Last day in Europe!

So we got back about 6ish this morning and got cleaned up and crashed. Then we got woken up at about 1 pm because the ladies cooked us lunch - they love us soooo much! Getting out of bed I actually jumped off the side of the top bunk and then didn't get a grip or something and slipped and fell like halfway across the room - it was funny but painful. I'm sure I'll have a bruise lol. Then we went down to lunch and they had made us steak, mashed potatoes, salad, pasta, bread, fruit, and cokes! It was very unexpected and thoughtful...that's why HUF is the best - the people. After lunch Paige and I went to layout on the terrace since it was warm and sunny and we hadn't got to go to the beach at all :(. It was fun. Then we got cleaned up and then we were informed that Kyle, our prof/assistant to all things HUF, was taking us all out to dinner at 630 tonight. More people showed up, like the boys who had train troubles :(, Susan and her mom, Molly, and Raeanne & Brette. So we all went to La Bottega one last time and then walked through the market in Scandicci for our farewell time. It was really fun. Then we came back and finished packing - my bag's a few pounds over...oops. Then I updated my blog - it's been a chore so be thankful lol. Then I'm about to get on skype for a few and then crash because for some reason I'm still really tired and 12 hours of plane rides tomorrow isn't going to help much lol.

I'll be home about 930 pm tomorrow! I'm very excited and ready to be back. Europe's been an adventure and great, but home is home for a reason! Love you all - see you soon :D

Marseille...or not

So Paige and I woke up and left Paris at about 615 this morning to catch our 730 train to Marseille. We were pretty tired, but excited to see the Chateau d'If and chill at the beach for a little while. We got there and were welcomed by a torrential downpour that was pretty, but not cool because the ferries couldn't run in that weather and we definitely couldn't chill at the beach in that. It was so bad that the roof of the train station was leaking. So Paige and I went to the bathroom and cheated the system - it's dumb to have to pay. Anyway so then we decided what we wanted to do and we decided to go to Nice and see what our options were from there since that was one of our stops on the way back to Florence during the overnight train stuff that night. Then once we got that planned out we had a little bit of time to get some lunch and get over to our train. We didn't have to pay since it was a regional train - so that was nice. Then once we were at Nice we checked on a train to Monaco since it was really close and popular. So we went there and it sprinkled on us a little bit, but it was ok. We just walked around there and went in a couple shops that were having sales. We saw the super nice car places like the Ferrari shop - there was a scandel in the middle of the street bc someone brought back a car damaged and it was pretty apparent - I decided to inconspicuously take a pic ;). Then we found someplace open so we could eat dinner and then we decided to check out Ventimiglia since it was just at the end of this regional train and it was on our agenda to get back to Florence too. From there we got an earlier and better plan to get back to Florence and we took 3 trains - a regional one, a reserved one that was the worst night train ever... so smelly and loud and hot...ugh, then another short regional one (that we crashed on since we were sooo tired). Then we were back in Florence around 530 am today and got back to the villa and crashed.

Paris - Day 3 of free travel (day 2 of Paris)

So today we got up and around about 9ish and went to get them coffee - yes I've been the odd man out all summer because I don't like anything coffee :(. Then we started our walking tour at the Notre Dame which was really cool. Then we went to their memorial to those deported from France. It was interesting but small and I really wish they had stuff written in English at least on a pamphlet or something like that so I could understand, but that's ok. Then we walked down this street that was dominated by book vendors that just sell books out of these little stands and it's cool bc they have new stuff and old stuff - at one of these Raeanne found me a book by Freud and I couldn't resist. I opened it up and it's actually 5 case studies of clients he had in the late 1800s - it's in French but I can read some of it. Plus it'll be a cool part of my collection for when I have an office someday :D. Then we went to the Shakespeare bookstore and they were filming something in there, but it was really cool and there were so many cool old books! They had realllllly old books next door, but they cost like 200 euros :( I really wanted to get The Count of Monte Cristo to read for Marseille (where Chateau d'If is - the prison he was in and where Paige and I are going tomorrow) but it was the unabridged version and I bought a book at the Louvre yesterday [Trey and Dad you'll be proud - it's not about vampires or werewolves at all]. Then we went to the Latin Quarter where all the philosophers and awesome people at the time hung out. Then we went in St. Severin church and it was cool - it's a part of the journey to Rome so that was really fun to see. Then we found this authentic French restaurant that wasn't too expensive and we ate there. I had salad then chicken and fries, then apple pie. Everyone really liked this place. Then we were sooo tired but we had a few more places to hit up. We went to this square that is symbolic of Revolution and revolts because they had to pave over the roads there because at one point students were revolting and they used the cobblestones from the streets as weapons and they chunked them at the cops! Then we went to Pont Nuf - which is the really old bridge and they were actually filming a movie on it at the time so we just had to look from the next bridge, but it was a movie supposed to be set in Rome...I don't get it either lol. Then it was about 4 so Paige and I decided it was too late to go to Versailles so we were headed for the Orsay Museum but it was closed by the time we got there and so we just went back to the hotel (about 630ish) and crashed because we were literally exhausted - I think all summer of traveling is catching up with all of us. Then a few hours later we thought about going to the Arc de Triomphe but it was rainy and gross so we just chilled for a little bit and watched BBC to catch up with world events (in English lol). Then we got some dinner and called it a night. Tomorrow is Marseille for Paige and I :)

