At first I had a little trouble acclimating myself to my new surroundings in Croatia.  I was really looking forward to exploring the country and its islands, but after 2 months in Italy, being in a new place with a new language and new currency was just throwing me off.  This ambiguous feeling made me make a rash decision to cut my time short in Split and move on after just 3 days, a decision that I ultimately regret. 

On my first day I did what I normally do and ventured out to explore the city.  Like most European cities, Split has a really beautiful, walled 'old city'.  Once you get out of the very touristy areas it was a very peaceful experience.  The homes in the area are still in the old style, all stone and stucco facades and orange tiled roofs, with rustic stone stairways crawling up the outer walls and aged wooden shutters.  It didn't take long, maybe a couple of hours, to make my way through the old city, and since I still had several hours of daylight left I decided to walk along the waterside. There were a ton of beautiful, expensive looking vessels moored in the port, and just beyond the port a park. As I continued my walk through the park and back along the waters edge I came across a small cliff edge where people were sunning and swimming. The cliffs were only 15-20 feet tall but they were perfect for some light cliff jumping. I didn't have my bathing suit but I came back a couple other times during my stay to enjoy a lazy afternoon of jumping, swimming and baking in the gorgeous Croatian sun.

On day 2 I was joined at my hostel by 3 British guys who made my short time in this city a lot more fun. They were wild and constantly joking around, which was fun and refreshing, even though I was the butt of 90% of their jokes and was given at least 3 nicknames. I went out with them 2 nights, only after the 3 of them knocked back a liter of vodka. I really wish I could have joined them in Hvar. I'm sure it would have been an amazing time and its definitely one of the places I regret not having time to see.

My last day was spent on the island of Brac.  Its the closest island to Split, and so I was able to get there rather inexpensively, which was a goal of mine since as I've said before, my funds are dwindling.  There is a famous beach on the island in a small town called Bol that juts out into the crystal blue waters of the Adriatic.  The tides and winds change the trajectory of the sandy/rocky cape on a daily basis.  The beach is very crowded but is still a beautiful place to relax.  Sometimes the wind was quite brutal, but if you just move away from the tip of the cape it gets much nicer.  The shaded pathway to get to the cape from the town of Bol is also really nice 20 minute walk.

By my final day in Split I was finally feeling the groove of this place and didn't want to go, but my plans for 3 days in Split, another 3 in Zagreb, were already set.  In the end I actually ended up cutting my entire time in Croatia in half so I could fit an extra country into my last month of travel through Europe. Looks like I've just got one more reason to make my way back, but I'm psyched to say...Romania here I come!

I took an overnight ferry from Ancona, Italy into Split, Croatia with BlueLine Ferry service, which was supposed to be a budget carrier but ended up being quite nice.  Since the vessel was not booked out I got upgraded to a cabin on a upper deck, which I got to myself.  Everything was clean and and the bed was pretty comfortable.  There was several restaurants/food options and a bar and casino on board.  I didn't really take advantage, aside from having one beer, but I was impressed with what they had to offer.  The trip took about 11 hours, and passed in a flash as I rested peacefully.  Great way to travel if you ask me!

2 months

8 regions

25+ cities

50+ gelatos

In two months I have been all over the bellissimo country of Italy, and there is still so much more to explore here. So, I will say farewell for now dear friend, ciao, arriederci, and I will see you again soon.

This evening I will be boarding a night ferry across the Adriatic Sea to Croatia.

The best thing about traveling is meeting people from all over the world.   Especially when you are traveling alone, making friends, even briefly, can be the difference between a good time and an unforgettable experience. Who would think that in a matter of days you could form such a bond with people, but that's how it is in the travel community. Facebook makes it even easier to extend friendship in the traveling/backpacking community beyond a place and time to a lifelong relationship.

I have been extremely lucky to have met some incredible people on every step of my journey. Too many to even name. Still, every time you have to say goodbye, and you promise to be in touch and meet again in the future there is always a hint of doubt that it will ever really happen. For instance, when I met an Italian couple on my camping trip to Uluru, back in my early days in Australia, I never imagined that nearly 3 months later I would be heading to their home in San Benedetto, Italy. Yes, we camped together for 3 days, and exchanged pleasantries and they told me that if I did make it to their tiny beachside town in central Italy I would have a place to stay with them, but I still never expected it to happen. They weren't even supposed to be back in Italy until after I had left the country. But, one thing led to another, plans changed on my end and on theirs, and here I am, spending my last 5 days in Italy with my Uluru friends, Francesca and Luca.

