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7/6/17: Goodbyes Are Always the Hardest

It’s hard to believe that this trip has come to an end. T_T I remember when I told my friends and family the summer before college that I was going to apply. Having applied, having been accepted, and having gone on the trip— it feels as if that was all just yesterday. 

 On our last day in London, we had an assignment inside Westminster Abbey. For some reason, the place didn't ring a bell in my royalty obsessed mind so once I realized the where I was at, I internally freaked out. XD Westminster Abbey is the burial place of England's most important citizens, the resting place of numerous monarchs and nobility, and the seat of royal coronations. I've been watching this show called "Reign" that revolves around Mary Tudor and her rivalry with Elizabeth I, so being able to see their tombs in real life was completely surreal! 

 After leaving, Alec, Laura, and I made a final stop to Covent Garden before high tea. Alec still needed to get some last minute gifts for his girlfriend's family and his brother, Laura wanted to stop by Brandy Melville, and I wanted a dress at H&M for high tea. Our lunch was delicious (I had my final fare of fish and chips) but it took much longer than we expected. By the time we were done, we only had a little over twenty minutes to hit all our target shops and decided to split up to cover more ground. Naturally, Alec and I were late but Laura ended up running a few minutes late as well— so it wasn't as bad as it could've been. XD We got home with 40 minutes to prepare for high tea, which of course, was back the direction we came.

I personally don't like tea and my time at high tea didn't change my mind... if anything it deterred me away from drinking tea even more. It was partly my fault because I had originally intended to order orange juice only to find out that it was extra, so in a quick moment of panic, I ordered the first thing I saw on my menu: Fresh mint tea. I wrongly assumed that it would taste like peppermint. Instead, it tasted like what it was: an actual mint leaf that had been sitting in water for too long, but not long enough for it to have any real taste. :( The pastries were mostly fine and the view partially made up for my tea disaster. Although I appreciated Prof White's efforts to show us the traditional English lifestyle, high tea had to be one of my least favorite moments in the trip. .-. 

After high tea we had about two hours or so before our last group dinner. Alec, Laura, and I headed over to our usual Taiyaki shop before we went to see Buckingham Palace (since I had yet to see it in person). Dinner was held at a nearby pizzeria (as if we hadn't had enough Italian food to last a lifetime right? XD) Fortunately, they had Hawaiian styled pizza where Alec proceeded to pick off all the pineapples (the blasphemy!) before eating his half. It was an especially fun, bitter meal, filled with superlatives (I won Best Dresses Girl) and karaoke. The waiter turned into a DJ. XD The end of the meal was the hardest. As a class, we said goodbye to Melissa and Prof White as we headed back to the hotel for one last hurrah. 

Alec, Laura, and I were originally going to head out with a group to see Big Ben at night but as we headed to the station, they made a sharp right turn into a nearby pub where a few others in the class were already waiting. XD So, it ended up just being us three (not that that was a bad thing at all. I love hanging out with those two!). We took the Tube to Westminster and crossed over the bridge. I was able to find another great photographer to take our picture (who repositioned us and took it at different angles) against the colorful London skyline. We spent almost an hour on the other side of the bridge, leaning against the wall to gaze down at the river (after I moped about the nearest McDonalds closing right as we got there). I couldn't help but feel somber, mostly because I don't know if I'm ever coming here again... 

 At around midnight we headed back home to the hotel for our early morning. I said goodbye to Laura in the elevator and went with Alec to drop something off at his room. He walked me back to mine with every intention of saying goodbye, but we ended up sitting in the hall and taking until 1:30 in the morning. XD His goodbye was the hardest because he had become my closest friend on the trip and I was the saddest when he walked away. 

I slept easy that night and woke up pretty early to pack, since I'd been lazy and waited until the last possible moment to do it. XD I managed to finish in time, skipped out on breakfast, and met Ally downstairs in the lobby to head to the Tube. We were originally going to take an Uber, but since the London traffic was growing worse by the minute, we opted to use the Underground. At first, I was dubious because I did NOT want to lug all my suitcases down the stairs, but we ended up running into more escalators than steps. Today was not my day with security. XD I beeped through the metal detector (I'm thinking it's because of my necklace) so I was directed to the rotating scanner. Now, that wasn't bad. The bad part happened when my carry on was stopped by security to be inspected. The lady removed everything— all of my carefully packed belongings, to pull out my contacts and Benadryl. Turns out the fact that they were liquids alerted the TSA guy. I would've been fine with the inspection, IF they hadn't forced me to repack everything afterwards. .-. 

