October 19, 2009
Sunday morning we took the 3 hour train to Sevilla. We walked around town and saw the Gothic Cathedral where Christopher Colombus’ tomb is. It’s the biggest Gothic Cathedral in the world! It’s beautiful. We loved Sevilla because it definitely has a stronger Spanish culture. All the buildings are so cute and colorful! We liked it much better than Granada. One thing I’m loving about Spain is that they have chicken on their menus unlike Italy! At lunch Jillian bribed me to eat bell peppers which I never would have even tried before coming to Europe to study abroad. She said if I ate them she would buy me churros con chocolate! Of course I took her up on it! I even ended up liking the bell peppers! But the churros were even more amazing haha! You buy them then they give you a cup of hot chocolate to dip them in! I’ve also been drinking lots of coffee this trip! I never really loved it before coming abroad!
Later Sunday we went with a group from our hostel to a flamenco dancing show! Sevilla is the flamenco capital of the world! They took us off the beaten path to a dimly lit bar where we enjoyed sangria and an amazing flamenco performance. There was one guitar player, one singer and one dancer. It was so unique and beautiful!
Unfortunately I have barely been sleeping at all this trip because I have a cough that acts up when I lay down and the medicine hasn’t been doing the trick. It’s awful! It’s hard too because the hours in Spain are so odd because of the “Siesta” so no one even has dinner until 9pm at the very earliest.
Today we just roamed the city. We saw the Plaza de Espana and the Alcazar Palace where the royalty lived and continues to live. We people watched and had a relaxing day! There’s really not too much to do in Sevilla but it was wonderful to see! We are currently almost to Madrid where we’ll spend the next full two days. Lots to do there! Can’t wait!
Ciao!
~K
Monday, October 26, 2009
Granada, Spain Oct. 17
Last night we arrived in Granada after a train, a bus, a plane and a bus--basically a LONG day of travelling! We grabbed dinner, got our bearings and headed to bed so we could get an early start Saturday.
We woke up at 7 and got to the ticket counter for the Alhambra at 8am because they only give out a limited number of tickets per day and you are given an exact appointment time in which you may enter. Ours was at 2pm. So until then we wandered around the city.
Granada is a relatively small city, but its really cute. Everything architecturally here is much more plain compared to the intricate details of the Florentine building facades. It feels absolutely amazing to speak Spanish again!!!!! After taking it my whole life it is really the first time I've been able to put it to use in the "real world." It is coming back to me SO well! I can have pretty detailed conversations with the locals, which has been great! In the beginning it was hard to get back into the habit of saying "gracias" not "grazie." Realizing all the times so far where Italian words have almost slipped out makes me realize that I've learned more Italian than I thought! I'm so excited to be here in Spain for 10 days and see how much my Spanish continues to improve! Part of me is sad that I didn't study abroad in Spain just because I know I would've become fluent, but nothing beats the Italian culture for me!
Since the Arabs inhabited Spain for many years their culture is everything. Lots of great shops with fun jewelry. So at 2pm we arrived at the Alhambra for our appointment to view the huge palace. The grounds are so green and lush and have the most gorgeous gardens! We explored and enjoyed all the panoramas from the gardens and on top of the fortress. The whole property is on top of a huge hill so it is quite a workout walking around it! As we made our way around the grounds aimlessly we noticed after about two hours that you didn't even need a ticket to be in the area we had been walking around. We decided to ask what the ticket was good for and found out it got us into the main palace. The main palace is the building with the large fountain in the center courtyard. This was the single image of the Alhambra that I had always known, ever since my AP World History class sophomore year in high school. We were excited to see it! We give the lady our ticket and she informs us that we are two hours late for our reservation so we can't go in. No one had told us that the main entrance where we gave our ticket at 2pm wasn't the area our reservation was good for! There were no signs and the ticket did not specify! We were so mad! We had woken up so early to get the tickets, waited in the cold, arrived early to our appointment and didn't even get to see the actual Alhambra palace. I guess I'll just have to come back again one day!
It is amazing how much the terrain here resembles California!!! Even the weather!!! But anyways after a long day we went our for tapas or basically the Spanish version of appetizers and I had my very first Sangria! It was soooo good! I'm obsessed! We then walked down the main street in the opposite direction we had been going and were so excited to find it very busy with lots of fountains and cute shops and even an outdoor concert going on! This definitely heightened our impressions of Granada. Jillian and I decided we would still only give the city a "B" rating. It is beautiful, but we just didn't find it to be anything extra special. Nevertheless we loved it and can't wait for the rest of Spain!!!
adios!
~ K
We woke up at 7 and got to the ticket counter for the Alhambra at 8am because they only give out a limited number of tickets per day and you are given an exact appointment time in which you may enter. Ours was at 2pm. So until then we wandered around the city.
Granada is a relatively small city, but its really cute. Everything architecturally here is much more plain compared to the intricate details of the Florentine building facades. It feels absolutely amazing to speak Spanish again!!!!! After taking it my whole life it is really the first time I've been able to put it to use in the "real world." It is coming back to me SO well! I can have pretty detailed conversations with the locals, which has been great! In the beginning it was hard to get back into the habit of saying "gracias" not "grazie." Realizing all the times so far where Italian words have almost slipped out makes me realize that I've learned more Italian than I thought! I'm so excited to be here in Spain for 10 days and see how much my Spanish continues to improve! Part of me is sad that I didn't study abroad in Spain just because I know I would've become fluent, but nothing beats the Italian culture for me!
