Dreams really do come true.

In the 6th grade we watched a documentary on Pompeii, a city south of Rome that was literally frozen in time when Vesuvius erupted and coated the city it hot ash. Pompeii is one of the worlds greatest treasures because it was left un touched for so long and so much of the city was preserved hundreds of years later. Well after this documentary I was bound and determined to visit the city someday. I have had two classics classes, and 3 art history classes, so it was a goal of mine to get there on this trip and yesterday and today, I did.
Megan went of to London this weekend to visit some family friends of her's who live there so Anicka want to give her host mom a break so she wanted to go somewhere too. Since I didn't go anywhere new over my break she asked me if I wanted to join her. Originally she was thinking Spain but we both decided Pompeii would be cheaper and something the two of us really wanted to see more.
Because we booked train tickets through the travel agent it came down to about 102 euro a piece round trip. I booked the tickets on my credit card, so since I got them together we got a two for one deal where it was 68 euro for the two of us to go one way economy, and then 68 euro each going home in first class (normally its 68 euro both ways. So we got a pretty good deal) Anicka took care of the hotel. She found one that was 50 euro's for the night and a ten minute walk from the ruins. They sent her step by step directions on how to get from the train station to the hotel, and a list of things to see. When we got there, not only was everyone there incredibly helpful and kind, but they also told us a couple of things to do since we were there for 24 hours. On top of being cheep, the hotel was CLEAN (I sound like my mother. Thank you mother.) It was so so so clean, and new, and they ended up putting us in a family room with a queen sized bed and two small twins because our room wasn't ready but this one was (no extra charge). The complementary breakfast was delicious, and they held our bags for us today after check out.
We took the train from Florence to Naples then we took a local train from Naples to Pompeii. Anicak and I are here to tell you Naples is every bit as sketch as they tell you. Actually that is not a fair assumption of the city, but the local train station for sure is. Napoli Central is sheak and clean and new like the Venice train station. But when you go down stairs to take a local train it quickly gets grungy and dark with nasty graffiti everywhere that leaves you watching each others back and holding onto your wallet and passport.We stuck together and just watched each others backs and we were fine.
Then our local train came in. It was rickety, covered in graffiti and didn't smell the cleanest. But it got us all the way to Pompeii, we got off at the right stop and found our hotel no problem. The biggest piece of advice I can give you about Naples and Pompeii is just to be smart. The two of us dressed way down (t shirts and jeans, no jewelry) and we stuck together. We kept to populated areas but we didn't get caught in crowds.
We unpacked, freshened up a bit, ate really awesome goat cheese, pesto and sun-dried tomato and olive sandwiches that Anicka had made the night before, and then we hit the ruins.
The ruins were beyond cool and I could not have dreamed them up in my wildest dreams despite having seen so many pictures of them. It was un believably humbling to stand on a city that had been so rich in culture and history and met such an untimely end to a volcanic eruption.
After running around the ruins for two hours, making friends with stray dogs, and taking a gazillion pictures, we shut down a bit exhausted from our travels (we left Florence at 6:50 am which means we were both up at 5 so we could get ready and get to the station in time to make the train.) We went back to our room, rested a bit before hunting down a grocery store to round out some dinner. 4.50 euros got us loaves of bread, pesto, turkey for me and cheese for Anicka, and some tomatoes for a light dinner. We had brought wine with us (which was a great life choice since it was a euro cheaper in Florence than in Pompeii and Florence had a way better selection.) We forced ourselves to stay up until 10 so we would sleep through the whole night. We watched some Italian TV, Lizzie McGuire, a wedding dress fashion show, getting progressively more punch drunk as the night grew later and we got more and more tired. At 9:45 we quit staying up, figuring we would risk waking up at 7 am just so we could sleep. My head hit the pillow and I remember no more until this morning when our alarm went off at 8 am.
After a delicious breakfast of pastries, coffee, tea and some fresh fruit, Anicka and I climbed the bell tower of the church in Pompeii at the suggestion of our hotel. It was 2 euro to take an elevator to the top to see all of Pompeii. It was absolutely a breath taking sight and one of my favorites from this trip.
Our train didnt leave until 2:51 from Naples, so that meant we didn't have to leave Pompeii until 1:30 so we went to the market by the ruins to shop. Pompeii being close to the sea has all the camios I fell in love with when my parents were here, made from shells and coral from the coast. They also have a lot of lava rock jewelry. Anicka got a really pretty pare of lava stone earrings and I found my camio-a ring made of silver and a shell. They vendor I got it from gave it to me for 20 euro because I came back to his stand (it was originally 25 euro and if its from a big shop rather than a family owned stand they are apparently double that.) I'm not sure if he's entirely telling the truth or not, but he was the nicest and least pushy of the vendors and he had nice work (and he wasn't saying "Ah, pretty price for a pretty ginger!" We told him we were looking, he gave us his schpeel and he mostly left us alone. So I was comfortable buying from him.)
After shopping we still had some time to kill so we sat down to have a drink at a bar. Cocktails were 5 euro and we decided to sit down. Well the waitress brought our drinks along with some hors d'oeuvres which we didn't order. We weren't hungry enough for lunch so we just decided to go with it-we were on vacation. Our drinks were delicious and refreshing and the hors d'oeuvres were yummy and when we went to pay for our bill we had a pleasant surprise of a bill of only ten euro! No sit down fee or food fee!
So we were just happy. We had had a great 2 days, the food was basically free, our train into Naples was much less sketch than when we had arrived, we were safe, we had seen one of our dreams come true.
Then our local train stopped. And stayed stopped for like 20 minutes. Now we were cutting it close to possibly missing out train in Naples to get back home to Florence. And while I'm fidgeting and getting nervous and Anicka is telling me not to worry we pull our out ticket and realize that our train does not leave at 2:51, it left at 2. And we were stuck on a train and it was 2:20 somewhere in between Pompeii and Naples.  And it was my fault because I had looked at the arrival time and read the minutes not the whole time so whether the train had stopped randomly or not, we would have missed our train.
Anicak shrugged. "There is nothing we can do now." She said "We are stuck on a train. When we get to Naples, we'll go to train Italia and make it their problem because we are stuck here. As far as they are concerned we missed it by sitting here." Which to be fare, if we had been on the earlier train and we had just stopped like this we would have missed the train too-we were waiting for 20 minutes or so.
Finally our train moved and pulled into the station. We got up to Napoli Central and we found someone to help us and we told him we missed our train and rather than dealing with frazzled, freaking out American girls, he just looked up a new train time, authorized our ticket and sent us on our way.
We still road home first class and we got free snacks like when you are on an air plane.
The trip was an epic success and Anicka and I could not be happier with our adventure. We made it there and back in one piece, safe and sound, nothing stolen or missing for about 150 euros each (plus the 20 we both spent on souvenirs, so 170 euros.) A bit of a pricey weekend but this is my last weekend to travel and it was well worth it to achieve one of my dreams that I've had since the 6th grade.

