....I'm baaaack! Part 2: Barcelona, Spain

When we arrived at the Barcelona airport we took the Aerobus for 5 euros to get to Plaza Espanya where we took the Metro right next to where our hostel was located. We walked up to the street and arrived at the number where our hostel was supposed to be, but we arrived to just a simple door with no sign of a hostel. I panicked for about 5 minutes and then a couple arrived confirming that they were staying at BCN Loft as well and that we had to call the guy who ran the apartments. They let us up to their apartment, gave us access to their Wifi and allowed us to get in touch with Victor, the guy who ran the place. He took us down to our apartment, which we thought was just for us but there were actually three other rooms of two. That was the first disappointment and then when we let us into our room it was quite dirty, and just unpleasant. The bathroom was tiny, the shower as well and I definitely do not recommend this place. Spend the extra money to stay in a hostel! (I wish I had a picture to share the emotions with you buttt I forgot to take any.)

On our first night we decided to walk over to La Rambla which was about 5 minutes from our apartment and is a popular touristy area with lots of shops, vendors, people dressed up crazy, food, etc. We walked up and down the entire street checking out all the deals that each restaurant was offering since it is a huge area for tourists. We finally decided on a restaurant that didn't have pictures outside of their tapas (a tip that was recommended to me) and had a deal with an appetizer, entree and dessert. For our appetizers I had a tapas plate and Matt had pasta, and then we both got paella as our entree. Paella is a typical spanish rice dish that is much heavier than I remember from when I traveled to Spain in high school. We stopped at a chill bar, Queen Vic, and met some students who were studying abroad but the food wasn't settling too well with our stomachs... another strike for Barcelona.

Seafood Paella... only a quarter was eaten 

Matt's goal for the whole trip was to rent a scooter so we went to check that out when we woke up on day 2. The guy forewarned us that if the police stop you that you need to pay a 300 euro fine so we didn't get one. We got a metro pass for the day and walked along the water, and through Barceloneta, which is an area right near the water. This area was gorgeous, it was filled with sailboats and was just a nice place to chill and hang out.

We then took the metro up to Parc Guell, which is a park designed by Gaudi who is the main architect in Barcelona. The park was a large hike up a steep hill but it was beautiful in it's design and allowed us to see a great view of the city.

Parc Guell

Parc Guell

View from up top

We went back to our apartment and took a nap since we were exhausted from walking everywhere throughout the day. When we woke up we took the metro back to the Barceloneta area to try to get some seafood for dinner, but nothing seemed like a good deal so we headed back to La Rambla. Well by that time it was approaching midnight and everything was closing so we wound up getting McDonald's for dinner. I couldn't believe I was eating that in Spain, especially since I haven't had it in about 3 years. That also didn't settle well with our stomachs so we basicallly striked out round two.

On the morning of the third day we went to a different scooter shop that we found a flyer from on another scooter that was parked on La Rambla. The offer was a full day for 26 euros, and the guy also gave us the forewarning about the fee that the cops could make you pay if you get stopped. A Spanish couple was in the shop and they basically told us that it was worth the risk and that if you follow the driving rules and drive the speed limit that nothing should happen. So we got our very own scooter and it was ASBOLUTELY awesome! It was the coolest experience ever and it allowed us to see so many areas of the city since many sites are up on hills and further away from the center.

On our scooter journey first we traveled around and then we went to Sagrada Familia which is a church designed by Gaudi, that was spectacular. We then went to the FC Barcelona Stadium, where the soccer team plays, and then over to the National Museum of Art that had a stunning view of the entire city of Barcelona. On our way back down from the hill we passed the Olympic Stadium and then traveled along the gorgeous beach. The scooter allowed us to successfully see everything that we wanted to see so this made Barcelona a lot more successful for us.

La Sagrada Famiglia 

At the National Museum of Art 

View from the Museum

Beach side :)

For our final night in Barcelona we got our final dinner, which was crappy pasta, so we completely gave up on the food! But I got to enjoy a nice big glass of Sangria so it kind of evened out... We then walked over to La Rambla just to hang out and look at all the crazy people who dress up in costumes and enjoy some ice cream. We wound up running into a market which was fiiiilled with fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, and fish. We had a relaxing night since we had to wake up bright and early to fly into Milan. Overall Barcelona was disappointing in my eyes compared to the other trips I took to Spain (Leon & Sevilla) since it was much more touristy and because of the crappy place that we were staying. The people weren't all that friendly and the food wasn't good either, but we tried to make the best of it even though we enjoyed Amsterdam much better. 

