Italy - Lili on the Loose

29 02, 2016

Travel Missteps: “It’s a Gift” Scam at Pompeii

By Lili|February 29th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2006, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Europe, Italy, Pompeii, scam, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site|0 Comments

The view of Vesuvius. Pompeii is an incredible site. Covered over by Vesuvius' explosion in 79 AD, it wasn't rediscovered until 1748 and has had ongoing digs since then. I had spent a semester studying ancient Roman architecture and this frozen city is a perfect place to relive the past. But like most amazing tourist sights, the entry/exit is swarmed with souvenir and chotskies sellers. After heading out of the bathroom an old local woman slipped a shell bracelet onto my wrist. She said it was a gift. Immediately I knew this was not the case, and tried to hand it back

17 02, 2016

30 at 30: Best Experiences So Far

By Lili|February 17th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Memories|Tags: Abu Simbel, Africa, Anaheim, Antigua, Asia, Aswan, Bath, Belize, Belize Barrier Reef, Bent Pyramid, birthday, Bostan, California, camping, Canyon Ranch Spa, castle, Caye Caulker, Cenote, Central America, Champ de Elysee, Chino, chocolate, Christmas Market, CIE, Concert, concert photography, Costa Rica, Dahshur, Dashur, DC, Disneyland, Egypt, England, Epiphany Night, Europe, Ewok, fireworks, Florida, France, G Adventures, Gadventures, GAP, Germany, golf carts, Great Britan, Guatemala, Harry Potter, haunted, Ik Kil, Ik Kill cenote, Ireland, Island of Adventure, Italy, Japan, Karnak, Lake Placid, Las Vegas, Latin America, lightsaber, Luxor, Massachusetts, memories, Mexico, Middle East, Munich, museum, Nagano Prefecture, Nevada, New York, North America, Orlando, Paris, photography, Playa Del Carmen, Pyramids, racing, Red Pyramid, reef, Rome, San Francisco, sharks, sheep, Sister Cities, snorkeling, Spa, St. John, Star Wars, Suwa, swimming, temples, The Vatican, Tokyo, tombs, tour, Trafalgar, Trajan's Column, travel experiences, trolly, Tucson, UK, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Universal Studios, USA, USVI, Vatican, Vatican City, Washington DC, white water rafting, Wizarding World of Harry Potter, yukata|1 Comment

Today is my birthday, and I've hit the "Big 3-0". I wanted to look back at 30 of my favorite travel memories in my life, in no particular order: Fulfilling my dream of going to Egypt, seeing so many amazing tombs and temples Sitting alone in the temples of Abu Simbel and Karnak Climbing into and on top of a pyramid Wandering the Christmas Markets of Munich Seeing the castles of Germany Taking a haunted trolly/walking tour of Boston graveyards. Seeing as many museums as I could in Washington, DC Swimming with sharks in Belize Racing golf-carts on Caye Caulker Making

8 02, 2016

Museum Monday: Laocoön and His Sons

By Lili|February 8th, 2016|Categories: Museums, Travel|Tags: 2005, All in the family 2005/2006, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Europe, Greek, Hadrian, Hellenistic, Italy, Laocoön, Laocoön and His Sons, Laocoön Group, Pliny the Elder, roman, Rome, statue, The Vatican, Trojan, Troy, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Vatican City, Vatican Museum|0 Comments

I was lucky to have taken an entire class on Ancient Italian Art & Architecture the semester before I went to Italy. So when I turned a corner in the Vatican Museum and saw this statue I was very excited. This statue was re-discovered in 1506 but is thousands of years older. It is unknown if this was an original Hellenistic Greek Statue, or if it still dates from that period but is a copy based on a lost bronze version of the statue. It is so old that the famous ancient historian, Pliny the Elder, even referenced the statue on the

28 09, 2015

Travel Missteps: Wrong Exit

By Lili|September 28th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2005, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Europe, Italy, Rome, Sistine Chapel, swiss guard, tour guide exit, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Vatican City, Vatican Museum, wrong|0 Comments

The Sistine Chapel - known for Michelangelo’s beautiful ceiling and the grand finale of most Vatican Museum tours. After craning my neck trying to take it all in, it was time to leave...except I went through the wrong exit. There are two ways to exit the Sistine Chapel. The main exit is to the left of the room as you enter. I’m told that this has a long walk back. The other exit is for licensed group tours only, and lets you out close to the entrance to St. Peter’s Basilica saving you a long hike back and skipping an

8 08, 2015

Souvenir Saturday: In fair Verona, where we lay our scene…

By Lili|August 8th, 2015|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: 2005, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Europe, Italy, love letters, romeo and juliet, statue, Verona|0 Comments

Romeo and Juliet is one of the best known plays by Williams Shakespeare and takes place in Verona, Italy. In Verona you can visit "Juliet's Balcony" which is in a courtyard and use to have a statue of Juliet. It is said that those who touch her right breast you'll be lucky in love. So many people touched her breast that it destroyed the statue and was recently removed. People also leave pleas on notes or graffiti on the way into the courtyard also looking for Juliet's help. I found it a bit ironic due to how the story ends.

