11 Day Summer in Europe
- shananelizabeth
- Jun 17, 2015
- 11 min read
I've always wanted to travel to Europe as a kid, so when the opportunity presented itself, there was no way I could turn it down! My high school Spanish teacher, who was one of my favorites, had partnered with EF tours to present Evergreen High School students with the trip of a life time. We spent 9 days traveling along the Mediterranean coast to Italy, Monaco, France, and Spain with our tour guide, Antonio, our bus driver, Stephano, and several other groups of students from various locations in the United States. Then, the EHS kids extended our trip to see Paris for a couple of days.
Day One:
My dad and my brother dropped me off at Denver International Airport, where I met with my friends and began my travels to Europe. After I checked into my flight and departed ways with my luggage, I briefly checked in with Mrs. Warren, then, I headed to the security line with my friends, Carson and Claudia. Slowly, we made our way to the gate, boarded the plane, and took our seats for our flight to John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City.
In New York, our group met up with Lauren and Lissy, who left their family vacations early to join in on our adventure. For our next flight, I was assigned to a seat next to Sean, who I did not know very well at the time, but Lauren quickly joined us in the row of five. Together, we watched Cinderella and The Best of Me, and when we weren't watching movies, we familiarized ourselves with our new friend. Our conversations with Sean and our exploration of strange crevasses on the large plane solidified our friendship with him. Needless to say, we were so excited to travel across Europe together that none of us slept on our overnight flight.
After the long flight from New York to the Malpensa Airport in Milan, we finally arrived, and our second day of travels began immediately.
Day Two:
We landed in Milan, Italy at 9 o'clock in the morning, and in my excitement to see Italy, I left my favorite sweatshirt on the plane. We changed our clothes in the airport and waited for a period of time before finding out that we were one of the first groups to arrive, and we had to wait for the other groups in the tour before heading to Cinque Terre. The last group was not scheduled to arrive until the afternoon, which allowed the EHS kids to explore the city of Milan.
Considering Milan is the fashion capitol of the world, it was not a surprise when we saw the first mall. Then, we continued to wander through the city, where we discovered an old fortress.
Next, our group stopped to eat lunch at the Granaio Caffe e Cucinca, before making our way to the famous cathedral, the Duomo in the Piazza. In the Piazza, we met with our tour guide and eventually headed back to the airport to pick up the remaining groups.
It was a three-hour bus ride to Cinque Terre and long at that. The A/C on the bus had broken, and being Summer, the bus heated to nearly 100 degrees. It wasn't long before all of the passengers fell asleep on the bus, but maybe the lack of sleep on our overnight flight contributed to that, too.
After napping on the bus, I felt a second wind of energy, ready to explore Cinque Terre. Upon arrival, we checked into our first hotel, the Hotel Sud Est, where rooms were assigned to groups of three. Claudia, Lauren, and I roomed together in the tight space, using a physical key to enter and lock our room. The hotel was nothing too nice, but it sufficed. We quickly dropped our bags in the room and headed to dinner in the lobby of the hotel. We were served a delicious pesto pasta, pork, and cake for dessert.
By the end of dinner, we were winding down; everyone went back to their rooms to shower and rest for tomorrow's big day. The shower was interesting in that it was very small, allowing little room for movement. After three showers, it was safe to say that we flooded our bathroom, but we promptly laid towels down to clean our mess. In addition to the strange showers, our bathroom had European hair dryers that resembled vacuums, as well as a bidet next to the toilet, which each of us were willing to try. By midnight, we were asleep.
Day Three:
Our wake up call was 6:15am; we ate a quick breakfast at the hotel. I opted for a yogurt with granola and peaches, and toast with Nutella. Quickly after breakfast, we loaded onto the bus to drive to the marina, where we loaded onto a boat. Originally, we were supposed to travel to the five coastal lands by train, but a strike within the train industry prevented the trains from operating. Instead, we boarded a large boat that explored each section of Cinque Terre. On the boat, Lauren and I met three lovely ladies from Ireland, who shared their travel experiences with us.
Our first two stops were in Vernazza and Monterosso, where Lauren and I walked around the shops and hiked the mountain side which lead to a variety of churches, clock towers, buildings, and homes. We also relaxed on the beach while swimming in the Mediterranean Sea with Andy, and ate an amazing Sicilian pizza on our way back to the boat. After swimming in the sea all day, our Colorado group began an inside joke saying, "you're saltier than the Mediterranean."
