End of Dublin and Beginning of Scotland!

Well once again I picked the color of where we are!!!! We are officially in SCOTLAND! and i can't even begin to describe how awesome is...but I'm getting ahead of myself because I must talk a little about the end of Dublin first!

We decided to sleep in and check out at 1030 as scheduled. We then sat around the common area where we had met some people who had been living in the hostel for over 6 months....crazy right? I ended up talking to this one girl who had lived in Rome, Amsterdam, and a couple of other places before settling in Dublin for the last 8 months. It was crazy. We both lived in the Vatican area and such. We ended up bonding over the fact that there was this red-haired girl who was ancient looking and would just say really inappropriate things in the common area. In addition, there was this guy who was probably 18, with boots up to his knees with no laces, black shirts, and weird longish hair, and these two would go at each other. Of course Wednesday night comes along (a big drinking night, not to mention the Champions Cup was that day, Manchester United LOST to Barcelona, ridiculous) anyways, these two were arguing and these two Irish kids started to pick on the boots kid. Boots kid said something under his breath and the Irish kids and boots kid started to get into it. Well needless to say the only threat boots kid has was "well i've been here forever". And these Irish kids could have snapped this kid in half. Meanwhile, poor Santino is trying to watch the Laker game and is slowly but surely turning up the volume. All in all, Tino told them to shut the hell up so that he culd watch the game in peace. The Irish kids end up getting 86ed from the hostel, only because they were very close to breaking the kid in half. Had I been there I would have said that he should have gotten the shit beat out of him earlier...and the red-head needed to grow up and find a job....but of course I was asleep at 430 in the morning.

Anyways, we boarded our RyanAir flight in Dublin at 1520, and of course we got hassled about our luggage. This time our suitcases lost weight though. Tino's suitcase was only 19.5 kgs and mine was only 3.2 kgs over. So we only got slapped with a 7kg over bag charge. BUT when i tried to board the plane some lady stopped me bc my backpack was huge. Of course. So i had to do some repacking so that it would fit in the stupid carrying case. But the flight was only 45 minutes, and it was a rather scary ride to say the least. When we landed, I'm sure we bounced before we landed the second time.

BUT SCOTLAND IS AMAZING! When we got here we were just in time to unpack, take a shower, take a nap and then hit up the FREE pub-crawl that came with the hostel. What a way to meet your new roommates. That's the best part of this hostel. The rooms are named things, like for example our room is called "Fridge". My bed is named "Miller" and tino's bed is "Corona". We've also got beds called Guiness, VB, and Stella. Across the hall is Gotham City and Little Miss. So this hostel is fun to say the least. On the pub-crawl we met a bunch of Kiwis (new zealanders for those of you who don't know the nickname) and of course a few Asians. Now, you know the Reynolds' sterotype. But come on, this kid had on a shirt that LIT UP! it was like a stero wave, and would go up and down with the beat. It was amazing. We have video footage, and Tino took a picture with him! He looked like that Wang guy from American Idol. And YES, he did do Karoke with his girlfriend. And yes it was to "I will survive". OHHH yeah, and of course my computer crashed right before we got to Scotland. So i've lost all my paperwork for school, and I can't get my SD card to upload pics from the past few days, so you'll have to make do with the pics from above for now until I can get the SD card to work again. We do have a lot of videos and pics on this SD card. It could be that problem.

