Tips, Tricks & Must Do's in Italy

Don't live by these suggestions but they could save your life ;)

• Don't bring large amounts of the US dollar.  Exchanging from US dollar to the euro will only get you about half of your money back.  For example $100 will get you 55 Euros.  The best way to get money changed to the Euro is by telling your bank ahead of time that you are traveling and you can also check the exchange rate they charge.  You will also need to tell them exactly where you are going and on what dates.  From there you can take a debt or credit card to any ATM and withdraw money.  Every ATM that I have used was capable of changing the language to English. 
• Buy a English/Italian dictornary before you leave the US.  Small enough that it will fit in a purse or bag.  Make sure it has a few basic phrases too. 
• Pickpockets are a terrible issue that you face when traveling in Europe.  Whenever I travel I use a waist money belt that I bought from Wal-Mart.  I would highly suggest putting your passport, train/plane tickets, cash and cards into your belt underneath your shirt.  I personal do not carry a purse.  I know 5 people in my program that have been pick-pocketed since we have been here.  They had no idea that it had happened until they tried to buy something later in the day. If you do bring a purse please have your hand on it and in front of you at all times. 
•  http://www.walmart.com/ip/Waist-Money-Belt/9107582 

•  Pack light!!!!  Advice that I have heard from tons of people as well as believe myself.  Bring twice the money and half the clothes.  You are going to want to take home all of the treasures of Italy and let me tell you there is so much that you are going to want to buy. 
• Think twice about bringing your iphone or expensive smart phone.  I brought my sisters old ipod touch and I am so glad I did.  Before you leave the US you can download texting apps that allow you to text other phones for free if you have WiFi.  Some café s and restaurants have free WiFi along with your hotel or hostel. 

 
The best way to get from city to city is most likely going to be the train.  The train website is:

Trenitalia Link

The link above is in English.  It can be tough to navigate through the website.  Keep patience and you will get your ticket.  

Rome

A great hotel at a great price is Aenea Superior Inn Rome.  It is not a usual hotel by American standards with it being located inside of a residential apartment building.  It is located on the 2nd floor with 15 rooms.  You have your own private bathroom and breakfast in the morning.  Along with a mini fridge, coffee pot and kettle. Very clean and well kept.  They also have free Wifi which is very important if you are traveling with only a ipod or computer. 

Aenea Superior Inn Rome Link


Tomorrow I will be posting: "How to see Rome in two day!" 

Rome Take Two

When in Rome...

The Rome Excursion was planned by our school, Richmond.  This was nice to have a planned out itinerary without having to plan or book a single thing.  This time around I went to so many more churches and museums, plus went back again to all the popular sites.  

Rome is a giant city.  For public transport they have buses, underground trains, and regular trains.  I am starting to get the hang of metro systems and how they work, however buses are harder for me to understand.  There are bus stations and stops all over the city and run at different spread out times.  So I generally take the metro.

But in the case of Rome the metro only runs around the outside of the city center because today's Rome is built over Ancient Rome and all of the ruins.  This leads to lots and lots of walking which I am so familiar with now.

The first day in Rome we visited Pizza di Spagna, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountian and about 5 churches with well known painters works.  Pizza di Spagna is known for it's Spanish Steps.  The monumental stairway has 135 steps.  We did not see the Spanish Steps as they usual are.  It is forbidden to eat or drink on the steps.  However, there had been a very important soccer game that day against a German team.  The Germans had taken over the steps and then the police came and kicked all of the Germans off.  The steps were littered with spilled beer and broken glass.  We were not allowed on the steps while they were cleaning up the mess.

The Trevi Fountian is such monumental fountain.  The fountain is actually just the face of a building.  The fountain is at the junction of three roads which marks the terminal point one of the ancient aqueducts that supplied water to ancient Rome.  The ancient story goes, throw one coin in and you will return to Rome, throw a second coin in and you will fall in love and if you throw a third coin in you will get married.  So guess how many coins I threw in?  Yep, that's right I threw THREE in!

On our second day in Rome we went to The Vatican Museums & St. Peter's Basilica.  I learned so much about the Sistine Chapel and Michelangelo.  The Pope at the time commissioned him to come and build the sculptures for a tomb, but early in the project the Pope changed his mind and told Michelangelo that he was supposed to paint a fresco on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Michelangelo at that time had never painted a fresco before.  He thought painting was dumb and for the weak.  Michelangelo was so mad at the Pope for making him change the project that he left Rome and went back to Florence.  The Pope then threatened war with Florence if Michelangelo did not come back to Rome and paint for him.  Michelangelo dragged his feet back to Rome where he created a masterpiece.

