SKYDIVING

As you all know, hopefully, I went to Interlaken, Switzerland for Spring Break. The only reason I really wanted to go is because I wanted to do the Canyon Jump. Now, the Canyon Jump is similar to bungee jumping but instead of bouncing back up, you swing through a glacial canyon. Awesome.

interlaken

Now, before I get to the best part about my trip I will fill you in with the minor details. We took the train (three different ones) to get to Interlaken, the trip totaled about six hours which isn't too bad. We stayed in a really nice hostel and the weather was sunny and crisp. It was very refreshing to be outside, in the open air that is rid of smoke and city pollution. I felt as if my body was going through a nice detox. We walked around the city, I had an amazing sausage for lunch one of the days and we pretty much did nothing. On Tuesday the 20th we went to Bern, the capitol of Switzerland. It was a very nice, clean, uniform city and surprisingly quiet for how busy it was. We spent only a few hours there but it was still nice to explore more of Switzerland. On Wednesday we went to the bar the Hostel had and met two people from Canada, who are currently in Florence and we have gotten together with them a few times, their names are Sarah and Kris. 24/25 years-old and a couple. They are very nice and we enjoyed just drinking and talking with them. Oh, I also read the Hunger Games and by read I mean it took me two days to read it so I suppose I flew through it. It is a great book!!! I loved it. Cannot wait to go back to the States and watch the movie.

"be scared"

Now, the greatest and more exciting day of the trip and of my current life was Thursday, March 22. The canyon jump was canceled because the ice was melting and they said it was unsafe, however, they told me I could go skydiving. It was about 10:30 am when I was at the front desk asking about the canyon swing, and they told me skydiving was an option...at NOON! So talk about a spontaneous decision. I asked Alex if she would be down...then I started jumping for joy when she said yes! We signed up and waited an hour till the van came to pick us up and drive us to the skydiving place. Dan and Tim were the two guys who picked us up (Tim ended up being the guy I jumped with). They were hilarious. After a 20 minute drive we arrived to an incredibly large open rectangle of lang with a landing strip for a plane in the middle. There were 5 of us jumping that day so we all got out of the van and waited for further instructions. Hans (hanz) another instructor, whom Alex jumped with, showed us how to exit the plane and free fall properly and how to land. Then we suited up, I felt like a bada** (find a better word to describe the feeling and I'll use it) because walking down the landing strip, with a harness on and jump suit made me look like I was about to go kick some serious butt in an action movie. Maybe I hoped I'd turn into Laura Croft...

Timmy!

The plane was incredibly small and there were a lot of us in it. Me+Tim and my cameraman, Alex+Hans and her camera man, Another girl+Dan and her camera man, and two other jumpers going by themselves. Tight flight to say the least. All of the guys were trying to make me nervous by making comments about how this is Tim's first jump too or saying "he doesn't really have to do that" when he would adjust something on my harness or when he had me sit on his lap so he could strap us together. Now, none of their comments worked, for some weird reason I wasn't nervous until the moment the plastic sliding door (no, there wasn't even a real door to this plane) rolled up and I had to walk (well Tim walked since I was stuck on him) to the edge of the plane and looked down. I was outside of the plane mostly since Tim was the one sitting on the edge and I am strapped to the front of him, so he pulled my head back, rocked three times and off we fell. (he grabbed my head because when you jump you are supposed to arch back and become almost a banana in the air)

off we go...