Anyways, Edinburgh is like the Karoke capital of the UK, because it was everywhere. After going to Oz bar, Opium, the Royal Mile bar and such Tino and I finally joined in at the end of the night. They had free shots for those who sang, so we coudln't resist. Anyways, we woke up fairly early the next morning to get an authentic Scottish breakfast. Bacon, eggs, sausage, potato thing, black pudding (eww) and Haggis (even worse eww). If you knew what Haggis is, you'd know it was pretty gross. Lamb leftovers boiled with oats and ewwness. Yeah no thanks. The rest of the breakfast was good. We then went on a three-hour walking tour of the city with this girl who looked exactly like Anna Vallis. It was crazy. After seeing soooo much including THE cafe that JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter, the poltergeist of Mad McKensie, and the "original" Hogwarts (to name a few) we were tired. BUT, we pressed on. We bought our train ticket to London for Monday (which was hella expensive, sorry mom it was the cheapest of the day though), we then went into a ride called the Edinburgh Dungeon. This was the scariest thing Tino and I have experienced in our lives. It was a walking tour of the murders, killings, deaths, and scaryness that is Edinburgh. How people died, where they died, the ghosts, hauntings, etc. yeah good choice huh? Especially since we purchased the Ghost Tour ticket for 930pm that night. Anyways, we couldn't even walk down the admission hallways without holding onto each other for dear life. We were like 5 years old walking around. Well, our cowardness paid off becuase by the time we got the nerve to walk down the hall the lady was like, Oh you're late, just go on in don't worry about paying! Good thing bc the tour was freakishly scary and we would have been pissed at the end of it. The actors in each room were great, and at the end there was a drop that was pretty cool. After this we went back to the hostel to rest, had some fish and chips for dinner and took a nap before the Ghost tour.

It was awesome. Nothing too scary. We walked around the "end of the world" where a wall used to be that blocked the city from inner and outer, and if you weren't rich enough to pay to get back in, well that was the end of the world for you. Anyways, at the end they gave you a free pint of whatever you wanted to calm your nerves from seeing graves, masoleums, and just general weirdness. I have a few pictures that are weird. The weather is "hot" for locals. But it's like maybe 78 degrees in the sun. The beautiful weather is following us. Anyways, it was sundown on Calton Hill (which witch burnings and hangings took place) and I took a picture of Old Town. But instead of being beautiful it looks like it's pouring down rain. And instead of being the town now it looks like it was in the 17th century which is the story our guide was telling us at the time. weird stuff!

Scotland is by far my favorite place to have visited so far. The people are wonderful, the hostel is awesome, and walking around amidst castles, and the crazy weird history is great. Oh, did I mention that Edinburgh is the top 5 most haunted cities in the world! Thanks dad for watching ghost hunters for us! More to come later today! We're going on another tour today!

DUBLIN PART I

!
!
!
WE'RE IN DUBLIN, IRELAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The above pictures are us on the plane, our first Irish pub, fish and chips, and the interesting condiment set-up. We left the Venice hostel at 630am, took the 7am train, made it to the airport by 8 and boarded our flight at 1010am. we landed by noon, and then made it to the hostel. We then went to a pub and managed to get some of our favorite foods before heading to another pub for an after beer. Of course my beer was much lighter than tino's, I just drink the Cider, which is amazing to say the least.

RyanAir sucks. Santino's suitcase was 9.5 KGs OVER the weight limit. But the lady was nice and only charged us for 7kgs over. so that was 100euro!!!! lol. behind the desk i took out a lot of stuff out of my backpack and it was still .8 kgs over. and MY suitcase was .7kgs over. it was crazy. but we got here. In line we sat next to this scottish couple who talked to us for like two hours. They were great. They told us where to go and what to do in Dublin, which was nice. They were so fun, and their accents were wonderful!

Stay posted for Guiness storehouse, Jameson Distillery, and Pub Crawl!

VENEZIA!

Venezia was wonderful! The weather was not too hot, and the room was air conditioned. It was great. We arrived at the station around noon, then found that our hostel was across the grand canale from the train station. We then took the water boat to St. Marc's square and then walked to the Rialto bridge. It was so hot after that walk back to the hostel that we ended up going back to the hostel for an afternoon out of the sun. Our last day we walked around looking at churches and buying gifts for everyone back home. It was pretty hot our last day in Italy. That night we took the water boat downt he canale again, and it was soooooo humid and hot! The next thing we knew there was thunder and lightening! Tino's first abroad thunder storm! lol...we got gelato, our last one!, and as we walked back to the hostel it started to rain. We had to go to bed early, because our flight to DUBLIN was at 1010am and we had to be at the train station by 7am! Off to Ireland! woo-hoo! Arrivederci Italia! Ciao Irlanda!

