Day 60, 61, 62: I'm going to miss you Switzerland

Monday...

Started the day at the lab with some testing. We did the 4 marker stairs test with Heiner, Patric, and I. I began processing right away. Once I finish with the processing, I then transfer all of the data to another computer with MatLab, where I create Excel sheets which can be accessed in MatLab. Once the Excel sheets are created, we can look at different graphs and plotting of the data which allows us to analyze the results. The results were good. Successful day at the lab. After work I rushed to the grocery store to pick up some ingredients to make chocolate chip cookies for coffee break tomorrow. I thought it would be a good going away treat. At 6:00pm I meet Heiner, Patric, and a couple of there colleagues back at the lab. We went out for some beers. First we stopped at a brewery. Not much of a beer drinker, plus I thought I might have to pace a 10k for Joel so I only got a "special" coffee. Around 8:20pm we left in search of a good place for food. We ended up at a British pub known to have the "Best Burgers in Bern." They were tasty. Since it was now getting later and pacing Joel was no longer possible I decided to get a "special" cider. Talked, laughed, and had a blast until about 10:50pm when we called it a night.

The brewery was right next to the bear park. In the past the building was used to store trams.

Tuesday...

Final day in Bern. Bittersweet. I love this city. I could most definitely stay longer! However, I am very excited to see my family and friends tomorrow. Tomorrow. Wow, I cannot believe that two months have flown by this fast. I have made such close friends and it seems like I have known them for so much longer than only two months.

I went to the lab at 8:00 for our weekly meeting. We discussed the work we did yesterday and the schedule for the next couple of weeks. Once they started talking about things beyond today, I started to realize this is it. I couldn't stop from feeling sad. I will miss Switzerland. Once the meeting finished, there wasn't anymore work for me to do. We had our coffee break and gave the guys the cookies I made last night. They turned out pretty well. I microwaved them to make them a little warm and gooey. I printed out my plane ticket and talked with Patric until noon rolled around, which is when we get ready for our Tuesday run. Heiner, Patric, and I did a loop through the forest that lasted about an hour. I was really glad Heiner was able to join us this week as he has had trouble with his Achilles tendon. We got back around 13:30. Joel was meeting me at the lab at 14:00 so we could get ice cream at Sattler cafe. This meant I only had 30 more minutes at the lab. We all said our goodbyes. Heiner gave me a gift. And I walked out the lab for the last time. I have a feeling this will not be the last time I see Heiner and Patric though. At Sattler Cafe I got a free ice cream cone because the cone broke. I told the server that she could just put it in a cup and then handed her the money. She said "No, no. It's free." I offered to pay again and she kindly refused. I love businesses like this. Joel and I walked back to Tscharnergut. We decided to make a big pasta dinner with the food we still have left. I went to Coop one last time to get some vegetables.

I made the pasta and Joel made the feta bread from scratch. Delicious.

After dinner, we wanted to swim in the Aare one last time, but not at the Marzili. We invited Elfi (our friend that lives on our floor) after seeing her in the kitchen. We ran through the woods to a trail that leads down to the river. Dropped off our shoes and shirts and walked up stream about a kilometer for a good place to get in. At first it was a little bit sketchy and Joel was questioning if it was that smart of an idea but then we got to a wooden bridge that had a perfect spot to get into the water.

On the way to the River. These are the trails that I always run on in the forest.

The two tiny specks under the bridge are Joel and I. Thanks Elfi for taking the picture!

Best guy from Sweden.

Joel, Elfi, and I

What a way to finish my stay in Switzerland. Great times. Now I am just about fully packed. Only need to zip up my suitcases and drop off my keys tomorrow. I will be catching the 6:02 train from Bern to Zurich and will arrive around 7:30. My flight departs at 10:30.

Day 57, 58, 59: Last Weekend

Friday...

Worked with Heiner today. Patric left for a vacation. Heiner and I spent most of the day talking about ACL injuries, doping in sports, and other movement/sport science topics. We also talked about UofM and it turns out that Heiner has spoken with some people who do research at the School of Kinesiology. At 2:00pm a student and a doctor came into the lab to begin a study on how leg muscles react to a tibial shift. This is where the anterior cruciate ligament comes into play.

