Visitors from the Land of Guiness

This week the girls who are studying in Ireland came to visit Rome and it has been so fun! It's crazy how different our two experiences are, yet we have so much in common. I loved seeing familiar faces from Saint Mary's and being able to hug my dearest Marge. We had a ball and I am sooo happy I was able to spend so much time with them!! I can't wait until Barcelona when the Ireland, Seville and Rome gals are all together. That actually might be too much for Barcelona to handle.

Ten Courses Later.....

I am happy. Really really happy. I had a great weekend. I'll tell ya why.

Friday night we went to dinner at Tony's which is my favorite and I had chicken parmesan and they gave us two bottles of the house white and lemon gelato for free. Fab.

Saturday we had a tour of Hadrian's Villa (the 40 excavated acres) where I gave a presentation on his bathroom, so that was fun and then we went to this beauuuuutiful garden full of fountains and statues and waterfalls and plants. Absolutely gorgeous. One of those places a camera couldn't capture, and I loved that about it. It was the same garden part of the Lizzie McGuire movie was filmed and yes, I did run through it and pretend I was running with Paulo singing "This Is What Dreams Are Made Of." Anyways, after that we went to another ancient town and climbed a huge structure and saw some more ancient stuff and headed back to the hotel. We showered, went to dinner at Mimi and Coco's and got a seafood pasta dish and then we went out to our stomping grounds: the Drunken Ship. It's never the place we wanna go, but it's kinda like the place we always end up. Somehow. Saturday night ended with Gina and I running right into each other and an entire gin and tonic getting spilled down my front. After that little mishap, me and my gin soaked outfit called it quits and headed home.

Sunday we woke up and got ready to visit Gina's great aunt and cousins in a tiny village 200 miles south of Rome. It was actually the greatest. We got off the train and realized there were no cabs. We went into the train station and asked and he was like "it's Sunday... there's no cabs." Todo, we aren't in Rome anymore. We ask a guy working at the station and we call a random number given to us by the guy and somehow in broken Italian, we get a cab. Cab shows up. It's like a 1970 Cadilac. Not kidding. Two back seats, fits all 6 of us, it's like actually hysterical. He's driving like a typical maniac and suddenly stops and asks a man on the street if he knows the address. The bystander responded by asking for Gina's family name and immediately knew who Lillina was and where she lived. That's how tiny this town is. We get there and are greeted by her Aunt Lina and cousin Maria. They each hugged us and kissed us as we introduced ourselves. They both spoke absolutely zero English so communicating with them was a bit of a struggle at first. Gina's English speaking cousin arrived soon and really helped us out with the language barrier. As soon as we walked in, Zia Lina says, "eat!" So we sit down at a table set for us. First we have homemade bread and olives from her garden. Then this like salami meat thing that we put on the bread. It was so good. I hate cold meat but I really liked it.Then big penne noodles in an amaaaaazzzzzinngggg homemade tomato sauce she made by cooking the tomatoes with meat bones for flavor then removing the bones. Actually best thing I've eaten here. Both vegetarians were so disappointed they couldn't have it. At one point, Meg, who hasn't eaten meat since age five. questioned her life choices and actually regretted not eating the sauce even though we are pretty sure her body would just shut down. That's another thing. Zia Lina didn't really comprehend the whole no meat thing. Then we had the best meatballs I've ever eaten. Ever. Ever ever. Then we moved on to thin breaded pan fried chicken. Then different kinds of creamy cheese. Then salad. Then fresh fruit including super sweet pears and huge grapes. Then we had a cake made completely from scratch. To finish it off, we had Italian coffee. Ten courses. It was the greatest meal I had in a longggg time. It was perfect. Then we walked around the town and saw where Gina's family was from. Everyone we met was so sweet and kind and loving. The treated all of us like their own kids and could not have been more welcoming. It was so nice to be hugged and be in a house instead of a hotel. It was honestly the best day. When we left, they sent us with homemade cookies and hugs and kisses. Each of them said "I love you" as they hugged all of us. It was the cutest. We already made plans to go back during finals week.

