Once More Around the Bend

This is my second to last post here in Italy. I haven't been able to update this past few weeks because of finals week. And then myself wanting to make the best of the time I had left. Especially now, after finishing all my finals, and I have three days left. I'm not ready to go yet. I stay up past 2 AM because I don't want the night to end. So I stay up lying in bed in the dark with my mind still running hundreds of miles a minute, going back to these past four months, to all the places I have been, all the people I have met, all the things I have learned, and all the emotions I have felt... 2 days left. It makes me so upset to say that. I feel that I have so much more to do, so much more to experience. But you know what? I'm embracing what I've gained thus far. I'll come home with a full heart, thousands of pictures and new lifelong friends.

It's been a while, I have a lot to catch up on.

On the weekend of April 11th-12th, I went on my last real excursion with API to the Amalfi Coast. We went to Pompeii, Sorrento and Capri, which was beautiful. The overnight trip wasn't long enough for me, because I wanted to see more of the architecture and museums and villas, but I was able to experience the Sorrento town, a boat-tour of Capri and get a chairlift to see most of Capri's coast and the ocean, and drink limoncello. I would definitely go back to Sorrento and Capri. I want to go back to Capri especially.

Sorrento: http://slickpic.us/436043NIzW
Capri: http://slickpic.us/436041m5TT

I wish I had more time to share all my photos because just choosing a select few only shows part of the story. If I could, I would want to describe each of them for you so I hope someday I can show you these photos in person, and share my stories with you all.

The weekend after was Easter Weekend. I had a research paper and another philosophy paper to finish, while Brittany visited her family and my other roommates were gone for Amsterdam (I think), and Taylor was in Tunis in Africa. So I was alone and had the apartment to myself all weekend. I got all my stuff done, and I was able to visit the Vatican City during the mass on Easter Sunday morning. I went early and got a spot, but only got a glimpse of Pope Francis speaking and I had to leave since I suddenly got sick after standing for 2 hours in a crowd of millions. Took me 15 minutes to even leave Vatican City!

 Eyyyy, Papa Francis!

Then it was the last week of classes. I handed in my papers. I went to a ballet show at the theater one night with API at the Teatro dell'Opera, which by the way, was really beautiful and interesting. I handed in my sketchbook. I performed a managerial debate. And then I was done. I decided that before I really began to study, I could afford to do one last trip. Just one more. So Taylor and I took a day trip to a place called Civita di Bagnoregio. We had to take a train to Orvieto and then take a 30-minute taxi to Bagnoregio. Civita di Bagnoregio, we thought was tourist free, turned out it's a destination for Italian tourists. After wandering around and waiting longer to even get a spot for the very few restaurants there for lunch, we headed back. We got back to Orvieto earlier than expected and saw that they had a funiculare - basically an uphill tram. Since we were so early, we spontaneously took a ride up for 1,30 euro and found the actual town of Orvieto (dubbed Old Orvieto). We saw photos on display in some stores of a great church, so we decided to find it, and found the Duomo. It was so BEAUTIFUL and dominated the piazza. It really reminded me of Florence.

Ballet night (one photo)... and....
Civita di Bagnoregio and Orvieto: http://slickpic.us/436045zD33

After that great day, it was down to the grind for finals. My first final was Management on Sunday morning (ugh). Then financial accounting on Monday. Philosophy on Tuesday and finally, art history today - Wednesday. I don't feel so good about my first three finals, but I think I kicked butt on my art history final! Good, because I was feeling awful about my other finals and studied beyond my brain's capabilities. There was a point where I couldn't process any information at all that I had to take a break! So that paid off!

After my art history final today, I treated myself by going to the cat sanctuary in Largo Argentina off Via Arenula with Brittany. I mentioned it a lot in my posts, especially in the beginning. If you come to Rome, you'll see that Largo Argentina is actually a ruin of temples. But if you look closely, you'll see a cat, or 20, laying around in the ruins. Today Brittan and I actually ventured inside the shelter itself (under the ruins) for the first time, and I was SO surprised by all the cats inside! Apparently they shelter over 200 cats. There were lots of disabled cats - cats with an arm or leg missing, cats with one eye missing, a cat completely blind, a brain-damaged cat (I first thought it was injected with anethesia, but it wasn't), and I met a cat that was deaf and she was a bit of a jerk. I wanted to adopt 4 particular cats, even that mean deaf one. They were all so perfect in their own way.

Brittany and I dubbed this cat "Crimson Chin" (Fairly Oddparents reference), because of its jaw, but it most likely had a disease or disability of some sort. He's a bit shy but friendly.

 This one was missing its ears (but still can hear), and had some impediment that make them stick their tongue out often. But it was so happy cuddling us. They kept purring like a motorboat and pushing their head into our chest and arm nook for warmth. I got droolmarks on my shirt from this one. So cute!!!!

