It's the FINAL COUNTDOWN!

Dooo doo doo do. Do do do do dooo. Do do do doo. Do do doo do doo…                                     (the song...)

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am officially done with my finals.

I’d like to say that my exams were exhausting and nerve-racking and that I slaved over my books for days reading every single note, but let’s face it: it’s pass/fail.

My exams are taken, my bags are (almost) ready to explode, and my souvenirs are bought. Currently, there is a huge pile of discarded clothes, books, bags, shoes, and used notebooks at the end of the hall, all ready to be given away to Roman refugees. I imagine Iranian refugees will be pleased to wear worn-out Charlotte Rouse pumps while reading about the architectural structure of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. I myself donated a pair of socks and a pair of slightly ripped underwear. Don’t worry, Mom, I plan on throwing most of my other crappy underwear out as I go. The Blaneys don’t bring underwear home from trips. We prefer to scatter them out throughout the world. Why, I have left my panties from South Dakota to Boston to New York to Dublin and soon to be Rome!

In other news, I am SO excited that my grandpa will be here in less than 36 hours! Eugene Kolb is making the trek out here to my corner of the world and together, we’ll see monuments, churches, and some wine. Really, I’m very happy he’s coming! I have my tour guide act down pat.

It’s unbelievably weird to think that I won’t be living in Rome soon. My friends who are going home Thursday are in disbelief that they will be home for the weekend… Kate sent me an e-mail with “T minus 10 days” as the subject line and I legitimately thought it was a mistake. To think that I’ll be leaving this place is incomprehensible.

For example, today I went shopping down Via del Corso, a trendy area of Roma full of great stores. We bused down, passing the Vatican and going over the Tiber. To get to the stores we wanted, we happened to pass the Pantheon and were a few blocks from the Trevi. On one intersection, there’s St. Maria del Popolo on one end, the Spanish Steps on another, the Vittorio Emanuele Monument on the another, and the Tiber behind you. This is just a typical day, by the way. How can I go back to Wisconsin? I love Wisco and it’s my home, but I’m leaving a part of me behind, and I’m not talking about the ripped undies and socks.

Because I can’t leave my blog w/ the last words undies and socks, here’s a quote I found from my new favorite movie:

Joe Bradley: Tell you what. Why don't we do all those things, together? 
Princess Ann: But don't you have to work? 
Joe Bradley: Work? No. Today's gonna be a holiday. 

 

No regrets.

Well, here we are: I have exactly 19 days left in the beautiful city of Rome. In some ways, 19 days seems like a blink of an eye. I still have papers to do, exams to take and bags to pack, not to mention some last minute souvenir shopping! I can’t handle thinking of saying good-bye to the friends I’ve made here, but it’s comforting to know that they are just a short train ride away in Chicago. It’s weird, but I feel like I have made some of my best friends here, but at the same time I can’t wait to see my MU and Geebs family.

So much has changed since I’ve been here. I am no longer intimidated by large hills or pushy Italian men. I can kick almost anyone’s ass at foosball. Airports are no longer thrilling and I’ve officially traveled by train! Yes, everyone here couldn’t believe I had never been on a train before… But I’ve also learned a lot about myself. I learned I never want to live in a big city because I miss nature so much and the noise is finally getting to me. I’ve also learned that it’s better to not be in cliques and just have some really good friends. Drinking to get drunk is not cool here and is considered really low-class. Most importantly, I learned that it’s okay to be myself.

I had so many expectations when I first got here. I had my little list of things I wanted to do and places I wanted to go and people I wanted to meet up with. People had told me “You HAVE to go here” and “Promise me you’ll go here, it’s the most amazing place I’ve ever been!” and I put so much pressure on myself to go everywhere just to please those people. Of course, I didn’t make it everywhere I wanted to go, and currently my biggest fear is that I’ll get home and the first thing people will say is, “did you go here?” or “did you see this?” and I’ll feel like I’ve failed them. Right now, I’m concentrating on not having any regrets. I did and saw and met everyone I could. I didn’t get everything checked off my list, but Europe’s not going anywhere.

So please, may I ask you all one thing? Please don’t ask if I made it to a certain place. I’m sure I’ll tell you all about the places I went to a point where you’ll get sick of hearing about it.

No regrets,

Erin

Is God most present in a church?

Is God most present within the Church?

This has been a question I have been thinking about for a while. It’s easy to say yes right off the bat. I mean, churches are designed to make you feel closer to God. That’s why they are covered with paintings of saints and the ceiling is often a starry night sky. Above the altar is the painting of Jesus Christ on the cross as a visual representation of how Jesus bridges the gap between heaven and earth.

But I don’t mean the physical church, the church we go to on Sundays. No, I’m talking about the Church, with a capital C. I just can’t wrap my head around the fact that the Church is the one true path to finding God. Who am I to say that He cannot be found in a mosque or temple or in nature? By saying that we can only be saved if we join and follow the teachings of the Church is to demean thousands of years of religious beliefs of billions of people.

I have, to date, seen 32 churches since I have come to Rome. This includes St. Paul Outside the Wall, San Marco’s in Venice, and St. Peter’s Basilica. I’ve seen the Sistine Chapel and have marveled at the Last Judgment. I’ve been moved by the beauty of the Pietá. I’ve seen the pope 4 times, including at Easter morning mass and the Stations of the Cross at the Coliseum!

But never have I ever found God as clearly as I did that one day in Tunisia. When I was in the desert, I could actually feel Him. I saw how the sand dunes changed within 30 minutes just by the wind. I saw the sun melt away. I felt Him wash away all my remaining sadness over losing friends, both physically and emotionally. I would draw my struggles in the sand with my finger and God would erase them with His might. Now I’m a good little Catholic. I’ve done all my sacraments and I go to church, but never have I felt as forgiven and free than when I carved “ME” in the sand and watch it turn clean again.

“ME” has a double meaning. It stands for Melissa and Emily, who I lost in high school in a car accident. I’ve carried that heartache with me for 5 years. We weren’t super close, but I lost a lot that night. I lost my sense of indestructibility, my sense of fearlessness, and my naiveté. After that night, I have been more cautious and only recently have I been able to regain some of that fearlessness.

The other meaning is more obvious: me. I am not proud of a lot of things I’ve done in my life. I’ve hurt people, I’ve lied, and I’ve sinned. By writing “ME” in the sand, I was giving God everything I had. It’s easy to offer up your talents but I gave Him my imperfections, my sins, and my shortcomings. “This is me,” I said. “I’m a sinner, but I’m trying. I’m trying to be better.” And God took me as I am.

Now tell me God is only in a Church.

Oh, Ciao Dublin!!!

If I could live anywhere in the world, it would be Dublin.



After we went when I was in 7th grade, I was ready to leave. People drank and swore and were out at pubs until 3 a.m., in comparison to the small little towns we had just visited.



But now I love it. Why? Because they drink and swear and are out at pubs until 3 a.m.



I went to Dublin, or Dublino (in Italian), a week ago and had a blast. We had the cab ride from hell to get to the Rome airport Ciampino so we were more than ready for a change of pace... And we sure got one. We were welcomed into Dublin with the nicest security people ever who asked my friend Alana and I what part of Ireland we were from. When I told him I really didn't know, he told me I was fron Donnegal. Hmmm... Our cabbie was awesome: he was built and swore and told us where to go and what to eat. Our hostel was small, but we had our own bathroom, so what did we care?



