There's No Place Like Rome

Wow. I can’t believe this adventure is over. It seems like just yesterday I was saying goodbye to my parents, not knowing what was to come in the next months. Now, looking back, I can truly say this was the best semester of my life. Yes, it was full of ups and downs, but more ups than anything else. I’ve never felt so alive, carefree, and excited about life than I did these last 4 months, which I think is pretty beautiful. I have to really give credit to the 35 amazing people in my program. We came from all over the US with completely different backgrounds, and we grew to become better people together. I don’t know what the future holds for me, but I do know one thing: There’s no place like Rome.

European Adventures and Heartfelt Reunions

Saturday the 21^st, Mom and I had breakfast at the hotel. We walked to the Spanish Steps, down Via del Corso, and to Piazza Venezia. Then I walked her towards Largo Argentina to show her where Caesar was killed. I showed her the Pantheon and Piazza Navona. We ate lunch at Abbey’s Pub, which was a regular hangout spot for us this semester. And I couldn’t leave the area without getting one last gelato from Frigidarium! Once we got back to the hotel, we waited outside for an hour and a half before Dad, David, and Grandma finally showed up! It was a great reunion! After everyone was settled in, we went for an early dinner at the Blue Light restaurant and walked around the Prati area! Finally, since everyone was tired, we went to bed around 8 pm.

Last picture from the top of the Spanish Steps!

Sunday, we woke up early for mass, and accidentally walked in late, thinking it started a half hour later than it actually did! From there, we took a cab to the Colosseum (We took an underground tour!) and saw the Roman Forum. On the way back, we stopped for lunch at a bar near Largo Argentina. We happened to get inside the Pantheon right as it was closing, so luckily those three got to see it too! At night, we walked to the Christmas market at Piazza Navona and got more gelato of course.

The Fab 5 in the Colosseum! 

Monday morning, we took the Scavi tour at the Vatican. Only 150 people are let into the underground part every day, so we were very lucky to get tickets! We saw the ancient burials, excavations, and tomb of St. Peter. It was a really neat experience. The tour ended in the tomb of the popes, so we walked around there for awhile. I noticed the tomb of Pope John Paul II was missing, so I figured they must have moved him since he is about to be canonized. Sure enough, we found him inside St. Peter’s. We didn’t stay inside the church for very long, since we were going back the next night anyway! We grabbed a late lunch, went shopping, and grabbed a cab for the Trevi Fountain. I’ve never seen the Trevi that jammed pack full of people! I guess we can blame that on the holidays, but we still got our pictures! We again got gelato and did some more shopping. (We stayed in one store for over an hour. Oops.) We decided to walk back, taking a very busy Via del Corso back, so everyone could see it all lit up! Once we got home at 7:30, everyone was pretty tired, so we went to bed early again.

The Trevi Fountain

Tuesday, we got let in early to the Vatican Museum at 8:30. First thing we did was head for the Sistine Chapel, and we were some of the only ones in there! It was breathtaking as usual, but after about ten minutes, it was wall to wall full of people! After about four hours, we decided it was time to head back to the hotel. The sad part, is that we didn’t even make a dent in all the sights of the Vatican Museum. Oh well, there’s always next time! After a quick nap, we grabbed some dinner at 4 and headed for the square. We waited in line at St. Peter’s for over 3 hours, but we met a very nice family from California right in front of us! They just so happened to be looking for another ticket, and we happened to have one! They told us we were their Christmas miracle, which was a nice feeling! After we finally got inside, we sat a little more than half way back in the church (which was as close as we could get). Mass started a little early and was only about an hour and a half long. It was amazing to be at the Pope’s mass, but he sounded very tired when he spoke. (I think it was long past his bedtime.) Also, each part of the mass was said in a different language, which was a really unique feature! Plus, I feel holier now!

Merry Christmas!

Inside St. Peter's waiting for Papa Francesco!

Wednesday was Christmas Day! The adults decided to let David and I sleep in a little, while Dad and Grandma went to the Pope’s blessing. After an hour and a half, the three of us decided it was time to go try and find them. Where did we find them? Shopping of course! We grabbed some lunch, went back to the hotel, napped, and hung out for awhile. We also learned something that day: absolutely nothing is open on Christmas Day. (It shouldn’t have been a surprise to us, but still, it made it difficult to even find food!) for dinner, we made another appearance at Blue Light to use up the rest of the meal vouchers from this semester. Since no one was hungry, we grabbed some appetizers and drinks and called it a night!

