The shortest distance between 2 ports is a straight line...

The shortest distance between 2 ports is a straight line...

After Naples, I began what turned into the longest transit jump of my trip (possible my life)  The morning started fine and good: I checked out, ate a hearty breakfast, and got to the train station at an acceptable time. Much to my delight, there was -you guessed it- a rail workers strike! Which means trains were delayed ERRYWHERR. I was terrified that I would miss my transfer in Caserta and subsequently (and literally) miss the boat. Luckily my first train was delayed only 15 minutes, and the connected was delayed 20. Once I got to Bari, I headed straight to the ferry port and the waiting game began.... 

 See, the ferry didn't leave Bari til 8:00pm, but it started boarding at 5:00. Waiting on the boat seemed better than waiting in an empty terminal, so on I went. I ended up meeting a physio therapy student from San Francisco that was also on his way to Athens. We sort of paired up for the journey, keeping each other company for the overnight haul from Bari, Italy to Patras, Greece. As our tickets were the cheapest ones available, our sleeping accommodations were whatever we could fashion out of the cafe chairs. So obviously they were SUPER comfortable and I slept for HOURS. Not. We also had the delight of passing through some rough weather. Now I'm not one to get motion sick, but this was ROUGH. No one could walk in a straight line and most of the passengers were looking a little green. This little patch of weather also added another 3 1/2 hours to our ride. So a 15 hour ride was now 18 1/2. I've never been so happy to get off of a boat in my life.

  Once we safely on dry land, Jake (San Fran Physio) and I teamed up with 3 girls from Regina and we all began the final leg of our journey: the 3 hour bus trip from Patras to Athens. We all parted ways on the Athens metro, but I was grateful I did not have to go through that ordeal on my own.

Once I got to my hostel in Athens (and showered) I did some math: 

  If Rachel leaves her hostel in Naples at 8am on Wednesday, has a 15 - min delayed train, another 20 min delayed train, an 18 1/2 hour ferry ride and a 3 hour bus ride, and arrives in Athens at 7:00 pm Thursday, how long was she in transit for?

Answer: 35 hours.

Things I have learned:

- ALWAYS take time to hit a grocery store for snacks before a long travel day. 

- travel pillows are a god send.

- when doing an overnight ferry, spend the extra 20€ to get an airseat. Your neck and spine will thank me.

- there's a part of me that wishes I hadn't changed my plans, as Bari seemed like it would have been interesting to explore. 

- some people pretty much nest when trapped on a boat for more that 3 hours. Large piles of blankets, pillows, groceries, magazines, various jackets and sweaters piled high around them like a citadel wall. It's impressive.

How would you like to Pompeii for your pizza tonight?

Would you like to Pompeii for your pizza with cash or credit?

So while in Rome, I had this moment of panic. I thought that I had planned poorly and was lacking a place to put my person for the night before my ferry journey. I had also not heard from the individual that was supposed to host me for couch surfing. Being the eternal sorter-outer, I decided to throw in a night in Naples instead of Bari as originally intended. This way I got to see Pompeii, and it was sort of on the way to Bari anyway. I left Rome early in the morning so I would get into Naples early enough to check into the hostel, drop off my luggage, and spend the afternoon touring the Pompeii site (which is a 1/2 hour train ride outside of the city). This ended up being an excellent plan. I loved Pompeii. It is significantly larger than I imagined, and spread out enough that even with all the tour groups there were times when I was the only person on a section of street. The details that remain of the city are astonishing, especially the intricate mosaics that still decorate the nicer homes. The only thing that bothered me was the sheer amount of garbage that people had left on the sites. Cigarette butts, camera batteries, empty water bottles. I imagine that archaeologists must HATE opening sites like this to the public, but have no choice because the admission fees help fund further research and excavations. The turmoils life in art and humanities. *le sigh*

 After Getting rained out of pompeii (emergency poncho FTW!) I did what one does when one is in Naples: I got pizza. The places the hostel recommended were kind of in a sketchy area of town, but all of Naples is sketchy area of town, so I figured I would take my chances. And the verdict is: I can safely say that when you go to Famoso, you are getting TRUE Napoli-style pizza. The crust and quality are exactly the same. The only thing that differs is the tomatoes, and that's just a case of freshness and type. You really can't beat a true italian pink san marzano. There's just something about that delicate sweet nuttiness...

