May 24, 2005

Croatia

Ciao a Tutti,

I am currently back in Roma until my flight to Dublin tomorrow morning. We (Amber, Margie, Em, and I) got into Roma yesterday. Croatia was (is) amazing, but we were all glad to be back here. It feels like home now, which is sad because soon we will all have to leave it.

Anyhoo … about Croatia:
Croatia is a crazy place. It was breathtakingly beautiful, but very different from the other parts in Europe that I’ve been too. Our ferry over was not as bad as I was expecting, the boat turned out to be like a low budget cruise ship. There was a restaurant which served bad food (I ordered “fresh” fruit and got a bowl full of canned, sweet, chunky, mildly fruit flavored thingies), we had a sink in our cabin to wash up in, and a duty free store which sold cigarettes, booze, and chocolate. But we still had a lot of fun running around the decks outside and watching movies on Amber’s laptop.

We got off the first ferry in Split, and then took a second to Havar, one of the cities on one of the larger islands off of Croatia’s craggy coast. We didn’t have a place to stay lined up before hand, but that is because in Croatia the most common and economical form of lodging is through private rentals, not hostels or hotels. Once we stepped off the boat we were completely bombarded by people offering us places to stay; it is overwhelming really, they kind of bum-rush you and you just have to go with who ever you think makes the best offer. We ended up going with Luca who had an apartment over his residence that he rents out. He took us, in his van, from the ferry docks into Havar. The scenery was beautiful (poppy covered mountain sides, small vineyards, and beautiful coastlines), but we were all too scared by Luca’s manic driving to really enjoy it. The apartment turned out to be really nice. There were two bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a kitchen. The rooms were light and airy, both had balconies with a great view of the sea. We were just about a 5 – 10 minute walk from the downtown area. And it was really inexpensive; we paid in Kuna (7 Kuna = 1 euro) so the exchange rate was in our favor for once.

Havar is beautiful; it was my favorite town in Croatia. It was clean and looked like it was fresh out of a fairy tale movie set: beautiful stone work, reddish orange tiled roofs, balconies overflowing with flowers, and intricate churches. The town was built up the mountainside, at the top are the remains of an old castle, and at the bottom is a harbor filled with yachts and all kinds of boats. By the harbor is a small piazza lined with shops and restaurants. The whole island smelled of lavender and sea spray, two smells which remind me of my mom. The first day we just walked around, ate, and tried to soak it in. The next day we packed lunches and rented a little speedboat for the day (actually is was more of a sort-of-quick boat, than a speedy one). The island we were on is just one in a string of smaller ones, the furthest away in this cluster was just 35 minutes or so. We tooled around the islands; sun bathed, dodged the bees, and played in the tide pools all day. It was perfect, one of my favorite things that I’ve done. The water was completely clear, the reefs and the bottom were perfectly visible. All of the islands were really green with rocky shores; it was such a nice day.

The next day we decided to go to Dubrovnik, one of the larger cities. To get there we had to take a Ferry back up to Split, and a four-hour bus ride down to Dubrovnik. It was a long day. At the bus stop was got attacked by people renting rooms again, we ended up going with one lady, Lina, who was renting two rooms for 65 Kuna a person (less than 10 euro). She was nice, but this time the rooms were in her home, right next to the kitchen where the whole family spent a lot of their time. So it felt a little odd. There was Lina, her three children, her husband, and the two grandmas; I don’t think the grandmas liked us very much. But we didn’t spend much time there, so it wasn’t a problem. It was interesting actually to stay with a family and get some first hand experience with how people from other cultures live.