His new girlfriend on La Rambla 

Fruit and nuts at the market

When we got to the Milan airport we took a 30 minute bus ride to the Milan train station (lots of little trips like I said before). We got our tickets to head back to Florence and then we walked around outside to find a little place to eat, which we successfully found a delicious pizzeria. We were instantly greeted by super friendly Italians who welcomed us and treated us so kindly which was an amazing feeling to return to Italy. I felt so at home that everyone was so nice and that I could once again speak the language, Italy is truly the best place ever. For our first night back in Florence we just relaxed and then went out to dinner at Dante's for some free wine and met up with Jessica to have some drinks in her apartment. Croton reunion! On Matt's last day we explored the rest of Florence, I showed him the infamous Duomo and then we just drank some coffee in Piazza Signoria like true italians do. All of my roommates returned back from their Spring Break and our host mom made us all a true meal which was a nice little bonding session. :) Spring Break come quickly to an end and Matt headed back to New York but it was absolutely the best week of the semester so far. Seeing new cities was a great opportunity but I definitely realized that Italy is amazing and I won't be going out of the country for the rest of the semester, only traveling around Italia.

Now it's back to the grind of our actual classes... until the next update, ciao bellas!

....I'm baaaack! Part 1: The crazy city of Amsterdam

Home sweet home in Firenze!! 

I'm back in action in Italy after a crazy fun filled adventure of Spring Break. I'm breaking up our week of travel into two different posts, one for each city, so that you all don't have a novel to read! Matt's arrival in Florence was smooth and simple, with no complications. I took a bus to the airport to pick him up and anxiously wait for his arrival. Since he stayed awake to fight off jet lag, I was able to show him most of Florence on the first day of our break. I took him throughout most of the piazzas, past our school, out to his first italian meal- pizza, and to finish the day off with gelato...naturally.

along the river arno :)

Saturday morning we woke up at 5am to head to the Florence train station to catch our Intercity train to Rome. We were flying Easyjet out of Rome to get to our first stop on our journey, Amsterdam. After arriving at the Rome train station we then had to take another shuttle train over to the Rome airport. These little unexpected travels definitely added up throughout the entire week! We were cutting it close to our flight time, but we made it through security and got to our gate to see that there was a long line of people waiting to board on our flight. So after all of the rush we wound up not needed to worry after all.

Once we arrived in the beautiful Amsterdam airport we asked around on how to get to the area of our hotel. We were informed to take the train to Central Station and then take the tram to Vondelpark. We made it to Central Station and then we were too tired to try to figure out which tram to take so we hopped in a taxi and took the easy way out to reach our hotel. The hotel was a little further out from the center of the city but the area was beautiful and the hotel room and service was amazing. For any of you that are going to Amsterdam, Hotel Central Park, I highly recommend it and it wasn't too pricey! One of the first things that amazed me about Amsterdam was the fact that almost everyone rides around on bicycles. It is their most common means of transportation and the streets are always filled with people riding around on them.. so cool.

One of the many canals of Amsterdam

Bikes eeeeverywhere!

To figure out where to go for our first night in Amsterdam we asked the guy who worked at our hotel and he told us to go to Leidseplein. This area was one of our favorites, there were a lot of people, bars, pubs, shopping, coffee shops, and tons of restaurants. When I say tons I mean this place had streets filled with every type of cuisine you could possibly want: Italian, Greek, Mexican, American, Chinese anything one right after the other!! I don't think that Dutch food is quite popular with all of the tourists...

Leidesplein

The Bulldog- Coffee shop

On the second day we were going to try to rent a scooter so we took the tram to Dam Plaza to get some info on renting one. The guy who worked there was so nice and didn't try to rip us off but rather told us that it wasn't really necessary for the small city of Amsterdam. He gave us suggestions of areas to explore, he told us to not waste our money on the Anne Frank or Van Gogh museum, but rather to explore the true areas that the city has to offer. He gave the best advice I have heard... the best things the city has to offer are always free. We took his advice and went to the famous Dutch Pancake Bakery where the "pancakes" were just one giant pancake and you could get sweet ones like at home or savory ones, with bacon or cheese. I went with banana and Matt went with bacon, both turned out being delicious.

