Europe :)

Sorry this has taken so long to update but the internet is very spotty and I don't have access to it much!! Plus, I had finals last week in Roma, which took up quite a bit of my time, but now I am done with the tough finals!!

The picture above is my friend Ron and I at the European Constitutional Court. We got to go on the terrace and had a speaker. Basically the equivalent of the Supreme Court! Very cool!!

We got to Strasbourg on Monday for the focus on gender in the law and international human rights and the institutional field study. It is extremely interesting and we spend our class periods talking about international human rights topics. We took a bus to Luxembourg today (GORGEOUS CITY) and we get to visit the European Union's International Court of Human Rights tomorrow which should be very interesting :)

Last week was basically spent on finals, and the week went by extremely fast!! It was kind of sad to say goodbye to some of these people I have spent the last month with. You become extremely close because you spend every waking moment with these people!

We had a final banquet at a restaurant called the View in which Justice and Professor Ginsburgs attended. The view from the restaurant was amazing and we had a great time!

This past weekend I went to Amsterdam which is another gorgeous city. I cannot wait to go back some day!! The weather was more my style--around 65-70 degrees which was a welcome change from the 100 degree weather of Roma!!

I will be in Strasbourg until next Friday and then I am going to Paris with some friends and meeting up with Heather and Whitney!! YAYYYYY!!!!! This weekend I am not going anywhere as I am running low on funds (hint hint mom and dad). The rest of the group is going to Paris o see the end of the Tour de France!! That would be sooo amazing!!

Well better jet--I am extremely tired!!

Week Three!!

I apologize in advance for how short this is going to be as I am studying for finals that are on Friday while trying to incorporate all of the "last minute" sightseeing and goal accomplishing that I need to do!! There are still so many things I wanted to do, but our days seem to be so packed with activities and lectures that it makes it diffcult to do anything else!

Last week we begun our lectures by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg which were amazing. She is one of the most intriguing people I have met and she is so intelligent it is indescribile.

Last week I also went to the Vatican museum and saw all of the historical artwork there and the Sistine Chapel. We also visited the tombs of all of the Popes and St Peters. We then found an amazing, cheap little pizzeria and had dinner.

This past weekend, I went to Cinque Terre which translates to 5 lands or 5 villages. We hiked for about 6 hours on Friday from town to town. If you don't know much about Cinque Terre you should google it. It was a beautiful vacation and it was fun to lay on the beach, hike, and swim all weekend. We went Thursday through Sunday and got back that night.

This week we have a final banquet (tonight) and a visit to the Supreme Court of Italy (Thursday) and studying for finals while trying to get in the last few sights and pack for France!! This weekend, we have a three day break before going to Strasbourg and we are taking off for Amsterdam!!

Ciao!!

Week Two

I haven't been very good at updating this but that is because I had a final last week! I will try harder :)

This is the view from the top of the Attorney General's office. We had a special invite to hear the top attorneys of Italy speak on various topics from civil law, to criminal, to tax, etc. The language barrier was a little difficult and it was, like usual, hot as crap in the building. It boggles my mind that Italians do not seem to notice the lack of air conditioning. I thought I was going to fall asleep because it was sooooo hot in there! This picture is taken on the rooftop patio and the building in the back to the right is the Supreme Court of Italy, and the hill behind it is where our school is located so that is kind of a cool pic. Once again, I have like ten million.

On Thursday we went and got pedicures and Italian pedicures are clearly different than American in the fact that you sit on a medical bed and put your feet in a bucket, and what you get depends on the ladies mood. Jesse got the deluxe pedicure version and I got the low end version but whatever. It was quite the experience!

Here is a picture of my roommate and Emily and I on Thursday night at a little hole in the wall restauant. Thank god we get along really well because it would be miserable not!! Even though my roommate cannot tell time ;)

Tomorrow I will write about my Fourth of July weekend :) Just need some pics to add!!

Ciao!!

Things I Have Learned in Italy

1. People here move SOOO slow. No one is in a hurry to do anything. If you want to fly somewhere, you MUST get to the airport abut 24 hours early because that's how long it takes to get through security.

2. The concept of forming lines is foreign to these people. Everyone just kind of crowds around whatever it is that you are trying to get to and there is no structure. Another good example is the airport when you are trying to check in and get your boarding pass. Don't bother getting in line. And be prepared for it to take 5 hours minimum.

3. Everything closes at around 2 pm and stays closed until about 4. Don't think you are going to get anything between those hours because everything is closed for siesta. That's right, naptime.

4. Don't go to a restaurant before 7:30 because either they won't let you in or if they do, they ignore you until 7:30 and you just sit there and wait.

5. Dinner takes forever and your meatballs come as a separate course from your spaghetti. Spaghetti first, solo meatball next.

6. Drinking 6 bottles of wine the night before your first final exam is a BAAAADDD idea.

7. Italian men are a huge boost to your confidence. They love American women.

8. Stick to sidewalks and as close as you can get to the building because the drivers are freaking crazy.

9. Cab drivers pass cars on the wrong side of the road and cut around normal drivers and turn in front of oncoming traffic. It's like a scary carnival ride.

10. There are mosquitoes in Italy. (Yes mom, Williston is NOT the only place with mosquitoes)

11. Apparently just like in America, I do not tan when spending all day in the sun. I just stay the same pasty white color.

12. Gelato is like a way of life around here. In my head because it is served in a smaller cup, it is better for me. More than likely untrue.

13. I would kill for Chipotle.

14. If you ask for your food to go, people don't understand. Yet another time-saving, efficient concept that is foreign to Italians.

15. It is sooo hot here. In every picture I take my makeup is gone, my hair is frizzy from the humidity, and I am sweaty. We keeping laughing that every picture has two things in common: sweaty face and big sunglasses. And PS the showers are never enough because when you are done getting ready from your shower, you are sweaty again.

16. I read somewhere that Italians eat a half of a pound of bread a day. A HALF POUND??!! Obviously, the low carb diet doesn't exist and I still don't understand how these people are so skinny. The staples of my diet are: tomatoes, cheese, bread, persecco, gelato, vino, and sometimes pancetta or prosciotto. I had the most amazing brie and speck pannini that looked like it was about 1000 calories.

17. Despite all my complaints, I secretly love it all :)