the final day, the saddest day

After a week of finals, great meals, and good times with friends, it is time to go home. I have really had a great semester here and i could not have been happier that i had this opportunity. Going to Florence, Cinque Terre, Paris, Lyon, the Almafi Coast, Perugia, Barcelona, Krakow, Thessaloniki, Tivoli, Prague, Budapest, Dublin, and Venice, it is finally time to leave the home that I have called Rome. I really dont think that it has actually hit me yet that I am leaving, as I feel like so much stands between me and getting on the plain.  I am excited to go back to U.S.A. and see my friends and family but at the same time, I am really sad to leave behind all of the great friends I have made here. I feel like this is the first time I have had to say goodbye to some really awesome friends that I am not sure when I am going to see again. I am really looking forward to the last few hours I get to spend here as we are going to try to fit in the last of some monuments but not looking forward to all of the goodbyes....  so, with that its time to finish packing! With that I leave you with this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5DOGsoiW6c

a day trip to venice!

last friday, my friend kealy and i woke up bright and early to catch a flight to venice! after sprinting threw the airport because we almost missed our flight, we finally make to it venice where it was nice and cold. we started off by taking a boat from the airport to venice, which gave us a nice view of the alps. from there, we walked around the town to see some of the great buildings.  we went into a few beautiful churches before we grabbed some lunch at a local restaurant. then the waiter at the restaurant introduced us to a gondola company that took us on a short trip threw the canals. it was really a breathtaking experience, as it was filled with great views and fun! after the gondola ride, it got really cold and it was hard to stay outside so we did some shopping and looked around at some of the different buildings.  then, we headed to the airport, where our flight was delayed for hours! after some fun times at the airport and getting ripped off by a cab driver, we finally made it home!! it was a great day and it was nice to see one final aspect of italy, and although it was cold and a long day, i am super happy i got time to go!

dublin!

country side of ireland

santa con

cliffs of moher

once again, sorry this is late, but two weeks ago i went to dublin! we arrived late on thursday night, and then woke up early on friday to do some sight seeing. we went and did a walking tour around the city to see some of the main sites in the city, which was definitely cool.  it was weird because i never realized that keltic wasnt really a dead language. i really thought they only spoke english but that was not the case! after our tour, we went to the jameson factory to sample some whiskey and see how it was made. anyways, that night we went to a few different bars in the area and got to see a lot of what the town was like.  the next day we woke up really early to go on a bus tour! We started out by seeing the dunguiare castle which was very unique as it was an ancient category.  Then we saw a old monastery and saw the baby cliffs before heading to the cliffs of moher! the cliffs were absolutely fantastic and stunning, and i felt like i actually got to see what ireland was like. after the long day of sightseeing... about 12 hours! we went back to dublin and got dressed in santa costumes for santacon (santa convention). there were tons of santa costume-wearing civilians out and about dublin which was really cool and led to a lot of great memories. the next day we did some souvenir shopping and visited the Guinness factory before grabbing our flight back to rome! this was my final weekend trip and it was really sad, but it was also one of my favorite trips i went on! i feel like there isnt really too much to write about because it really consisted of a lot of different things that you just have to see! 

Where dreams come true.... DISNEYLAND PARIS

taylor and i infront of the castle

sorry this is about 2 weeks after the fact. also, warning, this post will be boring and meaningless to anyone that has never been to disney world (for the most part anyways). moving on.

disney montage

christmas decorations

disney at night

so the day after thanksgiving, i hoped on a plane to lyon to visit my friend Taylor in lyon, france. after a nice night walking around the city and getting to see a few of the main sights, we got up nice and early to grab a train to paris!! although there was a little difficulty with the trains, we made it there around 10 to explore the two parks. we starts off at disneyland studios, where we went on the tower of terror, the rockin roller coaster, and aladdins magic carpets. the park was VERY small, but had a great deal of disney magic nonetheless. it was interesting to go on the tower of terror, because it initially seemed much smaller, but we soon learned that you dropped underground which was really cool. the fact that everything was in french was also pretty cool as it made everything funnier because for the most part we werent sure what they were saying. the rockin roller coaster was much different, as the room was basically dark with just a few neon lights (not even signs). they also didnt say you were pretending to see aerosmith at their show... they just said you were riding a roller coaster they designed. lame. nonetheless, the track was pretty much the same so the ride was still good. there were two new rides that they dont have in orlando: crush's coaster, and a toy story racecar ride. however, the race car ride was broken and the coaster had a 80 minute wait (probably because there were really no other rides) so we decided to move on to disneyland park aka magic kingdom. disneyland park was also much smaller, but very cool because it was totally decorated for christmas!! there were tons of mickey mouse santas, garland, and christmas lights. also, since it was the 20th anniversary of the park, there were a lot of special things happening for the event. we started off here by going on the auto-topia ride, where we got to drive on the other side of the road! then, because space mountain 2 was closed, we moved onto fantasyland. here we went on its a small world, which was especially cool because for the first time i had a connection to many of the countries! there was also a huge USA section which was much appreciated. next, we went on the pirates of the caribbean ride where we once again experienced the english/french dilemma. it was pretty funny because you would hear them say "dead men tell no tales" in english, then again in french (or at least thats what im assuming they said). i thought that this ride was better than the one in orlando, maybe because its more recent, but it seemed to have a lot of scenes from the movies which was cool and different. we then moved on to phantoms manor, aka the haunted house, which also seemed at first to be much smaller... and as we found out much scarier. this one was definitely not aimed for kids as it actually creeped me out quite a bit. after this, we went on big thunder mountain, which we were instantly intrigued by as we saw that you loaded into the cars on land but the ride seemed to only take place on an island. we quickly learned that you went underground in a pitch black tunnel which was really awesome especially considering the fact that i was in the front row! once again, i feel like i enjoyed this ride more than the one in orlando, but it also might be just because i didnt know what to expect for once. after this, we went on a new ride: indiana jones and the temple of doom. this ride i originally underestimated as a typical mouse trap kind of ride, but once i saw it went upside down i got more excited. overall, the ride really wasnt that great and my head really hurt afterwards, but it was still a cool new experience. then, for our final ride we went on buzzlighter and had some fun shooting zurg. since i got back from my day at disney ive been asked a lot about what i think overall, heres my best summary: positives: its disney, the christmas decorations were awesome, some great rides that arent in orlando, some interesting spins on disney favorite. negatives: long lines (because the park was so much smaller), the disney cast members werent that nice, the castle was super small. overall: i am super happy that i went, but i really dont think you need to spend more than 2 days there and it definitely is not worth making a trip just there... only if you are going to paris anyways. i was very happy to be back in disney though, and nevertheless, i still think any disney enthusiast should try to get there! after we were at the park (we had to leave before the fireworks), we grabbed a train/bus/train back to lyon where i had to pretty much instantly leave for my flight home. it was really nice to see taylor and meet some of her friends and see the city she has been living in, and i of course was happy to go to disney with her for the first time!

