Entry 14: June 18, 2008

Now that the rain that has been going nonstop for three days has stopped, a beautiful, sunny day has finally come! Today, we took a boat cruise around Lake Lugano. We were heading for Morcote, a small fishing village that is home to a great church, an amazing cemetery, and about 3,000 cobblestone steps. We docked at Morcote and hiked up to the church of Santa Maria del Sasso. We took some fabulous pictures overlooking this quaint village. Then, we headed over to the cemetery next to the church. Apparently, this cemetery has nine levels. I say "apparently" because no one in our group really checked to see if this fact was actually true. This cemetery was gorgeous! The graves were all different and they offered a hilltop, peaceful resting place. I can only imagine how great the people that are buried there were because of the hike it takes to get to the cemetery in the first place. After the cemetery, we hiked back down and treated ourselves to some gelato. It was not as good as the gelato in good ol' Sansepolcro, but we all devoured it anyway! We then took a boat back to Lugano and headed back to relax and finish up some work.

Entry 13: June 15, 2008

We left Interlaken today and made our way to our home for the next week and a half, Lugano. The accommodations here are much more luxurious than the ones in Sansepolcro; we have private rooms with hardwood floors, windows with lake views, and even our own bathrooms! I will miss my roommates that I spent every waking minute with though. Living by yourself can get kind of lonely, so we have to visit each other often! We also have kitchenettes, which translates to mean that we can cook. I am not the greatest cook by any means, so I will be making meals that require little to no cooking. Today was for settling in and praying that the rain goes away!

Entry 12: June 12-13 2008

Our next major trip after Lake Como was to Stechelberg and Gimmelwald by way of Interlaken. We pulled into Stechelberg, a small Alpine valley village in the heart of the German part of Switzerland. I was taken aback by its sheer beauty. I have never seen such beauty right before my eyes. We stayed at a charming place called The Alpenhof, ran by Diane and Marc and their precious 10 month old, Ellen.

The big adventure for this trip was the Alpine hike. We took a swaying gondola from Stechelberg up to Gimmelwald. From there we hiked to Murren. After spending a while shopping in Murren, we went up to the Sonnenberg. I rode the funicular (a car on tracks) up so high that it was snowing and we were above the fog! There is nothing like descending into mountains from the fog; it was an out of body experience.

Despite the achy reminders of the fact I went on an Alpine hike, I am so glad that I took the risk and went. I can now officially say that I have hiked in the Alps. That makes all the intensity, time and soreness worth it.

Entry 11: June 10, 2008

After some abrupt phone calls regarding our attendance at breakfast, we got ready and set out to take Como by storm. We ate at a small restaurant. I am pretty sure that there is nothing better than eating under an umbrella in front of a lake. After lunch, we wanted to take a cruise around, so we bought tickets and set our sights on Bellagio. This is smaller than Como, but it is a destination for tourists. We walked around and shopped and just tried to take in this quaint lake town in the afternoon that we had to spend there. We opted for a boat that put us back around dinnertime and we headed back to our hotel.

Before getting to Como, we had read about the possibility of having some Mexican food. Don’t get me wrong; our Italian food has been great, but we wanted a change. We found this little treasure, Cactus Juice, and enjoyed some of the best Mexican food that I have ever had. After dinner, we called it an early night and went back to the hotel.

Entry 10: June 9, 2008

Today started out like any other normal day at the Servi. We woke up, had breakfast, and had class. Today was no ordinary day. Today was our last day in Sansepolcro. It was so bittersweet, I was worried about coming, now I am sad about leaving and excited about moving on to a completely different country. We said our last goodbyes and I tried my best to take in the last bits of Sansepolcro as I walked to the bus station.

My sadness was short-lived when I began thinking about our upcoming trip to Lago di Como (Lake Como). After a day of traveling, we made it into this beautiful lake town as the sun was setting. We checked into our hotel, grabbed a quick dinner, and admired the beauty of this lake (if it is good enough for George Clooney, then it will definitely work for us!).  We immediately fell in love with the town and couldn't wait to get up the next day and begin exploring!

Entry 9: June 4, 2008

Can I please just stay here forever? I am in LOVE with Venice! Despite the everlasting sea legs feeling, I really do love this town. We decided to go to St. Mark's Square this morning. We successfully navigated the vaporetto and landed safely. It was on land where we were in trouble. Remember all of those cute pictures with people holding pigeons? Well, pigeons aren't so cute. I really don't like birds, especially those that fly at your head and outnumber you 100 to one. After choosing the path with the least pigeons, we made it into the Basilica. I was in awe of the mosaic ceilings and marble floors.

