Final Day in Dublin

Molly Malone- the Tart with the Cart

Posing with Molly Malone + Carroll's Bag = Tourist

Unfortunately, on my last full day in Dublin I had a final exam in The EU and the Business Environment, so I sent my sister into the city with Brittany and Stacy while Stevie and I took the essay test. Grace was going to go to the restaurant Queen of Tarts with them and then head to the Jameson Distillery while I wrote all I knew about Copenhagen Treaty.

After Stevie and I finished with the exam we too decided to get lunch at Queen of Tarts, while Grace and the other girls finished up at the distillery. The food was very good but the service was slow. After we finished (and Stevie was kind enough to treat me), Brittany, Stacy, and Grace arrived and we divided and conquered Dublin, but only after we did some shopping.

Stevie, Grace, and I opted to go to what most Irish considered "Ireland's greatest treasure," the Book of Kells. It is an illuminated manuscript made by Irish monks and housed in Trinity College in the centre of Dublin. The three of us arrived in the gates of Trinity kind of late in the day and I was worried (shocker) that we were too late to see it and I threatened to use tears (another shocker) to make sure that they let us in. Things turn out better than expected, though, when we were waiting in line and a women walking by with some poster board asked if we were American. We replied yes in our obvious American dialects and she said "Don't worry, we'll get you in." I thought that this meant that she would make sure we got in before it closed but it turns out that she works for Trinity and used her employee powers to get us in for free. Let me say it one more time, I love the Irish!

The manuscript itself was amazing (through not 8 euro amazing so I'm glad that we didn't have to pay)! It was so intricate and amazing that someone could do that with their own hands. I am really glad that I went and got to show it to Grace.

After that (and a stop at Supermac's) the three of us did some more shopping before the farewell dinner planned for that Wolf Pack that night. I had to go to Carroll's, the Irish souvenir shop that is on every corner of Dublin (not an exaggeration) to stock up on everthing Irish I could. The thing I found when I was shopping, though, was that none of the souvenirs really captured my time in Ireland. At least I have all the pictures, memories, and jewelry.

And then it was time for the final dinner at our favorite Irish restaurant O'Neill's. Grace was very excited to be back at an Irish carvery and both of us got corned beef. I also had cabbage for the full Irish effect. After dinner the complete Wolf Pack headed out in the streets of Temple Bar in search of live traditional Irish music and found some in Gogarty's so we stayed there a while singing along to all the songs that we learned by heart after four months in Dublin. After "Wild Rover" we decided to try a find another place to go, but were unsuccessful and we were faced with something that we knew was coming since Day 1- goodbye.

Little JMatch

Flash forward to all six of us (and Grace) standing in the cobblestone streets on Temple Bar crying and hugging. It was rough to say the least. Those five other girls were the only ones that knew what it was like to live at UCD for the Spring 2010 semester and I will always have a special connection with them (and an excuse to visit Melbourne and White Horse).

We all headed back to UCD and I started the impossible task of packing my life away before Laura, Grace, and I left to tour Ireland the next morning. Luckily, I was coming back to the apartment before leaving for good so it all didn't have to be packed away, although I wanted to make a good start.

America's Pasttime

Yesterday for Grace's birthday we went to the Brewer's game with Grace's godfather, our Uncle Potter, and his fiancee, which was the perfect reintroduction to the United States. What says USA like a night at the baseball field (except maybe watching fireworks next to the Statue of Liberty while eating apple pie in an American flag shirt)? It was all the great things about America rolled into one, like hotdogs, the national anthem and comraderie. Of course, the things that I was most excited about was the large fountain drinks (in Europe you usually just get a small bottle of Coke for the same price). Once I go somewhere with free refills I will be in heaven.

Many times when I was about to talk at Miller Park I thought "Now they are going to know I'm American because of my dialect," but then I remembered that in the US most people talk like I do! No more feeling like a foreigner. Another thing that is going to take some getting used to in my American cell phone. The other day I couldn't figure out how to charge after more time not using my new phone than using it.

And the Brewer's beat the Mets. It was a good day at the ol' ballpark.

Wicklow National Park

Beautiful Ireland

 

On Grace's second day in Ireland I didn't have a final and Grace wanted to see more of the beautiful country so I booked us a tour a the Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough (I had actually already gone to Glendalough once before but didn't ge a tour of the Wicklow Mountains). The one downside is that we had to wake up earlier in the morning than jetlagged Grace would have preferred. We started our day by making our way down to the city centre to catch the tour outside the toursit office. Our vehicle for the day was a mini-bus so that it could navigate the turns and small roads of the Wicklow Mountains.

