When In Rome.. (Rome 5)

Its that time of the week again, Monday's come by so fast. I feel like I just wrote my blog the other day! (Although this is Tuesday, I was having some WiFi problems earlier!) Little Delay!

This weekend was very different then my others, I stayed in ROME! It was very nice to relax and I actually did some miniature excursions. I got to know more about the public transportation and I can actually navigate pretty well on my own to all my favorite spots of the city! It is comforting to know that I can always know where I am and how to get home. After one full month it made me feel like a true Roman, and then it kind of hit me that I am abroad. (Its about time!)

Thursday night, I went to my favorite pizza place in Rome. It is in Trastevere and close by to my house with the tram. It is one of the best neighborhoods for students in Rome. The restaurant is called Dar Poeta! My favorite part of the meal was the nutella calzone! You don’t get better then bread and chocolate..

Friday I was up early for a schedule mid-evil walking tour with my program! We went back towards trastevere and walked around that area. We stopped for a cappuccino break, and then we went into many churches. It is amazing to me the history that every restaurant, fountain and building has. There is something historical about every little part of this city. From the outside of the buildings, I would always be like, "why are we going in here?" and then the inside would be spectacular!

On Saturday my roommates had planned a day trip to Tivoli. I had never heard of it before but then did some research with them on Friday night. It is VERY famous for its gardens and fountains. It was only about an hour and a half away and the train conductors NEVER check your ticket. It is amazing to me how Italian transportation is compltely free. (I will never understand it) It was a beautiful day and the first place we went was the main attraction. It was called Villa D'este. It was top five, one of the most incredible places I have ever been. The fountains were incredible, and the air was so fresh. Every spot in the garden was more beautiful then the next, it was a photography heaven!! We then went to lunch in the middle of Villa Georgrania, which is an old ruin admist the fountains and gardens. We were actually sitting in lunch besides ancient architecture and a beautiful view of the countryside. It was a great day!

On Sunday, one of my best friends Cayla arrived! I took the bus to meet her at the train station from the airport, and we went right to eat. (OF COURSE!) We had salads, pizzas, wine (no big deal it was 11AM) and we caught up on everything! We then walked around and met her friends for Apertivo. (a pre dinner meal and drink). It was so nice to meet residents of my school. So far, I have really only met study abroad students, and it is very interesting and refreshing to meet students who have spent their college education in Rome. I sometimes feel as If I am trying to rush everything in the couple months I have here, while they have taken their time and made names for themselves in this city. Many of them intern and have jobs lined up in cities such as Milan and Rome.

We came back to my apartment, and attempted to do my Italian Homework, while instead we feasted on the candy in my fridge and hung out. I knew I would be forced to go out (despite my exhaustion and quiz later this week!) but I am excited to be with my new and old friends out and about.

Today, I took a cooking class scheduled through my university! It was so much fun and we learned how to make a delicious meal! We made pasta with sauce and artichokes. We also made fried pork in a grape and walnut sauce, fresh bread, and potatoes! Then we made a custard pie for dessert. All very traditional Roman. We got to be in the kitchen, hands on, and work with a local chef who owns a near by restaurant. I loved it. I even got to flambé the pork (pictured below!)

Thursday is already approaching which means my trip to MADRID is SO SOON! I cannot wait to see EVIE (other member of this blog!) and my other best friend from home. It is so exciting to be able to see my best friends in Europe! I can't wait to visit Spain for the first time and see what they have in store for me!!

Have a great week!

Ali

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!

I know this blog is meant to be used for posts about the cities we are spending our semester in, but I have a post that I know all the abroad girls will really appreciate!

Last week was what many believe is the best week of the whole spring semester…Big Little Week! I personally think our sorority does a lot of things really well, but Big Little is certainly where we really shine! We have an amazing process of getting the new members to meet the older sisters, and from the minute the girls get a bid, it is certainly no secret that Big Little is on everyone’s minds!

One of the main reasons I actually joined AEPhi is because of my current big, Jess, and my grandbig, Hadassa. I met both Jess and Hadassa fall semester of my freshman year, and fell in love! They were two of the nicest, warmest and fun girls I had ever met, and I loved the time I spent with them. Throughout the semester, I met lots of their AEPhi friends, and when recruitment time came around, I couldn’t picture myself anywhere else but with them! So when it came time to select who I wanted as my big, there wasn’t a question in my mind that Jess was the perfect big for me!

