Monday: Returning to Amsterdam felt like coming home. It was nice to be able to start and finish the trip in the same city. And of course, see Paul, Kitty and Laurien again. What was especially nice about being back, was simply being able to slow down a bit.
Tuesday we were able to visit our favorite bagel shop, oh how we missed bagels! We did some shopping, a whole bunch of walking, and we even passed our favorite ice cream shop 5 times before realizing where it was, just in time to see them lock up for the day. At least we knew exactly where to go on Wednesday!
The weather was a bit gloomy, but cool and fresh! We were extremely lucky with the weather on this trip. It only rained once when we were first in Amsterdam, but we were in a car. It then rained when we were in the Naples airport. Not bad!
Tori was extremely enthusiastic about the clean feeling of the air in Amsterdam compared to the hot humid air in the south. I find Amsterdam to be really clean compared to most cities I have visited. The air quality seems pretty good too. I would guess the bicycle to car ratio is a major contributor.Wednesday: Our last full day in Europe : ( All good things must come to an end… We looked into changing our flights in attempt to keep the fun going, but it would have been mucho $$$$. I really want to visit my sister, Farin, in Romania, but I guess I’ll have to wait.
The weather was gorgeous. We enjoyed our final day strolling around the city. We got our favorite ice cream : ) And to enjoy the sunshine, just like our first day of the trip, we went to Vondelpark. Our dinner with Paul, Kitty and Laurien was at a Thai restaurant located in the Red Light District. Great food, interesting location, but hey that’s Amsterdam!
Thursday: The final day came & Paul was nice to drive us to Schiphol Airport for our flight home. We had been on the go for so long, that it didn’t really feel like we were going home, just moving on to another city. Reality hit us when the flight took off for Washington. It was a bit emotional, but at least there were a few things to look forward to when I got home: the US dollar, my Kodi Dog, mi familia, and of course, dryer sheets!
I’m not sure how I can possibly go about writing a conclusion to this trip… so, I’ll pass the torch over to Tori for that one… the English major ; )- M
I don't think there really are words to explain what we have experienced for the past 31 days! The blog surfaces the daily life we have had & really serves as a journal to look back on years from now. What I can say is that this trip (and traveling, in general) will remain an unforgettable memory that changed us for the better. If the opportunity presents itself, you simply must take it.
With that said, I want to thank my parents for their love & support on this journey, and instilling in me the desire to travel since I was a small child. Their enthusiasm for experiencing the world is truly a gift in itself.
I also want to thank someone who made this dream a reality for me. My goal after graduation was always to travel [somewhere] abroad, and I was blessed by my Uncle Bernard to pursue this endevour. I cannot quite explain my gratitude for this life changing experience; it brings me to tears. This was the best time of my life, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart!
- T
~though the journey may end, the memories will live on forever~
Thursday: From Roma we took an early train to Napoli and then the metro (creatively called "circumvesuvia" because it runs around the infamous volcano) to a little town called Piano di Sorrento. We officially started our weekend of "luxury" in the beautiful southern coast of Italia! Our place was wonderful (our main man, Francesco was super helpful) and we were located right outside the touristy town of Sorrento, which was a great location. We quickly unpacked & headed right for the beach, which was a cove surrounded by cliffs with crystal clear water (I believe I was so happy I was skipping all the way there :) We spent the evening in Piano & were pretty much the only tourists there which was actually quite nice.
Being in a local town, almost alien to tourists you discover intersting things. For example, Francesco confirmed that the official Italian language is a fairly recent phenomenon. "Italy" was created in 1871 & its inhabitants spoke up to 600 languages & dialects; even today, there are several local dialects that still exist. When the nation chose the Florentine dialect as the official "Italian" language, only 2% of the population could speak it; even in 1960 there were still less than 50% "native Italian" speakers. (This particular dialect was chosen because it was the language of Dante) Fransesco, enthusiastically, considers his dialect (a mix of Spanish & French) to be the most beautiful; he is originally from Napoli.
