My Roman Treasures Part 1

Here are some of my favorite memories of Rome, past and present. I hope you feel like you were here with me.... maybe you were and maybe you will be one day.  Just don't forget, if you toss a coin in the Trevi Fountain you will always come back to Rome.

Trust me, it works every time! Allora, facciamo una passeggiata a Roma!

First things first. Let's start the day off right with a little gelato.

Sometimes I like to start my walking tours at Piazza del Popolo.

I love the the little church in the lower right corner (you can's see it in the above pic) Chiesa Santa Maria del Polpolo. Everytime I come into this church I think, "They just don't make churches the way they used to!"

There are marble skulls with angels wings,

 

...dead people, usually a Pope, buried in sculpted tombs just hanging out with everyone going to mass,

 

...and the architecture is phenomenal! Chiesa Santa Maria del Popolo also houses two paintings by my very favorite Renaissance artisit, Caravaggio. Here is "The Crucifxion of Saint Peter".

Next stop:

The entryway to all shopping dreams come true...except the part where everything is free.  It's very exhausting shopping all day, particularly when you are shopping with Stephanie (my sister) as I have been doing for the past 2 days. She requires frequent stops in most, if not every single shoe store within a 10 kilometer radius.  Shopping with Steph requires "una pausa" on the Spanish Steps. These were the steps in 2004...

And then in 2009...

This is Via Condotti where all my famous friends live - Gucci, Armani, Prada, Fendi, Dolce and Gabbana, and all their famous French freinds. Sometimes I like to drop in for a visit but I usually don't stay too long given that I am dressed only in my California best, ripped jeans and flipflops.

The only thing that really changes besides the church facelift are the advertisements.  Below is a photo I took in 2004 near the Spanish Steps.  I love the juxtiposition of Rome's most beloved duo: the Madonna and Totti hanging out together. Sadly, there is not a current advertisment on this building below.

Given the pausa at the Spanish Steps, I will take a blog pausa now as I digest all the pasta I ate today.

Umbrian Escapades

This is a recap! Umbria has a lot of beautiful little towns for day-tripping on a Saturday or Sunday, or the rare afternoon without Italian lessons. I managed to get to 4 of them in November which seems a bit weak now that I think about it. Hopefully in your next trip to Umbria you will get to a few more than me!  Here are my November travels in review... 


"Tutto é bello a Spello"

Madeleine, aka Little Britain, and I took the 2:30pm bus to Spello one day after a morning lesson of what my friend Jim likes to call "Intense Congiuntivo." (As if there was any other way to truly study this bizarre verb mood without going a bit nutty. I mean, basically anytime you are expressing an opinion or desire or uncertainty you must use "Intensive Congiuntivo" which changes everything and will drive you bonkers. Just take my word for it.)

Back to Spello... on our passeggiata (walk) to town from the train station we encountered CRAZY Old Lady who advised us not to get in the car with the guy asking for directions. Good advice of course, but really CRAZY Old Lady, he was just asking directions and was not going to steal your bag and drop your body in the river. She then babbled on about her house in Spello behind the brown building over there, past the playground and to the left of the big tree where her brother lives near that fence, just near the door next to the wall, see it... what? Was she even speaking Italian? Perugino? Spellino? Or Greek?  Chissa! (Who knows!) All I know is we stood there with her for about 10 incomprehensible minutes. I nodded a lot saying "Certo!" (Of course!) and "Si" to whatever it is she was talking about. When she finally stopped for a breath I was able to interrupt, "Which way to the center of town?" After giving us all our options, we finally thanked her grazie, grazie, grazie, ciao, ciao, ciao, ciao, ciao, ciao, ciao. CRAZY Old Lady did leave us (rather we left her standing on the corner waiting for the bus) with my favorite quote of the day "Tutto é bello a Spello" and she was right, everything is beautiful in Spello!

 

When there's a fork in the road and a cute old Italian man resting at the top, always go up! That's where you always find your favorite street!

And don't forget to keep your eyes open for "I Cipressi Alti" in Umbria, those tall Cypress trees are everywhere! We particularly liked this one on the left.

Montefalco ...non c'éra nessuno, solo un castello, il vino e Giulio, il mio Romano! My friend Giulio from Rome came to visit me one very rainy weekend in November. We decided to defy the weather gods and travel to both Montefalco and Gubbio. Montefalco, famous for it's wine, was a big must on my list. Everywhere I went in Perugia, Montefalco was the wine of choice so it seemed like a good bet that this was the town for me! We took a late afternoon drive on the Autostrada where (mi raccomando! I advise!) one should never drive unless you are a true-blooded, born and raised Italian -- almost the same thing as driving on the 405 or I-76, risking life and limb, except 30X faster. I believe race car driving was invented in Italy, and if not, it certainly seems like the Italians have perfected it.

