Roma, Roma, Roma!

Rome was absolutely incredible. Seeing the sites that I've only ever seen in history books was surreal, to say the least. The hardest part for me to grasp was the lenght of time it took to build some of these fantastic structures, and the amount of manpower that went into it. Walking through Rome is like taking a stroll through time, you'll be walking by some 18th century buildings and then turn a corner and suddenly there is a Roman ruin - and the whole city is like that. One of the really great things for me was the fact that I know a lot of this history and mythology behind the ruins and temples, so seeing them in person was a lot of fun. I spent a lot of time recounting to Adj, the mythology behind each temple, all of the stories of the Gods and Goddesses, the myth of Romulus and Remus and how Rome came to be.... it was 'Superfluous Knowledge with Miranda' time. We got to see the Coliseum and the Circus Maximus - where Genesis and Phil Collins were playing a concert Saturday night - and the Pantheon. The last probably was my favorite. It's almost hidden in the middle of all of these buildings, you're walking through narrow passages far from any main road and all of a sudden this square opens up and you just stop and stare. I got to see it at night and by day. We saw the Piazza de Spagna, where the Spanish Steps are and we also went to the Vatican. That.... was definitely the experience of a lifetime.

We waited in line and then took the lift and then 330 steps up to the top of the cupola on the Basillica of St. Peters. The view of Rome was breathtaking. I think I took about 100 pictures from all the way around, trying to capture everything that I could see. Being inside Vatican was very thought provoking for me. It could be just a side effect of being in one of the holiest places on earth, but I took about ten minutes to sit down and sift through all that was in my head in the small prayer chapel.

That night Adj and I walked around and ate dinner between the Spanish Steps and the Pantheon and then he wanted to go to Piazza Navona so we headed west from the Pantheon, me with the map leading the way. It was dark by this time and when we found the Piazza it was all lite up by the amber colored street lights. There are beautiful fountains at each end and a statued obelisk in the middle that was being restored. There were performers and tourists and artists looking to draw your portrait everywhere. On the southern side of the Piazza there was a big open area and I was drawn to the sound of drums and singing. The music was coming from a group of Hare Krishna’s who were smiling and dancing and playing music, clothed in their brightly colored saris and scarves. The music was so catchy and irresistible that I found myself smiling and tapping my feet to the beat. One of the women saw me and smiled, reaching out her hand to me and I allowed myself to be pulled away from Adj's side and into their dance. It took a few seconds but I caught onto the steps and danced and spun along side the women and the few other tourists that had joined in. My new skirt that I had bought the day before was the perfect thing to be wearing as it flared out around me as I spun, clapping to the beat. The women and I laughed and got lost in the music until it came to an end. I felt regretful as I had to stop dancing and back away, returning to Adj and smiling a huge smile as I told him how amazing that had been. "Funny," I said, "Those are the people my mother always told me to avoid in the mall."

Adj and I had an amazing time, our hostel was really great and because Adj can get by in Italian and is an Italian citizen, we got a lot of special treatment. I was truly sad to be leaving Italy - again - but comforted by the fact that I know I'll be back. That isn't even an option for me.

And now? Back to reality here in Berlin. It is my last week in Europe and I have so much to do. I have to figure out how I'm going to pack everything, including the 5 bajillion presents that I have purchased. I have a ten minute presentation tomorrow and a five page paper due along with two exams on Thursday. I'm taking Leo, my host brother and a friend to see Harry Potter auf Deutsch (in German) tomorrow and I have to prepare myself to say goodbye to all of my friends here. It's going to be an insanely busy week.

Love to all at home, One week left,
*Miranda

Pictures in Leu of Anything Substatial

Well my intentions were to write a blog with some of my pictures from today, but unfortunatly, the computer drive at this internet cafe is not cooperating.

I leave for Venice, Italy tomorrow, and have some incredible plans for the weekends that are coming up. I will post something more substantial once I am back from Venice, but I wanted to put some pictures up that I did have so you all could put some names with faces.

These are my two greatest friends here from my program,Jessica and Adj. I have a much better picture of the two of them, but the computer wouldn't let me upload it. Next time maybe.

