Time to get creative...

It's been some time since my last post.  I'm going to go ahead and blame that on the fact that my free time is being taken up not only be work and tons of homework (don't wait until the end of the semester to start your online biology class), but also because I'm trying to figure out how in the world I'm going to pay for this trip.  If it comes down to it, I can sell my car.  Which in some ways would be a smart thing to do, but it really is a last resort.  I haven't been able to work as much lately and needless to say, before you know it, you owe $2000 that you don't have.  So what are my options?  Well...

1. I'm selling stuff.  Probably almost everything I own.  Luckily I'm not too attached to material items.  This is for two reasons.  The first obviously is for money for the trip.  The second is because moving my trillions of boxes every few months or so in college is really becoming a pain.  And I want to move and store as little as possible before the trip.
2. Sell my body.  Plasma.  I need to go in to do this but it can be frustrating and time-consuming.
3. Give up school and work a ton... Just kidding.  Let's not do that.
4. Beg my family for money... Which is always fun.
5. Have a bake sale?

That's all my ideas for now.  Also I'm getting pretty tired.  But somehow, I've got to make some money this week.  Ideas are welcome (I say this to my imaginary audience, since as of now I don't share this blog.)

Sleep tight all!

Casa Rosa is the place!!

It is decided!  We will be staying in Casa Rosa when we go early to Rome.  I'm very excited.  I have heard nothing but good things about it.  Plus, we get a private bathroom!! (Turns out that's not always the case when trying to travel cheap.)  This is what I'm thinking for a rough agenda:

• FRIDAY
• 10:30am-Flight lands
• 12:30(ish)-Find our way to the hostel.  Leave bags there and go buy groceries for lunch
• 1:30pm-Official check in time.  Make lunch, pack lunch and things for Saturday and relax 
• Evening-Talk to the manager to find a great place for dinner and a night on the town!
• SATURDAY
• 8:30am-Tayler's going to go eat breakfast (good luck waking the guys up)
• 9:30am-Take a bus to the train station (I think) and head to SPERLONGA!
• Find out how to buy a spot on the beach, and enjoy the sun!
• Head back before dinner
• Find Brandon some egg pizza or gelato for dinner :P

More to come!

Paper due tomorrow, but I'm going to blog about Rome instead

Here's my plan right now (I should be writing a paper but I can't stop thinking about Europe).  When we arrive early to Rome (Stephen, Brandon and I are going two days earlier than the rest of the group.  Have I told you that?) we will go straight to our hotel by either bus or train.  Bus is cheaper but takes longer.  We are thinking of staying in a place called Casa Rosa.  It is small and just outside the city center but is supposed to be awesome.  We will probably get settled in there just in time to be ready for lunch.  I'm thinking to save money we should probably choose to eat out only one meal each day and maybe buy stuff for PB and Js or something for the rest.  Breakfast is included so we don't have to worry about that.  Then we can spend the rest of the day relaxing and exploring and just soaking in Rome.  I'd like to get a little taste of night life, but we don't want to be up too late because Saturday morning I want to take an early train to...

Sperlonga!

It's a beach about an hour train from Rome and it's supposed to be beautiful.  It's a small town on a hill that used to be a medieval fortress!  I've heard of this thing called a BIRG ticket that can hopefully get us there and back for $10 each.  The alternative is like 8 Euros each both ways and possibly more to get to the train :/  But we will figure that out in time.

I just can't stop thinking about the trip... and how I'm going to pay for it.  I'm kind of stressed right now because the only way I can see myself going is by selling my car... I'm going to cry... I love that car so much but I just can't afford to even have it right now... sigh...  Hopefully I will figure out something.  Maybe my mom will buy it and then I can buy it back one day :)  Haha wishful thinking I suppose.  I'm selling my iPad tomorrow and I still have to do my tax returns, but I don't think that will turn into $6000... but I shall make it happen!  Somehow.

I'm so tired.  And I have class at 9 and before class I have to be ready for a wedding that will be an all day thing... and I still have a midterm paper that's due before midnight tomorrow... so I should probably prioritize.  TTFN

Eat All the Foods!

So being that we are going to have almost 3 days in Rome by ourselves, I've started looking in to things we can do (besides the normal touristy things, since we will be doing those later).  One important aspect, especially for me, is that we find some good food.  I love food, probably more than I love most things, and the last thing I want is a bad food experience in a place that is known for delicious food.  I stumbled upon a couple sites that claim to have found the good local places as opposed to the tourist traps, so hopefully they won't lead us astray.
http://www.revealedrome.com/2010/08/mistakes-not-to-make-when-planning-your-trip-to-rome-and-italy.html
http://www.parlafood.com/colline-emiliane-regional-cuisine-rome-trevi/

On the subject of food, we decided to add an extra element to our trip; we are going to go to McDonalds in every place we visit.  Foolish?  Maybe.  But maybe this will keep the potential home sickness at bay.  Supposedly MickyDee's tastes a little different in each country, and we'd like to put that to the test, and maybe reinforce just how crappy American fast food is.  Also, I hear word that the McDonalds by the Spanish Steps in Rome has marble walls and a gelato bar.  Just throwin' that out there.

Now that I've made my hungry, it's time for lunch.  Next time I will probably return with some ideas of where to stay in Rome.  TTFN

But what will I wear?

So today I spent a decent amount of time thinking about what to pack for the trip!  We were provided with a basic list of what to bring, but I wanted to evaluate my wardrobe and think about what outfits I could make.  I saw a post where someone created 40 outfits with 16 items, so I attempted to do something similar.

This is what I've got so far.  I think this is a good start.  There is a lot of room for mixing and matching.  I'm kind of excited.  :)  

Today we also decided that we are going to go to Rome two days early!  It's going to be so much fun.  Now I just have to find a cheap hotel for those days.  We are hoping to go to a beach, so maybe one close to that.  :)

I'm pretty tired, so that's all for now.  One day closer!

We bought our flights! So much to think about!

Welp... we officially bought our flights!  Originally we ("we" most often is going to refer to Stephen, Brandon, Alex, and Me) were considering staying an extra weekend to go to Venice or Greece, but since none of us have been to Europe, we thought it best to not tackle it alone.  But hopefully we will be able to go to Rome early and soak up the sun there a little longer.

A big reason I wanted to start this blog is so I can keep track to the things I want to do in Europe!  I'm thinking about so many things, so I don't want to forget it all.

Today I stumbled upon a place in London called Richmond Park.  I really want to go there.  It has a bunch of wildlife and looks like a pretty place to relax.
www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/richmond-park

I also found a website where people post "gems" they find in cities around the world.  Definitely worth looking into.
http://www.greatlittleplace.com/search?q=London

That's all for now.  It's way past my bedtime.