roadtrip mania

It feels weird blogging from home. Out of place or something. Oh well. I'll get used to it.

So after almost four months of being barely connected, I am not the social media queen. Let me just lay this out for you... I have texting, twitter, facebook, instagram, tumblr, CollegeFashionista, blogspot, pinterest, annnnddd I think that's it. I have to have a bunch of those for CollegeFashionista but what a change from not even a month ago.

This winter break has been road trip mania.

First, a couple days after Christmas, my family (there's six of us) and my cousins (there's six of them) rented an RV to drive up to NEW JERSEY. Yes, this actually happened. As we hit the curb and the thing almost flipped over while we were pulling out of my driveway at 5 in the morning I couldn't help but think how I went from traveling all over Europe to being crammed in an RV like the Griswalds.

With the exception of the storage door flying open on 95 and all of our beer and coolers tumbling into oncoming traffic, and slamming into a pole at the gas station on the way home, it was pretty uneventful. And the space on the RV made the 10 hour trip go by much faster. And of course, Jersey was fun and being with my fam bam was really nice.

That might have sounded sarcastic, but I'm actually serious.

cousin roasting by the fire

what a beauty

the citayyy

Road trip number two was to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl. After extreme family bonding and lotssss of car time, I was a little skeptical about getting back in the car for 14 hours there and 14 hours back within three days. BUT I was wrong. I had such a great time and absolutely loveee nola. Need to back. Asap. Actually right now would be great.

We left at 4:30 am on Jan 2nd. And of course, we broke down at 6:15. Of course. Typicalities my friends, typicalities. We hung out at a sheets for an hour and a half, I won 20 bucks in the lottery, and became best friends with Kathy who works the cash register. Could have been worse.

When we finally arrived in Nola it was great. Ate crawfish, beignets, and pralines, listened to live music, ran along the river, went to the SUGAR BOWL and sat in amazing seats (casual), and totally hated loved Bourbon street. I mean... how could you not? Unless you're the most boring person in the world.

As you can see, I clearly had a horrible time.

Finally, road trip number three wrapped up today. This one was only three hours, such a baby, in infant practically. We went down last night and came back this afternoon. My dad, brother and I ran a half marathon there this morning. And guess what? I didn't die and actually came in third in my age group. I was so worried I was going to be horrible. I mean I've been training and running but there's just been a lot going on. I don't think I'm going to be able to walk tomorrow but no worries. Why would I want to walk anyways? And my dad and brother did AWESOME.

After all of the places I've been lately I still think Ocean Isle Beach is one of the prettiest places in the world. I love it there. It's so peaceful and natural.

Sunrise. Best time of the day.

My sister

I've had a great break. Being back in America has been even better than I thought it would be and it's been so nice spending time with my family. My next post will probs be from NOVA akvnowdi!!!vnadionw can't believe I am going back on Wednesday... driving 8 hours... moving into a house... I'm sure there will be stories to tell.... alrightyyyy

ciao ciao for now yallllll

finito

So here I am. Back in NC. Sitting on my couch, watching the Polar Express, feeling like the past three and a half months didn't even really happen. I've been back for four days and it's been great. Home is always great. It's home. I guess I thought maybe it would feel different here, but it's still the same. Not much has changed. Which could be the comforting thing about home you know what I mean?

I was nervous that I was going to have culture shock, but it hasn't been too bad. I've only called money euros once, my bed feels like the size of Montana, and I almost had a nervous breakdown at the mall yesterday. But you know, I think that would have happened no matter what. It was crowded and hot and I couldn't find anything I wanted and everyone was breathing down my neck and I wanted to shoot myself.

Now that we are past the dramatics, it's been so nice being home with my family (and big coffees). And you know, it's the most wonderful time of the year, what's not to love? But when people ask me about how my semester went, I don't even really know what to say. It was amazing. It was eye opening, perspective changing, fast-paced but relaxing, I learned so much, about everything, but most of all, it was fulfilling.

Maybe I'm capable of more than I thought I was. Maybe we are all capable of more than we think we are. Sometimes you just need a little change of perspective to see it. But life is short, and things can change with the blink of an eye, so whatever you want to do in live, do it now; for life is time and time is all there is.

cioa ciao for now lovers.