They have a rather large apartment where they have been kind enough to offer me their spare room. My days have been filled mainly with relaxation and delicious food, the best type of hospitality you can be offered in Italy, in my humble opinion. Francesca's family owns a 4-star hotel in town and we have been enjoying large, decadent lunches by a world-renowned award-winning chef daily, before relaxing by the pool or back at the apartment to escape the intense midday weather. In the evenings they take me out for drinks or homemade dinners with family and friends. Everyone is so kind, I feel right at home. Luca's mother is the overbearing, loose-lipped (in the sweetest sense)Italian Mama I've ever met, always ready with an endearing, if not a little embarrassing, compliment. Francesca's brother was immediately friendly, evening teasing, like my own family would. And their friends have all been so welcoming and accepting of the foreigner who has randomly dropped into their lives. Francesca even invited me to come along on a special girls-night-out she was having with her two best girlfriends. I never once felt out of place, as the three of them welcomed me into their circle. I have been feeling homesick lately for my family and my friends, and this is just what I needed. Girls night made me feel like I was back at home chatting with my own girlfriends, talking about guys, and work and life, laughing at inappropriate conversations had in a crowded restaurant over wine.

I would say that this has definitely been a successful reunion. I am happy that I have made such amazing friends and could not be more thankful for their hospitality.

Now I am even more excited and hopeful that I will get the opportunity to see all of my new friends in the months and years to come. NYC, Seattle, California, Texas, all over Canada, Australia, Nepal, Thailand, Singapore, and across Europe. Looks like I have a lot more traveling to do! :)

Now that my time in Italy is coming to a close I thought I would do a tribute post to the the amazing food here.

Perugia Farmhouse was quite simply a breath of fresh air after touring all over Italy.  Perugia is the capital city of the region of Umbria, and its city is not unlike many of the others I have visited and written about over the past 2 months, but just outside of the city is an absolutely scenic stretch of land with rolling hills, fruit orchards and fields of sunflowers just beginning to wilt from the heat of the August sun.  And these hills are dotted by old stone farm houses just like the one where I have spent the past 5 days.  Its not like there was no sights to see around Perugia, but this stay was not about that.  Instead I lounged around all day reading by the pool, and writing, and visiting with the animals.  They have horses, the friendliest donkeys Ive ever met, sheep, goats, geese, chickens, ducks and dogs. The Farmhouse offers old bikes with baskets to its guests, and almost daily I would take a short ride to the local grocer and buy fresh food to cook in the quaint, country kitchen. 

The people who run the Farmhouse Laura and Manuele have been wonderful.  Laura I found is actually originally from NY so communication was never a problem.  The volunteer staff, Jenny and Elston could not have been more friendly and helpful.  And even the guests here are wonderful.  You cant help but be the best version of yourself at the Farmhouse, it just relaxes every piece of you.  I met a couple from Australia whom I joined for a day of wine and beer tasting.  Just a 45 minute walk away, through the fields, there is a winery with a 10€ tour and wine tasting, and right across the street is a brewery, where for 10€ you can enjoy a giant plate of fresh meats, straight from their on-sight pig farm, and locally brewed beers.  It was a nice day out.  There is also the Perugina Chocolate factory, only 15 minutes away by bike, where for 7€ you can enjoy a really interesting tour of the production line and a chocolate tasting. 

I feel recharged after my stay here, which is good because I have a busy month to come, bouncing my way across Europe until I fly home on October 2nd.  But first, I'm off to San Benedetto for 5 more days with my Italian friends, Francesca and Luca, from my Uluru trip in Australia.  So excited to see them again!

Loved being on a farm, it reminded me so much of home.  The donkeys were absolutely my favorite, and the chickens got to listen to smooth jazz all nigh long

I was going back and forth over whether or not I was going to visit Cinque Terre on a day trip from Florence.  Its a 3 hour train ride at best one way, so getting there and making the hike between the 5 seaside towns and getting back is a looong day.  Plus, I hadn't been successful in meeting many people at my hostel in Florence (if you read one of my earlier posts you would know I was avoiding the hostel and my weirdo roommate like the plague) and the thought of hiking Cinque Terre just seemed more fun with some company.  Finally though I made the decision that this was something I did not want to miss.  So, I got to bed early so I could wake up and catch the earliest train out to the town of Monterosso, the northern most of the 5 towns, where I was planning on beginning my hike.  Of course, since I have the worst travel luck ever, this plan did not quite work out.  First of all, I was not able to get on the early train because it turned out being 3x more expensive then what I had seen posted on trenitalia.com, and I did not bring my Eurail Pass to offset the cost.  So I had to wait until 10:30AM for the next, less expensive train to La Spezia, where I would then catch a train to Monterosso.  This already was putting me back about 3 hours.  Next, when I boarded the train in La Spezia I forgot to validate my ticket and was kicked off at the very next stop by a brute of a woman who refused to give me back my ticket, and so I was forced to buy a new ticket.  Luckily, I realized that this stop was actually Riomaggiore, the southern most town where I had expected to end my trip, so I figured I might as well just stay and work my way backwards.  By this point it was already past 2PM, and I figured if I was going to see all 5 towns in the chain I better scrap the hiking idea and just take the train between the towns.  I was a little disappointed, but with 2-4 minute rides between the towns there's not much to complain about.  Also, I found out that a few of the paths have been shut down since 2010, when a flood damaged the tracks, so maybe I'm better off.

