Rome'n and Ramblin'

2007-11-16T13:24:00.000-08:00

I recently got a haircut.

It looks like this: http://www.managesmarter.com/managesmarter/photos/2006/12/smm_20061201_office_jim.jpg

I am not even kidding.

I will soon be home!

--

Erm, not much else to say. Sorry, will be better when things get a little less crazy.

Florence - The Reckoning!

2007-11-01T07:05:00.001-07:00

Again, see two below to begin at the beginning.This time, it's personal?
The Ponte Vecchio.
"A thing unexpected can become quotidian." Um, sure, Florence.
Happy Days is my favorite theme song.
The aforementioned ridiculous key for our hostel.

Florence - The Semi-Beginning!

2007-11-01T06:50:00.000-07:00

See the post below. Daunting Dante in front of Santa Croce.
Assorted parts from St. Francis. (Cape, Cowl, Bat-Rope.)
I just love this. For some reason, this was my mind's-eye picture of Italy prior to coming here.
KUNG FU MOVIE? Don't mind if I do.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T. We found out what it meant to them.

Florence - The Beginning!

2007-11-01T06:33:00.000-07:00

Go here if you want the story behind these belated bepictures.
In Florence, a sudden gust of wind gave me a superhuman build.
This is our first view of Santa Croce.
"Quick, look awkward!"
Joe ha molto fame.

The beautiful square outside Santa Croce in Florence.

An A-Paul-ogy

2007-11-01T05:52:00.000-07:00

I am very sorry. This is obscene. The events of the past week-plus have mostly gone unchronicled due to internet not moving fast enough to keep up with my life. And my picture-uploading has been abominable. This cannot be countenanced. I will give you many pictures in order to make up for this transgression.

There is an Italian restaurant nearby (wow, talk about tautologies) that let me cut off a piece of the prosciutto for dinner. I was really excited about, then I asked him (in Italiano) how I did. He just smiled and shook his head. Oh well.
In the cloister in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, there is a pillar that supposedly is Jesus' exact height. I do not measure up to Jesus.
Mamma mia! This may be my best Halloween costume EVER.
On the beautiful isle of Ischia, just before the trek down to the hot springs.
Chris and I lounge in a naturally-heated pool.

That's the way I like it and I never get bored

2007-10-22T08:06:00.000-07:00

I had one of the best weekends of my life last weekend. We went to Ischia, an island off the coast of Naples, where I had two meals that EQUALED Il Gatto e Il Volpe. We were taken care of by a quaint family that ran the youth apartments who cooked us the best home food I've ever had. Each family member had a different speciality (pizza, pasta, seafood, fruits) and all of the food (including the fish) was as fresh as could be. I had a swordfish steak for 9 EURO.

And here we run into the principal problem of this chronicle -- I'm having too many adventures too quickly to adequately recount. I have written them down in my notebook, and maybe at the end of the trip I will go back over them.

But for right now, life is moving too fast for verbose contemplation.

2007-10-18T17:39:00.000-07:00

I am gonna be on ANOTHER trip (Iscia) this weekend.

So if I don't respond to e-mails, that's why.

Still having trouble uploading pictures. Maybe tomorrow?

Almost forgot

2007-10-16T09:31:00.000-07:00

MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT MENDICANT

Florence Like a Harpoon, Daily and Nightly

2007-10-15T08:14:00.000-07:00

This is the tale of my visit to Florence. Pictures forthcoming.

When I am disoriented and tired, my Italian kinda goes by the wayside, so I had a bit of a job explaining to the middle-aged lady that she was in my seat. Due to the first in a series of Wacky Train Hi-jinx, we did not get seats in the same cabin. However, the others must have managed to occupy my cabin at some point, because I was later mocked for falling asleep listening to Vanilla Ice's "Ninja Rap."

Travel Tip #1: When given the choice between a rolling suitcase and a backpack, pick the backpack. Pulling a suitcase on cobblestones is NOT fun.

Florence was gorg. The first thing I noticed (other than, to my terror/excitement, a McDonald's) was that it smelled like NOT urine. Also unlike Rome, there were few natives oot and aboot. Florence was clean, scenic, and touristy. ("50 points to Florence House," Adam said at one point, to which I added, "Two e-props.")

