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After leaving Rome I didn’t know what else to expect. I had already seen everything I had ever dreamed of seeing…so now what? Little did I know…
First off, on the train to Naples to get to Sorrento, the theory of Italian guys being very complimenting and vocal about what they think about you…well it got proved. We were sitting in the corridor of the train because we didn’t have actual seats since they were open tickets. We were fine with this and chose a nice quiet hallway type thing to sit in. We decided to sit by the area who had their windows shut with curtains…that way we would have to awkwardly stare at anybody in their seats. Good plan, right? No.
We were making jokes and being a bit loud, when one of the boys looked out his window at us, opened the curtain and opened the door. Instead of saying Hi, or even Ciao, he just sat there and stared at me. I tried to ignore it, but after 10 minutes this guy was still staring at me. So I decided to kindly ask him, ‘Is there a reason you’re staring at me?’ He started laughing and gave me a high five. I was confused, my friends were half cracking up, half wondering what the heck was going on. He had two other friends with him and they preceded to try to talk to me. I barely knew any Italian, and only one of them barely knew any English so needless to say the conversation was enthralling. He was taking an english class and was trying his best to piece together what he had learned. But, all he could really get was ‘I….I….WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!’ We all laughed so hard we almost cried. Then he tried singing NeYo’s ‘Miss Independent’ to me. I can now say that I was serenaded on the train in Italy.
When we finally arrived to Sorrento we were absolutely blown away by the amazing view. We took a bus to what we thought was a hostel, but it actually turned out to be little bungalow cottages overlooking the sea, called Villaggio Resort Nettuno. We thought we had died and gone to heaven. For only 14 euros a night we were in paradise.
The day after we arrived the ‘resort’ was running a deal where for 30 euros they would take you around Capri, into the Blue Grotto, and then you could spend the day on the island and they would pick you up at 430pm. So of course we took the opportunity!!
It was a 30 minute boat ride which is incredibly scenic. They took us to where the Blue Grotto is and since we were in a huge boat we figured that the cave where this thing is must be pretty big! I hate caves, so I was pleased. Well…not so much. They transfered us over to little rowboats and then pointed to where we were going…this little tiny holy that you literally had to duck in the boat in order to get through it. Holy crap. Luckily once you’re in the actual grotto it’s a lot bigger and going in there was one of the best decisions we made. Beautiful can’t really describe it…and pictures don’t even do it justice. You have to see this water with your own eyes to really understand just how magnificent it is. After the grotto, the boat took us to Manna de Piccola which had the bluest water in pure daylight that I had ever seen.
Capri is a beautiful island and if you have the money, find a hostel or hotel on the island and stay there. But it’s cheaper if you stay in Sorrento and take a boat to Capri for the day or two. Everything is very expensive on the island so it’s a good idea to pack a water bottle and some snacks with you.
Sorrento in its own right is just as beautiful. On our last evening in Italy we decided to head into the middle of town. They had tons of shops and curvy little streets. We took a little tour through the town on a little white train that looked like it had escaped the nearest children’s playground. And of course, found some gelato. (I seemed to be addicted to it.)
After returning back to our bungalow for the night, I decided to go down to the seaside with my Eat Pray Love book and have some ‘me’ time. It was nice to get away from everything and just sit and appreciate all that the last couple weeks had given me.
The best part about this Epic Eurotrip is that through all the disappointments, the stressful traveling instances, the heavy luggage….throughout all of that…I finally saw some of the world. And I loved every millisecond of it.
All I can say is I hope you, reader, have your own epic trip someday. One that really opens your eyes to the world. Even if it’s not to Europe…it could even be to the grocery store if you’re lucky enough, just a journey that gives you hope and new dreams that you never thought imaginable. I hope you do.
Epic Eurotrip ‘09, OUT!
ROME. I was like a kid at Christmas the second we arrived. I was so excited!
