Villa Medici and Sagra

A week ago my friend Nick got us (his 2 roommates, our friend Anna, and myself) a private, after-hours tour of the Villa Medici. Apparently his dad is good friends with a guy that is good friends with a guy that has some authority over the French owned properties within Roma, possibly Italia, but at least Roma.

We all agreed that it was incredible to be able to get a private tour of such an amazing building without it being mobbed with tourists - just us annoying, college-student, tourists!! But beyond that, Didier, our guide for the evening, took us into one of the towers, off limits to the public, where they are currently restoring the fresco on the ceiling. First, he took us into a small side room and gave us a run down of the frescos covering all of the walls. Then he actually took us up on top of the scaffolding to see the fresco that is currently being restored - it was amazing!!

Following our tour, Didier even took us across the street for drinks! All in all a very good night and an incredible opportunity.
















Of course, we then took full advantage of our location and swung by Giolitti's for some gelato on the way home.

Finally, last Saturday, my roommate Jasmine, Nick, and I all ventured out to Velletri, a small, hill town about 24 miles southeast of Roma, for Sagra dell'Uva e dei Vini. Sagra is apparently a festival that towns throughout Italia that celebrate the speciality of said town - in this case, it was grapes and wine! It was fun to get out of the city, explore a new town, and experience something so traditionally Italian. And, of course, we each came back with a bottle of wine!!


















That's about it for the last two weeks. Booked a weekend in Paris in 3 weeks, a weekend in Venice after that, and then a weekend in Prague in November before the parentals come. This weekend is a SAI (Study Abroad Italy) trip to Tuscany and Lazio. Horseback riding through the Tuscan countryside - so excited!! Plenty more to come, so keep a look out.

Ciao, ciao!!

Authentic Italy

Yesterday I set off with my friends Nick, Jessica, and Megan for our first real european excursion - no chaperones, guides, or real strict plan. The idea was to take the train to Napoli, where we would then catch a commuter train to Pompeii and make it back in time for some original, Neopolitan pizza before heading back to Roma. If we'd only known...

We met up in the middle of Trastevere at 7a in order to allow ourselves plenty of time to figure out how to get to Termini Station (the main station in Roma). Seeing as though none of us really knew what we were doing, this went really smoothly. We immediately hopped the "H" line and in no more than 15 minutes we were dropped off in front of the station.



Now that we had plenty of time to kill, all we had to do was figure out which track our train would be leaving from, and it was still early, I insisted on coffee.



Once, 8:30a rolled around, we were all on board the train, ready for our 2-hour ride to Napoli. We were all excited to be getting out of Roma and to, finally, be doing something entirely on our own.





About 45 minutes into our trip the train stopped, nothing too suspect. After sitting there for awhile though we realized that we were now changing trains, (this is supposed to be a straight shot from Roma to Napoli), as ours had apparently broken down. Luckily, Nick speaks pretty good Italian, so we were able to figure out that we were going to change trains, take the new one to the end of the line, and finally hop a bus into Napoli. Definitely not what we had planned, but all in all no big deal.

Another half hour or so later we end up here . . .


Where are we???

We have no idea where we are, or exactly why, but for some unknown reason the train we were on is unable to take us to the junction with the bus. We are now waiting, in what appears to be the middle of nowhere with little more than tractors (I kid you not!!) passing by, awaiting an entirely new bus that is now supposed to take us to Napoli.

We all realize that this is starting to get a little absurd, but it's not like there is anything we can do about it, so we all just share a good laugh about what a hot mess this would be back in the States and how we now know that we really are in Italia!

After maybe 20 minutes of waiting for a bus that may never come with the theme from Deliverance playing eerily in my head - a bus shows up!! Having been baking in the Italian sun for the past 15-20 minutes, everyone rushes the bus as no one is sure that there is enough room for everyone and, strangely enough, nobody wants to be left behind. Of course, in true Italian fashion, as soon as the bus is parked, the driver gets out and goes on a 10 minute smoke break. There are now probably close to 100 people jockeying for position to get on a bus with no driver and no foreseeable future of leaving!

Once we're finally on the bus there is some sort of issue with too many people - for the first time since leaving Roma, a fact that rather irritated Nick, our tickets are checked. And by checked I mean, fleetingly glanced at to see if you have something remotely resembling a ticket in your possession - date, origin, destination, and traveller make no difference.