The trip to our hostel went smoothly...until we were told our hostel didn't actually have room for us. This was the first in a series of Leadership SNAFUs that Justin had to deal with. Luckily, they simply transferred us to another hostel five minutes away. (At Hostel #1, Becca was utterly transfixed by their aquarium. "These are the best and most active fish I have ever seen, she said." Shrug.)

Our true hostel had three bathrooms, a kitchen, and a ridiculous four-inch key that had to be turned just so. The owner explained to a nervous Justin all of the things that could potentially go wrong with the process.

Florence has four major attractions -- the Basilica of Santa Croce, Ponte Vecchio, the Uffizi, and the Duomo.

S. Croce is a large church with a large collection of art and dead people. I saw the tombs of Michelangelo, Machiavelli, and Rossini. There was also a dedication to Dante, but not Dante's body because SOMEONE decided to keep it (I'm looking at you, Ravenna.) The thing that made me happiest was Galileo's tomb. I couldn't resist grinning like an idiot when I saw his inscription. For some reason, it was like seeing the last resting place of a grandfather. In a maudlin display of nerdiness, I made sure no one was around, then whispered "Eppur Si Muove" and bolted.

After we wandered through the city for a while, we caught the glittering city lights off of the Ponte Vecchio. I have nothing to say, but much to show.

Afterwards, I had the best meal of my life at Il Gatto e La Volpe, a small restaurant in Florence that was painfully unaware how good its cuisine actually was.

Appetizer: Foccacia with spicy tomato chutney
Primi Piatti: Gnocchi con pesto e gorgonzola, Tagliatelle con salmone, Tortellini con bacon
Secondi Piatti: Pollo con marsala, Pollo con pomodori picanti, Pizza con i funghi

I'm not a gourmet or epicure or whatever, but I nearly died of happiness. Oh, side note: the name of the restaurant is a reference to the two characters from Pinocchio. After I figured this out the decor made a lot more sense.

Our first stop the next day was the Uffizi, an old Florentine mansion that housed some of the finest art in the world. Not being schooled in the art of, er, art, only two things appealed to be -- ancient Roman Imperial busts and the Niobe Room.

Having just learnt about the rise of the Roman Empire, seeing Julius, Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, Otho, Vespasian, and Marcus Aurelius was like meeting an internet friend for the first time. Julius Caesar looked, well stately but kind of naive, frankly. Augustus Caesar was a bad-ass Harrison Ford type. Nero looked like a sissy deviant. (Go figure.) Marcus Aurelius had four or five different busts/statues. He managed to look contemplative in ALL of them, whether he was fourteen or forty. In fact, he reminded me a little of Ross. My favorite bust was Vespasian, a merry old prankster who was kind of the Seinfeld of the ancient world -- always smiling, telling jokes and NOT killing his subjects in fits of pique. I felt an instant connection to him, and not just because he looked like my grandfather, but partially because the bust was so incredibly well done.

The Niobe room is a large, extremely well-preserved room that is full of statues and paintings that recount the myth of Niobe, in which Niobe learns an important lesson about snubbing Goddesses. I have little else to say about the Niobe room, save that everyone should go see it in person.

The Duomo was our next stop after the Uffizi. I can't even begin to describe its inside, so I'll focus on the mundane. Tourists are people who love to pay to exert themselves physically.

Travel Tip #2: If you love to pay to exert yourself physically, go to the Duomo in Florence. It is exactly what you love to do and they let you pay to do it.

We paid 6 euros to climb the 463-step bell tower and got the best view of Florence possible. On the way up, I counted each individual stair and was disappointingly enough, one stair off.

I ate dinner at McDonald's, reasoning that after the previous night's feast, even pretty good food would taste like ashes. After the Duomo, the plan was to take the train to Venice where we would stay at the hostel of Champions...CAMP JOLLY! But that is a tale for another day. Sera, loyal readers.

Fare Firenze, Vengo a Venice

2007-10-11T00:01:00.001-07:00

I am leaving for Florence, then Venice in less than an hour. I plan on acquiring many picture-units.

