Snowpocalypse?

I feel weird ‘apologizing’ for not posting mid-week. Because that would imply that there are people other than my parents (love you guys!) checking this. But in my defense, my week was crazy last week and any post would have been a jibberish post with me talking about my Italian final, the Swiss Guard that saluted me (AGAIN!!!!) and if I am being honest, probably reaching to eat another spoonful of nutella.

Something I learned about myself:

Sometimes, you just gotta go with the flow. We were scheduled to go to Tuscany this weekend as a program and I was really looking forward to it. But as Rome was hit with a ‘snowstorm’ aka two inches of snow, our plans quickly got derailed. The night before we were scheduled to leave, I stayed up late-ish cleaning and packing because my midwestern sensibility told me there was NO WAY our trip would ever be cancelled. Imagine my surprise when I woke up to an email saying that we weren’t going to be able to go! Usually I am very high-strung and like a set schedule, but this time I just decided to go back to bed and let it be. Everything always works out, and we will be going to Tuscany next weekend—you know you’re blessed when the ‘worst case scenario’ is having to stay in Rome for another weekend . . .

This was the amount of snow that was on the ground
on Friday when everyone was freaking out. Note all the
umbreallas. Me? I was on my way to my Italian final
(P.S. It's socially acceptable to drink wine during finals here. . .)

The Best Thing That I Ate:

Nutella. Now, you would think that with all of the wonderful food that they have here in Rome, I would appreciate it enough to label something other than nutella as the best thing that I ate. BUT, since I have been abroad, I have come to really appreciate consistency. And let’s just say that my relationship with nutella has been one of the most consistent things that I’ve had. When I come back from a rough day, it is always there to console me in the form of a nutella sandwich (or straight from the spoon). I promise that I haven’t completely lost my mind, it’s just that nutella is really good.

That is exactly what it looks like. A spoonful of nutella. 

An Adventure I Went On:

Angelus with the Pope! Anything that involves the Pope is going to be an adventure because it always involves several things: 1. Tears. 2. Sheer gratitude. 3. Squealing. When I found out that I was going to have a free weekend, I knew that it would be the perfect opportunity to go to pray the Angelus with our Holy Father. St. Peter’s was at 50% capacity with only 100,000 people. Well, what do I know but that is my best guess. Pope Benedict couldn’t be more precious if he tried, and my favorite part was when he said (I’m paraphrasing) “Welcome to all zee English speaking Pilgrims!” I obviously squealed very loudly. And then almost slipped on some ice. But that’s a story for another day.

So, so wonderful. 

St. Peter's covered in snow!! 

The Craziest/Most Interesting Thing That I Saw:

Snow on the streets on my way home! 

SNOW! When it started to snow on Friday morning, I didn’t really think anything of it (I am from MinneSNOWta after all), and I honestly just found it odd that there were people running around everywhere screaming and taking pictures. However, over the course of the weekend, I have come to realize that this is the first major snowfall they have had since 1985!! So I guess I kind of understand why everyone was going insane. Despite the fact that the Roman government has no infrastructure in place to deal with snow, we were able to enjoy it—I’m convinced that every city is beautiful with a layer of snow on it, Rome certainly is no exception.

I thought I was SO artistic.