When in Rome!

Well hello again to all my faithful readers, and welcome to everyone who has just joined me on my abroad experience. As I sit down to write this week on that which has just passed I don’t know where to begin. I guess it should be where I left off and usually start; the beginning of the week. My time in Italy is becoming just another day in the life of a student who happens to be in one of the most amazing places. This week I broke out of my routine of classes, eating, homework and hanging out to experience one of the things Italy is famous for….CHEESE! I along with my three other roommates joined other students for a night of cheese indulgence. It was bellisimo! Apart from Asiago, which I already eat on a regular basis I have a new favorite in Pecorino Fresco. I am told that I can use it to make macaroni and cheese, which I foresee an attempt at in the near future; some things I just can’t leave behind.

This week I also found out that I was chosen to participate in the experiential learning project “la Familia” for one of my classes. Each week I will get to spend a few hours with a family, learning while living like they do. I am very excited and anxious to start! I am also working on my first paper here in Italy….I’m sure some of you might be worried I’m not working hard over here with all my adventures. Don’t worry I am! I do have to say that I miss being able to sit down in a library like at Stonehill and have everything I need or could possibly want at my fingertips. But since that is really my only complaint so far I feel like I can’t really complain.

So that’s the weekly recap…here comes the weekend which was simply beyond words. Friday morning Sam and I headed to Rome! Being in Rome is almost like an out of body experience, and while I say that words can’t even begin to describe I will try my best. Stepping out of the Roma train terminal is like walking out into a living museum. If I could have, I would have taken a picture after every step I took. After meeting up with my friend and fellow Stonehill-er Matt we headed out to some of the major sites. We saw Piazza Navona, Campiodglio and another one I can’t remember the name of. We wandered around inside the Patheonon, threw change into the Trevi Fountain, sat on the Spanish Steps, saw the Forum, Colosseum, and the Arch of Constantine. Needless to say it was a very busy day! Each thing we saw was just as amazing as the one before it.

Saturday Sam and I had two main objectives: shopping (I know I know, every week) and the Catacombs. Well shopping we managed with no problems. We even managed to make some stops back at some of the sites from the day before. The Catacombs were another story…more like an adventure by themselves. Let’s just say after over an hour on the right buss going the wrong way we made it to the bottom of the street we needed. Unfortunately we needed to be 283 numbers down the street. So after we walked, and walked, asked for directions, and walked some more; God’s humor opened the sky above us and the rain fell, we got wet, and then we gave up! I’m starting to think that things like this are just inevitable from time to time. At least I got to see parts of Rome I never had imagined! Our journey brought us back to St. Paul’s Basilica so we decided to check it out as to not make it a totally wasted trip. It definitely made it worth it. The church in a word is stunning, big and beautiful.

Unlike Saturday, Sunday went off without any buss troubles. We lucked out that all of Vatican City is free on the last Sunday of each month which means we saved lots of money on the museums, but the lines were extra long. When we crossed the boarder out of Italy and into the Vatican we headed straight to the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel, and waited in line for forever. It was absolutely worth it. The Vatican Museum is one of the most beautiful and incredible places I have been. By the time you get to the Sistine Chapel and look up it is just overwhelming. I could not even begin to fathom that I was actually there, standing right under one of the most famous ceilings in the world; it did not disappoint. I have no idea how much time we spent looking at the ceiling, and even after we left the awe still lingered. You can’t take pictures inside, and even if I had I’m sure they would not have come close to doing it justice. We headed to St. Peters right after and hardly had to wait in line to get in! It had a lot to measure up to following the Sistine Chapel but it was incredible as well. First off it is HUGE, and it is gorgeous. As with so many things in Rome words can’t begin to describe. The best I can do is to leave you with some pictures.


I’ll leave you with my list of When in Rome:
- Do not get on the right buss going the wrong way, you will get there but it will take a while
- Buy a good map
- Paying for buss tickets is not necessary, getting of the buss when the men in blue get on is.
- Excessive PDA is acceptable for people of all ages; however staring at those engaged in it is not
- Cross the boarder and go to Vatican City
- Eat the Pizza
- Take too many pictures
- Take it all in

David!

