WOah, the Vatican is hugeeee!

What started off as an early morning encompassed by rain ended up being sunny and beautiful. Sure it was a little chilly but it's going to be that way for a while.

It's officially the end of the month of January and that means that I was allowed to go into the Vatican for free! Check out these facebook pictures. Most of these images are from the inside of the Vatican. After getting home, I realized how much I hadn't seen yet. There was an entry fee for the rest of the rooms and chapels that I intend to save for another day =] That place is massive and words can't describe how hard it is to image how people built it with their bare hands. Besides the size, the marble was mind-blowing because I never knew it could look as smooth as silk, and as soft as flesh. Looking into the eyes of the figures sculpted was like watching a foreign movie. You don't always know what's going on but you can read from their body the emotion of the scene and the heart of way the characters interact. Here are also some points I jotted down in my mind...

1. It's HUGE!

2. The cardinals have a really legit changing room. 

3. Oh don't forget to get holy water from the angels before leaving =].

After the vatican I went back to my apartment with my bud Akshay and we made some awesome breakfast burritos! Delicious!! I ended up having more left over so I made some tonight with beef instead of home fries. I love wraps! They're so healthy and easy to make. nom nom nom. Anywho, we both also suffered from food coma but decided to go to the vendors that are only out on Sunday. There was so much for sale. I managed to get a cute dark chocolate leather purse for 5 euro (score!), 50ml Burberry perfume for 3 Euro, and 3 pairs of socks for 2 Euro (yes I needed them with all of this rain). So not too bad of a mini shopping day. I wish I was able to get this shirt that said I <3 Roma but the "o" was the Colosseum. Hopefully I'll find it again later.

My roommates just got back from Florence and said that leather was absolutely everywhere and for great prices! I'm totally excited to head over there sometime soon. Besides, I have to pay a visit to David and his two replicas. =D

Tomorrow will be filled with lots of homework and reading, but I'm so glad that after shopping I just wandered the city streets for a little while. It was sunny so I figured why not right? As I walked around I took some pictures and thought to myself, wow this place is so different in such a positive way. The people are beautiful, the amount of integrity they have for their traditions is inspiring, and I love that even though I get lost all the time, I always seem to find something new to appreciate. I feel that as many pictures as I take, this city is just something you have to witness in real life. That way you can find your own "lost" cobblestone path to something beautiful. Staying here helped me appreciate things back at home more already, but while I'm here I should try my best to take a few extra minutes out of my day to let go and just get lost. Just the other day, I saw this little boy that was in his puffy blue and orange jacket. He was standing there in a pile of white foam everywhere. It took me a second to realize he sprayed shaving cream all over the sidewalk, himself, and there was no way to cover up this mistake. He didn't even know what to do but you know even messes like that get cleaned up and so will any that we all make. It's kind of funny to think about these mistakes from time to time anyways. This little guy reminded me that I'm doing just fine in a new city and that mistakes will lead to good funny times.  I'm in Rome, I should probably do as the Romans do or at least try. *smiles*

Home clean Home

Saturday morning and I decide to get up and clean. Not just my side of the room but the ENTIRE apartment! Oh mama would be so proud. haha. I was so tired for seeing stuff everywhere, dirty and messy. I swept and mopped all but one room, cleaned the bathroom, bleached our shower curtains, took out the trash, cleaned the entire kitchen, cleaned the stove range (ugh), scrubbed the walls, and so much more. I even cleaned my roommate's side nicely and I must say, her bed is way nicer than mine now!

I love the final touch of the juicy couture scarf on top of the blue blanket. ;)

Either way I'm so happy that everything is just about spotless. I feel like I can walk around barefoot finally. After cleaning up I went on a run to the train station which was so awesome. When you're by the tracks it's kind of like a totally different place. I"ll be sure to have a photo spree over there sometime this semester. Unfortunately I couldn't pick up my train tickets for Venice vaycay there so I ran back towards home. I then got on the bus to the major train station called Termini. OMG it's so nice and is basically comparable to an airport. Bellissima! 