Lina’s house was about a 20 to 30 minute walk from the “old city.” The old city is just that, the oldest part of the city built hundreds of years ago, still enclosed by the old castle/fortress walls. It was incredible actually. The old city started (I think) as a fortress. It was built right on the water, with a huge harbor and a “sandy” (i.e. very rocky and pebbly) beach just outside the walls. The walls are HUGE, stone, heave, and very formidable. Inside the town was built haphazardly (like most medieval cities), with rambling alleyways, tangled streets, buildings crowded right on top of one another, and some open piazzas. It was very cool. It was easy to imagine how it must have once been. It was a romantically beautiful place. The first night we just walked around and checked out the local pubs. The second day we spent at the beach. The Croatian coastline is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. Little, green islands dot the horizon, and the sea is a deep turquoise. The coast is actually quite mountainous, so the effect is very visually stimulating, wooded mountains and green hills marching strait into the sea. The third day we walked the walls. In total the walk around is two kilometers, lots of stairs, but the view is amazing. On one side of the city the walls raise directly out of the sea, the mountainside dominates the other side. The city has grown considerably, and so much of the mountain is developed, but the rest of it is covered in pine trees. From the top of the walls you also get a birds eye view of the city inside, a maze of small streets and orange tiled rooftops.

Croatia is an interesting place. There was such beauty, and such rich history, but also evidence of the violent war, which ended less the ten years ago. So only children eight years old and under don’t have some sort of first hand memory of the conflict. Many people are still rebuilding parts of their homes, and everyone can point out where the snipers were located in the hills, scary stuff. But everyone seemed really happy and peacefully now. The Croatians were intense when you talked to them, but happy nonetheless.

It took us two ferries, a bus, a train, and the metro to get back home in Rome. Croatia was wonderful, the kind of peaceful get away we needed after finals. I would love to go back some day, but it still feels really good to be back in Italy.

Posted by Lauren Lester at 04:37 AM

May 16, 2005

a presto

ciao a Tuti,

OK, I am sitting in an Internet cafe in Ravenna, a town north east of Rome. The program has ended, we have finished finals, and moved out of our apartment. At the moment we (my roommate Em, her sister Margie, our friend Amber, and myself) are waiting for our train to Ancora, from there we take a boat to Croatia. We will be in Croatia until the 23rd. I spent one night in Rome and then fly to Dublin, where I am meeting up with my roommate and Bestest friend from San Diego, Shannon. We spend three nights in Dublin and then fly to Budapest, three nights in Budapest and then I fly to Rome. I have to nights in Rome, by myself, and then I fly home on June 1st. I am glad that I will have that time in Rome to my self, a chance to make peace with the Eternal City, and come to terms with leaving it. I have mixed emotions about all of this.

I am excited to start this part of my European adventure, I can't wait to get on a Croatian beach, but SO sad to be done with my study abroad program. I feel so different and far from the girl who first arrived in Rome, clueless and unsure, yet the time went so fast. I feel like I experienced 20 years worth of life in three weeks. My head is spinning. This is a transition. I am both excited and disappointed to know that I get to go home soon. Excited to see all of the people I care about and miss dearly, but disappointed that I have to leave when I don't feel ready to do so. Va Bene, time is time, it moves forward and there is not much I can do to stop it. The plan is to relax, breath in my last moments here in a few deep cleansing yoga breaths, and jump in to my next phase.

I love and miss you all, this is the home stretch ... see you in Cali. =)

A presto,
Lauren

PS: Ravenna is pretty, well at least the central part of town which is still reminiscent of the middle ages is. We saw some amazing mosaics, which is what the town is know for, and Dante's tomb. Don't be fooled by the one in Florence, they exiled Dante, and he came here. Then he became famous and Florence wanted his body, but Ravenna wouldn't hear of it, so the actual tomb is here, and the one in Florence is more of a memorial. Ravenna was also the last capitol of the Western Holy Roman Empire before it fell.

I will do my best to keep you all posted through out the remainder of my travels, but I don't know how available the Internet will be. But I will do my best.

Pace.

Posted by Lauren Lester at 03:22 AM

May 10, 2005

Weekend in Spain

Hola chicas y chicos,

Just got back from a whirl wind weekend in Spain! I sort of went on a whim. Last weekend was the weekend before finals, and since I didn't have a final until Tuesday, I had a four day weekend. I had friends who were already going to Spain, and they invited me to meet up with them for the weekend, perche no? So I went!

