This fine Saturday morning, we returned to St. Peter’s Basillica (and we didn’t climb 28 stories of stairs).  This was the morning that we finally saw one of the most recognizable pieces of sculpture, one that happened to be Michelangelo’s big break. Christ is laying in the shape of an S on Mary’s lap, something the viewer unconsciously connects to. An S shape will provoke either happiness or sadness, and in this case, sadness. Jill, our tour guide, explained the three contradictions of the work: there is passion, but calmness; pain, yet tranquility; and sorrow, but peace. Michelangelo was conveying so many emotions with this one sculpture, and that is what made him popular: his ability to connect with the viewer.

To finally see this incredible piece of marble in real life was absolutely breathtaking. I have seen so many pictures in textbooks, that it didn’t feel real to be there taking pictures of it, surrounded by dozens of other tourists doing the same thing. To know that it started out as a piece of marble, and was transformed into this masterpiece gives me chills.

After our trip to St. Peter’s, we visited Castel San Angelo, right down the road! It was originally built as a mausoleum (fancy name for burial place) for Hadrian, but has also been used as a fortress and place of safety by Popes and members of royalty, and is now a museum. We had lunch on the rooftop area, and ate while looking out on the city of Rome. That is also the last we saw of Jill, she had to go greet a group of Canadians. I will miss her, and learning so much from our travels together, but I am so grateful for having the opportunity to meet Jill.

*The Next Day (Sunday)*

Viva Fiorenze! Today we went to Florence, Italy! We woke up an hour and a half earlier than usual so we could get to our train. This was my first time traveling by speed-train, and it was so comfortable! Going through all the hills made my ears pop, so those parts were a bit less fun… but it was exciting, nonetheless!

Molly was our tour guide today, as she is studying Art History at Syracuse University there! She is super sweet, and like Jill, knows so much about her city! Florence is beautiful, and much smaller than Rome. One of the first things you notice is the huge dome in the distance. That would be the one and only Duoma, constructed by Filippo Brunelleschi! I can’t count how many times I have read about this dome, nor the number of documentaries I have seen about the study of this dome, so (like basically everything else) to see it in person was astonishing. It is so prominent and beautiful, you can’t help but stare! I was really eager to climb the steps (despite past complaints) because then I would see what Florence looks like from the top of Brunelleschi’s Dome, but they had it closed. I’m not surprised, from what I have learned about it, there are some structural problems coming to light, and maintenance is essential if we want to continue enjoying its beauty.

The past two days have been a whirlwind of emotion for me (in a good way), but I would like to discuss them tomorrow so that I may spend an appropriate amount of time making sure I have properly portrayed my experiences. Instead, in this post at least, I shall discuss some cultural aspects of Rome that I have learned and experienced here!

