a couple pics

here are a couple photos to keep you guys entertained until i can get home in a couple weeks :)

claire, elena and i at the prague castle. 

top of the eiffel tower with the BC girls

snow shoeing in the alps!

christmas party with everyone in my program. :)

wrapping it up

Well this is it kids.  Looks like the semester of my life that I have been planning for since high school is officially over.  Would anyone like to like to help me figure out where the time went?!

As sad as I am that it is all over, I had a great ending.  Starting with the Alps and then all the way through this past weekend/week when I did my last country-hopping.  After the Alps it was all down to business for a couple of days while I studied for my 4 exams in 2 days.  They all went well though (two 100s!) so that was a great relief.  After the exams ended I spent most of my free time wrapping up everything in Parma and packing.  It was surreal taking down the pictures and decorations that it seemed I had just put up.  Two of my roommates left early on Thursday morning and that made reality hit quickly when their room was completely deserted! We still had a day of classes after exams were finished, but they were mostly filled by saying goodbyes and doing class evaluations so it wasn’t anything too extensive.  Wednesday night we had our farewell dinner with everyone in the program and our two coordinators.  It was great food, but we were all a little disappointed that there was no pasta dish.  Although I could go without eating pasta for a very very long time, it would have been nice to try some fancy pasta one more time, haha.  The night ended oddly though as the owners kind of rushed us out of the restaurant and we were unable to say many goodbyes.  I ended up seeing most people again the next day, but there was still not a lot of closure because we were all unsure of when would exactly be the last time we would see each other.

Friday I left early in the morning to head to Paris with 3 girls from the Parma program.  We took a 7 am train to Milan for our flight (I will NOT be missing those) and got to Paris around 2 pm.  We quickly headed to the hostel to drop everything off and then hustled to the Eiffel Tower to see it before it got dark.  We had a great location for our hostel, right off the subway, so it was easy to navigate all weekend.  We took lots of pictures outside of the tower and then decided to head up.  It was absolutely FREEZING, but worth it.  There was a bit of haze over the city as there had been a chance of rain all day so the view wasn’t perfect, but we got to have a decent view from there.  We actually hit our timing perfectly because we got to take our pictures beforehand when it was light, go up while it was light and then the sun was setting and then as we were descending on the elevators the lights came on to decorate the tower.  We then ran across the street (trying to keep warm!) and took some group photos in front of the lit tower before heading to the Louvre.  Upon entering the Louvre we saw a Starbucks and I was immediately in heaven.  I can’t remember if I have shared my soy chai love with all of you, but despite the fact that I probably paid way too much for the soy chai latte, it was phenomenal.  We had decided to go to the Louvre that night because after 6 pm it is free for people under 26.  It wasn’t too crowded and we were able to see most of the things we wanted to (Mona Lisa, Napoleon’s Apartment, etc).  We didn’t finish up in the Louvre until about 9:45 (since its HUGE) so we were starving and found a cute cheap place on the other side of the river.  We had some good French bread and food which was nice.  Afterwards we were all exhausted so we headed back to our hostel for the night.

Saturday we woke up and headed to Notre Dame.  It was quite impressive although I was a little annoyed by the fact that the façade appears to be masked by a gigantic Christmas tree in all of my photos, but c’est la vie. The inside was gorgeous though and we spent some time in there checking it all out.  Kristin and I wanted to climb the towers to get a better view of the city and the gargoyles, but they were closed because of ice (told you it was cold!). Afterwards Kristin and I went to Musee d’Orsay while the other girls did some shopping.  The building itself is stunning.  It used to be a train station and it is definitely still apparent although now decorated by some of the world’s most famous paintings and sculptures.  We probably could have spent even more time in there, but we were feeling a little pressured to head out and see what else the city had to offer.  We grabbed a quick lunch and then headed to the Arc de Triomphe at which point it started to rain.  We got to walk down Champs Elysees though which was cute and they had a Christmas market running down the length of the street.  Afterwards we thought it would be a good idea to head to one of the largest shopping malls (Galeries Lafayette).  Boy was that a bad idea.  They had cues to get into the stores and people were pushing and shoving every where you went.  It was worse than anything I have ever seen in the U.S. I guess those Parisians were excited for Christmas in a week and a half.  Despite the weather being bad we headed to Monte Matre and Sacre Coeur.  Sacre Coeur is a cathedral and also the highest point in Paris with its position on top of a hill.  It was really rainy and windy when we got to the top so we didn’t have a great view, but the cathedral itself was worth the hike up.  Moulin Rouge was located nearby so we took a quick tram ride over there to snap a couple photos and then waited in a café until it was time for dinner. We ate at a fondue house with some of the most unique owners I have ever encountered.  They had very quirky personalities and served us wine in baby bottles!  It was quite the experience.  Haha.

Sunday we had to wake up early to catch our flight back to Milan.  Once we got to Milan I had to say goodbye to those 3 girls since they would be heading home within the next couple of days and I was headed to Prague to meet up with some other friends.  I had to wait in the airport for about 4 hours to catch my next flight, but made it safe and sound to my Prague hostel around 4:30.  However, I did meet an interesting character on the train.  She sat diagonally behind me on the plane and decided it would be a good idea to have a life discussion for most of the flight despite my apparent desires to just listen to Christmas music on my iPod.  After we had reached BFF status in her book we realized that we were on the same flight back to Milan on Wednesday so she insisted on getting my number so we could meet up on Tuesday night. This interaction will be more significant later, don’t worry.  Anyway, I met up with Elena and Claire at the hostel and we made plans for the night.  Two of my friends from Parma (Dave and Jeff) had just spent the past 3 days in Prague so I called them up to meet them for dinner before they headed back home.  We met at the Christmas market in the Old Town square (so cute!!) and  then wandered for a while to find dinner.  The food in Prague was so good!  Well, I actually don’t know if it was that good or I was just so excited about having meat and hearty food that I associated it all with being amazing.  Nevertheless, we ate well all weekend. 

Monday we woke up and went to see the Charles Bridge.  It’s the most famous bridge in Prague and has many statues running along the perimeter (although as per everything in my life, half of it was under construction).  We still got a good view though and then proceeded to hike up to the Prague Castle.  It actually turned out not to be much of a castle, but rather a palace and basilica with other buildings surrounding it.  The views were great though!  The cathedral was interesting because of its very apparent gothic nature, and then almost mosaic-like stain glass windows with vibrant colors (including hot pink).  It was an interesting mix, but another beautiful church.  After we were finished touring that we headed back down and grabbed lunch in the Christmas market.  They had all sorts of food being grilled and it was just too tempting to pass up.  With the two main things we wanted to see in Prague already accomplished, we decided to have a relaxing afternoon and spent it window-shopping and resting back at the hostel.  We headed back to the Old Town Square for dinner and ate a restaurant overlooking the market (if you can’t tell, we were obsessed). 

