Well hello again!

I am making my comeback to the blog. Sorry for the long delay in posting- I just got behind and the task seemed to daunting to catch up.

So, to recap faster than you can even believe--

• Capri = BEAUTIFUL and such a delightful experience
• A highlight from Capri was jumping off our tour boat to swim through a grotto. I was totally overtaken by such joy and laughed more heartily than I have in a long long time. I think it was at that moment when I really began to understand the beauty of this whole experience.
• Pompeii (same weekend trip as Capri) was an incredible glimpse into the real ancient Roman empire. It seems like the city was only vacated yesterday and brought it all to life so well. Water still runs out of the public fountains that people used way back when- that just sends shivers down to my toes. Plus it's one of those places I've dreamt about going to since I knew it existed.
  
• Some bad news-- my wonderful and much-beloved Art of Rome professor, Terry Kirk, passed away the week before midterms. It made that week incredibly hard and generally wonky for the entire University community, but the class resumes normally tomorrow with a former student of Professor Kirk's. She went on to get her graduate degree in art history after being so inspired on her study abroad experience with Prof. Kirk. I think that's incredibly fitting and a wonderful tribute to the amazing man he was.
  
• I found two old old old libraries in Rome which are incredibly inspiring. The mostly Medieval (or thereabouts) Latin texts have been sitting on those shelves for hundreds and hundreds of years. The experiences reaffirmed by belief and love of knowledge and learning- I know, I know, my inner nerd is totally showing, haha. I just LOVE libraries!
  
• Then there was a trip to Assisi with ISA. Such a wonderful small city, centered around peace- what's not to love? I'd definitely do another trip back, even if just to soak up the calm for awhile.
  
• Right before fall break I took a walk around my neighborhood and happened upon the largest park in Rome! I spent the lovely afternoon exploring Villa Doria Pamphili. What made the experience so great is that it was so unexpected. Similar to when I discovered Villa Sciarra.
  

Alrighty, now I'll actually go into FALL BREAK stories! We had an epic adventure to Dublin and London ahead of us and oh lordy, did they deliver.

We dropped our bags at the Four Courts Hostel (GREAT place to stay) and promptly headed for the Brazen Head, a pub established in the 1100s. We warmed up over our first of many pints of Guiness and I had the Irish stew. A friendly fellow pub patron (and Dublin native) showed us the oldest graffitti in Dublin- an Irish leader for independence who etched his name in the window before being arrested in 1798.

We went on a pub crawl the first night that met at the front gates of Trinity College. There were some Austrians, some Australians, a few other nationalities- quite a hodgepodge group. The highlight was certainly when we went to a crowded dark pub with a band playing traditional Irish music. It was SO great! Kelly and I pretended we knew how to do the Irish jig- if you can only imagine how hilarious that would've been to witness. I think Emmy or Molly has videos- and, rest assured, I'll do my best to make sure they never see the light of day! Hahaha

The next day we went to Kilmainham Gaol (Gaol=Jail) which is where the leaders of the campaigns for Irish independence were held and executed. Very creepy but very very interesting place. Certainly gave us new insight into Ireland. We needed a bit of a pick-me-up from the tour, so we set off for the Guiness factory of course! I swear it was like Disney world for adults! They've turned the old factory (new one was built across the street in the 80s) into a self-guided museum, topped with the Galaxy Bar which allows a panoramic view of Dublin and a free (well, included in the price of the ticket) pint of Guiness. They also had James Joyce quotes on the windows about Dublin. My running theory is that what heaven may be like.

After a lovely night trudging around the Temple Bar area, we woke up to another (surprisingly) lovely day! Kelly and Emmy set off for a day trip to the country and Molly and I rented bikes to further explore the city. (And by the way, riding a bike in the city is quite a bit harder that I'd expected- but all part of the adventure right?) We headed to the Dublin Flea Market which was SO fun and then to Phoenix Park on the west end of the city which was also quite nice. Then we were, of course, starving so we started our quest for a proper Irish dinner. We landed ourselves at O'Neils which, again, may be heaven. It was the Irish version of a buffet- called a carvey. Let's just say Molly and I had to take breaks every few minutes from the mountain of deliciousness we'd amassed. A group of Irish people around our age ended up sitting around us and we all got to talking when they invited us to just stay and have a pint! Well of course we will! Back at the hostel, we went down for a power nap and, alas, woke up 15 hours later to a new day. HAHAHA

Grabbed yet another Irish breakfast (OH. MY. GOD. The Irish know how to do breakfast- I think it's high time the Italians catch on. A cappucino and a cornetto doesn't hold a candle to this type of feast!) on our way to Trinity College where we explored the campus, and all reminisced about our own campuses back home. We then ran into the Dublin Marathon which was neat to see. Then Emmy and I wandered around a bit and, oops, found ourselves at the old Jameson Distillery! Well of course we went on the tour! I made a perfect fool out of myself getting really excited about volunteering to be one of the eight whiskey tasters at the end of the tour- so worth it. Afterwards, we left the Jameson distillery with very high spirits and had a fairly quiet night hanging out with new friends in the hostel.

