Florence, Italy

        Hey there guys! This is my last post. I hope you've enjoyed them. I'm not the best writer, but I'm trying to be better. Thanks for reading!!

       Now to talk about Florence. Well Florence is a great place for shopping!! If you love pashmina scarves, they have them everywhere, and for a really cheap price. Also Florence is known for their leather; you can find some of the best leather there. When you go to buy some of their leather items, you can put your initials in what ever leather item you buy. They use gold, for no extra cost, and imprint whatever letters you want in that item. For example, I bought a very nice leather belt for 30 Euros and I had my initials, KNW, put in the belt, and it was gold! I thought it was a really cool idea. Here's an example:

      Now you can't just go to Florence for the shopping. You have to see some of the historical sights there. One of the main things you have to go see is the statue of David made by Michelangelo. It was built in the 1500 and is still in amazing condition. It's a 17 foot statue made of marble. He is located in Galleria dell Accademia. If you go to Galleria dell Accademia, you will see other great statues, just like David, and there are paintings from the 13th-17th century. Its a great museum to go to!

      Another place to go visit is Piazza della Signoria. Florence's most famous square is Piazza della Signoria there is a mini sculpture exhibit outside. There is also a replica of David here. It's very pretty, and the sculptures are interesting to look at. I love how much detail they put into the sculptures.

       Ponte Vecchio is another great place to go see. It means old bridge in Italian. It was built in the 1300s. It was Florence's first bridge and is the only surviving bridge from Florence's medieval days. If you go, there are a ton of shops along the bridge, and there is a great view of the Arno River.

       Well that's it for this post. I hope you guys really enjoyed my post. I hope you travel to Italy one day and see these beautiful sights. Trust me, you won't regret it!! If you have any question's feel free to contact me through here, just leave a comment. Thanks for reading!!!

Naples, Italy

        Hey!! Glad you're back to read more. I hope when you read my blogs, it makes you want to travel to Italy one day.

       Now to talk about Naples. I've only been to Naples once, but while I was there, I had a great experience. We took a boat to Naples from Sorrento. It was a really pretty boat ride. Seeing Italy from the view we had on our boat was truly amazing. I suggest that if you travel to Italy, that you take a ride on a boat.

       When we finally arrived to Naples, the first thing that popped in my head was how it reminded me of Greece. The different colors of the buildings and the way they were all stacked right next to each other. Naples is built on a really big mountain, so when we arrived we had to take a bus all the way to the top. The view from the top of the mountain was something I'll never forget. It was breath taking.
 

 

           After our ride up the mountain, we decided to explore Naples. The picture below is one that we took after we started exploring. We ended up in this garden with one of the best views I've ever seen. I strongly suggest visiting Naples if you have the chance. Its a beautiful place, if you like mountains and water.

        Besides the view, Naples has really good food. As you'd know from my first post, I love food!! We went to this little pizzeria for lunch, and I think I tasted heaven. It was the best pizza I've ever had. I ended up taking an extra pizza to go. Italy definitely has some of the best pizza.

      Well that's it for this post. My next blog is going to be about Florence, Italy. Florence is known for their shopping. Who doesn't love shopping!! But Florence has more to offer than just shopping. There are also really pretty sights and statues there.

Rome, Italy

         Hey there!! I hope you are having a great week!! My week was pretty good. Thanks for reading!!

         So where to start, Rome is another amazingly beautiful place. Rome has better sights to see than Venice does; when it comes to landmarks. The top 5 places you have to visit while you are in Rome are the Spanish Steps (Scalinata di Trinita dei Monti), The Pantheon, The Colosseum (Colosseo), St. Peter's Square (Piazza san Pietro), and, of course, the Trevi Fountain (Fontana di Trevi). There are many other sights to see, but those are the ones that you have to make sure you see before you leave.

        The Spanish Steps got their name from the Spanish Embassy. During the summer, they divide the stairs with flowers. Before you go up the stairs, there is a really pretty fountain at the bottom. It's really a beautiful sight. When you go to the top of the stairs, there is a exquisite church.

         The Pantheon is another magnificent place. The Romans say its one of their best preserved buildings. It was set on fire before, and yet it still looks amazing.

        The Colosseum is one of the most famous ancient monuments in Rome. When you go to the Colosseum, I suggest you go for a tour. When you go for a tour, you get to go down some of the locked stairways, and you get to hear about all the historical things that happened there. Its truly a beautiful sight. The Colosseum is one of my favorite places to go when I'm in Rome.

 

 

 

           St. Peters Square is just gorgeous! It really is a true beauty. I love the way it looks. The single rows of columns. Its amazing.

 

        
          Last, but not least, The Trevi Fountain. When you go you are suppose to throw a coin in the fountain to secure your return to Rome. I've been to Rome twice, and every time I go, I make sure I throw a coin in the fountain.  Here's a picture of me throwing my coin in.

