The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 760 times in 2014. If it were a cable car, it would take about 13 trips to carry that many people.
So after my weekend in Ireland and whirlwind traveling, I got to settle down a bit and just wait for my parents and brother to come! They came in through Milan and took the train to Florence in the late afternoon on Saturday so I had the whole day to kill to wait for them, which I spent doing homework. Of course the week my parents came was the week I had 3 papers due and two group presentations to prepare for. Nonetheless, I got my work done in time to show them around my city! It was Easter weekend and I didn’t have school on Monday so I had an extra day to spend with them and not have to balance it with class time. My roommates were all away for the long weekend in various parts of Europe so my brother kept my company in my apartment until they came home– yay sleepovers! As the school week rolled around I became very busy and left exploring Florence mostly just up to them, which could be nice to experience all yourself before someone yaps away in your ear about how this is where her class is and this restaurant sucks and this place has 5 shots for $5 on Tuesdays.
Thursday I had no classes and we left that morning for Venice by train! I had previously gone with my program early in the semester but I was happy to go again and fully explore the city of Venice with my family. We got off the train and attempted to find our hotel which we had an address for so it should have been pretty straightforward. Unfortunately we had the wrong address and no 3G to get directions. Needless to say it took us longer than anticipated to find our hotel but once we did (about 40 minutes later) we were greeted by the guy at the front desk who we affectionately began to refer to as Albert, due to his Albert Einstein-like appearance. Albert gave us recommendations for restaurants and we set out to explore Piazza San Marco where the old palace and Bascilica are located. We watched the sunset over Venice and grabbed some dinner before slowly making our way back to the hotel. It is unbelievably easy to get lost there and I’m surprised more people don’t just fall into the canals, especially drunk ones because I almost fell into one normally.
The sunset over Piazza San Marco
The next day Albert gave us suggestions for a walk around the lesser traveled part of Venice that included visiting several churches and a famous gelato place. It was a beautiful day and we took our time walking around the edges of Venice. We then grabbed lunch and split up; my dad and brother heading back to the hotel while my mom and I went to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum. The museum itself was very cool and there were so many famous artworks there from Picasso to Duchamp to Mondrian to Pollock. It is a very impressive collection but the experience was less than impressive due to the hundreds of rowdy and loud children milling about. I’m not sure why it was such a hot spot for kids that day (well actually there’s a whole kids sections so I guess it makes sense) but I was irritated nonetheless. My mom and I go on museum dates often which usually consist of quiet, contemplative atmospheres so this was a big change for us. Oh well, the art was amazing. We then reconvened for dinner at a fresh pasta place near the hotel and packed up our things to travel to Milan.
Me and my boys
The fam-jam in Venice!
Saturday morning we made our way to the train station, bags in tow, taking the long way to explore the rest of Venice that we had not seen the previous day. We saw something strange: a parking garage full of cars (remember cars aren’t allowed in Venice as there are no roads, a seemingly obvious fact that even I didn’t quite piece together right away). It was interesting to see where and how the “new, modern world” met the “old, Venetian world.” The bridge near the parking garage was by far the most modern looking, with steel beams and a criss-crossing structure, and it lead directly to the train station, another sign of the modern world. But then the area seamlessly blends into the old city of Venice. After much observation, we made our way into the train station and we were on our way to Milan. Our hotel was right next to the train station (good planning, Mom!) and we went exploring later that afternoon. The fam had already done some exploring during their first visit there the week before but I had not been yet so I was really excited. It was very different from Florence; it was more of a modern city with skyscrapers, wider streets, lots of cars and transit and real roads. It gave me a much needed dose of home but I was happy to return to my little Florentine city the next day. In Milan though is the second largest cathedral in the world, rounding out my visit to the top three biggest cathedrals in the world (St. Peter’s in Rome, the Duomo of Milan and the Duomo in Florence) all of which happen to be in Italy! Go figure! It was amazing to see the Duomo of Milan. It was in the Gothic style, something not really seen in other parts of Italy but due to Milan’s close proximity to France and Switzerland, it had more outside influences than other Italian cities. There is also the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, one of the oldest shopping malls in the world, which boasted most if not all the major designer brands and labels. It was quite impressive, architecturally speaking that is and you can see how many malls are modeled after this design.
