Finding Cassie

Yesterday was finally the day that Cassie was able to come and meet me in Europe so we could begin the long awaited Eurotrip. Her first impression of Italy was off to a rocky start: her phone wasn’t working and she couldn’t reach me…or anyone. When she finally got to the train station, she couldn’t find the tram, still couldn’t reach me, and ended up getting a taxi to our couch surfing location.

By this point, it had been a few hours since her plane landed and I still hadn’t heard from her. I was getting seriously worried. I tried calling and it went straight to voicemail, so I literally had no way of contacting her. I headed off to the train station (which is gigantic) to see if I could somehow locate a lost American among the sea of people flooding the Termini station.

I finally got a call—she had made it to the apartment! As it turns out, we were unknowingly at the train station for the same time…just in different areas. But not to worry, we eventually got to the same place at the same time and were able to begin our adventure together in Rome!

First pic in Europe with this amazing gal!

Ancient statues collide with modern art in the Roman Forum.

Filling up my new water bottle from Cassie at a water fountain outside of Vatican City.

The Vatican!

Cassie's first Italian meal! Complete with Tuscan wine and pizza.

Our view from the outdoor cafe.

Outdoor cafes are adorable when it's sunny, but slightly problematic once the rain starts to pour.

Our strange, bad luck streak continued in the form of unfavorable weather (despite the forecast of clear skies and sunshine). We visited the Coliseum, the Vatican, the Castle of Angels, and went on to Piazza Navona. There, we saw Bernini’s Four Rivers fountain. It was mesmerizing. After strolling through the piazza, we found a little outdoor café and got Cassie her first taste of Italian wine and pizza! Right after I got the waiter’s attention to get the check, the skies began to darken and we heard the low rumble of thunder began off in the distance. It began to rain. Then pour. Our cute little outdoor table with the gorgeous view quickly became soaked. We finished off our diluted wine and ran for shelter.

After waiting under cover for a good, long time (and meeting a fellow traveler, visiting from the Netherlands), it became clear that the rain was not about to let up. We considered found the first bus stop, and hopped on a bus that looked like it would take us back to the station. It was headed in the wrong direction. We stayed on till the end of the route, then back tracked until we FINALLY reached Termini station, all the way at the other end of the bus route.

At least we found a rainbow in the middle of the downpour :)

After an hour and a half wasted sitting on the bus, the rain had subsided temporarily and we were able to race back to the apartment to layer up. Up till this point, I had been running around in the thunder, rain and lightning wearing only a T-shirt, jeans and vans.

My highlight of our trip in Rome (for me, at least) was supposed to be this gorgeous night walk through all the highlights of the city. Cassie could take pictures; we could people watch, get gelato, and wander through Rome.

As our luck would have it, the rain was constant and the metro closed earlier than expected. Nevertheless, we made the best of everything and even stumbled upon some amazing, unexpected sights along the way.

We took the metro to the Trevi Fountain, made our wishes, and headed back only to find a closed metro station. Not wanting to miss a thing on our adventures in Rome, we continued on by foot to the Spanish Steps. The yellow streetlights reflecting on the rainy, abandoned steps was really quite beautiful. Incredible different from the first time I was there with my family, on a balmy July afternoon, enjoying gelato and people watching. (And secretly wondering why the Spanish Steps were so special.) Tonight, we had the sights all to ourselves, it seemed.

After consulting our now-soggy map, we plotted out a path to the Ponte Sant’Angelo. Somewhere along the way we missed a turn and went to far, ending up in Piazza del Popolo by a happy mistake. I had never been here before and was overcome with awe looking up at the giant, hieroglyph-covered obelisk. There were fountains and statues of ancient, mythic creatures lining the piazza. Although my worn boots had filled with rain and it was nearly 1 am, I ran to the fountain in my sloshing boots to take pictures by the fountain. 

Trevi Fountain

The Bridge of Angels

By the time we finally reached the bridge, it was 2 am, we were soaked through and exhausted. We had absolutely no clue how we were going to get back. The metro had long since stopped running, as had the tram that took us to Elisa’s apartment. There was an empty taxi stand near-by with no taxi in sight. Not that it mattered. After consulting the map, we realized that we had trekked to the exact opposite end of Rome from the apartment. If we took a taxi now, we figured it would be around 50 euro. Out of the question. It was at this point that I began to question my adventurous, it-will-all-work-out attitude. What had I been thinking, walking late at night, through the pouring rain, in the exact opposite direction of where we needed to end up?