Thursday was a day of adventure for the Mihulka clan. We caught a train at 7:30 for Naples. The first problem was even finding the metro stop by our hotel to get to the train station. We came to realize the map we had was wrong, but we eventually made it! After getting some McDonald’s breakfast and a two hour train ride, we were there. I tried to warn my family what to expect in Naples, but I don’t think they realized just how serious I was. Naples felt very dirty, rundown, and dangerous. Again, it’s not my favorite place in the world. We jumped on a connecting train to get to Pompeii, where we discovered that we didn’t get off when we were supposed to. So, we got the scenic route of Naples, but fortunately, we had a French couple with us that did the same thing we did! After another hour or so, we finally arrived in Pompeii! Yay! At that point, it was pouring rain, so we decided to grab some lunch before we actually went into the excavations. It rained all day long. After a few hours, it just became funny, and Dad looked up to the sky saying, “God, give me everything you’ve got!” Lesson learned: NEVER challenge God. Within a couple minutes, it was raining harder than I’ve ever seen it rain. It was clear that the risk wasn’t worth the reward anymore, so we decided it was time to leave. I felt bad because we really didn’t get to see much, but the day was so adventurous that I think everyone had fun anyway!

Even soaking wet, we look good.

Friday morning, we woke up at 5 to leave for the airport. Since we had 9 pieces of luggage with us, we decided to stop by our future hotel and leave 5 pieces behind. Good choice. We got to Fiumicino airport and grabbed some breakfast. While at McDonald’s I heard my name and saw it was a kid in my program named Andrew! I was so surprised and happy to see him! After chatting for a few minutes, we left, and I cried because seeing someone in the program was exactly what I needed! The flight to Bucharest flew by (literally)! We got to our Marriot hotel and were shocked. The place was absolutely gorgeous and had high-end designer stores right inside. After getting settled in, we went for a walk and got some money. Once it was getting dark, we decided it was time to head back to the hotel. For dinner, we met Anca and Mihaela and took them to the restaurant in our hotel. Not knowing at all what to expect, they were everything I hoped for and more! We chatted for hours about anything and everything. They gave David gifts that had been in Anca’s family for 150 years and beautifully designed spoons and horseshoes. The whole night was just wonderful.

Saturday the 28^th, we woke up early and ate another fancy breakfast at the hotel. We were picked up by Anca’s friend Mariana who drove us all around the area. First, we stopped at a Greek Orthodox monastery. It was cool to hear her explain the differences between Orthodox and Catholicism, since she herself is Orthodox! Then we continued up the mountains to the Romanian royal family’s summer palace. Everything inside was so ornate. It’s hard to believe people live in such gorgeous places. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take any pictures inside, but I have a few mental pictures! From there, we drove to Bran castle, which is also known as Dracula’s castle. Funny thing is that the castle has nothing to do with Vlad the Impaler, but the connection between the two was made in Bram Stoker’s novel. The castle itself was just a royal home. With its plain white walls, little art, and cold feeling, it was very different from the summer palace.

Romania's royal summer palace

For dinner that night, we met Anca, Mihaela, and David’s foster family at 7 at a restaurant near our hotel. The look on the father’s face when he saw David was priceless. He threw his head back in shock over how big he is, because David is a good 4 inches taller than all of them! The whole dinner was filled with happy tears (mostly from the mothers). The foster sister and son were both so nice, and the family’s foster son was just adorably sweet. Probably the saddest moment of the night though was when the foster mother said after David left, she kept his clothes near her because they smelled like him. It was sweet, and you could tell it meant the world to both of our families. I think David will definitely be back in Romania again!

And I got forced to dance with the performers!

Loved by two families on opposite sides of the world!

Sunday, our flight back to Rome was at noon. Our hotel was near the water, way outside the city of Rome, but near the airport. We walked around a little, got one last gelato, and had dinner at a nearby restaurant!

