So I am clearly not good at keeping this thing updated, and never got to tell you about Berlin. Bottom line it was awesome. We stayed with my friend Ina and it was so nice to be in a home, with pets, and being shown around. I definitely look forward to going back there when Alina is there. Maybe a destination for a summer internship in the future? :)
I am now home after the hardest semester of my life. It wasn't the material that was hard, but the way it was taught, and how we were tested on it. Finals week was miserable and I am not confident I did too well in any of my classes. I'll honestly be happy to pass them, I can't even be picky about grades. Whatever. I had the most amazing 4 months of my life. Ireland will always have a spot in my heart, and I am without a doubt going back someday. Hopefully with my Mom and Dad so I can show them around. It's definitely a place like no other, with a very different culture, and some of the nicest people in the world. The last semester has helped me grow as a person in a way that I can't describe. I don't really feel different, no one has told me I have changed, but I am definitely a better person than I was last August. I met the most amazing people, Irish and American. These friendships will last forever no matter how often I see these people for the rest of my life. The American's bonded in a way that no one but those who have studies abroad would understand. They're your family more than anything.
I hope next summer is filled with visits from my American Ireland friends, and my Irish friends. If not in Rhode Island, maybe in South Carolina once I'm back at school.
I can't emphasize enough how thankful I am to have been able to travel as much as I have, and meet all the people that I did. I don't take any of this for granted for a second. I know how lucky and blessed I am to have been able to do this. Thank goodness for my amazing parents! It's so cool to see movies, or pictures in restaurants and be like "I've been there!" For the rest of my life these memories will trickle back when I hear certain songs we danced to at Irish pubs, eat gelato like we did in Italy, or any other random things that remind me of the best semester of my life.
Next I'm off to Stellenbosh, South Africa for my last semester abroad. I'll start a whole new blog and hopefully keep up with it better than I did this one :)
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Monday, December 6, 2010
Poland
Wroclaw (pronounced Vrats-Woff)
Getting to our hostel was interesting. Only a few people could speak broken English so thank goodness Kara wrote down bus numbers and whatnot. We were going through some pretty questionable neighborhoods and I was super nervous. Once we got to our hostel we were relieved. It was right next to a Christmas Market! We had read online that we were gonna miss it by a few days so we were super excited to see it right next to where we were staying. The hostel was the cheapest we've stayed at so far (only about 10euros a night) and I'd say the nicest. We had a 10 bed mixed dorm with just means 8 other people were in there besides us and it was men and women. We went out to the Christmas market after we settled in and on a search for Polish food..in the 20 or so degree weather. We found a stand selling kielbasa, sauerkraut, and bread and we got some. My goodness was it delicious! My mouth still waters thinking about how yummy it was.
The next day we slept in which was nice. We also woke up to SNOW on the ground! I was so excited. We didn't really do much except for walk around our surrounding area. We didn't want to venture too far because of the fact that we don't speak Polish and next to no one speaks English. We heard about this really good, cheap restaurant that sells Polish food so we found our way there. I got polish dumplings with meat and sauerkraut, or as we know them- perogies. This topped our meal the night before. It was heavenly. For the rest of the day we walked around the Market Square, ducking into stores when we felt like we were starting to get frostbite. We went back to our hostel early because we knew how long the next day was going to be. We stopped at the stand from the night before and got a bread bowl filled with deliciousness- maybe just stewed sauerkraut and kielbasa? Not exactly sure but it was tasty.
Sunday we went on our tour to Auschwitz-Birkenau. This was why we wanted to go to Poland. It was a few hour drive away from where we were staying and it the scenery was so pretty. A lot of farmland, a lot of snow, and a lot of Polish deer. You hear about the holocaust, learn about it all through school, and read books about it. Being there was something totally different. Driving down the street to the Birkenau concentration camp I first saw that barbed wire fencing I've seen in books or on TV so many times. After parking, standing there looking at the entrance was surreal. It is the saddest feeling place I have ever been to. Not even sure how to describe it. We walked in and our tour guide took us to the bunk houses. They were originally stables meant for 52 horses, and the Nazi's housed about 400 people there. Walking through it and seeing the beds that were purposely slanted so more people could fit in them because they were rolled onto each other, or the few toilets with no privacy whatsoever for hundreds if not thousands of people was unbelievable. It is so hard to try to imagine what it was like. Impossible to imagine. We then walked back to see the crematoriums. There were pictures of the lines that the SS officers made for women and children, and then men, and who would be sent to their deaths. Standing there in the exact spot, or walking down the exact road of where these people were just decades ago was a unique feeling. Surreal, sad, unbelievable, terrible, I honestly can't describe most of my feeling of that day. We got to the first crematorium and it was in shambles. They destroyed it with good reason. There was a headstone to the side that was for all the people who died here. Their ashes were used as fertilizer so essentially we were standing in a mass grave. We then walked around the rest of the grounds and saw other crematoriums. There are so many pictures on the grounds of what happened that I've never seen before. One that will stick out in my mind was a little girl with her mom and probably brother standing in the cluster of trees I was looking at. The caption explained that this is where people were told to wait when the crematoriums were filled. That adorable little girl and her family were probably murdered within an hour of that picture being taken. I won't ever get her out of my mind. We walked through the rest of the camp and witnessed more of the horrors that went on there. It is absolutely unbelievable.
