Location: Tempe, Arizona, USA

HAHA! So it's done! I'm finally accepted to ASU! Can we all say, "It's about freakin time!"? Yeah, I can. I'll keep everyone updated on what's going on, but right now, just be happy that I'm finally moving along. :)

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Now you know.

Location: Ramstein, Germany

HAHA! I love my job, really I do, hate the hours but LOVE the job!

Being a part of marketing on base I get some perks. Mainly whenever some big named wanna be star comes through I get to work with their publicity and therefore a lot of times I get to meet them. Hence today's post.

The one and only HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS came through the KMC this past week. Poor me, I had to work during the event :) HAHA! I had to record the show, so no pictures, but get this: it was sooo much fun. I was up on the catwalk, ALL BY MYSELF, didn't have to fight with the crowds, didn't have to strain the neck to see, I just had the best seat!

During the show they always do these silly timeouts and have some fun with the crowds. During one of them they did the YMCA and here I am up all alone on the cat walk, let me ask you this: would you do the silly YMCA dance if it was just you up there? I didn't think so, so neither did I. Apparently I had been drawing some attention, because one of the HGs looks up at me and saw me not doing. He pointed right at me, and motioned for me to start doing the dance. I did the Y, and the M but he turned around so I stopped, he turned back around in time to see me not doing the A and just flipped! Again motioning for me to start back up I did, I honestly thought he was going to get the whole squad walk up to the catwalk and hold my hand until I did it, that woudl have been funny, but I knew I was already blushing, so I did it.

I got the thumbs up from him and I looked down to see my coworker recording the whole thing :) haha! Next thing I know I hear people down underneath me asking like, what is going on? Who are they looking at? I go to lean up against the rail again and I hear, "Oh, there's someone up there." So I look and give a smile, next thing I hear, "Hey that's cheating, why can't I be up there?" I look down to see an Airman questioning my authority. I retort with the answer that I'm working and again he is all, so, "I am too." Oh great! He's a cop. I then asked him why then wasn't he up there with me. He answers, "because I'm not you." I had a HUGE smile on my face and said, that's right sir, you aren't me! :)

The show was awesome, seriously, if you ever get a chance to go, I would. I want to go again. My family couldn't go because you had to have a ticket and unfortunately they didn't have a way of getting them. So it sucked. But I want to take them someday when I can.

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Now you know.

Location: Autobahn, Germany

So as I said in my other blog, I like to drive and take pictures. It totally works, well, the other day I was driving to Miseau, about 35 mins away, to play in a volleyball tourney, and guess what, snow.

Germany had it's first snow fall sometime last week, but this was the first chance I got to take pictures of it. Blurry, obviously, but still nice.

Craziness is all I can say, white stuff should NOT be falling from the sky. NO SIR! It was kind of cool though. So long as it doesn't cause for a blanket onto the road I'll be ok. I just really don't want to go crashing into a ditch this winter. Especially if I'm leaving.

Oh look, more snow. Here you can kind of see how fast I was going. Look, snow is ZOOMING by. :) Love the Autobahn!

And the last one, look, you can see tha tI'm actually in Germany and not just making all of this up. Haha, I love the Autobahn sign for Paris, shows how close I am to everything. Trier, yeah, been there a couple times too.

So Volleyball, we played 3 teams, 2 of them Air Force and one Army, the Army team is the only one that mattered and I am happy to announce that we won! YAY! I had some killer hits too.

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Now you know.

Location: Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic

Hehe, so as promised, here are the pictures and tales from Karlovy Vary. If anyone has seen "The last Holiday" with Queen Latifa, it was set in this city. So lets get to the pictures. This will be a short post; it was cold and I was just trying to stay warm until we got to get back on the bus.

So in this little town, they have a hot spring. Again, I'm not the best listener when it comes to tours, but I think it was discovered and then they built a building around it (?) haha! It was weird being in that room, it wasn't warm, but it wasn't cold, it was just steamy. They say if you drink the water from the geyser you will cut 10 years off your life. I was also told it tastes like sweaty feet, so I didn't drink it. I don't think I have 10 years to loose, that's more than half my life. Jo drank some though, said it was Salty and Warm. Oh good, so it tastes like hot ocean water. Great. haha!

So then we just walked around the rest of the day, went and got some really good pizza, tried to find the infamous supermarket, then sat in the square and watched as a dog chased pigeons. It was quite fun.

So that was Karlovy Vary, known for the geyser and for the good shopping. Again, Czech is known for their crystal too. I got some :) haha! But that's mainly why people like Karlovy Vary; especially them Germans. It's just a short drive over the border and relatively cheap crystal.

So there's the latest account of my life. I'm planning a trip up to Belgium, maybe next week, we'll see. Then we have Holland, Berlin, Switzerland in November. Can't wait for all that :)

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Well now you know.

