Ciao!
I just wanted to write to let you know what's going on. Tonight is my last night in Florence. Ive spent the whole day buying souviners for my friends and family. I'm about to start packing and then tonight we have our farewell dinner.
Honestly, I am completely depressed. I am not ready to leave. I miss my family more than anything in the world and I can't wait to see them; however, Florence is truly my second home. I wish I could transport my whole family to be with me and this place would be perfect. I've had to say bye to one local I've met and tonight I will say goodbye to other. When buying scarves in the market, I met one of the nicest people and since then I have sent all my friends to him. He tells me I'm his nicest customer. He would greet me every morning and every afternoon as I made my way through the market and this afternoon we had to say goodby. Thank goodness for facebook. The other guy I must say goodbye to is the guy at the News Cafe, where I get coffee at least three times a day. I guess we established somewhat of a relationship since I've been here. I will be saying goodbye to him shortly.
I don't know how I am going to adjust to coming home. I have completely adapted and adjusted to the Italian culture and if I believed in reincarnation, I would believe I was once Italian. I'm just not ready to say goodbye. I just want to stay here forever.
When I first started looking at studying abroad, I was determined I wanted to go to Prague since there is an extension of the College of Textiles. Then, while sitting in scholars one day, I heard about the Florence program and I knew that was where I was supposed to go. And it has been the best decision of my life.
I am now thinking about looking into a whole semester abroad and trying to learn the language in the next year.
Well, I need to get a shower and start getting ready for our last night here. Talk to you all when I get home.
Jess
Friday, June 19, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Paris! Day 2 Friday
Friday morning we had to wake up super early (around 600) so we could get ready for our all day Paris walking tour. I wasn't too thrilled because I always am the one that gets up first. Plus 4 girls were having to use one straightner which is always annoying because it takes forever.
We left the hotel about an hour to early so we were concerned about making it to the tour meeting spot on time. So we enoyed a nice little breakfast in a little cafe near the Louve. I had ham and cheese quiche which was out of this world and the best croissant I have ever had.
Our tour started at the Louve, where I saw the inside of the glass pyramids. It was so cool to see the bottom of one pyramid meet the top of another. There is a myth that says this is where Mary Magdelene was buried. I also got to see an ancient moat of a fortress in the bottom of the Lourve that wasn't even discoverd until the late 1980's. It is so amazing that they can find and restore something so old. The most interesting thing about the moat was that there was an inside (dry where they disposed of all their trash and waste) and an outside (had water in it to protect against enemies) and also the stones used to make the moat had differnt symbols such a a heart, cross, or square engraved into them which distinguished which group of brickmakers made that particular brick. I was also able to see the Mona Lisa, which was totally cool because it is sooo famous; however, it isn't super impressive in real life. It was a small portrait that has its huge own indivual wall with fire proof, bullet proof, idiot proof glass surrounding it. I also saw a couple of other pieces, but because there is like 8 miles of things to see in the Louvre and would take approximately 2 months to see it all, I wasn't able to see and observe much in the hour and a half I got to spend there. After the tour was over, I got STARBUCKS which was so delicious. I got so excited when I saw it on the way end that I was determined to get some before leaving. Not to mention I was completely out of it since I hadnt really slept in a couple of days.
After we left the Louve, we took a boat Taxi down the Siene River to the Effiel Tower where we had a couple of hours to eat lunch and enjoy the view. One of the main reasons we took the all day walking tour was because lunch in the Effiel Tower was included. I had a Chicken Ceasar Salad as my first course and then seared salmon with mixed vegatbles as my second course. It was absolutely amazing. On of the things I am learning most is to try new foods no matter what is in them. And because of that I have had some of the most amazing food ever! My friends had some cheese and noodles with asparagus and mushrooms (not as good as my salmon, but good none the less) cheesecake and mixed fruit. We all tasted each others dishes and the food was so good. I've said this so man times, but I am going to be so spoiled when i get home. We also enjoyed a class of wine on the first floor. After we were done with lunch, we walked to the second floor (just to say we climbed) and then we tried to take the elevaor to the top, but the line would have taken forever and we wouldn't have had time to enjoy ourselves at the top since we had to be back at the boat taxi by a certain time. That was ATTEMPT ONE to get to the top.
