Sojin Josephson

On June 29, I had not seen my mother for exactly five months. Although I was rarely homesick during my semester abroad, I did miss Mom, Dad and Tae. I only live four hours from Missoula and the University of Montana, which means I see the parental unit often. So I could barely contain my excitement the morning Mom arrived. I got up fairly early and took a train to Malpensa Airport to pick her up with my handmade “MOM” sign. But she saw me first, yelling “SOJ!” If you know my mom at all, you know it was loud and followed with lots of laughter. I’m fond of that moment.

A few months prior, we toyed with the idea of traveling multiple countries. Maybe France and Italy, maybe Switzerland and Italy, but in the end, we settled for just Italy–it was my host country after all. After we chose dates, we decided to gradually move south from Milan through the country until we hit the region of Napoli. After a few days there, we’d head back to Milan in one shot. Mom is not picky and our only rule was: no planes. Trains it was and trains we did. Fourteen to be exact.

The weather was over 100 degrees the duration of our trip. We started every morning showered and fresh, ready to take on the day’s activities. But unlike the movies where the characters remain in the scorching sun all day with not a hair out of place and a gentle, peppy soundtrack playing in the background, we dripped sweat with our first step out the door. The heat and humidity provided us with some comical moments throughout our trip.

The names of our accommodations are included in this post in case you head to Italy anytime in the future. They were all in perfect locations with exquisite views and hospitable staff and owners.

June 29-July 3: Salvo and Simona’s Airbnb near Lambrate Metro Stop, Milano

• Milan
• Lake Como

During our first few days in Milan, I showed Mom my favorite spots in the city and places I spent most of my time–Universitá Cattolica, Carducci, Piola, Navigli, Duomo, Cadorna–the list goes on. We shopped because Milan is a fashion capital and that’s what you do there. We also cleared plenty of time for gelato and aperitivo.

We took a little jaunt to Lake Como one day. I thought since Milan is so close, Mom should see it. Mom got to ride her first real train and had an experience because we were accompanied by 50 young Italian kids on a day camp trip. We got a kick out of them. I had been in the Lake Como area twice before. Once with the girls and once to visit my lovely Aunt Jorgi. But the sights don’t become any less, that’s for sure. We went sandal and hat shopping, ate pasta and gelato, walked a lot and trained back to Milan for the evening.

July 3-6: Tuscany- Hotel Alma Domus, Siena

• Florence
• Siena
• San Gimignano

Florence is in between Milan and Siena, so we stopped to shop the leather markets for an afternoon. The leather markets are kind of like being on what I imagine of Wall Street–sweat, bribes and a lot of yelling–all for money. But replace the sea of black, grey and navy suits with more color than you’ve ever seen in your life. I was also on a mission to find Stas a new leather jacket (hers was stolen in Spain), which was a sight to see. I ran from shop to shop asking for a specific collar, size and polka dot lining and the shop owners thought I was insane. We ended up buying the perfect jacket from a charming young Italian who asked if I would date a younger man… he was 20 and I’m 21, so maybe I look old? After that exhausting day in the midst of the leather markets, we hopped on a train for Siena.

Before I departed for Italy, I had a perceived image in my mind. A Hollywood film, Pinterest-inspired, too-many-romance-novels, Shakespeare-play image. Mom and I arrived in Siena just before dusk and for the first time, I saw the picture that I concocted in my mind so many months before. We found our hotel dipped below a cathedral and a bundle of Italian restaurants, checked in and opened our balcony windows to a gorgeous view of Siena. I loved this balcony. I could stand on it and see the very Italian structures nestled into the hill with both the Tower of Mangia and the Duomo in sight. I could see all of the lights from the windows of these houses and hear dishes clinking and the boisterous Italian laugh as families and friends gathered for late-night dinners. And that is why I loved that balcony. Standing there felt like being in an old, black-and-white film with not a care in the world and I hope I can hold onto that feeling forever.

For the next few days, Mom and I shopped, ate and toured our way through the winding, cobblestone streets of the city. We were fortunate enough to catch the aftermath of the Palio di Siena (traditional horse race). The winning team paraded around the city center a few times a day with drums and flags and wore traditional clothing. Mom asked a local how long the celebrations lasted, thinking a week or so. Nope, one year. They celebrate for an entire year. But if you have any questions about the Palio, Mom is now quite the expert on the event.

On our last full day, we went on a Tuscan wine tour. Seven women piled into an air-conditioned (thank God) van with our man driver. He drove us through panoramic views of Tuscany and sunflower fields. He took us to an ancient fortress and San Gimignano, a medieval village with world’s best gelato, and to a pre-vineyard wine and cheese tasting all before we even got to the main event. We finally made it to the actual vineyard where cold cuts, cheese, multiple flavors of olive oil and an entertaining winemaker awaited. “Señor, señora, hey guys,” was his main quote of the night while trying to get everyone to pay attention. From there, he poured us six glasses of 200-euro wine (no wonder I liked it). Mom, ironically enough, doesn’t drink, so whenever the winemaker turned around, she poured her wine into the waste bucket…after he told us not to waste his wine. But who can blame her? I did the same thing.

If you couldn’t tell, I loved Siena and if my love of Italy wasn’t cemented already, Tuscany did it. I have a new goal on my bucket list: live in Siena for one year and learn Italian. I don’t care if I’m 23 or 100, I’m checking that one off.

July 6-9: Parco di Nerone Bed & Breakfast

• Rome

I was eager to get to Rome because it was the last major city I wanted to cross off after many years of Rome posters and Rome-set movies and books. New York. Paris. London. Rome. Now they’re all checked off of my list and I have a new list of cities to dream about. Mom and I arrived in the early evening and checked into our bed and breakfast, which was conveniently right next to the Colosseum.

