Since we've only had two orientation events this week and classes don't start until Monday, this week has really been about exploring Rome and figuring out how everything here works, as well as getting to know my apartment-mates.
Some things I've noticed about Italy:
Television: Their shows aren't necessarily what we would find "entertaining" in the United States. My personal favorite is snow biking, where a man bikes on a normal bike in the snow, not over any mountains or hills, and without any other bikers. How exciting does that sound?? Every other channel was dedicated to gambling or infomercials for Renaissance paintings. We found one English channel that featured a really dramatic soap opera.
Gelato: It's no joke that they're obsessed with gelato here! I really thought only the tourists would eat it multiple times a day, but before and after dinner everyone is in the gelato shops. Most of the shops put whipped cream on it, and also have a full bar!
Nap Time: I knew that the Spanish like to siesta, but apparently the Italians do as well. Between 1 and 4 almost all shops (except gelato) close down, and quiet hours at this time are mandated by law. I've been told though that it's very insulting to call this a "siesta". Too bad they don't give us off from classes between 1 and 4 :(
On Tuesday, we made the trek across town to IKEA to get towels, sheets, and other random stuff our apartment still needed. I've never been to IKEA even in the US, so being in one where nobody speaks in English was really crazy (and kind of funny). It was in a mall that was basically like Universal Studios, complete with walking sidewalks and some rides. We spent a pretty long time trying to figure out to communicate to them that we wanted mattress pads and fans, and ended up getting neither. The store did, however, have gelato vending machines!
Later, we had a short orientation at the school and then walked 2 miles across Rome to go to Vodafone so Jill could get a SIM card. We walked through some amazing areas, including downtown Trastevere and the Jewish Ghetto to get to the store on the main throughway.
Some things I've noticed about Italy:
Television: Their shows aren't necessarily what we would find "entertaining" in the United States. My personal favorite is snow biking, where a man bikes on a normal bike in the snow, not over any mountains or hills, and without any other bikers. How exciting does that sound?? Every other channel was dedicated to gambling or infomercials for Renaissance paintings. We found one English channel that featured a really dramatic soap opera.
Gelato: It's no joke that they're obsessed with gelato here! I really thought only the tourists would eat it multiple times a day, but before and after dinner everyone is in the gelato shops. Most of the shops put whipped cream on it, and also have a full bar!
Nap Time: I knew that the Spanish like to siesta, but apparently the Italians do as well. Between 1 and 4 almost all shops (except gelato) close down, and quiet hours at this time are mandated by law. I've been told though that it's very insulting to call this a "siesta". Too bad they don't give us off from classes between 1 and 4 :(
On Tuesday, we made the trek across town to IKEA to get towels, sheets, and other random stuff our apartment still needed. I've never been to IKEA even in the US, so being in one where nobody speaks in English was really crazy (and kind of funny). It was in a mall that was basically like Universal Studios, complete with walking sidewalks and some rides. We spent a pretty long time trying to figure out to communicate to them that we wanted mattress pads and fans, and ended up getting neither. The store did, however, have gelato vending machines!
Later, we had a short orientation at the school and then walked 2 miles across Rome to go to Vodafone so Jill could get a SIM card. We walked through some amazing areas, including downtown Trastevere and the Jewish Ghetto to get to the store on the main throughway.
Unfortunately, Vodafone's entire SIM activation system was down. Since we were already downtown, we went to a hotel with a rooftop bar and then had a relaxing dinner in a very tiny, family-owned restaurant that was on the touristy streets but seemed to be mostly locals. Afterwards, we met up with some other abroad students who live nearby and were from American, BC, and even Munich!
On Wednesday, I went back to Trastevere for dinner, but first we joined part of an AUR walking tour of the neighborhood. We saw an amazing fountain that was built by an early Pope to provide water to this section of the city, which was traditionally where the common people lived. We are also on the same side of the river as the Vatican, so the water was used for Vatican City as well.
On Wednesday, I went back to Trastevere for dinner, but first we joined part of an AUR walking tour of the neighborhood. We saw an amazing fountain that was built by an early Pope to provide water to this section of the city, which was traditionally where the common people lived. We are also on the same side of the river as the Vatican, so the water was used for Vatican City as well.
And the view of the entire city from this spot–
We stumbled upon a place called Marco G's for dinner. I loved it so much–the pumpkin ravioli was out of this world! (See photo of pasta below–I need to master how to take better shots because these don't do the food justice!). The restaurant was in downtown Trastevere, which is a really cool area on our side of the river. It's less touristy than the area near the Trevi Fountain and Pantheon but still has the authentic, Roman feel and we found people who spoke just enough English. This is also the area with John Cabot University, so once their semester starts there will be a lot more abroad Americans in the area.
Thursday was also an exciting day–we found the grocery store! Then we went to look for a "chinese store" (shout out to Jessie!) where they sell cheap notebooks and other random items we might need, kind of like a dollar store. Everyone kept telling us that it was just down the street, when in reality it took almost 25 minutes to walk there. We kept trying to ask for directions to see how close we got, because these stores don't have names and you just kind of know when you stumble upon one. FINALLY we met some girls around our age who spoke some English and were able to show us the exact location. I'll have to go back once my classes meet to get notebooks and other supplies, but I'm glad that now we know where to find it. We also stumbled across some helpful stores on the way there, including a store with blowdryers, a pharmacy that was like CVS, and about a dozen more gelato places.
For dinner, we hopped on the bus and went downtown. This is the Victor Emanuele Monument, which is one of the tallest buildings in Rome. If you look closely, in previous shots of the skyline you can make our the chariots on top!
Our walk ended up at the Trevi Fountain. If you haven't heard it's been closed for construction since last July, but the policeman nearby said it should reopen the last week in November! Even without water, you could tell how magnificent the fountain is and I can't wait to go back when it's working. It was also really crowded, so I can image how large the crowd will be when it reopens!
We of course had pasta nearby (duh) and I attempted to take an artsy photo which probably completely failed:
The last event of orientation was a safety meeting today with a representative from the US Consulate, where they tried to scare us about everything bad that can happen here. Aside from exploring, I think everyone's ready for class to begin so we can meet more people and start learning even more about Rome!
Ciao,
Alyssa
Ciao,
Alyssa