I liked Milan a lot and was super impressed with their architecture and Venice continued to dazzle me. It was really nice to see and spend time with my family for a week. Their visit gave me enough of a dose of home to not be homesick for my last month and we had a lot of fun together. Next up is my last weekend trip of the semester: the Amalfi Coast. Spoiler: the weather was not nearly as nice as it was in Venice and Milan 😦
Hello all! Sorry for the long hiatus in posts but I think it’s safe to say that my last month in Italy was the best month by far. I was extremely sad to have to leave Florence but I will always remember the time I spent there, the people I met, the things I saw and the places I visited. Returning home is nice but rather stressful to have to start to deal with real life again. I had a nice break from it and I won’t trade my little slice of surreal life for anything. It was the experience of a lifetime. Myself and everyone I met there will never be the same after this. It’s hard to come home feeling like a completely different person and seeing that nothing at home has changed much at all. I think that’s been the most difficult part for me. That and I can’t speak italian with anyone (except my brother, thank god for him).
There are so many things I miss already, and some I don’t miss much at all, and I will attempt to list them as they come up but there is no end to the amount of things I experienced in Florence that I will miss more than anything. Walking past the Duomo every single day is something I will never forget. It’s probably safe to say that we all took that for granted for most of our time there, but looking back now that’s one of things that stands out the most about the whole experience. Of course Florence was an amazing city and I am so happy with my choice to study there vs. Rome, which would have been too big, overwhelming and scarier, but my experience would have been nothing without the people I met there. Every single person, whether our relationship was saying “hi” in class or hanging out every single day or hating each other’s guts (I don’t really think there were any of these for me), we each shaped each other’s experience abroad into what it ended up being and I am thankful for each and every one of them for that. I can talk all about wasted time and how it took me half the semester to figure out who I really wanted to spend my time with, but it all happened the way it was supposed to. If I felt that I wasted time at the beginning, that’s just more of a motivation to continue the friendship out in the real world, not just in our little Florence world.
I want to thank all the people I met abroad, especially my roommates and “the crew”; my experience would not have been the same without you. I want to thank my family for all their support, encouragement and excitement as I embarked and lived my adventure of a lifetime. I especially want to thank my parents for giving me the opportunity to have this adventure. You know it means the world to me and I appreciated every second of it and you two for everything you do for me.
In the next few days I’m going to process my adventure, post more pictures and attempt to recall the adventures of my last month in Florence. Last thing y’all heard was that I was in Ireland and my parents were coming. There is still the weekend with my family in Florence and in Venice, my weekend in the Amalfi Coast and my last week in Florence. There’s still a lot to tell you all so I’ll get started right away.
Stay tuned 🙂
Yesterday marked the 1 month mark until I touch US soil again. It seems crazy that I could only have one month left of my semester abroad and that I’ve already been here for almost 4 months. It takes me a little while to process and form thoughts so I’ll leave that for later. But lately as I walk around Florence, I’ve started taking note of the things that I normally take for granted and the things that I encounter everyday that aren’t exactly normal in other parts of the world. I thought I would start a list now and I’m sure I’ll be adding onto it in the future, thus the “Part 1” in the title. I’ve also started thinking more critically about Florence because MY PARENTS AND BROTHER ARE CURRENTLY IN ITALY (in case you couldn’t tell I’m super excited) and I need to put on my best tour guide hat and show them all the best spots. So here goes my attempt at naming all the Things I Take For Granted in Florence:
– Walking past the third largest cathedral in the world every. single. day.
– Hearing the language I’m learning everywhere around me and over the course of the semester, understanding more and more of it. That’s satisfaction I don’t think anyone can really understand.
– Not getting carded, like ever.
– Being able to “walk home” and casually detour to the market to “window shop”.
– Seeing famous churches in the skyline out my window.
– Running here is not common and usually only the Americans are doing it, but when you do it’s like the Hunger Games or something with all the people. I’ve probably become more agile trying to run 2 miles without getting hit by a bike, bus or shopping bag in Florence than in the four years I ran track in high school.
