customs

so um, customs in england - not to be taken lightly my friends. it's happened before and i remembered that as i was walking up to the counter, in other words, too late. when entering england you're gonna need some things 1. a name and address of where you're staying and 2. an exit date. without these, you can't enter. period. of which, i had neither. oopsie.

so after haggling with a very smug young customs officer (and i use haggling very loosely. really, i just smiled and answered his questions as politely as i could). which brings me to my next lesson learned: YOU CAN'T OUT-WIT A BRIT. don't even try it. especially if they are annoyed with all things american and you, an american, want to get into their country. i don't know if it's the accent or the patronizing questions, "you could call them now, couldn't you?" or "the blank is there for you to fill out, now isn't it?" or "if you're visiting a country, you should know the rules, shouldn't you?", or what but i don't recommend trying to enter without these crucial items.

btw - i did make it through after he called my friend and ripped her a new one.

england - here i come!

oh yeah, stonehenge...

...the biggest henge of them all...

kinda fun that we just happened to drive by this mysterious ancient attraction, because everyone always told me it's so far out of the way and for what? so, there you go. stonehenge was right off the highway. it's so weird how that happens. like michaelangelo's david being in some alley in italy. just there. by itself. no big whoop.

sara and steven

newlyweds. i am staying with three different newlyweds while in london. sara and steven are the first of them. i worked with sara while on yl staff and she remains on staff still with a new british hubby. it's so wonderful to see people's worlds and their people. steven is perfect for sara and it's so fun to watch and get to now be steven's friend as well. i like that.

sara and i hung out that night, made a yummy stir fry and i was a big girl and stayed up until 10:30. seriously, who am i? jet lag - please...

the next morning, we... scratch that, i mean the next afternoon. that's right, i slept for a solid 12 hours. it was awesome. so the next afternoon, we headed off to cambridge. (did i mention british boys are cute? well, they are.) in cambridge we punted. which is to say, a british university fella steered us around in a boat thingy whilst we lounged with some proper british ladies. (i LOVE people watching/eavesdropping). hilarious. they referred to oxford as "that other place".

there was more strolling, more sitting by the river and talking, and fish and chips enjoyed that day with my friend sara. lovely. and thank you.

a "common schoolboy error"

day 1 - frankfurt

i had to kill a day in frankfurt before flying to london. why? you ask. well, i got a stinkin good deal, that's why. so me in my jetlagged state had to walk around frankfurt for 9 hours alone with bags in hand. not so bad, actually. i was impressed with myself to be honest. i am a big girl now and i like coffee, so i think that helped. i never sat down too long - also helpful. and it was a gorgeous day. i bought a day ticket for the train and upon closer inspection noticed that i couldn't find frankfurt hahn airport on it. hmm, curious. so i got in line at the info desk along with 30 other stinky foreigners to ask how i can get to this airport to fly to london (note that it's a different one than i flew into, which was frankfurt main airport). oh, she says, frankfurt hahn is an hour and a half away by bus and that's 12 euros. lesson 1: FIND OUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING BEFORE YOU DO IT. oh, so i just wasted 9 euros on a train ticket. excellent. i don't need that one. so i just chalked it up to "that's what happens when traveling". "don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it" my brain is telling me. so what do i do? just walk around. it's seriously unbelieveably remarkable weather and i'm in germany. and guess what? i remember my german!

there was a german mom sitting next to me on the plane over with her cute (and well-behaved) 1 year old girl and she spoke baby german the whole time to her. "auto, ja. da ist ein auto. gut" etc. etc. etc. while it sounds annoying, she was lovely and i believe she was my german language angel. it all came back in a flood. "oh yeah, 'du bist muede', i remember that." and, "moechten sie etwas mehr?" i got it, on and on and on. yay! so german it is (at least for today). i walked out of the train terminal and promptly purchased a nutella and pear crepe. god bless it. i was made for this.

i just meandered through the square and along the main river, sitting once (but not too long) for a capuccino, another time in the grass in the sun (had to get up and keep moving lest i fell asleep), and walked -in germany. there were german people leisurely strolling along the river, german bikers with their short shorts on, german scents filling the air, german, german, german. love it!

then on to frankfurt hahn airport, which i mentioned was an hour and a half away. sweet.

so, in review:

LESSON 1: FIND OUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING BEFORE YOU DO IT

LESSON 2: FRANKFURT HAHN AIRPORT IS NOT IN FRANKFURT. it's like telling someone to fly into kansas city's other airport in manhattan, ks.

money wasted: 9 euros.

