Capri and Sorrento

Ciao! Well, this weekend was amazing. Our trip started out at the train station where we met and got picked up by a bus. Most of the people from our group ended up going so the majority of kids were from FSU. We took the train ride overnight but had to stop and pick up our friend Eric because he mistakenly booked his trip from Rome instead of Florence! It was so funny, when he finally got on the bus we all clapped. Finally we got to Sorrento at about 3 in the morning and we were all exhausted. We stayed in a hotel called 7 and it is only about a month old. It was my first hostel experience so I was pretty spoiled because this place was so nice!! It was brand new and the bathrooms and rooms were all nice. We had 10 girls in our room, but they were all from our apartment, so we're used to living together. Anyway, they had a courtyard and a huge rooftop porch which were so nice! We all went to sleep when we got back and then had to meet at 8:15 in the morning for our Capri trip. We had breakfast at the hostel, which was complimentary, and then walked down to the marina where we caught a ferry to Capri. When we got there, we took a boat to the Blue Grotto and went in! It was so beautiful and we actually got to swim inside. The water was so cool and blue, it was amazing!! The guy driving us even sang as we left. My camera got a little wet though and it's not working anymore so I am going to have to rely on other people for pictures which is a huge dissapointment :( My friend Aleksa is an amazing photographer though and she has one of those awesome cameras, so at least I know I'll get good pictures. After we left the grotto, our boat took the long way around Capri, so we got to see some of the famous landmarks and the whole island. When we got back to the marina, we took the funiculare (spelling?) up to the actual city of Capri and had lunch. Lunch was good, we had a glass of wine and got to look at all the gorgeous Italian men serving us the whole time! Then we took a bus up to Ana Capri and jumped on the chair lift. The views were of course, GORGEOUS! When we got back down to Capri we just laid out on the beach until it was time to leave. We took the ferry back to Sorrento and all 38 of us literally CRAMMED on the bus. It was ridiculously crowded, and the few Italians on there hated us, lol. We got back to the hostel and fought for showers then had dinner there. They had a pretty good selection for very cheap. But the food turned out to be.. not so good. Oh well! It was pretty late by the time we finished so we just grabbed drinks at the bar (at the hostel!) and went up to the roof to just hang out.
The next morning we had to meet at 10 and we got on a bus to go to Positano. We went to the beach and it was all rocks, it was amazing! There was tons of Italians there, definitely a very busy time of year for the beach, but it was still nice. We walked to another beach and had lunch and hung out there for a little longer. Then we rented these awesome speed boats and we drove out to this HUGE rock in the middle of the ocean. You had to first pull yourself onto the rock and then literally climb and hug it to get to the top. Then WE JUMPED OFF!!! It was amazing. The first drop was only about 10 feet but you could climb up higher and there was a 32 foot drop! I jumped off the first one a few times and it was very exhilirating but I finally got myself to do the 32 foot one. I knew I just had to do it fast, so I just went to edge and jumped! It was INCREDIBLE. I got the worst wedgie of my life, but it was totally worth it! I have never done anything like that and it was crazy!! Then once we jumped in we just floated around in the HUGE waves and watched other people jump. It was so amazing. We finally got back on the boats and headed back to the beach and hung out until it was time to leave. We took the ferry back to Sorrento and then crammed on a bus AGAIN to go back to the hostel. It was a fight for the showers again and we grabbed a pizza from down the street. We were supposed to go into Sorrento for the night, but with a group so large, nothing can move quickly and it ended up getting too late. So, once again, we just drank on the roof. We met some British friends and just hung out up there all night.
Sunday morning we had to wake up early again. We got on the bus and headed to Pompeii. Everyone in the group went on a guided tour, but I chose not to go because I've been there so many times, and I saved 20 euro! I ended up going with the guy who was in charge of the whole trip into "new Pompeii" and just walking around exploring. It was nice to see new Pompeii, cause you only ever see the touristy area. It was small and very quiet!
We got back on the bus and made it to Florence around 10 pm. On the way home from the train station, we got lost and had to ask for help twice! It was all in good fun though as we know we're learning more and more about the city by getting lost!
So, that's all that's new. More class today, of course. Classes are going well, I got a 91 on my Italian midterm! But it's still boring when you're in Firenze to go to class.
Thinking about leaving this place is making me sad! It is really becoming like home, and I am making such great friends. I am going to try to make the most of the rest of my time though. We are trying to book a hotel for Vienna right now! Next week we are going to Venice for the day on Friday with FSU and then Carlyn, Aleksa and I are heading off on our own to Vienna, Austria. We have an overnight train ride (with beds!) booked friday night and then we have 2 full days and one night in Vienna, and then another overnight train ride sunday night. Needless to say, I'm sure I will be EXHAUSTED monday morning for class, but you only live once!!!
Hope everyone enjoyed my picture updates. I am going to post Roma asap. Love you all and miss you!! xox