"O, Valencia!"

I just got home from my first haircut in Europe. I must say that I was scared to death, and so was Pot, especially because of the language barrier. Theresa comforted me when I asked her if she ever got a haircut here, and so did my hairdresser at home, who told me I'll get a "great haircut" over here. Pot and I found a cute little shop down the street from our apartment where the hairdresser spoke some English, so we just went with it! Well.... our heads aren't shaved and we are happy with our cuts :)

On that note (kind of?), apparently our bathtub drain is completely clogged. Our landlord came over today and tried to de-clog it, and he said it is a "humongous problem." So now we sit and wait for the plumber. Yayyy

This past weekend I went to Valencia, Spain, with Pot and Stacey from Thursday through Sunday. We didn't get into Valencia until very late and when we had finally found our hostel, we were so hungry that we ate at the Chinese restaurant across the street from our hostel. Yes, we ate Chinese in Europe, and it was delicious! We spent Friday morning catching up with our sleep from the week and from traveling and then we went to visit the Jardines Real (the Real Gardens). Valencia apparently has a ton of gardens and parks that are absolutely beautiful - our hostel was in a great location with surrounding parks, so we were happy about that. The gardens have lots of palm trees and fountains in them (to the right), and a lot of people were walking through them no matter what time of day it was. After coming from rainy and cold weather in Firenze, we were soooo happy to be in 60-degree weather, so we just sat in the gardens and soaked up as much sun as we could for the afternoon! Our first Spanish meal consisted of Spanish ham and cheese on bread, which is their most common meal it seemed. Nevertheless, it was delicious! I have never been one to like ham, but I really enjoyed it in Valencia. We also visited la playa (the beach) - Valencia is a very tropical city since it is on the Mediterranean, and it obviously attracts a lot of tourists in the summer time. To the left is a picture of Pot, Stachay and me in front of the beach. It was empty on the beach since it was a Friday afternoon, but when we went back on Sunday, it was extremely crowded! There were a lot of families playing games and relaxing on the beach together, which must be really nice. I wish family time was that easy in the U.S.!

We also got to see the bull-fighting arena from the outside, which looked exactly like the Colisseum in Roma. Katie told us that we absolutely must try Valencia's famous drink, Agua de Valencia, while we were there, so we went to a tropical bar on Friday night and had it. Her warning was correct: it is delicious and very strong! Enough said. Unfortunately we didn't get to see Katie because she resides in Toledo and couldn't get there for the weekend, but we are hoping to see her when she comes to Italy for her spring break in April. Our dinner that night consisted of ham and cheese crepes, which is pretty much the only thing every restaurant had to offer us. It was still delicious, and we followed it with a chocolate crepe that was even better! To the right is me with my first glass of Sangria wine, which is also famous in Spain. I didn't like it too much!

On Saturday, we visited Cathedral of Valencia (not sure of the name) and climbed the tower to see a 360-degree view of the city. It was very pretty, but nothing compared to the view of Firenze from the Duomo! It was very refreshing to hear Spanish - the language that I have been accustomed to learning the past 13 years - but I was getting so confused between my Italian and Spanish! However, I was still able to communicate for the most part with the Spanish and was proud of myself for remembering all of it. I've realized that I really enjoy learning languages and kind of wish I had minored in one or two. It comes pretty easily to me, and I like to practice communicating with the natives whenever and wherever I am. Below is a picture of a fountain in the middle of the city during the parades.

For the rest of the afternoon on Saturday, the three of us took a siesta like the rest of the town and woke up for another fun night out in the piazza. We tried a restaurant near the Piazza de Reina so that we could try some paella. We ordered paella veguras - vegetable paella, which is just a bunch of cooked rice and vegetables together. It was pretty good, but if I was studying abroad in Spain, I would never be able to live off of that for a semester! At least I tried it, which is what this trip is all about - stepping out of our comfort zones and immersing ourselves into the native cultures. I also tried a tuna sandwich, which I loved the most out of anything I tried in Spain! I can't wait to eat more tuna sandwiches at home now!

We returned to Firenze very late Sunday night (more like Monday morning) and went straight to bed. During my walk to class on Monday, I noticed that this city is getting SO touristy already! It's barely even mid-tourist season and I already can't stand the tourists. I know that I am somewhat a tourist myself, but I can definitely see why the natives get so annoyed with us. I can barely walk through the market to get to my class in time! I better get used to it.

We went to Mass last night for Ash Wednesday, and before we walked in, I asked Pot why we haven't seen any Italians with ashes on their foreheads all day. Considering this is a Catholic country, I thought it was so strange to not see the ash crosses on peoples' foreheads. I found out the answer when I got my ash - they literally throw the ash (what looks like dust) in your hair - ha!

While I've been here and made Italian friends, I have realized a lot about international countries' dependence on our own country, the U.S. I feel ignorant and kind of dumb for not realizing how dependent every country in this world is on America. I mean, I knew that America is the country that no one wants to leave and everyone wants to come to and that it has much influence on the rest of the world, but I never knew how much the citizens of each country truly cared about the influence our country makes on them. The U.S. political system is like the most important thing to them and they act like it determines their future. The other day, Pot was talking to Luca and Ana (the leather store owners) and Ana interrupted the conversation and yelled, "I have to go to the George Bush!" Luca told Pot that that means she had to go to the bathroom (hahaha). He told her that they say that everywhere in Europe because they all hate George Bush because when he took presidency the economy went down. It's hilarious that they say that, but at the same time makes me realize how important our country is to everyone else in this world. We are so lucky to be citizens in such a strong and influential country.