True Dutch meal: Pancake Bakery

For our third day in Amsterdam Matt decided to live like the locals and rent a bike for the two of us, for him to drive and for me to sit on the luggage rack on the back. It was the best idea because we got to see everything and we got to travel around just like the locals and not seem like tourists. We drove all around through Dam Plaza (big shopping area), through Rembrantsplein, and then we decided to head to the Heineken Experience to take the tour of the brewery. The tour was awesome showing you the history, the change in the labels, the Heineken horses, how it's made, the ingredients, a ride that turns you into a beer, a chance to make your own personal bottle, and then a final bar with 2 free included beers. Definitely worth the 14 euros for this "museum" :)

Beside one of the machines that they use to cook the beer

Churnin the water and barley

That night we biked around, headed back to Leidesplein for dinner, and then ventured up near Central Station. We eventually ran into the Red Light District, which completely blew me away to see ugly prostitutes hanging out in the windows. Definitely a crazy, wild, city that I am totally glad we got to visit.  On our last day in Amsterdam we had until 3pm before we had to head over to the airport so we searched for an American version of breakfast, and we eventually found a place that had omelettes. We hung out close to Central Station since that was where we had to catch the train back to the airport, in a really cool coffee shop, Homegrown Fantasy, until it was time to go. The city was extremely unique in it's relaxed attitude, it's architecture, and it's way of life. Amsterdam was one of my favorite cities for suuuure!

Red Light District

3 tests and an essay complete = SPRING BREAK!!!

As I anxiously await Matt's arrival at the Florence airport, I figured I would update before we head off for the amazing journey of Spring Break!!

This past week was "midterms week." Back at JMU Midterms Week is basically hell, everyone is in the library, always studying, blah blah. In Florence... everything is basically just laid back. The tests are not nearly as difficult, and the teachers practically tell you what the test is going to entail. Even if you think you did bad on a test, they will count another assignment to weigh the grade out, so I have no concerns about midterm grades.

For wine class we went to Benvenuto Chianti Classico, which is a day long festival with around 150 wine producers, all producing Chianti Classico wine, which must use a certain blend of Sangiovese grapes and their vineyards must be located in the region between Florence and Siena. It was a great out of the classroom opportunity to be able to interact with the producers, ask them questions, and discover about their vineyards, and try their different wines.

Symbol of Chianti Classico made of corks

After completing all of our tests and essays yesterday, it was officially SPRING BREAK! My roommates all left this morning for the start of their journey to Sicily, so I am anxiously waiting all by myself! Matt and I are staying in Florence tonight and then leaving on a 6:30 train tomorrow for Rome, where we will fly out to head to our first stop, Amsterdam! We will be staying in Amsterdam until Tuesday and then heading to the city of Barcelona until Friday, when we will fly into Milan and then return back to Florence. I am so so so extremely excited, I can't even put it into words! These two cities are going to be amazing, there will be plenty of pictures and blogging as soon as I return! 

PS. I booked my weekend trip to the Almalfi Coast for March 24th!!

Happy Valentine's Day... italian style! 

463 steps later...

As you all know, this weekend the London girls finally arrived in Florence! We had a jam packed 2 days of guiding them around Florence, which truly felt like "our city." We brought them to all the Piazzas, the chocolate festival in Santa Croce, and the leather market. They were allowed to enter their hostel at 5pm so we parted to get ready for a new aperitivo spot for dinner. We tried out Oibo, which had a good spread of food and delicious drinks, and it is located right next to our favorite bar. After that first spot we moved along to our regular bar, Naima... where we stayed for the whole night. Our plan was to go to the club, Full Up, but everyone was exhausted since their travels started at 3:30am.

Since we aren't too big on the breakfast here in Florence, which consists mostly of cookies, and crossaints (I have cereal every day) this morning, Stacey, Caroline and I went to breakfast at The Diner, an american diner to have some eggs. amazing. Sorry I always talk about food...oops.

After a meal to gain some energy, we showed them the Duomo and then we finally completed the task of climbing up the dome part of the church. It was 463 steps up to the top, where you could walk around on the inside of the dome to see all of the artwork, and then you could go outside of the dome to see the entire city of Florence. For the cost of 8 euros, it is probably the most breathtaking scene I will ever see.