After another feast of a breakfast at O'Neils we headed off to London!

We had a lovely flight on AirFrance and found our hostel without too much fuss, but had to say bye to Molly who was staying with a friend in London. We dropped our stuff at the, hmm how do I put this nicely, shit-hole of a hostel room (this one we were in a 16 bed, coed dorm room, well, closet really) and went to a bar with some new French friends who were also staying in our room. Got plenty of rest that night since we had the UK to conquer the next day.

We heard of a free walking tour from our friend Pete who was also in London so we did that the next day and got a great sense of the city- Buckingham Palace, St. James, Westminster, Parliament, Big Ben, etc etc etc and ended the three hours of walking with a hearty portion of fish and chips. From there we headed back to Trafalgar's Square and saw the National Gallery. Highlight was definitely a beautiful Da Vinci sketch which I could've stared at for hours. That night Kelly and I went to meet up with some Australian guy Kelly had met in Prague who was living in London and we had a great night being led around the city by them.

Next day Kelly and I went to the Tate Britain Museum- SO fantastic. Easily one of my favorite museums of all time. Then we headed to Oxford Circus but got waylayed by a choir concert at Westminster Abbey which was simply amazing. It was so beautiful and gave me goosebumps about the whole time. Very calming. Then we went walking down the (really overwhelming) shopping area and since we were so exhausted, went back to the hostel and called it an early night.

Next morning we caught the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham. Got there early and only stayed through about half of it. Then we went to the storied Camden Markets and had a blast wandering through the nearly endless alleys of stalls selling, well, everything. Even though we'd already checked out, we went back to decompress at the hostel for awhile and grabbed some dinner with a few friends at the hostel. From there we met back up with the really fun Australian crowd from the other night and headed straight to the airport for our very very early flight.

Now were safely back in Rome and it's really nice to have a little quiet again. Another week of school started today... oh boy. AND I am starting to count down the days until friends and family start arriving in Rome! Kelly's Mom and brother are here this week and Emmy's sister will be here in a few short days and I won't lie, I am incredibly jealous of them.

Well hope that properly catches yall up on my goings-on. I may put pictures up on this post if anyone expresses interest or cannot get on Facebook to see them all. Please comment!

A presto,
E

Warning: Really Freakin' Long Post

Oh, dear readers, an apology is in order. My last post was mid-September! You must have thought I’d disappeared off the face of the Roman Empire!

Today is certainly the day to update, as I’ve been rejuvenated by plenty of sleep and a REAL breakfast (made by yours truly, as Italians have not caught on to the wonders of the omlete…).

Plust, I’m onto my second cup of caffe, which always helps. Does that mean I’ll even have enough energy (and attention span) to write and mail postcards home, you ask? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, folks.

I’ll limit myself to highlights of the last few busy weeks, so here goes…

Art of Rome was in the forum the week I got back from Cinque Terre. I am in love with this class because once a class is finished as some famous Roman site, I have such a deeper understanding of it than I probably would get from a normal tour. I almost lost my mind walking into the curia (Senate house), with original marble floors still intact. It was astoundingly easy to picture the toga’d politicians carousing in the large building, their voices pinging off the walls as they discuss public affairs of the Empire.

That Saturday was Rosh Hashanah. Emmy, Molly and our friend Jon were planning on going to services for the New Year so we decided to wake ourselves up enough to drag around the Jewish Ghetto that Friday to explore. (Jon was not originally part of our band of explorers, but we ran in to him on the bus on the way there, so he joined in.)

Most everything was closed, considering it was a Friday afternoon before a major Jewish holiday AND it was during siesta when we got there. As Emmy puts it, “so many rookie mistakes.” But it was still a great time and a few cafés were actually open, so thumbs up all around.

We actually ended up wandering around town for awhile, stumbling upon the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and the best gelateria (kiwi and pineapple this time… such a good idea) in all of Rome. Not bad. Plus, we knew right where we were the whole time. YES.