On Tuesday we woke up a little later since we didn’t have a whole lot we needed to get accomplished that day and headed to the Jewish section of town.  We went into the Old-New Synagogue and then walked across the city to the Spanish synagogue to see the differences.  The Jewish community is only about 1,600 in Prague, but these synagogues are very popular in the city because of the history.  It was interesting to be in synagogues after spending so much time learning about cathedrals this entire semester.  The Spanish Synagogue was located in the New Town area so we spent some time walking through there and up the river until we made it back to the Christmas market for lunch (of course!). They always had these chicken kabobs and sausages tempting us so we finally gave in.  We also loved these sugar coated nuts they offered and got packs to keep us content during the day while we walked around.  After lunch we decided for another chill afternoon and went back to take a nap since I wasn’t planning on sleeping that night.  We went back down when it was dark to see the bridge and castle lit up at night and then got dinner right next to the bridge.  It was fun to just sit around and chat with these girls.  We spent a lot of time reflecting on our semesters and the next 3 coming up which was cool.  After dinner we headed back to the hostel despite my earlier plans to meet the girl from the plane in the Old Town Square.  We were supposed to be meeting up to take a taxi together to the airport, but we finished dinner early and so we decided to head up assuming that she could figure out how to get to our hostel.  Bad assumption.  I spent many annoyed texts and phone calls trying to get her to my hostel and then she finally arrived about 5 minutes before the taxi came.  She and I loaded up our things and then headed to the airport for the night.  We had a flight at 6:50 meaning we would need to check in at 4:50 and it just didn’t seem necessary to pay for a hostel that night.  It actually wasn’t that bad staying  there, I just spent about 3 hours reading and  then another hour listening to my iPod before we had to check in.  Finally we got on the plane around 6:30 and I immediately passed out until we landed in Milan.  Then we had to take a bus to the airport (for some odd reason it took an extra hour and a half, but at least we made it) and then I had to take a train back to Parma.  I was very glad to be back in my apartment even though every one else from my program had left.  I spent the night doing some last minute packing and just chilling out.

Today I had to do my last solo traveling!!  I bought my ticket for the train yesterday so I wouldn’t have to worry about it when I arrived at the station with all of my things which was nice.  I had planned to get a cab from my apartment at 11:30 to give me plenty of time, but of course things never work out like that.  I tried and tried to get the cab company on the phone, but it wouldn’t work.  After I had freaked myself out enough about missing my train I called one of the coordinators and got her to call for me.  Luckily she was able to get me one and I made it to the station in time.  There my tandem partner met me to help me get all of my things on the train which was so nice!  Once I finally managed to get situated on the train the family sitting around me began to talk to me in Italian and we had a good 2 hour conversation for the duration of the trip.  They were super cute and it made me feel very accomplished that I was leaving my program able to speak with natives for 2 hours.  We discussed EVERYTHING (my classes in Parma, traveling, Paris, American culture, fast food, etc).  They were also great to have when I had to get off the plane because the 3 of them helped me get all of my stuff off of the train before it pulled away.  There is no way I could have done it on my own.  I had decided it would just be easier to take a cab from that train station rather than trying to get my things on another commuter train that would take me to a more centrally located train station, but apparently there are no taxis in that area.  I had a good chat with 2 old men and an old woman  though and they helped me figure out how to get my things onto the commuter train.  Although I did almost have to leave one bag behind as the train signaled it was ready to pull away as I watched my other suitcase sitting on the platform while I was on board with my other one.  Not a good feeling.  Another Italian man was nice enough to help me though so everything made it.  Once I got to the central train station I took my time getting off the train and walking to the cab area since I no longer had deadlines I had to meet.  I finally made it to the cab and then the hotel.  I definitely had a sense of relief as I dropped my things off in my room and sat on the bed for a quick break.  I ate a quick (and very late) lunch in the room and then headed out to walk around the city for a while.  They also have a Christmas market here so I checked that out and then hit all of the highlights to see if there were any interesting changes since I was here last.  Lots of Christmas lights up which is cute.  After 3 hours of walking around I grabbed some food and then headed back to the hotel to chill for the night.  I’m tired and sore after lugging myself around the country today so I think I am going to call it a night and watch a movie. 

Its so exciting to be in the room that Alli and I will be sharing in just a few hours!!  I am so excited to see all of them.  Words can’t even begin to describe!  I’m not sure how frequently I will be able to update while I travel with the family, but I will at least try and post to let you know that we are alive and doing well. 

I hope you all have a very merry Christmas!  I wish I could be home spending it with you all, but I will be home soon enough and able to share some of these amazing experiences with you in person.  Can’t wait!!

Buon Natale. Ciao!

E

P.S. Longest post ever.  I’m sorry!!  Touché if you made it the entire way through. I don’t know that I would have.

walking in a winter wonderland...

...more like snow shoeing, but sadly there are no songs to incorporate such an amazing extracurricular activity.

We made it back from the Alps! Hardest for me to comprehend about that sentence at this point is the fact that that was our last weekend as part of my study abroad program. "The Alps" were the weekend that we we have been referring to since we got here as the time when we would "all get to hang out together one final time and it will be SO great!".  Well kids, that time has come and gone and now I'm on the very quick down hill slope.  Only 4 exams in 2 days stand in my way of finishing up my life here in Parma, but first let me recap the past week...

Last week was mostly spent in classes, getting ready for finals and enjoying the finally fully lighted streets of Parma.  I went on a walking tour of Parma with my Cultural Diversity class which was interesting because he took us to a few locations that I had yet to visit in my time here.  My other classes proved to be a little less interesting and a lot more stressful as the professors decided it is that great time of the year to spring on last minute information for the finals just to ensure that no one feels confident.  Love it. We also had our Christmas party at Anna's house on Wednesday night which was fun.  She prepared some appetizers and desserts for us and we got to sit around together as a group and enjoy some time together in a fully decorated Italian apartment.  We also sang some Christmas carols while Sarah played the piano from sheet music she was reading from the computer! 

Saturday morning all 25 of us headed up to the Alps together for the weekend.  It was a 3 1/2 hour bus ride, but so nice to have a private bus to pick us up and drop us off exactly where we were staying.  The hotel was also nice, and the most energy-efficient place I have ever stayed.  We couldn't figure out why our heater wasn't working one day only to learn that the system shuts itself off when someone forgets to completely seal the door to the outside. The setting was also gorgeous!  Aosta is a very cute little town situated in a valley of the Alps so as you look all around you are completely enclosed by gigantic snow-covered mountains.  It was breathtaking.  Saturday we didn't get there until late in the afternoon so we went on a walking tour of the city and then had some time to kill.  I want back to study some (lame I know) and then we all had dinner together at the hotel.  Afterwards a bunch of us tried to watch the ACC Championship football game together, but sadly our sanity wouldn't let us finish watching it after we watched a couple of the worst offensive plays any of us have seen in a while.  (Its okay boys, we'll be ready next year.)  

Sunday we all had the option of skiing (which I opted out of for many reasons including not having the appropriate clothes) or going snow shoeing.  I don't know how many of you have been able to take part in the experience that is snow shoeing, but we had a great time.  We had an alpine tour guide who led us on our path, pointed out random parts of the natural habitat and helped us fix our show shoes when we broke them.  I have never ever been that cold in my life though!!  I was wearing 3 long sleeve shirts, a sweatshirt, my peacoat, a scarf, 2 pairs of gloves, ear muffs, leggings, jeans, 3 pairs of socks and Ugg boots, but somehow the cold still managed to get to me.  After I got back to the hotel that afternoon, drank some hot chocolate and got into warm clothes it all seemed totally worth it.  That night we all had dinner together at the hotel and then watched Elf back in our hotel room before we crashed super early.  Being outside all day really drained us.