Before our flight, we stopped by Pret A Manger to get lunch, a souvenir shop, and a mini convenience store before hauling it to our gate a few minutes after we found out our gate number. Much to our relief, we arrived just as they began boarding. This flight had to be one of my favorites. I took Virgin Atlantic and scored an aisle seat (a hard lesson I learned from the flight here). Inside he plane, it was much more spacious than Alitalia and had purple lights through the cabin. Every other hour, they served us FREE food which included your regular meals, snacks, and even ice cream! Even better, the flight only took 10 hours— shorter than the flight to Italy which took an arduous 12. As I write this, I am sitting in the LAX awaiting my final flight home. Writing these last few words brings a sort of sadness to my already exhausted heart (nearly 17 hours of traveling does that to you). Although my time on the Honors Trip has come to a close, my travels haven't not. One day, far into the future, I hope to look back on these blogs for inspiration when I visit both London and Rome again. Until then, goodbye. <3 :(

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7/4/17: Spending a Holiday with the Enemy

What is more ironic than spending the 4th of July in Britain? XD

Today was our Dickens walking tour at around 1 pm, so we had the morning to do whatever we wanted. Alec and I returned to Covent Garden to finish up buying the last of our souvenirs and I was able to finally find some street art! Since being on this trip, I’ve realized that I have a mild addiction to purchasing street art and listening to street performances. XD

When Ali saw me at our meeting (she knows about my existing street art collection), she exclaimed: “More paintings Rachael?!” XD

Our tour clocked in at two hours and we walked all over London, getting to cross the Millennium Bridge, government buildings, seeing vents over the Tube, and the Globe. My favorite fact of the day was learning that most of the crowds in London were from the 300,000 commuters that work here. Turns out, only a few thousand actually live in the London area!

We ended in Boroughs Market where I of course had to try out the famed grilled cheese Sarah had talked about months earlier. Sadly, it wasn’t as good as I expected. It ended up being super salty and too thoroughly grilled to the point where it felt like I was biting into a rock. :/

After Borough, Alec and I went with Laura and Diana to the Taiyaki place (we did end up going XD) where Laura immediately fell in love. Since we only had an hour until our group dinner, we just headed back after we were done.

Our group dinner ended up being at Byrons which was just nearby. I have had my fair share of burgers while I’ve been here, so I ordered a Cobb salad instead. XD Since it was the Fourth of July, everyone was looking for something to do. Martin found that they had released fireworks at the US Embassy yesterday (why yesterday?! :/), so we made it our mission to try looking for sparklers. We walked down through Kensington (otherwise known as the posh pit according to a friend from the train) to a supermarket where a lady was very confused about our description of sparklers. XD The security guard sent us to stores along the street towards he nearest station where we didn’t have any luck either. :/

Thus, Laura, Alec, and I spent our Fourth in my room trying Greek deserts. XD

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7/3/17: Shopping and Steak and Taiyaki, Oh My!

Today was the second day of our free weekend here in London. Yesterday was a very chill day— Alec and I just got breakfast at Paul’s Bakery (which was heavenly), visited Kensington Gardens, and watched Les Mis (the movie) and As Above, So Below before eating at an Indian place Arturo recommended later that night.

Our morning started off with Paul’s Bakery where Alec proceeded to by another set of 10 mini donuts (which were filled with chocolate) before we tried hurrying to catch up with Laura’s group at Covent garden. Once we arrived, we sat down to eat our breakfast only to find Hayley and Ally walk by. Apparently they group was going to leave at noon, but Alec and I wanted to stay longer so we could buy our family gifts.

Little did we know that the weekends and Monday boasted something new at Covent Garden. Today, they weren’t selling their usual souvenirs but instead were selling all sorts of jewelry, trinkets, spoons, and antiques. Since I have no self control when it comes to sparkly things, I ended up buying a necklace and a bracelet. XD

After we left Covent, we decided to stop by the Portobello market where I’d bought these cute charm bracelets the day prior. There were a lot more stalls today than there were yesterday and they lined the street, filled with clothes, food, and artisan crafts. There I got a few mugs and more bracelets for friends back home.

Fast forward a few hours, Alec and I decide to treat ourselves despite our status as poor college students and get steak. XD We found a place that was close to the Chinatown where the steak was only TEN POUNDS. The wait time, however, was an hour and thirty minutes which to me, didn’t seem like it was worth it. We retraced our steps for a few minutes before stumbling across a second steakhouse we had seen on Trip Advisor and were seated immediately.

So far, I’ve noticed that the British are one of two things: very nice, or very mean. There were three older men who were sitting beside our window seat at the restaurant who were giving our waitress a particularly hard time because the main courses had come our prior to the starters. :/

I ordered my usual ribeye and was surprised to learn that this place was a cook our own steak! They served it to me semi cooked on an extremely hot stone slab paired with spices and butter to season to my liking. At one point, I must’ve been cooking it odd because a group stopped outside the window to laugh over my cooking skills (or lack thereof). XD

Despite being super full, we decided to head over into Chinatown and grab the fish ice cream Laura had been wanting to try. It was across town, past a beautiful gate, in a small shop called “Bake”. Once inside, we stood in line and ordered before using our ticket to go to the ice cream machine where one of the employees filled a fish shaped fluffy cone with vanilla ice cream.

