Ciao, Roma / Hola, Madrid

A little self-deprecating music, because I could've started enjoying Madrid much sooner (also check out their new album. It's really good)

Ciao, Roma

Rome is one of my favorite places I've ever been. Something amazing to eat or see was always around the corner, from 2000 year old Roman monuments to a Renaissance statue to a local market to an amazing family-owned sandwich shop or pasta place. It was overwhelming in a good way. I could spend a year in Rome and still probably not see and eat everything there is. Even after 5 1/2 weeks, there were still parts of the city I hadn't explored yet.

The food and coffee culture in Rome was a dream come true for me. Chain restaurants were practically nonexistent and all the restaurants emphasized fresh, quality ingredients: two hallmarks of great restaurants in my eyes. It made finding a good meal incredibly easy. I felt spoiled by all the great food around me all the time.

Rome had also become a bit like my therapist. Whenever I was feeling lonely or a bit down, all it took was a trip to downtown and a delicious lunch and/or gelato to lift my spirits. The highlight of many of my days in Rome was exploring the city, because if there's two things that will never fail to cheer me up, it's exploring somewhere cool and eating great food (also baseball, but I had to go to Bologna for that).

I was really happy where I was and if I could've, I would've stayed another month or even two in Rome. All seemed right with the world and I didn't want my time there to end. I started missing the city from the moment I stepped on the plane.

Hola, Madrid

Allow me to throw Spain
in your face for a moment

         This is the attitude I came to Spain with. It led me to look for reasons to dislike Madrid and focus on what Rome had that Madrid didn't instead of trying to appreciate the new city. To add to this, it rained nearly every day for the first week and a half, which literally put a damper on things made it hard to go out and explore the city. Also working against me was the fact that my apartment and the study center are both a solid half mile out of the way of the center of town, so I can't just go exploring if I have a two hour gap like I did in Rome.
          All of this made me not care for Madrid for a while. I've since realized that the more I try to compare Rome and Madrid, the less of a chance I'll have to enjoy my time in Spain. The cities are so different culturally and historically that it's impossible to approach them in the same way. I still like Rome more, but I've finally started to take in Madrid and I've really warmed up to it. So, here's some notes on it:

Look how clean and modern it is!

-Public Transportation is a dream: Everything is clean, on time, fast, and you can get anywhere in city and even its suburbs by bus or train. The Metro and the bus system work like clockwork and are extremely reliable and fast. Coming from LA, where it's practically nonexistent, and from Rome where it's a chaotic, overcrowded mess make me appreciate it even more. It's hands down the best I've ever seen. It's so good that I actually don't mind taking the bus, something I try to avoid if at all possible in other cities. This is the public transportation all cities should aspire to.


-I'm less likely to die crossing the street: This was the case in Italy. I think I talked about the chaotic traffic in a couple different posts about Rome, which is why it was shocking how nice the drivers in Madrid are. If a driver sees you standing in front of a crosswalk waiting for you to cross, more often than not, they'll stop and let you go and make sure you're enough out of the way before going through. this is unlike Rome where the drivers all thought they owned the road and would aggressively maneuver around anything in their way.
          This caution extends to pedestrians as well. In Rome, you had to be opportunistic and go whenever you could, regardless of what the signal said. In Madrid, most people hesitate to go until the signal is green, even if there is absolutely no traffic.

Madrid really is beautiful

-Siesta: Yeah, it's real. For those who don't know, Siesta is socially acceptable nap time in the afternoon in Spain, usually between 2:00 and 5:00. All the restaurants are open during siesta, but if you want to go shopping anywhere in the afternoon, it might be hard because many of the stores are closed until later. Siesta traffic is also a thing. I took a bus to get lunch in the 2-3 hour and traffic was so bad that the bus got gridlocked to the point where the driver let us get off in the middle of the street if we thought it might be faster to walk. I have yet to try siesta myself, though. My class schedule makes it hard since I have all afternoon classes. It's because of siesta that...

-Everything happens later in Spain: Most Spaniards don't eat dinner until 9 or 10 PM and the bars stay open way past I'm willing to stay up. This is probably the biggest culture shock I've experienced since being abroad. A late dinner for me is 7:30-8 PM, but a lot of dinner places in Spain don't even open until that time. It can make finding food tricky when you're hungry at 6:30 or 7. Lunch also happens later, as a lot of the lunch places don't open until 1 or 1:30. I'm actually ok with this because I procrastinate enough that I usually end up eating lunch around then anyway. Speaking of food...

Paella from the Mercado de San Miguel. Probably the best
meal I've had since coming to Spain

-It's harder to find good food: I keep hearing Madrid is a great food town, but I haven't seen that so far. I've had a couple really good meals and found a few good places to eat, but the food as a whole hasn't blown me away. I haven't had a "holy shit" meal yet, one that makes me say those words after taking a bite (AKA the best kind). Tripadvisor was my best friend for finding restaurants in Rome, but it hasn't been that so far in Madrid, as all the "top" places are the fine dining, which is not my thing, nor is it something I have the money for. Spanish culture also seems to place an emphasis on meal time as a sit down, social experience. I didn't like this for a while because I had gotten used to of Italy's cheap, quick, and quality culture when it came to food and sit down is boring if I'm on my own exploring, which I usually am. This was initially my biggest complaint about Madrid, but recently I've been trying to put more effort into finding good places, so hopefully I can in the time I have left.

