Rome: The Poster Child for Manic Depression

Ciao a tutti! We thought it was just about time to let you all know how our weekend in Rome went.... so here she is.

Forgive us if we slur our words or sound rather uneducated, because at the moment we are very tired and in Ari's case, very much sedated on cold medication. We also cannot get the picture section to function, so it will be picture-less for the moment... we will add when we can. This will also probably be brief...at least for us. Yes, we know that last time we said that it ended up being the longest post on record, but this time we mean business. We are striving for the digest version of our Rome adventures...and misadventures. Enjoy.

Thursday afternoon our Italian class was cancelled, so we got an early (ish) start and took a train to Rome around 11. We spent the entire train ride playing cards... and are convinced that we succeeded in playing the longest game of Rummy on record (for curious parties, Katie won after a long, neck-in-neck battle). Ari thinks that Katie's need to flaunt her victory in such a childish way is just evidence of her innate need for attention. Katie thinks that Ari is bitter and doesn't know how to accept defeat gracefully.

After arriving, we promptly lost ourselves in the loud, bustling labyrinth that is Rome. We were immediately hit with the chaos and noise of the city...apparently we have grown accustomed to the sleepy nature of Padova. Eventually, we located our sad excuse for a hostel (Globtrotters, Gulliver's House- misspelled in accordance with their actual name). So this place is basically a converted apartment, and the best way to describe it succinctly is to say that it is a piece of crap (sorry, Mama Bacon). The dormitories are 8 beds to a room, mixed boys and girls, with charmingly unwashed blankets and no top sheet. When Ari asked for a top sheet, the slightly unwashed, mullet-sporting Norse hostel wench looked at her as if she had demanded fresh chocolate chip cookies on her pillow every night before replying "um, no." When we walked into our room, there was a mostly unclothed couple spooning in one of the bunk beds. This room was also lacking bed lamps, so that when we walked into the dark room at night to retrieve our belongings, we were yelled at by our roommates for waking them up with the noise caused by our inability to see. Ari's bed turned out to be occupied. She had to move. We also were treated to a symphony of snoring by our large, hairy naked bunkmates, which meant that sleep was elusive to say the least. Showers were also... less than fun. Ari's shower ran frigid ice water into a hair-clogged, soap scum-filled basin until it completely overflowed and flooded the entire bathroom.

Painful hostel aside... the afternoon we arrived we met up with Katie's aunt and uncle who were visiting for the week, and went out for "the best coffee in Rome." Ari had hot chocolate, poverina, but it was certainly delicious. They showed us their favorite piazza and then had to leave, so we found a fabulous, little restaurant on a side street. Katie had incredible salmon ravioli and Ari had pesto gnocchi with clams, then we split a tiramisù.

The next day, we decided to see as much as we could of Ancient Rome. So we started with a walking tour of the Fori Imperiali, which is basically the ruins of the town center where everyone went shopping, eating out, making business deals, etc. This was soooo cool and took us most of the morning. Then we walked over to the Colosseum, which was massive and very cool. After this extremely exhausting morning (it was also much warmer than we anticipated), we met up with the Aunt Mary and Uncle Wayne for lunch at the home of the original tartuffo (a gelato mound-shaped concoction). Afterward, they took us over to see the Trevi Fountain, where it is said that if you toss a coin over your shoulder and wish to return to Rome, you'll come back one day. This is also supposed to be the place with the clearest water in Rome/in the world. It tasted delicious... There are also fountains all over the city that look decorative, but are actually drinking fountains. The water comes out of a spout, so you plug the spout with your finger and it shoots out the top. It is a strange sight to see people doing this all over the city...or washing their fresh fruit in the fountains. Then they took us to the area with the Spanish steps, where they decided that we absolutely had to read a book that they had been recommending, so we went into an American bookstore and they bought us: "The Agony and the Ecstasy," about the life of Michelangelo, and "Beach Music," a fiction set in Rome. We each started out with one and are planning on trading.. thus far, excellent reads. For some reason that day we were so overwhelmed and tired that we couldn't handle any more stimulation. So we promptly found the only reasonably priced cafe near la Piazza di Spagna, and sat there, drinking our respective hot drinks, and chatting. For about three hours. True to our usual form, we had no idea that much time had passed until the sun started to go down, and the cafe started to close. So we thought we'd sit some more... and walked to the reputed "best pizza" in Rome: Pizzeria Baffetto. There was an enormous line of all native Italian speakers, which we took as a good sign, and when we eventually ate... it was worth the wait. Katie had pizza with beans on it. Sounds weird... incredible. We were shocked, however, when the couple next to us ate TWO entire pizzas each. Stamina and dedication.

