I went to the POST OFFICE yesterday! It was really, really intimidating, with tons of italians in line speaking really fast. APPARENTLY, you have to take a NUMBER when you arrive at the post office, to be the next one served. Of course. Why wouldn't you have to do that? Italy, the land of confusion and inconvenience for the sake of difficulty. Well, I didn't take a number, so some woman started talking to me, and of course I stared at her not knowing what was going on, but then the woman working there beckoned me to her station. I mailed 14 postcards. The stamps were really old school stamps, that required ripping apart on the dotted line, and using a glue-stick to apply. Non of that new age adhesive sticker stuff we use. So, hopefully everyone will be receiving them in the next 90 days. I hear the Italian post office isn't too rapido.
I spent the rest of my day across the Tiber River in a super great area called Trastevere. On my way crossing one of the bridges, this old man, probably like 67 years old, said to me "When I look at you, I think of a bambolina!" I of course, had to know what that meant, so I asked him and he said it means "little doll." Haha, ok. He proceeded to chat my ear off and ask me where I was from and told me his son is a pilot out of the raleigh durham airport in NC! SO. RANDOM. I then told him I just went to school very very close to there. He told me he should set me up with his son, but alas, I had no pen to record information. He then told me a restaurant to go to in Trastevere, and called up the chef, and told him I was coming. However, something very common amongst the italians is there lack of good direction giving. He told me the street name and acted like it was right across the bridge to the left. However, when I crossed the street, there were about 900 little alley streets with millions of names and directions to go, so after 40 minutes of NOT finding the street he spoke of, I gave up. I was kind of sad bc it would have been cool to go somewhere a guy who lives there claims to be the ultimate. But oh well. I found another place, and specifically went there bc it said PIZZERIA on the outside. When I was seated and looked at the menu, it said ONLY PIZZA AT NIGHT. Damn. But I had some gnocchi. and It was good. And none of the waiters spoke english. So that was cool.
This area is especially very authentic and Roman, with little tourist interaction. Lots of cool vintagey shops and tonnnns of super good and cool restaurants and cafes. I actually purchased a vintage bag from a little place, and then went to a cookie store, as listed in my guide book. I wanted to go to this one dessert/cookie/gelato place, but when I arrived the the address, it was CLOSED! Completely, shut down. Sad. But these cookies were good. I told her I wanted chocolate, so she filled me a little bad of assorted chocolate treats. WHAT MORE COULD I WANT?!
I saw Claudio, the waiter who kissed me on the mouth my first day I was here last night. However, he was DEFINITELY working at a different restaurant... hmmm.... I avoided him successfully.
Today, I took a super super cool exclusive tour of The American Embassy. WHOA. This place is MAJOR. It's a huge mansion/compound/used-to be Palace. I guess that's what you get when you win the war! You can only go in if you are guided by someone who works there and can only go on the tour if you know someone works there. Pretty intense. All the entrances have tons if Italian Guards, and you have to go through this big security check before you can go in. It was awesome though. The Ambassador's office is unreal, and a lot of the hallways and staircases are unbelievably exquisite. I think I'd like to marry an Ambassador. I had lunch afterwards with Jimmy, Julia and their friend Nate who works with them (who went to Haverford college while Jimmy was at Haverford school, CRAZY!) at some great modern italian restaurant. It was way trendy and good. I got a "Regina Margherita Pizza" which was just mozzarella and basil and lots of cheese and really thin crust. SO GOOD. I was, clearly, very famished after the tour. And we all know about the unsatisfying Italian breakfasts and how they don't hold you over very well...
For the rest of the day, I walked a lot and, naturally, got lost a lot. This city is very easy to get lost in. So many streets! I did a lot of window shopping but was feeling too lazy to actually try anything on. I'd really like a black leather jacket. Maybe tomorrow.
I walked into a lot of churches yesterday and today. It's almost like every church in this country is famous for something. All the intense artwork and gold everywhere. They are SO elaborate. But also mostly very, very peaceful and dark and nice. I enjoy that dark peacefulness. I went into a few that were empty of any visitors and it was really nice. I always get really stressed upon entering, however, bc they are VERY strict about covering your arms and legs. There are signs everywhere that say a dress code. I brought a sweater with me today, but its simply too hot to wear pants or leggings with all this intense walking. I keep imagining some mean priest kicking me out for being indecent! I went into one right down the street that Jimmy and Julia frequent, and this really old priest came over to me as I was putting my sweater on, and grabbed my hands. He said something in Italian, some mumbling Italian that began with the letter "d". I told him in a really frantic, nervous way that I didn't speak italian, and he continued to talk. Then I said "English" and he said "english", and nodded and walked away. He looked like he was about 90. Hahahaha. Jimmy says hes funny and a little crazy. I wish I knew what he was saying. These old italian dudes, they are somethin' else!
I found leffe blonde at the grocery store! I needed to go there, because I had eaten the last Ringo ice-cream snack in the freezer, and I needed to replenish their stock. (I also love how they call them ice cream, or gelato "snacks"). I think the only places that have Leffe Blonde in stock are NYC and Europe. So gooooooooodddddd. I'm drinking it now at my own personal happy hour.
I also forgot my camera yesterday AND today. I bought a DISPOSABLE camera today. Can't wait to develop those.
We may watch Angels and Demons tonight. It was filmed HERE IN ROME! That's always cool to be there where the movie is, ya know?!
Back to my leffe. :-)
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Gladiators
Yesterday, I took a long stroll over to the Colosseum. It is SO big and so cool. I didn't attempt to wait in the never ending line, since I have been in it before, but rather walked the circumference of it. One of my FAV things about this area, are the GLADIATOR dudes. They are hilarious. I decided, what the hell, I'm totally taking a pic with them. I was careful to choose some whose costumes looked pretty good, and who weren't old and ugly. I succeeded. These two guys beckoned to me, and instead of ignoring and walking away I said "YEAH. I DO WANT A PICTURE!" It was kind of just like Old Time Photos, where he created the scene and kind of gave me a pose.
This was our first one. He told me to put my arm up, and be "sensual" bc I am his wife. I was laughing so hard. The sensualness didn't exactly work out.
This next one, was him killing me. I look like a ditz, smiling in the grave face of death.
And this next one, is just us happily together.
The Galdiator's name was "Joseph"... was he "Americanizing" his name for me? Who knows. He called me blondey, and was rather Gladiator photogenic. It was a very hilarious experience. Total rip-off, but what the hell.
I really enjoyed this group of Japanese people. The woman always walk around with umbrellas so their fair skin is not ruined by the sunrays. The gladiators were grabbing and posing with their umbrellas, it was funny.
Just some images of the Colosseum.
After a lot of walking through ruins, I decided I wanted to go to a lunch spot, as listed in my "Let's Go Rome!" book. I'm telling you, this book NEVER lets me down as far as food is concerned. Led me to The Queen of Tarts in Dublin. I trust it always.
I went to a place called Pizza Art. It had gourmet, thick focaccia pizzas. SO GOOD. Mine had large amounts of mozerella, olive oil, tomatoes and mushrooms.
It's weird how you will be walking down the street, and just walk by things like this:
Just some ancient ruins, no big.
The leaves are also changing!
We met Jimmy by The Spanish Steps before we went out with the Diplomats, so here is a picture of my fav spot... The Spanish Steps! Crowded.
