Back from across the pond

In so many ways the south of Italy felt like a developing nation. The mentalities, the bargaining, the pollution, the driving, the feeling of inferiority versus the cosmopolitan North. But how beautiful. Their primordial love and enthusiasm for soccer was so deep you could feel it the day the Napoli football team made it to 1st division and there was nearly rioting in the streets. A car was set ablaze, news reporters everywhere, helicopters, fireworks, the whole town driving scooters in packs in circles, popping wheelies and waving blue and white flags frantically and with sheer joy and excitement. This was on our first night in Naples and it was a bit alarming I must say. But it was truly a sight.

Capri and the Amalfi Coast were gorgeous and hilly with amazing views and waters that alternated between turquoise and navy blue. Capri's beaches were too rocky to allow for swimming without the fear of slipping on a rock and getting wounded but the best part there was the boat ride around the whole island. I highly recommend visiting La Grotta Azzurra. You take a canoe to a tiny cavern that is inaccessible if the water levels are too high. The entrance is so small you marvel at how anyone could fit but once inside you're suddenly in this enchanted pool that's illuminated by the sunlight that peeks in. Magical.

Naples was our base for our first few days in Italy and Capri and Amalfi were day trips. We took a bus to the Amalfi Coast which was as scary as the bus rides in Kenya but, like Kenya, well worth the view. We did our swimming and beaching in the town of Amalfi and strolled through Positano which is mostly good for expensive shopping and expensive sunbathing. It was a great, relaxing way to start off our vacation.

Rome was a whole new ballgame. We probably walked for 13 hours each day taking only short refueling breaks. Rome almost seemed contrived... how can there be a stunning historical landmark every few steps? I felt like I was on a movie set where everything was strategically placed. We got tired of pizza and pasta and found a lovely Chinese restaurant on our last night. I loved Verona because it was less tourist-infested, it was quiet, charming and it had only two main piazzas to worry about. We visited la Casa de Giulietta, an amphitheatre partially in ruins, similar to the Colosseum, and had a nice quiet dinner.

Venice was probably my favourite place. Canals serve as the main streets and your taxis and buses are all boats, it was brilliant. And unfairly expensive. But what a concept. The tiny alleyways that called themselves streets, walking around in circles and reaching a dead end, not halted by a wall but by a canal with a happy gondolier rowing by, the sparkling Murano glass that enticed us from every single shop window... ahh Venice. To Venice I would return, and to Tuscany. I never got to explore the countryside. We went to Florence but (to everyone's dismay) I didn't love it! Our daytrip to the tiny medieval walled town of Siena was lovely though. And Pisa... yes we had to do it.


Now for another disappointment... I preferred Brussels over Paris... *shame?* Maybe not.. we had four days in Paris to capture all the sights and it felt like all we did was run to and fro. After standing in line for two hours, the top of the Eiffel Tower was suddenly declared closed so we only got to see up to the second floor (which is still ridiculously high) but when we came back down, guess who decided to open up again... the traffic was scary, the food tedious, the metro suffocating... maybe I'll return someday to give it a second chance.

Maybe it's because in Brussels we had more time, less sights, more opportunities to laze about, stroll through the streets, take our time, take in the atmosphere. And we took a day trip to Bruges, a Flemish town about an hour away where it's best if you keep your French skills hidden and just speak English. Beautiful place, more canals, lovely people, lovely waffles, fries, and chocolate :)

I had four weeks in London, England, and it was really wonderful to see my British family. For that I am grateful for my time there. Now the weather was an entirely different story. We were lucky enough to avoid the flooding happening a short distance away. But why didn't anyone tell me to bring more trousers and sweaters and a scarf.. apparently it was uncommon, the weather this summer. Everyday brought more rain, cloud, wind and an overall state of gloom and doom. Perhaps this contributed to my general not-warming-up-to-the-place, or perhaps it was the city itself? The twisty, narrow streets, tube delays and replacement buses, hard water, my frizzy hair, extravagant prices, the elusive sun, and words like 'fizzy drinks'.... all combined to stretch my weeks out a bit. If it weren't for my family, London would have been a bit too much for me. I have to mention some good things of course. The bustling Westend, the eclectic Camden Town, the majestic Windsor Castle and Hampton Court, my cousin teaching me some Cockney rhyme schemes, fish and chips... I have tons yet to see there and I'll probably be back, another place to give a second chance.