Anyway, I thought it might be nice to finish off my blogging with a quick rerun of the last three months and a top ten list of my favorite things I've done during this incredible summer. I've been trying to keep track of the best moments all throughout the trip, and it's been really hard to choose, but here's the finished result:
10. Mass at Sacre Coeur - Paris
We totally stumbled upon mass going on at the cathedral, and so we sat in the back and watched the end. It was absolutely beautiful, and the space was totally incredible. Afterwards, we wandered around Montmartre with other people from our group, which was also lots of fun.
9. Day Trip to Glendalough - Ireland
After weeks of being in cities, it was such a relief to get back to the country! Glendalough was absolutely beautiful, and it was definitely just what Ireland is supposed to look like. Hiking--even if we were schlepping our backpacks the whole time--was such a nice change from city walking and subways.
8. Bike Riding to the North Sea - Belgium
After our finals, we rented bikes and rode out to the North Sea with one of our professors. It was a really relaxing afternoon, and I had forgotten how much fun bike riding is. Seeing an actual beach was also a nice change, as was drinking good Belgian beer with a professor. Quite an afternoon.
7. Borghese Museum - Rome
Even though this museum was one of the smallest we saw on the whole trip, I absolutely adored the Berninis they had there! It was great to finally see them close up, especially after studying them so much in art class.
6. Pimm's at the Eagle & Child - Oxford
Even though it's totally full of Americans, my friends and I fell in love with the Eagle & Child here in Oxford. It's everything that a good English pub should be, plus they have the most delicious Pimm's I've ever had (Pimm's is a very British drink that involves fruit, lemonade, and cucumber--AMAZING). We spent many a Thursday night there :-)
5. Climbing the Fortress - Salzburg
Austria was one of my favorite countries we visited, and the views from the top of the fortress in Salzburg were just SPECTACULAR. It was, admittedly, quite a climb, but totally worth it in the end. That was such a fun day.
4. Churchill War Rooms - London
By far the coolest historical museum I've ever been to! I mean, the British Museum was absolutely spectacular, but I'm so interested in World War II history that I just had to love the War Rooms. They've been so perfectly preserved for the last sixty years... absolutely amazing.
3. Weekend in Lisbon
Okay, so I know that it's cheating to say that a whole weekend was a particular thing we did, but it was just so much fun! Good food, a great hostel, fantastic company, and beautiful architecture all over the place. What could be bad?
2. Our Last Dinner in Italy - Venice
The best food we had in Italy (which is saying something) with great company in a beautiful garden. Proves the worth of waiting to eat and finding a restaurant far away from the tourist centers. I'll definitely never forget that pesto.
1. The Vienna Philharmonic - Vienna
Listening to one of the greatest orchestras in the world in a beautiful concert venue. The finale of the Mendelssohn suite we heard was one of the most incredible musical moments of my life. Everyone should try to hear the Vienna Philharmonic at some point in their life.
So that's it! I--of course--also loved learning about art and music, eating lots of good food, and improving my photography skills (stuff like that), but those are the biggies. I hope that you've all enjoyed my blog all summer, and thanks so much for reading! I'll post a quick update on Sunday letting you all know that I've gotten home okay.
Happy end of summer, everyone...
Dara
promises, promises...
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