For those who don’t know, I’m not used to things that come with being in a big city. With that said, since the minute we landed in Rome, I’ve been stepping out of my comfort zone to experience everything that I can. The thing that shocked me the most was the metro. There really is no such thing as personal space, and sometimes you just have to push through to try and reach your destination. It’s thrilling and terrifying with each experience I’ve had because between no space, getting lost, and trying to communicate can be frustrating, but it’s also rewarding to attempt and possibly succeed at a task which makes the struggle worth it. 

     While being here for 2 1/2 days, the biggest challenge I’ve dealt with is getting lost and finding my way around the city. With knowing 3-5 phrases in Italian off the top of my head, getting lost is different but exciting. One issue is the language barrier because one thing I learned before coming to Italy was that less then half the population knows English. So it’s safe to use certain phrases to see if they speak English or not, it’s better to ask rather than assume. Thankfully I was able to use these phrases so I could ask for assistance when I had some difficulties with the metro ticket by almost losing it to the machine. I’m definitely growing out of my shell and expanding into a different person in a short amount of time, and I look forward to seeing other ways to grow.
 

Line A with graffiti