The Last One

Wow, we cannot believe we are sitting here writing our last post. This semester has truly been amazing and one of the best 4 months of our lives. Thank you so much to our parents for supporting us (mentally, emotionally, and financially) through this incredible adventure. This post is dedicated to remembering the best and funniest things of abroad.

See you all soon (a.k.a. today AHHH what?)

People We Will Miss (or maybe not) 

1. coke waiter with great egg breakfast dishes #HugsNotDrugs
2. crazy cab driver who “didn’t speak english” yet yelled at us then spoke perfect english and told us it was all a lesson #ThanksTeach
3. our spanish cinema teacher that we walked out of his class 5 minutes in when we learned it was all taught in Spanish #NoHabloEspañol
4. The waiter who told us to stop ordering food because we had too much…. and then we ordered more food shortly there after
5. the very mean and sassy waiter from La Gallina Blanca who told Cassie to say thank you
6. Man in Marriott Copenhagen that reminded us it was a 5-star hotel and therefore we wouldn’t fit in
7. The spectacular man from hotel in Venice whose toupee was on fleek
8. Manu (no more words needed)
9. The cab driver that let us pick our own playlist aka queen and “dangerous”
10. The British Airways rugby team that acted as if they were at a bachelorette party
11. “ON THE ROAD TO MOROCCO” man
12. London tour guide who made us cry of laughter and then gave us ponchos
13. Woman in Harrods who bought her 4 kids all Moncler jackets #the1percent
14. Our pink-vested Lisbon tour guide that sang our troubles away
15. Chef at Cooking class in Seville who changed our lives with paella
16. Guard at Arc di Triumph that was the sexiest thing since sliced bread
17. actor who played Charlie in London Production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory #TheProductionDoe
18. Lady at Rue 8 that gets an A+ in dainty jewelry
19. Our sunglass lady that let us play with her baby
20. JOBO’s son up at Glasgow University

Things We Will Miss

1. not having to do school work #HardlyWorking
2. the idea that going out for a meal is cheaper than cooking for ourselves
3. convincing ourselves that ordering 7 tapas is perfectly natural
4. finding a 2 euro coin in our wallets
5. getting a gel mani/pedi for under 20 euros
6. never having to tip anyone, anywhere, at any time
7. The ability to casually travel every weekend from Thursday to Sunday
8. Being able to drink/purchase/order alcohol #Still20
9. Living in a “patio” with a rooftop terrace
10. Never having to decide what we want for dinner and just order tapas of everything
11. Wonkandy cuz… Bae
12. Getting a Toblerone for each trip
13. Finding symbolism in every city
14. Free breakfast buffets
15. Sharing a closet-sized room and loving every second of it
16. Watching a movie every night as Cassie falls asleep
17. The morning cookies in Mary Alice’s class… Making 9:30am classes worth it
18. Getting “aceitunas” before every meal
19. Hearing Jodi ask for them 5 times throughout the meal
20. Each other… Obviously

Things We Are Looking Forward To

1. the general feeling of being clean
2. being able to use a dryer for our clothes
3. get a salad/healthy lifestyle
4. not needing to ask “is there WIFI” everywhere we go
5. getting water for FREE at restaurants
6. the ability to use our phones on the go (basically – being able to speak to our moms when we are walking alone)
7. the use of a car instead of walking #MamasTired
8. Being able to watch a show during its scheduled showing
9. Not using military time
10. See our family and friends! (Thank you for reading thus far)

Mistakes We Know We Will Make in the States

1. saying “hola” when we walk into every store
2. asking for WIFI passwords
3. Saying euros instead of dollars
4. Still using military time
5. Always looking for our blackberry’s

Jodi and Cassie’s Favorite Tapas Bars

1. Perro Viejo
2. Viniera San Telmo
3. Mamarracha
4. Mercado Lonja del Barranco (aka glass market)
5. Ovejas Negras
6. Dos de Mayo
7. Contenedor
8. Gourmet at Corte Ingles
9. Nikkai Bar
10. Vega 10

Jodi and Cassie’s Favorite Hangouts

1. Abril (PSA: Jodi only went once)
2. Casino
3. Bandalai
4. Alfonso
5. Ruko N’ Roll
6. Tokyo
7. Antique
8. Botellon at the river

HASTA LUEGO, SEVILLA! ILY AND IMY ALREADY ❤

The One Where Jodi Found Bae in Lagos

Hello all! We are back with our (sadly) second to last blog post of the semester. It has truly been an amazing four months and we can’t believe we are 11 days away from saying goodbye to this amazing experience.

Jodi enjoyed the wonders of a Beer Bike in Sevilla. Don’t worry, they had sangria #GF. The bike moved MAYBE 5 miles an hour and I’m pretty sure Jodi is in the background of hundreds of Sevillians pictures on their iPhones #epic. It was definitely an experience that is #TypicalAbroad #Basic.

SOOO College

Beer Bike N’ Hoes

Jodi travelled to Lagos, Portugal this weekend as a final hoorah with some friends! The weekend was full of fun times spent in their rented out villa. Yes, a villa, you read that correctly. Pedro (the owner of this villa) was more than accommodating, despite his first impression (picture four girls waiting outside the villa in the heat with no one to let them in). However, Pedro showed up in fabulous Ray-Ban sunglasses and gave us a full tour of the villa. It was beautiful and full of odd-oversized decorations (picture two enormous sunflowers framing the TV in the living room as ONE example). Soon after, we set out for the beach and began our last vacation from our vacation. The weekend can be summarized by: cooking, eating, cleaning, tanning, boating, sleeping, and relaxing. To clarify, the eating entailed going to one of the top 50 burger places in the world: Nah Nah Bah Burger. To say Jodi met the love of her life is cold hard truth (and no, it’s not the burger – it’s the restaurant owner). OH, and the burger was delicious as well. Lagos was a beautiful city that Jodi is overjoyed to be able to visit and end abroad with.

Homemade Dinner

Sunsets on FLEEK

Villa Girassol

Cocktail Hour by the finest

Dis Boat ain’t loyal

Praia do Porto de Mós

Praia do Camilo

Nah Nah Bah: Burger

We decided to keep this blog short and sweet because we imagine the next one will be long and mushy/full o’ tears.

Stay tuned for our last blog next week!

P.S. The weather this week ranges from 96 to 106 degrees. You’ve been warned.

SEE YOU ALL IN 11 DAYS!