Goodbye old home...Verona!

So our last day in Verona was spent walking all over the city, collecting our laundry from the old lady who remembered me, and eating some more gelato. We sat in Piazza Bra for a while after a dinner of a Kebab in the park because we're already sick of Pizza, Pasta, and carbs! lol. But Verona is beautiful, and it's so nice not to have to walk around the city worrying about what street we're on, because I lived here for so long the map is ingrained in my head! We also walked all the way to Juliet's tomb, because the day before we went to see her house, and tino got to stand next to the statue. We also took a tour of the Arena, which back in the day was a model for the real thing in Rome...little bit o history for ya!!! anyways, Because we spent so long walking around and eating, we ended up going back to the room fairly early in order to make an early train to Venice! and off we went!

Verona Day 1

So here we are in Verona...Home Sweet Home!!!! It feels so great to be back for me, you have no idea! Walking the streets I don't even need a map. I'm like, here's this, and that way is Piazza Erbe, and there's the fountain, and here's where I partied until 5am when Italia won the world cup.....So many memories. I'm sure Santino is bored with my past Verona stories.

Anyways, we left Florence this morning at 1030, and made it to the hostel by 2pm. As you can see, our hostel here is by far the best we've stayed in. Amalfi was like a prison, Florence was an old woman's house, and this is like a day spa for celebrities. In any case, this hostel is amazing, and really near the center of both Piazza Bra and Piazza Erbe which is great. We're close to Juliet's house and Romeo and Juliet's tombs, not to mention the Old Castel. The coolest part of the city is Via Roma because, hence the name, it used to be connected to Rome back in the day. So after getting here, we dropped our bags, took our landry to the old lady down my street, (and actually remembered me!), and had lunch. And they had ICE in the drinks! amazing...We then tourned a church, Tino got to grope Juliet, and we saw the Castle. Not to shabby for our first day in Verona. We aslo saw Piazza degli Signori and Piazza Erbe (which is where I was during the world cup).

Tomorrow we'll see the rest of the city, and the head back to the hostel for another good night's rest because we'll be off to another old city with water soon enough. Tomorrow I'll update the blog with more pics of good ole' Verona!!!!

Florence/Fiesole

We are currently in Florence, tomorrow leaving for my favorite city of Verona...But first as to our adventures in the old, one time capital of Italy. We got here on Monday night after a treacherous ride from Salerno. It takes an hour bus ride from Amalfi back to Salerno where we took the Eurostar to Florence. After getting here we walked around and had dinner, saw things as the sun was setting, and then proceeded to catch up on some must needed rest. I went to bed at 9, and tino followed at 10...we were like old people! lol...

On Tuesday we got up really early and bought tickets for the big, red touristy bus, which of course we couldn't help but laugh at ourselves for. We went to Piazzale Michelangelo, where we saw the entire city from the fake David, then we took the bus to Fiesole on the opposite side. What I love about Fiesole is that it had a love/hate relationship with Florence, conquering and being conqured by Florence, however no one ever talks about my favorite part. Fiesole is where Machiavelli was banished after letters were discovered where he tried to take down the Medici family. This is also the place where he wrote his most famous work "The Prince". While most research suggests that Machiavelli wrote this to explain to leaders, but most importantly the Medici, on how to rule with fear and not love, I believe that his book was indeed a writing on how to tear down the Medicis from the get-go. Of course, this is what my paper is on this summer, so I was like a kid in the candy store when we were in Fiesole. After lunch we took the bus back home to recharge the camera, and then headed to see the real David. After waiting in a relatively short line we went through the museum, where we saw a bunch of people getting yelled at for taking illegal picutres. After this, we both started to feel a bit under-the-weather so we headed home. Luckily we did, because I had food poisoning and tino's sinus infection was doing some damage. We then just spent the rest of the night at the hostel.

