Amsterdam

This past Monday through Wednesday I spent in Amsterdam. Of course for me to get there, I took the "backpackers budget" route to get there (by bus). It was a mere 11 hours each way!! I must say it was a better trip than to Edinburgh because the heaters worked and the seats reclined, but by no means was it painless. On they way there, we crossed the channel on a ferry. We actually got to get off the bus and go upstairs where there were couches to lay down on. On the way home, we were in this creepy cargo-like box on a train under the Channel.
Monday we checked into our dingy, to say the least, hostel and cleaned up a bit before we went to the Heineken brewery tour. Then we went out to dinner and called it an early night.
Tuesday we got up and walked to the Anne Frank house tour. The house is just a bunch of empty rooms. I wish that I had read the Diary before going so I could appreciate the situation more. Needless to say, it is now on my "to-read" list. After Anne Frank we went on a canal boat tour around Amsterdam. It was a wonderful way to see the city and learn a little bit about the city. After the boat cruise we did lots and lots of walking around. We walked through the infamous Red Light District as well as some popular sqaures and shopping streets. For dinner we ate at a terrible tapas restaurant next to our hostel. Everyone was really disappointed. After our tapas we headed to a nearby square that was Christmas themed for a drink at the pub and then dessert at one of the many pastry stands.
Wednesday we were on a mission to find the " I AMsterdam" sign. It actually lead us right to the Van Gogh Museum as well. It cost 14 euro to get in (almost $20) so we opted out and decided to just walk around the city more. The only problem with this was that it was extremely cold out! We were nearly numb by the time we got back to our hostel to catch the train to the bus station.
Our hostel was probably the worst ones i've been to. Not only did everyone just light up a cig whenever they want but the rooms were ridiculously small. The bathroom was down the hall and the shower was basically in the check in room. There was no shower curtain or separation between a shower stall and toilet.
Everything aside, I did have a great time in Amsterdam. It is a beautiful city. I don't think it is on the top of my returning list but I am glad that I went and experienced it!

Done-Zo

YAH! I am finished with my coursework! I printed off my papers this morning and am officially carefree!! Not to mention the fact that it took me 50 minutes to print the darn things off but i suppose that is to be expected at City. Nothing is efficient. haha
Anyway, so yesterday I went to the Victoria & Albert museum. I walked through most of it. It holds worldwide sculptures, tapestries, ironworks, jewlery, etc. By the end I discovered that I am kinda museumed-out. I am getting to the point where I am not appreciating things nearly as much as I should be! I know it's terrible but that's just how it goes I guess.
Today I went to Greenwich with my friend Christina to stand on the Prime Meridian. I have officially been at two places in one time. It is located at the Royal Observatory which was cool because I have always loved astronomy. We had to climb this really big hill to get to the top but the views were amazing once we got there.
Tonight I am going out to dinner with the whole Wisconsin crew. It will probably be our last time all hanging out since we are leaving to go on trips and going home at different times. I am not sure where we are going yet but I will be sure to take and post some pictures!
It's so crazy to think I will be home in 8 days!

Finals Week!

These past two weeks have really been devoted to getting my school work in order. I had two group presentations and projects to hand in last week and this week I had 3 exams and 2 2000+ word essays to write! But I am happy to say that I am DONE! I plan to go to school tomorrow to print off my papers and submit them to the course office!
I cannot believe how quickly my time is flying by! In about a week I will be back home! I have one last trip planned to Amsterdam. I am leaving on Sunday night by bus and arriving in Netherlands Monday morning. It will be an interesting 11 hours. I bought myself a fleece throw after the freezing experience I had in Scotland. But overall I am really excited for the trip!

EATALY

Hope everyone back home had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. I wish that I could have been there but I really can't complain because I spent my weekend in Rome with my friend from high school Morgan!
I arrived in Rome on Friday afternoon. It seemed that one thing after another was going wrong for me. My debit card wouldn't work at the ATM, I stood in line for almost an hour and half waiting to get onto a bus into the city center, and I didn't really know what i was going to do with myself since morgan had class and wasn't flying in until later that night. But I got to the hostel safely, checked in, and claimed by bed.
I did a lot of walking around that evening. I went to the Spanish Steps, Piazza Popolo, Piazza Navona (sp), Trevi,  and crossed the bridge to see the massive court house. Once it started getting a little darker out, I decided to head back home since I was all by myself. I went back and met some really cool kids in my hostel room. We just hung out, talked, and drank a bit. They were mostly from Indiana, and Colorado State. I was SO happy when Morgan finally made it into town! There was a bar underneath our hostel that we went and got a drink and mapped our day for Saturday!
Boy, did we pack A LOT into that day! We mapped it all out on Sunday and we walked 8 miles just on Saturday and then another 5 on Sunday.  Anyway, we did all the hotspots! The colosseum, ancient ruins, the forum, palantino, shopping on National Ave, the Castle, the Museum of Rome, Spanish Steps (again), Trevi, plaza after plaza! We just kept on moving! Of course we made plenty of time for Italian pasta, PIZZA, and gelato.

one coin to return to Rome and another to one day get married

Sunday we woke ourselves up early to go stand in line for the Vatican Museum.  It is free on the last sunday of every month so we had perfect timing but we knew we had to beat the crowds. We actually only ended up waiting for an hour and half. Not too bad!

Famous Adam & Eve inside the Sistine Chapel

I also saw the Pope! He gives a prayer every Sunday at noon in St. Peter's Square. After the prayer we went inside the basilica and climbed the 321 steps to the top of the coupe! It was raining out but I still got some awesome views of Rome.

After the Vatican City, we did a lot more walking around Rome, stopping at some plaza's and eating amazing pizza! 

Monday morning I had to wake up at 630 to get back on a bus to the airport. It was hard getting off the plane to snow after spending a weekend in chilly but sunny Italy. I think that we went at the perfect time of year. It wasn't nearly as busy as in the summer months. The weather really was perfect (minus some rain on Sunday).