a taste of home!

Walking along the water in Sliema, Malta ^
a great view in the citadel of Gozo, Malta ^
Red sand beach in Gozo, Malta ^
Calypso's cave in Gozo, Malta ^
21st birthday drink ^ Gozo, Malta
St. Peters, Vatican, Rome, Italy
Trevi Fountain. Rome, Italy. Liz, Michelle, Devon, Me ^
Colosseum. Rome, Italy. ^ 

I just received a care package from my mom! Yes I know that I am in italy with the best food imaginable, yet I do miss some of my American junk food. Here's what i got:

sunflower seeds

trader joes creamy tomato soup

hot cheetos 

dried mangoes

trail mix

fun dip

skittles

sour skittles

starbucks ready brew iced coffee

hot cocoa

crystal light 

boston baked beans

oatmeal

sudafed medicine

gel pens 

skippy peanut butter

campbells chicken noodle soup 

crest toothpaste 

taco seasoning

HOME BAKED CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES!!!!!!!!!!

most of these things you cannot find in italy. They have oatmeal, peanut butter, and taco seasoning, but it is ridiculously expensive!!!! So, thanks mom!!!!!!! 

anyway,

I went to Rome 2 weeks ago and loved it! it was extremely different from Florence. For starters it's a huge city and you have to take the metro everywhere. I went to all the sights in ancient rome and everything was extremely interesting. Then we went to the vatican. It was pouring, but we got in right away because we were on a school field trip and had reservations. The Sistine chapel was beautiful. I was so happy I took an Art History class back at sonoma, because I actually knew what I was looking at on the ceiling. By far, my favorite part about rome was the Trevi Fountain. It was huge!!!! I didn't expect it to be that big, so it pretty much blew my mind! My school organized everything for us and we all stayed at a 4 star hotel!!! We all felt like royalty compared to all the hostels we stay at when traveling on our own. We all definitely took advantage of the heater, and long hot showers. 

The weekend before Rome, I went to Malta! I fell head over heels in love with Malta. I want to go back sooooo bad! The weather was beautiful (in the high 70s) and I was wearing flip flops for the first time in a long time! I spent my 21st birthday there, and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. Devon and I went to a small island off malta (called Gozo) and roamed around it all day. My first "legal by USA standards" drink was a sex on the beach. My second was  a bloody mary and my third was a kamakazee. It was definitely a great and relaxing day. Malta is my second favorite country, because of course Italy is number 1 :)

This weekend, we are going on another school field trip to Ravenna. This trip is from Friday-Sunday. I'm hoping we stay in a nice hotel again!

It is getting REALLY REALLY COLD HERE!!!!! My daily outfits include many layers, gloves, a scarf, and a hat. And its not even December yet!!!!!

Ali, my friend/roomate from sonoma is coming to italy in less than a month! She gets here December 27th. maaaan am I excited! We are planning on traveling to France and meeting up with Cathy, my friend since kindergarten, since she will be there on vacation! 

On yet another brighter note, I found the most adorable coffee shop! In most coffee shops here, you order your coffee and usually drink it standing at the bar, because they charge you extra to sit down. But, this place I found doesn't do that! It is two stories and it is loft style. All the furniture is mix matched, and there are book shelves everywhere filled with a million books. You can sit in there as long as you would like, and they are always playing jazz music. My new favorite thing  is to go there and order coffee or hot chocolate, and read for hours. It kind of reminds me of the coffee shop in the TV show, Friends, yet waaaaay cuter!!!