 

Mannis was our guide for the day and he was a cute old Irishman who made us tea at our first stop. It was a good tour and here were the highlights:

• Blessington Lake
• Guinness Lake
• Waterfall
• Sally Gap (filming site for PS I Love You) and Wicklow Gap
• Grace seeing sheep

Grace at Guinness Lake which looks like a giant pint of Guinness

 

And after lunch at a classic Irish carvery we went to Glendalough monastic settlement.

 

Round Tower at Glendalough

 

Grace at the Upper Lake of Glendalough (meaning "valley of the two lakes")

 

Walking down a path at Glendalough

 

We also met the cutest French girl on the tour. She must have been about four and didn't speak English and we did not speak any French but that didn't stop her from talking to us. She just kept chatting away, despite our attempts to tell her we didn't understand. It was tremendously cute.

 

After arriving back in Dublin we invited the Wolf Pack over for a pasta dinner. I had a final the next day so after Grace went to bed to try and recover from jetlag I studied late into the night.

Home

After 4.5 months of living the dream in Europe I have finally arrived back in the great city of Chicago and am writing this entry from my very own chair in my very own family room in my very own house.

Grace and I got on the plane at Charles de Galle after almost failing to get a taxi and checking in our bags that were thankfully underweight, but more on that in later entries. After the eight hour flight we arrived at O'Hare Int'l Airport at 2:30 local time. We went through passport check, as well as customs, and they saw nothing suspicious and let us in the country. We then went out to the waiting area only to be greeted by our parents and Aunt Pat (from Maui) waving American flags, and I was happy to see the good old red, white, and blue waving in the air of the land of the free and the home of the brave.

We arrived at home and as soon as we got in the door we turned around to realize that Freddy, the small child from next door, was also inside. Apparently my family has adopted other children since I've been gone (or at least let them play with the pets), but Freddy was cute enough and likes hanging out with my dad so I was glad to have another scapegoat to blame things on in the house ("Freddy must left those red stilettos in the middle of the floor"). For dinner we had a lot of Grace and my favorites and for dessert my aunt brought some pastries from Maui.

Naturally I had to show my family all the great souvenirs that I had accumulated throughout the past four months and did not wait long to do so. I also got a surprise when I went into my room and found that my mother had cleaned it while I was gone. What a wonderful (and somewhat needed) surprise!

While at home I also had the pleasure of bathing in a bathtub, and opening my dresser which reminded me that I have more clothing than the two suitcases full I brought with me to Europe (it's almost like I have amnesia).

I'm glad to be back and will be working on updating the blog with all my adventures. I know you're all panting with anticipation.

Grace and Claire: EuroTrip Warriors

Grace and me at the cliffs on Inishmor in the dense fog

So far we've...

traveled by plane, train, taxi, bus, ferry, and bike,
stayed at four hostels and one bed and breakfast,
seen about half a dozen castles,
been to four airports,
eaten Italian, Thai, Irish, Chinese, and French food,
attended two West End shows,
used two different currencies,
and we got checked our bags and got through security at the airport today in under 25 minutes...

...and we still have two days in Paris.

Short Update

I am currently attempting to pack up all my belongings in Dublin and right now, at 12:30 am, it seems almost impossible. Grace has been in the past week and we have conquered Ireland and are leaving for London tomorrow then off to Paris. I will be sure to update everyone on the adventures we have had and are sure to encounter in the UK and France.

I will be home on May 27th so get excited! And once I am home my life will be a lot less exciting and I will have plenty of time to put together the final entries on my blog.

Karaoke Update: The Swan Song

The day we never thought would come has come at last.

Alastair and Brock in the centre

Thursday we had to say goodbye to our favorite local hangout and primary singing venue (secondary venues include the streets and Supermacs). Grace had gotten in that day and after a short nap we headed into Blackrock with Brittany and Stacy to get some food before the main event. We went to a cute little pub across the street from The Wicked Wolf and got some traditional Irish food, including cottage pie and beef and Guinness pie.

After eating the four of us headed over to The Wicked Wolf in our finest dresses (we all had gotten a little more dressed up for our lasts night), which looked so different in the daylight and it seems like it is a nice bar to go and have a drink in even when you are not being serenaded by the one and only Brock Jones.

And it was a good night. Brock must have dedicated five songs to us, not to mention everyone else just went with the flow and dedicated their songs to us. Brock even changed some of the lyrics to give shout-outs to Chicago and Melbourne. Grace and I decided to sing "Don't Stop Believin'" and the entire Wolf Pack sang "Save Tonight," which had lyrics that described what we felt with painful accuracy (we also attempted to sing "American Pie" with less success). We got "Home" and "I've Had the Time of My Life" dedicated to us by another patron and Alastair, who is in fact auditioning for the X Factor today, was having a lot of fun serenading us with "You Are Not Alone," "You Raise Me Up," and of course "End of the Road." Laura busted out a solo of "Love Song" which was exceptional. The usual girls also sang their standard "Don't Stop Believin'" (even after Grace and I sang it) and "Don't Stop Me Now." There was also an extreme amount of dancing involved.

