ROCK WERCHTER

THURSDAY 3 JULY
Main Stage: Air Traffic | Counting Crows | Mika | Lenny Kravitz | R.E.M. | The Chemical Brothers
Pyramid Marquee: Modern Skirts | Vampire Weekend | The National | Shameboy | Soulwax | 2manydjs

FRIDAY 4 JULY
Main Stage: The Black Box Revelation | Monza | Slayer | Babyshambles | Jay-Z | The Verve | Neil Young | Moby
Pyramid Marquee: Cool Kids | Patrick Watson | Ben Folds | My Morning Jacket | Duffy | Zita Swoon | Hot Chip | Digitalism

SATURDAY 5 JULY
Main Stage: The Whigs | Gossip | The Hives | Editors | Kings of Leon | Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals | Sigur Rós | Radiohead
Pyramid Marquee: Galactic | MGMT | Band of Horses | Donavon Frankenreiter | Kate Nash | KT Tunstall | Gnarls Barkley | Róisín Murphy

SUNDAY 6 JULY
Main Stage: John Butler Trio | Panic At The Disco | Nightwish | The Kooks | The Raconteurs | Kaiser Chiefs | Beck | dEUS
Pyramid Marquee: Devotchka | Tim Vanhamel | Hercules and Love Affair | Adele | Mark Ronson | Grinderman | Justice | Underworld

Happy to Be ALonE!!!

I never thought I would say this.. but I am really happy I am going to Europe alone. I won't have to listen to anyone complain, or fight about where we want to go and for how long. I can do whatever I want and be whoever I want. I can meet anyone I please... without anyone getting jealous... and I can be alone with my thoughts.
I know being a girl and traveling alone can be a little dangerous, but I think overall Europe is the safest place to do something like this. Probably safer than America... I will definitely be careful. No excessive drinking, a vow of celibacy, and no walking alone after dark... etc. etc.
This is going to be a life altering experience... I have a feeling I will never be the same again.

An Itty Bitty Itinerary....

May 25-June 26th - Siena, Italy (Language Program)
June 26- travel to Cinque Terre, check in
27- Cinque Terre
28- Cinque Terre- lover's walk
29- Cinque Terre- beach
30- Cinque Terre
July 1- Cinque Terre
2- check out, travel to Milan, fly to Brussels, train to Leuven, check in
3- wake early, pitch tent, camping Leuven, Belgium
ROCK WERCHTER Music Festival begins!!! Beer Tent here I come!
4- Leuven, Belgium ROCK WERCHTER (Neil Young!!! Hot Chip)
5- Leuven, Belgium ROCK WERCHTER (King of Leon, Justice)
6- Leuven, Belgium ROCK WERCHTER (Sigur Ros, Kaiser Chiefs)
7- travel to Amsterdam, check in Vondelpaark, free concert in park
8- Amsterdam-wake and bakey! go to Van Gough Museum
9- Amsterdam- tulip fields, bike riding, Ann Frank's House, Absinthe
10- Amsterdam, check out, hang out and hop on night train at midnight
11- arrive in Bern at 8 am, train to Interlaken, check in
12- Interlaken, Switzerland - go hiking, Junfrau, eat fondu
13- Interlaken, Switzerland - ride bike around Lake
14- Interlaken, Switzerland - canyoning or bungee jumping
15- check out, take train through ALPS, meet up with Kent (8 days to play)
16- Verona, Venice, Padua, Bologna, Aosta (Italian Alps)
17- ? party
18- ? eat the most amazing food in the world!!!!!!!!!!
19- Italian Fiesta for ME!!!! party with Kent's Italians....
20- ? soccer game
21- ? party
22- ? see the "real" Venice
23- check into Milan hostel and explore city, sit at a cafe
24- flight leaves to Santorini, check in... arrive at 3 pm- explore
25- Santorini - explore and find sexy Greek men
26- Santorini watch the sunset from Oia...
27- Santorini - watch the sunset, party
28- Santorini - beaches galore
29- check out, ferry to Athens, check in, kick it with fellow backpackers
30- explore Athens... sleep on the roof under the Acropolis
31- Check out, train to Patras, ferry to Zakynthos- check in
Aug 1- Zakynthos, go to shipwreck beach
2- Zakynthos- The Blue Caves
3- ferry to Kefalonia, check into a nice ass hotel in Agia Elfimia
4- Kefalonia- rent a scooter!!!! beep beep! find beaches
5- Kefalonia, day trip to Ithaca
6- Kefalonia, Underground Lake, Messini Cave
7- Kefalonia, Myrtos Beach
8- Kefalonia, hiking and exploring villages
9- Kefalonia, Assos and Fiskardo
10- Kefalonia, explore beaches
11- Kefalonia, kick it with locals
12- Kefalonia, sit on beach allll day, find a private beach
13- Kefalonia, snorkeling
14- Kefalonia- awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.......
15- Kefalonia, catch a late ferry to Bari, Italy, sleep on ferry
16- arrive in Bari, Italy, train to Pompeii, explore...train to Rome, check in
17- Rome- explore, St. Peter's Basilica, Museums
18- Rome, day trip to Tivoli
19- Rome - check out Trevi Fountain, Colosseum, etc.
20- check out Rome............. FLY HOME!!!!!! 10 am
21- arrive home.....