Sunset pic from last night, from above the Spanish Steps
This was our first one. He told me to put my arm up, and be "sensual" bc I am his wife. I was laughing so hard. The sensualness didn't exactly work out.
This next one, was him killing me. I look like a ditz, smiling in the grave face of death.
And this next one, is just us happily together.
The Galdiator's name was "Joseph"... was he "Americanizing" his name for me? Who knows. He called me blondey, and was rather Gladiator photogenic. It was a very hilarious experience. Total rip-off, but what the hell.
I really enjoyed this group of Japanese people. The woman always walk around with umbrellas so their fair skin is not ruined by the sunrays. The gladiators were grabbing and posing with their umbrellas, it was funny.
Just some images of the Colosseum.
After a lot of walking through ruins, I decided I wanted to go to a lunch spot, as listed in my "Let's Go Rome!" book. I'm telling you, this book NEVER lets me down as far as food is concerned. Led me to The Queen of Tarts in Dublin. I trust it always.
I went to a place called Pizza Art. It had gourmet, thick focaccia pizzas. SO GOOD. Mine had large amounts of mozerella, olive oil, tomatoes and mushrooms.
It's weird how you will be walking down the street, and just walk by things like this:
Just some ancient ruins, no big.
The leaves are also changing!
We met Jimmy by The Spanish Steps before we went out with the Diplomats, so here is a picture of my fav spot... The Spanish Steps! Crowded.
Sunset pic from last night, from above the Spanish Steps
Monday, September 20, 2010
"I can't eat this. I just can't eat this huge salami sandwich at ten at night." (After sitting down with a salami sandwich he just spent time making for himself)
(He disappears to the kitchen...) "I'll just have 3 yogurts for dinner." (returns with a STACK of yogurt)
What the hell?
My brother, I'm learning, really cracks me up.
(He disappears to the kitchen...) "I'll just have 3 yogurts for dinner." (returns with a STACK of yogurt)
What the hell?
My brother, I'm learning, really cracks me up.
I wanna be a diplomat.
I just returned from a really cool aperitivo/wine/drinks time with many diplomats and cool young married couples who live in Roma. Wow. Their lives kind of blow my mind. Literally, a huge long table, of well-dressed, attractive, cool, SMART, married people in their late 20's-early 30's, in celebration of one woman's 30th birthday with her drunken mother. It was really fun.
As we walked home, a waiter approached me, talked to me, offered his hand to me, asked me where I was from, and when I said in an angry tone "AMERICA", he responded "oooooo wasssssuupppp girl." Because, that's clearly how American girls talk, and obviously what someone, specially like myself, would respond to positively. IT'S GETTING OLD MEN, IT'S GETTING OLD. Maybe tomorrow I'll dye my hair black.
As we walked home, a waiter approached me, talked to me, offered his hand to me, asked me where I was from, and when I said in an angry tone "AMERICA", he responded "oooooo wasssssuupppp girl." Because, that's clearly how American girls talk, and obviously what someone, specially like myself, would respond to positively. IT'S GETTING OLD MEN, IT'S GETTING OLD. Maybe tomorrow I'll dye my hair black.
A Honda Civic and the Medieval Streets of Tivoli
Yesterday we took a day trip out of Rome! How exciting. Jimmy was "on duty" for work, whatever that means, and was not allowed to go anywhere further than an hour away, so we went to a small nearby hilltop Medieval town called Tivoli. We DROVE there in my brother's very own vehicle. Chiara, the not-so-trusty GPS system, guided the way. Jimmy claimed she was leading us on the "rape route", where, we'd surely be raped as she led us down not-well-traveled cobblestone roads in the medieval darkness. What a new and interesting experience, driving in this country. Tivoli is about an hour away, and when we arrived...it was pourrrrriiinnnggg rain. So we waited in the Honda Civic vehicle, right here in this very spot, and waited for the rain to lessen.
This picture was taken afterwards... but I enjoyed this scenery very much, those houses/apartments are so old and beautiful looking.
We proceeded to run up and through the cobblestone streets, thank GOD we had some umbrellas, until we found a nice open Trattoria to consume in. I ordered some kind of meat stuffed pasta, which I thought was going to be ravioli, but it turned out to be these log-type things, in a large lasagna-like platter. It was extremely good.
There is a famous Villa there with gardens, called Villa d'Este. The gardens were pretty. Thank goodness the rain subsided so we were able to tour them. TONS of fountains. Wow these ancient people really loved fountains...However! The cool thing about THESE fountains, is that they are all completely run by gravity, with no water pumps or anything mechanical.
This one was really cool. It had like hundreds of mouths and heads just spurting out water.
This was the "Water organ" that plays music on the half hour, every 2 hours. Water makes it play. It was actually kind of boring. They should have had geysers like blasting up or something cool while it was playing.
How weird is this one? We were perplexed by it.
After the gardens, I was in dire need of some snack/cafe nourishment, so we entered back into the medieval streets to find something. What we ended up with, was, in all seriousness, THE BEST TREAT, I may have ever experienced in a long, long time. Julia and I randomly split a BANANA SPLIT. But. it was made with DELICIOUS gelato, (crema, chocolate and nocciola (choc. hazelnut)), which homemade whipped cream on top, chocolate shaving, some drizzled chocolate syrup, and an exceptionally good banana. It was so FREAKING FLIPPING good, I'm still thinking about it. DAMN. Gelato makes ALL the difference. Here is the aftermath, couldn't control myself to get my camera out before it was devoured.
God. Italy, you are not known for your banana splits, but you ARE GOOD, OH ARE YOU GOOOOOODDDDDD.
Oh, this is a statue of Romulus and Remus. The myth says they were raised by a She-Wolf. (woman wolf?). See them suckling the wolf??? THEN, the two of them each head opposing villages. They fought, and Romulus won... which is WHYYY it is called ROME... not REME. I mean, Rome is a wayyy better name.
Such a MEDIEVAL TOWN.
This town is SO old. Kind of felt like going back in time.
And then it started to rain again as we left. This is when Jimmy said "Look at me driving this Honda Civic, that I bought in SPRINGFIELD PENNSYLVANIA, down this Medieval road. What the hell."
We then hit some serious, SERIOUS Italian Roma traffic on the highway. All the Italians were hanging out of their windows smoking their brains out. We were behind a Priest, and figured, if God were to separate the traffic and create a clear way home, it would surely be in the Priest's lane.
That's just some dude who got out of his car, bc we were not moving at all. And that's the Priest in front of us, in the Volkswagon Golf.
What a day, what a day! We made it back in time for Jimmy to watch the Eagles game....lame.
This picture was taken afterwards... but I enjoyed this scenery very much, those houses/apartments are so old and beautiful looking.
We proceeded to run up and through the cobblestone streets, thank GOD we had some umbrellas, until we found a nice open Trattoria to consume in. I ordered some kind of meat stuffed pasta, which I thought was going to be ravioli, but it turned out to be these log-type things, in a large lasagna-like platter. It was extremely good.
There is a famous Villa there with gardens, called Villa d'Este. The gardens were pretty. Thank goodness the rain subsided so we were able to tour them. TONS of fountains. Wow these ancient people really loved fountains...However! The cool thing about THESE fountains, is that they are all completely run by gravity, with no water pumps or anything mechanical.
This one was really cool. It had like hundreds of mouths and heads just spurting out water.