Since the Arabs inhabited Spain for many years their culture is everything. Lots of great shops with fun jewelry. So at 2pm we arrived at the Alhambra for our appointment to view the huge palace. The grounds are so green and lush and have the most gorgeous gardens! We explored and enjoyed all the panoramas from the gardens and on top of the fortress. The whole property is on top of a huge hill so it is quite a workout walking around it! As we made our way around the grounds aimlessly we noticed after about two hours that you didn't even need a ticket to be in the area we had been walking around. We decided to ask what the ticket was good for and found out it got us into the main palace. The main palace is the building with the large fountain in the center courtyard. This was the single image of the Alhambra that I had always known, ever since my AP World History class sophomore year in high school. We were excited to see it! We give the lady our ticket and she informs us that we are two hours late for our reservation so we can't go in. No one had told us that the main entrance where we gave our ticket at 2pm wasn't the area our reservation was good for! There were no signs and the ticket did not specify! We were so mad! We had woken up so early to get the tickets, waited in the cold, arrived early to our appointment and didn't even get to see the actual Alhambra palace. I guess I'll just have to come back again one day!
It is amazing how much the terrain here resembles California!!! Even the weather!!! But anyways after a long day we went our for tapas or basically the Spanish version of appetizers and I had my very first Sangria! It was soooo good! I'm obsessed! We then walked down the main street in the opposite direction we had been going and were so excited to find it very busy with lots of fountains and cute shops and even an outdoor concert going on! This definitely heightened our impressions of Granada. Jillian and I decided we would still only give the city a "B" rating. It is beautiful, but we just didn't find it to be anything extra special. Nevertheless we loved it and can't wait for the rest of Spain!!!
adios!
~ K
Amsterdam Oct. 11
October 11, 2009
So I am currently on the train from Amsterdam back to Brussels for the night. Amsterdam was so amazing! The train ride there was so beautiful, lots of lush green farmland and waterways and canals as we entered Holland. We arrived late Friday night so we checked into our 30 person room hostel!!!! Yes you read it correctly---30 person! It supposedly is rated one of the top hostels in Europe. It was all we needed and everyone was super respectful. It was definitely bizarre though to see people smoking pot in our lobby!!!! WEIRD. It was definitely strange to see all the legal “coffee shops” around Amsterdam and know that it’s all legal is absolutely insane to me.
We found a great restaurant for dinner and our waiter was so sweet circling stuff on our map to go and see. After eating we decided to wander into the “Red Light District.” It was shocking! Even though we knew what it was before visiting it, seeing it was a completely different story! We thought it was so intriguing and hilarious! We kept exploring all the different alleys and looking at all the girls in their fluorescent bikinis standing under the neon lights in the windows. It’s just so awful that this is the life that they choose; they even have to pay taxes and get health benefits for it! So crazy! Also when we were still in the Red Light district we saw someone get mugged! I looked down this alley and saw flailing limbs and a person jump up and run away then literally seconds later two police officers on horseback went galloping after the guy, it was crazy! The guy was so dumb to try to mug someone when there were so many people still out walking around in the streets. Nonetheless witnessing that on our first night made us much more cautious about sticking together.
We woke up early to our free breakfast—a great thing about staying in hostels. We then made our way to the Anne Frank “Huis” or house where Anne Frank and her family hid from the Nazi’s in WWII. The building was the office building of her father Otto Frank’s Jam Factory. I read the Diary of Anne Frank in 8th grade so it was really neat to see it in real life. The hidden “annex” where the 8 people including the Frank family hid was much bigger than the space I had imagined. It was basically a full apartment, but what was really crazy to me was the amount of time they had to remain there without any fresh air or sunlight because of the black-out curtains. The whole museum was very tastefully done. My favorite part was definitely getting to see Anne’s actual diary that they had on display.
We then shopped around this area called Jordan, which is the less-touristy area and more residential with some great boutiques. For lunch we got traditional Netherlands pancakes that were good, but kind of strange too….I think I prefer our pancakes in America. We headed back into the city center and did some major shopping. Amsterdam has amazing shopping!
Later Saturday night we met up with three of our friends from CEA that happened to be in the city for the weekend too. We had dinner together and walked around the city and showed them the red-light district…which we were still fascinated by!
Today we got an early start and walked by the flower market where they had tons of beautiful tulips which Holland is famous for. We then went to the Heineken Factory for the “Heineken Experience.” It was SO cool! Since it started in Amsterdam they offer this really great tour where they had interesting ways to communicate the company history and lots of interactive activities. One of the coolest parts was this room where you would stand and face this screen. It was supposed to simulate “brewing you” as if you were the actual ingredients. For example when we were “mixed” the floor would shake and real bubbles or mist would appear. We were mixed, heated, stirred, bottled, and enjoyed! It was really neat! When we were bottled the screen showed us being opened from inside of a box of Heineken and taken out and enjoyed at a rooftop party! It was a great and fun way to learn how beer is made! We were also given a fresh glass of Heineken and taught how to properly drink it. There was another room where you could sit on individual couches that had TV’s attached to each chair that showed all the Heineken commercials throughout the years starting in the 1950s. Each room was so fun and interesting! At the end we got another fresh glass of their beer, we opted for the Extra Cold version! The area where you could drink your beer and relax was awesome! The tabletops were interactive and sensitive to cold so wherever you set your cold beer a Heineken symbol would appear under it and if you set it on certain places on the tabletop image of a world map facts about certain cities would appear on the tabletop screen. It was so high-tech!
We were so glad we went! I must say that Heineken is not my very favorite beer, a little too bitter for me, but I still LOVED the experience and would highly recommend it!