• Corn syrup is illegal here. That means everything you eat is seriously good for you, so eat up! (cough, cough, gelato) The soda is made with real sugar, the fruit in the supermarket smells how food is supposed to smell (a bit funny at first, but then something deep down clicks, and that is the moment you realize you will starve in the States because you don’t want to eat anything fake or chemically processed), and that Italy is really cool for outlawing something that shouldn’t be consumed anyway!
• Water is everywhere! The aqueducts system is still in use to this day, and clean, refreshing water is available to everyone! It is the best water I have ever had the pleasure of tasting, and I am so thankful I brought a bottle with me to fill. The hardcore tourists are the ones buying a bottle of water every time they see one.
• Income taxes are approximately 60%. That’s a lot of money the government keeps, yes, but it also pays for your education (you mean you don’t have to go to college and live with thousands of dollars worth of debt when you graduate? No. Absolutely not.), your retirement pension, and your insurance! So basically you don’t have to worry about inescapable debt, saving 10% of your check for retirement, nor about whether or not you or the person next to you has insurance! And yes, people still go out and get jobs.
• Speaking of taxes, the sales tax rate around here is about 18%. It is already added into the price (which saves a lot of time and effort), which is why returns don’t happen.
• And speaking of university, people don’t go to college until about their 20’s or so. Also, the universities don’t have dorms or computer labs, nor are the professors super readily available for help and tutoring.
• I feel this is a good time to mention that people don’t normally move out of their parent’s houses until they are in their 30’s, 40’s. Jill has a few friends that are still living with their parents. It’s just the culture here to not move out until you get married!
• People drive like maniacs here! I compare it to a video game where you don’t care enough to drive properly. Those line things on the road are actually just suggestions. Often times the parking jobs are just as hilarious, with cars jutting out into the road, and SMART cars parking in parallel parking spaces like any other normal parking space.
• Also, they don’t drive super fast! Jill says they are typically driving around 20 miles per hour (kilometers, sorry), even if it doesn’t look like it. That’s why there are so few accidents! The drivers usually have enough time to react to the ever-changing environment, so they avoid a lot of trouble (not that everyone’s goal is to sue everyone).
• Going along with the 20 Km/h thing, you get to cross the street whenever you feel like it! Jill calls me, and those similar, ‘aggressive walkers’ because we are the ones that cross the street when they feel like it. No, Mom, I am not risking my life, I am being a local! This is what they do! The trick is to make eye-contact with the drivers, really stare them down if they start creeping while you are walking across. It is definitely one of my favorite parts of everyday life here. It is funny to watch the tourists wait for them to stop. They don’t if you are on the sidewalk, but they will when they see you in the roadway. If there is a gap in the traffic, no matter how small, just go for it!
• Buon giorno is meant for the morning time, Buona Notte is meant for nighttime. The guy at the reception desk gave me a little Italian lesson on that when I went down there for another Wi-Fi code. Grazie.
• There is a lot of honor-system going on here. Many businesses don’t have high-tech security cameras monitoring every corner of the store. It’s really easy to steal things. They don’t immediately charge you, either. When I get a panino (sandwich), they don’t usher you to the cashier, you get to look around a bit before paying.
• The same goes for the buses — the driver doesn’t check the ticket when you get on, there is a machine on the bus. Their bus system here is fantastic! A bus will drive by the stop every few minutes, as oppose to every other couple of hours like in Florida.
• There is nothing open for 24 hours over here. Italians like to have time with the family.
• On that note, dinners last for a couple of hours and the service in cafes are slow (compared to the US) because you are meant to digest the food gradually and it is encouraged that you talk with your family and friends in the meantime. It’s not the most conventional thing when you get 11 hungry teenagers together, but I still enjoy it, nonetheless.
• Stairs are everywhere. I have learned to accept them. As that one day we refuse to talk about draws nearer, I have even grown to cherish them. After climbing the 28 stories up to the top of St. Peter’s Basilica on the first day here, I will never complain about stairs in Florida.
• Apparently it’s cool to wear American gear, like the US flag on purses and shirts and whatnot.
• Landmarks are literally essential to remembering how to get somewhere; everything is so disorganized that you cannot go to a street-corner and look at the sign. It will tell you nothing. According to Jill, part of the reason why the Nazis weren’t able to efficiently destroy Rome was because “it’s so disorganized, it can’t be organized for destruction”. I think it’s awesome that she knows so much about everything here!
• There are specific ways to eat/drink something. Never drink out of a bottle, it is incredibly disrespectful. That’s why they hand you a glass. Use it. Also, pizza. You don’t cut it into triangles, fold it, and eat it with one hand. That’s very American. You are supposed to use your fork and knife to cut into it!
• Everyone with even the smallest window sill or balcony has their own little garden growing on it. It adds to the charm and beauty of Rome.
• Don’t be surprised if you are wandering through some alleyways and then you turn a corner and the Pantheon is there. That happened to me, and it took my breath away how a huge piece of history and culture was in the middle of modern-day civilization. Add it to the list of things that take my breath away.
• They love Nutella here. Nutella packets in the baskets at breakfast time, Nutella gelato (delicious), Nutella spread, Nutella cereal, etc. Please don’t make me go home.
• There is a reason why I am currently at 28 different flavors of gelato: they make it with every sort of ingredient you can imagine! I don’t recommend the mint; it tastes like Christmas at first, but then (because it’s actual mint in the actual gelato) chunks of the herb get stuck in your teeth and it becomes too much. Still counts, though!

