I am finally back in Rome after a great-but long weekend along the Amalfi Coast. I saw some awesome places, ate some even better food (way too much), and made some good memories. We left early Friday morning and headed for la Reggia de Caserta, which is a beautiful Italian palace. Next we went to the Grand Hotel Vanvitelli for lunch. It was delicious, and we had chicken and cooked vegetables, which was a nice change from pasta, although the pasta here is delicious, obviously!

Next we checked into our hotel, and just explored for a few hours. Then we had a HUGE dinner at the hotel. It was delicious. That night we went to a disco, which was a lot of fun! 

The next day we woke up and went to a buffalo farm where they made their own leather goods and tried some fresh mozzarella, which was DELICIOUS! We also went to the site of some Greek temples, which was interesting, but our tour guide talked forever and ever, and we took twice as long as every other group, which was funny and annoying at the same time. 

We then had a huge lunch that never seemed to end. Lots of meats, mozzarella, pasta, and pizza. It was even complete with some interesting cultural entertainment...

We went then and explored Agropoli, which is a beautiful city up on a hill. We all saw an awesome sunset there. 

Then it was back to the hotel for another huge dinner and a lot of wine. The wine here is so good and so cheap...which is a good thing, always ;)

That night I just went with some people and explored the city, and the next day we went and saw a lemon farm, and finally got back around 9pm

It was a good weekend, but if feels good to be back in Rome!

One of the many beautifully painted ceilings at la Reggia de Caserta

One of the Greek temples

Part of the Buffalo Farm

My mozzarella sample

Beautiful sunset in Agropoli

The lemon farm we toured

It has been an exhausting couple of days of sightseeing! Saturday we went to the Coliseum and to the Roman Forum, which was crazy to see in person after learning about it since I was a child! It is an incredible feeling to be standing in these places which have truly stood the test of time. The way back to campus was a different story. The school bussed us downtown to sightsee, but we had to find our way back on our own. Well, let's just say that the public transportation in Chicago is a lot better than it is here. After being helped by some 15 year old Italians, we made our way back to campus. 

Today (Sunday), we went to Tivoli, and saw the Villa d'Estate. To be honest, I'm not sure whose house it was, but it was very old and big, and had some awesome gardens with some amazing fountains that were all powered by water pressure alone. It was very cool to think that someone lived there at one time. 

For lunch, all 200 or so JFRC students went to this "hole in the wall" restaurant, which turned out not to be such a hole in the wall. Basically the whole restaurant was a giant cave filled with passages that kept leading to more rooms, which are believed to be Ancient Roman Baths. The owner told us the whole story which made the whole dining experience that much better.

Tomorrow classes begin, which in some ways I am looking forward to. I like having a routine!

Until next time!

 The Roman Forum

 The Coliseum

 One of the many fountains at Villa d'Estate in Tivoli, Italy

The restaurant that we ate at in Tivoli. 

Getting settled

Today is my second day in Rome, and I am still working on getting settled. Luckily, I slept on the plane over here so I am not too jet-lagged! I haven't seen a lot of the city yet, other than the neighborhood in which I am living in, which is called Monte Mario. I live at the Hotel Zone, which is nice and modern, other than the fact that it is about a 15-20 minute walk to campus. We have our own bathroom and there is free breakfast every morning, which is nice! All of the students have been busy with a lot of paperwork and informational meetings, so everyone is still adjusting.
I have only ate here in the cafeteria, which they call "mensa", and the food has been really good, but I hear that I will get sick of it after a while. This weekend and next weekend there are some school trips planned to the Coliseum and some small cities throughout Italy, which I am excited for. I will be able to post some pictures then and have some pictures of the neighborhood.
Right now though, it is 8:00 PM, or 20.00, which is how they tell time here. I am still getting used to that and I have to think every time I want to know what time it is. I am off now to explore the city for the night, and then more meetings tomorrow!

Ciao!