We grabbed a quick lunch then got our bags and headed to the train station. We will have dinner in Brussels tonight and leave early tomorrow morning (Monday).
Overall I’m obsessed with Northern Europe!
~K
So I am currently on the train from Amsterdam back to Brussels for the night. Amsterdam was so amazing! The train ride there was so beautiful, lots of lush green farmland and waterways and canals as we entered Holland. We arrived late Friday night so we checked into our 30 person room hostel!!!! Yes you read it correctly---30 person! It supposedly is rated one of the top hostels in Europe. It was all we needed and everyone was super respectful. It was definitely bizarre though to see people smoking pot in our lobby!!!! WEIRD. It was definitely strange to see all the legal “coffee shops” around Amsterdam and know that it’s all legal is absolutely insane to me.
We found a great restaurant for dinner and our waiter was so sweet circling stuff on our map to go and see. After eating we decided to wander into the “Red Light District.” It was shocking! Even though we knew what it was before visiting it, seeing it was a completely different story! We thought it was so intriguing and hilarious! We kept exploring all the different alleys and looking at all the girls in their fluorescent bikinis standing under the neon lights in the windows. It’s just so awful that this is the life that they choose; they even have to pay taxes and get health benefits for it! So crazy! Also when we were still in the Red Light district we saw someone get mugged! I looked down this alley and saw flailing limbs and a person jump up and run away then literally seconds later two police officers on horseback went galloping after the guy, it was crazy! The guy was so dumb to try to mug someone when there were so many people still out walking around in the streets. Nonetheless witnessing that on our first night made us much more cautious about sticking together.
We woke up early to our free breakfast—a great thing about staying in hostels. We then made our way to the Anne Frank “Huis” or house where Anne Frank and her family hid from the Nazi’s in WWII. The building was the office building of her father Otto Frank’s Jam Factory. I read the Diary of Anne Frank in 8th grade so it was really neat to see it in real life. The hidden “annex” where the 8 people including the Frank family hid was much bigger than the space I had imagined. It was basically a full apartment, but what was really crazy to me was the amount of time they had to remain there without any fresh air or sunlight because of the black-out curtains. The whole museum was very tastefully done. My favorite part was definitely getting to see Anne’s actual diary that they had on display.
We then shopped around this area called Jordan, which is the less-touristy area and more residential with some great boutiques. For lunch we got traditional Netherlands pancakes that were good, but kind of strange too….I think I prefer our pancakes in America. We headed back into the city center and did some major shopping. Amsterdam has amazing shopping!
Later Saturday night we met up with three of our friends from CEA that happened to be in the city for the weekend too. We had dinner together and walked around the city and showed them the red-light district…which we were still fascinated by!
Today we got an early start and walked by the flower market where they had tons of beautiful tulips which Holland is famous for. We then went to the Heineken Factory for the “Heineken Experience.” It was SO cool! Since it started in Amsterdam they offer this really great tour where they had interesting ways to communicate the company history and lots of interactive activities. One of the coolest parts was this room where you would stand and face this screen. It was supposed to simulate “brewing you” as if you were the actual ingredients. For example when we were “mixed” the floor would shake and real bubbles or mist would appear. We were mixed, heated, stirred, bottled, and enjoyed! It was really neat! When we were bottled the screen showed us being opened from inside of a box of Heineken and taken out and enjoyed at a rooftop party! It was a great and fun way to learn how beer is made! We were also given a fresh glass of Heineken and taught how to properly drink it. There was another room where you could sit on individual couches that had TV’s attached to each chair that showed all the Heineken commercials throughout the years starting in the 1950s. Each room was so fun and interesting! At the end we got another fresh glass of their beer, we opted for the Extra Cold version! The area where you could drink your beer and relax was awesome! The tabletops were interactive and sensitive to cold so wherever you set your cold beer a Heineken symbol would appear under it and if you set it on certain places on the tabletop image of a world map facts about certain cities would appear on the tabletop screen. It was so high-tech!
We were so glad we went! I must say that Heineken is not my very favorite beer, a little too bitter for me, but I still LOVED the experience and would highly recommend it!
We grabbed a quick lunch then got our bags and headed to the train station. We will have dinner in Brussels tonight and leave early tomorrow morning (Monday).
Overall I’m obsessed with Northern Europe!
~K
Brussels Oct.9
October 9, 2009
I LOVE Brussels! After arriving late last night after a few minor obstacles we reached our hotel in Belgium! The hostel was so great! Really clean and social. They had a restaurant, bar and ping pong table and there were always lots of young people around socializing. We got an early start and took advantage of the complimentary breakfast they offered of bread, yogurt and granola/cereal. We were ecstatic to see familiar breakfast food! But I must say the very best part of breakfast was the hot chocolate! It came out of a machine, but I swear to you it was better than anything Starbucks could ever make!
We got a map from the hostel and just started walking towards the city center. All of the buildings and churches are all gorgeous! We stumbled across this little outdoor market that had the cutest, most unique jewelry! In the same square we discovered our first of the many chocolate shops in Brussels! Belgium is world famous for its chocolate, so obviously we decided to take full advantage of it! We also discovered that nearly every shop offered samples even Godiva!!! Literally every other store on the streets was a chocolate shop! Many even had the chocolate fountains in the windows! We happened to discover all of this at like 10:00am and were in a chocolate coma by noon. It was insane! We also had to try a Belgium waffle! I mean how many times do you really come to Belgium? The waffle we split was amazing! It was so light and airy, not heavy at all like in the US. They even put fresh bananas and powdered sugar on top=heaven. Everyone is just so nice and more people speak English than in Italy, which is a nice break. The most common language here in French, but it’s been so funny because we kept saying things in Italian! It’s crazy to realize how much the Italian culture has sunk into us!