– Walking past a Louis Vuitton everyday to go to class.
– And having my classes right across from an Armani.
– Being able to walk 5 minutes to the train station to casually meet up with a friend from the States in Bologna.
– The food may go bad faster than at home but that probably means it’s healthier for me.
– Unlimited pizza, pasta, wine, risotto, etc. within a two minute walk from from my apartment.
– I definitely take my location for granted. Being right next to Mercato Centrale is an amazing location to have, just a 5 minute walk from my classes, the train station and the Duomo. It doesn’t get much better than that.
– The culture and daily life here is something I’ve become so accustomed to. I now know where all the street performers hang out, where the gypsies will ask you for money, when to avoid the Piazza del Duomo and how to just ignore the men who try to sell the fake Prada, Gucci and Louis Vuitton bags. They’re not even good knockoffs.
– My favorite thing that happens here is near the leather market in between Piazza della Repubblica and Piazza della Signoria. There are these clearly defined square on the ground from some sort of road work and every day, especially as the weather became nicer, there are artists painting and drawing replications of famous works in chalk on the ground. It’s so cool to watch the process of the drawing as you walk by at one time then later. The process isn’t an easy one and then later that night, the street cleaners comes by and washes it away. It’s so temporary but they do it anyways. I know it’s a way for them to make money and maybe someday I will give them some change, but it blows my mind that there is always someone drawing there, every single day. I love it. Yesterday I saw a Mona Lisa and another one today too. It’s definitely my favorite little thing about Florence. I think my big favorite thing is the Duomo because it doesn’t get much bigger than that.
When I was deciding on where to go at the beginning of this semester, there were two places I really wanted to go: Greece and Ireland. Now that I have been able to go to both, I can safely say that they were my favorite trips so far. All European countries have such deep and rich history and these two have very different but equally as interesting stories to tell. To go from the prestigious and ancient ruins of Greece to the spirited and rebellious Ireland was quite the change but I still loved them both. Though my time in Ireland was brief, I love every second of it and got enough of an overview to be satisfied but I could definitely go back for more.
We flew out of Pisa which I had never done before but it’s relatively easy. We took a shuttle from the Flroence train station to the Pisa airport and arrived with plenty of time and that was before our flight was delayed for two hours. Bit of bummer because we were excited to get there but we did eventually so I didn’t let it get me down. We touched down in Dublin after flying over the Swiss Alps, France, the English Channel and England. We checked into our hostel and went out searching for a place to get dinner. Most of the pubs and bars had stopped serving food so we ended up at an Eddie Rockets, the Irish equivalent to Johnny Rockets in the US I believe. I got a grilled pineapple burger-delicious. Not Irish I know but I don’t think any of us realized how much we missed small things from home (burgers, fries, the English language) and Ireland was the closest thing we could get to home for the time being. We retired right after dinner because we had an early day tomorrow to travel to the other side of the country to Galway and the Cliffs of Moher.
Because we did so much traveling to get to Greece that riding on a bus or boat for an extended period of time has become so easy for me. I’ve also learned to sleep in almost any position. So the 3 hour bus ride to the Cliffs of Moher from Dublin was a piece of cake. We arrived at the Cliffs after driving through the beautiful and super green countryside to meet my long lost friend: the Atlantic Ocean. The cliffs were breathtakingly beautiful and it blows my mind that it’s all natural. I learned that the 6th Harry Potter movie was filmed there as well as “The Princess Bride”, very cool. You could hike between the coastal towns but we didn’t have much time to walk very far, especially because we stopped every two feet to take a picture (guilty). I would love to explore the cliffs some more and maybe see the puffins that live there but there just wasn’t enough time, which seems to be a theme for most of the trips I take. But it was enough to appreciate it and just like that we were on our way to Galway. We shopped and explored in Galway for the most part because it’s famous for making the first Claddagh ring. Other than the main streets though, there wasn’t much to do there during the day. Apparently the night life there is incredible so another time I’ll have to experience that and just like that we were on our way back to Dublin. We spent most the day driving but we knew that’s how it had to be. I’m just glad we got a chance to see Galway and the Cliffs of Moher. That night we went to the (in)famous Temple Bar area that has all the most rowdy bars you could expect to find in Ireland. We found a place to eat in that area and I had Guinness and brew stew with mashed potatoes. Holy moly I was in heaven. Then we walked down the street and found a bar that had a guy playing covers of American songs. I’m telling you, Ireland was just like America with better accents. Saw some interesting people, met some Norwegians, you know just the usual.
