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Our Italian journey begins -- Venice & Cinque Terre

It’s been exactly one month since I graduated from the University of Georgia. I can’t say my life has changed drastically like many of my fellow graduates. I haven’t moved, or started a new job or entered the “real world” as they say. However, these past few weeks have been some of the best of my life, and I have created memories that surely will stay with me forever. I’ve traveled places I had only dreamed about or 'pinned', experienced different cultures, overcome various language barriers and learned (am learning) to be a savvy traveler. I can’t believe we still have three weeks left of visiting beautiful places. I’ve enjoyed every minute so far and and am looking forward to the rest of our journey.

After leaving the beautiful country of Switzerland we began our trek through Italy - starting with Venice. After having a long day of travel, we arrived a little after 8:00 p.m. We had a hard time finding our place, and as it was getting dark we began to worry a little. Eventually after numerous wrong turns and asking directions from many locals, we made it. We spent the next day wandering the streets and canals and having our first taste of Italian pizza, wine and of course, gelato. Before dinner we took a bottle of wine to San Marco square and enjoyed our surroundings and what seemed like the place to bring dogs to play together in the evening. For dinner we took a short walk to a restaurant on one of the canals. The night before, during our aimless wandering, we had seen this place packed with people and saw that it was rated high on Trip Advisor and decided to give it a try. It was a small restaurant, with all of the tables and seating very close together - very family-oreinted feel. The meal and the atmosphere were excellent. My favorite part was the pana cotta at the end :). We decided we were glad we visited Venice, but it was definitely a city you could see in one night and one day. The amount of tourists was a little overwhelming and it was hard to place a finger on the local vibe of the city. 

The next day we packed up and headed to the train station. We were running late, but managed to get on the train with two minutes to spare and we were on the way to Cinque Terre! Cinque Terre was one of the places I was most excited for and boy, did it not disappoint. We stayed in Monterosso, the northern most town of the five, at a precious bed and breakfast. Cristina, the owner, was young and very friendly and our room was quaint and a perfect retreat after a long day. There was also a cat there that I appropriately named Tom. As our usual first days in new places go, we spent the afternoon wandering the streets, taking in the scenery and enjoying our first beach destination since we’ve been in Europe. For dinner we went to a restaurant that Cristina suggested. Since Cinque Terre is the home of pesto and seafood, I ordered pesto gnocchi  and Drew ordered an entire lobster which he made sure to enjoy every bite of. He talked about his lobster meal “fit for kings” for days. 

In the morning we started the hike from Monterosso to the next village - Vernazza. The hike was a little over 2 miles and took about an hour and fifteen minutes. It was an incredible hike with the most amazing views and we had wonderful weather which was a plus considering some of the weather we had in the beginning of our trip. It definitely wasn’t an easy hike, with lots of climbing up and down the mountain, but it was one of the best I’ve done in my life. 

Leaving Monterosso

Hello Vernazza!

When we arrived in Vernazza we headed straight for the nearest pizzeria with a view and had a relaxing lunch by the sea. We wandered over to the rocks near the harbor and found a good rock to sit on and take in the views while preparing for the next hike. We walked around Vernazza for a while and then started the next trek to Corniglia. This hike was a little over 2.5 miles as well and took about the same amount of time as the last one. Again, beautiful views, wonderful trail scenery and a very enjoyable hike. In Corniglia we had some gelato, walked around the town and then boarded a train back to Monterosso. Unfortunately, the last two trails to the other towns were temporarily closed due to rock slides.

 That night we had a picnic out on the rocks during sunset and ended the night with a few drinks in old town. We were thrilled when we found an I.P.A as well as a summer ale - tasted like home and summer nights at Terrapin.

Our third day in Monterosso we spent laying on the beach, swimming and jumping off rocks into the ocean. It felt like the perfect summer day and I couldn’t have been happier. We had planned to take the boat and/or train to the other two towns that evening for dinner but unfortunately I started to feel under the weather late in the afternoon, and we didn’t quite make it.

