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.