Saturday...

Headed to the Marzili for an afternoon of swimming in the Aare. It was 93 degrees out and had a real feel of 100. At 3:30 Joel met me with some of his friends. A Finnish and Swedish guy. We hung out at the park and whenever we felt the heat we walked a kilometer to a bridge.

This is the bridge I am always jumping from. It almost seems like it was built for jumping into the Aare.

Around 7:00pm I rode back to Tscharnergut to eat lunch and change. I met the guys back at a park in Old Bern around 8:30. I love the view.

I  made more friends with some people that the Finnish guy invited. They all worked at a horse stable. Two were riders that trained and showed the horses and two were groomers that took care of the horses. Really interesting people to talk to. We sat on the grass and enjoyed the night. As the night grew on, we went towards the city center to check out the bar scene. We ended up at the Reitschule, which is a....very....interesting place. Go to http://www.reithalle.ch/reitschule/info-en.html to learn more about the Reitschule.

Just a small fire in the middle of the road next to the Reitschule. Police and firefighters eventually put out the flames and returned Bern to its original state of complacency.

Back to the Switzerland everyone is use to. The capital building.

Sunday...

I have officially begun the packing process. I usually hate packing, but so far so good. Also, I have started cleaning my room. There is a long checklist I need to complete before I can check out. And the front desk has made it very clear in the form that if everything is not done a 50 frank per hour cleaning fee will be charged.

Day 54, 55, 56: Food and Friends

Tuesday...

Everything has been going good at the lab. Progressing day by day with the study. We returned to our weekly Tuesday meeting at 8am this week. Heiner was impressed with all of the work Patric and I had accomplished. Especially with the updated GUI (MatLab term) Patric developed. My side of work such as the processing is becoming easier and easier with the advances Patric has been making. Good news for me. After work, Heiner, Patric, Vera, and me went to an ice cream shop. Heiner passes it everyday to and from work and always notices a long line, but has never been to it. He thought it would be a good idea to see what the buzz is about. And boy am I glad we did as I'm sure everyone knows I love ice cream.

Caffè Bar Sattler. This place has the best gelato in Bern. The owners go to Italy for recipe ideas and certain ingredients. Not too bad of prices either for Switzerland. I got a cone with 3 scoops (chocolate, nutella, and coffee). Delicious.

Wednesday...

Tscharnergut. Home away from home. Taken on my way into work.

A physiotherapist was at the lab today. I have talked about him before. He has just started a study to try to prove that his therapeutic shoes do in fact lead to gains in health. He had 15 or more patients come in and do the same procedure I did for him two weeks ago (I was the very first subject). While he was doing research on one side of the lab, Patric and I were also doing research on the other. We took measurements with the Vicon system. We set up stairs with the force plates. First we did the lower body model. I had to measure and place 15 markers on Patric starting at the anterior superior iliac spine going down to his feet. The lower body model is used to compute joint angles. Once finished, we moved on to our normal 4 marker foot model. Again he walked down stairs with the force plates. After work, Heiner, Patric and I rode our bikes (Vera is now letting me borrow hers) down to the Aare. Heiner has been working in Bern for two years, and Patric one, yet neither of them have swam in the Aare. Patric swam in it at his home town but the current isn't as fast there because it is a ways downstream. We walked to the bridge that I regularly jump from. To time our leap together we counted, "1, 2, 3! WOOO!" and splashed into the rushing water. They loved it. Heiner joked that it took until an American got here to get him to jump into the Aare. Once we dried off, we rode to Patric's place (about 7km away) where Vera was making dinner. She has a cousin that lives in Italy who has taught her some recipes so our dinner was Italian themed. We had wine, salad, 4 different kinds of pizza, all
followed by coffee and tiramisu for dessert. Simply delicious. The food and the friends made it a night I will always remember.

Thursday...

Highlight of the day- For lunch at work Patric shared leftovers with me from our dinner last night. When work was over I went to Denner and bought coconut Lindt chocolate. Everyday this last week I am trying to buy a new kind of chocolate I have never tried. I had pasta for dinner and then went for a nice run.