Because we were in there for 2 hours, the volunteers had to move us out of the nursery room to make room for more visitors, haha. Too bad. So we each donated 5 euros for the good cause and headed to Tiber Island to sit down by the shore. On very sunny warm days, people often "sunbathe" here on Tiber Island while on their breaks.

Later in the evening, we headed for the last meeting with our API RDs, Naike and Alessio, for a big dinner with the rest of the group. We had a fantastic meal, and my friends and I stayed behind with Naike and Alessio to talk with them more because for me, it was so hard to say goodbye to the two nicest and most wonderful RDs anyone could ever ask for. I'm so glad I had the chance to meet them. 

So it's 3 AM now. I'm still wide awake and I don't want to go to bed yet. I'm just stretching time on now at this point. Tomorrow (well, today) is May 1st - Primo Maggio, which Italy celebrates as a national holiday for labor workers with the Festa dei Lavoratori. It's basically Italy's labor day. So tomorrow, my friends and I will walk around Rome to finish our errands (me: print my plane ticket, get remaining gifts......if the stores are open, that is). Also, in Rome to celebrate Festa dei Lavoratori, they hold a great concert sung by Italian and foreign artists! Trams and buses will be closed for a period of time, so we'll be figuring out the best way to get to the Laterano Square! 

We'll be finishing off tomorrow night with a nice dinner with all of our friends, as a way to say "see you later" because it's definitely will not be a goodbye! We're so fortunate that we all live in the New England area, so we are all relatively close to one another. There will be planned reunions for us in the future. :)

2 more days.

The Two Ancients: Pompeii and Athens

I'm alive! It was a stressful week last week full of midterms and after that, I took a field trip with my art history class on Friday to Pompeii on February 28th, then jettisoned off the next day to Athens for an overnight with Taylor! Both trips are memorable in their own ways, with both the ups and downs of it.

POMPEII

I left Rome with my class at 7 AM on a bus to Naples/Pompeii. It was cloudy and gross out and by the time we arrived around 11, it poured. It poured all day, and I didn't have an umbrella since mine went missing few days before that day (talk about bad luck!). The rain stopped briefly at one point but came back in full force. My teacher, Professor Corrado, and our class stopped at this cafe that she wanted to show us that had a tasty pastry with ricotta cheese inside of it (no, not a cannolo). We then went and toured around Pompeii whilst Prof. Corrado continued teaching as normal; she explained Pompeii's history, culture and its architectures and their uses.

Bunch of old guys who were standing there when I wanted to take a picture of the alley. I snapped one of them too because they were goofy and insisted. I think they're either tourists or excavation workers.

Last photo is a view of Naples, which by the way, isn't that pretty or nice at all. It's run down and has a bad scene. It's more of a stop-over city rather than "sight-seeing". Just some tidbits for you all to know in case you wanted to come here. Don't go to Naples! Anyway, we arrived back in Rome by 7 PM and it was still raining. I needed to find boots because the weather forecast said it would rain in Athens. I couldn't find boots because shops were quickly closing up. Oh well - off to Athens!

ATHENS

I left my apartment earlier than planned because Taylor's roommates came home "early" and he couldn't sleep. So he eventually texted me which woke me up before my alarm could and we met up at a cafe. Unfortunately, it was pouring. Rain. Again. Even with my raincoat, I got completely soaked. Because it was early, the rain made me quite a bit grumpy. I got over it though once we got to the tram and went to Trastevere train station to take a express train to Fiumicino Airport so I stayed dry! Soon, we found ourselves going to Athens! It was our first time out of Italy and by ourselves without a guide, so we were both very excited.

The flight was pretty short (2 hrs), and they served Greek lunch on board, the sky and seas were so blue, and it made me sad once we dipped below the clouds because then everything was gray and full of drab.

Taylor and I hit the ground running - almost literally. We only had 24 hours in Athens so we wanted to make the most of it. This is our "24 hours in Athens" trip.

As soon as we landed, we quickly figured out where the metro was and deciphered the Greek language on all the signs to get to where we need to go. It went pretty smoothly and we found our inn, Pella Inn, quickly as well. We checked in, found the desk-person gave us one double bed rather than a two singles. We shrugged it off because we were only there for one night, didn't want to cause any trouble, and plus we've been friends for 3 years so we were comfortable enough with each other (we both sleep like bricks anyway), so we just took it in stride. Our room had a view of the Acropolis too so it was a cool bonus.

And so, literally as soon as we threw our bags on the bed, we left and headed to the Acropolis which was about a 10-15 minute walk from our inn. I was sharing Taylor's umbrella which didn't really help. But we climbed up to the based of the Acropolis and literally as soon as we got to the gates, the gates CLOSED. Just in front of us! Talk about bad timing.

It was still raining. We walked to a cafe that was near the gates and the man there spoke pretty good English (and Italian), so we held conversations in both. There was a cat there named Mario who hangs around there a lot. Afterwards we walked to the Temple of Zeus, which we also found was closed. Everything seemed to close by 5 PM in Athens, except for walking around.

