As the title mentions, it rains EVERY Sunday here!! We counted and we think we really only had one nice Sunday! However, I was able to get some work done because of the crappy weather!
We had our last Mass today; it was really nice. We sang On Eagle's Wings after Communion for the church; they seemed to really enjoy it. Pere Jean also said some nice words about us in French to the congregation (that Margaret translated, of course!). But, he said that we were a lovely group and they enjoyed our company and participation and he welcomed us back whenever! Everyone there is so welcoming and delighted to have us there.
After Mass, we took some photos as a group and with Peter and Margaret. It was sad because it seemed like the first of our goodbyes here in France. :( Hopefully, this week will unfold slowly and I'll be able to take in every last minute I have left!
Still having upload problems; pictures will come soon:)
I reached my limit on Picassa too, sooo I have to pay for it then I'll have that updated:)
Time to study French! booo:( haha
Ohh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM! <3
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Saturday, April 25, 2009
And we're down to a week!
I can't believe this time next week I'll practically be home! This time has really flown by; I feel like I just wrote the 2 week blog! I'm really going to miss this place! We've all gotten to be like a big family here and we really feel apart of Ambialet!
This past week has been pretty much focused on school work. We had our last two French classes and we conclude that this Monday with our final -- kinda nervous for that! We also had our final paper and presentation for our Art class with Gerry and our paper for Sandrine due. I still have two more papers to go though! But hey, I can't complain.. we didn't have too much work all semester!
The weather is starting to look up! We had some pretty nice days the past couple of days. One day, Dan took Owen, Matt and I out to take pictures for the website we were creating. It was a really nice drive! We also saw sheep and cows being herded; I was so excited! I never thought I'd see that!
Speaking of seeing things for the first time, I saw my first shooting star!! Three to be exact!! On Thursday night, we had some fellow Albi students, along with other studying abroad students over for dinner. We had a nice dinner out on the terrace and the night continued with talking and jokes until about 11PM or so. The stars were amazing -- all of our guests loved them! There were 2 French students, 2 students from London, 1 from Turkey, and 3 from China. They were all very nice and we had a wonderful time!
We went to two castles yesterday! The first one was Brousse a la Chateau. It was amazing. We had lunch there and it was delicious. I wasn't a big cheese person before I came to France, but I think I'm really going to miss having a slice of good cheese with my meals! Then we took a tour of the castle. However, we were sidetracked with some people who were there to act out a jousting tournament. We took some pictures with the swords and then he challenged some people to joust him. Owen went first -- I video taped it with my camera! He was followed by Matt, Eric, and Ian. It was pretty amusing. Oh, and Gerry ended it all by being knighted! haha.
Wellll, I've been trying for the past twenty minutes to upload some pictures, but it won't work! I promise I'll post some tomorrow to procrastinate while I study French! :)
Au revoir! :)
This past week has been pretty much focused on school work. We had our last two French classes and we conclude that this Monday with our final -- kinda nervous for that! We also had our final paper and presentation for our Art class with Gerry and our paper for Sandrine due. I still have two more papers to go though! But hey, I can't complain.. we didn't have too much work all semester!
The weather is starting to look up! We had some pretty nice days the past couple of days. One day, Dan took Owen, Matt and I out to take pictures for the website we were creating. It was a really nice drive! We also saw sheep and cows being herded; I was so excited! I never thought I'd see that!
Speaking of seeing things for the first time, I saw my first shooting star!! Three to be exact!! On Thursday night, we had some fellow Albi students, along with other studying abroad students over for dinner. We had a nice dinner out on the terrace and the night continued with talking and jokes until about 11PM or so. The stars were amazing -- all of our guests loved them! There were 2 French students, 2 students from London, 1 from Turkey, and 3 from China. They were all very nice and we had a wonderful time!
We went to two castles yesterday! The first one was Brousse a la Chateau. It was amazing. We had lunch there and it was delicious. I wasn't a big cheese person before I came to France, but I think I'm really going to miss having a slice of good cheese with my meals! Then we took a tour of the castle. However, we were sidetracked with some people who were there to act out a jousting tournament. We took some pictures with the swords and then he challenged some people to joust him. Owen went first -- I video taped it with my camera! He was followed by Matt, Eric, and Ian. It was pretty amusing. Oh, and Gerry ended it all by being knighted! haha.
