Minneapolis, how I love thee

I just had the nicest Memorial weekend in my favorite city (in America), Minneapolis. I love Minneapolis (and its twin, Saint Paul) very very much. Something about it just gets in your blood...

Anyway, Sunday was a perfect Minneapolis day. I spent the night at my friend Ashley's apartment, and we slept in. She made pannekoeken for breakfast, and then I headed over to Dan's. After lazing around for a while, we headed to the Birchwood Cafe and I had a perfect lunch of a smoked turkey salad sandwich with watercress, roasted corn, red peppers, black beans, and microgreens in a lime cilantro dressing, and Dan had a black bean burger (I did not pay any attention to his burger, I was enraptured with my sandwich). I think it is my favorite place to eat in the cities. Everything is so fresh, local, organic, and just plain yummy. Last time I was there, they had a turkey burger with strawberries, red onion, honey aioli, bibb lettuce, and a big hunk of melty brie. mmmmmm.

I digress. After that we went to Sebastian Joe's in Linden Hills for ice cream. We walked near Lake Harriet and wandered into a little garden shop, where I made good friends with a little old lady, and watched the sky get very very dark in the Northeast, shortly before the tornadoes came.

The only way it could have been better would have been a trip to Kopplin's Coffee and a movie at the Riverview Theater but tornadoes were touching down and we decided to go back to Dan's nice sturdy apartment building. While we stood outside (Dan lives across the street from The Band Box) watching the storms come in, I ran into my good friend Rachel. She is one of my favorite people. We ended a night with a trip to Uptown and yelled at a taxi driver for being stupid. It was a great, Minneapolis day.

Minneapolis, I will think of you often while I am in Switzerland, and I cannot wait to be a resident of you again, someday.


en fin

adventure

Less then three months until I leave! It is starting to feel real... every now and then I get little glimmers of absolute excitement. I was trying to describe it to Dan; feeling like I did the first time I explored Old Town in Stockholm, or saw the Colosseum, or explored the rainforest. Pure, untainted excitement. When I am abroad, I am fearless. Nothing (other than lack of funds) can hinder my adventure. I love it.

Basically, I am excited. And I am blogging because I am sick of cleaning my room and trying to pare down my belongings.

Anyway, I think I am going to make a Target run, because I love Target, and I want to continue to procrastinate.


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prediction

I already know there are some American things I am really going to miss.
So here is the list, in random order:
1. Dan
2. The Simpsons
3. peanut butter
4. America's Next Top Model (seriously)
5. my down comforter
6. green money
7. easily conversing in English
8. Portillo's
9. REAL Coca-cola (european coke is weird. at least I know in advance)
10. TARGET
11. being only a few hours from Dan
12. family get-togethers
13. Minneapolis, in general
14. Dan
15. reading street signs
16. of course, lots of great people
17. Fahrenheit, miles per hour, inches and feet, cups and tablespoons, etc.
18. Dan
19. easily finding books in English
20. American sports
21. sales (Switzerland only has sales 2x a year. :( Seriously. )
22. sitting wherever I want at the movies (yes, there is assigned seating in Switzerland)
23. the election - I have voted every chance I have gotten, I will vote absentee, but you know
24. Dan
25. Dan

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101 days!

Yep, I am leaving in 101 days. Right now it seems so surreal. Some days I cannot fall asleep because my mind is going a mile a minute, trying to decide what to pack, if I should come home for Christmas, how much I am going to miss Dan, etc. For example, what shoes should I bring? This is a very important decision. Do I really need my 4 inch black velvet cut-out wedges? Will I not want them so I can look fabulous while visiting Paris, Milan, etc? What about my 3 inch gold wedges? And do I need two pairs of black knee high boots (completely different, I swear)? You know, important stuff.

I feel a little detached from the whole situation, and I think I can pinpoint it. I really have not been in contact with the family this past week, I think that missing connection has impacted my mood a little... it is difficult to put into words.

Lately I guess I have felt like I have been out of touch with the whole world. Restless. When I talked to Dan about it, he gently said "Cam, you know you feel like that about every 3 months, right?" Yeah, it is true. I just get a little restless. And I want big adventures. But this time... I am actually kind of glad I am feeling like this right now. I am trying to enjoy my small world before my big adventure, and I am so very very aware of my small world right now. I am restless but content, eager to move on, but increasingly nostalgic. Paradigm. Whatever.

Pretty much I feel a lot of things that I cannot fully grasp.

If anyone has packing advice, please send it my way. I am going to ship some things, but I am only allowed one suitcase, at about 48 lbs. Eek.