My trip to Italy

Here is what you have been waiting for. My epic blog post about my trip to Vienna, Venice, Verona, Florence, and Rome. To save everyone's time I just did bullet points but it's still a long post. Feel free to skip around and just read bits and pieces and look at the pretty pictures. That's what I would do. :-)

Friday March 1

• We took a flight from Copenhagen to Vienna. 
• At the Vienna airport, we bought the wrong ticket for the train to the city but figured it out before we got on the train and bought the right one. 
• Blake helped us find the hostel. Can we talk about how street names are hidden on buildings and how some maps don't have every street labeled?
• We stayed with two French girls who were pretty friendly. 

Hint: Sentences starting with Can we talk about...are the beginning of small angry rants. 

• Saturday March 2
  • Schonbron palace. We did a self guided audio tour that was very helpful.

•  Lunch. We ate a cafe that Blake's brother recommended. I had schnitzel 

• Sigmud Freud museum. This was a big disappointment. It was very short and there wasn't much to see. 
• Train around the city. We did a touristy train around the city center for an hour.
• Met Sebastian a German guy at the hostel  
• Ate dinner at a nearby place where we were the only customers. Can we talk about why it's a thing in Europe to be a crappy waiter? Like they don't wait on you, they just do the bare minimum and you have to tell them you need the check now. 

Sunday March 3

• Belvedere: a really cool art museum 
•  Vienna ferris wheel- it was a little scary because it was so old but gave us a good view 
• Ate lunch by the ferris wheel.   Museum of Modern Art- it was very minimalist and modern. Not my favorite museum. Can we talk about why some things are considered art? I could easily make some of those things that were in that museum.    
• 
• Spanish Riding school- we did a tour that was guided by a human being. It was really cool to see the Lipizzaner stallions resting in their barn, see their tack, and see the arena where they perform. 
• Ate a leisurely dinner at a cafe where other old people were eating. We learned to eat where old locals eat, because they know where it's at. We were sort of bored so Blake pulled out a word search book. It was kind of ironic that I was doing a word search about America in Vienna (Looking for words like purple mountain majesty, land of the free, etc) 
• Took the night train to Venice. Met an older guy from Austria who has a family and is involved in scouts.

Monday March 4

• Woke up on the train, seeing the Italian alps. Very cool sight to wake up to. 
• Found our hostel
• Instead of buying a metro pass we bought a water taxi pass because they use boats as their public transportation. I thought that was neat. Venice is made up of lots of little islands connected by bridges.
• The weather was so sunny and hot!
• We relaxed at an outdoor cafe. 
• Went to Dodge palace
• Went up to the big tower
• Went into St. Mark's Basilca
• Tried to find a movie theatre but couldn't. People kept giving us conflicting directions (do cross the bridge, no don't, go left right left, go straight, etc)
• Going back home we actually got extremely lost. We got off at the wrong train stop, an old man told us to take a bus, multiple busses drove right past us and didn't stop, weren't sure when to get off the bus, asked another man for help, his name was Marco and he helped us find the right bus stop. 

Tuesday March 5

• There wasn't two days worth of stuff to do in Venice so I suggested we take a train to Verona. It was just a two hour train and a couple euros. 
• Of course we immediately went to Juliet's area. She has a balcony, a museum, statue, and so much more. It's such a tourist site but it's neat to see all the names on the wall. People put letters into the wall and they write names on padlocks. 
• Ancient roman arena: this was like a mini colosseum and was very cool. 
• Ate lunch at a nice outdoor cafe where I got breakfast food
• Went up to the top of a tower and took pictures of the city
• We weren't sure where to go next so we looked at the signs that were all around the city and chose the roman theatre. We didn't have to buy a map here because the signs were so helpful.
• The roman theatre was pretty neat because it was not crowded and we just took our time there and talked. 
• We ate nutella crepes
• Took the train back
• (We never actually paid for our hostel in Venice. We only put a 10% deposit down and then when we checked in and checked out no one asked us for payment...It was a crappy hotel so whatever.)

Wednesday March 6

• Took a morning train to Florence
• Checked in at the hostel (this was our favorite place. even though the bathroom was down the hall)
• Went to the Uffizi, where we picked up our reserved tickets, waited til our allowed time, and went in (so many Asian, Russian, French, and Italian tourists!) Here, we saw Botticelli's Birth of Venus and lots of Madonna and Child paintings. 
• Went to the Gucci museum. It was really terrific to see all of the Gucci shoes, dresses, and bags over the years. We were drooling over the dresses. They also had a neat Cindy Sherman photo exhibit there. Who doesn't love Cindy Sherman?
• Did a wine tasting of three red wines. It came with bread, meat and cheese too. 