This week I have been reflecting a lot on my past (almost) two months abroad in Europe. Like I said earlier, this trip for me was about stepping out of my comfort zone and immersing myself into the culture. I can't even begin to explain how much I have stepped out of my comfort zones. First of all, coming here and being away from Mom and Dad for this long is a huge and personal step for me. Additionally, I have learned to be a citizen of another culture and to fit in. I have become accustomed to the culture, customs and ways of life (and trying LOTS of new foods!) here in Italy and I know that this will benefit me for the rest of my life. I have learned more than I could ever learn in a classroom and what is most important to me is that I have learned that I can step out of my comfort zone and take risks. In addition, I have become way more independent than I have ever been. Being an ocean away from my parents, family, boyfriend and closest friends, I have had to force myself to be more independent (though I already am) and know that I can do things myself and without asking for help. I haven't experienced culture shock yet (knock on wood) and I attribute that to my previous travels that I am fortunate for having and for being interested and open minded about everything - that is one thing I promised myself I would do: come here with an open mind. I can't explain it well - I just feel a million times smarter just by experiencing life in this amazing place and I will forever be fortunate for this opportunity and the things I am learning. I miss my family, especially Izzie, Katey and Ellie, and friends and Mark, but I wouldn't ever trade anything for this opportunity.

Well, tomorrow is the day! Mark arrives in Italy tomorrow morning and I am so excited to bring him around Italy and share this place with him! Now I have to clean.......

Florence, I love you!

Right now I am sitting in my warm bed in my apartment in Florence and couldn't be happier. I have realized, upon returning from Venice about an hour ago, that I am attached to Florence and absolutely love it. Like I said previously, I think that I actually feel like a resident in this city and I feel totally, 100 percent comfortable in it, now that I know my way around, know how to deal with the rude Italians, know how to bargain with the market vendors, know where to grocery shop, know where to get the cheapest meals, etc. We went to Venice extremely early on Saturday morning with the LdM program and just returned today. Venice is absolutely beautiful and I loved it, but there's something about Florence that we just love and always want to come home to!

We started the Venetto trip at 4:45 a.m. on Saturday because we had to meet at the LdM program bus. We chose this trip as one of our included excursions with LdM because it is Carnivale weekend, which I will explain later. There were about 50 students on the trip, and only about eight of us were from the UNC program. It was a fun and good group of us together though. We rode a double decker bus, which was so cool! Europeans are so freaking economical, though sometimes it can be annoying - like when you have to pay five cents for a grocery bag (or 20 cents for a packet of ketchup for that matter), or when you have to use your hotel key to actually turn the lights on (and keep them on) in the room. So basically, Patee, Marielle and I got a total of two hours of sleep and then slept on the four-hour bus ride to Venice. As soon as we got there, the bus took us to the ferry dock, where we took a ferry to the island of Burano, which is famous for its lace. First of all, I had no idea that Venice was part of the province Venetto, which is comprised of little islands. These little islands are the only islands in the world that do not have cars - I can't imagine living without car or motorcycle transportation, though it makes so much sense here. It is such a different world. Burano is one of the islands, and we also visited Murano. Murano is the site of the glass factory, which we got a tour of. This was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip because we got to witness the man actually make a vase and horse. It blew me away at the skill you need to do this - basically you take a little patch of sand that comes from Spain and they twist it around on a stick and put it in a really hot oven. They use the stick to blow into the glass at the other end of the stick when it comes out of the oven, so that they can shape/form it however they want to. The amount of detail they can put into it absolutely amazes me. Grandma also told me that I had to buy a piece of glass from Venice, so I already knew I wanted to buy a little something ... but watching the glass-making demonstration made me want to buy absolutely everything in there! After the demonstration, we took a tour of the store, which is really neat because they don't have prices listed on most of the items because they are meant to be bargained for. They were being really easy on us because we were students and had a really big group there. I bought a few presents for people at home, and I bought something for our apartment next year and am really excited about it! Above is a picture of Shannon, Samantha, Renee, Niema, Rebekka, me, Pot and Marielle on a bridge in Murano.

After the islands of Burano and Murano, the ferry took us to Venice. It was insane because it was so crowded because of the start of Carnivale. Carnivale is a celebration similar to that of Mardi Gras in New Orleans. It starts about two weeks before Ash Wednesday, and it ends on Shrove Tuesday (Fat Tuesday). It is literally a ten-day celebration where Italians just walk around the city of Venice in costumes and masks. The most popular and traditional costumes are Medieval ones, while younger children dress as princesses, Mickey/Minnie Mouse, Disney characters, etc. Some adults had some crazy costumes, but there were also some amazing Medievil costumes that probably cost more than a thousand dollars. Pretty much everyone is decked out in painted masks with feathers and other jewels on them, and we felt left out so of course we all bought one. The ones we bought are at least authentic, handmade and painted in Italy, so we feel good about our cultural purchase. The celebration takes place in San Marco Square, which is the site of a lot of filmed movies. It was absolutely crazy because we could barely move and we could barely walk around without losing each other. Our guide who took us on the trip tried to give us a walking tour in the group of 50, but that was pretty crazy of him to think we could work that out. We all got separated and our UNC group walked around together to the Rialto Bridge, which is more than 500 years old. It is beautiful and has the most beautiful view from the top where you can see gondolas and boats and other city-happenings on the main canal (much like a main street). We continued to walk around together and people watch until we got so exhausted that we had to sit down on a dock before our ferry left the island - it was such a long day!

