I was very upset yesterday, so I didn't make a post. I got my luggage yesterday, with no laptop. I had my suspicions that it would be gone, and unfortunately my fears came to fruition. I had all my work on it, and no recent backup. In hindsight, I wish I had done two things: take a recent backup off of my laptop, and not bring it in my suitcase (OK, I agree, that was really dumb of me - but when paying $1300+ for travel, I at least expect all my stuff to get there, ya know?)
Anyways, I thought, stuff happens - I'm not going to let it bog me down. So on day 4, after classes were over, my roommates and I decided to go out and have fun downtown. We met up with some girls that they met, and two of them were also from UMD. As a group of about 14 people, we left, got on a tram, and went to familiar grounds - Campo Di Fiora. It's a huge square with a bunch of restaurants, Americans, and bars. At one bar, we ordered some pitchers of Malibu, grapefruit and orange - at about 19 Euros a pop - some rum and cokes, and of course, beer. Feeling a bit loose, we went on to other bars, to see what kinds of bars they had and to see what other awesome drinks they might have out there. Nothing surprised us too much - besides the fact that bars around Campo Di Fiora specifically cater to Americans, with baseball and other sports games on TVs, and American music playing. I got back around 2:30am, and went to sleep right away. It was a good night.
So the ACTUAL day 5 started the next morning. It was my first weekend day here, where I had not a care in the world, and could do anything. Without further ado, I decided not to beat around the bush and go straight to the Colosseum! A little something you should know about me: I detest large groups of people taking tours, for a few reasons. Number one, you have to "stick with the program" which means if you're at a sight and you want to move on, but others are still taking pictures and buying souvenirs, you're stuck waiting for X amount of time as the day goes on. Number two, you aren't in control: I like to roam, and if I want to go left on a side street, there's no one telling me they want to go right. I like roaming around, just my thoughts and I, gasping at each incredible sight that is Roma.
Shortly before noon, I hopped on bus 75, which took me to another stop, where I transferred to bus 4. A few stops later, I could see it: the Flavian Ampitheatre was huge! I learned last year in a human literature class about its significance to public affairs, from dramatic performances to public executions. It was finally in front of me, in its full glory. The line to the Colosseum was like 2 hours long, there were about 200 tourists in line. Besides familiar English, I overheard a lot of Russian talk - I guess Rome is famous among the Ruskis. Snapped pictures here and there, got about 80 of them, I'd say. Then my camera battery died. But before it did, I was able to take some pictures of myself in front of beautiful places. Here is a map of my travels that day:
I stopped by a gorgeous Chinese place that served mediocre, but inexpensive food. What the place lacked in taste, it gained in design: it was so Chinese that it would put even the best Chinese place in my town to shame. I think every such restaurant should be heavy on authentic design. I was surprised not to see my familiar favorites on the menu: sesame chicken and orange chicken were nowhere in sight. Instead, they had delicious alternatives like curry chicken and portabello mushroom duck. I ordered pollo con ananas, and got a decent size plate of chicken with pineapple in pineapple sauce. It was great. Unlike in the U.S., rice comes extra - you get what you pay for. No freebies in Rome.
It was shortly after the restaurant that my camera died, but I didn't let it discourage me. I still soaked in the sights of Rome, some of which really made me gasp for air. What a beautiful city.
I was tired and on my way back by 4pm. I was back by 5pm, ate dinner, and decided to take a nap around 6pm. The nap turned into full-blown sleep. I woke up at midnight. That's when the realization that my camera charger was in my laptop bag occurred to me. The USB cable itself, it turns out, doesn't charge it. Upset, I almost ordered one online, but realized I'm better off going to a computer store on Monday (nearly everything is closed Sundays). I stayed up until 4am planning a trip to Brussels, Belgium or Nice, France - haven't decided where yet. I've got friends at both who would love to show me their town and host me for a weekend. I decided not to make rash decisions, and to sleep on it.
It's day 6 as I'm typing this. My roommate surprised me with a camera battery charger this morning! It turns out the charger for his camera also charges my battery - what a fortunate coincidence. So just now, I cooked eggs with ham for breakfast. I think I am going to run out and grab some groceries. I want to make a nice dinner (or breakfast?) for my roommates. Through my troubles with the luggage and stuff, they were there for me to help me out, so it's time I do something nice for them.
See ya!
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