Day 52 & 53: ALETSCHGLETSCHER

Sunday...

Awoke at 4:50am to get ready for my hiking trip with Patric and Vera through the Swiss canton of Wallis (sounds like valleys). Our train was leaving Bern at 6:07 to arrive in at the Betten train station at 8:00. From there we took a mountain cable car to the village of Betten (first mountain cable car ride in my life and it was awesome).

View from the cable car. It gets better.

Starting at an elevation of 1,203 meters, we had a long way to go to get to the peak of Eggishorn. The plan was to walk up a trail that takes you through a pass onto the other side of the mountain where the Aletsch Glacier is in view. We would then walk along the mountainside until we reached a valley. From there we would choose based on the weather if we wanted to climb to the peak or take a tunnel made just for hikers through the mountain. The tunnel of more for tourists. The peak is for the real Swiss hikers. And now an assemblage of photos...

Church in Betten

View of Betten and the start of the trail. Matterhorn in the distance. The pyramid shaped peak with only the very tip covered in snow.

Pass onto the other side of the mountain

First view of the Aletsch Glacier AND a sheep! The Aletsch glacier is the largest glacier in the Alps. Length of 14 miles and covers 46 sq mi. More photos of sheep to come.

Couldn't stop taking photos of the spectacular scenery.

These guys were just stopping by on the trail to say hello. Well it sounded more like "Baaaaaa," but I knew what they meant. For some reason, they really liked licking our hands.

The vivid blue water seeping up from the fissures in the ice reminds me of Frost Glacier Freeze Gatorade. I want to drink it!

Switzerland, Earth

Patric

Into the snow

Peak of Eggishorn

Really cool restaurant near the mountain cable car station that would take us back down.

Rivella! To celebrate the conquering of my first mountain, Patric and I had a glass. The Swiss drink of choice. It may look like beer but it's a soda that has milk whey as an ingredient. It has a taste of its own. I like it. The perfect way to end the hiking trip. The glacier was spectacular and spanned across such a huge distance. It was impressive. Had a picnic on top of a mountain overlooking paragliders who were enjoying the warm updrafts produced by the terrain. By far my favorite hiking trip ever. Patric and Vera are such nice people. I'm glad I am sharing these experiences with them.

Monday...

Heiner's back! The lab is back to order. It was great catching up with him about his vacation. MatLab was down for some reason today so I wasn't able to do much work. Patric showed me how the machine he has created operates. It's hard to explain. There is a wooden structure built around a plate that has stairs leading up to it. Hydraulic motors move, shift, rotate, and shake the plate to produce randomized movements, which could be used to help strengthen muscles. Quite amazing that he built it.

Day 49, 50, 51: Great work week, now for a great weekend

Thursday...

Patric and I continue to complete tasks on our to-do list. We have done so much this week that I don't know if we will be able to catch Heiner up with everything at our meeting on Tuesday. After lunch, around 2:00, we started watching le Tour de France. Don't worry the computer I work on has two monitors so I was still working on one while I had the tour on the other. At 4:00, when I normally leave, it was down pouring outside. Not the best conditions for riding the bike back to Tscharnergut. Patric and I both stayed and watched the end of the tour. The rain let up some so I headed home. Of course I raced back as fast as I could from seeing the cyclist ride through the rain in the tour.

9th floor Tscharnergut decided to have a potluck for dinner! I made good ole American baked macaroni and cheese. Had to go to two different stores to find cheddar cheese and the store that had it only had one brand. And since it wasn't smoked cheddar I added some bacon to give it the smokey flavor. Turned out really well.

Here are the other dishes everyone else prepared. We have Swedish meatballs, Chinese stir-fry with sheep, Italian risotto with vegetables, Spanish tortilla, and German cheesecake. We also had some mojitos and wine to drink. Everything was delicious. It was the first time we've really spent some time together. It was a great night. 

Friday...

Patric made some big improvements in his Matlab syntax (I helped a little). It's exciting to see how far we have came from the time when I arrived. We got the results we wanted to around lunchtime so called it a day. At night I played ping pong with Joel. Last time I won the overall series, but he was on his A game tonight which switched the outcome.