Laura and me belting

The one downside to our night was the fact that Mark, the raspy voice Canadian, and Stefan, the usual barkeep, were not there. I had Alastair text Mark to tell him that he had to come and say goodbye but he claimed that he was sick. I think Grace was a little surprised to see that most the friends we had made at the Wicked Wolf were old Irish men.

The X Factor

The End of the Road

And then the music stopped and it was time to bid farewell to the Wicked Wolf. We took a couple group pictures with Alastair and Brock and then said goodbye. We wished Alastair good luck on the X Factor and Brock said he was bad at goodbyes so he just said "until next time." We went up to the bar and talked with Eugene, who told us to be good girls and go home. We're going to miss them all.

And on to Supermacs and our usual worker. We all ordered the chicken tenders and laughed at the three Diet Cokes that Laura bought so that she could pull an all-nighter for her exam the next morning at 9 am.

Confessions

Here are some of the confessions I have about my time abroad. Don't judge me.

1. I brought my security blanket, affectionately known as "Red Blanky" to Dublin.
2. I have taken over 120 photos just of doors.
3. I gave myself a haircut (just a trim).
4. Laura taught me the Vegemite jingle and I frequently sing it.

Grace Has Arrived!

Grace left a rainy Chicago last night at about 10 pm after hours of delay and is now here with my in Ireland!

Because I had an exam today at noon I could not pick my little sister up from the airport for I had to enlist my great friends Laura and Stevie to do it. They even had a nice little "Grace" sign so that she knew who they were. Everything went according to plan and they three of them found each other and had lunch without me in the city centre. My Irish family and biological family has merged into one.

As I mentioned, I had a Cross-Cultural Management exam today that prevented me from meeting Gracie at the airport. I got to the exam facility and found me seat (the other day I sat in seat 2256!), pumped up on a chocolate muffin, tea, and a Coke. Although the tea and Coke got me hyped up I also had the problem of really having to go to the bathroom around halfway through the test. The other kids in the test also thought I was nuts when I kept making jazz hands to pump myself up (I attribute my ACT score to my excessive use of jazz hands during the breaks).

All the tests here have been essays and I felt confident on my essays today. You cannot leave the room for the last ten minutes of the exam and I had finished my essays and gone through them with 12 minutes left. I was then left with the choice of going through my answers more and adding little facts here and there and having to wait 10 minutes to get out of the room or just getting out of there and reuniting with my sister. Naturally, I chose Grace.

I got into the city and met up with the girls at Penney's, where they were doing some shopping. I then took Grace and we went on the short scenic tour of Dublin and then took the double decker bus back to UCD campus. Now she is napping and we are getting ready to go out to karaoke.

It's going to be a fun two weeks!

Trim

Sorry loyal followers but there have been a lack of posts due to the lack of adventures in my life. I, along with the other members of the Wolf Pack, have been busy studying for finals and haven't had time to take Ireland by storm like we usually do. We have, however, had a lot of time to introduce Laura to the trash TV that is The Real Housewives of New Jersey.

Yesterday I woke up and since I don't have another final until Thursday it seemed like the right time for an adventure to Trim Castle in County Meath. I woke up at 10 am and seeing that it was a beautiful I quickly found when the next bus for Trim was leaving and started on my way, fueling myself with an apple and a Crunchie candy bar- the breakfast of champions.

I often feel like Blanche Dubois because in Ireland I really "depended on the kindness of strangers" (not because I'm crazy). I'm just so lucky that the strangers in Ireland are so nice. I asked a man at the train station to verify that I would be able to get to Trim if I got on a certain bus and the bus driver also made sure that I got on the right bus. When I had to get off not only did the bus driver tell me that this was my stop but another random girl on the bus also told me.

I got off the bus in a slightly drizzly Trim and the castle was right in front of me.

I love castles. Trim Castle is an Anglo-Norman castle built in the 12th century.

It was also used in the filming on Braveheart.

I found the entrance to the castle and signed up to do the tour (free due to my Heritage Pass) which wasn't until "half two" or 2:30, so I had about 45 minutes to wander. So wander I did.

After walking around the grounds I went up on the other side of the Boyne River and explored the Yellow Steeple. The Yellow Steeple is all that remains of an old abbey's bell tower.

