Thursday, May 31, 2007

My last post

I think this will be my last post : ( I have my pictures uploaded and so I'm not sure what else I would write about. If you want to view my pictures, go to MelissaDaul.com and click on pictures and then follow the Europe Link. They're all there. I hope everyone enjoyed reading my blog. This trip was so amazing and I am so glad I got to share the experience with such amazing people!

signing off...m

Monday, May 28, 2007

Happy Memorial Day

It is strange to blog on a laptop and not the blackberry. Since I am officially home, in my apartment, I thought I would throw out another post to say I am home safe and sound. Thanks to everyone who read my blog and commented. It was nice to have some notes from home.

Tomorrow is back to work, but today is laundry, separating things out and probably napping a bit. Life will go back to boring, but that will be okay for a while. I need to get back in the swing.

I'll put another post on here once my pictures are posted. That might take a while!!

Sunday, May 27, 2007

back in the big bad usa

We are on the bus back to oshkosh. The group has been downsized to 18 ppl. We are supposed to get back to the lot at 9, which makes for a late night for this tired traveller. Some ppl are talking about going out in Oshkosh but I might have to play the old lady card and head up the fox to see morgan. I bet he misses me. I am pretty stoked that all my baggage made it back. I was a bit concerned about that. Next step will be to see if the crystal is intact. If that is the case then the trip will be a 100% successful!

Okay, time to chat with my travel buddies!

Signing off...m

leaving on a jet plane...

We are sitting in the Prague airport, waiting for our flight to Zurich. I am really sad to leave. I am excited to go home, sleep in my bed, and not eat out every meal, and see Morgan. The trip was so great and we had such a cohesive group. Now it is back to the grind. Hopefully I will have a chance to come back but at least I know that I made the most out of the trip. We are already planning some reunions this summer. I can not wait!!
Okay, we will board soon.

Signing off...m

Saturday, May 26, 2007

hanging out at the top of the hill

We took a little trip to the prague castle today. Our small group (jesse, jenny, robbie and me) decided against the tour and just bummed around at the top of the hill. We stumbled upon a great resturant that served the most awesome milkshakes ever. The atmosphere was amazing and we had so much fun just sitting and enjoying our snack. After that we hit up a park, which was a nice break from tourist mode. Now we are going to Jama for dinner, since it is Robbie's b-day he chose the location of dinner. We'll probably have a few drinks after to celebrate our last night in Prague. I wil probay post something tomorrow at the airport about being sad that I am leaving tomorrow. But now I am on my way to eat.

Signing off....m

Friday, May 25, 2007

clubbing it up Prague style

We all wanted to go out tonight as tomorrow is the only day we had absolutely only day we did not have to get up early. So our tour guide took us out to the clubs, one that is mostly locals. Needless to say, we all sweat out a few pounds on the dance floor. It was so much fun, we hated to leave, but since it is now 4 am and the birds are chirping, it was probably a good idea. The club played american and czech music, and drinks were cheap. All but two ppl from our group came with, so it was a great time. Even the older grad students (who pointed out they could be some of our parents) were busting the moves.

Tomorrow will be our last day. Better get some sleep so we can make the most of it.

Signing off...m

our last fun night out!!

Tonight we had our farewell dinner. It was a great italian place. We had a great time, everyone enjoying talking to our new friends :)
Tonight is the last night that we can actually go out. Right now we are playing beer pong in Nick, Todd and Peter's room. Good stuff! We are going out to a pub and then to the disco tech! Should be a good time!!! Okay, time to kick Jesse and Nick's ass in beer pong. Lorna and I are on a roll!!

Signing off...m

the last professional events!

We had our last professional event today. It was interesting to hear the perspective of a professor in the CR. He spoke as to the state of the EU and the future.
Now we have some free time and tonight is the farewell dinner. Tomorrow is free time so I think we are hitting up the castle. I have a few more shopping duties to hit up and then I am good to go. My crew is ready to go, so I have to jet!

Signing off...m

Thursday, May 24, 2007

it is time to say goodnight.

