Passport to Paris!

First, I am sorry for the delaying in blogging this time; I think Paris actually took a mental and psychical toll on my body and I've been unconsciously avoiding writing this post. Maybe it is because I truly am at a loss for words about this weekends events! Let me start by saying that if this weekend didn't solidify my questions about being some sort of event planner in the future, I don't know what will ever give me my "ah-ha" moment. Going abroad is all about learning more about yourself, and I think this weekend to Paris showed me I most definitely like to have a plan, a to-do list, and a clear map in front of me at all times (the map part becomes difficult when you don't even know how to say thank you in French...)

So, Friday morning, 5 of us ventured off to Pisa for our flight. After an incredibly quick hour and 45 minute flight, we landed in Paris! We bought our tickets to the metro, grabbed a map, and asked for some last minute directions to our hostel. We realized this trip was about to be an hour to our hostel, apparently a standard travel time from the airport. Things were smooth sailing as we oddly navigated our metro transfers perfectly. Then, as we were crammed more tightly than on a subway in NYC, we realized 2 men consistently starring at us for the duration of our last metro. As our stop approached, we quickly got our bags and jumped off....but so did they. We realized we were being followed and I realized how badly I needed Liam Neeson's skills; all the prior departure "Taken" jokes were becoming somewhat reality. Hiding our obvious panic, we went upstairs and managed to loose the men, thank god. It was very scary but the 5 of us stuck together more than ever and eventually got to our hostel. We were ready to explore the most romantic city in the world.

First stop? The Eiffel Tower of course. Let me just say the Eiffel tower at night time is unlike anything you've ever seen. It literally took our breath away. If you ever are there, the tower sparkles at every hour, so try and catch it! While we were too exhausted for our own good to do anything else Friday night, the rest of the weekend was filled with more mishaps and beautiful sights. Although our time in Paris was short, we got to squeeze in the Lurve, Notre Dame, the love lock bridge and the Eiffel tower round 2. Oh, and managed to get Nutella and banana crepes.......AMAZING. The amount of people pushing and shoving to see the miniature portoirt of Mona Lisa at the Lurve was unreal and it gave me anxiety, but we made our way through to see it. The love lock bridge was definitely my favorite part of Paris. On this bridge its tradition to buy a lock, write the name of whoever you love, keep one key and throw the other key in the water, symbolizing eternal love. The bridge is absolutely filled with these locks which was just incredible to see. Fun fact? putting these locks on is still very controversial despite how many there are. So buying the locks on the bridge from these sketchy men was interesting; if the police were in sight, they took off running with your money and the locks.....catch them if you can?

For me Paris was just one of those unfortunate trips where anything that could've gone wrong, went wrong. By the end of the weekend we had to just laugh. Between almost debuting in Taken 3 on day one, to my scarf getting caught in the metro and having 9 strangers ripping it off me, it was certainly an interesting weekend to say the least. BUT I would've been absolutely devastated if I did not get to see this city. It truly is beautiful and there is so much to see. If you're abroad, Paris is a must-see (so I really hope this post didn't scare you away). My advice: 1) stay somewhere close to the heart of the city!! Paris is tremendous and our hostel wound up being way outside the city in a very sketchy area. It was somewhat inconvenient for us to get to and from places. 2) give yourself enough time to see everything. Although I'd be lying if I said I wish we had more time there, it's impossible to see everything you want to see in a day and a half; give yourself a long weekend if possible.

Like I said before, going abroad is one of the biggest learning experiences I am sure I will ever have; Paris happened to be my first uneasy weekend in Europe, but we definitely had some lessons learned. And just as we start recovering from traveling, were off to Rome in the morning! Pray that the rainy forecast is just a joke because I can't imagine the 8 am tours of the Colosseum being enjoyable in the rain :(. BUT, either way I am excited!! Thanks for reading

xo Bria

(W)INTERLAKEN

If you cant picture me on top of a mountain in Switzerland, I am by no means offended, because personally, I still cant believe anything I did this weekend. My roommates and I decided to take our first weekend trip abroad to Interlaken, Switzerland. As I drugged myself for the casual 9 hour bus ride, I opened my eyes to find the real definition of a "winter wonderland." (Sorry, all of you at QU, Hamden's 40 inches of snow this weekend has nothing on the Swiss alps....)

I remember talking to my best friend who went abroad last semester about how amazed she was by Switzerland, and it all made sense to me as we pulled up to our hostel at 5 a.m. Friday morning. The entire town is boarded by the most picture escque mountains and the brightest snow. To say it was breathtaking is an understatement. I feel very repetitive when I write about the scenery anywhere I have been going in Europe, but I promise I'm not exaggerating, and there is no other way to describe it.

We shacked up at "Balmers" hostel for the weekend. This hostel is 300 years old.... so I was concerned about what I would be sleeping on. Although the 30 second spurts of water in the showers were interesting, my first hostel experience was a pleasant surprise! All 9 of us in my room felt like we were at camp with our bunk beds and shared little bathroom. We came to love it by the end of the weekend. We pried ourselves out of bed on Friday to sign up for activities. Whatever came over me that morning, pushed me to sign myself up for night sledding and paragliding. I don't think I knew what I was in for...