 

Things I have learned:

- it is impossible to ignore the economic crisis plaguing Italy when you're in Naples. The city is covered in political graffiti and there a general disatisfaction that looms over all the inhabitants. It's sad because the city is gorgeous and has so much potential.

- Pompeii was essentially the Vegas of Ancient Rome. Or at least the buildings that survived made it seem that way. Penis and sexy frescos on ALL the things.

- I really need to lay off the dairy. And the pizza for that matter. *squish squish*

- you can buy Nutella in 4 litre pails. This is dangerous information.

- always get the unlimited day pass for the train system. I kept asking for it and they kept selling me one-time fairs. When it came time to come home from pizza, both of the ticket kiosks were broken and it ended up taking me an hour to figure out get change and figure out where to buy one. Not fun at 10:00 at night... Especially in Naples.

Wherever I May Rome

Wherever I may Rome...

After falling in love with Florence, it was time to take my dairy-bloated self to Rome. I really didn't have any sort of plan for specific sites I wanted to see, and was honestly feeling a bit blah about the whole place.

When I got in, I found out my hostel did not have kitchen facilities or included breakfast, which meant I would have to eat more meals out--an expense I wasn't expecting and was a bit choked about. The hostel also wasn't very conducive to meeting people, so I spent the 4 days pretty lonely (especially after having so much company in Florence). My first full day there, I decided I would start at the coliseum and work my way around the main centre. When I got out of the metro station, I came across a breast cancer marathon. Consisting of over 34,000 people.  Greeeeeeeat. Trying to get across the street to actually see the coliseum was a nightmare and the lines were already ridiculously long at 10 am. Unimpressed Rachel was unimpressed. I did notice that you could get a city pass that would grant you free access to your first 2 sites and unlimited transit usage for 3 days, so my goal of the day became to acquire one of these. Which turned out to be more difficult than I anticipated because there was just so many people around that you couldn't get your bearings. 

  I think part of my negative attitude was traveller's fatigue. By this point I was about 4 - 5 weeks into my trip and I was just getting sick of wake-up-stand-in-line-dodge-tour-group-see-sight-take-pictures-eat-picnic-repeat. I know, first world problem, but this nomad lifestyle can be exhausting, both physically and mentally. I used the evening to get to bed early and hopefully recharge my sense of wonder.

 The next morning was a bit easier. I started at the Vatican (just the site, not the museum) and worked my way down the main road, across the river to plaza nuovo and the trevi fountain.   And the answer is no, I did not throw a coin in. *GASP*  It was so crowded by that time of day that I was terrified I would hit someone in the face if I tried to do it. So now I HAVE to come back to Rome in order to throw my coin in. Take that. 

I checked out the roman forum and palatine hill in the afternoon, and figured I needed a fix I hadn't gotten since Lyon: seeing a movie! This time: The Great Gatsby with Italian subtitles. Not Baz's best work, but it filled the gap.

 Speaking of filling the gap, guess who found 2 (yes 2!) vegetarian restaurants in Rome?! THIS GIRL. The first was The Beehive, which is actually a hostel with an organic cafe  inside. It was Sunday night so I happened to be in time for the set menu for 8€. Ohmygodsotasty. I really wished I had stayed there as it was just around the corner from my hostel, has free breakfast and kitchen facilities and was only 5€ more a night. I also had a little curry platter at a place by the Vitoria that was also ohmygodsotasty. Definitely a nice change from pasta.

Things I have learned:

- I found I enjoyed the roman forum ruin more from outside the actual site as you could see better where all of the foundations were.

- actually, I found I enjoyed ALL the sites more from outside. Rome really is a city of history, and there is so much around you really don't need to go in the attractions to appreciate them

- compared to the other major European cities I've been to, Rome's metro system is fairly lacking. I imagine that anytime they try to expand it though they come across another archaeological site.

- reading Jane Austen makes me instantly sleepy.

- the Spanish steps are kind of unimpressive...

- Rome sells hot priest calendars! Like firemen calendars only with less abs and more crucifixes. 

- there is still way more Pope John Paul II swag than ones for the new Pope Francis. It seems everyone just wants to forget about Benedict...

Florentines and gelato spoons

Florentines and Gelato Spoons

After some outdoorsy fun on the cinque terre trail, it was time to head back into the city for some culture- And what better way to check mark that box than in the artistic town of Florence. The beginning of my time there was less than ideal though....