After Birkenau, we went to Auschwitz which is a museum now. One of my favorite books is Night by Elie Wiesel. If you haven't read it, you should. There is a scene in the book where he is forced to walk from Auschwitz to Birkenau barefoot, and people are dropping like flies becaue of the condition of their health. I went down that road he describes in the book. It is very long, and I had 2 layers of socks in my ugg boots, 3 layers of pants on, 3 layers of long sleeves and a jacket, a scarf, and a hat and I was freezing cold. He walked that road barefoot with close to nothing on. That scene always stuck in my head, but now I have a completely different understanding of it. The museum was interesting. The entrance says "Arbeit Mach Frei" or Work Brings Freedom. What an interesting phrase for what that place was. Each block was it's own museum for something different. There were rooms filled with shoes, luggage, pottery, children toys, eye glasses, prosthetic limbs, and other various belongings. They were told they were going to a new place so many brought all their prized posessions. There were pictures that filled hallways of prisoners showing when they arrived and when they were murdered. There was a death wall where people were told to stand against it and shot, or different torture methods were used there. There was a punishment room which was about the size of a small closet with a very tiny door at the bottom- they put 4 or so people in there at a time and most ended up suffocating. Many didn't even last a month. Womens hair was shaved off and sold, any gold teeth that they had were taken. I really did not realize the extent of the horror that these people endured. Obviously I knew it was a terrible place, but seeing it with my own eyes put a different perspective on it.
I am so glad we went there. To see something like that, and see what mankind is capable of is humbling. I don't really even think that is the right word for it. It gives you a different understanding of the world I guess. For anyone who wants to see the pictures I took here is the link. http://picasaweb.google.com/116166525438118288268/AuschwitzBirkenau?authkey=Gv1sRgCI3ryfiQuP3uIA&feat=directlink
I have to go study for finals but will update about my trip to berlin soon :)
Getting to our hostel was interesting. Only a few people could speak broken English so thank goodness Kara wrote down bus numbers and whatnot. We were going through some pretty questionable neighborhoods and I was super nervous. Once we got to our hostel we were relieved. It was right next to a Christmas Market! We had read online that we were gonna miss it by a few days so we were super excited to see it right next to where we were staying. The hostel was the cheapest we've stayed at so far (only about 10euros a night) and I'd say the nicest. We had a 10 bed mixed dorm with just means 8 other people were in there besides us and it was men and women. We went out to the Christmas market after we settled in and on a search for Polish food..in the 20 or so degree weather. We found a stand selling kielbasa, sauerkraut, and bread and we got some. My goodness was it delicious! My mouth still waters thinking about how yummy it was.
The next day we slept in which was nice. We also woke up to SNOW on the ground! I was so excited. We didn't really do much except for walk around our surrounding area. We didn't want to venture too far because of the fact that we don't speak Polish and next to no one speaks English. We heard about this really good, cheap restaurant that sells Polish food so we found our way there. I got polish dumplings with meat and sauerkraut, or as we know them- perogies. This topped our meal the night before. It was heavenly. For the rest of the day we walked around the Market Square, ducking into stores when we felt like we were starting to get frostbite. We went back to our hostel early because we knew how long the next day was going to be. We stopped at the stand from the night before and got a bread bowl filled with deliciousness- maybe just stewed sauerkraut and kielbasa? Not exactly sure but it was tasty.
