Go with the Flo[rence]

Hello my favorite readers! After two weeks of gallivanting around Florence, Rome, and then going to Barcelona with my parents, I am back and ready to tell you all about it! First and foremost, with my nine American counterparts and the Snow Doctors, we traveled  to Florence first. After the world's choppiest flight, Florence was finally in reach. needless to say, Florence was a feast for the eyes! The views of Florence are something to behold. On the first night, we climbed the stairs to the top of the Piazza Michelangelo, a hill from which one can see the entire city and the iconic Duomo of the city. With the sun beginning to set, this was the perfect sight for some tired American travelers.

At the Piazza Michelangelo with Katie, Kath, and Sam

View from Piazza Michelangelo

Our subsequent days were filled with art and exploring and a wine tasting in the hills of Florence. Of course, we went to the Uffizi Museum, where I took selfies with even more famous works of art like Botticelli;'s "Birth of Venus" and Titian's "Venus of Urbino." Needless to say, my art history loving heart was full of excitement.

Botticelli's "Birth of Venus"

Titian's "Venus of Urbino" with my friend Elena

Outside of the Uffizi Museum with the entire group and our professor Dr. Snow

After gaining our fill of art, another magical moment in Florence came at the top of the Duomo. For 10 euros and and hour and a half in line and 463 steps, Ashley and I climbed the Duomo to see the entire city from above. noting can compare to climbing up ancient steps to make your way into the sunshine to see the entire city from above. Stunning it was, to say the least. We could even see where we were in the Piazza Michelangelo the night before. Comparing the two views of the city gave me a new appreciation for the beauty beheld in Florence.

463 steps to the top of the Duomo

A 360 degree view of Firenze!

Absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt, the highlight of Florence came in the Academia di Belle Arti di Firenze. Why you may ask? THE David. Michelangelo's David calls the Academia di Belle Arti home. For me, this was a spiritual experience. For ages, I saw David in books just hoping that one day I would be able to see him in person and he certainly did not disappoint. At the end of a hallway flanked with unfinished Michelangelo sculptures, David stands under a dome in all of his glory. The minute I saw him I was in awe. Awestruck, I stopped walking and just stared. For me, there was noting in that museum except for David. Overwhelmed, I shed a bit of a tear seeing him in all of his beauty. I only had eyes for David. He did not disappoint. At all. I loved him so I even got a David charm for my charm bracelet. If you are ever in Florence, the David is a requirement. I can certainly understand why he is one of the most famous works of art in history.

Michelangelo's 'David"

Our trip to Florence ended with a wine tasting in the Tuscan countryside. As someone who does not know much about wine, this trip to the winery was quite enlightening. While the wine was beautiful and delicious, the views of the Tuscan hills were more than satisfying.

The Tuscan countryside

The Tuscan countryside

After Florence, our group jetted off to Rome, which I will talk about in my next post. Stay tuned!

The entire group after our Tuscan wine tasting!

Packing with a purpose: 9 things to think about before you leave

When it comes to packing, I have it down pat; My mama taught me well. Think you can't pack for 10 months with two bags? It can be done! When we came to Leuven in July, I managed to pack an entire year's worth of clothes into one checked suitcase, one carry on, and my purse and they were all under the 50 lb weight limit! Needless to say, many people came with more than one checked suitcase. Anyway, I consider myself a packing mastermind of sorts. As I mentioned in my last post, I will be in Italy and beyond for two weeks and I am (only) taking a carry on and a personal item, which in this case is a backpack. Not the most stylish, but insanely practical. Since being in Leuven, I have gotten many questions from my fellow travelers and friends about how to pack so lightly for a long time. I have now decided to share my wisdom with all of you!