After leaving the Effiel Tower, we took the boat Taxi to the Notre Dame as the last stop on our tour. The church was gorgeous. One of the most beautiful places I have been. While we were there, I was able to witness some kind of catholic ceremony. I have it on film, but I have not been able to figure out what it was. It was interesting and intriguing and really cool and I don't think I will ever forget that experience. I also lit a candle for Holly as well as for my family. This whole trip would be so much better if I could have them here with me and one day, I want to bring them here.
Once our tour was over, the five of us headed home where we grabbed subway for dinner because it was quick and easy and they had free internet! After dinner, we got dressed up and decided to go back to the Effiel Tower and go to the top at night. This was ATTEMPT TWO and the most outrageous of them all. We got to the tower and while waiting in line to go through security, these people (from Poland as I later learned) tried to front us in line. It is really easy to do so, since the lines are straight and they just throw you in between two gates. I started paying closer attention to them and despite my efforts they fronted us and went through security before us. Well, they didn't know what to do once they got through security, so we were able to get back in front of them. HA. or so I thought. Well as we are waiting, this other lady was seperated from her family so I let her go in front of me since it was just her. I thought I was being nice. Well then they let like 20 to 30 people jump in front of me. Boy, was I unhappy and they knew it because they could understand English, but I couldn't understand Polish so they were just laughing about it. Finally, we are a couple of rows away from getting up to the ticket stand and this woman tries to front me to go get with the group who just let 20 or so people in front of me. I lost it. I told them they were rude and ridiculous and they fronting a million people was uncalled for. They laughed and pretended they didn't speak English. Lets just say everyone in line for the Effiel Tower that night was quite listening to me have it out with this man. They say Americans are rude. I say people walk all over us and then we voice our opinions. Anyway. We finally get up in line to buy our tickets and the lady informs us there are no more tickets going to the top that night "becuase too many people are already up there." I was soooo frustrated because of all of the hassel to get the tickets and we had missed the tower sparkle.
So that night we decided to go watch the 11:00 sparkling from the fountains at the Louvre. It was beautiful seeing it all lit up, but of course the tower didn't sparkle. The most memorable part was when I went to throw a coin into the fountain and a pearl braclet that belongs to my mom flew off my wrist into the fountain. I started freaking out because theyre Mommas! I couldn't leave them there, so I took off my shoes and rolled up jeans and went into the fountain to retrieve the pearl braclet. It was so funny and I can't believe I actually got into the fountain.
After leaving the Louve, we went back to the hotel where we enjoyed a view drinks and I had my first Nutella crepe. It was soo good. That night led to a bunch of tears and deep conversations and revelations that I would rather have been ignorant about. But hey what can you do. I learned alot about others around me as well as myself.
That night three of us pushed our beds together and made one huge bed! It was so much fun because we had turned our three singles into one extra king size bed.
We left the hotel about an hour to early so we were concerned about making it to the tour meeting spot on time. So we enoyed a nice little breakfast in a little cafe near the Louve. I had ham and cheese quiche which was out of this world and the best croissant I have ever had.