Sunday we went on our tour to Auschwitz-Birkenau. This was why we wanted to go to Poland. It was a few hour drive away from where we were staying and it the scenery was so pretty. A lot of farmland, a lot of snow, and a lot of Polish deer. You hear about the holocaust, learn about it all through school, and read books about it. Being there was something totally different. Driving down the street to the Birkenau concentration camp I first saw that barbed wire fencing I've seen in books or on TV so many times. After parking, standing there looking at the entrance was surreal. It is the saddest feeling place I have ever been to. Not even sure how to describe it. We walked in and our tour guide took us to the bunk houses. They were originally stables meant for 52 horses, and the Nazi's housed about 400 people there. Walking through it and seeing the beds that were purposely slanted so more people could fit in them because they were rolled onto each other, or the few toilets with no privacy whatsoever for hundreds if not thousands of people was unbelievable. It is so hard to try to imagine what it was like. Impossible to imagine. We then walked back to see the crematoriums. There were pictures of the lines that the SS officers made for women and children, and then men, and who would be sent to their deaths. Standing there in the exact spot, or walking down the exact road of where these people were just decades ago was a unique feeling. Surreal, sad, unbelievable, terrible, I honestly can't describe most of my feeling of that day. We got to the first crematorium and it was in shambles. They destroyed it with good reason. There was a headstone to the side that was for all the people who died here. Their ashes were used as fertilizer so essentially we were standing in a mass grave. We then walked around the rest of the grounds and saw other crematoriums. There are so many pictures on the grounds of what happened that I've never seen before. One that will stick out in my mind was a little girl with her mom and probably brother standing in the cluster of trees I was looking at. The caption explained that this is where people were told to wait when the crematoriums were filled. That adorable little girl and her family were probably murdered within an hour of that picture being taken. I won't ever get her out of my mind. We walked through the rest of the camp and witnessed more of the horrors that went on there. It is absolutely unbelievable.
After Birkenau, we went to Auschwitz which is a museum now. One of my favorite books is Night by Elie Wiesel. If you haven't read it, you should. There is a scene in the book where he is forced to walk from Auschwitz to Birkenau barefoot, and people are dropping like flies becaue of the condition of their health. I went down that road he describes in the book. It is very long, and I had 2 layers of socks in my ugg boots, 3 layers of pants on, 3 layers of long sleeves and a jacket, a scarf, and a hat and I was freezing cold. He walked that road barefoot with close to nothing on. That scene always stuck in my head, but now I have a completely different understanding of it. The museum was interesting. The entrance says "Arbeit Mach Frei" or Work Brings Freedom. What an interesting phrase for what that place was. Each block was it's own museum for something different. There were rooms filled with shoes, luggage, pottery, children toys, eye glasses, prosthetic limbs, and other various belongings. They were told they were going to a new place so many brought all their prized posessions. There were pictures that filled hallways of prisoners showing when they arrived and when they were murdered. There was a death wall where people were told to stand against it and shot, or different torture methods were used there. There was a punishment room which was about the size of a small closet with a very tiny door at the bottom- they put 4 or so people in there at a time and most ended up suffocating. Many didn't even last a month. Womens hair was shaved off and sold, any gold teeth that they had were taken. I really did not realize the extent of the horror that these people endured. Obviously I knew it was a terrible place, but seeing it with my own eyes put a different perspective on it.
I am so glad we went there. To see something like that, and see what mankind is capable of is humbling. I don't really even think that is the right word for it. It gives you a different understanding of the world I guess. For anyone who wants to see the pictures I took here is the link. http://picasaweb.google.com/116166525438118288268/AuschwitzBirkenau?authkey=Gv1sRgCI3ryfiQuP3uIA&feat=directlink
I have to go study for finals but will update about my trip to berlin soon :)
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Happy Thanksgiving
So being here in Ireland I feel like I've grown up...a lot. Not like I feel like an actual adult or anything crazy but I definitely feel like a better person now than I was a few months ago. I am truly thankful for every day I've been given and all that I have. Especially for the people in my life. Even though I'm not celebrating Thanksgiving with my family like usual, I've still been thinking about everything that I'm thankful for more than I think I ever have. Here's a few...
1. Nana
You always hear people say that if they could be half the person someone else is their life would be good. Well I can only hope that I can be a quarter of the person she is. I have seriously never met a more amazing person. She is the most caring, loving, kind and compassionate person I have ever met. Words cannot even describe how much I love her and how thankful I am for her being my Nana. I can't wait to squeeze the living daylights out of her when I see her pretty face waiting for me at arrivals :)
2. Mom, Dad, Aimee
7. The ability to travel as much as I have
London, England; Rome, Florence, Pisa, and Venice, Italy; Klagenfurt, Austria; and soon to be Wroclaw, Poland; and Berlin, Germany
8. Hot Showers
One that is consistently hot and one that doesn’t require me to remember to flip a switch.
9. A warm room- above 40 degrees fahrenheit
I don't think I will ever complain about how hot my room is at home EVER again
10. Anything less than 7 rainy days a week
I've gone through 2 umbrellas, and have learned that clear blue skies don't necessarily mean that it's not going to rain
11. Skype
I can't imagine how much harder being away from home would be if I couldn't see everyone while I talked to them.
12. A car
Makes things such as grocery shopping and just getting from one place to another SO much easier
13. Stores open on Sundays and later than 6pm during the week
Never really thought about how lucky we are to have longer store hours. It always seems more convenient to go to a store on a Sunday or later in the day.
14. University finals in the States
I will never complain ever again about how hard a final is or how much I have to study at home.
15. Good friends
Both the few from home who've tried to stay in touch even though I'm here, or the one's I've made in Ireland.
