Traveling...That's My Thing...

Franklin College...the school of the traveler. That should be their motto, because in all reality, that's the best thing going for it...

And since I am here, I have been taking advantage of that. I should say that there aren't too many opportunities for traveling, but then I guess weekends (and "long weekends...consisting of a Friday or Monday off) will have to do.

My first weekend was "Carnevale Break" early in February. Now, a lot of people really wanted to go places that weekend, and I was game for anything...under a few conditions. (A) It had to be a brand new place - no where that I have already been. Best instance would be new country (I have to cross more off of that Facebook Map!). (B) It had to be cheap/relatively inexpensive. I have no money, so flying somewhere far and staying in great accomodations...out of the question.

There were many plans thrown about, but nothing was really settling, and it was roughly 10 days before the actual break. Alas, I was coming to terms that I would not be traveling anywhere for this break. But then an online conversation changed everything...

So I was chatting with my mom, seeing how things were going (and yes, my mom does have a screen name on AIM...she's technologically savvy...beat that!), and the topic of travel came up. I laid it all out, saying that a trip wasn't looking too probable, but she wasn't as "Oh, I understand" as I imagined. Instead, I got exactly what I needed - the ol' "Is that not why you went there? To travel... Seriously, find somewhere inexpensive and just go!" And, that's what I did...all night long.

I wanted to make sure, with a week left, that things would all still line up (trains to airports, flights, hotels, etc...), so I would literally find myself with 8 windows open searching random cities. But then, I finally found one... Enter Porto, Portugal! A new country, relatively inexpensive to be in, and a city from the Amazing Race (my friends, that's a trifecta...cannot beat that!). So, literally in the course of one evening I booked...

-Train from Lugano -> Milan
-Bus from Milan Centrale -> Airport
-Flight from Milan -> Porto
-Hotel for 2 nights in Porto (actually cheaper than the hostel)
-Flight back
-Shuttle to train
-Train from Milan -> Lugano

...and the grand total...roughly $240. That's pretty good, right?! God, I should do planning for a living...

Now, I will say that this trip came with some conditions. Mainly, I would have to leave others that I was thinking about traveling with behind...and that I would be traveling alone. But, I was prepared, and they were all understanding. It would just be me, my multiple confirmation #s, and my camcorder...(enter "The Ballad of the Cam...)

Well, it is time for class once again! Check back later to see just how the experience went! And also, find out the troubles with technology (well, mainly chargers and batteries...).

...is this my first cliff-hanger?!