First Week in Rome

This semester I’m studying abroad in Rome, something I was never completely sure would happen, especially with the ongoing pandemic. It’s my first time leaving the U.S. and the farthest/longest I’ve been away from family.

To catch you up, after I was accepted into the program: I filled out a bunch of forms, took passport photos at both Walgreens and CVS (…go to CVS), went through a passport appointment, got a passport, got a physical, got my hepatitis A vaccine, completed a lot more forms, thankfully booked a visa appointment when hope was almost lost, went to the consulate, got a visa, found housing after a month of back-and-forth emails, got plane tickets, figured out how to pay rent in Euros, got a new suitcase, got my booster shot, had to get a bunch of specific masks since cloth and surgical masks are not allowed, had to get outlet adapters, had to figure out how to get physical euros…

January 9th:
I had a PCR covid test 72 hours before my arrival time, since a negative test was required to go to Italy. However, due to the holidays and surge, the PCR test had a “24-72 hour turn-around time”, but I needed to have it in order to check in to my first flight. So on top of the PCR, I had to pay to get a rapid antigen test a couple hours before my flight at Charlotte. Luckily the location was very efficient and got me the test back within an hour. I also had to get a new SIM card (still in progress), but got a temporary one near the airport before my flight just so I had one that could work abroad.

January 10th:
Airplane sleep was not great- but at least I had a window seat, and the flight wasn’t fully booked so I had two seats to myself. We landed about 10am Rome time, or about 4am New York time. The first difference I noticed was as we were landing- the trees look so different here! Made it through the passport check and everything fine, and eventually made it to the apartment which I am sharing with one other person in my study abroad program. We then went out and got some pizza for dinner. It just felt very surreal the entire day, that we had made it to Italy and were now eating pizza. I know am very fortunate to be able to study abroad.

January 11th:
Went to the Colosseum with some fellow architecture students, and also stopped by the Circus Maximus, Trajan’s Column, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, and probably saw a bunch of other things along the way that I don’t even know the names of (yet). Just a tiny bit overwhelmed seeing every sight right after the other.

January 12th:
Went to an Italian grocery store for the first time! Some initial observations: eggs aren’t refrigerated (I had heard of this before), you have to weigh the fruit yourself before checking out and get a price sticker (at least in the store we went to), and they have lots of pasta haha. I bought some Fanta- in Italy they are required by law to have at least 12% real orange juice in orange flavored drinks and I was very curious, especially since orange Fanta is my favorite soda back home. Verdict: I think I like my American Fanta more… I probably could have predicted this on account of the fact I don’t like orange juice haha. But it was definitely interesting to try. I also got some chocolate filled croissants, apple juice, yogurt, crepe “bases”, and cordon bleu chicken. I feel like quite a bit of things are less expensive than in the U.S.

Afterwards we had an introductory walking tour around the area with a professor, and then got dinner a bit later with more classmates. Already a tad bit tired of pizza (it’s too early to be getting tired of pizza… I have several months to go), I was curious and tried a cheeseburger, as well as an appetizer of fried lasagna, very good! Also had gelato for maybe the first time- I don’t recall if I’ve ever had it before. But it was delicious.

January 13th:
Did a little bit of window shopping before going to a studio orientation, where I finally found out my professors. Definitely more of a relaxed day.

January 14th:
Went to another mandatory orientation in the morning. Then stopped by the grocery store again to buy fruit, Kinder surprise eggs out of curiosity (since they are illegal in the U.S. hehe), le mou latte candy (milk flavored), as well as some ravioli and sauce. Back at the apartment I put some of my crepe bases and fruit to use and made some crepes, before going to Poggi, an art store, to get some supplies for sketching class. Also did laundry, watched Arrietty (I love Italian Netflix), and ate aforementioned ravioli for dinner.

January 15th:
Went to Vatican City and into St. Peter’s Basilica- it was larger than I could have imagined, pictures really can’t do it justice. The amount of detail in everything is astounding. The sun shining in through the windows in such solid beams of light was really gorgeous, especially as it made the gold in the ceiling glimmer. Also was able to go into the crypt downstairs.

Afterwards we ate lunch, I tried the Rigatoni alla carbonara. It was maybe the fanciest meal yet, with free little sliders with meat sauce, tasty bread, and lil cookies on the house (I am sure there are proper names for these things). Went to the Spanish Steps and watched the sun set. Ended the day with eating gelato (I tried Mousse Oreo, out of the 150 flavors) near the Pantheon.

January 16th:
Also more of a laid-back day, to mentally prepare for classes to start tomorrow. Went looking for a notebook, then went to la Feltrinelli (Barnes and Noble type bookstore). Got a couple of books in Italian as both souvenirs and as something to read and practice with. Then went to McDonald’s with my roommate since it was something we both wanted to try. I ordered a ‘tasty basket’ which had “6 Chicken McNuggets, 4 Panzerotti con pomodoro e mozzarella 100% italiani, e 9 Pepite con Asiago DOP e Speck Alto Adige IGP” (quote from the menu because I don’t exactly know the English names). Also got fries and a Sprite. I think the nuggets and fries tasted just like typical McDonald’s, and the additional nuggets stuffed with cheese, tomato sauce, and the alto adige meat all tasted good. Will have to come back again to try some more Italy-exclusive foods.

So yes, that is my week in review. I will be drawing a lot more in the future, but I don’t anticipate making posts every single week, though I may try.

Thanks for reading!