The Long Journey Home

Saturday night was family night in Via dell' Ariento.  Everyone was packing and cleaning and not wanting to leave.  It is hard to say goodbye to people you have spent the past 4 months with and saw everyday.  It was eerily silent in the building.  I stayed up as late as I could to make sure I said bye to everyone I would not see in the morning.  Around 5 I finally went to sleep and awoke an hour later to get ready to leave.  I said bye to everyone and went to the shuttle with, Jon, Ben, Lexie, Chris, Tyler, Will, and Monica.  Lexie and Chris were headed to Switzerland and the rest of us were on our way to Frankfort.  We arrive at the airport with plenty of time for check-in and to get through the joke that was airport security.

We watched the TV screen as our flight was delayed later and later.  When the airline personnel finally told us the flight was cancelled there was no possible way to catch my connection out of Frankfurt.  We were told to get our luggage from the luggage claim and then to get on a bus that Lufthansa got for us to take to Bologna that was an hour away and there was a plane waiting for us.  We finally got to Frankfurt and were left to get new flights.  Lucky for us, they put us in a nice hotel for the night.  When booking my flight home, my friend Megan was also going to Austin so I booked our flights together.  She went to go get our bags with Jon and I took care of our flights.  When the five of us got to the hotel, we ate dinner and then watched a movie to relax.  It was the first night in a week that I had more than an hour of sleep at one time.

Megan and I had a 10:15 flight Monday morning and it took us 11 hours to get to Dallas.  Im now back in the US and ready to return to Europe as soon as I possibly can.  It was an amazing semester and I learned so much from school and the people I met.  Here are some photos from my last remaining days in Florence.

The End

A College Dorm on Tracks...

That is the best way to describe the overnight train I took to Vienna and back.  There was a group of 55 people but on the way to Vienna we were split up and the two trains connected in Venice around 1am.  Most of the people in the car were drunk by 10pm and running from room to room in the crowded quarters.  I awoke to my friend Chrissy yelling "Oh, there is snow!"  I looked outside and saw the freshly covered town we were passing through.  Around 9am we arrived in Vienna and immediately got on the U-bahn to get to our hotel that was outside of town.

The group dropped our stuff off at the hotel then headed back into the city to see a few churches, grab lunch, and go to the second largest residence in the world, the Sissi Palace.  The palace was cool on the outside and the history behind it but the museum was nothing but china.  Room after room of plates and silverware.  I was actually starting to fall asleep while standing, listening to my audio guide.  Unfortunately the museum did not get any more exciting when I went to the upstairs part.  The best thing was learning about how the assassination of Elisabeth of Bavaria.  Several hours spent in the museum was enough.

We went to dinner at this pub where we had local wine and a traditional Viennese meal: kraut, potatoes, sausage (for those that eat meat), and strudel for dessert.  It was a lot of fun and after we attempted to go to a bar.  This ended up with me going back to the hotel with some people I met at dinner and we played cards before going to sleep.

On Saturday we went to the Schönbrunn Palace, which is where the largest garden in the world is.  The palace was a bunch of old furniture and the people I was with were just as disinterested with the interior as I was.  We quickly ran through the palace and then headed to the garden.

The garden was massive and had a zoo and labyrinth in it (neither of which I went to).  We walked around for a while and then headed to an art exhibit across town.  This was the best place we had visited yet.  I walked through the exhibit with my new friend Kinsey and we interpreted all the painting.  After walking through the gallery we were free to do whatever we wanted.  I walked around the small christmas fair behind the gallery with Kinsey and her roommates and then we headed back to the hotel.  I met up with Chrissy and Rebecca and we hung out until we had to meet to go to an Orchestra Concert at the Sissi Palace.

The concert was amazing.  The performers were having fun with the show and the opera singers were a nice touch.  We were free to do whatever after that so a few of us went to dinner and then an Australian pub.  Since the metro had closed we had to take a cab back to the hotel.  It was very sketchy.  The driver wasnt sure of where he was goign but luckily Jon sat up front and had a map of where we needed to go.

