Caro and Jackie's Europe Trip 2011
Reblogged 11 months ago from scouttroopa
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Source: scouttroopa

Hey Caro!  Looks like you guys are having a blast!  My fave was you falling/running down the hill in Prague!  Found myself laughing out loud watching that video.  Hope you have an awesome rest of the trip!

Love you! 

Monica 

Posted 11 months ago

Hey Caro!  Looks like you guys are having a blast!  My fave was you falling/running down the hill in Prague!  Found myself laughing out loud watching that video.  Hope you have an awesome rest of the trip!

Love you! 

Monica 

Posted 11 months ago
Heading to Barcelona! Before we elaborate on our Geneva stories we’d like to give you a little entertainment. Our train to Barcelona is not just one straight shot, it’s 6 trains total. Geneva to Lyon, Lyon to Avignon, Avignon to Narbonne, Narbonne to Cerbere, Cerbere to Port-Bou, and Port-Bou to Barcelona. Awesome. We tried booking the train 3 days in advance which is usually more than enough time. This time however, not only was the overnight train booked, but the day TGV (as in the fast train) was also booked. This left us with one option… Local trains! At that moment, what would have been a 9 hour travel immediately turned into a 14 hour travel. To start off our journey our first train was departing at 7:28 am. OF COURSE, we woke up at 6:56 on the dot. Jackie, who sleeps like a log, for some odd reason woke up on her own, rolled over to check her phone, realized it was 6:56, and yes, Emily, shouted out numerous profanities. Caro responded with other profanities. No complete sentences were said. We jumped out of bed, finished throwing our stuff in whatever bags it would fit in, rushed to the lobby to check out, and hauled our 70 pound luggage to the train station. Luckily it was around the corner and across the street! We got inside, and left Caro standing with the luggage as Jackie RAN to the sign to check our platform. We grabbed our luggage and took off in the direction of platform 7. “WE MADE IT in the nick of time,” we thought. We glanced up at the digital sign only to read that the train was running 25 minutes late. Okay so updates as we go from station to station… We made it to Narbonne!!! We had a 45 minute wait for our next train to Cerbere, so we decided to get an early start on lugging our bags up the stairs (never an enjoyable experience). To our surprise the train was already there. “YES” we thought! “We can board early!” So we did. Not only did we board but we verified with other passengers that we were on the right train. Affirmative. One at a time we took turns running to get boxed tortellini (microwaved to our liking of course… Only the best for us!) and oranginas.. Each of us spent 9 euro on this crap! Finally, we were comfortable in our seats on the train! As we sat on the train eating ur overpriced box of pasta, we had a visitor!! A worker for the train line approached each and every passenger to let us know that the train had no driver!!!!!! Perfect! Apparently the driver went on strike. Word to the train lines: PAY YOUR CONDUCTORS! Problem will be evaded! With no other option but to get our crap off the train, we did just that. We made our way to the ticket office only to find out that the ONLY WAY TO BARCELONA is to take a 30 minute bus ride to some city that starts with a “P” and find our way to their train station, go to the ticket office, and figure out how in God’s name we are going to make it to Barcelona… This city better be worth it! Hopefully the rest of our travels go smoothly. Doubtful but hopefully! Wish we had a duck to follow this time! Okay… We made it! Safe and sound in the hotel! So to correct our earlier statement, this trip should have taken 9 hours, then turned into 14, but REALLY took 16 hours!

Heading to Barcelona!

Before we elaborate on our Geneva stories we’d like to give you a little entertainment. Our train to Barcelona is not just one straight shot, it’s 6 trains total. Geneva to Lyon, Lyon to Avignon, Avignon to Narbonne, Narbonne to Cerbere, Cerbere to Port-Bou, and Port-Bou to Barcelona. Awesome. We tried booking the train 3 days in advance which is usually more than enough time. This time however, not only was the overnight train booked, but the day TGV (as in the fast train) was also booked. This left us with one option… Local trains! At that moment, what would have been a 9 hour travel immediately turned into a 14 hour travel. To start off our journey our first train was departing at 7:28 am. OF COURSE, we woke up at 6:56 on the dot. Jackie, who sleeps like a log, for some odd reason woke up on her own, rolled over to check her phone, realized it was 6:56, and yes, Emily, shouted out numerous profanities. Caro responded with other profanities. No complete sentences were said. We jumped out of bed, finished throwing our stuff in whatever bags it would fit in, rushed to the lobby to check out, and hauled our 70 pound luggage to the train station. Luckily it was around the corner and across the street! We got inside, and left Caro standing with the luggage as Jackie RAN to the sign to check our platform. We grabbed our luggage and took off in the direction of platform 7. “WE MADE IT in the nick of time,” we thought. We glanced up at the digital sign only to read that the train was running 25 minutes late.