Last night, in celebration of completing our first Civ course, Matt (who I call Lolmatt) and I hooked up the Falcon to the big TV downstairs and played Super Nintendo. Maggie had a couple of rounds of Mario before the spirit-breaker that is the Koopa horde finally got the best of her.

In other news, the Redfields have left us. Losing any professor just as you're getting to know him is an annoyance; losing the Redfields is a tragedy.

--

Once, twenty years ago, one of Redfield's grad students rushed into the Professor's office "with his hair disheveled" and told the Professor that he'd couldn't sleep.

"Why?"
"I've been reading Plato and there's no reason to believe the world exists!"
"What else would it do?"

It was as though a cloud lifted from the student's face. "Oh," he said quietly, then left the room.

This kind of serene clarity (combined with a gentle sense of humor) is exactly what every teacher should have, and if not, fake.

INTERNET HERE STILL SUCKS

2007-10-09T15:31:00.000-07:00

"Oh, they've encased him in carbonite. He should be quite well preserved...assuming he survives the freezing process, of course."
I do not look proportional.
The mendicant to my left stole my hat.
We were looking at A STONE LION. It had a spine coming out of the back of its, uh, back.

The System Is Down

2007-10-08T09:33:00.000-07:00

Um, my internet situation is getting worse...if you can believe that. The crappy 56k-speed wireless cafe nearby has ceased to work, and now I'm stuck using the hotel's computer for two euros an hour.

Also, chances are we're going on another trip this weekend since it's another four-dayer. Current plans are to go to Venice, where we have found a hostel to stay in for 15 euros a night. (15 Euros! THIS IS RIDICULOUS.)

I'm out until I find a better/cheaper way of blogging. A dopo.

Cumae-lative Weekend

2007-10-06T02:37:00.000-07:00

Professor Redfield told us this morning that when FSU was rated the best party school in the nation (and the U of C was rated the worst) he went to a conference at FSU, bought a huge amount of FSU sports clothing and wore it around campus for weeks.

Another time, he had taken his five-year-old daughter to a U of C football game. The Maroons were a yard away from their opponent's end zone. Three downs later, they hadn't moved an inch. They decided to try for a field goal.

"This is a field goal, Emily," he said. An ornery man two rows ahead of him turned around and glared.

"You're one of those critical 'Chicago' types, aren't you?"

The Professor, irritated, went home.

--

Today, we went to Cumae, an ancient Greek colony/mining town. Cumae is by far the most beautiful place I've ever seen in Italy.

Apparently, this place was settled by pirates and mendicants (the Professor said they were analogous to Vikings) who sought their fortune and heard there was money to be made in the mine.

We hiked up this beautiful vista to the ancient Acropolis, which was where most of the holy places were located.

I had this amazing experience where I climbed to the top of the vista and looked out at the Mediterranean and the tiny town, harbor, and beach. Out in the distance, two chariots were racing up and down the beach.

I felt closer to the ancients than I'd felt the entire trip. Something about seeing this landscape (which hadn't changed in millenia) versus seeing Pompeii (which had) really helped me relate.

For some reason, I couldn't get "May the Force Be With You" out of my head. You know that scene in A New Hope where Luke's looking out at the Tatooine skyline? (It's called "Binary Sunset.") The wind was blowing in my hair and I was watching the chariot races back and forth.

I can't reproduce it. I can upload some pictures when we get back to the Casa San Giuseppe.

Afterwards, we walked into an ancient, gorgeous series of tunnels that may or may not have been mentioned in the Aeneid.

--

At night, we stayed in this incredibly rustic (Ross would say "Quaint") Italian villa that was totally adorable. The owners had homemade everything (from pasta to wine), served us dinner themselves and even packed us bag lunches. The bag lunches had cheese, tomatoes, a sandwich, a pear, a banana, and water. They were among the most delicious things ever.

We had two birthdays during our stay. Both nights, the staff made these delicious Italian pastries and sang "Happy Birthday" in Italian to the birthday boys. On the second day, the elderly hotel owner bent down and kissed Harrison on the cheek and said "Come Mamma."