Our tour started at the Louve, where I saw the inside of the glass pyramids. It was so cool to see the bottom of one pyramid meet the top of another. There is a myth that says this is where Mary Magdelene was buried. I also got to see an ancient moat of a fortress in the bottom of the Lourve that wasn't even discoverd until the late 1980's. It is so amazing that they can find and restore something so old. The most interesting thing about the moat was that there was an inside (dry where they disposed of all their trash and waste) and an outside (had water in it to protect against enemies) and also the stones used to make the moat had differnt symbols such a a heart, cross, or square engraved into them which distinguished which group of brickmakers made that particular brick. I was also able to see the Mona Lisa, which was totally cool because it is sooo famous; however, it isn't super impressive in real life. It was a small portrait that has its huge own indivual wall with fire proof, bullet proof, idiot proof glass surrounding it. I also saw a couple of other pieces, but because there is like 8 miles of things to see in the Louvre and would take approximately 2 months to see it all, I wasn't able to see and observe much in the hour and a half I got to spend there. After the tour was over, I got STARBUCKS which was so delicious. I got so excited when I saw it on the way end that I was determined to get some before leaving. Not to mention I was completely out of it since I hadnt really slept in a couple of days.
After we left the Louve, we took a boat Taxi down the Siene River to the Effiel Tower where we had a couple of hours to eat lunch and enjoy the view. One of the main reasons we took the all day walking tour was because lunch in the Effiel Tower was included. I had a Chicken Ceasar Salad as my first course and then seared salmon with mixed vegatbles as my second course. It was absolutely amazing. On of the things I am learning most is to try new foods no matter what is in them. And because of that I have had some of the most amazing food ever! My friends had some cheese and noodles with asparagus and mushrooms (not as good as my salmon, but good none the less) cheesecake and mixed fruit. We all tasted each others dishes and the food was so good. I've said this so man times, but I am going to be so spoiled when i get home. We also enjoyed a class of wine on the first floor. After we were done with lunch, we walked to the second floor (just to say we climbed) and then we tried to take the elevaor to the top, but the line would have taken forever and we wouldn't have had time to enjoy ourselves at the top since we had to be back at the boat taxi by a certain time. That was ATTEMPT ONE to get to the top.
After leaving the Effiel Tower, we took the boat Taxi to the Notre Dame as the last stop on our tour. The church was gorgeous. One of the most beautiful places I have been. While we were there, I was able to witness some kind of catholic ceremony. I have it on film, but I have not been able to figure out what it was. It was interesting and intriguing and really cool and I don't think I will ever forget that experience. I also lit a candle for Holly as well as for my family. This whole trip would be so much better if I could have them here with me and one day, I want to bring them here.
Once our tour was over, the five of us headed home where we grabbed subway for dinner because it was quick and easy and they had free internet! After dinner, we got dressed up and decided to go back to the Effiel Tower and go to the top at night. This was ATTEMPT TWO and the most outrageous of them all. We got to the tower and while waiting in line to go through security, these people (from Poland as I later learned) tried to front us in line. It is really easy to do so, since the lines are straight and they just throw you in between two gates. I started paying closer attention to them and despite my efforts they fronted us and went through security before us. Well, they didn't know what to do once they got through security, so we were able to get back in front of them. HA. or so I thought. Well as we are waiting, this other lady was seperated from her family so I let her go in front of me since it was just her. I thought I was being nice. Well then they let like 20 to 30 people jump in front of me. Boy, was I unhappy and they knew it because they could understand English, but I couldn't understand Polish so they were just laughing about it. Finally, we are a couple of rows away from getting up to the ticket stand and this woman tries to front me to go get with the group who just let 20 or so people in front of me. I lost it. I told them they were rude and ridiculous and they fronting a million people was uncalled for. They laughed and pretended they didn't speak English. Lets just say everyone in line for the Effiel Tower that night was quite listening to me have it out with this man. They say Americans are rude. I say people walk all over us and then we voice our opinions. Anyway. We finally get up in line to buy our tickets and the lady informs us there are no more tickets going to the top that night "becuase too many people are already up there." I was soooo frustrated because of all of the hassel to get the tickets and we had missed the tower sparkle.
So that night we decided to go watch the 11:00 sparkling from the fountains at the Louvre. It was beautiful seeing it all lit up, but of course the tower didn't sparkle. The most memorable part was when I went to throw a coin into the fountain and a pearl braclet that belongs to my mom flew off my wrist into the fountain. I started freaking out because theyre Mommas! I couldn't leave them there, so I took off my shoes and rolled up jeans and went into the fountain to retrieve the pearl braclet. It was so funny and I can't believe I actually got into the fountain.
