Since I had travelled to Ireland with my core course during the first travel week, I had a week off from DIS courses last week. So, I joined up with a few friends from DIS to fly south to warmer pastures for a few days…
Rome
The three of us touched down in Rome and began our navigation to our Airbnb via train, bus, metro, and our own two feet (but there were three of us, so six feet? I’m not sure). Of course, along the way we stopped for some delicious pizza (and tiramisu)! We unloaded our belongings, and ventured back into the city to meet our fourth at the foot of the Spanish Steps.
I must’ve clocked in over 20,000 steps that half day alone, walking from the Trevi Fountain to the Pantheon, from plaza to piazza, from alleyways to bridges. The clouds held off the rain almost long enough, but our walk back to a bus station was drizzly… naturally we celebrated the chill with some Italian gelato before continuing on our way.
The next day was absolutely jam-packed with fascinating architecture, captivating ruins, and buildings somewhere in between the two. We started off walking past the Vatican (grabbing a slice of lemon yogurt cake) and wandering down to the River Tiber for a few stunning views, then hopped on a bus towards the Colosseum. But first we wove through the narrow streets to a delicious restaurant hidden away from the throng of tourists (although clearly not hidden well enough, since we found it).
Seeing the Colosseum in person was awe-inspiring. The sheer scale of the construction combined with the rich history to create an experience that still felt immersive, despite the long lines (that we didn’t have to wait in) and crowded overlooks. I really loved seeing the interior of the Colosseum, with all of the complex and interlinking passageways, ramps, and engineered structures that lay underneath what used to be the competition floor.
Next, we moved onto the Circus Maximus, which is in not as good of a shape as the Colosseum. I was still super excited to see the site in person, since I’ve heard about it so often (thank you Sid Meier’s Civ 5). Imagining what it would have looked like in its prime brings imagery of soaring stands and roaring crowds.
A quick metro stop took us back to the Roman Forum, where I got to geek out (not Greek out, mind you. That would be scandalous) over the myriad of ruins and relics of the Roman Empire. I dragged the group all over, obsessing over column types and marble carvings. We eventually ended up atop the Palatine Hill overlooking Rome, and the sweeping views of the city were just amazing.
The next day, we said goodbye to two of our compatriots and set off to see the Sistine Chapel. I spent little more time wandering through the streets of Rome before grabbing our train to Venice!
Venice
This was by far my favorite part of the entire trip. Unlike Rome, Venice felt almost devoid of tourists, even in the hotspot locations. The weather was absolutely phenomenal, perfect for walking around the city of bridges (once we took the train over to the island).
We started by walking around Mestre, observing some of the architecture on the mainland before taking the local train out to Venice itself, where we were greeted by glimmering domes and bright blue water.
I am in love with the style of Venice. The narrow streets, open shutters, and ample greenery across every building provided the perfect complement to the vibrant colors and sparkling water that reflected the bright blue sky. Every bridge we crossed had its own character, and the little plazas we stumbled across always felt special and hidden away.
We saw the Rialto bridge, which was more magical than a picture or movie could ever convey. We walked to the northern docks on the island, and strolled our way back towards the station, finding a nice little restaurant on the way for a late lunch.
The next day took us back to the island, where we sprung for water bus tickets to take us across the water to the island of Lido and the nearby Church of San Giorgio Maggiore. What a gift it was to see Venice from a boat as we hopped back and forth, landing at the monastery just in time to take a look inside the church and walk past the gardens.
From there, it was back on the water bus! We headed over to San Marco’s Plaza and meandered through the square before setting off into the network of alleyways again to cross the Accademia and visit the Santa Maria della Salute.
A few more canal crossings placed us at a small restaurant owned and operated by a local Venetian. We dined on a decadent dinner with a view of the sunset over the open water, and then hopped on the train back to the hostel.
The final day, we stayed in Mestre, visiting a few parks and various historic sites in the morning before my travelling partner left me to head to Florence a day earlier that I. I killed a little time (6 hours) in my hostel lobby reading, relaxing, and recovering, before boarding my 10:30pm train towards Florence.
Now let me tell you, while this was the cheapest option, both being the least expensive train from Venice to Florence and saving me an extra night at a hostel, it was not necessarily the easiest option. Nonetheless, I arrived in Florence at 6:45am ready to embark on a guided tour trough Tuscany.