1. If you are going somewhere for a long time (semester/ year abroad, more than a few weeks), bring clothes that you will leave there.
I know, I know no one wants to leave their clothes behind but hear me out. Bring things that will wear out during the time you will be there, like gym shoes or basics that can be tossed after a while like tank tops or older tee shirts. Especially if you;re coming to Europe where walking is part of the game, your shoes will be destroyed by the end, even new ones, so brings ones you wouldn't mind messing up. At the end of your time, you'll have fewer things to take back and more room for all of your souvenirs! To Leuven, I brought pajamas, tennis shoes, and basic tees and tanks that I know I won't bring home and then I am not upset if i have to leave them somewhere when I travel if I run out of room. This could also be applied to shorter trips if you want to leave crummy clothes behind, but it seems more realistic for a longer span of time abroad.

2. Be realistic.
Really look at the clothes you want to bring. If you didn't wear that dress in the last year, you probably won't wear it while traveling. Only bring the clothes you actually want to wear or are practical. Sky high heels? Don't need them. 7 pairs of flats? You can manage with three or less.

3. Pack multipurpose clothing
When it comes to travel, less is more. When you have to lug your suitcase up a cobblestone paved hill, you'll wish you had less too. Instead of packing 14 separate outfits for a 14 day trip, pack pieces that can be worn again and again in different ways. Dresses are great for this because they can be worn on their own, or layer with tops and sweaters to create different looks.

4. Bring fewer but versatile bottoms that can be worn with EVERY SINGLE TOP YOU BRING. Pants, skirts, and shorts can take up a ton of room and no one ever looks at your legs. Bring one or two pairs of pants than can be worn with every thing else you bring. If your pants match all of your tops, you can create so many outfits with limited pieces.

5. Do laundry while you travel.
This shouldn't be a chore; you're on vacation after all, but doing laundry can save time and space during your travels! This could mean going to the laundromat or having your hotel do it for you. For me, it means bringing a bit of washing powder and lathering my clothes up in the sink or shower. It takes up little space or weight in your suitcase and can be great for emergency stain removal or if you want to wear an outfit again. I do not recommend washing pants in the sink or shower unless absolutely necessary; they take way to long to dry. Tops, undies, and thin clothing dries quickly overnight and will be ready in the morning. If I hand wash my clothes, which I do right before bed or while I;m taking a shower, I can wear them again and again, meaning I can bring less clothing overall.

6. Pare down pairs of shoes
I love shoes as much as the next girl, but come on ladies! We don't need to bring so many pairs with us! To Europe for the entire year, I have two pairs of boots, two pairs of tennis shoes, and four pairs of flats, plus shower shoes and slippers. While it was hard to decide, I rarely miss my shoes at home. I picked neutral, comfortable shoes that ca be worn in many seasons. For the love of baguettes and puppies, do not ever bring rain boots or plastic flip flops to Europe. No one wears them and neither will you and they take up too much space. For a short trip, even two weeks, three pairs is more than enough pairs to get you through your travels.

7. If you forgot something, remember that you can always replace it or have it sent to you.
After paring off some clothes, you might realize you forgot something you need or realize that you want is still at home. Don't fret! There are stores in Europe and you can replace a few things once you get here. Obviously, this can get expensive, so do not rely on this, but remember that it is an option!

8. Look at the weather and customs of the places you will be visiting.
While this might seem like an obvious hint, many of my fellow travelers came a bit ill prepared for Belgium because they didn't look at the weather. Check the weather throughout the time you are packing, to keep yourself up to date on the weather and also look at the average temperatures of the time you will be traveling to get a more accurate picture. Once I see what the weather will be like, I plan my packing accordingly. However, I always bring a few pieces that can be worn is the weather is warmer or cooler than I expected so that I can be prepared. For example, even on a beach vacation I bring a sweater or light jacket in case of a cooler day. If you look at the weather, you can plan to be prepared with the proper clothing and accessories for any situation you might be thrown into!

9. Check luggage sizes and weight allowances of the airlines you will be traveling.
Do this to avoid heavy luggage fees. It is not fun to go to the airport only to learn your bag is too heavy or large and has to be checked, meaning you have to shell out 50 euros for your bag. This also means you should weigh your baggage BEFORE you leave. This will save headaches and money.

