Day 29 – Copenhagen – Thursday June 21st

We woke up bright and early (7am) to get ready to go to a lecture at Copenhagen University in their Computer Science department. We took an incredibly long bus ride to the university and arrived to meet the very lively professor that taught us for the rest of the day. He was a good lecturer and very interesting. He gave three lectures; the culture of Denmark, the life of Peter Naur, and mobile technology around the world. We had short breaks in between each lecture, so we never were completely restless. The cultural review was very interesting. He made a large point to say how respectful, tolerant, and trusting Danish people were compared to Americans. I thought for sure that he was just talking up his people (to some degree, he probably was), but I do have a story for later that proved his point. The lecture lasted until about 1:30 or so, and the class took a bus back towards the main square near our hotel. We caved and ate at a McDonalds which was much cheaper than any of the local places (though not by much).

Directly after that, knowing that we definitely weren’t going to be able to see the major landmarks given that all of them close by 5pm, we headed for Tivoli, the local amusement park. The place reminded me of the Pavilion at Myrtle Beach, just cleaner. They had plenty of fun rides, including two great roller coasters, a freefall, a pirate ship-style ride, and a ride that spun as it flipped you upside down. We ate at the nearby Copenhagen Hard Rock Cafe where I saw Bob Dylan’s telecaster. Then, we went back into the park and rode some more rides. I got some candy floss (cotton candy) and ate it all. Eventually, the group wanted to go back, so I stayed back with two girls from the group that met up with us and wanted more rides to ride.

During the course of these events, I must have had my camera literally fly out of my pocket because it suddenly just was not there. I thought I should try to find it just soI could know I tried. Somehow (and this relates to the trustfulness of the Danish), my camera had just been turned in when I arrived. He asked me the model, and I said, “I have no idea, but my mom made me put my name on the side. It says Ben Suitt.” That sticker actually came in handy; who knew? We finished the night by watching a light show and letting Jocelyn look in trashcans for cups since returned cups gave you a whopping $1 each.

I came back to the hotel and was convinced to go out to a karaoke bar, so I thought I’d give it a try. I sang “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash. It was pretty funny because people were clapping and cheering for me. I had two guys come up and ask me where I was from. They were from Memphis and San Francisco. Some of the guys sang “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen and other songs. We all had a real great time. I went back to the hotel and went to bed.

Day 28 – Train to Copenhagen – Wednesday June 20th

We did not have to leave until about 10am, so I finally got to sleep in a little bit. We headed for the train station, which for some reason was only reachable by a half hour walk and a ride on the S-bahn. I got Dunkin Donuts and some magazines to hold me over on the train ride. We made it near the German border and switched to a train that literally boarded a ship to cross the Baltic Sea. For those of us that fell asleep and had no forewarning, it was a little strange to wake up with the lights off on a train with no one in it slowly rocking. I ate in the cafeteria they had and went to the top deck where you could see the Denmark coast.

We had two more hours of train riding when we made it into Denmark. When we arrived around 6:30, Chris, two other guys, and I ate at what appeared to be a local family restaurant similar to a Longhorn. The food was not too great and very expensive due to Copenhagen’s high socialist prices, so I didn’t get too much bang for my buck.

Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel and enjoyed a number of the five pools they had to offer. Sam, Drew, Rob, Nick, and some of the girls met us down there, and we all swam for an hour or two. We relaxed in the sauna and went to our rooms. Most everyone in the room stayed in and watched a movie, so it was a relaxing evening. I had to read some articles for Dr. Turkett’s class. As a result, I also need to include two pictures in this blog. The picture, taken in Florence, had been compressed into a .jpg file with a 20% quality factor. Can you tell the difference between the two? One is actually a much smaller file.

Day 27 – Berlin Day 2 – Tuesday June 19th

I woke up at 8:30 and had some breakfast before meeting the Computer Science class for a field trip to the German Museum of Technology. The Museum was very interesting. We saw exhibits on the first electronic computers created by Zuse and the development over the 20^th century of computers. Afterwards, I took a detailed audio tour of the ship and aviation exhibits they had. From the Kaffenkahn ships to the Junkers Ju 52, I saw the development of ships and airplanes in Germany over the past 150 years or so. After going through the exhibit, most of the class had already left. I went with Dr. Turkett back near the hotel.

We ate lunch at a pizza place near the hotel that was very good. Germans really have been the friendliest so far on the trip. The waitresses have been especially nice. The restaurant suggested we try German Cola, which ended up being very good (at least better than Pepsi).

