I've just arrived in Ljubljana so I thought I'd let you all know how Venice was.
Amazing!
All
the canals made the city seem so romantic and fairy tale like, I
absolutely loved it! I went to St Mark's which is definitely my
favourite cathedral, it's so Gothic and spooky inside, I loved it! I
took the water bus up and down the Grand Canal several times taking in
all the scenery and surrounding sights. It was mad arriving in the city
because it felt like the train was floating on the water. After a lot of
walking about and getting the general feel of the place I went to the
Lido AKA THE BEACH!! The sea was gorgeous but I forgot my swimming stuff
so couldn't go in :-( but I did enjoy lounging on the sand! Wondered
about some more and probably crossed a millions bridges and I DIDN'T
get lost which everyone normally does.
The following day I went
to Verona to see the Romeo and Juliet sights which was so lovely. I was
only there for a few hours so I only saw Juliet's balcony, her tomb and
the amphitheatre (third largest in the world). As you walk into Juliet's
house there is an arc covered in love graffiti, so romantic, so i wrote a
little message (cheesy i hear you say) I also bought the play and
wondered around enjoying the delightful little city. Juliet's house had a
fantastic little art display by Quinn (I think) it was painting and
sculptures of flowers, so vibrant and colourful, I really enjoyed it!
The hostel I stayed at was fab, awesome people, a fab location and
breakfast and dinner included! The only bad side was when I was woken up
by one of my room mates being sick on the floor, lovely!!
There
were so many pigeons in the city, it reminded me of the guy who gave me
some random bird food in Milan so they would fly up to my hands, horrid!
He took my photo and then had the nerve to ask for 5 Euro, i gave him
20 cent!! I had so much fun the last few days I can barely remember what
happened so there isn't much more i can write. Venice was incredible
and I really want to go back again. It was bloody expensive but worth
it... maybe! I would have like to do a gondola ride but they are super
pricey so maybe next time.
I'm sad to leave Italy and
all the
nuns (there have been so many!) but I think I've eaten enough pizza and
gelati to last a long time so bring on Eastern Europe. I've finished
Eclipse so I desperately need to find a book shop to buy the final
instalment, until then I'm reading Romeo and Juliet. I also bought the
most ridiculous sailor hat in Venice, it's ab fab!
Ciao for now people
Showing posts with label Italy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Italy. Show all posts
Monday, 24 August 2009
Friday, 21 August 2009
When in Rome
Tonight I'm leaving Rome for Venice even though the last two days have
been fantastic! Rome is massive compared to any place I've been on my
trip yet which in turn means much MUCH more to see! The Colosseum, Roman
Forum and Palatine where incredible especially when you consider
they've been around for more than 2000 years, It really is like stepping
back in time to another world almost! I particularly enjoyed the forum
which is where Roman civilisation' first developed all those years ago.
The place is obviously in ruins but the peaceful atmosphere and
magnificent architecture allows you to walk around for hours forgetting
you are in the middle of a busy city. I took a visit to the Vatican to
see St Peters Basilica and the Museum! The Cathedral was beautiful and
the museum was extremely impressive, probably the biggest one if been
too, i walked around for HOURS! The museum finished with the Sistine chapel which was beautiful!
Today I climbed the Spanish Steps, threw some money in the Fountain de Trevi (which is where La Dolce Vita is filmed, great film) and saw the Pantheon amongst some other churches and ancient buildings! The fountain was lovely but due to the extreme temperatures in Rome I almost jumped in (which IS NOT allowed)! My trainers completely fell apart today from so much walking, so i had to buy a new pair which was a bit lame!
There have been some lovely people at the hostel (which was not so lovely), I have come across quite a lot of Canadians and Scandinavians and everyone is so friendly! I've finished Twilight and New Moon but fortunately there was an international bookshop at the train station so I was able to buy Eclipse, woop!