Brussels is actually the capital of the whole European Union so basically the capital of Europe! As we walked around the city all morning we just kept coming across such beautiful buildings that were all so detailed. We also went and saw this really famous fountain in Brussels that is tiny, but hilarious. It’s on the side of a church and it’s a statue of a naked little cherub peeing out of fountain of water! It’s pretty funny. We all then got a substantial lunch of chicken sandwiches that were phenomenal to balance out the chocolate we had consumed all morning. On our way back to our hostel we also all tried some of the Belgium “frites” or French fries that they are famous for! They were really good and not greasy at all and since I never have fries it was quite a treat! It’s so funny how Europe has such amazing foods, far better than in the states, yet it is Americans who are obese! My food and wine class teacher has been explaining that it’s just because everything here is fresh and seasonal and has no to little preservatives! It’s great that I’m getting to experience so many new flavors and foods. I’ve never been someone who really cared about food, but food is such a huge part of the European culture that it’s rubbed off on me and my palate has expanded so much!
Anyways! We collected our bags from the hostel and are now on a train to Amsterdam! We’ll spend all day tomorrow (Saturday) and most of the day Sunday there before coming back to Brussels then flying home to Florence Monday just in time for midterms to start! Yippee!
Until Sunday ciao or bonjour!!
~K
I LOVE Brussels! After arriving late last night after a few minor obstacles we reached our hotel in Belgium! The hostel was so great! Really clean and social. They had a restaurant, bar and ping pong table and there were always lots of young people around socializing. We got an early start and took advantage of the complimentary breakfast they offered of bread, yogurt and granola/cereal. We were ecstatic to see familiar breakfast food! But I must say the very best part of breakfast was the hot chocolate! It came out of a machine, but I swear to you it was better than anything Starbucks could ever make!
We got a map from the hostel and just started walking towards the city center. All of the buildings and churches are all gorgeous! We stumbled across this little outdoor market that had the cutest, most unique jewelry! In the same square we discovered our first of the many chocolate shops in Brussels! Belgium is world famous for its chocolate, so obviously we decided to take full advantage of it! We also discovered that nearly every shop offered samples even Godiva!!! Literally every other store on the streets was a chocolate shop! Many even had the chocolate fountains in the windows! We happened to discover all of this at like 10:00am and were in a chocolate coma by noon. It was insane! We also had to try a Belgium waffle! I mean how many times do you really come to Belgium? The waffle we split was amazing! It was so light and airy, not heavy at all like in the US. They even put fresh bananas and powdered sugar on top=heaven. Everyone is just so nice and more people speak English than in Italy, which is a nice break. The most common language here in French, but it’s been so funny because we kept saying things in Italian! It’s crazy to realize how much the Italian culture has sunk into us!
Brussels is actually the capital of the whole European Union so basically the capital of Europe! As we walked around the city all morning we just kept coming across such beautiful buildings that were all so detailed. We also went and saw this really famous fountain in Brussels that is tiny, but hilarious. It’s on the side of a church and it’s a statue of a naked little cherub peeing out of fountain of water! It’s pretty funny. We all then got a substantial lunch of chicken sandwiches that were phenomenal to balance out the chocolate we had consumed all morning. On our way back to our hostel we also all tried some of the Belgium “frites” or French fries that they are famous for! They were really good and not greasy at all and since I never have fries it was quite a treat! It’s so funny how Europe has such amazing foods, far better than in the states, yet it is Americans who are obese! My food and wine class teacher has been explaining that it’s just because everything here is fresh and seasonal and has no to little preservatives! It’s great that I’m getting to experience so many new flavors and foods. I’ve never been someone who really cared about food, but food is such a huge part of the European culture that it’s rubbed off on me and my palate has expanded so much!
Anyways! We collected our bags from the hostel and are now on a train to Amsterdam! We’ll spend all day tomorrow (Saturday) and most of the day Sunday there before coming back to Brussels then flying home to Florence Monday just in time for midterms to start! Yippee!
Until Sunday ciao or bonjour!!
~K
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Milan & Lake Como
Friday bright and early my Art History class left on a bus for a fieldtrip to Milan. We arrived at the Sforzesca Castle and saw a beautiful ceiling that Leonardo da Vinci had painted to look like a Mulberry tree. We then walked to the Duomo in the center of Milan. It is massive! It was built in a Gothic style and is white with huge spires and statues covering it. Our class then went to see the famous “Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci. We had to arrive promptly for our group appointment to view it. They divided us into groups then made us walk through this corridor that cleaned our feet then go into a set of doors that closed behind us so the air around us could be purified before walking into another room where they purified the air again. Finally we were allowed into the room where the “Last Supper” is painted on the wall. I had always thought it was just a painting on canvas, but nope. Its HUGE! The room is in a building attached to a church and used to be the dining hall of the monks, so they could “eat with Christ.” It is a miracle that the painting is still intact because American troops bombed the building in WWII. The only walls not affected were the one with this painting on it and the wall opposite it covered with a crucifixion scene. When Da Vinci painted this he was experimenting in using different methods of painting such as fresco, tempura and oils so the painting itself has not preserved as well as a normal fresco would have.
We then went to another museum where they had pages from Da Vinci’s journal on display. They were incredible! From mere pages of his writing (he wrote from right to left) to diagrams of inventions and architectural designs for towers, canals and cities. Milan was definitely a cool city, I would definitely want to go back at some point in my life to explore more and shop! All the girls there were dressed amazingly!
