Lago di Garda

I know I've been neglecting my blog. I officially start 'school' today!

Lago di Garda was amazing! It was nice to get away from the city for the weekend and just relax, and don't worry! This time I did not fall into lake water, but it would have been perfectly fine if I did. Haha. We started with an early train ride there, where we all pretty much fell asleep. It was an hour and a half long, so we did have a little bit of time to get ready for the long day ahead.

After getting to destination point, we caught a cab to the trailer park where we were staying. It definitely was the cutest little trailer...ever. LOL! It had air conditioner, and I had my own bed. After dropping our stuff off there, we headed out to get something to eat because we were all so hungry. Jade and I split a hamburger and french fries. It was seriously so good! We then headed out to rent those foot paddle boats. I don't even know what they were called, but it was definitely so AMAZING!

We walked around in the pounding sun for about an hour. The town was so pretty, but it was definitely a relief to get back to a place we recognized. We chilled at the pool for a while before going to dinner at this Mexican place. The food was alright, but the company was AWESOME.

The next morning a group of us wanted breakfast. In Italy, they don't do "breakfast." You know....eggs, pancakes, bacon, waffles....and in Hawaii rice, fried rice, spam. Haha. But we went around looking for something that would satisfy our craving, but with no luck, we found the nearest restaurant and decided for some pasta. It ended up being a great decision. We were going to try and catch the bus to the castle, but it started pouring, so instead we decided to go back to Milan. It was a great decision at the perfect time because the train system was on a strike that day! We got lucky though. When we got up to the window, the ticket lady said she just heard of a train we could catch back to the city. We were stoked that everything worked out perfectly!

This weekend we stayed in Milan because it was Milano Fashion Week!!!! It was amazing, but that'll be my next blog. I'm also heading to Oktoberfest next weekend. We're driving from Milan to Germany. I'm so excited!

Oh my goodness. Europe has been beyond amazing so far. I don't even know where to begin, so I'll do what I usually do when I'm overwhelmed...make a list. Haha.

• French sunsets at 36,000 feet in the air
• Amazing buildings and cobblestoned roads
• The beautiful scenery covered in graffitied walls...literally! But it just makes Milan so much more charming.
• Not having to worry about driving
• EATING...As Thomas calls it, E A T A L Y
• Spending the night with a group of amazing Brazilian people
• Buying our own groceries and eating what we made.
• Buying 'things' in a foreign language
• Our beautiful apartment with its old-school elevator and its black cat
• Our sore feet from walking EVERYWHERE!
• Quiet Milan mornings
• Hot, sweaty, humid days and nights! It's like Hawai'i but hotter!
• Oh yeah...we shorted out our electricity on the first night by using too many things at once. Haha. A bad situation turned hilarious because the problem was fixed.

The Thrill

OH EM GEE! That's all that's pretty much going on in my head right now. After all this time talking about leaving to study abroad, I'm finally doing it. I leave for Milan, Italy tomorrow. I'm nervous yet definitely excited!!! I mean...how can I not be? After going from bringing only one fifty pound bag, I'm officially bringing two forty-something pound bags. I'm not even sure if I have everything I need, but I definitely have enough shoes. Haha. JK...Dad!!! A girl could never have too many shoes anyway :)

AHHHHH!!!!! I can't believe this. I'm leaving for the airport at 4:15 this morning. I'm also planning to stay up all night. I would never be able to sleep anyway. I'm way to STOKED for this semester!

I leave in less than a week: three days to be exact. I'm feeling nostalgic not only about this summer but about my family, friends, and Hawai'i. This is the first time I'll be living away from Hawai'i, let alone home. It's only four months....I'm not expecting to get home sick, but everyone keeps telling me I'll eventually get home sick. We shall see...

I haven't really started packing yet. I guess I should start doing that. Hmmm....what to pack. I want to bring everything including my three adorably, naughty dogs! Haha.

There's so much to do, yet so little time. I'm not worried....yet!

Model Brooklyn Clayton

Film Kodak Portra 400bw

I've been shooting quite a bit recently. It's been a great learning experience. I'm very new to film, but I've been learning each time I shoot. This has definitely been my best roll to date, but I know I still have much to learn.

I leave for Milan in a little less than two weeks. C R A Z Y ! I can't even believe it. I finally got my VISA, so that's a big relief. It actually came in earlier than expected, so I'm very grateful, although I did have a little bit of trouble when it came to calling the San Francisco Italian consulate asking about the status of my VISA. He was just very vague, but it all worked out, so I'm relieved.

I've been ordering quite a bit of things online recently like a coat (which wasn't really a coat, but a sweater) and a Quiksilver Women's backpack. Let me tell you, I had the hardest time with Quiksilver's customer service. They seemed very disorganized. My first order got rejected, which I'm still rather confused about because my order through Roxy went through fine after I ordered from Quiksilver first. It seemed like I wasn't going to get my money back, but I eventually got refunded in another giftcard they sent a week later after hounding their customer service twice a day for a good week. I just ordered the same backpack again, and I got an email saying it went though, but I'm still crossing my fingers.

On the flip side, AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! I leave in less than two weeks. I'm nervous, but it hasn't quite hit me yet. I'm definitely unsure of what to pack. I don't want to pack too much, but I want my comforts like my S H O E S! Haha. What to do...What to do...

And the countdown begins...

It's officially August, which means that I leave in exactly thirty days! The fact that I'll be in Italy for four months is finally starting to settle in. Whoa! A wave of nervousness just hit me. What do I bring? What can I buy there? And what won't I need? Even then, how am I going to fit four months of my life into one suitcase? Nonetheless, I'm still excited!

Alyssa Wooten for Reverie Jewelry

Finally Moving

It's almost August which either means that it's time to get excited for my study abroad in Italy, or it's time to get worried because I haven't finished everything I have to do before I leave! It's a little of both to be honest. Between waiting anxiously for my VISA or buying a coat for the trip, I've been just a little on edge. I mean, I live in beautiful Hawai'i. The only time, if any, we need a coat is almost never, and I know the transition from going to summer all the time (Hawai'i weather) to way colder weather shall be interesting. Nevertheless, I'm definitely excited!

If you don't know, I'll be studying abroad in Milan, Italy for a semester (4 months). I've never been out of the country, so EVERYTHING will be foreign to me. I'll also be attending school with one of my most awesome friends, Jade. We've pretty much got all the big stuff down. We got our beautiful apartment in a safe neighborhood. (Mom, this ones for you!) We of course bought our "round-trip" plane tickets. The only thing we're really waiting for is our VISA, which we sent in last week. Apparently all the Italian consulates are on vacation until August (great for them, but not so much for us.)

The rest of the things we have to do aren't as big but are still of importance. Here's our list so far:

• Get traveler's check/figure out the money situation
• Unlock our phones
• Buy US to EU converters/Adapters
• Get physicals
• Go to the swap meet for gifts for future friends
• Government travel registration
• Sign up for miles

Pretty important stuff. There's more, but these are the more important of those things. Arrivederci!