I think I've seen enough churches to satisfy the Pope for a life time and I'm not sure how much more sight seeing I can stand in this heat, I hear Venice is HOT! So after Italy I'm taking it easy, there's only so many museums one person can take!
I hope everything is well in sunny England (I hear there is a heat wave) and everyone is having a good summer!
Ciao for now.
Today I climbed the Spanish Steps, threw some money in the Fountain de Trevi (which is where La Dolce Vita is filmed, great film) and saw the Pantheon amongst some other churches and ancient buildings! The fountain was lovely but due to the extreme temperatures in Rome I almost jumped in (which IS NOT allowed)! My trainers completely fell apart today from so much walking, so i had to buy a new pair which was a bit lame!
There have been some lovely people at the hostel (which was not so lovely), I have come across quite a lot of Canadians and Scandinavians and everyone is so friendly! I've finished Twilight and New Moon but fortunately there was an international bookshop at the train station so I was able to buy Eclipse, woop!
I think I've seen enough churches to satisfy the Pope for a life time and I'm not sure how much more sight seeing I can stand in this heat, I hear Venice is HOT! So after Italy I'm taking it easy, there's only so many museums one person can take!
I hope everything is well in sunny England (I hear there is a heat wave) and everyone is having a good summer!
Ciao for now.
Tuesday, 18 August 2009
Home sweet home (if only I lived in Florence)
So I've been in Florence for the last two days and I LOVE it here, the
city is amazing! It's quite small but there is still plenty to see and I
especially enjoy the tall Renaissance style buildings that shelter me
from the sun! I've been to see the 'real' David and the replica, which
was pretty breathing taking considering it was carved out of one
MASSIVE piece of marble! I saw the big cathedral, the Palazzo Veechio,
Basilica de San Lorenzo and other lovely looking building. Today I went
to Pisa to see the leaning tower which was pretty cool.... after getting disgusting lost on the way. I made it in the end.... eventually! At
sunset I climbed the Piazzale Michalangelo which was incredible, the
best views in the city, stunning, despite the millions stairs!
The hostel I'm staying at isn't too bad, met some lovely people and ate goooood food! I really really love Florence and would definitely come back even thought I've pretty much seen all I wanted to. I've discovered i don't really like Renaissance paintings, they're a bit too grand and dark for my liking, but the statues are wonderful! I'm heading to Rome tomorrow morning which will be great even thought I'm starting to get a little fed up of sight seeing, it's pretty exhausting! Looking forward to seeing old Popey!
I best go as I'm using my room mates laptop and they're out of the shower now! Italy is an amazing country but I hate the heat and the mosquitoes, except for that everything is wonderful and I'm having lots of fun!
The hostel I'm staying at isn't too bad, met some lovely people and ate goooood food! I really really love Florence and would definitely come back even thought I've pretty much seen all I wanted to. I've discovered i don't really like Renaissance paintings, they're a bit too grand and dark for my liking, but the statues are wonderful! I'm heading to Rome tomorrow morning which will be great even thought I'm starting to get a little fed up of sight seeing, it's pretty exhausting! Looking forward to seeing old Popey!
I best go as I'm using my room mates laptop and they're out of the shower now! Italy is an amazing country but I hate the heat and the mosquitoes, except for that everything is wonderful and I'm having lots of fun!
Sunday, 16 August 2009
A tale of 3 cities
OK, so at the minute I am in Milan but before I get to the excitement of Italy I will fill you in on the last few days.