This morning we had the option of going to mass with our 2 leaders since it is a National Holiday here in Italy, but I opted out since it was Italian and also a Catholic mass and I assumed I would not get much out of it.  I instead stayed in, did a little bit of studying for my Italian final and then met up with the others at the Christmas market afterwards.  I bought a great winter hat there!  I definitely feel it will come in handy once I make it to Prague so be on the lookout for photos with it included.  After the Christmas market we headed back to the hotel to pack up and head out.  It was a really fast weekend, but really fun to get away to such a gorgeous setting.  Not a place I probably would have planned to go on my own, but I'm so glad they did it for us.  

Now I have 2 finals tomorrow (Italian exam and Organizational Behavior presentation) and 2 on Wednesday (History of Parma exam and Cultural Diversity exam).  I am most worried about the Italian and Cultural Diversity ones so at least they are spaced out over the 2 days.  I will definitely be glad to be finished studying.  After those 2 days are finished we have our closing dinner on Wednesday night where I will say goodbye to Caterina and Beta (our 2 leaders).  It will be super sad because they are such awesome ladies, but they have promised to come visit us in Boston next fall so I will see them again!  Then I have Thursday night where I guess I will go around and say some more goodbyes to some of the other kids who I won't see again until we get back to BC.  Friday morning I will leave super early with 3 girls from this program to head to Paris!  I'm so excited to see the city! We will be there for 2 nights and then Sunday morning I head out to meet Elena and Claire (my friends from BC who are studying in London) in Prague for a few days.  If all goes according to plan I will be back in Parma next Wednesday night (exhausted!) just in time to finish packing up everything and head out to Florence on Thursday with all of my belongings in tow.  Then the family arrives on that Saturday!! 

Its going to be a whirlwind couple of weeks so I don't know when the next time I will be able to post will be. I will somehow figure out a way to be in contact with Alli and/or my dad at some point so if you want to hear updates you may need to contact them.  I will try and update this at least with a couple of brief sentences to let you guys know how I'm doing if I get the chance.

I hope you all are doing well and I would love to hear some updates before my weeks of traveling come up and I don't have the regular access to email.  Hope you're able to enjoy the holiday spirit and know that I am thinking about all of you and can't wait to see you soon!!

Love,

E

P.S.  My dad's mother is having open-heart surgery tomorrow to replace a valve in her heart.  We have known for about a month that this surgery was going to need to occur, but recent events have made the doctors push up the date to tomorrow.  They are very optimistic about the success of the surgery, but, as in any circumstance, I would greatly appreciate your prayers for her and the entire family.  Everyone seems to be handling things well, but I would pray that this would continue and that the doctors could easily move through the surgery so that we can all begin to work on the next phases of this process.  Don't feel obligated, but I did want to share in case any of you would be willing to lift her up in prayer over the next few days. 

its christmastime in the city...

Happy Thanksgiving!! (a few days late I know)

I hope all of you were able to celebrate with your families and really enjoyed it.  I am envious of all of you who did, but celebrating with some of my best friends from BC was exactly where I wanted to be if I couldn't be with family this year.  

Last week was particularly short so there isn't much to report before I left for London.  Last Monday evening we all went to a chocolate pastisserie on Via Cavour for chocolate calda on BC.  It was interesting (the consistency of chocolate pudding!) and I wasn't too impressed, but it was an Italian experience and a good way to try and stay warm when it was cold and snowy outside.  Tuesday I had my regular classes and then dinner with my roommates at Anna's house.  She and her husband own the apartment I live in so she has been trying to find a time for us to come over for dinner all semester.  It was weird going over there and not learning how to cook a meal, but no worries, we still ate well!  She fixed all of my favorite dishes (pasta with homemade pesto, chicken with peppers, salad and chocolate/almond cake).  We ended up just sitting around and talking for 3 hours in Italian and it was great.  I love that I have been able to grow in my Italian this semester because I was so worried about that aspect.  Its so rewarding to be able to have these lengthy conversations (even though I obviously make a million mistakes!) with locals who really appreciate our attempts.  After our lengthy dinner I came back to the apartment to pack for London!  

Wednesday I went to my two classes and then headed to the airport.  This was the one and only time I have been able to fly out of the Parma airport and it was so nice.  Not having to factor in an hour and a half train ride plus hour bus ride into my traveling was awesome!  However, Sarah and I did have a little bit of problems getting there on the city bus because when I asked a woman on the bus she told me that we had already passed the airport 2 stops back.  We ended up getting off at the next stop and trying to walk, only to find out 30 minutes later when we arrived at the airport that the bus had not in fact gone to the airport yet and that we had not needed to walk along the highway with our heavy luggage, haha.  Public transportation is always an adventure!  The flight to London was easy though and I arrived just in time for dinner.  The girls had already ordered pizza once I got there and so we ate in Hil's room while watching Love Actually.  I have watched that movie with these same girls every year at BC so it was nice to keep up the tradition this year.  After the movie we went iceskating at Somerset House which was so festive and fun.  It wasn't cold out at all so we were able to really enjoy it and surprisingly no one fell!  It helped that we had hockey skates, but I was still quite impressed.

Thursday was Turkey Day but I didn't even realize it until we were on the way to breakfast that morning and Hil wished us a Happy Thanksgiving.  So weird to be that separated from it all, but we had an awesome day none the less (just a little less family, food, football and parades than I'm used to).  For breakfast I finally got the Starbucks that I had been craving!  Not something I ever thought I would miss, but something about Starbucks and this time of year just makes me feel warm and happy.  Soy chai lattes are not found in Italy so I drank my fair share while I was there to keep me going until Jan 4 (and of course they always reminded me of my mom). After breakfast, Caroline and I did a bus tour of the city that day which was nice because we got to see EVERYTHING.  We only stopped off at one place though (Westminster Abbey) because we didn't have lots of time.  Westminster was absolutely gorgeous!  If any of you ever make it to London I hope that you will go.  You aren't allowed to take pictures so I can't share the experience with you, but its not something that photos could do justice anyway.  We also made sure to take pictures of Big Ben and a traditional touristy photo in the telephone booth there too.  After the tour was over we headed back to Hil's room to get ready for the "Thanksgiving Dinner" that the BC-London program was hosting.  It turned out to be quite the joke (they served us nachos, prosciutto wrapped sausages, and veggie platters), but it was fun to dress up and hang out with friends.

On Friday Claire was our tour guide for the day while Hil had class.  We went to the Natural History Museum, Hyde Park (there was a Christmas festival) and the Tower of London.  I took about a million photos while I was there so there are many to share later on.  After we had finished touring for the day we went and got Indian food for dinner.  I don't know whether the place was actually that good or if I was just so excited to not be eating Italian food, but it tasted phenomenal!  Afterward we went to a bookstore where I bought a British comedy book (pretty funny trying to learn all these new words they use) and then went and saw Four Christmases.  It wasn't that great of a movie, but nice to be in a movie theater again and hearing English.  After that we headed to Claire's for the night and watched The Holiday.  Well, I should say they watched it while I finally had to quit and pass out on the floor because I was so tired.

