Home Sweet Home after a Long Journey

Wow, who would have thought that I would be writing this blog entry from the campus of Robert Morris University, but I just haven't had time to sit down. Also, I have to admit, writing this entry also means that I'm really not living in Rome anymore. OK, I know I've been back for about over 3 weeks, but between my mom's birthday, the celebration of my 21st birthday in the States, Christmas, and New Year's, this break has just flown by and I'm back at Bobby Mo already.

But back to my departure from Rome. Here's my scheduled itinerary: the shuttle bus picked up Shelby and me at our apartment at 8:15 AM. My flight left for London around noon. I landed in London around 2 PM and had an hour to board my plane to Washington, DC, which I figured would give me enough time to get through security, etc. I had booked the flight to DC Dulles Airport for 2 reasons: 1. It was cheaper than flying into Pittsburgh & 2. My relatives (the Taylor family, including my adorable goddaughter Madeline) lived north of DC in Crofton, MD, so when my parents picked me up at the airport, we would be able to visit with my relatives since I hadn't seen them in over 4 months!

Well, scratch that itinerary!!! Liz, my roommate, turned my world upside down when she woke me up at 6 AM. Our two friends, Russell and David, found out that their flights had been cancelled for that day and had texted Liz to let her know. I can't remember where they were flying into, but I started to panic just a bit. (The day before, I had received AlertDC e-mails saying that there was going to be a huge snowstorm in the metropolitan DC area the day I was flying back to the States.) Liz calmed me down and said that I should just double check that my flights weren't delayed or cancelled. I used our apartment's desktop computer since my lap top was already packed away in my carry-on luggage. My flight from London to DC was right on schedule, but I had one BIG problem: my flight from Rome to London was delayed for some reason and was only departing Rome at 6 PM!! That would mean I would miss my 3 PM flight from London to DC. Which was a very BIG problem, considering there was going to be that massive snow storm in DC, meaning if I didn't catch that flight, I would probably be stuck in the Heathrow Airport overnight, which was something I did not want to do.

So, there I am, around 6:15 AM on Saturday morning, in panic mode. I called British Airways and explained my predicament to the customer representative, asking her if there is ANYTHING she could possibly do to help me out. I remember her saying, there is one solution- I could book you on the 7:55 AM flight from Rome to London, then you would be able to catch your 3 PM flight to DC. I don't even remember thinking about the situation, I just remember saying on the phone, "Yes! Book me on that flight and I'll get to the airport ASAP." Now that I knew I would be making my flight, I frantically gathered my belongings that I hadn't packed. My roommates were the best- one of them called a cab for me, while the other made sure I didn't forget any of my belongings. I rushed down the stairs of my Roman apartment, and I started crying. I would never live in this apartment again, probably won't see it for a very long time. The mix of emotions came over me and I literally waited two minutes for my cab to arrive while my roommates said good-bye to me and helped me pack my 5 bags into the trunk- 3 checked bags and 2 carry-on bags. I couldn't believe- I was really leaving Rome. I continued to sob a little bit as the cab driver maneuvered the car to the Fiumicino Airport. As much as I despised the crowded buses and the humid weather at the beginning of my experience, I reflected that I really fell in love with Roma bella- her ancient ruins, cobblestone streets, old buildings next to modern ones, her delicious food (pizza!) and vino, her churches and basilicas, her Colosseum, her language, and most of all, her fountains. Anytime I see a fountain in the U.S., I know I'll try to compare it to a fountain I saw in Rome or Italy.

As I arrived at the airport, I realized that this is where it all began- I had landed in Rome approximately 4 months before, just after spending 5 days in Copenhagen with Maria. That had seemed so long ago, yet almost seemed like just yesterday. I can't even try to explain how time worked when I was in Europe, but it always seems like you'll have more time to do things, see things, experience things, but then time runs out on you, and you have to move onto the next city, a new country, a different but exciting experience. I checked in for my 7:55 AM flight at the British Airways desk, checked my luggage, and I was told that my luggage would be going straight to DC and I didn't have to worry about re-checking it in London. Well, that was good news, but I was still anxious to make sure I made it through security and to my gate in time to depart for London. The woman at the desk printed my boarding pass, and I went through security. I easily read the signs and worked my way to the gate to board the plane. The flight from Rome to London was relaxing. Once I sat in my assigned window seat, they fed us a delicious breakfast and I took a quick nap, hoping I would be rejuvenated for my layover in Heathrow.

After getting off the plane in London and seeing the snow on the ground, I was excited to be in England again. I know I obviously wouldn't have time to go and see more of the city (though I would have loved to do that!), I knew for certain that I will be back, whether for business or pleasure. I walk toward the gates that says "Connecting Flights" and hand the woman my boarding pass for my 3 PM flight. She scans my pass and looks at the screen, looks at me kind of funny, looks at the screen again and makes a face, and looks at me once again with that funny look on her face. "Ma'am, this flight has been cancelled. You have to go to the ticket counter at customer services and they will take care of you." NO WAY! I did not just rush around my apartment at 6:30 AM to hurriedly catch the earlier flight, just to learn that my flight had been cancelled. I calmly walked to the end of the line at the customer service line. Other people were having the same problems, so I tried to remain as calm as possible. Once it was my turn, though, I'm not going to lie- I started tearing up as I was explaining my current situation to the BA customer representative. She was typing away on her keyboard, and of course, I didn't have

any experience with flying in the winter, let alone flying alone. I was worried that all flights to DC would be delayed due to the snowstorm, and I kept asking her if I could fly into another city, like Philadelphia maybe. (Little did I know, all my friends that were supposed to fly into Philly flew into Pittsburgh instead- boy, did I wish I had been on their flight- I would have been so much closer to home!) The BA rep put me on standby for a 10:55 AM flight- mind you, my flight had landed in London at 10 AM- I had even less time than I did in Rome to go through security and get to the gate. And, since I was on standby, I wasn’t guaranteed a seat: I would only get a seat if someone didn’t show up. I was really nervous about making it to the gate in time. I handed my standby boarding pass to the woman at the “Connecting Flights” desk, she let me go through easily this time, no funny/confused faces involved. I rode the escalator up to security, and the security personnel allowed me to skip the line because I showed them the time of my flight- less than a half hour until they started boarding the plane and shutting the gate. I walk as calmly as possible in the direction of my gate, and of course I have to take a tram to get to the terminal, as the Heathrow Airport is pretty big. I rush to my gate, and ask if I would be able to board with my stand-by pass. The BA employee does her thing on the computer and magically prints my ticket- I’m overwhelmed with joy! I’m on my way home! I turned on my Italian cell phone to try to call my parents to let them know I’ll be flying in earlier. My Italian cell phone didn’t have service, though. Oh, well, it was out of my control and I couldn’t do anything about it. I would cross that bridge when I came to it after landing in the States.