16. Life itself and being as happy as I am
1. Nana
You always hear people say that if they could be half the person someone else is their life would be good. Well I can only hope that I can be a quarter of the person she is. I have seriously never met a more amazing person. She is the most caring, loving, kind and compassionate person I have ever met. Words cannot even describe how much I love her and how thankful I am for her being my Nana. I can't wait to squeeze the living daylights out of her when I see her pretty face waiting for me at arrivals :)
2. Mom, Dad, Aimee Whenever I need help making a decision or a little extra money to visit a friend they're always there with advice on how to make it happen. Aimis is always there when I need to have a skype date with my baby or just a chat. I've also realized that she's a lot better housemate than some other people I've been living with :)
3. Auntie Nancy, Uncle Craig, Kelly, Michelle
3. Auntie Nancy, Uncle Craig, Kelly, Michelle
There's nothing like skyping Uncle Craig hysterical cause I miss home and him and Auntie Nancy making me feel all better within minutes. Kelly is always there for a chat, and Michelle is always there to remind me that homework is more important even if I'm on another continent :) 4. Jazzy, Judy, Ginger, Fluffy
You never realize how much you miss cuddling something warm and fluffy until you have to go without it for a few months. There's nothing like unconditional love from an animal.
5. Moose, Samson, Kayla
Always there to make me laugh, or tell me how it really is.
6. Living in Ireland
I still can't believe I'm lucky enough to consider this beautiful place home
You never realize how much you miss cuddling something warm and fluffy until you have to go without it for a few months. There's nothing like unconditional love from an animal.
5. Moose, Samson, Kayla
Always there to make me laugh, or tell me how it really is.
6. Living in Ireland
I still can't believe I'm lucky enough to consider this beautiful place home
7. The ability to travel as much as I haveLondon, England; Rome, Florence, Pisa, and Venice, Italy; Klagenfurt, Austria; and soon to be Wroclaw, Poland; and Berlin, Germany
8. Hot Showers
One that is consistently hot and one that doesn’t require me to remember to flip a switch.
9. A warm room- above 40 degrees fahrenheit
I don't think I will ever complain about how hot my room is at home EVER again
10. Anything less than 7 rainy days a week
I've gone through 2 umbrellas, and have learned that clear blue skies don't necessarily mean that it's not going to rain
11. Skype
I can't imagine how much harder being away from home would be if I couldn't see everyone while I talked to them.
12. A car
Makes things such as grocery shopping and just getting from one place to another SO much easier
13. Stores open on Sundays and later than 6pm during the week
Never really thought about how lucky we are to have longer store hours. It always seems more convenient to go to a store on a Sunday or later in the day.
14. University finals in the States
I will never complain ever again about how hard a final is or how much I have to study at home.
15. Good friends
Both the few from home who've tried to stay in touch even though I'm here, or the one's I've made in Ireland.
16. Life itself and being as happy as I am
Visiting :)
So I finally got to visit Alina. She's my German friend who studied in America our Junior year of high school. She's going to college in Austria. Her friend Ina who I met when they came to RI for a little bit during their leap year also went to visit the same weekend so it was one big reunion. Flying into Klagenfurt airport I was practicly peeing my pants. There were a few mountains sticking up above the clouds at cruising altitude, then when we started decending they were every which way I looked. The pilot headed straight for one of the mountains before doing a u-turn and landing very quickly. It was so nice to see Alina and Ina's smiling faces outside the door waiting for me. We then went over to the car rental place and met their 2 guy friend who were picking up the car for our trip to Venice. After getting the car we went back to Alina's apartment for a little bit and picked up all the snacks and everyone's bags and set out to Venice.
The first part of highway was mostly tunnels since we had to travel through all the mountains in the area. I even saw snow on the ground! Unfortunately it was incredibly foggy and getting dark so I couldn't fully take in all the scenery that I'm sure was there. They made weinerschnitzel so I tried it. It was on a sandwich and I liked it. Not my favorite, but I wouldn't say I'd never eat it again. After a few hours we got to Venice and found out it's basically an island. We had to take a boat to our hotel. We made our way to the boat and sat outside in the front. Not only was it freezing, but so foggy you couldn't see anything farther than maybe 10ft. We got to our hotel which was a very nice suite with 2 bedrooms and a living area and relaxed for a bit before going out to get dinner. We walked around a little bit and saw that famous bridge, but it was dark and kind of late so we didn't see much else.
The next morning we got up, checked out of our hotel and walked around the city. I never realized how pretty it was. Luckily it was a nice day out. It is so cool how everything has to be accessed by boat. Even the ambulances! We ate lunch at this awesome pizza place. I got mine with black olives, assuming they would be pitted and sliced. I was wrong. I had to unpit all of the olives, and slice them. But it was sooo good. We just wandered around the rest of the day and then made our way back to Klagenfurt.