Wellll, I've been trying for the past twenty minutes to upload some pictures, but it won't work! I promise I'll post some tomorrow to procrastinate while I study French! :)
Au revoir! :)
Saturday, April 18, 2009
only 2 weeks left!!!
Wow, I can't believe we are down to 2 weeks -- this time has FLOWN by!
It's been nice here in Ambialet, we've had class and also had a lot of free time to ourselves. A couple of the students took a trip this weekend; some went to Barcelona and 2 went to Corsica. However, I decided to stay here and get some work done and enjoy Ambialet!
Two days ago, Tim took us on a little adventure! We saw two of the most beautiful towns in France -- Monesties & Najac. Monesties was pretty tiny and pretty unique. Najac was a bit bigger and had ruins of a chateau. We were able to go inside the chateau and we climbed the whole way to the tallest tower! It's so cool to say I've been in some pretty old castles!.. Oh and the trek up to the castle is FOREVER long! haha It was a nice day out though & we learned one thing especially -- the French LOVE their bocci! haha
We've had some oookay weather -- we get some sun and nice days, but there always seems to be at least an hour's worth of rain in there! Yesterday Owen and I took off for a little exploring -- we ended up hiking up this huge hill/mountain. It had a wonderful view and we were able to get some great photos of Ambialet; however, I won't be able to post them yet because I haven't uploaded them to my computer yet! haha But, on the way back we decided to make a couple different stops to see some things we've heard about -- like a 14th century stone cross that is still standing here today! We also chose to go the long way back, and just as we start up the hill it starts POURING! We made the best of it though and I think it made the walk up the hill go a little faster.
Last night we had some company for dinner! There were a group of 6 guys who came and played their horns for us. They were really good & it wasn't like any horn I've seen before. They just use their breathing capabilities to make the sounds, there are no valves or anything. It was really entertaining. Also, there are a lot of people who own homes in Ambialet, but they only come during vacations and summer. So, there is a couple down the road and he has a twin brother. They are actually the brothers that played the trumpet at Easter mass. They also joined us for dinner and we had a little fun with them afterwards! Since they are English, they pride themselves on their drinking. We challenged them to a couple drinking games! haha We decided to teach them flip cup and they didn't like it because they said there wasn't enough drinking involved. So they taught us one and it was basically a game of who could chug faster. Let me just say, that I'll stick to the American games! haha And I think I can speak for all of us! They had to leave after the game because they were waking up VERY early to head back home. They were a lot of fun and really nice people!
Other than hanging out and doing some work, I've been trying to see as much of Ambialet as possible. Owen and I just take random walks and see where we go. Everything is so beautiful and so serene. There are so many wonderful views, especially of the monastery!
We have a lot planned for the next 2 weeks and I think it'll be a great way to end it. We're going to start barbecuing outside and help plan the Springfest at the University in Albi! As for today, I'm going to enjoy some barbeque, do some homework and maybe explore Ambialet some:)
It's been nice here in Ambialet, we've had class and also had a lot of free time to ourselves. A couple of the students took a trip this weekend; some went to Barcelona and 2 went to Corsica. However, I decided to stay here and get some work done and enjoy Ambialet!
Two days ago, Tim took us on a little adventure! We saw two of the most beautiful towns in France -- Monesties & Najac. Monesties was pretty tiny and pretty unique. Najac was a bit bigger and had ruins of a chateau. We were able to go inside the chateau and we climbed the whole way to the tallest tower! It's so cool to say I've been in some pretty old castles!.. Oh and the trek up to the castle is FOREVER long! haha It was a nice day out though & we learned one thing especially -- the French LOVE their bocci! haha
We've had some oookay weather -- we get some sun and nice days, but there always seems to be at least an hour's worth of rain in there! Yesterday Owen and I took off for a little exploring -- we ended up hiking up this huge hill/mountain. It had a wonderful view and we were able to get some great photos of Ambialet; however, I won't be able to post them yet because I haven't uploaded them to my computer yet! haha But, on the way back we decided to make a couple different stops to see some things we've heard about -- like a 14th century stone cross that is still standing here today! We also chose to go the long way back, and just as we start up the hill it starts POURING! We made the best of it though and I think it made the walk up the hill go a little faster.
