December 2011
7 posts
Walking in a Winter Wonderland...in Vienna!
Wednesday night, after quickly putting our lives back together from Paris on Sunday, Lauren, Emma, Rachel, Arielle and I jetted off to bella Austria for the Vienna Christmas markets! We had seen the amazing ornaments and light displays online beforehand and basically, we were sold! It literally looks and feels like the North Pole. I’m actually quite surprised that we never ran into Santa...
Perfect Paris
Ever since I went to Paris senior year with my mother, I had been itching to go back to Paris! Paris swept me away with its elaborate buildings, classic aura and its graceful elegance. It is EXACTLY how you would picture the city, for it is exactly as romantic and picture-perfect as how you see in the movies. Even after visiting this dream of a city again, I still stand by the declaration that...
London Baby!
While trying to get a few hours of homework done on the plane from Dublin to London, we finally arrived in England! Now, I had been to London with my mom for a week during my senior year in high school. So, generally, I felt like I could really navigate around London with ease, remembering all the sites and the mastering the tube. Our hostel was located right next to Victoria station, just a...
November 2011
11 posts
The Luck of the Irish: Thanksgiving in Dublin
Stuffing our bags full of clothes, sweaters, and scarfs, we jetted off from Ciampino Airport to begin our Thanksgiving weekend adventure in Dublin and London. When we arrived in Dublin (after some productive reading and highlighting on the plane…she does it all!), we boarded a bus to the city center that had Edward and Bella on the back of the bus in a Breaking Dawn advertisement. This was...
Shakespeare Heaven: Verona, Italy
As if you couldn’t already tell enough from my Shakespeare blabbing and quoting and such, I am a Shakespeare-worshipping English major, through and through. I can’t begin to tell you how much I miss studying poems, word by word, making arguments about enjambment and syllable inconsistentency…basically, crazy-people talk. I feel like such a weirdo, but I really do love being...
“Therefore, love moderately. Long love doth so/ Too swift arrives as tardy as too...”
– Friar Lawrence, Romeo and Juliet, Act Two, Scene Six (so excited for Verona this weekend!!!)
Silly Moment of the Day: Nov.16, 2011
As I am sitting in my Public International Law class at the esteemed (not really) John Cabot University, talking about WWI, minding my own business, I look over to see an Italian student take notes, spelling the “Automan” Empire. Oh goodness….take me back to UCLA!
Upcoming School Year Excitement
I may be traveling all over the world this semester, but boy oh boy, I am going to be one busy bee for the upcoming calendar year!! Delta Gamma election results were just confirmed last night and I am thrilled with my upcoming positions! I have acquired two positions, Director of Recruitment & Recruitment Records and Director of Productions. For the first position, my job will be quite a hefty...
Dar Poeta
Good news, everyone! I officially found my favorite pizza in Rome!!!! :) After a long, sad time of living off cereal, turkey sandwiches and homemade pasta, Lauren and I decided to go out to lunch on Thursday afternoon in Trastevere. I kept hearing from everyone that Dar Poeta was the most amazing pizza in Trastevere, so I knew I had to check it out since, well, I had been a bit frugal for awhile....
Picturesque Prague (Part Two)
After observing the gorgeous view from the top of the castle, we ventured across town, over the Charles Bridge to the Town Square. The Town Square was amazingly scenic in its surrounding buildings, the clock tower, the remarkable astronomical clock and the church nearby. Just looking up at the architecture, it is unbelievably beautiful to see each and every inch of Prague. Aside from the...
Picturesque Prague (Part One)
After enjoying a nice, healthy Mickey D’s for lunch in the airport, (I will be eating McDonald’s a lot in this post…beware and kindly refrain from judgment) we hopped on our plane to Prague in the Czech Republic! As soon as we arrived, we had to go to the ATM to get out our Czech crowns. We got 2,000 crowns, which is equivalent to about $115 US dollars. The ATM literally...
October 2011
8 posts
My first homemade chocolate chip cookies!
