Arrivederci Roma, Bonjour Paris

This is a bittersweet good-bye.

Today I am leaving Rome and beginning a new adventure. I am flying to Paris, a city I have dreamed of going to for practically my entire life. I will spend 5 days there, then my uncle Paul will meet me and we will start driving. Right now the plan is to make our way north to Denmark/Norway/Sweden. All we know for sure is that we have to be in Frankfurt by the 18th to catch our flight back to the U.S. Other than that we don't really have a plan. We are just going to take it a day at a time and have an amazing adventure!

I have spent three and a half months in one of the most amazing cities in the world, but more than the beautiful buildings and awesome food, I'm going to miss the people. I made friends that I will have for life and will miss dearly. I took a leap of faith, stepped out of my shell, and embraced life in Rome. I laughed, I cried, I sweat a lot (thanks to the oppressive Roman summers), and I made memories that I will cherish forever. I look forward to seeing what will come next!

A dopo.

BVLGARI

From History to Eternity. 125 Years of Italian Jewellry

One of the most famous names that comes to mind when you say exquisite jewelry is Bulgari. And, for 125 years they have been designing the best.

As a jewelry designer I am constantly looking for inspiration, so last Sunday afternoon I wandered to a part of town I spent little time in and found a quaint museum with an extraordinary BVLGARI exhibit. I have never seen anything so fantastic, I think I walked around for 2 hours with my jaw dropped.

I have to say it was one of the most pleasant Sunday afternoons I have had yet.

Where has all the time gone?

I woke up yesterday morning and realized that I have exactly 4 weeks left before I move back to Auburn. I have no idea where the time went. It seems like just yesterday I was scrambling around Auburn trying to take my finals early, pack for 4 months, and build up my jewelry inventory. I now feel a slight sense of urgency to see and do everything that I was putting off because I thought I had so much time.

The Daily Commute

Oh the joys of public transportation. I came to Rome with a romanticized view of public transportation--how eco-chic it would be to take the train every day. That idea lasted about a week.

Today for example, a seemingly normal Friday morning, turned into the commute from hell. I leave the apartment at 7:45 to catch the 8:06 train. I walk down the street and around the corner and see that the tram has just left. No worries though, there is usually one every 5 minutes or so, plus the #3 bus that can get me to the Trastevere Station. Not today though...I wait for 15 minutes--no tram, no bus--then finally at 8:03 the #3 bus pulls up, still no tram in sight, I hop on. The bus is hot and crowded, and there is no way I am going to make it to the station in time for the 8:06. I arrive at the station at 8:12, get to platform 5 and notice there are a ton of people. It turns out the 8:06 train is going to be 5 minutes late, which if you do the math, by the time I get there it is already at least 6 or 7 minutes late. At 8:25, the 8:06 train finally pulls up. For a second I contemplate waiting for the next train because this train is so unbelievably packed. I decide against it--a decision I will soon regret--and squeeze myself in the doorway, thinking if I am against the wall it will be fine. And what might you ask happens next? Someone shoves their hands against my back, nearly making me fall, shoving me into the middle of the train while about 6 more people managed to cram themselves in the doorway. The not so sweet smell of un-showered, non-deodorant wearing Italians is something you just don't quite get used to. And, the fact that the a.c. is either not on or not working doesn't help the situation. 3 stops later, I fight my way off the train--sweating, annoyed and feeling slightly violated after being a sardine for 20 minutes. I walk the final stretch to HQ, swipe my badge, look at my phone and it is 8:45. That's right, 1 hour door-to-door. I am so looking forward to the 17:28 train back to Trastevere.

A note on traveling...

I think it is more important to get an intimate feel for a city and not see everything, than rush around checking off the tourist hot-spots. You have to put aside your guide book, walk as fast as you can away from the tourists, and most importantly relax. Go were the locals are and soak up the environment. I am convinced that by doing this you will get the most out of every place you travel.

La Biennale di Venezia

53. Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte: Fare Mondi

"A work of art is more than an object, more than a commodity. It represents a vision of the world, and if taken seriously must be seen as a way of making a world."