Saturday morning we had to wake up super early to get Caroline to the airport.  Hil and I were still really tired so we went back to her apartment and slept for a little while longer and then got up and ready for the day.  We decided we just wanted to have a good chill day in the city.  We went to Borough Market, Oxford Street, Regent Street and Harrods!  Borough Market is a huge food market near Hil's apartment and we just walked around to see all of the fun presentations.  We also got to try some free samples and even saw some Parmigiano Reggiano cheese for sale.  So fun to see all of the Christmas decorations, but ridiculous to try and fight the crowds of people on the main shopping streets of London that day.  It was worse than any Black Friday experience I have ever had in the states, but much more fun because we weren't actually there to buy anything.  Harrods is an experience in itself.  The ridiculous decorations and high end stores are overwhelming, but we spent a good couple of hours there just taking it all in.  Then we decided we would get dinner from the market there (it is all so fresh and beautifully displayed) and then took it back to Hil's room.   We had toyed around with the idea of going to see a play that night, but then decided against it because we didn't want to spend the money on a play we could see in the States and we also had a very important BC game to watch.  We watched Serendipity while eating dinner and then Claire came over to watch the game with us.  The final score ended up being closer than I would have liked, but at least we are going to the Championship! Go Eagles!

Sunday morning I had to wake up at 5:15 and head to the airport.  I got there with plenty of time though and read some of my new book while I ate my last Starbucks for a while.  I got back to my room around 1:15 and then just chilled out while blasting Christmas music all afternoon.  

I can't believe its December 1st already!! My program is over in 10 days and the family comes in 18 days! So hard to believe.  It also means I have to start doing some more intense work to finish out this semester.  I have been working on outlining for a final all day so far today and finally finished that before I sat down to write this.  Now I need to go study for a  mock-final we are having in Italian tomorrow so I don't completely embarrass myself.  So weird to be on this side of it now.  We have our Christmas party on Wednesday night at Anna's and then this weekend we are headed to the Alps with the entire BC group.  We have the option to ski, but I think most of my friends and I have decided that we will save the money and opt for ice skating and checking out the town (Aosta) while we are there.  I also will have to find some time to do work too, but I'm sure we'll figure it out.

I hope you all had great Thanksgivings at home and enjoy the fact that it is now officially okay to blast your Christmas music!  Happy first week of December!

Much love,

E

BC group after "Thanksgiving Dinner"

Half of 90-601 in a telephone booth.

Caroline and I in front of Westminster Abbey and Big Ben on Turkey Day.

Ice Skating!

601 Christmas Card. (note the Tiffany's influence EVERYWHERE)

snow?!

I woke up this morning to do my usual lounging around, catching up on the news, and updating my blog, but then looked out my window to see SNOW on the ground.  They had been calling for a snow/rain mix, but I didn't expect any of it to stick.  We don't have a lot (and actually most of it is being melted by the rain now), but it was definitely enough to feel a little festive. Have I mentioned how much I love this time of year?!

Last week was pretty typical for me...classes, going to the villa for cards, last dinner at Anna's (SAD), private cooking lesson to learn how to make the best chocolate chip cookies in the world, and doing some work for these next few weeks.  On Friday, BC sponsored a trip to Verona which I was pretty excited about since I didn't remember much about it from the last time I went.  It actually turned out to be a rather unfortunate day though because our typical leader, Caterina, had just gotten back from BC the night before so she put two of our other professors in charge for the day.  One of them had never been to Verona before except to take her child to the doctor and the other one only seemed to know how to say "Arco Romano" (Roman Arch) and other miscellaneous and unnecessary tidbits of information.  I did finally get my chocolate calda (hot chocolate) there though!  It was awesome (looked like it was just going to be straight chocolate pudding, but actually had some liquid consistency to it).  

After we finished up the day in Verona, a few friends and I took a train to Venice for the night.  We arrived around dinner time, checked into the hostel and then went to find something to eat.  Venice is so ridiculous to try and maneuver around, but luckily one of my friends had spent 3 days there prior to our semester abroad so he knew his way around pretty well.  We found dinner at some small restaurant not far from the hostel and had some decent food.  I had read that pasta e fagioli soup was supposed to be great in Venice, but I ordered it and was not that impressed.  Maybe I am just used to something different since I'm from the states, but I think from now on I'll stick to some other dishes.  After dinner, my friend who knew his way around Venice also had a cousin living in the Wake Forest house in Venice so we headed over there to hang out for a while.  That house is absolutely disgusting.  I took some photos for you guys to see because I can't even describe how nice it is.  Its right on the Grand Canal, has many huge common rooms, a professional kitchen, huge bedrooms and bathrooms, etc.  I was in awe.  I was also excited to be able to have some NC conversations with those kids, but apparently Wake no longer admits NC students because they were all from the rest of the country.  Quite unfortunate.  Most of them were really nice so we had a fun night of being in a more college-like atmosphere which was a nice change for just one night.  

Saturday we woke up fairly early to make sure we could get the most in for the day.  Originally when we checked in the hostel told us that in the morning we should come to the front desk, pick up a voucher and then head over to the Chinese Buffet for a free breakfast.  We were all a little sketched out by this proposition, but figured it was free so we might as well try.  That morning though the Chinese Buffet was closed so we quickly realized that we would instead be eating day old croissants from the bar next door (I'm not sure which would have been a better option.)  The rest of the day we spent just walking around THE ENTIRE CITY.  As my friend Kristin said, I really wish we had pedometers here to see how much we walk in a day.  Jeff and I had already been to Venice (and I'm going back for 4 days in Dec/Jan) so we didn't feel the need to pay to see things this time, but we still had a great time just walking around. Venice is such a unique city.  We walked into about every store that sold Murano glass (which is approximately 1 million) and stood in awe at each one.  To finish the day off we took a water bus around the entire island (we were too cheap to pay the 80 euro for the gondola ride) and got to see a gorgeous sunset over the water.  We took a train back to Parma around 7 and as usual nothing can ever go smoothly with public transportation.  When we purchased our tickets we were given only one each and it said that we would be going to Parma via Bologna.  We weren't sure if this meant that we would need to switch trains in Bologna or not, but assumed probably not since we had only been issued one ticket.  The ride from Parma to Bologna was nice and smooth, no complaints there.  Then once we arrived in Bologna it seemed that everyone was getting off the train, so the boys got off to see if they could figure out if we were supposed to switch.  Dave came back on and said that he thought we needed to go to another train, but by the time we could start to gather our things the train started to move again.  We figured we could just deal with it at the next train station, but there would be no next train station as this train never gained speed and headed straight for the docking station away from all civilization and lights. PERFECT. We immediately grabbed up our things and tried to get off the train at this point, but they had locked all of the doors assuming that everyone was already off the train.  We freaked a little and started power walking towards the front of the train, trying to make it to the conductor so he could let us off, but before we could do that all of the lights on the train went off.  We all jumped and then screamed that someone needed to pull the emergency lock on the door and as soon as we did we all fell off of the train into some dark alley way.  There was a man standing alone at the end so we all decided to turn around and walk away (Kristin and I were a little more on a mission with this and booked it to the train station).  We had to cross over a million train tracks always looking to make sure a EuroStar train wasn't about to come and pummel us, but we made it safely back and in time to catch the train we were supposed to be on.  Nothing like a little adrenaline rush, right? haha.  We made it back to Parma safely and I had the entire apartment to myself.  I blasted Christmas music (obviously), took a loooong hot shower and just chilled out for the night.  