Saturday...

Kambly makes the most known biscuit (cookie) in Switzerland. The main Kambly factory is in Trubschachen, about 50km away from Bern. I heard if you go to the factory, you can sample every cookie Kambly makes...for free! And after you decide on a favorite you can pick up a big bag for a good deal. Once I heard about this lovely place, I had to go. To make things better, the route from Bern to Trubschachen is through the Emmental, a scenic region of valleys and countryside. I thought if I am going to eat a bunch of cookies, I should probably bike there and back with Heiner's bike (thank you Heiner). I took pictures with my iphone of the route I planned to take.The route was pretty simple and getting out of Bern should be easy since I have been living here. Turns out getting out of Bern was the toughest part. I missed a turn and once I finally noticed I turned around to backtrack. This caused even more issues as I took a wrong turn on the way back. I ended up nearly all the way back at Tscharnergut. So I started my trip again. At least this time I was warmed up from the 30min ride around Bern. After two hours of cycling through hilly, winding roads through beautiful Swiss countryside I was rewarded with the Kambly Experience (it's what their website calls it).

I ate at least 20 different cookies. I never thought it would happen, but I actually didn't even try them all. 

Farming in Switzerland. I was going to take a lot of pictures of the route on the way back to Bern but right after this picture it started raining and thundering (even though it was still sunny). I left my room at 1:30 and got back around 6:30. In total I biked ~120km (75mi).

Sunset from the kitchen/common room balcony.

Day 46, 47, & 48: It's not work, it's a vacation!...ok it's kinda work

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday...

Patric and I are working in the lab all by ourselves this week. Lorenz has been on vacation for awhile now and  Heiner is for the week. Here is a picture Heiner sent me via email from southern France.

Someone is ready to do some hardcore mountain biking. 

Even though our boss is gone, Patric and I have been working harder than ever. Monday morning we began with testing. In the afternoon, I processed data while Patric improved the MatLab syntax. Tuesday we had our lunch run. Met up with one of Patric's colleagues from Holland who works in a building close by. I have a friend from Holland that I met here and after meeting Patric's colleague I have concluded that all Holland guys sound the same when speaking English. If a Holland guy was talking in a crowd, without a doubt I could pick him out. The lunch run was sandwiched between a morning and afternoon full of data analysis. Not the most fun, but definitely something that will put me a step ahead in my academic life at Michigan. We used today (Wednesday) as another test day. Recorded sessions of level walking and going up and down stairs. I began processing data after lunch and have more to do tomorrow. Missing Ursina's help. We would always split the processing duties between the two of us. My life outside of work these past three days has been quiet. I have been staying at the lab a little bit later so when I get back to Tscharnergut it's nearly time for dinner. I take my time cooking. Wait an hour or two and then head out for a run. I found some new trails to the west that are nice. The temperature has been in the low to mid 80's but with the humidity it feels hotter.

Two weeks left.

Day 42, 43, 44, & 45: Slow down time

Thursday

It was Ursina's last day at the lab. She was an intern that I did a lot of work with. Exciting time for her as she is searching for a job as a physiotherapist. Good luck!

Friday

I worked with Heiner at the lab. A masters student came in to start his new study. The lab had a machine made for them to basically test ACL and hamstring responsiveness and strength. You put a strap on your lower leg (just below your knee) and attach a wire to the front of it. The wire goes over a pulley and then is connected to a platform at a bottom of a pole that is hanging in the air. At the top of the pole is an electromagnet. A weight is attached to the electromagnet. When a button on a remote is pressed, the electromagnet shuts off, releasing the weight which slams into the platform causing a force that pulls the wire and thus the strap on your leg. Scientific. We all tested out the machine and none of our shin bones were ripped out of our legs so the study was a success. Today was just the first day where they wanted to test everything out. Heiner and I had some good chats. I gave him a tour of the University of Michigan and Chesaning on Google Maps. Today was his last day until the 22nd. He has a week holiday (vacation) so he left his bike for me to use. He's going to southern France. The rest of the day was good. I ran, played ping pong with Joel. The ping pong table is on the 20th floor of Tscharnergut. Great view of the Alps from up there. After ping pong we watched Without Limits. Joel likes to run and although he has heard of Steve Prefontaine, never saw the movie so I had to show him.

