Benvenuto a Sulmona

Day 4

It was a rough morning as I was completely exhausted from the lack of sleep as I was up with a sick friend. We had to pack our bags as we were taking the bus to Sulmona that day. I went to breakfast at 8:30 - I had yogurt and a croissant again. Kylee, Melissa, Michelle, Alex, Christina, Justin and I went to the supermarket a few blocks from our hotel to grab some snacks for the bus ride. I just got some crackers, Powerade and a water bottle. I always find it interesting to see what snacks they have in other countries. We brought our bags downstairs and waited for everyone else to bring their stuff down so we could leave. We didn't end up leaving the hotel until about 11:00. We had a nice big bus, it reminded me of the one I took in Greece. I was one of the last ones to get on the bus, and so I wasn't lucky enough to get a seat to myself so I shared with Kylee near the front of the bus. Everyone was pretty tired so we were all hoping to catch up on sleep during the 8 hour bus ride. We had 2 bus drivers and they took turns driving throughout the trip. We stopped a total of three times for bathroom breaks and lunch breaks. My stomach had been bothering me throughout the day so I didn't have anything for lunch, I just ate my plain crackers. The scenery during the ride was absolutely gorgeous! It was exactly what I pictured Italy to look like, with the rustic homes and countryside. It was also nice to see the mountains in the background - some of the pictures I took looks like there's a fake background because it is so beautiful! I slept a bit during the ride which was also nice. We got to Sulmona at about 7:00 pm, and unpacked a bit and then headed up for dinner.

Kylee, Shannon, Kelly and I shared a room. The hotel (Hotel Ovidus) was so nice, and more modern unlike our previous hotel. We have an actual shower too which is nice and air conditioning. The view from our window of the mountains is unreal. It is also nice as our friends are right beside us and down the hall. The staff at the hotel is so friendly and good as speaking English as well. After unpacking a bit, we all went upstairs to some wine and appetizers. They had little pieces of pizza, deep fried/baked olives and meat, and deep fried/baked potatoes to officially welcome us all to Sulmona and the hotel.

I felt bad because one girl found out her Grandpa passed away and was quite upset. After our appetizers we went into the dining room for our dinner. We were given red wine again, and our first course was a vegetable soup, which I passed. Our second course was carbonara pasta which was pretty good. After I ate my pasta I started feeling really overheated and sick, so I went outside to cool down and skipped the third course which was Veal and potatoes and the dessert. Maria, Angela and Jenny made some announcements and we all went around and said one thing that we were happy for, then the four of us went to bed.