Italy-My last trip...for now.

I just spent 7 wonderful days in Italy..and I think to say that I am exhausted would be an understatment. We got back at 5:30 this morning and I had class at 9.We left right after class on Wednesay and flew into Rome. In Rome, I got to see the Colleseum, the Vatican, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain. I really enjoyed seeing all the main sights in Rome, but overall I have to agree with those who think that Rome is a big, dirty city. I am still really glad that I went, but I just don't know if it would be a place that I would want to come back to. Our hostel that we stayed at in Rome was very, very tiny. It was kind of funny having to wait in line to take a shower because you had to wait for the one bathroom to free up. The last night we were there, one of the guys that worked at the hostel made everyone in the hostel a free dinner, and we all sat around and ate and talked. I thought this was really cool, and I liked getting to meet different people from all over the world.
On Saturday morning we took a train to Florence. When we go there, the weather was BEAUTIFUL! All of us girls wore our dresses or skirts that we had brought, and we all wore flip flops. Florence was really pretty. There were famous landmarks there, but I liked how it was slow pace. We didn't feel rushed to go see a lot of stuff and had the time to just walk around and relax. Some of our other friends were staying in a different hostel with a pool, so we went over there to hang out and swim. I was sitting down next to the pool, with my feet in, and when I sat up, I hit my head REALLY hard against a ledge that I did not know was above me. Long story short, I think I suffered from some type of minor concussion because I started to act very strange. I did not realize how strange i acted until i woke up the next morning and I could think more clearly. They said that I looked kind of dazed and loopy, like I wasn't really all there. I kept walking off the the side, and I just remember feeling like my brain was "foggy" and I had a hard time focusing. Please don't be worried as you are reading this, I am completley fine now, It just was such a strange feeling and I am glad that it went away after one night.
We took a train to Venice on monday morning, and from the start it was rainy day. I was the only one who had actually brought an umbrella, and everyone else ended up buying one. Venice was beautiful!!! Even though it was raining, I think this was my favorite place out of the three. It even cleared up after a little bit the first day that we were there..and we went on a gondola ride!! It was pricey, but it was definetley worth it because we all wanted to do it and now we can say what we've been on a gondola in Venice, Italy. Basically we just did a bunch of walking around in Venice, got lost a couple of times, and fed the pigeons a lot. In San Marco's Square, there are pigeons EVERYWHERE and for some crazy reason everyone buys food that the pigeons will come and get all over you to eat it. I tried not to think about how grossed out I am by pigeons while they were all over me, and it was a lot of fun.
So, I think that I made a great choice for my last trip. I had geloto at least once a day, felt the sun for what feels like a long time, and really enjoyed all the great sights I got to see. I officially leave England 2 weeks from today. It feels so unreal. I can not belive it's already time for me to go back. I am going to do everything I can to soak up every moment of all the time I have left here.
I can't wait to see everyone, and I really hope and pray that you all are doing alright.

Cheers!!

Paris!!

We went as a group to Paris this past Saturday through Wednesday. Our hostel including breakfast and dinner was included and we were even given an allowance of spending money on top of that. However, we all managed to spend a lot of our own money on top of that. Oh well.

We took the Euro star from London to Paris. It goes underneath the ocean somehow. It was only a 2 and a half hour train ride, and it went by really fast.

On the train ride over I was sitting next to Katie who had been to Paris before. She was telling me about a great crepe place that she knew about it. We planned to go there right away when we got to Paris..and so we did.

Katie and I with our first crepes of the trip. There were crepe stands EVERYWHERE in Paris. I had WAY too many! In fact, I really think that all I ate while I was in Paris was pastries and crepes. I really am craving some healthy food after all the "junk" I ate. Even though it was SOOO good.

The first night we were there we took a Bike Tour through Paris. We had been told that this was something that we really needed to do, and it came highly recommended. It's called the Fat Tire Bike Tours and it's an American company. In fact a lot of the tour guides were from the University of Texas, which is really funny. Anyways, you go on a tour while riding bikes around the city of Paris at night. It was SOOO much fun. Paris is beautiful at night and I liked how we got an overview of the city before our trip really began. This was probably my favorite thing in Paris and one of the highlights of this semester. Who wouldn't want to ride a bike past the Eiffel Tower?

This was me trying to look tough on my bike...but not doing a very good job of it.

My favorite was when the Eiffel Tower would glitter for 10 min. on the hour at night. It was SOOOO pretty!

We went to the Louvre on Sunday. It was REALLY big. Some people go to Paris and could spend the whole week just looking at the Louvre. I liked looking through it for just a little while, and then I was satisfied. There were just so many people everywhere and it was really overwhelming. I saw the Mona Lisa..and that's enough for me!

The Louvre

Mona Lisa

Karissa, KrisAnn, Beth and I left the Louvre and then headed to Notre Dame to climb the tower. It was a lot of stairs to get to the top, but it was worth it. The view was amazing. We also got to the famous bell of Notre Dame. From Victor Hugo's story Quasimodo supposedly lived up near the bell.

I loved the gargoyles, or actually I think they were called chimeras

This was the little door that led to stairs which then led up to the Bell

A view from the top of Notre Dame

Me squinting in front of the Arc de Triumphe. I personally had never heard of this before. It is definitely a famous landmark of Paris and it was neat to see.




Another really cool thing that happened while we were in Paris was that the Olympic Torch came through. They blocked off the Eiffel Tower for the day, and it was hard to find streets open to get a view of the torch. We got there early and had a great view. Before the actual torch came through, we noticed big crowds of people swarming in. Some of them were people from China who were there in support of the Olympics because the Olympics are in Beijing this year. They were smiling, waving flags, and kept yelling, "Welcome to China!"(We weren't really sure why)

However there was also a HUGE group of protesters because of events happening with Tibet. They were against the Olympics and had black shirts on with the Olympic rings in the shape of handcuffs. Huge riots started breaking out and the French Police(who were EVERYWHERE) had to link arms and push people back. I lost count of how many people I saw tackled to the ground by French police.

Then the torch came by and they got even crazier. I am not meaning to make it sound like I was in a dangerous situation. There was a not a moment I felt "unsafe." We were a good distance above the riots and there were enough French police there for me to feel protected. It just was something that was crazy, intense and very interesting to watch.

If you look closely you can see the torch, and all the masses of people in the background

This is one of the many beautiful, famous painting I saw at the Muse de Orsay

We went to the very top of the Eiffel Tower!

The view from the top

My breakfast my last day in Paris

I think that I liked Paris more than I thought I would. I had heard differing opinion from others who though it was a dirty, overcrowded place. Even though it was still a populated city, and it was not the cleanest place I've ever been..it had a charm and beauty to it which you can't experience unless you've been there. I loved all the famous landmarks. I walked by many accordion players and more people smiled and said, "Bonjour," than I thought would.

I am glad to be back in Oxford and I can't believe I leave to go to Italy again in a week. I also can't believe that that will be my last trip and that I go home in 4 weeks. At this point in time, I am ready to go back. I feel at peace about it. I know that everyone has been talking about home a lot and more people are getting irritable with each other. The feeling of it being the "end" is in the air.

I want to soak up my last month and enjoy it while it's here. Well I am very tired and I hope to rest up this week.

You all are in my prayers. Keep reading and commenting!