Kathryn Tohill Mr.

Neuburger English 101-104 30 January 2013 Narrative Essay European Vacation When I was a little girl my father got orders to move to Europe with his family, and I was lucky enough to spend nearly six years there. There are so many trips and memories that I could share with you, and I could rattle on endlessly if you let me. The movie European Vacation was about the Griswold family and all the crazy things that happened to them during their trip. Movies are a lot of fun to watch, but actually living through my own European vacation was definitely a much better way to experience life in other cultures. One of the first vacations we took was to the French Alps (Les Gets). While we were there, we visited a small town known as the Goat Village. Once we arrived, it was easy to see how it had gotten its name with goats of all shapes and sizes roaming free throughout the village. When we first got there, I was excited to be there, but still wasnt exactly sure what to think about all the goats just running around free. I stood there for awhile petting the goats until one of the larger goats came up to me and attempted to take a candy wrapper from my hands. I fought and fought with the goat because there was no way that I was letting go of my candy wrapper. Even though it was only trash, it was still mine, and I was determined I was going to win the battle between child and goat. I didnt win in the end and didnt pet anymore of the goats on that trip. Instead, I hid behind my dad so that they couldnt get me, and to this day, I still dont like goats.

Later that night, we went to dinner at a nice restaurant at one of the neighboring towns. My parents asked my brother and me if we would like to try a cheese sampler and we both said yes. We were expecting a little plate with just a few different French cheeses on it, but little did we know their cheese sampler was a large tree stump that had huge blocks of cheese that had been sitting out in the sun all-day. I didnt like the cheese at all and told my parents it tasted exactly like the goats smelled, and that was disgusting. Our trip to France was only the beginning of many memorable trips. One of my favorite trips was when we went to Salzburg, Austria. When I was a little girl, and still today, my favorite musical is the Sound of Music. I couldnt have been more excited that I got to visit and tour the city where it had been filmed. On the tour, I got to see the Mansion that the movie version Von Trapp family had lived in and the gazebo where the oldest daughter sang the song Sixteen Going on Seventeen. My parents allowed me to walk along the concrete benches like she had done in the movie and then later they took me to a hillside where I got to spin around like I was Julie Andrews. It was a dream come true to experience something I had only seen in movies before. At the time, I thought visiting Salzburg would be my most memorable moment on that trip, but I was wrong. During our Austrian adventure, we went camping. Most people wouldnt think that one camping trip would be more memorable then another; I would normally agree with them. This camping trip was a bit different though; I ended up breaking my arm. Being little, I wanted to do everything that my older brother would do. It didnt matter what it was, I would do it. While my parents were finishing setting up our tent, my brother and I went swinging. Thats a pretty typical, usually safe, kid thing to do. Boy was I ever wrong. My brother decided it would be fun to jump off his swing. Well, me wanting to do everything he did,

I jumped off my swing, too. My brother landed a perfect dismount onto the ground, while I ended up landing, not so gracefully, onto the rocks. Even though I didnt know it until much later, I had broken my arm. My brother and I went back to the tent where my parents were. I was crying and cradling my arm and he was looking anything but innocent. They asked me what had happened and I told them that my brother had pushed me off the swing and that my arm hurt. Of course, my brother denied my accusation and told my parents that he hadnt done it. Im still not sure whether they actually believed him or not. My parents didnt immediately take me to have my arm checked out since I could be a bit of a hypochondriac. At that age, I could also be quite the drama queen, so they just thought that I was faking it to get a little attention. They decided not to take me to the doctor right away. Instead, they opted for first aid 101. They found some gauze in our first aid kit and wrapped my arm as tightly as they could and miraculously, I was fine. The only time I wasnt okay was when it wasnt wrapped up. I could be running around and grabbing things while it was wrapped up and I was fine, but if I wasnt wearing it, I would cry. It definitely appeared I was being overly dramatic. A few days after we got back from our trip, I had a t-ball game to play. I hadnt complained about it since we had gotten home until I grabbed a bat and I couldnt hold it; I just kept dropping it. My dad asked me if my arm was hurting and I told him yes. They finally decided that maybe this time I wasnt being a drama queen and maybe we needed to get it checked out. It turned out that my arm was broken. My parents felt horrible and I completely milked it, but once I found out I could have a pink cast, it didnt really bother me all that much anymore. What family vacation would be complete without a trip to an amusement park? In Europe its no different. One of my favorite amusement parks to go to was Geislewind, which

was located in Germany. The one thing you may not know about German amusement parks is that they dont have the same ride restrictions as we do here in the states. It doesnt matter how big or small you are, you can ride on anything you want to. Being visitors in another country my parents assumed, incorrectly, that the amusement park wouldnt allow them to take a child that was too small on a ride. Boy, were they ever wrong on that one! The ride we got on wasnt an overly large ride, but the cabins you sat in spun around a lot like the tea cup ride does. I got inside the ride with my parents and brother excited and ready to be spun around. The ride started out slow enough and all seemed to be going fine. I was laughing and giggling as the cabin increased in speed. It didnt take much longer for my dad to realize that I wasnt being suctioned into the seat like hed expected. Instead, because I was so small, the force of the air was pushing me out of the seat! My dad quickly placed his arm over me holding me in place as best as he could. I was completely oblivious to what was actually happening until it was all over and I heard my parents talking about how they thought they were going to lose me from the ride. My parents were worried and all I could think was can we do it again! As much fun as I would have at Gieslewind, nothing was better than Disneyland Paris. Minnie Mouse was my favorite Disney character and my parents promised me that I could meet her and have my picture taken. I didnt care about the rides, or any of the shows. All I wanted was to meet Minnie Mouse. Even though my brother wasnt overly thrilled, I drug my family all over the park until I found her. I passed up the opportunity to take pictures with Goofy, Pluto, and even Mickey Mouse! None of them were good enough. My parents were able to keep their promise, and to this day, my photo with Minnie Mouse still hangs in their spare bedroom on the wall.

Like the Griswolds in European Vacation, my family and I went on many crazy adventures while we were stationed in Europe. I learned a lot, experienced a lot, and took away some of the best memories I will ever have. Not everyone gets a chance to have a European vacation, but as long as you get out there and experience life, you will be able to make your own memories and hopefully, those memories will make not only you smile, but someone else, too.