The week of Big Little, Jess left me presents on my bed for three nights! It was absolutely amazing! The awkward thing was that we had class together, so I tried my best to avoid her for the week, I couldn’t manage to keep a straight face when I saw her, since it really was supposed to be a surprise. Big little reveal finalized what I had wanted from the minute I knew I loved Jess- she was finally my big!!

My door from when Jess decorated my room!

Me with my grandbig Hadassa and my big Jess!

Fast forward one year, and I was the big searching for a little! Thank goodness I found my perfect match- Marissa. Marissa and I met during recruitment, although I had known about her for months, her older sister (also named Jenna) was a senior in our sorority when I was a freshman. I knew that Marissa was the little for me, and I did my best to girl-flirt my way to her heart, I literally felt like I had a crush! Marissa was sick for a lot of her new member period, so we used to keep in contact by sending each other myspace-y pictures of what we were doing/wearing! Thank goodness she felt the same way about me as I did her, when I found out she was my little I had never felt happier!

Decorating her room was SO exciting! I definitely went a little crazy with the decorations…

Marissa's room on "AEPHI" themed night!

Us at Big/Little Reveal!

 In one year, Marissa became not just my friend and my little, but my best friend! We lived together first semester, and will be living together next year! She is really the greatest thing that has come out of joining AEPhi for me! And as of last week, I am officially a GRAND-BIG (basically just a nice way of calling me a grandma) and Marissa has not one, but TWO amazing littles! TWINS!

Suzanne, Marissa and Ariel!

This is certainly when I consider myself lucky to not be aboard for the semester, I would have been so sad to miss this! Marissa and I baked for what seemed like HOURS, and decorated TWO rooms, for three nights in a row! We tried really hard to keep it a secret that she had twins, especially since one of the littles was Suzanne, my REAL sister, but it seems that toward the end of the week they found out. Ariel and Suzanne are the most perfect editions to our amazing family, and I couldn’t be happier and prouder of MY little for pulling off an amazing week! Some pictures below!!

 Weeks like this really make me miss my friends who are abroad! The five of us really became close, (and friends in the first place) because of AEPhi. Last year we all baked together, and shared the big little experience, even making a joint dinner for our littles after big little reveal! These sorority traditions are so special and exciting, and it was so weird to be doing all these exciting things without some of my best friends. We really do owe our friendship to the sorority, and it has been my absolute pleasure and privilege to deliver the news of how amazing my friends’ grandlittles are, but I really wish that they all were in Boston to share in all the excitement!

Hilary, Ellen, Evie, me and Ali and our beautiful littles!

A Whole Lot of Chocolate

Hola hola!

I had my first big trip this past weekend! My friend Carolyn and I went to Bariloche, a town in the northern part of Patagonia. I didn't really know what to expect, aside from all of the "ahhhhing" from the Argentinean's before I left when I told them I was headed to Bariloche. I didn't want to look at pictures, because I wanted to be surprised.

Little did I know I would be visiting the most beautiful place I have ever been to! It was so full of nature and had European charm. The town of Bariloche is a Swiss town (when all of the immigrants flooded to South America, the Swiss settled in Bariloche and El Bolson). Thus, the small "center" of town had a huge Swiss influence, thus LOTS OF CHOCOLATE!!

The first day we arrived, it was rainy rainy rainy! After our 21 hour bus ride (yes, you read that correctly, but we were treated like royalty with wine, champagne, a merienda, dinner, and breakfast) we were ready to take on the town. Unfortunately, due to the weather, we couldn't do the outdoorsy things we would have otherwise done that day, so we got familiar with the center and tasted chocolate like it was our job! We ate lunch at one of the most well known parillas in all of Argentina! (El Boliche de Alberto) Carolyn got lamb and it was great! We then went back to our really cute hostel and later made ourselves a stir-fry for dinner and met the other people in the hostel. Most people were traveling around South America for many weeks or months, and most were from Europe. The common language was English!

Rainy view from the road to the hostel

Rainy day cure: chocolate caliente

chocolate on chocolate on chocolate

oh and then some gelato

Our cute hostel!

The next day we decided to head to El Bolson, which was formally (and still has a large influence) the huge hippy town in Argentina. Needless to say, it has a very chill atmosphere. I don't know how it couldn't, since it is planted in the middle of a beautiful backdrop of luscious green mountains and a river that runs right through it. They have an amazing artesian fair that we went to with local beer, berries, jams, chocolate, hand-crafted items, and many other things. It was a good day, and we unexpectedly ended up hiking up a mountain that overlooked the small town, which was nice for snapping a few shots. Speaking of snapping shots, the drive to El Bolson was absolutely beautiful and that in itself was worth our day spent there.

