13 Bucket List Items Completed in 2013

One of my Christmas break goals was to make a Bucket List. After a full day of blog reading and wanderlusting, I finally finished. Since I have an obsession of making lists, a Bucket List is kind of like the ultimate list project. It also was partly a way for me to deal with fact that this is the year that I graduate and remind myself that there are fun things to do in the real world too. But being myself, I didn't feel completely satisfied that I couldn't include (and more importantly cross off) some bucket list items I already completed so far. Since this whole blog is essentially a self indulgent journal (and proud of it), I figured I would include the bucket list items that would have been completed if I had made the list one year ago:

13 Bucket List Items completed in 2013:

- Paris with my amazing boyfriend. It's the city of love and staying in an apartment, eating snails, going to the top of the effiel tower, frolicking at Versailles was all made even better by having Scott there.

- Go to Aushwitz in Poland. I never wrote about it on the blog because it felt a little disrespectful, but it was an incredible and depressing experience. It really changes the way you view history and humanity and made for an extremely reflective morning.

- Eat a belgium waffle in Brussels. This was pure deliciousness. Somehow, Scott and I only ended up having one Belgium waffle (and one mini one) during our weekend in Brussels, but the taste did not disappoint.

- Studied abroad in Europe. I don't even know where to start on this one, but Prague is one of the best cities in the world, and it was the best experience of my life.

- Learn some of a new language. I may not be great, but I was pleasantly surprised by how far my Czech came along at the end of the semester. A highlight for me was having a little conversation the young Czech girl at the Prague Zoo. I have never felt so accomplished after exchanging names with an 8 year old.

- Eat pasta in Italy. I love food and I love carbs even more. I think this is a pretty common bucket list item and something that I was looking forward to ever since deciding to go abroad. From pasta carbonara, gnocchi in white sauce, linguini and mussels, to ravioli with truffle sauce, I ate so much that I had to lay down at one point. That is a sign of success if I've ever heard of one.

- Grand Canyon. My Grand Canyon bucket list was made possible by Scott. I always wanted to see the Grand Canyon, but I had this idea that I would see it on a spontaneous trip. Seeing and walking around the Grand Canyon as a surprise road trip was perfect.

- Swim off the Amalfi Coast. You know those experiences that you can't believe are happening even while they are happening? Boating around Capri and jumping into the water felt like a movie (besides the very cold water) and was one of my favorite memories from abroad.

- Swim in the Adriatic Sea. Also cold, but the water was so beautiful. The seafood was amazing, the place was amazing, and the pebble beach was amazing. Also included in this section is river rafting in Croatia and all the adventures there.

- Go clubbing in Berlin. I had heard about Berlin's crazy nightlife, and I feel like our successful Saturday night met my expectations--a club called Matrix under a subway station complete with gogo dancers playing electric violins and dancing in cages.

- Storm a football field. Also known as the time my life felt like a football movie and the time that I did not get trampled. The whole experience ended with purchasing and passing around a bottle of Fireball whiskey.

- Girls trip to Vegas. Oh Vegas, the best place to be dressed up and 21. Bonding moments with the crew and ego boosts all around. A girls trip was definitely the way to take on Vegas because 1) getting ready became half of the party and 2) we only spent money on our dinner together.

- Have a crazy 21st birthday (and hangover) With my 21st birthday on a Tuesday and work the next day, I wasn't sure how my crazy birthday dreams would work out. Luckily I have amazing friends who took me out for a fancy drink at Terranea and then for a crazy night in Hermosa. It was fun that on a less crazy night I was the only birthday in the bar, and had a ridiculous number of drinks bought for me as a result. I wouldn't have changed any part of the night even though it brought the birthday appropriate hangover from hell.

Sorrento and Capri, Italy

My last blog post about my Italian "spring break" ended with my friends and I getting up early on Friday to catch our train to Sorrento. After a relaxing and quick train from Rome to Naples, we got on a train that was packed so full that we had to stand in a packed space with no air conditioning. But even that couldn't take away from the beautiful sights and places that we passed through. Huge green hills, small Italian towns, and the ocean(!) made the trip go by quickly. It was the first time I had seen the ocean since Copenhagen in February (but I was literally freezing), and it was really exciting. Plus, the train definitely gave me the "backpacking through Europe" vibe--which might have had to do with the fact that I had packed for 5 days in a slightly larger than average school backpack (a source of pride throughout the trip).