XOXO,

JZ and CW

The One with a Moroccan Zingler Marb(a)ella Feria Extravaganza

Great to see you all again! We are so sorry for the delay in posts but I mean we were caught up in Morocco, with some fam members, a jaunt to Marbella, and in the Sevillian festival of Feria. Since we have a lot to go over, let’s break up this post into three parts.

1. Morocco

ON OUR WAY TO MOROCCCCOOOO (said, no YELLED, our tour guide every 30 seconds on the bus every day #doless. You may have found yourself wondering: is that a bus, a boat, or another bus? No, that’s just us getting to Morocco in 12 hours. As this trip was ran by CEA (our program), it meant two things. 1. our trip was FO FREE (so we were like HYFR); 2. we had to run on their schedule. This means the EXTREMELY early (even for Jodi) departure at 4:45am to Morocco. All was going to be fine, the girls were just going to put on their music and fall asleep. This WAS the plan until Jodi turned on her iPod and saw that all of her music had been erased MMM KAY! Finally, they arrived in Tarifa to hop on a boat. The boat was nothing like Titanic as we all had expected it to be (the romance/Celine Dion part, people). We finally arrive in Africa and leave our European troubles behind. Our first stop was the “Blue City” of Chefchauen (see pictures below to understand). We stopped for lunch and got authentic Moroccan food aka cous cous (No, Melanie Zingler, Jodi did not eat that). After an extremely long day of traveling, the girls finally got to the hotel in Meknes and instantly went to bed.

The boat tooooo MOOOOROCCCOOOOO

Blue City of Chefchauen

Cous Cous with grilled vegetables #basic

This is Morocco.

The next day, they woke up early (with a SLIGHT alarm fiasco #TimeDifference) to a free breakfast buffet courtesy of the hotel. FYI these girls will do ANYTHING for a free breakfast buffet. The girls left for Fez (thank you, Rory Gilmore for getting us excited to see this place). The city was full of an amazing tour with our favorite uber-polite tour guide (after Jodi asked him a question he said “thank you so much, you’re welcome” and walked away) as well as the incredible sight of seeing them create and dye leather. Later that day, the girls were given free time in the Medina so clearly Jodi thought: hey, this is a reputable place, I am going to put a snake and monkey on my body. Following this blog now provides you with its very first perk: exclusive pictures of Jodi being attacked by a monkey (see below).

This ain’t no PLEATHER

Snake Gone Wild

Monkey Got Even Wilder

The last day of our trip was spent in Asilah. It is a beautiful town on the beach and allowed Cassie to ride her first camel #basic. Despite the less-than-regular backdrop, it was a definite #classic Moroccan experience that Cassie is overjoyed to have experienced. Next time in Jerusalem.

Next year, in Jerusalem!

If we learned anything in Morocco, it was to not get obsessed with fancy trendy patterned pants trend and also understand that if pants say XXL it most likely is a children’s XXL. Take note.

Also, sidenote. The boat ride back offered us an experience more similar to Titanic (in terms of shakey-ness this time). Let’s just say people weren’t so chatty this time and Zofran was needed.

When you’ve been on the bus more hours than not…

2. JZ with the Family #ZingSevilla 

As soon as Jodi got into Sevilla from Morocco, she rushed over to see her family. I meannnnn like it had been WAYYY too long since she has seen these fantastic people. They had an amazing week full of tapas, touring, and laying out by the pool. A quote that stood out was the one and only Barry Zingler telling Jodi “You just don’t look like anyone in the family.” And when she gave him a look of confusion, he clarified by saying, “No, no its not what i meant. I just meant you don’t look like anyone.” MMM kay thanks Dad ily. Jodi took her family to all of the touristy sites in Sevilla (mostly through a segway tour, shoutout to Fran), and led her tour in a different fashion than Brookie-Cookie Zingler. By that, I mean she didn’t make stuff up when Melanie and Barry asked countless questions. They enjoyed the LUXURIOUS accommodations of the Alfonso XIII hotel, including incredible beds and free breakfast buffet (refer to what was said above in regards to this). The family moved onto Barcelona! The time in Barcelona could be summarized by some small fights, Jodi getting sick, delicious meals, and Coca Cola Light Sin Limon. We were able to see the Sagrada Familia, Gaudi Houses, Magic Fountain and the Boqueria (main market). Melanie Zingler heavily contemplated becoming a vegan over the smell in the market. Don’t worry, come this Rosh Hashanah she will be eating Bubbe’s brisket. It was an amazing week that went by WAY too fast. ILY AND IMY YOU ALL! See you in a month!!!

They put my love on TOP (of Las Setas)!

Getting rowdy on Las Setas

Est. 1994

La Abuela Gelato: Thinking of Bubbie the whole time

Things Zingler’s of Tenafly Said During This Trip:

1. Calling it a peso instead of a euro every time – Dr. Barry Zingler

2. “GET IT!” – tagline courtesy of Brooke Zingler

3. “You know what, you guys are great kids” – Melanie Zingler

My very own Segrada Familia

This picture is a choking hazard.

Park Guell was swell

ILY

3. Marbella

After small tears were shed, Jodi jaunted off to a relaxing weekend in Marbella, meeting Cassie and some friends there. The weekend was full of relaxing, tanning, using lemons in our hair #SunIn #CassieIsBlondeNow, eating delicious dinner. The days were full of crashing the Iberostar next door’s breakfast buffet, laying out, relaxing, water sports, and grabbing a delicious lunch/ice cream snack. What could be better? I mean, it puts the BAE in Marb(a)ella #Basic. It was exactly the weekend we all needed. I know, you’re probably like, what are you stressed about that you needed a weekend like this? Answer: ummm no comment.

Marb(a)ella

Just a littttttttle windy!

Meet our new friends, the British Airways rugby team
P.S. Yes, that man is dressed as a bull

4. Feria Week

AHHH, Feria Feria Feria. What can we even say?!? Feria is nothing like anyone can ever understand unless you are here. Therefore, we thought it would be helpful to compare it to more relatable things

1. A bar-mitzvah crawl in which you hop from Bar-Mitzvah party to party all day and night full of dancing (aka the Horah)

2. The Wildwood Boardwalk with all the rides (sans safety measures, however)

3. A constant cocktail party where the Cotton-Eye-Joe and Cha-Cha Slide are professional flamenco dancing

It’s time for FERIA

Meet the Rebujito: sherry and soda (we think)

Feria from a Ferris Wheel

Cassie and Jodi Take Feria: Season 1

Hi, I’m Jodi and nothing in my life is fer(ia)

Hi, I’m Cassie and I’m as sweet as this cotton candy.