I went out with a few people that night to a (fairly Americanized) bar in the Testaccio neighborhood. While walking in, my eyes immediately were drawn to a Drew Brees jersey waiting at the bar to order a drink. Yes, OF COURSE I went up to him, anticipating some great reminiscing about New Orleans. Lo and behold, it’s an Italian guy, who speaks little to no English, and has never been to the States. HAHAHA! A friend of his did speak a considerable amount of English, so I chatted with their group for awhile, before rejoining the others and eventually making our way back home.

Sunday was the much anticipated day of the weekend. We counted ourselves among the frenzied population of Rome, the diehard fans, the ticketholders to the Roma vs. Fiorentina soccer game(calico in Italian, pronounced cal-cheaux).

We clamored aboard a bus, then another bus, and then were greeted by the glowing lights of Tiger Stadium, ugh, I mean, Stadio Olimpico…. We grabbed a quick Peroni at a roadside stand and joined the last of the locals on a nearby bridge to gulp down the brew before heading in to find our seats. They had bottle openers and a little English, so of course we made friends.

The place was a madhouse. I felt right at home. The Roma side was jeering at the Florence fans, they were jeering back. It was great. The game felt so very Italian-- as in, not a tourist-trap, not crawling with Americans, and I was not within earshot of English (aside from our immediate group).

The bus back was easily as much of a spectacle as the game itself (Final: Roma 3 Florence 0). The masses huddled by the bus stop, craning their necks to see what number would roll up next. When our bus did show, it was like a crowd of tourists at Rex, hoping to get close enough to the float to get that pair of OMG-THOSE-BEADS-LIGHT-UP, except that this was just a ride home. There were about ten people per seat and 100 people per square foot of standing room on the bus. And then there was the cheering. Need personal space? Jump out a window.

We go home just fine, nothing stolen, just having rubbed elbows with more Italians than we ever thought possible. HA.

Oh, and p.s. we had gotten cheap Roma jerseys that morning at the market, so we were able to join the throngs of super-fans a little easier.

Another week of school soon started and another Tuesday means another episode of Art of Rome, this one set in the Vatican Museums. We saw ancient Roman sculpture, more ancient Roman sculpture, and then some more ancient Roman sculpture. It was so awesome, our prof taught us how to recognize people by certain attributes (Augustus by his hairstyle, Bacchus by the grapes, Hercules by the lion skin and club, etc. etc. etc.). We saw stuff that I’d studied in Art History at SSA, and there it was, right in front of me. I don’t think I’ll ever get over that feeling.

A few of us stuck around since we had some time to kill before having to get to the next class. We began to make the pilgrimage to the Sistine Chapel, and right around the corner, and another corner, and through another room, and then that hallway, and then another corner, another room, a bigger gallery, a smaller gallery, another million people to squeeze through, another gallery, yet another corner (you get the idea- this is why I used the term “pilgrimage”) we finally found it! The journey also involved happening upon THE SCHOOL OF ATHENS, my second favorite painting of all time. Swoon. There were so many times during this one morning I just stood and looked up, my jaw to the floor, in total awe. Awesome awesome awesome.
Wednesday night Kelly was going to meet up with some friends-of-a-cousin-of-a-friend something-or-other Italian people our age, so I tagged along. We ended up at a pub to watch the calico game (remember your vocab from earlier in this lesson?), this time versus Palermo. It was really neat to hang out with some (non-sketchy) Italian people our own age. I even had my fist vespa ride!!!!!! AAAAAAH!

The next day everyone was leaving for weekend trips and I was starting this weekend, full of plans to explore the city. Cristof (Vespa driver from the night before) got in touch with me to see if any of us were free to meet up for an aperitif (think happy hour, but instead of drink specials, you get free appetizers). It was just me still free, so we made plans to meet up at a Piazza in Trastavere when I got out of class.

He picked me up (school bag still in hand) on his (swoon) !VESPA! and zig-zagged through infamous Roman traffic and sped our way to meet up with the others a few alley ways away from the Pantheon. They all spoke great English, but when other friends arrived, everyone switched to Italian and I got quieter. Hahaha. It was so great though, I loved just sitting and listening, recognizing every few words. What a dream come true, I was just hanging out in a small piazza with a bunch of Italians! YES! Plus, my glass of chianti kicked ass.