My first meal out in Spain was
literally just a plate of chorizo

-Pork: There is so much pork and ham here, it's ridiculous. From chorizo to the famous Jamón iberico (it's pork that's been fed acorns, apparently) to every form of cooked pig you could possibly want, Madrid has it. There's even a restaurant chain called "Museo de Jamón," or "Museum of Ham," as the ultimate homage to ham. I think pig is the tastiest animal, so I can't complain at all. My friend who's been here all quarter told me the pork culture comes from the expulsion of Jews and Muslims in the 15th Century, since a good way to test whether they had truly converted was to see if they would eat pork or not. I'm not sure if that's true, but it makes a lot of sense. 

Take one walk down Gran Via and tell
me it doesn't remind you of New York

-Madrid feels a lot more like an American city: It's new for Europe (founded in 1500s) so it's certainly closer in time to cities like New York and Boston, and even Los Angeles. The buildings and parks also look new and clean and it makes the city feel modern. If I were to describe it in one sentence, I'd call it the Spanish-speaking European lovechild of New York and Washington DC, since there are parts of Madrid that feel like each city. It has both the upscale commercialism and style of New York and the political buildings and monuments of DC.

Yay for government buildings

         International brands are also much more prevalent here than in Rome. You'd see the occasional McDonald's or Burger King in Rome, but otherwise, everything would be local. Here, it's common to walk down the street and see McDonald's, Subway, Dunkin Donuts, etc, and this makes the city feel really American. I think this is also one of the reasons I didn't initially like Madrid, since I was expecting something that felt more different than America. 

-Madrid has money: The biggest difference between Rome and Madrid is money. In Rome, the really touristy areas were well-financed, but the side streets were often left deteriorating. There was trash and dirt in the streets and it seemed like the government either didn't have the money to maintain everything or decided to spend it elsewhere. Madrid is not like this. Everything looks really well-funded. As I mentioned, the metro is fantastic and about as clean as a metro can get, all the buildings look sleek and modern, all the public parks are well-watered and taken care of, and the city just has a very clean feel to it. It's clear that someone is pouring a lot of money into the city because it's absolutely spotless and gorgeous. From what I've learned in class, this is the only region in Spain that can afford it.

Crappy pano shot of Plaza Mayor

I still like Rome more, but Madrid is definitely growing on me. It's an absolutely gorgeous city and I feel like I've just begun to give it a proper chance to win me over. I'm sure I'll have more to say in a week or two.

Where to Eat in Rome

Rome is a great food city. If you're planning on visiting, I'm going to assume you know this. A good meal isn't hard to find, but some places are definitely better than others. Three things I used to find good restaurants were:

1. TripAdvisor: For those of you familiar with Yelp, it works in the same way, but in Italy. If you go on their site and search "restaurants near Rome," it'll give you a pretty good list of recommendations. That's how I found a lot of these places.
2. Watch for Stickers: If you see a restaurant with a lot of stickers in the window, that's an excellent sign. The more the better, I've found. Be sure to look not only for Tripadvisor stickers (make sure they say "recommended" or "certificate of excellence" and not just "review us") but also for any with dates on them, like "Roma 2014" or something like that. These are usually signs of good places to eat.
3. Who is there/When?: When you walk by a restaurant, do you see mostly tourists or a bunch of locals? If you see a lot of locals eating there, that's a good sign. This is especially true if you see the restaurant packed at like 2 PM or 6 PM, times that are less busy than the respective lunch and dinner rushes. A restaurant being busy or having a line all the time is a double-edged sword. It means you have to wait a bit, but it's also the sign of a great restaurant that's probably worth waiting for. This is a great way to find good restaurants anywhere, not just in Rome.

While it's hard to go wrong with food in Rome, here's a few of the places I tried and would recommend going. Keep in mind that these places are takeout restaurants or street food. If you're looking for a fancy, upscale meal with friendly waiters in a place that oozes luxury, this list isn't for you. I travel on a budget and I'm also a firm believer in the fact that you can get as good if not better food from downscale local places than any fancy 5-star restaurant. At all of these places, you can get amazing food for €8-9 or less.

The Essentials--Places I'd consider can't-misses and worth going out of your way for:

One of Biscottificio Innocenti's owners and their cookies

Biscottificio Innocenti, Via della Luce, 21 (Trastevere): Holy shit, these cookies. The bakery is tucked away on a side street. If you can find the street, the bakery shouldn't be too hard to find--not because it's obvious, but because you can smell the delicious sugary smell from a good distance. The bakery is a family business that's been going for 4 generations, so they know how to bake cookies. Every single cookie I tried was incredible. They somehow manage to give them all a perfect texture. Not too chewy, but not too crunchy either. I can only describe it as "just right" and every one is a heavenly sensation in your mouth. I recommend getting the assorted cookies. It's a little more expensive, but for €6 (300 g) you get a pretty full bag, and it's a great way to try all the types of cookies they have. A majority of them are sugar cookies, but a good number have chocolate, nuts, coconut, or raisins. It took a good deal of restraint to not eat the entire bag in one sitting. This place is definitely a must visit if you're in Rome.

