I can say without a doubt that my Fall Break experience has been the most memorable and eye-opening part of my semester abroad thus far. I have been seeing and learning so much, and I have loved every minute of soaking up the culture, atmosphere and lifestyle of each new city. I never thought I could be more in love with traveling, but these 10 days proved me wrong.
The first stop on our adventure was Paris (Parigi in Italian). Words can almost not describe my love for Paris. Of the four of us traveling together, I was the only one who had ever been before, but I was delighted to discover that there was still an endless amount of things that I still hadn’t seen. We spent the longest part of break in Paris so we would have plenty of time to see everything. We hit all the important and necessary destinations like The Louvre, The Eiffel Tower, The Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, and The Champs Elysses, to name a few. We made it to the top of both the Tour Eiffel and the Arc de Triomphe and were rewarded with breathtaking views that I will never get tired of. One thing I did not plan on adding to our itinerary was another trip to the emergency room (that makes 2 trips so far this semester, for two different people). But we made the best of it and found ways to laugh about it nonetheless. I also laughed harder in those few days in Paris, to the point of tears, than I can ever remember laughing.
One of my favorite things that we did in Paris was wander. Wandering and getting lost is my absolute favorite way to see and experience a city. In doing this we stumbled across the most beautiful park I have ever seen in my life, and it unfortunately puts my favorite park in Rome to shame. Climbing to the highest point in the park we found ourselves with a breathtaking view of Paris.
I’m sure you can imagine my sadness in having to leave, but I was beyond excited to travel to Berlin for the first time! We only spent a short time here so had little time to see things. But the Berlin Wall was something that we absolutely could not miss. It was truly amazing to see and read about the history there in person. One thing I noticed in Berlin was a much more casual, layed-back feel compared to the touristy atmosphere we have experienced in Rome and now Paris.
I wish we could have spent some more time in Germany, but I’m so glad that we were able to fully experience Prague!
Prague quickly became one of my new favorite cities. I never thought too much about visiting the Czech Republic but I am so glad I did! Everyone I know who has been to Prague is always talking about how beautiful it is, and now I know firsthand exactly what they have been talking about. The Old Town Square is magnificent and so rich in history, and the view from the top of the Astronomical Clock Tower is out of this world. My friends even managed to get me to go on an underground ghost tour (which I don’t recommend if you’re claustrophobic and not into that sort of thing).
It was a huge surprise running into Rollins friends on a random side street completely 100% unplanned! It was so nice to have a small taste of Rollins after being away for these two months, and really showed me that it is such a small world…
The street food was a huge part of the experience, and my two favorite things, which have sadly become obsessions (since we don’t have them in Rome or the US), were goulash (like a stew) and Trdelniks (an unbelievable delicious kind of dessert). The sausage was also amazing. The park that we found at the very end of our last day was so beautiful and vibrant with fall colors. The view of the city was once again breathtaking. It was the perfect bookend to our Fall Break.
This experience abroad has already changed my life, and I’m not even thinking about being halfway through because its becoming difficult to imagine ever leaving.
Au revoir, auf Wiedersehen, sbohem, arrivederci for now!