Rome, Sweet Rome

Today, mom and I climbed off the cruise ship MSC Splendida for the last time in Rome! We took an hour train to Termini station and grabbed a cab to our hotel. After settling in a little, we wandered around. I showed her my school, Bar Valle (the coffee shop I went to every morning) and had a coffee, and Despar (the grocery store by school) and ate one more Ponza salad. Then we walked to the Trastevere area, showing her the Basilica di Santa Maria (the church by my apartment), the boy's apartment, my apartment, and Conad (my grocery store).

My school

Bar Valle! I will sure miss Sonya and her cappuccinos and muffins!

The piazza by my apartment

One last walk across the river from school

Via Natale del Grande 21 :)

Although it was raining, it was still a good day. It was sure hard to be back in those places, because each place brings special memories back to me. But, these next days start a whole new chapter of adventures!

Just Cruisin'

On Friday, we explored the ship a little. After going through security, we had dinner in the restaurant, did a few laps around the ship, and went to bed pretty early, anticipating a busy week. Before bed though, we checked what stations we could get on board. Guess what? We got a few Italian, a few German, and one English. Yes, one. And it was National Geographic! At least we could try to learn something on board. However, every program was about plane crashes, boats sinking, and tsunamis… Not exactly the thing people on vacation want to think about. But, sometimes they did play some fun programs. Friday night we learned all about a 700 lb woman. Science!

Mom and I practicing our safety procedures!

Saturday, our boat stopped in Genoa. For mom and I, this was kind of the tester day. We didn’t book an excursion and just wandered around the town. Unfortunately, there wasn’t really anything to see or do in Genoa, so after three hours, we just came back to the boat. Don’t cry for us though! The rest of the day was spent laying in the sun on the top deck and drinking fruity cocktails. We even hit up the hot tub. Sounds tough, huh! Before take off, we sat outside and just talked about life for awhile. Realizing this experience has come to an end meant some tears were shed, but it was a talk I needed to have and made the reality come more into focus. It was great being able to just have hour-long conversations with mom again. I definitely missed those.

That night, we did dinner buffet style and hit up the casino! I got to experience the evil of gambling first hand by losing 10 euro. But one good thing came out of it: I learned I am kind of, somewhat, decently, ok at blackjack. Yay me! Later, we went to the show on board. It was called, “Italians!” I thought for sure it was going to be an interactive show, so I was convinced I was the first victim, but luckily there was no audience participation. The show itself was pretty cute, filled with dancing and singing. However, my favorite part was the pictures and graphics in the background. So many things I learned about in my cinema class were in the show like the movies “8 ½”, “La Dolce Vita”, and so many others. They also mentioned Roberto Begnini, Sophia Loren, and Marcello Mastroianni. It was so much fun to make connections in that way! Finally, mom and I got some gelato, and went to bed watching National Geographic’s program about mental capabilities and mental illusions.  

Sunday’s excursion was to Marseilles, France. We started at the Cathedral of Notre Dame de la Garde, which was located at the top of a hill. It was beautiful inside, but my favorite aspect was the sailboats hanging from the ceiling! (It was nothing I would’ve expected inside a church.) Then we went to Longchamps Palace, which was GORGEOUS! I could live there. (See pictures!) Finally, we had some free time in the Vieux Port (meaning “old port”). We wandered through a Christmas market and stopped at some fresh fish stands. Let’s just say there are some UGLY fish in France. Yikes.

Beautiful palace!

The view from the fish market.

When we got back, we layed on deck for two hours because it was so beautiful out. (Like mid 60s! Jealous?) That night was captain’s night, so we got a free drink before dinner! We ate dinner in the buffet again, since we weren’t exactly prepared with formal attire. The show that night was called “Olympia”. Of all the shows on the ship, that one was definitely the weirdest. Not my cup of tea. And the captain spoke afterward. The ship’s captain is clearly Mr. Personality and LOVES his job. (Sarcasm. Haha.) But mom and I were cracking up the whole time. Afterward, I was so exhausted that I just went to bed. But not before National Geographic taught me all about drug smuggling!

It's December? Hmm, I didn't notice.

