Starting 2020 Off Right

I ended 2019 in a really great way. I spent time with Malte and was spoiled by his mom and dad who showed me Brussels, Cologne, and Düsseldorf in the last three days of the year. I really enjoyed our trip to Belgium and was completely captivated by the city’s beauty. From the gold plated buildings in the city center to the tiny little Manneken Pis statue, Brussels is so charming. We indulged ourselves in Belgian fries and Belgian waffles and had a delicious lunch in the city. I also took home 5 or 6 pieces of Belgian chocolate and it really was some of the best chocolate I have ever had. I definitely want to visit Brussels once more.

The day after visiting Brussels, Malte, Kerstin and I drove the slug bug to Cologne (much to Malte’s disgust) and we saw the jaw-droppingly gorgeous cathedral. The details are so ornate and the building is so ginormous, one could stare for hours and still find more. We were lucky to have a little sun this day and the light hit the cathedral perfectly. We ate lunch at an Italian restaurant and I had a margherita pizza (probably my 4th or 5th one of the week).

The next day Malte and I spent shopping in Düsseldorf. We were sad that many of the shops closed at 2 PM so we couldn’t go everywhere we wanted, but we weren’t surprised because it was New Year’s Eve. Nevertheless, I ate some french fries and we rode on the Düsseldorf Ferris wheel and all was well in the world. That evening, Kerstin cooked us a delicious multi-course meal as well as baked tiramisu. It was amazing home cooking! In the evening, Malte and I went with his friend to a New Years Eve Party and the Germans seriously go hard! They went all out with fireworks and it was good for me to see but too much action for me. At 3:45 AM, I left the party to go to the train station so I could catch a train back to the Cologne airport. My GPS took me through an unlit Graveyard at 3:45 AM and I was convinced I was only going to live 4 hours into to 2020, but alas, I survived!

I spent 4 great days in Copenhagen for my first solo trip. I had so many great adventures and honestly ate too much fast food in order to save money, but that’s how the budget is sometimes. I stayed in a hostel room with 5 other people and I was pleasantly surprised that despite one or two minor issues, it was all in all a great stay. I ended up making friends with people from Japan, China, India, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark and I’d say it was pretty nice to have some roomies to talk to. I also went to a really cool sauna/spa type thing on the Copenhagen harbor where we were in hot tubs and saunas and were encouraged to meet and talk to new people. I met a couple from Great Britain, a girl from Finland, and two guys from China. The girl from Finland encouraged me to take a dip in the freezing cold Baltic Sea and I did! (The short video is in my Facebook post). I also was really thankful to have the chance to meet up with Axel and Erin for a day to do some more exploring. We saw Rosenberg Palace as well as the beautiful marble church. We listened to music at a peaceful bar and we also went to a pretty boujee bar where we ate truffle popcorn and we ate dinner at a delicious pizza restaurant. I was really thankful to have so much time for some much-needed self reflection during my trip as well as step slightly out of my comfort zone and talk to new people. Check out my Facebook post for all the pictures.