Oh Hey, Whats up?
Well, yes I am aware that I made a promise to write more frequently and I failed miserably. I have been told by family and mostly Miss Cara that my inability to keep a blog is astounding. But, what can ya do. My travels and leisurely lifestyle make it quite difficult to write (but really not at all because I have a plethora of free time on my hands). Well any way, this is going to be the longest blog entry ever considering that I have to retell my entire life since well, forever ago. Soooo, here is where we left off:
The weekend of March 19th, I traveled to the small, unknown city of Barcelona, Spain. The weekend was filled with catching up with old friends, exploring with new friends, and seeing all the Gaudi one can possibly see. I spent my days eating tapas, gallivanting from Parc Guell to the Sagrada Familia to the beach. So, a very difficult and trying weekend (NOT). How was your flight there Jaclyn? Oh, funny you should ASK! IT WAS THE WORST EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE. I WILL CONTINUE TO USE CAPS TO EXPLICITLY STATE THAT YOU SHOULD NEVER, EVER, AS LONG AS YOU LIVE FLY RYANAIR. IT IS LIKE BEING ON A BAD COMEDY SET WHERE YOU THINK YOU MIGHT DIE. Ok, so here’s what happened. Not only were my friends Katewatson, Olivia and I waiting in the cardboard box that they refer to as Ciampino airport for our delayed flight, but once we boarded, all of the fun began. Amid beginning to take off for Girona (yes, Girona because RyanAir is too cool to fly into major, real life airports) our pilot decided to stop mid-runway because our plan was broken, yes broken. I, of course, handled the situation beautifully by taking all of my stuff of the plane with me, crying, panicing, and having a heart attack as they evacuated the plane (a bit of an exaggeration, but well, you know me). So the plane wasn’t really evacuated, but we did have to get off of it. I then proceeded to call just about everyone that I knew to ask if I would die if I got back on. Well, I got back and on and am clearly fine since I am writing to you now a month later. But, it was a dreadful experience, so here is my warning: Don’t Do RyanAir. Ok so on to my next adventure.
Post Barcelona, I had midterms and then MISS CARA LYNN MALONEY came to visit! We had the most amazing time, running around seeing every sight possible and eating some of Rome’s most delicious cibo (food for you uncultured folk). Among our favorite activities were throwing coins into the Fontana di Trevi, eating until we couldn’t stand or walk, and experiencing tartufo at Tre Scallini. Being with Cara in Rome was absolutely amazing and catching up was really, so great! Yes, I know I’m being sappy but reuniting with friends like Cara and Meredith in Europe are among the memories that I will never forget. Sorry for the tear-jerking mushy stuff, I will now return to my usual facetious self.
Once Cara’s visit was over, we both went to the airport together for her to return to Cornell and for me to set-off for Paris. I seriously debated fitting Cara into my carry-on luggage, but alas, we were unable to do so.
And so, my Spring Break began. WAAAAHOOOOOO SPRING BREAKKKK. My first stop as I said was Paris accompanied by the lovely Lindsey, my programmate and Parisian partner in crime (we used the aliases Jacques and Louis). We spent our three days devouring French Onion Soup, Crepes, Pastries, Croissants, macaroons, and FONDUE. It was beyond delightful. Although I have yet to lose to the fifteen million pounds that I gained from eating. Lindsey and I, in our attempt to see the sights probably experienced more of the Parisian underground than the actual city, although we did see the Champs de Lycee, Notre Dame, Le Tour Eiffel, etc… Oh, funny how the Pompidou is closed on Tuesdays, yeah thanks Paris, I will now learn nothing about modern art for as long as I live – as city you have failed to teach me and further my non-existent knowledge of important cultural things. Haha, I also forgot to mention the pleasant little hotel that Lindsey and I stayed at, oh wait, it wasn’t pleasant at all. Although it was clean, I will give them that, the hotel was creepy and well not very good. I would have much preferred to spend my money at La Duree, considering we woke up to hotel construction directly outside of our room, men working, and garbage bags everywhere. But, Paris was stunning. So we left our hotel daily to explore and eat, which was not bad at all!
After Paris, I met up with Katewatson and we embarked on our journey to Greece for the remainder of the break. Our travels were filled with exciting but also stressful timesss. Our first day in Athens was absolutely incredible, we went to the Acropolis on the most beautiful day and hiked around. It was truly stunning. After sightseeing, we retired for a great lunch of Chicken Souvlaki and other yummies and shopping of course! We also saw the Olympic Stadium, Parliament, Temple of Zeus, and the city’s park. For dinner, our new best friend from lunch recommended a place called Sardelles, where we had the most amazing fried calamari, fresh trout, and steamed mussels that I have ever had. I would fly (yes, fly despite my paralyzing fear of planes) just to eat there again. The next day we woke up and packed up for Santorini. We hiked around a bit exploring the Flee Market and other ruins before attempting to get to Santorini without any troubles. Of course this was impossible. You wouldn’t believe what a horrible turn Athens took within our last 2 hours there. On our way to catch our ferry at the port, Katewatson was sandwiched in the escalator, pushed around, and turns out, robbed by a group of people. We had no idea what was going on and thought that the individuals were just being exceedingly obnoxious, yet they were professionals and distracted Kdubs as they shoved her and took her wallet and all forms of ID and money. Luckily, her passport was not taken, but it was such a horribly stressful and upsetting experience. We barely made it to the ferry, at which point we were so upset and exhausted that we sat down at the ferry restaurant to eat. Once our 5-hour ferry journey was over, I was exiting with my 50 lb bag, yes 50 pounds – I have packing problems, I blame my mom. I was pushed by the aggressive people behind me and fell off of the ferry ramp, on to the ground, so a good end to a great day (but not at all). Exhausted we reached our hotel and finally sat down!
Although our experience in Athens ended on a sour note, we had an AMAZING TIME in the gorgeous island of Santorini. Oh, I don’t know if you know this about me, but you could probably infer it, I am afraid of absolutely everything, including horses, animals, heights, planes etc… But, I made a promise to myself that I would go out of my comfort zone while abroad and so I RODE A DONKEY DOWN A CLIFF, YES A DONKEY. Whilst having a panic attack as my donkey stumbled and swayed down the ramps above 500 meter cliffs, Kdubs laughed behind me. I constantly screamed to the Donkey Man (as I refer to him), “Excuse me, SIR MY DONKEY IS TRIPPING!” or “Excuse me, excuse me, my donkey is fighting with the other donkeys,” to which he would respond with the only English that he knew, “No problem, no problem.” But YES, PROBLEM! Turns out, Katewatson was freaking out the whole ride down, seeing as my donkey had a bad leg and was only using three legs to transport me down the perilous path to the marina. Just my luck! But I DID IT – how proud are you? I know, I know I’m the best. Oh stop, its too much, I can’t handle all of the praise! Later that day, we only saw some of the most amazing views that I have ever seen in my life. After climbing the volcano, yes volcano, we looked out on the Greek islands and vast, crystal clear ocean. Life is good, let me tell yah aha! The rest of our stay entailed sunbathing on the black sand beaches, shopping for souvenirs, and celebrating Easter Greek style. In one of the towns in Santorini, a candle ceremony takes place on Good Friday, where the towns people set up about five thousand candle/torch-like objects lighting up the entire town and creating one of the most beautiful scenes you will ever see. We had an amazing time!
Well, I think that this is all you can handle for now. If I am underestimating your abilities, please let me know! I will update you on my life since April 6th later this week! Love you all so so so and cannot wait to see you in 18days!

Molti baci,
Giacomina