After we checked in around midnight thursday, we went out to get food. Oh, my god. It was the first time in 3 months I had a chicken sandwich with mayo. To quote the Bible, it was good. We went back and crashed at 1:30 and the next day we got up at the crack of 9.



Because the weather was kind of crappy, we decided to do one of those really cheesey bus tours where you can jump on and off at tourist sites. We got on at St. Stephen's Green, a 5 minute walk from our hostel and my favorite place in Dublin and our first stop we got off at was Kilmainham Gaol. I could bore you with some facts about the jail, but instead, if you want to learn more, here's the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilmainham_Gaol. It was really interesting (and cheap!). I'm not going to lie, the four of us got a big kick out of the fact that today the Gaol has a tea room....



We got back on our bus and jumped off at Ha-Penny Bridge, where we had lunch at Ha-Penny Bridge Inn. So good.



Having decided that it was a more acceptable time to start drinking, we jumped back on and headed to the Guinness Factory!!! Being the girls we are, we started with the gift shop, where I bought a t-shirt. While the factory, which is the shape of a pint glass, was impressive and huge, our tickets for sure paid for our "free" pint at the top in the Zero Gravity Bar.

By this time, it was time for dinner, so we headed to Temple Bar, the trendy area of Dublin. We agreed on a pub called Oliver St. James Gogartys. I'd like to take this opportunity to say how much I love the girls I traveled with. No drama. No pety arguments. Three hour long dinner.

It was close to 11 when we left and we went back to the hostel. We were tired, okay?! We couldn't bring ourselved to actually go to bed that early, so we went down to the common room and just talked until 1:30.

We got up at the crack of nine again and decided we did enough touristy stuff the day before, so we spent the morning shopping on Grafton Street. We wound up by Trinity College and looked at a pub for lunch called Blarney Inn. It was too expensive so we found a good fish and chips place. Yes, family, I ate fish. Turns out it's good if it's deep fried! We did some more shopping and headed to a dessert place called "Queen of Tarts." Promise me if you ever go to Dublin you will go there. I don' know if it was because I hadn't had a good dessert in 3 months or it it was really that good, but it was amazing!

Afterwards, we headed back to look around Trinity, but on our way, we ran into my high school friend Susan! Susan's studying in Granada and was on Spring Break. I knew she was going to be here that weekend but never thought I'd actually see her! It was so much fun running into her!! We eventually got to Trinity, vowed to come back, and headed to the National Gallery of Ireland. The Gallery was free (you hear that, Rome? free museums!) but we were tired by that time and headed back to the hostel shortly to crash before the night's festivities.

We went on a musical bar crawl. In one word: epic. But first let me go back to our Irish cabbie. He told us that a few years ago during the census, the government realized that there was 1 pub for every 30 people in Dublin, a city of 1.5 million. Do the math. Want to know which pubs were on our crawl? Oliver St. James Gogartys, Ha-Penny Bridge Inn, and Blarney Inn. Got to love irony.

Our musicians were awesome and we had a blast. The music was good and they were funny. Unfortunately, it ended at 10:30 and we'd be damned if we were going back to the hostel that early. The musicians told the four of us about a pub called Devitts, which happened to be across the street from our hostel, so we went.

People say that Dublin is becoming too touristy, but we were the only Americans in the pub and apparently you could tell. The musicians there were just as cool and we made new friends with them and these 3 Irish guys who were probably in their early to mid-20s. Devitts closed at 12:30 and the boys took us to a pub/club just down the street called Flannerys. We danced, had a pint or two and were asked to leave at 4:30 when the place closed.

The next morning, we had to be out by 10:30 and spent the rest of the day in St. Stephen's Green and a nearby coffee shop savoring the city. We stayed there until we had to leave for the airport and headed back to Rome.

I'd like to take this time to tell you I will be living in Dublin soon. I want to go back so bad!!!

Top 10 Favorite Sights

Top 10 Favorite Sights:

 

10.  Oasis in Sahara

            Pit stop during the 4 x 4 drive. I always had trouble picturing what an actual oasis looked like, as the only reference I had was this tiny cardboard book about Joseph and Mary finding an oasis on their way to Bethlehem.

9. Dunes in the Sahara via 4 x 4s

            They were massive! We were told at the campsite not to wander in the Sahara because the dunes can change in a half hour. Picture the moving staircases in Harry Potter and you’ll understand.

8.  View from hotel room in the Tamerza Palace

            This was definitely the best hotel room, by far. I claimed the best bed, the one that looked out on the mountains. In the morning, I got some great shots of the sun right above the mountain tops.

7. Top of a mountain in Matmata

            Self-explanatory. We stopped for a photo-op and after I picked my jaw up from off the ground, I climbed this small mountain (a glorified hill, really) and was amazed. This was the area where the desert homes in Star Wars were filmed, to give you an idea of what it looked like.

6. View from hookah bar in Sidi Bou Said

We were up above the hill town, a suburb of the capital of Tunis, at night. It was gorgeous. Millions of lights lit up in the huge city below us. (Sigh)

5. Brook on the way to Tamerza

            Another pit stop that turned out to be amazing. This is now officially my happy place. It just came out of nowhere and was so clear!

4. Mediterranean

            Isn’t it insane that the Mediterranean is fourth? If a normal person saw the Mediterranean, they would be in awe, but I saw so many gorgeous things, that it ranks fourth!

3.  Sahara at night/ stars

            Any stars I see now will be a huge disappointment. Dad, remember when I used to get sick when we camped and we looked at the stars while we went for a walk? This made those stars look like those twinkle lights Mom and Kate love so much. I could just stare at them forever if it wasn’t for the sand getting into places it shouldn’t get into…

2. Great Salt Lake

            The Great Salt Lake just came from nowhere. Seriously. We saw it the morning after the night in the desert and I was just passed out on the bus. We stopped and I was so confused why. Then I looked outside and thought, “Oh… I get it.” The lake itself was all dried up, but the salt remains, which makes for my favorite pics from the trip.

1.   Sahara at sunset

All I can say about the Sahara at sunset is that it puts words to shame. Sadly, I have no pictures. It was like this huge ball of fire was just melting into the sand. They told us that the sand just ruins cameras in a heartbeat, so I don’t have any pictures of the desert. If you’d like proof I was there, I’m sure I can shake my head and some sand could come out.

 

Top 10 Sayings from Tunisia

I've been trying to think of a fun way of blogging about my trip without having to do the whole day by day play by play, which lets face it, you will all gloss over and pick one thing to comment on. So, on that note, I've decided to change it up and do it Letterman-style, and by that I don't mean having an affair with someone a fraction of my age.

Top Ten sayings from Tunisia:

10. “Look! George Bush!”

            Tunisians think it’s really funny to tell you you look like someone famous, i.e. they told my friend Matt he looked like Bush. We had fun with that one.

9. “Chicago! Obama!”

            With all due respect to Green Bay, I’ve given up trying to explain to people where I’m from. I’ve taken to just saying Chicago; however, when I do that, the immediate reaction is Obama!”