Last night we had some company for dinner! There were a group of 6 guys who came and played their horns for us. They were really good & it wasn't like any horn I've seen before. They just use their breathing capabilities to make the sounds, there are no valves or anything. It was really entertaining. Also, there are a lot of people who own homes in Ambialet, but they only come during vacations and summer. So, there is a couple down the road and he has a twin brother. They are actually the brothers that played the trumpet at Easter mass. They also joined us for dinner and we had a little fun with them afterwards! Since they are English, they pride themselves on their drinking. We challenged them to a couple drinking games! haha We decided to teach them flip cup and they didn't like it because they said there wasn't enough drinking involved. So they taught us one and it was basically a game of who could chug faster. Let me just say, that I'll stick to the American games! haha And I think I can speak for all of us! They had to leave after the game because they were waking up VERY early to head back home. They were a lot of fun and really nice people!
Other than hanging out and doing some work, I've been trying to see as much of Ambialet as possible. Owen and I just take random walks and see where we go. Everything is so beautiful and so serene. There are so many wonderful views, especially of the monastery!
We have a lot planned for the next 2 weeks and I think it'll be a great way to end it. We're going to start barbecuing outside and help plan the Springfest at the University in Albi! As for today, I'm going to enjoy some barbeque, do some homework and maybe explore Ambialet some:)
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
The second trip to Paris was pretty fun. It seemed like we had more time to ourselves to do our own thing and that was fun! I actually did a lot of stuff in this last trip to Paris.
One of my favorite things was seeing Paris from above. We did this twice -- once by the Eiffel Tower & then from the top of the Arch de Triumph. Both of them were beautiful!! We only went up two floors of the Eiffel Tower though. We walked 668 steps though!! The elevator line was SOOO long & I thought the view was beautiful from the floor we were on. The Arch de Triumph also had an amazing view because we were able to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance. It was really interesting to pick out the buildings and places we've been. Also, the Arch was neat because all of the cars driving around it looked like matchbox cars. There are like no set lanes or anything, so it literally looks like a kid placed them there! haha
Eiffel Tower:)
From the top of the Arch de Triumph
We also visited La Defense. Gerry told us this is where the 20th century began. It was really different from the rest of Paris. There was a lot of modern art involved and the buildings were more like sky-scrapers here; they also had really cool designs. La Defense is home to the Grand Arch -- it's a new landmark and it has a quote on it about bringing all types of people together. Also, the artist we met during our previous visit had a lot of his sculptures here. It was really interesting to see them after meeting and talking with him.
Some of us girls at the Grand Arch
La Defense also had a HUGE mall! Like 3 or so floors and there were duplicates of stores. I left the people I was with because they were leaving and went to find Owen and Ian thinking the mall wouldn't be that big. I COULDN'T find them! After walking the mall for about an hour & TRYING to work a pay phone, I finally had to ask a cell phone store to put minutes on my cell phone. That was the solution & I met up with them after that!
Owen & I went to a couple different things that are worth mentioning. One thing was that we went to see the tomb of Napoleon. Legend has it that he is buried in numerous tombs because they were afraid of him escaping and I believe it after seeing the size of it!! Along with this museum, we walked around for a bit looking at different arms, armor, etc. from the different wars.
Owen saw signs all of the metro that talked about a Graffiti Exhibit. So, we looked it up and saw that it was in this one building that we kept passing. It was pretty neat; it was definitely a change from the museums we've been going to. Our favorite part was that the first piece we saw said "I love Philly."
We also had our share of museums with Gerry. One we went to was an exhibit on an art named Seraphine. It was also linked to a film that we went and watched. It won a ton of awards & told the story of her life. The downside of it, it was all in French! However, there wasn't much dialogue so it wasn't that hard to follow along. We also visited the Picasso museum. We had a wonderful tour guide there that walked us through the different stages in Picasso's life. It was so interesting to see how his style changed, but there were always similarities. We also went to an exhibition based on a famous cartoon. It was really interesting. Again, the cartoons were in French -- buuut the pictures def. told the story!:)
Obviously I did a lot more in Paris -- but this is basically the gist of it and the things that we saw! I feel like we did so much more, but I feel like I'm just writing and writing! haha I will definitely share my pictures and more stories will unfold:)
One of my favorite things was seeing Paris from above. We did this twice -- once by the Eiffel Tower & then from the top of the Arch de Triumph. Both of them were beautiful!! We only went up two floors of the Eiffel Tower though. We walked 668 steps though!! The elevator line was SOOO long & I thought the view was beautiful from the floor we were on. The Arch de Triumph also had an amazing view because we were able to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance. It was really interesting to pick out the buildings and places we've been. Also, the Arch was neat because all of the cars driving around it looked like matchbox cars. There are like no set lanes or anything, so it literally looks like a kid placed them there! haha
Eiffel Tower:)
From the top of the Arch de Triumph
We also visited La Defense. Gerry told us this is where the 20th century began. It was really different from the rest of Paris. There was a lot of modern art involved and the buildings were more like sky-scrapers here; they also had really cool designs. La Defense is home to the Grand Arch -- it's a new landmark and it has a quote on it about bringing all types of people together. Also, the artist we met during our previous visit had a lot of his sculptures here. It was really interesting to see them after meeting and talking with him.
