The Spanjich Family Visits Florence!

Even despite the devastation of hurricane sandy, my parents, Georgette, and Abby were able to come visit me in Florence. With all the stress my parents have been under I am glad that they were able to escape reality for a little bit in order for me to share my Florentine experience with them! They arrived in Florence around 10:30am on sunday. I greeted them at the airport with my Spanjich family sign and open arms to give them the biggest hugs! Mommy and Gette fought each other as to who would get to me first, and Gette won! It was so great to seem after 3 months, especially after everything they have gone through the past few weeks. We hopped in taxis and went straight to their hotel to check them in and drop off their bags before we started exploring! There hotel was on the Arno River right near the Ponte Vecchio. The views from their room windows were incredible.  After checking in I took them to see my apartment on Via Gihibellina. I gave them a quick tour of what I like to call home while I am here. By this time their stomachs were rumbling from a hours of traveling and the anticipation of arriving in Florence! I took them for their first traditional tuscan meal at Gusto Leo, where we ate, drank wine, and cheersed to a good florentine week. After our tummies were full I took them to see Piazza Santa Croce and Piazza del Duomo. Then we walked through the leather markets in order to start the observation process of what they would want to purchase later in the week. Walking around the leather markets their jet lag kicked in so we headed back to their hotel so they could nap in order to rejuvenate themselves. Before heading back to the hotel we stopped to get some wine and I was able to impress my family with my Tuscan wine skills and proved to them that I really do take class here! A power nap can't hurt anyone. After awaking from their naps I took them to mass said in italian at the Duomo. We lit a candle as a family after mass. The evening continued as we walked around the outdoor markets by the Santa Maria Novella Basilica where they indulged in sampling cheese, tuscan pastries, and salami. At 7:30 we met Cait and her parents at Gato il Volpe for a family style dinner! We all enjoyed each others company at dinner & then headed to bed for the night!

Entrance To My Apartment

In Front of the Duomo

Walking Down The Street With Our Wine Bottles

Monday: I had class on from 8-3 so unfortunately, the family was on their own for the beginning of the day. With my guidance they headed to the Santa Maria Novella train station to go to Pisa for the day. They enjoyed their day walking around Pisa, taking the typical tourist picture, and climbing the leaning tower! I met them at their hotel once they returned from Pisa. I was excited to hear all about their Pisa adventures. Next on the agenda was lunch! I took them to the one and only Pino's Panini place! Needless to say they all fell in love and now know why I call it the my hero of Florence. We sat around one of the high tables surrounded by wine bottles and enjoyed our paninis and each others company. After savoring every bite of lunch it was time to explore the Ponte Vecchio. We walked across the bridge and window shopped as we gazed at all the sparkling jewelry in the windows. Once on the other side of the bridge I took them for their first gelato experience! They all sampled a few flavors before deciding on which one to get. They loved it! We walked with our gelato around the high end fashion district of Florence leading us to Piazza di Republica. Mom, Gette, Abby, and I all rode the carousel as dad took our pictures. It brought back lots of memories for all of us when we were little and had our horse back riding birthday parties. On they way back to the hotel I took them to rub the bores nose for good luck! Next we headed back to the hotel for happy hour before going to dinner. We had wine, prosciutto, and pecorino cheese before heading to dinner. After happy hour we went to Il Teatro for dinner. After dinner they walked me back to my apartment and then they headed back to their hotel for a good nights sleep! 