Cinque Terre is definitely somewhere I will return. It was a perfect place to relax, as well as be adventurous, eat great food and it isn’t overly crowded. We debated staying another night, but in the end we headed to Florence early on Friday morning. I’ll write about Florence tomorrow, but for now we are on the train headed to the Amalfi Coast to Positano - another one of the places I am most excited for. 

Love from the train somewhere between Rome and Napoli,

Emily & Drew

Switzerland! -- Lucerne & Interlaken

Right now (when I started to write this...) I am sitting in my bed in Interlaken looking out of the window to the Swiss Alps that surround this town like a walled fortress. During these past several days in Lucerne and Interlaken, Switzerland I’ve been surrounded by some of the most beautiful, picturesque scenery of my life.

On Monday, we arrived at the train station in Paris around 11 a.m. after missing our 6 a.m. train ride to Lucerne. We weren’t too concerned because there were 24 other trains leaving for Lucerne from Paris that day. Our care-free attitudes quickly took a downward spiral when the lady at the ticket counter told us there was no possible way to get to Lucerne, or any city in Switzerland, for at least two more days. This began one of our first real mishaps of the trip. Our hostel in Lucerne was already booked and paid for, and we had no where to stay in Paris. We spent the next six hours in Gare de Lyon trying to find a way to make it, even if we had to go through multiple cities. Around 4 o’clock we thought we had it figured out and had routed a way through Strasbourg to a small city in Switzerland and finally to Lucerne. The train to Strasbourg left in 20 minutes and we rushed to the ticket counter with lifted sprits and hopes that we would make it. Unfortunately, the train we were ready to hop on was at a different station on the other side of Paris. After a day of stressful planning and re-routing we decided it was time to find a place to stay that night so we weren’t left sleeping on a bench in the park. As an after thought, being “stranded” in Paris isn’t the worst thing that could’ve happened. We booked a room in Paris and made our way to the hotel. We ended up having one of our best meals yet at restaurant that was on top of a hill overlooking the city. It was a beautiful way to wrap up our Paris-stay. 

The next morning we hopped on a train at 7 a.m. to Nancy, France, and then changed trains and went to Strasbourg. From Strasbourg we rode to Basel, Switzerland and finally boarded a train to Lucerne. Although it was a hectic and long day of travel, it felt good to have figured out a way to get to Lucerne all on our own, and with taking the long way we were treated with beautiful scenery of the French countryside as well as our first glimpses of the Alps. 

The day we arrived in Lucerne was a beautiful, sunshine-filled day. We had wonderful pizza and pasta at a small Italian restaurant near the lake, took a nap at our new home for the next two nights, and ended the night having a couple drinks at an Irish pub on the lake. 

The next day we had a hike planned, but to our dismay it was raining - I am surprised the whole continent of Europe is not flooded by now. Our response to a bump in our plans was to bar hop all day which was an adventure on its own.

In the morning we decided to commit to the hike we had been denied even if the weather was not ideal. When we woke up it was a little cloudy, but no rain! We packed up, locked our stuff up in the lockers at the train station, and boarded the boat that took us on an hour-long scenic ride to the base of Mt. Rigi. From there, we took a mountain train up the mountain with incredible views of the mountains and lake below. 

All of a sudden, to our surprise, this was our view out of the window.

We were obviously underprepared for a full on blizzard, but we zipped our jackets and put our hoods up and hopped out into the snow. It was a crazy feeling going from sunshine and greenery to literally above the clouds in the snow. We walked up to the peak of the mountain and enjoyed the view.

We decided to walk down the mountain farther and had quite the adventure slipping and sliding through the snow, throwing snowballs and looking down at the lake and towns below. Drew got some great footage on his GoPro camera which he had strapped to his chest during our time on the mountain. I’ll see if I can upload that on here or to Facebook. After an exciting day we took the mountain train to the bottom and all of a sudden we were back in the sunshine and snow-free environment.

We hopped back on the boat, went to the train station and headed to Interlaken! Our time in Interlaken used as our recuperating time. We had planned to go paragliding or hang gliding, but it rained the whole time so we used the time to rest, read and do some more travel planning. The third night we moved hostels and it was one of the best hostels we’ve been so far. We had a balcony with a nice view, free breakfast and a short walk from the main town. We also were able to do laundry for free. We were like giddy little kids in candy shop when we were folding our clean clothes. After traveling every few days and living out of suitcase, I guess it’s the little things. 