After realizing no one was really at the hotel at this time of day, Dr. Turkett and I went to the Topography of Terror to take the free audio tour that they offered. The exhibit was very detailed and actually taught me more about the German side of things than Auschwitz did. In fact, I wish the order had been switched for when I saw this exhibit and Auschwitz because I would have understood the concentration camp much more had I known the information about Germany beforehand. Of course I knew some, but not as much as I feel I know now.

We headed back to the train station and happened upon a drum circle with break dancers. It really wasn’t anything special, but it was very entertaining.

As soon as I got to the hotel, I found out that everyone was over at the Sony Center, where I just was. I went back with a group of people and met up with the guys. We saw Ocean’s Thirteen. It was in English, but the theater experience was very different from America. Seats were assigned, the screen was covered in a red curtain, and previews lasted for 30 minutes exactly before they shut the curtain again and sold ice cream. The movie was an entertaining heist movie, but for all its style, it lacked a conflict. In a summer of sequels, this one was nothing special.

Full off of movie food, I came back to the hotel with rob and did my Computer Science homework. I went to bed after a very fulfilling trip to Germany.

Day 26 – Day 1 in Berlin – Monday June 18th

I met a large group of girls downstairs in the lobby of the Hotel California at about 10am. We went straight for Zoo Berlin. There they had the largest number of species of any zoo in the world. We saw a large variety of monkeys first. It always makes me sad to see orangutans though because they appear so sad usually and very humanistic.

We saw elephants, lions, tigers, wolves, tapirs, flamingos, camels, giraffes, polar bears, seals, penguins, hippos, rhinos, and jaguars to name a few. They had a baby polar bear which was a main attraction at the zoo. It came out between 11 and 12 for public feeding. They had to move the crowd out in fifteen minute shifts to make the crowds reasonable. The zookeepers literally were tackling the bear and rolling in the dirt with it. They made it seem like polar bear bites just didn’t hurt.

We met with Dr. Bob at 1pm to go see the Checkpoint Charlie Museum. It was very interesting with all of its stories of daring escapes out of East Berlin. The most creative, I thought, was a homemade scuba tank and accompanying gear that was made from scrap metal and tubing. We were rushed a little to get through, so I missed some of the museum. I got the gist of it though. From there, we saw the last remnants of the Berlin wall. They were mostly chipped away, but they were an impressive part of history nonetheless. The Topography of Terror was literally right next to the wall, but I had to breeze through it in order to stay with the group. We walked to the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag. The gate was beautiful and so was the Reichstag. We did not go inside the Reichstag, but apparently the view from the top was great.

Next was the Holocaust memorial across the street from the gate. It seemed almost plain from the street. It appeared to be just black slabs of different sizes all thrown together. Once inside, however, I realized that the slabs were over ten feet high in places. I lost sight of everyone I was with in seconds and the instant feeling of loneliness in a maze of black towers was almost frightening. The memorial really showed how something so innocent looking from the street could be a maze of solitude and terror.

Rob and I met in the lobby of the hotel at 6pm to grab dinner. I had a duck salad and a rack of lamb tat was both affordable and delicious. We met Dr. Turkett and Dr. Bob at 7pm and headed to the playhouse down several blocks from Checkpoint Charlie. We saw the Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams. It was in German, but they made it very visual. They changes quite a bit to the story. The figurines were made of ice instead of glass and they cut several scenes with Tom. They even changed the ending slightly. It was still worthwhile though; the acting was engaging and well-crafted.

We headed back to the hotel, but since Rob was sick and the other guys had gone, I was left with little to do. Luckily, there was a large group of people in my room (maybe 12 or so), so I took everyone to “Klo” (the toilet bar Dr. Rast suggested to me). It was very fun. The novelty of the bar was that they played pranks on you while you sat there and they played funny videos and had fun paraphernalia all around. Seats shook or changed heights, spiders and foam hammers fell from the ceiling, and the waiters would sneak up on the table and scare us. We all had a good time and left happy.

Day 25 – Train to Berlin – Sunday June 17th

We got up at around 8am to get ready for a day of traveling. After breakfast, we had to take a metro over to the train station. The ride to Berlin was noticeably shorter this time around (4 hours compared to our usual 12).

We arrived at the Hotel California around 3ish, unpacked, and rested for a while. We then headed to look for an ATM and an early dinner. We happened upon a lovely German restaurant. I had a gorgonzola sauce steak that was excellent. Most everypne got a schnitzel.

