Exchange in Den Haag 2016

It was Ted's 21st Birthday the other day. Instead of just keeping it to our main friend group we decided to invite ALL the Exchange abroad. It was over 100 people.

All those people in Ted's small apartment. It was one of those nights.

TONS OF PEOPLE CAME.


It was so nice to hangout with everyone from class or that you only see once in a while.

We all got so drunk, tons of pictures.

It was a moment where you stop and you think, I am so lucky.

I was talking to everyone, and anyone.

The party got so out of hand that we got the cops called on us, it was so funny.

We then ended up going to this dancing club.



The Spanish girls taught Euan how to salsa so he was salsaing up a storm.

Him and I drunkenly danced the salsa for 15 minutes in that club, we were so in to the moment that we even had people stopping and watching us. It was hilarious.

We ended the night with some joints with our student hotel friends, and I was barely alive.

The next day I was talking about how drunk I was on the walk home back from the club, and all my friends looked at me and said, " Victoria, you rode your bike home last night."

That's how drunk we were, and I loved every second of it!

Date with Euan

Euan came over to my room the other day and said that he was bored of sitting around and thinks we have been wasting our time.

So we hoped on our bikes with no plan and just decided to see where the night took us.

Our first stop was this coffee shop that was also a bike shop.

They had no wifi, so Euan and I sat there sipping our coffee, and just talking.

Next we went to this Irish Pub across the way. It was one of the coziest pubs. We ended up drinking way to many La choffees, and chatting with the old Dutch people next to us. They thought we were funny.

While outside we talked about our familes, and my brother jordan. It was fresh, raw conversation. It is my absolute favorite when Euan and I have these conversations.

We then went to this restaurant my friend recommended to me called, Little V. It was a Vietnamese place.

It was the best restaurant! We got carried away and ordered huge cocktails, appetizers, and 3 main dishes to share. It was worth it.

After loving our meal we  went to yet another pub, this one was called, the American Bar.

In here we ordered more pints and met these dutch guys who had a vietnamese wife, and they were loving Euan and I and thought we were married, then proceeded to tell us that we need to get married since we are not married.

After leaving this bar to meet our friends out we were already wasted.

I know it sounds just like a normal day, but that is not the way it felt.

Euan is one of my favorite people in this world.

We did my favorite kind of day where you just run around and adventure with no plans. The conversation and the love I felt with Euan this day was what made it special. Those are the best days.

I don't know what I will do without Euan, I dont think he knows quite what he means to me.

Friendmas

Our friend group had Christmas and it was one of the most magical days. Everyone came together for our last night all together, because people are leaving or wont be back before others leave.

I think knowing this was one of our last nights all together added a certain feel to the night.

We were appreciating the moment, and each other.

Everyone was dressed up in Christmas colors and sweaters. The apartment had a Christmas tree and Christmas lights.

We made a massive meal again and sat together drinking and eating.

We did secret Santa too, I think it was the best secret Santa I have been apart of yet.

Every person really thought about the gift that they got the person. It was so sweet, we all opened them and guessed who had us, then after we all opened and played with our gifts. It was like we were little kids.

Ted had me and got me a digital camera. It is so vintage and cute. I also forgot how fun it is to take pictures, and then have to wait to see them till you develop them!

We smoked, and talked, and even all got a little sad drunk together. We are going to miss each other so much. It is getting so hard.

It was such a warm night, one i know we will all look back on.

Phillip, who doesn't show emotion that much, broke down into a heavy cry. It was actually really beautiful.

I spend a lot of time being sad when I think of leaving these people who changed my life, but my friend Ginnie here made a good point the other day. How lucky are we to have each other. to have something so good, so full of love, and happiness that it is tearing us apart inside to leave.

I will never ever forget the people I met, how i changed, and all I did and saw while on my semester abroad.

CopenHagen, Denmark 2016

We had another trip to Copenhagen right after Budapest. We were all in rough conditions so this was a more low key trip. We also only had 2 days there.

The first day we arrived we walked through the city center seeing all the Christmas lights ( Copenhagen is a huge Christmas city)

we headed home pretty early so we could be up early to take advantage of our only full day.