The next day I had made plans to meet up with Fabio, a guy I met via Couchsurfing, to see the Appian Way. My friend Nicole joined the adventure and we met up with him near the Circus Maximus and began walking. We WALKED all the way to the Appian Way (Appia Antica) and then walked along the ancient rode. Yes, my feet HURT. But it was so very worth it, getting to know an Italian, getting to know the city. Such a great afternoon.

The Romans couldn’t bury their dead inside the city, so there are tombs all along the Appian Way. The crumbling tombs and inscriptions and relief sculptures are just plopped in the grass, like it’s absolutely no big deal. This puts the 17th century fabled New Orleans cemeteries to shame. It was nuts.

We also got to talk to Fabio a bit about Berlusconi and current Italian politics. Freaky stuff. He said the main two powers are the Berlusconi family and the Pope. Berlusconi owns basically all media outlets in the entire country, limiting the amount of news that comes out about his insane antics with seventeen year old girls. And we thought American politics were nuts…

I got home and, although Nicole and I had grand plans to head to San Lorenzo that night for a concert, the exhaustion took over. I settled in for the night and got to talk to Garret for a good long time on Skype which was wonderful, and got a solid nights sleep.

Today I’m going to head across town and find a café to people watch in, maybe do some window shopping, maybe a museum. I’m thinking Villa Borghese. I’ll let you know… Until next time dear readers! Sorry I have taken up so much of your time with my antics, but hope you enjoyed! Pat yourself on the back if you have reached this far, and if the time is appropriate (or hell, even if not) grab a glass of red wine. La dolce vita, y’all.

The First Trip

It's Monday morning-- you can tell just by the haggard look on everyone's faces. That, and talk of the upcoming weekend trips has already begun the same way we talk about dinner at lunch.

To say Cinque Terre is heartbreakingly gorgeous is almost an understatement. Looking back at my pictures, it's hard to believe I was actually the one behind these photos. (Quick note-- it seems that even on the Internet at school, uploading pictures to the blog will not be easy. Blech. Feel free to see Facebook for the rest of the pictures!)


So twelve hours before our train left Termini, I purchased my ticket. Such a whim, and such a great decision. It was a great group of people I was tagging along with- all easy going, very fun to be with and plus it's always fun to get to know new people.

The train ride was wonderful-- something about being on a train just makes me so so so very happy. I had grand plans for homework and sleeping, but significantly more staring out of the window ended up taking place.

Five hours later we came to a halt at Riomaggiore, one of the five towns in Cinque Terre. We trudged up a hill to our hostel, checked in, paid a near-fortune (for a hostel anyway) and were led up to a great little apartment that we would call home for that night. Soon afterwards we were re-stocked with pesto, goat cheese, crackers and cheap boxed wine. Always the ingredients of a great night, ha.

We also were able to steal a few hours of sunlight at an all-rock beach, complete with Speedos like you wouldn't believe. Not topless though, since I knew you were wondering. I took a nap on a rock in the middle of the Mediteranean and continued thinking in disbelief that this is actually my life.

We had a great night getting to know some of the other travelers in the town (Norweigians, Swedes, British, etc.) and doing plently of sunset sightseeing.

The next day we awoke to start hiking the infamous five-town, five-hour Cinque Terre extravaganza. Despite dehydration, headaches, and probably not the best shoe choices, we made it out to the trail.

I was expecting a real hiking trail-- think rugged, rocky, hills, etc. PART OF IT WAS PAVED! What a cop-out. Nevertheless, it was absolutely stunning and really fun to get some (even if less-intense) exercise.


At the middle of our journey, we were stopped dead in our tracks, lured to a little pizza place for lunch and a beer. Well, the journey stopped there. We had to check into our campsite at 5 after heading back to Riomaggiore to grab our bags out of the hostel's storage closet.

We made our way back, turned in the key, grabbed some gelato (of course!) and began our half-hour journey to the campsite. A train and a short bus ride later, we were at the entrance of La Sfinge.

The place was actually a trailer park in all reality, but we were all thrilled. Especially since the price per night (9 euros per person) beat the cud out of the night before (41 euros per person).


We'd gotten food for a dinner picnic and spent the night around this table, talking and doing some damage to, yet again, more cheap boxed wine. Also briefly met some Canadians. I'm starting to believe no one in Italy is Italian.... hmm...

Our train left the next afternoon, so we made plans to grab some beach time at Monterosso and then hop on the train back to Rome (now being referred to by all of us, as home!). The beach at Monterosso had slightly smaller rocks, much easier on barefeet.

