Holiday - Nice & Monaco

Aitken & I bussed it into the city of Nice from the airport, and I saw mom and dad on the promenade next to the Mediterranean and hopped off in excitement to see them. Two of my pals! WOOHOO so pumped they were able to make the trip. Also stoked to be back in a country that I know the language - the Italian was a strug some days. Hol and I went up to the room to shower and after the day of travel we had it was everything and more, I felt like a zillion dollars (worth more than a euro otherwise I would've said a zillion euros, you know in spirit of eurojules and all.) the four of us ventured out for dinner, but of course no restaurants open until 7 for dinner so we had a few drinks waiting for places to prep and we chose an Italian spot. oddly enough, we all ordered the same thing and it was a rigatoni and it was tasty as (how can you go wrong with pasta?) Of course we passed a few gelaterias (Nice is so close to Italy it feels more like Italy than France) and dad had never tried gelato and he & I are the ice cream fiends so that was fun. Mom had lemon, Hol a berry something (strange for her bc she usually goes caramel or chocolate) dad went with a chocolate chip equivalent and coffee for me (SUPERBE.) It was really great having Hol there to meet mom and dad, it's two of my worlds colliding in the best way and they were able to see why I adore her so much, and of course vice versa for Hol to meet two of my best friends.

After gelato, we walked along the Mediterranean promenade, and mom suggested we go down and touch the water just to say we did. The beach is made mostly of pebbles and rocks, no sand, and the way the tide came in there was a ledge/shelf of the rocks already formed but not at all sturdy. The waves kept coming in short, so we scooted down a bit in order to touch and go. Mom was the first to slip, and she picked herself up pretty quickly. Then Hol went down because the rock shelf just slid and crumbled towards the water. I bent down to help her up, and this massive wave came up and soaked us all. We were all laughing so hard it was tough to get up and recoup away from the waves. Finally we did, I was soaked mid thigh down to my boots and mom was crying she was laughing so hard. Dad grouped us and we all did like a group huddle/hug and were like OKAY that was great we touched it alright. In fact our shoes squished with the sound of the Mediterranean the entire way back to the hotel. lolz

Dad walked Hol to the bus stop at about 5am Saturday morning, I was sleeping so heavily I missed them. It was weird waking up without her, considering we had been together for over a week nonstop. the two of us traveled really well together, and I had the time of my life by her side traveling through Italy. spring break 2016 - the best yet without a doubt.

Saturday we sort of bummed around, snagged a tasty lunch at a local diner type place, and then went back to chill for a bit before dinner. Our dinner was delightful - mom and dad had a ginger roasted chicken breast and I had sea bream with some veggies. ma bought tickets to the Carnevale finale, which is a massive parade celebration with a whole lot of weird floats, confetti and silly string. The floats though odd were incredibly well made and the music was fun - chilly and rainy didn't stop us from having a good time.

Sunday we ventured over to Monaco - the smallest country after the Vatican. It was really gorgeous with all of the yachts, mountain side buildings in array of colors, and the sparkly blue Mediterranean Sea. There were more luxury cars in Monaco than I think I've seen in the past year in total - it's a wealthy area to say the least. The hotel mom found had an incredible view of the sea as well as some pretty sweet boats, one of which looked so much like it would belong to James Bond and it was even called sky fall (one of the 007 movies.) We went into the Monte Carlo Casino, very fancy and embellished walls and big chandeliers. The Monte Carlo was featured in multiple James Bond movies, so that was pretty neat to see. We bummed around the docks and made our way back to the hotel where we ate an interesting and not so noteworthy dinner and called it a day early because we were wiped from the walk.

