Sharing an American Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Dinner.  I've helped cook or had help cooking the food for years.  Some of my 'specialties' have been deviled eggs, my grandpa's sweet potato dish, crescent rolls, and pumpkin pie.  I had an egg cooker to make perfect eggs every time; it's been easy to find inexpensive sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie ingredients around Thanksgiving time; and my KitchenAid mixer helped me create wonderful rolls.  

This year my friend (Heather) asked if I'd like to help with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for the church.  Absolutely!  We brainstormed together and planned out the menu.  We wrote down the amounts we would need for each recipe and made shopping lists of the 6 or 7 stores we would need to go to in the hopes of finding all of the ingredients.

Since the import store was in Rome I volunteered to get the things we needed there after school.  Heather knew they had some American staples that just are not found here, staple things like soft brown sugar, shortening, pickle relish, evaporated milk, cans of pumpkin, etc.  I even found a bag, a very small bag, of American marshmallows!  I spent about what I usually spend on the entire dinner for less than a dozen items.  I was so happy to have these items, that is until I realized I'd be carrying them all the way back home.  Fortunately, I had brought a large reusable bag with me that could go over my shoulder along with my backpack from school!  

Our first stop on shopping day was for sweet potatoes.  They had them, but the price was ridiculous at 6.90 € a kg!  I figured I needed about 6 lbs (2.75 kg).  We would have spent $23.75 on just sweet potatoes!  We thought we'd find them elsewhere. 

At the end of our first shopping adventure, we had most of the ingredients, but had not seen sweet potatoes again!   A few days later, Heather was able to find them, even cheaper, along with the final items needed.

Then we started cooking.  Heather cut up all the things to go into the stuffing, made the green bean casserole, corn casserole, and cranberry sauce.  

When I moved to Italy, I did not bring appliances.  So I had to ad lib a bit from my normal.  I described my egg cooker and Heather realized it was really just a steamer.  So we used her three-tier steamer and cooked them all at once!  Perfect!

We found french fried onions, not French's, but from IKEA!

Another ad lib:  used her bread machine to mix my crescent roll dough.  We found out it does not like to do double batches!   I had good help!  Heather's daughter, Isabella learned very well how to roll them up.  But, she forgot to wash her hands afterwards, oops!

Here are 90 crescent rolls all bagged up and ready to go to for the dinner. 

When shopping I could only find whole cloves so I had to work a bit extra to have some ground cloves for the pumpkin pie.  The 'pie pans' don't have sloped sides here and only two pies would fit in the oven.  But, they looked and tasted great!

Sweet potatoes the way my grandpa made them and the corn casserole.

On Saturday morning her husband, Andrea, went to pick up the fresh 30 lb turkey!  We were able to fit the bird in the pan and on Sunday morning make it fit in the oven to bake for six hours.  It was one of the most tender turkey's I've ever eaten!  I made gravy for the mashed potatoes.  Early Sunday morning Heather made the mashed potatoes and put them in a crock pot to keep warm.  We made the stuffing together.

As we brought in the food, the people at the church started humming the American national anthem for us.  It was touching. Thanksgiving Dinner (or pranzo, since it was the mid day meal) was served.  Heather shared a bit of the history of Thanksgiving and people enjoyed the experience of our tradition.

Thanksgiving dinner and Language Learning

There is a box of food a friend sent me so I could have all the trimmings for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (except the turkey).  When I heard it was coming I was so excited anticipating all the tastes of home in that box.  I know how my Thanksgiving dinners have been  in the past.  My mouth might have drooled a little.  The box made it to Italy very quickly from California.  However, after nearly two weeks, it is still going through the process to actually get to me.  I know when it finally arrives I will be able to enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving dinner like I've had in the past. 

One of my favorite sayings is 'when life gives you a lemon, make lemonade.'  So, no traditional items for this Thanksgiving?  How could I sweeten this sour taste.  I told my friends here that to celebrate Thanksgiving this year I wanted to experience a 'real' Italian restaurant.  I've been here seven weeks and hadn't really experienced it yet.  I'd been to pizzerias, caldo tavolo (hot table), and other small mainly 'to-go' places. We ended up at a trattoria here in Italy. 

When the waiter asked we wanted and since it was in celebration of our Thanksgiving we decided we needed to order a sampling of several of their antipasti (appetizers) with 'fizzy' water and regular water to drink.  For our 'first plate' we ordered pasta, too.  We would see if we needed a 'second plate'.

The server began bringing the antipasti dishes. She brought out a three bowl container each filled, a plate of bruschetta, and then a large tray filled with a variety of goodies.  We all ate to our hearts content the delightful tastes of Italy.  Our tummies were taking note, it was indeed Thanksgiving.  The server took the antipasti plates away and fresh plates set before us.  

Skillets of pasta, one for for the different pastas ordered, were brought to our table.  Wow, everything tasted so good!  We continued to eat and enjoy our non traditional Thanksgiving dinner.  We started feeling like we were back in the US on this Thanksgiving Day as our bellies were filled!  A young one said she felt filled to the top of their head.  Oh the food was so good, but no one could completely finish their meals.  We would need to let the food digest before eating anything else!  No second plate for any of us!



