Buone Notizie!

most people don't like pigeons.  i do.

Good news on all fronts everyone!

Things are moving forward with the job progress & I am molto felice about it!  I still won't be starting work until November but...  there has been a change of plan, hopefully for the better!  As you may know I use specialized Xray equipment for my chiropractic technique & turns out I will be able to use a machine that is already here in Rome.  At the Vatican with il Papa (the Pope)!!  Just kidding but, just outside the walls of Vatican City.

So, I will use this machine & have my office in that location in city center.  It will be at a big physiotherapy center, which is better than the cardiovascular & diagnostic clinic it was going to be in.  It was turning out that the other location actually wasn't going to be ready for a couple more months so, this option is better.  So many changes, right????  I have been doing my best to roll with the punches, I realized that I had a lot of expectations for this experience & it has been less stressful to try to be more open to change.  Ch-ch-ch-changes.  (David Bowie)

All I can say is... things happen differently here in Italy.

Trastevere neighborhood

In other progress....  I found a place to move & will be relocating into the city this weekend!  I'll be living in the Trastevere (means literally, across the Tiber) area.  It is a very old part of town with small streets and charming buildings, trattorias, churches, etc.  It is also a very hip part of town with many stranieri (foreigners) having moved in & lots of more artsy, bohemian, liberal culture.  It is where I was hoping to live so I am very excited!  Not as close to the future office as I might have liked but, I could walk there in maybe 40 minutes or I can take a tram closer or I can walk 10 minutes to the metro station which will drop me off very close.  OR, if I am bold I can get a motorino (scooter) or if I am crazy I can ride a bicicleta!

Trastevere scene

I will be moving into a flat with a real nice Roman lady!  I am happy for this because I won't be lonely & also we can speak Italian.  She works in something to do with international trade & is happy to have me moving in because then she can practice her English.  It's perfetto!  We are on the 4th floor & I'll have a nice big view of a lovely, green courtyard.  Overall my housing search was leading me to a bunch of crapholes.  I was so relieved to find this nice apt. & nice woman!

more of the quaint Trastevere

Other good news...  I had the best gelato yet today!  3 flavors, cannela (cinnamon), pistaccio & tiramisu. Having just ice cream for lunch is ok, isn't it?  It's the Italy diet :)

Also, my first language class session ends tomorrow with a final exam.  Wish me buona fortunata!  Next week I will start "elementario" level & also some more conversation classes.  I am becoming more  used to speaking & am feeling less apprehensive about it.

There are still some museums to see!  The other day I went to check out the Capitoline Museums, on a famous hill in Roma.  The Capitoline has been an important spot for ages, some of the very first temples were built here & it has continued to be a significant spot throughout history.  The Capitoline Musei houses, of course, a fine collection of classical art!  I still haven't had enough of this stuff.  I continue to be fascinated by ancient marble carvings.  I would like to share my experience with you!



There is a long, marble staircase leading up to the capitoline that was designed by, my favorite..., Michelangelo!  At the top is la Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore, just another inspiring church.  The capitoline plaza was also done by M. Buonarotti.

word has it the penitent used to climb these stairs on their knees!

Capitoline Piazza

massive pieces of a sculpture of Constantine

Brutus, betrayer of Caesar.  Look at that intense gaze!

boy with a thorn

with the infamous she-wolf!

Bernini's medusa, she's a meanie but, she is tortured by it!

bronze bust of Michelangelo

view of some cupolas

another oversized Constantine

overlooking the forum @ tramonte (sunset)

I will post again real soon to show you my new place! buon fine settimana a tutti! xo

Bernini & Caravaggio!

Hi there!

I went to yet another amazing museum this afternoon, the Borghese Gallery.  Mr. Borghese was a wealthy cardinal who built a grand villa outside of town surrounded by a big park.  Over the years he filled it full of fantastic art, acquiring in particular many sculptures by Gian Lorenzo Bernini & about 6 Caravaggio paintings.  Today, the villa has been transformed into an incredibly lavish gallery.  There are two floors, the lower is full of sculpture and the upper is full of paintings, called the Pinacoteca or picture gallery.  