8. “Santa lives in Tunis!”

            When we went to the US Embassy, we were given a speech by a number of higher-ups, including a stout older man with a white beard. He tried explained what he did, which includes giving people temporary passports. He said he was Santa, not us, for the record.

7.  “I hope we have a new ambassador. This one’s just so stupid.”

The owner of this quote remains anonymous. I promise it’s not me. The person would like to add that he doesn’t care for the ambassador because the ambassador considers Tunisia the Middle East.

6. “You guys? Who’s Tony Danza?”

We learned a new card game that we called Tony Danza, which involves yelling Tony Danza at the top of your lungs. While playing, my friend Matt made the huge mistake of admitting to not knowing who Tony Danza was. Shunning was involved.

5. “Let’s take him home!” “Okay!”

            Yes. We were talking about a dog. I did not initiate any dog-napping this spring break. Sadly, the guy who suggested it turned out to be joking. I was not amused. The puppy was adorable.

4. “Your camel has gas issues. It sounds like bubbling nuclear waste.”

            You know what? Not all camels are like the ones in Aladdin. On that note, neither are Arabian Knights, but that’s a different story. My camel, I have to admit, did have some serious issues in the gastro-intestinal area…

3. “Fish and Chips!”

            Perhaps my favorite name to be called. When I tell them I’m not American, i.e. when I like messing with people by talking in a British accent, they start yelling “fish and chips!” I’m glad to know British people have their own stereotypes…

2. “I think I bruised my boob!”

            While I know I will get lectured from my parents for being inappropriate, I couldn’t not mention this one. Let’s just say the seatbelts were very effective. I had no idea the 4 x 4s were so fun and intense! Truth be told, I wasn’t even going to put on my seatbelt until it was strongly suggested by the driver. We bounced so much that I actually hit my head on the top of the jeep.

1. “For you? Good price!”

BEST QUOTE OF THE TRIP! We heard it every time we went to a market, or walked by a random vendor, or out of a museum, or really anytime. Part of the “Tunisian market experience” is haggling with vendors. They are actually really smart and can switch from one language to another in a blink of an eye. They can also screw you over majorly. They start out with an absurd price, but tell you it’s a special price because they like you, or they like Obama or you have nice eyes. They tell you you won’t get a better price. The trick is, I’m 99% sure they all work together. Case and point: if they don’t have change, they go to the stall next to them and get it from them.

'Twas the night before Tunisia...

... and all the through the school
not a person was quiet
no, it wasn't cool.

I leave for Tunisia in 7 hours!!! YAY!!! I'm so incredibly excited!!! Tunisia, by the way, is just a hop, skip, and a jump, or in this case, a bus, a plane, and a bus, away from Italy. It's in Northern Africa, just across the Mediterranean.

We leave from the J-Force at 7, NO EXCEPTIONS...so we'll pull out around 7:30. I swear it's worse than Alpha Chi time. First we're going to the embassy and then hopefully check in to the hotel in Tunis, the capital.

But I'll talk more about the day-by-day stuff when I get back.

What you'll find entertaining is the meeting we had a few days ago. Being my father's daughter, I took notes. If nothing else, they will be funny to look back on later. I wrote normal things like "don't drink the water" and "wear a scarf at the Mosque" but then also wrote things like "don't wander too far in the desert or a sandstorm might come and I'll never be seen again" and "hold on to the camel tight so arabian knights can't pull me off and sell me into slavery in Algeria." Why Algeria, you ask? Because a month after the J-Force went last year, just that happened to an American tourist. But don't worry, my friends Danielle and Erin back at Marquette are already hatching a plan to save me from slavery. Seriously. Danielle gave my dad her cell number.

On a positive note, we'll get to see where they filmed the desert scenes in Star Wars!

What else is new.... I had class yesterday at the Vatican again. This time we went to the Vatican Museum, which, of course, was amazing. I wasn't feeling too well, darn pasta is getting to me, but still managed to appreciate all the wonderful art. I've also come to an important realization: modern art stinks. In case you don't know the story, my mom and I raced through Art Street in 10 minutes flat and through Andy Warhol in 20 minutes. The only reason Warhol took that long is because we couldn't stop laughing at Kathleen and my little joke... Love you sister!!!

No, modern art is horrible. Michelangelo made art. Raphael created art. Bernini made art. Warhol made Last Supper drawings with soup cans in the background.

Speaking of Michelangelo: I saw the Sistine Chapel!!! It was so impressive, although a lot smaller than I thought. Darn Ron Howard and Tom Hanks made it seem bigger in Angels and Demons. What really through me off was the Last Judgment. It's horrible. People being cast into hell and eternal damnation wasn't really enjoyable. Then I realized the next time I'd see it, I'd be a part of the real thing, which was very unsettling.

Signing off now! I don't know what Internet I'll have in Tunisia-- have they even heard of computers there?--but I'll try to update when I can! And I'm just kidding about the computer situation there, I hope...

How does this count as school??

Seriously.

Right now, I'm laying out in the front courtyard, it's beautiful, and life couldn't be any better (except if I didn't have two midterms on Friday, but who cares? All I have to get is a C!!)

My life the last few weeks has been a huge roller-coaster. I came back from Venice (high!) only to get sick (low!). I have wonderful friends (HIGH!) but then the cold I got a lot worse (low!). Finally, my parents came (HIGH!!!!) but then I was told I had to go to class Friday to take those darn midterms in the 2 classes I don't like (low....).

What more could a person ask for? I have a family that loves me as much as I love them. I have awesome friends both at JForce (John Felice Rome Center) and in MKE and GB. There's barely a cloud in the sky and the courtyard is covered in what I'm choosing to believe are daisies.

It's days like this when I'm truly surrounded by God. Sure, I've had my struggles (who hasn't?), but if you told me a year ago that I would be sitting outside in Rome on my laptop with plans to go to Tunisia in a week (!), I would have thought you were on drugs. Never did I think I'd end up here. Those who know me well know how indecisive I am and how much I struggled choosing a study abroad option: South Africa, Ireland, England, Spain, El Salvador and then finally Rome. 

I wish I could describe this moment better, but in this one moment, in this one place, everything is perfect in the world.

Carnevale- Days 2 & 3

We, of course, slept in on Saturday and went to Murano, which is a separate island. We finally found a ferry and after only getting a little confused as to which one to take (think a complicated bus system, but in a different language, and not buses, but ferries), we managed to get to the island.

We wandered for a bit, did some shopping, which of course was a huge priority. Murano is well-known for their glass-blowing, so we simply had to get some authentic Murano glass jewelry!!! My favorite part was that in every shop window there was a sign that said, "This store sells only Murano products. Whoever buys goods imported from China kills Murano." That's a bit harsh... After making our way down the main street, and by street I mean on one side of the large river that divides the island in two, we found a factory, but lo and behold the factory was closed on Saturdays, including the weekend of Carnevale, which I would assume is one of the busiest weekends. We made our way back the way we came from, only on the other side as to not miss those stores. A nice man told us where we could find a demonstration and we saw them blow glass! At first, I was thinking, "Okay. That's great. I don't understand what the big deal is, though." Then he made a gorgeous mustang statue with about 4 quick movements and then I was impressed.

