Just some thoughts...

1.  The trip is going by fast, and I am enjoying every experience here!  Even being sick in Rome is better than being sick at home! 
2.  I am so bummed that I missed the US Womens game today...I searched all 900 channels in our apartment hoping to find the game, I think I found every game except that one!  I am surprised I have not seen or heard more about futbol here in Rome!  I tried to go to a game, but never have been able to track down one! 
3.  By the end of the trip, I will be ready to be at home.  I love Italy, but not being able to communicate with people is exhausting, never being quite sure of where you're going is fun...unless you need to be somewhere on time, then it is stressful, I am looking forward to a fan and being able to sleep safely with the window open!  Don't get me wrong, I am greatly enjoying Rome...but I am sleepy (it's well worth it, however) I am also looking forward to fresh air, my nose hurts from all the smoke here!
4.  Driving my car, cell phones, and the constant go-go-go that you find in the states, I have not missed.  It will be wierd to have the option to drive, instead of walk 10 miles every day.
 5.  I hope it rains on July 24th, because I am going to go outside and run in it for I have never missed rain like I do right now - I never realized how refreshing it is...until I didn't see it for the better part of five weeks.
6.  I feel like I carry around half the dirt in Rome every day. I haven't felt clean since we arrived here, between the hot weather and dirty roads, floors and sidewalks, dirty all the time is the state I live in!
7.  Rome is beautiful and through the people of Rome I feel like you can see 1 Corinthians lived out (in the older generations, not the teens) If you watch, you can really see patience, kindness, trust, hope, and what it means to be in love.  You can see when a man and woman are together here they are truly with one another.  They are not texting, chatting on the phone, on facebook, ipads, ya-da-ya-da-ya-da they are truly invested with the person they are with...it's amazing to watch.  Call me a creeper, but I have definitely watched the people very closely here and seen many examples of being invested in the person you're with. 
8.  I have never appreciated history as much as I have the past few weeks. History is beautiful, sometimes you need to dig a bit, but history is beautiful. 
9.  Romans know the importance of not working too hard, yet they still seem to konw how to be good workers.  Almost everything is closed for most of if not all of the day on Sunday and some places even Saturdays.  They spend this time with family. They close up shop during the day to give their workers a break.  They really seem to know how to seperate work and play!
10.  I am an adult no matter how much I don't want to admit it.  I have seen the importance of being responsible, respectful and the use of common sense.  I am thankful for the skills and knowledge I was raised with. 

This week holds a lot of exciting adventures -
* An art history midterm tomorrow
* A cooking class tomorrow where I shall learn to make Pasta Carbonara, baked vegetables and chocolate mousse.
* A field trip to St. Peter's
* The ballet - Il Lago Dei Cigni (The Swan Lake) at the Roman baths of Caracalla (Which I hear is a rare and beautiful opportunity)
* A wine tasting class
* An adventure to Cinque Terre
And I'm sure many more good meals with awesome people, amazing sites, and many moments of awe. 
If Rome wasn't so far away from home, I would find a job here so I could be awe-struck every day...I think that commute is a bit rough though!

Thank you to those who have been keeping up with my adventures, I am glad to be able to share in my experiences and I am looking greatly forward to what the last leg of this trip has in store. 


This was my view from dinner last night, The Pantheon under
 a clear blue sky, not too bad if I do say so myself.




Colosseum under the night sky




I wish I could have done justice to how beautiful this is all lit up,
but I just don't think it's even possible.

Sosta e l'odore delle rose oggi. Amo con tutto il tuo cuore. Sorriso.
(Stop and smell the roses today. Love with all your heart. Smile)


Hanno una buona settimana a tutti!