Saturday

I could have went on a hiking trip with some friends who live on my floor but I decided I should spend the weekend in Bern. I have been traveling so much that I haven't really seen all that the city has to offer. Since I have Heiner's bike I decided to ride around Bern. I went to the Paul Klee Center. It is a modern art museum. Unfortunately, it was closed. Fortunately, it was a sunny day and the museum had art pieces outside.

The front of the Paul Klee Center

On a trail behind the Paul Klee Center. I think the building itself is suppose to be an art piece. It's built right into the hill.

After I rode around the museum, I headed to the rose garden. Really cool place.

View from the rose garden. Best view of Old Bern. When the Swiss built Bern it looks like they made an oath before they started building: Do not cut down a single tree unless you absolutely have to. This idea has lead to a beautiful coexistence of nature and man. The contrast between the brown roofs of the buildings, green leaves of the trees, and illuminating blue glacier water of the Aare River is breathtaking (Picture doesn't justify). I stayed here until sunset.

When I walked in the rose garden I saw some posters saying "SwanLake." The posters said it was starting at 8:45pm on July 13. I figured since I was there I might as well stay around and see what's going on. A little after 9:00 the show started. Ended up being a performance in the fountain. It was like the Black Swan. The picture is of the cast at the end of the show.

Sunday

Caught up on sleep this weekend. I went for a run around 1:00 and got back to my room at about 5:00. I did a big loop through the forest and ended up at Neufeld. Ran through town until I got to the Aare. Then ran along the river on a nice dirt path until I got to the bear park. I was at an hour and a half. Watched the bears for awhile. They had just been given watermelons and it was hot out so they were playing with their watermelons in the river (the park is on a hill next to the river). It was awesome. One of the bears was practically swimming right underneath of me. After the bear park I headed to Marzili (the public pool park). On the way I saw a gate was open to a cinder track I have been wanting to run on. I did a few laps. It was a 300m track. I got to the Marzili and dropped off my shoes, watch, and hat and started walking upstream to where a bridge is that everyone jumps from. Joel and I had already done it before. The 62.7 degree water felt...brisk. definition:

 
Active, fast, and energetic.
Cold but fresh and enlivening.

Perfect word to describe the Aare because the current is so fast. It is about a mile swim back to Marzili but it doesn't take long at all. I laid in the park, soaking up the rays until I was pretty much dry and then headed back to Tscharnergut. Most enjoyment I have gotten out of a 2 hour run.

Day 41: Top Notch Research

Wednesday

Trains are back running smoothly. No delays today. Thank the heavens because if I know one thing about Swiss people, it's that they like there trains on time. Got to work today. Talked with Patric and Ursina a little bit. Went on a coffee break. I really enjoy a good coffee break. One of the best parts of the day. Once I had my dose of caffeine, I began processing data from the test day with the stairs. I finished by the time lunch rolled around. We didn't know if we were going to have a bbq and grill some food so just in case I brought bratwurst (turns out I butcher the word when I say it). Also, Americans are dumb when they say, "Can't wait to grill some brats" because brat means fry in German. Wurst means sausage which is what you are grilling. SO when we say going to grills some brats. It's like we are going to grill and fry. No food involved. Wurst is not pronounced like worst. It's pronounce like voorst. Back to the day at the lab. After lunch, at 2:00pm, a friend of Heiner stopped by. He has developed a therapeutic shoe. The shoe is projected to decrease pressures on the foot that lead to other issues such as back pain. It does this with the sole of the shoe which has the layout of the perfect pronation (inward roll/heel strike to toe off) of the foot. Today was the first day of his research. He will be back in late July to start testing with his actual subjects so he wanted to do a trial run today. Heiner asked if I wanted to be his very first subject. They performed the trial like they would in late July. Had to put the insoles that are on the treadmill into my running shoes and walk on the treadmill at 4km/h and then put the insoles into his therapeutic shoe and do the same. Each insole has 99 sensors. The data is sent directly to the computer which gives a live view of location and magnitude of pressure on the insole. The system cost 30,000 franks. However, the lab got it for free. Heiner's wife won it in a raffle. She is also in the health field.

