Week One

Time has been flying by since I got here almost two weeks ago. Rome is faded, worn, hot and dusty. It’s busier than I expected- most people drink and eat standing and then rush out the door. Traffic is horrendous (yes, worse than New Jersey). Everything is so old and beautiful. The marble steps have huge grooves worn in them from millions of footsteps.

The first weekend we went on a trip to Todi and Titignano for a meal. It had some great courses and some pretty good ones. I wrote down some of them later- started with fresh juices, pizza and crostini as appetizers, prosciutto and pepperoni, a cheese pastry, asparagus risotto, lasagna, pasta bolognese with wild boar meat, stewed meat (venison?) and green beans, roast chicken and potatoes, salad, tiramisu, grappa, espresso and biscotti, and finished with a fresh peach. It sounds like tons, but they were smaller portions and I ate only half of each dish, so I managed to finish. It was all served with very new red table wine. The Italian countryside is just like an impressionist painting (even though these are of France, they look similar).

On Sunday, I went to an A.S. Roma soccer game at the Olympic Stadium. Although it wasn’t close to sold out, it was really noisy. Everyone was taunting, chanting and singing. The opposition section was surrounded by security guards. Let’s just say Italians are especially inventive at taunting gestures. People were decked out with flags and scarves. There was no clock or score board and the electronic display only showed goals from other games going on at the same time.

It rained the next day and I first realized how filthy the streets are. It was an absolute mess.

I’ve been sick since the day before I flew out with a cough and cold. It wasn’t going away, so I went to a German doctor. It was the weirdest experience- he stuck tongs up my nose and poked around. Then he vaccuumed my nose (yes, really) with a suction tube and sprayed medication and anesthetic up there! It was so odd feeling. He wrote me about 10 prescriptions for different medications for symptoms (which I didn’t fill) and finally agreed to give me an antibiotic. Apparently Italy has been having some problems with over-prescription that they are trying to crack down on. I’m finally starting to feel better though. Nothing worse than a summer cold :P

I’m taking my time visiting the sites. So far I’ve been to Piazza de Popolo, Via del Corso for shopping, Basilica of St. Ambrose and Charles, the Spanish Steps, and the Church of Trinita Del Monti.

Shopping is weird. Many of the shops have only one size of clothing and if you don’t fit, too bad. Somehow, I fit the clothes, which I am thrilled about :) The shoes are still another story.

The food has been pretty good. I’m getting used to amazing pastries and cappuccino in the mornings and very late night gelato runs as a study break.

This past Friday, we took a class trip to Pompei (the English spelling is Pompeii). Our tour guide was a professor from Belgium for the undergrad art program. He was a total hardass- we were told we were there to learn and not enjoy. He told us there would be no stopping for the bathroom or drink breaks! Mind you, it was at least 90 degrees out and Pompei has very little shade and is on a hill. He generously allowed us 15 minutes to eat standing up while he continued to lecture. He walked at a blazing pace from building to building, only stopping to close his eyes and imagine ancient Rome every once and a while while he talked. Although he was very knowledgeable, I feel like I couldn’t appreciate Pompei. The tour was 5 hours long, with no time to see things on our own. Now that I look back on the pictures, there was some really neat stuff- but I’m still not clear on ancient Roman history/politics/law.

After the death march was over, we were on our own to spend the weekend. I went to Sorrento with some friends. Sorrento near the Amalfi Coast, about 4 hours south of Rome. It’s famous for lemons and limoncello. The lemons were- no kidding- the size of my head. At least a very large grapefruit size. They were amazing and almost sweet. The oranges were small compared to regular navel oranges, but I never tasted any orange so delicious. Sorrento was very lush with flowers and geckos all over the place. During the day, we took the ferry to Capri. It was absolutely gorgeous. The sea was turquoise and the beach was white rocks about the size of golfballs. The water was very clear and salty- great for swimming. Capri is famous for the Blue Grotto (and the White and Green Grottos too) but we couldn’t go that day because the sea was too rough to enter the cave. Capri was touristy and crowded. It is a famous spot for celebrity beach vacations, so there are super expensive stores in town. We saw an 11,000 euro necklace cut out of a huge aquamarine. It was crazy. The island of Capri is a giant conical mountain sticking out of the sea. We arrived in Marina Grande, swam, took the cable car up to the town of Capri at the top of the mountain, then took one of the scariest bus rides of my life down to Marina Piccolo on the other side of the island for more swimming. The bus driver was cursing everything- us, the other drivers, the road. The roads were only 1 car width at some points with stone walls on both sides. So the drivers had to back up over hairpin turns to let others through. We were less than one inch away from other buses at some points. Yikes.

I’ll have to update about my roommates, room, and school next time. Buona notte!