When in Rome...

This may come as a shock to you, but once again I'm writing my post on a plane. This time we are winding down our unbelievable fall break and heading back to Dublin from Milan, Italy. At this point Colleen, Jenna, and I are just happy we made it on the plane. It's been quite the day. I'll give you a quick rundown of our transportation for the day: we walked from our hotel to the train station in Florence which took us to Milan where we hopped on a bus to the airport which puts us on the plane we are currently on to Dublin where we will catch a bus to Belfast where Colleen's friend Patrick will pick us up and bring us to his home by car. I feel like I'm in the movie Planes, Trains, and automobiles, which is actually pretty accurate considering the little bumps in the road we experienced today. One of those little hiccups was when I lost my 50 euro train ticket right before our train was leaving the station. I was forced to just get on without it and pray they wouldn't check our tickets for some reason, because it was the last train to get us on time to our flight. By some absolute miracle, no one ever came to check our tickets and I was not fined or kicked off the train! Although it was THE longest hour and 40 minutes of my life. Then later at the airport, we got caught up in so many long lines for security and passport checks that we nearly missed our plane. And when I say nearly I mean our gate closed at 1 and we got there at about 12:59 and 30 seconds.... But we must be carrying some of that Irish luck with us, because here we are on the plane and everything has ended up working out. 

Not having much of a plan and just "seeing where the wind takes us" was kind of theme of our time in Italy. Which I just have to say right now was one of the absolute best experiences of my whole life and a dream come true. I'll also warn you now that I'm sure this post will become very lengthy, because the trip was unimaginable and in my opinion it's more than worth sharing. Anyway, we started our Italian adventure in Rome where we showed up at the airport with the idea that we would just walk the mile to our hotel. This is when "the wind" took us to a cab because a 4 lane interstate was the only way there and walking on it isn't exactly encouraged. By the time we got there it was late and we were exhausted so we did our best to get some shut eye with all of our excitement and prepare for our big day in Rome!

The next morning we got up and wandered around until we came across the train station where we could hop on and head to the city's center. We didn't really have a definite plan for Rome either, but we had a goal to see the Colosseum, the Vatican, and the Trevi Fountain.  While Rome wasn't built in a day, we decided that we could walk it in 4 hours before we had to catch our train to Florence. Well we did succeed, and I have feet that look like a war zone to prove it. By the end of the day my feet were literally bleeding and covered in blisters. The cobblestone streets, while beautiful, are not so pleasant to walk on. But all of that pain was more than worth it, as I am still in awe of everything I saw. Rome is an absolutely beautiful city and there is so much history and character there. I still can't believe I threw a coin in the Trevi Fountain or stood outside the Vatican. These are all things I've always dreamed about doing, but never imagined I'd be doing so soon. Even though our time in Rome was short, it was hands down one of the most amazing things I've ever seen/done. 

So that evening we headed on to Florence, which was where we decided to spend most of our stay in Italy. We were more amused with the train than most probably, as we were in coaches that very much resembled what you see in Harry Potter movies. Our tickets put each of us girls in our own cabins where we were the only passengers, and Colleen and I both came out with train selfies because we felt like we were on our way to Hogwarts. It's the little things I suppose.  But more importantly Florence....Words can't even describe how amazing this city is. We spent all of Tuesday exploring the city, seeing the sites, and doing a bit of shopping of course. I splurged a bit on some Italian goods and souvenirs because I lack self control, but I actually employed some pretty impressive bartering skills and didn't end up too badly. When in Rome...   We also started to get a taste of the Italians, who are incredibly friendly but also very forward. We definitely got our fair share of flattery, but I think we can all admit hearing "ciao bella" never really gets old. :) We also enjoyed speaking the little Italian we could, which was mainly just grazie, because the Italian language is beautiful but it was also a bit of a barrier for us. 

Back to the actual city of Florence: Everything was breathtaking. The Renaissance statues and art, the absolutely astounding Cathedrals that were nothing like anything I'd ever seen, and the outstanding view of the city and river that we  were able to climb  a bit to see. It was literally something out of a movie, and I'm still waiting for it to sink in. Later that evening to top off the perfect day, we found an amazing authentic Italian restaurant where we all got pasta and some Italian wine and it was absolutely to die for. 

This brings me to a very necessary paragraph about Italian food. There are no words. The pizza and pasta is everything we hoped for and there's a reason it gets so much hype. We had plenty of pizza and pasta whenever we could. I also tried an amazing cannoli that was one of the best things I've ever eaten. But I think our real obsession came when we tried Gelato. We first got it in Rome, and after that we were hooked and made it a point of getting it at least once, sometimes twice, each day. It is seriously the best ice cream you will ever eat and there is no ice cream that can even come close. I swear you would have to try a new flavor everyday of your life to try all they offer there, and we never had one we didn't like. Put it on your bucket list. 

Ok enough about food... So we wrapped up our amazing Tuesday night by heading into the night life area of Florence, and we had an amazing time meeting some of the local people and checking out the bars and clubs. 

Wednesday morning started with us sleeping in a bit, which was greatly needed, and then we jumped on the train and traveled about an hour to an absolutely gorgeous beach on the coast.  We actually had no clue where the beach was from the train station, no surprise there, but we walked in the direction that "felt right" and we actually came across it fairly easily. It was a beautiful day; sunny and 75 degrees with blue skies. We spent the afternoon lying on the beach, swimming in the ocean, and just taking in the beautiful area which included the ocean in front of us and the mountains behind. It was such a surreal day, as I'm not sure the next time I'll be able to sunbath on the beach in the middle of October. It was the absolute perfect way to spend the day, and I am beyond blessed to have days like that. Wednesday evening we out for one last pizza dinner, which was delicious of course, and then we checked out the Florence night life one more time. 

This, sadly, brings us to today where it was time for us to leave Italy. While I'm sad to to because it was such a gorgeous place, I'm also still so grateful for the amazing time I'm having in Ireland, and I'm excited to go back "home". We are going to end this last weekend of fall break by visiting some friends in Belfast. I'm sure we are going to have an amazing time, and I think it will be the perfect way to end an unbelievably perfect fall break. 

One last thing I thought Id mention is more for just reflective and sentimental purposes for myself, because this blog also kind of serves as a journal for me. So if you've stuck with me this far, feel free to dip out now if you'd like. It's about a thought I had so many times during this break, about how lucky I am to have met my world traveling companions, Jenna and Colleen. I truly could not have asked for better girls to travel with, and they are such a big part of what made this trip so amazing. While at times we were tired, hungry, frustrated, and lost, we ,for the most part, kept good spirits and were always able to crack a joke. They are truly amazing girls who are caring, funny, and smart, and I'm so glad that this trip has allowed me to gain two more of my closest friends. It is absolutely crazy to think that a month and a half ago I didn't even know them, and now we traveled the world together and I can't imagine not having them in my life. So if either of you decided to read this, thanks so much for making my fall break so incredible :)

Well I think that finally sums up my Italian experience. I apologize for the lengthy post again, but experiences like these are hard to just brush over. I know Ive said it several times, but I am truly so blessed to be doing the things I am, and that fact is never lost on me. Now I'm looking forward to the second half of my study abroad semester, and I can't believe how fast it is going by. :( Here's to a great weekend in Belfast now and an amazing fall break! Thanks for taking the time to read my novel! :)