My only complaint about Cinque Terre is that it was so incredibly and painfully touristy. I heard easily more English this weekend than Italian. Definitely a let-down. Sure, it made it really easy for all of us, but that's not what I'm looking for. Maybe next time...

All in all it was a great weekend and I am hugely astounded at how easy it is to just hop on a train and be in a completely different place so easily. I am so ready for the rest of the weekend trips! I am also really ready for the price of traveling to go down, as this is still (sorta) tourist season. October and November look cheap and therefore promising for greater adventures!

Onto another week at school, and definitely time to get my academics organized. This may prove to be a challenge, as my mind is 100% on vacation. Eh...

Peace out

We're heading to Cinque Terre on the Italian Riviera this weekend! So so very excited- it's going to be gorgeous.

Week ended well, classes are great, getting more of a sense of where we are.

P.S. Yall all need to go to my roommate Emmy's blog: http://em-italy.blogspot.com/ she updates more often than I do and we're all usually together. Plus, its a great read.

Well I'll do a new post when I get back, I'm sure. I may even have enough patience to upload pictures on it. We can hope, right?

Ciao
E

Io studio

Buena sera,

Today was the second day of classes! Yay! I'm going to be super dorky for a few minutes now. I LOVE SCHOOL! I'm so happy with everything I'm learning, it's going to be such a great semester!

Today we started with Art of Rome. Emmy and I are both in it = success. The class starts at 9 a.m., the teacher rushed into the room at 9:03 and by 9:05 we were already on our way to the Pantheon. Picture a class of 20 American college kids on the bus during Roman rush hour. HA!

Let me pause now and paint a picture of my prof. Super duper skinny, super tall, balding and short where there's still gray hairs, dressed very Italian (pressed button down, pressed slacks, leather belt, and WOVEN leather shoes). P.S. He's got a pencil straight mustache- looks very much like he's balancing a grey hairy pencil on his top lip.

We got such a great thorough tour of the Pantheon, it was so great. As with all else in this city, I was totally beside myself with wonder. It was also really neat to be learning so much about it- not just a shallow, quick and dirty tour. This business was thorough.

PLUS we had a 15 minute cappucino break. Any teacher that does that has won me over.

PLUS the cappucino was only 1 Euro. Any coffee shop that has those prices has won me over.

Emmy had to meet Molly at school right after class and I sketched off to a bookstore to find a journal. It's so great. It's got a sketch of the Colosseum and the SPQR shield on it. How very Roman.

I grabbed a cheap panini and strolled back to the Pantheon to eat lunch under the portico of the Pantheon. Then I called Birthday Boy Garret even though it was 5:30 in the morning. It was so wonderful to talk to him finally and hear all about what sounds like a great hiking trip with his dad. AND I was sitting at the Pantheon. You can't beat that. Just try.

Headed back to school and up to my next class, The Developing World. Also sounds great, even though I felt half asleep the whole hour and a half. It's going to focus mainly on Africa, and I'll be learning a lot abour foreign aid, NGOs, the UN, all that AMAZING great stuff. We had to all go around the room and talk about why we were interested in the class, where we were from, and what we wanted to do after college, etc. I talked about wanting to do international nonprofits/philanthropy and international relations (think Red Cross, Rotary International, the UN, etc.) and especially with a focus on disaster management (especially being from New Orleans). I'm thrilled about this class- lots of reading assignment that sound like stuff I'd probably read anyway. YES.

Next was my 2 and a half hour Italian class. We all sat around a room and basically talked to each other in Italian. My teachers great, he's from New Jersey originally but he's been in Italy for a long long time. It's so great and I'm really looking forward to leaning Italian so fast. (Even though I'll be in that class 7 hours a week...)

Tonight we were going to go to the Opera, but it looks like there are shows every other day, so we're going to hang out at the apartment and start on homework, book some trips, etc.

So far, I think we have Cinque Terre booked for weekend after next. Now we're working on Budapest (Hungary) for this weekend. Oh and also Fall Break in England/Ireland/Scotland. I know, life's tough.

Buona notte all,
E

Veni Vidi Vici. And fast.

I've seen all of Rome.

Ok, fine. Just kidding. But not really. We've seen quite a bit, you have to admit that if you've seen any of my Facebook pictures. Impressive, I know.

P.S. Blog readers, is it okay with y'all if I don't post pictures on this one? The Internet (please excuse my French but it's totally necessary here) is about to shit a brick. I think someone put a Voo Doo curse on my computer before departure.