Sunday we went to another museum that had archeological findings from ancient Egypt, greece, and Rome and also several paintings galleries.  This museum was really nice and had mummified crocodiles in it.  The best part of the trip was after the museum we went to the Vienna Christmas Market and were set loose to do whatever we wanted.  Chrissy and I wandered around for several hours looking at all the ornaments and other festive items.

We met back at the hotel and disembarked for the train station.  The train home was very similar to the way to Vienna.  People drinking and running from room to room.  Around 12:30am we made a 10 minute stop and the 10 of us that were awake ran outside and started playing in the snow.  I ran back onto the train with frozen hands.  I finally decided to go to sleep around 330.  I awoke about 45 minutes before we got to Milan and had to switch trains.

From Milan to Florence I was unable to sit with the group so I sat with the chaperones in  another car.  My seat was right next to my Italian teacher so for the 2 1/2 hour trip I learned everything I needed to know for Italian class and she had me talk to the strangers around me.

It was a fun trip except for the boring palaces.  Its finals time.

Vienna

My New Favorite Thing.

I don't know why but I love that when a flight lands in Europe the entire plane cheers and applauds the pilot.  After the flight back to Pisa from Barcelona, an applause was much needed.  The turbulence was so bad after we went past the Spanish coast that I was being thrown in the air.

Thursday afternoon I flew to Barcelona with my friends Chrissy and Rebecca.  We arrived to our hostel off of Paral.lel Ave. around 6 and then went to go get dinner.  Las Ramblas is the most famous street in Barcelona.  We walked to here after checking in to the hostel and had the best paella at a restaurant a little ways down Las Ramblas.  While eating dinner, the two ladies next to us ask where we were from because they recognized our non European accents.  They asked us about what we were studying and what we thought about living in Florence.  One was there on business and the other was there to visit because it is easier for them to get together outside of England than when they are both at home.  They were incredibly nice and gave us some recommendations for our stay in Barcelona.  After dinner we started to walk back to the hostel and decided to get some more sangria.  We went to this little cafe type place and had some fresh made sangria and our waiter kept bringing us random things like incense and chips and we couldn't figure out why.  We headed back to the hostel to get a little sleep because we wanted to cover a lot of ground on Friday.

We got up and headed across the city to Parc Guell.  When we got off the subway we walked a little ways down the street and then tuned the corner and saw the network of escalators that went all the way to the park.  With each level, we could see more of the city below us.  When we finally reached the top and entered the park I saw a familiar friend, prickly pears.  This is something I have not seen in 4 months.  We walked to the top of the park where the three crosses were.  This seemed to be the top of the hill and we could see past Barcelona and to the sea.  Unfortunately it was still cloudy but we had an amazing view of the city from our high vantage point.  We continued our journey through the park and saw the viaducts and a giant plaza that was surrounded by mosaics made by Antoni Gaudi, the designer of the park.  Where we exited was actually the main entrance and each side of the gate had a house that represented Gaudi's signature architecture. We left the park and continued down the hill that used to be known as Montana Pelada (bare mountain).  We went and saw the famous church Gaudi designed.  The church looks like it is melting sand on one side and very geometric on the other.  Construction started in the 1800s and is still not done.  World's longest construction project it seems like.

The next stop was the Museum of Contemporary Arts where there was an exhibit containing award winning press photographs.  The nice thing about Barcelona compared to Florence is it isn't nearly as touristy.  We were able to walk to the museum without being stuck in tour groups.  The museum appeared to be the best place to skateboard in the city because there were kids all around it skating and a huge art piece made of skateboards was on an outside wall.  We walked inside and saw huge piles of rice on sheets of paper scattered around the room.   Each pile of rice represented a different statistic.  One of the more interesting comparisons was of millionaires in the '80s and millionaires today.  The photography exhibit was stunning.  The photos were from all over the world and captured many different emotions and events.  One of my favorites was an image of a group of Congolese carrying a mountain gorilla tied to a make-shift stretcher.  They were trying to rescue the massive animal that had been shot during a firefight between the different militias.