Comunque, we went for a late afternoon/evening adventure and found this tiny little town completely abandoned. At least until we discovered the town watering hole housing the entire population of Montefalco. We pushed our way to the back bar and ordered a glass of Sagrantino, THE wine of choice. So delicious. That's about the best I can do in terms of describing wine. Maybe it was peppery, fruity, bold, full, great tanins, etc, etc, blah blah blah. All I know is that it was good and I was happy. I feel like any town that defines itself as "Citta del Vino" is a sure bet.

Gubbio, dove si deve fare 3 giri circa la fontana per non impazzarsi...  Gubbio, where you have to walk around the fountain 3 times so that you do not go insane!

Apparently there was an outbreak of crazies here once... maybe CRAZY Old Lady from Spello escaped from Gubbio. As the legend goes, you have to walk around the fountain 3 times to ensure your sanity. Hmmmm, that sounds absolutley sane to me. I did 6 circles - 3 in both directions - just for good measure. 

Gubbio is yet another beautiful Medievil town where ceramics are handmade and hand painted and hanging on the outside of every shop that sells them.  It was another day where no one but me (RainGirl) and my trusted Roman sidekick ventured outside. The Duomo and town square were completely empty.  I guess the dark clouds in the distance where a bit daunting.

Orvieto was high on my list of towns not to miss. I had been to Orvieto 13 years ago with an Art History Study Tour my freshman year of college.  I remembered absolutely nothing about it except the feeling that I wanted to go back. I have a memory of eating a picnic of cheese, bread and wine one warm June afternoon and being blissfully happy.

Armed with this knowledge and my Brazilian friend Edurardo, I trained it to Orvieto. Okay, so I do have one little regret and here it is - I wish I had come to Orvieto in September because I would have come back often. It's absolutely beautiful and it's just easy - easy to be here, easy to relax, easy to find a little bench and pass a few hours reading a book. Everyone was  nice. 

It was a little foggy this afternoon, but you can still make out the castle in the countryside I will be purchasing when I win the lottery... (by the way, I did not win the cow). The Duomo here is absolutely breathtaking, if only my stupid battery camera hadn't died there would be a few more pictures. Instead, I only managed 4 photos and these are it! They certianly don't do Orvieto any justice. You must go! 

 

Arrivederci Perugia...

Time is passing so quickly! Halloween and Thanksgiving have come and gone, and so has my time here in Perugia. Three months in this little hilltop town in the middle of Umbria is just about perfect... and now I must go to Rome! Yay!!

My friend Zach believes Perugia is a Siren, and that if you aren't careful she will keep you here forever. I think he might be right. Every time I have thought, "Perugia is beautiful, but it's just too small..." something fantastic happens, like the other day.... I was passing through the center of town on my way to Cafe Morlarchi to meet my Italian girlfriend, Daniela, for an espresso when I heard drumming. Turns out there was a Calabrese troop of Flag Throwers performing (just like in Under the Tuscan Sun!). It was strangely beautiful. These men in blue and yellow tights were parading around gracefully launching flags into the air. I sent a quick text redirecting Daniela to The Fountain (there's only one) and we decided to follow along as they paraded down Corso Vanucci, Perugia's main street. We ended up at Piazza Italia where every last Sunday of the month there is an antique market. I had totally forgotten! Thankfully, I only brought 5 Euro with me... enough for my espresso and some totally decadent pastry.

I am departing with a sense of accomplishment and nostalgia, exactly how one would like to look back on any experience. I have made some great friends and met some amazing people from all over the world - China, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, Indonesia, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, England and the good-ole USofA. Oh, and a sprinkle of Italians too.

Perugia has been good to me. Here are some of the things I am thinking about: 

I spent 3-months studying Italian and flirting with Leonello, the 70 year-old owner of my local cafe who is leaving his wife, 3 kids and 5 grandkids behind to open a little Italian cafe with me in LA. I went to the Opera (Righeletto) and I learned all the important doggie commands in Italian (Seduto! Terra! Damme una zampa! Parla!).  I ate a fair amount of chocolate and gelato, and a lot of pizza; I mean, a lot of pizza -- 10 pounds worth in 3 months. For this I will thank my Napolitano Pizzatoio Felice at Pizza and Musica for the best pizza in town, which just happend to be "due passi" or just around the corner from my apartment. I lived with two fantastic women from New Zealand who left me for Rome after only a month together. Then I lived with two 18-year olds from Liverpool who gave me a new perspective on why my mom yelled at me to pick up my towel all the time.. and unless you have a teenager, you have no idea! Was I really that clueless once? At least they were very sweet. I would have preferred living with Italians, but it just wasn't in the cards. I will fondly remember dinners at Mauro and Nikos' home where Mauro made the most delicious dinners from practically nothing. This is the kind of Italian man I need; he also irons! I met Daniela regularly for un caffe and made her teach me all the cool things people say in Italian such as, "Stasera, mi vesto troppo figa" which means, "Tonight, I am going to look hot!"

I also learned to brave cold weather once again and I actually went sightseeing in the rain! I am like a whole new person now :) On the other hand, I have not sent enough postcards and I still can't remember the present tense of most verbs. Nevertheless, I am happy to announce that I can ease-drop rather well on Italian telephone conversations, train conversations and lovers quarrels whenever the opportunity arises.