Wow. My heavens, I don't even know where to begin. The bus tour of Rome was amazing and magical, save for me drooling over myself at the sheer astounding beauty of this place. Major highlight: when we got to the top of the Gianocolo Hill right up the street from AUR, with jaw-dropping views of the city. It's safe to say that's when I think it hit me that I was in Rome. Being able to stand atop that hill and look around and point out "Oh wow, that's the Pantheon. And there's the Palatine Hill. Oh and that's the Victor Emmanuele Memorial. OH MY GOD THIS IS ROME."

Following the bus tour was a walking tour where we hit up the Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, the Pantheon and Campo di Fiori. (In answer to your question, yes, my feet hurt.) The ISA staff peaced out at Campo di Fiori and inside I was thinking "Time out, folks. TELL ME HOW TO GET HOME FOR GOD'S SAKE." But in all actuality, we did really well! Can you believe it?

Somehow, I'm not at all nervous about public transportation. We've vici'd buses, trams, the metro, taxis and that's not even counting the fact we all got here by plane just fine also. I am so so proud. So- a side note to all those coming to visit- worry not about transportation. I got this.

The next day began AUR orientation (in their auditorium that may fit a fifth of an LSU class- and it's their AUDITORIUM folks). Checked off the list 1. getting an Italian cell phone (details below!) 2. class schedules 3. ID cards (that we have to swipe at the walls of the school to get in-- super fancy) 4. found the computer lab and got to know the innards of the campus a little more (all of, ya' know, four buildings!) and 5. started out Permesso di Signorio stuff.

That night we all decided to go to a club by Castel St. Angelo called Maison. It's swanky and hip and very international and expensive. But SO fun. Furthermore, they're apparently 5-15 years behind in music so I actually knew the songs they were playing! HA! Think Michael Jackson (not as a memorial, but seriously), Spice Girls, that "Boots with the Fur" song from Freshman year. Yeah, nice guys.

It was a great time- we met people from Italy (of course), Germany, Australia, Scotland, Spain, the States, among others. It was basically if someone did a youth-clubbing version of the UN and added disco balls and plonked it down on the Tiber River. Nice.

The next day we were to meet AT the Colosseum AT 10 a.m. AFTER being out, well, rather late. Let's just leave it at that. But we made it! And early, no less! We had a great tour of the Colosseum, followed by the Forum. The only (and HUGE) problem was it was about noon. Needless to say, the sweat dripping off me was not such a great look. HA.

I could quite possibly go on about how amazing it was to see those places, but there are only so many synonyms for amazing in the English language. Let's just say I've dreamt of being there since I knew they existed. And I can't say much else, considering I was speechless the whole time, that's probably appropriate.

After our crazy, sweating, unbelievable morning/afternoon we went back to the apartment and I did some hardcore unpacking. I cannot tell you how mentally relaxing it is to be settled in. It just felt so right. I think it made me feel even more that this is my real life, and I'll really and truly be here until January. I cannot believe this is my life.

The next day we decided to go see the Spanish Steps. Via bus #44 to Piazza Venezia where we walked to the Colosseum, met up with Molly's friend from home, jumped on Metro Line B, swithced to Line A at Termini and then grabbing gelato (caffe and fiori di latte) right before hitting Piazza di Spagna. It was pretty crowded, but so amazing, and of course, like everything else, so surreal. Unfortunately we really needed the little girls room and even more unfortunately, had to go to McDonalds. I don't want to talk about it.

So then we set off on a big adventure to find H&M (you know, clothing we can actually afford while drooling over the Fendi, Dior, Yves St. Laurent stores surrounding us. It took a long long but wonderful while strolling down the legendary shopping area of Rome. We played in H&M (yes, I bought stuff- and stop rolling your eyes! I see you!).

Then we accidentally found Piazza del Popolo which was GORGEOUS especially since it was so unexpected. THEN we happened upon Villa Borghese which was also surprising and amazing. We found a bus that would take us to Piazza Venezia where we could connect to the 44 and the bus drove through this wonderful swanky area where we saw the garden area of Villa Borghese and the US Embassy which was also neat.

Wow. While writing this I'm realizing how long it's been since I've written and why it's taking me so long to do this. It's game time folks, this needs to happen fast.

I'm not entirely sure where this fits in, but one night we tried to go to the boys' apartment from ISA which was supposed to be about a 15 minute walk. An hour and a half, a lot of being lost, and a displeased taxi ride later, we made it to their place, met up with a bunch more people and then we all trompsed over to Campo di Fiori. I won't lie. Not great. We were in a huge group of Americans from AUR and they were all being drunks and loud and "Let's take HUMONGOUS group pictures in the middle of the square with A HUNDRED cameras and call EVEN MORE ATTENTION to ourselves." Not happy. Molly, Emily and I sneaked off to a tiny quiet bar on a side street closer to the tram and grabbed a quick birra and talked and talked until Kelly came back from the crazy group and joined us for an, ahem, quieter evening.