Some of us girls at the Grand Arch
La Defense also had a HUGE mall! Like 3 or so floors and there were duplicates of stores. I left the people I was with because they were leaving and went to find Owen and Ian thinking the mall wouldn't be that big. I COULDN'T find them! After walking the mall for about an hour & TRYING to work a pay phone, I finally had to ask a cell phone store to put minutes on my cell phone. That was the solution & I met up with them after that!
Owen & I went to a couple different things that are worth mentioning. One thing was that we went to see the tomb of Napoleon. Legend has it that he is buried in numerous tombs because they were afraid of him escaping and I believe it after seeing the size of it!! Along with this museum, we walked around for a bit looking at different arms, armor, etc. from the different wars.
Owen saw signs all of the metro that talked about a Graffiti Exhibit. So, we looked it up and saw that it was in this one building that we kept passing. It was pretty neat; it was definitely a change from the museums we've been going to. Our favorite part was that the first piece we saw said "I love Philly."
We also had our share of museums with Gerry. One we went to was an exhibit on an art named Seraphine. It was also linked to a film that we went and watched. It won a ton of awards & told the story of her life. The downside of it, it was all in French! However, there wasn't much dialogue so it wasn't that hard to follow along. We also visited the Picasso museum. We had a wonderful tour guide there that walked us through the different stages in Picasso's life. It was so interesting to see how his style changed, but there were always similarities. We also went to an exhibition based on a famous cartoon. It was really interesting. Again, the cartoons were in French -- buuut the pictures def. told the story!:)
Obviously I did a lot more in Paris -- but this is basically the gist of it and the things that we saw! I feel like we did so much more, but I feel like I'm just writing and writing! haha I will definitely share my pictures and more stories will unfold:)
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Joyeuses Pâques!!
Joyeuses Pâques everyone!! -- Happy Easter:)
It's been kinda rainy and gloomy here in Ambialet, but that didn't stop us from having a good Easter!
I've been to Mass the past three days -- it was kind of interesting to see how the Easter services are here compared to in the US. Friday afternoon was the Stations of the Cross. This was pretty neat because we hiked up the hill and stopped at each station to say a little prayer. Also, a different person would carry the cross from station to station. After stations, we proceeded to the Church where veneration of the cross and Eucharist took place. The Easter Vigil service was nice. It started at 9:30 with a bonfire outside. We then made our way into the church by candlelight. There were trumpet players and guitarists -- it was a pretty service. The same with Easter Sunday, the trumpets and guitars were there and even though we don't really know what they are saying, you could tell it was the Easter atmosphere!
We had a big Easter feast here in Ambialet! It's 10:18 PM and dinner started at 4:30 and I'm STILL full!!! We started dinner with shrimp, deviled eggs and white wine. After that was the main course -- duck, green beans, another type of bean, corn pudding, mashed potatoes and a red wine. I was definitely full after that portion of the meal! haha Buuut we had more to come!! The salad was then brought out; I don't know if I mentioned this before or not, but they eat their salad after the main course. Following the salad was the traditional cheese and bread! And then TWO desserts!! -- raspberry tart and chocolate cake with ice cream!! It was a very very good meal and it was in good company! We all dressed up a little and had a good time! Gerry, Olga, and Daniel joined us for dinner!
I just talked to my family back home, it was nice to get to talk to everyone on Easter! I'm excited to get home and see them all, but I'm also trying to drag this time out because it's obviously a once in a lifetime experience! Buut it was really nice to talk to them on the holiday! They seem to miss me:) hahah
It's been pretty relaxing here, not much class since we have a 4 day weekend. But, I've been getting some work done so that has been good!
Oh & I'll update you tomorrow on how my recent trip to Paris went!
