The Calm Before the Storm

January has been a pleasant month for Matt and me. We haven’t been particularly busy, but we have been enjoying spending time with friends, working out, and attending class. Now we are into exam week! We have essay exams for history and literature and a paper to write for grammar class. Matt and I have carefully chosen the subject of language transfer in film and will write about subtitling, dubbing, and simultaneous interpretation. We enjoyed drinking coffee late Monday night to celebrate Johnny’s birthday, a supper at Carolina’s, and a lasagna night at our apartment. Our new semester will begin on February 12 and Matt and I plan to take some fun new classes!

Barcelona Snapper

From Top: Heather in front of La Sagrada Familia (Sacred Family Cathedral); Sagrada Familia; Mediterranean Sea port; sharks in the Barcelona Aquarium; the surprise parade of the Tres Magos; sick Matt with Indian entertainer on Las Ramblas street; Matt in front of aquaduct system in Park Guell; us sitting on the longest bench in the world;
one of many great views from the park - this one of the Hansel and Gretel house and the long bench.

Beautiful, Sunny Barcelona

After the cold and chill of Germany and Italy, Barcelona’s weather felt like heaven. The morning of the fourth Matt and I found a pharmacy and I purchased some medicine similar to Theraflu that miraculously allowed me to feel much, much better. Unfortunately, Matt was just beginning to sneeze and blow his nose incessantly and it became clear he was quickly picking up my sickness. That morning we snapped photos of the famous Sagrada Familia and loved a hot lunch at Kentucky Fried Chicken. In the afternoon, we walked down to the port and soaked up the warm sunshine and the beautiful view of the Mediterranean Sea. I bought some popcorn and we sat on the dock for almost an hour; the sunshine felt like medicine itself. Then we toured the aquarium museum for several hours, taking the time to read the information and writings on the walls and tanks. Matt loved the stingrays; I found the moving sidewalk to be the best part. The sidewalk slowly pulls you through an area where the tank is above and on either side of you and you can see sharks and a large variety of fish. Unfortunately, our lovely day ended with a bummer of a restaurant which cost us all that our budget would allow and we left hungry. Nonetheless, the next day we started out with as much enthusiasm as a sick Matt and a getting better Heather would allow. We spent the afternoon at an impressive Picasso museum which houses over 3600 pieces of the artist’s work. That evening, we were so fortunate. We were walking around just to look and see and we found a large group of people clustered around a main street and soon discovered a bright and flashy parade – the parade of the Three Wise Men. Matt and I watched with delight, caught handfuls of candy, and captured moments on film and video. The next day was a holiday, the day when gifts are exchanged in Spain; accordingly, the museums and so forth were closed. Matt and I then happily exchanged the city for the beauty of Park Guell, designed by the famous Gaudi. After a nice long walk and a rest on the longest park bench in the world, we enjoyed steaming hot cups of coffee as the sun set and the evening chill set in. Since Matt was feeling terribly sick, we returned early to the noisy hostel and spent the night in relative comfort. The next morning, we woke at six to catch our flight with IBERIA!!! Indeed, Iberia is much more pleasant than RyanAir and we found we were able to move through the lines with relative ease. Our flight landed in Vigo around noon and we were back in our own lovely apartment around one. What happiness we felt when walking into our own clean space! That afternoon, Matt slept off his sickness while I began on the laundry and made homemade chicken noodle soup. The joy of adventure and travel certainly led to the joy and thankfulness of returning to Vigo.

Fotos de Venezia

From Top: The bridge across the Canal Grande (or Italian language equivalent); Matt; traditional Venecian Carnavale masks; a statue; beautiful view of the river and sea; Saint Mary's Cathedral; poor Heather fighting a cold; a traditional Venecian Gondola.

