Venice! Feb 17-19

This weekend we went to Venice for the big Carnevale celebration! I was very excited to go because we learned all about this festival in my Italian class. Before going to Venice, I heard many mixed reviews on the city. Upon arrival into the city I was taken back by the beauty and uniqueness of it. We only went into the city for dinner on Friday because our train arrived fairly late, after many delays. We found this cute little café and had wonderful pesto pizza! It is a growing trend on how much pizza we all get because it is so delicious and so cheap! Early Saturday morning we go back into the city and this time I was so overwhelmed by how many people were there! The streets were flooded with people, many of which all dressed up in fancy outfits and masks. There were people of all ages dressed up- some in traditional Carnevale outfits while others were in outfits such as the Mario Kart characters! In the main square, San Marco, there was a huge stage set up as well as numerous vendors selling masks. On the stage, there was a few performers singing songs ranging from the chicken dance to pop songs.
There was not much else to do in Venice other than walk around the streets, but that was fine by me! I thought it was so cool how no cars are allowed in the city (for good reason- the alley ways are so narrow and there are bridges everywhere!). The weather on Saturday was absolutely beautiful- we really could not have gotten luckier! It was probably in the mid 50’s and not a cloud in the sky! And since it was not too hot, it was not smelly because of the water like I hear it is during summer. I wish I could have gone on a gondola ride, but they were at least 50 euro… so there went that idea! It is so funny how easy it has become to spot the Americans- if they are wearing a north face jacket, there is like a 95% probability that they are from the states haha! Over the past day we all have done so much planning on what we are doing for the rest of the weekends/week long breaks. Reality is hitting in on how fast time is flying by over here and how we really don’t have too much longer here! It is official that I am going to Munich this weekend and I could not be more excited! A bunch of people from my trip already went there and most of them said that Munich has been their favorite city thus far!

First 10 day break: Edinburgh, Dublin, Stockholm and Amsterdam!!

Here goes the start of my first 10 day break! We flew out of Milan to Edinburgh on early Saturday morning. Getting to Milan’s airport was a headache. Peoplesaid that they found a way to get there for free, using our rail pass, something that no one has found a way to do before. We usually have to take a bus that costs 35 franc one way or 60 for round trip, something that no one wants to pay for. Well the night before we’re supposed to leave at like 10:30-11ish I was talking to the woman at the main desk at where we live told me that this train that we were planning on taking was a horrible idea. Since it was really cold and snowy the local trains probably would not be running, especially at 5:30 in the morning when we were going to get on the train. By this point a lot of people were asleep and I realized that we (20 of us) had no way of getting to the airport because 20 of us could not show up at the bus in the morning expecting them to haveroom for all of us. One of our professors, Julien, found out about this dilemma and helped me resolve it. He got on the phone with the bus company and arranged for a big bus for all of us but by the time that we got this all sorted out it was 12:30 and most people were asleep. I needed to inform everyone on what the new plan was as well as get cash from them all. This burden was placed on me but without this we would have all missed our flights.

We all get on the plane and it was the scariest flight of my life. There was so much turbulence that I felt like I was in the scene from LOST where the plane went down. There was this one woman who was screaming while all the turbulence going on and looking back on it, it was quite humorous.

We arrive in Edinburgh and I instantly fell in love with the city. Little did we know though, that the day we arrived was the day of the huge Scotland vs. England rugby game. There were people every where getting ready for the big game- tons of guys in kilts walking towards the stadium. This actually worked in our favor because the other side of town was empty for us to do sight seeing. We really booked it around Edinburgh so we could see everything. My favorite parts were going up to the huge castle and then going to this park where the ‘second Parthenon’ was supposed to be built. Apparently Edinburgh was the Athens of the north so they started to build another Parthenon but soon realized that they had no money so it was only partially completed. But from this area the views of Edinburgh and the landscape were breath-taking! As game time approached, we went to a bar to watch the game with all the locals! Sadly, Scotland lost but none of us really knew anything about rugby anyways. While talking to some locals we told them how we were going to Dublin the next day and they thought we were following the rugby tournament because apparently the next game in

the tournament was in Dublin where Ireland was playing Wales. This gave us a little piece of mind on why the hostels were so booked in these two places for our stay!

I absolutely fell in love with Edinburgh and want to eventually move there. Everything about the city was wonderful. The people were so friendly, the buildings and streets were so charming and within the city it felt very welcoming. I wish we got to spend more time in Edinburgh, and I already plan on going back as soon as I can! It was a good thing I had a ticket booked out of Scotland because I did not want to leave!

In the morning we took a very short flight, 40 mins, to Dublin. We got into Dublin and I have to say I was not immediately impressed. It felt like just another big city because we got off the bus on the main street. My opinion did change though. Our hostel was a bit of a walk away but it was so worth it! It was an amazing place- the lobby was actually 3 floors, all of lounges, big TVs and a bar area! The room was also great- so clean and spacious! We walked around Dublin on our own that day and that night was both the rugby match and the super bowl! We knew it was going to be a late night so we rested up a bit because the super bowl did not even start until 11:30 their time! Ireland lost and my patriots lost so sports-wise, it was not a great day!

