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Monday was rough after getting very little sleep on the night train. Unfortunately school doesn’t stop for us when we travel. We are here to “study abroad” not to just be “abroad” is what they say. We seem to think we can do both.

This week was a very relaxed week especially since we didn’t have a major trip this weekend. After Oktoberfest some of us were a little under the weather due to the colder weather conditions we encountered. A relaxed week and some down time is exactly what we needed. This weekend we had a day trip to Prato and we made a last minute decision to go on a wine tasting adventure.

Prato was really cool. It is the textile capital of Italy. One of the faculty members at CEA lives in Prato and personally gave us a tour of the city. We had the pleasure of seeing the textile factory museum as well as other historical architectural sites. Not only is Prato known for the textiles but for the biscotti as well. The biscotti anywhere else can’t even compare, I don’t think I have had real biscotti till this weekend. It was amazing. We also had the great opportunity to visit a small architecture firm in Prato. They showed us some of their work which was really neat to see. Comparing their process to the process we follow in the United States was intriguing.

Yesterday we went on a bus wine tasting tour through Tuscany. We were able to visit a couple wineries and learn about the local wines, balsamic and olive oils. Along the way we saw some really pretty views including the sunset. It was so pretty to see Tuscany in a completely different perspective, the country side of Tuscany is beautiful.

Today is a lazy Sunday consisting of me trying to recover from this nasty cold. The constant traveling and lack of sleep has finally caught up to me. Really looking forward to getting past this cold and being able to visit more new places.

I have the great opportunity to go back to Germany for the first weekend of Oktoberfest. With these festivities around the corner this week was a long one. The excitement was difficult to hold back. This once in a lifetime opportunity which started as a thought, is now becoming another item to be checked off my bucket list. So exciting!

Throughout the week, the excitement did not cease. On the night train to Munich, I slept very little because of all my enthusiasm and need to find a comfortable position to sleep. The chairs extended to form a sort of bed-like structure which would have been comfortable for one person however there were two of us. It has been noted to get a bed next time we night train anywhere.

Almost twelve hours and many obstacles later we finally made it to Munich. We rented the cutest Airbnb, a short distance outside the city center and away from the craziness. As we explored the city, our next challenge was finding a decently priced and nice looking drindle, the traditional dress worn at Oktoberfest. Surprisingly finding a drindle was difficult, they were either extremely expensive or not what we were looking for. All of the stores were chaotic and a tossed mess, we finally had to just pick one. Beggars can’t be choosers.

The day finally came! I think I was most excited to dress up however I was also looking forward to being a part of the German culture. Our morning started off late and relaxed, Oktoberfest is a marathon not a race. As we entered the venue it was really cool to see everyone dressed up, there was a variety of people, some were really dressed up while others were not as much. Throughout the day we tent hopped drinking some really good German beer which is by far my favorite beer. All in all Oktoberfest was a blast. It wasn’t really what I thought it would be like. It was more of a state fair with multiple beer gardens. We met some All in all Oktoberfest was a blast.

We are heading back to Florence today. We had a little more time to explore the city since we are on another night train. This one is even more uncomfortable due to the fact that our pod is completely full. Hot, stinky and just an uncomfortable situation calls for a really long night and an even longer day tomorrow.

This semester is a huge change in my life. I had so much doubt right before I left for this trip. I not only was leaving my friends and family at home for school, I was leaving everything I have known for the past three years. How could that not be a hard and scary change?

As excited as I was for this trip I can honestly say part of me did not want to go due to the fact that I would be missing out on so much back in the states. I traded half of my senior year with some of my best friends to leave the country and be with people I don’t really know in that way. I have left all parts of my comfort zone.

Before I go on more about this I know what you all are thinking…”but you’re in Florence, Italy one of the greatest places” “think about all the cool things you’ll experience” “you’re going to have a blast”… I get it and I understand however no one can really know what this is like until you do it.

I am so beyond grateful to have this opportunity and experience but it was and still is difficult. As much as I don’t want to admit it, I have had moments of homesickness. I see all of my friends at home having a blast at football games and I can’t help but think that I don’t get to experience that in my last year of college. I’m over here wondering who is actually missing out, is it me? Or is it everyone back at home?

