Florence - the real story (well, most of it)

Okay, my previous entry on Florence was a little vague and skimped on detail, so I feel like I should at elaborate a little bit. Damn. my fans are demanding.

After leaving Cinque Terre (which was one of the best parts of the trip), we headed to Florence. For once, our hotel was right in the heart of the city and we were right in the middle of everything. So Sunday afternoon, a bunch of us headed to what is supposed to be the most famous statue of all time, David, at Accademia Gallery. It was actually pretty amazing, especially the detail - the muscles and veins were actually quite realistic. And he was huge... I didn't expect him to be so tall.

After gawking over David and trying to figure out if any of the body part ratio formulas were accurate, Andrea and I thought we would see if we could get into the Uffizi. It was but a pipe dream since it was about 4:00 pm, the line appeared to be about 2.5 hours long, and the museum closed at 6:35.

Instead, we took a stroll over the Ponte Vecchio and up to the Pitti Palace and the Giardino Boboli. Initially, the uphill nature of the gardens just looked to daunting for us. We were exhausted! So we lazily sat by the small pond and did some people watching. It was awesome to hang with Andrea. Most importantly, I think she was able to prove to me that there are still cool people in Texas.

One of the things I found funny about Florence was all of the rogue street vendors selling designer knock-off purses. They would carry all of the bags in a sheet and set-up shop just about anywhere. Not really being on the right side of the law, every few minutes they would gather up the bags and run around the corner if they saw the police anywhere near by. I saw groups of these guys all of over the city, hovering around the corner waiting for the po' to go the other way. It was definitely interesting - kind of wish I would have bought a good Prada knock-off.

The rest of the night was pretty uneventful except for the awesome dessert we had with dinner. Let's see - when I think of Italian desserts, I think gellato, biscotti, tiramisu, tortoni, or cannoli. It was exactly like that, except instead, it was an orange.

Stuffed from the orange, I headed to bed early knowing I wanted to get up in time to for a bike tour the next day. Somehow, I just wasn't into seeing the leather factory with the group and wanted a little adventure of my own. The bike tour, I Bike Italy, didn't dissappoint. To be honest, the first 3 miles killed me. Tuscanny is not flat (which might qualify as the understatements of the year). If you have been reading all my entries, you now know my athletic prowess (stop laughing) has been challenged by Arhur's seat and a bike tour that includes wine with lunch.

Despite the tough start, the ride was beautiful. There is good reason that Florence is the epicenter of art and beauty. With a nice long lunch, a stop at a winery/olive grove, and downhill ride in the afternoon, it was the perfect way to spend the day in really seeing the outside of Florence. Thanks for the great ride Per - your knowledge of the terrain was superb!

I joined my friends for dinner at a restaurant that overlooked the whole of Florence. It was probably the funnest dinner we had together! There were loads of laughter and wine (I still can't believe the Texas sisters don't like wine. It would have been insulting to our host to let it go to waste, so no need to thank me for drinking your share!). The highlight of the evening was the piano player and the leg of pig served to the theme song of Star Wars. I don't want to brag, but when was the last time you had leg of pork rolled out on a cart with a sparkler in it? It was one of those nights I laughed so hard I cried. While everyone else went to the Space Disco, I met a local I had met earlier in the day for some gelato. I think that made the 4th or 5th day in a row eating gelato. I think my favorite combination was lime/dark chocolate, but choosing a favorite is like Sophie's choice.

It was a treat to be out with someone who really knew the city - it made me a little less like a tourist. One of the best parts was the scooter ride up to Piazzale Michelangiolo to overlook the city at night. It would be impossible to plan a more enjoyable evening. It also helped to have a cute tour guide! ;-)

Back at the hotel, my group had a real bonding moment when the fire alarm went off at 5 am and stayed on for an hour. Anyone see Yak?

Florence was beautiful and romantic, but somehow different than the way Paris is beautiful and romantic. I think the difference is that Firenze has a more organic beauty; less designed, yet no less inspirational. I'm sure there could be some great metaphor for the rich soil that grows the grapes and olives adding a richness to life; I'm just not able to quite capture it though.

I think I was also finally getting to a place where I could really relax and thouroughly enjoy the slower pace of life. Even thinking back to my time in Florence, I feel calmer and seem to take deeper breaths.