Da Simo's sandwich with chicken, pork, lamb, and chicory

Da Simo... pane e vino, Via di Parione, 34 (near Piazza Navona): This is one of the places in Rome I'm going to miss the most. They have the best sandwiches I had in the city. Whenever I needed my meat fix, I went here. The workers are all extremely friendly and speak pretty good English, and they knew me by name by the last couple times I visited. The sandwiches are a little more expensive than other places in Rome (€4.50 for half, €6 for full), but you get what you pay for. They're big, they have a lot of meat, they're insanely delicious. I've had the one with chicken, pork, and lamb, the one with boiled beef, onions, and chicory, and one with meatball and artichoke and they've all been crazy good. They also have a nice selection of beers in the fridge, though I never really took advantage of that because I usually had class right after I ate lunch. The seating area is subpar (all outside and on cheap tables), and they do tend to take their time, especially when they're busy, but the sandwiches are more than worth it.

Gelateria Frigidarium, Via del Governo Vecchio, 112 (between Piazza Navona & Castel Sant'Angelo): Hands down the best gelato in Rome. I've had some very good gelato in Rome, but this place is consistently head-over-heels better than any other place I've been (the only better gelato I've had anywhere was in Florence). There is usually a bit of a line, but don't be intimidated. It moves quickly and the gelato is totally worth the wait. €2 gets you a small cup (2 flavors) and then you have the option to dip it in white or dark chocolate. Frigidarium, the namesake flavor, is the best in my opinion. It's yellow with a chocolate swirl and cookies sticking up out of it and it tastes like a buttery chocolate cookie. Other flavors I really liked were the dark chocolate (fondente) (which is especially good if you combine it with the caffé flavor) and cannolo (cannoli). You won't go wrong with any flavor though. I've made a point to try at least one new flavor every time I went and everything I had there was amazing.

Trapizzino's coda alla vaccinaria (oxtail)

Trapizzino Testaccio, Via Giovanni Branca, 88 (Testaccio neighborhood)- A trapizzino is basically a pocket made out of pizza dough and filled with a variety of things. I've had the chicken cacciatore and the oxtail (coda alla vaccinanara) and they've both been amazing, though I think I liked the ox tail more. I think the concept of a trapizzino is unique to this restaurant, which has two branches in Rome, though I've only visited the Testaccio location. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but around lunch, there's usually a line or a crowd of people around it, which is always a great sign. Just be warned that since it's street food, seating is limited.

Other favorites: A tier below "can't miss," but also incredibly good.

Bar Amore's cappuccino

Bar Amore, 41 Via dei Banchi Nuovi (between Piazza Navona & Castel Sant'Angelo)- I went here probably more than any other restaurant in Rome, for three reasons: 1). It's right next to the UC study center, 2). It's delicious, 3). It's a great value. This place is really easy to miss. The only thing that makes it place stick out from the street is a thin sign that says "snack bar," that you probably wouldn't pay attention to unless you knew it was there. There's usually a line when you go in, and there's two areas of the restaurant: one where you can order a panino or a pastry, and then the coffee bar. Their cappuccinos are truly some of the best I had in Rome. I didn't drink a cappuccino the last day I was in Rome because I wanted my last cappuccino in Italy to be from Bar Amore. Their paninis are also great. They have several different types of meat and vegetables to choose from as fillings, and the portions are also pretty big for Italy. It's a great place to get coffee and/or lunch.

Suppli'

I Suppli', Via di S. Francesco a Ripa, 137 (Trastevere)- Suppli', for those who don't know, is a fried rice ball filled with meat sauce and cheese. Yes, it's as good as it sounds, maybe even better. I about cried the first time I had suppli' because of just how good it was. I Suppli' is easy to miss. I walked past it a good 2-3 times without ever noticing it, but just look for a mob of people eating rice balls outside, and that should help you find it. They also have pasta and pizza, which I didn't try, but the suppli' is the main attraction, and at €1.20 a piece, it's a great deal. They're kinda small, but they're definitely filling.

Pasta e Vino's Fettuccine Carbonara

Pasta e Vino Come na vorta, 
Vicolo Del Cinque 40 (Trastevere)- Really good pasta place. They have some of the tastiest and richest carbonara (a Roman specialty made with cheese, pork cheek, cream, black pepper, and eggs) in Rome. They seem to have perfected "al dente," as the pasta consistency is perfect. This is probably due to how fresh it is. You can see the pasta being made right in front of you. The restaurant has a window in front of a cutting board where you can watch the owner knead the dough and then cut it into pasta-shaped strips and prepare it to be cooked. It's a little more expensive than some of the other pasta take away places in town, but not overpriced by any means (€6-7.5 per plate). Just be sure to plan ahead if you decide to go. Seating availability is limited and this place also likes to take its time making your food.

