I have experience with the US Consulate in Italy

Sage
I went to Italy last year, and honestly, it was kind of a blur. 
I was studying in Oxford, and we received a week off to travel as we wanted. Being bold, I decided to go to five countries in ten days. This was achieved through a combination of bus, train, and plane (sadly lacking boat opportunities, though I did ride a ferry in Amsterdam).
Long story short, it was very fun, but also created a situation where I was in the middle of a twenty-hour bus ride, at midnight, in Munich, at a bus station, in the middle of Oktoberfest. And I lost my passport.
Discovering my passport was missing in Switzerland, five hours away from the Swiss embassy, in a town where very few people spoke English. Additionally, I, and my very kind travel buddies, decided the best option was to go to Milan to the US Consulate.
My top takeaways are: 1) make sure that the person at the US Consulate spells your name correctly on your emergency passport. If they don't, shockingly few people will notice, including you, but it is embarrassing and a little scary, especially coming back to the US. 2) The US Consulate is very nice about helping Americans stuck in a foreign country. I got a new (albeit flawed) passport in a day.

Anyways, I really hope that doesn't happen again.

My number one goal for Italy is to give Pope Francis a little kiss on the forehead. 

Short of this, as I recognize it is ambitious, I will be very happy if I get to see some gorgeous art since I'm a big fan of art history. Also, I'm really excited for food and baked items, since I am a pastry connoisseur. I am also cautiously optimistic that I will not need to go to the US Consulate, but if anyone else is having any issues that may need this let me know! I have that experience and they are also very helpful. 
<3

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