Overall, Switzerland was beautiful, relaxing, and full of adventure. The only downside was the high price. It is definitely the most expensive place we will travel, so having our money go a lot farther in Italy has been nice so far. 

I'm putting my Switzerland album on Facebook tonight so look our for that. Next post -- Venice!

Love to my friends & family!

Emily 

Paris -- ooh la la!

We arrived in the City of Lights last Monday (May 20) after taking a train ride from Brugge to Paris. We were greeted with rain and chilly weather, but at this point are used to the European rain cloud that tends to stay above us more often than not. We experienced our first Paris metro ride and when we came up the stairs from our metro stop, the first thing I saw was the Eiffel Tower which immediately put me in a better mood, despite the chilly drizzle. I have been longing to visit Paris for as long as I remember and couldn’t have been more excited for the week ahead.

We found our hostel after much frustration trying to figure out the grid system of the streets, which is in fact not a grid system so much. The hostel was nice, and we had our own room which was a nice change of pace. We spent our first night wandering the streets and having dinner at a restaurant right down the street complete with our first bottle of wine to start our Parisian journey.

The second day in Paris, we spent more time walking around and exploring our area. We turned the corner during our stroll and happened upon Luxembourg Gardens, which we had planned to go see but it was a pleasant surprise for that day. The park and palace were beautiful and we enjoyed a crepe and a glass of wine in the middle of the park. To end our night and take a break from the rain we had a relaxing night at our hostel and I proceeded to buy the season finale of Scandal on iTunes because I couldn’t bear waiting any longer. To everyone who doesn’t watch Scandal - watch it. 

Luxembourg

On Wednesday we visited the Louvre, which was more massive than I ever imagined. We spent a solid three hours there and probably only saw about half of the museum. We saw the famous Mona Lisa, but were a little underwhelmed. All of the other art around us seemed to impress me a bit more. 

Eventually we became burned out from painting-viewing and art-discussing and made our way down the Champs Elysees. Lined with park space, shops, bakeries, restaurants it was a fun wide-eyed filled stroll down one of the most famous boulevards in Paris. There was one bakery/tea room that had been recommended to me by the most Parisian American I know (thanks Kristen) called Laduree. The macaroons literally melted away in my mouth. Even Drew, who opposes most things sweet, loved them. I tried other macaroons while in Paris, but nothing compared. 

On Thursday, the day I had been waiting for finally arrived - we packed up our things and headed to the 4th arrondissement to our apartment that we called home for the next four nights. We arrived in a new area of Paris and took full advantage of having a closet, our own bathroom and kitchen. That night we went to a club called Wanderlust just a metro ride away that was right on the river. 

Friday morning Brian (Drew’s brother) arrived to the apartment and we began the day at a cafe not too far from our apartment. It was an interesting first meal for Brian, and for anyone for that matter. I guess some restaurants just don’t prefer using plates? Also, on the way to breakfast it started to hail. That afternoon we went to Musee d’Orsay which I actually preferred over the Louvre. The building was much more navigable and overall I enjoyed the art more, especially the Impressionism, featuring Monet and Manet. That night we had dinner in our neighborhood again and ventured down the street to the absinthe bar - my first time drinking absinthe and I surprisingly enjoyed it a lot. The three of us went to Rex Club that night which was a fun night out.

The next morning we treated ourselves to sleeping in a little and then took the metro to Rue Cler which is a traffic-free cobblestone road lined with markets, restaurants and gourmet shop - perfect for assembling the perfect French picnic. We leisurely walked down Rue Cler and got supplies for a picnic at Champ de Mars - a park in front of the Eiffel tower. It started to drizzle for about 30 minutes but then cleared up to a perfect sunny afternoon perfect for a lazy afternoon in the park. 

