Stunning Stuttgart (part 1)

And so ended the travelling part of my trip. With a brief stop in Vienna (for a couple of hours in the early hours of the morning), I made my way back to Germany... my home for the next month or so.

I went from Austria to Munich in Germany, and then on to Stuttgart, where I would be attending an exchange, Summer School, programme at the beautiful Hohenheim University. My first impression of Stuttgart was that it was a clean, modern, and an internationally friendly city. I spent just short of a month in this lovely city, and my first impressions proved to be accurate. Being in Germany in summer was amazing... long days (when the sun goes down late), lovely weather, and plenty of festivals. There was legitimately a festival every day/night during my stay there, which was wonderful. It gave us (myself and fellow summer-schoolers) something to do, and provided an awesome opportunity to get to know the local customs/culture and experience real life Germany.

Perhaps it had something to do with the incredible people I met in Stuttgart, those that I studied with, the ones I stayed with or just the randoms I met along the way, but I truly loved Germany, and particularly Stuttgart. Living there also meant that I had the opportunity to experience it in a different way to all the other places I visited during my travels. I bought food at the local grocery stores, cooked for myself, enjoyed the amazing entertainment at the festivals, hung out in a few nightclubs (and sang ample karaoke), went to a couple of house/roof/basement parties, and even had my own public transport pass. I pretty much lived like a German for a month. I do not know exactly what I expected, but Germany really surprised me. The people are incredibly friendly and welcoming, and their English is excellent. This was extremely helpful considering I did not exactly know much German (although I now have some of the basics down pat). I should however add, that some of my friends who have visited different parts of Germany on different occasions did not feel the same way. 

I loved walking around Stuttgart, exploring the different areas, and using the U-Bahn (tram system) which made getting from place to place unbelievably easy. I truly loved feeling safe enough to venture off on my own, and experiencing the culture was wonderful. I was lucky enough to study with some incredible people, and attend lectures hosted by lecturers whom are top in their field. Whilst I was a little out of my depth studying at an agricultural university (since my studies in South Africa were in Human Life Science), I found it so interesting, and thoroughly enjoyed the lab work and excursions.

I have decided to split my Stuttgart review into two as otherwise; this one will be too long. Please continue to follow my blog to see what I got up to in stunning Stuttgart, as well as some of the other German cities I visited.

I would like to dedicate this blog post to my lovely friends (for life) that I made while there. Tumi, Felicja, JieKai, Sandra, Isabelle, Natalja, Jelte, Yu, Greg, Julia, Dawid, Esther, Rita, Islam, Kasia, Hun Kiat, Anita, Danny and all those who I have not named here. Thank you for being a part of my adventure. I miss you all greatly.

Photos of Venice

I have had trouble getting onto my blog for the past couple of months, and when it does let me log in my photos never seem to load (due to terrible internet connection at university). Now that I am home for the holidays, and my log in has actually been successful I can finally upload photos of lovely Venice, Italy.

Canals, canals and more canals ... Venice

 

The home of canals, gondola’s, Venetian Masks and glass blowing... lovely Venice was beautiful and vibrant at the same time. Cram packed with tourists, one can easily get lost moseying around the odd streets that both line and run perpendicular to seemingly hundreds of canals.  Before long, every canal looks the same, and the quirky, old buildings begin loosing there “wow factor”. None-the-less, the city in which Shakespeare’s’ Othello and the Merchant of Venice are set and from which the infamous Casanova originates, is beautiful and time-less.

 

Travelling alone meant that it was too expensive to go on a gondola and one is only capable of so much walking around. As a result, I personally got rather bored in Venice. The hustle and bustle of tourists buying curios and discussing which gelato to buy was entertaining, and the gelato itself amazing, but after spending a few hours navigating around the City of Canals I was ready to leave. However, I will be frank in saying that this was almost completely owing to the fact that by the time I reached Venice I was tired, a little sick and rather lonely. Much like Paris, I found myself feeling the effects of travelling alone. I will admit that I have heard wonderful stories about Venice experiences from many friends who have visited the lovely city. They all had amazing experiences there and did not get bored. Thus, I am left with the conclusion that this must be because they were there in groups.

I found Venice to be rather pricey and so I suggest that you prepare yourself for that if you plan to visit this beautiful Floating City. Other than that... the glasswork is incredible, the food delicious and the gelato oh so yummy. Make sure you remember sunscreen and a hat as much like the rest of Italy, Venice is HOT.

Peace, Love and Happiness.

*Having troubles with my photo uploads, so photos to follow soon.

Photographs of beautiful Capri

Beautiful Capri / My favourite day

Easily the best day of my entire trip, was my day spent on and around Capri. I took the train from Pompeii early one morning and was fetched at the Sorrento Station by a shuttle. This then took me, along with a number of other holidaying families to the harbour where we then boarded two yachts. These then took us to the magical Isle of Capri, where we then spent a few hours. I met the most incredible people on my boat. Being the only lonesome traveller among a few families, I was adopted for the day by a wonderful English family. Their kindness and friendliness was something that I will treasure for a very long time and I have no doubt that the friendships that I made that day will last for many years to come.

The incredibly wonderful company was only but a part of what made this day one of my favourites. Capri itself was a little disappointing to be honest... unless you have plenty of money and are going there to buy designer clothes or jewellery. The vernacular that takes you to the top was rather exciting and the view from the top simply breathtaking, but I personally enjoyed the restaurants and sites at the base of the mountain, surrounding the harbour. Apparently, Anti-Capri is where one should go if you are looking for something more old school and traditional. Unfortunately, with limited time, I was unable to venture to that part of the island.