I will leave Perugia with a quote Daniela gave me one day at Happy Hour as we were writing down some useful Italian phrases:

"Meglio il rimorso e non il rimpianto!" Which is to say, "It's better to have remorse than to have regret." Sometimes things don't always turn out the way we want them to in life, but the important thing is that we never regret that we haven't tried. Perugia is a special place and although there's always an opportunity to say, "I should have" or "I wish I had" while I stayed here, there's so many good things to remember. I can safely, say I don't have any regrets.

Fuori Servizio

I just couldn't help taking this picture. It was the coat hanger in a restaurant and too fantastic to pass up! Ahhhh, Italian humour....hope you are laughing!

Sunshine, Vistas and The Illusive Permesso di Soggiorno

It's official! I am Italian!

It happened on Wednesday, November 11, 2009 at about 12:30pm.  It was sunny day and the temperature was rising,  a rarity these days - I mean, I was so hot I took off my scarf! I was leaning against the wall at the top of Piazza Italia with my Brazillian friend and taking in the views of the Perugian countryside.

We were just chatting about life, friends, and where to get the best pizza in Perugia when I felt like someone was watching me.... so I peered over my shoulder just as this paparazzi snapped my photo!! Okay, so it was just a German tourist, but he thought I was Italian! That makes it official, right?  He showed me the picture which turned out to be pretty cool with the hills in the background and then he walked across the street to meet his wife. I am pretty sure he deleted the picture having burst his bubble when told him I was American. I mean, come on. Who wants random American girl in their romantic, whimsical Italian photograph?

Comunque (co-muuuunk-way: aka, my favorite Italian word meaning "anyway" or "whatever")... this was a sign!  At 3pm I was going back to the Questura to pick-up my Permesso di Soggiorno!

Cut to 3pm, Wednesday November 11, 2009:

When I arrived at the Questura there were about 50 people waiting at the gate. At first, the officer on duty wasn't going to let me through because my name wasn't on the list, but I insisted in a rather agitated voice, "No! La signora mi ha detto che devo venire oggi!" Clearly he realized he was wrong and I was right as I pointed to the date and time wrecklessly scribbled on the back of my documents: November 11, 2009 between 15:00 - 17:00. So, he let me in.

Since the sun was still shining and they had just called #24, I took a seat in the sun and waited for #63. Somewhere around #44 I started to wonder why my name wasn't on the list. It should have been on the list. How strange! I checked the date again: 10/11/2009. What's today's date? 11/10/2009? 11/11/2009?

Insert culture lesson here:

Did you know that in Italy they write the calendar date as day/month/year? I did, but I read it wrong. "Cazzo!!!!" I was supposed to be here yesterday. I am such an idiot! How on earth could I have done this to myself!!!! This is not a good thing. So much for being officially Italian today, Julia. (N.B: This emphatic "parolaccia" or "swear-word" sounds a lot less serious when I say it in Italian then in English which is why I feel okay screaming it in my blog. Cazzo!!!!)

I decided to wait for my turn since it had already been an hour, and frankly, what else was I going to do? Eventually, I would need an appointment at the Questura. I only hoped that I didn't have to go see the same guy I spoke to regarding my tatuaggio.

Here's the short version: I tried to explain politely that I had made a mistake, but the officer just looked at me like I was an idiot (warranted), yelled at me a bit, told me I would have to come back for another appointment, walked away, came back, spoke to his colleague, left again and eventually came back with my Permesso di Soggiorno. He took my fingerprints and basically threw it at me, as best as one can when standing behind bullet-proof glass. Then we joked about how we write the dates differently in the States. Sometimes, I think they just like to mess with you for fun.

So now I am offically legal (3 months later) and allowed to stay in Italy and study until July 2, 2010, if I want. I guess we will have to wait and see what the Spring has to offer. As for now, I'll see you in Philly for the holidays and will be in CA by the end of January...after that who knows what life holds for me. The good news is I can come back to Italy whenever I want... which I am hoping coincides with some more sun and warm weather! I am such a wimp! 

EuroChocolate 2009

 You may have heard the rumors....and they are true. Here it is EuroChocolate: 10 days of chocolate heaven. It would only have been more heavenly if there was actually free chocolate. Instead, you have to buy it. There are a lot of opinions on the worth of this chocolate festival -- cultural vs. commercial. In my opinion, it was awesome. Like I said, more free chocolate would have been nice. They did also sell these "Chococards" which gave you some free tastings and alleged discounts... but it didn't seem worth it, at all. In any event, here's what Perugia looked like for 10 glorious days in October....

Don't forget about Floppy, Goldie, Bonkie, Princess Georgia, Woody, Chickie, Jake, Spanky, Matteo, Maddy, Saddie and all other doggie relatives past and present :)

And it just keeps going and going and going.... chocolate covered banana anyone?