By the time the bus finally leaves we were supposed to be, (according to the train tickets we so honorably purchased), in Napoli about 30 minutes ago. But, we're on a nice, air conditioned bus and, even though we are now looking at an hour and a half ride to our final destination, we are moving again! Bring on the crazy Italian drivers attempting to fit a vehicle that is just as wide as the street is narrow down the old cobblestone roads with oncoming traffic!!

So we settle in for the final leg, or what we believe to be the final leg, of our now rather drawn out journey. After about another 45 minutes or so though, probably shouldn't be too surprised at this point, we find ourselves at the station where we were originally supposed to catch the bus...getting off again!!

(By this point, I should mention, Nick has managed to befriend a sweet, older Italian lady that speaks no English, but is keeping us in the loop as to what is going on and helping us navigate our way through, what should have been, our easy trip to Napoli. She came to be referenced as "our Italian grandmother" and she was fantastic!! The entire thing would have been that much worse without her.)

We are now told that we are getting back on the train into Napoli as it is much quicker. Apparently it is working again, too. Although, of course, because that's just the way our luck worked yesterday, we are also told that the train is leaving in 5 minutes, so everyone is rushing to catch the train before it leaves. Luckily, LUCKILY, this actually turned out to be the final leg of our trip.

SO: 2 trains, a bus, another train, and 5 hours later, in what should have been a 2 hour trip, we finally arrived in Napoli!!

Of course by this point we are all starving and have come to a consensus that we will have to make another trip back for Pompeii. Not only are we quickly running out of time to truly explore the ancient city, but there is no way in hell any of us are getting right back on a train. It's all good though because we had our wonderful "Italian grandmother" leading us to L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele. Only later did we come to find out that not only is Michele's featured in Eat, Pray, Love, but it is widely considered to be one of, if not the best, pizzerias in all of Napoli!

By 2p we are sitting on some random staircase (we don't really care at this point, although very Italian) inhaling quite possibly the best pizza any of us have ever tasted with a nice, cold bottle of wine.



Anyway, now that we had finally made it to Napoli and had experienced real pizza, we were all excited to set out and explore the city! We headed back to the train station and hopped the metro to Montesanto, what we were told is the old part of town. We strolled, Italian style, through the streets and, very non Italian style, took many touristy pictures.











After awhile we managed to find ourselves standing in front of the Archaeological Museum. I had heard that this was a must see if in Napoli as it houses many of the artifacts from Pompeii, so since we now had ample time we jumped at the opportunity.





















We probably spent a good hour and a half to two hours meandering through the museum before we finally decided to head back. It was now a little after 5p, we were all fading fast, and we had tickets for the 6p train back to Roma, although we were sure we could catch a later train if we so desired. Unfortunately, after the day we'd had we are all ready for our relaxing, 3-hour, (we all crossed our fingers), ride home.

The one thing that we didn't manage to get a picture of, something we're all disappointed about, was our metro ride from Montesanto back to the main station. Just one more example of a quintessential Italian experience. I thought I'd been packed into a Metro car before in Paris, but that was nothing! I was pushed back against the wall by Megan who was literally face-to-face with me, as Jessica was pushed into her left side and Nick pushed into my right side. There was absolutely no room to move or we would have been all over the photographic evidence of that ride.

In the end, we had a very uneventful, thank goodness, ride back to Roma and managed to catch the "H" back to Trastevere in good time. Despite all the hiccups, we all agreed that it was a great day, lots of fun and lots of laughter, and undeniably the most authentic Italian experience any of us have had. Here's hoping that our future trip to Pompeii will go smoother, but, in the meantime, I wouldn't trade yesterday's experience for anything.

And by the time we had made it back to Roma, we all agreed that it felt good to be home!!

6 Things I've Learned

1) Italians smoke too much

You would think that, generally speaking, this wouldn't bother me so much since it shouldn't directly affect me. Unfortunately there is no getting away from it and Italians seem to think that it shouldn't bother you. No matter what you try to do to get away from it, there's always somebody there to blow their smoke in your face. I swear, if I ever get lung cancer I'm blaming it on Roma!

