Mountain Adventures

Well, I finally finished language school! Can I get a WHOOP??

So, as a treat for studying so hard, learning so much, and putting up with a city of 6 million people for so long (harder than I thought it would be for this semi-country girl), I decided to go for a hike. The nice thing about this bustling city is that it's surrounded by mountains, so for just a few Euros I hopped on a train, not really knowing where I was going except that my friend said she went hiking in this little village and I should be able to ask somebody to find the trails...ha...So I got there and had no idea how to get to the trails from the train station. Luckily, in my research the night before I had read on some guys' blog that he had to walk up a long road to get to the trails. So after asking a few people who were just as clueless as I, I decided to take a risk and walk up the hill on what looked like the main road. Once my phone had reception I called my friend to make sure I was going the right way, and I was. Soon I found an information booth and they gave me a trail map and pointed me in the right direction. Here's me getting started on the trail super excited that I even found it:


I picked the trail that was supposed to be 2 1/2 hours long (LIE - more like 3 1/2). It was BEAUTIFUL. And the most beautiful part was that it was just me and God the whole way. I could enjoy His beautiful creation uninterrupted - sing out loud - soak up the sun - just be myself by myself - whatever I wanted. It was great.

I could walk along the rocks despite the presence of a perfectly good trail, just because I wanted to, and nobody was going to give me weird looks or ask me why. I could make "shpcooo" sounds every time I jumped down from a tiny boulder without fear that my quirkiness would annoy any companions. I could jump over a ditch, just because I felt like it, and bounce from side to side of the trail for no reason at all, without judgment. It was great. It was beautiful. It was refreshingly free.

I could also take a picture of this random bathtub:
I am definitely planning on going back. I might go with some friends this week, or I might go by myself again sometime. But I'll make sure to wear better socks, because this time left me with some nasty sores on my heels.






p.s. please note that I am wearing my "Moosejaw" tshirt in the pictures. And while you can't see them, I was wearing my hiking boots that I got FOR FREE from Moosejaw. So if you ever need any hiking/camping/rock climbing gear, or maybe just a pair of Chacos, go to Moosejaw. They're awesome (I feel obliged to advertise for them since they gave me free boots)