Okay so updates as we go from station to station… We made it to Narbonne!!! We had a 45 minute wait for our next train to Cerbere, so we decided to get an early start on lugging our bags up the stairs (never an enjoyable experience). To our surprise the train was already there. “YES” we thought! “We can board early!” So we did. Not only did we board but we verified with other passengers that we were on the right train. Affirmative. One at a time we took turns running to get boxed tortellini (microwaved to our liking of course… Only the best for us!) and oranginas.. Each of us spent 9 euro on this crap! Finally, we were comfortable in our seats on the train! As we sat on the train eating ur overpriced box of pasta, we had a visitor!! A worker for the train line approached each and every passenger to let us know that the train had no driver!!!!!! Perfect! Apparently the driver went on strike. Word to the train lines: PAY YOUR CONDUCTORS! Problem will be evaded! With no other option but to get our crap off the train, we did just that. We made our way to the ticket office only to find out that the ONLY WAY TO BARCELONA is to take a 30 minute bus ride to some city that starts with a “P” and find our way to their train station, go to the ticket office, and figure out how in God’s name we are going to make it to Barcelona… This city better be worth it! Hopefully the rest of our travels go smoothly. Doubtful but hopefully! Wish we had a duck to follow this time!

Okay… We made it! Safe and sound in the hotel! So to correct our earlier statement, this trip should have taken 9 hours, then turned into 14, but REALLY took 16 hours!

Posted 11 months ago
Amstersam 2 While we were there, we made it a point to visit the Heineken Brewery, which along with the German museum, makes top 3 coolest museums ever. We were able to check out the history of Heineken, sample the ingredients used to make it, and do all kinds of interactive activities. If you ever visit Amsterdam, do not miss going to this museum! Caro has a bit of a bias because the museum was basically one big marketing campaign, but it was still super interesting and fun. The iamsterdam sign, honestly, is overrated. It’s just a silly sign that says “iamsterdam.” We were able to get some good pictures, but Caro’s dream picture never came true. All she wanted was to climb on top of one of the letters and have a picture of her taken up there, but due to her lack of athletic ability, was unable to do so… Oh well. We got some pictures in between the letters anyway. We made some new American friends later on that night, who accompanied us to the Red Light District. It was smaller than expected, but yes there ARE almost naked women (both young and old, skinny and fat) trying to lure you in, and stores full of sex toys everywhere. We went to the Anne Frank house as well, in the pouring down freezing rain (of course, the line was outside). It was by far, one of the saddest/interesting things we’ve seen on this trip. Jackie pretty much cried from the moment we walked in, until the moment we left. Not only were we able to see interviews with people who knew the Franks and an old friend of Anne’s that would throw over packages of food to her while she was inside the concentration camp, but we also got to watch a video of Otto Frank (the only survivor of the family) reflecting on Anne during their time in the “Secret Annex”. Walking through the rooms they had to live in, and actually going up and down the same steep stairs they did, was pretty touching. When we wrote this we were on our 4th train of the day to Geneva, with only one more left to go!

Amstersam 2

While we were there, we made it a point to visit the Heineken Brewery, which along with the German museum, makes top 3 coolest museums ever. We were able to check out the history of Heineken, sample the ingredients used to make it, and do all kinds of interactive activities. If you ever visit Amsterdam, do not miss going to this museum! Caro has a bit of a bias because the museum was basically one big marketing campaign, but it was still super interesting and fun.

The iamsterdam sign, honestly, is overrated. It’s just a silly sign that says “iamsterdam.” We were able to get some good pictures, but Caro’s dream picture never came true. All she wanted was to climb on top of one of the letters and have a picture of her taken up there, but due to her lack of athletic ability, was unable to do so… Oh well. We got some pictures in between the letters anyway.