Ciao bellas e bellos!

I feel like I write this every time I sit down to write a blog but WOW did this week go by fast. It is nice to have finally settled in and established into some type of regular routine: Class, computer time, back home for a break/nap/lunch, classes, homework, dinner, out to enjoy the evening. Even without readily accessible internet, or television I seem to find plenty to keep myself occupied. Now that classes are in full swing, we finished our first full week of classes Thursday, I have an idea of the work load I have this semester. While it is not as packed as my semesters at Stonehill I know it will keep me busy. While I love traveling on the weekends it is definitely not the most conducive to studying. Although I did manage to get some work done on the trains this weekend…mom and dad are you proud? It is just really nice to have finally settled into my life here in Italy.

I’m sure you are glad I had a great week but I’m thinking I should also share with you my amazing weekend. Any guesses? Well if you were thinking FLORENCE you got it right, and it might also mean we are facebook friends and you read my status Thursday when I left. One thing that is so great about so many study abroad programs is that they give you Fridays off from classes so you have more time to travel. This being the case my roommate Chelsea and I left after classes Thursday and caught a late train into Florence. Lucky for us, my friends Kristen Clark and Kait Mendall are studying in Florence this semester and let us stay on their pull out sofa. I do have to say that their apartment is WAY nicer than mine, it’s right on the Ponte Vecchio! but I’m only slightly bitter ;-) Florence was great but I am glad I live here in Perugia. First of all there are hoards of tourists everywhere! While I realize I myself am a tourist, it is rather annoying when there are millions of people everywhere all the time. Everything is a little more expensive and a little dirtier than here in Perugia. Of course I’m not saying that I had a bad time, it was GREAT! On the Friday morning after we arrived it was raining so we decided to hit the museums. We got up and got inline to see David (Michelangelo’s famous work if anyone is wondering). He is big and beautiful, as is the rest of the Galleria dell’ Academia. We also did a walk-by of Dante’s house and church. We also visited Santa Croce church, it’s beautiful inside and out and holds the tombs of Galileo, Dante, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. We wrapped up out sight seeing for the day at St. Johns Baptistery. When you fist walk in it seems rather plain and simple and then you look up. The ceiling is ABSOLUTELY beautiful. Having a busy morning inside museums and hotels we decided it would be a good idea to take a break and hit the market.
Saturday morning was sunny and beautiful so we decided it was the perfect day to check out the Duomo. Now you can just go in and have a look around, OR you can walk up and down about 500 stairs all the way to the top of the dome. So far I would say this is my favorite thing I have done. The frescos are beautiful beyond words, and the views from the outside the top of the dome are breathtaking. Since we had gotten to the Duomo before it was actually open, we had some free time to just wander the streets of Florence. We saw the Uffizi Gallery, one of the three fake David’s (not nearly as cool) and the Loggia Dei Lanzi (an outdoor sculpture gallery). Once again after a busy morning we headed back to the market, where I spent too much money, but what can you do when you’re in one of the best leather markets in the world? By the end of the day my feet were so sore that we decided to have a nice relaxing evening inside, although we did make our way out to the pub for one birthday drink, HAPPY 20th Kristen! Bulmers Cider Beer is now officially my favorite.

We didn’t have a train till late Sunday so we took advantage of our relatively free day by walking up to Piazzale Michelangelo. It is one of the most popular spots in Florence because of the views. It’s set further outside the main city and sits on top of a hill. You have to make the treck up to see some beautiful scenic views of the whole city. I also really liked being able to see out into the Tuscany countryside away from the hustle and bustle of the city. We ended our sightseeing with a stop at Palazzo Pitti. Inside there are a ton of museums and the Giardino di Boboli (public gardens). Don’t be fooled by the name like we were, the gardens and everything at Palazzo Pitti is kinda expensive so we passed and just enjoyed the architecture. We spent the rest of the day just milling around. There are a lot of cool places, shops, and sites you can find by allowing yourself to just wander. Somewhere in our wanderings we landed up back on the Ponte Vecchio doing a little gold shopping. It’s a world famous spot for quality gold and I have to say someone is getting a very nice Christmas present! This is a picure of me taking a break on the Ponte Vecchio.
By the time we picked up our stuff from my friends apartment we were broke, tired and ready to go home! I’m happy to report that as our train pulled into the Perugia station Sunday night we had successfully made it there and back without getting on a single wrong train!
The weather has finally cooled off and I’m ready to start another week!
Ciao!