The one thing we didn't like about going on this excursion is that the hotel they booked for us was not on the island of Venice. Instead, it was about a 40-minute ferry ride away from Venice on the main peninsula. This was unfortunate because we weren't able to independently go out at night and there wasn't anything worthy of seeing or doing on the peninsula we were on. We had dinner at supposedly the most famous restaurant in the Venetto, where the meals were already fixed and planned out for us. I will say that it was an extremely cultural Italian meal, but I will also say that my immature taste buds were not very thrilled about it all! The first course was purple lettuce (which looked like squid), a cheese/mushroom biscuit and bread. The second course was cheese/mushroom lasagna, with gnotti and duck sauce. The third course was beef, potatoes (french fries) and corn, while the final course was tiramisu and strawberries and cream. Though these are not my ideal options (except for the tiramisu and strawberries, which I could eat everyday of my life), I tried every little thing on my plate and was already really hungry so I ate a lot of it (yes, Mom - I ate mushrooms, but I will not eat them again!). Like I've said before, Theresa made a really good point to me when she told me to not hold back on trying anything while I am here!

Our meal ended around midnight and we were sooo exhausted. We all pretty much passed out on the bus back to our hotel. Patee and I got home to a wonderful surprise - we opened our suitcase and found that the box of red wine we had brought with us had bursted all over our clothes. No worries though, we got it all out of our clothes after handwashing them! I can say I have not had much luck with red wine the past three days because on Thursday night I spilled it all over my computer. Fortunately (or unfortunately - however you want to look at it), Marielle has had this experience three times in the past two years, so she knew exactly what to do so that my computer wouldn't be fried. So no worries, my computer is still alive and well as if nothing ever happened to it. Yes Daddy, I can hear you screaming at me from here.

This morning we woke up bright and early to catch the bus back to Venice with the group. We were soooooo exhausted from the traveling and not looking forward to walking around the island that was supposed to be five-times more populated than yesterday. Today was the official beginning of Carnivale, which meant that absolutely everyone was going to be there and there were events scheduled, such as people flying over the city, beauty pageants, parades, etc. Patee, Samantha, Rebekka and I went on our own instead of with our tourguide and group because we felt like we would've gotten more out of the day by independently traveling through the city. We are so glad we chose to do this because we got to do so much more than if we were traveling with the group. We figured out by the end of this trip that traveling independently is soooo much better and easier than traveling with groups. We walked around the island and got to see San Marco Square and Basilica without the huge crowd in front of it! It was so weird seeing it empty because it was so early in the morning and people weren't out for the Carnivale celebrations yet. We then headed to Rialto Bridge to see the view agian and to visit a few stores, and then we four compulsively decided to ride a gondola, which was way cheaper than we thought it would be. It was only 20 euro per person, and we got to ride it while it was still peaceful and quiet around the island. It also included our own personal tourguide, who gave us information on surrounding buildings and sites - for instance, we saw the original house of Marco Polo, which is now a hotel. I can't wait to go back with Mom and Dad and ride a gondola with them - it is so relaxing, and something you HAVE to do while in Venice. We felt so satisfied after we rode the gondola because we felt like we had done everything we should have and needed to do while in Venice. The picture to the right is of Pot and me on the gondola, and Samantha and Rebekka were in front of us. We visited a shop on the top of Rialto Bridge, where I found an antique ring that looked so familiar to me. The ring is an antique-looking one, and is known as the Victorian lady with rose cameo. The shopkeeper explained to us that cameo is an original type of Venetian jewelry. The Victorian lady pictured on it in front of the rose background has something to do with a princess. I then realized that Grandma had it as a ring or necklace (can't remember) and that is why it was familiar to me. Of course, that tempted me to buy it even more. Dad, you can blame Grandma for all of my purchases! How could I resist? Patee bought one too!

After traveling around the island for a couple of hours, the four of us decided that we were so exhausted and it was way too cold, so we took the train back to Florence instead of waiting for the group to take the bus back. Rebekka was sick anyways, and it was extremely cold outside - felt like snow! Since Venice is more north and closer to the Alps (which we saw on the boat rides - the snowcapped Alps!), it is way colder there. However, I am sooooo thrilled to be going back with Mom and Dad in April when it is warmer out. It is going to be absolutely more gorgeous and they are going to fall in love with it. Venice overall is good enough for a day trip, even if you want to take a ferry to the other islands like Murano/Burano. I am glad that I got to experience the Carnivale, and I will be glad to go back and see it when it is not so crowded and cold!