After work I ran to the Aare. Joel invited me down to go for another float. This time we jumped into the river from a bridge. It wasn't too high. Floated down to the public pools again. Sat in the sun to dry off. And then ran back to Tscharnergut. Good day.

Day 39 & 40: Keeps getting better

Monday

I went to work at 8:30. Not too much went on today. Patric arrived at the lab at 1:30. We analyzed some graphs and then went up to his office and went over a previous project he did last year. Went shopping at Aldi after I got out. Made a meal inspired by my Germany trip: currywurst with bread you actually have to slice yourself (old school). I went for a run in the woods. Saw a deer. Just the second deer I have seen in the forest since I have been here. Saw more animals on my hike in Scuol than my entire time in Bern. Makes sense though because the hike was on a Swiss National Park. That concludes Monday.

Tuesday

As you can obviously see from the picture below I had a delay at the train station this morning on my way to the lab.

Translates to "the train has been cancelled."

Everyone had to get off from the train for a replacement train. It didn't arrive until 8:28. I was like this sucks but at least it isn't worse. It got worse. A guy came on the train and told everyone to get back off. He was speaking in German the entire time so I don't know what he was saying but everyone got off and started walking in the same direction. I followed. I ended up at a transit stop. Had to wait 7min for the next transit to Bern Bahnhof. Didn't get to the lab until after 9:00. So much for making the 8:00 meeting. I always thought of Swiss public transportation as the best, superior to all else. not anymore. When I was on the public transit it was so packed that I had to get off and back on at the stops to let people get through the door. One time I asked if a woman with a little boy needed to get off. She started talking to me in German and I didn't respond fast enough with, "Sorry only English." She said a lot of stuff and I just nodded and gave an agreeing sound. She talked some more and I acted like I understood and shook my head up and down again. Situation averted. Today was a great day at the lab. Finally got away from the computers and desk work. We had to move the stairs in the picture below across the lab into the view of the 3D kinematics system. Then we built a staircase in the place where the other one was because another researcher will be doing a test with stairs around the same time. We set up the force plates on the stairs (that's what the tower is for that Heiner is working on). Heiner has been soldering the last week, connecting the force plates in the floor to an EMG. We actually had the stairs placed on the force plates in the floor with the force plates on the steps above. Force plates on force plates connected to an EMG. High tech stuff. We'll only being using the ones on the stairs. Anyways...Heiner and I were standing by the tower and it just about blew up in our faces. Not literally but there was a small flame that shot out and some smoke. A short in one of the electronic chipboards caused the spark. We looked into it and everything appeared to be fine. Let everything cool down for a bit. Patric made another ground wire. We turned it back on and it worked perfectly. We also ran a some trials on the stairs. Ursina had the 5marker model on her foot and walked up and down the stairs. 

I watched a futbol game for the first time in Europe. It was at the track I workout on. Neufeld Stadium. BSC Young Boys vs. FC Winterthur. The Young Boys are the Bern team. Ended in a draw. 1-1.

(Throwback) Day 15, 16, 17: Italy Trip

Finally getting back to my trip to Rome and Venice...

Day 15
...Cody and I woke up after a good nights rest in Hotel California ready to explore Rome. It was Friday morning. The plan was to check out Vatican City today and then Saturday we would go to the Colosseum. Before we left Hotel California we had to take advantage of the free breakfast. Once I was full on bread, nutella, yogurt, and croissants, I grabbed some more food to pack for lunch. Vatican City was a long distance away so we took a bus. The bus was packed to the brim with tourists. From here on out we knew we would always be running into long lines and crowded places. We started our tour of the city by going into St. Peter's Basilica. Beautiful man-made structure.