We made some new American friends later on that night, who accompanied us to the Red Light District. It was smaller than expected, but yes there ARE almost naked women (both young and old, skinny and fat) trying to lure you in, and stores full of sex toys everywhere.

We went to the Anne Frank house as well, in the pouring down freezing rain (of course, the line was outside). It was by far, one of the saddest/interesting things we’ve seen on this trip. Jackie pretty much cried from the moment we walked in, until the moment we left. Not only were we able to see interviews with people who knew the Franks and an old friend of Anne’s that would throw over packages of food to her while she was inside the concentration camp, but we also got to watch a video of Otto Frank (the only survivor of the family) reflecting on Anne during their time in the “Secret Annex”. Walking through the rooms they had to live in, and actually going up and down the same steep stairs they did, was pretty touching.

When we wrote this we were on our 4th train of the day to Geneva, with only one more left to go!

Posted 11 months ago
Amsterdam From the moment we arrived in this city, we fell in love with it and we’re down to move there. Everyone was SO nice and relaxed, and very welcoming to tourists (which was SO nice). Besides the rainy, cold weather, we had a REALLY good time. We first visited a “traditional” coffee shop, where coincidentally, George Clooney and Brad Pitt frequent, as they filmed scenes from Oceans 12 there (not going to lie, we felt pretty cool). Again, much to your surprise, we made some local friends and thanks to them, discovered the greatest Indonesian take out, which the four of us got and ate by the river like true Amsterdamians. We also went to an underground Hookah Lounge. It was a really local place, and very cool. We had a coconut-orange hookah…. It was phenomenal.

Amsterdam

From the moment we arrived in this city, we fell in love with it and we’re down to move there. Everyone was SO nice and relaxed, and very welcoming to tourists (which was SO nice). Besides the rainy, cold weather, we had a REALLY good time.

We first visited a “traditional” coffee shop, where coincidentally, George Clooney and Brad Pitt frequent, as they filmed scenes from Oceans 12 there (not going to lie, we felt pretty cool). Again, much to your surprise, we made some local friends and thanks to them, discovered the greatest Indonesian take out, which the four of us got and ate by the river like true Amsterdamians. We also went to an underground Hookah Lounge. It was a really local place, and very cool. We had a coconut-orange hookah…. It was phenomenal.

Posted 11 months ago
Paris 2 On our second night in Paris, we found our way to the “Latin Quarter” (tourist central), to have some overpriced, weak drinks. The next night however, we went to a bar around the Saint Germaine des Pres area, where more of the young locals tend to go out. Naturally, 2 drinks later, we made friends with some local guys around our age. They ended up taking us to 2 more places, which we would’ve never discovered on our own. We have one word for you to describe the following day: HANGOVER. Jackie must be like a really good friend, because as the lesser hungover of us two, she brought Caro breakfast in bed. WIN! Finally, we were all sobered up and feeling better. Jackie’s cousin, Olivier, his girlfriend Stephanie, and their ADORABLE 15 month old daughter Margaux, who live just outside of Paris, took us to lunch and around the Jardin du Luxembourg. It was great for Jackie to see him, and meet Stephanie. We FELL IN LOVE with their daughter. She barely speaks yet, but whenever she’s asked “Do you speak English?” she responds, “Yah!”. She’s actually the cutset little thing to ever walk the planet. Caro also got to push her stroller (a little practice for future nieces and nephews … Hint hint J.C. and Julie), which she of course found super exciting, and Margaux seemed to love because she couldn’t stop lookig back and laughing. Jackie really hopes she gets to see her cousins soon again! The next day, we visited Mont Matre and Sacre Coeur, but other than that (and purchasing macarons), it wasn’t a very eventful day. The next morning was though when we almost missed our train to Amsterdam. We literally threw our luggage on the train and jumped on just in the nick of time. Moving on to Amsterdam…

Paris 2

On our second night in Paris, we found our way to the “Latin Quarter” (tourist central), to have some overpriced, weak drinks. The next night however, we went to a bar around the Saint Germaine des Pres area, where more of the young locals tend to go out. Naturally, 2 drinks later, we made friends with some local guys around our age. They ended up taking us to 2 more places, which we would’ve never discovered on our own. We have one word for you to describe the following day: HANGOVER. Jackie must be like a really good friend, because as the lesser hungover of us two, she brought Caro breakfast in bed. WIN!