I successfully boarded the plane and made my way to my window seat- I love sitting by the window now that I have some experience flying. This plane was huge! It was definitely bigger than the SAS plane that I rode in from Pittsburgh to Copenhagen. We had to wait on the runway for about an hour before we could take off- something about snow on the runway. I sat next to a man who was an American civilian working for the military in the Middle East and was coming home for his 45^th anniversary. I thought it was a cute story. And then, we took off for DC. They fed us a big lunch, and then I settled in to watch a movie. I napped a little bit, and then it was time for tea- they gave us sandwiches and tea or coffee. The food was really good, surprisingly. The 8 hour flight wasn’t too long, and the landing was very smooth, considering all the snow on the runway in the Dulles Airport.

Then, the nightmare of my dreams became a reality. Well, I guess that’s kind of an exaggeration, but it was close to a nightmare. I turned my American cell phone on in an attempt to call my parents to let them know I had landed. It wasn’t active because my mom had de-activated my line while I was in Italy. Well, I guess she thought that she had activated it, but obviously she had not. So, as we made our way to the airport, I asked the nice girl beside me if I could use her cell phone. She only had an international cell phone that didn’t work in the States, since she worked in Dubai. I asked another woman beside me, who ended up being British and she said snootily, yes you can use my phone, but it’s a British phone, so don’t use it for too long. I quickly tried to call my mom, who somehow missed my call. I went into panic mode once again. No one knew I had landed in DC- they had my previous flight numbers to check on their status, and from that information, they thought I would be spending the night in London. Well, they were wrong. I still had to fill out my customs form, and luckily, I had a pen- something that another student coming back from traveling abroad did not have. But, he was in possession of a phone! Perfect for both of us- he borrowed my pen and filled out the form while I used his phone to call my cousin Jenn, who lives in Maryland, just north of DC and Baltimore. I frantically told her what happened, and she said that she would try calling my mom to let her know that she needs to activate my phone so that I can easily be in touch with everyone. I hung up the phone and thanked the student again. I breezed through customs and walked to the baggage claim area. I found the nice girl with the international cell phone who was working in Dubai. She was friendly and a good person to talk with to calm my nerves. I read my book for a little, and then realized that I had a missed call on my American phone- which meant it must have been activated!!!! I was so excited, I called Jenn back to see if she or her husband could come pick me up. She had some bad news for me- the roads were pretty bad, since DC hardly ever gets hit with snowstorms of this size, and she thought it would take Bert about 3 hours to get to the airport, and then travel three hours back to their house, which was just a long trip in general for both of us. Her solution was to find a hotel near the airport that had a shuttle to it, so that I wouldn’t have to worry about a taxi. She was going to look for one while I called my mom to talk to her. As soon as I started talking to my mom, the tears came again, only they were happy tears, not panic mode tears. I was just so relieved and happy to hear her voice and let her know I was safe. Talking to my dad, the same emotions came over me again. Then, my Aunt Gail called me, frantically telling me not to pay this amount for a hotel and giving me all this advice. Between the calls from my three female relatives, I was a little overwhelmed.

And to top it all off, I was informed that I wouldn’t be able to claim my luggage that night- with all the snow, the equipment couldn’t get to our plane to get the luggage off. :( I wasn’t very happy- all my shampoo, body wash, and various other liquid hygienic items were in my checked luggage because I wasn’t allowed to pack them in my carry-on. I also only had one change of clothes. Oh, well, I was just going to have to live with what I have. I went outside with my carry-on luggage in tow, waiting for the shuttle to my hotel. I waited outside probably only about 20 minutes, but it felt like an hour, since I wasn’t wearing boots and my feet were exposed to the cold and snow. I boarded the shuttle and checked into my hotel. I took a nice hot shower and called my mom again to let her know that I had made it to my hotel. I fell asleep to watching the movie “He’s Just Not That into You.” I was exhausted from my trip and easily fell asleep. I was almost adjusted back to the time change, and it was only my second day back to the States. I woke up the next morning to go to continental breakfast in the lobby. Then, Bert picked me up. It was so good to see a familiar face. It only took us about 1 ½ hours to travel to their home, but first I wanted to swing around to the airport just to check if I could get my luggage. Unfortunately, BA was not open. I could see my luggage locked safely in a room, but there was no way to get into that room. I was a little upset, but realized that I should be thankful I landed safe and sound in the States and my baggage could take a back-seat priority. I played with Madeline and her new baby brother Nicholas and visited with Jenn to pass the time. My parents arrived at Jenn and Bert’s house, and I was so happy to see them. I hadn’t physically hugged them in over 4 months! It was so good to finally be with them in person. We stayed one extra night at their house because I was told by British Airways that I could pick up my luggage at 1:30 PM. Then, later that night, I was told I would be only be able to pick it up at 3:30 PM, which was too late for our schedules. I was promised that it would be shipped out to me the following day. Needless to say, I didn’t receive all three pieces of my luggage until about a week after Christmas, but everyone understood when I told them their Christmas presents were on their way. It was so different living back in St. Marys, but I was so busy celebrating my mom’s birthday and going out to the bars for the first time, celebrating Christmas with my friends and family, and visiting with everyone, telling them about my Eurotrip that I didn’t really have time to adjust or have that reverse culture shock. The culture shock didn’t really sink in until after New Year’s Day. But I think that topic might be another for another blog entry, probably my final entry.

