Hello all,

As clichèd as it sounds, time is passing incredibly quickly here. I am almost halfway done, and that is hard to believe. Since the last post, I have to Venice, which was amazing. It is surreal pulling into the city at night on the vaparetto, seeing all the palazzi lit up along the Grand Canal. Of course, we got really lost right away, thanks to a combination of some poor directions, the wrong address, and a labyrinth of Venetian streets, and ended up back at the train station. Alas, we finally found the apartment in Canareggio, which was a great deal for 5 of us. The weather was ideal, and we spent most of the weekend walking around different sights. There is a remarkable view from the bell tower in St. Mark's, and you can see all of the city, the water, and snowy mountain crests in the distance -- so lovely. We also saw a few nice churches, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, which is a great little modern art collection that was very refreshing after so many dark and somewhat daunting religious images. On Sunday, we had an ill-fated trip to Murano, the little island where they make the glass, where we found all the factories were closed. But the boat ride in the sun was nice enough, and we found a cool, kitschy cemetery to look around.

Grand Canal in the daylight

And at sunset

In the bell tower at St. Mark's

Amazing view from the tower

Besides these travels, I have been in my usual routine-- midterms approach in all of my classes, work at Progetto Sud has been going well. This past weekend, I visited Tivoli, a sweet little town about an hour outside of Rome. It is famous for the Villa D'Este, which is a garden with all of these great fountains. I also went to a concert, Animal Collective, at this really cool new venue called Parco Musica that is a little bit outside of the city. Spring break is coming up, as well as a visit from my lovely mother. Then, there is only a short amount time left before I head across the Atlantic. Mamma Mia.

At the Villa D'Este, in Tivoli

Anyway, I hope that everyone is doing well, getting by in the last of the winter. I would love some updates!

Con amore,
Cait

Saluti da Roma,

The last days of February are over and it is really starting to feel like spring.

Cherry blossoms in the park down the street

Since my last post, I have been settling into classes, further exploring Rome, and doing some traveling. Last weekend, we went took a train to Florence from Termini Station. It is such a lovely place, small enough to see everything in a short amount of time and absolutely beautiful. Santa Maria del Fiore, the massive church with the famed dome designed by Brunelleschi, is so impressive. The weather was perfect, and I had the best sandwiches from this little shop run by two brothers, I Fratelli. The Uffizi Gallery was another highlight. I did not know what exactly they kept in their collection, so I would enter a room and see a Botticelli or Titian that I had seen innumerable times projected in art history classes or printed on posters. It was really remarkable.

View of Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo

We went to Pisa on Sunday, which is only a short train ride away. The tower is really the only thing in town, and it is a lot smaller than I expected. We took the obligatory tourist pictures and then boarded the train for Rome.I had to

Since last weekend, I have been getting into classes, which are really interesting. I am taking on course on art conservation with this cool Italian girl. I feel like we are in the Da Vinci Code, learning about these secret flaws and layers in various artworks. I am also in a course with this cool Roman Catholic priest from California, on Contemporary Issues in the Catholic Church. We are debating really controversial things like same-sex marriage and abortion, so needless to say, it is going to be interesting. Additionally, I am doing an internship at a non-profit called Progetto Sud, which is sponsored by the Italian Labor Unions and coordinates projects with workers in developing countries. I think it will be a cool experience; I will be translating and helping with their website.
I am really trying to get out there and see different parts of Rome; there are so many cute little neighborhoods and sights. I am also getting into cooking for myself, which is hard not to in a culture that celebrates food and provides such amazing ingredients. I cannot believe it is March, I can already tell that my time here will pass very quickly. Spero che siate benisimmi...

Ciao ciao!

Basilica di San Giovanni, right near where I liveOutside this great Piazza, designed by MichelangeloPantheon