Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre, which literally translates to "Five Lands", is five seaside towns on the coast of northern Italy, linked together by hiking trails. Each of the five towns are different from one another, some more picturesque and some with more things to do.  I stayed in Vernazza, the slightly smaller but more picturesque version of Monterosso, the most northern town with sprawling beaches. We stayed in a lovely little hotel right on the port with an ocean view and spent our days hiking the trails, trying all the recommended restaurants and pizzerias, and laying around on the beach. It was incredibly relaxing. Most people do Cinque Terre in a day trip but you can definitely spend a whole weekend there. We really only saw two of the towns out of the five, and spent a whole day in Levanto, the town above Monterosso, which is not one of the five, because there were rumors that you could surf there. We found no waves so instead picked a beach-front cafe and burned the day away aimlessly. I hope to go back before I leave, at least for a day, to see the pastel buildings clumped together spilling into the sea.

Albergo Barbara  - Our hotel in Vernazza

It happened. This means I'm fluent in Italian now right?

Now you're probably thinking I had my first dream in Italian which language-teacher-legend tells is the first sign that you are fluent in a language. Sadly, this is not the case. It will take years for this to happen I am guessing, but today something extraordinary happened, marking at least a small progression of my Italian since I arrived in Florence until now.

I understood a conversation that was not directed to me and between two Italians who had no idea I understood what they were saying. Unfortunately, the conversation consisted of one older woman telling the woman we were buying flowers from how strange we looked. Give me a break, I had just gotten off a fourteen hour bus back from Croatia. When we started laughing she asked us in Italian if we understood what she was saying. And we answered in Italian that yes we did, and that we spoke a little Italian. She laughed, told the florist she would come back, and wandered off. The florist apologized but I was more excited that I actually understood the conversation than offended that she had said I looked strange... because honestly, I did.

Adventuring in Croatia

 white water rafting the Cetina river

Easter weekend in Croatia was a wonderful relief from the pressure to go see every castle, museum, and significant statue. Staying in the quaint yet elegant marble paved city of Split, we took a boat cruise to the islands, went white water rafting, and went hiking in the Krka National Park. The boat cruise took us several miniature islands, which we jumped off the deck of the boat to swim to. We explored the beaches and got gelato, then napped on the deck on the way home. The next day we went rafting down the Cetina river, which weaves through magnificent, lush, green mountains rising steeply up from either side of the clear water. 

 path through the marsh-like, waterfall-filled Kyrka national park

The last day we ventured to Kyrka where wooden ramped paths lead you through overgrown ponds and cascading waterfalls to an outdoor, picnic-benched restaurant serving up heavenly food and large mugs of beer. Though the fourteen hour bus ride home to Florence in traffic wasn't ideal, the undiscovered beauty of Croatia was well worth the travel time. 

marble paved square in Split

I traveled to Croatia with Bus2Alps program. They have many great trips and provide transportation, hotel/hostel, breakfast, and travel information and guides!

A Brief Thought on Why to Go Abroad

I have always called myself geographically challenged. And I do not wish to offend anyone by using that word, because I mean it seriously and about myself and how I used to imagine the world in my head. I'll prove it: I had the east coast down, and I knew where California and Texas were, and everything in the middle was just mushed together.

In Europe, I knew where the UK was, that France was on top of Spain, which was on next to Portugal (note: the original text of this blog read, "...Spain which was on top of Portugal", point made) and that Italy was somewhere east of all those, and that everything else was just mushed in between and above.

At this point I am seriously considering why I am about to publish this online...

A few months ago my most feared role on road trips was "navigator" but now it feels like I am always the one with the map and can always find my way. I had no idea what Prague was and now I have been there and would go back for an entire semester if I had the chance. I had no inkling of an urge to ever go to Croatia and I am dying to go back and be in the beautiful mountains again. In Florence, I can find my way home from anywhere and tell you the directions to the Arno, the Ponte Vecchio, the Duomo, San Lorenzo, the Uffizi, Academia, and Santa Croce.

       

I guess I am getting to the point where people keep asking me, should I go abroad? I just hope that this serves as a small example of just one of the ways you are forced to grow up by throwing yourself into another country for a semester. 

Memories of Prague

 Old Town Square, the center of the historic district of the city where the infamous planetary clock is.

