Well, its official. That’s right ladies and gentlemen; I have officially become a regular at my first local pizzeria (surprised it took this long actually). I discovered this last night when the owner (a man from New York's Upper East Side) gave me not only free pizza but also a free pastry for the next morning because I “looked exhausted.” He then came from behind the counter and twirled my hair around his finger for a brief moment, which is creepy I’m aware of this. But if the local pizza guy doesn’t twirl your hair are you really a regular/pizza lover?
That being said, this post will more or less be a wild recording of thoughts as I don’t have anything awfully exciting or surprising this week…other than the breakdown I had at school when the little espresso vending machine stopped working. I’ve been LIVING off of these things. They are 50cent chocolate espressos that give you just enough energy to survive class. It’s become quite the addiction.
Embarrassing moment of the week: I spent all of Sunday (and I mean ALL of Sunday in bed, in the dark, and then decided to binge eat with Kelsey which we immediately regretted.)
I tried something called a piadina this week, which is essentially a gyro/wrap hybrid. The quesadillas are steamed for most of the day which means they’re extra warm and wrap-able and soft. You go through a chipotle-esque line in which you pick different ingredients. I tried a combination of a veggie salsa mix, lettuce, onions, rice (the best), and Tzatziki sauce. For being much thinner than a gyro, and made out of a flour wrap instead of pita bread, it’s almost more filling.
Speaking of food, almost every time I've gone out to eat at night I've ended up getting some variation of pasta Amatriciana. This "Amatriciana" sauce is a red sauce, cooked with bacon, herbs, and pecorino cheese. Both the cheese and this type of sauce are rather famous in Rome and is considered a signature dish (along with carbonara). Absolutely unreal.
I feel like there is a totally different relationship between men and women in terms of being a “gentleman.” By this I mean, I feel as though there is a stronger feeling of men being more important (?) than women. I’ve especially noticed this on the metro/busses. I’ve watched seats become available and instead of looking around to see if a woman or child needed the seat; men have sat down immediately without thinking twice about the woman standing on either side of them. The same is true for holding doors. Not that they don’t do it, but it’s less exaggerated. As a self-identifying feminist, none of these things particularly bother me, just not what I’m used to seeing in the states.
However, in the same situations on the metro, the elderly are given seats almost immediately. If an older person gets on you usually see a few people get up and offer him/her their seat. I just think it’s interesting that once you reach a certain age the tables turn and you are automatically respected.
I’m really tired of paying for water at restaurants, but I just can’t do wine every night. Miss you, free water.
I started my internship this week which has become such a delight because it gives me a nice break from the mundane routine of classes while offering a lovely interior aesthetic. Guillaume and Paulo are the sweetest and their dog Igloo is so tiny and shy but such a doll. It also forces me to explore the windy streets of the downtown area, discover new food places and test my reaction time while trying to not get run over by cars/vespas.
I am beginning to get somewhat homesick. It all started when I craved a salad about a week ago. Getting a salad here would be highly unsatisfying because they don’t put chicken in it or dressing and not many veggies. I miss hearty salads and guac. GUACAMOLE DOESN’T EXIST HERE. You can't talk about guacamole without talking about clubbing...and thats what we did this weekend too. That made me feel a little closer to home because they played a good deal of American club music (peep the dramatic pre-club selfie).
To add on to these massive voids in my life, it’s also done nothing but rain for the past week straight. We were told February is by far the worst month in Rome because it’s all thunderstorms and rain (that’s their version of winter). Speaking of storms, I witnessed a hail storm a few nights ago that was crazier than anything I’ve ever seen. I’m talkin’ hail the size of golf balls hurdling towards the earth, in MASSIVE amounts. The ground looked like a Chuck-E-Cheese ball pit void of any and all color. All I want to do is be in my warm bed, with a working TV and candles. Ryan is coming for spring break the first week of March, so at least I’ll have something to look forward to that will be a little piece of home, and a nice way to break up my trip.
-da Roma
Kat
That being said, this post will more or less be a wild recording of thoughts as I don’t have anything awfully exciting or surprising this week…other than the breakdown I had at school when the little espresso vending machine stopped working. I’ve been LIVING off of these things. They are 50cent chocolate espressos that give you just enough energy to survive class. It’s become quite the addiction.
Embarrassing moment of the week: I spent all of Sunday (and I mean ALL of Sunday in bed, in the dark, and then decided to binge eat with Kelsey which we immediately regretted.)
I tried something called a piadina this week, which is essentially a gyro/wrap hybrid. The quesadillas are steamed for most of the day which means they’re extra warm and wrap-able and soft. You go through a chipotle-esque line in which you pick different ingredients. I tried a combination of a veggie salsa mix, lettuce, onions, rice (the best), and Tzatziki sauce. For being much thinner than a gyro, and made out of a flour wrap instead of pita bread, it’s almost more filling.
Speaking of food, almost every time I've gone out to eat at night I've ended up getting some variation of pasta Amatriciana. This "Amatriciana" sauce is a red sauce, cooked with bacon, herbs, and pecorino cheese. Both the cheese and this type of sauce are rather famous in Rome and is considered a signature dish (along with carbonara). Absolutely unreal.
I feel like there is a totally different relationship between men and women in terms of being a “gentleman.” By this I mean, I feel as though there is a stronger feeling of men being more important (?) than women. I’ve especially noticed this on the metro/busses. I’ve watched seats become available and instead of looking around to see if a woman or child needed the seat; men have sat down immediately without thinking twice about the woman standing on either side of them. The same is true for holding doors. Not that they don’t do it, but it’s less exaggerated. As a self-identifying feminist, none of these things particularly bother me, just not what I’m used to seeing in the states.
However, in the same situations on the metro, the elderly are given seats almost immediately. If an older person gets on you usually see a few people get up and offer him/her their seat. I just think it’s interesting that once you reach a certain age the tables turn and you are automatically respected.
I’m really tired of paying for water at restaurants, but I just can’t do wine every night. Miss you, free water.
I started my internship this week which has become such a delight because it gives me a nice break from the mundane routine of classes while offering a lovely interior aesthetic. Guillaume and Paulo are the sweetest and their dog Igloo is so tiny and shy but such a doll. It also forces me to explore the windy streets of the downtown area, discover new food places and test my reaction time while trying to not get run over by cars/vespas.
I am beginning to get somewhat homesick. It all started when I craved a salad about a week ago. Getting a salad here would be highly unsatisfying because they don’t put chicken in it or dressing and not many veggies. I miss hearty salads and guac. GUACAMOLE DOESN’T EXIST HERE. You can't talk about guacamole without talking about clubbing...and thats what we did this weekend too. That made me feel a little closer to home because they played a good deal of American club music (peep the dramatic pre-club selfie).
To add on to these massive voids in my life, it’s also done nothing but rain for the past week straight. We were told February is by far the worst month in Rome because it’s all thunderstorms and rain (that’s their version of winter). Speaking of storms, I witnessed a hail storm a few nights ago that was crazier than anything I’ve ever seen. I’m talkin’ hail the size of golf balls hurdling towards the earth, in MASSIVE amounts. The ground looked like a Chuck-E-Cheese ball pit void of any and all color. All I want to do is be in my warm bed, with a working TV and candles. Ryan is coming for spring break the first week of March, so at least I’ll have something to look forward to that will be a little piece of home, and a nice way to break up my trip.
-da Roma
Kat