What has made my study abroad experience even more special was that we are given a week long break during the middle of the semester. It serves as a great time for us to travel for a longer period of time with new friends we have made on the trip, and it is also a great time for our families to be able to travel over here. It is so amazing to be able to see our families and have the opportunity to spend some time with them. Several students’ families came over to visit them for the break and some went to Paris and different cities throughout Italy. Another group of students went to London, Ireland, and Switzerland. My parents decided to come and visit me for the midterm break and I loved having some time to travel with them and experience a small piece of Europe together. My parents first flew into Rome and I took a train from Albano to Rome to see them. Since we only had one day in Rome, I took them to my favorite part of the city. I took them to The Colosseum because it is my favorite part of the ancient Roman Empire that still stands today. We took a tour of The Colosseum and I got to tell them as much about the structure that I had learned so far. For the rest of the midterm break, we decided to travel outside of Italy. I have always wanted to travel to Germany and so my family and I decided to travel there. We first flew into Munich and spent two days there. I loved Germany from the beginning, it is so beautiful and I love the language and the people are so nice. In Munich we rented a car so that we could travel throughout southern Germany via their famous autobahn. This may have been my favorite part about the break, it was amazing to see Germany’s beautiful countryside and driving through the small towns along the way to our next destination. We traveled from Munich to Rothenburg and stayed one night there. My parents actually have artwork of Rothenburg hanging in our living room that my dad’s mom brought back from Germany. I was an amazing experience to get to see it in real life. From Rothenburg we drove to Wurzberg. I loved Wurzberg in particular because it is mainly a college town and I was fun to get to talk to a lot of the university students I met in restaurants and stores. From there we drove to Frankfurt where my dad was born, I loved a lot of the shopping Frankfurt it was also wonderful to see where my dad was born. He hasn’t been back to Frankfurt since he left when he was one year old. So it was great to go to Frankfurt with him and my mom. Lastly we drove from Frankfurt to Prague, Czech Republic. I was blown away by the beauty of Prague. Before going to Prague, I did not much, if anything at all, about the city. And it was such an adventure to experience a new culture like that. I am so thankful that I got to go to a country that before this semester I would have never figured I would have visited.

Wow! Everyone at the palace is shocked that we are already finished with week nine! We only have three short weeks left here in Italy and then it is back to the United States we go. While it is sad that our study abroad adventures are coming to an end soon, this past week was anything but gloomy!
The entire group took a field trip to Venice and Florence that lasted just over a week. Our first day in Venice, we took a boat ride tour of the Grand Canal and I can honestly say it was breathtaking. Everyone loved how the only way to get around the city was by boat! And we were all shocked that this city is literally built on water! We continued each day to explore the beautiful city and also visit two more towns, Murano and Burano. Murano is known for their amazing glass blowing and Burano is famous for the colorful houses that line the canals running through the town. After a few days in Venice, we headed over to Florence.

Florence was equally as beautiful but it was a rough trip for everyone’s wallets! LEATHER LEATHER LEATHER!  We went to both leather markets each day and I think between all eighteen of us Chigi Babies we spent way more then we all had hoped. Florence was a huge city similar to Rome, so being able to spend about five days there to just explore was wonderful. I am so thankful we were able to visit both cities during our semester abroad and loved everything about Venice and Florence!
~~Ciao~~
Megan Milam

by Liz Hopewell
Excuse me while I faint due to shock that this experience is already halfway over – 7 weeks down and a mere 5 to go. You would think that I would be either over the moon that I get to go home in a few short weeks or clinically depressed that I have to leave here so soon, but surprisingly I am neither. Instead I am filled with joy when looking back at every moment of these last fun filled weeks and looking forward to soaking up every second of the next 5.

One great thing about this program is the freedom it provides for personal travel outside of the program. One specific weekend trip (rather week long trip) was our mid-term break last week. During this week, we had 10 days to plan (on our own) a place to go, somewhere to stay, many places to eat, what to do, how to get there, and any other logistics related to our adventure.

Those of us that didn’t have family or friends coming over to visit decided to embark to Ireland and Switzerland!
We all pulled together to research where to stay (thank goodness for Rick Steves), what to do when we were in each place, and most importantly, what to eat in each country. Luckily, mid-October becomes tourist season for both Ireland and Switzerland. This worked in our favor more often than not – resulting in cheap flights and lodging. Once the details were all in place, we embarked and loved every single adventure that followed.

After traveling on our own for 10 days I learned a few things about European travel, the do’s and don’ts, and I thought I would share a few of them with you for your future travels.

1. Research. Research. Research.
Like I said earlier, I am so thankful for Rick Steeves. Through his books, we chose all but one of our spots for lodging for the entire 10 days. There are people out there that travel for a living (sign me up for that job!) – so utilize their talent and look up recommended places to stay and eat during your European study abroad or vacation.

2. Spend a little extra money on a good hotel.
This one may be a little hard for a poor college student to grasp, but it really pays off in the long run. Our lodge in Doolin (25 Euro per/person a night) had one of the best breakfasts I have ever had. Most people looking for a budget option would opt for hostels (which are usually great cheap options), but the local hostle in Doolin disguised itself as the cheap option when it was really a few euro’s more expensive than other options.
 

 
3. Get to know the locals
Locals are the ultimate tour guides and they are filled with great information about their respective cities. The more people you ask, the more recommendations you get – and when you get a lot of recommendations for a particular place, you know it’s legitimately good. Locals enable you to immerse yourself in the culture rather than skimming the touristy surface.

4. Have everything you can planned out beforehand.
It truly pays off to have your schedule set before your embark – look at transportation schedules, compare transportation options, look at check-in and out times, ensure you have the correct currency, look up key phrases. All of these, and more, will enhance your trip ten-fold!

5. Have fun!
Is that cliché and obvious? Maybe, but after the research and planning are done – relax and enjoy your vacation. Everything may not go perfect, but the minor details all seem to fade and the good times are remembered forever!
 

Yesterday, I got to see the inside of a very successful fashion house. The fashion majors at Auburn got a personal tour of Fendi’s flagship store and headquarters. Alana Pucci was our tour guide for the day. She planted a curiosity in us because of her knowledgeable for the brand. She has been working for Fendi for 31 years. Alana started in February just as Valentine’s help and has been there ever since. I loved to hear that Fendi credits their employees for their huge success. This large company acknowledges that every person is apart of the team and has contributed to their success. Learning about each handbag that Fendi produces was incredible. I knew that fashion is very detailed, but I did not know that each bag has a story behind the name of the bag. Karl Lagerfeld is one of the most famous fashion gurus, but I was surprised to hear that he was responsible for creating the double ‘F’ logo for Fendi. The double stands for “Fun Fur”. Most people think it stands for Fendi, but Lagerfeld never wants to be predictable in his work.  He still to this day helps design the extraordinary furs and dresses for Fendi. The fur is from different places in the world but is hand-dyed and created in Florence and later distributed to the stores. Fendi uses fox, mink, beaver, and rabbit to create their staple piece. Alana informed us that mink is the top seller for fur selection. I have developed a love and respect for Fendi after this tour. I look forward to seeing their new collections and the success that they receive.