Home sweet home,

Filippa and I finished our trip now 3 weeks ago, I was home for 2 weeks now with a german friend of mine I met in Frankfurt. She is going to study medecine, which I think is very good (we NEED doctors!!) and I think she will make a wonderful doctor!

So what happened actually the last weeks? Where did we end up going in Italy?

So, first, we went downtown in Bari and sat at a cafe in one of these narrow streets, Filippa sipping her tea, while I was drinking my wonderful cappucino, italian, and a cornetto to go with. Filippa and I enjoyed to se the vespas driving back and forth, children talking and women speaking loudly to one another, so that they could hear each other, as on was on the street and the other at her window. We had finally arrived to Italy, our last country on this trip. Afterwards we headed to Alberobello and saw the trulli houses, sweet little italian houses, unesco protected, situated in Alberobello, and the neighbouring villages. They are very pretty, untraditional though and may have looked like the first houses built by humans (at least, that's how I imagine it). So that's the first day we had, after having slept on the deck of the boat. But we sure had a revanche, because we slept in a 4 stared hotel that night in Martina Franca!

The following day, we headed to the city that was definetely not build in one day, yes, Rome. Rome, the favorit city of my 108 old great grandmother, who once had an audience with the former pop. We slept in a cosy hostel and headed to this great town. We climbed the spanish stairs, an architectural wonder, that you can find in the list of the book "buildings that changed world architecture", we admired the fountain of Treviso, hidden behind Rome's cobbled streets, visited the pantheon and both imagined professor Langdon, right there, trying to find a cardinal whose last hour has come.

Everything was just so wonderful and the food was amazingly good, everywhere, without any exception, even the low key restaurants or cafes. And what a delightful population, italians are a real delight to the eyes..

Focus! And then, the highlight: we went inside St Peters church in the Vatican, that hides an amazing and dark history, an incredible collection of books, manuscrits, diaries, poems and other valuable writing material. Furthermore, St Peters church is after the legend, build on Peters tomb and remains after having being hanged upside down. The first basilica was built in the 4th century and Peter was known as the first pope, I believe. It was fun to see the Swissgard, called so as they have all gone to a special school in Switzerland and wear costumes designed by Michelangelo. Let's say that they are very colourful and bring a big contrast to the rest. Maybe not the best work of Michelangelo. Though, something incredible is the plazza, drawn by Bellini, which gives you an impression of being in a safe and trustworthy world. Pretty good job I must say, especially in our financial times.. It feels like being embrased by god himself and having his arms around you. I was just a little carried away here, let me continue to our following adventure..

After having admired this architectural and extremely spiritual site, we decided to go to Siena, just 2 or 3 hours away from Rome. Eventually we went to the main station and asked when was the next train to Siena. It was leaving from the furthest platform we could get to in 4 or 5 minutes.

In the absolut best interrail style we ran to the train. We catched it. And hopela we where in Siena (I should work for dsb (the danish railway company) and make advertisments for interrail.).

Siena was beautiful, a real middel ages city, pardon me, a renaissance city, with the most beautiful town hall I have ever seen. We stayed there for 2 days and made ourselves a wonderful italian dinner on night, and that was when we learned the death of the popstar Michael Jackson, which I still can't really believe. It is very hard as a fan to loose a very loved icon like him...

Siena though was still as enchanting and magic. On the main square (also where the town hall was located) a horse race was held the day we went to Florence, imagine in the middle of the city!

Though that day we were going to Florence, given that we only had 2,1/2 left of our trip together. Florence was also wonderful, a little bigger, tucked in the valley and therefore extremely hot (not as hot as Milan where I stayed 40 minutes to catch the next train on my way back to go to Paris) but neithertheless, magic. The dome was breathtaking (not from the inside though..) and the surroundings as well. We went to the Uffizi (I belive it is spelled this way), where Filippa and I saw the breathtaking works of Boticcelli, as the spring, which I immediately bought as a poster after visiting the museum. From one of these galleries we had the most stunning view of the river Arno and the golden bridge (Ponte Vecchio) from where we the same night watched the sunset.

The following day, our last day together, we walked around, taking pictures of the medicis old hometown, ate our home brought breakfast on the steps of a palace, hiding the biggest garden of Florence.

We both sadly realised that this was soon the end of our trip together and our sabbatical year. The trip had been wonderful, filled with art, languages, hostels, cafes, discussions of life at 3 in the morning, studies, fears and hopes for better or worse, meeting people from the world, listening to their lives and adventures and telling them ours.

I think that we have both learned many things from ourselves in a very positive way, we have become independent, strong in our minds and decisive and maybe more focused about things we want to do. This may sound vague and unfocused, but trips like these help us understand in general and in any sense. We did grow up and I feel more so ready now to start my studies and I believe Filippa does to, eventhough I know that she was very tempted to take another gap year, which I completely understand.

One last thing before I disapear, I got home 2 weeks ago while my german friend returned home herself this afternoon and I will receive my answer on being accepted at university the 30th of july..

So this was the end of a fairy tale by Filippa and I, who are the respectable authors of our adventures (how wonderfully logical that sounds, Filippa will be thrilled!) shared with you, as now new adventures are on their way... respects to you, our trustworthy readers.