So we walked around and we found the first modern Olympic stadium (built in the 1890s, I think). There was a group of English speaking college students (who probably are there on a trip) hanging around the prize stands and I really wanted to take a photo there. Taylor and I got this brilliant idea, without telling each other somehow - we're brain-linked I tell ya! - after one of them noticed I really wanted to take a picture. Taylor and I proceeded to speak in Italian, pretending we're Italian tourist-students. It was so funny see them all flail and push one kid forward who presumably knew the 'most' Italian of them. ;) It went fairly well and Taylor and I had a good laugh afterwards.

We walked a little more after and stopped by the Parliament building. Soon, night fell and the rain hit harder. Suddenly, I tripped on my shoes and the WHOLE bottom sole came off! It was flopping and it was hard to walk. So I was miserable throughout the next few hours. We stopped at a fancy coffee bar/restaurant that had a few middle-aged Greek men smoking cigars and drinking coffee. I tried my first Greek coffee here and I LOVED it. Taylor didn't like it because it was so dark and thick (Greek coffee is in between Italian and Turkish coffee). Afterwards, Taylor and I headed to the shopping streets to get a pair of boots once and for all. I walked between several stores comparing shoes and as soon as I was notified that a store I was in was closing, I just bought the pair of shoes - for 40 euros. It was the only boot with the smallest heels that looks like it was walkable and that it could stand rain. So annoying. Europe can't seem to understand the concept of combat boots.

Taylor and I celebrated my purchase of working shoes by going to a restaurant for dinner and ate outside. In Europe, outside tables are popular and they almost always have those gas lighter stands that are really tall and keeps you warm. And guess what we ordered? Gyros! It was delicious and probably so fattening but it was so good and worth it.

We headed back to the inn and decided we'd get up super early to make see all the monuments we came here to see. We goofed around, messaged friends back home, and eventually fell asleep.

Day One photos - Click here!

At 3 AM we woke up because of a festival going on (which we didn't realize until a few days later). We woke up again at 7 and Taylor got tea and I ordered Greek coffee again. We knew it would be a decent day Saturday, but what we didn't expect when we stepped out of the inn was the blue skies on the horizon as the sun rose.

We headed to the Temple of Zeus and its ticket office. We were happy to learn that entrance was free. The sun was still rising and we were the only ones at the complex where the Temple of Zeus still stands. We walked all around it and saw the Acropolis in the distance. I pointed to it, and said to Taylor, "Well, that's where we're going next!" And so we went. On the way to the Acropolis, we passed by a (probably Greek Orthodox) church but stopped because we heard choir singing coming from it so we stopped for a moment to listen.

We continued on to the Acropolis and arrived just as it opened. Imagine our surprise when we went to the ticket office when they said it was also free! Sunday, you are treating us well. We trekked up the Acropolis where the view just kept getting better and better and the skies kept getting bluer and bluer, and there were hardly anybody, even tourists, when we went. We reached the top, and boy - my breath was taken away! You could see all of Athens (one of the biggest cities I've ever seen), the Mediterranean and the mountains. It was a view to remember.

After relaxing by the Temple of Athena for a while, we trekked back down after we saw a large group heading towards the entrance at the bottom of the Acropolis. We didn't want to deal with them so we left. We headed towards the Agora and the Roman Agora and toured inside there.

We walked around a little more and passed through what seemed like, the Sunday outdoor markets! It was a wild and loud scene. Taylor and I went to an area we didn't pass by before and partook lunch outside at a table that faced the market scene. We had delicious fried feta cheese and some bacon-covered chicken kebab! We had a few more minutes after eating so we walked around the market a bit and headed straight back to the inn to check out and head back to Rome. We didn't want to leave but we felt we accomplished all that we wanted to do, see and experience in these 24 hours. I wouldn't trade these memories for anything. Even if my toothpaste got confiscated in Athens on the way back to Rome.
Day Two photos - Click here!

I recently came back from a weekend trip in Interlaken, Switzerland! I don't have a lot of time these days between classes and traveling to update this blog but I will eventually catch up. So I'll update about Switzerland next weekend. Some hints: bicycle, lake, paragliding, Alps, and cheese fondue.

This weekend I'm starting my spring break! Hurray! I can't wait to relax. This weekend I'll be going to Brussels and Amsterdam until Monday with Christina and I'll be back in Rome for a day where I plan to tour the city on my own. Then I'll spend a day in Venice with my roommate and her mom. And then after that, during that next weekend, I'll be going to Stromboli and Catania in Sicily with Taylor!

As for my midterms, I got a B+ on my management midterm. Hurray! I'm not sure how I did on the others. I don't think I did too hot on the financial accounting midterm, and I know I got a lot wrong on my art history midterm despite being 75% confident and I think I did decent on my philosophy midterm. Fingers crossed.

Brittany and I signed up for a cooking class a few weeks ago and it's this Wednesday! We'll be learning to cook a meal from a chef at a restaurant! I wonder what we'll make. :)