Today was a classic Roman day.
Woke up and waited for the bus to take me to the Vatican...and waited...and waited.
Toured around the Vatican museum with a friend of Anne's, and the guy at the ticket desk was so bored out of his mind that he didn't care we were obviously not Italian or EU students, so we got a 5 Euro break on ticket prices.
Walked around the museum, lots of old stuff including the restored Sistine Chapel, which is still great.
Tried to go home, got stuck in traffic because a tour buss couldn't manage the turn.
A big traffic jam developed with lots of angry gestures and horn honking.
the driver of the bus and 3 people stuck in the traffic jam got out of their vehicles, looked at the bus, looked at the car, picked up the car, got back in their cars and drove off.
Thank God for Italians, little cars, and no alarm systems.
14.3.07
5.3.07
5/3
The Chinese restaurant down the street from me is great. Not only do Chinese people eat there (a good indication of the quality of the food), but its also dirt cheap. Dumplings are 1 euro for 2, big spring rolls are 1 euro each, and the main dishes are between 4 to 6 Euro. Very cheap and mouth watering. What was weird about it was ordering Chinese food in Italian. Zuppa di won ton, riso bianco, e pollo con veruti mista just sounds weird. The food was great, but a huge damper was that sesame chicken and general tso’s chicken doesn’t exist in Italian Chinese food. Disappointing.
27.2.07
27/2
So today I ran into my first crazy Italian person on the Tram.
The tram was very crowded, as is usual on a weekday morning. I step on the tram, and take my place near the center pole. A woman accidently steps on another woman's foot, about 2 feet from me. The one whose foot was stepped on, rather than shrugging off an accident that happens in a crowded place, started screaming at the woman about her foot. This continued and then just became a constant scream of "Basta! Basta! Basta!" very loudly, very close
Everyone on the tram made a circle of open air around this woman, as big a one as possible, which wasn't so big. I, and about 5 other people got off the tram at the next stop. However, once more people came on, I heard the tram pull away, with the screaming beginning anew.
Not a good experience, but considering how open a tram system it is, this being the first experience in two months is pretty small.
In case I haven't said before, my roommate Time is a snorer, but only when he's on his back. When he is though...sawing is not strong enough of a noise ;) It was bad enough that Saturday night, I actually grabbed my mattress off my bed, carried it to the living room, and slept in their. Unfortunately, this drastic measure didn't occur to me until like 4 in the morning, so Sunday was one long day.
The tram was very crowded, as is usual on a weekday morning. I step on the tram, and take my place near the center pole. A woman accidently steps on another woman's foot, about 2 feet from me. The one whose foot was stepped on, rather than shrugging off an accident that happens in a crowded place, started screaming at the woman about her foot. This continued and then just became a constant scream of "Basta! Basta! Basta!" very loudly, very close
Everyone on the tram made a circle of open air around this woman, as big a one as possible, which wasn't so big. I, and about 5 other people got off the tram at the next stop. However, once more people came on, I heard the tram pull away, with the screaming beginning anew.
Not a good experience, but considering how open a tram system it is, this being the first experience in two months is pretty small.
In case I haven't said before, my roommate Time is a snorer, but only when he's on his back. When he is though...sawing is not strong enough of a noise ;) It was bad enough that Saturday night, I actually grabbed my mattress off my bed, carried it to the living room, and slept in their. Unfortunately, this drastic measure didn't occur to me until like 4 in the morning, so Sunday was one long day.
20.2.07
20/2
Its been a bit since I've posted, but oh well. This past weekend, I was feeling a bit lacking in American things, so I went over to Hard Rock cafe. On the way to this bastion of American food, I had to go by the Treve fountain, the Pantheon, and the Spanish Steps. I felt ancient rome shunning me the whole way.
At Hard Rock, I dove into potato skins, a hickory BBQ bacon cheeseburger, and a kronnenbourg, as I don't really drink bud at home anyway. The burger was amazing, with sauce dripping everywhere, all over my hands and plate (and a bit of my face). My table went through 2 (small) bottles of Heinz while there, as ketchup is not an Italian thing, with Italians preferring mayonaisse on their burgers.
The best part of the whole experience was the music. Blasting such favorites like Spin Doctors, CCR, and Arethra Franklin, you knew where you were.
All in all, good times, if a just a little expensive (11 Euro burger for instance). Next time I go out though is to China Garden, a place by me with 4 Euro dishes and eggrolls at a Euro a pop.
