Who else is ready for a new week of adventures? Surprisingly I was, and I went on a school organized trip with my trio again. You can’t separate us, it is actually impossible to right now, us New Yorkers stick togetha.
Monday
I got an email during my poetry course about an opening on a school trip to Sorrentine Coast for the weekend and I jumped at the opportunity because my friends are also on the trip and we have been trying to get me on it. As soon as I sent the email, I got one back immediately and paid for the trip and it was set in stone that I was going away again this weekend!
We also got another trip planned today. Our trips before were not very planned out so we were getting ahead of the game and planned this trip out thoroughly. This trip will be during Thanksgiving break and we will depart from Rome and fly to Paris, France. After our time in Paris we will take the EuroStar train to London, England and spend a little bit of time there.
We made a Google Doc where we are putting down the places we want to visit in each city as well as how much it will cost per person along with any additional information that goes along with the location. So far we have our transportation booked because it was only €360 per person for the flight to Paris, EuroStar to London, and flight home to Rome.
Tuesday
I bought the flights for our trip to Paris and London. First I looked at different websites comparing the prices of the same flight because on one site, I would get a discount for being an Amazon Prime Student, and the other site was directly through the airline.
I had so many tabs open that I thought I went back to the tab to use my discount. I accidentally bought tickets to leave on Thursday instead of Wednesday night. It wasn’t entirely my fault because both flights left and arrived at the same time so it was really confusing. I called the company and they were so great and switched our flights to the correct one for no extra charge. If you are an Amazon Prime Student, you should definitely take advantage of StudentUniverse to book your hotels and flights.
Wednesday
Not much happened today besides prep for the weekend. I got my homework done that was due at the beginning of the next week, laundry, and any shopping that would be at all necessary.
Thursday
Today was for packing and we got dinner.
We went to Grekos, which is a Greek restaurant with amazing tzatziki sauce. I got a “Hercules Pita” which is exactly what I have at home. It is chicken souvlaki pita with fries in it as well. So good!
Afterwards, we went back into town and stopped by a gelateria for some gelato and then we walked by the jewelry tables and I bought a bracelet that matches a daisy necklace that I had bought the first weekend I was here. Then after we split ways, I walked back to my apartment with the helpful and lovely sounds of Luke Combs.
Back at home during the summer, I bought tickets for Luke Combs for when he performs in Orchard Park so my goal for study abroad, one of the many might I add, is to be very much prepared for the concerts that are in April. I listen to his music every day that I am here.
Once I got home, I opened a can of coke and got to packing. I made sure to pack an umbrella because it was going to be raining a lot on Saturday. I also brought comfortable clothes and shoes because the streets of Italy are not going to be comfortable with sandals only.
Friday
I had an early wake up because I had to make sure to be at the bus stop by 7:30 am, so I got up at 6 so I could do any extra packing that I needed and I would have time to grab a cornetto and a Powerade on my way to the bus. I ended up being 15 minutes early than what I needed to be but I like that I wasn’t late enough to wave the bus down.
This trip is organized by the school that I am attending, John Cabot University. They have organized a bus to get us everywhere we need to go, hotel accommodation, breakfast every morning as well as dinner every night. They also organized tours for some of the cities and sites we are seeing.
Our first destination was Pompeii. When we were rolling through Pompeii one of our trip leaders pointed out Mount Vesuvius. I am going to be honest, I thought that it was inactive but apparently, it is still very much an active volcano still.
Our bus arrived at the ruins of Pompeii where we got a guided tour of the site as well as the history of the land. We got to see where people lived, performed, and how some people are kept in cement as torture to kill. It sounds interesting until you see facial expressions through the cement.
After the tour, we sat down for lunch and had time to buy little gifts. I bought some postcards, as I do everywhere I go. Then we went back on the bus to go to a pasta factory/museum where we were taught the history of someone’s family and their pasta business. At the end of the tour, some of us bought some of the family goods, including me.
Later that night after the dinner made by the hotel kitchen staff, my friends and I went out and enjoyed a couple of drinks and dances before heading back to the hotel to get some shut eye.
Saturday
We started off with breakfast in the hotel and afterwards we walked to the port where we got onto a ferry that took us to Capri. The ferry ride was fine, not too bumpy, but I sat in the back and on top of the ferry boat. As soon as we reached the island, we had to rush off of the port and immediately run undercover to get out of the pouring rain. We waited at a restaurant for an hour and a half waiting for the storm to pass. I had my very first cappuccino ever while we waited, it was really good!
After the storm finally passed, we were able to split from the group, and explore the island and shops on our own. When my group of friends reached the top of the island, there were stores everywhere. Emily and Alyssa went to a jewelry store while I meandered my way into, shocker, a Prada store.
I wasn’t going to buy anything, I just wanted to look at what they had and compare the store to the one back in Florence. I did however find a scarf and a coin bag that I really liked. I am glad that I asked the prices before touching them because as soon as the guy told me the bag was almost €2,000.
Before I left home back in August, I made a list of products and items that I wanted to get while I was abroad. One of those items was to get custom made sandals from Capri. So we found a leather shop where they will make sandals for you and I designed some! I also got my initials stamped into them. Alyssa got some too!
While they were making the sandals, we went and got lunch at Pinseria tre Farine and I got a chicken caesar salad, boy did I need it. I haven’t really been eating salads since I have been in Italy so it was nice to get something that wasn’t pasta or pizza related.
After lunch, we went to the store that Emily had stopped at first to get a necklace that she bought, and then we went back to the leather shop to get the sandals that Alyssa and I made. Afterwards, we got gelato and a cappuccino, yup another one. We finally made our way back down to where our meeting point was so we could get on a different boat to get a private tour of the island.
After the tour, we got back on our ferry to head back to Sorrento where we had some free time so I picked up a few gifts for my family as well as a scarf large enough to wear as a shirt, and I did that night. We walked back to the hotel and immediately sat down for dinner, and afterwards we went up to our room to shower and rest before we had a night out with our friends that were also on the trip.
It was a really fun night, and we went back to the same place from the night before and we enjoyed some “Sorrentine Spritz’” which is limoncello, prosecco and club soda, very good.
Sunday
Today was the last day of the school trip and we went to the Royal Palace of Caserta. The palace was beautiful and we got a very well guided tour of the grounds. After the tour, we were let go to eat lunch at the museum and afterwards we would get a tour of the gardens. That was until the rain hit, again, and everyone just wanted to get back on the bus and sleep. The rain did eventually let up and we got to see the gardens, the waterfalls, and the ponds. It was all so beautiful.
Afterwards, we got back on the bus and headed back to Rome. I tried to sleep that ride back, I am honestly not sure if I did or not. When we got back, Emily, Alyssa and I got some pizza for dinner and then I walked back to my apartment. It wasn’t too bad of a walk and it was still light out, but I wasn’t about to take a €40 Uber by myself.
That was my week and I hope you enjoyed it. There is more to come about my trip to Paris and London so don’t worry. Make sure to come back next time to read about my experience at Oktoberfest in Munich!
Picture Captions:
I got this beautiful picture of my puppy nephew, Teddy
My dinner from Grekos, Hercules Pita
Pompeii
Capri Lighthouse
Capri Faraglioni
Inside the Royal Palace of Caserta
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