My oh my...

I honestly don't even know where to begin! I've missed what? two days of internet access, and I already have so much to share!

On Tuesday, we went to Vatican City. We toured the Castle of Saint Angelo; at the top, there was an amazing view of the city of Rome. The funny part about this area of town is that on the first day, Paige and I walked around the castle and everything and never noticed the Vatican just a little ways off. It's funny how when surrounded in a city of beautiful buildings, some can be easily overlooked. But believe me, once we got closer to it, I was in a state of shock. When they say "world's biggest church", they really mean it. It was fantastic! Inside was so delicately designed. Pieta was phenomenal.

We moved to Florence yesterday, and it was a day of much sleep. It was about a 4.5 hr bus ride from Rome, and I slept most of the way. I did get to see a lot beautiful Tuscan landscapes and traditional homes during the times when my eyes were open. When we arrived at our apartment, we settled in and then had to wait for our Land Lord to arrive for a meeting. There was a three hour span that we had to wait at home for him, and he came 15 minutes after those 3 hours were over! It's okay though because since it's so hot, I spent the whole time sleeping. Our apartment is beautiful though! The living room window overlooks San Lorenzo basilica and market, and to the left, we can see the Duomo. Each of our bedrooms has a bathroom, and we even have a little set of stairs that goes up to a very nice sized terrace! It's great to look over the rooftops and at the mountains in the distance or to sit there in the dark and listen to the city.

It didn't take long at all for me to realize differences between Rome and Florence. I feel much safer walking in the streets in Florence. By safer, I mean, I have a smaller fear of getting run over because the streets are much smaller, so there are much less cars! At the same time though, it can be weird because the men are much more forward here than Rome. In Rome, they would whistle or shout out a "Ciao, bella." In Florence, the men come right up to you and start talking all sorts of cheesy pick-up lines like, "You dropped something...my heart." One man came up to me tonight and put his hand lightly on my arm, saying, "Ciao, bella. You beautiful. I love you." It's so hard not to laugh. Thus far, no one has been rude or violent or anything. They're just funny! I know not to respond to them, but really, sometimes I just want to laugh. Like when we first moved into our apartment, the six of us girls were walking into the building and men on the street were stopping to watch us. "New sexy ladies, here." "Must be models." "Mmm, sexy." Sometimes I just wonder about them. What do they expect us to do, really?

Today, we had our first experience of being sent off into the Mercato Centrale (Central Market- an indoor market that is open in the mornings with all kinds of fresh foods). It was beautiful, really. "Voire dua, per favore." "Basta?" "Si." "Uno y trienta." "Grazie." "Prego." (Excuse my spellings!) I haven't taken any Italian yet, but it's wonderful to put a foreign language to use. Even simple conversation makes me heart smile. The market is chaos. I have learned that you really have to speak up to get what you want. Use your elbows a little, you know? I spent less than ten euro and got enough fruits to last me, hopefully the weekend. I love it. Can we start this in America, please? Kill the manners. Make life a chaotic mass of beauty.

I find myself comparing everything to America. I guess that's supposed to be normal with culture shock or whatever, but it makes me dread the thought of actually having to leave this place. I know that I still have weeks left here, but it feels like I have been here for a long time. I don't know how else to explain it.

Oh my goodness. So I said about the cars being very little and everything. I think those Smart cars are made out of plastic or something. I was walking down the sidewalk, and someone was trying to un-parallel park. It was quite amusing. There was maybe an inch on either side of the car, and the driver backed up, smashing right into the car behind them before pulling out of the parking spot. Instead of smashing, however, the bumpers bent together in a bouncy mesh like the bubbles in a lava lamp. It was hilarious. No wonder all of the cars in town are so scratched up!

There's just something about getting a stamp in your passport when you travel abroad, and guess what? I didn't get one! I'm so bummed about it! Is that a stupid thing to be upset about? I was really hoping to have a goal of filling my passport with stamps before it expires, but how can I do that if they don't stamp?! Instead, I have to pay 18 euro and fill out some Declaration form. I don't want an expensive piece of paper. I want a stamp! Argh!

Okay, I'm done! Anyways, umm, I mailed 8 postcards today, and it cost me 13,60 euro. I wrote them as if there would be a follow up, but I don't know if I can afford one! Ha! If you get one, enjoy it because you probably won't get another!

Tonight, we had a cooking class on the other side of Pointe Vecchio. Our instructor, Fabrizio, taught us how to make fetticcini pasta from scratch as well as tiramisu and a delicious apertivo! At the end, he even gave us a copy of the recipes! There was no way that I would have remembered everything as we went. It was very fast-paced! Fabrizio was impressed with my egg-cracking skills, but not so much on the tomato slicing. I cut big sandwich tomatoes, but he wanted thin, stackable tomatoes. "No bene," he shook his head. Oops! Nevertheless, everything was delicious! We were all so proud of ourselves!

