Euro Trip- Part 2

 The Evaluation

The Do's and Dont's

6 girls, 1 month, 1 Mercedes Benz taxi van, 1 of many ways of transportation= BAGGAGE.

So, I made it home to sunny Cali, July 6^th, 2013, after a month of traveling through Europe, albeit with some bumps n’ blisters (bumps from hitting my head against Hannah’s monster of a backpack as I boarded a train, blisters from footing it an entire day around Rome in sandals… stay tuned for that story), a major case of jetlag (I wasn’t mentally home until around July 10th?), and other killer encounters with experiences that have changed my perspective so much on the way I live, and we live, and what that means to different cultures.

My main objective is to let you all know now for certainty WHAT TO PACK and WHAT NOT TO PACK.  There were key items I left at dear old home, that were tugging at my heartstrings every once and again.  My top three items I did not pack but recommend you do pack, no matter where your travel destination:

             1. Nike Free’s. (or any comfortable walking shoes).  Someone advised me not to pack these trusty walking shoes because you’d stand out as a tourist and therefore be a target for the “Pick Pocketeers”.  Let me tell, those thieves are going to swipe your money regardless, and I’d rather have them take my valuables while wearing my Free’s.  I’ll take solace in the comfort of my feet as I pity the loss of my Euros.  I missed those shoes so much, and there’s enough obvious tourists anyway Nike’s are a go.

             2.  Shorts. Um, yes I said it.  I didn’t pack shorts…what?  Once again, same somebody who advised me not to pack my Nike’s said and I (don’t) quote (these are my words but the gist of what this person told me), “Paris will be too chilly to even think about shorts, and Italians wear skinny jeans, always looking stylish even amidst the heat”, okay, no.  You want shorts.  It is way too hot not to be in the comfort of a pair of good ol' denim shorts.  Thank goodness I had 5 other girl’s traveling closets aka suitcases to rummage through, who had packed shorts.

         3.  Sweatpants.  This decision was strictly logic when leaving these babies behind, “no room in the suitcase”, “too bulky”, “it’s going to be hot”.  Make the room.  Please just pack your beloved sweatpants or hoodie, whichever you prefer.  You’re going to want the comfort of home and it won’t be a letdown once those extra 2 pounds are unpacked and being put to use. 

The items in the list above were my only pit falls, other than that I was pretty spot on with what I packed.  My leather jacket literally was worn most everyday in Paris, it looks cute with everything and it’s heavy enough to add warmth, and if it starts to drizzle (which it will, Paris weather is truly very unpredictable) the jacket is water repellent.  A few places where the leather jacket came through:

The Leather Jacket

Versailles

This palace once lived in by Louis the 16^th and Marie Antoinette was probably the most grand, most elaborate of all the interiors we visited. 

The Magical Gardens.  Look all the way to the far back right corner of this picture, and add 2 more miles...that's where King Louis built his wife's house, so we followed in her footsteps and got to also visit Marie's house.  Can you say "walk of shame?"...

Also pictured is my Paris roomie, Emily.  She had the most fun Parisian outfits, and here she kept it casual with a simple, floral cardigan, black tee, jeans, and add that belt to give it a pop!  And note both of our bags: I definitely recommend a cross body bag, it was so convenient to just whip around and pull out my wallet I had in one of the zippered areas.  Emily’s bag is the “it” bag of Paris, Longchamp 'Le Pliage' bag.  It can be folded down to a smaller size for traveling purposes but folds out to a shoulder bag size so you can fit all sorts of goodies in there; maps, umbrellas, cameras, wallets, macaroons (sorry, not sorry). 

Champ Elysees

Home of the Arc de Triomphe, this street is one of the main tourist attractions,  and just saying my Nike Free’s would have fit right in here (there was straight up a Nike store on this street, killin' me.) 

look UP, standing below the Arc.

and okay, so those are shorts I did pack BUT the sides have a floral design so it limited to what I could pair them with and the fit of them is pretty snug, so they were not the most comfortable to walk around in.  You want a pair of loose fitting shorts.  (And that bag I’m holding contains macaroons, sorry not sorry.  That place, Laduree, is famous for their macaroons, let’s say what Sprinkles is to cupcakes, Laduree is to macaroons). 