So on Wednesday night I arrived in Barcelona in the sweltering heat. I stayed at an awesome hostel called Barcelona Dream, it was a bit out the way but the place itself was really great. Thursday was dedicated to sight seeing. I went to Park Guell to have a walk about and enjoy Gaudi's art which was fantastic. I really enjoyed they way his mosaics and sculptures are so colourful and stand out so vibrantly against the natural background. Despite the trek (and it really was a mission) up the hill to visit the park it was totally worth it, the place was beautiful and you could see all around the city, truly magnificent. I had to buy one of those flamenco fans because it was so hot and i don't fare to well in the heat! I did visit the Gaudi museum but to be perfectly honest it was over priced and i wouldn't recommend it. I then went to La Rambla to see all the shops and street entertainment which was a lot of fun. I popped into this amazing food market and the produce was amazing. Thousands of fresh fish (you can imagine the smell) and glorious looking fruit. I decided not to buy anything cos it was all a bit pricey. I walked along the river front by the harbour soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the tranquillity of the coast. The city is so alive and energetic it was nice to have some peace. The hostel hosted a paella night that evening which was great fun, yummy food and sangria, great times! Unfortunately I didn't get to see half the stuff i wanted to but it's a place i will definitely by visiting again, I loved it!
The next day I caught a train to Nice. I was originally going to get a direct fast train but the reservations were full so after the panic (Greg and Dom will understand) I found a way, much longer with 4 changes, where reservations were not needed (phew!). This route turned out to be extremely enjoyable and was only an hour longer than the original (a breath taking 11 hours in total)! I made friends with 2 American girls which kept me occupied for the first 3 hours and after that I had some glorious alone time with Edward Cullen!!! To say the route was scenic is a massive understatement. I am no stranger to the sea but seeing it for the first time as we crossed the Spain-France border was breath taking. I don't think I've ever seen the sea so blue and perfect, amazing! We coasted through little French villages where the colours of the terracotta roofs, vivid green foliage and cloudless blue skies stood out against each other like you wouldn't believe it! Looking out the train window was seriously amazing. At one point there was this perfectly situated sail boat all alone in the middle of the ocean, it was like a postcard. The South of France is truly amazing, I would love to live there!
I arrived in Nice late and because I originally thought I wouldn't make it I cancelled my hostel booking, bad idea! Every single place was fully booked and any rooms available costed €150, mad! Fortunately I found Maya, a lovely Canadian girl, who was also stuck! We considered sleeping on the beach, breaking into a hostel to sleep on someone's floor (this we were actually in the process of doing) until Emily came to the rescue and said we could sleep at her apartment in Monte Carlo. After walking around for hours with are luggage, Maya and I boarded a train to Monaco, almost missing it (the last one as well) but spent another hour getting lost until we found Emily. We got to bed after 2 and were relieved to say the very least. What a palava but of course looking back it was all a bit fun!
Whilst running around Nice we got to see a bit of the place but I wasn't impressed! It wasn't as glamorous as I'd expected it to be but maybe this was due to all situation, anyway i wasn't sad to leave it behind. The following day Emily showed us around Monte Carlo which was super amazing, so fancy and perfect, I want to live there, but also was too expensive. We ate croissants and ogled at the €70 millions plus super yachts. We went to the casino and generally fell in love with the place!
That afternoon I got a train to Milan and spent bloody ages finding my hostel! I'm sharing a room with English people which is nice because I haven't come across any yet, but thankfully everyone speaks English anyway! Today I have wondered the city visiting the Duomo which is beautiful (you need to be dressed in certain way to get in and luckily I fitted the bill)! I went to the fancy shopping centre and naturally ogled the Prada and Gucci, wondered around the Opera house (amazing) and went to the Casello Sforzesco which had a really good museum. I chilled out eating ice cream with my feet in a fountain and listened to Italian music outside the castle grounds, lovely!
Not sure what the plan is for tonight but I'm off to Florence tomorrow and looking forward to precious reading time on the train as I'm about to start New Moon, I never imagined I'd love Twilight so much!
The travelling is great, but the weather is vile, too hot for me I feel like melting! Hopefully I'll get back on the net in a few days and PS the Italian as sleazy to say the very least!
