Starting Holy Week off right:)

     Being in Rome for its craziest time of the year, Holy week, has already began. The tourist are all starting to pour in and I'm starting to hear tons of people speaking english, which is awesome hah. I had such an amazing experience today. Before I left home for Rome, my great Aunt Susie who loves traveling and Rome especially, told me that while I was here I absolutely had to visit the sisters of Notre Dame's convent and her friend Sister Mary Margaret Agnes. At first I honestly thought it sounded like another one of those things that people tell you that you 'have to do' while your here or there, but it turned out to be an amazing experience. Two of my roommates and I took a cab there this afternoon, it was only about 10 minutes away surprisingly. It was on a huge hill a little outside of Rome and gave us an amazing view the entire ride. Once we got there we honestly didn't know what to do since we kinda just planned this adventure on a whim. For some reason I thought it would be okay to just show up and not call or anything hah, but it ended up working out so it was okay:) Once we finally found our way into the convent gates we were blown away with all the smells and colors of flowers and orange trees, it was beautiful. We were greeted at the back door by the nicest Indian lady who welcomed us inside without having any clue who we were or why we were there. She led us inside to a cute little living room where we could sit down, and then finally asked who we were visiting and who we were. I was hoping that Sister Mary Margaret Agnes was even there since she had no idea we were coming! Thankfully when I told the lady who we were there to see, she smiled and said ooh your visiting from the United States?! She then said she would go let Sister know that she had visitors and she would be right down. A few minutes later the Indian lady came back down with drinks for us and asked again how we knew Sister Mary Margaret Agnes. I told her about Aunt Susie and gave her an article about Aunt Susie to help spark Sister's memory incase she couldn't remember. A few short minutes later Sister came down and said, 'you must be Lauren!' I was shocked that she knew my name and exactly which one of us I was. She then told me that Aunt Susie had written to her back during Christmas saying that I might come visit, but how she remembered my name was still crazy to me! She even said that she could tell that I was Lauren because I resembled Aunt Susie and her family hah, it was so cool. I felt so bad because we caught her so off guard and interruped her bread making, but never the less she seemed happy to have us:)
     We spend the next hour just sitting and talking to Sister and hearing all about her life. She is from Covington, Kentucky originally and after taking her perpetual vows 56 years ago moved to Rome and has been here ever since! She said that originally when she left home for Rome she thought that she would never be back again and had to say her final goodbyes to all of her family and friends, and that although she said it was hard she said that becoming a sister of God was truly what she wanted and she knew that it was what she wanted to do. I was blown away by her strength, I don't know if I would ever be able to say goodbye to those I love like that. You could see the tears welling up in her eyes as she told us the numerous stories of saying goodbye as well as saying hello to the new life that lay before her. She told us the most amazing stories of people she has gotten to meet, events that she witnessed, as well as times she has lived through. Not only has she been in Rome for some of the greatest pope's to ever live such as Pius and John Paul II, but she got to be in their presence and even meet John Paul II. It was unbelievable listening to her tell stories of being invited to a small chapel in the Vatican with only 20 people in attendance to have mass with Pope John Paul II, and to be personally blessed by him afterwards. Her energy lit up the room as she closed her eyes and told us that she still can remember how amazing it was so be blessed my such a man. It brought tears to her eyes and I felt like I could feel the grace that John Paul II brought to the world just through her experience. Eventually, after the Second Vatican Council many of the rules were changed and she as well as many others who had made their lifelong commitment were allowed to go home and visit their families every couple of years. But until now, she thought that she would die here in Rome, but she has decided that in May she will be going home to Kentucky for good. Although she is excited she said that it will be so strange leaving Rome. Even though home has always been in Kentucky, she has spend the majority of her life here in Rome. She then brought us some cookies and huge wafers that her friend brought back from the Czech Republic, they were soo good!!! It was so interesting to hear all about Aunt Susie from Sister. I couldn't believe that even though I was halfway across the world from home, here I was sitting in a villa in Italy with a fellow Kentuckian listening to stories about my great Aunt...it's crazy. Not only did she talk about Aunt Susies amazing accomplishments, but also of how cool of a life she has had. Before this, I honestly had no idea what all Aunt Susie had done, but it sounds awesome! I can't wait to talk to her more about it when I get home. Sister then gave us a tour of the beautiful convent. I couldn't believe how peaceful, quiet, and blooming with flowers it was. There were tons of tulips of every color, which were all imported from Holland by other sisters. They were literally the biggest tulips I've ever seen, mom would have been in absolute heaven. The rest of the yard was filled with orange trees, palm trees, pear trees, and she even walked us down a tiny path to show us a tree that she knew we had never seen...a cork tree!!! We got the chance to even walk through the greenhouses they had, which were full of Easter lilies about to bloom:) I have never seen such a picturesque yard.
     I am so glad that I got the opportunity to visit Sister Mary Margaret Agnes and hope that I get to visit her again sometime! It's always so nice to feel at home even in a different country with someone you've never met, it's pretty special if you ask me:)

finally a warm day in Rome!

