Goodbye Venice

Last day together :(
Carnival Masks

Rialto bridge-outdoor shopping market

Could my pizza be any bigger?

Goodbye Venice, Hello Paris! I loved Venice, so unbelievably beautiful. I hope you enjoy these pictures!

Ciao, Soleil

Venice

Rialto Bridge
Gondolas everywhere!

I LOVE VENICE!!!

It's ok to be jealous ;)

I'm super tired, it's 2:33am, so I'm just going to post pictures tonight. If you want to know the details about Venice, ask me in two days when I'm home!!! Can't wait to be back in the US! xoxoxo Soleil

Verona

YUM! And YES, I ate the whole thing!
Good luck for me!

The Arena

Castle bridge

Bonjourno!

Jocelyn and I arrived in Verona this morning around 10am. We took the bus to our hotel, which is perfectly located near all the touristy sites. We got gelatto to start the day off right and walked to a near-by castle. After, we went to the Arena, but the line was super long so we didn't go inside (I saw the Colosseum, I have a pretty good idea what it looks like). We walked to a super cute outdoor market and got sandwiches and fresh fruit cups (SO GOOD!) for lunch.

We walked to Juliette's house and took pictures touching her left boob-for good luck! Considering all the traveling we've both done over the past 5 weeks, we were dead tired and went back to our hotel for a nap. I took a cold shower because it's so hot here! But as soon as you're out of the shower, the cold water just turns into sweat all over again!

For dinner we walked back to the outdoor market and ate a cute outdoor restaurant. I got a vegetarian pizza (pictured above) with tomatoes, potatoes, artichokes, and zucchini. It was the best pizza I've had yet in Italy! Jocelyn ordered a drink with her dinner called "Spritz". It's a fizzy orange flavored wine spritzer drink that is famous in the Venetian region of Italy... I tried it and was not impressed, but my taste in alcohol is about zero, so....

Of course I got gelatto after dinner, Bacio and Mint, so delicious! We walked back to our hotel and are now relaxing, watching movies, and preparing to take the train tomorrow for Venice! I can hardly wait! Only 4 more days and I'll be home!

Ciao, Soleil

Milan

Italy in one word: Gelatto
Pretty Castle

Duomo

Yay! Not alone anymore!

Buona Sera!

Milan was beautiful in it's own way, but not my favorite place. I met up with Jocelyn finally! We went to the Duomo, La Scala, a pretty castle and of course, shopping. Milan has every name brand you can imagine, but considering my lack of riches, the shopping wasn't too captivating. We ate dinner at a restaurant near the Duomo and called it a night. Now I've been there, can say I have, and don't feel a necessity to go back any time soon, unless I marry wealthy and can afford to blow thousands on a shopping spree. Until then...

Ciao, Soleil

Leaving Rome

Piazza Navona

I love Rome!

Pantheon

Today is my last day in Rome! My new friends Jamie and Charlotte had to go back to France, so I was flying solo again. I visited the Pantheon, Trevi fountain, Spanish Steps, Piazza Navona, and Campo di Fiori. The Trevi fountain is my favorite spot in Rome, I got gelatto again today! Mint and Bacio, my new favorite. Tomorrow I meet up with Jocelyn in Milan, I can't wait! I can hardly believe it, but this LONG adventure is coming to an end- I'll be back in the US on August 13th, only 6 more days! I'll be so sad to leave behind pizza, pasta french bread, and crepes, but I can't wait to see everyone and be home. xoxoxo Soleil

Vatican City

Sistine Chapel

Sorry, blurry...
St. Peter's Basilica

Swiss Guard

Rome

Dinner at Limonea with Charlotte and Jamie
The Colosseum!!!

Me at the Colosseum

Trevi Fountain

Bourjourno! (I think that's how you spell it...)

So I arrived in Rome and am having the BEST time! I met Jamie and Charlotte on the train from Nice. They're both from the US, California and New York. I'm so glad to have met some friends to spend my time in Rome with!

Yesterday Jamie and I walked from 11am-8pm! We did a huge circle and covered almost the entire city! We did a guided tour of the Colosseum, saw the ancient ruins, the Trevi fountain (my favorite), the Spanish steps, Piazza del Polpolo, and walked all the way to the Vatican city! I love Rome and it's amazing. The Italian boys are SO cute! I fell in love with our waiter last night, his name is Francesco!

Wish me luck with my future husband!

Ciao, Soleil

Leaving France

On the train-my new form of transport

Bonsoir!


Here's a quick update: I enjoyed a long day at the beach in Cannes yesterday ans Nice today. Tomorrow I jump on a train for a ten-hour ride to Rome. I can't wait to indulge in pizza, pasta, and Italian boys! Wish me a safe train ride!


xoxoxo Soleil

Photos in Aix

I went to the outdoor market in Aix on Saturday. It was massive and amazing. Anything you can imagine, they had it: food, clothes, jewelry, lingerie, purses... I bought some cherries to fit in with the crowds. Here are some pictures of my little adventure! xoxo Soleil

Olives
Soleil Peaches ;)

I thought this was a cool display of spices

Aix-en-Provence

Bonjour!