That night I (and the rest of the girls) "bundled up" in our leggings, combat boots, headband, sock bun and little gloves and deemed ourselves ready to tackle the Swiss alps........the man in charge actually laughed in our faces when we pranced down to the bus. Needless to say, we arrived at the top of the mountain in rented snow pants and boots. and THANK GOD we did because the hour run down the mountain would have been miserable in my H&M leggings. The whole experience was kind of a blur. We took a gondola up to the top with our tiny plastic sleds. The string attached to the sled was our steering source....I'm not going to lie, I was internally panicking. Not only was I so very far out of my element, the miniature glow sticks they gave us as our only light source were less than comforting. BUT, once we got on and got the hang of it (or at least somewhat), we had a blast. When am I ever going to sled down the Swiss alps again? Probably never.

I guess I was trying to top one activity after another when I signed up for paragliding the next morning. My 2 roommates and I got on our snow pants and boots again and headed for the mountain at 9 am. The only thing that genuinely confused me about all of these activities were that the people running them just chose not to mention that before we would actually paraglide, we would have to causally hike to the cliff first....so we pull up on the side of the mountain, and surprise! Hiking in feet of snow, falling every two steps, was absolutely hysterical and the men in charge got a kick out of us. (Throw yourself in the middle of the Swiss alps, its impossible not to feel so incredibly awkward...) Anyways, coming out of that hike, we saw the most BREATHTAKING view. I was stunned. The mountains in front of us and the lake right below us was unreal. After the initial shock of the view, I remember that I am about to hurl myself off this mountain and fly across Interlaken. So, I harnessed up, strapped a 250 pound man to my back, along with the parachute, and was ready for take off? Well, Take off didn't go quite as smoothly as one would have hoped, being that I almost lost a shoe in the midst of it, but I made it up there! And it was totally worth it. I recommend paragliding to anyone especially if you ever have the chance to go to Switzerland. I promise these views are even more surreal when you're FLYING. As my hands decided to go numb and my motion sickness kicked in, we tumbled down for landing, and I realized that I probably just had lived the coolest 10 minutes of my life. It was worth the numbness and vomit that followed! When am I ever going to paraglide off the Swiss alps again? Probably never.

The rest of the weekend was spent getting lost in the best way possible and seeing as much of Switzerland as we could. That included long bus rides, a language we actually did not speak one word of, and discovering amazing chocolate! I was so excited to get back and blog about this trip; although it was my first, I feel like it is going to be one of my favorites. Not only did I get to see one of the prettiest places in the world (in my opinion) but I learned that I had this new side to me? Adventurous, outdoorsy, daring, winter-loving? Who knew. Guess my diva ways aren't everything :). Sorry this post is a bit long, but I wanted to include as much as I could! So now its time to rest for a few days, but then celebrate my roommates 21st in PARIS on Friday. I will be sure to inform you all how Valentines day is spent in the most romantic place in the world....

xo Bria

Firenze Fanatic

So remember my first post about my mixed emotions and admitted sadness leaving Pearl River? I would be laughing at myself if I could've only been able to predict how I feel right now, fast forward a month into being abroad (ah, its already been a month!) Words cant express how in love with Florence, or should I say Firenze, I am. With the first week living here under my belt, it still is weird walking out of my apartment, with the Ponte Vecchio in front of me, and believing that this is my home until May.

If you have visited Florence before, you've seen the Ponte Vecchio, one of the most famous sights in Italy. And yes, I live directly across from it. Living with 10 girls may seem like a ridiculous task to some, but equipped with our apartment, I don't think one of us could ever complain. I wish I had my camera on me to capture the smiles across all our faces, after lugging 20 overweight suitcases up 3 flights of stairs, to find our new home!

Like I said in my post about Siena, the culture shock is still in full effect. But Siena and Florence seem like 2 different worlds. Florence is way more of a city and has become a bit more Americanized. However, it is absolutely saturated in culture and history. Just blocks away from us is the Duomo. Some of you may have heard about this church before, but I can tell you words can not even give this building justice. It is simply stunning in person.

Every day we learn at least 3 new things; whether it be a new cafe discovery or a shortcut to get to school, we're still getting the hang of things! And that is one of my favorite parts about being here, we're never going to know enough about this place. During our orientation, one of the people in charge of our program told us to "put away the maps and just get lost." Ignoring the initial panic that comes with the word "lost" for me, it really is the best way to get to know Florence. Just last night, some of my roommates and I stopped 6 times for directions on our way to this pub......I don't know what is more embarrassing, holding a map to your face or our awful attempt at asking for directions in Italian.

And on that note, nightlife. The clubs, or should i say discos, are hilarious. We've had a blast every night we've been out so far. When were not dogging the Italian men and their ever-so-charming pick up lines, safe to say were dancing until were inappropriately being kicked out at 4 a.m. (sorry mom and dad). The bars and pubs are my favorite. There is even an American pub that takes American money and has college tshirts covering the walls. Everyone signs their names and sororities/fraternities on the walls too, making the atmosphere so cool. The music is my favorite part of going out though. I've come to the realization that my going out experience abroad will be summarized by American throwback music. For example, Black Eyed Peas' song "Pump It" came on, and every single person in the club acted like they just hit the lottery. Kerry and I looked at each other and died laughing...but we went with it. Since then, we've come to fully appreciate and embrace the best of the 2000's.

I'm sitting here trying to think of everything I can squeeze into one post, but it's just impossible. I'm sure I will do more posts on Florence, so I will leave you with this tonight. Now, the traveling part of our experience is about to begin..... I CANT WAIT. We're headed to Interlaken, Switzerland on Thursday for the weekend. I've never put skis on in my life so wish me luck fitting into this winter wonderland!

Xo Bria