And this would be how much fun we all have.
this is Chris, Jessica again, Me and Sophia (it's her birthday here!)

And finally, one of my favorite pictures thus

far:

Jess and I! Being the hot ladies we can be. (I know I know. I CAN clean up sometimes. Shush you all.)

More updates when I return from Italy!

Love to all at home,

*Miranda

Was?! Die Zug ist nicht laufen?!

Oh Berlin :)

What an incredible city. I have seen most of the important sights briefly, what with Adj, Jessica's and my wanderings and our bus tour yesterday. I've also explored the ins and outs of Berlin public transportation - which is far superior to Chicago's, I must add.

Right now, I am living in East Berlin (the old soviet side) in Pankow, a northern neighbourhood of die Mitte, the old city centre. I live on 29 Florapromenade, on the third floor. It's a nice area with a really nice pool, as Adj and Jessica and I found out on Saturday. Berlin is hotter than blazes and I have already located every public pool in the city limits. Some of them might even have diving boards!

My classes start today, and I'm feeling a little apprehensive about it. My Jewish History was cancelled so that leaves just the Berlin Lit today, and it will be taught in all German. If my almost week here in the city has taught me anything, it's just how poor my German skills really are. I am hoping for drastic improvements.

Some notable things that I have seen are: The Berlin Wall, the Brandenburg Gate, The TV Tower (w00t, buddy!) the Memorial for the Murdered Jews and Fredrick the Great's old palace in Charlottenbug. Oh, and I'm going to be visiting the Kennedy Museum on Pariser Plazt. Yes, those Kennedy's. I'm so excited and my dad would love it; I wish he was here to see it with me.

I don't have much time write, as my new friend Adj has asked me to accompany him to the bank to open a German bank account. Damn him and his dual citizenship, I'm jealous. Unfortunately the third musketeer of our little band has class, so Jessica will not be joining us. I have stories to tell and MANY pictures to post, but please understand, my internet access is very restricted.

So, until later,

Love to all at home,
*Miranda

Oh yeah. Did I mention I'm going to Venice on Friday? Just thought I'd throw that out there.

Back to Berlin!

It felt really good in a strange sort of way to be back in 'familier' surroundings today. My night train or 'Nachtzug' from Paris was a really nice train. I DID have a bed, and that made me immensily happy. After I boarded I went and wrote for a while in the dining car, having some bread and rolls with honey and butter and a glass of red wine to help me sleep. I eventually went and laid down, sleeping poorly until I was woken up probably around midnight to the arrival of more passengers into the couchette compartment. One of the women said that I was in her bed, but ended up just taking the bed below mine. I eventually fell back into my restless sleep again and woke up when the condunctor knocked on my door to give me my Eurail pass back and to tell me that we were 30 minutes from Berlin.

Once off the train, I headed to the Gepack Centrum (Luggage center) to retrieve my large pack and all the luggage I had left here in Berlin. Once I had that, I loaded everything on to a cart, and decided that it was time to relax for a few. I grabbed a coffe from Starbucks and sat on a bench to read my book for a while. It was nice to just sit and not have to be anywhere or really worry about anything. While Paris was amazing, I was pretty high-strung the whole time I was there, just worrying about one thing or another. I also bought myself two bottles of water, because I knew I was dehydrated, and that with a couple of tylenol did my headache in.

I then spent twenty minutes rearranging everything in my packs to re-consolodate. I have SO MUCH stuff and it's really bulky. Then, I had to figure out how to get to my hostel, which was surprisingly painless. I had to take the S-Bahn to Alexanderplatz and then transfer to the U-Bahn and take it to Rosenthalerplatz. I think it ended up being only five stops total.

I got to my hostel and I think it's going to be the best one I've stayed in. It's really professional and they have a cafe, bar, luggage storage and hang out areas. I'm really only interested in a shower and a good nights sleep, but this looks like the place to be doing it.

Alright, well I'm getting tired and hungry and it's time to check into my hostel so I will post more, maybe later.

Love to all at home,
-Miranda