I hope this has helped you, my fellow world explorers, to start to begin packing with a purpose! Stay tuned for more installments of "Packing with a purpose" very soon!--C

Insta Recap #8

Hello lovely readers and welcome to another installment of Insta Recaps! I'm having a pretty exciting week. On Friday, my parents are going to be in Paris! I cannot wait to meet up with them in Italy, which brings me to another exciting point. Next Monday, I leave for Florence and Rome for two weeks for Spring Break! During the break, I will travel with all of my American counterparts and the Snow Doctors to these two incredible cities! I absolutely cannot wait to go and I'll get to see my parents in Rome! With that in mind, I will not be bringing my laptop to Italy (it is vacation after all) which means no blogging. However, I will certainly do a few massive posts when I return! Without further ado, let's get into the Instagrams!

Our first morning in Dublin, we stopped at a pub called O'Connell's on Aston Quay if I am not mistaken, for brunch. This place was actually so good we stopped in another time during our trip! I cannot remember what we were laughing about but I had to post this picture drinking Irish breakfast tea for breakfast (I know it's cheesy!)

With the Ashley's (they're both Ashley) after successfully pouring the perfect pint of Guinness!

A garden view of the Dublin Castle

This is the inside of the Mauritishuis in the Hague. This is the ceiling of the second floor and it is absolutely a work of art in it's own right! Plus, what's not to love about red walls?

Hopefully this post will hold all of my voracious readers over until I am able to blog after Italy! See you in a few weeks!

Day Trippin': Den Haag

Isn't it amazing in Europe that it takes merely two hours on a coach bus to be transported into another country? Drive two hours in Ohio and you stay in Ohio. Yesterday, the Loyola International Nachbar Huis took a trip to Den Haag or the Hague, the City of Peace. Since the weather was a bit crummy, I didn't take many pictures outside and I usually don't take too many pictures inside museums.

Our first stop was the Peace Palace, funded by the Carnegie Foundation. Inside, the International Court of Justice and the court of the United Nations preside. Since press is not allowed inside, the public rarely hears about the proceedings here. Unfortunately, we were not able to tour the inside of the Peace Palace, but we did visit the visitors center where we learned about the Justices serving on these courts and even got to see the check Carnegie wrote to help build the palace. It would have been incredible to go inside, but even seeing the building was enough for me and it is am=n important landmark that works towards justice and peace for our world, something I find important.

Peace Palace at Den Haag

Once we finished up at the visitors center, we visited the Escher Museum, Escher in het Palais. As you can imagine from the name, the building which houses these works of art was once a palace. Escher is a Dutch artist who made lithographs, drawings, and woodcuts often inspired by nature that are incredibly mathematically precise. When making a woodcut, for example, the design is carved into a block of wood before it is printed on paper. After mulling over this technique, I could not believe how precise the works of Escher were. I cannot imagine drawing straight lies, let alone carving them into a block of wood! Many of his pieces feature optical illusions, the use of mirrors,a tessellations and repetitions of images. Some of his most famous works include "Drawing Hands" from 1948 and many of his depictions of stairs. Overall, I was incredibly impressed. Not only are the works wonderful optical illusions that test our ability to judge what we see, they also showcase an incredible amount of attention to detail. As someone who is a bit neurotic and adores attention to detail, these images by Escher were quite calming and impressive, If ever in Den Haag, the Escher museum is a must see.

Escher's "Drawing hands"

Of course, I couldn't just visit one museum. With only a few hours left in our day, I, along with two other girls, visited the Mauritshuis, a museum that houses Dutch masterpieces. The most famous painting that calls this museum home is "Girl with the Pearl Earring" by Johannes Vermeer. Being this close to a masterpiece, how could I not visit. For 11 euro, it was all worth it. As the name suggests, this museum is in a huis, so it is quite small and intimate with two floors chock full of works by master painters, like Rembrandt and Vermeer. the building alone is worth a visit; the second floor has a gorgeous painted ceiling and red walls that are utterly swoon-worthy. Without a shadow of a doubt, the "Girl with the Pearl Earring" is the stunner of this collection. Prior to visiting, I was familiar with the painting but I was not super drawn to it. After seeing her in person, I understand the fascination. She is incredible, stunning, with creamy skin and the earring she wears glistening under the light. I was mesmerized by her, enchanted by her beauty. Very rarely do I feel so deeply upon seeing a work of art, but this Vermeer is a painting everyone should see.

