To Europe...And Beyond!

It's important to note that when I begin a blog entry, I never have a set purpose. Often, I'll have some hint of inspiration, or I will just need a reason to stay up later at night than necessary. The latter is the case this time. After an epic adventure with five friends in a small car making the trip to Rhode Island's capitol just to go to iHop (mind you, Providence is only about twenty-five minutes--got to love the smallest state), I do not feel like going to bed. Instead, I'll just sit here on my bed with my fancy little laptop in my room, which is currently more full of color than ever before. You see, I went college dorm shopping today. Even without the $116 of new things my room is pretty amusing. It's violet and lime green. Now, there's a whole mess more of violet, plenty of orange, and bits of green, pink, and blue. And suddenly I feel as though I'm a lot more prepared to begin school. Of course, there are still six or seven weeks until I will make the six hour drive up to Syracuse with all of these new colorful things. However, I assure you that I will be occupied thoroughly until then. In four days, I embark on an over-seas journey to Italy. Specifically, I'll in in Rome for five or six nights and Florence for one. I'll be traveling with family (an adventure all it's own), including the Ma and Pa, as well as my older sister (22) and older brother (20).

It's not as though we've never traveled together--our month-long trip cross-country was a doozy--but this is the first one in a while. Of course, being on a plane together for 9 hours isn't much improvement from being in a van for a month. Nevertheless, our family is exuding excitement. Especially since Mother, Father, and Brother have never been abroad. It is sure to be quite the experience.

Just today I converted $160 into 105 euros--it sounds weak, but keep in mind that exchange rate variation is all relative. Those euros found a cozy spot in my wallet. I'll admit that it's nice to have foreign money on me again. It's been a year since I last travelled abroad, on a world-wind "Mosaic" trip to England, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Austria. All in two weeks.

Anyways, this trip is sure to include lots of museums, for one, since my sister is filled with knowledge of Italian artists, and she's never shy to share it. My brother is looking forward to the Vatican, which I'm sure will not disappoint. And I know disappointment. Last year, in Paris' famous Louvre museum, we saw the Mona Lisa. Yes, it was from a distance, but it was quite a bit smaller than most people would guess.

Personally, I'm excited to dive right into the culture of the country. What do people eat? Where do they shop? Yes, all the history and sites are fantastic to see, but once the night sets in, I hope to be able to explore.

So, I'll be sure to write again when I've gone to yet another European country. It should be a blast! And even though it's raining in this lovely little state and it will be 90 in Italia, let's try to enjoy the summer, sì?