2 Weeks Left

So last week I was sad I didn't get to celebrate 4th of July since I didn't feel good that night.. When I get back I plan on eating a LOT of barbecue :-D yumm... I didn't do a whole lot this week but I did go out several times to campo dei fiori, which has a nice nightlife. For class we went to palantine hill, a museum, and the theater of Pompey (where Julius Caesar was murdered). I went to a gigantic mall here for Italian class & went to see the Romeo & Juliet ballet at the baths of Caracalla, which were built between 212 and 216 A.D. What a wonderful ballet! It was almost 3 hours long though.. With my attention span being so awful, that did not go so well. I went to Matilde's birthday party which was really neat because it was very international. This weekend I did some more souvenir shopping on via del corso, ate at a nice pizzeria, and watched Toy Story 3! Yesterday visited the Capuchin crypts which was probably one of my favorite things I have seen so far and I went out with some friends again. Tonight it's time for the Spain vs. Holland game (GO HOLLAND!) which should be interesting because I'm supposed to go watch it.. but since I'm bad luck I might have to try not to watch it and just look slightly off to the side of the screen. Plus I have taco bell bet on this game! Good thing is I went grocery shopping today so I can make some good food tonight but unfortunately the lettuce I bought must not be so great.. it had a weird texture and I'm sad :-( This week I did get to try a Sicilian gelateria which was great but I feel like I'm just destined to continue going to Ping Pong (the gelateria next door). I did get the peanut butter & ranch dressing my parents sent which is good news! I guess this isn't the most interesting blog post.. but this week has been odd due to a public transportation strike and the heat that keeps me from wanting to wander around Rome too much.


I'll be back to Houston in 13 DAYS!

-Mary

Italy starts to boil...

So Wednesday I prepared sandwiches for homeless people but unfortunately could not serve them due to the ridiculous blisters on my poor feet :-( Everyday I come back to the apartment here I wish I had one of those foot baths/massage things.. That would be so wonderful. Thursday after a long class day I went out with some friends around Trastevere & ate some gnocchi. Friday morning we took a train to Florence where it is even more boiling hot than Rome right now. Luckily our hotel had AIR CONDITIONING!!!! After going around town and to the school there for free lunch, I got to go to the Accademia where the statue of David is.. Talk about amazing. That statue is 16 feet tall without the stand and is carved out of a single piece of marble. I have never enjoyed art so much! In line to get into the museum 2 girls behind us were from Puerto Rico which was really cool because I talked to them in Spanish.. but then that messed up my Italian. The guy directly in front of us in line was from New Zealand and I really wanted to ask him if it was business time. The other couple in front of us were from Brazil and I kept thinking how cool it was how people from so many different places were there in Florence! Anyway after going through the museum we returned to the hotel where we took a fantastic air conditioned nap :-) We walked around Florence afterward and ate at a nice restaurant. Friday night I got to enjoy my first cannolo (yes it's cannolo because it's singular). Saturday we went to the Uffizi which hosts the majority of the renaissance art collection. Purtroppo (unfortunately) I don't really know a lot about art.. but the birth of Venus painting was there! Maria (the secretary for AI that was with us on the trip) and I tried to change our train ticket back to Rome for earlier but it didn't work out so she took me out and bought me a kebab, which in Italy looks more like a gyro or a burrito.. but I think kebab refers to the style of meat. After walking around the city we got the train back to Rome which arrived as it was raining (yet still very hot). I went out for a friend's birthday and got to eat at Montecarlo's which is a really good pizza/pasta/traditional Italian place. Today I went out and got some souvenirs but I think I actually melted. When I got back I bought some gelato (of course) and today I think I will just try to chill around the city hopefully staying indoors and wishing I could see some 4th of July fireworks or eat some brisket at home *sigh*

That's it for now!
-Mary

My weekend in the Netherlands (so far!)

So I wrote this fantastically detailed e-mail to my parents about what I have been up to so I decided I should write a blog about it!

