Arrival: Airplane view
So I have only been here for five days but I have seen so much. I arrived in Roma, Italia on August 27. I was the first of my apartment-mates to arrive in the apartment. I walked into the apartment, put my things down and just sat down for 30 minutes. Then I called home to let everyone know that I was okay and safe. By this time it was about 12 noon Rome time and 6am at home on the East Coast. For the next couple of hours my roommates showed up. Caitlin and I went on a walk just to look around and explore. When we were all here and unpacked a little we decided to go out for our first Italian dinner.
On Wednesday and Thursday I had orientation. Wednesday we got lost between the two campuses and got soaked in a torrential down pour.
Thursday our navigation 101 guide took us on a mini tour around the city. We stopped at places like the Tiber River, the school supply store, the Forums, the “wedding cake building”(I cannot remember its original name) and the Colosseum. On our way back to Campus we took the subway to Termini station and looked around and then took the bus to John Cabot University Tiber Campus.
On Friday our SAI leaders Amy and Lisa took us to the catacombs of San Callixtus and then to an old farm for lunch. The catacombs was a very interesting experience because, well for one, it was sort of creepy to me that we were walking where dead bodies used to be and two because it brought everything that I learned in church and Christian history class to life. They did not allow us to take pictures because it was considered a holy place. The farm we went to was the Borgo di Tragliata Organic Farm. It was built on Etruscan ruins and had a medieval tower and church from the 17th century. For lunch we had a full traditional Italian meal with appetizers, pasta, chicken and potatoes, cake and wine. It was molto buono, very good.
Saturday my roommates and I got lost trying to find the Pantheon and the Trevi Fountain, eventually we got there. The Pantheon is extremely breath taking; I have never experienced something so beautifully constructed. Of course the Trevi Fountain was beautiful as well.
At around 7pm we met up for a tour of night life in Rome, had dinner and went to an Irish pub to watch a football game. Today, Sunday, September 1, 2013 SAI took us to one of Rome’s many beaches. We spent the day there, it was hot and I’m pretty sure I got a tan. Tomorrow is the first day of the semester and I am really excited about going to class and meeting some more new people!
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Darrah is a student at Pace University studying at John Cabot University during the Fall 2013 term.