On day one, we toured the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. When you stand inside the Colosseum, you can almost feel the crowds and royals and animals and gladiators there with you. It’s hard to explain. Before the tour, I sadly got my facts from Russell Crowe, but now I’m glad to say I know the exact history behind the famous and ancient arena. The Roman Forum was fascinating as well. It’s hard to imagine such an old world when ours, here in America, is really so new.

A tour of the Vatican City was on our agenda for day two. Technically, I hit country number 16 that day because the Vatican City is its own country–the smallest in the world. But I figure that’s stretching it. We walked through the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica and learned the vast history of the two. Then Mom invited Irish Mick from our tour to lunch so we dined once again. After we took a break from the heat back at our B&B, we journeyed to the Spanish Steps and then to the Trevi Fountain, which is unfortunately under construction. We made wishes and threw coins with our right hands over our left shoulders anyway. Mom and I spent our last night on the roof of our hotel, where we sat, listened to and watched the ancient city unfold around us.

July 9-12: Napoli- Hotel Cosmomare, Piano di Sorrento

• Sorrento
• Positano
• Capri

About a year ago, before I knew I would be studying abroad in Italy, I was looking at one of my favorite fashion blogs called Gary Pepper Girl. I saw a post where she visited this magical place along the sea with colorful buildings and curvy roads–the pictures were captioned “Amalfi Coast.” Well, that place went to the back of my mind because I never thought I’d make it, but Mom and I are so fortunate to say we have been to that dreamland.

The Amalfi Coast doesn’t have the easiest access, so Mom booked us a hotel in Sorrento. Sorrento is also much cheaper than staying along the actual Amalfi Coast or in Capri–a good tip for you future Italian travelers. We arrived by train to Naples and took another “train” to Sorrento. But mostly it was like an antiquated metro where we were smooshed up against the walls and windows for an hour like bugs. We took a taxi from the main station in Sorrento to Piano di Sorrento where our hotel was. Another spectacular view. The breakfast area had these huge glass windows with the bright Mediterranean light shining through and we were granted the same seascape from our own balcony, without the glass separating us from the sea breeze.

Mom and I ate pizza and stocked up on fruit and water from the local grocery store for a relaxing night. The next morning, we waited for a bus to take us to the Sorrento port where we took a ferry to Positano–the first stop along the Amalfi Coast. The second the ferry stopped and we all piled off, I felt my excitement and awe mirrored in Mom. I had been to Cinque Terre and Lake Como, but this was completely different. It felt different. We walked to the top of the village, with the stunning real-life views I Googled the night before. At the top, we ate the best seafood pasta dishes and drank the best fresh-squeezed lemonade. Southern Italy is known for its prime lemons. The rest of the day, we made our way through the winding streets while we ate lemon ices and shopped around for glass products before heading back to Sorrento.

The next day we decided to take another ferry to Capri, but after Positano, it was a little underwhelming. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about Capri, other than how expensive the island is, but I don’t think any of those people have been to Positano. Mom and I walked around the island for a bit, ate another seaside lunch, more lemon ices and then decided to go back to Sorrento. Tip for Capri: go swimming or take a boat tour around the island or to the caves. It was obviously a beautiful place, but a tour would make the trip more worthwhile. Back in Sorrento, we found all of these markets, shops and cafés near the city center, which we of course had to explore before going back to our hotel.

Mom and I both enjoyed experiencing the changes from northern Italy to southern Italy. If you go, make sure to take note because it’s pretty intriguing.

July 12-15: Anna Giese’s Airbnb near Piola Metro Stop, Milano

• Milan
• Venice

After a five-hour train ride direct from Naples to Milan, we arrived at Centrale–a station I know like the back of my hand. We made our way to our final accommodation, a three-minute walk from my own Donatello apartment. I booked it close to the Piola stop because that’s also where Simone lives and I had to pick up all of my suitcases from his apartment. I don’t know how we kept getting so lucky with views, but this Airbnb had a killer panorama of Milan. I felt like I was on top of the Duomo. The place was also what I would call eclectic in all of its ninth story, penthouse-feel glory. Mom and I loved it so much we decided to cook dinner and eat in. We went grocery shopping at the same Carrefour I shopped at the whole semester. We made spaghetti and ate watermelon for dessert.

We traveled to Venice early the next morning. Another day trip. The last time I was there was in the winter for Carnevale with the girls and I was ready to see it in the summer. Surprise, surprise, we ate again. Then we took a gondola ride from a young, hunky guy who sang old American country songs. It was weird. I was hoping for someone at least age 60 with a straw hat and white hair who sang Italian ballads. But you win some, you lose some. Mom and I did a lot more walking and sightseeing and then ended our final adventure and headed back to Milan.

Our last day consisted of last-minute shopping because again, it’s Milan. And Montana doesn’t have shopping. We went to Navigli for one last meal. Then we packed. I dumped everything out of every bag and stared at it for an hour while I built up enough courage to see if it would all fit in my luggage. It did…phew. We ate our last gelatos with Simone (gosh, I still crave gelato everyday), and cherished the final moments of being in the most beautiful country.

Unfortunately, our time in Italy had come to a close. But we made the most of our 17 days together in the Old World, living each day to its fullest by eating our weight in every type of pasta imaginable, the world’s best gelato, floppy pizza, and much to my mom’s dismay–espresso. I’m so lucky I got to explore the country with the best travel partner in the world. Love you so much, Mom. I can’t wait for our next adventure.