You have to reserve a ticket ahead of time as they only allow about 300 people in for each 2 hour slot.  It is frequently sold out and you aren't allowed to bring in cameras, purses, water, anything really.  I had been wanting to go since arriving in Roma.  Here are some highlights.  I apologize, these are images from the internet because you can't take photos.  A little background on Bernini's style, these sculptures are HUGE and are meant to be viewed in a 360 degree view.  Unlike other sculptors around his time, these are not just one figure standing there.  

This is Daphne & Apollo.  It was gorgeous!!  The story goes that cupid shot the naiad Daphne with an arrow of lead to inspire hatred & shot Apollo with one of gold to induce love.  Apollo is in love with her & she detests him & asks her father to change her into something so that he will leave her alone.  Her father turns her into a bay laurel tree & this sculpture is of that transformation.  Wow!

Detail of her hands turning into leaves:

her legs are also turning into a tree trunk.

This next one is The Rape of Persephone.  Here you see Hades (Pluto) god of the underworld capturing Persephone & kidnapping her.  She ends up becoming queen of the underworld.  This is a fantastic depiction, again it is huge!  You can see Cerberus, the 3 headed hell hound at his feet.  

 Look at the detail of him grabbing her.  This is marble!

Then there is Caravaggio, a master of his time.  He became well known for depicting real looking people by using regular folks he met on the street as models.  In particular whores & beggars.  He started as a still life & portrait artist & often shows his figures brilliantly lit with the rest of the picture very dark.  At that time, this was revolutionary.  He often used himself as a model too, like in this Bacchus:

This is one of his most famous paintings, Boy with a Basket of Fruit.  Caravaggio is also known for his homoerotic depictions.  What do you think?

come hither.  looks sort of like a young winona ryder.

Madonna & child with St. Anne.  This one was controversial because the model for Mary here was the most popular prostitute in Rome.  Also, the christ child is buck naked.

Another famous figure at the Borghese Gallery is this Venus based on Borghese's daughter Pauline.  Here you can also see all the artwork in the rooms.  They all looked like this & all the ceilings were frescoed up as well.  

Here are some other works from Bernini around Rome!  I did take these photos:

fountain in Piazza Barberini

The ecstasy of St. Teresa.  Bernini is so theatrical, note the sculpted theater box watching St. Teresa get murdered by an angel!

Ok, I lied, I didn't take these next two.  I wanted to show you the details of this one and with my crappy camera I couldn't get a good shot.  I was particularly interested in The Ecstasy of St. Teresa because I just read the book, Cutting for Stone, in which it was prominently featured.  Did you read that book?  It was good!

look at St. Teresa's face, she is enraptured by the lord!

angel on the ponte Sant Angelo

another on that bridge

Fountain sculptures in Piazza Navona.  My school is 5 minutes walking from here.

Fontana dei quattro fiumi in Piazza Navona

In other news... nothing much new to report.  I got a 65/70 on my Italian mid-term exam!   I've made a date to do a language exchange with an Italian so, maybe that will force me to speak Italian more.  In many situations it is very easy to revert to English because a lot of people know it.  

I have really been getting into the coffee bars here.  Here is the method:  First, you pay @ a cashier & get a receipt.  You bring the receipt up to the bar & get the barista's attention.  Then you say, un caffe per favore!  A caffe is the most common thing to get, it is just a shot of espresso.  Most everyone dumps a sugar packet in, stir it up & then drink it in a couple sips just standing there.  Then you say grazie & get the hell out of there.  The whole process takes about three minutes, it's a quickie.  Italians scoff at to go cups, I don't even think they exist.  No massive quadruple shot starbuck's lattes in two paper cups, that's for sure.  Italians don't drink cappuccino after noon, if you do it's a sure sign that you are a...  tourist!  God forbid!  Possibly a macchiato.  Once you get the hang of this coffee process you can really act like a local.  Start wearing high heels and carry a louis vuitton bag & you are IN!  :)

I looked at an apartment today that was... unappealing.  I am going to look at some shared housing to cut costs & meet people.  I know I mentioned moving into some free fabulous flat options earlier on, that isn't panning out quickly enough.  

Have a great week everyone! :) xo

A day at the races!