We headed back to the hotel and really just relaxed for the rest of the evening. The day felt long for some reason, and the hotel had free internet. I called Dad, worked on some homework, and checked my mail. Nothing too exciting today, but tomorrow should be incredible.

Day 24 – Prague Second Day – Saturday June 16th

We woke up at about 9:30am. Breakfast was the same, and afterwards, I met up with all the guys, Lanny, Chappie, Amelia, and Ginna. We walked once again to the main square with the astronomical clock. It was lunchtime by this point, so we ate at a nearby restaurant. I had the ribs for the third day in a row and continued to believe they were the best ribs I had ever had. We made the walk over the Charles bridge, which was beautiful and lively with its statues and performers and caricature artists. We headed up to the castle on the hill and happened upon Greg and Scott who we were walking to meet anyway. Graber took us over to the cathedral within the castle walls. It was like a smaller Notre Dame, so it wasn’t anything I hadn’t already seen better somewhere else. The castle was really a bit of a disappointment since there was little to do. It was very much unlike the castle in Krakow which was meant for tourism.

We went from there past the Charles bridge to go pedal boating. On the way, I spotted the locations from Mission Impossible where the car explodes, the girl gets stabbed, and Tom Cruise runs down a flight of stairs to see it all happen. It was pretty cool to recognize an onsite location like that. The pedal boats were very cheap to rent for an hour, so we had no problem getting out on the water. I was in a boat with Rob, Greg, and Graber. We just pedaled on up to the higher boundaries of our boating area and drifted down the river for an hour. It was the most relaxing part of the trip so far.

We went straight to the hotel to change and get ready for dinner at Graber’s house. We took taxis over and had no problem getting into the house. We were told security would be pretty tight and that we needed passports. It really wasn’t that big of a deal once we got there. The Graber’s did a wonderful job of making it feel comfortable. The house of the ambassador was beautiful; I can’t believe Graber lives there every day. We took a brief tour of the house and then went swimming in their outdoor pool. For dinner, we had hamburgers, taters, salads, and fruit. Afterwards, we just relaxed in the library and listened to beach music. I really had a wonderful time.

We left after several hours to go have Graber show us some bars and clubs that he liked to go to at night. I had a great time that night. I got back to the hotel late with a large group of people and went to bed after a wonderful day in Prague.

Day 23 – Prague First Day – Friday June 15th

We woke up at about 9:30 and had breakfast. It wasn’t anything special, but it did the job. We mostly just waited for Brent, Greg, and three other girls to come from London to meet us to tour the city. I had some more laundry done and went to an internet cafe. They came right around lunch time. It was great to see Greg, who I hadn’t seen since he left for London, and Brent, who hadn’t come to visit since Interlaken. We ate at the town square with the huge astronomical clock that moved during its hourly chime. I again ordered ribs, but these were exceptional compared to the ones from the day before.

We watched the chiming of the city clock, but it really wasn’t too special. Some carved figures circled the top, and a figure of Death next to a musician danced next to the clock. We decided to climb the clock tower next. While buying tickets, however, we had yet another experience where not having small change was an issue. I don’t understand how a change-based company cannot supply enough change to break larger bills. We made it to the top at any rate. It really looked almost Italian from the top. The castle was in clear view at the top, and we decided to head in that direction the next day. We did walk to the Charles Bridge. It was beautiful at the bridge, but it was not overwhelming or anything. I think after seeing the beauty of Western Europe and Krakow, nothing in Prague could really stand up against the competition.

It began to pour on the way back. During the storm, some of us made it into a bar, some made it into a souvenir shop, and Greg and I made it into a grocery store. Eventually the hailstorm let up, and I picked up my laundry and updated my blog.

I went to get ready for the opera Carmen in the evening. Dr. Turkett, Peter, Jocelyn, and I left for the opera at 6:30. It was a wonderful show with a beautiful rotating stage. Carmen was beautiful and had a marvelous voice. The toreador was a little too stiff to seem like a natural, but he still did very well. I was as blown away by the live music in this production as I was by the music in Budapest. It was just perfect. I had seen the show in Atlanta, but it was much better here. Once the show was over, I thought it was a bit too late to go out, so I had a small dinner with Dr. Turkett, went to my room, and went to bed.