It was worth the entire four pounds because the inside of the cone was exceptionally rich, soft, and chewy. Naturally we swore that we are going to go again tomorrow, with Laura of course, so we will see if end up doing so. XD

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7/1/17: "I Have Done Thy Mother"

As you can imagine (based on the title), we spent our Saturday in Stratford Upon Avon, or Shakespeare’s hometown. The weather was no longer cold and gloomy, and it was the first time I’ve seen the sun and sky since we came to London. XD Paired with the glittering Avon, the fair, and the vibrant green grass, it was a picture perfect day.

We had tickets to see Titus Andronicus at the local theatre which had peculiarly tall seats. The bottom of my chair began where the back seat of the row before me ended. The play itself was not anything like I imagined. It was a modern reinterpretation, set in the future complete with guns, well dressed politicians, and helicopters. A brief summary of the plot: Titus Andronicus was renowned general in Rome and had recently stepped down from his position. During his rule however, he was known to be merciless and cruel. Upon being named the new emperor, Saturninus married Tamora, the Queen of Goths whose son Titus had recently executed as a part of the war. In an effort to seek revenge, Tamora has her remaining sons murder Titus' son in law (and the opposing candidate for emperor), exiles his other son, mutilates Lavinia (Titus' only daughter), and has Titus chop off one of his hands. In return, Titus kidnaps her sons when they attempt tricking him, bleeds them, and serves them to Tamora and Saturnius as revenge. The acting was incredible, and Act II was much more humorous than its predecessor, going so far had to use toy water guns and bow and arrows.

After the play, we had about two hours before our train left the station. A group and I decided to eat since we hadn't gotten lunch. We stopped at the "oldest pub in town", ordering at around 5 pm. Little did I know that our service would soon become one of the worst I've yet to experience. An hour into our wait, we still had yet to see a glimpse of our food. We asked our waiter about its progress and he promised us it would be out in 5 minutes. By then, it was 6 pm and we had to be at the train station by 6:25 pm. To speed up the process, we paid ahead of time which I sorely regretted afterwards as that meant we HAD to stay and wait. It wasn't until another 10 minutes passed that it finally came out, piping hot as if it had just been cooked despite being ordered over an hour ago. -.- I was particularly annoyed mainly because I had decided to invest in an expensive steak, which I ended up having to scarf down in 10 minutes. I was even more bitter by the fact that we didn't have time to visit Shakespeare's house. Needless to say, the late lunch was not my favorite memory and it soured my otherwise pleasant day. :(

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6/29/17: Puntin' Down the River

I’ve realized that ever since I’ve become friends with Alec, I’ve become a lot later to meetings. XD

For instance, today we arrived at the train station to Cambridge at 9:52 am (2 mins after the scheduled time) after a LOT of fast walking through the Tube.

The train ride to town was long, but the walk was longer. :/ I think it took at least 30 mins to get from our train station to the heart of the college, where we waited for our tour guide. Funnily enough, our appointment turned it to be at 1 instead of 12, so we all grabbed a group lunch at Honest Burgers.

Our tour guide ended up being an older man named Dick who happily showed us around Cambridge. We stopped by several colleges, chapels, and the laboratory where the most recent DNA model (of the double helix) and the nucleus were discovered (Cavendish Laboratory). :O We were also able to see a ton of new graduates! I would be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous of their robes. They were black, with different colors draping against their backs in swooping sashes.

After our tour, we had some time before punting, so Prof White let us wander around town for a bit. Alec and I perused through the nearby market which had a variety of food, flowers, hats, and other trinkets. Alec tried on a paper boy hat and was thrown back into the 1920’s. XD Today also happened to be an extraordinarily cold day. The breeze was biting and I had to constantly bounce on my feet so I wouldn’t freeze. I hadn’t felt this cold since the week before Fall semester finals. D: We quickly headed over to a small nearby river (which was definitely not the Thames) that was bordered by willows and various other trees. My punting group ended up being Laura, Alec, Kaeli, and Claire.

Now, it looked pretty easy. All you had to do was stand on the end of the flat boat and push off the river floor with a long stick. But boy was I wrong. Laura was the first brave soul to punt and it wasn’t until two pro punters saw us struggling that we had any idea what we were doing. XD One of the most memorable occasions (beside colliding into other boats, spinning in circles, and nearly falling into the water) was when good old Alec GOT THE STICK STUCK IN THE MUD. We floated helplessly away from our only tool and attempted to use a tiny paddle to vigorously row back to shore. Fortunately, a kind group threw us our stick and we went on our merry way. When it was my turn to punt, I found that it was a lot heavier than I thought. You had to drop the stick straight in, push off, and then steer as you moved it through the water. At one point, we went directed under some willow trees and I had to crouch to avoid being knocked into the river. XD But I did successfully turn our boat around once we had to head back!!! Despite being super difficult, punting was definitely one my favorite things we’ve done on this trip yet. :D

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6/28/17: Do You Hear the People Sing?