We went to thermo king today. It was interesting to see what goes into the heating and cooling systems of a bus. After we got back into the city we went bumming and I got jocelyn something super cool. Haha you don't get to know until I come back! Then Beth, Lorian, Jenny and I had some good greek food and came back to the hotel. It is already after 11 so I thought I should get some sleep. Tomorrow we are going out to celebrate robbie's b-day and just hang out. In the morning is our last professional visit. I will be so sad to leave, but I will be excited to get home and see my family and friends and Morgandorfer!
I should go to bed! Czech you all later! Haha, I am funny :)

Signing off...m

holy crystal

We just toured a crystal factory. Holy man, that was so interesting! The Bohemian Glassworks factory turns out over 5000 designs a year. I really enjoyed watching the glass blowing and hand cutting. We hit up the store, as a group we spent 3500 dollars at the store. Craziness.
Now on to ThermoKing. Hard to believe there are only a few days left.

Signing off...m

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

another action packed adventure

Today after O2 we visited KPMG. The speaker was an Aussie and he told us about ex-pat oppurtunities in the Czech Republic. It was really interesting. Fergus (I had to get that name in somehow) has been here for 5 years.
After that, Nick, Jesse, Peter, Lorian, Beth, Jenny and I went to do some shopping, but got distracted by the large tower near the castle. It was a hell of a hike up (which could of been avoided had we realized there was a tram), but a beautiful view. We were at the top of Prague.
Afterwards, we had dinner at the Italian place by our hotel. Very good.
Tomorrow is the crystal factory and glassworks. It is also thermo king. I am stoked. I love the professional events. Such a great way to network. I have some great business cards now : )
Okay time to sleep!

Signing off...m

another visit

We went to O2 today, which has about 38% of the market share for the Czech cell phone market. It was interesting to hear how they are transitioning ppl into mobile service from the traditional land lines.
It is about 1:15 now. We are leaving in a few minutes to go to KPMG, which is a consulting firm. I believe tonight is free. Tomorrow we have Bohemia glassworks and another manufacturing firm.

It is really warm, upper 70s to 80s. With all the walking you have to do a lot of water drinking, but everyone is holding up well. Hard to believe that the time here is on the downslide. I wish I could stay much longer! Although I am sure Morgan misses me!

Okay, better go meet the group.

Signing off...m

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

prague by boat

We went on a dinner cruise tonight. It was beautiful. The tour was two hours long, just eating and drinking on the boat. I really enjoyed it. Our group did some more bonding, shocking. We all get along really well.

Since I got a mass e-mail from Kara today, I can finally say congrats to her and Simon on their impending parenthood!

Now, a favor, someone needs to email me and tell me who wins dancing with the stars. I am dorky, I can't help it.

Okay, I need a serious shower!
Signing off...m

prague by boat

We went on a diner cruise tonight. It was beautiful. The tour was two hours long, just eating and drinking on the boat. I really enjoyed it. Our group did some more bonding, shocking. We all get along really well.

Since I got a mass e-mail from Kara today, I guess I can finally say congrats to her and Simon on their impending parenthood!

Now, a favor, someone needs to email me and tell me who wins dancing with the stars. I am dorky, I can't help it.

Okay, I need a serious shower!
Signing off...m

Czech it out....

That was kind of lame, but that is okay.we just took a walking tour of Prague. It is a beautiful city filled with so much history. Our tour guide was so knowledgeable and was able to tell us a lot about the landmarks and history. We stood in the spot where the velvet revolution came to a head. It was pretty amazing.
Tonight we are going on a dinner tour on the river. Should be interesting. Hope I don't get motion sick.
Okay, time to get ready.

Signing off...m

Monday, May 21, 2007

is more beer possible?