Once in Klagenfurt Alina and Ina made pasta for dinner and all of us ate together
. We decided to stay in and just squeezed in Alina's bed and watched the hangover. I go out so much in Ireland it was really nice to just stay in and relax with them. The next day we got up and went into the city. It was decorated for Christmas, and I got some sweets at a candy stand. Everything looked so good but I settled for some caramelized nuts and picked up a little treat for my friend Kara back in Ireland. It was then time for me to go back to the airport to start my journey home. The plane ride back up was just as crazy as the plane ride down. We turned onto the runway towards the side that was ran out, did a u-turn at the end and had to take the entire runway to take off. We went up so fast I was dizzy and felt all weird. Even when we got up the mountains were so close to the plane even though we were thousands and thousands of feet up in the air. I was a little less scared this time around and instead took the window seat so I could enjoy the views I knew I would get.
. We decided to stay in and just squeezed in Alina's bed and watched the hangover. I go out so much in Ireland it was really nice to just stay in and relax with them. The next day we got up and went into the city. It was decorated for Christmas, and I got some sweets at a candy stand. Everything looked so good but I settled for some caramelized nuts and picked up a little treat for my friend Kara back in Ireland. It was then time for me to go back to the airport to start my journey home. The plane ride back up was just as crazy as the plane ride down. We turned onto the runway towards the side that was ran out, did a u-turn at the end and had to take the entire runway to take off. We went up so fast I was dizzy and felt all weird. Even when we got up the mountains were so close to the plane even though we were thousands and thousands of feet up in the air. I was a little less scared this time around and instead took the window seat so I could enjoy the views I knew I would get.
I wish that I had more time to spend with Alina and Ina but hopefully they will come visit me while I'm in South Africa :)
Monday, October 18, 2010
Italy
I got back from Italy last Thursday and have yet to update this. I was so happy to be "home" I just relaxed all weekend and forgot all about it. We went to Rome first, then Florence, and then Pisa. That was also the order or most to least enjoyed. I went with my housemate Kendra, and our friend Kara. We had to leave on a 1am bus to Dublin, got stuck in the back and we were feeling a little bit queazy most of the ride. Our bus got to the airport around 4:30, and then we had to get in to make our 6am flight to Rome. Needless to say, we did not get much sleep.
Rome
We got into Rome around 10am, and had to take a bus to a train station, through the slums of Rome and then find our subway from there. We knew which stop we had to get off on, but not how to get onto to the right car. The people we asked convienantly did not speak english so we just chose a direction to go in, and were lucky enough that it was the right one.
Once off the train we walked the 2 minutes to our hostel, dropped off our bags, and then started our adventure. The weather was perfect. It was about 75-80. Unfortunately I brought no shorts or capris so had to roll up some of my jeans. We made it to the Colosseum which was amazing. It's weird seeing all this stuff in person that I've seen in the movies my entire life. It's crazy to think what that thing used to be. The banquets and whatnot that were held there. It's also crazy to think how they built that, so sturdy it's still standing. After this we went to Palatine Hill, and the Roman Forum. Honestly. Once you see 1 ruin, they all look the same. They were getting quite redundant so we decided to just go back to the hostel and take a nap. One our way we had our first gelati experience. It is so much better than icecream, and the flavors are delectable. I had dark chocolate, and caffe in a cone. So freaking delicious! After our naps and relaxing we found the cutest little restaurant in the back corner near the Colosseum. I had the best pizza I have ever had in my entire life. We could see them cook it from our table. We also realized that Italians don't usually eat with their hands. They cut everything up, pizza included.
A couple girls in our hostel were waking up early to go to mass at the Vatican. I wanted to go, but since I'm not Catholic and don't regularly attend church at home I felt it wouldn't be right of me to go just to said I had gone. Instead we slept in and then went to look for the Vatican, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and a couple well-known Piazza's. The Vatican was unbelievable. I have never seen so many people in one area with the exception of a sports game, or a concert. There was a huge screen in the courtyard or whatever showing the mass that was going on inside. The Pope was leading it! I guess it was a day for the Middle East and many bishops and priests from that area were there. We were waiting outside when up in the window a rug looking thing flew out from the window and people started screaming. Apparently the Pope was going to make an appearance! He came to the window and did his Pope hands and started praying. It was quite the experience to be led in a prayer by the Pope, while thousands of other people joined in. Catholic or not. He ended up blessing us all, and had something to say in many different languages. It was so awesome! Something I will never forget. The Trevi Fountain was fun. We each threw our 3 coins each over our right shoulder while facing away into the fountain. Now we're pretty much guaranteed to find true love :)
Florence
We left Rome on a really early train and started the 4 hour journey to Florence. Once we got there we made the 20 minute walk to our hostel. It was more like a hotel room than a hostel. It had a king size bed and a twin bed. We had to share the bathroom but it was right down the hall from our room. Not bad. After we checked in we went to explore. We found the duomo which was quite impressive. The architecture is unbelievable. We also found this street that is famous for the jewelry. Never have I seen more beautiful jewelry. When I'm grown up and rich, I'm gonna defintely go back there! We went back to the hostel fairly early, after getting lost in this super ghetto neighborhood and got a good nights sleep in our quiet room, with our nice comfy beds. The next day we just wandered around. We found a flea market where I got lots of presents. I also rubbed this bronze boars head, and dropped a coin out of his mouth. Apparently this means that I am ensured to return back to Florence in my lifetime. We went to an Italian meat market/fresh fruit market. If you're ever in Italy and need to find the attractive men, start there!