After a good few hours on the island, we once again boarded our boats, where we had lovely lunch and drinks and then took a trip around the island. Seeing the Green, White and Blue Grottos (caves) was awesome... particularly as one immediately understands why they are called this, as the water in the grottos really is the green, white or blue respectively.  I can truthfully say that I have never seen such beautiful, clear water in my life before. This made swimming, snorkeling, cliff jumping and cave explorations so exciting and truly an experience of a lifetime.

As I am more of an outdoor, beach type of girl... sun, sea and swimming are very important to me. These combined with the most amazing people and memories, made it the perfect day... even a little sunburn did not ruin it.

Enlightening Pompeii

From Rome, I ventured off to see the infamous city covered in rock and solidified ash and lava... Pompeii. One can walk through the streets of the old city and marvel at the immensity of it all. Pots, statues and pillars line the streets and the semi-remaining dilapidated buildings tell a horrific and interesting story. The ampi-theather and stadium give you a sense of a bygone era and the solidified bodies in foetal or sleeping positions tell of how suddenly the fiery Vesuvius erupted. The old city is incredible and definitely worth the visit. I spent a good few hours moseying around it, marvelling at both the beauty and sadness of it all... getting “lost” in the maze of streets and houses.

The “new” city boasts wonderful restaurants and friendly people... perhaps over friendly at times. If you look foreign, and in particular a girl, you may begin to feel slightly pestered and slightly overwhelmed with the attention you may receive from the opposite sex. The new city is lively and yet still seems old school, with plenty of shops and restaurants, lining busy streets, just next to the old city.

I spent only a day and night there before heading off to the wonderful Capri, so unfortunately I was only able to visit the old and new city, but had I had more time I would have loved to have climbed to the top of Mount Vesuvius, as one of the friends I made in Pompeii did. I met two lovely girls in Pompeii and we spent the evening learning about each other over the most divine food and slow strolls through the lovely Pompeii.

Pompeii definitely makes it onto my list of favourite places and I highly recommend it, whether you are a history lover, avid photographer or simply an adventurous soul.

 

When in Rome...

After leaving Paris, I headed for wonderful Italia. I took a train to Stuttgart, Germany to drop off some of my stuff at the dorm I would be staying in during my study programme. I then hopped on a train to Munich from where I took an overnight train to Rome.

Rome was amazing, and Italy in general was my favourite country (although Ireland is an extremely close second).  The food, the weather, the people, the sites... all just incredible. If I thought Paris felt like I was walking through a museum, then Rome must be the greatest museum of all time. Whether you are visiting the Colosseum or the Vatican City, or for that matter the Spanish Steps, Pantheon, Capitoline Hill or the infamous Trevi Fountain, the history is both beautiful and interesting. I opted for a hop-on-hop-off bus to get around Rome, but later in my stay decided to walk, and just “get lost” in the city. This was actually, when I saw the most and experienced the real Rome, and thus I recommend doing this at least once when visiting Rome. You will discover places that you may not have, had you just stuck to tour groups or hop-on-hop-offs, not to mention the amazing family-run restaurants down random side streets, serving the most delicious food I have ever tried. More than that, it is also cheaper than that found just outside the main sites.

I spent two days in beautiful Roma. On my first day there, I visited the Colosseum, which was breathtaking, and a real education. I felt as though I had been taken back in time and half-expected gladiators to begin a fight at any time. I also ventured to the Roman Forum and Palatino Hill, passing the Arco di Constantine on route. I enjoyed the most delicious Gelato on the edge of the Trevi Fountain and threw my three coins in... this hopefully means my speedy return to the beautiful city. While on the Hop-on-Hop-off, I also saw the incredible Capitoline Hill.

On day two, I headed off to see the Vatican City. This is one of the smallest cities in the world and is where the Pope (leader of the Catholic Church) stays. Unfortunately, I was not willing to wait the 4 to 5 hours to get inside, so I settled for the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel instead. They were breathtakingly beautiful, and the Sistine Chapel was all that I pictured it to be, with Michelangelo’s incredible artwork donning the ceiling. Strangely enough, I actually preferred the paintings and statues in the rest of the museum to the main attraction (the Sistine Chapel). I also visited the Pantheon and the Spanish Steps, before getting lost in the city (deliberately) to see sites that were not necessarily on the usual tourist map. I met the most amazing people in Rome and loved sharing meals with them and venturing off to see the Colosseum at night. They truly made my stay wonderful and I was reminded of how beneficial staying in Youth Hostels can be.

Some tips to keep in mind when visiting Rome (Italy in general):

• Take a hat, or buy one as soon as you get there.
• Carry water or juice with you, as drinks can be quite pricey outside places such as the Colosseum. Rather buy from a supermarket and then freeze one bottle so that it will be cold later in the day.
• Also, carry a re-usable bottle so that you can fill up at the ample water fountains around Rome.
• Eat at restaurants a little further from the main attractions. They will be cheaper and give you a better idea of the real Rome.
• When eating out, it is important to be aware that if bread is placed on your table you will be expected to pay for it. So if you do not want that, ask them to remove it when you sit down. Also, be aware that you will pay for water. When asking for tap water you will probably be met with a “we don’t have”, so you may as well order a cold drink.
• Be prepared for the heat. It is crazy hot in Italy in summer, and somehow there seems to be no shade... so remember sun block.
• When visiting the Vatican City/Museum you need to cover up as a sign of respect. This means no shorts, strappy or revealing shirts and no short dresses. Ladies, I recommend taking a scarf/shawl, made from light material, that you can just put over your shoulders.
• Ladies, be aware of getting lifts from random people (although you should always be aware of this) as doing so has certain connotations associated with it. Also, be prepared for whistles, hooting and many Italian men trying to flirt with you... particularly if you look foreign, as I do.

I loved Rome and all the people that I met there. The food was the best I have ever eaten and the Gelato phenomenal.

Peace, love and happiness.