Updates and Adventures!

Wow!  I'm so sorry it has been so long since I last posted! Things here have been so crazy!  Blogging is definitely much harder than I expected it to be.  I love sharing all the amazing things I'm doing while abroad, but it can be hard to sit down and take the time to update everyone.  I know that in the end it will be so worth it to have my time here documented, its kind of like a travel journal!  

So, time for the updates!  Two weeks ago I made two quick trips to Pisa and Bologna.  I went to Pisa on Saturday and had about 7 hours there.  I learned pretty fast that this was way to much time!  Literally the only two things that are in Pisa are the Leaning Tower and the Duomo.  So, I walked around, got lunch, and sat and read my book.  A tip for anyone traveling to Pisa--don't got for more than 3 hours or take another trip to Lucca which is a quick train ride away!  On Sunday, I made it all the way to Bologna only for it to be rainy and gross, so I returned to Rome shortly after.  On Monday we went to the North American College (NAC) for adoration.  The NAC is a seminary for American diocesan seminarians!  It is a pretty cool place.  It was an interesting experience getting there since there happened to be a monsoon on our way there. We were soaked, but it was still great!!  It really made me miss campus.  Later that week we had some professors from CUA in Rome and they performed an opera for us!  It was amazing to hear some beautiful music during Liturgy of the Word.  After we went out to dinner at an amazing restaurant a few blocks from school.  It was a fun evening.  

Last weekend was a whirlwind of events!  I was studying for midterms all day Saturday and at night I went with Rylee, Tim, and some of his Notre Dame friends out to dinner at a restaurant in Trastevere called Le Fate.  It was delicious and cheap!  They have a student menu for 10 euro that is homemade on site everyday, so good!  After we headed to Scholars to watch the Notre Dame game, they won which made Time pretty happy!!  On Sunday we woke up really early and were heading to St. Peter's for the CANONIZATION of seven new saints, including two from the United States!  There were so many people there and it seemed like all the Filipinos in the world were there!  It's as close as you get to the Philippines without actually going there!  It was an amazing ceremony with the Pope and being there for the canonization for Saint Kateri Tekakwitha and Saint Marianne Cope from the US!  

This past week has been insanity!!!  We had midterms and these were the hardest midterms I have ever taken in my life!!  I studied for hours slept for little, but I made it through--barely!  The one bright side to the week was our trip to the opera.  We went to see La Gioconda!  It was so incredible and the ballet was beautiful! I had such an amazing time!  Rylee's 21st birthday was on Thursday and I am so glad I was able to celebrate with her!!  I baked brownies, since she has been dying for them and went out to dinner.  My big surprise for her was filling the outside of her door with balloons so they fell on top of her when she opened the door, great success!  Now that this crazy week is over I am so ready for Fall Break!  Rylee and I are headed to Madrid, Barcelona, Amsterdam, and London!!  It should be amazing!!  Once I get back get ready for updates on my travels!!  

The Floating City

Last weekend we went on a trip to Venice!  It was amazing!!  We woke up early Saturday morning and took a 4 hour train into Treviso, a small city outside of Venice, where we checked into our hotel and had some lunch.  We went to a Celtic Pub down the street from our hotel and had a delicious lunch which included french fries!!  After lunch we were officially headed into Venice.  

We took a train into Venice and once we stepped off the train we were greeted with boats and boats and more boats!  Venice is such a cool city in that there are no cars or mopeds.  It is much quieter than Rome.  The two ways to get around in Venice are on foot or by boat.  There are boats all throughout the canals.  Also, Venice is sinking.  So if you come later in the year there are platforms to walk across because the tide rises and covers the streets!  Crazy!!  We took a boat to San Marco, the Cathedral of Venice dedicated to Saint Mark the patron of Venice.  We took a tour of San Marco and we had free time for the rest of the afternoon.  Rylee, Danielle, and I started walking throughout the streets of Venice.  Before we left our Italian teacher Letizia told us it was very easy, but beautiful, to get lost in Venice, well she was right.  We totally got lost in the streets, but it was amazing.  There were so many cute shops selling Venetian masks and Murano glass.  After awhile walking we decided to get Spritz, the local drink of Venice.  It's sparkling wine with Aperol, an orange flavored liquor.  It was delicious!  By far my favorite drink I've had here in Italy.  After our drinks we needed to get back to San Marco for dinner,  we realized that we were all the way back by the train station.  So, we hopped on a boat and had to take a 30 minute ride to San Marco.  We ran to meet the group for dinner, luckily we made it just in time.  Dinner was so good!  We finally had some seafood--something I have been waiting for since we got here.  We had pasta with mussels, clams, and shrimp.  After we had some salad and calamari!  So good!!  After dinner we headed back to our hotel for the night.  When we got back to Treviso, Caroline, Rylee, Danielle, and I walked around the city and stopped back at the Celtic Pub for some Spritz!

Sunday morning we woke up bright and early to get to Mass.  After a long walk around town we finally made it to a church for Mass.  After we went to mass it was a long walk back to the hotel, a quick breakfast and off to Venice!  When we arrived in Venice, Caroline, Rylee, Danielle, Rich, and I went to Murano--an island off the coast of Venice that specialized in blowing glass.  Let me tell you that the glass here is beautiful!!  They make anything you can think of!!  We walked around the island and saw a gondola race and a gondola parade, it was great!  After our morning on Murano, we went back to Venice.  We went exploring through Venice again, looking at the masks and we even went on a Gondola ride!  We also had an amazing lunch!!  After all of this free time it was time to head back to Rome.  We got on the train and expected a smooth ride back, but about three hours into the train ride we stopped.  Just stopped with no explanation.  After an extra two hours we finally got into Rome at 12:30.  Even with the train problems it was an amazing weekend!!

This weekend I am off on my own to Pisa, Bologna, Parma, and Genoa!  I am super excited!! I'll let you know how it goes!! 

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!