After our short tour, we had a very European lunch (and by European, I mean long) and then headed to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. This was the most amazing, quaint gallery I have ever been to. Her collection of modern art ranged from Dali to Pollock, with a few Picassos thrown in for good measure. The most fascinating part of the collection was her grave, where she was buried next to her 14 dogs. After our full day, we had a nice dinner by the canal and try to soak up as much of Venice as we could (just not the canal water because it's disgusting).

Three weeks in and I still cannot believe what I am seeing. My group is going to Lake Como and Interlaken this week, then we go to Switzerland and we couldn't be happier!

Entry 8: June 3, 2008

This morning we woke up and had breakfast at our hotel. There were rolls at breakfast which may sound weird, but they were salted so we were extra happy (The bread in Tuscany is unsalted and tastes slightly like cardboard). After breakfast, we met up with another travel group and decided to head to Venice's islands. We first went to San Michele, the cemetery island. There were rows and rows of layered monuments. These were very different from American headstones. Many of them had pictures on them, and all of them had flowers. This cemetery did not have the eerie feeling that many American cemeteries do; this was more of a place to celebrate and remember rather than grieve. After San Michele, we headed over to Murano, the glass-blowing island. Apparently, the town of Venice was so fed up with the fires the glass artisans were causing that they kicked them off the mainland, thus birthing Murano. We headed over to the glass factory and watched the men create their masterpieces. After admiring their work for so long, it was great to see them in action. A few hundred degrees Celsius and multiple purchases later, we found lunch at a waterside cafe. After such a long day, we had a relaxing evening and rested for our last day in Venezia.

Entry 7: June 2, 2008

I have found the most beautiful city in the world. Venice, Italy. We arrived around 5:30 after a LONG train ride! We found our hotel, the Albergo Guerrato down some slightly sketchy alleyways near the Rialto Bridge. We settled in and then went out for a dinner at a little Venetian restaurant down a little side street. After dinner, we decided to explore Venice a bit. Instead of shelling out tons of euros for a gondola ride, we opted for an alternate to the gondola. We hopped on the Vaporetti (the Venetian bus on a boat) and rode around all night. We talked, took pictures, and just enjoyed each other's company. This was probably the best night that I have had since we came to Italy. I realized how lucky I am to be in the most beautiful city in the world with some really great people. We all went to bed with visions of Venice dancing in our heads.

Entry 6: May 28, 2008

Today is the big day! Today we went to the Pope's blessing at the Vatican. We were lucky enough to get tickets so it turned out that we were about 50 meters away from the Pope! This was an amazing experience. Even though we were in direct sun and it was hot, the reality of being in the presence of the Pope distracted us. Needless to say, we were amazed and I can honestly say that this is one of the greatest highlights of my life.

After seeing the Pope, we headed over to the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. The Sistine Chapel was beyond any pictures I had ever seen. I just can't believe that I was able to see so many things in one day!

I keep trying to make myself believe that I am actually experiencing what I am. I am amazed each and everyday by the sights I see. I can't believe that I have seen so much and I still have a month here!

Entry 5: May 27, 2008

When I woke up today, I was expecting the day to be pretty normal. Shortly after getting up, I realized that this day would be anything but ordinary. We had a toilet explosion. What appeared to be the Italian equivalent of Niagara Falls gushed from our toilet, completely enveloping our room in toilet water, which we prayed was clean. After calling the front desk for help and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, we set out to begin our day.

We first went to Termini and bought a Roma Pass. This cost €20 and was worth every cent of it! This got us into some exhibits for free and allowed us to use public transportation (including the Metro and the buses which proved to be interesting experiences!) We made our plans and headed out to the Colosseum.

The Colosseum cannot be described in words. Pictures can't really do it justice either. We spent two hours walking around, taking pictures of everything we saw. Despite the heat, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and loved seeing this piece of history.
After the Colosseum, we went across to the Roman Forum. This was the center of the ancient city and was amazing! It is just so crazy to stand in a place that is at the heart of such history. After the Roman Forum, we went to the Pantheon and Piazza Navona. The Pantheon was amazing and we were so fortunate to get the chance to go inside and see this temple-turned-church. Piazza Navona was also grand, even with its renovations going on.

Needless to say, we tried to cover everything today! Going for hours straight in 90 plus degree weather will really wipe you out!

