Venice, Italy with Jason

I've been to Venice before with my friend, Alexis & her family.

Although it is beautiful, it's a very smelly city due to crowding & polluted water & the people aren't very friendly. 

Nevertheless, I took Jason, my fabulous beau, to Venice making it my second visit. It was still smelly & many things were closed (reposo [you may know it as siesta or a midday break] is from 2-4 so try to avoid exploring during that time), but we make the most of it.

We walked around & got lost down desolate alleyways.

We then found the gondola rides. It was 80€ for 30 minutes, but I told them that it was too much so we got a 20-minute ride for 50€ instead.

Always try to bargain when buying high priced items or services in Europe.

The gondola ride was beautiful & so romantic; Jason & I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.

The gondola driver told us the history of Venice's different sites. It was quite an experience, especially with the one I love the most.

Until next time 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielview13

Verona, Italy- The land of Romeo & Juliet

To get to Verona's center, take TrenItalia to Verona Porto Nuovo & it's about a 20-minute walk to the Colosseum.

However, we took a cab being that we were pressed for time; the cab was 7€.

We went to the Colosseum (also called the Arena) & got in at a discounted price with our student cards & took photos together with the amazing structure in the background.

We saw Romeo & Juliet's balcony. Jason & I wrote notes to each other in the guest book that they had. After we bought a lock, wrote our names on it, & locked it on the gate of the fountain near the arena & restaurants in the main circle (it should be easy to find since our lock is the only one there). 

After we got 3 fabric, heart-shaped pot holders free-hand embroidered for Mom, Jason's parents, & one for Jason & my new apartment.

 It was a romantic & fun-filled day for us. I definitely recommend Verona, especially for couples.

Until next time 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielview13

Garmisch & Mittenwald, Germany

On December 21, 2014, Mom & I drove 4½ hours up to Garmisch, Germany from Vicenza, Italy. We went to the Christmas market where I got hot spiced mulled wine (also called glühwein), a hat, & a scarf. Then we went on a 55-minute train-ride to Tirol that was free with our hotel stay at Hilleprandt (buses & other attractions were free/discounted with our stay as well).

Note to Ariel Viewers: Most everything in Southern Germany is closed on Sunday so be prepared to not do anything on Sundays other than church if you're into seeing a German service.

However, the train ride was nice. The landscape is beautiful: the mountains, trees, animals... It was breathtaking. In Tirol, we ate at the only café open & everyone in the café smoked, which drove us crazy, but we dealt with it. We ate two hotdogs, which were delicious & then a drunken old German man tried to strike up a conversation with us, but completely forgot how to speak English & gave up. We then ate dinner at Hofbräustüberl back in Garmisch & it was super good. Then we went back to our hotel, passed out at 20:00, & woke up at 08:30.

Mom & I both slept horribly despite the long time laying in bed; the beds were rock solid & very hard to sleep in considering Mom & I love our memory foam/Temperpedic type mattresses. After our free breakfast at the hotel, we drove to Mittenwald, which is a town near Garmisch. In Mittenwald, we saw awesome little shops, ate a great lunch, went inside St. Peter und Paul Mittenald Church, & I bought a nice leather backpack & wallet.

We drove back to Italy on December 23. I would definitely recommend going to Germany, especially Garmisch & Mittenwald. They are very small, cute, & quaint towns; the people are super nice, & the gypsy population is low, which means theft is low.

Until next time 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielview13

Get educated to be in everlasting debt

It is instilled in most of our heads that higher education is one of the only ways to get ahead in life, to make more money, & to get a better career, but is it really worth it? Students leave college with sometimes $100,000 of debt or more & they end up paying it off for the rest of their lives on top of the accruing interest. So many people these days have degrees & it makes it difficult to stand out in the crowd to get chosen for a good position & ultimately, graduates are left taking jobs that pay $10-$15/hour until they gain years of experience. How can people reasonably live on that & still pay off their loans? Many graduates live at home to save, pay off loans, & figure out their lives & it is truly unfair on both the parents & the graduates (even if your parents are like mine, who would let you live at home forever).

A degree does not guarantee a job; it just gives people a leg up to be noticed, but now to get noticed, seen, & heard, one either needs a master's, which requires even more money, or experience, which is nearly impossible to have being a young & recent grad. Phil N. said, “Can you make it without one? Yes, but you need to work your tail off. Can you make it with one? Yes, but you need to work your tail off to pay for it. Either way, the work has to be put in for the lifestyle that you want. It’s almost a personal preference. I personally think I need it because the lifestyle I'm destined to lead requires it, but I also know that for a solid part of my life I'll be paying back loans- everything has its cost. By no means do I think it's fair, but I can’t argue with the system currently.”

Basically, in order to get the life I want, I need to pay huge amounts for it as an American. Why is our economy set up to get young people in debt from the get-go? Countries like Spain have close to free education & graduate with almost no debt. Yes, Spain has many economic issues, but at least their graduates have a chance to succeed. However, there are people like my older brother who is doing incredibly well for themselves without a degree. He has a nice home in Texas, a nice car, & he & my sister-in-law comfortably support my adorable niece & nephew &can still take vacations. So many paths, so many choices & ways to be successful in life. It's all up to you & choosing a way that works for the life you wish to live.

