What were you grateful for this week?Being able to travel and see parts of Italy that most tourists skip over.

What was the most challenging part of this week?This week was so hot, it was a challenge walking and sightseeing around Italy in the heat.

Tell us about a “wow” moment you had this week. It was just nice to see my host kids again!! They went on vacation the entire week and got back Sunday night, so I was happy to see them.

Tell us about your week! This week was FULL of adventuring! Since my host family left on vacation, I stayed back in Rome and was able to spend a lot of time exploring the city, as well as traveling to small towns outside of Rome that were absolutely beautiful. I’m quickly learning how trains work here and the right way to navigate them, so I took many trains to see some small towns.

First I ventured out to Orvieto for the day, a town high up on a hill that was stunning. I had read the Orvieto was a big tourist spot, but was surprised to see only a few tourists around. The next town I went to, Bracciano, had even fewer tourists and proved to be just as beautiful as Orvieto. The highlight of my week was undoubtedly touring Bracciano’s famous castle that Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes apparently were married in.

The last town I ventured to is called Assisi, and was even more beautiful in person than any pictures of it I could find. Another Rome Abroad traveler arrived this week, and we were able to meet up and travel to Assisi together! It’s SO nice to finally have someone to travel with. Assisi was very crowded, but made for a great end to the week. We even happened upon a wedding at one of the churches there and got to see the bride arrive at the church. So cool!