ITALY HOLIDAY PART TWO

Next Stop: Milano.

Catching the early train, we were off to Milan. We had a later check-in time so we were planning to spend the day at Lake Como because well, Pinterest suggested it so we said what the hey. We got to our hostel which took forever to get too since it was so far from the metro station; it also didn’t help that it was really hot and we were all lugging our heavy bags. We checked into to the ‘Zebra Hostel’, changed, and grabbed our things for our day trip. Let’s just say that our trip to Lake Como was not what we were expecting. 

We grabbed a quick lunch (where I made jelly sandwiches in Burger King), bought our 5 euro return tickets but little did we know what would happen next. We hopped onto a “special” train on accidents where we were charged because we didn’t have “special” tickets, it sucked because the workers that the station told us that we could go on this train with our tickets and the conductor checking our tickets wasn’t having it; so another 15 euros came out of our pockets which bummed us all out a bit. The sun also happened to disappear behind the clouds AND you can’t even swim in Lake Como (at least where we were), and people kept staring us weird because apparently wearing shorts is a strange concept. On the bright side it was a beautiful area and McLaren shared with us that George Clooney lived on the lake so theres that. 

We decided to cut the day trip short and head back to the hostel to just hang out, which ended up being so so quiet (because literally there were hardly any other people). After resting up a bit, we headed over to the market to get some food for the rest of the trip and settled for making spaghetti for that night. That evening we made a friend who was a little strange and made us food to share, it was tasty though I gotta give him that and that night we all went to bed with full bellies. The next day all of us were prepared to see whatever Milan had to offer. First stop, Piazza del Duomo, which was breathtakingly beautiful! The architecture was sooooo crazy!! I sadly couldn’t go in because I had to much skin showing aka my skirt was too short for what they required but I respect that and sat right out front while everyone else toured inside. In that time though, I saw a man pickpocket this girl!

 I wanted to say something but he slipped away quickly. After the girls were finished looking around in the duomo we all headed to a famous shopping centre, Gallerica Vittorio Emanuele II, where they have some of the original high fashioned stores. We even did the very touristy thing and spin on the bull’s balls for good luck. Once we walked around the shopping centre for some time we then headed out to seek some gelato and MY OH MY we found a great place. It was right outside of the centre and it was soooo delicious. I got a double scoop of crème with nutella and white chocolate with almonds. 

Mmm.. Eating the gelato we realized that we were more hungry than we thought so we headed to our next place which was a castle and right behind it was a park where we sat down, enjoyed the sun, and ate our packed lunches.

Relaxing for a few hours we decided to hit our last destination, a cemetery, Cimitero Monumentale di Milano. You maybe thinking, a cemetery??? But let me tell you, it was so interesting! I have never seen a cemetery like this before. It was filled with buildings that stood tall for different families and from different centuries; I found one dated all the way back to the 1700. It was so different but really neat. After exploring around the cemetery we headed back to the hostel for the night packing up our things ready for the next city.

Next Stop: Venice

Waking up before the sun, we walked on our way to the station to catch our train to the city I have been most excited for, Venice. I sat next to McLaren again with our assigned seating and we watched the sunrise through the dirty train windows with our tired eyes. 

We found our hostel where we had to drop our bags off because of the later check-in time but that gave us time to explore the city a bit! We got some pizza (no surprise there) and found an alleyway that lead us to a dock where we sat and watched the boats go by. It was finally time to check in our hostel so we did all of that fun shindig and met our roomies for the next few days.

We headed out into the streets for a canoli with one of our new roomies, Jordan from the States and we ended the day watching the sunset in Marco Square. What was one of the most magical moments I had during Spring Break is this street musician that was playing his accordion as it echoed down the alleyway on our way back to our hostel. IT WAS MAGICAL I TELL YAH!

The next morning we all agreed to share the cost of a Gondola ride with our new friend Jordan. Once we ventured around and found a Gondola Man; he agreed to take us on a route for 45 minutes and it was just so as;eifhjaoiwejf. I. WAS. SO. EXCITED. It was so so cool seeing the city from the water. I also learned a ton from the Guy was rowing and he even sang us “that’s amore” which we were all super stoked about. After he tied the boat back up, I was bummed it happened so fast but I was super happy that I got to share such an amazing experience with my mates. 

Beaming with happiness, we wandered around some more. Katie and Savannah got delicious candied apples, we got lost looking at rows and rows of stalls, checked out a few markets, got lost some more, and so on. We headed back to the hostel for lunch and hung around; laughing and just spending time together.