I don't know if I'll ever be fed or cared for as well in any other hotel.

A Nobel Ambition

2007-10-05T13:21:00.000-07:00

Upon watching an episode of the West Wing, where everyone's in awe of President Bartlet's Nobel Prize.

Professor Redfield: "Well, after all, Economics is a second-rate Nobel."

Pomp(eii) and Circumstance

2007-10-05T10:04:00.000-07:00

Nothing in Italy comes easy. Nothing in this world that's worth having comes easy. A trip to Pompeii was worth having.

I honestly didn't know what to think of this trip, for several reasons. For one thing, we were going to Naples but not to Naples. Imagine going to New York, then staying in Armonk the entire time without venturing out to the City. This is what we were supposed to do.

Maggie said that she loved Naples, but she also wanted to make sure no one got robbed or shivved. Moreover, we were running on a tight schedule and there probably wouldn't be time for such a trip.

All of these concerns were put to rest by Pompeii. My only previous memory of Pompeii was this sixth-grade tale "The Dog of Pompeii." Google it for more details. For some reason, I'd had the misconception that much of Pompeii was burned, instead of covered in ash.

Pompeii is breathtaking. It's gorgeous, creepy, serene, and menacing all at the same time. I'll upload my pictures later. The Internet here has severe problems.

We're actually staying in a charming little villa outside of Naples. The staff here cooks us full dinners (pasta, meat, salad, bread, and amazing dessert) and even packed us lunches for today. Rural service = everything that urban service isn't.

The things I miss most, other than consistent Internet and my friends, are barbecue sauce and ice.

Last night, I dreamt I was on Jeopardy!, but my buzzer failed to work properly. The net result was that I had 3,500 in the middle of Double Jeopardy!, while my opponent to the left had 75,000. (This did strike me as odd.)

Double Jeopardy! was full of frog-related categories, like, "Frog Habits", "Famous Frogs", and "Frog Delicacies." But for whatever reason, I was unable to answer any of the questions. (I remember one question regarding which restaurants in France served frog legs that I completely blanked on.)

Kermit presented one of the clues in a category, but Steve Whitmire refused to talk to me because I lost.

Romp(eii) in The Pomp(eii)

2007-10-02T23:59:00.000-07:00

So, starting soon I'm going to be in Naples. We'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy, at least according to the numerous things I've heard about it. Actually, we're going to Pompeii, because Naples is so friggin' dangerous.

I am not unready, though. I have a Batman belt buckle, my wits, and a large Max Working in my pocket.

We shall see who crimes whom. (Talk to you guys Sunday, I think.)

Got to admit, it's getting better

2007-10-01T08:40:00.000-07:00

Today, I spent three hours trying to help my professor's wife (who is an impressive academic herself) download the season premiere of Grey's Anatomy. This proved more difficult than it sounds. For one thing, DSL is extremely rare in Rome -- even more rare is a place that will let you plug your computer in, as opposed to using their computers.

Mrs. Redfield wanted to use her daughter's iTunes account, which required all kinds of monkeying around. Her battery was in not good shape and only held thirty minutes of charge.

It took us two hours to download the thing because the hotel we connived our way into letting us connect only had 56k.

So picture me and Mrs. Redfield stuck in a tiny closet, her holding her computer just so (the fragile modem was constantly in danger of falling out) while I held her charger against the wall socket because it also kept falling out. For two hours. When it finally finished downloading, IT DIDN'T EVEN WORK.

Regardless, it was actually not as bad as it sounds, because Mrs. Redfield is an amazing conversationalist. She's taught Rhodes and Fulbright scholars, and she's been with the University for longer than I've been alive.

She then bought me lunch at Rosso Pomodoro, this really upscale place. (She's been raving to our Italian lector about me, apparently.)

Trouble in paradise

2007-09-30T02:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had my first study abroad hiccup. It's both worse and better than it sounds. While taking pictures in an absolutely gorgeous church, some mendicant banged into me and caused me to drop my camera on the floor.

The end result was that my Canon Powershot's lens came off. It's a relatively simple problem (no parts were broken; it just needs screwing back into place) but one that I'm sure I can screw up in some relatively simple way.

