Arrivederci, Italia!
Over April Vacation I traveled to Italy with my school. The flight was a beast, followed shortly by another lengthy drive. However, all of this was worth it.
Allow me to take you on a journey to Italy. Surrounding you are buildings that date back to Ancient times, the Renaissance, or even more recent. Traffic is like a war raged between high speeding vehicles, and you see more scooters parked along the streets than SUVs or trucks. When walking down a one-way alley, the constant chorus of bicycle bells ring in the air, warning pedestrians of who's coming up from behind.
The currency is Euros, which are worth more than dollars (one euro = 1.45 dollars). There are Libyan immigrants everywhere, trying to escape their country's political issues
by selling knock off designer bags or cheap sunglasses to naive tourists. Everyone is tall and lean in Italy, and graced with Chanel and Gucci clothes. The majority of the little shops along the streets are either these designer brands, pizzerias, or gelaterias! This is Italian culture for you.
My journey began on Thursday, April 14th when I left for Logan Airport with Profile School. The van ride down I93 passed by quickly, but the first plane ride did not. Seven hours of being glued to one seat, breathing air that was already used by those around you, and having the back of the someone else's seat in your lap. Oh yes, fun. Luckily there was a monitor on the back of these seats, so passengers could watch as many of the latest Hollywood movies as they liked. We were saw the sun set, and the sun rise. We ate breakfast three hours after dinner, and landed in Frankfurt, Germany at about 9am European time (which is six hours ahead of US Eastern time).
After passing through Customs and Security, we perambulated to our next gate, to the airplane that would carry us to Milan. While waiting, I passed a VW beetle add and bought a kinderegg! It's basically a chocolate egg with a plastic yolk on the inside, and in the yolk is a little toy!
Finally, on the next plane I was so happy to be sitting next to my friend, Mary Pearl. (Don't I look gorgeous? Comfort is key on any sky ride!)
Mary Pearl and I were amazed by the sites we saw from the window. As we passed into Italy, we flew over the Swiss Alps!
After finally landing, we met our tour guide- Alescio- boarded a tripped Italian 70s decor coach bus (no joke), and headed three hours south to Pisa! (Apparently every Italian- aside from Pisa residents- despises this region and those from it...Oh yes, they're big into their hometowns. Italy only became unified 150 years ago!) In the following photos it's easy to tell we had just hopped off a plane, were over-tired, and quite goofy. (My friend in this photos is Katelyn, who was also one of my roommates.)
And then we drove through the Italian countryside to Florence where we visited a leather shop, admired the sights, and went on our own. My friends and I ate at an Italian restaurant AND SURVIVED!
We also visited a beautiful river with locks hanging along the sidewalk. Apparently couples all over Europe secure a lock to the chain and throw the key in the river. Aww!
