Traveling Back In Time

Today seems like it's been a run around kind of day between going to work, taking my dad to the doctor, and just running some errands. Days like this with my dad being a little frustrating, make me want to take a vacation far away. In my 23 years, I've been lucky enough to have traveled a great deal despite having enough medical conditions.

My healthy tips for traveling, especially with a heart condition include:

- Train! I can't stress that enough (the more you do, the easier the transition is)
- Plan an itinerary, that way if you can't get to everything, you can at least narrow down the list to what you want to see the most
- Over pack medications, especially if you're abroad
- Take items you can throw away at the end of the trip (even shoes)
-  Use a bag with wheels, your body will thank you for it later
- Bring a bottle that can hold water and stay hydrated! (though make sure you know what places allow you to drink from the sink or if it needs to be boiled)
- Make sure you get your protein in! (If you're walking all day, you can't just survive on carbs)
- Bring that sunscreen (I came back to the states a whole different color after Italy)

When I visited Italy, I can honestly say it was an experience of a lifetime. While  I just scratched the surface of Rome on my five week study abroad program, there are a number of museums and places that are must sees!

The Capitoline Museum is a prime example of which people might be reluctant to get to or even think it isn't worth it, but if you get the chance to visit, you won't be sorry. You have to walk up more stairs than Michelangelo ever intended for people. (originally it was meant for horses to climb)
If you're an art history/history person like me, there truly is nowhere like Rome to see the transcendence of an empire for what it once was, to what the city is today.

Here is just a taste of Capitoline Museum and the views of what this hill offers.

Constantine

Roof Museum cafe

There's a "she wolf" in the closet..

Part of Michelangelo's design

Marcus Aurelius

Baby Geta

While walking within this building, you really have a lot of scenery to take in. And also, a lot of stairs. I recall thinking if I can survive this many stairs leading up to the museum, the impossible suddenly has become possible. I certainly had many major milestones on this trip, the big one - actually surviving. Climbing Michelangelo's design makes me look back on that first full day of my trip and really wonder how I survived without training myself.

This is only a small part of my travels and I hope to share more. It's funny looking back on it now how my health always seemed to be struggle, but yet I still pursued traveling despite not being 100%. I wouldn't suggest this to everyone and I know I certainly checked in with my doctor to make sure I was enough good health to go anywhere.. (though HCM just came up out of no where)

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.

Explore. Dream. Discover. 

~ Mark Twain ~

~ Happy Travels ~ 

<3

Jess