As I was drying dishes in the sink today, I was thinking that the Europeans seem to thrive on a lifestyle of "if it ain't broke, why fix it?". I was only thinking about this because we have no dishwashers, no dryers, no microwaves, no air conditioning, etc., and we are still living happily and easily. It also goes along the lines of living so economically, which I noted earlier. It just goes, again, to show how spoiled we are in America and how uptight we are. We are ALWAYS on the go and never sit down to relax and enjoy life, which is such a shame. My Italian teacher said to our class one day that she wishes we weren't always looking for something to do and she's noticed, after teaching Americans for so long, that we never want to sit down and relax. She's right. I have to admit that I am that type of person - just like my Dad and Grandma. I ALWAYS have to have something planned or something to do, and if I don't, I go crazy. However, I've noticed that after being here for a month I am not as antsy like that. Maybe I'm just living according to the Italian lifestyle and learning to relax and enjoy life, which I really needed to learn how to do anyways. I have never been so relaxed before in my life - I can see why Americans want to move to Europe and live there for the rest of their lives. Mark told me that he wanted my New Year's resolution to be not to say the word 'stress' because it just makes me more stressed out. He's right, and I am finally learning how to sit down with nothing to do and be happy about it. Maybe Daddy should live here for a couple of months?! :) Speaking of being just like Daddy, I have been getting more comments than EVER about how I always look so serious and never smile. Even the Italians ask me why I look so serious and sad all the time - but I never am sad while I'm here! And I really am not being as serious as it looks - it is just my normal facial expression, just like Dad. I find that a lot of the Italians always walk around looking angry at the world, but they really aren't ... maybe it's an Italian thing?

Yesterday was Valentine's Day, which, to our surprise, is also celebrated in Italy! I was lonely without my Valentine though :(. Mark and I are in the process of planning a short trip to Geneva, Switzerland, when he is here in less than two weeks. We are excited to go there and explore Italy together!

Tomorrow begins our third week of classes (I can't believe we've been here for a month already! 1/4 of our semester is already finished :( ). I am still amazed at how laid back the classes and teaching system are here. We never get any homework and it is just always "suggested" that we read from our books to be prepared for class. They are the most interesting classes I have ever taken and will never get the opportunity to take again. For one thing, I am learning how to speak a totally new language that I have never spoken before. For another thing, I am learning the history, philosophy and literature of the city I am living in because a lot of those subjects originated here. I never knew that I was living in a city that is home to the original and classical philosophers, poets and writers. Tomorrow we are taking a tour of the Santa Croce Church with my history class. I am thrilled because it sits right down the street from our apartment and we never knew the significance of it. It is the largest Franciscan church in the world with 16 chapels and founded by St. Francis himself. It is also the burial place of some of the most illustrious Italians, like Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, Rossini and Marconi, which is why it is also known as the Pantheon of the Italian Glories. I told Patee that this is probably the only time in our lives that we will love Mondays because we only have one class and it is a really enjoyable class. Overall, our instructors are EXTREMELY good at what they do. I have a feeling my history and philosophy teacher will go down in my books as one of the best teachers I have had in college. However, I am learning so much more - just by living here - than I could ever learn in the classroom and I am still so fortunate for the experience. I will never stop thanking Daddy and Mommy for this opportunity and I am going to be sure that Ryan takes advantage of this opportunity in his future collegiate years.

Next weekend we are going to Valencia, Spain, which is supposed to be really fun because it is going to be warm!!! Valencia is on the coast of Spain and Katie said it is absolutely beautiful and lots of fun. ... until then, Ciao!!!

When in Rome...

I can finally say that I have cooked my own authentic Italian dish! Marielle, Patee and I have decided that since food is so expensive, we are going to assign each other one night per week to cook a meal for the three of us. Not only will it save us some money, but it will also make Patee and I learn how to cook! I looked up recipes on a Web site and found a baked pasta with three-cheese sauce and grilled chicken - and I successfully made it tonight, though it did take about three hours for me to figure it out - oh well, you gota start somewhere! And it was delicious, if I must say so myself. :) The food here is soooo expensive, which really sucks. It is almost impossible to find a lunch meal for less than 10 euro - even the jars of peanut butter at the grocery store (which are half the size of the ones at home) are 6 euro!!! It is ridiculous. I figure that the lunches are as expensive as dinners because Italians eat their BIG meals in the afternoons. We still are getting used to this, but I don't know if we ever will! Unfortunately we are eating our weight - it is so hard to eat healthily!

Last Thursday, Patee, Marielle, Stacey, Rebekka, Samantha, Shannon and I all took the train to Rome together. It was a long four-hour train ride, but we brought our 68-cent boxed wine, which made it go by faster. Yes, there is 68-cent boxed wine here, as there are also wine juice boxes. It's amazing and almost impossible to not drink a glass of wine every day because it comes with any meal you order ... and it's not uncommon to see someone drinking a glass of wine with their croissant at the bakery in the morning. Gross - they mind as well substitute wine for milk in cereal.

When we arrived to Rome, we found our hotel, which was called Papa Germano, and right near the train station, which was extremely convenient. I didn't necessarily like our location in Rome in general because it was pretty far from the nightlife and from Vatican City. The seven of us went to dinner, where we tried the supposedly famous Roman dish of spaghetti all'amatriciana - a spicy thin tomato sauce with chili peppers and bacon. It was delicious, and recommended in my guide book. Speaking of the guide book, I don't know where we would be without the guide book Caroline got for me - we'd probably still be trying to find our way to our apartments. It is seriously our Bible while we're in Europe.