The weather in London hasn’t changed since we arrived. It continues to be cold and cloudy but thankfully, it no longer rains.

Our assignment for the day was to visit the British Museum for our debate Friday. My group and I went relatively early so that we could have some time to ourselves before the Les Mis performances later tonight and spent two hours perusing around the museum’s halls.

My favorite exhibition had to be the Enlightenment because it resembled a large library, complete with display cases, statues, and books. It was interesting to see all parts of the world within one museum but for me, it paled in comparison to the ones in Rome (perhaps because I knew the history behind the ones there).

After the museum visit, we met up with another group to eat “the best fish and chips in London” at a restaurant called Poppy’s. It was close to the West End and we traveled through London’s Chinatown town to reach it.

While I’ve never had any other fish and chips, it certainly set the bar high for my future expectations. The fried batter surrounding of the cod paired with the tang of the tartare sauce made it one of my favorite food experiences thus far :D

Since we had time before the musical, we decided to stop by Westminster Abbey, Parliament, the Big Ben, and the London Eye.

While we were walking by Parliament, we saw a line of tinted black cars drive out of the gates and naturally assumed it was the queen, only to be corrected by a nearby pedestrian who was not too happy with our "Americanness". XD Turns out that the cars were driving the prime minister! 

Once we got back to the hotel, we departed for Les Mis at around 7 to make it at around 8 pm. Martin, Brandon, and I all took a picture because we were wearing leather jackets and I had decided to brave the London habitat with heels. XD The show was indescribable. I've always thought I hated musicals, but after seeing Les Mis, I think it's because I hadn't seen the right ones. The singing made me cry, the stage production (it had a spinning floor which helped with set changes, movement, and dancing) was incredible, and the overall storyline branded itself my heart. 

A brief outline: Les Mis focuses on an ex prisoner named Jean Val-Jean who leaves prison and eventually becomes a mayor. There, his past is discovered by his adversary, the prison ward, and he is given the mission to save a young dying woman's daughter named Cosette. He raises her as his own before aiding in a rebellion during the French Rebellion. My favorite singer was definitely Jean Val-Jean, and my least favorite was Cosette— mostly because her voice had too much vibrato for my liking. Afterwards, Alec and I were hungry and wrapped up our long day with a stop by the Burger King by the hotel. XD

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6/25/17: Hello, London!

We left Italy today with bitter hearts which were (quickly) mended once we arrived in the thriving city of London. The plane ride was only two hours, which continues to astound me. Compared to the US, everything in Europe is so close together! A few minutes less than two hours of travel in the US would only take you from Phoenix to Los Angeles (cited from personal experience).

When we arrived, we ran into your typical British weather—cold, cloudy, and raining. While I don’t typically like the feeling of gloom and doom, I welcomed it with open arms as it was a refreshing respite from Rome’s sweltering heat. Transport out of the airport, however, was another problem. We had landed in Gatwick, which did not have a direct Tube line connecting the airport to the station by our hotel. After consulting each other, we decided that taking a train to the Vitoria station and then transferring from that station to the Tube would be the cheapest and easiest solution.

When the train arrived, it was completely packed. Katie, Alec, and I ended up running to the next available car which had closed but Katie was able to open it by pressing the flashing button on the door. She and I threw ourselves into the car just as the doors slammed shut only to realize that Alec had not made it onto the train. Naturally, I screamed at him to press the button and nearly had a panic attack when the train began rolling away as he disappeared from view.

I can’t even begin to describe how guilty and awful I felt. Here he was alone in a foreign country, with limited internet and even less knowledge on where to go. Katie and I spent a good portion of our 30 minute train ride staring at each other in disbelief with the other portion involving me pestering her to try and contact him using her data.

Ironically enough, the two of us became separated from the rest group because we got off at the Vitoria station while they exited the station prior. Fortunately, the Tube wasn't impossible to navigate and Katie and I managed to exit the train station to reach the Underground. I was nearly impossible however to lug my giant orange, 50 pound suitcase around in the cramped and busy tunnels that essentially WAS the Tube, but at one point, a guy offered to help me drag it down some steps. His friend encouraged him to run away with it and despite feeling thankful, I couldn't also help but feel panicked. Katie and I eventually made it to Earl's Court with little to no losses at the same time the rest of the group (sans Alec) did. The Burns hotel was just a short, three minute walk from the station and when we arrived in the lobby, we found the rest of our class checking in. This hotel is... not as nice as our one in Rome. Although I guess you could say it has a cozy, old fashioned charm, it leans more towards the decrepit side. You have to wait between toilet flushes, the floors creak, and there is no AC or fridge. My outlet went out so I have to share one outlet between Diana and I, and the light likes to flicker on and off. 

