My Florence

We’ve finally come to the (almost) end of my abroad blog. I’ve been tossing around ideas on how to close the curtain on this digital adventure for some time now. When I closed the curtain on the real-life adventure, it involved lots of running around town and seeing and eating all that I could inContinue reading “My Florence”

Exploring Transylvania | Pelisor, Peles, and Bran Castles

On day two of my Romanian adventure, I headed out to the mysterious mountains of Transylvania – a place where fairy tales, legends, vampires and mysteries abound. Transylvania, the geographic center of Romania, has been a popular destination for business-people and travelers for centuries. Its position at the crossroads between Europe, the Middle East andContinue reading “Exploring Transylvania | Pelisor, Peles, and Bran Castles”

Weekend in Romania | Bucharest

This post was originally written for Syracuse University’s writing course, WRT 424: Writing a Sense of Place. It will soon be published in the class book.  We arrived in Romania on a sunny morning in late November. I was so excited – Romania sounded like such an enchanting place. My travel buddy Andrew and IContinue reading “Weekend in Romania | Bucharest”

Adventures in Verona

Verona might just be the most under-rated city in all of Italy. Ever since I first read Romeo and Juliet, I’d wanted to see Verona. Even just walking through other Italian cities, I often found myself saying something like, “This looks just like how I pictured Romeo and Juliet!” So after two days in Venice, IContinue reading “Adventures in Verona”

Wandering Venice

Before I even knew I’d be studying in Florence, I dreamed of going to Venice. The sparkling city on the water, full of extravagant elegance at every turn, was like a far-off fairy tale to me. It was something out of the pages of an ancient romantic story, its pages telling of mysterious and festive masqueradeContinue reading “Wandering Venice”

My Celtic Adventure | Blarney Castle and Last Days in Dublin

The next morning, the time came to leave Annascaul. We boarded the bus after an early breakfast at the hostel for our last day with our tour. Today’s agenda: the Blarney Castle and Guinness Storehouse. We spent much of the morning at the Blarney Castle, and it’s a testament to the castle’s size and intricacyContinue reading “My Celtic Adventure | Blarney Castle and Last Days in Dublin”

My Celtic Adventure | Killarney National Park and the Dingle Peninsula

Galway set the quaint-ness bar pretty high, but our night in Killarney was a good competitor. We overnighted at a hostel downtown just minutes from a small web of shops, restaurants and a beautiful church. Killarney’s main attraction, though, is its national park – a sprawling 25,425 acres (about 40 square miles) of forests, lakes,Continue reading “My Celtic Adventure | Killarney National Park and the Dingle Peninsula”

My Celtic Adventure | Ireland’s Western Atlantic Coast

The past few days had been so full of breathtaking beauty that I couldn’t imagine there being any left in the country to see. But, I learned that Ireland is a country full of surprises, and it’s wealth of beauty proved endless. We woke in Derry where we’d spent the previous night and boarded theContinue reading “My Celtic Adventure | Ireland’s Western Atlantic Coast”

My Celtic Adventure | Northern Ireland

My dream trip had officially begun! Camilla and I met our tour guide, Shaun, and about 20 other travelers from all over the world for a six day tour of Ireland. After leaving from Dublin, we were to head north, then make a loop through the west and south before returning to Dublin. We reallyContinue reading “My Celtic Adventure | Northern Ireland”

My Celtic Adventure | Day One In Dublin

Just an hour in a plane and we were landing in Ireland. It didn’t feel real. I’d been hoping all my life for that moment, and there it was. We flew over green fields dotted with sheep before landing in the Dublin and taking a bus to the center. We set off right away toContinue reading “My Celtic Adventure | Day One In Dublin”