I was feeling a bit off and slightly nauseous the morning I left la spezia, and figured it was due to spending too much time in the sun the previous day and not drinking enough water. I took a couple of Tylenol and was sure the 3 hour train hop would do me good. I  started feeling progressively worse, getting intense cramping in my lower abdomen. I took some Advil and contributed it to motion sickness. I would totally feel better once I got off the trains and to my hostel. Well I got to the hostel and tried to take a nap, but the pain in my stomach made it impossible. It almost felt like someone was jabbing a hot spear through my right upper back and sending diagonally through my torso out my right thigh. I was getting quite concerned as the pain was getting worse and the drugs weren't helping. I finally went down to the front desk and asked the clerk where the nearest doctors office was. She was concerned, said I looked awful and would get a taxi to take me to the tourist clinic on the north side of Florence. I agreed but was told it would take about 45 min to arrive. During this time an English guy had come up to the counter to talk to the clerk and we ended up chatting a bit. I wasn't my fully charming self due to the agony but we got along alright and i went up to my room to wait. I ended up feeling a bit better before the taxi came and decided to check out a bit of Florence. Just as I was about to leave I bumped into the English guy again. Turns out this was his second time in Florence and he was meeting friends later, but he offered to show me around the city a bit. It was really nice to have some company as I hadn't really hung out with other travellers since before I went to vineyard. We hung out off and on over the next couple of days and we even went on a grand adventure to find the foreign medical clinic when the pain came back the next day. Turns out: kidney stone! I got some painkillers and a recommendation to drink 3L+ of water a day to flush it out. I felt way better though. 

My favourite part of my time in Firenze was when I saw the duomo all lit up.  It had rained so everything was really bright and reflective. It was amazing and beautiful and the kind of scene you only see in the movies. My camera did not do it justice.

I also happened to arrive in Florence in time for the Firenze gelato festival. It's when Master gelato makers from all over the world do a tasting showcase. 10€ got you 5 flavour tastings and a gelato cocktail. My lactose intolerance said no but EVERYTHING ELSE inside of me said yes. Oh my god it was amazing. I had a mojito made from mint gelato, one with pears and red wine, one with salted dark chocolate with candied orange pieces, a coffee one with lime and lemon, one made from black rice and one with tiny profiteroles drizzled with hazelnuts caramel and hard chocolate. I was certainly gelato'd out by the end but it was totally worth it. Every. Bite.

Things I have learned:

- kidney stones are freaking agony. Don't get them.

- the tourist medical clinic is lovely, but is now in a different place than the guide books say.

- the statue of David is bigger than I  thought it would be.

- Botticelli's Venus is okay, but not as exciting as everyone makes it out to be.

- it is ALWAYS worth the extra 4€ to buy a reserved time ticket to the big museums. Standing in line is for suckers.

- a true Bellini is prosecco mixed with fresh peach juice. A Rossini is the same but with strawberry purée.

-  I am still lactose intolerant. Very much so. 

A good Milan is hard to find, La Spezia-Ly on the beach.

It was back to the roaming life for me after my week at the farm. First it was back to Lyon for a night (thanks Yacine) and then 6 hours on a train chugging through the Alps, past Torino and into Milan. Milan wasn't originally in my plans, but I couldn't train directly or overnight to La Spezia in one day, so I figured "why not?!"

  I had also left my sunglasses at the farm, so my goal of the day was to find a new pair. Being the fashion capital of the world, I knew exactly where I would go to find them:

H&M.

...What? I'm on a budget, people.

It was, however, a three story H&M and I did pick up a sweet summery outfit or two. Swedish-Italian glamour ACHIEVED. Complete with sunglasses.

The main shopping district is also right by the duomo and I have to say its pretty impressive. It's been by far the most modern feeling cathedral I've seen. There is a rear rose window that has almost an art nouveau feel about it, with a swirling rosette pattern instead of the usual symmetrical one. Prettyful!

The next day it was off to La Spezia, a small city near the Western Italian coast. It wasn't necessarily the city I went to see, but the small villages near it: the famous Cinque Terre. These are 5 (cinque) villages that used to be really remote from the rest of Italy and have kept a very old world sea-side charm about them. They are obviously now overrun with tourists, but the houses built into the steep cliff sides still take your breath away. The villages are also close enough together that you can hike through all of them in about 6 hours, which is what I had intended to do. I got my sunscreen on, got some dried fruit, put on my merino wool socks and i was READY. And then I got there. And the only chunk of path open to hike was between the first 2 villages. 