Early early early morning today to make the trek back to Nice to fly out to Nantes and then drive to Angers - thrilled to show mom and dad my home for the semester, not so thrilled to go back to class. What's school anyway?

cheers, jkro

Holiday - Genoa

Genoa was one for the books. we arrived in town about 3pm, mosied around the city (smaller but beautiful nonetheless) got a glimpse of the ocean (holl was VERY excited about this) and then trained it to the eastern side of Genoa where we met Alessandra. there is a website called couch surfing where you can look/search around and request to stay on people's couches. Alessandra was our first experience and I think it will be tough to compete because she was so kind and so gracious. she picked us up, we went back to her place, she invited us out for drinks and aperitivos with her gals from work to send off a colleague that is leaving the company. after we drove and parked in the city, Alessandra gave us a little tour of the city on our way to the bar. she had little tidbits of history that she passed onto us, and hearing her speak about Genoa just really showed how much she loves it here. she's been so many places, and she chose to come back to Genoa. the place we went to was a trendy little bar, and Alessandra so graciously bought our drinks. we sat around a big table, listened to quick Italian chatter and socialized with some really fun women (also tried focaccia bread - YUM) After the bar we headed out, and Alessandra stopped on our way home. she took us into this adorable little dessert and espresso bar, so of course Hol and I got some gelato (lemon - delightful) and the girl working was rattling off Italian to Alessandra. Alessandra told her where we were from, and about 5 minutes later she gave us a little bag with two mini pastries in it and she said something to Alessandra which Alessandra translated to us saying, "she wanted to give you a little something for your visit. she knows people around here aren't the nicest and wanted you to feel welcome." Though surprised by her comment about people not being the friendliest, we extended many thanks and departed the shop. we popped in next door to a bar where we met some of the gals we had dinner with - they had a few more drinks and we left to go back to Alessandra's. Cecilia came along as well and stayed in Alessandra's room, and Holl and I stayed on the pull out couch which Alessandra so kindly prepared for us. It took me a while to fall asleep, and we were up by 6:45 with Alessandra taking Viking (her fluffy golden retriever with a serious agenda) for a walk. after we remade her couch and tidied our area we left for the train station. Alessandra drove us all the way to the station, which we weren't expecting at all and it was so terribly kind of her to go out of her way. She hugged us both and said we always had a place to stay with her, and we both extended the same offer if she ventured back to the USA or made it to New Zealand. 

Hol and I had quite a bit of time to kill, so we parked it in a cafe in the train station. Around 45 minutes before our bus was to depart from the coach station, we started our walk there. Upon arrival, we couldn't find out bus. We inquired to a few (not so nice) bus drivers and then the panic set in (as it often did) that we wouldn't make the bus or train and be stranded and have to buy another ticket etc etc. Our Ouibus arrived, we hopped in (snagged the front seats - my motion sickness was thankful) and began our 3 hour journey to Nice. We stopped at a gas station for a half hour, and the driver demanded we get off the bus (ok man relax) and then we were stopped at the Italy Franxe border to have our passports checked. For some reason he lingered when checking mine and I just broke out in the sweats assuming the worst like he wouldn't let me in or something crazy. After he walked away Holl and I both blew out a breath of relief and gave each other the look, one we exchanged multiple times during our week together. Onward to Nice to see MA & MONSIEUR!

cheers & ciao, jkro

Holiday - Bologna

​Bologna (pronounced bo-lone-ya) was an interesting stop for us. After the immaculately clean streets of Florence, Bologna was more or less the opposite. Being north of Florence, it was much chillier as well. We stayed in a dodgy part of town (which you don't really know until you get there) but we were hyper aware of our surroundings and ended up at a restaurant Tuesday night that was oh so delicious. People always say you find the gems on the outskirts, and we did indeed. Funny enough the restaurant was called Snoopy 2, and it was a fellas joint - we were the only gals in the whole place. We arrived about 630, and they didn't technically open until 7 (a European standard.. not a eurojules favorite when i'm hungry) but they sat us anyway. Hol and I crushed two baskets of bread (which you pay for but in the end it was necessary) and shared some really meaningful conversations. Hol is so easy to talk to, and she makes you feel comfortable to open up beyond the average surface level conversation. We both ordered the tortellini (we did that often throughout the week. We'd go to order and realize we chose the same thing. Great minds think alike?) and it was divine. Best tortellini I've ever had. Tuesday night we both washed a bunch of clothes in the sink with some detergent we picked up. Man do I love and appreciate washing machines - AND dryers when my stuff was still wet Wednesday night and I had to use the weakest blow dryer known to man to try and dry the underwear I had to wear to bed so as not to flash Hol in the middle of the night. On Wednesday we slept in for the first time all week, and it was delightful. We have been running on little z's between the loud exteriors of where we stay or just inability to sleep that well. We then ventured out into the city (not on bikes.. we were salty about that) and hiked up the Asinelli tower. 498 TINY SLANTY STEPS! Multiple breaks were had, giggles exchanged, and no wipe outs which was a real blessing. The view at the top was definitely worth it - and we worked off the tortellini.. right?