"Victory over the Future" by Anatoly Shuravlev, Russia/Photograph by Emma Jane Keller

The Anatomy of a School Feeding Operation

A Taste of Italy...

Saturday night I was invited to an intimate gathering atop a beautiful Roman apartment near Villa Borghese. We enjoyed a wonderful meal prepared by Roberta & Francesca consisting of:

Antipasti:

Prosciutto, Fichi e Melone

Olive di Gaeta, Taggiasche e Calabresi

Pizza Bianca

Mortadella

Formaggi:

Toma con Olio d'Oliva

Mollichella di Parmiggiano

Stracciatella di Burrata

Mozzarella di Bufala

Pietanze:

Lasagne al Forno

Parmiggiana di Melanzane

Dolci:

Pesche Gialle al Vino Bianco

Vino:

Pescaja - Roero Arneis

Pinot Bianco - Istituto Agrario di San Michele Appiano

It was such a wonderful and relaxing evening, it reminded me that all you really need in life are good friends, good food and good wine.

Photographs by: Pierre Lord

Ahh...Cinque Terre

I have been in Rome for almost 2 months, and haven't really made it outside of the city. So, some fresh Mediterranean air and time communing with nature was much needed. I heard a little about Cinque Terre, a rugged portion of the Italian Riveria about 4.5 hours north of Rome, and decided that would be my first destination. Cinque Terre consists of 5 small villages perched on the coast with a hiking trail connecting them. The hike is about 10km and offers some of the best views in Italy.

I managed to convince a friend from work at that if we took the first train on Sunday morning and the last train back that night, which would get us back to Rome around 6:00am Monday morning, that it would be a good idea.

We met at the Trastevere station at 6:30am Sunday morning, and thus the adventure began. After about 4 hours traveling up the western coast of Italy we arrived in La Spezia, from there we would take another train for about 20 minutes to Monterosso, the northern most city of Cinque Terre. The 20 minute ride turned into 40 minutes, and now halfway to Genoa we realized we had probably missed our stop. I am realizing that this is quite common any time I try and go anywhere on a train, remember back to the whole Orte/Orbatello fiasco, but...c'est la vie. So we got off at the next stop, turned around, and finally made it to Monterosso.

Once in Monterosso we could not resist the beautiful Mediterranean Sea calling our names. We quickly changed into our swim suits, left our bags with some tourists, and dove into the refreshing salt water. We floated around for about 20 minutes, dried off a bit, and then decided to grab some lunch. This region is famous for its pesto, so of course I had to have it. There were 3 choices: gnocchi con pesto, spaghetti con pesto, or troflie con pesto. For those of you that know me, you know it was no question that I chose the gnocchi. And, may I just say that this was the best gnocchi I have ever had. It was like biting into a cloud, and when combined with the freshest pesto imaginable, I was in heaven!

After indulging ourselves, we decided we should get started on our long hike. The path from Monterosso to Vernazza is the most challenging. It is like spending 2 hours on a Stairmaster on level 5. You could definitely feel the burn. When we finally got to Vernazza we were hot, tired, and needed to get back in the water that was still calling our names. Vernazza doesn't really have much of a beach. It has a little bay area with some rocks, but that is about it. We saw some sea kayaks that you could rent by the hour, so we rented one. Since we couldn't leave our backpacks anywhere we had to tie them up to the kayak. We put our money, phones, and cameras in a plastic bag and off we went.

Within minutes our kayak was filling with water and all of our stuff was getting hopelessly soaked. After paddling around for an hour we headed back in and realized just how wet everything was. By this time it was around 6:00pm, and we had to figure out how to dry everything off. The rocks were still warm from the hot summer sun, so we laid all our stuff out to dry and hopped back into the sea to float around a bit more. After about 30 minutes, our shorts were semi-damp, but our tennis shoes, shirts and socks were beyond dry-able. I brought flip-flops with me that I could kind of hike the rest of the way in, but Pierre had nothing. He went off to try to find some flip-flops to buy. When he came back he not only had flip-flops, but matching Cinque Terre Italia t-shirts, you know the really touristy ones. We put our wet things back in our packs and headed out for the second leg of our journey in matching khaki shorts, matching t-shirts, and flip-flops...it was quite a site.