We were never off track!

Week two went by almost as fast as the first one. We finished up our week of intensive Italian on Tuesday and started regular classes Wednesday. From the two days of classes I’ve had so far I think I am really going to enjoy this semester. As some of you may know I am a history major and am getting a few of my last requirements out of the way. I know it’s early, but so far I think my class on the Roman Empire will be one of my favorites. For my class on Contemporary Italy we not only get to learn about Italy from unification in the later part of the 1800s, I also have the possibility of getting an Italian family. If I get picked for this alternative track I will be assigned a family that I get to hang out with once a week or so for about 6-8 weeks to really learn about life in Italy today. I think it would be a really neat experience, but I just have to wait and see. I am also really excited about my history of food and culture class…on the first day I already learned that spaghetti, something most consider typically Italian is actually not at all. Noodles originated in China whereas tomatoes are from North America, the Italians just happened to put the two together. The only class I’m nervous about is Archeology, it seems interesting but I still haven’t decided if I like it yet. Most important I can’t wait for all my field trips…those were always my favorite part of classes when I was younger.
Of course I am here to study but everyone knows one of the perks of studying abroad is traveling! In my last post I left you hanging about where I was headed this past weekend so I hope you are excited…..drum roll please! This past Friday I headed to Cinque Terri with four other girls. It is actually made up of five towns that are all connected along the west coast. It is absolutely beautiful but getting there was quite the adventure!! We had originally planned on leaving early Saturday morning but Thursday afternoon we found out there was going to be a train strike in Florence and that no trains would be running though that area Saturday. So after a brief panic we booked an extra night at the hostel we were staying at and jumped on the train after getting our permission to stay documentation Friday morning.
Now I had a whole class on using the trains in Italian so I thought we were all set. Here is Chealsea and i ready to go!

We bought our tickets and got on the train, and then another, and then another, and then the wrong one, and then the wrong one again, and then we got kick off, and then we were on the right one and then got off only to figure out it was the right one as it pulled out the station. Needless to say our supposed 5 hour train ride lasted about 8 but we DID make it! By the time we made it in we were pretty tired so we had a nice bite to eat, walked around a little and headed to bed. It was a good decision to say the least as we were determined to complete the famous 5 hour hike of the five towns Saturday. The hike was long, really long but absolutely worth it! I could not even begin to describe how beautiful the hike is and since a picture is worth a thousand words you can just have a look for yourself. Sorry there is not more, italian internet is rather slow with uploading!Thats just one of the towns and some of the coastline!
You might be able to tell that it was a little rainy when we left at 10:30 but by the time we made it to Monterosso, the last town around 4 the sun was out and we enjoyed some much needed and deserved beach time. The actual sandy part of the beach isn’t very big, and so when the tide came in we enjoyed the rest of the town and a really good dinner. We decided taking the train back to Riomaggiore, where we were staying, was the best idea at only 2 Euro. We also thought that after the day before we had finally figured out the trains, we were wrong! Needless to say we got on a train that flew past our stop, thankfully it did stop in La Speiza which is the town right after the five towns of Cinque Terri. We hopped off there and managed to get on the RIGHT train back to Riomaggiore. We saw that sign so many times it is permanently ingrained in my brain. By the time we made it back to our hostel we showered and went out down to the water for just a little bit. There are not beaches in any of the five towns except Monterosso but there still are beautiful places to sit and just lookout over the Mediterranean. We were gonna go to bed early but when we went back to our little apartment we somehow managed to break the key in the door! Thankfully we were able to reach the owners who landed up having to climb through the window to let us in we all went to sleep! By the time Sunday morning rolled around we were all well rested and ready to head home. I had my 3rd hot chocolate of the weekend…they are incredible, and we spent the rest of the morning down on the water. We did manage to make it all the way home without getting on the wrong train! All in all it was a good week and a great weekend.