I hope you are having a nice weekend!  I am!  I had a funny activity today.  My host, Edgardo, took me to the local racetrack (cars) to see some racing.  I am not really into car racing but...  he was eager to introduce me to some doctor friends of his.  They are a father & son & are plastic surgeons, the son specializes in giving men hair therapy (hair plugs) & plays rock & roll music during the procedures.  !  They took one look at me and said, the sun is your enemy!  I know, too late!  Apparently I've got some 'marionette lines', how gross. The father is in his 70's & has a strong passion for racing cars!  He's been doing it for ages.

these were all maseratis.  i guess you rent them from the owner to use in a race.

Jim Morrison!  I wanted to rent this one & got to sit inside it.

So, we went to the track & got to hang out behind the scenes.  Today was just a qualifying round of races.  It was me hanging out with a bunch of Italian men talking about Maseratis and Lamborghinis.  Most of you probably know me well enough to realize that I could care less about car racing.  Needless to say, I was fairly out of place.  I was the only lady around & these guys really got a kick out of me putting on the car helmet & clowning around.  They were all very nice.

I guess this one is worth 700,000 Euro!  Just the door is worth about 5,000.   All I could wonder was who the hell would spend that much money on a car????  One guy I was with told me at one point, "I have six porsches, three for summer & three for winter."  whoa.

Unfortunately, some of us decided to go out for a typical Italian long lunch (2.5h) & missed the race of the guy we had come to see.  Typical.  We were outside of town in the country & ate at a rustic place with charming atmosphere.  Here is what I had to eat:

appertivo:
battered & fried courgette (zucchini) & squash blossoms
eggplant parm
bruschetta
riccotta
buffalo mozzerella
foccacia, ciabatta & grissini (breadsticks)

then I had some fettucini with garlic & porcini mushrooms.  the other guys had meat pasta or gnocchi.

we also had a nice bottle of prosecco

then...  i had just a bite of some berry ricotta tart thing & a slice of cantaloupe.

and then some caffe'.  It is the custom to all have a yummy espresso after a meal.  i should have taken photos.  i will start taking some food photos for you guys.

It was a great day!

not too many folks there because it was just a speed trial.  after watching the cars go around three times i got bored.  i mean, you really just watch the cars go around & around???

Some have been wondering about the food here & my diet.  As you likely know, I'd been vegan for about 8 or 9 years.  I decided that, in order to experience Italy more fully & other reasons, I'd be less strict & just be vegetarian.  It has been going ok but honestly, my stomach & digestion are rebelling.  I have been eating cheese but, pretty minimal because I am concerned that over the years of vegan I became lactose intolerant.  So, I am having milk in my coffee, a bit of cheese, pasta (infrequently) that probably has egg in it and gelato (frequently).  I have yet to bring myself to eat something like a fried egg & likely won't.  My health has been good for the most part since being here for 3 weeks but my digestion has been... actually terrible.  I'm working on it.  Oh, I did get some greek yogurt for the probiotic qualities & have been having it with fruit for breakfast.  I wondered what all the hype was about with greek yogurt, turns out it is delicious.

In other news, BAD news about work.  I can't start now until November & I am not pleased.  Many aspects have continued to be somewhat uncertain.  I have voiced strong concern about this so my employers are putting together a NEW contract & giving it to me on Tuesday.  I had a contract before but, I actually never signed it & was continually told to not worry about it.  I was worried about it!

I am doing my very best to be patient & trust that things will work out but, Italians conduct business very differently.  They can drag things out for ages, can say one thing & do another or just never follow through.  It is not what I am used to & I think it is morally foul.  They are extremely nice to my face but I feel that when I leave the room they think I am very naive.  Not to generalize but, this has been my experience.  I can understand much more Italian now but, not when people are speaking very quickly or using verbs & tenses that I don't know.   At least it sounds like I'll be financially a bit better off with our newer agreement.  I have begun searching more seriously for a flat downtown to live in.  Things are HELLA expensive in Roma!  Italian language learning has been coming along.  My most used phrase is "io non so" meaning I don't know.

