Spring Break!

Hi friends!
Sorry it has taken me so long to get this post up.  I have been one busy lady! (well, not since I have got back. My friends and I have been taken it easy these past couple days!) In this post I will go over a little of what I did over spring break and then I will put the pictures in another post.  So April 7th was the start of the coolest spring break ever!  We flew to the Greek Island, Zakynthos, that night and got a taxi to our hostel. We got to stay on the Island 2 days and that was not enough time!!! I loved the island because everyone is extremely friendly and we could rent a car and drive around the whole thing in just one day! Our hostel was also wonderful (Kavos Psarou, if you ever go to this island STAY HERE). The owners went out of their way to give us breakfast, lower our nightly rate, and set up a car rental. After our stay was over we took a ferry and bus to Athens, where we stayed for the next three days.  For people like me who really like Greek history, seeing all the ancient buildings was a dream come true.  However, three days was enough for Athens. Its dirty and less friendly but we still had a great time.

Next it was off to Roma! Our hostel there was literally two blocks away from the colosseum and it was culture week in Italy so all the public museums were free! There are also a lot of other cool ruins in the area which was so fun to see. The next day we went to the Vatican and guess who was giving mass that day?! The Pope! We also went in the vatican and saw the Sistine Chapel and tons of art.  Did I mention that while here our diet has consisted of pizza and gelato? The next day we did some shopping and I got the cutest pair of Italian leather pumps, so worth it! Florence was next for three days.  Here we saw the David up close.  We also toured a former Medici castle (they had a section on dress and I loved it!). By this time we were pretty worn out so we took a lot of naps here. The last day we spent in Pisa, and I wish we could have stayed longer.  There is really only the leaning tower here (which is pretty leany if I do say so myself) but the town is very charming and felt less touristy.  We left on the 19th and came back to some lovely Hatfield weather!

London, Oxford, and a little Harry Potter

This weekend was a busy one!  On Friday, my friends and I took a little trip into London for the first time in a month!  We have been so busy traveling to other countries that we haven't got the chance to go back until this weekend.  While I was there my fellow Theta, Madeline, was visiting from Italy! So, we went on this free tour (its called Sandeman's New Europe and you just tip at the end based on how good you think the tour guide did) and learned some history behind all the buildings we have been marveling at.  We also took her to Camden Market and introduced her to the best donuts in the world!  I think it is safe to say she would agree with that statement. :)

Madeline and I at Trafalgar Square in London

On Saturday, we took a trip to Oxford through the school for study abroad students.  Best part about Oxford is the fact the Harry Potter was filmed there!!!! The college buildings are super old which makes them perfect for certain scenes that involve the Hogwarts Castle.  After they took us around to see all the buildings that make up Oxford University (which are a lot by the way) they then took us to this really ritzy shopping center.  Why? I have no idea because there was not many things I could even think about buying.  However, I did fall in love with a store called Cath Kidston which I like to think is very similar to Vera Bradley (which I also love).