Natalie Braswell
Entry 6: June 29, 2008
Prague Blague
I am writing this on a plane, currently flying over millions of gallons of ice cold water hundreds of miles away from any land. I’m trying not to think about it. I am also trying not to think about today, the day I left Prague. It marked the end of my last big vacation as a student. This is my last summer as an undergraduate- what a way to go, right?
Prague was amazing. I didn’t have time or access to internet, so the journals and blog entries are coming post-vacation. By the time this gets posted I’ll be at home, hopefully with Bojangles. For now, I am bored out of my flipping mind and my iPod has betrayed me and DIED like a selfish little monster. So…I have taken out my laptop and decided to write down all of my thoughts. I did this for an article in high school and it was a hoot. Feel free to only read the interesting ones. Here we go:
Prague was a great time. The city is beautiful, with a billion churches and beautiful buildings. Czech was a bit harder to get around in…there was a lot of “skas” at the end of things. The only words I picked up were “thank you” and “please.” Daniel took me to some of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. We toured the Prague castle, Petron Hill (I thought it sounded sketchy, but it actually had a bunch of rose gardens and stuff…way cool), the Charles Bridge and a beautiful church with a library that looked like it should be at Hogwarts.
I got to meet most of the people who were on the program with Daniel and also his bartender friend, Phillipe. He took us out for drinks the second night I was there and then we went to his bar last night. Beer is stronger, bigger and cheaper in the Czech Republic. Also, almost all of the walls I’ve seen in Prague are green.
Plane updates I’ve gotten from the little TV screens:
We are approaching land THANK GOD.
Time to destination: 4:22
Time at origin: 19:10
Time at destination: 13:10
Temperature outside the window: -12 F
Flying over St. John’s and Quebec…? I thought I was flying into Atlanta?
Entry 5: June 17, 2008
I feel like it was the Reagan administration when I wrote last. Sorry, folks.
I am finally in Lugano, Switzerland, and finally have my very own wireless internet. We are staying in the dorms at Franklin College. Although it is rainy and foggy right now, it is a gorgeous campus and a gorgeous city. I am very happy to be here.
We spent the past six days travelling from Sansepolcro to Lugano. I’ve now spent two nights in Como, two nights in Interlaken and two nights in Stechelberg.
Como was beautiful. George Clooney has a house there, but I didn’t want to call him when I was there. He gets so clingy, you know? We spent most of our time wandering around Bellagio, buying things….and wandering around.
Stechelberg was also a good time. It looked like “Heidi” could have been filmed there…I kept waiting for some little punk to come pouring out of a wheelchair onto my head. Never happened. We DID go to Muren though (which was a hell of a hike) and looked around there. I finally bought a rain coat, and to my surprise it didn’t stop raining immediately. It may have been my best purchase yet, and it sure beats the trash bag poncho I was wearing (no offense Amanda, it was a lovely gesture). The picture is the first shot we took upon arrival in the Swiss Alps. I couldn’t contain my excitement.
Interlaken was …. Interlaken. We went rafting, which was crazy fun even though it was freezing. If you are looking for a way to bond with someone, go rafting with them. The paddles and limbs became indistinguishable and there’s no way to bond like plunging headfirst into a freezing glacial stream via a class 4 rapid.
More later!
Entry 4: June 10, 2008
We finally have a wireless internet connection, so now I don't feel so stupid for bringing my laptop. I may even have the energy to upload some more pictures tomorrow if you are lucky. The one on here is me at the local pub (The Compass Rose) with my host "brother" Luca.
Our last two nights in Italy will be in Lake Como, or Lago di Como as I call it now. I am basically Italian.
The grand finale for Sansepolcro was a good time. We had all of our Italian host families come for a big dinner at the Servi where we were staying. It was full of loud people, good food, more good food and some questionable singing. The girls that did solos were moving and fabulous, but our rendition of "Carolina Girls" that was supposed to be an auditory treat may have caused some untimely deaths. Not sure.
We departed this afternoon around 12. After a lo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ng train ride and a particularly uncomfortable nap next to Bo*, we arrived in Milan, the fashion capital of the world. Let's just say I was not expecting that much denim or nylon. Yikes. Culture Shock.
We have to get rest now though, we have a meeting with George Clooney tomorrow. You know, that old chestnut.
More tomorrow. Buonanotte!
Entry 3: June 7, 2008
Ciao again.
This will most likely be my last post from dear Italia. We leave for Lake Como on Monday and my itinerary (very strict) does not allow room for internet time between the extreme lounging and marathon meals I plan to undertake.
We got back from Venezia yesterday. As much as I liked the city, it goes on my list of things that don't totally make sense to me (like cruise ships and airplanes). The water literally came up to the doorsteps of the first floors and sometimes made its way in. Yikes.
I got to go to the Peggy Guggenheim house/museum while in Venezia. I was almost emotional (yeah... I know) to see the Pollock paintings in person. They were smaller than I had imagined, but then again it was one woman's private collection and you can only fit so many paintings in one house. Peggy Guggenheim cracks me up. The more I learn about her the more I like her. I wanted to buy some of her signature shades (googleheim them), but I couldn't afford the 140 Euro price tag.