Finally, we were all sobered up and feeling better. Jackie’s cousin, Olivier, his girlfriend Stephanie, and their ADORABLE 15 month old daughter Margaux, who live just outside of Paris, took us to lunch and around the Jardin du Luxembourg. It was great for Jackie to see him, and meet Stephanie. We FELL IN LOVE with their daughter. She barely speaks yet, but whenever she’s asked “Do you speak English?” she responds, “Yah!”. She’s actually the cutset little thing to ever walk the planet. Caro also got to push her stroller (a little practice for future nieces and nephews … Hint hint J.C. and Julie), which she of course found super exciting, and Margaux seemed to love because she couldn’t stop lookig back and laughing. Jackie really hopes she gets to see her cousins soon again!

The next day, we visited Mont Matre and Sacre Coeur, but other than that (and purchasing macarons), it wasn’t a very eventful day. The next morning was though when we almost missed our train to Amsterdam. We literally threw our luggage on the train and jumped on just in the nick of time. Moving on to Amsterdam…

Posted 11 months ago
Il n’y a que deux endroits au monde où l’on puisse vivre heureux: chez soi et à Paris. What to say about paris? It’s as awesome as everyone says it is and it was definitely not a let down. The only times that we’ve ever been to Paris were with family or school, so getting to be there alone was definitely an adventure! We checked in really late the first night so we got some rest. The following day, June 10th, we jumped right in and went straight to the Eiffel Tower… Side story time!!! Jackie is a hero! She might not have saved a little boy’s life, but she certainly saved him from getting hit by a car which would have at least resulted in a broken arm or leg. I know, I know, I’m awesome. This little boy was walking behind his father. Mistake number 1. He dropped his ball which landed behind a parked car. He ran behind the the car to pick it up just as the car began to reverse. As jackie hit the side of the car she SHOUTED out “OH MY GOD STOP!” Needless to say the driver slammed on his brakes probably because she scared the crap out of him, not because he noticed that he was about to run over a child. The father, really confused, stayed silent for a few minutes and finally asked us what happened. We told him and his response was “oh wow well thank you for youuuurrrr emotion!” … uhm okay? Caros response? “Yea it must be that motherly instinct.” Moving on… We then walked over to the Eiffel Tower where we… I mean Caro…. waited in the line for an hour and a half because Jackie has an overactive bladder and spent most of the time Caro spent in line (alone and getting frost bite) finding a bathroom. It must be said though, that the view from the top is NOT overrated and very worth the wait and cold. Side story #2: because are from miami, we underestimated what 55 degree (windy) weather really feels like. So, even though we knew prior to leaving Miami that it would be chilly in the northern cities we’d be visiting, we decided to only bring 1 light jacket each, a (very) limited supply of long sleeve shirts, and sandals (Jackie luckily brought one pair of closed toe shoes). We did bring scarves though! So picture this: 2 Amercan morons walking around Paris with scarves, jackets, jeans and yes, beach sandals. We’ll give you a moment to laugh at us, it’s ok, we understand. So the Eiffel Tower was awesome and we got about 6 million pictures of each other in front of it in every single possible angle. We then walked down the Champs Elysses, or as J.C. Sr. Would call it, “the Chumps of Liz”. Quickly, for those of you who don’t know, Caro’s mom (Cuqui) thinks that she was French in another life, and J.C. Sr. (Caro’s Dad) always makes fun of French words and whatnot, just to get on her nerves. Anyway, we then visited the Arc de Triumphe and Avenue Montagne.

Il n’y a que deux endroits au monde où l’on puisse vivre heureux: chez soi et à Paris.

What to say about paris? It’s as awesome as everyone says it is and it was definitely not a let down. The only times that we’ve ever been to Paris were with family or school, so getting to be there alone was definitely an adventure! We checked in really late the first night so we got some rest. The following day, June 10th, we jumped right in and went straight to the Eiffel Tower… Side story time!!!

