Finally, Some Good Food

The last 3 days have been pretty great food-wise. First, while we were in Rome, we had a group dinner that Tulane paid for. I really wish I could remember the name of the place we went, but luckily I know where it is so that I can go back there. We just had the antipasti, and it was pretty insane. It was family style dining, and they brought out plate after plate after plate - there was no way to keep up. It was mostly vegetables, but there was some cured meat and some meatballs. The meal was really wonderful, and I heard it was only 15 euro a person which is great for the quality and the amount of what we ate.

All of the food so far in Sicily is so great. Last night the entire group went to a pizzeria that was the best pizza I think I have ever had. Everyone here eats very late, and so even though we went at 8 or so, the place wasn't packed until 9:30. We really had a leisurely meal. I would say that it was how I really pictured meals in Italy, and incidentally, they are pretty close to classic New Orleans meals like the 3 hour Galatoire lunch. We had both white and red local wine, and I thought it was interesting to note just how spiced they were. The bread was savory but also had this hint of cinnamon. I would guess that these are spice influences from the middle east. At the end, they brought us these frosted, freezing cold bottles of a thick chocolate beverage and creamy lemoncello, both of which are on the house and just part of the experience. They are very, very alcoholic and sneak up on you like crazy. Marda and I went back for lunch there today, and they still brought these giant bottles even though it was lunch and there was only 2 of us.

Tonight we went to a different pizzeria as part of a smaller group, and it was good as well although not quite like last night's experience. Still, I don't think I can eat pizza in Rome ever again.

Also, we picked grapes from outside our hotel room and ate them. And! There is a pomegranate down the street.

Sicily

Our hotel.




The view from our room.




Yesterday we left Rome for a design workshop in Sicily that will be 10 days long. We are in a town called Gioiosa Marea that used to be located high on a mountain, but there was an earthquake in the town and so they relocated down closer to the beach. The view from my hotel room is pretty great. Last night while I was trying to sleep, I could hear the crashing waves. We have a balcony and are able to keep the double doors thrown open all night.

This is a nice change from Rome. It is a pretty small town; it is definitely smaller than Oxford, and very walkable. One thing that I found pretty interesting about Sicily was that in the 1970s they built a main highway to Palermo and it is almost completely underground in a tunnel system. I can't imagine driving in a tunnel for that long.

The Knife Sharpener: An Update

Yesterday and today I noticed the knife sharpener again, only this time he was walking around with his motorcycle and not in the market. I realized today that he is walking though the streets and calling out to the residents that he is available for knife sharpening like an ice cream man with a sharpening stone. I really wish I had a knife for him to sharpen!

Not Posting

I have been very busy since school started, and this has caused me to not post. To be frank, my biggest issue involves image processing. First, I am too busy to remember to photograph things. Second, when I do photograph, I then have to put them on my computer and I would prefer to send them through photoshop. In particular, my pictures are all very large files and I think Blogger would be pretty upset with me if I attempted them without shrinking them first. Then I don't post because I feel like I have to have pictures.

So! I have made the decision to post with or without pictures. Hopefully it does not become too much of a habit, and it helps me to post more regularly.

The first weeks of class have been hectic. Last week, we spent the majority of the time in a crash Italian language course. I am glad that it is over (the crash part anyway) because now we are much more focused on studio. For our first project, we are doing a close study of a piazza of our choice; I decided to study the Piazza del Popolo. Specifically, I am studying the intersection of the more transit-oriented lower piazza that goes through the historical main gate to Rome with the reflective upper piazza that is a park that is visually oriented with the Vatican. I wish I had my camera with me in studio today so that I could photograph my work that I have pinned up.

Tomorrow we are going to Sicily for a 10 day intense workshop. I am able to focus on that yet because of our review this afternoon, so I am not excited about it yet. I bet after the review I get there. This gives some general info about what we are going to be doing: Sicily Lab

At Night

I have yet to be at the right angle at the right moment to get a good picture here. At some point soon I am going to set out to really visit the Roman Forum and its ruins, so maybe the picture will happen then. For now, every time I see the colosseum I am only passing through.

The Knife Sharpener

I noticed a man in the Campo di Fiori today who has converted his motorcycle into a knife sharpening station. It is still ridable; he just comes into the market, parks, and then switches on his sharpening stone using the motorcycle motor. I wish I had a knife for him to sharpen.