With all the change I have been experiencing, there are things that are becoming normal as I live the Florentine lifestyle.

What do I mean by “reality,” I mean we had an entire week of orientation so not really back to the reality of school yet. This week called for many free nights and some more free time to explore Florence.

Once everyone from my class got into town, we all went out for dinner to catch up. It was definitely a weird experience at first. All of us were a little out of our comfort zone in many ways. Away from home in a new city, a foreign city, away from our friends and family, being associated as only classmates before but now roommates, it was such a change. Not having our comfortable friend groups to fall back on but being forced to become a new closer friend group, relying on each other since it is all we know right now.

In the midst of embracing our new home and life situation, some of us decided to take a relaxing beach day before classes start. It was much needed after what surprisingly was an exhausting week of orientation. Tomorrow is when the real work begins.

I first want to apologize for not completing the blogs from my previous travel adventures. Life got hectic as my travels came to an end and I headed back to the states. But I am back!

Being back on the traveling grind is an exciting and terrifying feat. It was an adventure to get to Florence in more ways than one. The plane ride for one was rough, aisle seats are not for me. It was also a different experience with all of the luggage I had. Such a difference compared to just a single backpack. Packing for two months of travel versus packing for four months of living is so different, needless to say I had a lot of stuff with me.

I arrived to Florence early. I had a few days before orientation which I spent with a couple classmates. I wanted to get a lay of the land before classes and the craziness started. It was a blast to get to know the city day and night. The Italian lifestyle is very different than what we are used to in the States. Late dinners and even later nights. This did not help with the jet lag.

It’s been a great relaxing few days however it is back to reality for me tomorrow. I am so excited for this next chapter of my life!

In order to make the most of my day and see as much as possible I signed up for a day tour of the Windsor Castle, The Baths and Stonehenge. An 11 hour journey with so much to be seen.

An 8:30am departure with an 8am check in was the beginning of my very long day. We had a full bus with a total of 53 in the tour. The driver and the guide were very entertaining and also very funny.

Our first stop was the Windsor Castle. We had a long que or line to enter. Our time was very limited for we were constantly in a rush to get to wherever. The castle was very amazing. It was unique in that it looked as if it was from a fairy tale but there wasn’t much to see. I was able to see the queen’s doll house. I also got to take a picture with the guard which was the highlight of this site.

Our second stop was The Baths. It started raining and I was not prepared for this type of weather. I had to wear one of those plastic rain ponchos. The rest of the group and I looked like such tourists.

The Baths were a very cool place filled with so much history. With many carvings and ancient ruins, The Baths were sort of a mystery with all of the unknown.

Our last stop was Stonehenge, the only reason I really wanted to go on this tour. I had studied it in one of my classes and was instantly intrigued.

I was so excited for this stop. We only had so much time but it was most definitely worth it no matter how short the time. The stones were huge and way bigger than I thought. It is unreal how they managed to put them where they were with the little technology they had. It was mind blowing.

I might have missed New Grange, but Stonehenge was enough to make me forget about it. My day was made, in fact I think my whole year was made.

When you think about London you think about the royal family. The queen, the past queens, the past kings and of course Kate Middleton.

Today I had the pleasure of seeing the changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace. There had to have been about a million people or more. There were so many people I could not even walk. It was suffocating. I finally got to a spot where I could kind of see. Thank god for the go pro stick, I was able to get some good video of it since I wasn’t able to see it. I also had the chance to tour the palace. It was the opening day of the exhibit for the season and the last available spot was for 5pm and I jumped on it. How could I come to London and not see the Buckingham Palace.

Wow. Let me tell you this is everyone dream house. Everything had gold Goulding on it and the chandeliers were on another level of elegant. The entire palace was just exquisite, even the gardens. They were literally as if they were scenes out of a movie or a picture.

Before the Buckingham Palace I went to visit the Kensington Palace which is also a part of the many estates the royal family possess. Shoot I would be fine with just one palace but what I could do with multiple.

