“I soon realized that no journey carries one far unless, as it extends into the world around us, it goes an equal distance into the world within.”

La Bella e La Bestia

I don’t want to start off the post in a cheesy way, but Lillian Smith’s quote really hit home for me this week. My response to it was spurred on by two different things: first of all, my journey is extending into the world around me. I am actually living in another country and am in constant awe of my surroundings. However, my journey truly has been an internal source of growth. Let’s start with the world around me, the easier of the two topics to describe.

Italy was always the top place in the world that I wanted to go, and I knew perfectly well that I would be amazed by the country. My grandma had told me it was the most beautiful place in the world, and I agreed without having yet to set foot on Italian soil. My astonishment at this country comes in two sizes: on a grand scale and on a smaller scale. On the grand scale, the city of Rome is entirely filled with history, art, landmarks, and natural beauty. Even the simplest building may house artistic treasures. Even the smallest park gates may lead to a world where flora and fauna live in fantastic harmony. I have yet to explore even half of Rome, but I’m looking forward to experiencing everything that it has to offer. Beyond Rome, I am planning trips to many different parts of Italy and I can’t wait to explore the rest of the country. On the smaller scale, I am in awe of my everyday surroundings. The other day I found myself sitting in front of my favorite gelateria and pasticcheria for two hours, just talking with a friend and watching as all of the people passed by. Small things like a little boy in a bumblebee costume or a family stopping at the café for gelato make me smile. I am surrounded by Italy. I walk Italy, I sleep Italy, I eat Italy, (someday I will speak Italy). I live in Italy, and it is a fact that never ceases to amaze me.

Internally, this journey has impacted me more than I can describe, more than I can understand. I had heard that going abroad would change you, would help you grow. But I never understood that until now. Sometimes I walk down the street on my way to school, and I take a deep breath, looking around, and realizing that I am really experiencing these things. I am so proud of myself that I have been able to adapt and learn how to live half way around the world on my own. Simple, everyday occurrences make me so incredibly proud of myself. Little things like purchasing food in the market using only Italian puts me on top of the world. I can’t believe this is the life I get to lead.

Ok, in keeping with the traditions of my previous posts, lets start in on my week (and what an amazing week it has been)…

Nothing particularly special happened this week in school. Classes are going well, I even had my first two quizzes in Italian and they both went very well. Thursday is Gnocchi day at the pizzeria by school and my friends and I have started a tradition of getting lunch there every week. This week I tried the pesto gnocchi and a carciofi fritti (battered and fried artichoke) and both were phenomenal. On a side note, when I reheated my leftover gnocchi the next day I put them in a pan with a little olive oil and they got toasted on one side which was fantastic- it was a textural wonder to have the crunchy side with the rest of the pillowy-soft dumpling. Before arriving for Gnocchi Thursday, I took my weekly stroll to the fresh produce market and was able to use only Italian to purchase my food! When I gave one vendor exact change but she wasn’t sure that it was the right amount, she checked it and was so complementary to me. “Bravissima!” (“Very good!”) I was beaming as I walked home. Thursday night was spent enjoying a wonderful night with friends and a potluck dinner at one of their apartments. Good food, good company, and decent wine made for a fantastic night in Roma!

I did a little exploring of some new places on Friday. My friends and I began with Tiber Island. For those of you that aren’t familiar with Roman geography (don’t feel bad, I’m still learning too), the Tiber River runs through the middle of Rome. It is not actually very wide at all, although it is wide enough for a small island evidently. The island didn’t hold much, mainly a hospital and a small church. After a quick stop there, we crossed the street into the Jewish Ghetto. This historic area houses a large synagogue, kosher restaurants, Judaica shops, and ruins. The area was incredibly beautiful and I got the sense that I was stepping into history. We ate at a charming kosher restaurant where we enjoyed carciofi alla giudia (one of the staples of Roman Jewish food, a fried artichoke lightly seasoned with salt and herbs that looks like a giant flower blooming on the plate) and a pizza with lox on it. While I don’t normally like lox, this was quite tasty. The artichoke was delicious, however we couldn’t tell if we were eating it right. Were we supposed to eat the leaves? If so, all of them? They tasted like little potato chips, so why not? Half-way through the artichoke we learned that we were not supposed to eat the outer-most leaves. Thankfully we hadn’t had too many yet. The man two tables down looked as confused as us and he ate the entire thing, so I guess our idea wasn’t that silly after all. Before leaving the Ghetto, we stopped at a bakery that had “American specialties” and got chocolate chip cookies. They were nowhere near as good as my mom’s, but it satisfied a craving for American comfort food.