My dad has been reading my blog & wrote to me the other day, "do you know that your photos are limited by your camera?"  I do know this but, they are decent, right???  I hope you are enjoying them & I'm hoping to get a new camera.  My dad & stepmom are climbing half dome this week, wish them luck!  I am proud of them, it is a tough hike!!

Also, my mom had a big knee surgery last week in MN & it was hard for me to be so far away.  Please send her good wishes for a speedy recovery!  Grazie mille!  Here are some other photos from recently:

here is the Vittorio Emmanuel monument.  locals think it is an eyesore & call it " the wedding cake".   it is on a piazza that is busy with car traffic & i guess they have to clean it every couple of years to keep that marble white!  Victor Emmanuel was the first king of Italia after unification.

here's what a drinking fountain in Roma looks like.  there are lots of fontanellos around town, many just a constantly running faucet with a nice basin on the streetcorner coming out of a building.  it is tasty water!

Legend has it that Rome was founded by the twins Romulus & Remus.  These twins were raised by a she-wolf and all around town are sculptures on this theme.  Whenever you read about this legend they are always "suckled" by the wolf.  There is even a particular fig tree on the Capitoline hill that is supposedly the "suckling tree".  At some point Romulus committed fratricide & murdered Remus.

St. Peter's chains!  Legend has it that St. Peter was locked up in these chains & in some holy event was liberated by an angel or something.  These are apparently the actual chains & a whole church is built to honor them.  The story goes that the chains were separated, one part was in Jerusalem & the other in Egypt for a while.  When the two pieces of chain were reunited a miracle occurred & CA CHINK, they fused to form one chain!  magic!

this church was decorated with at least one hundred chandeliers.

nice view of the Tiber & St. Peters.  The Tiber used to be actively used for shipping but, not anymore.  High walls were built along it back in the old days to prevent seasonal flooding from damaging the city.

I got an Italian cell phone, finally.  I have received one phone call so far!
xoxo

the Vatican!

Hi everybody, how have you been? 

Today I’m going to report on the Vatican City.  It is a tiny city-state within Rome where the pope lives.  For the most part it is walled in & contains a vast array of interesting sights including:  St. Peter’s Basilica & square, the Vatican museums, the pope’s apartment, Vatican post office (manufactures it’s own stamps & sending p-cards from here is a tourist hit), radio station, gardens, etc.  Apparently a lot of money in Rome & in Italy in general are tied up in the Vatican.  Some here would say its more about business than religion. 

Pope JP II was much loved by people & was considered a humanitarian.  Current pope Benedict XVI is German & had served as an advisor to Pope JP for many years.  The people in general aren't as excited about Benedict because he is more of a theologian, very conservative & not as personable.  Also, unfortunately, it seems like he is in poor health.  You can sign up for a free ticket to have a papal audience, I think he just comes out & waves at people, more of a viewing.  I think he probably needs a chiropractor!!!  Right?  (ME!!)

So, the other day I cued up to visit St. Peter’s, the most fantastic church on earth!  You are required to wear modest clothing, no leg showing above the knee & no shoulders exposed.  Everyone herds along to pass through a security checkpoint that includes a metal detector & sending your bag through on a conveyor.  The church is simply magnificent.  Pope JP II commissioned Michelangelo to work on it & this became one of his most amazing works & took many, many years to complete.  The main nave is the length of 2 football fields.  All of the sculptures are huge to agree with the scale of the place.  Bernini, father of Italian baroque style added many fantastic art/design touches including the altar, golden dove window & many sculptures. 

Michelangelo’s pieta (Mary & Jesus) is just in the entryway.  Mike completed it when he was only 25, I think it was his first major work.  It is the only piece of his art that he signed.  After someone else tried to take credit for it he chiseled his name on Mary’s sash.  It is enclosed behind bulletproof glass because once a madman came in & tried to destroy it with a hammer or something.  Whoa!

A mass occurred while I was in there & the music was very pleasant and created a feeling of peace and serenity.  The church is so big, it was roped off about halfway up to the altar so that tourists couldn’t interfere with the mass & literally it was like the service was going on in another church, way up at the front.  

