“It is solved by walking.” “Most of my treasured memories of travel are recollections of sitting.”

Julie and I at the Colloseum

This post brings about something new, the use of two quotes for titles, as neither is adequate on its own but together they are ironic, hysterical, and totally fitting. The first quote, a famous Algerian proverb, accurately describes the main method of transportation during my Spring Break trip in Italy- walking. The second quote, by Robert Thomas Allen, also summarizes the other side of this part of the trip: on the final day while sitting on the grass in the shadow of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Julie and I asked each other, “Should we go explore a little more?” “Nah, that requires walking.”

Before I start in on the crazy adventures of the two Julies in Italy, there are many new pictures up on Picasa. A blog post to follow shortly will describe my week with my parents and our adventures in Rome and the Amalfi Coast, and those pictures will be up soon too. So far only pictures of Spring Break are updated at https://picasaweb.google.com/100853123413362137278/LaDolceVita?authkey=Gv1sRgCI6NoeLsqoHy_QE#

Three weeks ago began the extravaganza that is Spring Break. Julie arrived in Italy on an early morning flight and I went to the airport to pick her up, meaning not much sleep for either of us (even worse for her due to jet lag). Sadly, this was an incredibly rainy day from start to finish. Undeterred by the wet, we took it all in, with a trip up to my school (one class stood between me and Spring Break), around a park, and down to Trastevere for some delicious gelato. Feet thoroughly soaked and hair poofing into a giant frizz ball, we still enjoyed a delicious dinner near the Pantheon, sharing a pizza and pasta carbonara. We went back for an early night so that we could make the most of the next day.

Our next two days were jam-packed with Roman adventures! We spent our first full day at the Vatican, an unbelievably impressive sight. While it is pretty easy to get there by bus, finding the bus stop to get on and finding the right bus stop to get off can be difficult. Thankfully, a kind old woman showed us what stop to get off at and walked us half-way to the museum. It was incredibly sweet of her and definitely helped us find our way. After an odd tour of the museum in both English and Spanish, we decided to climb St. Peter’s, only to arrive as the clock chimed 4:30 and they informed us, “No, the Cupola is just closed.” Fortunately, we were standing right behind a large student group whose director managed to express that his group was supposed to climb and the guard begrudgingly let them in. Julie and I turned to each other, shrugged, and became students for twenty minutes as we waited in line and passed another guard checkpoint. Once we got up to the ticket counter, they just assumed we had been let in and didn’t question why we purchased tickets separately from the group. This sneaky little act got us up to the top of St. Peter’s for breathtaking views of Rome, with half of the city covered by a dark cloud and rain while the other half was sunny and nestled under a rainbow. It was picture-perfect. 

The following day we took a tour of the Colosseum. My sister had told me about a recently-opened addition to the standard tour that involved going underneath the Colosseum and up into the top levels. The underground parts have been recently discovered and excavated and allowed us to see where the slaves used to work to run the entire show. It was unbelievably eerie to walk where so many people had once worked. Not to mention we felt like VIPs, as these exclusive parts of the tour take you to places where no one else is allowed.

By far one of the best parts of our three days in Rome was doing what I call a "Midnight Monument Tour." After our day at the Vatican, we went off to the airport to retrieve Julie's lost bags before heading into Trastevere for a fun dinner at a restaurant called Da Otello (where the staff actually know me and greet me now!). We arrived at about 9 or 9:30 and were definitely there at "local time," as the place was cleared of early-eating tourists and filled with Romans. Some people were even seated at 11, showing just how late Romans sometimes eat. After a yummy but late meal, we decided to venture into the city and see the Trevi Fountain at night, followed by a desire to just see everything else too! We hit the Pantheon, Trevi, Colosseum, and the Vittoriano. By the time we made it home it was well after 1 am and we were incredibly tired, but the chance to see everything glowing in the moonlight (not to mention spared from excessive crowds), was an amazing opportunity!