Happy Easter <3 Joyeuses Pâques
It's been kinda rainy and gloomy here in Ambialet, but that didn't stop us from having a good Easter!
I've been to Mass the past three days -- it was kind of interesting to see how the Easter services are here compared to in the US. Friday afternoon was the Stations of the Cross. This was pretty neat because we hiked up the hill and stopped at each station to say a little prayer. Also, a different person would carry the cross from station to station. After stations, we proceeded to the Church where veneration of the cross and Eucharist took place. The Easter Vigil service was nice. It started at 9:30 with a bonfire outside. We then made our way into the church by candlelight. There were trumpet players and guitarists -- it was a pretty service. The same with Easter Sunday, the trumpets and guitars were there and even though we don't really know what they are saying, you could tell it was the Easter atmosphere!
We had a big Easter feast here in Ambialet! It's 10:18 PM and dinner started at 4:30 and I'm STILL full!!! We started dinner with shrimp, deviled eggs and white wine. After that was the main course -- duck, green beans, another type of bean, corn pudding, mashed potatoes and a red wine. I was definitely full after that portion of the meal! haha Buuut we had more to come!! The salad was then brought out; I don't know if I mentioned this before or not, but they eat their salad after the main course. Following the salad was the traditional cheese and bread! And then TWO desserts!! -- raspberry tart and chocolate cake with ice cream!! It was a very very good meal and it was in good company! We all dressed up a little and had a good time! Gerry, Olga, and Daniel joined us for dinner!
I just talked to my family back home, it was nice to get to talk to everyone on Easter! I'm excited to get home and see them all, but I'm also trying to drag this time out because it's obviously a once in a lifetime experience! Buut it was really nice to talk to them on the holiday! They seem to miss me:) hahah
It's been pretty relaxing here, not much class since we have a 4 day weekend. But, I've been getting some work done so that has been good!
Oh & I'll update you tomorrow on how my recent trip to Paris went!
Happy Easter <3 Joyeuses Pâques
Friday, April 10, 2009
Rome!
Okay, so it's time to hear about Rome. First off, I was pretty surprised with it. The sites and the history were beautiful, buut I couldn't believe how dirty it was. There was graffiti EVERYWHERE. Also, Rome had the most beggers, street vendors, etc. One night Owen and I were sitting at a pub outside and literally 6 or 7 people came up to use and tried to sell us stuff. They would NOT leave you alone. I got pretty frustrated by the end of the trip.
Our first day there we got tickets for a bus tour, like the one we did in London. Our ticket was good for two days. We rode it part of the way and decided to get off. We thought we were in the direction of the Spanish Steps, but we ended up following a group of people to the France vs. Italy rugby game. Italy had some crazy fans for being a crappy team!
After we realized we messed up with directions, we turned around and found the Spanish steps and some other sights!
The next day there was a huuge marathon in Rome. There were thousands and thousands of poeple running in both the 4k and 40k. We made our way to the Colosseum and that's where the race began and had a route. We saw some racers and it was pretty neat. We decided to go into the Colosseum that day -- it was soo cool! You can see the underground tunnels where the animals and fighters were kept. You can walk all around and see it from every view. It was pretty nice because it wasn't that crowded due to the race. With our Colosseum tickets we were able to get into the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. I thought we saw Palatine Hill, but we didn't:(... However, the Forum was really really interesting. There are just random remains of all different types of buildings. I loved the old pillars that are still standing. There are also many places that give you a good view of the Forum.
We also visited the Pantheon that day, I didn't expect what it was. It was just one big round room with the cool open window at the top. There were altars, pews, etc in there too!
The Trevi Fountain was my favorite thing in Rome I think! It was soo pretty. It was HUGE! and I didn't expect it to actually be built into a wall! It was also very very pretty at night.
Some other things we saw were the Capitoline Hill Museum, the Unknown Soldier's Tomb, different churches, etc. Capitoline was full of different works of art that I've learned about in school and it's neat to say that I remembered learning about that. The Unknown Soldier's tomb was really neat too. We could climb tons of steps and get a pretty good view.
One thing I fell in love with in Rome was Gelato!! It was sooo good; we searched all day to find this one really good place. We finally found it and it was definitely worth it. Mixing the flavors is my favorite!