Naturally, I took a short nap only to be woken by an insane sounding alarm. I had no idea whether I was supposed to exit the building, or stay where I was at, but eventually chose to do the latter. Once night fell, my air bnb group and I went to go grab dinner at Honest Burgers, our first meal that didn't consist of pizza or pasta. It was a short commute to the restaurant and inside, it was incredibly cozy and welcoming. I ordered the Beef burger with a side of chips and happily ate the entire meal, not realized how much I missed burgers until today.

Afterwards, the girls wanted to to get milkshakes. We took the tube on the Piccadilly line about 20 mins northbound only to realize once we got there that they only had ice cream, despite their menu choices. We left with cold, rain drenched hearts, but found a nearby donut shop to stop by. Later that night, Alec finally responded to my insistent text messages and I retrieved my suitcase which he had, to his good heart, been dragging around with him the entire day.

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6/21/17: Gelato on the Hill

Due to the countrywide pubic transport strike that happened last Friday—today was the day we ended up going to Orvieto. We had an extremely early train at around 7—meaning I had to wake up at 6 am. I haven’t woken up that early since my high school days.

The train ride only took an hour or so, which was nice, but I’ve come to despise trains whenever they pass through tunnels—mainly because the pressure changes always pop my ears. :( I sat next to Alec and Laura and we spent the entirety of the trip karaoking (or at least, I did XD).

Once we got into Orvieto, we had to wait twenty minutes to board a bus which took us to the actual town. Because it was so packed, I had to stand which was one of the most possibly terrifying experiences of my life—especially since the ride was a combination of steep hills and winding roads.

The view however, was completely worth it. It reminded me of the live action Beauty and the Beast I’d watched recently, with a town swathed in flowers overlooking sprawling green country sides and castles as far as the eye could see.

We first stopped by the local Duomo (which was incredibly beautiful. It had the most colorful exterior I’ve seen yet) and ventured inside for half an hour before we headed to lunch. I decided to be adventurous and try the local pasta paired with tomato sauce and wild boar. The boar tasted like your usual pork so it wasn’t anything too exotic. Either way, it was delicious!

After our group lunch, Alec and I wandered around some shops until we decided to stop by the nearest gelato shop to rest our feet. It just so happened to be the best gelato I’ve had on the trip thus far. The peach and strawberry was so perfectly flavored—such that it wasn’t too sweet, strong, or too “fake” tasting and it was the perfect way to end a day trip out of the city.

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June 19, 2017: Never Trust the Bus

Today marks my last week in Rome after an amazing weekend in Florence. While other people are excited for London, I'm feeling nothing but bitterness. :( Hopefully I am able to come back to Rome one day and bring my family with me so we can enjoy it together!

This morning began with a relatively late start— meaning that I didn't have to wake up before 8 am. ~(^_^)~ I got breakfast with a few others and we left the hotel around 8:45 to make our way to the Catacombs of Callixtus, which was located about an hour away. The best route, according to City Mapper, was to take a metro to the Circus Maximus and wait for bus 118, which would take us directly to the catacombs.

I found myself grouped with Brandon, Martin, and Michael (aka the boys), because Brandon was adamant that going to the stop by the Circus Maximus meant less time on the bus (which is usually an unpleasant experience >.<). Everyone else however, decided to get off at the Colosseum, so it was just us four who stayed till the following stop.

While we waited for the 118, we found ourselves taking about the trip, and cracking jokes to the pass the time. It wasn't until 9:30 rolled around that we became mildly anxious. All the buses that had rolled up were not the 118, and the only 118 we had seen went in the opposite direction. Michael ended up asking a bus driver if it was going to come at all, and the driver had said it was, so naturally, we waited another 30 mins for it to arrive.

 Unfortunately for us, it still did not come. We attempted to hail down a taxi while also trying to contact our peers. Apparently, the group we had left with before had successfully made it to the catacombs. (-.\) Despite our impatience, we still decided to linger for another 15 mins before taking the metro back to the Colosseum. I’m pretty certain Brandon almost fell onto his knees in relief when the 118 finally appeared down the street. XD

The ride itself after we finally got on wasn't too long, but we ended up getting to the catacombs an hour after we were supposed to. XD

On the bright side, Prof. White had also been late because her and Melissa’s bus broke down so they weren't mad at us. We slid into an English speaking group and began our dark descent into the catacombs.