Today was productive. We went to the Duomo, and the rest of the map that we deemed we wanted to see before we left this huge city. The funniest part of this trip however has to be Tino's bag. Like I said earlier, his wheel was burned when we got to Amalfi because of all the off road terrain we had to delve through. THEN, when we got to Florence, his zipper barely opened, and it looked like it would never close again. After ripping it open, we decided that his luggage was history. So, today we bought a huge suitcase from this gypsy woman on the street for really cheap. I know we're going to have to pay ginourmous amounts to get these bags on RyanAir, but oh well. Only 4 more days in ITALY!!!! Tomorrow we get up to head to Verona, where I did my undergrad study abroad experience. So needless to say I'm a bit excited for the next two days, and then Venice after that! Stay tuned for more updates in the future!

Salerno/Amalfi/Atrani

We made it to Salerno by 1230, and took the bus from Salerno to Amalfi at 1245. What was nice, is where we sat there was a girl named Dana that said that she was going to the same Hostel we were staying in, and there was another guy on the bus with us as well. So if we weren’t going to make the 2pm time, we were screwed together! Needless to say, the route to Amalfi is like going to Yosemite, and Tino and I were having trouble keeping it together on the way there. Thankfully, the bus was only an hour and a half, so we made it. Of course we got off 1 stop too late and had to walk from Amalfi to a small town “200” meters back to the small town, Atrani, where our hostel was. What they FAIL to tell you when Italians say “only” 200 meters is that it is UPHILL! So that was fun with two suitcases, two backpacks, and a purse that is the black hole. Yes, I do have one of those now! I will have shoulder problems when I get home I’m sure. Anyways, we met Damion, another Argentine, and walked up this hill. Now we all know that I haven’t worked out in like 4+ months. So as the Argentine basically sprinted up this hill, I’m panting, sweating, and fingers falling asleep at the bottom. I was in a tank and capris, and the Argentine was in long jeans!!!! We ended up catching up to him…we did lose sight for a bit, but then we got a little of a downhill (YES) and made it to a sign that said our hotel was UP! Ahhhh. So then we had to climb a bunch of stairs, and now it’s 245. So we’re a little worried, but not too much. We get ahold of our hostel owner, and find then that he’s eating and will be down in ten minutes. So in Italian time I said we had a half hour! Anywho, we finally get our room and discover we’re in the room with Dana, which is nice. One bed was empty, so we got to use that as storage. We also discovered that one of Tino’s wheels broke, so that was hilarious…in retrospect for him it will be! We only need to make it to Florence to get him a new suitcase since the bazaars there are phenomenal. We then walked back to Amalfi (which was considerably shorter without the bags) and toured the city. The church was gorgeous, and I loved it because it was so medieval looking. After walking around the entire city we had dinner, which was fantastic. Tino got a mixed seafood salad and I got grilled calamari with mixed veggies. TROPPO BUONISIMO!!! I loved it so. Damion, Dana, Tino, and I then found this bar ran by two brothers that had a ridiculously priced bar…I mean a beer for 2 euro (think German stein) and a liter of things like Pina Colada and Mai Tai for like 7 euro. It was great. We sat around and talked for a while learning about each other’s cultures and talking the ears off Andrea and Lelo who were the owners/brothers of the bar. Now, the hostel had a curfew of 1230…but one of the brothers said that the door was always open, so we stayed out until 1 and then went home. Tino and I decided to do a beach day Sunday, because it’ll be the only beach opportunity until we get back to Cali…which come to think of it, is really, really sad! But our tour should be great so I can’t complain too much! Lol…So after basking in the sun for 4 hours (don’t worry, I only got pink, and I only laid out for 2 of the 4 hours, we bought an umbrella) and then went to lunch overlooking Amalfi. We then went back, took a shower, and had another amazing dinner of mixed seafood salad and a rolled pasta with fish. We then walked ten steps back to the bar with the brothers, who then gave us so many souveniers from the bar that those will be the memories we will always have of Atrani. Great people, great food, and great drinks. We stayed out kind of late, and Damion is going to be kicked out for his last day, but it was worth the fun we had that night. I’m currently writing this in the Salerno train station as we wait for our train to Napoli and then off to Florence! I’m excited to see the Davide again, and take a mini trip to Fiesole where I can view where my favorite philosopher of ALL time made his namesake! Machiavelli rules! More to come once we discover Firenze!

