Ciao, Italia!

MY GOODNESS! What a crazy few days I have had! I've been to Firenze, Roma and Venezia, and now, sadly, I am in München (Munich), and I miss Italy already.
You got my post from Florence; the next few days were even crazier! The morning after the dinner and club we woke up to an earlz breakfast, put our stuff back on the coach and headed back into the city. We saw a leather-crafting demonstration and got to look at some very expensive purses and such, and then we had about an hour or so of free time to hang around before we went on a walking tour of the major sights. I wandered around and bought a few gifts and such, and took a few pictures in Piazza Signoria, where the replica of Michaelangelo's David stands, and then met up with the tour at ten to 11. Our guide was very knowledgeable and well-spoken; she took us past the Uffizi gallery, pointing out all the statues of important Italian artists, authors and leaders; she took us to Ponte Vecchio, which is home to 24 gold and silver shops; we saw some markets, some piazzas, and finally, the Duomo and the Gates of Paradise. Very cool. I had time for lunch and then we headed out for Rome!
In Rome we went for a sight-seeing walk with Sion, but we had to be sneaky because she could get fined up to 500€ for being a non-Italian guide. We saw the Trevi Fountain (!!!!!), the column of Marcus Aurelius, the Pantheon, and finally Piazza Navona, where we were all responsible for finding dinner. Me and the gang found a restaurant up an alleyway and everyone had something different and delicious.
The next morning Jon wasn't allowed to drive again, so we all took the Roma Metro into the city for our guided tour of the Roman Forum and the Colloseum. We arrived in the nick of time, and the tour was awesome if not very, very hot. I loved the history of the place; it's just so old! After we finished there, the gang and I headed for Vatican City. We got in pretty quickly but lost Melissa to heat exhaustion shortly thereafter; she headed back to the campsite for a shower and a nap. Khanyisa, Augusto and I kept going, through miles of galleries and corridors, until we finally reached the Sistine Chapel; it was darker and more crowded in there than I expected, but the awesomeness of that masterpiece of a ceiling made up for it. We went to lunch when we were finished, and then took the Metro one station over to go to St. Peter's Square. It was gorgeous too! So much space and such beautiful architecture, amazing! We went back to camp and had dinner there, and then went to bed late after some drinks.
The next morning we headed for Venice; it's the longest drive we've had so far, but so worth it! We arrived at the camp with enough spare time to get changed, and then took the camp shuttle ferry into town. After a glass-blowing demonstration and some shopping time we took a half-hour gondola ride and I got toasted on champagne. I struck out on my own after that and shopped and wandered and ate the most amazing lasagna I've ever had, got my last gelato, and headed for the ferry back to camp.

Now for a German dinner!

-Laur