The internet also seems to be behaving a lot better, so maybe I will be able to post more updates now.

Ditta G. Poggi

Due to the lack of air conditioning in Rome, most homes and businesses have windows and other ventilation open to the outside. Because of that, when you walk by you can smell the building in ways that you might not be able to in a block of sealed conditioned buildings. One day early on, I smelled a tiny library before I saw it. Later as I was visiting the outside of the supreme court building, I was shocked to notice that it smelled like the Ole Miss law library. Does law have a smell? Ditta G. Poggi smells like wooden pencil shavings from the sidewalk.

This art store is probably my favorite I have been in. I like that it is a series of winding rooms like a lot of Roman stores, and that they have such a wide variety of stuff. It is a block from our studio space on a corner halfway between studio and the Pantheon. I haven't actually purchased anything there yet, but I think tomorrow may be the day.

More Market

The Campo di Fiori is so close to the Piazza Navona that I go there essentially everyday. Luckily it is now the best time for figs, and they are really wonderful. They are larger than I am used to and most are green, although today I bought some purpley-brown ones. I really like it when they are soft and sweet enough that it tastes and feels like jelly when you bite through it.

The italian broccoli was a purchase by Marda. It tastes just like the broccoli we buy in the US, only it has a spicy kick to it, particularly when raw. She made some gnocci that she tossed with some veggies, the broccoli included.

One thing I like about this market is that all of the fruit is meant to be consumed today. I left my figs for a day, and by evening they were almost too far gone. I have been disappointed with the peaches in the farmers market (and the tomatoes!) because they are being picked way too soon. The vegetables here are picked at a much riper point, and I think it makes a big difference in taste and texture. I ate a peach the other day that reminded me of a particularly good year in Oxford peaches a few years back. I just can't seem to get anything in New Orleans that isn't rock hard.

The Internet

One major downside to living in a 400 year old church is that the internet service is pretty bad. I would love to update the blog, but I am faced with an almost complete lack of internet. I hope that they will at least get it up in studio by tomorrow so that I can post.

Since my last update, I have been back to the beach and started class. I also have started to miss New Orleans a bit more than I thought I would. But, things are great, Rome is cooling off, and we go to Sicily in a week and a half.

Ciao¡

Ostia Lido

Yesterday was a very full day because we decided to take the metro and the train over to the beach at Ostia Lido. It was a fairly short ride, considering; it took us probably 45 minutes to get there. One great thing about the metro is that the closest station is at the Colosseum. It was the first glimpse of it that I got, however, the sun was directly behind it making it impossible to get a picture.

The beach was not touristy at all and was full of families who were on vacation, which was nice. The sand is very dark, almost black, so it burns your feet. There are a lot of sea-washed rocks at the shore line, and it is easy to find really neat pieces of old tile that have been washed smooth. I saw a restaurant that I really should have photographed, but I was so tired at that point I didn't. It was called the Old Wild West Steakhouse, and it had a giant menu with colorful images on it. One of the prominent ones was for Mississippi Beef. I am really unsure what that means.

Today has been sort of slow. We had our first orientation, and not much happened except for receiving our cell phones. I think the grad students and I are going to go on a big adventure to find....Ikea. Hah! It is an adventure because it is far away from old Rome where we are staying and there will definitely be fewer English speakers. We shall see how it goes.

Giolitti

Late this afternoon Kristy and I went and checked out another Fred Plotkin suggestion, Giolitti. It is an old gelato and pastry shop, and it is really pretty amazing. I love how old fashioned it is. I had a melon granita that was topped with some grapefruit. The grapefruit tasted very sour and was almost a bit much for me in that department. The melon was very sweet, but it was tempered by tiny cubes of candied orange rind that would give it some bite. It was a great experience all around. I can't wait to try the gelato, I was just so thirsty at the moment that the granita seemed best. Luckily, this shop is also by the Pantheon and the kick-ass coffee shop. And our studio! It will be visited frequently, I am sure.