Poland: Auschwitz, Birkenau, and Krakow

town square

clock tower

As we said goodbye to Prague and the Czech Republic, we said hello to Poland! We were slightly confused as to why we were boarding an 11 hour train when Prague and Krakow were only separated by a 5 hour drive, but we found out soon enough.  After being almost scared to death when our train stopped for 3 hours and we realized we were no longer connected to the conductor train, we finally got back on track to Krakow and arrived at 7am when it was about 30 degrees! From there, we took a bus to Auschwitz where we joined a walking tour. The tour lasted for 3 hours and included both Auschwitz and Birkenau on the tour. It was a really moving experience, with a lot of exhibits, but for the most part, many of the buildings had been burnt down before the camp were discovered. To keep this post moving in a happy direction, im gonna skip over to when we arrived in Krakow! Know, let me highlight once again how cold it was, 27 degrees! Which was really tough as it has been around 60 degrees here in Rome. In Krakow it was pretty foggy so it was hard to see a lot of the buildings, but it was still a very cool town to see with a lively center. After grabbing some pierogies for dinner, we walked over to the Krakow Castle and got to see the famed dragon statue. Then we hung back at our hostel for the night since we had to get up early to fly home. Luckily, in the morning, the fog had lifted and we were able to see some of the buildings and take some pictures! It was a really nice day and although we didnt get to see a lot of Krakow, it was still interesting to see the different buildings.

High ho, High ho, its off to Prague we go!

Old Town Square

The Church of the Prague Castle

Prague Skyline

So after spending the morning in budapest, Remy and I got on a bus to Prague! Although it was a 8 hour bus ride, it was actually pretty nice as they played movies and even showed a few episodes of Big Bang Theory! Once we got to Prague, we got to walk through part of New Town (not that we knew that) on our way to our hostel. At our hostel, we shared a room with 26 girls which seemed intimidating but was actually pretty manageable, especially since the beds were super comfy and they had rainfall showers! The next morning we woke up early to grab some bagels for breakfast (delicious) and then we walked over to Old Town to join a walking tour.  The tour was actually fantastic as over the course of the 3 hour tour we saw all different parts of the town. Prague is definitely one of the coolest cities I have ever seen, as it was full of history and beautiful architecture. It is also a great blend of old and new, as they have two towns dedicated to both. We also got a chance to see the Jewish quarters, which were very interesting and full of even more history.  What makes Prague unique is that it was one of Hitler's favorite cities, so almost all of it was left untouched during WWII, so there is a ton of stuff that dates back to the middle ages. My favorite part of the city was just walking around as literally every seat had buildings with beautiful architecture and something unique! After the tour, we walked across the river to the Prague Castle, which was absolutely beautiful. The castle was up on a hill so it provided us with a great view of the city, truly fit for a king. After walking around inside the castle walls, we walked over to the John Lennon wall to take some pictures and attempt to carve our names into the wall with coins since we forgot to bring a pen. Then, as the sunset, we walked across the Charles Bridge, which was built in the early 15th century, and then we did some souvenir shopping before heading over to the train station to set of for Krakow, Poland.  It was really an awesome day, and I wish I had some more time in the city, but I am happy with everything we got to do!  Prague was really, really, amazing and I hope that one day I can maybe go back.