Shively Words of Wisdom

Disclaimer: read at your own risk. My dad's humor is an acquired taste and is most defiantly not suitable for young children and could potentially be so sassy it might offend some. You have been warned.
As much as I roll my eyes at what he says, he really can be funny sometimes and while he was here, he just kept coming up with these couple line zingers that were kind of stupid but really were humorous. I mean he does this normally at home, and I've taken to tweeting these one liners which makes my twitter pretty funny. But while he was on his European adventure he decided these should be titled "Shively Words of Wisdom" (which is more appropriate than #Shitmydadsays which is what the Twitter trend is for silly things you dad says the you Tweet.)
Well, a couple of these golden nuggets of my fathers wisdom made it to Facebook and now my whole church knows that these are a thing and they want to know what else he said. Since I was the one keeping track of them (for my Twitter) I've been asked to share them. Well here they are. For your enjoyment folks: Shively's Words of Wisdom. Chapter Italy.

(Me and my dad in Venice)

1) Dad: I'm going to start what I call Shively Words of Wisdom. Its going to be like Mr. Handeland's life rules. But better.
2) Italy isn't meant for fat people. But I'll say big people so I'm politically correct.
3)Me: I’ve been keeping things like business cards and train tickets in my journal. I want to put wine labels in there too but I always rip them

Dad. The proper way to get labels off a bottle is to soak them. Here. I’ll show you.

4)On the topic of bidets: They just need to wash their essentials. They don’t take showers you know.

5)Me: Dad. I have friends who want to be friends with you.

Dad: I don’t do facebook.

Me: Dad. They just want to get a beer with you and be bros.

Dad: Well if they want to buy me a beer, I’m down.

6)Just so you know, I’m formulating words of wisdom for buses and mopeheads. Just so you know

7) Electrical codes in Europe? Non existent.

8)Only in Venice is a doorway a street.

9)A pile of plat forms in Venice is not for an up coming concert.

10) Me: Man. These heated towel racks should be a thing in the states. Can you imagine if the swim team had them in the winter? Warm towels? Warm socks…

Dad: You took my “heated towel racks are a good idea” for Shively words of wisdom.

Me:  Just kidding, you can have it. The boys swim team would literally never leave the locker room if we gave them those…

11)Dad: Hey Laura did you know you turn pink when you drink wine.

Me: Yes. I know.

Dad: And Lemoncello turns you’re red.

Me: Yes. I know. Thanks Dad.

12)Dad: you’re just going to rip the label.

Me: Challenge accepted.

Good news guys. Cold bottles of water condensate enough to pull the label off with out ripping it.

13) Dad: Laura, you probably just don’t get along with tall people.

Me: Dad. Everyone is taller than me.

Dad: give me a look

14) Me: I figure while I’m here I’ll just keep my bottle opener in my purse.

