. I was exhausted from the whole day, so right when I got to the hotel, I fell asleep. It was a good thing because I had to wake up early the next morning to leave.

Paris:

Paris has a one hour time difference from London. Right when we went to Paris we went to the hotel “Palais des Congres”. It was pretty tiny. Probably a family ran business. I liked my room because it had stairs and a mini kitchen! We all put our suitcases in our room and we started to tour! The first thing we saw was the Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral! The detailing of the place was amazing. Everyone took pictures and then we separated! My group went shopping! The crepes there looked REALLY good. I never got one though.

After the Cathedral, we went to eat dinner and back to the hotel to sleep! The next morning, we woke up pretty early, got ready, ate breakfast, at the hotel and started leaving. Before we went to the Eiffel tower, we toured around. When we got to the Eiffel tower, it was GIGANTIC. Literally, you could stack a million Asia’s and then you’ll be the same height as it. The vendors there harass you until you buy something. Since we can annoy them too, we bargain. But that’s not till later. We took an elevator to one level and then stopped, went off, took another elevator, and then went to the VERY top. Most people would think that the top is scary. But I felt safe there. The whole place, ever the top is surrounded! So there’s no possible way of you falling off! After I went down and then the vendors attacked! We all got to bargain the vendor, so we all got a good deal! When we left, we saw it light up! BEAUTIFUL! After staring at it for a while, we all walked to a deck to go on our cruise! I didn’t really see much because I fell asleep. I felt bad but I was exhausted! So when I got to the hotel, I knocked out.

On my last day in Paris, I went to the Louvre Museum where the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo are. It’s nice seeing paintings and statues from hundreds years ago. The only negative was that there were a lot of stairs and A LOT of naked statues. It was cool seeing the REAL Mona Lisa, the REAL one. We were like 50 feet away from it so it was awkward taking a picture. Then we left and went on a walking tour, we went to this Paris Plage beach and got yogurt! Went to dinner, ate and then slept. Woke up in the morning to get ready for Switzerland! The road trip was going to be 12 hours.

Switzerland:

I LOVE IT THERE. It’s all green and everything is organized. Our hotel was on a hill so we had to bus up there. The ALPINA FAMILIEN Hotel is really cozy and the furniture looks like it all came from Ikea. It’s really comfortable. We had a free day, and we all got to explore the hotel. The next day, we ate breakfast at the hotel, and hiked on the road to Our Chalet, a Girl Guides World Center, founded by Helen Sorrow. It was cold, but nice there. Everything was organized and interesting. We stayed there until lunch and then we went back. Half of the group walked to town to go shopping; the other half went back to the hotel to change and rest a bit. My group stayed at the hotel. Our bus didn’t come so we asked our tour bus driver to drive us. It was sprinkling but that didn’t stop us from shopping!

No one really bought anything besides chocolate. So when we went back people separated again. One group would go to a hike to the waterfall and the other would go to the hotel. Most people didn’t go because it was raining, but I went because I didn’t pay $3,500 to chicken out on stuff. So when I got there, it was freezing! I didn’t bring a jacket but luckily Andie let me borrow hers and Colette let me borrow her poncho! We started hiking and then it poured. We got to the waterfall and it was really pretty! Everyone started taking pictures; and if you tried to talk to someone, you’d have to yell since the waterfall made such a loud sound. After a while, we started heading back. We stopped at this creek to get water and most people would think it’s dirty, but it was one of the best water I have ever tasted! It was clean, nice, and fresh! When I got back to the hotel everyone was awake because they all took naps while we were gone. So, I changed, showered, and started hanging out before and after dinner. After enough time with everyone, I went back to my hotel room and slept.

My last day in Switzerland, and also my last day in Europe, I started touring. We went to Mount Pilates, which is REALLY high up. You feel on top of the world when you’re up there. When we went down, we took a train, which went almost straight because the mountain was so steep. When we got off we took a cruise on Lake Lucerne to another part of the city. We went to get our Swiss Army Knives and then went shopping! We bought A LOT of chocolate, about $80 worth? Afterwards, we went to eat at this really Swiss restaurant. They were celebrating their culture since it was Switzerland’s national holiday recently! It was awesome! The food was good, I danced, heard a lot of different Swiss instruments! My favorite is when people started yodeling. It looks funny, but it takes a lot of practice to get it perfect. At the end, everyone was tired and when we went in our bus, we were all shocked by how cool the bus was! It was like a party bus with two floors, blue lights, and tables! Nobody really cared though, since everyone was exhausted. When we got to the hotel, everyone hung out. I slept in a different room because I wanted to hang out with everyone before I left. So, when I woke up everyone was crying because they were going to miss us! It made me feel bad. I was definitely going to miss them too. We said our goodbyes, exchanged email addresses, and said our last words. Then we were off to the airport to fly home. Overall, this trip has given me memories and friendships that will last a lifetime.