Bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao!

Well, I’ve been in Rome for almost two weeks now, but it feels as though I’ve been living here forever. The city is so beautiful and diverse. I love that there is so much history mixed in with the contemporary, very different from California. Today my roommates and I visited the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, and the Roman Forum. A lot of walking (in the rain no less) but well worth it.

Only 1/3 of the original structure remains but at it's prime it could hold 50,000 people

"Magna Mater"- she brings life and fertility to the Roman people

I would have put up a picture of a Cypress tree but I didn't want to rub salt in your wounds, Dad :P

Apparently Romans don't care too much for this building because it was commissioned by Mussolini :/ 

Yesterday I walked around the corner from our apartment (literally- around the corner) to the Church of Santa Maria in Tastevere. The interior was gorgeous with a huge mosaic scene above the altar. The experience was surprisingly relaxing, a nice change of pace from the hustle and bustle of the city. And to think, this fourth-century church is just around the corner from where I live… kinda crazy.

Last week we visited the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain, cliché tourist spots but impressive none the less!

I absolutely love my roommates, they are all really cool and easy-going. We are going to stay at the apartment in Florence next weekend so that’s our next adventure, and hopefully I’ll be spending my first break next month with Christine in Ireland!

All in all I am really enjoying living in this huge city. There’s always something to do and the walk to school is never boring- ah yes school. Sometimes I forget I’m here for school and not to travel! Right now we have Italian class for three and a half hours every day which is semi-brutal but I feel like I’m learning a lot. 

Also I've been cooking a lot which is kind of a big deal for me, my roommates are teaching me. I made this the other night!

Ciao!

Salute!

It’s my second day in the Eternal City and I already feel a great deal more comfortable in my surroundings than I did as I stepped off the plan yesterday morning. After about eight hours of flight time and a couple of gourmet meals only United knows how to provide, our descent was announced and I experienced my first profound sense of excitement. Before this I was neither sad nor excited to leave but as we touched down just as the sun was rising behind the rolling hills of Italy’s Lazio region, I felt exhilaration.

It took days to collect my bags which, mind you, at about fifty pounds each (both of them), proved extremely difficult to maneuver by myself. Luckily the walk from the baggage claim to the taxi was short, and I found a girl I knew from UCSB to share a taxi with into the city. The taxi driver drove like a maniac and spoke no English but was kind enough to point out all the sights we passed.

Once we arrived at the study center (located in the Piazza dell’Orologio- about two blocks from the Piazza Navona) I learned that this girl and I were also housemates. It was nice to have someone I knew to share the terrible experience of lugging one hundred pounds of clothes up some very steep marble steps into our apartment.

Our three-bedroom dwelling is located in the Transvestare neighborhood, just a block away from the Tiber River and a fifteen-minute walk from school. I absolutely love the neighborhood. There is a grocery store right next door to the building (literally- the next door to the right) and there are several restaurants and “bars” on our block. A bar in Italy of course is not like a bar in the states, it’s more like a café, mostly serving coffee and pastries.

While the apartment is not luxurious in any way it has all the necessary amenities and of course, “location, location, location.” Today we had orientation and on the walk home my housemates and I stumbled upon a much bigger grocery store than the one downstairs. Ergo, I am now enjoying my first home cooked Italian meal: fusilli pasta with pesto sauce.

Stairs of death (scale delle morte)

My street!

Entrance to my school

Bridge over the Tiber

Tomorrow is more orientation and a group photo (shoot me now) but hey, I’m in Rome so I guess I can’t complain…