While we had a great time exploring Rome, I was very excited to hit the road and start 5 days of travel throughout Italy. Our first stop was Venice after a very early-morning train ride. Managing to find our way with basically no directions or map, Julie and I arrived at our adorable hotel. It was only about a 15-minute walk to both St. Mark's square and the Rialto Bridge. As it was a Sunday, St. Mark's basilica was closed, however we were allowed up into the museum which boasts incredible views of the square below. The rest of the day was spent wandering the streets of Venice, looking in every shop imaginable on the hunt for a beautiful mask for Julie and a watch for me (success with the masks but not with the watch), and attempting to stay warm in the progressively colder air. We chose a spot on the Grand Canal for dinner, enjoying some tasty seafood but desiring to clutch the space heaters just to stay warm.

The Rialto Bridge

After an early night and a relaxing morning filled with a quaint breakfast at our hotel, we made our way back to the train station (via a gondola ride across the canal for only fifty cents and then a short walk the rest of the way) and departed on a train to Bologna. Having spent two days in Venice before, I recommended that this trip have only one day in Venice and then a chance to try a new city. Bologna was right on the way from Venice to our next stop of Florence, so we decided to pick there. It was also described as a true "Foodie town." Unfortunately, I didn't find that much food. Mostly, the town was cute but quiet. It's not exactly a major hot-spot for tourists, so we found ourselves a little bored. And by a little, I mean we kept saying "Hmm, so what should we do now?" Our hotel was very nice and incredibly located, just a short two-minute walk to the center of town, Piazza Maggiore. We visited the Neptune fountain and the main church, San Petronio Basilica, which was probably one of the largest letdowns. It was supposed to be a main tourist attraction in the city, but it wasn't even completed! The church had many walls and cathedrals that were completely barren, with some other walls even partially painted but then randomly stopped. Ironically, the church was about to celebrate the 300th anniversary of its completion. Needless to say, this was hysterical and disappointing all at the same time. Julie and I also climbed one of the famous towers, an incredibly daunting task. Its never ending staircases spiraled up the building like the inside of the Three Broomsticks in Harry Potter. While the view was beautiful, it was an exhausting trek filled with remarks of "We're almost there!" for twenty minutes straight. After the tower, we got so bored that we decided to go out in search of other churches, including one with a basin where the man who condemned Jesus washed his hands after making the announcement. After several churches, we found our way across the city to their university. It was about 4:00 pm and students were rolling joints and drinking beer in the streets. Needless to say, this school is a little different than schools at home or even in Rome. It was quite an interesting sight.

Climbing the tower in Bologna.

Sadly, we were starving by about 6 and nothing was open to eat until 7 at the earliest. We walked into a restaurant at 7:05 and were the only ones in the entire place, that is if you exclude the staff eating in the back. "Reservation?" they asked. We looked around at the 50 empty tables. "No," we replied with confusion. The man looked around at all the tables and wondered where to put us, before sticking us at a little table against the wall. Hmm, that must have been really hard- should we put these silly Americans at open table number 1, 2, 12, or 30? Oh what a pickle! We later realized that each table was labeled with the names of people who had made reservations. However, several groups came in half-way through our meal without reservations but it took until most of the way through dinner before anyone was seated near us. Needless to say, it was awkward. Mostly because we got our food right after ordering (pretty yummy homemade green raviolis filled with rabbit and topped with smoked goat cheese) but then finished and waited 45 minutes for the check. Our plates had been cleared, we had finished our drinks, and no waiters would even look over to our table. Julie and I couldn't help but laugh hysterically at the length of our wait as every table around us filled up. When a waiter finally looked over, he asked if we were doing ok but I didn't understand so I said "Si" and he walked away before I said "Scusi scusi, the check please." He smiled and nodded, but honestly: would we have just sat there for 45 minutes without ordering anything else and not wanted the check? Oh what a night. At least we laughed it off!