From the Latin Quarter all the way to Montmarte

We got to experience the Summer Solstice, which is a celebration of the longest day in summer, and only day a year recognized all throughout Europe and in France musicians ranging from DJ’s to local bands playing on every street corner were performing for free.  It was like a music festival throughout the streets of Paris, it was awesome! There was a DJ right outside our first floor hotel room, so we could hear the music and watch the crowds below, while rocking pj's even after we had called it a night.

While in the Latin Quarter we watched as this artist painted for pleasure, and for coins as passerby's admired his work.

One of the band's playing right outside our hotel, the Citadines Montmarte (they offer a fantastic complimentary breakfast, side note.  Croissants, hard boiled eggs, fresh fruit, toast, cereal, yogurt).

Taking the Metro from one end of Paris to the other to hear the music sound! A friend of mine, Esther, and we just matched by coincidence (great minds!)  I only wore these pants once, but the color "spiced up my life" ("laa, laa, laa, laa, laa, laaaaa"- Spice Girls).

So now moving onto Italy, got to shout out my girls, and the not so fashionable moments of the trip, it's bound to happen...

The Good, The Bad, and the Maxi Skirts... these skirts are easy to just throw on for comfort while you tackle 2 Metro trains, 1 overnight train, and 1 local train to Florence from Paris.  

The Shoes

While I thought we had done some intense walking around in Paris, little did I know it was about to get that much realer...and that much farther...and that much longer...

Rome 

The Bad: So all I really need to say to sum this up is DO NOT wear sandals and then walk the entire city of Rome from sun up to sun down.  You will get blisters, and you will limp the rest of the way from your last sight to see, the Colosseum, to the train station, and you will have to hop on one foot from the bedroom to the kitchen to avoid contact with that foot and the floor for the remainder of that day and the next.  Just wear walking shoes...

Vatican City- outside the Basilica.  Be sure to cover your shoulders, and have your knees covered, pope's orders ;)

Inside the Basilica, does not do it justice. 

Hobbled my way to Ancient Rome, one of the coolest spots we went to.  I could just feel the history and the culture envelop me.

Gladiator Stance...and/or "Powering Through The Pain".  The Colosseum was amazing, and takes me one- seventh of the way to chucking the "7 Wonders of the World" off the bucket list!

Pisa

"Flying down to Pisa, just to get some pizza..." heard that Jay-Z and that we did (x10. Pizza, pizza, pizza.  No regrets.)

Pisa was a quaint, small, little city and this was an easy walk through.  It took us about 20 minutes to walk from the train station to the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  But what I dug the most in this city, was the Keith Haring wall we stumbled upon, and the Keith Haring gelato cafe to accompany...that combo is truly a masterpiece ;)

Keith Haring + gelato + borrowed shorts + comfortable Converse = HAPPY :)

Pompeii

The Good: saved the best for last, (not intentionally but that's how God works!) :) This was a one day excursion, we took the train from Sorrento to Pompeii (only about a 40 minute train ride).  This was my favorite day of the entire trip for numerous reasons; probably because this legit was the most look alike spot to Jurassic Park (place in my heart, I have no idea why, that movie can just do no wrong), we met the coolest couple from Texas who were part of our 10 person tour group (and the 6 of us took up more than half of that group), our tour guide knew every detail about the history of this ancient city destroyed by Mount Vesuvius and rediscovered by archaeologists, the weather matched the mood perfectly (it was thundering/lightning and then started pouring rain on us.  We literally were running through the ancient streets of Pompeii in the rain...I mean, once in a lifetime), and I had one my Converse (feet were dry, and cozy, and unblistered)...

Read about Pompeii, so interesting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pompeii

The House of Apollo- the oldest temple found in Pompeii, where they used to sacrifice animals (I chose not to believe that portion).  

LOVE these girls, and LOVE that we brought no umbrellas that day, and LOVE that I tried to substitute a paper map for a shield against the rain... it crumbled, a representation of the crumbled city around us.

I'm so thankful for such a beautiful trip, with such a beautiful group of different beautiful personalities, and while the wardrobe might not have always reflected this beauty, that's not what it's always all about.  Good luck to you as you pack (and one last note, instead of a duffel bag carry on opt for a backpack, your left arm will thank you.)

-Alysha M