You’ll Be Glad You Went

If I studied abroad in Spain for four months, I felt like I would be letting the entire country down by not visiting the capital city. Honestly, originally I hadn’t planned to make it to Madrid. But, when I found out my program was offering a trip for the weekend that included the train fare and two nights in a hotel, how could I pass it up? The first thing I noticed about Madrid was how green it was. I forgot what it was like to be in a city with a lot of trees and grass. It helped that I was there in dead of spring, but Barcelona is a beach city with sand in place of grass in many places. Apparently, there are natural springs of water under all of Madrid contributing to its allover vibrancy. Even though a casual walk down the street was beautiful, I highly recommend a trip to the Botanical Garden. With a student I.D., entry to the Gardens is only a few Euros and entirely worth it. With a variety gardens thoughout featuring all the different types of flowers you ...

Switzerland is a country I had heard amazing things about… great chocolate, heaquarters of FIFA, the Alps and stunning views. However, it wasn’t until I met one of my good friends at University of Georgia who is from Zurich that I decided it was a must see destination. Since a few of my other friends were studying abroad in Europe last semester as well, my friend from Switzerland and a couple others who were in Athens still for the semester decided to plan a trip. Over spring break, the people not studying abroad made the long trek overseas and all of us already in Europe booked trips to Zurich. We all stayed at my friend’s house and had our own personal Swiss tour guide! This experience was incredible and we were lucky that we had our friend to take us to all of the best places. One thing I loved to do whenever I’m in a new place is visit the place with the best view of the city ( see Barcelona Bunkers post ). My friend immediately knew of the perfect pla...

I don’t even know where to begin with this amazing city. To be completely honest, before I arrived in Europe in January, I never knew much at all about Lisbon and it definitely wasn’t the top of my European travel destinations for the semester. But, despite these initial thoughts, my friends encouraged me to book this as my first weekend of travel. We arrived in Lisbon pretty late on Thursday night and when we arrived at our Airbnb in the Barrio Alto neighborhood, I was immediately mesmerized. The streets were small, windy and hilly and the architecture was unbelievable. I couldn’t wait to wake up and see the city in the daylight the next day. When the morning finally came, my amazement only grew. Here are few recommendations on what to do if you make it to Lisbon:        There is a flea market on Saturdays and it has the most amazing hand-made art and little trinkets that make awesome gifts.        One of the best eating e...