Sunday morning we woke up to go to the Christmas market off of our main piazza in Parma.  It was so cute, lots of samples of food and Christmas decorations.  It was fun to just spend some time looking around and walking around with the locals.  Afterwards, I headed back to my apartment to do some work for this week and then went to the villa for our Thanksgiving Dinner!  It took us all afternoon to prepare but it was absolutely amazing.  My friend Jeff is an awesome cook and he made a great turkey, stuffing, apple pie and pumpkin pie.  I made the veggies (green beans and broccoli), Nate made mashed potatoes (I've never seen a larger pot of them in my life), Dave made this French Canadian dish (potatoes, meat, onions and seasoning-AWESOME), Kristin and Steph made the world's best chocolate cookies that we learned how to make at Anna's last week.  It was so much food, but totally worth it.  Although it wasn't quite like being home, it was definitely a nice alternative to get to spend a pseudo Thanksgiving with 10 other people in our program.  So fun!  

Today I've got to do some work on my final presentation for my Organizational Behavior class.  It shouldn't be too bad since I have already done all of the research, but also doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun, so I'm procrastinating a little.  Its hard to believe I only have 2 days in Parma this week before I head off to London!  I can't wait.  My roomies there have a great itinerary planned out for us and I'm just so excited to see them all and hang out in a city where they speak English and love the Christmas season as much as I do!  I will be taking tons and tons of photos to share with you all so no worries there.  

I hope you all are doing well.  I got home from Venice and had lots of update emails which was great!  I wish you guys the best Thanksgiving ever and hopefully I will get to talk with you all soon! Ciao!

Love,

E

haven't had any pics in a while

I realized today that I hadn't uploaded pics for you guys to see in a while so I thought I would put up a couple while I'm taking a break from studying. They are from the past few weeks of traveling and in Parma. Enjoy!!
Private cooking lesson to learn how to make the best chocolate chip cookies in the world!

Overlooking the gorgeous sunset in Sicily.

All of the students in my cooking class at our last lesson :(

Just me hanging out at the top of Erice (Sicily) overlooking the Mediterranean.

Cinque Terre. My favorite place in the world.

More of Cinque Terre. I can't ever get enough of this place.

the best cannoli of my life.

I've made to back from my adventures down south and let's just say it was an interesting trip.  I ate the best cannoli of my life, saw one of the prettiest sunsets over the Mediterranean, ate real Sicilian pizza, avoided the major rain storm that was supposed to ruin our weekend and tasted Marsala wine from Marsala.  However, I also drank 4 Nalgenes of Sicilian tap water before realizing that it was making me sick, stayed in a town that had NO restaurants (not an exaggeration), couldn't figure out the public transportation system and saw more rabid dogs than was comforting.  Don't get me wrong, it was an awesome trip and I'm so glad I went, but it just wasn't quite what we were expecting.

I think this is what has made me most excited about my travels abroad because most of the places I have been have not at all resembled the conceptualized versions I held of them (Portugal and Sicily being the most different).  So despite living in the ghetto of Sicily for 2 nights (where a tour guidebook said that money laundering was one of the biggest activities in the city) we felt pretty safe and got to experience some great sights.  

As per usual, we spent most of the day on Friday traveling (bus, train, bus, plane, bus=9 hours) and arrived in Trapani, Sicily at about 5:30 pm.  We immediately threw down our things in the B&B (which was actually pretty nice) and then headed straight for food.  Much to our amazement after the owner of the B&B had promised us lots of options for restaurants just down the street, we couldn't find any food.  We finally stopped in a store and asked a woman about where to eat, but she just looked at us blankly and replied, "you don't have a car?".  Not exactly what you are hoping to hear when you haven't eaten much all day.  We finally did find a pizza shop where you could choose your own pizza toppings and they would make it fresh for you.  This took about 40 minutes and I'm pretty sure all of our faces were glued to the pizza making process for all of them in hopes of speeding up the process.  Luck did seem to turn our way though when we found a pastry shop that offered the world's largest and best chocolate chip cannolis for only 1.50 euro each.  It was an amazing find and gave us the energy to sprint back to the B&B in the rain (while ever so carefully carrying these precious food items) and eat straight for about 30 minutes in our room.  We decided to stay in that night since we were all exhausted and let's be honest, there weren't many places to go out in that town anyway.

Saturday morning we ate breakfast at the B&B and then waited around for the bus to take us to Marsala.  We had some time to kill so we went to the main square of the town and played cards while a bunch of old Sicilian men watched us closely and asked us questions about America and Obama (of course!).  Then when it was time for our bus to come we headed to the stop, only to figure out that we had been waiting at the wrong location which sent the 7 of us American girls sprinting around this square trying to find the correct location through asking a series of questions to the same old men who had been watching us all morning.  Each one seemed to have a different answer as to where the bus was supposed to pick us up so we finally just stood on the street corner and decided to take the next bus that came.  It didn't end up being the exact bus we wanted, but it got us to the bigger town over so we were just pleased to make it out of Paceco.  Once we were in Trapani we figured out the transportation a little better and made it to Marsala (40 min train ride) where we went to the Marsala wine factory and were able to do a free wine tasting.  The most interesting information we found out there was that people in Sicily don't use the Marsala wine to cook (unlike the rest of the world), but rather use it as a celebratory drink.  For lunch we did manage to find a place that served veal marsala though so we were pleased to be able to try it there.  After lunch we hustled back to Trapani where we caught another bus to Erice.  This place was gorgeous!!  It was the biggest mountain around and gave us breathtaking views of the coastline (especially at sunset!).  We spent quite some time up there and even took the cable cars up and down so that we could get a better view of the city while we waited for the bus.  This part was definitely the best portion of the trip!  The whole day I had been feeling pretty weird, but couldn't quite place what was causing the odd pains until I put two and two together that I had been drinking a lot of the Sicilian tap water.  I stopped drinking it by mid-afternoon, but it left me feeling pretty crummy all night which was unfortunate, but we opted for another chill night anyway so it wasn't too big of a deal.

Sunday we ate breakfast, paid the owner (who had no idea how much I owed him, very odd experience) and then headed down to see the historical center of Trapani before we headed out.  We ended up just doing some wandering around the city, saw a couple of cute churches, happened upon a local festival with food, ate lunch (the eggplant in Sicily is to die for, words can't even describe) and then grabbed a couple souvenirs as we headed to the bus stop.  We managed to make all of our public transportation modes back home and arrived in Parma around 9:30.  It was definitely a long weekend, but as usual totally worth it!  

It seems to me that our program is practically over at this point which is hard to believe.  I have my last official cooking lesson this week (so sad!), starting to prepare for my final projects and exams, and only have a couple more weekends of traveling left.  I'm definitely excited about all of the things I have coming up, but also very ready to see family and friends too.  It seems that all of Italy decided that this weekend would be a good time to put up all of the Christmas decorations so everything seems to be in full-swing.  Nate even told me that they started doing 

horse-drawn carriage rides in Parma this weekend which I can't wait to see!  I absolutely love this time of year!