At Hard Rock, I dove into potato skins, a hickory BBQ bacon cheeseburger, and a kronnenbourg, as I don't really drink bud at home anyway. The burger was amazing, with sauce dripping everywhere, all over my hands and plate (and a bit of my face). My table went through 2 (small) bottles of Heinz while there, as ketchup is not an Italian thing, with Italians preferring mayonaisse on their burgers.
The best part of the whole experience was the music. Blasting such favorites like Spin Doctors, CCR, and Arethra Franklin, you knew where you were.
All in all, good times, if a just a little expensive (11 Euro burger for instance). Next time I go out though is to China Garden, a place by me with 4 Euro dishes and eggrolls at a Euro a pop.
12.2.07
12/2
So back from Florence, and David is a rip off.
It’s a wonderful statue and is a real masterpiece. The other few statues in the Accademia are also Michelangelo works, his unfinished sculptures, and are also great to look at.
The problem is that entrance to the museum is 6.50 Euro, and beyond David and the unfinished ones, that’s all there is to see.
This is a tough comparison when seen against the Uffizi museum, which costs 6 Euro and is jammed pack with art. I spent 4 hours walking around the Uffizi and still missed some famous works. I spent an hour in the Accademia, and that was only because I refused to leave after 20 minutes.
After leaving the Accademia, I went to the Duomo, and climbed all 436 steps (I didn’t count, it was posted next to the signs that said people with heart disease shouldn’t climb it) to see the view over all of Forenzi. The climb was a claustrophobics worst nightmare, with people going both directions in spaces narrow enough to barely fit one person with broad shoulders. The ceilings were also barely 6 feet high. It was quite the tight fit.
When going down the stairs, I did however have the opportunity to show off my amazing Italian skills. “Scusi!” I said as I bolted down the stairs. “Gratzie!”
“No worries” he said next to me.
“Thanks!”, I shot back, at which his amazed girlfriend said,
“Oh my God, he spoke English!”
I take it they were having a rough day trying to communicate with Italians in the city.
All in all the trip was a good one, and 30 Euro for a round trip on a decent train was much better than 80 Euro both ways on Eurostar. I’ll save 50 Euro and have my travel take 4 hours more total any day.
It’s a wonderful statue and is a real masterpiece. The other few statues in the Accademia are also Michelangelo works, his unfinished sculptures, and are also great to look at.
The problem is that entrance to the museum is 6.50 Euro, and beyond David and the unfinished ones, that’s all there is to see.
This is a tough comparison when seen against the Uffizi museum, which costs 6 Euro and is jammed pack with art. I spent 4 hours walking around the Uffizi and still missed some famous works. I spent an hour in the Accademia, and that was only because I refused to leave after 20 minutes.
After leaving the Accademia, I went to the Duomo, and climbed all 436 steps (I didn’t count, it was posted next to the signs that said people with heart disease shouldn’t climb it) to see the view over all of Forenzi. The climb was a claustrophobics worst nightmare, with people going both directions in spaces narrow enough to barely fit one person with broad shoulders. The ceilings were also barely 6 feet high. It was quite the tight fit.
When going down the stairs, I did however have the opportunity to show off my amazing Italian skills. “Scusi!” I said as I bolted down the stairs. “Gratzie!”
“No worries” he said next to me.
“Thanks!”, I shot back, at which his amazed girlfriend said,
“Oh my God, he spoke English!”
I take it they were having a rough day trying to communicate with Italians in the city.
All in all the trip was a good one, and 30 Euro for a round trip on a decent train was much better than 80 Euro both ways on Eurostar. I’ll save 50 Euro and have my travel take 4 hours more total any day.
8.2.07
8/2
I might have mentioned this snack earlier, but in Italia, a popular one is something called a souppli (spl is off). It's a ball of rice, cheese, and tomato sauce that is fried and eaten like a zeppoli. They also have a potato version called croquette. A place down the road from school has wonderful soupplis and croquettes and a souppli, along with a bottle of water served as my breakfast this morning. As good as it was, I think I earned the shop keepers eternal ire by paying for my 1.80 souppli and water with a 50 euro bill. Don't blame me, blame the atm machines for not giving out 20 Euro bills more frequently.
4.2.07
5/2 continued
After making this post I went to the Vatican with Anne and Vanessa. I'll be slowly posting the pictures, as posting pictures takes a good amount of time. Highlights of the vsit include going past John Paul's Tomb (no pictures allowed), seeing the Pieta (behind bulletproof glass), and going to mass at St. Peter's Basilica.
It was all amazing beautiful, but no trip to the Sistine chapel this time around. I have 4 months or so to hit that one up, so never fear.
It was all amazing beautiful, but no trip to the Sistine chapel this time around. I have 4 months or so to hit that one up, so never fear.
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