Pray with the Gods...

I think I might actually know more about Greek Gods than I could have ever wanted to know. Three days later...7 archeological sites, a bridge documentary, and truly I have been fully educated.

Reflections after the "cruise":


Mara and I were mostly excited about seeing Olympia where the first ever Olympics were held. Unfortunately, we could only look over the fence because they took us there on Easter Sunday and it was closed. Well, I could have told you that. What I did enjoy was a town called Delphi (pronounced del - fi ) it has some sort of serious archeological significance, but to be honest, I went to the Down Town Club the night before with some locals and I was in a little bit of of a fog. The actual actual town of Delphi had one main road and a gorgeous view of the mountains that were seen from the balcony of our hotel room.











There was a Greek dancing show up near the church in town to celebrate "Christos Anesti" meaning Christ has risen. We definitely enjoyed ourselves and met a few locals who were willing to show us around and take us to a bar that served ouzo and other liquor that I did not pay for. My kind of 3 day archeological tour. I asked the one guy, ( insert hot Greek guy name here) if the club played American or Greek music. He replied, "well, my cousin owns it, so they will play whatever you like." so we have left our mark on Delphi with Rihanna and Drake, you're welcome pop music.


Perhaps the best moment of the trip was the following morning where the friend we met from Kenosha who was on the trip with us explained how she had gone back to the hotel at 5 am. This does seem insane, considering we left with the group at 6 am that morning for Athens. What is even more insane is that I went back to the hotel at 12:30. Hmm 4 and a half hours - she is quite the party girl- I think I'll keep her. Greek men are not exactly shy and to be honest, the Irish men could take a few hints.








Think about this question, "Are you married?"
Pretty straight forward if you ask me. The guy I asked this to ressponded, "well, kind of. I'll explain later." It's really a yes or no type of question, but I accepted the shot of ouzo anyway.

After the tour, Mara and I headed back to Athens, thank goodness. Not the most beautiful city you have ever seen, graffiti literally everywhere on every building. I can't say I was impressed by Athens the city, but I was impressed by the Parthenon. It showed incredible views of the city of Athens and the masses of houses that are around it.









Mara (legit primary source) read that the temple at the Parthenon was for goddess Athena (Athens - creative, I know) because the people in the area were impressed by her Gift of the olive tree that represented renewal. It's a long story, but you can read about it here.

To see all my photos from Greece, click HERE.
Off to Espana... Madrid has huge game tonight against Barcelona. And it's in Madrid, where we are. And, it's tonight. Bienvenidos a Espana...

Greece... The way to Olympia

Greece

Well, the cruise we signed up for is actually a bus tour with no bathrooms and I will definitely not be wearing my Italian sandals tomorrow, that's for sure. I am being seriously educated on the history of Greece and went through the area surrounding Athens towards Olympia where we will stay for the night.

What we saw: The Corinth Canal, the Epidaurus Ampitheatre, and Mycenae.

What I ate: thank goodness for regular sized coffee here... Italy was killing me with espresso. I tried lamb from a spit today at an outdoor restaurant, well I can say check next to that. I suppose now is when I miss steaks on the grill, corn on the cob, and watermelon. hard to admit it, but USA, there's just something about you that I am in love with and yes, I do appreciate your many amenities, like chai tea lattes and Target.

Tonight, midnight Easter services...

Roma, Italia

Rome



Where to start? When in Rome, see the Vatican. That makes the absolute top of my list. I don't think I could explain in words what it was like to spend Good Friday on the steps of the Vatican. It is really more than you could ever imagine. The size alone of the Basilica is overwhelming and the Sistine Chapel with Michelangelo's famous Genesis fresco is so perfect... I could have looked at it all day long. Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel against his will and was at the time in competition with an up and coming artist, Raphel. His Fresco is breathtaking and although no pictures were allowed, everyone took them -how could you not?

St. Peter was martyred and buried underneath the Vatican and all succeeding popes held the Vatican as their residence. Vatican City is its own country and has its own monetary system and post office. How do I know all of this? -I'm a genius, no really. It is essential to take a guided tour of the Vatican and you don't need to prebook it. There are tons of independent English speaking guides who are insanely knowledgable, and for 10 extra euro, you will actually know what you are looking at. I could have listened to our tour guide all afternoon! We were lucky enough to get a little inside information about the Swiss guards who work for the Vatican... That's pretty much all I am allowed to say, but I will explain that any girl who gets a date with a Swiss Guard gets a private tour of the Vatican Gardens... You can put two and two together yourself; I, on the other hand am sworn to secrecy and will never have pictures to prove anything.