We stayed in a airbnb that was 1 20 min and then 20 min walk away from the city. It was no big deal because it was beautiful and the walk was actually quite nice.

That full day we saw so much.

We went to the castle, and walked through the park

We went to a Christmas market, and walked through the famous area of NewHoven with the pretty colored houses.

Copenhagen is so beautiful, and quaint. It feels like a classy city ( nothing like Budapest that we just experienced)

We ended up eating at this cool food truck place that had tons and tons of stand of different foods from all over, it was everything.

We went to go see Freetown Christiana.

It was as actual hippie Commune.

Freetown Christiana is a mix of homemade houses, workshops, art galleries, music venues, cheap and organic eateries, and beautiful nature. It is still a society within a society, for an example you cannot buy a house in Christiana. You have to apply for it, and if successful, it is given to you. The area is open to the public – even with guided tours, run by the local Christianities.

It has tons of graffiti and a skate park, and what I think may have looked like the warmest, little cafe where the people that lived there with the food they make and grow make meals. 

We then walked around Copenhagen some more enjoying the sunset and some hot chocolate.

Instead of spending tons of money at the bars ( It is SO expensive there) we decided to get wasted at the house, and boy did we.

We had our typical card game, get drunk fast time.

We ended up doing tons of beer funnels and people got weird. 

Nin shaved Teds chest and back again while drunk and was cutting him while Nicolette had his mom on face time watching this while we are wasted.

We all started showing each other our nipples.

Nicolette dared me to climb the tree and Alex dared me to strip so I started doing both at the same time.

classic fun night.

Copenhagen was a good trip! 

Budapest, Hungry 2016

Budapest is now my favorite city. It is alive, and it feeds you. 

We all knew this was going to be a great trip from the start because at the airport on our way to Budapest, the guy was asking people to check bags. The couple in front of us were being complete assholes and would not just there bags because he wanted his newspaper.

We all offered up our bags and just to tell off the other couple he let us skip the whole line, even priority. 

You should of seen the look on the couples face. 

We were o a high, one of the girls walked us to get on to the plane first, and she made it all dramatic, and funny. 

It was such an experience.

We go to Budapest late, the group separated because some of us wanted to stay at a party hostel that online cost 7 Euros a night, the others did not think they could handle it. 

Man I am so glad I choose the hostel. It  was made for me. No joke, I was trying to extend my trip after being there a hour. 

Their main quote for the hostel is: " You can check out when ever you want, but you can never leave" - and boy is this true 

We walk up to this grungy dirty hostel, with shirts and shoes in the tree. We here a guy yell at us, it was Ren. This Aussie that works there ( so many Australians there). We walk up to graffiti covered walls, and it legit looked like a garage punk band house. Ren was the only worker there and he was shit faced so he didn't check us in and stole 3 bottles of wine with us for a hour and a half just talking. He greeted Nin and I with kisses and boob squeezes. I didn't mind. 

This is there bio:

"About Grandio Party Hostel
Grandio is one of the only true party places on this earth that welcomes alcoholics, lost souls and party people with talent but no direction and audiences. It’s a living, breathing creature that is constantly evolving – the place with a crazy cult following.
The place itself is as derelict as our staff and guests and has been decorated by street artists from around the world. So the imaginative amongst you might appreciate the fact that all of our rooms and the facade, are decorated by the best street artists of Budapest, and have been added to by global artists who liked what they saw and wanted to make it even better.

You can sleep when you're dead so DON'T expect to get any here."

They warn you like 10 times that it is a party hostel. 

It is almost exhausting trying to explain how amazing this place was, at least for me personally. It was like a hippie commune. Grungy, hippie bearded men, AUSTRALIAN MEN ( that all looked like heath Ledger) that are all workers and volunteers and they are paid to get fucked up with you. 

After our wine with Ren we get to a pub to meet up with the other guys and I got blackout drunk. We went back to our hostel and into what they called, " the anal room" where you get to write your name on the wall if you have sex in there. I ended up making out with the manager of the hostel, Pixie, who loves to wear colorful leggings and has crazy curly hair. 

