Spring is Here!

After a more-than-a-little-slow start to the spring, and a massive hiatus from yours truly from blogging, it seems that the famous Roman weather is finally in swing. That Icelandic volcano has apparently been behind the poor weather, which will probably continue to be gross through at least August, but at least for now (and the last couple of days) it's sunny. Nothing too new has happened in the last few weeks, we've just been enjoying the spring. Our team finished 2nd place at the last Pub Quiz, and fourth in the league overall, which we're pretty proud of. The picture up top is of me and my team. Work is going well, it's nice to have a source of income, at least! I have 2 weeks off in August, and we are planning a little trip around Tuscany, for which I am so excited. We stayed in Tuscany 3 years ago as a family, and I can't wait to revisit all the little hill towns and eat the delicious food. Even though Rome is in Italy, it is such a tourist city and the food is not as great as in the rest of the country. Which is not to say that I haven't had some fantastic meals. We had dinner the other night, 5 of us, and went to a little place in Trastevere that I've been to before, but the gnocchi was just fantastic. You can really ruin gnocchi. If it's too dense, it's really bad, but these were perfect fluffy pillows covered in a tomato sauce with mozzarella. Fantastic. On another note, today I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of my Rosetta Stone language software. After visiting me here, and seeing how poorly my Italian has been progressing, my dad generously offered to foot the bill for the program, and I'm so excited. It's my summer project, to become at least functional by the fall. I'd like to be able to get myself around by the time we go on holiday, because I don't like having to have someone always speak for me, so here's hoping. I'm sorry I've been so lazy in posting, maybe the Italian lackadaisical quality has rubbed off on me!!! Much love to all.

Senioritis

I feel like I owe it to the elderly of Italy to give them a shoutout. For a country that so values physical appearance, "La Bella Figura," it is more than marginally shocking that people age the way they do here. It's as though all of a sudden they reach a threshold, say at 60 or so, and all of their prior careful primping and coiffing and meticulously chosen wardrobes go flying out the window. To put it bluntly, the old people here look, well, OLD. It's like they wake up one morning and acknowledge the passing of time, and resign themselves to spending their twilight years in a world of shapeless, blandly colored outfits and orthopedic shoes. My mother has always believed that age is nothing but a state of mind, and that you are only as old as you feel, and I agree with her. I don't think I would be alone in giving a nod to my parents, who are in their 60s and could run circles around most people in their 50s, and probably some in their 40s (and me, in my 20s, but that's another tale). What, then, has caused the decline of Italy's elderly? Should this even be worth mentioning? Or are Americans conditioned to fear old age? Popular celebrity culture, most rampantly prevalent in the United States, has essentially made aging a cultural faux pas. Botox, collagen injections, and face creams made from placenta are all footsoldiers in the army against Mother Nature. And maybe that's not right, either. There is certainly something to be said for aging gracefully, but what about the sunset of life screams, "MY OUTFITS MUST BE DRAB AND MY SHOES PRACTICAL?" Granted, I understand the need for the shoes, but the kind favored by the Italian grannies is the kind that gives people cankles. For those who don't know, a cankle occurs when there is no distinction between the calf and the ankle- they are one and the same. And orthopedic shoes cause cankles. Alright, there are a few resilient members of the Golden Girls set who simply refuse to don the uniform of seniority, and instead still flaunt their "Golden Girls" in tight sweater sets and short skirts with fishnet stockings, as though they were teenagers on their way to the sock hop. But that's not graceful either. I guess you just have to know when to say when, but I sincerely hope that when I get to the magic age of dressing 'old,' that I have the strength and courage of conviction to throw on a pair of jeans now and again.