Monday, we woke up in Barcelona, Spain! We first stopped at the Poble Espanyol, which is a village designed to show Spain’s different architectural styles throughout time. It was pretty interesting. After, we drove down Spain’s longest single street, which was 13 km. Then we finally got to see the one thing I NEEDED to see while I was in Barcelona: Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia. This church has been in construction for over 150 years and is expected to be finished in 2026, one hundred years after the death of Gaudi!

Sagrada Familia!

That night, mom and I had dinner at the restaurant and ran to play bingo! There was a 7,000 euro jackpot on the line, and that money was meant to be ours! Unfortunately, it wasn’t ours or anyone else’s. But one lady did win 346 euros, so yay for her! The show that night was “Rhythm and Rock”. It was all songs from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, so it included the Beatles, Elvis, and Michael Jackson. The final song was “Hey Jude” and included some audience participation. The show itself was already amazing but the little Asian man in front of us really spiced it up! He got WAY too into the final song, clapping off beat, and I’m shocked he didn’t pop a lung singing. Although he was horribly off beat, he was sure jamming! Night made! Haha! Before bed, mom and I got to watch NG’s program on airport security. Woo!

We lost.

All day Tuesday, we were at sea. It was kind of strange not getting off the boat at all, but it was fun! We slept in until 9:15. (I was so proud of mom for that!) We had our usual big American-style breakfast and came back to the room. Since we had so much time that day to really do whatever we wanted, we decided to watch “Cinderella”, because everyone loves a good Disney movie! After that, we sat on deck and had a drink. (We are getting way to good at drinking.) Then we went to a short presentation about the off-limits parts of the ship. They showed the control room, kitchens, engine rooms, and laundry facilities. It was pretty interesting! After, we grabbed a quick lunch and took a nap. “Why?” you may ask. Because we are on vacation and we can! Woohoo! We did dinner that night in the restaurant and went to a fashion show on the main deck. It was all people who work on the ship modeling the products they sell like Tommy Hilfiger and Guess. Of course they made it a little extra entertaining with their outgoing personalities. From there, we had to hurry to the show, themed “Paris”. They had a bunch on cancan dancers, crazy costumes, and power house ballads. My favorite part was the shadow puppeteer! That night’s educational program was about drug trafficking… Again!

Wednesday we woke up in AFRICA! And what better way to start a day in Africa then by singing “The Circle of Life” to mother as she got ready for the day! (Stereotypical, I know, but she seemed to enjoy the performance.) Since the excursions started so early, we had to be up before the sun. The benefit of that was that we got to watch the gorgeous sunrise. It was truly spectacular! Not really knowing what to expect in Tunisia, we walked off the boat with an open mind. First thing we saw was four camels giving rides to passengers and a four-man band in traditional Tunisian clothes. The customs process was just getting a stamp on a piece of paper, (not our passports) and we were let right in! We took the historical and city tour of Tunis, which was a great choice. We first were taken to an outdoor market and given free time to walk around. I was really interested in buying a dress at one of the stands, but didn’t even look because the vendors were so aggressive. They literally stand in your path and try to lead you into their stores. Mom and I just held onto each other and ran away! It was kind of creepy but funny at the same time. They would try to guess our language, and we just denied everything. One guy said, “German? English? French? Chinese?” Chinese?! Really?! We got a good laugh out of that one! Next, we went to the ancient city of Carthage. The ruins were so cool, very unique from the ruins I’ve stared at in Rome the last three months. Along the way to each location, we passed by beautiful mosques and gorgeous scenery! One thing that surprised me was that each sign was in both Arabic and French, because Tunisia has two official languages! Finally, the tour ended by going to an ancient amphitheater. We actually got to go inside where they kept the lions and prisoners before being executed. It was kind of eerie! The funniest thing we saw was a very heated stare-down between a very tough little black lab puppy and a full-grown ram. The ram only had to take one step forward before the puppy flipped out and dashed the other direction. It was adorable!

Africa.

Camels!

The town of Tunis.

The baths of ancient Carthage.

The fiercest of the African cats.

Mommy and me!

