Andiamo a Perugia!

Monday, December 19, 2011

Final portion of fall break-405 takes Milan & Venice Part I

The final portion of my fall break: 405 takes on Milan and & Venice. It was pretty epic traveling around Europe with Meredith. Let me clarify by saying that Meredith and I lived in Harkness 405 freshman and JA 405 sophomore year, with that being said, we consider ourselves the 405 roommates. We flew from Paris to Milan on RyanAir again—survived…again! This time around, some of my toiletries got confiscated unfortunately. My three most valued toiletries: hair gel, facial moisturizer, and make up remover. Seriously!? I should have known that I ran such a risk when I packed the non-travel sized containers. Going from Italy to London was not a problem, but Paris caused me some grief. Oh well, my mistake!

Once we landed in Milan we got a bus to the train station, near where our hostel was supposed to be located. However, we couldn’t find it. After asking for directions we finally got settled into our hostel and we were ready to see Milan. We knew that the Duomo (what we wanted to see most) was only two Metro stops away so we decided we could handle the walk. Well, two hours later we were still wandering around Zone 2 of Milan (the industrial part of the city, where we stayed…Zone 1 is the city center) asking storeowners and newspaper stand vendors “Dov’è il Duomo?” They would point this way and that. We managed to find a Metro stop and ended up taking it straight to the Duomo. Come to find out, the two hours of walking only took us one Metro stop. After some frustration, we sat at a café and enjoyed some lunch and cappuccinos at the Piazza del Duomo. We were dragging a little bit so we decided it would be a good idea to have two cappuccinos each. After enjoying the two cups each of warm, frothy goodness, we take a look at the bill--4€…for EACH drink!! So I paid 8€ for some energy to keep me going for the rest of the day. Rip off!

Enough of the aggravation because the day did get better, I promise! We went inside the Duomo, which was extremely lavish and grand. There were enormous paintings hung up all around the interior. There were also sarcophagi, or stone coffins, of archbishops plotted around the cathedral. It was kind of creepy to be standing so close to these coffins but I was so drawn to them at the same time. The only thing separating me from the coffin was a small iron railing. I was in admiration of all the stained glass adorning the windows of the Duomo. They were beautiful and brightly colored. We also went downstairs to visit the crypt of Cardinal Borromeo. It was eerie and enticing at the same time.

Of course, because we were in Milan, we had to go shopping! We stumbled across this makeup store, Kiko. We were in there for what seemed like hours! We were obsessed with all the nail polish and each picked out a stylish color. Then we became easily amused by the eye shadow they had, which when mixed with water, made it look metallic. The saleslady was persuading us to buy this “special” solution-we tried the eye shadow with water and it did the exact same thing. Needless to say, we didn’t leave the store empty-handed. On a side note, after coming back to Perugia, I realized that there is a Kiko on the main drag here, literally less than five minutes away from me. Awesome!

After walking some more along one of the main streets leading away from the Duomo, we stumbled upon this giant castle, il Castello Sforzesco (the Sforza Castle). The Sforza family was ducal, meaning members of the family became Duke of Milan. The family also often commissioned work for Leonardo da Vinci, as I have learned in my art history class. This castle is the other “big” monument to see in Milan. I didn’t know that at the time. Like I said, we simply stumbled upon it. So we went into the courtyard and admired the size and atmosphere of the place. It was a beautiful afternoon so we sat in the courtyard for a bit…and played with cats. We found at least 10-15 cats just lounging in a small section of the courtyard. Meredith adores cats so we found ourselves snapping away pictures and trying to play with them. It was very entertaining! I saw a grandmother and her two young grandchildren come over to where the cats congregated and throw bread out on the grass. Well, that invited the pigeons too! The little girl ran about in excitement and fright. It was quite cute.

All over Milan, there were elephant statues in different positions and painted in a different fashion as some sort of art project for the city. This is part of the Elephant Parade that is the most popular open-air art exhibits in the world. It was in London last year (2010) and was elected event of the year there. The parade is an effort to save the endangered Asian elephant. If any of you remember the cows that were placed all over Boston, this is very similar to that. Mere and I got pictures of each other at a bunch of the different elephants.