After leaving the Louve, we went back to the hotel where we enjoyed a view drinks and I had my first Nutella crepe. It was soo good. That night led to a bunch of tears and deep conversations and revelations that I would rather have been ignorant about. But hey what can you do. I learned alot about others around me as well as myself.
That night three of us pushed our beds together and made one huge bed! It was so much fun because we had turned our three singles into one extra king size bed.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Sorry!
Hey guys!
Sorry, I have not updated about my trip to Paris. I began working on it a little bit, and then my mother sent me a video that was a virus, so my internet at home has been disconnected. I'll work on it today and hoepfully get it posted before I leave in the morning for Venice! I cant believe I come in two weeks. I'm not ready to leave Florence because it is absolutely amazing, but at the same time I miss my daily conversations with my mom and we don't have the same times to talk.
Ciao for n0w,
jess
Sorry, I have not updated about my trip to Paris. I began working on it a little bit, and then my mother sent me a video that was a virus, so my internet at home has been disconnected. I'll work on it today and hoepfully get it posted before I leave in the morning for Venice! I cant believe I come in two weeks. I'm not ready to leave Florence because it is absolutely amazing, but at the same time I miss my daily conversations with my mom and we don't have the same times to talk.
Ciao for n0w,
jess
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Paris! Day 1 Thursday
Bonjour!!!!
I am currently sitting in my hotel room after just packing my suitcase up so I can leave Paris tomorrow morning. (NOTE: I was when i orginally began this blog) I am sad, but at the same time so excited to return home (to Firenze). I have loved Paris, but at the same time, there is just something about the Italian culture that I am completely in love with. However, I wish I could bring the Persian men back with me because they are so well dressed!
On Thursday morning, I woke up 30 minutes late to get ready. I thought I would be okay, but I was super pushed for time seeing as I hadn't packed my suitcase. Fortunately, I had already picked out my clothes, so I only needed to roll them. I was successful in geting packed and ready to go, but unfortunately my roommate is a heavy sleeper and doesn't wake up no matter what you do to get them up. I was too nice when trying to wake her up and finally at 8 till 5 (our cab was scheduled to pick us up at 5) I finally got her up. I thought everything was okay until we arrived at the airport and I made sure everyone had their passport. Well she had forgotten hers. However, my roommate in Florence got up and took a taxi to bring her the passport. Needless to say, we made our flight, but what a crazy start to our trip!
Upon arriving in Florence, we struggled to find our shuttle, but after 20 or so minutes of making our driver wait, we finally found him. He seemed a little irritated with us, but after a 2 hour ride, I think he loved our excitement for Paris. We finally got to our hotel: The Best Western Bergere Opera and it was actually very nice. The entry room was done in browns and brights greens and was very contemporary and modern. It kinda felt like something I would see at home. The three of us (Brian, Lauren, and myself) found our room and got settled in and finally met up with the other two people who had come with us (Emilie and Laura). They had a bit of a hair crisis that morning, so they hadn't made it out to the city to explore. We ate lunch at a subway down the street. it was so nice to have a taste of home.
After lunch, the four of us girls went to explore the city and to find exactly where our tour meeting spot would be located. It was actually quite simple to find and very easy to use the metro simply, which was much more complex than Rome's two lines. I wish Raleigh would build a metro. Right outside of our tour meeting spot, were some gorgeous gardens that we decided to explore before heading back to the hotel to get ready for the evening and to get Brian up from his nap. As we walked around, the we kept thinking that the place looked so important, but couldn't figure out exactly where we were until we finally stumbled up the glass pyramids outside of the Louve. It was so cool to actually be standing outside a place that was such a central part of the Da Vinci Code (one of my favorite books of all time). Funny moment: We were taking pictures of ourselves and as we were getting organized we saw this man taking a picture of himself and he was bent over a stone with his butt poking so far out. It was quite hiliarious.