On our last day in Rome, we visited the Vatican. It was huge!! The Pope returned to Rome on Monday, we visited Tuesday and he gave his speech on Wednesday -- the day we were leaving, sooo we missed out:( haha We went into St. Peter's Cathedral and looked all around. We saw Michelangelo's famous dome, along with many other famous pieces of art. We got a little lost here. We left the Cathedral thinking we could get to the Sistine Chapel. However, we didn't! So, we got back in the line for security because we thought we had to -- the map made it seem like it was right inside the square. So, we go back in and we end up going into the room with the tombs of the popes. This was interesting; Pope John Paul II's tomb was very nice and there were candles and flowers all around it; there were also people just kneeling and praying.
After we realized we were wrong, we decided to ask! We realized we had to walk a good 10 minutes to get to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel. Soooo, we walked there and went in! There is a maze of museum to find the Chapel. So, while looking for it we went through the Raphael Rooms, Egyptian art, sculptures, tapestries, and many more! However, the Sistine Chapel was amazing! Pictures were not allowed, but I was able to snap one! The artwork was amazing! It was just full of scenes. After the Chapel, we headed back to the center of Rome. We walked there and it surprisingly didn't take too long ANNND we didn't get lost! haha
We walked around for a bit and decided to eat dinner out that night. We had gorgeous weather ALL break and all day we said we'd thought it'd rain. As soon as we sit down to eat, it starts to rain! Good thing we picked an indoor restaurant! It ended up hailing REALLY bad. However, when we were ready to go back outside - it stopped raining! It was a miracle! haha
We got some gelato for the last time and headed back to pack for our trip to Paris!
We enjoyed Rome for the most part, but it wasn't my favorite. I'm glad I went and saw it, but I'm not sure if i would go back and visit! That's basically the gist of my trip; there are obviously little stories in between that I'll most likely share at some point when I remember them:)
More on Paris soon:)
Our first day there we got tickets for a bus tour, like the one we did in London. Our ticket was good for two days. We rode it part of the way and decided to get off. We thought we were in the direction of the Spanish Steps, but we ended up following a group of people to the France vs. Italy rugby game. Italy had some crazy fans for being a crappy team!
After we realized we messed up with directions, we turned around and found the Spanish steps and some other sights!
The next day there was a huuge marathon in Rome. There were thousands and thousands of poeple running in both the 4k and 40k. We made our way to the Colosseum and that's where the race began and had a route. We saw some racers and it was pretty neat. We decided to go into the Colosseum that day -- it was soo cool! You can see the underground tunnels where the animals and fighters were kept. You can walk all around and see it from every view. It was pretty nice because it wasn't that crowded due to the race. With our Colosseum tickets we were able to get into the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. I thought we saw Palatine Hill, but we didn't:(... However, the Forum was really really interesting. There are just random remains of all different types of buildings. I loved the old pillars that are still standing. There are also many places that give you a good view of the Forum.
We also visited the Pantheon that day, I didn't expect what it was. It was just one big round room with the cool open window at the top. There were altars, pews, etc in there too!
The Trevi Fountain was my favorite thing in Rome I think! It was soo pretty. It was HUGE! and I didn't expect it to actually be built into a wall! It was also very very pretty at night.
Some other things we saw were the Capitoline Hill Museum, the Unknown Soldier's Tomb, different churches, etc. Capitoline was full of different works of art that I've learned about in school and it's neat to say that I remembered learning about that. The Unknown Soldier's tomb was really neat too. We could climb tons of steps and get a pretty good view.
One thing I fell in love with in Rome was Gelato!! It was sooo good; we searched all day to find this one really good place. We finally found it and it was definitely worth it. Mixing the flavors is my favorite!
On our last day in Rome, we visited the Vatican. It was huge!! The Pope returned to Rome on Monday, we visited Tuesday and he gave his speech on Wednesday -- the day we were leaving, sooo we missed out:( haha We went into St. Peter's Cathedral and looked all around. We saw Michelangelo's famous dome, along with many other famous pieces of art. We got a little lost here. We left the Cathedral thinking we could get to the Sistine Chapel. However, we didn't! So, we got back in the line for security because we thought we had to -- the map made it seem like it was right inside the square. So, we go back in and we end up going into the room with the tombs of the popes. This was interesting; Pope John Paul II's tomb was very nice and there were candles and flowers all around it; there were also people just kneeling and praying.