Toilet Humor

Contrary to what the title may lead you to believe (and given my often crude sense of humor, who could blame you?), this post is not about poop jokes and the like. Rather, it's a bit of a rant on the conditions of toilets, not just in Rome but in the world at large. As part of my Christmas stocking this year, my mom gave me a small box of disposable toilet seat covers. Clearly, I laughed, and she just said knowingly, "you never know when you might need one". Well, I haven't needed one yet, because THERE ARE NO TOILET SEATS IN ROME. Okay, to be fair, there are some, but at a vast majority of places, it's just the bowl. So many things that we in America consider to be necessities (dishwashers, drying machines, triple-grande vanilla soy lattes), are considered mere luxuries here, not for the average Giovanni. This attitude towards certain amenities begs the question in light of today's post: Are toilet seats a luxury? Or are the Italians so lackadaisical about everything that putting a lid on the porcelain throne was too much work? I have this theory that they put in all the toilets in Rome at the same time, and then decided that the effort would be too great to outfit them all with seats, so they just didn't. Am I being too harsh? There is no law anywhere that states that there needs to be a buffer between my derriere and the toilet bowl, it's just something I've become used to. As I write this, however, I think about the benefits of not having a toilet seat. Men don't have to worry about putting it down (not that they do anyway)...women don't have to touch it when men forget to put it down. One of my least favorite things about public restrooms is that space on the U-seats, where you can see the edge of the bowl under the seat, and without a seat, this problem no longer exists. I guess that one of the reasons that I'm baffled by the universality of subpar toilets, is that going to the bathroom is one of the most basic human functions, that all humans must perform in order to survive. Why then, has this necessity been relegated to some of the dankest, most disgusting places? I guess the world may never know.

Craig in Rome- Part Two

Another picture of Dad and me at Tivoli- this time Villa d'Este!!
Let's see...when I left you last, Dad and I had just gone to Tivoli for the day. On Monday, he braved the half-hour+ tram ride to come out to my area of Rome to see my apartment. What I didn't realize is that, because of track reconstruction, half of the trip out here was given over to a bus, a fact that Dad had to discover on his own, which he did admirably. When he got here, I showed him my apartment, which I was very excited about- I love it. Then we wandered around, looking for a cute little restaurant to have lunch- such a thing apparently does not exist out here in Centocelle. The afternoon was given over to separate endeavors, and that evening we went to Mirabelle for dinner. Located on the 7th floor of a hotel overlooking the Villa Borghese, this one-star Michelin restaurant had the most outstanding views of Rome, especially after the sun went down and St. Peter's was all lit up. The meal was excellent, although I confess to having preferred the one from Il Pagliaccio. But the whole evening was lovely. After dinner, I joined my team at Pub Quiz, which they had lost miserably without me. The next day it was early to rise for the Vatican. It was a rainy day (we've had a lot recently), so being at the Vatican's extensive museums was a good activity. Brandon again did a fantastic job showing us around-- the Vatican is his best tour, so it was really a treat. We've been there before, but the massive collection of art never fails to amaze me. Some highlights: The Laocoon, the Apollo Belvedere, Michelangelo's Pieta, the Sistine Chapel, Raphael's Transfiguration, and my personal favorite- The Raphael Rooms. The School of Athens is my favorite painting, ever. I'd be hard-pressed to tell you why, but it is a truly awesome masterpiece. I had to work that evening, but when I got off we met Brandon and Erin for dinner at a place near the Pantheon that a couple of us had discovered a number of weeks ago. I'm glad Dad got to spend some time with two of my favorite people, and it means so much that he wanted to! Wednesday was Dad's last day, and we met Brandon again for a less structured tour around- we stopped in a few churches that I wouldn't have thought of, which were great, and got to see Bernini's 'The Ecstasy of St. Theresa,' the obviously sexualized, beautifully rendered statue of St. Theresa in the throes of passion, being pierced over and over by an angel's golden arrow. Dan Brown didn't do it justice- it's an incredible piece of work. I had to work again that evening, but Dad and I met again for dinner at a place near his hotel. The dinner was bittersweet. We reflected on the week, and had a lovely time, then parted ways, as he was leaving early the next morning. I returned home and burst into tears when I walked in the door. I had such a great time with my Dad, and it meant so much that he came all the way over here just to spend some time with me. Seeing him made me a little homesick, so when he left I was a little sad, but it was a wonderful week.