I got on the tour at 2:30 with a Flemish couple and our guide, Brenda. I introduced myself as Claire and she said (like many other Irish have) "a good Irish name." She took us on an hour long tour and told me some interesting facts. Here are the highlights:

1. There is only one door to the keep in the center. The door is above the ground and a wooden staircase leads up to it. In times of crisis, the townspeople could run into the keep and then burn the stairs behind them so that so one could get to the door, and because the door was a couple meters above the ground a battering ram could not be used.
2. The spiral staircases in the keep all went clockwise. This is so that the man at the top would have the advantage. The designers of the castle figured out that 7 out of 10 people were right handed and if the staircase turned clockwise then the right-handed person coming down would be able to take a full swing, unlike the person coming up whose stroke would be impeded by the support in the center of the staircase. The spiral staircase only allow one person up at a time, another defensive advantage.
3. The moat running around the castle was where the town dumped the waste from the leper hospital. Naturally, people didn't want to jump in that moat.
4. Rain water was kept in order to have a reserve in times of trouble.
5. Brenda told me that after women give birth in Ireland they are given a Guinness to drink. Stout apparently gives you iron which is needed for breastfeeding.
6. If two people with the same last name get married they will have the cure for something (like ringworm) according to Brenda.

After the tour Brenda showed us pictures from when Mel Gibson came to film Braveheart and then I headed back to the bus stop and had a pleasant ride back to Dublin. When I got into the city I bought supplies for dinner (chicken caesar wraps) and then had dinner with my Irish family.

Venice by Night

Before dinner we had gone back to the hostel to check in and put out stuff in the room we were staying in. We talked to the kinda odd hostel worker again (who was sleeping on the couch when we returned) and he showed us the four bed female dorm that we had booked. He took us into the big girls’ room and then went to the wall where there was a padlocked door. He unlocked the padlock and we walked into a glorified closet that was supposed to be our room. We paid twenty-seven euro for this?

He left us there to unpack and make our beds and the three of us talked about how weird this was and a possible escape route (jumping out the window into the canal) should he use the padlock to lock us in the room (Stacy did ask him if the padlock would be on and he laughed saying that he would not lock us in while we were sleeping, which was only a little reassurance).

We went to dinner, which was probably the worst food that we had while being in Italy, and then tried to think of ways to avoid going back to the somewhat dirty and shady hostel. We strolled the streets of Venice for a while but it looked like things were shutting down and we were forced to go back to A Venice Fish.

When we got there we went into our little padlocked closet, which we were sharing with two other girls despite the fact that we thought we booked a four bed dorm, and tried to find the light switch but there was none to be found. Actually, we couldn’t even find a light that the switch would turn on. This was not looking good. While nervously laughing (I’m sure you’ve witnessed my nervous/scared/uncomfortable laugh before) I declared that there was no way that I was paying twenty-seven euro to sleep in a closet that didn’t even have a light and stormed off to find the rodent-like hostel worker (he had both a rat-tail and beady eyes, earning him this distinction).

I found him in the kitchen cooking for the hostel wearing a David apron. David aprons are aprons that have the front of Michangelo’s David  on them in an attempt to make the wearer look like he has David’s body. As we were walking down the streets of Florence and Rome we kept thinking to ourselves “Who would wear that tacky thing?” Now I know.

I asked him where the light for the room was and he showed me. We went back to the dorm room where Stacy and Britt were waiting and he went to the corner, pressing a switch with his foot that turned on a “floor lamp.” This “floor lamp” consisted of a broomstick with too light bulbs duct taped to it.

More nervous laughing occurred and we tried to pack for our flight back to Dublin. Brittany and I went into the common room of the hostel because we thought that more people we make the whole experience a little less scary. We met a nice boy from Canada who we talked to a little and I called my Dad to regale him with tales of me singing in a gondola, which he enjoyed.

Brittany went to bed but I stayed in the lobby so that I could use the internet. I continued to write in my journal and the rat-tailed hostel worker came up to me and asked what I was writing. I was tempted to say I was writing about him and his sexy apron but he seemed like the unpredictable type and I didn’t know how he would react. He also tried to get the other guests in the hostel to go out with him after his shift, which everyone declined. I did however meet a girl from none other than the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign! She said that I looked familiar but since she is in Psych I doubt that we had ever met before.

We survived the night but none of us slept particularly well. At one point in the night a dog started to continuously bark, which lead to a lot of screaming in Italian. A boat also came by blaring rap music, another indication that I might not be in quiet, picturesque Venice at all, just an Italian neighborhood in Queens (although I’m sure in New York cars bust out music, not boats).

Venice by Day

"Venice by day, Venice by night. 

Right where I am is terrifically right!"

The final stop on our Italian tour was amazing. We took the train in from Florence at 9:30 in order to spend as much time in the city as possible. As always, the first thing to do when arriving in a new city is to find the hostel. This hostel was A Venice Fish Hostel. Cute name, not so cute hostel. It was deja vu of our France hostel experience when we rang the bell and no one came, followed by the worker sticking his head out the window and coming to get us. Like our French hostel, we also walked into a room that was barren and looked as if under construction. This could not be good.

