Ciao Bellas!

Well, I’ve found home ladies and gentlemen. Ana Capri was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been in my life.

We arrived after a string of transportation modes (walk, bus ride, train ride, taxi ride, ferry ride, bus ride, walk) to our place of residence at the top of the island, Villa Eva. We expected two rooms in a string of others close together, like a hotel. What we found was a sweet little independent unit with handpainted floral patterns on the doors and mismatched sheets. We could walk out and in a couple steps be at either a small pool or a little bar. We made ample use of both, spending the first day soaking up sun and taste testing the different tropical options. The lawn chairs on the island had little things on top that would shade just your face. I got through 78% of my book, The Other Boleyn Girl, on just the first day.

Our first trip out was peacefully uneventful. We bought a few souvenirs and ate a darling lunch at an outdoor café. I had my first Caprese salad; I will never be the same. That junk is amazing. I had one at almost every meal for the remainder of the trip, until I realized that my “salad” was supposed to be a main course and was costing me 8 Euro in addition to my main course. Way to not look like an overindulgent American, right?

Speaking of indulging, let me tell you about the great sandal adventure. As we were strolling along a little side road, we passed a little shop with leather shoes and belts littering the front of the building. We fell in love with the shoes and eventually ended up buying half the store. The man who makes the shoes had made other pairs for Gwenyth Paltrow (who was there last week) and Julia Roberts. The ones I got were designed for the Ferrari president’s wife.

One of our last hurrahs was the Blue Grotto fiasco. I only say “fiasco” because of the great ordeal it took for us to actually get in the water. After carefully observing the sign that said “SWIMMING IN THE BLUE GROTTO IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN,” we obviously peeled off our clothes and prepared for the swim. I was the first in after a few minutes of careful debate. I launched into the cool Mediterranean water with the grace of a bull elephant and upon seeing the entrance to the cave, proceeded to walk on water to get back out again. After a few more unsuccessful tries and some choice verbiage, I hopped back in and managed to convince Whitney and Julia to get in with me. The jeering Italian men above the Grotto were helpful in pressuring us to go in. They kept yelling “just go!” like that would actually help.
The three of us meandered over to a little chain that led into the grotto. Once we were in the cave, it was all worth it. The blue glow beneath us was spectacular. We were in awe, but also acutely aware of the steadily rising tide. I stayed in for one more visit when the other girls (Sarah, Christin, Jennie Lee and Lesley) went in, but was quite happy to get out.

Speaking of fiascos, there was the lemoncello debacle. We got a free round of Capri’s famous liquor and managed to take a few pictures cheers-ing with it before anyone tried it…
…it tasted like acetone. We didn’t want to be rude, so we all downed ours (with some excellent facial expressions along the way). Oddly enough, that tiny amount of liquor was enough to have us all giggly and knocking over tins of breadsticks within five minutes. We’ve really made mature impressions on this island.

My other favorite experience was a taxi ride. Seriously. We took a convertible taxi (all seven of us) from Ana Capri to Capri. The driver put on some Louis Armstrong-esque music and we cruised past gorgeous views with wonderful new friends and took about 400 pictures between the seven of us. It is hard to explain, but that taxi ride was one of the happiest times of my life. Strange, but if I’ve learned anything about traveling abroad, it’s that you can’t expect these moments of grace. Sometimes they just happen.

AnaCapri

Dear loved ones,

I have fallen in love with Capri and I am never coming home. You are encouraged to visit.

Love,

Natalie

P.S. Villa Eva in AnaCapri is where I am staying. Google it if you like the feeling of jealousy. 

Sorry

It is crazy here...no time to update and long internet lists. When I have a minute, I have to share about:

Firenze
Host Family
Capri/Rome trip

More later!

Oxygen Tank

...and by oxygen tank, I mean an internet cafè.

I promised myself I wouldn't spent all of my time or money in one, but this is such a great break from the old computer and the excruciating lines at the Servi.