Once in Sorrento we walked to our hostel/hotel, and looked around at the town. Sorrento is famous for its lemons, and there were lemon trees and orchards everywhere. It was beautiful and smelled amazing. We stayed at the Florida Hotel, and even though it was cheaper than our Rome hostel, it was much nicer. They had a great little pool with some lounge chairs, so we tanned by the pool while we waited to check in to our room. This hostel also had a 5 person room, so we all got to stay together.

After dropping our stuff off, we walked back towards the center of Sorrento. We admired some of the best ocean views I've ever seen (PV is still up on that list too), and grabbed some photos before finding an amazing street full of shopping. It was a very Italian road-narrow and crowded-with everything from souvenir shops, leather stores, and bakeries. We all immediately fell in love with ceramic wine stoppers, and I don't think anyone left without buying something. After walking through the street (and deciding we would come back), we went to go find lunch.

We ended up finding this beautiful hotel restaurant with a gorgeous view. The host gave us a table where we could all sit and see the ocean, and after a few more pictures we tried to decide what to order. I decided to get a mojito. Even though it was probably one of the more expensive drinks I've ever purchased at 11 euros, it was probably one of the best drinks of my life. The mojito was huge with tons of fresh mint, and perfect for the warm weather. Every time I see a picture of it, I immediately crave another one. I also ordered linguine with mussels, and it was also great. Give me anything with seafood, and I am a happy camper. Overall it was a pretty expensive meal, but the view and the drink alone made up for it.

During lunch, we had a group discussion and decided that we would take a semi-private boat to Capri that was advertised through our hotel. It took 8 people around the island of Capri with lunch and drinks, and then dropped us off for 3.5 hours and took us back for 70 euro. We originally were a little shocked at the price, but after looking into it, we realized the ferry to Capri and back was over 35 euro and the island was so expensive that lunch and drinks would cost at least 15. Plus, if we wanted to swim we would have to pay to get to and on a beach, where the boating company promised to include a swimming break (at least another 15). The company would also pick us up and drop us off at the hotel. Ultimately the 5 euro difference was worth not having to plan anything and having a boat almost to ourselves (it ended up being the best decision we made all trip).

The rest of our day was spent shopping more, picking up snacks for the next day, and hanging out in Sorrento. There was one interesting experience--while walking back to the hostel, a guy on his scooter slapped my butt as he drove by and then circled back to blow kisses. Seeing as he was driving by quickly, it not only took me by surprise, but also hurt and left a mark. I knew Italian men were stereotypically aggressive, but I was not prepared for that! It ended up being a funny story, but it didn't stop me from yelling some aggressive (and the opposite of flirtatious) things back when he circled around.

The next morning we were up bright and early to get picked up by our boat captains. We were already so happy that we chose this option, after the drive to the harbor was a treacherous, windy, and steep one-way road that would have been impossible to walk down. It also helped that our captains were both cute, young Italian guys named--seriously--Mario and Luigi (sorry, Scott!). The boat was fully booked for 8 people, so the five of us were also joined by a family from Greece. They were so sweet and interesting--they moved to Great Brittan because of the economy, so there young daughter had British accent, while they both had thick Greek ones. Throughout the trip they called us their Charlie's Angels. The second our boat motored off the dock, we all immediately got to tanning and enjoyed the amazing views of Sorrento and then Capri.

The boat took us to the white and green grottos, and then stopped in a little cove for us to swim. The water was freezing, but we braved it and got more excited than the 5 year old Sophia when they brought out pool toys. After we swam for a little, Mario brought our lunches and we ate and tanned in the sun. Lunch was caprese sandwiches that were simple, authentic, and amazing. The tomatoes especially were perfect (and if you know me, I am obsessed with tomatoes). The boat also took us to the famous blue grotto, but since it cost 12 euros, we felt we had already splurged too much that day to justify it. After 4 hours of sightseeing, tanning, and swimming on (and off) the boat, we pulled up to the Capri harbor with three hours to explore the island.

The main town was up higher on the island, but since there was a path that led to it, we opted out of paying for the bus to take us. The walk ended being much longer than we expected, and turned into a hike uphill. It's a good thing I loved the hot weather and the island is beautiful because it definitely could have been rough trek. Once we reached the top we enjoyed the view, window shopped at some very expensive stores, and grabbed some obligatory postcards. The heat was finally getting to us, so we stopped by a crowded stand to pick up some delicious drinks that were half fresh lemon slushies and half orange juice. The drinks were refreshing and cold and exactly what we needed. We wandered around more, grabbed some of the best gelato ever (Rome had the best fruit gelato and this had the best sweet flavors), and finally headed back to the boat. Our ride to Sorrento was only half an hour, but I was pretty sunburnt so I did the Jessica approved lay in the sun with a towel covering you method.