Location: Prague, Czech Republic

Hehe! So I went to Prague, I went to Prague! No, don't worry, it wasn't that great of a time ;)

We left at about 10 PM on Friday night and drove 7 hours basically non-stop on a bus. We being a friend of mine, Jo, and myself. Haha, he's fun, in the Army, he's leaving soon so we decided we would take a trip together to get out of K-town and have some fun together!

So in the wee early hours on Saturday morning we get to Prague. So tired we both are. But we get out into the COLD, yes, PRAGUE=COLD!, and we head off to Prague. We start at the palace going in the back entrances and working towards the front. *Disclaimer, I didn't have MY camera with me for this trip, so these pictures are not the best quality* So we start at the back, all the sudden there was a cathedral that poked it's speyers out from the trees, I will give 10 dollars to anyone who can tell me which cathedral this one looks like. I've posted pictures of it on here before.

Shoot, gmail started freaking out, so I'm going to blog without pictures then I will post them later so you at least get the story eh? haha!

So this cathedral is cool, but it's like others I've been in. We get into one of the The glass windows done in this country are cool. Wish I had a house that could have big windows like that.

We walk to the backside of the cathedral, it doesn't open until about 9 so we had a little bit of time to burn. On the back we find the cathedral of St. Vincent, I think too many of them, he has an interesting story I will share later. This chapel has two different towers of two different sizes. The bigger one is Adam and the smaller is Eve, how creative huh? Yeah, that's what I said.

Next we went into the cathedral, I wish I had my camera for this, but whatever, you get what you can. There were a lot of really fun things to see, but unfortunately again, not my camera.

So I will only post a few. This first one is part of the gate they put up around the sarcophaguses of the dead saints. Czech is known for it's red Garnet stones, and that is all that is in the middle of the sun with this picture, but holy! That is one expensive gate!

So this next picture is a picture of a painting. The saint of this cathedral listened to the confessions of the queen and apparently it was a deep confession and the king wanted to know. Again, not knowing all names, I didn't really pay attention to the guide. So the king asked the St. and he wouldn't tell. So the king had him tortured and he still wouldn't tell so the king had him thrown off the bridge. His body was found a few days later with 5 stars above his head... so there you go, that's how you too can become a saint ;)

This next statue was on the outside castle gates. I just liked the flag in the background, and the lion being crowned. Totally cool!

The Czech have guards outside their gates. They are supposed to be like the Buckingham Palace guards in the sense that they don't move or anything. I took this one picture of the guards and it's funny cuz as I zoomed into it I see the guard looking at me with his eyes.

Haha, say hello to the smallest Orchaestra in the world. :) That's what they said they were. Czech music is kinda good though :)

A view of the Prague skyline from the castle gardens. The American flag showed us where the American Embassy was, just in case we did something stupid and needed their help.

So we continued on our walk down the hill. We got to really see the city of Prague. Prague is like the city of statues. Madrid was the city of fountains, Prague, the city of statues :)

So we continued further and further into the city.. haha, John Lenon is a big thing in Europe. After he died many people went and protested something, I don't think it was his death, cuz heaven knows you can't protest a death. So here this wall is and they used to white wash it every night, but it kept getting grafitied night after night, so they finally gave up. So if you ever go to Prague, take a sharpee, or some spray paint and you can legally grafiti.

As we walked I found a rather large water mill, I think that's what it's called. It was just spinning ever so slowly, but still cool. Darn, so google again started freaking... On we go without pictures though.

I got a picture of the palace and cathedral from the city square. I'm so mad about the picture I will post soon, stupid construction crane got in the stupid way! GRRR! Ah well, still liking the pictures and clouds. (I found that I took a better picture without the stupid crane in it... YAY for taking lots of pictures!)

This next picture is a shot taken from the bridge that crosses the river in Prague, I don't know which river it is, but hey, still a cool bridge and shot.

So I skipped a lot of pictures, but hey, I'll post them on some other site if you REALLY want to see them. This next shot was taken because Jo kept wanting to take a picture of me with something, like the John Lenon wall. He said it would be the only way people would know that I actually was in Prague. I kept telling him I went on trips to take pictures of buildings and other people. Not to take pictures of me. So I took a picture of my feet in Prague. Ha, look, I'm in PRAGUE!

We climbed to the top of the tower of one of the churches and ha, took pictures of things around, just enjoy them...

The last one is a picture of people waiting in the square to watch the astronomical clock go every hour on the hour. It wasn't that great, but whatever.

We were done for the day, Jo and I were just spent and exhausted. So the next day we went to Karlovy Vary. It's a nice little resort city on the way home towards Germany. But that's my next entry, so until then, Enjoy.

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Now you know.

