Tuscany

Yesterday evening I returned back to Rome from my weekend trip in Tuscany. This is one of the trips sponsored by the school, and you pay a flat rate that covers all of your meals, lodging, transportation, and anything else you can think of.

The weekend started early Friday morning where we boarded the bus at 7:30 AM and headed out. The first placed we stopped was at a vineyard for a wine tasting. We tried lots of different of red and white wine, and had some awesome food. This food was more than enough for a meal, but we still had lunch directly after. My favorite thing was the lasagna with truffle sauce. It was the best lasagna I have ever had in my life. It was delicious. We then went to a small town called San Gimignano, and it had some of the most breathtaking scenery that I have ever seen. We had a great meal there and then explored for a while and then headed to our villas. We stayed at a place called Montesigliano. It is like an old, small Italian town that someone has turned into luxury villas and olive groves which produce olive oil. We stayed in 3 villas, and they were all very beautiful and different. Most of the time we hung out in the big villa, which was an entire mansion with tons of rooms and lots of space. We had a lot of fun. We also went to Siena on Saturday, and it was pouring, so that put kind of a damper on that, but it was still cool. 

Some other things we did while there were an olive oil tasting, karaoke, and lots and lots of eating! Tuscany is probably my favorite area of Italy, and I cant wait to come back. I won't forget this weekend ever, as it was definitely one of the best I have ever had!

Kitchen

Living room of the villa

View from the villa

Olive grove tour

Easter Weekend

I can't believe that it is already Easter! Time has literally flown by, and now I will be home in less than 3 weeks! Crazy! Well, Easter weekend was a fun one, and a longer than usual one since we get Monday off as well. Today I am recuperating from my weekend of traveling and waking up early.
Thursday night I went on a school trip to about 10 churches in Rome, which they called a "Church Crawl" for Holy Thursday. It reminded me of Halloween, where there is just people all over walking from church to church, and all of the churches have a display set up where they store the Blessed Sacrament temporarily. We then went to dinner with the school near Piazza Navona and had some of the best pasta I have had here in Rome. Soooo good.

Friday was spent by trying an all you can eat Japanese and sushi restaurant in Trastevere, which is a beautiful area in Rome with lots of great restaurants and nightlife. The sushi was good, for the most part, but we had one roll which was not good at all. But, after all, Rome is not known for their sushi. Ha! Friday night I went to the Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum which was led by the Pope, and there were TONS of people and it was standing room only...very cool experience but also a mad house!

Saturday me Lizet, and Bella went on a spur of the moment trip to Naples and Pompei. Naples is known for being dangerous and dirty and for having the best pizza (since pizza was invented there). It was definitely one of the less beautiful Italian cities I have seen, but the pizza was amazing. We went to the L'antica Pizzeria Da Machele, which was featured in the film Eat, Pray, Love, by Julia Roberts. I have yet to see the film, but definitely plan to since the majority of it was filmed in Rome and Naples I guess. The pizza placed was PACKED with people, and we had to wait an hour to even get in the door, but the pizza was definitely worth it, the best I have ever had in my life. The which was weird to me is that they only serve a cheese pizza and a marinara pizza, and I thought, well how good could that be? Well, it was awesome and definitely worth the trip to Naples for.

After lunch we went straight back to the train station to head to Pompei. It was about a 40 minute train ride, and when we got there it wasn't too busy, although about 30 minutes into exploring the ruins, it started to POUR and I didn't have a hood or umbrella, so needless to say I was soaked. My favorite part was seeing the stone frozen bodies that were found after Mt. Vesuvius erupted.

We then headed back home to Rome and the next morning Bella and I left for St. Peter's at about 6:30am in order to get a good seat at Mass. We were about the 7th row back and we had a great view, although it was a little obstructed by one of the TV camera stands which filmed the Mass. It was an awesome experience though, regardless.

After spending about 6 hours at St. Peters, I was starving, so we went to a restaurant in Trastevere and had a big meal. I ordered lamb since that is what I always have on Easter, but it wasn't as good as it is at home. Everything else, was good though. We had salad, prosciutto with melon, milanese, tiramisu, and white wine. Very good meal...minus the lamb.

After that I returned back to my room and slept for about 12 hours, and today I will be spending my last day of Easter break doing homework! Fun!!

My next trip will be this coming weekend to Tuscany with the school, which will be filled with nothing but lots of great food and lots of great wine! I cannot wait!

Eating pizza in Naples

Pompei

One of the bodies frozen in Pompei

Life since Spring Break + Assisi

I haven't posted anything on here for a while, but I have been super busy and the month of March is flying by! I will be boarding a plane back to America in about a month, which doesn't seem real at all. The past few weeks I have been enjoying Rome and enjoying the beautiful weather. It is starting to get busier here though since the weather is nicer and Easter is approaching, and there is definitely a noticeable increase of tourists.
Yesterday, though, I went on a school trip to Assisi, the home of St. Francis. It was a great trip and a lot of fun. We ate 2 GREAT meals and some good wine, too. We also got to see some really cool churches and explore the city of Assisi which is really cool. Here are some pictures from the trip!

