Life is beautiful.
But, blogging is not easy.
It was so easy early on in the semester...
but now, it has become quite complicated.
I don't really have much time to sit down and breathe.
I'm going to make a list of things I must write about.
Pisa/Cinque Terre
Mom and Kelly (Yes, Kelly you will get your moment of fame)
School
Visitors
Florence stuff
Verdi's Requiem
Dr. Hopper
Photography scavenger hunt (tomorrow)
Upcoming free travel plans.
Thanks, I promise. As soon as I get a moment to breathe.
Happy Good Friday.
Ciao!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
Free Travel #2.
The next day we got up and headed out to the Arc De Triomphe. It must be a rule in Paris that it will rain/drizzle for the first few hours of the day and then it will magically clear up. We climbed to the top of the Arc and FROZE!! It was quite windy! But, it was such an awesome view!
On top of the Arc.
We could see everywhere. The Grand Arch, the Eiffel Tower, Sacre Couer, the Champs-Elysses, and the Louvre! We came down and wandered down the Champs-Elysses looking in all the windows and actually going in to some stores.
Nour and I stopped at a Swatch store where she bought a watch and Leigh and Libby went on to do their own thing for the afternoon. Nour and I were so happy that the weather had cleared so we took the Metro and headed up to MontMarte to see Moulin Rouge. Neat building, but definitely not much to see. We bought the obligatory postcard at the gift shop and then got nutella crepes and headed up to the top of the hill.
Once at the top, we could finally see Sacre Coer! It really is such a beautiful church. Nour pointed out that it almost has a 'mosque' style to it. It's white and has 5 or 6 domes with a lot of detail. We took the funicular up to the top, walked up some stairs and there we were standing at the entrance...completely amazed by the grandeur.
We turned around and once again we had a great view of the city. Finding the highest point in the cities we visit has become one of our most favorite things. You can see how the city is laid out, where the landmarks are, and get an overall feel for the architecture and the colors. We turned back towards the church and entered...for free! This church is kept as a place of 'perpetual prayer' and they don't charge you to get in. It was really one of the most beautiful places I have ever been into. There was just the right amount of stained glass! The color was amazing. Nour and I walked all the way around the aisles of the church on both sides and finally ended up seated in the pews. We couldn't help but just stare at the apse of the church and the mosaic that was done inside of it. It was so detailed and so perfect --- covered in gold and lapis l'azzura. Of course, you can't take photos in there – so, if you want to see it, you'll have to google it. But, we sat there for a good 10 or 15 minutes with our mouths hanging open.
The church.
We walked back down the hill, caught the metro and went back to the hotel to get Nour's stuff together so she could head back to Amsterdam. She left and I laid down to take a nap and not too long after L & L came in. We got out and went to Hard Rock of Paris. And, thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We had a fantastic waiter (who was fascinated by my being from Tennessee – he said he loved Jack Daniels...no lie!) and listened to good music and got American food.
As we were heading back to the hotel, L & L wanted to tell me what we were going to do the next day and they were so excited about telling me! (Sidenote: We were only going to stay in Paris 2 days, 2 nights...but we loved it so we decided to stay Wednesday night as well!)
They had been very intent on finding the Palais Garnier...which is one of the main opera houses in Paris. It is also the opera house that the book Phantom of the Opera was based on. There are stairs that look like the masquerade stairs...a chandelier that supposedly fell and killed someone and even water channels underneath the building!! They found the house and were told it was 4.50 to tour and see the inside of the auditorium but that they'd have to come back another day because there was a rehearsal in progress.
They deliberated for a few moments and the man at the ticket booth told them it would be only 7 euros a piece to buy opera tickets. So....they did! And surprised me.
Of course, for 7 euros, what can you expect?! Our tickets said “sans visibilite” on them – which they most definitely were...if you were sitting. We stood for the hour that we stayed :]
But, it was so worth it. We got to see the building and wander around inside before the show started...we got to see the inside of the auditorium...we got to see the chandelier and the Charles Shagall painting on the ceiling (which was Gorgeous). After about an hour or so we decided to leave. The opera (The Rake's Progress) was in English but it was just getting more ridiculous every minute...so we left when they brought out a man in a wolf head, a life sized plastic horse and a midget in a silver-sequined suit.