Most regretably, our time in Florence had to end as we needed to make our way to the last official stop on our trip, Rome.

Luckily for me, it wouldn't be the last time I saw Florence on this vacation;-)

Florence

Firenze was very, very, very good.

I'm finally at a place where the Marley song that says "don't worry about a thing, every little thing is going to be okay" is really resonating.

The leaning marathon

I dare someome to tell me one thing they know about Pisa besides they have a tower that leans. Anyone?

Well, don't feel badly because I've now been there and I don't know much more. Sunday morning we made it Pisa and had just a few hours there. The tower really is amazing - it leans much more than I thought it would. Then there are a bunch of churches as well, but between the Valley of the Fallen, Sagrada Familia, the Duomo, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Bascilia, I will have seen many more churches than any JAP should. The highlight of Pisa for me was that the Pisa marathon was happening that day. So instead of seeing another ornate church, I thouroughly enjoyed myself cheering for the marathon. It was the perfect amount of inspiration that I needed to get me ready for my own marathon training which starts right after I get back at a bit sooner than I would like. The only action my Asics have seen lately is when I pull them out of my luggage looking for flip-flops and then guiltily put them back in without any use.

Cinque Terre

At this point, I assume many of my friends and family are saying "enough already, I get it, you're having a great time, everything is beautiful or amazing or brilliant, now shut up already." I get it. I remember reading Heide and Mark travel blog with 75% enthrallment, and 25% unrelenting jealousy. But it also inspired me, so maybe you'll read this and the travel bug will bite you too. Or not, but this is also for me, so I'm sorry to go on and on, but I don't want to forget how spectacular this whole experience has been.

I digress. So we left Nice early this morning and headed for the Italian border. We arrived at the train that took us to Cinque Terre and hopped on. I wasn't quite paying attention when our tour guide explained this part of the adventure, so I didn't know what to expect exactly - I was just going with the flow. Sometimes not knowing what's next allows for the best surprises. Cinque Terre was so cool and one of those places I would have never thought to go on my own. It is five little towns along the coast connected via train or walking path. We did a nice little hike between a few of the towns and then had lunch in Monterosso. And when I say lunch, I mean one of those lunches you dream about - Margaritas and the best gnocchi I've ever had with a spectacular pesto alongside the beach. The lunch was only topped by the best part of the vacation so far - the beach. The water was warmish and a bunch of jumped in regardless of not having towels. We had so much fun just being silly and playing in the water. It was a really great time. much before I was ready, we grabbed our things and jumped on a boat that took us to another port. We jumped off with just enough time to grab a gelatto (I had apple - delicious) and transfer to anther boat. The view of the western Italian coast was spectacular. None of could figure out how some of the houses were built there without roads. This is probably the second best day of the trip so far - but there is still Pisa, Florence and Rome.

Monte Carlo Baby!!

The days are all starting to run together a bit.

So Tuesday was a pretty uneventful day driving from Barcelona to Avignon. We stopped in Avignon, which is a pretty cute little town, but I could have lived without seeing it. Those who know me know I don't really do cute.

But Wednesday was awesome. Talk about checking things off a list in one day. Our first stop was Aix-En-Provence, a little town with great markets. I picked up some of the soap the town is famous for, but can't decide whether to be selfish and keep it for myself or give it as a gift. This was one of those areas you could wander around in for hours and hours. But there wasn't time to waste - we wanted to make Cannes by lunch. Cannes was beautiful - it reminded me a bit of Monterrey, CA but warmer and sand beaches.

After Cannes, we drove to Nice about 40 minutes away and checked in and got ready pretty quickly for a night out in Monte Carlo. The drive there was amazing - the hills are filled with beautiful houses overlooking the Cote d'Azur. The road was a bit terrifying as I'm afraid of driving on windy, narrow, mountain roads, but we survived. We had a quick stop at a perfumery and it was better than expected. Did you know that to be a "Nose" (which there are only 150 in the world) you need 7 years of schooling and can't smoke, eat spicy food or drink? Yeah, that sounds like a great job.

Smelling great, we all headed to Monte Carlo. We had a great dinner (I kept hoping someone would run by James Bond like) and then headed to the casino. Take a second and get a picture of what you think the Monte Carlo casino is like. Got it in your mind's eye? Ok.