He took us up to the hostel and it was kinda nice. He us to a place to put our stuff because our room was not ready, so we changed there and then went out to explore Venice.

"And this is the Grand Canal. 

Its resemblance to life is not obscure. 

It is filled with the milk of human kindness, 

in spite of the fact its really a sewer. 

But don't let that spoil your moral. 

Its still a grand canal."

I was talking to my father and he agreed that the neat thing about Venice is it is the Venice you dream of. Everything is old with picturesque canal running through; it was like stepping back in time (except for the motor boats going everywhere). We window shopped on our way to the bus station where we were going to investigate how to get to the airport in the morning. Finding this out proved to be quite a feat as it took us to three separate buildings but finally we got our answer and purchased a bus ticket for tomorrow.

And what is the quintessential thing to do while in Venice? Why, take a gondola while humming selections from Nine: The Muscial of course! We found a gondola and paid a decent amount to be rowed around for about forty minutes. Our gondolier was fifth generation and you could tell that he enjoys his work. He even picked flowers for us while rowing along. Brittany asked him if he knew any songs that he could sing and he said that he did not have a good voice, would Brittany care to sing instead? She said she was in the same boat (literally) but I had a decent one. I suppose it didn't matter if I had a decent voice or not but when asked to sing I have no choice but to unleash my diva and perform. I stood up and performed my new go-to song, "On My Own" from Les Miserables, right in the middle of a canal in Venice on a gondola. Needless to say, it was an amazing once in a lifetime moment.

"And he is a gondolier.

Seeking love is the center of his life.

Though he never will go as far as wedlock.

That would really annoy his present wife."

The rest of the gondola ride was nice and peaceful, although much less epic. We saw the house Casanova lived in and went into the Grand Canal (which prompted much more Nine humming from me). It was indeed grand. Our gondolier told us that the canals are only 2 meters deep. At one point, a bridge was so low hat he essentially had to turn the gondola sideways to fit underneath.

After drifting through the canals of Venice is was time to shop! Venice is famous for its glass and Carnivale masks so we had plently of fun browsing and buying souvenirs for ourselves and people back home. Next stop was the Rialto Bridge, which is a large bridge with shops on it that crosses the Grand Canal. We had beautiful views from there and spent our time soaking it in. We even went to a small cafe on the banks of the canal and sat there for a bit.

Masks

Glass animals

Rialto Bridge

The Grand Canal

Next stop was Piazza San Marco, the biggest square in Venice. There was a giant church at one end but nothing to amazing. The worst part was there were tons of pigeons and I am not a fan. After witnessing San Marco Square we headed back to the Grand Canal area to get dinner on its banks.

Venice By Night coming up; studying is taking it out of me.

Karaoke Update

Yes, another Thursday has come (our penultimate in Dublin) and we spent it at the Wicked Wolf singing our hearts out. As always, I need to document the happenings.

• We have successfully infiltrated the local crowd. Brock bought us a round of drinks and Allister came and hugged us. The owner, Eugene, said goodbye to us as we left and encouraged us to come early next week.
• Once seated at our usual table right in the front Brock called us up to the stage to sing. We had planned on singing the classic "Total Eclipse of the Heart" (at this point I have watched the Glee version an embarrassing amount of times) but some guy stole it from us so instead we sang the karaoke standard "Don't Stop Believin'". The crowd didn't get that into it but we sounded very good. Laura and I even added some intentional harmony, unlike the unintentional harmony that usually comes from us being off key. 
• We also sang "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," a suggestion from the barkeep who has befriended us. We did not know his name until tonight. He refused to tell us it so I had to ask Eugene. Its Stefan.
• Mark, the Canadian smoker, sang his usual "Gangster's Paradise" and "Streets of Philadelphia" but added a new twist. He got up on stage, appeared to forget something, went back to his stuff and brought up a pair of sunglasses that he wore for the song. Yes, he wore sunglasses onstage while singing. I think he might have gotten embarrassed though because he took them off after about two verses.*
• Mark starting flirting with this German woman that was there and they both attempted to sing "I Got You Babe" together. It must have been the reggae version and the two of them could not get a hold of it, but that didn't stop Mark from trying to make his move onstage with everyone watching. It was extremely awkward to say the least. 
• More awkward fun came when the German woman left stage after singing with Mark and started dancing with another man.
• Even more awkwardness followed when Allister went up to sing and serenaded the German woman, who was over-served. There has been much discussion between Laura, Brittany, Stacy, and I about what happened to Allister's girlfriend, Sam, because she was here tonight but he was also blatantly flirting with another woman and we think that Sam may have cheated on Allister. This is all speculation of course.
• The girls from BU came and joined us. They also came to Supermac's with us afterwards.
• Supermac's was Supermac's. Laura remarked on how we got four chicken strips this time instead of the usual three.