All in all, great weekend in great places. Too much love in my heart right now.

One down, two to go.

A month ago tomorrow, a horrifically tired Katie stepped off a plane and into a foreign world. When I think about that day, it feels like ages ago… but when I think about how long I’ve been here, it feels like no time at all. The only time I realize how long I have been here is when I think about my odd familiarity with Rome. For example, after a long day of traveling and all we want is sleep and food and we get off that train, the first thing I think is “Ahhh, home.” But I’m not home. I’m in Rome. I also get mad at tourists. There have been times I have rolled my eyes behind large groups of tourists with stickers on their shirts and maps in their hands who don’t know how the whole stoplight thing works. Like whoa Kate, who made you a native Roman? I can tell the difference between good and bad pizza. Can you believe I just put those two words together??? Bad and pizza? Who am I anymore? I’m no longer fazed by the Pantheon. It isn’t even cool anymore. Just crowded. I am completely accustomed to being able to legally drink. Go figure. My feet no longer ache with the pain of walking multiple miles per day on cobblestone streets. I’m a huge diva. Huge. Bigger than before. I get annoyed if my cappuccino isn’t strong enough. My sense of direction has actually developed into something somewhat useful. Last but not least, I finally figured out how to unlock the classroom building door. I’m basically a true European.  

However, there are some things I just will not budge on. First and foremost, free bread and water. I’ll never forgive Europe for the lack of (American) generosity. The exchange rate will never be ok. I wish Europeans cared a little bit more about deodorant. I will never like veal. I will always want sweats to be a socially accepted thing. And I’ll honestly never not miss America’s efficiency and standards of cleanliness. Sounds odd, but it’s true.

As you can see, Rome and I have a great balance. Truthfully, I almost cried today thinking about how I only have two months left. This is been such a great experience so far and I will forever be grateful for this opportunity and this beautiful life I have here.  

Miss you all even more than I miss unscented toilet paper.

XOXO

Shout out to the people that kept me alive

Hello all.

I know you have all been anxiously waiting by your phones, computers, radios and televisions for any news of the condition of my precious health. You'll be glad to hear that this girl is back. Most of the achiness, headaches and plague-like symptoms have subsided and I am about 95% back to my bubbly, happy-go-lucky, glamorous, gorgeous, diva queen self. For this I owe thanks to a few people and things:

1. Muh frands
From the hugless heartless Haley who still brought me Gatorade, Carole who literally is my mother here, Gina who gives the best hugs, and Meg who let's me talk it out, they are the greatest.

2. The maids of the Albergo del Sole
The only people brave enough to clean the death room and the only people kind enough to ask me how I'm doing even though they literally have no clue what I'm saying.

3. Subway
I walk past a Subway every single day on my way to Pascucci's or the classroom building and every time I think to myself, "I'll never eat there, I'm in Rome!" Well yesterday, in my hopeless attempt to get to Pascucci's, I literally could not keep walking. I stopped in Subway and got a 12 inch sandwich with chicken and as many vegetables they could fit on it. I honestly think I would still be sitting on a curb on the busiest street in Rome if it was not for that Subway sandwich.

4. Gatorade
My current life source. I'm going to start sweating colors pretty soon.

5. The workers at Pascucci's
Stefano took my temp and pulse and put ice on my neck (it's not creepy I swear...) and Patrizio was just kinda Patrizio (and it was creepy).

6. My mommy. And Ryan.


So folks, moral of the story: don't worry about me. I'm ok. I'm alive. Rome is good.

Peace and blessings.

Why me?

I have the flu.

At least that's what we think.When we google my symptoms, meningitis and the flu come up. So we kinda just rule out meningitis..... Logical.

If there's one thing that can make a girl homesick, it's having the flu 4000 miles away from her mommy. Luckily, I have the combined maternal instincts of all the girls in this program and enough Gatorade, saltines, water and love to get my through this. Anyways, I'll be sitting here, sick, drinking Gatorade, eating Saltines, and blogging.

