Bonjour Family!
As many of you know, I have left Rome for good (well, sort of), returned to Boston to see Jamie graduate (tear) and have come back to Europe for another 5 week adventure! I got a job working on the Tennis Channel production of the French Open, called the French Open Tonight Show, and will be here for 2 whole weeks! After, I will be traveling to some new places and some places I've already been, so I will do my best to update you on my travels in the next few weeks, as well as some from my last month in April, including my mom and two aunts coming to visit!
Bear with me...I have limited internet access in the next few weeks, but I promise eventually I will get everything up! Thanks for sticking around, I appreciate your enthusiasm with this blog. Well, hopefully you are as enthused as I think...if not looks like Dad, you're my only fan.
Love you lots,
Caitlin
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
A Day in the Park
On the weekend after Spring Break, only three of us in our apartment were around. It was a nice, recuperating weekend from the hustle and bustle of travel, and we did nothing but relax and enjoy Rome during the day. On Saturday, we went to Villa Borghese to enjoy the beautiful day, and rented boats out on a little pond. My friend Kia and I, the smallest girls around, were designated the rowers for the afternoon. Here are some pictures I thought you might enjoy.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Spring Break
So Spring Break did not go exactly as I had imagined it, to say the least. I left early Monday morning with a fever and a throat that was the size of an orange to catch a flight to Budapest, Hungary. We landed around 10am and immediately took a 2 hour nap as soon as we arrived in our hostel. Budapest, from what I saw, was cold, quiet, and empty, and nothing like I have ever seen before. After our nap, we set out to wander the city and found a sushi restaurant for lunch. I couldn't even finish a bowl of Miso soup, so I decided wandering around the city in the cold was a bad idea. I went home, slept all afternoon and into the night, feeling worse the next morning. I forced myself to eat some yogurt almost unsuccessfully, as I couldn't even get that down easily. I also knew I had to take advantage of being in Budapest no matter how sick I was, so my friends and I went to the famous Turkish Baths for some healing waters. It was really cool to see and a lot of fun to just relax in, but no healing was had. In fact, my sickness just kept getting worse. I finally started taking some anti-biotics my roommate had sent with me after some tearful and expensive phone calls to Mom and the doctor in Park City. I was miserable, to say the least.
After missing 99% of Budapest, we left Wednesday morning for a train to Vienna. As soon as we checked into our hostel, we couldnt move into our room until later so we went into the city. I saw St. Stephan's Cathedral and went to their famous Central Cafe for lunch, where my tears and lack of appetite convinced my roommates a trip to the doctor's was necessary. So Fly took me to an English speaking doctor who told me I had strep throat/ acute tonsillitis. As Mom said, theres nothing cute about that. So I continued taking my antibiotics and spent the rest of the afternoon and the entire next day all by my lonesome self in the hostel while my roommates were Museum hopping. I finally went a little crazy and forced myself to go out that night to the Vienna Opera which was awesome and I'm so glad I did, even if I wasn't feeling 100%. I missed everything else, but the Opera House is definitely the thing not to miss.
Friday morning, we caught a train on to Munich!! This was where I began to feel infinitely better, although my appetite was still not up to par so I couldn't enjoy the weinerschnitzels, and my anti-biotics keeping me from enjoying that great German beer. We walked around the city Friday afternoon, saw Pope Benedict's church, and walked through the English Gardens during Sunset just in time to catch the last round at the beer gardens by the famous Chinese tower. The park is beautiful, and twice the size of NYC's Central Park.
After my friends enjoyed their beer and I attempted to munch on a pretzel, we went to the Hofbrauhaus, Munich's most famous beer garden and brewery, to get some dinner and enjoy the traditional Bavarian cuisine and music. Men were literally walking around in the traditional Bavarian outfits, with a stein in hand, laughing and singing in a happy drunken German manner. I love my heritage. I, on the otherhand, sipped some warm chamomile tea to pass the time.