View of the second floor ceiling from the stairwell--absolutely stunning!

I take too many selfies with famous masterpieces. Here with "Girl with the Pearl Earring"

Another masterpiece selfie with Rembrandt's "Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp" (1631)

My trip to the Hague was wonderful. I experienced and was moved by works of art by two very different artists. for any museum-lover, the Hague should certainly be at the top of your list of places to visit!

A lovely quote by Escher-- "A good bit of childish wonder is undoubtedly needed. And I've got plenty of that: wonder is the spice of life."

Be sure to check out the Escher and Mauritishuis websites listed below!
Escher Museum: http://www.escherinhetpaleis.nl/?lang=en
Mauritishuis: https://www.mauritshuis.nl/

Dublin up

 With two girls named Ashley as travel companions, we embarked on another weekend trip. From Thursday to Saturday morning, I spent time in the place of some of my ancestors: Dublin, Ireland. Looking out the window as our plane descended on the Emerald Isle, it looked completely how I imagined; incredibly green, lush foliage, cool blue water meeting what must have been a stunning coastline. When we arrived in Dublin, the customs officer knew right away that I was Irish and promptly welcomed me home (he probably noticed my middle name, Farrell, on my passport and guessed from that. Needless to say, the trip started out on a high note, demonstrating how nice the Irish proved to be the entire trip.

For such a blitz trip, we managed to visit many of the Dublin highlights, starting with the Guinness Storehouse tour. Prior to going to Dublin, I never tried Guinness, so this was a totally new experience. Of course, the museum walks you through the steps of making beer from the ingredients to fermentation to the history of the Guinness family to a tasting process to fully experience the flavors of Guinness. Of course, no trip to the Guinness Storehouse would be complete without learning to pour the perfect pint at the Guinness Academy. To properly fill Guinness, the glass must be tiled at a 45 degree angel until 3/4 full and then it must settle. Once it settles, the ruby red, not black, pint is topped off. Of course, I learned and now can officially pour the perfect pint. After learning how to pour Guinness, we finish our drinks while admiring the panoramic view of the city in the Gravity Bar. After sampling the Guinness, I think it's safe to stay I'll stick to gin and tonics for now!

The beginning of pouring the perfect pint of Guinness

Perfectly Poured Pints

The gate to the Storehouse

While Guinness was certainly a highlight, we did so much more than learn to pour beer. We visited St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Dublin Castle, which is still an active political building. Being in Dublin, of course a trip to Trinity College was a must do. KU Leuven does not have much of a campus, due to the city setting, but Trinity has a sprawling campus with green space and a huge gorgeous library with cobblestone pathways to boot. On top of that, we wandered Grafton Street and O'Connell Street, two of the most famous streets in Dublin, filled with shops and wonderful street performers. The end of Grafton Street leads to St. Stephen's Green, which was beautiful, but boy was it windy in the park that day! So much so that the water from the fountains sprayed every which way.

The yard at St. Patrick's Cathedral

 Trinity College

Trinity College

From the garden at the Dublin Castle

Performers on Grafton Street--Dublin is one of the few European cities that still allows street performers!

A windy afternoon at St. Stephen's Green

Finally, no trip to Dublin would be complete without a visit to a pub or too. Our first night, we went to a pub called O'Neil's, where the food was a serve-it-yourself and there was live music and Irish dancing! During the performance, a drummer would produce a beat and the dancer would mimic the sound with the stomping of her feet on the floor; it was incredibly impressive!

