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When in Rome..!
Our U.S. College Student Visits Ancient Rome
Inside and outside
the massive and historic Colusseum.
•
Amy
Arrives in London
•
Amsterdam
– The Full Report
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The
Best Time Ever!
•
The
Whirlwind Weekend
By
Amy Jones, Cal State-Fullerton Senior
I am sitting here, reveling in everything
that has happened this past week. I thought that I had the best time
ever in Scotland but let me tell you, Rome is amazing!
ARRIVING IN ROMA!
We took an airline called Ryan Air that is a low cost, no frills
airline. We got in late and headed for the hostel. One of the weirdest
things ever...no one pays to use the public transportation system.
When you get on the bus they do not check your ticket. When you go to
the Metro there are police officers standing there but they don't care
if you just walk right in. Like, when we got there, we went in to the
metro but had no idea which way to go. This police officer stopped us,
and I thought that we were in trouble for not paying, but instead he
pointed us in the right direction. Weird.
Once settled into our room, we went to walk around and ended up at
this pastry shop. They had the best pastries ever!!!
FRIDAY
So if you know me well, I'm sure that you know that I am obsessed with
Italy. I love everything about Italy and have wanted to go there for
as long as I can remember. I even have worked at a few Italian restaurants
and can not wait to study in Florence this summer.
So, I was like a little kid going to Disneyland when I got to Rome.
I was so unbelievably excited!!! I planned out our days there and everything
that I wanted to see. We headed to the Colusseum for our first
excursion.
When I saw it for the first time my jaw dropped. It is so massive and
awe inspiring.
I mean, you see it in books and stuff but to actually see it in person!!!
We took a lot of pictures and then went inside. It is crazy to actually
be inside the Coliusseum When inside you can almost imagine what it
would have been like to be there 2000 years ago...to sit and watch the
games. Wow! Let me tell you, you have to come to Rome! It is the best
thing that you will ever do...if you go one place, travel here!
After the Colusseum we went to the Roman Forum, which is the
old marketplace that the Romans used to use. Now it is just ruins but
we listened in to a tour and learned what each building was and a lot
of the history behind everything. It is another amazing sight!
Then, hunger set in and it was time to eat...real Italian
food.
We were looking for a place that was authentic and had
really good pizza. We stopped at this pizza bar where you order
a la carte. Oh my gosh!!! It was the best food that I had ever tasted
in my entire life. Olive Garden doesn't even come close to how good
this tasted! I had pizza, an olive and tomatoe salad, and bread. Amazing!
This food rocked!
After the most wonderful meal ever, we went to get some
gelato. Gelato is Italian for ice cream...but gelato is not regular
old ice cream. It is the best stuff that you will ever taste in your
entire life!!! I don't even know how to describe this but we had just
eaten a great meal, had creamy gelato in our hands, turn the corner,
and there is the most beautiful fountain ever right in front of us.
At the Trevi Fountain,
another fantastic Roman landmark.
It is the Trevi Fountain and is ridiculously amazing!
It is huge and carved out of marble with pictures of Roman Gods, angels,
and other images. So we ate our gelato by the fountain. Oh yeah...there
is also a superstition that if you throw a penny over your right shoulder
into the fountain that it means that you will return to Rome before
you die...so of course I did that.
Then we walked along the Rodeo Drive of Rome. There were
all of the designer stores and we shopped (well window shopped) for
awhile. The shopping ends up at the Spanish Steps. So
you think, what is so special about a bunch of stairs? Well, they wind
up and everyone comes there to hang out. Also, from the top there is
a beautiful view of the city.
From the top of
the Spanish Steps, all of Rome is within view. Well, almost..
After we soaked up that for a while we went to get some
dinner. We walked to find a restaurant and were stopped by an Italian
guy. He was cute and started talking to us (in Italian). We were trying
to ask him for a good restaurant but he thought that we were asking
him to come to dinner with us.
Soon, he got on his mobile and a minute later his friend
was there. We figured, what the heck...when in Rome and asked them to
show us a good restaurant.
They took us to a Chinese/Italian place that was not all
that great...but oh well. It was probably one of the weirdest meals
that I have had in my life because they didn't even speak our language!
But I guess now I can say that I have had dinner with two Italian guys...it
makes for a good story.
Girls: Watch out for the crazy Italian men.
Crazy Italian Guys Story: As we were walking home
from dinner we crossed the street and this guy let us pass. So my friend
said, "Grazie!" and we crossed. A minute later he had turned his car
around and passed us on the road. If that wasn't freaky enough, he proceeded
to stop his car, get out, and approach us! So if you ever go to Italy,
watch out for the men...they are crazy. You can't even say hello without
them thinking that it means something else.
SATURDAY- VATICAN CITY AND THE SISTINE CHAPEL
Inside the incredible
Pantheon, though the Vatican will have to wait.
I woke up around 11am, got ready and headed out around noon. When I
got to the Vatican at 12:30 it was closed. You wouldn't think
that it would close so early, but it does. Now I tell myself that I
didn't see it because I wanted to save it for the next time that I am
in Rome. So, if you go to Rome, go to the Vatican early!!!
Then we went shopping and to lunch. We ate at this little restaurant
that had a three-course meal for 9 euros. It was good stuff!
Then we headed for the Pantheon. The Pantheon was built in like
8 B.C. or something ridiculous like that and was originally a temple
to all of the different Roman gods. Now it still holds religious ceremonies
but it is also a place where famous people, like the artist, Raphael,
are buried. It is impressive! I mean, it is huge and beautiful inside.
After the Pantheon we walked around and ended up at a hot chocolate
bar. Now, hot chocolate here is not the same as in the states. It is
literally hot, melted chocolate. It was really rich, but oh so yummy!
Especially since it was cold. We sat outside by the heat lamp and ate/drank
our hot chocolate.
Since Rome is such a beautiful city, we took some time to walk around.
We found these stairs that led to a church and climbed them. From the
top there were the most amazing views of the entire city. We sat and
talked for a few hours and admired the amazing city of Rome!!!
At night we figured that we would just take the metro to a random stop
and find a local place to eat and we ended up at a pizzeria. It was
so good, and cheap. I know that I have been talking a lot about the
food, but seriously, it is the best food in the entire world! After
dinner, it was our ritual gelato and then back to the hostel.
Amy Jones is a Cal State-Fullerton student on an exchange program
in London. She arrived in January and is filing regular reports for
PubClub.com.
 Amy
In Amsterdam!
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