It was late in the evening by the time we left the exhibit so we went down toward Placa Espanya to see the Magical Fountain.  There was still time to waste so we went and checked out an indoor market that was full of seafood and fresh produce.  It was a smaller version of Mercato Centrale but I liked it better because it is open until 8 instead of closing at 2.  We went and had some sangria and tapas then walked over to see the fountain.  The water is lit up and goes to music.  It was really cool to watch and I attempted to get some photos without my tripod.  The show ended and we were hungry and wanting to see the beach so we headed to Barceloneta down near the port.

The beach was cold and desolate but that is probably because it was so late at night.  I ran around for a little bit while the girls sat on a bench and then we headed back toward the hostel but stopped for some more sangria on the way.

It was raining when we woke up in the morning but that didn't stop us from heading out and going to the Picasso Museum.  The museum showed his work from when he was a kid all the way up to the start of his cubist phase and to his death.  It was really neat to see an artist's progression from an unknown child to one of the most world renown artists.  After seeing his work we went and grabbed lunch and then headed to Port Vell.

The sun had come out and it was a bright afternoon.  We walked along the harbor and stopped at a little outdoor market.  We walked up Las Ramblas toward the hostel and looked at some more stands selling jewelry and crafts.  The girls were tired so we went back to the hostel so they could take a quick nap before I drug the to the beach again to take pictures.

An offshore storm was creating some big waves and there was some lighting in the distance.  I tried taking long exposures of the waves but they didn't appear as dramatic as I hoped but I still got some interesting shots.  I took some long exposures of Rebecca, Chrissy, and me and of the boardwalk.  It was getting really late so I dropped my camera gear off at the hostel and we headed out to get dinner.  Around midnight we found a restaurant that was full of people watching the Barcelona-Seville soccer game.  We had some more paella and sangria (thats pretty much all I had this weekend) and headed home because it was already 2 am and we needed to get up early to check out.

Sunday we went to lunch and then headed out.  We didn't really do anything except walk down Las Ramblas and saw all the animals that were sold on the street.  There were birds, rabbits, turtles, and fish in cages and aquariums everywhere.  The hour long bus ride to the airport was really neat because I talked to a girl living in Grenada for the semester and it was interesting to hear about someone else's study abroad experiences and I got to see some snow-capped mountains.

The flight back was full of turbulence and laughter.  It was so funny to see everyone freaking out as our plane dropped and rocked side to side for about an hour.  We were lucky with weather because it rained the entire weekend in Florence.

I am heading to Vienna tomorrow night for the weekend for a school trip and hopefully will get to see some snow.

Barcelona

On Monday I found out that this photo I took is being used for the poster to advertise for the school's art show and it is also selected for the show.  I might have more pictures in the show if they are picked.

Olive Oil, Truffles, and Chaos

Last Saturday I went  to the White Truffle Festival in San Miniato.  The town is a 40 minute train ride from Florence.  The festival started partially down the hillside and led all the way to the top where there was an amazing view of the surrounding hills.  The festival had more than just truffles.  The olive harvest just ended and there were booths with new oil that is a bright green color and glows like a neon light in the sun.  There was also local wines and preserves.  Booths full of meats and cheeses and some packed with sweets.  The town was beautiful as well.  I decided to walk down to the train station instead of taking the bus.  As I began to walk I realized that San Miniato was the hilltop town and that the lower town was a different name and they were separated by vineyards.  It took me a few hours but I finally reached the train station and returned to Florence.

On Sunday I went to an organic festival and a new oil festival in Florence.  The organic festival had all kinds of food and clothing and was perfectly situated in what is known as the "hippie piazza."

Tuesday my photography class went to the farm school where the Fiorentina Soccer Club trains their new prospects.  It was cool to watch the goalies train and to see all the soon to be Fiorentina players.