As I said before he had never done a fresco before, so halfway through painting the ceiling it began to rot.  He once again had to start from scratch.  The fresco only took him four years to complete.  Contrary to popular belief he never laid down to paint the ceiling.  He stood and painted from scaffolding that he created himself.  Can you image day and night standing, painting and looking up for four years of your life.  The pain would be unbearable.  Did you know that Michelangelo also wrote. 

Michelangelo: To Giovanni da Pistoia
"When the Author Was Painting the Vault of the Sistine Chapel" 1509

I've already grown a goiter from this torture,
hunched up here like a cat in Lombardy
(or anywhere else where the stagnant water's poison).
My stomach's squashed under my chin, my beard's
pointing at heaven, my brain's crushed in a casket,
my breast twists like a harpy's. My brush,
above me all the time, dribbles paint
so my face makes a fine floor for droppings!
My haunches are grinding into my guts,
my poor ass strains to work as a counterweight,
every gesture I make is blind and aimless.
My skin hangs loose below me, my spine's
all knotted from folding over itself.
I'm bent taut as a Syrian bow.
Because I'm stuck like this, my thoughts
are crazy, perfidious tripe:
anyone shoots badly through a crooked blowpipe.
My painting is dead.
Defend it for me, Giovanni, protect my honor.
I am not in the right place—I am not a painter.

Up until the 1980's everyone thought Michelangelo was a deep dark soul.  His fresco's were very dark and gory.  However, when the Japanese paid for the restoration of the Sistine Chapel everyone soon realized that the paintings were just dirty.  They came to life and are the colorful paintings that we see today.

Just in case you wanted to know how a fresco is made - you first apply plaster to a wall, then you let the plaster dry.  After the first layer of plaster you add more plaster but with pigments mixed into the plaster.  You only mix as much plaster as you can use in one day because it drys fast.  And the process continues until you have a painting.   

We also visited the Colosseo, Foro Romano, San Pietro in Vincoli, Campidoglio, and many more wonderful sites in the beautiful city of Rome.  

Next post will be on tips and things you have to do in Rome. :) 

Hope all is well!   

Barcelona Cont...

                     



                  
                  Barcelona, Spain

The six photos for my first photo journalism assignment.  Above, an egg stand.  You can't touch most of the products in the market unless you buy.  No Tocar.  
   







Strawberries are one of my favorites along with tons of other fruit. There was so much to pick from.

I am so behind on blog post.  I have been writing here and there, some on notebooks from class, random pieces of paper, and a few post in my journal.  The task of catching up begins, Barcelona, Rome and Pairs.

I am not sure how people actually backpack across Europe for a year or even years.  It wears you out.  I think the combo of school and trying to backpack on the weekends was very tough on my health.  Only one trip to the doctor, one case of stomach flu, one case of a cold virus, and now I am feeling much better.  Being sick in Florence, Rome or Barcelona just doesn't seem as bad so I can't complain :)

Anyways more sights from Barcelona:

Gaudi's architecture all over the city was amazing.  He had a beautiful eye for the designs of things.  One of the many houses he has designed was called La Pedrera.  The house is meant to replicate the movement of waves and splashes. 

We took a nice afternoon break on the Placa d'Espanya steps with a glass of sangria.  This was marked the gateway to the great park of Montjuic, which was made for the 1992 Olympic Games.

Switching from Italian to Spanish was a bit difficult and then switching back to Italian was crazy.  There are very similar but not really at all.  I was so fortunate to go and be a part of Spain for the weekend.  And I loved Barcelona.  Some of the many photos from the trip.

Placa d'Espanya

One tiny part of Sagrada Familia

Kayla, Kaitlin and I on the double decker bus, just cruising around Barca!

La Pedrera, see the waves!

Guell Park

Wanted to play some sand volleyball on the beach!

Inside Sagrada Familia

First meal in Barcelona, bacon, potatoes and sausage (and a Spanish beer)!

Sangria Toast to Spain

Barcelona

I had no time to be upset or homesick after my dad left as I flew to Barcelona Spain the very next morning with Kaitlin & Kayla.  First I had a 30 minute walk to the train station in the early morning.  While on the way I thought I was getting robbed but really it was just a man rushing to the train station and just bumped into me.  As my friend Kayla says, "Nothing wakes you up in the morning like thinking you are getting mugged."  I was wide awake for the rest of the trip.  From the train station we took an hour bus ride to Pisa to the airport.  From the airport we took a plane 1.5 hours to Girona, Spain.   And from there we took another hour bus into Barcelona.  Finally we walked the 40 mins to our hostel.