Sentimental Post

Alright.

Here's my sentimental post about what I am going to miss. Things are getting real emotional over here and it's kind of throwing me off. I'd rather not deal with sad people and myself being sad. No thanks.

So things I am going to miss...

1. My roomates. I seriously lucked out. Somebody must have been looking out for me because they are awesome. I have learned so much from them, and so much about myself from them.  And here I was thinking I was going to get stuck with the freaks of the world for 4 months... it could not have been more opposite.

2. Being able to walk everywhere. I know I complain about the hike up the mountain, and lugging my groceries (which is still annoying), but it is SO nice just being able to walk out your door and go out, or go to dinner, or to your friend's house. I have a small love affair with the outdoors and I feel like I get to spend so much time outside here walking. I am going to miss that.

3. My food class and my food teacher. Honestly, at the risk of sounding like a complete nerd, I loved every second of that class. I found it so interesting. And guess what? I just finished my exam and since I got all of my multiple choice questions right this semester I got all of this really expensive Tuscan chocolate. Get at me. **Villanova (or my dad) take note: if you offer the promise of chocolate as a reward for getting every question right, I will succeed**

4. The food. It's incredible.

5. Italians.  They are great people. I wanted to come here because I loved the things that Italians value in life.  After this semester I can say that all of those things have been confirmed and even more have been added.  They appreciate good meals, fresh food, the outdoors, their family, playing the accordion just because they feel like it and Christmas.  They understand the importance of their history, the beauty of a mid evil church, the spectacular renaissance art.  A day isn't complete without a good glass of wine with dinner and a strong espresso in the morning. They take siestas and sometimes don't feel like going to work on Mondays.   They are romantic and passionate. They live. They live simply and fully and for the most part, happily.  And maybe that's what I needed. Maybe I needed to go to a place where there's not stress streaming through the air. I understand that I don't need to breath in that stress and get caught up in it, but it sure is a hell of a lot easier to not do that here. And I'm going to miss that. A lot.


Ciao ciao for now lovers.

last sunday

So it's my last Sunday in Italy.

HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE

Since I know I'm going to miss a lot about this country and it's going to take me some time to figure out what things are blog worthy, today I'm going to talk about what I'm NOT going to miss (I feel like I sound like a lecturer). Plus, I'm just not really in a sentimental mood right now.

Things I'm not going to miss:

1. Almost getting hit by either a bus or a car at least once a day. I'm over it. Get me a damn sidewalk or don't let cars drive in PEDESTRIAN areas. I almost got my arm ripped off on my walk up to school today by a car. I'm serious.

2. My washing machine that makes your clothes smell worse after you wash them. It's like mold central in that thing. Gross.

3. Hiking up the mountain every time I have to go anywhere. At first I was all "Oh this is great! It's like an extra workout!" Yeah... No. Not after you already ran 10 miles and your legs are burning in agony because they don't feel like moving anymore.

4. Getting creeped on by every Italian man in Perugia. Sistergirl wanted to haul off and smack the guy who followed me around like a lost puppy last night. Clearly if I walk away whenever you come up to me, I don't want to talk to you. Take a hint buckey.

5. The seating situation in my apartment. These are my choices: a wooden chair or my bed. And guess what? I don't like sitting in my bed unless I'm going to sleep. So I sit on the wooden chairs. Which are the most uncomfortable things in the world. Honestly, couches are God's gift to earth.

6. The internet. Enough said.

Never again will I take sidewalks, a good washing machine, a flat walk to class, normal boys, a couch, and internet for granted.


I'll probs be more sentimental tomorrow. Because I really am going to miss it here contrary to my rant.  Really. So look for a postie then.

ciao ciao for now dearies.

hiiiiii sorry its been 20 years since my last post

Alright let me think.

SO last Thursday I went to Rome to meet my Mom and MA. I love Rome. It's what made me want to come to Italy. I just think it's a fantastic city. You're walking around, shopping or whatever, and oh look, there's the Vatican and the Pantheon and the Colosseum. Cool. Casual. No big deal. It just amazes me.We basically just bopped around and ate amazing food (that I didn't have to pay for, thank you Jesus). And then I got to sleep in a real bed in a hotel with sheets that don't fall off in the middle of the night. Small miracle.