Today we went to the Old Folks home to sing to them. Lauryn, who loves old people, was entirely too excited. I told her I wasn't sure about going to the rest home with her knowing how she feels about old people. Her reply: "Natalie I went to the Uffizi and the Guggenheim with you."
Good point.Entry 2: May 30, 2008
Well, I’ve found home ladies and gentlemen. Ana Capri was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been in my life.
We arrived after a string of transportation modes (walk, bus ride, train ride, taxi ride, ferry ride, bus ride, walk) to our place of residence at the top of the island, Villa Eva. We expected two rooms in a string of others close together, like a hotel. What we found was a sweet little independent unit with hand painted floral patterns on the doors and mismatched sheets. We could walk out and in a couple steps, be at either a small pool or a little bar. We made ample use of both, spending the first day soaking up sun and taste testing the different tropical options. The lawn chairs on the island had little things on top that would shade just your face. I got through 78% of my book, “The Other Boleyn Girl,” on just the first day.
Our first trip out was peacefully uneventful. We bought a few souvenirs and ate a darling lunch at an outdoor café. I had my first Caprese salad; I will never be the same. That junk is amazing. I had one at almost every meal for the remainder of the trip, until I realized that my “salad” was supposed to be a main course and was costing me 8 Euro in addition to my main course. Way to not look like an overindulgent American, right?
Speaking of indulging, let me tell you about the great sandal adventure. As we were strolling along a little side road, we passed a little shop with leather shoes and belts littering the front of the building. We fell in love with the shoes and eventually ended up buying half the store. The man who makes the shoes had made other pairs for Gwyneth Paltrow (who was there last week) and Julia Roberts. The ones I got were designed for the Ferrari president’s wife.
One of our last hurrahs was the Blue Grotto fiasco. I only say “fiasco” because of the great ordeal it took for us to actually get in the water. After carefully observing the sign that said “SWIMMING IN THE BLUE GROTTO IS STRICKTLY FORBIDDEN,” (yes, strictly with a “k”) we obviously peeled off our clothes and prepared for the swim. I was the first in after a few minutes of careful debate. I launched into the cool Mediterranean water with the grace of a bull elephant and upon seeing the entrance to the cave, proceeded to walk on water to get back out again. After a few more unsuccessful tries and some choice verbiage, I hopped back in and managed to convince Whitney and Julia to get in with me. The jeering Italian men above the Grotto were helpful in pressuring us to go in. They kept yelling “just go!” like that would actually help.
The three of us meandered over to a little chain that led into the grotto. Once we were in the cave, it was all worth it. The blue glow beneath us was spectacular. We were in awe, but also acutely aware of the steadily rising tide. I stayed in for one more visit when the other girls (Sarah, Christin, Jennie Lee and Lesley) went in, but was quite happy to get out.
My other favorite experience was a taxi ride. Seriously. We took a convertible taxi (all seven of us) from Ana Capri to Capri. The driver put on some Louis Armstrong-esque music and we cruised past gorgeous views with wonderful new friends and took about 400 pictures between the seven of us. It is hard to explain, but that taxi ride was one of the happiest times of my life. Strange, but if I’ve learned anything about traveling abroad, it’s that you can’t expect these moments of happiness. Sometimes they just happen.
Entry 1: May 21, 2008
Ciao and mi dispiace for not writing before now!
It has been quite the first week. Everything good has been amazing and everything bad has been easily blamed on culture shock. It's quite the scapegoat.
I'm sure everyone will write about Casa Buitoni and how gorgeous it is and how amazing the views were, etc. Well, that is because it IS absolutely gorgeous and the views ARE amazing. Describing the views would either not do it justice or just be cruel to you who have not seen them for yourself. Take a gander (eww...I said gander...culture shock) at Lauryn DuPree's entry/travel journal for a picture of us at the Casa. It may be in the photo album...not sure. The hike up was a nice little walk and pretty eventful by most walking standards, a snake even launched itself out of a crevice in a wall at Lauryn, who then felt culture shock. Lauryn also took a nasty spill on the way down the hill (culture shock), which we all thought was cheating her way out of a few extra steps...she is totally winning the culture shock game.
Our lodging is wonderful. Margherita (our housemama) is also our chef, which could not be a better situation. I love my mother's food, don't get me wrong, but this lady has yet to make a meal I didn't like. Today we had a crispier version of the fried zucchini I love so much at home which was out of this world. So far I have not had any culture shock with the food :). My room is the largest, with 8 people in it. We have a beautiful view of Margherita's private garden and some Sansepolcro-ian rooftops. The earth tones of the buildings and rooftops are so gold and the sky is so blue (unless it is having culture shock and decides to be gray and rainy).
I keep trying to take pictures, but nothing really looks real enough. I've included an attempt at capturing the ritzy feel of the Casa Buitoni. Enjoy.
