Fall break has come and gone so quickly, having started October 15 and lasting until October 21. During these many days all of us Temple Rome students ventured off to other Italian cities or European countries to further enrich our cultural immersion. And, more importantly, we all needed to relax and have some fun after the stress of mid-terms.
For my break I went to both London and Paris. Getting to and from the airport from the apartment complex here in Rome was very easy and inexpensive. The flight was relaxing and enjoyable. My travel buddy, Kamille, is someone that I met for the first time at Temple Rome. It’s funny how life brings people together, and you end up doing amazing things, like traveling around Europe. I couldn’t have asked for a better travel partner. We had a great time and kept each other safe.
Upon our arrival in London, we found our way to my friend’s flat who is studying with the Temple London program. Once again, how wonderful and ironic that my friend would be studying abroad the same semester as I am. I also had a friend from England who came to London for a couple days to help us do the touristy things and see as much of London as possible in the two days we had. We saw Big Ben, the London Eye, Buckingham Palace, and much more. In addition to the common places, we also ventured into the London countryside and had a delicious brunch at a Tea House as well as got great landscape pictures. We also got a personal tour of an old church and the cemetery, which was also really exciting.
Our next stop on our break was Paris. My friend from the London program had her fall break the week after ours, so it worked out that she started her break by joining us on the journey to Paris. Since my friend and I are both Disney cast members we decided that it was a must to visit Disneyland Paris. To some, this may seem like a silly place to go while traveling around Europe, but it’s someplace I’ve always dreamed of visiting. To be so close to it without going would’ve killed me inside. Even with the public transportation strikes going on during this time in France, we managed to get to where we needed to go without any problems. We spent two days in the Disney parks, and it was so much fun especially because they had Halloween decorations up and special Halloween themed shows. It was also chillier than back in Rome which really made me feel like I was getting a piece of home that is practically nonexistent here.
And of course, just as I couldn’t be in Paris without visiting Disney I also couldn’t be there without seeing the main sites too. Therefore, on our last day of travel we saw Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, and visited the Louvre Art Museum. I felt overly satisfied with all that I was able to accomplish and fit in within the short amount of time, as well as stay well under my budget.
Coming back to Rome wasn’t a hard adjustment. After all, I was coming back to Rome! The hard part was returning to classes and getting back into the groove of things involving all the work and studying. But I guess that comes with the phrase “STUDY abroad”. I credit that transition back as the reason why this blog is so delayed. However, I’m finally back on track and still feeling refreshed and ready to finish this semester by making every minute count! I still can’t believe that it’s more than half way over, wow!