The Water Canals of Venice

On the morning of the 31st, Matt and I left Milan and rode the train for a four-hour journey to Venice. Once outside of Venice, we switched trains and continued on to the small city of Treviso, about twenty minutes from Venice. In the city of Treviso we began to look for a city bus to take us to the neighborhood of Cassier where our hotel was located. We happily found the correct bus and were riding comfortably for ten minutes when Matt said, “Maybe we should ask this lady when we should get off for the hotel.” I agreed and asked in my clearest English and the woman responded by pointing directly across the street as the bus rushed past the hotel. Matt and I couldn’t help but laugh as she hit the button to ask the driver to stop and we got off a hundred yards from the hotel. We had arrived! Our hotel was modern, clean, and comfortable; best yet, we were greeted by a friendly man just a year or two older than us named Oliver. Oliver chatted in English with the musical Italian accent and was happy to acquaint us with the hotel and area. Unfortunately, we discovered it would be difficult to get back in Venice for a New Year’s Eve celebration due to our distance from the city and Treviso’s city bus schedule. So we settled into our room, warm and cozy, and watched Italian TV before venturing out to find a nice restaurant to eat supper. We did indeed find a pizzeria within walking distance but then found out the restaurant was booked for the evening’s parties. The owners did politely allow us to order and stay for thirty minutes, and I admit we were thankful to have something warm to eat. With nothing else to do, we went back to the hotel immediately afterwards and found its restaurant was just beginning to open for evening guests. The ladies and gentlemen were dressed in dresses and suits, so we felt like the dirty, tired, and worn travelers that we were; our room provided suitable refuge and the evening hours quickly passed away. Around eleven, we went back down to the restaurant area and talked with Oliver as we drank hot tea. We stayed until the midnight countdown and rang in the New Year with a room full of happy Italians and kisses all around. The next day we traveled to Venice in the afternoon once the buses were running again and spent our time attempting to stay warm while wandering around the water canals and shopping areas. We particularly enjoyed looking at the intricate Carnival masks. We ate a late lunch at a Chinese restaurant and were pleased with the hot soup, rice, main plate, and tea. The next day I was feeling the effects of a bad cold but we still continued our adventure in the city by riding on the “bus” – a series of boats which make trips to different points of the city. The majority of our day was spent at Plaza San Marco wandering around confusing streets and exploring the old buildings and huge gothic church. We finished off the chilly day with yummy gelati cones that just somehow seemed to make everything all right. The day of the third of January was our traveling day. We left Treviso around noon on a train ride back to Bergamo to catch our flight to Barcelona. Our day went accordingly: bus to Treviso train station, fifteen minutes; train to Venice, thirty minutes; train to Bruccia, three hours; train to Bergamo, one hour; bus to Bergamo airport, forty minutes; wait in RyanAir lines, three hours; flight to Girona, one hour; bus to Barcelona, one hour; metro to hostel, ten minutes; walking around lost at midnight, thirty minutes; check in at hostel, fifteen minutes…and so our adventure continued!

Hello There Folks!

Just writing to let everyone know that we appreciate you reading our blogs and REALLY appreciate it when you write a little comment so we know that someone did read the blog! We love and miss you all and will post more soon.

We took Milan's Picture

From Top: The Duomo (Cathedral), Castle Sforezco, Heather in front of the same thing, Michelangelo's "Pietra" - his final work of art before his death, inscription on the "Pietra," one of many strange and beautiful works of art in the Sforezco museums.

Freezing in Fashionable Milan

We left for RyanAir’s airport outside of Milan from Hahn the night of the 27th. After waiting for more than an hour on the ground due to the freezing snow rain outdoors, we finally took off and landed in Bergamo an hour later. We were forced to take a taxi to our hostel because of the late hour; we were finally checked in and ready to find our room by one in the morning. Though we had to make our beds (bunk beds with twin mattresses) in the dark and share a room with six others, the hostel was decently clean and comfortable. It didn’t really matter much, because the next morning we woke early and ate breakfast before leaving immediately to find the train station. From Bergamo we traveled by train to Milan and found our next hotel in that city by two pm the afternoon of the 28th. The hotel had a nice location in the city; however, our room smelled strongly of stale cigarette smoke and it never felt warm enough to be cozy. We found the weather to be miserable because of the 0-5 degree C temperatures in addition to the heavy humidity and fog. Our first stop in Milan was the gothic church Duomo. It is large and intimidating and perfectly European. We walked in and around and were even gifted by “lucky” string bracelets that were tied around our wrists without warning while the creator asked for a “donation” for his efforts. That afternoon we wandered around the square and nearby outdoor mall area, stopping to check out a computer-geek store and for lunch at McDonalds with at least two hundred other frantic tourists. We only wanted a warm place to sit and eat, as did those two hundred others. The other days we spent in the castle museums, ten in all with themes such as “Portrait Museum” and “Egyptian Museum.” Perhaps most famous works we saw was Michelangelo’s Pietra and Da Vinci’s murals decorating the ceilings of several castle rooms. Otherwise, we enjoyed tasty Italian pasta and pizza meals and struggled to stay warm. Because of an deep chest cough and sore throat, I picked out a black wool scarf at a fashionable shop; really I just disappointed the worker who was trying to sell me something really special in his estimation – a cashmere scarf for a mere 90 euros. I was happy with my wool scarf. Matt enjoyed the TV in our hotel room; it turns out American movies are just as fun in Italian as they are in English. In the end, we were happy to get on the train the morning of the 31 as we traveled on to Venice.

