Day 11-14 Pisa for a minute then ROME!

When in Rome… walk enough to get blisters, do a pub crawl, meet as many people as possible, sweat like you are in a wild fire, drink $5 bottles of good wine, eat only pasta and pizza, oh and gelato too.

Day 1

Pisa
We got on our way early, the bug bites in Florence had motivated the boys to be up and moving by 8AM, maybe that or it was the insanely strong espresso we have been drinking. We had planned to hop on the 10:30AM train to Pisa, but luck was on our side and the 10:00AM was a few minutes behind so we were able to hop on.

We had heard Pisa wouldn’t take long, and we proved it. We caught a cab from the station to the leaning tower, held him at the site with the meter running, took our pics and still made it back before the next train had pulled into the station for Rome.

Camera kills boredom


The most typical tourist photo we have


Rome
We got into Rome around 4PM and quickly discovered what Roman rush hour is all about, our hotel wasn’t walking distance but we probably would have made it in the same amount of time. The heat and lack of AC wasn’t helping, either was the 30 Euro tab. The cab ride took us right through the heart of the city, we got a taste of Rome right away.

Emanuele II War Memorial from the cab


Next boy band “The Wolfpack”


View of Central Park and Vatican City from Hotel Balcony


After we settled in at the hotel, I made friends at the front desk with Francesca who gave me directions to her favorite restaurant. We were all starving and began our trek to the restaurant, with a map in hand I watched as our cabbie took us the longest way possible. We finally made it to the restaurant and some highlights of the meal include 5 Euro bottles of great wine, me knocking a glass off the table, and all of us eating our hearts out. The food in Florence overall was much better than in Rome.

Me and Johnny Boy at the Restaurant


The House Wine



The wine and food got the best of all of us, and we called it a night pretty early. This would be the right decision considering the day we have ahead!

Day 2

So we completely fail to wake up before 11AM and cash in on the 5 Euro breakfast downstairs so we head into town to eat. I must say we are damn good at navigating every subway system we have come across! Even though we got on the wrong subway 2x in Rome, it only cost us about a minute each time.

We make our way directly the Colosseum terminal and purchase a Roma pass which basically substitutes for tickets at every sight we would see, except the Vatican City, and it also allowed us to skip all lines. We immediately parked it at the first place offering a meal, which ended up costing us 5.50 Euros for a soda, yet our meals were 7, lesson learned.

It was a great thing we decided to eat here because guess who found us?! The Irish girls from the train ride to Monaco. They had spent a few days in Nice and came straight to Rome, while we went to Monaco and then Florence before Rome. Yet somehow in the busiest city we’ve seen yet, we see familiar faces. This would set us up for an intense pub crawl for the night with our favorite “Irish lassies” as they like to say.

Then an intense session of sight seeing began, the sights we saw included; The Colosseum, Palatine Hill, Arch of Constantine, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon.

Colosseum


Four of us at Colosseum


Arch of Constantine


Trevi Fountain


Pantheon


After our toughest day of sightseeing yet we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the pub crawl. We met the girls and the rest of the group at 9:30 right outside the Colosseum and we got started quick. Basically we paid 20 Euros for as much as we could drink in the first hour, and then we got to skip all lines at the next 2 bars and the club to end the night. It was well worth it! Shoot we even got t-shirts.

We have very few pictures of the night but some highlights included… Pounding a tall can before we even got into the first bar, Irish girls chugging white wine, a group of 60 people from nearly every part of the world, meeting those 60 people and then some, me getting those 60 people to chant AY-OH LETS GO at the top of our lungs walking the streets of Rome, being laughed at for saying I am Irish, being told to calm down when 2Pac “California” came on, meeting girls from HB, having a girl give me a fake name that turned out to be a famous writer, dancing our asses off and nearly passing out because of the strobe light, and most of all keeping pace with Irish girls that we were worried would out-drink us! I could go on and on… it was an amazing night.

Part of the crew


Jamesy, Myself, John


Sal and the Lassies


After a drunken cab ride at 4:00AM and a minor issue at the front desk with having too many people in our room we finally passed out while the sun was coming up. We would be feeling it the next day big time!

Day 3

THE HANGOVER: Rome Edition

So if our bodies had adjusted to the european schedule, that was out the window now. I got up at 2PM and the other three might as well have been dead. I couldn't lay in pain any longer so I made my way into town on my own, I needed the alone time at this point anyway.

I gathered my tourist gear (watch, ipod, safepac, sunglasses, camera, and maps)and made my way to the subway... I would be a prime candidate for a mugging at this point. Nobody bothered me however probably because this hangover had me looking mighty pissed off I'm sure.

I started my day off with the Spanish Steps followed by the Trinita dei Monti, Santa Maria Aracoeli, Capitoline Hill, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, and finally I ended up back at the Colosseum.

Spanish Steps


Trinita dei Monti


Tomb of Unknown Soldier and Emanuele II Monument


Capitoline Hill


There was a fire raging on the outskirts of Rome which gave the city a very cool backdrop for the whole day, the boys were worried I had burnt the city down! I parked it outside the Colosseum for awhile and just laid on the grass and just pondered life and some of things I have weighing on my brain. It was a much needed day!

