MODS

Ciao everyone!

I am so sorry I haven't updated this thing in like 20 days, its been entirely too long and for that I apologize. I know how much you all love to hear about my life...lets be honest, most people do. I have three weekends to catch you all up on, and after this coming one it will be 4!! I have just been so busy with everything here, and I'm off to Switzerland this tonight to go SKIING IN THE ALPS!!! If I didn't still have to pack and prepare a 6 minute oral presentation for my Italian class this afternoon, I would take the time to do it now. I'll do my best for next week though, although it is midterm week.

But I should let you all know that I GOT A MOD!!! I know you don't really know what that is, but its the BEST housing you could ask for Senior Year! For those of you who have been to BC, its the little community of the ugliest looking buildings that were set up in the 1970s for temporary housing. Mod is short for modular housing, so that should give you an idea of what they look like. They are tiny, cramped, but INCREDIBLE! It is where all the partying is, and all the tailgating for the football games. Ask my mama, she knows. They have little backyards with them and a BBQ, so good times will be had. Only a little more than a third of seniors get Mods, and they are the most coveted place to live, so for that I am very fortunate. Also, ALL OF MY FRIENDS got Mods! Senior year, here we come!! I'm on cloud 16B (our mod number).

Ok, I'm so sorry to be writing about BC while I'm supposed to be writing about Europe, but bear with me. I am so excited right now I can't even contain myself.

I guess while I'm on here I'll tell you about my dinner last night. I met a priest who works at the Vatican named Father Angelo, who has been going to Corpus Christi since 1993 and is a good friend of Carol Sanborn, my good friend Jessica's mother. She put me in touch with him and he took me out to a wonderful little restaurant where I ate fantastic fish and had great conversation. He introduced me to a friend of his, a young woman named Marianna, who is an international law student looking to improver her English. We talked the entire time in English to help her improve, but hopefully I'll be able to get some Italian practice out of this. They are both very nice and wonderful people. I'm so glad to have this contact now.

Ok time to pack, I'll do my homework later. This time tomorrow I'll be skiing on the Alps!!!

Baci Baci

Address

By the way, my address is

Caitlin Martz
John Cabot University
Via della Lungara 233
00165 Rome
Italy

in case you love me or anything.

Visit www.futuraforwarders.it for info on sending a package. You must REALLY love me if you are going to do that! I'll take notice...

Carnevale!

Ok so this past weekend was spent in Venice celebrating Carnevale!! Carne-vale, literally translated to "good bye meat" is the celebration before lent similar to Mardi Gras but a hell of a lot classier. Katie and I took a 6am flight Thursday morning (BAD BAD IDEA, since we had to leave at 4am and were out until 1 celebrating our friends birthday, thus I did not sleep a wink until we got to the airport). We got into Venice after a 2 hour plane ride and one hour bus ride (all a blur), then had to find our way to our hostel which was NOT easy going off of barely any sleep and in a city with no street signs, or streets for that matter. My good sense of direction that I have been blessed with (thanks Dad) led us straight to the hostel where we proceeded to pass out until 4pm. The entire weekend the weather was foggy and cold, but that added to the ambiance. There is something very mysterious about wandering around in a city with canals as streets and people dressed in costumes and masks in a cloud.

So finally Fly and I get up and wander aimlessly around the city, looking at masks making sure we get the perfect one, which I definitely did. My mask is perfect! Its gold and blue, and Fly's is green and silver. I LOVE my mask! So anyway, we go to this bar in a piazza that is setting up a stage for a band that night, and get a glass of wine. After we sit there talking for a little bit, we decide to walk outside and wander around until Jac and Brison call us to let us know they are in. We walk right outside of the bar and hear "What the Crap!", a catcall if you will from Brison who we randomly ran into. Both girls had forgotten their pin number, necessary to turn the phone back on, and could not find the hostel. It was a miracle they found us! Venice is a magical city.

That night, dressed in our masks, we wandered the city from piazza to piazza. There was music in the streets and people dressed up as everything under the sun. My favorite was a man dressed in a lollipop. I was very surprised at how early everything shut down though. We got to Piazza San Marco, the traditional center of Carnevale, at 11 to find people clearing out. This happened both nights too. Regardless, it was still amazing just walking around people watching. Both Thursday and Friday we managed to stumble upon hippie Italy. Both nights while lost, we found reggae shows where dreads were mandatory. On Thursday night, the show we found played classic American rock and we were loving it!