Mission accomplished!

BONUS! As I leave the station there was a vendor that had boots. After weeks of searching for boots, who knew I'd find the pair I wanted right there. In addition to them feeling like butter and a teddy bear mixed together, they were 20 Euro. SCORE! That's so much cheaper than anything else I've seen!

 

What a great day huh? I think the best part is that I'm starting to feel comfortable and familiar with the Italian culture in Rome. I know where to go to get certain things, I'm learning how to navigate around the city, I'm booking trips, I don't mind talking to my neighbors in my broken italian, and I feel like it's not as crazy cold as before. I do have a lot of italian that I need to work on, but with a willingness to learn I'm sure I'll be fine. It's also a good thing I know to cook fairly well to add variety to my food.  Everyday is I walk around and see tons of pizza, pastries, pasta, gelato and cheese. No wonder people gain weight so easily due to  carbs, dairy (no fat free anything here really), and sugar! I think I'm finally feeling at home though. This is my home for the next few months. I like it. =] <3. 

On a side note..something else I really like is this candle from IKEA. It's apple scented but I like to think it smells like my favorite japanese candy called hi-chew... delicioso =D It's like a little piece of good times from California.

 

 mMmm soo yummy!

eye-key-yuh (IKEA)! =D

So it's been a few days of no blogging but so much has been going on. I've decided to get over my professors that frustrate me and just get on with life. I auditioned for a musical at school entitled "RENT" and was casted for the role of Mimi. She is basically a dancer/stripper that is a coke addict (not coca cola although probably just as bad for you), and has AIDS. She's spunky, sexy, and upbeat though!!! I've also booked a place to stay while in Paris in February. I'm in the process of booking another place to stay along with tickets for Venice next weekend. I also will be planning out spring break in Barcelona (to start). SO much to do, so little time... oh yeah and I have to work on homework... psh. 

Speaking of homework this was the first drawing I did for my sketchbook class...

a few flaws here and there but hey.. not too shabby I feel. It was my first attempt at only working with pencils of different degrees of hardness/softness =]

It's still raining over here in Rome. Regardless of the sunny afternoons, we still seem to get rained on no matter what. =\ At least it's getting a little warmer. Either way it wasn't raining when I headed off to a mall called the Galleria Porta di Roma. It was hugee!!!  I didn't really get to pick up too much stuff but that's okay. I did manage to get a french press, which is way easier to clean, and use than the espresso makers here. Plus with a french press I saved money and can make a lot of tea/coffee at the same time! I also managed to find a braided leather belt! Of course I won't use it like in the image below but I thought it would be a fun photo...

 

I'm sure the rest of shopping with just come with time. Besides the vendors by school have amazing prices. Speaking of amazing prices, I love not having to pay tax on things here. Another big difference is that when we have sales here in Rome, they really are sales. In the states, I feel our sales are just ones that just discount the tax we pay. Unfortunately getting there was really long, but at least I got to use the train, metro and bus system today. It's actually not as confusing as I thought. Although later on that night I did take forever to get home because I had to figure out my way back from the mall. Not only that but it was pouring on me and my bag. In the mist of getting lost I stopped by a nearby grocery store and since you have to pay for bags here, I just said no and used my Ikea bag. As I stepped outside it continued to pour as my paper ikea bag got wet. With my luck, I knew it was going to tear... this is what happened:

As I exited off the bus onto my street I slowly see my milk bottle slide out from under the bag. In a panic I grabbed it and walked faster to my apartment. When I got there, things were peachy. In the elevator, they weren't. Thankfully one of my neighbors helped me and got me to the right floor. As I left the elevator and said my thank you, my loaf of bread slipped out of the bag LOL. Embarrassing much? lol!! I'm just glad I made it into my place with all of my groceries. What a night I tell ya and it's all thanks go IKEA! <3

The end! (for now) It's time for some snoozing =D goodnight!

