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