You're wrong. It is the opposite of Vegas. No music, no ka-ching of slots, and worst of all, no free booze served by scantily clad women. It was very quiet and serious with maybe 20 tables going. Very, very serious. Had I tried hard, I might have left with a rich (but not so cute) husband. So what did I do? I ordered some champagne, bought some chips, and bellied up to a table. I went roulette - it seemed the easiest since all the dealers spoke French. First play - I lost 10 euros. Second - there went 10 more. But three the lucky number and I hit - now I was up 40 euros. I hit once again, but in the end, I sacrificed about 60 to the Museum of Gambling. I like to think of it as a steep admission fee for the chance to say "I've gambled in Monte Carlo." The bad news is I didn't get any pics because they don't allow you take pictures in the casino. Eric will vouch that I was there (and he even said I was good luck charm for the guy I was standing next to - which means I'm happy to be a good luck charm for anyone who wants to take me back to the French Riviera...I'm sweet like that).

All in all - a day that you shop at a provincial French market, lunch in Cannes, have dinner and gambling in Monte Carlo and then head to Nice for the night isn't so bad.

But Friday was the day had been looking forward to for months. A full day in Nice. I'm sure there was some fantastic something or other to see and I missed an amazing opportunity to see it, but I had only one thing on my mind. The beach. I have never gone swimming in clear blue water and it was time change this. So I spent almost the entire day at the beach. The bad news is the beach wasn't all that great because it was a rock beach and it hurt to walk on it, but once you arranged correctly, it was fabulous to lay out on. And I braved the tough sea floor and went for a swim in the Mediterranean - chilly at first and then pretty refreshing. And really, really salty.

Overall, a great day of eating and laying by the beach. Which brings me to the food. Mom - no worries about me being too thin anymore - I am happily eating my way through Europe. Tapas and wine in Spain. Crepes and wine in France. I'm sure everything and wine in Italy.

Tapas?

No, I said topless. That conversation usually goes the other way around. More on that later:-)

My heart is torn - in three pieces so far. Amsterdam, Paris and now Barcelona have me in a love triangle. I'll almost afraid to go to Italy in fear of adding to this tug of war.

After leaving Madrid, we had a very long bus ride on Monday. We stopped in a little town for lunch, but I forgot the name of it. We finally got to Barcelona around 5:30 pm and went to this the fort on the top of the south hill of the city. The view was great and it was a good way to see the whole city. - it was very, very dense. And it was my first time seeing the Mediterean. It was beautiful - the word that kept coming to mind is azure. It seems to describe more than the unique color of blue water, but something a little more majestic.

After a little tour of the city, checking into the hotel (with a new roommate - woo hoo!) We headed out into the city for a drink. We ended up at this great lounge where a good time was had by all - I'm really getting to like some of the people in my group. Special little shout out to the Texas siblings, Susan and Walter, Patrick, Christine and Melanie and lots others.

The bad news is I only had one full day in Barcelona and a list of about 30 things I wanted to see. I knew it was going to be tough, but I gave it a shot. Just like the night before where I gave myself a shot. Or two. Plus a few mojitos. - but I was up with dawn to get going. Fine, I'll tell the truth, I got up at the crack of 9.

Since I had such a good time on the Paris bike tour, I decided to do it again here. The thing I wanted to see the absolute the most was the Sagrada Familia - I think Spain was on my list almost solely to see this. I could try to explain it, but my words would never do it justice. The fact that it still won't be done for another 20ish years and that the final spire will be twice as tall as any of the already built is ones is beyond imagination. Also, I learned how the city is crazy (and justifiably so) about Gaudi. My regret in Barcelona is that I didn't get a chance to see his house.

I saw lots of other sites, but besides the Sagrada Familia, the highlight was the beach. We stopped and had a drink seaside and it another one of those moments you have to do a reality check. And yes, it was also a topless beach. I would go into further detail, but this is (mostly) a family friendly blog. Well, at least sometimes.

Side note, one of the guys on the bike tour looked so much like my cousin's cousin, Steve, that I kept calling him that. Thanks for putting up with it "Anthony."

