From August 31st until September 10th, I travelled around Italy with three of my friends, thanks to the funding opportunity that Gateway provided me with. This was the first time I had ever backpacked and organised a trip with multiple destinations by myself, so while the admin scared me a bit (I was terrified of messing up dates with hostel bookings!), I was extremely excited.
I had read and heard so many wonderful things about Italy, and it certainly did not disappoint. Our route took the form of flying to Rome where we stayed for three nights, then the train to Florence (two nights), Pisa (one night), Cinque Terre (two nights) and finally Bologna for two nights. Each place was very different, but beautiful in its own right. Staying in hostels was a great way to meet so many people from around the world and hear some great stories. It made me think Italy was a good trip to start with, but gave me motivation and courage to try somewhere farther afield next time.
Whilst we made sure to check off all the must-see sights such as the Colosseum, the Duomo, and the Leaning Tower, I really feel we found some very authentic Italian hidden spots. In Cinque Terre, we stayed at the edge of one of its smallest villages, Corniglia, where the locals were shocked to see young girls staying in such a quiet place. We loved it! There were a shocking 400 steps up to where we stayed, but I definitely feel like that helped us work off the copious amounts of pizza, ice cream and aperol spritz that we indulged in throughout the trip. The views around Cinque Terre were breath-taking, and whilst we had seen many amazing pictures and works of art in the museums of Florence, for me nothing could quite beat the cliff-top views of the Mediterranean.
Saying that, the place that I am most keen to visit again is Florence. I feel I could spend far longer than two nights in this city, even live there. The architecture is drawn together by a muted orange tint in every building that makes the city so bright and happy, which is reflected in such friendly locals. We enjoyed listening to live music on the church steps every evening, and it was the perfect time of the year to be there for the cool evenings and warm days.
I am so thankful for the funding Gateway gave me in order to do this trip. I definitely matured as a person and learnt a lot of life skills in organising the logistics, but also spent such a relaxing ten days emerging in a very different and wonderful culture.
Francesca Ixer
Geography