Most of our time in Milan felt like it was spent wandering and stumbling upon different sights, which is one way to see a city. It was very unlike us to travel without some sort of plan or itinerary; we just went with it. Although we only saw a very small portion, it turned out to be a very cool city. I wasn’t as impressed as I thought it would be, though. I thought Milan was going to be very fashionable and chic, as it is considered one of the fashion capitals of the world. Perhaps it was because we were in a different section of Milan, I don’t know. I now know that Milan is an industrial, economic, political hub since it’s the biggest city in Milan (thanks to my art history professor). I will be returning to see the Duomo and The Last Supper (at Santa Maria della Grazie) with my art history class this upcoming weekend so I’ll be able to experience more of Milan. I always hear about how great of a city it is, but I don’t feel like I experienced the best parts. Don’t get me wrong, Milan is beautiful, but I would like to see other parts of the city to compare.

To be continued…

il Duomo

Mere @ the Duomo

Really neat door of the Duomo

Candles inside the Duomo

My candle!

Looking down the aisle

Beautiful stained glass

Catacomb

More of the catacombs

One of many plotted around the inside

The Galleria

Inside the Galleria

Elephant!!

Il Castello Sforzesco

More elephants!!

Mere & I outside the Sforza Castle

Courtyard of the Castle

CATS!

Behind the Castle

Oh, she LOVED the elephants!

Galleria at night

Duomo at night

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

:)

I AM OFFICIALLY DONE (ACADEMICALLY SPEAKING) WITH THE SEMESTER!!

Tonight is my last real night in Perugia so the entire school will be celebrating and saying some goodbyes before we board a 1 a.m. bus Friday morning and head off to the airport in Rome.

Don't worry-blog posts to come! I cranked out my finals and I now have some time to devote to catching y'all up!

The past four months have truly been a blessing and I can honestly say that I have done everything without any regrets. I only wish I could stay here a little longer and continue building the friendships that I have made early on in the semester as well as the ones that have only just come about. I am thrilled to be coming home for Christmas but I am going to Perugia with all my heart!

Before I get too sappy and start crying...again...I should probably start packing (Mom & Dad-where are you?!?!?!?!)

A presto! (See you soon!)
Melissa

Monday, December 12, 2011

Mi dispiace... (I'm sorry...)

Ciao a tutti!

First, let me apologize for leaving you all hanging with my posts mid-fall break. I was computer-less for two weeks and just got it back last Thursday. My logic board stopped working so it was quite the ordeal going around Italy trying to 1. Figure out what was wrong with it and 2. Dropping off/picking up my computer in Florence.

With just about a week left and finals underway, here is what’s to come. I will obviously need some study breaks so I will share my adventures with y’all here:

The rest of fall break i.e. Milan and Venice

A day in the Umbrian countryside olive picking and truffle hunting

Food field trip to Parma and Modena

Check back soon!

4 DAYS LEFT=UNREAL=:(

Melissa

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Fall Break: Part II-Paris

And my adventures continue on...

Tuesday morning (at 5:30 a.m.), Alyssa and I (along with Isabel who came along for a surprise visit to Paris) took the Chunnel from King’s Cross Station in London to Paris. If there is any way to travel between these two beautiful cities, it definitely has to be on an underwater train! Meredith met me at the train station and I ran into her arms. It felt so great to be back together again! Isabel came along for a surprise and Mere nearly fell over with excitement! I realized how much I missed the girls J

Once I saw Paris, like London, I immediately fell in love. It was a different first impression, though. I had studied French for such a long part of my schooling that I had seen so many pictures of the monuments and the city and I already knew so much about the culture, that I felt like I had been to Paris before. I felt very at home, very comfortable.

Right off the bat, I started what would be three days of exquisite eating and dining. I had my first authentic chocolat pain (chocolate croissant)-it tasted like perfection! The four of us went to Meredith’s apartment first where she showed us the view from the terrace of her building. In the distance you could see the Eiffel Tower, so clear and erect over the entire city. The symbol of Paris, something I have wanted to see my whole life, ever since Sister Maria first taught me how to say “Bonjour” in 1^st grade. I was antsy to get up close and personal with it. I didn’t have to wait long in since Meredith took me to the Eiffel Tower as our first order of business. I stood in awe of the trademark of Paris. The closer I got to it, the smaller I felt and I couldn’t believe that I was standing under the Tower. It was incredible! I also had my first crêpe from Paris from this wonderful little stand right near the Tower. What could be better? A banana/Nutella crêpe sitting with the Eiffel Tower as a backdrop- absolutely sinful!