Today, we took a tour of Florence: just a basic walking tour. Near Pointe Vecchio, there is a mass of locks just hanging on one of the roadside barriers. It's beautiful. Our tourguide said, "If you want to lock a love forever, you hang lock and write names on it and throw key in the river. That way, you never lose love." I love it. Maybe I should make one for Italy and me.

Blessings.

Roma, continued!

Anyways, as I was saying...

Our hotel room is beautiful. The bathroom is very small; there is just enough room to turn around. Sitting on the toilet is funny because my knees hit the shower doors. The shower is another funny story--it is a square that is maybe 1.5ft on each side, maybe. I bump my elbows on the sides when washing my hair, and there is an "Alarm" string that just hangs by the wall, and I am always afraid of accidentally giving it a yank when I move my arms (This may sound unreasonable, but the string has a small, clear rectangle on the end of it that weighs it down and makes it susceptible to snags of the elbow). Nevertheless, it serves its purpose, and I love it for the experience of it!

Yesterday, my roommate, Paige, and I went for a walk around the city. At every street corner was "Oh, look at this!" "It's beautiful!" "Oh my gosh!" "Let's go this way!" "Oh my!" "Watch out, scooter!" The exclamations are endless. I call this the "I love" stage. We have just arrived in this beautiful, foreign land, and everything is a wonder to us.

Thank you to those who warned me that people drive crazy here! Surprisingly, they drive on the same side of the road as in the U.S. (How did I not know this?). However, the vespas are everywhere, and they run the road however they damn well please. It's not surprising, though, because the roads here are so small; they usually have to squeeze between people and tour groups and cars or box trucks to get anywhere. Oh, the cars. The cars here are all so small! They make the Honda Fit and the Toyota Prius look big! There are a lot of those little 2-passenger "Smart" cars, and the rest are just really tiny versions of vehicles! It's amusing to watch them fit comfortably down tiny alleys.

As for sight-seeing, we have done much. Our familiarity with Rome can at least get us to our favorite shop-spots, gellaterias & back to our hotel, of course. Yesterday, we were merely adventuring: getting to know the city, the places to eat, where we could get internet, etc. Today, our program took us on a tour of Ancient Rome! Can I say that it was amazing, or should I just let you assume?

First, we went through the heart of Rome, near our hotel. We are in the middle of the "Storica" district, which is very political. We went to the Senate building and other political buildings, all marked by both the Italian and the European flags. Along the way, we visited the Pantheon: the best-preserved ancient building. It surpassed my expectations. The pictures in my Art History class gave no justice. It's darkened exterior was merely a precursor to the wonder that it held inside. Now a church, we had to enter in silence, though the tourist noise level was a little loud anyways (It's hard not to be when "wow"s cannot be contained). The occula was much larger than I expected, but it let it plenty of light; the magic of seeing light pass through, reflecting on the interior, spotlighting the ancient statues inside seemed unreal. While inside, we made a stop at Raphael's tomb (the painter, not the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle; sorry).

We also went to the Trevi Fountain and threw in coins in wishing for love, of course. It seemed pretty busy today, though, so hopefully the fountain heard my request!

After the fountain, we went to the Coloseum. There, we saw the Arch of Constantine and passed the Column of Trajan as well as his ruins and some of the Caesar's ruins. The entire atmosphere felt like a step back in time. Men even stood around dressed as ancient Roman guards. Even though the inside of the building was extremely worn-down, I could imagine well what it must have been like. One of the best parts of the Coloseum was probably while we were just inside the outer wall, waiting for the rest of our group, and old, fallen column pieces are strewn around, so we sat on them. I looked at Paige and said, "You know, just sitting on ruins... at the Coloseum...in Rome...Italy. No big!"

Shopping is crazy because the people will negotiate with you all right! If you don't like their price and try to leave, they will nag at you until you tell them what you think you should pay for the item, and then they will sell it to you for that, but if you were just looking, they get very offended. One seller even followed us down the street, offering lower and lower prices! There comes a point where it gets annoying.

I think that it's funny because it pretty much is how people say. Boys and men will whistle and hoot at a group of us girls walking buy. Often, when walking, "Ciao, ladies/senoras." is heard when eyes accidentally meet. It's all friendly though. Really. I mean, we never respond, except maybe a "ciao" and a wave. I just find it amusing because it's a true sort of stereotype.

Here's the plan for the next few days: tomorrow, we are going to Christian Rome, including the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel, as well as several churches. On Wednesday, we move to Florence to our apartment and begin orientation. I can't wait to finally settle in; I suck at living out of a suitcase, especially since everything inside was extremely shaken up from the flight here.