After heading back to the hotel, we all got ready to go for a night out in Paris. It started with a trip to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner where I enjoyed a wonderful cheeseburger, french fries, and of course some RANCH. it is definately one of the things that i miss most from America. I also had a strawberry daquari and all five of us split a pitcher of white sangria. I have to say that unlike most of my peers I am definately a red wine kind of girl. Having American food was great again, but our waiter was unbearable. He didnt greet our table until we went and asked and then it took him forever to get things accomplished. I have no idea what his deal was, except that I think he was definately doing some kind of drugs in the back.
After dinner, we decided we wanted to go see the Effiel Tower all lit up so we made our way down to central Paris. It was really windy outside (seeing as it barely reached around 65 degrees the whole time we were there) which made the trip at night a little unbearable. However, we had a great time and at this point we were still so amazed with being there that we didn't care. After an Effiel Tower photo shoot, we went back to the hotel to get a good nights sleep since we were having our all day tour starting bright and early the next morning.
I am currently sitting in my hotel room after just packing my suitcase up so I can leave Paris tomorrow morning. (NOTE: I was when i orginally began this blog) I am sad, but at the same time so excited to return home (to Firenze). I have loved Paris, but at the same time, there is just something about the Italian culture that I am completely in love with. However, I wish I could bring the Persian men back with me because they are so well dressed!
On Thursday morning, I woke up 30 minutes late to get ready. I thought I would be okay, but I was super pushed for time seeing as I hadn't packed my suitcase. Fortunately, I had already picked out my clothes, so I only needed to roll them. I was successful in geting packed and ready to go, but unfortunately my roommate is a heavy sleeper and doesn't wake up no matter what you do to get them up. I was too nice when trying to wake her up and finally at 8 till 5 (our cab was scheduled to pick us up at 5) I finally got her up. I thought everything was okay until we arrived at the airport and I made sure everyone had their passport. Well she had forgotten hers. However, my roommate in Florence got up and took a taxi to bring her the passport. Needless to say, we made our flight, but what a crazy start to our trip!
Upon arriving in Florence, we struggled to find our shuttle, but after 20 or so minutes of making our driver wait, we finally found him. He seemed a little irritated with us, but after a 2 hour ride, I think he loved our excitement for Paris. We finally got to our hotel: The Best Western Bergere Opera and it was actually very nice. The entry room was done in browns and brights greens and was very contemporary and modern. It kinda felt like something I would see at home. The three of us (Brian, Lauren, and myself) found our room and got settled in and finally met up with the other two people who had come with us (Emilie and Laura). They had a bit of a hair crisis that morning, so they hadn't made it out to the city to explore. We ate lunch at a subway down the street. it was so nice to have a taste of home.
After lunch, the four of us girls went to explore the city and to find exactly where our tour meeting spot would be located. It was actually quite simple to find and very easy to use the metro simply, which was much more complex than Rome's two lines. I wish Raleigh would build a metro. Right outside of our tour meeting spot, were some gorgeous gardens that we decided to explore before heading back to the hotel to get ready for the evening and to get Brian up from his nap. As we walked around, the we kept thinking that the place looked so important, but couldn't figure out exactly where we were until we finally stumbled up the glass pyramids outside of the Louve. It was so cool to actually be standing outside a place that was such a central part of the Da Vinci Code (one of my favorite books of all time). Funny moment: We were taking pictures of ourselves and as we were getting organized we saw this man taking a picture of himself and he was bent over a stone with his butt poking so far out. It was quite hiliarious.