Now, I completely regret doing so, but I had told the boys that I was mildly afraid of going into the catacombs because I have a crippling fear of ghosts and the dead. Naturally, they tried scaring me the entire time we were down there so I can't say my experience was too pleasant. -.- Despite their shenanigans, the catacombs itself was as dark and somber as it was breathtaking. Our descent lead us into a winding labyrinth of tombs and narrow hallways, their shadows an acknowledgement to the past.

A brief history about the catacombs: They were created outside of the city walls as it was illegal during the 1st century AD to bury the dead within the city. The Christians during that time needed a place to meet without fear of persecution. As a result, they began digging what is known today as the Catacombs of Callixtus. This catacomb in particular was one of the largest in Rome and housed half a million people! :O

I found it amazing how some of the walls (comprised of volcanic rock) still had their original frescoes, despite them being almost a 1,000 years old.

After our assignment, I went out to lunch with Ally M at a nearby restaurant. She and I both wanted to stay around the hotel, as for the past week, we’ve been overwhelmed with with work and assignments. They ended up giving me a free dessert because the waiter had messed up on my order and gave me a carbonara dish instead of a margherita pizza. Whatever the reason, I was more than happy to accept a free dish. 

Otherwise, it was a relaxing day compared to my jam packed schedule last week. Until next time! 

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June 11, 2017: Around Town

On Saturday, I went back to the Piazza Navona at around 12 pm. I got lost, again, when I tried finding the bus station. I’ve realized through this whole experience that I rather have a real map with me when walking than relying on Google Maps to take me around. XD The first bus that arrived was the dreaded 64... the last time I’d gotten onto there, I was shoved against people I didn’t know and found myself suffocating in the midst of human sweat and body heat. Needless to say, it was one of the most unpleasant experiences in my life. This bus, however, was pretty empty and I was able to find a seat by the window- a commodity that is normally unheard of in public transportation within the city... XD I rode it until Argentina, got off, and made my way towards the piazza. Since it was a weekend, it was significantly more crowded than my last few visits.

I stopped by a leather shop and picked up a beautiful leather journal priced at about 30 euros. It was intended as a souvenir for a friend but now... I’m not so sure I want to give it away. XD I spent a good half hour taking pictures of the fountains and wandering among the tourists, plopping on an empty bench to simply enjoy the bustling, Roman atmosphere.

While I took my time taking in the sights, my main goal of the day was to get a painting from a man my group and I had visited on Thursday. He was tucked away in a nearby alley and sold these gorgeous watercolors of various sites around the city. The first time I revisited that street, I saw that he was only starting to set up his stand. So, I kept walking and stumbled across more vendors selling jewelry- which I have a really bad habit of perusing and eventually purchasing. XD I ended up buying these two rings, one for myself and a friend, for five euros before also stopping by a souvenir shop. I was able to pick up a snow globe of the Trevi Fountain to add to my collection for only 5 euros!

I headed back towards the painter’s stall and found he had finished setting up. Funnily enough, he recognized me, asking if I had been there with a group two days ago- in which I said I was. XD I had a difficult time choosing which one I wanted, but ended up buying a beautiful painting of a random street bursting with blooming flowers and plants. Since I was hungry, I went back to the gelato shop we’d gone on to on Thursday and sat near the Pantheon under the shade as I people watched.

When 2 rolled around, I began heading back to the bus station. Getting back was a story in itself... I desperately wanted to avoid the 64 as it was rush hour, but the buses that kept coming weren’t going to the Termini station. It took a whopping half hour of waiting for me to finally hop on bus 492 which would take me to Barberini, where I would take a metro back home (I must say, I love riding the metro XD).

I returned to the hotel around 3:30, FaceTimed with my dad, and joined the boys (Brandon, Joey, and Jason) later at 4 pm. They wanted to go to a restaurant on the other side of town called the Old Bear and had invited me to come the night before (so kind of them T_T). We made our way back through the city and decided to climb the Spanish steps. I think they were having a children’s concert of some sort!

This is where the story gets a little more... interesting. As I was walking back down the steps... I slipped and fell. And not just a delicate little tumble. I crash landed- to the point where I heard a lady gasp and people scream. I was absolutely mortified! T_T Of course I, of all people, would fall in public. While I wasn’t bruised, my pride certainly was.

