Those infamous, elusive almond blossoms...

Finally, I found a way to capture these lovely trees on camera! I took a long stroll down the hill from Cortona to Camucia with my camera...

Venice & Carnevale

Friday morning Erin and I boarded a train for Florence, to squeeze in a little shopping before we met up with the rest of our schoolmates in Venice. She found herself a leather jacket (yay!) and I found a few souvenirs/gifts that I'd been looking for. We arrived in Venice around 3pm, and immediately began shopping for the perfect masks. To learn about the origin of Carnevale, click here. I found two that I absolutely LOVE! We wandered around some more, settled into our hostels, and then ventured back out for supper. Traditional Venetian cuisine (as you may have expected, it being a sea-front city) is seafood. We ate linguini with spider crab. YUM! Friday night was pretty quiet, as the main events of Carnevale didn't start until the following night.

Saturday morning, we slowly made our way through the streets of Venice, exploring the shops along the way. Venice is best known for it's masks and it's Murano glass... so shopping was a necessity. Upon arriving in the main square, I must admit I went a little camera happy... But how could I help myself with sights like these?

I also discovered how having a dSLR causes people to automatically assume you are a professional photographer. As I was making my rounds, snapping pictures of everything beautiful, I discovered these two:

And was approached afterwards by the non-costumed gentleman to ask for my card. My card? Yes, so he could get the picture from me... Luckily a friend of his had also captured the picture and we left it at that. However, it was a curious (and slightly ego boosting) encounter.

Shortly before dinner we all headed back to our respective hostels, donned our fancier masks and dolled up for the evening. Pizza for supper, and a night of enjoying Venice festivities! This included more masquerades around San Marco square, concerts, and plenty of partying. The thing about Venice at night (as we discovered) is that it is MUCH colder... I suppose that may be due to the water. Throughout the evening I managed to earn the nickname "Little Orphan Annie". Why? I have no idea, but how could you resist such a cute face...

Sunday morning, we HAD planned to meet up back in San Marco square, where the main festivities took place. Little did we know that Sunday had even MORE celebrations than did Saturday. Not exactly a prime meeting place, we discovered it was a little like searching for a needle in a haystack. After playing "sardines" - literally (and not the version of hide and seek) for a solid hour, we gave up and headed to the train station. Luckily, most of our group had planned on the same train time and I had found my way back with around 5 minutes to spare. I'd say the entire morning counted as one of those adventures I could have gone without.

The last adventure of the weekend, and probably one of the highlights, was arriving in Camucia to see Sergio waiting.

Not for us though. Contrary to popular belief.

But, he was kind enough to offer that we could squeeze (all four of us) into the backseat of his little Mr. Bean car. Our other options were to call a taxi or wait for the bus. So we all piled in, and got very familiar with each other. Haha. The first thing I did upon arriving in the hostel was microwave my leftovers. Somehow in the rush between trains and figuring out how to get home, I forgot to eat between 10:30 am and 6 pm. Kyra was one cranky bear, at least on the inside.

Pompeii/Herculaneum

Weather forecasts in Italy are never accurate. For example... right now my forecast says that it is raining in Cortona. Last I checked it was sunny. Other days it will say the temperature high will be +8, but it will actually be +16. Both of these examples are positive discrepancies, and I really can not complain. In other cases, the forecast will be for sun, and it will pour.

Darn rain...

Such is the case in Pompeii this past weekend. I wondered if maybe it would rain, so I packed my umbrella. But then when we arrived, it was sunny! So I left my umbrella in my backpack... on the bus. Of course it would rain. It is rather difficult to use your fancy camera in the rain. BUT! I still managed to capture much of the excavated city.

Pompeii and Herculaneum are cities "frozen in time" from the classical world. In 79 AD, Mt. Vesuvius erupted and buried Pompeii in lava and Herculaneum in boiling mud flow. The only survivors were those who fled the cities days in advance. A few centuries ago, these cities were partially excavated. This provides us with a snapshot of what life was like back then. Compared to the ruins in Rome, these provide us with a much better idea of Roman cities.

We wandered through the Triangular Forum - basically the entertainment center of Pompeii, the Roman Forum - the political center of Pompeii, the House of the Faun, the Forum Baths, and the Villa of Mysteries. A key thing about Pompeii is that it wasn't originally Roman. First it was an indigenous city of Samnites, then it became a Roman colony and much of the architecture was "Romanized" to show this.

Theatre in the Triangular Forum

Stepping stones to cross streets - to avoid getting your feet dirty!

The Capitoleum and Mt. Vesuvius

Almond Blossoms in the Forum

Wall Painting inside the Villa of Mysteries

One of my favourite things about Pompeii/Herculaneum? The Kyra-sized doors. I didn't have to duck when everyone else did! Haha!

