Match day

Ciao!

Just a quick note today because it's getting late. All of the kids arrived today. They were paired off with Italian families, with whom they will live for the next nine months! I never could have done this as a teenager so I'm in awe of them. The school had a very cute ceremony this afternoon for the student/family match up. All of the students seem great! We're really excited for this year to get underway.

PS. Italian can be a tricky language. We just found out that one slip of the tongue can make all the difference:

"Eli ha uno anno." = Eli is one year old.
"Eli ha uno ano." = Eli has one asshole.

Don't worry, we've got it down now...

Peculiar smells

Here's Eli in his new "gelato-mobile". He loves it! We've found that it keeps him entertained long enough for us to squeeze in two scoops of gelato without him noticing.


So far Italy is much more like America than we expected. The people in the streets all look American at first glance. There are a few gold-clad, ultra-tan, ultra-skinny types walking about, and we have seen a few seven year old boys with enough style to put Johnny Depp to shame, but, for the most part, small-town-Italy is similar to small-town-America. American songs and American movies seem to dominate pop culture here. Maybe it's also so familiar because Italian food, wine, and design are so prominent in American culture. However, there's one sure-fire, day-to-day sensual reminder that we are in a foreign country: Italy smells different. As I've mentioned in past postings, everything here has a very distinct scent. Some scents are glorious. Every afternoon from our bedroom we can smell the wood burning oven of the pizzeria down the street. When we're on an evening walk in the back alleys of town we take in the delicious smells of home-cooked Italian meals from just about every window. The smell of espresso wafting from cafes on every block is heavenly. Even the lava stone of the medieval buildings in town has a wonderfully old and earthy smell. However, the more purposeful scents of the products we buy here are down right bizarre. This is where I notice our most obvious cultural differences. Why do Italians want everything scented, yet so many of them don't wear deodorant? Why do they want bathroom cleanser to smell like Alka-Seltzer? Dish detergent like Tang? Clothes detergent like perfume? Ok, that last one's not so weird, but when the perfume scent is strong enough to make your eyes water that is weird. The hand soap that was left in the apartment for us has a grapefruit/potpurri blended scent (not kidding). It's for these reasons that I'm glad we came. I'm excited to find the answers to these questions.

PS. Sam's birthday was yesterday! We had a great night out on the town to celebrate.

carried off by a twooster

In other news, the Macchina di Santa Rosa, the big statue thing that 100 men will carry around the city in two weeks (stay tuned), and the scaffolding surrounding it was blown over today when a freak storm passed through town. I am not sure if there was a tornado or anything like one, but at around 2pm today the wind suddenly picked up to what must have been 60 or 70 miles an hour. We had to shut all of the windows as soon as we could so that they wouldn't get blown off the hinges. It took about 10 minutes to pass, and when it did, we walked down the street to stop by the school. When we got to the end of the street we looked towards the Porta Romana where the Macchina resides until the procession happens on the 3rd of September, and we saw the whole huge thing (about 100 feet high) blown over and leaning against the city wall. It was still raining out, and only a handful of people had seen this. Men were running to and fro, and I can only assume they were assembling the people who could do something about this. It was very exciting, and we felt cool that we could pass on the news to the people at school who knew nothing about it. Since then (now five hours later) they have brought a crane in and are starting to right the giant thing. A massive crowd of people has gathered to watch, and for all we can tell this is the craziest thing to happen since "Wargames" got snubbed at the Academy Awards. Here's a pic:

Roma di nuovo (Rome again)

Eli and Mom at the trattoria in Trastevere, and Eli and Dad at the Theater of Marcellus.





So we made another trip to Rome yesterday, and I would basically characterize the trip as moments of euphoria punctuated by profuse amounts of sweat and the occasional moment of utter desperation. It was muggy hot. I have never traveled to the deep South in summer, but I imagine that this is what it feels like in New Orleans or Georgia or wherever the deep South is at this time of year. The hordes of tourists have subsided somewhat. I figure the lions share must have had respiratory failure after breathing in the scooter fumes and gone home to convalesce. In the major tourist center we visited, around Piazza Venezia and the Forum Romanum, the tourists still outnumbered the layperson about 50 to 1, but this was a major improvement over our last visit when I don't think we saw a single person who wasn't holding a map and/or a guidebook and ogling some monument. It's great that so many people come to see these wonderful sights, but I am eager to go back and visit the sights when the words throng, horde, nauseating, and dehydration will no longer directly apply to our experience in this great city.