Inside O'Neil's Pub

Visiting Dublin was an absolute blast! Being Irish myself, I certainly felt at home on the Emerald Isle and would love to come back again. Who knows, I might even like to live here one day!

Insta Recap #7

Hello world! Today, I bring to you my seventh installment of "Insta Recap!" I will be honest, I did forget about doing these posts, so I have quite a few photos I have not shared on the blog! I really enjoy doing these posts since it allows me to look back on the semester and some of the fun that I have had! Without further ado, let's get started!

Back in the fall in Bruges with some of the lovely girls from my unit! This was such a great weekend trip!

Het Stadhuis all lit up in December for Chrsitmas!

 German dinner

German schneeballen (Seeing all of my old German food posts is making me hungry and ready to go back to Berlin!)

A chunk of the Leuven group back in St. Malo from our first trip ever! I posted this on the day we were supposed to meet in Newark to fly back to Belgium! I, however, didn't make that flight...

The sunny Plaza Mayor in Spain--what I would do for this sunshine in Leuven!

Parque del Retiro in Madrid with Ashley

Cheering for an imaginary bullfight in Madrid!

I know, I know, some of these pictures are months old. Even so, this is a great way for me to reminisce about my time abroad so far. I hope you all enjoyed my post and get ready for a few more posts soon--I am going to Dublin on Thursday and you can bet there will be posts to come! Stay tuned.

The journey of being

This past Monday, classes resumed for the second semester. How can it be that already half of my European adventure has come and gone, in what seems to be the turn of a page or better yet, the click of a blog post. What is more shocking is that it is already the middle of February and the days keep fading into one another, as though they will soon become one continuous span. Looking back on the first semester and the January break, I noticed a profound change in myself. The kind of change that takes time to notice but once you do, it reveals itself in everything you do. As I put it to a friend last night, I am here in Leuven on a journey of being and a journey of becoming and I hope that is to be the reason I feel such a profound change in myself as of late.

After coming to Leuven from a few days in Madrid, I found myself in a slump. Maybe it had to do with the gloomy winter weather in Leuven or the fact that classes were looming just on the horizon and I do not know if I was ready for that to begin once again. Either way, there seemed to be a funk in the air that was bringing me along with others, down. While I planned to spend the remainder of the week in Leuven, I soon realized that I need to go somewhere and fast. What could be better for the tired soul than a spur-of the-moment jaunt to Paris. With an American comrade in tow, we booked a bus to Paris on Sunday night that would leave on Monday morning. Perhaps that seems reckless, to book an international trip the night before. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. Either way, we filled bags with clothes and fruit, destined towards the City of Light. What started as an impromptu trip to leave the quiet of Belgium remains to be one of the highlights of the term so far.

What did Paris do for me? The Answer: what it does to every person and that is it revived me with inspiration. It seems all to cliché to say "I love Paris" but there is a magic in Paris. Real magic like that contained in the pages of books that really mean something. It is no wonder that so many progressive artists, writer, poets, and playwrights passed their time in Paris, garnering inspiration from the city on the Seine. While I may not be penning the next great novel or painting a portrait to stun the world, I did drink the inspiration sprinkled over the city. inspiration I so desperately craved.

Paris showed me that I am going up, changing, progressing. As the title of this post suggests, it is a journey of being. Much like the discovery of the world through the journey of travel, there is so much self-discovery happening during travel. To be in Paris, with no agenda but to drink too many lattes and write in corner cafes, I felt different, rejuvenated. Paris ignited in me a desire to do more and to find the passions and to follow them with gusto. I want to be alive, feel alive, and be authentically myself. I'm not so sure I was authentic before this impromptu trip, but now I feel more myself than ever. It takes time to become who you truly are and who you are meant to be and I conclude that Europe and all of its wonder, is making me more myself every single day. I, for one, am excited to continue sharing my story of change and feeling alive, feeling myself.

I hope you all enjoyed this more personal post and I hope to be sharing more with you in the coming weeks!