Next week is our last one. We hope to monopolize the stage and have all our favorites sung by Allister and Brock. Tears will be shed.

*I read this entry aloud to Laura and she hypothesizes that he could not see the lyrics on the prompter and that is why he took his glasses off. I would not be surprised if that is the case. Considering he sings this song every week and no doubt practices throughout the week, he should really start to memorize those lyrics and it is bizarre that they are not memorized already. He just must not be cut out for the fast paced nature of show business.

Florence- Day 3: The Light in the Piazza

"The god who created the hills around Florence was an artist. No! He was a jeweler, engraver, sculptor, bronze founder and painter: He was a Florentine."

-Anatole France

After exhausting myself seeing my fill of art, Brittany and I picked up the key to the hostel from Stacy and headed back to our beloved Ciao Hostel. We got there and what started out as a "rest my eyes" turned into a full-fledged nap for both of us. Eventually I woke and and woke Brittany up so that we could make it to the Piazzale Michelangiolo for sunset. After power-walking a little and climbing a lot of stairs we made it there and got some great pictures. And I know I've said this a billion times, but my camera just couldn't possibly Florence's beauty.

I had to be back at the hostel at 9:30 so I could claim my shifts for work for next semester so after the sunset Brittany and I headed back, stopping for pizza and a sandwich on the way. The front desk woman had waited for us so that we could use the computer at the front desk and once we got there she left, leaving us to turn it off. We were in the lobby alone when a drunk man from across the street apparently saw us there and wanted to come over and say hi. Luckily for us, the door was locked but that didn't stop Brittany from hiding behind the desk.

Once he had gone and I had my shifts claimed for ICS we decided to go to the train station to get tickets for our train to Venice tomorrow. We got there and found out that there were only three tickets left, which was a lot better than there only being two left. We snatched those up right away and headed back to the hostel to attempt to pack all the things we bought into our suitcases. Oh, the challenges of traveling in Europe.

Florence- Day 3: Shopping, Church, and Art Museums

"All Art Has Been Contemporary"

Sign outside Uffizi

On our second day full day in Florence Stacy was feeling a little worse for the wear, so the Wolf Pack was down to two for the market that morning. Stacy also spent most the day with her roommate because they wanted to catch up considering they have not seen each other since summer.

On the way to San Lorenzo market that morning I once again stopped for some pastries to fuel my shopping. And I did a lot of shopping. I got a leather journal for myself, as well as a myriad of things for other people back in the US. I almost splurged to the extreme and got myself a leather jacket but I could not justify it. Had I had an enabler there who knows how many leather jackets I would be arriving home with.

Church of Santa Croce- final resting place of Michelangelo and Galileo

After spending too much time and money in the market Brittany and I headed over to Church of Santa Croce. It was five euro to go and Brittany wasn’t feeling it so I flew solo. The church itself was nice and had many tombs and people buried there, including Michelangelo and Galileo. I enjoyed seeing these as well as the people buried within the floor of the church (I don’t know what the proper term for those are). These were extremely old, dating back to the fifteenth century. Can’t find stuff that old in the US which is one of the reasons I love Europe. After walking through the church I walked in the courtyard which was so beautiful too, just what you would expect. I just loved it!

Galileo

Michelangelo's Tomb

The three women represent (from left) painting, sculpture and architecture with his bust on the top.

Various other people buried in the floor

As I mentioned before, I had a reservation at the Uffizi Art Museum at 1 o’clock so I had to get there. I have been thoroughly spoiled with art museums, considering the last one that I went to was the Louvre and I grew up going to the Art Institute of Chicago. The Uffizi was good and I enjoyed it, but after a while to the untrained eye (my eye) all Renaissance paintings with Biblical subjects start to look the same. I did see Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus and Primavera, which were nice, although I think that you can get the idea just buy seeing the prints of Birth of Venus that everyone has seen everywhere since birth. I glad a spent part of my time in Florence at the Uffizi though.

I got out of the museum and got myself some lunch which consisted of a kebab and a diet coke. I met up with Brittany on the shore of the Arno River in a little piece of sand. We stayed there a couple of minutes and then took a walk back into the centre of town. Britt got a panini and then we walked to the Galleria dell Accademia, where I had another reservation to see Michelangelo’s David. In the US you make reservations for dinner, in Italy you make reservations for art museums.

I was very on the fence about going to see David; there were two replicas in Florence that I could go to without paying and so far works like The Mona Lisa, Venus di Milo, and The Birth of Venus did not live up to the hype. I called my father and he said that he had gone to see David while in Florence decades ago and encouraged me to go. He also talked about the four unfinished Michelangelo’s that are there that he remembered and had stuck with him.