2) The men aren't that bad

My biggest fear, if you could call it that, coming into this experience was the Italian men. Every person that I ever spoke to before I left, consistently warned me about the men and just how sleazy and annoying they can be/are. Well, I'm happy to say that while I've had a fair share of encounters that I wish I could forget, if you ignore them they tend to leave you alone. Yes, they'll still say things, but acknowledge them and you're screwed, ignore them completely and you're golden!!

3) Siesta time

To say that time isn't money in Italia is a bit of an understatement. I have to admit that, being American and all, I was rather skeptical of this whole siesta system they have going on over here before I left. How is one supposed to get anything done when things move so slowly and, what seems, so ineffectively, let alone closed during the middle of the day?? Somehow they've managed to make it work, and personally, I've totally converted - when is the U.S. going to choose to adopt the siesta system?? Lazy mornings, afternoon naps, and late nights - it's a great way to live!!

4) Walking in Roma is a giant game of chicken

While the overall crime rate in Roma is fairly low (petty crime, yes, but very little violent crime), the law in other respects seems to mean very little to the Italians - for example, the rules of the road. I'm not entirely sure what the exact rules of the road are, but if I had to guess, I'd say it's a free for all. Of course, this makes walking a rather interesting experience. I learned very early on that jay walking doesn't really exist in Roma and that the art of walking is basically a giant game of chicken. Yes, the drivers will come extremely close to you, possibly even close enough to knick you if you aren't paying attention, but pedestrians are expected to have the right of way. In other words, if there's an opportunity, get over it and walk!!

5) The food is amazing and the gelato is even better

I know that everyone thinks they have an idea of just how good authentic Italian food is, and I will admit that I was one of them, but you have no idea!! I have yet to taste a single thing over here that was not, at the very least, very good - most things are something that you can't possibly imagine and I can't describe. Then, to top things off, there is the fact that there are gelaterias everywhere! I will be the first to admit that I am not the biggest ice cream fan. It's not that I don't like it - I just really have to be in the mood for it. Gelato - entirely different story!! So good!! Between all the amazing food and gelato, it's a good thing I'm walking so much!!

6) Coffee is an experience to be savored

Last, but most certainly not least, I had my first Italian coffee experience on Saturday. (D, I think you're app has finally started working.) I had gone about a week and a half without coffee, undoubtedly the longest I've gone in more than a decade, and I just couldn't take it any longer. I would say that my withdrawals probably affected the experience, but every time since has been just as good and satisfying. Not only is the coffee (cappuccinos, for me) absolutely delicious, but it is the overall experience that makes it that much better - it all ties back into the siesta way of life. In fact, I think it's time for me to get a cappuccino before class!!

Ciao, ciao!!

La Vita Romana

*Finally, there are pictures!!*

I apologize in advance that I am so slow in posting, but unfortunately I have been having computer issues, both at home and at school, at least in regards to posting pictures, so rather than make you wait any longer I'm just going to go ahead and post this without pictures. Hopefully I can figure out a solution to that problem in the near future, but in the meantime, here is a more basic first post. (With that being said, if you have access to Facebook there are a bunch of pictures I've been tagged in so you can at least get a feel for it - feel free to share with those that don't have FB.)

Anyway, I arrived last Tuesday morning after a very long, but uneventful day of travel. My first impression, just in trying to get from the airport to the Hilton where we were to meet our shuttle, was that it is really hot and incredibly humid here. After about an hour or so, and a rather scary shuttle ride through the chaos that is Roma, we, my roommate from SMC was also on my shuttle, found our apartment. We are in the old part of Trastevere, a neighborhood about a mile and a half from school. Besides my roommate from SMC, there is 1 girl from UCLA, and 2 girls from Pace in NY. Everyone is very nice and we all get along well, although my roommates do seem to be a little more focused on going out than I am.



So about an hour after I got settled into my apartment, I went and met up with a girl from WWU, she was also on our shuttle into the city, and, in an attempt to help fight off the jet lag, wandered around aimlessly until we wound up in Campo di Fiori. (We would come to find out later that this is the most popular night life spot for American students.) At that point the jet lag was starting to set in and we still wanted to figure out where school was, so we headed back across the Tiber. By the time I got back to my apartment at around 6p I was exhausted and, after taking a shower to wash off the sweat and dirt that is Roma, I crashed hard!