food eaten: crepe, capuccino, schinken kaese bagel, apple, croissant with jam.

good day. guten tag.

german mannequins

the happy hands club

domo arigato, mr. roboto

something stinks

just yesterday i was getting ready and i smelled something ... off... i had just showered and i couldn't quite place it, although i have been traveling... and then it occurred to me that it could very well be my stitches or the bandaid. yes, friends, i am a genius and decided to stick my hand into an open can and slice the very skin that 12 years previous i got stitched up for doing THE EXACT SAME THING. this time, four things were different - 1. it was on work time, so i don't have to pay - bonus for workman's comp. (other than the sketchy guy in the waiting room yelling "i have to pee in a cup! pee - you know, in a cup" over over again on the phone at the place) 2. i sliced it good and proper and now have nerve damage in my finger so that when i shake hands i am the one giving the lame dead fish handshake and wincing when others go in for the kill. 3. there's no cute boy to hold my hand and dote on me. and 4. i wasn't going to europe for 3 weeks immediately following the accident - bad, bad, bad timing.

yup - surprise! i'm in europe again. this time it's only for a trip. seeing friends and places i have missed for two whole years now. and i'm gonna invite you to join me and my day to day experiences here. the plan is london, prague, then munich. the sad part is that i didn't bring my camera cord to show pics, that will just have to come later.

can i give a shout out to my lovely friend, nicole, who packed me and my bags up right? if anyone has seen the movie french kiss and noticed that meg ryan has on the same outfit every day, just mixed and matched, that is what i am talking about. she's a genius, people. i, taryn dawn glidewell, despise packing and nicole did me up right. minimal clothing and maximum style. score.

hello yummy food, way too much time with great friends, lots and lots of walking around really old buildings and streets, sitting in cafes and chatting, and people watching. goodbye personal space, work, and the same ol' same ol'.

oh, and the stitches will be coming out in munich...

can't get enough of me - can ya?

so i am wondering just exactly what the response might be if i should decide to continue with my blog in kc. any takers?

by the way...

i wanted to let everyone know that i have moved back to kansas city, mo as of july. so if you are in the neighborhood, give me a ring... thank you so much for stopping by my site to keep up with all of my overseas adventures!

crockett and tubbs

if you knew german, you would know that this is pronounced "miami vice", but it means miami white. it's an advertisement for kitchen supplies with a mediterranean look. the little nuances.

oh, those silly germans...

tis the season

SPARGEL!!! every spring these stands can be seen at least every mile on every road. you wouldn't want to be caught offguard without fresh white asparagus. when i say germans like asparagus, i mean they LOVE it. they celebrate it. they have entire menus dedicated to the stuff. you want soup? we have spargel soup. you want salad, spargel salad. entree - yup. i haven't yet seen a spargel dessert, but i wouldn't put it past them.

p.s. it's delicious! but you have to say it in a loud voice, as all of the signs have at least one, if not three exclamations pointing you in the direction of the stand. my favorite is the spargel cartoon people they use to advertise or the spargel shaped stands.

a little courtesy, please...

so, you know that unspoken rule in the states that all radio dj's adhere to? the one where no one speaks over words in songs? well, apparently that doesn't exist here. they will start a song in the middle of their conversation, which often sounds like the peanuts teacher, and you get all excited, even sing a few of the first lines in anticipation. and then... they are still talking... grr. or on that same note, they will seriously just cut the song off, right in the middle of it. leaving out entire verses... what kind of closure is that? come on, people...

not just for kids anymore

this tasty little delight is 100% normal. average adults can be seen enjoying this in public. no shame. and no, it's not spaghetti, it's ice cream. what we as americans would only eat at our kids' birthday parties, is just another dessert here in germany. after years of making fun of it, i decided to concede and try it. can i just say - yum.

there's something to be said for being 10 again...

in prague

a perk of the job: living so very close to other rad countries. i was able to take one of my high school girls on an overnight to prague just to hang out more with her. simply marvelous to be able to stay at a good friend's home (Barb who is on YL staff), see the local sites, get quality + quantity time with a great kid, and see prague. it's a win win win win win. in kansas city, that would be like hopping over to springfield for a night - no brainer!

here is a really cool church with four distinctly different architectural buildings surrounding it. i don't remember them all, but apparantly prague is known for the variety of architecture and how nothing was destroyed by the war. also, prague has a massive amount of jewish memorabilia that hitler sent there to make a museum to the "lost race". so there is plenty of jewish history there if you're in the neighborhood... not to mention we are standing right on the prime meridian.

barb and alina.... awww...