But looking back on it now, I realize that I reacted with the right problem-solving skills. I didn't freak out, I just knew that I would have to find a solution, whether it meant switching airlines, getting on another earlier flight, or even flying into a different city, it could be done. And as for my cell phone and luggage issues, I realize that you just have to go with the flow. This journey has taught me to be flexible- life could be worse than being without a cell phone and having delayed baggage. And I realize now also that you have to prepare for change, you just can't react to it. So, the next time I fly by myself across an ocean, I'll be prepared in case this happens again. I'll pack my carry-on so that I have the appropriate necessities in case I am stranded again. I guess I learned my lesson, but I really didn't think I would have that much trouble with my luggage. Live and learn I guess!

So I'm not sure if the end of this blog means that I won't be blogging again for awhile or if I'll find something to blog about. Or maybe this isn't the end of this blog at all- I think I still have some more reflecting to do on my study abroad experience and how it has affected my outlook on life. I've learned a lot about myself and others through this experience, and it has most definitely changed me as a person. Until next time, as the Italians say, Ciao!!

My Sveet Adventure in Stockholm, Sweden

So where did I decide to go on my last Eurotrip? Stockholm, Sweden, of course! It was the perfect city to get me in the Christmas spirit- I'm not kidding, either, because I downloaded some Christmas music when I got back to Rome on Sunday. I landed in Stockholm around 1 PM on Friday afternoon. I did just fine traveling on a flight once again by myself- I was meeting my friend, Chad, at Stockholm for our final European adventure. (He was leaving Spain on December 17, while I have until December 19 in Italy.) I caught an hour and a half bus ride to the center of Stockholm, followed the directions to the hostel, and found out that our hostel is pretty centrally located- only about a 10 minute walk from the bus station and main streets of Sweden. Since Sweden is so much closer to the North Pole, it was already dark outside at 3 PM when I arrived at the hostel. I decided to get settled, relax a little bit, then walk around to get to know Stockholm.

This time of year, Stockholm's streets are filled with Christmas markets stocked with candy, hot chocolate, and many more items to give as Christmas presents. It's freezing cold this time of year (literally- it was 1 degree C when I landed- o degrees C is the same as 32 degrees F). Chad's flight didn't get in until 7 PM, but he didn't arrive in Stockholm until 9 PM because of the long bus ride to the city. The people of Stockholm were very pleasant and welcoming. It was nice to get away from the crazy drivers of Rome, as well- I could cross the street safely in Stockholm without fear of being run over. Some Swedish drivers even stopped to motion me to cross the street when they saw I was on the corner waiting to cross.

On Saturday morning, we were ready to explore the city together. For breakfast, we decided to stop at a muffin place that I had tried out the night before. I had a strawberry cheesecake muffin that had real cheesecake and strawberries inside. It was delicious with a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice! Now, we had more energy to see the city of Stockholm. We walked down to the Old Town, where the streets are narrow and the buildings are picturesque of northern Europe. There were souvenir shops to browse and we finally made it down to the water, where there were many boats and even a Christmas tree by the harbor. We walked to the Royal Palace, where the Swedish king and royal family lives. We explored a little more, just wandering through the streets, taking random pictures- it was a very laid back trip with no itinerary whatsoever. We went back to the Christmas markets and I bought a candy apple with sprinkles on top. We also bought some sugar roasted almonds, which were delicious. We both had a hot dog for lunch as well.

Then, we saw my friends from AUR, Stacy and Kayla. I have my most interesting class this semester, Consumer Behavior, with Stacy. I had planned on meeting up with them anyway, as her and Kayla were on my flight to Rome on Sunday morning at 6:50 AM. They told us about free ice skating just around the corner. We would meet up with them later. I was a little rusty on the ice skates, and fell a couple times, but it was totally worth the memory of ice skating for free in Sweden while it was snowing right before Christmas!!! It snowed and the snow even started sticking to the ground that night! Lucky for us, there were firepits with fires burning to warm our hands. Because I had worn a sweater, North Face jacket, pea coat, gloves, hat, and wool scarf, I was not all that cold, though the weather had officially hit 0 degrees Celsius!

We browsed through the Christmas markets one more time, then wandered through the streets admiring the twinkling Christmas lights and the snow falling down in huge flakes. We finally decided to eat dinner at a taco place, since we were both craving Mexican food. I had completely forgotten about trying Swedish meatballs until I boarded the plane back to Rome. Oh well, it gives me a reason to go back to Sweden and visit again! I need to go back and get a relaxing Swedish massage too! We went back to the hostel to freshen up and nap, since we had been on our feet almost the entire day. We went out to a bar and then met up with Kayla and Stacy to go to several more bars and clubs. We ended the night at McDonald's right before we had to board the bus to the airport at 3:40 AM...We made it to the airport to check-in and go through security in plenty of time to board our plane. We landed safely in Rome, and I spent most of Sunday catching up on sleep and starting to study for finals. This will be my last week in Rome- it seems like I just landed in Copenhagen to visit Maria. I'm going to make the most of this week while studying for my finals- eating lots of gelato, pizza, pasta, and going to all the major landmarks are at the top of my list! Until next time, ciao!

Tour de Paris

I still can't believe I was in Paris this past weekend-and I have to say, I really loved the city of lights!!! It's an amazing city and even more beautiful at night, considering it is the city of lights.

