Buda Buda Pest (Part 1)

(title meant to be read to the tune of the song You the Best by Drake... you da you da best.)

Well Budapest was forever ago, but oh what a journey it was!

On friday afternoon we biked super fast to the train station and almost missed our train. We were on a tight schedule. If we missed anything we were screwed and wouldn't make it to the airport in time! Talk about stressful to the max. Luckily we made everything and were at the terminal just as they started boarding. We left Friday with the first batch of people: Allison, Catherine and me (all from my Berkeley), and three new boys! Daniel (from Toronto, Canada), Adam (from Scotland), and Dave (from Australia)! Yay new people. I had orientation with Daniel, and had met Adam a few time, but I had never met Dave before. They all live on Catherine's floor and they decided to join us on this adventure. And an adventure we had. It was pretty easy to get from the airport to the hostel, and by the time we got there it was around 8 and we were all starving. Luckily (for the meat eaters) they had beef stew ready for everyone! How nice of them. But I was all, "great, what am I supposed to do?" But some really nice guy (who I later met for real, Jack) offered me his last vegetarian Spring Roll. It was delicious and exactly what I needed. Such a great first impression of the hostel! It was such a cool place. Very young person friendly. The people that were staying there were all very cool, and the staff were young and so nice. Made the trip extra great. After we were done eating, everyone in the hostel was going out to this old converted ruin bar, Szimpla. It was so cool, and we had so much fun.

Palinka! This is not what our faces looked like after...

I had no idea what to expect from Budapest, which I think was the best way to go into a trip. I knew nothing about Hungary, knew nothing about their crazy currency (and I still don't) and I knew nothing about their culture and traditions, but now I can say I got a glimpse, and learned a lot. We started the night with shots of a special Hungarian Brandy known as Palinka. It was... weird. Everything was so cheap though. Yay Eastern Europe. It was hard knowing how much money you were spending though since they don't have the Euro and all of their money has so many zeros in it. 900 Forints was about $3, but when something says 900, my immediate reaction is woah there buddy, thats so much! It was trippy.

We also tried mulled wine, which is like apple cider, but made with wine. Delicious!

Also tried Absinthe! It was on fire. Legit.

You only live once right? So we had to try everything. It was a lot of fun. We were with a big group of people and got to know people from Germany, England, and France. It was a great night.

Daniel and Dave after Absinthe.... haha.

The next morning I was up and ready to go, but the boys? Not so much. They were all so hungover. I laughed and opened the blinds and got their lazy butts out of bed to go exploring!

Our hostel, so cute

 They eventually made it outside, and we were on a mission to get lunch before we took a free walking tour. We found this cute little stand selling Hungarian Langos, which is like Hungarian pizza. It was so delicious. Like nothing I've ever tasted before. Yum.

Oven bake Langos.

The free walking tour was great. We saw so many things and the guides were a lot of fun. I also learned so much about Hungary, knowing nothing before I had a lot to learn. Their history is... tumultuous to say the least. It's pretty interesting to hear about because of all the transitions in rulers, but it's also very sad because of all the fatalities. They kept it pretty light hearted for most of the tour though.

Its good luck if you rub his belly, supposed to have a great meal... it didn't work.

Chain Bridge

View from Castle Hill

Budapest has a huge random hill on the other side of the river. Budapest is divided into the Buda side and the Pest side. Buda has the hill, Pest has the nightlife. We stayed on the Pest side, but the Buda side has beautiful hills and museums.

The whole Friday group, plus Edwin who joined us that morning. It was a little sunny...

Our tour guide and an... interesting statue

After the tour was over we walked and walked and walked trying to find this underground Hospital cave that sounded really cool but was one of the weirdest things I've ever done as a tourist. They didn't allow pictures and it's hard to explain. But it was a hospital that was built underground and is fully furbished, and now filled with creepy human like wax dolls to make it "feel alive". Creepy creepy creepy.

But when we left it was night and the area was all lit up and it was absolutely beautiful.

Fairytale land?

Then we went and got some authentic Hungarian dinner, and it was gross. Weird flavors, weird textures, weird.

But our desert was amazing!

Later that night we went back to Szimpla, but no pictures to prove it this time. Couldn't wait for more adventures the next day, but that's all for now!

Daycation to Germany

In celebration of the beginning of March, Allison, Nancy and I went on a very short and sweet trip to Aachen, Germany. March is Nancy and my favorite month, and just happens to be both of our birthday months as well. March is just such a great month, the sun starts to shine, but not too bright, the flowers begin to bloom, the frost melts, and people begin to smile more. Its the start to something new, Spring! Love it. 