Day 22 – Train to Prague – Thursday June 14th

We woke up very early to get to the train station in time for our 7:10am travel time. The hotel was kind enough to leave us breakfast in baggies. The train was not air-conditioned again, but the windows opened this time, so we did alright. I sat with Nick, Sam, Drew, and Rob. The train, during the course of the 6 hour ride, split into two parts, with one part leaving for Prague and the other for Vienna. Two of our students were asleep on the wrong part of the train at the wrong time. Luckily, they had their tickets and passports with them, so they made a daytrip out of the experience.

We arrived at the hotel, only to find out it was the hotel from Mission Impossible. Also, it had a beautiful dining room that was the original inspiration for the dining room on the Titanic. The one on the sinking ship was much larger of course, but it was still similarly beautiful here at the hotel. The hotel was beautiful, but the halls were so long and cavernous, it felt very much like we were at the hotel from The Shining.

The guys and I headed for lunch at a place recommended by Dr. Bob. You would think I had ordered some medieval dish, but the pork ribs I ordered were huge and proudly displayed on a slab of wood. We just sat and ate and drank at the restaurant for several hours. Upon our return, we got ready for a free dinner in the famous dining room. I had the lamb and the Vienna chocolate cake.

Afterwards, we just headed out and went to several bars before calling it a night. We had a good time though.

Day 21 – Krakow Second Day – Wednesday June 13th

Rob and I got up at 9:30 and ate another great breakfast. My laundry had been delivered inside my room in the morning, so I head fresh clothes from the start of the day. While Rob got ready to go for the day, I went and got a haircut at a highly recommended barber shop right next to the hotel. I think they did a wonderful job, and the hair washer lady at the shop was gorgeous. I did not mind her washing my hair at all.

Rob and I headed slowly over to Wawel Hill where the Royal Castle and Cracow Cathedral are located behind fortified walls. We stopped in shops and admired street painters on the way. Once there, we bought tickets for the Dragon’s Den and for the Armory. It would begin to be much more than that to see the apartments. The cathedral was free. Tickets are in high demand and limited by the hour, so Rob and I were very lucky to get the tickets we did (many on our tour did not get a chance to see anything but the Dragon’s Den). We went into the treasury/ armory, and I saw a marvelous collection of armor, swords, guns, cannons, pikes, maces, horse armor, shields, and a variety of jewelry, china, and gifts to the king. The most beautiful armor was plated and had attached feathered wings to the back breastplate that came up as high as the head. The most interesting weapon was the pistol sword. It was a full-length sword with a gun that would shoot out down the side of the blade. I thought it was strange those were not more common. We went from the armory to the Dragon’s Den. At the entrance of the Den was a great view of the city and the nearby river. Down a spiral staircase, we came into an actual cave that was said to have housed a dragon. It was beautiful, but it hardly cost the dollar I spent to go in. A fire-shooting statue of a dragon lived just outside, and a whole fieldtrip of kids surrounded it with smiling faces.

We left then to eat lunch. We happened upon a Polish fast-food place called “Kebob”. It was similar to a Moe’s in that you ordered the type of meat and fillings you wanted for the gyro-like sandwich they created for you. It was really good.

We headed for St. Mary’s Church in the town square near our hotel. We somehow snuck in with a tour group that was watching the noon reveal of The Assumption of the Virgin
(a huge wooden centerpiece) and avoided paying, which was unintentional but nice. I really hate the idea of paying to go into a church. It seems wrong. The church was gorgeous with huge blue ceilings and a beautiful altarpiece. I saw the Slacker Crucifix; apparently it is a very famous crucifix made by Veit Stoss. We left to go back to the hotel and rest.

Rob and I missed the other guys for dinner, so he and I went back to the restaurant from the night before. I got a filet of beef that came out on fire (for effect). It was delicious. Then we had some apple pie that was also great. With such an early wakeup call for the next morning (5:30), we headed back and packed. I went to bed.

Day 20 – Auschwitz 1 and Auschwitz 2 Birkenau – Tuesday June 12th

Rob and I woke up at 7:30 to get ready to meet Drew, Nick, and Sam for breakfast at 8:30. I felt so much better today; it’s hard to put into words. I was chipper to say the least. Breakfast was unusually good with its assortments of meat, cheese, and yogurt. I had to eat quickly though because we needed to leave at 9am promptly to get to the bus station. We made it there pretty quickly thanks to a chance encounter with Americans who recognized we were looking for the bus station. We paid on the bus and took our seats next to some older English people.