I made it to Aix-en-Provence. My train left Nice this morning at 8:37. I switched trains in Marseille and arrived in Aix at 12:30pm. I paid the minimum 7 euro for a taxi to my hotel, only to find out it was only three blocks away-oh well. You live and you learn.



It's really beautiful here. My hotel is situated on the perfect street with little shops and cafes everywhere. I walked around for a few hours taking pictures of everything. I went in search of the Cathedrale St-Sauveur, but couldn't find it. I'm going to go looking again soon. I also went to the Natural History Museum, they had an exhibit on dinosaurs.



I ate lunch at a cool "cafe" called Simple Food. It's all healthy sandwiches and salads. I got an egg-salad sandwich and a bowl of fruit. Delicious. Tomorrow there's a big outdoor market that I can't wait to see, hopefully I can find it; streets in France are so confusing, everything winding this way and that...

Nice

Nice
When you're alone, you have to take pictures of yourself....

This is the hard life alright.

NICE!!!!

I cannot describe how beautiful it is here, or how lucky I am to be spending my summer on the beach in the south of France. I arrived yesterday morning at about 9am. I couldn't check into my hotel so I walked down to the beach (about 15 blocks). The water is blue and clear, the sun is shining and cute boys are EVERYWHERE. Wow, I have it rough. ;)

I spent all day at the beach yesterday and today and am planning to make day trips tomorrow and the next few days to close cities, Cannes, Monaco etc... I'm getting really tan, but of course by the time I return home, my tan will be gone...maybe I should just stay here. When on the beach, "vendors" walk around with big coolers offering drinks and snacks. They just shout out in a bunch of different languages what they have to offer. It's actually pretty cool, although I have yet to buy anything from them. One guy was walking around with a tray of pre-cut watermelon, is that safe???

I switched from a one-piece to a bikini today, who knows maybe tomorrow I'll go topless and fit in like a local?! Or maybe not.... we'll see. Shelly says I have to, just to say I have. I almost did today, but then a whole family sat right next to me and I chickened out. I kept thinking of the little kids as Rourke and Vaugn-they would die if I went topless. But while in France, you have to be like the French. Tomorrow, definitely tomorrow (this is my go topless pep-talk).

Well I'll be sure to write more from wherever I am tomorrow. Thank you SOOOO much Dad and Shelly and Grandma and Grandpa for making this happen. I LOVE it here and am having the time of my life.

xoxoxo Soleil

Bordeaux

BOnjour!
Sorry I haven't written in a while, my Internet wasn't working for a few days. My last few days in Paris were really fun, I spent all my time with my friends eating crepes and seeing all the last-minute sights. My very last night we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower-it was so gorgeous. On our way back to the dorms, we met four VERY cute guards and took pictures. I fell in love immediately.

Next I took a train to Bordeaux where I met up with Marcel and his wife Nathalie. They were So wonderful and welcoming to me. I wish I could have stayed longer. My first day, Nathalie packed a picnic lunch and we drove to the beach. TOPLESS women everywhere and all the guys wear speedos; something to get used to. The beach was wonderful, nice weather, and we had a really yummy picnic of "salad" (tuna, rice, tomatoes, pickles eggs) and bread. I'm told this is a very french thing to do-pack your picnic and eat at the beach. Isn't it an American thing too?

The second day, Nathalie's daughter Ann-Laure and her boyfriend David took me to downtown Bordeaux. We walked everywhere and I took pictures of everything, being the good tourist that I am. We bought sandwiches and ate on a park bench (also very french). For dinner, Marcel made a special vegetarian couscous just for me, it was so good!

My third and last day in Bordeaux, Marcel took me to St. Emillion. It's a very small but VERY beautiful wine town about an hour outside of Bordeaux. We walked all through the town and got lunch at a cute cafe, owned by Marcel's friend. I got a "Maillot de Legumes", a basket of vegetables with a creamy ranch-type sauce to dip. Marcel gave me his creme-brulee. YUM!

Later in the evening I went to their friend's house for aperitif, before dinner drinks and socializing. At 9pm Marcel drove me to the train station to catch my train to Nice...

I had such a great time staying with them and hope I can return as soon as possible!

Au Revoir! Soleil

St. Emillion

St. Emillion-adorable wine town
Marcel in St. Emillion

Soleil*Ann-Laure*David

The Mirror in Bordeaux(water squirts up and covers these tiles to reflect the building)

My LAST night in Paris, my boyfriend is second from the right ;)

Fontainebleau

Waltzing in the ballroom

Musee Rodin

Le Baiser (the kiss)

Eating ice cream in the gardens, just like I did with Grandma 6 years ago

La Cathedrale (the cathedral)

I loved these hands-so beautiful