The next morning we went on the walking tour of Dublin! It was so awesome because we had a great tour guide who knew everything about Dublin so we got to learn all about the history of the city! My favorite part was probably walking through the Trinity College campus. It was so cool how it was in the heart of the city but once you walked through the campus walls, it was like the city was miles away! We also went to this really cool museum where there are preserved bodies from hundreds of years ago. They were in these bogs that the alkaline levels were so neutral that it allowed the bones, hair and nails to stay intact! We had the most amazing dinner that night. Luckily, we past this small restaurant that looked really cool so we decided to eat there. We all had one of the best dinners of our lives!

Next we made our way up to Sweden! Stockholm was a city that I really did not know anything about nor had an idea of what to expect. The beauty of it pleasantly surprised me! Our hostel was in a very convenient location, it was right along a very large pedestrian street. The street was lit up at night with tons of Christmas lights and such, which made it fun to just walk along! My favorite part about Stockholm was walking in the old downtown part.It was narrow, cobblestone streets that were just lined with various little shops and restaurants. Megan, Lindsey and I went into this small coffee shop to escape the cold and get something warm to drink. Megan and I ordered chai lattes and we were served them in these huge bowls. Never in my life have I had a chai that was so good!

We went to the Vasa museum where there is the huge vasa ship that was discovered in the waters right by Stockholm dating back hundreds of years yet the ship was still in perfect condition. Now the ship is in this museum and it is just surreal. You can’t appreciate how big this ship is unless you are standing right next to it. They also had specialists do facial reconstruction on the bones that were discovered so they could see what the people who were on the vasa looked like. It was all so impressive and overwhelming because it was hard to believe how this ship was really hundreds of years old and I was standing right in front of it. The only thing I did not like about Sweden was that the people there were the most unfriendly towards tourists that we have seen so far.

Our last stop of this crazy trip was Amsterdam. It was so cool to see it when we did because all the canals were frozen over, something that has not happened in over 20 years! Everyone was ice skating down them or just walking on them to avoid walking on the streets because the streets there are crazy! There are cars, busses, trams, and the thousand bike riders as well as pedestrians walking around. Amsterdam was another place that I didn’t really know what to expect. The architecture there and how the whole city is set up around the canals was so cool. Going to the Anne Frank house was probably one of my favorite things I did this break. It was so interesting to walk through it and actually be in the place where I have learned about for years.

It was a weird transition going from the Anne Frank house to the Heineken factory. But the Heineken Experience was definitely worth it! It was really interesting to learn how beer was made and the history of Heineken (as well as tasting some of the beer J ) My first souvenir that I brought on this entire trip was this customized Heineken bottle! It was sad to see this trip come to an end but by the time that I got back to Lugano I was so happy to see my bed and get a nice 13 hour nights sleep J

Florence and Tuscany Jan 26-29

We arrived in Florence at night after a day of class and get to our small hotel. At first it seems kind of sketchy because it is so quiet, but it actually turned out to be a nice place to stay! That night I just went to sleep because we had to get up early and go on a tour of Tuscany. At 8 am Friday morning, Lindsey, Megan and I go to the bus station to get on our bus to start the tour.

Our first stop is the small town of Siena. This is where the annual horse race goes on. The town was so quaint- the streets were quite empty but there was so much charm! All the buildings were so old but very well preserved. We had a guide walk us around the town and give us a little history about it. Our next stop was at an organic farm and vineyard where we got a delicious meal consisting of home made pasta, salad, bruschetta, cheeses, various kinds of wine as well as biscotti with wine that you dipped it in. From there we went to another small town called San Gimignano. There we walked around on our own. There were many leather shops as well as places to get gelato. We caved and got ourselves so gelato and it was delicious! Our last stop of the day was at Pisa. We got out of the bus and had this little train/tram thing take us around the town. I have to say I was not as impressed with Pisa as I thought I would be. Granted it is not tourist season, but the town was pretty dead and dirty. We did get to have our ‘cheesy’ leaning tower of Pisa picture taken though!

We spent Saturday and Sunday in Florence. I was thrilled that I go to see my friend from high school, Amy, in Florence on Saturday night! While in Florence, besides just walking around seeing all of the beautiful buildings, we went to the Galleria dell’Accademia, the Duomo, and the Uffizi. Seeing Michelangelo’s David was surreal. From pictures you simply can not appreciate how stunning of a sculptor it is! We walked across the Ponte Vecchio as well! The only thing that I did not love about Florence was the mass amounts of tourists there were. I felt like I did not see any locals- all tourists! All of the food was amazing though- we got authentic Italian meals that were delicious! I would have to say that Tuscany was hands down my favorite part of the weekend!