I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for an Italian repair shop, but I don't want to pay a ridiculous amount of money for this procedure. Right now it looks like my best bet is to wait until I return to the states.

In other news, the Euro is getting stronger and stronger against the dollar. (It's currently at its highest point ever.) What does this mean for me? Everything is prohibitively expensive, and it's becoming even more so.

On top of this, I have a presentation on the Pantheon and 150 more pages of reading to get through today.

So not in the best of moods right now. Surviving this experience will be more difficult than I originally thought.

Something unpredictable, but in the end it's right?

2007-09-28T03:04:00.000-07:00

This is already rivaling Scav for the coveted title “Best Experience of My Life.” I can’t remember the last time I’ve felt this physically healthy, socially outgoing, and intellectual stimulated. The people are luminous beings. (I’m really regretting not getting out of the House more often last year.) Every night I see and do something new in this ancient place.

I’ve now been in Rome long enough to get hit with a bundle of contradictions. Before I set foot on this continent, I knew absolutely nothing about the Roman civilization. I mean, I knew all of the requisite “Jeopardy!” cursory knowledge (the major emperors, big still-standing stone objects and their locations), but I knew nothing about how the Romans lived, what they did, etc. If a group of ancient Romans came up to me, and in the course of conversation, used the phrase, “You know how we do” I would be forced to reply “FALSE.”

But now, after three days of class, I have a wealth of information about their habits, system of government, violent quirky legends, etc. that I never had before. I’ve never acquired so much information about a subject I knew absolutely nothing about in such a small time before. I am somewhat suffering from sensory overload at this point.

Additionally, I can feel myself getting better in Italian. I’ve had two conversations over AIM in Italian. IN ITALIAN. (This does not count the mundane daily talking in Italian that happens over the course of the day.)

I’m under budget by about two euros a day, which is amazing. I may be able to buy something nice if this keeps up.

Despite the incredibly inconvenient internet situation, I still managed to download the season premiere of Avatar, albeit three days late. This isn’t Rome-related, so I’ll hold off on my thoughts unless someone asks me directly.

Look At My Pictures, or, the Call 'o "SEE 'EM"!

2007-09-28T02:37:00.001-07:00

Man, I'm really reaching for the pun there."You're the top...you're the Coliseum. You're the top...you're the Louvre museum."
They used to flood this bottom area and have mock naval battles. Dr. Redfield confirmed this.
There's a stage! They still use the Coliseum for performances occasionally. I NEED to go to one of these.
Nothing like taking a picture while stretching, Cassie.
Una bella vista.
Mystery arch? No one sitting around me can figure out which one this is.
Justin is the haps.
If only Max Working had a Myspace page.
See those plastic-y, fake looking columns to the left? They put those up for use in midnight fashion shows. I have no idea why the old people depicted found me so interesting.
Moments before, this man was dressed as a Gladiator. They have these fake Gladiators/Centurions that walk around the Forum exhorting you to take expensive pictures with them. So kind of like Disney mascots, except more explicitly violence-related.
"You see, Artie, these are cobblestones."
"Very interesting."
Dan and Sonia are presenting on the church San Clemente, WHICH I SAW A HISTORY CHANNEL SPECIAL ON THE DAY BEFORE I LEFT. Remember that, Mom? They were walking through a darkened corridor and the host was totally nerding out! I HAVE BEEN THERE NOW.
The Vittorio Manuele monument is actually pretty from this angle.
You can't see it that well, but that sign says: "Spider-Man: più umano dei super-uomini." (Spider-Man: The Most Human of the Superheroes.") I promise I'll post pictures of this exhibit later.
Little Caesar's statue.
This is a car we saw near our hotel. It had this on its window.
It is covered in fur. FUR!
Gross.
Sei serio? Ma va.
Temple of the Vestal Virgins.
The Arch of Trajan is in the middle of the picture, while the large square building to its right is the Curia Hostilia, or the ancient roman Senate building (still standing!)
Our fearless leaders, Professor Redfield and Maggie!
As we were walking by, some people were excavating a site in the forum.
OMG GEEK OUT.
That's it for today. I still have loads of pictures, but I also have loads of reading to do this weekend.