After we realized we were wrong, we decided to ask! We realized we had to walk a good 10 minutes to get to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel. Soooo, we walked there and went in! There is a maze of museum to find the Chapel. So, while looking for it we went through the Raphael Rooms, Egyptian art, sculptures, tapestries, and many more! However, the Sistine Chapel was amazing! Pictures were not allowed, but I was able to snap one! The artwork was amazing! It was just full of scenes. After the Chapel, we headed back to the center of Rome. We walked there and it surprisingly didn't take too long ANNND we didn't get lost! haha
We walked around for a bit and decided to eat dinner out that night. We had gorgeous weather ALL break and all day we said we'd thought it'd rain. As soon as we sit down to eat, it starts to rain! Good thing we picked an indoor restaurant! It ended up hailing REALLY bad. However, when we were ready to go back outside - it stopped raining! It was a miracle! haha
We got some gelato for the last time and headed back to pack for our trip to Paris!
We enjoyed Rome for the most part, but it wasn't my favorite. I'm glad I went and saw it, but I'm not sure if i would go back and visit! That's basically the gist of my trip; there are obviously little stories in between that I'll most likely share at some point when I remember them:)
More on Paris soon:)
Monday, April 6, 2009
Spring has arrived!:) -- A little about my travels aroud England!
Spring has arrived!!! The weather has been gorgeous!! I haven’t really checked the temperature, but it has to be in the 60’s. We all have been taking advantage of it and spending as much time as possible outside. Yesterday Owen and I went for a walk and before we knew, 3 hours had passed. It’s just so beautiful, both the weather and the scenery. When we returned we rounded up some other people and played a game of bocce! It was a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
I realized I never told you about our visit with Owen’s family, so I will do that before heading onto Rome. They were soo nice and soo welcoming. It was really nice to be able to meet them and it was also very nice for Owen to spend some time with them. Even though our time was short, I could tell that he was very happy for getting there.
We mostly stayed with his Aunt Carol and Uncle Graham. They did soo much for us! Everything from planning our days, getting train/bus tickets, having pizza ready for us as soon as we got off the train, and doing our laundry! I felt so bad and wanted to help, but they wouldn’t have it any other way. Unfortunately, his Aunt had to work so his Uncle took us around. Our first day there was spent visiting Silverstone & Oxford. Silverstone is a major racetrack in Europe. The Grand Prix is held there along with other events. We lucked out with our tour because the track was supposed to be closed that day. However, Owen’s uncle talked the lady into a tour because that was the only day we would make it. So, we went from no tour to being able to see a Force India car being tested. It was sooo loud and soo fast! This was really neat and it was probably Owen’s favorite thing we did! He found out that he could drive cars for around 90 euro or so, so he is definitely trying to do that. After Silverstone, we headed up to Oxford. This is a major university in England. It was absolutely gorgeous. There are about 20 some colleges within Oxford and they each have their own courtyard, chapel, buildings, dorm, etc. The different colleges is basically equivalent to the majors we choose. All of the buildings were so old and extravagant. It was really pretty.
Racetrack!
F1 car!
Oxford University -- one of the colleges
The next day we visited Strafford upon Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. We took an open bus tour and saw where Shakespeare was born, where he lived, where he died, where his mother lived, where Anne Hathoway lived, where his plays were performed, etc. It was neat because most of the buildings were somewhat new in the town but then there were the famous buildings that were soo old looking! It was neat to see because now I can say I saw Shakespeare’s hometown:) Also, we got a full English breakfast that day! (At a French restaurant!) haha It was really good though. After Strafford, we headed to the Jaguar plant. We got a tour and saw how the SFR is made. It was pretty cool; they took you through every part of the process and we saw real cars being made. Owen loved that they incorporated cars into this trip!
My new car- duH!
Anne Hathoway's house
We then headed up to North Wales! Here we stayed the night with Owen’s Nan, she was so sweet! I met more of his family and they took us out to dinner. They were all so nice and so funny! We spent a good two or three hours at the restaurant just talking; it was nice. The next day, Owen and I headed to Chester for a few hours. It had a lot of shops and old Roman buildings like the Roman amphitheater. We got a little confused with the bus schedule here and had to run to one. While running, I wiped out and made a fool out of myself – hey we made the bus though! Haha
We went back to Owen’s aunts that night because our time there was coming to an end. We had some train troubles and broke down for an hour 2 stops away – ahhh! We were told “welcome to London!” haha Overall, it was a really nice trip around England. Owen was able to see his family and I was able to meet them. They were all so nice and so welcoming and we did A LOT with them!