Just another sunny day

First off I have a new haircut that I decided to give myself. The last time I had a haircut was 5 months ago. =O I also considered getting it cut by an italian but then I got really scared.... so I did it myself!! Check it out:                                                                      

BEFORE: 

& AFTER!!!

For a beginner in cutting hair, I feel pretty good about this cut! This was just another highlight of today. Regardless of the rain and my pants, that were soaked from puddles and driving cars, I walked around with my umbrella and "suppli" without a care in the world. I did well in my marketing class and also booked a trip for Paris in February. I hope that tomorrow morning I'll be able to plan out a trip to Venice with my friend Josh in the month of April. Yay!

I really thought that with the rain today was going to be so unbearable and cold but it really wasn't all too bad. Sure I really wanted to curl up in my warm bed, but, oh well, I got to learn how to use my camera semi-properly in photography class! Hopefully this ensures better pictures for the both of us to see in the future. =] I must get to drawing for my sketchbook class tomorrow though, but I'll write to you soon!  Ciao!

PS. thank you to everyone that has been commenting on my blog!! =D Love you guys!

Rainy Days

I just took a shower and as I placed my glasses on my face.. here is what happened...


 Fail.

I spent all of today doing laundry and trying to study. Unfortunately it'll be rainy all week and I have on site classes that could be anywhere in the city of Rome. This will be a cold week of walking for me and I can't wait for it to pass. I suddenly feel like I should have taken less classes so that I could travel to some place sunny. lol.

Something good that did happen was that I found a cute umbrella for 2.50 Euro.  I didn't mess up my laundry. I also got to teach my roommate Caitlin how to cook her first batch of pasta which was a nice highlight of today. It was fun sitting, talking over nutella, and looking at how good her pasta came out.

All of us are just pretty frustrated with our living situation: a clogged sink and smelly bathroom that hasn't been fully fixed since day one but whatever. Hopefully things get better. I must now go and attempt to fix my glasses. Someone bust out the masking tape!! =D

Late Night Clemintines

After a nap at 8pm. Here's how productive I was since I couldn't go back to sleep...

I <3 Clemintines.

It almost looks like an egg when you look at it quickly!

It's also 3 am and outside I could hear a group of girls singing "I can't wait to be King" from the Lion King . I now realize that one was my roommate. LOL

It can only get better right?

So for a little summary about how the rest of today went..

- I didn't get homework done.. yet.. the night is still young =]
- I made delicious chicken tacos for my roommates and I. Horrahhh for meat finally. I swear there isn't a lot of meat here, but the meat they have is good. Our tacos consisted of mozzarella, chicken, spinach, diced tomatoes, corn, and of course the tortilla that was nicely toasted on both sides. Nothing but the good stuff baby ohhh yeah.
- My roommate Kim and I cleaned the kitchen. She did laundry and I went grocery shopping my roommate Caitlin. (Note to you.. if you come to travel bring your own lotion so you'll save 5 euros on a small bottle.)

I also decided that so what if I'm not going on a trip yet with anyone. It'll happen and when it does I bet it'll be great. If anything I'm looking forward to learning more italian in the meantime. I told you I would feel better soon! =D Besides I did get a little bit of sunshine.... no hug yet but I'll take what I can get. tah tah for now! *hug*

Looking for some change and inspiration

It's Sunday afternoon and I've been up since 6am when Larry left to his next big adventure. I suppose it ended up being another lazy morning, but I did get up to video chat with HD for a bit =D yay! Today will probably be dedicated to homework and maybe some laundry. Washing clothes really isn't that dire of a task to do as of now. My roommate and I are still trying to figure out how our washing machine works. It tends to make sound like it's about to blow up or at least blast off into space as it tumbles our clothes in suds. As crazy as that sounds I secretly think it'd be kinda cool to see.

It's been less than a month here in Rome, and I don't think I'm homesick but I must say that I do miss a lot of things and people back in the states. I miss my microwave. =[ For those of you who were worried about my avocado and mexican food problem, I did manage to find a decent little mexican food restaurant by my place called "La Cucaracha". It's a 20 min walk, a bit expensive, but it was worth it to satisfy my craving. Speaking of food.. I should go grocery shopping again. Perhaps tomorrow I'll check out microwaves or something along those lines as well. Who knew it was such a luxury to have a microwave?

One thing I've been worried about was the fact that I haven't been writing in my journal that I purchased. I don't feel very inspired to write about anything yet I suppose. I'm still adjusting to this new lifestyle and those that I'm living with. They're all wonderful but they all seem to have their own "pair" since they requested friends from home for roomies. I, on the other hand, don't really have a pair. =\ Wow I sound pretty lame. I guess I'll just hope for a traveling buddy in the future.

I think another reason I haven't been inspired is due to some of my professors. I have one in particular that ensures our class that we won't learn anything because he can't teach drawing. He paints. My thought on that subject is... "why are you here teaching me then? Especially since I paid for your teachings? At least make me feel like I'll learn." We'll see how this class goes. Either way it'll be good practice for me to draw anyways. Hopefully the weather will be kind. It's been cold each day. Probably because I'm so used to west coast weather. I've been pretty freezing. For those that know me, my toes are like ice cubes haha =P

Anywho, I think it's time for me to be productive. I can't wait for something exciting to happen. Not that Rome isn't but living here isn't as luxurious as many would think since you can't enjoy it like a vacation.  Perhaps that's what I need to start thinking about it as now. Especially since I've finished buying books, paying for housing necessities, paying a housing key deposit, spending 166 euros for my permit to stay, and then some. I know I sound pessimistic, but I suppose I just need some sunlight and a good hug. In the meantime.. I tried to decorate a bit. I started with some origami butterflies =]. Luckily for them they don't have to walk to Venice.. they can fly.. oh wait so can I but on a plane lol. =D

PS: Thanks for reading. It's nice having someone to talk to. <3 See ya later! I promise I'll be more upbeat lol.

It's Early.... oh boy.

So originally got myself up to say goodnight to Hai Dao, but he had to sleep so I decided to blog. It's pretty early and my body is telling me to go back to bed, but first I'll give you some updates!

I uploaded another facebook album filled with adventures that Larry Combs and I had yesterday. It was pretty awesome. We came, we saw, and we basically conquered.

It was a little chilly but sunny outside, and we started our journey at 2:30 ish. We first went over to find a friend that MJ told us to find at the Vatican named Emanele, and then we turned our direction to shopping on Via del Corso. On our way we found a McDonalds that was so crazy! It was soooo nice and served gelati and tiramisu. I wish I got better pictures but there are a few on that album. I hope to try Burger King soon due to all of the hype I've been hearing about a mozzarella burger. As far as shopping goes, it was pretty packed. I did manage to find a nice jacket though! It's not realllly leather but it feels darn nice! I pretty much love it! It made up for my sadness of living without avocados for a brief moment.

On our way back home we decided to hop onto a taxi since it got so cold outside. Little did we know we'd be paying more than necessary due to the fact that our older taxi driver didn't know the right way to get to our place. Thankfully it was only a 2 minute walk to our place after, and we managed to stop by a grocery store. Even after getting food Larry goes down the street to find more food and goes back to the apt with a box of different types of pizza. I totally made fun of him because he decided not pick pizza for what was on it but to chose by color of the pizza. hahah one had potatoes on it and noodles on another! I only tried the potato one and it was cosi cosi (just alright). One good thing was that we found out was that my roomies and I love Bellini !!! Delicious stuff and I can't wait for our next bottle in the near future.

I won't tell you about the rest of the night, but I can tell you I was wiped out and surprised I actually got up this early in the morning. I think my favorite part of the day was seeing the amazing Trevi Fountain. I loveeeeeed it. That's baroque art for you. I know the rule is if you toss 1 coin that ensures your return to rome, 2 coins will bring you a new love, and 3 coins ensures a divorce. Apparently a new rule is that if you throw 3 coins with your right hand over your left shoulder, it'll bring goodluck. Iono about that one but wikipedia says so... that means it's legit I guess. It also says that an average of 3,000 euros go into the fountain a day and usually is collected to pay for food for the needy. =] pretty nice... It really is a beautiful work of art that everyone should see. Bring coins! I did ;)

I think I'm going to get food or hit the sack again but buongiorno everyone and thanks for reading!

( my coin toss reenactment) 

Morning Cravings

Status update: Jen officially misses California and it's happy Avocados. Apparently they're expensive here. I have to have some form of Mexican Food. My tummy is sad...

PS: if anyone wants to mail me a letter my address is:

Jennifer So Box: 740
Via Della Lungara, 233
00165 Rome (Lazio), Italy

Ta tah! I'm going to hunt for some food. =P.

Love and miss you all!

It's 3:30am and it's totally time for me to hit the sack. I figured I'd pay you all a little visit on jendotwoot anyways! It has been a fun night out in Trastevere and Campo di Fiori. Packed with people but nonetheless fun. Larry from CSULB is actually in town and he's residing on the couch in another room, and I must say, it has been extremely pleasant to catch up with a friend from back home. Today was another sunny and beautiful day. It was my 3rd day of classes and it couldn't have ended on a nicer note. I do wish I had a foot massage though. Heels and Roma don't mix well. There are way too many ways to sprain and angle with each step. =P

As far as my classes go here are just a few of my thoughts:

Marketing: My professor is intense and will be working us hard.

Italian: Pretty chill but I'm going to be learning a lot thankfully.

Digital Photography: Professor is a little difficult to understand but he has passion. Should be fun, frustrating, and exciting at the same time.

Roman Sketchbook class: Thankfully he won't be lecturing the whole time. He says he can't teach art and that it's not an art class. Hopefully he realizes he needs to at least pretend that we'll be learning. *crosses fingers*

Art History: Cool beans. The professor is German and a little hard to understand but he's exciting and hopefully we won't get too lost at each on site class.

I'm pretty stoked for the semester, but I hope my professors gain some enthusiasm. If they think they aren't competent to teach us then they should at least pretend to think they are. I signed up for classes for a reason. As much as people want the easier classes, I still feel we should be challenged and almost threatened that we won't succeed. It makes us push, work hard, and find our edge.

I think tomorrow will be filled with exploring. I can't wait to go shopping because I"m in dire need of shoes. Boots in particular. I think the highlight of my day today was getting my first italian cappuccino. It was one that was not only fantastic but also just .80 Euro. I hope for more bursts of awesomeness tomorrow. Can't wait!!

First Day of school

My first day of school started off on a good foot. It started with a delicious breakfast that I made myself, and then walking to class listening to music on my Ipod that has served as my best friend. =] Thanks Loc! Meh, I also arrived a bit late due to a last minute change in classrooms but whatever right? The morning was sunny as ever and my classes went smoothly. For those of you who watched "Love Actually", my Italian professor is adorable, and she reminds me of Aurelia. A little quirky, smiles a lot and speaks english in the same manner. She kinda looks like her too. She  says she wants us to call her by her first name, and also that calling her "professoressa" makes her sound old. How funny is she? The rest of the night carried on at a friend's apartment as we drank some delicious wine and tried to plan out some trips for the weekends to come. How exciting!

Although I only have one class tomorrow, I have a good amount of errands to run. Ekk. Wish me luck. OH! And Larry from CSULB will be in Rome. I'm looking forward to meeting up with him sometime tomorrow evening. yay! Anywho it's time for bed seeing how it's almost 3am here. ahh!. Have a great night/afternoon everyone!

Lazy Dayz...

I just woke up from a nap, showered, and realized that I slept past dinner time. :| bah humbug. lol I suppose it's better now that later so that I'll be able to sleep tonight. I had a weird dream that was pretty vivid. I was pretty tired so that probably had something to do with it. I dreamt that I was asked to get married in Europe, but I didn't. I ended up breaking the poor boy's heart, but we were still friends. Oh and I saw the most random people that tried attending the ceremony. Like Jessica Ranes and Kelly Panter from elementary school. As fun as it all was, I was glad I woke up and avoided the witch that was rolling down the street to attack people. =\. Don't ask... I don't understand it either.

School starts tomorrow morning for me, and my walk will commence at about 8:30am. I noticed that the sun comes out later over here, so I'll be walking in the cold and some darkness. Hopefully I won't get in an accident like the one that just happened right outside my apt.

As for today, I was kind of a bum. Still a fairly productive bum though. I bought a calendar to keep track of my schedule. I also bought gloves for 5 Euros down the street from this chinese girl that spoke italian and chinese. Unfortunately she didn't speak my lingo, but the gloves were very nice. I also went grocery shopping and I found a mind-blowing tube of mayo....

 so trippy... it's what you would see oil paints in! The way to break the seal was awesome. You just screw the cap tighter, and a piece at the nozzle gets pushed down to break the seal inside. OH and when you squeeze the tube mayo comes out star shaped. Kind of like frosting on a cake. =D I didn't take a picture of the ketchup, but the bottle cracked me up because it was labeled with the McDonald's logo on it. I also found out that ruby clementines are awesome, and the way to buy produce is as well. You weigh it, push a number and it prints out a receipt so you know exactly how much you'll be spending. Love that factor.

The only things I wish I found today were ziploc bags. I would LOVE that, and it would make life so much easier! Hopefully I'll come across some. Also for your dining pleasure, I found out the name of that delicious snack that I had. It's called "suppli", and here's a site with a good recipe for it : Suppli Me! Enjoy and let me know how it turns out please!! =D

<3,

Jen

Lost in the Ruins

Yesterday was the day that I finally was able to see some of the roman ruins that I've been dying to see. I took about 40ish pictures and make an album on facebook instead of uploading all of them. Here's the link: FacebookAlbum! Aside from that, here is my creeper status picture that I took. I just thought they were cute, minus the other man. Reminded me of someone I was missing at home, especially since it was our monthaversary...

Oh another cool thing I got to do in the morning was listen to my man Ben.. the Pope! He was blessing everyone in different languages at St. Peter's Square. I couldn't get a great shot of him but I still got him! St. Peter's square was pretty wicked, and it's about 2 minutes away from my place. I had no idea the square had 2 HUGE big screen TV's in it. I don't think the Roman's made those back then.

Unfortunately, the tour that I took with my school later on about Ancient Rome was pretty lame. We could barely hear our tour guide. There was an entire herd of us, and I ended up getting lost and going out to get groceries for the apartment. Thereafter.. I just got lost for a while. I eventually gave up and took a taxi back to my place. You probably would too if you were walking aimlessly in circles and with groceries. When I got back, I made myself dinner that consisted of tortellini.

The night didn't last all too long, but I did get to video chat with my little cousin Garry! Thereafter, I just ended up passing out around 10pm. I don't have class till Tuesday, but I have a feeling that I'm going to have to buy gloves. Especially with all of this cold weather that I'll be walking through for the next few months. I'm still sitting on my bed after having breakfast that consisted of more tortellini and eggs.. who knew they went together so well! =D Hopefully I'll get my bum up sometime soon, and face the cold that awaits me outside. Wish me luck, or at least warmth lol.

A Domani!

Side Note for my LDCers

I reside fairly close to the Vatican... They have a bell that rings every 30 minutes in the wee hours of the morning, and it makes me think of LDC when I wake up. KP TIME!!!! <3 I love you guys.

Sunday Morning

Buongiorno! This morning was yet another day when I got up around 5am. In Long Beach it would be 8pm. Slowly I'm getting hungry due to the fact that my tummy tells me that it's dinner time. I'm sure I'll get used to things soon. Something that I still haven't gotten used to here is how much smaller portions of food are in Europe. No wonder they're all so slim. Plus we walk everywhere!! ... ( wow.. I said "we". ) =]

Unfortunately I didn't get to blog recently due to the fact that I just ended up passing out on my bed. One night from a girls night out with the roomies, at our first Roman night at a bar. The other from just being exhausted. We literally walk everywhere, and I still feel like I've only seen a little slice of Rome. Hopefully this turns around. Besides I've been doing orientations all week anyways. I've been considering doing this bike tour that I saw an ad for on facebook. www.ibikeitaly.com. Maybe I'll try it! Just keeping my options open.

As far as updates go....

1. I found out that my roommate loves to party so I kinda have the room to myself at night. lol Here's a picture of all six of us on top of a terrace at school:

2. I signed up for a cooking session at school with a chef that has their own restaurant in Italy. I also signed up for dance. Then I figured, what the heck, let's try bellydancing too.

3. I've only seen 2 other asian students at school (not that it really matters anyways). 

4. That angry Italian neighbors are scary to the max. I would be upset too if my neighbors above me were talking at 3am. Probably louder than usual do to vino, jack, and then some. 

5. I learned how persistent Italian men are but if you brush them off nicely they're usually still kind and just bid you a goodnight. Also that personal space is very much nonexistent. 

6. I found that if you try and speak Italian, the locals will love you and smile. There are many that have given me things free of charge.

7. I learned that sometimes you do have to wear running shoes to walk in for the sake of your body. We walk everywhere and although you look like an American, it's worth it every now and then.

8. I got my ID!

9. My first gelato I tried here was Hazelnut. Unfortunately they were our of lemon which is apparently very good!  Oh well, I have 5 months to try it, and I also live next door to one gelateria. ;)

I've already befriended many locals and I finally was able to go into a journal store that I'd be dying to go to. I didn't expect to meet so many kind people that smile ALOT. The place is called "Officina della Carta", and the owner is named Gaetana. She's lovely and hand binds all of the journals and planners inside. She also was kind enough to make changes to my journal, free of charge. In this little store I also met Jan, who is an older American woman, that came back to Rome to learn Italian. She's pleasant, a little quirky but she was a doll. she also kindly translated some Italian for me as the owner was speaking. She hopes to meet up again for coffee and gave me her email. Abigale was another woman that came in with her son. He looked scottish but was fluent in Italian because he was born here. They were extremely kind and gave me pointers on amazing places to eat by school. It's crazy who you'll find in a small store :). Unfortunately it was getting late and I was by myself... ekk. So I said my goodbyes and will be returning on Tuesday to pick up my journal. Yay!

I'm still getting used to the culture here. The food is delicious, and there are these Italian rice balls that I tried the other day that were amazing!!! I'll have to take a picture and share the name with you when I remember it. I'll probably be returning today. =] It gets pretty cold at night so I think I should do some shopping. I wish there were more hours in the day here. Time seems to fly when you're eating good food. I can't wait to see what today will offer next. In the meantime, I'm going to hunt down some food. I really need to go to my favorite store soon.. the grocery store! Till next time.. ciao!

Scuzi, we're lost. Ooo food...

Ciao mi amici!

