Firenze = gelato.
Finito.
02 July 2009
Cinque Terre
I had to be dragged away from the Italian Riviera by the rest of the group when it was time to leave, though I don't think any one person wanted to go. Being in Vernazza was a vacation from the vacation, which was fantastic.
There are no real sights to see in Cinque Terre, so it was pure relaxation. Minus the laundry fiasco and the lack of a market, that is. I downed 4 loaves of foccacia from the tiny bakery, and everyone else found a quick favorite eatery on the main drag that is maybe 3 blocks long.
We spent a lot of time in the water, which was a gorgeous and deep blue-green, swimming amongst schools of fish and trying to avoid a huge passenger boat (because that is how they get between the 5 towns) that didn't care much for swimmers.
The whole town is maybe 5 minutes long, so it was a quick walk to the beach or anywhere else. I can't even begin to explain the tiny streets and gorgeous buildings. There is something about Vernazza that makes it so authentically Italian--no one tries hard to be charming... they just are.
The place can only be explained in photos, which I will post ASAP.
There are no real sights to see in Cinque Terre, so it was pure relaxation. Minus the laundry fiasco and the lack of a market, that is. I downed 4 loaves of foccacia from the tiny bakery, and everyone else found a quick favorite eatery on the main drag that is maybe 3 blocks long.
We spent a lot of time in the water, which was a gorgeous and deep blue-green, swimming amongst schools of fish and trying to avoid a huge passenger boat (because that is how they get between the 5 towns) that didn't care much for swimmers.
The whole town is maybe 5 minutes long, so it was a quick walk to the beach or anywhere else. I can't even begin to explain the tiny streets and gorgeous buildings. There is something about Vernazza that makes it so authentically Italian--no one tries hard to be charming... they just are.
The place can only be explained in photos, which I will post ASAP.
27 June 2009
Un bacio di Roma
Ciao, i miei amori! I don't even know if that is right. As seen in the past two days in Rome, my Italian from two years ago is extra rusty this time around.
Yesterday, after two days of touring (piazzas, Colosseo, Vatican, etc.), our group decided to get dressed up and go out. We wound up at this gay bar where we tried to bring on Brian's game.
Attempt #1:
Cute guy from Naples talks to Brian forever but ends up kissing me on the cheek when I tell him that I'm confused about my orientation. He goes, "Aww, don'ta worry. You will learn it soon," pity kiss on the head, much to Brian's dismay. Then he wants us to Facebook him and disappears.
Attempt #2:
I ask some guys how to get to a place where we can dance. One of them, with much condescension (is that a word?), tells us there is nowhere to go and the rest of his group basically ignores us. Sudev has to extract us from this train wreck.
Attempt #3:
Brian, drunk and irritated, forces me to ask in my shitty Italian how the gay culture works and why it is so hard to meet guys. These three guys explain to me in Italian + broken English that the place we were at is for friends to meet up, not to pick up people, which is done mainly in clubs. Nice. Two hours wasted.
Highlight of the night: pissing off the snobby French woman in the room across the hall by showering at 3am. Our hostel lady told us that she has been complaining up the ass every day she had been here. And she insulted California wine to Brian's face, which was definitely a no-no.
Today, we went to the Pantheon and got bomb pizza and hit up the famous gelateria, Giolitti's. Nirali orders this flavor, Bacio, which means "kiss" in Italian. The server asks her who she wants a kiss from, him or another server. We laugh and kind of joke around with them. After he scoops my ice cream, the server walks around the counter and plants a fat kiss on my cheek to go along with my cone. Freaking Italians. That shit would never fly in the US, but I guess it is all part of the charm.
Tonight we are going to hit up Campo di Fiori and Trastevere before calling it an early night, as we are catching a morning train to Cinque Terre tomorrow!
Yesterday, after two days of touring (piazzas, Colosseo, Vatican, etc.), our group decided to get dressed up and go out. We wound up at this gay bar where we tried to bring on Brian's game.
Attempt #1:
Cute guy from Naples talks to Brian forever but ends up kissing me on the cheek when I tell him that I'm confused about my orientation. He goes, "Aww, don'ta worry. You will learn it soon," pity kiss on the head, much to Brian's dismay. Then he wants us to Facebook him and disappears.
Attempt #2:
I ask some guys how to get to a place where we can dance. One of them, with much condescension (is that a word?), tells us there is nowhere to go and the rest of his group basically ignores us. Sudev has to extract us from this train wreck.
Attempt #3:
Brian, drunk and irritated, forces me to ask in my shitty Italian how the gay culture works and why it is so hard to meet guys. These three guys explain to me in Italian + broken English that the place we were at is for friends to meet up, not to pick up people, which is done mainly in clubs. Nice. Two hours wasted.