Thursday March 7

• Started the day early at Acadmeia Gallery to see Michaelangelo's David. He's huge! And so muscular! 
• Climbed the Duomo. It was sort of like the Arc de Triumph with narrow staircases but a great view at the end. We stayed up there a while relaxing and taking pictures. (Can we talk about how it's a bad idea to climb the steps backward, when the stairs are not wide enough to be two way but they are. I don't love being pressed up against random tourists)
• Toured the Pitti palace which belonged to the Medicis (that family had some serious money) The Botticeli gardens were so beautiful. It reminded me of Versailles. 
• We napped and relaxed in the hotel
• Ate my favorite dinner meal at a place called Firen. I got pizza, tirmasiu and this mixed drink that had champagne in it. We sat upstairs and loved the atmosphere and the quality food. We also had good service here, unlike other places. 
• 

Friday March 8

• Took a morning train to Rome. The countryside was so gorgeous. I saw sheep grazing on hills. For some reason we were in business class and so they served us coffee and cookies. 
• Ate again at the cafe at the train station
• Can we talk about how rude some Italians are? I order my food, go over to the other counter and give her my receipt, and she gives me my cappuccino. I'm still waiting for my orange juice and then this woman comes up and drinks my cappuccino!  She just assumes it's hers. I didn't say anything but I should've. The woman saw this and just made me another cappuccino. I got my food but it just made me angry at how rude that woman was. 
•  We get to Rome and go to the Colosseum
• It's named after the large statue of Nero that used to be there, not after it's colossal size. I learned that from the audio guide tour we did. I was a little disappointed you couldn't walk on the ground floor and at how rushed it felt. The audio guide was only 2 hours and there was a sense of hurry up take your picture and get out. It was still really cool to be at such an old historic place. 
• Went to the Vittorio Emmanuel II Monument and went to the top. We went to the top of every city we went to! 
• Went to the Pantheon. You talk about an old, well preserved building. 
• We checked into our hostel which was a six person room. We took these two beds that had folded sheets on them, so we assumed they weren't taken. These two girls walk in and say "You're in my bed." What? So rude. We get up and go to dinner and talk about getting a new hotel. We find a new place to stay and switched hotels. Best decision.  

Saturday March 9

• This was our day in Vatican city. We were supposed to do a guided tour but no one showed up/ we couldn't find where to meet. 
• I was frustrated at how crowded it was, how hot it was, and how disorganized the Vatican was. Feeling hangry (hungry-angry) we grabbed lunch. I bought much needed sunglasses and a guide book and felt better. 
• We waited in the long but fast moving line into St. Peter's Basilica.
• I did an audio tour and learned a lot about the meaning of the different statues and paintings. It was the most beautiful church I've ever seen. It was a very moving and powerful experience. 
• We went to the Vatican museum but the Sistine Chapel was closed so it wasn't that great. 

Sunday March 10

• We were so tired and kind of sick of each other that we just did the Spanish steps and then walked around the city. 
• We met some Danish guys at our hotel. We heard them speaking Danish and I asked them why they were in Rome. They were high schoolers "studying" in Rome. 
• Plane got delayed an hour because of  bad thunderstorm in Rome. The airport's power flickered on and off and they grounded all planes for a while. We met two other DIS guys to talk to so the time passed easily. 

On the plane, I befriended a sixteen year old boy from Poland. I make friends pretty easily. Haha.

Florence

Wednesday

We arrive at the train station and easily found the hostel thanks to Blake's carefully planning and good navigational skills. It's a small hotel where our room has two beds, a sink, mirror and wardrobe. The bathroom is down the hall just like at college. We both like it fine. Its in a fine location. The beds are comfy so that's all that matters.

We went to Uffizi and saw the the Birth of Venus. It was gorgeous.

The musuem made us both very tired so we stopped for some gelato as a pick me up.
We hit up the Gucci museum. It was so cool to see the Gucci dress Blake Lively wore and all of the old Gucci handbags and shoes. We both enjoyed that museum.
On our way back, we stopped at a small place to eat dinner.

We ended up doing a wine tasting each of three different red wines. It came with meats, cheeses and bread. We also got entrees but barely ate them because we were full and a little tipsy. Hehe. It was fun to drink wine in Italy. :-)

Thursday

We woke up early to try and be at the Academia gallery around 8:30 because it opened at 8:15. Getting there early helped us beat the crowd and breathe through the small museum. The main thing to see was David. He is massive! And a true work of art. You can see all of his muscles and veins. He is thirteen feet tall. It was so neat to just turn the corner and see the famous statue.

All of the museums get a little tiring. I've seen enough Madonna and child paintings to last a lifetime. All the paintings are of Jesus. When in doubt, it's Jesus. After each museum we stop at a cafe to sit, snack and relax.