Aachen is about a 30 minute bus ride from Maastricht and super easy to get to. It was a fun little jaunt across borders for a little sight seeing. Aachen is an old medieval town and was home to Charlemagne during the winter months between792 and 814 AD, so it's pretty old. 

Charlemagne 

The Aachen Cathedral is pretty magnificent. It is the oldest church in Northern Europe, and was the church for the Coronation of German Kings and Queens for nearly 600 years. Construction began in 792 and it was consecrated in 805, but has undergone many renovations. 

The Cathedral

(my camera was still broken so I had only my phone)

My phone doesn't do it justice, it was insanely beautiful.

After going inside the Cathedral we wandered around and happened upon a little museum that explained some of Aachens extensive history. I don't remember much but they had some cool interactive exhibits.  We then continued to wander and meander in and out of stores. There wasn't much else to see and we were getting cold so we decided to head back to Maastricht for a much needed nap. We didn't leave before getting a pretzel with chives, of course. So delicious.

Nap time on the bus home

Great day trip to Germany!

Sprinting Through Roma

I had a choice. I could fly home on Sunday and spend two days in Rome, but also spend twice as much on the flight, food, and accommodations, or I could fly home Saturday night, sprint through Rome, but save over €100. I chose the second. Part of me wishes I had spent more time in Rome, but it just gives me a giant reason to have to go back. And boy, do I want to go back.

I arrived in Rome around 2 pm on Friday afternoon (we missed our first train out of Florence) and I wasn't immediately impressed. We got off the train, figured out how to get to the airport then went to figure out the Metro. I didn't have the right change for a day ticket, so I had to go allllll the way back up the stairs and through a maze of hallways to ask for change, got it and went all the way back. I put my money in the machine, selected which ticket I wanted and it said "Printing ticket. Thanks, Have a nice day." Yet there was no ticket. Anywhere. I waited. I looked around. I got frustrated. I hit the machine, and went to find someone to solve my problem. I went up to a security guard like person and with some difficulty, due to the language barrier, I eventually was talking to the tech guy. We went to the machine and he tested everything, and it was working perfectly fine. I had no proof that it didn't print my ticket, and the machine was showing no signs of being broken. This would have been fine if it was a cheap ticket, I would have just bought a new one, but it was an expensive all day ticket and I wasn't about to pay for another one after running all the way upstairs to get change, which I would have to do again to get more change to get a new ticket. I was annoyed and frustrated which obviously meant I started crying and the evil tech guy kept saying there was nothing he could do, so I cried more and he gave me a one way ticket. Small consolation, but I took what I could get. After that, nothing in Rome could bring me down, I wasn't going to let it. And nothing did.

This is when Rome got amazing. Well eventually. We checked into our hostel, but Kathleen was filling terribly ill still, so we had to leave her behind as Tiffany and I went to explore. I felt so badly for her. Sick in Rome? Terrible thing. But with my limited time I had to use it wisely. We head off to go see the Coloseum. On our way we walked past the most beautiful blood oranges ever. I had to buy one, and I'm so glad I did. It was so tasty, I ended up eating like 6 in the 24 hours I was in Rome.

Beautiful and Delicious

The Coloseum was breath taking. You get off the Metro, walk outside and BAM. There it is. It took my breath away. I had tiffany pinch me to check if it was indeed real life. It was. Those walls have seen so much history. I tried to remind myself of that as I was exploring the ruins around it and inside. What a trip through history. Loved it.

It was an insanely beautiful afternoon. It was about 16˚C, which is 65˚F, 30˚ warmer than any high I had seen in Maastricht for weeks. The sun was shining so brightly I was sweating, and I was wearing a tank top. I missed the sun so much, just letting the rays warm my cheeks made me immensely happy. 

We wandered towards other things that looked old and interesting as the sun was setting and happened upon some very beautiful buildings. This one was my favorite. It's so magnificent, and impressive when you think about how long ago it was built. 

Gorgeous

We then headed back to the hostel to make sure Kathleen was still alive and see if she wanted to join us for dinner. But first I had to get myself some Italian coffee before leaving. It was quite good.

Cappuccino 

Kathleen was alive, but not doing well at all. We got her food and water and forced her to eat and drink something, and while still worried I had to go out and see more of Rome, especially the Trevi Fountain so I could throw my coin in to make sure I got to go back. It was a bit of a struggle, but completely worth it. Insanely exquisite.

Hopefully it works

On our long wandering walk to the fountain, we walked past a really cute restaurant where an old Irish man was smoking a pipe outside. He gave a raving review and after walking so long we were starving, so we found our way back and I had the best gnocchi of my entire life. Light puffs of heaven. 

