trials and tribulations.

Ciao all! So I know it's been a couple days, but I'll be honest with you, I never had the intention of writing a post once a day. It's just a little excessive in my opinion. So here's an update on the last couple days. 
My first night out with Carmen was pretty fun! We went to a bar called The Drunken Ship in Campo di Fiori with a bunch of other people from the program. It was an American bar (hence, the title), and even though it wasn't the quintessential Italian bar or club that I was looking for, we still had a good time. We met the bartender who happened to be American as well and he gave us tons of free shots. Unfortunately, I took him up on that a little too frequently. Mistake.
Needless to say, the next day was a struggle and a half. After waking up too early and hauling my a$$ to our second orientation in the Accent center, I spent an insufferable couple hours sitting in an uncomfortable wooden chair in a room with a sauna-like atmosphere listening to one of our professor's present a powerpoint of information that I could have learned by reading the small booklet she had already handed out to everyone. When it finally drew to a close, I trudged back to my apartment and jelled out until the evening. 
Originally, Carmen and I were going to join her friend Ross again with the same group from the night before, but at the last minute we decided to join another group of girls from our program who were going to a discoteca that was only a short walk from the residence Trastevere. 
Yet another mistake. The six of us left at about midnight which may sound crazy late to you, my American friends, but trust me, this is not unusual here. However, after two hours of walking deserted residential streets and asking about 15 different people for directions without a shred of success of finding any discoteca, let alone the specific one we were looking for, I was about ready to cry. But not wanting to sound like a party pooper, I kept my mouth shut. Luckily, Carmen wasn't so worried about that and quietly asked me if I was ready to head back. I could have danced from happiness, even with my aching feet. So we told the girls we had had enough and were heading back. Strangely enough, it took us about 10-15 minutes to get home...funny right? Not so much. 
Today, however, entirely made up for the absolute failure of yesterday. I decided on a whim the day of our first orientation to sign up for a free tour led by another professor from my university called the Baroque walk even though I didn't really know anyone going. It turned out to be probably the best choice I've made my entire time here. The tour was great. The professor knew so much about every monument he took us to and was very enthusiastic about answering any questions we had. Everyone on the tour was also given a little headset so that we could stray a little bit and take good pictures, while still being able to hear what he was saying. 
He took us to monuments created by the two most famous rivaling Baroque architects of Rome, Bernini and Borromini. I had only heard of the name Bernini, but I still found the lecture so interesting. It really made me wish I had taken an art history or architecture class at UCSC before though. We visited monuments such as the Piazza Navona with the Fountain of the Rivers (Bernini) and the church of St. Agnes (Bernoni), the Piazza Minerva, and the church of San Ignazio. 

Piazza Navona

the Fountain of Four Rivers

the church of St. Agnes

Piazza Minerva

a frescoe of San Ignazio

I'm not gonna lie though, the best part of the tour was meeting some of the girls I hadn't had the chance to talk to yet. I really hit it off with a few of them (one of them is even in an a cappella group!), and it makes me so relieved to have found girls that want to do the same things I want to do! After the tour we all grabbed lunch at a very touristy albeit fun place. They played the relaxing tunage of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and Play That Funky Music White Boy. It truly completed the authentic Italian dining experience. Once we finished our meal, Justine, Katie and I snagged some gelato and we all made our way to the Trevi fountain. It was by far my favorite monument of the day. I can't even describe how much I love sculpture, it's definitely my favorite art form. Frescoes are a close second, but there's something about the way a sculptor can chisel a perfect human body from a block of stone, while capturing expression, emotion, and movement. It just renders me speechless.  

Coconut gelato, the real deal

the Trevi Fountain

When we were done taking a bajillion pictures in front of it, we shopped around the area and found some adorable shops. My wallet is definitely going to take a beating this trip, the Italians know their clothes. Shocker, I know. 
And tonight I think we're all going out to the gay bars together! It should be fun, I'm excited. It will be nice not to be hit on by lots of Italian men for a change. Fingers crossed.
Well, I hoped you all enjoyed the novel I just wrote. I might actually have to reconsider how often I write posts. 
Buonanotte! <3