I have never been so excited/happy in my life. I was laughing and screaming and beaming the entire fall. I loved it. We were in free fall for about 50 seconds before he pulled the parachute. That was the weirdest feeling, going from falling 120 km/s to shooting up into the air and almost floating because of the chute. My adrenaline rush was beyond ridiculous. I didn't each much before the jump, I didn't want to throw up or anything but I wish I would have eaten more because I felt light headed afterwards and I wanted nothing more than burger so badly! Burger craving aside, skydiving was probably the easiest thing I have ever done. Odd, I know but over the past few months my fear of heights has decreased and I have been waiting so badly to do something crazy. The whole experience was super short and I definitely want to do it again and try other things, like bungee jumping and maybe SixFlags? Hopefully I am over my fear of roller coasters now...

carpe diem

Under the Tuscan Sun

Okay, okay I know it has been almost a month since my last post and I have done some crazy things during this time, so HERE is my blog about when my Aunt Jenna came to visit. It was great to finally have some visit me, even though it was the week of my midterms. Jenna arrived on a Saturday night and we went out for some beers. I'll just leave it at: we had a nice evening.

atop the walls of Lucca

On Wednesday the 14th Jenna and I spent the day in Lucca. I was told by my grandparents that I HAD to go to Lucca. I am very happy that I did because not only was it a beautifully sunny day, Lucca is just a very quaint and beautiful city. The old city is surrounded by walls which are lovely to stroll along and overlook the grass and city below. We left for Lucca around 9 am and we stayed until 3 since I had a midterm at 6 that night. While we were there, we mostly just wandered the city, window shopping, talking and basking in the sun. We had lunch at Trattoria da Leo and I just ordered grilled chicken breast and a side of baked pumpkin. The pumpkin was delicious, it reminded me of the amazing pumpkin risotto I had in Venice but also of roasted butternut squash. Lucca was a quick trip but it was very refreshing, but sadly my white body was not used to the sun and my face was definitely a few shades of pink when I returned. The joy of being a ghost.

Thursday the 15th---

On Thursday we left for San Gimignano, the first stop on our wine tasting filled weekend. I think San Gimignano was my favorite city that we visited throughout the weekend. Not only was it a beautiful day, the city had a vibe that was different, calming and relaxing. The city sits on top of a hill that over looks Tuscany. The views were postcard perfect. Rolling hills, vineyards, and villa type homes spread out across the landscape. We went to a Enoteca (wine bar) for lunch and tried 5 wines while enjoying a sample platter of different meats and a cheese platter with this amazing mustard di fruitta (it isn't mustard but more of a spread that was very sweet and light).

San Gimignano

We also had bruschetta & lardo. Lardo, is delicious, sounds gross because its fat, but it is a very thin slice and tastes amazing (salty and buttery almost). Oh, and where we sat was on the edge of the town so while enjoying the amazing food and drinks we had a picture perfect view of Tuscany. No, I can't complain about my life, especially when sitting there. I also got a bronze fleur-de-lis ring from a shop in the city. (thank you Jenna for the birthday gift)
After San Gimignano, we headed through the Chianti region, small, winding roads but still GORGEOUS. Tuscany, just oozes with beauty. Every where we went was gorgeous and had amazing views. I understood that people found this region to be gorgeous but until you actually visit, you cannot fully appreciate it for all that it is, breathtaking. We stopped at a winery and had a free tasting but it was getting late and we needed to head to Siena before it got dark outside, increasing our chances of getting lost or driving off the small roads. As much as I love the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland, this drive was not as exciting or enjoyable after a while, especially after lots of meat and cheese and wine consumption. We made it safely to Siena where we stayed for the weekend. We enjoyed a nice dinner then headed to bed, we were exploring more cities the next day and needed sleep!

View from where we had lunch

Friday, the 16th---

I know I said that I fell in love with Tuscany, but it officially stole my heart after today. The hills, small medival towns and sunshine literally are just as stunning in person as they are on postcards. I could hold up a postcard, take it down and still see the same image. We left Siena around 10 am and hit our first city which was Cortona. Cortona is situated high up on a hill, making for some amazing views of the valley below. For those of you familiar with the movie Under the Tuscan Sun, this is the city she 'lives' in. It was a very steep, uneven but very worth while walk to the top of the town where the Fortress of Girifalco is, which overlooks the entire vast, valley below. Cortona was a cool city and it was nice to visit something very different from Florence.