While sharing the fun of the evening with a fellow student at school during our break today, this analogy hit me.  Language learning is like eating a Thanksgiving dinner.  The language (food) is presented little by little.  As the teacher (sever) teaches (brings out the dishes) you put the information (food) in your notebook (on the plate).  As you do the homework (eat) it takes time. More information (food) is brought and you take more notes (refill the plate).  However, there comes a time when no more information (food) can go in without taking some time to process (digest) what has been learned.  There is a need of the breaks to fully digest before taking in more.  Language learning is like a Thanksgiving dinner.  Even though it is wonderful, there is so much!  You can't eat like that every day!  I'll always be learning, just like eating to stay nourished!

I've had days where I feel like I'm 'filled to the top of my head' not knowing how any more information could possibly fit in.  I do look forward to the weekends, to have time to digest what was learned during the week so I'm ready to take in more the next week!  

This new session is already a quarter finished.  I'm looking forward to the Christmas break to really let things digest and be ready to 'feast on' in January!

Updating My Operating System

A few weeks before coming to Italy I had a notice from Apple that it was time to upgrade my operating system on my Mac.  Oh, how I dread those updates, especially at the beginning, there are always bugs that will require an upgrade to the upgrade.  Going to Mavericks was not easy. It was the worst upgrade I had experienced.  It MIGHT be that l was living in a guest house and the wifi was kind of slow sometimes.  So I took my Mac to the Apple store and they reinstalled it 'quickly'.  It was still a few hours to reload.  The guy told me that the first time I booted it back up it would take time as it would need to be reconnecting everything.

Since I've been here Apple had a new upgrade.  It again took a few hours to totally do.  I could do some minor things during the installation, but I had to mostly just let it make sure all the files were in the right place and then a restart to the system.  This one seemed to work so much better.  My Mac is running more like it did several months ago!

Sometimes there needs to be updates because things didn't go as planned with the initial install.  Everything seems to run slower than normal.

While sitting around the table eating lunch my friends and I started talking about my life and how this move to Italy is like an 'upgrade of my operating system'.  Since my life here in Italy is a completely new 'operating system' it takes a while to load (into my brain!).  I still can do some other things while it loads, but everything is slower.  Some things don't work yet, and they may need updates.  There might be some glitches along the way.  And until it is fully loaded I won't be able to take advantage of all the new features that comes with this new 'operating system'. 

I'm looking forward to when my new OS is working well and I can start doing the work that is before me.

Sciopero (Strike)

In the United States when there is a strike no one usually knows about it until it happens or maybe there is an information leak and there may be a bit of knowledge prior to that day.  Here in Italy transportation strikes (scioperi) happen, and when they do people usually know about them.  There is a website you can go see not only the date, but the hours the strike will occur.

The Friday before my language classes began there was a strike in the transportation system in Italy.  I had heard about it and knew it didn't affect me, because I was not going anywhere, so I had not really paid a lot of attention to it.  I figured it would be a while before there was another one and I was glad it was right before school started!

On a typical day I leave my apartment one hour and fifteen minutes before class is to begin.  It takes me approximately ten minutes to walk to the train station, then figure out which train to take (and on which platform I need to quickly get to when it appears on the departure screen); then hop on board and stand for the 18 minute trip to Rome's main train station (Termini).  The train I usually catch is the 8 or the 8:05 train.  Then a quick, five minute walk to the Metro connection to wait (with a platform full of others) for the next underground train. I squeeze on board and ride to the Piazza where my school is located. 

I plan the time for my commute so if a train is extremely full I have the time to wait for the next one.  I have arrived as quickly as thirty five minutes after leaving home and as long as just over an hour.  (For those who know me well, I have a new habit.  Habits usually take three weeks, right?  For the past three weeks I have arrived at least ten minutes before class, and usually before the school even opens!  I have almost always been the first one in the classroom!!)

This past week I was informed of a sciopero that would happen on Friday, November 14th.  I knew this would affect how I would travel to school and back again.  Fortunately, strikes are announced ahead of time and most strikes happen during the time of the day most people are at work. This one was to stop the Trenitalia trains from 8 AM to 6 PM and the Metro trains and buses from 10 AM to 2 PM.  

Since I typically ride the trains during the strike times, I decided to leave a little earlier to make sure I got to the city before they stopped running.  I made it to the train station and even made it on the first train that arrived.  Not only did I make the train, I even had a seat!  First time to sit on the way to school!  As I arrived in Termini it appeared that the station was nearly dead, since it was now after 8 and non of the trains would be moving for several hours.  However, the Metro was just as crowded as normal!  I made it to school about ten minutes before it opened!

My class is finished at 1 PM.  Since I knew public transportation was not running, I started walking and found a wonderful pizzeria and chose a pizza to take with me.  Before I finished that wonderful zucchini pizza (don't knock it until you try it!) I passed a gelateria that looked fantastic!  I stopped and finished my pizza.  I went in and bought a small cone for 2 euros.  I love it that you get to choose three flavors!  Lemon, vanilla with hazelnut, and vanilla with chocolate bits throughout were what I chose!  I kept walking until I arrived at a Metro stop and checking the time (a little after two) I went down into catch a train.  I probably should have waited a while longer since they just had started running again as there were many people squeezing on board.