On Friday morning I got up and ran along the Tiber River. No big deal. And we headed to Orvieto, a small town an hour outside of Rome. We rented a car here which was interesting. Italians don't believe in stoplights, or following any traffic rules whatsoever. So here's the deal with Orvieto. Back in the day this priest had major doubts about the Eucharist and such. Then, during one mass, the Communion bled real blood on the altar's cloth. Everyone thought it was so amazing that they needed to build a church for the relic. So, this is what they came up with...

Let me tell you something. Sistergirl has been in more churches in the past three and a half months than she probably ever has in her entire life. I'm practically a church expert these days. But what's amazing about them is that all of them are so unique. And it really does blow my mind that someone could actually build and construct something so massive and ornate. Unreal.

On Saturday we drove to Spello and stopped at this little vineyard on the way. We rang the doorbell and this guy answered and invited us in and just gave us our own private wine tasting. Only in Italy.

Spello was beautiful and afterwards we went to Assisi. That night we headed back to Perugia. I was excited for my mom to see where I live and what I do here. It's such a great place. We ate pizza and eggplant parm, shopped around, walked to all the amazing views, and stayed in a beautiful hotel. It was so nice having her here.

Quick story: Sunday night we went to dinner at a place that I had never been to before. The menu was in fancy Italian, not the basic stuff that I know and no one spoke English there. In my broken Italian I asked the chef (who was taking our order) to bring us out his favorite appetizer. Ten minutes later the waiter comes out with, I'm not even kidding, a raw hamburger.

I am not a huge meat fan. And raw meat? Oh good God. So we tried a bite each. I'm not trying to be a baby here. And it was kind of nasty. The waiter cleared our dishes and brought them back into the kitchen, which has glass windows so that you can see inside. When he walked back in he said something and everyone started laughing and looking at us.

Hey buckies we don't eat raw hamburger in Amurica.

All of the sudden the chef comes busting out of the kitchen wondering why we didn't like his food and saying how good it is (Italians are offended if you don't eat every last bite). So then we became his little project. He was a food pusher all night. Kept checking on us to make sure we were eating. And we were! My mom got this chestnut soup that was DANK.

So here's the raw meat...

Monday afternoon after some pizza my mom and MA headed back to Rome to fly home and I headed back to school to do actual school work (yes, its true, I do have some work here)

And now I only have a week left in fantasy land. And just when I thought this dream life couldn't get any dreamier, my roomate and I threw a Christmas party for our program at our favorite bar last night. It was decorated and I made a great playlist if I do say so myself, and I even bought real live mistletoe at the organic market last weekend.

Of course it had to rain last night and while I was walking up to my friend's apartment with my computer and the mistletoe and my high heels in my bag, I slipped and went down hard completely crushing the mistletoe with my computer in my bag. So it looked a little mangled last night, but what are you going to do? It was only a matter of time before I really fell. And to think I almost made it to the end with no falls... Damn Uggs with their slippery bottoms...

I have my Italian final tomorrow and I have successfully done everything I can think of to procrastinate my studying. I've gone for a run, cooked breakfast for my roomates, cleaned my apartment, showered, called my mom, skyped my friend, uploaded pictures to Facebook, and now I'm blogging. Good Mol, good.

But it's Christmas heaven here right now. There are lights everywhere and even though half of them blink like they're on speed which gives me a headache, they are gorgeous. I am getting ready to come home, my jeans have holes in the knees, the soles of my boots are ripping off, my purse is falling apart, my hair needs to be cut, and I really would like to sleep for a week straight. But I'm going to have mixed emotions. I love it here.

Anyways. I'm rambling. Ciao ciao for now lovers.

heaven on earth

I, Molly Elizabeth, am madly and deeply in love with Cologne, Germany.

I think it might be a perfect place. First and foremost, the whole city literally looks like the North Pole exploded all over it.  There were Christmas decorations everywhere. In restuarants, clothing shops, grocery stores, and hotels. The Christmas markets were phenomenal. There were 7 total throughout the city and guess what? I went to every single one.