The chandelier.
I think we went and got cappucinoes and hot chocolate after that – but, I honestly can't really remember. We got our stuff packed and we were ready to get up at 6 to get to the train station by 7 the next morning so that we could go to Zurich and meet Tyler Jones, one of our fellow HUFers.
Oh, I forgot - we went to Versailles on Wednesday morning! It was SO cold outside in the garden. But, we're glad that we went. The grand apartments...the hall of mirrors...there was a huge collection of silver there as well!!
The gate into Versailles.
The Hall of Mirrors.
All's well. We make it to the station a little after seven...and we're in the line....the international ticket line...when, lo and behold we get up to the counter and we are informed that the 8:24 train to Zurich is full. And, that every subsequent train to Zurich for the DAY is full.
So, where on this Eurail map could we go? -Libby.
There were tons of people behind us in line, so we said – okay, we can handle this. Let's get breakfast, take out the time table and the map and figure out just where we can go. So, that we did. We sat at the cafe in the train station and kept pitching out ideas. “Heidelberg?” “London?” “Reims?” “Frankfurt?” “Bern?” “Innsbruck?” etc. Then, Leigh comes up with this crazy idea and says, “What if we get to Berlin and we see the wall and head back home on a night train...?!” Of course Libby and I were willing to go along with it – especially since we didn't have any real plans.
Leigh worked her magic, opened up the Thomas Cook Book and found a whole slew of trains that would take us to Berlin by ten. We'd have to wait for the 6 am train the next morning to get to Munich, but we knew we could occupy ourselves for six hours.
WRITE THESE TRAIN TIMES AND NUMBERS DOWN!!! -Leigh
We get to the ticket counter and the guy acts like the first train (to Frankfurt) was full and so Leigh looked at him and simply said, “Just give us a train ticket...a ticket to SOMEWHERE.” It was then that he looked back at his screen and realized that we could ride that train.
When we got to Frankfurt we were supposed to take a connected train (we arrived at 3:56) at 5:13 to get to Berlin. Nevertheless, we wanted to make sure that everything was perfect. So, once again we rushed to the ticket counter. And, by this time it's about 4 – the man at the counter said, “Oh, you can take the next train to Berlin – it leaves at 4:13.” We looked at eachother and had huge grins on our faces – so much for food, that could wait – we were going to be on a train that would arrive a lot earlier to Berlin...a train that would arrive at 8:20. That meant...
We could get a cab to drive around the city for 30 or 45 minutes – we could come back, grab a bite to eat and be on an OVERNIGHT TRAIN to Munich at 10:14 pm. Which would put us home in Florence at 5:30...instead of 11:45.
HALLELUJAH! This was working out perfectly. Getting to Berlin was a breeze – well, somewhat. Their seat reservation system was a little complicated, but once we figured it out we had it down. The German trains are so nice a spacious! We arrived in Berlin, rushed to the ticket counter (you see the recurring theme here I hope) and, once again – we were so blessed! There were 3 couchettes on the train to Munich for 2 hours later. Sigh. We were doing well.
We ran downstairs and tried to catch a cab. The first guy rolled down his window and Leigh said “Hello, we'd like ---” and he waved his hand at her and drove away. He did NOT like the English.
So, the next driver pulled up, got out took our bags and put them in the back and then asked us where we wanted to go.
We told him that we primarily just wanted to drive around this side of town and that we wanted to see the Berlin wall. He said, “I've got the perfect place to take you.” He took us to a huge section of the wall and proceeded to tell us about what life was like when he was young and living here before the wall fell. And he told us about the changes that occurred when it was brought down. How the East felt towards the West and vice versa. It was a short experience, but a moving one and a memorable one.
Needless to say, we made it back to Florence...walked quickly in hopes that bus 16 would be at the stop...and there it was...with 6 girls from our group there. It was a great reunion – they were happy to see us and we them.