The girl can finally read a map.

5 girls. 4 hours of sleep. 3 trains. 2 cities. 1 day. That was Saturday.

         Back when we booked the trip, we did so with slight overconfidence. We had just tore through Florence with ease and we received insider advice about Italy (spolier alert: it was horrible advice). So we waltzed into the travel agency and booked our Saturday down to the minute. 6:50am train to Venice. 3:00pm train to Bologna. 9:00pm train back to Rome. Slice of pizza, right? No. Wrong. Very wrong. We all promised each other and ourselves we would go to bed early Friday night, which we did. But given our horrible sleep schedules, I could not fall asleep for the life of me. And the more I thought about how early I had to get up, the more awake I got. Our 5:00am alarm came way too quick and for a second I thought, "maybe my bed will be better than Venice today." I quickly snapped out of that and got up and ready to go. We walked out of the hotel doors but 6:10am in desperate search of a cab to take us to Termini station. Because 6am is actually the dead of night for Italians, there was not a car in sight. We finally waved down a lone taxi that told us he couldn't take us, but he would show us someone who could. Sounded legit. He sped away and we ran after him through the streets of Rome into some sketchy taxi hang out. It was weird. But we found a guy who could take all five of us so we hopped in and headed to the station. For those of you who don't know, train stations in Italy are bigger than some airports in the U.S. It's very overwhelming. Luckily, with our small experience from last weekend, we found our train and shuffled on. One banana and an Italian granola bar later, I still didn't have any more energy than before. Against what everybody tells you, Haley and I both fell asleep. I woke up every hour to make sure all my stuff was there and that I was still clutching my beloved leather bag, and then would fall back asleep. I know this wasn't the smartest thing, but I honestly do not think I would have made it through the day if I didn't nap on that train. We all got to Venice in one piece and walked with confidence out the doors of the train station. It was beautiful. It was like we stepped out of the real world and into a story book. As we walked through the tiny streets and over the bridges that linked the city together, we took it all in. It was like jumping from one little island to the next. The water looked like green glass and the red, pink, orange and yellow houses lining the canals were the perfect contrast. By the time we got to the Piazza di San Marco, we were already in awe. When we saw the San Marco Basilica, we were simply speechless. It was gorgeous. From there we went to the gondola station to get ourselves a gondola. At first, it literally felt like a ride in Disneyworld because nothing around us felt real. It wasn't until the gondolier started talking about the history of the city and the buildings we were passing that it felt like an actual city. After that we did some shopping (Venice is famous for their handmade murano glass and masks) and got a cappuccino, then it was back on the train to our next destination: Bologna. When we got there, we were surprised. We just left fairytale land and entered a completely urban town. After a little bit of confusing and a lot of being lost, all we wanted to know was why Aldo (the hotel desk worker) told us this would be a fun place to be. The more we walked the worse we felt, so we headed back to the train station to see if we could change our tickets to an earlier train. Of course, this was impossible. Oh no. So we walked out and decided to give it another try. This was our second chance. I asked a cab driver how to get to the main piazza and somehow, don't know how, I successfully got us there. Mom, Dad, it's true. I, Katie Morrissette, got us where we needed to be. I even read a map correctly. We walked around and shopped and stopped at this awesome restaurant for dinner. I got homemade pasta with Bolognese sauce (in Bologna! LOL). It was delish. However, at this point, I was so tired I thought I was going to die. I actually thought I wouldn't make it to the train. Somewhere inside me I found the strength and we made it home on the last train back to Rome, finally.
          It was one of the longest days of my life and at times I was so exhausted and a bit confused, but every time we travel, I notice myself getting a little smarter, a little stronger and a little more grown up. So yeah, we probably should have given ourselves a little more sleep and yes, we probably should have researched Bologna a little more before we started aimlessly walking through it, but I am realizing that it's ok to make a few mistakes and it's ok to not know. I am a nineteen year old girl exploring a country and continent I have never been to. Not everything is going to be perfect, but everything is going to make me a smarter, better, more well rounded and independent person. And I think that's worth losing a few hours of sleep.