We stayed at the Hotel Positano. It was a great hostel to stay at, especially when you’re on a tight budget. But when on HostelWorld, don’t be fooled when they say they have internet. They don’t. The nice thing about Rome is that when you don’t want to pay the extra money for a hotel right in the middle of everything, they have an area that’s pretty much ALL hotels and hostels…so even when you’re not paying a lot, you can at least know that you’re still in a safe part of the city.
Since we arrived in Rome in the evening, we found a nearby pizza place and headed to our Hostel for the night and eventually fell asleep. Then, at 3:43 am, we all awoke to our beds shaking violently and our phones falling off the table. “What’s going on?!’ we were all saying…turns out we were in the middle of the now famous Italian Earthquake of 2009. Now there is an Epic Eurotrip adventure right there!
What I love most about Italy are the people. Everyone is so happy and so nice. And the guys are stupidly gorgeous to look at. Take my advice, if ever you are going through a terrible break-up or divorce…go to Italy. Your self-esteem will be flying through the roof by the time you get back! The guys are always complimenting the girls and calling them Bella. Who wouldn’t love this place?!
Finally, the rain didn’t follow us and we basked in the sun for the rest of our trip (and got some good suntans…or burns.)
We decided to gather up our money and do the Hop On Hop Off bus tour around Rome. It was a great investment and we saw sooo much. When I caught the first glimpse of the Colosseum was when it finally hit me that I was seeing the world.
Unfortunately, it was Easter Weekend…so the place was packed. We met up with a friend who was studying there and she said she had never seen it this busy before. I guess we just had some really bad timing with visiting…oh well, it was totally worth it!
Right by the Piazza del Popolo there is an area with a ton of stairs. Climb them and look out across all of Rome. It’s amazing. If you keep walking it’ll take you to the Spanish Steps as well. It was one of my most favorite places.
After a 24 hour bus ride, we arrived in Venice. Ever since I was old enough to comprehend what Italy was, I had wanted to go there. So needless to say, I was stoked about this trip.
We stayed at the Villa Dori…which, don’t be fooled when it says it’s in Venice. It’s not. In fact, it’s so far that you have to pay for a shuttle to take you there each day. Not a positive. But, the hotel is a very beautiful hotel, very enchanting and makes you wonder if you somehow entered the Clue game. So if staying outside of Venice in the countryside is more your style, than this is more your hotel. For four college girls with little funds…not so much.
Venice is very captivating with it’s ancient buildings and water. At night it becomes even more entrancing and a bit spooky. I felt like I was on a movie set…or a maze. It’s extemely easy to get lost so make sure you know your way around.
The best thing about Italy? Cheap, delicious pizza.
We only stayed in Venice for one night…mostly because as beautiful and captivating as it is…it’s not really fit for cheap college kids. It’s a very good, romantic place for honeymoons and couples though. When I saw that it was 60 Euros for a gondola ride, I vowed that someday I would come back with a significant other and we would ride that gondola. I’m determined.
Still, I’m glad we went. 
26 hours after leaving Amsterdam, we arrived in the beautiful, sunny Barcelona, Spain. Except it wasn’t sunny..it actually was raining. We decided that the rain followed us from England. (Ironically, Ormskirk had a straight week of sun as we were constantly trying to escape the rain from country to country.)
We stayed at the Garden House Hostel. It was the best decision we’d made since beginning this journey through the world. The Hostel is beautiful, clean, the staff is extraordinary and so helpful, and the rooms were AMAZING. Best of all? Completely in a college kid’s budget. It’s a big out of the way if you’re looking for somewhere in the center of town…but it’s in a really safe neighborhood and only two blocks from the train station which leads right into town. Farther down the street from it is a park that has a few hiking trails that lead up to the top of a hill that has benches, a large cross (which you can see from the balcony at the hostel.)and a magnificent view of the city and surrounding areas. All I can say is STAY HERE. It’s beautiful.