We were sad about having to walk up the hill with our packs. But, Sandro (he is the villa do-everything-man) was driving by – saw the 9 of us and stopped and pointed to our bags and had us take them off to put in his car. He doesn't speak much English, but I think he understood how grateful we were the way we hugged him and kept saying, “Grazie mille!” in the most southern way.
And, thus ended my first real European adventure.
On top of the Arc.
We could see everywhere. The Grand Arch, the Eiffel Tower, Sacre Couer, the Champs-Elysses, and the Louvre! We came down and wandered down the Champs-Elysses looking in all the windows and actually going in to some stores.
Nour and I stopped at a Swatch store where she bought a watch and Leigh and Libby went on to do their own thing for the afternoon. Nour and I were so happy that the weather had cleared so we took the Metro and headed up to MontMarte to see Moulin Rouge. Neat building, but definitely not much to see. We bought the obligatory postcard at the gift shop and then got nutella crepes and headed up to the top of the hill.
Once at the top, we could finally see Sacre Coer! It really is such a beautiful church. Nour pointed out that it almost has a 'mosque' style to it. It's white and has 5 or 6 domes with a lot of detail. We took the funicular up to the top, walked up some stairs and there we were standing at the entrance...completely amazed by the grandeur.
We turned around and once again we had a great view of the city. Finding the highest point in the cities we visit has become one of our most favorite things. You can see how the city is laid out, where the landmarks are, and get an overall feel for the architecture and the colors. We turned back towards the church and entered...for free! This church is kept as a place of 'perpetual prayer' and they don't charge you to get in. It was really one of the most beautiful places I have ever been into. There was just the right amount of stained glass! The color was amazing. Nour and I walked all the way around the aisles of the church on both sides and finally ended up seated in the pews. We couldn't help but just stare at the apse of the church and the mosaic that was done inside of it. It was so detailed and so perfect --- covered in gold and lapis l'azzura. Of course, you can't take photos in there – so, if you want to see it, you'll have to google it. But, we sat there for a good 10 or 15 minutes with our mouths hanging open.
The church.
We walked back down the hill, caught the metro and went back to the hotel to get Nour's stuff together so she could head back to Amsterdam. She left and I laid down to take a nap and not too long after L & L came in. We got out and went to Hard Rock of Paris. And, thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We had a fantastic waiter (who was fascinated by my being from Tennessee – he said he loved Jack Daniels...no lie!) and listened to good music and got American food.
As we were heading back to the hotel, L & L wanted to tell me what we were going to do the next day and they were so excited about telling me! (Sidenote: We were only going to stay in Paris 2 days, 2 nights...but we loved it so we decided to stay Wednesday night as well!)
They had been very intent on finding the Palais Garnier...which is one of the main opera houses in Paris. It is also the opera house that the book Phantom of the Opera was based on. There are stairs that look like the masquerade stairs...a chandelier that supposedly fell and killed someone and even water channels underneath the building!! They found the house and were told it was 4.50 to tour and see the inside of the auditorium but that they'd have to come back another day because there was a rehearsal in progress.
They deliberated for a few moments and the man at the ticket booth told them it would be only 7 euros a piece to buy opera tickets. So....they did! And surprised me.
Of course, for 7 euros, what can you expect?! Our tickets said “sans visibilite” on them – which they most definitely were...if you were sitting. We stood for the hour that we stayed :]
But, it was so worth it. We got to see the building and wander around inside before the show started...we got to see the inside of the auditorium...we got to see the chandelier and the Charles Shagall painting on the ceiling (which was Gorgeous). After about an hour or so we decided to leave. The opera (The Rake's Progress) was in English but it was just getting more ridiculous every minute...so we left when they brought out a man in a wolf head, a life sized plastic horse and a midget in a silver-sequined suit.
The chandelier.
I think we went and got cappucinoes and hot chocolate after that – but, I honestly can't really remember. We got our stuff packed and we were ready to get up at 6 to get to the train station by 7 the next morning so that we could go to Zurich and meet Tyler Jones, one of our fellow HUFers.