On Friday, Patee and Marielle accompanied me on the train to Formia, which is where Grandma and Grandpa's families are from. I am so lucky that I have two best friends who would do such a thing for me because they realized how important it was to me. Even though we had no idea what to do there and where to go, we had a blast. Formia is absolutely gorgeous and is pretty much just a small, modern city of beaches. The three of us had to ask a lady who was walking her dog where we should go and she pointed us to the main street, where we found the fisheries. Supposedly Great Grandpa used to be a fisherman on this fishery, which is so amazing to me that I got to see it. People looked at us so weird because Formia usually only receives tourists during the summertime, since it is a beach city. It was refreshing to hear the Italians speak only Italian to us because sometimes they will speak English to us, even when we are trying to speak Italian to them. It is frustrating for us because we really want to learn the language and practice in normal conversations in our daily lives, but the Italians seem so impatient with us! Anyways, the three of us pretty much sat on the rocks of the fishery, took pictures and just talked. It was so nice to relax by the sea, which was pretty clear, and to bond with Marielle and Patee even more. It meant so much to me to be able to see the city where my ancestors lived and worked, and it meant so much to me that Patee and Marielle would do whatever it took to get us there. It was a good way to reflect and think about my ancestors and remember Grandpa, who I really miss so much, especially being here. I want to take Mom and Dad back there and look for the cemeteries where our ancestors are buried. I did find two cemeteries on a map, but we didn't have the time to go searching in them. We also walked around the main street to look for some lunch or a wine bar, and of course every single shop and restaurant were closed for siesta time! It's even worse than Florence's siestas because literally every single restaurant and shop were closed in Formia. It's so inconvenient, but part of the Italians' culture and laid-backness. Below is a picture of me in front of the sea in Formia.

When we returned to Rome from Formia, we decided to go with the flow that we had been on all day, and just fly by the seat of our pants. So, we went to an "enotecha," which is a wine bar. Wine bars are on every corner of the street, and we hadn't been to one yet. We were the only ones in there and ended up having three glasses of wine each. The server, we later figured out, is a famous Italian actor and musician. His name was Leonardo and he showed us pictures of him at Grammys and other award ceremonies, and he played music for us. He also fell in love with Marielle (ha), and gave us free desserts to take home. He asked us if we liked Obama, and we gave him our answers, and he told us that he hated Obama! He is the first person we have met in Europe to not like Obama. It was very interesting to hear this, and actually pretty refreshing!

That night, the seven of us went to eat at Miscellanea, which is also recommended in my guide book. It was delicious, and its wallls were covered with lists of universities that had been to that restaurant before - and NC State was on there! Marielle and I were so proud!

On Saturday, five of us met up with the tour guide we had hired and we visited the Vatican Museums. I had no idea that the Vatican was a museum filled with art. After 11 years of Catholic school, I thought I would've known that by now, but I was comforted by the fact that no one else I was with knew it was a museum either. We all thought that it was a place for the Pope and Cardinals to do work and live and stuff. Anyways, we walked through a few hallways of art and through the Sistine Chapel. The Sistine Chapel was extremely beautiful and impressive and is the site of where the papal elections take place, which I did not know. I took a lot of pictures, even though we weren't supposed to (oops!), and our tour guide yelled at me, but oh well - when else will I ever be back there? She gets to go there all the time, and everyone else in there was taking pictures. :)

After the Vatican, we went to St. Peter's Basilica. It was a beautiful Church, but I personally thought that there was nothing impressive about it compared to all of the other basilicas we have seen. I guess I'm just now getting used to these humongous and beautifully-built churches. We saw St. Peter's Tomb, and the Pope's altar, where he says Mass. We also were able to see La Pieta - the sculpture by Michelangelo of Mary holding Jesus after he died. It was sooo beautiful and probably my favorite part of the Vatican and St. Peter's. Our tour guide told us that Michelangelo depicted Mary as very young in this sculpture, and no one really knows why. I would've never noticed that if she hadn't told us that. She also told us that a few years ago a crazy man ran up to the sculpture with a hammer at Mary's head. Now there is a huge glass case surrounding it. Why are people so crazy?

We walked through St. Peter's Square, which is where the Pope speaks to audiences and holds Masses. I loved it there! I also bought Grandma a BEAUTIFUL rosary from there and think she will really like it, especially knowing it came from the Vatican. To the left is a picture of Shannon, Samantha, Pot, me, Stachay, Rebekka and Marielle in St. Peter's Square.

Later on, Patee, Marielle and I went to the Catacombs, which was so cool! Since burial inside the city walls was forbidden during ancient times, Christians dug maze-like catacombs where they buried their beloved ones. I learned that this was an alternative solution to the pricey land. Anyways, it was literally like a cave inside of there and I was really impressed with it. It was my favorite part of the day, and probably the entire trip.

On our way home from the Catacombs, the three of us got on the wrong bus (oops!), which led us to the where the busses stay overnight. Luckily, there was a bus stop for us to get on the right bus, which took an additional 30 minutes, while it was also dark outside. About 15 minutes into the ride, Patee looked at me and told me that there was a man about to board the bus who looked like trouble. Well, the second he boarded I could smell the liquor and alcohol. He walked up and down the aisles, yelling in Italian and literally popping his eye balls out of his head at people (LITERALLY!!!). It scared the hell out of the three of us. The bus driver told him he had to get off the bus because he obviously very drunk and on a million different drugs. He refused to sit and kept yelling in Italian, until a man went up to him and talked some sense into him so he would sit down. Two minutes later, he walked around again, making people move away from him, including Patee and me. He started talking to the bus driver, who was yelling at him to sit down, and then the crazy guy started talking about Obama. This really scared the three of us because we thought he was targeting us as Americans and was going to do something crazy. He made eye contact with me and started yelling and popping his eyeballs out of his head in my face, and the bus driver stopped randomly and made him get off. It was the scariest thing ever, and Marielle and Patee were crying by the end of it. A nice little Italian lady came to comfort us, which was so sweet of her. It made us startled the rest of the night - we went to McDonald's and wondered what in the world drives people to that point. Yes, we went to McDonald's in Italy. They have cheeseburgers for only one euro!