The bus ride was an event. Our bus must have had problems with stalling or starting or something because we did not stop once. We couldn’t. The driver shooed people away with his hands ahead of stops or else they had to literally run onto the bus. It was the same getting off for some people. One man started running while still in the bus and he just transferred himself out of it. A woman who could hardly hold the door open sidestepped out and face planted into the sidewalk. She got up, but the driver couldn’t stop. We went around a roundabout so fast, an Asian woman in front of me sleeping just fell flat on her back on the floor. It was crazy, but the bus did stop once we made it to Oswiecim, the home of the Auschwitz concentration camps. We made it there in about two hours.

We headed straight for the museum and signed up for the three hour English tour they had available. The museum and the grounds are free to see, but the tours were considerably more. Its hard to say how the experience made me feel. I don’t want to describe everything that I saw because they were just too sad. I saw everything that I could see, chambers, Gestapo offices, barracks, killing blocks, and everything else. The most gripping and saddening part by far were the several tons of hair they had piled in a room. It was maddening, the whole experience. I felt so angry at people. I kept asking, “How could anyone be okay with this? Why did anyone deserve this? Why did God let this happen?” I took many pictures, but I don't like having them. The place felt like death. I felt gross being there. I left my sadness at the gate and did not talk about the experience once we got on the bus to come back. One man on our tour group summed up the feeling. He said, “This is the worst day of my life.” I know why he felt that way.

The bus back was air-conditioned and a tour bus, so I slept the whole time. We made it back in about two hours. We headed for the square near our hotel and ate in a random restaurant. The place ended up being really affordable and very delicious. I had pork and cheese that was unreal. We took our friends there later on and they gave us a discount. During dinner we noticed that Poland, like the Netherlands, had a large number of beautiful women, and they weren’t all blonde. After the second dinner, we saw a show in the square. It was a drum circle with fire dancers throwing, breathing, and twirling fire wands, strips, and whole rods around for a fifteen-minute show. I headed back afterwards and went to bed glad to be feeling better and loving Poland.

Day 19 – Train to Krakow – Monday June 11th

I woke up at about 7:30 feeling very refreshed. Compared to the past several days, I was golden. I still went to the corner store and loaded up on liquids and took a taxi to the train station instead of walking. The travel day was about twelve a half hours long with four train changes. The countryside of Slovakia and Poland were beautiful though. I took several pictures from the train.

We had two hours of free time in Breclav. I walked around the town for about an hour with Peter and Chris. There was literally nothing to see, but we did make some cool observations. The locals dressed just as we did, so we blended in well. Their shirts would be written in English, but would sometimes have one or two letters mixed up. The people were much larger here than anywhere else on the trip. Also, we could afford a whole lot more here for cheaper.

We arrived in Krakow around 9:30 or so, and we headed to our hotel (which was literally just inside the medieval walls of the city). Although not air-conditioned, it was certainly a nice hotel. I again roomed with Rob and Chris. Nothing was really open when we went looking for dinner except for a McDonald’s, so (unfortunately) we had to settle. Really it was fine though. I was starving and had just started feeling better. McDonald’s hit the spot, even if it was American. We sat in the nearby square and admired St. Mary’s Church. We went to bed in the hotel without air-conditioning to a man repeating the song “Hallelujah” by J.J. Cale over and over again with a thick Polish accent.

Day 18 – Second Day in Budapest – Sunday June 10th

I woke up at about noon. Chris, Rob, and I went to eat lunch just a block away from the hotel. I had some great pasta. I stocked up on water and fruit juices on the way back. I literally did nothing but sleep this day to get better. I didn’t even have my camera on me. The sleep was much needed though. Yesterday was a big wake up call for how much I needed to slow down. Rob brought me some dinner in the evening. I mostly just slept, watched television, and worked on homework all day long. I slept well that night.

Day 17 – Budapest – Saturday June 9th

I woke up around 9:30 and Rob, Chris, and I all took our time getting ready. I felt a little better, so I decided I’d go eat lunch with the group. We ended up walking all the way to an island on the Danube. The walk was a little further than I would have liked, but I managed to be alright once we were sitting down and eating. I ordered a light salad and water. The island was a nice park area where people were laying out and listening to music next to fountains and sculptures. The walk back was pretty tiring, so I took a nap once I got back.

I woke up in time for the ballet I was signed up for. It was Romeo and Juliet. The walk to the Opera House was not very far at all, and when we got there, we found that we had pretty good balcony seats. The three act show was just beautiful. All with a live orchestra, the girl playing Juliet was especially talented. The most beautiful dance was the one when Romeo was calling Juliet at her balcony. The balcony dropped to the floor and they dance with each other in the stars.