Tuscany
I met up with my fellow DIS traveler and we boarded the tour bus. Our first stop took us to Pisa, where we were given free rein (yes that’s the correct phrase. I looked it up, because it looked funny to me) to explore.
Of course, we saw the tower, in all it’s wonky leaning glory, but we also left the square itself to see the main street with all its little shops and restaurants. Upon our return to the square, we got the free tickets to take a look inside the Cathedral of Pisa, but then had to head back to the bus.
As the bus hauled us to our next destination, we got a comprehensive history of the region (towns on hills are built by the Tuscans, while towns in valleys are built by the Romans, with a few exceptions) and started passing into the picturesque scenery of olive and cyprus trees, vineyards, and rolling hills.
Our next stop was at a winery for a wine tasting and lunch. We learned all about the proper way to swirl your glass, the correct sniffing and tasting technique, and how to discern different flavors and notes. Our guide would ask questions to the group, and correct answers were rewarded with more wine.
At this point, I hadn’t really had a substantial meal for over 24 hours, and I’m apparently very good at detecting aromas, so I ended up having a wonderful time. Fortunately, lunch directly followed this: plenty of pasta, more cured meats, and the most heavenly balsamic I have ever tasted. Then it was back on the bus to Siena.
We were dropped off in Siena and released to wander the city for an hour and a half or so. So, I picked a direction and started walking. I eventually found myself in the central square, and took a few pictures, thinking it was quite beautiful. But then I followed a different street that took me to the top of a hill overlooking the city, and let me tell you that was stunning. There was a group of musicians practicing as I walked along the path, and the combined sensory experience was perfect.
Then it was back on the bus to head to San Gimignano! At this point the sun had set and there was a light drizzle sprinkling down, but the towers climbing into the dark sky were still majestic. The rain started coming down a little more, so we ducked into a shop for a cannolo before braving the rain again — while the cannoli were delicious, the extra time meant that the rain had become a voracious downpour. We were soaked by the time we made it back to the bus, but it so worth it!
I got back to the hostel, set my extra-early alarm to catch my flight to Paris, and said farewell to Italy.
Paris
I touched down in Paris, France at 9am ready to attack the day head-on. I must say, I am not a fan of downward pointing arrows indicating that something is directly ahead (as opposed to everywhere else, where an upward facing arrow means directly ahead and a down arrow means below you). But after going in circles a few times, I made it out of the airport and onto the public transportation into the city center.
The first stop of the trip was the Musee d’Orsay, where I stowed my bags and met up with a friend I knew from last summer. We grabbed a quick coffee to catch up since we last talked, traipsed through the museum, and put together the plan for the day. I particularly loved seeing all the impressionist art, but also really loved walking through the sculptures in the central atrium.
From the Musee d’Orsay we walked past a statue of Thomas Jefferson (I can’t even escape him in Europe), the National Assembly (what a beautiful building), and countless little shops (each with so much character) to get to the Musee Rodin.
We spent a lot of time walking the sculpture gardens and making up stories for each statue. Funnily enough, we didn’t think of a story for The Thinker himself.
Afterwards, we had a little time to kill before the meal of the evening, so we walked past Napoleon’s grave in Les Invalides (stunning building) and visited the Eiffel Tower (wow is all I can say). I wasn’t planning on even going to see it, since I had so many other things I wanted to see in Paris, but I’m so incredibly glad we took the time to see it, especially at night.
From there, we strolled along the Seine and stopped at another cafe to chat more (and do some people-watching too!). After a long dinner with some other students studying abroad, I met up with my DIS friends who were also in Paris at our hotel and we watched (most of) Night at the Museum before hitting the sack.
The next morning was the travel day for everyone; I said goodbye to my friends and hopped on the metro to check on Notre Dame (it’s still mostly there) and visit Shakespeare and Company (it was closed but the distraction brought me past a little garden and some more interesting architecture). And, an hour and a half after that I was in the airport, ready to board my flight home to Copenhagen.
Copenhagen
Wow. That was a lot. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to travel with so many wonderful people in a non-academic setting. Maybe next time I’ll take it a little slower though. It’s ok to not go everywhere, all at once. Sometimes it’s worth spending more time in one place and truly feeling like you’ve explored it fully (like my time in Venice).
Ingenthron, abroad. 
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