This was the "Water organ" that plays music on the half hour, every 2 hours. Water makes it play. It was actually kind of boring. They should have had geysers like blasting up or something cool while it was playing.
How weird is this one? We were perplexed by it.
After the gardens, I was in dire need of some snack/cafe nourishment, so we entered back into the medieval streets to find something. What we ended up with, was, in all seriousness, THE BEST TREAT, I may have ever experienced in a long, long time. Julia and I randomly split a BANANA SPLIT. But. it was made with DELICIOUS gelato, (crema, chocolate and nocciola (choc. hazelnut)), which homemade whipped cream on top, chocolate shaving, some drizzled chocolate syrup, and an exceptionally good banana. It was so FREAKING FLIPPING good, I'm still thinking about it. DAMN. Gelato makes ALL the difference. Here is the aftermath, couldn't control myself to get my camera out before it was devoured.
God. Italy, you are not known for your banana splits, but you ARE GOOD, OH ARE YOU GOOOOOODDDDDD.
Oh, this is a statue of Romulus and Remus. The myth says they were raised by a She-Wolf. (woman wolf?). See them suckling the wolf??? THEN, the two of them each head opposing villages. They fought, and Romulus won... which is WHYYY it is called ROME... not REME. I mean, Rome is a wayyy better name.
Such a MEDIEVAL TOWN.
This town is SO old. Kind of felt like going back in time.
And then it started to rain again as we left. This is when Jimmy said "Look at me driving this Honda Civic, that I bought in SPRINGFIELD PENNSYLVANIA, down this Medieval road. What the hell."
We then hit some serious, SERIOUS Italian Roma traffic on the highway. All the Italians were hanging out of their windows smoking their brains out. We were behind a Priest, and figured, if God were to separate the traffic and create a clear way home, it would surely be in the Priest's lane.
That's just some dude who got out of his car, bc we were not moving at all. And that's the Priest in front of us, in the Volkswagon Golf.
What a day, what a day! We made it back in time for Jimmy to watch the Eagles game....lame.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Espana
You know, we had a really delicious dinner of some Spanish tapas tonight at a Spanish restaurant. The Spanish menu made me realize how much spanish I really do know. And also, I think I like Spain a lot more than I ever remembering. I went to Spain when I was 14, and I think I'd like to go again. Really love the tapas and sangria combo. Great!
There was some opera singing group that was singing outside tonight that we could hear, and the waiters at the restaurant across from us kept mouthing out the songs and putting their whole bodies into acting like they were the ones singing. It was really funny, and they were laughing at themselves doing it. This is why I love this country.
My brother is sitting beside me, reading recaps of Jersey Shore episodes. I guess, even while living in Rome, you gotta get that good old USA fill of trash tv.
There was some opera singing group that was singing outside tonight that we could hear, and the waiters at the restaurant across from us kept mouthing out the songs and putting their whole bodies into acting like they were the ones singing. It was really funny, and they were laughing at themselves doing it. This is why I love this country.
My brother is sitting beside me, reading recaps of Jersey Shore episodes. I guess, even while living in Rome, you gotta get that good old USA fill of trash tv.
Pics!
Here are some pictures from the Vatican Gardens Tour yesterday:
The Dome of St. Peter's Basilica from the Gardens
That brown pointed building is the Sistine Chapel from the outside! Who knew that's what it looked like!
Palm Trees! And a polish girl.
Famous major fountain.
More dome and palm trees.
Gardens.
The Dome of St. Peter's Basilica from the Gardens
That brown pointed building is the Sistine Chapel from the outside! Who knew that's what it looked like!
Palm Trees! And a polish girl.
Famous major fountain.
More dome and palm trees.
Gardens.
Pioggia! (Rain!)
It is raining today. :-(. I set my alarm for 10:00am today and for some unknown reason, it did not go off and I awoke at 12:15!!!!! WHAT IS GOING ON?! This time change must really be upsetting my sensitive need for sleep. Even after my 4 hour nap last night, and going to bed at 12. So strange. But feeling good now!
Jimmy and Julia both had to work this morning, so when Julia came home, I was finally awake and showered for the day. We ventured out to get some food. We went to a little outdoor place, owned by Sicilians. These waiters would not stop talking to us in really fast italian. Julia of course, could respond, while I just smiled and nodded. She said their accents made them very difficult to comprehend. We had some pizza, and I obviously needed my daily cappuccino. The one waiter told us, in italian, that we looked like we were from Sicily, bc Americans are *insert boisterous and chaotic hand movements*. I don't really know what he meant, but apparently Americans are loud and obnoxious... as if Italians are quiet people...and as if we actually, in any way, look like southern italians with our blonde hair and paleness...
THEN as we were getting our check, the OTHER waiter, told Julia he will take her out to dinner and pay for it. He proceeded to hand her a piece of paper with his number on it. HAHAHAHAHA, to which she responded "My husband doesn't like it when I go out with other men." and he said "no, no, is for her!" (meaning, me). Their tactics and methods never let me down. This marks the first time I have ever seen one work this technique before. Writing the number down and everything. Ciao buddy!
We wandered to The Pantheon, which is really quite incredible. The dome is SO HUGE and perfectly made. I can't believe it was made at the time it was (it is the oldest dome of its time). Built in 126 AD. WHOA, seriously, thats old and impressive. They couldn't figure out how to close the top of the dome, so there is a hole at the top! Rain falls through of course, and the floor is slightly tilted in, allowing water to drain in little holes on the ground. It is now a church, and is really huge and really cool!
Here is a pic of the outside:
The open dome!:
As we left, it was beginning to drizzle. We made our way to The Trevi Fountain, and threw in a coin and made a wish. The tradition says, that when you throw a coin in the fountain, you are ensured a return to Roma. Weirdly enough, this is my THIRD time in Rome! It must work! I was really hoping to see some of those guys with these huge 1980's Polaroid cameras, offering to take a picture of you, for money of course. They are so funny, almost as good as the GUARDA! men. Didn't see anyone with one of those old school cam's, but DID see one with a digital. Guess they have upgraded! I wonder if The Mafia is behind all of this absurd street selling business...
Trevi Fountain, looks like it did today, with cloudy skies and crowds! Wouldn't it be cool to be in one of those apartments/offices/ whatever they are next inside the fountain?!
So now, it is raining. What do you do on a rainy day in Rome? Guess I'm doin' it!
Jimmy and Julia both had to work this morning, so when Julia came home, I was finally awake and showered for the day. We ventured out to get some food. We went to a little outdoor place, owned by Sicilians. These waiters would not stop talking to us in really fast italian. Julia of course, could respond, while I just smiled and nodded. She said their accents made them very difficult to comprehend. We had some pizza, and I obviously needed my daily cappuccino. The one waiter told us, in italian, that we looked like we were from Sicily, bc Americans are *insert boisterous and chaotic hand movements*. I don't really know what he meant, but apparently Americans are loud and obnoxious... as if Italians are quiet people...and as if we actually, in any way, look like southern italians with our blonde hair and paleness...
THEN as we were getting our check, the OTHER waiter, told Julia he will take her out to dinner and pay for it. He proceeded to hand her a piece of paper with his number on it. HAHAHAHAHA, to which she responded "My husband doesn't like it when I go out with other men." and he said "no, no, is for her!" (meaning, me). Their tactics and methods never let me down. This marks the first time I have ever seen one work this technique before. Writing the number down and everything. Ciao buddy!
