Everyday Life and an Italian Horror Story

After looking at most of my blog posts I've realized that I have been telling you about all of these amazing adventures I have been going on around Italy, but I haven't told you much about Rome!  It is hard to believe that I'm closing in on my sixth week here in Rome.  I have found that I love this city.  There is so much culture, beauty, history, and excitement all in one place.  Its amazing!  The one thing that I have found weird is how normal it feels to be living in Rome.  Rome is home.  

Farmer's Market!

Now that were in the swing of things school wise I am getting the hang of balancing school work and fun in Rome, which is definitely a good thing!  Last week we had our Italian midterm.  After 5 weeks of intense learning it was time to see how much I have comprehended, the good news is that it went very well, but I definitely have some more to work on!  This past weekend was my first full weekend in Rome with no other commitments or responsibilities, which made for a great time to to explore and relax!  On Saturday a group of us from CUA went to a Farmer's Market at Circo Massimo.  If you didn't know this already, I love farmers markets!  I just love the idea of getting fresh and often organic food right from the people who are growing or producing it!  Way to go local business support!  We were able to sample some delicious cheeses, honey, fruit, jam, bread, and olive oil.  And there was a real farm with live animals!  They were even giving out free bags of lettuce! Deal!  The best purchase of the day was organic apple cider, so so good!! 

Bees making organic honey!

Dome in Santa Maria in Angeli

In typically Italian fashion I have been seeing so many churches here.  There is literally a church around every corner!  This week in my Liturgical Art and Architecture class we went to Santa Maria in Trastevere and Saint Cecelia.  They were both beautiful!  After class I went with Rylee over to Tim's apartment for dinner.  Tim was going to make his famous potato soup.  Let it be known that I traditionally do not like soup at all, so eating this soup was a big deal.  I must say it did not disappoint.  It was delicious and I had fun helping Tim and Rylee prepare it!  Some other exciting developments here in Rome was Tuesday's strike.  On Tuesday all public transportation was shut down for a strike to promote the rights of workers.  This was my first experience where a strike has directly effected me.  Luckily it was a beautiful day and the walk to and from Italiaidea was great, but it really made me appreciate how lucky I am to be able to have access to public transportation.  And I am all for the rights of workers, so I am more than willing to deal with the strikes!

Santa Maria in Trastevere

Here is where we switch from everyday life to an Italian Horror story.  This is not urban legend, but true life accounts.  In order to be living here in Rome we must apply for a permesso di soggiorno, a permit that keeps me legally here in Italy.  Back in August I went through the first step of the application--forms and fees.  Somehow I only paid about half of the actual cost of the permesso, which I have been told was the old price.  I thought/knew this was wrong, but when I asked this was the correct price I was told it was correct.  After paying I talked with Dr. Dawson and Aurora who assured me that my "discount" was really just a mistake by the government and I got lucky.  On Thursday we went to do the second step of the process--fingerprinting.  Unknowingly this process took SEVEN hours!  It was terrible.  We left the dorm at 9:30 for our 11:30 appointment, yes it did take an hour and a half to get there.  We had to take the metro to Termini, switch to the B-Line and take that all the way to the end, it seemed like the end of the world.  But, getting there was not yet finished.  We hopped on a bus that took us to the Italian Immigration Office.  Once there we learned there would be a lot more waiting.  At 11:00 the 10am group had not even been let into the building.  By 1:30 we were finally let in for our 11:30 time.  Disaster.  But hey, it gets worse.  When I got there they did not seem to have all of the forms I submitted during the first part of the process.  Since I had my receipts they let me through, but I did not have a good feeling about this.  45 minutes later I was taken back to get my fingerprinting.  I was then informed in a lot of Italian and then broken English that since I didn't pay the full amount during the first part, I could not get a permesso.  Basically what this means is that I do not have a permit to be in Italy, so if I try to leave and reenter the country I will not be allowed.  That may not seem like a big deal, but with fall break in three different countries approaching this is terrifying.  Currently I am at a stand still to see if I will be able to go on all of trips I have planned, but I'm trying to work it out.  I will keep you updated.  As for now, Italian Bureaucracy-1 Amanda-0.  Update on my horror story...all is right in the world I can travel in and out of Italy no problems and I don't have to pay to get another permesso.  Thank God!  Italian Bureaucracy-1 Amanda-2 VICTORY!! 

Other than that huge misstep I am really enjoying myself here!  We are headed to Venice for the weekend, which should be great!!  I can't wait to tell you all about it!

P.S. Here is a hilarious YouTube video my friend Caroline introduced me to. Watch This! You will not be disappointed!