a morning in budapest

after landing in budapest and getting to the hostel just before midnight, my friend remy and i went to sleep so that we could get an early start on exploring budapest! budapest is actually composed of two different towns, buda and pest, so we took sometime to explore both. since we didnt have much time, we did a lot of walking to see the main buildings and we spent some time in the market place. we got to see the castle, parliament building, and some pretty cool churches. shopping in the market place was also a lot of fun as we got to see a ton of the different souvenirs they had. overall, budapest was a pretty modern city for the most part, as they had a lot of brand-name stores and everywhere took credit cards (which is rare in most parts of europe but really useful as budapest does not use the euro).  although we didnt have much time there, i really enjoyed what i did get to see and really enjoyed my day! at 3pm we walked over to the bus station and got on our bus to prague! more on that soon :)

market place

inside the castle walls

γεια! (thats hi in greek... i think)

sunset

gyros

this weekend, i got to go with one of my friends here in rome, kealy, to visit one of my best friends from BC in thessaloniki, greece! my first feeling in greece was pure confusion as all of the signs were literally written with greek letters on them and i quickly wished i had a sorority level education of the greek alphabet. we eventually made it to trisha's appartment and grabbed some gyros for lunch... which were delicious! i had tzatiki sauce on mine which was basically a cucumber dressing, and then i also had pork, onions, tomatoes, and french fries all on a pita (which is apparently what everyone gets). then we spent some time catching up, and getting to know some of the other people in trisha's program before we had greek salad and little spinach pita-like things for dinner. that night, we spent some time exploring the town and "living like the locals." the next day, we woke up and had τοστ for lunch (which is pronounced like toast) which were basically ham and cheese paninis on white bread, along with some bbq chips. after that, we walked around by the pier and saw spent some time enjoying the views on the coast line and seeing the "white tower" which is the most famous thessaloniki landmark. overall, the city had a lot of grafiti and did not really look like a safe place, but it actually was very safe and the people were very friendly... minus the fact that i had no idea what they were saying.  because there was not really a lot to see in the city itself, as it is not known to be touristy, we checked out some of the main squares and did some shopping. luckily, we got to catch the sunset, which was very beautiful and picturesque as it set over the water with the mountains in the distance. that night, we celebrated trisha's birthday which was actually sunday, but we went to a traditional greek restaurant!  i apologize if everyones mouths are watering after this post, but like i said there wasnt necessarily a lot to see, so kealy and i got our tourism fill from trying all of the different traditional food... which was honestly a much needed and healthier break from pasta, pizza, and gelato! During dinner we had greek salad, grilled fetta, different types of meat, chicken, and pork, then there were cheese balls, and french fries! that night, we went to a few different bars to celebrate trisha's 21st birthday! the next day, we had gyros (again) before we grabbed a flight home. it was a really great weekend and i was happy to spend some time with trisha for her birthday :) this weekend/today i am going to budapest, prague, and krakow!

roman day trip: tivoli!

as a part of my last full weekend in rome two of my friends and i took a day trip to a small town outside of rome called tivoli! this small mountain side town at first seemed very empty, but we soon realized it was full of life! we went into a renaissance village called villa d'este which was filled with beautiful frescas (paintings) inside and more importantly, a huge garden outside. within the garden there were two huge waterfalls and multiple smaller water fountains with statues dedicated to different gods and goddesses. it was a lot of fun to frolic around for the day and take pictures and we even got to see an ancient organ for a small concert! after spending about two hours in the garden, we explored the center of the town for a little bit before we headed back to rome! i was happy to see a more scenic view of italy, which is something i will really remember!!

iviva barcelona!

parc guell

inside sagrada familia

so last weekend we went to barcelona for a weekend of fun! the first night we got there we got some traditional tapas (enchiladas for me) and then went out and explored the town and some of the areas by the beach. the next morning we got up and headed to the sagrada familia church designed by gaudi, which was a very very beautiful church filled with stained glass, mosaics, and intricate sculptures. it was honestly the prettiest church i have ever seen and i really enjoyed all of the time we spent there. after spending an hour or two in the church we hiked up the mountainside to gaudi's house and to parc guell. there we found more mosaics and the lizard statue which was really cool, and then after our photo shoot at the parc we grabbed some traditional paella! it was very tasty and very unique! then we took a short nap at the hostel before we grabbed some burgers for dinner and prepared for another night of fun. the next day, we walked down the most popular street in barcelona, las ramblas. we did a lot of shopping, hit up a local market, and then we checked out the waterfront/harbor area for some more beautiful views. we had a tappa sampler that night for dinner along with more paella and black rice, which was a nice ending to our weekend! unfortunately, we had a 5:55 am flight sunday morning so it was an early night for us but nonetheless a great weekend!! it was really nice to see a different culture, especially one where i spoke the language (even though barcelona is technically part of a region where they speak catalan). i am so glad we got to go there for the weekend and hopefully one day i can go back and enjoy the beach!

Perugia: EuroChocolate

This past weekend some of my roommates and i went on a schools sponsored trip to perugia to go to the annual chocolate festival! we started off with a tour of the perugina factory, which is home to one of the most famous italian chocolates, baci. the tour of the factory was pretty cool and it provided us with TONS of free samples of chocolate... which was a lot for 9:30 in the morning. after the factory we took the "minimetro" up to the town center of perugia. the mini metro was the coolest form of public transportation i have ever seen as it was basically like the monarail but with the littlest cars. once we arrived in the center of perugia we grabbed a bite to eat, so that we didnt fill up on just chocolate. after, we strolled around the town, which was so so beautiful. we saw tons of different types of chocolate ranging from pasta to beer to traditional chocolate bars. the whole day was really interesting because it was a real cultural experience, and it was really nice to be in a nice and quaint town as sometimes rome does seem to be an overwhelming city. once the day was over we trekked back to rome and grabbed some salads for dinner... in an attempt to compensate for the chocolates. it was a really cool day trip and it was nice to see a different part of italy! next weekend i am going to barcelona... so until then! enjoy the new taylor swift album everybody... and the rest of your week!