Multicolored Gnocchi with shrimp and asparagus in a cream sauce

We went back to the hostel eventually and I repacked everything so I didn't have to worry about it in the morning. This is the room we were staying in. Felt like I was in the teenage Marshall Erickson's room (from How I Met Your Mother). It was funny. 

Minnesota decorations in Rome. Who woulda thunk?

The next morning I woke up really early and got out of the hostel as fast as possible. I had to leave Rome by 1 and still wanted to see the Vatican City. This is where the sprinting starts. I walked as fast as possible the whole time. The Vatican City is also magnificent. Everything is in such pristine condition. It's so hard to believe how old it is.

Another beautiful sunny day

First, I went to St. Pieters Basillica. What a beautiful church.

Then I went to the Vatican Museum, or Musei Vaticani. This place is insane. The ceilings are amazing. Literally could stare at the them forever. But instead I had to sprint through them, with the main goal in mind, leave myself at least 7 minutes to marvel at the Sistine Chapel.

Incredible

The Sistine Chapel is also breath taking. The detail and expansiveness of the whole thing is just... simply... I can't even describe it. I was speechless. I truly wish I had more time, but I'm really really glad that I made time to go see it. I'll never forget it.

Finally, I sprinted down this beautiful spiral walkway and ran to the Metro station, ran to my hostel, grabbed my bag, and ran to the main train station just in time to catch the bus to get to the airport. I got to the airport just in the nick of time and checked in, went through security, and was almost last in line to get on the plane. I probably should have left an hour earlier to have played it safe. But it all worked out. I love love loved Italy. Favorite country so far, definitely. We took off and I said  Ciao Italia, for now :]

Fire in Firenze

I was in Florence, Italy for two days. Arrived Wednesday around 1 and left Friday around 11. It was a whirlwind of new people, sunsets, wine, amazing food, long walks, haggling, camera failures, and long sunny days. Kathleens roommate from Berkeley, Anna, is studying abroad in Florence for the semester as is Kathleen and Tiffany's friend from high school, Kathrina. So their main priority was to visit their friends and see Florence from their perspective. It was really nice having people around that knew where they were going, what we should see, and where the best places to eat were. Took the stress off of being new comers to a city I'd heard so little about. First things first we got the best pizza yet at Gusta Pizza, and then got some gelato and ate it on a bridge overlooking the Ponte Vechio. 

Oldest bridge in Florence, and quite beautiful as well.

Then we went off to see the other sights of Florence, including the Duomo. 

The most famous: the Duomo. Incredible

We stopped at Kathrina's apartment to see how they live on the other side of the river and look at this view from her balcony. Living the life in Firenze. It's absolutely beautiful. It didn't hurt that it was 16˚C outside and sunny, which made it feel about 65˚F. Amazing after spending the last 3 weeks freezing our butts off... but actually.

Gorgeous view of the Duomo

Then we sprinted up to Michelangelo Hill for an amazing view of the sunset overlooking the city. We enjoyed a bottle of wine and Tiffany and Kathleen got to catch up with their friends. It was very pleasant.

Hello Italy

When the sun had finally set we went to dinner at this restaurant called Dante's where there is a student special. You get bottomless wine with your meal for no extra charge. Yes please. It was the best white wine I have ever had. So tasty and my pasta was amazing too. 

Macaroni with spicy tomato sauce. Yum!

Then we all hung out for awhile and others decided to go to sleep while Tiffany and I decided to go out and meet up with our friend Nancy who is also studying in Maastricht this semester and we just happened to be in Florence at the same time. It was a fun night, until we tried to get home. We had no map and only a partial memory of how we got home twice before that day. We ended up making one wrong turn and walking 20 minutes in what we thought was the right direction, only to turn around and have to walk the same way back. It took about 2 hours to finally get home. What a struggle, good thing I was with Tiffany. She's a pleasure to be lost with. 

Next day we got a late start, but we started with the most amazing panini's. I love the food in Italy. Pretty sure I gained 7 pounds. A well loved 7 pounds. No regrets.

Grilled eggplant and Pescaro cheese.

We ate our sandwiches in the sun and I was wishing I was wearing less layers. It was gorgeous and so warm. Pretty sure I got sunburned since my face hadn't seen the sun in over a month. It was a lovely preview of the warmer spring days to come. 

Then tragedy struck. As I was walking across the Ponte Vechio someone bumped into me and my camera hit the unforgiving cobblestone. Everything seemed fine at first but 20 minutes later I tried to zoom to take a picture of this statue and my camera decided to hate me forever.

Awesome statue

Not so awesome statue

I was sad and confused and tried everything to get it to work again. Nothing helped, but I wasn't going to let that ruin my lovely warm sunny day. We got some more amazing gelato and then walked around their big outdoor market. The merchants were very forward but liked to haggle. I haggled for the first time and it worked! I was surprised. I was also told that I was "bella" "bellisima" and "the love of my life" multiple times. Italian men are interesting ones. Not sure how I would fare living here. It's fine for a week, but I was already getting sick of them. Props to all the Italian women who endure it day by day. 