There wasn’t anything left to do but start to walk. I figured if we could keep to touristy, well-lit areas until we got to the main station, we could take a much cheaper taxi to the apartment and save some money while avoiding the darker alleys.

Thankfully, at our darkest (literally) moment, some luck started to kick in. We found a bus stop! There were some helpful people who told us where to go and what bus to take to get to the station. From there, it was a breeze. We followed the directions and got to the stop right as our bus pulled up. There was a taxi waiting at the station and we got dropped off right at the apartment, arriving just before our lovely host went to sleep. I was filled with relief at finally running into some desperately needed transportation luck on our final night in Italy.

Now, we’re on a train to Milan, before heading off to France. I can’t believe that tonight I’ll be in Lyon (foodie mecca). Hopefully just in time to get a delicious dinner!

We attempted to create this picture of the happy travelers on the front of our Eurail passes...

Cassie and I off on our first train using our Eurail passes!

Adventures in Rome

After 4 months in Florence, I’m finally branching out! I’ve gone off to Rome, y’all. Tomorrow, Cassie is finally joining me. Because she’s never been to Rome before and only has one day, today I spent the day doing lesser-known touristy attractions. I started off going to Saint Peter’s Basilica, which is a big tourist attraction, but the line is a year and a half long so I figure we wouldn’t have time for that anyway.

Inside Saint Peter's

It was incredible! It was actually kind of nice going to churches by myself. When you go with a group, there’s constantly that one annoying person who takes forever examining every detail of each art piece. Or, you turn out to be that person, and then feel rushed and don’t fully enjoy the museum/church/ruin. Today, I was able to go entirely at my pace.

In St. Peters, there are certain chapels that you can’t enter as a tourist. However, if you go in to pray (and promise not to take pictures), they won’t stop you. I’m not a religious person, and I certainly don’t pray regularly, but I really wanted to see those chapels. Also, I’m fairly certain that if I went in and only pretended to pray, I would end up in a special circle of hell for those terrible souls who dared to lie about praying. And in the Vatican, at that.

So, I prayed. Thrice. First, I prayed for Cassie, who is actually a Christian and will be flying out to meet me soon. Then, I prayed for anything else I could think of…this got a little scattered and was mostly a list of everything I’m grateful for (friends, family, smooth travel experiences), and any people/places that might need help. By the time I got to the last chapel, I was out of prayers. So, as I was staring up at this gold angel levitating in front of me, I noticed a strange smirk on her face. And I prayed for art.

Guard at Vatican City. All guards should wear this. Possibly even bouncers at clubs.

 I decided to continue on this church trail and head over to Saint Ignazio Church, the first church of the Jesuit order. I hopped off at the bus stop, map in hand, definitely looking a little lost. An Italian guy offered to point me in the right direction and was kind enough to show me where the church was. The church was beautiful, all done in baroque style. The ceilings were frescoed with beautiful paintings in still-vibrant colors. 

It's baroque! (Sant'Ignazio Church)

Check out those frescoes.

Cool Statue, but...

This would make a cooler statue! The first chapel in Sant'Ignazio was filled with these anime-style biblical characters. It was bizarre. And awesome.

When I left the church, I was surprised to find Giorgio waiting there for me. He continued to show me around all of the places on my list (including a few “must-see” things he didn’t think I should miss). Although I could have done the tour on my own, it was nice to have a local perspective and someone who actually knew (most of the time) where we were going. We went by Campo dei Fiore, where Giordano Bruno had been burned at the stake. There was a big market there when we walked through, full of flowers and fresh produce.

I went by the Temple of Apollo to see some ancient ruins, much to Giorgio’s despair as he insisted it was incredibly dull. Still, I spent a good deal of time looking at the ancient pillars that was once the site of a temple, then church, cemetery, and fish market through the years.

