Can It Get Worse?

Yes, I love Rome. I keep telling myself this. But I honestly do. Unfortunately, it just seems like I can't catch a break. It's been one thing after the other lately. First, my credit card was cancelled. Second, a week long charrette that has kept me up late at night this whole week (although it was nice to have some work to focus on). Third, just friday night, my purse has up and disappeared. I have no one to blame for this but myself and my lack of attention. I arrived home without my bag. This contained the following: my camera, my driver's license, my check card, my insurance card, my huge set of keys, chapstick, and some other odds and ends. I'm baffled at my stupidity. Other than that, things are going well. My group for the charrette has worked well together. We're a group of four, me being the only female. There's Bart and Joel from University of Arkansas and Nick from Philidelphia University. It's been quite an experience learning about other schools mindsets. More photos to come (I hope...)

Italian Weaknesses

I expected myself to gain a tremendous amount of weight while I was here in Europe. Suprisingly, I don't believe that will happen due to walking as much as I do as well as practicing yoga and running regularly. All this was true until now. I have found myself hooked on these simple shortbread like cookies.





Inexpensive, not too sweet, little o's that tantelize anyone who tries to resist. Approach this bag of goodies with caution because there is truly no turning back. One thing I have been able to resist, but not well, is Nutella. Why is it that when one comes to Europe it's as if they have never seen it before? It's readily available in the states! Due to my new found love of these chocolate hazelnut spread, I will come back with a cute pink panther souvenir Nutella jar. Not a bad deal. Another thing... Soda, I went without it for weeks. I had stopped drinking it even before I left the states. But sometimes sometimes, unfortunately, one just gets a craving for that tangy, bubbly, not so great for you chemical concoction. I settled for an inexpensive orange soda. In comparison to sodas in the US, these are no where near as sweet. It's rather refreshing not to be overcome by some sugar rush after you take a swig.


Just the other night, Nicole and I went out to dinner before hitting the town to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. We settled on a restaurant that we had been to before for a free joint dinner with the University of Arkansas students. The food the first time was excellent. But the second was unbelievable. Nicole and I decided we had to have the plate of fried vegetables again. After splitting that, our main dishes were both pasta. Mine was incedible. I was definitely in the mood for something a little different than say spaghetti or rotini noodles, so I ordered Risotto agli Spinaci, which I'm sure all of you can figure out is spinach risotto. It was unbelievable. Something I will definitely attempt to repeat (I doubt I can even come close). But tonight will consist of the usual, pasta tossed in sauteed garlic and basil with some red pepper flakes and a little salt. I may mix it up a little bit and saute down some onions. Haven't had those beauties in a while.


A presto

I Plan on Framing This One.

I forgot to post this the day we went to the Spanish Steps and watched the sunset. I'm rather proud of how this photograph turned out. Taken with my 35mm Digital Camera. Nothing too fancy but the picture turned out spectacularly. (St. Peter's Basilica is the "small" dome on the left)

Lonely in Roma

I'm here in the apartment for a few days by myself. And unfortunately, this is the time that one tends to get a little homesick. But, I've managed to find plenty of full length movies on youtube, and I even did a little shopping today (window shopping that is). All of my roomates as well as most eveyone else in the program has packed they're bags and headed out. Unfortunately, most of what they were interested in doing, did not fit my budget. Either that, or they could have cared less whether or not I came and therefore, I wasn't invited. One group is spending the whole weekend travelling from Venice, to a couple of the hill towns, to Florence, and then back to Rome. The other groups I know are heading to Florence, and many are staying the whole weekend. Sadly, I had no desire to go to Venice. And while Florence was enticing, no one seemed to want to take a day trip there and come back later that same evening. I guess I was just out of luck. But on the brighter side, I just put money towards a trip that one of the studio managers is heading up. It's a small beach getaway down to Naples and we'll be staying in Villa there as well as seeing the island of Capri. Because food expenses are rather slim here and I haven't eaten out much at all, I've been able to save up a little bit to spend on this trip.

This past week has been a little hectic. We had two projects due on Tuesday, both of which went well. It was our first late night in Rome; bedtime comes around 10 or 11 and we didn't turn the lights off until 1.30 or so. Yesterday was spent outside of Rome in the ancient port town of Ostica Antica. It was reachable by a thirty minute ride on the train, and is only a few train stops away from the beach. This may become a weekend destination. We have monthly passes for the train and subway systems that allow access for all of the month of March and April. Ostica was quite the change from Rome. As soon as we stepped out of the train stop and began our short walk down the road, I could smell flowers and hear birds. Only the occasional scooter interupted the sound of the breeze. It was such a relief.



