Going to Venice!

Talk to you soon! Updates and pics coming, promise!

Oh. Hi, Washingtonians. Hiii.

Poor Washingtonians (this includes you too, Karli, regardless of your current residency - WA 4 LYFE), I feel like I've been neglecting this blog un po'. Life in Italy is both slow and fast-paced. I take my time during the day, eating lunch for hours, exploring Rome and walking miles and miles each day that by the time I get home I am stanchissima (especially since I have to remind myself I'm not on vacation and that I have homework every night).

But don't worry, it's time for a quick (quick, quick) update.


It's been 5 days since my last update (oops) so I'm just giving you the highlights. Since we couldn't go to Florence for the weekend, we stuck around in Rome...

Friday We did our class tour of ancient Rome and the Colosseum.

Me & Molly in front of il Colosseo

Saturday  Me and all my flat-mates walked all the way to Piazza del Popolo.

Sunday With all the traffic noise outside our apartment windows, we woke up with the Sunday crowd and made it to Sunday mass at noon at Piazza di San Pietro (St. Peter's) and saw the Pope (sort of).

Then it was off to the Porta Portese market.
Then we ate nearby in Trastevere, where I had the best spaghetti and mussels.

Monday After class Monday we went to la spiaggia a Lido! I ate fresh coconut from on the beach and played soccer in the sunshine!

Beach in Lido!

Tuesday During one of our class tours we saw the Trajan Markets.

Romans knew how to re-use and recycle.

We got a special tour and was able to climb this tower! Ruggero, one of our professors is 50 years old, grew up in Rome and said he's never been up this tower.

See that column? It holds Trajan's ashes, tells the story of his successful campaign and spoils he brought from war... and marks the height of the hill that they removed to build his palace.

Trip Cancelled

So due to a sciopero (strike) by transportation drivers in Rome, the train to Firenze (Florence) was cancelled... We all packed last night, took our packs to the UWRC before our 9 am tour of ancient Rome, then returned 4 hours laters to head to Stazione Termini. Our ticket confirmation numbers didn't work at all and we found out our train was not running. It's a complete bummer, especially after such an incredibly long day. We'll just have to try to go another weekend - afterall, our biglietti are still valid for another 2 months for the same day and time.

Other than that, today was amazing! We walked up onto the most important and oldest hill in Rome, Palatine Hill. There we saw Il Foro, L'arco di Tito, La Strada Sacre, and so much more. Pictures to follow. 

That's it for now. I just wanted to do a quick update. Now it's nap time until we go out and check out some bars by the Spanish Steps.

Florence for the weekend

All right, readers. I'll be on a short break as me and my roommates are vacationing in Firenze for the weekend. Talk to you on Monday!

Ciao,

Rosin

Musei Capitolini

Today, we toured Musei Capitolini which are museums on one of Rome's 7 hills, this hill was Capitoline. We met Claudio and Ruggero at the UW Rome Center (UWRC) at 9:30 in the morning walked over to the 'musei', and as we approached you can see the incline of hill. We walked up this sort of ramp-stair thing, which apparently is made that way because in ancient times it was made so that aristocrats could ride their horses up the hill without dismounting. Walking up the elongated ramp-stairs, you realize that this was the very same entrance that visitors, emperors, enemies and everyone entered through. Two giant statues, who were two sons of Apollo, flanked the entrance at the top of hill. Then as you walk more, you're in Piazza Nuova with a huge replica of Marcus Aurelius mounted on his horse. 

The "ramp-stairs"

Finally we made it into the museum where we met our guide, Dottoressa Daniela. The most soft-spoken guide I've ever had in my life led us all through Roman history. We leapt through time, from The Republic time period to the Empire, where Rome was at its apex. I guess that's kind of how I feel about Rome when I explore around the city everyday. It's a city comprised of the old and new. We walked through buildings that have been rebuilt again and again after earthquakes or sieges or new rule - whatever reason there was to build a palace or monument, the Romans found one. It was surreal to pass through rooms and be face-to-face with famous statues or art work that I've only seen in my art history text books. 

We also some of the older ruins. It's so hard to imagine a Rome different from the Rome of today. A Rome where there was still grass, haha. And buildings didn't occupy every available space. A Rome where crumbled temples we see now were architectural feats that tower above even the tallest building today.

Then, after 3 hours of touring, we got lunch, caffe' and gelato in the caffetteria at the top of the museum, needless to say there was an amazing view...

After our 2 hour break, it was time for afternoon class: Ital 399 with Claudio, Italian culture through cinema and Ital 390, Corsa Roma - in which Ruggero teaches us about Roman history (he is a romano himself afterall). 