On Friday we are headed, as a group of BC students, to Verona for the day to learn about some of the history of that city.  Then a few of my friends and I are headed to Venice afterwards.  We decided to stay just for one night (Friday) so we won't actually have a lot of time there, but I think it will still be good to go and see it with some friends.  We will be there for quite some time when the family comes, so I'm not too worried about missing out on anything. 

Hope all of you guys are doing well.  I still continue to be impressed with the BC football team!  Hope all of you enjoyed that game.  Keep sending me updates!

Ciao ragazzi,

E

a weekend in parma!

First of all, I need everyone to take a moment and realize that it is already Nov. 10th.  Now, can someone explain to me how this happened?!  I am absolutely in shock.  I don't even know what happened during the first 10 days of November, haha. Although I do know we are in luck with the new President-elect!

Alright, I'm quite exhausted after an amazing weekend with some friends, but I'm going to recount everything as well as possible...

Last Tuesday I had my usual classes followed by cooking class.  We learned how to make tiramasu (still not one of my favs even after having it homemade).  It was my favorite meal so far!  She fixed us pasta with homemade pesto, chicken and roasted peppers, salad, cheese course, and then the tiramasu.  Amazing!  Then after cooking I headed over to the villa for a long night of watching every single US news broadcasting station online.  We started out with quite a few of us watching at first, but then got down to two when they finally declared Barack the winner. I was so emotional it was a little embarassing.  I ended up only getting 25 minutes of sleep before I had to get up to go to class at 7:45.  It was well worth it though!  Wednesday we had our History of Parma class at a nearby fortress.  We ended up not having a lot of time to spend there, but it was nice to get away from the city and see a little bit in the surrounding area.  My other class for Wednesdays we cancelled after History of Parma so I was quite pleased and came back to nap for a few hours.  I managed to catch up on my sleep pretty quickly so that was nice.  After I woke up from my nap I took the rest of the day to myself and spent some time reflecting and talking with family.  Definitely a good way to remember my mom. Thursday I just did the class thing and then had intentions of going out that night, but the weather didn't seem to want me to do that (we had a pretty intense thunderstorm around 9).  I ended up just staying at the apartment and watching the Bourne Ultimatum (so good!) and falling asleep pretty early.  

Friday I cleaned the entire apartment so that it would be ready for my friends and got all of their beds ready.  Elena arrived around 10:30 pm after a long day of traveling so we took her back to Andrea's apartment and fed her some Parma food (cheese, prosciutto, bread, wine and a fake bday cake).  It was so good to see her! I love all my new friends here, but getting to see friends that have known me for 2 years is totally different.  I ended up heading back to my apartment late that night so that I could sleep in my own bed and do some last minute prep stuff before Hil and Claire arrived at 11:30 on Saturday.  I picked them up at the train station and then brought them back to my apartment so they could unload their stuff and change clothes.  They had a long train ride from Rome that morning so they were already pretty tired.  Then we went out to lunch, I took them on a walking tour of the city, got them their first Parma gelato, and then came back to my apartment to just chill out for a little while before dinner.  We decided to take them back to the place where we had our welcome dinner which turned out to be even better the second time around.  Andrea and Elena both hadn't felt well that day so we all went our separate ways after dinner and just chilled at our different apartments.  Sunday we planned to go to Cinque Terre (my favorite place if you remember!) which required us leaving Parma at 7:50.  Unfortunately, Elena and Andrea didn't make it to the train station in time so only Hilary, Claire and I got to go.  We still had a blast, but missed spending time with the other girls.  The weather was gorgeous (although much colder than the last time I went).  We ended up buying an unlimited train pass for the afternoon so that we could go back and forth between the 5 towns since we weren't hiking (we were all too exhausted and two of the trails were closed due to mudslides).  I think they got to see the highlights and both of them said they want to come back again so I hope that means they enjoyed it.  I could go back there a million times. We got back pretty late from Cinque Terre (although just before the train strike began, thank goodness!) so we immediately went to try and find a place to eat.  We ended up at a place some other students had recommended to me, but I ended up with the only meal that we were pleased with, which was unfortunate.  We weren't quite sure what we were ordering and so it definitely was a surprise when Claire's lasagna came out with some odd meat on top, brown sauce and cinamon and Hilary had some random parts of the seafood floating in her pasta.  haha.  I had pumpkin soup though and it was great!  Afterwards I took them to Milano Chocolat for gelato (still my favorite place) and then we came back here so that Nate could come over and hang out with them since he hadn't seen them yet.  He and Kristin had made sugar cookies so they brought them over and then we all just sat around and chatted for a while.  Almost like being back at BC, so good.

This morning we had a pretty chill time while we did a little more shopping around the city and then grabbed some lunch before they had to head back to London-town.  I was sad to see them leave because we had such a good time, but I know that I will see them in just 2 weeks so that is really exciting.  It was so nice to have them here!

This week should be pretty good.  I have another fake midterm tomorrow in Italian, two cooking lessons this week, and then I'm headed to Sicily this weekend! 

I hope you all are doing well.  BC kids, I hope you enjoyed the ND win for me!  So exciting! 

I guess I'll check back in with you guys after my trip down south. 

Much love,

E

train rides, snow, cheese and chocolate...

I've officially made it back from my 4th country this trip.  Switzerland was absolutely gorgeous!  

Last week was pretty good too.  A lot of normal classes and things.  I feel like I get into the same 4 day routine while I am in Parma, even with what I eat.  I go to the grocery store here and buy the same things for those weeks because I know exactly how much of those things I need to buy to last me.  Its nice though because it puts some rigidity in my life when I'm spending one weekend in sunny and busy Barcelona and the next in cold and chill Lucerne.  We also had a 80s/Halloween party last week for one of the girl's birthday.  It was pretty fun and one of my friends even carved a pumpkin! We're trying to hold onto a few of the traditions of the states while not being the obnoxious American students.  

Friday morning we had a train out of Parma at 9:38 to head to Milan and then Lucerne.  We ended up having about a 20 minute delay on that train and had to sprint around the Milan train station trying to find our train before it left us.  It was a little ridiculous with all 9 of us, but somehow we managed to all get on the train before it pulled away.  I always seem to be running for some form of transportation while I am on these trips.  Keeping me on my toes I guess.  The train ride to Lucerne was ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS.  It took us right through Lake Como and the very snowy Alps.  I kind of dozed off at one point and then woke up because I thought someone was shining a light in my face, but turns out it was just the snow reflecting in my eyes.  I looked out and was in an amazing mood for the rest of the day.  It also got me into the holiday spirit despite it only being Halloween at that point.  (I've already started the Christmas playlists on my computer).  Once we actually got to Lucerne though it wasn't quite as snowy.  Plenty cold, but not snowy.  We immediately went to the hostel once we got there (which turned out to be pretty nice!)  All the girls (6 of us) got our own room and the boys (3 of them) had what they thought was going to be their own room, but then they got a smelly/snoring roommate during the middle of the night on Friday. haha.  The accommodations were nice though, with clean amenities and a really good breakfast every morning. 