Friday morning I got up at 6 in the morning or so and rushed around to get things ready for my trip since I had not packed (I did not plan well. I know this now!) I got to the station in time and made it to the airport with plenty of time (Thank God!) because there was this crazy couple who kept cutting lines and things just go slowly in Italy. The flight was only 2 hours but unfortunately the woman next to me has probably never even heard of deodorant.. so that was gross. Anyway I get to the airport and Marc was waiting with Jelle, who I have not seen in 6 years, to take me to Amsterdam to look around! The city was really interesting and I got to walk by the red light district (ahahahaha). I had some traditional dutch french fries along with a chicken burger, which was amazing. We did a bit more walking and catching up before we hopped the train to Marc's town where his dad picked me up and Marc biked home. Literally everyone rides their bike here and it's safe to do because drivers are more respectful! I saw a 70 year old with a basket on her bike just riding along and it made me think how I totally want to do that when I'm 70. Marc's house is really neat and I love the modern feel :-D The room I am staying in is Texas themed and made me feel at home. Friday night we went to Marc's girlfriend Mariela's house where we had a dutch barbecue in the nice cool weather. Saturday I woke up,ate a traditional dutch breakfast and finally got to eat some peanut butter before going to Rotterdam to see the city and walk around the market. I had some fried fish and french fries because dutch people love their fried food! Everyone really is tall... I feel like a midget but it's ok cause they are really nice. Saturday afternoon Marc, his family, and I went to Dordricht to ride the flausterboot (not sure on the spelling.. but it means whispering boat) to tour the city since it's on a set of canals very similar to Venice. It was beautiful! Saturday night I got to experience bike riding to a bar (and back..) but it was really fun to go out and see dutch people sing songs from the musical Grease! Sunday morning we got up early and went to church but I couldn't understand much since it was in dutch. We came back and had a wonderful lunch of different kinds of fruit after going to see the windmills! I really would like to live in a windmill now.. or have my dentist's office there. I got to take a nap when we got back and then had a delicious cheese & bread meal :-) I went to a park with Marc & his girlfriend and got to pet a beagle! Sunday night we went to visit Marc's friend who has having a birthday and it was nice to just hang around with some people from another country. Monday was fun because I got all dressed up in my "Nederland" gear and headed to the airport. Unfortunately my flight was delayed by 3 hours (whooo!) so I got to have a nice glass of wine waiting for my plane to arrive like a true Italian. When I finally got back to Rome I was very very tired, feeling much taller, and realized just how hot Rome is >.< Good thing is Tuesday (yesterday) was a holiday in Rome so I got to visit different beautiful parks, see the statue of the ecstasy of St. Teresa at the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria (please google it!). I still have no sense of direction in the city and wonder if I ever will.. Hmmmm...

10 days in Italy, 33 days left

Hey there readers (mostly my family),

I am currently cooking some pasta because that's the most popular food item around here. I always thought it was just a stereotype that Italians only eat pasta and pizza (sometimes with meat and cheese). It is completely correct.. I love Italian food but by the time I come home I may not want any for a while, which is why I'm so glad I had Mexican food last night! So Friday we went to Tivoli, the pictures are on my facebook and the gardents/fountains/view were AMAZING. Our tour guide was a very cute old man named Maurizio that I now want to be best friends with.. Anyway I was exhausted but Friday night we went to go see the England soccer (football in Italy) game at Villa Borghese (spelling?). It was huge and watching it with guys from Britain made it pretty funny.. The next morning we caught a train (after missing one) to Sperlonga. That is one gorgeous beach! Too bad it rained.. but it was fun and I got to hear one of the English guys say "muppets" which.. is pretty hilarious. It was a tiring day but very very fun. Yesterday was very fun because I got to see a lot of sites/art/statues (one museum) and got to see a play in English for free! Tonight I have a night out on the town and I'm trying to keep myself from being homesick :-(

Good thing is I do love the Italian language! and the gelato.. but funny thing is Italians don't use salad dressing :-(

