I’ve been studying abroad in Florence, Italy, for two months now, but my adventures have taken me far beyond the city! As much as I’ve fallen in love with Florence and everything about it, one of the greatest parts of studying abroad in Europe is how destinations that once felt like distant dreams suddenly become accessible. Since being here, I’ve explored places as close as Siena, Naples, and Venice, and places as far as Barcelona and Munich and everything in between like Cinque Terre, the Amalfi Coast, and the Dolomites! From the shores of the Mediterranean to the peaks of the Italian Alps, I have been able to explore many dream destinations, and for that I am eternally grateful. One of the best parts of these adventures has been being able to share them with the friends I’ve made while studying abroad. Whether we’re navigating unfamiliar train stations, trying foreign foods, or getting lost in a new city, every experience has brought us closer together.
Let’s start with the closest destinations right here in Italy! Some of the locations I’ve been lucky enough to travel to so far are Siena, Naples, and Venice. Siena is one of my most recent day trips, where we got to visit an elaborate and beautiful church that features black and white stripes all over. I’ve seen many different basilicas since being here in Europe, but this one took my breath away! I also spent a day in Naples. After wandering beyond the bustling streets, I stumbled upon a local restaurant tucked away from the crowds. While Naples is a big city that has some rugged parts, it also pleasantly surprised me with some hidden gems of culture and amazing food. In Venice, I had an overnight trip with almost two whole days to explore not only the main area of Venice, but also Murano and Burano. We explored all over Venice to see all of the many different channels, and I was able to take a boat ride to visit some of the islands off of the Venetian mainland. In Murano, we saw glass masters work at blowing the authentic Murano glass. And in Burano, there were many colorful and picture perfect houses on display! Venice, Murano, and Burano blew me away with their beauty as well as their customs of glassmaking and handmade masks.
Moving onto the far destinations, I was able to travel to Barcelona during my fall break for an extended period of time, and then, later on in October, I traveled to Munich, Germany, for their traditional Oktoberfest! I fell in love with Spain; while it is very similar to Italy in its culture, its efficiency and beauty swept me away. While we were there, we ate amazing food, including Taco Bell of course, and saw all of the big sites, like the Sagrada Familia and Gaudí’s Park Güell. The grandeur and magnitude of the Sagrada left us just sitting and staring, and the fine tuned detail of Gaudí’s work in Park Güell captivated us. Later in the semester, in early October, we took the long ten hour bus ride to Munich Germany to experience Oktoberfest and explore the city of Munich. We spent the first day walking around Munich and got traditional bratwurst in the city center. The rest of the time we were there, we spent in the Oktoberfest festival grounds. The sheer size of the Oktoberfest grounds was mind-blowing! They had dozens of massive tents that were basically entire buildings, as well as tons of different rides and vendors. We bounced around to multiple different tents to experience not only the steins but also different vibes of each one. We also made sure to ride a couple of the rides and try all of the different foods and snacks. There were bratwursts, chocolate-covered strawberries, traditional sweet dumplings, and massive steins within the tents. Germany blew me away with their reliable transportation, efficiency, rich culture and food.
Lastly, we had so many fun destinations right here in Italy! We took a day trip to Cinque Terre and were able to explore two of the five cities within it. The first city we went to was Vernazza which is the stereotypical picture-perfect city with the perfect water and colorful buildings behind. It is the city that the Disney movie Luca was based off of! After jumping in the water and taking pictures, we took the five-minute train over to Monterosso where they have the big beaches. We spent the rest of the day soaking in the sun and dipping in the Ligurian sea! I also got to explore all over the Amalfi Coast, including Positano, Amalfi, and Capri, as well as other small towns in between. I enjoyed amazing sea food and even got to go on a small boat tour to see all over the coast. We spent all our days swimming in the beautiful Tyrrhenian sea and ate plenty of gelato! Finally, we escaped the water and the city and had a cozy weekend in the mountains. The Dolomites are part of the Italian Alps and they’re massive! We stayed in the small city of Ortisei, where we explored the city and took hiking trips for two days. We hiked the big loop around Secenda, as well as explored the meadows below Alp di Siusi, passing by grazing cows and donkeys while taking in the breathtaking views of the jagged mountain peaks surrounding us.
Overall, I’ve been blessed to not only live in Florence but also to explore places I never thought possible until now! From the sweeping mountains to the vast oceans, I’ve been lucky enough to see it all. This is just the beginning, too— as I type this, I’m procrastinating my packing for Paris this weekend! And even more so, hence the name… there’s a postcard from everywhere here and there!