I was definitely not happy when I got home. I was quite aggravated with myself for not being fluent in Italian. I'll come back to this soon.

Sunday we were supposed to wake up and go to the beach with AUR kidos (Where is the beach in Rome, you ask? Yeah, I don't know either.) We were supposed to meet at the 8 Tram stop at 10:30. We woke up at 10:20. It did not happen.

Porta Portese is a market near our neighborhood that happens on Sundays and I really wanted to go, so I dragged myself out of bed and hopped on the bus down there by myself. The market was so very fun and a little sensory-overload, but totally great. At one point there was a bongo player accompanied by a sax. I honestly thought I was in the French Market or the Quarter. It was nuts.

I decided to walk home from the market (if you're curious- Google maps Porta Portese to Via Andrea Busiri Vici-- it is FAR but GREAT!) It was such a lovely walk and a lovely day. I got to take a closer look at my neighborhood (think: peeking in garden gates, noticing tiny charming architectural details on houses, getting a little lost, randomly finding the Irish Embassy, etc.).

Near school is a little park we can kinda see into so I decided to hop in there for a quick visit before making my way to the apartment.

OH MY GAWD IT WAS MIND-BLOWINGLY GORGEOUS. GO SEE PICTURES ON MY FACEBOOK. NOW. I guess it was just because I wasn't expecting it at all. It's a sculpture/fountain/walking paths/heaven complete with views of the city scape. I actually cried it was so gorgeous. It is Villa Sciarra. Swoon.

Feeling quite a perk in my step, I headed home and we found some dinner, etc. etc. etc.

Today we started classes. My first was travel writing. If heaven was a class, this would be it. I am so so so excited about it. You should be too, as my blog will be greatly enhanced considering I'll be putting some academic effort into this now.

I had a long break until Global Marketing so I made some groceries across the street and had lunch (did you notice the made the groceries thing? I'm getting oddly nostalgic about kooky New Orleans idiosyncracies).

Global Marketing was a nightmare. I haven't even taken Principles of Marketing at LSU- that's actually going to need to happen next semester. I was lost and thinking "Wow this would be completely awful to be totally lost not only in Europe but in CLASS too?" Not happening. Plus, my schedule was totally wonky and a lot of add/drop mess had to happen.

As it stands now, I'm in Travel Writing, Art of Rome (an on-site class! Swoon!), The Developing World, and... drumroll please...

A SEVEN HOUR INTENSIVE ELEMENTARY ITALIAN COURSE. It's Italian 101 AND 102 in one class. It sounds really daunting, yeah, and I was scared. But then I remember how I felt that night after Campo di Fiori and I thought "Well, hell, when in Rome, right?" So I'm taking it. I'm actually so excited.

For heavens sake that was such a long post. Hope it wasn't to neurotic but it's 1 a.m. now. Night y'all.

P.S. Please comment below! I feel like this is unrequited love. I want to know what's going on at home! Thanks in advance.

A presto,
E

Salve Rome, piacere conoscerla

(Hi Rome, nice to meet you.)

Wow. I'm here. I'm in Rome. This is real life. And it is AMAZING! Here's how I got here:

Saying goodbye was tough. Carmel, Mom, Garret and I grabbed lunch at Acme. I needed some Louisiana food to stick to my ribs until I got here and my roast beef po boy and seafood gumbo did the trick! AND my Aunt Mary Beth and Aunt Jill came to surprise us! It was a great great time.



Carmel headed back to BR for class and the rest of our party headed to the airport. We'd gotten there super early so I checked in and then we all sat and talked for awhile which was lovely. Also, Mom had baked me an individual sized cherry pie which we passed around- amazing. I still had half of it (which was later scarfed down in Memphis about a millisecond before boarding the plane to Amsterdam).

After many hugs and kisses and tears, I made my way through security, turning back to wave like a nutcase the whole time. Then I cried all the way to D6.

The plane ride to Memphis was great. I sat next to a huge burly tattooed medical escort who has traveled all over the world. We chatted the whole time- it was so fun (and random). The plane was late getting into Memphis so I ended up with about 20 minutes before I boarded my 9 hour flight to Amsterdam. I made some rushed phone calls, grabbed my last American snacks, annihilated the other half of the baby cherry pie and boarded my flight with a huge goofy smile.