Friday night we took a train to Varenna on Lake Como from Milan. After several stops and delays we reached Menaggio by ferry. Our other girlfriends had met us at our hostel from Florence.
We woke up to a complimentary breakfast of coffee, bread and jam then took a stroll around the tiny town of Menaggio before taking a ferry to Bellagio across the lake. We walked around, looked in some local shops, had lunch then a few of us went into this beautiful garden at a villa that is now open to the public for viewing that once belonged to a Duke. The grounds were just amazing! SO green and well-kept, right on the lakefront. We took lots of gorgeous pictures.
We went back to Menaggio to get some gelato from a place we had read about before getting ready for dinner. We were in the middle of discussing what to do and where to go for dinner, not wanting to get stranded late across the lake but wanting to see more of the lake, when this nice young guy offered some help. He was a young free-lance photographer from the states, but has lived on the lake for nearly ten years. He suggested this restaurant in Bellagio called Silvio. The restaurant picked us up in a car at the ferry in Bellagio and drove us up the mountain a little to the restaurant. We were so glad we took his suggestion! The six of us had one of the best dinners we have yet to eat in Italy! The bread was even freshly made and delicious! It was a pretty fancy family owned restaurant and we thoroughly enjoyed sparkling white wine and various pasta dishes. Everything was incredible! At the end of the meal the owner came over and talked to us and we of course ended up talking about how George Clooney always eats there! He went on to say that George’s new girlfriend isn’t even very pretty in person! So funny! The owner ended up driving us himself back down to the ferry where it took us to Cannabia ( a city away from Menaggio where our hostel was.) It was pretty chilly out so we convinced our new friend “Fabio” who worked at the hostel to come pick us up! The six of us literally piled into his teeny tiny European car for the few kilometer drive. It was quite an experience. The whole lake is surrounded by HUGE Mountains and in the dark you can see this little church high on the mountain that is lit up so it looks like it is floating among the blackness of the mountains. It was awesome. We also found out that we were only a few miles away from Switzerland!
We woke up early today, had our bread and coffee breakfast and were on our way! After a quick stop in the town of Lenno we took a ferry to the larger city of Como. We were planning on taking a train from there to Milan. The boat ride there was so beautiful! Lake Como is “Y” shaped and Menaggio (where we stayed) is in the junction of the “Y” and Como is at the end of one of the branches. The boat was a great way to get to see more of the lake. We had planned to spend some time in Como, but after trekking all the way to the train station to figure out our train tickets we decided to take the next train out. We had to go Como to Milan, Milan to Florence. It was such an incredible weekend and will definitely be going back as soon as my life allows me to!!!
This is going to be a very crazy busy week so there’s lots I need to get done!
Ciao for now!!!
Xoxo Kara
We then went to another museum where they had pages from Da Vinci’s journal on display. They were incredible! From mere pages of his writing (he wrote from right to left) to diagrams of inventions and architectural designs for towers, canals and cities. Milan was definitely a cool city, I would definitely want to go back at some point in my life to explore more and shop! All the girls there were dressed amazingly!
Friday night we took a train to Varenna on Lake Como from Milan. After several stops and delays we reached Menaggio by ferry. Our other girlfriends had met us at our hostel from Florence.
We woke up to a complimentary breakfast of coffee, bread and jam then took a stroll around the tiny town of Menaggio before taking a ferry to Bellagio across the lake. We walked around, looked in some local shops, had lunch then a few of us went into this beautiful garden at a villa that is now open to the public for viewing that once belonged to a Duke. The grounds were just amazing! SO green and well-kept, right on the lakefront. We took lots of gorgeous pictures.
We went back to Menaggio to get some gelato from a place we had read about before getting ready for dinner. We were in the middle of discussing what to do and where to go for dinner, not wanting to get stranded late across the lake but wanting to see more of the lake, when this nice young guy offered some help. He was a young free-lance photographer from the states, but has lived on the lake for nearly ten years. He suggested this restaurant in Bellagio called Silvio. The restaurant picked us up in a car at the ferry in Bellagio and drove us up the mountain a little to the restaurant. We were so glad we took his suggestion! The six of us had one of the best dinners we have yet to eat in Italy! The bread was even freshly made and delicious! It was a pretty fancy family owned restaurant and we thoroughly enjoyed sparkling white wine and various pasta dishes. Everything was incredible! At the end of the meal the owner came over and talked to us and we of course ended up talking about how George Clooney always eats there! He went on to say that George’s new girlfriend isn’t even very pretty in person! So funny! The owner ended up driving us himself back down to the ferry where it took us to Cannabia ( a city away from Menaggio where our hostel was.) It was pretty chilly out so we convinced our new friend “Fabio” who worked at the hostel to come pick us up! The six of us literally piled into his teeny tiny European car for the few kilometer drive. It was quite an experience. The whole lake is surrounded by HUGE Mountains and in the dark you can see this little church high on the mountain that is lit up so it looks like it is floating among the blackness of the mountains. It was awesome. We also found out that we were only a few miles away from Switzerland!
We woke up early today, had our bread and coffee breakfast and were on our way! After a quick stop in the town of Lenno we took a ferry to the larger city of Como. We were planning on taking a train from there to Milan. The boat ride there was so beautiful! Lake Como is “Y” shaped and Menaggio (where we stayed) is in the junction of the “Y” and Como is at the end of one of the branches. The boat was a great way to get to see more of the lake. We had planned to spend some time in Como, but after trekking all the way to the train station to figure out our train tickets we decided to take the next train out. We had to go Como to Milan, Milan to Florence. It was such an incredible weekend and will definitely be going back as soon as my life allows me to!!!