Well, I’m going to go enjoy the good weather – enjoy the snow you might get tonight:)
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
DISNEYLAND:)
Before you hear about Rome, you gotta hear about ... DISNEYLAND!
We had a day off in our schedule on Sunday & Owen and I decided to head to Disneyland in Paris! It was about an hour ride on metro & RER to get there. Owen was sooo excited; he was like a little boy on Christmas morning!
The park opened at 10 so we planned to get there right when it opened and that's what we did! We woke up early and headed out. We had a little trouble with the RER ride, but it all worked out good and after paying 25 euro for an RER ride we were at Disney! haha
Owen ran up to the park with a big smile on his face -- it was pretty cute. haha We loved our day at Disney though! It's a lot different but also very similar to the one in Florida. First off, there are only 2 parks -- Disneyland & Walt Disney Studios. Disneyland was pretty much like Magic Kingdom & Studios was like MGM. However, they were A LOT smaller. We did pretty much everything we wanted to in one day there. We got park hoppers and went back and forth.
It was a pretty nice day, but it was a little cold. We went to the Motorama Stunt Show & pretty much froze! haha I had seen it before in Disneyworld, but Owen hadn't. I figured he would love it, so we went! There was a good crowd there, we didn't have to wait too long in lines - but there were still lines. It wasn't too bad though.
Funny story about fast passes -- We got a fast pass for the Aerosmith Rock n' Rollercoaster and when we went to use it there was a little line. We were about a ride away and the ride broke down! Instead of waiting and unknown amount of time, we decided to leave the line & not ride that rollercoaster. We also got a fast pass for another ride, but didn't even use it. However, we were handed a fast pass for Tower and Terror and got RIGHT up! It was awesome! We rode a good bit of rides and saw a good bit of shows. Mostly everything was in both English and French. The one show Mickey spoke French and Donald Duck spoke English; it was funny. aha
We waited in line for a roller coaster at night & it was definitely worth it. It went very high and we saw all of Disney lit up. It was so pretty. However, they didn't have much at night like the fireworks and the parade.
We did see the Dreams come True parade during the day though. It was kinda short, but good. The characters were out & that's about the only time we saw them. They don't roam around like they do in Florida.
We opened and closed the park and had a good time. It was not really what we expected, but it was worth it. It was nice to say that we've been to Disney Paris:)
We had a day off in our schedule on Sunday & Owen and I decided to head to Disneyland in Paris! It was about an hour ride on metro & RER to get there. Owen was sooo excited; he was like a little boy on Christmas morning!
The park opened at 10 so we planned to get there right when it opened and that's what we did! We woke up early and headed out. We had a little trouble with the RER ride, but it all worked out good and after paying 25 euro for an RER ride we were at Disney! haha
Owen ran up to the park with a big smile on his face -- it was pretty cute. haha We loved our day at Disney though! It's a lot different but also very similar to the one in Florida. First off, there are only 2 parks -- Disneyland & Walt Disney Studios. Disneyland was pretty much like Magic Kingdom & Studios was like MGM. However, they were A LOT smaller. We did pretty much everything we wanted to in one day there. We got park hoppers and went back and forth.
It was a pretty nice day, but it was a little cold. We went to the Motorama Stunt Show & pretty much froze! haha I had seen it before in Disneyworld, but Owen hadn't. I figured he would love it, so we went! There was a good crowd there, we didn't have to wait too long in lines - but there were still lines. It wasn't too bad though.
Funny story about fast passes -- We got a fast pass for the Aerosmith Rock n' Rollercoaster and when we went to use it there was a little line. We were about a ride away and the ride broke down! Instead of waiting and unknown amount of time, we decided to leave the line & not ride that rollercoaster. We also got a fast pass for another ride, but didn't even use it. However, we were handed a fast pass for Tower and Terror and got RIGHT up! It was awesome! We rode a good bit of rides and saw a good bit of shows. Mostly everything was in both English and French. The one show Mickey spoke French and Donald Duck spoke English; it was funny. aha
We waited in line for a roller coaster at night & it was definitely worth it. It went very high and we saw all of Disney lit up. It was so pretty. However, they didn't have much at night like the fireworks and the parade.
We did see the Dreams come True parade during the day though. It was kinda short, but good. The characters were out & that's about the only time we saw them. They don't roam around like they do in Florida.
We opened and closed the park and had a good time. It was not really what we expected, but it was worth it. It was nice to say that we've been to Disney Paris:)
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