We wandered to The Pantheon, which is really quite incredible. The dome is SO HUGE and perfectly made. I can't believe it was made at the time it was (it is the oldest dome of its time). Built in 126 AD. WHOA, seriously, thats old and impressive. They couldn't figure out how to close the top of the dome, so there is a hole at the top! Rain falls through of course, and the floor is slightly tilted in, allowing water to drain in little holes on the ground. It is now a church, and is really huge and really cool!
Here is a pic of the outside:
The open dome!:
As we left, it was beginning to drizzle. We made our way to The Trevi Fountain, and threw in a coin and made a wish. The tradition says, that when you throw a coin in the fountain, you are ensured a return to Roma. Weirdly enough, this is my THIRD time in Rome! It must work! I was really hoping to see some of those guys with these huge 1980's Polaroid cameras, offering to take a picture of you, for money of course. They are so funny, almost as good as the GUARDA! men. Didn't see anyone with one of those old school cam's, but DID see one with a digital. Guess they have upgraded! I wonder if The Mafia is behind all of this absurd street selling business...
Trevi Fountain, looks like it did today, with cloudy skies and crowds! Wouldn't it be cool to be in one of those apartments/offices/ whatever they are next inside the fountain?!
So now, it is raining. What do you do on a rainy day in Rome? Guess I'm doin' it!
Friday, September 17, 2010
JET LAG and BUMS.
I took an accidental 4 hour nap this afternoon. WHOA. That's intense. I was so so so exhausted after a morning of walking around Vatican City, my feet were pulsing with pain (reminded me of he restauranting days) and I NEEDED to lay down. This lay down then turned into a full out slumber. Which I needed I suppose!
We went out to dinner tonight at a really cool spot across the bridge called Trastevere. It was very cool and crowded with cool dark restaurants and bars. Very trendy and hip seeming. We ate at an amazing restaurant outdoors, where we shared an antipasti of sliced meats and vegetables, and I need to explain the QUALITY of this salami. It was thickly sliced, where you could see the white casing on the edges, like brie cheese. And it HAD like an essence of brie cheese taste in it. It was SO GOOD. The bread was also large and crusty and delicious.
It was at this restaurant that I had my first experience with the "GUARDA!" men. Allow me to explain. Rome, along with various other tourist cities are filled with men selling weird things, and weird street performers and all that. There are these men who come around at night from outdoor restaurant to restaurant, and they do a magic show. A LAME magic show. (Guarda means "look" or "watch") They also wear fake hair, my brother informed me, because apparantly the grand finale has something to do with them lighting this hair of theirs on fire or something. AND, the best part is, they ALL perform the EXACT same show, with the EXACT same script and intonations in their voice. They sing this weird chant-like thing that something like this "GUARDA LA COCa-COLA!" "GUARRDAAAA LALALAL blah blah blah". It is SO. FREAKING. FUNNY. I could not believe it was happening. They have zero enthusiasm and chant in a monotone voice, its unbelievable. There were two GUARDA men that stopped by throughout our meal, and before they could begin their acts, the restaurant owners kicked them away. However, on our way out, I had the PLEASURE of seeing one in action. He had some sort of fake sword in front of his throat, and pushed it through, like it was going through his neck and released an anti-clamactic "aaahhhhhhhh" sound. I was dying. We all were dying. I wanted to see the entire act, most specifically, the hair firing, but we continued on our way. If you see me in real life, I need to impersonate the chanting. It's out of this world.
Poor GUARDA. These wigged men need some acting lessons, if not a new career choice.
There are also the various Arabic looking men who sell things like... mini tripods. Like. I really NEED to know, in WHAT situation, would I need a 4 inch tripod????? Apparently, you are supposed to use them on bridges with your camera... um....
Then there are the African men with the fake bags. The Pradas, the Louis Vuitton, always the big African men.
Today I saw some man selling, what I call "the little jumping beans." They are these little paper characters, with yawn legs, that jump up and down beside a radio playing music. My mother really loved them when she visited me in Florence, so one day I bought some. AND WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP. They definitely don't dance. They are literally a piece of paper, with yawn hanging down as legs, and little paper feet stapled to them. The guys who sell them, apparently, have magnets attached to them. Apparently, when sold, the figures are always between the radio and another bag, where there is some sort of magnet in action that makes them danced. Pissed me off, I really enjoy them. Check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCRncicc_3I&feature=related
Effing Jumping Beans!!!!!
hmmm. what else... there are also the Gypsies of course, who lay on the ground and shake their hands begging. It is SO weird to me that THIS is how they live their lives. Like, they do this as their jobs, basically, and all day everyday. I did notice, however, that I have seen WAY less Gypsies that I did, say two years ago in Florence. Julia told me Paris just gathered all the Gypsies up and SHIPPED them all back to Romania! Racist issues are of course in discussion now because of this. What a bizarre life. And horrible.
My brother says there is a specific type of bum that dominates this area that we had dinner in tonight. They are like, kind of punk, have a lot of piercings, and a lot of dogs. We saw many of them. He said he once heard some of them in a raging fight, and couldn't identify what language they were speaking. Interrressssting. I saw one of them tonight playing music and dancing with his dog. He picked up his two front legs and was dancing with him and kissed him on the paws. I thought that was really cute, until I saw another bum girl who was wasted and had a black eye. Unfortunately, her bf probably did that to her.
Lessons: Don't ever become a GUARDA man, don't ever sell dancing paper, but please, dance with dogs!. GOODNIGHT!
We went out to dinner tonight at a really cool spot across the bridge called Trastevere. It was very cool and crowded with cool dark restaurants and bars. Very trendy and hip seeming. We ate at an amazing restaurant outdoors, where we shared an antipasti of sliced meats and vegetables, and I need to explain the QUALITY of this salami. It was thickly sliced, where you could see the white casing on the edges, like brie cheese. And it HAD like an essence of brie cheese taste in it. It was SO GOOD. The bread was also large and crusty and delicious.
It was at this restaurant that I had my first experience with the "GUARDA!" men. Allow me to explain. Rome, along with various other tourist cities are filled with men selling weird things, and weird street performers and all that. There are these men who come around at night from outdoor restaurant to restaurant, and they do a magic show. A LAME magic show. (Guarda means "look" or "watch") They also wear fake hair, my brother informed me, because apparantly the grand finale has something to do with them lighting this hair of theirs on fire or something. AND, the best part is, they ALL perform the EXACT same show, with the EXACT same script and intonations in their voice. They sing this weird chant-like thing that something like this "GUARDA LA COCa-COLA!" "GUARRDAAAA LALALAL blah blah blah". It is SO. FREAKING. FUNNY. I could not believe it was happening. They have zero enthusiasm and chant in a monotone voice, its unbelievable. There were two GUARDA men that stopped by throughout our meal, and before they could begin their acts, the restaurant owners kicked them away. However, on our way out, I had the PLEASURE of seeing one in action. He had some sort of fake sword in front of his throat, and pushed it through, like it was going through his neck and released an anti-clamactic "aaahhhhhhhh" sound. I was dying. We all were dying. I wanted to see the entire act, most specifically, the hair firing, but we continued on our way. If you see me in real life, I need to impersonate the chanting. It's out of this world.
Poor GUARDA. These wigged men need some acting lessons, if not a new career choice.