We went back to the apartment, had our second family dinner, and got ready for night 2. Night 2 was awesome, but somehow I don't really want to explain the details, as I'm sure it would make all of you very nervous and concerned... Ask me again in 10 years and I'll give you the deets. Everyone ended up fine.

Sunday, we slept in, met up with the other JFRC (or J-Force) kids and split up. Some went to check out of the hostel and get the deposit back while the rest of us waited for the other group who were leaving their luggage at our place for the day. We went back to San Marco's and got some more awesome pics. Definitely my favorite part of the day was when this huge group of guys (think of 10 frat guys, only Italian) dressed up as cows attacked me and yelled "MOO!!!" Gosh, I miss Wisconsin...

We went back, had our last family dinner, chilled, and went out for gelato before we left for the train station, which was a good 20 minute walk from our apartments. We got there with 1 1/2 hours to spare, though, but by then we were so tired we just didn't care.

Then came the ride home.

Words cannot describe how awful it truly was. We were supposed to have a cabin to ourselves, but when we got there, 2 African men, who smelled horribly of urine and alcohol, were sprawled out on our seats. They didn't understand that it was our cabin and didn't speak English. After a mild freak out by one girl, we found a man who explained that they had to leave, which they eventually did. Unfortunately, they left their horrible odor behind. Luckily, that same girl came prepared with Febreeze. After 2 good sprayings, we were able to suck it up and go in. I still couldn't fall asleep, though. Those of you who have had the pleasure of living with me know that I tend to freak out if I can't fall asleep. That, coupled with the odor, the cramped space, the creepy guy drumming his nails on the other side of the door, and the fact that I knew I had a long day of classes ahead of me, kept me from sleeping. I think I finally dozed off for a grand total of 2 hours, though!!!

Looking back on all the experiences I had, Venezia. Was. Epic.
End of story.

Farewell, Meat! Carnevale 2010- Day 1

Gosh, you guys sure get antsy when I don't post... I guess it's a sign of love! <3

Speaking of love, last weekend was Valentine's and I WENT TO VENICE! (You see that flawless transition???)

Words. Cannot. Describe. It.

We left thursday night at 10:30, which was our first mistake. If you ever are in Italy, never, under any circumstances, take the night train. Out of my entire trip, being sick, hurting my foot, and the cold showers, the night train is still the worst experience I've ever had. Normally, I'm able to just pass out and sleep the entire time. Nope. Didn't happen. I think I got about 2 hours and then we pulled into Venice at 5:45 am. Oh, and we couldn't check into our hostel until 9. My first impression was, boy, Venice is cold! A normal person would have looked at a map and realized, hey, Venice is in northern Italy and is surrounded by water. Nope. Not this girl. 

We we able, thankfully, to drop off our bags at the hostel and then just wandered the streets of Venice. It was so weird. At first, our only priority was to get warm and hopefully sit down, but nothing was open so on we went. By this time, it was 6:30 and the sun was beginning to peak out so we wanted to find a place to watch the sunrise, something I have yet to do in Italy...

After some more wandering and my sad attempts at asking for directions, we somehow found San Marco's. If you get the chance to go to Venice, take it if for no other reason to go to San Marco's. St Mark is the patron saint of Venice and is buried in the church that bears his name. As huge and impressive as the church is, the views are even better.

I feel like I should do a little backtracking. This weekend was the end of Carnevale, a 12 (?) day party/ festival celebrating the start of Lent. Traditionally, it was when everyone would eat all the meat they had, thus "Carne" ("meat") "Vale" ("go away"). It was expanded into a huge 2 week long party where people from all over the world come to party and show off the most extravagant costumes I've ever seen. Think Halloween on steroids mixed with Phantom of the Opera.

It turns out that the best dressed come out to San Marco's to have their pictures professionally done at sunrise for magazines, ads, TV... Guess who happened to be there at the same time??? THIS GIRL!!! I got SO many incredible pics that Halloween will be a huge letdown this year.

We checked into our apartments. Yes, that's right: plural. I traveled with 7 other girls; 10 if you count the girls we met up with. We were given the first floor of a building that has 3 separate apartments. Apartment is the wrong word. Penthouse is more like it. Please refer to the picture. That is just my and one other girl's bed.

We took a well-deserved nap, had lunch at a pizzeria right outside our apartment, and, being the girls we are, immediately started our searches for the perfect masks. I decided on a subtle purple and gold mask, with jewels, edging, and huge feathers. I love that mask... We all met back at made pasta for dinner and totally ate family style. We got ready and went out to celebrate one girl's 21st bday!!! We heard of some stuff going on at San Marcos, but it turned out to be kind of a bust. We went back to the apartments to change and stumbled upon a huge party in a piazza near us. We met up with some more JFRC kids, but nothing much happened and we were back home by 1:45.

Just another day....

Hello all.

Haven't blogged in a few days, but that's just because nothing major has happened.
I'm trying to put together a trip to Austria to Salzburg and Vienna to do the Sound of Music tour, which if you know me, is one of the coolest things I can imagine.

I did go to St. Peter's for mass on Sunday, which was pretty surreal. The mass was in Italian, but again, I was able to figure out that the Gospel was about Simon the fisherman and once again, I was pretty proud of myself.

I came back after and did some reading for my Roman Catholicism and Christian/Jewish classes. Unfortunately, I then discovered ch131.com, where I can get seasons 4 and 5 of Bones online, so you can bet I wasn't too productive afterward. I did end up going to mass at school again that night because I missed what the first 2 reading were about at St. Peter's.

I stayed up and watched the 1st quarter of the Superbowl, which we streamed here, but it started at 12:30 am so needless to say I was pretty out of it.

Monday, I'm not sure why, but I just felt really down. My italian class was really confusing, in my RC class, my desk top was broke and clattered to the floor and in my C/J class, the prof. thought I was falling asleep even though I wasn't. Disclaimer: even if I was, it would have been understandable: I had that prof for 5 hours that day, it was 9:15, and the Superbowl was the night before. I still maintain I didn't fall asleep, though.

Now, it's 12:30 Tuesday morning and I'm technically supposed to be in my Italian class, but I finished the quiz in about 6 minutes, including double-checking my answers, so I have 20 minutes to kill.

Ciao all!

Lesson Learned: Don't Mess with the Orangutans.

I went to the zoo today and almost wet myself. Not because it was wet outside or because I couldn't find a bathroom. No, it was because I thought I'd have a sweet moment when I would put my hand on the glass of the orangutans display and then he would slowly put his hand up like they do in movies. No, it doesn't work that way. I held up my end of the deal and squatted down to his eye-level and slowly put up my hand. You know what that little monster did? He smacked his big ol' orangutan hand right in my face, given that I was on the other side of the glass, but still: not exactly cinematic. There was some heavy swearing involved, along with what people have told me was a very impressive jump.

We had plans to go to the zoo all week and not rain nor wet socks was going to stop us. What almost stopped us was our lack of directions. We didn't realize that the #19 bus first of all was actually a tram, not a bus. Secondly, we didn't realize that the #19 took you all the way to the entrance of the zoo. We got off 3 stops before, which here is a good 2 miles. Oh, did I mention it was raining? On the plus side, I got to use my "Jacket in a Packet" for the first time, which is a rain coat that folded up nicely into the pocket but now just barely fits...