Pisa
Not as impressive as I thought it would have been. The weather was cold here, and not much to do. We heard about this cheap and cute little restaurant that we were gonna check out. But in Italy, dinner isn't until 7pm or 9pm and many places don't even open until then. We had some time to kill so we walked down the main road. We found a cute little gelati place with cannoli, so we decided to have dessert before dinner. So yummy! We then found the leaning tower. Yes it was leaning and cool to see, but that is Pisa's only claim to fame. We went back to find dinner and had the most delicious meal and house white wine. Kara and I finished it off and were feeling pretty good by the time we were ready to start heading back. The next day we walked to the tower again to see it in daylight. Still wasn't so impressive. We found a little sandwich shop to eat lunch in and kill some time. I never would have thought that mozzarella and tomato on a sandwich would be so delicious. On our way back to our hostel to get our bags and go to the aiport we went to that gelati place to have our last Italian gelati. They remembered us from the night before and loved that we were going there for our last indulgance. I got coconut and dark chocolate and then they drizzled nutella on top.
Rome
We got into Rome around 10am, and had to take a bus to a train station, through the slums of Rome and then find our subway from there. We knew which stop we had to get off on, but not how to get onto to the right car. The people we asked convienantly did not speak english so we just chose a direction to go in, and were lucky enough that it was the right one.
Once off the train we walked the 2 minutes to our hostel, dropped off our bags, and then started our adventure. The weather was perfect. It was about 75-80. Unfortunately I brought no shorts or capris so had to roll up some of my jeans. We made it to the Colosseum which was amazing. It's weird seeing all this stuff in person that I've seen in the movies my entire life. It's crazy to think what that thing used to be. The banquets and whatnot that were held there. It's also crazy to think how they built that, so sturdy it's still standing. After this we went to Palatine Hill, and the Roman Forum. Honestly. Once you see 1 ruin, they all look the same. They were getting quite redundant so we decided to just go back to the hostel and take a nap. One our way we had our first gelati experience. It is so much better than icecream, and the flavors are delectable. I had dark chocolate, and caffe in a cone. So freaking delicious! After our naps and relaxing we found the cutest little restaurant in the back corner near the Colosseum. I had the best pizza I have ever had in my entire life. We could see them cook it from our table. We also realized that Italians don't usually eat with their hands. They cut everything up, pizza included.
A couple girls in our hostel were waking up early to go to mass at the Vatican. I wanted to go, but since I'm not Catholic and don't regularly attend church at home I felt it wouldn't be right of me to go just to said I had gone. Instead we slept in and then went to look for the Vatican, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and a couple well-known Piazza's. The Vatican was unbelievable. I have never seen so many people in one area with the exception of a sports game, or a concert. There was a huge screen in the courtyard or whatever showing the mass that was going on inside. The Pope was leading it! I guess it was a day for the Middle East and many bishops and priests from that area were there. We were waiting outside when up in the window a rug looking thing flew out from the window and people started screaming. Apparently the Pope was going to make an appearance! He came to the window and did his Pope hands and started praying. It was quite the experience to be led in a prayer by the Pope, while thousands of other people joined in. Catholic or not. He ended up blessing us all, and had something to say in many different languages. It was so awesome! Something I will never forget. The Trevi Fountain was fun. We each threw our 3 coins each over our right shoulder while facing away into the fountain. Now we're pretty much guaranteed to find true love :)
Florence
We left Rome on a really early train and started the 4 hour journey to Florence. Once we got there we made the 20 minute walk to our hostel. It was more like a hotel room than a hostel. It had a king size bed and a twin bed. We had to share the bathroom but it was right down the hall from our room. Not bad. After we checked in we went to explore. We found the duomo which was quite impressive. The architecture is unbelievable. We also found this street that is famous for the jewelry. Never have I seen more beautiful jewelry. When I'm grown up and rich, I'm gonna defintely go back there! We went back to the hostel fairly early, after getting lost in this super ghetto neighborhood and got a good nights sleep in our quiet room, with our nice comfy beds. The next day we just wandered around. We found a flea market where I got lots of presents. I also rubbed this bronze boars head, and dropped a coin out of his mouth. Apparently this means that I am ensured to return back to Florence in my lifetime. We went to an Italian meat market/fresh fruit market. If you're ever in Italy and need to find the attractive men, start there!
