Before we head off to Itlay (which is the country i'm MOST excited to see!) we stop in the swiss alps to take a cable car way up into the mountains. The views up there are unbelievable! We're allowed to just kinda wander around up at the top for 
for about an hour and we end up with some pretty 'pretty' pictures and some pretty goofy pictures. Since I love so many of the mountain top pics you'll get a bunch of them in here. Also, one of my favorite silly moments of the trip was up in those mountains when dan, james, and I were wandering around and came across one of those "stick-you-face-in" cut outs of some giant furry creature and her baby.
James goes, "it's sasquash" and dan replies "isn't it sacajewea!?" we laugh for hours about sacajewea. turns out it's some famous swiss beaver or something. But anyway. after lauging and relaxing on top of the mountain we head down, return to the coach, and head into ITALIA!
for about an hour and we end up with some pretty 'pretty' pictures and some pretty goofy pictures. Since I love so many of the mountain top pics you'll get a bunch of them in here. Also, one of my favorite silly moments of the trip was up in those mountains when dan, james, and I were wandering around and came across one of those "stick-you-face-in" cut outs of some giant furry creature and her baby.
James goes, "it's sasquash" and dan replies "isn't it sacajewea!?" we laugh for hours about sacajewea. turns out it's some famous swiss beaver or something. But anyway. after lauging and relaxing on top of the mountain we head down, return to the coach, and head into ITALIA!
We stop for pizza. which rocks. and then carry onward into Florence. We have to drive near the city and then walk the rest of the way because the city streets are too narrow for the coach. I love the city already! dinner is incredible! the idea of eating Italian food IN ITALY was like surreal for me. and the courses just kept COMING. Also a big fan of the free wine. mmm. and Ryno (our amazing tour guide i'm beginning to fear i don't mention neeearly enough!) bought us all shots of lemoncello. and since so many of the people near me don't like theirs, and i'm nearly the last to exit and notice a quarter of the bottle left..... i happen to have quiiite a bit of lemoncello. mmm. do i love it!
and then after dinner we head to the red garter (i think it was called) kareoke bar where we get another free drink (long island please!!) and meet up with a Contiki Road to Athens bus. I decide I MUST 
snag an aussie for the night and in my intoxicated state i quite quickly meet a cute sweeheart of a fella and Nick and I embark on one of the most memorable nights of my life. First we dance and talk a bit in the bar but then we decide to head for this big dam/beach/stoney sandbar type structure in the middle of the arno river. There we uh. get to know each other. much better. and lose track of time. By the time we start bewilderingly wandering back to the bar, it's 3am and we don't remember where we're going. Eventually after asking numerous pedestrians and police we find the bar. which is closed. Then we decide we've got to find some way to get a cab. We go to what we presume to be a relatively busy area and I stick out my hand. I'm a new yorker. that's how i get cabs. But in florence, none come. Eventually a car (not a cab) pulls up and a guy sticks his head out the window and says "are you american?" i tell him that i am. and that i'm from jersey. He's from michigan but his friend and the driver is a Florentine. 
He says if we hop in he'll take us to a taxi ring. We hop in. I ask what they're doing driving around at 330 in the morning; his friend is craving melon. We're invited to join them for melon so we say suuure! But, obviously, all the melon selling shops are closed so they just bring us to the train station with no melon. THEN, at the train station we come across about 3 bums sleeping, and a group of teenage Italian boys who think they're the shit. after about 20 min of banter, a cab finally comes and Nick and I are whisked back to our respective hotels. It was one hell of a night though!
snag an aussie for the night and in my intoxicated state i quite quickly meet a cute sweeheart of a fella and Nick and I embark on one of the most memorable nights of my life. First we dance and talk a bit in the bar but then we decide to head for this big dam/beach/stoney sandbar type structure in the middle of the arno river. There we uh. get to know each other. much better. and lose track of time. By the time we start bewilderingly wandering back to the bar, it's 3am and we don't remember where we're going. Eventually after asking numerous pedestrians and police we find the bar. which is closed. Then we decide we've got to find some way to get a cab. We go to what we presume to be a relatively busy area and I stick out my hand. I'm a new yorker. that's how i get cabs. But in florence, none come. Eventually a car (not a cab) pulls up and a guy sticks his head out the window and says "are you american?" i tell him that i am. and that i'm from jersey. He's from michigan but his friend and the driver is a Florentine. 
He says if we hop in he'll take us to a taxi ring. We hop in. I ask what they're doing driving around at 330 in the morning; his friend is craving melon. We're invited to join them for melon so we say suuure! But, obviously, all the melon selling shops are closed so they just bring us to the train station with no melon. THEN, at the train station we come across about 3 bums sleeping, and a group of teenage Italian boys who think they're the shit. after about 20 min of banter, a cab finally comes and Nick and I are whisked back to our respective hotels. It was one hell of a night though!And of course I can't forget that when i get home, my new woooonderful roomie liz is awake and waiting to hear my adventures, and we swap stories over wine and marshmellows. PERFECT END to a damn perfect first night in florence.
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