We met our new roomie aka Sarena who was born & raised in Australia but took a job in London! We wandered around the city some more with our new mate, wandered down through random alley ways and somehow ended up at the edge of the city! We decided to pop-a-squat and watch the sunset. Once the sun was set, we were off to buy souvenirs and explore the streets of Venice at night. We saw a ton of sweet masks, marano glass, as well as met a really nice backpacker (who was from the states but I can’t remember her name). McLaren and I did help her choose what to buy though so that was awesome! As expected, our day in Venice has come to an end and we were already back at our hostel. Yet again, heading to bed with another early morning train ahead but this time to our last destination.

Last Stop: Bologna (pronounced Ba-Loan-Ya).

This was probably the most laid back time that we had in Italy together. We took a taxi to our hostel where we had to wait some time to check in because our rooms weren’t ready for us yet. The guys that worked at the place seemed to not like us that much. Thankfully, with the time that we waited for our rooms there was a park where we laid down and enjoyed the sun.

Once we got to our rooms, we settled in changed into our day clothes and caught the next city bus to take us to the city centre. Everyone grabbed some lunch then we headed over to a market that was selling a bunch of stuff for cheap! 

All of us got a few different things and we were all satisfied with our purchases. We headed to the supermarket to grab some snacks as well as this giant egg for pure curiosity just to see what in the heck it was. To our surprise, it was a giant chocolate egg! HA! Who would’ve thunk? 

That night was filled with laughter, good chats, more laughter, mac photobooth pics, potatoe chips and just all around jolly time. The next morning we took a taxi to the airport and we were welcomed with a lovely notification that our flight was delayed; from 11AM to 4:30 PM to be exact. We eventually got to our gate and we were off. Just like that our time in Italy has ended.

In the time that I spent in Italy I have walked over 20 miles, had plenty of hangry moments, consumed an unhealthy amount of jelly sandwhiches, nommed on scoops of gelato and pizza, got lost, got tons of blisters, made tons of memories, learned a lot outside of the classroom and I can go on and on about my experience but I am so glad that I got to share such an amazing time of my life with a group of amazing mates: McLaren, Danielle, Savannah, and Katie…thanks for making Italy a time I will always remember!! I will be telling my kids stories about you guys and this trip until they will be able to recite word for word about the times that I had with you guys. Ah! So good. 

Until the next adventure, ciao for now.

ITALY HOLIDAY PART ONE

Wow, oh wow! The time has arrived and that time is Spring! It is also a wonderful time for universities students around the world because of two words and that is, ‘spring break’. What is so awesome about the spring break here in Brighton is that it is practically a month long!!! The girls and I have been planning Itally for a few months; It seems just like yesterday that we all were sitting around in my flat booking our trains!! Now I am currently sitting in my flat about to write about my experience and I am so excited to share it with you!

First stop: London-Gatwick Airport.

Getting antsy by watching the clock it was finally time to meet in the courtyard and I was out the door with my bags in hand. We hopped on the train to head towards London and before we knew it, we were sitting in the airport waiting for the gate to be announced so we could go through security. Once it was shown on the screen, we all grabbed a quick lunch then headed over to our gate to board. Savannah was seated behind me and luckily I had an empty seat, so we got to sit next to each other to our next stop which was Rome. Fast forward a bit, we arrived to the airport and we decided to split a cab. Immediately, I noticed that the cars drive on the right side of the road…which seemed foreign to me since I have gotten so used to the cars being on the left!

Next stop: The Yellow Hostel.

Once we arrived, we did the normal shindig like check in, but welcomed by a minor hiccup. One of my mates accidently made a booking mistake and we ended up having to find another hostel for her that night but it was thankfully just around the corner. After we all settled in our rooms and such, we were all starving and I had one thing only on my mind…..PIZZA!!!! There was literally a pizzeria on every corner and we had one just down the street from our hostel. We got pizza for 2 euros and it was soooo delicious. Once our tummies were satisfied from pizza, we walked McLaren to her hostel. On the way over, there was a homeless man who meowed and crawled towards us like a cat too, it rattled us a bit. Once we composed ourselves, we left the hostel and ran across the street to try and avoid Catman; He knew that we were totally avoiding him and he stuck his head up and meowed…again! No thank you!! Thankfully, that was the last encounter of Catman.