Ciao
So on Wednesday night I arrived in Barcelona in the sweltering heat. I stayed at an awesome hostel called Barcelona Dream, it was a bit out the way but the place itself was really great. Thursday was dedicated to sight seeing. I went to Park Guell to have a walk about and enjoy Gaudi's art which was fantastic. I really enjoyed they way his mosaics and sculptures are so colourful and stand out so vibrantly against the natural background. Despite the trek (and it really was a mission) up the hill to visit the park it was totally worth it, the place was beautiful and you could see all around the city, truly magnificent. I had to buy one of those flamenco fans because it was so hot and i don't fare to well in the heat! I did visit the Gaudi museum but to be perfectly honest it was over priced and i wouldn't recommend it. I then went to La Rambla to see all the shops and street entertainment which was a lot of fun. I popped into this amazing food market and the produce was amazing. Thousands of fresh fish (you can imagine the smell) and glorious looking fruit. I decided not to buy anything cos it was all a bit pricey. I walked along the river front by the harbour soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the tranquillity of the coast. The city is so alive and energetic it was nice to have some peace. The hostel hosted a paella night that evening which was great fun, yummy food and sangria, great times! Unfortunately I didn't get to see half the stuff i wanted to but it's a place i will definitely by visiting again, I loved it!
The next day I caught a train to Nice. I was originally going to get a direct fast train but the reservations were full so after the panic (Greg and Dom will understand) I found a way, much longer with 4 changes, where reservations were not needed (phew!). This route turned out to be extremely enjoyable and was only an hour longer than the original (a breath taking 11 hours in total)! I made friends with 2 American girls which kept me occupied for the first 3 hours and after that I had some glorious alone time with Edward Cullen!!! To say the route was scenic is a massive understatement. I am no stranger to the sea but seeing it for the first time as we crossed the Spain-France border was breath taking. I don't think I've ever seen the sea so blue and perfect, amazing! We coasted through little French villages where the colours of the terracotta roofs, vivid green foliage and cloudless blue skies stood out against each other like you wouldn't believe it! Looking out the train window was seriously amazing. At one point there was this perfectly situated sail boat all alone in the middle of the ocean, it was like a postcard. The South of France is truly amazing, I would love to live there!
I arrived in Nice late and because I originally thought I wouldn't make it I cancelled my hostel booking, bad idea! Every single place was fully booked and any rooms available costed €150, mad! Fortunately I found Maya, a lovely Canadian girl, who was also stuck! We considered sleeping on the beach, breaking into a hostel to sleep on someone's floor (this we were actually in the process of doing) until Emily came to the rescue and said we could sleep at her apartment in Monte Carlo. After walking around for hours with are luggage, Maya and I boarded a train to Monaco, almost missing it (the last one as well) but spent another hour getting lost until we found Emily. We got to bed after 2 and were relieved to say the very least. What a palava but of course looking back it was all a bit fun!
Whilst running around Nice we got to see a bit of the place but I wasn't impressed! It wasn't as glamorous as I'd expected it to be but maybe this was due to all situation, anyway i wasn't sad to leave it behind. The following day Emily showed us around Monte Carlo which was super amazing, so fancy and perfect, I want to live there, but also was too expensive. We ate croissants and ogled at the €70 millions plus super yachts. We went to the casino and generally fell in love with the place!
That afternoon I got a train to Milan and spent bloody ages finding my hostel! I'm sharing a room with English people which is nice because I haven't come across any yet, but thankfully everyone speaks English anyway! Today I have wondered the city visiting the Duomo which is beautiful (you need to be dressed in certain way to get in and luckily I fitted the bill)! I went to the fancy shopping centre and naturally ogled the Prada and Gucci, wondered around the Opera house (amazing) and went to the Casello Sforzesco which had a really good museum. I chilled out eating ice cream with my feet in a fountain and listened to Italian music outside the castle grounds, lovely!
Not sure what the plan is for tonight but I'm off to Florence tomorrow and looking forward to precious reading time on the train as I'm about to start New Moon, I never imagined I'd love Twilight so much!
The travelling is great, but the weather is vile, too hot for me I feel like melting! Hopefully I'll get back on the net in a few days and PS the Italian as sleazy to say the very least!
Ciao
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