Pisa
Not as impressive as I thought it would have been. The weather was cold here, and not much to do. We heard about this cheap and cute little restaurant that we were gonna check out. But in Italy, dinner isn't until 7pm or 9pm and many places don't even open until then. We had some time to kill so we walked down the main road. We found a cute little gelati place with cannoli, so we decided to have dessert before dinner. So yummy! We then found the leaning tower. Yes it was leaning and cool to see, but that is Pisa's only claim to fame. We went back to find dinner and had the most delicious meal and house white wine. Kara and I finished it off and were feeling pretty good by the time we were ready to start heading back. The next day we walked to the tower again to see it in daylight. Still wasn't so impressive. We found a little sandwich shop to eat lunch in and kill some time. I never would have thought that mozzarella and tomato on a sandwich would be so delicious. On our way back to our hostel to get our bags and go to the aiport we went to that gelati place to have our last Italian gelati. They remembered us from the night before and loved that we were going there for our last indulgance. I got coconut and dark chocolate and then they drizzled nutella on top.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
you sound like you're from LONDON
My trip to London started off less than enjoyable. I decided to stay out and celebrate Arthur Guinness day instead of stay home and go to bed earlier since I had to be outside waiting for the bus to the airport at 5am. I was still feeling the drinks, and the hangover at the same time. Then to top it all off, once we got to the hotel around 10am we couldn't even check in for another 5 hours. Instead of going to sleep like I had planned, I went shopping. I didn't buy anything but it was fun to window shop. Not only does 1 pound equal about 2 dollars, the clothes are mostly high fashion and expensive anyway. We went into Harrod's. That was pretty crazy. It is the biggest most expensive store I have ever been in. The word massive doesn't do it justice. It was 4 or 5 floors, with escalators. Maybe about the size of Providence Place but it's just 1 store. Once the clock hit 3 I went back to the hotel and took the most glorious shower of my life. I just stayed in bed and watched the tele for the rest of the night until I fell asleep.
Saturday morning we had to be downstairs in the hotel lobby for our sightseeing tour. We went to all famous things in London. Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Bridge, London Towers, the Eye of London, Coveant Gardens and the Millenium Bride (from the newest Harry Potter). It was interesting to see all these things I've always seen on TV or in the moves in person. Everything had a story, and it was lovely to see. After the guided tour was over we got to go out on our own. We all bought oyster cards for the subway and explored. We went to King's Cross station and found Platform 9 and 3/4. This was seroiusly probably the highlight of London. I was so excited! We then made our way over to the St. John Wood station and found Abbey Road. It looks exactly what I imagined. The crosswalk is on a normal road, and the locals don't exactly enjoy the load of people that were stopping in the crosswalk to re-enact the famous Beatles picture. There was lots of beeping, and flailing arms.
Saturday night was for Broadway! Everyone else went to go see Grease (which I've already seen :D) but Kendra, Kara and I went to go see the Lion King. I can not reccomend this play enough. I was blown away. The way that they portray the animals is so creative. The voices on the actors are also amazing. The woman who plays Rafiki had the strongest most powerful singing voice I have ever heard. It was well worth the money and I'll definitely go see it again if I ever have the chance. We found a bar and grille afterwards to go have dinner. I had a jalapeno and chili burger. Not an American burger but it was still yummy. We decided to be responsible and not go out so we just went back to our hotels. Kara and Kendra were staying in a hostel kind of far away so I took the subway by myself most of the way home, and then walked from the subway to the hotel alone. Being the paranoid person I am I put my camera, vera bradley, and money in my jacket figuring if I got mugged they could have my bag :). When I got back to the hotel the rest of the girls were already back from Grease. We just stayed in and had a girls night. We decided to walk to the 24 hour store down the street around 1am to get some ice cream and snacks and I got laughed at for my pajamas...a few times. I guess not many people walk around in boxer shorts and mocassins in London.
Sunday we had to check out and got to do whatever we wanted. We decided to take advantage of the free museums near by. We went to the natural history, and an art museum. They were so huge and the architecture of the building was incredible. I'm not sure what the building was before a museum but the gargoyles and all the fixtures were beautiful. Lindsey and I then went to do a little shopping and found a sushi restaraunt (the 1st in Europe). It was then time to go back to the hotel and then to the airport. It was very warm without a cloud in the sky when we left that morning, so we didn't bring umbreallas. We got stuck in a very heavy rain storm. Completely soaked by the time we got to the hotel. Although not my favorite place, London was sure pretty sweet. Oh! We also saw that lady I think from India who is famous for having so many piercings in the subway station. She was quite the sight!
