Back to work

Well its Sunday again. I can't believe its been a week since I last posted anything. I also can't believe that I arrived in Rome only 2 weeks ago. It feels like I left months ago and I already feel like I live in Rome.

This week we have all been adjusting to being architecture students again. All of us had full time jobs last semester (co-op) and we haven't been students since last April. Its all a bit of a shock to get used to things again. The life of an architecture student consists of working for 20 hours on a project that we take 10 minutes to present and then being berated and criticized for not thinking enough about the project and not taking enough time to look at one certain detail. We had all learned to handle it by the time we left for co-op but we lost that tough skin after 6 months of actually getting paid for our work.

Our first project was due on Friday. We got together in groups to research different aspects of the city. We are trying to inform ourselves of the urban context of Rome before we begin our individual projects of designing a building in Rome. Our professors told us that we would have 5 minutes to present a set of 4 slides. My group prepared a pretty good slideshow, only to be torn a new one (excuse my french) by the critics. Apparently a 5 minute presentation translates into 15 minutes and we didn't do enough work. Ah...what a warm welcome. Thank goodness it was Friday, my anger was washed away with that first gulp of beer.

We went out on Friday night. If my memory serves right (which it may not), we got to bed around 5am. I slept until noon and sat in the apartment doing homework for the rest of the day. I haven't slept a full 8 hours since I got to Rome. Its a combination of jet lag, partying, and pure homesickness. So while everyone else went out last night, I caught up on my Gossip Girls and One Tree Hill. I'm not sure I can watch them again, it just increased my homesickness. Sitting in my empty apartment, watched those shows on my laptop doesn't quite compare with sitting by a roaring fire with my mom and sisters, gasping at every soap opera moment.

I finally went to bed around 11.30, was woken up by one of my roommates calling me, drunk of course, at 4am. At that point, I took a sleeping pill and went back to sleep for 7 hours. I am crossing my fingers that I'm caught up on sleep and will be taking a Melatonin pill tonight to try and regulate my sleep cycles. You know its bad when your Italian teacher comments on how big the bags are under your eyes.

Today I will be doing homework all day. Correcting the slideshow that was not good enough, and doing some sketching at a Piazza down the street. I will be attempting to fight off homesickeness for the next week or so, until I can get used to Rome a little better, although it never completely goes away. I hope everyone is well at home and in Boston, or wherever you are in the world.

Love you all and hope you're having fantastic days.

Ash

A weekend of sleep

Since I last wrote, we have finished "orientation week" and now its Sunday night. Our last two tours of the week were of the Jewish Ghetto (surprisingly interesting) and Piazza Popola and the trident that extends from it and into the city. They were great tours but our first one of the Forum and Colosseum was the best one. This might have been because of the fact that, for the last two days, my feet were blistering and I wasn't getting any sleep.

On Thursday night, as I was skypeing with my parents, my classmates and I decided to go out for ONE drink. I know now that its impossible to limit the drinking of ten people out on the town. We ended up bar hopping to four different places, and getting home at 4am. I had to wake up at 7am the next morning. Once again, completely sleep deprived. There is an area here called Campo di Fiori. Its basically a gathering area for all American students in Rome. This was where we were all Thursday night. Although it was really fun, I would like to try and find some Roman hang outs. I didn't come to Rome to party with Americans, besides my roommates and friends, of course.

Speaking of roommates, I live with 3 other girls and 6 guys. The 20 other students are on the 2 floors below us. So far, the dynamic of the 10 of us is working really well. The guys are some of the nicest, most respectful, and funny people I've ever met. Not to mention the fact that, somehow, they are all pretty gorgeous. The girls are some of my best friends from the architecture program. And on top of all that, everyone is so clean! Our kitchen is spotless most of the time. I couldn't be happier with the living situation.

On Friday, after our last tour and lecture for the week. We trudged home in the rain and got dressed to the nines for our "welcome dinner". The school arranged a traditional Italian dinner for my entire 36 person class and our 8 professors. We all got dressed up (pictures soon to come) and went to the studio for pre-dinner Proseco and then to the restaurant. It was a 4 course meal complete with wine. To speak frankly, the food could have been better, but it was a great experience with everyone in such high spirits. I was so tired that I was ready to go to bed after dinner. However! in the their usual way, my roommates convinced me to go out and we spent another night out until 2am. We then came back to the apartment and continued the party until 5am. 

Needless to say, we all slept until 3pm the next day. I had to catch up on sleep! I woke to see an hour and half of beautiful daylight and then went back to sleep again. That night, Pat's friend (and now mine), Alessio, took me out for drinks. He drove me (on his scooter!) to a little restaurant near my apartment and we had some fantastic wine. He gave me some great tips about Rome and we had a good chat at the same time. Note to Pat: Thank you! I now have a connection in Rome. He told me to call him any time. I'm sure we will be getting together a few more times before I leave.

On Saturday night, one person suggested that we stay home rather than go clubbing and everyone in the room groaned with relief. We were just waiting for someone to suggest it because we were all so burnt out.

Today is Sunday and we had one assignment for the weekend. We had to go out and find an "interesting interior space" to do a detailed drawing of. We slept in until 11am and then ventured out into the city. We went by this HUGE flea market by our apartment where I got a belt for 2 Euro (genuine leather, I'm sure) and a night light for reading without bothering my roommate. Then we crossed the Tiber and found ourselves in the middle of the more suburban area of Rome. Its actually scary how much more run down it is than the centro of the city. We went and ate a beautiful cafe in the Ghetto (proscuitto, grilled eggplant, and mozzarella on olive foccacia bread) for lunch and then began exploring the churches in the area. 