Once we got into the zoo, found the guy we were meeting up with, who, the poor guy, had thought we ditched him and had started heading back after waiting for 1 1/4 hours for us, we had a lot of fun. We accepted the fact that the weather sucked and was grateful there wasn't any crowds.

You already heard about my orangutan fiasco, which apparently was the highlight of the trip for my friends. We also saw the usual zebras, lions, tigers, chimps, apes, wallabies, and seals. I realized that I had not been to a zoo probably since I was 8, so I had a blast making a complete fool out of myself with my friend making animal noises.

Estimated time getting there: 2+ hours
Estimated time getting back: 45 min...

What you are, we once were; what we are now, you will be.

If anyone knows (without looking it up!) what this is referencing, you are seriously disturbed. Just throwing that out there.

Today (Friday) has been an eventful day: I had a make-up Art in Rome class because on Wednesday, we went to the Papal Audience. First off, every night before this class I wonder why the heck I'm taking it: it's tons of reading, I have to get up early, museum fees are already adding up, and it takes at least an hour to get anywhere on public transportation. That being said, today rocked.

We met at the Pantheon (NOT the the Parthenon, which I learned is completely different) and toured it. I know I've said this before, but my prof knows everything about everything. This class I actually took notes, which was a big step for me, because I usually just tell myself I'm just absorbing everything he's saying w/o writing anything down. We learned about the sentence on top of the Pantheon, the columns, the dome, the recesses, the history of Caesar, Hadrian, Marcus Agrippa and everyone else who lived or breathed at that time in history.

Then we walked about 10 minutes to the Ara Pacis, which is the Altar of Augustan Peace. It was constructed when Augustus Caesar was returning home from a 3 year-long battle and was created as a symbol of the peace he had restored to Rome.

Class was technically over, but my friend Julia and I went and grabbed lunch at a Tabacchi, and then got the best gelato yet. Seriously, this place must have had over 60 different flavors. It had pastries, cakes, cannoli, tiramisu, candy, and, my personal favorite, huge suckers with the pope's face on them. After picking out our gelato (8 flavors, 2 girls, no regrets), we walked around for a bit and met up with some people and went to the Church of the Immaculate Conception, aka the Really Creepy Cappuccin Monk Skull Church.

I have never been scared by a church. Actually I normally find them very comforting, but this place was just trippy. We asked the woman working there and she said there was over 3000 skeletons there. Google image it, and do it during the day. I'm not sure if it was the actual skulls and bones that freaked me out or the fact that I will one day be one. That's what the title is, by the way. At the very end, there's a sign that says, "What you are now, we once were; what we are now, you will be."

We took the long way back to the bus line we needed so we could stop at the Spanish Steps. The views there are amazing! I got a bunch of great pictures I'll try to put up soon!

Highlights/ Random Tidbits:
* The Pantheon is the best preserved ancient Roman building because it was handed over to the church in the 7th century.
* The famous phrase "M. Agrippa, son of Lucius, on the counsel for the third time built this" is a total lie. Agrippa originally built it, but it was destroyed by a fire and rebuilt by the Emperor Hadrian.
* When the crazy woman who works in the creepy monk church says no pictures, she means it.
* Jumping out and saying "boo!" to your friends in the creepy monk church is frowned upon.
* There's a store off of Via del Corso that sells boxers that have pictures of the David's, um, manhood.
* The art historians at the Ara Pacis are crazy strict. They yelled when my friend put down her folder on a 2-year old model of the Ara Pacis. I swear it's because they don't want to have to clean it...

Ciao, famiglia e amici!

VIVE IL PAPA!!! Part II

=-)
Today was Papal Audience Day and we had the day off from classes. First of all, you got to love that we get off for something like this! Second of all, WE GOT TO SEE THE FREAKIN' POPE!

We got out tickets last night at dinner which was basically a green 1/4 sheet of paper that said, according to Fr. Bohr, "you are cordially invited to tea with the Pope," along with 1100 of your closest fellow Christians. We really weren't given any other instructions, but decided that we would just follow the masses (get it? masses? church? oh, I need sleep...) the next morning.

Some people were absolutely crazy and left by 6:00 in the morning. I got up at six and left at the much more reasonable time of 6:45 and was there along w/ the rest of Loyola at 7:15. No one told us that we couldn't even get in until 8:30, so we chilled (literally, it was cold!) outside until then. I was a little disappointed we didn't have to elbow our way through the nuns, like I was told.

After security (of course) we were ushered into the audience hall and got great seats and waited for another two hours, but we were inside, sitting, with access to a free bathroom, so no complaining here.

Then, he came.

It was so surreal. He was probably 200 meters away. I say 200 meters because I have absolutely no idea and don't want to think about how the actual distance. He was flanked by the Swiss Guards, looking as sharp as always in their "costumes," as one friend said.

First was an opening blessing only in Italian. Then someone read a Scripture passage from Psalms in French, the next one read in English, the next in Spanish, German, Portuguese, and Russian.

Then came Roll Call. The priest who read in Italian would come back to the mic and announce who was there from French-speaking countries. Each group would stand and either cheer or sing and then the Pope would give a very short homily on the reading in French. The JFRC kids were panicking because we didn't have a song! It was so obvious that everyone else had been preparing for weeks to sing for His Holiness and we just stood up and looked at each other and cheered. Yay!!!! But really, it was awesome. He gave us a special blessing, and said he was praying for us and our loved ones, which is you guys! So you all were there in spirit!

After Roll Call, we sang the Our Father together in Latin while the Pope did his blessing over the objects (I brought my rosary Kate gave me from Kenya (Kenya? Belize? Peru?)) and we were done!

We headed to Old Bridge, the best gelato place in the city and then back to campus for lunch. I napped, obviously, and then here I am telling you all about my great adventures!

Highlights:
* My friends getting gitty with the cold and started to yell stuff like, "Look! Papal Pigeons!" while we were waiting outside
* The Austrians sitting in the section in front of us wearing what I liked to call "Von Trap hats" and yes. They sang.
* The Irish grade schoolers who apparently thought it would be a good idea to bring huge balloons than when they eventually popped, sounded like gunshots.
***** The. Traveling. Jugglers. Think Oceans 11 when they went to go get the Chinese guy. The face on the Pope was awesome after they were done. It was a combination of surprise and "what the heck was that?"

VIVE IL PAPA!!!

Oh, hey.
Saw the Pope today. He says hi.

The end.

Class, Class, What a Pain in the--- Butt.

I'm finally giving in to family pressure in two ways: I'm letting my family friend me on Facebook and I'm blogging about my classes. Sigh.

Here's a little bit about my school life:
~My classes normally don't start until noon, except Art In Rome, which I'll explain in a bit.
~ Everything at the JFRC is in the same building, an old convent.
~ I can be on facebook until 3 minutes before my class begins, go to my room, grab my stuff and still be on time for class

Italian 101:
Sadly, my one day of Italian freshman year did not fulfill my Italian requirement here. Italian is one of my favorite classes actually because the class is so small and we're really encouraged to ask questions and make mistakes. Whoever said Italian would be easy because I have so much Spanish experience is a moron. Spanish just makes everything so much harder! You think you know how to say something in Italian, but then the person looks at you like your crazy because apparently, you're speaking Spanish. Gr. Still, I'm improving.