This was the first time any of us had ever been to see the Theater of Marcellus (started by Julius Caesar and finished by Augustus around 13 B.C. It was dedicated to the latter's would-be heir, Marcellus, who died prematurely at age 19. see the last few hundred lines of Book VI of Virgil's "Aeneid" for a poignant tribute to him. Then guess who's writing this post) which was the first permanent theather built in Rome. We also stumbled upon the Jewish Quarter which was nice. We will definitely go back there since some of the best vittles in Rome are supposedly hidden there. A brief jaunt around the Capitoline Hill brought us to the Forum Romanum. On the way we stopped to let Eli practice walking on the grass in front of the Wedding Cake (a.k.a. the monument to Vittorio Emanuele II). Our descent into the Forum lasted about 2 minutes. Eli started to melt down and the stroller couldn't hack it on the rough surface of the paths. We'll be back there for sure. By the time we leave here I want Eli to be reciting the dimensions of the Curia in Oscan.

We managed to eat a great meal outside under a shaded umbrella at a trattoria in Trastevere. Caroline had spaghetti alla matriciana and I had the spaghetti alla carbonara. Loads of pancetta...game on. We drove in this time which was a whole new adventure, t00. Despite the fact that we didn't know where we were 90 percent of the time, we managed to navigate the streets without really making a wrong turn. I'll credit the superior navigation skills and refined geo-spatial intuition of my better half, but I want credit for not killing or maiming any living beings while behind the wheel.

Eli is up from his nap now, and I need to go. Until soon. Ciao.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELI!

Yesterday was Eli's first birthday! We had a small but media heavy party for our little man. We took pictures for the blog, video for Sam's parents and grandfather, and my parents were in attendance live via skype... there was a lot going on. Eli took it in stride. As you can see from the photos, he was very excited about his presents and very serious about his food. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree...


The fixings...

The presents...


The cake...

Eli is a hominid after all (a.k.a. Eli's 1st steps)

Yes. Eli has continued his rapid ascent on his way towards becoming a full-fledged, upright walking member of our species. Today was a wicked hot day here in Viterbo, and Eli was cranky from the get-go. He took an increasingly rare morning nap, but that did little to soothe the little Savage. A brief trip to school (where I will be teaching) helped cheer him up as he got the chance to play with two kids of staff members. After that we found ourselves back at the apartment waiting for him tire enough for a second nap. He spent another hour or so in dreamland (not to be confused with Dreamscape, that fabulous Dennis Quaid/Max von Sydow film), and we promptly exited the premises afterwards for some refreshing gelato. From there we went on to our favorite (and the only) playground inside the city walls where we watched Eli enjoy the marvels of gravity in his bucket swing. It was actually a pretty cool scene. Three or four older Italian women were sitting around chatting. An older man showed up, chatted for a while, then went into the corner of the little park and grabbed a pick-axe type thing. As the women chatted he did some minor weeding. Then he put back the axe and sat down to chat again. He was clearly not a city worker, just a guy who decided to pull a few weeds in between conversations. Not that this was a big deal in any way, but it did remind us that life just moves at a different pace here. Even though every three year old has a cell phone and Vespa, people really do seem to take time for lots of little things. Maybe this has something to do with the Italians living longer on average despite the fact that they smoke like chimneys and have never heard of hand sanitizer.

Anyway, on to Eli's first steps. It was afternoon. Hot. The kind of hot that is, you know, really...hot. Caroline and I sat on the grass opposite one another and led Eli towards one another holding his hands until he would let go. The first few times the result was the same as it has been for the last few weeks. As soon as we let go he would get a worried look on his face and then buckle down to the ground. Then, instead of falling to his butt he tried to move forward. A first. After a couple more tries he managed to put one foot in front of the other and then buckle. Finally, he managed to put as many as three or four steps in a row as he walked, yes walked across to Caroline. Somewhat confused as to whether or not we could call those his first steps we tried again, and this time he added a few steps for show. It's official. Eli took his first steps. Like any good parents we pushed him and pushed him until he refused to walk anymore. His crowning achievement was probably 6 or so consecutive steps, and we are quite proud of our little walkin' man. Of course there are no pictures or video to prove or commemorate this event. I am not even sure the old ladies and the man know that they witnessed history.

Alla prossima.

Copulating Etruscans

I'm on fire this afternoon. This is my second post of the day. I thought I'd report on our latest sightseeing ventures in addition to my last post about Eli. Our sightseeing ventures have been good on the whole so far, with the exception of Orvieto, but I'll explain our Orvieto debacle later. First, Tarquinia, where we saw a bunch of Etruscan ruins. (FYI, Etruscans were a pre-Roman society in these parts for those of you that aren't up on your ancient history).