Market

Today was all about grocery shopping. Us four grad students went to the early morning open market at the Campo de' Fiori. At first I was a little intimidated because of the language barrier, but an older woman called to me and forced me to try parmesan cheese and salami. I ended up buying both from her, and the cheese in particular was amazing. I bought a giant chunk of it that was 7 euro or so. I bet the same amount would be almost 30 dollars in the United States, and not nearly as tasty unless it was purchased at just the right place. At another stand, I bought some general cooking vegetables like onion and carrots and celery, and some lentils that are so tiny and wonderful looking. I really love tiny lentils. At that stand, I decided to buy a melon that seems very similar to cantaloupe, but with different color variation and texture. The stand owner asked if I was going to eat it today, and when I said yes he took his knife and cut me out a tiny sliver and handed it to me so that I could try it and make sure I liked it. Trying the fruits and vegetables at the stands is very much a part of the experience. I grabbed a small container of fruit to snack on, and the raspberries in particular were so sweet and wonderful.



After that, we went to a grocery store by the Pantheon (of course we visited my favorite coffee). The grocery stores here are a series of maze-like tiny rooms instead of one big room. I have been in two so far, and both were that way. It is interesting because in France, the large groceries were closer to what we have in the United States. I got some other staples and a bottle of rose for dinner. I know pretty close to nothing about Italian wine, other than the fact that they have a controlling body like in France. I just grabbed a bottle with the Denominazione di Origine Controllata label and hopefully it will be tasty.

I also got toilet paper and fizzy mineral water. Yes!

First Day

On our first full day we did a lot of walking around and did some sight seeing. The Pantheon was beautiful and huge and amazing, as was the river and the sprawling Vatican in the distance. We had to go find the supreme court building after all this discussion about it, and it was actually worth checking out.





One of the great finds of the day was courtesy of Fred Plotkin. This coffee shop is world famous and roasts their own beans on the premises. It is right beside the Pantheon and happens to be right by where we will be going to class and studio. It is an oddly shaped crooked-hallway of a building with a winding bar that has a constant changeover of people, both tourists and locals. I really love the place. It is only 1 euro for a cappuccino! I see myself there every day.

I have an answer!

Today Marda and I walked around and stumbled upon the building that I originally thought I could see out the window. It is, for sure, not that building. This building is so big and ostentatious, I thought it looked very French (haha) and not Italian at all. When we mentioned it to our architecture professor who came in today, she rolled her eyes and said "ugh." It is apparently a really hated building.

So, if you squint really hard, you can see that the building says "corte di cassazione" which apparently means supreme court. The building we can see is called the palace (or hall) of justice and was built around 1900. Now we know!

What is That?

I just looked out my window again, and there is no way that the thing I said was the monument to Vittorio Emanuel II is actually the monument to Vittorio Emanuel II. Also! There is a dome of some sort partially hidden behind a building which I would also like to identify. And another church-like thing?

In Rome

Front of Church



Back of Church, or, Our Front Door







Outside the window by my bed.


The internet here seems to go in and out, and so it has been difficult to make this first post. I have a feeling that isn't going to improve much.

The flight was uneventful, although long. I wasn't able to get comfortable enough to sleep, so I was pretty tired when I got to Rome. Marda and I befriended a woman from San Francisco who is on vacation and was equally as lost; we all got on a shuttle that dropped people off at various hotels and he was nice enough to take us to our location, for 40 euro of course. The ride was nice though, because we drove past all sorts of monuments. It is interesting how these ancient ruins are just stuck in the middle of modern buildings, and they creep up on you so that you turn a corner and there is another one. I also noticed that a lot of the buildings are very run down, and there is a ton of graffiti. We were told that it is difficult to get things like plumbing fixed because everyone takes there time doing things in a way that sounded pretty New Orleanean.

We are staying in an old monastery that is at the back of a pretty awesome church. The Piazza Navona is always full of people, and the alley behind the church is lined with restaurants. While I was sleeping this evening, I was woken up to various musicians and very drunk Italian group singing. We were so tired that all we did was eat something and go to sleep. We were too dazed to investigate food thoroughly, so we just sat down at a touristy spot. It was very reasonable (the pizza was huge and like 6 euro) and was better pizza than anywhere in New Orleans or Oxford at least.

Outside my window, you can see both the Vatican and the monument to Vittorio Emanuelle II. Right now I can see the sun rise, which makes me realize that this is going to be another long, tired day.