Some of the Cliffs of Moher. Pictures can never do it justice.
The Dubliner was our favorite pub we went to! Live music, not tooooo crowded and places to sit. Clutch, except it was rather pricey which apparently a lot of the pubs in Temple Bar are because it’s so touristy. Oh well, we paid for the experience.
The next day we went on a tour of Dublin. Now we were supposed to go on one through our hostel but we branched off before we even started to get coffee and delicious donuts, thus we lost our group. But this turned out to be our best decision all day because we found another free tour group with this cute little Irish boy (well he was 24 so he’s not a boy or a man really…) named Oisin who was a fantastic guide. He spent the whole first half hour or so just giving us a brief history of Ireland with his witty, Irish charm of course. Then we went to Trinity College, St. Andrew’s, Dublin Castle and the Gardens, Christ Church and City Hall. All beautiful, pictures below. Then we went to the Guinness Storehouse which I think people really like or think is really stupid. I see both sides. On one hand it’s all about one type of beer but on the other, they give you a complimentary pint (after you pay to get in of course so it’s not “free” at all). I had never had Guinness before and I have to say, I dig it. It tastes like vaguely like chocolate and coffee, kinda yum but very heavy. They also have a good business strategy going for them: make them take a tour, let them pour their own beers, send them up to the “Gravity Bar” with a panoramic view of Dublin, then make the way out through the gift shop so that after they’re good and tipsy from the bar, they’ll buy some Guinness swag. Drunk people in the gift shop are guaranteed to make you money every time. Fun times. After that we ventured to find St. Patrick’s Cathedral since we were in Dublin after all, then we went shopping which was a little crazy. I spent a decent chuck of change to say the least… Then we found another pub for dinner, had some Cottage Pie (it’s what I would call Shepherd’s Pie but I found out that usually has lamb in it. Ba-ba.), then regrouped back at the hostel to go out for a bit. We didn’t stay out too long because our flight was at 6:50 am so we took a taxi to the airport early and then jetted back to Italy!
Pouring my Perfect Pint of Guinness! So much concentration.
Christ Church in Dublin. Our tour guide asked at this point in the tour if anyone studied art or architecture and my friends were like, “HER! HER! She does!” So I pointed out some Romanesque and Gothic features, note the rounded arches for Romanesque and the rose windows for Gothic. #feelingsmart #collegeispayingoff
Trinity College! Lots of cool history here.
Overall it was quite the whirlwind weekend, with only two full days in Ireland but we made the best of it. I would love to go back and explore more of Northern and Southern Ireland, so if anyone is going anytime soon let me know! Loved it there 🙂
Last weekend I had the chance to explore the areas closer to me, including Cinque Terre and the Tuscan countryside. Even though Florence is in Tuscany, we don’t get much a feel for it here in the city so it was nice to get out of the craziness that sprouted from the warm weather. On Friday, my friends and I went with a tour group to visit the towns known together at Cinque Terre, literally meaning “Five Lands.” They were coastal towns beautifully built into the rocky and hilly Italian riviera. The trip was supposed to include hikes from each town to the next but because it was pouring that day, we didn’t get to do much hiking at all. Actually the only “hiking” we did was in the third town to get from the train station up to the town which consisted of 20 minutes of switchback brick pathways that were slick because of the rain. Not the best hiking conditions. Regardless of the weather, the towns were beautiful and quaint little coastal villages. We were given free time in each to explore, shop, eat, whatever we wanted. My friends and I mostly walked around to explore. There were some trails close to the town that weren’t closed because of the rain so we did what we could. We took a boat from the fourth town to the fifth which was a little rough. I have learned a lot from my study abroad experience and I think the most prominent thing I’ve come across is this: I am not a boat person, at all. I’m not sure if it’s the lack of balance or what but I just can’t do boats when the waters are rough which they definitely were that day. Not to mention the rain was coming down very hard while we were waiting and the boat was delays for we were all wet 😦 Though the weather could have been much better, I liked Cinque Terre and maybe someday I’ll go back to actually hike it! Definitely worth the day trip.
