When in Europe the UK and Beyond: The Independent Traveler

"I have wandered all of my life, and I have also traveled; the difference between the two being this, that we wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment."

-Hillarie Belloc

Con-form-ity it is a funny word actually.  It implies a person who follows the set standards of a society and does not dare to venture away from them. This person goes down the path that has been traveled by many. However, as the famous poet Robert Frost once wrote: “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

During my spring break I went on a life altering trip by myself to Italy. Along the way I deviated from the social conformity of the tourism industry. I strongly held a belief that the tourism industry is a very blurred line between the reality and the accepted perception.

What I mean by this is that there are two entirely different experiences when it comes to traveling. One can choose either to experience a new place on their own or they can choose to follow a guided group. The difference here in lying that the guided group is a blurred perception, as they tell you what it is you are supposed to be getting out of the spectacle in which you are observing. Whereas when left up to the individual perception, one gets more out of the experience as it is more of a reflective, self-discovery experience. As opposed to a perception in which has already been laid out for you.

Sure I visited all the sights that all tourists do, while in Italy, but I expanded my horizons beyond the norm. I did what many might consider mad. I wandered down many side streets not knowing where they would take me or what I would get out of them.   I knew that in varying down the normal pathway, I would only grow further as an individual. I’ll admit there were plenty of times in which I got lost and had to find my way back, but I am better because of it. I became more self-aware of my surroundings and a keener navigator. 

As a result of going down random side streets, I got more out of the experience in each city as I ran into various cathedrals, buildings with unique architectural designs and restaurants that I otherwise would not have seen and or experienced.

In many ways I am glad that I choose just to stay in one country as opposed to jumping around from country to country. I got more out of the experience in this way as I got to experience a culture more thoroughly.

I am also glad that I choose to travel alone, because I got more out of this experience than I would have otherwise. I was able to travel at my own pace and observe, learn and grow immensely in ways I never thought were possible until now.

I leave you with one final thought to bare and mind next time you travel : “A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find that after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us.”

-          John Steinbeck

When in Europe the UK and Beyond: My Final Day In Italy

This morning I got up and took the water bus to Saint Marco Square. I queued in line to go on top of the Saint Marco Square's tower. After a brief wait time I made my way up to the top of the tower.

The first glimpse from atop the tower was a view of the Grand Canal and the rest of Venice in all its beauty. It was a partly cloudy day, but very good weather regardless, which made the view all the more spectacular.

I then made my way to the island of Murano, a place in Venice well known for its glass making. In order to get to Murano you had to take either the 4.1 or the 4.2 water bus. The fastest and most efficient way that a majority of people take is the 4.1. However, since the water buses run once every twenty minutes, and there is massive line of people getting no where.  I opted instead to take the 4.2 which was longer but  practically nobody was on the water bus and it was all the more enjoyable rather than be cramped in the 4.1. 

By noon I arrived at the Island of Murano. I walked around Murano and till I found an interesting place to eat. What surprised me the most was that I had expected the meal to be more if not just as expensive as Venice, but I actually got a meal for a lot of less. A full plate of pasta and a coke for only 7 Euros was the cheapest meal I had gotten in Italy.

To some extent while Venice is quite lovely within itself, I somewhat preferred the island of Murano. For one it was much smaller and quainter. Secondly there was a lot less going on and rather relaxing. Not to mention the outstanding glasswork.

They shaped glass into pretty much anything imaginable. What stood out to me the most was an Electric Guitar made out of pure glass. Its body was a light blue hue and its neck was a light brown. I was just impressed that they were able to craft such an object out of glass.

I kept walking along until I came onto a glass structure. It was a spherical structure covered in various spike liked tubes sticking out in various directions. I was not sure really how to interpret its meaning, but regardless it was still very neat.

I stopped by one of the glass making factories to watch a glass blower at his craft. The particular factory I went to was very chauvinistic. As the glass blower did his craft there was a narrator who described what the glass blower was doing. Every so often the glass blower would make a overly dramatic pause and show everyone what he was doing. Of course the audience was awe inspired. It reminded me of one of those old sitcoms people use to watch, that indicated when something was funny by inserting laughter into the background. Similarly the audience made sound effects almost in sync with any overly dramatic moment.

  

The glassblower ended up making two objects. A vase which wasn't all that impressive and then a small miniature horse.

I got a boat back to my hotel and took a short siesta. I went back out for dinner and then watched as the sunset over Italy for one last time.....

When in Europe the UK and Beyond: The Golden Staircases of Venice

I made it into Venice around 12:30. The moment I walked outside the train station I saw the Grand Canal. Its water was pure as gold and slick as ice. The water itself had a hint of a green tint to it. Lining the canal were various pastel colored houses that seemed to go on endlessly down the canal. This first magnificent view of Venice is one I will remember for the rest of my life.

I hopped on a water bus to my hotel. However, I ended up getting on the wrong water bus by mistake, and ended up by the Rialto Bridge. My hotel was not too far away from here, but it was not very easy to find the hotel. This was because the hotel was situated down a back alley way. It was very quiet and remote in this area, which I really enjoyed.

After checking into my hotel, I excitedly made my way over to Marco Polo's House.  I thought it was a museum, but was instead just a plaque stating where he lived. Disappointed I moved on wandering in a random direction. Eventually I came upon Saint Marco Square. In this square there were many restaurants, a cathedral and Dodge's Palace.

I went into Dodge's Palace and let me tell you this place tops anything I have seen in Italy. As you walked up to the staircases inside the building the ceiling was covered in a glitzy glamorous gold. It was such a transcendent experience walking up these staircases.