Oh, I forgot - we went to Versailles on Wednesday morning! It was SO cold outside in the garden. But, we're glad that we went. The grand apartments...the hall of mirrors...there was a huge collection of silver there as well!!
The gate into Versailles.
The Hall of Mirrors.
All's well. We make it to the station a little after seven...and we're in the line....the international ticket line...when, lo and behold we get up to the counter and we are informed that the 8:24 train to Zurich is full. And, that every subsequent train to Zurich for the DAY is full.
So, where on this Eurail map could we go? -Libby.
There were tons of people behind us in line, so we said – okay, we can handle this. Let's get breakfast, take out the time table and the map and figure out just where we can go. So, that we did. We sat at the cafe in the train station and kept pitching out ideas. “Heidelberg?” “London?” “Reims?” “Frankfurt?” “Bern?” “Innsbruck?” etc. Then, Leigh comes up with this crazy idea and says, “What if we get to Berlin and we see the wall and head back home on a night train...?!” Of course Libby and I were willing to go along with it – especially since we didn't have any real plans.
Leigh worked her magic, opened up the Thomas Cook Book and found a whole slew of trains that would take us to Berlin by ten. We'd have to wait for the 6 am train the next morning to get to Munich, but we knew we could occupy ourselves for six hours.
WRITE THESE TRAIN TIMES AND NUMBERS DOWN!!! -Leigh
We get to the ticket counter and the guy acts like the first train (to Frankfurt) was full and so Leigh looked at him and simply said, “Just give us a train ticket...a ticket to SOMEWHERE.” It was then that he looked back at his screen and realized that we could ride that train.
When we got to Frankfurt we were supposed to take a connected train (we arrived at 3:56) at 5:13 to get to Berlin. Nevertheless, we wanted to make sure that everything was perfect. So, once again we rushed to the ticket counter. And, by this time it's about 4 – the man at the counter said, “Oh, you can take the next train to Berlin – it leaves at 4:13.” We looked at eachother and had huge grins on our faces – so much for food, that could wait – we were going to be on a train that would arrive a lot earlier to Berlin...a train that would arrive at 8:20. That meant...
We could get a cab to drive around the city for 30 or 45 minutes – we could come back, grab a bite to eat and be on an OVERNIGHT TRAIN to Munich at 10:14 pm. Which would put us home in Florence at 5:30...instead of 11:45.
HALLELUJAH! This was working out perfectly. Getting to Berlin was a breeze – well, somewhat. Their seat reservation system was a little complicated, but once we figured it out we had it down. The German trains are so nice a spacious! We arrived in Berlin, rushed to the ticket counter (you see the recurring theme here I hope) and, once again – we were so blessed! There were 3 couchettes on the train to Munich for 2 hours later. Sigh. We were doing well.
We ran downstairs and tried to catch a cab. The first guy rolled down his window and Leigh said “Hello, we'd like ---” and he waved his hand at her and drove away. He did NOT like the English.
So, the next driver pulled up, got out took our bags and put them in the back and then asked us where we wanted to go.
We told him that we primarily just wanted to drive around this side of town and that we wanted to see the Berlin wall. He said, “I've got the perfect place to take you.” He took us to a huge section of the wall and proceeded to tell us about what life was like when he was young and living here before the wall fell. And he told us about the changes that occurred when it was brought down. How the East felt towards the West and vice versa. It was a short experience, but a moving one and a memorable one.
Needless to say, we made it back to Florence...walked quickly in hopes that bus 16 would be at the stop...and there it was...with 6 girls from our group there. It was a great reunion – they were happy to see us and we them.
We were sad about having to walk up the hill with our packs. But, Sandro (he is the villa do-everything-man) was driving by – saw the 9 of us and stopped and pointed to our bags and had us take them off to put in his car. He doesn't speak much English, but I think he understood how grateful we were the way we hugged him and kept saying, “Grazie mille!” in the most southern way.
