Cheese and Wine

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Where Do I begin... There is so much to get caught up on..After staying in Milan for only two nights, we got on a train towards treviso, Italy, where I had family we would be staying with. After a few hours of connecting trains, we made it. Once we arrived at their house, we enjoyed a nice big plate of pasta- for the first time on the trip, we both knew we wouldn't be hungry. Soup, followed by pasta or another main dish, with wine and cheese and coffee almost everyday- we felt like royalty.

While staying at my zia pinna's and zio Angelo's, we got to catch up on sleep and get the rest we needed to fight off our colds. They took me out a few nights to visit all of my family who lived in treviso. It was nice to reconnect, but they all said next time I go to Italy I have to know more Italian then hello and thank you.

One day, Justyn and I planned a day trip to Venice- it was only an hour train ride away. The first sight you see as you step out of the train station is a canal running through a dense city with gondolas and water taxis everywhere and people dressed in maskarad. The Italian Halloween had begun the day we arrived which was a sight to see. It was still incredibly busy considering it is off season.. I couldn't imagine the summer. Venice is by far the most beautiful place I have been so far. The narrow streets packed with people, a massive cathedral on every corner and the winding canal system is all so surreal. And my favourite part- there were no cars. Everyone had to walk or boat around the city. I have tones of pictures which I will post once I can!

We stayed at my zio and zia's for 6 nights. It was nice to kick back and enjoy time with family, and meet new family as well. Ideally, our next stop on the trip was Prague.. But flights and trains from Treviso were very expensive, which lead us to buy two plane tickets to Berlin. Zia pinna and zio Angelo drove us to the train station so we could get to the airport- it was sad to say by, but I made a promise to return.

When we arrived in Berlin, Justyn's cousin Uli had been waiting for us. We would be staying at this flat for a little while, and he is also our personal tour guide. The first night in Berlin was very peaceful.. We made music and wrote group poetry while drinking 60 cent beers- life is good. The next day, Uli had taken us to an abandoned hospital not far from his place. It was an adventure to explore.. If you could see past the broken glass and garbage, there was lots of awesome street art. We climbed up to the roof and overlooked Berlin. The is something very peaceful about being on a rooftop.

Later in the day, we jumped on a subway heading to the Berlin wall. The wall is covered in art from famous and not so famous artists all around the world. It gave a very nostalgic feeling. Once we walked that remaining section of wall, Uli took us to a squat which was inhabited by tones of artists who display there work and live there. It was a very interesting place.. Something we would have never seen if we didn't know Uli. On our way home, justyn and I got caught without a ticket on the subway. We played the oblivious Canadian card and got away with just a warning. Don't worry mom.. We've bought tickets every time since then.

On the weekend, we went to a bar to enjoy some live music.. Even though it wasn't very good, it was still a good time. After going to another bar and having a few more drinks, we got home at 6:30 in the morning. We bought fresh buns from a bakery that opened at 6 in preparation for the hang over the next day. The next day followed a similar pattern, with more live music and beer.

During the week, Justyn and I had jumped on a subway and went to the Berlin arch. We got a little list because we didn't have our tour guide with us.. But we found our way. Beside the arch is a 22 million euro holocaust memorial, which was very busy and photogenic. Later that night, one of uli's flat mates Marcus took us out to see a few short plays at his acting school. Even though the plays were spoken in German, I was still able to understand what the characters and tension the actors were portraying. Once the plays finished, we went out to a bar with the cast and enjoyed a few drinks.

Our week in Berlin has been filled with art so far and I do not see the next few days changing. Uli is a gifted artist as well as his flat mates which creates a really comforting atmosphere in the house. This weekend we are heading to hamburg to see justyn's other cousin and uli's brother Jo-Jo. That's all for now... I'll be updating new stories shortly!

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