Turns out it was absolutely amazing! The replicas and pictures don’t exude anything like the original. First of all, it was very tall (24 feet), as you can see in the illegal photo I took of it (I’m such a rebel when it comes to art museums). Also, there are skylights above David which shed natural light on him and make him glow. And if those weren’t amazing enough, he is just so beautiful. Not only do you have the perfectly sculpted body, but his facial expression is so emotional. Unlike the triumphant expression that you usually see with David after he kills Goliath, this David is more pensive. After days of trying to put into words what I think the face shows I have decided to interpret it as this: David has just killed Goliath, but he is almost remorseful, contemplating if it is ever right to kill another person and debating if what he did was right.

David himself

"I saw the angel in the marble and I carved until I set him free."

-Michelangelo

In the museum there were also four unfinished statues by Michelangelo, called the Four Prisoners, and an unfinished Pieta, meant to be Mary cradling a dying Jesus. The first unfinished Prisoner I saw was my favourite; it honestly looked like someone was trying to escape from the block of marble. It’s also interesting to see how a block of marble is transformed to a masterpiece like David.

Photo Source: Life 2.0, life2point0.com

Florence- Day 2

Shopping and eating- La Dolce Vida

On our first full day in Florence we got up and walked to the market, stopping for pastries on the way. As you can see, the day was off to a good start.

Apparently San Lorenzo Market in Florence is the biggest outdoor market in Europe; I would believe it. They sold everything there, from scarves to ties, meat to leather. The only problem with the market was its seductive nature. You could go in swearing that you won’t buy anything and come out with three new scarves and eight rings. I probably spent more than I should, but since I haggled for most things I like to think it was like getting them on sale.

The market was also a great place to pick up guys if very forward foreign men are your type. We got a lot of compliments, including “good price for blue eyes.” We even got called The Spice Girls once.

After we had our fun in the market we got lunch at a small restaurant where we could eat out side; its our usual. After having more bruschetta and a sandwich we headed over to the Boboli Gardens to witness the views of Florence. Unfortunately, before we could fully take in the gardens it started raining so we sought shelter with a group of seven year old Italian students. We did pay to get in the gardens and when the rain seemed to be lightening up we set out again to explore them. We climbed a hill and the views were so amazing. Frau Curry, Brittany, and I even took some self-timer shots with Florence in the background.

After having our fill of Boboli Gardens we headed back into the heart of the city. I had read about the Uffizi, an art museum in Florence and one of the best in the world, and wanted to see if I could get in. Turns out that the line to get in was over an hour long, so instead I opted to just get a reservation for one o’clock the next day.

It was still kinda rainy so we tried to find a nice rainy day activity, which turned out to be more eating. There was a nice chocolate shop in the Piazza della Signoria which was also mentioned in 1000 Places to See Before You Die, Caffe Rivoire, so we thought that we would splurge and give it a shot. They are famous for their hot chocolate so Stacy and I ordered to of those and enjoyed while taking in the views of Piazza della Signoria.

That's Amore

After enjoying our chocolate it was off to the Ciao Hostel to freshen up for dinner. The plan was to get dinner and then head up to the Piazzale Michelangiolo for sunset but we ended up having a very long dinner and missed the sunset. Dinner was great and we just took our time eating our pizza, drinking our wine, and chatting away. We even tried lemoncello after dinner, which I still maintains tasted like Crystal Light and rubbing alcohol. I do not understand why it is so popular.

We couldn’t let the girl talk stop just because we were done with dinner and had been sitting at that table for a couple solid hours, so we headed up to the Piazzale Michelangiolo to catch the night views of the city. Once we got up there Stacy bought another bottle of wine from a little stand (only in Europe) although at that point I was wined-out. The Piazzale is at the top of a large hill overlooking the city and there is also a bronze replica of Michelangelo’s David up there.

We had planned on going to a club called Bebops that night because it was Beatles Night but it was getting late and we were tired. Nevertheless, we decided to stop by and check it out for a couple of minutes. We got in there and went to the bathroom, on the way running into none other than Stacy’s roommate from U of I that is studying in Versailles. What a crazy coincidence! We talked with her and her friends for a while but Britt and I were wiped out so we headed back to the hostel. Stacy said that she would spend the night at her friends’ hostel because she could not get in to our without a key and she wanted to stay longer.

Cut to 3 am when there is a knock on the door. After being sufficiently freaked-out but a knock at the door in the middle of the night, I mustered enough courage to answer the door. Turns out with was Stacy and one of the guys that we were talking to that night. Stacy did not say anything to me just went right to her bed, while the guy looks at me and said “Hear you have an extra bed.” Confused as I was, I cleared off the bed and he collapsed there. And then I was left wondering what was going on.