P.S. Jodi went to see a bullfight and actually found it fascinating. Unfortunately, 6 bulls were killed in her presence. Let’s just be glad its not dogfight #amirite #RozeyAndHarryForever

This is only pic we will show of the bullfight #You’reWelcome

SEE YOU ALL SOON (in person and on the blog)

ILY,

JZ and CW

The One With the Burns and Pizza (but not burnt pizza)

HELLOOO WISCONSSSINNNN!!! (sorry – too soon after the recent loss? We hope not).

We are back and bigger than ever (literally, I meaannnn what did you expect post-Italy)!

Before we dive into the Italian waters, we thought we would share some information about our time pre-Italy and post-last blog. Jodi was in Seville and travelled to Cadiz, while Cassie was with her fam in Barcelona, then Milan, then Zermatt, then our lovely Sevilla.

Jodi’s Week:

Jodi’s week can be summarized by a normal week that ended with a lot of sun and bathes. We’ll explain.

1. Cadiz

Jodi travelled with her two friends in Sevilla Jess and Lexi to Cadiz (a beach town in Spain that is a short train ride away) for the day. We repeat: the DAY. The forecast predicted a lot of clouds an only 60 degrees (yes- we know all you East Coasters are def like “stop complaining- we still have snow” but when you are expecting a beach day, 80 or higher is preferred, lezzz be real. So we get to Cadiz early AM and head straight to the beach. We were the only ones on the beach. We wore shorts and t-shirts (foreshadowing to our tan/burn lines). We laid out for around 3 hours. None of this explains the color of our skin at the end of that day. To say we were burnt is an understatement because we were swollen AND burnt. The pain AND struggle was DEFINITELY REAL. At the end of the day, we took our burnt and destroyed bodies back to the train station and promised ourselves we would enter in a committed relationship with Aloe Vera on Facebook.

Despite the burns, Cadiz was beautiful and had a truly breathtaking sunset (and a delicious salad)! The trip was one we (and our skin) will never forget!

2. Arab Baths

The Arab Baths are a local luxury of Sevilla. The same tri-pod went to the baths the day after Cadiz and enjoyed some much-neeed R n’ R. We were not prepared for the heat of the water against our freshly burnt bodies. However, the experience is extremely calming for three highly anxious Americans. The baths vary in size and temperature. There is even a rooftop bath, aka hot-tub. This experience is definitely one we want to do again.

Cassie’s Week:

Just want to start off that this will not be nearly as funny or entertaining as the main writer of this blog, Jodi Zingler. So I left Seville at 6:45am for my flight to Madrid and then Milan. Met up with my mom, dad, and sammie at the Milan airport and got straight into a van to drive to Zermatt. It was so cool driving through Italy to get to Swiss going up, down, and around so many mountains. We finally get to the Grand Zermatterhoff Hotel where there are no cars, only tiny electric cars for taxis. We woke up the next day and headed out on the slopes… And in order to get to the top you literally have to take a taxi, train, gondola, and chairlift. The Swiss clearly don’t believe in ski in ski out. The skiing was like no other. A bit challenging trying to navigate because there were no names for the slopes or chairlift, but the views made the shlep worth every second. Sitting at a ski beach with Lenny and Darla looking out at the Matterhorn was unbelievable. One of the coolest parts was being able to ski from the Swiss alps to Italy and have lunch at a traditional pizzeria. The way back to Milan was definitely an adventure. Thank god our driver was good because we literally drove in a blizzard as we drove up, down, and around the mountains about 10 mph. We finally made it to seville and had the best few days doing all a tourist could do in seville: cathedral, alcazar, a horse carriage ride (def a highlight) and of course eating at the best restaurants. It was a tough goodbye but couldn’t wait to start my spring break in Italy the next day.

Just your average carriage ride through Seville

Sisters take the slopes!

Team Black Diamond

Black Diamonds don’t scare the Wolffs!

CIAO BELLAS! WELCOME TO OUR FIRST SPRING BREAK!!!

Okay, here for the good stuff. For our first spring break, we decided to travel Italy’s main cities of Rome, Florence and Venice. Each city offered something very different but all amazing.

1. ROME

From the second we stepped off the place in Rome, we could smell the pizza. Our first cab experience was very odd in the sense that we were shown a cab, got in, then a new driver came, then we were thrown out of that cab and asked to go into a different one. Reasoning? Still extremely unclear. But we got on the road and headed toward Jodi’s besties Phoebe and Sydney’s apartment. Luckily enough, there was a Shmorgasburg-type food market going on in Rome that weekend! We went and were drawn to the mozzarella stand. It was there that we had the best mozzarella of our lives. Even Phoebe and Sydney confirmed this praise. The first day in Italy we were able to see a lot of the sites and get some amazing gelato #basic. The “free” tram aka public transportation aka subway above ground proved to be a great way to get around the city. That night Jodi and Cassie were able to get their first round of authentic Italian pizza. Key word: FIRST round.

The BEST Mozzarella EVER

Jodi, Sydney, and Phoebe together again!

The next day the girls began their day with a early lunch at Ginger where they were able to have FRESH salads and smoothies. Who knew salads weren’t a thing in Spain? Not these girls, we can assure you. Jodi’s smoothie had Aloe Vera because like…um reread the section on Cadiz. Mama’s gotta peel, ya know? The girls found amazing stores in Rome, that they quickly learned are also in NYC! Shoutout to the Internet on a Blackberry! As Phoebe and Sydney went to class, Jodi and Cassie wine to see the Colosseum and Wedding Cake (provides amazing views of the city). At night, they travelled to the Jewish quarter and got some amazing Jewish-style artichokes, followed by another round of gelato, of course.

Jodi and Cassie at the Colosseum

Do wishes still work if the fountain is under construction?

The next day, Jodi and Cassie sang “TAKE ME TO CHURCH” and their prayers were answered (HA, LITERALLY, GET IT?!?) They took a 3-hour tour of Vatican city. It was truly amazing to see all the artwork and learn the history of this city. Did Jodi and Cassie understand any of the Catholic references? Hell, excuse us, Heck NO! But they just smiled and nodded. The Sistine Chapel was unbelievable. Made only better by the Wizard of Oz-like voice that would come on the loud speaker frequently and silence the room. The SYMBOLISM in this chapel made these girls heads spin. #PeaceLoveSymbolism. Post-Vatican City tour the girls got their last lunch in Rome. This is where Jodi had the best pizza of her life! AND YES, it WAS gluten free aka senze glutine. The things Jodi would do to eat that crust again…..let’s not go there. Sidetone: Jodi sneezed at lunch and said “bless you” to herself after she sneezed. Why? Unclear. Was she just feeling extra holy in the Vatican City? We assume so. But like still SUPER weird that she did that.

the BEST gluten free pizza in the world

Hello, Vatican City!