This is going to be a very crazy busy week so there’s lots I need to get done!
Ciao for now!!!
Xoxo Kara
Update from October 1
After Shelley left I got my first wave of homesickness since I’ve been here. I just really missed my friends and family, but luckily I had a busy week ahead so I was somewhat distracted.
Tuesday after my Italian class Lindsay, Collin and I went to some swap meet market down the river that we had heard about. Afterwards I took them to “Gusta Pizza” to try it after they heard me raving about it! It was so funny, right after sitting down in walked Kelly and a bunch of her Stanford friends. Florence is such a small city! It was so funny too because I had a coffee date with Kelly later that same day. We still met up that afternoon for coffee in Santa Croce. Both of us had sort of been in a rut the previous days, but being in the company of such a close friend and talking about everything took all my sadness away and totally got me back on track. It was amazing, now I’m back to appreciating and enjoying every single second. One thing that had finally gotten under both of our skins was the Florentine men. Never in my life have I ever received so much male attention. But his kind of attention is all crude remarks, looks, pick up lines, and pervy looks. They leave me feeling gross, bad about myself and angry. But after talking it out, Kelly and I both felt much better and will forevermore appreciate American men more!
Wednesday for Art History we got to go to Palazzo Vecchio in Florence’s Piazza Signoria. We had the opportunity to go to the top of the historic city hall (Palazzo Vecchio) where the top tapestry restoration lab in the world is. We saw beautiful tapestries made with silvers, golds, silks and wools all being restored. It was pretty fascinating. Normally this area is not open to the public, but our teacher had connections that allowed us to get a brief look. I love that my classes give us such unique experiences. From the restoration laboratory there was also a spectacular view of Florence!
Thursday was a full day! So many wonderful things! I had a fieldtrip to the farmers market with my Food & Wine class and learned about some local foods. For my Fashion Marketing & Merchandising class we also had a fieldtrip but to the Salvatore Ferragamo museum! It was such a unique and amazing museum! It’s in the basement of his store on Via Tournabouni and it has the most beautiful collection. There are many foot molds of his former clients such as Marilyn Monroe, Audrey and Katharine Hepburn, Sophia Loren, etc. Each room was color coordinated by shoes in display cases. He was such an interesting man and it was so interesting to see how innovative and ahead of his time he was. He invented the “invisible sandal” made with fishing line on the tops and the platform shoe which he covered with vibrant colors of suede in the 1930s! Far before the platforms fashionable in the disco era! There were even some shoes on display that had been made for royalty and the very wealthy that were decorated with gems. My favorite pair was made completely of 18 karat gold!!!
After class CEA had arranged for us to get a boat ride on the Arno River. This was a really special opportunity because you never see anyone on the river at all! We piled into two large canoe-like boats that we learned were actually antiques from the early 20th century. These boats had once been used to carry sand to be used in construction for the Florentine buildings. It was amazing to see the city from the water. It was so peaceful and still and just a wonderful afternoon. I also learned that there is some sort of huge fish (like 2 meters +) that lives in the Arno that eats fish and even these huge rodent-beaver things whole!!! That sort of freaked us out knowing that these mammal eating fish things are lurking!
Later Thursday night we went to get gelato at our favorite place along the river to watch a firework display we heard about. It was absolutely incredible! It was one of the best firework displays I’ve ever seen! It was so unique! They literally shot off the fireworks from the riverbank. The show was for this fancy Antique Banquet dinner that was taking place in this old palace on the river. There was beautiful Italian music playing as they were shot off and they even turned off the surrounding street lights! Along with the fireworks being shot into the air, some were set off right above the river so that they caused water to spray and illuminate. Also at the base of the launch pads were spinning wheels of sparkling fireworks that were each like ten feet in diameter. It was truly unbelievable and I’ll without a doubt remember that forever.
Tuesday after my Italian class Lindsay, Collin and I went to some swap meet market down the river that we had heard about. Afterwards I took them to “Gusta Pizza” to try it after they heard me raving about it! It was so funny, right after sitting down in walked Kelly and a bunch of her Stanford friends. Florence is such a small city! It was so funny too because I had a coffee date with Kelly later that same day. We still met up that afternoon for coffee in Santa Croce. Both of us had sort of been in a rut the previous days, but being in the company of such a close friend and talking about everything took all my sadness away and totally got me back on track. It was amazing, now I’m back to appreciating and enjoying every single second. One thing that had finally gotten under both of our skins was the Florentine men. Never in my life have I ever received so much male attention. But his kind of attention is all crude remarks, looks, pick up lines, and pervy looks. They leave me feeling gross, bad about myself and angry. But after talking it out, Kelly and I both felt much better and will forevermore appreciate American men more!
Wednesday for Art History we got to go to Palazzo Vecchio in Florence’s Piazza Signoria. We had the opportunity to go to the top of the historic city hall (Palazzo Vecchio) where the top tapestry restoration lab in the world is. We saw beautiful tapestries made with silvers, golds, silks and wools all being restored. It was pretty fascinating. Normally this area is not open to the public, but our teacher had connections that allowed us to get a brief look. I love that my classes give us such unique experiences. From the restoration laboratory there was also a spectacular view of Florence!