We also stopped by the Campo de’ Fiori again because the boys wanted to buy these sunglasses Martin got for only 15 euros, but by the time we got there, they were in the process of cleaning up for the day. We ended up at Old Bear several minutes before they opened (which was tucked away in nondescript alley) and were seated outside. There were no other tourists around, just the locals, so that in itself was already a good sign. XD

The food, of course, was amazing! I don’t normally enjoy fish, but we ordered an appetizer that had sea bass marinated with oranges and it was the best seafood I’d ever had. Joey and Brandon got ravioli (apparently all ravioli dishes here involve spinach?), Jason got gnocchi, and I got spaghetti carbonara. After our dinner, where we tried each other’s food and had plenty of laughs, we bought some gelato at a nearby place the waiter had recommended to us. It was extremely crowded. We had to get tickets just to wait in line. XD I got banana and peach this time, which was good, but pretty strong. My server gave me whipped cream even though I didn’t necessarily ask for it. XD

Today, I have just been in my room, too exhausted from yesterday’s events to even go to breakfast. It is only 3:34 pm right now, so we will see what this day continues to bring after I finish my work!

[rachaelstraveldiary-blog]

June 9, 2017: Solo Adventures

Buonasera!

Apologies for the discrepancies in my posts- I couldn’t figure out how to fit my charger into my adapter/converter so my laptop has been dead for the past several days.

I can’t believe that it has already been a full week since the start of my Roman travels! I’m feeling quite bittersweet. On one hand, my weekend has been a little lackluster so the days are dragging by, but on the other, my time in Rome has been quietly ticking down towards my eventual departure... 

Today, we didn’t do much as a majority of the group was going out of town for the weekend. Our only assignment was to visit the Ecstasy of St. Theresa by Bernini in the Cornaro chapel and the nearby street market. 

I completed my assignment with a few people in the morning, and then found myself quietly sitting in my room alone around noon. I had no idea if anyone stayed in Rome and planned out the weekend as a solo adventure. 

My first stop was a nearby pastry shop called Regoli’s where I had an amazing strawberry tarte. The strawberries were wild so they were super small, no larger than the size of my finger nails! I also stopped by a supermarket along the way, which was underground. While it was a means to pass the time, I had to pick up some laundry detergent and some snacks. When I paid, however, the lady told me the price in Italian and I had no idea what she was saying... so I just handed her a 10 euro bill hoping it was enough. XD

Since I had slept through dinner on Thursday, I also trekked to the restaurant everyone had gone to that night called: Pasta Imperiale. It was quite a ways from the hotel, and I did admittedly get lost once or twice. Google maps is certainly unreliable at times. -_- Despite circling around a block every now and then, I did arrive at my destination. It turned out to be a tinnnnnyyy restaurant. I ordered some ravioli with meat sauce as take out and headed back home- which, fortunately, was much less of an ordeal than getting there. 

[rachaelstraveldiary-blog]

June 8, 2017: 7.1 Miles Later...

Ciao! 

Despite waking up much earlier than I preferred (we had to meet Professor White in the lobby by 8 am), today had to be my favorite day yet! 

We began our morning by busing over to the bottom of the Capitoline Hill where our tour began. Since it was so early, there was hardly anyone around so I was able to get some nice pictures of the famed Spanish Steps. Professor White took us southwards and we ended up at our first location: the church of St. Cecilia in in Trastevere. A little history about the building: St. Cecilia was a 14 year old girl who refused to marry and convert to Christianity. Thus, she was drowned in a bathtub in that very house underneath the church and when that didn’t work, her throat was slit. Gruesome... I know. At one point, Prof. White suggested that we go into the basement to see the spot where she was murdered and I felt a little part of me cry inside (thanks to my fear of ghosts and the dead). Fortunately, we didn’t go. 

After winding through the elaborate alley ways of the neighborhood, we reached our second location: Santa Maria in Trastevere. Apparently, the church had one of the first depictions of the Virgin Mary as being just as important as Jesus himself. As with all the churches in Rome, it was beautifully decorated with columns, ceiling artwork, mosaics, and sculptures. 

Along our tour, we also stopped by a medieval pharmacy, an ex-monastery, a botanical garden, Prof. White’s favorite bakery (where I had my first cannoli), the French Embassy, and Il Forno (Prof. White’s favorite pizzeria). My second favorite location of the day was definitely the market at Campo De’Fiori. I have never seen so many varieties of pasta in my life! XD They sold a dazzling array of fruits, meat, pasta, alcohol, leather goods, and flowers. 

Our next stop was the Pantheon. While I had visited it two days ago, I didn’t go inside which was, as I would soon find out, a grave mistake. It was, singlehandedly, the grandest monument I had ever seen in my life. The building was a massive domed structure with an enormous curved ceiling etched with squares and a single hole in which light poured into the room. On each vicinity of the walls were statues of Roman gods and goddesses posed in their own respective arches. I couldn’t get enough of its grandeur and was incredibly heartbroken when we had to leave. 

My mood was momentarily lifted when we visited a wonderful gelato place right after where I ordered my usual combination of strawberry and banana. After sitting and consuming our tasty treats, we finished our tour at the Piazza Navona and the Castle of St. Angelo. 

