A New Beginning!!

Saturday, September 1st 2012

Being an au pair is not always fun and happiness, but also it has difficult times.. Therefore, I moved in Seattle,  Washington.

My flight to Seattle was at noon, with a stop in Phoenix, Arizona! So, after a 6-hour-flight  (approximately, if I had went straight through, it would have been 3,5 hours) I landed-off to Seattle.

Behind the Scenes

1. The drunk lady who was sitting next to me from Arizona to Seattle. She was a nervous flyer and while we were landing-on, I heard her doing : AAAAAAA!!!! (but not loud! She didn't get embarrassed to the others passengers) and holding  my hand! When we landed-off, though, she only cried after the plane had stopped moving... :/
2. From the plane, I could see the forests and the houses between them. The port, the Space Needle, the Lake Washington. So beautiful!! Afterwards, I saw somewhere that Washington is called as the "Evergreen State", because it's raining a lot, but it's snowing rarely!!!
3. I would say it's an alternative city! There are very interesting people!

Sunday, September 2nd 2012

A quite day, I would say!! After having breakfast, we went for a walk at the closest park, and then for shopping - bying necessary things for the household and me.

And later in the afternoon, we went to the house of another family for dinner! We had a great time!!

Monday, September 3rd 2012

Labor Day !!!

The childrens' grandparents, the kids and me, we went for a trip to Hood Canal where the house of a greek-american family is located. The kids and I had a blast!!! But let me tell you few words for the Hood Canal.

 Hood Canal is a fjord forming the western lobe, and one of the four main basins,^[1][2][3] of Puget Sound in the state of Washington. Hood Canal is not a canal in the sense of being a man-made waterway—it is a natural waterway.

 Hood Canal is long and narrow with an average width of 1.5 miles (2.4 km) and a mean depth of 53.8 metres (177 ft). It has 342.6 kilometres (212.9 mi) of shoreline and 42.4 square kilometres (16.4 sq mi) of tideland. Its surface area is 385.6 square kilometres (148.9 sq mi) and it contains a volume of water totaling 21 cubic kilometres (17,000,000 acre·ft).^[3] Hood Canal extends for about 50 miles (80 km) southwest from the entrance between Foulweather Bluff and Tala Point to Union, where it turns sharply to the northeast, a stretch called The Great Bend. It continues for about 15 miles (24 km) to Belfair, where it ends in a shallow tideland called Lynch Cove.

 Along its entire length, Hood Canal separates the Kitsap Peninsula from the Olympic Peninsula of Washington. The U.S. Navy's Naval Base Kitsap, Bangor Annex, is located on the eastern shore of Hood Canal near the town of Bangor. Hood Canal has several internal bays, the largest of which is Dabob Bay. Most of Dabob Bay is a Naval Restricted Area, and is used by the submarines stationed at the Bangor Base. Quilcene Bay is an inlet extending northwest from Dabob Bay. Near the north end of Hood Canal is Port Gamble, a bay and a town of the same name.

Several rivers flow into Hood Canal, mostly from the Olympic Peninsula, including the Skokomish River, Hamma Hamma River,Duckabush River, Dosewallips River, and Big Quilcene River. Small rivers emptying into Hood Canal from the Kitsap Peninsula include the Union River, Tahuya River, and Dewatto River. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hood_Canal

                              

To get there, we had to catch up the ferry (a 45-minute-trip) to Bremerton city, and from there to Hood Canal/Kitsap Peninsula.

There were many things to do!

1. Collecting oysters, shells and crabs! The beach was full of them. We had to walk carefully in order to not break them.
2. Going for crab-fishing!!!According to laws, it was the last day that anyone can fish crabs. The excursion was amazing! The whole coast was full of shells and above the houses, you could see only the forest! The catch of that day was 7 crabs!!!
3. The kids wanted to try out water skiing, so they wore their bathing suits and life jackets, and climb on it. I accompanied them by being in the boat. They couldn't stop laughing and smiling.
4. After the water skiing, we went for swimming at the pool. Unlike the ocean's water, the pool's water was warmer. The kids were trying to figure out many ways not sinking by using the noodles.
5. Ice-cream time!! The kids were very happy when after the lunch and dinner, they ate ice-cream as a treat!
6. Tree-house!! We saw a tree-house that the family built. It's about a full-equipped tree-house with two bunk-beds, heat and TV!

End of the trip...It was time to go back home since everybody was tired!!!

