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Naples and Capri, Italy
July 4tht through 5th
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -- Mark Twain
I woke up bright and early to do the city orientation of Naples with my friend Courtney. Not going to lie, Naples had a hard act to follow after Rome. Although the city seemed decent, it definitely lacked the artistic resonance that came with Rome. However, I really did enjoy learning about the ancient wars and how Naples was a main fortress to stop invasions. There are five castles in the city. On one of them you can even see where a canon had hit it and there is a large starburst of broken rock. Sweet! At the end of the city orientation, we were able to do some window shopping in the main square. We had some great pastries and saw a protest against the G8. The protests I have seen are so peaceful and seem almost like festivals. Everyone is having a good time. It's nothing like San Francisco.
I came back to the ship and met up with Samantha and a group of our friends. After having the group split up and there being serious confusion, we all finally found each other at a lovely restaurant called Brandi. It is the restaurant in which the Margharita Pizza was invented. My oh my, was it delicious. After lunch we all departed our separate ways, and I went and did some more window shopping. I came back to the ship, took a nap, and then met up with some more friends for dinner.
I actually took them all to Brandi again because I loved it so much! They loved it too! We happened to also pick the same restaurant as our Assistant Dean, our Living Learning Coordinators and our IT Coordinator. It was really fun to hang out with them off the ship. While we were waiting for our meal, an appetizer showed up at our table. Then the waiter came out and said that it was on him, and asked us to enjoy it. What a great start to the night! Another group of our friends showed up and my friend Cameron had bought some Cuban cigars earlier in the day and got a porch table and went at it. The rest of us had our first taste of Limoncello. I'm pretty sure that that will be my last taste as well. It tastes like a ridiculously sugary lemonhead with alcohol. I didn't care for it at all.
After dinner we then headed to Victoria Square and spent a while enjoying the night life and dancing. I found a loft where no one else was and we sat and watched the dynamics of the bar below. Still completely sober, we made our way home in preparation for our 8am trip the next day.
Daytwo we were off to go to the lovely island of Capri. It was defiantly a highlight of the voyage. Capri is absolutely stunning. From the sparkling green blue waters to the peak of Anacapri 900 meters above sea level, this island was blessed with beauty. We took a hydrofoil over to the island from Naples. When we arrived we took small buses to Anacapri, the highest point of the island. I thought for sure we were going to fall off the sides of the cliffs with our driver. When we got as far as we could by coach, we took a chairlift to the top of the mountain. The view from the top of the mountain was unreal. It's so difficult to describe. I felt like we were in the heavens. The clouds were at the same altitude as us, and sometimes they would pass by and everthing would get really foggy. When you looked off the side of the mountain you saw cliffs all the way down to the seashore. Flocks of white birds were soaring below us over the tops of lushious green trees. The water still looked stunning with its green blue tint. Enormous yachts looked tiny and speed boats were merely specks. There was a small café up top. It's the most perfect place to have the lunch of a lifetime. I wished so badly to have some of the people I love there with me, and then I realized I was one of the few who actually did have someone I loved with me. Sharing the moments with my sister were precious and I was thankful.
We took the chairlift back down and had lunch on a restraunt on the mountain overlooking the sea and the town below. We got literally seven minutes of shopping so I ran in a store and got something for my best friend. We then went all the way down to the seaside where we got in a speedboat. We figured we had already seen the island from above. We might as well see it up close and personal.
The boat was awesome. Our tour guide, Sasha, was crazy and tons of fun. My professor Alex Nalbach and his partner were on the same boat as well and we had the funnest time hanging out with them. We got to see some amazing caves, cliffs, and stalagtites. Once we made it to the other side of the island, where all of the mega-yachts were, Sasha let all of us jump out of the boat and swim around. It was so refreshing! Alex couldn't stop laughing at all of us girls screaming and playing in the water. We really did have an amazing time! Now I can say I have swam in the Tyrrhenian Sea! We went back to the beach and then got back on the hydrofoil to Naples where we got back on the ship.
Capri was absolutely fantastic and one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. All I keep saying to myself is how fortunate I am. So few people have been able to have this experience, and even fewer get to share all of it with their sister! Traveling through these countries, although I am truly beginning to shed my American mentality, I have to admit that I am so happy that I am American for the simple reason that it is an American institution that has this program. I wish so badly for other people from other countries to be able to have this experience. I think everyone should have this opportunity. If everyone traveled I really do feel like we would have a greater understanding of each other. Regardless of our customs, despite our governmental structures, even though we hold different roles and come from different regions, we are all people. We all laugh and smile. We all love and kiss. We all dance. If there is one thing I have learned it is that we are not as divided as we may sometimes seem. I am no more valuable than another being. If we all love and are loved we are equal in my eyes.
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