10 more days until Italy and I just booked my flight to Poland for Thanksgiving weekend. LIFE IS GOOD!
Saturday morning we had to be downstairs in the hotel lobby for our sightseeing tour. We went to all famous things in London. Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Bridge, London Towers, the Eye of London, Coveant Gardens and the Millenium Bride (from the newest Harry Potter). It was interesting to see all these things I've always seen on TV or in the moves in person. Everything had a story, and it was lovely to see. After the guided tour was over we got to go out on our own. We all bought oyster cards for the subway and explored. We went to King's Cross station and found Platform 9 and 3/4. This was seroiusly probably the highlight of London. I was so excited! We then made our way over to the St. John Wood station and found Abbey Road. It looks exactly what I imagined. The crosswalk is on a normal road, and the locals don't exactly enjoy the load of people that were stopping in the crosswalk to re-enact the famous Beatles picture. There was lots of beeping, and flailing arms.
Saturday night was for Broadway! Everyone else went to go see Grease (which I've already seen :D) but Kendra, Kara and I went to go see the Lion King. I can not reccomend this play enough. I was blown away. The way that they portray the animals is so creative. The voices on the actors are also amazing. The woman who plays Rafiki had the strongest most powerful singing voice I have ever heard. It was well worth the money and I'll definitely go see it again if I ever have the chance. We found a bar and grille afterwards to go have dinner. I had a jalapeno and chili burger. Not an American burger but it was still yummy. We decided to be responsible and not go out so we just went back to our hotels. Kara and Kendra were staying in a hostel kind of far away so I took the subway by myself most of the way home, and then walked from the subway to the hotel alone. Being the paranoid person I am I put my camera, vera bradley, and money in my jacket figuring if I got mugged they could have my bag :). When I got back to the hotel the rest of the girls were already back from Grease. We just stayed in and had a girls night. We decided to walk to the 24 hour store down the street around 1am to get some ice cream and snacks and I got laughed at for my pajamas...a few times. I guess not many people walk around in boxer shorts and mocassins in London.
Sunday we had to check out and got to do whatever we wanted. We decided to take advantage of the free museums near by. We went to the natural history, and an art museum. They were so huge and the architecture of the building was incredible. I'm not sure what the building was before a museum but the gargoyles and all the fixtures were beautiful. Lindsey and I then went to do a little shopping and found a sushi restaraunt (the 1st in Europe). It was then time to go back to the hotel and then to the airport. It was very warm without a cloud in the sky when we left that morning, so we didn't bring umbreallas. We got stuck in a very heavy rain storm. Completely soaked by the time we got to the hotel. Although not my favorite place, London was sure pretty sweet. Oh! We also saw that lady I think from India who is famous for having so many piercings in the subway station. She was quite the sight!
10 more days until Italy and I just booked my flight to Poland for Thanksgiving weekend. LIFE IS GOOD!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Happy Birthday Arthur Guiness!
Today is Arthur Guiness' birthday. Pretty much a nationaly holiday here. A lot of the pubs are giving out free Guiness, and the others are offering it at 1/2 the price. It's definitely gonna be a good time. The Irish have been drinking all day to celebrate. What a lucky man Mr. Guiness is! A whole country, and perhaps others around the world celebrate his birthday every year.
I'm also packing for LONDON. I can't wait. Spice World, and dancing with Rosa to their music when we were little keeps popping into my head. I'm looking forward to a normal sized shower in the hotel, and being able to shave my legs with them outstretched, instead of crunched up like a flamingo. I'm also hopefully going to see Lion King!!! I can't wait.
As I'm sure I've said before, I'm so unbelievably thankful for the life I have. I never thought I could be this happy. I also think about Poppa a lot lately. Even though he hasn't been around for a while I think about him with almost all the choices I make in my life. With marching band high school, to college, and now here. I've always known how lucky I've been to have had him in my life. I can't help but wonder where I would be if he hadn't been the man that he was. I'm going to have to have a Jim Beam for him while I'm here :)
I'm also packing for LONDON. I can't wait. Spice World, and dancing with Rosa to their music when we were little keeps popping into my head. I'm looking forward to a normal sized shower in the hotel, and being able to shave my legs with them outstretched, instead of crunched up like a flamingo. I'm also hopefully going to see Lion King!!! I can't wait.
As I'm sure I've said before, I'm so unbelievably thankful for the life I have. I never thought I could be this happy. I also think about Poppa a lot lately. Even though he hasn't been around for a while I think about him with almost all the choices I make in my life. With marching band high school, to college, and now here. I've always known how lucky I've been to have had him in my life. I can't help but wonder where I would be if he hadn't been the man that he was. I'm going to have to have a Jim Beam for him while I'm here :)
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