Entry 6: June 30, 2008

Home Sweet Home. It feels so good to be back in America. As I look back on the past six weeks it is hard for me to believe that I have done all that I have. On my last travel break, after visiting Munich, Germany, my group and I traveled to Paris, France. All my life I have heard about how wonderful Paris is, but I personally was not that impressed overall. I did see some amazing sites though. During my first day in Paris I visited the Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre. The Louvre is a gigantic art gallery containing nearly 35,000 pieces including the world famous piece, the Mona Lisa by Leonardo Di Vinci. On day two in Paris, we visited Versailles palace, the Eiffel tower and walked down the designer streets and saw high fashion brands such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Versace, and Armani. Versailles was home to King Louis XIV during his reign. Also part of the Versailles kingdom was Marie-Antoinette’s estate. She was the only queen who was able to get some say so in what she wanted in her palace. My traveling group consisted of Kelly, Sarah, Kate H., Jennie Lee, Christin and myself. In Paris we learned to use the metro and it became our most popular means of transportation during our time in Paris. Europe has been a wonderful experience and I have made so many wonderful memories that I will treasure for the rest of my life.

Entry 5: June 25, 2008
Since my last post I have been staying in Lugano, Switerland. Lugano is a beautiful resort town located near Lake Lugano and it is part of the Italian speaking Switerland. We used Franklin College’s facilities for our studies. During our stay, we took a day trip to a small Italian village called Morcote.

In Morcote we visited Santa Maria del Sasso church and its nearby cemetery. The churches and cemeteries are so much more elaborately decoratred here in Europe than they back at home. In Lugano we spent our mornings in class and then had our afternoons free. I spent most of my free afternoons shopping at the Manor (Lugano's department store) and H&M and relaxing on the dock by the lake.

On Monday morning, the 23rd of June, we left Lugano bright and early (5:55 a.m. for my travel group) and headed for Munich, Germany. Our time in Germany was a blur because it was so rushed but we did see some of the highlights on the famous Mike's Bike Tour. Now I am in Paris, which is my last stop before heading back to Zurich to depart for the United States. All good things must come to an end and my incredible summer is quickly reaching the finish line.

Entry 4: June 11, 2008

Today we arrived in Switzerland from our last travel break in Italy. I went to Monterosso, one of the five towns in Cinque Terre, with Christin, Shayna and Sheryl. Monterosso is another beautiful city in Italy. It is located by the sea and the water was so smooth and clear!

This was not our busiest travel adventure; in fact, for the most part we just relaxed on the beach. We also ate some really good seafood! The first night we had fresh noodles with shrimp and zucchini and the second night we had spaghetti with mussels and clams. Both dishes were delicious! And while I am speaking about food, tonight in Interlaken we found a Mexican restaurant! For the last few weeks I have been craving some spice in my life and Mexican food really hit the spot. I was sad to be leaving Italy but after seeing some of the beautiful scenery here, I think Switzerland will also be great!

Entry 3: June 6, 2008
Venice

Any time I am near a body of water I seem to enjoy myself and this was exactly the case in Venice. Venice, known to some as Europe's best preserved city, is unique because of the numerous canals and its variety of attractions. We arrived in Venice on Monday and spent the remainder of the day seeing what the city had to offer. After dinner, Jenni Lee, Christin, Natalie and I met up with Lauren, Whitney, Julia, Katie H., and Kelly. We went for a late night vaporetto ride. We had the best time!

On Tuesday the weather was perfect for exploring Venice. We first went to visit the cemetery island and Murano, the island famous for its glass blowing industry. In the factories, glass is blown to make a variety of items including jewelry, flower vases, picture frames, and chandeliers. All of it was so beautiful! After Murano, Christin and I visited St. Mark's Square. The church itself had a beautifully decorated interior but other than that the piazza was not very appealing to me. There were too many people and too many pigeons!

On Wednesday, Mother Nature was not very cooperative with us. It rained in the morning so we got off to a slow start. Our first stop was the Peggy Guggenheim Museum. Most of the artwork in the museum was modern 20th century pieces including work by Picasso. From there we wandered around the Academia Bridge shopping and sightseeing. Later that day we made our way back to St. Mark's Square to tour Doge's Palace and to see the Bridge of Sighs. The palace, which was formerly the home of the duke, houses the world's largest oil painting. The painting, entitled "Paradise" was done by the artist Tintoretto, and is of Christ and Mary surrounded by 500 heavenly saints. It is truly a masterpiece. Connected to the palace is the Bridge of Sighs, which is the final bridge that criminals walked across to get their last glimpse of Venice before their execution.

Venice has many incredible sights but everything was so expensive and the food was not nearly as delicious as the food back in Tuscany. But all in all, a trip to Italy would not be complete without a visit to Venice and after all, it is hard to mess up a city near the sea!

Entry 2: May 30, 2008
Activity took place May 27-May 29

There are some places in the world that it seems unfair for people to live in permanently because they are so beautiful. The island of Capri is one of those places. For my first travel break, myself and six other girls decided to spend the majority of our break in Capri. Capri is a small island stretching only four miles by two miles and it consists of two towns Capri and Anacapri. Our group which consisted of Christin, Jenni Lee, Natalie, Sarah, Julia, Whitney and I stayed at a lovely place in Anacapri called Villa Eva.

The weather was perfect for some tropical fun and we spent majority of our time shopping, laying out by the pool, swimming in the bluest ocean I have ever seen, eating delicious food and getting to know the locals. The locals were wonderful to us. They showered us with friendliness and good advice.

One of our adventures was taking a chairlift ride from the piazza of Anacapri up to Mount Solaro and when we reached the top we had a magnificent view of the whole island. We also swam in the Blue Grotto which is a famous cave that has limestone in it so when the sun hits it, it appears at if we are swimming underneath blue gold. The experience was once in a lifetime and there was no other place I would have rather been than the island of Capri!

I hope everyone at home is doing great, I love and miss you!

May 21, 2008

What a summer this has started out to be. It seems so surreal to actually be here in Italy eating delicious pasta and seeing some of the most beautiful art in the world. Sansepolcro, the small Italian town located near the Tiber River, is where we are experiencing authentic Italy. There are many sites to see within the town. Sansepolcro is home of Pierro della Francesca, a famous artist, and I have seen several of his paintings including the Resurrection, and the Madonna della Misericordia. We have not even been here a week but we are already learning and seeing so much. I have seen numerous churches, walked several miles a day (some in the rain), been to my first mass service and eaten the best ice cream (known as gelato in Italy) in the world.

The second day we were here I made my first attempt at grocery shopping, the store is called Pam, and it was so interesting and challenging to try to find what I was looking for in Italian labels and then purchase it using Euros. Speaking Italian has been a completely new experience for me but thankfully the town's people are very helpful and patient. Fortunately, everything I have eaten has been absolutely delicicious and Nutella is a gift from God. My fondness for Sansepolcro is increasing with every new experience, but I still have a special place in my heart for Meredith College.