The weather has been a bust the past few days, it hasn't stopped raining or being foggy. We keep making trips to the Pam (supermarket) and I wandered in a UCB and bought sweatpants a few days ago. I was interrogated about the purchase pretty hard. I realize it may seem stupid to buy sweats (especially ones that are tight around the ankle) but I've worn them every day and I don't think they look stupid, thank you.

Mom, that rain jacket would have paid for itself by now. I keep rewearing a wet sweatshirt...gross. Let's go back in time and slap ourselves.


Aside from a slight fiasco yesterday, the past few days have been relatively uneventful. We have been too tired from classes and thick pastas to go out like we did the first night, and to be completely honest, I think we are all a little scared to. The fear of a nasty rep is a strong anti-go-outter. I hope that changes soon.

We're required to post on the Meredith blog once a week. I don't know how much personal stuff they want and I'd prefer to just use this one, but if anyone is interested there will be more information there and you can see some of the other girl's experiences.

Yesterday was my mother's birthday as well as a girl on the trip's, Jenny Lee. Be sure to tell either one you see happy birthday!

Tomorrow we go to Florence, or Firenze (ps they are the same thing and I won't judge you if you didn't know that, but my mother will). They scared the pants off of us about pickpocketers, but as long as I cling to my stomach-fanny-pack and forsake my dignity, I should be fine. I am especially excited about the Uffizi and the Ponte Vecchio. We'll see what I end up liking the most.

Ciao mamas.
Nat

PS If you have any questions, post them. I am afriad this is heinously boring.

Casa Buitoni

First, before I forget: http://www.santamariadeiservi.it/ this is the website for where we are staying. I keep meaning to post it. The pictures aren't that great, but oh well.

Today we went to Casa Buitoni. Google the company, they are now owned by Nestle. The first picture is where we ate lunch...not bad. The other one is of me and Julia and Whitney (gemela! gemela! at the bar) at the top of the Casa Buitoni with Tuscany behind me. Not bad. The one below is us being Von Trapp-esque and presh in the gardens. You wish you were here.

USB device found!

Yes. This is what I see when I wake up in the mornings. Actually, I see Sarah's head usually, but this too. I took this the first day when it was about to rain. You can imagine it on a sunny day. More pictures to come when I feel like uploading them to the computer. Enjoy!

Uhhh...

Well it looks like it may be a while before I get to put pictures up. The computer here was made about the same time as the frescoes, and there is no USB input in sight.

Last night we went out to Yummys pizza (due margharita, per favore) and then the bar across from the church, The Compass Rose. After a few mojitos we decided to try to order a light beer. After perusing the guidebook, we ordered Birre Chiaras. Lauryn ordered a Corona and got it with a lemon instead of a lime...she tried to turn it upside down like there was a lime in it...

"I realized mid tip that the lemon was a shade smaller than the bottle top" It was like a Jimmy Buffett new year...with Corona champagne.

Long story short...we got home eventually and I decided to write the stream of consciousness blog you see below. Today I went to Catholic mass.

Tomorrow we are going to the Casa Buitone (big mansion...Cribs Italy style). As always, I will keep you posted.

PS I set my hair on fire this afternoon. Way to use a converter correctly...oy.

The Arrival!

We are here! The computer I have has a low internet connection and a stubborn space bar. I also need to keep my time short because the 23 of us are sharing one computer. (also...the keys are different and I cant find apostrophes so...sorry about the grammar). The flight was fine...I wont go into details. One girl with us turned 21 on the flight!

We live in a freaking castle. It is a deconsecrated convent. I am in the room with 8 beds. Our view looks like something from Under the Tuscan Sun. We went out last night to window shop and take a stroll. After an accidental detour, we ended up outside of the giant medieval wall and lost.

Today, we went to the grocery store. I got the essentials: shampoo, conditioner, laundry detergent, Barbie cups, a bottle of Pinot Grigio (for only €3). Now if only we had a bottle opener...

Packing

Fabulous.

I can't pass anything travel-sized or travel-related without purchasing it. I also keep buying things that are "good deals" or "necessary, timeless items" to pack in my one backpack, one big backpack and carry on item of choice.

My plans for saving my money and packing light before the big trip are failing worse than Aubrey's attempt to bring back the word "hella."

It just isn't happening.