July 4

Today was the fourth of July but we didn't even get to celebrate it. It was kind of sad. We had a walking tour of Florence today. We went to a church first,Cappella Brancacci, with some really great frescos inside. We went to the Accademia, which is the museum with the famous sculpture, the David. It was really amazing to see. It is so huge with a great amount of detail. Then we went to the Uffizi Museum. The famous painting there was The Birth of Venus. Then we had the rest of the day as a free day to finish up our shopping. We finished the day with a nice cup of gelato!!!!!Kaari, Chance, and IThe Expulsion of Adam and Eve by MasaccioThe DavidThe Birth of Venus by Botticelli

Zach and I... with a fantastic background!

Happy 4th of July and last gelato in Italy!!!!

July 3

We spent most of today shopping and wandering around Florence. We saw the Duomo. It was very different from all of the other churches that we have seen. The shopping there was pretty good. At the market everything is basically the same and it is just a lot of bargaining with the owners. It was very fun though.River in Florence.This is a replica of the David but this is where it used to stand.The Duomo.Jess and I in front of the Duomo.

These doors are really famous but I forgot what they are called.

July 2

Today we went to Rome. We woke up super early and took a train. It was almost time for our train to depart and Rachel and Jessica weren't on the train. We ended up leaving without them hoping that they would get there some how. Later, when the ticket man came by he told us that they had gotten on the wrong train but were still going to Rome. When we finally arrived, we took a tour bus to each of the main sites. Our first stop was the Colusseum. It was so cool to be there. You always hear so much about it but to really be there was amazing. It is so crazy how old it is. It was suprisingly smaller than I expected but just as spectacular. Our next stop was the Pantheon. This was really cool too. I loved the oculus at the the center of the ceiling. It had just started to rain but not enough to notice water inside the building. After that we went to Vatican City. We just stayed outside because the line was so long to get in and we didn't have a long time. Our last stop was Trevi fountain. It was such a huge fountain! Then we had a long train ride home. It was really amazing to see everything in Rome but the people there were very unfriendly and the men were very creepy.Waiting for the train... before Jess and Rach got left... Jess, Cass, Me, and Bre.The colusseum.Inside the Colusseum.Katie and I at the Pantheon.

The oculus in the Pantheon.

Cassie and I at the Vatican.

Trevi Fountain.

Breanne, me, and Jess.

July 1

Today we woke up early and were off to Florence. When we arrived in Florence we showered and got something to eat. We went to this little restaurant that the hotel consieur recommended. It was really good but we got 2 courses that were really really filling. For the rest of the day we just wheeled and dealed our way through Florence and all of the shopping there.

June 30

Today we started out the morning early and went straight to Venice. We decided to walk to St. Marks today which is a long walk. We went through all of the back alleys though. It was so beautiful. Almost all of the buildings have beautiful balconies with plants all around. Later, Jess, Zach, Katie, Lindsay, Cassie and I all took a gondola ride. It was so beautiful to see all of the sights of Venice through the Grand Canal as wel as the side canals. For the rest of the day we just shopped and walked back to the train station.Rialto BridgeLunch, spaggetti and meatballs baby!Linds and I on the gondolaDiego, our gondola man.

Large calzone!!!

June 29

Today we arrived in Venice. We were all very tired. We took a train to our hotel and were surprised and excited when we saw that it was right next to the train station and so luxurious. Well, come to find out that was not our hotel. So we had to walk about a mile or two in the blazing heat with all of our luggage to find our hotel. When we got there it was very nice though so we were glad. We showered and got ready then went out for a night on the town. We had to take the train back into Venice and when we got there we took a water bus to St. Mark’s cathedral. We looked around and got a bite to eat at this great restaurant. I had the best pesto pasta I have ever had in my life! Then we looked around, shopped a little and decided to go home.Jess and I lovin Venice.Girls just chillin on the dock.Notice the pink glass on the lamp.Best pesto ever!Gondolas.Beautiful but dirty canals.

Coolest Asians ever! Winnie and me!

Me, Jess, and Lindsey on the water taxi,

June 28

Today we had our last day in Paris and did some shopping. I went shopping with Lindsey, Jess, Chance and Zach and later met up with Keysha. It was a really fun day but not too exciting. I saw a pickpocketer at H&M. He had a knife and was trying to cut peoples bags open, but that was all. Later that evening we rode the cachet. This is a sleeper car. It was really fun but kind of a bumpy ride. Katie, Jess, Zach, Chance and i were all in one room. We tried really hard to stay awake but were so tired. The ride ended up being about 13 hours long!

Zach, Jess, and the sparkling water.

Chance not wanting to be in a pic.

Katie, our favorite gangsta.