Lunch At Pino's

Rubbing The Bore's Nose For Good Luck

Having Some Fun

Ponte Vecchio

Santa Croce

Crossing the Ponte Vecchio

Me & Georgette

Mom & Dad

Enjoying Some Gelato

Mom, Gette, and I Riding The Carousel

It's Wine Time

Tuesday: While I was in class in the morning Mom, Dad, Gette, and Abby went to the Boboli Gardens and the Piti Palace. The Boboli Gardens is one of my favorite scenic places to visit in Florence. After class I was going to meet them in front of the Duomo. Mary, Trevor, and Steve came with me to take part in our florentine afternoon adventures. Once we met up with my family we headed to Mercato Centrale. They all really enjoyed the indoor market being able to see the butchers, cheese stands, the vibrant fresh fruits and veggies, and the homemade pasta! While in the market I took them to one of the stands I had gone to on my gastronomic tour with class. They had the opportunity to taste and sample homemade apple strudel, fresh apple juice, prosciutto, and grapa. After exploring the indoor market we walked around the leather markets and made various purchases! How could they come all the way to Florence and not see The Statue of David? We went to the Academia to see David and the shattered glass room. David was so much bigger than I thought he would be. We stopped at GROM to get some gelato! YUMMY! We then headed back to the hotel to drop all of our purchases off and to get ready for Pino's wine tasting! At 7:00pm we went to Pozzo Divino for Pino's wine tasting. The wine tasting took place in Pino's wine cellar, which is 700 years old and used to be part of a prison. During our time there we got to taste one white wine, two red wines, tuscan salami, balsamic vinegar, parmesan and pecorino cheese, and olive oil. Before tasting each wine Pino would explain the wine in Italian and then his assistant would translate it for us. The wine tasting was a blast and I was happy to treat my family! After wine tasting we went out to dinner at Baldovino. Once we finished dinner mom and dad headed back to the hotel and my friends and I took Gette and Abby out florentine style. Throughout the night we went to shots cafe, danced at uncle jimmys, and then red garter. We were all saddened by the carousel being closed when we passed by it on the way to red garter. The night concluded of course with secret bakery! 

Mom & Dad At The Boboli Gardens

Gette At The Boboli Gardens

Pino's Wine Cellar

Mommy, Daddy, and I

Salute! Pino's Wine Tasting

SO Sad The Carousel Was Closed

Secret Bakery!

Wednesday: I met them at their hotel for breakfast on wednesday morning. We all enjoyed breakfast and coffee together and then headed out for another Florentine day! First on the list for the day was the Santa Croce. We went inside the Santa Croce and the museum. I showed them where Michelangelo, Galileo, and Macchieveli are buried. They really enjoyed the inside of the church and the artwork inside. While I was in class they went to explore the Palazzo Vecchio and ate lunch at Gusta Pizza! After enjoying their lunch they wrote a message on their pizza ticket and placed it inside the table along with hundreds of other peoples tickets. They met up with me after class and I took them to the popsicle place! We all enjoyed fresh fruit popsicles dipped in chocolate and covered in nuts! Then it was time to climb the Duomo! I had worked up the courage and the confidence to do so with the help of Gette and Abby! Mom and Dad sat on a bench in the piazza as we made our journey to the top. 463 steps later we had finally reached the top! The view from the top of the Duomo was immaculate especially with the sun setting behind the mountains as the sky glowed a shimmering pink, orange, and yellow. We coincidently ran into Deanna and her family at the top! From the top we could look down and see mom and dad sitting on the bench. The climb down was worse than the way up. On the way down the stairs seemed a lot steeper. We were cracking up about the asian tourists who stopped every two feet to take selfies on their ipad. After climbing the tower I went back to my apartment to gather my things to spend the next few nights at the hotel with Gette & Abby! I met them back at the hotel for happy hour before meeting Deanna and the rest of the Hehl family for dinner at Aqua al 2. Dinner was absolutely delicious and I could not have been happier to have had steak for the first time in three months. The steak was so tender that it melted like butter in your mouth covered in blueberry sauce. I can't wait to visit Aqua al 2 in it's Washington DC location! After dinner we headed back to the hotel because we were waking up really early thursday morning to do as the romans do! 

Inside The Santa Croce

Enjoying Our Popsicles

Gette & Abby At The Top Of The Duomo

Top Of The Duomo

Thursday: It was weird waking up Thanksgiving morning and not going to or watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Instead we woke up at the crack of dawn in order to catch the 7:00am train from Florence to Rome! We decided to do Thanksgiving Roman style. We took the high speed train and we arrived in Rome before 9:00am. We purchased tickets for the hop on - hop off bus and began our day full of sight seeing! So much Roma so little tima! Our first stop was the Vatican. We walked around Saint Peter's Square and stood in the center to see all the columns aligned. Next we visited the Vatican Museum  and went to the Sistine Chapel. After viewing the Sistine Chapel, we went into the Basilica, which was indescribable. The walls were covered in gold and mosaic tile. The architecture had such intricate detail. We walked through the Basilica and took in all that it had to offer. Next stop was the Trevi Fountain, which is one of my favorite places in Rome. When I was in Rome four years again I threw my three coins into the fountain. My third wish had been granted to come back again. We all gathered our three coins, stood with our backs towards the fountain and tossed our coins in. The first coin was for love, the second coin for luck, and the third coin to come back again! Fingers crossed my coins work just like they did the last time I had came to Rome! After gazing at the fountain for some time we walked up the Spanish Steps in Pizza di Spagna. After doing all that walking we worked up an appetite for lunch! Unfortunately it was not a 5 course turkey meal, but it was still delicious. Our sight seeing continued with the Coliseum. Unfortunately, we go there 5 mins after the Coliseum had closed so we were unable to go inside. I was rather disappointed because it was one of my favorite things I saw the last time I was in Rome. Next we walked around the Forum and then got gelato! After enjoying some gelato we finally found the Pantheon. By this time it was dark out so we headed back to the Trevi Fountain to see it all lit up at night! Our Roman adventures came to an end with a glass of wine, a big bowl of pasta, and the high speed train ride back to Firenze. It was not your typical Thanksgiving day, but it was one filled with family and new memories! 

