Weekend in the Amalfi Coast

 

 

A couple of weekends ago 3 friends and I headed to the Amalfi Coast. It was crazy to us that we had planned it 6 weeks prior, thinking of it as our last hoorah before we go our separate ways, and it was already here! Friday was a day filled with various forms of transportation as we made our way from Florence to Atrani (about a 10 minute walk from Amalfi), where we would be staying for the weekend. Our bus ride from Salerno to Atrani was an unforgettable one to say the least. The views were gorgeous, if you could stand to have your eyes open, as we winded around the steep cliffs, honking our horn constantly to remind others we were there and stopping & starting allowing for cars to squeeze by. Even myself, who doesn’t get car sick often was more than grateful when my feet were back on pavement safely!
Upon arrival in Atrani we were in awe of what a beautiful location we had found ourselves in, where the bright blue water crashed against rugged cliffs and quaint houses were stacked between the hills. On the shore you could find hundreds of pieces of beach glass, reminding me a little bit of home. The Amalfi coast is what I imagine what a combination of Portugal & the Greek Islands would be like.

Saturday we got up & onto a ferry headed for the island of Capri. Our first excursion in Capri was a ride on the chairlift up to the top of the island to get a grand view from above, which did not disappoint.

Following we raced back down the mountain to catch our boat tour at 2! I had booked us a private boat tour through Capri tours rather than doing the touristy blue grotto tour. We were driven around the island stopping at the love grotto, swimming through the green grotto, white grotto, and passing through the famous rocks that makeup Faraglioni. We truly felt like royalty stopping wherever we liked to swim, snorkeling around & enjoying the scenery while jamming out to good tunes! The boat tour was the best $40 I’ve probably ever spent & I will be reliving that day forever!

Living the good life

Couldn’t help but smile this big all day!

Love Grotto!

View of Positano from our ferry ride to Capri.

Arriving back in Capri, we ran to catch our ferry ride back to Amalfi where we found ourselves exhausted from all of the fun in the sun. We sat down at one of the bar/cafes near our hostel & enjoyed watching a soccer match before calling it a night.
Sunday we laid by the beach for the majority of the day, resting before a busy last week of classes began. In the afternoon we wandered the streets of Amalfi where you could find some of the largest lemons I’d ever seen in my entire life! I also tried my first ever cannoli, hard to believe after living in Italy for almost 2 months! I didn’t dislike it, but I think I’ll stick with the gelato 🙂

Someone’s gotta hold the bags during the photo ops!

We headed to bed early after deciding how many alarms (and listening to every possible ring tone–thanks guys!) we would need to wake us up to catch our 6:15 AM taxi appointment. The taxi ride back to Salerno was much more enjoyable than the bus ride and before we knew it we were on our way back to Florence to catch our afternoon classes!
These girls have made even the stressful travel situations, fun & entertaining & I’m gonna miss that so much!

(Wannabe) Local Life

With a free day ahead of me & the list of “things to do before leaving florence” in front of me I decided to cross one off by signing up for a wine tour of Tuscany!
The trip included stops at two wineries in the Chianti region. Almost everyone on the bus was an American female college student all dolled up to get most insta-worthy photos of themselves frolicking between the rows of grape vines. The bus ride was about an hour long but flew by as I was graced with some wonderful entertainment. But I’ll spare you that story!

The first winery was Il Palagetto where we tried their white & red wine as well as the extra virgin olive oil they produce. We also learned about the process of wine making and wandered through their huge barrel cellar. The next was Tenuta di Torciano, a winery that had been in the family for over three centuries! We tried many various types of their wines & if they had given me one more glass I may have purchased a bottle of their amazing balsamic vinaigrette–seriously the best I’ve ever tasted! The rain had let up a little bit & we were all able to walk around the grounds to take photos! The bus ride home was much louder than the ride there as you would expect from a bus full of gals after having lots of wine! We arrived back to florence around 7 and I was in bed asleep by 9!

 

Saturday I spent in Florence, exploring the city I’ve come to love. A friend and I wandered the markets before meeting up with others to go to the famous sporting event held in florence, Calcio Storico or “historic football”. The game is played 2 weekends, once as a semifinal and then the final game is held on the 24th of June. There are four teams that represent the neighborhoods of Florence. The game is a mix of soccer, rugby & wrestling. There are only a few rules, allowing for what can be a very aggressive game; no sucker punches or kicks to the head, no ganging up on a single opponent everyone is 1 vs 1, & you must be a resident of Florence for at least 10 years. Honestly after watching hype videos & hearing about how in the past this game has lead to death I was expecting the game to be much more action packed than it was. However, I was not disappointed & was very glad that I was able to experience this cultural game in Florence.

