London Day 2

August 1st

After browsing some of the tourists shops across Baker St. Karen and I met up along with others to go see Abbey Rd. She showed me how to use the tube and it is easy/idiot proof in my opinion. We got on at the Bakerloo line from Baker St to Maide Vale and walked for about 5 minutes up to Abbey Rd. Once we got there they were confused if it was actually the famous crosswalk and I said yes.

So by this point I'm ready to freak out because c'mon...it's Abbey Rd we're talking about. My one and only goal was to take a photo of me walking across with no shoes on Just like Paul McCartney did on the famous Abbey Rd. Cover.




After that I had to write my name on the Abbey Rd. Studios Wall outside. Unfortunately the public is not allowed inside the studios. For artists to go in there it costs about 2000 pounds a day and you could probably go inside the studios if you paid 4000 haha.


A few blocks away there was a Beatles Coffee Shop Karen mentioned. It was at St Johns Underground Station. The shop itself was a small shop but they had a lot of stuff to offer. I only bought a Beatles wallet and an Abbey Rd. pen because Karen said there is a Beatles Store right by Regent's Park. Once I was satisfied, we left and I went with Karen to Euston to pick up her older sister Elizabeth who flew in from DTW. However on the way Karen was a bit concerned because there is Euston Square and Euston Station and was confused which one her sis would be at. Luckily we found each other at Euston. After seeing where her sister was staying we took the Tram back to Regent's Park College where Karen treated us to lunch since she had money left over int the cafeteria. Once we finished eating, Karen had to pack up her things. Her and Elizabeth were going to Scotland for a week. We said our goodbyes and then I was off by myself. It was very nice that Karen showed me how to use the tube- the rest was a cake walk. If i was in another country I would most likely be screwed.

So when i was done I ended up going out to a Korean restauruant right outside of Paddington Station. It was very good and ended up talking with an old english couple throughout the meal.

The following day I woke up and went on a Beatle's Walking Tour that met up at ___. The guide, Richard, was quite humurous and has met Paul McCartney numerous times since the 1980s...(continued in part 3)

London

July 31st, I left FCO to arrive at London Heathrow (LHR) around 1:30PM. All I brought with me was my backpack with a change of clothes for the weekend and my Canon 40D. After landing, I decided to take Heathrow Express to Paddington Station (Possibly the most expensive way to get out of LHR unless I took a taxi. 16 GBP). However being on the HE train, was quite comfortable and I felt I was first class.

Arriving at Paddington Station, I immediately notice the 20 degrees difference between London and Rome. The whole weekend was 70 degrees F while Rome that weekend was above 95 degrees F. My hostel was at the University of Westminster, Maryleborne Hall, off of Baker St (Sherlock Holmes) which was about a mile away. I was not familiar on using the Underground Tube system so I walked from Paddington to the Hostel/university and made it within 20 minutes.

Upon my arrival they were extremely generous. The room was small, but nice nonetheless. It was a one person efficiency dorm style room and the bathroom was cramped and similar to ones on the airplane except room for a shower. Once I settled in my hostel, I ended up taking a 2 hour nap because of a lack of sleep the night before and on the plane. Then Karen Schrauben gave me a call and then I was ready.



I was glad to meet up with her. When I arrived in Heathrow I called her and Breana Cronk to see what their plans were but no answer. The unsettling feeling that I wasn't going to see either one did make me nervous, even though I was in an english speaking country, not italian.

Funny to mention, From the moment the plane landed on the runway until later that night, I still had the mindset that I had to speak in Italian. It took about a day for me to get over that and eventually I caught onto the English accent...YOU SOUND LIKE YOU'RE FROM LONDON!!!! (Chuck a.k.a. Kuno from the film "Forgetting Sarah Marshall")

Around 6 o'clock Karen met up with me. She was studying at Regent's park College which was right across the street from me so that ended up working out. She showed me around some of Regent's Park and College and then we went out to eat at a pizzeria right down the street from my hostel off of Baker. (great italian style pizza too!)



Afterwards she had to meet up with the GVSU group and we parted ways. We made arrangements to meet up tomorrow at 9am to take the tube and go to Abbey Rd...Pretty much the main reasons of my travels. It was about 8:00PM when I got back and I decided to go venture off around the block by myself. Bought some snack food, picked up a photo mag, and enjoyed the cooler weather.

