YORO

YORO: You Only Rome Once. The other day my roommate Katie came up with this saying as a joke but all of my friends loved it so much it quickly became the catch phrase of our trip.

I have now been in living in Rome for 18 days. 18 DAYS!!! It feels like I've been here for months. Even though I can't speak the language, I'm starting to feel like a local. I love taking the metro to different parts of the city and I've walked the city so many times that I'm actually familiar with street names. I was even able to give a lost Australian couple directions the other day!

This week my friends and I finally made it inside of St. Peter's Basilica. Vatican City is beautiful on the outside but the inside is so gorgeous its almost magical. It's hard to explain exactly how I felt standing inside of the basilica. I guess overwhelmed would be the best adjective to use. The statues, mosaics, paintings, and other decorations that adorn the church are massive but they are breathtakingly beautiful at the same time. As a Catholic it was so cool to be able to see the heart of my religion.  My grandma would be proud to know that I took the opportunity to pray in one of the designated prayer rooms.

My friends and I went to the Vatican on Thursday when the weather was sunny and in the high 50s/low 60s so we decided to climb to the top of the basilica. For those who don't know, I absolutely hate heights so this climb was a big deal for me. However in the end I wasn't even that afraid. I was way too busy focusing on my breathing and trying not to die as I climbed the hundreds of stairs that lead to the top. Although the view was worth all of the fear and exhaustion.

I don't have class on Fridays, so this Friday I spent the day at the wedding cake monument and the Colosseum.  The Colosseum is everything I pictured it to be. I can't wait to book a tour and see the inside of it. The way that modern day Rome is built around all of the ancient ruins like the Forum and Colosseum blows my mind. Its crazy to me that on my 20 min walk to school I pass buildings and statues that are hundreds, if not thousands, of years old.

This week was also kind of crazy because three of my new friends celebrated their birthdays. We celebrated in small ways during the week (I made a cake, my roommates made sangria), but on Thursday my friends and I all went out to dinner to celebrate properly. We went to dinner at this rather infamous restaurant named Tony's. The owner, Tony, loves american study abroad students so he gave us free appetizers, dessert, and champagne. We had a blast.

On Saturday my friends Mackenzee, Shannon, Katie, Mackenzie, and I took a day trip to this little town named Tivoli. Tivoli is this little town outside of Rome that is know for its fountains and gardens. It was a fun and peaceful day trip to take with the girls. And it was cheap! We took the train and the whole day (including lunch) cost me about $15.

I think that's about it for this week. Here are some pictures! Enjoy!

(From top to bottom: me outside of the Vatican, my friend Ryan and I inside of the Vatican, the view from the top of the Vatican, the Colosseum, fountains at Tivoli, more Tivoli fountains)

Assisi

My first week of school flew by!! So far I'm liking all of my classes. I am taking beginning Italian, Film and Mafia (a class during which we watch movies about the Italian mafia), Art Therapy, Sketchbook Rome, and a literature class. My two art classes are my favorites by far. I don't spend a single day in a classroom for my Sketchbook Rome class. Instead we meet up at different spots of the city and spend the time sketching different things! This week we drew different items we liked in a cathedral and we also sketched what we saw in the Piazza del Popolo. 

Even though classes started this week I have still been getting out to explore the city. I also partook in a wine tasting workshop at my school on Monday.

On Friday my friends and I decided to venture outside of Rome so we took a day trip to Assisi. Assisi is this little town north of Rome. It's famous for its stone houses, narrow streets, stunning views, and patron saint; St. Francis. In order to get to Assisi my roommates Mackenzee, Mackenzie, Shannon and I took the train. All four of us fell in love with the tiny town. Because this time of the year isn't prime tourist season, we pretty much had the town to ourselves. We saw several smaller cathedrals but we ended our day with a visit to the famous Cathedral of St. Francis. The basilica was beautiful and we even got to see St. Francis's tomb (he's buried underneath the church). 

After our encounter with St. Francis my friends and I went back to the train station to wait for our train home and to grab some dinner. We ended up at eating at McDonald's because every other restaurant we came upon was closed! The menus at Italian McDonald's are pretty different than the menus at McDonald's in the U.S. Here in Italy they offer a "Taste of America" menu. This features several different cheeseburgers all named after major U.S. cities like Chicago and New York, mozzarella sticks, star shaped chicken nuggets, and waffle fries. Oh and Italian McDonald's also make you pay for ketchup. Not cool McDonald's. Not cool.

The girls and I got back to Rome around 11pm Friday night. On Saturday morning I got up early and went to the Vatican Museum. That was spectacular. For those of you who don't know, I LOVE museums. I can spend all day in one, and actually that's exactly what I did on Saturday. Ryan was the only one of my friends who wanted to go with me, so the two of us spent over 4 hours exploring all of the different exhibits the Vatican has to offer. One of these exhibits was the Sistine Chapel. That place blew my mind. I wish I could have taken pictures to show everyone but taking pictures of the art on the walls in the Sistine Chapel is strictly forbidden. Ryan and I saw several people get kicked out for trying. After seeing the Vatican Museum Ryan and I wanted to go into St. Peter's Cathedral but the line was way too long. I do plan on going back sometime soon though and I hear you can take pictures inside there.

I saw Britt twice the weekend! We spent a lot of time planning our trip to visit our friend Cora who's studying in England. That was pretty much it for this week. Enjoy the latest pictures and I'll update again soon!! 

The Past Few Days

Like my roommate Liz likes to say, we killed it these past couple of days. Although it has been raining non stop for the past two days my friends and I haven't let the weather slow us down. We've explored some new areas and we've already ventured back to places like the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. Today (Super bowl Sunday) we left the comfort of our dry apartment in favor of finding Terme di Diocleziano (the Baths of Diocletian) and Altare della Patria (the monument erected in honor of Victor Emanuele II, the first King of unified Italy). Both places were absolutely stunning and they were dripping with history. Because the weather was so bad, my friends and I pretty much had the places to ourselves.

In ancient Rome, it was very popular for the people to gather in the large bath houses in the city. The Diocletian baths were the grandest public bath house in Rome. Unfortunately today the actual bath parts of this amazing site are crumbling in ruin. The basilica (church) part, however, still remains intact and it is beautiful.

  The first picture is a view of the basilica from the entrance. The second picture is of the inside of the church. To give you an idea of how massive the building is, you can see my roommate Liz standing in the bottom of the second picture.

After the bath house it was on to the Altare della Patria, or as the locals call it, The Wedding Cake monument. Most Romans aren't a fan of this site. They think its far too large and gaudy. The middle of the monument houses Italy's version of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the top of the cake offers spectacular views of Rome. Unfortunately because of the pooring rain, I didn't get any pictures from the top of the building. I promise to go back soon though and post the pictures I end up taking.

The past few days have also been exciting because my friends and I have figured out how to navigate the public transportation systems! We have successfully ridden the metro (subway) and the city buses without any problems or picked pockets. 

Last night while we were on one of our metro adventures, my friends and I stopped at a random restaurant for dinner and ended up making friends with the owner. After dinner the owner (Daniele) invited us up to his rooftop bar next door and gave us free desserts and a round of free drinks. 

It has been so much fun exploring Rome uninterrupted for the past four days. Tomorrow, however, I actually start taking classes. Wish me luck! Ciao bellas!