May 2011
3 posts
I'm home!!!!!!
The DeBenny's Come to Roma :)
Ciao tutti!
For this post, I thought it would be fun to describe the 10 days my family spent in Rome… from my mom’s perspective. You’ve heard me babble on and on about my experiences so far, so why not hear about it from Linnet DeBenny’s perspective? Right? My thoughts exactly :).
I’ve divided it into two separate emails she sent me (you’ll understand why) and put...
April 2011
4 posts
Spring Break 2011: Corfu, Athens and Aegina
Ciao tutti,
First off, Buona Pasqua! I hope you all had a nice Easter. Although I missed finding Easter eggs with my family and having a massive Easter brunch, Sunday mass in St. Peter’s square was truly awe-inspiring! (More on that later, I’m so behind in blogging haha).
Anyway, since I’m going to put up about 170 pictures from Spring Break this blog post won’t be as long as the rest. I’ll let...
Siena, Venezia, Firenze
Guess who’s back? Back? Back? Back again-gan-gan? Aria’s back, back, back. Tell your friends… Eminem anyone? No? Ok :).
I, once again, find myself beginning this blog apologizing for the massive delay in updating you all on my life. I’ve gotten numerous emails and requests for an update, pictures, and just to verify my existence. Recently I returned from Greece, where I spent my Spring Break and...
March 2011
2 posts
Czech-ing Out Prague
Hello friends!
I apologize for the massive delay. I know it’s been awhile.
In case you were worried, yes I am still alive and breathing with all of my limbs still attached :). And although my body is in good physical state, my brain isn’t.
We had midterms last week, which were ruff. There is so much more to studying abroad than traveling and living in a foreign city for 4 months. There’s this...
February 2011
5 posts
Dublin, Ireland →
Click here for pictures from Dublin :)
Grá Dílseacht Cairdeas: Love, Loyalty, Friendship
I am very happy to report our trip to Dublin, Ireland went much better than Brussels haha. It was our first successful traveling weekend and we had a great time!
Our plane left early Friday morning again and we slept most of the flight… until our pilot informed us that we were going to have a little bit of a “bumpy landing“– ha, what an understatement!
Our landing had Casey holding on to the seat...
Brussels Pics →
Click here to see all my pictures from Belgium! Enjoy :)
Brussels, Belgium (continued)
Let me begin by expressing my sincere regret in missing the snowstorm of the century. My mom always talks about the blizzard of the 60s and apparently this one is much worse. But, I can’t complain too much because it is in the high 50s here and sunny. So although I am disappointed I am missing a historical blizzard for Chicago, I really can’t complain :). I hope you are all staying warm and enjoy...
“Life is made of moments. We have to love the journey, not the destination.”
– Source Unknown
January 2011
9 posts
A plane, train, subway, bus… to Belgium
This weekend we took our very first weekend trip to Belgium. It was definitely a weekend full of fun, frustration, and fried foods. Ready? Let’s start at the beginning…
So our trip began early Friday morning at 5:00 a.m., and the morning started out great. We left our apartment with plenty of time to reach the airport, boarded our plane, and whala! In no time we were in Belgium.
Well, shortly...
Wait, I actually have to go to school?
Now that the vacation feeling has officially worn off, let’s talk about why I’m here. Obviously to learn… ok, that’s debatable. But it is one of the many reasons I am here, so I’m dedicating this blog to my studies and to give you a taste of my classes this semester. It’s definitely different than Marquette, but so far I like it. Ask me at midterm week and I’ll probably disagree, but for now it’s...
Home sweet Rome
So, I’ve been here for almost 2 weeks and it’s so hard to believe! The “vacation” feeling has definitely worn off, and I am beginning to call Rome my new home. My feet are toughening up, my arms are strengthening, my eyes are adjusting and my mind is accepting.
Tough Feet = Tough Italian Women
After the first few nights in Rome my feet hurt in places I didn’t even know existed. I originally...
Hello? Hola? Ciao!
So obviously I’m in Italy and everyone here speaks Italian. Ok…that’s a given.
Not so given: how much of a language barrier I’ve encountered.
Speaking English is frowned upon, makes things difficult for everyday tasks, and automatically labels you as an American. Bottom line: I need to work on my Italian!
The 3 words that got me through the weekend were as follows:
Parla te inglese?
Non...
“Italians live life, Americans merely exist”
– Me, Blog #3
Setting the scene
Our apartment:
We are located in Trastevere - a nice neighborhood surrounding downtown Rome. The apartment building, itself, is extremely safe. I’m sure my family would be happy to know we have security guards that stand outside the building, we have to swipe each time just to get into the building, and each individual apartment doors lock from both the inside and outside. I think it’s safe to...
Last but not least... Me
At approximately 4:05 p.m. I arrived in Rome, Italy. When I finally reached customs I nervously handed the Italian man my passport. As he analyzed the pages he looked up at me and said a million things I didn’t understand. So instinctively, I said “huh, what?”
How American! How embarrassing! All the guards were now looking at me because I was in the wrong line. I’m telling you now, nonverbal...
I'll be back when the grass turns green
And so, my journey begins…
After the tears and fears, anxiety and anxiousness, the day finally arrived for me to leave the United States and become truly independent (despite my brother’s speculations).
I’m disappointed to say my last afternoon in the United States was spent finalizing banking stuff, redistributing weight in my luggage, packing my carry-ons and running around like a chicken...
““The world is yours for the taking
There’s nothing here that’s out of...”
– All You Need - Amely 