Finally on track, I took a deep breadth, decided to put the awful morning behind me and have a good day.  The towns were each really beautiful.  Ive heard people compare Cinque Terre to the Amalfi Coast, and I would have to agree that it is very similar, but Cinque Terre just seems a little more untouched, as if it has yet to be discovered by the masses.  There was a fair amount of tourists in each of the towns, but nothing close to Amalfi Coast.  My favorite of the 5 towns would have to be Manarola, followed by Corniglia.  Manarola was a beautiful seaside town with excellent cliff jumping spots.  There is an area right off of town where you have to pay to swim, but if you follow the path further round the coast there are plenty of spots to swim and relax and cliff jump for free.  I am proud to say that I did go cliff jumping, but I also have to admit that the cliff was not very high at all.  I guess I'm not that brave.  The water was crystal clear all the way to the bottom, which was incredibly deep in some areas, and the perfect temperature in the sweltering summer heat. 

Corniglia also had a marina to swim in, but the more interesting part was the town high above the waves, teetering serenely on a cliff edge.  You have to walk A LOT of steps to get to the town from the train station, but it is totally worth the effort.  The town has a real local feel to it, even though you can see hints of where it has been touched by the tourist market.  The people of the town are just so friendly as they go about their daily activities.

There was not much to see in Vernazza, aside from shops and restaurants, but I did take a nice hike, again up many many steps to a lookout point that I am guessing most people do not venture to.  The view from the top was absolutely stunning.

I didn't spend much time in either of the bookend cities of Riomaggiore or Monterosso, but I don't mind because they seemed to be the most touristy ones.  I would have liked a little more time in Monterosso, but I actually made it there just in time to catch the last train of the day back to Florence.  I am glad that I made the trip to Cinque Terre, but I do wish everything hadn't been so screwed up  from the get-go, which would have made the day much more pleasant and relaxing.  Who knows, maybe I will get the chance to visit again with some friends and have a great time.

It was not originally in my plan to visit Venice.  I wasn't ever planning on being that far North and to be honest, visiting the City of Love was not high on my solo travel list.  But, as is turns out, Venice is only 2 hours from Florence by train, and from what I had been hearing was worth a look.  Since there is not much to do there really besides wander around and explore the maze of canals I figured it would make a nice day trip paired with a trip to Bologna.  The idea was to spend a few hours in the morning in Venice, and then stop in Bologna for  few hours on my back to Florence.  Little did I know that this plan would change before the day was out.

I do not have too much say in length about Venice, except that it really is a charming city.  Yes, it is crowded with tourists, especially on the main canal and larger piazzas, but there are also plenty of almost deserted areas of the city to enjoy, and it was not overtly romantic in my opinion.  I particularly liked looking at the dozens of Venician mask shops.  They were so whimsical and beautiful.  I really wanted to buy one, but they were pretty expensive, the well made masks going for about 15 euros for a small, relatively simple mask, to upwards of 45 eruos for the larger and more intricate ones.  As far as the gondola rides, they were also really expensive, but I was not the least bit eager to jump on board.  Once upon a time, this may have been an experience not to be missed, but now the whole operation just seemed overly touristy and sad.  They would sometimes pile up to 10 people in a single gondola, which seemed strange and just wrong.  Where's the romance in that?  A few days after I left Venice I actually saw a story in the news about a gondola that had been hit by a water taxi, a man, his wife and 3 year old daughter were thrown from the gondola into the water and the man, only 50 years young, was crushed between the two vessels.  Tragic! 

Don't let that put you off visiting this town though, it is really lovely, even as a single traveler :)  In fact, a not so bad looking gentleman stopped me in the street on my way to the train station, showering me with typical compliments and invited me to coffee.  I know I've complained bout Italian men and their Don Juan syndrome before, but when you are in alone in a city like Venice, its nice to get a little bit of attention. I declined of course, but the sentiment was nice. 