I fiddled around with all the stuff in my backpack, watched a movie and then loaded up on Benadryl to help me sleep. I did get a little sleep but time-wise I was really confused so I have no idea how much sleep I got. I got off the plane in Amsterdam, and it's true, Schipol airport is neat. I ran into two guys from Hattiesburg in the line for customs in Amsterdam. Oh and a flight attendant on the trans-pond flight was from Houma. It's a small world after all!

Hi, Amsterdam.

My original plan was to find my gate then find a cup of coffee, but once I reached my gate, my entire body refused to move again. Plus it was hot as hell, so just thinking about hot coffee made me sweat. More.

What was really strange waiting for that flight, and also the flight itself for that matter, was that I think it's safe to say every person on that flight spoke a different language. Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore.

Arriving in Rome was incredibly surreal. I just kept sayiface andng to myself, "Holy ___, this is Rome." (I mean, do you blame me?) The plan was to wash my get at least half presentable before exiting the airport but it was all I could to to find 1. baggage claim 2. a bathroom 3. toilet paper for that matter 4. my luggage and 5. my mind.

The sight of my last piece of luggage making its way around turn-thingy was quite possibly one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. I could've cried I was so happy. I just couldn't believe I had made it all that way by myself. AH!

So I got out of the airport after calling the ISA people, got a taxi (despite my embarrasingly poor Italian) and got to my apartment. The taxi, by the way, was terrifying. We hit 180 km/hr which translates to 111 mph, spent most of the drive not in a lane, some in oncoming traffic, etc. etc. etc. Roman driving at its finest.



Got up to my apartment and it is HUGE and GORGEOUS. Two bedrooms, two baths, wood floors, two balconies (one off of my room!). It exceeds any expectations I could've even hoped to have had. Except is had no air conditioning. And the temperature is about the same as home. It is so hot. I am so sweaty. All the time. BUT I'M IN ROME! So it really doesn't matter.



We then went to the University to meet up with all the other ISA students and staff and went to dinner. And not just dinner. An EIGHT course Italian feast. Then we got our first gelatos on the way home (I chose limone. Mmmmm...) Pictures below:




The roomates are amazing, it's really uncanny how well we're already getting along. Hooray! We stayed up last night, completely delirious, playing a game and it was hilarious. Today we woke up and got to school for 10:30 to get our Permesso di Siggnorio (Permit to Stay) in order, got our Italian cell phones, AUR student IDs, class schedules, etc. It was fun to see more of the (super tiny) campus and hang out with some of the other ISA kidos. We finished up business and then a group of us went to find lunch. We stopped at a pizzeria right outside of campus. I think they put pure joy into all the food here. Later, we're going on a tour of Rome. I'm sure plenty of pictures will follow.



Sorry this post is ridiculously long. I promise I'll start editing... A presto!

Arrivederci!

I chose Frank Sinatra's "Come Fly With Me" in lieu of the traditional "Leaving on a Jet Plane." I like Siantra's style better. And plus, Carmel put it on my going-away CD (entitled "Too Cool for America").

Just wrapping up a great weekend of seeing friends and family in Baton Rouge. Had a wonderful going away party at Blaire and Noelle's apartment and got to say bye to everyone. It was a grand ole' time, complete with Margaret and Holly's festive purple and gold togas. HAHAHA!



Well, let's get down to business. I'm leaving tomorrow. I can count the hours until ROMA! It's unreal in an I'm-about-to-be-Alice-in-Wonderland-Italy-style type of unreal.

On the to-do list? Nothing. And it feels GOOD.

Peace out, America. Catch ya' in a few months.

Oh heavens...

Two weeks from today and I'll be on my way.

On the to-do list:

• Pack. I am starting to freak about packing. I mean really freak. Freak to the point of being rendered entirely incapable of doing anything. Well perhaps that's a tad dramatic. But when they look like

and I look like
Well, we'll see how that goes... ha

• Make endless copies of endless paperwork for the endless beuracratic nonsense required to step a foot out of this country for any decent period of time. Now, it's the Permesso di Soggiorno, or permit to stay. I have to go to the State Police (Polizia di Stato) to get this thing. That should be a hoot.
• Aside from that, it's nothing particularly interesting-- getting travel soaps, vitamins, etc.
• Oh, and learn the Italian language. HA

Oh, and p.s. I got WINDOW seats all the way to Amsterdam! Hooray!