Friday I went to Venice with my friends Megan, Christy, and Patricia.  We arrived in Venice around noon and the city was covered in a light fog.  It was cold and grey all day but the city was still beautiful.  We went to Piazza di San Marco and saw the San Marco cathedral.  Walked down to a festival and then went to the small island of Burano.  The island is known for its lace and the brightly colored buildings that make up the community.  It was so nice to be in a city where there are no vehicles except for boats and it was interesting taking a water taxi to Burano and seeing how the sinking town's tower is at an extreme tilt.

Going home, we had to take 3 different trains which was not a problem.  Our train from Venice to Bologna was 25 minutes late and we got to Bologna with just a few minutes to get to our train.  We searched everywhere and could not find it.  When we finally realized where our train was, we noticed it has been delayed 4 hours.  This meant we would not leave Bologna until 2am and Florence by 4:30.  No one wanted to stay that late so we went on a quest to find a way to get home earlier.  As we ran around I noticed that all the trains were delayed but I assumed that was typical Italian transit.  Christy and Patricia went to talk to the information desk and found out that there was a train accident and there was only one train going by Florence for the rest of the night and it left in 6 minutes.  We did not know where the train was so we began running up and down platforms and asking anyone we could find.  Finally we found the train and jumped on.  We lucked out because we were not checked for tickets.  We finally reached Florence around midnight.  The rest of my weekend was spent doing massive amounts of homework.

I leave for Barcelona in the morning to spend my Thanksgiving Spanish style.

Festivals

Venice and Burano

Last Week at a Glance

I haven't had internet access at my apartment for the past week so I'm a little behind.

Last Thursday I went to Boboli Gardens and the Pitti Palace in Oltrano (that's the other side of the river in Florence).  The gardens weren't very vibrant but that is because most of the flowers have died off. On Saturday the study abroad program I am in offered a free wine tasting at Castello di Verrazanno.  The castle is set in the northern part of the Chianti region and is named after the same guy the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge is named after.  We got a tour of the wine cellar and a 3 course meal with a wine tasting.  The region is known for their wild boars and that is where the name Verrazzanno comes from: wild boar territory.

On Sunday, there was a fair in Piazza di Santo Spirito that had a ton of antiques and clothing.  I got a stack of italian cookbooks for 2 euros and a nutcracker that is in the shape of a pair of legs.  It has gotten several laughs.

Monday, for class, we went to the Davanzati Palace and an artisan leather shop.  The guy who runs the leather shop is the only person in Florence that makes leather goods the traditional way.

Tomorrow I am going to a truffle festival in San Minioto.  Hopefully I can upload pictures sooner.  Here are some pictures from the past week and some photoshopped pictures I have been working on in class.

Random Play

Photoshopped

Now I Know Why They are so Lucky

"Marlborough Street is the only street in Dublin that you should worry about."

This was the first piece of advise Dustin and I were given when we arrived in Dublin.  Our cab driver said this to us as he was driving us to our hostel on Marlborough Street.  "I suggest in the morning you find a different place to stay."  Of course we didn't listen but we had no problems during our stay.

We arrived in Dublin Wednesday night and went straight to the hostel.  It had been raining there all day and it was cold.  Typical weather for the island this time of year.  We got to the hostel and then went walking around the block.  We did not do much since we were waking up early the next morning.  The hostel was not too bad either.

The next morning the weather was still dreary but we went caught the train to Cork anyway.  When we got to Cork we walked to the bus station and headed to Blarney to go see the famous castle where the Blarney Stone resides.  The castle was like the rest of the European castles i had seen, in ruins.  It was still really cool.  We walked to the top, checking every nook and cranny on the way up, and of course kissed the Blarney Stone.  After Dustin and I reached the bottom of the castle we decided to check out the Rock Close which was a garden along the river that was at the base of the castle.  The garden was lush with vegetation and the green was broken up by fallen tree leaves.  We walked around taking pictures for a while and then headed back into Blarney to get lunch at a little restaurant by the bus stop.  After lunch we left for Cork and got to the train just in time to get to Dublin.  We arrived in Dublin and it was raining.  Lucky for us, the tram stopped right by our hostel so we took that to avoid getting soaked.  After arriving at the hostel, we relaxed then went to go get dinner.  We stepped out the door and it began hailing on us.  It stopped after a few minutes and then the rain disappeared.  We walked down O' Connell Street and turned the corner by the river to discover a chinese buffet.  We had dinner here then went back to the hostel to plan for Friday's adventure around Dublin.