At Termini I got off the B line and made my way to the A line.  There were even more people and the doors were closing as I squeezed on board.  This is the line I take home on Mondays with my friends after Bible study, so I knew I would ride to the end of the line.  I believe nearly everyone on board rode to the end of the line that day!

On Monday's my friend's husband comes to pick us up, but I needed to learn how to get back home without a car.  They had told me what the bus number was I needed to look for.  However, in my typical fashion I thought I would remember the number ... how many different routes would be in the 500's, right?  I knew there were two 5's in the number, but as I arrived I saw there was a 551, 505, and several others that were in the 500's!  But, I could not find the name of the stop near my home on any of them.  Oops!  So, this required a quick call to my friend, "What was that number again?  'Oh, I need to take the 515!  Oh, I'm looking in the wrong area for the bus?"  Ah, finally I see where I could find the bus!  I see the next one will be in about 20 minutes. So, there was time to walk around and 'windowshop' at the little open air shops which were set up nearby.

When the bus arrives I am one of the first on.  Which meant I had my choice of seats!  Wow!  As the bus started off and I realised I wasn't sure what the stop looked like where I should disembark.  I knew it was near the train station but on the other side of the tracks from the  station, but I had not been there on foot.  So, I watched while we went along, as people got off and others got on.  I thought I started recognizing the area when the bus stopped and almost everyone that had got on at the Metro station got off.  I thought, "I guess I need to get off!"  As I looked at the sign I knew I was in the right place.

Now all I had to do was figure out how to find the subway (the underground passage below the train tracks).  There were no obvious signs.  However, I felt I needed to go to the right and low and behold there was the subway passage!  As I came up on the other side I saw the monitors showing the train schedule and I could tell there were indeed no trains running.

After my walk home I checked my pedometer, I had walked 9,500+ steps (approx 4 miles) that day and it was a little after 4 PM.  It took me over three hours after class to travel home, but I did it!

I checked the website for strikes ... I get to do this again on December 5th!

"Rain Day"

Another new experience ... Back in Indiana we would go to school/work in the rain, in storms, in the snow (unless it was too much - several inches), in the cold (unless it was too cold - much below zero).  But, this day I stayed home from school due to rain.  At first it didn't make sense to me.  They were predicting heavy rains, but they were only expecting an inch.  What's an inch of rain?

Then I remembered the rain in my life in Indiana.  Flat Indiana.  Nothing but the sewers underground.  An inch of rain could flood the streets if the sewers didn't drain it quickly enough. I remembered that rain accumulates in the lowest places.  I remembered my house had twice experienced having water come inside due to rain coming down too quickly.

I travel back and forth to school by walking, by train and by Metro.  (The Metro is underground trains.)  When I go to school I go down into the ground one level.  But coming home I go down two levels.  

An inch of rain coming down quickly, where would the water go?  Down into the Metro!

Thank you, government of Rome for closing schools today and saying to travel only if necessary.  Thank you to my friends who shared with me what the government of Rome said!

When there are storms in my life, let me remember to listen to the One who knows the best for me, and let me heed His advice!

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION the day after:
They are calling this rain event 'Bombe d'acqua' (Water Bomb) It was a storm that covered almost all of Italy.  I've read where parts of Rome had rain falling at a rate of 5-6" per hour!  We had some hail where I was, but some places in Rome had walnut size hail.  I haven't found total rainfall, for the day.  I went back to school today.  The rain was still falling, but the intensity was gone.  I have a nice umbrella which did it's job today!

Differences I've Observed

I left for Italy four weeks ago today.  In some ways it seems like a lifetime ago and in other ways that time has gone by so quickly.  I've noticed a few things are different for me.  Some are small and some are huge.  Let me share with you some of these differences.

DRIVING.  Any one who knows me well knows how much I love to drive.  I started driving a tractor alone at age ten!  At twenty I drove to Georgia alone for the summer.  A couple of years ago I had some training to go to in Colorado.  I drove alone for the two days to get there without problem.  The return trip took five days for me to be able to stop and visit a few people I hadn't seen in a very long time.  When each of my kids were learning to drive, they were required to practice.  I would allow them some time behind the wheel, but not all of the time.  I really enjoy driving.  So, this first thing is a major thing.  I've not driven in four weeks!  However, watching Italians drive, this is a good thing!  Maybe by the time it's time to move on I'll be ready to drive in this country, then again, maybe not.

