In the past month or so I have been to 6 countries and 11 cities (that is if you count a camp in the Sahara as a city). I would like to give you a little view into what my trip was like.
First stop: Venice
Ashley, bestie, came to Bologna for a few days before we set off on our adventure. Our first stop was Venice and my friend from SAIS, Brian, joined us. It was a foggy, cold day in Venice, but we tried to make the most of it. We walked across the Rialto Bridge, strode alongside the famous canals, hung around in Piazza San Marco, and ended our day with a weird dinner at a creepy little restaurant. The three of us then made our way to the train station to meet up with Matt and Caitlin, the remaining of our travelling five-some.
NEXT! Vienna
A major part of the trip to Vienna was the actual transportation to Vienna: the overnight train, a 7 hour long ride in a tiny cabin with 6 beds and 1 stranger. We made the best of it and arrived in Vienna safely, though some of us (me) were a little grumpy. We spent our time in Vienna well bundled and well fed. It was a little rainy and very cold the whole time we were there, but for every hour spent outside in the lovely Christmas markets, we made it up to ourselves with Schnitzel: God's delicious breaded pork gift to earth. We saw Stephansplatz, the Hofburg Palace, the Belvedere Palace, the Opera House, and many other beautiful sights. We spent Christmas in Vienna and for Christmas Eve dinner we made ourselves a feast and invited a couple friends over who were in Vienna as well. We ate, drank, and were merry. In the morning (if we consider 11:30 AM the morning), per tradition, I blasted Mario Lanza's Joy to the World and Christmas day began. We each exchanged 1 gift to 1 other person then, exhausted, we took a nap. It was a tough day.
NEXT! Prague
Early the 26th we took a train to Prague. Prague is a wonderful land full of castles and beer and royal crowns and potato pancakes. Our group had a fun time exploring the Czech streets stopping every once in a while to have a beer and some meat or to pop into a castle. At one castle, we were even crowned Kings and Queens of Prague. It was an honor that we bestowed upon ourselves. We deserved it and everyone knew it. From Prague, we headed back to Bologna where we said goodbye to dear Ashley, our esteemed travel and food guide. Thank goodness for her 7 page itinerary.
NEXT! Budapest
After a day in Bologna I was off again to meet up with Brian in Budapest. Budapest had its fair share of castles, too. The city is divided into two sections: Buda and Pest (clever). Pest was the bumpin' side and the area in which we stayed, Buda is home to a large castle on top of a hill with a lovely view of the city. For New Years Eve we met up with 2 other SAIS students and had a delicious meal with flowing wine. We waited until a few minutes before midnight to avoid the cold before we ran out into the streets and rang in the new year. We found a square with lots of people and a band playing on a pretty elaborate stage. We had the traditional Hungarian shot (probably not traditional) and hot wine (maybe traditional?) and started our own 4 person dance party. Hungarians: not impressed. Random Serbians: kind of impressed, but actually just wanted us to take a picture of them and then make fun of us. All in all- successful night! The next day we had Burger King.
NEXT! Bologna/Ravenna
There were 2-3 weeks of very long stressful hours of studying and finals, until one glorious day when they were done and, magically, Vic and Wendy arrived. Mom, Dad, and I spent a few days in Bologna where I showed them around to all the hot spots. We took a day trip to Ravenna, southeast of Bologna, where we saw lots of churches with really old mosaics. They were neat.
NEXT! Paris
If I hadn't had my fill of overnight trains, I got it! Because of the snow, our flights to Paris were messed up and we ended up deciding to take the overnight train from Bologna to Paris. A 12 hour ride this time, with a smaller room, but only 3 beds and 0 strangers. All would have gone swimmingly had the middle bed not fallen and hit me right on the head. BUT I survived! and we made it to Paris, though some of us (me) were a little grumpy. We visited all the good spots: the Louvre, l'Orangerie, the Concorde Ferris Wheel, Saint Chapelle, and lots of cafes with lots of wine. It was the perfect post finals vacation with the perfect company.
