So, warning, this is going to be a ridiculously long post!
It started Thursday, with a French rail strike! Luckily, unlike alot of my fellow students, our train was not cancelled! Woohoo! But it did create worry among our group. So, we took the train from Nantes to Paris. Then metro in Paris. Then bus to Beauvais (airport about 1 hr outside of Paris) then flew to Bergamo and took a taxi to our hostel. Ok, so it was a long day. But highlights included GF fried rice in Paris and when we were in the taxi in Bergamo, translating the taxi man's broken English into French for two French girls! Yup, the Americans are translating!
So Friday. I started out the day bright and early running along ways up a hill (not the whole thing because it was literally foothills to mountains) and turning the corners every switchback were amazing views of Bergamo! Then, we needed to take the public transportation to the airport to catch our bus to Milan. So, first we see a bus coming and these two old Italian ladies are telling us its the wrong bus (but they don't speak English). We then get on the next bus following them, only to discover that you need to buy tickets at a tabacchi. But the little old ladies force the bus driver to let us on anyways. Then, about two stops down the line, they kick us off the bus because there is a tabacchi where we can buy tickets! Once we got to Milan, we wandered the fashion district (oh mon dieu, très cher) and saw the giant Duomo. Along with TRL Italy being filmed and TONS of shrieking Italian teenyboppers. We caught our train to Venice, no problem and upon arrival in Venice, we discover that our map ended before our hostel and we went around asking for "San Polo?" which turns out to be a square, a neighborhood, a street and a church. So not helpful. Then we started asking for the Fish market. Much better responses! Finally, we found our hostel and checked in! Absolutely amazing, with a 4 person room.
Saturday, the fish market (and fruit market) was open! We bought a lot a lot a lot of fruit! Then wandered to the Duomo and saw the place where Vivaldi lived and taught! (Definitely a highlight for me). We then wandered to find food. We decided to eat a nicer lunch and stopped at a cute little restaurant. I handed the guy my food card and was asking what I can eat and he was like "Well of course we have rice pasta for you!" I love Italy. I went for a really nice run that afternoon but was so the tourist because I had to stop a couple of times on bridges to look at my map! My friends ate really good looking pizza that night (pizza jealousy!).
Sunday, we wandered more, starting out in search of Vivaldi tickets (which we then passed on due to not having tickets for the concert we wanted and the other concerts being très cher). We basically just explored Venice for the day. Mainly in search (at all times) of Vivaldi, gelato, pizza, chocolat chaud (or cappuccinos for my friends) and Italian leather purses and boots. That evening, we went out in search of dessert and looking at a menu, a guy passed us (about 50 years old) and in an Italian accent, he told us that it was no good and asked us what we were looking for. He sent us down the street and his young child offered to accompany us. On the walk, the boy (maybe 10) was telling us about "what us typically Venetians do." So cute. Then at a restaurant on round 2 (of dessert) later that evening, a cute little girl (maybe 1.5 years old) came and flirted with us. And the waiter offered to have my friend's babies. She politely turned him down.
Monday brought the second train strike of the trip. This time, our train was canceled, so we had to (such a burden) spend a few more hours in Venice and then we sat on folding chairs in the aisle of a later train! We got into Milan later than we wanted and got straight on a bus to Bergamo. In Bergamo, we thought that the public transportation bus would run up to the Citta Alta. But apparently, it had two stops: the train station and the airport. Since we got on at the airport, and didn't get off at the train station, we rode the bus in a circle. And a half (because we still needed to be downtown). After dinner, we found the bus line that we needed, unfortunately, it didn't come for another 40 min. We debated walking or taking a taxi. Right then a taxi came flying down the otherwise empty street and I flagged it down. Which was described as the "most baller taxi flagging ever." Ok, so maybe I did leap into the street. We then checked in and tried to book a taxi for the morning but the taxi place was closed, so they told us to call in the morning 10 min before needing a taxi. I might add that we were leaving the hostel at 4:15 the next morning.
Tuesday, so we all got up at 3:45 after going to bed after midnight. Took our taxi to the airport and then had to wait an hour for the boarding! We all napped on the plane and then upon arrival, took a bus to Paris where we hung out for the day, ate galettes, adored the french language (so easy to understand compared to Italian) and took a late train back to Nantes.
Overall, it was a very fun trip. I really want to go back to Italy (mountains next time!) and visit Venice again (during Carnaval!)
Ok, sorrry for the uber long post! Pictures to come!
Ciao
Laura