View from Cortona

From Cortona, we went to Montepulciano, a city on a mountain (large hill) surrounded by rolling hills and vineyards and yes, extremely famous for their wine. We did a wine tasting here (obviously) and the place we went to was awesome. It has a great atmosphere and the outdoor space was lovely. We tried 6 wines and ended up buying one (Vino Noble is what it was called and it is a red). We sat here for about two hours, drank and talked. After we went into a few more shops, trying wines and one shop where we tried different types of Pecorino cheese.

Montepulciano

Oh my, I can do it no justice, but the cheese was the best I have ever had. Well almost the best, because after this stop we went to our next city, Pienza which is actually famous for their pecorino cheese. The city was small but still have gorgeous views AND turns out this was also where scenes from the Gladiator were filmed. Around Pienza are wheat fields, which inspired the location of Maximus' house and the scenes when he is walking home to find his family dead and when he meets them again in Heaven.

Pienza

Yeah, I just about died when I found out one of my favorite movies was filmed here. We went into two stores while in Pienza, one where we tried some amazing salami and sausage and another were we tried some amazing cheeses. After Pienza, we went to our last stop which was a little city called San Quirico. We just walked around here and enjoyed the golden sunshine and digested our food from a long day of eating and drinking. Definitely a day well spent.

San Quirico

Saturday the 17th--

Town Hall and Bell Tower

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Saturday was our last day and we spent it in Siena. I think I like Siena more than Florence, one because it is less hectic and crammed and two for aesthetic reasons. The city is much more uniform and not nearly as "dirty feeling". Siena is famous for their horse races they have twice during the year, both during the summer. The horse races take place in their large main square and it is a competition between each of the 17 neighborhoods within the walls of the city. I bought a flag of the Lupa neighborhood, go she-wolves! We climbed the tower which is in the main square and it was a little nerve racking because I compared it to my soon to happen bungee jumping experience in Switzerland. After the tower, we stopped and had the greatest meal ever. We stopped in this small butcher & cheese shop that we had walked past a few times before and decided that this was something we HAD to experience. It was a total man cave, tons of meats hanging from the ceiling and cheese. We had a large sample platter of things like wild boar sausage, other various sausage and salamis and cheese.

best.lunch.ever.

It was an amazing experience and the large man with a mustache that worked there totally liked Jenna and I. Jenna and I bought the white wine we had with our lunch. After lunch we went to the Duomo on Siena and the church was gorgeous. The colors of the city are black and white, in stripes usually, thus the church has black and white stripes all over it. At around 3 we headed back to Florence. I was sad because I really just wanted to keep repeating the weekend over and over again. Sample platters and wine. 24/7. I would die a very fully and happy person. This weekend was probably one of my favorites. I tried so many new things such as lardo, liver (in a paste form mixed with olives), wild board meat and lots of cheese. I love cheese. I love wine. However, let this be a lesson, consume both in moderation or else you will feel like you are going to explode. But another lesson, consume both and you will be a very happy person.

Enjoy life. Enjoy the view. Carpe Diem.

ciao!

 

Roma & The Vatican

This past weekend I went on my second school trip to Roma and the Vatican. We left at 6 am on March 3rd (Saturday) on a bus, this trip the group was an entire bus smaller than the Venice trip which was nice, not as chaotic. The ride was 3 hours long and once we arrived in Rome around 10 am we were dropped off at the Coliseum. It was..wait for it...beautiful. This entire experience has been very surreal, for lack of a better word. I am visiting places, even living in a city, rich with thousands of years of history. I am standing where Romans once stood, some of the world's greatest artists, philosophers, heros, politicians and 'villains'. I obviously appreciate it now, but this trip will truly hold a special place in my heart for the rest of my life.

Obviously reppin the sorority inside the Coliseum

Back to the Coliseum, so we arrived at the Coliseum and there was a protest happening for construction labor unions, so that was really interesting to watch. We walked inside the Coliseum for about 30 mins, then we went to the Palace of the Emperor (well the ruins of it) right across from the Coliseum up on a hill, so we got some spectacular views of the city.