CARS.  First, the cars here are small, it appears that two cars here would fit the space of my Chevy Malibu in the US.  Who knows, maybe three, if they were all Smart cars!  Second, all the cars are manual transmission.  Even though my Malibu was an automatic, I've known how to drive a stick since the farm truck my Daddy taught me to drive was 'four on the floor', so I know how to do that.  This does help with gas milage.  Third, they drive and stop fast.  Stop signs seem to be considered yield signs, if there is no one coming, slow down, but keep the traffic moving.  Pedestrians have the right away in a crosswalk.  Many stop signs have been turned off because they were causing traffic jams.  Fourth, everyone noses their car into traffic.  An example is one particular road that almost always is full of traffic both ways.  There is a road that intersects it.  Since there is no light there, people would have to wait all day for the road to be clear.  So, they nose out and once they get part way out traffic stops to let them in.  Fifth, the roads are narrow.  Most of the buildings were built before cars were invented, so they need to keep their cars small.  Parking is simply amazing.  People know how to squeeze their cars into a very tight space.  The apartment building's parking lot does not have enough spaces for all the people that live in the buildings.  At times you must park on the street.  Sixth, the price of fuel is much higher here.  1.55/liter might sound good, but remember it takes 3.79 liters to make a gallon.  So that's about $7.57gallon!  (Currently, I get to go shopping with a friend with a car.  When I move out on my own I will be doing shopping more often since I will have to carry things home.  I notice a lot of people using carry on bags as people go from place to place in their daily lives.  Most kids school backpacks are on wheels!)

So, if I'm not driving, how do I get places?  Public transportation here is simply amazing!  I did not say great, I said amazing.  They have trains, the Metro, buses, trams.  I also have my feet.  In just four weeks I've done it all!  Once you understand their signs you can get from place to place very efficiently!

TRAINS.  The tracks to the train are just across the street from my apartment, so I hear them go by all day and night.  Most of the time I don't even hear them.  However, I live about a ten minute walk to the train station.  I now know how to read the message boards to know which platform I really need to be on so when the train arrives I can get on.  (I learned this the hard way on Tuesday when took a train that normally stops in my town, but I had not noticed that it would not that day.  I ended up 25 kilometres away from where I was to be!  That's about 15.5 miles. An hour wait to get on the right train to actually stop in my town, I finally made it home three hours after school!)  In the mornings, during rush hour, I normally ride the train the 17-18 minutes into Rome standing up.  I've not had a seat yet in the morning.  In fact, sometimes there are so many people standing up that there's not room to turn around.  When I was in high school I rode Amtrac back and forth to visit my sister in college.  Everyone is assigned a seat.  If all the seats are filled, the train is full.  They don't sell any more tickets.  You could get up from your seat and walk around, but you knew you could go back to your seat.  Here in Italy, I've learned there is no 'personal space' bubble as in America.

METRO or the subway system of Rome.  (FYI - the 'subway' is the walkway underground to get to the Metro or from on train platform to another.)  When I explained how the train ride is you might have thought that was bad.  But, during the morning rush the Metro is tighter yet!  Normally I take off my backpack, bring it around front and squeeze onboard with hundreds of others.  (Absolutely no personal space here.  Also, need to be aware of pickpockets!)  Fortunately it is just a five minute ride with two stops in between.  

BUSES and TRAMS.  So far I've only been on the tram once.  It is like a bus on tracks or a two or three car train in the city.  Buses during rush hour and near the center of Rome are crowded.  I've ridden many times standing.  Yesterday a group from my school got on a bus.  The first five on the bus of the fourteen of us had seats, about half way to where we were going everyone in our group finally had seats.  (I really had not thought about riding so much standing up!)

WALKING.  I am now walking about three miles a day.  On Monday's I spend the afternoon sight seeing so it is more.  Last Monday was nearly nine miles of walking!  I'm SO glad I bought SAS tennis shoes before coming.  My feet haven't hurt at all!  

HAIR.  I could not bring with me or ship the only hairspray that has ever held my hair in place well.  (It is an aerosol can and that is now banned even in the cargo hold.)  I was so disappointed.  However, my hair seems thicker, softer, and seems to grow faster that in the States.  I bought a cheap, German blow dryer and curling iron.  My hair dries faster than ever and it holds a curl like never before!  I don't even have to wash my hair daily!

FINGERNAILS.  Have you ever let a guy in the mall polish one of your fingernails?  The end result is one smooth and shiny nails without polish!  Just like in the mall, however, all my fingernails are smooth, shiny and stronger than I ever remember in my life!    I've found out the the water in the Rome area is full of calcium.  Maybe that's it?

TIME.  For those who know me well, I am an 'on time' person.  Which means I like to arrive 'on time'.  I'm not usually early and I really don't want to be late.  (If I have arrived at a place I need to be on time, but not in the room I'm supposed to be, my brain still consider that 'on time'!)  So, for me to be from thirty minutes to ten minutes early for school, this is a big change!  The first day of school I arrived ten minutes before it was to start, which gave me ten extra minutes to do my test!  In the last four days, I'm been the first to arrive to my class two of those days!  Since school has started I've also gone to bed earlier. I was asleep one night by 9 PM!  (Time here is on the 24 hour system, so I was asleep by 21!)  Another time issue is the 'system'.  Applying for the permission to live here permit took about three weeks to accomplish all that was required of me.  However it will be another month or two before it is actually ready to be picked up!  Most times are listed with a point not a colon.  So it is 4.30 not 4:30.  Dates are day, month, and year.  I have been surprised at how quickly I've adapted to this.  