My First Italian Blog.. but in English

I packed too much.. of course, what else? My bag was 51.5 lbs until I emptied pills, peanut butter, and extra converters. Good thing is once I did that my bag only weighed 49 lbs (mwahahahahah). I got no sleep 2 nights ago because I was stressing about every little thing. I was grumpy yesterday morning and pretty mean to everywhere I came in contact with (Sorry Mom & Dad!). After trying to check in online (and later found out I couldn't for some strange reason) I got so frustrated and decided to check in at the airport. Even though I was on a "united" flight it was operated by Air Canada so I had to go there to check in. I ate lunch with mom &dad at the same place we ate before Mel left for Spain 2 years ago. I found out I was going to be in the middle seat all the way on my 8 1/2 hour flight but after a failed attempt to change that I accepted it. After eating lunch and saying goodbye I headed through security to the gate and found the people who were standing around the gate check-in counter were angry because their flight to Montreal was canceled (because the engine failed.. full restores my faith in planes!) I am just glad it didn't happen in the air. I sat in a sitcom type boarding gate.. no joke, imagine: a nun texting, 2 small children running around screaming, and 3 women gabbing on the phone. Oh yeah and there was a guy who literally was yelling into his phone. i started reading Eat, Pray, Love which is a true story about a women's self discovering search in Italy, India, & Indonesia (the 3 Is on a self discovery.. haha) Well I thought it would be appropriate since it discusses the fabulous food in Italy. The author reminded me of me because she said her 2 majors are in conversation & food with a concentration in gelato.. yup! So anyway the flight was pretty nice despite some turbulence and there were the cool touch TVs which no one seemed to think was quite as cool as I did.. After landing in Canada, which is a very cold place, and going through customs I waited at the gate for a pretty long time eating chex mix. They did feed me dinner on the flight which was all right as far as dinner on an aircraft can be. Even my middle seat was literally the middle of the entire aircraft, a husband and wife were supposed to be on either side of me so the woman let me switch with her (which was nice) but I guess I still would have rather had a window seat.. maybe on the way back :-D The flight was ok.. way too long but I did sleep some which is more than I expected. Once I landed I felt pretty gross though :-/ I met up with some other people from the Arcadia program (1 is my roommate here) and we headed out to our apartments. Ours is ADORABLE and pretty big actually. I will be taking pictures and posting them later but it's really nice and it has wifi :-) After I unpacked, took a shower, brushed my teeth, and took out my contacts I began to felt like a clean human being for once (hah!). We waited until the rest of our group and Geraldine came to get us then we went for gelato. My first gelato in Italy? FANTASTIC! I got chocolate and mint chocolate chip :-) yummm... Anyway then we walked.. a pretty far way - not sure how far right now to the arcadia center (the school is across the street) to meet the director of the program which was fine and all but I was SO tired & thirsty. She did give us some fresh lavendar from her adorable garden on the terrace. We walked a ways to go to dinner, which consisted of some interesting italian food (but no pasta yet :-( ) then we took a taxi back to the apartment since we could no longer drag our legs anywhere. We tried going to the supermarket but it closed (I am used to Kroger...) so then we got lost for a few minutes but eventually found our way back. Now I am back in my room thinking I am already ready for bed and it is only 9:22 PM Roma time. Until next time, which will probably be in 2 days.. I know this is a lot for just the trip over here and the first day!

Oh and the 3 most Italian things I saw: Geraldine reacting with "Mamma Mia!" when our van driver almost ran into someone, a man honking from a vespa saying "Ciao Bella" at us, and an old lady standing in her kitchen with an open window (we are across the side street from her) wearing old lady pjs making pasta & talking on the phone loudly.

Ciao,
Mary

2 days left!

Hi there :-D

So I will be leaving in exactly 2 days. First I have a flight from Houston to Toronto (or as my dad says "toRONTO") and then I have a flight from Toronto to Rome. I am a little nervous because of the thunderstorms that might be going on when I am supposed to leave. If I miss my connection in Toronto I have no clue what to do! But before I leave I still have 2 more nights of volunteering with vacation bible school and lots of packing/preparing to do. I already have tons of music on my iPod and I found out that on my flight from Toronto to Rome I will have my own personal touch screen TV & outlet for my computer. I am bringing my laptop and I will also have several new books that I just bought. I hope this is enough to keep me occupied for the 12 hours (total) I will be flying because I have never been on a flight for this long in my life. I am also getting a little nervous about the packing part - how do you pack for a 6 week trip!? I know that I will be able to laundry there but I keep thinking "oh I might need just 1 more _____." Pretty soon I will have 20 of everything and a suitcase that is way too heavy (I guess that's why they give you a weight limit right?)