The path from Vernazza to Corniglia is not as strenuous as the first leg and takes about an hour and a half to hike. We started hiking about about 6:45pm, and the daylight was rapidly disappearing. By the time we made it to Corniglia it was about 8:00pm, we maybe had 20 or 30 minutes left of daylight and a good 2 hours more to hike to get to Riomaggiore, the last town of Cinque Terre. So, exhausted and damp, we decided to stay in Corniglia, find a nice place to eat and then grab the train back to La Spezia to make sure that we made it in time to catch the last train to Roma.

We found this small enoteca, Enoteca il Pirun, with only 6 tables with handwritten menus. As a budding wine enthusiast, I was in charge of picking the wine. So, in my broken Italian I managed to order the one of the best bottles I have ever had. It was a 2005 Poggio dei Magni, Colli di Luni Rosso Riserva...a.k.a. a delicious sangiovese from the Liguira region of Italy near Cinque Terre. To accompany the wine I had pesto...again...this time with troflie, a tasty fresh pasta.

By the time we finished with dinner it was 11:00pm and we only had an hour and 15 minutes to get to La Spezia and on our train to Roma. But first, we needed more wine. It was so good that we wanted another bottle to enjoy on the train. Again, in our broken Italian we managed to get the owner of the enoteca to sell us a bottle to-go, plus give us a wine opener and 2 wine glasses...only in Italy. Now it was time to book-it to the station in Corniglia. When we got there we had a minor panic attack because we thought the station was closed. It turns out that we were on the wrong side and didn't need to contemplate jumping over the fence, we only needed to walk around to the other side.

We finally got on the train, rode 3 stops to La Spezia and had 15 minutes left to buy our tickets and get on the train. There was one problem...the train we were supposed to get on was not showing up on any of the computers, there was however a train going to Napoli, which was stopping in Roma, leaving at 1:24am, Monday morning. We had no choice but to wait for that train. So, what do you do in Italy when you are waiting for trains? Again, remember back to the Orte/Orbatello fiasco...you drink wine. So there we were, sitting in the La Spezia station, still in matching Cinque Terre t-shirts, drinking fine Italian wine out of our gifted wine glasses wondering if we would really make it back to Roma.

The train finally came, we hopped on and crashed for about 3 hours. We arrived in Termini at about 5:45am, caught a bus to Trastevere and arrived home around 6:30 and managed to make it on time for the Monday morning meeting at 8:30.

What a day...I would highly recommend going to Cinque Terre, perhaps giving yourself a little more time, but definitely go!

ge·la·to

A rich ice cream containing little or no air.

Etymology: Italian, meaning literally frozen

I have come to the sad, but true realization that I live exactly un piccolo cono away from my favorite gelato place.

Almost every night around 8:00 you can find me walking through the Piazza di San Cosimato, down Via San Francesco a Ripa to Giorgiagel's where I am always greeted like family. I always order un piccolo cono with 2 flavors. Lately, it has been cocco (coconut) with some other fruity indulgence. Last night it was cocco e mango, a combo I will most definitely have again. After paying the minimal 1,50 euro I leave the quaint little shop, go back up Via San Francesco a Ripa, through the Piazza di San Cosimato and round the final corner to my building door at which point I take my last lick of gelato and crunch into the cone. On the way up the stairs to my apartment I finish the cone and pop the last bit into my mouth just as I turn the key and push open the door.

I actually do work here...

Though it may not seem like it from my previous blog posts, I actually do have a full time job in Rome.  I just finished my 4th week of work at the UN World Food Programme Headquarters and I absolutely love it!

We just released the new version of the Students and Teachers section of WFP.org and each one of you should definitely check it out.  The new site offers lots of great resources for teachers, like our classroom activities that are cross-curricular in scope and easily fit to attain existing curriculum goals.  There are educational news feeds, stories of interest, sites providing interactive games for students, and there is even a blog where we post daily.

