A whole lot of chaos

I will keep this short and sweet since I updated everything on social media as we went!

5/15: I met Izzy at the airport in Budapest and we grabbed lunch before our flights. Unfortunately, our first flight got delayed and Izzy’s bag had to be checked which resulted in it not making it onto our next flight. We sprinted across the Zurich Airport before hopping onto our flight to Venice. Once we landed in Venice, we learned that Izzy’s bag would be arriving the next morning so we bought our public transport passes and exchanged money. A few missed buses later, we ended up at the train station where we grabbed a quick dinner and headed to the hostel. We checked in and called it a night.

5/16: We grabbed breakfast at a cafe close to the hostel, and decided to go to the airport to grab Izzy’s bag. We were back by early afternoon, and Izzy got cleaned up for a trip into the city. We took a bus and a water taxi, and finally landed in Venice. We grabbed lunch at a cute local bakery and walked around to see some sites. We had a few drinks throughout the day and decided on a design your own pasta bowl for dinner. We headed back to the hostel and called it a night.

5/17: We woke up early again and headed back to Venice for breakfast and exploring a local district. We grabbed some lunch items for our train ride at a local grocery store. We found some souvenirs grabbed a prosecco and waited for the train. Izzy slept for a good chunk of the train trip which was about 4 hours long. We made it to Rome and walked to our hostel. We got checked in to the hostel and met 2 guys from Minnesota - unfortunately they ended up being NDSU grads but we chatted it up for a bit before they had to go catch their train. Izzy and I then took a walk around the city and found dinner at a local restaurant. We had some traditional Roman pisa and a bottle of wine! We walked back to the hostel and got some much needed sleep.

5/18: Izzy and I headed off to find the Big Bus Tour stop, we hopped on and enjoyed the cruise around the city. We used it as a form of transportation the rest of the day. We stopped at the colosseum to grab some photos and met the cutest couple who traded us to get pictures. We ate lunch at a shop nearby where I tried a veal sandwich (very tasty). We were able to watch some of the Pope’s inaugural speech while we were fighting traffic on the bus too. We explored a few more districts in Rome and I stopped for a bellini and Izzy grabbed some gelato. We grabbed dinner at the same place as the night before (minus the whole bottle). Afterwards, we hiked over to the Trevi fountain to throw in our coins.

5/19: We decided to hike all the way to the Vatican City, because why not? We almost died on the 2 mile walk to and from but it was definitely worth it! On the way, we grabbed coffee and breakfast at a local bakery and watched JD Vance’s escort drive by! We continued our trek by stopping at the Spanish Steps and grabbing a bite from the famous McDonalds nearby. We did a little clothing shopping, and continued our trek to the Vatican City. We finally made it and went through security before walking into the city! Truly one of the highlights of our trip everything was gorgeous. We started the long walk back by grabbing another round of drinks and snacks. Afterwards, we walked to the Limone dessert shop where I got a limoncello sorbet inside a lemon! We continued our hike back to the hostel and got packed up for the next travel day.

5/20: We hopped on the train from the station to the airport and were off to Budapest. Once we landed, we had plenty of time to sit around and wait for the air bnb to be ready. We grabbed brunch, and chilled in a park for a bit. After a few hours, we found a cafe where we grabbed some more coffee and relaxed indoors before the bnb was ready. Check-in time finally rolled in and we got in I did some laundry and went to a grocery store close by for dinner. We had a very lowkey night in and I tried to catch up on sleep before Jaeda and Gabby arrived.

5/21: Izzy and I grabbed breakfast nearby at a cafe and spent the time relaxing before meeting Jaeda and Gabby at the bus stop. After a round of hugs, we headed back to the hostel to drop off their bags and let them freshen up. We grabbed dinner on fashion street and did some sight seeing. We called it an early night since we all had 6 am flights the next day.

5/22: After arriving at the airport, we grabbed breakfast and then I said my goodbye to Izzy; Jaeda, Gabby, and I got ready to board our flight to Athens. After making it to Athens, we found our way to the hostel and dropped off our bags. We found a brunch place close by, and made our plans for the day. We decided to walk around the Plaka district where I bought a pair of sandals! Back at the hostel, we took a quick cat nap and were off to the Acropolis/Parthenon walking guide tour. About 2 hours later, we had hiked all the way up the Acropolis and enjoyed the views until it closed up. We grabbed dinner at a Greek restaurant and crawled into bed.

