How have I changed? It’s the ultimate study abroad question, for in the end, it’s not really about the pictures, the places visited, or the souvenirs─ it’s about how I’ve grown, learned, and self-discovered. During the struggles and adventures, it’s hard to recognize that, but looking back now, I can see I’m coming home a different person. Through my four months in Italy, I have developed strength in adversity, an appreciation of the diversity our world has to offer, and emotional independence.
While traveling abroad, nothing goes as planned. Well, okay, that’s an exaggeration, but at times that’s exactly how it feels! In Italy, when problems arise, there is no calling home. There is no playing innocent. There is no sitting down in the middle of the street to cry and give up! I found this especially apparent while traveling on weekend trips. Missed trains, unknown bus routes, poor directions, money problems: they all have to be dealt with, and no one is going to come rescue you. Instead of panicking, I’ve learned to rationally weigh my options, to seek out hidden solutions, and most of all, to ask questions. It may not always be the most convenient, efficient, or economical solution, but accepting the ‘bumps’ and maintaining a view of the bigger picture is a learned skill that has become essential. Distressing over an extra 40 Euros spent, a tour missed, or an added half day of waiting will get you nowhere but miserable.
My travels have broadened my understanding of the world and its diversity. I know it’s a bit clique, but it’s true: this experience has opened my eyes to appreciate the beauty in nature, in architecture, in culture, and in people that surrounds me. I have seen an unbelievable number of beautiful monuments, famous art works, and monumental structures, yet each one continually awes me, one after the next. Visiting large cities has shown me architecture that I hadn’t thought to imagine, meeting helpful people has renewed a belief in humanity, and best of all, seeing the beauties of nature has reminded me to appreciate what lies at my own back door. Some of my most enjoyable experiences abroad have been things that I never take the time to enjoy in the states: a bike ride through the hilly countryside, the frost on the fields in the winter mornings, a sunny walk through the park, lingering over a long dinner with friends, wine, and good conversation, or the satisfaction and creativity enjoyed in preparing a delicious meal. You don’t have to travel to discover the wonders of the world, but sometimes that’s what it takes to open your eyes to them.
Perhaps the most impacting experience and the most difficult to put to words has been my emotional journey to self reliance. I’ve always known myself to be an openly emotional person. I lean on the strength of those around me when I am down and share my optimism when I am happy. Through personal struggles, I’ve come to realize that positive social interaction (with friends, with family, with a friendly stranger) is what keeps me excited about daily life and maintains a level of comfort by making me feel connected to others. In the past, if I saw something humorous I’d immediately text a friend to share the laugh; if I experienced something dramatic, I’d make a call; if I was excited, I’d tell those around me about it; if I was disappointed, I’d look to a close friend to cheer me up. In short, I always shared my emotions with others. However, through my Italian experience, I’ve learned how to enjoy, to grieve, to be frustrated, or to be excited on my own. It seems basic, but it took an inability to contact others and a new surrounding to force me to realize that I can rely on myself. It’s an empowering feeling to discover a sense of self reliance. I know I haven’t changed who I am; I will return home and appreciate the times I spend interacting with other people and building intimate relationships. However, I hold a self assurance that if left on my own, I won’t crumble. Better yet, I’ll be able to share a laugh, a heartache, or a satisfaction with myself and it will be enough.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Art, wine, and a hike with beautiful views: a Great Italian Weekend
Youn is in the room with me watching The Notebook for the first time… It’s so fun to see her reactions all the way through! “No, she’s leaving!” “Just wait Youn,… it gets even better!” What a classic!
Okay so down to business: this last weekend I went to Rivoli Castle (which houses a contemporary art museum) on Friday, Alba on Saturday, and Cinque Terre on Sunday/Monday. Needless to say, it was a great weekend!
Rivoli is a castle outside of Torino, but unlike many others, it has been kept in its natural state (ie not restored to its original state but left rough, aged, and weathered). On top of this historic structure, a layer of modern interventions have been added. It has been my favorite castle ─ such an interesting juxtaposition of old and new. The rough brick sits in combination with a modern steel staircase, for example. The concept of old and new is carried through to the function of the building: an exhibit for contemporary art inside a historic enclosure. Walking through the gallery, abstract, large scale modern art is displayed in rooms with frescoed ceilings that are peeling at the edges, with walls decorated by plaster moldings, and with original stone flooring. The art itself was very interesting, definitely different than what I am used to or what I normally seek out. To non-art lovers, it was merely things like: a circular pile of rocks in the center of the empty room, a mound of sand with a candle on top, a video of a man walking naked down a highway,.. I think you get the picture. However, since we went for my art class, we had an English guide explaining the artists’ intentions and meaning behind each piece, which made it much more interesting to see.
Saturday morning began the travels for Youn and I; we’ve never traveled together before and I really enjoyed her positive attitude and our girl-time. We took a two hour bus to Alba, which is a small, historic, wine producing community surrounded by vineyards. Since we visited on a Saturday, we got to experience the market in the morning that wound through the crowded streets. In the afternoon, there was a wine festival. Unfortunately, it was a very rainy, gloomy day, so the wine tasting was not as ideal as pictured (held in big tents), but it was still fun and interesting to try to begin recognizing the differences between wines (of which I’m still no good at!). Youn and I are both lightweights, so we took it slow and spent the afternoon using our 10 tasting coupons. I found out that I like Moscoto the best, although it’s a dessert wine, so that should really come as no surprise if you know my palate. I bought my favorite Mascoto (only 6 Euros! I love that about Italy… great wine for so cheap) and then we headed back on the bus that evening. We left at the perfect time too; while we were waiting under the cover of the bus station, it started to DOWNPOUR and thunder and lightning.
With the terrible weather of Saturday, we were really worried about our plans to hike Cinque Terre on Sunday. We were going to try to reschedule but would have been charged for our hostel, so we took our chances and headed out early in the morning on the train. It is supposed to be a 4 hour journey, but somehow the ticket-man gave us a bad combination of train connections and it ended up taking us 6 hours to get there! It worked out though; we had just enough time to do the whole hike between the towns and arrived at the last village in time to have a sunset dinner on the water. The hike takes 6 hours (11 Km, 6.8 miles) and has some dramatic changes in elevation (some towns are at sea level, while others are perched on the top of the hills). It also varies widely in the trail conditions. At the beginning, it was a wide stone paved path hugging the side of the cliff on the sea. By the end, it was a narrow dirt trail that wound among the ridges of the vegetated hills. The five towns were all cute and offered a different atmosphere. I think I enjoyed Vernazza the most (the 4th town) for its more lively square, colorful buildings, and picturesque cove with small weathered wooden fishing boats waiting to be taken out to sea. We were very tired by the end of the day and enjoyed a good night’s sleep in Riomaggiore (the first town we started at… we took a train back after finishing at the 5th town).
By the way, Youn just finished the notebook and when I asked her what she thought she got that dreamy look in her eyes and melodically responded, “It’s like a dream…. Where is my Romeo?” I couldn’t have said it better myself; we’re so good at being girly together!
Okay so down to business: this last weekend I went to Rivoli Castle (which houses a contemporary art museum) on Friday, Alba on Saturday, and Cinque Terre on Sunday/Monday. Needless to say, it was a great weekend!
Rivoli is a castle outside of Torino, but unlike many others, it has been kept in its natural state (ie not restored to its original state but left rough, aged, and weathered). On top of this historic structure, a layer of modern interventions have been added. It has been my favorite castle ─ such an interesting juxtaposition of old and new. The rough brick sits in combination with a modern steel staircase, for example. The concept of old and new is carried through to the function of the building: an exhibit for contemporary art inside a historic enclosure. Walking through the gallery, abstract, large scale modern art is displayed in rooms with frescoed ceilings that are peeling at the edges, with walls decorated by plaster moldings, and with original stone flooring. The art itself was very interesting, definitely different than what I am used to or what I normally seek out. To non-art lovers, it was merely things like: a circular pile of rocks in the center of the empty room, a mound of sand with a candle on top, a video of a man walking naked down a highway,.. I think you get the picture. However, since we went for my art class, we had an English guide explaining the artists’ intentions and meaning behind each piece, which made it much more interesting to see.
Saturday morning began the travels for Youn and I; we’ve never traveled together before and I really enjoyed her positive attitude and our girl-time. We took a two hour bus to Alba, which is a small, historic, wine producing community surrounded by vineyards. Since we visited on a Saturday, we got to experience the market in the morning that wound through the crowded streets. In the afternoon, there was a wine festival. Unfortunately, it was a very rainy, gloomy day, so the wine tasting was not as ideal as pictured (held in big tents), but it was still fun and interesting to try to begin recognizing the differences between wines (of which I’m still no good at!). Youn and I are both lightweights, so we took it slow and spent the afternoon using our 10 tasting coupons. I found out that I like Moscoto the best, although it’s a dessert wine, so that should really come as no surprise if you know my palate. I bought my favorite Mascoto (only 6 Euros! I love that about Italy… great wine for so cheap) and then we headed back on the bus that evening. We left at the perfect time too; while we were waiting under the cover of the bus station, it started to DOWNPOUR and thunder and lightning.
With the terrible weather of Saturday, we were really worried about our plans to hike Cinque Terre on Sunday. We were going to try to reschedule but would have been charged for our hostel, so we took our chances and headed out early in the morning on the train. It is supposed to be a 4 hour journey, but somehow the ticket-man gave us a bad combination of train connections and it ended up taking us 6 hours to get there! It worked out though; we had just enough time to do the whole hike between the towns and arrived at the last village in time to have a sunset dinner on the water. The hike takes 6 hours (11 Km, 6.8 miles) and has some dramatic changes in elevation (some towns are at sea level, while others are perched on the top of the hills). It also varies widely in the trail conditions. At the beginning, it was a wide stone paved path hugging the side of the cliff on the sea. By the end, it was a narrow dirt trail that wound among the ridges of the vegetated hills. The five towns were all cute and offered a different atmosphere. I think I enjoyed Vernazza the most (the 4th town) for its more lively square, colorful buildings, and picturesque cove with small weathered wooden fishing boats waiting to be taken out to sea. We were very tired by the end of the day and enjoyed a good night’s sleep in Riomaggiore (the first town we started at… we took a train back after finishing at the 5th town).
By the way, Youn just finished the notebook and when I asked her what she thought she got that dreamy look in her eyes and melodically responded, “It’s like a dream…. Where is my Romeo?” I couldn’t have said it better myself; we’re so good at being girly together!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Stereotypes
This was a Journal entry for a class assignment in Culture, but I thought you might be interested in some of my views on the variance between the Italian life style and ours in the States.
Honestly, I think my strongest stereotype before coming to Italy was about the food! And it is definitely different than I had pictured; it has a milder flavor, an emphasis on fresh market ingredients, and simple, natural construction (you know what is going into your food because you are making it from the basics, not from the ready-made ingredients in the States). Until grocery shopping in Torino, I didn’t realize how much Americans rely on prepackaged, pre-prepared foods. For that reason, the grocery store is a completely different experience (and co-exists with necessary trips to the market).
In the United States, I felt Italians were/are represented as a fashion conscious culture, one who values the finer things in life, and takes leisure time to ensure enjoyment. On some levels this has proven true, although, as with all groups of people, it varies greatly depending on the person. I do see a lot of people (especially my generation) assert their own fashion style, indicating their level of concern for clothing. I’ve passed many high-end clothing stores, an example of the financial value Italians are willing to put on personal appearance. I would argue that this appreciation extends into the “finer things” in life as well. It’s common to enjoy a morning cappuccino at the local café or linger over a meal for hours with good friends. In comparison, Americans usually just grab coffee ‘on the way to work’ or make it themselves in the morning rather than take time out of their day to enjoy the café surrounding and the personal service of the local employees. As we’ve mentioned in class, I rarely see people walking with food; even in a busy schedule, time is taken to enjoy the daily activities.
Some stereotypes that I have developed since I arrived deal with driving, males, and punctuality. Although I think that most people view European traffic as very hectic, I was unaware as to the extent. I now generalize Italian drivers as aggressive, intense, and “rule breakers”. This system would be very nerve racking for me to drive in, however I do not see Italians as negligent or reckless. I have actually only seen one accident (involving a bus)! Similarly, I was warned of the forward nature of Italian men, but since being in Torino, I have developed an even stronger negative stereotype. I think a really big part of this has to do with the location and level of interaction I’ve had with males. In most cases, I deal with men while out at pubs, dance clubs, restaurants, or night settings. These locations/activities tend to attract the less “reputable” type of men. While I do understand that, I also get some of the same feelings during the day (ex: on the bus, at the market, walking along the street). The way men openly vocalize, stare, or view a smile as encouragement has definitely been verified through my experiences. Part of this could also have to do with the fact that in the States, I rarely visit large cities and might experience something similar in a place the size of Torino. Lastly, I was unaware of the relaxed view on punctuality, business etiquette, and ‘waiting’ situations. For example, our apartment has been told that we will be getting internet installed since January. In the states, a lack of follow through in a business situation would reflect very poorly on the establishment (whether the hold is with the landlord, the internet company, or other circumstances, I do not know). While this can be frustrating, there are also parts of this philosophy that I enjoy; the laid back approach reminds me to take life slowly, enjoy the everyday routines, and realize that it’s not all about being the first person in line.