Ruggero and Dottoressa Daniela

In bocca al lupo!

Everyday is fantastic and totally exhausting. The city is so loud, but beautiful. The beauty makes up for it and I easily get lost in it so that sound is almost drowned out. Not only the beauty of the city, but the contradictions of the city. The juxtaposition between antiquity and modernity. It's really weird, you know? The streets are made of chunky, square, and weathered cobblestone; and upon these roads that all lead to Rome, cars of all sizes drive, and by drive I mean speed, like nobody's business. They park in places you'd never think a car could fit. The car horn is like an extension of their hand, haha.

My favorite image so far is when we were walking somewhere, and passing us in the opposite direction was a priest listening to an iPod and smoking a cigarette. Best memory so far. He epitomizes the strange juxtapositions I see everyday in Rome.

And I thought I walked a lot in Seattle. No, I walk distances I wouldn't even dare walk in Seattle. Thankfully, we've gotten free bus passes - yay!! That'll be a whole 'nother adventure though. Traveling via bus through Rome... In bocca al lupo!

In bocca al lupo literally means "in the mouth of the wolf", and is an expression for Good luck! or Break a leg! And the response is Crepi! which means "shall he/the wolf die!". 

Baci da Roma

Did I say I was going to "sleep soon" in that post earlier? At 7:45pm?  My mistake... I meant to say I was going out all night with my flat mates. Coming straight off of the airplane from 24 hours of traveling you'd think I'd want to rest, relax, and recuperate. But despite my jet lag, sleep deprivation and a zombie-like dose of delirium of course  I had to go out to the bars with the girls.

It was my first evening in Rome and it was too beautiful to waste sleeping. Sleep when I'm dead right?

After over an hour of preening ourselves for the Roman nightlife, we met the other apartment of girls by the Vatican. Wait, did I just say our meeting place was the Vatican? I did. "Oh hey, girls meet us in front of the Pope's house around 10..." It's surreal!

All us girls in La Piazza di San Pietro in front of the Vatican before we hit the bars for the night.

My skin and hair don't like me in Rome.

Ciao, Roma.

So, I finally made it. A few thousand miles, a 6 hour layover, 2 taxi rides, and a swift leap into the future later... I made it to Rome, the eternal city. Everything's really new so I'm noticing all the things that are different. For example, lanes/road lines are more or less optional and blinkers are used sporadically and if necessary, maybe.

Something I noticed from spending 24 hours in international airports: Europeans look like Americans, or I suppose it's that Americans look exactly like Europeans minus the dressy outfits. I think it was mostly from sleep deprivation, but I started playing this game, American? Si o no? Where, obviously, I tried guessing whether a family or an individual were European or from the U.S. Once they started speaking Dutch, however, it was game over. Anyway, I probably should be getting to sleep soon. 7:45pm my time isn't too grandma, is it?

Oh, and here's that airplane picture I promised in an earlier post:

This is the view from my window as we were passing over the Shetland Islands at about 6:08am (or 10pm yesterday, Pacific time). At this point, we've traveled 4,541 miles. Also, it was -66 degrees Fahrenheit above those clouds.

Airports, Airplanes, Sleep and Whatnot

So, I'm in Amsterdam finally after a 3,000 mile (kilometer?!) flight. Don't ask me how it was. But, if I had to answer... I'd say about one lunch, one breakfast (dinner, was lost somewhere over the Atlantic), one Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel movie, Drew Barrymore and Justin Long movie, and about half a Shia LeBeouf movie later we're arrived in Amsterdam. It's 8:50am here. Good morning, all of you - sleeping soundly in your beds now. Me? I feel like I pulled an all-nighter... I just want sleep, but it's like a cruel joke. I left at 2pm and arrived at 7am here without sleep. Airplanes make nearly impossible for you sleep on airplanes with endless movie options and solitaire for days. And now, seeing as it's the morning and all, I can't quite get in a solid 6 hour snooze.

Upside about my crazy leap through time? Well, technically for you guys, I'm living in the future now. Suckas. Also, I had an amazing glimpse of the horizon while we were over the Shetland Islands (picture to come).

But, for now I must go. I only have 17 minutes left on my free wi-fi sesh.

Why does it always seem like pee comes right when you're not allowed to pee on an airplane?
Me: Man, I should go to the bathroom really quick.
-(BING) Ladies and gentlemen, we will be taking off in approximately 30 minutes, but until then please remain seated with your seat belt fastened just in case there's some unexpected turbulence while we sit here idly... Thanks.
Me: Greaaaat.

On my way...

Well, I'm at seatac waiting to board my flight to Amsterdam!