On Friday Dustin and I started the morning by packing up and checking out of our hostel.  The hostel let us keep our bags there which is good because our flight wasn't until 6am on Saturday.  After checking out, we walked across the river and to Trinity College.  The campus was fairly empty when we got there but not long after there were students running across the courtyard in the center.  We went to the library and saw the Book of Kells exhibit.  The book is one of the earliest English translations of the Bible and the exhibit explained the history behind it and how it was made and ended with a dark room that had the 2 of the 4 parts of the anthology on display.

After visiting Trinity we walked to the Temple Bar area to got to the National Photographic Archives. Unfortunately it was closed so we went to the Big Ass Cafe for the Big Ass Breakfast.  Potatoes, mushrooms, baked beans, an egg, toast, juice, and coffee for 7 euros.  Not a bad deal and it was delicious.  When we finished breakfast we walked to St. Stephen's Green which is the Dublin equivalent of Central Park.  The park was beautiful and we had a bright blue sky above us.  We walked around the park for a little bit and then headed over to St Patrick's Cathedral to wait for our friend, Christy, who had been traveling around Ireland all of the break.

When Christy finally found us the three of us walked to the Guinness Storehouse to learn about the famous stout.  At the Storehouse we learned how it is brewed, what makes it different from other beers, history behind the beer and the brewery, and about their advertising campaigns.  As you follow the self-guided tour, you work your way towards the top of the building.  At the top we redeemed our tickets for a complimentary pint.  Dustin got his from the gravity bar but I decided to learn to pour my own from the tap.  I never knew that their glasses are designed for the perfect pint and that there was so much science behind it.  Also, at the top, in the gravity bar, we got to see one of the best views of Dublin in the city.

After the Storehouse we walked back towards O'Connell Street to get dinner.  We went to a '50s style diner that was extremely overpriced but was still fun.  After that we went into a few shops and then met up with another guy named Dustin that goes to FUA with us.  The 4 of us walked back into the bar area to find a place to enjoy our Halloween.  We ended up at a place called Porterhouse Brewing Co.  There was 5 floors full of people in their costumes and all having a good time.  We hung out here for the rest of the night just talking and having a good time.  The new Dustin left us to go back to his hostel around midnight but Christy, Dustin, and I stayed until about 1am and then walked back to the hostel to get our bags and go to the airport.

We had to check in at 4am and got to the airport around 130am.  The airport was desolate when Dustin, Christy and I first walked in but when we went up stairs to the food court to find a place to sit there were people everywhere sleeping, waiting for the morning flights.  The majority were college students.  We found a table and as soon as I put my head down I was passed out.  Dustin and Christy woke me up just before 4 and we walked down to check in.  After checking in we went to the gate until take off.  The flight was really empty.  I had an entire row to myself but was not tired so I stared out the window for the 3 hour flight.  Dustin and Christy were asleep as soon as we were in the air.  There wasn't much to see but I did see an amazing sunrise and the clouds broke away when we reached the Alps.  Staring down on these mountains made them appear to be a child's toy.  Their snow-capped peaks glistened in the sun and then disappeared as the clouds reformed.  We landed in Pisa just before 10am and then were in Florence by noon.  Our trip had come to an end but will not be forgotten.