A beautiful view of Germany

From Top: Heather, Samy & Fatima on bridge in Frankfurt (on our last day there); 20 foot tall decoration at a Christmas Market in Darmstadt which we missed by a day; Samy & stranger discussing the unfortunate closing of the Darmstadt Christmas Market the day before we saw it; Samy as we played one of many nightly Settlers of Catan games; the wonderful aquarium we watched for hours; Christmas dinner (supper); an incredible castle in Bensheim - where Samy & Fatima live, my favorite castle so far in Europe; Samy and me - Matt, on the couch.

Christmas in Germany!

Matt and I left Rome on an early morning flight on the 22nd with much satisfaction of our time and great anticipation for reuniting with our friends. After several hours of RyanAir lines and time on the plane, we arrived in the small city of Hahn, an hour outside of Frankfurt. We then bought tickets for the bus that travels between the small airport Hahn and the large airport Frankfurt and settled back for a more comfortable trip; I even took a nap, warmed by the sunshine streaming through the large window. When we got off the bus at the big airport, we began to feel nervous about meeting Samy, hoping our flight details and arrival times were conveyed without confusion. Sure enough, within a few minutes Samy turned the corner and we spent a few moments in hugs and the happiness of seeing each other again. Samy loaded our luggage into his small car and we drove on the autobahn to their apartment in Bensheim, a thirty minute drive. The entire time Matt and I were chatting of Vigo and Rome and Samy encouraged us with his laughs and questions. We responded by peppering him with our own questions of his work and Fatima’s progress on her chemistry thesis. It was such a jumble of entertaining conversation! That evening, we relaxed as Samy prepared lasagna and we all waited for Fatima to arrive from her university. Nothing escaped our attention: the new furniture, Samy’s fish aquarium, the view of the city castle, recent photos framed and added to the wall. Matt was delighted to find the board game Settlers of Catan on the shelf; the game is one of his favorites and he undoubtedly remains the Catan champion in Vermillion. That evening we sat down with the game and bottomless cups of tea and played to our heart’s content. The rest of our days were equal in their fun and relaxed atmosphere. We went in search for a famous Christmas market in several cities but each day found the market closed, having finished the evening before. Nonetheless, the trips were fun in that we enjoyed the drives and the walks in the area. One bitter cold afternoon, we went for a walk with Samy up the large mountainous hill where there is a white cottage restaurant. Once we arrived at the top, finally warmed up by the strenuous exercise, we were rewarded with a stunning view of the city and beyond. We ordered coffees and warm desserts and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Our next stop was the city castle on a bigger yet hill, only we arrived after dark. That indeed did not stop Matt and Samy. We climbed inside the ruins and explored around and finally the boys decided to climb the stairs of the lookout tower. I was terrified because of the dark; the stairs were angled and steep and the only light was the glow of Samy’s cell phone. After a few heart-stopping minutes, we reached the top and had yet another beautiful view, this time of the city with the lights sparkling. That very evening we drove to Darmstadt and enjoyed a meal at Pizza Hut to celebrate the success of our visit. Fatima’s home-cooked meals are certainly worth mentioning: we ate salmon, chocolate cake, crepes, and typical German Christmas foods, including a chicken dumpling meal. Matt and I were amazed by their generosity. The morning of the 27th we drove back to Frankfurt and toured the city for a few hours before warming up with coffees. That evening we had to say our difficult goodbyes. Our visit was characterized by laughter, jokes, games, rest, good eating, and conversation, and we loved every minute of our time with Samy and Fatima. Perhaps we both felt a bit guilty for not sharing kindness and generosity as well as they do; certainly we both wish we could have made their time in Vermillion as pleasant as they have made our time in Europe. Above all, though we dearly missed our families over Christmas, we were indeed happy and blessed by our time with our friends in Germany.

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Rome in a few pictures

From top: Us in front of the Colosseum, the Pantheon, Vatican City (St. Peter's Basilica), inside Saint Peter's Basilica, the Castle of Saint Angelo.

