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Spring Break!

Although Italy has been my home for the past several months, I was able to regain a bit of that feeling of home over my Spring Break in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Knowing the language fully makes things so easy. This trip was another dream come true, in the long line of dreams I have been lucky enough to realize during my time abroad. I experienced a few rough weeks of midterms and papers before I was able to commence my British invasion, but I made it to London with a terrible cold that I was determined not to let stop me. London was a whirlwind of sights, sounds, food, people, excitement, and, my favorite, the tube (metro or subway) because it got us everywhere and quickly…something we weren’t quite accustomed to with the limited transportation system in Rome. After first grabbing some fish n’ chips and shepard’s pie (the anti-nutritious, yet quintessential, British delights), we commenced our three day adventure in London. Locations visited included: Big Ben, London Bridge, Portabello Road, Buckingham Palace (to see the royal guards and perhaps catch a glance of the Queen herself), Notting Hill (no Hugh Grant, unfortunately), Kensington Palace and parks, the statue of Churchill (a personal hero of Catherine’s), Trafalgar Square, and Leister Square (where we saw some random pillow fight with about 300 people). My favorite moments included: seeing the musical Wicked (ahhhh!), going to the National Gallery, eating Indian food and then waffles with Nutella and strawberries, going to Abbey Road (I still can’t believe it!), and finally ending with West Minster Abbey on Sunday for Easter.

Then, we were off to Edinburgh, Scotland for two days. Edinburgh quickly became the favorite. Not only is it absolutely beautifully situated in a valley, but its striking Edinburgh Castle stands as a gem in the center of the city. As we stepped off of the bus and onto the Royal Mile, we could hear the sound of bagpipes faintly playing in the distance. I know many of these things are just done for the tourists, but I soaked it all in because it created such a charming, if only fabricated, ambiance. Snowflakes began to fall, so we felt obliged to buy some pretty nifty hats with zig-zags and pom-poms decorating almost every inch. We stopped into the Elephant House, the famous location where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter, for a bit of coffee and lunch. It was recommended that we also partake of fried Snickers bars, a new beloved snack of mine. We toured several museums as well, including the Scottish National Gallery, the Tartan Museum (yes, as in kilts), and the Scottish War Museum at the Castle. Edinburgh made me feel like a princess, especially when I saw the crown jewels at the Castle. I’d really like to go back to Scotland one day and tour the rest of it…and perhaps catch a glimpse of old Nessy.

Next up was Dublin, Ireland. We stayed in a bed and breakfast right off of O’Connell Street in the center of town. We visited the Chester Beatty Library, St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Dublin Castle while we were in the city, but my favorite experience in Ireland was our bus tour of Wicklow County. Just south of Dublin, Wicklow is full of ideal, picturesque Irish countryside. When you think about the greenery of Ireland, Wicklow is it (which explains why so many movies about Ireland are filmed there). In fact, the movie P.S. I Love You was filmed right along some of the roads we traveled and in a small town we visited. It was gorgeous. We ended our trip with a few double cheeseburgers from the Burger King down the street and then flew back to Rome the next morning. I had an unbelievable time. It’s weird to think that in only a few weeks, I’ll be home. My time abroad has felt like it’s flown by, but I’m excited to see my family and friends soon.