It was by far one of the prettiest days we've had since we first arrived. The breeze was blowing and there was hardly a cloud in the sky. It was a bit warmer than usual but still a little brisk at times. This port town was beautifully planned, with apartments, shops, and storage facilities. Truth be told, the set up of the apartment homes centered around a courtyard is still a successful plan in use today.



Not sure what this weekend holds in store for me. I know I'll be doing a lot of cooking to keep myself busy and maybe go shopping a bit more tomorrow.

I have only one question...

What can Italian Brown do for you?

I Saw Stars in Roma

Hello all. Today was a lot of walking. A LOT of walking. But I've come to find that is how you really get to know the city. One seems to stumble across some of the most incredible things while simply strolling. Nicole and I made our way up to the Piazza del Quirinale once again to get a little work done for our project coming up next week. On the walk east on the Strada Pia, we were fortunate enough to venture into one of my favorite churches (at least judging from photographs I had seen) San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane. It is beautifully Baroque and words cannot describe the wonder of this space. The doors opened as we followed in a tour group of American students. As my eyes came to the ceiling, tears literally welled up in my eyes. Soft white light reflected from the hand carved stone statues. Strangely enough, being inside this chapel felt like a cradle. It is meant to swaddle and comfort. I cannot tell you how much I love this space. I was in so much shock that I didn't want to ruin it by taking pictures, but expect some soon.

From here were walked down to the Porta Pia, the eastern gate into the city designed by Michelangelo. From here, we walked to the Corso, one of the major shopping districts in Rome and one of the three streets leading off of the Piazza del Popolo. I forced myself to resist buying anything, but nevertheless I was tempted.

A Run Along the Tivere

I went on a run this morning along the Tivere. And I get to do this multiple times a week. I am truly blessed.

Series of Unusual Events

Ok. To continue where I left off from the previous blog...

Early Tuesday evening was spent at our professors' apartment where cheese and crackers and wine were provided. Ten bottles later, we decided it was a good time to head out. A few of us were rather hungry so we headed to a local pizzaria. One of my girlfriends told us of this place near her apartment and she had become familiar with one of the servers. After ordering pizza, water, and two desserts for all three of us, we were all fat and happy. I'm not sure how long we stayed at the restaurant, but it closed with our table still full. We started to make plans with the waiter to go out to a discotec. I used a rather butchered mix of Italian, Spanish, and English, but it seemed to get my point across. Before we knew it, techno music starting thumping through the dining room and a weird colored stobe light managed to make its appearence. I can only laugh about this bizarre experience.

Wednesday was dedicated to personal study and exploration throughout the city. Nicole and I headed to the Quirinale (Quirinale Hill, home to one of the major seats of government). It was quite a hike from out apartment, but after jumping on one bus, we quickly made our way. After reaching the top of the hill and observing the activity of the piazza, we noticed police had begun to block off the plaza to public foot traffic. We thought this slightly bizarre and soon after, were asked to step outside the plaza. Locals and tourists alike began to queue up behind the barriers so Nicole and I decided it might be a good idea to stick around and see what might be going on. We were fortunate enough to see an extensive changing of the guards ceremony.

From here, we continued on to a small nearby garden and took advantage of the ample sunshine and benches to take a break from the city. It was getting later in the afternoon and we decided it was probably a good idea to head home. On our way back through the winding Roman roads, suddenly Nicole grabs my arm as we passed an alley. She says sternly,"we're going this way." To my confusion, I agreed. As soon as I set eyes on what was ahead, I gasped. We had somehow stumbled upon the Trevi Fountain. It was swarmed with tourists (obviously). As we entered into the piazza outfront of the fountain, I heard the familiar chanting of a Rugby song. I grinned and walked briskly in the direction of the song in hopes to meet some Rugby players. After finding out that they really didn't speak english, we settled on people watching for a while. Strangely enough, a group of British men came up next to us and struck up a conversation. Turns out they were the city to watch the Roma vs. Arsenal "futbol" match. They invited the two of us to grab a beer with them, and we figured "what the heck?" Live a little. I'm always up for making friends. We walked to the nearby Pantheon and found a little cafe and our group of ten or so sat down and enjoyed some Peronis (Italian brand of beer). Come to find out one of the gentlemen is a developer out of Dubai. He politely asked Nicole and I to send him over some of our work. We were grinning from ear to ear with excitement. We had a blast just sitting around chatting, singing obnoxiously, and laughing with this group of folks. It was nice to be surrounding by people speaking english for a bit.

