First Impressions of Rome #HogsAbroad in Italy

Hello, America! These first few days in Rome have been exhausting + amazing - it's strange knowing I'll be living here for the next month when I still feel like such a tourist. Backing up a bit; I arrived in Italy on Tuesday morning with intense jet lag (my longest flight yet) and even feeling a little feverish. Walking around in the heat (though it's not quite as hot as Fayetteville) made me feel pretty disgusting, but it's now day four and I'm on the road to recovery.

TUESDAY

Tuesday was mostly spent sleeping. We moved into our apartment (six girls living in a three bedroom space with a kitchen and two bathrooms - we snagged the room with the balcony) + ate dinner with the rest of the Rome Center. This is our tiny, messy, not quite unpacked room on the first day!

WEDNESDAY

This Wednesday was our orientation day - the first half of the day was spent going over rules and regulations at Piazza Taverna. I was in a hurry to buy an Italian SIM card during lunch and didn't end up eating (oops) - but if you're ever abroad I highly recommend getting a new SIM, especially if you have an unlocked phone through ATT! After lunch we split into two groups and explored Campo Marzio, where we stumbled into the Pantheon. Literally - it's so wild to me that I can just be walking through the city and I'll come across one of my images from art history (the same thing happened with the Column of Trajan on Thursday)!

THURSDAY

Thursday was the first day of classes for some, but mine were scheduled for Friday so Emma (roomie) and I went to Zara and the art store here (Ditta G. Poggi). I picked up this super cute linen dress, a pair of denim shorts, + some of my favorite gel pens.

FRIDAY

Today was what really felt like my first day here; we started classes (I'm so in love with the program I'm enrolled in here - hopefully I'll be able to document + post some of my work here as well) and my jet lag finally subsided. I feel well rested, happy and (finally) got to take some pictures around the city!

I think that's about it for the week! Tomorrow the girls in the apartment and I are traveling to Cinque Terre for the weekend; many more pictures and thoughts to come. Ciao for now!

--
Graphic Design major Annie Lefforge spent the summer 2018 term at our U of A Rome Center.

Read more from Annie at http://blog.annielefforge.com/

Don't miss your opportunity to study or intern abroad! Start your search at http://studyabroad.uark.edu/search/