           The detail that was put into the fountain is just absolutely amazing. It's one of my favorite sights. If you go there at night, it's even prettier. They lite the whole fountain up.
 
            We'll that's all for this post. My next post will be about Pisa. When I went to Naples, Italy, I was surprised how much it reminded me of Greece. I'll explain why in my next post. Thanks for reading :)

Venice, Italy

       Hey! I'm glad you're back to read more of my posts. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them.

       When we lived in Germany, we traveled a lot. We decided to go to Venice, Italy, during our summer break. Venice is a beautiful place,;it's hard to pick one word to describe Venice. Just calling it beautiful doesn't even do it justice. It takes your breath away. Venice is known for its blend of romance, art, and of course, water. If you are ever in Italy, you have to go to Venice.

       The water canals is part of what makes Venice so beautiful. If you are ever in Venice, one thing you must try is going for a gondola ride. They are very romantic, and it lets you see a great side of Venice.

Here are some pictures I took while I went for a ride on one of the gondolas.

 

      The best time to be in Venice is during Carnival of Venice (Italian: Carnevale di Venezia).  It starts 40 days before Easter, and the last party is before Ash Wednesday and Lent. Everyone dresses up in gowns and wear really pretty masks. Sadly, I wasn't able to go to Venice during Carnival, but I hope one day in my future I'll be able to.

          Besides all the sightseeing, my favorite thing to do in Venice is eat ice cream and feed the birds. There is a square in Venice that you can go to and feed the birds. They use to sell corn to you, but now its illegal for them to do that. So I like to get ice cream, and usually when you get ice cream they give you a wafer, and I crumble it up and feed the birds. It's so fun! The birds aren't shy either as soon as they see you feeding them, you'll have at least 15 birds surrounding you.

 

         One place you have to go before you leave is the Rialto Bridge (Ponte di Rialto). It's one of my favorite bridges. I think it has one of the best views from the top of it. You can go and see a really good sunset there too. On your way to the bridge, you'll pass a lot of little shops surrounding the bridge and a bunch of souvenir places too. This bridge is a must see if you travel to Venice. When you get to the top of the bridge, you can see the Grand Canal from a great view and watch as the gondolas pass by.

         My next blog will be about Rome, Italy. Another one of my favorite places. I've been to Rome twice now. It's an amazing city!

Traveling Europe

        I'm an Army brat. My mom married my stepdad when I was 10 year's old. My stepdad was in the Army for 6 years. When my mom married him, we were later stationed in Germany. I just turned 11 when we moved to Germany. It was a huge change for me. Before we moved, I was a little southern tomboy who lived in Georgia. When we arrived in Hanau, Germany, I couldn't believe how different it was compared to Georgia. I decided to embrace this culture change. I really wanted to adapt to their ways.

        Germans were very different. I was in shock for a while. They were very open when it came to nudity, something we definitely weren't use to. It took a while before I got use to seeing so many naked people. When we went to the swimming pools over there (Schwimmbad), they had changing rooms and lockers where you put your stuff. Well as soon as you walk in there, you will see at least 5 naked people...men, women, and very old people . . .  Oh and we all shared a locker room; they didn't have different ones for men and women,
sadly.


         They  have the coolest swimming pools.  They were like water parks but indoors. They were all salt water pools. There were pools that started inside but you could swim under this little plastic wall and go outside. During the winter it was fun to do that while it was snowing. You didn't have to worry about being cold because they were heated. There are also saunas', but if you go in them you were most likely going to be surrounded by naked people.

        There is one thing that I can't complain about . . . Their FOOD!!!! I died and went to heaven when I started trying all of their different types of food. They also had really good candy, but candy wasn't one of my favorite things. My favorite thing was their bakeries. They had the best breads and pastries. We had a little bakery right across the street from our house in Heidelberg. It was my second home. I was always there! If you ever travel to Germany, you have to try their bakeries. You won't regret it. I probably gained 30 pounds..but its ok because it was so good. 

        Another really good thing to eat over there was their Brauhaus Vetter. They serve some of the best food I've ever tasted. They make this amazing Schnitzel. It's breaded chicken or pork. They pound the meat and make it thin and then fry it. It was one of my favorite things to eat over there besides bread.

       Fast food in Europe was surprisingly very different. We ate at one of the McDonalds that was close to our house; it was so good. I'm not a huge McDonald fan, but over there it's so much better. All of their condiments taste completely different; mainly because they use sugar cane. It adds a completely different taste. They also have different foods on the menu, like potato wedges with sour cream. It was one of my our favorite things to order. Also, if you want ice in any of your drinks, you have to ask for it. Even when you ask for ice in your drink they only give you a couple cubes, not your average handful or whole cup of ice. That was one thing that my mom really didn't like.

       Germany was a great experience, I would love to go again. There isn't one thing I regret doing over there. The sights were amazing, but not as amazing as Italy. My next blog will be about my experience in Italy, mainly Venice. The place I fell in love with.