Travel Blog Posts
And on the seventh day, God made Gelato
Published: February 15th 2008Europe » Italy » Veneto » Venice
May 10th 2008
As the last few Viennese were going to bed, we got up to catch the early 7 ½- hour train to Venice. Normally, it would be hard for me to get up that early and sit so long on a train, but when it was for Venice, it was a bit more bearable. I sat awake, as protector of our luggage for the journey. Jessie slept an amazing 7 hours. It was her loss. I enjoyed a beautiful Austrian countryside. It was hard to believe something so vulgar as Arnold Schwarzenegger (FYI: Schwarzenegger is in the Microsoft Word dictionary) could come from somewhere so beautiful. We were helped by one of our guardian angels to the hotel outside of Venice. When we finally caught the bus we were supposed to take, we didn’t know exactly when ... read more
February 15th 2008
We were up at the crack of dawn to eat the only breakfast of our trip thus far and then walk to Academia in time for our reservation to see Michelangelo’s David. A lot of times when I see hyped-up pieces of art, I’m let down when I finally see it. As with The Mona Lisa, for example. With David, this was absolutely not the case. Getting up early and paying for the reservation to see him just before massive crowds surrounded him was well worth it. We then had quite a bit of time until our reservation at the Uffizi Gallery, but went to that area to see how the line was—to see if we wanted to wait in line to go in before our reservation. The line looked about 2 hours long, and we ... read more
May 14th 2007
We slept in today before heading to the Coliseum. It wasn’t too crowded and we got in for free, no complaints from me. The coliseum was certainly impressive and I’m glad we got to see it. It was one time we wished we were on a tour or had a more informative book. We had what we remembered from World History and what my little book said, and bits I thought I could trust from what Russel Crowe taught me—but this didn’t satisfy Jessie’s hunger for details. You answer one question, and she has 10 more questions about your answer. I wish I had a curiosity that strong; I might be smarter. In the case of the Coliseum, though, I really did want to know more. We wandered around the Roman Forum and Palentine Hill before ... read more
May 12th 2007
In our train ride from Venice to Florence, I believe there were more loud Americans than I’ve seen in 5 months, and that includes the one I was home at Christmas for. We decided not to stop in Bologna, and instead get to Florence early. We were happy with the decision, as we instantly decided we loved Florence. We had lunch after checking in at the hostel. It was the best meal we’ve had so far. Jessie got some sort of pasta, while I got a steak. We both loved it, but I saw her enviously looking at my meat a few times. We walked to the Duomo, an awe-inspiring church with the Gates of Paradise at the Baptistry in front. I think they’re duplicates, as my art teacher said the originals have been being refurbished ... read more
May 11th 2007
So, Jessie turned 19 today. I know, not many would want to spend their birthday in Venice, but we carry on. We went straight to St. Mark’s Basilica this morning with our covered shoulders and shins. We went into the treasury to see relics “recovered” from crusades, including three rocks supposedly used to stone Stephen. We went from the church to Doge’s Palace to experience the extravaganza of Venetian interiors. The book shop and café were closed due to a strike and it appeared security was on strike as well; we caught two guards sleeping in their chairs. I could’ve stolen a painting if I had room for it in my backpack. We enjoyed sighing over the bridge of sighs, but Jessie criticized my sigh—saying it was more of a gasp. I’ll continue to sigh however ... read more
How do you say “Screw you” in German?
Published: February 15th 2008Europe » Austria » Vienna » Vienna
May 9th 2007
We decided to sleep in today, as we had the whole day and another night in Vienna. When we got up, we headed with ease to the _____________ Palace, where Jessie was happy to see the same palace as she had seen on 1001 Places to see Before You Die. I don’t think she’s ready to die yet though. Nor am I. It was raining again, no surprise. We went from there to the center of town, where we found Café Central. As we are big on coffee, we though we should go to where my book called the Mecca of Cafes. Café Central was a historic, beautiful café with green arches and marble all around, where Freud, Trolsky and Lennon used to meet for chess. We had coffees and decided that—it being 1:00 and we ... read more
I’m so excited to ride the train! Goodnight!
Published: February 15th 2008Europe » Czech Republic » Prague
May 8th 2007
This morning I went to Jessie’s bed and shouted obscenities in Czech in ear in order to get her awake. After I paid for that mistake, we headed out for our first sightseeing day. We went straight for Prague castle— again in torrents of rain. It was pretty amazing with views of the city and its red rooftops. We walked over Charles Bridge and saw the Astronomical clock. We made it to Wenceslas Square before we decided we had had enough of getting lost in the rain. It is really impossible not to get lost there. I’ve been an impeccable navigator in London—but Prague—I don’t know if I could ever master it. Besides, I don’t think I would want to. I’ve decided that the sights of Prague are somewhat being ruined by the city making them ... read more
May 7th 2007
My family asked me that question many times before our trip began. Well, we were asking it too this morning when my roommates, just a few hours after finishing packing were getting up and getting us up in the process. I booked an early evening flight to Prague to give Jessie plenty of sleep after her marathon flight yesterday, but it turned out we were up pretty early anyways. We got ready, and we went out for coffee. We were greeted by horrible weather in London, surprisingly enough, because it had been nice for over two months. After we got our coffee fix, we headed back to my flat to clean stuff up before returning my key. We ate some leftovers from last night and then cleaned out the fridge— where some food from months ago ... read more
Bang Bang Shrimp & Stuffed Chicken Chardonnay-Marsala
Published: February 15th 2008Europe » United Kingdom » England » Greater London » London CityMay 6th 2007
After a restless few hours of sleep, I got up and walked across Hyde Park before hopping on a Tube to London’s Heathrow Airport. After 46 minutes since American Airlines Flight 46 had landed, I began to get worried. I thought the airline must’ve lost our backpack and that Jessie and I would living out of only one small backpack for the next 25 days! But then, finally, I saw hope—hope in the form of a very tired Jessie waddling out the arrivals terminal with both backpacks in tow. Soon we were in my apartment, repacking those bags with some of my clothes. We packed my remaining luggage in suitcases and made a tiring trek to my school to store them for the next month. We got our last shot of the Internet and headed back ... read more
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