Flights in Europe can be very cheep, especially Ryan Air.  As soon as they land everyone starts clapping, which made me very nervous at first.  Since the flights are so cheap you have to spend the extra time and money to actually get to the airport with other means of transport.  Not sure if it is worth it to pay more for a direct flight or take the time and use the cheaper airline.  I guess it depends if you have the time or not. 

This was also my first time staying in a hostel, which was a little nerve racking.  Definition of hostel: 

Hostels provide budget oriented, sociable accommodation where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed, in a dormitory and share a bathroom, lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex, although private rooms may also be available. Hostels may include a hot meal in the price.

Our hostel was pretty much exactly like that.  Three bunk beds and six lockers with one private bathroom, however the shower was out of order.  When we checked in we were the only 3 in the room, so we locked our backpacks up in the lockers and I put my money belt on (everyone makes fun of me for this, but guess what I have also not been pick pocketed)!  We hit the road towards La Rambla. 

Barcelona is a pretty good size city, about 1.6 million and with surrounding suburbs 4.5 million people.  The main street is La Rambla.  This is where thousands of people, vendors and shops swarm the street to sell goodies.  Right off La Rambla they have the best open air market, maybe the best in all of Spain.  For my 1st photo assignment we needed a series of 6 photos that told a story from a reporters view.  This was a perfect opportunity for colorful shots.  

After walking down La Rambla we made it to the ocean :) This reminded me of my wonderful trip this summer to Florida with my family, loved it.  Another side note: next on my bucket list is my scuba diving license.  

After all of the walking we found a great restaurant by our hostel to sit down and chow down on some great food. I ordered a salad and my first hamburger since abroad and of course a pitcher of sangria, one of my favorite things from Spain.  It is a staple of Spain that you just have to try.  Getting back to the hostel we were all nervous that someone had checked into our room...and no one had.  There were 3 empty beds left, yet we were all nervous that someone could check-in in the middle of the night...oh boy. 

Woke up and to my relief no one had checked in.  We decided to spend our next two days touring the city from the double decker bus.  I would highly suggst this to anyone that is traveling and wants to see the main points of a city in a short amount of time for the lowest cost.  You can also jump on and off as many times as you want. 

OUR STOPS:
Sagrada Familia - Is a beautiful cathedral designed by Gaudi!  It is still under construction and the building of it started in the late 19th century.  Gaudi said that he didn't care how long it took to build the church because God had time.  It is fully funded by churchgovers, devotees, and through ticket revenue from vistiors like me.  It was Gaudi's dream, to which he devoted much of his life to.  It will not be completed until 2022. 

"Much of Gaudí's work was marked by his big passions in life: architecture, nature, religion. Gaudí studied every detail of his creations, integrating into his architecture a series of crafts in which he was skilled: ceramics, stained glass, wrought ironwork forging and carpentry. He introduced new techniques in the treatment of materials, such as trencadís, made of waste ceramic pieces"

Park Guell -  This is one of the great places to see much of Gaudi's work.

more to come...

I am off to Rome with my school early tomorrow morning.

Hope all is well! 

Rome - Colosseum, Vatican City, St. Peter's Basilica, The Pope...

Being in Rome with my Dad was one of my most favorite times here in Italy.  If you are ever in Italy you must make a stop in Rome.  This trip was a lot of first for my Dad and I.  We took a 1.5 hour night train ride to Rome.  Thankfully our hotel was very close to the train station.  (I planned everything pretty well if I say so myself!)  After finding our hotel and checking into our room we made a night trip to see the Colosseum.  Walking down the steps from the road to the Colosseum was very...words can't describe.  I swear I heard the roar of the crowd from when the Colosseum was in it's prime.  It really is breathtaking at night.

After a short nights rest we woke up and went back to the Colosseum for a glance of the inside of the giant stadium....AMAZING.  We bought a guide book that showed us all the features and history behind the Colosseum.  It is crazy to think that thousands of men and animals lost their lives in that arena for the sake of a good show.

After the the Colosseum we took our chances with a ride on the metro, we only went the wrong way once.  Some really nice people from Tennessee helped us out and got us back on track.  I think from then on my Dad was scared that I didn't know what I was doing.  He would also double check with me and other people that we were on the right line.  But we finally made it to Vatican City, where we went to the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel (amazing work by Michelangelo), and St. Peter's Basilica.  We really lucked out and got in the right line to enter the Basilica.  (Not being catholic we forgot that it was Ash Wednesday)

My dad's favorite experience was getting to see the Pope and being in St. Peter's Basilica among the masses during this historic time.  The Pope now is the first Pope in 600 years to retire and of 8 that have ever retired during the 2000 some years of tradition. 

Our last sight in Rome was Trevi Fountian.  By the time we rode the metro and walked to the fountain it was dark.  Another sight that I would suggest seeing at night.  It is one of the most celebrated fountains and designed by Nicola Salvi.

