Spring Break Part 3: Venice, Italy

From Florence I took a train to Venice, arriving in mid afternoon. I checked into my hostel and then set off to explore the beautiful city. Although you can get a map of Venice, they don't help all that much. It's easier (and more fun) to just follow the signs from one place to another. I spent my first few hours just exploring, wandering through the narrow streets and over the innumerable canals.

Unexpectedly, I found the old Jewish quarter on my travels. After learning about it in my Mythologizing Shakespeare class (we covered The Merchant of Venice among other plays), it was intriguing to see its remains. To this day, the area is populate by Jews. The restaurants in the area are kosher, as is the little grocer's stall. Shops sell Jewish jewelry and art. Around every corner was a sign wishing residents and visitors a happy Pesach. After exploring the area a bit, I noticed the sun had begun to set, so I headed back to the hostel to grab dinner and get to bed.

The next morning, I woke up early. I packed my things and brought my bag to the luggage storage that the hostel provided before grabbing a cup of tea and a light breakfast. I set out for the Ponte Rialto and the Piazza San Marco, two of the most famous aspects of Venice. One of the greatest parts of waking up early was that when I arrived at the Piazza, very few tourists had woken up. I got to see the monuments without the crowds that would appear later in the day. I wandered around for a bit and then headed for Academia, an area filled with art schools and galleries. I found a cafe for lunch, and then treated myself to gelato before going back to the Piazza to go into some of the monuments I had seen earlier in the day.

I started with the Doge's palace, which was probably my favorite site of the day. I especially loved the golden staircase, so named because of the gold leaf covering much of the ceiling. After spending a good portion of the afternoon there, I toured the inside of the Basilica and then walked across the Piazza to a museum made of rooms that were once the Empress's chambers. It was so interesting to see the two different living areas on opposite ends of the square. Though originally inhabited at different times, they both had the same royal feel.

Finally, I made my way back toward the train station. I grabbed a bite to eat and picked up my bag, moving my belongings around so that I would be ready for the train that would take me to my next stop: Germany.

Spring Break Part 2: Florence, Italy

On Sunday, I spent much of the day traveling by train, first from Cannes to Ventimiglia, then Ventimiglia to Milan, and finally Milan to Firenze. Each leg of the trip was vastly different, but I have to say that the first two were my favorites of my whole trip. From Cannes to Ventimiglia, I chose a seat on the top level of the train, settling in next to a window that faced the south. We rode along the beautiful coast of France, by far my favorite scenery from my journey. The trip to Milan was my other favorite because of the actual train. I walked onto the train and discovered that it was made up of compartments stretching off a long corridor. Each compartment held 6 seats in two rows facing each other. Being the nerd that I am, I realized that this was my first ever trip on a train in the style of the Hogwarts Express. Even though no one came through with a trolley of sweets, I had a wonderful time on the ride.

I arrived at the Santa Maria Novella train station just as dusk began to fell and was glad that my hostel was just a few blocks away. I found my way there in just minutes, dragging my small suitcase behind me. There, I met up with a group of students on my program, some of whom had forgotten that I would be joining them for a short part of the break. They greeted me enthusiastically, and after dropping my bag in the room where I'd stay, I sat with Mila, Katie, Clare, Amy and Bella outside in the cool night air. We sat up talking until it got late, laughing and joking loudly.

The next morning, we took advantage of the free breakfast at the hostel before setting out for the Piazza Michelangelo, the highest point in the city. Along the way, we paused briefly at the covered market to pick up some fruit, which would be the perfect snack that afternoon. We walked past the Santa Croce, where Galileo is buried (among others). We crossed the canal and walked down a few small side streets until we came to the base of the stairs leading up to the Piazza. Halfway up the climb, we paused to explore a sculpture garden before finishing the journey. The view from the top was worth every step, and we roamed around of a bit. We were glad to have left our jackets back in the hostel as the warm sun shone down, illuminating tulips already fully in bloom.

I split off from the group, descending the stairs and walking back over the canal toward the palazzo vecchio, where I met up with Elizabeth for lunch. One of my favorite parts of visiting with other people who are abroad is that they tend to show you their favorite places off the beaten track, and in Elizabeth's case, a deli and a gelato shop were in order for the day. We grabbed paninis and caught up on our semesters so far. Our stories grew toward more distant pasts as we realized how long it had been since we had last seen one another - just over a year by our calculations - and we brought our gelatos along as she showed me the Palazzo Republica, famous for its arches and the carousel that has been erected in its center. After, we made our way back to the palazzo, where we sat until it was time for Elizabeth to head to class.

I met back up with the group at the Ponte Vecchio, the city's most famous bridge. We found a cafe (they hadn't yet eaten lunch) where we sat for a bit, happy to be off our feet after a long morning of walking. After our break, we walked back over the bridge to the Duomo. The cathedral rose before us, and we waited in line for just a few minutes before being admitted to explore. I marveled at the ceiling, high above us, painted so clearly that the details were clear, even from the ground.

We returned to the hotel for the afternoon, sitting out on the porch and breaking into the morning's fruit.We relaxed for much of the rest of the day, venturing out only to get dinner and gelato. I was glad to have a chance to catch up with some of the people on the trip, realizing that even with Oxford, there were so many people I simply never got a chance to talk with. I said goodbye to them that night, as they would be leaving early the next morning to continue their journey through Italy to Roma.

The next morning, I met up with Olivia. I dropped my suitcase in her room so that I wouldn't have to drag it to lunch and such. I had my first taste of Italian pasta for lunch, and then we sat in a park near her apartment until I had to go to the train station and she had to go to class. I loved getting to see her and catch up - we had last spent time together a year and a half earlier - and I was sad to have to go. At the same time, I was excited to see what the next stops on my break would bring.