Illegal Picture Part 1
Sistine Chapel Ceiling

 

Illegal Picture Part 2
Sistine Chapel

The girls said a sad goodbye to Phoebe and Sydney and went on their way to Florence by train.

2. FLORENCE

Florence aka FIRENZE was full of Duomos and delicious food. The city was definitely much smaller and felt similar to our home in Sevilla. Our hotel, N4U Apartments was in a prime location right next to the Duomo and Cassie’s bestie Lauren’s apartment. With a little trouble actually getting into the building, Jodi and Cassie were pleasantly surprised with the quality of their room. Definitely a great find! The girls went to ZaZas for dinner with some of their friends studying abroad in Florence. The next day, the girls were led by their tour guide Lauren Strum all around the city. Lauren showed us the top of the bell tower, Massimo (check Lauren’s business card for Massimo’s number and Facebook profile), leather market, Ponte Vecchio, Gusta Pizza, and piazza Michelangelo at sunset. They learned that Massimo is BAE and knows how to produce an epic Stella knockoff. If you’re confused, just check out any Jewish girl when she’s back at school in fall and what bag she carries at night. You’ll understand. The day was perfect and gave us a great feel for the city of Florence. The sunsets over the city were breathtaking. At night, Lauren, Jodi and Cassie dined at Acqua al 2 and got every “sampler” on the menu. Everything was delicious, especially Jodi’s make-your-own risotto and Cassie and Lauren’s pasta sampler. Later that night, Cassie took to Space. No, we don’t mean the solar system but rather the hip nightclub that Stefan from SNL would be all over. Through some sweet-talking, they got to the VIP lounge and danced the night away.

Top of the Bell Tower

Piazza Michelangelo

The next day, Cassie and Jodi planned to go to see the famous David statue. Unfortunately, the ticket was misunderstood and the girls were not able to see the David. UGH like just classic men playing hard to get, am I right ladies?!? Can I get a HELL YA? Anyway, the girls decided to not let this ruin their day and they went to eat a quick lunch at Oil Shoppe (s/o: gf bread) and a final Firenze gelato at Festival. After putting themselves in a full food coma, the girls got on the train and said CIAO to Firenze and BONGIORNO to Venizia.

Last Gelato in Firenze
Festival del Gelato

3. VENICE

The last stop and final trip for just Cassie and Jodi during this abroad semester (SAD)! Venice was the perfect place for these two ladies to end the trip/honeymoon. Venice was unlike any other city in the world. They travelled around in a water taxi system that was basically a subway on water. The first day, the girls went straight to dinner at Scala. NOTE: DO NOT GO TO SCALA IN VENICE. It was hotel recommended so we were like uhh, sure! But, how wrong we were. Cassie’s dish was basically lox pasta and Jodi was constantly asking her fish, “is that a bone or are you just happy to see me?” Answer: always a bone. The girls quickly paid the check and got the hell out of there. Starving, they went to get gelato. Turns out, VENICE FLOODS AT NIGHT! The myth is true: Venice is actually sinking. Well, these girls were unaware of this odd feature and went to get gelato. They were fine getting into the gelato bar but it was leaving it that proved a problem. The gelato place was closing up shop of the day and removed the wood board that allowed people to come in and out of the store. Therefore, Jodi and Cassie had no way of getting out without getting soaked. Luckily for Cassie, she was wearing boots and took the leap of faith and made t across the puddle/pond. Jodi, on the other hand, was not so fortunate. She was wearing sneakers and jeans. You can imagine what she had to do. It wasn’t pretty nor graceful.

The next day, Cassie and Jodi went to Murano to see the insane skill glass blowing. It was incredible to watch them take nothing and make it into a beautiful piece of art. We then got to see all the beautiful finished pieces that made us understand how much Jodi trips/walks into things. NOT the time or place to do this. After the Murano tour, the girls, in the spirit of Passover, went to the Jewish Quarter of Venice. They got beautiful Murano glass Jewish pieces and lunch at Gam Gams. This was the closest to home the girls had experienced in a while. Cassie and Jodi then went on a gondola ride. The boat was BYOB (Bring Your Own Bellini’s). Bellini’s are nectar from heaven. That is all you need to know. The ride was full of Italian singing and gorgeous sites. Post-gondola we took a quick cat nap and then went out to get dinner in the town. Let’s just say this dinner was infinitely better than the last.

Kosher Lunch at Gam Gam’s

Gondola Ride!

The last day of their time in Venice was spent walking around in the rain and stumbling across cute boutiques. This was a perfect way to end the trip.

The girls headed back to Rome by train and stayed in an airport hotel that provided a free airport shuttle at 4:30am for the next morning. While Italy was an unbelievable experience, it was great to be back home in Sevilla!

THANKS, as always, FOR READING AND GETTING THROUGH THIS LONG BLOG POST!

PEACE OUT ITALY!

NEXT UP: MOROCCO AND THE ZINGLER’S COME TO SEVILLA!

ILY TO SEVILLA AND BACK!

El Uno Donde Las Chicas Comen Todo

Disclosure: for those of you who don’t enjoy reading/seeing pics of food – we highly suggest you stop reading now.

As this past week was more low-key and Cassie is currently snow-bunnying it up with her family in the Swiss Alps, we decided to take this blog post to show the amazing food in Sevilla. Being that it is half-way through our semester abroad (we don’t know how either- man time REALLY flies when you’re having fun), we want to summarize some of our favorite places in Sevilla (or of all time).

(in no specific order)

1. Ovejas Negras

“Trendy” tapas full of gluten free bread, amazing burrata, and so much more!

Ovejas Negras
Patatas Bravas y Burrata

Perro Viejo
Eggplant Dish

2. Perro Viejo

Another place full of trendy tapas. Make sure you listen to the waiter when he/she tells you that the rice dish is TOO big for one person- Jodi didn’t believe them and received a large paella-sized bowl to finish herself. Challenge accepted.

Perro Viejo
Burratta

Perro Viejo
Salmon Ceviche

3. Mamarrancha

AMAZING tapas! Think: burrata with roasted pumpkin, DIY eggplant miso soup, do we need to go on? Unfortunately, we were too hungry to take pics. But here is the amazing dessert we had!

Mamarrancha
Chocolate mouse with pear and vanilla ice-cream

4. San Telmo

Ah, San Telmo. Our home away from home. Literally, because it is basically in our backyard and is home to authentic Spanish tapas with a twist. You’ll see what we mean in the pictures below.