Paris - Day 2 of free travel

So we got up early and our train left at 635 am from Nice to Paris. So we slept on it :) Then when we got there we had to get on their metro system to get to our hotel - not hostel :D. Then after we checked in and all that we got Subway sandwiches because we were starving and they were right across the street! Then we went to the Louvre and spent about 3 hours there. We ended up seeing Michael and Anna there and went to dinner with them at a Chinese place because everywhere was a minimum of 20 euros! Plus this lady was super nice. Then Raeanne, Brette, Paige, and I went to the Eiffel tower and ended up getting there around 830 or 9 so basically perfect timing to get daytime pics and then night shots and on the hour they turn on flashy lights for 5 minutes! It was super awesome. I got my last souvenirs for people today so I am officially really done now lol. Then we went back to the hotel and crashed because we were so tired. Tomorrow is a walking tour courtesy of Rick Steve's guide to Paris book and a short visit to Versailles with Paige.

Nice, France - Day 1 of Free Travel

Ok so we got up and went to the train station at 5:45 am to catch our train to get us where we needed to be to catch our train to Nice. Well, apparently the people told us wrong or our train was just MIA, but it didn't come so we had to wait til 7:45 to catch the next train there which has us missing our train to Nice. So we were up ridiculously early and nothing was open so we just went down to the water and watched the waves and it was very cool to experience it with no one out there. Paige fell asleep and I was talking to this awesome cat that was just chilling out there. I named him Cassanova because of the "Stray Cat Strut" song hahahaha. Then a bar opened at 7 so they got coffee and a croissant. Then we stayed up in the train station and got on that train. Then we got on another train to Nice and ended up getting there at about 3 pm. The weather there wasn't too warm either, but it wasn't rainy. So we checked into our hostel which was nice and then reserved our train to Paris for the next day and then walked around town and went to H&M - big sale going on. Then we saw these street performers who were dancing and it was soooo fun! They were really good. Then we made our way to the beach and it was pretty but cold. People were actually in the water though and these guys were acting so dumb and like belly flopping in the waves and then losing there shorts and not pulling them up right away - gross. Plus old men in speedos. Ew...Anyway then we got some dinner - KFC and kebabs lol. Then we found out that some of our friends got stranded in Nice because their trains messed up and so we met up with them and they ended up getting a spot at our hostel (which is the best in France btw) and so we hung out with them in McDonald's while they tried to figure stuff out and then we just went back to the hostel and chilled for a bit and then said our goodbyes for real. Then tomorrow is a train to Paris!

Saturday of Cinque Terre

So this day was supposed to be dedicated to sleeping in and chilling on a beach, but the weather has been weird this summer. We all got up got around about lunch time because the sun was actually out then, but Anna and I wanted to hang around and get ready before joining Paige and Hailey. So we got all ready and met up with Michael, Anna's boyfriend, and went to catch the train and it was sunny kinda, but absolutely frigid. It would've been miserable to be at a beach in that weather! So we decided to change plans and I got information about getting where we needed to be to catch our train Sunday morning to begin our real free traveling. Then I walked around and looked in the little stores around Vernazza and then got some lunch and went back to the room for a bit. Then a big group of us went to this awesome little Pirate restaurant for dinner. The waiters were brothers and they ran it and they were cracking jokes the whole time and they gave us their famous dessert for free, so we each took a bite - it was berries and some kind of cream yogurt stuff...sooo good! Then a little while later all of our group met up at this park and said our goodbyes and gave hugs. People were crying. It was dramatic. Then we walked down to the water again and it was gorgeous! The waves were very high today and it was hilarious to see people getting splashed 0:). Tomorrow it's time to travel to Nice, France!!!

Friday of Cinque Terre

So this day was interesting. The trains were on strike so we got a bus to take us to Cinque Terre which is a group of 5 fishing villages on the coast. So we got as far as we could on this really windy, on the edge of a cliff road and then after 2 people told our driver if he continued driving on the road he'd get his bus stuck, he decided to stop and let us out. Then we had an awesome traffic jam going on while he backed up and turned around at a hairpin turn. Then we crammed about people and everyone's luggage into a tiny van that some nice little Italian man called for us and that took us down to Vernazza, the village we stayed in. We got checked into our hotel and cleaned up and then went to dinner at this little restaurant and it was ok. Then we walked around and went down to the pier to look at the coast. Then we crashed because it had been a loooong day. The plan for Saturday was to sleep in and then go to the beach.