Catching up...

Sorry I have been neglecting keeping you all updated! I have found that there is hardly any time to sit down and relax, let alone sleep for a significant amount of time. I will start by catching you up with last weekend (Oct. 11-12). On Saturday we had an early morning wake up call and the whole SMC group was on the bus by 7 am on our way to Tarquinia, a necropolis of the ancient Etruscans. After about an hour and half bus ride there, I was kind of annoyed to wake up to see a field of openings to go underground to the tombs. However, the tour turned out to be very interesting and exciting. You had to be observant and pick up on the patterns as we went to each tomb. It was actually fun to think of the meanings behind the scenes and structure of the tombs, whether it could be a depiction of the afterlife or a person's life. Then we went to a museum to examine the sarcophagi (coffins) and other artifacts of the Etruscans. I thought it was fascinating how they took aspects from Greek culture, but still managed to have very unique and defined techniques. As fascinating as all of this was, I can only take so much of tombs and pottery, so luckily we got a much needed break with pizza and a trip to the beach along the Tyrrhenian Sea. It was really refreshing and relaxing to just walk along the water and enjoy the beautiful weather. After this we headed to Ceveteri, another Etruscan necropolis. The tombs here were much different than the ones in Tarquinia. Here the style switched to a tumulus, which was often build more above ground. I really enjoyed these because you could explore and actually go into the tombs. It was kind of creepy sitting where the dead once laid, but it was definitely one of the cooler things I have done. 

We got back to Rome at about 5:30 in the evening, exhausted and dirty from the day, but in usual fashion of our lifestyle here, we were up and going not long after that. MTV was putting on a free concert in a piazza by the Colosseum (about a 15 minute walk). The concert consisted of an Italian band, John Legend, Italian rappers (which were horrible), and The Cure. When we first got there the crowd wasn't too huge, but it gradually built up. The Italian band and John Legend were pretty good, but The Cure brought out some weird people. It was the first and only time so far that I haven't felt completely safe here. By the time we left, the crowd was almost never-ending, but luckily we made it out safely. 

The next day, we went to Porta Portese, a huge local market on Sundays. There are rows of a large variety of tents, including clothes, jewelry, shoes, decorations, music, etc. I found some black skinny jeans, and was able to haggle the price down a little to 9 euro, and I found a silver watch for 3 euro. If you want to be in on some of the fashion in Italy, go for purple and boots. You can't go wrong with those two here. Also, you never go out in public without looking your best or at least presentable. It is a huge change from dragging myself out of bed and going straight to class at SMC, but I really kind of enjoy it now. It's nice not looking like you just woke up all the time. :) Hopefully I can keep this up when I get back!

Well that's a quick catch up for now, but I will be updating again tomorrow on this past weekend, including the Scavi Tour and other awesome adventures in Rome! Thanks for your patience with me!