Rome

From the top: In front of the Sistine Chapel, Vatican City, the Colosseum, sitting at the top of the Spanish Steps, in front of the Trevi Fountain.

Rome was the last stop on our week tour of Italy. We got in sort of late, so Lisa and I just decided to go to a piazza and take a couple of pictures in front of a fountain. The next day, we got up early, and went to Vatican City. I hardly had to wait in line to get in the Vatican Museum. I saw the Hall of Maps, the Sistine Chapel, and many other rooms with amazing art. After walking around the Vatican for a while, we went to see the Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps. They were pretty packed with tourists, but it still was great to see them. We learned from our tour guide that the city of Rome gets a large amount of income from the coins collected from the Trevi.

The next day, we toured ancient Rome. We saw the Roman Forum, and the Colosseum. Again, I was just blown away how the hustle bustle of the city surrounds ancient architecture. It was phenomenal.

Gelato was a daily occurrance during our stay in Italy. The weather was great, and I would love to go back very soon!

Gardens of Villa La Pietra

Florence

From the top: Sneaking a picture of the David, classic picture in front of the leaning tower of Pisa, carosel in Piazza Repubblica, view of the Duomo from Piazza Michaelangelo, Ponte Vecchio.

Florence was really great. A couple of our friends are studying at NYU in Florence, so we had great tour guides to show us the ropes. We took day trips out from Florence to Siena and Pisa, which was really fun, and I got to take a touristy pushing against the tower picture. We went to a couple of restaurants that are friends had been raving about, and they did not disappoint! One of the places was called Il Latini, and when you go they don't even give you menus. We sat down, and out came dish after dish of family style Italian.

The courses:
1. Prosciutto and bread
2. Liver paté on a crostini and sauteed mushrooms on a crostini
3. Caprese Salad
4. Cheese Raviolo, Penne Bolognese, and a flat pasta with meat sauce. It came with a delicious bean soup
5. Platters of Chicken, Steak, and Pork with french fries
6. Ice Cream, Cream puffs, Kiwi-strawberry pie, and biscotti

It was phenomenal! All of us walked, or I should say waddled, out of the restaurant so full and so content.

One of the days, we went to Galleria Accademia to see David. We waited in line for 20 minutes, and when I went around the corner to the main atrium, I was stunned. The statue of David is 15 feet tall or so, and breath taking. He is perfect, and some say that Michaelangelo carved him to mirror himself.

After that we walked around the Duomo and took pictures, before heading up to NYU in Florence campus. We then proceeded to take a tour of Villa La Pietra, which is a villa that was bequeathed to NYU in 1994. It is an amazing Villa steeped in Renaissance art and history. The Acton family gave it to NYU on the condition that they would leave all the art and furniture in tact, and give tours to students and tourists. It had the most amazing gardens!

NYU in Florence is beautiful; however, I'm glad I'm not studying there, because I would probably gain some serious weight from all the delicious food.

Venice

From the top: View from Ponte di Realto, Ponte di Realto, Church in Piazza San Marco, Lisa and I in front of the water in front of our hostel.

Venice was absolutely beautiful! The city is built on water, and the canals are it's veins through out. The weather when we got into Venice was sunny, and warm. It was a huge change from the clouds of Prague. We walked around the Piazza San Marco, and roamed the paths along the canals. I couldn't help but think that everyone walking the streets must be tourists. How does one actually live and work in Venice?

My friends and I found a restaurant with decent prices and sat down for dinner. The pasta was amazing. This was just the beginning of delicious food.

Italia!

I'm heading off to Italy tomorrow! I'm very excited and will update as soon as I can! xoxoxo

Bears in Český Krumlov

Here are the bears that are outside of the castle. So cuddly! 

Český Krumlov

From the top: Lisa and I at the Eggenberg Brewery in front of beer storage tank, Eggenberg sign, the town of Cesky Krumlov from the castle, Jack, Lisa, and I in front of the castle, our hostel. 

NYU took a group of us on an overnight trip to the town of Cesky Krumlov which is three hours outside of Prague. It is the second highest tourist destination in Czech Republic beside Prague. The town was really beautiful despite cloudy weather. We took a tour of the castle which has around 300 rooms. 

The castle has a full, functional theater, masquerade ball room, and luxurious sleeping quarters. 

The best part about the castle was two bears guarded the entrance. Yep, the Czech know how to keep trespassers away.  Two bears were in large pastures by the entrance of the castle. Apparently they are brother and sister, but our guide said they were also mates. Interesting..... They looked very cuddly. 

The next day, we all went to the Eggenberg Beer Brewery. The brewery has been in operation since the Middle Ages. It was really cool. The brewery still makes part of their beer the exact same way it was made in the middle ages. It is an extensive process and takes about 3 weeks to make it the old war. On the other hand, it takes one week to make beer with modern technology. Our tour guide was a retired man in his 70's named Rostra. He speaks English, German, and Czech and leads tours on a daily basis. 

It was a great trip. If you ever make it to Cesky, make sure you come in the spring or summer. Our tour guide emphasized that the town is much more happening during the "on" season. 

Delicious Food!

From the top: Lisa's homemade bolognese sauce, my chicken saltimbocca with a vegetable rice  medley, salmon steak with roasted potatoes and sauteed vegetables.

Somewhere in between classes, homework, and free time, Lisa and I have stepped up our skills in the kitchen. We have been experimenting with many ingredients and recipes and the results have been glorious. Here is just a couple of our delicious dinners. Not pictured: a tasty chef salad with cranberriers, walnuts, feta, and mixed veggies and fajita type wrap with mixed vegetables. YUM-O! 

Interesting facts about Prague

I now have been living here for over a month, and I feel right at home. There are some notable differences between Prague and New York, so I thought I would share. 