Thursday was a full day! So many wonderful things! I had a fieldtrip to the farmers market with my Food & Wine class and learned about some local foods. For my Fashion Marketing & Merchandising class we also had a fieldtrip but to the Salvatore Ferragamo museum! It was such a unique and amazing museum! It’s in the basement of his store on Via Tournabouni and it has the most beautiful collection. There are many foot molds of his former clients such as Marilyn Monroe, Audrey and Katharine Hepburn, Sophia Loren, etc. Each room was color coordinated by shoes in display cases. He was such an interesting man and it was so interesting to see how innovative and ahead of his time he was. He invented the “invisible sandal” made with fishing line on the tops and the platform shoe which he covered with vibrant colors of suede in the 1930s! Far before the platforms fashionable in the disco era! There were even some shoes on display that had been made for royalty and the very wealthy that were decorated with gems. My favorite pair was made completely of 18 karat gold!!!
After class CEA had arranged for us to get a boat ride on the Arno River. This was a really special opportunity because you never see anyone on the river at all! We piled into two large canoe-like boats that we learned were actually antiques from the early 20th century. These boats had once been used to carry sand to be used in construction for the Florentine buildings. It was amazing to see the city from the water. It was so peaceful and still and just a wonderful afternoon. I also learned that there is some sort of huge fish (like 2 meters +) that lives in the Arno that eats fish and even these huge rodent-beaver things whole!!! That sort of freaked us out knowing that these mammal eating fish things are lurking!
Later Thursday night we went to get gelato at our favorite place along the river to watch a firework display we heard about. It was absolutely incredible! It was one of the best firework displays I’ve ever seen! It was so unique! They literally shot off the fireworks from the riverbank. The show was for this fancy Antique Banquet dinner that was taking place in this old palace on the river. There was beautiful Italian music playing as they were shot off and they even turned off the surrounding street lights! Along with the fireworks being shot into the air, some were set off right above the river so that they caused water to spray and illuminate. Also at the base of the launch pads were spinning wheels of sparkling fireworks that were each like ten feet in diameter. It was truly unbelievable and I’ll without a doubt remember that forever.
Update from September 27th
So Thursday night or should I say VERY early Friday morning (1am) Shelley finally arrived at the Florence train station after a delayed flight and missed train. It was so amazing to see her! We literally almost ran to when we first saw each other. It was so strange having her be in the city I now call home.
We got an early start Friday and I took her to the San Lorenzo market for a make-shift breakfast of bananas, nuts and dried fruit. We took our little meal into a piazza and enjoyed it on the steps. I then took her to the Accademia museum to see Michelangelo’s “David.” Luckily we got to borrow my friend’s museum pass so Shelley got in free with me to all the Florence museums. It had happened that I had been to see the “David” two days earlier with my Art History class. I was able to be an excellent tour guide, I actually impressed myself with all the facts that I had picked up from my Art History teacher. I told her all about the secrets and stories of Giambologna’s “Rape of the Sabines” and both Michelangelo’s “Prisoners” and “ David.” It was so neat to be able to share all the interesting knowledge and such beauty with someone who enjoys art (Shelley is an art minor). We next headed off to the Uffizi Museum and Piazza Signoria where the Rick Steeves Italy book gave us a great swift overview of the museum, highlighting only the “must-sees.”
We were starving after absorbing so much visual stimuli so we decided to try this restaurant called “Gusta Pizza” which is said to have the best pizza in Florence. It’s just a small place with super friendly staff and pizza that is to die for! Shelley said it may have been the best she’s ever had! It was cooked to perfection, with the perfect fresh ingredients and a splash of olive oil on top. DELICIOUS. On our way to the Pitti Palace after lunch we stumbled upon this great vintage store my friends told me about called Pitti Vintage and had fun looking through all the great clothes. We proceeded to go to the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens, the former palace of Florence’s historic rulers. It was crazy to see all the details and how lavishly they lived. It was definitely nothing compared to Versailles in France, but still was awesome to see. Our favorite part was the costume exhibit. They had some historic outfits on display as well as an amazing head-to-toe Chanel outfit—a black leather jacket, pink dress and their classic black quilted purse. We were in love.
Needing a break from a day on our feet, I took Shelley to the top of the Department store La Rinascente where there is an outdoor café with an incredible view of Florence and Piazza della Reppublica (where my school is). We enjoyed ourselves with great café lattes and conversation! Our next stop was the San Lorenzo outdoor market where we shopped around. Shelley got a few leather souvenirs, but the best part was the leather jacket I ended up buying! We met a salesman named Fredrico who was quite the charmer. He took us back to his family’s store and kept calling us “darling.” That is when I fell I love with this great cream colored side-zip leather jacket. After bargaining down the price more than half, I decided to splurge. I definitely have no buyer’s remorse!
We then ate dinner at this restaurant called Trattoria Zaza that I had heard about for dinner. It was fantastic! Great outdoor seating and big menu! I was thrilled to see chicken on the menu because supposedly Italians “don’t believe in poultry.” Nevertheless I ordered it and was in heaven! For dessert I of course took her to my favorite gelato shop La Carraria on the Arno. She loved it of course!
We went home, got ready while enjoying some wine then went with my friend Tyler who is a club owner/promoter in Florence for drinks. Shelley, Jillian and I ended up driving around with him all night going to different clubs. We went to a club Central Park then to some ALL Italian club that his cousin owns then to Twice to VIP (he started this club.) We had such a great night and I was so glad I could be a great hostess and show her a fun night out and about in Florence! We were out until 5am!
Therefore we woke up exhausted on Saturday morning. We got breakfast again at San Lorenzo then had a lot of fun going into all of the designer shops on Via Tournabouni, Florence’s equivalent of Rodeo Drive. For the rest of the day I showed her other sites around the city like Santa Maria Novella church, Santa Croce, Piazzale Michelangelo, etc. ALL my favorite places!