 

Sunday I had my field trip to Lucca for my Art & Architecture course. We first stopped at Villa Torrigiani, the gardens were beautiful. There were lemon trees all around the grounds & I couldn’t help but wonder what they do with all of the fresh lemons! On our walk back to the bus we stumbled upon the Flower Carpet of Corpus Domini. I couldn’t believe the color and amount of detail that each section had. Once in Lucca we had free time to explore. A few of my classmates & I decided to rent bikes and bike around the wall that surrounds Lucca. We then toured the cathedrals. Our group’s project was on the facade of the ahahsus church. Ironically the entire facade was under construction! Since this was the main attraction we had traveled to see they allowed us to climb the bell tower for free!

 

On Tuesday a friend & I headed to a market down the arno quite a ways. We decided to give the mobikes here in Florence a try. I only got honked at once and I’m alive to tell about it so I’ll count that as a victory. We walked through the market for a long time & had yet to see where it may end, so we decided to head back so we could make it to class. We located the nearest bikes & hopped on. I noticed my pedal was clicking each rotation, but wasn’t too concerned about it. At about our half way point the pedal & all of its pieces went flying off. I of course start laughing until Italian officers start yelling at me in Italian & saying no! It was at this moment we realized we were right in the middle of the US Embassy property, apparently you can’t stop there! I get off my bike & collect the pieces & try to roll it away, however the bike has sensed that my ride is “complete” & locked the wheels. At this point we are dying laughing wondering what to do! An Italian guard woman came up to us letting us know she didn’t know what to do but we needed to move & I couldn’t leave the bike there. This is where it gets real good! I do what my only option is, pick up the bike & begin to carry it to the end of the property. The bike then thinks it’s being stolen & sounds a piercing beeping until I set it down, outside of the embassy. I found another mobike not far away and hopped on, waving goodbye to my number 1 fans at the embassy! I think I’ll laugh about this story for the rest of my life…

Wednesday my roommate & I attended mass with our host-parents, where we were finally able to see one of their choirs perform! They allowed us to sit across from the choir, where others typically aren’t able to access. It was held in the Santa Croce church where many famous people are buried & is considered one of the most beautiful churches in the Florence area. It was fun to see them perform & you could see how much it meant to them that we were there. The mass was interesting, all of the second hand smoke I have been encountering had well prepared me for the incense usage. Neither of us knew what was really going on, as it was presented in Italian, but the beauty in the church was enough to entertain me for the duration.

 

Overall it’s been fun seeing Florence as a “local” the past week. I have mixed feelings about having to leave here in a week but so excited for my family to arrive & show them around!

Switzerland: Adventures Await

This past weekend held many firsts for me! It was my first time doing a solo weekend trip & I am so glad that I did. Prior to booking I knew I had a 4 day weekend that I wanted to spend in a special place & after finding a great deal Switzerland was calling my name! I was so excited as I hoped Switzerland would remind me of home with the lakes & many outdoor activities at hand. Of course when I checked the weather the day before I left it called for thunder storms all 3 days I would be there, the irony! But I’ve learned to never trust a weather man & im glad I didn’t because it was beautiful every single day, I’ll bet if I didn’t bring my umbrella though it would have rained the entire time!

 

I went through a tour agency here called Smart trip & boarded a bus for Interlaken Switzerland at 10pm in Florence. After many restless hours I was woken up by the twists and turns of the road as we descended through the Alps and the ring of cowbells as we passed a herd moving up the mountain. Still very tired, I thought that I may have woken up in the middle of a movie! We arrived in Interlaken around 6 AM. I was dropped off with the group at their own hostel & hungout in the lobby until I was able to head to mine. I stayed at the Lake Lodge Hostel, about a 20 minute bus ride out of interlaken right on Lake Brienz. I never minded the bus ride with such great views along the way. In fact I met an older gentleman who lived in a retirement home who would get bored sitting inside all day so he would get on the bus & ride it just for the hell of it & to meet new people!