And, thus ended my first real European adventure.
Friday, March 14, 2008
First Free Travel #1.
It's been a while. It's been a long, long while.
It all began Friday, February the 29th.
Everyone took off for free travel after lunch and Leigh, Tyler and I were left in the villa alone with just Mona Lee and Dr. Garner and Riccardo. Libby's mom was still here, so we were going to take a train back to Rome with her the next afternoon and catch a flight to Barcelona.
So, the villa was ours for the taking for the next 18 – 20 hours or so. Leigh and I were dying to make chocolate chip cookies or brownies or some American dessert. So Riccardo asked the ladies after lunch if we could use the kitchen that night and they just seemed more than happy to let us do so. The three of us went to the Coop and bought ingredients (according to Riccardo's mom) and headed back to the villa. We ended up eating dinner at Gallo's with the Garner's and Nick who was not leaving til 11:30 pm. When we got back to the villa we took over the kitchen and the baking began!
We had lots of fun trying to figure out how to light a humongous gas stove...how to keep the brownies from burning...finding pans...etc. They did turn out quite awesome.
Saturday Leigh, Libby and I took a train (with Libby's mom) into Rome where we parted ways and the 3 of us headed out to the smaller Rome airport to catch our flight to Barcelona.
We were only a little skeptical of RyanAir not losing our bags – so, when we landed in Barcelona and saw our bags come off the plane we did a little dance. So far so good. We made it to town and after being defeated by the automated ticket machines for the metro we decided a taxi might be best. Always a great idea.
That taxi took us straight to our fantastic hostel (Mambo Tango Youth Hostel...I would recommend it!) We got set up in the room and cleaned up a bit and got out to eat dinner. In Barcelona, people do not start eating until about 10 pm at night a lot of times! It was crazy. We ate and then took a walk around the 5 or 6 blocks closest to our hostel and even on down to the pier. Seemed pretty lively, almost a little too lively at times.
Sunday morning we woke up and went down to the pier again and sat outside the aquarium waiting for Kati, Coulter, Sara and Nick whom we had made plans with before the villa. We all went into the aquarium together – supposedly the largest in Europe – and learned not to believe (once again) everything you read on the internet. Shortly thereafter we roamed around some more (story of our lives) and then ate lunch.
Nick got this grand idea to order something as an appetizer that he had NO clue what it was. Actually, I think he thought it was calimari – which would've been fine. It would've been fried. But...no. He actually ordered small octopi. Small marinated practically alive octopi. It was really gross looking. We finished the oh-so-appealing lunch and walked to La Sagrada Familia.
La Sagrada Familia was designed by Antonio Gaudi and construction began in 1882. To this day, it is stilll being built. Projected date of completion is 2025 or 2030!! But, the church is very famous and very beautiful in an almost dark way. It looks like a drip sand castle or like it's made of melting wax! It was very neat. Gaudi's creations gave us our word and definition of “gaudy”. Following the church we made our way up to the top of the city to Park Guell – also a place that he designed.
In the park you can find a fantastic panoramic view of the city from above :] This is where the longest park bench in the world is located! Gaudi designed a whole pavilion area and the caretaker's house and animals and staircases --- and had them made all out of mosaics of broken ceramics. Therefore, the whole area is very colorful and picturesque.
The group around the mosaic lizard.
I forgot to throw this in – that morning, we woke up super early and found the train station in hopes that we could buy tickets for Sunday night for an overnight train to Paris. We were very blessed and got tickets. Now, back to the story.
We found the Starbucks in Barcelona and felt like we were walking into America. We parted ways with the other group when we left there and we headed out to our train. We slept very little, but made it to Paris the next morning. We got off of our train thinking that the hotel was not going to be that far away – so we would just walk. And, honestly, it wasn't that far away.
But, we got outside and it was raining and we took a route that went WAY out of the way to get there. Needless to say, an hour and a half after our train pulled into the station we were walking up to to our hotel doors. Nour met us soon thereafter and the 4 of us set out for the Louvre.