So, go to www.wfp.org/students-and-teachers and see what I have been up to!

An Adventure in Tuscany

Simonetta invited Angela, my mom and I to her country home in Tuscany for the weekend. We were simply to get on the train to Orbatello, where she would pick us up and then drive us to her home. Well...we bought the right tickets, but got on the wrong train! Please note that Orte is not short for Orbatello. After a 2 hour train ride, we got off and realized we were in the wrong place. We called Simonetta and worked out a solution, we would take another train to Vitterbo which was out of her way, but would get us closer than we were. Since the train wasn't for another hour and a half we decided to make the best of it and drink a bottle of wine and laugh about the situation.

Once we made it to Vitterbo, Simonetta picked us up and off we went. We stopped in the town of Toscania, a quaint little medieval village, and had a wonderful dinner at a no-named restaurant run by two old Italian ladies. There was no menu and only 3 options for each course. I had gnocchi al cacio e pepe, and I have to say it was the best cacio e pepe I have had! After indulging in 2 courses, plus bread, we all decided we should walk around the ancient city. Needless to say we got very lost, and ended up walking for about an hour, asking every Italian we saw "Dov'e Via Roma?" With each Italian giving us a different response. Eventually we found the car, and off we went to Simonetta's country home about 3km from the beautiful Tuscan coast.

After a good night's rest, we woke up and got ready to soak up the Tuscan sun. Simonetta

needed to finish up some things around her property, so she got one of her local friends to take us to the beach. Carino, chef/handyman/musician, picked us up and off we went to the beach. It really was like a scene from a movie. Two Americans, a Colombian and a crazy old Italian man speeding along the the winding Tuscan roads in a tiny little blue car listening to the traditional music of Abruzzo. We spent the rest of the morning relaxing in the sun, enjoying life.

It was a humerous weekend which I thoroughly enjoyed!

Mio compleanno a Roma

So Wednesday was my birthday, and I have to say it was one of the best I have had.

When I got to work in the morning there was a beautiful bouquet of flowers, pink gerbera daisies and yellow roses, waiting at my desk from my co-workers. Following that they surprised me with a beautiful pair of earrings. Then, my mom, who is spending the week in Roma, flew in and met me at WFP HQ around 10:00am and spent the whole day with me. For dinner that night my mom, Angela, Simonetta, and myself enjoyed a fabulous dinner at AnticaPesa, followed by gelato - combo you can never go wrong with!

Villa Pamphili - A Slice of Italian Paradise

I spent today - a beautiful Sunday, not a cloud in the sky - strolling around Villa Pamphili with Simonetta, the amazing lady I am renting a room from. We packed a picnic of insalata, pane, fragole (fresh from her country estate), ricotta forno, e vino bianco. Of course, the only way to have a proper picnic in Roma is with wine! We walked about 4km, stopped and ate our delicious lunch, then walked a little further to a little coffee shop in the middle of the park to have un caffe. After walking a little bit more we decided to find a nice piece of grass to lay down on and take a quick nap. Refreshed and ready to walk 4km more we headed back down to Trastevere.

Today was a relaxing, much needed break from the fast paced, tourist crowded streets.

The International World of Coca-cola

Why is it that Cokes in the U.S. are made with high fructose corn syrup while abroad they are made with 100% pure cane sugar?  The taste of an international can of Coca-cola is far superior than that of the corn-enriched American version.

If anyone goes to the World of Coke in Atlanta will you please bring up this perplexing issue.

Work, work, work...

So, Monday was my first official day at the UN World Food Programme Headquarters.  Laura rode the train with me to help me find my way and to be there to capture every Kodak moment.

Note:  Do not try to take a picture outside of HQ at the WFP sign. Security will stop you and it will be embarrasing!

After that fiasco, I finally made it to my desk.  Yes, that's right, my very own desk with a telephone that says my name and a computer that, well, kind of works.  Apparently my computer has a history of not working properly and taking days to sort out.  Due to the technical difficulty I spent most of my first day sitting and staring at blank, blue screen, alternating with the lovely view of McDonald's that is right outside my window.