Pompei and Napoli

pompei town square

margarita pizza

after our time in positano, we got up early and got in a cab to go to pompei! overall, i thought the whole place was pretty underwhelming, although it was cool to see a city so well preserved, it wasnt really overly exciting. we got to see the ancient baths, houses, and a high school, but besides from the buildings, many of the mosaics and ceramic pieces had been removed and relocated in a museum. it was still very interesting, just not as cool as i thought it would be. after pompei, we figured we had some extra time before our train so we journeyed to napoli (naples)! there we went to a place called brandi which is the home to the margarita pizza... which we of course had a taste of. we then went for a walk around the town and saw some of its main monuments. i had been warned that napoli was some what of a sketchy and run down city, but since it was a sunday it was pretty deserted. it was still pretty trash-filled however. after spending some time in the city, we took the train back to rome and had one final dinner before my parents left to go back to the US. it was really nice to have them visit and i miss them tons already and really hope they had a great trip!!

The Almafi Coast: Positano and Capri

A view of Positano at sunset!

sorry its been awhile! but its midterm season here, so needless to say its been a little bit crazy. anyways, last weekend my parents were here and we took a trip down to the almafi coast for a relaxing (but rainy) weekend. we started out friday morning taking a train from rome to salerno, a town just outside of almafi, and from there we took an hour and a half bus ride to the town of almafi. the bus ride to almafi was probably THE CRAZIEST bus ride i have ever been on in my life (and i think my parents would agree). it was filled with death-defyingly winding turns that scared all of us. once we made it to almafi, we took another bus to positano which had more of the same types of turns making us all think it would never end. once we got off the bus, we had to take another cab down to the hotel before we were finally there. the hotel was really really beautiful, even though it was raining, it was still a gorgeous site.  after exploring the town and grabbing some food we went back to the hotel tired from traveling. the next day, after grabbing a great breakfast at the hotel (it has been awhile since i have had eggs!) we took a boat over to the island of capri for a fun filled day! my mom and i got custom made sandals which was really cool and then we took a boat ride around the island. during our trip we got to see some pretty amazing views, my favorite being the green grotto! despite the fact that it was raining pretty much all day we still managed to have a lot of fun. we then took the boat back to positano and grabbed dinner at a restaurant called chez black which has been frequenting in the past by celebrities like denzel washington and jimmy fallon. the next morning we got up and went to pompei and naples! i will write that post when i have some more time but right now i gotta get some sleep so i can be up and ready by 6 to head to perugia for a chocolate festival! hope everyone else has a great weekend.

PARIS.

after years of dreaming about going to paris and seeing the eiffel tower, my dream finally came true this past weekend! seven of my friends from john cabot (mostly my roommates) and i journeyed to the airport last thursday night just to find our flight was delayed, which just prolonged my excitement. we finally made it to our hostel that night just after midnight, which was when we had the first of many crepes we would eat during the weekend. the next morning, we woke up at 9 in order to grab some free croissants from our hostel and then got a jumpstart on our day. my friend abby from BC met me and my friend claire for some sightseeing... once again it was nice to have a tour guide who made sure we didnt get lost. we started by going to see notre dame, the home of the hunchback, and were overjoyed when we realized we could get in for free! the building was truly beautiful and full of stain glass windows and murals painted on the walls. after notre dame, we took the metro over to the eiffel tower where we grabbed sandwiches and nutella crepes to eat while we sat on the lawn in from of the eiffel tower. i must say, it was the perfect lunch in every sense. after lunch, we had the first of many photo shoots in front of the eiffel tower as the three of us had fun trying to take pictures of us jumping up in front of the tower. we then headed over to one of the big shopping districts in the city, and abby gave us a tour of her school, which was truly beautiful. it really had a campus feel that i think claire and i feel is missing from JCU here in rome. we then had the chance to pass by the two famous cafes where lost generation writers such as f. scott fitzgerald and ernest hemmingway used to hang out. after this, we went over to the luxembourg gardens to hang out and share a bottle of wine before getting ready for dinner and meeting up with the rest of our fellow travelers. for dinner we stumbled upon a quaint little french restaurant where i had the most delicious salmon and ratatouille... which i loved almost as much as the movie! we then took off to a british pub where we met up with a bunch of other BC students who were studying in paris/visiting paris for the weekend. i feel like i have met so many new BC people while being here which is a nice compromise since I am not actually doing a BC study abroad program.  anyways, this brings us to day two, which unlike day one, was really rainy. we started off by going to the louvre, where it once again ended up being abby, claire, and i exploring the sites. once again, we were overjoyed to learn that since we are students of the european union (weird to think about) we were able to get in for free!! while at the louvre, we got to see the mona lisa, michael angelo statues, an underground mote, an ancient sphynx, and napoleons apartment. after spending almost 3 hours in the louvre, we walked to the arch de triomphe, stopping along the way to grab some lunch crepes and doing some shopping. i bought a longchamp bag which was something on my bucket list while i was in france! after taking many more pictures, we went back to the hostel to get changed before embarking on the greatest adventure of the weekend... CLIMBING THE EIFFEL TOWER. we started to climb the tower just as they turned the lights on which was a really cool experience. although it was raining, it was still a lot of fun the climb up the tower. once we got to the top, it was really windy and i felt like i was going to blow off but we managed to get to the side without the wind and take a ton of pictures! on our way done, as it reached 8pm, the lights on the tower started to sparkle! apparently, this happens for the first 5 minutes of every hour, which we got to see 4 times over the course of the night!! after we climbed down, we took some more pictures then saw the lights sparkle again as we headed for dinner. at dinner i got a burger and french fries (so parisian) and then we went back to the tower to meet some of my roommates. we then ended the night by getting a final strawberry and chocolate crepe and heading back to the hostel for a chill night before we woke up REALLY early to catch the bus to the airport. on our way to the airport, we witnessed a huge brawl on the metro which was pretty cool because we were safe inside, but other than that i found the metro pretty safe and easy to use! it was truly a fantastic weekend, and although i feel like im missing half of the details of our weekend, i have to catch up on some school work and more importantly... PREPARE FOR MY PARENTS TO GET HERE TOMORROW!! more information on our time together soon!!