            

VACATIONS Part 4 - The Final Part

Thursday, July 5th 2012

Le Musée Rodin - Jardin

Since I am an European citizen and between 18-25 years old, I can visit any museum that I want for free; or as the French say "graduit".

After my visit to Louvre, the next one was Le Musée Rodin - Jardin, which is close to l' église des Invalides. The museum consists of the garden (jardin) and two buildings, the Hôtel  Biron where the main exposition is hosted, and the main building (reception, bookstore etc. ) where another exposition is shown.

I started with the garden. It's a very beautiful garden where at some parts there are rose bushes, sculptures of Auguste Rodin, a woodland area and a fountain with a small pond giving the feeling of tranquility and serenity. Then, I went into the Hôtel  Biron, a building with two floors (ground and 1st floor) where the sculptor's best-known works are; they were made by marble and bronze. One room is dedicated to his lover Camille Claudel. Now, at the area of the visitor lobby, there is a room in which many exhibitions have been hosted. This time, the name of the temporary exhibition was "Rodin, La Chair, Le Marble". Sculptures that impressed me:

1. Le Baisser (The Kiss)
2. La Femme-Poisson (The Woman-Fish-----> the face of a woman with her mouth wide-open just like a fish in the water)
3. La main de Dieu (The hand of God)
4. Le jour et la nuit (The day and the night)
5. Psyché et l' amour (Psyche and he love)
6. Jeux d' enfants (Childrens' games)
7. Diane (Diana-goddess)
8. La main du Diable (The hand of Devil)
9. L' âge mûr  (The age of maturity)
10. La Vague (The Wave)
11. Le Sommeil (The Sleep)
12. La Porte de l' Enfer (The Gates of Hell) 
13. Le Penseur (The Thinker) and
14. La Valse (The Waltz)

Saturday, July 7th 2012 & Sunday July 8th 2012

Weekend-off! It's a chance to visit many places.

First stop: Notre-Dame        Bad Thing: Rainy Weather!!

Looking at the Notre-Dame, anyone can notice that the three entrances with the roman-style arcs are decorated with human figures. This fact impressed me while I was waiting to get into the church. As getting into, I admired the vitreaux with the saints' figures and then Le Trésor de Notre-Dame (The Treasure of Notre-Dame), a separate room with objets d' ancien régime. Afterwards, inside the church, there was "une exposition photographique : Thérèse de Lisieux ou la brulûre d' amour?".

I was ready to leave when I realised that I hadn't climbed up on the Towers of Notre-Dame. Going up was a LOOOOOOOOOOONG ADVENTURE! Where shall I begin? The queue was LONG and I had to wait for 2,5 hours. Furthermore, while I was standing, it started pouring cats and dogs. Finally, it was my turn to go up! TIP: If anyone wants to go upstairs, he or she has to be in a good shape, not being afraid of heights and not having heart problems since the only way is climbing up a 400-spiral-staircase!

What impressed me?

• From the top you can see les Gragouilles  (the little monsters and if you don't understand, you can watch (again) the "Esmeralda"-Disney movie!)
• The view!!!! For one more time, I caught myself with my mouth wide-open admiring the view. La Seine, la Tour Eiffel, la Montmartre etc.

More places that I visited were Panthéon, Jardin du Luxembourg, Centre de George Pompidou, La Place de la Bastille.

Wednesday, July 4th 2012

American Independence Day -----> Day-Off!!!!!!!

It was a chance to visit the Louvre http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre_Paris!! I spent more than 6 hours to explore it!! More with photos!! 

(I don't know when I can upload them!! :((((..... ) 

VACATIONS Part 4 - Back to Paris!!

Monday, July 2nd 2012

Back to Paris, and I did one more walk in town. That time, my destination was Monmartre. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montmartre

Start point -------> Av. De  Friedland which continues to Boulevard Haussement (Galerie de Lafayette). As you can guess, during my exploration, I have NEVER used any public transportation!!! My moto is : KEEP WALKING!!

On my way, I saw l'église de Saint Augustin et de Saint Vincent-de-Paul, and then I made a left turn on Boulevard de Magenta. This neighborhood is totally different from the "quartiers" around the Arc de Triumph or La Tour Eiffel. It is the other side of Paris just like everything has two different sides! It is about a poor neighborhood with inexpensive stores and people working as salesmen from place to place or at the fleemarket on Bd De Rochechouat. To tell you the truth, I was litlle scared. The only thing that I could do was to keep my handbag "safe".