Day 2:  Still no working computer, but excited nonetheless to be a member of the WFP Youth Outreach Team, currently consisting only of myself and Graham, the Youth Outreach Coordinator.  Computer or not, I was busy working on lots of projects to meet our Friday deadline to have all the content for the new version of the "Students & Teachers" section of the WFP website.

By the third day I am finally in the swing of things and fully functioning with a working computer! 

I absolutely LOVE my job!

Roma's Best

Here is a list of the best places I've found in Roma:

Roma's Best Gelato:

Giorgiagel's
Via S. Francesco a Ripa 130
00153 Roma, Italia

This tiny little store about a block from my apartment has the best and cheapest gelato in town! Un piccolo cono for 1,50 euro is the perfect way to end a day. They make their gelato fresh every morning and Giorgiagel is there every day and insists that you get panna (whipped cream) every time. Thanks Julie and Jennifer for introducing me to this amazing place!


Roma's Best Pizza:

La Boccaccia - Pizza e Focaccia
Via Santa Dorotea 2
00153 Roma, Italia

This is the perfect place to grab a quick bite to eat after walking around Trastevere. The pizza is delicious and cheap, for 2-3 euro you can get a slice and a coke.


Roma's Best Organic Grocery Store:

Trastevere Bio
Via Santa Dorotea 11
00153 Roma, Italia

This store offers a wide variety of fresh organic pastas, fruits and veggies, snacks and more.


Roma's Best Restaurant:

AnticaPesa
Via Garibaldi 18
00153 Roma, Italia

For an elegant dining experience this ristorante is the perfect choice. It has been tempting palates since 1922 and is one of those places you just don't want to leave. Thanks again Julie and Jennifer for introducing me!


Roma's Best Clothing Store:

(ethic)
Via del Pantheon 46/47
00186 Roma, Italia

Here you can find unique, made in Italy designs that use natural fibers and dyes, avoiding anything synthetic. Only small quantities of each design are made so you won't find people all over the world wearing the same thing.


Rome's Best Secret View:

Piazza dei Cavalieri di Malta

In this piazza in the beautiful Aventine area of Roma you can see a minature view of St. Peter's framed by a tree-lined avenue by looking through the bronze keyhole in the doorway to the Priory of the Knights of Malta. This makes a wonderful late afternoon walk on the way to dinner.


Rome's Best Bird's Eye View:

Dome of St. Peter's Basilica

You have to wait in line for about 1.5 hours, then climb 551 steps, but it is well worth the effort. On a clear day you can see the mountains in the distance, as well as every part of the city. You can also see the amazing symmetry of Bernini's colonnade in the Piazza San Pietro.

Pieces of Roma

A perfect day in Trastevere

My sister and I spent the afternoon exploring Trastevere, my amazing neighborhood. We grabbed a quick bite to eat in a little pizzeria, I am loving the pizza con zucchine. The best part is it never has sauce on it! Right down the street from the pizzeria is my new favorite place, a tiny little organic grocery called Trastevere Bio. I picked up some organic pasta, olive oil, and some crackers. I will definitely be back!

Buon giorno Roma!

The past few days have been such a whirlwind, but I am here safe, sound, and exhausted!

The journey started Tuesday afternoon, I finally finished all my finals, loaded up the car and headed to Atlanta. After a short night, I went to the airport, said my good-byes and boarded the plane to Washington, D.C. It was a small 50 seater plane with an overhead bin that wouldn't close. We waited at the gate, with all of us stuck on the plane, for 45 minutes for maintenance to get there. The finally arrived and deliberated for 10 minutes on how to fix the latch. I turned to the person next to me and jokingly said, "Why don't they just use some duct tape?" In the mean time, the maintenance guy had gone out to his truck and was now back on the plane. He pulled out a roll of duct tape and taped the overhead bin shut, no joke! The entire plane bursted out in laughter. After waiting another 20 minutes for them to fill out official paperwork saying they taped our plane together, we were able to take off.