They got in before me, I flew into Valencia and they met me at the airport. We took off at 7am and I got in at 9-ish, I didn't sleep the night before. The flight from Rome to Valencia was strait over the Mediterranean, so the decent was very dramatic: ocean, ocean, then an amazing strip of coast line. We lucked out because the weather was really nice the whole weekend. A kooky Italian guy named Fabio, sat by me on the flight. He was from Luca, a small town in Tuscany outside of Florence. We spoke in a weird Italian/ English hybrid. He was funny and forward in a typically Italian way. He stayed with me until I met my friends. He got the hint (eventually) and went on his way. My friends had rented a car, so as soon as we had eaten, we went on our way. The first day we drove all day. We got lost getting out of Valencia, and once we finally got on the freeway, we got pulled over, and the Spanish Police gave us a ticket. I think we got scammed, it was 98 euro on the spot, but they kind of just pulled that amount out of the air. Oh well, what can you do? We found our rhythm eventually. We stopped at a few coastal towns for food and gas. They were all really pretty, very colorful and very friendly. I love all the sights, smells, and sounds which go along with being near the ocean like that.

That night was found a small cove and slept on the beach (I had a Cinque Terre flash back), we were smarter this time and brought sleeping bags. The stars were so bright; they seemed so near, like they were pressing down on our heads. There is something very comforting about falling asleep so near the water like that, the waves just sort of lull you to sleep, a natural lullaby.

The next day we drove down to Marbella, which is exactly as it sounds, a town by the beautiful sea. We walked through the town and wandered through a really pretty little park. We ate breakfast in this small Italian café (go figure) right on the board walk, and then spent the better part of the day lying on the beach. Feeling the hot sand beneath me, and the hot sun on top of me was so familiar, and so nice. Once I got a little crispy I spent a really long time swimming. The Mediterranean was clear, calm, and very blue. The waves rolled smoothly, making swimming and floating very easy. I went a long way out. I felt completely at one with the sea just floating there, completely connected to my self and my environment. It was spiritual actually. The most peaceful and content I've felt in a long time.

We left Marbella for Seville at around 3pm. The drive along that part of the coats was very mountainous and very windy, lots of hairpin turns, I was a bit frightened at times, but we lived. The landscape reminded me of driving through the hills and canyons behind Malibu off of the PCH back home. We got into Seville a few hours later. Seville was a really cool city, historical, artsy, metropolitan, and old worldly all at once. If you ever get a chance to go to Spain, go there. We wandered the streets, and saw a random procession, I think for the Virgin Mary, but I can't be sure. The city was full of flower strewn balconies, brightly painted shutters, rambling parks, beautiful cathedrals, and tucked away cafes. I could live there. We ate dinner in a restaurant hidden at the end of an alley; it was really good, wonderful sangria. We stayed until 12:30 am or so. We drove to the coast because we had planed on sleeping on the beach again, but it was too cold, so we slept in the car. By the next morning we all felt soo dirty. Va bene.

But it was ok because the next day we ... drove to PORTUGAL! Portugal was so pretty. More undeveloped than I had expected, rolling hills, white stucco buildings, red terra cotta roofing, and hand painted tiles. It was so nice, a very peaceful, simple, and friendly country. We drove into a town which we called Trivia, even though that wasn't the real name. We found rooms in one of the residences. We explored the town, wandered around a castle, and then checked in, showered (finally) and napped. So nice! That afternoon we drove to the most southwestern point in all of Europe. The Mediterranean was to tour left, the Atlantic to our right, and Africa straight ahead. It was literally where the side walk ends. The place had a very somber almost sad vibe. The landscape was bare, red cliffs and low shrubs, with a huge white fort of all white buildings starkly against the landscape. I felt like I feel when I'm reading an existentialist piece, or like I did when I read "The Bell Jar," pensive and melancholy, but peaceful at the same time. The whole time I felt this urge to get as close to the edges of the cliffs as possible, and just peer over at the rocks below, I wanted to get as close to the water as I could. I felt safe, but my friends were a little freaked out I think.