We ate the hotel barbeque dinner, showered, and contemplated going out until it started thunder storming. At that point, we resigned ourselves to some drinks at the hotel bar, and heading to bed on the earlier side since we were leaving for Rome the next morning. Sunday morning we ate the rest of our snacks for breakfast, and Diana and I ran to the market so I could pick up one last gift. The train was much less crowded this time, so we got to enjoy the views while sitting and relaxing on the way back. We actually had an hour in Naples between trains, and Diana and I decided to go out and look for a piece of Pizza. We were warned before that Naples "wasn't for everybody" by travel books and that it was the worst place in Italy from other study abroad students, but I was not prepared for how utterly dirty and unsafe it felt. We were probably in the worse place (hopefully), but trash filled the streets and piled in huge planters, and everyone started swarming the "tourists" (us). It's probably the most uncomfortable place I've ever been. Diana and I quickly headed back to the train station to grab lunch there, and were very happy to be heading back to Rome.

Sorrento and Capri felt like a vacation from our vacation. Just spending the day boating around Capri felt unreal--we couldn't stop saying how it felt like a movie and that we never imagined we'd be able to tan on a boat on the Amalfi Coast. Rome was incredible, and every sight exceeded my expectations. It was incredible walking around so much history, and everyday we had a full agenda of what we wanted to see. But, it was so nice stopping in Sorrento and Capri for two day where we didn't feel guilty for relaxing and sun tanning because we weren't missing out on hundreds of historical sights. It was the perfect way to celebrate the cold spring being over and relaxing after walking miles from morning to night in Rome. Plus by the time we came back, we were ready to tackle our last sight seeing to do list!

Rome, Italy

Since May 1st was a holiday in Prague and most of Europe, all the students in our program got the day off, and almost everyone used it as an excuse to create our own spring break by skipping Thursday classes too. With a 4:25 am wake up call, me and 4 of my friends headed out to the airport for our flight to Rome. When we got there around 10, we dropped off our bags at the hostel and immediately headed back out to do some major sight seeing.

Our first stop was obvious--walking to the Coliseum. On the way, we stopped by a flea market to look around. I came to the quick realization that Italy is very sunny so I grabbed a pair of sunglasses before moving onward. Seeing the Coliseum was beyond exciting. It exceeded my expectations, and it was so crazy to be somewhere that I've studied for so many years. We ended up deciding to buy a 25 euro pass that would get us tour of the Coliseum and of the forum and to cut all the lines. It wasn't the most riveting tour (a lot was what I already knew), but walking around the Coliseum was incredible. Plus it made for the perfect opportunity to make USC puns, which everyone seemed to be definitely be enjoying. Witnessing such a huge ruin from ancient Rome was the perfect way to truly realize that we were in Italy and wake us up from travel grogginess.

One of the things I was most excited about in Italy was the food. Eating Italian food in Italy is on most people's bucket list, so all of us were a little anxious for it to be around noon so we could run over to the nearest restaurant. Since it was a holiday, the place we looked up ended up closed, but we went to a nearby restaurant that had a tripadvisor sticker in the window. We ordered a bottle of wine, and my friend and I split a goat cheese salad, pizza with mushrooms and prosciutto, and carbanara pasta. The pasta was amazing--it was fresh and creamy and had perfect bacon in it. The salad and pizza were good, but didn't live up to my high Italian expectations (not to worry later meals would fix the pizza issue!).

After the huge lunch, we continued to walk around Rome past the Forum. It was closed because it was a holiday, so our tour of the area would be on Thursday, but just walking down the street gave us a good view of all the ruins. It was incredible to be walking in modern Rome next to ancient history. Our next stop was past the huge building which is nicknamed "The Wedding Cake" because of its size and white color. The statues were huge, and like everything else on the trip the pictures did not do it justice.

Our next stop was to hunt down a famous gelatria called Gelatria del Teatro. My USC roommate had warned me about gelato places that weren't legitimate in Italy if they heavily decorated and mounded up their gelato to attract tourists. This place was hard to find and had only gelato in it's windows, but had a long line even on a rainy day. I got three flavors--white chocolate, cheese and cherry, and kiwi. It was by far the best ice cream I ever had, and the kiwi flavor blew me away. It tasted exactly like fresh kiwis, and after (reluctantly) letting everyone have a taste it was voted the favorite. When we left, we could see a bowl of fresh peeled kiwis in the kitchen about to be made into ice cream.