Apparently so. We went to the pilsner brewery, which is the original pilsner. Anything you see that is pils is a knock off, or so they told us on the tour. The beer was great. They still brew some the way the firt batch was brewed in the 1800s. That is the stuff we got to try, straight out of the oak barrel in the basement. It was a nice tour.
We left pilsen and went to Prague. We got in late and didn't get to see much, but we are staying right off the main square in old town and have a great view of some amazing buildings. A few of us got dinner at a place that had czech food. It was really good.
Now it is creeping up on midnight and I need sleep!

Goodnight!

Signing off...m

on the road again...

We are in a bus right now going from Munich to Prague. This morning we went to MAN. They manufacture huge trucks and coach buses. The tour of the factory was very interesting. I thought it was interesting that there were no saftey glasses available, escpecially since the union presence is large in the country. Next stop is the brewery in the Czech Republic.
Okay, that is all I have. Back to the bus ride!

Signing off...m

Sunday, May 20, 2007

soooo tired

So Füssen and the castle (which I won't even try to spell out) were great. It was so cool to be in the Alps and see the beautiful mountains. The castle tour was so interesting. I took so many pictures becuase it was so inspiring. The king who built it, who died before the completion, spent over 6Million duetch marks to build it. The bed alone took fourteen carvers four years to complete. Amazing.

I am actually typing this from a internet cafe. We ventured out, before what will be an early night, and since no one else is done yet, i thought it would be easier to blog on here. It would be, if the z and y weren't in each other's places. The @ sign took me a bit to find as well. Interesting.

Tonight we are taking it easy, kind of like i planned to last night. Right, that didn't work so well. Tomorrow is busy with a visit to MAN manufacturing and the Pilsner brewery as well as the transfer to Prague which I am hoping is just as amazing as Munich. I have had so much fun in this city. It has an energy that I can't get enough of. There is just so much life around you and everyone has been so nice and so friendly. Plus, the city is in such a great location. A four hour train ride (which, by the way, this trip reconfirmed my love for riding the train) and you can be in Verona, Switzerland, or Austria). It is about 7 hours to Paris. Not too shabby! I am also amazed at the amazing cleanliness. I have been in few other big cities that were so clean.

I think that is all I have to write for now. I am hoping everyone is done so I can go pack and go to sleep. It is 8:10 now and I plan on being sleeping by 9! It may take me longer than that to pack, but as soon as that last piece is in the suitcase, I am out! All this day tripping around Bavaria has got me awfully worn out.

good night!

signing off....m

6 am comes really early these days...

It is already almost 8. We are on a train going to some castles that I am not even going to try to spell. Last night I was planning on going to bed early. After we went to dinner at the beer garden (which was awesome because there weren't many tourists) we had a few drinks. I guess I could be more specific...I had 3.5 liters. I feel good this morning...so don't worry mom. We had so much fun there. Ppl were laughing and dancing and singing. There were fire breathers and other street performers. Our group has a lot of fun together. We hit up the hotel bar on the way back. Guenther even joined us for a brew and told ne if I moved to munich he would not only teach me german, but also be my friend :)
Ok, the train conversation is getting good!

Signing off...m

Saturday, May 19, 2007

when you know the notes to sing...

Salzburg is beautiful. We are hanging out in a park after a busy day of seeing sights of the sound of music, the castle and the beautiful gardens that are in the city. The train is taking us back to Munich, then dinner and an early night! I am tired from all the excitement!
The train ride was wonderful! It is by far my favorite form of transportation.

I took a ton of pictures. Can't wait to bore you all with them!

Signing off...m

Friday, May 18, 2007

it is really early in Munich

I woke up at 5:55 and could not fall back asleep. Not so hot since I got to sleep at like 1. Oh well, we have like 2 hours on the train to Austria.
I realized my first travel hardship this morning...blisters. Between my toes from my Keen flip flops. Damn. At least I can wear something else today and let them heal, but it still sucks!!
I can not wait to get my pictures on to my computer and see if they turned out! I think I have some good ones!!!
Ok, I should get ready for breakfeast.

Signing off...m

are you all getting sick of reading about beer?

We went to, where else, the beer garden tonight. Very fun, escpecially the swiss guys who kept saying to Kaia "I love you".
I have to apologize for all my misspellings. No spell check reminds me how much I am dependant on technology.