I don't think that I have talked at all about food. Mari will be disappointed with me because she wants a food blog! Yesterday, our program instructors took us out for some traditional cuisine with all four courses. I was absolutely stuffed by the end of it! We had a variety of appetizers that were different, but delicious, and the main course was pasta, but it wasn't just noodles or anything. The pasta was these little balls of dough filled with potato. Tasty! (I know that I said four parts, but the parts that I am excluding are because I didn't eat them due to my vegetarianism!) For dessert, we had tiramisu that was so rich that it melted in my mouth. I really wanted a glass of milk after that though.

Instead of milk, Paige and I went out to toast our first night in Italy. We each had a glass of white wine, which was very good, much sweeter than I expected. Tonight, with dinner, I had a red wine, but it wasn't as good; it tasted very strongly of alcohol, almost like a vodka--it burned going down. I ate it with pizza which was delicious but huge; I could barely finish half of it. When we ordered, I think that we expected "pizza" to be like one slice, not an entire pizza. Afterwards, we went out for gelato. I got peach this time. Yesterday, I had a strawberry one. I am in love with all things fruity, which really makes me crave juice. I will probably drink a million glasses of the "blood red" orange-juice that they serve at breakfast at the hotel!

So, am I missing home? Only a little. I think that I miss the familiarity of knowing the people that I am around all day. I kind of stick to hanging out with my roommate here because I know her the best, and we have a lot in common. Hopefully, I will get to know some of the other girls (I say girls because there are only five guys in the program) better in the coming days. I'm just not too enthusiastic about it because  thus far, I'm having a difficult time relating to many of them. It's just strange because I guess I expected most of the students to be on their first big adventure, penny-pinching, and excited. A lot of the other students have the "been-there, done-that" attitude or act like they've seen/done better. It's pretty discouraging, so I just try to keep my distance. I think that's my problem. I don't like big groups. I like groups of 3, maybe 4 people. Anymore than that? No, grazie.

Ha! That reminds me. Vendors and waiters and what-not will often ask questions, and my automatic response is often, "No, grazie." Then, however, they think that I'm Italian just because I said one word, so they start rambling on and on in Italian! I usually just shake my hand and walk away or say that I speak English. I find this amusing though, but I don't blame them since there are many walks of life that live and speak Italian. I can't pick one out when we're walking down the street!

Well, I'm waiting for pictures to upload onto Facebook, and I think that I've shared enough about Rome. I am very excited to continue in Italy, even if my body is exhausted from the heat and the tons of walking. It's worth it all. Every drop of sweat, every dollar spent, every glass of strong wine!

Blessings.

Roma!

Today is my second full-day in Roma! Using this keyboard is an experience of its own! There are many foreign keys for symbols and accented letters and what not. I find strange accents coming out in my mind as I write this. I can hear people speaking Italian around me all day long, and it is beautiful. Everything is beautiful.

Living in a foreign country is definitely the best way to learn a language. I came here knowing zero Italian words. Now, when we walk into the hotel, we ask for our hotel room key, "Cento diechi, per favore." We also had a wonderful time ordering gelato in Italian, even though I am still not sure as to what the flavor was. Nevertheless, it was called "Albicacco." My guess is "apricot."

Anyways, the flight here was very, very long, especially after many delays in the airport, but somehow we made it on time. My flight to Philadelphia ended up being delayed by an hour which left not much time to catch my flight to Rome. A few other students on the same flight rushed with me to our gate, and we made it just in time to board, even though we then had to sit on the plane for an extra 45 minutes as they fixed something or the other. Alas, after nearly 10 hours of flying, I am in Rome, and it is real, and I am still in shock.

Our hotel is a beautiful, 4-star place. The room is very small, but the ceiling is high. Out of our enormous window is a quaint view of the street (I am finding myself describing most things as "quaint" and "beautiful").

We have had a lot of free time so far, but we have also done LOTS of sight-seeing. However, I am at a local Internet Point right now, and it cost me 2,6 Euro to be online for 15 minutes! I have one minute left because I went on Facebook first! Oops! I will definitely be on again soon for a further update!

Blessings.

Destination: Rome

I woke up this morning (Wait, I went to sleep last night?!) and realized that my next awakening would be in a hotel room in Rome, half a world away. This idea baffles me. Not the hotel or anything like that: half a world away. Sometimes, it feels like there is no land beyond the shores of my homeland. I think it's just that I've never been challenged enough to think globally before. I mean, sure, I took geography and learned the capitols of countries that I will never remember exist, but I mean truly globally--the realization that other countries truly exist; they are solid, and I can touch them.

On the car ride to the airport, I sat in the backseat with my sister. "You're going to ITALY!!" she said to me with her face stretched in an excited smile. I couldn't contain mine and let out a long squeal like the pig in the Geico commercial. Sometimes I wonder when I will act like an adult. Then I walked through security, and waved goodbye to my family. I walked on, alone, and realized that I should probably get on that whole 'adult' idea pretty soon if I wanted to survive one day alone in a foreign country. 95% of the time when I have gotten on an airplane, I have landed in Arizona, where my heart belongs. It's strange to think that this time, I will be landing in a different sort of heat: a tanned, European sun that doesn't speak the English that I know.