There are also the various Arabic looking men who sell things like... mini tripods. Like. I really NEED to know, in WHAT situation, would I need a 4 inch tripod????? Apparently, you are supposed to use them on bridges with your camera... um....
Then there are the African men with the fake bags. The Pradas, the Louis Vuitton, always the big African men.
Today I saw some man selling, what I call "the little jumping beans." They are these little paper characters, with yawn legs, that jump up and down beside a radio playing music. My mother really loved them when she visited me in Florence, so one day I bought some. AND WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP. They definitely don't dance. They are literally a piece of paper, with yawn hanging down as legs, and little paper feet stapled to them. The guys who sell them, apparently, have magnets attached to them. Apparently, when sold, the figures are always between the radio and another bag, where there is some sort of magnet in action that makes them danced. Pissed me off, I really enjoy them. Check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCRncicc_3I&feature=related
Effing Jumping Beans!!!!!
hmmm. what else... there are also the Gypsies of course, who lay on the ground and shake their hands begging. It is SO weird to me that THIS is how they live their lives. Like, they do this as their jobs, basically, and all day everyday. I did notice, however, that I have seen WAY less Gypsies that I did, say two years ago in Florence. Julia told me Paris just gathered all the Gypsies up and SHIPPED them all back to Romania! Racist issues are of course in discussion now because of this. What a bizarre life. And horrible.
My brother says there is a specific type of bum that dominates this area that we had dinner in tonight. They are like, kind of punk, have a lot of piercings, and a lot of dogs. We saw many of them. He said he once heard some of them in a raging fight, and couldn't identify what language they were speaking. Interrressssting. I saw one of them tonight playing music and dancing with his dog. He picked up his two front legs and was dancing with him and kissed him on the paws. I thought that was really cute, until I saw another bum girl who was wasted and had a black eye. Unfortunately, her bf probably did that to her.
Lessons: Don't ever become a GUARDA man, don't ever sell dancing paper, but please, dance with dogs!. GOODNIGHT!
nuts.
They don't have peanut butter here. Or peanut butter gelato. But wouldn't that be GOOD???!!! Hazelnut has taken it's place, I suppose.
I awoke extremely early this morning for an exclusive tour of The Vatican Gardens, which are essentially, the Pope's private gardens. This is a special thing, apparently, bc these Gardens are not always open to the public. Our current Pope, however, has allowed it, while others in the past enjoyed strolling through them too often to let other people see them. Apparently John Paul II used to jog through them... I always recalled him being like REALLY old, but I suppose there was a time when he was a jogger.
I was in an English speaking tour led by a very Italian woman named Sylvia. She was amazing in every way, exactly what I imagine of a true Italian woman. There were some Americans in my group, who were from Virginia, and looked like cartoon tourists. They were wearing rediculous khaki pants, that looked like they were made out of that material that doesnt wrinkle so they are nice and packable, and the man had this long hair hr held in what appeared to me a woman's hair clip. And sneakers, of course. There were also some Australians and a whole lot of Polish people. It is interesting that so many speak english, that when they don't offer a tour in their native language, they can just do the english one bc they know english too. It's the language that binds us all together, I guess.
Only one tour group is allowed in the gardens at one time, which was nice. They were really beautiful and green. Not many flowers, but lots of well manicured bushes and trees and fountains, and a lot of italian gardeners that Sylvia was friends with. The tour was about 2 hours long and involved A LOT of walking. Did you know there are green parrots and palm trees in Vatican City??? Did you know Vatican City is ITS OWN COUNTRY?!
By the end of the tour I WAS STARVING.
On that note- The italian breakfast is simply NOT ENOUGH. A pastry and a cappuccino is clearrrllllyyyy not substantial. I need some protein.
After the tour, I practically ran to the museum cafe to scarf down a small salami sandwich for immediate nourishment. I then decided I should probably go see the Sistine Chapel again.
Now, in order to get to the Sistine Chapel, you literally have to walk through another 12 rooms of sculptures and tapestries. There are constantly signs pointing "This way to Cappella Sistina", and so you are like "oh awesome, I'm almost there!" Um.. no. It's definitely another 40 minutes of trampling through hundreds of people in these various rooms staring and taking pictures. I have been here twice already, so I didn't feel bad about not "taking in" all of these rooms. There is SO MUCH stuff in there, and I pretty much don't even know what they all are or who created them all.
I eventually made it to the Chapel, and of course, its amazing. Which brings me to my next life question, along with HOW DO PLANES FLY???! isssss HOW THE HELLLLLL did Michaelanglo PAINT THAT CEILING???? It is SO high up, and SOOO beautiful. This is something I have thought a lot about in my life. I imagine myself, laying on top of a ladder, painting. How can you get any perspective of what you are doing at all? IT REALLY BLOWS MY MIND.
I'm realizing, A LOT OF THINGS BLOW MY MIND.
The really famous part of the fingers touching is smack bad on the center of the ceiling and involves much neck craning in order to see it. It'd be nice if you could lay on the floor.
Anyways, I realize Michelangelo he had all of his apprentices and whatever helping him, but, yep, its pretty amazing.
There were obviously tons of people in there, and every so often you'd hear a museum official officer man hush everyone. This is a Holy Place after all. Speaking of which, if you ever plan on going in any churches in Italy, better cover those shoulders and legs! They won't let you in anywhere with tanks and short skirts.
It also takes another 40 minutes to get OUT of the Vatican Museums. Sheesh.
How cool is the name Michelangelo? And Raphael is cool too. Maybe I'll name a dog that someday. The Ninja Turtles were smart.
I AM SO TIRED. SYLVIA!!! That was quite the walk.
I was in an English speaking tour led by a very Italian woman named Sylvia. She was amazing in every way, exactly what I imagine of a true Italian woman. There were some Americans in my group, who were from Virginia, and looked like cartoon tourists. They were wearing rediculous khaki pants, that looked like they were made out of that material that doesnt wrinkle so they are nice and packable, and the man had this long hair hr held in what appeared to me a woman's hair clip. And sneakers, of course. There were also some Australians and a whole lot of Polish people. It is interesting that so many speak english, that when they don't offer a tour in their native language, they can just do the english one bc they know english too. It's the language that binds us all together, I guess.
Only one tour group is allowed in the gardens at one time, which was nice. They were really beautiful and green. Not many flowers, but lots of well manicured bushes and trees and fountains, and a lot of italian gardeners that Sylvia was friends with. The tour was about 2 hours long and involved A LOT of walking. Did you know there are green parrots and palm trees in Vatican City??? Did you know Vatican City is ITS OWN COUNTRY?!
By the end of the tour I WAS STARVING.
On that note- The italian breakfast is simply NOT ENOUGH. A pastry and a cappuccino is clearrrllllyyyy not substantial. I need some protein.
After the tour, I practically ran to the museum cafe to scarf down a small salami sandwich for immediate nourishment. I then decided I should probably go see the Sistine Chapel again.
Now, in order to get to the Sistine Chapel, you literally have to walk through another 12 rooms of sculptures and tapestries. There are constantly signs pointing "This way to Cappella Sistina", and so you are like "oh awesome, I'm almost there!" Um.. no. It's definitely another 40 minutes of trampling through hundreds of people in these various rooms staring and taking pictures. I have been here twice already, so I didn't feel bad about not "taking in" all of these rooms. There is SO MUCH stuff in there, and I pretty much don't even know what they all are or who created them all.