Fire from Roman Forum


Approaching the Colosseum


I made it back to the hotel by about 7PM just in time to eat with the boys at the hotel. James and I ordered the gnocchi "Roman Style" which turned out to be a bad idea. It was basically like eating a potato sponge and you all know how I hate my potatoes. The gnocchi in the States is much better. After a few bottles of wine the other three hit a bar for a bit while I settled in to write the Florence blog and get some much needed rest.

Day 4

The Pope is back in town! As well as Obama apparently... We had no idea he was here at the same time as us, he hit the Vatican the same day we were pub crawlin. Regardless the Vatican City did not disappoint.

We started by walking St. Peter's Square and then walking through St. Peter's Basilica, and then through the Tombs of all the Popes. James and I stopped to say a prayer in one of the prayer rooms in the Basilica, this church has an intense aura I have never felt before. I now understand what a mass pilgrimage might feel like!

In St. Peter's Square facing St. Peter's Basilica


St. Peter's Square


Inside St. Peter's Basilica


After walking the Basilica and through the Tombs James and I decided to trek on while Sal and John needed a breather. We made the climb to the Dome of the Basilica which included over 500 steps that were of all kinds of different shapes and sizes. The hallways were extremely narrow and on tilt so you couldn't even stand straight up. It didn't help that it was scorching hot and it smelled like an NFL locker room. The climb however was worth it, the dome was beautiful and the views at the top were unmatched.

Mosaic on inside of Dome


Dome


View of the square and surrounding Rome


Next we moved on to the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. John and Sal had met back up with us and we began what seemed like a never ending journey through timeless works of art and sculpture. The two that left the most impact for me were Raphael's "School of Athens" and obviously Michelangelo's "Sistine Chapel" as a whole.

Michelangelo's "The Last Judgement"


Michelangelo's "Creation of Adam"



Rome as a whole was amazing, but at the same time overwhelming. We saw so much that I could never possibly fit into a blog or even my brain for that matter. I definitely will be returning to this city in the future. On that note I'd like to leave you with James doing his natural impression of Alan from "The Hangover".

Day 9-10 Florence

It was hard to say goodbye to Monaco so fast, but thankfully the food in Florence alone was enough to distract us. No disrespect to Spain or Monaco, but your food just wasn't cutting it. If I see another tapa the rest of this trip somebody is getting hit!

Day 1

THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE OF FLIRT.

So we hit our train from Monaco to Florence at a bittersweet 10AM, luckily we were seated right next to four cute french girls who spoke absolutely no english. Thankfully, the language of flirt knows no bounds, so we had a blast trying to get our points across using the translator, hand gestures, and miserable attempts at speaking french. I thought the french didn't like americans!? Oh and I still haven't shaved since we've gotten here... not that you can tell haha.

Me taking a creepy pic with frenchies in the background


So we got into Florence in the early evening and had to check into our first and only hostel... even though we had our own 4 bed room so we still cheated. It was called Hotel Leopolda and I don't have any pics of the inside but just imagine a room with no decorations and four insanely uncomfortable beds and you got the idea. We were right on the street and the sound of the cars at night made it feel like were in the middle of WWIII. Needless to say we all took half of an ambien.

View of the street from our windows


We immediately took to the search for food and found somewhere suitable within minutes. We ate like kings, for the first time in awhile I felt full, and I can't forget our 5 Euro bottles of wine. We took to the streets for a bit not to sight see, instead to walk off the meal and get acclimated to the town. I had no idea how small Florence was.

Our table waiting patiently to be filled with grubbins! Bad pic sorry!


None of us could escape the food coma so we hit the hay relatively early, big sightseeing day tomorrow! Oh and not to mention we have to do laundry!

Day 2

So James and I hit the sights early, Sal and John followed a different gameplan. First James and I hit the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella, a smaller but extremely old church in Florence, the first Basilica actually. This churched housed the best stained glass I have seen yet, as well as my first encounter with legit gypsies out infront. Pics weren't allowed inside but I did my best.

A view from the front


Stained Glass


Next we moved onto one of my favorites, right up there with the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. It was called the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, locally referred to as the Florence Cathedral or Duomo because of its epic Dome in the back of the church. The dome is second in size only the the dome of the Pantheon in Rome. We were taken back by the size of the cathedral I could have ran windsprints in this thing. Inside there were plenty of interesting pieces such as "Dante and the Divine Comedy", the largest clock I've ever seen, as well as 44 stained glass windows.

Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore from the front


Clock above entrance


View of Dome from floor



The most amazing part of the Basilica though was the Duomo, for the entire thing was covered in an extremely elaborate painting of "The Last Judgement". This painting included angels, demons, Jesus, skeletons, babies, and basically everything you could imagine taking place on Judgement Day. We paid the extra supplement to climb the dome and see it up close and then go on up on the outside of the dome for the best 360 degree view of all of Florence.