Highlight of the night: pissing off the snobby French woman in the room across the hall by showering at 3am. Our hostel lady told us that she has been complaining up the ass every day she had been here. And she insulted California wine to Brian's face, which was definitely a no-no.
Today, we went to the Pantheon and got bomb pizza and hit up the famous gelateria, Giolitti's. Nirali orders this flavor, Bacio, which means "kiss" in Italian. The server asks her who she wants a kiss from, him or another server. We laugh and kind of joke around with them. After he scoops my ice cream, the server walks around the counter and plants a fat kiss on my cheek to go along with my cone. Freaking Italians. That shit would never fly in the US, but I guess it is all part of the charm.
Tonight we are going to hit up Campo di Fiori and Trastevere before calling it an early night, as we are catching a morning train to Cinque Terre tomorrow!
23 June 2009
Sevilla
This is easily the most romantic city in Spain, with the flamenco, tiny cobblestone streets, and some kind of love in the air. Today, the rest of my grupito are on a day trip to Cordoba and Granada, so I am on my own just hanging out and enjoying the Andalucian life.
I feel like doing a Spain trip the second time around is so different because I live so much slower than I did the last time. Having seen everything, my focus is good food and good people. I've met some great kids at this hostel and offered up my non-existant apartment in California to all of them. It's hard to be cranky when you're relaxing during the siesta, whereas it is quite easy to be pissy outside where it is a bajillion degrees.
Yesterday we did a tour of the bullfighting ring which I missed last time and could barely stomach this time. It is a very interesting part of Spanish culture, and there are a lot of nuances that I can appreciate about it; however, the vegeterians want to go see a bullfight and the meateater will take a pass. Funny how that works out.
The only things left for me to do are flamenco and lounging by the river with a calimocho or tinto de verano. And feel wistful as Nirali and Sudev walk around the old neighborhood together while Brian rejects my advances. Miss you, Kab.
I feel like doing a Spain trip the second time around is so different because I live so much slower than I did the last time. Having seen everything, my focus is good food and good people. I've met some great kids at this hostel and offered up my non-existant apartment in California to all of them. It's hard to be cranky when you're relaxing during the siesta, whereas it is quite easy to be pissy outside where it is a bajillion degrees.
Yesterday we did a tour of the bullfighting ring which I missed last time and could barely stomach this time. It is a very interesting part of Spanish culture, and there are a lot of nuances that I can appreciate about it; however, the vegeterians want to go see a bullfight and the meateater will take a pass. Funny how that works out.
The only things left for me to do are flamenco and lounging by the river with a calimocho or tinto de verano. And feel wistful as Nirali and Sudev walk around the old neighborhood together while Brian rejects my advances. Miss you, Kab.
20 June 2009
Bilbao / San Sebastian
After pulling an all-nighter to catch our early flight to Bilbao (helped that I met a super cute Canadian guy who kept me entertained from 1am to 4am), our group headed over to the Guggenheim Bilbao in the rain.
I wish I had been more coherent in order to better understand and internalize the exhibitions. I really liked Richard Serra's exhibit on time and space, even though I found it quite abstract until he explain how he makes visitors encounter different personal bubbles and such through the forms of his sculptures. Cai Guo-Qiang's exhibit made me think the most, because while the gunpowder art was just straight up cool, he was also the one that designed the Opening Ceremony for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. He also did a replica of some exhibit showcasing the people working during communism. It's a lot of food for thought when you stop to ponder how the pieces reflect his sentiments toward the system. I'm not sure how much I agree with it all, but it definitely resonated the most with me.
After the museo, a Basque lunch downtown put me back in a good mood, and we happily trekked to San Sebastian. Julia and Renske went to their hostel while we were welcomed by a big jolly Irishman at ours. We met up again for "pintxos" aka Basque tapas at this totally legit bar (Bar Munto?) that was easily the best food we've had yet.
I passed out when we got back, and after my drunkard friends came back later, we slept in until 1pm today. Julia made poor Renske run around the city with her while Brian, Nirali, Sudev, and I climbed Mont Urgell to check out the small castle at the top. We had a super lazy day, and I am super excited to just lounge around here.
San Sebastian is one of my favorite places, if not for the big sights but more for the lifestyle (just like how the rest of Spain won me over) and the food. I can't get enough of the water and the lazy days.
I wish I had been more coherent in order to better understand and internalize the exhibitions. I really liked Richard Serra's exhibit on time and space, even though I found it quite abstract until he explain how he makes visitors encounter different personal bubbles and such through the forms of his sculptures. Cai Guo-Qiang's exhibit made me think the most, because while the gunpowder art was just straight up cool, he was also the one that designed the Opening Ceremony for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. He also did a replica of some exhibit showcasing the people working during communism. It's a lot of food for thought when you stop to ponder how the pieces reflect his sentiments toward the system. I'm not sure how much I agree with it all, but it definitely resonated the most with me.
