After being here in Rome for a little over two weeks, I’ve noticed something. A lack of ‘compensation’…or in Leman’s terms, everything here is small. Prime example is what most of the people drive here. It’s called a Smart Car. Created by the head of Swatch who teamed up with Mercedes to creat the smallest legal road vehicle I’ve ever seen. It’s approximately the size of a Golf Cart. No joke. And Italians tool around in them everywhere. I had the pleasure of visiting a small in-city Smart Car dealership while out and about on Villa De Corso, the hip and trendy fashion street (well, one of the many). The car is somewhat ridiculous and ingenious at the same time. It has a crazy amount of leg room, considering it’s size (it is only a two-seater), however, as my golf-crazed roommate pointed out “there’s no way you could easily fit two golf bags in here, so I’d never buy it.” Though, after careful inspection, I think it might be possible if all the woods and old man long putters are taken out and laid lengthwise w/the car instead of sideways. I’m sure it also get’s some absurd amount of liters per kilometer (similar to the mile per gallon) ‘cause the engine is tiny. It also weighs about as much as an NFL lineman. I’ve seen people pick them up and move them when they are jammed into a spot by two other cars…it’s hilarious. (www.smart.com)
Also, a great deal of people here have dogs, and a great deal of those dogs are nasty little ankle bitters. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like the small dog, but they’re all freaking Chowawas and things of that yappy, ankle-bitting nature. The funniest part is that half of them (basically all the women who own these creatures) carry them around, instead of walking them. It’s as though it were a child that required no breast feeding (which we’ve seen several times out our winder) and cries all the time. It’s something that I’m apparently not Italianized enough to understand yet, maybe by the time I leave.
I will conclude my ranting with apartment doors and blankets. Granted, they’re almost normal size, it’s as though a 4 year old constructed them…probably the same 4 year old who drew the pornographic art that came with our apartment. None of them close correctly, forcing you to jam them closed. This wouldn’t really be an issue if people weren’t getting up at 8.30 to go to 9am classes while others are trying to sleep. Not to mention that they squeak so horribly I though I was in Frankenstein’s layer opening a giant steel hinged door. And the blankets that came with our “supplied bedding” would almost cover up my sister who despite valiant efforts and growth spurts, is still much shorter than I. I think I shall go into student services later today and ask for a real blanket or if I can guy buy one and be reimbursed ‘cause it’s fairly absurd how inadequate the blanket the area of coverage all these blankets provide.
Now that I have that off my chest, I swear I really enjoy it here. I just figured that I should throw some sort of a rant in every-once-and-a-while so that these things don’t get too boring. Sunday was the weekly flee market…let’s just say that the flea market and I got along just lovely this week. I ended up buying a Luis Vitton travel bag (the world print, not the LV print), a horribly fake motorcycle jacket (but people in the state’s will think it’s cool), and a Breitling watch. It was all in all a good day, though I was unable to locate the purse(s) I’ve been requested to find. Hopefully next time.
Monday, there were an unusually large amount of “entertainers” outside of our window. One of them happened to be an Italian named Ben sporting a Stratocaster, loop station, wah pedal, and mini powered amp. He was pretty good and I eventually got my guitar, yelled form the window, and went down and jammed with him for about a half hour. It was pretty cool. Didn’t really make any money (I think a few people may have dropped some coins, but I didn’t take any of them). So, I unofficially played my first “show” over-seas…boo ya.
On Monday, I also booked our trip to the Isle of Capri for the weekend. We’ll be staying at the Bussola di Hermes in Anacapri. I believe it’s on the top of a large hill on the island and is w/in walking distance to the beach. It’s supposed to be very pretty and half in some forest…or something. I’m not really sure exactly, but the pictures looked pretty nice. (http://www.capri.net/salsa/lang/en/card1_id/57/page/card.html)...that's a website of the hostile...
Oh, we also went to the outlets Sunday with our Italian friend Fabrizio. They we’re pretty much the same as the outlets in the states in their layout, however it was Dolce & Gabana and Versace instead of Gap and Rebok. I ended up getting a solid deal on some Pumas and a David Mayer shirt. Boo Ya for Italian outlets.
Tonight, I have decided to make dinner and to change things up from the usual Mussels, Pasta, or Pizza, I’ve gone out and purchased some ground beef, French bread, and various vegetables and cheeses to make some of what you may like to call imitation Tubby’s burger subs. Basically, slice the bread open like a sub, and shove lots of meat, veggies, cheese, and ketchup in it. Hopefully it turns out, but if not we can probably just go around the corner and get some pizza.
Thanks to everyone who has responded to any of my e-mails/postings, it’s good to be informed of what’s happening outside of my little roman bubble. Without the TV and limited internet time, it’s hard to keep up w/everything that’s going on in the world. I’ll write soonly, talk to ya’ll later.
Ciao,
Jon boy
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment