The Roman Adventure, p.1

This is long, long overdue, but I’ve been doing a lot of work for school. So, two essays and two presentations later, a summary of my adventures in Rome:

Day One (starting in Brighton)

I woke up. I caught the bus to the coach station where I got the bus to Heathrow. I missed my stop, not realizing I was supposed to get off at Terminal 5. I had to catch a bus back to terminal 5. It was funny because I had to pay 50p to get the bus, but all I had was a 10 pound note, and the driver didn’t have change, so the three people who were also on the bus immediately started going through their change and one of them paid for me. Old people are so sweet :)

Anyway, after that I got to the proper terminal and got on the plane. It was a really smooth ride, pretty much no turbulence except towards the end when we went through some clouds. Once I arrived in Rome I caught the train to Termini station, then I took the metro to Viale Manzoni. The hostel was a short walk away, around 4 minutes. I stayed at Ciak Hostel, a nice, cozy little hostel, which I’d definitely recommend. (No, they aren’t paying me to say this, I just found their staff to be amazing. They’re all really nice there.)

And then after I checked in, I wandered around to find somewhere to eat. That’s when I had my first issue with the language barrier. The guys who worked at the pizza place didn’t speak a word of English. They kept asking me if I spoke any other languages and I felt really stupid for only speaking one. I eventually got my message across, got some pizza, and went back to the hostel, hoping the next few days would be less awkward.

Day Two

I decided to start early and went to the Coliseum. Unfortunately my sense of direction is terrible, so pretty much whenever I wanted to go somewhere I went the direct opposite way. (Eventually I spent so much time there that I did learn how to read the map properly, so yay for entrapment by volcano?) I walked the wrong way for ten minutes, then walked back the right way. It was pretty much a straight line from the hostel to the Coliseum. I walked around the entire thing trying to figure out how to get inside. Upon walking around a second time I realized the entrance was extremely obvious, and that I still sucked at directions.

It was really cool. There’s a little museum type thing on the second floor, and you can walk around the inside (but not on the ground on the inside). I had already downloaded a free thing about the Coliseum before I left, so I listened to that while I walked around. They had gladiator fights in there and everything.

Next was Palatine Hill, which is

a short walk from the Coliseum (there are signs; the Roman Forum is next to it too). It was really pretty, though very uphill. I was tired after only a few minutes. I’m not sure what else to say about it, but it was impressive to see.

I went to the Roman Forum next. I really, really wish I had had a tour guide, because I had no idea what I was looking at. There were no signs that I could see. I wasn’t even sure if I was in the right place. It was a bunch of broken down stone buildings, and while it was cool to look at, I didn’t actually know what it was. Tour guides are expensive though, and considering all the extra money I spent while I was later trapped there, I’m glad I didn’t waste any more money on a guide. (Overall, you don’t need a guide for the Coliseum, or necessarily Palatine Hill, but I’d definitely recommend one for the

Forum.)

I was very tired after the Forum, but the day wasn’t done yet. I tried to go to the Pantheon and somehow ended up at Trevi Fountain. I’m laughing as I write this because that’s completely ridiculous. I have no idea how I ended up there…I thought I was following the map. Fail.

I bought some souvenirs and sat down and got a picture and through a coin in…you know, all the touristy stuff. I

checked the time on my phone and decided to get some gelato too—fragola, or strawberry in English. It was good but to be honest nothing special. I decided to sit down again right before searching for the Pantheon, just to

rest a bit more. After a few minutes I got up and tried going to the Pantheon. Five minutes later I want to check the time again. But I couldn’t. Why? Because my phone was gone.

Yeah, that second time I sat down is when it happened. I got up and the phone fell out of my pocket. I know, because I remember thinking something felt odd, but figured I was just being paranoid. Good job me.

So I immediately turned around to go back to the Trevi Fountain. After all, there was still a chance it was there, right? Only not really, because it’s probably the biggest tourist trap in Rome, and there’s a gagillion people sitting and standing around there. And what made it worse is that I SUCK AT DIRECTIONS, so even though I’d just come from there, when I tried to go back I ended up lost, and it took maybe 15 minutes to find it again. Of course, the phone wasn’t there anymore.

Really irritated, I decided to just go to the Pantheon, and thanked my lucky stars I had brought a spare phone just in case. It ended up being extremely useful, what with the volcano and all.

You know, I feel really bad for contributing to the whole “women are horrible at directions” stereotype, but I really am horrible at it. Sigh.

And the Pantheon wasn’t even that impressive. There was this massive scaffold covering half of it, and there wasn’t really anything inside. I made my way back to the hostel for the day.

Even though it kind of sounds like I had a bad day, I actually really enjoyed it, and I talked to some nice girls when I got back, so it was a decent day. It sounds kind of negative reading it back, but it really wasn’t. I guess I just figured I only have 2 more months in England anyway, so losing the phone wasn’t that big of a deal. I mean, in 5 years when I look back at my life, I seriously doubt losing that phone will even matter in the grand scheme of things.

It’s all about perspective people. That’s my bit of optimism for the day—enjoy it, it’s rare.

This is getting really long actually so I’ll continue this another day. I’ve used the word “really” a lot in this entry, sorry about that. I’m really, really sorry about that ;)

The Roman Dilemma...is OVER!

Really quick, really short update. I'm back in Brighton! I got back a few days ago and I've basically been to lazy to post, but I just wanted to give an update. I managed to get a flight back. Thank goodness this nightmare is over. I guess it'll be a cool story for the kids one day.

Anyway I have a bunch of stuff to do this current week so I'll post again soon.

The Roman Dilemma of 2010, p. 1

Hello there. Well, there's a ton of drama going on right now so I may as well make it interesting.

And now, a first look into the mind of one of the thousands of stranded people due to the Icelandic volcanic eruption.

Yeah, that's right. I'm stuck in a foreign country with pretty much no hope of getting back any time soon. I'm in Rome right now. I got here last Tuesday and was set to leave on Friday. Only what happened? A volcano, that's what happened. And of course, it happened to me.

I'll update more another time, mainly because right now there are only two computers in the hostel and everyone is in freak out mode trying to figure out how to get back home. School starts this week. I have two essays due next week. I'm a student, which means I only have so much money. This is a nightmare come true, and you're getting a first look!

Right now I'm looking into a bus or something. It'd take forever, but all the trains are sold out. It'ds just a horrible situation. British Airways isn't doing a single thing---I'm stuck paying everything myself. Very, very not good.

I'll just write a quick summary of Rome then:

1. They drive like crazy people. Those scooters/motorcycles/whatever they are are everywhere, and they try to squeeze past you even when the "walk" sign is on.

2. There are pizza and gelato shops everywhere. It's awesome. One bad thing is that drinks are really expensive. If you plan on coming to Rome I'd suggest bringing a water bottle and just filling it up at the numerous water fountains located all around the city. That's free, and considering how expensive this city is, free is good.

Actually, that's all I'm writing for now. I have to go and try to find a bus or train or whatever. Stress galore.

Oh well. at least I didn't go all the way to the airport only to be told to go back. That would've been horrible. My WONDERFUL mother texted me the morning I was going to the airport and warned me about the volcano, saving me from a trip.

Laterrrr.

To be continued, muahaha......

Edinburgh :D

Hi! So guess what I did last weekend? I went to Edinburgh! Which I learned is not pronounced the way it is spelled. Who knew?

It was a nice trip. Of course, with my luck it started raining as soon as the train pulled into Waverley Station. Luckily the hostel was very close by.

I’d like to talk about hostels actually. I think students who’ve never done any research on hostels seem to think you’re going to end up murdered by a crazy person, due to that movie called Hostel. I’ve never seen that movie but apparently it’s gory or something. But in reality, hostels are a great place to stay. Yeah you won’t have a room to yourself (or you could if you’re willing to spend a little more) but that wasn’t an issue for me. The room held around 12 people I think. You can request a single sex room if you want (which I did), though some hostels don’t offer them. The hostel I stayed at had lockers so I felt my belongings were safe (no pun intended).

Since it was raining, the first day wasn’t amazing. I got there at around 2 in the afternoon after taking the train. I wandered down the Royal Mile after putting my stuff at the hostel. I went to a few museums like the Museum of Childhood (which had these really cool old pedal cars that kids could pretend to drive in; they only have those cheap plastic ones now). I tried going into the Palace of Holyroodhouse, but it was closed that day. Exhausted from all the traveling, I just went back to the hostel and went to sleep early.

The next day I got up and went to the castle, which was like a three minute walk from the hostel; it’s ridiculously close by. I really liked looking at all the old stuff inside (sorry, my ability to describe things properly is extremely lacking). It was a cool looking castle, and it was sunny, so that was a bonus. I had a sort of brunch at a café in the castle, and then I was off.

I went to the Palace of Holyroodhouse next. We weren’t allowed to take pictures inside. That’s where the Queens stay when they visit Scotland, or something.

After that I took a free tour around the area. The guide was very entertaining and it was nice to hear a bit of Edinburgh’s history. There’s this thing called the Mercat Cross where they used to nail thieves’ ears to the wall of it, and they had to stay there for 24 hours while people threw food at them and stuff. They could rip themselves off, but then part of their ear would be missing, so people would later know they were a thief anyway.

I also visited the Elephant House, the place where J.K. Rowling first started writing Harry Potter. I didn’t like the menu though, so I didn’t eat there.

I also tried to visit the Royal Botanic Gardens. To make a long, pathetic story short, that didn’t happen, and I ended up just getting something to eat and going back to the hostel.

I left early the next day. I decided not to go to Princes Street, because it’s just a bunch of shops, and I don’t need to waste any more money. I got breakfast at a place on the Royal Mile and then got the train back to Falmer.

Overall, the trip was okay. I didn’t see the highlands, but I wasn’t planning to. I think it might’ve been nicer if I’d shelled out some more money to take a day trip to the highlands or to loch ness…but really, I just don’t have that kind of money. Maybe another time.

It was a nice little getaway. I’m still on vacation until the 19th. I’m still working on my nano (I keep coming up with new ideas, it’s so annoying…I just want it over with) and some other stuff…I also have to pick courses for next year soon. That should be fun. I’m not being sarcastic either, I like picking new courses.

That’s that then. I’ll see you soon :) Happy Easter!

Really quick

Time for an update.

Well, it’s vacation. Wow, that didn’t sound enthusiastic at all. For some reason I’m thinking ahead and I feel like a month isn’t enough time…which is amusing because people in the states only have a week.

I went to see Wicked yesterday. I’ll spare you a “wicked” pun and say it was amazing. We were really close up, which was a bad idea in hindsight because when you’re that close you have to crane your neck to look at stuff happening on top of the stage, or in the air…or something. What I mean is, sometimes there were people climbing up the sides as monkeys and it hurt to look up at them after a while.

But yeah, it was amazing. And after coming home and doing a ton of research on the cast and spending a ridiculous amount of time on youtube attempting to find videos of the people we saw last night, I’ve come to the completely uninformed conclusion that the London show is WAY BETTER than the American one. I actually have no idea whether that’s true or not, but I’ve been comparing versions of “Defying Gravity” all day (even different versions by the same person) and I like the British cast better. The woman playing Elphaba is the only one who actually sounds like the witch…and that’s enough focus on that.

I also went to Covent Garden yesterday. To be honest, I don’t know what to say about it. It was a bunch of stores on a bunch of streets. I guess it’s cool if you want to go shopping, but I expected it to be a bit different.

And…that’s all I have to say. Since it’s vacation I’ll try and update once a week like I did before. Bye 

I want to play a game...

Right into it:

BritBit 1: Crutches. The crutches here are different than the ones in the U.S. They don’t go under your arms, they go around your elbows and you hold onto a part sticking out of the crutch. They look old fashioned, but they’re the only types of crutches I see here, so I’m guessing those are the ones they use.

…I really don’t have anything else to say. Everything is so familiar now; nothing stands out. Have I mentioned the faucets? Yes. Have I mentioned…hm…I know. Let’s play the look-around-the-room-and-see-what’s-different-than-the-U.S. game.

Oh!

BritBit 2: Just noticed a bag of crisps. Lays potato chips are called Walkers here. It was amusing the first time I saw it, but now it’s normal. I actually forgot what Lays were called the other day—I heard someone talking to someone else saying that “Walkers aren’t called Walkers in the U.S.” which is what reminded me of this fact in the first place.

BritBit 3: Just noticed the cereal boxes sitting above my head on the shelf. There are several British versions of popular American cereals.

Cocoa Krispies = Kellogg’s Coco Pops

Cocoa Puffs = Nestle Nesquick. I was confused when I first saw this, because Nesquick is a chocolate drink in the U.S., not a cereal.

Honey Nut Cheerios = Honey Cheerios. Basically the same thing.

They have Rice Krispies here too. I think they have Special K as well. Unfortunately, they don’t have Captain Crunch with crunchberries or Apple Jacks or Fruity Pebbles. I found some websites that ship all kinds of American foods (amusingly, Mountain Dew and Lucky Charms are the most prominent product on all the sites’ home pages; they are the quintessential American snacks) but it’s ridiculously expensive. I’ll manage without it.