Entry 4: May 26, 2008

After a short morning of class, we ate a quick lunch and headed to the bus stop in Sansepolcro. We took our bus to Arezzo and then took a train to Arezzo. As our groups split their different ways, we all set off for our travel adventures! My group successfully found our hostel which was pretty close to the Termini (train station). We got our room assignments and lucky us! We were given a room on the fourth floor, which is the American equivalent of the fifth floor. Needless to say, our calves should be a little more chiseled after this trip.

We made it up to our room long enough to just drop our stuff off. Despite our exhaustion, we trekked on and decided to do some sightseeing. We set out for the Spanish Steps. After walking a while, the steps kind of snuck up on us. While the staircase was grand and beautiful, it was a little disappointing. Nevertheless, we were still in Rome and seeing artifacts that are older than our own country!

After the Spanish Steps, we traveled a short distance to the Trevi Fountain. This left me completely speechless, and those who know me know that this is a major feat. Despite it being covered in tourists, this was a great way to start out our trip to Rome. After a ton of pictures, we turned our backs to the fountain and tossed a coin in. This is said to guarantee a trip back to Italy very soon. Let's hope this comes true!

Wiped out from traveling and walking around Rome, we settled back in for our first night's slumber at the hostel.

Entry 3: May 20, 2008

The highlight for today was our group's trip to the Museo Civico. This is the community museum for Sansepolcro. While a museum in Sansepolcro may seem like a minor deal, this is home to four of Piero della Francesca's (a Sansepolcro native) works. The two most famous are the "Polyptych of the Misericordia" and "Resurrection." The Madonna of Misericordia piece is a collection of many painted panels making up one work. It features a larger than life Madonna extending her cape outwards to allow believers to seek shelter and safety under. Its size, detail, and gold foiling made it hard to not be captivated by the work. Additionally, "Resurrection" is a fresco, meaning that it was painted directly onto the plaster of the wall. It was amazing to know that I was standing in the exact same space that Piero did when this piece was painted. This piece is available for all citizens to see, whether they have purchased a ticket to the museum or not. The town decided to transform the doors to the room that contain this piece open into windows so that it can be seen at all times. After our trip to the Museo, we went as a group to a local jewelry maker’s house. Her family opened their doors and invited us in to buy jewelry and have snacks and drinks with them. This jewelry was absolutely beautiful and many of us felt the need to support a local small businesswoman.

I am having a hard time putting this experience into words. It is impossible to tell you all of the amazing things we are doing. Hopefully, over the coming weeks with visits to Rome and Venice, I will be seeing more of the sights that Italy is so well-known for.

Ciao!

Entry 2: May 19, 2008

Today, we were awakened by the famous Tuscan sunshine. We were all a bit excited because today was the day we got to visit Casa Buitoni. After a hike up the mountain side and an unwelcomed visit by a snake, we made it to our destination. The hike and the snake were well-worth it. The Casa was, hands down, the most beautiful place I have ever been in. The views it offered were breathtaking, words just cannot do it justice. We went on a tour that took us to a sunroom, private living quarters, dining rooms, and even an experimental test kitchen for the Buitoni pasta brand. After our tour, we went out onto the piazza for lunch. I found myself looking out over Sansepolcro and being hit with the reality that I am actually in this beautiful, foreign land. I cannot wait to see what else this magical place has in store for me.

Entry 1: May 16, 2008

We have arrived safely in Rome! After a "good" night's sleep on the plane, I woke up and saw the sun beginning to peek over the horizon. What better symbol for the beginning of this trip than a sunrise? We landed and it was if I was plopped down into a different world. Signs were in Italian, people were speaking different languages; needless to say this was a bit overwhelming.

After both groups arrived, we traveled by bus to Sansepolcro. As tired as we were, our eyes were glued to the breathtaking views compliments of the Tuscan countryside. Houses were perched on the mountain sides and greenery was abound. Before we knew it, we took the exit for Sansepolcro and after a few turns; we had arrived at our destination.

As we unloaded our bus, I noticed a lady peering out at us from her balcony as if she was saying "they're back..." We got our bags and made our way to the medieval-like doors of the Servi: our home for the next three weeks. After we got settled, we had our first homemade (delicious!) Italian dinner and walked around Sansepolcro. We had our first taste of gelato and I can definitely tell this is going to be a good relationship. I found myself saying "I can't believe I'm actually here!" so many times already. Everything is like a picture I have seen in a book. I can't believe this is where I am living!