El Bolson! and the pretty sky

Frambresas #nomnomnom

View of the town from our hike!

Cute lil mountain town

On the drive there..

and again.. the drive

The next day we headed down the road to go on a bike tour of the lakes surrounding Bariloche. We took the bus (after quite the struggle, may I add, thanks to the kind soul who paid for us to get on...) to the bike renting place. After getting the map of the places we would be seeing, we were off! Excited and full of energy, our feelings quickly took a large downfall... as we saw the first obstacle ahead of us.. aka a mountain. Why I thought we would be doing a flat course was possibly one of the dumbest thoughts my brain has ever processed. HOLA BRAIN, we are in mountains, clearly you are going to be biking up all the mountains around you to get across the lake... what did I expect... magical flying bikes? So, after four hours of utter exhaustion (think a 4 hour spin class....) I must give myself 23 pats on the back for never walking up the hill thank you #stubbornness. BUT really, it was such an amazing experience, I got to see some of the most beautiful views I have ever seen in my life. The agua in these lakes, SO unreal. I don't understand how they are so beautiful and so blue/green! Then.. I took a 3 hour nap... then woke up for dinner.. and passed out once again. It was a fab end to the day.

Panoramic View of some surrounding mountains

Thought I was taking a nice picture at the beginning, but we ended up biking up this and 40 other mountains #died

The next day was by far my favorite day!! Why?? Because we went into town and bought chocolate (kidding, but we actually did go buy chocolate en la mañana). But really the best part of the trip: KAYAKING! We got picked up and brought to a secret lake that was off the beaten path. Carolyn and I doubled up in a kayak and she was the captain controlling the utter (is that the right word?? IDK the steer-y thingy). Anyway, we were on a picturesque lake, and what was the best part? We were the only ones on the lake. This lake was no pond. It was HUGE and it was smack dab in the middle of mountains on all 360 sides of it! So beautiful. I tried to take pictures of the amazing color of the water.. definitely not the same in the pictures.. but ya get the point. That night, we headed into el centre for our last dinner. We got trucha y cierva (fresh trout probably fished out 30 minutes before it was cooked.. but really.... and CIERVA= DEER). Yes people, Ellen Leserman ate deer/venicen, whatever you like to call it. The chica who doesn't eat red meat.. I am so adventurous. It was SO yummy, it tasted just like brisket, and for those of you (MOM) that know my obsession with brisket (like the only red meat I genuinely love), I was a happy lil camper.

On our final day in Bariloche, we cried in our hostel for the morning as we had to depart from our fairy tale vacation. But good news, we both finished our books while we were there! After blowing my nose 393984 times, we were off... I got sick there since it was pretty chilly out. Then we took another 21 hour bus ride back.. And I am still hoping that I will wake up in Bariloche!!!

So, if I am MIA, I probably ran away and you can catch me in Bariloche! (it rhymes)

Besos a todos,

Ellen

The GLAMOUR-ous Life

     I am enjoying my internship at Glamour and am starting to make more bold fashion statements at work. I love seeing the European styles because they inspire me to try new things. Lace up boots, colored pants, fur, denim shirts, and suede are all the rage here. I am realizing that English is a powerful skill in Spain and at Glamour. Although Spaniards learn English in school, the system is not particularly strong. Most people lack sound grammar and don't practice speaking it and are therefore shy and embarrassed to converse in English.
     On Monday I was assigned to write an email as if I was my boss, the editor of the style section, asking a PR company for help with a special photo shoot collaboration for Glamour's 10th anniversary in November. It felt wonderful to feel needed and like I am making an impact.
     Later that day, my co-worker, Leire, invited me to have lunch with her and some of the other gals. I usually eat lunch outside and run errands, but I was so excited that she explicitly asked me that I couldn't say no. I honestly have no idea what was said at lunch because too many people were talking at once, but I laughed and nodded when everyone else did. I loved being part of it. We ate in the cafeteria, each with our respective packed lunches. Everyone commented on how unfortunate it is that I get sandwiches packed for me all the time. To me, a sandwich is a pretty standard lunch item; but since lunch is the main event here, Spaniards bring feasts to work complete with meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
     After lunch, I got to go to the basement, called the "almacen," with Leire to watch them photograph some trench coats in the studio that are going to appear in the magazine in an upcoming edition. I got to see where they keep all of the clothes and shoes from different designers before they photograph them...very impressive!
     Another glamorous part of Madrid is its rich culture. Tuesday Fiona's friend, Robbie, invited Fiona, me, and Cristina to the Teatro Real (where they have the Opera) to see a contemporary Cuban dance show. It started at 8pm, and I had class until 8:30pm, so Fiona and I told our professor a white lie to leave class early. We told him that our host brother was in a play at school that we were going to, and I am so glad we did!
     We arrived one minute before it started and got front row seats for 5 euros a piece! The people sitting next to us paid 50 euros and bought the tickets months in advance. The show was incredible: beautiful and powerful. There were 3 acts: each very different. It was a diverse group of about 30 dancers, guys and girls, all ridiculously muscular and in shape. We were so close that we could see the sweat dripping off their bodies.
     The only way I can explain why the show worked out so perfectly is that Cristina was there. She has what we have deemed "the X factor." She seems to be in the right place at the right time and stumble upon lucky surprises without trying or thinking about it. It's a gift.