Here are some things I learned:
* Ask for a train itinerary…the cities printed on your ticket mean nothing.
* Always bring a raincoat/ jacket….Italian weather is tempermental
* Do not break your room keys in the door, it causes unplanned evening activities
* Italian hot cocoa is heaven in a cup

Hope your week was as great as mine…any guesses where I’m headed next?

Week one and done!

Well my first week in Italy is already over! Some parts of the week flew by while others seemed much longer. I think it will still be a while before I feel completely comfortable here, its hard not to miss everyone back home and wonder what else is going on in the world from which you are currently removed. But on that note I would like to say this week has been pretty awesome! Intensive Italian has been just that INTENSE, and I still have two days left before our regular classes start. I don’t think I have ever been so excited for the start of classes before, but I really am looking forward to all of mine. On the upside I think I am at least starting to pick up on the language. At least now I can order gelato, ask to buy a train ticket, and how much things cost. Understanding what they say back is still a work in progress.

This week I did however; manage to successfully complete my first venture out of Perugia. We got out of class early on Friday so myself and a few of my friends headed to Assisi, which is right across the valley from Perugia. Both towns are built into and up opposing sides of hills and back in the middle ages Perugia and Assisi were constantly at war with one another. (Im not sure why though—my Italian isn’t good enough for me to understand everything there is to read) Anyways it was a great first trip. We made it there and back without any major catastrophes. Although we did almost get on the wrong train and lost a girl to illness and got lost. Don’t worry she is better now! To get to Assisi you take a 30 min train ride to the bottom of Assisi, then you have to take a bus up the hill, or if you’r crazy enough you could walk. We took the buss most of the way up but got off at the Basilica of San Francis. For those of you who don’t know St. Francis is the founding father of a Catholic order called the Franciscans. St. Francis himself was the son of a wealthy textile merchant who gave away all his possessions and to follow his calling. He is one of the most important and well known saints in the Catholic Church and the basilica commemorates a lot of his work. The inside is absolutely beautiful but you can’t take pictures inside but I did take a few good ones outside.

After our stop at the basilica we headed up to the tip top of Assisi where there is the old castle. I do have to admit that we got somewhat lost before finding our way up but the views at the top were defiantly worth it. We spent the rest of the day making our way down toward the buss stop and poking in and out of some of all the other churches.

The castle we hiked all the way up to!

A small chaple off the main piazza

Views from the top of the castle

On the way back down

Although we were exhausted from hiking in Assisi we got up bright and early to head out and explore Perugia. Even though I have already been here a week I felt like there was a lot of the city I hadn’t seen and I was right! Perugia has a mini metro (outdoor elevator on a track is the best way to describe it) that takes you up and down the hills of Perugia. Every Saturday there is a BIG market at the very bottom of Perugia so we checked it out. You can find almost anything you are looking for at the market for a pretty good price. I brought home some great looking vegetables and dried fruit. Once we dropped off our purchases we walked all over the city taking pictures, checking out the shops, little grocery stores and stuff like that. It was a lot of fun and I got a lot of great pictures! We spent the night in true Italian style sitting on the stairs of the main Piazza and people watching. It was a lot of fun and a great way to end our day.

The foutain in the piazza de novembre

View of the Perugia country side

More views

Out by the market

Views off the far wall

Sunday wrapped up the last part of our orientation here in Italy for the semester. We headed out into the countryside to learn more about the people and culture. We got lessons on local Italian agriculure, past making, our program and delicious breakfast and lunch. It has been a busy week but I'm already looking foward to the next...wait till you find out where I'm headed!

First days in Italy!

So I am moved into my apartment! I have finished the first part of orientation, and started my week of intensive Italian! And I just have to say to anyone thinking of being a language major...your brave! I now remember why I was soo excited when I finished my year of language at Stonehill. Four hours of Italian in the morning just makes my head cave in. At least we only have intensive for one week. Then we just have regular one hours class each morning. Ill get back to that in a second.