Assisi and Superbowl Monday

Ciao amici!
This past weekend our group traveled with the school to the town of Assisi, the center of Italy, and we had a great tour guide who took us to the Basilica of St. Clare, through the town center, and down to the Basilica of St. Francis. Everything in Assisi is dedicated to Saint Francis of Assisi, for obvious reasons. The town completely made out of limestone, which is absolutely beautiful. The history and art in both of the churches was unreal...unfortunately you aren't allowed to take pictures inside, so I guess you'll just have to come and see for yourselves :)

Basilica of Saint Francis

On Sunday we just hung around at our homestay, I accomplished one of my essays that is due this week, and we saved our energy to make it out to watch the Superbowl at night. We went to an American Bar here in Florence, Red Garter, which was one of the bars that hosted the event. The Superbowl started at 6:30 at home, which means 12:30am here... but yes, I made it out and I stayed out til about 3... once the halftime show was over. We didn't get to see any of the Superbowl commercials since it was a live stream and not actually live TV, so if you have any youtube recommendations, let me know about that!

Other than that nothing too exciting has been happening this week, we have two essays due tomorrow..fun stuff. My best friends are visiting from their study abroad program this weekend, 3 days, which is my motivation for the week! I can't wait to show them around the beautiful city of Florence :)

PS. random note for those who plan on studying abroad here: bring a Nalgene or water bottle because they charge you for water everywhere. Even in restaurants, free tap water just doesn't happen!

"pictures can't even explain it the way I want to explain it..."

Dear friends and family who read this,
It has officially been my favorite day in Florence so far. We went on many adventures today so I forewarn you that this post will be long, but have many pictures of a day that I don't ever want to forget...so blogging here I come.
To start off the day, Julia and I both dressed in red to support our sisters of Alpha Phi back home in raising the awareness of heart disease. We miss you all so much!! Luckily, we looked cute for all the places we went and all the pictures we took all day long!

Our host mom told us all about this trattoria that her boyfriend took her to for lunch that she loved and recommended so we decided to go today, Friday, since we have no classes and could take our time. We got two courses, a pasta dish and a meat dish, all for 7 euros! It was an amazing little hole in the wall spot, off the main road, which was full of all locals. Today was one of those days where I finally just feel like an American in Italy, and no longer like a tourist.   

Our journey then continued to the Chocolate Festival in la Piazza Santa Croce, where there were stands and stands of the best chocolate makers around. There were kebabs of fruit covered with chocolate fondue, mounds of chocolate in basically any form that you could imagine. The festival goes on until February 13th, right before Valentine's Day! :) I bought a chunk of dark chocolate with hazelnuts in it to take home as a souvenir, cause who can go home empty handed from a chocolate festival...honestly. 

 

After the Chocolate Festival, a whole bunch of us from our program headed on a 15 minute walk up to the Piazza de Michaelangelo. After reaching the top, the area is truly the most beautiful view of Florence that you can possibly see. I actually feel like I could now leave this city having seen the true beauty that it holds. Gosh the realities of how fortunate we are to study abroad truly sank in today.

it's gunna be a good day...

You know one of those days that something happens and you just know its going to be a great day? Today was just one of those days, and it turned out to be a wonderful day. Well actually the morning started out rough since I got an email from my Mom, saying that the bank thought my debit card was taken... even though I told them before I left that I was going to be in Italy for three months, like I was supposed to. Guess that little tid bit of info got lost? Nice one Chase...

But then my fate turned around when I took a shower this morning. I know that sounds strange but the only thing that I can complain about here is the shower. It is either extremely hot or extremely cold and the water pressure is intense. Well on Sunday when I went to take a shower I was in the shower for about a minute and there was already a HUGE puddle outside of the shower and I realized that the shower head was broken. (It was chaos but I won't get into details.) After some translation and a little shopping, we now have a new shower head and the shower is absolutely amazing. Perfect water pressure and perfect temperature = start to the good day!

On Tuesdays I don't have class until 2:30, so I got stayed home and got my homework done...success, and then went to lunch at Trattoria Casalinga with some girls on the program. We wound up sitting with 3 italians after Ally asked him what he was eating and he gave her a fork to try it out. We practiced some of our italian, enjoyed some red wine, and I tried a new dish that they recommended, pasta with boar (surprisingly amazing)!! After my only class of the day, Julia, Taylor, and I went to Gelateria La Carraia, which just reopened today for the season. Let me just say that I have been searching for my favorite gelato place in Florence, and I am finally impressed. The gelato was absolutely amazing and the store is so cute and tidy, I will take a picture sometime soon!

Just a fun little countdown:
Day trip to Assisi: 4 days
London Girls' arrive in Florence: 10 days!
Matt arrives in Florence: 16 days!