My first day (Thursday) in Paris was a long day. Our taxi picked us (me and Shelby) at our apartment at 4:30 AM to ensure that we were at the airport by 5, since our flight left at 7 AM! We had to take an hour and a half bus trip to the city of Paris, then the metro to our hostel. We only arrived at our hostel around noon, then freshened up, grabbed a delicious sandwich at a nearby French bakery, and then mapped out our itinerary for the day. We decided on the Musee D'Orsay, Notre Dame, and the Arc de Triomphe. Museum workers were on strike when we arrived, so we walked from the metro stop, past the Louvre to the Musee D'Orsay (where there is art work by Picasso and van Gogh, etc.), and then realized that the museum was closed due to the strike. We walked back towards the Louvre, did some window shopping, and went to the Notre Dame. We saw a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower walking toward Notre Dame. One of our roommates who had already traveled to Paris told us to climb the bell tower in the cathedral. Today was just not our day, because when we asked information, they said that no one was allowed to climb the tower that day; she didn't give a reason, just said we couldn't. Rather than go all the way to the Arc de Triomphe, we did some souvenir shopping, and I bought my typical post cards to include in my scrapbook along with a fashionable Parisian hat to keep me warm. Since it was cold and rainy, we decided to sit at a cafe and try some French wine. Shelby and I split a bottle of red Bourdeux wine, and since it was my dad's birthday, I toasted to my dad back in the States. :) After the wine, we walked around in search of a good restaurant and finally found one to please both of us- I ate French onion soup, roasted duck with honey sauce and French fries, a Coca-Cola, and a baked apple with caramel, nuts, and cinnamon for dessert. I was glad I had finally had a taste of French cuisine- I think I'm hooked. We went back to our hostel and went to bed because we were so tired from all the traveling.

Friday was another long day, but we saw so much of Paris, it was totally worth it! We had breakfast at the hostel, and the weather was beautiful- not rainy! And there were hardly any clouds in the sky. We took the metro to St. Michel (in the Latin Quarter) where the bike tour began. Yepp, you heard right, I took my first European bike tour in Paris! And I would recommend it to anyone who goes to Paris, it's much better than walking and taking the metro to all the tourist spots. Right before we left for the bike tour, we found a Starbucks and got our caffeine fix for the day. On the tour, we saw Notre Dame from the outside, Pont Neuf (the oldest bridge in Paris), the exterior of Musee D'Orsay, the Eiffel Tower, the place where Napoleon was buried, and much more. I got a little work out along the way, and Shelby had a little trouble with her bike, since she's shorter than me and they didn't have a small bike to fit her short legs. But she survived. After the bike tour, we decided to get some crepes. They were much deserved after the work out! For lunch, I had a savory crepe- ham, cheese, and mushroom- and for dessert, I had a Nutella and banana crepe. They were both soooooooooo delicious. We decided to go to the Arc de Triomphe, only to find out that civil servants were striking, so we couldn't climb to the top like we had planned. We walked down Champs Elysse, the street with all the designer stores. There was also a Christmas market going on towards the end of the long boulevard. The street looked so pretty at night, all lit up with lots of Christmas lights and decorations. We went back to the hostel to freshen up and grab our gloves, hats, and heavier jackets, since it was getting a bit chilly outside. We went to the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa. That's really all we wanted to see and the museum is so big, that we really just saw the Egyptian exhibit and then left. We met Chad, Leah, and Alan (Chad and Leah's friend) outside the entrance to the Louvre. Again, we walked around Paris in search of a restaurant with a reasonable price. I had French onion soup again. :) I said good-bye to Chad, but I knew I would see him next weekend in Sweden. They were going to Portugal for the next several nights, so we wouldn't see them in Paris anymore. After dinner, we went back to the hostel and fell asleep early again.

On Saturday, we woke up for breakfast at the hostel again and took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It was pouring down rain, and I hoped that it would stop so that it wasn't raining when climbed to the top. Lucky for us, we waited in the rain in line for a loooooong time to climb, but once we started climbing the stairs and took the elevator the rest of the way up to the very top, it stopped raining. It was windy at the top, but we had an awesome view of Paris! Then we took the metro to the Moulin Rouge. This was the meeting point for our walking tour of the neighborhood Montemarte, where many famous artists have lived. Before the tour, we had a hot dog on a baguette for lunch, then it was off to see the famous sites. I found out the name Moulin Rouge means the Red Windmill in French, and then we started walking to more places. We saw where Van Gogh lived with his brother in an apartment; the red light district of Paris (Pigalie); the story of Saint Dennis, the patron saint of France; the cute/quaint houses and apartments in Montemarte; the last surving windmill in Paris; a statue of the Egyptian-Italian diva Dalida, who our tour guide compared to an international Cher; the only vineyard left in Montemarte; Picasso's studio and a copy of one of his paintings; places where the French film Amelie was filmed; a cafe where Picasso traded his paintings for food; the Le Maison Rose (the pink house) where Van Gogh regularly ate in a restaurant on the first floor and indulged in the pleasures of women at the brothel on the second floor of the house; the Artists' Square, where I could have had a sketch drawn of me; and the Sacre Coeur (which means Sacred Heart), an amazing church in Paris located on the highest point in the city with another great view. After the tour, we freshened up at the hostel, then went to see the Eiffel Tower at night to see the special light show that is only happening this year (120th anniversary) every hour during the evening hours. We went on a pub crawl and ended the night at a night club. It was fun to experience the night atmosphere that Paris has to offer.

On Sunday, we woke up, ate breakfast, and checked out of our hostel. We finally were able to climb the Arc de Triomphe, and since we're students, we climbed for free. :) Then, we went over to the Musee D'Orsay, hoping the strike was over and it was open. Well, it was open, but all museums in Paris are free on the first Sunday of every month, so the line was veryyyyyyy loooooooong, so Shelby and I decided we will just have to come back to Paris to see it, since we didn't want to wait in line for that long. We grabbed some lunch and walked around. We didn't have a specific direction, but it started pouring cats and dogs and somehow we ended up at the world's first department store, which can be found in downtown Paris. We went back to our hostel to gather our bags, then went to the airport. I have no comment for the airport that was 1 and 1/2 hours outside Paris. It was small and slow and our flight was delayed, not due to weather, but because the airport was inefficient. But that was honestly my worst flight experience in Europe, and since it was at the end of my study abroad experience, I guess I really can't complain. We arrived back in Rome and made our way back to our apartment. It was a wonderful weekend and I need to return to Paris. I wouldn't say it was my absolute favorite city, but it makes my top 5. Until next time, ciao!

Castles and Basilicas and Thanksgiving in Italia

Oh, Rome, another week with you just flew right by- I honestly can't believe that I only have 3 more weeks until I go back to the States. I'm definitely going to miss your charm, your delicious food and your beautiful language....

