What’s been going on… Part 2

So, let’s see…I left off back on October 27, 2013, not including the random post from Cappadocia. I was in Rome with Jim and his dad. We had a great time and then Jim’s dad returned home while Jim and I remained in Italy a while before continuing on our way. I guess I should fill in the gaps. 

This post will cover the rest of 2013 and the very beginning of 2014

Torre Annunziata, Italy: Slept and relaxed, amazing pizza, gross trash-filled streets, Herculaneum 

We were staying in this town as a cheaper alternative to Naples. We needed some days to relax after 3 weeks of excessive sightseeing. It was not the nicest place in the world and honestly, not a town I'd return to. Herculaneum is highly recommended, however!

Jim: "That place was a bit of a shithole, except for the food. Also, the accommodations were quite nice."

Pompeii, Italy:  Pompeii with Meiling and Daphne, Merry-go-round wine evening, day trip and a very rough bus ride to Almafi Coast on Halloween, dinner in Sorrento, foggy day at Mt. Vesuvius, Hung out at a campground and binge watched Breaking Bad

We stayed in a nice bungalow at a campground only minutes from the Pompeii site. It was the perfect location. This part of Italy is beautiful.

Jim: "Lots of wine, Breaking Bad, and amazing ruins."

Naples, Italy: Museo Nazionale where all of the real artifacts are kept, The Secret Room, “themed” hotel

Naples...no reason to ever go back. This is the first city I have not felt safe in.

Jim: "It was ok."

 

Venice, Italy:  stay in Mestre (much cheaper!), Wandered a park, the snailicide - RIP, incredible glass mosquitoes, Meiling and Daphne randomly on a bridge, food, best bookstore ever, exploring

We made a huge mistake by walking along the water in the park. Crunch crunch crunch. Millions of tiny snails everywhere...it was the worst!! Venice is a gorgeous city, but definitely doesn't require more than a day or so. Small back streets are the best.

Jim: "Really cool. Very neat and unique place. I would have liked to stay there, but it was a touch too expensive."

Zagreb, Croatia:  Zvonimir!, ridiculously windy day, Holly!, Museum of Broken Relationships, Walk to the park/zoo, incredible food!, lots of street art, stop at Plitvice on extremely foggy day 

Surprisingly nice city. Plitvice Lakes National Park is absolutely incredible! It was so foggy, we could barely see any waterfalls, but that made it an even better and more unique experience. 

Jim: "Zagreb is an alright place. Plitvice is super cool, but regrettably not as awesome as it would have been during summer.

Split, Croatia: Old town, chestnuts, donut-like balls, day trip to Trogir, mountain w/ view

Definitely needed more time here, perhaps another trip is in order.

Jim: "Beautiful. Beautiful and I wanted to stay longer."

Dubrovnik, Croatia:  Awful walk up hill with bags, old town, walled city walk, arboretum at Tresteno, Ferry to Lopud, dog friend who came into bar, stormy afternoon with HUGE waves, café crawl, bye bye Holly, so many cats!, hike up big hill, Hunger Games 2, closed cave bar, scuba dive!, best gelato, Mexican restaurant

So once Holly departed, we ended up staying in Dubrovnik another couple weeks. I LOVE this place. It is so incredible there and the diving is absolutely amazing. Also, so many cats!! :)

Jim: "Probably my favorite city in Croatia. I felt almost as if I were in Game of Thrones."

 

Budva, Montenegro:  Walk the walls, lots of cats, organize last minute flight to Greece

Stopped here for a couple days. It was very beautiful but similar to all of the other places we'd visited recently. Unfortunately I can't find my pictures at the moment!

Jim: "I keep forgetting we went there, but it was nice."

 

Athens, Greece: Pantheon, Parks, Incredible food!, The Hobbit 2, Christmas, goat, friends, hot wine with honey, lots of down time, wandering

We spent several weeks in Athens. It is an amazing city. Such great food and people.

Jim: "It was very nice. Great ruins, great food, tasty tasty oranges, and it taught us to love olives!" 

Delphi, Greece: Gorgeous ruins and scenery!, picnic overlooking the valley, museum

I highly recommend a visit to Delphi for anyone in Greece. It is a very unique location. 

Jim: "Gorgeous and very picturesque setting. Very cool place."

Meteora, Greece: Amazing hikes, cloudy days, monasteries, New Years!, ridiculous firework echoes, tasty food, goat skull in cave, slip on moss, more hikes

This is easily one of my favorite places we've been so far. It is such a unique location and it is very peaceful.

Jim: "Never before I have enjoyed nearly slipping to my death hundreds and hundreds of times. Would do it again in a second."

Theselonikki, Greece: Walk along the shore, cafes, gyros

This was simply a stop along our way. Nothing special about it for the typical traveler.

Jim: "I can't remember Theselonikki. Don't write that, remind me. Oh yeah, I went to the dentist. I mean it was nothing super special. The boardwalk along the water was really nice. That's about it."

Istanbul, Turkey: Mosques, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Islam talk, Salep!, Basilica Cistern, Grand Bazaar, Turkish Ravioli, Ferry to Asia, failed attempt to walk across the bridge, boots, Turkish ice cream

I need to give Istanbul a second chance one day. It did not impress me, but I absolutely love Turkey, so maybe Istanbul isn't as bad as I think.

Jim: "I didn't like Istanbul, but we were in a heavily touristic area so I feel obliged to give it another chance someday."

So there you go. That sums up what happened between October 27 and early January. More to come soon, and this time I really do mean soon.