Next, we headed to Manarola. We hiked to the top to enjoy the views while swinging at a small, children's park, and we replicated Lauren's photo of her Grandmother in nearly the same spot years and years ago. We continued to walk around the shops, and the group of Colorado kids jumped nearly 30ft into the sea from a large rock outcropping. While I was too scared to jump, I photographed each of my friends experiencing the fun and terror. When Emma jumped, she landed in the water wrong, bruising her entire thigh. Regardless, she was happy to have gone cliff diving, and I think she even jumped a couple more times.
On the way back, Lauren and I fell asleep on the back of the boat despite the drunk Australians that were trying to make conversation with us. When we got back to the hotel, we enjoyed dinner before heading to our rooms to shower and hang out with our friends.
Day Four:
We woke up at 6am for a quick breakfast at the hotel, before checking out and loading the bus for a three-hour ride to Monaco. EF Tours brought us to the top of the city, which was primarily for tourists. We watched the guards change at the palace, shopped, enjoyed lunch, and strolled along the garden walk with beautiful views.
After a couple of hours, we boarded the bus for the hour and a half ride to France, stopping at a perfumery called Fragonard along the way. We took a tour of the facility, then hiked up the mountainside before returning to the bus. Soon after, we checked into our hotel, the Kyriad Cannes Ouest, in the French Riviera. The rooms were nicer than the last; Lauren and I roomed together. At the hotel, we attended a pool party with the other groups in the tour, then ate dinner at the hotel. Some of the other kids walked down to the beach after dinner, but Lauren and I headed back to our room to FaceTime with our families and get some sleep.
Day Five:
At 7:15am, Lauren and I woke up to eat breakfast at the hotel and board the bus to Nice, France. In Nice, Lauren, Becca, Lorna, Victoria, and I walked around the town square, bought beautiful yet illegal paintings, and sipped on smoothies from a local cafe. While shopping, Lauren and I met a very nice lady who made us personalized bracelets. Then, we grabbed a quick lunch.
After lunch, the Colorado kids met with one of the other groups from our tour and walked along the water to Nice Diving, a snorkeling company that brought us out on a boat to one of the 30 reefs in the area. One of the girls from the other group got stung by a jellyfish, but the water was incredible and the snorkeling was unforgettable.
After drying off, we met the rest of the EF tour at a local restaurant for a chicken and gnocchi dinner. Then, we got back on the bus to go back to our hotel in Cannes.
Day Six:
It was an early morning, 6:10am, we woke up for breakfast at the hotel. We checked out of our rooms and loaded the bus for Barcelona. The bulk of today was a travel day, since the bus ride was nearly 10 hours. Driving for so long made me realize how many tunnels there are in Europe, haha. We made several stops at gas stations along the way, although most of the time was spent playing cards or sleeping... so many sabotage pictures of people sleeping on the bus! Anyways, it was a good time to relax since the past five days have been so busy!
We stopped at a pit stop for lunch, which was almost like a high end gas station and cafeteria combined and the food was surprisingly tasty.
By the time we arrived at our hotel, the Hotel Park Guell, it was nearly dinner. Yet, we took a quick dip in the rooftop pool before going down to the lobby to eat. This hotel was even nicer than the last, and with three people per room, Lauren, McKenna, and I roomed together with plenty of space. Before the night ended, a bunch of us went to Emma and Bailey's room to hang out.
Day Seven:
A 7:15am breakfast at the hotel called for delicious pastries, then we went on our grand tour of Barcelona with a new tour guide, Dan. First, we drove by the Olympic stadium and walked around the nearby Parc de Montjuic. Then, we headed to the Park Guell, Sagrada Familia, and the Plaza. The Park Guell was one of the major works of Gaudi, through themes of Hansel and Gretal, as well as intricate mosaics and designs. In addition to the park, we saw a glimpse of the Gaudi house.
The Sagrada Familia, a Roman Catholic church under construction during our stay (set to be completed by 2028 - nearly 140 years after construction began), was designed by Gaudi in the 1800s. He combined gothic and curvilinear architectural designs, however, the project was never finished due to interruption by the Spanish Civil War. The structure is thought to be controversial due to the elements that could disregard Gaudi's designs after his death. Yet, the intricacy of the building and the story that will be conveyed through the architecture is incredibly interesting.
