Dear Blog,
I just got back at 1:30am from the Swiss Alps where I went skiing for the first time ever! It was difficult, I'm not going to lie, and I basically slid down three mountains, but by the end I think I got the hang of it. We took a 12 hour bus up to Interlaken where we skied for two days and by the end I was, and still am, really sore. I was also with a group of intermediate skiers, but I held my ground. It was definitely the coldest I have ever been in my entire life though! And word to the wise: ski-shoes hurt like nothing else. So does falling with your ski hitting the middle of your back but that doesn't happen to everyone. Haha. But we had the best hot chocolate ever and I took the best pictures. Honestly Switzerland has got to be one of the prettiest places ever! On sunday before we took the 12-hour bus back home to Rome, we walked along the lake and the homes on the mountains.
Here is a link to my facebook pictures: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3126304831906.2150228.1093219883&type=3
So far this week in Rome I have been very busy. Today is Valentine's Day and to celebrate I had my first Mars Bar ever. :) My friend from Oxford is visiting Rome this week and I'm planning on seeing her tomorrow or Thursday at some point.
Today I went to get my permisso (spelled something like that), or permission to stay and live in Italy. It's something I never had to for England which is interesting. We had to go to the Police Station and wait around for a few hours so that they could take our fingerprints. So yes very tired tonight, but planning to go out for Valentine's Day to this bar called The Abbey.
Yesterday I had my Onsite Theology of Pilgrimage class and we visited the first church of Rome--San Giovanni Laterano, the Scala Santa, and Santa Maria Maggiore! It was a wonderful experience. In one of the churches there was a copy of the Holy Shroud. So awesome!
Tuesday 14 February 2012
Monday 6 February 2012
It is snowing in Roma!!! Supposedly it's the first time the snow has stuck in thirty years. I have finally gotten my White Christmas..just two months later. This is the third time I have seen snow in my life. Everyone here from Chicago are already over it, but I think it's beautiful. I just got in from playing around in the snow and trying to build a snowman. :)
Speaking of snow, some friends and I went to AMSTERDAM this past weekend and it stands as one of the prettiest cities I have ever seen in my young life. And yes, there was snow! It was cold, but manageable. We stayed at the StayOkay Hostel and it was alright, not the best hostel I've ever stayed in, but not the worst.
The first night we wandered around the city exploring stores and all the food places. We had two dinners that night. As it turns out, Amsterdam, Holland has the best pancakes ever! I got a gigantic pancake with caramel sauce and powered sugar. At one of the stores I tried on the wooden iconic Holland shoes. They hurt my feet way too much to get a pair, so I settled with a shoe magnet and then bought an Amsterdam spoon, of course.
This past Saturday we got up really early so that we could get to the Anne Frank House. It's a good thing we did because as soon as we left, the line was wrapping around the side of the building. It was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. I had actually forgotten that Amsterdam was where the Franks had hid. Seeing the actual rooms where the families had hidden together was an emotional experience. The rooms surprised me in that there was more space than I had imagined from reading Anne Frank's Diary back in high school. I never thought I would be able to visit the actual rooms. Made my trip.
Next we visited the Van Gogh Museum and saw all four floors of his amazing artwork. Some beautiful stuff. Then we went to the Heineken Experience where we saw how they make their popular beer. Every bar in Amsterdam usually had a Heineken sign outside. I got a bottle with my name on it as well as a sporty Heineken shirt which I wore last night when we watched the Superbowl! It came on at 12:30am here, so even after traveling some of us stayed up to watch it until 4am. The New York Giants beat the New England Patriots within the last minutes of the game!
Overall, it was a great trip and made me realize how great the weather really is in California. Even with all the snow, people were still riding their bikes everywhere and just leaving them in the snow. Those must get so cold. :/ We did have to wait for our flight in Amsterdam when returning home for about four hours because it never snows this much in Rome and people were going crazy. We were lucky we got a taxi back.
This weekend is skiing in Switzerland and I'm super excited and nervous. It's going to be even colder...
Here is a link to my facebook pictures: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3068647710514.2149303.1093219883&type=1
Speaking of snow, some friends and I went to AMSTERDAM this past weekend and it stands as one of the prettiest cities I have ever seen in my young life. And yes, there was snow! It was cold, but manageable. We stayed at the StayOkay Hostel and it was alright, not the best hostel I've ever stayed in, but not the worst.
The first night we wandered around the city exploring stores and all the food places. We had two dinners that night. As it turns out, Amsterdam, Holland has the best pancakes ever! I got a gigantic pancake with caramel sauce and powered sugar. At one of the stores I tried on the wooden iconic Holland shoes. They hurt my feet way too much to get a pair, so I settled with a shoe magnet and then bought an Amsterdam spoon, of course.
This past Saturday we got up really early so that we could get to the Anne Frank House. It's a good thing we did because as soon as we left, the line was wrapping around the side of the building. It was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. I had actually forgotten that Amsterdam was where the Franks had hid. Seeing the actual rooms where the families had hidden together was an emotional experience. The rooms surprised me in that there was more space than I had imagined from reading Anne Frank's Diary back in high school. I never thought I would be able to visit the actual rooms. Made my trip.
Next we visited the Van Gogh Museum and saw all four floors of his amazing artwork. Some beautiful stuff. Then we went to the Heineken Experience where we saw how they make their popular beer. Every bar in Amsterdam usually had a Heineken sign outside. I got a bottle with my name on it as well as a sporty Heineken shirt which I wore last night when we watched the Superbowl! It came on at 12:30am here, so even after traveling some of us stayed up to watch it until 4am. The New York Giants beat the New England Patriots within the last minutes of the game!
Overall, it was a great trip and made me realize how great the weather really is in California. Even with all the snow, people were still riding their bikes everywhere and just leaving them in the snow. Those must get so cold. :/ We did have to wait for our flight in Amsterdam when returning home for about four hours because it never snows this much in Rome and people were going crazy. We were lucky we got a taxi back.
This weekend is skiing in Switzerland and I'm super excited and nervous. It's going to be even colder...
Here is a link to my facebook pictures: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3068647710514.2149303.1093219883&type=1
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