Yesterday, I had the amazing opportunity to visit St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City.
View from St. Peter's Square
Papal Residence
Once I entered the building, I was in awe. The sheer beauty of the church is enough to take your breath away.
We wandered through the tomb of Popes which was a bit creepy, but still amazing to see. Walking past Pope John Paul II's tomb was incredibly eerie and saddening. We were shepherded through quite quickly and no photos were allowed, but no one could take their eyes off the tomb. Some people even tossed letters and photos into the area.
After seeing the tombs, we headed into the main church and saw Michelangelo's famous Pieta and Bernini's Baldacchino. Beautiful.
Main church.
Pieta.
We went into a chapel just for private prayer. It was amazingly beautiful and I felt chills just being in the room.
Afterwards, we headed to the gift shop and purchased some beautiful and reasonably priced rosaries for our family members.
I had a great experience visiting St. Peter's and might even head back there on Monday when I go to see the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel!
While many banks and shops were closed, I still had class. My art class headed to the Colosseum area to sketch, but we were greeted with a large military parade.
According to About.com, Festa della Repubblica celebrates the day in 1946 that Italy voted for a republic form of government.
I've never seen so many military persons in one area! It was quite a sight.
The Colosseum was draped with a gigantic Italian flag.
I even caught a glimpse of the Italian president Giorgio Napolitano.
There are so many differences between Italian and American culture. Last night, I went to a presentation on campus about culture and social life in Rome. While it was quite humorous, I definitely learned a few things I didn't know before, some good and some not so good...
-Italians love to stare...One of Temple's staff members Gianni explained to us that if an Italian stares at us, and we feel uncomfortable to just stare back. He says that Italians are very curious people.
-There is no such thing as personal space in Italy. I learned how very true this one is today when I took the metro to the Colosseum for class. Gianni mentioned that Italians don't have a privacy bubble like us Americans do. They stand very close to each other and don't mind if they are touching someone else. The Champions League Final took place today, so fans from all over Madrid and Britain came to Roma for the match. The metro was SO crowded...I would argue it was more crowded than the Broad Street line on the day of the Phillies championship parade. We were crammed in with literally no breathing room.
-Bella Figura literally translates to mean beautiful figure, but it means being a beautiful person with a good appearance (not just physically). Gianni explained that Italians don't get drunk in public or eat while they walk because they are trying to keep the perfect appearance.
-Italians don't stop at stop signs! You need to be VERY careful crossing the street at all times.
-It's considered extremely weird here to get any kind of food or drink to-go. Italians like to relax and enjoy their food and drink and then move. It's also weird to get certain types of coffee after 11:00 a.m. here.
-Gianni gave a word of advice to the guys in the room about trying to pick up Italian girls. He said that Italian girls are VERY skeptical of American guys because they are used to Italian guys being very forward with them. He mentioned its best to take it slow and hang out with the girl a few times in a group before going on an actual date. He also said that it's wise for guys to say they are from California or New York City because Italian girls have grown up watching movies and TV shows that take place in those locations.
-This is a serious tip. As I'm sure many of us have heard, Italian men are stereotypically quite forward. Rape doesn't hold up very well in court here. There is an unspoken rule that if you enter an Italian man's apartment, you are giving up the right to say no. In one court case, the court ruled that if a woman is wearing tight jeans, she obviously couldn't have been raped because she would have had to help the man take the pants off. It's really sad, and I think this is one area that the United States might be excelling in.
-Everything is MUCH slower here. It's great. Dinners last three hours, waiters don't bother you to leave. In class, my professors ask if we want to stop for espresso's on the way to our next site visit. It's great. I love the stress-free life.
-My favorite cultural difference: siesta time! At home, I love to take naps and I guess that could be considered lazy, but here, everything shuts down from noon til three and everyone takes a rest. I love it!
Are there any major cultural differences I may have missed that you noticed when traveling in Europe?
Yesterday, my roommates and I headed down the block to the open air market (mercato trionfale) to check out some of the local vendors. It was so amazing! My one roommate Erica described it as "Reading Terminal Market [in Philadelphia] on crack." I have to say, she is right.
This market was incredible. It was humongous and the prices were great. We bought a ton of fruit for under 2 euros. We bought fresh bread and pasta. The market also sold all kinds of poultry, fish, beef, cheeses and wine. We bought 3 bottles of wine for 6 euros! You can't beat that.
Bread and pastries
Wine
After, we bought a few things at the market we headed up the block to our local grocery store. It was such an adventure looking at all the different brands, and comparing it to what the item would be in America. It cracks me up that the only cream cheese we saw in all of Rome so far is Philadelphia Cream Cheese. So funny!
The roommates and I made a delicious dinner with all our new food from the market. We made pasta with tomato sauce, salad, bread and oil. Delicious!
Dinner
Later that night, Andrea Bocelli was performing a benefit concert for the earthquake last month at the Coliseum, so we headed over there to see if we could hear anything. We got there too late, but we had a great time hanging out at the bars in the area. The Coliseum at night is just breathtaking.
Coliseum
Today was the first day of classes...more on that later!
As part of orientation, on Sunday, we took a day trip to Todi, a medieval hill town in Umbria in central Italy. It was about an hour and a half bus ride through the beautiful countryside. My pictures don't even do the beautiful landscape justice!