But now it's time to talk about my past week in Rome. On Monday, I had the normal class schedule, and Tuesday I only have class at 5:15 PM, so I had all of Tuesday to see Castel Sant'Angelo. This building used to be the mausoleum of the Roman emperor, Hadrian, who was a great emperor. He traveled throughout the Empire, especially to Greece. He commissioned the Pantheon to be rebuilt in Rome (in case any of you have forgotten, the Pantheon is one of the best preserved ancient buildings in the world!), he had a beautiful villa right outside Rome in the town of Tivoli, he founded an efficient post service for the empire, and had a period of peace within the Empire, to strengthen its borders. If you can't tell by now, I went to Castel Sant'Angelo not only to visit a castle, whose patron saint is St. Michael, but because I'm writing a paper for my art history class on Hadrian's mausoleum and why he was such a good emperor, along with the funerary practices of the time. It should be an interesting research project, but I'm not very motivated to write a 10-page paper about the topic.

Anyway, so I went to Castel Sant'Angelo on Tuesday afternoon. I want to let you know it's right near the Vatican, not even a 5 minute walk from St. Peter's Basilica. After the first sack of Rome, when Hadrian's ashes, along with his wife's ashes and all the other emperor's remains housed there, were stolen, it was used as a military fortress for a period of time, since it had a good look-out point and it was right next to the Tiber River. When Rome was under attack by enemies or during the Sack of Rome, there is supposedly a secret passageway from the Vatican to Castel Sant'Angelo, and the Pope would follow the passageway and hide safely in the castle. Since the early 1900s, it has been a museum and that is its present-day purpose.

After paying the entrance fee and walking around kind of aimlessly, I decided to return to the entrance to buy an audioguide. It was very helpful and taught me a lot about the original purpose and structure of the building. Another note: it's kind of freaky going to a site where you know there used to be ashes of deceased people, even if they're not there anymore. But I overcame that fear and took detailed notes, as I will have to describe the structure of the mausoleum in my paper. On top of the castle, there is a fantastic view of the city, and you can see a wonderful view of St. Peter's Basilica. There is also a statue of Michael the Archangel on the terrace, and I'll explain the significance of that with a supposed legend I learned about on the audioguide tour.

(If you're not into history, just skip this paragraph- but it is pretty interesting I think). During the 6th century, when the pope was Gregory the Great, there was a plague in Rome, which was believed to be a divine punishment for all mankind's sins. Pope Gregory organized a procession with the image of the Holy Mother from Santa Maria Maggiore (one of the Vatican churches in Rome) to San Pietro. As the procession was passing the castle, St. Michael appeared in the sky over the castle, brandishing his sword and placing it in his sheath, as a sign of peace. The plague suddenly ended after his appearance, and a chapel was built to St. Michael inside the castle, and from then on, it was given the name Castel Sant'Angelo, since St. Michael is one of the most important archangels. The bronze statue of St. Michael on top of the castle was added later.

Wednesday was another day full of classes, and then Thursday was Thanksgiving Day, which they obviously don't celebrate in Italy, because Italians don't have a reason to be thankful for the pilgrims and Indians. LOL I only have one class on Thursday (Italian), and my teacher had an interesting lesson for us that day: we were going to make the Italian dessert, tiramisu, instead of having a traditional class. She spoke in Italian to us, and we followed the recipe in Italian. It's actually really easy to make, but I won't spoil the recipe for anyone- I want to make it myself when I'm back in the States and impress everyone with my newly acquired cooking skills. :) After making tiramisu, we went to the dinner that our school was cooking for us. It was nice to have turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes and wine of course! I'll have to admit, it wasn't nearly as good as the meals I would have had back home, but it was a good substitute. I talked to my parents on Thanksgiving morning their time, right before I went to Italian class. I had a relaxing Thursday night and Friday, and I grabbed some coffee with my friend Rita on Friday evening.

I had to be up early on Saturday to catch the bus for the school trip. This was my final trip with AUR, and I was excited to go to Assisi. They had a tour guide waiting for us when we got off the bus, and I learned a lot on the tour. I didn't know that Assisi was a Roman town; they even had Roman ruins underneath the medieval streets that are still standing today. Most of the buildings are made out of limestone brick and there were green plants everywhere- it was a really beautiful, serene town, and it was nice to take a trip somewhere so calm. We saw two basilicas there- one for St. Clare, one for St. Francis of Assisi. They were both filled with amazing art work and had interesting historical backgrounds. We ate an authentic Assisi meal- I had bruschetta and then pasta with olive/mushroom sauce. It was soooo delicious and I was so full, yet I still had room for a chocolate cannoli. :) We had a little time to browse the shops, but I personally didn't do any shopping. It was time to catch the bus back to Rome, and I admired the setting sun on the Italian landscape, realizing that I only have three more weeks to enjoy this beautiful country. Until next time, ciao!

Una Bella Settimana a Roma- A Beautiful Week in Rome!

My beautiful week in Roma included my 21st birthday, watching a meteor shower, going to see Pope Benedict XVI, my friend Chad visiting me in Rome, and meeting and hanging out with a celebrity, Ryan Cabrera.

So I'm sure you're all wondering how my 21st birthday went in Rome- well, it was not as exciting as you all thought it would be, but I still had fun. I had class all day from noon to six, and everyone in my classes was wishing me happy birthday. I also received so many birthday cards- thanks to everyone who wished me a happy 21st birthday from the States- I got cards in the mail, e-cards, e-mail birthday wishes, and so many wishes on Facebook. I came home and was able to talk to my parents on Skype. Then, my roommate Shelby surprised me with a bottle of champagne and a cake. It was a great birthday already, and then we went to dinner at this Spanish restaurant near Piazza Navona, my favorite piazza in Rome. The restaurant was right across the street from La Botticella, the Steelers bar. Unfortunately, the Steelers bar was closed because the owner, Giovanni, went back to the States for Thanksgiving with his family. Even though I had just been to Spain, we ordered Spanish tapas and everyone shared their delicious food. My roommates Liz and Shelby were at dinner along with Bryn and Dan, two of my friends at AUR who go to school at Chatham and Point Park, so I'll hang out with them in Pittsburgh when I get back. Of course, we ordered sangria at dinner and then were off to have some more drinks. Since the Steelers bar was closed, we went to Campo di Fiori, the American section of Rome. Shelby and I had a couple more drinks there, but Shelby had a presentation the next day and we didn't stay out too late. I wish my birthday hadn't been on a Monday when everyone had tons of homework, but I'm so excited to celebrate my birthday in St. Marys and Pittsburgh- American bars, ready or not, here I come!!!