We climbed the Duomo. It was 463 steps to get to the top. I don't mean like nice stairs I mean like narrow spiral staircase, really steep, one way stairs. It was rough trying to let someone pass you because it was so tight. It reminded me of the arc de triumph and climbing that. The view was well worth the trek though. You could see all of Florence. We stayed up there a while just enjoying it. And watching all of the Asian tourists. Apparently Florence is the place to be if you are Asian and like traveling in large tour groups.

We ate lunch at a nice cafe. I got tortellini. Love it!

Last thing we did was go to the Medici palace and gardens. They were so magnificent. Kind of like Versailles, but different because these gardens had hills. We took our time there and just let it soak in. It started to rain so we were literally getting soaked. We got a cappuccino in the cafe until the rain let up.

We are taking a break in the hostel before dinner because we are tired. Kind of like what we do at Disney. Go out in the morning, take a break mid day and then go back out again. Speaking of Disney, every city we've been to there is a Disney store and they are all the same.

I wish I could show you pictures but you will just have to wait for now.

Wi fi on the train

Chao!

There is wi fi on the train so I was able to go on Facebook, check my email and read about what to do in Florence.

I thought I should quickly blog and say I'm doing great. Well actually I have a loud and frequent cough and my nose is stuffed up but besides that I'm fine. Haha.

We are going to go check into our hostel in Florence and then make our way to the Uffizi because we have reservations. There is so much to do and see in Florence and Rome. We just have today and tomorrow here so I think we will be busy.

Shout out: Congratulations to Liz and Jesse! I'm so happy they are engaged.

Chao Bella.
Prego.

Fair Verona

Hey there,

Today Blake and i spent the day in Verona. It was a two hour train ride away and just eight euros. We ate a quick breakfast ate the train station and enjoyed the relaxing long train ride through the Italian countryside. The mountains are breathtaking.

When we got to Verona, the woman at the train station ticket desk helped us take the right bus and by the right bus ticket. Asking people is a great thing to do when unsure. It was a quick bus ride to the main city center. Everything was marked with directional signs so we did not need to buy a map or guide.

First we of course visited casa di guiletta (Juliet's house). There are two walls filled with people's names and writings. When you emerge into the small plaza you can see her statue and her balcony. Everyone was taking pictures touching her breast, including us. I forget what it means to touch her breast. There was a wall with padlocks on it, I guess to symbolize love. It was a pretty quick tourist place to go.

Second we went to the arena. It was a roman area back in the day. They were doing construction in the middle so we couldn't walk on the ground floor. But it was neat to climb the stairs and see a view of the city.

We ate a leisurely lunch at an outside cafe. We chose one that had old people sitting there because we have learned that restaurants that are not crowded are not crowded for a good reason.

After lunch, we did the tower. I forget the name of it. We took an elevator to see a wonderful view of the city. It wasn't crowded so it was great for pics. We climbed more stairs to see a higher view but it was blocked by chicken wire for safety reasons I guess.

Not sure what to do next, we looked at the signs and agreed to go to the teatro Romano. We walked over a lovely bridge and arrived at a beautiful uncrowned spot. There was an archeological museum there with the ancient theatre. The museum was nothing to rave about. The atmosphere and unspoken vibe of the place was the best though. It was so calm and peaceful. We heard birds chirping, could hear the water, and see Verona. It was not crowded which helped make it a great experience.

We ended the day with delicious Nutella crepes. We took the bus and train back home and ate a light dinner at the train station.

In just five or six hours we saw what a charming and relaxing city Verona is.

Ps: no pictures for now because I'm using my iPad.

Off to Venice

Hello readers.

So i am in the Vienna train station now. We are waiting for our overnight train to Venice. Overall I really enjoyed my short time in Vienna. It reminded me of both Copenhagen and Paris for different reasons. Can't wait to come back someday. ;)

Today we did:

- Belvedere: a really cool historic art museum. I saw the painting of Napoleon Bonaparte where he is riding his horse into battle. I liked the Impressionism and realism. They had Monets which was neat. Everything was so beautiful and impressive. I loved it.
- Ferris wheel: called Riesenrad. it's the famous Vienna red Ferris wheel that is very historic. At the top everyone got scared when a window fell open. It was no big deal but made a loud noise and made us jump. It was cool to see the mountains past the city of Vienna. It reminded me of the London eye.
- lunch: we both had ham and cheese sandwiches with an egg on top and fries underneath at a place near the Ferris wheel. It's an amusement park called Prater.
- museum of modern art: called Mumok. this was in the Museum Quarter. It was very modern and minimalist art. It wasn't my favorite but Blake liked it.
- Spanish riding school: we got to see the real Lipizzaner stallions. They were resting in their stalls. We also saw the arena where they perform. This was the only human guided tour we had and it was our favorite because we could ask questions.
- dinner: we looked forever for a nice place to eat a slow dinner since we had time to spend but we just settled on this one cafe. I got sausage and gravy which I would not recommend anyone else eat. It was like two hot dogs in a sauce of brown liquid. We sat there for a while and each did a word search. Then we shared a lice of famous cake that Sebastian, a German guy we met at the hostel said we had to try. It was very rich, heavy and moist. The name started with S.
- picked up luggage from hostel and went to train station.