I will add more cultural things to future posts, but I felt I should post something! I hope you enjoy and are able to understand the Italian culture a bit better…

Today was our last day of class in Rome at the Pontifical University. I have to admit that I will miss climbing four flights of stairs to get to the classroom, just a little bit. Not too much, but maybe a little bit.

Tonight was finally the night we went to the Musei Vaticani — the Vatican Museum! I have been looking forward to this moment for so long, that to finally be here was incredible! Jill took the night off, but left us with the guidance of Rich. Dinner was provided by the museum, a table filled with various cheeses, finger sandwiches, meats, etc., and I sat with Eritha and Mr. Hesting. I enjoyed the cheese and some sort of vegetable dish, before going back up to try the finger sandwiches. Everything was delicious, and then we were off for our private tour! Well, it wasn’t as though we had the entire place to ourselves, it was more about it being much less crowded than during the day.

Before I knew it, we were walking through rooms filled with ancient statues that Romans had carved from marble. I became overwhelmed with awe and thus began tearing up. We kept walking because we couldn’t spend too much time in any one place (if you were to spend one minute looking at every piece of art in the museum, it would take you over 12 years to see it all!), and I pulled myself together. And then we walked through the Gallery of Maps and into the Raphael rooms. Cue the waterworks. The School of Athens was right before me, and as I stared at the ginormous detail of the paint, I began to tear up once more.

And then we were in the Sistine Chapel, with The Last Judgment on a wall and stories from the Old Testament above us. It was breathtaking, and painful to look at. No really, holding your head in that position is comfortable for only so long before it starts to hurt. Also, the security guards in the room, put in place to prevent people from taking pictures of the infamous art, kept talking into the speakers and saying “Shhhhhhhh, silenzio per favore. No talking, please. No photos, please. Shhhhhh.” I understand why they were trying to keep the talking to a minimum, with the amount of people in there at any given time, all the bacteria of breath would affect the paint, as would the pictures. It’s something I will always remember, though: being shushed in the Sistine Chapel.

Today, during class, we all participated in a Model United Nations activity. Each student represented one of 11 countries given to us, came up with a resolution, made alliances, etc. I represented Great Britain (mostly because I can do the accent) and, appropriately, wore my Doctor Who shirt. My resolution addressed both the environment and the impoverished citizens of my land by suggesting we all come together to build wind-energy farms and combined-heat plants, which would preserve the atmosphere for future generations while also providing thousands of jobs for the current population. It was interesting to hear the different resolutions that the other ‘nations’ had developed, and to see how we all interacted with one another. We all agreed that we probably wouldn’t follow through on the resolution because a) there would be no threat if we didn’t, b) there is an extensive process to get things resolved through the UN, and c) we have other, more current and immediate, things to worry about right now.

It also rained. A lot. It poured during class, comparable to that of a Florida storm! In the three years he’s been going on this trip, Mr. Hesting hasn’t seen this much rain in Rome ever, so it was a pretty rare occurrence.

After our lunch break, we went back to the Hotel and then met Jill to take a tour of the Jewish Ghettos and a Synagogue. It was really cool to hear the history of Judaism and to see tapestries and items from centuries ago, and then to learn about the recent history, however, it was also terribly upsetting. What the Nazis did against the Jews during WWII was nothing new, and to hear that humanity has always been so evil. The tour ended on a more uplifting message, though, that the Jews have had more than their share of persecution, and yet they are still here. I thought that was an inspiring message of faith.

After the emotional tour, we headed out to grab a bite to eat. Jill’s friend, Veronica, met with us as we walked from the Synagogue to the hole-in-the-wall pizza place. There I had some of the best pizza in my entire life, and then had a slice of a Nutella calzone. They make everything possible with Nutella, and I am so grateful.