Kensington palace was amazing. Smaller but still an amazing estate. The garden was beautiful. It was a peaceful place that was open to the public. Greatly used by the Londoners as well as the tourists, the Kensington Palace was a very well rounded and well used place.

It is great that even though the palaces are for the Royal family and their affairs, the public is able to view and be a part of their world a little. I have to think of things in the perspective of their royalty being equivalent to our presidents. I personally have never been in the White House but I know it would be amazing and really awesome if I did get the chance.

The history of England is great and very interesting however, the buildings were mesmerizing. The architecture and the detail that has been put into these rooms of these buildings is unreal. I always wonder how long it took to create.

I had a quiet evening since I have a big day tomorrow. Stonehenge was my next excursion.

My first day in London and I was beyond excited. A city that is well known throughout the world and I was there. Sometimes I just can’t believe I am where I am.

I roamed around the area of Westminster. I walked around a lot and got a feel for the London life. I even went on the underground. This was one of the most exciting things about London. The public transportation in Europe is huge and it is amazing. The underground made life so easy, it took you all over the city. A very simple system that even me a tourist could figure out. I fell in love with the underground.

The Westminster area was pretty and really big. I managed to see the London eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace from the outside and more. Of course it started raining which was kind of nice because there weren’t too many people out. Less people means better pictures and less frustration with the tourists.

To get around I ended up walking through a couple parks. I had not yet mastered the underground so walking was my go to. The parks were very pretty. They even had artwork around which was really cool to see.

After spending the day here I had realized I greatly underestimated London and all it had to offer. There was way more than I thought and I did not plan enough time to see everything. I had to add another night to my stay if I really wanted the full experience.

Today I got to meet up with a friend who I had originally met at home in California. She had visited one of my neighbors since they were family friends. I had taken her around Manhattan Beach and Los Angeles while she visited. She lives in Chester but also attended University in Manchester. The tables have turned and instead of me showing her around, I had a personal tour guide in Manchester today.

We walked around and she showed me all of the hidden places around the city. Places I would never have gone to if she hadn’t shown me. We went to shops that were very vintage which was really cool. There were clothing stores that were very unique and different than the average Top Shop and Zara.

We also went to a cafe where they charged 6 quid per hour. The food and drinks were free and all you can eat. You paid based on your time being there. It was a cute little place that would have been great for studying.

We talked and got caught up with each others’ lives. It had been about 3 or 4 years since we had seen each other. Time flies, and life goes by so quickly.

After more shopping and more touring of the city, we went and got a couple drinks. Of course to the perfect day we had had so far there needed to be a little hiccup in our day.

We had a little confusion on the bar situation. We had gone to this place that had two bars in one. We had sat down at a table at one of the bars and we had a menu from the other bar. We proceed to order drinks from the one bar while also trying to order food from the other bars menu which wasn’t going to work. Once we figured out there were two bars we tried to order food from the correct bar but we were then seated at the wrong tables and they wouldn’t serve us food. We moved tables got our food and we were satisfied.

The next adventure was speed walking to the train station. I was not wearing the right shoes for I didn’t think I would be rushing anywhere.

We made it in time and got a quick picture in the process. It was great to catch up with Faith today and it was another great day in Manchester, but London was calling.

A train and a short walk through not the best area of London and I finally made it to the hostel. Loud Jamaican music was blasting from the downstairs bar and I first wasn’t sure if I was in the right place but I was. I was also in for an adventure and interesting stay.

To my friends, family and whomever it may concern I would like to take time to apologize to all of you. I have not been the best at keeping up with my blog. It is tough to be traveling and to keep updating. Finding the time to write everyday is not the easiest.
Between train travel, sight seeing, sleeping and of course seeing the night life, there is very little time in the day to do it all. Sometimes actually enjoying the cities overrules writing.

I am so lucky to have the opportunity to have such great people surrounding me and supporting me through this trip. Thank you all for reading my posts and I will continue to do my best at posting.

Much Love,

Kaela