Disclaimer: I've taken almost 300 photos but most are on my camera ,which I'm too lazy to connect at the moment so these snapshots are from my phone. Also, this post is really long. Oops!
Day 1
We made it to Rome! We landed around noon (on Saturday). Italian security was so casual–nobody even opened my passport and customs was literally just walking through a door!
We made our way in a van (which had some close calls on the highway and tailgated other cars the entire way) to our hotel. As we drove, we went past many suburban areas and buildings that Mussolini created. Our driver attempted to tell us about what we were seeing, but I think all of us were way too tired for more than a polite nod.
The hotel was in the old city, with a view of the Parthenon and the Piazza Della Rotunda (Okay, clarification my parents room had this amazing view, Lauren and I had a view of an authentic Roman brick wall/roof!) We could hear all of the music and performances being played in the square, which was really cool.
We made our way in a van (which had some close calls on the highway and tailgated other cars the entire way) to our hotel. As we drove, we went past many suburban areas and buildings that Mussolini created. Our driver attempted to tell us about what we were seeing, but I think all of us were way too tired for more than a polite nod.
The hotel was in the old city, with a view of the Parthenon and the Piazza Della Rotunda (Okay, clarification my parents room had this amazing view, Lauren and I had a view of an authentic Roman brick wall/roof!) We could hear all of the music and performances being played in the square, which was really cool.
After a quick nap, the fam checked out the Pantheon, which was beyond amazing. The building was larger than I ever imagined, and the inside was so well preserved in comparison to the outside, which looks fairly disheveled. I also loved how all the sunlight streamed in from the opening at the top, but I can only imagine what it's like on a rainy day!
The Piazza itself was really crowded, with basically every building hosting a restaurant. Tourists were streaming in and out of the Pantheon, and vendors trying to sell basically everything (including knock-off designer handbags and dancing baby dolls) were everywhere. My favorite souvenirs were the Pope and gladiator bobbleheads–just imagine a row of 10 Popes nodding at you! The fountain in the middle of the Piazza has an original Egyptian obelisk that was taken when the Romans occupied Rome. And of course, there were at least 25 gelato places within a 2 minute walk.
For dinner we had our first authentic Italian meal and it did not disappoint (and I have high expectations for pesto!) I think this photo can speak for itself:
For dinner we had our first authentic Italian meal and it did not disappoint (and I have high expectations for pesto!) I think this photo can speak for itself:
Day 2
The next morning we woke up early to walk to get a SIM card for my phone (yay for being connected!). Dad was in charge of the maps and of course led us in the complete wrong direction, but we did get to see the Piazza Venezia (Think: Livingston traffic circle + Italian drivers + no traffic lights), which also had Napoleon's family home and a massive building that's a monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, the first King of a unified Italy.
After, we ventured to the Colosseum and took a tour of both the Colosseum and the Palatine Hill, which includes the old Roman Forum. I've tried to save your poor fingers from extra scrolling by putting these pictures all into a gallery...
After, we ventured to the Colosseum and took a tour of both the Colosseum and the Palatine Hill, which includes the old Roman Forum. I've tried to save your poor fingers from extra scrolling by putting these pictures all into a gallery...
Later that evening, we checked out the rooftop bar of our hotel. If you follow me on Instagram you've already seen it but I LOVED this amazing view of Rome from over our little Piazza. The farther dome that's sort of in the center is St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, which is the tallest building in the city!
Day 3
Day 3 was move-in day at the American University of Rome! We had to wake up early to be at the school at 8:30 and meet up with my roommate, Jasmine. To get to the school, you go over the Tiber River and up a very steep hill, around winding streets. This is supposed to be the tallest of the 7 hills in Rome. My parents joke that it's the Brooklyn of Rome ,but that's fairly accurate because from what I've been told, this area is younger and more hip than the older sections of the city.
The school itself is very small and consists of three buildings arranged in sort of a triangle, with a garden at the entrance. We were able to wait in the garden for a van to take me and Jasmine to our apartment. The apartment is about 10 minutes by car from the school, and hopefully just as close via bus. It is in a normal residential building close to a main road. i was expecting it to be really small but it's fairly big, and there are five of us living here. Besides Jasmine and I, there is also Jill from Emory and two girls who we were told will arrive tomorrow.