After a couple hours spent enjoying the scene, we decided to go back to the hostel, and as I'm leaving I see a familiar face...non other than Joanna B., one of my best friend's in high school who is studying in Florence, sitting with her friends. Of all the places in all the world, I run into Jobie in the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany. If that isn't any indication of a small world, I don't know what is. It was so great to see her, and I still can't believe how random it was! I had no idea she was going to be there that weekend. I tried to see her later in the weekend but she was on a school sponsored trip and had things planned all weekend.
Saturday afternoon we took a bike tour of the entire city, called Mike's Bike Tour. It was four and a half hours long, complete with a stop at the Chinese Tower beer gardens, an amazing South American tour guide who was so much fun, and some exercise which we all needed. We all had a blast with this group and got to see the entire city with some awesome things pointed out to us. Munich is basically made of all bike-paths, as EVERYONE rides bikes there. I'm in love with this city.
Leaving on Sunday was something none of us wanted to do. I was finally feeling better so I felt like my trip had just begun, and we were all in love with Munich. Now, at the end of my Euro-travels, I say Munich was definitely one of my favorite places I have visited. Sunday I was able to enjoy my first and only Bavarian beer!
After missing 99% of Budapest, we left Wednesday morning for a train to Vienna. As soon as we checked into our hostel, we couldnt move into our room until later so we went into the city. I saw St. Stephan's Cathedral and went to their famous Central Cafe for lunch, where my tears and lack of appetite convinced my roommates a trip to the doctor's was necessary. So Fly took me to an English speaking doctor who told me I had strep throat/ acute tonsillitis. As Mom said, theres nothing cute about that. So I continued taking my antibiotics and spent the rest of the afternoon and the entire next day all by my lonesome self in the hostel while my roommates were Museum hopping. I finally went a little crazy and forced myself to go out that night to the Vienna Opera which was awesome and I'm so glad I did, even if I wasn't feeling 100%. I missed everything else, but the Opera House is definitely the thing not to miss.
Friday morning, we caught a train on to Munich!! This was where I began to feel infinitely better, although my appetite was still not up to par so I couldn't enjoy the weinerschnitzels, and my anti-biotics keeping me from enjoying that great German beer. We walked around the city Friday afternoon, saw Pope Benedict's church, and walked through the English Gardens during Sunset just in time to catch the last round at the beer gardens by the famous Chinese tower. The park is beautiful, and twice the size of NYC's Central Park.
After my friends enjoyed their beer and I attempted to munch on a pretzel, we went to the Hofbrauhaus, Munich's most famous beer garden and brewery, to get some dinner and enjoy the traditional Bavarian cuisine and music. Men were literally walking around in the traditional Bavarian outfits, with a stein in hand, laughing and singing in a happy drunken German manner. I love my heritage. I, on the otherhand, sipped some warm chamomile tea to pass the time.
After a couple hours spent enjoying the scene, we decided to go back to the hostel, and as I'm leaving I see a familiar face...non other than Joanna B., one of my best friend's in high school who is studying in Florence, sitting with her friends. Of all the places in all the world, I run into Jobie in the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany. If that isn't any indication of a small world, I don't know what is. It was so great to see her, and I still can't believe how random it was! I had no idea she was going to be there that weekend. I tried to see her later in the weekend but she was on a school sponsored trip and had things planned all weekend.
Saturday afternoon we took a bike tour of the entire city, called Mike's Bike Tour. It was four and a half hours long, complete with a stop at the Chinese Tower beer gardens, an amazing South American tour guide who was so much fun, and some exercise which we all needed. We all had a blast with this group and got to see the entire city with some awesome things pointed out to us. Munich is basically made of all bike-paths, as EVERYONE rides bikes there. I'm in love with this city.
Leaving on Sunday was something none of us wanted to do. I was finally feeling better so I felt like my trip had just begun, and we were all in love with Munich. Now, at the end of my Euro-travels, I say Munich was definitely one of my favorite places I have visited. Sunday I was able to enjoy my first and only Bavarian beer!
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