San Telmo
Cheese, Tomato, and Eggplant Tower

San Telmo
Roast Beef, mustard, and mashed potatoes

5. Catalina

Catalina is San Telmo’s next-door neighbor. Basically the “girl next door.” She is home to our first meal here in Sevilla. One which we will never forget (because we keep going back).

Catalina
Pesto Greek Salad

6. La Gallina Blanca

A little spice of Italian food here in local Sevilla.

La Gallina Blanca
Burrata

La Gallina Blanca
Eggplant Parm

La Gallina Blanca
Salad with DIY Honey

La Gallina Blanca
Caprese Tower

7. Dos de Mayo

Bringing the spirit of College Park, MD, Dos de Mayo is a hectic restaurant where you order at the bar and they notify you with a buzzer (a la Cheesecake Factory) when your food is ready. It is well-worth the constant struggle to find a tendency and worth the stalker-like tendencies you develop. This is home to one of our favorite dishes in Sevilla. We can’t describe it, we can’t really do it justice with a picture. So you’re just going to have to come try it in Sevilla yourself.

Dos de Mayo
Eggplant Dish

8. Catalina Casa de Comidas

Different than the other Catalina mentioned above. Home of the ox tail which we tried and fell in love with. #SorryRabbi

Catalina Casa de Comidas
Ox Tail

9. The Room

Mixing it up with some asian fusion! Home of pad thai and other amazing asian dishes that are truly one of a kind. Also the home of the place where they gave us the smaller version of Pad Thai than we ordered, so we asked for more #FoFree

The Room
Pad Thai

10. El Barranco

The “Glass Market” of Sevilla! Great place to try all sorts of restaurants in one location.

El Barranco
Meatballs and Paella

El Barranco
Burrata

And that’s all for now! See you in 2 weeks after our first spring break to ITALY!!!

ILY,

JZ and CW

The One With Saint Patrick and the Saint that is Sevilla

Disclosure: When we mention Temple Bar in this article it in no way refers to the holy place in which we had our Bat-Mitzvahs. Sorry for the confusion #Dad

This weekend in Dublin was definitely one for the books. It was full of brewskis, bars, and baskets of chips (aka french fries). To say that the weekend is one we will always remember is a slight fib in that some parts of the day were #hazy. It was definitely an amazing place to celebrate such a patriotic holiday. Some have compared this holiday to Fourth of July, tailgate season, and much much more. We personally feel that this weekend was like no other. Cassie found new residence at Temple Bar. To explain to you why, it might be helpful to know they played live music. Anyone who knows Casssie knows that she is a sucker for some live music #futurehusband? #hookherup #porfavor. The weekend was full of being with great friends and memories and we couldn’t have been happier to experience such an amazing weekend in an unreal place.

Note: we both were able to see the city through a Hop On Hop Off Bus tour of the city #noworries

The epic moment when you’re eyes match the scenery.

Dublin:1
Cassie: 0

Beautiful Temple Bar, Dublin

Can you spot Jodi?

We would like to take this time to tell you more about our truly beloved city of Sevilla. With March Madness rearing its end for us here, we finally are able to enjoy the beauty that is Sevilla. The restaurants we have found are truly unreal. I know this may come as a MAJOR shock to all of you, but we happen to have made more friends! I know, like who would have thought based on our pictures of Facebook and Instagram that these four months weren’t called Jodi and Cassie: The Duo. Additionally, with one of our roommates moving out (LONG STORY), we now have an extra room for storage and studying (HAHA).

Sundays have become one of our favorite days because it allows us to experience both the new city and come back to our second home in Sevilla. After seeing our friends abroad in other European cities, it is clear that we made the best choice possible for our study abroad experience. We are able to thoroughly know our city and enjoy all it has to offer. Don’t hate us, but the weather here is high 70s-80s and sunny every day. Let’s just say we don’t miss Netflix (kinda).

WE ARE PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THAT OUR MIDTERMS ARE OVER!!! Let’s just say MADDDDD blanks were left on multiple exams #YOSAO (You Only Study Abroad Once).

Today we went on a field trip to the Triana Market! Definitely a great place to get a feel of the authentic Spanish culture. Jodi tried fresh sushi made of salmon, pesto, and seaweed salad. I mean………perfection to the MAX. She literally couldn’t even.

Not too shabby in Sevilla

Triana Market for Daizzz

We want to welcome Cassie’s family to Sevilla next week! We both can’t wait to see you and show off our amazing city. Zingler’s – you’ve got a month to prepare to have Jodi schlep you around the city.

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! We miss all of you so much! ILY!!! Til next week…

The One With All the Opium (the club)

Disclosure: This weekend was known as Abroadfest to all those in the tri-state area/anyone who we have ever met. While we expected it to be PV 2.0, it was actually an amazing weekend full of dancing and beaches! #ThanksMomAndDad

Welcome to THEEEEEEEE blog post about barTHHHHHelona!

This weekend was truly like no other in which the focus shifted from sightseeing to having a moment to relax and catch up with old friends! Don’t worry, we definitely did sightseeing – we just also took the weekend for a must-needed break from the constant running around cities trying to see it all!

The trip began with a typical European abroad student experience: flying RyanAir. RyanAir is worth every small amount of euros we paid for that flight.

Things We Noticed on our RyanAir Flight

1. You have to be in shape to fly it – SoulCycle once a week just won’t do as it is a trek and a half to just get to the plane
2. One can RANDOMLY, we repeat randomly, be chosen for Priority boarding! Is it sexist? Is it about how pretty you are? We hope not, because we have never received this First-Class/Beyoncé treatment
3. When you land (which will have turbulence) – a short jingle will play that will take you back to a land full of fear and childhood merry-go-round memories

But enough complaining, the flight was cheap and we got there safely (said everyone reading this post!) WE know, we KNOW! Just had to air it out okay!

Back to the important stuff- BARCELONA!

We arrive Thursday night to find our Air B n’ B to be…ehhh “different.” To be honest, we were expecting the worst and despite popular opinion, it really was NOT bad. It was this weekend that we fully understood how being abroad is about the funny stories about the weird/gross places you live in and not able living in a Ritz Carlton. You got to ruff it up to get the good memories! We shared a room with all of Cassie’s Wisconsin friends, aka a total of 12 of us – think Real World: Barcelona OR The Bachelor (without any nice jewish boys to fight over).