Honestly, I think my strongest stereotype before coming to Italy was about the food! And it is definitely different than I had pictured; it has a milder flavor, an emphasis on fresh market ingredients, and simple, natural construction (you know what is going into your food because you are making it from the basics, not from the ready-made ingredients in the States). Until grocery shopping in Torino, I didn’t realize how much Americans rely on prepackaged, pre-prepared foods. For that reason, the grocery store is a completely different experience (and co-exists with necessary trips to the market).
In the United States, I felt Italians were/are represented as a fashion conscious culture, one who values the finer things in life, and takes leisure time to ensure enjoyment. On some levels this has proven true, although, as with all groups of people, it varies greatly depending on the person. I do see a lot of people (especially my generation) assert their own fashion style, indicating their level of concern for clothing. I’ve passed many high-end clothing stores, an example of the financial value Italians are willing to put on personal appearance. I would argue that this appreciation extends into the “finer things” in life as well. It’s common to enjoy a morning cappuccino at the local café or linger over a meal for hours with good friends. In comparison, Americans usually just grab coffee ‘on the way to work’ or make it themselves in the morning rather than take time out of their day to enjoy the café surrounding and the personal service of the local employees. As we’ve mentioned in class, I rarely see people walking with food; even in a busy schedule, time is taken to enjoy the daily activities.
Some stereotypes that I have developed since I arrived deal with driving, males, and punctuality. Although I think that most people view European traffic as very hectic, I was unaware as to the extent. I now generalize Italian drivers as aggressive, intense, and “rule breakers”. This system would be very nerve racking for me to drive in, however I do not see Italians as negligent or reckless. I have actually only seen one accident (involving a bus)! Similarly, I was warned of the forward nature of Italian men, but since being in Torino, I have developed an even stronger negative stereotype. I think a really big part of this has to do with the location and level of interaction I’ve had with males. In most cases, I deal with men while out at pubs, dance clubs, restaurants, or night settings. These locations/activities tend to attract the less “reputable” type of men. While I do understand that, I also get some of the same feelings during the day (ex: on the bus, at the market, walking along the street). The way men openly vocalize, stare, or view a smile as encouragement has definitely been verified through my experiences. Part of this could also have to do with the fact that in the States, I rarely visit large cities and might experience something similar in a place the size of Torino. Lastly, I was unaware of the relaxed view on punctuality, business etiquette, and ‘waiting’ situations. For example, our apartment has been told that we will be getting internet installed since January. In the states, a lack of follow through in a business situation would reflect very poorly on the establishment (whether the hold is with the landlord, the internet company, or other circumstances, I do not know). While this can be frustrating, there are also parts of this philosophy that I enjoy; the laid back approach reminds me to take life slowly, enjoy the everyday routines, and realize that it’s not all about being the first person in line.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Niiiiiiiiiiiiiice
Nice, France
My weekend trip with Kate and Sarah was my first venture into our neighboring country, France. And the first opportunity to call back my two years of high school French (after speaking both, I still think that French is beautiful; it rolls off my tongue in ways Italian never will). It was almost a 5 hour train journey to our destination, but I love traveling by train. The rhythm of the movement and sound put me right to sleep (practically in a comma… I can’t stay awake and read even if I want to!). The weather forecast warned us that our arrival day would be the best conditions, so we went straight to the beach to relax and soak up some sun. The beaches in Nice are all pebble/rock beaches, so it wasn’t the most ideal except the water was absolutely beautiful! I’ve never seen such a crystal shade of blue and teal. The wind picked up and it got chilly, so we hurried back to our hostel, changed and left to walk the main shopping street of town; an evening of shopping and I only bought one thing (thankfully!). We had tapas for dinner (small servings of food so you can try many different things… all you can eat of course). Unfortunately, I developed allergies for the first time and was so stuffed up I couldn’t taste anything (extremely disappointing when you are trying new foods. My dinner companions were trying to describe all the tastes to me). To our delight, we realized that Alice in Wonderland was playing in its original format (ENGLISH!). After dinner I took in my first 3D movie experience. The costumes were elaborate, but the movie story itself seemed a little underdeveloped. It was still fun to see a new American movie though.
The second day we ate breakfast at a delicious pastry shop; the best I’ve ever tried. Then we trekked across town and up a hill to an old historic lookout point. It gave a great view along the coast, out into the ocean, and the sprawling city in the hills. The weather finally failed us and it started raining, so we picked a cozy bench under a large tree and watched the rain move in across the ocean and towards the hills. The rest of the day was spent wandering and enjoying the town.
It was the first time I’d stayed in a mixed gender dorm hostel. It was actually a really good experience and we were able to meet some nice fellow travelers: two guys from the states who are attending school in Oxford for the semester. Over the course of the evening, we got to know them pretty well and all went out for a drink that night. In fact, they had to leave early the next morning for Switzerland, but were able to work in a visit to Torino on their way to Florence. It’s amazing the people you can randomly meet when traveling; a reassuring experience that great people surround us every day if we’d take the time to get to know them.
My weekend trip with Kate and Sarah was my first venture into our neighboring country, France. And the first opportunity to call back my two years of high school French (after speaking both, I still think that French is beautiful; it rolls off my tongue in ways Italian never will). It was almost a 5 hour train journey to our destination, but I love traveling by train. The rhythm of the movement and sound put me right to sleep (practically in a comma… I can’t stay awake and read even if I want to!). The weather forecast warned us that our arrival day would be the best conditions, so we went straight to the beach to relax and soak up some sun. The beaches in Nice are all pebble/rock beaches, so it wasn’t the most ideal except the water was absolutely beautiful! I’ve never seen such a crystal shade of blue and teal. The wind picked up and it got chilly, so we hurried back to our hostel, changed and left to walk the main shopping street of town; an evening of shopping and I only bought one thing (thankfully!). We had tapas for dinner (small servings of food so you can try many different things… all you can eat of course). Unfortunately, I developed allergies for the first time and was so stuffed up I couldn’t taste anything (extremely disappointing when you are trying new foods. My dinner companions were trying to describe all the tastes to me). To our delight, we realized that Alice in Wonderland was playing in its original format (ENGLISH!). After dinner I took in my first 3D movie experience. The costumes were elaborate, but the movie story itself seemed a little underdeveloped. It was still fun to see a new American movie though.
The second day we ate breakfast at a delicious pastry shop; the best I’ve ever tried. Then we trekked across town and up a hill to an old historic lookout point. It gave a great view along the coast, out into the ocean, and the sprawling city in the hills. The weather finally failed us and it started raining, so we picked a cozy bench under a large tree and watched the rain move in across the ocean and towards the hills. The rest of the day was spent wandering and enjoying the town.
It was the first time I’d stayed in a mixed gender dorm hostel. It was actually a really good experience and we were able to meet some nice fellow travelers: two guys from the states who are attending school in Oxford for the semester. Over the course of the evening, we got to know them pretty well and all went out for a drink that night. In fact, they had to leave early the next morning for Switzerland, but were able to work in a visit to Torino on their way to Florence. It’s amazing the people you can randomly meet when traveling; a reassuring experience that great people surround us every day if we’d take the time to get to know them.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Sunshine and Friends
I’m going to fly by the seat of my pants and blog OUT OF ORDER… I still need to tell you about my great weekend in Nice, but I had such a beautiful day in Torino that it needs to be shared!
The day began with an early rise to get to the open market (I feel like most good days in my life begin with me getting up early… I should make that a trend). This was a new market that Tara found so she and I and her friend from out of town spent a few hours and a “few” Euros there this morning. Let’s just say part way through I visited an ATM… But they were such good deals! It was a quality market. Among the purchase were bright pink top-sider shoes, white summer flats, summer skirt, flowy shirt, chunky bead necklace… well, you get the idea.
We came home in time to meet at the Borgo Medieval Castle in the park near our house for a class tour. It was a cool place to see (okay well I seem to like it more than others, but that’s beside the point, this is my blog). After leaving the castle, we took the time to enjoy the park and grabbed Kebabs for lunch at a little stand. Probably the best Kebab I’ve had. THEN we finally went back home and had a “fashion show” to show all the roomies our market purchases…. Can it get any girlier than that?! Ready for some relaxing time, we headed to the park to soak up the rays, take a nap, listen to music, and read magazines (I finally got to read my “Dwell” magazine I picked up in London). Returning home in the evening, the neighborhood café was our next destination. And here I sit, enjoying aparitivo (a drink and unlimited finger foods), talking with friends, and relishing my internet connection. We’re going out tonight to hear Tara’s Italian boyfriend DJ at a local club. I think it’s awesome that he’s a DJ and I’m excited I get to hear him finally. He’s been over the apartment several times and is a really nice guy. I love sunny spring days in Torino!
Worthy side note: There is an avocado salad at aparitivo with a light citrus flavor…. Best thing I’ve ever had.
The day began with an early rise to get to the open market (I feel like most good days in my life begin with me getting up early… I should make that a trend). This was a new market that Tara found so she and I and her friend from out of town spent a few hours and a “few” Euros there this morning. Let’s just say part way through I visited an ATM… But they were such good deals! It was a quality market. Among the purchase were bright pink top-sider shoes, white summer flats, summer skirt, flowy shirt, chunky bead necklace… well, you get the idea.
We came home in time to meet at the Borgo Medieval Castle in the park near our house for a class tour. It was a cool place to see (okay well I seem to like it more than others, but that’s beside the point, this is my blog). After leaving the castle, we took the time to enjoy the park and grabbed Kebabs for lunch at a little stand. Probably the best Kebab I’ve had. THEN we finally went back home and had a “fashion show” to show all the roomies our market purchases…. Can it get any girlier than that?! Ready for some relaxing time, we headed to the park to soak up the rays, take a nap, listen to music, and read magazines (I finally got to read my “Dwell” magazine I picked up in London). Returning home in the evening, the neighborhood café was our next destination. And here I sit, enjoying aparitivo (a drink and unlimited finger foods), talking with friends, and relishing my internet connection. We’re going out tonight to hear Tara’s Italian boyfriend DJ at a local club. I think it’s awesome that he’s a DJ and I’m excited I get to hear him finally. He’s been over the apartment several times and is a really nice guy. I love sunny spring days in Torino!
Worthy side note: There is an avocado salad at aparitivo with a light citrus flavor…. Best thing I’ve ever had.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Cheers to London
It’s been too long since I’ve updated! A series of fortunate events has kept me occupied. To begin, let’s go all the way back to London:
I loved visiting London… Not to mention we definitely savored the opportunity to speak english! We split a hotel room (cheaper than a hostel), which ended up being really plush. It was just us 4 girls this time: Katie, Kelsey, and Sarah. Drew was in London for the weekend too, so we met up for Thai food and a drink at the Pub for his birthday (Side note: glad I did not turn 21 while in Europe). Unfortunately, we only had a day and a half for touring, so it was packed with activity. Of course we saw all the major sites: Parliament building, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, River walk, London Bridge, London Tower, Portobello Street (vintage shops), Tate Modern Art Museum (I saw Picaso, Monet, Matisse, Warhol, Salvador Dali, and even more that I can’t remember right now… It was very cool). My favorites were probably Westminster and Tate. And the accents: In the pub, we had an English man telling us how much he loved OUR American accent and the fact that we all spoke so properly. I’d have to disagree with his view, but it was fun to hear none the less.
Our flight out of London left at 6:50 in the morning. It is an hour bus ride to get there, we had to get to the bus stop to catch the airport bus, plus get to the airport early; all this left us with a departure time of 2:30 am! Yikes…. But of course we used our time wisely the night before: stayed up late watching episodes of CSI (had to feed the TV thirst).