Friday night after getting settled into the hostel we went searching for a place to eat which proved to be a little more difficult than we thought. We either couldn't get in because they were closed or they wouldn't take a group of 9 of us.  Finally we found a place where almost everyone ordered German sausages.  I ended up with this traditional swiss plate (mushrooms, cream sauce poured over a pastry shell) that I had seen recommended online during my research for my trip.  Pretty good, but at that point we were all so hungry anything would have been good.  We took a while with dinner then took a long walk back to the hostel where we planned for the next day.  The mountain that everyone tells you to go up when you go to Lucerne was closed because of the massive amounts of snow they already have, so we weren't able to do that, but we spent most of Saturday just walking around and taking lots of cute pictures.  We have lots and lots of group photos in front of gorgeous backdrops.  Almost everything was closed Saturday because of All Saint's Day which was kind of a bummer when we were doing souvenir shopping, but other than that we didn't really miss out on much and just spent the time walking around.  Saturday night we made reservations for a fondue place that Sarah's host father had recommended.  It was really fun to experience "true fondue culture" although it wasn't that different than the Melting Pot.  We ended up just doing the cheese portion because we were all pretty full afterwards.  Then we spent the rest of the night at the only open pub in town watching soccer with the locals and just enjoying a good chill night inside where it was warm!

Sunday our train didn't leave until 12 so we had some time to run around and buy more chocolate before we headed out.  The fog was unbelievable over the lake so we also spent some time hanging out and watching the ferries come in and out eerily from the fog.  The train ride back took us a different route so we were able to see other parts of the Swiss countryside. There were a ton of waterfalls on the side of the mountains that were gorgeous to look at.  We made it back into Parma around 6:30 and then all headed back to our apartments to chill out for the night.

It was definitely nice to be away for the weekend and cnn.com.  I am so disgustingly obsessed its actually starting to annoy me.  I can't believe we will all know so soon!  I'm very ready to know so I can move on since there isn't much I can do at this point except sit around and wait.  My dad was awesome and sent in my absentee ballot so I've done my part. 

Hilary and Elena come to visit me this weekend!!  I am SO excited to see them.  Everyone has been having friends and family come visit over the past few weeks, so I am definitely ready for my turn.  I think we are just going to spend the weekend enjoying Parma and the food here. Should be good!  

I hope you guys are doing well!!  I'm thinking about some of you as we hit the 2 year anniversary tomorrow.  Its been hitting me pretty hard lately, but I'm also blessed to be surrounded by so many of these great experiences to distract me.  Please don't hesitate to email me how you are doing with it all.  I really do like talking it out with people, but if not know that I am thinking about you.

Love you all,

E

All of us after our walk through the Gutsch Forest!

The girls with a swiss horn.

Lion monument in Lucerne.

Most amazing hazelnut hot chocolate!

First dinner out with our traditional foods.

BARCELONA

Alright I've got to recap you guys on a full weeks worth of events so stay with me or just find the parts you want to read and don't worry about reading it all.

Last week was pretty routine and relaxed.  My Mondays are quickly becoming very boring so last week I attempted to entertain myself with uploading pictures and things, but found myself out of things to do around 2.  I decided I was going to go crazy if I stayed in the room any longer so I went on a 3 hour walk of this side of the city.  It was actually really nice because the weather was perfect and although I bike by all of those storefronts and houses every day I never get the opportunity to really look at them.  That night I had dinner with the girls that live upstairs and as usual we just did a potluck dinner where I make the salad/bread and then they provide the meat and wine.  Its always fun to hang out with those girls.  Tuesday I had my usual day of classes and lunch with my tandem partner, Mara.  We went to lunch at this really cute sandwich shop near school.  I entered the restaurant talking US presidential politics (as per usual) and the owner of the restaurant must have overheard me talking so he came over, apologized for interrupting and then introduced himself as Joe the Plumber.  It was probably one of the best things I have experienced so far in Italy.  That lunch was also particularly nice because my tandem partner brought a friend of hers to lunch so instead of just speaking English the entire lunch we actually got to speak a lot of Italian (very broken on my end) and  discussed politics, movies, TV, food, etc.  Its so nice to feel comfortable enough to just try to use the language and know that they will help me if I need it.  Such a great abroad experience!  I also had cooking class on Tuesday night where we learned how to make orecchiette with broccoli.  I enjoyed it although didn't think it had a whole lot of flavor, but as per usual she made sure there were lots of other amazing foods to supplement (chicken marsala, green beans, cheese, salad).  Always the highlight of my week in Parma!

Wednesday the entire BC group went to the Parmesan cheese factory as part of our History of Parma class.  We were all a little less than excited to be getting up to leave at 7:45, but it turned out to be much more involved and interesting than we expected.  They walked us through all of the different processes of making and aging the cheese.  We got to try some in the end and got a free cheese grater too!  Good day. haha.  After that I had my other class and then hung out at the villa on Wednesday night after packing for Barcelona!

Thursday I went to my first two classes and then had to miss my Organizational Behavior class (definitely not a problem) to catch a train to Milan for our flight.  Traveling went very smoothly which was a very nice experience after the previous weekend's nightmare.  We left Parma at 3 and got to our friend's apartment in Barcelona around 11.  We were exhausted once we got there though so we decided to stay in for the night and plan our next couple of days.

Since we had 2 full days in Barcelona (as opposed to the usual 1 when we fly out on Friday) we were able to sleep in a little on Friday and then get up to see the city well-rested.  Chiara was an AMAZING tour guide.  She has been in the city for only a couple of months, but knows so much about it all.  As we were walking around I kept talking about how the tour buses were following us because everywhere we would go they would be there, we were just doing everything for free and on foot (which is always better).  My legs and feet were very tired after this weekend, but it was totally worth it to say that we really saw everything.  I am just going to kind of list what we saw here, but if you have the time I would recommend looking up some of the spots we saw online because they really were great.  I am a huge fan of Gaudi now even though I couldn't have told you much about him at all before we went.  His presence in Barcelona is EVERYWHERE.  From the street lamps, buildings, parks and sidewalks he has left his impressions for everyone to see and its really inspiring.  I could walk around that city for the rest of my life and still be in awe.  So for Friday, we got up and spent a few hours in Parc Guell (an area designed by Gaudi that was supposed to be a residential neighborhood but lost funding so it has now become a park) , then ventured over to Las Ramblas (the main street of Barcelona for shopping and toursity attractions), Mercat de la Boqueria (the most impressive food market I have ever seen), Palau de la Musica Catalana (gorgeous exterior), La Pedrera (a house designed by Gaudi with an amazing rooftop overlooking the entire city), House of Bones (another house by Gaudi which was beyond impressive), Universitat de Barcelona (I contemplated transferring there because its so beautiful), and the Cathedral (under major construction so you can't see much due to scaffolding).  After a long day we had a great dinner at a tapas restaurant Chiara recommended.  It was so nice to sit down and enjoy some real spanish food and sangria.  

Sunday we followed the same routine of waking up around 9 and then heading out by 10 or so.  We were able to have a little more relaxed day because we had seen so much the day before, but still managed to stay plenty busy.  We first went to the beach (so warm!) at Olympic Port, then walked through the Gothic Quarter (where I would live if I lived in Barcelona), went back to Las Ramblas, saw La Sagrada Familia (more impressive than words or pictures can do it justice), Hospital de Sant Pau (I also considered injuring myself just so I could stay here for a few nights.  It looks like a gorgeous college campus.), Parc de Montjuic (we took a ski lift to the top of the mountain to see an amazing view of the entire city), Olympic Stadium (there was a children's neighborhood cultural event going on, complete with fireworks!), and a light show at Placa de Espanya (gorgeous!).  After another full day Chiara took us to get some more amazing food for very cheap.  I considered ordering paella because it seemed like a requirement, but then remembered I don't like much seafood or rice so I decided against it and ordered salmon instead.  Still a very good choice.  Then we went souvenir shopping and I found some great coasters that I will definitely be excited to use in my dorm next semester.  I love buying these little things that I know I will be able to use for a long time and remember this amazing time I am having.  

