il mare!

I was invited to the beach by some FAO friends, Cecilia (di Roma), Flora (di Brazil) e Marza (di Sicilia). I met them at a metro stop, and then we took Ceci's car out of the city and to the beach. it. was. awesome. 

rome, me and everyone you've never met

I did some sightseeing, along with every other tourist in the world. I saw the piazza del popolo, and the spanish steps (note the school children eating lunch!). I took some pictures of some people taking pictures of some people. 

i found salsa! and some germans.

At 18:00 when I finished work it was pouring buckets. I ran into an acquaintance who was standing in a small group watching the rain. I told her I didn't have an umbrella, and she said that was fine because it was time for salsa class anyway. I followed her down the steps to a basement room with a wall-length mirror, where there were about 10 other multinationals assembled. Thursday night is salsa night: a fellow from San Diego and another from Mexico City teach salsa for free at FAO, an hour beginner and then an hour advanced. I stayed for both hours and will be a regular for the rest of my roman holiday.


On the way home I found my way to a small restaurant I read about in the Jewish Ghetto. I was ushered in (alone) by the two grandmothers (wo)manning the door, and seated at a 4-top by myself. I ordered wine. The hostess then came back with two large germans, and sat them at my table. I ordered carciofo alla guiudia (literally jewish artichoke), which is an artichoke that has been deep fried and salted. It tasted like the most delicious crispy vegetable chips I've ever eaten. I also had fettuccini con pesto alle genovese, which was handmade and delicious. The germans were quite pleasant, if not a little loud.

italian national day

...was yesterday. On my walk to work I passed the normal ruins:

and then what appeared to be the attendance of every military personnel in all of Italy, waiting for the parade to begin. 

I never actually saw the parade (I was working, I swear), but I heard what sounded like B52 Bombers fly over FAO several times. Most Italians took the day off, and most shops, bakeries and restos were closed. Italian National day is apparently the celebration of the choice of republic over monarchy for the country. 

Mark Strand

Mark Strand has long been one of my favorite poets. He's a Pulitzer winner and an all-around phenomenal poet. Turns out he's also the writer in residence at John Cabot University, the english-speaking uni here in Rome. It also turns out that he is beloved by the Italians because of a particuarly dedicated translator. Last night Juliette and I attended a free reading, in which Strand read a poem that was followed by the Italian translation, read by the translator. Although the constant swapping was a bit cumbersome it was amazing to hear the poem in english and then simply listen to the italian. I could pick out a few words, but Italian is so lyrical that simply hearing the language (in poetic form) was really quite powerful. I bought a book of translations that also contains the orginal versions with the hope that reading  poetry aloud will improve my Italian. Plus, any Strand at all is always a pleasure. Here's a nice little Strand poem.

The Coming of Light

Even this late it happens:
the coming of love, the coming of light. 
You wake and the candles are lit as if by themselves, 
stars gather, dreams pour into your pillows, 
sending up warm bouquets of air.
Even this late the bones of the body shine 
and tomorrow's dust flares into breath.

chinotto

Today I paid .60EU for a small, black can of San Pellegrino Chino from the vending machine near my office at FAO (more on FAO soon, I promise!). I had no idea what Chino was, but when I popped the can I swore I was drinking Campari! The color is like coca-cola, and it's incredibly bitter with a hint of sweetness. My Italian friend tells me it's quite popular in Italy, and it turns out that Chino is actually made from the same fruit as Campari: the chinotto, a small bitter citrus fruit that grows on a tree also known as the myrtle-leaved orange.

Campari lovers: ask your favorite gourmet shop to start carrying SP Chino, and you can have your Campari fix (senza alcohol), any time of day.

ah, tennessee!

Juliette and I went last night to the English Theater in Rome to see "Ah Tennessee,"which was a production of three short plays by Tennesse Williams, each directed by a different person. In order, we saw "This Property is Condemned," "Talk to me like the rain and let me listen" and "The Long Goodbye." TPisC is one of my favorite short plays, but the acting wasn't so great this go-around. Talk To Me was, however, one of the best short plays I've ever seen produced: the actress was from Slovenia, and the actor from Rome and they put on a spectular, powerful and troubling performance. TLG was excellent as well, but not quite as deeply penetrating as Talk To Me. Seeing the shorts made me want to read the plays, and see more theater!

On the way home Juliette showed me (the other) Phoebe's favorite gelato shop, which had zanzera (ginger!), sicilian wine cream and four types of chocolate. I had already had gelato earlier in the day so I refrained, but I'm looking forward to going back!

a chance encounter

For several days we'd been planning to attend "a chance encounter on the tiber," the installation/music piece by Robert Hammond (the High Line mastermind) and Lisa Bielawa (NY MATA Festival co-founder) on the Tiber River, which runs through Rome and is very close to our apartment. The piece was "an urban revitalization plan combined with amusic performance composed expressly for outdoor public space" and was a tribute to William Whyte's studies "The Social LIfe of Small Urban Spaces," in which Whyte discovers that one of the most successful tools in creating vibrant public spaces was the use of movable chairs. Hammond and Bielawa painted 100 folding chairs red and placed them by the river and then put on four separate 30 minute shows. We attended the last show (20:00) this evening. 

Above, part of the Blue Chamber Orchestra. Below, the Brooklyn Rider String Quartet.

Jewish Ghetto

I always walk home through the Jewish Ghetto. I've been told the food is delicious but I haven't yet explored. The light was especially pretty today, 

and I liked the sass in these two women. 

Caravaggio

Our third flatmate Phoebe (yes, that's correct) arrived last night. To get acquainted, we stood this morning in a queue for the largest Caravaggio exhibit ever shown for 3.5 hours. In the sun. If I had been more of an entrepreneur I would have purchased a case of cold water and made a little extra spending money. Instead we waited patiently with the Romans and tourists. The show was actually fairly spectacular, and more exciting still was having a personal art historian in Juliette, a brilliant french architecture graduate student. 

My favorite painting was the dramatic Judith Beheading Holofernes. Apparently Judith is seeking revenge on Holofernes for her rape. To me Judith looks strong, a bit regretful and surprisingly sensual.