"She asked me how to spell orange"

So, it has been a while since I've posted. That's mostly because this has been a pretty uneventful week outside of the trips we've taken. I had a paper due on Friday on a mosaic in one of the museums we went to and then I had to finish getting ready for a presentation by Friday as well, which I will be giving tomorrow at Ostia Antica on theatres inside the theatre there! So anyway...

To recap:

Scholar's Lounge = boring. I've finally reached the point with the people I'm with that I haven't stopped being nice, but I have started telling them off when they're being annoying. Its a problem, but at the same time completely necessary for my sanity. I really tried to bond with the guys I'm on the trip with, but it just didn't happen. I'm not really upset about this though. I can deal with idiots for 2 more weeks. Plus they didn't have hamburgers and the fries were terrible.

After that I really just came back to the Candia and slept to be ready for the next day’s adventure to the Auditorium of Maecenas, which is completely closed off now, but originally had the side opposite what looked like a stand of seats wide open because the Romans appreciated natural beauty as well as being extremely adept engineers. In this place people would perform poetry with such an amazing view behind them. Sarah read a poem from Horace trying to give us a sense of what it would have been like. After that we went to the Aqueducts where Bobbi and Jason gave a very informative presentation.

In between the two site visits we went to THE most incredible bakery to which I’ve ever been. I bought some cake roll with jelly rolled in between and fruit on top. It was, for lack of a better word, orgasmic. Again, I’m never eating fruit in the states because it is just so much better here.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. I spent most of it in my room writing a paper and doing research on theatres, on which I’m presenting on Sunday now instead of Monday because of some Holiday the Italians have and thus closing all museums.

(Not to jump around in my day too much but…)

I had a great dinner with Asia, Christina and Amy. It was just simply noodles with pesto, tomato sauce, olive oil, and cheese, but the company was the best. We talked for so long. It was definitely one of the best social meals I’ve had this entire trip.

Today, Thursday the 25th, we visited the Pyramid, (Pyramids: No longer just for Egyptians!) of Gaius Cestius and the remains of the Aurelian Walls. For as grand as the pyramid is, we only were able to go into a tiny room with a tiny entrance. Inside though there were great 3rd style paintings and evidence of looting. The next place, Monte Testaccio, was a place where they would bring huge vases once filled with olive oil and other goods and smash them because they assumed that they weren’t good for anything anymore. We literally were walking on broken pottery (This was all too appropriate as we heard the song Walking on Broken Glass by Annie Lennox in the café only 30 minutes before this). The mountain was made of this pottery. They haven’t even gone down to see just how old it dates back to, but they assume a long time since the mountain is so high.

Came back again today to try do more work only to discover that the internet here sucks. It has been out most of the day and I have been able to do very little research, although I was able to finish my paper completely. It is the birthday of one of the girls on the trip who is only turning 20, which just makes me feel old since I’ll be 22 in a little over a month. Tonight we’re all pitching in to make a huge dinner for all of us, and then perhaps going out afterwards since we don’t have to be at the Vatican until 9:45 tomorrow. Yes… 9:45 has become sleeping in for me. I can’t believe it myself. Well, I’m going to save this entry on Microsoft word since I can’t actually post it yet….

*Edit*

I should probably explain my title for this post.

One of my roommates asked me how to spell shower... as well as today asking why there were two paths (one clearly a ramp and the other stairs) and then again today asked if you go excavating if you get a hammer...