A good tourist spot is the Parc Guell. It was really packed when we were there, but hopefully it’s not always like that. The view is amazing and I believe an episode of America’s Next Top Model was shot there. And of course, being 20/21 year old girls, we found a playground and played around for a good hour.
After finding our child within on the playground, we decided to head back to the center of town and go to Barceloneta, and go to THE BEACH! It was just as beautiful as I had imagined it. And there were surfers EVERYWHERE. 
It was my first real experience at a beach (a downfall of living in IOWA.) and I was absolutely blown away. When walking to the beach we passed by a lot of little shops and restaurants, but there was a gelato shop and it was AMAZING. I have racked my brain trying to think of the name, and I can’t remember it. But it’s there, and it doesn’t have any doors, completely open and on a corner. Try to find it…it’s amazing.
One day we took an afternoon away from the beach and sightseeing and went to the Barcelona Aquarium. It’s perfect for families and so awesome. And after you’re done staring at sharks, eels, and octopuses, there’s a ton of activities and toys for little ones. And of course, since we’re kids at heart, we spent a good hour messing around on the rides and activities. It was an afternoon well spent.
The only downfall of the sunny, beachy Barcelona is the crime. We had three attempts of pickpocketers with one success. Poor Maggie got her wallet stolen on the train. It was very scary but luckily she was able to get everything figured out and luckily she wasn’t traveling with a credit card. Still scary though…I was really glad my parents instilled in me good travel tips about pickpocketers and such.
All in all, Barcelona is beautiful and makes for a great sunny holiday…when it’s not raining. Go there!
Yes, you read that right. For the third time in only eight months I went back to Amsterdam. Although this time it was because Kristin, Danielle and Maggie had yet to see this place of magic and mystery…and coffee shops.
Originally we meant to be here for a few days, see the sites, be college tourists…but plans got changed when we realized we HATED the cold and instead of going to another cold place, we wanted to go to where the sun never sets and rain doesn’t exist….SPAIN. But because of this quick change of plans, we only got to spend one night in Amsterdam since our bus left the next morning. Turns out…sometimes all you need is a night in Amsterdam.
We stayed in the Hans-Brinker Hostel…my idea, since I had such a good time there in October.
Since I had already been there twice before, the girls looked to me for directions and good places to go. Little did they realize that the last time I was there it was in a large group and I was completely oblivious to where we were half the time anyway. This can be troubling…especially when trying to get from the bus station to our hostel at 530 in the morning. But after biting it on train track (we all knew I was bound to fall eventually…), seeing a man with a bloody face by a McDonalds, seeing men with kilts EVERYWHERE we went, and getting barked at by drunk boys…we made it to our hostel…only to find out it wasn’t ready yet so we waited and had free breakfast in the cafeteria. (The best thing about that hostel…their FREE breakfast!) We decided to walk around and see what was around…there was a shop that sold all American and UK foods in which we almost cried in excitement. (Probably the only time in my life I’ll be that happy to see a Fruit by the Foot and Apple Jacks.) And the Blue Dolphin Coffeeshop, which is literally right down the street from the Hostel and by far one of my favorite spots in Amsterdam. The place has the most epic decorations you’ll ever see…it’s underwater themed.
Then the interesting drama filled night happened. We went to bed a bit early so we could get up freakishly early for our bus to Spain. In the Hans-Brinker they give you cheaper rooms the bigger they are, so we had two extra beds in our room with one random roommate. We named him ‘Darren’ although we never really knew what his name was. He was nice, studying in France and there for a holiday. Seemed like a nice, studious guy….the perfect victim for Amsterdam’s ways. at 4:30 am we wake up to find him in the pitch black darkness fighting with the lockers, trying to get his bag out. It was louder than a stampede, I swear. We thought we were getting robbed, and there is still speculation to this day if he had a friend with him or not. There is also speculation about whether or not he leaned in and stared at Kristin. Either way, it was one of the scariest nights. Althought nothing technically happened…we were scared to death. Just another great story from the wonderful city of Amsterdam. I always said I’d be back. 