Eloise at the Plaza just wants bread.

Now that I have been in Rome for a little over two weeks, I have adjusted to the change and fully delved into the European life. I love the food, the urban vibe, the fashion and did I mention the food? I not only love Rome itself, I love my Eloise at the Plaza lifestyle. I live in one of the oldest, most well known hotels in Rome, right off the main street of the city. My room is cleaned everyday, my sheets are changed once a week, I get fresh towels everyday. 6 days a week my breakfast and lunch are taken care of and 3 nights a week I'm fed at some of the most fabulous restaurants in Rome. The other nights we explore to find the best pasta or pizza. Every night we get gelato at our favorite place, Gioletti's by the Pantheon, and on the weekends we travel to wherever our little hearts desire.
As you can see, life is pretty good across the pond for this gal. However, there are some things about America I truly do miss. For example, you have to pay to sit down at a restaurant. Just to sit down. And then you have to pay more for bread. I understand this is part of their culture and the way waiters are paid, but sometimes a girl just wants to sit down and have free bread. Is that too much to ask for? In a moment of extreme patriotism, I actually said to my friends, "Give me bread or give me death!" The same goes for water. I will never again take for granted free water in a restaurant. I also really miss Goldfish crackers. Those are my ish. Another thing about this place is the lack of social sipping. No one sits around and enjoys coffee like they do at, let's just say, Starbuck's. People throw back coffee like cough syrup. It's odd. I really really miss unscented toilet paper. The next and final American thing I miss is actually the world's biggest 1st world problem but I do not care. This blog is my open forum and I'll say what I want. I miss 3G data. I do. Not being able to just look something up or text a friend to find them makes living in a big city a difficult and at times stressful and I don't care who knows it. Say what you want but if you've ever lived in a big city without being able to use a phone at any given time, you know what I say is true.
Even without those American hallmarks I miss dearly, I would not trade my time here for the world. I am loving every second and I am dreading the day I have to leave. I'll be the girl sobbing as we walk out the doors of our hotel. No lie. Until then, I'll keep eating, drinking, laughing and loving Rome! See you guys not too soon :)

The seven story museum of pots, the one and only original copy of the David and the leather love affair.