There was a meteor shower on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of last week, but supposedly Tuesday was the best night to watch it. At midnight, my roommate Kelly and I met up with some of her friends and we went to a look out point near our school. We drank wine and ate cheese and watched for all the shooting stars. It was an awesome night in Rome and a great day after my birthday- as I've told all my friends, we have Polish birthdays in my hometown, which means we celebrate our birthdays for about a week or so. I missed having a family party with my brother Aaron for our combined birthdays, but I'm sure it will happen next year.

On Wednesday, I woke up bright and early to catch the bus to the Vatican to see the Pope. I had already been to the Vatican twice (once on a tour with Gwen and Kristen and another time for my art class). I was skipping my art class for this papal audience, but it was totally worth it. My roommate Kelly didn't have class on Wednesday morning, so she was coming to see the Pope with me. We walked from the metro stop to St. Peter's, went through security, and then had to cross St. Peter's Square and go through security one more time before we could go inside to where the papal audience was being held. I assumed that since there were hundreds of chairs set up in the Piazza di San Pietro that we would see the Pope outside, but this wasn't the case. The Swiss guards guided us to a building behind St. Peter's Basilica for the audience. Luckily, since so many groups want to sit together, we were able to find 2 seats only about 30 rows back from the stage. The cardinals were sitting onstage and we were awaiting the Pope's arrival at 10:30 AM. He came out right on time, and greeted everyone with his right arm, blessing us. Everyone in the audience clapped and cheered for the Pope. A cardinal read some Scripture in English and then many other cardinals read the passage in their native tongue. After that, the English-speaking cardinal announced all the groups from America and other English-speaking countries that were in attendance. As each group was announced, they raised their flag or sign and some even sung a hymn to the Pope. After the groups were announced, the Pope made his weekly statement from the Catholic Church, in English. After that, another cardinal speaking a different foreign language announced his groups and the Pope made his statement in that language. This went on for about 35 minutes, and then the Pope sang the Our Father in Latin and the audience was over. It was an interesting experience, and if I had had something that I wanted the Pope to bless, I could have taken it to be blessed after the papal audience. Kelly and I walked over to the Castel Sant'Angelo and took some pictures of Bernini's famous angel statues on the Ponte Sant'Angelo, or Sant'Angelo foot bridge. After that, it was time to go home to prepare for the rest of my classes that day.

On Thursday night, Chad and his friend Leah were flying in to Rome. They were taking a bus from the airport to the train station and Shelby and I met them at Stazione Termini. On Friday, I took them to the Vatican and since I had been there twice, I knew all about the sculptures and paintings. We went into the Sistine Chapel, and next on our list was St. Peter's Basilica. But first, we were hungry and ate the sandwiches I had made at the apartment. Then, it was time for Leah and Chad to experience their first Italian gelato. We browsed in some souvenir shops until we made it to St. Peter's. This was the first time I came on my own, not with my art class. I could take pictures and see what I wanted to see, not what my art teacher wanted to see. It is just so big, you can't even imagine. All the sculptures are made out of marble and it's amazing that they were able to build such a huge structure so many years ago, just with man power. Leah and Shelby didn't want to climb the dome of St. Peter's, so Leah and I climbed over 500 stairs to finally get a glimpse of the city of Rome from atop St. Peter's dome. It was another breath-taking view, and the climb was worth it. Comparing the climb to climbing the duomo in Florence, I would say that Florence is a smaller city, so it was easier just to take everything in. Since Rome is such a big city, I didn't know where to look, I almost couldn't believe that I was living in this huge place. But it's really happening, I'm really living here and experiencing the Italian culture in this ancient city. This is such a great opportunity and I'm so thankful that I was able to come here and experience it! Friday night we went to an aperitivo- only it was open buffet AND open bar from 9-11 for only 15 euro, pretty good deal if you ask me, since most drinks cost between 5 and 8 euro.

On Saturday, we woke up and it was time to do the typical Roman sight-seeing. We took the bus to Piazza Venezia, then walked to the Spanish Steps. My academic advisor had told me to go inside the McDonald's near the Piazza di Spagna. It turns out that it was the first McDonald's in Italy, so it had marble columns and marble statues decorating the inside of the fast food restaurant. It was really busy, so we didn't even both ordering food there. After we had seen the Piazza di Spagna and climbed the Spanish Steps, we walked down the road with all the expensive stores, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada, etc. Next on the list was the Fontana di Trevi. Chad and Leah couldn't believe how big it was! Since it was a Saturday, there were lots of tourists, but I honestly thought they would all be gone by November, but obviously not. Oh well, they bring the city lots of money, so I shouldn't be complaining. We tried some more gelato on our walk over to the Pantheon. We went inside the old building, then decided to catch some lunch at a restaurant that has good prices and even better food! They both ordered pizza and I had the gnocchi with tomato and basil sauce. I also couldn't resist ordering some zuppa- minestrone! Now it was time to see the Colosseum. I think this was their favorite part- we walked around it, but didn't go inside- we're students and on a budget! We went back to the apartment to rest before going out- Chad and Leah really wanted to go on a pub crawl, and since I had already been on the Spanish Steps pub crawl, we decided to do the Colosseum one, plus they would be able to see the Colosseum at night, just like I did on my first night in Rome! Unfortunately, they cancelled the pub crawl for that night, so we went to Scholar's, an Irish pub not far from the Colosseum. We weren't out too late, considering that they had to be up early the next morning to catch their flight back to Barcelona.