Roman Catholicism:
Is a lot harder than I thought. We're still in the abstract phase: what is theology? What is faith?
The professor, though, is really interesting. He's from Germany, lives in Rome, teaches "Faith" at the Gregorian Institute in Italian, and teaches 2 classes at the JFRC in English. We asked him just how many languages he spoke and he said 10, 13 if you count ancient Greek, Hebrew, and Latin...

Christian/Jewish Encounter:
I have the same professor as for Roman Catholicism and it is a lot more interesting than my Roman Catholicism class, which is a little disconcerting. :/

Art in Rome:
This is the class that you all love. It's the one where we meet each Wednesday at a different site and get a tour of it from our professor. I've only had it once and we went to the Forum, Colesseum, and the Palatine Hill. Very cool, but I heard his tests are impossible.

Immigrant Experience:
MY FAVORITE! The book is really interesting and the professor's adorable. We watch clips from movies that really show what it was like back then. Oh, and our big homework assignment was a 2 page paper on a Charlie Chaplin movie we watched in class.

That's all for now!! =-)

Huge marble penises! Everywhere!

Tell me to describe Florence in one phrase and that has to be it.
Seriously.

I went to Florence this last weekend with a bunch of Marquette kids (Claudia, Zach, Chris, Stephanie, Michael, and Katherine) and honestly, words cannot describe it.

We got in and I was ready to catch the next train back to Roma. It was dirty and there was graffiti everywhere and we had to walk 3 miles to our hostel. I was less than impressed. Then I realized that that really wasn't Florence. It's like how the Tower Drive Bridge gives a less than ideal first impression of Green Bay. We walked and walked and walked and just when I thought I was going to collapse, we ran straight into the Uffizi, which is one of the biggest art museums in Italy. I had only done a little bit of research on Florence before we left, but even I knew that the Uffizi was huge! Then we began to see the huge stone penises everywhere. Outside the museum. Outside the churches. Inside the churches. Around the piazzas. In store windows. In the markets. Okay, I may be fudging the last two, but you get the idea.

We literally walked around the corner and found our hostel and because we were a group of 7, we actually got out own little apartment, with 2 bedrooms, a living room, a closet-sized kitchen and a kitchen-sized bathroom. We threw down our stuff and headed straight for the Uffizi because it closed in a few hours and there wasn't any line.

The Uffizi was amazing. I saw so much art this weekend that my head is starting to spin, but in a good way. I have a few favs from the Uffizi, though: The Birth of Venus (obviously), The Annunciation of the Magi, and Madonna con Bambino. Of course, we saw more stone penises. We didn't want to pay for a tour, so we just looked around by ourselves, but I, of course, creeped on a few different tours, the first being in Spanish. God, I miss Spanish... The second and third were college classes, like my Art in Rome class.

We were some of the last ones out of the museum and then headed back the apartment for some water/ bathroom use. After, we split into two groups: one went out for a few glasses of wine and the other went to find the best gelato in the city. Guess which one I did? Hint: Uncle Jon, you would be so proud! We must have looked at at least 8 different gelaterias before deciding on one called "Festival del Gelato." It. Was. Amazing. Nutella, chocolate, and tiramisu. My mouth just watered writing that...

In between gelato shops, we heard this weird organ music down a side street. Being curious, we naturally followed it into this dark church, Santa Maria di Ricci. No one was in it, except for the 3 of us (me, Zach and Chris), the organist, and this adorable dog that would come and go as he liked. It was straight from Phantom of the Opera. We stayed in there for a bit and it was just so cool stumbling on something like that.

We walked around a bit more and eventually ended up at Ponte Vecchio, which is Italian for Old Bridge. It's actually one of the most famous bridges in Italy because it has a bunch of stores on the bridge and because Hitler didn't blow it up in WWII. Yay, Hitler! I bet he just didn't want the antique stores to go out of business. I got some great pics of Florence at night there, too. We met a bunch of (American) girls who just came to Florence to study for the semester, and told them what a great town it was. We also saw this weird little Florentine statue with a gate around it where you put a lock on the gate w/ you and your boyfriend's names and that means your love will last. I thought it was cute... The guys I was with? Not so much.

The next morning we all headed to the Accademia, where we saw The David. If you are ever in Florence and you don't see The David, don't tell me because I will hunt you down and hit you over the head. We couldn't take pictures, but I'm glad because it wouldn't do it justice. It's just huge! It was so hard to imagine that it was once just a huge piece of marble. More stone penises...

We split up into a few different groups: one went to Pisa, one went to the gardens, and I chose to wander around Florence. There's just so much to see that I didn't want to leave just to get a picture of me pretending to hold up the tower. Uncle John Blaney can just photo-shop that! I stumbled on this huge outdoor market, which was really cool, saw a few more churches and then we all met up for dinner.

Ok. About this dinner. Have you noticed that besides the gelato friday night I didn't mention anything about eating? There's a reason. We didn't. We just waited and survived on salami and cheese until Saturday night because we wanted a good meal. And we did. (after wandering trying to find a place for a solid 45 min). We found a place down a side street and ate like I've never eaten before. We had lasagna, chicken, french fries, bread, and wine.

Of course, we were so full that we went straight home and passed out right after. =-)

This morning, the plan was to get up at 6 to go see the sun rise, but due to some communication errors and a little too much wine, we didn't get up until 8. We all split up again and I ended up at Santa Croce, which was just down the street. We were actually walking out of our apartment when I heard the church bells. I thought I'd take my chances and sure enough, mass started 5 minutes later. It was in Italian, but they had the reading, prayers and responses written down, so I could actually follow along. I was so proud that I pick out the reading from Corinthians: When I was a child, I thought like a child, reasoned like a child, talked like a child... and the greatest of these is love. <3

In the Basilica, it turns out Galileo, Michelangelo, and Machiavelli are all buried. Not together, of course... How's that for something just to stumble upon?

I did some more wandering, took some more pictures and then we all met at the Duomo before jumping illegally on a train to our train station. We just couldn't do that damn walk again...

Our train was delayed close to an hour, and at this point, our biggest concern was whether or not we would make it back to the JFRC for mensa (dinner). We strategized what buses to take, where the nearest bus stop was, what time mensa closed on Sundays. Thankfully, we made it and you have never heard a group of 7 college students so quiet as us as we ate as much free food as we possibly could.

On getting pictures: I don't know how, but I will finally accept you as a friend on facebook so you can see them!

Florence= amazing.
Feet= 7 blisters and counting (yeah, I didn't switch shoes like I should have)
Penis count= priceless

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum...

Finally. I've been waiting to use that title since I decided to blog from Rome.

But something funny really did happen-- your favorite blogger tripped and fell flat on her face before (therefore: on the way) even entering the place.