Spanjich Family In Front Of The Basilica

Trevi Fountain

Trevi Fountain

Daddy & I On The Spanish Steps

The Coliseum 

Friday: Time seriously flew by this week! But, you know what they say time really does fly when you are having fun! Now that we had explored the city of Florence and the capital of Rome, it was time to adventure through the Tuscan country side! We met at the Santa Maria Novella train station where our tour guide met us for the day. We drove through the mounts and the Chianti region. The rolling hills were filled with autumn technicolor leaves, vineyard vines, and olive groves. Our first stop was Poggio Alloro, which was a horse farm. While at the farm we saw incredible up close views that we saw along the drive and were greeted by Pepe, the friendly farm dog! Next we were on our way to Siena! Our leader guided us through the city and explained things along the way. The city was very quite being that it is off season for tourism. It was really cool to see the Piazza del Campo, which is where they famous horse race takes place every summer! After walking through the city we were on to our next stop Monteriggioni! Monteriggioni is a quiet little town home to the one of the oldest medieval castles and only 40 inhabitants. The castle was really cool to see and the views were all so incredible. The way the sun was glistening over the vineyards and rolling hills made for the most beautiful skyline. We also saw people picking olives off the trees for the olive harvest. Then it was time for lunch! We went back to Poggio Alloro and ate upon a hill over looking the farm and in the distance could see San Gimignano. The first course at lunch was traditional tuscan pecorino cheese and bruschetta bread. There was tuscan bread on the table to dip in this years harvest of olive oil. There were also freshly picked olives on the table.  The fresh olive oil and olives were nothing like I have ever tasted before. The main meal was homemade penne pasta with meat sauce. Along with lunch they served two different kinds of wine. The first wine was the only white DOCG wine in tuscany: Vernaccia di San Gimignano. The second wine was a Chianti Riserva. For dessert they served the dessert wine Vin Santo with biscotti to dip in it. After lunch we headed to our next city San Gimignano, which is the little manhatten of italy. I was so sad to have gotten there to only find out that the world champion gelato place was closed for holiday. Our tour for the day concluded at my favorite place in Florence, Piazza Michelangelo. Being up there was the perfect way to end our Florentine week together! We enjoyed bistecca al florentina for dinner accompanied by wine. We all really enjoyed our week together! I spent their last night at the hotel with them and we all had breakfast together this morning before they departed for the airport. Thanks you mommy, daddy, georgette, and abby for coming to visit me and sharing in my florentine experience with me! See you all when I return to the states three weeks from today. MISS YOU ALL ALREADY! 

Siena

Piazza del Campo

Monteriggioni

Poggio Alloro

Poggio Alloro

Tuscan Country Side

San Gimignano

Mom & Dad in San Gimignano

Piazza Michelangelo 

I can't believe I return to the states exactly three weeks from today. It is a bittersweet feeling and I will make the most out of my remaining time here. There is only two weeks of classes left before finals week. This thursday I am leaving for the Christmas Munich Markets to truly get me into the Christmas spirit! 

IRELAND!