This equals.... about 2 months in Italy and 1 month in Greece.....I will be gone for 3 months!!!!!!!!! Dont miss me too much! Woooooooh! Caio bella!

Let the countdown begin...

It's hard to believe that I only have 1 month left before I leave on my European adventure... I am starting to get really nervous. Turns out I will be spending the majority of the time alone, which is freeing and exhilarating... and exactly the way I want it... but being a female solo traveler is a bit intimidating. I am really happy I am not going with Joel and his sister too even though I would have had felt safer in larger #'s. I just think it would have a huge waste.
So here I go, off alone, into the great wide open... the first month in Siena, Italy learning Italian and living with a Italian host family. I will be volunteering with local organizations and hopefully really getting to learn and be a part of the Italian culture.
Right after Siena, I have a week to kill. I think I will go to Cinque Terra before I head up to Belgium for the Rock Werchter concert, where I will see my all time favorite musician.. Neil Young...and I can check one more thing of my "To do before I die" list. Hopefully my friend Jesse will fly out for the concert... and then after all those festive shenanigans we can run off to Amsterdam and frolic in the tulip fields, coffee shops, drink some absinthe after dinner, and go to the Van Gough Museum!!! Oh the things we will do in Amsterdam... that will stay in Amsterdam.
Then off I will go alone to Nice, France... then take a ferry to Corsica!!! I cannot wait to experience Corsica. I plan on doing much hiking, biking, sunbathing, exploring, climbing, sailing.. anything my little heart desires. Its pretty cool that their flag is a guys head.. because they chopped off some kings head and won their independence. I think that's how the story goes.
After a few weeks in Corsica... I will take a ferry to Italy... see Pompeii... eat some of the best pizza in the world in Napoli (a secret place in my favorite book that I will never reveal)... then take a ferry from Bari, Italy to Kefalonia, Greece, Ionian Islands... 38 degrees latitude which happens to be my lucky number!!! crazy... but anyway... I will do a little island hopping to Ithaca and Zakynthos to see Smuggler's Beach. I am taking a tent and plan on doing a lot of camping in Greece. The campgrounds are pretty dang nice... I could handle waking up on the beach...
there are caves to explore and snorkeling at these islands, as well as hiking, tons of historical building and ruins, local art, and sexy Greek boys... I don't think I will go to Corfu though because its just a big party island. I can't wait to hike up on some amazing cliff, write in my journal, read a book, meditate, and take in the sunset.
Then, sadly, I will depart the Ionian's after a few weeks.. head to Italy to catch anything I missed like Bologna. I must find me a short term boyfriend in Rome... I hear the men there are ridiculously beautiful... then I will head up to The Alps (Italian and Swiss). I really want to go to Bern, Switzerland because from what my Grandma Joan tells me I have descendants from there. Apparently my ancestors on my Dad's side were Sicilians who moved to Ireland and then to America later... and my mom's side is Swiss and English. So I am Swiss Italian Irish... sounds like nice combo : )
I am so happy for my trip... it is going to be quite the journey.. spiritually and physically. I can't wait to find out more about myself and the world...