The Thing About Study Abroad is There's Studying Involved

Alright so it's been a little bit. I finally found some time to do this, so that is the plan. I've done a lot since I last posted. Friday night I went with Rosa (to recap my GVSU RA) and some friends out to Campo di Fiori which is where all the bars are and a lot of Americans. I guess it's a pretty dangerous place but it was a large group, it was fun, and I didn't die so I'm satisfied with my decision. Saturday morning I met up with a few friends I met the night before and we went on a walking tour of Rome. Our tour guide was a speedy little guy so it was more like a sprinting tour of Rome. We saw the Pantheon, the Trevi fountain, the olympic stadium, the fountain of four rivers, lots of different embassies, and many other things that were also very interesting. However, it was REALLY hot. I don't think I can explain how hot it is here during the day. We all just sweat a lot. I'm sure you all love knowing that but it's true. The Italians though have some sort of trick that I don't know to looking like this is nothing. Maybe because it is nothing to them. That could be it. Anyway, the tour ended on the Spanish steps and he just left us. We had no idea how to get back and were too hot to search right away so we went to a restaurant and had lots of food! That helps, until you get back outside. It's still hot out there. After a total of five hours I got home. I mini celebrated by taking a shower and a nap. Then woke up and met up again with friends and went to the Tiber River. At night they have tents set up all along it. Some are restaurants, some are shops, and a couple are carnival tents. It's really pretty cool.

Sunday was awesome. There was an organized trip to Sperlonga that my roommates, matt, brad, sid, and maureen (new freinds hahaha) and I went on. It was a two hour bus ride there but so worth it. It's a beach town on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It's surrounded by mountains and a town that looks like it could be Greece. The houses are built into the hill on top of each other. Maureen and I swam in the sea (which was 75-80 degrees) which was sooo nice compared to how hot it was. It was really just the perfect beach day, so relaxing and gorgeous. The drive back to Rome was 3 hours though, and that was prettttty long. Then we went to McDonalds. I'm not ashamed, it was delicious.


On a hill in Sperlonga.

Monday started classes. I had Italian which is interesting. It's cool to learn but hard because it's so similar to Spanish they get mixed up in my head so easily. It's probably going to end up being pretty challenging. We go through things SO quickly. They try to put a whole semester into 5 weeks. It's a lot. After my roommates, sid, and his roommate tim and I went to the spanish steps. We saw the Pantheon and Trevi fountain again but this time through a coin into it. If you do that you will some day return to Rome. So that's all set. I threw one in for Megan too. That was she can just go to Rome hahaha. We got to the Spanish steps which is also the shopping district. They only have sales twice a year in Italy, not like the US. Once in the summer and once in the winter, so that's going on right now. Sid and Jessica went to check out Gucci, Prada, Boss, ect and Tim, Francesca, Justyna, and I climbed the Spanish steps. It's beautiful up there. If you go allllll the way up you can see out over Rome. It's...great. We didn't get lost going back this time. We took a new route and got to see where Julius Cesar was said to have been killed. It's surreal standing in some place like that. There are a lot of those moments.


Throwing our coins in the Trevi fountain


Where Julius Cesar died.


Today I had my first class of Ancient Rome and It's Monuments. The class is going to be insanely interesting because it's all on site, but it's also going to be really tough. Lots of reading, two exams, an oral report, and a term paper in a 5 week span. Plus it's a four hour walking class. We just meet at the site, so it's important that I can actually find the site. That's not as easy as it sounds either. Hahaha, overall I think it's going really well. A lot to do, take in, and process, but that's all part of the experience.

This weekend my roommates and I are going to Cinque Terre and Portofino. I'm pumped about that. Hopefully I'll update before then so these entries stop being so small novel like. Until then..

Ciao!
Anna