Big Changes

Two days ago, I decided to sit down and look over Brian's credit hours that he has earned so far. He attended 2 years of school at Ole Miss and quit when we moved to New Orleans. He has been talking about going back in the spring, and so I wanted to compare course offerings at the University of New Orleans and at Ole Miss. UNO does not offer his program, which complicates matters.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that he should be in Oxford taking classes while I am in Italy. 24 hours later, all of his paperwork was complete (including financial aid and VA crap) and he put in his notice at work. I am in shock, to be honest. These are some big changes. I am probably signing on for Brian to spend my thesis year in Oxford while I am here without a car.

It is really for the best though, and I think he will be happier in Oxford than here by himself in New Orleans.

Coulis

I noticed today that the Gambit had a rather upbeat piece about Coulis recently. I am not sure it was a glowing review, but it was pretty close to it. Frankly, I am baffled by this. I was really excited about Coulis because it is a block from my house. When its predecessor The Bluebird Cafe was closing, I was just moving into town and I was sad to see a popular breakfast place so close to my house disappear before I ever even got a chance to know it. I ate there my first weekend in town, and then it was gone. When the cheerful yellow building sprouted a painted sign of bacon and eggs, I was really excited. How could you go wrong with a sign of painted bacon and eggs?

The menu is a bit weird, but really, the service and the food was just really bad. I can't recall all that went wrong, but I know something was sent back and Brian and I just don't do that. Ever. It may have been one of two times in my life that I did it. The coffee was undrinkable. The bacon was charred to inedibility. I was simply shocked at how bad it was. Recently, my brother mentioned that he also went to Coulis and was dumbfounded at its utter horribleness. Why is there a line there on the weekends? Desperation?

When I read the article, I had a brief twinge of wanting to give it another shot. I quickly came to my senses, though. Surrey's is just too good to put up with inedible bacon.

Photo courtesy of the blog NORA in NOLA which, incidentally, happened to also like Coulis.

Bullseye

This is at least the second time I have seen one of these this year, maybe even the third. Of course, nothing has materialized, but it is still a bit nerve-wracking. I think my biggest fear is that I will be in Italy and Brian will have to evacuate alone. He will have to deal with gas lines and contraflow and will have no one to bitch to about it while it is happening. I think we need to buy him a cell phone car charger. Last year there really weren't any scares, but when I thought about the tropical weather season my biggest worries involved getting classwork done during an evacuation (architecture doesn't stop for weather, that's for sure!). The weather itself and the traffic didn't bother me. I feel a little different about it all this year.

Maybe T.H. will want to evacuate with him; it would make gas cheaper, anyway.

Selling The Dress

I was supposed to have a wedding ceremony July 3 2004, but Brian was deployed to Iraq on June 17. There is a rather long story attached to that, but it is now so long ago I feel like I am living a different life and maybe it wasn't even real. But it was, and I have put off selling the dress for a variety of reasons. Maybe it made me a bit sad to do it. However, I figure I need the money for Italy and so, why not? Today I listed the dress, the veil, and the headpiece on ebay in a 7 day auction. Hopefully I can get a few hundred dollars out of it. C'est la vie.

In other news, 14 days from right at this very moment I will be on an airplane.

Two Weeks Away

I have been thinking pretty hard about Rome all summer, but I really haven't been preparing for it until the last few weeks or so. I have bought some fall/winter clothing, found a new laptop bag, and finally acquired some "grown-up" luggage. My visa came in the mail today, and honestly I had forgotten just how bad the picture was!

In other words, this is becoming real, and exciting, and scary. I will miss Brian. I worry about money. What if it is hard to be in studio with undergrads who have been doing this 3 years already?

A few months ago there was a great Q & A in the New York Times with Fred Plotkin who wrote Italy for the Gourmet Traveler. Considering I fancy myself a gourmet traveler, I ordered the book today. In the mean time, the New York Times provided a great teaser!

I think everything will be a-ok.

Spring Rain

Today it flooded on our street during a morning downpour. It came and went so fast that I didn't even get to see it myself. The better part of the day was spent dealing with wet car floorboards; our rental car had two inches of standing water in the bottom of it. Now I can feel like a true NOLA resident as I own a wet/dry shopvac.

Photo courtesy of Vida's iphone.