Hablamos Pronto,
Evie

Viva Carnivale! (Rome 4)

Ciao to all the followers out there!

It’s that time of week again. I happen to love Monday’s because I get to catch up on sleep from weekend trips and I get to write in this blog! There is always so much to say that I plan it out in my head during class and then write it as soon as I return home!

This weekend was Carnivale in Venice and many other places in Europe! It is definitely an experience and I am so glad that I was able to see it. Carnivale is almost an American type of “mardi-gras.” There are huge festivals in the street, and people come from all over to dress up and wear beautiful masks. Even just walking down the canals, you see people in all types of different and unique costumes.

We booked our hotel on hostel world and had the address of the hotel as soon as we got off the train from Rome. It was only about a three hour ride from Rome and we slept the whole time. (Going out the night before and waking up at 6 AM might not always be the best idea). We took out our phones and Venice Map as we searched for the hotel. Something we were not aware of before we went is that directions in Venice are extremely complicated, to say the least. There are so many little alley ways that navigation is never simple. (below is a picture of us trying to figure out our way!) After walking around for 2 hours, (calculated as an estimate 20 minute walk originally) we arrived at Al Lion Morosini. The location ended up being very good, half way in between San Marco square and the Al Academia Bridge. We had a huge balcony that over looked one of the canals. It was really nice until we realized that people party (a lot) right under neath the balcony in a common square. While trying to nap on Saturday we were awoken to the singing of the Italian version of "when the saints go marching in.." multiple times. There were also any other songs that were chanted very loudly. It ended up being really funny and I now have the whole thing on video..

We began our day of touring! On Friday we went to San Marco square and the Rialto Bridge to observe all the amazing costumes. The next day, we went towards Academia Bridge again, where there is an American university. We went for lunch and then walked to the famous gelateria Da Nico. This was probably the best dessert I have ever had. The gelato was fabulous and they had a special dessert that we all shared. It was a brick of hazelnut chocolate ice cream dipped in espresso and whipped cream. IT WAS UNREAL! We also went to the Guggenheim Museum that had a great Jackson Pollack and cotemporary exhibit. That night, I had another incredible food binge. We went to GAM GAM restaurant in the Jewish Ghetto of Venice. We had matzoh ball soup, potato latkas, and fresh hummus. It was the best break from Italian food ever! I felt like I was in my living room during the Jewish holidays.

The weekend’s seem long but also fly by at the same time. Sunday we woke up, grabbed snacks and headed to the train station. This time we found it within only 20 minutes, but that did not fore shadow what was about to occur! I had bought mine and my friend Hannah’s tickets for our return train to Rome. It was the 12:27PM and everyone had done the same time as well. When they came to take our tickets, there seemed to be a problem. We looked at her confused, as to what could possibly be wrong. BOTH our tickets were for Monday instead of Sunday! I could not believe it. The conductor demanded we get off at the next stop. Getting kicked off of the train in Italian? That’s a new one! As we arrived in BOLOGNA, we had to switch trains and get on a new train to Rome. Although it wasn’t as bad as it initially sounded, it was somewhat of an annoyance! I stormed into the Tren Italia office asking them to help us in any way possible. After bombarding them with English, we ended up actually saving money for our ride home since from Bologna it was much cheaper! We got on a new train 23 minutes later, and off to Rome we went. Now we can cross of Bologna of the places we have been ;)

I am excited to be back in Rome and escape the crowds of people from this weekend. It is Venice’s busiest time of the year, and you can tell. The tiny streets are NOT big enough for thousands of people all trying to see the same thing!