Rue Cler 

That night we had dinner at the world famous Buddha Bar. Asian-style dinner completed with people watching on par with walking down Rodeo Drive. I had some of the best sushi I’ve ever had and a view of a two-story golden Buddha right in front of our table. After dinner we continued our lavish night a couple blocks away with drinks at Hotel Costes, another Parisian staple. After seeing Great Gatsby a few days before, I couldn’t help but feel like we had gone back in time to a speakeasy in which Gatsby would merely blend into the crowd. 

Our final day in Paris was definitely our longest and most packed day while in Paris, and maybe overall while being in Europe. We began the day early and ventured to Versailles. We toured the palace first. Describing the palace and decor as extravagant would be an understatement. The entire time I kept looking around wondering how anyone could live in a “house” this large and so richly decorated. It was a beautiful, overwhelming experience. After the walk through the palace we went out the gardens. I think that if I lived in Versailles my whole life I would probably still not see every part of the garden and land that was a part of the estate. The landscape was perfectly manicured and the labyrinth of gardens extended as far as the eye can see. 

After taking the train back to Paris we went to a flea market that is one of the biggest in the world. The booths and storefronts were filled with collectibles, antiques, art, furniture and more. We spent a couple hours wandering the alleys in awe of everything there was to offer. After leaving the flea market we took the metro to the area around Notre Dame. Brian put a lock on the lock bridge for him and Leemarie. Drew and I are coming back to Paris at the end of the trip to fly home, so we decided to save our lock for the end. Hopefully we will find a cool one in one of the cities during the rest of our travels. We took the long way home and walked along the Seine and enjoyed the scenery. It was this moment that I truly felt that I was living a Parisian life (if only for a week). 

That night we got a little bit of late start heading to dinner, but walked back toward Notre Dame along the river and had dinner at one of the only places still serving dinner, which turned out to be a very nice meal complete with absinthe and a bottle of Bordeaux. I called it a night, and Drew and Brian went out together for a few hours longer. 

The next morning we had our last Parisian meal with Brian and parted ways. It was a great long weekend with Brian filled with memories of all sorts. We only wish he could stay in Europe longer! We left for the train station bound for Lucerne, Switzerland, but didn’t quite make it that day (more in the next post...). Paris was everything I had imagined including things I didn’t quite expect. I had my Eiffel Tower picnic, ate macaroons, walked along the Seine and museum hopped at some of the best in the world. We also had our share of mishaps, unexpected moments and being lost. As we continue our travel we have learned that learning along the way is all a part of the journey. 

I promise I’ll get better at blogging every couple days so my posts won’t have to be this long! We arrived in Interlaken, Switzerland today after three days in Lucerne. So far Switzerland is possibly the most beautiful place I’ve ever been, but more in the next post! 

Love from Europe to my family and friends. I miss y’all!

Emily 

Chocolates, beer & windmills, oh my! -- Brugge, Belgium

Hello friends & family!

As I write this we are sitting on the train on our way to Paris. We left Brugge this morning after three days of strolling through the cobblestone streets, wandering past beautiful medieval architecture and trying our fair share of Belgian chocolates and Belgian beer (Drew’s favorite). 

We left Amsterdam on Friday morning and had our first trip onboard a train with our Eurail pass.  The task of getting on the right train and making a switch in Antwerpen came much easier than expected, and I can now breathe knowing we might actually be able to figure out this whole European travel thing.  Even though it was a dreary day, the scenery zooming past the countryside was very beautiful.

When we arrived in Brugge we hopped on a bus to head to our hostel. This particular hostel is a chain of hostels that are in several cities around Europe and had more of a hostel feel, bar included. 

Our first day we spent walking around and getting our lay of the land - similar to our first day in Amsterdam. We found a cute restaurant along a canal and enjoyed a long meal accompanied with Belgian beers in order to take cover from the rain. We went to our hostel’s bar that night and took advantage of the drink coupons that came with our room - 2 for 1 drinks all night? Yes please. 