Todi
We arrived in Todi and had to walk up a very steep hill. It was worth it when we got to the top though, because the view was breathtaking! We wandered around the small town and saw a gothic cathedral and looked around the shops.
At the top of the hill in Todi
Cathedral
After Todi, we got back on the bus and traveled to Titignano to have a 12 course feast at an old manor. We were truly in the country...I had taken a nap on the bus and when I woke up, we were traveling on a dirt road!
The feast included food like lamb, proscuitto, pasta with wild boar meat, chicken, risoto, and lots of wine! I'm a very picky eater, but I'm proud to say that I tried lamb for the first time.
It was great to see the contrast between the bustling city of Rome and the quiet Italian countryside. I think I prefer the city right now, but I can imagine how the countryside could be a relaxing retreat for city dwellers.
It's very different from anything in America, but that's what studying abroad is all about. There is no air conditioning, so we have all of our windows open to get some fresh air.
Now..the tour!
Tiny kitchen
Living room...don't ask why we have an awkward cot and not a couch..
Bathroom....we have a bidet...also strange to me
Sweet doors to our bedroom
Bed
Bedroom and roomie reading
Balcony that wraps around the apartment part 1
Balcony that wraps around the apartment part 2
Tomorrow night, we plan to head to the open air market to buy pasta, sauce, veggies, wine and spices and cook dinner in our apartment to eat on our balcony!
Today, I woke up and headed to school for a bit of an orientation. I felt much more comfortable navigating the city and the culture after the presentation. One really funny thing that Gianni, one of the Temple Rome guys said regarding safety in Rome was, "In Roma.....we don't....umm, kill people? You know, we don't shoot people like in Philadelphia. We just have pickpockets." Everyone in the room cracked up. Sad, but true statement about Philly!
After that, we broke into smaller groups and took a walking tour of Rome. It wasn't really a historical tour like I thought it would be; It was more of a practical tour teaching us how to get around, how to find things, and how to speak Italian in some of those places. It was really helpful.
Pretty flowers
After that we headed to the Fontana di Trevi (Trevi Fountain). So beautiful! It was just like I've seen in pictures and movies. We didn't throw a coin in the fountain yet to ensure a return to Roma. We are planning to do it at night when the fountain is all lit up and sparkling.
Incredible!
We were tired and sweaty after the afternoon, so we headed back to our Residence to rest for a bit. It is SO hot during the day in Rome! At night, it's the perfect temperature, though!
We knew we wanted to go to a cute restaurant for dinner, but we weren't sure where to go, so we asked the security guard at our building. It was really the first time that I attempted a full conversation in Italian, and it went really well! It felt awesome to be able to actually communicate in another language. Thanks to his suggestion, we headed to La Rustichella. I misread the menu and thought I was ordering a large Coke, but actually ordered a large LITER of Coke...oops. Luckily, the table shared.
The very large Coke
We all ordered some gelato, and I got some delicious lemon sorbet. It tasted just like Polish Water Ice which is my absolutely favorite snack to eat down the shore.
After dinner, we wandered over towards Vatican City. My mind was absolutely blown by how beautiful the Vatican is. I can't wait to go there during the day, and hopefully catch a glimpse of the Pope.
In front of the Vatican
Tomorrow, we are going to the medieval hilltown of Todi to walk around and have a traditional 4 hour and 12 course meal...lots and lots of food.
More to come on Todi, and some photos of my awesome Italian apartment!
I made it safely, thankfully. Oddly enough, the flight was actually sort of fun. This was my first time on a long flight (the longest flight I've ever been on has been to Florida) so I was a bit nervous, but everything went fine. There was a bit of turbulence, but nothing too bad.
At the Philadelphia airport
Luckily, I flew with my friend Erica so I wasn't alone. We had our own personal TV screens in front of us, so I watched Marley and Me, Bride Wars, and an episode of How I Met Your Mother. I only slept for a little bit. I was so amazed that it was dark the first half of the flight, and then became sunny, even though it was very late at home.
We got our bags with no problem and headed to Temple's apartment building. I am living in an apartment with my three friends Erica, Reilly and Melissa. We really lucked out in getting a quad (more on that tomorrow, I will post pictures of the apartment!)
I took a little nap, and then went to an Internet cafe to make sure my mom knew I got to Rome safely. Since then, I've been able to get the Internet working in my apartment, so I'm good to go.
Around 6, we walked to the school for a pizza party. The school is about a 30 minute walk away, but it was a pretty nice walk. I met some of the other people on the trip and enjoyed some Italian pizza. We walked over to the Spanish Steps and people watched for about an hour and a half. I could sit there all day!
After that we walked to the Piazza del Popolo which was amazing.
Piazza del Poploo at sunset
Later, we wandered around Roma and went to a restaurant called Starbess near our apartment and had some vino like true Italians!
I'm a bit thrown off by the time difference. I'm not too tired, I just never have any idea what time it is or when I should be eating or when I should be sleeping. Hopefully, my body will adjust soon.
Tomorrow, we continue orientation with a walking tour of Rome, so I will update with more pictures after that!
I am definitely loving Rome so far. Can't wait to see more!
By day, I work in communications, volunteer with two area public relations professional associations and love to run. By night and on the weekends, I freelance for a variety of websites and am working toward creating the kind of life I want to live.
View from St. Peter's Square
Papal Residence
Main church.
Pieta.
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