Fettuccine with Pesto

Pasta Imperiale, Via dei Coronari, 160, (Pretty close to Castel Sant'Angelo): I'm sad because I only got to visit this place once, on my last night in Rome. The pasta I had, though, was excellent--truly some of the best I had in Rome. I had the pesto and it was absolutely fantastic. I'm not sure if I've ever had such fresh, tasty, and cheesy pesto. I really regret not finding this place sooner. You can also get it in a combo meal, which is €8-9 and includes pasta, a piece of tiramisu and a bottle of water. The restaurant has a couple small tables, but not much. I didn't get to eat my food there at all, so I can't comment too much on it.

Cappuccino & mini cannoli 

Sicilia e Duci, Viale di Trastevere, 69 (Trastevere): This was a place I found on accident when I was walking somewhere and impulsively decided to get coffee. They have pretty good coffee and excellent Sicilian pastries. This was my favorite place to get a cannoli in Rome. They have mini cannolis that are delicious, only €1, and not so big and filling as in other places. They also have freddo, which is one of the only ways to get iced coffee in Rome. Like many cafés, they also have actual food, which I didn't try, but can only assume is delicious based off the quality of the other stuff they had. It's a great place for a mid-afternoon snack and coffee.

Solopasta's spaghetti carbonara & wine

Solopasta, Via della Vetrina, 1 (Between Piazza Navona & Castel Sant'Angelo)- Really good pasta place. I've had the carbonara and ragu' before and they're both excellent. The best part about this place is the deal you get: €5 gets you a big plate of delicious pasta AND a drink, which is pretty much unbeatable. They have Peroni, the standard Italian beer, red and white wine, and water to choose from. Just don't go if you're in a hurry. The place is small and it can take them a little time to get your order out, but it's worth it for the food and the value.

Honorable mentions: Pompi (Via Albalonga, 7, near the Spanish Steps), Il Pastaio di Roma (Via dei Coronari, 102/103, down the street from Pasta Imperiale), Caffe' Lungara 1940 (Via della Lungara, 14, Northern Trastevere)

Now go to Rome and eat like motherf'ing royalty.

Meeting My Arch Nemesis: Italian McDonald's

Ignore the fact that this is actually about relationships

Forgive me, Lord, for I have sinned.
I broke one of my cardinal rules of traveling: don't eat at a chain restaurant.
I also broke of of my guiding principles in life: don't eat at a fast food chain unless there are no better options.
I ate at a McDonalds in Rome.

Before you call me a sellout and rightfully question my decision-making, let me just say that I did this purely for the experience. I've heard McDonald's is different around the world and it looked radically different than any McDonald's I'd ever seen before.

"What do you mean by that?" you may ask. I mean it looks like this inside:

And there's a balcony:

So with curiosity and some encouragement from a slightly less than sober roommate, I decided to go and document my experiences. I went twice; once with my roommates during dinner and again a few weeks later during lunch.

Keep in mind it's been about 4 years since I've been in McDonald's for any reason other than to use the bathroom and it's been even longer since I've ordered anything from one, so my comparisons are based on old memories.

If it weren't for the Italian, could you tell the difference?

Once you get inside, the counter looks familiar and ordering works the same way it does in the US. The menu is sprawled out on signs behind the cashiers. They had the typical fare: burgers, fries, milkshakes, sodas, chicken nuggets, etc. The only item I saw that was different was beer. Yeah, they sell beer at Italian McDonalds.

McDonald's is surprisingly pricey in Italy. A standard burger or a meal costs €7-8. That's still not super expensive, but I feel like it definitely costs more abroad. Normally I can get a killer panino or plate of pasta €6-7 max, so that's also what I'm used to. Since I wanted to spend as little as possible while committing this foodie sin, I opted for the value menu.

I ordered a McBeer because I felt like I had to just to say I did. I also ordered a chickenburger off the value menu, and I got an order of fries when I went back during lunch because I wanted to experience a "complete" meal.

The chickenburger & beer

The Chickenburger is a chicken patty with mustard on a bun. Its stripped-down nature is the price you pay for, well, not paying the full price. The first thing I tasted while biting into this thing was the cheap, dry, almost papery bun. It felt like the bun was pushing the definition of "bread" a little because I'm pretty sure actual bread shouldn't taste like paper. The patty tasted like one of McDonald's chicken nuggets, just thinner and wider. I'm not entirely sure it's purely chicken, but it tasted vaguely like chicken between the blandness. It was one of those things where you end up tasting the texture more than the flavor. Then you got to the mustard, which was a gross, greenish sort of thing. You could tell they were aiming for a mustard-like flavor, even if they didn't meet their goal. It added a new flavor, but I'm not sure that's a good thing. It tasted about how I remember it tasting in America and reminded me why I never go to McDonald's. I thought the food might be different in Europe, but I guess standardization is key for big corporations. Overall, it was bland, cheap, and a little gross-- about how I view fast food in general.