cinque terre!

for our final full day of the weekend we took a two hour train to cinque terre... the "5 lands." although it was a bit overcast, it was still an amazing experience! we only went to 3 of the five because we figured we were short on time, which was a good plan since a lot of the walking plans were closed due to landslides/mudslides. the first town we went to was riomaggiore where i got a traditional mozzarella, tomato, and pesto sandwich on foccacia bread. we then hiked up to what is said to be one of the oldest castles, which gave us a nice over look of the city! the next town we went to was monterola where we went down to the water and sat on some rocks at the edge of the water. it really felt like i was apart of the little mermaid as i was sitting on the rocks with the waves crashing behind me! we then grabbed some gelato from a small store that was rumored to have the best gelato in cinque terre, and then we walked on the only path that seemed to be open. we then stumbled upon a church that was actually really creepy as it was home to a really old cemetery. however, it did provide us with an even better view of the city which you can see in the picture.  after taking in the view, we continued on the monteresso, which is actually the last town in cinque terre. monteresso had the most “tropical” feel, as there was an actual beach in this town. the beach itself was actually pretty rocky, and because it wasn’t too nice outside, none of us went in the water, even though it felt pretty nice to dip our feet in. here, i made everyone climb this huge rock that was right at the shore line. i honestly could have spent all day sitting up there as it provided the greatest view of the ocean. after awhile, i finally came down and took a nap on the beach until it started to drizzle and we figured we should move on. for dinner we went back to manarola to a restaurant we had found earlier in the day for some seafood pasta. we also had fried calamari which was so delicious! it was then time for us to head back to florence to get some much needed rest! sunday morning we then got up and grabbed some pizza (which was not as good as roman pizza) before catching our train back to rome. it was really a lovely weekend but i am happy to be home and take a nap before preparing for a week of midterms, papers, and tests. wednesday night we are taking the opportunity to see the romeo and juliet ballet, which means im probably skipping sunday night football to get started on my work… especially since next weekend in PARIS!!! hope everyone has a great week!

firenze

florence (firenze) is such a wonderful city. its a real change of pace from rome as florence seems to be less of a "city" than rome does (kind of like comparing rome to new york city and florence to boston... just different). we were fortunate enough to have two friends of my friends let the four of us crash in their apartment, so not only did i get to make new friends, but we had our own personal tour guides! after getting a later start than we had originally planned, we headed over to a restaurant called the diner... which had all american food! it was such a nice treat, and although not really a cultural experience, it is said that northern italy pizza is not as good as the pizza in rome so we didnt wanna take the chance (once again, the new york/boston reference is relevant). i had a cheese burger which was just as good as something you could get in the USA so i was overjoyed. after that, we headed over to one of the main piazzas (town squares) to take in some of the scenary. we then headed over to the ponte vecchio which is one of the oldest (and prettiest) bridges in the world(bottom picture). we then attempted to go to the uffizi museum (home to the david) but it was closed due to some sort of strike... as were almost all of the museums. so instead, we went to this museum/tower near by (which was apparently the only museum open) where we got to see some pretty cool architecture, murals, statues, and paintings. then, we climbed 283 steps to the top of the tower for a beautiful view of florence! we just sat for awhile and took in the view until we decided to go back and shower to get ready for dinner (top picture is view of the duomo). on our way to eat, we stopped by the michaelangelo piazza which gave us another beautiful view of the city. it is rumored that the prettiest sunset can be seen from the piazza however, by that time of the day it was starting to drizzle and it was a bit cloudy, but nevertheless we enjoyed taking a seat and listening to a lovely italian women sing "time after time." then we headed over to a restaurant where i had some authentic penne alla vodka, which needless to say was delicious! we then grabbed some gelato and headed back to the apartment which has a beautiful view of the duomo, which is such an impressive and gorgeous building. we then decided to spend the night by staying in and getting some much needed sleep as we are grabbing a train at 7am tomorrow to head to cinque terre, which literally translated to "five lands," but more information will come about that later!! overall, a fantastic trip thus far and hopefully more fun to come tomorrow!!

shipping out!

not too much new this week, or blog-worthy for that matter! i did attend another cooking class which needless to say was once again awesome. the best part of the meal was a lemon custard with caramelized peaches on top... i must say i was integral to the grilling of the peaches which may have been why it was the best. i also got to watch a lot of football last sunday, which some of my friends and i think we are going to make a weekly tradition. but the best news of all, is that today... after four weeks of being in rome... im going to travel!! i leave in about a half hour for florence and cinque terre for what i hope will be an awesome weekend! we are planning on doing a lot of sight seeing, and im hoping to meet up with a few of my BC friends who are in florence taking classes. i also have a ton of exciting events coming up in the next week, as i also leave for paris a week from today!! i hope you all have a wonderful weekend in the USA!

