¿Qué pasa ahora?: Rome

My study abroad program organized a trip to Rome. It was one of the best trips of my life. I always knew I would like Italy (what's not to love?), but I had no idea that I would fall in love with it as much as I did. Our group flew out of Málaga airport and landed in Rome in the evening. We checked into a very nice hotel and went out in search of our first Italian meal. My friends and I found a great restaurant and instantly made friends with the staff - facilitated by our comical lack of even the slightest bit of Italian. The waiter didn't understand a word we said, and we couldn't understand him either.

It was strange to feel a reverse kind of culture shock - a yearning for the ease with which we get around in Spain. To give you an idea of how difficult communicating was - I accidentally ordered a $7 plastic car with a tiny ice cream cup in the middle...obviously not what I wanted, and the staff had a good laugh watching me pack it into my purse to take home. We ate there two more times while we were in Rome. It was fun getting to know the staff, and even more fun getting to know the menu.

The next day we went on a bus tour of the city. We got a quick look at a lot of things but didn't spend a significant amount of time in any one place. Later that day my friends and I ate some pizza and gelatto by Vatican City before heading to the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel.

The Vatican Museum was incredible. It just kept going and going and going. My favorite parts were The School of Athens by Raphael, the Roman statues, and of course Sistine Chapel.

That night we went to Trevi Fountain. While at the fountain we met three Italian navy boys. They bought us roses from a vendor at the fountain and invited us to have a drink. I was a little hesitant to hang out with them because I thought it would quickly turn into a night of creepy unwanted attention. We had a lot of fun, and I was only half right in my assumption. Although one of them didn't waste any time in putting his arm around me and spitting out the only English phrase he knew "I kiss you?," the other guys were very nice. Only one of them spoke some English. His English wasn't enough for us to have full conversations, but we were able to learn about their families and the city without too many problems. When it was time to say goodbye they asked to see us again the following night.

The next night we got together and watched part of an equestrian show at the carnivale celebration. We also went to the top of the Spanish steps to watch a fireworks show. The night was perfect, except the part when the same creepy guy from the night before tried again to kiss me. We went back to Trevi fountain, threw coins into the fountain, and said goodbye since we were leaving the next day. It was great to have Italians show us around Rome. They pointed out a lot of things that we wouldn't have noticed on our own and we had a lot of fun meeting them.

One thing we all wanted to see without a doubt was the colosseum. We had fun goofing around posing as gladiators. It was cool to imagine what it would have been like to be in the colosseum with the crowd, the lions, and the gladiators.

We also went to the Royal Forum where there are ruins from the ancient city.

The Pantheon - originally built as a temple to the Roman gods.

We went to Vatican City and saw St. Peter's Basilica. It was incredibly busy with tourists but we were able to make it inside. It was very impressive and the size and grandeur is impossible to describe. We paid a little extra to climb to the very top of the cupola. It was well worth it. We had an awesome view of the city and of St. Peter's square.