CURRENCY.  Yes, I knew there were Euros instead of Dollars. I knew it was based on 100's so how to count the cents is the same.  However, the denominations of coins are different.  They have 1 cent, 2 cents, 5 cents, 10 cents, 20 cents, 50 cents, 1 euro, and 2 euro coins. The paper money is different sizes, too, I've seen the 5's, 10's, 20's, and 50's.  The smaller the amount the smaller the paper.  Another interesting difference is the ',' and '.'  In numbers everywhere the USA uses a point, Italians use a comma.  Everywhere a comma is used the Italians use a point.  So the sign says something costs '1,59 €' or the population of Italy is 60.157.214 people.

WINDOWS. They open to the outside world!  There is not a screen on them to keep the bugs out.  The windows open in so the whole opening allows the breeze to come in.  There are shutters on the windows!  These shutters are used!  In my old neighborhood there were shutters bolted to the side of the windows for decoration only.  I took mine down because they just were impractical.  Why have 'shutters' that can't be used?  The shutters keep the direct sunlight out, darken the room, and keep the heat in or the cold out!  How practical!

FOODS.  Some 'normal' things in my USA cabinets can't be found in the typical Italian supermercato.  Liquid vanilla (theirs is a powder), powdered sugar or brown sugar (I can find a box of approximately 1/2 cup powdered or a bag of 500 g of brown, but not in the US normal 2 pound size bag), and shortening (just not here).  However, there are many other things that are NOT in the USA or just different.  Most milk is on the shelf for long storage.  Most eggs are brown (people think you are crazy to eat eggs for breakfast!)  I've seen ground beef, ground chicken, ground turkey, ground pork, and even ground horse (I won't be buying this one).  I've eaten anchovies on pizza (fyi - don't knock it until you try it!) and it was not bad.  They enjoy eating their meals in separate courses.  The pasta dish, then the meat and salad, fruit and/or dessert, and finally caffè.

TRASH.  Everything is sorted and collected on different days.  There are days to put out food trash, then a day for paper recycling, another day for plastics, a day for non recyclables, glass bottles are deposited in a huge green bin on the street.  

FLOORING.  The floors here are not carpet, laminate, hardwood, or linoleum.  They are marble!  (I had a gift from my sister a year ago of slippers that are now being used.)

LAUNDRY.  The typical washer is a 5 kg front load washer with about 30 different settings.  I chose the 30 minute express wash.  Then I hang the clothes out on the balcony on a drying rack for the sun to dry.  I've heard some washers are also dryers. 

TV.  In this apartment it is all Italian TV.  However, there are a lot of shows that are German or American with Italian voice overs.  There is one show that is like a combination of 'Judge Judy' and 'Jerry Springer' with a judge, mediator, forum, and the people who have the issue.  It goes on for about 1 1/2 hours!

I know there are more, but this is just a few of the differences I've noticed this month.

My First Few Days of School

MONDAY - Day 1 of school

The walk to the train station takes about ten minutes.  With standing room only I rode the train into Rome, for 17 minute ride.  Walked to Metro and found the right one, going the right direction.  I arrived at school ten minutes early, and I went inside.  The man who had signed me up called me by name, handed me my test, and showed me where to go to take it.

I took test, and I did better than I thought I would.  The last section was with the present perfect verbs (passato prossema) and knowing their correct conjugations.  (Persent perfect uses essere (to be) or avere (to have) or occasionally stare (to be) as the helping verbs.  I just used the wrong one all but twice!  The gal interviewing me told me that I did well and many people get them confused, but I will be learning that soon.  (She only speaks Italian for us and was my teacher that day - her name: Catia) Then she told me I was in the second level class.  (Where I thought I should be!)   People in the class are from Greece, Germany, France, China, Japan, Russia, Egypt, Turkey, USA, and I'm not sure where else.  There were 13 of us in the class.

When Catia started the class she said it would only be in Italian, for her and for all of us.  Then she talked for a little bit and then broke us up in pairs.  In Italian we had to tell our partner what we did on Saturday and Sunday.  (She was working on our past perfects already!!!)  I learned a little of a gal from Greece's weekend and she learned of mine.  Catia got us back together and told us now you will tell us about your partner's Saturday and Sunday!  ACK!  Not too bad.

Then she asked to guess what she did.  Many different things were asked.  I came up with: 'Che sei lavorato il vestiti?' (Did you wash your clothes?)  She said YES! and then hung them to dry, but she did not iron them.  Her husband LIKES to iron!  

Anyway, tomorrow starts the grammar lessons.  2 hours of grammar, 15 min break, the rest of time conversation.

On Sunday we had been researching online prices for a weekly pass for public transportation.  The most we could figure it would cost was 32.50 euros for this week.  Each ride is 1.50.  I have to have a train and a subway ticket each way.  So it would be 6 euros a day times 5 would be 30 euros.  When I got to the train station I found out the weekly pass would cost me 34.50 euros because I live in Zone B and Rome is Zone A.   I could not buy it in Ciampino.  So, I bought a ticket for the train and got onboard.  The monthly ticket will be less than daily tickets combined so I will be buying a November pass (but it goes by the calendar month.) 