I loved visiting London… Not to mention we definitely savored the opportunity to speak english! We split a hotel room (cheaper than a hostel), which ended up being really plush. It was just us 4 girls this time: Katie, Kelsey, and Sarah. Drew was in London for the weekend too, so we met up for Thai food and a drink at the Pub for his birthday (Side note: glad I did not turn 21 while in Europe). Unfortunately, we only had a day and a half for touring, so it was packed with activity. Of course we saw all the major sites: Parliament building, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, River walk, London Bridge, London Tower, Portobello Street (vintage shops), Tate Modern Art Museum (I saw Picaso, Monet, Matisse, Warhol, Salvador Dali, and even more that I can’t remember right now… It was very cool). My favorites were probably Westminster and Tate. And the accents: In the pub, we had an English man telling us how much he loved OUR American accent and the fact that we all spoke so properly. I’d have to disagree with his view, but it was fun to hear none the less.
Our flight out of London left at 6:50 in the morning. It is an hour bus ride to get there, we had to get to the bus stop to catch the airport bus, plus get to the airport early; all this left us with a departure time of 2:30 am! Yikes…. But of course we used our time wisely the night before: stayed up late watching episodes of CSI (had to feed the TV thirst).
Friday, March 26, 2010
Martina's Book
It’s weird to be considered an “expert” in English when I’m used to being surrounded entirely by English speaking people. In my architecture class on Thursday, the professor (Martina) asked me if I could come back to her office and help her out with a project; She is an innovative, accomplished young architect and one of her firm’s projects was being published into a book. Unfortunately, the translator that was hired did a “less than professional” job. Martina is proficient enough in English to recognize that it did not sound correct, but didn’t have the ability to change what needed to be fixed. She was so upset that the years of effort, that went into the project itself and then also into the publication, were going to be wasted by an embarrassing subpar translation. She later told me that she was sitting in class completely frazzled by it, when she heard me presenting my architecture project so articulately and knew that I was the person to “save her project” (her words, not mine). I felt so bad for her; on the drive to the office I could tell that she was really upset about it all. Understandably so, for when I read through the text it was an obvious direct translation from Italian, meaning sentence structures, ordering of words, punctuation and even word meaning were done incorrectly. It was helpful that I have a background in architecture so I was able to understand the ideas she wanted to communicate in the book. In some cases it was an easy fix and in others Martina would wordily explain to me the idea she was trying to express in order to help me choose the right words, adjectives, and phrasing. It was actually a really cool experience to work with her and to understand her project in such depth. They are also going to add my name to the “special thanks to…”-page in the publication. Isn’t that cool?! Martina said she would bring me a copy to class (done by the middle of April). And it was rewarding to see what a big change we made in the quality of the work, although they had to submit it for printing THAT night, so we couldn’t spend the time to make it absolutely perfect. (There was also the problem offending the publisher who had suggested the translator. We didn’t want to completely change around the wording if it could be avoided since the decision to bring me in on the project was Martina’s and not discussed by the publishing manager). I worked at her office from 2pm until we finished at 9:30, but the time flew by. Martina told me that she was just going to have me look at a few of the big things but then when she saw what a difference we were making she asked me look at everything! It was a good experience and I’m glad I could help her out… she was so appreciative and as I was leaving she kept telling me that I had “saved the book”.
Spring Break: Greece!
Spring Break: this is going to be a long one so sit down and buckle up!
It started off on a shaky note; the girls (Jena and Amanda: two friends from college) were supposed to land in Torino Friday morning and then take the airport shuttle to the downtown area where I would be waiting to welcome them. After waiting 2.5 hours at the bus stop without seeing them, I had reached my maximum worry point (they don’t have phones so if we didn’t meet as planned how would we find each other?!). I texted my parents who were able to call Jena’s mom and find out that their flight out of the states had been delayed 8 hours. So 8 hours later I stood waiting at the bus stop again… But they apparently arrived earlier than I had planned and were wondering around the train station, thinking I would meet them there. Luckily, they were able to mime well enough to a janitor/train worker/Italian man and he let them borrow his phone to call my number. So we ended up meeting just fine (with only a few more gray hairs).
Saturday afternoon we visited my cute little neighborhood café before heading downtown for delicious gelato and shopping at the central open market. On the walk, I showed them some of the notable buildings and piazzas of Torino. Then we came home and made yummy pizza and packed for our “overnight” train to Rome. Basically everything from here on out went so surprisingly smoothly (you can stop holding your breath now). The train was fine (and not scary)… we arrived at 6am to Rome so we decided to sit at the station (outside a closed McDonalds) for the sun to rise before we ventured around the city. Our hostel was nice (with computers too). In the two days we were there, Jena and I showed Amanda all the famous attractions of Rome: Trevi fountain, Pantheon, Vatican, Roman Forum, and Coliseum (I went inside this time! It was great to see… very impressive. We even listened to the corny Rick Steve’s audio tour on our ipods while we wandered through the ancient stadium).
With our fingers crossed and our parents worried, we then headed to Greece! We landed at the Athens airport but then took a regional bus two hours outside of the city to Nafplio. It is a quaint little town and was a perfect first impression for Greece. There is a castle perched atop a cliff that rises directly out of the downtown area. We climbed the 999 steps (no we didn’t count, but that’s what the legend claims) to the top where we were rewarded with some great views of the bay and town. It was fun to get out and do something rather than just visit historical sites all day!
Nafplio offers many authentic “worry bead” shops. It is Greek tradition (in the ancient days probably started with a religious purpose, such as the rosary, but now is a secular habit). The beads are “clinked” together along the string and with each unique sound of the beads the owner thinks positive thoughts (“peace, protection, strength…”). After continually doing this (weeks?), the subconscious recognizes the “clinking” and the mind and body receive positive energy from the calming thoughts of “peace, protection, strength…” I liked this explanation the best (others merely described the beads as a way to relieve nervous, worry energy by playing with them). It was really cool to see so many local people actually using worry beads; sometimes I feel like I hear of “traditions” from other cultures but they don’t seem to be practiced anymore. Also, it used to be something that only the males did, but now it has expanded to be used by the women as well.
We also began our “good food” campaign in Nafplio… Greece treated us well when it came to food! The gyros (like pita wraps with grilled meat) and the baklava (pastry made from thin phyla dough layers, nuts, and a sweet honey sauce over the top) were probably my favorite, although the cream pies and Mousaka (dinner dish layered with eggplant, meat, potatoes, and probably some other stuff that I don’t currently remember) deserve an honorable mention. The place we stayed here was so cute! It was like a little bed and breakfast (by far the best “free” breakfast I have ever had… maybe even the best breakfast period). We were only there one night before taking the bus back to the city.
Next was Athens! You’ll be glad to know that we saw no rioting and no strikes. In fact, everyone was extremely helpful and most spoke English (which we were worried about before). We saw all the sites, but of course the Acropolis was my favorite! The view from the top of the hill is incredible and makes the impressive structures even grander. Unfortunately, our time got cut short on the Agora (why would they close at 3 on a beautiful, sunny afternoon?! I’m still confused) but we saw all the big stuff. AND at the hostel Jena got shocked by the electrical plug. She was unplugging her camera charger from the adaptor when it happened (and all the electricity in the room when out). Never had that happen before! (no worries, she took it like a champ… ). We liked seeing Athen’s ancient ruins, but the city itself was nothing special. In fact, it felt like an overcrowded, busy, dirty city (I think the population is something like 4 million, but don’t quote me on that. I know from our view on the Acropolis, the buildings were incredibly dense and stretched out over the hills and out of sight.) Interestingly, there were stray dogs wandering ALL over the city. They’d keep following us for blocks so of course we had them all named.
We ended our trip in Santorini: a perfect, relaxing destination to contrast the site seeing of the other locations. The island is very quiet this time of year, which we were thankful for. This meant fewer shops and restaurants were open, but it also meant that we were surrounded by locals and were able to enjoy the calm of the island without crowds of tourists. The first night we went to the neighboring town on the very tip of the island that is known for its beautiful sunset view, Oia. The views in Oia were absolutely amazing; I felt like all of my pictures should be postcards! We explored the town for couple hours in the warm sunshine before we settled on the cliff edge with a handful of others and watched the sun sink into the ocean. This was probably my favorite moment of the whole trip; the play of light on the ocean, the white washed structures of the town that clung to the cliff edge, the contrast of the buildings against the intense blue of the ocean and sky… it was great.
The next morning at the “hostel’s” breakfast (I say hostel loosely here… it was so nice! They even picked us up from the airport and dropped us off again at the end of our stay) we meet 5 other girls who are originally from the eastern United States but are currently studying in Florence. They were so fun and friendly; we all really hit it off. So that morning, we all (8 of us) climbed down the thousand-some stairs of the cliff to reach the old port. From there we took an afternoon boat tour on an old-style sailboat. Our first stop was the nearest island; it is a newly formed (within the last 500 years) volcanic island. We hiked 40 mins to the top and had an expansive view of the Aegean Sea and the surrounding small, uninhabited islands. Back on the boat, we headed to a hot springs located on the nearest of those “baby” islands. In order to reach them, you have to swim in the ocean from the boat to the spot where the warmer water dumps into the sea. We were told the water was 15 degrees Celsius, but being 8 adventurous girls on spring break, we took the plunge (notably, the only passengers of the boat crazy enough to give it a try). The water was such a cold shock! I started swimming frantically in hopes of reaching the warmer water faster. However, the water was so cold it kept my heart rate down and forced me to breathe in short wheezy gasps. We all made it to the “hot springs” (although I would classify them as “luke-warm-springs”) and back to the boat successfully. What a memory! AND… (Yep still more to this crazy boat adventure) When we docked in the old port, we all rode donkeys back up the thousands of stairs like they traditionally did to transport goods. It was a little nerve racking at first to trust this animal on such a steep and relatively narrow pathway, but it was a fun novelty to have experienced. The whole day seemed like it was straight out of a travel commercial. The next day was a little more low-key. We visited a wine museum where we also did a wine tasting. Then we relaxed on the black sand beach (although the day was not as warm as the others, so we didn’t stay more than an hour).
All in all, I left Greece wanting to go back again soon! It was so much fun to travel with my two good friends and to see such beautiful sites.
It started off on a shaky note; the girls (Jena and Amanda: two friends from college) were supposed to land in Torino Friday morning and then take the airport shuttle to the downtown area where I would be waiting to welcome them. After waiting 2.5 hours at the bus stop without seeing them, I had reached my maximum worry point (they don’t have phones so if we didn’t meet as planned how would we find each other?!). I texted my parents who were able to call Jena’s mom and find out that their flight out of the states had been delayed 8 hours. So 8 hours later I stood waiting at the bus stop again… But they apparently arrived earlier than I had planned and were wondering around the train station, thinking I would meet them there. Luckily, they were able to mime well enough to a janitor/train worker/Italian man and he let them borrow his phone to call my number. So we ended up meeting just fine (with only a few more gray hairs).
Saturday afternoon we visited my cute little neighborhood café before heading downtown for delicious gelato and shopping at the central open market. On the walk, I showed them some of the notable buildings and piazzas of Torino. Then we came home and made yummy pizza and packed for our “overnight” train to Rome. Basically everything from here on out went so surprisingly smoothly (you can stop holding your breath now). The train was fine (and not scary)… we arrived at 6am to Rome so we decided to sit at the station (outside a closed McDonalds) for the sun to rise before we ventured around the city. Our hostel was nice (with computers too). In the two days we were there, Jena and I showed Amanda all the famous attractions of Rome: Trevi fountain, Pantheon, Vatican, Roman Forum, and Coliseum (I went inside this time! It was great to see… very impressive. We even listened to the corny Rick Steve’s audio tour on our ipods while we wandered through the ancient stadium).
With our fingers crossed and our parents worried, we then headed to Greece! We landed at the Athens airport but then took a regional bus two hours outside of the city to Nafplio. It is a quaint little town and was a perfect first impression for Greece. There is a castle perched atop a cliff that rises directly out of the downtown area. We climbed the 999 steps (no we didn’t count, but that’s what the legend claims) to the top where we were rewarded with some great views of the bay and town. It was fun to get out and do something rather than just visit historical sites all day!
Nafplio offers many authentic “worry bead” shops. It is Greek tradition (in the ancient days probably started with a religious purpose, such as the rosary, but now is a secular habit). The beads are “clinked” together along the string and with each unique sound of the beads the owner thinks positive thoughts (“peace, protection, strength…”). After continually doing this (weeks?), the subconscious recognizes the “clinking” and the mind and body receive positive energy from the calming thoughts of “peace, protection, strength…” I liked this explanation the best (others merely described the beads as a way to relieve nervous, worry energy by playing with them). It was really cool to see so many local people actually using worry beads; sometimes I feel like I hear of “traditions” from other cultures but they don’t seem to be practiced anymore. Also, it used to be something that only the males did, but now it has expanded to be used by the women as well.