Lower entrance to the church of St. Francis

A statue of St. Francis that has a real dove sitting in the basket that doesn't move. Kind of weird but also really cool. 

Dusk

View from outside the church

St. Francis' rose garden where thornless roses grow

Spring Break: Part II

Spring Break has already come and gone, and I can't believe I am already halfway done with my semester. Today marks 2 months that I have been here in Rome, and that doesn't seem possible.

Early Monday morning we maneuvered Rome public transportation to the airport, where we were headed for Nice (said like niece). Nice is a beach town on the French Riviera which is beautiful with awesome beaches, restaurants, and shopping. It was a little too cold though when we were there to go hang out at the beach, so we explored, ate, and relaxed, which is exactly what I think of when I think of the south of France. I really want to return sometime during the summer, though, as I think it would be a completely different city and I could really enjoy the beach. All of the people were super friendly too.
However, Parisians do not have the same said about them, but from the 3 days we spent there, I didn't have one unpleasant experience with the people. They were all very kind and helpful, and in my opinion more outwardly friendly than most Italians.
When we arrived for Paris, we headed for our apartment. It was located in Montmartre, which is in the same neighborhood as the Moulin Rouge and the famous Sacre Coeur, which is a basilica located on top of a hill where you can see all of Paris. It was beautiful. We then went and saw Notre Dame, which is very different from what I expected. I expected it to be in the middle of a busy street, but instead, it was almost set off from everything else in like a little park. I didn't expect that at all. Inside was cool, but not mind-blowing. Next we headed to the Eiffel Tower, where we went all the way to the top. There were beautiful views of Paris from every angle. Absolutely breathtaking.
After leaving the Eiffel Tower, we started walking towards Avenue de Champs Elysees -  which is the equivalent of Michigan Avenue in Chicago or 5th Avenue in New York. At the end is the Arc de Triumph, which is a landmark of Paris. It was very cool to see all the different stores and we stopped at a great bakery on the way and got some amazing sandwiches and desserts. One of my favorite parts of Paris was definitely the bakeries.
That night we headed back to our apartment for a night of cooking our own little makeshift meal and just relax and hang out because the next day we were headed for Versailles.
First we got on the wrong train and after riding for an hour, we realized we were not on our way to Versailles, and we were out in the middle of nowhere. We finally got on the right train and got to Versailles. Versailles was very extravagant and over the top, and the whole time I couldn't believe people lived there. It was absolutely huge and there was room after room adorned in gold and other rich colors. My favorite room was the Hall of Mirrors, which just has mirrors lining the wall opposite the windows with dozens of chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. We also toured the gardens and those were very cool, but since it was summer yet, the fountains weren't on, but there were still a lot of people there. I would like to someday return to Versailles in the summer and take in the whole effect of the gardens when everything is in bloom and the fountains are on.
On our last day in Paris we went to the Louvre to see the typical attractions - the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, etc. The room with the Mona Lisa was packed with people fighting to get to front of the crowd as she just sits up there with that smirk on her face. It is pretty funny actually. I had always heard how small it was, so when I actually saw it I thought it would be smaller than it was, which is the opposite of what people usually say.
After leaving the Louvre, we headed to the airport, and a few hours later we were back in Rome! It was a great time and I think it is safe to say Paris is my favorite city that I have visited so far and I can't wait to go back!

Nice from our rooms balcony

The beach at Nice

View from Sacre Coeur

Sacre Coeur

Moulin Rouge

Notre Dame

View of Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower

Myself on top of the Eiffel Tower

Arc de Triumph at the end of Avenue de Champ Elysees 

Versailles

Hall of Mirrors

In the background is part of the gardens 

Everyone wants to see the Mona Lisa!

Louvre Pyramid

Spring Break: Part I

It has been a great first weekend of Spring Break. Everyone else on campus is gone, so the campus is empty, which is kind of nice. Friday I spent the day exploring Rome. We went and re-saw a few things, and saw some new things as well. We went to the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (I could every day), The Pantheon, and the Vatican. I also found a store that sells memory cards, which I am very happy about! We also went to lunch at a little cafe near the Pantheon, where we had spaghetti, a chicken dish, warm bread, and a glass of wine. It was delicious! Later that night we decided to go to this Chinese/Japanese restaurant in our neighborhood. It was delicious, and I had sushi 2 days in a row, which I can't complain about!
Saturday my friend Alessandra and I took a day trip to Florence. We took the train, and arrived at about 12:30. We saw the Duomo, which is a beautiful church. We also saw Michaelangelo's David, which was cool to see in real life, although it is disproportionate because Michaelangelo designed it to be viewed at another angle. We also ate lunch in Florence and then walked to the river, and then back to the market. Florence is very well known for their leather, so I got a couple of cool things, and considering it is real Italian leather, I got a great price!
Today I will spend my day packing, printing boarding passes, and probably going to hangout downtown. Tomorrow we leave for Nice in the south of France, and then a couple days later we go to Paris! I am very excited!

