Small World (Friends, Food, and...more Food!)

Chillin' in Roma

I think April has been my favorite month in Rome.  The weather is getting warmer, the flowers are blooming, and I have had wonderful company all month long!  The first weekend, Mom and Grandma visited.  The second, Liz and I went to Venice.  And the third, Travis!

St. Peter's during Holy Week,
CRAZY!

Things I learned this week:

1. Easter Week in Rome is crazy!  

There are so many people!  The program alumni warned me that come spring time, I would be grumbling about tourists just like the locals, but I've tried to keep in mind I'm just an extended tourist with no right to get annoyed.  People flock to DC and Michigan all the time because they are beautiful places to visit.  Rome is an even better example.  It's an amazing place that I think everyone should see.

Drinking from the fountain at
the Orange Gardens

2. I know my way around!

Every time we went downtown, we probably took a different bus line.  I'm glad I've worked out how to get where I need to go, even if it took four months.  Anyway, this came in handy when running around the city all weekend.

The Forum

3. I walk, A LOT!

My sense of distance has made the European switch!  (At least part way.)

Between sporadic bus strikes, getting lost and confused, and not having a real winter, walking is just a bigger part of life here.  When I get back to DC, I hope I don't bother waiting for the AU shuttle to take me the 3/4 of a mile to the metro.

Piazza Navona
(Prettiest at night)

4. I'm not very good at bargaining down prices with street vendors.

Travis, with his months of Jordanian Bazaar training, kind of showed me up on that front while buying a little something for his host sister.

5. I don't appreciate trees enough.

...According to the guy currently living in the desert, but I think it's a good point anyway. 

Spanish Steps
Ahhhh!

Before I left, our program advisor told us "Yes, go see Europe, but don't forget about Rome!"  She's right.  It's easy to get caught up in travel and school.  Sometimes, on my free days, I'd rather just sleep in, relax, and watch a movie.  And that's fine every once and a while, but there is a lot to see in this incredible city and I'm glad I've had this month to run around it with friends and family, putting to use what I've learned in my "All Rome All the Time" semester.

Trevi Fountain!

So we did St. Peters, the Capitoline Hill, the Forum, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Famous Keyhole, the Orange Gardens, Trastevere, Monteverde, Tiber Island, AUR, Giolitti, and Villa Pamphili.  Whew.

But while playing tourist, we dove into the real Rome.  We ate at my favorite restaurants: Le Fate, MoMo, and we even tracked down the best pizza in Rome at Dar Poeta. MMM!

Villa Pamphili

On Thursday we had a picnic on the Aventine Hill. We took the bus up to school and walked into the deli on the corner.  The two guys at this place really know their trade, because they throw together delicious sandwiches with fresh cheese, meats, and sauce.  I ask for two sandwiches.  They ask what kind, and I say "una sorpresa!"  I love going there because the whole experience is just so Italian, and the sandwiches are amazing!

MoMo Desert!

Easter Monday night, I was surprised by our dear family friend Gary and his wonderful fiancée Amy.  We had dinner at Le Fate which included some excellent Cacio e Pepe pasta and a mysterious "Chocolate Salami."

 Food, Friends, and Rome!  What more could one ask for?

Well, I guess one could ask for more photos.  So here they are!

"The Most Beautiful City Built by Man." (My Weekend in Venice!)

Northern Michigan is my absolute favorite place in the world.

Emily in Venice!

It's difficult for me to imagine a summer without going to Michigan Beach, sailing on Lake Charlevoix, and swimming in Oyster Bay, or a winter without the beautiful snow, half frozen Great Lakes, and delicious Woolly Bugger hot chocolate.  If I don't find an internship for this summer, I will be seriously considering moving up there for a few months.  I could teach swimming lessons, give yoga classes, and fulfill my life long dream of being a dock hand for Shepler's Mackinac Island Ferry Company while teaching myself to sail.

Grand Canal

Where is all of this reminiscing and fantasizing coming from?  This weekend, I found very similar place: Venice!

My dear friend and fellow international traveler and temporary European, Liz Swarthout visited last week.  After a few days of sightseeing, gelato, Italian class, gelato, Italian food, and yes, more gelato, we embarked on an adventure!