On this same trip I experienced my first stay at a Hostel! Upon arrival I could not believe the location of this place and the fact that I was only paying $15/night to stay there. It made a little more sense when I checked in & she said “oh yes a tent room” & walked me back outside to show where I would be staying. I guess next time I should take it a little more literal when they say “tent room”- don’t ask what I thought I’d be staying in cause I don’t know! After unzipping my door I found 4 cots placed in a large teepee style tent. I had myself a good laugh before I got myself situated and figured out my plan for the day.

With the sun coming up I decided I better get my day rolling & headed back to interlaken to hike Harder Kulm. After hiking for a little while the signs for the hike disappeared & different ones had continued. With no expectations & being alone I decided to keep going anyway. I finally came up to an area with many cows & figured I was definitely lost. Another 50ft later I saw a sign saying I was on the right trail but it was still a ways up. I continued for another 10 minutes then saw the dark sky moving in, realized I had scene what I had wanted to see & headed back down.

This was the beauty in traveling alone. I simply did whatever I would want to do. Saturday morning I was able to wake up, make myself some coffee & breakfast, enjoy a short walk along the lake & then sit down & figure out how I wanted to spend my day. I decided to head to grindelwald,another town outside of interlaken to do some hiking. When I arrived I saw the trail I had intentions of doing was closed but there was a bike rental place right next door! I figured I was already there why not enjoy a bike ride through the Swiss alps! I asked the bike mechanic for a trail recommendation that was easy but would offer beautiful scenery. I don’t know who he thought I was when he suggested a trail that would be 2.5 hours incline then forty five minutes back down. And I really don’t know who I thought I was when I took his recommendation. About half way up I decided to take the bus the rest of the way! The bus’ had a funny horn they would honk to warn bikers they were there around sharp turns & after riding the bus up I was sure I would be taken out by a bus on the way down! Once we arrived atop the mountain I decided to sit for a little & enjoy the view and the snacks I had packed. It was much cooler than I had expected at the peak then I remembered that the mechanic had mentioned on a clear day you could see jungfraujoch, “the top of europe” & should have expected the breeze. The ride down was beautiful, winding through the fields covered in wildflowers, between the mountains. There was a certain way the mountains made me feel I can only begin to describe; free, curious, tiny, alive.

I’ve always thought I’ve been pretty funny but after traveling alone I think even stronger of this. As I coasted down the mountain, I rode the brakes for most of the way, and about half way down they began to screech terribly, all I could think about was how I’d have to call my parents from a hospital bed & explain to them that I had a need for speed & apologize for hauling ass through the Swiss alps.

When I returned to my hostel I cooked up some dinner & enjoyed an evening stroll around the lake & up into hills I had yet to wander. After the long day I sat down on one of the day beds that lined the front of the hostel. I chatted with other travelers and laughed with another visitor over the small victories that we recognize when we travel alone. I was pleased that everyone at the hostel was so friendly & willing to share their recommendations.

This trip came at the perfect timing, as I was just beginning to miss sunsets over the lake! The waters were so blue it wasn’t incredible!

On Sunday we boarded the bus & headed to Lake Como, a famous resort town in Italy! Our trip only allowed for a 3 hour stop which wasn’t quite enough time to track down George Clooney. Instead, we enjoyed lunch, wandering the boardwalk & relaxing near the before boarding the bus for our last leg back to Florence. It was nice to have Monday to catch up on life before our next session of classes started! This session I am taking Art & Architecture of Florence and Tuscany and continuing to work on my Italian with my host family during dinner!

Days Spent Under the Tuscan Sun

Tuesday; Pasta & Gelato Tour
Pasta & gelato; the Italian diet. After living with my host family I have definitely learned that pasta & gelato aren’t the only dishes Italians have perfected! Through our program we were given a pasta & gelato tour of Florence. The gelato tour was more of a taste testing, although I don’t think any of us were complaining!

The pasta tour was a lot more in depth, it was fun to see how much science and detail there truly is behind making the perfect pasta. We also got to try some of the fresh wine that the pasta shop had on tap as well as their olive oil.