We broke up into pairs and decided to meet back in the afternoon so we could visit Notre Dame together. Nour and I spent a couple of hours in the Louvre. I think we could've spent 2 or 3 days there actually! But, it was set up so well and very worth it to visit. I saw all of the things that I wanted to see. Plus, in the great hall of paintings outside the room that the Mona Lisa is in I got to see tons of Italian painters – ones I have been studying while here in Florence. I really felt as though I appreciated the art work because I knew the artists and I knew the time periods – and I for one of the first times in my life enjoyed looking at all the gothic and Renaissance art. After the Louvre, Nour and I found a place to eat and we ended up getting Nutella Crepes at the end :] What a great creation!!!!
Nour and I at the Louvre.
We met up with L & L at Notre Dame – we went in at a great time because the sun was hitting the stained glass on one side of the building just right – it was very brilliant.
Such a neat church – I almost thought that the back of the church was more beautiful than the front. We spent a while in the gardens and then found Saint-Chappelle on the map and headed there.
Saint-Chappelle is a gemstone (literally almost) that is sort of 'off the beaten path' in Paris. It's almost completely hidden by the palace of Justice. However, you pay a small fee to enter and you go up some stairs and once you get to the top you are in a room with 3 walls of stained glass – WALLS. It was so overwhelming and so beautiful!! The sun was sinking even lower then so it made the colors very vibrant. I would recommend going there for anyone who heads to Paris. I will definitely go back if I return to Paris.
Part of one of the walls in Saint-Chappelle.
This play-by-play is getting a little exhausting...but I know I'll want to have it when I'm years past some day...so, ONWARD.
We ended up heading back to the hotel and cleaning up and eating a nice dinner in the Bastille area. We were going to go up the Eiffel Tower, all 4 of us together, but L & L decided they didn't want to do it in the mist. Nevertheless, Nour was only going to be there for that one night so she and I headed out there. We got to the top. Were told that the elevator was closed for us to come down and it really wasn't and then we made it back to the hotel a little after midnight.
More later.
Ciao!
It all began Friday, February the 29th.
Everyone took off for free travel after lunch and Leigh, Tyler and I were left in the villa alone with just Mona Lee and Dr. Garner and Riccardo. Libby's mom was still here, so we were going to take a train back to Rome with her the next afternoon and catch a flight to Barcelona.
So, the villa was ours for the taking for the next 18 – 20 hours or so. Leigh and I were dying to make chocolate chip cookies or brownies or some American dessert. So Riccardo asked the ladies after lunch if we could use the kitchen that night and they just seemed more than happy to let us do so. The three of us went to the Coop and bought ingredients (according to Riccardo's mom) and headed back to the villa. We ended up eating dinner at Gallo's with the Garner's and Nick who was not leaving til 11:30 pm. When we got back to the villa we took over the kitchen and the baking began!
We had lots of fun trying to figure out how to light a humongous gas stove...how to keep the brownies from burning...finding pans...etc. They did turn out quite awesome.
Saturday Leigh, Libby and I took a train (with Libby's mom) into Rome where we parted ways and the 3 of us headed out to the smaller Rome airport to catch our flight to Barcelona.
We were only a little skeptical of RyanAir not losing our bags – so, when we landed in Barcelona and saw our bags come off the plane we did a little dance. So far so good. We made it to town and after being defeated by the automated ticket machines for the metro we decided a taxi might be best. Always a great idea.
That taxi took us straight to our fantastic hostel (Mambo Tango Youth Hostel...I would recommend it!) We got set up in the room and cleaned up a bit and got out to eat dinner. In Barcelona, people do not start eating until about 10 pm at night a lot of times! It was crazy. We ate and then took a walk around the 5 or 6 blocks closest to our hostel and even on down to the pier. Seemed pretty lively, almost a little too lively at times.
Sunday morning we woke up and went down to the pier again and sat outside the aquarium waiting for Kati, Coulter, Sara and Nick whom we had made plans with before the villa. We all went into the aquarium together – supposedly the largest in Europe – and learned not to believe (once again) everything you read on the internet. Shortly thereafter we roamed around some more (story of our lives) and then ate lunch.