Today was truly a once-in-a-lifetime day. I mean, yes, this entire trip is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but today was just the panna (whipped cream) on the gelato.

We went to the Vatican’s bible study this morning, arriving at just past 8 o’clock this morning, and were greeted by thousands of people. Thousands. All to see the Pope, and rightfully so. Papa Francesco truly is ‘The People’s Pope’ because he is just so caring about everyone! The morning started off by him walking through some sort of holy building (no one knew which) to bless some of the disabled children. Just observing him from the ginormous TV screens they have set up in St. Peter’s Square, you could clearly tell that he gave 110% of his individual attention to whomever he was facing, blessing the child and assuring the family all would be well (we don’t know what he was saying, but I am sure he was being supportive).

He gratefully accepted gifts, holding onto them for a few seconds before someone would take it from him, he held babies, posed for papal pictures, he even signed his autograph! Pope Francis has become not only the representative of the Catholic Church, but also an inspirational figure, a paragon of being a genuine person; he is just so incredible! He then rode around the Square in his Mercedes-Benz PopeMobile, greeting the crowd, pausing to see the children and accept gifts, and just to energize the crowd.

We were with ten feet of one of the most adorable people on this planet.

It was interesting to witness the actual study — there are several other Vatican representatives that read the passage and recite the Pope’s message in several different languages. It took a bit of time, but Frankie’s word was relatively brief and succinct, talking about the importance of family. It was also really cool to see watch the crowd: there were tour groups, missionary and pilgrimage groups, locals, children, truly a diversified crowd.

It rained on and off throughout the morning, but man, these people were prepared! Well, I say rained, but it was truly just a very, very light sprinkle. Nothing at all compared to Florida’s storms. That didn’t phase them; a few drops would fall and within ten seconds, the crowd full of heads and hats was swathed with umbrellas of equally colorful designs. The ladies that were in front of me pulled out umbrellas and beckoned us to stand with them under the layer of protection. I felt silly, considering I live in a place where hurricanes are the usual and storms happen whenever they feel like it, but I also felt sort of welcomed, if that makes any sense. I suppose it’s because I can’t believe how nice the majority of people here are to us Americans. They didn’t speak any English, but I was able to once more use my Italian to show my appreciation. Grazie, grazie, grazie.

Among these ladies was a nun, just one nun, that pushed her way to the front, and made me want to run. Jill wasn’t kidding — these nuns meant business. I wasn’t particularly fond of this nun, but I wasn’t going to push her back out of the way. Jill would have, but not me. I might feel a strong connection to the culture here, but I’m not comfortable enough to push an elderly lady out of the way. She was there for a very important meeting with her boss, after all.

At the end of his speech, just before the conclusion, Frank blessed the crowd and also whatever religious items you hold in your right hand. I had five things blessed: the postcards that I have yet to send (sorry), Rufus (the stuffed animal I brought with me), my glasses (yes, I now have blessed vision), my camera (because why not), and my water bottle (it was empty, but I figured I might as well). I know they’re not necessarily the most religious items you could have held, but they were what I had at the time.

Once Frankie concluded, we went back to the hotel for a couple hours of free time. Eritha and I returned to the market, with me consuming gelato both there and back, so she could purchase some peach tea. Absolutely delicious. As of blogging this post, I am in a very far lead of 19 different flavors. My “competition”: 7. #areyoueventrying

I then called my mom from the hotel room and then took a nap before leaving to meet with the Holy See ambassador for the US. I truly do not want to leave this nation. I love clutching my bag to prevent pick-pocketing in the tunnel, I love all the stairs (though never at the time), I love the food, the language, the necessity of walking into traffic to cross the street, I love ordering gelato, I love seeing the dogs, the flowers and gardens on everyone’s balcony (no matter how small), truly everything. I was overwhelmed with emotion on the plane when we landed (there were tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat), and I will be overwhelmed with emotion when we depart (crying because I will already be missing this land). I am not looking forward to Tuesday. Nor Monday, packing day. Mom, I hope you are okay with just throwing my stuff in the luggage. I’m kidding, of course. (Kind of).