The second town of Cinque Terre, Manarola.
The next day we left with our program for our “Under the Tuscan Sun” weekend that was definitely a great weekend. The weather was better in that it didn’t rain but it was cloudy for most of Saturday unfortunately but cleared up by Sunday. Our first stop of the trip was to see the beautiful and historic city of Siena. The whole town is almost like a preserved medieval town, with its traditions still fully intact. The city is split into different contrade or districts that were original over 50 in total but it has dwindled down to just 17. Each contrada is represented by a crest that incorporates their animal or symbol, for example the eagle, snail, dragon, owl, etc. Each contrada was also originally created based on the occupation of its members like a guild of sorts. So the dragons ware bankers, the owls were shoemakers, the giraffes were painters and so on. All these contrade are still in place today and they all participate in the horse race, the Palio, that is held twice a year. The winners get a painting and bragging rights. I think it’s so fascinating and cool to see these traditions preserved in a town as far as now. With the way the world is changing it’s nice to see a piece of history that is still being appreciated and lived in today. Our tour guide told us that even to this day, the night before the horse races, married couples from different contrade sleep in their respective districts, a form of district pride over marriage I guess haha. I find it all very interesting and would love to have spent more time there learning about their rich and unique history but sadly we left that afternoon to head to our next destination: a Natural Springs spa.
View of Siena from St. Catherine’s.
Torre del Mangia in Piazza del Campo
Piazza del Campo
The springs were super relaxing. The water was naturally heating and pumped into the many pools at the resort. Unfortunately that also meant that it had a very potent sulfur smell. I got used to the smell but I definitely needed a shower after that. We checked into our hotel and showered before having dinner with my program and setting out to explore the night life of the town we stayed in. There wasn’t very much to do but I still had a lot of fun just hanging out with my friends. The next day we went to Cortona, a very small city in the Tuscan countryside. It has 500 inhabitants living within its walls. We got a chance to explore and climb to the top of the town for a magnificent view of Tuscany. Next was a wine tasting at Castello da Verrazzano, which was beautiful and a lot of fun. The man that ran our tasting was so cute, wise and funny. We talked about growing up and how time makes wine but it also makes people. He was so cute and we ate it up. It was a great way to wrap up the weekend. Even though we didn’t go somewhere very far, I enjoyed the trip immensely because of the people I was with, it’s as simple as that.
Panoramic view from Cortona
Panorama on top of Cortona
❤ at Castello da Verrazzano
Sunset over the Tuscan countryside
With only a month left in Italy, I’m realizing that I’m going to remember the people I met far more than I’m going to remember the things I went to see. I’m all about the quality of the time spent rather than the quantity. Even though our program didn’t take us to Paris for the weekend or something equally as glamorous, I appreciated it even more than I would have if they had taken us there because this way everyone got to focus on each other rather than on the city itself. At the end of our time here, we’re going to talk about the places we went to for sure, list all the countries and what not, but we’re going to forever remember the people, the friends we made and the shenanigans we got ourselves into. I’ve met a lot of people here that are all different and bring their own quirks to the table but it makes for a richer meal, if that makes sense. I think some of the relationships I’ve established will last a lifetime and some will not past the goodbyes said at the airport but that’s just how it goes. You put the time and effort into the ones you want and the other ones were good while they lasted.
Well that was a heartfelt way to wrap up how I spent my weekend. I didn’t even know that was how I was feeling until I wrote this. Go me. Next up from this past weekend: Ireland
Panathenaic Stadium
Hadrian’s Arch (with the Acropolis through it)
The Acropolis (boo construction)
Athens from the Acropolis
Inside the Panthenaic Stadium
The Pink Palace looking out at the sea over the beach.