After the bike tour, "Anthony" and I wandered around a stumbled on the famous Boqueria market. I'm a proud Washingtonian and Seattlite, but even I have to admit that Pike Place market had nothing on this one. I have never seen such large, brightly colored fruit - it looked (and tasted) delicious. It was almost out of Willy Wonka. If I lived here, I'd be there everyday and twice on Sundays.

After the market, we headed to the Gaudi park the north hill of the city - Parc Guell. Can someone do me a favor and send me list of synonyms for "amazing." I feel like I use to ofter and I don't water down some of the things I've seen. It was an aesthetic dream - everything was a little dreamy. Absolutely beautiful. Not even the steep climb up there could infect the experience.

Overall, a perfect, if not a bit rushed day that ended very late with tapas in Las Rambla with Audrey, a few overly friendly Scottish and two cute Canadians.

Like Paris, I definitely wish I had more time. But maybe its better this way. The more time I had, the more I would have loved it and the more my heart would break as I left it.

Ola

So I've started my grand adventure. I packed everything up from my flat on Friday, shipped it off, and say goodbye to Bethnal Green. I should have been a little sad to leave London, but I was so excited to start my holiday, nothing could bring me down. I caught my flight to Frankfurt and it all went pretty uneventfully. Yeah, right. This is me - there's no such thing. I headed the right direction for my connecting flight to Madrid, but made wrong turn somewhere and ended up where I started, except I had to go through passport control (my favorite place) and they gave me a little trouble, although the guy was really friendly, because when I was deported from the UK in January, my place of origin was Frankfurt because I had connected through there from Chicago. Somehow, they were able to see all this by the way the stamp was placed on my passport. It wasn't too much hassle, I just feel like you get deported once and you are on the Interpol list for life. On the good side, I got the German stamp in my passport.

Flying into Madrid, I could already tell that Spain was a beautiful country. The soil seems redder and it looked much different than anything I've flown over before..

I have to admit, I didn't even bother with figuring out the public transportation and just got a taxi to the hotel. It's the first time in my travels and although it was so much easier and only 22 Euros, I feel less authentic and much more like a "Turisto."

Now, the moment of truth was about to avail itself - was doing a 13 day trip with a huge group of strangers a really good idea or was it a really, really bad idea? After checking in, I went to my room and my roommate was there, but dead to the world she was asleep. I tried to wake her politely, but no luck. So I went out and got something to eat. When I got back, she was stirring and I introduced myself. Unfortunately, she doesn't speak English. She's from Tijuana. I'm not quite sure how she ended up on this tour because all of the lit and the website are pretty clear that everything is English for the whole trip. I feel badly because not only can we not communicate, but all the instructions and information are English. And then she asked to borrow my hairbrush. At first I thought I wasn't understanding until she walked over and gestured for my brush in my hand. I was kind of shocked and just handed it to her. Some of the guys reading this might not think this a big deal, but girls are you with me on this one? Unless I am somehow related to you, we're good friends, or you're a famous movie star and I think I could sell any stray hairs on ebay, I'm not exactly excited about sharing my hairbrush with you.

This wasn't really how I hoped this trip would start.

Despite the unfortunate roommate situation, the rest of my group seems cool. It is mix of college kids and some older adults like me:-) It is also a mix of Americans, Canadians, Aussies and a few other countries represented. We had the first dinner together near the hotel and then went out to Club. And when I say club, I mean disco in a way I have never seen before. This place puts any NY or Chicago club to shame. It was 8 floors and it was pretty hard-core. The Spanish love to dance. I was particularly fond of the Spanish men dancing without their shirts.

It was a pretty late night but that didn't stop us from a really early start to go see the palace. It was pretty cool, but I'm a little castled/palaced out. You can only see so much extravagance without becoming a bit immune to it. After the palace, some of us headed to the mountains to see the valley of the cross. It was really, really beautiful and a bit intoxicating to breathe mountain air. It strangely reminded me of home and the Cascade mountains and the Nye cabin because there was so many pine trees, which I wouldn't have expected in Spain if I had ever given it a thought. The cross was huge, but the really amazing part was the cathedral below. It was actually built in the hollowed out rock. Think about three football stadiums inside the rock hallowed out to make the church. It was really, really beautiful - one of those things I would have missed if I was visiting on my own and glad I didn't miss it.