 Mondays will be my exploration day per week.  So after class I was frustrated because I thought I would have a weekly pass and would be able to ride the buses or Metro at will, but I was just buying a ticket per ride.  So, I decided to walk around Rome.  So I did, I walked, and walked, and walked (over 20,000 steps).  Went in some churches and museums (if free) and saw some different places.  I took a lot of pictures.  By 6:45 I met my friend to go to a Bible study near the Spanish Steps.  After the study I bought one ticket to ride the Metro back with my friend (who had parked the car at the Metro station), so I only spent 4.50 euros!  Ha!  Take that public transportation!  Then I bought the rest of the Metro tickets for this week.  Tomorrow when I get to the train I'll buy the train tickets for the rest of the week.  

TUESDAY - Day 2 of school

First train to Rome was SO full that there was no room to squeeze on board.  Fortunately I left early enough that I just waited for the next train.  It was still standing room only, but I found a spot that I could lean on a wall.  I took the right Metro and made it to school before it opened!  So, off to the bar on the corner for a cafè latte.  I decided to have a croissant, too.  I chose NOT to sit down but to drink at the bar, so it just cost me 2.20 euros for both!  (It costs 1 euro more to sit inside and 3 euro more to sit outside!)

Went into school and found my room.  There was a different teacher today.  I thought at first is was just for the grammar part, but he lead the conversational part, too, today.  His name is Giovanni Gafè.  He, too, only speaks in Italian and expects no foreign language in the classroom.  Grammar today was good.  We went over the test (I wish I could have kept it, but it was picked back up.)  He explained many of the rules that were covered on the test.  Of the people in the class all were in the beginning level 1 class (the last four weeks) except three of us who are new to the school.  So most of them have had 4 weeks together.  But today they struggled a bit more while they tried to get their sentences out of their mouths.  OK, maybe I do fit in that class after all!  ;)  The 4 hours zoomed by.  I took notes (mostly in Italian!)  Some comments in English.  No homework yet, but the assignment books and the text book were handed out.

Then I rode the Metro back to Termini.  I checked out the ticket machines and there was a gal there wanting to help me.  1 - I figured she would want paid for her assistance, 2 - I wanted to do it myself, 3 - I wasn't sure exactly which train I wanted to ride!  So, I told her no thanks for the help and I went to a newsstand and bought my tickets for the trains for the rest of the week.  They get validated when you ride. It is cheaper to do the 6 euro a day this week.  I will buy the Nov pass latter this week.  I think it is about 55 euro, but for just 20+ times it would be 120 euros, so I will gladly pay the 55.  Then I can go anywhere in Rome, riding whatever, as many times as I want, and whenever I want in November!

At this point today's adventure began.

So, there are 5 - 6 different trains that stop in the city of Ciampino (where I am living) that leave Termini. I'm to look at the schedule, find on of them, make sure it stops in Ciampino, see which platform it will be on and the time it leaves.  I have a list of the names of the trains I can take.  Today I took a different train than I had before back to Ciampino.  The schedule SAID it was to stop in Ciampino.  However, as it gained speed and it was a MUCH longer trip than I had experienced in the past, I started to second guess myself. I got off when it stopped in a town I have never heard of before.  Zagarolo! (I now know it was 25 kilometres EAST from where I needed to be!)  I knew to get off and if nothing else I could ride the train back to Rome and try again.  After seeing there was another train back to Rome coming in about 30 minutes I called Heather to let her know what happened and to make sure I was doing it right.  She said it is easily done, an Italian friend of hers did it, too!  She explained the how it happened and that I HAD chosen the right train, but it had NOT stopped in Ciampino (it happens sometimes!)  Anyway, another person walked by and said, I did it too!  So I finished the call and Cassie (the person) told me she went in to see.  The next train to Rome was a high speed train, too, but an other train (1 hour wait) would stop in Ciampino!  So then we spent time getting to know each other during that hour wait for the right train to take us back to Ciampino!  (She is from Bejing and is currently studying jewelery making in Florence! and had a 'fall break' so she was going to go to Greece.  She was staying at a Bed and Breakfast tonight in Ciampino before flying from the Ciampino's airport tomorrow.   We were able to walk together from the train station all the way to my apartment before she needed to go on.  We had exchanged contact information with each other and said our good byes.  I'm glad I can make friends easily, even in a foreign land.

I finally arrived home at 4 PM!!  Exhausted!  I didn't eat lunch, it was too late.  I made an Italian version of Cowboy Caviar.  No black beans that I have found yet and no cilantro.  But, the avocado was simply the BEST I have ever seen.  The skin of it was easy to PEEL!  It was great!  I ate that for supper around 7 - 7:30 (that is actually early around here!)  I washed one load of clothes and hung out for the sun to dry Wednesday.   I told the lady I am staying with good night at 8.  She laughed and told me I would go to the computer and she would be saying good night at 10 after her last pill.  Well, my lights were out and I was asleep by 9 PM!!  My alarm woke me at 6.  Guess I needed that sleep!