The following morning we were off to explore Rome and what was pretty sweet was that our hostel was in walking distance of everything we wanted to see. We made a small pitstop in a café where I bought something that I didn’t recognize. If you know me, I am not very adventurous with my food so this was a big step for me. To my surprise, it was a freakin’ pizza sandwich! IT WAS SO GOOD (I want one right now, ugh the struggle). We walked and walked and turned a corner and BAM! The Colosseum was right there, in front of my eyes!

It was so neat to see something in person that I have learned about in school or seen photos of online; I still can’t wrap my head around that I saw it! Since the queue was so long, we got advice to go to the kiosk to get tickets for the next day and we ended up getting a great deal because we got tickets for the Palatino Gardens as well. After the gardens we were off to what I was most excited to see, Trevi Fountain and on top of that we got our first cone of Gelato! Gelato for breakfast? Don’t mind if I do. To my dismay, when we got to the fountain it was sadly being renovated. There was scaffolding covering 99% of it. 

How could I live without being like Lizzie McGuire and making a wish and meeting a popstar right after???? With the disappointment of the failed attempt to see the fountain, we headed over the Pantheon. It was pretty impressive to see in person. Once we went through it, we had 5 hungry girls on the search for some decently priced lunch. We finally found a place to eat and with perfect timing too; it started to rain. I ordered some pasta and I believe that is what everyone else got as well. Luckily by the time we all finished eating and paid for our meals, it stopped raining. Booyah, that’s what I am talking about! As we were on the way to explore some more, we passed by a sign that said 150 Gelato Flavours. How could we pass up this opportunity? So of course, we got our second round of Gelato. I got this berry flavoured scoop and chocolate chip scoop, might I say that it was delicious.

Next stop: The Spanish Steps.

Taking a few wrong turns and missing the alleyway we were supposed to go down, we eventually made it to the Spanish Steps. We walked all the way to the top and my legs weren’t happy but man, the view was lovely and to top it off… so was the sunset. At this point, I made it goal that everywhere I go, I have to make it a priority to find a viewpoint to see the entire city.

Since our legs were tired of walking, we all decided on taking the tram back to our hostel to give our legs a rest. That night, we decided to go to the event that the hostel was hosting, “The Rolling Bar”, at this event we got a few drinks and had the opportunity to meet other people as well as getting to visit two locations at night. The first stop was a view point of St. Peter’s Square! We sat and admired the view, as well as talk to our new friends. Next, we were off to the Colosseum! It was pretty awesome being able to see it at night. The evening ended like any other night full of memories and stories. Staying out late wasn’t the smartest choice (although so worth it), especially since we were going to wake up early for our tour of the Colosseum the next morning. Of course like any day, it was morning and we were all so pooped. 

We grabbed breakfast, where I had another pizza sandwich and we were off for our tour. It was really neat to see the inside of the Colosseum and see history sitting right before us; like Katie said at one point, “Guys, a lot of people died here,” which was very true, we even tried to eavesdrop in the group tours but most of them weren’t speaking in English so there wasn’t really any point to do so. Afterwards, we headed back to our hostel to grab our bags to head to our next location. As we were walking to the train station Katie noticed that we were heading to towards the wrong station, so in panic we ran into a local who directed us to the right way which ended up us running than hopping on a metro aand having to run through the station sprinting to the platform making it to our train with seriously one minute to spare, PHEW! I was sat next to McLaren and the whole time we chatted while admiring the beautiful scenery on our train ride.

Next Stop: Florence or like the Italians say it, Firenze.

Exhausted, we got to Florence and of course we struggled to find our hostel. We had to pop into a Hotel to ask for directions and they kindly gave us a map leading us to a spot we walked by already (of course). This hostel was a little different it was called, Locanda Daniel. Danielle and Mclaren were in one building but Katie, Savannah, and I were just down the block in our own little flat! It was pretty cool! It had its own kitchen, bathroom, and room with three beds. The negative side of things of being in a different building is having to get in contact with the other two with the struggle of not being able to connect to wifi. Once we were settled in, we thought it would be a good idea to go ring the bell of the other building; what was funny was on our way I look into a restaurant and inside sitting there is Danielle and McLaren. It all worked out perfectly and I even got a yummy pizza…so I was pretty stoked about that.

We also got another cone of gelato, which was actually in my opinion the best gelato I had the entire trip. MMMmmm, I want some right now. After we ate, I decided to plan the next day with McLaren and Danielle so we were off to their building, which had workable wifi. Along the way, we actually ran into Chris, who was someone we met in Rome! Small world! We talked to him for a bit and said our farewells. We got to their flat (which you had to walk up these killer stairs to get there) and we were on to planning. Once we had what we wanted to do the next day, the girls walked me back and we ran into Chris, again!! What’re the odds. The next morning, we woke up a little later then we hoped but we caught up on the sleep that we lost from Rome.

