Today was yet another magnificent day in the life of an Italian:

I woke up and actually began my coffee habit! I had a few sips to wake me up, not enough to actually finish an entire cup (tazza), but enough to keep me awake and engaged in class. World Religions and International Relations passed by really quickly, so at lunch time we decided to go to a bakery by our hotel for food. There, I ordered a vega panino, and practiced a bit more of the simple phrases. After that quick bite, a few of the students, including myself, went down to the local supermarket! It was different from your local Publix in that it actually smelled like… food. Food without pesticides, preservatives, corn syrup, etc. It was actual food! I bought a stack of Pringles and two Kinder eggs, for late-night study sessions and because you cannot buy them in America, respectively.

At 2 o’clock, we met Jill downstairs and headed to the Metro! It was my first time riding a subway and, to be honest, it wasn’t all that exciting. It truly is for transportation of the public, not for locking eyes with your soul mate, not for Peter Parker to save the day, and not for getting mugged. Okay, pick-pocketing is very much a popular hobby, that last part was a lie.

We then met up with a different tour guide, Ava, and she took us off of Jill’s hands to show us a different part of Rome. She showed us the Spanish steps, Fountain of Troy, the Pantheon (!!!), and several other fountains. If the wifi connection would allow me to upload a picture, you would be able to see that I took a selfie with Rafael’s tomb. He used to be the life of the party, but now he only tells haunted tales. Please laugh at my puns and wordplay.

At Piazza del Popolo, we had the incredible chance to watch Italy’s World Cup match against Uruguay on huge screens in the middle of town. It was interesting to see the amount of people actually sit down and watch the match. I was also surprised to see many observers using the Italian flag to sit down on the cobble road; I understand the Italians are quite proud of their heritage, so to see the cultural difference of it being acceptable for the flag to touch the ground, whereas in America it is majorly frowned-upon, was something I wasn’t used to. To be honest, I thought it was a pretty solid idea that the (American) flag shouldn’t touch the ground because that would represent defeat. There were all sorts of people watching the match: Muslims, tourists, Indians, Italians, children, etc. So many people came out or stopped by to support their nation’s team, which I found hugely inspiring and uplifting. I was so into the match that I found myself throwing my hands in the air when Uruguay got the ball from Italy, and protesting when one of Italy’s major players was removed from the game for playing aggressively. I really enjoyed the ‘flopping’ aspect of the sport, that is, when a player accidentally/intentionally does something miniscule, like bumping elbows, and the other player dramatically falls to the ground in an attempt to have the chance of a penalty goal. Uruguay won, so Italy is now out of the World Cup. The viewers were all collectively disappointed, but there wasn’t any sort of rioting as I was expecting.

By the end of the match, all we could think about was food, so we hopped the metro back to town and ate dinner. Eritha, one of my roommates, and I combined our 13 Euro budgets to achieve gelato for both, split a pizza, and special drinks. It took a bit of scheming, but we were both entirely pleased and happy with our skills.

I am still in the lead for the gelato-eating contest with 12 different flavors! It may seem a bit gluttonous, but I am enjoying every bit of it because this is stuff they don’t have in the US. You can’t find a gelatoria with 20 different flavors of naturally-good-for-you ice cream. From Italy. It just doesn’t happen, so I am going to try as many different flavors as I possibly can. To beat the previous record of 32 flavors is one thing on my bucket list!

The other was to ask someone if I may pet their dog! In Italian, of course! After a brief internet search, I memorized the essential phrase. All throughout the day, dog after dog walked past me, hurrying to their human’s next destination. They were all adorable, but I felt incredibly awkward and bothersome when I thought of stopping the human and taking up their time. But, I finally did it! On the way back from picking up some gelato, heading to the Piazza for the football match before it started, a lady with a couple of her gal-pals were heading in the same direction! After a quick pep talk from Eritha, I said Mi scusi, posso toccarre il cane? Of course the owner was super sweet and said Of course!, so there I was: I had finally asked the question I had been dying to ask, and after not being in contact with a four-legged friend, I was suddenly loving on the world’s fluffiest poodle. The ladies were so nice and kind to me and Eritha, I couldn’t believe it! One thing accomplished on my Italy Bucket List!

Tomorrow, we are getting up early to watch Papa Francesco give his weekly bible study! The goal is to get a selfie with him, as well!

Perhaps it is in tomorrow’s blog post that I share some things I have learned about the Italian culture. It is now 3 AM, local time, and I am starting to get woozy. I am somehow still wired to Tampa’s time. Coffee.