My only warning about this city would be about getting yourself lost in the maze of streets and canals.  Its really confusing.  After the first 15 minutes I realized that there would be no way, even with a map, which I didn't have, to keep myself on track.  I was surprised however, after wandering for a few hours and feeling totally disoriented, I still ended up finding my way back to the train station just in time to catch a train to Verona.

Verona? But, Kristen, I thought you said you were going to Bologna?  Yes, that's true, and I can not even say when my plans changed, but as I was buying my ticket out of Venice for some reason I typed in the name Verona, instead of Bologna.  When I saw there was a train leaving for Verona in just a few minutes I made a flash decision to go for it.  I guess I wanted to keep the City of Love tour going, and so I was off tot he home of Romeo and Juliet, Verona, Italy.

At first I immediately regretted my decision to go to Verona.  From the train station there is no tell tail sign or beacon to lead you in the right direction towards the old town.  So, I started walking pretty aimlessly.  I ended up in what I'm guessing was part of the new city, and since it was siesta time and I was not in a touristy area, it was completely deserted.  Eventually though, I got myself on track by following signs to the Arena.  Once I actually made it to the old town I was really glad I had chosen Verona and was eager to explore.  The town is just really pretty, and is actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  When you enter through a large medieval looking gate, it opens up into a very large piazza with a lot of activity.  On the far end is the Arena, which is a smaller scaled Colosseum, which was an unexpected surprise.  I didn't realize that Verona would have anything like that.  I did some research and found that it was built in 30AD and is the 3rd largest arena in Italy.  The also still preform opera in the amphitheater.  From the piazza there is a main street, which is pedestrian only, but I would avoid this crowded avenue, unless of course you are looking to shop because it has all the high-end shops.  Any of the other streets are quite charming.  I wish I had actually given myself more time to explore around, and maybe a map as well so I knew where I was, but I did happen upon several churches, art fixtures and piazzas that were lovely.  I also missed Juliet's house, but came across the house of Romeo, which was scrawled with love notes.  Very cute. When it came time to leave I was really sad to leave, and I found myself hoping that I will return one day soon.

On my way back to the train station, which is a bit of a walk, I broke my shoe and had to walk bare foot.  People were apparently very amused and concerned, and just about everyone I passed asked me what happened to my shoes.  Of course, I didn't pass a single shoe store on my way.  This is Italy, right?  Since I was using my Eurail pass for this trip I was able to get a comfy seat in first-class, which made me feel a little better, especially after I realized I was sharing the car with a few members of the Italian Football team and their coaches!  It was only a little embarrassing walking past them bare foot.  After I was seated I figured out a way to rig up my shoe until I got back to the hostel.

I had to make my visit to Siena a separate post, because it was one of my favorite places so far in Italy.  The town is not big and not necessarily the most beautiful Ive seen, though the Duomo is one of the nicest, I think, in the whole of Italy, but the spirit of this place, especially during the Palio celebration, is undeniably electric.  The Palio is a horse race that the town of Siena puts on two times per year on July 2nd and August 16th, in which 10 of the 17 districts of the town competes in a bare back horse race around the piazza.  The race only takes about 90 seconds to complete, but the festivities last 4 days.  The day my tour group visited the town was the first day of the celebrations.  It was my original plan to go to the actual race on Aug 16th, but after hearing about how crowded and wild it is I was happy to suffice myself with witnessing probably the next most exciting event, the horse lottery.  The rules state that even if a rider falls from his horse, if the horse crosses the finish line first the district still wins, so the lottery is pretty important.  Though, in my opinion, its hard to lose any way you look at it because the horses I have seen are some of the most beautiful and powerful animals I have ever laid eyes on. 

We started with a guided tour of Siena at the Duomo, which, like I said, was the most beautiful I had seen in all of Italy.  The facade was so intricately carved that it was hard to look away from it to even enter the building, which was equally as stunning inside.  At one point, before the plague nearly destroyed the town in the 1300s, the church was bigger than any other in Italy, even bigger than those in Rome.  When it fell to ruin and had to be rebuilt the Pope demanded that it should only be rebuilt to half of its size. 