The Perfect Rome

We left on a sunny morning in Vigo on the 18th of December. Despite the unusually pleasant weather, we were a bit anxious for all the uncertainties of travel and still yet excited for the future fun and discoveries we were certain of finding in Europe’s historical cities. Our first leg of the trip was a train ride from Vigo to the airport in Santiago de Compostela; here we discovered we were to be flying with a large group of Italian students from our university in Vigo and others near-by. We really do like the Italians, but they certainly are a loud, rowdy bunch of friends! This was our first experience with RyanAir, and undoubtedly the best in a long run of irritating flights. Here’s the deal: RyanAir sells cheap tickets but then charges for each piece of luggage and strives to sell unnecessary travel insurance with each flight. Furthermore, the cheap tickets are really only a good deal if you happen to fly out early in the morning (8 am or earlier) or late in the evening (9 pm or later). Otherwise, the tickets are just as expensive as any other airline. It does, however, get worse. RyanAir flies from the small airports outside of the major cities, allowing for at least an hour of additional travel once arriving. Worst of all is the non-existent customer service. Lines form to check in at least two hours in advance; when a worker arrives at the desk to begin the process, the line is usually 50 or more people long. After check-in, typically one must spend another thirty minutes to move through the line to reach security. Then the backpack is searched and all forms of liquid and metal must be declared. Finally, when you reach the gate, another line is formed because tickets do not come with seat assignments; indeed the rush to sit where you want with whom you want on the plane is a free for all. Once happily seated, you can’t help but notice the strange amount of yellow and blue plastic as the flight “attendants” work to sell you a sandwich for 6 euros or some other item in their gift brochure. When Matt and I arrived in Ciampino around midnight that night, we were astonished when our travel buddies and others clapped at our safe landing as celebratory music played in the background. And that was only the beginning! Happily, our hotel was just outside Ciampino, and we were delighted to stumble into a modern room with TV and clean shower. The next morning we woke in time to enjoy the free breakfast and I must add that it was a banquet of breakfast – juice, coffee, tea, bread, cheese, meat, cereal, jellies, and honey. Before leaving, we had monitored our meager supply of groceries for two weeks in order to save all money for the trip. Accordingly, we had been eating very little at each meal and not at all the night before. Therefore, this breakfast with so many choices seemed heavenly and we marveled for the entire hour that we ate. This set a very fine stage for our first day of exploring and we headed immediately to the Colosseum. It really is outstanding, and we bought tickets to walk around the inside and along the narrow halls. Much imagination is not needed after movies like The Gladiator to picture large Roman crowds with mighty men and fierce animals below. The Colosseum sets up the stage to visit the ancient Palatine Hill where Matt and I walked for an entire afternoon after enjoying a picnic lunch (borrowed sandwiches made from the hotel breakfast!). In subsequent days, we visited the Pantheon, catacombs and the Vatican City. On a tour of the Basilica, we were shown through a room of pope’s tombs, including the recently deceased John Paul II. The sanctuary of the church is just beautiful and we walked through it in silent awe along with other guests from every country imaginable. The Vatican has its own postal system and Matt and I sent off postcards to Hanna and Matt’s mom and Ron. Finally, we toured a castle museum on the Tiber River with a grand finale overlook of the city from the very top of the castle. We found Rome to be just lovely, especially with its lights for the Christmas season. The Metro system makes it easy to get about in the city and we saw to our heart’s content!

Three Weeks, Three Countries

Matt and I made it back to Vigo! We arrived on Sunday the seventh around noon, two of the happiest and most tired travelers there ever could be. In two weeks and six days, we had been to several major and suburb cities: Ciampino, Rome, Frankfurt, Bensheim, Hahn, Bergamo, Milan, Treviso, Venice, Girona, and Barcelona. We are very blessed in that despite all that moving around, our luggage arrived safely with us at each location. We flew with RyanAir, Europe’s discount airline; took the train between Bergamo, Venice, and Milan; traveled by bus from the airports in the suburbs to the cities; rode the Metro and bus lines within the city; enjoyed the comfort of traveling by Samy’s personal car; and finally hopped on the boat transport in Venice. We really did beat “trains, planes, and automobiles!” It is no wonder that when I was trying to sleep last night, my mind was busy recalling bus and train schedules and I instinctively wanted to ask Matt what Metro line we wanted to catch to see the Duomo. Yes, we really did have a great time exploring each city and learning how to become wise travelers. Perhaps our best time was spent at Samy and Fatima’s home in Bensheim, Germany. We were there for Christmas and were treated to such kind hospitality and warm friendship that it was difficult to leave when our stay was over. Rome was delightful; we saw the ruins of the Colosseum and Palatine Hill, the Vatican City, the Christian burial grounds of the catacombs outside city walls; and a castle museum right on the Tiber River. After Christmas in Germany, we went back to Italy on a late night flight into Bergamo. The next few days we spent in Milan. It was downright freezing in Milan with heavy humid air and temperatures near 0 C. We were happy to take refuge in the museums that house historical treasures and art such as the pietra by Michelangelo. Our next journey was to Venice where we enjoyed the intrigues of a city built on water. We delighted in our best gelati (Italian ice cream) at the best price found at dinnertime after being chilled from walking about the square surrounding a gothic church. Our last stop was in Barcelona where we were greeted with the sun of a pleasant Mediterranean winter. Here we visited the famous Sagrada Familia and a museum with 3600 of Picasso’s works. We happened to see the Christmas parade “Tres Reyes Malagas” of the three wise kings complete with real live camels. Finally, we are now back in Vigo, safe and sound, with at least a hundred stories to tell! I will write about each stage of our journey in future blogs. For now, we want to say thank you! For all your warm thoughts and prayers. We are sure our travels were so successful because of God’s blessings due to the strength of so many prayers. How much we miss you all!