All the workers have weird names like ballsacks, bambi, Avril, Ren , Pixie

(Pixie!)

The second day Nin, Phillip and I got up at 8:30 even though we went to bed at 5:30, we felt like death but got food, and went on the way to explore the city. We saw so much. This is one of the most beautiful cities. We saw Christmas markets, the bridges, great views, the palace, the churches, etc. It is like a magical oasis. 

Then we met up with our other friends ( some came a day later) so we were a group of 12. Our hostel host things everynight and that night was a Jagger bomb train night at there sister hostel. Nin and I finished 2 bottles of wine before we headed off with the group to the Retox bar. On the way there Phillip fell and took me down with him, but we both managed to not spill our wine. The locals thought we looked crazy. 

When we got to the bar/hostel it was just all the hot guys from our hostel, and tons of like minded travelers. It was dream. I had a obnoxious amount of shots, we did the Jagger bomb train which was 50 people or more each taking 5 bomb shots, I fell out of the bathroom stall, peed in the street while people walked over my urine, saw ballsack ( worker) give a full on naked strip dance, I fell at least 10 times, sprained my ankle, and then on the way home got into a fight with a man and was kicking all the garbage's. I think it was the most blackout drunk I have ever been. It was hilarious and perfect for being at party hostel. I even fell sleep in the anal room. 

Phillip fell asleep at the bar and had loads of strangers color on his face in sharpie. 

The next day we all felt like asshole but still got up early and hit the famous Hungarian Thermal baths. This was the perfect hangover cure of my life. We sat in the spa with the crisp cold air for 5 hours. We went into saunas, steam rooms, ice baths, whirl pools. We made it so fun. After that we went back to the hostel to pre drink AGAIN. 

We had a little bonfire at the hostel, drank with the other guest an workers, and we tore it up in the anal room, dancing, screaming, and talking the best photo shoot of my life.

( Ballsack!) 

Then we hit the famous ruined bar, Szimpla Kert. 

Ruined bars are all the rage in Budapest.There are in District VII neighborhood (the old Jewish quarter) in the ruins of abandoned buildings, stores, or lots. This neighborhood was left to decay after World War II, so it was a perfect place to develop an underground bar scene.

I have never loved a bar more. Tons of lights, odd end furniture, grungy, dim lighting, tons of  art work, it is the perfect bar. They are usually multi leveled and almost like a maze with plants and random rooms.

When we got back home we were so drunk that we decided to all try and punch a hole in the bathroom wall. I punched it so hard we all thought I broke my hand, and now I have a nice big bruise. The worse part is I didn't even make a hole. 

We really did partying this weekend, i drank every day for a week straight, heavy drinking, and I do not regret it at all. Studying abroad baby, this is the stuff I will look back on. 

We had the time of our life, I became a part of that city and that hostel, you almost mold into the city, it takes a part of you. I think it is one of those places for me that when you are there in the moment with the right people you are just like, this is the place for me. That is how i feel about Budapest.

I know this is a long post because I just cant put into words what a place this was, the people i met, how fucked up I got. It almost didn't feel like a real world. It was a dream land for me. 

Funny quotes from the trip: 

" Throwing up was the best decision I made all day." -Nin ( throwing up at 10 am)

" I came through this hostel 2.5 years ago, and just never left." -Ren ( hostel worker)

" I know I am drunk when I want to smoke a cig through my nose."- Nin 

"Phillip I am going to fill you with my semen." - Random guy at the hostel 

" Of course this is a fanny pack, I usually wear leggings, so how else am I suppose to carry my stuff around." - ballsack 

"If you see dirty men, with long hair, and leggings on, thats how you know they work here."- Ren 

"What the fuck did I do last night, I need to be locked in a cage." - Nin 



Alex got a great picture of my drunk in the anal room and she posted it with the best caption and I think this caption is the perfect way to end this post because it describes how I feel about studying abroad and being able to travel on weekends:

" That awkward moment when you realize you are in one of the best cities in the world with grungy pubs and bearded hippie men that all want to drink with you, then you realize that you are there with the best people in the world and it all gets too damn much so you turn into a demon and then you just carry on with your night"