I found our day studying Etruscan civilization so fascinating that I'm now reading book about it... no kidding... the things you'll resort to without TV. Anyhoo, Tarquinia is southwest from here, very close to the coast. It's on top of a huge hill overlooking the water. The highlight of our day was the enclave of Etruscan tombs that were open to tourists to oggle. Each one comprised of a doorway that led to a steep stairwell. At the bottom of the stairs was a window or a door that allowed a glimpse into the tomb. They were very interesting indeed. Each one had it's own theme, Burial Procession, Farming and Feasting, Earth and Sky, etc. But one stood out to us more than the rest. As we were perusing our map and the audio tour booklet we rented, we noticed a tomb entitled "Flogging Rights". Well this obviously stood out amongst the group, so we made a bee-line for tomb #10. It was hilarious! Some guy wanted to be burried in an S&M chamber - and now we're studying it in great detail... Ah, those wily Etruscans. Here's a pic of Sam and Eli out front.
The other day trip we made was to Orvieto. A gorgeous town that I highly recommend. Again another dramatic hill town, but this one's in Umbria, which is definitely more scenic than Lazio somehow. A visit to the town even includes a funicular ride to the Piazza. All would have been well if I hadn't had wicked allergies over the previous few days. I finally went to the pharmacy the night before we went to Orvieto and they gave me Zirtec right over the counter (love Europe!). Well I've never taken it before, but they didn't seem to carry the lightweight stuff, such as Benedryl, so I gave it a try. Our day in Orvieto went something like this... Caroline is hungry and needs food NOW, Caroline is cranky and needs to yell at Sam NOW, Caroline is tired and needs to sit down NOW, cranky, tired, cranky, hungry, cranky, cranky, cranky! Before I put two and two together about the Zirtec, I thought for sure I was pregnant. YIKES! You can see from the strained smile on Sam's face (dagger eyes actually) that this day wore on us a bit.

Other than those two trips, we've been going to a lake called Lago di Vico everyday. All of Italy is shut down this week due to the Ascension of Mary holiday today, so there's not much else we can do. Lago di Vico is a lake that is inside the crater of an inactive volcano which is pretty cool. It's about ten minutes away, so we can hurry back for Eli's naps when needed.
Keep in touch everybody!

Eli Update

We thought it was time to report on how Eli's adjusting to his experience on The Continent. He seems to be taking everything in stride, though he still refuses to walk. We think he's waiting until he has the strength to walk clear across the room by himself before he ventures out without a helping hand. It's getting a bit frustrating for us but we're trying our best not to push him. Grassy crawling terrain is harder to come by in these parts so traveling would just be a lot easier if he could stretch his legs from time to time no matter where we are. Also, some progress on the talking front. He says Mama and Dada now, but with both words he sometimes loses his train of thought. It goes something like "Mama!(with an acknowledging smile, then on to-)... mam...mamabababa...babagadadagaga.... and so on. He's said "Ciao!" on cue a couple of times as well, but not with any consistency. He's cute as a button though, and we're thoroughly enjoying all of his new tricks. We'd love to see some pics of the babes back home!


For those parents out there, when did you start to momentarily dunk your bambino underwater? Eli seems to be begging for it, but I've been too chicken thus far. Enjoying a dip in the lake...

Sated and sticky after demolishing a enormous nectarine...

We found a bucket swing in town. Yippee!...

Enjoying the train ride to Rome...

Life in Viterbo

We're getting to know our way around town a bit now, s0 we've post some pictures of our apartment, Viterbo and the local haunts we've found thus far...

Our Apartment

The front door to our building .


The front door to our apartment on the third floor (walk-up).

The living and dining rooms face the street. They're pretty much one big room. A skinny wall divides the far sides of the room between the media stand in the living room and the desk in the dining. (There are ridiculously ugly light fixtures in every room - check them out!)










A crude panorama of the view from our living room window.




Local Haunts

Sam at the fruit market across the street.

This very cute meat and cheese market is across the street as well.

The cafe where we get our caffe espresso in the mornings.

The pharmacy where we get all our toiletries etc. BTW, it's curious how there's no such thing as unscented here. It simply doesn't exist for detergents, lotions, soaps, etc. The closest thing we've found are items that "contain no serious fragrance"... hhm... Allergies are practically unheard of as well - but I get a lot of sympathy from pharmacists when I tell them that Eli and I have skin allergies. We're interesting projects for them.

A park and playground for Eli.

A gorgeous little wine bar (or enoteca) for Sam and me.

Viterbo

Street scene in the historic medieval district.

In front of a papal palace of the 13th century.




Hard to tell from this photo, but this is a fairly high-end little shopping district in town.



Residential gardens, such as these, and are peppered throughout town.

two things.

1) The program totally screwed up the formatting of all the pictures in the last post. The table I mention is at the bottom.

2) In the previous post, the tile, Due Euro Carlo (i.e. two buck Chuck) was intended to have a section on wine, but I got distracted and now it's late. Stay tuned for tales of booze.

pics: Rome and Bagnaia/Villa Lante

Rome

Bagnaia/Villa Lante

























This table to the left is actually an outdoor dining table that the popes and their guests used. Water runs down the middle of it and through the face at the end pictured here. At the other end is the fountain with Neptune reclining pictured above.