kallie.elizabeth.walker

The best weather so far. My cheeks even got a little pink on the 3 hour slow-boat to Korcula. It was a spontaneous move to go to Korcula, so I didn't know what to expect. When we pulled into the harbor, my jaw dropped:

Ferry from Bari went smoothly, thank goodness. Pulled into Dubrovnik at sunrise and what a welcoming. Such a beautiful, clean city. The people are friendly and sun is shining!

Three weeks into my trip and I’m at Pompeii. Now I know I’m a tourist, but I hope I’m not that stupid. I heard an American lady arguing with her husband today. She goes “These can’t be houses. They’re only one room big, and there’s no room for the chariots…”
Seriously?

Took the ferry out to Capri, despite the shaky weather. The island of Capri has been up on the top of my list as long as I can remember, and I was a little disappointed. It was really touristy and just not like I expected it to be. I guess it’s not really fair comparing it to the Cinque Terre, but they kick Capri’s butt!

Finally some luck with the weather! It’s my last day, and my hiking day. Unfortunately only made it to Monterossa and missed the other 3 cities, because of [another] mishap with public transport… Oh well, I’d like to come back this Spring.

Hostels are a little like life. You meet some really cool people, and just as you’re getting to know them, once day they’re just gone.
It poured all day today. I stayed all cooped up inside and drank tea all day with the heat cranked up. I stepped out for about a half hour to take some pictures at the arena, and got completely drenched from head to toe, but it was totally worth it. The waves were HUGE and just smashing into the rocks in the bay. So powerful.
We got 8 new roommates, putting us up to 11 in the tiny little apartment! It is so crammed in the kitchen with that HUGE table that takes up half of the apartment.
It finally stopped raining later in the evening around 10:00pm. I went back out to the Marina and took some night shots. Man, I never thought I’d say it, but I wish I would have brought my tripod!

Dear friend,

Wish you were here, living in the moment, seeing the places, meeting the people, experiencing the culture, and having the time of your life.

- Kallie

Today I played soccer in the streets of Venice with bored gondola drivers. No picture. Only great memories :)

I had a little dilemma yesterday when heading out of Paris. I spent all day Saturday looking for a hostel online in Portofino or the Cinque Terre, and couldn’t find anything. My train reservation would be useless unless I had a place to stay, so I spontaneously decided to go to Venice… Even though I didn’t have a hostel booked there either!
The hostel, the Venice Museum, was an old mansion and was fit for a king. They only had a few rooms, and there were only 6 or 7 other people there at the time. We’re like a little family. We ate breakfast and dinner together, and went out to the pub each night to have a drink. The people I’m meeting here are just incredible, and I feel like I’ve known them forever.

Even though I’ve been to Paris before, it never gets old. I still enjoy going to the Eiffel Tower, walking through Notre Dame, and taking pictures of the Arc de Triumph.
They say the French in Paris are a little rude towards Americans, but I still haven’t experienced that. The French people I’ve met have been so friendly, polite, and anything but rude.

Tip #2 (after Tip #1: Ask the price before you buy): Drink your coffee standing up. Otherwise, you will get a service charge of around 2 Euros per person. Your 1 Euro shot of espresso shortly turn into three.
We were headed on the train from Florence to Milan, in route back to Freiburg, when we sat next to the cutest, old, matching (Purple, of course), Italian couple. They couldn’t speak a word of English, and us Italian (with the exception of my German-Italian phrasebook), but we somehow managed to carry on a broken, schrade-like conversation for the whole 2 ½ hour train ride. They reminded me so much of Ulf and Vera. Mari, the lady, was very proper, and slightly embarrassed by her husband, Bino, who was extremely animated, loud, and absolutely hilarious!
We got out pictures taken with them in the end, and I said “É stato veramente un piacere conoscerti,” or in English “It was great getting to know you.”

Firenza reminds me a lot of Freiburg. Narrow streets, cute shops that close early, and just it’s own adorable charm. The only thing I’m a little disappointed with, is that it’s a little dirtier than I expected, and very crowded. The 18 Euro Gelato put a damper on things too…
Ab and I decided to get some gelato for lunch. We didn’t bother to ask, and figured it’d be 3-4 Euros, since Florence was pretty touristy, and boy did we pay for that mistake. Two gelatos came to 18 Euros!!! I about had a heart attack! That’s more than one night in a hostel! What a tourist trap!
Abbie and I will be eating the free breakfast, skipping lunch, and enjoy the free pasta dinner at our hotel for the remainder of Florence, lol.

Every morning, I’m greeted by “CIAO BELLA!” and offered a cappuccino and breakfast by the friendly staff of Hotel Lodi. They are so nice, genuine, compassionate, and loving. Hotel Lodi is family-run, and you can tell they’re a tight-knit family.
I met Justin, who was from Canada. We somehow got on the topic of cameras, and I found out he had a Hasselblad 500 series! We went to the Colosseum together and took a million pictures. We went back to Hotel Lodi for a break to upload some pics, and Fabriosio (one of the staff) asked us if we were hungry. We said yes, and he cooked us the most AMAZING, DELICIOUS pasta I’ve ever eaten in my life! Thick, homemade noodles in a tangy sauce with fresh oysters, tomatoes, and meat. Yummmmm!
Later that night, Marius, Justin, Max (Great Britain), and I sat in the kitchen and shared a bottle of red wine. I’m getting to see some pretty cool things, and go some pretty cool places while traveling, but it’s being completely overshadowed by the wonderful people I’m meeting. I love Italia.