When I think about travelling far away, I get really excited. Super-duper excited, as I've been saying when people ask. The past few days, I have been a busy-body trying to prepare my belongings and my mental self for the journey that is ahead. Despite my best attempts at overcoming some last-minute strep two days before my flight, I have arrived at the airport after saying "ciao" to everyone that I love. As I sit here looking around, there is no one at this gate who looks near as excited as I am. I can't rid my face of a smile, but everyone else just looks bored, disinterested. Sometimes I forget that I am very-much-so a small-town girl, and that people travel on 10hr. flights to foreign lands everyday. Where have I been?

The past few days, I have had to tell myself in my mind that I am not about to take my first (of, hopefully, many) once-in-a-lifetime journeys. It makes the time continue to pass at a reasonable rate. If I think about what I am doing and where I am going, the clock stops, and my clammy hands wringle knots of my fingers as my mind contemplates the scenarios that everyone has been warning me about. The funny thing is: first, my family and friends would say, "Oh! Italy! You are going to fall in love with an Italian boy and bring him back/come home with him/ never come home!"; then, "You better be careful, and don't trust everyone, and don't walk on streets alone, and don't talk to boys, and always stay with a group!!"; and finally, "You are going to have a such a nice time! It's going to be great!" Can I opt for cautious fun? I'll take the first and last and work on a few things in the middle, please. No, no, that completes my order. (:

Just keep breathing, and don't think too much because then you worry too much. (That's not just a note-to-self; it goes for you too, Mom!)

The countdown is over. Thank God!!

Blessings.

Counting down the days

So since I've come home from college, I have been too busy working two full-time jobs, trying to save up for  my trip, that I have sort of completely forgotten that this blog even exists! I guess that's okay though because I don't even have any followers! Yay for selfish writing! Anyways, Italy is so close that I can't even watch an Olive Garden commercial without getting excited. The thought of sitting on a plane for nine hours, however, makes my stomach churn into knots of some combination of excitement and nerves of a varied sort.

Like I said, I've been working as much as possible to save up money for Italy. Nevertheless, it feels as though no matter how much I make, it will never be enough. My budget always looks to low because I look at it, and it is in U.S. dollars. Then, I think about the exchange rate and how it totally gyps me of my hard-earned cash, and I just get so frustrated that I lose nearly an extra forty cents of every dollar. Get this: I went to the bank for Euros to take with me before I leave, and after $30 in fees to get it wired to the bank, and after the awful exchange rate, I paid $230 for 135 euros!! It makes my stomach ill to think about it. Yes, I am a penny-pincher.

My program in Italy has sent all of the final paperwork, and I pretty much have all of those details figured out. I'm glad that I have had so much time to plan this trip and work out the small details because it really has taken a while to get each little thing sorted out. Always, always do things little by little. I've learned that recently because I have a tendency of taking on too much, but I'm learning that if I just take tiny steps, it may take  me longer to get there, but by the time that I am running, my stride is without error. Hopefully.

Anyways, what I was getting at with the paperwork is that there is a ton of it! I had to make copies of everything for myself and for my parents and my school. Most of it is just precautionary which makes me nervous like the people leading this stuff expect something bad to happen. So, just in case, I have a one-inch binder bloated with paperwork that I've collected over the past nine or so months in planning this.

The thought of leaving home both excites me and scares me. I am already exhausted from everything that it takes to get through each day of work (how will I ever survive in the working world after college?!), and I am beyond ready to get away from home for a bit. However, sometimes it hits me just how far I will be going. I've never been away from home for so long or so far away or in a place where I can't even effectively communicate in a language that I am comfortable in. What have I gotten myself into?

Everytime that my mind starts to brew on all of the warnings that my friends and family have been giving me over the past month mostly, as my trip comes closer, I simply remind myself about all of the romanticized aspects of Italy that I will, naturally, love such as the beaches, the food, the scenic views (which my new camera lens will drool over!), the sexy men, the fresh markets, the local cafes, the beautiful language (even if I have no idea what they are saying), and the aspect that time will go quicker than I will it even though the rate has never changed.

When I tell people that I will be spending a month in Italy, they tell me that I will come back a different person, that I will be changed. I'm having a hard time believing them since I seem to shift personalities from the "school me" to the "home me," so maybe the "Italy me" will only stay in Italy even after I have left. But enough of that! I haven't even gotten there yet! Right now, I'm just praying that nothing falls through, and that it will be a safe trip, and that I will have the time of my life while I am there, regardless of what happens when I return.

Blessings.