Wednesday; boat tour along the Arno river
I no longer feel like a tourist here and am beginning to get annoyed of the tourists myself, although I know I have no right to! Our program offered a boating excursion down the Arno river, which brought a new view of the riverside to my eyes. It felt as if I could watch all of the tourists passing on the ponte vecchio as a fly on the wall. Of course we were the ones that they had their eyes on, floating down the river on a gondola!
I loved this photo of the painters freshening up the colors of the shops on the famous ponte vecchio!

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Saturday with temperatures in the high 80s it was only right we take a day trip to the beach! We headed to Viareggio to do just that. Not only was the weather perfect, but the views were beautiful; on the left the Mediterranean Sea and to our right rugged mountains. I couldn’t get enough of this place, although the water was no Lake Superior 🙂

Sunday we had another excursion planned through our program. We boarded the bus at 8:30 sharp to head to the picturesque Cinque Terre. This area was on my list of go to places & I was so excited to finally be heading that way! We first stopped in manorolo before taking a ferry to monterosso. Originally I had planned to hike between the towns but the weather was too warm for this Michigan gal, so another beach day would have to do! From where we layed on the beach we could see the other 4 lands that make up cinque Terre. The relaxed pace of these towns made them easy to fall in love with & I hope to return sometime.

Exploring Italy: Orvieto + Bologna

This past weekend was our first full weekend in Florence. Many of us had class field learning experiences to attend one day out of the weekend, for me this took place on Saturday in Orvieto. With that in mind some friends and myself planned a day trip for Friday to Bologna.

Bologna was a town I had never heard of before and probably would not have thought to visit without their plans. It was a beautiful town where we spent most of the day wandering the streets, stopping in shops and exploring the markets. We stopped at a tent to grab drinks where I ordered a Spaghetti Stout, I found it funny they named it spaghetti when it had nothing to do with spaghetti and instead had a malty coffee flavor. If you’re ever in Bologna 10/10 would recommend.

 

Here we also climbed the tower of Bologna which happens to be the tallest leaning tower in Italy– contrary to popular belief that the leaning tower of Pisa is the tallest.

 

Our greatest adventure was probably when we missed our train back to Firenze after being at the train platform an hour before the train was scheduled to arrive. Leave it to us– the group that got pooped on by pigeons in Rome– to accomplish this. For those curious as to how we managed, there happened to be multiple “platform 3″s that we were unaware of. We made it to the ticket office 20 ,images before closing and got onto the last train to Firenze for the evening. I was grateful to share this experience with others that could laugh about it as opposed to being stressed out alone.

Setting my alarm clock for 6AM was difficult after our late arrival from Bologna the night before but I had to be at the train station (1/2 hour walk) at 7 for my field learning in Orvieto. Orvieto is a town in Umbria that sits atop a flat rock cliff, allowing for beautiful views of the countryside and the vineyards that make it up. The town was small but rich in history.

We first toured St. Patrick’s well. It is famous for having a double helix stairwell so that the paths of the mules hauling water did not cross.

Next we toured the caves of Orvieto. We only saw a small portion of the caves as there are hundreds beneath the town. I was blown away as to how large these caves were,  it really could be run and was, as an underground town.

Orvieto was home to yet another beautiful church. The detail in the architecture amazes me, especially when I think about the tools & technology used when they were built.

Roaming around; Rome -> Florence

I cannot believe that it has already been one week since I first arrived in Italy. While some things still need some time to adjust to, others do not such as:

• Savoring meals made from scratch using fresh ingredients!
• pizza & gelato everywhere you look
• Crossing the street even when there’s traffic, knowing the cars will stop. Our saying everytime we think about stopping has been “locals don’t flinch.” This one could be an issue upon returning to the states.

I have had issues adjusting to is the amount of smoking that goes on here, seeing as I have always been one of those people that begins to fake cough when passing someone smoking in public. At this point there’s a good chance I have developed second hand smoke but I’ll try & look at it on the positive side as: ” it’s part of the experience” or “it’s included in the cost of tuition”. Another difficult adjustment for many of us has been paying a cover charge that includes the utensils you use at restaurants, paying for water everywhere you go, and even paying to sit down at some places!

On my first night in Rome I was re-booked at a different hotel than I had originally planned. The taxi driver drove me (if you could call it that– ever want to be in a rally race, drive with a local in Rome) to the other hotel where I asked the 2 important questions: is breakfast included & what time does the pool close. I went out on the patio that was attached to my room & caught the sun setting over the Vatican! Someone pinch me! What a great first night relaxing in Rome after a long day/s of travel.