After heading back to the hotel, we all got ready to go for a night out in Paris. It started with a trip to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner where I enjoyed a wonderful cheeseburger, french fries, and of course some RANCH. it is definately one of the things that i miss most from America. I also had a strawberry daquari and all five of us split a pitcher of white sangria. I have to say that unlike most of my peers I am definately a red wine kind of girl. Having American food was great again, but our waiter was unbearable. He didnt greet our table until we went and asked and then it took him forever to get things accomplished. I have no idea what his deal was, except that I think he was definately doing some kind of drugs in the back.
After dinner, we decided we wanted to go see the Effiel Tower all lit up so we made our way down to central Paris. It was really windy outside (seeing as it barely reached around 65 degrees the whole time we were there) which made the trip at night a little unbearable. However, we had a great time and at this point we were still so amazed with being there that we didn't care. After an Effiel Tower photo shoot, we went back to the hotel to get a good nights sleep since we were having our all day tour starting bright and early the next morning.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Update from Last Weekend
Hey everyone!
Sorry it has taken forever to post about this past weekend. It has been a crazy week trying to get all my school work done. I took my first test this morning and I just finished my first paper. I hope it all goes well.
So this past weekend I went to Pompeii, Sorrento, the Island of Capri, and hiked up Mount Vesuvio. It was more than amazing.
So Friday morning, our study abroad group got up and had to catch the bus at 6:00! It was so early, but thankfully I was so tired and was able to sleep the whole trip. We had one stop for breakfast/bathroom break and there we found the most gorgeous group of guys ever! They were all in uniform and walked in slowly, taking off their sunglasses in slow motion. It was like they were out of a movie. When they walked out the door to leave, our group was waiting on the stragglers and I couldn't help but to stare. Literally. Pointing with my mouth hanging open. Grandma will be so disappointed, but they were beautiful.
We finally arrived in Pompeii and ate lunch (Pizza and french fries are a staple here) before heading into the Ruins. Our advisor at LDM, Luca, knew all about the history and gave us a complete tour. I found this fascinating since this is what I had studied in Latin. It was also kinda creepy seeing the bodies that were preserved and some still had their teethe. It was sad and depressing, but amazing all at the same time.
After leaving Pompeii, we headed into Sorrento where our hotel, The Michelangelo, was located. It was a 4 star hotel and beautiful, but my room had a very unpleasant view of the train tracks. We all ate dinner in the hotel restaurant that was soo good. My first dish was a mussle, pasta, and potato dish that was delightful. Second course was stuffed swordfish with a limchello sauce. That was alright, but I wasn't too fond of the stuffing. And for desert, I had some coffee stuff. Not exactly sure what it was, but it was definately good. We were also provided both white and red wine, which were the best since I have had since I've arrived.
After dinner, a group of us wint out to some American bar that was having karokee. It was an interesting outing because they would play of a song then change it. Not to mention half the songs I had never heard of and the other half were from like 10 years ago. But none the less, I had a great time and called in early since I had an early start off to Capri on Saturday morning.
Saturday morning, I woke up and had breakfast at the hotel. It was kinda weird because they had lots of deli meats, but I love Salami and cheese and bread, so I made a sandwhich. After breakfast, we left around 8 to catch our boat over to Capri. I didn't think anything of the clouds, since all days seem to start off cloudy and chilly. But when we arrived, our group was informed because of the weather conditions and roughness of the sea, we were not allowed to go out on a boat or into the Blue Grotto. I was completely devasted becuase I have seen pictures from past students and I have also done lots of research. I think I almsot cried because I had come so far and wasn't going to get to do one of the things I was looking foward to most.
Thankfully, the day turned around. As a subsitute, we took a trolly car to the middle (heading up the cliffs) of the island. From there we were able to take these super cool swings to the highest point. The view was amazing! I was absolutely amazed by the beauty and wish I could live there forever. The ride up and down was very peaceful and I called mom to check in on the family since I knew they were all in DC celebrating Christopher's graduation. I was very sad I couldn't be there to celebrate such an accomplishment with him and to be able to tell him how proud of him I am.
