Before posting about yesterday's events i need to issue a correction. earlier in the week, i deemed the eyesore of rome as the tomb of the unknown soldier. i, however, was incorrect. it is actually the monument to vittorio emanuelle II. i apologize for any inconvenience this caused. here is the picture of the monument as a reminder.


despite the rain, last night was a complete success. though in the beginning it didn't seem like it would be. first, we got sort of a late start. gretchen didn't take a shower until right before we left and lisa had stuff she had to do on the internet. not a big deal, though, since the best time to get to clubs is like 1230 or so. so then we head over to trastevere to sara's apartment to have some wine before we leave. the H bus decided it didn't want to run at night so we hailed a cab (which believe me, in piazza venezia is NOT easy) and headed over to via de trastevere. so we get there and gretchen decides shes far too hungry and we stop at mcdonalds to get chicken nuggets that she didn't even really enjoy.
anyway, we get to sara's and map out a way to get to alphaeus, a club recommended by one of our italian teachers. this is me and lisa with our makeshift shot glasses since no one has any.


this is our best attempt at a picture of the 4 of us before going out. i still haven't mastered it.


after much walking and trying to find it, we find alphaeus on this lil dead end street and it turns out its not open. so we keep walking (at this point for about an hour) and ask a few times along the way where we can find a club. eventually we find a few clubs in the park at testaccio. we get in line for one called akab and make friends with some very friendly italian men who are trying to convince us that there are 4 of them and 4 of us and that it could totally work. they wish. so then we make friends with a guy who knows the bouncer and get in after about 5 minutes of waiting. i have to say, clubbin in rome really reminds me of home. besides euromullets, they all look just like my staten island and new york friends and are probly the only people who like techno and house. ok, so maybe that's a little harsh, but of all the people i know...staten island people are the few who like to listen to and dance to techno. needless to say, i enjoyed my long island iced tea and had a blast dancing the night away. one last note on the club...i didnt think i would use the phrase "long island" as much as i did yesterday. and i never expected to hear an italian say "long island" to me either. ever.
here's a picture of the club sign. sooooooo much fun.


anyhow, my friends are wimps and wanted to peace out at 4 so we headed out to the street and tried to hail a cab to no avail. we continued to walk and found a random bus that we did not know the route of but knew it ended up at stazione termini, which is quite the transportation hub. so we get on and see that it passes right near ponte rotto and get off to walk to saras house. this morning, she fixed us a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs and potato croquets (interesting breakfast combo, i know) and then we headed out in an attempt to be real people. we didn't trust that the H bus would come so we took the 8 tram to Argentina. I didn't know this but apparently in Piazza Argentina, there are ancient ruins that happen to be the main area where stray cats stay. it's called the Cat Sanctuary (the name is actually in english which struck me as odd). Here's a picture of the sign and the ruins.



In Piazza Argentina, we also ran into the most random like marathon or run for a cause or something. here's a picture of the guy in the lead...he has a torch?


i have to say, clubbing in rome is so so much fun, despite the casualties. to begin, my feet are mangled! wearing heels while walking around and dancing for 5 straight hours does not do well for the feet. when i got up this morning, my feet had cuts, blisters, and dirt all over them. also, i dropped my jacket in the mud which is so depressing cause it was a new jacket and it was my first time wearing it. after washing it, a lot of it came out but the traces are still there. i think ill find a place tomorrow and get it professionally cleaned or perhaps just go to the grocery store and find stain remover and try again. it wasn't an expensive jacket and the stains aren't that bad so i can still wear it, but still kind of depressing. we took this picture in the club while waiting in line for the bathroom. not bad, eh?


i'm kind of glad i didn't head out to the vatican for mass this morning. benny is in germany right now which i completely forgot so we wouldn't have been able to attend his mass anyway. also, it's been pouring all day! it wouldn't have been very enjoyable to have to stand in the pouring rain for an entire mass that would be said in latin.

on a last note, my internet has been so shotty today (knock on wood). for some reason my roommates have been able to connect on and off to our local network but i've been having a problem connecting at all. but i'm finally back, bizzes.

ps class starts tomorrow. boo.