Some things I forgot to mention in previous blog posts:
- The apple juice in Italy (at the Diner at least) is green... like candy apple green... but not in a good way. It tastes a bit weird.
- At the Diner where me and the roomies got breakfast, we took up a table meant for eight. It was way too hot to try to squeeze all four of us into the booths that are only big enough for two. We kept saying, "I'm from Texas" in a really deep voice... we found it to be absolutely hilarious.
- People in Italy either smell REALLY good or REALLY bad... I don't think there is any middle ground when it comes to personal hygiene. Walking down a street in Italy, you will smell STRONG men's cologne, STRONG body oder, and STRONG sewage... repeat.
- My mom and I were at the market and I greeted the vendor guy in Italian then asked him the price of something in Italian. He answered me in Italian. I understood what he said, made a face, then set the purse back down. Then he reprimanded me for trying to speak Italian. Something about how I shouldn't speak Italian if I only knew a few words, and I should speak English if I know English... Um. Sorry homedog. I made a face when you responded because your prices are too expensive to match the junk you are selling - not because I didn't understand what you were saying. ...I didn't buy anything from him.
SO! Here I am in London, England! My last few days in Italy and my first few days in London:
FRIDAY-SUNDAY! This past weekend was suuuppper chill. We got up around 9:45 every morning and headed downstairs for the most amazing breakfast ever. Seriously. The little sausages and the spinach square things were the best. I miss the coffee. :( No one anywhere does coffee quite like the Italians. I can't explain it, but it's just simply better. I've been spoiled. We walked around Florence so I could show her my favorite spots. I felt like a tour guide! My history class taught me so much... I was able to point out all of the important landmarks and regurgitate a ton of information about them. WHOO. It was sad to leave Florence, but I was ready for a change of scenery. I hope that I will be able to go back to Florence in the near future. OH. So my mom and I ate at an osteria right across the street from my apartment (this place was super loud at night and would usually wake up me and Christin). Well. Best meal I have had in Italy. That place. I can't even believe it. It was right there the whole time! Cray. Anywho, we ate at some other yummy restaurants and shopped around. It was nice to be able to relax in Florence. I hadn't been able to do that because we were traveling every weekend.
Piazza della Signoria!
Statues...
TOMATO SALAD. Yes.
Palazzo della Signoria
The Duomo. Still amazes me.
Isn't she adorable?! :)
MONDAY! It was definitely bittersweet leaving Florence. I have so many great memories there, and I have truly enjoyed living there. Rome, Venice, Milan, and all those other places are cities that you visit - Florence is the city where you live. Florence will always have a place in my heart. :) But for now, it's off to London! My mom and I had our last delicious breakfast at the hotel, packed up our things, and headed outside to catch our taxi. The cab took us the the Florence airport. That place is rather small and really hot. I knew that most places don't have air conditioning, but I am starting to feel like they simply don't believe in it or something. It is in the upper 90's. I see the vents. But there is no air. It's record highs people... what are you waiting for? Well, we checked in and made it through security. But then one of the security people stopped us and sent us back to get a label put on one of the carry-ons... well okay... so we went back to check in... then back through security... it was a little cray. Sorry your check in people don't do their job correctly... Oh well. And the security metal detectors are inconsistent... my mom got through the first time with her watch on, but not the second. Then in Belgium, I tried to explain to the dude that my shoes were going to set off the metal detector, but he told me to leave them on. ...Then they set off the detector. Then I had to get the full pat down. Now that was fun. Sooo we flew to Brussels, Belgium. The airport was super nice. There was a Starbucks. Haven't seen one of those in a while. It was interesting because no one spoke Italian OR English. So I felt useless. Hey there foreign country. After a two hour or so layover, we got on another plane to head to London. The weather here is gorgeous. It is much cooler than Florence. It has been nice to get away from the heat. Once we settled into the hotel, we headed out to walk around Covent Garden. We ate at a restaurant called Garfunkles! hah. All I have been able to talk about is how tired I am of eating pasta, pizza, and bread... well... I ordered a pizza. It was BBQ chicken though... so that was nice. I miss BBQ! After dinner, we headed back to the hotel to get some rest.
Phone booth!
TUESDAY! We woke up this morning and got ready for our Harry Potter tour!!!!! AAAHHH! So. Cool. A private taxi picked us up from the hotel. He drove us all around London showing us all of the spots where the Harry Potter movies were filmed. I saw Gringott's and King's Cross and Platform 9 3/4 and the Leaky Cauldron... excitement overload. Most of the places don't look exactly like what is in the movie because of all of the special effects... but. You can get the idea. It was awesome! After the tour, we had the driver drop us off in Covent Garden. We walked around and went into a few shops. We ate lunch at a traditional English pub. I had fish and chips! It was sooo good. In Italy, they give you Balsamic Vinaigrette and Olive Oil. Buuut in London, they give you ketchup and malt vinegar. I found that interesting. And tasty. We walked around for a little while after lunch, then headed back to the hotel to rest. I have been a little sick for the past few days, and I'm trying my best to not get worse. I still got lots of stuff to do! :) We are going to see Matilda the Musical tonight. I am so excited!!!! It should be really good. It was one of my favorite movies back in the day, and I loved the book. YAY!
Gringott's! They filmed on the inside. They took the outside of the building and added a bunch of stuff to it before putting it in the film.
Third Hand Book Shop!
Leaky Cauldron!
Sirius Black's house!
Heck. Yes.
Fish and chips!
A few things about London:
- I have been here before, but it was when I was in elementary school. I don't really remember it that well... I am so excited to be back!
- I keep wanting to speak Italian. Sometimes I will say something in Italian, then realize that they speak English. It has been a weird adjustment.
- London looks much different than Italy. It seems like the buildings are newer and more modern. It reminds me a little bit of New York City.
- London is a bit more like America than Italy (I mean, America is London's baby). There is a definite difference in culture.
- Though I miss speaking Italian, it has been nice being able to speak English. And the TV channels are in English. And that is awesome.
- I love listening to people talk over here in their British accents. I love busting out my British accent when I'm being silly back home... but I probably won't be doing that here... that might be offensive...
- They have Starbucks.
I miss Italy, but I love London. One step closer to home.
Arrivederci!
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