I have always dreamed of going to Ireland and envisioning everything around me to be emerald green. I was slightly disappointed when I tried to look up flights to embark on my Ireland adventure only to find out that flights only went to and from Florence to Ireland on tuesdays and saturdays. I had pondered it for quite some time because I would have had to miss two days of classes, but finally came to the conclusion, when would I ever had the opportunity to fulfill one of my dreams like this again. Needless to say me, Deanna, Megan, and Mia took the risk of missing classes and were headed to the land of the green! Our flight left out of Pisa left at 6:45am, which only meant we would have to get up at the crack of dawn in order to get to Pisa on time for our flight. Unfortunately, the trains from Florence to Pisa do not start that early so we came up with other scenarios. We traveled through the streets of Florence  as the dirty stayouts walked the streets at 3am in order to catch the bus at 3:40am to Pisa. I do not even think I slept for an hour the night before we left or for the rest of the trip for that matter. For the 5 days we were in Ireland we all toughed it out with just a backpack full of whatever we needed so we did not have to pay and check our bags. Upon arriving at the airport we went through customs and patiently waited at our gate for our plane to Dublin to board!  The flight was really smooth and I was able to see a beautiful sunset out the plane window. The views that I saw out the window of the plane while landing were absolutely incredible.  Once in Dublin, it was quite pleasant to hear people speaking English for a change and the Irish accents just made me melt into a bowl of mush.  We took the local bus to the temple bar area where our hostel was situated. 

Our hostel may not have been the best accommodations, but let's face it all we were going to be doing there was sleeping. After checking in we headed out to start exploring Dublin. But, our first stop was breakfast! We found a cute little cafe and had a traditional irish breakfast of eggs and coffee. Our next stop was Saint Patrick's Cathedral, which reminded me very much of Saint Patrick's Cathedral in NYC. We walked around the streets and headed to the Guinness Factory! The Guinness factory is the largest brewery world wide. The original lease for the building was signed for 9000 years for a site at the Saint James bridge. That sounds completely absurd doesn't it?  When you walked into the Guinness factory you were standing in the largest beer stein in the world. The  beer stein could hold 14.3 billion pints of beer if it was entirely full. There is over 3 million pints of beer are produced a day in the factory.  Guinness beer is enjoyed in over 150 countries world wide where the original recipe is still used! It was really fascinating to walk through the factory and museum to see how the process is done, what ingredients are used, and how long the entire process actually takes. Along the way  you had a guinness tasting and when you reached the top gravity lounge you enjoyed a pint of beer to yourself! When the bar tender handed me my pint of guinness he drew a shamrock in the foam that remained in the top of my glass. The view from the gravity lounge was an incredible overlooking all of Dublin. The room slowly rotated so you go a complete 360 degree view. After spending most of our afternoon at the Guinness factory our next stop was Trinity College where we saw the book of Kells.  After walking around Trinity College campus for a bit, we headed back to the hostel to freshen up before dinner. We walked around till we found an irish pub to eat dinner in and to listen to live irish music. For dinner we all enjoyed shepherds pie with irish cider beer as we listened to the irish band play guitar and sing along. After dinner we were on an Irish high and continued to walk through the temple bar area. We finally came across a pub called Oniel's where there was a live band coming on at 10. We found a table to sit and listened to the band. One of the members played a guitar and the other played a flute. They of course picked us americans out and continued to joke around with us throughout the night. Megan and Mia enjoyed Irish & Bailey's coffee. Deanna and I enjoyed some traditional Irish beer which  some nice Irish men kindly bought for us. The bar tender allowed us to sample several different beers before we chose which one we actually wanted. We were practically falling asleep at the table, but every time we would try to leave another good song came on or the band made another comment towards us. The night concluded with an irish river dancer showing us how to irish step dance and the band teaching us a traditional irish song. Needless to say, by the time we left the pub we had fallen madly and deeply in love with Ireland, the pub scene, and the Irish people. 