Jackie is a hero! She might not have saved a little boy’s life, but she certainly saved him from getting hit by a car which would have at least resulted in a broken arm or leg. I know, I know, I’m awesome. This little boy was walking behind his father. Mistake number 1. He dropped his ball which landed behind a parked car. He ran behind the the car to pick it up just as the car began to reverse. As jackie hit the side of the car she SHOUTED out “OH MY GOD STOP!” Needless to say the driver slammed on his brakes probably because she scared the crap out of him, not because he noticed that he was about to run over a child. The father, really confused, stayed silent for a few minutes and finally asked us what happened. We told him and his response was “oh wow well thank you for youuuurrrr emotion!” … uhm okay? Caros response? “Yea it must be that motherly instinct.” Moving on…

We then walked over to the Eiffel Tower where we… I mean Caro…. waited in the line for an hour and a half because Jackie has an overactive bladder and spent most of the time Caro spent in line (alone and getting frost bite) finding a bathroom. It must be said though, that the view from the top is NOT overrated and very worth the wait and cold.

Side story #2: because are from miami, we underestimated what 55 degree (windy) weather really feels like. So, even though we knew prior to leaving Miami that it would be chilly in the northern cities we’d be visiting, we decided to only bring 1 light jacket each, a (very) limited supply of long sleeve shirts, and sandals (Jackie luckily brought one pair of closed toe shoes). We did bring scarves though! So picture this: 2 Amercan morons walking around Paris with scarves, jackets, jeans and yes, beach sandals. We’ll give you a moment to laugh at us, it’s ok, we understand.

So the Eiffel Tower was awesome and we got about 6 million pictures of each other in front of it in every single possible angle. We then walked down the Champs Elysses, or as J.C. Sr. Would call it, “the Chumps of Liz”. Quickly, for those of you who don’t know, Caro’s mom (Cuqui) thinks that she was French in another life, and J.C. Sr. (Caro’s Dad) always makes fun of French words and whatnot, just to get on her nerves. Anyway, we then visited the Arc de Triumphe and Avenue Montagne.

Posted 11 months ago
Mademoiselle Caro et Mademoiselle Jackie:

Bonjour Caro et Jackie:

Comment ca va?

So far I am really enjoying your blog.  Can’t wait to hear about all the fun that you are currently having in “La France”.  (of course your mother is more excited about this than any other country).  How unusual…….

I look forward to meeting up with you soon in Madrid!!!!! A couple more weeks. Can’t wait….

A bientot!!!! Je t’aime beaucoup!!!!

Posted 11 months ago
Jackie’s Homeland Bonjour France! Our first stop in France was Mulhouse (in Alsace) to visit Jackie’s family. We stayed with them in their house, which was a much needed and enjoyed break from hotel hopping (thank you Claudine and Patrick!!). Jackie’s cousin Kathleen met us at the train station and the moment she saw our suitcases, she realized that taking the bus home was never going to happen - that’s when she called her dad to bring the car and pick us up (yes, the luggage continues to be a problem one month later lol). Theyre house is SUPER cute and we were greeted with “open arms” by the family dog, Vicki…. She hated us ALL 4 days we were there. She is super cute, but just has problems with visitors and our attempts to be her “best friend” (because of our love for dogs) failed miserably. From the moment we arrived, we had a great time. We had a family dinner the first night with our first taste of Alsatian wine (yum). Dessert was also incredible- a home made cherry tart made with cherries from their tree in the back yard - WOW. We spent our second day shopping with Kathleen and eating lunch close to the center of Mulhouse with Jackie’s other cousin (Kathleen’s sister) Maureen. While in Mulhouse, Jackie’s family took us down the famous Alsatian “Wine Route” so we could sample and purchase some wine to bring back to the states. This of course was nothing but a success. We wine tasted in the most adorable little town near Colmar called Riquewihr. For any Lourdes girls who went on the Spain/France trip in 2006, you have been there also! This is the small town we stopped in to have lunch before making it to Strasbourg. Combined, we purchased a total of 5 bottles of Alsacian white wine for everyone to enjoy when we get back to Miami (and you all BETTER like them because the bottles are making our already heavy suitcases even heavier). Patrick, Jackie’s uncle, also purchased 6! (which made us feel better about our purchases, so thank you) From the moment we got there, everything we ate was spectacular. As one example - Maureen’s boyfriend, Sebastien who is studying to become a chef, prepared a FEAST for us on our last night, with an assortment of seasonal cheeses, meats, breads and pates, that tasted like a piece of Jesus Christ himself. Jackie’s personal favorite cheese was the “stinkiest” and strongest of the bunch (that Caro could barely even swallow)… After all, she is the French one. So, Sebastien and Maureen, thank you so much!!! We were definitely very spoiled at the “Maison Scherrer” and are very grateful! As for all of our friends, Kathleen will be staying with Jackie in Miami for about 2 months beginning July 10th - so you can all make a new French friend! Lastly, and one of the coolest things we did on our trip, was visit the “Cite de L’Automobile”- one of the most famous car museums in the world. Most importantoy, it houses the largest collection of Bugattis in the world (yes, hundreds of BUGATTIS under one roof). We saw everything from the first models of Bugattis to the most recent, which was unbelievable and costs almost $2 million. There were also collections of old school Mercedes, Ferraris, Peugots, Rolls Royces, and Bentleys among others. We were in heaven. If you’re ever in France, you must check this place out!! We have now arrived in Paris, and will share some stories with you soon!