I eventually made it to the Chapel, and of course, its amazing. Which brings me to my next life question, along with HOW DO PLANES FLY???! isssss HOW THE HELLLLLL did Michaelanglo PAINT THAT CEILING???? It is SO high up, and SOOO beautiful. This is something I have thought a lot about in my life. I imagine myself, laying on top of a ladder, painting. How can you get any perspective of what you are doing at all? IT REALLY BLOWS MY MIND.
I'm realizing, A LOT OF THINGS BLOW MY MIND.
The really famous part of the fingers touching is smack bad on the center of the ceiling and involves much neck craning in order to see it. It'd be nice if you could lay on the floor.
Anyways, I realize Michelangelo he had all of his apprentices and whatever helping him, but, yep, its pretty amazing.
There were obviously tons of people in there, and every so often you'd hear a museum official officer man hush everyone. This is a Holy Place after all. Speaking of which, if you ever plan on going in any churches in Italy, better cover those shoulders and legs! They won't let you in anywhere with tanks and short skirts.
It also takes another 40 minutes to get OUT of the Vatican Museums. Sheesh.
How cool is the name Michelangelo? And Raphael is cool too. Maybe I'll name a dog that someday. The Ninja Turtles were smart.
I AM SO TIRED. SYLVIA!!! That was quite the walk.
HOTDOGS.
There are TONS of tourists here, and I mean TONS. I read in one of my travel books that the chances you are standing next to a real Roman while in Rome is 1 out of 9! Jimmy told me in order to be considered a "real" Roman, your family has to have lived here for 7 generations. That's a damn long time! There are english speaking people everywhere, and Lord Almighty, if there is one thing that is SO aggravating, it is SLOW WALKERS. And here, you pretty much can't avoid that. I guess that's ok though, b/c Rome definitely shouldn't be a place where one should be in a hurry. But its still annoying.
One ultimately dumb thing, is how restaurants LOVE to advertise their food in english. Most specifically, what stands out to me are signs that say "HOTDOGS!" "HAMBURGER", "WURTSEL!" Ok, any IDIOT who comes to Italy to get a HOT DOG... is an idiot. WHAT THE HELL???!!! Like, I don't understand how those signs could attract guests to their establishment by offering hotdogs. And I doubt any Germans come to Italy to sample their wurtsel. And anyone who doesn't know that GELATO means ICE CREAM, is also dumb. So, the bottom line here Italy, is, I understand tourism is a hug income for you, but please trust the fact that no one is here for American cuisine of any sort. And I effing LOVE hotdogs.
One ultimately dumb thing, is how restaurants LOVE to advertise their food in english. Most specifically, what stands out to me are signs that say "HOTDOGS!" "HAMBURGER", "WURTSEL!" Ok, any IDIOT who comes to Italy to get a HOT DOG... is an idiot. WHAT THE HELL???!!! Like, I don't understand how those signs could attract guests to their establishment by offering hotdogs. And I doubt any Germans come to Italy to sample their wurtsel. And anyone who doesn't know that GELATO means ICE CREAM, is also dumb. So, the bottom line here Italy, is, I understand tourism is a hug income for you, but please trust the fact that no one is here for American cuisine of any sort. And I effing LOVE hotdogs.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
"Alejandro" is stuck in my head.
A few thoughts at this hour of 12:35AM here in Italia:
A) I CAN'T SLEEP. WHY? I WAS. SO. TIRED. ALL DAY.
B) There is no salt in the bread in this country, which gives it a definite different, yet good taste.
C)I really, really, wish I could speak this language better. It's truly the only language I have really loved learning and TRULY desire to study more of.
D) HOW can Rome be the home to THE POPE, and at the same time, be SO SEXUAL? Everything about Rome is basically about sex. The Italian men, their passionate ways of saying EVERYTHING, their indulgence of fine food and wine all day everyday, their chic fashion sense and understanding. What a conundrum!
E) You can drink from many of the fountains throughout the city. They are incredibly drinkable, in fact and have been for centuries! There are a lo of fountains in this city. I went for a drive through Margate this summer at the Jersey shore. There were also a lot of fountains there.
I'm pretty certain I have that "Christmas Eve" feeling right now, like when you can't sleep because you are SO excited. This is a rarer thing now, because now, things like toys don't excite. Things like new houses/apts, and I guess exploring cool towns make this happen!
In a random book store today, I saw these novels with The True Blood picture on the front. The books the show was based off of. But they were in Italian.
I'm also hungry. There is no late night snacking/2nd dinner-ing here. (Caroline, this is a warning).
A) I CAN'T SLEEP. WHY? I WAS. SO. TIRED. ALL DAY.
B) There is no salt in the bread in this country, which gives it a definite different, yet good taste.
C)I really, really, wish I could speak this language better. It's truly the only language I have really loved learning and TRULY desire to study more of.
D) HOW can Rome be the home to THE POPE, and at the same time, be SO SEXUAL? Everything about Rome is basically about sex. The Italian men, their passionate ways of saying EVERYTHING, their indulgence of fine food and wine all day everyday, their chic fashion sense and understanding. What a conundrum!
E) You can drink from many of the fountains throughout the city. They are incredibly drinkable, in fact and have been for centuries! There are a lo of fountains in this city. I went for a drive through Margate this summer at the Jersey shore. There were also a lot of fountains there.
I'm pretty certain I have that "Christmas Eve" feeling right now, like when you can't sleep because you are SO excited. This is a rarer thing now, because now, things like toys don't excite. Things like new houses/apts, and I guess exploring cool towns make this happen!
In a random book store today, I saw these novels with The True Blood picture on the front. The books the show was based off of. But they were in Italian.
I'm also hungry. There is no late night snacking/2nd dinner-ing here. (Caroline, this is a warning).
Also, we had dinner at home tonight. A new concept for me in Italia. However, it was truly great. We had curry chicken and rice, some delicious Italian bread, and I had white wine. GREAT. We had Jimmy's first anniversary "gift" to Julia as a centerpiece. A fake flower. The first anniversary is the "paper" anniversary. HA. what a jokester.
Italian Men Sure Know how to make a girl feel special...
Today was my first real day. I awoke after a weird semi sleep around 11:15 am, meaning 5:15am in my body clock. I decided I needed to wear a dress today after seeing so many people in them yesterday. I opted for this simple vintagey black one I once bought at a thrift shop in Brooklyn. Of course, I only brought BROWN shoes. But whatever. Julia gave me a book called "24 Walking Tours of Rome". It's a really cool book that created these walking routes throughout the city that you do on your own. I decided to do "Romantic Rome", mainly because I liked the name, but it took you to various places where Romantic artists spent time and lived. I set out by my solo self, and made my way to the Spanish Steps, which I think is my favorite spot here. It's so open and beautiful and sunny and soo nice in every way. On my way, a waiter guy/host, of course called to me to come to his restaurant. I decided to say no and keep walking, but boy did he get me to come back. He took my hand, and held it, as if we were dating, and asked me what my name was. He told me him name was Claudio and he wanted to "make me something special." Then he told me I have beautiful eyes. I laughed in his face and he held my hand strong, and said "Why you smile?!" HAHAHAH. GOD. Weirdly, enough, even though I am certain he does this alllll day long to American girls walking by, i was amused by him and not weirded out. DAMN they are good at this. HE then proceeded to give me directions to where I wanted to go and then leaned into my face. I assumed he was doing the Italian cheek kissing thing, no biggie. He kissed one side of my face THEN PLANTED ONE ON MY LIPS. I was so taken aback, but was also laughing and kind of shocked. Had I not been in Rome, this definitely would have been weird, but I just accepted that it happened and was on my way. A few italian men who were standing by were watching and laughing at the scene that just took place. Thanks Claudio, love ya.