View from Ruins of Roman Palace, Coliseum in the background

From there, we went back onto the bus and headed over to the Vatican City. Now there really is no difference between saying "the Vatican" or "the Vatican City", they both encompass the same things...some girl asked the difference. Anyways, we had lunch on our own outside of the city walls and then we met up with our tour guides that took us on a 3 hour tour through the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica and other various parts we were allowed to enter. The Vatican was probably my favorite place we went to all weekend. St. Peter's church literally took my breath away. I walked in and stopped in shock/awe. I know I have said other churches are gorgeous, beautiful, etc. but this...this was something else. Most churches I have been into have been gorgeous, but very simple and 'plain'. St. Peter's on the other hand was very elaborate, lots of gold, statues, and detailing from floor to ceiling. When we went in to the church it was around 4, so the afternoon sun was pouring in from the west, obviously I was then told that they build the church purposefully facing the east so that the sun would shine through the dome in the back and onto the alter.

Inside St. Peter's Basilica

Another fun fact, the main doors to the church are only opened every 25 years on the Jubilee (2025 is the next time that they will be opened). Also, the crest of the Catholic church bears two keys, the keys of St. Peter, one is gold and the other is silver. The gold opens the gates to heaven and the other to Earth...our tour guide seemed a little confused as to why one would want to go back, but at least you have the option. Anyways, the crest can be seen all over Rome on various churches and fountains. Fun game to play "spot the crest"..no?

Our tour ended in St. Peter's Square in front of the Church. We learned about the Swiss Guards who are in charge of protecting the Pope. They are all Swiss men between the ages of 18-30 years old. During their service they cannot drink, be married/have sex and they also much be attractive...not complaining but I have no idea why. I also sent Camille a postcard from the Vatican...I think she will like it :] hehe.

After the Vatican we went to our hotel and got our rooming assignments. Alex and I forgot about the meeting for the trip so we didn't get put together and I ended up rooming with a girl named Colette from New Jersey who is a Fashion major. She was really nice and I invited her to join Alex and I for the rest of the evening. We met up with one of my sorority sister's Kiernan who is studying in Rome and she took us to Scholar's Pub. They played great American music and had amazing food...drinks as well. Definitely enjoyed my evening in Rome. Even if we felt like we were traveling into the depths of hell when trying to figure out their metro system.

---Sunday March 4th---

Today was a jam packed day! First we went to Piazza Navona where we saw three gorgeous fountains. The main one depicted four rivers from the four corners of the Earth. Sorry, the only river I remember him saying was the Nile, the others..one was in Africa, another South America and the last...I do not know. The fountain was incredible, I really find it astonishing how perfect sculptors are when it comes to during a slab of stone into a masterpiece. From there, we walked to the Pantheon, which again, I was simply blown away by the fact that they could build such amazing buildings, without cranes and other pieces of 'modern technology'. Talent does not rely on technology, thats for sure.

Really awesome fountain

After the Pantheon, we walked to the Trevi Fountain. I gasped when I first saw it. Gigantic, majestic, white and perfect. I have ALWAYS wanted to go to the Trevi and throw in two coins: the first meaning I will return to Rome, the second meaning I will find true love and I am so happy to say that I was able to throw in my two cents. Camille told me to jump in the fountain but seeing as how I did not want to get arrested, my hand was all I was willing to risk. I could have sat at the fountain all day long, it was so beautiful and serene. I also did not realize how large it was and that it was made off of the facade of a preexisting building. Also, legend has it that a virgin is whom discovered the source of water that the fountain is connected to and she is depicted in the fountain in the top corner. The main element of the fountain being Neptune, as it is attributed to him. He is in the center with two tridents guiding the seahorses that pull his chariot (a seashell). The movement throughout the fountain is flawless and I would not mind having it in my house to stare at all day long.

pantheon

Our next stop was the Spanish Steps, also another place I could stay all day and people watch. The steps and surrounding area were lovely but the men hustling roses were not so beautiful. They would literally give you the flower as if it were a gift or shove it in your hand and then as for money for it. I told a girl to just throw it on the ground, lets just say the man shouted some not so nice things but serves him right to assume we are dumb and going to pay for something we clearly don't want. From the Spanish Steps we went to, what the Romans call, "the wedding cake". It is really a building that was built to honor the first King of Italy who helped in it's unification but Romans do not like it for it is very fascist looking and also is not rooted to the hearts of the citizens but really a political statement. However, after WWI it became the resting place of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and is now more of a memorial, which Romans seem to appreciate a little more since it represents something much more important.