Turns out Stacy was just going to sleep at her friend Maria’s hostel but one of Maria’s friends volunteered to walk her home. Since we had an extra bed in our hostel room Stacy offered him it so that he wouldn’t have to go out of his way. And that was another hostel adventure from my European life.

The Final Countdown

I'm sorry that I haven't been updating you all on my European adventures but finals at UCD started yesterday and I have been trying to study. And, yes, I do mean "trying." After a semester of very little work it has been hard to get in the right mindset to study hard (I accidentally watched Waiting for Guffman last night), but I guess I can't complain.

Finals here are a lot different than at home. First off, the exams are not administered on the UCD campus, but rather at a convention complex about a 30-minute walk away. UCD has the building that looks like a concert venue and smells like a barn. It has 2000 tables and chairs set up and each student gets assigned a seat. They also have a bag check that you must check your bag into for one euro. They don't want to take any chances that you are cheating.

I walked to the exam place but there are also free shuttles that leave campus every 20 minutes. The problem- with a building that holds 2000 students, a bus that carries 40 leaving every 20 minutes is not going to do much. From what I hear, students literally get into fist-fights over who gets on the bus because no one wants to miss their finals.

I had my first final today and it was an essay test, like every other exam I have this semester. Financial Institutions Management was the exam d' jour and I think I did a decent job; at least I hope I did well because it was worth 100% of my grade, which is very nerve-racking.

And the Final Countdown to the US: 3 weeks from today! Who's excited?

Florence- Day 1

After a scenic train ride through Tuscany we arrived in Florence and followed our usual routine- check-in then find food. We were lucky that the Ciao Hostel was located close to the train station so we got there quickly.

We had a four bed room but there was no one to occupy the fourth bed so we had it all to ourselves. It was a really nice place with a kitchen and two bathrooms on each floor and once we got into our room we opened our window up and let in the beautiful Italian breeze. (We got very lucky with the weather for the remainder of our trip.)

The front desk worker recommended a nice restaurant where the locals go down the street but when we arrived there it did not appear to be open. Instead we found a lovely restaurant by the train station and I had the best pizza that I had in Italia. The sauce on it was just fantastic. Frau Curry* and Britt got ravioli which I understand was also very delicious.

Brittany had a friend from high school that was studying abroad in Florence, Lydia, who had volunteered to show us around which was really nice. I also discovered something while in the night air of Florence- I love Florence! I was an amazing city which adorable streets and shops everywhere you turned. We also got gelato and had a fantastic first night in Florence.

Rubbing the noise on this wild boar statue ensures a return to Florence.

*Stacy has been given the nickname of Frau Curry ever since she got a letter from the German government addressed to Frau Curry. And why did she get a letter from the German government you ask? She got a ticket on the train in Berlin for not having a valid ticket and she did not pay it before leaving the country. Frau Curry thought that they did not have her home address but they seem to have tracked her down. Since the first letter she has gotten one more that seemed to have a harsh tone and it leaves us with the question- when is she going to get a knock on the door in Naperville from two angry looking Germans?

Day 2 in Florence

Rome- Day 4

We woke up with only a few more hours in Rome, so we checked out of the Alessandro Palace Hostel and hit the town. As I have mentioned before, I fell in love with the Trevi Fountain so we walked that direction stopping in souvenir shops on the way (where I got a watercolor print of the Trevi so I wouldn't miss it as much). I actually loved the fountain so much that at dinner the previous night I asked the waiter what the policy was for bathing/swimming in the Trevi. He said that they have close-circuit TV on it but he thought that as long as I didn't damage anything I would only get a slap on the wrist. Tempting...


I also bought some postcards and patches, my staple souvenirs.

After shopping we went to the cutest little restaurant on a side street by the fountain. There we ate lunch in the Mediterranean sunlight as the vespas sped past us. Again, I claimed that I was just going to get bruschetta because I had eaten so much pasta, but the pasta looked too good to resist so I got bruschetta AND pasta. I was carb-loaded my entire time in Italy.

After a lovely lunch we headed back to the hostel to get our bags and then walked to Roma Termini to catch our train to Florence. We bought tickets but had a little difficulty locating our train platform and had to run to catch the train. We did successfully make it on broad and were on our way to Florence, Italy!

Loving my life in Italy

Fountains are the New Statue

In Rome, any water coming out of a pipe is potable. I may have had a little drink out of some of these.

These are the fountains of Rome and Florence. Click to enlarge.

Piazza Navona

Piazza Navona

Trevi Fountain by Nicola Salvi in 1732

Triton Fountain in Piazza Barberini by Bernini

Fountain in Boboli Gardens

Neptune Fountain in Boboli Gardens in Florence

Bacchus Fountain in Boboli Gardens

It's just bizarre.