Day 20: Rome

Gelato flavors tried: millefoglie, white peach and lavender, mango, caramel cream, lemon pie, cheese and fig

On Friday, Amara Lakhous, author of the book we read about immigrants (Clash of Civilizations Over an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio) came to speak with us about the book and his experience. He came from Algeria and got graduate degrees in philosophy and anthropology in Italy. He loves talking with readers, and he definitely put himself into the main character of the book we read. He has another book that's coming out in a year in English, and I'd like to read it!

In the afternoon, we trekked to Villa Borghese, north of downtown Rome. It was about a 45 minute walk, but the villa's gardens are beautiful and tree-shaded, although without water spouts =( We went to the Borghese museum and saw lots of art collected by Scipione Borghese, including several statues by Bernini. I've decided that I for sure prefer sculptures to paintings, and Bernini's statues are incredibly interesting and dynamic - for example, the sculpture of Pluto abducting Persephone, where you can actually see Pluto's hand digging into Persephone's flesh. It was really quite cool! We then headed back home to make dinner before going out for gelato for Molly's birthday! Gelato is the birthday thing to do around here.

On Saturday, we went to Florence! We got up really early and took the bus to the train station. Luckily, we were early enough for our 7:45 train to get a cappuccino and cornetto before we left. The train was very high tech, and watching the countryside go by put me slightly to sleep. The trees and fields and green of the area we traveled through was more what I expected "Italy" to look like before I came to Rome.

We got to Florence by 9:30 and headed straight to the Academy Gallery to see the David. We waited in line for over an hour - not quite what we were anticipating - but it was worth it. David is BIG. He towers over everyone. We walked around him and looked at his face from the side: he's much more concerned-seeming when you're able to actually see his face. Definitely impressive, and I was kind of sorry for all the other works of art in the museum, because they were overshadowed by the hype about David.

By that time, it was time for lunch! We went to a place Lisa recommended called Za-Zas, and I got penne with tomatoes. They even were able to give us tap water, which is very unusual in Italy. After lunch, Kristin, Catherine and I headed out to the San Lorenzo market to go shopping. It's an incredible shopping street, lined with stalls and booths. It all seems reasonably priced, too. We went to a leather store that Lisa recommended ("How did you know about us?" the guy asked. "Our professor." "Oh, Lisa!"), and Catherine and Kristin got leather purses. I got a new wallet! We looked around a little more, but by this time it was getting very, very HOT, so we stopped for gelato. Gelato in Florence is not as good as in Rome because it tastes more like ice cream than gelato. It's still tasty and refreshing, though.

In the afternoon, we saw the Duomo of the Medici (the outside is stunningly elaborate, and the inside is cool as well. There was more stained glass than I've seen in a church so far. I liked it a lot, mostly because it felt very roomy and the wall decorations were not overdone). We walked down to the river and across the bridge, exploring the side streets and looking at churches we passed. But then we were too tired and hot to do much more. We found an air-conditioned restaurant and watched the World Cup game between Germany and Argentina (luckily, the restaurant let us stay even though they were technically closed until dinner time). It was an intense game, and, incredibly, Argentina lost, which made the Italian restaurant owners very upset. We found another restaurant for dinner, but by that time we just wanted to go home. We changed our train tickets so we took an earlier train home. I slept most of the way back.

(Note: being in Florence made me appreciate Rome more. Finding bars/restaurants is much more difficult in Florence. Florence is more touristy. And Florence doesn't have abundant water spigots like Rome. However, I did like the feel of the streets - Florence is a more laid-back town).

On Sunday, we relaxed. We went up the hill in Trastevere near our apartment and looked out over the city of Rome. I had no idea such a great view was so close! I finished my paper as well. We went out to dinner in Trastevere. The food and wine were great (a mix of ravioli and tortellini with artichokes, prosciutto, and mushrooms for me), but the dessert was atrocious! The tiramisu didn't taste like it had any coffee in it whatsoever.

Monday, we had classes off. I led a group of us to see the Capuchin Crypt, beneath an old church. It's a crypt decorated with the bones of 4,000 dead Capuchin friars: walls of skulls, ribs and vertebrae in star and cross-shaped patterns, stacks of hip bones, and standing mummified whole friars (complete with scythes). They didn't allow photos, or I would have taken a bunch. On the way back, Sarah and I stopped to visit her monument - Santa Maria della Pace - and got gelato while we were in the area. In the evening we went over to Kathie and Resat's apartment for a July 4th dinner. They provided salad and lasagna - very tasty - as well as awesome tartalettes and cream puffs. We sat and talked for a few hours. I heard some incredibly funny pet stories. Some people played Uno with Melis. Afterward, some people went out for gelato, but Catherine, Sarah and I headed home, picking up some frozen yogurt (delicious!) on our way home. Sarah and I watched Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog because we discovered that we both loved it and had a craving to watch it. We attempted to sing in harmony. Sarah is in opera-singer training, and I fail at singing, so it was a little sketchy, but still really fun.

Today, we spent the morning touring the old Jewish Ghetto, right near the Rome Center. In the time of the ghetto, 7,000 people were packed into about 4 square blocks (!). We visited the great synagogue, seeing the inside and some of the attached museum. It has a very different feel from a church. There was more gold, and the use of Hebrew on the walls gives it a profound aura of other for me. The square dome with its rainbow decorations was beautiful, too.

In the afternoon, we talked about Islam and finished discussing the book we read, "Trickster Travels." We decided on a topic for our paper about Islamic influences - the blue pigment of ultramarine, imported from Afghanistan via Venice - and agreed on how we wanted to proceed. In the evening, we listened to Resat give a talk on the interactions of cultures in the Mediterranean (cool! he's a great speaker, and also going to be the head of the Jackson School of International Studies next year). On the way home, we got crepes which were fantastic! (pear, gorgonzola, and prosciutto)

We have just over a week left in Rome! And two projects to finish!