Today was slow. That's all there is to it. I was exhausted all day and haven't been feeling up to par, but such is life I suppose. I'll be heading off to bed shortly and waking up in the morning and heading to the local market to restock the fridge. Should have some exciting stories about the upcoming weekend!

A Series of Unusual Events

I apologize for my lack of punctuality and not writing as frequently. Classes have started and most of my day is committed to studio and the like. But as the name suggests, this week has been a whirlwind of activities. So I'll commence from the beginning.

Monday started early, as most of our days do. (We have now deduced why Italians are so found and proud of their coffees. It's simply because they stay up late and get up early. Caffeine is the life blood around here.) We met at the Rome Center, one of the two venues for classes. Here we were introduced to our first instructor who will be with us for a two week period. Our task is to focus on the work of Pope Sixtus V and to retrace and analyze a portion of his urban plan in Rome. More on that later. Lunches are spent in the Piazza Navona. It's a very short distance from both the Rome Center and the studio apartments. Our italian class met for the first time and I'm beginning to pick up some of the language. Italian class is followed by studio and here, we are focussing on the analyzation of the subject of our choosing. As of now, I'm going to be looking into sitting space and the effect it has on the popularity of a space such as a piazza or a courtyard. It may come to include the changes of space and the way it shifts throughout the day. That evening, we had a free dinner at a local restaurant near the Rome Center. It was supposed to be a mixer type dinner, with both the University of Arkansas and Auburn University students eating together, but somehow, like an awkward middle school dance, the the girls sat together with familiar faces and the gentlemen followed suit. But it was a free meal, and as a broke college student, I can't complain. The meal itself was fantastic. Course after course after course came pouring out of the kitchen. I hadn't eaten that much food since I landed in Rome. All of it was pheonominal.

Onward to Tuesday. Our class met at the base of the Spanish Steps and proceeded on a (ver unorganized) tour of some of Sixtus V's work. Seeing the steps in the morning was a wonderful experience. Mostly due to the extent of working people making their way around in their designer suits and handbags. We made it to the top of the steps and behold, an unbelievable view of the city.

Our tour continued the intersecting streets of the Quattro Fontane (Four Foutains). On one of these corners is my favorite churches that we have studied thus far - San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane. It's an absolutely stunning example of Baroque architecture and I have yet to have the opportunity to venture inside. That will probably be a task for tomorrow. After passing the Four Fountains, our final destination was to be Santa Maria Maggiorre, a basilica atop one of the seven hills in Rome. A very Baroque facade masked beautiful mosaics covering the back wall of an upper balcony. We were fortunate enough to get a tour to the upper floor and into the pope's reading room. It was a truly beautiful space.

More to come...

Coloseo in the Sunshine

Today was the only day of our weekend, and was it a good one. The weather was close to perfect, a little cool in the shade, but the breeze was blowing and the sky was a perfect shade of blue. Unlike back home, Rome's humidity tends to stay pretty low unless, obviously, it's raining. It seemed like everyone was out today. It was a little warmer than yesterday and because it's Sunday, everyone was relaxing, preparing for the week ahead.

Our morning started out a little later than usual. I finally had the opportunity to sleep in. I managed to sleep until 11 and I had gone to bed a little past midnight. It felt lovely. But upon waking this morning, come to find out our toilet button was "broken". Here in Europe, unlike the states, there's a button on the wall directly behind the toilet that one pushes to start the flushing mechanism. The cavity, normally behind American toilets, is moved up the wall, almost to the point of needing a ladder to reach it. But either way, the button used to flush had gotten stuck in the wall, so our business just had to wait. My roomates and I sat around waiting for the repairman to show, but no such luck and we were running out of time to spend at the Coloseo (Colosseum). Finally we decided to pack up our things and head out.

We managed to do two huge loops, once through an unknown area of town and the second through the Jewish ghetto. The latter of the two turned out to be a rather beneficial venture for it is filled with restaurant after restaurant; all of which smell incredible. I will definitely be convincing some people to go over there for lunch or dinner one day. After our immense loops around from the Tivere (Tiber River) and back again, we finally made it to the Coloseo. It stood beautifully against the blue (almost) cloudless sky. We ran into the rest of our group while making our way around the interior. It's hard to piece together what a sight this must have been. I guess it's comparable to the football stadiums of today. What's even harder to imagine, is the means of constructing such a colossal monument. No cranes, no jack hammers, just back breaking, labor intensive work.

Only the first and second livello (levels) are open to the public. The carcere (the underground stalls where both gladiators and beasts were held) are unavailable unless through private tour (I'm assuming).