Hope you're doing great too.

Nutella

At the hostel

Vienna waits for you.

So we had a busy day. We started our day by eating the all you can eat breakfast at the hostel and then went to Schonbruun, a really large palace where we did a self guided audio tour. It was so beautiful and historic. Marie Antoinettes mom lived there. Then we ate lunch at a nice cafe that Blake's brother recommended. I got Schnitzel and loved it. Next we went to the Sigmund Freud museum. It was difficult getting there because some streets weren't labeled on our map. When we got there we were underwhelmed. The self guided audio tour started by saying "if you're looking for the famous couch you won't find it here. It's in London." So that museum was disappointing. It was very short and there wasnt much to see. We took a yellow tourist train car around the city for a half hour. We bought some souvenirs (I bought a book and some postcards) and came back to the hostel.
So far i really like Vienna because of its architecture and rich history. Some of the people on the train seem to not like Americans but thats their problem. I wish we had more time here. :-)

Viva Italia!

I’m excited for Italy! And nervous! It was difficult to find time to get excited because I was so busy all this week. It was one project, paper, or exam after another. Sunday I had an International Reporting article due. Tuesday I had a Human Trafficking exam and a lot of reading, Thursday I had a Strategic Communication exam, and Friday I had a Creative Travel Writing paper due and a photojournalism PowerPoint partner presentation. I just took things one day at a time. Sometimes even one hour at a time! I tried my best, given how much time I had to study and prepare.

It’s now Friday and I’m finished with all of that schoolwork. Now I can move onto stressing about packing. How much should I bring? How many bags? How many pants? A bathing suit? A rubber ducky? Toilet paper? Those last two were jokes. Of course I’m brining a rubber ducky ;)

 I’m not brining my computer to Italy so I won’t be able to blog every day probably. I also won’t have time to write in detail about my day. I will journal a lot and then use that to blog later. I’m brining my iPad and I plan on finding internet cafes to use the internet there. Some of our hostels have wi fi (or wee fee as my host parents say). My parents and my host parents said I have to contact them somehow stating I am alive and well. Fair enough. Since I can’t use my phone in Italy (do you want to pay for my crazy high roaming costs?) I will be emailing, blogging (maybe short bullet point posts?), and facetiming to communicate with both sets of my parents. It will be a challenge to go without my cellphone for a week. But it will also prove I don’t need it to survive and that it’s just a luxury, not a necessity. I am not someone who is dependent on a stupid electronic device.

I’m looking at this trip as an adventure. Emily May and my mom gave me that advice. So what if I get lost? What if my hostel isn’t a 5 star luxury hotel? Who cares if we have to walk a lot? I will survive and laugh about it later. I’m going to have fun in the moment, embrace this opportunity, and have a good time. I came to Europe to learn to be more independent and this is a great way to do that. I plan to stick to Blake like mud sticks to Ginger for safety reasons but I will still be fairly independent because we are not in a large tour group. I think I’ll have to remind myself of these things I’ve mentioned. I’ve known myself in the past to pout if things don’t go my way or fret when things aren’t ideal. I probably will get lost, I probably won’t be staying in the best hotels, and I’m sure something not ideal will happen. But I will make the best of it and go with it. Smiley face :-)

While I’m going into the trip with a positive attitude, I’m also going into with the safe attitude. I’m leaving a copy of my passport with my host family, brining a copy and the real thing with me. I plan on holding my purse at all times and guarding my nice camera with my life. No Romanian child gypsy thief will be stealing my stuff.    

            My Travel Plans:

Friday: Fly to Vienna at 8:25. Get there at 10pm. Check in at hostel.

Saturday: In Vienna

Sunday: Take an overnight train to Venice.

Monday: Venice.

Tuesday: In Venice.

Wednesday: Take a train to Florence at 9:25 and arrive at 11:30.

Thursday: In Florence

Friday: Taking a morning train to Rome.

Saturday: In Rome

Sunday: Fly home to Copenhagen and get in around 9pm.

We don’t have a lot of time in each city and I’m aware that we will not get to see everything we want to. I hope to see:

·      the Freud museum in Vienna

·      a castle or museum in Vienna

·      Grand Canal in Venice

·      Statue of David in Florence

·      Duomo in Florence

·      Pantheon in Rome

·      Sistine Chapel in Rome

·      Coloseum in Rome

·      Trevi Fountain in Rome

So wish me a safe and fun week! I hope to buy postcards and one or two small souvenirs at each place. And of course, I hope you have a great week too!

Here you can see where Venice, Florence and Rome are.