New Years!

Today was a long and eventful day so I will keep it brief as I have to be up in 4 hours for the papal mass. Also, no pics b/c there are too many to choose from! 

The day started with a visit to the Joel Nafuma Refugee Center. It was a very humbling, yet fun experience. It was amazing to hear the stories that some of these people have gone through already in their lives. The day was a great way to get an understanding of the migration issue that Italy and Malta face.

Second was a visit to the Roman Forum and Colossuem. It was absolutely beautiful. I still can't believe that I was visiting buildings built thousands of years ago! After that we split up and some of us went down one of the main boulevards for some window shopping. Being in an Italian bookstore was one of the worst experiences of my life. It is awful not even understanding the titles of the books! We ended our walk at piazza del popollo and then walked along the river back to our restaurant for dinner. Our meal was delicious - I had pasta with ricotta and pear in a carrot sauce. 

After going to the trevi fountain (I couldn't find Paulo, yet!), we stopped for gelato (pistachio and bacio) and then headed to the colossuem for New Years. It was a lot of drinking, yelling, and fireworks and was definetly the most memorable New Years I've experienced! Happy 2014! 

1st day in Roma

My first day in Rome started off with a 4 hour nap! Once the jet-lag wore off my roommate and I went to explore the neighborhood and get a little lunch! We found a roman-style pizzeria down the road which was delicious. I got some sort of pizza with zucchini and tomato I think. I also successfully ordered and paid with my minimal Italian knowledge! 

Later we met up with the rest of the group and headed to the center of Rome for the night. We had our first lecture which was an overview of the migration issues in Italy and Malta and a discussion about ethnographic fieldwork. Our professor and his wife are both very nice and I'm glad they are spending the trip with us so we can get to know them better. 

After our lecture we headed to la piazza de novela. There was a carnival-like event going on for the holidays. This piazza also had the fountain of four rivers which was sculpted by Bernini. 

Then we went to dinner. I had penne alla vodka and a glass of vino. It was very tasty! After dinner we went to a gelateria, which was also super good! I got a mix of coffee, hazelnut, and puro (chocolate) gelato. The shop was really cute inside and I loved the ceilings and decorations so I took a picture. 

So far I love the architecture of the city - the cobblestone streets and cute little store fronts and big, baroque style buildings. Rome is a beautiful city and I can't wait to explore more tomorrow! 

In Rome, at last!

We finally made it to Rome after an extremely long and bumpy flight. It is really strange to be in a foreign country where everything is in a different language. The first thing I noticed about Italy is that the men dress much better than American men - they especially have better jackets. 

Our apartment/hotel is really interesting. It's very big but looks like it is decorated in the 70s. I will add pictures. It has a bidet, a courtyard, and lots of space, which is cool. We are also having issues trying to turn on the heat b/c the thermostat is in Celsius. 

The plan for today is to settle into our rooms, take a nap, go explore a little bit, and then we have our first lecture and dinner with our instructor, Professor Zammit. 

At the airport

Ciao! I'm currently 2 hours into my 5 hour layover in D.C. It's finally starting to sink in that I am going to Rome! I cannot wait to get there and see everything. To keep myself entertained during this layover I'm trying to learn a few phrases in Italian... Better late than never!