After passing through the Chiesa Nicola (took a picture for you Nikki) and its underground tavern, we settled on drawing another church near Circus Massimo and the Forum. Near Aventine Hill. We did a rough sketch for about an hour and half and then came back to the apartment and spend another 2 hours finishing the drawings. I must say though, my drawing skills are already getting better, and I could not be more happy with my work.

Anyway, we are going to search for some gelato before retiring to bed. Have a long first day of classes tomorrow and I need more than 8 hours tonight.

Love you all, hope your days are fantastic.

Ash

Jetlag and Tours

I've been here for three days so far and I think I've finally gotten over the flight. However, they have kept us so busy that I haven't had time to gather my thoughts and realize that I'm in such an incredible city.

I left my house at 4.30 am to catch my flight. By some grace of god, my Mom managed to accompany my dad, Makenna, and I to the airport. Needless to say, there was lots of tea and half-closed eyes involved. It was awesome to have all of them there though, we got to say goodbye the right way. I had a cinnamon role for breakfast (tradition for my Mom and I) and passed out as soon as I got on the plane. After a short connection in Chicago, I met all my classmates in Frankfurt. It was amazing to see them all again since we haven't even spoken since May. There are 36 of us and we have been in all the same classes since freshman year. Our group is really fun and pretty down to earth. As well as that, we all share the same crazy obsession with architecture. Its comforting to walk down the street and have someone else yell out "look at the gorgeous trusses on that building!" before I do.

When we got to Rome, we hit the ground running. Our apartment is in the Trastevere neighborhood and my room overlooks the Tiber. The accommodations are sparse to say the least. The rooms are tiny, there are two people in each, and there is just enough room for two twin beds and a tiny wardrobe. The common areas are huge though and its really fun to hang out in them with my ten other roommates. Our entire class lives in the same building and its turning into a free circulation between floors.

The last three days has been a whirlwind of lectures on the history of Rome, trying to complete my visa application, and Italian lessons. I took night classes for Italian in San Diego and apparently I am now qualified (along with 8 other students) for the second level class. We'll see how that goes. The lectures are really interesting but its difficult to stay awake considering our level of activity for the rest of the day.

We went out last night for the first time and the nightlife here is NUTS. I can't give too many details but I will say that we didn't get home until 3 am and I wasn't feeling very good today.

We had out first tour of the city today. We have one every day for the rest of the week and our one today was 4 hours long. Despite the cold weather and long walks, the tours are absolutely incredible. Our guides are archeologists that tell the story of Rome so well that it makes me wish I lived back then. Palatine Hill was the most interesting area today because we got to learn about all the lavish living of the Emperor. After Palatine Hill we went to the Forum and the Colloseum. Every once in a while it would hit me how privileged we are to have the opportunity to do this. Private tours around all the most amazing sites in Rome.

Now I'm sitting in the common room with 14 of my classmates. Some are doing homework, some are drinking copious amounts of alcohol, some are eating dinner and everyone else is just talking and hanging out. Its an amazing atmosphere and is doing well to distract me from my homesickness. On our tour, it was odd to go to all the same places I went this summer with my family. Walking around the Forum gardens made me extremely homesickness. Luckily my hangover converted some of the emotional stuff into bodily pain.

Next week we officially start classes and we're all dreading the imminent increase in work load. And I am about to go to bed and catch up on all the sleep I lost last night.

Hope everyone is happy and healthy.

Ash

ps. I've decided that it takes WAY too much effort to try and write these things well. Consequently, I'm going to stick with the lazy, crappy writing.

And so it begins...

Hello All!

As many of you know, today is my last day in San Diego. Tomorrow morning I leave way too early and I'm off to the Eternal City, Rome. I am going to be writing a blog post about twice a week to fulfill a school requirement and to keep people updated on happenings on the other side of the pond. Hopefully I'll eventually be able to post pictures and videos as well. 

I have been preparing to leave for about a month now and I seriously cannot believe its already time. Shutting down my life to move and start over again does not get easier with time and my emotions have been certifiably unstable (even more than normal) since I finished at my internship and realized it was the beginning of the end. My parents and I are trying to stay busy today so that we can distract ourselves as much as possible. Whenever anyone mentions me leaving, we start tearing up and hissing at them to shut up. Its not going to be an easy goodbye, thats for sure.

However, I have been here before and I know that once I get on the plane, the excitement will hit. I'm going to Rome! Here's the scoop. I will be living and going to school with 36 of my classmates from Northeastern. We are going to be taking a couple architecture classes and an Italian class. Every third week we travel to a different place in Italy and study there for 5 days. For those of you that know Italy, we are living in Trastavere. For those of you that don't know Italy, we are about 3 blocks from the Colosseum. Its going to be an adventure, thats for sure. Let alone the fact that we are all legal to drink. Oh god.

There will be more blogs to come, I would set it up to email each one of you but I can't imagine how annoying that would be. Consequently, if you care enough to check out my blog every once in a while, the web address is http://ahoppy.blogspot.com/ . I can't write more right now, I'll start crying, but I just want to say goodbye to those that I didn't get to see. The last week here was a whirlwind and I barely had time to hang out with my family. But rest assured, if you received this email, I love you, or at least like you.

Hope you're all having an amazing day!

Ash