This gives you an idea of just how grand everything is in Rome.

An American chocolate chip cookie!

Later that evening several friends and I had tickets to “La Bella e La Bestia,” the Italian version of the Broadway musical Beauty and the Beast. It was an absolutely spectacular night. I have to say that I was as giddy as the children in the theater. Bringing out my inner child, I was swept up into the magic of the show. As every song started I got the chills, completely in awe of where I was and what I was doing. I nearly cried several times out of sheer happiness. The actors were phenomenal and immensely talented. And while it was comforting to know the storyline when my very basic Italian knowledge didn’t help me understand the lines (although it did sometimes, to my incredibly pleasant surprise), I found the music to cross the language barrier. It doesn’t matter what language the songs are sung in, they still give me gooesbumps. The story is classic, magical, and sensational. The final cool thing about the night was that it made it feel like Rome is my city. As if I was in any city living in the U.S., I went out for the night to a Broadway show. It could have been any city, anywhere, but it wasn't. It was here, it was Rome. And I get to live here! Life is amazing!

Today I woke up very early to depart Rome for a day trip to a small town called Tivoli. As I have not left the city since my arrival, I was really excited to take a train out to the countryside. I was very proud of myself that I figured out how to get to the train station and how to make our way to Tivoli. But I had given my friends fair warning that as soon as we got to Tivoli, I had no idea how to make it to Villa D’Este, the incredible gardens that Tivoli is famous for. We were able to figure out our way, but we never actually made it to the gardens, not for lack of directions or desire to go, but for wonderful detours that we took. In our attempts to find the gardens, we stumbled upon the town’s Carnivale celebration and were enchanted at how cute it was. There were candy stands, dried fruit and spices, as well as bountiful craft and toy stands. I purchased a beautiful glass necklace made of Murano/Venetian glass. After a snack of some dried fruit (have you ever had dried orange or dried strawberries- they’re heavenly), we traveled in the direction of the gardens, but were distracted by a coral and cameo store. When we entered we were kindly greeted by a 9^th generation cameo carver who spoke wonderful English and delighted in showing us his craft. The sweet old man even asked if we were students and then joked, “Students? 20% discount! Teacher? Full price.” He chatted with us as we marveled at the tiny masterpieces. I was particularly struck by a blue necklace. After much hesitation and his continual lowering of the price (he was quite the smooth talker), I walked away with a stunning blue cameo necklace worth €80 that he sold to me for €50, stating “This is beautiful, this is the thing you will pass on for generations and always remember Italy.” I’m very excited for this unique purchase. After our shopping, we finally made it to Villa D’Este, but didn’t have enough time to justify the entrance fee. We walked away promising to return before the semester ends. After another stop in the charming marketplace, we departed for home, but not before countless pictures of the surrounding mountains.

The view from the center of Tivoli

My beautiful necklaces

I have to say, this trip made me feel so empowered. I was able to find a place I wanted to go, find a train, and simply go! I figured it out, I actually got us there! And along the way we stumbled upon the most wonderful things. Not only that, but tonight I made risotto for dinner in my tiny little kitchen- a fantastic risotto with spinach, zucchini, red pepper, veal sausage, white wine, and basil. It was delicious! I still can’t believe that I was able to cook something so fancy in my quaint Italian kitchen. Additionally, this weekend I also made pancakes again that turned out a little better than last time, not to mention the jam and butter that I was able to melt into a make-shift syrup. Pretty creative if I do say so myself! I told my parents that I didn’t know how to even describe my happiness at everything I had done this weekend. As we video chatted tonight, they told me that my smile said it all. If that’s true, then I wish you could all see my smile, maybe that would be a better way for you to understand how I feel. Thinking back to the fact that I almost hesitated and decided to not study abroad, I’m absolutely floored. I can’t imagine not being here, not having these experiences. Living here has been an educational time, a time for growth, for friendship, and for discovery. This Tuesday will mark my one-month anniversary of arriving in Italy and I can’t wait for everything the next three months have in store. Next weekend I’ll be journeying to Venice, then Tuscany the weekend after, followed by visits from my sister, my friend, and then my parents. What an amazing next month I will have!

Risotto from scratch! Feeling so accomplished right now!

Much love to all of you! I miss you very dearly! New pictures are also up!

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