After returning from the mountains, we walked around the city a bit, although many things were closed because it was Sunday. One of the best parts was sitting outside on at a cafe having tapas and Sangria with some of my new friends Patrick and Christine. Many of you know that my favorite restaurant in Chicago is a tapas place, so it was a treat to be having the "real" thing in Spain. Yum - it was delicious, especially my favorites - the manchengo cheese and potatoes bravas.

The sangria and the sun did me in and I called it an early night. It was great to get a good night sleep in preparation for the long, long bus ride the next day.

Overall, I liked Madrid and my first taste of Spain. I would take a day or two and visit if you can fit it in your travel plans, but probably not make a whole trip of it by itself. Next entry - Barcelona. Teaser... Topless beach.

Mind the Gap

So my time in London is coming to a close. I should be packing up as I write this.

It has been an adventure. And a learning experience. And some fun. And lots of hard work.

I can't say I came without any expectations, but to be honest, I can't remember what they all were. I did expect to be spend a lot more time in pubs than I actually did, so although my social life was less than stellar, I am on very good terms with my liver...at the moment.

There are some things about London that I will really miss...

• The marketing team - Helen, Andrew, Bhav, Bruce, and sort of Paul - you made me laugh everyday and you put up with my "well, in the states, we do it like this..." every 20 or so minutes. Don't worry, they think I'm a know-it-all in the states as well. Most importantly, you taught me to swear properly. (Sorry for taking a piss at you Andrew instead of taking the piss out of you)


• Friends of friends - Budgie, Brad, Greg and Nicola, Laura - I met some really great people who took time out of their lives to keep me company and show me a bit of real London. Thanks!!


• The grocery stores - I don't know why, but I love British grocery stores, they're perfect for shopping for one.


• The accents - I'll never get tired of them and I can now tell the difference between an Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Aussie, Cockney, and regular London accent.


• The lady who did my nails and the one who helped me get to Ikea - the two nicest strangers I met in London


• The Tube (but it is also on the things I won't miss list) and double-decker buses - I like the signs telling you how long until the next train/bus, which is always just a few minutes because they come so often and seeing the city from the upper deck of the bus


• Spitalfields market - no particular reason, just loved it


• Being able to cross off "work in another country" on my life's TO DO list


• Proximity to the rest of Europe - and being able to visit places I have always said "someday" about


• Lots more - I'll add them as I think of them, probably once I get home and really get a chance to miss them

What I won't miss...

• The prices - Almost everything is 100% more expensive in London (except for allergy medicine). I never was able to just let go and stop converting everything to dollars. Don't even get me started on the cost of dry cleaning.


• The Tube in the morning and/or when it's warm outside - miserable


• The service - in restaurants it is pretty poor most of the time and in shops it is generally indifferent


• Mayonnaise/egg/onions in almost everything


• My tiny little kitchen and planning my life around getting my laundry done


• My less than full social diary

I would do it all over again, even if I couldn't change a thing. It has been a once in a lifetime opportunity. I am a very,very lucky girl.

-Michelle

P.S. So, what next? I'll be taking a real two week holiday for the first time in my life. I'm very, very excited. I'm doing a tour so that 1) I didn't have to plan squat and 2) I have other people to travel with - keep your fingers crossed for me that they're cool. So Saturday, I fly to Madrid and from there I head to Barcelona, Avignon, Nice/Monte Carlo, Pisa, Florence and then end in Rome before flying back to Chicago.

An American Girl in Paris (Part Deux)

Bonjour!

Paris. I had heard mixed reviews about it lately (maybe Carrie’s disappointment in the city unconsciously lowered my expectations), so I went back and forth deciding whether to go or not, but I finally decided that I would go and make up my mind for myself.

I apologize in advance for all the clichés to follow – I just can’t help myself. I’m just not conceited enough to think that I actually had any original thoughts about Paris as it is one of the most written about cities in history.

I LOVED Paris. It was beautiful. It was romantic. The shopping was amazing (but I refrained). The croissants were buttery and the coffee strong. The men were flattering and the women confident. The banks of the Seine were decked with Parisians drinking wine and enjoying the weather. The city itself was at its peak with bright, blue sunny weather – around 80F/26C. I don’t think I could have hand picked a more beautiful weekend to explore Paris.