Sunday we had to get up early (especially early because we forgot that Day Light Savings Time was ending until we got to the train station) and headed back to Parma.  We got back here around 3 and then got to relax for a while. Nate was awesome and cooked our little group dinner again since he was in town for the weekend so we all got to get together and talk about our weekends which was fun.  

Today I have been doing all of my school work and trying to debate my plans for next semester at BC.  I have a lot of things that I would love to do, but don't want to fill my plate up too much.  Definitely be praying about that for me if you can!  

Tomorrow night we are headed to the Opera in Parma which should be so much fun to get dressed up and experience some real Italian culture.  (Hopefully it will be better than the horrible one we went to when I was here with PDS last time, haha).  Other than that, the week is looking pretty normal and then 9 of us are headed to Lucerne, Switzerland on Friday.  I can't believe November starts on Saturday!!  And the election is in a week?! What?! No, I'm not starting to freak out or anything.  I'm thinking of having people come over and spend the night at my apartment and then we all can get up pretty early (our time) to watch the results and I'll make a big breakfast for everyone.  We'll see how that goes, but I figure we're going to need something comforting to do while we sit around and wait for the results to roll in.  

Hope you guys are doing well.  As always I keep you guys in my thoughts all the time and would love to hear any updates.  You guys have been so awesome about staying in touch!  I love it.  Every time I check my email it seems like I have one waiting from at least one of you.  Thanks!

Love and miss you guys a lot!! Ciao ciao.

P.S. Here are a couple of pics to recap.

Chiara, Kristin and I on the bench designed by Gaudi in Parc Guell. 

Amazing light show at Placa de Espanya.

All 3 of us again on the roof of La Pedrera and you can see La Sagrada Familia in the very far distance.  Very toursity pic, haha.

not quite what we had planned...

Kristin and I sitting in a tower in Lisbon, Portugal.

Me in front of Lake Como. (You can imagine George standing with me.)

Well I was supposed to be writing you tonight after eating Belgian chocolate and waffles all weekend, but sadly our plans didn’t quite work out as planned.  First though, I’ll do a recap of the week.

 

Monday, like normal, I didn’t have any classes so I spent the day going to the grocery store, preparing food for the week, doing a little bit more homework, running and just enjoying a day of recuperating after a whirlwind weekend in Portugal.  Its really nice to have that day in place where I know I can come back and relax before starting classes again.  My roommates also hosted a party in our room that night which I wasn’t took excited about at first, but turned out to be really fun.  It was a lot of people that I don’t usually hang out with so it was nice to see them and just be able to chill out in the comfort of my own apartment.  Tuesday I had my usual two classes and lunch with my tandem partner.  I had an hour and a half to kill between my first class and lunch so I walked all around the city to trying and get more of my bearings set.  I am never forced to leave the main street because my apartment, classes and friends all are located off of that street.  It was nice to see what else is around, although its really not much more than little shops and cafes up and down the streets. It was still fun to wander around though. Hopefully I’ll get even better at navigation in the city as time progresses.

 

Wednesday we went to the world’s least entertaining museum for class with probably one of the world’s most long-winded professors ever.  This was all for our History of Parma class and could not have bored me any more.  It turned out to be more a Latin lesson on how to read people’s tomb stones than actually learning anything about the city.  At least the grading in the class is supposed to be easy.  I also had cultural diversity which is still very intriguing and definitely my favorite class here.  It is even making me strongly consider changing my minor to sociology when I get back to BC.  And by that I mean I am almost 100% sure that is what I want to do.  I had never taken a sociology course before now and am realizing that a lot of my passions align with the sociology classroom, so that’s a great discovery!  Wednesday night I spent hanging out at the villa with friends and playing cards.  Jeff made sangria for us that night which was interesting, lots of good fruit!  Thursday is still many my hell day of 3 classes spread out over the entire day.  I kept to my routine of going to the fake library in-between classes and getting my work done which is always a bonus.  Thursday night I just had a chill night because I was getting up at 5 am to go to the train station on Friday.

 

So here come the events that constituted my very not-to-plan weekend.  I woke up at 5 am to make it to the train station by 6:30.  We were going super early because we had heard there was a train strike planned for that day so we wanted to ensure that we would make it to Pisa for our 12:30 flight.  Only to find out that the strike was cancelled and we were at the train station an hour and a half early.  Despite that, we made it to Pisa (after 3 trains) with just enough time and ran into the terminal to check-in.  Upon entering we looked up at the display screen and see that CANCELLED is written next to our flight to Brussels.  Not exactly what you want to see after 6 hours of traveling.  We immediately head to the customer service area and stand in line for a few minutes.  Once it becomes our turn to talk to the representative she immediately rushes away telling us she has a “mandatory break” and points us in the direction of the other terminal.  We then stand in line there for an hour and a half waiting to talk to someone, only to find out that they have no other flights to put us on and that we will be refunded for this flight (if we send them a letter or fax. What century are we living in?) but not our return flight on Sunday.  We were all quite annoyed so we decided to head to Florence to see if we could figure out a way to get to Brussels from there, but were unsuccessful.  Some of the kids stayed in Florence that night because they were tired of traveling that day, but Kristin and I were tired of Florence after living there for 3 week so we decided to come back.  We met the most adorable man on the train from Florence to Bologna though!  Seriously, it was the only saving grace that day.  We discussed religion, politics, where he’s lived, Italian men, food and traveling. It was great!  We got back to Parma around 6:30 pm (a full 12 hours of traveling from the last time we were at that station) and headed to dinner.  Then we just had a relaxing night and planned our activities for the next day. 

 

Saturday we got up late because we were exhausted from the day before and headed to Lake Como.  Unfortunately there was no sign of George Clooney, but it was really pretty.  We took a bus ride along the coast to the middle of the lake and walked around at that city, Bellagio, for an hour or so before starting the treck back home.  It was a nice and relaxing day.  Como was on my list of things to see while I was here so I’m glad we made it there even though it wasn’t in the best of situations.

 

Today I just had a very relaxing day of cleaning the entire apartment, watching the SNL skits, watching the Office, grocery shopping and cooking dinner for some friends.  I love cooking here, but never take the time to make really good things because I am usually just cooking for myself so it was a nice change to cook something good.  I felt like a true Italian because I was cooking in small increments all day so I wouldn’t have to do it all once everyone got here.  I think I’m finally getting used to this less-strict lifestyle. 

 

This week should be pretty much the same and then I am headed to Barcelona on Thursday!!  I am so excited for it because Kristin and I are staying with a mutual friend, Chiara, so we will have a personal tour guide to show us all the great things.  It should be a lot of fun.

 

Hope you guys are doing well!!  Keep the updates coming.

 

Love,

E