Next stop was the Vatican museum, which leads you through the Sistine Chapel. Everything was stunning, however, since there is countless statues, paintings, and other art pieces to see everything begins to blend together. Your eyes become accustomed to the surroundings and lose a touch of interest. Don't get me wrong though. Everything was still stunning.

We ended up running into Chelsea and Courtney, the two friends we planned to go everywhere with, in the Sistine Chapel. Not the best place to talk. There were guards walking around, constantly telling everyone "Silenzio!" Cody and I told them we would meet them outside of the museum. We finished walking through the museum and headed outside to eat lunch on some steps. We waited about 2 hours and still no sign of the girls. At this point we realized we were in Rome and didn't want to spend too much time waiting. I thought groups of two made it easier to walk around anyway so we left to see more of Rome. We walked just about everywhere, following our tourist map I got from a hotel last night when we were searching for a place to stay. It was about 90 degrees for the whole weekend. Around 6:00pm we started to get hungry. It was hard deciding which pizza place would be the best out of the hundreds we saw. Finally, we chose one and ordered a pepperoni pizza. It wasn't anything special. I would have been happier with a Cottage Inn delivery pizza. Once it started to get later in the day we began looking for places to stay. We went into an internet cafe (had to pay 50 cents for 15 min) and searched for hostels. We found one and wrote down the address/directions. 21 euro for the night. A lot cheaper than the hotel from the night before. There were 3 bunk beds in the room. Two young university students like Cody and I that were from Britain were in one bunk. Really cool guys. In the other was a guy from Poland who seemed to always be in a dazed state. The very first night we stayed there we met some new friends. A girl from Indiana, a girl from Melbourne, Australia, and a guy from New York. They invited Cody and I to go to another hostel called The Yellow Hostel. We walked into the building. Took a left and went through a door into a bar and then headed down some stairs into a basement. Blaring music, people from all over the world, flashing lights, fog, dancing, etc...It was like something I have never experienced. I didn't know places like this existed. A real gem. I couldn't stop from smiling. We stayed for awhile and I had a great time.

Common nude statue

Day 16
Woke up from a good sleep in our bunk beds. I still had some fruit and bread that I grabbed from Hotel California. Made for a light breakfast. Cody and I went upstairs to the room that has wifi. It was kind of a meeting room because all of the other people who were staying in the hostel also went there for the internet connection. We met a guy from Alaska who was currently on a 6 year trip around the world. He was into year 4 and had so many stories to tell us. I could have sat and listened to him all day. At 10:00am we left the hostel and headed to the Colosseum. Really long lines. I bought tickets for both of us online beforehand so we got to pass the lines and head straight in.

Once we finished our tour of the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, and Roma Forum, we were suppose to meet the Australian girl at the Capuchin Crypt which contains the skeletal remains of 3,700 bodies. Unfortunately it was closed for the day due to a power outage. So instead we walked around with her and toured more of the city. We went to another restaurant, this time to try some lasagna. We picked the perfect place. A 4 course meal with a drink for 10 euro. The restaurant was ran by an old Italian couple that fit the exact image I always imagined. I wanted to upset the old lady so she would chase me with a broom yelling Italian things. First course was Lasagna, then potatoes, then gnocchi, and finished off with lemon sorbet. Our time in Rome was coming to an end. I made sure to get gelato one more time before we headed back to the hostel. A couple things I almost forgot...the annual Europe Motorcycle Tour was going on so there were Harleys and guys walking around in black leather everywhere. Also on Saturday there was a gay pride celebration.

Day 17
Woke up at 5:55 to catch my train to Venice after going to sleep at 2am. I don't recommend it. Venice has a feel of its own. Narrow streets that are only made for walking. Canals separating the city into many islands with bridges holding everything together. At times it made me feel trapped.

I bought three cannoli (I only meant to buy one). I ate 2 while searching for the perfect pizza place since I didn't have any luck in Rome. I found a few places that offered a deep dish style with one standing out among the rest. I tried to buy it but they would only accept cash. This is where the last cannoli really helped me out. Chelsea and Courtney arrived two hours before I was leaving. Chelsea had euros so she bought me a slice of pizza in exchange for the cannoli.

Trip complete.