I felt pretty bad when I made it back. I think I just tried to do too much considering my condition. By the time I laid down, I was feeling better.

Day 16 – Travel to Budapest – Friday June 8th

We got up at 7:15, ate breakfast, and headed to the train station. The train was noticeably nicer this time than any of the others. We had our own boxes with 6 seats each. I had signed up late, so I was not sitting with my close friends, but I was with Dr. Turkett. All 6 people in the compartment played games, but when I got tired of that I tried to go to bed. I could never fall asleep though, and I kept feeling worse and worse. We changed trains two times, and by the last one, I was struggling. At the end of the 12 hour travel day, we had to take a metro one stop and then walk several blocks to the hotel.

By the time I made it to the hotel, Kessler was carrying my book bag because I couldn't anymore. I started feeling very hot, and then I went to go sit down. I felt horrible. I had told Dr. Bob and Dr. Turkett that I needed to go to a doctor, so once everyone was checked in, I got to see one.

He did not speak English very well, though he did speak some. He understood it fine. He knew what was wrong almost immediately. He prescribed me amoxycillinum and a fever reducer and 500mg of vitamin c. He told me I was dehydrated, so I needed to drink lots of water, orange juice, and lemonade. He never got through to me what was wrong with me otherwise. I assume that the penicillin was for a throat infection though. Ironically, his name was Dr. Alibrahim Jihad. He was just the nicest man, and he really tried to help me. Dr. Bob and I took a taxi back to the hotel. He got me some water and lemonade to drink and went to go get my medicine. I took my medicine when he got back, and went to bed.

Day 15 –Venice – Thursday June 7th

Rob, Chris, and I woke up pretty early to go to the Island of Murano to watch glass blowing. We grabbed some pastries off the street and headed towards the water. We had to get vaporetta tickets ahead of time though, and while we waited in a very inefficient line, it began to rain. We got our raincoats and I took some Tylenol again. The trip to the island on line 42 took a very long time (probably 45 minutes), but once we got there, plenty of people were waiting and willing to direct you to their glass blowing factory. We found one which was free. The system must work great for them because after fifteen minute demonstration and explanation, everyone just goes and buys glass from their store. They had some very affordable glass, but I decided not to get any.

When we left, it was pouring. I got pretty wet, even with a raincoat on. The trip back didn’t take as long because we got off at the Piazza San Marco. We went inside St. Mark’s, which was beautiful with all of its gold mosaics. We went outside and watched children with birdfeed in their hands get attacked by swarms of pigeons. Rob had two land on him. I guess they just liked him because they stayed on him for a while.

We went to go eat lunch but made the poor decision of going to a pizza place owned by Asian people. Not that I don’t think an Asian person could make a good pizza, but when I’m in Italy, I should probably get one from an Italian person. The pizza was by far the worst of the trip (even worse than anything back home). We took a gondola ride across a canal for 50 cents. We went to the church of Santa Maria della Salute. It was beautiful on the outside, but nothing special really on the inside. It began to rain while we were there, so we just chilled out for a while.

We walked back to the hotel, and we all took naps. When everyone went to dinner, however, I stayed in because I was not feeling very well. I needed to rest.

Day 14 – Train to Venice – Wednesday June 6th

Our train left pretty early, 8:37am, and we took a nice three hour ride into Venice. I had had a sore throat the night before, but today, I felt very bad. I was just drained, my neck was swollen, and my head felt heavy. I took some Tylenol sore throat medicine to bounce back. I took a nap until 2:40 and met up with the majority of the group. I didn’t feel great, but I was not incapacitated. I really did not want to miss anything, and I went out just as the group was leaving. We went on a boat taxi from the nearby stop from our hotel on the grand canal to the Academia.

We took pictures on the nearby bridge and then walked to the Casa Artome that is owned by Wake Forest. We took a tour of the house and met the seven Wake students that were studying there for 6 weeks. The house was beautiful and overlooked the Grand Canal. We relaxed there until about 4:45 and left for a nearby piazza that Dr. Bob told us was the place where all the young locals ate dinner. Upon our arrival, we saw dogs, children with their families, and teenagers all hanging out in the square. The group split up, and a large number of us went and ate at a restaurant nearby. We sat down at about 5:00 and ate for two hours. I had lasagna that was pretty good.

We hung around for a while but walked back after grabbing some gelato. The night ended early, but the day seemed very long. I felt better once I had some food and water in me, but I still was not one hundred percent.