Anyways here are a few things to cover to catch you up on my Italian adventure. Fist off we moved into our apartments Monday (9/1) and it is great. Take a look around for yourself but I think its pretty cute and cozy. Sam and I are sharing a room and our roommates Chelsea and Lizzy, from Denison University in Ohio, are sharing the other bedroom. We also have a little kitchen, a living room and a bathroom. We don’t have air conditioning but it should be cooling off here soon. On the plus side we do have a washing machine, so at least I wont be hiking up and down the hills to do wash!

Welcome to Via della Cupa 7!

Our little bitty bathroom

Our tiny kitchen that we have yet to cook in

Sam and my room--my bed is in the other corner

View out my window

So I know I mentioned our week of intensive Italian earlier so let me fill you in on that. ITS HARD! But I am learning. During this week of intensive Italian our afternoon session is called “survival Italian.” Each day we have a new topic to help us make our way around. Today’s topic was bars. Now don’t get too excited, here in Italy coffee shops are called bars. Most of them are privately owned so each one is slightly different. So today I learned how to order all different sorts of coffees or caffe, gelato, pastas (pastries) and other things. We also got to try lots of samples!! ;-) YUM! I dont know whats planned for the new few days, we will just have to see.

Yesterday (9/3) the girls from Stonehill went out for a really nice dinner. Here in Italy people don’t typically eat dinner till much later. Appritivios, or what we consider appetizers are usually eaten around 7 and then people will eat sometime around 9. We compromised and ate around 8 to save a little on the pocketbook. The outdoor cafe we picked was delicioso! Here are some picts of us enjoying our relaxing dinner.

Good news too! I have tentatively planned travel for the semester!!! Before I come back to the states I hope to visit lots of spots in Italy, but also Germany, Paris, Barcelona, Ireland, Greece, Switzerland, and wherever else I can fit in! But you will have to check back for more on my travels.

Arrivederci!

Im leaving on a Jet Plane

So im finally here! After flights from Dallas to Chicago, Chicago to Zurich, Zurich to Rome and a couple hour buss ride I am finally in Perugia! And as excited as I am to be here I do have to say it is weird not being back at the hill with everyone. Im sure everyone there is having a great time! My time back home was great but very busy with lots of errands to run but I did manage to see some of my friends who hadn’t left for school yet eat at a lot of my favorite spots. Speaking of which, anytime I’m back home I overload on Mexican food! I love Massachusetts but I don’t love the Mexican food, I just really feel like nothing beats good ol’ Tex-Mex. So on my last day at home mom and I headed to Campo Verde for one last Mexican food fix. Now I have to share that growing up Campo Verde was my favorite restaurant not only because of the most amazing chips and queso you get for free but because it is quite possibly one of the tackiest decorated restaurants you can ever see. They have scrap metal mariachis on the roof of the building and once you get inside it looks like Christmas lights exploded everywhere but the food is YUMMY! So if your ever visiting Arlington Texas its defiantly worth a stop.

Check out the mariachis!!

SOOO good!

Anyways back to Perugia after all I did make it all the way across the ocean…so after arriving at the airport we were met by Umbra staff who made sure we all made it on to the right busses. This first night we are staying at Hotel Gio, tomorrow (Monday) we will move into our apartments in the morning. But tonight after everyone was settled into their rooms we had a nice welcome dinner with everyone participating in the program.
I know I have only been in Italy for a few hours but, as I sit here writing this on my hotel room floor I have already noticed quite a few difference. First well the internet that we are so used to being readily accessible is somewhat of a scavenger hunt to find. It will be an interesting 3 months without daily facebook and email checks (but don’t stop sending me messages, I still love those!) Another difference that is hard to miss is European bathrooms. Sam and I already had an interesting experience trying to figure out how to work the shower. Now I know all showers are slightly different but usually a brain power and you can figure them out. Well let’s just say it took Sam and myself more than a few minutes to figure this one out. On top of that it’s not ever a real shower. It’s basically a showerhead on a hose in a bathtub…hopefully we won’t flood the bathroom to many times this semester.

Sam's and my room at Hotel Gio

So that’s all that for now, time to finish settling and getting ready for the start of orientation tomorrow. I’ll follow up later in the week with new on my apartment, and orientation!