DAY 5 - VAMONOS MEXICO

Day 5 in Mexico brought us to a Cenote. We went to Rio Secreto for a private tour in an underground river full of with thousands of beautiful stalactites and stalagmites

 We were given wet suits, helmets, headlamps, and water shoes for our adventure.

Before entering the cave, we visited a Mayan Shaman who burned some incense and offered some words for purification and he wished us a safe journey.

 Our guide took us on a 3km tour that lasted about 3 hours through the cave with a combination of walking and swimming (or floating).

You have to be careful not to touch anything to help preserve the landscape.

It was an amazing opportunity you shouldn't pass up if you are in the area.

After the tour, we had a special lunch provided by Rio Secreto.

 For dinner, the 4 of us finished off a tomahawk 30 oz. steak.

Today was a good day.

MEXICO VACATION - DAY 3

This morning, we loaded into a van with our driver Gustavo and tour guide Jose. Our first stop was at the humble home of a shaman (he calls himself a JMan) near Chichen Itza.

 He took sat us down individually to purify us and then he bonded us a family. It was...interesting.

My favorite part of this stop was this abuela shucking corn.

We continued our journey to our next destination: Chichen Itza. The Mayans used a tons of symbolism in all of the buildings in this complex. Our guide was giving us an in-depth explanation of it all. Then some in our group needed him to speed things along so he shortened it and we started taking photos.

Climbing the ruins was closed in 2007 to the public so we weren't allowed to go to the top. I was a little bummed at how commercial/touristy the area is, but it was cool to see.

 About fifteen minutes down the road, we stopped for lunch at a small Mexican restaurant. My group was afraid eating local food would upset their stomachs...so that meant more tacos and horchata for me! 

(PS my stomach was fine.)

While we were eating lunch, a cute little parade passed. I love being immersed in a culture.

The final spot on our itinerary for the day was Ek' Balam.

 It is another Mayan village in the Yucatan with ruins that we were able to climb and enjoy.

*Here we are rocking those homemade shorts I showed you from day 1.*

 The site is known for a plaster on the tomb (on the side of a palace) of a king who was buried inside.

My favorite part was climbing to the top to enjoy the view. 

The clouds were so fluffy today I thought I was gonna die.

Mikuláš

We were in Prague for Mikuláš this year. St. Nicholas (Mikuláš), the Angel (anděl) who represents the Good, and the Devil (čert) representing the Evil were walking the streets. 

All three characters are supposed to walk the streets, stopping children to ask if they were good in the past year. Most kids say yes and sing a song or recite a short poem and are rewarded with sweet treats handed out by the angel. Bad kids are supposed to be put in the Devil's sack and taken to hell, or would only get a sack of potatoes or coal instead of candy. They are here to scare the kids to behave better.

Sounds a little creepy, eh?! Trust me, it is...but maybe a little like our creepy Halloween traditions.

For some reason, we mostly saw the Devils roaming the streets this year. Uh oh.

FRIDAY THE 13TH

I went to San Diego to celebrate Friday the 13th.

 The cityscape was scary beautiful

and palm trees were alarmingly gorgeous.

Next, I visited the Whaley House in Old Town San Diego. Visitors can go on self-guided tours during the day for $8 or guided tours in the evening for $13/person.

According to the Travel Channel's America's Most Haunted, the Whaley House is the number one most haunted house in the United States.

In celebration of the 13th, the tour was done in the dark with small lights carried by the tour guide. The staff chose random people to "die" during the tour and I was chosen. Here is my death certificate.

I didn't see any ghosts walking around, but I did feel a little loss of balance while we stood in the general store. It was a strange feeling. Visit the Whaley House on your next visit to Southern California.

ITALY Day 4 & 5 - MILAN

Once again, we woke up early and took a fast train to the next city....Milan.

It was raining when we arrived, but we didn't let that stop us.

The Duomo is beautiful in any weather.

Don't forget the gelato!

 We headed to a super cool indoor shopping area

with a fun Ferrari store. Across from the Ferrari store, we noticed people lining up to go inside a building like crazy. I asked around later in the afternoon (because the line to enter the shop was still out the door ridiculous) and was told it was because there was a big soccer game tonight.

What?! We couldn't let the opportunity to experience the biggest rivalry in Italy (InterMilan vs Milan) with crazy Italian fans pass us by so we headed to the sold out stadium later that night to buy tickets from some shady guys.

My new friend and I parted ways to go to different airports to continue our travels in different places.

I found a shop with every italian treat I could think of: pistachio croissant, macaron, and cannoli.

Time to kiss & fly my way back to Prague.

ITALY Day 3 - CINQUE TERRE

Cinque Terre means 5 lands in Italian. We woke early for a day trip via bus to this area of amazing little villages.

We were able to visit 4 of the 5 villages and they are all so darn charming. You can take a ferry, train, or hike between them.

I couldn't find one thing wrong with this place. 

OK. I lied. There are a lot of pick pockets around that you have to beware of while visiting. There are signs posted everywhere warning you and one person in our group had their wallet stolen. Other than that, this place is so fabulous!