After we came down from the top of the cliffs, a large group of us ate at the restaurant where Mariah Carey, Beyonce, and Jay Z have ate. It was a beautiful restaurant and the wait staff was super nice and super duper cute. Of course, I had pizza but it was probably some of the best I've had since I've been here.
After lunch, some friends and I wanted to play in the Mediterrean and since there was no chance of getting on a boat we thought we would climb down to the ocean. It was a hard and crazy hike, but we finally made it to the bottom and ended up near the two famous rocks when you look up Capri. We took some amazing photos and I got to play on the rocks, but to all of our disappointment, we weren't even able to put our toes in the water. I was so disappointed and I tried to stretch so far, but I just couldn't do it. I was almost to the point where I just wanted to jump in, but I was scared I wouldn't make it out alive.
And then Lauren's phone rang and my roommate and another girl on our trip needed more people for a boat ride. We ran through the middle of the cliff to get to the trolly car since we only had 20 minutes. Of couse, we made it and had an hour boat ride around the island of capri! We were able to jump off the boat into the Mediterrean and it was the prettiest bluest water I had ever seen. Unfortunately, I had my contacts in and couldnt open my eyes under water, but I was told you could see the bottom about 25 feet below us. It was the best ending to our day at Capri and I will never ever forget that day!
Upon returning to Sorrento, we once again had Pizza for dinner and then we had a couple of drinks at the hotel bar on the terrace and then called it an early night.
On Sunday, we went to Mount Vesuvio and I hiked to the very top. For very different reasons, this adventure was beautiful. One of the girls in my group of friends has asthma and we all stayed together so we could make sure she made it to the top since we were told she couldn't. We did it as a group and that made it amazing. Unfortunaly, I wasn't impressed with the top fo the volcano, nor the view, but at least I could say I hiked to the top.
Since then, I've been back in school and trying to get all my assignments done. I succeeded in getting them done and now it is just a wait for the grades. I am trying not to care so I don't spend all my time worrying so I can enjoy the city.
I had my second cooking class this evening where I learned how to make three different kinds of bruschetta, this yummy tomato soup, some steak dish, and a cake. It was all so good and I can't wiat to come home and show off my cooking skills!
I have also spent a few hours tonight packing because I leave for Paris in 6 hours! I'll probably update while I am there and eventually try and get this past weekend's pictures posted sometime!
Love you all and have a fabulous weekend!
jess
Sorry it has taken forever to post about this past weekend. It has been a crazy week trying to get all my school work done. I took my first test this morning and I just finished my first paper. I hope it all goes well.
So this past weekend I went to Pompeii, Sorrento, the Island of Capri, and hiked up Mount Vesuvio. It was more than amazing.
So Friday morning, our study abroad group got up and had to catch the bus at 6:00! It was so early, but thankfully I was so tired and was able to sleep the whole trip. We had one stop for breakfast/bathroom break and there we found the most gorgeous group of guys ever! They were all in uniform and walked in slowly, taking off their sunglasses in slow motion. It was like they were out of a movie. When they walked out the door to leave, our group was waiting on the stragglers and I couldn't help but to stare. Literally. Pointing with my mouth hanging open. Grandma will be so disappointed, but they were beautiful.
We finally arrived in Pompeii and ate lunch (Pizza and french fries are a staple here) before heading into the Ruins. Our advisor at LDM, Luca, knew all about the history and gave us a complete tour. I found this fascinating since this is what I had studied in Latin. It was also kinda creepy seeing the bodies that were preserved and some still had their teethe. It was sad and depressing, but amazing all at the same time.
After leaving Pompeii, we headed into Sorrento where our hotel, The Michelangelo, was located. It was a 4 star hotel and beautiful, but my room had a very unpleasant view of the train tracks. We all ate dinner in the hotel restaurant that was soo good. My first dish was a mussle, pasta, and potato dish that was delightful. Second course was stuffed swordfish with a limchello sauce. That was alright, but I wasn't too fond of the stuffing. And for desert, I had some coffee stuff. Not exactly sure what it was, but it was definately good. We were also provided both white and red wine, which were the best since I have had since I've arrived.