Our hotel for the night had an amazing view of the sea, and the supper was amazing also. We got roasted potatoes! Oh YUM! Highlights: "I want to feed the fish! How do I say that? Manga pesca?" "No Erin, I think that means you want to eat the fish."

Mt. Vesuvius over the Tyrrenhian Sea

Herculaneum ended up having gorgeous weather. Of course this would be the day I put my umbrella in my purse. *Shakes head* Some of the major differences between Pompeii and Herculaneum (besides the weather): Pompeii was a working class town, Herculaneum was a vacation spot. Pompeii's forum has been excavated, Herculaneum's has not. Pompeii was covered in lava flow (meaning much greater damage to the city), Herculaneum was covered by mud flow (meaning some rooftops and wooden staircases have been preserved). In both cases the seafront was pushed back a km or two.

Here we saw more baths, the House of the Stag, some incredible wall paintings and floor mosaics.... and enjoyed an afternoon of SUNSHINE!

Enjoying the wall paintings in the House of the Stag

House of the Stag - View through the garden to where the sea used to be

Another Kyra sized door...

Herculaneum

Field Trip!!

Do you remember field trips in public school? Trips to the park to pick leaves for an art project... trips to the museum... band trips to the art barn... trips to the career fair at the agricom in Edmonton.

I always loved field trips. It meant a break from regular classes, and a chance to get out and do something different!! But those field trips cannot compare to what I am about to experience. Other courses have done trips to Rome, Spoleto, Perugia, Assisi... oh the list goes on! This will be the first field trip I get to partake in! A two day trip to Pompeii and Herculaneum!!

Let me explain why we are going... my courses are about the ancient classical world of Greece and Rome, and part of that looks at the structure (and resulting purpose) of the ancient Roman city. Believe it or not, Rome is NOT the prime example of this. Cities like Spoleto, on the other hand, are. Pompeii and Herculaneum are unique, because they are a snapshot in time. Remarkably preserved beneath a blanket of hardened mud and lava, due to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. Over the years these sites have been excavated, supplying us with a rich quarry of knowledge and antiquities.

Another part I admit I'm looking forward to... staying in a hotel on the coast. Not a hostel... a hotel. My standards jump a mile high with that slight name change. Beauty of it being part of the costs of school here... my stay in a hotel is already paid for. Yesssss!

So here goes, bright and early tomorrow morning. I'll be back Saturday evening with a camera full of pictures, and plenty of stories to share! Yay field trips!

San Valentino

When: Valentines Day

Where: Cortona, Italy

Why: Because we miss our men something fierce and because Valentines is for everyone.

What: Janelle and I bought a few bottles of wine and prosecco, as well as some treats from the Cioccolateria - Cocoa. Secondly, everyone in the hostel participated in a "Secret Cupid" where you needed to buy someone a $5 gift and secretly deliver it to them on Monday. My Secret Cupid bought me chocolates and flowers!!

Thinking...

My apologies for being quiet the last week or so! I can't even blame it on the lack of happenings... because I DO have a post or two that needs to come up. Once I get pictures off my camera. But I was thinking about the real reason I haven't been writing much, and I realized that I was worried about coming off as bragging. But then it crossed my mind that blogging for the sake of keeping friends and family updated was only half my reasons! The other reason was for my benefit! I'm not keeping a regular journal... because I don't at home and I would not be diligent enough to write often enough. My blog is supposed to be my way of writing about my experiences, and my thoughts about them. My thoughts about my experiences? Honestly, every single day that I am here I think about how awesome it is to be here. It hits me again and again that I am living in Italy and that is so incredibly cool! I mean, I have the novelty of doing day trips to places like Rome and Florence. I walk down the hill to school and have the most breathtaking view of Tuscany. I'm learning to speak Italian! I drink wine with dinner every single night, and I love it. My taste for wine is most certainly developing. Could be a very expensive habit when I come home... We go for cappuccino's at one of the many local cafe's, or if we're feeling elegant we'll have a glass of wine. We buy our fruit and vegetables at a local store we've dubbed 'The Fruit Cave", or on Saturdays at the market. Living in "rez" is so much fun also. I'm not a "partier" per-say, but you certainly get to be close to people really quickly when you interact on a daily basis. Lying in the Tuscan sun while studying, and opting for a nap instead. All the leather! Oh how I love leather! The almond trees have begun blooming around Cortona, and I've heard that this is a very important sign that we'll be getting an early spring. You'll hear no complaints from me!

All in all, I LOVE living here. And that is by no means an attempt to brag about it! I know that I am incredibly blessed to be here! I'm going to look back on this experience and not regret a single moment of it! I'm going to be able to tell my children some day that travelling before settling down is worth it! Whether it be Italy or somewhere else in the world... where do YOU want to go? If you have the chance to go, then GO!