Day 13 – Rome – Tuesday June 5th

Rob, Chris, and I woke up at 6:15 to get ready for an early train to Rome. We took the fourth fastest train in the world for a trip just over an hour and a half. The second we got there, a large group of us headed for the B line to get to the Vatican. We got on the wrong line, however, and realized the A line was the correct one. The subways were shady. B line was covered in graffiti, and a girl in my group was groped on the A line (she was fine; she just elbowed him and moved away). We finally made it to the Vatican only to find that the line for entry into the museums wrapped around three blocks. Apparently, within the last year, they decided to significantly limit the amount of non-group visitors into the museums. They also closed entry for tourists at 12:30pm. While waiting, we had a nice parade go by that surprised us all. We made it inside a little past 11:30. The problem with the inside was that there were so many statues and paintings that without a guide of some sort, I was lost. I’m sure I missed something important, but the signs for the Sistine Chapel loomed heavy on my groups shoulders. We booked it for the chapel, taking pictures all along the way, hoping we captured something of importance.

The Chapel was awe-inspiring. I just zoned out in its beauty while people laughed at the guards saying, “No photo! Shhh!” I especially liked the depiction of the Final Judgment. The progression from the heavenly bodies at the top, to Jesus in the middle, to demons below was so masterful. We left after a long time of gaping and had some pizza in their cafeteria.

Direct from the chapel, we headed to St. Peter’s to look around. There were no lines outside the Vatican anymore, and the inside of the cathedral was not overcrowded. I rubbed my hands on St. Peter’s feet (though apparently people usually kiss them), and admired Michelangelo’s Pietà. The beauty of the cathedral was overwhelming, and I wish we had spent more time exploring. Feeling rushed to see all the sights in one day, we left for the coliseum.

Taking the B line there, we waited in line for about twenty minutes to get in. There were not any student discounts, so the money we saved at the Vatican went into seeing the Coliseum. It really was not anything special. There were no guides that could explain what I was looking at or any gladiator history at all. I thought I’d enjoy it more if there were more spaces for tourists to walk around. Really I wish they just restored it, or part of it. It was so crowded with tourists and so soulless that I did not really enjoy it nearly as much as I thought I would. I did get to take some pictures with gladiators outside though. What I didn’t realize was that the 5 euro fee for the picture was actually 5 per gladiator. Three gladiators equaled a hefty bill.

We walked from there to the Pantheon, passing the Roman Forum and the Vittoriano on the way. I really enjoyed the Pantheon, and there were enough signs and readings to guide me through its history. I took a few pictures, and we met up with Dr. Bob to go relax at a bar called “The Drunken Ship” in a piazza just a few blocks from the Pantheon. We stayed until everyone else met up with us. We ate nearby, and I had spaghetti alla carbanara. It paled in comparison to anything from the night before, but it was still very good.

We left for the train station at 8:30pm. On the bus that we took, however, Dr. Bob started becoming very upset. It turned out that a pickpocket was noticeably spying on our bags and pockets. He physically pushed the man away from the group and stood over next to me in a central position. He discovered that there were three of the men all working together to seek out something to take. You could literally see there eyes moving downwards over people’s belongings. One positioned his hand behind him and near the pocket of one of my friends next to me. My friend quickly covered his pocket. Dr. Bob alerted as many people as he could to what was happening. The front man even tried to put a jacket up on the handrail to block Dr. Bob’s sight from what they were doing. They left unsuccessful and flicking us off. No one lost anything.

The ride was noticeably longer coming back, and we did not arrive until 11:30. It had been a long day, and most of us just went to bed.

Day 12 – Florence – Monday June 4th

Chris, Rob, and I woke up around 10am and headed out straight to the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, or the Duomo for short. It was epic. By far one of the most beautiful buildings so far on the trip, the colors were amazing. We got in line with the other tourists. A young boy played an accordion very well while we waited in line. I tipped him a little bit and took his picture. The inside of the Duomo was impressive with its beautiful floors and painted ceiling. The floor is usually not the center of beauty in a building, but here it definitely was. We went into the museum in the basement of the building to see the ruins of the original cathedral, including some relics and tombs. We headed for a small cafe soon afterwards where I had some great spaghetti and some gelato.