Afterwards, we drove to Lagos, a really fun little funky town. We ate dinner in a really nice little restaurant and then wandered around the city and ended up at a really chill bar full of friendly people. The town had a really positive and funky vibe, I really liked it. Portugal felt very earthy and easy going, another place more than worth visiting. We didn't even get to our rooms until 2am or so, and we had to get up really early, 5am or so, to make my flight out of Jerez Spain the next morning. We over slept. We Got up at 6:15am and left in about ten minutes. So stressful.

I made my flight. I flew out at about 11am and flew into London, and then after a layover, I flew back to Rome. I got back to my apartment at about 9:30pm or so. I was in four countries on Monday: I woke up in Portugal, Drove and flew out of Spain, stayed in London for about four hours, and then ended up back in Italy. So crazy, I love Europe. Now I am back in the midst of finals, classes are winding down and we are all finalizing our travel plans for after the program ends. Time here has flown by, so surreal, but so amazing.

Posted by Lauren Lester at 04:02 PM

Comments (1)

Ostia Opera Out

Ciao a tuti,

It's been a while; let me catch you up ...

I turned 21 two weekends ago (April, 29), which is so surreal you have no idea. I feel myself growing up, and it scares me. The years are going by faster and faster, speeding me ahead in to an unknown future ... but (as my dad says) it is better than the alternative. The legal drinking age here is very "flexible," So turning 21 lost a bit of its novelty, but I still had one of the best birthdays of my life. I turned 21 in Rome, who does that?

First Bri and I had a site visit (class trip)for our Ancient Roman Civ Class with Prof. Darius Arya, to Ostia, the ancient port city of ancient Rome. The city is about 45 minutes outside of Rome, by metro and then train. The ruins of the city are still amazingly preserved. It was a smaller version of what Rome might have looked like in its imperial hay-day. It was otherworldly and really interesting. Wandering around I kept trying to picture the city as it once was, full of people living their lives. We saw ancient burial grounds, temples, an outdoor theater, preserved houses, apartment buildings, shops; we also saw mosaics, beautiful frescos, and an ancient bath complex. Parts of it are still being excavated, so it's covered in haphazard vines. Headless statues seemed to pop out of no where. The ancient buildings were still magnificant, even in their disrepair. It was soo cool, I felt like Lara Croft or a female Indiana Jones. We finished at 3pm and got home around 4-ish.

Bri was acting kind of strange; she kept text messaging on her phone. She opened the gate to our building and charged ahead. I followed, and when I turned the corner to walk down to our patio I saw my roomies and all my friends here in the program; my roomies had thrown me a surprise patio birthday party! They even decorated with a banner and Italian balloons! Em cooked a really good dinner and we all drank wine (I had champagne). It was so sweet of them; I had never had a surprise party before. I really had absolutely no idea that they had planed it. The even had a gelato cake (the Italian version of an ice-cream cake). I was so happy.

Coincidentally, that same night, our program had arranged for us to all go to the opera! We all got really dressed up, and our guy friends brought us roses, it was a bit like prom. Everyone looked really nice. The opera we saw was Turndot; a story of an evil princess who everyone falls in love with, but she puts through life or death challenges to see if they are worthy, our hero (a mysterious prince from far away) eventually wins her over. We had box seats! It was amazing, the opera house was beautiful: gilded and dripping in red velvet, plus the voices and music were indescribably amazing. We were all a bit overwhelmed I think.

Afterwards, Sam, Em, Bri and I took a cab home. It was 11pm on a Friday night, so Rome was lit and full of people. We drove from the city center to the Vatican (our apartment), so the ride went through some of the most beautiful streets in Rome. Sam told the driver it was my birthday and asked him to take the route which took up right up to St Peters', so beautiful at night. Once we got home we changed from our opera dresses to going out clothes, then a group of us wet out to a club. We danced (on the bar), and drank, I lived up being 21 a bit. In the end I had an absolutely fabulous birthday. Exceedingly memorable. Who else can say that on their 21st birthday they explored ancient ruins, had a surprise patio party, went to an Italian Opera, and then out clubin' ... IN ROME!!! I love my life.

Posted by Lauren Lester at 02:29 PM