Piazza Maggiore at night

The next morning we had a wonderful breakfast at our hotel before departing for Florence! I was really excited to go back to Florence, having not done much the first time there and ready to explore it more. One of our first stops was the Uffizi after an hour-long wait in line behind a girl who wouldn't stop staring at the silly Americans (Italians stare a lot and I'm more used to it but she was a little extreme with it). Unfortunately, both Julie and I felt the art was lost on us. While the sheer enormity of the collection is impressive, the majority of the pictures are all dominated in one style and are very similar religious scenes. I can appreciate good art, but after 20 rooms of similar pictures, they all begin to blend together and it is hard to distinguish them and appreciate them. After the Uffizi we wandered the streets for a while, finding a gelato shop that I had been dying to try. I got dark chocolate and blueberry, which the employee happily scooped and remarked "That's my favorite too." No offense to Rome, I love its gelato very dearly, but this was THE BEST GELATO I'VE EVER HAD! The chocolate was the most pure essence of chocolate and the blueberry, more of a sorbet than a gelato, was like eating a handful of freshly-picked berries in the middle of the summer. I was in gelato heaven. Later that day we climbed to the top of the Duomo, a simple hike compared to the tower in Bologna the day before. The views were absolutely stunning and completely worth the climb. Florence is a beautiful city surrounded by the Tuscan countryside, making the Duomo a perfect place for picturesque vistas. The day was topped off by another awkward meal. We enjoyed some gnocchi in pear and gorgonzola sauce while quietly wondering where the spinach was that we had ordered on the side. After another 30 minutes of not being approached by any waiter, not even to realize that we had not even been served bread, we laughed at the hilarity of the situation: how could this happen to us two nights in a row!? Even the couple behind us remarked that they had waited 20 minutes for their bottle of wine, something wasn't right. A mid-20s Italian woman approached our table remarking "It's not like the states, you have to wave him down to get his attention." While it was sweet of her to offer advice, did she think we hadn't tried? We'd made many attempts but could barely even find our waiter. We finally got his attention and he came over crying "Mademoiselle!" with a huge smile. "The check please." He brought it back almost instantly, of course they're fast when they want your money. The spinach was on the bill, so before he could walk away I said, "No, we never got the spinach." "Huh (cocks his head to the side), no spinach?" As he started to walk away, I called after him, telling him that we didn't want it anymore, and he said "No no no, you pay the thirty euro, I pay the other four." Toto, we are not in America anymore. No "I'm so sorry!" No "Would you still like it, it's on the house." Instead of being angry, we just laughed at the lack of service, but by the time we left the restaurant we were a little annoyed. Just because we are two young American girls traveling alone doesn't mean we aren't just as much paying customers as the adults. Oh well, a Peroni and a nutella-covered waffle by the river with a view of the Ponte Vecchio ended the night on a good note.

At the top of the Duomo

At the top of the Duomo

The next day we left the hotel early for the Academia to avoid a long line to see the David. We didn't wait more than ten minutes before we were let in. The David was quite a sight to behold, enormous and virtually perfect. We sat in awe for about 20 minutes, also enjoying overhearing a lesson from a nearby tour guide explaining the history of the statue. The rest of the day was spent shopping for leather (I bought a bag that I am completely in love with), exploring the city, and trekking up to the top of Piazza Michelangelo for beautiful city views. 

The views from a hill near Piazza Michelangelo

The next day, completely exhausted, we packed our ever-growing bags and boarded a train to Pisa. After a half-hour walk to the Leaning Tower, we were thoroughly tired and had one thing in mind: dropping our heavy backpacks and purses. As the Tower was €15 to climb, we decided to pass, having already seen beautiful views of Tuscany from Florence. The entire day was spent taking pictures, enjoying the warm weather, and laying in the shadow of the Tower while writing in our journals and people-watching. I couldn't imagine a better way to relax on the last day of our trip.

Our seats for the afternoon- perfect way to spend a day in Pisa

We made it back to Rome that night and essentially crashed into our beds. After sleeping in the next day, we toured around Rome a little more, hitting the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and Piazza Navona. It was a perfect ending to the most amazing Spring Break ever! Sadly, the next morning meant an early wake up to take Julie to the airport. It was hard to say goodbye and watch Julie go through security to fly home. I was so happy that she was able to come to Italy, it was amazing to see her and spend 9 days exploring Italy together! Thank goodness for Skype at least keeping me connected to everyone at home while I'm here! I’m looking forward to seeing Julie and all of my friends in College Park when I arrive back in the States!

Thankfully, I discovered the best medicine to help you get over the sadness of your friend leaving: seeing your parents! After Julie walked through security I went right down to the Arrivals gate to pick up my parents! My next blog post will feature everything that we did on our trip together! I hope to get that up by the end of the weekend! As always, thanks for reading!

At a fountain in the Palatino