Favorite close-up of "The Last Judgement" on dome


View from the top of dome


We concluded the sights for the day at the Accademia, where the Statue of David resides. The Accademia also had an exhibit of musical instruments dating back to the 1400's and James got a pretty big kick out of it. James and I felt unworthy approaching the "David", its hard to imagine it being 17 feet tall when you see it in pictures. I can't imagine an artist today reproducing the detail in this statue.

Statue of David (I wasn't supposed to take this picture)


James on the walk back


We concluded our night with laundry and an episode of Entourage. Entourage and East Bound and Down have been our saviors during our downtime and train rides. We cannot wait to get back to the states for the new season of Entourage!

The boys with clean laundry


My face after I get clean laundry


James and I posted watching Entourage


Alright I'm done typin, my head hurts! Rome blog will be up asap!

Day 7-8 Monaco

I'm pretty sure I've found my home. Everywhere we looked we saw gorgeous women, expensive cars, million dollar homes, and a bright blue ocean. I could definitely get used to this standard of living. Unfortunately, we only had two days here.

Day 1

Before I even get started I want to open you guys up with just how sexy the French Riviera really is...



Ok so let me rewind a few steps and just say the trek from Barcelona to Monaco was absolutely insane. Since it was part of our two days in Monaco I have to relive the memory unfortunately. So we missed our train in Barcelona which would have landed us in Monaco by 6PM. We booked the tickets at the major station in Barcelona and somehow the booking agent and information desk failed to mention our train left from a completely different station. We caught a cab to the other station only to watch our train disappear before our eyes, talk about heartbreak.

So I figured out our alternate route which consisted entirely of local trains, which essentially means slower and less comfortable. While waiting patiently in the station atleast we had some entertainment, out of nowhere we hear a lady start screaming and of course I immediately run towards the commotion while James watched the bags. Right as I got to the spot I see a man probably about 6'3 230 being confronted by another man in a pink shirt probably about 5'9 170 and I'm not sure who is the aggressor. The guy in pink turns out to be an undercover agent of some sort as he flashes his badge and whips out an extendable baton and smashes the other guys shin before he jumps on his back and takes him to the ground. Somehow he chokes the guy out and cuffs him all on his own. I give that guy mad props.

So after 12 hours on a train and an 80 euro cab ride we finally made it to Monaco at midnight. We would not have made it through the ride had we not met a group of Irish girls to follow through all the stops... errr that sounded creepy, of course we had befriended them =).

James, Sal, John, the Irish girls, in one of our many oldschool trains.


Boys on the train


Getting into France


Upon checking into the hotel and discovering we had our own patio right on the ocean we became partially rejuvenated and decided to head into town and try our hands at the Monte Carlo Casino. Unforunately they closed up shop by the time we had gotten over there, which was a major bummer since it was now Sal's birthday and he wanted to gamble! So we headed to a bar called "The Living Room" and this place was a little like heaven. Drop dead gorgeous women everywhere with about a 5 to 1 ratio, and plenty of them seemed to be way too interested in us. We are still trying to figure out if these women were over the old guys or it was a brothel.

Here are some pics of the view from our room, which by the way I have to give a major shoutout to my pops and his friend at the Marriot. We would never be able to afford rooms like these obviously and with there help this trip feels like even more of a dream.

Ocean from our balcony at night


Day view from the balcony


Day 2

Since this day was spent shopping and at the beach my camera didn't see much action as I didn't want to lug it around or leave it on the sand. Regardless seeing the daily activity of this town was interesting because it nowhere near matches the nightlife. Instead of the Ferrari's and Lambo's we saw Smart cars and Mini's. We visited a grocery store and loaded up on lunch meats and water seeing how everything in this town is 100 Euros minimum. I also loaded up on band-aids because even if I haven't mentioned it once my feet are taking an absolute beating. We then hit the beach and if you have forgotten already... Let me remind you what Jamesy was wearing...

It might have been more shocking had he not blended in with everyone else.


Before the beach we had loaded up on a bottle of Hennessy we had never seen before in the States, now Mamma I know you don't like me drinking liquor but I have a soft spot for Cognac when I do so let this one slide =). It goes without saying we were feeling good at the beach and throughout the night not having to spend all of our money on ridiculous $25 drinks.



After resting up from the beach, we got suited and booted and headed into town for a birthday dinner for Sal followed by some gambling finally at the Monte Carlo Casino. We ended up turning this into a long night of gambling because somehow we were all winning. Blackjack at Monte Carlo got old fast as our winnings began to dwindle so we headed down the block to SUN casino where we could find some craps. John rolled before me and went on a nice run of 10 minutes, and when the dice hit me I couldn't be stopped! I rolled for probably a good 15-20 minutes. I was up 240 Euro's only betting the table minimums. Sadly we gave it all back.

Here are some pics of our night...

Monte Carlo Casino


The boys infront of the casion and about $10 million in cars


Eagle made completely from golden necklaces


Moon over the ocean


Considering the fact we were left with close to 24 hours to experience Monaco I'd say we all loved it and look forward to returning one day. I could definitely spend quite a bit of time in the French Riviera as a whole. Next stop is Florence and I will have the blog up ASAP. Love you all!