For fall break my wonderful family came out to visit me! My dad met me in Athens and he tried a gyro and some fresh fruit from the farmers market and some treats from my favorite bakery. We met my mom and my sister in Paris. We were staying at an apartment a block away from Notre Dame. I finally got to see Notre Dame at night which was very cool.
The next morning we went to visit my dad's friend who lives in Orleans and he and his wife took us to tour several castles in southern France. We visited Chambord and Chenonceux. Unfortunately it was raining but it added a medieval feel to the castle visits. The castles were gorgeous and the grass was so green. The unfortunate part of Athens is that hardly anything is green so I got pretty excited arriving to fall weather in France and seeing trees and green grass in southern france.
After a wonderful day with my father's friend in southern France we headed back up to Paris. We walked along the Champs Elysees and I got to see the Arc de Triomphe again. I also stopped in the Shakespeare and Company Bookstore and ran into an old friend from high school who happened to be study abroad in France for the semester! It's a small world after all:)
After one last dinner in Paris we headed out to Florence. We ran into quite a few problems at the airport with our flight and ended up spending about 10 hours waiting at the airport. We arrived in Florence pretty late the next day so we waited to start our Florence adventures until the following morning. Our apartment in Florence was amazing and very close to everything we wanted to see. We toured the Santa Maria and Duomo, and found a wonderful street art vendor who I purchased several sketches from. After that we tried out some recommended food places from my friend who previously studied abroad in Florence. We ate at this delicious panini place and tried gelato from three different stores. We learned about the differences between real and fake gelato. The stores with the big mountains of gelato are fake because they make the gelato with too much air, also, the gelato flavor should only last for 10 seconds in your mouth! Otherwise it is made with extra added flavors. For dinner we ate at a delicious pizza place that more locals eat at and it was the best pizza I have had! We also toured the Pitti Palace and saw tons of beautiful artwork. After taking my art history class in Greece I could point out the differences between Greek and Roman artwork. It was fun to be able to apply what I learned in class to what we were seeing! I also ran into my friend Nikki who is also on the program with me but was touring with her family. We didn't know we were going to be in Florence on the same day so I had another small world moment:) We also window shopped down Palazzo Vecchio.
The next day we went to tour Sante Croce and saw where Michelangelo, Enrico Fermi, and Galileo were buried. Then we went to the Leather School of Florence which is actually attached to the church. Many movie stars buy their leather there and their pictures line the walls. I also got to watch them imprint gold leaf onto the leather which was very cool. After shopping there we continued walking around and shopping in Florence. The city is a beautiful place and it is so much fun to see all the different Palazzo's and crowds of people around the statues and fountains. After a lovely day of shopping and relaxing we head to Palazzo Michelangelo to watch the sunset and enjoy some live music. Then, we ate at a small restaurant and tried some delicious appetizers and pizza's.
The next morning my family dropped me off in Rome at my new apartment but not before trying another Italian restaurant.
This weekend has been an orientation weekend for me with lots of walking tours and meeting some of my professors. We had an Italian crash course to get us started and enjoyed a guided walking tour of some of Rome's center city highlights.
This morning we attended the Papal Mass. It was the only one occurring while we were in Rome and I felt like an Italian experience I could not miss. We caught the bus at 5:30 am and got dropped off right in front of the Vatican/St. Peter's Basilica. We were some of the first in line and had to deal with some aggressive nun's (beware, they will push you and run in order to see the Pope). We also ran into a student from St. Thomas who was in the seminary program in Rome. He filled us in on how to get the best seats. I almost got shut into the side of the Vatican when I tried to use the rest room. The nice guard outside told me to go right in but the guards inside wanted to shut the doors so as I was walking out of the bathroom they were shutting the big gates and I ran out just in time. The mass was 2 hours and mostly in Latin. I was probably 3 feet or less from the Pope when he came down the aisle. The basilica was beautiful and the choir singers were amazing. It was a very cool Rome experience that I will always remember.