I went to the Roman Forum, the Colosseum, and the Palatine today for my Art in Rome class. Honestly, last night I was thinking about dropping the course. I was reading the unit in preparation for today's class and it was the most boring thing I have ever read, except for my Calc. book. God, that was horrible... But anyways, this was awful, too. I couldn't care less about how the Arc of Vespasian was erected to commemorate his looting of some city that I'm sure could not defend itself. Hooray! Let's celebrate NYC's ability to kick the crap out of of Podunk, Louisiana! =-/

But today was awesome. I got up ridiculously early (6:45) and was ready by 7:15, as my friend said we should leave a little after 7. 7:30 rolls around and I knock on his door and wake him up. Needless to say, I was less than amused... We still got to the Forum with 15 minutes to spare, though, so I should probably just let it go.

Picture this for a second: a tiny older man surrounded by 25 Italian speaking 20 year olds, who are all wearing what appears to be large, electronic hearing aids with big old battery packs touring Lambeau, because that is what we looked like to the Italians. We all had what I can only describe as walkie talkies, with the professor having the ability to talk to everyone. Hypothetically, we could turn him off and just pretend to listen...

My prof reminds me so much of Fr. Gilsdorf, in that he knows everything about everything. We could (and did) point to an obscure part of an ancient arch and ask him what it meant and he could (and did) go on about it. I was tempted to pick up a pebble, show it to him and say, "Now this pebble. How long has this pebble been here?"

We did the Roman Forum in depth and then went to the Colosseum, but didn't go in as a class. He gave up some background info and then dismissed us. I explored it (and got some great pics) with a few friends and then went to the Palatine. The Palatine basically is a bunch of ancient ruins (surprise! more ruins!) that used to house the emperor and his family.

Now I'm back at school, a mere 8 hours later, to change and I'm off to the Mass of the Holy Spirit at the Church of San Ignacio!

Arrivederci!

ADRIAN!!! ROCKY!!!

Yeah, not one of my best titles, but Hadrian's Villa (or the Roman spelling "Adrian") really was rocky, but mostly I did it for the reference.

Saturday I went to Hadrian's Villa and I honestly don't remember where it is located but I do remember it was in the town of Tivoli.

For you history enthusiasts (::cough:nerds:cough::), Adrian was an emperor in the second century a.d. Apparently, his palace on Palatine Hill in Rome wasn't cutting it, so he built this, which can only be described as a town in itself. Spanning 60 acres, his villa had no less than 10 dining rooms, 6 gymnasiums, libraries and galleries galore, and what I can only call their version of bathrooms, which consisted of a water stream, a stick and a sponge. I can't imagine where they would put their antibacterial hand gel!

Really, though, it was gorgeous. We had the choice to go to Hadrian's Villa or Villa D'Este, and I personally didn't care, knowing they would both be great. We honestly just got on a bus and then asked where this one was going.

I'm sorry I don't have pictures yet, but my internet is still on working (thank you, Loyola).

In other news, I will be spring breaking it in TUNISIA! It's an Islamic country in the north of Africa. We'll be spending the majority of the time in Tunis, it's capital and then trekking it to the Sahara, where we will spend a few nights. Oh, and we'll ride camels, no big deal... =-)
Be jealous. You know you always wanted to ride a camel since you saw Aladdin.

It's VatiCAN, not VatiCAN'T

I know, I know. I haven't blogged in a while and I'm sure you all are both devastated and on the edge of your seats. If not, you should be.

I think I left off on Thursday.

Friday was V-Day. That's right. I finally went to the Vatican. And it was good. It was like being in Disneyland. Seriously. First things first though, I had gelato from this one place everyone says is the best and they were right! As with most of my Italian transactions, it involved a lot of pointed and smiling, and compromising because I don't know words like "dish."

I went with a bunch of girls I met in Assisi, who shared my affinity for Catholic culture (if you get the reference, five points) and we did the typical mass picture-taking thing in front of the fountain in the Piazza. Then we saw a long line and thought, "Hey! They seem to know what they're doing!" So we jumped in line w/ them and ended up going into St. Peter's Basilica. Before, though, we were screened by Swiss Guards, who, by the way, weren't wearing the full costume, so a part of me is thinking that they were just creeps.

What a beautiful place! My one big regret, though, is that I didn't get a tour and didn't do research beforehand. I completely missed the Pieta! I did, however, see Pope John XXIII, Pope Pius XI, and, most importantly to me, Pope John Paul II, who had a Swiss Guard at his, along w/ a dozen or so people praying and a 1/2 dozen roses. St. Peter's still had their creche scene up. For my parents/ those in on the story: I verified that indeed, Judy with the jugs is part of the creche scene. I took pictures to prove it. We debated on whether or not to go to the Vatican Museum, but seeing that we are poor college students and that I'm sure my parents will be more than happy to pay my admission when they come to the Vatican, we passed. All was not lost, though. On our way out of St. Peters, we (FINALLY!) saw Swiss Guards in the full get-up and yes, I got pictures. And yes, I have no shame.

On to lunch, where there was more pointing and nodding, and then we went to Castel Sant' Angelo. Little known fact: Castel Sant' Angelo was actually the secret Church of Illumination, the Illuminati Lair. I learned that from Dan Brown. Once again, we didn't do a tour because it was getting late and we were trying to meet up with some girls.

We headed back via Piazza Cavore to Via Balduina to Via Massimi.

I don't want to overload you, so I'll write more later!!

This blog is brought to you by the letter C...

No, really.

Yesterday was my first real day of classes. For those of you saying, "Hey! You said your first day was 2 days ago!" I lied. Well, kind of. I did have a class on Wednesday morning, but I didn't go. Because the Italians are apparently paranoid that we are just going to stay here forever and ever, I had to do yet more paperwork, which involved going to l'ufficio postale, which sounds cool until you realize it's the post office.

I had my first day of Italian and then the Immigrant Experience class. Both of my professors seem very nice, the IE one might be a bit crazy, but in a fun way, and the Italian one is very sweet, knowing that when she was talking in rapid Italian, we all had a glazed-over looks on our faces. Then we learned our alphabet and spent a good 15-20 minutes talking about the letter "C" and the many different ways it can be paired up with vowels.

After class, I went to UPIM , which is the Italian equivalent of Target, but so much nicer, with a girl I met in Assisi. It's probably a mile away, going downhill on the way there and up on the way back so when you have a bunch of groceries, you'll get a workout. I stopped at a supermarket and bought some biscotti and wine. The wine came to a grand total of 2,10 euro, so you know it must be good stuff.

Then came dinner, and a chill night hanging out in Reinaldos.

I'm off to the Vatican, but I'm sure I'll regale you with stories from this trip later!

Assisi-mazing

Yes, I know all of you sarcastic Blaney family members are rolling your eyes. I can feel it all the way over "the pond" (:cough::Kathleen::cough).

I honestly have never seen a village as beautiful as Assisi. Words can't do it justice, but y'all know I'm going to try anyway.

We left at the crack of 8 Sunday morning, 8:45 JFRC time/AXO time. Dad, you'll be glad to know that the alarm does, in fact work; however, I realized yesterday and this morning that you actually have to take it along to Assisi in order for it to wake you up...

After stopping for a short (45+ min) break at the Italian version of a truck stop for a snack break and a grueling, yet hilarious game of Triangle with Stephanie, Zach, Chris, Claudia and Katherine, we stopped for lunch in a little town outside of Assisi. Without knowing it, we had literally stumbled upon a town festival, the stumbling being over all the animal poo in the streets. We made our way to the church/ center of the festival to try to go inside, but somehow managed to find ourselves quite literally in the middle of a huge procession out of church. Claudia, Mike and I were almost hit in the head by these men with these huge trumpets, dressed up in what I can only described as costumes too gaudy for the Swiss Guard.

