Pics from Days 1 through 4

Images from top to bottom: Giolitti's (Day 4), Saturday Night Crew (Day 3), McDonald's Across from Pantheon (Day 3), Inside the Pantheon (Day 3), Outside the Pantheon (Day 3).

And so it begins. . .

Images from top to bottom: Graffiti of a Young Me (Day 3), Creepy Girl Filleting Fish (Day 2), Honors Group Watching the World Cup(Day 4), Ruins on Tram Street from Explorations (Day 1), State of Giordano Bruno in the Campo dei Fiori (where I live).

ok ok ok, I know you're all wondering what the hell I've been up to since I got to Rome, and the good news is that I'm having a blast and a half. I can't even really describe in words what it's really like being here, but all I can say is that it has been quite an amazing experience so far and its only been like 5 days. For now, I'll just break it down day by day.

Day 1: The Arrival

So we arrived Thursday morning in Rome after losing a day due to travel and the difference in time zones. Rome is a whole 9 hours ahead of west coast time, so I'm still feeling a tad bit jet lagged, but it well worth it. After checking into the UW Rome Center and dropping my bags at my Roman Apartment, which is housed in #46 of the Campo dei Fiori, me and my roommate Roman (yes, that's his actual name) decided to do some preliminary exploring before having orientation. After orientation, we all went to go get our Italian cell phones. The Nokia brick I bought makes me feel like I'm in middle school all over again. Later that night the entire Honors group went out to pizza at a small restaurant about 2 blocks from the campo. It was great going out with and getting to know everyone. Later after dinner, fouir of us went out to an American bar named "Sloppy Sam's" and watch the World Cup match between Mexico and France. Surprisingly, there was a large group of Mexicans at the same bar, and luckily for us, Mexico ended up winning 2-0, making out night much more enjoyable as we got to celebrate with them.

Day 2: Tour of the Campo

Started the day by one of our instructors, Lisa, giving us a quick tour of some of the good places to go and eat / shop and get necessary items in the Campo Dei Fiori and the surrounding area. Later that night, a smaller group of us (about 10 people) went to a restaurant in the nearby neighborhood of Testevere, which is right across the Tiber river. The food was mediocre, but had a really creepy painting of a little girl filleting fish, whilst surrounded by colorful orbs. After dinner, I met up with a few friends to scope out the nightlife / bars in Testevere, and we concluded with a plan of action for the following night, when we would try and carouse the rest of the group to go out with us. During this scouting of the Roman streets, we came across a graffiti painting of what very strongly resembled a young version of myself (pics below), it was quite funny.

Day 3: Party, party, party. . .

Slept in Saturday, then went down to the Campo to buy some eggs to make for breakfast; scrambled eggs on toast, can't beat it. Then me and some others in the group decided to make a trip to the pantheon, which is about a 10 minute walk from my apartment, which was well worth the trip. Took some amazing photos. Then came back to the Campo and hung out there until we went out to a large group dinner with all the students and professors. The meal was 4 courses and lasted a little longer than 3 hours. Ridiculous. However, the food was delicious and it was fun getting to know the other students better, as well as the professors, over good food and wine. After the longest dinner of my lifetime, we enacted our plan mapped out the previous night, as about 11 of us went out and had drinks at a couple of bars, one of which had the best mojitos I've ever tasted. The night concluded with me and my roommate getting soaked on our way home, as we had to sprint through a torrential downpour. Rain aside, it was a great night.

Day 4: The never-ending flea market

So after about 5 hours of sleep, we had a large group outing to go to the Rome flea market. After making a couple turns to try and make our way to the exit, a few us ended up walking what must have been about 2 miles worth of bootleg stands, cheap clothes, and generally old stuff. As we made our way back along the river, the rain that I thought I left in the Northwest came back with a vengeance. However, this time, we were equipped with umbrellas. After running on 5 hours of sleep, a cup of (fantastic) cappuccino, and an apple strudel, it was high time for a nap. At 4, the Honors group met up at a bar in the Campo to watch the World Cup match between Italy and New Zealand. After the game ended in a 1-1 tie, the Italians we were surrounded by were not happy at all. Afterwards, in an effort to curb my spending, which at this point was looking like it was going to out-pace the Obama administration, I decided to grab a couple small things from the supermarket and make myself dinner. This was my great success of the day, as I made penne pasta with chopped up lamb steak cooked in garlic that turned out deliciously. The night cap of the evening included going to gelato shops of ALL gelato shops, a place called Giolitti. This shit was like Willy Wonka of gelato, clean, metal plated, and the guys serving the gelato even had on special outfits that looked like something from the 19th century. The most interesting aspect of Giolitti was that it included a bar, as well as a cafe with pastries. It had everything a grown man-child would need.

At this point, I need to conclude. This post ended up way longer than I expected, and I don't realistically expect anyone to read all (or any) of this. Day 5 - The Colosseum was today, but that'll have to wait.

Finals Week!

Ok, quick short blog. Final's week officially sucks. One paper down, two tests to go. Then hopefully record a demo for my band Audio District (check us out on Facebook) this Friday. Saturday its going down with the going away party. Then only a few days to spend time with the homies and fam before its off to Roma!

Let's Get it Started!

First official blog post. It's about to get real. Stay tuned.