Dinner was bittersweet as I knew that he would have to be leaving soon.  We took a 3 hour night train back to Florence.  We walked the 40 minutes back to my apartment and then started packing him up to go back to Nebraska.  It was a rough morning, from no sleep and a long week of activities and traveling.  The cab ride to the airport was a tearjerker...it was even harder to tell him goodbye at the airport. Family is so important to me.  I am so thankful for the love and support that I get from my family and my friends.  I know that I will always have to live close to them because they are so important in my life. 

*Pictures to follow (very soon)

Days with MY DAD!

Time really does fly when you are having fun.  I can't believe my dad has already flown to Florence and is back in Nebraska already.  We had such a great time together.  I was very worried about him traveling here by himself, checking into the airport, making all the connections and just getting here.   But I had nothing to worry about.  Of course he made tons of friends on the plane rides and here in Florence and Rome in all the shops we visited.

Monday I had to go to all of my classes.  He said that he wasn't going anywhere without me.  The streets are a little confusing and you can easily get turned around.  So I took him with me to my painting class from 9am to noon.  He did get a little adventurous and visit a few shops down the street from my classroom.  He came back and told everyone that he bought an antique mirror for 50,000 Euros and some of my classmates even believed him. haha

For lunch we went to a little restaurant near my house.  It was a hopping little joint that spoke all Italian and the menu had no English.  We ended up ordering spaghetti, bruschetta, soup and ravioli with rabbit.  My suggestion to you: Do not order the ravioli with rabbit...No BENE!

During my afternoon classes he went to Pitti Palace and other shops around my school (and he didn't get lost!)  For dinner we went to one of my favorite restaurants with some of my favorite friends! After dinner we decided to make a like stop at the Loins Fountain, a pub that a lot of the American students go to.  After a few drinks the song Wagon Wheel came on the jukebox. (One of my favorite all time songs to dance to!) My Dad and I just showed everyone in that pub to swing dance :)

After an early morning of dancing we slept in for a bit and then hit the road again.  We went for a stroll through the leather market.  The leather market here in Florance is wonderful, exciting and very cool to walk through.  They have thousands of bags, purses, shoes, fur coats, and scarves.  The market is all about bargaining for the best price.  If one vendor sees that you look at something for more than a minute they start bargaining with you right way and sometimes even follow you down the street.  This was a hay day for my dad, Mr. Bargain King.  I still haven't went back to the market yet...the vendors might attack me!

Padre - Father

I almost couldn't sleep last night because I was so excited and a little nervous :) This morning  I needed to walk about 25 minutes to the train station to catch a shuttle bus to the airport to pick up my DADDY! After finally getting to sleep I never heard my alarm go off, but I still woke up in time for a quick bowl of cereal and was out the door.

I first stopped at a tobacco shop near my apartment to buy the bus ticket, well he didn't understand what I was saying and said that I needed to just go to the train station.  So I quickly walked the 25 minutes to the train station to find a very large area and very many people moving in about 50 different ways.  Culture Shock set in a bit this morning!  I tried to ask a few people about directions or where to find the shuttle, no luck. 

Side Note (Regular people here do not talk to strangers on the street and I mean they do not talk to you at all and walk in a different direction.  People that will talk to you on the street are either trying to sell something to you or steal your wallet, so generally the public doesn't speak to strangers.)

After running around to a few shoppes and frantically looking for the shuttle I saw a blue bus that had aeroporto scrolling across the top! So I ran to the bus as fast as I could, and whoop whoop it was going to the airport.  Payed 6 Euros and was on the way to pick my dad up! I was about an hour early and then his flight was delayed by another hour.  

I had to sit and watch other people arrive and meet their family's....this almost brought me to tears.  There is something about distance making the heart grow fonder.  Everyone was so excited to see their family and friends.  Italian greetings were happening left and right (Ciao's & kisses on each cheek)!  

Finally after two hours I saw my Dad walking through the exit.  I was waving and almost crying with excitement and guess what?  He didn't even recognize me...I think we wasn't planning on not seeing me until after another checkpoint or maybe I just look so European already. :)

We had a great day.  I gave him a tour of Florence, took him to Fiesole (best view of Florence and monks remember), Gusta Pizza, chocolate festival (they had chocolate makers from all over showing off their skills), and we bought chocolate, wine, cheese, and olives! And for supper we went to Pitti Cafe.  

My dad is now fast asleep and snoring...haha I just love him! :)

After Gusta Pizza!

Dad & The Ponte Vecchio!

And Dad in front of the Duomo!

And Him & Me.

Just hamming it up!