the city was really pretty with the brightly colored buildings, fairly consistent with the other Italian cities, and we aimlessly wandered to some sites - their main piazza and cathedral as well as popping in and out of shops. For dinner we went to a suggested local favorite for some traditional bolognaise pasta - good but not great after the tortellini at Snoopy the night prior. The next morning we made our way to the train station (on public transit buses - seamlessly thank you very much) and trained to Genoa. Another great stop on our tour of Italy! 

cheers & ciao, jkro

Holiday - Florence

Florence was such a pretty city. I was really astounded by how clean the streets were - and by how many Americans I saw. Emma (Leising whom is studying in Florence for the semester from Miami!) said that there are 6,000 american students studying in Florence this semester. insane! I saw IU, Northwestern, and Penn State tshirts in the day that we were there. We met Sarah and Mary for dinner Sunday night (after it took us forever to get into the city - traveling difficulties which seem to be inevitable for hol and myself) at a little restaurant in the downtown area. Hol and I both had a penne ragu, which was incredible (1 because it was tasty and 2 because we were ravenous.) We all split a bottle of the house wine, which we decided we deserved because we had a really long day. We made our way back to the Airbnb, a great location close to a lot of hot spots in the city and rested for the day ahead.

Monday we set out around 1130, made our way to the duomo, which is really spectacular on the outside. it looks like someone sketched it on white paper with a pencil which I find so interesting. the inside was of course beautiful, but after seeing Saint Peters Basilica in Vatican City, I think the inside of every church I see from now on will pale in comparison. We mosied around the streets of Florence, which were hustling and bustling with young people and of course the guys trying to sell selfie sticks (these knuckleheads are EVERYWHERE) and heard some really incredible street music. We stopped for gelato for breakfast (only way to do it) because there were gelaterias on every corner (like a Starbucks in the states) and saw some statues around town. the Italians really love their naked buff figures - they're honestly everywhere. there were a ton of little markets and stands with purses, scarves and soccer jerseys galore - I liked looking through them just to see the colors and different styles. we popped into a few shops too and the girls picked up a few things in Zara. We sat outside for a little dinner - I had pork and potatoes which was seared deliciousness.

Holly's corner: 

• yonks: meaning, ages. "haven't seen you for yonks!" 
• guts, meaning: sucks. "guts for them."

Ponte Vecchio

We trekked (appropriate use of the word) to Piazza Michaelangelo, which had a really gorgeous view of the city. It was unfortunately overcast so we didn't get to see the sunset, but still worth the hike. After that we made our way back home, stopping for some wine at the market because we planned to pick up pizza and sit on the bridge to eat it (a popular suggestion by the locals.) On our way to the highly revered pizza place, we realized it was closed. Feeling pretty defeated, we walked that direction to meet Emma who joined us for dinner. We found a place near the river, and Holl and I both had carbonara, which was to die for, so stinkin delicious. We made our way back home, and then Sarah and I went out to a club called Yab. It was 10 bucks to get in, and then another 3 to check your coat (which wasn't an option. they wouldn't let you in unless you checked your coat - they shake you down in Europe I swear) and then we were thrown into the jungle. it was completely packed, and sar and I were just dancing together getting bumped into left and right. we actually found a flyer (one of Sarah's pals from home) which was both surprising and cool considering we were in a packed club in Italy and found a Dayton flyer.) After the club walking home, it was absolutely down pouring. i am grateful and blessed to say that's the first real rain I've had so far on this trip, and I'm totally okay with it. the morning after (a bit of a doozy) Hol and I made our way to the train station where we took a quick trip north to Bologna. Firenze, you were so good to us.

cheers & ciao, jkro