A dopo.

For Lee

2007-09-27T09:08:00.001-07:00

So I found this place across the street that is like some '70s - early '80s American pop culture wasteland. It's filled with Back to the Future paraphernalia, Bruce Springsteen album covers, Muppets calendars, and a working Commodore 64 with Pong!

Here are some more pictures. I'm working on getting the Spidey pics; they're not on my camera.

We rode this crazy Space Mountain-esque brightly colored bus on the way back from Ostia. It looked like my room from last year.
This kind of stuff is ALL OVER ROME.
Why a pyramid? Why not?

Everything's Under Control; Situation Normal.

2007-09-27T09:02:00.001-07:00

Lee has brought it to my attention that those of you without Blogspot accounts can't comment on my posts.

FIX'D.

Now you have no excuse. Also, contrary to popular belief, I have managed to avoid falling in love with Max Working.

Hope you're all well; I have a long weekend so I will post more pictures and stuff tomorrow.

Does Whatever The Romans Can

2007-09-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

Professor James Redfield is a certified bad-ass. One of the most respected teachers in his field, he's one of the only lecturers who can hold my attention for two consecutive hours. My goal is to do ALL of the reading -- something that's not only optional, but pretty difficult. I think I've gotten off to an excellent start in both classes.

Redfield told us the U of C operated much like the late Roman Republic. This was pretty entertaining, as Rome's government failed to work unless there was an external threat to the city. Basically, both the U of C and Rome lacked unitary command at ANY level, so consensus-building among the autonomous bureaucratic bodies was/is next-to-impossible.

In other news, I went to this exhibit. It featured not only art, but historic comic covers/costumes several giant statues of him, and an amazing (ouch) walk through Peter's history in Italian. I actually understood most of it!

I went to the Coliseum. It was colossal. (I'm actually really excited about it, but without pictures it's tough to rave.)

So basically, I am having an amazing time in every possible way.

The River and the Beach

2007-09-24T04:50:00.001-07:00

I really like how the Tiber slopes here.
SPQR is everywhere.
Graffiti declarations of love are fairly common. This one says, "Babi, I tell you in a soft voice...I love you." There is no word on how Babi feels about this.
Max and I saw someone filming a documentary on the Tiber. When asked, they said it was "un piccolo film." They made it clear that they did not need English-speaking extras. Painfully clear.

I like to think that somewhere in Rome, there is a naked businessman who left this behind.
Hey, stick stickly man! Whaaaat are you doing?
Una parca senza erbi.
Vittorio Emanuele is not on my Christmas card list. "Hey, guys, let's build a big dumb ostentatious monument to me that dwarfs much cooler stuff nearby!" What a chump.
Still not impressed.

So that's it for Saturday. On Sunday, we went on an excursion to the beach. I swam in the Mediterranean! Unfortunately, it was pretty difficult finding a public, free beach. We had to take a train and two buses. But it was kind of worth it. For me, anyway. The others didn't even get into the water. I was all, "Water you doing?"

I like the symmetry of this picture.
At this point, the Italians stopped us and said we had to pay to go any further. I took a picture in frustration.
Us.
We made it! But no one was in the water?
To the Max.

My first day of class is (was) today. Redfield is really old, but he's a very good lecturer. I have my first Italian class in a few minutes. Ciao until then. (I'll try to cool it with the pictures from now on.)

This Just In

2007-09-23T03:07:00.000-07:00

Rome is full of things. Many of them are very, very old. I haven't even gotten halfway through the 100-odd pictures I've taken so far. (I decided early on to stop being self-conscious about being a lame American tourist and to simply snap a photo whenever I saw fit. Also, I really like my new digital camera.)

I still do not have free internets. The Italian strategy of doing things seems to be to promise to do them and then to not do them. I am reminded of a quote by Dwight Kurt Schrute: “Michael once told me, ‘Don’t be an idiot.’ Changed my life. From now on, whenever I am about to do something, I think, ‘Would an idiot do that?’ And if he would, I do not do that thing.”