Ok...time for bed. It is 12:34.

Good night

Signing off...m

long long walks and surfing in the park...

After the intel presentation and trip back to the hotel, we hit the tow with Guenther. Only 9 of us went on an add'l guided tour. We hit up the '72 olympic games grounds. We even went up in the tower, about 230 meters above Munich. So cool! I even took a picture hugging a tree for Lexi!
Then we walked through the Olympic village. After a short subway ride and walking through some of the Munich city streets, we hit up the english gardens. They span over 3 km. There were ppl everywhere just chilling, just hanging out, even some nudists (which were old men, so not exactly appealing). When we got over to the bridge there were ppl surfing from the current created under the bridge. It was neat.
Although I wasn't going to mention beer because I think my mom is worrying, but I do have to say that today we had an excellent brew at a beer garden at the olympic village with our schnitzel and potato salad. It was such a beautiful location, in the village on the grounds, up the hill created by the ruins from WWII. We are in a resturant now, having dinner and radler, which is beer and sprite mixed and is really quoite excellent.
Tomorrow is austria. The hills are alive w/the sound of music!
Food is here.

Signing off...m

Thursday, May 17, 2007

more beer!!

That title probably scares my mom, but we were in a group in the hotel bar. Since we have to get up early, everyone decided to just have a few drinks in the bar. Since Jenny and I had made friends last night with the bartender and waitress, we thought it was a good idea!

Right now it is 11:21 pm. I am almost ready to wind down, get some sleep!

We went to dinner with Guenther at a nice resturant that I can't remember the name of anymore...but it was good. The group is great and really cohesive. It is probably hard to believe that even though we have known each other such a short time, it feels like I have known these ppl for much longer. Hopefully it continues to go well. Traveling with fun ppl makes a good group makes a huge difference.

Tomorrow is intel. I am stoked for that. Then more viewing of Munich. Woohoo!

Signing off...m

gotta luv the beer gardens!

Today we went on a guided walking tour of Munich, after our first presentation. It was so interesting to see the sites through the eyes of a born and bred local. Guenther, our guide, showed us many of the sites of old Munich, along with the beer garden! The waiter asked me what I wanted, so I asked for their standard dark. When he asked me size, I asked what the options were. The options available to me were tourist or Bavarian (the state we are in). Never one to back down from a challenge...I got the Bavarian. That was a liter, which is a lot of beer!!! It was delicious though, and went well with the pretzels they served. Tonight we're going to dinner with the tour guide and then we're hitting another beer garden. While in Munich you should do as they do, right?

Tomorrow we have an early meeting at Intel which should me amazing. Then the rest of the day is free. I am fairly excited to bum around the city (which is very safe mom) and get some more pics. Rest assure, I did get a picture of me with my big mug. Can you say Christmas card??

Okay, it is 5:45 pm and I should get ready for dinner!

Signing off...m

beautiful in the early morning light

This morning a group of six of us got up at 6 and went to explore Munich before the bustle of the day began. It is amazing that for an area that was so amazingly busy last night that our group and the cleanup crews were the only ppl on the street. I took like fifty pictures of the amazing buildings that line the square. The details are breathtaking. There was a bit of rain as we walked around, but the vibe of being in Munich was amazing. The city is old feeling but has so many modern emenities.
When we got back we took in the free hotel breakfeast. My personal fave was the fresh fruit. I was not brave enough to try the liverwurst...maybe tomorrow. Ok, probably not. Now it is 8:30. We got a lot done this morning.

Last night was cool too. When we got back from bumming, Jenny and I decided to have one beer in the hotel bar (we're going to a beer garden tonight for the authentic experience). There are several American business ppl staying here as well, so I got to do some networking. It was really cool to talk to ppl with truly int'l careers. So cool...plus we got some low down on Munich from the bartender and waitress. Locals always give the best info!

Ok, I am going to take a power nap before our presentation. I think then we're taking a guided tour of Munich.