a day in the life

so there are a few things i have notice recently that for better or worse are different than the way we do things in the US:
1. paper size: 8 1/2 by 11 does not exist. instead, the paper is longer and thinner... which isnt really noticeable unless you brought a notebook from home (like me) and have all of your syllabus's sticking out the top. i am still not sure how i feel about this yet... it just interesting i guess.
2. vespas: everyone rides them. men, women, young people, old people, one person at a time, two people at a time, surprisingly no babies... which makes me question how they are transported. vespas are even bigger than the average car, and honestly come in more varieties. i even saw one the other day with a plastic shield to protect drivers from the rain. it is absolutely insane.
3. fun fact: wine is less expensive than soda. it is "coke light" not diet coke, and it is wicked expensive. especially at restaurants, beer and wine are much cheaper (im talking like $2.50 cheaper). also, you have to pay for bread and water, but you dont have to tip your waiters... so there is that. also there is no way to buy over 4 cans of soda at one time. needless to say, i am going threw withdraw but my new years resolution was to drink less soda so i guess i am back on track with that
4. italians love american music. last night i got the "privilege" to see a bon jovi cover band. it was awkward to say the least.... somehow people knew every word to the songs but no english in conversation. this includes the lead singer.  hearing "living on a prayer" with an italian accent is something i am trying to adjust to still hours later. they also have springsteen and ricky martin cover bands... whether or not i will attend is still very debatable.

well thats what i got for now, ive had a pretty slow week as far as blog-worthy events go. i did finally figure out how to watch some tv online! (the office premier was fantastic by the way) I was also supposed to do wine tasting in tuscany this weekend but it got cancelled.... so i think its a day at the beach again for me tomorrow! which i definitely cannot complain about. minus the excessive amounts of speedos, that i feel like i cant justly whine about. hopefully ill have more to mention soon!

how to make the most out of a weekend

this weekend was pretty awesome... and its not even over yet! on friday, although it started out a bit rainy, my two roommates and I headed to the roman forum/colosseum for some sight seeing. at the roman forum, we stumbled upon a glass exhibit that was open for the final day. inside they featured some of the coolest and most ancient jewelry, glasswork, and mosaics that dated back to the first and second centuries AD.  we also saw the remains of what used to be there center of rome, which was the place where many speeches were given by julius caesar, and many of the things that we think of as "iconic rome" took place such as chariot rides and marketplaces. we then made it up to palentine hill, which is one of romes "seven" hills. there are actually more than seven hills, but because seven was the lucky number of the romans they only recognized seven. anyways, here we saw some cool botanical gardens, a natural spring fountain, and a beautiful view of rome (see picture top left). by that time of the day the sky actual started to brighten up which was when we headed over to the colosseum. while we were there we took a walking tour and got to hear about a lot of the ways that ceremonies were held and the type of architecture and designs that went into the planning. on of the best fun facts about the colosseum was that they used to make ostriches battle, which i thought would be pretty interesting. we also got to see pictures of what some of the different gladiators dressed like along with what the covering of the colosseum was thought to look like. to be honest, the inside of the colosseum actually made it feel smaller than it looks from the outside, but it was really a breathtaking experience. its unfortunate you have to pay to go inside, otherwise i feel like i would go and sit once a week! that was all for friday, we were all so tired that we just grabbed some dinner and sat around the room for the rest of the night. then on saturday, we made it to the beach! which gave me my first opportunity (and hopefully not the last!) to stick my feet in the mediterranean ocean. i think because of the rain the previous day, the water really cooled down, so i spent most of my time just taking in the sites from the shore. it was really a nice and relaxing day after all of the walking on friday. after the beach, we made a quick stop at the grocery store and grabbed some food so we could make a "pinterest inspired" dinner. my roommate lucy made some very very delicious pesto stuffed chicken and then i worked on pasta with tomatoes and then we all worked on some strawberry/blueberry sangria and cheesy garlic bread, while my roommate claire made nutella cookies and chocolate strawberries. it was all so delicious... and we now have dinner for the rest of the week! it was really nice to sit down and eat something that we all worked hard on but spent no more than an hour on. then, we all headed out and met some of my friends from bc who were visiting from florence, and we walked around and met some of the locals. overall, it was another great day. we were originally going to go to the zoo today, but we figured we should probably save something to do for another weekend... so instead we are all trying to get some work done before the rest of our roommates come home. i hope everyone had just as amazing of a weekend, ill report back with something probably not as interesting later this week!

Buon appetito!

 last night, i went to a cooking class that was arranged by my school, and as one could only imagine it was AWESOME! there were about 18 people in the whole class and we had the option to move around and work on whatever we wanted to make. our first course (out of four) was bruschetta, which i did not get to help make, but, it was very very delicious. the green tomatoes were an especially good extra touch. our second course was a type of pasta that is similar to gnocchi, but it is made with pasta
rather than potatoes.
if i dont say
so my self, i was instrumental in
this part of the meal as i rolled the
individual noodles making
 probably 100 or so in total... i was there for a full hour. another set of students made tomato basil sauce for the pasta by hand, which was the perfect final touch. the third course was some sort of beef and mushroom dish, (which because i spent so much time rolling pasta i did not help with) and it was probably my least favorite out of all of them, but still good nonetheless. finally, we had tiramisu which i learned literally translates to "pull me up" as it is meant to give you some what of an energy boost (thanks to the coffee) as a result of eating it. i helped dunk the lady finger cookies in the coffee and lay them out on the bottom of the pan and then i helped sprinkle a layer of chocolate as a few other classmates made the top layer. for someone who does not really enjoy the taste of coffee, i still thought it tasted phenomenal. at the end of the class we all got coupons to the chef/teachers restaurant around the corner from my dorm as well as all the recipes to what we made! what was really cool about the class is that every time it is taught they make a different menu so that you can have a different experience every time. i think i am definitely going to take another class as it was only 20 euro ($25) for more food than we could all even eat. the best part was that it was all relatively easy (the parts i did at least), and i really do feel like i could go home and make everything again! this weekend i am (hopefully) meeting up with two friends from BC who are visiting from florence (firenze) for the day and then possibly going to the zoo where, my roommate claims the animals make different noises (doubtful, but i will report back the findings). i am also going to attempt to dip my feet in the mediterranean ocean by making a trip to the beach! i have also been trying to get a little more trip planning done as i booked barcelona for a weekend in october and florence/cinque terre for two weeks from now. hope everyone enjoys their own weekends!

