My 2012 resume

This year I have been traveling a lot, and when I say - a lot - I mean that I am now sick of airports only this word frightens me...
In total I got 23 PLANES only this year !!! I spent something like 2 weeks of my life in airports and on a plane, I basically know one of the Ryanair stewardess by name right now, and this is not a good thing. She knows that my hand-baggage is always slightly bigger than it should be since the first time she stopped me at the gate after showing my documents. The moment when I saw the door that would have brought me to a "safe-place": the plane, far from those bureaucratic pirañas who are called stewards by Ryanair.
That time I practically had to jump on my suitcase to make it fit into the metal cage Ryanair uses to torture you 10seconds before you can go inside the plane and consider yourself blessed that also this time you fooled the stupid Ryanair restrictions.

So my year basically started in London when I went there with few friends after exams as our personal reward :)

Then I went back to Ireland and with my uni we went a lil bit around Ireland to Killarney and Dingle

Nico, Marcelo, Carlotta and me

 My first st. Paddy's day

I flew back to Tuscany for the Eastern holidays:

(Above some of my lovely italian friends)

Carlotta and I with the major of Dublin at a fashion show in Dublin's fashion district

Nico and I  basically spent the last month in Dublin just sunbathing in St. Stephen's Green (a park in Dublin)

My friend Ivana and I at the Gffith Ball

Donabate (20km far from Dublin):

Cristiano and I

If you live in Ireland you must visit the Wicklow Mountains they host the most beautiful botanic garden I have ever seen:

AVICII concert , Dublin

Back to Italyyyyyyyy in June:

Nico, Carlotta, Marcelo, me and Diana in MILANO

VERONA ( North of Italy)

BASSANO DEL GRAPPA :

Back to my place in Tuscany:

Cooking with my mommy

the view from my bedroom

The view from my house's main balcony

After my mexican friends flew back home Carlotta and I decided to keep traveling, heading to SPAIIIIN:

1st stop: BARCELONA

Alice, Carlotta, Camilla and I 

JAZZ concert on the roof of La Pedrera

Our apt in Barceloneta

2nd stop : GETXO, Basque Country

3rd stop: CASTRO

 

4th stop: BILBAO

bilabo's airport

5th stop: ST. SEBASTIAN 

6th stop : MADRIIIIID

Parco del Buen Retiro

Palacio Real

BACK HOME : pasta and my best friend Emma :)

Airport again because my Turskish family invited me, my mom and my brother to finally visit them :

Stuck in the crazy Istanbul traffic

ISTANBUL : the CATS' capital

Blue Mosquee

Once we were in Turkey, we got another flight and we went to Cappadocia which is really AMAZING!!!

Salt lake

When my family and I travel, we like to try everything and when I say everything I mean it! Especially my mom! She was the one that basically dragged us on the air ballon at 4 a.m. to watch the sunrise  from the sky. Few hours of sleep were totally worth it!!

Air Ballon ride

Then we flew to Ankara where my Turkish family actually lives.

Got Back to Italy to spend some time with family and friends..

A little stop in Milan to visit my friend Camilla..

Then again another flight...back to study in DUBLIIIIN :

However my South African sister Lara was getting married and I wouldn't have missed that special occasion for any reason in the whole world!
After 20 hours of flight and 3 different planes I finally landed in CAPE TOWN!!! my second home!

Jared and Lara's wedding

My lovely South African family

 My South African parents then decided to bring all of us on a road trip to Jeffrey's Bay, an amazing location for surfers:

Me sand-boarding

Surfing lessons

The time with them was incredible and precious as usual!
Sadly because I had to leave my family I went back to my student's duties in Dublin..after other 20hours of flight :/

Dublin's Airport

Then I went to Manchesteeeeer :

And finally back to TUSCANYYYY for xmas!!!

This year has been insane because I actually haven't been at home(in Italy) for more than 2 weeks in a row..but at the same time it was one of the best years of my life, not only because I traveled so much and I visited so many marvelous countries but especially because of all the amazing people I met on my path, and who eventually are never going to leave it. 

I made friendships with people from all over the world that I would have never thought I could have ever met in my life and that I could have gotten along with them so well. 

This 2012 was so great also because of all the people who, even if time passes and distances separate us for so long, they are always close to me and they are always there for me to support me and love me: no matter how far neither how long it will take us to see each other again.

At the end of this year I understood that it doesn't matter how beautiful the place you visited is or how many things you see; WHAT REALLY MATTERS is who you meet while you are busy exploring all that beauty: what you learn from him or them, what you gave to them and what you can build with them... because, to me, every travel should never end in your earth. 

Life itself is a journey of the search of your identity and you cannot do that by yourself, that's why you need companions that you meet along your way; but you need to let your heart open to love, to suffer to forgive and then love again.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE !!

Hope it will be fulfilled with extraordinary experiences and significant meetings!!

Love

Chiara