All this said, I would be lying to you if I said my heart was not in Canada. It is in good hands, and I have no doubts about that. This is one of the biggest differences between this trip and the Kyra-Colette assault on Europe in 2009. So I suppose that guarantees I'll be coming home!! What a wave of emotions that will be. Excitement to see him, but a longing for the Tuscany I've grown to love.

Expect another post (or two) in the next few days with picture updates of the last week: Day trip to Rome, San Valentino (Valentine's day), and maybe some of those infamous almond blossoms...

Cinque Terre & the Mediterranean Sun

Cinque Terre = 5 towns nestled away on the mediterranean coast of Italy. Gorgeous regardless of the season. Definitely worth going to.

From Camucia this meant 3-4 trains, and about 4 hours of travelling. Since we wanted to make the most of every day we planned to wake up early Friday morning and catch an 8am train. Torn between walking down to the train station and catching a last minute bus, we waited long enough to see if the bus was even coming. Buses in Italy seem to be rather unreliable and unpredictable. When it became apparent that the bus was either excessively late or not coming at all, we glanced at our watches and turned to RUN down the hill to Camucia. I am so not a runner. But, we needed to catch that 8am train, so I ran anyways. My muscles had warned me of the consequences last weekend when we walked up and down that very hill. Clearly I hadn't learned my lesson.

We still missed the train. By two minutes.

The next adventure was catching the last train to Monterosso, the northern-most town of Cinque Terre. The fine print that we hadn't read upon purchasing our ticket, was that this train was an inter-city train. NOT a regional train. The difference, you may ask? Intercity trains are faster and more expensive. Oops. We ended up paying the supplement on-board... at least we were not fined.

One of the biggest attractions of Cinque Terre is the walking paths between each town. These walking paths were the reason we planned to spend two days in Cinque Terre. What we did not know is that there had been landslides, and most of the paths were closed. The only other way between each town was by train. Trains that only took 3-7 minutes each. Darn.

The sight of the beautiful blue Mediterranean made it all worth it. Oh the crisp smell of saltwater, the warm unrelenting sun...

Highlights of each town:

Monterosso

A beautiful, wide, sandy beach. I can see this being one of the biggest tourist attractions in the heat of summer.

Vernazza

This is where we had booked a room to stay the night. Had we done the walking path, it would have taken us 2 hours to get here from Monterosso. Instead we spent those hours sitting on rocks near the water, watching the sun set into the Mediterranean.

Other highlights of Vernazza: Wine and cheese appetizers in our cute little apartment and a typical Cinque Terre seafood dinner.

Corniglia

Waking up the next morning, my muscles quickly reminded me that I am so not a runner. Good thing those walking paths were closed and we had no choice but to take the train... oh darn. Corniglia is the least coastal in the sense that it is nestled highest into the cliffs. Easy to access by the cliffside stairs though, I might add. Stairs are not so much fun when you're already sore. Biggest highlight of Corniglia was the seafood pasta we ate for lunch. Penne with Crab Meat. YUM! We also spent about 40 minutes basking in the sun while we waited for the next train. The heat was unbelievable considering it is only February.

Manarola

Manarola had the cutest little cove, with the most inviting turquoise water. Oh how I wished it was summer and that I had my swimsuit. As hot as it was this weekend, it wasn't swimming hot yet. Just below the surface of the water we could see sea urchins on the rocks! I've always wanted a sea urchin as a pet!

Riomaggiore

The last of the five towns, and the only town accessible to us by a walking path. Via Dell'Amore. Only twenty minutes, and by far the easiest walk (as we've been told). Called the "Lover's Path", along the walk there were many spots covered in locks. Not locks as in blocked off paths, but locks as in the symbol of everlasting love. Quite common in Italy, romantic locations are often covered in locks from couples who have visited and "locked in their love." The other highlight of Riomaggiore was the beach. Not a wide sandy beach like Monterosso, but a rocky beach. Regardless, we had time to take off our shoes and socks and feel the crisp water on our feet.

Picnics in the Olive Grove

Wednesday turned out to be a gorgeous sunny day, and what better way to spend it than to go for a picnic? We had been informed of this lovely old monastery that was a divine picnic location, so we packed up a lunch and headed off. Of course, we had assumed that the directions given... as well as our ability to follow directions... would be relatively simple. However, we soon ended up in a nearby hillside town with grumbling stomachs and no picnic spot in sight. Naturally the solution would be to hike up into an olive grove (since Tuscany is filled with them), put down our blanket, and open the bottle of wine.

It wasn't the location we'd expected, but the sun was out and we were sheltered from the wind. The company was great and the food wasn't bad either! What a lovely way to spend a Wednesday afternoon.