Still looking…

By the way, Eurostar contacted me today about their atrocious Christmastime performance. I’m getting a refund AND a free return trip on Eurostar! I have no idea where to go though…I’ve already been to Paris; it seems like it’d be a waste to go back when there are other places to go. Then again, the other places are Lille and Belgium, which don’t exactly appeal to me. I have no pressing urge to go to either of those places, so I could go back to Paris and visit a few places we missed last time…and now I’m just thinking on paper so I’ll move on.

…Random note, but I can’t believe how clean my room is…relatively speaking, anyway.

Okay, focus. British things, British things…

BritBit 4: I really didn’t need as many outlet converters as I thought. I’m only using one, to my surprise. At home I use at least five. I have two converters but when I brought them to Paris (they were useless and I knew that, I don’t know what I was thinking) I never bothered to plug one of them back in when I got back. The only thing plugged in is my computer. I bought a phone here so the charger is already in…I don’t know, British format. If I need another outlet I just unplug my computer and use it for the other thing. So anyone planning on studying in the UK, you might not need as many converters as you’d think.

On another note, my main light isn’t working. During the day I open the curtains, but at night I have to use my mirror light and my desk light (which happens to be on my nightstand for inexplicable reasons). I tried contacting the porter about it and he said someone would be around to fix it the next day. That was last week. I’ll guess I’ll go back later and DEMAND SERVICE…or, more realistically, ask politely for someone to fix my light.

Oh!

BritBit 5: I found a store that sells sneakers! Which, by the way, are called trainers here. I’ve tried looking for them, but all I’ve been able to find were flats and heels and such—all of which didn’t fit because the sizing here is weird. 3s are too small and 4s are too big, though some 4s do fit, depending on the shoe. Argh.

Anyway, I found a store near Churchill Square, the only mall (that I know of) in Brighton. The store is a sneaker paradise, and practically everything was on sale. So I got some new shoes, yay me. Also, I got a new coat for a decent price, since winter is almost over and they’re putting winter stuff on sale. It was a good weekend.

Okay, I think that’s a decent length for an entry. Oh, by the way, my classes are going okay. Just thought I’d mention it, since that’s kind of why I’m here in the first place.

Enough with that boring stuff. See you next time!

Randomness

Hello there. I seem to have unofficially gone from updating once a week to once every two weeks. Oops.

It's hard to think of things to talk about. At first it's like wow, everything's different! After five months it'd difficult to notice little cultural differences. But here's one...

BritBit 1: CCTV. I don’t know what it stands for, but basically it’s a bunch of surveillance cameras all over the place. Whenever you walk into a store it has a sign that says something to the effect of, “This place is being monitored by CCTV”. At first I thought it was some special sort of camera that everyone had, but I see it absolutely everywhere. Apparently it’s the government keeping track of people. Some people don’t like the idea of being constantly watched, which is understandable. For some reason the first thing I thought of when I found out that it was the government’s cameras is that it’s good, because if you’re ever falsely accused of a crime you will already have cameras everywhere proving you weren’t there. I watch too many cop shows.

You know, I think about different things for BritBits all the time, but as soon as I sit down to write, I forget what they are.

Wait, I think I remember one:

BritBit 2: As well. As well, as well, as well. People here say “As well” all the time. Americans just say “too” usually. It’s like every conversation I hear, people say “As well”. It’s slightly annoying.

BritBit3 3: Top Shop. It’s a really popular clothing store. Apparently they have them in the U.S. too, but I’m not very fashionable so I didn’t hear of its existence until I got here.

BritBit 4: The X Factor. It’s a show kind of like American Idol…actually, it might be exactly like that, I’ve never seen it. It’s a singing competition and everyone loves it; it’s huge. It might be coming to the U.S. soon, so Americans will get to experience it as well…oh crap, I’ve started saying it too.

I’m really, really tired. Papers aren’t fun. I know I just had some due the last time I posted, but I had another one due today.

It’s weird to think I only have a few more months here. I’m not looking forward to the reverse culture shock…being surrounded by Americans again…ugh. It’s weird to think about. I’m so used to hearing stuff like, “I’m gonna go to the pub and get a pint, yeah, and do a bit of dancing as well.” It’ll be odd to hear the American version, “Dude, I’m going to the club tonight and getting wasted.”

Okay, that’s all I have to say. Later.