The apartment is kind of a weird mix between modern and 90's decor–think bright colors and strange couches, and a brand new microwave but an ancient dishwasher. The housing woman who showed us the apartment showed us our special "Roman dryer", which is a drying rack. We also can't have a lot of electronics and lights on at the same time because it will short out the electricity. The closets have shelfs with hanging rods on top, but they're so tall you have to use a chair to climb up to it! I think we're lucky though to have two bathrooms, a fairly decent sized-kitchen and a very nice dining room table, but we'll see what happens when all 5 of us are here!
We went looking for a local grocery store (spoiler alert: we didn't find it), but saw that the neighborhood was really cute and has some great looking shops and gelato places nearby. Once we've unpacked and cleaned up our giant mess, I'll post some pictures of the space!
Afterwards, the fam went to lunch and then was off to the Jewish Ghetto. The Great Synagogue of Rome was spectacular and very ornate (photo below), and was built in the early 1900s on the site of most of the old ghetto. I learned a lot about the ghetto's existence since the 1500s with the rise of Catholicism–I had always assumed the ghettos came about in the 20th century. The museum that was attached also had some amazing artifacts from centuries of Judaism in Italy, including the most beautiful torah covers.
The school itself is very small and consists of three buildings arranged in sort of a triangle, with a garden at the entrance. We were able to wait in the garden for a van to take me and Jasmine to our apartment. The apartment is about 10 minutes by car from the school, and hopefully just as close via bus. It is in a normal residential building close to a main road. i was expecting it to be really small but it's fairly big, and there are five of us living here. Besides Jasmine and I, there is also Jill from Emory and two girls who we were told will arrive tomorrow.
The apartment is kind of a weird mix between modern and 90's decor–think bright colors and strange couches, and a brand new microwave but an ancient dishwasher. The housing woman who showed us the apartment showed us our special "Roman dryer", which is a drying rack. We also can't have a lot of electronics and lights on at the same time because it will short out the electricity. The closets have shelfs with hanging rods on top, but they're so tall you have to use a chair to climb up to it! I think we're lucky though to have two bathrooms, a fairly decent sized-kitchen and a very nice dining room table, but we'll see what happens when all 5 of us are here!
We went looking for a local grocery store (spoiler alert: we didn't find it), but saw that the neighborhood was really cute and has some great looking shops and gelato places nearby. Once we've unpacked and cleaned up our giant mess, I'll post some pictures of the space!
Afterwards, the fam went to lunch and then was off to the Jewish Ghetto. The Great Synagogue of Rome was spectacular and very ornate (photo below), and was built in the early 1900s on the site of most of the old ghetto. I learned a lot about the ghetto's existence since the 1500s with the rise of Catholicism–I had always assumed the ghettos came about in the 20th century. The museum that was attached also had some amazing artifacts from centuries of Judaism in Italy, including the most beautiful torah covers.
Not only was the synagogue amazing, the surrounding streets were really cute (as I've decided most streets in Rome are). Many of the shops were closed because mid-August is vacation time for Rome, but there were a ton of Kosher restaurants, and even pareve gelato. Shout out to Leah for telling me to try the Chocolate Fondant flavor–it was insanely good, and is only found in Rome. It literally can't get closer than this to tasting like you're eating a chocolate bar!
On a sidenote, we stumbled upon two or three different areas of ruins just walking around. This was sunken in the middle of a plaza, and I believe was an ancient street!
Our next adventure was finding an Italian grocery store because we were unsuccessful earlier (oooh, exciting right?). It was actually hard to spot the store but one was close to our hotel. The entrance was on one side of a restaurant and souvenir shop with the exit coming out down the block. Aside from parmesan cheese as big as my head, many of the items were similar to American stores, and it wasn't too hard to find what we were looking for. My favorite atypical find: Frozen octopus!
I'll end this post how a day in Rome should be finished–with a great big plate of pasta with mushrooms! I also ate this at 10pm. Yum! This also all happened while watching street performers (including some who sang and did flips down the narrow passageway of the street).
Ciao,
Alyssa
Alyssa