Over the three full days that I had to tour the city and experience Parisian culture, I saw all the major places: the Eiffel Tower, L’Arc de Triomphe, strolled down Champs-Élysées, Notre Dame, the Seine, the Louvre, Centre Pompidou, passed by Place de la Concorde as well as the Musee d’Orsay, walked through the Luxembourg Gardens and the Tuileries.

On Wednesday, Alyssa and I decided that we would take a trip to the Louvre in attempt to see the Mona Lisa (Italian: La Gioconda, French: La Joconde). Once we made it into the main courtyard we saw that the line was wrapped around the entire courtyard and then behind the building extending into a different courtyard. I didn’t care-it was a mild day and I wanted to get inside what appeared to be such a beautiful, grandiose museum. An hour later, I was making my way down the escalators inside the famous glass pyramid. We got our tickets and were on our way to the Italian paintings wing (Note: we didn’t have to pay for because we were students of the European Union, which was great. However, I didn’t bring my passport with me and only had my Umbra student ID that didn’t make it very clear that I live in Italy. I had some issues, but eventually talked my way into getting a free ticket J). We finally made our way down to the room with Mona Lisa. My art history professor warned my class (I am taking a Leonardo da Vinci class this semester) that the Mona Lisa was much smaller than people think. In such a large room with other oversized paintings, the Mona Lisa, so small, stood in the middle of the room protected by a glass case. It was pretty impressive, however, to see something that I am studying in class in real life. The Mona Lisa is replicated all over the world for different uses, whether it be art or satire, so to see the actually painting itself, live, in Paris, was incredible. Later on that day, Alyssa and I met up with one of her friends from home who took us into Notre Dame and through the Tuileries (the gardens abutting the Louvre). We got a little shopping done as well, which never hurts!

Thursday was my day just with Meredith! She planned out the day and wanted to take me to all her favorite places and spend a day frolicking in Paris avec moi. It was such a great day. I got to see Paris through the eyes of a now true Parisian student. Since the Luxembourg Gardens are pretty much her backyard, we took a stroll through the Gardens, which were very picturesque. We also picked up some sandwiches from Meredith’s favorite boulangerie. Mere took me to see her school, which was nice to see and picture her in her element in Paris. I got to see the outside of the Centre Pompidou. We didn’t have time go inside, but I had seen pictures of just how neat and artsy the outside of the museum was decorated. We went through some markets located close to the Eiffel Tower and picked up a few additions to our lunch and shopped some. Finally, we made it to the Eiffel Tower, where we had a picnic lunch on the Champs de Mars (the big green lawn in front on the Tower). Our sandwiches were classic French food: a baguette with lettuce and chèvre (goat cheese). It was one of the tastiest things I have ever eaten-even in Europe! We got some olives from the market to go with our sandwich, but nothing could compare to the crispy bread and soft, savory cheese. Yum! After lunch, we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Both Meredith and I always wanted to go to the top so it was incredibly special to share the experience with her. We stopped at the second level up the Tower and got out, took pictures, took in the landscape, but once we made it to the tip top of the Eiffel Tower, my world was forever changed! I could see for miles and miles. It was extraordinary how much of Paris you can see from there. You could see the layout of the city and all the major monuments/tourist attractions were clearly spotted amidst the miles of city. I even spotted the Sacre Coeur way off just sitting on the horizon. It’s hard to put into words just exactly what I was feeling and seeing, but some words that come to mind are the following: euphoric, romantic, nostalgic, blissful. The view was breathtaking!

One more thing, I stayed at my friend Isabel’s dad apartment in Paris, which I am fortunate enough to have had that really cool opportunity. I got to pretend that I lived in Paris. I slept in her older sister’s bedroom, with a view of the top of the Eiffel Tower. The very last night I was there, I finally saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle! At night, the Tower lights up and every hour it sparkles. However, at around 1a.m. the Tower goes completely black and just sparkles-it was so beautiful and exquisite! Meredith and I sat on the bed and just watched in awe of this fabulous sight. That definitely made my trip complete. I was staying in this beautiful apartment with some of my great friends, frolicking around Paris! It was like I was living a dream!