The next morning we went on a run along the canal and through the park of windmills. Couldn’t have asked for prettier scenery for our first run... if only I had some wooden Dutch shoes, then I would’ve fit right in. We stopped at a local bakery at the end of our run and enjoyed our pastries sitting in the park. The rest of the day was spent walking all over town. One of the people at the hostel told us we had to stop at one of the fry-carts and try the fries with “stoovlesaus” which is a Flemish stew and a local delicacy; similar to a beef stew/gravy. I wasn’t the biggest fan but Drew absolutely loved it. We had lunch in the market square, which wasn’t the most spectacular meal of the trip thus far, but enjoyed the atmosphere and people-watching. On the walk home we stopped into one of the what seemed like 500 Belgian chocolate shops and enjoyed the melt-in-your-mouth chocolates. Well, I did. Drew doesn’t like chocolate which is something I will never understand.

That night we walked about two blocks from our hostel and had an authentic tapas meal and shared a carafe of the house red. Next door there was a biergarten which turned out to be one of our favorite spots in Brugge - a must-see if you ever make your way to Belgium. The bartenders were friendly, the music was great and the overall atmosphere was inviting and lots of fun.

On our third day we walked back to the Market Square and climbed the 366 steps to the top of the the Belfry of Brugge, which is a bell tower that was built around 1240 and renovated and added to in the 15th century. Drew conquered his fear of heights and although his knees got a little shaky while passing people on the spiral staircase, we made it to the top and were rewarded with spectacular views of the city. That afternoon we returned to Hof van Bereop, and when I didn’t think I could love a place more, I ordered a Gingerito which is probably the best drink I have ever had. Gin (instead of rum), fresh mint leaves, fresh chunks of ginger and tonic.

We finished the night at our hostel’s bar and called it a night. We woke up early this morning, enjoyed our last complimentary breakfast and hopped on Bus 16 to the train station. After two train changes in small towns in Belgium and France, we are now on our first high-speed train of the trip on the way to Paris! We are staying in a hostel near the Eiffel tower for the first three nights, and then we have an apartment in the 4th arrondissement for five nights after that. Brian, Drew’s brother, is meeting us for those five nights so it should be a good time.

Drew's personal beer tour while in Brugge:

More pictures of the trip will be on Facebook soon!

Au Revoir!

Emily & Drew

Our journey begins -- AMSTERDAM

Hello from Europa!!!

I haven't blogged much since I was in Greece two summers ago, so I'm trying to get back in the swing of things during my seven weeks in Europe.

A little introduction...

Drew and I are traveling around Europe for 7 weeks spending anywhere from two to eight days in each city. We are staying in a mixture of hostels, hotels, apartments and Bed & Breakfasts. We are going to 15 different cities starting in Amsterdam and doing a 'loop' down through Switzerland, Italy, Spain and France. General map of our loop is below (subject to change).

(route may vary when we feel spontaneous)

We graduated from the University of Georgia on May 10 and in only three days time we were on our fight to Amsterdam. It was a hectic couple days getting ready and a long day/night of travel, but well worth it. Upon landing in Amsterdam we stumbled onto a bus hoping it would take us where we needed to go, found our hostel (which was more like a hotel), and quickly settled in. 

One major hurdle has been due to the fact that I didn't look up the weather before venturing to this side of the pond. All I could think about was my dream summer in Europe so I quickly packed my cut-off shorts, flowy tank-tops, sundresses and sandals. The cold was something I was unprepared for and I quickly had to adjust to the colder temperatures... as well as the rain. I bought some Keds, which actually helped me to fit in better here.

We spent our first day exploring our new neighborhood and figuring out the tram system. On our second day we explored more of Amsterdam and went more into the central part of the city. Drew would like to add that we strolled through the must-see Red Light District. We met up with Dean and Lindsey (friends from home) and walked along the canals, stopped into coffeeshops, had some amazing crepes and had dinner at a small restaurant near our place. 

On our third day we did some traditional Amsterdam sight-seeing. We visited the Anne Frank House, which was a somber experience. We also went to the Van Gogh museum (100 yards from where we were staying) which was four floors of Van Gogh originals - really cool!

I'll put more pictures on Facebook, but here are some highlights for now!

                                                      (Van Gogh's Almond Blossom -- yes, this picture was allowed)

Next post - Brugge, Belgium!

Cheers,

Emily & Drew