We also began our “good food” campaign in Nafplio… Greece treated us well when it came to food! The gyros (like pita wraps with grilled meat) and the baklava (pastry made from thin phyla dough layers, nuts, and a sweet honey sauce over the top) were probably my favorite, although the cream pies and Mousaka (dinner dish layered with eggplant, meat, potatoes, and probably some other stuff that I don’t currently remember) deserve an honorable mention. The place we stayed here was so cute! It was like a little bed and breakfast (by far the best “free” breakfast I have ever had… maybe even the best breakfast period). We were only there one night before taking the bus back to the city.
Next was Athens! You’ll be glad to know that we saw no rioting and no strikes. In fact, everyone was extremely helpful and most spoke English (which we were worried about before). We saw all the sites, but of course the Acropolis was my favorite! The view from the top of the hill is incredible and makes the impressive structures even grander. Unfortunately, our time got cut short on the Agora (why would they close at 3 on a beautiful, sunny afternoon?! I’m still confused) but we saw all the big stuff. AND at the hostel Jena got shocked by the electrical plug. She was unplugging her camera charger from the adaptor when it happened (and all the electricity in the room when out). Never had that happen before! (no worries, she took it like a champ… ). We liked seeing Athen’s ancient ruins, but the city itself was nothing special. In fact, it felt like an overcrowded, busy, dirty city (I think the population is something like 4 million, but don’t quote me on that. I know from our view on the Acropolis, the buildings were incredibly dense and stretched out over the hills and out of sight.) Interestingly, there were stray dogs wandering ALL over the city. They’d keep following us for blocks so of course we had them all named.
We ended our trip in Santorini: a perfect, relaxing destination to contrast the site seeing of the other locations. The island is very quiet this time of year, which we were thankful for. This meant fewer shops and restaurants were open, but it also meant that we were surrounded by locals and were able to enjoy the calm of the island without crowds of tourists. The first night we went to the neighboring town on the very tip of the island that is known for its beautiful sunset view, Oia. The views in Oia were absolutely amazing; I felt like all of my pictures should be postcards! We explored the town for couple hours in the warm sunshine before we settled on the cliff edge with a handful of others and watched the sun sink into the ocean. This was probably my favorite moment of the whole trip; the play of light on the ocean, the white washed structures of the town that clung to the cliff edge, the contrast of the buildings against the intense blue of the ocean and sky… it was great.
The next morning at the “hostel’s” breakfast (I say hostel loosely here… it was so nice! They even picked us up from the airport and dropped us off again at the end of our stay) we meet 5 other girls who are originally from the eastern United States but are currently studying in Florence. They were so fun and friendly; we all really hit it off. So that morning, we all (8 of us) climbed down the thousand-some stairs of the cliff to reach the old port. From there we took an afternoon boat tour on an old-style sailboat. Our first stop was the nearest island; it is a newly formed (within the last 500 years) volcanic island. We hiked 40 mins to the top and had an expansive view of the Aegean Sea and the surrounding small, uninhabited islands. Back on the boat, we headed to a hot springs located on the nearest of those “baby” islands. In order to reach them, you have to swim in the ocean from the boat to the spot where the warmer water dumps into the sea. We were told the water was 15 degrees Celsius, but being 8 adventurous girls on spring break, we took the plunge (notably, the only passengers of the boat crazy enough to give it a try). The water was such a cold shock! I started swimming frantically in hopes of reaching the warmer water faster. However, the water was so cold it kept my heart rate down and forced me to breathe in short wheezy gasps. We all made it to the “hot springs” (although I would classify them as “luke-warm-springs”) and back to the boat successfully. What a memory! AND… (Yep still more to this crazy boat adventure) When we docked in the old port, we all rode donkeys back up the thousands of stairs like they traditionally did to transport goods. It was a little nerve racking at first to trust this animal on such a steep and relatively narrow pathway, but it was a fun novelty to have experienced. The whole day seemed like it was straight out of a travel commercial. The next day was a little more low-key. We visited a wine museum where we also did a wine tasting. Then we relaxed on the black sand beach (although the day was not as warm as the others, so we didn’t stay more than an hour).
All in all, I left Greece wanting to go back again soon! It was so much fun to travel with my two good friends and to see such beautiful sites.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Working Woman
I am working this week! It’s exciting to see money coming in instead of always just going out! The USAC advisor asked me if I’d be interested in working for a company that needs English speakers to edit their sound bites and make sure they sound “right”. It was a vague description, but the 23 Euros an hour payment hooked me! I rode the tram there yesterday afternoon (45 min tram ride!). I had to get through two security check points because the work takes place inside the Italian Telecom headquarters (or something like that). The two people I worked with were really nice. They are working for Fiat to develop a car media system that allows you to control USB media devices through voice commands while driving in order to keep your hands on the wheel (I think he said it was called “Blue and Me”). They’ve already introduced the product in Europe, but now they are “localizing” it for release in the states. They played sound clips of what the computerized voice system would say in reply to a command by the user. I had to tell them if it was most importantly, understandable (right wordage) and then play with the computer input text to see if we could make it sound more “natural”. For example, in some cases, the words would come across rushed or mumbled, so by adding spaces or commas or extra letters, the computer read it differently. It was actually pretty interesting (like a puzzle: “how to trick the computer”). Plus it felt pretty cool to feel like and “English expert”! I work three days this week for three hours in the afternoons. It’s a busy week! I don’t know if they’ll need me any more after spring break, but either way it is nice to earn a little pocket change.
Ps. It’s a running joke/common knowledge that I am not a good speller. Twice he was typing a word in English and asked me if it was spelled correctly! O boy… Little does he know…
Ps. It’s a running joke/common knowledge that I am not a good speller. Twice he was typing a word in English and asked me if it was spelled correctly! O boy… Little does he know…
Monday, March 8, 2010
Weekend in Torino (Cirque de Soleil)
A relaxing weekend spent in Torino: I basked in the guilty pleasure of doing nothing! Friday dawned bright and sunny so Kate and I walked to school along the park that boarders the Po River (like the green belt!) A little exploring and curiosity led us to meander off route and turned it into an enjoyable hour stroll in the sun. We finished off the journey with tasty gelato and a much needed trip to the grocery store. Sixty Euros later my shelves in the fridge and cupboard were finally stalked again… It was a good weekend of homemade meals. I even made steak! (For those of you who know me well enough will notice that I was having a STRONG desire for American food to drive me to such extremes!). It was alright; I’m still not in love, but it did the trick. Tonight I was back to pasta.
Friday night Kate and I went out dancing and tried some new trendy bars we’d heard about. Saturday was full of cleaning: my bedroom, my laundry, my sheets, the bathroom, the kitchen, bedroom floor… Let’s just say all my traveling had left my area a little “neglected”. This afternoon (Sunday), I met Katie and we ventured to a new part of town in search of Cirque de Soleil! One of our classmates had told us that it was in town and tickets could be had for only 35 Euros (a steal of a deal compared to the $90 I paid two years ago in California). Today was the LAST showing so thankfully after a little blind bus navigating, we arrived with plenty of time to buy tickets at the door. It was a great show full of feats of flexibility, strength, and odd talent. The costumes, set, and music are always unique and add a heightened level of entertainment to the show. The great thing about Cirque de Soleil shows is that they communicate the “story” with their bodies, so I wasn’t even frustrated by not knowing Italian.
Side Note: Beautiful, warm and sunny on Friday. Bright and blue sky-ed on Saturday. Woke up today to a BLIZZARD! It snowed ALL day. Nonstop. Not even kidding.
Side Note #2: Coming home from Cirque de Soleil tonight I waited 30 mins for bus #34 – it is supposed to come every 11 mins. I finally gave up and walked to a different bus route. When I came home to vent to Kate about the unreliable bus system she informed me that bus #34 doesn’t run on Sundays. Oops. Maybe after my 4 months of living in Torino I will finally figure out public transportation. Did I mention it was miserably cold and snowing that whole half an hour?!
Side Note #3: I finally watched Gladiator for the first time. I think it will add a whole new level of reality to my imagination when I actually go into the Coliseum next weekend. Spring Break Adventure 2010 begins Friday with the arrival of Jena and Aerosol… I hope you’re excited! Rome, Athens, Santorini (pray for sunshine!).
Side Note #4: I just wanted to point out the very real fact that I am half way through my stay in Italy. Didn’t I just get here?!
Friday night Kate and I went out dancing and tried some new trendy bars we’d heard about. Saturday was full of cleaning: my bedroom, my laundry, my sheets, the bathroom, the kitchen, bedroom floor… Let’s just say all my traveling had left my area a little “neglected”. This afternoon (Sunday), I met Katie and we ventured to a new part of town in search of Cirque de Soleil! One of our classmates had told us that it was in town and tickets could be had for only 35 Euros (a steal of a deal compared to the $90 I paid two years ago in California). Today was the LAST showing so thankfully after a little blind bus navigating, we arrived with plenty of time to buy tickets at the door. It was a great show full of feats of flexibility, strength, and odd talent. The costumes, set, and music are always unique and add a heightened level of entertainment to the show. The great thing about Cirque de Soleil shows is that they communicate the “story” with their bodies, so I wasn’t even frustrated by not knowing Italian.
Side Note: Beautiful, warm and sunny on Friday. Bright and blue sky-ed on Saturday. Woke up today to a BLIZZARD! It snowed ALL day. Nonstop. Not even kidding.
Side Note #2: Coming home from Cirque de Soleil tonight I waited 30 mins for bus #34 – it is supposed to come every 11 mins. I finally gave up and walked to a different bus route. When I came home to vent to Kate about the unreliable bus system she informed me that bus #34 doesn’t run on Sundays. Oops. Maybe after my 4 months of living in Torino I will finally figure out public transportation. Did I mention it was miserably cold and snowing that whole half an hour?!
Side Note #3: I finally watched Gladiator for the first time. I think it will add a whole new level of reality to my imagination when I actually go into the Coliseum next weekend. Spring Break Adventure 2010 begins Friday with the arrival of Jena and Aerosol… I hope you’re excited! Rome, Athens, Santorini (pray for sunshine!).
Side Note #4: I just wanted to point out the very real fact that I am half way through my stay in Italy. Didn’t I just get here?!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
In Memeory of Grandma Caroline
I read this poem at her Vigil on Sunday night. I'm glad I could be there and say something. It's so hard to accept how things have changed - it doesn't seem real yet. Please keep my family in your prayers.
Grandma Caroline
For me, Grandma Caroline was many different things:
She was family Christmas gatherings and warm crackling fires.
She was warm summer nights on the patio with owls hooting in the trees.
She was old-time music from a radio that seemed even older and a simmering pot of potato soup that was always ready for you when you arrived.
She was a removed pool table because family dinners were more important, clean laundry when college days demanded it, and a haircut to all the boys.
She was homemade apple sauce and perfectly seasoned coleslaw.
She was an apple pie to a hurting friend and the listening ear at the end of the phone line.
She was a shoulder for tears, a prayer for strength, and an embrace for comfort.
She was a story re-told every time a new family member entered the room, the inventor of "sick tired!" and the tenderness in the endearment “doll baby.”
She was the exclamation "Isn’t that amazing?" at the end of every spiritual story and the beacon when you’d lost your way.
She was freshly brewed coffee – anytime of night, and early morning conversations in her rocking chair while the others still slept upstairs.
She was the counter of the shades of green and gold as the fields turned, and on Memorial Day, she was flowers for the loved ones who’d passed on before her.
She was a card in the mail, a lunch at Taco Time, or a thoughtful gift when encouragement was needed.
She was the pride for every one of my accomplishments and the cherisher of each sketch, poem, and project.
She was the worrier that got us home safely and the phone call at the end of the journey.
She was a mother, a wife, a grandma, a neighbor, a friend.
And even now, though we are left with just these memories, I continue to see her all around me:
For TODAY she is the selflessness I see in my aunts and the humor of my uncles.
She is found in the love for a friend, the compassion for a stranger, and the kindness in the giving.
She is the strength I find in her children and the passion of her grandchildren.
She is the faith when I’m discouraged and the encouragement to never stop seeking the Lord.
She is the moral that keeps me doing what’s right when wrong is so much easier and the lesson in life when I’d rather not even look for it.
She is found in the bond of a family that values time spent together and in the support of a community that holds each other up.
Today, she is a loving memory that will never lose its beauty and the living strength carried on in the kindness of every life she touched.
-Megan Dobroth
Grandma Caroline
For me, Grandma Caroline was many different things:
She was family Christmas gatherings and warm crackling fires.
She was warm summer nights on the patio with owls hooting in the trees.
She was old-time music from a radio that seemed even older and a simmering pot of potato soup that was always ready for you when you arrived.