...*sigh*.

I didn't want to waste the day completely, so I did the hike between village 1 (monterosso) and 2 (velnuzza). When I got to Venuzza about 90 min later, I camped out on a rock in the bay and cooled myself in the azure blue ocean. There was also another, rockier beach that you could only access through a cave in the town where the waves came in MUCH stronger. I had already spent quite a bit of time in the sun, so I was good for the day, but it was amazing to hear the sound of the waves pulling along the rocks. It reminded me of one of those fireworks that fizzles after the light has disappeared. :)

 There was also a really neat mixture of natural stone and terra cotta on the beach. The area had a flood recently that caused many of the houses perched on the rock face to collapses into the ocean. Pieces of the clay roof tiles, as well as chunks of mosaic walls had all been eroded by the tides and now peeked through the natural dark stone, as well as added their own timbre to the previous ocean soundtrack.

 I'm beginning to really love being by the ocean. I love the diversity it has, and how one section of coast can have completely different waves, depending on what's around it or what the current brings. But I also love the rhythm. The consistent pulse that beats through each ebb and flow, and brings life to all around it. But perhaps more importantly, it brings change.

Things I have learned:

-that maybe I should be more concerned about ALL the surfaces in my hostels, and not just the beds. The place I stayed in Milan had a sign in the benched seating area that said "no gang bangs."  Does that mean they've had a problem with gangbangs before, or is this just a preventative measure? And does that mean couples and threesomes are okay?

-I will have to go back to France as I never did get to see the gorges in Ardeche. Le sad.

-while McDonald's has free Internet in Italy, you have to have an Italian phone number to use it. Also, ALL free Wifi access needs a password from the salesclerk, and you can only get it if you buy something. It sucks.

- Italians LOVE their ray bans. And not just the iconic hipster shaped ones - all Ray Bans. 

-Italian croissants (cornetto) are different from French in that they are sweetly glazed like a donut. #themoreyouknow

-I think I've been to too many museums, as I saw a pile of wire and rusted debris on the beach and naturally assumed it was an installation by a local artist.

- I LOVE HIKING. This is thing I need to do more of. Banff shall be my bitch this summer I think (...in all the free time I have between fringe rehearsals...)

Beaujolais me down in a bed of roses

Beaujolais me down on bed of roses

After my adventures in cosmopolitan  Lyon, it was time for a change of pace. I present to you with WWOOF-ing** at Les Dessous du Cep or "the bottom of the vine", the organic vinyard I volunteered at for a week. I know I usually put the "things I have learned" at the end, but i feel I need to get a couple of these out from the get-go:

- always read your train ticket. Even though I bought it at one station, the ticket started at a different one. And of course I realized this when I was at the wrong station and had 10 minutes to get to the right one. Needless to say I missed my train

- always check the ENTIRE departures screen for your train and platform. There may be more than one leaving from the same platform in a 20 minute period. Needless to say, I got on the wrong train. I gladly realized this before I left Lyon and made arrangements for the next one. 

- Skype does not work for numbers you are not contacts with and foreign numbers. I discovered this while trying to call Denny and Jeanne to let them know I had missed my train twice and would need a pickup at a later time. Also, pay phones are no help AT ALL.

- Romaneche-thorin is a lovely vinyard town. Especially the train station. I got a good look at it for about 45 min before I got picked up.

Okay, now that we have THAT out of the way, the week at the vinyard was amazing. Jeanne ( a french artist raised significantly in English speaking countries) and her spouse Denny (an Italian dancer and musician) together have a 400-hectare organic vinyard consisting of 2 Plots: one behind the house and another a short distance away. Of these grapes they make 2 red wines each fall which they rename every year. 2011's season was "Cleopatra", which is made from grapes from the far section of the vinyard, and "ErotiKa" made from a blend of the two plots.  Both are delicious, with ErotiKa being softer and a little fruitier. 

They also run a small, reservation-only organic restaurant out of their home, and I was grateful to get a daily sampling of their French-Italian fusion cuisine. (Anything I owed that was fitted however, not so much)

(ALL THE BREAD AND WINE AND COFFEE)

We didn't work in the actual vinyard so much because spring was late and the vines were juuuuust starting to bud. At that point they are so delicate the slightest brush can cause the buds to fall off, so the more we left the vines alone the better. We did however clear out the garden and help tidy the yard, preparing it for a season of guests.