Nick got this grand idea to order something as an appetizer that he had NO clue what it was. Actually, I think he thought it was calimari – which would've been fine. It would've been fried. But...no. He actually ordered small octopi. Small marinated practically alive octopi. It was really gross looking. We finished the oh-so-appealing lunch and walked to La Sagrada Familia.
La Sagrada Familia was designed by Antonio Gaudi and construction began in 1882. To this day, it is stilll being built. Projected date of completion is 2025 or 2030!! But, the church is very famous and very beautiful in an almost dark way. It looks like a drip sand castle or like it's made of melting wax! It was very neat. Gaudi's creations gave us our word and definition of “gaudy”. Following the church we made our way up to the top of the city to Park Guell – also a place that he designed.
In the park you can find a fantastic panoramic view of the city from above :] This is where the longest park bench in the world is located! Gaudi designed a whole pavilion area and the caretaker's house and animals and staircases --- and had them made all out of mosaics of broken ceramics. Therefore, the whole area is very colorful and picturesque.
The group around the mosaic lizard.
I forgot to throw this in – that morning, we woke up super early and found the train station in hopes that we could buy tickets for Sunday night for an overnight train to Paris. We were very blessed and got tickets. Now, back to the story.
We found the Starbucks in Barcelona and felt like we were walking into America. We parted ways with the other group when we left there and we headed out to our train. We slept very little, but made it to Paris the next morning. We got off of our train thinking that the hotel was not going to be that far away – so we would just walk. And, honestly, it wasn't that far away.
But, we got outside and it was raining and we took a route that went WAY out of the way to get there. Needless to say, an hour and a half after our train pulled into the station we were walking up to to our hotel doors. Nour met us soon thereafter and the 4 of us set out for the Louvre.
We broke up into pairs and decided to meet back in the afternoon so we could visit Notre Dame together. Nour and I spent a couple of hours in the Louvre. I think we could've spent 2 or 3 days there actually! But, it was set up so well and very worth it to visit. I saw all of the things that I wanted to see. Plus, in the great hall of paintings outside the room that the Mona Lisa is in I got to see tons of Italian painters – ones I have been studying while here in Florence. I really felt as though I appreciated the art work because I knew the artists and I knew the time periods – and I for one of the first times in my life enjoyed looking at all the gothic and Renaissance art. After the Louvre, Nour and I found a place to eat and we ended up getting Nutella Crepes at the end :] What a great creation!!!!
Nour and I at the Louvre.
We met up with L & L at Notre Dame – we went in at a great time because the sun was hitting the stained glass on one side of the building just right – it was very brilliant.
Such a neat church – I almost thought that the back of the church was more beautiful than the front. We spent a while in the gardens and then found Saint-Chappelle on the map and headed there.
Saint-Chappelle is a gemstone (literally almost) that is sort of 'off the beaten path' in Paris. It's almost completely hidden by the palace of Justice. However, you pay a small fee to enter and you go up some stairs and once you get to the top you are in a room with 3 walls of stained glass – WALLS. It was so overwhelming and so beautiful!! The sun was sinking even lower then so it made the colors very vibrant. I would recommend going there for anyone who heads to Paris. I will definitely go back if I return to Paris.
Part of one of the walls in Saint-Chappelle.
This play-by-play is getting a little exhausting...but I know I'll want to have it when I'm years past some day...so, ONWARD.
We ended up heading back to the hotel and cleaning up and eating a nice dinner in the Bastille area. We were going to go up the Eiffel Tower, all 4 of us together, but L & L decided they didn't want to do it in the mist. Nevertheless, Nour was only going to be there for that one night so she and I headed out there. We got to the top. Were told that the elevator was closed for us to come down and it really wasn't and then we made it back to the hotel a little after midnight.
More later.
Ciao!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
i made it back to the villa.
Somehow.
Barcelona, Paris, Versailles, Berlin.
7 days.
I have tons of stories and pictures.