View from the highest point on the island of Corfu
Meadows and hills on top of Corfu. Oh and a church
Spring Break 2014 was a success, one for the books. I had never been on a real spring break before (at least not by college standards) so this was all a new experience for me and I have to say, it was quite fun. But returning to Florence was like coming home after a long time away which technically it was longest I’ve been away from my little Florentine apartment since we moved in. I have to admit I experienced a little bit of separation anxiety, especially from my comfy little bed. The beds in the hostels, hotels and boats I slept in were, let’s just say sub-par. Regardless, I was glad to be home because I had such a good time in Greece, making new friends and hanging out with the old, bought some silver but not some gold (see what I did there?). Anyways, here’s a (detailed) breakdown of my vacation.
Day 1: Buses, Boats and Bunks
We departed early saturday morning on a bus to make our way to Ancona on the east coast of Italy to catch an overnight cruise to Igoumenista, Greece. The bus ride was about 6 hours but we watched some good movies which made the time go by fast. We then boarded the boat to Greece which was MASSIVE, I mean like a hotel on water kind of big. I had never been on a boat that huge so I was smiling like a little kid at Disney World for the first time, or on a cruise too I guess. It had bars, a casino, a couple of restaurants, a discotheque, shops and more. Apparently there was a gym but no one seemed to find it (or want to, we’re on vacation after all). But my excitement died down almost completely once the boat ride actually started. We were scheduled to leave at 1:30 pm Italy time and get there at 9:00 am Greece time which was a total of 18.5 hours (because Greece is 1 hour ahead of Italy). That is a long time to be on one floating mass and that big boat suddenly got a lot smaller. Thankfully I followed the advice of my brilliant mother and bought myself the upgrade for a cabin that I shared with 3 other girls in my group. We each had a bunk that wasn’t very comfy but compared to the floor and airplane seats everyone else had, it was like Cloud 9. So I drifted off to sleep on my little cloud into the next day…
Day 2: Beaches, Togas and Plate Smashing
We touched down in Greece that next morning and hopped on yet another boat to take us from the port to the island of Corfu, one first destination. It was much bigger than I expected and we were picked up by the Pink Palace buses. Now when I say the Pink Palace, this is the hostel we stayed at and it was pink, like really pink, neon pink. They had a lot of buildings built into the hillside running all the way down to the beach where I stayed. It was quite the sight. The only downside of this set up was that when we wanted to go to dinner or reserve a spot in the daily activities, we had to walk all the way up the hill to get there and it wasn’t a cake walk. But it did balance out all the food I ate though because they provided dinner for each night and it was AMAZING. I was so happy. Guess it doesn’t take too much to make me happy. If only they had Legos… Anyways dinner was amazing and we had spent the whole day on the beach just napping, tanning, playing soccer, having fun and relaxing. Next up was the toga party to which we all sported these might spiffy pink togas. It was a lot of fun and there was a performance of traditional Greek dancing and then plate smashing. Quite the night! We were really looking forward to a full day to have fun again.
Day 3: Rain, Rain and More Rain
One of the daily activities the Pink Palace ran was an ATV Safari that took us on a full day tour of the island. So the next morning, my friends and I got up early so we could sign up for the tour. We signed up and everything and went to at 11:15 to get the safety and operating low-down of the bikes. Then it started to pour. And it didn’t stop all day. Needless to say the tour was cancelled and we were left with nothing to do. Most people immediately headed to the bar and stayed there till dinner but that’s not really my thing so I hang around for a bit, grabbed some lunch and went to my room with my friend and we just talked for a long time, it was nice. Then we had dinner which was amazing again but this time there was only 60 or 70 of us compared to the 300 the night before because one of the other travel companies had 2 groups there and they had left right after their early dinner. So we didn’t dance like the night before but instead we had a lower key night that consisted of hours of Playing Heads Up, my new favorite game. If you don’t know what it is, google it. I’ll say one thing: Ellen DeGeneres came up with the app so it has to be awesome.