My next stop was Largo Argentina. It’s this awesome archeological dig that’s been turned into a cat sanctuary! It’s crazy. I honestly just couldn’t get over it. I guess, someone comes by and takes care of them, so stray cats just stay there and roam through the ancient ruins. The dig is right by this part of the Tiber River that has an island (Tiber Island) in the middle. The bridge there goes through the island, where there’s a hospital, along with some small vendors and artists scattered around. From the island, you can look across and see Ponte Rotto, which was partially destroyed during a war. Now, only a single arch remains of the ancient bridge. Right next to it, there’s a new bridge to take its place.

Largo Argentina Archeological dig

Obviously, it was filled with cats. All the best ruins are.

More kitties

Tiber River

Tiber Island!

These gorgeous, red poppies are all over Italy this time of year. I can't get enough!

Ruins at the Temple of Apollo

Not really sure how to interpret this, but I think they're welcoming me in, right? 

Ponte Rotto

The explorations continued across the River with Santa Maria Trastevere, yet another church. Giorgio finally left at this point (he didn’t want to go in), but I continued on! I headed back across Ponte Rotto and went to see if I was an honest person at Bocca della Verita (“Mouth of Truth”). Legend has it, this giant sculpture eats the hands of liars! (Don’t worry, my hand remains in tact.) After, I crossed the street to check out the Temple of Vesta, which was built in 200 BC, is still incredible well preserved.

Bocca della Verita 

Old homeless men in Italy even stay well dressed! Just look at his button-downs hanging to dry while he organizes. 

Terme de Caracalla 

Then I walked on to Circus Maximus! Wasn’t that impressed, but I had been through a lot of history at this point, so please don’t hold it against me. By the time I got to Terme de Caracalla (the ancient Roman bath house), I seriously considered just walking the perimeter before going back and calling it a night. But I couldn’t just give up, so I had a shot of espresso and bought a ticket to the bathhouse. It did require a bit more walking, but it was worth it. I got that feeling I had when I first was the Roman Forum and I could really feel the history of ancient Rome coming to life. It was simply amazing to walk the length of the enormous pools, baths, steam rooms, and gymnasiums. Having been to the bathhouses in Budapest just a few months ago, I could really understand what it was meant to be. Just in the distance was a track for athletes to practice and work out. Somehow seeing current Romans working out in the vicinity of a nearly 2000-year-old building where ancient Romans used to work out seemed just right.

So. Many. Seagulls. 

 While walking around, I befriended a black cat that followed me around the rest of the day. He would jump up on benches and stare at me with these soulful eyes until I caved and pet him again. When the heavens started rumbling and the clouds darkened, I knew I had to say goodbye to my new friend and head back before I got soaked at the baths.

My new bestie. We have a secret language and everything.

When I got back to the apartment, I was not only tired, but also starving. I hadn’t actually eaten anything since my nutella croissant that morning. I had planned on going to a recommended pizza place nearby but while I was walking around (in the pouring rain) I passed this adorable little café, Il Biglietto. There were students studying, chatting, and drinking. I walked in just in time for apertivo, too. It was meant to be.

I ordered a strong drink and loaded up my plate with appetizers. The server, Marco, had spent some time living in San Francisco and helped me order with my limited Italian. The café had backpacks piled 3 levels high in the corner, and a random collection of tables and chairs to spread out on. The walls were covered with overgrown plants, books, even a bird cage and empty DIY-craft-style wine bottles. It kind of reminded me of Portfolio coffee shop in Long Beach. The food and drinks were good; the people were friendly, but quiet. I definitely shared a knowing, sad look with an Italian girl who clearly had writers block. She just sat there with her laptop, staring out the window and sipping her coffee. There are some things that don’t require language to communicate. It was the perfect, peaceful end to an amazing, busy day in Rome.

Leaving Florence

First Florence sunset I watched from Piazza Michelangelo with my flatmates.

This isn’t how I pictured my last day. I’m not ready to leave, but I know I’ll be back. If you really fall in love with something, it’s never truly goodbye—just see you later. That’s what I hope is true for Florence and all the wonderful people I’ve met along the way. There is still so much I want to do! I didn’t even see Michelangelo’s David until two days ago.

