Category: Caroline in Florence

Fall Break

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At first, fall break seemed like a daunting time period. When I got to Florence, many people already had plans for break like having parents visit or going to see friends studying abroad somewhere else in Europe. However, I knew that I wanted to solo travel at some point, so I decided that along with a few mini trips with friends, I would embark on a solo trip! My fall break ultimately consisted of 3 different trips to Zürich, Edinburgh, and Amsterdam.

Zürich, Switzerland

The first segment of my break was with two of my friends in Zurich! We took an overnight bus from Florence and arrived on a rainy morning. After getting some overpriced coffee and delicious bagel breakfast sandwiches, we walked around old town Zurich and took a cruise around Lake Zurich! Then, we went to our Airbnb and made tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner (the kitchen was very bare bones to say the least). The next day, we went on a hike in Sihlwald and then continued exploring that night. The last day in Zurich started off with a trip to the Lindt factory, which was definitely a highlight for me! We stopped by the cafe and I had a Lindt hot chocolate and got a few Lindor truffles to try! Before I knew it, my time in Zurich had come to an end and I departed on the solo leg of my journey!

Edinburgh, Scotland

I have to admit, I am definitely not somebody that you would think of when solo traveling comes to mind. Before this trip, I liked my occasional alone time, but I love being around people and traveling solo felt like something way out of my comfort zone. However, I was determined to make the most out of my 2 days in Edinburgh! The first day, I went on a 12 hour bus tour through the Scottish Highlands, which I cannot reccomend enough. On the tour, I met the sweetest older couple from Colorado Springs who I sat by on the bus and got to know by the end of the day! The trip took us to see highland cows, visit Glencoe (where scenes from Skyfall were filmed- if you know me, I am the biggest James Bond fan ever, so I totally fangirled). Then we went to the Glenfinnan Viaduct, which is more commonly known as the bridge from Harry Potter. Although the weather wasn’t the greatest, the fog hanging low over the hills made everything feel magical. Along the way, we stopped in a few more cute villages and got back to Edinburgh late that night! The next day, I wandered around Edinburgh, stopping at Dean Village, Prince St Gardens, Advocate’s Close, St. Giles Cathedral, the National Museum of Scotland, and I got a pint at Greyfriar’s Bobby! That evening I got an early dinner at Dishoom, which I had in London 7 years ago and knew I had to go back (the Indian food is SOOOO good, I wouldn’t stop gushing about it for days after). I ended my night at Knoops, where I got the best hot chocolate of my life with cinnamon and a homemade marshmallow (it blew the Lindt out of the water!!). The next day, I caught a flight to my final destination! Overall, this was definitely my favorite part of my break- I got pushed out of my comfort zone, and learned so much about myself (I know that is such a cliche, but whatever).

Amsterdam, the Netherlands

I knew that Amsterdam would be the perfect end to my trip- I visited my junior year of high school with my childhood best friend and our moms for our 16th birthday and I had dreamed of coming back ever since. I also got to meet up with my roomate/partner in crime, Kira and her family here! Although it was only a day and a half, I fell in love with Amsterdam all over again. The first day, we got in and just walked around Amsterdam, got drinks at a cute bar and dinner at Verona (ironically got Italian food even though I have had enough pasta in Florence to last a lifetime!). Side note- Kira’s older sister got food poisioning from this restaurant so maybe beware. The next day, Kira and I got breakfast at Pluk, a cafe I had tried during my first visit to Amsterdam and we also stopped by the hotel I stayed at to grab some of their delicious room scent. We went to the Anne Frank House museum which was incredibly powerful- not only how resilient Anne was but how positive of an attitude she had despite the circumstances. We ended this night with a cruise at dusk and then after a stroopwaffel sweet treat, tucked in for the night.

Fall break truly flew by and I loved getting to reunite with old friends, make new ones, and experience so many new places!

Arrivederci,

Caroline

Halfway Reflections

Published on by carolinepotterLeave a comment

Amidst the chaos of cramming for my midterms, I realized that aside from the tests I would have, this week marked the halfway period of my abroad experience! Before I came abroad, I got advice from anyone and everyone- I just wanted to be prepared. The one thing that I kept hearing was “Abroad will fly by in the blink of an eye!”. 

If you had asked me my thoughts on this the first week here, I would have said that it couldn’t feel further from the truth. I missed my routine at home. I missed my favorite Trader Joe’s items. I missed watching Brooklyn 99 with my mom at night. I missed being able to drive over to my friends house in just 3 minutes. The days felt like they were going painfully slow- although I loved all of the time to go indulge in aperol spritzes and gelato, I felt like there were gaps in my day that were impossible to fill. 

Now, just 8 weeks later, I cannot believe that I only have 7 weeks left in Florence. I have built a whole life for myself here. I have optimized my “plan of attack” for getting in and out of Conad (our local grocery store), gotten into a routine of walking along the river every morning and listening to a podcast. I have made new friends who I couldn’t imagine life here without. Although I could be sad and pout about the fact that I only have so much time left, I want to try to squeeze every last moment I can out of Florence!

Here are some of the things I would want to tell my week 1 self:

Just say hi! Going up to people from DU that I recognized during orientation events, even if it was something that I felt a little nervous doing ended up being one of the best decisions! It is how I met new friends that I now get to travel with almost every weekend!

Go out of your comfort zone! For a naturally introverted person like me, it can feel super scary to push myself out of my comfort zone. But doing small things like speaking up a lot in class build up confidence over time and make things like class presentations feel more manageable. Going on a solo trip felt extremely daunting, but I booked one to Scotland and it ended up being my favorite part of fall break! It was something that a year ago I could never imagine myself doing, but I was so proud of myself for!

Incorporate pieces of home! Things that I regularly do at home- like going on long walks, baking, and water coloring are all things that I have added into my daily life here in Florence that give me not only something fun to do, but make me feel more at home. 

Focus on your life! With many of the people that I follow on social media also being people from DU traveling abroad, I really struggled with comparing my life to what I was seeing on Instagram. People would be traveling to far-flung corners of Europe, while I was staying in Florence for a weekend to get adjusted to my new surroundings. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of FOMO, which all of my friends know, is something I struggle with- even at DU. I decided to delete Instagram and TikTok off of my phone, so I wouldn’t find myself scrolling every free moment I had and instead could only look at them on my iPad during time I dedicated to being on a screen. 

Don’t be afraid to ask for help! This in perticular is something I have always struggled with. However, in a country where things can be completely different, asking for help can make all the difference. For example, I needed to find batteries at the grocery store last week for a food scale. I wandered to where I thought they would be and after not seeing them, I decided to ask a cashier for help on where to locate them. It did take me a moment to find them (included me mistakenly walking into the store bathroom) but with more help and a few laughs, I made it back to my apartment, AA batteries secured.

Embrace down time! This last takeaway may be the most impactful for me. Back at DU, I would schedule my days down to the minute, planning what I was going to eat, what clothes I would wear and most importantly, having something to do so that I would not feel that I was being “lazy” by having free time. However, an Italian motto that I was told on the first day of being abroad was “piano piano”. It means to take things slowly. The Italian way of life is one that embraces taking breaks- from afternoon relaxation time where shops close to the people meandering through the streets (opposed to my speed walking around). I have loved having time where everyone is relaxing, so I don’t feel as though I am not doing as much as my peers at any given moment. 

As I am writing this, I am just returning from my week-long fall break that took me to Switzerland, Scotland, and the Netherlands, so look out for a recap of that trip soon!

Arrivederci,

Caroline