My Month in Europe: Lake Como

Lake Como, Italy

This is where our travels ended.

We were originally supposed to spend our last day in Europe in Cinque Terre, but it was a very rainy day and our instructor knew better than to attempt cobblestone streets and swimming in the Mediterranean on a sub-par day.

So, Lake Como it was, and Lake Como could not have been better. 

This day was bittersweet from the moment we woke up.

Everyone knew it.

The bus ride was full of jokes and laughter as usual, but there seemed to be this air of awareness over all of us that this was the last day we'd spend together traveling Europe.

But instead of getting all teary-eyed right now, let's talk about Lake Como, because it was remarkable!

We all took about an hour-long boat ride around Lake Como, but before that we naturally had to find a gelateria that was open early in the morning.
This particular gelateria had a balsamic-strawberry mascarpone gelato.
Let's just say that isn't something you can describe and effectively get the point across, so I'll just leave it to this:
It. Was. Heaven.

Our boat ride around the lake was beautiful.
We were able to drive past George Clooney's property, but we unfortunately didn't spot him or Amal (even though this was just two or three days after their wedding which shut down the entire city!).

After the boat ride we wandered around Lake Como for a bit and found a spot for lunch.
Now, I have to admit, I'm not the biggest fan of gnocchi, so I had yet to order it anywhere in Italy, but the place that we ate lunch had a Havarti Chickory Gnocchi that I had to try.
It did not disappoint!

It was so delicious and light, and to this day I still haven't had gnocchi anywhere else because I'm sure it won't be nearly as good!

After lunch we went back for a second round of gelato, and then just walked around the homes and piers.

Lake Como was the best way to end one amazing month. Italy, you're fantastic! #lakecomo #italy

We all kept remarking on how surreal it was that this was our last day in Europe, and that we'd soon be back in the United States with the memories we made and experiences we'd had.

When you spend a month traveling Europe with a group of people you've just met, you create a truly unique bond.

Whenever I think of the month I spent in Europe I think about more than just the places I went to and the things I saw.
I think about the friends I made, the people I met, and everything that I learned about myself as well.

So after our beautiful day in Lake Como, we took the bus back to Milan, where a group of us just couldn't resist riding the metro back to the heart of the city for yes, you guessed it, a few last scoops of gelato.

We walked around the shops and Duomo, and stumbled upon a street performer.
All of us in the group I was with looked at each other and just knew that we were all feeling the same thing.
It was one of those indescribably palpable moments - like a scene from a movie, which resulted in teary eyes from almost all of us.

I took a video, and I'm putting it below, although I'm fully aware it won't even begin to translate what that moment felt like! 

At that point we went back to the hotel to get some sleep before our early (and long) venture back to the United States!

We were exhausted, excited, sad, and already nostalgic, but most importantly, we were changed for the better as a result of every minute we had spent in Europe.
We had made it home - until next time :)

Tomorrow morning I board a plane back home, but a part of my heart will forever be in each part of Europe I have visited over the last month of my life. I have seen rolling hills and sheep in Ireland, walked the streets and fell in love with London, spent half an hour in awe of Van Gosh's Starry Night at the Musee d'Orsay in Paris, came closer to God while hiking the Alps in Switzerland, was kissed twice on the hand by a completely wasted man in the famous beer hall of Germany, sampled every type of balsamic vinegar and olive oil in Austria, ate more gelato than I should have in Milan, and got lost in the squares of Venice. I have developed relationships with the people I have traveled with as well as the people I have met along the way. I have gained a deep appreciation for all cultures and the lives each individual leads, and most importantly, I have learned more about myself than I ever would have anticipated upon boarding an airplane from New York to Dublin. This has been the most spectacular month of my life, and is one I am not soon to forget. 

My Month in Europe: Venice

On our second day in Italy we took a day trip to Venice!

This was the day that I realized that my trip through Europe had officially taught me how to sleep in a moving vehicle, because I slept from the minute I sat down on the train to Venice until we arrived.

It was fantastic.

We had one goal for Venice: to get lost.

Let me tell you, it wasn't hard to do. 

We spent the day wandering the squares of Venice, looking at artwork and architecture, taking a gondola ride, and eating some delicious ravioli right there on the Grand Canal.