When you study abroad for a semester, it seems like you have all the time in the world at first. I mean, 4 months is a long time, right? But it slips by so fast and before I could check off half the things on my list, I’m suddenly sitting here the night before move out day, looking around at an empty room.

There is so much I have done that I’m so grateful for. There were challenges, cultural differences, a few language barriers and a lot of gesturing, but I wouldn’t have changed a thing.

One of my classes this semester was Backgrounds of Western Literature, during which I reread The Odyssey. After reading about the adventures Odysseus encounters on his journey, our professor passed around a poem that seemed to encompass the ideal experience of traveling. For anyone else out there who loves to travel, I hope you will appreciate this poem as much as I did:

Ithaka

As you set out for Ithaka

hope the voyage is a long one,

full of adventure, full of discovery.

Laistrygonians and Cyclops,

angry Poseidon—don’t be afraid of them:

you’ll never find things like that on your way

as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,

as long as a rare excitement

stirs your spirit and your body.

Laistrygonians and Cyclops,

wild Poseidon—you won’t encounter them

unless you bring them along inside your soul,

unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope the voyage is a long one.

May there be many a summer morning when,

with what pleasure, what joy,

you come into harbors seen for the first time;

may you stop at Phoenician trading stations

to buy fine things,

mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,

sensual perfume of every kind—

as many sensual perfumes as you can;

and may you visit many Egyptian cities

to gather stores of knowledge from their scholars.

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.

Arriving there is what you are destined for.

But do not hurry the journey at all.

Better if it lasts for years,

so you are old by the time you reach the island,

wealthy with all you have gained on the way,

not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.

Without her you would not have set out.

She has nothing left to give you now.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.

Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,

you will have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.

-Constantine Petrou Cavafy

As I continue to travel around Europe these next two months, I’m keeping this poem close to my heart. I will definitely continue blogging—hopefully with more frequency now that the semester is over.

And now I’m off, “backpacking” (I’m actually bringing a small suitcase) through Europe. Wish me well!

Last Week in Florence!

Santa Croce during Notte Bianca

These past 2 weeks have been a blur. Now I have less than a week left in Florence. I can’t even begin to understand where the time went. At the end of every semester, time always seems to be speeding along, but this semester just disappeared completely.

Bianca Notte was last Tuesday night. It’s an annual event in Florence where the whole city stays up all night, shops are open late, and there are art installations in all the main piazzas. Definitely one of my favorite nights in Florence. I even got to ride a carousel! 

The park just before sunset

Last Saturday morning I was up at 4 am & already making by way to the train station by 5 to meet my cousins in Rome for the day. We explored ancient Rome all morning: the Coliseum, the Roman Forum…even a few random little chapels.

It was so amazing to just be able to take the train into Rome for the day to meet up with family! I love how easy it is to travel around Italy. I was even back in time to go to the Firenze vs. Roma soccer match.

Firenze vs. Roma: Smoke bomb on the field.

Madness ensued. I knew Italians loved their soccer, but the game was crazy! Wild gesturing everywhere, giant flags waving, more security guards than I knew existed in Italy, multiple almost-fights, and smoke bombs being thrown around—once even in my section! It was an amazing game and so incredible to be a part of such an enthusiastic crowd for a soccer game. 

Leather shopping

This weekend, my Wisconsin cousins (Justin and Christy) visited me in Florence! I got to show them all around and go shopping, while doing some last-minute souvenir shopping myself as well.

Sunset over the Arno

Last night was Nicole’s birthday, so we went to Osteria Santo Spirito across the Arno, somehow skipped the hour wait, and were seated at a lovely little table outside overlooking the piazza, surrounded by twinkle lights. The food was amazing and it was a perfect night out for our last weekend in Florence. To top it all off, we saw a beautiful sunset over the river while walking to the restaurant.

Feelin' the love at Gusta Pizza

That’s the short version of what I’ve been up to these past few weeks. Other than that, I’ve been swamped with schoolwork. (Yes, we still have finals and papers for study abroad.) I’m still here though, trying to get the most out of the precious little time I have left in Florence. Sometime in between, I explored the Boboli Gardens, the Santa Maria Novella Church, and a park on the outskirts of Florence at sunset.

Medieval Jesus in SMN

Santa Maria Novella Church