It was about 7am German time and I was ready to just get on the plane. The only problem was that the flight was overbooked. I was so mad, we sat there for an hour as they tried to figure out a way for us to finally get on the plane. But there was no such luck. We had to wait until 5pm to finally board the plane, and I was not a happy camper because we couldn’t leave the airport that entire time. It was July 4th and I wanted to be in America on the most American day of the year, but of course when it comes to airports they can pretend their organized with their many signs, rules, and regulations, but in reality airports can feel like the most chaotic places ever. At least that was my perception that day when all I could think of was the firework displays, barbecue, and apple pie that awaited me back in the states.

After awhile I quit complaining even though that really is a rough thing to do for a tired teenager, but I managed. My crew and I made ourselves at home in the airport beings that we were stuck there and we ate at the airport McDonald’s and explored for awhile. We bought a ridiculous amount of European chocolate, which included Bueno, Kinder Eggs, and Happy Hippos. This candy was so good and I knew I would miss it immensely when I got home. Also Kinder Eggs are illegal here. I really don’t understand it. You can but a certain kind, but it has to be the type where the toy is in a separate part of the package rather than encased in the chocolate. You can get fined up to $2,500 per egg. According to the government this is because kids can choke on them. There are about a billion flaws to this because I’ve choked on water before and I don’t see them banning water, also they don’t seem to care about kids that much beings that they are marching for their lives at the moment, but that’s a whole different story. The real problem here is my ability to eat the chocolate that I want.

Eventually we got tired of exploring and sat at our gate. Now in order for you to understand how tired I was, I hate sleeping where people can see me. I don’t sleep on public transportation, I don’t sleep in class, I didn’t even sleep on the seven hour plane ride to Europe and stayed up for almost forty eight hours. This is because I don’t want people to hear me snore, I’m afraid I’ll talk and say something weird, or do some other embarrassing thing that I can’t think of. But the point is I fell asleep on the bench for hours. Out of all the new experiences I have had on that trip I think that was by far the most unexpected for me.

Finally, we boarded the plane and were on our way back to the United States. I was so pumped. But one girl that we were on the trip with continued her snobbery. She never stopped saying how something wasn’t up to par or wasn’t what she wanted so she drove me borderline insane. And when we got on the plane my friends and I were talking about how we might see the Macy’s Day fireworks since we’d be in New York at around that time. And she interrupted our conversation just to start talking about how she hated being in America on American holidays. Now I understand America can be absolutely stupid and narcissistic as a country at times, but still it was the the 4th of July and we were just having a good time and she decided to try and rain on our parade/fireworks. So since Shannon, McKayla, and I were seated together and that girl was directly behind us, we decided the obnoxious thing to do was sing the National Anthem when we landed. It wasn’t loud enough to tick off the other passengers, just her. And her face was priceless, she looked so irritated. I think that was the best way to enter the States, on the Fourth of July, and being petty to a girl by singing our national anthem.

 

So it was sadly our final day of being tourists and I was not happy about it. I did not want to go to the airport the next day. I did not want to see my house or the mundane streets of my hometown. I was a sour person, so in order to combat this I was determined to enjoy every little bit of my last day in Europe. It began in the cute little hotel we were staying at near Koblenz Germany. The people that owned it was this sweet old couple and they loved us. That morning they said that they would have a little party for us at the end of the day, and they were just so excited about it that it was contagious.

Our first activity that day was a riverboat tour on the Rhine River. It really was not that exciting after awhile. But it was cool to see a bunch of random stone castles along the river. It seemed like throughout the time on the boat my group started to miss home. One major American norm that they missed was not having to pay each time you use a public restroom. This custom seemed really odd to me because I didn’t think that I should have to pay in order to perform a human bodily function, but I did have to say their restrooms were extraordinarily clean. My friends also missed cheeseburgers. I do have to say that I really missed cheeseburgers, I was craving them almost the entire trip. They were sold there, but I saw people with them and they just were not up to my American standards. After hearing them talk about this I did sort of miss home, but I’m very stubborn, so I refused to admit it when I was there.

Next we were on our way to our last castle. It was rougher looking than the Ambras and Neuschwanstein Castles, but it was built as more of a fortress than a place for kings. We were shown cannons that they would use to shoot over the Rhine River at ships sailing by. Then we walked up the dilapidated stone stairs that warped over time to the actual castle. When we walked in Lucas told us that the stairs curved the way that they did to give the castle owners an advantage because the people coming up the stairs would hit a wall when they were trying to swing their swords. Something I found interesting was that when we were led into the bedrooms the beds were freakishly small. Our guide told us that this was because they would sleep sitting up. Next when we were shown the eating room an interesting addition was that they had a toilet right next to the table so that when the residents were hosting dinner they would not have to leave the conversation to go to the bathroom. They really did not understand hygiene and I am so glad it is not like that today.

Finally we were back to the hotel with the sweet old couple. They fed us till we were completely stuffed and constantly kept trying to give us more. Then when they finished trying to fatten us up they turned up some music to party. They even brought out funny costumes like hats, boas, and glasses to put on. We played limbo, did the YMCA, and did all those classic line dances that people do at celebratory events. Then it was time to go to bed and I was dreading leaving.