The Italians, whenever they are about to do something, they think, “Would it take effort to do that?” And if it would, they do not do that thing. This is probably why they were not unified until the mid-19th century.

It should be noted that this reticence to do things seems limited to the Italians in charge. The people whom I've interacted with so far on a personal level have been kind and helpful.

Yesterday, I was cruising through Rome on foot wearing my Nintendo t-shirt (it gets kinda chilly at night) and I was stopped by two gaping native specimens. They were very impressed by my garb. I had some difficulty understanding them, because they seemed to be asking which 'bookstore' I had bought it at. Finally I just told them I was American. They then told me Italy was a great country.

Man, this post is worth about 18,000 words.

2007-09-22T08:15:00.001-07:00

And then there was nun.

The Tiber is pretty. Pretty dirty.

Representing the street.

Max Working is still real.

Campo de' Fiori, which is really exciting if you like vegetables and shopping.

It's all inside.

Max Working told me a story about some Monk that was crucified for heresy. I call him the resentful monk. I think he looks like Nick.

So these are some ruins that Mussolini dug up and made better. They belonged to Nero or Pompey or someone. Now they are filled with cats.

Very Zelda 2.

Il gatto!

Do not abandon your cats here, please.

I could not get enough of these ruins. Fortunately, we'll be touring them later.

A-maze-ing.

This building looks great. I have nothing to say other than it looks great.

We ranted and raved about the terrace. I don't think any of you can appreciate how amazing sitting on the roof of a building in Rome in the morning is. Seriously, this terrace should be used in recruiting brochures for this program.

Max is ready to terrace apart.

This inscription is talking about historical efforts to get rid of trash dating back to a long time ago.

This bridge dates back to the original Rome. No one has broken it yet.

Do NOT as the Romans do.

2007-09-21T01:51:00.000-07:00

This is very important. You see, for months I had been entertaining a simple but powerful fantasy. My Vespa (which I would name “Knight Rider” or “Gonzo” or something suitably strapping) would zoom through the alleys of Rome at a safe but unfollowable pace while the rest of my fellow students, unable to keep up, would realize their folly and take up positions on the side of the road to watch me discontentedly. Some would fawn, some would shed tears, some would beat their chests in despair, but all would acknowledge my superiority.

Unfortunately, in Rome, this is neither possible nor practical. No one pilots any vehicle except feet in Rome unless he or she has a death wish. Our information packet (“A Guide to Surviving Abroad”) similarly discourages emulating the Romans in this way. Che disastro!

My broken dreams notwithstanding, I simply haven’t the words to describe how fortunate I am. My strategy of assuming the worst has paid off tenfold. I am disappointed by only four things so far – the lack of carpeting in our hotel room (which as I understand is fairly standard in Rome), the lack of bathmat in our bathroom (which I’m told the staff is working on), the lack of less luggage to lug (which is my fault), and the lack of internet (which is repeatedly dangled in front of us in this hotel, but never actually delivered.)

My arrival in Rome was not as stressful as I’d expected, except for one thing. My parents, conscious that I would be leaving the North American continent behind, felt that it was important that I bring as much of it with me as possible. This resulted in roughly one extra full-size suitcase of doodads. Regrettably, my parents did not pack me an extra limb with which I could carry said suitcase.

Luckily, of the six of us who boarded the same plane, two of us were in the same, ridiculous luggage situation. As a result, we resorted to a hilarious tag-team process where one person waited at the bottom of an escalator while the other hurriedly brought luggage over two at a time until all bags were at their correct destination. This must resulted in Vaudevillian hilarity from the Roman point of view, and I’m sure we could have taken our show in the road were we not already on it.

Despite jet lag, I managed to go a full twenty-four hours without sleeping, and went to bed around 11 PM after a full day of exploring my surroundings. My internal clock roused me today at 8 AM, which is a pretty good start, I’d say.

I Immagini!

The view from my window.

My window/il tivu.

More pictures to come once I actually bring my camera with me, which may or may not be soon.

When in Rome...