From my first rooftop view of the city of Prague sprawled out before me, I am fascinated. It is like nothing I have ever seen before. The Gothic towers and Baroque Churches dominate the cityscape giving the city the feel of being ominously beautiful. The ancient stone buildings rise up from the cobblestoned streets and culminate in steely-grey, spiked roofs or ornately decorated domes. Cold, sleek buildings from the Communist era share walls with their earlier baroque survivors creating an incredibly rich portrait of the city's history right before ones eyes. It seems there is too much history to learn about the city in a weekend, I could find out new things about the cobblestones I am standing on every day for a semester and never hear enough. Part of me wants to follow around all the walking tours I can and shove as much into my head as possible and the other part of me just wants to get lost and find my own way. 

 roasted pork knees and neck are a specialty in Prague and Eastern Europe

Savory scents and smokey gusts drift from the multiple food vendors set up in cabin-like wood stations selling an array of traditional Eastern European delicacies. I stop for a delicious plate of roasted potatoes, cabbage, sauerkraut, brats, and cheese for a cheap lunch and wander on through the streets sparkling with garnets and crystals from the shop window. I can’t seem to put my camera down, I just want to capture everything, but it never seems to look as good on my tiny screen, so eventually I give up and pay full attention to what is in front of me.

Charles Bridge

note: my profile picture to the right is also taken in Prague, in front of John Lennon's wall, a civilian-made memorial in honor of the assassinated Beatles singer.  It is constantly changing with new works of art and messages of love.

Hotel Sax, our slightly-more-upscale-than-usual hotel that we stayed in located in Old Town

rumor has it, Munich has the best pretzels in the world...

these are from Prague, so if they can get better than this I may never leave Munich.

A Lack of Color

a response to the question of "greenery in Florence"

Cream, yellow, burnt-orange, off-white, brown. Where is the green? I can’t find the green. Where are the trees? There are no trees. There are no lawns. There are no parks. I’ve heard of some parks. But I can’t find them. They must exist. Somewhere. I just want a place to sit and read my book or bring a sandwich or rest during a run that isn’t concrete or pavement or a bench looking out on nothing but cream, yellow, burnt-orange, off-white, and brown.

           

I only know of once place where there is certain to be green but you have to pay to see it. We wanted to bring a picnic to the Boboli Gardens and finally enjoy an afternoon surrounded by greenery. No food was allowed, we ate our pizza on the sloping pavement outside. Why is there all this pavement with people laying, and eating, and kissing, and drinking on it like it is a rolling lawn? That can’t be comfortable. Tried to go in again, no wine allowed. We drank our wine on the pavement. Why are there so many rules surrounding the one bit of green in the entire city? I just wanted a nice picnic. At least we got to play chess in the grass. Little pink and purple flowers were sprouting up from the lawn. Finally, a sense of spring.

Trattoria 4 Leone

I've found my favorite restaurant. Nestled into a piazza in the Oltrano, 4 Leone has spilled out its doors in an array of white umbrellas and manicured green bushes to celebrate the arrival of warm weather. I went my second night in Florence and ate on a budget. I went when my parents were here and ate everything. I went when my friend's family was here and reminded myself of what a wonderful place it is.

This ambiance is cozy and Italian with its low arched, stucco ceiling, yet modern with its turquoise walls and fancy dish presentation. The food is phenomenal. The salads, the Ribolita (traditional Tuscan vegetable and bread soup), the pastas, the meats, the fishes, and last but far from least, the desserts, everything I have tried has been outstanding. The menu is only in Italian but the wait staff speaks pretty good English so they are helpful in translating. Or, you can just learn Italian.

I recommend trying...

• Pecorino cheese selection with honey ("Pecorini misti"),

• The 4 Leone salad which has arugula, pine nuts, swiss cheese, avocado, and a pesto dressing ( "Insalata 4 Leoni: avocado, rucola, emmenthal, pinoli e pesto di rucola"),
• Large tortellini with pears and cheese inside and a light cream sauce with asparagus ("Fiocchetti di pera in salsa di taleggio e asparagi"),
• Cheesecake with wildberries ("Cheese cake di Maurino ai frutti di bosco")

The Seach for Peanut Butter

Peanut butter is another one of those staple American foods. PB&J's, peanut butter and celery, peanut butter and bananas, peanut butter and apples, Reese's peanut butter cups, the list goes on...

I arrived in Italy and immediately began craving one of my favorite snacks, apples and peanut butter. Alas, there was none to be found besides a teensy jar of Skippy Creamy for 5 euros at the grocery store. However, for us chocolate lovers the good news is Nutella is the peanut butter equivalent here in Italy and most of Western Europe. However, Nutella and apples? I don't know...