Friday: Off to the Amalfi coast! From Sorrento, we took an insanely scary bus ride across the top of Sorrento to Positano. We saw the most beautiful views of the coast from the top of the mountain while saying our prayers that we would survive the ride! (Somehow I was able to sit in the front with Mitch there AND back to help with my motion sickness, which my youngest brother swears I have made up since being a small child. While the front seat may have helped, you also must watch how close you come to hitting cars while turning corners 5 feet wide and thousands of feet high) Once dropped off at the top of Positano, we made our way down the mountain, stopping at adorable beachy shops & eating delicious panini's. Once we reached the beach, we marvelled at how beautiful Positano really is. Imagine a city built into a mountainside right along the coast on a pretty summer's day; I definitely recommend visiting...it is worth the bus ride!
Saturday: A hot day for Pompei! A metro ride away, the ancient city of Pompei was a test of patience. A much larger excavation site than we expected, we endured the heat with tons of tourists while trying to figure out where we were actually at in the maze of bricks & stones. It was cool to see the real city after studying it as a child & fascinating to learn about how it operated when inhabited. It is worth a trip if you go to the Napoli area, but plan on going in cooler weather! After our self tour, we spent the evening in Sorrento but decided we didn't prefer it as much due to its exploitation of tourists.
Sunday: A day trip to the island of Capri! We took an early ferry from Sorrento to Capri & quickly signed up for a boat tour around the island. Boy was it a rocky start! The waves were pretty heavy at first until we started to reach the grottos. Capri is known for their blue & green grottos which have illuminated water from natural lighting. They also have bright orange coral and beautiful natural arches in the cliffs. Our goal was to go into the blue grotto, which requires you to go into a small rowboat and sqeeze through a little hole in the side of the cliff. (Tip: if you decide to visit you will pay for the boat tour AND will be informed AT the blue grotto to pay extra to go in. If it is a busy day, you will also wait in a line of boats. In general, Italians love exploiting tourists & the rowboats will try & have you tip before even going inside!) In the end, the trip inside was spectacular & it was the prettiest blue water you could imagine! You can't spend much time taking pictures because it is a quick trip & hard to capture...so you just lay back, enjoy the sight & the singing "rowboaters." 
Besides exploring the town shops & cafe's, the beaches are absolutely beautiful. There isn't sand but rather rocks or (if you are inland) black sand from Vesuvias' eruption. The water was even clearer than my experience in the Bahamas! It was nice to spend the afternoon on the beach & bask on the big white rocks along the shoreline. Before we took the ferry back to Sorrento, we walked partway up the cliff to overlook the port. Capri has some of the most beautiful sights :)
Monday: Taking a bus ride from Sorrento to Napoli, we finished up our southern coast trip & flew in the afternoon back to Schiphol airport in Amsterdam. We are staying again with our "Dutch family" and are happy to be back! The weather is much cooler (but nice!) and it even feels like we are breathing cleaner air. We already miss Italia but are excited to be back in Holland and explore more of the city. We both have to admit the Dutch have been the nicest and most accomdating people we have met on our trip thus far! Ciao! 
We used Serena's awesome guide and map to strategize our first day. We are staying a 10 minute walk to the Colosseum, so we decided to start with ancient Rome. After a minor set back, me forgetting the camera battery, we were standing beneath the massive remains of the Colosseum. Despite seeing it in photographs your entire life, it is truly amazing to see it in person. Similar to when I came upon the Taj Mahal. We got pulled into a guided tour, which ended up being a good deal and extremely informative. The guide had the heaviest Italian accent I have ever heard, which I thought gave the tour more character.
After the Colosseum we explored the ancient Forum. First with the guide, and then on our own. Sometimes I cannot believe how hot it is here for the middle of September, while being on the same Latitude line as NYC. Hot! So, we try our best to stay hydrated, even if this means filling our water bottles up from the "potable" fountains that are scattered around the city.
The Colosseum and the Forum took most of the morning, the afternoon, and our energy supply to explore, but we continued to truck on afterwards. We visited the Capitol, Piazza Popolo, Piazza Spagna, and the Trevi Fountain. Along the route up Via Del Corso we explored some of the high end shopping district. Oh joy!... We were near the Piazza Spagna when we passed through a huge group of paparazzi. We stopped to see what the comotion was about. Someone famous came out of their car and was hit with hundreds of camera flashes right as we passed by. Tori and I both really wish we knew who we saw, or at least got a photograph so we could figure it out later. Oh well!