Back on the ship, we ate lunch, had a cocktail, layed on the deck, and watched “The Lion King”. (Keeping with the African theme as you can tell.) We ate dinner at the buffet and tried our luck one more time at the casino. We lost. Again. But I managed to walk out with one whole nickel left, and I AM PROUD OF IT! That night’s performance was “Coney Island”. It was very whimsical and fun with cool talents again. At the end, people from all parts of the ship sang “We Are The World”. I was CONVINCED they were going to ask for donations for a charity at that point, but they didn’t. I mean, it’s “We Are The World”! Could you get any cheesier?! Finally, the evening NG program was the same airport security show we had already seen. Bummer. But don’t worry, we watched it again! Haha!

Walked in with 5 euro. Walked out with 5 cents. I like to call it a win.

Thursday quickly came, waking up in Palermo, Sicily! The first stop on our excursion was to the top of Mount Pellegrino to take in the view of the entire city. We drove back down toward the coast and stopped at the “Miami Beach” of Palermo to get some gelato (lemon and strawberry, of course). After checking out some smaller attractions, we stopped in the city’s cathedral, which had some sort of military service going on, and we walked right into it! Oops! Then we went to a giant outdoor market, the Market of Capo, which sold fresh fish and produce. Although there wasn’t a whole lot to see in Palermo, I loved the whole feel of the city, which may be because of my new experience in Italy. Probably my favorite part of the day though was driving by the prison where the mafia bosses were held after the mega trial in 1992! (Again, connecting class with experiences!)

View of Palermo from the top of the mountain!

Mommy enjoying her Sicilian gelato!

The center of town.

After climbing back on board, we grabbed lunch and sat outside. Again, it was a gorgeous day! (We’ve been so lucky with nice weather this whole time.) We had a cocktail, of course, and just chilled, enjoying our last day on board. After dinner in the buffet, we saw that night's show called "Aztec". It was ok, but not my favorite. I liked the children's performance beforehand better! 

It’s Not Goodbye, It’s See You Later

Wednesday I had my Rome Through the Ages final! And boy, did it go great! I actually knew the information, so I think I will get the grade I want in that class! Yay!

That night, the girls’ apartment by Termini had a game night! We played a bunch of stupid fun games and some drinking one too (of course). And my team DOMINATED at tippy cup. (Duh!)

STORY TIME! Thursday morning, I tried to be the good daughter and surprise my mom at the airport! Starting at 10:15, I stood at the bus stop for twenty minutes before a police officer came over and told us that everything was shut down for a protest down the street. So, I briskly walked to Largo Argentina with a very lost American family, and by that point I didn’t have time to wait for another bus! I jumped in a cab and finally got to Termini station. I found out my train to the airport left a half hour after I expected, so I treated myself to some McDonalds. Finally, I got on my train and arrived to the airport right at 12:20 (when mom was landing). I waited eagerly in the arrivals area for over 2 hours without any sign of my mom. Crap. Then my confused brain assumed I must have missed her and the poor lady must be standing outside my apartment! Fearing that outcome, I jumped in a cab and raced back to Trastevere. Because of the big protest, I couldn’t get too close to the area. I jumped out of the cab and ran the six blocks home. When I got there, no sign of mom either! I knew I needed to check my email. Sure enough, I had an email from a random man saying my mother missed her flight. Ugh. The whole situation was a mess, but is hilarious to look at now. And finally, at around 8 pm, my buzzer rang, and it was my mom!!!! What a happy reunion that was. :)

That night, everyone in the program, directors, and professors had our goodbye cocktail. It was very fun, but so hard to say goodbye, especially to Marco. I will always love that bald-headed weirdo! Afterward, the students all went to Abbey’s Pub, figuring it was a better venue to say goodbye to each other. We all ate dinner, had a couple drinks, and listened to Claire sing one last time. Later, most of us decided to walk to the Trevi fountain. We made one last wish together, took group pictures, and said goodbye to each other. As emotional as it was, it was truly the best way to say goodbye…

My final wish in the Trevi Fountain. No better way to end the semester.

Friday morning, Mom and I woke up, started cleaning my now empty apartment. (My roommates all left at 4 am for the airport.) We of course had a coffee break during it as well. Then Theo came over before he headed to the train station, and we said our goodbyes. At noon, mom and I left my apartment for the last time, grabbed a cab, and drove the hour and a half to the port to leave for our Mediterranean Cruise!!! (Which I will discuss more in the next post.)