She was a removed pool table because family dinners were more important, clean laundry when college days demanded it, and a haircut to all the boys.
She was homemade apple sauce and perfectly seasoned coleslaw.
She was an apple pie to a hurting friend and the listening ear at the end of the phone line.
She was a shoulder for tears, a prayer for strength, and an embrace for comfort.
She was a story re-told every time a new family member entered the room, the inventor of "sick tired!" and the tenderness in the endearment “doll baby.”
She was the exclamation "Isn’t that amazing?" at the end of every spiritual story and the beacon when you’d lost your way.
She was freshly brewed coffee – anytime of night, and early morning conversations in her rocking chair while the others still slept upstairs.
She was the counter of the shades of green and gold as the fields turned, and on Memorial Day, she was flowers for the loved ones who’d passed on before her.
She was a card in the mail, a lunch at Taco Time, or a thoughtful gift when encouragement was needed.
She was the pride for every one of my accomplishments and the cherisher of each sketch, poem, and project.
She was the worrier that got us home safely and the phone call at the end of the journey.
She was a mother, a wife, a grandma, a neighbor, a friend.
And even now, though we are left with just these memories, I continue to see her all around me:
For TODAY she is the selflessness I see in my aunts and the humor of my uncles.
She is found in the love for a friend, the compassion for a stranger, and the kindness in the giving.
She is the strength I find in her children and the passion of her grandchildren.
She is the faith when I’m discouraged and the encouragement to never stop seeking the Lord.
She is the moral that keeps me doing what’s right when wrong is so much easier and the lesson in life when I’d rather not even look for it.
She is found in the bond of a family that values time spent together and in the support of a community that holds each other up.
Today, she is a loving memory that will never lose its beauty and the living strength carried on in the kindness of every life she touched.
-Megan Dobroth
Friday, February 26, 2010
Experienced Traveler
I am currently in the Salt Lake airport on my 5 hour layover. I wish I was coming home on better terms, but I am grateful to have to ability to be with my family this weekend and attend my grandma's funeral. I left Torino at 4am this morning (currently 22 hours ago) to catch the bus to the airport. Flew from Torino to Paris (I always wanted to go to Paris... hopefully next time I'll leave the airport) and then from Paris to Salt Lake on a 11.5 hour flight. Unfortunately, it was my daytime, so i wasn't able to sleep much and the movie system was not working (thank goodness for ipods!). I'll finally arrive in Spokane at 8:30pm Mountain time (5:30 am Torino time...) What a long day! It is weird to be able to understand what everyone is saying around me. And not be nervous about asking questions of workers for fear that they won't be able to understand! I've met some really nice people on flights today and experienced customs for the first time.
I've also come to realize how lucky I am to have such great roommates. At 4am this morning, Youn got up to walk with me to the bus stop (20 min walk) because she didn't want me going alone and wanted to see me off with a hug! She even made me vegetable soup this morning, because "that's what we have in Korea in the morning". Kate left me a bag with a pastry, chocolate, strawberries, orange juice, and yogurt for my travels and a nice card reminding me to come back to Italy :) People like this make me realize I need to remember to show compassion everyday; it's easy to forget how much the little things mean to someone having a hard time.
I've also come to realize how lucky I am to have such great roommates. At 4am this morning, Youn got up to walk with me to the bus stop (20 min walk) because she didn't want me going alone and wanted to see me off with a hug! She even made me vegetable soup this morning, because "that's what we have in Korea in the morning". Kate left me a bag with a pastry, chocolate, strawberries, orange juice, and yogurt for my travels and a nice card reminding me to come back to Italy :) People like this make me realize I need to remember to show compassion everyday; it's easy to forget how much the little things mean to someone having a hard time.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Rome... the hard way
O boy… yet another travel story of missed transportation and hectic planning. Our flight for Rome was leaving at 7:30am from Milan which means we needed to catch the 3 am shuttle bus from Tornio to the Milan airport (2 hours away). Now people that know me would predict that my morning was flawed by oversleeping, as that usually is to blame for me missing morning activities. This was not the case… the 6 of us left my apartment at 2am to walk to the bus stop. Drew specifically called to determine exactly where the bus pick-up was located and was told by an English speaking employer the location. We arrived with plenty of time to spare! After waiting for 20 minutes with 3 am too close for comfort and no site of a bus, we called the company again. This time we got a different operator; different location. After a panicked 5 minutes of sprinting SEVERAL blocks down the street and another phone call, we accepted the fact that we had just missed the bus (which we already paid 18 Euro for by the way). With no more buses, no trains, and a plane that was located 2 hours away, we were in a pickle! We called a taxi and were told it would cost 190 Euros to reach Milan… When the taxi showed up, they could only seat 5 people and we were told our only option was TWO 190 Euro taxis. After pleading with the man in Italian, we gave up and decided we’d be skipping Rome this weekend. FORTUNATELY, the man took pity on our sad little predicament and finally agreed to squeeze and extra passenger into the vehicle (illegal by the way). Two hours and 40 Euros each later, we were at the airport!
I am happy to report that the weekend takes a lovely upturn at this point (we decided that fate was trying to pay us back). It was supposed to rain ALL weekend; I never once opened my umbrella. I had the chance to go to the Borghese Gallery and see Bernini’s sculptures (David, Daphne and Apollo) and a few works by Caravaggio (they are my two current favorites). And I even returned back to my friends safely after walking through the park for 30 minutes, after sunset, in Rome, by myself (sorry Mom and Dad… there was no avoiding it. But there were still people around jogging and stuff so it didn’t freak me out too badly. I was ready for a fight if I had to!). I saw the Coliseum from the outside (I’m saving it to see with Amanda and Jena over spring break!), the Pantheon (it was very impressive), the San Carlo Quattro Fontane church (that I’ve studied in art history classes), the Trevi fountain, the Spanish steps, and more churches, piazzas, café’s, gelaterias, etc. I also was really lucky when it came to the Vatican. In the morning, the line was an hour wait (at least!) to see St. Peter’s Basilica. However, thanks to Rick’s advice (aka my Rick Steve’s book), a friend and I came back in the afternoon and got in within 15 minutes! I was really excited about that. The Basilica was MASSIVE. The vaulting is huge and spans such a wide space that I wish I understood the engineering of it all. Of course it is filled with amazing sculptures and elaborate decoration, but the sheer space of it all is what impacted me the most.
After two full days of walking and site-seeing, we headed to the airport at 10pm at night (we decided to stay at the airport because our flight took off at 7am which is before we could get any trains to take us from the city center to the airport). In past airports I’ve seen, I feel like I could have reasonably slept for the night. However, Rome has its own “sleeping at the airport” culture which they apparently try to fight against by making the chairs impossible to lay on (curved bottoms, armrests, no cushion). Oh and they save on their heating bill at night too! After a night of little sleep but many laughs (it’s always nice to travel with friends that can make light of a bad situation). At the Milan airport, I split from the group and headed into the city center to catch my reservation for The Last Supper”. It was such I beautiful day out that I also climbed the stairs to the top of the Duomo (which we didn’t get a chance to do last time we were in Milan but I had wanted to). I was tired after a long weekend of little sleep and headed home on the train from Milan to Torino. I had used an old ticket Kate gave me because it was never punched so she thought it would still be good… wrong. After everyone on the train stared at me while the ticket checker man tried to explain to me in broken English that it was no good (and I tried to play the innocent “I didn’t know because I’m a tourist who doesn’t speak Italian and is such a sweet nice girl” game), I bought a ticket and paid an extra penalty fee. I’m beginning to think I need to start a “Megan learns all her lessons in Italy the hard way” fund! (By the way, I also never admitted that I got a bus ticket too… I HAVE a monthly bus pass, but of course the one day I forget my wallet I get checked by the bus authorities! I was terribly upset after being handed a 60 Euro ticket, but the USAC office said that since I really do have a monthly bus pass, I can bring that in when I go to pay for my ticket and the charge will be reduced to 11).
I am happy to report that the weekend takes a lovely upturn at this point (we decided that fate was trying to pay us back). It was supposed to rain ALL weekend; I never once opened my umbrella. I had the chance to go to the Borghese Gallery and see Bernini’s sculptures (David, Daphne and Apollo) and a few works by Caravaggio (they are my two current favorites). And I even returned back to my friends safely after walking through the park for 30 minutes, after sunset, in Rome, by myself (sorry Mom and Dad… there was no avoiding it. But there were still people around jogging and stuff so it didn’t freak me out too badly. I was ready for a fight if I had to!). I saw the Coliseum from the outside (I’m saving it to see with Amanda and Jena over spring break!), the Pantheon (it was very impressive), the San Carlo Quattro Fontane church (that I’ve studied in art history classes), the Trevi fountain, the Spanish steps, and more churches, piazzas, café’s, gelaterias, etc. I also was really lucky when it came to the Vatican. In the morning, the line was an hour wait (at least!) to see St. Peter’s Basilica. However, thanks to Rick’s advice (aka my Rick Steve’s book), a friend and I came back in the afternoon and got in within 15 minutes! I was really excited about that. The Basilica was MASSIVE. The vaulting is huge and spans such a wide space that I wish I understood the engineering of it all. Of course it is filled with amazing sculptures and elaborate decoration, but the sheer space of it all is what impacted me the most.
After two full days of walking and site-seeing, we headed to the airport at 10pm at night (we decided to stay at the airport because our flight took off at 7am which is before we could get any trains to take us from the city center to the airport). In past airports I’ve seen, I feel like I could have reasonably slept for the night. However, Rome has its own “sleeping at the airport” culture which they apparently try to fight against by making the chairs impossible to lay on (curved bottoms, armrests, no cushion). Oh and they save on their heating bill at night too! After a night of little sleep but many laughs (it’s always nice to travel with friends that can make light of a bad situation). At the Milan airport, I split from the group and headed into the city center to catch my reservation for The Last Supper”. It was such I beautiful day out that I also climbed the stairs to the top of the Duomo (which we didn’t get a chance to do last time we were in Milan but I had wanted to). I was tired after a long weekend of little sleep and headed home on the train from Milan to Torino. I had used an old ticket Kate gave me because it was never punched so she thought it would still be good… wrong. After everyone on the train stared at me while the ticket checker man tried to explain to me in broken English that it was no good (and I tried to play the innocent “I didn’t know because I’m a tourist who doesn’t speak Italian and is such a sweet nice girl” game), I bought a ticket and paid an extra penalty fee. I’m beginning to think I need to start a “Megan learns all her lessons in Italy the hard way” fund! (By the way, I also never admitted that I got a bus ticket too… I HAVE a monthly bus pass, but of course the one day I forget my wallet I get checked by the bus authorities! I was terribly upset after being handed a 60 Euro ticket, but the USAC office said that since I really do have a monthly bus pass, I can bring that in when I go to pay for my ticket and the charge will be reduced to 11).
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Tour of Italy
A week traveling through Italy; I have so much to tell - Bare with me! We left Wednesday morning on the 11 o’clock train to…
PISA
We stopped here for a few hours (really just to take pictures of the tower and run). Unfortunately, the church was already closed so we didn’t get to go inside, but we did have a fun photo shoot! Also had some of the best gelato I’ve tasted so far, and trust me, I’ve tasted my fair share! Then we grabbed another train to…
FLORENCE
We arrived with enough time to have free dinner at our hostel! It was a great place to stay (see previous post). There is SO much to see and do in Florence. The first morning we took the free 2 hour historical center tour (with the hostel) and saw a lot of the main sites. The Duomo had a beautiful exterior of green, white, and rose marble. The interior was really simple because of the time period it was completed, so the inside wasn’t as awe-inspiring as the ornate façade. The dome is naturally a historic feat of design (the building was constructed before the technology to top it with a dome that could span the large distance needed was developed yet… Brunelleschi came along and saved the day). It was exciting to walk through the city and recognize buildings I had learned about in Architecture History class. I never really expected to see so many firsthand! We also explored the open market where I got a really original, thick leather belt (Tuscany has great leather products). After the next morning’s second free tour, we spent the entire afternoon in art galleries (Academia and Uffizi). Seeing the famous pieces in person was much more moving than studying them from a book! Little things change the experience so much, such as being able to see the light glinting off the gold flecks in the paint and taking in the massive size of the paintings. The Uffizi museum houses works by many of the “greats”: Fra Filippo Lippi, Botticelli (“Birth of Venus”), Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titan, Caravaggio, Rembrandt… (and the list goes on). The QUANTITY of art in the museum is overwhelming! We spend over 4 hours walking through the halls (and that was with a little hurrying at the end because our eyes were starting to lose focus!). I loved seeing everything in person (you can imagine the artist right there painting each form), but it was definitely a very exhausting afternoon. Then we went to the Academia, which displays a much smaller collection, most noteworthy being Michelangelo’s David. It was really spectacular to see the detail and size of the statue. Even pulsing veins can be seen carved into the strong arms of David; it really is an exceptional piece. Kate and I were both more impressed with The David than we had expected to be. While taking in all the art, I think one of the major realizations that hit me was the emotional power of the works. Seeing such intricate, lively, and decorative pieces of Jesus, Mary, etc really made me FEEL the pain, suffering, and exaltation of each scene depicted; for me, it was so different than studying them in class that it somehow hit me as unexpected. I understand why the Church commissioned such masterpieces – it literally moves the viewer to a sense of spirituality.