Cassie and Jodi separately had school friends studying abroad in Barcelona (who are actually rooming together in Barcelona – small world, WE KNOW!) Anyway, so the girls spent their days being guided through the cities with their respected school friends and their amazing guides! It was definitely nice being reunited with their friends! But as Dorothy once said, “I don’t think we are in Madtown/CP anymore” when they saw the unreal Barcelona beaches and pickpocketing/butt-grabbing men.

Jodi and friends at random fountain in Barcelona!

Cassie and friends showing that black is the new black!

We will spare you all the details of our nights out, as they consist of MMMMM-skaaa music and dance parties that lasted until a whopping 5:30am (aka when Dr. Zingler goes to the JCC for his sweat-time).

The weekend really consisted of spending good quality time in an amazing beach city in Europe!

GAMES WE HAD TO PLAY THIS WEEKEND

1. OMG wait you go there, do you know (insert last name who ends in -stein or -men)? She’s my BEST friend!
2. Oh! I’ve seen that food on Instagram!!! Should we go? Definitely. Should we split two things so we can try more? Hundred percent.
3. An ultimate game of follow the leader was created in the clubs at night – basically this looked like long lines of girls holding each other’s hands to make it through the crowd. Basically young Jewish mothers in the making.

When we arrived back in Sevilla, we were UNNNfortunate enough to get the worst cab driver since sliced (gf) bread. He instructed us in spanish to do something with the door! Jodi, as the official Spanish speaker of the two, thought he said that the door wasn’t shut all the way so she slammed it shut. He began to SCREAM and put his face in his hands and utter “AMERICANS SON LOCOS” and a bunch of other negative slurs to us. PLOT TWIST: he was trying to “teach us a lesson” and was “totally kidding.” The “lesson” if you will was that he doesn’t want to talk to us Americans in English because we will never learn. SIDETONE: he spoke perfect English!!! Cassie was extremely pleasant to him post-crazy, while Jodi was PISSED OFF. I mean, can you blame her? This guy went crazy on her for no reason and laughed the rest of the cab ride. He later said “you know I was kidding before” and Jodi responded that it was scary and mean and unnecessary and he laughed. Jodi, a lover of humor, found ZERO humor in him. He WEIRDLY reassured her outside the cab that he was kidding and tried to pat her arm. Jodi, in her natural arrogant nature, walked away without a peep.

That’s all folks! Back to Sevilla for a hot sec before we go to celebrate our favorite (ehh, sure?) holiday – ST. PATRICKS DAY in the city of all cities – DUBLIN, IRELAND!!!

Wish us good luck on midterms for the next two weeks!!!

P.S. miss all of you so much- here is something to remember us by

ILY

ILY,

JZ and CW

The One Where We Won London and Brought Our Passports to Paris

Disclosure: We hope you are sitting down because this post will be quite lengthy.

Could we BEEE more excited to share with you our amazing adventures to the well-known capital cities of London and Paris??? We spent the last 6 days traveling those two cities. And by traveling we literally mean waking up at 7:30am and touring all day. To sum it up in a few words it was: enchanting, exhausting, delicious, and confusing.

First Stop: London

We arrived late Wednesday night in London. Immediately we felt like locals by taking the tube straight to our hotel. Our hotel was…ummm….let’s just say “cozy.” You could say it was built for a king if that king was Lord Farquad. The Kensington Rooms Hotel provided us with a bathroom fit for a small child and a labyrinth to get out of the hotel every time. I swear we spent a total of 30 minutes finding our way to and out of our hotel room. This posed to be a problem when the fire alarm went off at 6am in the morning. To say we were alarmed (pun intended) was an understatement. The labyrinth of halls on our way out allowed us to see an array of characters that we can’t unsee (aka a half naked girl and a group of wasted British women).

THURSDAY

We began the day early, getting a quick bite to eat and then straight to the Hop-On-Hop-Off Bus Tours! Despite the “classic” London rain, we were able to see a lot of sites this day! Our tour guide was the best man we have ever met. His humor made the rain bearable and he even supplied us with gorgeous rain ponchos to sightsee Buckingham Palace. We were able to go to a delicious outdoor market (thanks to the recommendation by the one and only Brooke Zingler)! Then, we traveled across the Tower Bridge (during a hailstorm we might add) in order to see the London Tower, which held the Crown Jewels (or as Cassie called it, “the jewelry store”).

Rain Ponchos are the new black.

Tower Bridge pre-hail storm

This is our “post-hail storm bridge” look
p.s. it stopped raining right as we got off the bridge #epic

Our next stop was to the meca of all mecas: Harrods. Decadent and luxurious are the two words that perfectly sum up our experience there. The most unbelievable part was that there were people that actually bought these crazy expensive items with no second thought (NOT the frugel kugels of the world if you know what I mean).

With our day reaching its end, we decided to stroll on down to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. On our way, we took the tube and found the elevator to be overcrowded- forcing us to climb 193 steps. Life was LITERALLY a climb. Stairs are now the new enemy. Despite our new hatred, we landed in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory for an amazing production (Cassie’s favorite phrase of the weekend)! The show showed us how British kids are just cuter and better #sorrynotsorry. Charlie was adorable and had the singing pipes that made us shoot out of our seats like Grandpa Joe.

Read our tombstones: Death by Stairs

We’ve got the golden ticket!

FRIDAY

New day, same wake up call. We got out of bed pre-sun rise in order to begin our new day of exploring. Because we saw so much, it is best to be clear and direct at all the sights we saw. Big Ben. Parliament. Westminster Abby. Changing of Guard (crowded but overrated/we had no idea what was going on/felt like President Inauguration that happens every day). London Eye. Food market. Took fancy cab to Shakespeare’s Globe. It was closed. Went to top shop. Explored the Victoria and Albert Museum (showing a special Wedding Dress section – Jodi was FREAKING OUT). Whole foods (search for Luna Bars – to say we went to 7 stores looking for them would be a lie, because we went to 10…) Hotel. Much-Needed Nap. Dinner at Umami (note: pad thai can be found in every city in the world).

Our friend, Big Benjamin

Where the Queen (not Beyonce) enters when she visits Parliament

Westminster Abby (think: how do you solve a problem like Maria)

Big Buck Palace

EYE love London!

Been around the Globe, but couldn’t get in

Wise words from Albert and Victoria Museum’s Wedding Dresses gallery!