The View from the Hostel

Us three headed over to D & M’s building to have breakfast and the view from the hostel was beautiful, you could see the Duomo! We somehow ended up in a doggy pile at one point that morning but is made me realize how much I appreciate the four girls that I get to travel with just a bit more. After talking to the receptionist about wifi and getting that all fixed, we were all off for our adventures that day. We headed to the Duomo first where I got the chills just listening to the church bells ring, it was so loud but it was so magical. We tried to see ‘The David’ next, but the queue was killer and apparently the first floor was closed so we thought it was way too much to pay just to see that one exhibit, looks like I just got to go back and see. We did happen to see the fake David and got pictures with it, so we didn’t TOTALLY miss out. 

Next we were off to see the Ponte Vecchio, which was a lovely bridge that was recommended by a few different. It was super crowded that we decided to not stay long, so we got quick pictures and we were off to the Bardini Garden.

It was such a beautiful walk to the gardens with a bunch of cute alleyways and homes. We got a great deal to see both Bardini and the more well known, Boboli Garden, so we were off to a good start on the garden fix. Although nothing was in full bloom, it was still so beautiful and we even got to see an amazing view of Florence, view check and holy crud, it was so beautiful. 

Thank you pinterest for suggesting us here, if you’re even in Florence definitely make your way to Bardini Gardens, you will not regret. It isn’t a trip to a new city without getting lost which did happen on our way to Boboli. Since the Boboli Gardens was so huge, we decided not to hit very much of it and find a spot to plop down and just rest a bit, which was quite lovely. 

At this point of the evening, we had a group of pretty hangry girls so we were off to find some dinner. We settled at a restaurant close by our hostel and I got Penne with meat sauce, it was alright to be honest but I was so hungry that I didn’t care and of course we had gelato for dessert. We than headed to our rooms to rest up a bit, but later explored the street markets to get some souvenirs and look around, then ended it watching the sunset at the Ponte Veccio Bridge. Later that night we ended back in our rooms and chatted the night away. It was such a great way to end our time in Florence and I am so happy that I got to spend my visit with such lovely mates.

taken by Katie Busch

To be continued…

#nowplaying: Sugar by Maroon 5

CHECK OUT MY STELLER STORIES (more photos) OF MY TRIP TO ROME & FLORENCE (click the city name to see that city)

ALL TIME LOW & WWIM x2

Happy belated St. Patrick’s Day from Brighton! I started the morning exploring unfamiliar parts of Brighton with Savannah and Katie. We popped into a random teashop where I had a piece of carrot cake and a pot of tea for breakfast, which was pretty solid. 

Afterwards, we walked towards the pier and too our surprise the sky and pier had a nice haze, it was pretty sweet (of course I took pictures but that’s no surprise). Afterwards, we met up with Eric and McLaren with the plan of heading to a pub but since it was starting to get a bit chilly, we headed home to grab coats but we headed right back to the city centre to join everyone else for the night. 

Before heading to the pub, a few of us hopped off the bus to head to the Level (and some background on The Level aka a park, we had always passed it on the way to the city centre and I always mentioned how fun it’d be at night when no one else is around; so that night, we went for it). We then headed to the main street of pubs that we knew would have things going on the evening and a few of us were able to score a few free things like a sweet gear and even a few of my mates got their face painted.

The following day it just so happened to be a chill day. I took that day to catch up on some photo editing, shared a box of mac & cheese with Katie, skyped several different people and to do some laundry. College and studying abroad made me really appreciate social inventions such as Skype because it gives me the chance to chat with people overseas and I think it is so amazing that we are able to do that. Like, can you imagine? People back then had pigeons and people on horses to deliver letters, CRAZY! Speaking of deliveries, I got a package from my mom with some knickknacks, chocolate, goldfish, sriracha sauce, letters from a few friends, and clothes that I ordered online. I am mentioning that I received package because it is crazy to me that it is my last one I will get until I am back at home!!! HOME AKA WASHINGTON. AHHH, I don’t want to think about that yet though.