If I were to give any advice as a recent grad, I would say to get your associate's degree at your neighborhood community college. This is what I should have done & regret not going to community college before Pace University. Once you have an associate's degree & try to transfer to a 4-year institution, you may have to take some of the University's mandatory classes, but most, if not all, of the prerequisite courses will transfer. It is a huge savings & I recommend everyone do this rather than going to a four-year school from the start. Not only do I push education, but I push getting it the smart way, not the expensive way. What do you all think? How was your financial experience in & after college?

Until next time... ciao 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielviewyoga

Free Education in Prison & Where on Earth our Taxes are Going

“Prison education is a means of rehabilitating & re-directing. If you release someone with the same skills with which she came in, she’s going to get involved in the same activities as she did before.” – Marymount Bedford Hills Program student.

According to the Prison Studies Project, there have been studies conducted over the last two decades that have confirmed that the higher the education level in prison programs, the crime rate ultimately reduces saving the taxpayers money. However, taking into consideration that less than 5% of American’s taxes are going toward prisons does not make this situation any better.

From what I have researched, I do think that prisoners who are not serving a life sentence & are not mentally ill should be educated to high school level for education is an important step for people to grow. However, I do not think that it is fair that hardworking Americans with clean records & are earning a living for themselves are spending thousands of dollars on college educations when people who have done wrong are getting a college education for free.

The government justifies their spending by telling us where our money is going (see photo from www.cbpp.org). Even so, many citizens do not see results. 22% of our taxes go toward social security… Oh, I’m sorry, I am pretty sure that I have heard that social security will be nonexistent by the time I need it so what am I paying for? Also, why are only 2% of our taxes going toward education? That seems insanely low to me.

Here is what our taxes should be paying for:

1. High school education for prisoners (ones without life sentences)

2. Defense & international security assistance

3. Healthcare for EVERYONE (which should include medical & scientific research since it betters life for humans)

4. Free education

5. International affairs

6. Fixing of roadways, transportation routes, etc.

7. Financial support for the elderly & disabled I may be missing some here, but these are the 7 that I think are the most important. I don’t understand what is so difficult about changing the system to better the people. Our system is so backward that we make it a struggle for working-class people to get a higher education, but our criminals are getting it for free. If we had the American money-hungry mentality with Europe’s healthcare & education system, we would be unstoppable. We need a change & we need it now before our economy collapses as a whole. We’ve already gone through one recent government shutdown; let’s try to prevent another.

Until next time... ciao 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielviewyoga

Bliss

Thoughts spiraling: Education, jobs, love, & loss. Just a couple months left until I’m out in the ‘real world.’ The unhinged thoughts drain me. Should I follow the rules to get ahead or play by my own rules to be happy? Travel the world living on a few dollars, enjoying what I truly love, or be comfortable in business from the same place I’ve always been? I don’t want to follow the crowd; I want to be successful in my own way, not what society deems to be successful. Money is meaningless if you don’t have a purpose for the money other than materialism. I don’t know how to get to that place. I don’t know how to get to a place where I don’t get tied down to a person or place, where I don’t need a highfalutin education to be someone that I don’t want to be, other than wealthy or financially comfortable. Nothing in this society is ever enough & no one is ever happy with what they are given. I don’t want this for myself & I don’t want this for the future generations that come after me. In the minuscule amount of years that I have lived, I have learned to educate myself through experiences I have gained, become wiser in the mistakes that I have made, & the challenges I have faced, & I try to not dwell on them & move on. I have learned to become stronger from the people I have met who have lifted me up & that who have pulled me down. I have learned to never change my beliefs for someone else & to always know that I have control of my own destiny. What I have learned & what I will continue to learn is to be myself, follow what I want, & I will get to where I need to be in the end. Bliss.

Until next time... ciao 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielviewyoga

Getting a college degree in the US-An expensive social class status

The more I hear about college abroad, the sadder it makes me feel. Although I love Pace University dearly for its location, professors, & students, the cost of a Pace education is unbelievably expensive & students graduate paying off debt for decades. Pace isn't even in the top tier of schools & yet students pay $50k per year to attend (without financial aid, that is).

Then I hear stories about schools abroad where public university education is free, fully paid by the government. Another story to consider: CEO of Family Dollar, Michael Bloom, recently on the show, Undercover Boss, has an associate's degree from a community college. He didn't need an expensive US university degree to be the success he is today, but even millionaire, Mike Bloom feels lesser than those with a 4-year degree. So why are people trained to think that spending tens of thousands of dollars will get them ahead for sure? Why is an American 4-year degree the absolute way to go to "make it"? I am not saying that a US education isn't worth anything; education in the US is great. The US has amazingly intelligent professors who have so much knowledge & experience.

However, for the price students pay, professors do not see nearly enough of the benefits, nor do the students. Students who graduate college with enormous debt & in this economy are faced with this horrible job market. Also, why is there such a stigma against community college? Community college is a great way to save money & earn prerequisite credits that students need to take in any college they're in. Unfortunately, many students learn early that community college is seen as "a low education" & "not the best education to get." But if you are undecided in what major to pursue (like I was) or trying to save money (like I wanted to do), then community college is a great option. So my purpose in this post is to say that the most expensive way isn't always the best way, regardless if it's Harvard or any of those big names. Nothing is worth the stress of debt after graduation. Yes, education is important, but get it the smart way, not the easiest. You don't want to be spending your first paycheck on paying back loans.

Until next time... ciao 💗

Follow me on Instagram: @arielview13