Trevi Fountain

Finally, after a long morning we left to have a traditional four course Roman lunch which lasted..2.5 hours. I don't think I could have touched my toes afterwards I was so full of pasta, eggplant and tiramisu. Then we went to the catacombs, which were cool but we didn't see any bones or anything, just dirt and empty graves but they go on for 10 miles and are 100ft deep. We only went down to the second level and were in there for maybe 25 mins.

Rome was amazing. Aside from being rich with history, it was also a very lively city and a much different pace than Florence. I really hope that I can go back before I leave, possibly when my mom comes!

-----
Today is International Women's Day! An older British man asked us in Italian why we had yellow flowers (which we given to us at lunch) and that is why! Yay for being a woman and for him thinking we were italian and understanding what he asked!! Now it is time to celebrate with super happy hour for the ladies.

Ciao!

Paris, Je t'aime.

I know it has been two weeks since my birthday weekend and I apologize but life started to pick up over here (in a good way) so the constant traveling then diving back into school immediately has made it difficult to stay on top of blogging. SO, here we go: Paris 2012.

--Thursday, February 23rd--
I have Italian from 9-10:15 am on Tues/Thurs so both Alex and I had to head straight from Italian to the train station in order to get on a train to take us to Pisa to make our flight at 2:45pm. Considering neither Alex and I had taken a train before, we were a little stressed out about timing. We ended up getting to Santa Maria Novella (the name of the train station in Florence) at 10:57am...just in time to make the 11 am train to Pisa. The train was direct, so it only stopped once and we got to the airport by noon. Our flight was an hour behind, which was not super fun so by the time we got to Paris, we were a little irritated. Irritation quickly turned into confusion because we had no idea how to get from the airport to our hotel. We figured out how to get there, so I asked the man working the ticket booth for the tram/metro if he spoke english (in French) and he responded (in French) saying that he only spoke Chinese. I continued to speak in English and asked for two tickets and he laughed and said (in English) "I said I only speak Chinese!!" I was thankful that he was nice and funny, definitely made me feel more comfortable not having any idea how we were going to get to our hotel.

Once we got to the metro station, Alex and I jumped on and off trains unsure if it was the right one or not....after about 20 mins we realized that they were all the same...oops. We finally got to our hotel..two hours after landing but we were so excited to finally be at our home base for the weekend and looked forward to meeting up with my friend Aisha from high school who is currently studying at the American University, Paris. Aisha took us to dinner at Tribeca and then we all got bottles of really cheap 'sparkling wine' (the French only call Champagne, champagne, it if is from the Champagne region) and walked over to...the Eiffel Tower. I cried, a little...mostly on the inside..but regardless I was in shock. I could not believe that I had finally made it to the city of my dreams and I was standing in front of a landmark that covers the walls of my room back in the U.S. It was a perfect place to turn 21 :]