Any who, let me tell you about something really quick… ALL TIME FREAKIN LOW!! So they had a show this week that was at Wembley Arena in London and I have wanted tickets since summer but sadly, they sold out super quick! My friend Jordan from California was going to be in London for it and I was dying to go even more because I’ve been wanting to meet her since forever. Long story short about the tickets, I would probably check once a week on stubhub to see the prices and they were all overpriced… so one day I desperately tweeted how I wanted a GA ticket for their show and a week before their show I got a handful of tweets and I found one for FACE VALUE! Of course I bought it and the day had finally come: it was the day of the show! I hopped on the train that morning to head to Buckingham Palace to meet up with Jordan but it was not easy to find her. I needed to top-up my phone and I had no way of contacting her. I walked to the closest shop with wifi and I finally found her!!! 

We did a few stops for sight seeing but then it was time to head to Wembley via tube. We got there several hours early and we were both itching to get inside. We both planned to some how find each other in the crowd since Jordan had meet & greet and I had to go to a completely separate queue but keep in mind that this show is sold out and there are over 12,000 people.

I was determined, but lost a little hope when I saw how long the basic general admission queue was. It was finally doors open; I rushed inside and got merch and ran to the area for floor seating. No sign of Jordan but Real Friends came on stage. During their set, I met some rad people in the crowd and we all jammed together but I lost them because I was trying to cram to the front because I knew that was where Jordan would be. Still no sign and the next band, Neck Deep, came on and midway through their set I met some other awesome individuals who I stuck around for a bit (sadly I can’t remember their names) but then I FINALLY FOUND JORDAN! 

She was right at the barricade, but I decided to stay back to let the people who were there have their spots because I would be mad if someone just swiped where I was if I waited in line for ages; I was about three people away from the barricade so I was content. Finally intermission happened then ATL’s intro and the crowd went ballistic. Long amazing story short: the concert was filled with rad vibes, good tunes, awesome effects, new friends, and sweaty people. Besides the fact I felt like I broke my foot, the show was so bloody good and I didn’t get kicked in the face from crowd surfers so that’s great. 

It is so awesome being a fan of a band for so long that I literally grew up with them. Seeing them for the first time ever in a small venue in Seattle then now in a sold out arena show in London! I am so proud of those guys even though I don’t actually knew them personally. After the show, Jordan and I were starving, and I haven’t eaten since 10 that morning and it was about midnight. We headed to the only thing open which happened to be McDonalds. We waited in the queue and I have never been so happy to get my large Fanta and nuggs. We than hurried over to the tubes, we said our good byes and went to our separate stops. I ran and caught the last train at the London-Victoria station with three minutes to spare. 

I finally got to Brighton Station but with the construction on the train tracks, I had to hop on a bus that would take me to Falmer Station which TOOK FOREVER. I didn’t get back to my room until about four in the morning. I almost forgot to mention that the entire concert was filmed for a DVD that they will be releasing this summer and I popped up on the screen a few times so maybe I will be in it!! We’ll see. :)

It seriously felt like my eyes just closed when my alarm rang the next morning at 6 AM. It was time to head to London, again! This time for the Socality-Worldwide Instameet. There I met up with another new friend, Katya, who is also a photographer for Local Wolves. We then headed to the meet up spot which was the Millennium Bridge, which happens to be the bridge that was in Harry Potter that the dementor destroyed (which I thought was sick).

 Any who, it was a really awesome meeting fellow instagrammers from all over (like LA, England, Australia, and more)! Being able to hang out with individuals who share the same interests as you is awesome and refreshing, as well as getting to know their dreams and just chattin in general. I had to leave the meet early for a shoot I had set up for Local Wolves. At this point of the day I was crashing hardcore due to the fact I was running on 1.5 hours of sleep but I luckily pushed through the shoot! The day was full of constant moving and photo-taking so that helped as well. It was finally time to head home after a long day and I got home and plopped into bed because I honestly could not keep my eyelids open any longer but the week festivities don’t end there.

@fordamanda95 aka name twin aka Amanda one of the lovely individuals I met at the WWIM in London

The next day, was the WWIM in Brighton and I had Katie to join me. It was really nice meeting fellow photographers in the city that I lived in and making new friends. Since I was so tired and my foot hurt… Katie and I dipped out early and I just chillaxed back at home. It was a nice end to the long but excting  weekend.

taken by Katie Busch

Although it was a busy busy busy week, it was well worth losing sleep and sore feet. That just means for the next week I got to use it to catch up on sleep and relax before Spring Break. Here goes nothing!!!

TACO NIGHT - Flat Dinner. x

Cheers!!!

Amanda

#nowplaying: Kids in the Dark – All Time Low

These events were between the lovely days of the 17/3/2015 to 22/3/2015.