Did you know that Assisi had hills? I do. Now.

Imagine the steepest, longest hill you have ever seen. Now increase the incline about, oh, 35 degrees. That is the smallest hill in Assisi.

After cussing myself out for not dancing for 6 years, we were ushered into the auditorium where we were given room assignments and then returned for a group discussion about community. Then came dinner and mass at a small chapel called S. Pietro near the retreat center.

It is my, what, 5th day in Rome? This is also the first night without having wine.

After dinner, we went back to the auditorium and got introduced to our JFRC director and one of the professors, which was awesome. They're so sweet. The prof just got knighted a few weeks ago. Honestly-- who get's knighted these days?

Then came the night out in Assisi. After thinking I couldn't possibly go up anymore hills, I worked my way up to the top of the town and a bunch of us, re a good 100, found an open pub.

We woke up the next morning and went on a walking tour of Assisi. We first saw Chiesa Nuova, the church built where St. Francis's home once stood. Very nice, but I was less than impressed, thinking at this was the big basilica of San Francesco. Then we went to La Basilica di Santa Chiara. Oh, I'm sorry. You all don't speak Italian. That's the Basilica of St. Clare, which was about 6 times bigger than San Francesco's. Sorry S. Francis... I was able to pray at the same church that held the relics of my patron saint, which was a surprisingly powerful moment. But then I went across the piazza and bought some souvenirs.

After Santa Chiara, we made our way to the real Basilica di San Francesco, which had no less than 4 floors. I've never seen a bigger church. If you remember the famous painting of San Francesco and the birds, you probably know where the original is. That's right. I saw it... No big deal.

We went back to the retreat center, ate and headed to Gubbio, a village just north of Assisi.

As much as I loved Assisi, I think I loved Gubbio just as much, but for totally different reasons.
I realized I wasn't being as independent as I wanted, so I had grabbed my journal before leaving. When we pulled into the town, I found a little bar (bar= cafe), and ordered my first cappuccino and observed real Italian life. It was so unbelievably cool. I reflected and was able to write down what I had seen and my memories of the last few days. Afterward, I saw Chiesa di San Francesco and left.

We went back to Assisi, ate (of course), and after I met up with a bunch of girls and we just played cards for a few hours, as none of us had any energy to go out again.

This morning, we all got up, had lunch, and headed back! I'm now exhausted, but energized.

Few notes:
**The patron saint of Assisi is not St. Francis, but St. Rufino.
** St. Francis's father would lock him up in a cell to try to convince him to return home, only to have his mother release him when he left town without his knowledge.
** The Basilica di San Francesco is actually owned by the Vatican.
**The term cappuccino is named after the Cappuccin order. If you mix equal parts coffee and milk, you get the exact color of their robes.
**The Fransicans were the first religious order to wear underpants. Because their frocks were shorter and they bent over in prayer, they needed to cover themselves.

For those Blaney's keeping count, that's 7 churches: Temple of Minerva in the forum in Assisi* Chiesa Nuova* Basilica di Santa Chiara* Basilica di San Francesco* Chiesa di San Francesco in Gubbio* Chiesa di S. Pietro* Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeles in the town outside of Assisi*

Sorry it's so long!

Classes tomorrow... =-/

Um. False.

Whoever said I'd be over my jet-lag by now was lying... Just saying.

On a positive note, we, all 235 of us, are going to Assisi tomorrow at the crack of 8 a.m. Trying to be honest here, I knew nothing about Assisi except that it was where St. Francis was from. I did just look it up (thank you wikipedia and Rick Steves!) and found a really cool church (and yes, that's not an oxymoron) that I want to visit. La basilica di Santa Chiara= the Church of St. Clare, where she was buried.

Interesting notes for the day:
**Italians apparently don't enjoy hot water. The water here is freezing! Should be good for spring though...
** St. Clare is the patron saint of television. Apparently, she was so upset that she was hospitalized at Christmas and couldn't hear St. Francis sing at mass that she began to see and hear the mass on her hospital wall.
** I learned my numbers in Italian, which means I can now talk to a 3 year old. Maybe tomorrow I'll tackle those pesky colors...

~*Erin*~

The ride to Rome was fine...

The ride to Rome was fine. Freakin' long, but fine. I, along with ALL of my luggage, arrived unscathed, with only one casualty. No, it wasn't the annoying woman next to me who hogged the armrest (really? who does that??). It was my shirt. If you look closely, you can see my entire journey. There's the stain from my dinner! There's the stain from my bloody nose! There's that awkward stretched out part where I tried to clean up the dinner! And the blood!

Really, though, the ride was fine. The Rome Cab worked out well, too. We had a guy waiting at customs for us. At first I thought it was because of the 30+ unmarked white Melatonin pills Kate had stuffed in a ziploc baggy, but it was our driver.

My roommate is actually a girl from Marquette, who seems really sweet. The group from Marquette is really close, which is very nice. I've met a bunch of great people so far, but have yet to see Pope Benny, although that may be a good thing, considering I may not be able to stop myself from jumping the barrier.

Cultural experience of the day: I had never seen a bidet until today. Still not sure how to use it, so I think I'll steer clear of it.

Notes about Italians/ Italy:
* IT'S HILLY!!! No really, it's unbelievably hilly, and cobblestone-covered, yet girls still wear high-heeled boots. Told you, Mom!
** Italians sure can eat: I, along with my 100 new friends, went to a restaurant Capperi! (yes, with the ! in the name). We were told it was a traditional Italian meal, so I expected exactly what you get at Buca's, because you can't get more authentic than that! We had had 3 small things to eat, and I was stuffed, when my friend Stephanie said, "Oh, just wait until the first course!" Yup, there was still a potato dish, a rice dish, a meat thingy, pasta, and dessert. I thought I was going to explode. All I could think was "HOW ARE YOU PEOPLE SO THIN???" Then I remembered the hills.

It's 10:00 pm. I haven't slept since wednesday night, I think today's friday, but I'm not possitive, so I'm taking this as a hint to go to bed.

Amor d' Roma,
Erin

Is this thing on???

Hey everyone!

I've never really done an actual blog, but here it goes!

I'm leaving for Rome in 8 days... which is both terrifying and exhilarating! Right now, my biggest fears include (but aren't limited to!) getting there with all these new security measures and meeting new people. My poor family! I'm sure I've been driving them all nuts the last few weeks with my little outbursts of "What if I don't make my connections?" and "What if I can't understand them?" Fact: I have never taken Italian, although a friend told me I should just speak Spanish with an Italian accent....

Here's another reason I love my family: Skype. My dad got a camera and has set Skype up. Partly because he didn't want to be technologically outdone and partly because my aunt might have separation issues, my uncle Jon installed Skype on his and my aunt Mary Jo's laptops. Picture this: my dad, my uncle Jon, my aunt Mary Jo, and my sister, all on separate laptops Skype-ing each other while they are all in the same room. It. was. epic.

Ciao for now! Hopefully, I'll learn how to really speak Italian soon...

Erin