Not all who wander are lost (part 2)

Written while drinking bottled sparkling water and listening to Taylor Dayne's Supermodel song from the Lizzie McGuire Movie.

Before I came to Rome, I consulted with all of my friends who went abroad in the past year, particularly to La Citta Eterna.  They each gave me a list of the best restaurants, gelaterias, sites to see, places to visit, etc.  Then when I arrived in Rome for my IES program, they proceeded to give us a "bucket list" as well with dozens of sites, places to eat, visit, museums, etc.  And they gave us a class syllabus, with a list of places that we would be seeing on our field visits.  I, being the super organized type, took all of this in stride and proceeded to make my own "when in Rome" list, performing a cross-section analysis of all the places I "had to" visit.  Much to my surprise-but nobody else's apparently-there was hardly any overlap.  In fact, I was so overwhelmed that I had no idea what to do with myself but panic.  But, after about three seconds I looked at the document and was like, "Hannah, you need to cool it.  You're in Rome now.  There's no time to panic."  Since then, I have taken my trip to Rome in stride, picking and choosing from my friends', family's and IES Center's lists of things to do in creating my own experience.

Today we didn't have class and instead were supposed to have an optional walking tour of baroque churches in the city center with one of our professors.  However, when we were talking to him this week, he suggested that we go to the Vatican instead.  When he got approval from the center director, it was decided that we would meet at the center and walk together to the Vatican for a tour of St. Peter's Basilica.  Normally, I'm not one for waiting in lines-I get this from my dad.  But, this was completely different.  We only waited in line for a half hour before walking into the biggest, most beautiful church that I have ever seen in my life.  Apparently there is one just a bit bigger on the Ivory Coast, but this was unlike anything I have ever seen before.  Instead of just wandering around with my jaw on the ground (literally), he showed us the highlights of the inside.  While we didn't get to see the pope (turns out he has better things to do each day than sit inside the church and greet tourists), we did get to see a lot of burials of former popes.  I left absolutely in awe of what we had just seen, and happy that I finally got to explore "my neighborhood" a little bit deeper.

The pope stands on this balcony when announced and blessing the crowd at Mass.

We came at the perfect time, just to see the natural light feeding in.

The pope's aisleway.

My favorite sculpture in the entire church.

After we got back from St. Peter's Basilica, I felt energized and eager to keep exploring.  In continuation of my solo adventure in Paris, I ventured off on my own to discover parts of Rome that I wanted to see.  Part 1 was a bust.  My friend Melissa told me about this amazing building where you can pay a small fee to take an elevator up to the top of the highest building in Piazza Venezia to get a panoramic view of the city at sunset.  Well, apparently tonight you couldn't because there was a private party or something.  Oh well, she texted me directions to get to another one of her favorite places in Rome: the Spanish Steps.  As I proceeded to walk in that direction, I found police and newspeople and helicopters everywhere.  Lucky me to forget that today we received an email that there would be some non-violent demonstrations in the city today, and Piazza Venezia would be a primary site of them considering their location in the city center.  After getting out of the area, I found myself walking down a really cool shopping street: Via del Corso.  Definitely something worth checking out if you're ever in Rome.  I walked down the street for a little bit before following the signs for Piazza di Spagna.  As soon as I turned the corner, I found myself absolutely in awe.  There they were.  Something that yet again I never thought I would get to see for myself besides in all of my friends' abroad pictures or google images.  Wow.  According to Melissa, I had to "walk alllll the way up them until there are no more stairs.  Then turn for the most gorgeous view of the city."  Melissa, you killed it.  As soon as I turned around, I found myself face to face with the most beautiful Roman sunset.  Situated against a balcony, I took out my GoPro for the first time since coming abroad and capturing the impressive view.  There are no words to explain how stunning it was to see it in person...another must if you come to Rome someday.

The most beautiful building that I have ever seen. 

No, I don't want your $1 selfie stick when I have one of my own...and that view though!

After I carefully made my way down the steps, I found myself back on Via del Corso before I saw signs pointing to a place called Giolitti's.  I immediately decided to follow them, because I remembered that it was a gelato place that came highly recommended by my friends, grandparents, and the staff at the IES Center.  In fact, it was just rated as one of the top gelato places in the heart of Rome, so I knew I had to check it out for myself.  After all, when you walk nearly 8 miles in a day, you can do that for yourself.  For 2.50 euro I got a small cone with Oreo Biscotti and Chocolate, and it was without a doubt the best gelato that I have ever had in my life.  Smooth, rich, delicious, with a cone that had the right amount of crunch to it.  I nearly died inside.  And it was one of those places where you order and pay at the front and then hand your receipt to the person scooping the gelato.  It's a really cute restaurant and bakery, too.  Another top priority if you ever decide to come to Rome, which by now you should if you haven't already.  I ate my cone following the signs to Piazza Navona before I found myself walking back towards my apartment, feet hurting from walking and exploring so much.

The best. The absolute best gelato you'll ever have in Rome.

May or may not have made my study abroad friends cry.

I'm proud of myself today.  I used public transit by myself and walked around a (somewhat) new city.  I feel like a local now!  This city is starting to feel more and more like home each day, and I am so thankful for the opportunity that I have to spend part of my summer here.  There may be millions of tourists around each day, but Romans come to life at night, and I felt incredibly comfortable wandering the city by myself.  Just another Lizzie McGuire Movie fantasy come true.

Tomorrow we have another fun extracurricular activity with one of the professors at the IES Center before kicking off our free weekend.  I'm excited to explore the Ancient Appian Way and visit Florence this weekend...before getting ready for midterms and writing my journal entries for class.  Until then, it's the Orange is the New Black finale for me and wondering how in the world I bought sparkling water from the drink station on the street instead of regular...lol.

Addio bella!