The fries were a surprise. On a french fry scale of "basically just crispy, fried potato" to "potato wedges," these fries were definitely more towards the "basically just crispy, fried potato" end. There was not a ton of potato inside, but they were pretty crispy and tasted kind of potato-y. They were a bit bland, but they definitely got better when I put some salt on them. I could tell they were low quality and not exactly made with fresh ingredients, but they were decent and tasted about like the ones I've had in the US. Granted, it was about 1:45 and I hadn't eaten anything since breakfast when I had these, so my hunger may have exaggerated my feelings towards them a little, but I've had worse fries.

I was severely disappointed that the beer wasn't called a McBeer or a McBrew. It was a can of Birra Moretti, which is one of the cheap, standard Italian brands. The first thing I noticed was the lack of carbonation. Like, it was there, but only barely. I'm not a huge carbonation fan, but it still felt a little wrong. The beer was watery and lacked a little in flavor, especially with the aftertaste, but it was still pretty drinkable. However, before my 21st birthday in March, I had never had a beer, so maybe I haven't tried enough of them for my standards to be too high yet. Still, I thought it was decent. It was one of the better parts of the experience and I can now definitively say I've had a beer at McDonald's, even if it was a letdown that it wasn't called a McBeer.

When we first came for dinner, the restaurant was not that busy, but by the time we left, around 8:30-8:45, the restaurant had filled in quite a bit. Italians eat late, so this isn't too much of a surprise. During dinner, there were several families with small kids, 3-4 couples, two pairs of friends, a couple groups of young, hipster-esque guys, and one man sitting by himself.  During lunch, there were 7 or 8 people sitting alone who looked like they were out on lunch breaks, two moms with young kids, a couple groups of young friends, and a few couples. Interestingly, most of the customers were relatively young, and no one looked, at least from simple observation, like they were poor, disheveled, or obese, which are three things you expect to see at an American McDonald's.

The atmosphere was the best part of Italian McDonald's. The restaurant has several large bar-like tables plus a few small two-person tables and a good amount of booths.. There's also a nice outside area with a few tables, an umbrella, and a space heater. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to go up on the balcony. It was closed when I went for dinner and when I started walking up the stairs during lunch, the door was locked and an employee shot me a look of, "sorry, man." It had been raining earlier in the day, so maybe that was why it was closed. The way it was designed, it seemed like more people ate the food there than took it home.

The restaurant is really bright and colorful inside and had an olive green/brown/white theme that splashed the walls, tables, and chairs. It felt more like I was in a Panera than a McDonald's and it gave it a fun, almost artsy and upscale vibe to it. Both times, I sat at a long bar-like table in the center of the restaurant that had a power strip for people to plug phones and laptops into. There was EDM playing in the background during dinner and then standard radio songs during lunch. It seems like McDonald's here puts effort into creating a bit of an atmosphere.

Italian McDonald's is basically an American McDonald's plus beer and minus the despair, obesity, and poverty. Overall, it was the worst meal I've had in Rome, though Rome sets an extremely high standard. If you must go, get the beer and fries, but steer clear of the main courses. I hope this is the last time I order food at McDonald's for a long, long time.

Ok, you made it through the fast food. As a reward, here's a picture of a delicious plate of pasta with parmesan and cream sauce:

From Il Pastaio di Roma, one of the places you should go in Rome

More Notes on Rome

Song

You know those movies or books that are basically just a collection of short stories or vignettes, loosely united by a common theme? That's this post. Imagine me as Tarantino minus the cartoonish violence.

Rush Hour- Growing up in Los Angeles, I'm no stranger to traffic, but Rome's rush hour is pretty insane. I normally walk to class instead of take the tram because it's cheaper and the exercise justifies the plate of carbonara I'm most likely going to shove down my throat during lunch, but I've had the (dis)pleasure of being a part of Rome's rush hour a couple times. I live in Trastevere, which is a neighborhood West and across the river from the center of town. In the morning, every street on my route to class, in the center of town, is gridlocked. Cars try to squeeze through any way they can on the narrow streets, creating lots of honking and near misses.

The train on a day I walked to class.

         "Wow, that sounds bad, Noah," you're probably saying, "but you should take the train and you'll be fine, right?" Wrong. One time, I was going to take the train to class with a few classmates. The train showed up and it was so full that it was physically impossible for me to get on, even when everybody squished in as far in as they could. There was nothing I could do. I'm not small and neither is my backpack, so as the train doors closed and departed with my classmates inside, I was left at the station. It felt like one of those old movies when someone says goodbye to somebody leaving on the train, except it was more of an, "oh crap. I guess I'm walking" reaction instead of a teary, heartbreak-filled goodbye.
           However, this only seems to be a problem outside of the downtown touristy area. Once I got to the center of town (this was about 9 AM), the streets were surprisingly empty. I guess the tourist area doesn't get busy until later in the day.

Cappuccinos are the best. Never let anyone tell
you otherwise.