I am in the hotel room in Florence with Mom and Kelly right now.
It's nice.
Big update soon.
Look for it!
Ciao!
Barcelona, Paris, Versailles, Berlin.
7 days.
I have tons of stories and pictures.
I am in the hotel room in Florence with Mom and Kelly right now.
It's nice.
Big update soon.
Look for it!
Ciao!
Saturday, March 1, 2008
past few days.
We spend the day at the Galleria degli Uffizi on Wednesday (Gallery of the Offices). It was pretty fantastic. The Uffizi were the offices of the Medici family...boy did they run Florence and Italy in general!!
The gallery is divided up in chronological order starting with art from the Middle Ages and ending with Raphael and the culmination of the Renaissance.
I got to see paintings by Giotto, Leonardo Da Vinci, Botticelli (THE BIRTH OF VENUS IS AWESOME), Michelangelo (the only painting he ever did is in the Uffizi; he did tons of frescoes, but only one painting), Raphael and Caravaggio. I've seen a lot of art since I've been here and I've gotten tired of it, but I really didn't get tired of it that day. It was nice to see the highlights and I really feel as though I'm appreciating the art more. Much better than Art Appreciation at HU.
Dr. Garner's son Ben got here today - Mona Lee stood at the window at 12 pm today with her binoculars watching for him to come in. He got here a little before 2 and she absolutely lit up. (I also received a great hug from Mrs. Brenda through him!) We all went out to Gallo's tonight (the people that were left, them, me, tyler, Leigh, Riccardo and Nick). Gallo's still has the best pizza hands down.
After dinner we rode back to the villa and we made brownies...we bought ingredients at the grocery store this afternoon and Riccardo got his mom's brownie recipe and we all baked and they were SO good. Leigh and I also made trail mix and Ritz crackers with peanut butter (we opened it today!)...I think we ate more of the crackers and peanut butter than actually got saved.
We are leaving for Rome in the morning and then flying to Barcelona.
Over the next week we'll be in Spain, France and Switzerland. I'm pretty excited. The weather is supposed to be at least semi-okay everywhere. My bag is packed and I have tons of room. I'm really learning how to stuff things into every crevice.
PS: Mom, those vacuum seal bags were the best thing I brought to Huf.
Until next time - hope I get to all my destinations at the right times! AHH.
CIAO!
The gallery is divided up in chronological order starting with art from the Middle Ages and ending with Raphael and the culmination of the Renaissance.
I got to see paintings by Giotto, Leonardo Da Vinci, Botticelli (THE BIRTH OF VENUS IS AWESOME), Michelangelo (the only painting he ever did is in the Uffizi; he did tons of frescoes, but only one painting), Raphael and Caravaggio. I've seen a lot of art since I've been here and I've gotten tired of it, but I really didn't get tired of it that day. It was nice to see the highlights and I really feel as though I'm appreciating the art more. Much better than Art Appreciation at HU.
Dr. Garner's son Ben got here today - Mona Lee stood at the window at 12 pm today with her binoculars watching for him to come in. He got here a little before 2 and she absolutely lit up. (I also received a great hug from Mrs. Brenda through him!) We all went out to Gallo's tonight (the people that were left, them, me, tyler, Leigh, Riccardo and Nick). Gallo's still has the best pizza hands down.
After dinner we rode back to the villa and we made brownies...we bought ingredients at the grocery store this afternoon and Riccardo got his mom's brownie recipe and we all baked and they were SO good. Leigh and I also made trail mix and Ritz crackers with peanut butter (we opened it today!)...I think we ate more of the crackers and peanut butter than actually got saved.
We are leaving for Rome in the morning and then flying to Barcelona.
Over the next week we'll be in Spain, France and Switzerland. I'm pretty excited. The weather is supposed to be at least semi-okay everywhere. My bag is packed and I have tons of room. I'm really learning how to stuff things into every crevice.
PS: Mom, those vacuum seal bags were the best thing I brought to Huf.
Until next time - hope I get to all my destinations at the right times! AHH.
CIAO!
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