Saturday was devoted exclusively to Vatican City. We headed over in the morning and hopped in the ENORMOUS line for i Musei Vaticani. Inside were many lovely statues, works of art, Egyptian artifacts, etc. We had a little lunch, and then entered the main Piazza. This view, for those who haven't seen it, is breathtaking. The piazza (designed by Bernini) is huge, ringed with the massive Colonnade that is four columns deep, dotted with fountains, and crowned with St. Peter's Basilica. We had just enough time to enter St. Peter's and view the amazing Basilica (which is... overwhelming in size and amazing mosaics), before meeting up with the relatives. We decided that no church we have seen on this trip (and we have seen at least 20) even compares to this one. It is full of beautiful art that looks like it is painted, but upon closer examination, all the 'paintings' are actually mosaics, made of tiny little colored tiles. The detail is unbelievable (mama Bennett would love it). Then we met up with the relatives, who were staying in the same hotel as the Prince of Lichtenstein practically adjacent to the Vatican. There we were taken on...

... a PRIVATE TOUR OF THE SISTINE CHAPEL AND PAPAL PALACE. AFTER CLOSING TIME. WITHOUT OTHER PEOPLE.

Turns out, this Aunt and Uncle are good friends with the man who handles the fundraising for the Vatican (and occasionally writes some of the Pope's speeches), and since this man is friends with the Pope, he got special papal permission to take us on a tour. After admiring the beauty of the Sistine sans tourists, we were taken into the Room of Tears, where the Pope goes after being elected to change his clothes and collect himself before greeting the public. There was clothing worn by previous Popes, and the voting sheet. After wandering the Papal Palace for a bit, we left with the relatives for dinner. It was delicious and totally family-style, which is decidedly our favorite method of eating here, because we get to try a little bit of everything. We went back to our hovel of a hostel for an earlyish night after that.

On Sunday, our plans were to take a morning tour of some Roman catacombs and then check out the big outdoor market. Our plans were foiled, however, when we realized that public transportation in Rome is a nightmare. After successfully figuring out which was our stop on the subway, we exited, only to be faced with a row of controllari (italian subway monitors) who demanded to see our tickets. Since you need a ticket to get on the train to begin with, just like the subways in America, Katie did not see the necessity in keeping the thing, and was hence written up for a 100 Euro (roughly $150) fine. She was... displeased. She is hoping that this turns out to be bogus, but was told that a letter will be sent to her home in Maine from the embassy in Rome. After getting out of this awful situation, it took us a long time to figure out what bus we needed for the catacombs. After getting on the bus, we got off at the wrong stop, and ended up lost... walking with all of our luggage through countryside until we found our destination. Since the catacombs were closed for lunch and nap time, we grabbed a light lunch at the local pasticceria, where we saw the silliest beggar bum of all time. He was actually pouring himself red wine from a bottle, sporting a Ralph Lauren Polo, and smoking cigarettes like it was his job, while leisurely asking passers-by for money to eat. The saddest thing about this was that people actually gave it to him.

The catacombs tour turned out to be awesome...11 miles of twisty, dark tunnels full of bone-filled ancient graves. Apparently some guy broke into the catacombs a little while back and was lost in them for three full days. We both wanted to try our hand at exploring, but thought better of it. We did not get to see all 11 miles, but what we did see was thrilling and spooky. It goes four levels underground.

Afterwards, we were tired, slightly cranky, and much in need of solace in the form of lovely little Padova. We hopped on the first bus, then subway, to the train station. We practically cried with joy when we saw the Padova train station ahead. Then we went home to Katie's house, made tea, and watched Mulan in Italian. That made us feel better.

What we have learned from this experience is that we much prefer the quieter city feel of Padova to the overwhelming, noisy rush of Rome. Granted, Rome has many beautiful and historic experiences to offer, but we think that to get a feel for the real Italian lifestyle, it is best to leave the big city behind. We also learned that the universe can be a fickle mistress...manic-depressive, if you will. One moment she is granting you private tours of the Vatican, and the next she leaves you in the fetal position under your lice-infested bedspread listening to the snoring symphony of the great unwashed. She has taken us from the great to the greasy, the divine to the disease-ridden, from frescoes... to fines. But that's the universe for you. We prescribe a solid visit to the local shrink.

So now we are back in Padova, sitting in an internet cafe, and procrastinating studying for our Italian quiz tomorrow. All is well overall, tonight is Spritz Night, so much fun should be had by all in the Piazza delle Erbe. We send all our love, and hope everything is lovely back in the US. Don't forget to comment!

Molti Baci,
Le Ragazze