Coffee- Coffee culture is everywhere and I love it. Every restaurant or snack bar has coffee, every street vendor sells espresso makers, and I've even seen a few coffee vending machines. This all means that I haven't had a bad cup since I've been here (I'm not doing that cup I had on the plane the decency of calling it "coffee"). Cappuccinos have become my drink of choice. For those of you who don't know, it's a shot of espresso with warm, foamy milk (and sometimes cocoa powder) on top. It's simple, but delicious. It's cheap as hell too. The most I've paid for coffee here is €1.5, which, even with the exchange rate, is still cheaper than any halfway decent cup of coffee I could get in the US. Granted, the portions are smaller since coffee and espresso mean the same thing here, but it doesn't matter because it's so good and these little shots of espresso pack a punch in terms of caffeine. One shot of espresso does me just as well as a 16 oz drip coffee. Unfortunately for me, an avid iced coffee drinker, it's a lot harder to find cold coffee. It exists and is called either a freddo (basically sweet cold brew espresso) or a shakerato (made by shaking ice, sugar, and hot espresso together in a cocktail shaker), but they're usually a little more expensive and harder to find.

Have a generic crowd shot for lack of anything else relevant

Clothing- People seem put a lot more effort into fashion here than they do in America. The Romans dress well and seem make an effort to look nice and put together outfits. As someone who puts next to no effort into fashion as it is, I feel a bit underdressed. This is especially true when I wear shorts. Wearing shorts is a great way to immediately be identified as a tourist. The only people I've seen wearing shorts, even in warmer weather, are foreigners. The only Italians who don't have their legs covered are women wearing skirts and children. Ever since I realized this, I've tried to wear long pants when I can and when it isn't too hot, but since the rest of my wardrobe consists of t-shirts and tennis shoes, I still look like an underdressed foreigner. Part of me wants to try to dress the part of a European a little more, but the other part of me knows I don't have money to burn (I'd rather spend it on food) or an adequate knowledge of fashion to make it happen.

Sandwich with chicken, pork, lamb, and chicory. Oh god yes

The Standard of Food: One of the things I've noticed is that in Italy, the standard of food seems to be much higher than in America. There are very few chains, meaning every other restaurant is locally owned. This makes me happy. There also seems to be an emphasis on fresh ingredients and local products. It's like this place was made for a food lover/hipster like me. Both of these things make a huge difference in the quality of food (free cooking tip while I'm at it: Fresh ingredients absolutely matter). Even the more average meals I've had here are as good as the above average ones in America. Though I still try to go to the highest-rated places, there's much less of a risk at ending up getting a subpar meal than if you wander into any restaurant in the US. I'm not going to lie, the food is probably my favorite thing about Rome.

The Communist Party door I mentioned. I love the fact that it's
red. It's so cool, it's Com-rad. I'll see myself out.

The Presence of Communism- In America, thanks to Mr. McCarthy and others, "communist" and "socialist" have (unjustly) become dirty words few are willing to publicly associate with. However, the only Red Scare in Italian history was called "fascism," and we all know how well that went over. Therefore, Communism doesn't have the stigma it does in America, so it's still alive and kicking. It's pretty common to see the sickle and hammer graffitied on walls when you're out walking, and I've also seen some campaign posters for Communist politicians. On my way to class, I also pass by an office for the Communist Party, sitting there amongst the gelato shops and a gift stores on a big street. It's something that shouldn't surprise me but does. Communism is such a taboo thing in American politics that I've been led to believe it's a dead philosophy nobody but extremists believe in any more. That may be true in the US, but definitely not in Italy.

Taken in downtown Naples, on one of the major streets. 

Crosswalks- Pedestrian signals are completely arbitrary. Crossing the street is all about being opportunistic. There are pedestrian signals (which look like stoplights, but with a pedestrian silhouette), but following them might actually be more dangerous than just jaywalking. Often times, the light will be red but no traffic is coming, so it's perfectly safe to go. Other times, the signal is green, so you step out in the street and almost get run over by a Porsche, a taxi, and 3 motor scooters, who all honk at you to get out of their way. For big roads, the signals do help, but in general, it's best to disregard the signal and cross when others cross or when there's no traffic coming. Roman drivers also think they own the road and won't hesitate to honk at you or speed past you when you're a foot or two away. I never want to drive here. I feel like I'd get in a crash within a week, and I consider myself a pretty good driver.

I take classes in this building.

Classes- Oh yeah, those. That's right, Noah's actually doing studying in Europe and not just taking a 3 month vacation. Kinda forgot, right? I'm taking one about 20th century Italian history through film and one about Early Modern Europe. They're alright, though it's hard when they have to cram a quarter's worth of work into 5 weeks. If you thought the quarter system was fast-paced, try this on for size. Because of this tight schedule, the classes are 3 hours long. I don't care how interesting the class is--that's brutal. Oh, and I'm procrastinating on them by writing this post. Whoops.

Church Hopping

"Say what you will about organized religion. Those bastards knew how to construct an edifice.” -Ron Swanson, Parks & Recreation.