you live and you learn

sorry for my absence the past few days, i have just been doing a bunch of low key things i didn't think anyone would care to waste their time reading. i have been jotting down a few cultural notes however, based on questions people have asked me and things i have seen around that i think are pretty interesting and unique to italian culture:
1. there are fresh, spring water fountains continually running along the roads (picture right). they are apparently extremely efficient and clean drinking water that is free for the taking which is really nice! especially since you have to pay for tap water at restaurants, these things come in handy. fun fact: if you cover the bottom where the water comes out the water redirects and comes out of the top like a regular drinking fountain (which is a bit messy if you ask me but the italians seem to know how to do it just right and not end up soaked... or maybe its just me)
2. during one to four everyday almost everything (except for the one gelato place down the street) closes so that the owners can take a nap/grab lunch. which is a pretty awesome concept, sometimes inconvenient, but i find if you plan on things being closed and they happen to be open it ends out working out pretty nicely. i also have found i take a nap almost every day at this time for lack of anything else to really do (when i dont have class that is)
3. the floors are numbered differently, which actually makes a lot more sense. what would be the first floor in america is the ground floor, then what americans would call the second floor is actually the first. im pretty sure this is because there are not many basements because of how old all of the buildings are, but i was in one store that listed the lower floors in the negatives (-1 was the basement). but i guess there are never really that many underground levels anyways. either way, i think its pretty convenient until you get in the higher floors and realize that the sixth floor is seven flights of stairs...
4. my residence hall has a cannon (no joke, literal cannon) that goes off everyday at noon. the entire building is pretty modern in decor (literally everything is from ikea) but it is made entirely out of marble, so you can hear everything. so, when the cannon goes off, i swear to god the whole building shakes. now, no one seemed to what to clarify what the cannon actually means (i wanted to know if a cannon ball shot somewhere or something... there is apparently a jail two doors down from me... just learned that yesterday...) but i have not found the answer to that or the cannon as of yet. so i will just have to let you know.
5. doing the wash takes 3 hours. on the shortest cycle. and there is no drier. allegedly this is more "environmentally friendly" because it uses less water during the course of the cycle, i am personally skeptical, but with the heat and the amount of walking i have been doing lately, my clothes seem clean so i guess it works out, but out of all the prior things i mentioned, i think this is the one i am happiest not to have... unless there is a cannon ball that really fires somewhere... which i doubt... but hope.

anyways, that is all for now. i do have some exciting stuff coming up this week! i am taking a cooking class wednesday and have my first on-site class tomorrow! i also think coming soon i will have a post about what its like living with 8 other people.

finally, i just wanted to thank everyone for their positive feedback so far about the blog, i know there are a variety of people who read it and i just wanna say thank you to everyone! believe it or not i can track how many people check my page daily and it always makes me happy when i have a lot of readers!! grazie e ciao!

clearly, i am not italian

today i ventured to the bookstore by myself as a test that i could get there and back... which i did without getting lost!! im not sure if it is because of italian prices or just because i have not bought a book from the bookstore... ever, but the prices were out of control. i also made another pit stop at the trevi fountain on my way to see it in all of its glory during the day time, of course it didnt disappoint, and of course i made another wish. i also bought two really cool leather bracelets (2 for 5 euro!), half because theyre awesome and half so i can say i bought them at the trevi fountain (picture right). then, on my way back, i noticed there was a red light and all of the cars were stopped on the one way street, so i went to cross.... when i was clipped by a vespa. not cool. i walked away without a scratch (a small rip in my bag) but i was SO mad that the vespa was basically going against what seemed like such common sense to me. but i really do not believe that the italians have driving rules (i have yet to see a speed limit sign) so it was totally my fault, which was fine but infuriating. and im okay, so its just a lesson learned for next time, and im sure a few people enjoyed the show as the italian vespa driver screamed at me. on my walk today i did get to take in a bit of italian culture the three main takes away of the day:
1. i am taller than 2/3rds of romes inhabitants
2. people in rome walk slower than toddlers learning to walk
3. three months will never be long enough to try to understand this country
with that, i head out for the night as this school doesnt believe in friday classes (this is something i do understand)
CIAO.