SATURDAY

Saturday called for delicious cereal breakfast and classy high tea. We started our day going to the other side of London to see the well-reviewed Cereal Killer Cafe. It was definitely worth the shlep. The ambiance took us back to the 90s, while the upcoming high tea took us back centuries before. High tea was everything and more. We went to the Browns Hotel which graciously had a gluten free version of high tea. Yes, that means gluten free finger sandwiches, hot scones, and small desserts. It was by far the best meal we have ever had. This is ALL due to the scones. The scones were life changing. Is butter a carb? If so, we didn’t seem to mind smearing their homemade butter and jam all across our freshly baked scones. We HIGHLY recommend going for high tea when in London. High Tea is BAE. Scones are the ULTIMATE BAE.

If cereal could kill…

Camera Shy: the unbelievable scones

Our subway stopped in the middle of our travels, making us extremely grateful that we were in a country that’s native language was English.

TIME FOR THE CHUNNEL! We took the famous chunnel (known as that for the idea that it goes through the tunnel through the channel). It was quick and easy. Everything we wanted it to be and more.

Sharing some giggles on the Chunnel!

PARIS

We call this section: Two American Girls in Paris- Part Une.

Our experience was NOTHING like Carrie Bradshaw’s #unfortunately. However, none of that mattered because we were in the city of LOVE! Jodi could not have been happier/in a greater state of bliss. Jodi’s love for love exploded in this city.

BONJOUR A PARIS

SUNDAY

The day began with a delicious French-style breakfast – so basically all pastries. Luckily, for Jodi, they found an all-gluten free bakery! Cassie officially wins nicest roomie in the world to eat gluten free pastries at her own will. The pastries were amazing (according to only Jodi of course). The ladies traveled to the Louvre, unaware that on the first of every month everyone gets in for free so the line circled around the block multiple times. However, after a security guard whispered sweet nothings in our ear and we found the secret entrance through the carousel that led us right into the museum sans-line. We saw it all and by it all we mean Mona #typical and Napoleon III’s apartment. Definitely not your average NYC real estate.

Jodi’s first eclair!

Our homegirl, Mona!

What was wrong with Mona?

Hey MTV, Welcome to my crib! – Napoleon

We LOUVRE It!

After the Louvre, we explored the wonders of Cafe Angelina. Hot chocolate will never be the same. It can be described perfectly (by Cassie) as the taste of the end of your hot chocolate where all the excess chocolate is stored. It was that amazing. The waitress, in true French style, was so sassy and told us we ordered too much food #sorryNOTsorry.

No hot chocolate will ever be the same!

Your newest Parisian hat models!

After Angelina we walked along the Champs d’Elsey #casual and stumbled along some great hats and macaroons. Lauduree was everything we expected it to be. The macaroons were all they were cracked up to be. We could MAC(aroons) them all day. We also were able to explore the 5-story Louis Vuitton store that made us feel like a bunch of peasants. We then took the plunge and climbed the Arc de Triumph. But before we could do that, we had to cross the traffic circle to get there. Little did we know that we didn’t need to dodge traffic and there is a clear underground/less dangerous way to get to the arc. We were unaware and dodged traffic like mad men. But don’t worry, we live to tell the tale.

Labels and Love

Then we stopped by this little known building known as the Eiffel Tower. It was beautiful in three ways. One- during the day, two- some lights on at night, and three- when the light show occurs. All three ways left us mesmerized. Cassie definitely enjoyed the crepe right outside the Eiffel as Jodi was obsessed with the neutral color of the Eiffel Tower #bothtypical.

Eiffel in love with Paris

Holy Crepe!

The two girls left the beautiful sight to go to dinner and then a great night sleep at Jodi’s friend Ali’s apartment!

MONDAY

Waking up early (as per usual) the girls went with their new tour guide Ali to D’orsay. But before they could do anything, the ladies had to try the best croissant place in all of Paris (that happened to be down the street from Ali’s apartment #LuckyLady). The croissant was nothing less than “buttery and flaky and amazing.” No croissant will ever compare. Unfortunately, the museum D’orsey is closed on Mondays so the ladies were not able to go inside the museum #BigFatBummer. No worries for these gals! It might be surprising to know, but Jodi was pretty calm about a change in her strict itinerary plans. Our little girl is growing up!

The girls then went to walk around the shopping area, try more macaroons (but, of course), Notre Dame, go back to their Israeli roots by trying amazing falafel, and ending the day at Pompidou museum. The museum was definitely more of Jodi and Cassie’s style with its modern feel. Luckily, artist Jeff Koons was there! Definitely an must-see!

Three Chicks in front of the mighty Notre Dame

Preeetttaaaayyyy close to Israel

Jeff Koons Takes Paris

AND THAT’S ALL FOLKS!

Talk to you after our weekend in Barcelona #abroadfest.

The One Where We Had a DAM Good Weekend

AmsterDAMMM that was an amazing weekend.

Welcome to Amsterdam!

As one might be able to conclude, Cassie and Jodi travelled to Amsterdam, Netherlands/Holland (we pulled a Joey Tribbiani and had no idea what the Netherlands were)! The trip started off luxurious with a direct flight from Seville to Amsterdam #UnheardOf #FlyingWithClass

The moment we stepped out of the airport (and was greeted by a faux-IAMSTERDAM sign) we knew this city was something REALLLL epic! The city is a beautiful village that made us forget all about the rain and chilly weather! We were warmly taken by shuttle to The Grand Amsterdam Marriott Hotel! It definitely lived up to the hype! Our beds made us feel like the queens we think we are! While the non-free wifi made us feel like the peasants we ACTUALLY are.

Thursday night we sought out an authentic Danish restaurant called Pantry that gave us a rich and delicious understanding of why people love Amsterdam so much! After circling the same area for 30 minutes, the Pantry came at us like a wrecking ball and served some of the best food we have ever eaten!

Cinnamon Ice Cream FTW

Friday morning bright and early, Jodi and Cassie were able to reunite with their respected friends! Jodi’s besties Phoebe, Sydney, and Ali all took the pilgrimage over to Amsterdam as well. Similarly, Cassie’s home bestie Lauren came from Florence to spend some good QT with her BFFAEAEAE!

Cassie and Lauren sharing a brewsky at the Heineken Factory!

Jodi, Ali, Sydney, and Phoebe (left to right) all reunited on the Marriott hotel beds!