Screw it. 2 intros. I just found this song yesterday and I like it.

Rome is a very religious city. Naturally, it has a lot of churches, and most of them are open to the public when they're not doing worship services. A fun thing to do is to go church-hopping: going from church to church across the city. That may not sound like a lot of fun if you're familiar with the ordinary-looking churches in the US, but here, they're a main attraction.

The churches in Rome are ridiculous. Walk into any church in Rome and I guarantee you'll be impressed. And I do mean any church. Even the less elaborate ones are still insanely beautiful and blow away anything I've ever seen in the US.

You walk into one church and are impressed at how lavish, ornate, and beautiful it is:

You think you're in the most beautiful church you've ever seen. Then you walk into the one a couple blocks down the street and see this:

OH MY GOD, CATHOLIC CHURCH. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? THAT'S INSANE. NONE OF THAT IS FAKE GOLD.

I've gotten in the habit of laughing when I walk into a new church just because of how ridiculous and over-the-top each one is. I imagine the early modern Catholic Church as John Hammond from Jurassic Park constantly bragging that he, "spared no expense" in his park. Of course, his dinosaurs ended up escaping and killing people. You could probably make an analogy out of that, but I'm not going to.

It feels like churches in Rome were built for the specific purpose of topping each other, like its builders were compensating in the same way people with huge, lifted pick-up trucks are (and knowing the history of the Catholic Church, I think it's safe to assume that's at least somewhat true). I can see why many during the Renaissance criticized the Church for its excess. I mean, look at this and then look me in the eye and tell me this isn't excessive:

San Carlo al Corso, my favorite church in Rome. This and the
previous picture were taken there.

Inside the gold thingy was the remnant of one
Saint's heart

Each church has between 6 and 12 different altars on the side to complement the main sanctuary. Sometimes they're just pretty altars and other times they're dedicated to a particular Saint, or to Christian martyrs from a particular place.

I've seen a few resting places of famous Saints as well, but I don't know enough about them for it to mean much to me (Protestants doesn't revere saints). There were signs that explained what everything was, but I couldn't read any of them because they were all in Italian. I really wanted to and ask someone about the history of the church, because I'm sure it would add to the spectacle that's already there, but I don't know the language well enough. Even if I could ask, I don't think I could understand them well. I'm not at that point yet.

Oh, nothing. Just some Renaissance masterpiece
art on the ceiling. Just an average Tuesday.

Each church also has a little table where religious pamphlets, candles, rosaries, and even postcards are sold. I'm not sure whether or not these booths were affiliated with the Church or not, but it was a little weird seeing makeshift gift shops inside a place of worship. I have a feeling they're also partly there to monitor the church and make sure nobody starts vandalizing the art, but I couldn't help thinking it was a way for the Catholic Church to make a quick buck, especially when I'm standing in a Vatican-endorsed church that's at least 100 feet tall, covered in stunning art, and lined with gold.


If you're in Rome, I highly recommend going church-hopping. It's a great way to get to know the city, and you won't see more beautiful art anywhere else. The churches sometimes grossly excessive, but absolutely breathtaking in equal or greater measure. Just forget the questionable church policies that created them and appreciate them as the works of art they are.

Yes we Vati-CAN: Easter with the Pope

Relevant song title + great guitar playing

As you should've been able to gather by now, I've been in Rome the last week.
Easter was last Sunday.
Last Sunday was part of the last week.
Therefore, I was in Rome during Easter.
Rome is where the Vatican is located.
The Vatican is where the Pope and Catholicism are based.
Easter Sunday is a big deal in Christianity and it is celebrated at the Vatican.
I was there.
It was pretty great.

I realized I'd be in Rome during Easter about a month ago, and the crazy idea of, "what if I went to the Vatican on Easter?" popped in my head. It was nothing but a crazy idea until the night before, when I actually made plans to go with some people from the program.

Imagine this face burning into your eyes
when reading the "Very Lutheran" paragraph

Let me contextualize this a bit by saying that I am very, very protestant (i.e. not Catholic). To say I was brought up in the Lutheran church would be an understatement. My grandfather was a minister for over 50 years, and my aunt and great-grandfather also spent time as ministers. The rest of my maternal family has also been heavily involved in the church for many years. The answer to the question, "how Lutheran am I?" is "VERY LUTHERAN," flashing and blinking in all caps to the point where a hallucination of Martin Luther's face starts to appear between the flashes. (If you didn't know this about me, don't feel bad. I don't like to tell a lot of people)

Despite my obvious biases, I thought it'd be fun. Plus, Catholicism is close enough to Lutheranism that I feel comfortable participating in a lot of it.

Tickets to Easter Sunday mass were free, but you had to reserve them well in advance. People with a ticket could sit in a large area of seats that had been set up in front of the Vatican steps. Anyone else was welcome, but it would be standing room only. Since the plan came together late, we assumed we'd be amongst the crowd. It'd be crazy, but worth it.

