Please forgive all the horrible typos. I'm writing this on my tablet while on the bus, and the autocorrect paired with a moving vehicle mean this post is a disaster area. I'm too lazy to fix it all though. So, just the best you can :)
Right, so where was I up to on the days? Did I tell you about Pompeii? Well, it was awesome! The amazing history's all so visible and available to seemed feel. The guide was interesting and passionate and the whole day was great. The next day was in Naples too, and I went on quest to find the eat pray love pizza place. The internet told me it was amazingly life changing pizza, but I was super underwhelmed. I had the magherita with extra buffalo mozzarella and itdidnt really have that much flavour. It was also a littleburnt from the wildfire pizza oven.it was verycheap, but not really the experience I was expecting. However, I made up for it by going to an amazing gelato store. First I walked down all these alleyways and came across a big section of market selling stuff to make your own Christmas nativity scenes. There's so muchstuff, just like for townhouses, only it was Christmas. It was pretty cool! Anyway, then I found the gelato place and had a chocolate one and a caramel nut one. Very good ice cream! Then I walked to the botanical gardens, but they were closed :( so, I wandered the city a but then called it a day.
Then the next day was Saturday. I caught the train back to Rome then found the starting hotel for the contiki tour. Now, I'm just going to give a bare bones description of everthingnive done since joining up with the tour a couple of days ago because it's too much to write otherwise!
So, I made it to the hotel without much trouble and met my room mate. She is awesome, we are about the same age, and she's doing her PhD, so we have lots to talk about and she and I seem to enjoy similar things and get on well. She's really nice and not annoying at all :) so, that's great! And there's another girl, Vikings from Canada who's lovely too. Oh, my room mate is Ange from NZ. I've also met a really nice guy from California named Frank... I know right mum? Haha! Anyway, he's a real life doctor! Nice guy, great sense of humour :) I've spent a fair bit of time with him and it's quite refreshing because he likes to talk about all kinds of things, not just sport and whatever like a lot of guys you meet. Plus, a lot of the people on this tour are like 18, 19 years old and I feel so old! Haha, they seem so young (not to mention a tad dumb at times). But there's plenty of peeps my age too. Some really nice fun people!
So, Saturday we met up in the afternoon and had a tour meeting. Then we went for dinner at pizza place in Rome.there was live entertainment with a piano player and an old dodgy guys singing sleepy Roman love songs. It was funny, and the pizza was nice.
Then, on Sunday it was time to see the coloseum. We had a local guide, a lovely old granddad called Pietro. He took us through colosseum and the Roman forum, both of which were awesome. I especially liked the colosseum, it really easy to imagine the emperors and gladiators and everything. Amazing buildings! After that it was lunch time so the group went to a cafe high on the hill to look out over Rome. Then we had a walking tour Moffat all replaces
I'd already visited, but I went anyway because they are so awesome. I got another gelato from the great gelato places and threw some coins in the trevi fountain tainted for luck and some wishes. I also bought a small watercolor painting of the fountain because it's my favourite thing in Rome. After through walking tour we had some free time. Ange, Vicki, Frank and I hung out together and went to an amazing old church, then frank and I wen4 to a museum, then we met back upland went back to th3 hotel to meet for dinner. Some of the group, US included, went to dinner at a restaurant where there was live entertainment, opera singing! We had a 4 course meal of eggplant and mozzarella, then two types of pasta, 4hen veal and veg, then creme caramels. The meal was mediocre, but fun. The creme caramels sucked!
Ok, big break in writing here! The next section was written a few days later:
Ok, now I don't remember wherein was up to. The start of contiki? The second day? I don't think I wrote about Florence.
We got on the bus in the in the afternoon after the Vatican. The paintings in the Sistine chapel were simply amazing, I really enjoyed it! Then we hopped on the bus to Florence. Florence was great too. Apart from the rain! We went on a walking tour of Florence. It's so beautiful! But it starTed pouring with rain. Ange, Vicki, Frank, and I walked around lots, and got really really soaking wet. We went to a pretty cool museum in a palace during a thunderstorm - was awesome :) we had a group dinner of meatballs and then went to a karaoke bar, which was fun. I didn't sing, but I did dance.
The second night in Florence was a special Tuscan dinner. I sat with a really fun group and we had four courses: bruschetta and salami, some pasta, roast pork, and tiramisu for dessert. It was a lovely meal, made all the better by the friendly waitstaff. If there's one complaint I have about Italy, its that nearly all the restaurant staff are a bit rude and abrupt. It makes the nice ones really stand out.
The next day was a medieval village and a wine tasting. I tried it all. I had no idea what I was drinking, but some of it I liked and some not so much. That night Frank and I shared a really big t-bone streak, and it was super yum! Then we went for a walk around the city and hung out for a while. He is amazingly easy to talk to. I haven't talked to a guy this much, with this much mutual interest and understanding for a very long time. Frank has sort of made me realise that a relationship with a guy doesn't have to be so much work. With Brook there was so much work to keep myself happy because he couldn't do it, and with Andy there is so much work just communicate normally. Or at all really. We've never talked like I've talked to Frank these past few days. And I've also come to realise how serious Andy is and how I don't bring up certain subjects with him because I know they will make him grumpy or upset, or I don't bother because I know he won't understand. Not just from a language barrier point of view, but just because he won't understand on a personal or cultural level. I'm thinking this is not what I want in a life partner.