the dancing building. the straight one is supposed to be fred astaire and the bent one is ginger roberts dancing together with him. pretty righteous.

fat tuesday; a la germany

notice how many heads you see in the background. outta control i tell you...

so on tuesday, feb 20 we celebrated fasching along with the rest of the world. a day to party it up pre-lent. call it what you like, mardi gras, fasching, carnival; regardless it was f-u-n. i went with my german language class.

and here's some of the colorful aftermath... confetti!

my amicus girls

since i have been here, i have seen 4 of my amicus girls: noemie, bernadette, magda, and johanna (sorry jo, i couldn't find a pic... send me one!) what a fantastic blessing to see these girls who inspire me. this was one of the reasons i wanted to be here - to see amicus girls and remind them of god's amazing love for them. i am so thankful.

i done went skiin'...

so, last saturday i went skiing for FREE with the school as a chaperone. a miracle because i haven't been for 7-9 years. i only bit it twice, unfortunately for me, one of those i think i broke my dang thumb... but i am just ignoring it for now... sound advice- right? also a miracle because we haven't had snow here really at all this year. which is drastically different from last year when i arrived to 4 feet of snow that did not melt until late april. so, here i am with my friend, colleen, in the austrian alps enjoying god's beautiful creation. jealous?

dumb tree takers...

so i was put off when they cut down the cute shade and privacy tree by my balcony and now i have to stare at a lame half tree/the street, but i am completely thrown off by the total deforestation going on behind my house. see pics below (p.s. this is the last time i saw some of these beauties, may they rest in peace):






i loved the view out the back of my house, wonderful big trees blocking the wall for the autobahn (yes, directly behind me), when one day they cleared out the crap. okay, fine. clear it away. but no, the next day and the next and the next they took out 90% of the trees covering this wall, so now what do i see out the window? stupid white-ish nothing. why? i thought germans embraced nature and all that comes with that . this does not fit in my "this makes sense in germany, this is what they do" box. they still have their diggers and special deforestation machines out there, maybe i should hijack them or yank a cord or write a really really mean note or something. seriously folks, why?

deutsches bundesliga

i am not sure if you are aware of this or not, but to germans futball is not just a sport, it is a religion, it is life. so, here we are in front of their temple, the alliance arena, colored red for the FC bayern muenchen team's game that night. this was just an ordinary game, tuesday night, and the place is packed out. even in the frigid outdoor seats, the steam from the screaming fans and the gluewein heated us from head to toe. we were enraptured by the chanting, expecially when they replaced the words of "oh, susanna, don't you cry for me", to "fc bayern, blah blah blah blah blah blah." (it was all german, what do you expect?) how can you live in germany and not go see a futball game? the whopping score of 0-0 was the straw that broke the camel's back, however, and our coach was promptly fired. these germans won't stand for scores like to this to keep happening, so ex-nay on the oach-cay... you live you learn or so they say...

advent; prepare ye the way!

God's love overwhelms us and breaks into our lives leaving our human good will behind. it was never Christ's purpose to bring about self-improvement. he became poor not to offer us a moral toning up, however good this may be. the Word became flesh so that the same amazing life that broke into the world when Jesus Christ was born actually becomes realized in our own lives here and now.

-philip britts

from a book i have been looking forward to reading for a year now: watch for the light, readings for advent and christmas. i am trying to prepare the way for Christ in my own heart to take up residence. i started celebrating the liturgical calendar sometime in university, and i really appreciate how it sets my focus and prayer life to be more in tune with the ebb and flow of the seasons and holidays. i am quieted and ready for these times to meet the risen Christ.

first ever yl european women's conference

these are the 4 other women i work alongside here in munich; kristy, donna, tara, and meghan.

card playing ensued every evening until the wee hours of the morn. these are some of my cute friends; barb in prague, kathy in paris, and zsa zsa in london.

dinner out with all 35 ladies. christmas pudding wasn't all i had hoped it would be, but you have to try it just once!

hallelujah! that's all i have to say. these women are amazing! for real. wow, they are following jesus and taking him at his word that he is faithful. what a healing moment when we can all be real and wounded at the feet of the cross, and when jesus tells us he loves his little girls so tenderly and completely. words can never express what sweetness these ladies hold for me.

jesus, you are praying for me

day and night you are interceding

jesus, you are praying for me

day and night you are speaking words of life

my priest

you know how i get weak

all of my wanderings

and the places i hide when i just can't find

my faith

and you say

father, pour out your grace

this one is seeking your face

you know why i died

father, you love this child

look at my hands and feet

grant mercy

-laura woodley