Guinness Factory

First Guinness

Ain't That The Truth

O'NEIL

The next morning we went on a tour of Wicklowt National Park. We were greeted by our tour guide Eamon, who was the cutest little old Irish man. We intently listened to him speak with his accent and when he tried to teach us some of the traditional Gaelic language. On our drive to the park, he gave us some history about Dublin and the land that we would be exploring for the day. Dublin has a population of 1.2 million people. Ireland has 3000km of coast land and 40,000 hectares of natural environment.  There are five national parks throughout Ireland. On first stop on the tour was an area of land which used to be an ice age valley from 12,000 years ago. The rolling hills went on for miles, as streams flowed through them, and wild flowers covered them. I have never seen so much green in my life. It was everything I had imagined it to be and more. As we drove through the park,  we made stops along the way and Eamon would enlighten us as to what we were looking at. Wicklowt National Park has been used to film a lot of movies due to the good tax regime. The movies that have been filmed within the park are Braveheart, Excaliber, and P.S. I Love You. I actually got to sit on the bridge where the movie had been filmed! Unfortunately, there were no "wild" irish dogs and a Jerry to come and save me. It was really cool to see that, considering Deanna and I had watched to move to prep ourselves for Ireland. We made a stop along a stream where we enjoyed coffee, tea, and cookies that Eamon had packed in a thermos for us to enjoy. After exploring some more we stopped for some lunch in an Irish pub. We enjoyed beef guinness stew as we sat around the fire place to get the chill out of our bones. Once our bellies were full it was time to explore some more! Next we stopped in Glendalough where Saint Kevin is believed to be buried. The remains of the church where he once was still stand there today. There is an old Irish myth that Saint Kevin is believed to be buried underneath the cross that remains there. If you stand facing towards his tower, wrap your arms around the cross, and try to have you fingers touch it is believed that you will be in contact with him and receive good lucky. Needless to say, I tried to do it and my short little arms were almost able to do it. There was also the rock that Saint Kevin used to sit upon where he would pray and look over Glendalough, the monastery, and the people. He prayed so hard that his finger prints are in the rock. Many people used to come to the rock on pilgrimage in order to place their hands where his once were.  Of course I placed my hands where his once were. Some of the views that we saw on the tour were some of the most beautiful landscapes that I have ever seen. The pictures that I took does not even do it justice. After a long day of venturing and hiking we headed back to the hostel to get ready for the Ingrid Michaelson concert! The concert was at a small theater in Dublin. Her opening act, Gavin James, was your typical red headed irish man who had the most beautiful voice. Ingrid Michaelson is a great performer and crowd pleaser too! She was really funny and even gave a shout out to her fellow Americans. Once the concert was over we got to meet the opening act Gavin James & got his autograph too. After the concert it was bed time because in the morning we were headed to Galway!

Wicklowt National Park

Tea & Cookies By The Stream

Gazing At The Beautiful Landscape

The Bridge From P.S. I Love You

Saint Kevin's Cross

Saint Kevin's Finger Prints

Meeting Gavin James

Ingrid Michaelson

Early the next morning we boarded a 7:00 bus from Dublin to Galway. I think I slept the entire way and woke up when we reached the bus station in Galway where Conor greeted us. While in Galway we were staying with some friends from SJU. Conor led us back to his apartment where we would be staying. After dropping our bags off we went to get breakfast sandwhiches at a little cafe. Galway is a tiny little fishing village on the west coast of Ireland. After breakfast we walked along the bay near the Galway light house. We spent hours walking along the shore line and writing things in the sand. After spending time on the beach we went to a coffee shop to have some bailey's cheesecake and a cup of tea to warm up. The weather was quite chilly in Ireland compared to our 65 degree whether in Florence. After warming up we walked through the quaint little town and went in and out of all the shops. After a day of exploring we headed back to Conor's apartment and all went out for dinner together. After dinner Conor and Andrew showed us a night out on the town Irish style. We pub hopped throughout the night and had a great time! The people at the bar kept calling me and Deanna leprechauns because we were so short haha! We got up early the next morning and headed to the Cliffs of Moher. Unfortunately, the weather was not in the best conditions for it. It was cold, rainy, and foggy, but the view was still absolutely incredible. I felt as if I were standing on the edge of the world. Standing on the Cliffs of Moher was the closest I have been to home since I left in August. I stood on the edge and called across the Atlantic Ocean to everyone at home. My voice just carried and blew in the wind. We also stopped at a family farm that overlooked the valleys of Galway. We concluded our final night in Ireland at a pub drinking bailey's and irish coffee while listening to a traditional irish band. After a long few days we headed back to the apartment to pack up our stuff and head home to Florence in the morning. We woke up early saturday morning and took the bus to the Dublin airport. The flight home went well and we were welcomed by the warm florentine weather once stepping off the plane. We headed back to our apartment in order to prepare for all our guests that would be visiting during thanksgiving week!

Writing In The Sand

Galway Bay

Sloncha!

The Farm In The Valley

Cliffs of Moher

Cliffs of Moher

I'm On The Edge Of The World!

Galway Bay

I would probably have to say that Ireland has been my favorite trip that I have taken thus far. The landscapes were absolutely beautiful. Every single person I met was cheery, happy, and friendly. Not to mention that their accents just swooped me off my feet. It was nice not to have a language barrier for a change. The pubs, the dancing, and the live music made the trip so enjoyable! As they say in Gaelic, Slancha, which is there version of cheers!