Craig in Rome- Part One

As you can probably tell by the picture, my Dad's here in bella Roma! Seeing as how we have already done a lot of things, and still have a lot to do, I figured I would divvy up the blog entries into a couple individual ones, so you weren't all bombarded by a lot of crap at once. Dad got in on Friday, at around 10:30 AM. I was working, and didn't get off until 2, at which point I headed over to his hotel and woke him up from his well-deserved nap. Between leaving Colorado, flying into NYLGA, transferring to JFK and flying to Rome, it took him about 24 hours to get here, a Herculean effort which I hope to reward with fun experiences. We took it relatively easy that evening, just walking over the river to a restaurant which wasn't open, so we wound up going somewhere that neither of us enjoyed, but it was nice catching up. The next day, Saturday, we joined my friend Brandon's tour of some of the underground sites under churches, etc. I had already been on the tour, but it's truly fascinating what is just under our feet as we traipse along the streets of this city. We had to leave the tour a bit early, however, as we had dinner reservations at Il Pagliaccio, the only 2-Michelin-star restaurant in Rome. It was a superlative meal, and I can now say that I have eaten baby goat. Fantastic. When we sat down they presented us with a wine-list-type tome so that we could select...a bottled water. After asking for the waiter's expert recommendation, we settled on the San Faustino, a choice which indeed proved to be an excellent accompaniment to our repast. I mean, it's water, people. Anyway, like I said the meal was just amazing, and what's even better is that Dad and I got to catch up. I hadn't seen him since I left Vail after the holidays, and we always do have such a good time together. Today we went to Tivoli with Brandon, and got to see two UNESCO World Heritage sites (of which there are approximately 500 in Italy alone)- the country villa of the emperor Hadrian (which I'm pretty sure covers more acreage than my college), and the Villa d'Este, a magnificent villa overlooking the Lazio region with about 30 fountains of varying size and impressiveness, the coolest of which was one that, through water pressure alone, played a 16th-century Classical tune on an organ. I much preferred the Villa d'Este, which is from the 16th century, although Hadrian's villa is staggering both in its size and its architectural impressiveness, especially when you consider that it was built in the 2nd century AD. Tomorrow Dad's coming to see my apartment, and on Tuesday we have reservations at the Vatican, so I will post more about that as the time comes. Seeing my Dad reminds me of all the family and friends I miss so much, but I'm so thrilled to be able to share my life here with him, because as the two saccharine-sweet posts prior to this one may have hinted at, I'm kind of happy here. Don't worry to those who only read for my causticity-- I have a rant coming soon. XOXO

Life is Good Today

Me, Becky and Erin at our picnic today.
I've done it again...neglected to post. In all fairness, however, this week has been hectic. In a good way- I started my new job (!) on Monday. I'm working for a school called the Trinity school, and it's teaching English to adults, and it's awesome. There's no lesson planning and no traveling. It takes place at the school, and we basically follow along on the students' learning trajectories. Everyone's very nice, and I really like it so far. We've had a couple of days' wretched weather here, but today was absolutely beautiful. Becky, after being temporarily foiled by the dastardly Icelandic volcano whose name I can't pronounce, let alone spell, has arrived in Rome. She got in on Friday evening, and it's been a wonderful time so far. Today, she, Erin and myself went to the Porta Portese market, which sells everything from clothes to used batteries (really). It was awesome, and so sunny. The market closes at 2, at which point we went and had a picnic in a park somewhere, where various others came and met us. An absolutely perfect day. I have briefly returned back to my apartment to regain my energy and take a shower, then will be heading out to Sunday night karaoke at Scholar's Lounge. I wish I could convey to you all just how great it is here. I am so freaking happy, and for someone who rather cynically has spent the majority of her life waiting for the other shoe to drop, it's a bit unsettling. But in the immortal words of the McDonald's advertising team, I'm Lovin' It. The food is awesome, I finally have a job, and the people have met and exceeded any expectations I had. I miss my family, and my friends in the States, but I'm on this awesome rollercoaster, and I'm going to stay on it for a while. I don't know what each day will bring, but every night I fall asleep smiling, having fallen just a little bit more in love with existence, messy and strange though it may be sometimes.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

Wow, I can't believe another week has gone by! I'm having such a great time that every so often I have to step back and wonder if this is really my life. I love Rome, and I love the people I've met so far. I have been offered a job, which I start tomorrow (Monday) so hopefully I'll be able to get some solid hours with them! Becky was supposed to visit this weekend, but the volcano in Iceland foiled those plans, so she's re-booked for next weekend, but I hear that flights might be grounded for a while. I hope she makes it. On another note...Dad's coming! Craig Foley will be in Rome from April 30th-May 6. I'm so excited. We had such a great time when we came here as a family 3 years ago, and I'm planning lots of fun things for us to do. It means the world to me that he's coming, and it's also a great excuse for me to do a bunch of tourist-y things that I might not think of on a day-to-day basis. I can't wait to show him my apartment, and introduce him to some of my friends, and be able to share in some of the excitement I have for my life here. I just re-read this, and realized that I have become one of those people who can talk about nothing but how happy they are. I'll try and throw in some bite next time, but for now it's springtime in Rome. Tonight a bunch of us are going to the Pakistani ambassador's house to watch the Rome soccer game. Should be fun, it's always an experience at Rahim's. Much love to all.