So now for my day with a celebrity, Ryan Cabrera. He sang several hit songs, including True and On the Way Down. He's also used to date Ashlee Simpson, and Joe Simpson used to be his manager. Well, it turns out, his new manager was my roommate Shelby's friend from summer camp. Shelby didn't want to go on the pub crawl with us, so she saw her friend (Ryan's manager) the night before when she was out in Rome. They exchanged numbers and he asked her if she would want to hang out with him and Ryan on Sunday. She asked me if I wanted to meet and hang out with Ryan Cabrera and of course, I said yes! We met them at a restaurant near St. Peter's, then walked back to their hotel. Ryan was really down-to-earth and nice and had a couple more tattoos that I had remembered, but he was a cool guy, not a super diva celebrity. It was funny on the way back to the hotel, in this one piazza, there were tons of birds flying over our heads. Ryan thought it was cool, so he recorded it with his video camera from his iPhone, and almost right after he put his iPhone away, he looked up and a bird pooped on his forehead. It was hilarious!! We went back to the hotel and had a glass of wine at the restaurant across from their hotel. Their hotel was located right near the Spanish Steps- it was pretty fancy. I wasn't really starstruck, since he was such a cool guy. Shelby's friend (Ryan's manager), Greg, was a nice guy too and they were traveling with a girl, Michelle, who was possibly going to be opening for Ryan on Wednesday, where he will be performing in Florence.

So there was my beautiful week in Rome. It was my birthday week and it was an interesting week. I was so glad to have visitors again and to just be able to relax in Rome and not travel anywhere. This week is Thanksgiving and I'm going to miss celebrating with my family, but thank God for Skype!! Until next time, ciao!!!

Barcelona!!!!!!

OK, so I was told by other traveling study abroad students that you party all night and sleep all day in Barcelona, and I wasn't completely convinced. I knew that the Spanish culture includes a siesta, just like the Italian culture, and I learned just recently that the Spanish eat dinner sometimes as late as 11 PM. So, the clubs don't usually open until 2 AM!! Crazy, I know, right? I got lots of rest the week before going to Barcelona to visit my friend from St. Marys, Chad Meholic. Our friend, EJ Crowe, who attended 8th-12th grades with Chad and me, would also be in Barcelona this weekend. I would be traveling with my roommates Shelby and Lizz and my friend Megan. I was so pumped for this trip!!!

The trip started off a little shaky, I'm not gonna lie. We weren't sure if we were going to make our flight on time due to several obstacles. First, I was having some difficulty calling taxis to take us to the airport. My Italian conversation skills (at least the ones for speaking to someone on the telephone) were not as good as I thought. I struggled to speak to this woman, searching for words that just would not come out of my head until I hung up on her, frustrated. Finally, I just had a person from AUR call a cab for us. The cab driver arrived promptly at 7 PM, but we weren't completely ready to go, yet he started his meter. We realized it was going to be an expensive cab ride, so as our driver was darting through all the traffic, going at lightning speed, we asked him very nicely to take us to Termini Stazione, where we could catch a train to the airport. God was on our side, as the train to Ciampino was leaving within 15 minutes. We bought our tickets and rushed to get a seat on the train. We got off at the second train stop and took a 15-minute shuttle bus to the airport. Shelby realized that she one of her boarding passes didn't print and so she needed to recheck-in for her flight so that she could board the plane. But, finally after that was all sorted out, we went through security and arrived at the gate just as the people started queing up to board the plane. Whew- it was a close call!! We were on our way to Spain!!! The flight went smoothly and we landed just in time to catch the bus to the center of Barcelona. All these cheap airlines always fly out of airports that are far away from the center of cities, but the cheap airfare is still worth it. The hour and 15 minute bus ride took us to the main bus terminal in the city, where we had to take a taxi to our hostel. Our hostel, Kabul, one of Europe's famous hostels, is located right next to a flamenco dancing club and is on one of the famous streets in Barcelona, Las Ramblas. It's pretty crazy, and the party had already started at our hostel, even though it was 1 AM! We were exhausted from traveling so much, so we just went to bed, knowing we needed lots of rest to survive our weekend in Barca.

On Friday morning, Shelby and I woke up early to eat breakfast that was included in our hostel. I called my friend Chad after breakfast to see what time he could meet up with us. We decided around noon, so we had some time to just walk around and explore Las Ramblas, with all the crazy people dressed up in costumes on the street, asking for money to take your picture with them. Also on Las Ramblas, lots of shopping, a Starbucks, Subway, and H & M!! There was a fresh market with fruits, veggies, meats, fish, cheeses, and lots more. One of the specialties was freshly squeezed juices. It was time to meet Chad, but first, we were hungry and were craving Subway because we don't have it in Rome, so of course Chad said we could make a pit stop and eat there. He was going to take us to the Sagrada Famiglia, which is a huge church designed by the famous Spanish architect Gaudi. The word gaudy originates from Gaudi and all his fabulous architecture. It's amazing that the ideas in his head have actually become a reality. Supposedly, the church won't be finished til 2025 or 2030, but since the Spanish have a pretty laid back work ethic, it probably won't get completed until 2050. I'll have to come back and check it out for sure when it's completed though! Chad's friend, Leah, who goes to St. Vincent (where he attends college) also met us at the Sagrada Famiglia. EJ goes to school at St. Vincent as well and eventually we caught up with EJ and his roommates, who are studying in Dublin, Ireland. We decided to go up to this one mountain, where there is a fantastic view of the city and also the 1992 Olympic Stadium, where the 1992 Summer Olympics were held, obviously. LOL The stadium wasn't anything particularly special, but there were foot prints of some athletes outside the stadium, including two of my favorite tennis players, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. I took a picture with my foot next to both of theirs, of course!! The next highlight of the day was seeing the great view of the city and then the fountain show that takes place every day at 7 PM. And since we all know how much I love fountains, this was the show for me!! The main water fountain changed colors and also the direction of the water flow changed with the classical music that was being played during the show. It was an awesome beginning to an even better night.

