Un semestre en Cáceres, España: Semana Santa!

Easily one of the best spring breaks ever! I went to Paris, Florence, Venice, and Rome with three other girls in my group. We started off in Paris and as soon as we arrived we were able to see the top of the Eiffel Tower. We thought it was only a 17 minute walk so we decided to chase it. An hour had passed and we still had not found it so we turned back and called it a night. The next day we woke up and tried getting into The Louvre for free with our ISIC cards but they wouldn't let us so we went to the Notre Dame Cathedral where I lit a candle, the Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysees street with all the famous stores, and the Eiffel Tower. Everything was so amazing! Perfectly crafted and nothing like I have ever seen before. It was a pretty chilly day so we went into a few cafes to keep warm. The best part of my day was being able to meet up with the Aquino family! We took the metro back to their apartment and had wine, bread, and cheese while reminiscing all the good times. At this point, I started to feel quite ill so the next day the other girls went into the Louvre while I stayed back and continued to rest before our flight to Florence.

In the airport we saw a lot of people getting their bags checked so we freaked out a little and started to layer on all of our clothing. Sweatpants over jeans and leggings used as belts. Everyone was staring at us but hey we made it through without having to pay 60 euros to check our luggage! I felt even sicker than before as well...The next day the other girls went to Pisa to see the leaning tower but once again I stayed back to rest. When they returned we decided it would be a good idea for me to go see the doctor. We think it was a parasite from Africa that was making me sick so the doctor gave me 4 medications to take. The hostel we stayed in was super sketchy and even one more morning there was no water so we had to go somewhere else to get ready for the day. We went to the Accademia Museum and I was able to see the famous statue "David" by Michelangelo. It was incredible how much detail there was.We also went inside the Duomo Museum and saw the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge and went up a hill to see an incredible view of the city. This part of the trip was not the best for me because I felt sick the entire time so it was hard to enjoy it to it's fullest but I was happy to be able to see all of the cool sites and eat some real italian pizza and pasta!

We then took a train to Venice. When leaving the train station in Venice I was in complete awe of the city. It was exactly what I imagined and more. There were stairs leading right into the water and all the buildings' doors opened up into the water. It was unreal! We were only in Venice for a day so we spent our time walking the city and taking pictures. One of the girls in my group actually slipped and fell into the Venice Canal. Luckily none of her things were ruined so we were able to laugh about it. I still laugh about it when I replay it in my head. For dinner we stopped at a restaurant right on the water and I ate my favorite pasta, Fettucine Alfredo, it was a dream come true!

Our next stop was Rome. The train we took was exactly like a Hogwarts train, it was so cool! Even a food cart drove by and everything! After the 6 hour train ride (it would usually be 3 hours but we saved so much money by taking this train that made more stops because we are all cheapos haha) and settling into our hotel (where we booked for only 3 people to save money so I had to hide the entire time) we found a Hard Rock Cafe and had the most amazing American meal ever. I was able to have a BBQ pulled pork sandwich and french fries dipped in ranch! That night we took our own personal walking tour recommended by Rick Steve (he makes the best travel books and one of the girls in my group is obsessed). We saw the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain (where I saw someone get proposed to and we threw in pennies and made wishes!) and the Spanish Steps. Everything was beautiful! The next day we went to get our tickets for the Vatican for Easter mass on Sunday. We then had reservations to tour the Vatican Museum but we realized that we had left the tickets in the hotel so we had to sprint through the rain to go get them because the bus system was super confusing, but we were only a few minutes late. The museum was huge and super crowded, but we got to see everything and it was so cool! The Sistine Chapel was incredible! I can't believe that Michelangelo painted it all by himself. The rest of the day we went and saw the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the inside of the Pantheon. I was also able to meet up with a friend from ISU who is studying in Whales this semester so we all went and had dinner and called it a night because we had to be up super early for Easter mass.

We woke up around 5:30am in order to get in line by 7am for Easter mass at 10:15am. When we arrived there were four lines forming so we chose one and waited until they let us in at 8:30 and then when they opened the gates they scanned us through and just like at Iowa State football games everyone was sprinting to get the best seats. We ended up in the 8th row and it was so cool! We were closer than I had ever imagined. Before mass started, there were bands proceeding in and the city was packed with people. The mass was done in Latin and I was able to see the Pope! It was so awesome to be there and see everything. I even got to have communion and at the end the Pope blessed every country in their language. It was such an unforgettable experience! That afternoon we went to Trestevere neighborhood and it was such a cute place. We climbed up a hill and got to see yet another gorgeous view. It then began to get stormy looking so we booked it back down and found a bar to hangout in until we met up with some people for dinner. After dinner we went back to the hotel and gathered our things because our flight back home was at 6:30am so we had to leave our hotel by 4am.

We arrived back in Caceres safely and on time! I am now feeling much better and I can't believe that I only have a few short weeks left! I'm really sad! I am happy that I am done traveling so I can spend these last few weekends in my home away from home. I might go to the beach for the day next weekend depending on the weather. This entire experience has made me realize that I made the best decision of my life to study abroad. I couldn't ask for anything more amazing. It was such a great opportunity and it has changed my life!

I will see you on May 3rd, America!

Here are some pictures :)