On Saturday night, we girls went out together and met up with the other people from our program who were in Rome for the weekend too. We had such a fun last night in Rome, even though Marielle fell on the cobble streets and ripped a hole in her jeans, hahaah.

On Sunday morning, we went to see the Ancient City, which included the Colosseum. We hired a tour guide for only 8 euro, which was so worth it beacuse we also got entrance to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. The Colosseum was awesome - I found it most interesting to see what was below the floor - it was a bunch of stones and grass, which is where the they stored the animals before going onto the stage. The stones actually used to be elevators, which carried the animals up to the state in seven minutes! The Palatine Hill was kind of boring to me, but it was also really neat to know that I was standing on the ruins of a palace. It amazes me that some of this stuff is still here today. After that, we saw the Roman Forum, and we also found a little public garden with orange trees! Marielle and I picked some oranges and tried them, but they definitely were not ripe then, which was disappointing. We had to spit them out because they were so sour! Later on, the three of us went to the Spanish Steps and Trivi Fountain. I LOVED the Trivi Fountain - it reminded me of the Lizzie Mcguire movie when she was in Italy. I thought it was so beautiful and the detail of it was amazing! The picture below is of Marielle, me, Rebekka and Pot in Palatine Hill.

Overall, I had higher expectations for Rome and was not as impressed as I thought I would be. Art is really boring to me, and I try very hard to appreciate it and understand it, but I have no appreciation for it. I feel like a lot of the sights we saw had a lot to do with art, which may be why I wasn't impressed. I also felt extremely uncomfortable and unsafe in Rome. There were signs everywhere that warned us of gypsies and pick-pocketers, so we knew we had to be extra careful, but there is something about Rome that made me uncomfortable. I was really excited to get back home to Florence - I think I finally just feel like a resident now and like a part of the city and culture. Our apartment has gotten so cozy and a home to us and we absolutely love it. So anyways, it was very refreshing to get back to Florence. We are going to Venice this weekend with the LdM program for the Carnivale, which is a big Catholic celebration like Mardis Gras. We are going on Saturday and Sunday, so we have Friday to catch up on sleep and relax after this week (we have to meet at 4 a.m. for the bus to Venice on Saturday!). We are buying masks for the Carnivale at the dollar store so we can fit in with everyone else - it is also supposed to snow in Florence AND Venice this weekend! Exciting (I think)! Stacey's and Sam's birthdays are on Thursday, so we are going back to Dante's for dinner and then we are celebrating their birthdays the rest of the night. We are going to Valencia, Spain, the next weekend, where we will hopefully get to visit with Katie. She told me that it is absolutely beautiful and it's on the Mediterranean, so we will probably be warm and get a tan. I am so excited!

I have my wine tasting class tomorrow again! It was so much fun last week - we have FIVE glasses of wine in every single class! It is all so neat, but so hard! We learned a lot about the ages of wines and what is better - for red wine, it is better to have it aged. If you lean your glass towards a white background and it is dark, ruby red in the nail of it than it is not aged enough and therefore not as good. If it has an orange tint to it, than it is a good glass of aged wine. Interesting, huh?

I really miss Mark a lot and wish he could be here. Only 16 days until he is here to experience this amazing city with me! And soon after Mom and Dad will be here with me also! I have so much to look forward to and am so thankful for this opportunity.

Ciao!

First Week of Classes

It's been awhile since I have updated, but it has been a busy past week because the sun actually came out all last week and we had lots of touring to do!

This week has been our first week of real classes. After our intensive Italian crash-course, which I thoroughly enjoyed and received an A in, I began my core and elective classes on Monday. I am taking Italian Renaissance, Civilization and Culture, Italian Literature, Italian Philosophy, Italian and Wine Tasting! So far, I have really enjoyed my classes, and thoroughly enjoy how the subjects of the classes revolve around Florence. It is really neat to learn about the Church that has been sitting right down my street, and all of the cultural and historical aspects of where I am living. We also get to take a lot of tours of the Churches and Museums with our classes, which will be worthwhile because we have our own tourguide AND our teachers there with us. I haven't started Wine Tasting yet, though I will in just a few short hours. My friend who had her class yesterday said that we have five glasses of wine per day - woahh!! I am excited to come home and share a wealth of knowledge on wine with friends and family!

Last Monday we toured the Duomo (Santa Maria del Fiore- the main Church in Florence) inside and we climbed it. It was 463 steps each way! It was a bit hard climbing and descending with my boot on, but I wasn't going to let that get in my way of seeing a breathtaking view of this city. It was absolutely amazing to be up there! I told Mom that she may have skipped out on climbing the Eiffel Tower, but there is no way I am letting her skip out on this (so get ready!). We were able to see absolutely everything in Florence, including our street, the market, Santa Croce - everything! I could've sat up there for hours. We had a ton of fun fooling around up there and taking pictures - we were just so excited that the sun was actually out and we could do something!
To the left is Stachay, Pot, me, Marielle and Rebekka on top of the Duomo.