Anyway, I got an e-mail from the program manager with the orientation/summer schedule which is pretty exciting! I won't be posting what some of the surprises are because I'd rather make you read what I post in Italy :-D. I won't be posting the address where I will be in Rome because that just seems dangerous and I think sending letters would be too much of a hassle; however, feel free to e-mail me (mcamp@trinity.edu) or facebook message me while I'm there. I have a feeling I will get homesick considering this will be the longest I have gone without seeing my parents except for college.

My next blog I post will be one in Italy :-)

Ciao,
Mary

Exactly 3 weeks to go!

 So here are the specs:
Who? Mary
What? Studying Abroad
Where? Italy
When? June 10 - July 24, 2010
Why? It's Italy.. enough said
Can she take the challenge? Bring it on..

I am really amazing at how many people actually want to read my blog about Italy! I mean I hope I am interesting enough to keep you guys entertained... *jazz hands*? Anyway it's been a sad day.. so I really don't know what else to write besides I want to thank everyone who is supporting my trip to Italy!

2nd Pre-Italy Post!

So I got a lot of things done today for my departure! I made 2 copies of WAY too many documents, cards, and IDs. We decided what kind of cell phone to rent while I'm in Europe so I can call him in case of emergency. Oh and I now have some converters & adaptors to take over there so I don't blow up the outlets! I also have a new journal to write in, bubble wrap, 2 travel purses, and 3 books to read on the plane ride. I have been cleaning out my closet and in the process I have sort of mentally put together my suitcase but I'm scared because I have never packed for this long of a trip before! Actually, I've never been on a trip this long at all.. Anyway I have much appreciated all the advice I have been getting about Italy/Europe/travel/etc. because I really don't know what I'm doing!

I'll post again when I feel productive!

My New Blog

So I decided it would be a good idea to create a blog in order to write about my Italian shenanigans even though I don't leave until June 10.. Anyway this is my chance to be selfish and talk about my life :-D Luckily no one is required to even look at it! I picked up my visa today (and some euros!) which was really exciting because it wasn't a fiasco like last time. I also have a bunch of letters that let me get into the country.. It's amazing when I hear people say "Oh I'm moving to [insert country in Europe here]" because it must be a PAIN to get a visa to do that. I mean really.. It was crazy just trying to get a visa to study in Italy! Today we also went to the galleria where I lusted over some coach purses.. I'm not one to enjoy expensive items but they looked pretty fantastic (& there is a purple one).. which reminds me.. I must finish painting that purple desk & side table. Since my mind moves at a 100 mph I might changes subjects in this blog (you will have to deal with it)! I want to watch Roman Holiday because it really makes me excited about seeing the city. I can't wait to see vespas & eat gelato. Yes, gelato is the concentration of this trip apparently.. Anyway before the trip I still need to find out about renting a cell phone in Italy because my parents want me to be able to call home in an emergency.. I need to find out about euro rail tickets and see if I should travel a little while I'm over there. I need to order outlet converters, get traveler's cheques, make copies of all the important documents, buy some travel size stuff, and PACK! Speaking of which.. I hate that I may have to dress up :-( I feel comfy in my t-shirts but I don't want to stick out as an American. We will see how that goes..

Oh yeah and before I leave for Italy the other things I need to do: clean out my closet, give away stuffed animals, buy a new storage case for video games, take the DAT, write essays for the dental application, put grades into the dental application system on Tuesday, and pick up my dress from Meghan's mom. Sorry about the laundry lists but I like my random writing.


Arrivederci (spelling?!) or GOODBYE!
-Mary