First few days in Roma

Hey y'all!

So, I arrived in Roma yesterday morning... I was only able to sleep for about two hours on the plane, so I was pretty exhausted all day. But, I got to watch three movies that I had been wanting to see for a really long time, so it's all good. I watched Madagascar 2 (hilarious), Yes Man (very funny), and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (sooo good!). Anyway, it was nice to see three free movies and totally worth it to miss some sleep. :)

I met up with three other guys in my program (there are 15 students total), and a driver from the American Institute of Roman Culture picked us up to drive us to our apartments in Roma on Via Rasella. It was nice to be the only girl because the driver carried one of my bags. Haha :)

Our apartments are SO nice (pictures will be posted soon) and really are right in the heart of Roma. We are within five minutes walking distance to both the Trevi Fountain (which we pass on our way to class every day) and the Spanish Steps. It is just an absolutely beautiful part of town, and it is quite safe.

After getting our apartments set up, we met up with some other students in our program and explored the area a bit. We went in some beautiful churches that made me extremely excited to be a Catholic in Roma. After a few hours of exploring, we headed back to apartments to shower and get ready for dinner. At six, we all met up to walk around together, and then we headed through the Forum to dinner. While eating, we met our two Italian professors and got to know them a little bit. They are both extremely nice and seem really excited about teaching us about Roma.

After dinner, the group headed home. We ended the night with a classy glass of vino and a game of Catchphrase where the girls dominated the boys.

Today, Meagan and Chris joined me for mass... at the PANTHEON! It was amazing. We got up around nine and got coffee and croissants at a place that is reputed to serve the best coffee in Roma. It was fabulous. Mass in the Pantheon was incredible, even though we couldn't understand everything that was being said... Some was in English and and other parts were in French, German, and Italian. Thank goodness I'm Catholic because I had a pretty decent idea of what was happening most of the time. Haha :)

After Mass, the group met at noon for a tour of the city. We saw Piazza de Fiori where we ate some delicious lunch, the Pantheon, some parts of the Forum, and a lot of other places that I really can't spell.

My internet is about to run out, so I must sign off. However, I'll keep y'all updated about my adventures.

I'm loving this trip so much!

Ciao,
Ashley