Sitting in a cafe in Beijing and writing about my time studying abroad in Rome, is surreal to say the least. This is especially true when you factor in the Rome-sickness and the all-consuming need to write about all things China. But before, I delve into the culture shock (there’s no faking your way through Chinese), joys of being randomly photographed while at the grocery store (I blame the hair), and the not-actually-that-bad woes of pollution (cannot remember the last time I wore a mask), I wanted to post a quick update on my last two months in Rome. This first post, is mostly going to be a photo recap of the six cities I visited outside of Italy, with the majority of pictures coming from fall break with my three cousins who hail from Chicago, London, and Windsor, Canada.
So flashback to London, England ~ October 2, 2015 -October 3, 2015.
….Just kidding, the internet here does not agree with me. So here I am nearly 3 weeks later, posting this from Chicago. Okay, now back to the flashback.
Day one in London. Here I am reunited with my cousins and posing in front of Tower Bridge.
One of my favorite areas in London was Borough Market. Not only can you try all the cheeses and jams you could possibly want in the world, but you can also sample delicious and unique street food.
This is me in front of the Shakespeare Theatre reminiscing about second semester honors. Shoutout to Professor Foster for teaching us about the Globe Theatre.
“O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend
The brightest heaven of invention,
A kingdom for a stage, princes to act
And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!” – Shakespeare, Henry V
Vicky, Natalie and I casually standing on THE HARRY POTTER BRIDGE, otherwise known as the Millennium Bridge. Needless to say I was fangirling hardcore in this picture.
Natalie and I posing for an obligatory picture in front of Big Ben.
So this was the end of our first night in London, and we were thoroughly exhausted, but I could not leave London without seeing Chinatown. Interestingly, here in China, we just returned from an excursion to Yunnan, where we visited a town that looked almost exactly like this street of Chinatown.
Now for Nice, France ~ October 11, 2015 – October 12, 2015
My childhood best friend from Canada, Saly, joined us in France, where it was all about food and sun.
Vicky and I enjoying a delicious croque monsieur and reminiscing about my French classes from high school. I was pleasantly surprised by how much French I remembered – the phrase “je voudrais” was a life-saver.
Meet our friend, Mister Crepe, famous crepe-maker and hat-wearer of Nice.
Moving on to Santorini, Greece ~ October 13, 2015 – October 14, 2015
Now there is truly no other word to describe Santorini except paradise. This is Saly and I on the balcony of our hotel room with the beautiful blue sky and sea of Santorini surrounding us.
Me enjoying a Greek Frappe.
These are the beautiful blue top churches of Santorini, which we woke up very early in the morning to go see, before our boat to Mykonos set off.
Mykonos, Greece ~ October 15, 2015
My time in Mykonos was a mix of disappointment, because it was off season and almost nothing was open, and adrenaline, because I drove an ATV for the first time and was fantastic at it.
Our last stop in Greece was Athens ~ October 16, 2015
“The sun is the best doctor”- our taxi driver/guide. We first met him upon arriving to Greece when he drove us to our ferry for Santorini and gave us his card so we could call him when we arrive back in Athens. Calling him was the best decision we ever made. He drove us all around Athens, guarded our luggage, and made an itinerary for us on the spot, with strict timelines for when we needed to be in and out of the Acropolis in order to make it to our flight on time. My cousin, Natalie, still remarks on how much he reminded her of her father, my uncle, who was a taxi driver in the states after emigrating from Iraq to Greece to Chicago. Truly, this day was the highlight of our trip.
Saly and I, attempting to get our bearings while in front of the Parthenon. It’s remarkable how many details of the architecture you can remember from honors when you’re in front of the real thing.
Finally, my last trip outside of Italy was to Dubrovnik, Croatia with friends from the JFRC ~ November 6, 2015 – November 8, 2015.
This photo is for all the Game of Thrones fans out there. I’m not exactly sure what this is in the show, but my friend, Hannah, who is an avid watcher, says its important.
Hannah, Amy, James and I on a boat to Lokrum, an island just off of Dubrovnik.
Me, pinching myself, on the edge of Lokrum, just feet away from the Adriatic Sea (which was freezing by the way).
This lovely picture of Amy, James, and Hannah is from the next day when we climbed the city walls that enclose the Old Town of Dubrovnik.
On our last morning, we took a cable car to the top of a mountain overlooking old town and saw this amazing view of Old Town on the right and Lokrum on the left.
So that wraps up this little flashback to the non-Italy cities I visited last semester. My best advice to anyone who is studying abroad at the JFRC, or in Europe in general, is to take advantage of this opportunity to travel, you never know who you will meet. Until next time!
-Em