Last few days in Roma

Blog posts will resume Saturday and parts of early Sunday. As of now I have to get my final projects and studying done by tomorrow (Thursday afternoon). When I am not doing any of those I will be rockin it throughout Rome with everyone I've met on this amazing trip in the Eternal City. My flight leaves Saturday at 9:15pm then i land in Amsterdam at 11:45pm and will wait in the airport until my flgiht leaves at...8:10am where then I will be back in the US hopefully by Sunday around 10:40am, probably 11:30 I will be out of the airport to await my luggage and go through customs.

So while I am sitting in the airport in Amsterdam I will spend that time updating my blog, editing photos, and finishing off the last season of Boy Meets World on my external HD. Ciao! Hope to see all of you soon!

some thoughts

So right now I am taking a break from typing up a paper that is due in 6 hours...no biggie, really! This Friday I am traveling to London. I will be able to meet with with my good friends Karen Schrauben and Breana Cronk. Also just as important, I will be staying in a hostel that is NOT far from Abbey Road and Abbey Road Studios. I will be gone 4 days 3 nights coming back Monday night. Then friday August 7 I have my finals then August 8th I fly back home and arrive August 9th around 10:40am EST.

The trip to London is really a pilgramage for myself. I have been a long time fan of the Beatles and as corny as it sounds their music has a huge impact on my life in general. It makes my relationship with my mom stronger since she loves them, and there is no other music like it. I will be able to hang out With Karen and Breana but there is a possibility of being myself which im perfectly fine with...they speak English over there at least so I can get by. I want to get lost in the city and explore. and one day travel back..one day as in ASAP

What I am posting and listening to right now is the Beatles last public performace before breaking up as a group. This performance caused quite a scene back in the day and I can see why. The Beatles stopped performing in public around 1964 or 65 because it got so loud they couldnt even hear themselves play so seeing them play was rare then too! The police ended up coming in to stop the concert. This concert was re-created in Across the Universe as well. Check these out whether you have seen it or not.


BTW: in the first video on 5:45, you see a 356 Porsche. The Porsche you see there was owned by the one and only Janis Joplin

Florence 18th and 19th of July

So the over night stay outside of Venice was restless but it was amazing nonetheless. I did not end up falling asleep until 3am and then we woke up around 8am to eat the breakfast. We ate toast with preserves, ham, and some juice and cappucino. After checking out around 9:30, we hopped back on the number 5 bus to take back to the Train station so head to Florence.

The trip from Venice to Florence took a little over two hours. I feel asleep on the train ride there. When we got off the train in Florence, our hostel was only a minute away from the station (compared to 20 minutes the night before) and they were really nice. Brad and I actually got upgraded to stay in a hotel since they ran out of rooms in their own hostel. AC was enjoyable HOWEVER when we left from Venice and arrived in Florence, it was quite chilly. Chilly as in no higher than 80 degrees!. It was a relief to travel around in cooler weather.

Time for another self portrait!


I kinda wished thought i brought a pair of pants. I miss wearing those haha.

Our group decided to keep it easy the first day. It was nice to not be on the move every minute of the day and relax. I took a short nap in the hotel/hostel and then all of us went out to shop - mostly for the italian leather which i felt not desire to get but i did snag a couple tshirts and a pair of sunglasses that actually fit me. I did see a 69 belt buckle...but didn't have enough cash on me to get it...darn!


Later all of us went out for dinner to celebrate Anna's 21st birthday. The restaurant gave free champaigne for all of us and a dessert for Anna which she gracefully shared with the group.

Then there was the after party - going out for drinks. On the way there we passed by Piazza san Croce. They were filming some movie there-presuming something in relation to Marilyn Monroe because the actress could definitely pass of as her.


anyways

We went into this bar/nightclub area where I definitely got 2 drinks for 18 euros...yeah its bad. my mojito was 10 euro and my long island (not that strong btw) was 8 euros. So because i was so depressed about these prices, I thought it would at least be beneificial to just finish those 2 drinks in 30 minutes...

and now most of you are probably shaking your heads in disappointment, or laughing becuase you would do the same...whatever works

Anna, Brad, and I walked back, Brad being the only sober one, and we got lost around 2:30 am...i'll leave it at that for that night.


The following day is when we did all of the sight seeing and the pictures that you will now see.

I saw Michaelangelo's ORIGINAL David statue. It was truely epic and amazing to see such fine art on display as well as for my photographer colleauges...ROBERT MAPPLETHROPE'S work. Don't worry none of the really grotesque ones. Of course I was the only one to really appreciated this while I was there. I felt like I was in photo history 2 all over again. The body of work that was displayed by Mapplethrope was related to Michaelangelo's David Statue which i never thought of before.