I actually DID want to eat very badly, but i decided to not take Claudio's offer and continued walking until I found a place that looked not to fancy, and that was moderately crowded and that had MALE servers. This is a very big deal, bc with my past experiences, although they flirt with you, the male italians are wayyy nicer than those italian women workers. yikes. Pretty sure they don't love the American tourist girls. So another host man approached me as I was observing his menu and I decided that place was good enough. I got a simple marghertita pizza, some aquua minerale and a cafe latte. He asked me "Are you alone or are you waiting for your boyfriend?" HAHAHAH. Once again, gotta love em.
My mother called me during my meal, so I chatted with her for a bit on my new/actually not new italian cell phone my brother has for guests. I also needed to observe my map for my future of walking all day. It is interesting being alone, eating solo at restaurants but I kind of really love it!
After my meal, my waiter, who I learned was named Luca, told me he lived in Florida for 6 years and loved it. He then said to me "You know, when I have feelings and when I think something, I cannot keep it inside, and you, I really really like you a lot. If you like, come back here at 8 and we have dinner." Once again, laughing within so much. Luca was extremely non creepy and hardly talked to me at all throughout my time there, until this bomb came out, that he "really really likes me." HAHAHAHA. Sweet Jesus. I told him I'd have to see what my plans were. Later, as I was wandering, I passed by his restaurant again and actually had to run away down another street bc I didn't want to face him again. He physically reminded me of Stanley Tucci in the movie "The Lovely Bones." that is a very, very bad thing.
So the day involved wandering and wandering until I found those glorius Spanish Steps. Gosh, they are so great. Possibly my favorite spot in what I know of Rome. So open and sunny and nice and beautiful! At the bottom of the steps, is a museum called "The Keats Shelley House" where famous British poet John Keats lived for a short time and died at the age of 25 due to tuberculosis. It was really neat, showed his bedroom and lots about his life and personal letters and such. SO many people died from tuberculosis back then, it blew my mind. Keats was a determined poet, who gave up a life of medicine to persue writing. He was passionately in love with a girl named Fanny, but they couldn't get married because he was financially unstable. He then moved to Rome and died, and sent her a letter saying how much he loved her and blessing her. Now, I don't know much about him, but I have definetly heard of him and certainly studied his poems at one time or another. He wrote one poem, called "To Autumn" that I can greatly appreciate at this autumn time.
Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells.
Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;
Or on a half-reap'd furrow sound asleep,
Drows'd with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady thy laden head across a brook;
Or by a cyder-press, with patient look,
Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours.
Where are the songs of spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too, -
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;
And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.
I just love that he wrote a poem to Autumn, how brilliant of him. Lova ya Keats!!!!
His house was so nice, overlooking the spanish steps.
Anyways, after that, I got lost a lot and whipped out the map. I hate doing that because then its an automatic CRY FOR HELP from a stranger, but really, I have all the time in the world to figure it out myself! And I want to!
Then I saw another house that was occupied at one time by Elizabeth Browning.
So I wandered and wandered and got lost, in the street of ROME! And it was amazing. My feet started to hurt though, so I eventually made my way back to the apt around 6pm. I tried to find the Trevi Fountain, but the signs that say one direction are always kind of wrong, you follow it, to no avail. Tomorrow maybe!
I sat upon these spanish steps today writing down my thoughts and such from the morning so I would not forget. it was glorrrrious!
I found this wedding dress shop at the top of the spanish steps down a nearby street that I LOVED in 8th grade when my family came to Roma. I made sure I found it once again, it is truly beautiful. It is called Angelo Vitti, check it out! www.Angelovitti.it
I wandered so much today. It was semi hot but breezy with a flawless blue sky. I really need to not forget my camera tomorrow and upload some pics. Its hard not having the usage of my blackberry at all times. As I wandered, I truly felt like I could cry. There was an old man at the corner of a street playing an accordion, filling the street with that good old italian music. It was so amazing. And the bambini! When I see an italian child, speaking italian, it is just so mind blowing to me. I realize that thats the language they speak and have spoken forever, but there is something so cool about it.
Why can Europeans always speak more than one language????!!! Sometimes like, 6!
I just saw a bug in the bathroom and thought "look at you little bug, All the way here in Rome. What a lucky little bug to live here in Rome, you are such a cool bug."
That's all for today. I am so so tired. I have to awake very early tomorrow for a special tour of The Vatican Gardens. Ciao.
ROMA!
I have been to Rome before, twice actually, but never with this capacity of time and this, I suppose, appreciation for all things beautiful. THIS CITY IS NOT REAL. It almost feels like Disney World b/c it's THAT amazing and old and just one of those places you can't believe people actually, LIVE and HAVE LIVED for like soooooooo many years. It's ridiculous!!! But in a very, very good way.
I arrived yesterday after flying to Frankfurt from Philadelphia and then into Rome. I think all in all I got about 4 or 5 hours of sleep. My flight left Philly at 6:50pm, which, in my opinion, is kind of a dumb time to leave b/c its not like I am ready to go to bed for the night at 7pm. By the time I was tired on the plane, there were only like 3 more hours left and then I was in Germany. I did, however, have a 3 hour lay-over and was able to fall asleep on some airport seats. ANYWAYS, I got to watch "Letters To Juliet" on the plane and actually prayed in my mind that it MIGHT be an option and IT WAS. It was, however, really really bad and boring and predictable. But I'm glad I finally saw it. This trip also marked the first time I ever had my own individual tv at my seat! I WAS SO DELIGHTED. For some reason in the past, I always got the one plane that was not equipped. Thank you Lufthansa, for making this a final reality in my travel experience.
I got in a cab once in Rome, and a very good looking young Italian man took me to where I was supposed to meet my brother, Piazza Novana. This Piazza is a huge, very touristy place with 3 famous fountains. The Piazza is outlined by restaurants and cafes and souvenir stands, with tons and tons of artwork being sold in the middle of the square. I was really in need of some nourishment and caffeine, so I scanned the perimeter of restaurants, lugging my large suitcase and carry-on. Eventually, one little host man approached me, like they do, and asked me to come to his restaurant. I was like "ok." He carried my luggage to a nice shaded table, and proceeded to sit down across from me and chat. He was nice and funny, non-creepster, which is always good in this country. I told him I wanted something small, along with a cappuccino, and he suggested some bruschetta. So there I sat, eating bruschetta and a cappuccino, alone at a table in the Piazza Novana. I had no phone and was just hoping Jimmy would find me. Let's talk about italian cappuccino's for a second- they are GOOD. They only use whole milk, and are always served in tiny cappuccino cups, and the frothiness of them is PERFETTO. Like, WOW, they are so good. The bruschetta at this particular place was sub par, but thats what you get in these tourist restaurants. Eventually, after sitting for an hour, my host friend, who I learned is originally from northern Africa, offered me his phone to use to call my brother. He took it out and PUT MONEY ON IT for me to use. SO NICE! I got in contact with him and told him the name of the restaurant I was at "Novana Ristorante"... could it be any more non-specific?? He told me he would be there in 20 minutes. So, after about another hr went by, I was getting concerned, and my host friend had left since his shift was over. Behind me, was a group of 65 year old smoking, tattoed, rockster men, let's call them The Italian Rolling Stones. This one dude, with long, gray hair and an opened black button down, of course initiated conversation with me. I told him my name was Annie, and he said "LIKE ANNIE LENNOX!" He then proceeded to sing my name a lot. It was obvious he was either on drugs or had a little too many in his earlier years. He gave me his card for their band title "Frock Rock". One of the other old men suggested I come to "a very nice" party tomorrow night with them filled with "very nice people, and very nice party." HAHA. Oh my god. I eventually turned my back a little more forcefully and thye stopped talking to me. But they were amusing. I got very nervous since Jimmy was so late, so I went into the restaurant and asked the non-english speaking owner if I could use his phone. He was super nice and dialed my numbers for me, to no avail. He then let me leave my suitcase there while I went on a walk around the Piazza to find him. And when I returned... viola! Jimmy was there, seated exactly at my seat ordering a beer. What a nice little place that was. Bravo Navona Ristorante.
