Geography Lesson: Europe: Luxembourg.

i was going to save my first blog entry for when my collection of photos was more substantial, but i feel maybe a little intro to luxembourg would be appropriate. 

LUXEMBOURG! 

Grand Duchy Of Luxembourg

a little baby country squished between germany, france and belgium. the history is quite interesting and their timeline of becoming established as a country has been an uphill battle. they date back to the year 963, so they have been here! (we just havnt been paying attention..) andrew james charles cunningham, (aka my best friend from my childhood) was a commencement speaker at the International School of Luxembourg for the class of 2010! -leave it to the vermonters to seek out a small and quirky country like the lux! merging three languages, german, french and luxembourgish, it seems to depend on neighboring countries for it's place on the culture spectrum. luxembourg? what exactly is luxembourgish? there's french kisses, swiss chocolate, boston baked beans, but luxembourg!? what do you have to show for yourself? hopfully more then the canola oil i asked for in the grocery store today with the HAPPY response: "YES, WE HAVE THAT! AND IT COMES FROM LUXEMBOURG!" 

in other news, like my personal life, i have been back at lindt and sprüngli in new york for a few months after mexico. (nathan tucker is my savior and my willpower for not eating ANY chocolate. he might not know that for the month after working i stuffed my face with it!)  i have received  my TEFL Certificate. (which I completed today, thank you!) since being in sweden with louise and alexander, learning and teaching english and swedish i have become fascinated with languages; more specifically how we learn them. my swedish class in stockholm also might have something to do with that as well.. :) 

david hjelm from sverige came to the united states for the first time! he arrived in july and we flew back to europe a week and a half ago; him back in school in malmö, sweden and i arriving in the lux. i did the best i could to showcase my home, new england. making boston our homebase (thanks lisa p!), and traveling to the beautiful country sides of vermont and new hampshire, and braving a trip to brooklyn to meet with friends and pay time square a visit. 

  

i did pick him up in the airport with that sign.

  

quechee gorge, vemront.

ben and jerrys factory! waterbury, vermont.

edward sharp and the magnetic zeros! complete with little sister, BOTS!

times square.

 

camp 2010 in colchester, vermont included a hike up camel's hump! (ben and jerrys happened directly after to makeup for the lost calories!)

      

because he wouldnt be swedish if he didnt have the meatballs to prove it! 

a not so positive first time bubble tea. . .

i am uncertain of matching last years traveling schedule, since from lux seems a bit out of my price range. it is SO exciting to be back in europe; i enjoy my swedish family, and my housewife skills are in tip top conditions! work visa papers have been sent in; fingers crossed until we hear! (or you can hold your thumbs if you are in sweden..)

pleasant reading!

XOXO