The weekend was spent laughing way too much and reminiscing on old times. Here are some highlights of the weekend:

1. Everyone was very honored to be able to see the Anne Frank House. It was definitely a very moving experience and taught us how proud we should be of our Jewish religion. Anne Frank said it best, “We can never just be Dutch, or just English, or whatever, we will always be Jews as well. And we’ll have to keep on being Jews, but then, we’ll want to be.” (April 11,1944)
2. The food was delectable – all brunches were delicious and gluten free! Jodi was even able to find a gluten free bagel (not pictured due to her overwhelming excitement to consume it like a mad man). Each morning brought us incredible breakfasts – those of which are lacking in other cities in Europe – but we are NOT complaining! Other foods we tried: Chispy King (try satay sauce FO SHO), Wok to Walk (again- UNREAL), Peri Nas (dank Indonesian food) and too much more to write down/admit we ate!
3. The AMSTERDAM sign proved to be an endless game of “How did they get up there?” and “Can this girl move already- no one is taking her picture!”
4. The Red Light District brought out the Jewish mother in all of us, causing as to ask ourselves “why they didn’t bring a coat out” and “what their father thinks of this career choice.” But as type-A college students, we thought “do they offer internships? #Work9To5JustToStayAlive”

Things We Saw:

1. Cheese Museum

The Home of Endless Free Samples!

2. IAMSTERDAM Sign

3. Van Gogh Museum

4. Anne Frank House

Anne Frank Haus

5. Red Light District

(we felt it would be best to not include pictures of this area) 

6. Boom Chicago Comedy Show

7. Heineken Factory

Followers, thank you for continuing to read our blog! We appreciate it more than you know!

P.S. to make you all laugh – Jodi got her first eyebrow wax in Europe…and no, it was NOTHING like European Wax Center. To put it lightly, let’s just say one of Jodi’s eyebrows looks like she is always curious/pondering something important. No pics at this time, too soon and she is feeling a little self-concious #classic !

See you soon for our words on London/Paris and all the rest!

The One Where Life Was a Climb, but the View Was Great

GOOD MORNING LISBOOOOOOOONNNN!!!

The quote above is a shoutout to our amazing hostel experience (no sarcasm) at Good Morning Hostel in Lisbon, Portugal this past Valentine’s Day weekend. (Lisbon)honest, we were a little (a lot) nervous to stay in a hostel. Horrible images of sharing a bathroom with naked ladies walking around and all of our stuff being stolen and getting bed bugs were quickly laid to rest when we walked into the quaint and joyous Good Morning Lisbon hotel. As they will be the first to tell you, we were greeted “with a smile” and instantly felt at home (well, not at home, but better than we had anticipated, so “home” works).

The Beautiful Good Morning Hostel Lounge

The hotel was clean and adorable, we were ready to set out on the town! Thanks to TripAdvisor, we were awarded a delicious dinner at Bico do Sapato with a view of the water (aka Atlantic Ocean, aka so close to home!) The food was delicious, the pastries were divine (and gluten free) and the waitress was super sassy (classic)!

Moving onto Friday, we decided to paint the town red (literally, as we got around town in a red tram car)! With a slight mix up with our tickets for the tour, all was set to go and we felt as if we were in San Francisco. We say this due to the bridge which looked the same as the Golden Gate Bridge (shoutout Full House theme song), the trams everywhere, and the oh so many hills that did wonders for our calves (disclosure: we write this blog with ice on our calves to sooth their soreness). We got a beautiful look at the ancient city and then went on to explore the wonderful area of Belem (aka the pastries). The pastries, known as Pastreis de Nata, were surprisingly gluten free and one of the best desserts we had ever tasted. We guess Nata meant “NATA gluten” (Jodi thought this was hilarious and clever- who knows why). No picture can do this treat the honor it deserves, but we will show you one any way, cuz like come on, you know Cassie took 20 minutes getting the right angle/lighting/layout so let’s give her some credit.

A typical Portuguese dessert: Floating Islands

The Red Tram Engine that could!

The doppelgänger of the Golden Gate Bridge

Pasteis de Nata

Unfortunately, as most young tourists do, we got lost. Jodi found it hilarious while Cassie was furious and exhausted. The phrase “We Will Cross That Bridge When We Come to It” was proven false this weekend as we walked for over 30 minutes trying to arrive at the bus station that was “right after the bridge” aka didn’t exist. We swear the bridge got further away from us the more we walked. It was definitely needed post-pastry, but not enjoyable in the blazing heat (okay- that was Jodi being dramatic- it was like 60 degrees out #ClassicJodiExaggeratingEverything).

We were also able to ride the Santa Justa Lift which provided a gorgeous view of the entire city.

The View from the Santa Justa Lift

Finally, a bus driver picked us up and we immediately deemed him a Saint (are Saints a thing in Judaism? Fact check with Rabbi David Seth Kirshner please- BZ we are all looking at you for this one)! Finally we got back to home base and were starving for lunch. The only place that seemed appetizing had the world’s most annoying and pushy/flirty waiter in the world that either had something in his eye or was just constantly winking at Jodi #unclear #WeHopeItWasSomethingInHisEye.

Dinner was delicious at a place called Sacramento, only confirming the feeling that we were in California. Coming soon to Lisbon, the HOLLYWOOD sign (we kid, we kid).

Fastforward to Saturday in which the exploring of beautiful Lisbon continued. We took a tour of the old city called Alfama with our precious tour guide André. Did he wear a pink vest? Naturally. Did this cause us to sing the classic hit from Legally Blonde the Musical “Gay or European”? Again, naturally yes of course. Despite the rain and André serenading us with his eyes closed, the tour was very educational! We concluded the day by checking out Saint George’s Castle. The view was spectacular but the stairs were not (reminder of the sore calves).

Relaxing at Saint George’s Castle

A late flight on Sunday allowed us some time to explore Barrio Alto, a lively and hilly part of the city that offered us some odd food but cute markets!

All in all, our travels to Lisbon were extremely satisfying and definitely one for the books. Although our two roomies on the trip most likely got e-coli from Seville, we managed to lighten the situation with a few jokes and a lot of delicious food.

Hope everyone had a romantic Valentine’s Day back in the States!

Sending our LOVE from Portugal!

Things We Learned:

1. It is never a good thing to start cracking up laughing when asking for directions from an already sassy tour guide.
2. People in Lisbon/Lisboa are not what one would call “friendly” – giving New Yorkers some competition.
3. Never look for food when hungry – can result in dangerous decisions such as eating white rice and french fries instead of trying new food #WorthIt
4. When asking someone to take a simple group photo, assume he will without-question take individual shots of you with no warning.

Laugh of the Week:

Jodi tripped over a garbage can while dancing Flamenco in her class and everyone starred, the teacher laughed and continued to ask her multiple times if she was okay until Jodi got red in the face and hid behind her friend. DON’T TRY FLAMENCO AT HOME. You will fall into a garbage can and die.

Catch up next week in AmsterDAMMM !!!