By night the weather actually gets a bit chilly. I took it easy because unfortunately I'm battling a little cold...which seems to progressively get worse. Annoying as it is, I refuse to let it stop me from enjoying myself.
We were one of the first in line for the Vactican museum. Once inside, we were able to explore the exhibits. It is incredible how much art, and how many artifacts they have in there. I can't even imagine how much $$$ the Catholic church must have had to aquire all of it... well minus the "borrowed" artifacts from the ancient city. And finally... The Sistine Chapel. How much patience must Michelangelo have had to create such a masterpiece! We took our time absorbing the atmosphere of the room before finally moving on.
Getting up early is nice, you feel like you have so much more daylight to utilize. After getting Tori's daily caprese (mozzerella & tomato) & pizza at a local cafe, we walked to the Castello del Angelo. This gave a great view of the city. While up there, we noticed some smoke rising from the Vatican area. By the time we were crossing the Ponte Sant' Angelo bridge the smoke had become a thick dark cloud that covered most of the sky. We are still investigating the cause.
We walked along the river to the Trastevere area. There we visited the church of St. Maria, and ate more delicious gelato! Our goal is to try all of the different flavors that are offered. You do the math : ) It was time to do some laundry and relax. We found a romantic outdoor restaurante for dinner near our place and enjoyed the evening with more Italian cuisine accompanied by a violinist.
Today (Wednesday) is our final full day in Roma. I have a feeling Tori may not leave the country and return home, sorry Mama Maruca : )
Tomorrow it is off to the Amalfi coast! Tori cannot contain her excitement. Stay tuned.
We enjoyed the experience tremendously...and were also the subject of many photographs! It was the first relaxing part of the day & it was everything we expected it to be :) It was also a little humorous the number of people who stood on bridges and took pictures of us as we passed underneath. At one point a man & his wife smiled and waved (while taking a bunch of photo's) and he yelled (very enthusiastically while giving us the peace sign) "LOVE FOREVER!" We still are laughing about that one ;)
I was so happy to feel better & eat delicious Italian food I think I had tears in my eyes! When we arrived in Florence, we had a pretty easy time finding our hostel & were overjoyed that there was a washer/dryer on the premises. We decided (in order to save some time & money) to wash our clothes a little at a time in Spain in our sinks. Mitch & I have become quite a team, and washing clothes is no exception. I stick to the washing & he does the rinsing & drying (well, he engineers the rope we have in order to maximize drying time :) But by now, it is nice to have all of our things clean & dry at once!
Saturday: Our first full day in Florence & I am already in love with Italy! We have a fantastic guide to Italy for the 10 days we are here from Serena (Mitchell's younger sister)...she is awesome! Due to the fact she spent last semester studying abroad in Rome & traveling around Italy, she has great advice of where to go for sights, food & an overall good experience. Thank you!!! In the beginning of the day we visited Duomo and climbed to the top...meaning we climbed over the church's dome to the very top & overlooked Florence. The hike was ridiculous but that only means the end sight is going to be worth it. It was an incredible sight to see!
We went on to walk through some markets (including the infamous leather market) and ended up at Academia to see Michelangelo's "Il David." We both really loved the museum and work represented there. Though you are not technically allowed to take pictures, my will had already been set & there was simply no turning back (not that it was very hard to take pictures if you wanted). It was actually funny to see how sneaky (and unsneaky) people were. From Academia, we went to San Lorenzo Square & Ponte Vecchio to see more statues & shops along the water. 
We were both feeling a little tired but the sun was just beginning to set and we decided to hike (yet again!) up to Piazza San Michelangelo. What can I even begin to say to describe what we saw? With a bottle of wine and the sun setting on Florence, we watched the city illuminated by the light...and a bride & groom taking pictures with it all in the background! Towards the end, after a long while, we started to leave when I spotted the moon beginning to rise over the mountain on the opposite side. It was the single most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my entire life. If you do not believe in a creator, I suggest you visit this place during sunset and watch for the moon...if it is full, like when we saw it, you will most likely find it impossible not to be moved by the beauty surrounding you!
Today (Sunday) we plan to spend another day in Florence and head to Rome by night. However, plans are never always as they seem so stay posted :)
Until next time...arrivederci!
-T