Rome'in around

yesterday was super exciting on a few different levels as classes started and i toured some of the city! my first class (wine and the drinking culture in classical antiquity) was cancelled because my teacher was stuck in traffic... which let me tell you can get brutal. i would never want to drive here. EVER. i now understand why everyone drives vespas and bikes, but even that seems like its annoying. my second class of the day was italian, where my teacher spoke only in italian for the majority of the class. luckily, it is so similar to spanish that i had a pretty good idea of what was going on even though i walked out of the class with a super big headache.  then after that i had time to nap (thank god) and then my final class of the day which was the american 20th century which was comprised of mostly italian natives, which was pretty cool. then some of my roommates and i got dressed up and we went to dinner a place nearby where we had already been and loved (i got the same pasta with mozzarella and tomatoes as the other day). after that, we made the trek to the trevi fountain, which i must say is so so so so SO much prettier in person. luckily they have steps you can sit on and just stare at. half of the building that the fountain is apart of is even under construction but it still looks breathtaking. i got to throw a coin into the fountain too and make my wish (pictured below)! the only thing that is bothersome about some of these places/around the city in general is the fact that these people (generally indian men) illegally walk around and try to take your picture/sell you roses in order to make money. the worst part is that they are extremely pushy and even come into restaurants and come up to you while you are eating your pasta. needless to say, "no grazie" (no thank you) is one of the very few phrases i have perfected. from the fountain, we stopped and grabbed gelato (picture right) and some drinks before heading to the spanish steps, which were also very cool. at about 150 steps they provide a beautiful view of the city and a direct overlook of one of the classiest streets in rome (im talking louis vuitton, prada, fendi, gucci, pucci, burberry, dior, to list a few). what was also interesting was that some spanish speaking guys from argentina asked us to take their picture and i was the only one who knew how to translate! for once my spanish was directly useful which was different. we then stumbled upon the fountain of four rivers which was also super cool as it was in a plaza that is a perfect oval with two smaller fountains as well. it was overall a really awesome night and a great way to forget the summer is "technically" over.

grown up problems

today i finally made it to the grocery store! it was disastrous.  i could not read what anything was and had no idea what i even wanted to buy other than pasta... i could not find chicken or lunch meat anywhere, and felt like i didnt know what else i knew how to make. anyways, i made pasta with pesto sauce and mini shrimp for dinner (picture) and all of my roommates claimed they were jealous so i guess i made it okay. on the note of culture, i went out last night and heard call me maybe..... which was actually exciting in a weird way because it was comforting haha. i should note that it was an american bar, and i also got to watch college football (not bc, which was probably for the better) which was really awesome. but i feel like all italians love all americans. which is not even flattering in my opinion because its just seriously across the board an obsession. it was really nice though because last night 8 of us went to dinner, we ordered 3 bottles of wine and 6 pasta dishes, but we were also giving another free (better quality) bottle of wine, and two free scoops of gelato per person... total bill: 70 euro ($80). literally because we are americans... so in that case it was obviously very nice. i dont really understand it honestly haha but it is what it is. i also did some trip planning today with some of my roommates in an effort to get the cheapest places, so we decided to do paris fashion weekend in october, and we signed up for a cooking class (thank god), the chocolate festival near rome, and the romeo and juliet ballet. which is super exciting!

on the run...

i literally feel like i have not had a second to catch my breath. i have wanted to take everything in and havent even taken the time to sit! yesterday a few of my roommates and i went to go shopping and ended up basically stumbling upon the colosseum... so cool! i am going to go back to do the whole tour obviously but it is literally about a 30 minute walk from my room. speaking of walking, ive done a TON. thank god i bought sperrys (or rather my mom did for me... thanks again!) because i am the only one in my room that does not have huge blisters. we did go out for a nice italian dinner last night, which was not only delicious, but inexpensive! it is so nice because all of the portions here are a realistic size... unlike america where everything practically comes in bulk. i also ran into three bc kids last night who i didnt even know were in rome! they go to a different school but it was so crazy to see them! it definitely made me once again feel like i was home. the big problem that i have been having lately is that i keep responding to italian in spanish.... needless to say that doesnt work out too well for be although the languages are pretty similar. not speaking italian is not a problem at all when it comes down to it, because most store owners speak enough english, the problem is when i buy things (like shampoo and conditioner) i have no idea what the products say on them! well, i of course have more orientation stuff to go to, which is sometimes helpful but i really (kind of) want classes to start so i can get into a schedule instead of running around and grabbing pizza before an info session starts... which is what im about to do. CIAO (the one word i actually know)

p.s. the picture is some kind of ruins where a ton of cats live....

live as the romans do

as per italian rule, no one is allowed to know who their roommates are OR where they are living until they arrive. needless to say, when i arrived as the last person in a 9 man i was shocked. there are three doubles, and then i am in a triple (my part of the room top left, roommates side of room bottom left). for the 9 of us, there are two bathrooms, two showers, a full kitchen (top right), a dining room table (bottom right), couches (also bottom right), and a ton of storage space. in my room, there are 6 (yes, six) girls that go to rutgers (all of them from new jersey... obviously)
plus me, that
makes 7 jersey kids
haha and the last two are from
minnesota and philly! despite the fact that i have been awake for 33 out of the last 36 hours, i feel like time has flown by. i had some actual italian pizza and gelato (nutella flavored) which was absolutely awesome! the biggest problem is that i have no idea where i am going, but since practically everyone got here yesterday, i have had plenty of tour guides. it is really amazing how small of a world it is, which has made me feel more comfortable very quickly... just since ive been here i met a kid who goes to mendham and northeastern and i also met a girl that has a shore house on the same street as me in LBI. a lot of people are going to explore tonight but since they have already been able to get past the jetlag i think i am just going to stay in and get comfortable here for a little bit! ALSO, i have wifi in my dorm!! so i can receive messages whenever i am here! enjoy the pictures!