End Of ROME!!

So to give the full update….Rome was awesome. We had so much fun with my friends, and we were able to do the entire tourist thing in three days, which was fairly successful. The last day in Rome, of course we have to have a STRIKE!!! So, Tino got to witness the lack of 1st world status that is Italia at it’s best! Haha…We had to get up at the crack of dawn, but we made it to the Colosseo, being harassed by every English speaking tour-guide known to man, and waited in a relatively short line. We knew it was going to rain that day too because the Gypsy men had their umbrellas at the train station, so we were a bit nervous. But we made it through unrained on and went to the Palantine Hill that overlooks all of Rome. It rained there while we were in the catacombs, so that was nice. We then walked to Trastevere and had prosciutto e melone, a salad, a liter of wine, and a giant pizza for really cheap. We then walked all the way to Piazza del Popolo. Now if you look at the map, Trastevere is in the bottom of the map, and Popolo is at the top. It took us a full 25 minutes to walk that distance. But we’re troopers, and young, so we made it in good times. Our last night in Rome we hung out with my best friend Ryan and then proceeded to go home since we had to leave on the 830 train to Salerno so that we could make it to Amalfi by 2pm. Why they had a 2pm check in time I’ll never know…but needless to say, we didn’t make that cut off…but more on Salerno in the next section!

Arrivederci ROME!!!!

We have officially left Rome...and due to the fact that we are in Amalfi, with no internet at the hostel, we have to eat and drink at an establishment to use the internet for 15 minutes!!! I love Italy...

Anyways, Rome was great. We got up early the day after Tino got here and proceeded to see the Vatican, Sistine Chapel, and other various famous places. That night we went out to Il Piccolo Diavolo for a Goodbye marcella/Hello Santino party...after that we saw everything else Rome had to offer. Oh yeah, and our last day in Rome we walked 4 miles because there was a transportation strike. Only the Reynolds luck.

We cant spend that much time on this blog because of our time limit, so pics and official updates will have to come when we get to florence. However, just know that to get to amalfi takes half a day, and a sickly bus ride through winding roads...just think the trek to Yosemite...but more beautiful!

ciao for now!!!!

Some friends from SCU and I ended up taking a few days to go to Capri. It was amazing. Our view was as seen above, and we took the boat tour around the island (which I DID NOT get sick on). However, the boat ride TO the island was a bit rough, and the inside cabin we sat it was SOOOO hot that I ended up getting really sick. It was larger than the boats on the lake, and smaller than a liner, so that made me seasick. At least the trip home we were on a huge liner so I was totally fine. Some of friends couldn't make the whole trip either, so I didn't feel sooo bad. We ate near the cliffs at night, and during the day we took a trip to Anacapri which was beautiful. The buses were so small! I forgot to take a picture of that, but they only held like 25 people! It was great, and we had so much fun! The next stop, Amalfi coast with Santino! Maybe I should give everyone an outline of our little adventure. Tino gets here tomorrow! on May 12th...and we're here until May 15th.
May 16-17 Amalfi/Pompeii
18-20 Florence
21 Pisa and on to Verona
22 Verona
23-24 Venice
25-27 Dublin, Ireland
28-31 Edinburgh, Scotland
1-7 London, England
8 England-->Minneapolis-->San Francisco!!!!!

I'll update our sights in Rome next!