Memorial Day & Labor Day Travel
I need a change of scenery. Not a permanent one, but something in the form of a vacation. Or two. So Dave and I decided to plan 2 trips, one mini and one major.
For our Mini-Memorial Day getaway, we decided to fly to Nashville and visit two very good sets of friends/couples. Stephanie & Trey live in Nashville and Nick & Erica live in Clarksville; both Steph and Nick were in our wedding this past Fall and both have been friends with us since high school. We love them, and their spouses, too!
Nick just returned last month from serving our country for over a year in Afghanistan. Luckily he was able to come home on his 2-week leave in November for our wedding, but he had to go right back afterwards...boo. But now he's home for good...yay! (Or at least for now.)
We cannot wait to see his new home he shares with his wife Erica and baby Sarah in TN.
And Steph has been one of my best friends since freshman year of high school on the volleyball team. We both got married in 2008 were each other's bridesmaids.
It will be great to see her again, too.
Now as for our Major Labor Day Getaway... drumroll please...
Dave and I are planning our first trip abroad and will be going to ITALY!
Much, much more on this to come, but I need to book our flight before we begin to plan many more details.
It think these two trips will be just what we need and will give me so much to look forward to this summer. If anyone has any Italy travel trips, please do share!
4 comments:
So fun! We're headed to KC over Memorial Day weekend for a friend's wedding. I love mini-vacations, but I'm way jealous of ITALY!
Yay CONGRATS on the vacas!! How exciting!
I went to Italy a few years ago, so I can actually help give you some tips!
1. Learn as much Italian as you can. Not many people speak English there! Especially helpful if you need directions or are trying to order food! I used an at home CD and book to learn. Put in more time than you think you need here! I thought I was fine but we had to speak in some english, some italian, a little spanish, and a fraction of french to get by!
2. When you order water, ask for "aqua naturale". If you ask for just "aqua" they will give you soda water (not good when you are trying to quench your thirst! I learned this the hard way, haha)
3. If you decide to drive yourself instead of using public transportation, know where you are going ahead of time. Especially cities like Rome, the streets are really confusing. Maybe bring a GPS with an international map (when I went there weren't really any GPS systems out there, we had a paper map and drove around Rome for 4 hours trying to find the Colloseum!)
4. If you are a coffee drinker, be prepared to go without your regular cup, and drink either espresso shots, or cappucinos. Most places don't have the type of coffee you have in America. We did find some places that had it, but you had to ask for "Cafe Americano".
5. Go to an authentic Italian restaurant. OMG.... SOOO good. I actually try to remake a dish I made there, it's always a hit. Cheese stuffed tortellini with chunks of ham in an alfredo sauce. OMG...
6. If you get a chance, try a bloody orange. I'm not sure what they call it in Italian, but it's such a sweet orange, almost like a clementine. They grow them in Sicily, I'm not sure how far north in Italy they go.
7. If you feel like exploring, and going for a drive, (and if you're in northern Italy) drive into Switzerland. Try a bratwurst. Seriously. WWOWOWOWOWOW. So amazing. If you're really feeling adventurous go to Zurich. There is a train there that will take you to a ski resort in the Alps!
Well, I hope that this helps!!! I'm sure I'll think of more things but here's a start!!! HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!
I forgot to mention, the reason why I recomend driving into Switzerland is because as soon as you hit the border, BAM! The Alps. It really is a breathtaking sight.
Italy will be amazing! I went in high school, but really would love to return to Rome in particular. I have a thing for ancient Roman history, so I would love to do a historical/archaeological tour. I'm looking forward to hearing more!
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