Jackie’s Homeland

Bonjour France! Our first stop in France was Mulhouse (in Alsace) to visit Jackie’s family. We stayed with them in their house, which was a much needed and enjoyed break from hotel hopping (thank you Claudine and Patrick!!).

Jackie’s cousin Kathleen met us at the train station and the moment she saw our suitcases, she realized that taking the bus home was never going to happen - that’s when she called her dad to bring the car and pick us up (yes, the luggage continues to be a problem one month later lol). Theyre house is SUPER cute and we were greeted with “open arms” by the family dog, Vicki…. She hated us ALL 4 days we were there. She is super cute, but just has problems with visitors and our attempts to be her “best friend” (because of our love for dogs) failed miserably.

From the moment we arrived, we had a great time. We had a family dinner the first night with our first taste of Alsatian wine (yum). Dessert was also incredible- a home made cherry tart made with cherries from their tree in the back yard - WOW. We spent our second day shopping with Kathleen and eating lunch close to the center of Mulhouse with Jackie’s other cousin (Kathleen’s sister) Maureen.

While in Mulhouse, Jackie’s family took us down the famous Alsatian “Wine Route” so we could sample and purchase some wine to bring back to the states. This of course was nothing but a success. We wine tasted in the most adorable little town near Colmar called Riquewihr. For any Lourdes girls who went on the Spain/France trip in 2006, you have been there also! This is the small town we stopped in to have lunch before making it to Strasbourg. Combined, we purchased a total of 5 bottles of Alsacian white wine for everyone to enjoy when we get back to Miami (and you all BETTER like them because the bottles are making our already heavy suitcases even heavier). Patrick, Jackie’s uncle, also purchased 6! (which made us feel better about our purchases, so thank you)

From the moment we got there, everything we ate was spectacular. As one example - Maureen’s boyfriend, Sebastien who is studying to become a chef, prepared a FEAST for us on our last night, with an assortment of seasonal cheeses, meats, breads and pates, that tasted like a piece of Jesus Christ himself. Jackie’s personal favorite cheese was the “stinkiest” and strongest of the bunch (that Caro could barely even swallow)… After all, she is the French one. So, Sebastien and Maureen, thank you so much!!! We were definitely very spoiled at the “Maison Scherrer” and are very grateful!

As for all of our friends, Kathleen will be staying with Jackie in Miami for about 2 months beginning July 10th - so you can all make a new French friend!

Lastly, and one of the coolest things we did on our trip, was visit the “Cite de L’Automobile”- one of the most famous car museums in the world. Most importantoy, it houses the largest collection of Bugattis in the world (yes, hundreds of BUGATTIS under one roof). We saw everything from the first models of Bugattis to the most recent, which was unbelievable and costs almost $2 million. There were also collections of old school Mercedes, Ferraris, Peugots, Rolls Royces, and Bentleys among others. We were in heaven. If you’re ever in France, you must check this place out!!

We have now arrived in Paris, and will share some stories with you soon!

Posted 11 months ago