The Fall of Rome

Here I am, back in Stow, Ohio. It's not as weird as I thought it would be. I was imagining getting a weird look from the Starbucks cashier when I am unable to get out of the habit of saying "Cappuccino, per favore. Grazie", being astounded by the size of America's cars, or being appalled by the size of the food portions in restaurants. None of this happened. Everything is normal and unsurprising and familiar. It's as if I fell asleep at the end of summer, had a very long and fantastic dream, and woke up just in time for Christmas. I have to look at the pictures occasionally to remind myself that I really did accomplish that goal of studying abroad in Rome. I think that's the first serious and specific life goal that I can check off my list.
For those who don't want to read the past umpteen blogs about my life in Rome, and for those who just want a recap, here's Rome in a nutshell (a hazelnut shell, covered in nutella and set next to a cup of cappuccino)

August 26, I arrived in Rome with 28 other Notre Dame students
We met Maria Younes, a woman who would make little impact in our lives except for added frustration and unintentional amusement
Arrived at our apartments, at Medaglia D'Oro. I'm assigned to 127 and meet Erin, Caitlin, Jackie, Kristina, and Colleen. Our apartment becomes the hang out spot for everyone else because we are so cool/are too lazy to go to anyone else's apartment.
Went through a week of intense site-seeing and orientation in 100 degree heat (looking back, I don't know how we did not complain more/die)
Heard tons of speeches about the dangers of Italian men. Turns out that we were able to handle the occasional "Ciao Bella" without being hugely offended or subjecting ourselves to sexual assault.
Walked through St. Peter's Square and my love affair with Rome began
Had gelato and became a regular at Old Bridge
Had cappuccino and became a regular at Tony's
Had pizza and became a semi-regular at Bafetto
Had pasta every single day and never got tired of it
Started class at John Cabot University in Trastevere, the home of the Lemon Tree Courtyard , intense ping-pong players, and sub-par education
Spanish Steps
Trevi Fountain
Colosseum
Roman Forum
Vatican Museum
Lots and lots of Ancient and Renaissance stuff
Figured out how to grocery shop for myself
Figured out how to cook--mainly pasta with beans and corn
Learned how to dodge traffic, or more specifically, give traffic enough attitude to make them stop
Began memorizing the metro stops and "Uscita lato destro/sinistro"
Shopped and neglected to figure out the currency conversion
Learned my size in Italian clothing simply by asking a saleswoman and having her eye me up and feel me up. The size she suggested was dead on.
Vino rosso della casa and Peroni
Learned the useful, common Italian phrases
Pub Crawl
Campo dei Fiori--hang out for Americans abroad and Italians looking for easy Americans
Florence
Sienna
San Gimignano
Pisa
La Notte Bianca--party time in Rome
Pompeii
Mount Vesuvius
Beach time outside of Rome
Ventotene island
Venice
Outlet shopping in Tuscany
Assisi (retreat)
Farfa (olive grove)
Paris
Reception at the Villa of the Ambassador to the Holy See
Prague
Vienna
Munich
London
Dublin
Bologna
Last days in Rome
Crypt of the Cappuccini monks
Mouth of Truth
Freezing in the apartment because our heat doesn't work
Lots and lots and lots of gelato
Souvenir shopping galore
7 church walk
Finals weeks, the only week of work all semester
Discoteca!
Soccer game: Roma vs. Mancester United
Saw the Pope
Hair appointment at Noi salon
Christmas party and Secret Santa gift exchange with the Rome group
Packing and moving out of Medag
Last Old Bridge gelato while chilling out in St. Peter's Square
Saying goodbye to the Medag and Rome
10 hour flight and back in the USA

And for an even quicker summary: I saw a lot, had excellent experiences, and made great friends. I'm sad that it's over, but thrilled to be able to say that I lived in Rome for four months. I'm more independent, more worldly, and have a crap load of souvenirs, so I would say the trip was a success. I'll be in Stow until mid January, so if anyone wants to grab coffee with me and hear me condescendingly compare it to Italian coffee while you update me on the past 4 months of your life, give me a ring. Well, I'm off to watch Gladiator and criticize its historical inaccuracies. The Rome chronicles are over. Thanks for reading.