5/23: We were up early to head to the island of Hydra, a close by island that is famous for cats and donkeys. We did some sightseeing and ended up relaxing along a rocky beach. All 3 of us hopped into the chilly water and enjoyed the fact we were actually swimming in Greece. We headed back to Athens and grabbed dinner before going to sleep.

5/24: Another early morning as we headed off to Aegina Island, known for its famous pistachios. We grabbed lunch once we got there right along the beach. The family behind us was visiting with their waiter and after a little eavesdropping we learned that their son is currently on a cross-state trip through Montana - what are those odds! Naturally, I turned around and we visited a little and I gave him some recommendations of things to see. On top of their son being in Montana, we learned that their waiter’s dream was to go to Montana and see a cowboy! So of course, we had to visit with the waiter about what life was like in Montana! He was super sweet and ended up giving us a list of recommendations on the island. We headed off to see the famous umbrella street and did some souvenir shopping, before heading to one of the beach bars he recommended. We grabbed a round of drinks and changed into our swimsuits. We headed over to the much sandier beach for some tanning and a dip in the water. After a few hours there, we walked back to the main street for some pistachio themed desserts. Before long, it was time to head back to Athens. We grabbed dinner close to the hostel again, and I walked Jaeda back to the hostel. She got some much needed sleep, while Gabby and I stayed up til 2. We headed back to the hostel to pack our bags and wake Jaeda up so that we could head back to the airport.

5/25: Our day started impossibly early, and after sleeping on our two flights from Athens to Ljubljana we were ready to call it a day. However, our hostel wasn’t ready for us so we dropped off our bags and grabbed some much needed coffee. We took a trip over the Ljubljana Castle and did an audio guide. It was a great way to see the city from above and appreciate the outdoors. We headed back to the hostel in the afternoon and accidentally slept until the next morning!

5/26: We started the day bright and early. We did another walk around the river, and grabbed breakfast. it was a pretty quiet start to the day and afterward we grabbed a round of mimosas before hopping on a river cruise. The cruise was about an hour long and afterwards we did some more walking around the city. We saw the famous Dragon Bridge, Triple Bridge, and the love-lock bridge. We grabbed some more drinks and visited the big market area for more souvenir shopping. Afterwards, we grabbed a late lunch at a restaurant and shared an enormous pizza with lemonade. That afternoon we hopped on our bus to Budapest - which was a 6 hour long journey. Unfortunately, due to the lack of sleep the arrival from the bus station to the air bnb was a bit difficult. We grabbed KFC for dinner at the metro stop and then it took us an hour to find our sleeping arrangement.

5/27: Once we got it, we slept for about 3 hours before we were up to drop Gabby and Jaeda off at the airport. I called dad and visited with him for a bit before I was off to the train stop. The train was a long 2 hours, but once I was back I slept for another few hours. I woke up around noon, made some lunch and started studying for my final later that afternoon. Good news, I passed the final and the class so that is 4 credits done! I attached the audio portion of exam below if you want to hear some Hungarian. My next two finals are on the 4th and 5th of June!

5/28: I slept for most of the day, but we grabbed lunch at the canteen. Flora was off to take an exam, and I did some much-needed grocery shopping. I also wrote an email to one of my professors at SDSU that will be teaching here in Debrecen in the fall sharing some tips and things I have learned since being here!

5/29: Flora’s birthday! We didn’t do anything to crazy to celebrate but we did grab dinner at a local pub with the French girls. We also learned that traditionally in Bulgaria the birthday person pays for everyone else’s dinner and drinks… which felt wrong. We decided Flora could buy our drinks but not our dinner!

5/30: Charlotte was finished with her semester, so we headed to a cafe for brunch. Charlotte and Adeline interviewed Flora and I for their program about our time in Debrecen. Reality hit when we were back at the dorm saying our goodbyes. She flew out early the next morning, so she spent the night in Budapest. It was pretty sad to realize that our time together was coming to an end, but we are all pretty excited to back at our respective homes. I did some more grocery shopping and mailed out my last round of post cards before the family’s arrival in Europe. I have also started the job search for when I am back now that I don’t have classes!

5/31: Flora and I slept in, so we grabbed lunch at the cafe on campus. We decided we both needed to start studying for this week’s exams. We were in the Learning Center for a few hours before calling it a night. Today was also our branding day back home, and I would be lying if I said it wasn’t incredibly difficult to be missing another huge event! However, we are down to less than 2 weeks before i get to see the family (minus Jess).

Sorry I don’t have too many photos on here from my travels it was just too many photos to upload at once! Anyways, I will see you next weekend!