That is all for now!
Check out our group blog: http://beyondcsbsju.wordpress.com/
The next morning we went to visit my dad's friend who lives in Orleans and he and his wife took us to tour several castles in southern France. We visited Chambord and Chenonceux. Unfortunately it was raining but it added a medieval feel to the castle visits. The castles were gorgeous and the grass was so green. The unfortunate part of Athens is that hardly anything is green so I got pretty excited arriving to fall weather in France and seeing trees and green grass in southern france.
Chenonceux Castle
After a wonderful day with my father's friend in southern France we headed back up to Paris. We walked along the Champs Elysees and I got to see the Arc de Triomphe again. I also stopped in the Shakespeare and Company Bookstore and ran into an old friend from high school who happened to be study abroad in France for the semester! It's a small world after all:)
After one last dinner in Paris we headed out to Florence. We ran into quite a few problems at the airport with our flight and ended up spending about 10 hours waiting at the airport. We arrived in Florence pretty late the next day so we waited to start our Florence adventures until the following morning. Our apartment in Florence was amazing and very close to everything we wanted to see. We toured the Santa Maria and Duomo, and found a wonderful street art vendor who I purchased several sketches from. After that we tried out some recommended food places from my friend who previously studied abroad in Florence. We ate at this delicious panini place and tried gelato from three different stores. We learned about the differences between real and fake gelato. The stores with the big mountains of gelato are fake because they make the gelato with too much air, also, the gelato flavor should only last for 10 seconds in your mouth! Otherwise it is made with extra added flavors. For dinner we ate at a delicious pizza place that more locals eat at and it was the best pizza I have had! We also toured the Pitti Palace and saw tons of beautiful artwork. After taking my art history class in Greece I could point out the differences between Greek and Roman artwork. It was fun to be able to apply what I learned in class to what we were seeing! I also ran into my friend Nikki who is also on the program with me but was touring with her family. We didn't know we were going to be in Florence on the same day so I had another small world moment:) We also window shopped down Palazzo Vecchio.
The next day we went to tour Sante Croce and saw where Michelangelo, Enrico Fermi, and Galileo were buried. Then we went to the Leather School of Florence which is actually attached to the church. Many movie stars buy their leather there and their pictures line the walls. I also got to watch them imprint gold leaf onto the leather which was very cool. After shopping there we continued walking around and shopping in Florence. The city is a beautiful place and it is so much fun to see all the different Palazzo's and crowds of people around the statues and fountains. After a lovely day of shopping and relaxing we head to Palazzo Michelangelo to watch the sunset and enjoy some live music. Then, we ate at a small restaurant and tried some delicious appetizers and pizza's.
Santa Maria and Duomo
The next morning my family dropped me off in Rome at my new apartment but not before trying another Italian restaurant.
This weekend has been an orientation weekend for me with lots of walking tours and meeting some of my professors. We had an Italian crash course to get us started and enjoyed a guided walking tour of some of Rome's center city highlights.
Trevi Fountain
This morning we attended the Papal Mass. It was the only one occurring while we were in Rome and I felt like an Italian experience I could not miss. We caught the bus at 5:30 am and got dropped off right in front of the Vatican/St. Peter's Basilica. We were some of the first in line and had to deal with some aggressive nun's (beware, they will push you and run in order to see the Pope). We also ran into a student from St. Thomas who was in the seminary program in Rome. He filled us in on how to get the best seats. I almost got shut into the side of the Vatican when I tried to use the rest room. The nice guard outside told me to go right in but the guards inside wanted to shut the doors so as I was walking out of the bathroom they were shutting the big gates and I ran out just in time. The mass was 2 hours and mostly in Latin. I was probably 3 feet or less from the Pope when he came down the aisle. The basilica was beautiful and the choir singers were amazing. It was a very cool Rome experience that I will always remember.
That is all for now!
Check out our group blog: http://beyondcsbsju.wordpress.com/
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