I met up with the group at the lovely hour of 6:45 AM, knowing we'd have to get there early if we wanted a good seat. What made it worse is that Europe has Daylight Savings a couple weeks after America, so this year, it happened to land on Easter Sunday, which meant I had even less time to sleep. We stopped for a cappuccino and a croissant and then walked to the Vatican.

The line for the second round of security

We arrived about 8:00 and waited in a line in the long street that led to St. Peter's. Security was everywhere. I had brief, morbid thoughts about a terrorist attack here in the wake of Brussels, but I sincerely doubted security would let anything like that happen at such a high profile event. If anything, it was probably stricter now than it would've been otherwise.

There was only one entrance into St. Peter's plaza and our bags were checked before we went in. We were then shown to another line on the left side of the plaza, in and around the big columns. When we made our way through that line, we had to go through an airport-style security station, where they checked for any metal and X-rayed our bags.

"IT'S TOMMY
TROJAN!" I said
several times, but
no one laughed.

We got through security and, in trying to find a place to stand, were escorted into one of the seating areas. We didn't have tickets, but none of us said a word and there seemed to be no objection. I was happy we didn't have to stand for like 4 hours straight, but I was also shocked that we actually got seats. I thought we'd have to get there at 5:00 AM or something ridiculous like that to get so close. I even started to think it was a mistake. To go to the bathroom, you had to leave the seating area, which meant getting your ticket marked for re-entry by the Vatican's security guards, which, by the way, look like this----------------------------------------->
Since I didn't have a ticket, I just held it in, fearing I wouldn't be let back in if I left.

Our seats. Not bad, right?

The service started about 10:15. Content-wise, it was pretty much what you'd expect from an Easter Sunday service at any church, but on a massive scale and with a huge budget and the Pope.

One of the criticisms I have of the Catholicism is that its worship services are not very participatory. What I mean by that is it's a lot of watching and listening. You don't really get to do anything except for a couple musical responses and prayers. It seems more like I'm watching a performance than worshipping anything. Normally, this makes things dull, but in the context of being at the freaking Vatican, the performance-style worship works perfectly and adds to the spectacle.

The Pope led a procession out the Holy Door (yes, it's really called that) and around the altar, spreading incense before being escorted to a throne-like chair in the back, where he sat for a good portion of the service. He came out again to the altar during Communion, but otherwise remained in the chair. The service was led from a pulpit at the bottom of the staircase. We couldn't see it, but it was shown on the video monitor.

The Pope is the guy in gold in front of the man with red pants.

The crowd was enormous. I was close to the front in a seat, but behind the seating section, it was standing room only throughout all of Vatican City. It was absolutely packed around the fountains and down the street. It was the definition of a sea of people, and it very well might've been the biggest crowd I've ever seen anywhere.

A taste of the crowd

The crowd was also extremely international. I saw and heard Italians, fellow Americans, Germans, Koreans, Russians, and Chinese people sitting around us and flags from Spain and Latin and South America in the crowd behind us. It reminded me how truly wide-spread Catholicism is. You'd be hard-pressed to find many ethnic groups and nationalities that weren't represented.

The Church was obviously aware of this in planning the service. One of the coolest parts was the prayers, which were all read in all different languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Arabic, Russian, Greek, and Chinese, while the rest of the service was in Latin or Italian. I absolutely loved this and it was so cool to see the Church trying to represent the diversity of its followers. The word "catholic" means "universal," so the Church seems be trying to live up to its name.

The music was amazing. Everyone they had sing at the pulpit had a beautiful voice. While the audience could respond or sing along, the singers they had were the main attraction. I got chills at least a couple times listening to some of their voices. I mean, you have to be really good to sing at the Vatican on Easter, right? The choir also sounded great, but some of its quality was lost because it wasn't well-mic'ed.

After the service was over, the Pope was escorted to his Popemobile (as it should be called) and rode through the crowd in pathways security had cleared. He rode up and down the crowd for a good 20-30 minutes, making the rounds twice. I wasn't near one of the clear pathways, but I was still able to see him really clearly. At closest, he was about 40-50 feet away from me, which is still a lot closer to a Pope than a lot of people have been.

The Pope at his closest to me. I cropped the picture, though, so he was a little farther away than it looks.

Pope Francis delivering his sermon. iPhones
don't zoom well.

Once he was done, he returned to the Basilica and disappeared for a few minutes. He then appeared on the top balcony of the Basilica and delivered a sermon. It was in Italian, so I didn't get everything, but I heard the words, "violenza,""terrorismo," and "Jesu'," as well as "Belgium" and the names of several countries where there had been violence, so it was about violence in the world, and he related it to Jesus' love at the end, I think. He had a calm, wise, and gentle voice. It sounded... papal, if that makes sense. He finished his speech to great applause and afterwards, the crowd slowly dispersed.

I'm so happy I decided to go. What was once a crazy idea turned out being one of the coolest experiences I've had. I feel like even the most die hard of atheists would enjoy it, just for the grand spectacle if nothing else.

And I may have been a heathen as a protestant going to Catholic mass with the Pope, but it's ok, because I made sure to represent us with a shirt I bought specifically for the purpose of wearing to the Vatican: