Ciao a tutti! Mi chiamo Megan, e sono di Orange County in California. Ora, sono a Roma e abito a Residence Candia...
Just kidding. I promise to write this blog in English and use my Italian sparingly. If and when I do write in Italian, I will include some sort of translation. :)
For some of you, you may have been looking at my pictures on facebook or via email, but I feel as though I need to give you the real story behind my adventures in the Eternal City (La Citta Eterna). True, I've been here almost three weeks, but I figured it's better late than never. Plus I know that as I continue to explore this country and others, I will have a lot that I want to share with you. So, that being said - Let the storytelling begin...
Before August 17th
Ah, August 17th. The day when I summoned my courage and prayed to God that I would make it to Rome and then back home alive. Before that Monday, life was really challenging because I knew that I had never been away from home for this long before. My fears ranged from missing the ones I loved the most, to not being able to make any friends, to wondering whether or not I would be able to survive this city at all.
As many of you know, my heart was set on studying abroad before even going to college. My Dad promised me that if I went to a UC school, studying abroad would be an option. (Clearly he passed on the travel bug.) Enter UCLA and one day at both St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican. Presto! My university and the city that I needed to explore more thoroughly. Jump forward two years - I completed the application and challenged myself to fulfill this dream.
Preparing over the past few months was not easy by any means. Tears fell frequently, stress surged throughout my body, and heartache was too common. Yet, I knew that I needed to go. Why? I need this semester because I want to grow as a person and to show myself that I am capable of being an independent, strong woman. I'm not at that point yet, but I feel that by the time I leave the Eternal City, I will be.
Week One
Monday, the 17th, was the big day. I made it through the day without falling apart completely, although that is debatable. Key point - I made it through security and forced myself onto the plane. That's the important part. Thanks to Sonata, I slept 6 hours on my flight from LAX to Heathrow. (God BLESS sleeping pills.) Upon arriving in Heathrow (8/18), I went through another round of security and ate a sandwich before boarding my second plane to Rome. A short while later, 18 hours of flight and airport time finally came to an end. Once I landed in Rome, I recognized some of the UCSD students who would be staying at my hostel that night. I befriended them while grabbing my luggage and then met my driver. I never went through customs; there were no customs to go through. We were just allowed to exit...scary, right? Anyway, the taxi driver drove me to the Pensione Ottaviano Hostel. Oh My Goodness. What an experience. I stayed in a room with random people (three of whom turned out to be UCSD students), didn't bring a lock to store my valuables, and didn't have a towel with which to dry myself. Not so fun. My original plan was to just try to fall asleep again, but luckily, I joined the nine other students for a welcome dinner in Rome. (See my first Roman pizza below.)
Dinner was pricey, but what else can you expect when you eat so late? ;) After that, we returned to the hostel, and I crashed yet again. Morning came quickly, and before I knew it, I was getting ready to really start my stay in Rome.
8/19 - I walked by the Piazza di San Pietro while trying to find the Accent center. I honestly couldn't (and still can't) believe how close I am to the Vatican. The Pope and I are practically neighbors! How AWESOME is that? Answer: VERY. Well, after getting a five second set of instructions on where I was living, I walked back to the hostel, shoved my bags in a taxi and left for Residence Candia. My room wasn't ready when I got there, but I did end up meeting one of my roommates, Alycia. She helped me a lot with move in, as did her wonderful mom. Most of Wednesday was just getting settled and preparing for a very fun outing with half of Residence Candia. One of my apartment-mates, Haley, was celebrating her 21st birthday, and we filled a restaurant to celebrate it. :)
8/20 - First trip to the market where we bought fresh veggies and fruit, gathering some food before orientation number one. At 1:30, we piled into Teatro dell'orologio to have Tim Gunn, whoops Stephen Conger (the program director), tell us about life in Rome. We didn't learn anything big, other than "we must attend an opera before leaving" and that "we entered a calm city when we arrived, but it will be incredibly crazy in just two weeks time." Okay - somewhat informative. Almost everything was closed because all of Italy likes to vacation simultaneously, and I'm pretty sure that gypsies were on vacation too, considering that they now swarm the Vatican walls... Post meeting we explored the city a bit. We stumbled upon the Pantheon, and I ate my first gelato in Rome! Lemon flavored, of course. :D
8/21 - Academic Orientation. Fun? Eh. This is where Professor Hairston told us to "front load" all travel plans because this program has a much heavier academic program than most. Way to kill the enthusiasm. :/ However, whatever was lost at this orientation was regained that afternoon. Getting a phone, seeing the Spanish Steps, riding the metro, eating. So good. Then, we topped off the day with the Spanish Steps pub crawl. Yes, you can believe it; I did a pub crawl with my roommates and a lot of people from our building. That was an experience...
8/22 - A day that was much more my pace. I went to the beach at Santa Marinella, swam in the Mediterranean, ate gelato, and had a very relaxing evening in Candia.
Week Two
8/23 - This Sunday has two words to describe it - hot and exhausting. At 10:30, I signed up for a walking tour of the Forum, Palatine, and Colosseum with school. Never mentioning where the meeting location was, my roommates and I walked to school. WRONG. When no one showed up, we decided that we should probably walk to the Forum. By that point, we had been walking for a good 45 minutes. Luckily, our group was just outside the Forum, and we caught them before they went inside. The Forum was incredible, especially since we had such an incredibly knowledgeable professor as a tour guide. I saw the exact point where Julius Caesar was cremated, where ancient Roman Senators met, and where the Vestal Virgins carried out their thirty year reign. Unfortunately, the heat was beating down on me so much that I didn't have the energy to walk the entire Palatine. Instead, I grabbed lunch with Alycia, Haley, and Julie and proceeded to explore the Colosseum. This, by far, is my second favorite building in Rome. Gladiators fought "dangerous beasts" there, and the common people watched as man destroyed man. The immense history that took place there was simply astonishing.
That night, I'm pretty sure that I ate the best cannelloni that I've ever had (L'Angoletto ai Musei); it kept me full and made me feel good the night before I started my first intensive Italian class.
8/24 - It's no secret that I'm crazy about school; why would it be any different here? ;) I challenged myself and signed up for the advanced beginners' class which put me in a room with students who already have a quarter of Italian under their belts. I'm happy to report that I am holding my own in this class, although I'd like to make the argument that my French is still much better. I guess only time will tell how I do speaking Italian... That night, after a long day, the school put on a student dinner - hello four courses. :D Sleep quickly followed, especially since the lasagna sent from the gods made me quite tired. lol
8/25 - 8/28 - I am so sorry to disappoint those of you who were expecting some fun stories from these days. I honestly spent almost all of my time either in the grocery story getting what I needed, sleeping from being overwhelmed, and studying my butt off for Italian. I cannot emphasize how much I needed to study for Italian - when they said intensive, they meant it. The only interesting part was Thursday night when I ate at "La Cucaracha," the Mexican restaurant up the street. It wasn't disappointing, but it wasn't the greatest either. My beef burrito was really a few tiny pieces of beef with heaping pile of beans. Interesting to say the least... Friday, I survived my first of three Italian exams, ate a calzone with prosciutto, and was quite happy knowing that I would spend the following day walking in St. Francis's steps...
8/29 - Prayer, Peace, Perseverance. Do these words sound familiar to you? I don't expect them to, unless of course you went to St. Francis of Assisi elementary school. Even if you did go there and still don't recall these words, good for you. It means that your brain has made space for better memories. (just kidding...lol) Anyway, with my elementary school's motto in mind, I departed with thirteen other girls for Orvieto and Assisi at 6:45 am. Thank goodness we had such a long bus ride to Orvieto, because I crashed on the bus like I'd never slept before. The air conditioner made it feel like an igloo, and I was so relaxed that two naps followed later that day. After waking up from siesta number one, I was at the base of Orvieto and had to take a funicolare to the top. It was fun! Then we rode on a bus to Il Duomo di Orvieto, or the Orvieto Cathedral. This cathedral has a black and white facade, and it was built in the 14th century.
Following my brief stop in Orvieto, I then traveled to the heart of Umbria, where I got to taste fresh chianti wine and delicious olive oil. Sooo yummy. I then ate bread, pasta, turkey, and panacotta. Green Line Tours clearly needed to feed me before I spent the rest of the day in Assisi. Once I made it to Assisi, I had a new perspective on St. Francis (the saint, not the school). St. Francis focused not on conversion but rather on peace between humans and the world around them. He befriended animals and created a new face for the Catholic Church. He escaped Assisi's walls and spent a life devoted to God and to good works. Santa Chiara (Saint Claire) adored St. Francis and followed him, abandoning her position as a noble and creating her own order of nuns (the Poor Claires).
The above pictures show what I saw for the rest of the day. First is La Basilica di Santa Chiara, simple and classy. No pictures were allowed inside (just like in St. Francis's), but even the picture wouldn't do it justice. The altars were AH so pretty, and I was lucky enough to pray before the cross where God spoke to St. Francis. Then, I walked down into the crypt, where I walked by St. Claire's body. It laid there, still perfectly preserved, although covered in wax. I'm not sure what you're supposed to do when you walk by the body of a saint. I didn't know, so a simple prayer and sign of the cross sufficed. After visiting her basilica, I ventured with the group over to La Basilica di San Francesco, pictured at the bottom. (The middle depicts the walk to St. Francis's Basilica.) This basilica was even more magnificent than St. Claire's. St. Francis's tomb lies in the center of a crypt, and his four followers' remains surround him. In this tiny room, I made an offering with a while candle at the foot of St. Francis's tomb and prayed with Franciscan priests next to me. SO cool. I finished the tour with a stop at Santa Maria delli angeli, where St. Francis passed away.
It was quite the religious day, if you couldn't tell. I made a lot of wishes, said a few prayers, and stood in front of holy people's tombs. I really, truly enjoyed myself, even though it rained on the way home. That night, I grabbed some pizza with Haley and Julie and then went out to explore Roman night life.
Week Three
8/30 - Only word for last Sunday - relaxed. I went to the grocery store, bought food, and went shopping at H&M. Dinner, then sleep. That's it. :D
8/31 - 9/1 - Some more chill days simply doing homework, buying a monthly bus pass, and napping. I had a mandatory academic meeting (boring and repetitive) and a conversation class that also filled my afternoons. Nothing too exciting.
9/2 - I had class in the morning and a volunteer meeting in the afternoon. Why, then, does this day mean so much to me? I finally went into St. Peter's Basilica for the second time in my life. I went by myself and allowed myself to take time wandering from piece to piece, chapel to chapel. I must have spent ten to fifteen minutes at the Pieta; it is hands down the most magnificent sculpture in the world. It makes me feel Mary's sorrow and anguish all the way down to my toes. Pictures can try to give you the feeling, but until you are within a few feet of it, you will never get the full impact of its power. Just - wow. From there, I continued wandering, praying in front of chaples, seeing preserved popes. I touched St. Peter's foot for luck, stood by the altar where only the pope himself can say mass, and stared up at St. Peter's dome. I am vowing now that I will climb to the top before I leave Rome. Okay, okay, Megan. You've been there before, and we all know that you love churches. Why was this trip so great? Answer: I went to mass. In Latin. Next to nuns, priests, and visitors alike. Simply incredible.
(Pictures above - La Pieta, St. Peter's Dome, Where I attended Mass at 5:00 pm)
That night, my landlord Gianni cooked dinner for all those in the apartments. It was his "super big party." The free food was wonderful, not only because of its price but also because Gianni made it himself. He's such a sweet man. He also invited members of the Swiss Guard to dinner, who politely answered everyone's questions about their funky job. I concluded that night with an early bedtime before my composition the next morning.
9/3 - Yesterday, I again studied my butt off for my second Italian test. Busy busy busy. For dinner, I went to a Chinese restaurant that wasn't half bad. I ate sweet and sour chicken and drank Coke Light. (Note to everyone - Coke Light is NOT Diet Coke. Diet Coke is SOOO much better.)
9/4 - I have finally made it to today. I took my second Italian test, drank a cappucino with milk for energy, and have since spent the entire afternoon creating and writing this blog. Now, I should be able to post things more frequently and at less length. My roommates have a friend in town, and we are taking her out for an Italian meal at L'Angletto. Gotta love it. Tomorrow morning, I am heading to Venice! I will be there for approximately 32 hours, and I promise to write about the city under water as soon as I return.
Thanks for reading/skimming/looking at the pictures on my first blog post. If you want more pics, just check my facebook, as it's the easiest way to post them all. Arrivederci!
(This picture is the Bridge of Sighs. So pretty!)
Christie and me, sitting on the Spanish Steps
Christie and me, sitting on the Spanish Steps