Hello all!! This weekend was one for the books, so strap in and get ready. The last time I blogged was Friday night, and that was the night we planned our three months here in Rome. After I blogged that night, I thought it was going to bed due to the fact that we had to be up at 7:30am for an all day tour of 7 story museums containing nothing but pots from ancient Etruia made by the Etruscans. That was not the case. My gal pals and I like to talk. No I'm sorry, we love to talk. About everything and anything. We sat in my room the night before and talked until 4:30am. For no apparent reason. So as anticipated, Saturday was a doosy. We were shaken awake by the booming sound of crashing thunder and lightening. Our room was pitch black and the rain was so loud it sounded like our shower was on. Haley and I were like, "LOL no way we are walking through this today." But nevertheless, we got ready and braved the storm to get a much-needed cappuccino at Pascucci's. As we watched the storm while sipping our cups of joy, we once again thought there was not a chance in hell we were going. Despite our optimistic thinking, we went. And we went hard. We walked three miles in the pouring rain only to stop in a square for another ten minutes and kinda listen to my Art History professor tell me about some building. Here's the thing. I couldn't tell you a thing about the freaking building. I can, however, tell you how many times I contemplated faking some sort of medical emergency to get out of it. From there we dragged our soaking butts up a hill to get the the museum. The museum of pots. Not kidding. Seven floors. Five hours. Looking at pots. No food. No sitting. No mercy. I had never been so tired in my entire life. I remember saying to my tour group "I'm not even hungover" and feeling horrible for anyone who was. After that they took us through some tomb and some garden of history.  I'm not entirely sure because my mind blocked it out of my memory as a coping mechanism. There was a point when I started thinking about laying down on the floor of the museum. By the time we got out of there we just wanted food. Any food. We were so desperate we actually walked into a Hard Rock Cafe. I'm gonna say that one more time for the people in the back. We are in Rome and we almost ate a HARD ROCK CAFE. By the grace of God, there was no room for us. At the time, I honestly thought I was going to cry. Looking back, it was probably a blessing in disguise. Instead we stopped for shitty pizza. It did the trick. We walked back to the hotel and slept like babies until we went to our fav restaurant (Tony's, HOLLLA) in Trastevere. Then we came back and figured out our plans for the next day. My friends became biffles with the guy at the front desk and he gave us some tips for traveling and not being American idiots, so we set our alarms for 7:30am and hoped for the best. We successfully got ourselves up and to the train and to Florence. We were feeling pretty confident until we took one step outside and said, "OK..... what now?" We turned on our heels and bought the single most valuable item we have ever bought ever. A map of Florence. At the time, we didn't realize how small Florence is. So we decided to just take a cab to our first destination and get our bearings. Our first destination was the Galleria del Accademia to see the David. The real one. The one and only original copy of the David created by Michelangelo. None of us are really sure how this happened, but as soon as we walked up there was a man from the museum waiting there and we were like "oh is this the line for the David?" and he was like "Yes, if you have a reservation for a tour. If you don't, you can buy one now for 25 euro and skip the two hour line and have a tour by an English speaking art historian. It starts in twenty minutes." Choir of angels. We truly believe this was good karma for enduring the museum of pots torture the day before. Anyways, the tour was actually amazing. I learned so much about Michelangelo and how he worked and how INCREDIBLE he was. However, the most memorable part of the tour was when I entered the room where the David was kept. I will never forget the way my jaw actually dropped when I saw the magnificent piece of art work draped in beautiful white light. It was the single most impressive thing I have ever seen in my entire life.The detail and perfection was breath taking and I would suggest to anyone that is should be on your list of things to do before you die. After that we walked around in a state of awe and starvation. We stopped at a cafe down a little alleyway where nothing was in English (that's always a good sign). It was a fabulous little lunch of cappuccino and caprese sandwich. From there, we walked around more and saw more cool and famous stuff and then.... we went shopping. A dream of mine has been to own a genuine made in Italy fabulous leather bag in Florence. Today, that dream came true. It was love at first sight and I am actually obsessed with it. Its black with camel straps and details and everything about it is beautiful and perfect. I love love love it. I also feel really cool about knowing the inside knowledge of how to shop for leather and not get ripped off. After one of the greatest days, we headed home. All in all, it has been quite the eventful weekend and I couldn't be happier I am here.

Blair Waldorf Reincarnated

Tonight was the night that needed to happen. We all went to a market and got bread, pesto and salad. We sat down and ate and planned. Due to the lack of weekends (we are actually visiting every freaking museum within a 500 mile radius) and the lack of wifi (our hotel is the oldest hotel in Rome- it is built on the foundation of the theater where Julius Caesar was killed), it was stressful. I would say the stress level in my room was the equilvilent of the stress level on the floor of the Board of Trade. Not kidding. We planned our entire semester here and actually booked our weekends in Paris and Barcelona...... LIKE WHAT?! I am going to Paris and Barcelona?? I am so insanely excited. I am going to wander the streets on Paris macarons in hand and topped with a beret. I am going to dance through Barcelona and drink sangria. Every other weekend this semester we have planned with either a day trip to a town in Italy or another city in Europe. I am actually Blair Waldorf. How cool is that? I am so crazy excited.

Other random points:

• Thursday night I had the greatest penne alla vodka I have ever had. 
• Whenever my friends and I enter a bar it is like the scene from Bridesmaids when they walk on the plane to the Brittany Spears song.
• I am going to be really broke in December. Really broke.
• Gelato addiction is real.
• Farmers' markets are my new favorite thing
• I bought a leather skirt. How edgy am I?
• Italian travel websites are scary and confusing. 

Miss you! Love youu!!!!!!