Ireland

Its a Wee Bit Cold

The train ride form London to Edinburgh, Scotland seemed to take forever.  Dustin and I went through almost the entire English island and arrived in New Castle to change trains.  There is nothing special about this town except when we were crossing over the river and into the train station, a massive rainbow arched over the entire city to greet us.  The train from New Castle to Carlisle was only an hour long but felt so much longer.  We cut through the country side and followed the Hadrian's Wall line, the wall the Romans built to keep the native Scots away from them.  From Carlisle we hopped on another train and a few hours later, we finally arrived in Edinburgh.

Dustin and I immediately went to the hostel to unload our gear and relax.  After a little relaxation time, we headed onto the Royal Mile or High Street to find a pub to get dinner.  We arrived at the Mitre Pub just a block away from the Hostel.  I was surprised by the gourmet meal I had in the pub.  One would think bar food would be fried and dripping with grease but the risotto I had was similar to what I ate at Sands the night before.  The pear cider I had helped round out the meal.  After dinner we walked around a bit then headed back to the hostel.

Keeping with tradition, Dustin and I awoke early and headed for the train station to catch the train to St. Andrews.  The town of St. Andrews is more well known for being where golf was invented but people often overlook the other history that is there.  We decided to skip the golf and go straight for the castle that overlooks the bay.  There isn't much left other than some ruins and a mine shaft that you can go into.  After exploring the ruins for a little bit, Dustin and I walked over to the St. Andrews Cathedral.

The cemetery is full of old and new headstones and there are ruins of the main part of the cathedral are still standing.  We climbed the tower that gives a view of the entire city and then left the cemetery and walked out onto a pier that juts into the bay.  There wasn't much to see out there but it was a nice walk.

We walked back into town and got some lunch then headed back to Edinburgh.  We relaxed at the hostel for a bit then went walking around and got some dinner.  We went to bed early because we had a long day ahead of us on Tuesday.

Tuesday morning we had to be at the Rabbie's Trailblazers office at 8am for our tour bus.  We joined a tour that drives all throughout the Highlands and up to the southern tip of Loch Ness.  We stopped about an hour outside of Edinburgh to get some coffee and as soon as I got out of the van it started to snow.  This trend continued for the rest of the trip.  Every stop it would begin to snow a little bit.  At a few stops we saw people just walking through the country side.  Our guide, Eddy, said that since Scotland has no trespassing laws people walk all over for fun.  When we got closer to Loch Ness we went through a blizzard.  Loch Ness was not the most scenic place ever but it was still beautiful.  I think the best thing about the trip was all the small stops we made on the way to St. Augusta and on the way back.  We say mountains, snow, deer, and many Lochs.  Unfortunately, Nessie didn't grace us with her presence.  On the way back we drove through a large blizzard that finally let up when we got to the first National Park in Scotland.  Here, we walked up to a scenic overlook over a waterfall and attempted to find gold in the river but it was way too dark to see any.  The van finally arrived in Edinburgh after a long day of traveling through most of the island.

Wednesday morning, we walked up to Edinburgh castle to see where the royal families of Scotland had lived.  It was closed when we got up there so we went to the Haggis Cafe to get some breakfast.  Dustin decided to try haggis, which I think he regretted.  It looked like burned sausage and judging by the look on his face, tasted worse.  After breakfast we went back up to the castle and explored the many rooms.  The castle is full of history and ghost stories.  They have a cannon called Mons Meg that at one point was the largest cannon ever made.  We spent a few hours walking around the castle and then headed down the Royal Mile toward the Scottish Whiskey Experience.

Here, we learned about the process behind making whiskey and the difference between blended and malt whiskeys and the difference between Scottish whiskey and other whiskeys.  We did a tasting of a blended and a malt whiskey and then learned about the history of whiskey.  The tasting and process was interesting but the history was similar to a little kids carnival ride and was a terrible end to the experience.

Dustin and I walked further down the Royal Mile, all the way to the end, to Holyrood Palace.  This is where the Queen stays when she comes to visit.  We walked around the palace and throughout the garden then headed to the hostel to grab our bags and head to the airport.  Our flight for Ireland left around 8:30 p.m.  Scotland was such an amazing place and I hope to come back soon.

Scotland