The next day we had our first orientation session followed by dinner. There we experienced our first blackout in Italy. I know the first night & already partying wild. No, the restaurant was very busy & blew a fuse resulting in a loss of power or blackout!

My third day in Rome was by far the most exciting, I finally got to see all of my Lizzie McGuire dreams come true, excepting having Gordo & Paolo there to enjoy them with me. Listening to the history that our tour guide was sharing with us I couldn’t fathom just how old and how much detail was put into each & every monument we passed. Our guide (pictured dancing below) was hilarious, she made sure to keep reminding us that the Domans invented everything. My favorite story she shared was that it takes forever for anything to get done in Rome; there’s always 3 workers, one is smoking, another is chatting and the third is directing the other 2!

Once the tour was over we ventured out for food & the Spanish steps. While waiting for the bus to fetch us we sat down on the curb to give our legs a rest. Not even 5 minutes later we were given a gift, a crappy one if you will. It came from a pigeon up ahead. I had never seen one with such a range, this one pigeon hit 5 of us! This was my first time ever being pooped on by a bird & one I definitely won’t ever forget– or stop laughing about!

The next morning we boarded a bus & headed out for Florence! I had a hard time allowing myself to sleep as we passed through the Tuscan countryside that was too beautiful to miss out on. When we arrived I was greeted with my host mom. My host family, who I adore consists of Donatella, Jonny, their daughters Daniella & Nicole and another American student, Isabel, who happens to be from Appleton–small world! The speak mainly Italian but some English & while I’ve only been here less than a week I have already learned so much.

Our first day in Florence/Firenze was free for us to explore. So for me that consisted of getting lost multiple times & hanging out with friends. Getting lost was kind of my thing for the first few days here, but I didn’t mind it. Everywhere you look it is beautiful, that’s what I’ve realized about Italy, many times you see photos of places, visit having high expectations then find yourself disappointed with what it looks like in person, here that is not the case.

On Monday we had a walking tour of Florence. We were blessed with another great tour guide that happened to be the Jersey Shores cast’s guide as well when they visited. I found it funny how we had visited all of these historic monuments & such but when he showed us where the cast lived everyone immediately snapped a photo!  Tuesday marked the first day of classes. I will be taking 3 weeks of intensive Italian for beginners and 3 weeks of Art & Architecture of Tuscany– I expect myself to be tour guide qualified after this one! After my class I met up with students from our program to hike Piazza Michelangelo, where we were able to witness the various forms of beauty that make up Firenze. The view was breathtaking and I am so excited to call this place home for the next couple of months.

The food here has been amazing. You can really taste a difference even in similar dishes to the US due to the freshness of the ingredients here. My favorite part of living with a host family has been, not a surprise here, the authentic Italian meals. Usually dinner is served around 8 pm starting with a pasta or rice dish then followed by meat & veggies. The dinner is then finished with a dessert, usually a fruit salad or gelato, & espresso.

Wheels up!

Thank you for all of the well wishes! I have arrived safely in Rome and my program orientation will begin tomorrow afternoon!

Sunrise departing Dublin this morning!

I’d also like to give a quick shoutout to my parents for their encouragement and support. There’s no better way to say a short term good bye to the U.P. like the Fitz & a nice sunset, but when you are last minute packing you might miss out on one, so Fitzgeralds it was 🙂

 

The past couple of weeks have been a roller coaster of emotions in the best way possible. Finishing up pre-departure orientation material, exams and the craziness/excitement that is packing for almost 3 months abroad!
The time leading up to departure day has flown by as I’m sure these next few months will. As I boarded my flight I felt my nerves come to a halt and a sense of adventure and curiosity take over. Beside my lacking ability to speak Italian, which wasn’t going to change overnight, I felt ready for what was ahead. It was hard to believe that all of these day dreams I had envisioned were about to become a reality. You really can’t put those feelings into words, but another study abroad student I am meeting up with due to our early arrivals & I tried, as you can see below:

I hope the laid back style of the Italian culture will help me in learning to slow down this crazy thing that we call life and to embrace the spontaneity within me that I know I often push aside. I look forward to this amazing experience and hope to cherish every moment.

If anyone needs to contact me, please do so via Facebook messenger, whatsapp or email at accook@mtu.edu.

More updates to come!
XOXO adison