After dinner, a group of us wint out to some American bar that was having karokee. It was an interesting outing because they would play of a song then change it. Not to mention half the songs I had never heard of and the other half were from like 10 years ago. But none the less, I had a great time and called in early since I had an early start off to Capri on Saturday morning.
Saturday morning, I woke up and had breakfast at the hotel. It was kinda weird because they had lots of deli meats, but I love Salami and cheese and bread, so I made a sandwhich. After breakfast, we left around 8 to catch our boat over to Capri. I didn't think anything of the clouds, since all days seem to start off cloudy and chilly. But when we arrived, our group was informed because of the weather conditions and roughness of the sea, we were not allowed to go out on a boat or into the Blue Grotto. I was completely devasted becuase I have seen pictures from past students and I have also done lots of research. I think I almsot cried because I had come so far and wasn't going to get to do one of the things I was looking foward to most.
Thankfully, the day turned around. As a subsitute, we took a trolly car to the middle (heading up the cliffs) of the island. From there we were able to take these super cool swings to the highest point. The view was amazing! I was absolutely amazed by the beauty and wish I could live there forever. The ride up and down was very peaceful and I called mom to check in on the family since I knew they were all in DC celebrating Christopher's graduation. I was very sad I couldn't be there to celebrate such an accomplishment with him and to be able to tell him how proud of him I am.
After we came down from the top of the cliffs, a large group of us ate at the restaurant where Mariah Carey, Beyonce, and Jay Z have ate. It was a beautiful restaurant and the wait staff was super nice and super duper cute. Of course, I had pizza but it was probably some of the best I've had since I've been here.
After lunch, some friends and I wanted to play in the Mediterrean and since there was no chance of getting on a boat we thought we would climb down to the ocean. It was a hard and crazy hike, but we finally made it to the bottom and ended up near the two famous rocks when you look up Capri. We took some amazing photos and I got to play on the rocks, but to all of our disappointment, we weren't even able to put our toes in the water. I was so disappointed and I tried to stretch so far, but I just couldn't do it. I was almost to the point where I just wanted to jump in, but I was scared I wouldn't make it out alive.
And then Lauren's phone rang and my roommate and another girl on our trip needed more people for a boat ride. We ran through the middle of the cliff to get to the trolly car since we only had 20 minutes. Of couse, we made it and had an hour boat ride around the island of capri! We were able to jump off the boat into the Mediterrean and it was the prettiest bluest water I had ever seen. Unfortunately, I had my contacts in and couldnt open my eyes under water, but I was told you could see the bottom about 25 feet below us. It was the best ending to our day at Capri and I will never ever forget that day!
Upon returning to Sorrento, we once again had Pizza for dinner and then we had a couple of drinks at the hotel bar on the terrace and then called it an early night.
On Sunday, we went to Mount Vesuvio and I hiked to the very top. For very different reasons, this adventure was beautiful. One of the girls in my group of friends has asthma and we all stayed together so we could make sure she made it to the top since we were told she couldn't. We did it as a group and that made it amazing. Unfortunaly, I wasn't impressed with the top fo the volcano, nor the view, but at least I could say I hiked to the top.
Since then, I've been back in school and trying to get all my assignments done. I succeeded in getting them done and now it is just a wait for the grades. I am trying not to care so I don't spend all my time worrying so I can enjoy the city.
I had my second cooking class this evening where I learned how to make three different kinds of bruschetta, this yummy tomato soup, some steak dish, and a cake. It was all so good and I can't wiat to come home and show off my cooking skills!
I have also spent a few hours tonight packing because I leave for Paris in 6 hours! I'll probably update while I am there and eventually try and get this past weekend's pictures posted sometime!
Love you all and have a fabulous weekend!
jess
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