The Pantheon 

Duomo in Florence

Budapest

I just got back from a quick weekend in Budapest! We left Thursday night after I got out of class, and returned late Saturday night. Going to Budapest was kind of a spur of the moment type thing, since I was never really planning on going. However, the opportunity came up, so I took it! Turns out Budapest is a very cool city - and the best part is that it is CHEAP! 218 HUF= $1. It was quite a nice change from how expensive the Euro is, and especially how expensive the English pound is. 

When we first arrived in Budapest, it was around midnight since out flight was delayed out of Rome. When we arrived, we were expecting our car to be waiting for us, which it was...but we were greeted by a man who looked quasi-homeless and spoke no English, which was equally funny and scary. It turned out to be fine, and we got to our hostel at about 1am. The next day, we just decided to walk around, and we ended walking a TON, which is fine because we saw a lot. My favorite part of the day was seeing St. Stephen's Basilica. It was absolutely gorgeous and if you ever go to Budapest - I highly recommend you go see it whether or not you are Catholic. Around lunch time, we stumbled upon this festival which happened to be going on when we were there. It was tons of food stands with authentic Hungarian food, hot wine (which is famous in Budapest), and homemade chocolates, among other things. I got cabbage stuffed pork, and sausage with mustard and a huge slice of homemade sourdough for 2200 HUF, which is about $10. Great deal!

Next, we continued to walk through Budapest, we ended the night by eating at Hummus Bar (delicious), and by stopping by a few cool ruins bars, which are famous in Europe. We didn't stay long since they were so crowded and we couldn't find a table. We ended the night at a small wine cafe, which was very relaxed and a great way to end our night. 

Saturday morning we woke up and walked around a little more, and then headed to the baths. Apparently Budapest is known for its baths, and they were very cool! It was like a giant palace with tons of pools and saunas, all with warm water. It was very relaxing, and I even got a massage! I was very anxious before, because I had never gotten one before, but they are AWESOME! 

After spending a few hours there, we headed back to the hostel and waited for our car to pick us up, and then back to Rome we went, just in time to study for midterms (BOO). 

I think I will survive though! Plus, only 4 days and I get to spend a week in France!

Ciao!

View of Budapest from the bridge

Alter at the Basilica of St. Stephen

Part of my delicious meal - cabbage stuffed with pork

A section of the baths we went to

Part of the festival

Back from a quick weekend in London! I am very tired, but it was definitely worth it and I got to see just about everything that I wanted to! We had a quick flight from Rome to Stansted Airport, which is about an hour outside the city. We then took the  Stansted Express, which is a nice WiFi enabled version of the Amtrak, into the city.

The first thing that we did was go straight to Chipotle and get food. It was soooo good, and the manager liked us so much and she gave us buy one get one coupons, and told us all of the cool markets to go see and what other stuff to do in London. People in London are very very nice, which is something that I didn't expect at all. 

We then checked into our hostel, which was a "traditional" hostel. I am definitely not a big fan. There were some weirdos in my room which I shared with 8 other guys who I didnt know. Some kid was reading me his birth certificate aloud to me, which was bizarre...haha. The whole hostel thing is just weird and I don't plan on staying at one like that again (hopefully). 

The first night that we got there some of us broke off and went to the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum, which were both cool. The mummies were cool as well as a lot of the artifacts from Ancient Rome, which I have been learning a lot about in the past couple of weeks. 

Saturday started at 8am, and we saw almost everything you could see in one day. We bought the London Pass, which was 39 pounds, which translates to about $60-65 (The dollar to pound exchange rate is even worse than the dollar to the euro). The London Pass is a great investment since it is like paying the admission fee for different sites around London ahead of time, and you get them at a discounted rate. We took the Tube everywhere, which is the equivalent of the El (except cleaner). We started at the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, then headed to Shakespeare's Globe. The Globe was kind of a disappointment since it was all rebuilt and it isn't even the right location. But it was cool to see and hear about what theater was like back in the day of Shakespeare. Next we crossed the Millennium Bridge to go to St. Paul's Cathedral, which I believe is the main cathedral of the Church of England. It is where Charles and Diana were married.

Next we saw Big Ben, the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace, which were all very cool to see.

Now I need to start studying for my tests this week and catch up on some sleep!

Ciao

Joe

Mummy at the British Museum

Exhibit in the right foyer of the Victoria & Albert Museum

The crown jewels at the Tower of London. This belonged to the Queen Mum.

Me posing with the Tower Bridge

Big Ben 

Buckingham Palace

Platform 9 3/4 - from Harry Potter at Kings Cross Station

The escalators at Harrods