That night we went out to dinner with Anna's roommates. It was delicious and our waiter was even more delicious. One thing Italians have going for them, they are all beautiful. Well not all, but a large majority are. Anna's roommate were all very nice and friendly, it was a very fun evening.

This risotto makes my mouth water just remembering it

After a fun evening out we all slept so well. That is, except for Kathleen. We think she got food poisoning or ate too much too fast. She was not doing well. Puking all night. I felt so terrible for her. Especially when we had to be on a train for 2 hours the next day going to Rome! But more on that later.

Viva la Venizia

I flew out of Brussels early early Monday morning to head to ITALY for Carnivale break. I was so excited for gelato, warmer weather, and more festivities, I knew it was going to be a good trip. We started in Venice. I went with Tiffany and Kathleen again, the triple threat of travelling buddies. Venice started off slowly with pouring rain and a much needed nap. We weren't staying on the main island since it's reallllly expensive, we were staying in Mestre, and short bus ride over a long bridge right outside of Venice. It was a cute little area with lots of shops and restaurants and a grocery store right across the street. It ended up working out nicely. The first night we started in Mestre and got pre-dinner gelato. Our first gelato experience, and quite possibly the best. I got dark chocolate and it was so smooth and chocolatey, I never wanted it to end.

My gelato on the left, and my first italian pizza on the right

After gelato we decided to get real food and went to this pizzeria. We all got our first italian pizzas and I decided to try something completely new that I had never even heard of before, eggs on pizza? I went for it. The white asparagus was perfectly delicate, the cheese was amazing, the crust was crisp yet fluffy and the egg added an entirely new dimension I was unused to. Divine.

 Then we went into Venice to wander and see if anything was going on for Carnivale, since they celebrate it in Venice too, even bigger than in Maastricht, but Monday was pretty dead. I guess everyone was preparing for the final day of Carnivale, Tuesday.

Venice by night

We walked for what seemed like HOURS. Constantly feeling lost and confused, but we found some interesting things and saw tons of masks, yet none of us could decide which one to get, so we decided we would sleep on it and get one the next morning.

Masks on every corner

We found a cool Reggae fest thing that was going on where I tried a Venetian spritz. Its a delicious fizzy apertif that for some reason is only popular in Venice. I would drink this everywhere if it was everywhere, its that tasty. It is one part white wine, 1 part aperol (an orange sweet mixer), and 1 part seltzer water. They were selling them everywhere for €2. What a deal.
We somehow made it back to the bus station after countless wrong turns and went home to sleep before the big day. I loved Venice by night, even if it was mega confusing. Its so charming and adorable.

The next morning we headed in around 11 to find a mask and then join the festivities!

It was an absolutely beautiful day

We eventually all decided on the masks we wanted. I got a green one that was made in Venice. That was my goal, to get a Venetian mask made in Venice, not in China. It was pretty difficult but I finally found one that I liked for a very reasonable price. I really enjoy the one I chose.

 Time for more gelato!

We wandered forever, discovered lots of cute sections, great views, and adorable canals. Venice is truly unlike any other city I've ever been to.

The sky was insanely blue

Oh hey there ocean

Crazy costumes!

One major difference I noticed between Maastricht Carnivale and Venice was in Maastricht almost every single person was dressed up in some sort of costume and drinking some sort of alcohol and the bars were crazy even at 1 in the afternoon. Venice was much more low key with many more people. In Venice, there were a lot of people dressed up in intense costumes, like the ones above, and some in traditional garb too, like full on renaissance. Then there were people dressed up as pacmen, animals, guys dressed as girls, etc. And then there were hundreds of people just wearing masks, like ourselves, all presumably, tourists. It was also a different vibe, not as crazy of a party but still very fun. I'm glad that I got to experience two different Carnivales. Both were awesome and like nothing I've done before.

PACKED with people

Ponte Rialto: Venices largest and most famous bridge

Delicious Cannoli

As day turned to night the party scene started to get poppin'. We happened upon this small dance rave that was playing really awesome music, but I got semi-violated by a very young smelly Italian, so we moved on to bigger and better things.

Small dance partay

HUGE rock festival

Sponsored by Hard Rock, some famous Italian band was playing. We had no idea who they were or what they were saying, but it was still fun to be a part of. The possibility of there being a rock festival in the middle of the main square in Venice if I ever get to go back is slim to none, so it made it extra exciting. We left around midnight after a full day of fun adventures. Venice was truly beautiful.