Carnivale in Venezia- An Outdoor Masquerade!

I had heard stories about what Carnivale was like in Venice. Friends and family would try to paint a picture for me with their words...

Exceptional

Fantastic

Mysterious

Beautiful

Unusual

     

          And the list goes on.

I can now say from my own experience that these words did not do the actual experience justice. 

There were so many colors! People were elaborately dressed and parading around in their handmade costumes. Faces were painted, wigs were worn, music was booming, people were dancing. And the best part... the MASKS. Everywhere. Every window, every doorway, peeking around corners, crossing bridges, chasing one another, marching through the streets. 

The creativity involved in the creation of not only the masks, but the costumes that accompanied them was inspiring. The personality behind the mask is what brings it to life. Once the masks goes on, a person is free to assume a different role. They can become their mask. 

My favorite part was when the sun went down and the party in St. Mark's Square picked up. There was a blur of colors dancing and singing. There was never an easier time to make friends with complete strangers. And despite the frigid cold temperature, the atmosphere was hot with excitement, joy and mystery. 

I cannot begin to count the number of times during my abroad experience I have said, "I will never forget this moment." But, in the case of Carnivale in Venice, I can say it once again...

                                                  "I will never forget that moment."

SNOW IN ROMA!!!

IT HAS SNOWED IN ROME FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1985!!! Unbelievable!

Our Tuscany trip was cancelled due to the inclement weather, but thankfully has been rescheduled for next weekend.

So, as of now I have decided to venture out into the city of Rome and check out the city in SNOW!

I discovered that about 3-4 inches of snow in Rome might as well be about 2 feet...

(The city is not equipped to handle snow and therefore a lot of things get shut down).

Might I also say if I thought walking on dry uneven cobble stones was difficult, walking on snow and ice covered ones is impossible. My eyes have to be glued to the pavement as I navigate my way through the streets. To add to this difficulty is that I am trying to walk in boots not made for snow in any way!

Firenze- Florence

I'm finally able to get my picture up from my trip to Florence last weekend! The internet has been very spotty this week because it was rainy and terrible out.

Quick recap of my weekend in Florence:

• Arrival to apartment
• Walk to the Duomo 
• Viewed the inside of the Santa Maria del Fiore 
• Walked around the outside of the Baptistry- saw the famous doors 
• Climbed the Campanile- The Tower located in the Piazza del Duomo (Climbed the tower instead of the cupola of the Duomo mainly because we wanted pictures of the Duomo in the landscape shots!)
• After a tiring set of 414 steep stairs we made it to the top
• Walked around the city of Florence- surprisingly very small
• Visited the leather market on San Lorenzo (bought quite a few leather goods- not all for me)
• Walked around the Ponte VecchioWent out for a delicious dinner
• Returned to apartment around 11Around 12 I got sick with a stomach bug and fever
• Woke up with basically no voice, coughing, sinus headache, etc. (The cold I had been supressing for about a week- which turned into an upper respiratory infection as stated in a previous post).
• I was sadly unable to visit the Piazzale Michelangelo- not up to the trek to get there
• Unable to get an earlier train homeStuck it out until we left....terrible ending to a fabulous weekend, but I most certainly do not regret going.
• *Temperature wise- FREEZING for most of the time (except for the brief moments in the sunlight).

Overall, I absolutely love Florence and the architecture around every turn is breathtaking! Being on top of the tower was serene. I can't exactly describe the feeling I had while I was up there, but I know I wanted to stay up there for hours. Looking out on the city of Florence on a crystal clear day was spectacular; a view I will never forget.