WE of course enjoyed some excellent gelato in Florence (the town claims to be the original home of gelato). One of our afternoons in Florence, we took a day trip by bus to…
SAN GIMIGNANO
An old medieval town, it is surrounded by a large wall and allows only limited vehicular traffic. Since it’s the off season for tourism, the town was quiet and sleepy, but still fun to explore. Kate and I window shopped, enjoyed a nice lunch and local wine, and explored the weaving streets. On the outskirts of town we found a wooded area that was covered in deep shades of green and slightly blurred by a romantic white mist clinging to the air. Here we discovered what appeared to be old baths carved out of the stone hillside and fed by a warm natural spring. If only we had our suits! Haha
Friday morning we headed on a…
BIKE RIDE to SIENA
Kate and I biked through the Tuscan countryside! We had a personal guide/biking expert, Marco. He use to be a professional cyclist and then started his own bike touring business which has expanded to several locations including destinations in California (where he spends several months out of the year). He is from Florence so it was fun to chat with him about the area. We were his first clients for the season (he admired our dedication for biking in the winter!). It was still beautiful although I could only imagine how spectacular it would be in the spring. We were so lucky to have a window of sunshine and blue sky (literally, it rained the day before and started raining right when we finished). At times there was a light dusting of snow on the hills, but the temperature was never too bad thanks to our moving legs and the sunshine! Originally, the route is a 21 mile bike ride… I say “originally” because we had to start a few miles down the road (to avoid a shaded downhill area that was a little icy). After all our joking in the car about not being good bike riders, Marco seemed a little worried/nervous. After the first little jaunt, when we passed him he was all smiles saying “you guys are doing so great! Much better than I expected!” We didn’t even know what to think of that! Was he expecting us to fall down and crash?! Guess it was better to prepare him for the worst and surprise him with our hidden biking skills! However, I will admit that on the HUGE hill (not insanely steep, just very long), we were going so slowly I was afraid I would start rolling backwards! Stubborn, we kept pushing on until Marco informed us that we weren’t even half done with it yet. At that point we were thankful for the “van support”! The level and downhill stretches were so much more fun ;) We stopped twice on the ride: once in a little town (wander around, have a break, visit the market, etc) and once for wine tasting. The place we were supposed to go for wine tasting was closed (hours are always limited and changing in the off season) so we went to a little osteria (an osteria is a small café, usually family owned, that specializes in local cuisine). It was completely empty except for the two young men working there, who were more than happy to give us our own little wine tasting complete with homemade bread baked that afternoon. It was fun to get to know them and to enjoy little bits of different kinds of wines (I’m still not any good at telling a difference tho!). I think they enjoyed themselves too because they kept pouring new samples… “this one is my favorite” “you have to try this one” “this one is from the area” “this is a really nice wine!”. The second half of the bike ride was full of Kate and I singing songs ;) We loved the whole experience (even the hills!) and don’t regret splurging for the tour. It was a good opportunity to see something different and to DO something rather than walk from tourist stop to tourist stop.
SIENA
We only spent one night in Siena, but I thought it was a great city. The Cathedral is absolutely breath-taking. The interior leaves you so amazed, you just have to sit down and look for an hour to take it all in! And of course we visited the famous Piazza Del Campo. It is an unusual fan shape and quite large! I didn’t think it was as memorable as people seem to claim it is however. Kate and I enjoyed a lovely dinner of local cuisine: I had ricotta cheese and spinach dumplings over Tuscan meat sauce and then a serving of wild boar. The whole thing was delicious! We also purchase authentic Italian made leather boots; they were 60% off! Couldn’t help ourselves… A bus ride early the next morning brought us to Rome, (where we missed our first train... schedules are tight!) and from there a train to…
SORRENTO
Our time in the Amalfi Coast was short but sweet. The night we arrived, Sorrento was having a huge carnival downtown to celebrate their patron saint, and boy do they go all out: candy markets, dried fruit, toys, lights, music, fireworks, and general market booths. My sweet tooth ended up costing me 4 euro in gummies and candied pistachios! Then day one was consumed by Pompeii… We spent 5 hours amongst the ruins and were still running (literally) to see things at the end before it closed. Pompeii brought out my inner child: I just wanted to explore every turn, imagine colorful daily lives going on around me, and play house in the basic rock-walled structures. When asked about the trip I usually refer to Pompeii as my favorite, although it’s hard to decide amongst all the amazing sites we visited. Originally we had wanted to hike Vesuvius, but we ran out of time and the weather didn’t cooperate. Our last day, we walked around the city, focusing our time on the bay and the coastal views. Then we headed in for a quick pizza in Naples (Pizza is original to Naples you know…) and caught a flight to Milan. (only one little backpack allowed as my carry on... let's just say that I'm thankful my bag has straps for strapping extras to the outside, and for my mother for passing on her tight packing skills)
I wish this is where the story ended, but there is yet another tragic tale to tell! From the Milan airport, it is necessary to catch a shuttle bus to the train station. From there, we purchased the last ticket for the night to Torino Porta Nuova (station close to our apartment) and sat down to wait the 45 mins for the train. We waited and waited for the board to post what platform our train would be arriving at…. But it never came. Finally, 4 mins after the train was set to depart, platform 4 finally flashed up on the screen. We hurried in that direction (we were standing by platform 17… really not that far of a walk) and even jogged half of it joking around that it would suck to miss a train (we all know I’ve done that before). Literally 30 seconds after the number popped up on the screen, we reached the train to see its doors close RIGHT in front of us! A train worker even was standing right inside the door and did nothing for us… You can bet how mad we were! This train would have gotten us home at midnight just in time to catch the last bus home for the night. Instead, we were told to “just wait for the next train” (like that wasn’t a big deal for two tired, fuming mad travelers). The next train wasn’t for another two hours, took us to the furthest station in Torino, and forced us to pay for a cab ride home to the apartment. Finally got home at 3 am and was up at 7:30 for class! This traveling thing is exhausting! (For the record, we weren’t the only passengers that got left by the tricky Torino train).
It was a memorable week, made me love Italy even more, and even led me to appreciate dear old Idaho more (the hilly fields of Tuscany kept reminding me of the Palouse hills, and the Amalfi Coast reminded me of Oregon). Sometimes it’s easy to take advantage of the nature that surrounds us locally thinking we need to travel the world to find beauty, when in reality it’s right in our hands everyday if we have the state of mind to explore it with fresh eyes.
And all that for only missing two classes!
PISA
We stopped here for a few hours (really just to take pictures of the tower and run). Unfortunately, the church was already closed so we didn’t get to go inside, but we did have a fun photo shoot! Also had some of the best gelato I’ve tasted so far, and trust me, I’ve tasted my fair share! Then we grabbed another train to…
FLORENCE
We arrived with enough time to have free dinner at our hostel! It was a great place to stay (see previous post). There is SO much to see and do in Florence. The first morning we took the free 2 hour historical center tour (with the hostel) and saw a lot of the main sites. The Duomo had a beautiful exterior of green, white, and rose marble. The interior was really simple because of the time period it was completed, so the inside wasn’t as awe-inspiring as the ornate façade. The dome is naturally a historic feat of design (the building was constructed before the technology to top it with a dome that could span the large distance needed was developed yet… Brunelleschi came along and saved the day). It was exciting to walk through the city and recognize buildings I had learned about in Architecture History class. I never really expected to see so many firsthand! We also explored the open market where I got a really original, thick leather belt (Tuscany has great leather products). After the next morning’s second free tour, we spent the entire afternoon in art galleries (Academia and Uffizi). Seeing the famous pieces in person was much more moving than studying them from a book! Little things change the experience so much, such as being able to see the light glinting off the gold flecks in the paint and taking in the massive size of the paintings. The Uffizi museum houses works by many of the “greats”: Fra Filippo Lippi, Botticelli (“Birth of Venus”), Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titan, Caravaggio, Rembrandt… (and the list goes on). The QUANTITY of art in the museum is overwhelming! We spend over 4 hours walking through the halls (and that was with a little hurrying at the end because our eyes were starting to lose focus!). I loved seeing everything in person (you can imagine the artist right there painting each form), but it was definitely a very exhausting afternoon. Then we went to the Academia, which displays a much smaller collection, most noteworthy being Michelangelo’s David. It was really spectacular to see the detail and size of the statue. Even pulsing veins can be seen carved into the strong arms of David; it really is an exceptional piece. Kate and I were both more impressed with The David than we had expected to be. While taking in all the art, I think one of the major realizations that hit me was the emotional power of the works. Seeing such intricate, lively, and decorative pieces of Jesus, Mary, etc really made me FEEL the pain, suffering, and exaltation of each scene depicted; for me, it was so different than studying them in class that it somehow hit me as unexpected. I understand why the Church commissioned such masterpieces – it literally moves the viewer to a sense of spirituality.
WE of course enjoyed some excellent gelato in Florence (the town claims to be the original home of gelato). One of our afternoons in Florence, we took a day trip by bus to…
SAN GIMIGNANO
An old medieval town, it is surrounded by a large wall and allows only limited vehicular traffic. Since it’s the off season for tourism, the town was quiet and sleepy, but still fun to explore. Kate and I window shopped, enjoyed a nice lunch and local wine, and explored the weaving streets. On the outskirts of town we found a wooded area that was covered in deep shades of green and slightly blurred by a romantic white mist clinging to the air. Here we discovered what appeared to be old baths carved out of the stone hillside and fed by a warm natural spring. If only we had our suits! Haha
Friday morning we headed on a…
BIKE RIDE to SIENA
Kate and I biked through the Tuscan countryside! We had a personal guide/biking expert, Marco. He use to be a professional cyclist and then started his own bike touring business which has expanded to several locations including destinations in California (where he spends several months out of the year). He is from Florence so it was fun to chat with him about the area. We were his first clients for the season (he admired our dedication for biking in the winter!). It was still beautiful although I could only imagine how spectacular it would be in the spring. We were so lucky to have a window of sunshine and blue sky (literally, it rained the day before and started raining right when we finished). At times there was a light dusting of snow on the hills, but the temperature was never too bad thanks to our moving legs and the sunshine! Originally, the route is a 21 mile bike ride… I say “originally” because we had to start a few miles down the road (to avoid a shaded downhill area that was a little icy). After all our joking in the car about not being good bike riders, Marco seemed a little worried/nervous. After the first little jaunt, when we passed him he was all smiles saying “you guys are doing so great! Much better than I expected!” We didn’t even know what to think of that! Was he expecting us to fall down and crash?! Guess it was better to prepare him for the worst and surprise him with our hidden biking skills! However, I will admit that on the HUGE hill (not insanely steep, just very long), we were going so slowly I was afraid I would start rolling backwards! Stubborn, we kept pushing on until Marco informed us that we weren’t even half done with it yet. At that point we were thankful for the “van support”! The level and downhill stretches were so much more fun ;) We stopped twice on the ride: once in a little town (wander around, have a break, visit the market, etc) and once for wine tasting. The place we were supposed to go for wine tasting was closed (hours are always limited and changing in the off season) so we went to a little osteria (an osteria is a small café, usually family owned, that specializes in local cuisine). It was completely empty except for the two young men working there, who were more than happy to give us our own little wine tasting complete with homemade bread baked that afternoon. It was fun to get to know them and to enjoy little bits of different kinds of wines (I’m still not any good at telling a difference tho!). I think they enjoyed themselves too because they kept pouring new samples… “this one is my favorite” “you have to try this one” “this one is from the area” “this is a really nice wine!”. The second half of the bike ride was full of Kate and I singing songs ;) We loved the whole experience (even the hills!) and don’t regret splurging for the tour. It was a good opportunity to see something different and to DO something rather than walk from tourist stop to tourist stop.