3 08, 2015

Travel Missteps: Negotiating a Discount

By Lili|August 3rd, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2006, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Barter, Discount, Europe, Haggle, Italy, Leaning Tower, Pisa, shopping, Sister, Trafalger, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site|0 Comments

Follow my blog with Bloglovin The Leaning Tower of Pisa is a gauntlet of gaudy souvenir hawkers and littered with people taking that same vacation snapshot. Neither of which is necessarily a bad thing. As long as you are aware of that going in, you’ll be fine. So after enjoying the lesser known Pisa Church and Baptistry my sister and I made our way out of the area when one of the many souvenir sellers called out to us, and his wares caught our eye. The Leaning Tower of Pisa He had fashion watches, jewelry, and knock off

8 06, 2015

Travel Missteps: The Expensive Scarf

By Lili|June 8th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2005, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, euro, Europe, Italy, language, market, Rome, scarf, shopping, Trafalger, translation|0 Comments

My first morning in Italy I was so excited. I had a brand new DSLR Camera and I felt like a Pro photographer. I got up early and went into the piazza near our hotel. There was a local market going just getting ready for their first customers. I wandered through it, taking photos here and there. A festive fish stall My sister found me and we wandered towards the edge and found a woman selling pashmina scarves. It was late December and I realized I had forgotten yet again to bring a scarf for the cold weather.

27 04, 2015

Travel Missteps: Sigh “American Right?”

By Lili|April 27th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2005, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, chocolate, Europe, Italy, language, translation|0 Comments

Many people travel to countries where they don’t know the language. Prior to my trip to Italy I had traveled to England, France, Mexico, and Japan. In middle school and high school I had taken some Spanish, French, and Japanese classes, so I didn’t feel that lost language-wise when traveling to those countries. So Italy was a first for me, not knowing any of the language. After a long day of traveling, our group stopped into a roadside shop. It was like a mini-grocery market combined with a restaurant and a chocolate shop. I was tired and decided to buy

8 03, 2015

The Sounds that Travel with Us

By Lili|March 8th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Memories|Tags: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Asia, at the heart of it Ireland 2009, Backpacking it in England and Scotland, Belize, BuzzFeed, California, Canada, Caribbean, Central America, Christmas in Germany, christmas music, Costa Rica, drinking song, England, Europe, Germany, Good Food in San Francisco, Guatemala, House of Cards, Ireland, Italy, Japan, ke$ha, kesha, Las Vegas, Linkin Park, Mattafix, Mayan Encounter 2013, memories, Mexico, Nevada, North America, paradise, Robert Post, Sailor Moon, San Diego, San Francisco, Scotland, Sister Cities Japan 2004, song, songs, sound, sounds, St. John, St. John 2010, Toronto, USA, USVI, wild rover, Yea! Sports|0 Comments

BuzzFeed recently had an article about the sounds from Italy that will fill you with Wanderlust. And it reminded me of all the sounds I associate with certain trips. Here are some of my top highlights that will instantly take me back in time: Toronto: Theme from House of Cards Google Play and Amazon had the first episode of House of Cars for free. I figured, sure why not, lets see what the hype is all about. I watched the first episode on my flights out...and got hooked. At night I'd watch House of Card before falling asleep. San Diego:

10 01, 2015

Souvenir Saturday: La Befana

By Lili|January 10th, 2015|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: 2006, All in the family Italy 2005/2006, Christmas, Epiphany, Europe, Hag, Halloween, Italy, La Befana, Rome, Santa Claus, Venice, Witch|0 Comments

On Monday we discussed the story behind La Befana, the Italian gift giver around the Epiphany. I wanted to share with you the little La Befana that I got in a roadside shop on the way from Rome to Venice. The witch has wide eyes, warts, and a fur hood. She carries some straw on one side, a broom on the other, and a bag that held candies on her back. Souvenir Saturday is an every-other week series on the items that represent travel memories.