Venetian Traffic

We started early Friday morning.  We left the apartment at 7 to get to the train station before the bus strike started.  After some wandering, browsing, and shopping, we boarded the train and I promptly fell asleep.  Four hours later, we walked out into a very busy piazza.

Canal-side Churches

Venice is beautiful.  I think it's a lot like Mackinac Island, except with gelato instead of fudge, gondolas instead of horse-drawn carriages, and beautiful hand-blown glass instead of Petoskey stones.  Everywhere you look there are adorable shops selling jewelry and postcard-worthy views are around every corner.  I would love to spend a few months there, maybe after tourist season.

Rialto Market

Our first day, we found ourselves a bit overwhelmed, so we did the only reasonable thing and declared that day "Wander and Shop Day."  We followed the flow of people from the station to Piazza San Marco, stopping along the way for sandwiches, gelato, and a few pretty little things.

Amazing Architecture!

In my Italian class, we talked about the unique economic structure of old Italy.  Instead of one industrial center, everything was spread out and worked together in a web.  Rome is the city of government and metals.  Florence is the city of marbled paper and leather.  Milan is the city of fashion.  Venice is the city of glass and lace.  In Florence, I got my leather jacket.  In Venice, I had my eye's peeled for the perfect Murano glass watch.  After looking in countless shops, I found it.  The face is surrounded by the Venetian "Thousand Flower" glass design.  It's framed by gold gondolas that hold the muted silver leather strap.  I love it!

Beautiful!

Just another little canal

Two weeks before Ash Wednesday, Venice is overtaken by figures in elaborate costume and decorative masks for Carnivale, a historic festival that hid the identities of the guests so there was no distinguishing features to identify members of different social classes.  One of my professors explained the elite used it as an opportunity to be quite naughty and get away with it.  It's a huge festival with fountains of wine, parties, dancing, and beautiful art.  Masks are sold on virtually every street corner and we had fun trying on all the different colors and shapes, putting most of them back because huge feathers are not fans of backpacking as a method of transportation, but we did find a few that didn't mind the journey back to Rome.

Gondola's Galore!

After a successful day of shopping and getting used to our surroundings, we planed day two, the "Sightseeing and Photo-taking Day!"

We started the day by taking a Vaporetto (boat bus) down the Grand Canal from the train station to the tip of the main island.  We slowly walked back along the winding paths, being sure to take a few deserted side roads and being rewarded with picturesque canals, bridges, and churches.  By the end of the day, we had toured San Marco, wandered through beautiful courtyards, and crossed the three large bridges that span the Grand Canal.  We grabbed one last gelato before jumping on the train and heading back to Rome.  It was a wonderful trip!

You know what would make this blog post even better?
That's right! MORE PHOTOS!

Home Sweet Home Meets Home Sweet Rome

Nothing cures a little homesickness like a little bit of home!

AUR!

Capitoline Hill!

I spent the first five days of April with Mom and Grandma (who would now like to be referred to as Nonna). 

 We had a great weekend of sights, food, and fun!  Unfortunately I had class the Monday and Wednesday that they were here, but we did a pretty good job of squeezing in as much as possible.  So, here is a little photo-blog post!

Giolitti!

Pantheon!

On Saturday we met at St. Peters!  After some much-needed rest, we went to the Pantheon, where it was PACKED! I guess I underestimated tourist season.  After a lovely dinner on Piazza Navona, we strolled over to Giolitti for some of the world's best gelato, and then found my friend the mime!

MoMo!

Papa! (Italian for Pope!)

Sunday a late bus made me miss seeing the Pope. :\ When I get back to DC, I promise not to complain about the metro as much.  We made our way to my apartment and has some Supli! Yum!  Then we went up to school, down to Piazza Venezia, Capitoline Hill, and the Forum, and finished the night at MoMo Republic, where I had my Birthday Dinner back in February.  MMMMM!

Florence!

My European Shot

Monday I had class, but we made up for it with a day full of sunshine, sightseeing, and shopping in Florence!

Wednesday I had class again, but Mom and I had a late dinner, hit up Scholar's Irish Pub, and wandered around St. Peter's at 1 in the morning.  It was awesome!

I have just under five weeks left.  It's going to be five weeks packed full of awesome adventures! Oh yeah, and some of that school stuff too.