At 7pm we met up with Kelly and her Stanford friends for appertivos (Italian happy hour with included buffet) which was incredible! A drink and as much food as you can eat for only 8 euro! All of Kelly’s friends were so nice and I was glad I got to show Shelley another part of Italian culture!
Overall I think I was able to give Shelley a perfect impression of Florence! Since this is now my home, I obviously wanted her to love it…which I think she did!
I walked her to the train station early Sunday morning then slept until the afternoon! It’s tough playing hostess! That afternoon I went with a group of my girlfriends to the Piazza Pitti where the Florence Wine Event was taking place. For 8 euro you got a wine glass and a punch card that was good for 12 wine samplings! There were over 100 different booths with various wines from different vineyards. My favorite was a very sweet rosette (?) called Moscato. It was such a fun event, especially this time of year because this is when the grapes are being harvested and not to mention we are in ITALY!
Needless to say it was a great ending to a great weekend!!!
Xoxo
Kara
We got an early start Friday and I took her to the San Lorenzo market for a make-shift breakfast of bananas, nuts and dried fruit. We took our little meal into a piazza and enjoyed it on the steps. I then took her to the Accademia museum to see Michelangelo’s “David.” Luckily we got to borrow my friend’s museum pass so Shelley got in free with me to all the Florence museums. It had happened that I had been to see the “David” two days earlier with my Art History class. I was able to be an excellent tour guide, I actually impressed myself with all the facts that I had picked up from my Art History teacher. I told her all about the secrets and stories of Giambologna’s “Rape of the Sabines” and both Michelangelo’s “Prisoners” and “ David.” It was so neat to be able to share all the interesting knowledge and such beauty with someone who enjoys art (Shelley is an art minor). We next headed off to the Uffizi Museum and Piazza Signoria where the Rick Steeves Italy book gave us a great swift overview of the museum, highlighting only the “must-sees.”
We were starving after absorbing so much visual stimuli so we decided to try this restaurant called “Gusta Pizza” which is said to have the best pizza in Florence. It’s just a small place with super friendly staff and pizza that is to die for! Shelley said it may have been the best she’s ever had! It was cooked to perfection, with the perfect fresh ingredients and a splash of olive oil on top. DELICIOUS. On our way to the Pitti Palace after lunch we stumbled upon this great vintage store my friends told me about called Pitti Vintage and had fun looking through all the great clothes. We proceeded to go to the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens, the former palace of Florence’s historic rulers. It was crazy to see all the details and how lavishly they lived. It was definitely nothing compared to Versailles in France, but still was awesome to see. Our favorite part was the costume exhibit. They had some historic outfits on display as well as an amazing head-to-toe Chanel outfit—a black leather jacket, pink dress and their classic black quilted purse. We were in love.
Needing a break from a day on our feet, I took Shelley to the top of the Department store La Rinascente where there is an outdoor café with an incredible view of Florence and Piazza della Reppublica (where my school is). We enjoyed ourselves with great café lattes and conversation! Our next stop was the San Lorenzo outdoor market where we shopped around. Shelley got a few leather souvenirs, but the best part was the leather jacket I ended up buying! We met a salesman named Fredrico who was quite the charmer. He took us back to his family’s store and kept calling us “darling.” That is when I fell I love with this great cream colored side-zip leather jacket. After bargaining down the price more than half, I decided to splurge. I definitely have no buyer’s remorse!
We then ate dinner at this restaurant called Trattoria Zaza that I had heard about for dinner. It was fantastic! Great outdoor seating and big menu! I was thrilled to see chicken on the menu because supposedly Italians “don’t believe in poultry.” Nevertheless I ordered it and was in heaven! For dessert I of course took her to my favorite gelato shop La Carraria on the Arno. She loved it of course!
We went home, got ready while enjoying some wine then went with my friend Tyler who is a club owner/promoter in Florence for drinks. Shelley, Jillian and I ended up driving around with him all night going to different clubs. We went to a club Central Park then to some ALL Italian club that his cousin owns then to Twice to VIP (he started this club.) We had such a great night and I was so glad I could be a great hostess and show her a fun night out and about in Florence! We were out until 5am!
Therefore we woke up exhausted on Saturday morning. We got breakfast again at San Lorenzo then had a lot of fun going into all of the designer shops on Via Tournabouni, Florence’s equivalent of Rodeo Drive. For the rest of the day I showed her other sites around the city like Santa Maria Novella church, Santa Croce, Piazzale Michelangelo, etc. ALL my favorite places!
At 7pm we met up with Kelly and her Stanford friends for appertivos (Italian happy hour with included buffet) which was incredible! A drink and as much food as you can eat for only 8 euro! All of Kelly’s friends were so nice and I was glad I got to show Shelley another part of Italian culture!
Overall I think I was able to give Shelley a perfect impression of Florence! Since this is now my home, I obviously wanted her to love it…which I think she did!
I walked her to the train station early Sunday morning then slept until the afternoon! It’s tough playing hostess! That afternoon I went with a group of my girlfriends to the Piazza Pitti where the Florence Wine Event was taking place. For 8 euro you got a wine glass and a punch card that was good for 12 wine samplings! There were over 100 different booths with various wines from different vineyards. My favorite was a very sweet rosette (?) called Moscato. It was such a fun event, especially this time of year because this is when the grapes are being harvested and not to mention we are in ITALY!
Needless to say it was a great ending to a great weekend!!!
Xoxo
Kara
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