2007-09-20T04:47:00.000-07:00

My father gave me a lot of advice in the car on the way to RDU, but I was distracted by a combination of nervousness and a sense of literary déjà vu that was not helped by the fact that we had both walked out of a (bad) production of Hamlet around the time Polonius was also giving his son a lot of semi-rambling advice. I tried not to carry the allusion any farther, but I half-expected Dib Paul-onius’ to say something to the effect of “Neither a borrower nor a lender be,” and I was sure that the whole affair might end in tears if he did. Luckily, he didn’t.

My spirits improved when we arrived at the gate and my baggage was handled by a man who looked like Ricky Gervais in Extras. The entire check-in process was extremely painless; I didn’t even get the chance to give any TSA agents the evil eye for searching me. I did get some stares, but it was probably because of what I was wearing. (A bright red t-shirt with The Flash on it, black jeans, Roos, and a black sport coat.)
I had a minor attack of nerves as I walked by the Popeye’s Chicken, but this had more to do with an ill-advised movie rental choice from last night (Super-Size Me) than any real feeling of terror. I managed to resist buying a Michael Scott talking keychain and distracted myself by taking note of a man sleeping in his suit. It was a very nice suit (“good form”) but he was sleeping on the ground (“bad form.”) Therefore, we must conclude that it was simply “form.”
I’m a firm believer in the “expect the worst” doctrine, of people and situations alike. If it comes, you’re prepared; if it doesn’t, you’re satisfied. So far so good.

A domestic layover is the worst buzzkill of all time for international travelers. I stepped off the plane into the exotic land of, um, Philly. The moving walkway separated me from Gate B24, a 1:05 flight to O’Hare. (Probably for the best.)
Philly’s international airport provided me with new and exciting challenges, like what do I eat? A quick glance at the food court map provided me with five choices – a bistro/wine bar, “Au Bon Pain,” McDonald’s, “Famous Famiglia”, and “Asian Chao.” The bistro and wine bar seemed too pricey. McDonald’s filled my innards with a nameless dread. There was no way in hell I would pay money to eat faux-Italian cuisine at this point in my life. Finally, I had promised my mother (after a particularly evil stomachache) that I would never again eat cheap Asian cuisine. (Except for Nicky’s. Nicky’s, as I’ve often said, doesn’t count.) The only choice was “Au Bon Pain,” which is French for “A Good Pain.” Reasoning that if I had to be in pain, it might as well be the good kind of pain, I got a sammich from there.

Five or six of us met up in the Philly airport. Common complaints were the number of books. I was relieved to hear that no one had done summer reading of any kind.
You guys should have seen my expression when I told an old Italian woman who couldn’t speak any English to go ahead and take my seat so she could sit with her Italian companion. Multiculturalism rocks.

The Saga Begins

2007-09-18T16:05:00.000-07:00

After spending several days packing, panicking, and investigating the Emperor Nero pregnancy rumors, I'll finally be in Rome on the morning of the 20th. I depart on the 19th, routing through Philly. Not much else to say until I finally get there.

Tagliatelle

2007-09-09T19:14:00.000-07:00

Locked in a battle with my spaghetti at dinner, I reflected on my hate of noodles and noodlesque things. They're way too vermatiform for my liking. Actually, I think I'd rather eat worms.

This might be a problem when I get to Italy. (Perhaps I'll do some worm-related research before I get there.)

Ten days left

2007-09-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

before I depart for Rome. My passport's been passed, and my Visa is finally where I want it to be. Due to a series of unfortunate events (whoo...I'd better go easy on the pop-culture references from here on out) I did not receive my visa or passport until a week ago. (Dean Fortner was an invaluable resource in ensuring that I was not deported from Rome prematurely.)

Almost all of my books have arrived; my Italian textbook (Da Capo) is proving a recalcitrant buy. I've begun badgering the Half.com seller in question, but honestly I'm glad that a missing Italian textbook is the least of my problems.

It's finally dawned on me that I'll be gone from these shores for the longest period of my life. I think what I'll miss about this country are the strange things, like that commercial for Nasonex with the bee with the inexplicable Spanish accent, or maybe the bizarre cultish Active-On ads. (Perhaps I should go someplace I can't hear the TV and reevaluate this.)

I'm faced with a sudden urge to take as many pictures of the house as possible.