Week 6: SPRING BREAK!!! Veronaà
Romeà
Santorini J
What a spring break to remember!! I was blessed to be able
to spend my break in many different countries and cities all around Europe. Not
many people can say that they traveled through Italy and then went to a Greek
island for spring break. I don’t really know if I can even call it a “break”
either, because it is pretty much like I am on a three month break already, but
I guess I can just say it was a break on my break! After our group trip to
Vienna and then to Venice, we were set free to go anywhere on our own for
spring break! My group of friends and I were eager to break away from the group
and be on our own for a while. Therin, Burke, Xanny, Nick, and I jumped on a
train in Venice and were ready for spring break!
Verona, Italy
Our first stop was to Verona. To tell you the truth, I was
not that excited about going to Verona since I had Rome and Santorini to look
forward to. However this little city blew me away. I absolutely fell in love
with Italy, but we visited Venice and Rome, which are very touristy cities so
Verona was a nice change with less tourism. We didn’t really have a plan for
our time in Verona, so we just went and explored. We found many beautiful
churches- like in most cities we visit. Verona is home to Romeo and Juliet, so
of course we had to find the Juliet balcony. We decided to roam to the other
side of the city, and we came across a festival! There was a live band, wine
tasting, and so many delicious food stands. Of course we had to stop at every
single stand and get a free sample of cheese, sausage, olives, cookies, wine
and even free shots. It was a blast to enjoy this festival! That night we
climbed to the top of a hill just on the outskirts of the city and got a to
take in the marvelous view- Verona was amazing.
The wall of letters to Juliet
Juliet's Balcony
Beautiful views of Verona
Rome, Italy
So much to do, so little time! Rome is full of so much
history it is unbelievable! Right when we got to Rome, we wasted no time and
started sight seeing right away. Since we are poor college kids and don’t have
enough money to pay for the tours for all of the sights, we just downloaded
Rick Steve’s podcasts for free and listened to his guided tours. These podcasts
were absolutely amazing and probably even better the tours! First we visited
the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, it is crazy to think that these remains are
still around from so long ago. I never realized how big the Roman Empire
actually was until I took a tour and heard all of the deep history. We had a
short little gelato stop and then we made our way to the Colosseum. I have
always wanted to see this place! After stepping into it, I remember just being
shocked of how massive the Colosseum actually was! It was truly just impossible
to imagine that they used to kill so many people in this arena for
entertainment.
The Roman Forum
I can never have enough gelato.
The Colosseum!
We also got to visit the heart of the catholic church- the
Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica. The Vatican was huge and full of so many
grand statues and art, with the grand finale of the Sistine Chapel by
Michelangelo. I sat there just taking in how beautiful his work is and the
great story that was painted along the ceiling and walls. St. Peter’s Basilica
blows any church in the entire world. We got take in the outside of the
basilica where the Pope talks. I was in complete awe when I finally stepped
inside St. Peter’s. Words cannot even describe this place. It was incredible to
see how enormous and grand everything was. The beautiful canopy above the altar
is seven stories high but looks small when placed below the massive dome. The statues
and paintings were just astonishing! We also got to climb to the top of the
dome and see a beautiful view Rome.
St. Peter's Basilica
A great view of Rome from the top of St. Peter's Basilica.
In Rome we also visited the Pantheon and Trastevere where we
saw the first church in history to be dedicated to the Virgin Mary, which was
amazing. We spent a lot of time at the Trevi Fountain and threw in some coins,
which means there is luck of you returning to Rome again. Since Rome is known
for their great food and wine, we made sure to have plenty of each!! Rome was
such lovely city and I am grateful that I got to cross it off my bucket list.
The Trevi Fountain
You can never have too much pasta in Italy!
Of course another gelato.
Santorini, Greece
This place is absolutely my FAVORITE place I have been to
yet in Europe! I completely fell in love with this beautiful island and I would
go back there in a heartbeat! On our way to Santorini all I could think about
was the movies Mamma Mia and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants because they
were both filmed in Santorini. This Greek island exceeded every expectation I
ever had! It was paradise. The views were worth a million dollars. All of the
people there were so nice and friendly and the food was just amazing (even
though I say that about every place I go to).
I made some of the best memories here that I will never forget. First of
all we rented 4-wheelers to get around the island to the beaches and towns we
wanted to go to. They were a blast until one night at 11pm; Therin and I were
on our way home to our hostel from Oia when all of a sudden our 4-wheeler just
stopped working. So we were stranded. Sounds funny now but at the time we had
no clue what to do. We started walking and then found a fancy hotel were they
helped us call a taxi to make it home. Therin’s and I adventures in Greece
doesn’t stop there though. We spent a long time trying to find the red beach
and then when we finally made it there we fell asleep on the beach, only to
wake up and find ourselves as red as lobster. We ate plenty of gyros and
crapes, found ourselves dancing in a huge birdcage, and also made friends with
a few stray dogs. Memories I will never forget.
The beautiful Santorini!!
Our 4-wheelers!
The Red Beach where Therin and I turned red.
The food was just amazing!!
Baklava!! I love this dessert and was so happy to try it in Greece!
Crepes are now my favorite food.
One day we took a boat to a little island right next to
Santorini. After being on this tiny island I can now say that I have walked on
an active volcano! It was crazy to think that we were actually walking and
touching the ground a volcano that is currently active. Next the boat made its
way to the other side of this island and they told us to jump off the boat into
the sea and swim into this little cove where it turns into a natural hot
spring. This is when I thought my life was going to end. I jumped off the boat
and plunged into the extremely cold sea. It also happened to be a very very
very windy day and the waves were pretty big. At one point I literally thought
that I couldn’t make it back to the boat and that I now belonged to the sea
forever. Luckily God was looking out for me and some how I made it safely back
on board.
The donkeys were always ready to give everyone a ride.
The views in here were just breathtaking; no picture will
ever do this beautiful island justice. Santorini is known for one of the most
beautiful and romantic sunsets in the entire world. I live in Nebraska so I
have seen some of the best sunsets ever, so I was eager to see if Santorini
would really live up to its title- and it sure did. Santorini will always hold
a place in my heart.
Santorini :)
