“No Matter Where You Go, There You Are” – My Two Week Extravaganza!

It’s no surprise that every study abroad student looks forward to their mid-semester break. It’s shocking how much planning can go into perfecting every little detail of a two-week itinerary, and many long afternoons were spent with our entire house surrounding the kitchen table, double and triple-checking details, and joining in on one another’s plans. I was well aware this trip would be quite the experience, but of course, it was an amazing one.

My trip began on a Friday morning at 5:00 a.m., when I took the bus to London to catch my flight to Athens. It was a long day of  traveling, but when I stepped outside of my metro stop and caught my first, breathtaking glimpse of the Acropolis, the entire day was worth it.

Despite some of the troubles it has come across in recent times, Greece is such an amazing country. It is incredible how they have maintained their history and culture despite constantly changing times, and seeing all of the ruins was just fascinating. Since I spent four days there, I was able to see the entire city, and really gained a lot of respect and appreciation for the Greeks and how much they enjoy life.

My next stop was Rome, which had been the destination I was most excited for before even coming to Cambridge. Although the weather wasn’t the greatest for parts of my time there, that surely didn’t dampen my spirits or sight-seeing. Seeing St. Peter’s Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, and just the Vatican City in general really blew my mind. As a Catholic, I have heard and learned much about all of these places, and being able to see them in person made me feel very gracious and well in touch with my faith.

Of course, you can’t see Rome without seeing the Colosseum and other fun destinations, so a lot of walking was shoved into the few days I was able to be there. The Colosseum was everything that I had hoped it would be, and although I got lost while looking for the Pantheon, I was able to see quite a bit.

The next two stops on my tour of Italy were Venice and Verona, both of which I absolutely fell in love with. Walking around Venice was a blast, and I found myself constantly stopping to take pictures of the sun setting on the canals. It’s definitely a place I would like to visit again, hopefully to spend more time out on the water.

To some people, Verona may seem like sort of a cliche, since it is infamous for being the home of Romeo and Juliet. Although this was the main reason I decided to make it a stop on my trip, I was surprised at how much there was to do and see in Verona, as well as how beautiful of a city it really was. I spent my afternoon there mailing my letter to Juliet, seeing Juliet’s house, and sitting on the stairs of the city hall building, watching the sun set. It was definitely the right way to spend my last full day in Italy.

Getting to the airport for my flight to Barcelona wasn’t the easiest due to a miscommunication and the fact that I at one point got on the wrong train, just to hop off of it moments before it left due to a nice Italian woman who could actually understand me. After being anxious while waiting in a long line to check my bag, I was practically running through the airport and security to make sure I caught my flight, just to see that it was delayed forty minutes. I was actually really thankful for this delay, since it gave me a little bit of time to relax before having to travel yet again. My plane finally landed in Barcelona at around 2:00 a.m, and I have never been so happy to see a hostel bed in my entire life.

It may seem weird that I decided to spend an entire week in Barcelona for the last part of my break, but I must say that it was totally worth it. I was able to see and do so much in Barcelona, and I began to know the city as if it were home. The weather was beautiful (in the mid-70’s), so every day was perfect for walking around, or even hitting the beach. I was able to spend plenty of time with many of the members of the Cambridge group, as well as spend more time with my Reutlingen friends.

I could write paragraph after paragraph about how awesome and eye-opening my two break was, but like Amber, I must admit that I’m pretty exhausted from all the excitement. For now, I’m going to go enjoy being back at the Cambridge Centre with some pumpkin pie :). Ciao, bellas!