Signing off...m

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

all checked in

We have some downtime before the meeting to kick off the trip. I'm ready to go already, so I thought I would write a little more.
We flew into Zurich. The countryside was beautiful. It is too bad the only thing we will see of Switzerland is the airport going and coming back. The flight had a lot of turbulance. Apparently it had something to do with the tailwind. It didn't bother me too much. Being in row 40 of 42 wasn't the best seat, but since there was no one next to me and I was on an aisle, I had room to spread out.
The flight to Munich was less than an hour, so I barely got out my ipod before we landed. Customs also went quickly although the girls on the trip would of been ok with the delay because the guys working customs were nothing short of beautiful. The first word out of every girls mouth was "wow" when they got through. What a nice welcome to Germany!
So tonight we are having a quick meeting and then I am hoping some ppl will want to explore a bit! I have only taken three pictures so far and I am jonesing for some photo ops. I won't be able to post any before my return, but expect my website updated quickly!
Since we've done nothing else I have nothing more to write. Just remember I don't have spell check.

Signing off...m

we are here!!!

We just landed in Munich!! Right now we're on a coach bus going to the hotel. The trip was good, no big problems.

It is 2 pm here now, which makes it about 7 am in WI.

Even though the flight was long, it was a good oppurtunity to meet the other ppl on the trip. Although I didn't know anyone at the start, a lot of the ppl seem really fun, so I am excited.

It is about 60 degrees here, my kind of weather!

I should sign off, we're getting on a highway w/no speed limit, not the autobond though. Apparently this highway was built under the rule of Hitler. Interesting stuff!!

Signing off...m

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

the wheels on the bus go round and round

When is the last time you got to ride a school bus? For me it was Cory's bachelorette party, but that is beside the point! I am on a school bus right now with my trip mates, headed to Chicago O hare to catch our flight. The trip just started, so nothing to report yet. But...Bailey, you will be happy to know that I found what I was looking for at the mall, on clearance even!! Rock on!

Until my next post...have a good day!

Monday, May 14, 2007

tomorrow

I still find it hard to believe I am leaving tomorrow. I am pretty much packed. I have all the assignments done that need to be. I am ready to rock. I just want to get on that plane.

As for the rest of tonight, I am going to vacuum my living room, go to target and get a magazine for the plane, and just relax a bit. I might even browse through my guide books and pick out some amazing places to visit. Since I don't have to be in Oshkosh until noon I might even sleep in. Rock on!

OK, time to sign off for the night. I'm sure I'll write some thing on the bus. Maybe I'll feel prolific and write something great. I guess you'll have to check my blog again tomorrow to see what I write :)

Hasta luego

m

Sunday, May 13, 2007

Success!

The blackberry worked! So I'm going to try to blog parts of my trip when I have time via the blog. Please excuse any spelling mistakes and abbreviations, because it will be so much easier for me not to worry about it.

Woohoo!! I leave on Tuesday. I'm ready to go, unless to be ready you need to be packed, which I am not. I think everything I need is in the pile of randomness in my living room, but who knows. I think today I'll pack. Probably a good idea.

Now that graduation is done (yay for me) I am ready to relax on this trip! I'm super stoked to go to Austria (Salzburg actually - where they filmed the sound of music). I'm excited for the whole trip, but that will be neat.

Okay, instead of writing about a trip I'm not on yet, I'll sign off.

Safe travels!

m

Saturday, May 12, 2007

testing 123

So even though I won't have my laptop, I do have a blackberry w/int'l service, so I'm testing it on the blackberry.

Sunday, March 11, 2007

WOOHOO!!!

So Japan was amazing last year. When I realized that I could do the same type of trip to Munich and Prague in May of this year, I jumped at the chance. I've been accepted to go and I'm soooo excited! I wanted to start another blog so hopefully when I'm there I can blog again to share my trip info with everyone.

So I've started my blog. Too bad I still don't have my scrapbook done from Japan!!! I will have it done...before Europe...I have to!!!

I'm out for now!

m