Cinque Terre

Riomaggiore: didn't get to spend enough time
here. Would love to come back to it! 

Corniglia: this town isn't on the water. Not a lot
to do/see. Would take the bus up next time &
walk down. 

Manarola: loved having a cappuccino by the water. Climbed down by the rocks & got great views of the town. Loved hiking in the vineyards around the town. 

Vernazza: my favorite town! Had a lovely lunch by
the water. Climbed on the rocks by the water & just
relaxed on the shore. Very peaceful! 

Monterosso: this town was pretty stretched out
along the coastline. It had an old & new area of
town. There was a really big beach with a giant
rock. It also had a pirate look out & Nazi pill box.

Had an absolute blast going to Cinque Terre for the day with my parents and roommate, Kelsey. We woke up early and took a train from Florence to Pisa then from Pisa to La Spezia then from La Spezia to Riomaggiore! It was about a 2 & 1/2 hr train ride. Arrived to Riomaggiore & found out that only the first part of the trail from Riomaggiore to Manarola was open. The last 3 parts were closed :( So we bought a hiking ticket for the first path since that is all that was open.

We hiked from Riomaggiore to Manarola in about 45 min. We took our sweet time because we wanted to get lots of pictures to show you guys! We didn't really spend much time in Riomaggiore cuz we were so excited to start hiking! Got to Manarola which was town #2. Had cappuccinos by the water and walked around the town. Manarola is the type of town I picture when I think of Cinque Terre. The houses/buildings are stuck to the side of the hill with bright blue water around them. We could not have asked for better weather. It was such a gorgeous day out. It was warm but not too hot and there was a little breeze. We also hiked around Manarola up in the vineyards which I highly recommend because you can get great views down of Manarola.

Took the train from Manarola to town #3, Corniglia. Walked a short distance to the switch back path up the side of the hill to Corniglia. The switch backs look like they would take you forever but it only takes about 7 min to hike them. There wasn't a whole lot to do in Corniglia and the town is not on the water. There are a few restaurants and a church you can walk in though.

Took the train from Corniglia to Vernazza. Had a lovely lunch right by the water. Walked around on the rocks by the water and just sat and relaxed. It was so peaceful and I think this was my favorite town along with Manarola! Took the train to Monterosso, the last town. This town drops you off in the new part of town and you have to take the tunnel over to the old part. There is a large beach in the new part if you want to go for a swim. There is also a pirate look out and Nazi pill box towards the old part of town.

Absolutely loved Cinque Terre and I highly recommend going! If you can only go for a day then go! If you can stay for longer then stay. It is a must see. Make sure to check the train schedule between towns because it only comes once an hour. Also the ferry boats were not running yet, I believe they start after Easter. My roommate, Kelsey, loved Cinque Terre so much that she is going to stay a week after the semster ends to go back!!

Sorrento & Pompei

Amalfi Coast

Took a school trip to Sorrento & Pompei this past weekend. Left early Saturday morning and drove about 7 & 1/2 hours to Sorrento! It was a long ride but the views from the motor coach were wonderful. We drove right along the Amalfi Coast and we could see the Mediterranean Sea. We stopped in Sorrento for about 3 hours. We walked around and shopped. We went to a Limoncello shop and tried Limoncello. We also went to look at the bay. Such pretty scenery! We then drove about 30 min away to our hotel. Walked up to our hotel and my jaw dropped at the view of the Medierranean! We were right on the water. It was so sweet. We ate dinner at a pizzeria down the street from the hotel. Had a lovely little dinner. 

View from the hotel

The next day we woke up and had a nice buffet breakfast at the hotel then headed towards Pompei. Pompei is about an hour from Sorrento. Also Pompei is only spelled with one "i" not two. Pompei is right outside of Naples, Italy. We got to the ruins of Pompei and met up with our tour guide. The tour guide took us around the ruins for about 2 & 1/2 hours. This tour guide was phenomenal! He knew every little thing about Pompei and how Mount Vesuvius erupted. At the end of our tour he asked who would like to buy a copy of his book! I was like woah this guy has written a book about Pompei!? Thats awesome! Of course I had to buy a copy of it! Ate lunch at a pizzeria across from the ruins then took the 7 hr bus ride back to Firenze! 

Pompei & Mount Vesuvius 

Spring Break XI: Paris

Eiffel Tower

Took a train from London to Paris. Stayed in Paris for the last 4 nights of our spring break. We stayed in Regent Hostel near the Anvers metro station. It was such a great location and this hostel was so much nicer than our last one! We only had 3 days of actual sight seeing so we didn't really have a lot of time but we tried to make the best of it! My roommates friend met us in Paris and stayed at the hostel with us.