The next day, Wednesday the 31st, was a rather boring day of orientations. First our SAI (Study Abroad Italy - the organization that we are going through) orientation, a lunch break, and then our JCU (John Cabot University - the school we're actually going to) orientation along with a presentation from the U.S. Embassy on all the stupid things not to do.

While at the JCU orientation we met Andy Steves, Rick Steves' son, who apparently also did a semester abroad at JCU. Having just graduated himself, he's started his own travel business geared towards students and is around all semester hocking his tours. As it turned out though, that night he was doing a free walking tour followed by dinner, so I met back up with my friend from WWU and her roommates and we tagged along.



He took us from Piazza Trilussa (right next to campus), where we met, to Campo di Fiori (here we learned the true nature of Campo), to Piazza Navona (quite large and we learned that it was actually Noah that led the Israelites out of Egypt! I had to call BS on that one), and then finally over to the Pantheon where we had dinner.





I have to admit that seeing the Pantheon for the first time, maybe it was just because it was night and therefore not quite as well lit, I was somewhat disappointed. I expected it to be more impressive and it just didn't jump out at me -I would later come to change my mind, I've since been back through said piazza numerous times.



Dinner was great - just around the corner - 15 euros for a multi course meal (I wanna say 4 or 5) and all the vino you could drink - suffice it to say some over did it. It was fun to be able to get to know people though and, at one point, Andy and I spent some time talking about home. Apparently he was offered an internship in P.A.







After dinner, we walked another couple of blocks to his favorite gelato place. I can't say that I had a whole lot of room left over after dinner, but . . . when in Roma!! I couldn't possibly pass up gelato and it tasted GOOD!!!



Thursday, the 1st, was a SAI inclusive (we didn't have to pay anything additional for the day) excursion to Ostia Antica followed by a 4 course lunch at a working farm/hotel. Ostia was a port town (right next to Fiumicino airport) circa 8 BCE that has been preserved over the centuries by the flooding Tiber. While I am still having a hard time with the juxtaposition of ancient among modern (standing in the middle of Ostia watching airplanes fly overhead), it was really cool to be able to walk through the town as a lot of it still exists in fairly good condition.



After our tour of Ostia, we were shuttled to Borgeso Italian Farm where we had an amazing lunch in an absolutely idyllic setting! It was still incredibly hot and muggy, but if we were ever in doubt that we were in Italia, we couldn't deny it there. The food was great and the farm itself felt as though we were sitting in a movie - it was a rather surreal experience.



From here on out things slowed down a bit - thankfully!!

Friday, I took a lazy morning and then met up with a friend after lunch before heading off on JCU's navigation 101. Had we known, we would have skipped it, but being the unknowing newbies we are we forged ahead. In the following 4 hours or so we walked all the way over to the Colosseum, took the metro to the Spanish Steps, and then walked to Trevi Fountain. At that point, my friend and I had already made plans to meet up with Andy again for dinner and had to head out, so we skipped out and made our way back to the Pantheon.









Once we finally made it over there, Tom, my friend from SMC (we've pretty much been planning this study abroad thing together) finally showed up!! (His flight had been cancelled and rescheduled due to his layover in Newark and Irene.) I hadn't seen him since May so it was great that he was finally there and he joined us for dinner and gelato!







Saturday was a really lazy day - hung out at home watching movies and then had dinner with Tom.

Sunday, Tom and I met up with another SMC girl that we had a class with last semester and her two roommates for some touristy activities. More walking!! We walked to Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, Piazza di Popolo, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and back home. It was a lot of walking (at least I don't have to feel so bad about all the carbs and gelato!!), but everything here is and it was fun.





Finally, this week is my first week of classes. My earliest class is at 10:30a, so it's kind of nice to be able to sleep, especially in respect to the Roman time table. So far all my classes seem like they're going to be really interesting and probably quite a bit of work too. I still haven't met my Middle Eastern politics professor yet though, he is apparently stuck in the States (still have to go to class this afternoon though). I can say without a doubt though that Mondays and Wednesdays are my favorites as I am done with class by 1:15p. Tuesdays and Thursdays I have a nearly 4 hour break in between classes, so, right now, I'm coming home for the duration before heading back.

Tomorrow is another SAI inclusive excursion, this time to the beach at Ostia. I'm sure it will be incredibly hot, but it should be fun, too!!

Enjoying the Roman life, but now it is time to head back to class.