Copenhagen, Denmark Jan 20-22

This weekend I went to Copenhagen, Denmark! We got there on Friday night and just walked around, getting acquainted with the city! We were pleasantly surprised to find out that everything in the city is relatively close together. The people in Copenhagen were some of the nicest people I have ever met! When we got to our hostel, I felt like I was in the Beatles movie, Across the Universe! The hostel had such charm to it and it was a really welcoming atmosphere. The people at the desk were so eager to help us and just to chat. Saturday morning we went on this amazing free walking tour of Copenhagen. Our tour guide was hysterical but also really knowledgeable- I learned so much about the city that I never knew. We found out that Copenhagen has had two major fires in their history- one of them burnt down 46% of the city! Thank goodness the city was not too spread out because it was FREEZING! It went from raining to snowing and then it continued to snow all day. I actually was afraid I was getting frost bite on my toes!

That night we got dinner at this quaint Danish restaurant. We walked in and asked for a table and the hostess said that they would not have any tables for at least 45 minutes. Then there was this older couple already sitting down at a fairly big table and they offered for us to sit at the other end. It was so nice of them. They were from Oslo, Norway here in Copenhagen for their 30^th anniversary. We talked with them for almost 3 hours about things ranging from politics to their favorite spots in Europe. At dinner I got this delicious salmon and mashed potato dish!

On Sunday we walked around the city more. All of the architecture is beautiful! It also was so cool how everyone there rides their bikes around the city! Our tour guide said that over 60% of the residents ride their bikes to work every day. I was sad to leave here!

Interlaken, Switzerland Jan 13-15

Today we got home from Interlaken! On Friday we took the bus there. It was a terrifying ride- our bus driver was a sketch and then on a road going down a huge mountain (while it was snowing) we hit a huge line of traffic. Our bus driver decided it was a good idea to cut across the road right before a bend in the road to go to a place to park while the traffic cleared. Well we almost caused another accident doing this! There was a car going very fast around the curve that stopped just in time. Due to the traffic, we almost missed our train to go night sledding. What an experience night sledding was… It was terrifying but a huge adrenaline rush! We started out the night by having a fondue dinner at the top of the mountain. Lots of cheese and carbs… We were all shocked when we saw the crappy plastic sleds that we would be taking down this mountain. The trail was not like tubing back at home- it was a straight up ski trail!! We talked to a few locals on the gondola ride up and they were laughing when we said we didn’t have headlamps and we wearing sneakers. It was not until we started to sled that I saw why they were laughing. The trail was pitch black. There were orange ‘lights’ every 1000 feet or so but they didn’t give off any light.. it was just merely marking the trail. To top it all off the sleds went SO fast and no one had any idea how to steer. We kept our feet out as a way to kind of slow ourselves down! It was honestly a little frightening, but looking back it was really fun!

On Saturday, my friend Ashley and I went skiing on the Swiss Alps. It was absolutely surreal. There were no trees on the trails and the trails were so wide! We had to go through 4 gondola stops before we got to the top of the mountain! It was such an amazing day, I could not believe it as it was happening! All in all this weekend was a great time to bond with everyone on my trip!

Jan 12

On Monday we started classes, consumer behavior and Italian. Consumer behavior is really not the most exciting thing, but oh well. On Tuesday/ Thursdays we have classes back to back, meaning that we have 6 hours of class a day. It is brutal. After class, Kara and I decided to walk around Lugano and explore. It is funny because we as Americans are so distinguishable from the Swiss! This weekend we are going to Interlaken, Switzerland!

Jan 8

I arrived in Lugano on January 6th after a long, sleepless night on the plane from DC. The ride from Zurich to Lugano was breath taking. To our right was the bluest water and the swiss alps. I thought the mountains in Vermont were impressive but they have nothing on the Alps in beauty or size. The first day in Lugano was so long. We arrived at the Monterina, where we are living for the next 4 months, only to discover that it too is beautiful. It is funny because it is not that warm here but there are palm trees every where! After getting situated in the Monterina, we ate lunch and went for a walk in town. I felt like I was walking in a dream because the town feels like it is straight out of a movie! You have to walk about 20 minutes, all down-hill, to get to town and where the university is. The views over the lake are stunning. Our professor, Brinberg, walked us to the university and then told us to find our way back to the monterina. Me and a few other girls got kind of lost and ended up walking up the ‘death stairs’ which has approx.. 20 flights of stairs in one long drag. Needless to say, we slept well that night.

We slept in a bit and then the next day we went to Bellinzona, which is this region’s ‘capitol’. The main thing to do in this town is go to the great castle. We ate lunch at this little restaurant, where a random person had to help the waitress with English because there was a great language barrier- something that I was not expecting to be such an issue. Everyone here speaks Italian and most speak at least some English.

Today, Brinberg took us for a ‘walk’ which ended up being a 10 mile hike up the a Swiss Alp and into another quaint town. The pain and suffering that everyone enduring hiking up the mountain was well worth it for the picturesque views!