My Future Home ;)

Sicily: Catania 

After three days we had to say goodbye to Napoli! 

It was an overnight trip so this is how we slept. Luckily there weren't too many people.

Lucia!!

The architecture in Catania really impressed me.

There is no lack of statues, churches or water fountains in Italy.

The elephant is the official mascot of the town. There are elephants all over the city. This is because hundreds of years ago a skeleton of a elephant was found in Catania.

The building behind the elephant statue is City Hall. 

We took a mini train tour around the city. We ran into our Chinese friends we from Capri! :)

The Patron Saint is everywhere!

Bella

Statue of Vincenzo Bellini

Baroque Architecture  

Gorgeous park.

Through the whole tour Laura thought the old man in front was the mayor of Catania. She was so happy. Lucy  and I kept laughing so hard and I ended up breaking the bad news.

I am hoping that one day this will be my university. It's basically like the Letters and Science college in UC Davis. But of course, I would be studying Italian Literature!! <3

We went to City Hall and surprise, surprise, Laura got her own personal tour guide.

A celebration for the Patron Saint

This carriage is older than my grandma's grandma!

This painting caught my eye. This is St. Agatha, the patron saint of Catania.

Italian Pride. La tricolore.

 Inside City Hall

 Mini Lion

Yet another beautiful church. They are just as beautiful on the inside if not more beautiful. :)

 Me and my partner in crime. 

 The Underground Roman Amphitheater 

So happy. Can you blame me? 

After the tour we took some time to relax at the park and tried some of the famous Granita from the South.

 The weather was not perfect but the atmosphere sure was. Of course me and Lucy were observing the men from Catania :)

We ended up buying some personalized bracelets made on the spot. I know it's not a clear picture but mine says, Maria <3 Elena, in different colors. 

We only had one day in Catania but it was very memorable. We saw the city, made some friends, did some shopping, and ate cheap but delicious food. :) I will definitely be back to Catania. Best believe! 

Things I ♡ About Italy

1. Notte Bianca: Was the best. night. ever. There is just so much that went on. There was a whole group of us before it became me, Adriana, Piti and Andrea. Then what followed was free drinks, getting couples to kiss by chanting "Bacio! Bacio!", flash mobs, sexy bartending twins, dancing in piazzas, walking around all of Firenze, live music, pictures, running into old friends, more dancing and blurriness. It was Epic. Wish I could be here for the next Notte Bianca. :)

2. Hard Rock Cafe Firenze: I had never been to a Hard Rock Cafe before. I know we have so many back home, including one in SF but I just had never gone. So, when I saw one here in Florence I knew I had to go. It took me months but I finally got the chance to go with my roomies. The food was delicious. Huge portions, fried chicken and coca-cola. It felt just like home!

3. YAB: YAB is a club in the center of Florence. It takes me about five minutes to get there walking. They have great music, cute boys and good drinks. It has slowly become one of my favorite places. Mainly, because of the cute boys lol.

4. The Opera: My roomies and I went to see Carmen not too long ago and it was fantastic! It was set up in a small church but the performers were amazing. I fell in love with the role of Carmen. She was a charming songstress.

5. Lucy: My roommate Lucy is the perfect shopping buddy. She can, believe it or not, out-shop me. We can spend a whole day doing nothing but window shop. Most of the time she ends up buying everything while I go home with nothing but we always seem to have fun while doing it. Also, she happens to be the best makeup artist ever! I love it when she does my makeup! The amount of attention I get when she does my makeup doubles. She's a miracle worker! lol. Sadly, she leaves tomorrow to Mongolia. :/ I am so thankful I was able to have her as a roomie tho. I can't imagine my time in Italy without her. <3

I'm On A Boat!

Day 3 of our trip we headed off to Capri!!! 

Boats! Boats! Boats!

Lucy, Me and Laura on the ferry to Capri!

 Capri's beauty amazes me. 

This pastry was the perfect pick me up after our ride to the island. It was tasty and inexpensive. 

We took a tour around the island. This is a lighthouse we passed. We also saw statues, rock formations and the houses of Sophia Loren, Giorgio Armani and other famous Italians. 

We went under the Arch of Love. Couples kiss while passing under the arch to spend many years of happiness together. 

Laura and I enjoying the tour. 

I was so glad to finally get some sun. Winter lasted too long this year! Here I was waiting to get into the famous Grotto Azzurro (Blue Grotto).

This is in the Blue Grotto. All natural lighting with water as blue as can be. I couldn't believe the color of the water. 

While in the Grotto the men guiding us on the boats were singing different Italian songs. The acoustics were amazing. 

There's my boat!

I was the only one to go in the water! The girls just wouldn't budge. 

:) O Capri, Non vedo l'ora per tornare. Forse il prossimo estate. :)

The Girl Who Went To The Top Of A Volcano

The same day I went to Pompeii I went up the volcano that destroyed it. This was my favorite activity out of my whole trip! It was something I never pictured myself doing so when I actually did it I couldn't believe it. 

Going up to Mt. Vesuvius was a mission. We bought our tickets and were told it would be 30 minutes wait. Well, it was an Italian holiday that day and many Italians were out for family picnics in the area and what not. Let's just say that 30 minutes became 2 hours!! We were worried that we wouldn't be able to go up at all but luckily everything was sorted out. In the end, the wait was worth while. 

This is me waiting at the bus stop.
 
We got all the way to the entrance by bus. We are getting closer!

Then we had to take these bad boys all the way to the top. Look at those wheels!

These were the roads and views on the way up.

The higher we went the more beautiful the views.

This is me and Laura waiting to explore Vesuvius. 

These were breathtaking. 

When we got dropped off we still had to climb 20 minutes up hill to the very top. I'm telling you guys it was a mission getting to Vesuvius. 

I am amazed every day by Italy's beauty. 

Finally made it!

This is the very center of Mt. Vesuvius. If you look closely you can see the smoke coming out!

I could have stayed up there forever. 

 

These were fun to find. :)

 

Of course Baby Jesus was up there too. 

I left my mark. ;) 

It was nice to relax for awhile just looking out. <3 

We were ecstatic up there and left feeling accomplished.