Last weekend, I traveled to Rome, Italy with three other people from the IIP Berlin program! It was an absolutely amazing experience and we saw so many incredible sights and scenes! Some of my favorite places we visited were the Roman Colosseum, the Roman Forum, the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, and Capitoline Hill. Speaking of the Vatican, it was really weird technically being in another country. We also had a chance to enter St. Peter’s Square, which was really amazing! I am not personally religious, but I still was able to appreciate everything in the Vatican city for how beautiful it was. All in all, I think Rome is one of the places in the world that you just have to visit for yourself in order to really appreciate just how extraordinary it truly is.

Not to mention, the food was delicious, as expected. I had some of the best pasta, pizza, and gelato I think I will ever consume in my entire life. The people were so friendly and joyful to interact with. Our Airbnb host was so sweet and kind to us when we arrived. Although she did not speak the best English, she tried her absolute best to make us feel comfortable and at home as possible. I also encountered some locals who enjoyed making fun of us for looking/acting American. Nonetheless, it was all in good fun and it was honestly pretty funny from my perspective.

Although visiting Rome was an amazing experience, there were also a few things that did not go quite as well as expected. My biggest complaint is that the public transit system was not at all efficient. Maybe we are a little spoiled in Berlin, because the public transit system here is generally very efficient and trains and busses are almost always on time. There were also some other minor issues here and there, but it mainly revolved around transportation. However, all of these things were menial in comparison and did not have an impact on how much I enjoyed the overall experience. Overall, I had an amazing time and am really happy I went!