PICTURES WERE NOT ALLOWED INSIDE THE MUSEUM...I TRIED, AND I FAILED

so if you want to see the statue you can go online. or see a copy of it like this one

I took this picture on one of the highest points in Florence. From here I can see all of Florence and its beauty. So along with the great view I decided to take some jumping photos- for Jerry

Brad could have jumped a little higher at least!!! haha

After lunch, and walking around, we met up with the group to see Piazza Duomo, I took some photos inside and will post those when I am finished editing.

Then we went up to the Uffizi Gallery to check out Sandro Botticelli's work - most famous work is The Birth of Venus

*the image aboe was NOT taken by me*

The painting was at least 7 ft long by 8-9 feet tall. It was really the only reason I wanted to go in, and it was worth it. I did manage to appreciate the other arts there as well (sculptures, paintings, sketches, etc).

After all of this, it was time to go home. I spent about an hour in line to see David, and another hour for Duomo and another for the Uffizi Gallery. and a few hours worth of walking.

Great location, great experience... I'm glad I got to see what I saw and be around new people. It's now sunday and I leave to go back to the US in 2 weeks...


NEXT MAJOR TRIP

LONDON!

Yesterday, performer unknown. In Florence

time to update

Above is the birthplace of Gondolas FYI

Last weekend I was in Venice and Florence, here is my story…


I woke up at 5:00am to get ready and Brad and I walked down Trastevere to hop on the H bus to go to Termini. Termini is the main train station in Roma and from my apartment off of Trastevere, it’s about a 20 minute bus ride to the station. Well the bus was running a little behind schedule and all of us were getting antsy about making it there since our train left at 6:50am sharp. The bus didn’t end up getting there until 6:15 but we made it there on time regardless. Mind you there were at least 30 students from John Cabot going to Venice (and some to Florence) and all of us just happened to be on the same train there.




The train ride to Venice, or properly called, Venezia, took about 5 hours to get there from Rome. There were stops in between but a lot of us were tired. I went to bed around 1am the night before so 4 hours of sleep was not the greatest. I took an hour nap on the train ride to Venezia and while I was up I bought a ham and mozzarella sandwich with coca-cola at 8am in the food car. (didn’t eat before) I tried to be studious by reading for my mass media class…and that ended up nor working out.


Around 11am we arrived in Venice and this is what I saw:

The weather that day was extremely hot and humid. It was definitely one of the hottest days we’ve experienced since a couple weeks ago when we arrived in Rome. Our hostel we stayed at was not in Venice either. It was about 15-20 minutes away and it was a really nice hostel…almost too nice. We all felt apart of some horror flick with a bunch of college students traveling with a killer on the loose somewhere awaiting their next victim.

It didn’t happen of course but here are some images from that

After dropping off our luggage at the hostel and taking another shower, we went back into Venice to eat and experience all the shops and scenery Venice has to offer. All of us wanted to get to San Marco and see the basilica. There were tons of pigeons there and at least 10 or so flew right past my head. Rule of thumb – don’t feed the damn things. Hence they get really close to you, land on you, poop on you, etc etc..all but the last one happened to me.


The view was amazing as you can see from these photos

Afterwards I went over to the Hard Rock Café to look around, but more importantly – take advantage of the AC since the sun was still shinning bright around 5pm and it was still 90+ degrees with high humidity. A group of us were supposed to meet up with Anna and Ann for a gondola ride. But they ended up in San marco when we were already back by the train station (where we were supposed to meet up) after being exhausted and walking for 45 minutes (bc we got lost on the way) we walked BACK to San Marco to meet up. When we did meet up and wanted to go on the infamous gondola ride…mother nature decides, oh whats better than some rain and HAIL. That fiasco went on for a while. (mind you rain in Italy is NOT common) The once nice thing was the temperature dropped a lot so it was a relief. Whlie it was raining though we decided to have a group dinner at Hard Rock Café and eat some American style food. BBQ pulled pork sandwich was AMAZING. Pizza and pasta are great, don’t get me wrong, but this meal made my day…kinda like every other meal..oops!


We ended up waiting, eating, and chit chatting in there for a little over 2 hours. It was nice to sit down, and relax since that day we woke up early and had little or no sleep and the weather was taking its toll on us. No gondola ride L but I still had fun regardless. Anna also turned 21 at midnight but we wouldn’t celebrate her birthday until the next day. Because we were all tired, we waited a long time for a bus to take us back to the hostel. I did manage to take some night shots..not the best, but oh well