After seeing the Duomo our guide also gave us our first view of the Piazza del Campo, which had already been decked out for the race, with a gated area in the center of the piazza for spectators and sand laid in ring around the outer edge for the track.  Bleachers were also ready to be set up, which I found out cost upwards of 300 euro per seat, while space on the balconies looking into the piazza went for well over 500 euros!  After the tour we were given a couple of hours to ourselves for lunch and walking around, so I chose to grab a quick sandwich and head back to the Piazza del Campo and try to catch more of the action.  As I was walking I would see groups of people heading towards the piazza, usually an oddly dressed gentleman leading the way, singing a song and chanting.  This I found was each of the districts, parading into the square for the horse lottery.   After each horse was called, the district would cheer and then lead the winning animal out of the piazza, singing and chanting the same song over and over.  Some of the horses were pretty wild, probably due to all of the screaming, but several times the crowd would have to run and dodge an uncontrolled horse as it was led through the narrow streets.  After one of the last districts had chosen its horse I tagged along at the back of the crowd to see where they were going.  It turns out that they take the horse back to their district, where it is lead directly into the church to be blessed.  From then forward, until the race, the horse is treated like a new born babe, watched and catered to 24/7 by members of the community.  It was all very fascinating to watch. 

After the excitement had died down I winded my way back down the city streets, grabbing a gelato on the way of course, to meet my group for our departure.  I do wish that I would have been able to see the actual race, but the way it is set up, unless you have a place in the bleachers or balconies, you will be stuffed into the center of the piazza with thousands of others, in the hot summer sun, where you will not be able to see more then the horses heads speed by.  If you even see that much.  I'm not really much for crowds so I think witnessing the lottery will have to be enough.  I'm happy with that :)

District flags were hanging throughout the streets, and every local was wearing a scarf for their district.

There were so many places that I wanted to see in and around Tuscany, and some which required a vehicle to get to, so instead of just taking these places I decided to sign up for a tour of Tuscany.  I know I decided not to do anymore tours, but this just seemed like the best way to do it, and for only 55 euros I got to see 4 destinations and even do a wine tasting in the Chianti region of Tuscany.

The tour started at a tiny, walled medieval town called Monteriggioni.  This town was once a defensive fortification used by the city of Siena in the wars with their neighbor and rival, Florence.  Now the tiny town, still incredibly preserved is home to no more than 45 residents.  Walking through the streets and along the walls of the town was a magical experience, and though I am sure they see bus loads of tourists each day coming an going from their peaceful little town, the locals were very charming and sweet.  We really only spent about 20 minutes there, and that was all you needed to walk around the narrow streets and single piazza. 

From there, we boarded the bus and were on our way to Siena, but I am going to go into that experience in a separate post, because it was quite special to see the town celebrating its bi-annual Palio horse racing festival.

After Siena we moved on again to the town of San Gimignano.  This is a slightly larger walled city that is easily walkable within an hour, but has a lot to offer.  The two piazzas in this town were buzzing with local and tourist markets and the main avenue, like Cefalu, was filled with tourists and shops but just gave off such a pleasant, quaint vibe that I didn't mind in the least.  As you enter the main piazza, to you left is a gelato shop where...wait for it...you can get the best gelato in the world! Seriously, this place has actually won several world-wide awards.  And like I mentioned before, I have been eating at least 1 gelato a day since I arrived in Italy, and I can tell you that this place far surpasses any place I have ever tried, including the place in Pisa that I was so impressed with.  But, you have to be careful because to the right is a 2nd gelato place that has a sign reading `worlds best gelato  Do no be fooled because this is not it, tricky tricksters.  The real award winner is to the left and has a sign saying `Gelato Wold Champion.` Another treat in San Gimignano is a white wine that is only, and can only be produced by maybe a dozen wineries in the vicinity of the town.  Its called Vernaccia, and I had to pick up a bottle for only 5 euros.  I popped the cork back at my hostel with a few friends and we all agreed that it was quite good.  Since its production is limited it is probably pretty expensive outside of the region, but I ma start looking for it at home anyway.  Before we left I took an opportunity to walk the walls of the city and look out onto the picturesque views of the Tuscany valley below.  It was stunning.

Our final stop of the day was at a winery in the Chianti region, where we got to enjoy a tasting of about 6 wines and a tray of Italian meats, cheeses, and breads.  It was the perfect way to end the day, and was nice to sit and chat with some new friends that I made on the tour, a couple from Australia and another newlywed couple from Philadelphia, who actually grew up in South Jersey :)

I guess if the day had ended there it would have been nice, however, I am an idiot and ended up leaving my phone on the bus, so I spent a frantic evening trying to track it down.  Not only is it my lifeline to home and the outside world, but since my camera broke it also has a good deal of pictures on it, and several chapters of my book.  Luckily I was able to track it down and was assured I could go pick it up the next morning.  Maybe the relief of that whole situation made that bottle of Vernaccia taste that much better. 

If gelato is the best icecream in the world, and the best gelato in the world comes from Italy, and San Gimignano has the best gelato in Italy, then this must really be THE BEST ICECREAM IN THE WORLD! 
It was pretty delicious