On Wednesday, the boys made our apartment dinner (we are doing this tradition each week and trading off who has to cook). Mom, Dad and Grandma would never believe it - but I tried eggplant for the first time! Niema cooked eggplant and chicken parmesan, and it was delicious. After all the years that I have refused to eat it when Grandma put it under my nose, I finally tried it, and she'd be happy to hear that I enjoyed it. Theresa gave me lots of advice about when I come study here, but the one thing I really, really am happy she suggested is that I should try everything that is in front of me while I am here - when else will I be in Italy and have the chance to eat authentic eggplant parmesan?

After out Italian exams on Friday, Patee, Marielle, Rebekka, Stacey and I headed for the train station, where we took the train to Perugia, Umbria, which borders Tuscany. It was about a two-hour train ride, and kind of a random place we decided to go to. Stacey and I had read about it in our guide books, and it sounded like a lot of fun because of the student life and population there. It is such a beautiful town! It is so hilly and SO quiet compared to Firenze. I LOVED it - it is by far my favorite place we have been so far. We stayed in a hostel/hotel that was recommended in our book, called Hotel Umbria. It was a GREAT location! We were right in the middle of EVERYTHING. When we got there on Friday evening, we walked down the street and headed towards the sights we wanted to see. We especially wanted to see the Piazza IV Novembre (picture below), which is the social center of Perugian life. Conveniently, our hotel was right outside of it! Piazza IV Novembre is where lively locals, students, residents and tourists hang out at night and drink on the steps after hitting the bars - it is surrounded by several bars

. The Duomo of Perugia is the background of Piazza IV Novembre, which is known as Cattedrale Di San Lorenzo. I found it strange that locals sat on the steps of the Duomo to drink and socialize - in such a religious country, I assumed that would be offensive. We also saw the Fontana Maggiore, which is the big fountain of Perugia and sits in the center of the Piazza IV Novembre. It is really a beautiful setting. It was dark out, but we went back in the morning to take pictures. After the Piazza IV Novembre, we went down Via Rocchi, which is the city's oldest street and a former aqueduct. We walked under the Arco di Etrusco on that street, which is a perfectly preserved Roman arch built on Etruscan pedestals. It didn't seem like too old of a street; I thought they all looked the same. We then went to Via Dei Prioi, which was once one of medieval Perugia's goriest streets - the spikes on the lower walls of the street were once used to impale the rotting heads of executed criminals! We found several spikes and weren't sure which were the right ones, but how gross! I can't believe that those are still there! At the end of the spikes is the Chiesa di San Filippo Nero, which contains Santa Maria di Vallicella's heart at the right of the altar. We looked around that Church for awhile and found the heart, but Mass was beginning - Mass in Latin! - and we had to leave. There was a statue of St. Anthony (patron saint of lost and found) in one of the Chapels with candles underneath it, and I lit another candle for Grandpa there since St. Anthony was his saint. I find statues of St. Anthony everywhere here and think of him whenever I see one. Grandma once told me that Grandpa "needed St. Anthony because he lost everything!" Hahah... After we finished our touring in the quaint, calm, small city, we went back to the hotel to get ready for dinner at a restaurant that was recommended in our guide books. It was called Quil Ch'Se Magna st' Inverna. We wanted to go there because of the recommendation, which said we could have a five-course meal for only 14 euro there! Ever since we have been in Italy, we hadn't had an authentic Italian/Grandma meal that gave us five thousand courses. We got there and we had the most amazing dinner ever since we've been here! The first course was bruschetta and soup, called Quadrucci 'n chi ceci. It was delicious! The bruschetta came in all different kinds, including funghi (mushrooms). I tried mushrooms, and so did Patee! I had a few glasses of wine in me, so I may have to try it again.... The soup had a mixture of things in it, including chick peas. The second course was Ciccia 'mpanata - pasta, which was also delicious. The third course was salad and chicken, and the fourth course was some kind of "dolci," which tasted a little bit like tiramisu. They also gave us a liquor shot after dessert, which was kind of like lemoncello - used to cleanse our pallates after eating. We got all of this, and three bottles of wine for only 15 euro each! Amazing!

When we were walking out of the restaurant, we met a girl from the U.S., who works as a study abroad advisor at the University of Umbria. She was sitting with several other girls of all different origin, including from Austria. She invited us to come with them to the popular bars, and we had so much fun with them! We even went to Piazza IV Novembre just so we could take a picture on the popular steps that everyone HAS to sit on on the weekends. We had a great night, even though Marielle lost her iPhone and her Coach leather gloves!

The next morning in Perugia, we went to the Tempio di Sant'Angelo, which is a fifth0century circular church constructed with stone and wood taken from ancient pagan buildings. It was so cute! Right next to that was the Porta Sant'Angelo, which is an arch and tower for visitors to climb up. We climbed up it and found another beautiful view of the city. We then walked into a cute little shop just so Marielle could call the bar asking for her gloves, and turns out the shop was a famous store featured in National Geographic! It was so cute! It had homemade jelly, bread, dips, marmelade and wine! The elderly man who owns the store was helping us, and gave us samples of everything. Since Perugia is famous for its chocolate (which we saw none of up until now... and was one of the reasons we went there!), we bought some chocolate from him. He was so helpful and so nice to us. He also asked us about Obama and told us "Obama is good for the 'yoots.'" We're getting used to this...

