Meet Me Halfway : September 2015

Cinque Terre, Italy

Endless pasta, cobble stones and little roads- Italy was a dream!

Hey guys!! I just got back from Italy a few days ago and I'm already missing it! I had such a lovely time- I wish I could live in Florence forever! Let's start with how I even got there. About 4 months ago, I was kind of in a rut. I felt like I just needed to do something fun and exciting. So I poked around the Internet and I remember hearing about EF College Break from the commercials on Spotify so I decided to look it up.

I browsed around their website and found an awesome deal on their Grand Tour of Italy trip! I took a chance and booked it. I booked as a solo traveler and believe me- I've never been so brave in my life. I've never traveled alone to another country before! I was complete terrified but I also really felt exhilarated. Fast forward 4 months and here I was ready to leave on a trip I never thought I'd be going on!

Traveling there was exhausting due to the 2 connection flights but once I got on ground, I was glad to be there! Throughout my trip I had three roommates and became friends with a girl from NY who was also traveling alone! Majority of my group had friends traveling together so it was nice to meet someone who was also alone. It definitely made my experience better!

My trip was 12 days long, the first and last day were for traveling so technically I only had 10 official days in Italy and I made the most of it! We traveled from Sorrento/Naples-Rome-Florence and finished off in Venice!

Sorrento/Naples/Capri/Siena

This is the ultimate sunny side of Italy. I'm not exactly sure where we were but it was very bright and had a total seaside vibe to it. It was a gorgeous town. We took a boat ride to Capri and the sea was endless. It was so cute there! They had this little beach area where people could swim. I dipped my foot in- I want to say it was lovely but it really wasn't. Hahah. There were so many rocks there that I was scared to cut my foot on it! I treaded gingerly like a baby learning to walk for the first time on it! Now I know why people there had swim shoes on!

Rome

Oh Roma, now this is the place of walking! We literally walked EVERYWHERE. Everything was kind of walking distance so taking a taxi didn't make too much sense. We went to Pompeii, the colosseum, trevi fountain, the spanish steps, THE VATICAN! Any famous place you can think of! I was stunned of culture shock. I couldn't believe the ground I was walking on! I stood right underneath Michael-Angelo's ceiling in the Sistine Chapel for about 10 minutes trying not to die from the sheer beauty of it. I threw my coin in the Trevi Fountain (and of course I forgot to make my wish!) and I walked around the Colosseum where the emperor would walk- someone please pinch me. Rome was hectic because there was so much to see with so little time.

Florence

I could have stayed in Florence forever! It was definitely not as hectic as Rome. Florence had such a charm to it that you can instantly feel. It made me really enjoy just being there. Everything wasn't as far as a walk and it was so nice to go into the museums there. I can't quite explain it, but Florence was my favorite place we visited! Plus we also stayed in a hostel there which was extremely fun! It had a nice bar downstairs where you can get drinks and mingle with other travelers.

Venice

I always wanted to visit Venice. Knowing that it might not be there and the reality of it being swept under water is crazy! When we were there, it was high tide so the water was extremely close to ground. You can see it in my picture below! Venice had so many tight little ally ways and small streets- it was fun to get lost in.

I definitely want to go back to Italy one day but for now.. onto the next adventure!

linda

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I took about a million pictures so I'm just going to post my favorite ones I took!