During the day on Friday, we wandered aimlessly which is all you can do in Venice. Obviously we went to Piazza San Marco, where the famous pigeons are, and saw the costumes and masks. I managed to find 2 pairs of really cute Italian boots, BOTH on sale, so all in all it was a successful trip for me! We decided to hop on a gondola, the second one I've been on, which was of course magical and everything you think it would be. Theres not much more I could ask for than riding a gondola with 3 of my best friends in Venice, Italy. Friday night, we treated ourselves to a nice meal along the Grand Canal at night which was perfect. Obviously we had good wine, great food, and good conversation.

Saturday during the day it was raining and cold, and ridiculously crowded. The streets are so small, and people walking with umbrellas, it was almost miserable. We left that afternoon and Fly and I were back in our wonderful apartment by 10pm. As incredible as traveling is, there is no place like home.

Oh another thing...Older Italian men LOVE me! It must be the blonde hair, but no matter what I am always picked out of the crowd I am walking with and escorted by the men working at restaurants along the street or given phone numbers or something. I know I'm beautiful, but come on! All these men are 35+.

I'm spending the next two weekends in Rome which will be nice, but we are hoping to do something called an Agritruismo in Tuscany where we spend the weekend at a B&B, have meals cooked for us, wine tasting and ride horses.

Its OK that you are all jealous of me. But I think that people should start talking about visiting? (Cough Cough Mom, Dad, Aunt Carla...)

Baci Baci

Barthelona!

Hola familia! Como estas? So last weekend was spent in the awesome city of Barcelona, Spain. Katie and I decided last minute to surprise our best friend Caitlin Brison, with the help of another friend Jac. We bought the tickets Tuesday night and by Thursday at 10pm we were there. Brison had no idea we were coming, although everyone else did. We met Jac after she and some friends went out to dinner, quickly went back to her place to change, and strolled into the bar Brison was at. She started crying, obviously, because who wouldn't after seeing my beautiful face for the first time in 2 months! It was awesome and I'm so glad she had no idea.

We spent the weekend hanging out and having a blast. Friday, we walked around the city, checking out the famous areas such as The Gothic district, the Ancient Rome district, Las Ramblas and Plaza Catalunya. Las Ramblas was awesome! Its this long street which has different sections of vendors. For example, the first section of vendors sells nothing but birds and other pets. The second sells flowers, etc.

Plaza Catalunya is kind of known as the center of the city, with beautiful fountains. That night, we had tapas and sangria for dinner and drink! Such a typical Spanish dinner, and sooooooooo good!!! After dinner we hung out at our friend Maegan's apartment. Maegan went to LVHS with us and now goes to UCSB, so it was really fun seeing her after so long. We somehow found ourselves at a typical Barcelona night club called Pacha, and since it was so far away from Jac and Brison's place, we danced the night away until circa 5 am to catch the first metro home. We ended the night with some Patatas Bravas from a street vendor right outside their rooms. Obviously I would love Patatas Bravas, as it is nothing but a cup of french fries with ketchup and mayo on top. HEAVEN is what I like to call it.

Saturday we spent the day doing touristy stuff. We went to La Sagrada Familia, which is the Gaudi cathedral 120+ years in the making. It is BREATHTAKING. Honestly one of the most amazing churches I've ever seen. We explored Las Ramblas and the open air market near there a little more.




That night, we made Mexican food and had 2 of our friends from BC, Pat and Alex, over for dinner. It was really fun to see them and hang out for a little. I haven't had Mexican food in entirely too long so it was delicious.



Sunday, we woke up and went back to La Sagrada Familia because we never got the chance to go up in the towers. We paid the 5 euro entrance fee and then the additional 2 euro elevator fee to see one of the most beautiful architectural structures in the world. A small price, if you ask me. It was one of the coolest things I have ever done and I'm really glad I was able to have that experience. After La Sagrada Familia, we went to Parc Guell, the park designed by Gaudi with all the mosaics. We were there right around sunset and had the best view of the city. The mosaics were incredible. We ended the weekend with some nice pasta bolognese and gelato. Obviously I began to miss Italian food after only 3 days!

All in all, the weekend was incredible and I had such a great time. It was awesome to see Brison and Jac again and see a new city which is like nothing I've ever known! I really want to go back when the weather is warmer and spend a couple days lying out on the Mediterranean which is a mere 5 blocks from their dorms.

I love Europe. Vivo la dolce vita (I live the good life).




These pictures are from La Sagrada Familia. The first is the inside architecture and the second is Jac and I in one of the towers overlooking the city of Barcelona. The third is of the other towers. La Sagrada Familia was started in 1882. Gaudi died in front of it in the 1970s when he was hit by a tram when crossing the street.

The ones below are from Parc Guell. It was a park originally built by Gaudi for the Spanish elite to relax and enjoy the outdoors. There is a little house that looks like a gingerbread house that Gaudi lived in that is right behind my head in the picture below.