NEXT! Morocco... to be continued.
First stop: Venice
Ashley, bestie, came to Bologna for a few days before we set off on our adventure. Our first stop was Venice and my friend from SAIS, Brian, joined us. It was a foggy, cold day in Venice, but we tried to make the most of it. We walked across the Rialto Bridge, strode alongside the famous canals, hung around in Piazza San Marco, and ended our day with a weird dinner at a creepy little restaurant. The three of us then made our way to the train station to meet up with Matt and Caitlin, the remaining of our travelling five-some.
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| Ashley and Anika in Piazza San Marco |
NEXT! Vienna
A major part of the trip to Vienna was the actual transportation to Vienna: the overnight train, a 7 hour long ride in a tiny cabin with 6 beds and 1 stranger. We made the best of it and arrived in Vienna safely, though some of us (me) were a little grumpy. We spent our time in Vienna well bundled and well fed. It was a little rainy and very cold the whole time we were there, but for every hour spent outside in the lovely Christmas markets, we made it up to ourselves with Schnitzel: God's delicious breaded pork gift to earth. We saw Stephansplatz, the Hofburg Palace, the Belvedere Palace, the Opera House, and many other beautiful sights. We spent Christmas in Vienna and for Christmas Eve dinner we made ourselves a feast and invited a couple friends over who were in Vienna as well. We ate, drank, and were merry. In the morning (if we consider 11:30 AM the morning), per tradition, I blasted Mario Lanza's Joy to the World and Christmas day began. We each exchanged 1 gift to 1 other person then, exhausted, we took a nap. It was a tough day.
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| Ashley, Caitlin, and Anika at a Vienna Christmas Market |
NEXT! Prague
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| Ashley, Anika, Matt, Brian, Caitlin Kings and Queens of Prague |
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| Prague- Old Town Square |
NEXT! Budapest
After a day in Bologna I was off again to meet up with Brian in Budapest. Budapest had its fair share of castles, too. The city is divided into two sections: Buda and Pest (clever). Pest was the bumpin' side and the area in which we stayed, Buda is home to a large castle on top of a hill with a lovely view of the city. For New Years Eve we met up with 2 other SAIS students and had a delicious meal with flowing wine. We waited until a few minutes before midnight to avoid the cold before we ran out into the streets and rang in the new year. We found a square with lots of people and a band playing on a pretty elaborate stage. We had the traditional Hungarian shot (probably not traditional) and hot wine (maybe traditional?) and started our own 4 person dance party. Hungarians: not impressed. Random Serbians: kind of impressed, but actually just wanted us to take a picture of them and then make fun of us. All in all- successful night! The next day we had Burger King.
.JPG) |
| Budapest view from Buda |
NEXT! Bologna/Ravenna
There were 2-3 weeks of very long stressful hours of studying and finals, until one glorious day when they were done and, magically, Vic and Wendy arrived. Mom, Dad, and I spent a few days in Bologna where I showed them around to all the hot spots. We took a day trip to Ravenna, southeast of Bologna, where we saw lots of churches with really old mosaics. They were neat.
NEXT! Paris
If I hadn't had my fill of overnight trains, I got it! Because of the snow, our flights to Paris were messed up and we ended up deciding to take the overnight train from Bologna to Paris. A 12 hour ride this time, with a smaller room, but only 3 beds and 0 strangers. All would have gone swimmingly had the middle bed not fallen and hit me right on the head. BUT I survived! and we made it to Paris, though some of us (me) were a little grumpy. We visited all the good spots: the Louvre, l'Orangerie, the Concorde Ferris Wheel, Saint Chapelle, and lots of cafes with lots of wine. It was the perfect post finals vacation with the perfect company.
.JPG) |
| Vic and Wendy on the Concorde Ferris Wheel |