When the walking tour concluded at the Plaza, famously known for La Rambla, we were free to explore the area on our own. It was a great place to shop, while the Boqueria Market was a fantastic stop for snacks. Claudia, Carson, Lauren, and I went to Santa Maria del Mar and the Barcelona Cathedral, which had rooftop access. Then, we found a tapas restaurant for dinner.
At the end of the day, Claudia and I joined another group on our tour to see the Magic Fountain of Montjuic for the nightly light show, while the rest of the Colorado kids went back to the hotel. We walked to Montjuic castle, passing the Arenas shopping center on the way. After the show, we jumped on the subway and headed back to our rooms to shower and go to sleep.
Day Eight:
We got to sleep in... until 8:45! The Colorado group ate breakfast at the hotel, then went to the beach. For lunch, Lauren and I went back to La Rambla Plaza and ate at La Poma - BEST DECISION EVER! We had the best pizza of our entire trip. after lunch, Lauren and I went shopping before meeting up with our group at a restaurant for a paella/tapas dinner.
Day Nine:
5:30am wake up call, today was a travel day, and our bus left for the airport early in the morning. While the other groups flew back to the United States, our Colorado group caught a flight to Paris. After landing at Charles de Gaulle Airport, a taxi service brought us to our hotel, the Pullman Paris Montparnasse. Let me be the first to say that Paris streets do not have very many rules; it felt like a total free for all, making the drive quite chaotic.
Upon arrival, Andy, Lauren, Victoria, and I went to lunch at a nearby cafe. after eating, we went bak to the hotel to rest. The Paris hotel, although the nicest during our stay, resembled a traditional American hotel. We divided the rooms into pairs, and of course, Lauren and I roomed together.
Once all of our group was ready, we walked to the Eiffel Tower, stopping at a restaurant along the way for more delicious pizza. The street-side restaurant was fairly small, so it didn't take long for our entire group to fill all of the tables. We also stopped at a market for some fruit. When we got to the Eiffel Tower, we admired it before quickly hopping on a boat to tour the Seine River at night. We arrived back at the Eiffel Tower just in time to see the tower lined with lights for the night. As the boat tour concluded, we went back to the hotel for some shut eye.
Day Ten:
Today was our final day in Europe, and eventful nonetheless. I don't want to get into the nitty gritty or play the blame game on the dreadful events of the day, but rather share the fun adventures that we had. We started our day at 7:30am, having Nutella and banana crepes at a cafe near our hotel, where we made a plan for the day.
Andy, Bailey, Emma, Claudia, Carson, Lauren, and I decided it would be fun to repeat the hop on/hop off boat tour from the previous night, but get off at each stop, allowing us to maximize the amount of places we would be able to see. Our first stop was the Saint Germaine, where we bought locks for the bridge. By walking across the bridge, we we able to go to Notre Dame to tour the medieval cathedral. After walking around for a while, we found a cafe, where we had round two of banana and Nutella crepes... So good!
After lunch, we hopped back on the boat to go to the Jardin de Plantes, which didn't actually look like much of a garden. So we left rather quickly to go to the Louvre. Although it was too big to see the inside in our allotted time, we explored the grounds and played with the goats. On our adventures, we enjoyed 1€ baguettes and eclairs while roaming around the streets of Paris. We tried to go shopping, but many of the stores were closed since it was Sunday. We hopped back on the boat towards the Arc de Triumph, and while we got lost, we eventually made it to the Arc.
Now, I bet you are wondering what I meant earlier by "dreadful events of the day," and like I said I don't want to play the blame game or go through each of the factors that contributed to the whole situation, but we got lost. We couldn't find our group, which is even harder when you don't have cell phone coverage or easy access to WiFi or a lack of money. Point is, we got in trouble with our chaperones, so when we made it back to the hotel, our night was cut short. As the rest of the group went out to a movie and dinner to celebrate Europe and our group, we were stuck in our rooms. We packed our bags, showered, and called our families to explain our sadness and frustration in the day, and eventually, we fell asleep.
Day Eleven:
At 6:10am, we checked out of our hotel and waited for our shuttle to the airport. I said my goodbyes to Lauren and Lissy, as they headed off to other European destinations.
When I got to the airport, I has breakfast at a cafe and finally, I headed home. I flew to Detroit, then Denver, where my dad and my brother were waiting to pick me up. Fortunately, I slept most of the flight, and when I got to Denver, I parted ways with the rest of my groups and all of my new friends. It was an incredible experience, and even though the final days were a little rough, I wouldn't change a thing. We learned from mistakes, enjoyed all of the fun times, and bonded as a group.
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