I think today was so enjoyable (despite all the walking... when I checked my phone later we had walked a grand total of 7.1 miles O_o) mostly because we stopped by a market (which are one of my favorite aspects about going abroad) and toured through the authentic streets of Rome. 

[rachaelstraveldiary-blog]

June 7, 2017: Cinecittà Studios

Buonasera!

Today, my entire group and I visited Cinecittà Studios which is located about half an hour away from our hotel by metro. The metro itself was a really fun experience, mainly because I had never used underground modes of transportation before. It was well lit, spacious, and air conditioned, but incredibly fast so you had to hold on pretty tight onto the handle bars to avoid falling. After we arrived, we had some trouble figuring out where the entrance was which, laughably, was just a few feet away from the metro exit. 

While the studio was fun to explore and tour (I especially liked the back lots), it was very hot. By the time the tour wound up to a close, everyone was exhausted. Some quickly returned to the hotel while others chose to spend a little more time at the studio going into costume buildings or perusing the gift shop. A small group of girls saw me relaxing on a bench and asked if I wanted to grab lunch with them (Blaire, Andi, and Sarah). Of course, I said yes and we gathered a few more people before heading back onto the metro to an acai bowl shop. 

Since it was located pretty far away from the center of town, the cashier didn’t speak English. At one point, I wanted to purchase a bottle of water (as unlike everyone else, I did not bring my own) and asked her: ‘Can I have a water?’ in English, but she looked at me confusedly. Fortunately, I had heard my plane neighbor refer to water as ‘acqua’ in Italian and said that instead. She understood and brightened immediately, and remembered my order when we later went up to pay! Being that it was my first time speaking Italian here, I was very reassured by her appreciation towards my attempt at speaking their native tongue. 

Later that night, I had my first Italian dinner. A medium sized group and I went to a place Professor White had recommended called Rustica. It turned out to be a modern pizza shop set up in a similar fashion to the ones back home. I was able to get two slices of pizza (cheese and zucchini) and a drink for only 5.50 euros! While I couldn’t finish it (as I had consumed a sandwich and a smoothie at the acai bowl place), I packed the rest home for a snack later that night. 

In short, I was able to get over my insecurity of speaking in someone’s native language and successfully navigated the metro! A satisfying day, if I do say so myself. :)

[rachaelstraveldiary-blog]

June 6, 2017: Roma in a Day

Ciao! :) 

Today marks my first official day in Roma, Italia! Despite having been here for over 24 hours, it still feels surreal. Everything looks like it just came straight out of an Italian movie! The buildings, the streets, the music-- they’re all so bright and vibrant.

Our first assignment was to visit the Trevi fountain and five additional fountains. My morning began by waking up around 9:00, getting ready, and heading downstairs to grab breakfast. The food selection at the hotel is insane-- pastries, fruit, eggs, and drinks galore!

After breakfast, my group and I of five headed out at 10:00 am to hunt down our first location: the famed Trevi fountain. We tried using a picture of a google maps and the help of a nearby bus staff, but our walk quickly began relying on a map we’d grabbed on at the hotel. Our navigator was yours truly. ;)

By the time 11:45 rolled around, we had visited total of six fountains all located west of the Trevi: the Porter, the Fountain of Fountain of Four Rivers, the Fountain of the Naiads, the Fontana del Nettuno, the Fontana del Moro, and the Fontana del Pantheon. Three of the six were located in the Piazza Navona while the other three were located along the way to the piazza. 

The Trevi was a sight to behold. Although I had seen it before in numerous pictures while perusing through the most famous sites in Rome, seeing it in person was indescribable. The fountain was massive and extraordinarily sculpted, with careful attention to detail and decor. Fortunately, we visited it relatively early on a Tuesday morning so we were able to stand right at its edge. Of course, we also had to toss in a coin and make a wish for our fated return. 

After our assignments, we found ourselves meeting up with another group of four and figured that the day was still young. Why not stop by a few other places while we were still out and about? So, we headed south to the Tiber river and onto its island: Isola Tiberina after stopping in a church every now and then. The churches here are incredible... I find it hard to believe that they are used regularly for mass. You would think that they would be reserved as an ancient monument similar to the Colosseum! Inside every church we’ve been in, the domed ceilings have been etched with swirling, colorful, and opulent designs and paintings complete with gold and bronze. (Below, for example, was the ceiling of the Sant’Andrea della Valle)

Our excitement to explore, however, was cut short by our tired feet and ravenous hunger. We decided the best thing to do was head back towards the hotel to rest and find some food. Our route include a brief stop by the Roman Forum, or... the back of it. When we tried going around it, we found ourselves back where we started-- a few streets away from the river. Fortunately, one of us had the hotel phone that let us find our way back to the home which was another arduous half hour. If you named a popular tourist destination in Rome, we probably saw it hence the name for today’s post: Roma in a Day. XD