And not one single Parisian was rude to me!

If you read my last entry, you might note that my first night didn’t start my weekend the way I had hoped. But that is the beauty of traveling, the misadventures make for the best stories. I survived the nasty hostel on Friday night - you can even say it was a good inspiration to get an early start on Saturday morning.

After leaving my bag on the bed and hoping that karma has already had her way with me and wasn’t going to find a reason to steal my stuff, I headed out. Mission 1 in Paris – Croissants. Those of you in London know that I have established a bit of an addiction to the beautiful croissant. Those of you at home might notice I look a little thicker in some pictures. Those two things are directly related. I swore that this weekend was going to be my last hurrah with my addiction – and boy did I hit rock bottom. On the way to the Eiffel tower, I had 3 (two butter, one chocolate for those interested in the details).

Mission 2 – The Eiffel tower. I had caught a peak of it on the way through some buildings as was initially a bit disappointed as all I could see was the top and it looked a bit like a really tall power line. Then I entered the Parc du Champs du Mars and saw it completely. On second look, it was pretty amazing, as is the park. The bottom half is immense. Anyone who says “it was no big deal” is unimpressable.

Anyone following this blog along knows that I love myself a tour. To recap – Cambridge – bus tour, Edinburgh – bus tour, Amsterdam – canal tour, Prague – walking tour., London - bus tour. So why would Paris be any different? But it seemed like too lovely of a day for a bus and there was too much to see to do it all on foot, so I decided a bike tour was the way to go. I have to say, it was a great call. I had a blast riding through the city. We had a great tour guide, Mike – relaxed with just enough history/anecdotes to make you feel as though you were learning about Paris, but not so much as to bore you to death with dates and landmarks. To be honest, I can’t list everything we saw as the French names of places all sound a bit the same to me, but that is completely my ignorance speaking. I ended up doing 2 bike tours that day – the day and the night one. They were both great and if you are visiting Paris, I recommend Fat Tire Bike Tours.

Between tours, I picked my things up from the hostel (and everything stayed intact) and moved to a hotel. The hotel seemed five-starred to me by comparison. I even had my very own shower in my room and the bed had sheets on it. Talk about the lap of luxury! After I dropped my bag off in my version of the Ritz, I headed out again with my book and ended up spending a couple of great hours just laying in the Parc du Champs du Mars (pictured to the right here), people watching, doing a little reading and napping. It was a perfect late Saturday afternoon in Paris. Oh, and I had a croissant. Yes, that made the grand total for the day 4. But I am officially off of them now and looking into programs (Helen can attest that I haven’t had one at work since!)

The bike tour Saturday night was spectacular. We saw Notre Dame and rode our bikes through the courtyard of the Louvre. That is one of those moments that you consciously log in your mind so as not to forget the feeling. I kept thinking “I’m in Paris, riding through the grounds of the Louvre on a beautiful spring night – don’t ever forget this feeling.” It was almost as good as riding down the Champs-Elysées and seeing the Eiffel tower at night with its twinkling lights through the trees. It was truly magnificent and I’m incredibly lucky to be seeing and doing all of this. I don’t take it for granted for a second.

I was a bit sore on Sunday morning saying I had spend about 8 hours on a bike the day before, but I had more missions! The Louvre was yet to be conquered, and sadly, I barely made a dent. I saw some of the mandatory stuff, but I was really most impressed by the ceilings. They’re amazing! Without a single piece of additional art, the ceilings could be the whole experience and still not disappoint.

But it was Paris and I couldn’t hang out in just one place, so the next stop was Sainte Chappelle – the church built to house the crown of thorns. It has floor to 100 ft ceiling of stained glass depicting 1000’s of biblical stories. I have never seen light like it indoors.

Then, it was sadly time to get back on the Metro, pick up my bags, and head to the train station. I thought I could do a lot in a weekend, but next I go back, I will spend a week. There is just so much to see. And to really enjoy Paris, you really have to spend some time not doing anything but watching the world go by.

I’ll have to say is if you ever had the thought “I think I would like Paris” then GO!


P.S. The batteries died on my camera the first half of the trip, so some of the pics in this entry I stole from Flickr, but all the ones in the slide show above are mine.