1st Break- Rome & Naples!

For my first break, I went to Italy with my boyfriend, Joe, who's also a GWSB student studying abroad in London. That's one of the cools things about studying abroad in Paris, or Europe in general - it's really easy to coordinate trips with people who aren't in your program.

I left Paris early that Thursday morning on a 2-hour flight to Rome. But once I landed on Italian soil, it was so nice to enjoy 80 degree weather instead of the 60's in Paris. We immediately went sight-seeing to the Coliseum, Roman Forums, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps (Place d'Espagna, I believe it's called?), Pantheon, etc. The nice thing about Rome is that it is an absolutely beautiful city but all the major sites are next door to each other so you really get to see everything in a day. The next day, we took the metro to the Vatican. The line was an hour wait because President Sarkozy also decided to visit the Vatican... but it was great. Absolutely amazing. If you go to the tombs under the Vatican (which is all, by the way, for free), you can see the tomb and burial area for Saint Peter. After that, we went to the Sistine Chapel which is a part of a larger museum called "musei Vatican". They take you through many long chambers of rooms adorned with gold, intricate tapestries, and just beautiful art. This trip will take a true traveler about 3 hours - but we cut ours down to 1 hour, rushing to see the Michelangelo. The Sistine Chapel is much smaller than one would imagine, and its kept with very dim lighting as to preserve the art. Though no pictures were allowed, it was nice to just stand in the midst of this great art and take it all in. After that trip, Joe's family from Naples picked us up and drove us to Southern Italy! The next day, we went to the beaches in Naples: Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi Coast and really got a chance to overlook the coasts. It was so warm that we actually got to SWIM in the water! Never would I have thought I'd be swimming in October, but it happened. :) The rest of the days, we spent a lot of time with Joe's family. It was nice to be in a real Italian town and getting to really know the people - definitely a good contrast to the sightseeing in Rome. I had an EasyJet flight to Paris late Sunday evening and was back in time, ready to tackle my next business course.

Overall, Italy was absolutely beautiful and I cannot wait to go back! Perhaps sometimes this semester? Who knows :)

COLISEUM!

Trevi Fountain

The Vatican - did you know it was it's own "state"? Fun fact for y'all

Mount Vesuvius in the background! Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to visit Pompei but it's definitely at the top of my list for my next visit to Naples :)

Sorrento - the city is absolutely beautiful, I've never seen anything like it

Warm sunlight, clear blue water - nothing better than Southern Italy