SIENA
We only spent one night in Siena, but I thought it was a great city. The Cathedral is absolutely breath-taking. The interior leaves you so amazed, you just have to sit down and look for an hour to take it all in! And of course we visited the famous Piazza Del Campo. It is an unusual fan shape and quite large! I didn’t think it was as memorable as people seem to claim it is however. Kate and I enjoyed a lovely dinner of local cuisine: I had ricotta cheese and spinach dumplings over Tuscan meat sauce and then a serving of wild boar. The whole thing was delicious! We also purchase authentic Italian made leather boots; they were 60% off! Couldn’t help ourselves… A bus ride early the next morning brought us to Rome, (where we missed our first train... schedules are tight!) and from there a train to…
SORRENTO
Our time in the Amalfi Coast was short but sweet. The night we arrived, Sorrento was having a huge carnival downtown to celebrate their patron saint, and boy do they go all out: candy markets, dried fruit, toys, lights, music, fireworks, and general market booths. My sweet tooth ended up costing me 4 euro in gummies and candied pistachios! Then day one was consumed by Pompeii… We spent 5 hours amongst the ruins and were still running (literally) to see things at the end before it closed. Pompeii brought out my inner child: I just wanted to explore every turn, imagine colorful daily lives going on around me, and play house in the basic rock-walled structures. When asked about the trip I usually refer to Pompeii as my favorite, although it’s hard to decide amongst all the amazing sites we visited. Originally we had wanted to hike Vesuvius, but we ran out of time and the weather didn’t cooperate. Our last day, we walked around the city, focusing our time on the bay and the coastal views. Then we headed in for a quick pizza in Naples (Pizza is original to Naples you know…) and caught a flight to Milan. (only one little backpack allowed as my carry on... let's just say that I'm thankful my bag has straps for strapping extras to the outside, and for my mother for passing on her tight packing skills)
I wish this is where the story ended, but there is yet another tragic tale to tell! From the Milan airport, it is necessary to catch a shuttle bus to the train station. From there, we purchased the last ticket for the night to Torino Porta Nuova (station close to our apartment) and sat down to wait the 45 mins for the train. We waited and waited for the board to post what platform our train would be arriving at…. But it never came. Finally, 4 mins after the train was set to depart, platform 4 finally flashed up on the screen. We hurried in that direction (we were standing by platform 17… really not that far of a walk) and even jogged half of it joking around that it would suck to miss a train (we all know I’ve done that before). Literally 30 seconds after the number popped up on the screen, we reached the train to see its doors close RIGHT in front of us! A train worker even was standing right inside the door and did nothing for us… You can bet how mad we were! This train would have gotten us home at midnight just in time to catch the last bus home for the night. Instead, we were told to “just wait for the next train” (like that wasn’t a big deal for two tired, fuming mad travelers). The next train wasn’t for another two hours, took us to the furthest station in Torino, and forced us to pay for a cab ride home to the apartment. Finally got home at 3 am and was up at 7:30 for class! This traveling thing is exhausting! (For the record, we weren’t the only passengers that got left by the tricky Torino train).
It was a memorable week, made me love Italy even more, and even led me to appreciate dear old Idaho more (the hilly fields of Tuscany kept reminding me of the Palouse hills, and the Amalfi Coast reminded me of Oregon). Sometimes it’s easy to take advantage of the nature that surrounds us locally thinking we need to travel the world to find beauty, when in reality it’s right in our hands everyday if we have the state of mind to explore it with fresh eyes.
And all that for only missing two classes!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Florence is starting off on a good foot...
So turns out our hostel is freaking amazing... for the price of the room (19 euro) we get free dinner, free breakfast, free 2 hour walking tour of Florence (2 different ones) free wifi, and free computer in each room.(haha that sounds like a better deal than my apartment!) Along with a TV room with satellite and a computer hall where each computer has a webcam. Pretty stinking good huh? Kate and I split a pizza and salad tonight; it was pretty good. They even have omelettes for breakfast (usually it's just toast, croissant, etc). We are going to take the first walking tour tomorrow and then go to one of the little towns near by (San Gimignano) in the afternoon. Friday is our all Florence day (with two art museums scheduled) and then saturday is the infamous bike ride... looked up the weather... Saturday is the only day that's sunny!! Hopefully it works out as predicted and we have nice weather. anyways, i'm gonna go... don't want to hog the computer(we are in a room with 9 people total. Bunkbeds and then a private bathroom. Really nice for a hostel).
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Venice: the Enchanting City
Venice… Where do I even start?! It is just as beautiful as I had imagined from all the pictures. It has its own enchanting personality, different from any place I’ve visited. It is literally a maze of little alley ways and bridges; it’s fascinating. I loved seeing little canals run between buildings with family boats “parked” all along the edges. There were entrances to buildings right off the water (some areas just had canals and no sidewalks), which is something I hadn’t seen before. A little trivia for you: the city of Venice is made up of 95% water and 5% land (hence its development as a fishing village), it is a collection of over 100 islands (each time you cross a bridge, you are coming onto a new island), and the original people to settle the islands did so seeking defense from their enemies (who were not seafaring people).
We arrived Saturday afternoon (5.5 hour bus ride). After checking into the hotel (comfortable bed, shared a room with 3 other girls) we headed to the main city square, Palazzo St. Marco. We met with a tour guide who gave us a 2 hour walking tour of the city and shared a lot of the history with us (let’s just say sometimes I got distracted by taking pictures… glad there wasn’t a quiz!). By the end of all of this, it was dinner time. A group of us girls had a nice sit down dinner at a little restaurant. We then went out to explore the night life of the city, but Venice gets pretty quiet at night. The great thing is that the city feels very safe. At one point, we got lost trying to find our way back to the hotel (don’t go anywhere without a map!!!). A couple in their 50’s noticed we had walked by twice and asked us if we needed help (many people speak English in Venice). We showed them the hotel marked on the map, but after trying to describe directions they just decided to walk us home. It felt like such a supportive community and was a good opportunity to talk with locals (the husband told us to talk with his wife because she “needed to practice her English”).
Sunday was beautiful and sunny with a clear, blue sky - such a welcomed change from Torino weather and from the forecast (we were expecting rain all weekend). In the morning, we went to a PACKED St. Marco’s square; It was the day for Carnival celebration’s opening ceremonies. Carnival is a very famous time to Venice and they take it very seriously. We watched parades of costumes (locals go ALL out dressing up is elaborate outfits… check out pictures on facebook) before the angel “flew” through the courtyard. There is a long cable attached to the top of a high tower on one end of the square. The other end attaches to the opposite side of the square down on the stage area. Every year a woman dressed in an elaborate white dress is lowered along the cable, out over the courtyard full of people. The celebrations continued on all day with bands of costumed people marching through the streets and constantly posing for pictures. It was fun to see the city so lively and festive – an exciting time to be in Venice.
Saturday afternoon we saw the main Cathedral. It is incredible impressive. The exterior is completely covered in marble slabs (“won” from other countries during war times) while practically every wall and ceiling surface on the interior is covered in tiled frescos. The tiles are unique to Venice (made from a thin sheet of gold melted onto the back of colored glass). The gold makes the tiles sparkle in the light. The range of colors is unending; slightly varying shades were used to show gradual shading on each mosaic, demonstrating the intricacy of the work (with tiles smaller than half the size of a penny). I can’t even fathom how the all the tall domes of the church were mosaic-ed with such detail! The church also housed the famous 4 life-size golden horses that originally stood outside on the church’s balcony (which have obviously been moved out of the weather and replaced with replicas while the real statues remain inside). They are believed to be Greek sculptures from around 400 BC that were taken from Greece after winning a battle. To top off the grand church visit, guests walk out onto the balcony (several stories above the ground). It offers a close up view of the façade architectural details and the most incredible view of the entire square (which looks out over the port). The square also houses the Doge’s Palace and was used as the welcoming entrance to the city when guests came to visit the Royal family. We were so lucky to be able to see it all on such a sunny day.
After all this excitement, we wandered through the markets and stores looking at all the local glasswork and the colorful Venetian carnival masks. Around sunset, Drew and I took a ferry boat down the Grand Canal (the town’s public transportation system). It was good to see the buildings and port from the water (after all, it is one of the most unique aspects of Venice). We naturally ended with a late night of Super Bowl watching at a small pub. I left in the third quarter when I started falling asleep at the table (3:30 am)! On our bus ride home today, we stopped for 2 hours in Verona where we saw some Roman ruins, Juliet’s balcony, and a little bit of the town. At 8pm we finally returned to our apartment, all worn out! I have one day of school tomorrow before heading out on my week trip down through Italy. I better start heading to bed!
Ciao!
We arrived Saturday afternoon (5.5 hour bus ride). After checking into the hotel (comfortable bed, shared a room with 3 other girls) we headed to the main city square, Palazzo St. Marco. We met with a tour guide who gave us a 2 hour walking tour of the city and shared a lot of the history with us (let’s just say sometimes I got distracted by taking pictures… glad there wasn’t a quiz!). By the end of all of this, it was dinner time. A group of us girls had a nice sit down dinner at a little restaurant. We then went out to explore the night life of the city, but Venice gets pretty quiet at night. The great thing is that the city feels very safe. At one point, we got lost trying to find our way back to the hotel (don’t go anywhere without a map!!!). A couple in their 50’s noticed we had walked by twice and asked us if we needed help (many people speak English in Venice). We showed them the hotel marked on the map, but after trying to describe directions they just decided to walk us home. It felt like such a supportive community and was a good opportunity to talk with locals (the husband told us to talk with his wife because she “needed to practice her English”).
Sunday was beautiful and sunny with a clear, blue sky - such a welcomed change from Torino weather and from the forecast (we were expecting rain all weekend). In the morning, we went to a PACKED St. Marco’s square; It was the day for Carnival celebration’s opening ceremonies. Carnival is a very famous time to Venice and they take it very seriously. We watched parades of costumes (locals go ALL out dressing up is elaborate outfits… check out pictures on facebook) before the angel “flew” through the courtyard. There is a long cable attached to the top of a high tower on one end of the square. The other end attaches to the opposite side of the square down on the stage area. Every year a woman dressed in an elaborate white dress is lowered along the cable, out over the courtyard full of people. The celebrations continued on all day with bands of costumed people marching through the streets and constantly posing for pictures. It was fun to see the city so lively and festive – an exciting time to be in Venice.
Saturday afternoon we saw the main Cathedral. It is incredible impressive. The exterior is completely covered in marble slabs (“won” from other countries during war times) while practically every wall and ceiling surface on the interior is covered in tiled frescos. The tiles are unique to Venice (made from a thin sheet of gold melted onto the back of colored glass). The gold makes the tiles sparkle in the light. The range of colors is unending; slightly varying shades were used to show gradual shading on each mosaic, demonstrating the intricacy of the work (with tiles smaller than half the size of a penny). I can’t even fathom how the all the tall domes of the church were mosaic-ed with such detail! The church also housed the famous 4 life-size golden horses that originally stood outside on the church’s balcony (which have obviously been moved out of the weather and replaced with replicas while the real statues remain inside). They are believed to be Greek sculptures from around 400 BC that were taken from Greece after winning a battle. To top off the grand church visit, guests walk out onto the balcony (several stories above the ground). It offers a close up view of the façade architectural details and the most incredible view of the entire square (which looks out over the port). The square also houses the Doge’s Palace and was used as the welcoming entrance to the city when guests came to visit the Royal family. We were so lucky to be able to see it all on such a sunny day.
After all this excitement, we wandered through the markets and stores looking at all the local glasswork and the colorful Venetian carnival masks. Around sunset, Drew and I took a ferry boat down the Grand Canal (the town’s public transportation system). It was good to see the buildings and port from the water (after all, it is one of the most unique aspects of Venice). We naturally ended with a late night of Super Bowl watching at a small pub. I left in the third quarter when I started falling asleep at the table (3:30 am)! On our bus ride home today, we stopped for 2 hours in Verona where we saw some Roman ruins, Juliet’s balcony, and a little bit of the town. At 8pm we finally returned to our apartment, all worn out! I have one day of school tomorrow before heading out on my week trip down through Italy. I better start heading to bed!
Ciao!
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Plans for Italy travel... and random updates!
Written the night of Wednesday, Feb. 3rd:
Tomorrow is a busy day! We have to meet at the police station early in the morning to finalize everything for our “permit of stay” (fingerprints), then we are analyzing our ‘site’ downtown for architecture studio and heading back to school for a few hours of Italian class. All followed by a night a studying for my second Italian exam (lots of verb conjugations to memorize). It was beautiful sunny today in Torino; It was so cheerful! I can also check figuring out another ‘everyday activity’ of my list: pharmacy. I bought cough syrup and nose spray (for congestion). Luckily, the woman who helped me spoke English pretty well (otherwise I think I would have been playing charades in the pharmacy). I have a cold that seems to be clinging on, but it’s not slowing me down too much.