(i was trying to post a video of this here but...  i think my connection is too poor for it to work :(

The Vatican museum is incredible.  It is the most awesome collection of art that I have ever seen, spanning from ancient to modern.  The only bad part of the experience is the CROWDS, which you will see here in my photos.  You either cue up like crazy or pre-purchase a ticket online with an extra fee so that you can skip the cue.  They only let a certain # of people in at a time because too many people would simply overwhelm the capacity of the place.  And it is still way too crowded & hot!  Very many people are taking guided tours & they all have a headset on to listen to their own particular guide, also, you can rent a headset from the museum for a guided tour.  So virtually everyone is zoning out to their own headset.  I probably should have done that but, I just read along in my guidebook & also the posted signage.

This was the pine cone courtyard, there was this big ball of modern art in the center which seemed a bit out of place.  (you can't see the giant pine cone)

You then enter a hall FILLED with ancient sculpture & heads.  Simply chock full of it.

Artemis

This was one of my favorite parts, the octagonal courtyard.  Along the sides & in niches are particularly nice pieces, interspersed with big bathtub looking things.  These bathtubs may or may not have all been sarcophagi. (burial vessels)

Here is the Belvedere Apollo, considered the ideal human form.  Notice the graceful position & smooth musculature.  He used to be holding a bow & arrow.

This was something I had been really looking forward to seeing….  The Laocoon!  Laocoon was a priest who tried to warn Troy about the Trojan Horse.  The gods favored the greeks & didn’t like that Laocoon had warned the Trojans so, sent these serpernts up to kill he & his two sons.  Michelangelo was inspired by this sculpture & it was supposedly around at the time of Pliny the Elder.  Who is Pliny the Elder?

Here is an ancient Roman river god.  Michelangelo based his figure of Adam in the creation on the Sistene ceiling after this guy.

and here is a figure of Hermes.

Here is the Belvedere Torso! Michelangelo would caress this one & say "i am the pupil of the torso."  funny guy!  I am really into Michelangelo, a couple years ago I read "the agony & the ecstasy" a historical based novel about his life.  It's a good book!

Then we passed through the hall of animals.

Then we (me & 100 other tourists) proceeded into the round room.  The centerpiece was a huge jasper bathtub that used to be in Nero’s palace.  Purple jasper was rare & a sign of great wealth.  Another highlight here was this huge bronze of Hercules.

And on into a hall of tapestries designed by Rafaello, look at this crowd!!!  

In the hallway of the maps, VERY old maps of Italy & the surroundings.  There is a sheen of sweat on me!

Then on into Raphael's rooms.  Raph was such a hit with Pope Julius II (the same pope who commisioned Michelangelo to do St. Peter's, the sistene chapel, his tomb) that he asked him to paint the walls of his papal rooms.  Wallpaper by Raphael!  

the liberation of St. Peter

the dispute.  church vs. paganism (classical thought)

the school of athens.  this was my favorite, wish i'd gotten a better shot of it.  here you see Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Euclid, Pythagoras & others, including Michelangelo there in the foreground.  

Then I proceeded through many rooms of more modern art.  It was funny, most people seemed to be there just to see the Sistene Chapel & were just breezing past all this stuff.  Granted it was hot & I did spend 3.5 hours in there but I think it was worth it to not over look things like:

something cool by Dali

Rodin's "the thinker"

Are you still with me???  Finally, the tired museum goers went up & down stairs, around corners, through hallways to see the grand finale.....  the Sistene Chapel!  Michelangelo didn't initially want to paint it, considering himself a sculptor but, Pope Julius made him do it.  He built a scaffolding & spent about a million hours up there, probably with heinous neck pain, painting that ceiling.  It was truly astounding & beautiful.  About 15 years ago the chapel was cleaned & restored to it's original colors.  I spent about half an hour sitting on a bench & looking up as I viewed his story of creation & portrayals of prophets.   All the while listening to museum guards yelling out NO PHOTO & NO TALKING!  how rude.

One whole wall is taken up by his painting of the last judgement, which was done a while after the chapel ceiling.  When it was unveiled it knocked people's socks off.  I managed to get one photo before I realized a guard was speaking to me... NO PHOTO.  Here you go:

wow!

Well, that was a good day.  If you ever visit Rome, go to the Vatican Museum!  I felt like I had stepped through a time portal into history!

xoxo