| (this journal entry is a little late in coming, but here it is! it was written sometime in july...)
It's good to be back in the good ol' U.S. of A! After my program in London was over, I traveled to Venice, Rome, and Prague with a fellow classmate of mine, Cindy Suh (the greatest travel buddy ever!). We flew to Venice, took an overnight train from Venice to Rome (even though we rode 1st class it wasn't so fun...or comfortable for that matter), then flew to Prague. We almost didn't make it to Venice because there was another bomb threat in London on the day we were supposed to leave which halted the train and tube service for a couple of hours. However, we made it to the airport and even had a little time to spare. I was sweating like crazy from all the running and rushing I did, but it was all worth it when we caught our flight. We spent two days at each location. It was a whirlwind tour, but I still got to see some amazingly beautiful places in the short time that we had. I've caught the "travel bug." I'm thinking of backpacking through Europe/Asia sometime after I graduate. Anyone wanna join me?
Venice - If you're thinking of visiting, be prepared to get unbelieveably lost...even WITH a handy dandy map. Yeah. It's bad. 3/4 of the streets aren't labeled, hardly anyone speaks English (c'mon, isn't English the universal language? haha), and the streets twist and turn so often you feel like you're walking in a labyrinth maze. Oh, and make sure you arrive during the daytime so you'll actually be able to see the road signs. And another thing, make sure you DON'T use one of those suitcases-on-wheels thing. The pavement is uneven and cobble-stoned and there are many stepped-bridges to cross. Cindy and I arrived at midnight. And we had suitcases-on-wheels. Yeah. Needless to say, it was quite difficult to manuver the streets and bridges of Venice. However, we met a nice Canadian guy (who has a friend at Emory's medical school - small world!) who was headed to the same hostel as us, so we decided to explore the streets of Venice with him in search for our hostel. After crossing 6 bridges (I was about the throw my suitcase in the river), and making a few wrong turns, we FINALLY found our hostel. After a good night's rest, we were ready to explore (aka. get hopelessly lost). We ended up walking for 10 HOURS. Yeah. We didn't want to pay for public transportation, so we trekked all over Venice. We visited all 5 districts of Venice. We crossed the famous Rialto Bridge which spans the Grand Canal, visited the Jewish Ghetto, ate gelato (SOOOO YUMMY!) walked around in San Marco Square where the pigeons outnumbered the humans (if you've ever seen Hitchcock's "Birds," multiply the last scene by 10 and you've got San Marco Square), toured St. Mark's Basilica, ate gelato, then walked around some more. The next day, we visited the islands of Burano, famous for it's exquisite lace production, and Murano, well known for it's delicate glass work. It was so peaceful on the islands. People weren't rushing around
Rome - If you're traveling to Rome by overnight train, make sure you get at least a couchette so you can lay down and sleep. First class on a train isn't the same as first class on an airplane...it's more like coach/economy on an airplane. Our hostel was AMAZING. www.the-beehive.com. It was by far the cleanest, hippest, awesome-est hostel I've stayed in. It's run by an American couple. I guess Americans know how to do things the best . Haha. Walking around Rome was like being in a history book. On one side of the road you've got the Colosseum and the Forum, and on the other you've got ruins and early Christian churches.
After visiting Italy, I've come to the realization that knowing Spanish would've helped a TON! And since I live in Florida, I'd probably be able to use it quite often. I think I got taken advantage of (in more ways than one...but that's another long, complicated story) because I didn't know the language and was just another "dumb American."
Prague - BEAUTIFUL! GORGEOUS! A great place for a honeymoon. Haha. Castles and romantic bridges galore! I kept thinking I was in Disneyland because of all the cobblestone roads and gothic architecture. The public transportation system is very easy to navigate and figure out, even if you don't know the language. The locals are very helpful and nice. I actually enjoyed trying to communicate with them despite the language barrier, because it gave me the opportunity to listen to them speak their beautiful language. Everything is so cheap there...$1 USD = $25 CZK! So when I held thousands of Czech dollars in my hand I felt like a millionnaire! haha
I recommend everyone to go traveling through Europe. Even if you have to sleep on the streets. haha Take a friend with you and bum around. You won't regret it!  If you want to see my pictures, just let me know at jamieykchan@gmail.com. I'll be posting a link to the pics once I get it all set up. |
It's my last week in London and I'm not enjoying it because of an exam! Sadness! Why must we have a final exam? We're already having a class debate over whether the U.K. or U.S. has a more efficient health care system - isn't that enough? Oh well. 
The fun had just begun - after dinner we went downstairs to the basement of the restaurant and were treated to a private belly dancing show, complete with the throwing of plates on the floor! Then we all danced with the belly dancer...well, my friends did. I took many incriminating pictures and videos of the festivities. Haha. 
After a few hours of (watching) belly dancing, I walked home with Fern and Susie. We got a few cat calls and propositions from "dodgy" (the Brits' equivalent term for "sketchy") men, but made it home safely. 