I had a 7 hour lay-over in D.C., so my dad came to the airport to spend some time with me. We had a nice lunch and were able to chit chat for a few hours before boarding the plane to Italia! I boarded the plane at 5:30, took off around 6:15 and began the longest flight ever. I took a sleeping pill, hoping to sleep the entire way, but it didn't work. I got about 3 hours of sleep, on and off. I landed at Fiumicino at 9a.m., Thursday morning. I stood at the wrong baggage claim for 30 minutes, but finally found the right one, grabbed my bags and was on my way. I went to the tabbachi in the airport and bought a phone card, called Simonetta, hailed a cab, and made my way to Trastevere, the quaint part of Roma I am living in.

By the time I got to the apartment it was about 11:30am, Simonetta greeted me warmly and showed me into her apartment. My room is fantastic, it is a good size with a tiny shower in the corner, only 1.5x1.5 feet. I have a huge private balcony that is about twice the size of my room with a beautiful garden. I had to be at the AACUPI Headquarters, near the Forum, to meet up with everyone attending the European University Hunger Summit. Simonetta told me it was a quick 10 minute walk from her apartment and that I would find it with no problem at all. I wrote down the street names, drew a basic map, and headed out onto the Roman streets.

A word of caution, roads may appear bigger on a map than they actually are, like the Via della Lungaretta, on my map it is huge it looks like there would be at least 2 lanes, not a tiny cobble stone street that will only fit a Smart Car. Needless to say, this misconception, combined with streets that aren't clearly labeled, made my "10 minute walk" turn into about 45 minutes. I asked for directions twice, once from a police man, second from a taxi driver. But, in the end I made it to where I needed to be. Dr. Giles, Dean Henton, and all the Spidle crew spotted me and called me over to sit at there table for lunch. It was so nice to see some familiar faces after a frustrating walk.

We proceeded to the World Food Programme Headquarters, located about 15 minutes outside of Roma, to begin the European University Hunger Summit. Walking into headquarters was such an amazing feeling. Our opening sessions were held in meeting room, which is one of the most amazing rooms I have been in. After struggling to keep my eyes open and dozing off a couple times, we had a nice reception in the courtyard.

The coolest thing about Roma is that around every corner, literally, there is either a magnificent church, famous landmark, or ancient ruin. For example, after the reception at WFP, I rode back to the city with Mr. & Mrs. Gogue, Julie, Jennifer & Prof. Finn. We dropped the Gogue's off near their hotel and began walking back to Trastevere, a nice 30 minute walk. We turned a corner, and very nonchalantly Julie said, "Oh, there's the Pantheon." Again on our walk we came to the end of a narrow street into a piazza, which happened to be the Piazza Navona. It is absolutely breath taking around 6:45pm with the late afternoon sun.

I made it back to my apartment in Trastevere around 7:15pm looking forward to crawling into bed and finally getting some sleep. Right after I got home, Simonetta arrived and said she wanted to treat me to my first Roman pizza. How could I resist. By the time I got home it was about 10:00pm and I was beat.

So that was my very first day in Roma.

Welcome to my blog!

I figured this would be the best way to keep in touch with my family and friends while on my three and a half month Roman adventure. As of today, I am 46 days away from moving to Rome. I don't have a visa or a place to live, and I don't know Italian, but why focus on the details.

To catch everyone up, I am going to Rome for an internship. I will be working at the United Nations World Food Programme Headquarters, which is basically amazing. I will be in the Office of Communications and Public Policy Strategy Division working under the Youth Outreach Coordinator. That is just a long, fancy way of saying that I will have the best job ever! I will be contacting universities all around the world, telling them about Universities Fighting World Hunger (UFWH) to get them involved with the movement. I will also help develop materials geared towards primary, secondary and university students, which includes curriculum, newsletters, etc. Lastly, I will handle all of the youth outreach enquiries and assist in creating a WFP FAQ information package based on those enquiries.

While I am in Italy I am going to try to post every couple of days, so check back frequently!

Ciao!