After touring around Perugia, we five got to the train station again and rode to Assisi. When we got to Assisi, we missed the bus to take us to il centro (downtown) where some of the sights were. However, a cab driver offered to take us ALL around Assisi and be our own tourguide for the entire day for only 60 euro. At first we didn't think it was a good deal, but I am SOOO glad that we took it because we got to see twice as many sights, and there is NO way we (especially I with a boot!) could have walked to everything since it is all so spread out! He took us first to Basilica di Santa Chiara, who was one of St. Francis' first followers. We went inside there and saw her tomb, as well as her and his relics - like their robes, hair and shoes. I found this stuff absolutely amazing! I can't believe it still exists! He then took us to Tempio di Minerva, which was right across the street from Santa Chiara. Inside this Church, known as the Church of St. Anthony, were golden ceilings and golden altarpieces. It was a Roman temple turned Christian church. Again, since it was the Church of St. Anthony, I lit a candle underneath the statue of St. Anthony and said a prayer for Grandpa. After that, we went to the Church that was built on the site of St. Francis' home as a child. Since St. Francis came from a rich family, the site of his house is HUGE. At the end of the Church is his father's old shop and steeple, which is where St. Francis was born. Our tourguide also took us to Eremo delle Carceri, which is hidden WAY high in the mountains. It is a Church and a bunch of woods, which is the site of where St. Francis and other hermits did their thinking and living. It was a really nice hike, and we also saw a beautiful view of the town of Assisi from that high up. We then traveled to Rocca Maggiore, which is situated uphill from the Duomo. The view is absolutely breathtaking - I feel like I say that so much, but literally everything here is so beautiful and amazing! The Rocca Maggiore is a huge wall that was built when Assisi and Perugia were in war together. We then went to the Cattedrale di San Rufino, which has the baptismal font in which St. Francis and St. Chiara were baptized. Once again, I am so amazed that those things are still here! This Church also has a bunch of glass tiles on the floor that lets you peer into the Roman ruins below. We finally went to the Basilica di San Francesco last. Since there was Mass going on at the time, we couldn't do much touring. We were able to go down to the basement and see the remains and tomb of St. Francis, which I found amazing yet again - his body is almost 1,000 years old. There were also a lot of chapels in the Church, including the Chapel of St. Anthony and the Chapel of St. Martino, which I took a picture of for Daddy! :)

To the right is a picture of Santa Chiara and Saint Frances' clothing, which are in Santa Chiara Cathedral.

On Sunday night we went to a restaurant in Florence called Dante's Pizzeria. Stacey's friend told her about it and told the owner that we know her. Good thing we told him because he gave us our ENTIRE meal for free AND he gave us hats with the restaurant's name! It was yet another amazing Italian meal, and I tried eggplant pizza, which he gave to us as an appetizer. It was pretty good! I had a cheesey pasta with broccoli in it, which, yes, I ate the broccoli, Mom. He also gave me some delicious tiramisu and he gave us three bottles of wine. Can't wait to go back there! :) Everything is SO expensive here and stressing us out, so it's nice to get a free meal! Last night we had the LdM Welcome Reception, which was a reception for ALL of the LdM study abroad students. There are SOOO many students here studying! I had no idea that LdM was this big, and I had no idea that LdM was so organized. I have been so surprised at the organization of the school and the teachers, and I am also somewhat surprised at how laid back the teachers are, who barely care if you are late to class. Then again, it is the culture, which I love. I love being laid back here and not stressed out one bit like I always am at home! :)

Overall, Assisi and Perugia were absolutely wonderful. I love seeing and learning about the religious aspects of this country. I think that being Catholic makes me appreciate it even more, especially being able to know the history already. This weekend we are planning to go to Rome from Thursday through Sunday. Stacey, Rebekka, Patee, Marielle and I hired a tourguide who is giving us a discounted price becuse we are students. So we are taking a private tour of everything on Saturday morning, and on Friday during the day we are going to Formia. I'm not really sure what is in Formia, but I want to go for Grandma and Grandpa since that is where they are from. I know that there are lots of beaches there, as well as Cicero's tomb, but I really want to find Great Grandpa's house and fruit market. I have to research all of that, as well as our other trips tonight. We five have planned every weekend out and are visiting many places including Spain, Ireland, England, Switzerland, Prague, Germany, Austria and all throughout Italy! We are soooo excited! So we are planning all of those tonight together. Rebekka, Stacey, Patee, Marielle and I are having a great time together and we love traveling together. Who would've known fifteen years ago when Stacey and I were playing soccer together that we'd also be studying abroad together in 2009?! Small world.

Only 23 more days until Mark gets here, and I am ecstatic! I am just excited for the month of March in general because Mark visits, as well as Mom and Dad, AND we are traveling to Ireland and Englad for spring break. This semester is going by way too fast already! We are having the time of our lives though.

Also... Patee's new name is POT because her Italian teacher thinks her name is Pot. HA!

I will update after our Rome trip! Until then... ciao!