(Oh my gosh, I am listening to Italian Top 40 Radio!! I am listening to mainstream Italian music!! I’ve been wondering who the pop/rock stars are over here because in many of the places we have been in are simply playing American music!! But I am listening to them now!! And this is really good music!! For future reference, the station was 91.5, the artist Cesare Cremonini, and the song Logico. [Now they are playing Bon Jovi] I’ve no idea what they’re saying, but it sounds really good. Molto bene!!)

Back to the Embassy thing: We met with the Foreign Affairs officer and were able to ask her all sorts of questions. I inquired about how to apply for a student visa and the chance of being accepted to an Italian university, and she didn’t know the exact details (because that would be a more appropriate question for the ambassador to Italy) but that there are a lot of American students, so my chances are probably pretty good. And yes, she has diplomatic immunity.

Tonight we ate dinner at a place just past the Vatican, followed by gelato at a highly popular place.

I promise that I will mention in one of these posts more about the culture of Italy that I have learned and witnessed/participated in. Please be patient, it is quarter after 2 AM. I am tired. I will continue my cappuccino habit in a few hours.

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.

(I will probably end every sentence with an exclamation point because I am literally so excited about everything. Fair warning.)

Wow! Two whole days of Italia have already passed! Time will not bend to my will, and it is this conditioned reality that has our expiration date coming so quickly.

I have been using my Italian, and I am so proud of myself! Within five minutes of being at the hotel, I communicated with the lady that cleans our rooms and whatnot because half of our door would not open. Without even thinking about it or being flustered for being a silly tourist, I said Mi scusi, umm, la porta (made the gesture to open the door) and she got it to open! I then thanked her and carried on about settling down. Since that first language exchange, I have consistently been picking up on the culture and saying little phrases in Italian, such as please, thank you/you’re welcome, excuse me, I am vegetarian, may I pet your dog, etc. The basics, really. I already feel so comfortable here: I am wary about my belongings (as everyone is), I am assertive and I don’t apologize if I bump into someone (saves a lot of time), and I am currently in the lead of the gelato competition with four different flavors having been consumed! I just want to wake up every morning and walk down the cobblestone road for some cafe breakfast and pass the Coliseum on the bus to work. I just long to be here so badly. I know I look like a total tourist, but I internally feel like a local. I love travelling. I love everything here. Roma!

Let me back up to the whole getting-here thing: We left Tampa at 3:30, flew to JFK, landed there about 6 o’clock and departed at 8-ish. The flight to Rome is just over 8 hours long, and then there is also the 6 hour time difference (ahead of FL), so really the flight was like 14 hours. I tried sleeping, and fell asleep for a bit less than an hour because the chairs were so uncomfortable, plus you have to worry about bothering your neighbor, and then I had my incredibly bulky backpack “under the seat in front of me”, so I couldn’t stretch out my legs, and the whole thing was just awful. I am so thankful for the dozens of snacks, because when I woke up from my ‘nap’, I was starving! A couple packs of goldfish soon solved that problem. Other than my brief moment of sleeping, I watched movies on the back of the chair in front of me! They actually had a really good selection of everything: recent movies, popular television shows, and some jams! When I fell asleep, I was listening to this band called The Piano Guys, and they’re really cool! They turn pop tunes into instrumental songs! Movies-wise I watched The Monuments Men (Holy crap it was really good), The Way Way Back, Dead Poets Society, and 21 Jump Street (yes, mom, I know we stayed up watching it the night before, but I felt that Korean Jesus finally had time for my problems)! Regarding TV shows, they had HBO stuff, including Game of Thrones, which I know is really, really good, but I couldn’t start a TV show on a plane. That’s just not what you do. Plus, I would have only been able to watch the first couple of episodes, and I didn’t want to leave myself hanging. The airplane food was alright. I was terribly clumsy with the food, though, and spilled several food/beverage items on my pants/shirt. I will blame the turbulence.