Location: Munich, Germany

So this is finally going up. The last of my trips with my dear brother Cody. I know it's about 3 months late, but forgive me, I've been busy making a fool of myself. Long story...

So we went to Neuschwanstein, Dachau and Munich all in the same day. We went to Munich merely to see the Glockenspiel; AKA the Big Ole Clock that is On the Big Ole City Hall. The story of the clock is that back some many years ago there was a ruler who noticed one day that some of his people were just all the sudden dancing in the middle of the street. He enjoyed it so much that he asked them to do it once every 11 years. Crazy requirements, I know, but they did it. When the ruler died however so did the thoughts of having people dance. So on the new city hall they built a clock tower with people that did it for them. So yep, basically what we went for. But what do we see when we get there? The Clock is under construction.

Oh how sad don't you think? Munich is like 5 hours away. We got stuck in traffic on the way there from Dachau and we had to leave Dachau in a hurry to get to see this clock working. And it's under construction? No, I don't think so! *But really it was* So now I have to wait until November or so, to go and see it live and in action. It really is cool though, the figures are human size and it plays and spins and goes on for quite a while. Truly worth a visit.

Next we just started walking around and right in front of the city hall is this large fountain that had a rather large figure on top made of gold. Man, Germans and their gold figures, haha.

The base of the fountain was pretty neat as well. Little cupid like warriors fighting off all kinds of "daemons".

A snake, a rooster, and a lion. The rooster was funny because on our way to Central Munich we were listening to Bill Engvall's "Free Range Chickens" So we figured that the rooster was a free range rooster which is why he is worth more dead ;)

It had been raining on and off of us all morning so we figured we would turn to head home now. Drivers in Munich, CRAZY... It's like Paris I've been told, which is like Prague, which is like TJ... Oh my word it was CRAZY!

But here is one more picture to show off the massive figurines in the clock tower.

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Now you know.

Location: K-town, Germany

So I've been meaning to post up some updates, I still haven't finished my trips with Cody yet, and now spud is home, I will get to those soon, I promise TAWNI ;)

But before, I just wanted to finish posting some things here I've been wanting to get off my chest and I know a few people read this (Yeah, Tawni you aren't the only one, but you are the only one kind enough to comment on it...) So here it goes:

So I know it's about a week or two late, but congrats to Jordi and Dom who were just married! Yay for you! You know I'm happy for you don't you? I hope so. Honestly two years ago, never thought you would be where you are now. So yay!

On the other hand, now it's just me in this little group of ours for Single women, and you know what sucks the most about it? I still have to deal with the whole drama and trouble of being single and dealing with who I can hang out with, who I can't, blah blah blah!

Honestly, tonight I went out, had fun, but as usual, with the guys I chill with comes girls that they date, and that then turns into a whole night of getting shot ugly looks and questions as to why I am hanging out with, "their man"...

Who cares? I just am curious, because I'm a girl am I not allowed to hang out with guys? I'm a freaking "guys' gal" which friggin means that I make better friends to the guys than anything else. So no, you don't have to friggin worry about me getting serious with your man, you don't have to worry about me coming in and starting a relationship with a guy you like, because honestly, I"m ok with being in the spot I am. So shutup with ragging on your man, and my friend, about why they hang out with me, I am and will forever be, just a friend.

What I am most upset about tonight though I believe is that well, I hate the friggin "guys code". I have a friend, we'll call him Bob, he introduced me to this kid 'Chuck'. Remember I said introduced me to... well Bob is a bit preoccupied and all with another girl, and when I met Chuck like he is such a cool kid, I just want to hang out with him. But I talked to Bob about Chuck today and was asking him about him and all, but all the sudden Bob was all, you are an adult, you can do what you want, but just know that Chuck won't do anything with you. There is something called the "guys code". Now I think I know what this is, I've been around guys before, the age old, bros before hoes right? Yeah, hello BOB! you have a girl you are dealing with... What the crap???? And if this were the case why the heck did you even introduce me to Chuck telling me that we would get along great and talking for days about how we needed to meet?

Guys think girls are confusing? Yeah, no! Guys are friggin confusing! I have more confusing stories with other guys that I know, but I don't want you all to think that I just run around on guys trying to find ones that are dumb enough to hang out with me, but honestly, guys are confusing.

Location: Dachau, Germany

So once more, I took a trip with my brother, Cody. The final leg of the trips. Be prepared for this, when Cody and I lived in Germany before we lived closer to Dachau and so of course we went to take a gander at it. I was about 6 or 7 at the most. It's scary, but I still have vivid images in my head from that trip. Dachau has changed a lot. One thing that has not changed fortunately is the gate walking into the concentration camp. Dachau was a concentration camp during the Holocaust. It was actually the biggest camp used during the War, but Auschwitz is the best known. Some of the most important people were sent here, such as the man who attempted to kill Hitler with a bomb during a conference. Too bad he left early.