On Friday night, after 10 hours of traveling (not an easy place to get to from Italy) I strolled into one of the markets packed with people drinking spiked hot chocolate and buying Christmas ornaments while huge lit paper stars hung in the trees above and what do I hear? All I Want For Christmas is You playing from the speakers tucked behind the trees. I don't think I've ever had a more perfect moment in my life.

Pictures do not even do the Christmas spirit in the city enough justice.

So other than Christmas what is so great about Cologne? Well let me tell you. The people were super friendly.  We would be standing on the sidewalk looking at our map and someone would come right up to us and ask what we were looking for and if they could help us.  The shopping was fab. Too bad I have no money left.  It was such a cool mix of trendy and tradition.  We saw great clothes and ate pumpkin soup served in a jar in a cafe with hot pink walls, but we also went into the gorgeous Duomo and felt beautiful handmade wool hats at the markets. Everyone rode bikes everywhere, the city was big but fairly walkable, and there were young people everywhere.

And just to add the cherry to the top, there is a park with trails that circumferences the entire city making it easily accessible from pretty much everywhere. And guess what? I ran on it and there were SO many runners. Perfect place. I'm telling you.

And guess what? People thought I was German. More than once. For the first time this whole semester I wasn't sticking out like a sore thumb.  It was kind of weird going back to blending in, not going to lie.

In other news, I found out this week that I got an internship to write for college fashionista next semester and I'm SO excited about it (check out the website it's pretty cool)

My mom is coming tomorrow!!! dooinvoinwidnivwnd !!!!

She's actually in the air as we speak! We are meeting in Rome tomorrow, going to Orvieto on Friday, and then possibly Spello on Saturday, and Perugia Sunday and Monday.  It should be a really great weekend.  I'm taking the 5:50 train tomorrow morning to Rome. Guess what time it is right now? 12:30.

Yep.

Okay.

Goodnight. Ciao ciao for now lovers

happy thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving dearies!

Big things happened in Perugia today. I, Molly Elizabeth, successfully made a turkey complete with stuffing and gravy. And it was DANK. Let me tell you, this was no easy feat.

It all started last week when I had to go order my little tacchino (this was when I slammed my finger in the door and thought I broke it).  Then, last night, I stopped in to see if I could pick it up. Si, si, says the butcher.  A couple minutes later he comes out of the back room holding a turkey by it's legs that is legitimately the size of a small child. The thing was so large I had to cradle it in my arms like a baby while its little leg almost kept poking me in the face for the 15 minute walk home. Never again will I take for granted being able to drive my groceries home. But this was only the start of the 24 hour bond sesh I had with little tacchino. I let him brine in my kitchen all night, stuffed him this morning, rubbed him down with some spices, and literally crammed him into our tiny oven. Then, when he was finally done, I carried him back uphill to our friends apartment on a cookie sheet. I thought my back was going to break in half. And I got some weird looks. Wonder why.... It was a labor of love let me tell you. I almost felt slightly sad when I finished carving it up. Weird? Yes.

There he is! All crammed in the oven!

And I made an apple pie.

Thanksgiving was great though. All of my friends made great food as well and it was so nice having MG here. We sat around for 4 hours chatting, eating, and listening to Christmas music. It really was the perfect Thanksgiving away from home. 

But on a holiday that is so centered around family, I am missing mine big time. I have a fantastic family. Great parents, great siblings. I could not be more thankful for them and all the things they do for me.

On a less serious note, guess what time it is?

It's Christmastime!!!!!!fvnoendwinvidowvno!!!!!!!! 


I'm going to Germany tomorrow morning to see the best Christmas markets in Europe and I literally am worried that I am not going to make it through the weekend. I might die of happiness. I just might. 


Oh God. And Frank Sinatra's Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas just came on. Melts my heart. 


I'm going to be the most annoying grandma ever. Can you imagine? The thought is actually terrifying. 


Alright. I should sleep. Gotta get up in 5 hours. Yayyyyy. Who needs sleep anyway? 


But have the best Thanksgiving. Eat until you feel sick, watch football, be with your family, laugh when you have to repeat yourself 70 times because great grandma can't hear you, make turkey sandwiches for days and eat stuffing tomorrow morning for breakfast, listen to Christmas music, be thankful and enjoy every minute of it. 


Ciao ciao for now lovers