The gelato shop was down the street from the Pantheon so we made our way their next. Sadly, this was also closed for the holiday, but we made plans to come back later. The outside and size of the pantheon was already impressive to look at it, so we were still glad we stopped by.

We continued to the Trevi fountain, and fought our way to the front through the hundreds of other tourists. There we took turns putting our 1 cent euros to good use and making wishes by throwing them over our right shoulder into the fountain. It took a few times to make it a picture worthy experience, but it was fun (and reminded me of the Lizzie McGuire movie).

Since we had been going since 4:30 am and it was past 6pm, we finally all headed back to the hostel to check into our room and take a nap. After the nap, the rest of the group decided to meet up with one of our friend's sorority sisters for dinner, but sadly I was feeling sick with a headache and stomachache so I stayed in and slept (you know you're really sick when skip on a meal in Italy).

The next morning we (mainly me) woke up starving. We stopped by an Italian bakery and picked up a roll/pastry as well as a split decision mini cannoli to accompany breakfast. We ate them on the way to meet for our tour of the forum. We met at the Coliseum, and were happy to see we had a young, Australian tour guide (compared to an old, boring, although enthusiastic tour guide the day before). Our tour of the forum was probably the best thing we did in Rome our entire trip. I didn't even know the area existed before I came here, and would have had no idea what I was looking at. We saw where Julius Caesar was killed, where the vestal virgins kept the fire going, the inside arena for the emperor in his palace, and many more. The tour guide was really interesting, and the forum was over all just an amazing place.

Since it was our last full day in Rome, we knew that it was our only chance to see the Vatican. We heard that the Vatican closed its doors at 4 and actually closed around 6, so we started to make our way over to that area. It was a ways away (metro transfer and a long walk) so by the time we got to the vatican it was around 3:15. We went to go see St. Peter's basilica, but realized that half of our group was wearing shorts and tank tops. A few stops to souvenir shops later and everyone properly clothed with scarfs, we made it inside to look around. It was a huge and church and very pretty, but we quickly realized that it wasn't what we were looking for and a separate area for the Vatican museum and Sistine Chapel entrance was a ways away. Since it was 3:48 when we realized this and a 15 minute walk, we decided to actually run all the way to the entrance. Despite people making fun of us and the hot weather, we made it in the entrance a minute before 4, and was the last group to buy our tickets. It ended up being even more lucky because we had no line to see the Sistine Chapel (although it was very crowded) and we heard that lines could be up to four hours long.

After walking and running around today in shoes that are not meant for that type of activity, we splurged and paid a taxi to take us to dinner. Tony's was the restaurant that 3 of our group had been to the night before--and they had not stopped talking about it since then. I was really excited to see what the best Italian food they've ever tasted was actually like. The owner of the restaurant loves American students so he often takes bottles of wine off the bill or doesn't charge for water or bread. Diana and I had done our research so we knew that on Thursdays all the restaurants make fresh gnocchi. After with bread and olive oil, a shared cheese pizza, the best and most decadent gnocchi ever, and a few bottles of wine, I could barely move. As embarrassing as it was that I nearly ate myself sick (actually not nearly, I'm pretty sure I did), that was probably one of the best meals of my life. We walked around laid on benches until we felt good enough to make our way over to the Coliseum to see it lit up at night. We took some ridiculous photos and called it a night.

That morning we woke up bright and early to pack up our stuff, grab a hostel breakfast, and head to the  station to take the train to Naples (and then another to Sorrento). Sorrento was absolutely incredible and felt like an entirely different trip and place, so I'll leave that for another blog post.

We got back to Rome around 5 on Sunday, and our mission was to make it to the Pantheon before it closed at 6. The open air dome was really interesting, and being back at the Pantheon also meant we were close to the gelato place we visited before. We were all excited to have it again, and I got kiwi and coconut (once again kiwi was the best). We spent some time arguing deciding where to go for dinner. A lot of places in the guide book were closed on Sunday, so we ended up again at Tony's. While I wanted to try another place, ultimately, the ravioli with truffle sauce convinced me that there was no reason to go to another restaurant ever again.



We finished dinner and did a last walk through the city past the lit up forum to our final sight seeing stop at the Spanish steps.

It was a great end to our last night in Italy, and I still can't believe I got to go to Rome. Italy was definitely one of my top 2 trips of the semester, and I can't wait to go explore the country more.