Because the heat and sunshine were so hard to pass up today, Nicole and I headed to the Circo Massimo (Circus Maximus). It is now a green field with long gravel pathways lining each side. This was orginally, as the name states, a circus. A Roman circus was originally the venue for chariot races and foot races, hence the long, eliptical shape. Where seating once was, is now covered in a green, very fresh scented weed. It is smack in the middle of a high traffic area, but it serves somehow as a wonderful hiatus from the rush of the city. There were Italians and tourists alike, a few people on Segways (why?), children playing a referreed game of tag, a few people playing soccer, a couple getting a little too friendly, and then there was Nicole and me just enjoying the sunshine.

Today was overall relaxing and a nice change of pace. I've gotten some much needed sun on my face, but I believe I'm slightly dehydrated from all of this. A headache is about to send me to bed.

I Walked in the Footsteps of Ancient Political Greatness.

I believe I have finally adjusted to the 7 hour time change. Last night consisted of a wonderful 7.5 hours of sleep. The previous night was interrupted by a two hour session of italian MtV. It was a little rough. But last night was glorious. The beds, unfortunately, are not like the cloud of a mattress I have at home, but when you're exhausted from a day of trecking around Roma, any warm place to lay down can be considered a bed.

This morning began a little earlier; we weren't sure how long it would take to get to the meeting spot so we anticipated an extra 15 minutes. We met the class around 9 at the Campidoglio atop of the Capitoline Hill: one of the 7 hills in Rome. It still houses the Roman senate. The complex was designed by Michelangelo and butts up to the "wedding cake," or the Vincent Emmanuel momument, and the ancient Imperial Forum. From there, the group ventured to the Imperial Forum. It was indescribable to see the colossal remains of temples and basilicas. What was even more impressive, was the combining of the ancient remains and "modern" construction. From the middle of remains of an ancient temple, rose a medieval church with a baroque facade. A little wild and rather shocking to see the combination of three (maybe even four) architectural periods.

As I bore with you with innate architectural details, here was something rather amusing that my friends and I spotted in the forum. First, let me remind you that the roads taken throughout the forum are either cobblestone (if they have been replaced within the modern era) or huge stone pavers that were unbelievably uneven even in tennis shoes. While taking a break and enjoying the sunshine, I noticed these two girls struggling to make it down the pathway. One of them was wearing a pair of heels that wrapped around her ankle; the other, a pair of stilleto boots. They looked absolutely ridiculous. I was ready for an ankle to give way. One looked like a duck out of water trying to walk across gravel, if you can visualize such a thing. The things you'll see in Rome.

From here, we continued out walking tour to the Paletine Hill. This hill's name is taken from Palazzo, or palace. Atop this hill sits the "home" (this truly downplays the size of the complex) of Constantine, grotto, and garden of the Farnese family. At this point, I will admit, I began to focus elsewhere and people watched. It felt a little bit like Disney World in that many of the remains you couldn't touch, you were constantly surrounded by foreign languages, and you had to watch out for idiots with strollers.

Since it's Saturday night, I believe me and the girls are getting a group together and going to eat somewhere and then maybe grabbing a drink or two out and about. I'm looking forward to a relaxing evening; tomorrow we even get to sleep in.

Pictures soon to come.

Buon giorno Roma!

We finally made it. A three hour layover, a nine hour plane ride, two screaming babies, three tylenol pm's, one creeper trying to hit on me, and a long cab ride later... We made it. The flight over went smoothly. Evie Scogin and I left around 4.30 pm E. We found our seats and fortunately for me, I was in an exit row. I had plenty of room to stretch my legs. As soon as I had gotten myself comfortable, the captain comes over the speaker and reminds us of the nine hour flight ahead. I believe I heard a unanimous groan make its way around the cabin. All was well until two infants decided to get into a screaming match. Sleep was hard to come by so when we finally made it to the Rome airport, I can only imagine that appeared to others like the walking dead.

Trying to find a payphone, one that was funtional at least, proved to be quite the task. we finally found some towards the entrance of the airport where a lovely woman gave us change to alert the apartment we were on our way. People have been nothing but helpful since we've arrived. I hate to admit this, but I was slightly suprised. I realize it would help tremendously if I actually spoke italian, but I'm doing what I can with the spanish with which I'm familiar.

Our apartment is unbelievably quaint. A modest living room, small kitchen appliances, a large bathroom, and two comfortable bedrooms. The rooms are adornded in pink and green, so it's rather obvious they knew a few ladies were going to be living here.

I think we'll be heading out soon to purchase soaps, shampoos, etc. Hopefully I will return with more photos to share!