Non è Arrivederci, è Ci Vediamo Dopo

"It's Not Goodbye, It's See You Later"

I am now officially done with classes and in less than 48 hours I will be back in the USA.... this is UNREAL. These past 3 1/2 months have literally been the most extraordinary months of my life. I know this is a cliche but this experience has honestly changed me and the way I view people, the world, and cultures that I may not have/still may not understand. Even though I'm dreading leaving this wondrous place I've come to call home I cannot wait to infuse my new found insight into my "real" life back in the USA. Oh and I guess I'm pretty (super!) excited to see all my family and friends too ;) Be ready for the biggest & bestest hugs of your lives!

Since 9am marked the end of my finals I spent the rest of the day shopping, packing, and shopping more. It was great haha. Tonight also marked the final Tijuana Thursday. Yes I know, making a mexican restaurant in Italy a regular spot every week is kinda strange but trust me if you saw their 3.50 euro frozen drinks you would too. Just another thing I had to say "This is the last time we'll _____" to. Oi, I need to stop that, it just makes it that much tougher saying goodbye to. Tonight I'm going clubbing one last time with Katie, Jade, Dave, and the San Gallo girls. Then tomorrow will be everythingggg and anything I can think of as well as the farewell GSE dinner (I'm dreading saying bye to Chiara & Martina :'( ). We've also decided not to go to sleep tomorrow and our flight isn't until 2:40 in the afternoon on Saturday... this could be rough but totally worth it. I don't know if I'll be able to post again before I leave but look for one when I get back. Ti amo, Italia. Ti amo....

Here's a throw back picture:

1st view of the Duomo from our apartment window<3

vita, amore, felicità

Il Tempo è Quasi Venuto

"The Time Has Almost Come"

One.... Week....
It can't be true. We're definitely forgetting about an extra month or something, right? There can't possibly be only 7 days left for me to enjoy this amazing place I've called home for the past 3 1/2 months.... Someone is playing a mean joke right now. I just know it...
Ok, ok so I guess I have to come to terms with it some time but man is it going to be hard. It especially doesn't help that my last week also includes 5 finals which means time wasted studying when I should be out ENJOYING the city. Grrr, this whole "study" aspect of study abroad has never really bode well for me. And clearly you can tell by my sudden burst in blog posts that the studying part isn't really happening either.

This past week I have spent trying any random restaurants and cafes that I come upon. I walk into random stores just to browse and see what I've been missing. And I wander, lots. You really don't realize how little time you have here until it's almost gone. <- good reminder about life too. And if there is anything I've learned from this past week's events, including the passing of one of Stonehill's own freshmen, it's that you really do never know when it could all end and the only way to ensure you are happy when it does reach that moment is to try your very best to actually LIVE each and ever moment you are given. Enjoy because otherwise you're only harming yourself.

Wednesday marked the fake last day of classes (I still have Italian twice before my exam), so the Stonehill gang decided to celebrate by going out to dinner then having a little Christmas party, Yankee Swap included. It was such a blast hanging out with everyone and I really started to feel that Christmas spirit I had been missing. Although Katie may still be mad at me for taking her t-shirt during the Yankee Swap I think we all had a great time together and will continue to hang out once we're back on campus. Here are a couple pictures from the party :)

Stonehill Family Pic!

Our tree and presents

Conquered this wine bottle after 10 strugglefest minutes haha

1st present- boxed wine, firework poppers, & nutella ornaments-  courtesy of Dave

After the swap :)

Here are a couple pictures of the Christmas decorations around Firenze:

Love this one with the moon

vita, amore, felicità

Semplicemente ROMAing

"Just ROMEing"

Roma Roma Roma. Oh the things I heard about Roma before I went. It's dirty, crowded, the people are rude, the drivers are insane. Ya I heard it all, but Rome proved everyone wrong. Maybe we just went on an off weekend (does Rome have off weekends?) but I found it to be clean, spacious, to have nice people, and to not have that many cars on the road. Either way I absolutely loved it there. It was full of so much history and culture but also that modern city feel as well. It was everything I had not expected and more ;)

When we arrived Saturday we had a little free time before our tours would start. Hazel & I wandered the city a little, found some lunch, and enjoyed the sites nearby. Then we headed to a tiny country called, Vatican City. That would be my 6th country visited during this semester. Inside we walked around the courtyard area a bit, went into the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica. After seeing pictures of the painting on the Sistine Chapel's ceiling in every art class I'd ever taken I finally got to see them in person. They. Were. Amazing. How could someone paint things so beautiful on a ceiling, using a ladder, with little practice or desire for painting.... It just does not make sense. Michelangelo was truly a remarkable artist. So after gazing up at that ceiling for quite a while we all left with stiff necks to head into St. Peter's and wow. Gold everywhere. It was gorgeous. Inside not only did I get to see Michelangelo's Pieta but also the late Pope John Paul II's tomb. That was probably one of the most profound moments I've had here this entire time. To be in the presence of such a magnificently selfless person was heart stopping. I took a few minutes to take it all in and pray, right there, in front of his tomb. Man was that an amazing thing to be able to do. After composing myself I rejoined the group and finished walking around the church. We were then given free time which Hazel & I used to wander some more, to go to one of the Christmas markets, and to the Trevi Fountain. That night we all went out for a nice meal which probably around 85% left drunk from (excluding me of course). That wine just did not stop coming. Outside the restaurant we took a group photo to mark out last excursion together... *tear* No one ever likes the end of something so great.

Day 2 was raining.... so naturally we had a tour of the Colosseum, Forum, and Pantheon (all of which are outside of course). While I did enjoy being able to see of of those I can't say I was in the best of moods as I sloshed around in my non rainboots : \ The rain did eventually stop (basically right as our tour ended... ironic). The rest of our day was spent wandering some more. We ended up back at the Trevi Fountain, to 2 churches that were unfortunately closed, the Spanish steps (where we sat and people watched for a while), and into another gorgeous church that I don't know the name of. Even with the rain it was a fantastic weekend and I would absolutely love to go back to Roma one day!

Picturessss:

Outside Vatican City

Inside Vatican City

St. Peter's  Basilica 

Pieta

Pope John Paul II<3

can't have a xmas market without a giant ass nute

Cute couple dancing to street performer

Throwing coin #2 in!

GSE<3

Colosseum!

Walking ON the streets of Roma, never thought I'd be able to do that

Pantheon

Cutest little kid just went up to this guy and started fighting him

Fall in Roma, in December?

view from the Spanish steps

Flower guy gave us roses, took our picture, then took them back... we never learn

Sorry for so many!

vita, amore, felicità

Casualità

"Randomness" (No idea if that can actually be translated into Italian but there's my best guess)

This is going to be a post full of random events that I have forgotten/haven't had time to post about.
First: Climbing up the Bell Tower with Kat, Katie, and Dave. That meant 414 steps straight up. Luckily there were a couple landings in between but it was still a tough climb. You'd think I'd be used to climbing stairs by now after living on the third floor for 3 months..... nope. Here are a couple pictures (remember I was using my iPod):

 My Street!

Second: La Bohème! One Wednesday night my study abroad group was treated to a nice apertivo & an Italian Opera. It was a really nice night, despite the fact I could not understand most of the opera even with the subtitles flashing over the stage. It's hard enough understanding opera singers who are singing in english, nevermind italian haha. However, I still really enjoyed it since I had never been to the opera before. It was a very classy night :)

Third: Climbing the Duomo with my mom. I know I mentioned this in my last post but here are some pictures from it. 463 steps, 49 more than the Bell Tower but it felt like less. Strange.

Ceiling of the Duomo

<3

vita, amore, felicità