WEDNESDAY - Day 3 of school

Again I was the first one to class.  (Am I starting a new habit?)  However for the first thirty minutes of class I felt like I couldn't understand ANYTHING!  That was annoying.  (Good thing I had been told that might happen!)  But, the rest of the 3 1/2 hours I did pretty well.  Formulating sentences in my head and getting them out of my mouth is still my hardest part.  My comprehension of the spoken word is increasing!  It helps to be living with an Italian lady!  

Today during our conversation class we learned what a lot of Italian gestures mean!  Italians have their own 'Gesture Language'!  The teacher showed a video of two people conversing only in gestures!  It was pretty funny.  I now wonder more about Italian Sign Language!!  It will be exciting to learn!  

Class was out at 1 and I was home by 2!  Got my homework done before bedtime!

My Trial Run at Going to School at the Right Time of Day

This country has a great public transportation system!  They have planes, trains, subways (called Metro), trams, buses, and of course my feet.  Everything is in Italian, of course. However, if you know where you are going, can read a map and a transportation schedule, and have plenty of time, you'll do just fine.  Otherwise, you may have some interesting adventures!

To do it during rush hour is a different story.  (This will be my new normal as school begins.)

For my trial run to school I had planned on leaving home between 7 and 7:15.  I didn't get out the door until 7:30.  Good thing it was not really going to matter.  So I walked the 10-12 minutes to the train station and purchased my ticket at the newsstand.  That is funny to me.  You can buy tickets for public transportation at a variety of places.  At the train station by machine (but there you need the correct change since it doesn't give back change well.  (I've heard only up to 3 euro!)  So, people buy their tickets at the news stands, or in a bar (which is usually a coffee shop), or at a tabaccheria (tobacco shop).

Riding the train into town other times of day you can sit in a seat for the 17 minute or so ride.  However, in the early morning the train arrived in my town full, there are no seats available, it is standing room only, with one more stop to take on additional passengers!  I also learn, that riding the train that only take 14 minutes stops at platform 18.  Platform 18 is a good 3 minute walk down the tracks from Termini's other platforms!  (Termini is Rome's train station.  Using my brain, I now realize that I want to be closer to the front of the train so I will have a shorter walk once arriving at Termini.  Live and learn!

Piazza Bologna

After getting to Termini there is a five minute walk to the Metro.  (There are currently 2 Metro lines in Rome, the A line and the B line.  They are working on a third line and part of it are due to open in a few months.  It is to be fully functional by 2018.  I knew I needed the B line, but forgot I needed to get on the B line towards either Ribibbia or Conta d'Ore.)  I was kind of overwhelmed by the sheer number of people crowding on the subway.  So,  I squeezed on.  One word really describes this:  Sardines!  One stop.  Two stops.  I looked up at the chart and realized I was headed away from school!  I got off at Circo Massimo.  Yes, I'd like to come back here sometime to see it, but not right then!  This time I got on the right Metro and got off at Piazza Bologna and walked around the piazza to where the school is located.  Even with: leaving later than intended, riding at the rear of the train, arriving on platform 18, taking the wrong Metro, I made it with ten minutes to spare!

My school

Here is the building in which my school is located. 

Yes, my school is located in Piazza Bologna!  However here is is pronounced 'bō lō ña' not 'bō lō nē'!!

I decided it was now time to buy a decent map of Rome if I was going to actually see anything.  I found a news stand and for 3 euros bought a plastic map that included the Metro, bus, and tram routes.  It was a very wise purchase.

The hill in Villa Torlonia

Looking on the map I saw not too far from Piazza Bologna was Villa Torlonia.  It is a nice park area with a museum of modern art (not open at the time) and several other monuments.  I found a path up a hill and took some pictures from there.

After my exploration here, I decided to take the bus to city centre and see more of the sights.  I saw the Pantheon, then to Piazza Navona.  When I checked my time and my pedometer it was 12:15 and I'd walked 12,004 steps!  Needing to find a bathroom I asked a waiter who was trying to get people to come to their restaurant.  He told me I could go down stairs.  Since this was a pizzaria and it was noon, I thought I could sit down to a nice pizza and rest.  After I ordered a street accordion player came by playing for the patrons of the restaurant.

Continuing on my journey of the day I thought I would cross the river and go up to Piazzale Garibaldi.  I found a tram that took me across the Tiber River into the Trastevere area.  I thought it would be good for me to walk, so following my map I headed toward this piazza.  I came across a set of steps and thought it would be better than walking the long way up a hill.  It was called Scalea del Tamburino.  It was quite the climb!

Scalea del Tamburino

I continued along and trying to follow my map I realized that I was not where I needed to be.  There were a couple of men talking and I approached them asking in Italian where Piazzale Garibaldi was from there.  Needing to backtrack I finally got on the right street and saw a bus stop that had the piazza listed on it just a couple more stops.  While reading the bus stop sign a bus came by and stopped.  I got on and finished the last little bit by bus.  When I checked my pedometer:  19,000+ steps!