I bought two masks as souvenirs in Venice. Both were very beautiful and I wore one while I was there. I can’t wait to hang them up in my room and always remember the weekend here! Most of the costumes are all handmade, and the craftsmanship of them is unbelievable.

I am STAYING in Rome this weekend for a very special reason! My friend from one of my summer programs who spent time at the same university as me now (a couple years ago), is coming back to visit!! She is going to stay with me and her friends who still attend American school here in Rome. I know she will show me places I haven’t been yet and I am really excited to do some things in Rome I have wanted to do during the week. It is hard to accomplish everything when you wake up and remember you have class!

I want to do some shopping and get some roman fashion style clothes for sure. I packed very lightly and I am starting to get a little low on clothes if I don’t periodically do my laundry. Zara and Brandy Melville here I come!

More to come next week as always! Grazie!

Ali

so where are we going this weekend? (Rome 3)

I can't believe that it has been almost a month since I landed in Rome! Time really does fly when you are having fun....

Since the week days seem like a complete blur- I usually just go to class and try doing as much possible homework before the weekend while relaxing and stuffing my face with pasta and Italian snacks. They actually have DELICIOUS popcorn and cookies here!

On Thursday I felt a little run down & exhausted. If you know anything about me: that is not a good combination! I woke up the next day with a cold- obviously! This was a typical average everyday sickness in my life so I still packed and got ready for LONDON! I had some nice decongestant medicine on the plane and I was set to go.

Easy jet is a cheap airline that people use in Europe to travel. I can compare it to a type of jet blue with better prices! You are allowed to ONLY take one carry on luggage bag. I thought, how hard could this be? WELL I decided to pack a "bigger purse" and the one carry on. This did not fly (haha) well with the staff of easy jet. The process I had to go through to NOT pay 50 euro and get both bags successfully on the plane took skill and intelligence. When you have a best friend helping that makes things easier. Hannah decided to take my bag with her less noticeable back pack and tell them she was holding it for a friend in the bathroom coming right back. Met her past security and we had one more check point. With confidence and a stern look in my eye to the flight attendant (aka take my bag and I'll throw a fit) IT ALL WORKED! Only thing is, on the way back- I had to check it. THERE WENT THAT PLAN! I learned my lesson and advise anyone who is flying abroad to also, just bring ONE pair of black leggings- no need for three. ALWAYS a smaller bag!

Besides that, I will continue onto my fun London adventures! In London I stayed with my best camp friend Gari (pictured below). She lives in a great part of London near the tube so it was easy to get everywhere! My first afternoon there we went to Harrods. The whole store is such eye candy and I wanted everything from the food to the clothes! If I went abroad there I would be concerned for my parents financial well-being. At night we went to an awesome club with acrobats and dressed up dancers! Such a cool and different scene then in Italy.

The next morning we woke up early and went to Starbucks. HAVING AN ICE COFFEE BIGGER THEN A SHOT AND ONE ICE CUBE MADE MY DAY! We then went to changing of the guards, Buckingham palace, Portobello market and high tea! Portobello market was really awesome. It is best on Saturdays and has everything! The food was super cool and from so many different ethnicities. There was a ton of sampling (score!) and it was nice to try something other then pasta and pizza!

It felt really nce to go to a place that spoke English. It was just easier and a good break for sure! I also enjoyed asian food and frozen yogurt for the first time in a WHILE! I must say though I told the cab drivers "si" and "gratize" multiple times!! They looked pretty confused...

Before we left on Sunday Hannah & I met up with our old camp counselor who lives in London. It was SO cool and nice to see her there. We walked around soho for a little bit and then went back to Victoria station to get to the airport.

I brought home a ton of.. CANDY from London! Italy is amazing but it is super hard to find gummy bears and sour treats here! My room is currently stoked up with amazing yummy goodies :)

This Friday I will be heading to Venice for Italy's version of "Mardi Gras" called carnival. It has been so cold in Europe that some of their canals are frozen though! I didn't even bring a winter jacket and Europe is colder then ever. It is hard to find warmth in this country...seriously!!

I am having the best time and feel so lucky to be able to do everything that I am. My little in our sorority got her very own little today in Boston and that makes me miss school a lot!! Just something that I want to be involved in and am too far away! (when my grand little reads this- you are so lucky to have the greatest pham!) I know that I will be back before I know it though- and I need to take advantage of where I am as much as possible.

Un Sacco di amore,

Ali