Catching Up

I'm really bummed that I haven't been able to blog lately as much as I've wanted to. I'm sorry. It's been difficult to find time to blog about the many things I try to remember to write about each day...mainly because it's been difficult to find the time to sit down in front of the computer and type out my day's oddities. Some days I just fall asleep too tired to type, and other days I have no internet access. Throughout the past couple of days, it has been the latter...I.ve been limited by the number of minutes I can purchase for Internet access. But I've had an amazing time nonetheless.

So let me start with Rome. Rome wasn't built in a day. But if you speed walk through it like my travel friend, Matt, you can see all of its main sights in a day. We got up early to beat the lines at the Vatican - that's right, if you get there by 8:30am, you can practically walk through St. Peter's Basilica in 30 minutes. There's hardly a line at the Vatican, but about an hour later, there's a 2-hour long wait. At St. Peter's, the one massive entrance line breaks up into two...I recommend waiting in the Cupola line. We went to the Pope's tombs which was shorter -- but we realized what we missed later on when we got back to my aunt's. Go see the Cupola instead.

St. Peter's Basilica was by far one of the most awe-inducing structures Rome has to offer, with the Pantheon and the Coliseum coming in close behind. All of the ruins and churches scattered throughout the walk are pretty cool, and the fountains - like the Trevi - are definitely a must see throughout your walk. Rome was filthy with graffitti though, on pretty much every corner you could see. So I have to say, it was the carpaccio topped with Arugula (thanks Max!), pizza, and gelato that definitely made Italy. Mui gratzie again to Tita Chato and Uncle Max.

By

 the way, something worth mentioning (at least I think) was the first haircut I've given a guy ever...in Rome. I've n

ever actually cut a dude's hair before, and Matt - after several weeks of growing it out and not wanting to go to a Barbiero in Italy - let me try to cut his hair. I tried my best (I channeled you, Bridget!)...but it's slightly uneven. haha...

My favorite destination so far on this trip though was Cinque Terre. The five towns has by far been one of the most wonderful vacations ever. After taking the train (and odd 1 hour detour bus) from Rome to La Spezia and then running to catch a smaller train to Monterrosso and then walking a really hot hike with suitcases to the main road to our hotel (Hotel Margherita, which was awesome, by the way), this "5 town" stop was absolutely amazing. These tiny towns are beautiful Italian mini-villages scattered among some of the breath-taking cliff sides of Italy. They are absolutely adorable...and they house some of the BEST food ever. The pesto, pizza, and gelato (Stracciatella, Nutella, Chocolat, Caffe, Pistachio, Menthe, Hazelnut, Biscotti, Panna Cotta, Creme de Caramel, Coconut flavors; as well as Lime sorbet) here are to die for. So is the cobalt blue ocean --- which I very luckily got to experience by chartered boat. Thanks to Matt's amazing friends, Molly and Nick, Cinque Terre became an unforgettable vacation. Swimming in the Mediterranean, sailing the open seas, shopping for necklaces, eating fresh mussels (and other seafoods too!), drinking Italian wine, and feasting on fresh foccacia and pasta...will be some of my best memories ever... Of course, so will almost drowning in the Mediterranean because I couldn't put my snorkel gear together right; running to the ferry with half-pedicured toe nails because at one point I had to drop everything at a moment's notice; and being called "Big Head" by our chartered boat captain because he had to readjust my goggles 20x. Gratzie Italia!!

More catching up... So after Italy, Matt and I took the night train to Rome. It was kind of sad to waste a day waiting for vairous trains, trying to explore La Spezia and Parma. If you ever have a choice to do this, you shouldn't make these spots on your Italian tour if you can avoid it (unless Parma has something REALLY interesting going on). Parma can be a cute town, but it's totally skippable if you have a choice. So is the night train. (Seriously, just fly or take a faster train instead.) A 6-bunk car with a non-working air conditioner is just gross. Trust me, gross. (Especially when some of your flat mates don't culturally accept deodorant in the middle of summer.) It wasn't the best experience, but after talking myself out of hyperventilation and just falling asleep because I was so exhausted from thinking about the whole situation, I survived...(barely).

I'm in Paris now. Ahh Paris. Speed walking again through Paris, Matt and I have covered some serious ground. We've seen the Opera House, the Madeline, the Oblisek, Lauderee (a famous macaroon patisserie; where I of course accidentally swatted the first macaroon we bought out of Matt's hand and wasted 1 euro outside of the next door neighbor's store, Patek Philippe, because they didn't like us taking pictures on the sidewalk), the Champ Elysees, the Arc de Triumph (284 winding steps to the top without a lift!), the Trocadero, the Eiffel Tower, and the Champ de Mars (all 1st day); we've explored Montemarte - Sacre Coeur, the Moulin Rouge (actually not that exciting), the Amelie restaurant [where I had the best brunch ever, by the way!], the Jardin des Tuileries, the Concorde, and a little bit of the 16th district (great seafood dinner at Vin al Mar...thanks for the alcohol-bathed cherries on the house!). Everything was pretty cool to see minus the Jardins I was at today. Someone came up to me wanting to practice his English in a 5 minute conversation. I thought it might be okay until he said he would exchange a fit ("foot") massage for practicing his English. [Really, I don't understand why these quite random things always happen to me, even internationally!] So France, the EIffel Tower light show was great; your escargot was good, lobster was better, and chocolate souffle & rum soaked cake was amazing. I might come back.

So far on this amazing trip, one of the things I have to say that I truly realize is that life is like a handful of sand. If you try to hold on to it too tight, it will slip through your fingers, but if you enjoy it in the palm of your hand, loosely but gently, it can be amazing in the moment. Cliche but true.

Tomorrow I'm headed to the Louve and the Pompideau. Mona Lisa, here I come...

(PS...more images to come. I just ran out of wifi.)