ROMA!

Despite the fact that my school keeps telling everyone that they can’t leave the country until a 3 resident permit procedure is complete (I am only here 3 and a half months) I decided to go to Rome this weekend. The EU regulations is that they don’t check passports within the continental EU (aka be careful when traveling to Ireland/England) so I was pretty sure I was ok. I left with my roommate for Rome on Friday morning. Our flight was only forty five minutes and we landed in Rome! I then left my roommate and took a cab to Hannah’s (my very good friend from AU) apartment. She lives with five other girls in a huge apartment compared to mine. It was her birthday weekend so I figured it would be a good time to go visit her. I arrived by 1 pm and within an hour Hannah, her friends and I were going into downtown Rome. Hannah’s apartment was in Trastevere so it was only a fifteen minute Tram ride. Hannah wanted to go shopping but all the shopping was around amazing things such as the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish steps. So amazing how all of these hugely historical sites are just strewn about the city with restaurants and stores in between. For lunch I had delicious gnocchi with tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella and for dinner Hannah made delicious chicken and pasta with homemade tomato sauce. Of course I also had gelato, I chose chocolate and hazelnut (my favorite gelato flavor…along with white chocolate). At night we went to piazza del campo (I think that’s what it was…Hannah kept calling it the Campo) where there were many bars etc. That is where we rang in Hannah’s birthday at midnight. We met mostly fellow American students studying abroad. Some students from Cornell and Temple University. We got home pretty late that night and so the next morning was for sleeping in,
The next day we went out and about shopping again. The great thing about Rome is that while Hannah and her friends were shopping I could poke into churches right next door that had been around since the 11th century. This might have been my favorite part, just the fact that these pieces of history were right next to major shopping districts! Lunch was delicious, just a simple tomato sauce with spaghetti. Yummy. For dinner Hannah made some more pasta and tomato sauce with ground beef and pancetta. SO DELICIOUS. I am going to try and repeat what she made. At night we went out to this Irish pub called Scholars. We walked in and I immediately saw that it was filled with Notre Dame students. They were all watching the ND vs Michigan game that was on the television. I even met someone who knew Nick! It was good because the bar was filled with American, English and Irish people, so no creepy Italian men. There was live music and the Scottish singer sang all these great songs and it was a great way to end Hannah’s bday!
Next morning was a tough one because I woke up at 7:45 after only 3 and a half hours of sleep to go see the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel. After walking awhile I arrived at the beautiful Vatican and was able to explore inside. It was so amazing. Words cannot describe it. However, because it was Sunday the Sistine Chapel was closed. After going to the Vatican, Kacie (my roommate) and I got breakfast and then I went back to Hannah’s apartment to sleep for awhile (it was raining and I was tired). Around 2 or 3 when it stopped raining I went out to explore the Colosseum, Forum and the Pallantino. I did not go inside but explored it pretty well around the perimeter. Dinner that night I met my friend Ammaar (a friend from Camp IF who is also studying in Rome) for dinner. We met at a small local place right near Hannah’s apartment. This place is far from the center of Rome so was probably the most authentic place we had been to. It was the best pasta I have ever eaten. It was pasta with tomato sauce and eggplant and a little bit of cheese on top. The pasta was perfectly al dente. Sososo good. Ammaar got a salmon pizza which was also delicious. Then I went back to Hannah’s and almost immediately fell asleep.
My final morning in Rome I went back to the Vatican and went to the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. I did not have all day to spend there (my flight was at 5 and I needed to be on the train to the airport at 2). The line was very long and I had no idea how big that place is! I rushed through a lot of it trying to get to the Chapel. It was worth the wait though and even though I rushed through most of the museum it was unbelievably beautiful. On my way back I got some fresh pizza, just tomatoes and mozzarella and they folded it into a sandwich for me so I could eat it while walking the long walk back to Hannah’s. I made it to the train just fine and even though the airport was huge and confusing I made it back into Nice without a problem.
Overall the best weekend of my life I would have to say. We’ll see if any other weekend this semester can give it a run for its money.