Other interesting things about the Vatican - Michelangelo's masterpiece, Pieta, is also housed here at St.Peter's. It was knocked over after a psycho entered the basilica claiming to be Christ with a hammer and tried to destroy it. The marble sculpture was repaired but is now behind bullet proof glass... The dome inside St. Peter's marks the highest point in Rome and Michelangelo designed the inside of this as well. If you have one day in Roma, take a picture outside the colosseum and go in to tour the entire basilica and the Vatican museums including the Sistine Chapel. It will revive you, it will inspire you, but most of all, it will likely reaffirm your faith. I went back twice in 2 days just to see it.

I did actually do other things in Rome, like tour the Colosseum. This hits number 2 on my list and I would again recommend a guided tour. Most of the tours, well actually all of the tours I took in Europe were guided and only required an extra 10 to 15 euro and usually a jump in front of all of the lines. We grabbed a hop on, hop off bus tour for 20 euro that allowed us to go all over Rome and get off to see the sights we chose. It worked out really well, however if you want, most of the city is completely walkable. The Colosseum was enormous and holds 50 thousand spectators (obviously not anymore). The guide explained that all people were allowed to attend the events in the Colosseum except for actors and ex-gladiators. There were lotteries at the events and raffles where people could win animals or even slaves. During the time of the gladiators, it was common for most households in the middle class to have around six slaves working for them.

The gladiators were often treated like celebrities and had managers that they basically sold their life to while fighting (for about seven years). I suppose with fame comes a price... Less than two percent of gladiators survived all their fights. Events held at the colosseum were seen as family events and even children could come to see the gruesome fighting. Underneath the colosseum floor were chambers that held the wild animals that would be released into the arena. They would often release two to three male lions who had not eaten in over a week together just to enhance the action for the crowd. There was also a canopy above the arena that was used as shade for the spectators, but was rolled up three times a day to release the stench that accumulated with all of the dead animals, hot sun, and sweaty people.

The Trevi fountain was another highlight of our trip and we were able to see it at night with a beautiful glow against the background of Roma. The fountain is the biggest in Rome and was designed by Nicola Salvi in the 18th century. The spring underneath the fountain was discovered by a virgin and the central figures depict Neptune flanked by two Tritons. It is supposed to be a fountain of love and it is traditional to throw in a coin and make a wish (which of course, I did).




There are many palazzos (plazas) throughout Rome, but the main ones that are critical to see are ...

1) Campo de' Fiori - with lively music and shopping surrounding the palazzo during the day, and bars and clubs to venture through at night. Try a Spritz - drink while you're in Italy at least once... Decide for yourself what you think.

2) Piazza di Spagna- in the 18th century, the Spanish Ambassador to the Holy See had his headquarters on the square and the surrounding area was seen as Spanish Territory. The famous Spanish steps are also here, beautifully lined with flowers and built by the French in 1725 to link the the Trinita dei Monti church with the Piazza di Spagna. When we were there, it was filled with tourists and was hard to fight to get a picture. Connected to Piazza di Spagna on the opposing end of the steps is Via dei Condotti, which will, if you let it, eat your money. High end shopping finds its home here in Rome and we took a pass at Prada and Gucci. Instead, we traveled to an area near the Vatican (like I said, I saw it three times...), called Via Borgo, which had more reasonable shopping (and Italian leather sandals).

3) Piazza Navona- there are three fountains here and plenty of Gelato options! This piazza is lined with restaurants, even in the smaller side streets and no matter where you go, try the house wine. We learned a little late that while cheap, the house wine at most restaurants in Italy is excellent and comes in a pitcher ( no wonder Jesus and I get along so well, turned water into wine....hmmmm).

So to wrap up Rome, which is difficult, let me tell you.
Where to stay? Anywhere central to downtown near Piazza Navona or in that area keeps you pretty central to everything. We stayed a block from Campo di' Fiori At the Pomenzia Hotel - complementary breakfast, real hair dryers, friendly staff, reasonably priced, and clean. No lift... And we were room 33. If you know anything about me, you will realize that my huge muscles were the only thing that allowed me to carry my (huge) suitcase up three (which was actually like six - two to each flight) flights of stairs. Pack light, I won't ever, but you should.