Today was a beauuuutiful day that started off not with rain but sunshine, and also a cool brisk breeze that you could feel tingle lightly on your cheeks. Maybe not so much for those on vespas speeding down the street but for me it was. My day started at about 5am due to the fact that the bells from the Vatican decided it was time that I got my butt up. It goes off every 30 minutes in the weee hours of the morning, but it's okay because I just hopped into bed later on. My roommates and I were basically in bed till the afternoon. Thereafter we met our landlord who goes by Josephina ( I think ) and let me tell you, she is exactly as comforting as the rest of the Italians that I've met today. She just swung by to let us know that a plummer was coming by. I'm the only one that speaks a lick of italian in my apartment, and I was the only one that was able to speak to our plummer. I was given one of my first few chances to use the language. Although it seemed like a miniscule feat, I was utterly proud of myself for speaking the language to each italian I met today. Broken italian but still A for effort. *fist pump*

Speaking of meeting people, I'd like for you to meet our pet and buddy that resides in our appartamento with all of us.  His name was Kevin, dedicated to Kevin from "UP", but we changed it to Carlos. Carlos' name derives from a recent film entitled, "the Hangover". Hope you all have seen it cause it's awesome.... just like him:

"Ciao! Mi chiamo Carlos! Sono di Roma."

After we all finally left our apartment we had to find our school for the first time ever alone. None of us knew where we were going, and unfortunately it took longer than expected. Needless to say we missed our orientations, but no worries because we can do it tomorrow morning. We did happen to find this amazing pizza place for our first warm slices of italian pizza! Delicioso!

totally different from American pizza!

yes it tasted as good as it looks!

One of my roomates. Meet Caitlin!

Eating here was great, and the woman helping us was lovely. One of my roomies dropped her pizza and the woman said, " Don't worry, don't be sorry. Be happy! " She kindly then gave my roommate another order of pizza for free. This hospitality is really what makes me feel at home and welcome regardless of where we come from. Just about everyone we spoke to met us with smiles and tried their best to communicate with us. It's almost like Olive Garden's slogan, "when you're here you're family".

So update on the luggage, it's still not here yet. Thankfully I have a guardian angel in LA that called in to LAX to help me track down the luggage. Hopefully it'll arrive within the next day. Thanks Hai!

Tomorrow will be packed with things to do and meetings to attend. I'm hoping for kind weather and a delivery from the airport. Before I leave to go to bed, here's a picture from the beginning of my walk to class!

A presto e buonanotte!

The First of Many Blogs to Come

Today was a normal Tuesday, except for the fact that I'd be heading out of the country for the first time ever! Not just anywhere but to Rome, Italy!

It's 7:36 pm in Italy but the morning time in sunny California where I was yesterday. Today was definitely an interesting day filled with little sparks of excitement for everything to come. It took me three flight hops to get here, and to be honest I think I prefer it that way as opposed to one long and straight flight. Getting to the airport was fairly easy. Leaving the one person that supported me the most about my goal to study abroad was not as easy. I blame the sad piano music that was playing for a few of my tears. Nonetheless I got through my flights, on time, and ready to rock and roll when I reached Rome.  I must say, the flights are pretty cool when you can't figure out what are clouds versus snow. The cities started to look like those little towns you make during Christmas time with a train that weaves around in it.

Also, the airport at Dublin was just as I hoped it would be. It was filled with Guinness everything! It was almost like a mall in there. Pretty wicked. Once I got off the flight in Rome though, I realized that my luggage had been lost. I gave myself two options: get mad or get glad. I chose the latter. (I type this with a big smile on my face as I sit in my roommate's clothes that she kindly offered to me. ) I then found my "shuttle" ride that ended up being a Mercedes that sped off to campus. Note to self: don't drive in Rome. They're crazy in traffic haha. After about 5 hours I finally made to my new spacious dorm room where I reside now. We have 3 bedrooms, one bathroom, 6 beds, a living room, a kitchen, a room to hang clothes to dry, and balcony with a view of the Vatican.

Anywho that's my first update on Italy! I'm running out of battery so I'll have to continue later but I hope you enjoyed the pictures! Don't worry there will be more to come! <3