Landing in the airport and walking through the terminals, I was immediately hit with the European flavor of things: the ‘line’ to get through customs was more like a herd. It was really interesting to just observe all the different nations being represented in that grouping, though; India, various Eastern nations, America, Latin and Hispanic countries, etc. It was really cool to just see how much goes on in airports! (I had the same awesome feeling at JFK — I was in New York for the first time ever, and I saw actual NYPD officers and all I could think about was Law & Order, Saturday Night Live, and other pop-culture things while also observing dozens of nations interacting with one another in the food line. It was crazy busy and really fun!)

I also want to not-apologize for using so much detail — I simply want the reader and my future-self to be able to recreate everything from the words I am currently typing. Please not-forgive me.

We hit the ground running straight after the hotel! There’s nothing to get you over jet lag like climbing 28 stories of a Basilica! Indeed, the very hotel that our room’s view is the very first landmark we visited. 28 stories of short, sweaty, slimy, slanting, and steep steps. Several times I questioned whether or not all this pain and enough cardio to last a lifetime would be worth it. The view was breathtaking. So, yes.

On Day 1, we also learned a bit more about the Vatican! Did you know it is the only nation with a flexible border? Yep, when Papa Francesco is in his local residence, the Vatican border extends to the edges of St. Peter’s Square! But when he is away, the Square is considered part of Italy and is under Italian jurisdiction. Also, the Swiss guards that protect the Pope are there due to an eternal contract set up in the… 1400’s, I believe, after they literally saved that Pope’s life, so there you have three separate nations working together: Italy, the Holy Sea, and Switzerland. Plus, because the Vatican is a legitimate nation, they have their own postal service! Expect postcards soon.

Oh, I should mention that half-way up St. Peter’s basilica is where I had my first taste of actual gelato! The exotic flavor of…. vanilla. It was delicious. Speaking of, just a few hours ago, to wrap up Day 2, I had my three other flavors of Nutella, Oreo, and chocolate gelato. It was all super amazing, and would have killed my mother by being within a mile of it (she’s deathly allergic to chocolate). Sara-Kay: 4 flavors, Competition: I don’t know, but I doubt it’s 4 flavors.

We experienced public transportation today! We took the bus to the Coliseum/ancient ruins, so that was exciting! At the ruins, we walked on the exact same stone road that Julius Caesar walked upon. As Jill said, “You can literally walk in the footsteps of history.” Part of me was really into it and absorbed what was going on, but I will admit that it was also rather challenging to picture ancient Rome, what with all the weeds growing around the stones, the bottles and cigarette butts littered everywhere, the tourists and paying attention to my belongings, and then the railings that kept you from walking over things (which is a necessary addition to the location, but it is rather distracting).

Did I mention our hotel room situation? We have a street view, and I am the lucky one with the window bed, so St. Peter’s Basilica all lit up at night is what I get to fall asleep looking at. We also went to mass there on Day 1!

I will mention more of the culture here in future blog posts. It is currently 4 Am local time, but 10 PM FL time. I suppose I am still wired for the latter time, but I know I will regret everything when I have to wake up for class in the morning. Sounds like a good time to begin my coffee habit. They weren’t lying at all about the little packets of Nutella — they are amazing. The yogurt here is really good, too! I had a strawberry cup of yogurt, and 1) it is not a rosy-red sort of color because it does not add the food dye to it, 2) it was almost soupy, sort of liquid consistency, but not watery, just very refreshing yogurt, and 3) you didn’t have to stir it all up! The only thing I could think of to explain it, is to think of a Go-Gurt sort of product — that sort of soupy-but-still-creamy form, but a million times better than whatever stuff makes up a Go-Gurt (hint: it’s probably not actual strawberries).

To sum it all up, I love everything here. There was even an accordion player in the street practicing a few hours ago, and it sounded so Italian. Like, you could forget you were in Italy but here that accordion and feel like Italy. And then I remembered it was actually an Italian accordion playing the stereotypical music in the streets of the actually-Italian capital of… Rome. Perfect.

Arrivederci mie amici! Vi amo!

Sara-Kay West