Venice

Do I need to mention that I didn't sleep at all on March 24th? I got into bed around 10pm. I tossed until 12am when I skyped Paul, freaking out that I'd forgotten something, and was told that it was all fine and to go back to bed. I turned until 3am when I got out of bed to cook and eat two bowls of oatmeal....don't know what that was about...and then finally 5am arrived. I looked out my window to find Leeds foggy and cold- good day to fly to Venice? I think so.

After a pricy cab ride, Noah, Jordan, Danielle and I found ourselves at Bradford airport; I don't think four people have ever been so energetic at 6:30am. We were disappointed to find that our bag was 10 kilos to heavy to carry on, and blown to find that each kilo over would cost us 10 pounds. We just weren't having that. Half an hour later our bag matched the weight limit, and we had each donned a sweatshirt or two. Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do. Later in the security line, Danielle turned to us in sheer panic when she realized she'd left her Eurorail pass (which costed her about 300 US dollars, and was going to get her around for the next 17 days) back at Suagrwell. Our plane was to take off in 50 minutes. She took off for the airport exit, leaving the rest of us to wonder if she'd make it back in time to catch the flight. Missing it would cost her about as much as that Eurorail pass if she wanted to make it to Italy in time. We sat anxiously at the gate, texting Danielle and praying that she'd make it. With about 10 minutes to spare, Danielle arrived at the gate. Quick, yet emotional group hug, and we boarded the plane.

I fell for Italy the minute I stepped off that plane. We were met with a warm breeze and sunshine; our first meal was legit Italian pizza. Mmmmm. Venice is a city like I've never seen before. The entire thing is on water, so much so that very few people drive. People literally park their boats outside their homes. There is little to do in Venice, as far as touring goes, but just walking around the city was amazing. It is BEAUTIFUL. The first night we took a taxi boat around to see the city at night. Stunning. My camera didn't capture the half of it. A plate of tortellini later, and I hit the sack at our hostel, completely exhasted, content and grateful.

The next day we awoke early. Every day I spent in Italy was 8am to 12am. Sleep is something you obviously can't go without, but to spend more than 8 hours in bed in a place like Italy would be a crime. We had plans to go on a boat tour to Burano, an island off of Venice, and in line for the boat met 3 other Americans also on Spring break who have been studying abroad in Greece. We spent pretty much all day with them after that. It was fun to compare exchange stories, and to hear what life was like in Greece.

Burano was something else. My friend Lorena compared it a crayola box, and I couldn't put it better. Even on a foggy day it popped with color. I don't think I crossed a single bridge in the whole place without stopping to snap a picture. (ps- If I'd been shy about it before, in Italy I threw my pride out the window and unashamedly took touristy pictures the entire time. My camera was an extension of my arm, really.

That night we said goodbye to beautiful Venice, and made our way to the train station. Now, in planning our Italy excursions, my friends and I were all about two things- see as much as possible, and pay as little as possible. Hence our decision to book an overnight train to Rome. It would save us a- time we could be spending traipsing around Italy, and b- money that would have been spent on a hostel for that night. We realized it might be a little difficult to sleep upright on a bumpy train, but we figured we'd be exhasted from the day and what not. Noah brought sleeping pills just in case. I personally was a little concerned. I never fall asleep in cars or buses, but I figured I'd take a chance. Wooooah buddy. Was that a mistake.

I sat shoulder to shoulder with Noah and some other older man, and knee to knee with Danielle the whole night. The train stopped every 15 minutes or so, as people opened up our doors to see if there was room. Room. As if.

One man opened the door and started yelling in Italian, while I said "Non parlo Italiano" over and over. (Paul taught me some Italian before the trip- SO helpful). Needless to say, we didn't get a wink of sleep. We arrived in Rome around 7am, having been awake for 23 hours. We were not the happiest of campers. We managed to find our hostel, Italian signs and all, and I nearly cried when the concierge told us our room wouldn't be ready until noon.

We washed our faces in the lobby bathroom and decided to embrace the moment for what it was. We were in Rome, afterall.