Ok so on to the trip! We saw a lot of the main attractions. The night we got to Paris we walked to the Sacre Coeur church which was about 10 minutes from our hostel. I got my first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower! I tried escargots for the first time at dinner! The next day we went to see the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Arc de Triomphe, went to Laduree (famous macaroon bakery), Musee d'Orsay. The macaroons were delicious. I got strawberry, lemon, chocolate, vanilla, sour apple & rose petal. Chocolate and lemon were my faves. We were gonna go to the top of the Eiffel Tower but the line was so long we decided to wake up early the next day and go. Notre Dame was free to get into which was nice. The cathedral was very pretty. Arc de Triomphe was neat. You walk through a tunnel to get under the arch since there is a giant round-a-bout surrounding it. Saw the tomb of the unknown soldier under the arc. Got into the Musee d'Orsay for free with my student visa. Saw severl Van Goh & Claude Monet paintings!

The second full day we woke up early to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Took an elevator to the top. The ride up was somewhat scary! I am afraid of heights so I tried not to look down. The views from the top were great! I could see the Arc de Triomphe from up there. Went to the Louvre later that day & once again got in free with my student visa. Spent 6 hrs in the Louvre and saw like a tiny bit of it! The museum is so big! Saw the Mona Lisa :) Got to see the Eiffel Tower sparkle too! It was around 9pm that it started to sparkle. I have a video I will post later of it.

The Louvre

Last full day we went to Versailles. Got to Versailles around 10am and lines were starting to form! Got into Versailles for free with my visa once again! Glad I brought it with me. Spent most of the day at Versailles touring the apartments and gardens. Got to see the famous Hall of Mirrors. Walked to the Grand Trianon which is also on the estate. Came back to the hostel then went to La Place du Tertre in Montmartre. It was a little square up near Sacre Coeur church. It was such a cute little square. There were artists drawing self portraits for people. It was such a crowded little place. I got a chocolate crepe while I was up there and it was so good. Went to see Montmartre Cemetary & then stopped by Moulin Rouge!

The day we left to come home to Florence we stopped by the Opera House to get some pics. Didn't get to go in the Opera House because it opened when we had to catch our plane. Flew from Paris Orly airport to Pisa via Easy Jet. Then took a train from Pisa back home to Florence! It was such a fun spring break! Got to see most all of the main attractions & eat some great food! Escargots, Eiffel Tower, Versailles & Montmartre were my favorites.

Windsor, Stonehenge & Bath

So I really wanted to go see the famous Stonehenge in England but it is about an hour or so from London. I looked up tours online and signed up for a tour of Windsor Castle, Stonehenge & Bath with Golden Tours. So on the 5th day of our trip we took a bus from our hostel to a Marriot hotel to be picked up for our tour! A coachbus picked us up from the hotel & took us to the main building of the tour agency. We divided up into our trip groups & took off! We traveled in a coach bus with about 50 of our best friends. Our tour guide's name was Tony. He was pretty funny and made the drives between attractions fun. He was very informative on all the sites and surrounding areas.

Windsor Castle

We went to Windsor Castle first. This is the home of Queen Elizabeth II. It is one of the world's largest and oldest castles. We got to tour the castle & look around. We got a free audio guide with our entrance fee which was nice. Then we stopped for lunch in some little town in England! It was a charming little town. We also got to see a 2,000 yr old chapel while we were there.

Mysterious Stonehenge

Then we went to see Stonehenge which was so cool. Such huge stones and no one knows why they are there. The stones weigh about 40 tons each and they came to Salisbury Hill about 5,000 yrs ago. No one knows why but some believe it was a religious temple, astronomical clock or a Bronze Age burial ground. The mysterious Stonehenge!

Roman Bath

Then we went to Bath. This city was so neat and I wish I could've stayed longer. We went to tour Roman Baths. It was really interesting. It was a long day but we got to see so much. I highly recommend going with Golden Tours. They picked you up at a location of your choice and take you around to all the stops with a lovely little tour guide.

Spring Break XI: London

Went to London for 6 nights & Paris for 4 nights for my spring break. I went with my roommate and we stayed in hostels to keep things cheap! We saw lots of major attractions and enjoyed some great food. I have compiled a list of my own top 10 favorites of London. Hope you enjoy ;)

Westminster Abbey 

1. Westminster Abbey: this was BY FAR my favorite part of London. I got an audio guide with my ticket into the cathedral. This church was just breathtaking. The stories and all the history within the church was so interesting! Kings & queens were married, crowned & funerals were all held in the church. The Abbey also has its own choir school wich is pretty neat. The royal wedding will be taking place in the cathedral as well! How cool!

