Fourth of July! A day long awaited for all of us, I think we all now have a greater appreciation for this holiday and our blessings as Americans. Finally, we had a good excuse to eat some good American food and discuss what we all miss most from home. And what better way to celebrate America than to eat at the Hard Rock Café?

Just to fill you in, this was our last “free weekend” of the trip. There was intentionally nothing planned for us during this weekend so we could all make trips of our own. Originally, I had plans to visit either Athens or Barcelona, but by the time it came around to planning, all I really wanted was a relaxing weekend at “home” in Rome. Plus, there was plenty still left for me to see in Rome. So, I decided to stay back and enjoy what Rome had to offer. Several groups took trips however – some to Sardignia, others to the Dolomite mountains in the north, others to Milan and Sienna, and a few actually went as far as Paris. But there were still about 20 of us left in Rome, and we all decided to celebrate at the Hard Rock Café.

Kate, our USC staff member for the last two weeks of the trip, headed up the trip to Hard Rock. It is located on Via Veneto, a rather high class street near Barberini. We took the metro over and then walked up along the beautiful street. When we got there, I had the pleasant surprise of meeting with some friends from home. I had told my friends Marissa and Adam about our lunch plans and invited them along, but I wasn’t sure if they would make it. But they did! So I actually ended up sitting apart from our USC group, but not too far away. Then, even more surprising, Kate informed us that our lunch would be paid for by USC – I’m not sure how she pulled that one off, but that was the best news I had heard in a long time! So, of course, we all took advantage of this opportunity and ate to our heart’s content. Over a deliciously huge cheeseburger, fries, nachos, and a Coke, I caught up with Marissa and Adam about their experiences in Europe thus far. Adam had studied in Spain for a month and then spent most of another month travelling everywhere in Europe. His list of places he visited is way too long for me to remember, but if you’ve heard of it, he’s been there. Marissa had just arrived that week with a group from UC Davis to study “Italian culture and history” for a month. It was funny hearing about her early experiences and remembering how I felt at that point. We had a pretty long lunch and then Marissa (who was also with her friend Kelly) had to leave. Adam and I joined back up with the USC group for the rest of the lunch, and we witnessed the arrival of the bill, which was 550 euro! That’s at least $800, so it’s sure a good thing we got that paid for! Go ahead and make the spoiled children jokes, I loved my free meal :)

After lunch, Adam and I decided to stop at a church on the way back to the metro. It is the church of the Immaculate Conception, but it is most well known for a rather macabre chapel of sorts decorated with the bones of over 4000 monks. It was listed as one of the hidden treasures of Rome by Rick Steve or someone, so we decided to go see. Adam was quite creeped out, and I must admit it was a little much. I snuck a picture, again not allowed, and hopefully it gives some idea of what it was like. Then we hopped on the metro and came back to my apartment so Adam could use the internet to check in for his flight home the next morning. Then we decided to go climb to the top of the cupola of St. Peter’s, which I had still yet to do. It was something like 600 stairs, but it was totally worth it. It was easily the best view we have seen in Rome. We stood at the top for a good half hour and just enjoyed the view, and then started the long trek back down. Adam had to leave, so he went straight to the metro and I walked back to the apartment again. For the rest of the night I actually got to work on some homework – either portfolio revisions or final project – and spent some time hanging out with friends. We got to hear some fireworks, but couldn’t quite find where they were coming from. All the same, it was the thought that counted and we were proud to be Americans.