     Its finally warm out today!!!! I literally couldn't be happier:) I feel like Rome comes to life when the sun's out, and it's beautiful. The snow if melting, sun is shining, and tons of people are walking the streets, flooding the colorful open air markets, and even sitting by the river.
     But, I guess when all of the Romans come out of the woodwork, their personalities do too. While I was riding the bus home from school I was just enjoying my book when an older Italian woman sat diagonal from me. Naturally, since no one was sitting across from me I propped my feet up on the seat and went on with my reading. This Italian woman kept looking at me and I couldn't figure out why! As soon as I made eye contact with her I knew...she was staring at my feet hha. In broken english she asked why I put my feet up like that, and that I shouldn't do that because its not proper. Hahahahahah I had to hold back laughs, but I couldn't help but think how Grandma Neichter would be very disappointed in me, especially since she's always telling me to sit more lady like and not put my feet up on things. I should have listened to her..
     Since it's so nice out, I had to make a trip to the market across the street from my apartment:) Even though I've never made it before, I decided that I'm going to try to make my own homemade hummus!!! I bought a bag of chickpeas, a lemon, and peppers soaked in olive oil and couldn't wait to get home and eat it. Well, little did I know that since I bought fresh chickpeas they have to be soaked for at least 12 hours in cold water and then cooked for an hour. So...looks like I won't be having hummus any time soon hah, but at least it gives me something to look forward to!!!
     For the rest of the day some friends and I are going to get gelato and sit on the spanish steps and just relax while its still semi-warm out, I can't wait! Then it's off to Florence in the morning:)

Take me back to Switzerland!!

     This past weekend I went to Interlaken, Switzerland! This was probably one of the most spur of the moment, random trips I've ever taken! After my roommates and I booked our trip 2 days before it left we were a little nervous that we would be so out of the loop, but thanks to Bus2alps, the student travel group we went with, everything was as smooth as it could be:) As soon as we arrived in Interlaken after our 12 hour bus ride I automatically felt at home. Even just walking into our hostel, Balmer's Herberage (if anyone ever makes it to Interlaken you have to stay here!!!!) I could tell that it was my kind of place! Balmer's was amazing...from the Swiss decorations, awesome staff, and even bar underneath I couldn't have asked for a more culture filled and welcoming place to stay! Little did I know that this little hostel was the start to one of the most amazing weekends I could have ever dreamed of. I can honestly say that I've never met nicer people, eaten such amazing chocolate, and seen unbelievable views like I did in this little Swiss town. No matter which way I turned I was surrounded by the beautiful snow covered Swiss Alps, what more could I ask for:)
     The first day we spend wondering around the small, but enchanting city of Interlaken:) We soon found out that even though the exchange rate was awesome compared to Italy, everything was sooo expensive! So, we let the scenery be good enough for us and decided to explore the lakes that give Interlaken it's name as well as the hundreds of panoramic views and of course we had to stop in some chocolate shops! The lakes were straight out of a postcard, turquoise water, pebble beaches, and the Swiss Alps as a backdrop:)

When I thought I had seen all the beauty that Interlaken had to offer, we ran into one of the Bus2alps girls, Jenny, who told us that we had to come with her to the top of the MetroPole hotel for the most amazing view. Once we got there I completely understood why...every which way I turned were the huge snow covered Alps, below me were the small colorful villages of Interlaken, and all I could hear was the Swiss-German dialect spoken around me. I literally felt like I was in a dream! Mimosa's at this panoramic bar were a definite must, even though they were 9 Swiss Francs for what seemed like a shot of orange juice ahh!

     To finish our first day off we had to go rent all of our ski gear for the next day and then thought it would be a perfect idea to go to a chocolate show and then to the bar underneath our hostel:) Even though I was dreading going to rent our ski stuff because all I wanted to do was go explore, I was pleasantly surprised at how fun it was. All of the people at Outdoor Interlaken were Australian and some of the coolest people I've met. Not only did they help us pick out the perfect gear for our once in a lifetime skiing experience, but they also were just good hearted people:) Although they weren't Swiss, they really defined for me the attitude and kindness that all of the Swiss people seemed to go out of their way to show constantly. The chocolate show was awesome, especially since we got so much free chocolate! It was so cool because we literally got to see every stage that the chocolate goes through from when its picked off of the cocoa trees to being made right there in Switzerland! We even got to try fresh cocoa beans, sadly they tasted nothing like chocolate hah. 