Dad: Your talking to people who have one in the glove compartments of their cars.

Me: I mean until I go through airport security, It will be a permanent accessory of mine.

Dad: You were raised right.

15) Ah, Nudity, I like Nudity.

16)Stop signs. Those are optional here in Italy

17) Dad: I had to take my perverted shot of David with the sun lighting up his crotch.

Me: Of course you did.

Dad: Laura, this is why your boys want to be my friends. I'm funny.

Me: yea. This is guy humor

(Dad's shot of the David)

18) Dad: Laura did you see that girl winking at the Pizza guy? She got her Pizza's pushed forward and made before ours. You need to wink at the Pizza guy next time.

Me: Okay. I'll make sure I flirt with them more so you can get you're pizza faster.

Dad: Good. I like pizza. 

You do you: a lesson about tequila shots in the park

I'm going to start this out by saying I did not do shots of tequila in the park. I promise. That's not what this post is about. In fact this is one of those self reflection, I've grown as a person while I'm abroad posts that I hope you stick with especially if you are reading this because you are considering going on this program or just studying in a different country in general.
Like I said, I didn't take shots of tequila in a park and actually that is a story from a different trip. The summer between my junior and senior years of high school I spent two and a half weeks in Mexico and had the time of my life. It was a great learning experience and I was encouraged to actually use my Spanish and it was culturally eye opening and the food was great. All the things study abroad should be.
However, the group I was down there with, split into two cliques. As far as I am concerned cliques are natural. We humans are social creatures and we tend to gravitate towards people who are like us. I personally have never had too much of a problem with cliques. I'll be nice to everyone, but we don't have to be bff's or anything. Just cordial. And that has gotten me this far...
Anyways, in Mexico, one of the cliques, took tequila shots in the park. One of the guys on the trip had just graduated that spring and so he was 18 and could legally buy tequila even though on a school trip we weren't allowed to drink. This caused some problems because while none of us tattled to anyone that this went on, there was defiantly some judgment going on between the two cliques.
I was not apart of the tequila shots clique and could have cared less. But I did judge the kids doing that- I mean really, how could you be so stupid as to do tequila shots, under age, in Mexico, on a school trip and risk getting kicked off the program?
The kids in the tequila shots group were not bad people. Actually I got along with most of them and worked with them in class and academically they were pretty smart. They were nice people who were just making a questionable life chose as far as I was concerned.
When I was in high school I was very much against underage drinking. It was something the bad kids did and quite honestly I was too afraid to think of what my parents would do to me if I got caught doing something stupid like that.  And as an athlete and an honor student I didn't have time to drink.
But as my senior year went on, I changed friend groups and ended up making friend with the kids who drank in high school. And like I said, they aren't bad people. They just made their choice.
College was really my wake up call. You can't go to college and not experience the drinking, even if like me, you choose not to drink. I ended up with some really really wonderful and loyal friends, teammates, and sorority sisters (some who fall into more than one, if not all those categories) that would have been those people who took tequila shots in the park. Or would do it now. And yet, they could care less that I wasn't doing it with them. It wasn't like I was any better than them for not drinking or them any better than me for drinking. It was our choice.
My friend Anicka, who I met on this trip has coined a phrase "you do you." One night, we had had a little to much wine which resulted in not us being drunk, but in us discussion politics, something I generally don't do unless I really really know you. I don't like getting into un educated arguments with people. Well Anicka, though we have very different views, is educated in hers (aka she doesn't just vote party line) and as we explained why we voted in the last election they way we did she said "Hey. That makes sense. You do you."
So how does this all tie up together? Simply stated I went to Mexico to have an adventure and to practice Spanish. And I did. My adventure just did not involve shots of tequila in the park. Some people's did. College-my mission in college is to come out with two majors and a minor, be captain of my swim team my senior year, and do more with ADPi. Also I want to graduate with honors. So I don't have time to screw around having hang overs from drinking all night. But I also need to remember to enjoy some of the finer things in life, and have a good time. My time in Italy? Ultimately I'm the biggest, nerdiest, student you are ever going to meet. I LIKE school. In fact, I wish being a professional student and going to school for the rest of your life was an actual profession because that is what I want to do. So yea, I don't go to the bars super often here, I don't like to get drunk (both of which will still be truths about me when I come home), and I would much rather run around seeing different cities during the day and stay in and do homework at night (as lame as that sounds) But this is me doing me, just like Anicka said. I'm here to learn and that is what I encourage you to do. If you've read this all the way through, thanks. I encourage you to sit back, look at this program and think "what do I want out of this?" And then go do it. Because that is the point of it all. When you study abroad, you do you. And I promise you, you'll find someone along the way who will had goals similar to your's or someone who is willing to help you and push you to be the best you can be. I've always managed to find people like that and I'm a super nerd, athlete, who's trying to be an art student. There are people out there, you just have to do you and go find them.

Mexico Summer of 2010