On the day before I left, Denny also gave us a tasting of last fall's wine in the making, called "ISIS". He told us often times large wineries will taste the wine over the course of the fermentation and make changes to shape the taste and feel. He prefers to think of the wine as a baby still in the womb, and tasting the wine is like looking at a 5 month ultrasound-- it looks like a baby and has all the parts of a baby, but still needs time to fill out and develop, so making changes is pointless because its not done growing. And babies are exactly what each cask are to him. You can tell by the passion and care he puts into each one.

It really makes me want to come back to Europe and exclusively wwoof ** my way across the continent, tasting local cuisine and learning what people are doing around the world to put a dent in the industrial food crisis. I also want to see what wwoof-ing opportunities there are in Canada. Might be nice to go away to kelowna and pick fruit or pierce trees in Quebec for syrup. Road trip anyone?

**Note: okay, WWOOF! The World Wide Opportunities of Organic Farming. Basically it's a volunteer work-stay program. You get paired with an organic farm and work there for a week or two in exchange for food and board.  I have included the link below, as well as the link to Les Dessous Du Cep. There is way more about my stay there that I could write about, but you'll just have to take me out for wine for those details...

WWOOF: www.wwoofinternational.org

Www.wwoof.ca

Denny and Jeanne's: www.lesdessousducep.fr

Dijon isn't just a mustard and I ain't Lyon

Dijon was a chance for me to go waaaay out of my comfort zone and try couch surfing for the first time. And to great success! Seb was a lovely host. Finished his term in the French Air Force, he now builds and designs model planes. He took me to touch the owl on the side of the cathedral (which has been touched so many times he doesn't have a face. Poor faceless owl.) And gave me a walking your of the city he grew up in. It really is quite pretty. Like all the old parts of Paris but with more space and less tourists. He also introduced me to some of the Beaujolais wines and we made tagine in his swanky paella cooker. He even gave me a small tin of herb du Provence to take with me on my travels :) 

And then since I had so much experience under my belt from surfing in Dijon, I did it again in Lyon! This time with Yacine, a middle school maintenance man in his 30's and his 7 year old son Tijany.  While Tijany spoke little English, it was fun to play with him, and I even got to write my name in his cardboard bedroom castle. I know, gangster.

Lyon really is a beautiful city. It is definately trying to sell itself as the cosmopolitan alternative to Paris. More modern, but still embracing the picturesque Rhone-Alps around it and the history that goes along with them. It also happens to be the gastronomical capital of the world. So guess where I spent most of my time? That's right, MCDONALD'S. *sigh*  see, McDonald's (or McDou to the French) has free Internet. So I an order a small fry and Skype my friends and family without paying for meal or standing on one foot with a hanger in my hand as per most hostels. That, and I was too embarrassed over the quality of French to sit in a restaurant, and McDou has self serve kiosks in English. Yeah. Yeeeaaaahh.

I also marked my 26th birthday in Lyon. It was a simple affair. I went to the textile museum, meandered the shopping district. Yacine taught me how to make crepes for dinner and we decorated them In both savoury and sweet forms. Did I have a great epiphany? No. But I did reflect on how far I'd come and where I was going next. At least where I hoped I was going.

The next day I checked out the fourviere cathedral that over looked the city and the roman theatre ruins. I spent a good hour just sitting and writing in the audience. The weather was gorgeous and it just felt to peaceful I'd hate to ruin it by spending it inside. If it wasn't for the anti-gay marriage rally happening in the main square that i could hear it would have been perfect.

I spent the latter part of the afternoon at the gadagne museum checking out the collection of world puppets and marionettes and indulged in some ardechian pear sorbet before buying a ticket to see ironman 3 with French subtitles. Yep. Cultural rockstar right here.

The last day I spent in Lyon I rented a bike and roamed the tete d'or park. A giant urban park with a botanical garden, lake and zoo, it was a welcome break from all the cityscapes and tourist shops. I also got my first signs of a tan. Take that Canada.

Things I have learned:

- 30 year old single men who offer you their couch are not all serial killers or rapists!

- ironman 3 was disappointing. For multiple reasons. Buy me a drink when I get back and I'll tell you why

- French people eat cookies for breakfast. BREAKFAST. 

- teaching me how to make crepes was a dangerous thing. I will probably now make them/ eat them all the time

-you can get an electric pan for cooking just paella. I want it.