I enjoyed a bus ride down the hill, but now it was the beginning of rush hour.  Finally made it across the river and started walking.  I again read a bus stop sign and thought, I needed to get to Termini and go home.  I saw Termini listed.  A bus stopped.  I got on.  It WAS the right bus.  However, it was on the wrong side of the street.  So, I rode the bus all the way on the road that I had just walked!  Oh well, I'm headed to Termini, I thought.  As everyone got off the bus, I realized I was NOT at Termini.  I again looked at the sign and saw that Termini was the LAST stop and this place was the FIRST stop!  Back on the bus I went.  At least I had a seat at the very front of the bus!  I could see where we were this time!

Front of the bus

Ambulance, Paramedic (in orange) and my bus

This adventure was still not finished for the day.  More and more people got on the bus as we journeyed towards Termini.  I heard a thud.  Suddenly the crowd behind me started yelling at the driver to stop.  He pulls over about a half of a block from the next bus stop and opens the doors.  A great deal of people quickly dismount.  I was wondering if someone had gotten sick on the bus.  I looked back as the crowd thinned out to see a nun lying on the floor in the middle of the bus.  She had passed out cold.  There were some people who helped her as the the bus driver called for help.  He told everyone that they could go on up to the bus stop because he wasn't sure how long it would be.  However, every bus was so full I stood there until my bus was ready to go again!

When I finally made it home, it was just after 7 PM and my pedometer said over 23,500 steps!  What day of adventure!!

My First Solo Adventure in Rome

Knowing I would be going back and forth into Rome everyday for the next several weeks alone, made me think I needed to try going in on my own before school started.  I also needed to do it in a slower time of the day for the first time so I wouldn't be so overwhelmed.

I knew I had a Bible study in Rome at 6:45 so I thought if I went a few hours before I would be able to make sure I knew my way, and then see a few sights.

So I walked to the train station, paid for a day pass and took the train to Rome.  After arriving at Termini I went down to the Metro.  I thought I knew which way to go from there, so I though I would start my sightseeing and headed to the other line and to Piazza Barbinini.

Looking at my little map I saw on the Via di Quattro Fontane ended in Piazza Barbinini.  I knew there were the 4 Fountains on that road and I thought I would start there.  So I walked up that street.  I found them alright, they were all covered up. They are being worked on.  No new pictures of them.

I turned right and headed in the direction of Trevi Fountain.  I had seen Trevi Fountain the last time I was here with my sister.  I have a picture of me tossing a coin into the fountain over my shoulder.  The next time we went by it they were cleaning it so the water had been turned off.  So, I was looking forward to seeing the fountain again.

Let me just say here that I LOVE following maps.  As a child while we would go on vacation, both of my sisters had the door seats and I had the hump.  I didn't mind the hump seat, but I could not lean up against anything (or anyone) and nap like my sisters could.  So, I would lean up to the back of the front seat and watch out the windshield.  I would see the speed limit signs and compare them to the actual speed my Daddy was driving.  After pointing this out several times, my Mother and Daddy decided it was time for me to become 'the Navigator' for that trip (as well as future trips, too!)  They gave me a map, told me basically where we were and said find it on the map.  Through that experience I learned how to read a map and have loved using maps ever since.

However, THIS little map of Rome does not have all the streets listed, does not show the roads exactly as they are, and does not cover all of Rome.  It has a lot of good information on it, especially one section of Rome (Trastevere) but to actually follow it where I was and wanted to go was quite a challenge.

I would get turned around, but I would find where I was and turn around and find the right way.  I saw Piazza di Quirnale with cool lamp posts.  I saw LOTS of motorcycles and small cars.  Even a cute little red car with a long stem rose in the windshield wipers!  I didn't see a lot of people, so I knew I was not in the right place!

I had not planned on it, but ended up at the Monument to Vittor Emanuel II, called the ‘Wedding Cake’ or ‘typewriter’ by Italians.  At least from here I could recheck my map and follow it to Trevi Fountain!  

When I finally made it to Trevi Fountain over two hours of my time had been spent walking back and forth trying to actually find it.  Now I was disappointed.  I realized before I even arrived that I would not be seeing anything like I expected.  There was a high fence around it and most of the monument was covered up.  There was scaffolding in front of all of it.  There was no water anywhere.  They even had built a walkway where you could get a closer look at the monument.  It was going through a major restoration.  

While there, however, I overheard two American women talking about now needing to try to find their way to the Spanish Steps.  I checked my time and realized I needed to be heading that way, too.  So, my desire to help kicked in and I suggested they follow me.  I was heading that direction, too.  (Remember I had just spent a majority of the last two hours not knowing where I was!)  But, I KNEW it was north of here.  I had been by the Spanish Steps twice before, since the Bible study was near there.  I knew which road to take to get us there!  (At least I thought I did!)

These two ladies were childhood friends from Wisconsin and were enjoying a trip to Rome together.  I shared with them why I was in Rome as we walked along.  About the time one of them asked, 'are you sure this is right?  Is it very far now?'  I turned a corner and pointed towards the Spanish Steps, just a couple of blocks ahead.  They were so happy as they continued on their way.

I continued to walk around and I found a little shop that sold a Panini of cooked ham and fresh mozzarella for 3.50 euro.  It was very good.  Then stopped for a gelato.  I've tasted better!  Went on to the Bible study arriving early!