But anyway, back to the tour... Today we are back on the bus headed for Pisa and Verona, and finally Venice. I'm happy we've got two days left but also sad. But, it's possible Frank and I might do some more travel together in the future, which would be awesome. But, I'm starting to get a bit bummed about my career prospects in Korea. They're really not that great and I'm not sure what to do about it. I might do some online teaching and work on my writing. If I can make enough to live off that way. But the thought of teaching kindergarten with only 10 days break in a year is a bit disheartening.
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Ok, it's now Saturday and the contiki tour is over. I'm on the bus headed back to Rome. Vicky left yesterday, Frank left this morning, early, and I left Ange at the hotel. So, where was I up to? I know this is an extremelybare bones account of my tour, but there is just too much that went on, both in terms of travel and emotionally to sum up here without writing a novel!
So, on the bus headed for Pisa, Verona, and Venice. We got to Pisa and it was really cool. I took about a million photos of the leaning tower! Its really, really leaning! Frank and I hungout together again (are you seeing a theme here?), and explored one of the churches near the leaning tower. Man, if there's one thing Italy does exceptionally well, it's churches! After some free time exploring Pisa we were back on the bus bound for Verona. Sadly, by the time we made it to Verona it was, again, pouring with rain, and also dark. And cold! But, rain, darkness and cold are excellent, and valid, excuses to cuddle certain people :) we saw a few of the alleged places from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, a pretty swollen river, and stopped off in a church where a choir was singing. I really liked that, the choir was lovely and I can see why they have them. The sound of the singing in the beautiful space of the church is really special.
Then we joined the group for dinner. We had a selection of pastas and stuff. It was ok. Then, back on the bus headed for Venice. We arrived at about 10.30 at night, and Ange and I just went straight to bed. The next day, Friday, was cold, dark, and wet. We got the bus to the ferry and then the ferry to Venice, which was flooded! They put out all these platforms to walk on above the water so you can get around. It was probably coldest day of my life! I should have worn my big down jacket, but I didn't want to get it wet and then have to transport it. So, I was just wearing a jumper and it was COLD! Anyway, we got to Venice and went to a glass blowing demonstration, which was amazing! The artists, or whatever you call a glass blower, just casually put together these beautiful glass things like a vase and a horse. It was like magic to watch. Then we went to the shop section and I bought a glass necklace, which I love. It's red and gold, which are currently my favourite colours.
Then we had walking tour which was really lame because too many of the streets were flooded, so it was long, cold, and not that interesting. When we'd finished that, Frank and I, once again, teamed up and explored the city. We went to another amazing church, which had beautiful mosaic murals on the walls and ceilings. Then we went up the bell tower, which in hindsite was a bad idea because it was open up there, and the wind and rain were fierce. It was so, so cold! But the view was amazing. We stayed up as long as we could bare it, then headed down to go to a museum. The museum was actually great, but full of stairs, which really hurt my knee. But, I made it upland down about a billion stairs to see some amazing paintings, some huge swords, and some creepy dungeons. The museum was in an old palace, which certainly makes for an impressive setting!
After that it was time to meet up with the group for a gondola ride. Ange and I chose not to go, and I'm glad we did. It was so cold a dark! Instead we went and did some shopping for Ange. Then, back to the group for dinner. It was our farewell dinner, and everyone was in a good mood. I had an excelent night and nice food. I haven't laughed as much as I haven this tour for so, so long. Andy is a lot of things, but funny isn't really one of them. Anyway, laughing is great :) after dinner caught the ferry back to the bus, and drove back to the hotel. Because it was the last night, everyone wanted to hang out together. I don't think the hotel was too keen on it, but we all managed to get together for a while. Ange left quite early. I really like her, but I don't think she's a very social person, and has a bit of a bad habit of looking down on people who she doesn't like much. But anyway, I hung out with Frank all night, until he left at 5.30 this morning. So I didn't sleep at all apart from a couple hours between 5.30and when the bus for Rome left at 7.30. I did pretty well saying goodbye to everyone, and managed not to cry. I kind of had to leave Frank waiting for his bus alone though, because if I waited with him would have cried. So, sorry Frank, I wasnt running away from you, I just didn't want to cry all over you.
So, I'm now about halfway back to Rome. I'm looking forward to being back there, I really love that city. I'm going to take it easy for a couple of days before I fly to Egypt, both to recover from contiki and to rest my knee. And to try and sort myself out emotionally. I seem to be wanting something very different now from what I thought I wanted a week ago. Possibly its time reassess the plan. Or make an entirely new one.
* * *
Ok, made it to my hotel in Rome, and now I'm crying. Feeling the comedown from such fun group travel, I guess. And, of course, saying goodbye to Frank. I'm not sure what to do about that one. Well, I know what I want.
Ok, Sam's five things on contiki Italy:
1) Frank, hands down.
2) Ange and Vicki, awesome friends.
3) Thunderstorms in Florence.
4) Gelato.
5) the Vatican
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