After returning to the hostel to rest a little before dinner, the girls and I got ready for the night. We ate some tapas (potatoes or other appetizer dishes) and paella (rice and vegetables with a special seasoning and choice of meat- beef, chicken, or seafood combo) and drank sangria (wine with fruit). We didn't get to dinner until around 10:45 PM, so we were definitely ready to eat a feast. After dinner, we went to several bars, one of them including the jam-packed Chipitos, where they light every shot on fire. I tried the Boy Scout shot (and, yes, you guessed it, they made you roast a marshallow with the shot before you took it!), Harry Potter shot with cinnamon on top to make the fire sizzle like magic, and the Willy Wonka shot, complete with a handful of M & M's and whipped cream on top!! They were all delicious and it was only the start of a fun night of dancing and experiencing the Spanish party culture. One of the clubs we went to was right on the beach!! Lots of dancing and fun was had by everyone that night. After leaving the final club, we waited about 20 minutes for the metro to open at 5 AM, so we could get back to our hostel without having to take a taxi.

Obviously, arriving back at our hostel at a little after 5 AM didn't give us much option other than to sleep until around 1 PM on Saturday. As I said before, party all night, sleep all day!! We woke up and had spotted a bagel shop on our map of Barcelona. All of us were craving freshly baked bagels, since we can't get those in Rome either. Barcelona is definitely a more modern city than Rome, but I still love the charm that Rome offers. I feel like I'm living as an Italian when I'm in Rome, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Still, it was nice to have some American food. So we ate at the bagel shop, and since it was lunchtime, I tried the chicken club on a cheese bagel and it was delicious!! We walked around and bought some of that freshly squeezed fruit juice at the market on Las Ramblas- I chose strawberry pineapple- delish as well! I also couldn't resist the fresh raspberries. Soon, we were on our way to another Gaudi must-see, the Park Guell. It was amazing, and worth the huge hill that we climbed to get there. Guell was the patron for a lot of Gaudi's art, and the park is enormous. At the entrance, there are two structures that look like gingerbread houses. I was ready to eat them all up- even the decorations on the buildings looked like gum drops and frosting!! And then there was the famous ceramic sculpture of the Catalunya lizard. I also forgot to mention that they speak several languages in Barcelona, just like we have the Roman dialect and the standard Italian language- since it's so close to the French border, they speak Spanish and Catalon, which is a combination of Spanish and French. In many of the tourist areas, people speak English, so we were all able to survive. And Italian sounds so similar, I was actually able to speak Italian and they would reply in Spanish. After seeing another beautiful view of Barcelona from the Park Guell, we treated ourselves to some churros and chocolate- it was not as good as I expected it to be. Barcelona is definitely not my favorite dessert city. After dessert, we went back to our hostel to take another nap before going out. Chad was joining us for dinner, and we stumbled upon this Mexican restaurant that our AUR friends suggested we go to while here in Barcelona. It's called Margarita Blue and Megan, Shelby, and I all ordered chicken fajitas- yummy!! And of course, guacamole with chips- how I missed Mexican food. It was sooooooo goood. We waited for EJ and his friends to join us to go out to the bar, but they never showed up, so we told them to meet us at this Pippermints Bar, where they have enormous size drinks- 13 liters was the largest drink you could buy and then you split it between lots of people. Megan and I split a 1 liter between the two of us, and then we were off to an Irish pub where Chad and his friends go all the time. It was actually near our hostel, so we knew that we could easily walk back there if we were too tired. We called it a night earlier than we had on Friday night, and were back at the hostel by 3:30 AM.

On Sunday, we had to be up before 11 AM to check out of our room. We just relaxed basically the whole day- we got bagels again from the bagel shop near our hostel. We browsed through souvenirs, and sat sipping coffees at Starbucks for over 2 hours!! We retrieved our luggage from our hostel before grabbing Subway subs again and going to the bus terminal to go to the airport. When we finally arrived back in Rome, it felt good to come home to our apartment in Rome. Everything went smoothly traveling from the Ciampino airport to the apartment- this time, we took a shuttle bus to Termini Stazione, then a bus from Termini to our apartment, much easier than our journey to Ciampino airport. It was almost my 21st birthday and I couldn't believe it!!! Until next time, ciao!!

Cooking Risotto 101

My first ResGrad cooking lesson was this past Monday. And I was so excited to cook a traditional Italian meal and eat it, of course!! Creamy risotto was what we were cooking. The ResGrad, Alex, was going to teach us how to cook two types of risotto, giving lots of TLC (tender loving care!) to the dish: creamy mushroom and sweet pea fennel. Fennel is the vegetable that kind of resembles an oversized onion, but it actually tasted kind of like black licorice celery, and since I'm not a huge fan of black licorice, I didn't think I would like that type of risotto. But I was up for cooking the creamy mushroom risotto because we all know I loooooveeeeee mushrooms. :)

So anyways, after waiting for more people to show up for the cooking lesson, my roommate Kelly and I helped set up the kitchen, etc. We were designated as the official stirrers, since you have to constantly stir the rice so that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. And for this Italian rice dish, you don't steam the rice (usually hows Asians and Americans prepare the rice)- instead, you cook it in a little bit of olive oil, then add some rice, and then slowly add some type of broth- that night, we used a mushroom broth for both types of risotto. You add several spoonfuls of broth to the rice until it is absorbed into the risotto as you continue to stir it. Adding some white wine always makes the dish a little bit sweeter. Once the rice is cooked, add the additional ingredient (aka the mushrooms or the fennel and sweet peas) and voila- the meal is ready to eat. Kelly and I deserved some white wine for being such good stirrers and laboring over the heat of the stove. I think a little bit of my risotto stuck to the bottom- I guess I will learn to stir a little bit more next time. But the only way to learn how to cook is to practice, so I'll have to make risotto again sometime soon. Both types of risotto were delicious, by the way!! Even though I didn't think I would like the fennel, I tried it and it was pretty tasty. :) Cooking Risotto 101: I passed with flying colors. I'm off to Barcelona, Spain this weekend- can't wait to tell you all about when I return to Roma!!