The function halls were even more impressive. Never before have I seen so much gold in one place. The walls and ceilings were lined with paintings on every inch imaginable.  Not to add to the fact that the function halls were massive in size.

 Dodge's Palace also had a very impressive armory dating back to the middle ages up until the early 1900's. There was everything from knight armor to various guns.

There was also a dungeon in which was well known for the bridge of sighs. This bridge has a window that would offer most prisoners their last view of Venice. The dungeon itself was really cold, so I did not dwell to long down there.

For about an hour after the Dodge's Palace, I wandered around the streets aimlessly. It did not take very long to get away from all the tourists. Walking a few blocks in any direction will get you into peace and quiet. Being by yourself like I was, really helped me enjoy the streets of Venice more. The key to Venice is getting lost in its streets, it is only then that you'll be able to enjoy Venice to its fullest extent.

Venice has been an amazing experience thus far. It is at a close 1st place with Rome for my most favorite place in Italy.

Tomorrow begins the last day of my journey in Italy. Rest assured I shall make the most of it!

When in Europe the UK and Beyond: The Not So Much Leaning Tower of Pisa and Lucca

I had arranged to meet up with the couple with whom I sat next to on the flight to Rome at 10:30am today in front of the train station. We were going to be going to see Pisa and Lucca together. However, after 15 minutes they still did not show up so I went on without them.

By lunchtime I had arrived in Pisa. I slowly meandered my way down towards the Leaning Tower with no sense of rush or urgency. Along the way I walked down many side streets and found some really extraordinary views of the River Arno. What really upset me, however, was as I sat there gazing upon the River Arno, I noticed how littered with trash it was. Many trash bags were floating down the river and other loose articles as well. It is really a shame that people were ruining such a beautiful river such as this one, by throwing their trash into it.

I kept walking along until I came upon a small little restaurant and received a very warm welcome when I walked in. I ordered the Chef's Choice of Pasta and then sat back and relaxed. The restaurant owner came up to me and started chatting up a storm in Italian to me. I explained to him that I did not speak any Italian, but he carried on anyways. I sat there and listened, nodding my head every once and while pretending like I knew what he was saying. I might be wrong but from my understanding, I think he might have been telling me something about his family and how his restaurant came about.

You could also tell that this was a place that many of the locals came to, as many of them popped in and out and had very animated conversations with the restaurant staff.

The pasta came with some delicious mini pizzas. The sauce on the pasta was of an exotic flavor to me. I could best describe it as some type of Alfredo sauce. Overall this was a very lovely little restaurant.

Twenty minutes later, I came upon the Leaning Tower of Pisa. To be perfectly honest, it was not as leaning as I had always imagined it to be. Granted the Tower of Pisa was still somewhat of an angle that was still impressive, but not to the degree that any picture depicts of it.

Many people who surrounded the tower were all doing the generic photo of themselves pushing on the tower. Some people were even striking up various yoga poses. To be perfectly honest it looked pretty ridiculous to me. A picture in front of the Tower of Pisa was good enough for me.

Within the same plaza in which held the Leaning Tower of Pisa, there was also a Baptistery, a Basilica and several museums.

First I went into the Basilica. Out of all the religious buildings I had been in thus far in Italy, this one had the most impressive biblical paintings that were massive in size; some of these paintings were nearly 20ft high. However, apart from the impressive paintings the interior was not anything widely different than what I have described in previous pieces.

Most of the museums were closed for renovations, but there was one opened.  Inside this museum there were various paintings in which dated back some 600-700+ years ago. Much of what had remained of the painting was very faint red etchings that amazingly somehow have been able to stand the test of time.

Aside from the area in which the Tower of Pisa was situated there really was not a whole lot else to do in Pisa. I then decided to wander around Pisa for a while and see if I could find anything else to do while there. As I roamed around the streets, I came upon a very interesting lizard/gecko, I am not sure which one it was. He was extremely tiny, no larger than my thumb.  His back was lined with neon green dots and his skin was jet black. I sat there for several minutes looking at him, until he eventually decided to scurry off.

I then hopped back on the train for a short ride to Lucca. The city of Lucca is a relativity a medium sized place contained within walls. It reminded me a lot of Old Québec city to some extent. The main difference however, was that when walking along the wall you could enjoy phenomenal views of the mountains. It would be the perfect city to bike around or even a nice jog around. To top this experience all off there was not really any tourist around or frankly anyone, so it was nice to have some peace and quiet away from the city.

  

Within the constraints of the walls was a complex labyrinth of streets that did not appear to have any logical flow to them. You could be walking down a street then moments later it would abruptly stop. I found myself walking around in circles a few times until I got a better sense of orientation. The streets themselves were very quiet and empty no one was really around. I suppose it was late afternoon right before 5pm and everyone was on siesta or something.  I tried wandering around to see if I could find any museums to look at, but a majority of them were closed.

I did find a torture museum that was quite the oxymoron to such a beautiful place. Inside there were detailed descriptions of various torture devices. It was really fascinating yet at the same time chilling being inside.

After the museum I proceeded back to Florence and got back to my hotel around 8pm. I went out for dinner and then relaxed in my hotel for the rest of the night.

Tomorrow starts the last phase of my adventure as I travel to Venice. It is hard to believe that time has elapsed so fast. It felt just like yesterday that I landed in Rome and it has been one amazing life altering experience and I look forward to seeing where I stand as a person upon the completion of this journey.