Day 5: Venice, the BEST Day.

Today was such a breath of fresh air! No stressful travels, a good sleep, a good breakfast, and an absolutely amazing time in Venice today. It really is a charming place. So much happened today and it was all just plain gooooood. Again, here are some pictures:

I love posting pictures of food, and here's my amazing breakfast. I haven't had a solid breakfast since Oregon.

 Amanda, me, and a gondola.

 Beautiful, right!?!?

 Just one of the amazing buildings here.

 Just a fun picture!

 And another!

 Okay, confession. I've been craving a burger since eating a ton of pasta, and just so you know, burgers in Italy are NOT like American burgers. It was still good, but pork instead of beef. Wine too, of course!

 LOVED this spot!

 There were masks everywhere!!! So beautiful, too!

 Gold plated walls and ceilings at St. Marco Basilica

 

The outside of the basilica!

Right after I found out I used the men's restroom on accident AGAIN!!! I obviously walk into bathrooms with my eyes closed... :(

One of my favorite parts of the day was visiting a bar called Bacaro Jazz. I don't know the full story but the ceilings are covered in bras. Bras. Bras. Bras! 
http://www.bacarojazz.com/

 Dinner=vegetable soup. It was so good. Dessert=tiramisu.

Okay, bed time and off to Florence tomorrow!

Day 4: Venice & Prayer Request

This morning Amanda and I left early en route to Venice. We didn't know what to expect but that's become the story of my life, especially here.

Language Barriers May Lead to Stolen Money:

Before we got on the train, we wanted to grab some lunch to go and so I ordered food as best as I could and the cashier lady gave me waaaaaay less change than she should have. I was really frustrated and didn't know what to do, but thankfully Amanda helped me get it all back. SO frustrating but I hear that it's not uncommon. 

We then took a 4 hour train ride which was pretty cozy.

 When we arrived to the Venice train station, we had to figure out how to get to our hotel. We had to buy tickets to get on the water taxi/boat that would then lead us to a bus station. Here was our view as we stepped off the train. AMAZING!!!

Here we are on the boat ride along with some of the sites we saw along the way.

It was windy and I couldn't believe this guy was on a gondola. The waves were crazy and he never fell off! Definitely not a day for us to try. We would have been SO sick.

 

 When we got off our boat we then had to get on the correct bus and had no idea where our stop was for our hotel. We awkwardly asked around and eventually found some people who happily helped us. Our hotel is pretty far from the main city, but we get to see a different lifestyle. 

Here is the view from out hotel balcony.

  

The restaurants don't open until 7pm here. We found another seafood restaurant/bar and ordered alone which was such an accomplishment in my book!

 Finally, here I am with my clam spaghetti. It was so good!

 Prayer Request:

To be completely honest, I am really struggling with culture shock, fatigue, and lack of sleep. All of those things combined have been really difficult and sometimes I feel like I just want to curl up in a ball and hide, but I can't. Please pray that I catch up on rest and get myself together. ;) Thanks!

Day 3: Exploring Frascati & Culture Shock

Today was a restful one because we were recovering from yesterday's madness. We slept in, went for a walk around Frascati and did some laundry...

Here is a view of a part of Italy from the park that we walked to.

 

 We had some culture shock attempting to do laundry...People were trying to speak to us in Italian and we had to read directions in Italian. Some how we managed to figure it out... but not without some frustration.

 Here, Italians eat so much later than I am used to. We had a late dinner, but the pizza was soooo good. This one was just for me! Apparently, this is the normal size for pizza here.

 After dinner we walked to a bar called The Drunken Witches. We made it home! Woo!

A Lack of Toilets

If you ever visit Rome, just know that there aren't any public restrooms, so use the bathroom ANYTIME you get the chance! I almost had an accident. haha Just sayin'!

Oh and I acidentally used the men's restroom. Oops!

Italia Day 2: New Experiences up the wazoo?

My hope has been to update at the end of every day I’m here, but boy have I been exhausted and it’s only my second day! Here are some snapshots of my day. It was amazing and a day FULL of new experiences! I will try to keep it short and simple.

We began our morning with an Italian cup 'o joe, or rather cappuccino!

 Amanda and I then took the train into Rome! (It was so nice to have company!)

 Our first stop: THE ROMAN COLOSSEUM!!!! (My favorite stop of the day!)

 Next stop: The Forum, ruins of what used to be

 Next stop: The prison that Paul and St. Peter were sent to in Rome

 

Inside the cell of the prison, very small and cave-like.

 Our next stop: The Tomb of the Unknown Guard

 Lunch! I had a pizza-sandwhich earlier, no photo, but this salad was so good and fresh!

 Inside one (the ceiling) of the many beautiful churches.

 The Trevi Fountain!

 The Pantheon! When walking through narrow streets you become surprised by huge buildings like these.

 The dome inside the Pantheon. It's as tall as it is wide.

 My first gelato experience and it was so amazing!

 Next stop: The Spanish Steps, a place where John Keats (the poet) would come to contemplate his death. Here are Amanda and I contemplating ours.........and then we decided to walk back to the train station.

 My feet contemplating their death.

 We found an Italian seafood restaurant and one of the waiters wanted to show us his octopus...I got a little queasy and was reminded of when I played ultimate frisbee with one... haha

I actually tried the octopus too and liked it enough to only try one bite. It was very tough in texture and soaked in lemon. I couldn't look at the tentacles. :/

Here is my first sardine.

 Here is my meal with wine, of course!

Cheers to a good and full day!

Italia Day 1: Delays, a thief, stress sweat, sleep.

My day of travel lasted over 24 hours…but I was pretty much awake the entire time. Here are some highlights:

-Delayed flight in D.C. caused me to miss my flight from Munich to Rome.
-Finally got on the plane to Munich and had the craziest time trying to figure out where/when my new flight was taking off. Also, I didn’t have wifi to connect to my friends in Italy, so it was stressful for them as well.
-Flew from Munich to Rome covered in stress sweat.
-Landed in Rome and felt culture shock as I was trying to figure out how to find a shuttle to the train to Frascati, Italy, the place where my friend lives.
-A boy tried to steal my money as I was buying a train ticket.
-I had to run to the train that was leaving in 2 minutes.
-I got on the train without fully knowing that it was the right one.
-Found out the train was the right one and remembered to breathe.
-Met my friends!
-Fell asleep at 8pm Italy time…

It was crazy. I'm a little bit crazy. But I'm alive. :)
And the adventures begin.

I'm in Rome!

I just wanted to say that I made it to Rome, but not without lots of stress. I am just glad to be here!!! I will try to update with details later, but after what feels like the longest day (2 days) I am exhausted and my brain is not working correctly... lol

Packing for Europe!

So, the eve of the day is finally here and I leave tomorrow en route to Italy and Ukraine and who knows where else in between. :) I somehow managed to pack 3 weeks of clothing into one carry-on bag as well as a few other things in my purse. Here's proof!

I figured it would be easier to travel this way and I couldn't be more excited about it!

Please pray for:
-Safety as I travel as there will be some points when I am alone
-My friends whom I will be visiting
-Health
-That I will meet some amazing people and be a light to them

I will return on April 9th.
Continue to check in. I will try to blog as I travel!

Love,
Danielle

J.R.R. Tolkien