London Eye

2. London Eye: I had heard great things about the eye in the sky which is a giant ferris wheel right across the river from Big Ben. The ferris wheel had about 30 pods on it and about 15 people can fit into each pod. It moves so slow that the ferris wheel never has to stop to let people on and off! The views from the top were amazing & it was so fun to be in such a huge ferris wheel!!

Oxford St.

3. Oxford Street: best shopping in the city! This street had all the good stores on it. It had several H&M stores, Aldo, American Apparel, Top Shop, Dorothy Perkins, Gap, Miss Selfridge & lots more! All the younger kids from the city go here to shop. There are plenty of shoe and handbag stores as well.

Fish & chips

4. Fish & chips: went to Golden Union for dinner near Oxford Street. Had delicious fish & chips for dinner. For the record "chips" are french fries. Also tried a San Miguel beer which was pretty good :) A great dinner experience!

Big Ben

5. Big Ben: pretty much the main attraction in London. The first thing I think of when I hear London is Big Ben. It is the big clock tower that is part of the Palace of Westminster.

Portobello Rd Market

6. Portobello Rd Market: woke up early one day to go to Notting Hill. Walked to Portobello Road and the whole city was there! It was unbelievably crowded. Everyone was looking through antique stores and steet vendors tents. I jumped right in and looked through costume jewelry and other antiques. It was a lot of fun.

Abbey Road

7. Abbey Road: went to see where the Beatles walked across Abbey Road where they took the picture for their album cover. It was a busy street & I wanted a picture so badly so I had to wait for traffic to die down but I got one!

Cucumber Maki

8. Yo Sushi!: most fun restaurant ever! The food comes around on a conveyer belt. So neat! All the food comes on different colored plates. The different colors are different prices. I had two types of sushi, hairy prawns & two types of dessert which was so good.

London Bridge

9. London Bridge: walked across the famous London Bridge! Don't worry, it wasn't falling down! It was cool to finally see in real life. You can climb up in it but it cost so we decided to walk across it instead!

Hyde Park

10. Hyde Park: this park was gigantic and it was so peaceful. There were a couple of small lakes inside of the park & rose gardens. It was so beautiful. It was a nice escape from the city. The lakes had swans and ducks all over and people were all over the park. It was very enjoyable!

Carnevale di Venezia

Got the chance to go back to Venice for a second time for Carnevale!! Carnevale is a huge two week party before Fat Tuesday. I got to see many different costumes and masks. It was really neat! It was unbelievably crowded though. There were times when I wasn't even walking because there were too many people in the alley! We (my roommates and I) booked our trip to Venice through Florence for Fun again. There were about 200 other study abroad students from Florence that went as well. We took 4 coach buses. It was about a 3 hour bus ride from Florence. We got to Venice port and had to take a boat from the mainland to Venice. The boatride was about 30 min or so. Then we got off the boat and walked towards the glass blowing demonstration. We took so many turns and were winding down all these alleys. I had no idea where I was. Then all of a sudden there was the glass blowing shop! We got to see a glass blowing demo which was really neat. They showed us different types of glass and how purple and red glass is the most expensive. My roommate, Kelsey, bought a glass ornament which was really pretty. The glass was really expensive so I didn't get any.

After the glass blowing demo we were free until 6:30PM. Two of my roommates (Kelsey & Nissa) and Josh (roommate's boyfriend) decided to go exploring on our own. We walked around and went into a ton of different mask shops. The masks are very delicate and they don't like you to put them on your face especially if you have makeup on. I found a paper mache mask that I really liked. So I went ahead and got it. The lady at the store tied it on my face right then! My roommates and Josh also each got masks and we all wore them around. There were lots of tourists wearing masks too and some people were dressed in full costume. 

We walked to San Marco's square to see some of the festivities. There was a stage with live music and people dancing. There were people dressed in costumes and masks all around the stage. The square was very crowded with tourists. We got pizza for lunch at a pizzeria that was really good. Then we went to get some gelato! We walked around and went on some of the back streets. I really enjoyed going on the back streets because it was so quiet. Most of the tourists tend to stay on the street surrounding San Marco's square. Nissa and Kelsey got their faces painted.

Then we wanted to get a quick bite to eat before heading home. So we decided to go to a sit down restaurant and split a few pizzas. So we all 4 go in and sit down. We start to order... I ordered a pizza and kelsey just got a drink since we are splitting a pizza. Then the waiter says we can't split pizzas so I just said that it was for me. Then Nissa orders a pizza and Josh orders just a drink. Then the waiter said you couldn't order just a drink! So after he took our order we got up and WALKED OUT! Showed him! We walked down the street to another pizzeria instead. The people at this pizzeria were so kind!! We sat down and split 2 cheese pizzas and all had delicious hot chocolate :) Boarded our boat and headed back to Florence. Despite the crummy weather and Florence for Fun making us wait around a few times it was fun!