     The second day we woke up super early and started heading for the slopes!!!! It was a pretty good trek to get there, but it was well worth it! It was so funny how strict all off the transportation cops were there compared to Italy where you can pretty much ride all of the buses and trains for free if your sneaky. But, that definitely wasn't the case in Switzerland! As soon as I saw one of the many policemen walking towards me I though it was no big deal, I would just give him my bus pass that the hostel gave me and he would be on his way, but of course that didn't happen at all. Little did I know that even if you had your name and hostel on the card, if you forget to put the date on there you'll end up with a 90 franc ticket!!! I almost had a heart attack, but luckily Austin with Bus2alps was there to tell me that I didn't have to pay it! It was so crazy how high the train took us and then we still had to take a gondola up even higher, the views were amazzzing!

     When we first got to the top of the mountain I literally couldn't believe what I was seeing, I don't think I've ever seen so much white in my life, or such a beautiful sunrise:) It as almost mystifying and crazy; words can't even begin to describe it or how unreal the skiing was. It was definitely the craziest skiing I've ever done considering I've only been skiing in Indiana hah. I never knew that trails could last longer than an five minutes! It was pretty crazy how in the middle of nowhere I felt, yet there were little homes, restaurants, and pubs everywhere on the side of the mountains that you could stop at...so of course we had to stop and get a local Swiss beer!!

That was probably my favorite part of the whole day, I even got to call my dad and tell him how much he would love all of the snow:) Once we finally got to the top of the mountain we ate lunch in a huge Indian tee pee, it was so cool!!! The only downside to getting to the top was having to find our way down...which turned into skiing/walking uphill, falling off of a t-bar in the middle of nowhere by myself hah, and getting stuck in what seemed like a blizzard. Let's just say that by the end of the day I was so tired I could barely move. But, we still had night sledding and a traditional Swiss fondue dinner which was soo good:) I'm so thankful that I got to go to this amazing place and hope that I can go back again someday, and hopefully my dad can come because it would be in absolute heaven:) If only Bus2alps could plan that trip for us too!!
     I probably could have stayed a lot longer in Switzerland, but I'm determined to get back there someday no matter what:) I can't think of a better way to spend my first weekend trip in Europe and hope to do soo many more trips with Bus2alps!!

The first few days in Roma

Sorry it's taken me so long to get this thing going!!! We finally just got our internet fixed in our apartment :)

So far Rome has been pretty crazy and honestly very overwhemling . It was awesome having my mom here with me to travel for a week, but it was so hard for her to leave. Saying goodbye to her really made me realize that I was in a foreign country by myself. This may have been the weirdest, scariest, and most vulnerable feeling I've ever had. I kept finding myself thinking 'what have I gotten myself in to?' Meeting my roommates was good, there are 6 of them and they're all really nice! Emily is from New Jersey and goes to Cornell, Jen, Sidney, and Ally are all from Massachusetts and are roommates at University of Massachussets, Cecile is from Pittsburgh and goes to University of Pittsburgh, and Stephanie is from Miami (Florida, not Ohio) and goes to University of Miami. It has been so interesting getting to know all of them because they are honestly so different than me. Emily is Jewish and I thought it was so cool! I know this sounds horrible but I don't think I have ever had the chance to be friends with anyone that is Jewish, so it has been so interesting hearing about all the the traditions and practices that they do like Shabat. The three girls that are roommates at Umass are kind of clinging to each other and that's fine, it just is kinda weird when the rest of us don't know anyone! Cecile came last night, she is so awesome! She is kind of overwhelmed too, so it makes me feel so much better that I have someone to talk to and maybe even vent to when I start missing home and everyone I love.

Today we went to the Vatican and Castel Sant' Angelo! The Vatican was maybe the most amazing and mind blowing place I have ever been. The feeling that I got when I walked in was not only one of awe, but more so a homey feel. It was pretty crazy to me that even though I'm thousands away from my home and where my faith began, I am still able to relate to and feel part of somewhere so special. Our tour guide even took us down to the second level of the Vatican where we got to see the tombs of tons of Popes. It was crazy!! I could've stayed in this beautiful place all day.

It was so interesting that right after seeing home of Catholicism, my Jewish roommate Emily had to leave for Shabat services. I guess not every Jewish person does this, but she chooses to follow it. Every Friday at sundown becomes the Sabbath and a resting time for her. She found another girl in our program who is Jewish and they went to the Synagogue of Rome together. I thought it seemed so cool that instead of gearing up to party it up on Friday night in Rome, she still took time for her self and her faith. She even chooses to not use her phone or computer every week during Shabat. It sounds so crazy to me, but at the same time I am amazed!

This quote popped up as a reminder from God post-it on my home page and I loved it, and its really been helping me:)

"Have no fear. A beautiful future lies before you. Let it be a new life where every happening, even, and plan you are conscious of Me."