--MY BDAY! Fri. Feb 24th--

Cannot believe that I turned 21 in Paris of all places! Such a blessing, I wished that everyone I loved was there to celebrate with me. Today I went to the Notre Dame and it was just as beautiful in person. (running joke about the Notre Dame..."I returned home"...in reference to the hunchback and my gimp eye) I met up with two of my sorority sisters who were also in Paris for the weekend, they are studying in London. It was a joy to be able to spend the day with people from home. We all went inside the cathedral and I just about died when I looked up. The stain glass windows were the most stunning pieces I have seen. After the Notre Dame, I had a mission: to find this bridge covered in locks and place a lock on it for my father and I. It is difficult to explain and for many to understand but I do love my father and I am very proud to have both of the parents that I do because they have each taught me very valuable life lessons. My mother is a beautiful, strong, intelligent woman who I greatly respect and admire, even if I am very emotional and irrational with her at time. She has taught me the importance of drive, self-motivation and that overcoming adversity is always a better option than succumb to it. My father has taught me the importance of listening to my heart, being loyal to those who love you the most and to never stop fighting for what I believe in. I have learned that close relationships are what get us through the good times but more importantly the bad. It is really painful for me to live without him, I understand that we all make mistakes in life and that we have to live with the consequences of our actions, but he has missed out on a lot of important life events, so that is why this little mission he gave me meant the world to me. I was able to include him in my study abroad experience. I am lucky enough to skype my grandparents, facebook chat my nana, see my aunt Jenna in a few days and my mom is coming to visit in a few weeks! All he has are my blog posts, but now he also has this lock. Hopefully someday we both can go back to Paris and see it. I hope everyone can find and appreciate the beauty in that, life has not been easy for all of us, but the only way to move forward is to forgive each other of our trespasses and be thankful that we are all alive, healthy and I am accomplishing my dreams because of each of you. I had crepes in Paris, walked through the gardens in front of the Louvre, down the Champs-Elysse to the Arc de Triumph and back to the Eiffel Tower. I honestly could not have done any of that if it weren't for my family. I had the greatest birthday because of all the years you all have dedicated to giving me the best life possible. I have learned something valuable from each of you and I am forever grateful for that.

For dinner, I ate at Cafe Central with Aisha and Alena (my other best friend from high school also studying there). I had the most amazing meal of my life...chicken with creamy risotto. Seriously, I would fly back to Paris to eat it again.

--Saturday, 25th--

Another splendid day in this amazing city. I had breakfast at this place called La Marine. I had a ham & cheese omelette, croissant, coffee, and orange juice. The coffee was amazing (thank you Grandpa for telling me to get it) From there, we walked back down Rue de Rennes (our hotel's street) and I bought myself a birthday present (a watch). Bon anniversaire a moi! Then, we went to the Sacre Coeur which is a beautiful white church on top of a hill that overlooks the city. It was just as gorgeous on the inside, obviously every church is stunning, and I bought a few people some presents :]. The area the church is in was very San Fran-esque. Cute buildings, hills, great food and shops. After, we tried to go to the Musse d'Orsay but the line was an hour long and I wanted to walk around more, so I guess I'll just have to go back :]. So, unfortunately we just walked down the Seine river and had lunch (please note the sarcasm, the Seine is gorgeous). I had a croque monsieur, delicious and we then went to the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. A place that was frequented by Hemingway and other famous writers. I bought a book, of course, have to remember it somehow! It started to rain so we went back to the Hotel to change and figure out dinner plans. We met up with Alena and Aisha again and had sushi. SO GOOD! It was nice to be in a city with a diversity in cuisine.

After dinner, the magic happened...I accomplished a true dream of mine and I walked to the second floor (top was closed) of the Eiffel Tower. The man at security claimed that I was too beautiful to be French and that I must be American...in all honesty I think it was my childish giddiness about climbing a metal landmark that gave me away. Regardless, I had a very surreal moment when I finally reached the top. 669 steps and a dream was accomplished. I made it, to a city I have always dreamt of visiting. To a place a never thought I'd see. I was so happy that I swear I could fly. I had the greatest weekend of my life and a birthday I will never forget. I will continue to dream, simply so I can accomplish them.

Before I left for Florence, my little Madison told me 'carpe diem, seize every moment Brittany and accomplish your dreams because right now it is about you. Live it up because soon you will be back at home wishing you could go back, so don't for a moment stop. Have faith in your own life and tackle everything that you can'.

I did. 669 steps. A lock.

Thank you everyone for the love and support. I wouldn't have made it to the top of that tower without it.

Ciao.