Neverethless, after climbing up so many stairs, I made it and I arrived in Monmartre. The view was magical! All the city was in front of me!! I could see the skyscrapers in one place, la Tour Eiffel, l' Èglise des Invalides because of the gold dome and many more. Then, I entered the church "Basilique du Sacré-Coeur (Sacred Heart). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacre_Coeur_Cathedral

Just like all the Catholic churches, there were vitreaux everywhere, little chapelles on the sides, where each one is in the memory of a saint (Saint or Sainte), and iron, black candelabra. Before leaving the church, the Mass (liturgy for the Orthodox) was about to begin. The priest (or reverand)
was wearing a purple robe and a gold tiara. However, I didn't stay longer, I went outside to see what
there was around. I went on the back side of the church where the street started to be cobbled and overcrowded with people and many, many painters, who were approaching everyone to make their portrait. (no, they didn't make mine!). I knew that, but I completely forgot it! The location was picturesque with the litlle souvenir stores, the cozy bistrots and the colourful tables and chairs outside...

It was time to go back home, so I started walking again. On my way back, I saw the famous Moulin Rouge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moulin_Rouge!  on Bd de Clichy (on this street, there are only "weird" / "awkward" shops ----> sex shops! It is a quite unsafe neighborhood) 

VACATIONS - PART 3 --------------> ITALY!!!!!!

Saturday, June 23rd 2012, 04:00 am

My host family and I had already packed our things, because we were going for a week to Italy by car. We would stay at the area of Camaiore in Toscany, pretty close to the beach. The roadtrip lasted almost 12 hours. We started from Paris and crossed the southern part of France, passed through the Mont-Blanc, and then the north-western part of Italy (Milan, Livorno). During the trip, I didn't see anything else, but lands of grass, woodlands on the mountains , waterfalls... The scenery was MAGIC!!!!!

Monday, June 25th 2012

After spending the whole morning and noon on the beach (sandy beach with shallow waters!), in the afternoon, it was the first time to visit a sightseeing: the " Leaning Tower of Pisa" or "Campanile". But let me tell you few words... Pisa is the town (a medieval town) and the tower is located at La Piazza del Duomo (The Cathedral Square) surrounded by walls. At the square there are four remarkable monuments. 1. "Santa Maria Assunta" (the Cathedral/Duomo) : dedicated to the Assumption gf the Virgin Mary - founded in 1063 by Brusketo and Rainaldo and completed in 1118. 2. Campanile: or the "Leaning Tower of Pisa" - its foundations were laid on August 1173 by Gulielmo and Bonnano Pisano Why is it leaning?? When construction work had almost reached the top of the third order, land subsidence caused the trunk of the tower to lean over. Down the centuries, the nature of the land which caused the first dramatic subsidence together with the enormous weight of the building increased the inclination of the tower. Therefore, nonone can reach the top of it, but he or she can climb up the 293 steps to the summit. It's about a spiral staircase.. 3. The "San Giovanni Baptistery": by Diotislavi on August 15th 1152 4. Camposanto Vecchio (Old Cemetery): by Giovanni di Simone in 1272 The purpose of the four monuments' construction was to fully and intimately combine a fervent religious faith with a civic pride. La Piazza del Duomo is beautiful with all these sightseeings. To be honest, I wasn't so excited to see the Tower. However, I was speechless when I saw it. The funny part was that many people were taking photos with the same pose such as holding/pushing the tower with both hands or with one finger or relying on it, meanwhile other persons were climbing up the stairs of the tower!!! Anyway, another one experience came to an end!!! Ciao!!!!:P

Tuesday, June 26th 2012

FIRENZE! Oh yes, we went to Florence!!!! Going there, I loved the scenery!! it was so beautiful!!! AAAhhhhh Toscany!!! Anyway, we entered in Florence from the Piazzale Michelangelo by doing a tour across La Via di Belvedere. The whole city was underneath. The view was like a famous painting... :P Afterwards, we reached Lungarno Torigianni, the road besides the Arno river. We crossed Le Ponte A.Vespucci, and the adventure just started! We walked till Le Ponte Vecchio (The Old Bridge) where we separated and I had the chance to explore the city by mmyself! So, I crossed Le Ponte Vecchio with the little, but expensive stores on it, and I admired the view of the river. Then, I went back to find the Duomo ----> "Santa Maria del Fiore". Finding the Cathedral, I stood for a while at La Piazza della Signoria where there are the Palazzo Vecchio (Old Palace) with the tower of Arnolfo di Cambio on the top and the Loggia dei Lanzi (a late gothic structure by Benci di Cione and Simone Talenti) with the statues. Then, I took La Via di Proconsolo and admired the magnifisence of Santa Maria del Fiore. It's huge!!! I wanted to go inside, but I didn't, because there was a long queue and I had 3 hours at my disposal to explore the town. So, I decided to take a walk around. What I saw: 1. Piazza della Signoria 2. Santa Maria del Fiore 3. Palazzo Strozzi (exhibition) 4. Bibliotheque Nazionale