This is Piazza Novana, where I waited among nice Italian company.
We went back to Jimmy and Julia's apt, HUGE apt, and had some vino. aaaahhhh. Jimmy turned on the radio, which always sounds like a middle school dance, and ITALIAN GILMORE GIRLS, titled "Una Mama para Mica" meaning "A Mom for a Friend". hahahaha. He opened the huge windows in the living room, where there is obviously a glorious view of the streets below, and ITALIAN OPERA was blaring in the streets. I laughed a lot, bc this is of course very absurd. LIKE OF COUURRRSE theres a man SINGING ITALIAN OPERA OUTSIDE OUR WINDOW. I later discovered, it was coming from a music school just down the street, where they leave their windows open. SO AMAZING.
This evening, Jimmy, Julia and I went to a mojito beach bar looking place on the edge of The Tiber River. It was called "Mojito Tres" and only had one mojito on the menu... hmm. It was great though. We then proceeded to dinner at a cool totally italian little place called Osteria Del Gallo. We had some mixed antipasto of various meats and cheeses, some tomato bruschetta and I got the spaghetti carbonara, a traditional roman dish made with eggs and bacon and pasta. It was gooooooood. With red wine, duh. I of course, then had to get a cone of gelato on the way home, I chose hazlenut, a fav gelato flavor of mine. We walked home in the glorious night, I watched some True Blood and passed out. BENE!
I arrived yesterday after flying to Frankfurt from Philadelphia and then into Rome. I think all in all I got about 4 or 5 hours of sleep. My flight left Philly at 6:50pm, which, in my opinion, is kind of a dumb time to leave b/c its not like I am ready to go to bed for the night at 7pm. By the time I was tired on the plane, there were only like 3 more hours left and then I was in Germany. I did, however, have a 3 hour lay-over and was able to fall asleep on some airport seats. ANYWAYS, I got to watch "Letters To Juliet" on the plane and actually prayed in my mind that it MIGHT be an option and IT WAS. It was, however, really really bad and boring and predictable. But I'm glad I finally saw it. This trip also marked the first time I ever had my own individual tv at my seat! I WAS SO DELIGHTED. For some reason in the past, I always got the one plane that was not equipped. Thank you Lufthansa, for making this a final reality in my travel experience.
I got in a cab once in Rome, and a very good looking young Italian man took me to where I was supposed to meet my brother, Piazza Novana. This Piazza is a huge, very touristy place with 3 famous fountains. The Piazza is outlined by restaurants and cafes and souvenir stands, with tons and tons of artwork being sold in the middle of the square. I was really in need of some nourishment and caffeine, so I scanned the perimeter of restaurants, lugging my large suitcase and carry-on. Eventually, one little host man approached me, like they do, and asked me to come to his restaurant. I was like "ok." He carried my luggage to a nice shaded table, and proceeded to sit down across from me and chat. He was nice and funny, non-creepster, which is always good in this country. I told him I wanted something small, along with a cappuccino, and he suggested some bruschetta. So there I sat, eating bruschetta and a cappuccino, alone at a table in the Piazza Novana. I had no phone and was just hoping Jimmy would find me. Let's talk about italian cappuccino's for a second- they are GOOD. They only use whole milk, and are always served in tiny cappuccino cups, and the frothiness of them is PERFETTO. Like, WOW, they are so good. The bruschetta at this particular place was sub par, but thats what you get in these tourist restaurants. Eventually, after sitting for an hour, my host friend, who I learned is originally from northern Africa, offered me his phone to use to call my brother. He took it out and PUT MONEY ON IT for me to use. SO NICE! I got in contact with him and told him the name of the restaurant I was at "Novana Ristorante"... could it be any more non-specific?? He told me he would be there in 20 minutes. So, after about another hr went by, I was getting concerned, and my host friend had left since his shift was over. Behind me, was a group of 65 year old smoking, tattoed, rockster men, let's call them The Italian Rolling Stones. This one dude, with long, gray hair and an opened black button down, of course initiated conversation with me. I told him my name was Annie, and he said "LIKE ANNIE LENNOX!" He then proceeded to sing my name a lot. It was obvious he was either on drugs or had a little too many in his earlier years. He gave me his card for their band title "Frock Rock". One of the other old men suggested I come to "a very nice" party tomorrow night with them filled with "very nice people, and very nice party." HAHA. Oh my god. I eventually turned my back a little more forcefully and thye stopped talking to me. But they were amusing. I got very nervous since Jimmy was so late, so I went into the restaurant and asked the non-english speaking owner if I could use his phone. He was super nice and dialed my numbers for me, to no avail. He then let me leave my suitcase there while I went on a walk around the Piazza to find him. And when I returned... viola! Jimmy was there, seated exactly at my seat ordering a beer. What a nice little place that was. Bravo Navona Ristorante.
This is Piazza Novana, where I waited among nice Italian company.
We went back to Jimmy and Julia's apt, HUGE apt, and had some vino. aaaahhhh. Jimmy turned on the radio, which always sounds like a middle school dance, and ITALIAN GILMORE GIRLS, titled "Una Mama para Mica" meaning "A Mom for a Friend". hahahaha. He opened the huge windows in the living room, where there is obviously a glorious view of the streets below, and ITALIAN OPERA was blaring in the streets. I laughed a lot, bc this is of course very absurd. LIKE OF COUURRRSE theres a man SINGING ITALIAN OPERA OUTSIDE OUR WINDOW. I later discovered, it was coming from a music school just down the street, where they leave their windows open. SO AMAZING.
This evening, Jimmy, Julia and I went to a mojito beach bar looking place on the edge of The Tiber River. It was called "Mojito Tres" and only had one mojito on the menu... hmm. It was great though. We then proceeded to dinner at a cool totally italian little place called Osteria Del Gallo. We had some mixed antipasto of various meats and cheeses, some tomato bruschetta and I got the spaghetti carbonara, a traditional roman dish made with eggs and bacon and pasta. It was gooooooood. With red wine, duh. I of course, then had to get a cone of gelato on the way home, I chose hazlenut, a fav gelato flavor of mine. We walked home in the glorious night, I watched some True Blood and passed out. BENE!
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