I’m excited for my upcoming travels. On Saturday, we leave for Venice/Verona on a private bus and even get the luxury of a real hotel and not a hostel (it’s a USAC organized trip). I come back to Torino for one day of class (Tuesday) before leaving again to travel down thru Italy with Kate. We will be gone from Wednesday until the next Tuesday night (and only missing 2 classes total, don’t fret parents). We’re calling it our “Tour of Italy”. The plan is to take a train to Pisa (to stop for a few hours and see the tower) and then spend the next 3 nights in Florence. One day we will use to visit small towns in the region (REAL Tuscany), one day for seeing sights in Florence (already reserved two museums… and of course the Duomo), and the last day we are taking a private bike ride tour through the Tuscan country side to Siena with a stop for wine tasting. (Yes, I know what you’re thinking: very expensive… I am splurging. It’ll be so memorable to DO something in the Tuscan region rather than spending everyday looking at art). It is a total of 20 miles (but van supported… meaning when you get tired on the hills you can take the easy way out!). Hopefully my young body doesn’t let me down! From there we stay in Siena and then head down south to see the Amalfi Coast and Naples for 3 days. Hopefully we’ll have some sunny weather… it is supposed to be in the mid-fifties in the south (Fahrenheit not Celsius haha… you have to watch out for all those unit changes!), so a nice break from the cold.
I’m enjoying my classes, but I’ll be relieved when Italian is over. It meets 4 days a week for 2 hours each morning, which means we are covering a lot of material that is all memorization. Let’s just say pronunciation isn’t my forte. I just finished a power point on the Cinque Terre region (and now I can’t wait to go hike there in March when it is warmer) for Italian Culture. Tomorrow we see our site for the semester for studio; that’s where it all begins! And Art History holds my interest… I think I’m enjoying it the most right now. Just the four classes (yay!).
In other EXCELLENT news (I feel like I am an anchor on the 10 o’clock news that is transitioning between updates), we WILL be getting internet at our apartment sometime next week; our landlady signed the contract today! That will be helpful for planning trips, doing homework, and of course keeping in contact. Another random positive: I got stopped on the street last week by two people that looked my age asking for directions… I am excited by the thought that I looked like I belonged, knew what I was doing, and was Italian! Too bad I couldn’t actually help them ;)
I find it really interesting that some moments I’ll be walking down the street and completely forget that i haven’t always been here, that I’m not from the area. I always thought things would be so completely different on the other side of the world, but I keep finding more and more things that seem just like home (passing fields on the train last weekend that were dusted with snow… it’s a scene I could have seen ANYwhere in Idaho). It’s still hard to comprehend that I’m actually in Italy! I’m enjoying city life a lot too… I love being about to walk to the grocery store, the pharmacy, the pizzeria. And I love the effectiveness of the bus system (now that I know where my stop is! Haha). At night when I open the first door into my building and it shuts behind me, it’s always so comforting to be “home”. The apartment is a quiet little retreat from the city (and filled with English speaking women my age!). Not to mention it’s much more relaxing to not be constantly aware of my surroundings (watching my belongings, taking in the sites, making sure I know where I am, observing the people around me… you get the idea).
My meds are kicking in and I’m fading fast! Off to bed… Buonanotte!
Tomorrow is a busy day! We have to meet at the police station early in the morning to finalize everything for our “permit of stay” (fingerprints), then we are analyzing our ‘site’ downtown for architecture studio and heading back to school for a few hours of Italian class. All followed by a night a studying for my second Italian exam (lots of verb conjugations to memorize). It was beautiful sunny today in Torino; It was so cheerful! I can also check figuring out another ‘everyday activity’ of my list: pharmacy. I bought cough syrup and nose spray (for congestion). Luckily, the woman who helped me spoke English pretty well (otherwise I think I would have been playing charades in the pharmacy). I have a cold that seems to be clinging on, but it’s not slowing me down too much.
I’m excited for my upcoming travels. On Saturday, we leave for Venice/Verona on a private bus and even get the luxury of a real hotel and not a hostel (it’s a USAC organized trip). I come back to Torino for one day of class (Tuesday) before leaving again to travel down thru Italy with Kate. We will be gone from Wednesday until the next Tuesday night (and only missing 2 classes total, don’t fret parents). We’re calling it our “Tour of Italy”. The plan is to take a train to Pisa (to stop for a few hours and see the tower) and then spend the next 3 nights in Florence. One day we will use to visit small towns in the region (REAL Tuscany), one day for seeing sights in Florence (already reserved two museums… and of course the Duomo), and the last day we are taking a private bike ride tour through the Tuscan country side to Siena with a stop for wine tasting. (Yes, I know what you’re thinking: very expensive… I am splurging. It’ll be so memorable to DO something in the Tuscan region rather than spending everyday looking at art). It is a total of 20 miles (but van supported… meaning when you get tired on the hills you can take the easy way out!). Hopefully my young body doesn’t let me down! From there we stay in Siena and then head down south to see the Amalfi Coast and Naples for 3 days. Hopefully we’ll have some sunny weather… it is supposed to be in the mid-fifties in the south (Fahrenheit not Celsius haha… you have to watch out for all those unit changes!), so a nice break from the cold.
I’m enjoying my classes, but I’ll be relieved when Italian is over. It meets 4 days a week for 2 hours each morning, which means we are covering a lot of material that is all memorization. Let’s just say pronunciation isn’t my forte. I just finished a power point on the Cinque Terre region (and now I can’t wait to go hike there in March when it is warmer) for Italian Culture. Tomorrow we see our site for the semester for studio; that’s where it all begins! And Art History holds my interest… I think I’m enjoying it the most right now. Just the four classes (yay!).
In other EXCELLENT news (I feel like I am an anchor on the 10 o’clock news that is transitioning between updates), we WILL be getting internet at our apartment sometime next week; our landlady signed the contract today! That will be helpful for planning trips, doing homework, and of course keeping in contact. Another random positive: I got stopped on the street last week by two people that looked my age asking for directions… I am excited by the thought that I looked like I belonged, knew what I was doing, and was Italian! Too bad I couldn’t actually help them ;)
I find it really interesting that some moments I’ll be walking down the street and completely forget that i haven’t always been here, that I’m not from the area. I always thought things would be so completely different on the other side of the world, but I keep finding more and more things that seem just like home (passing fields on the train last weekend that were dusted with snow… it’s a scene I could have seen ANYwhere in Idaho). It’s still hard to comprehend that I’m actually in Italy! I’m enjoying city life a lot too… I love being about to walk to the grocery store, the pharmacy, the pizzeria. And I love the effectiveness of the bus system (now that I know where my stop is! Haha). At night when I open the first door into my building and it shuts behind me, it’s always so comforting to be “home”. The apartment is a quiet little retreat from the city (and filled with English speaking women my age!). Not to mention it’s much more relaxing to not be constantly aware of my surroundings (watching my belongings, taking in the sites, making sure I know where I am, observing the people around me… you get the idea).
My meds are kicking in and I’m fading fast! Off to bed… Buonanotte!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The Lost Weekend
This weekend was a “day trip” weekend, which I actually really enjoyed. Five of us went to Saluzzo, a little town about an hour train ride away. It was classic Italian (see facebook for pictures!). It was nice to be able to explore the town and get lost in the maze of streets and old buildings and not have to figure out “okay, what do we need to make sure we see next?” It was really sunny that day so just a good experience overall.
EXCEPT there’s a funny little side story: I was meeting everyone else at the train station downtown. I took the wrong bus (even after being here for 3 weeks… you know I got plenty of teasing about that one) and ended up in a different part of town. I had to work my way back thru the buses to the train station. Of course when I finally arrived and went to buy a ticket, the lines were really long and slow! So Drew waited with me while the other girls boarded the train. I finally was able to get my ticket and we ran (quite literally) to the train. We were about to hop on, but Drew freaked out saying “this train looks way to nice to be going to Saluzzo! This can’t be the train!”. So while he ran to check the train schedule, the doors closed and we lost our chance (it was the right train btw). The two of us were able to catch a train 45 mins later and met up with the girls at the station where we had to switch trains. It all worked out in the end and like Drew said: “No one ever says ‘remember that one time when the day went perfectly as planned?’… No, we’ll always tell the story of ‘remember that one time we missed the train because we thought it looked too nice?’”
On Sunday, Drew, Kelsey, and I went to a castle on the very edge of town (45 min bus ride). We of course got lost again! (This was the weekend for being lost… good thing we know how to say “where…?” in Italian). It was expensive to get in so I went in by myself while the other two looked around the town and headed home. It was cool to see, but I wish that they had information in English as well. There was a very through explanation about the history of the castle and the area and I was bummed that I didn’t get to hear any of that.
That’s all for now… I still can’t believe I am in Italy :)
EXCEPT there’s a funny little side story: I was meeting everyone else at the train station downtown. I took the wrong bus (even after being here for 3 weeks… you know I got plenty of teasing about that one) and ended up in a different part of town. I had to work my way back thru the buses to the train station. Of course when I finally arrived and went to buy a ticket, the lines were really long and slow! So Drew waited with me while the other girls boarded the train. I finally was able to get my ticket and we ran (quite literally) to the train. We were about to hop on, but Drew freaked out saying “this train looks way to nice to be going to Saluzzo! This can’t be the train!”. So while he ran to check the train schedule, the doors closed and we lost our chance (it was the right train btw). The two of us were able to catch a train 45 mins later and met up with the girls at the station where we had to switch trains. It all worked out in the end and like Drew said: “No one ever says ‘remember that one time when the day went perfectly as planned?’… No, we’ll always tell the story of ‘remember that one time we missed the train because we thought it looked too nice?’”
On Sunday, Drew, Kelsey, and I went to a castle on the very edge of town (45 min bus ride). We of course got lost again! (This was the weekend for being lost… good thing we know how to say “where…?” in Italian). It was expensive to get in so I went in by myself while the other two looked around the town and headed home. It was cool to see, but I wish that they had information in English as well. There was a very through explanation about the history of the castle and the area and I was bummed that I didn’t get to hear any of that.
That’s all for now… I still can’t believe I am in Italy :)
Torino Tour
Friday afternoon we walked around downtown Torino and saw some of the old sites. The USAC coordinator took us around (and only 10 of us wanted to go, so it was a nice little personal tour). We saw the replica of the Holy Shroud. It’s very interesting to hear the story and history behind it. We also saw the exterior of a couple palaces, the old roman wall (that used to surround the city), and tried a traditional Torino drink (Bicerin) made with espresso, chocolate, and milk/cream (VERY rich!).
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Bon Appetit
Tonight, Kate and I made focaccia bread pizza complete with pesto sauce, fresh garlic, fresh oregano, artichoke hearts, eggplant, zucchini, tomato, and red & yellow pepper (who said sorority girls don’t know how to cook for themselves?! Ha!). I finally did find a bottle of wine that I actually even enjoy! And then I made baked apples for dessert. It was nice to stretch the meal out the Italian way… we spent the evening preparing, baking, and eating, the whole while talking in the kitchen. I didn’t get much sleep last night, so tonight I am enjoying some quiet time snuggled in my bed, writing some therapeutic blogging, and watching a light-hearted chick flick to cap the night off.
I purchased another set of plane tickets today; Kelsey and I are going to London for sure now (early April). I think there are only 2 more weekends left that aren’t spoken for, which means they’ll be some cities left unvisited! But there’s so much to see, I’ll just enjoy what I get to take in and make several trips back later in life to continue seeing the rest. :) Tomorrow USAC is taking us on a city center tour. We will visit many of the historic places in downtown Torino and I’m sure we’ll hear plenty about the history of the area. I’m looking forward to it (I’ll be able to cross a few Torino sites off my list of places to see).
Can’t believe it’s already been three weeks (yet at the same time I feel like I’ve lived here for years… I guess I’m really getting comfortable with my surroundings).
Ciao!
I purchased another set of plane tickets today; Kelsey and I are going to London for sure now (early April). I think there are only 2 more weekends left that aren’t spoken for, which means they’ll be some cities left unvisited! But there’s so much to see, I’ll just enjoy what I get to take in and make several trips back later in life to continue seeing the rest. :) Tomorrow USAC is taking us on a city center tour. We will visit many of the historic places in downtown Torino and I’m sure we’ll hear plenty about the history of the area. I’m looking forward to it (I’ll be able to cross a few Torino sites off my list of places to see).
Can’t believe it’s already been three weeks (yet at the same time I feel like I’ve lived here for years… I guess I’m really getting comfortable with my surroundings).
Ciao!
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