After the museo, a Basque lunch downtown put me back in a good mood, and we happily trekked to San Sebastian. Julia and Renske went to their hostel while we were welcomed by a big jolly Irishman at ours. We met up again for "pintxos" aka Basque tapas at this totally legit bar (Bar Munto?) that was easily the best food we've had yet.
I passed out when we got back, and after my drunkard friends came back later, we slept in until 1pm today. Julia made poor Renske run around the city with her while Brian, Nirali, Sudev, and I climbed Mont Urgell to check out the small castle at the top. We had a super lazy day, and I am super excited to just lounge around here.
San Sebastian is one of my favorite places, if not for the big sights but more for the lifestyle (just like how the rest of Spain won me over) and the food. I can't get enough of the water and the lazy days.
18 June 2009
La vida española
The Spanish lifestyle is incredibly relaxing, which is perfect because traveling can be so stressful. It has been especially hard because Julia and I are trying to show the rest of the group a good time, which involves eating and drinking the española way aka beer with every meal and meat... except that the rest of the kids are pretty much vegetarians. Luckily, after a long and stressful search for food the other night, we found a pretty "Berkeley" place somewhere past Plaza Merce, where they had organic and veggie food that was actually rather delicious. Alissa would've loved it there.
We've also spent a whole afternoon at the beach and a whole day doing Gaudi things. It's getting to the point where the other kids depend on Julia and I to hold their hands while crossing the streets, so we have to remind them that they are too capable of opening a map themselves. I think everyone enjoyed Gaudi, but it was such a long day that today we went to FIVE cafes/bars and ate at every single one of them, finishing off the city with a light show at the Magic Fountains.
I forgot how much I like Barcelona, but I remembered how much I preferred living in Madrid. It still seems so surreal that Julia and I were back there, retracing all of our steps. Now we just need Brendan and Taylor to appear out of nowhere to make it Spring 2008 again, haha.
We've also spent a whole afternoon at the beach and a whole day doing Gaudi things. It's getting to the point where the other kids depend on Julia and I to hold their hands while crossing the streets, so we have to remind them that they are too capable of opening a map themselves. I think everyone enjoyed Gaudi, but it was such a long day that today we went to FIVE cafes/bars and ate at every single one of them, finishing off the city with a light show at the Magic Fountains.
I forgot how much I like Barcelona, but I remembered how much I preferred living in Madrid. It still seems so surreal that Julia and I were back there, retracing all of our steps. Now we just need Brendan and Taylor to appear out of nowhere to make it Spring 2008 again, haha.
14 June 2009
Madrid, tienes mi corazon
Hola de Madrid!
I just can't stop smiling. I had a huge grin the entire plane ride from London, and it hasn't left my face. I feel like an idiot, but I am so incredibly happy to be back in Madrid, where I left quite a bit of my heart last year. It feels so surreal to come back here and see everything, knowing that I used to live here and take the same buses and the same metros every day. I can't wrap my mind around it, especially since we've transplanted Berkeley into Spain with Brian, Nirali, Sudev, Julia, and Renske.
And today, we are relaxing at the royal park Retiro, where I am staying with my old host family. It's a trip, and I am loving every second of it (minus the hella sketch European guys, but I will put up with that for the amazing eye candy).
I just can't stop smiling. I had a huge grin the entire plane ride from London, and it hasn't left my face. I feel like an idiot, but I am so incredibly happy to be back in Madrid, where I left quite a bit of my heart last year. It feels so surreal to come back here and see everything, knowing that I used to live here and take the same buses and the same metros every day. I can't wrap my mind around it, especially since we've transplanted Berkeley into Spain with Brian, Nirali, Sudev, Julia, and Renske.Julia and I have been playing tour guide for the past couple days, showing off the reasons why Madrid is so much better than anything else:
Dinner on a terazza while the whole city is doing the nightly paseo (stroll) with live music- The gorgeous facade of Plaza Mayor
- The 3rd best palace in Europe, Palacio Real
- Naked protest against driving at el Jardin de Sabatini
- Tapas at El Tigre, where the three hot bartenders were so gracious (mi favorito was still there)
- Botelloning on a side street of Calle Mayor
- Dancing until 5am at Kapital the seven story discoteca
- Churros con chocolate until 6am at San Gines
And today, we are relaxing at the royal park Retiro, where I am staying with my old host family. It's a trip, and I am loving every second of it (minus the hella sketch European guys, but I will put up with that for the amazing eye candy).
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