Where to eat? Anywhere that looks family owned and has people eating at it. Don't go into an empty restaurant, it's probably empty for a reason. Eat gelato, and eat a lot of it. It's vacation and you can hit up the gym when you get home. Gelato is only good in Italy once you've had it there. Also enjoy at least one bottle of Chianti to yourself, no sharing!








Where to go? Give yourself 2 full days in Rome minimum. Also, purchase the Eyewitness Travel Rome pocket and map guide (seven euro with debit master card), which saved my life and allowed me to know quick facts about the many gorgeous sights I saw in Rome. You must already appreciate it considering a lot of the information in this post came from my newly gained knowledge! The rest was written in by my editor.
See the Vatican, the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain (throw in a coin and make a wish) and the above Piazzas. then, at night, walk back to the Vatican when everyone has left and take one last look. You might never again see something so incredible, so soak it up.



To view all of my photos from Rome, click HERE.

Florence

Florence

The accommodations were much better in Florence! We took the train from Venice and the 40 euro was well spent! The train system Italy is very reliable and the train is comfortable (has bathrooms). We stayed at this incredible family owned hotel called Hotel Europa. They were extremely nice and had a lift (not very common in hotels in Europe. The famous Statue of David (we could not take any pictures!) is located in Florence and the 10 euro was much less than we had expected to pay. The line took forever and would be something that you might want to book ahead of time online and just collect the tickets at the museum.

I wish we had another day in Florence and could have ventured off into Tuscany... Oh well, another romantic vacation I can take in the future. We did do a wine tasting at a small stand near our hotel and we were able to have small Tuscany experience minus the scenery! I suppose that Florence would be an art major's dream... However I felt that the day was well spent drinking chianti and eating Fettucini Alfredo-to each his own. While we attempted to find the night life scene, we settled for an extremely sketchy bar near the hotel that gave us an obscene amount of free drinks and played Rihanna. The idea of "going out" like what I might find in the states or even Ireland is not exactly the same in Italy. Friends tend to grab a table and sit with a bottle of wine instead. Florence was gorgeous, but not a must see for me... (don't hate). The wine was fantastic and the food incredible, but I'm hoping Rome will offer something different and more wine of course.

To view all of my photos from Florence, click HERE.

Venice

Venezia

Truly a city of romance, Venice was incredible. The streets are lined with old buildings and getting lost in the tiny alleys that cross small canals is a must for any visitor. I would not recommend staying more than 2 days, as you might find yourself drowning in gelato or vino. It is beautiful to look at; the Grand Canal lines a very crowded dock filled with colorful restaurants and people, but this would not be a city that would offer much more than you could see in 48 hours. We stayed 2 days and I'm not sure what we would have done on day 3. San Marco Square (think beginning of Italian Job... Past the hotness of Mark Wahlberg) and the Basilica are the most beautiful places to visit and you really cant miss them unless you do find yourself lost in the maze of streets.

San Marco Square

Views from the Gondola

Things appear to be much further apart then they actually are. Once you begin walking, the square is much closer than you originally anticipated. Public transportation was easy to use from the airport (ACTV bus number 5) will take you right into a main square where you can then access public water boats that take you to a dock that would be close to your accommodation. The entire journey from baggage claim to hotel takes about an hour and will only cost you ten euro. Much cheaper than 100 euro for a private water taxi. I can tell you where not to stay in venice. We stayed at a "hotel," however I think that just because you have a hotel shampoo label, does not give you the right to call yourself a hotel. Hotel Iris was a hostel, and it was not ok. It was advertised as a gorgeous, newly renovated hotel just 200 meters from San Marco square, well yea if you swim. And newly renovated - that is an opinion. The service was horrible and incredibly over priced. I would definitely do some more investigating next time and I can tell you it will not include Hotel Iris, unless i am writing a nasty review on Trip Advisor.

The actual city of Venice is very much its own little subculture and has a wonderful welcoming feeling. Rialto (area near San Marco Square) is a great place to shop and small boutiques along with high end shopping can all be found in Venice. We took a helicopter ride over the islands for 45 euro a piece - only 6 mins but incredibly worth every cent. The view was incredible and the perspective of the city completely changes once you see it from over head. Gondola tours are a must here, but be willing to pay 100 euro -we went with 2 other people and it made the cost much easier to swallow. We saw the home of Mozart (which will be greatly appreciated by my Gramps)! This city is definitely romantic, so bring your significant other, but please refrain from the PDA that most of the teenagers engage in here in Italy... Ciao!

To view all of my photos from Venice, click HERE.

View from the helicopter!

Gondola Dock




The tomatoes and pizza will be missed...