Interpretive Dance through Spain, Italy, and France!

Posted on Jun 30th 2008, 13:53

Hey guys,

Contiki Tours rocked my mind. Literally, I cannot believe how much
sightseeing, culture immersion, and fun I have had in the past two
weeks. The last we spoke, I was rambling about Las Ramblas in
Barcelona. If you're looking for a mini-world tour walk up and down
the street several times. You're bound to run into something you've
never even heard of.

Then we took a quick jaunt over to the south of France. Hysterical
moment: I'm walking down this seemingly quiet street in Avignon at a
typical French market. I stop to look at a booth and buy a present for
a friend back home when all of a sudden, this woman runs up to me from
her booth holding purses and screaming in the "sacre bleu" French. No
lie, I almost wet my pants. Luckily, I was with a fluent
French-Canadian (Thank God For Canadians) who informed me that all she
said was "I have these bags in black and silver!" Really great.

Another highlight of the tour was my trip to the Monte Carlo Casino
where I won 30 euro! I was happier than those people on Deal or No
Deal when they find out that the models were only faking them out. But
legit, the casino is beautiful. It's covered in ornate and decorative
paintings that give it this billion dollar shine. Not to mention the
Benzes, Porsches, and Jaguars parked out front. Unfortunately, my
winnings can't buy me a Rolls Royce, but it was still pretty sick.

Then, we on down to Chinque Terre and Florence (in Italian, it's
Firenze). I loved it. Once we crossed the border into Italy, I was
totally stoked. Seriously, I must have eaten enough food in my days
here to last an entire mountain village four days. No, make it five.
But it's just so good - the pesto is fresh, the tomatoes are ripe, and
the pizza - move over Domino's - the best in the world.

Other things to note: our Contiki tour guide was amazing. If, and
when, you head over to Europe as for Emma. She is just the most fiesty
Scottish woman who will greet you every morning with an "Okey guys"
and a "Wakey, wakey, wakey". With our Italian gigalo bus driver (he
identifies himself as this), the whole experience was a hoot from
start to finish. Gotta love it. Peace out guys!

World Traveler Intern, Wti, Pat, Pat Blute, Spain, Bercelona