Next, we headed for the Palazzo Vecchio. We headed down the wrong street though and ended up next to the oldest bridge in Florence, the Ponte Vecchio. We happened upon a plaza next to the palace and the Uffizi that had a replica of the David and other beautiful sculptures, so we took some pictures. Instead of going into the palace though, we headed for the Museo di Storia della Scienza. The Uffizi and the Accademia were both closed since it was a Monday; the Galileo museum based on the history of modern science had to do. It was filled with scientific instruments, celestial globes, and telescopes that were very beautiful and had great historical value as well. Highlights were the telescope Galileo used to see Jupiter’s satellites and Galileo’s right, middle finger. We happened upon a Georgia tech group that was following a guided tour through the exhibit. We just kind of tagged along, and we saw some demonstrations of the teaching tools in the exhibit.

We left and headed to check on our reservations at La Giostra, the 26^th best restaurant in Europe. From there, we went to the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella to take a look inside. Though its chapel had free entry, the church itself had an entry fee. Nothing pricey, but it seemed wrong for a church not to be free for the public. We made it inside and just sat in awe of the place for about fifteen minutes before walking around. It had a beautiful interior with many paintings and sculptures.

We left for the hotel afterwards to get ready for dinner that evening. Eight of us met at 7pm to head over to La Giostra. Dr. Rast had recommended the restaurant to me just before I left, and he made it out to be the best meal of my life. After a four hour meal with five courses and great service, it really was the best meal of my life. They treated my friends and I like royalty. They gave us all sorts of free food and drinks. The owner, royalty from two lines, came out and described the origin of all the food we ate. Most of it was direct from Tuscany. We had some chocolate cake made for us that apparently was made using a family recipe of his, passed down by word of mouth. The owner looked pretty goofy, with unkempt, long white hair and a chef’s hat on. You never would have guessed he was so important until you noticed pictures of him with John Travolta and Brad Pitt on the wall (just name a few of the celebrities there). Afterwards, we headed back for the hotel since it was nearly 12am anyway.

Day 11 – Train to Florence – Sunday June 3rd

We met at the train station in Interlaken at 8:45 after a small breakfast. We had three trains to take, with two substantial layovers in between each stop. Mostly we just slept, did homework, and listened to music. Our stop in Milan was sketchy. You could see pickpockets, or maybe just shady people, looking for unsuspecting people. A lot of people asked for money and some girls that went outside the station received some cat calls even though guys were with them.

The train station in Florence was much nicer and less sketchy. Americans were everywhere. The exit shot us right out in front of the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella. Our hotel was beautiful, and it was the first three star hotel on the trip. Apparently, it costs 300 euros per night, but since we have been coming for so many years, we got a great deal and just as nice of rooms. We took a break for a while but soon went in search of dinner.

The restaurant we happened upon had great prices, and the food was the best of the trip so far. I had the best pizza of my life. We went next door for some gelato that was just the best ever. We headed back and hung out on the balcony of one of the rooms that overlooked the roofs of the town.

Day 10 - Kleine Scheidigg – Saturday June 2nd

Chris and I woke up and joined the whole group for breakfast at about 9am. We all headed for the train station by 10am to get on a train(one of three) that would take us to a station at Kleine Scheidigg. It wasn’t the top of Europe trip that most people take out of Interlaken. That trip would take considerably longer, but we were still at about 7,000 feet.

There was snow everywhere. They had a few buildings, including some teepees that seemed oddly out of place. We saw dog sleds and a Saint Bernard with a little keg under his neck. We also saw helicopters flying overhead. It was all really cool. They had an outdoor grill with bratwurst and hash browns for 14 franks, so I grabbed some of that for lunch. Drew, Nick, Sam, Rob, Chris, Dr. Bob, and I all headed towards the top of a hill beyond all the buildings to go sliding down on trash bags. We went very high, and the snow was knee high. It was strange being very warm above the snow but freezing from all the snow in my shoes. We made a pathway and slid down. It worked pretty well.

I headed back down the mountain with the people doing afternoon excursions at 2pm. Amelia, Jocelyn, and I booked it to the stables to catch our horses by 4pm. We went for about 2 hours all around Interlaken, past rivers, lakes, mountains, golf courses, and forests. It was a wonderful time. My horse’s name was Lascar. The two Swiss Germans that took us around couldn’t speak English very well, but they did alright. We could understand what they meant most of the time. When I was trying to find a helmet to fit my huge head, they said to make sure I found “tight, but does not make pain.”

The three of us and Dr. Turkett went to eat dinner at a pizzeria that was wonderful. I caught Brent with everyone walking by just as I was leaving, so I went to sit with them for dinner. I just ordered ice cream with chocolate sauce. After dinner we all headed back to the hotel, and I went to bed.