As most of you all know, I am not exactly your typical Martha Stewart in the kitchen. And by this, I mean that usually even my macaroni and cheese pasta is overcooked. Somehow, in my years of age, I never learned to cook (not to be blamed on my mother…she has tried countless times and failed). However, since I have been in Italy, I have been forced to learn to cook meals for myself and for...
Ay, Ay, Ay! Barcelona! (Parte Dos)
After being out til 4 am Friday night (When in Barcelona, do as the Barcelonians do..?), we struggled a bit getting out of bed in the morning in the hostel. Not to mention, residing in a 10-girl room was a bit of a challenge. Coming home late, Lisa and I had to knock on the door to be let into our room (for some reason, the hostel only gave us one key for the whole room). Needless to say, one...
Ay, Ay, Ay! Barcelona! (Parte Uno)
Brace yourselves, readers…this is going to be a long and lengthy Barcelona post. Barcelona was absolutely entrancing-such a dynamic, lively city!
The second after we checked into our hostel around midnight, Lisa, my roommate, and I hopped in a cab to meet up with Izzy! Izzy is one of my best friends and sorority sisters from UCLA that is currently studying in Barcelona. I usually refer to...
Mamma Mia!
After a long, arduous, sleepless (well, four hours of sleep…it creates a more dramatic effect) day full of midterms on Wednesday, my friends and I went to the Broadway production of Mamma Mia! Our program had scheduled this little outting for us and I had been looking forward to it for a while. After all, who doesn’t wanna go to a musical??
A lot of students in our program had no...
Venezia
Venice was as perfect as I thought it would be, bridges, gondola men, and all. Venice is an absolute dream…it is SO adorable and quaint.
We arrived in the pouring rain, again, I had forgotten to pack jeans or a jacket…so it was a bit nippy, to say the least. From the train station, we took a water taxi to our hotel off the Grand Canal. The water taxi was such a weird experience. It...
Happy Birthday, Alex!! :)
Happy 20th birthday to my wonderful boyfriend, Alex! Side Note: I promise I will blog about Venice, Mamma Mia and Barcelona TODAY!! (so late, I know..)
Firenze
Thursday morning, my parents and I got on a 7:00 am train headed to Florence (about an hour and a half trip from Rome). After getting up at 5 am to talk to Alex and shower (some serious dedication..=]), and getting to the train station a half hour before we needed to, we finally got on the train and were heading to Florence.
Once we arrived and found that it was cold and rainy, I was a wee bit...
September 2011
17 posts
20 Things I've Learned in My Month in Rome
Yep, it’s true! I’ve officially been in Rome for a whole month. Time is seriously flying…I can’t even believe it! I have only less than 78 days here now, which is absolutely nuts. There’s still so much to do, so much to see! Anyways, I thought it would be a good idea to list some of the things I’ve learned about Rome, in a good way, the hard way, and sometimes...
Travel Schedule
Last night, Lauren, Rachel, Andrew, Connor and I went on a trip booking extravaganza and I am so so excited for the upcoming adventures! Here is the current itinerary:
October 6th-9th: Florence and Venice, Italy with Mom and Dad
Goals: Go on a cute little Gondola around the city and eat more pizza and more pizza. Duh.
November 4th-6th: Prague, Czech Republic with Lauren, Connor and Andrew
...
“I saw a guy and this dog washing off in Piazza Trilussa today….we could...”
– Lauren Tonkovich on our very conspicuous lack of hot water in our apartment
“I’m not some kind of test tube here!”
– Taylor G. Hansen
Miss Lauren Tonkovich
Today is a nice cool, breezy day (the first one we’ve ever had..it’s nice not to sweat through my shirt on the way to school at 9 am…ew). I am currently bored out of my mind with nothing to do (minus the ridiculous Philosophy reading I have) and haven’t seen my lovely roommate all day, so I figured, what a perfect opportunity to write about her!
Lauren became my roommate...