Friday, June 29th 2012

It's the last day before going back to Paris, and we decided to visit the "small version" of Florence, Lucca!!! It's really beautiful city surrounded by walls, just like all the old cities. Inside, apart from the picturesque residences, churches and stores, there is a canal as well..! WHAT MORE??? Lucca it's the hometown of Giacomo Puccini where there is his home.

VACATIONS - PART2 Thursday, June 21st 2012 Today,the day was rainy. Therefore, I decided to explore the neighbourhood Opéra as there are many stores and there was no way to get wet... Anyhow, this time, I started from the Av.Champs Élysées and I arrived at La Place de la Concorde. From there, I turned left on Rue Royale, where La Madeleine is located. It is about a Roman - Catholic church; it looks like a greek ancient temple.(L' église Sainte-Marie-Madeleine) Then, I walked on the Booulevard Haussmann where there are many malls and the popular "Galerie de la Fayette". Inside the store you can find anything you have imagined, BUT you have to be sure that you know what you are going to do!!! It's very expensive because it is the home for all THE brands. At the end, I admired the building of Opéra with the sculptures and La place de la Bastille in front of the entrance de l' Academie de la Musiqe..! :P

Prologue Sunday,June 17th 2012 I am going to Europe with my host family for vacations. Our first stop is Paris, and then is Italy!!! So let's get started!!!! VACATIONS - PART 1 Wednesday, June 20th 2012 -------> My first walk in Paris, today, so I tried to explore it as much as I could by starting at "La place de Victor Hugo"(which is close to "Le Bois de Boulogne") and walking on Avenue Raymond Poincaré. At the end of the street, there is the "Palais de Chaillot", which, now, functions as home of many museums such as "Le Musée de la Marine" and "Le Musée de l' Homme". There are two entrances above of which are some words engraved. Choses rares ou choses belles ici savamment assemblées instruisent l 'oeil à regarder comme jamais encore vues toutes choses qui sont au monde. Dans ces murs voués aux merveilleux j' accueille et carde les ouvrages de la main prodigieuse de l' artiste égale et rivale de sa pensée l' une n' est rien sans l' autre. The new Palais de Chaillot: As I was walking furtherdown, I saw la Seine (the river!?!?!?!!!!) and the Tour Eiffel [of course you can see it from faraway, but as anyone approaches it, it is more magnificent!) Crossing down the tower, I saw the "Champs de Mars", a beautiful land of grass with trees-cutten-in-the-shape-of-square on the sides.Following the "monument to the Peace", which was constructed in 2000 and made by glass,and where the word PEACE is written in all languages. (Yes, I found it in greek as well). Across the street, it is L' école de Militaire. From there, I walked on the street of La Place Joffre, I made a left turn on Av.de Tourville, and then a left turn on Bd de la Tour Maulbourg from where I could see "Le Musée de l' Armée". Afterwards, I reached at "La Place des Invalides" and kept walking on Av. du Maréchal Gallieni. I reached again La Seine(where I was witness of a photo-shooting for a fashion editorial :P )and I crossed the bridge "Le Pond d' Alexandre III. This bridge is so impressing because of many reasons. First, at the entrance, there are four golden angel-statues. In the middle of it, on both sides from outside there are golden sculptures as well. Furthermore, after crossing the bridge, it is the "Grand Palais" and the "Petit Palais" (golden touches and sculptures on each part of the roof again!) I continued walking across the river through a tree-path in order to see "La Place de la Concorde", a big open space with a fountain in the middle and the "Obelisk" (a tall monument). From this point, anyone can see the "Dome des Invalides",the "Assemblée Nationale Palais-Bourton" and the entrance of "Le Jardin des Tuileries". Le Jardin des Tuileries is a beautiful garden with fountains and ponds. Many people were relaxing on the grass or sitting on chairs around the ponds. Leaving the garden, I decided to go back home. So I walked on Av. Champs Élysées where there are many stores, restaurants and cafés. And, somewhere here, (Finally!!!) I got home!!!! :P