Mi Sueño

Hola familia y amigos,

As my time abroad is drawing to a close, I am feeling really sentimental and wanting to blog. Last weekend, over Spring break Part 2, my three friends and I headed to Paris, France for the weekend. It was a fun frenzy around Paris.

Louvre

We spent almost 3 hours in this museum. There was so much to see and so little time. We got in for free because we are students in the European Union! It was the best! We just had to flash our student visas like we were whipping out FBI badges.

My friends and I with Mona Lisa

The weather was crazy one second it was sunny, the next rainy, then hail!

When we left, the sun was setting over Paris.

Notre Dame

Jumping in front of Notre Dame. I was trying to hide my passport...can you spot it? Clue: look at my exposed belly.

The inside of Notre Dame was stunning!

Arc du Triomphe

Props to Amanda for taking awesome photos!

Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower is a staple of Paris. A site that must be seen. We visited the Eiffel Tower three times and passed it on a boat tour along the Seine River.

The day we decided to climb the Eiffel Tower. We did not know what we were getting ourselves into.

At the tippy-top of the Eiffel Tower. After climbing 669 steps and a quick elevator ride.

On our boat tour of the Seine.

That night, we ventured out to see the Eiffel Tower glitter. It glitters at the top of every hour for 5 minutes.

The Lock Bridge

The Lock Bridge at sunset over the Seine River with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Versailles

Inside the gates of Versailles.

The Hall of Mirrors

Our "mirror picture" in the Hall of Mirrors.

Working on my French glow in the Versailles Gardens! I miss grass!

Shout out to BW! Raise your Stingers high! Awww Jackets!

Our third day visiting was much more beautiful. My friend, Amanda, and I.

All my love,

Courtney

Hola familia y amigos,

Well I have a lot to fill you in on......but I will start with my 9-day trip on my first half of Spring break! I left with just one other friend of mine during Semana Santa (Holy week- the week before Easter). This post is kind of long, but filled with pictures! I left early in the morning on a Thursday to catch a flight to Barcelona from Sevilla. Then from Barcelona, I was off to Athens.

1. Athens, Greece

Kassi and I in front of the Parthenon!

Well, Athens started off the most interesting way possible; getting lost! What is a trip with no issues? Not an interesting one. We had to get from the airport outside Athens to our hostel in the center of Athens. Come to find out, everything in Greece is only in Greek. Let me tell you, Greek does not look like words at all. We took a bus from the airport to the city, but we were not sure where our stop was and could not understand the bus driver. So we got off early. We had to walk over an hour with all of our stuff to our hostel. We were tired, hot, and hungry. But it was ok because we made it to the hostel and had kicked off our trip properly. We ate some dinner and rested up for the next two days in Athens.

That mountain out in the distance....climbed it

Friday, we went to the Acropolis. I got in for free because I had a student ID for my university in Spain. Kassi forgot hers and had to pay 6euro like $9. It was such a beautiful day! The Acropolis was HUGE and had an incredible view of Athens and the sea. Afterwards, we filled our time with exploring the city by eating gyros, gelato, baklava, soaking up the sun and shopping! They had all kinds of neat shops and restaurants. Next time I go to Greece, I would like to visit a beautiful island!

Look! It is the Angora! It was featured in the movie, Hercules.

2. Off to Rome, Italy!

We arrived on the Saturday before Palm Sunday! The city was packed with people, especially priests and nuns. Rome was great city to explore all of the famous sites and sassy Italian culture.

Our first big stop was the Vatican! Check on the bucket list!

Oh, hello, Sistine Chapel!

Inside the Vatican.

I need a bath tub like this!

I bet the Pope parks his car out there.

Just a pope statue.

St. Peter's Square preparing for Palm Sunday and the new Pope in front of St. Peter's Basilica.

Looking down the street to the Vatican.

My favorite day in Rome was on Palm Sunday. Kassi and I did a self-guided tour around some parts of Rome. It was like a day out of a movie. The weather was warm and breezy with the sun high in the sky. We had a relaxing stroll through pedestrian walkways. It was one of those days that made me really think about how appreciative I was for my journey abroad.

My favorite place on our entire trip.

The Plaza was filled with artists.

The Pantheon.

The ceiling of the Pantheon

Trevi fountain! I tossed in 20 cents to come back to Rome.

Colosseum!

Rome was a wonderful city! I really enjoyed this city and recommend others to see it as well!

3. Venice, Italy

We left the sunshine in Rome for rain and cold weather in Venice. We had a day and night which was plenty of time. There was not much to do in Venice, but see how beautiful it is. To celebrate the half-way point of our trip, Kassi and I a relaxing dinner with huge italian pizzas and a bottle of rose wine. We ate dinner for two hours.

The canals were so beautiful.

Sadly, it was so cold that the gondolas were closed.

It was so cold in Venice, my lens fogged up and made this cool picture.

The day we had to leave the weather was so nice!

Well our Venice sure did end with a BANG! There are two airports leaving Venice....we were not aware. We ended up going to the wrong airport, mixing up our flights, and having pay 75euro to get to the other airport to catch our flight ASAP. Despite being broke when we arrived, we made our flight and headed to Prague.

4. Prague, Czech Republic

Honestly, I did not know anything about this city before I went. I had no expectations. Prague blew me away. It was a gorgeous city! We ended up finding an Easter fair that was the sweetest!

My heart-shaped, sugar cube.

Drinking mulled wine. It is like hot cider, but instead it is wine.

An Easter Fair in the center of Prague.

A yummy treat at the fair. It was bread covered in brown sugar and toffee.

The world clock.

Such a beautiful city.

The castle on the hill in Prague.

5/6. Zurich and Lucerne, Switzerland

First off, Switzerland is EXPENSIVE! Holy moly. We were not able to do very much, but walk around Zurcich because everything was closed on Good Friday. We took a side trip to Lucerne. It was a chill way to end our trip.

The bridge in Lucerne. You can't see it, but the Swiss Alps are in the background. It was a foggy day in Lucerne.

I have a complete obsession with fried eggs.

Last picture of the long trip. Goodbye, Switzerland.