1. Dogs don't have to be on leashes walking down the street. It looks like a dog is a stray, because it's wandering aimlessly behind it's owner. What's more, is he owners don't have to pick up after their dog, which is really annoying. I'm constantly have to watch where I step. 

2. There are various hot dog stands on the street where they serve you a hot dog in a baguette. It is so delicious, and costs under a dollar. 

3. Beer in the supermarket costs 9 Crowns which is equivalent to 40 cents. 

4. Czech Republic has the highest beer consumption per capita in the world. See #3

5. The Czech like to play American hits from the mid 90's onward in supermarkets, train stations, and other public places. I love grocery shopping and hearing the hits. 

6. The metro system operates on an honor system, meaning that there are no turnstiles to enter; however, if an inspector flags you down, and you don't have a metro pass, you have to pay around $35 for not purchasing a ticket. A single ride ticket costs about 80 cents. 

7. PDA is totally okay for Czech couples of all ages. 

8. Average escalator ride is about 3-5 minutes. 

9. No means Yes. Literally. "Ano" translated is Yes. 

Pictures from top: "Roll the Keg" activity between periods. The Czech team, right before a goal. The Finland team lined up. Lisa and I with our Czech flags. A group of us before the game. 

Czech Hockey: Češi, do toho

NYU took us to a Czech-Finland hockey game a couple weeks ago. They lost 5-3 unfortunately, but Czechs are really big on hockey. It's their national sport. Probably one of the only events that I have been to where there is no line for the women's bathroom but there is one for the men. It was really fun! They have interesting intermission activities including "Roll the keg" and "Race to the pivo." The Czech team lost, but it still was a really fun time. I felt right at home waving the Czech flag and cheering in Czech. I definitely want to go to more games. 

Karlovy Vary aka stomping grounds for the Russian Mob

Pictures: Me tasting the hot springs water, the saint mary madgalena church, the Grand Hotel Pupp (James Bond Hotel), downtown Karlovy Vary

This weekend, I went on an overnight trip provided by NYU to Karlovy Vary. It's a small spa town two hours west of Prague. It has natural hot springs running through the town, so it quickly became a popular spot for royalty and the wealthy. King Charles discovered the hot springs in the 14th century when he was there hunting. His dog fell in the water and started to yelp because it was so hot. The water supposedly has healing powers, so it quickly became a spot to see. We were told that it is a very big destination for the Russians, and supposedly the mafia would bring their families to vacation there.

We tasted the water coming out of 13 separate little springs. It has a very distinct, metallic taste. Not many people liked the taste of it. We were taken to the Becherovka Museum for a tour. It was very interesting, and I knew nothing about it before moving to Prague. It is the national drink right behind beer. The tour guide said most people do two little glasses a day. One in the morning to start your day off, and one right before bed. 

The tour was led by the professor who teaches the Czech architecture class, so it was very informative. The buildings are mostly from the Renaissance period. We were able to see the inside of the Church of Saint Mary Magdalena. It is more Baroque in style, and beautiful. We also saw the hotel from the movie Casino Royale where James Bond is at the casino. Grand Hotel Pupp.

The highlight was actually going to the spa. I got a 25 minute massage, which was wonderful except for the fact they had a Madonna playlist running. Not your typical spa music, that's for sure. I also did something called electroaerosol inhalation. You sit in a sauna type room, and the hot springs water is turned to steam and you sit for 15 minutes breathing it in. It's supposed to be good for your respiratory system. 

Berlin

Pictures from the top: Me in front of the Holocaust Memorial, Hotel Adlon (where Michael Jackson dangled his baby out the window), my roommate and I in front of Brandenburg Gate, The Berlin Wall, and above Hitler's Bunker. (They didn't want to build any sort of memorial for him, so it's literally a patch of grass where people let their dogs go to the bathroom and this sign.)

I went to Berlin last weekend with a couple of friends. It was a five hour train ride. When we got there, we took a tour and saw a lot of the landmarks. I saw the Brandenburg Gate, the Jewish Holocaust Memorial, the Parliament building, the Berlin wall, and check point charlie to name a few. It was incredibly cold, but it was a very informative tour. I saw immediate differences between Prague and Berlin. Most of the buildings of Berlin are relatively new, because they had been destroyed in WWII. There were often bullet holes and pieces missing from buildings because of explosives going off in close proximity. 

I was surprised to see how little the Berlin wall was. It looked like you could easily hop over it. An interesting fact that I learned from the tour is that once the wall came down, commodities were quickly introduced to east Germany. Today one of the only ways to distinguish whether you're in east or west Berlin is the pedestrian traffic light signal. East Berlin has the Ampelmann. He is way better than a stick figure man walking. He has a hat on, and he is striding. The do not walk sign is the Ampelmann standing with his arms out. Ampelmann is huge there. They have an entire store dedicated to it,  where you can buy anything from t-shirts to Ampelmann pasta. 

Our hostel was very nice as far as hostels go. It was very convenient by a metro stop, and had free internet in the lobby. A continental breakfast was provided with rolls, ham, cheese, and coffee. I am a big fan of the German pastries. Almost every corner had a pastry shop with great selection of freshly baked treats. They were delicious. 

Classes Started

Classes started yesterday, and they all were very interesting. All my professors have amazing credentials. One of my professors sits on the judicial board for all of Prague. He is the equivalent of a supreme court justice in the U.S. Another professor has been in one of the biggest marketing firms in London for 17 years. Should be a great semester. 

Charles Bridge

Pictures of Charles Bridge

Staroméstské Námésti (Old Town Square)

I took a tour of Old Town Square. The highlights were Charles Bridge which was built in 1357 and after more than 600 years it is now being renovated. The architecture is really pretty. Tyn Church is in the square as well as the astronomical clock which is a huge tourist attraction.