Day 4: ATV Adventures
So the next day we finally got to go ATVing which was SO MUCH FUN. I had never been before so I was a little nervous but once I tried it out in the parking lot, my friends said I couldn’t stop smiling. We drove all around the island, through the small towns built into the hills and to the highest point of the island for lunch which involved some off-roading but was totally worth it. Breathtakingly beautiful views, the bluest water I’ve ever seen. Gorgeous. This lasted most of the day and it was a great way to end our stay in Corfu. We got back with enough time to shower and pack before dinner after which we headed back to ferry to drive to Athens overnight. Now this was rough. 10 straight hours on the bus was really hard. I didn’t sleep much at all so when we checked into the hotel at 5:30 am, I went right back to bed and woke up at 10 am to eat some breakfast before our walking tour of Athens. I consider everything that happened before I went to bed in the hotel part of day 4.
Day 5: Walking in the Footsteps of the Greats
Athens was the reason I wanted to come to Greece. The history and architecture was the deciding factor for me and while others were sad to leave Corfu, I was beyond excited to experience the once great city of the ancient Greeks, the city of Athena. Our walking tour started out with visiting the Parliament Building and Constitution Square, the newer parts of Athens’ history. Next was the National Gardens of Athens which led us to the Panathenaic Stadium, which hosted the first ever modern Olympic Games in 1896. It is also on the site of the original Olympic Games of ancient Greece. We didn’t get a chance to go in but we did the next day (more of that later). Next stop was the ruins of the Temple of Zeus and Hadrian’s Arch. From any place we visited, the Acropolis was always visible as it was elevated high above the city. We hiked up there afterword and saw the ruins which were amazing. Unfortunately there was construction happening on the front of the Parthenon, so my pictures aren’t as amazing as they could have been but it’s ok, I understand that it’s old and needs some help every once in awhile. We went back to hotel and rested up to go out to traditional Greek family-style dinner which was very good, so much food! Then we went to the roof top bar of our hotel which had a great view of the Acropolis lit up at night, then to some other bars in the area but nothing too crazy. It was a great first day in Athens.
Day 6: Shopping is the Same in Every Country
The next day my friends and I spent shopping, going back to the Panathenain Stadium and shopping some more. The stadium was unreal, so big and majestic. Made completely of marble. The echo was so loud from just my voice, I can only imagine what it was like for tens of thousands of people to be in there cheering. By then we had gotten used to the streets of Athens so we just explored and walked past our favorite parts, taking it all in before we had to leave the next day. Also I think I probably had a gyro (pronounced like “euro” as in the currency) for lunch every single day. Not even exaggerating. So good and served with french fries inside, which sounds weird but is actually delicious.
Day 7 and 8: Back on that Travel Grind
We left around noon on the last day to drive to the port to meet our overnight cruise back to Italy. It was the beginning of a long set of travel days but we’d learned to keep ourselves pretty occupied. I had another bunk on the boat again and managed to finish two books on just the way home. I read the newest Nicolas Sparks book “The Longest Ride” and the second book in the Divergent series (and I’m starting the third now). We made it home finally saturday night and I was very happy to be back but had a lot of fun with my friends and being on actual vacation. It’s been a bit of struggle to get back into school mode and everyone is still recovering from the lack of sleep so I predict these next few days will be slow and not very demanding. But we have to gear up to go Cinque Terre and Tuscany at the end of this week. The travel never ends here but I’m not complaining! Pictures to come as an album on the blog so you can scroll through them but this was my spring break! It was a lot of fun and everything I could have wanted. No regrets here! I’m so lucky to be able to do this or even imagine doing it. 🙂
Ciao ragazzi!
Hey all! I was super busy studying for midterms pretty much since I got back from Venice but thankfully they’re all done and I am finally on spring break! I leave tomorrow with a bunch of friends to go to Greece!! I’m very excited and cannot wait to get there. After a bus and an overnight cruise, we should arrive in Corfu to spend a few days there then to Athens for a few and then back to Florence. It’s not one of those whirlwind tours like some of my friends are doing that visit 5 cities in 10 days but I’d prefer to just relax and not worry about travel. I’d rather spend my time on a beach than a bus. The weather is supposed to be beautiful so hopefully I’ll come back with a nice tan!
More stories to come! Arrivederci!
all the facades of florence 