Ciao Bella!

I shouldn't even be writing a blog post about Italy because words cannot describe how much I fell in love with this country. This was our first stop out of two for spring break, tough life, right? We left a little bit before 2 AM to catch the 52 to Victoria, and then another bus to Stansted Airport for a 7am flight. We arrived in Italy around 11am, I believe, and we all could not have been happier. There were a total of 11 of us and then Lauren and Rian met us at the airport, making it 13. 13 college students traveling through Europe for spring break…unreal.
We took ANOTHER bus to our air bnb located on the Amalfi Coast in Praiano, just next to Pasitano. When we arrived we all could not believe our eyes. It was BEAUTIFUL, with the most amazing view I, myself, have ever laid eyes on. The town was adorable. Little old Italian men strolling through smoking cigars, Rosa, who owns the market just up the road, was an elderly lady who I couldn't tell if she hated or loved us (she gave us mixed signals but we also gave her enough business that she could have retired 10 years ago), and the local pizza shops that made authentic Italian food. I was in heaven.
We were dead tired and passed out by 8pm that night but made up for it the next few days.
I woke up at 630 am, showered, Tommy made breakfast, we made coffee, and I sat out on the porch with my journal. Who do I think I am? For the first time in forever I felt 110% content with everything around me (wait till you see the view I had and you'll understand).
We visited the Amalfi Coast (very cute town) and Capri. I want to focus on Capri because it literally stole my heart. Capri is where my parents went for their honeymoon and now I see why they chose that as their destination. The people there (and in all of Italy) are so sweet. You can tell they live happy lives just by looking at them, ya know? As I was exiting a store an employee even looked at me and went "Excuse me? Smile! *insert me smiling* Brava!" I mean let's be real here am I supposed to be smiling the whole time I'm looking at souvenirs? Probably not because then I'd look like a psycho but he put a smile right on my face. Just genuinely happy people. I can't say it enough.
For lunch, we overlooked the town of Capri (photo below) and I had gnocchi. Overpriced, but amazing.
We took a boat ride with Alessandro and it was unlike anything I have ever experienced before. I had tears in my eyes. As sappy as it sounds, I had moments on that boat. Does that make sense? In that very moment as I was looking at my surroundings I truly appreciated my life in every aspect. It's not normal that a 21 year old gets to live in Europe and travel to countries like Italy for break. I felt so extremely lucky. And I still do. Alessandro also reminds me of my Papa, or what I picture him to be like if I would have been so lucky to know him before he passed. But the funny thing is, he also reminded me of my Gramps. I was pouring the last drops of my wine into my cup and when I realized I had no more I looked at Alessandro, shrugged, and then we both laughed. There was something about Italy that I just felt a connection to.
Now although I didn't get to see the town of Caltabellotta, I'll be back in Italy, I know it. Traveling abroad has made me appreciate the world around me immensely and I think that is why I loved Italy so much because it truly showed me how beautiful the world can be. I have always seen pictures but nothing compares to seeing it with your own eyes. Right now, Italy is my favorite country I've been to, and I don't see that changing in the future.