Venice is a dream.

Gondola riding with these lovely people! #venice

One year ago today I was eating the most delicious ravioli I've ever tasted on the Grand Canal in Venice right after a delightful gondola ride on said canal. What a dream it was. #venice #takemeback

What I loved most about this day was that it wasn't really anything special.

We were just able to wander around, get lost, and enjoy the unique beauty that is Venice.

The atmosphere was incredible, and it definitely helped that there were things like this happening throughout the city...

Venice, you treated us well.

It was a truly magical day.

My Month in Europe: Milan

We started off our day in Milan with a business visit to the AC Milan soccer stadium, which was pretty impressive despite not being a big soccer fan. 

^That's the face of a girl who's spent nearly a month traveling Europe and is so brilliantly exhausted.

Afterwards, we headed downtown near the Duomo and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping center for lunch and gelato!

We went to the most amazing gelato place, called Cioccolati Italiani!

(Side note - I just googled it for the correct spelling and the pictures made me incredibly nostalgic.)

This gelateria was incredible. 

They have chocolate fountains with three different types of chocolate, and thee best raspberry gelato my mouth has ever tasted and probably ever will!

With one bite of Italian Gelato my life was forever changed. I may have purchased gelato here three times today... #nevergoingbacktoamerica #italy #milan #gelato

Okay but really, I had 16 scoops of gelato in my 3 days spent in Italy.

I don't regret it.

After lunch and gelato (I swear, my memories of Italy revolve around when and where we got gelato) we had a business visit with World Expo 2015.
We had a beautiful view of Milan from their building and it was a really interesting visit!
It was crazy to think then that the event was still a year away, and now, as I'm writing this, we're almost a year beyond it.
Proof that I'm the most diligent blogger ever :)

From there we headed back to the main shopping area and toured the Duomo.
The Duomo is the third largest cathedral in the world, and I absolutely loved it.
It was the millionth cathedral we had seen in Europe, but easily the most impressive.

Visited the Duomo Cathedral today in Milan!

We spent the evening shopping (well, mainly window shopping), eating pizza and, you guessed it, gelato!

I bought a pair of jeans at Zara, drooled over purses at Prada, and savored every spoonful of Cioccolati Italiani gelato :)

It was a great Milano day.

My Month in Europe: From Munich to Milan

This day was our travel day to Milan!

You guys, this drive was honestly the most beautifully stunning drive of my life!

We went from Munich, Germany --> Rattenberg, Austria --> Lake Garda, Italy --> Milan, Italy.

We saw and drove through the Austrian Alps and then stopped for a while in the little Austrian town of Rattenberg. I immediately fell in love and Austria definitely made my list of places to go back to! 

Quick stop in Austria on our way from Munich to Milan! I will definitely be back to spend more time here one day. #austria

Rattenberg was so quaint and cute with the all of these amazing little shops.
One of the shops had just about every type of balsamic vinegar and olive oil you could imagine (among many other products) and I spent way too much time in there taste-testing them all!

I bought my mom blutorange (blood orange) balsamic vinegar and basilikum (basil) olive oil in these cute glass cork-top stackable jars.

I only spent a couple of hours in this charming Austrian town, but I will definitely be back to explore more of that beautiful country! #tbt #austria

I can't wait to go back to Austria some day, particularly Vienna.

From Rattenberg we traveled on to Italy.
As mentioned previously, this drive was absolutely stunning.
I was beyond exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep, but I wouldn't let myself because the drive was just perfect.

After traveling through the Austiran Alps we started to get into the rolling hills and vineyards in Italy.
It was a foggy day with some light rain, and I'm certain that Italy could not have been more beautiful than it was on our drive that day!

For dinner that night we stopped in Lake Garda, Italy.
Unfortunately, it was pouring rain and our choice of restaurant for dinner was rather unimpressive, but we did get our first taste of gelato, and it was divine.

Once we got to Milan and checked into our hotel, Hotel Raffaello, Katy and I went just across the street and had our first Italian pizza, and it lived up to all of our expectations!

Actually, it far exceeded our expectations, and we ended up going back the next night to get the same pizza for a midnight snack :)

We were off to a great start in Italy!