“The only reason I go to class is for the improved WiFi” - Taylor Hansen,...”
Tarquinia
Friday morning began as a bit of a struggle after being out late two nights in a row. Not to mention I had to wake up at 630 am…eek. After happily skyping for an hour with Alex :), Lauren and I headed to get bagels and frappucinos!!! I know what you’re thinking…calm yourself. But this was an extremely exciting food experience. A bagel was seriously needed. Then, we hopped on the...
Vogue's Fashion Night Out
On Thursday night, my roommates, Lauren, Rachel, Arielle and I decided to attend Vogue’s Fashion Night Out. I had no idea what this was or what it meant, but the girls said it was a big deal so we decided to go. All down Via del Corso, the 5th Avenue of Rome, there were hundreds of people fashionally dressed up in chic hats and clothes. In front of some of the big stores, there were these...
Italy Lies: The Case of the Hamburglar
Today was a bit of a struggle in terms of food searches. After class, Lauren, Taylor, Connor and I met at Piazza Trilussa to take the 280 bus home back to Prati. However, just as we were about to cross over the bridge, dun dun dun…we spotted a sign advertising “AMERICAN FOOD” with scrumptious pictures of assorted bagels, cupcakes and donuts. HOME! Lauren, Taylor and I have been...
WatchAndiamo nello Grotto Azzurro!!
Il Grotto Azzurro
The Blue Grotto is home to the bluest water in the entire world. It is essentially a cave with a teeny tiny opening that uncovers the bluest water you will ever see. Because the water in encapsulated in this little cave, the sun shines on the water in a way that contains the blue hue and makes it shine brighter than any other water.
To get to the Blue Grotto, you must take a little rowboat from...
Capri
The island of Capri has to be one of the most beautiful places on Earth. It was so bewildering how unnaturally gorgeous every part of the island was. I think it will be almost impossible to describe it and do it justice, but I will try my best. (Note: every photo is taken by me!)
After we took a ferry from Sorrento to Capri, we got on a boat specially reserved for just API. The boat would take us...
Mt. Vesuvius
Friday morning we left for our first API excursion to Southern Italy!
Our itinerary: 1. Mt. Vesuvius 2. Sorrento 3. Isola di Capri 3. Pompeii
We arrived at Mt. Vesuvius around 1 pm after a long, windy bus ride up the volcano. I don’t know how these bus drivers manage to keep everyone alive every trip because the streets are thin, the buses are huge, and the streets are almost falling...
Il Primo Di'a della Universita'
Well I am a day after the first day of school and let me just say, it was a bit of a hectic day. John Cabot University is tiny and a little sketchy looking and the classes ‘tend to reflect the building’s sketchy decour, but hey! it’s an adventure. I really enjoyed my Public International Law class and of course, my Italian class (always my favorite). Then, After being on campus...
Balliamo in Discoteca!
Nightlife in Roma is always an interesting experience. In Roma, people are always out at night and by people, I mean Italian men. The clubs and the bars are like 90% Italian men, sometimes middle-aged Italian men (no buono). And they are by no means shy. In Italy, men stare, stare, stare and it’s very strange. Girls think American boys are forward or sketchy…trust me, they are...
I monumenti di Roma
After an endless number of walking tours (4), getting lost and serious exploration, I can honestly say I have seen “I monumenti antichi di Roma.” All of the main sites are relatively connected geography-wise and easily accessible. By accessible, I mean, you can hit each destination after walking several, several miles. The people in Rome NEVER stop walking. I thought UCLA called for...
August 2011
1 post
Ciao, Europe!
A Few Goals for my extravagant European adventure from August 28th to December 17th:
1. Visit Verona and see where dear Romeo and Juliet led their lives as star-cross lovers. Gotta love my Shakespeare.
2. Frolick in the streets of Greece singing Mamma Mia showtunes and wishing I had the traveling pants. Bliss.
3. Go to Austria, hike the Swiss Alps and take the Sound of Music tour. This is...
