Roma

Two weekends ago I got the bold idea to venture to Rome by myself to visit some of my friends who are studying abroad there.  Traveling alone made me a little nervous, but the promise of seeing my friends assured me that it was worth the risk.  Everything was going smoothly until I landed at the Rome airport and was met by a group of taxi men.  After I showed them a scribbled down piece of paper with my destination, they coldly told me it would be impossible to drive there because snow had shut down that portion of the city.  I was overcome by panic.  Alone in a country where no one spoke english and unable to even get to the part of town where my friends live.  Then by some stroke of luck I was able to get on a shuttle the that took me to the metro.  The metro was a journey in itself.  I nervously shuffled up and down flights of stairs and through crowded alleyways with the rushing crowds.  The slow pace that I have become accustomed to in Spain sharply contrasted drastically with the quick and focused energy in the metro station.  When the metro finally arrived, I found myself crushed in a cramped train car which left little space for even my bag.  Once at my stop, finding my hotel became a quest of its own.   I went sliding on ice through the steep hills of the streets desperately looking the Pacifica Hotel.  No one seemed to have much sympathy for the bewildered American girl desperately trying to communicate despite her inability to speak a single word of italian.  Finally I reached my hotel and was greeted by one of my best friends who had already checked into the room.

Although the rest of the weekend did present its fair share of struggles, mostly due to the snow and lack of taxis, my weekend in Rome was the experience of a lifetime.  The first night we went to Johns Restaurant where we met up with a group of about 30 Penn Sate students who were all either studying abroad in Rome or visiting from their study abroad locations across Europe.  The atmosphere was filled with excitement that peaked as the authentic Italian cuisine began pouring out of the kitchen at a nonstop pace.  Breads, calamari, pastas, and tiramisu were cluttered the tables and were only outnumbered by the countless bottles of homemade wine.  The room was filled with warmth, laughter, and music.  Once the meal ended we spent the night trenching through the snow covered alleys into local bars and pubs.

The next day was spent shopping in Piazza Del Popolo [MAP].  I was amazed at how the new and trendy stores were planted amidst ancient streets and statues.  The fusion of the new world with the ancient ruins was something that I have never before experienced.  It was a wonder to me that people could stroll by such history without being as impressed as I was.  Once I had done my fair share of shopping, we stopped and got nutella crepes.  Before Europe I had never tried nutella, but by this point in my trip I am completely hooked.  By the time we had finished the crepes we were back on the metro heading to a local restaurant.  There were indulged in more authentic Italian cuisine and wine.  The night ended at a club called Babel in the heart of Rome.  The atmosphere reminded me a lot of Barcelona, but the addition of so many of my friends from home made it an even more memorable experience.

When I first arrived in Rome, I was discouraged by the unsympathetic taxi drivers and locals who I met during my struggle to find my hotel.  But now that I am reflecting on my trip, my feelings about the people of Rome have totally turned around.  I remembered the generosity of John who gladly let us fill his tiny restaurant and spoiled us with lavish amounts of food.  I also reflected on the man at the crepe shop who served each one of my friends crepes, but not without jokingly offering it to someone else or pulling it away before we could reach it.  There was also the kind man at the hotel who spoke no english but still managed to make my friend and I feel welcomed and at home.   These people are what have made me realize that first impressions are very shallow.  It takes time to know the true character of people in a city, and I was lucky enough to be able to see Rome’s true character even though I was only there for a short weekend.