So the gate says, "Arbeit Macht Frei". Not the best picture, but I was trying to take it and people wouldn't let me shut the gate to take it. The gate's inscription means, Work will make you Free. I don't think it ever did.

Cody and I wanted to show Wendy, his friend who came with him, the living conditions of Dachau. We walked back to the barracks for the "special prisoners" who were put there because they did something to annoy the Nazis. So the tower to the right here is just one of the towers put in the corners to keep an eye out. To help draw out the picture, when Dachau was up and running and when Cody and I went the first time Dachau had little around it. It was in a wide open field. Now there are houses around it, with businesses coming a new. What's more interesting is around 1998 they uncovered tracks that revealed prisoners were trained in and immediately got off and walked right into the gates of Dachau. There wasn't really much other place to go.

The next three pictures are words written by prisoners to describe how they were treated and the conditions of living, I am going to post them without any commentary, hopefully their words are strong enough to do the feeling that is present there justice.

As you walk down the long hallway in this building you can't go into many of these rooms, but as I was wandering around I happened to glance down and I noticed that someone had come and placed a flower in a room. Not 100% sure as to why, but perhaps it's where a family member stayed or just because a family member was sent to Dachau.

I had to lean over the glass that keeps you out of the rooms, but I had to get a picture of the toilets. I remember these from the first time. How utterly nasty they look, and they still look the same. Imagine what they looked like 60 years ago.

In one of the rooms is a portable alter, why they were given permission to have a portable alter I am not sure. I think it was for the religious leaders who were caught trying to help Jews and so they still needed them to perform services and to perhaps lead the Jews to the "right path". I am not positive what was going through their minds, but perhaps this is a good thing.

On the opposite side of the barracks is the holding cells for SS members who were charged and sentenced to imprisonment. A much higher percentage of them were executed than even the Jewish population.

One of the most powerful aspects of the camp is the wall with the enscription of different languages all saying the same thing. I realize it isn't easy to read, so it says, "May the example of those who were terminated here between 1933-1945 because they resisted Nazism help to unite the living for the defence of peace and freedom and in respect for their fellow men."

The next few pictures are inside of the museum, just a heads up that the information is sad and can get disturbing. This first one however is just the best shot I could get showing all the camps in Western Europe.

This is an etched glass that shows what Dachau looked like back in the day. Can you see the people standing in the background? The constatina wire? Just how plain it looks?

In the main room where they would "in-process" the prisoners after some excavations in recent years they found this under paint that was added after the end of the war. Rauchen Verbotten means "Its forbidden to smoke". They just took everything from them didn't they? Not that not being allowed to smoke is a bad thing, but man.

A form of punishment at Dachau. The prisoners were stretched over the table while two SS men beat them with a bullwhip. The prisoner had to count the blows outloud. What pains.

Ever wonder what happens to people who are imprisoned by a dictator who thinks they are not good enough to live? They end up nothing but skin and bones. Sad pictures, but I feel for some people they need these pictures to admit that the Holocaust actually happened and it is not a made up event.

This next man I don't think made it. How young he looks and so sweet. Can anyone honestly think it was right to do medical expirements on him or any other person?

Picture evidence of medical expirements. This one I believe they pumped air bubbles into his brain. The first shot before the bubbles reached him, the second during the time of impact, and the third, well after. I can't remember for certain, but I don't think he lived to see another day.

A sculpture done by a man who lived through it all. What a deathly march. People falling by the wayside and you unable to help them, bone pertruding from your skin, so many tribulations.

As you exit the museum another wall with more enscriptions in different languages; symbolizing the united front to "Never Again" let this happen.

This modern art was not here the first time I came, but how good is it to know that the world is recoverring from this tragedy and is able to move on; yet we are remembering the past so as not to forget those who did not make it.

Finally the one image that burned into my memory and even gave me occasionaly nightmares. When I first saw this as a young child the air was dead and snow was on the ground, everything around me looked like death and after going through barracks and the museum this sculpture shows you the true struggle it was for so many to try and stay alive here.

One final look at Dachau. The empty plots are where other barracks used to be. They were torn down after the concentration camp was taken over by US forces. Out in the distance is what I believe to be the old church place. I used to think it was the gas chamber, but they tore that down after the US forces took over as well. Thank goodness for that.

All in all, Dachau is a place that I believe everyone needs to go and see. I'm sorry if you do not handle situations like this well, but it really paints the picture for what was going on, and how lucky of a life we have. If American, count your blessings that now you cannot be mistreated because of your religion, skin color or ethnicity. I know good ole America is nothing near perfection, but I think we can all say that we don't have it as bad as any of the persecuted groups did.

Where in the World is Sara D. Ray? Now you know.